"I'm going to finish my damn story!": a support thread

[pink_silk_glove]

It's crazy how the more I write, the longer this thing gets.

You though it would get shorter? : P

 

[anthrodisiac]

You though it would get shorter? : P

Earth logic confounds me.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Earth logic confounds me.

It shrinks??

It was in the pool!!

 

[TheLobster]

It's crazy how the more I write, the longer this thing gets.

That’s what she said…?

 

[StillStunned]

Slow start today, and now I only have an hour to write. So I doubt I'll finish "Dungeon of Desire: Level 3" by tomorrow, but at least I've made good progress this week.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Managed to get 2200 words this weekend, up to 47.5k. Nine scenes to go and doubtful that I will add any. Five of the nine are partially done. Another 10k tops.

Difficult real life week, had no time to write. Now the weekend is here and just got a big sex scene done (I'm sure that it will need important edits), 1000+ more words, up over 49k. Hopefully a couple more scenes wrapped up in the next 24 hours or so.

 

[KittyOfSteele]

Don't you just love when that happens? I've had it happen once since I started writing again, but I used to routinely hit those numbers back in my prime. Maybe someday, I'll get back there.

Great work, keep it up!

The goal is to get an audience with the million-word-a-year Gods, but on my last pilgramage scaling the mountains I've only reached the 412000th step. Still, I'm also on my way to get an audience with the 10K-words-a-day Gods knowing that I've reached 5K in two different days just this week, but the pilgramage through that mountain is still harsh.

Just one extra word every second...

 

[anthrodisiac]

Just finished the rough draft of my Valentine's Day entry! 4.5k words today, topping out at 23k. The sex scene went longer than anticipated, which is a great problem to have.

Now I just need to start hacking away at this thing.

 

[Bloodandglitter]

I have never finished a story I've written. I really want to finish my current story, Ashes To Ashlynn because I want to publish it. It might sound corny but I'm really proud of it and love it when people enjoy reading it.
I'm nearing the end of my story and I really want to make it until the end.

 

[anthrodisiac]

I have never finished a story I've written. I really want to finish my current story, Ashes To Ashlynn because I want to publish it. It might sound corny but I'm really proud of it and love it when people enjoy reading it.
I'm nearing the end of my story and I really want to make it until the end.

I think just about every writer feel the same. Who doesn't like hearing someone say they enjoyed something you created?

And you should be proud! It's always an accomplishment to complete a work, doubly so when you feel proud of the work.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

I think just about every writer feel the same. Who doesn't like hearing someone say they enjoyed something you created?

And you should be proud! It's always an accomplishment to complete a work, doubly so when you feel proud of the work.

I'm never proud of my work. I take satisfaction in my work. I feel joy in my work. I've learned the difference and it's a big difference. Feeling proud only makes one look down one's nose at others (whether one realizes it or not). Pride is what makes people get cranky over criticism, legitimate or not. Pride is what holds a writer back from improving his skills, no matter how much he practices the craft.

 

[anthrodisiac]

I'm never proud of my work. I take satisfaction in my work. I feel joy in my work. I've learned the difference and it's a big difference. Feeling proud only makes one look down one's nose at others (whether one realizes it or not). Pride is what makes people get cranky over criticism, legitimate or not. Pride is what holds a writer back from improving his skills, no matter how much he practices the craft.

I think it's important to take pride in your work, but make sure it doesn't turn into pridefulness (I'm treating "being proud"/"take pride in" in the more informal/common parlance as distinct from actual "pridefulness"), and never let it be an excuse to stop growing or to listen to feedback. Finishing a work is something to be celebrated, and, as you say, something to derive joy and satisfaction from. I'm 100% on board with you on that.

The real trick is to be proud of (i.e. satisfied with) your accomplishments without letting it go to your head. If you don't, then you do crazy things like submitting a mediocre self-published book for Pulitzer consideration and are genuinely shocked when it doesn't win.

Not that I know anyone who would do that...

 

[stickygirl]

Wait
"Yes, vanity is a weakness indeed. But pride—where there is a real superiority of mind, pride will be always under good regulation." ( Jane Austen )

 

[pink_silk_glove]

The real trick is to be proud of (i.e. satisfied with) your accomplishments without letting it go to your head.

The very definition of pride is letting it go to your head. Most people don;t understand this because our society teaches people to be proud, and that pride is good. Pride is negative. Not only is it a deadly sin but it is the root sin of the other six deadly sins. I'm not trying to get preachy and I'm not religious, but the deadly sins (and the spiritual virtues) was originally the judeo-christian way of trying to teach us about chakras and karma that the hindus buddhists and other mystics have known for centuries. Of course like any other large institution, would, they have twisted into deceit to control. They twist it into pride being good for their own self serving reasons and the ignorant march inline with it.

So don't be ignorant. ; ) Pride is bad.

And I do understand that you are not trying to be proud in that sense, and that the meaning of the word pride is all fucked up these days (just as badly as the meaning of the word love is), but let's unfuck it up and separate pride from true joy and satisfaction so that there is no confusion, only truth. Pride is negative.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Wait
"Yes, vanity is a weakness indeed. But pride—where there is a real superiority of mind, pride will be always under good regulation." ( Jane Austen )

Jane (or the character who spoke it) is mistaken. It's actually the opposite. Pride is where things start to get out of control.

 

[StillStunned]

I have never finished a story I've written. I really want to finish my current story, Ashes To Ashlynn because I want to publish it. It might sound corny but I'm really proud of it and love it when people enjoy reading it.
I'm nearing the end of my story and I really want to make it until the end.

 

[Bazzle]

Even Anonymous wants to finish Mean Business Part 4...i've got 5k words written for it...but its complicated.

 

[Smuttyandfun]

My latest is just over 8K words, and it's getting there.

 

[StillStunned]

Even Anonymous wants to finish Mean Business Part 4...i've got 5k words written for it...but its complicated.

 

[Smuttyandfun]

View attachment 2591151
Even Anonymous wants to finish Mean Business Part 4...i've got 5k words written for it...but its complicated.

I've got a big complication in my writing, too. Without my permission, at least 75% of what I've written for the last decade or so is now stored in the cloud, thanks to Word. Since I haven't been able to retrieve it, I've got techies at Staples seeing what they can do. I've got full length books, most of my Lit stories prior to 2025, and a lot of unfinished work, so unless they can find it, I've lost it all.

 

[Bazzle]

I've got a big complication in my writing, too. Without my permission, at least 75% of what I've written for the last decade or so is now stored in the cloud, thanks to Word. Since I haven't been able to retrieve it, I've got techies at Staples seeing what they can do. I've got full length books, most of my Lit stories prior to 2025, and a lot of unfinished work, so unless they can find it, I've lost it all.

That is seriously not good news!!!

I have stuff on the cloud, on hard drives, duplicated everywhere...not always the same version, but a version.

I feel sorry for you

 

[Smuttyandfun]

That is seriously not good news!!!

I have stuff on the cloud, on hard drives, duplicated everywhere...not always the same version, but a version.

I feel sorry for you

Thanks. I just wish I could find a solution. It was all stored on my hard drive, then one day I noticed it was gone. So frustrating. Now the guys at Staples are probably going to get off on reading my stuff. lol

 

[StillStunned]

Thanks. I just wish I could find a solution. It was all stored on my hard drive, then one day I noticed it was gone. So frustrating. Now the guys at Staples are probably going to get off on reading my stuff. lol

You should have said it was your great aunt's computer that you found after she died. You never knew she was a writer, and now you're curious about what she wrote.

 

[Smuttyandfun]

You should have said it was your great aunt's computer that you found after she died. You never knew she was a writer, and now you're curious about what she wrote.

Yeah, I could tell them she was wild old lady. But since they're already looking for what I've written, they know it's me writing all the smutty stuff. So, I can't really blame it on my kinky old auntie.

 

[Statius]

It goes slowly, this rewrite. 5 paragraphs in and now I'm debating tense. It's 1st person, but these opening paragraphs need to be both present and past- there's a before the prologue and after the prologue dynamic here. Yes I could simplify the whole thing and be direct, but I have 2 issues with that.

1. Seems boring, dry, mundane and I plain don't want to

2. I feel like the simple, direct way will short change not just the 1st person narrative, but the MC as well; take away from her complexity and the emotional turmoil and something of the self isolation she is in.

However, attempting the more complex way is very challenging as it requires a certain amount of narrative wandering, which I'm good at, but this needs to be tightly controlled or obviously it gets confusing for the reader. All this while changing the mood and tone of the whole story and cutting the parts that no longer fit that I still have some attachment to, despite how corny they may be.

That's enough whining for now. Back to it!