Okay, so for this blog assignment I have to post about a literary blog that I've discovered. So the literary community I've found is called Scribophile.
I'm not a member of it but I think I may join. It's cool because you have to earn the right to post your own work by earning karma points. You earn karma points by leaving critics on other writers' work, and you're guaranteed 3 critics on your own work. There are workshops you can take, bulletins you can post, and you can make friends.
There are premium accounts you can pay for, but there are also free accounts as well. It seems like a pretty cool community.
March 14, 2014
February 27, 2014
Fiction Writing Blog Assignment #4 - Unassigned Story From Our Book
So, as instructed, my class had to pick a story that was not assigned to us in our collection of short stories and post an excerpt from the story. From there we're supposed to talk about the excerpt we posted in one of three ways. The three things we have to choose from are:
1) a great (or horrible) opening
2) good (or lame) dialogue
3) sharp (or weak) characterization.
The story I chose to talk about is Thom Jones's (I tried to find a good website to link to find more info about the writer, but Thom Jones isn't all over the internet. So, Wikipedia it is!) "The Pugilist At Rest." Here's the first paragraph from "The Pugilist At Rest":
Hey Baby got caught writing a letter to his girl when he was supposed to be taking notes on the specs of the M-14 rifle. We were sitting in a stifling hot Quonset hut during the first weeks of boot camp, August 1966, at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego. Sergeant Wright snatched the letter out of Hey Baby's hand, and later that night in the squad bay he read the letter to the Marine recruits of Platoon 263, his voice laden with sarcasm. "Hey, Baby!" he began, and then as he went into the body of the letter he worked himself into a state of outrage and disgust. It was a letter to Rosie Rottencrotch, he said at the end, and what really mattered, what was really at issue and what was of utter importance was not Rosie Rottencrotch and her steaming-hot panties but rather the muzzle velocity of the M-14 rifle.
I feel like this is a great story opening. From the opening paragraph I was hooked and wanted to know more about what was going on and who these people were. I don't really know what else to say about this. Post-Office by Charles Bukowski is one of my favorite books ever and this story kind of reminded me of it for whatever reason. I might have a new book to try to find next time I'm looking for a new book to read.
1) a great (or horrible) opening
2) good (or lame) dialogue
3) sharp (or weak) characterization.
The story I chose to talk about is Thom Jones's (I tried to find a good website to link to find more info about the writer, but Thom Jones isn't all over the internet. So, Wikipedia it is!) "The Pugilist At Rest." Here's the first paragraph from "The Pugilist At Rest":
Hey Baby got caught writing a letter to his girl when he was supposed to be taking notes on the specs of the M-14 rifle. We were sitting in a stifling hot Quonset hut during the first weeks of boot camp, August 1966, at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego. Sergeant Wright snatched the letter out of Hey Baby's hand, and later that night in the squad bay he read the letter to the Marine recruits of Platoon 263, his voice laden with sarcasm. "Hey, Baby!" he began, and then as he went into the body of the letter he worked himself into a state of outrage and disgust. It was a letter to Rosie Rottencrotch, he said at the end, and what really mattered, what was really at issue and what was of utter importance was not Rosie Rottencrotch and her steaming-hot panties but rather the muzzle velocity of the M-14 rifle.
I feel like this is a great story opening. From the opening paragraph I was hooked and wanted to know more about what was going on and who these people were. I don't really know what else to say about this. Post-Office by Charles Bukowski is one of my favorite books ever and this story kind of reminded me of it for whatever reason. I might have a new book to try to find next time I'm looking for a new book to read.
February 17, 2014
Fiction Writing Blog Assignment #3 - Inspirational Quotes
I know it's super early, but here is my blog post for this week. We have to post an inspirational quote about writing for our classmates, but I chose three. Anyway, here they are.
For my fellow sci-fi and fantasy writers in class, I want to post this quote:
“I have never listened to anyone who criticized my taste in space travel, sideshows or gorillas. When this occurs, I pack up my dinosaurs and leave the room.” ― Ray Bradbury, Zen in the Art of Writing
I also, would like to post the following quote, because I feel that too many people are writing to be meaningful, deep, or seemingly intellectual and not to write a good and entertaining story. Personally, I want people to enjoy my stories. I want people to read my stories and not want them to end. With that said, I think this quote is important:
“A good writer is basically a story teller, not a scholar or a redeemer of mankind.” ― Issac B. Singer
I found this while looking for a writing quote that I felt strongly about and thought that it was humorous enough to post. There have been plenty of times that I've heard classmates say things like, "That professor doesn't know what he/she's talking about." So, I think it represents how most pompous writing students feel about their professors instead of making the best of their classes/teachings.
“Yeah, I know what your English Professor tried to tell you. But if your English Professor could make a living writing fiction, they would have been doing it.” ― Dean Wesley Smith
Funny thing about this author, I've never heard about him before finding this quote and, upon looking him up, found that he's known mostly for his Star Trek novels, as well as film novelizations. Well, that's all I have. Enjoy guys!
For my fellow sci-fi and fantasy writers in class, I want to post this quote:
“I have never listened to anyone who criticized my taste in space travel, sideshows or gorillas. When this occurs, I pack up my dinosaurs and leave the room.” ― Ray Bradbury, Zen in the Art of Writing
I also, would like to post the following quote, because I feel that too many people are writing to be meaningful, deep, or seemingly intellectual and not to write a good and entertaining story. Personally, I want people to enjoy my stories. I want people to read my stories and not want them to end. With that said, I think this quote is important:
“A good writer is basically a story teller, not a scholar or a redeemer of mankind.” ― Issac B. Singer
I found this while looking for a writing quote that I felt strongly about and thought that it was humorous enough to post. There have been plenty of times that I've heard classmates say things like, "That professor doesn't know what he/she's talking about." So, I think it represents how most pompous writing students feel about their professors instead of making the best of their classes/teachings.
“Yeah, I know what your English Professor tried to tell you. But if your English Professor could make a living writing fiction, they would have been doing it.” ― Dean Wesley Smith
Funny thing about this author, I've never heard about him before finding this quote and, upon looking him up, found that he's known mostly for his Star Trek novels, as well as film novelizations. Well, that's all I have. Enjoy guys!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)