Post by sjp on Feb 26, 2010 19:17:39 GMT -5
Hello,
Found out about the group at the Comic Con in '09, not an official member yet, but will be working on that soon...
But as for the topic...back in 2007, I actually managed to finish writing a novella (as part of the Nanowrimo thingie in November...only one I ever finished, actually), and I thought the story was good enough to shop around. I got it copyrighted and shipped it off the first three "chapters" (the story's divided into un-numbered sections) to the publisher. They were nice enough to write me a "thank you for sending us the manuscript, but we're not interested at this time," but I remember thinking at the time that maybe the first 3 chapters were not what I should send, since they were mostly just set up for what was to follow.
But then I thought, if the first 3 chapters aren't interesting, what good is the rest of the story?
So, I've sat on this thing, not reading it, not shopping it around, not doing ANYTHING with it. Part of it is because I'm not sure what to do with it now, and part of it is because...well, it's a horror novel, but it's not something I really want to share with friends and the writing groups that I normally attend. It's not a question of not being proud of the story - I am - but it's not a traditional horror story. I don't even think I can outline the plot succinctly, since while there is a supernatural monster in it, there's only three deaths and most of the horror ends up being psychological...and most of the subject matter is not stuff I feel comfortable handing over to people who don't WRITE horror.
And therein lies the problem. While plot-wise I'm pretty much all set, it's more of the structural areas I'm concerned with, yet I'm looking for somebody interested in horror to review it and make sure the nuts and bolts of it are in place. I know there's plenty of places to improve already (mostly dealing with accuracy in regards to the foster care system, national park services, and portrayals of mental disabilities, as well as a part towards the end that might be a little silly), but even after all this time of letting it sit and rot away on my computer, I still don't know if I have the distance necessary to look at it and decide if it all fits together and makes sense.
So, what I'm wondering if anyone out there is willing to, at the very least, look at the first 3 "chapters" and point out the most obvious and glaring stuff that I need to fix, and, if willing, take a look at the rest of it, too. I'm asking this on a serious, professional level; this is something I definitely want to publish, but I think I need an objective view on it to make it work. I can take criticism very well, so don't think I will jump down your throat if you don't like what I have (though I'm more than happy to fight for stuff I DO like).
But I do warn anyone if they want to read the whole thing: there's a lot of unpleasant scenes in here. I'm not talking blood & gore (though that is in there); there are scenes of abusive foster care, self-inflicted violence, cruelty towards housepets, and an attempted rape. It is NOT a happy story with a happy ending, and I don't want to give anybody any false impressions otherwise.
However, I DO want to say this is a novel is a bit of an oddity from my usual writing; I do love horror, but most of my time is spent writing either fantasy, science fiction, or comedy, most of it fairly upbeat stuff. But this is one of those stories from the "Where in the world did THAT come from?" school of writing; I'm not an unhappy guy, and none of the stuff in here is anything personal to my life (well, anymore than writers 'borrowing' things from observation), but it's just a story I would prefer getting feedback about from people who are not only dedicated to writing, but are comfortable with the subject matter included. Oh, and I do have a short story I want to contribute to the magazine at some point that's a lot closer to the style I generally write in (it's about a ghostly game of cards), but that one's not done yet. Just, again, pointing out that utter gloom, depression, and despair is NOT my usual thing.
If you are willing to give any or all of this thing a shot, you can contact me by e-mail (see profile), but unfortunately this it is not my main account (my main one wouldn't receive the activation e-mail properly, and it's not an AOL) and I check that one only occasionally, so a PM or reply here would work as well. Also, I'm more than happy to reciprocate for anyone who is in the same predicament I am; I actually DO like editing, but I'm much better with other people's work than with my own.
There. That should work as an inauguratory post, shouldn't it? ;D
Found out about the group at the Comic Con in '09, not an official member yet, but will be working on that soon...
But as for the topic...back in 2007, I actually managed to finish writing a novella (as part of the Nanowrimo thingie in November...only one I ever finished, actually), and I thought the story was good enough to shop around. I got it copyrighted and shipped it off the first three "chapters" (the story's divided into un-numbered sections) to the publisher. They were nice enough to write me a "thank you for sending us the manuscript, but we're not interested at this time," but I remember thinking at the time that maybe the first 3 chapters were not what I should send, since they were mostly just set up for what was to follow.
But then I thought, if the first 3 chapters aren't interesting, what good is the rest of the story?
So, I've sat on this thing, not reading it, not shopping it around, not doing ANYTHING with it. Part of it is because I'm not sure what to do with it now, and part of it is because...well, it's a horror novel, but it's not something I really want to share with friends and the writing groups that I normally attend. It's not a question of not being proud of the story - I am - but it's not a traditional horror story. I don't even think I can outline the plot succinctly, since while there is a supernatural monster in it, there's only three deaths and most of the horror ends up being psychological...and most of the subject matter is not stuff I feel comfortable handing over to people who don't WRITE horror.
And therein lies the problem. While plot-wise I'm pretty much all set, it's more of the structural areas I'm concerned with, yet I'm looking for somebody interested in horror to review it and make sure the nuts and bolts of it are in place. I know there's plenty of places to improve already (mostly dealing with accuracy in regards to the foster care system, national park services, and portrayals of mental disabilities, as well as a part towards the end that might be a little silly), but even after all this time of letting it sit and rot away on my computer, I still don't know if I have the distance necessary to look at it and decide if it all fits together and makes sense.
So, what I'm wondering if anyone out there is willing to, at the very least, look at the first 3 "chapters" and point out the most obvious and glaring stuff that I need to fix, and, if willing, take a look at the rest of it, too. I'm asking this on a serious, professional level; this is something I definitely want to publish, but I think I need an objective view on it to make it work. I can take criticism very well, so don't think I will jump down your throat if you don't like what I have (though I'm more than happy to fight for stuff I DO like).
But I do warn anyone if they want to read the whole thing: there's a lot of unpleasant scenes in here. I'm not talking blood & gore (though that is in there); there are scenes of abusive foster care, self-inflicted violence, cruelty towards housepets, and an attempted rape. It is NOT a happy story with a happy ending, and I don't want to give anybody any false impressions otherwise.
However, I DO want to say this is a novel is a bit of an oddity from my usual writing; I do love horror, but most of my time is spent writing either fantasy, science fiction, or comedy, most of it fairly upbeat stuff. But this is one of those stories from the "Where in the world did THAT come from?" school of writing; I'm not an unhappy guy, and none of the stuff in here is anything personal to my life (well, anymore than writers 'borrowing' things from observation), but it's just a story I would prefer getting feedback about from people who are not only dedicated to writing, but are comfortable with the subject matter included. Oh, and I do have a short story I want to contribute to the magazine at some point that's a lot closer to the style I generally write in (it's about a ghostly game of cards), but that one's not done yet. Just, again, pointing out that utter gloom, depression, and despair is NOT my usual thing.
If you are willing to give any or all of this thing a shot, you can contact me by e-mail (see profile), but unfortunately this it is not my main account (my main one wouldn't receive the activation e-mail properly, and it's not an AOL) and I check that one only occasionally, so a PM or reply here would work as well. Also, I'm more than happy to reciprocate for anyone who is in the same predicament I am; I actually DO like editing, but I'm much better with other people's work than with my own.
There. That should work as an inauguratory post, shouldn't it? ;D
