The problem with deciding to self-publish and use images close to your main characters on the front cover, when you've made up some jewellery within the storyline, is finding anything like what you imagined. Maybe I should just advertise for an artist?
The other thing I've noticed … getting an editor is an expensive business. Someone charges 0.08 cents per word - about $800 for a full novel - someone else does £30 a page (so a 200 page novel is £6,000?!) … there's no guarantee that you'll even make that money back when selling your book. Why do freelance editors charge so much? And the fees for creating cover art … I want to do this as affordable as possible. I've asked my sister to model, and a friend to photoshop the image … they'll get paid somehow, but right now … why does money have to come into it so much?
Also, Lydia, is this what you're charging to edit that site? Because dayum!
Friday 29 November 2013
What's in a name?
So, I've like, 95% decided to self-publish Uprooted, but I was worried about Lambrini being a copyrighted name. Luckily, someone on the NaNo Essex site said it's a greek name! About the Greek Lambrini I'm so stoked! It means editing a little, but otherwise, it's pretty cool. It means bright, and is connected to Easter Sunday. Maybe she should be obsessed with bunnies, not butterflies (new life, and all that) … all I have to do now is set up my covers. I've asked my sister if she and her boyfriend would pose for them, and I've got so many ideas for the design … anyone know anyone who can do awesome fonts/work well with photoshop? I've thought of a great way of putting Lamb and Carter into the fonts ...
Tuesday 26 November 2013
Nailed it!
50337 words people! I'm a NaNo winner! I don't have to write for the next five days … but I'm totally gunning for 60k by then. 2000 words a day? Easy ;)
And for just $16.67, I can have a winners tee, lol … sweet ;)
**edit**
So I just checked it out, my last chapter was 10 pages in word. It's probably, roughly. about 15 pages on a standard paperback. My usual is 40% of that. NaNo is amazing, no other way to put it. I want to do it all the time! Except then I'd be really knackered, like I am right now.
And last night I did another chapter of my fanfics, because it's been a while since I touched those, and again it seemed to flow really well. It's true what they say you know, writing a little leads to writing a lot.
I got a really cute message on fanfiction.net actually. I'd left a message on someone's story, saying it had potential (seriously, that's basically all I put) and they PMed me to say it meant a lot from a proper writer. as I've said before, I've got quite the ego, and my ego definitely liked that! Not sure what basis it was on, but I'll take what little grains I can ;)
And for just $16.67, I can have a winners tee, lol … sweet ;)
**edit**
So I just checked it out, my last chapter was 10 pages in word. It's probably, roughly. about 15 pages on a standard paperback. My usual is 40% of that. NaNo is amazing, no other way to put it. I want to do it all the time! Except then I'd be really knackered, like I am right now.
And last night I did another chapter of my fanfics, because it's been a while since I touched those, and again it seemed to flow really well. It's true what they say you know, writing a little leads to writing a lot.
I got a really cute message on fanfiction.net actually. I'd left a message on someone's story, saying it had potential (seriously, that's basically all I put) and they PMed me to say it meant a lot from a proper writer. as I've said before, I've got quite the ego, and my ego definitely liked that! Not sure what basis it was on, but I'll take what little grains I can ;)
Monday 25 November 2013
Problem.
So, I've really been enjoying doing NaNo this year, I've felt so motivated and even though I've not covered the time the way I normally do, I've been a lot more descriptive than normal and that's pretty awesome.
My problem is *sighes* there's a character, who wasn't meant to be in it for long. Like, I'm coming up to the point where they're meant to leave. and they show no signs of leaving. My main characters seem to want them around. The reason why I was going to have this person leave are making less and less sense. I was tearing my hair out over it, a little, but as I started posting this, I did have an idea for a possible solution. i just don't know :( luckily, I can get to my 50k before that happens, but still ...
My problem is *sighes* there's a character, who wasn't meant to be in it for long. Like, I'm coming up to the point where they're meant to leave. and they show no signs of leaving. My main characters seem to want them around. The reason why I was going to have this person leave are making less and less sense. I was tearing my hair out over it, a little, but as I started posting this, I did have an idea for a possible solution. i just don't know :( luckily, I can get to my 50k before that happens, but still ...
Saturday 23 November 2013
Things I wanted to share but haven't. Because NaNo.
-You can tell when someone knows me really well. I rubbed my face at work, because I was tired, because working and writing is probably a stupid thing for me to do in the same day, and someone walked in the room about five seconds after I did it, and only took two questions to guess what had actually happened. Because my face goes red if I touch it, or I'm too hot, or too cold, or I've been daydreaming and you brought me back to earth, or I put myself under unnecessary pressure … I'm red-faced a lot. But this is normally a problem because people think I've been misbehaving, or I'm embarrassed, or something else is going on. So kudos Lydia, you've spent way too much time around me to know that shit without me spelling it out first!
-Jodie stealth-fed me calamari. I didn't hate it. I was quite drunk. She'd paid for a buffet at her engagement party, thinking it was finger food. Instead, it was chicken, these weird chips that I want right now, and fish. There were what we thought were onion rings with the fish. Nuh-uh, stealth calamari. Battered and deep-fried, it's pretty delicious. Say my alcohol tastebuds anyway.
-The shoes I've dubbed as my 'whore shoes' because they're five inch stilettos, bright red and strappy, are shit. That's what I get for buying from Deichmann, I guess.
-I have less than 5k words to go! That's a tenth of the project! I have more than a tenth of the month left! I might even finish the story before Christmas. Scary thought! I do feel like I'm near to wrapping this up now, unless I move a couple of things from the next story into this one, and then rearrange the start/end of the next one. Tomorrow, I might be storyboarding.
-The 50th anniversary episode of Doctor Who was amazeballs!
-I'm rewatching Supernatural. Dean has a hymen, apparently?
-Jodie stealth-fed me calamari. I didn't hate it. I was quite drunk. She'd paid for a buffet at her engagement party, thinking it was finger food. Instead, it was chicken, these weird chips that I want right now, and fish. There were what we thought were onion rings with the fish. Nuh-uh, stealth calamari. Battered and deep-fried, it's pretty delicious. Say my alcohol tastebuds anyway.
-The shoes I've dubbed as my 'whore shoes' because they're five inch stilettos, bright red and strappy, are shit. That's what I get for buying from Deichmann, I guess.
-I have less than 5k words to go! That's a tenth of the project! I have more than a tenth of the month left! I might even finish the story before Christmas. Scary thought! I do feel like I'm near to wrapping this up now, unless I move a couple of things from the next story into this one, and then rearrange the start/end of the next one. Tomorrow, I might be storyboarding.
-The 50th anniversary episode of Doctor Who was amazeballs!
-I'm rewatching Supernatural. Dean has a hymen, apparently?
Friday 15 November 2013
Wow I haven't posted in a while!
What can I say? I've been ploughing on with reunited (and the first people to be reunited in the story are, huzzah!) and doing a few fan fics, caning it at work, talking to people, getting excited for mcbusted, seeing my boy ... Life is good right now.
And although sleep is still an issue for me, I'm feeling good. I've just worked six days in a row, and it doesn't feel like it. I'm in such a weird headspace with it right now, it feels like this place where I go and talk to awesome people and fall in love with shoes and play shoe box jenga, rather than being work. So I feel like I haven't had a job for a month, because no way is work this fun, right? And then I've had a long wait between pay days - about five weeks? Yeah, in my head, I haven't earned much, and my overdraft is starting to protest ... But I have been earning. I'll get paid soon. It doesn't compute.
When I say leaving McDonalds is like leaving a long-term abusive relationship, this is the sort of shit I mean. I used to work my ass off in that place for maybe £1.40 more an hour than I'm getting now, just to be asked 'do you think you're worth the money we're spending on you' and now I'm happy, and enjoying life, and I still get a pay check? Freaking crazy!
The only real cloud is that I think my car has issues. When I go into fourth it feels like something's dragging, and my petrol gauge is dropping ridiculously fast, but that might be because I'm used to only going round the corner and back and filling up once a month, rather than one every 10 days or so. Still, when I drive fast, the car heats up and smells of petrol, so ... Worried.
And although sleep is still an issue for me, I'm feeling good. I've just worked six days in a row, and it doesn't feel like it. I'm in such a weird headspace with it right now, it feels like this place where I go and talk to awesome people and fall in love with shoes and play shoe box jenga, rather than being work. So I feel like I haven't had a job for a month, because no way is work this fun, right? And then I've had a long wait between pay days - about five weeks? Yeah, in my head, I haven't earned much, and my overdraft is starting to protest ... But I have been earning. I'll get paid soon. It doesn't compute.
When I say leaving McDonalds is like leaving a long-term abusive relationship, this is the sort of shit I mean. I used to work my ass off in that place for maybe £1.40 more an hour than I'm getting now, just to be asked 'do you think you're worth the money we're spending on you' and now I'm happy, and enjoying life, and I still get a pay check? Freaking crazy!
The only real cloud is that I think my car has issues. When I go into fourth it feels like something's dragging, and my petrol gauge is dropping ridiculously fast, but that might be because I'm used to only going round the corner and back and filling up once a month, rather than one every 10 days or so. Still, when I drive fast, the car heats up and smells of petrol, so ... Worried.
Tuesday 12 November 2013
McBusted.
Listening to Mcfly makes me so happy. Like, so unbelievably happy. I'm doing it as I'm writing, which isn't my normal MO but it stops me staring at Supernatural rather than writing.
Anyway, so I'm uberexcited about the idea of McBusted next year. Catty's putting aside some tickets at her work, so as long as I get the money to her by Friday, I'm guaranteed decent seats. We all are. You may hate me now :P
Also, I love their new song - McFly's, no James or Matt on this one - and I'm going to recommend you all listen to it. It starts off sounding a little weird, but it will be stuck in your head after you listen. You'll want it there.
Enjoy the warm, buzzy feeling in your tummy. Yes, that is Dougie licking a sledgehammer.
Anyway, so I'm uberexcited about the idea of McBusted next year. Catty's putting aside some tickets at her work, so as long as I get the money to her by Friday, I'm guaranteed decent seats. We all are. You may hate me now :P
Also, I love their new song - McFly's, no James or Matt on this one - and I'm going to recommend you all listen to it. It starts off sounding a little weird, but it will be stuck in your head after you listen. You'll want it there.
Enjoy the warm, buzzy feeling in your tummy. Yes, that is Dougie licking a sledgehammer.
Friday 8 November 2013
NaNoWriMo again
It's officially been 7 days of writing, I've hit the 10,000 word mark today (someone's managed 35,000? Crazy times! Although, I think he's retired) and Essex is ranked the 100th of 450 regions in terms of word count.
That's why I even created a girl like Lambrini, dammit. There is so much to the people from Essex beyond the stereotypes, and there's so much to be proud of. Even if it can be hard to see some times.
And Sarah, a girl I knew from way back when (our brothers were BFFs at one point growing up, and although she's closer to my sister's age, sometimes her mum would look after me and my brother and she and I would hang out. We used to do a lot of the same things as well, like guides and whatnot. We even did a couple of variety shows together) linked me in to a facebook page for Essex NaNo writers. OMFG, I love the people on there! They're so funny, and smart, and supportive - where have these people been all my life? I get a tonne of updates from the group too, so there's always something to talk about and respond to. Everyone has their own style of posting, but it's almost like a glimpse into the way they write too.
I got talking to one girl, especially tonight, and her male character, Eli, sounds an awful lot like Carter, we were joking about that. Personally, I think her Eli would wipe the floor with Carter, although Carter would bait him like crazy when he wouldn't shut up with the insults. Anyway, so I friended her, and I think she's got my aunt on her facebook? Freaking small world man, that aunt lives in Australia! She also has my old boss on her facebook. So now I'm like ... have I met this girl before? But I don't recognise her ... but she's all kinds of awesome ... so I would, wouldn't I?
I stand corrected, I just don't know how to use Facebook, apparently. Other suggestions ... that's actually really annoying.
That's why I even created a girl like Lambrini, dammit. There is so much to the people from Essex beyond the stereotypes, and there's so much to be proud of. Even if it can be hard to see some times.
And Sarah, a girl I knew from way back when (our brothers were BFFs at one point growing up, and although she's closer to my sister's age, sometimes her mum would look after me and my brother and she and I would hang out. We used to do a lot of the same things as well, like guides and whatnot. We even did a couple of variety shows together) linked me in to a facebook page for Essex NaNo writers. OMFG, I love the people on there! They're so funny, and smart, and supportive - where have these people been all my life? I get a tonne of updates from the group too, so there's always something to talk about and respond to. Everyone has their own style of posting, but it's almost like a glimpse into the way they write too.
I got talking to one girl, especially tonight, and her male character, Eli, sounds an awful lot like Carter, we were joking about that. Personally, I think her Eli would wipe the floor with Carter, although Carter would bait him like crazy when he wouldn't shut up with the insults. Anyway, so I friended her, and I think she's got my aunt on her facebook? Freaking small world man, that aunt lives in Australia! She also has my old boss on her facebook. So now I'm like ... have I met this girl before? But I don't recognise her ... but she's all kinds of awesome ... so I would, wouldn't I?
I stand corrected, I just don't know how to use Facebook, apparently. Other suggestions ... that's actually really annoying.
I suck at naming things
But I need a name for a glee club I'm writing. And all that's in my head is Sparkle Motion.
I fucking love Donnie Darko. But Sparkle Motion won't cut it.
Ideas?
I fucking love Donnie Darko. But Sparkle Motion won't cut it.
Ideas?
Tuesday 5 November 2013
Pwned.
Ways in which NaNoWriMo pwns Siobhan on her own:
-I just wrote my longest chapter, ever. It's about seven pages long in word, which isn't so long in the grand scheme of things, definitely not as long as a Rowling or Meyer chapter, but my forte is 'well, that's four pages, I'd be switching off now!'
-I've now written about a tenth of the third instalment of the Uprooted series, which I'm calling Reunited for now. It's probably the least ambiguous of my chapter titles.
-I feel like I understand Cole a hell of a lot better. He's no longer Mystery Fennigan to me. Which is a little bittersweet, but you should always flesh out your characters.
-I get to talk endlessly about books and writing. Huzzah!
Ways in which my new job pwns my old job:
-I get to work with Lydia again. Wooooooo!
-The other people I work with seem really nice. It feels like it's repairing my soul to go through a shift not being called a dick or a cunt by the people I'm working with.
-I get to sleep at night. All night. Every night. Although, with the effects of exhaustion I was struggling through, I'm not entirely there yet. Nearly.
-I can wear dresses. Every day. All black, sure, but DRESSES.
-I get prettyful shoes to wear. I must wear their prettyful shoes. Not shoes that can withstand chemicals and grease. Hmmmm ...
-I do not get covered in grease.
-I don't feel sick anymore. At all. It's gone, the chest infection, the tiredness, the headaches, the confusion, the dizziness, the stomach aches, the blood worry ... I can't even freaking remember it. It's been two weeks!
-I don't have to engage in pathetic arguments like 'I want a Big Mac, no pickles, I'm allergic.' 'Sir, the Mac Sauce has pickles chopped up in it-' 'That's okay. And I'm not a sir, I'm not knighted.' *no, but you are a giant walking douchebag*. Instead, the conversations are more like 'I really like those shoes with that top.' and other such girlie comments that I have to remind myself/be reminded that it's okay to say now. I won't get bollocked if I do, I'm more likely to get bollocked if I don't. Oh, go on then!
-I don't have to eat McDonald's any more. Ever. I can *gasp* lose weight!
-I can wear jewellery, including my TTP survivor band. I hated taking that off for Macs.
-I can do whatever the fuck I want with my hair.
-I don't have to wear a hat any more. I am not a hat person. I look like a twat when I wear them.
-I can paint my nails.
-I can be slightly OCD about the way the shoes sit on the tables. It's all so neat and organised out on the shop floor and I no longer feel an irrational need to cry at mess when I walk onto my shift. Yeah, that could happen at McDonald's. That floor isn't black normally, you know?
-I can see my son. Actually see him. We've spent more time together the last few weeks than we have for the rest of the year. I have missed that crazy boy.
-I can write! I thought I might not get to do NaNoWriMo this year, but clearly I am doing it! I've got the sporking going on, and writing my Supernatural fanfic, and I've had another fanfic idea too, playing on the DestielFic ideas ...
-I can have shakeaways! Only occasionally, because it's like, £3.90 for a shake, but if you'd had a Dave, a George, or a hot Sylvia ... you'd understand.
-Cinnabon is two stores away from shakeaways. Cinnabon.
-The first Taco bell is upstairs ...
-Millies Cookies are pretty freaking amazing too. What was I saying about a diet?
... I am pretty freaking happy with life right now. Lydia's my hero <3
-I just wrote my longest chapter, ever. It's about seven pages long in word, which isn't so long in the grand scheme of things, definitely not as long as a Rowling or Meyer chapter, but my forte is 'well, that's four pages, I'd be switching off now!'
-I've now written about a tenth of the third instalment of the Uprooted series, which I'm calling Reunited for now. It's probably the least ambiguous of my chapter titles.
-I feel like I understand Cole a hell of a lot better. He's no longer Mystery Fennigan to me. Which is a little bittersweet, but you should always flesh out your characters.
-I get to talk endlessly about books and writing. Huzzah!
Ways in which my new job pwns my old job:
-I get to work with Lydia again. Wooooooo!
-The other people I work with seem really nice. It feels like it's repairing my soul to go through a shift not being called a dick or a cunt by the people I'm working with.
-I get to sleep at night. All night. Every night. Although, with the effects of exhaustion I was struggling through, I'm not entirely there yet. Nearly.
-I can wear dresses. Every day. All black, sure, but DRESSES.
-I get prettyful shoes to wear. I must wear their prettyful shoes. Not shoes that can withstand chemicals and grease. Hmmmm ...
-I do not get covered in grease.
-I don't feel sick anymore. At all. It's gone, the chest infection, the tiredness, the headaches, the confusion, the dizziness, the stomach aches, the blood worry ... I can't even freaking remember it. It's been two weeks!
-I don't have to engage in pathetic arguments like 'I want a Big Mac, no pickles, I'm allergic.' 'Sir, the Mac Sauce has pickles chopped up in it-' 'That's okay. And I'm not a sir, I'm not knighted.' *no, but you are a giant walking douchebag*. Instead, the conversations are more like 'I really like those shoes with that top.' and other such girlie comments that I have to remind myself/be reminded that it's okay to say now. I won't get bollocked if I do, I'm more likely to get bollocked if I don't. Oh, go on then!
-I don't have to eat McDonald's any more. Ever. I can *gasp* lose weight!
-I can wear jewellery, including my TTP survivor band. I hated taking that off for Macs.
-I can do whatever the fuck I want with my hair.
-I don't have to wear a hat any more. I am not a hat person. I look like a twat when I wear them.
-I can paint my nails.
-I can be slightly OCD about the way the shoes sit on the tables. It's all so neat and organised out on the shop floor and I no longer feel an irrational need to cry at mess when I walk onto my shift. Yeah, that could happen at McDonald's. That floor isn't black normally, you know?
-I can see my son. Actually see him. We've spent more time together the last few weeks than we have for the rest of the year. I have missed that crazy boy.
-I can write! I thought I might not get to do NaNoWriMo this year, but clearly I am doing it! I've got the sporking going on, and writing my Supernatural fanfic, and I've had another fanfic idea too, playing on the DestielFic ideas ...
-I can have shakeaways! Only occasionally, because it's like, £3.90 for a shake, but if you'd had a Dave, a George, or a hot Sylvia ... you'd understand.
-Cinnabon is two stores away from shakeaways. Cinnabon.
-The first Taco bell is upstairs ...
-Millies Cookies are pretty freaking amazing too. What was I saying about a diet?
... I am pretty freaking happy with life right now. Lydia's my hero <3
That's ... unexpected
I bumped into someone from my old work yesterday morning. I'd sort of been dreading bumping into her, as much as I get along with her, because she has a habit of talking. Like, talking. Like, if I was to say 'how are you?' to someone else, they'd probably go 'oh, good thanks, you?' like most people would. But this lady would be like 'I'm pretty good, I just dropped my daughter off in class and I was talking to the other parents and blah-blah-blah' *my eyes glaze over and I just about follow, thinking 'I should've stuck to 'hey', although 'hey' would have probably led to this in depth knowledge about her entire day*
So you could imagine that the topic of me leaving wouldn't just be 'hey, you left?' 'yeah' 'okay' but an in depth interrogation. Seriously, she could learn to waterboard people. I really didn't feel like getting some major bollocking at nine in the morning, but it was actually pretty cool. Like, instead of 'you screwed us over' which I was expecting (the management team's looking a little skinny right now) she was pretty much like 'I'm jealous, I need a new job'.
Which was the reaction I got when people heard I was leaving, everyone was really supportive. Crazy. I want them all to find better jobs. Except the sexual-harassment guy, he can shove it.
So you could imagine that the topic of me leaving wouldn't just be 'hey, you left?' 'yeah' 'okay' but an in depth interrogation. Seriously, she could learn to waterboard people. I really didn't feel like getting some major bollocking at nine in the morning, but it was actually pretty cool. Like, instead of 'you screwed us over' which I was expecting (the management team's looking a little skinny right now) she was pretty much like 'I'm jealous, I need a new job'.
Which was the reaction I got when people heard I was leaving, everyone was really supportive. Crazy. I want them all to find better jobs. Except the sexual-harassment guy, he can shove it.
Sunday 3 November 2013
Don't you hate it when ...
... you're writing and you know you'll probably delete half the things you're writing because they're not grammatically correct, and then you realise the person sitting next to you is reading over your shoulder? Instead of upping your blog view counts by looking at the published version on the iPhone they're currently playing on? *coughs*Chloe*coughs*
Serendipidous amazeballs.
I got a cool message on my fanfiction the other day:
"Oh, soooo good. Great conflict and characterization, and your voice is awesome. Your grammar isn't half-bad, either, for which I'm grateful. (Oops. I'm sorry. My nerd is showing.) Love the "had a computer but never used it for porn" line... I can hear Dean's amusement/bewilderment. And honestly, I had NO idea Sam was such a "sad sonofabitch", until you pointed it out. Gasp. I guess I was blinded by his brilliance. Anyhow, off to read more-wanted to give you props right away because you deserve it. ;)"
And I thought I'd reply, because a)After reading Gehayi and Kat Makura's sporking of Fifty Shades of Grey, I'm learning that there's an even bigger gap between British-English and American-English than I first thought. Like, Americans hyphenate words more often than we do, for example. Would not have known that without their analysis. And since I want Carter's parts to be authentic, this sort of thing really matters to me. And my other reason for replying was b) I thought they were saying I didn't like Sam Winchester. I love Sam Winchester. We'd be a great brother- and sister-in-law combo, you know? Seriously, I feel like I identify with the Sam character more than the Dean character, I couldn't not love him because I understand him. So I put my Supernatural Nerd hat on and replied:
"Hello! First of all, thank you so much for reviewing my fanfic!
I just wanted to reply to a couple of things you said, if that's okay?
You said about my grammar being okay, and I know what you meant by that (some people have good ideas but haven't written before, for example) but I think there's a couple of things at play that make my grammar less than perfect. First of all, I'm British and trying to write American characters, and I know that there are a LOT of differences between American-English and British-English. But also, I write in first-person typically, so I've set myself a huge challenge writing in third person. My usual stream-of-consciousness run-on sentences aren't going to cut it ;) So my apologies for it not being great. It does give me something to aim for!
Second of all, and the main reason I wanted to message you back, is that you picked up on the Sam-stuff in the first chapter, with Dean and Bobby making fun of what are some of Sam's real qualities. I don't want you thinking I'm anti-Sam! I think I mentioned it in reply to another review, but I find the Winchesters completely fascinating as characters. They both have so many levels, so many small parts of their personalities that make up a whole. Whoever came up with the characters is amazing. Most of all, I like how you can describe them in a tonne of ways, and each way seems to paint an entirely different picture from the whole, or even from each other. On the surface, Sam is a nerd, he does like to watch what he eats and think things through. On the surface, Dean is impulsive and emotional, he just wants to plough into situations and make them RIGHT. But that's only a small part of them, and actually, why I think they work so well as a team - Dean uses his intuition to pinpoint what part of Sam's research could be correct, while Sam uses his logic to support Dean's whims. That's kinda why I decided to write this fanfic in the first place, to try and reason through what they would do if they couldn't rely on each other in the same way. I want to see if what I've learned about them will lead them to the same conclusions they would have together, you know? If who they are as people would get past that brother-bond, or whether they need each other to support who they are as people. The reason I picked Sam to be the one locked up, and Dean to be the one who forgot, is from those basic personality traits. Sam wants the logic, he wants to remove all possibilities to be certain of what is out there. Dean just wants to save the world. Dean would've busted out right at the start, while Sam was still doing his research."
Told you my nerd hat was in place ;) Sorry for the capsword too, I couldn't format my IM. Sorry. Anyway, I got this reply earlier (and dammit, there's spoilers!):
"Yes! Great analysis. And you're so right. They're multi-faceted and--especially for writers, I think--it's fun to peel their layers away.
In this current season of the show, (are you able to watch season 9, at least online in the UK?), Sam's logical side comes to the fore as he pores through their treasure trove of books from the Men of Letter's collection. Meanwhile, Dean's impusively pawing through boxes of stuff and complaining the MofL didn't label anything because he can't figure out how to use it. I love that the show's writers have found these ways (and others) to put both of them in their elements. One's a researcher/thinker, the other's a doer/actor.
By the way, I didn't think you were anti-Sam. My gosh, how could ANYONE be anti-Sam? He's just so...well. A tall, dark, and smart guy. *Gush.* Need I say more? (If I do, I'll sound like Becky. So I'll stop myself.) But really. Sigh. Sam. *cough*
As for my comment about your grammar--actually, it's WONDERFUL. I didn't express myself well in the review, and I'm sorry. Please understand, I'm a freelance editor, and I spend so much time fixing peojaple's manuscripts, which sounds like fun until you're working on a book that's just not your style. I've gotten so jaded and cranky! So I came to this fanfic thing thinking I'd take off my editor's hat and just enjoy what I'm reading (because it's Sam and Dean, right?), but then--gak!--I discover that the damn hat is stuck and I can't read stories when the grammar/word choices/plot line are badly done, no matter who it's about.
Truly, your story was not only well written, but also--it didn't make me want to ask for a revision. LOL. I really could sit back and immerse myself in your words. And for this, I'm extremely grateful! I miss reading (and writing) for fun.
Speaking of writing--I posted the start of my story yesterday and have a second chapter/installment to upload, and I can't figure out how to do it. And, I really should have figured out exactly WHAT the monster is, though...maybe it doesn't need to be a monster. Maybe the monster is the choice Dean has to make between having to choose between his heart's desires and doing the right thing (self vs. Sam). (As if that hasn't already been done. HA!)
But isn't that part of the appeal of the Winchester brothers? Watching them making the right decision--for each other instead of (them) self--in the midst of extraordinary circumstances? Even when it appears that they're about to go in the wrong direction (Sam drinking demon blood, for example, and hiding it from Dean), you know that they will, eventually, SOMEHOW, make the redemptive choice.
All that and a hot car, too. Love it.
I'll be reading you! :) Thank you for reaching out."
How cool is that? I mean, I've replied to other people who've commented with points I thought were interesting, but someone who edits writing who says nice stuff about your work when you're an unpublished author? That made my day! Next stop: finding and reading her fanfic ;)
"Oh, soooo good. Great conflict and characterization, and your voice is awesome. Your grammar isn't half-bad, either, for which I'm grateful. (Oops. I'm sorry. My nerd is showing.) Love the "had a computer but never used it for porn" line... I can hear Dean's amusement/bewilderment. And honestly, I had NO idea Sam was such a "sad sonofabitch", until you pointed it out. Gasp. I guess I was blinded by his brilliance. Anyhow, off to read more-wanted to give you props right away because you deserve it. ;)"
And I thought I'd reply, because a)After reading Gehayi and Kat Makura's sporking of Fifty Shades of Grey, I'm learning that there's an even bigger gap between British-English and American-English than I first thought. Like, Americans hyphenate words more often than we do, for example. Would not have known that without their analysis. And since I want Carter's parts to be authentic, this sort of thing really matters to me. And my other reason for replying was b) I thought they were saying I didn't like Sam Winchester. I love Sam Winchester. We'd be a great brother- and sister-in-law combo, you know? Seriously, I feel like I identify with the Sam character more than the Dean character, I couldn't not love him because I understand him. So I put my Supernatural Nerd hat on and replied:
"Hello! First of all, thank you so much for reviewing my fanfic!
I just wanted to reply to a couple of things you said, if that's okay?
You said about my grammar being okay, and I know what you meant by that (some people have good ideas but haven't written before, for example) but I think there's a couple of things at play that make my grammar less than perfect. First of all, I'm British and trying to write American characters, and I know that there are a LOT of differences between American-English and British-English. But also, I write in first-person typically, so I've set myself a huge challenge writing in third person. My usual stream-of-consciousness run-on sentences aren't going to cut it ;) So my apologies for it not being great. It does give me something to aim for!
Second of all, and the main reason I wanted to message you back, is that you picked up on the Sam-stuff in the first chapter, with Dean and Bobby making fun of what are some of Sam's real qualities. I don't want you thinking I'm anti-Sam! I think I mentioned it in reply to another review, but I find the Winchesters completely fascinating as characters. They both have so many levels, so many small parts of their personalities that make up a whole. Whoever came up with the characters is amazing. Most of all, I like how you can describe them in a tonne of ways, and each way seems to paint an entirely different picture from the whole, or even from each other. On the surface, Sam is a nerd, he does like to watch what he eats and think things through. On the surface, Dean is impulsive and emotional, he just wants to plough into situations and make them RIGHT. But that's only a small part of them, and actually, why I think they work so well as a team - Dean uses his intuition to pinpoint what part of Sam's research could be correct, while Sam uses his logic to support Dean's whims. That's kinda why I decided to write this fanfic in the first place, to try and reason through what they would do if they couldn't rely on each other in the same way. I want to see if what I've learned about them will lead them to the same conclusions they would have together, you know? If who they are as people would get past that brother-bond, or whether they need each other to support who they are as people. The reason I picked Sam to be the one locked up, and Dean to be the one who forgot, is from those basic personality traits. Sam wants the logic, he wants to remove all possibilities to be certain of what is out there. Dean just wants to save the world. Dean would've busted out right at the start, while Sam was still doing his research."
Told you my nerd hat was in place ;) Sorry for the capsword too, I couldn't format my IM. Sorry. Anyway, I got this reply earlier (and dammit, there's spoilers!):
"Yes! Great analysis. And you're so right. They're multi-faceted and--especially for writers, I think--it's fun to peel their layers away.
In this current season of the show, (are you able to watch season 9, at least online in the UK?), Sam's logical side comes to the fore as he pores through their treasure trove of books from the Men of Letter's collection. Meanwhile, Dean's impusively pawing through boxes of stuff and complaining the MofL didn't label anything because he can't figure out how to use it. I love that the show's writers have found these ways (and others) to put both of them in their elements. One's a researcher/thinker, the other's a doer/actor.
By the way, I didn't think you were anti-Sam. My gosh, how could ANYONE be anti-Sam? He's just so...well. A tall, dark, and smart guy. *Gush.* Need I say more? (If I do, I'll sound like Becky. So I'll stop myself.) But really. Sigh. Sam. *cough*
As for my comment about your grammar--actually, it's WONDERFUL. I didn't express myself well in the review, and I'm sorry. Please understand, I'm a freelance editor, and I spend so much time fixing peojaple's manuscripts, which sounds like fun until you're working on a book that's just not your style. I've gotten so jaded and cranky! So I came to this fanfic thing thinking I'd take off my editor's hat and just enjoy what I'm reading (because it's Sam and Dean, right?), but then--gak!--I discover that the damn hat is stuck and I can't read stories when the grammar/word choices/plot line are badly done, no matter who it's about.
Truly, your story was not only well written, but also--it didn't make me want to ask for a revision. LOL. I really could sit back and immerse myself in your words. And for this, I'm extremely grateful! I miss reading (and writing) for fun.
Speaking of writing--I posted the start of my story yesterday and have a second chapter/installment to upload, and I can't figure out how to do it. And, I really should have figured out exactly WHAT the monster is, though...maybe it doesn't need to be a monster. Maybe the monster is the choice Dean has to make between having to choose between his heart's desires and doing the right thing (self vs. Sam). (As if that hasn't already been done. HA!)
But isn't that part of the appeal of the Winchester brothers? Watching them making the right decision--for each other instead of (them) self--in the midst of extraordinary circumstances? Even when it appears that they're about to go in the wrong direction (Sam drinking demon blood, for example, and hiding it from Dean), you know that they will, eventually, SOMEHOW, make the redemptive choice.
All that and a hot car, too. Love it.
I'll be reading you! :) Thank you for reaching out."
How cool is that? I mean, I've replied to other people who've commented with points I thought were interesting, but someone who edits writing who says nice stuff about your work when you're an unpublished author? That made my day! Next stop: finding and reading her fanfic ;)
Saturday 2 November 2013
NaNoWriMo progress
So, I didn't even start my NaNoWriMo until 9.30 last night, and I've been writing for about two hours this morning, but I've done 3,024 words so far! Which actually, isn't as bad as some people. And one guy is apparently trying to write the entire 50,000 words in one day? Yeah, good luck with that, 10,000 is the best I've ever heard of anyone writing in a day.
Anyway, I already use Jenny Trout's word count tracker, because it's like a year-long tracker which helps you follow a few writing projects at a time, and I forgot my NaNoWriMo password so I had to reset that this morning. I used the yearly tracker to record last night's writing, but when I tried to enter it for yesterday my count came up as a minus number? So now I've had to put last night and today's writing as today on the site, so that's well out of sync. Oh, well. I won't be writing the entire novel for NaNoWriMo, because they set the limit at 50,000 words and Uprooted was 110, 000; Departed is about 70, 000 at the moment. Overall, I've done 6,700 words for Reunited, and I've barely gone anywhere with it yet. Still, getting a good chunk of it done in a month? What's not to love about that kind of motivation?
I want to get on with my Supernatural fanfic too, but I have a nine-hour shift to go to, and a boy to get ready for my sister ... and I guess I should get dressed too, since I don't think I can work in my pyjamas?
Anyway, I already use Jenny Trout's word count tracker, because it's like a year-long tracker which helps you follow a few writing projects at a time, and I forgot my NaNoWriMo password so I had to reset that this morning. I used the yearly tracker to record last night's writing, but when I tried to enter it for yesterday my count came up as a minus number? So now I've had to put last night and today's writing as today on the site, so that's well out of sync. Oh, well. I won't be writing the entire novel for NaNoWriMo, because they set the limit at 50,000 words and Uprooted was 110, 000; Departed is about 70, 000 at the moment. Overall, I've done 6,700 words for Reunited, and I've barely gone anywhere with it yet. Still, getting a good chunk of it done in a month? What's not to love about that kind of motivation?
I want to get on with my Supernatural fanfic too, but I have a nine-hour shift to go to, and a boy to get ready for my sister ... and I guess I should get dressed too, since I don't think I can work in my pyjamas?
Friday 1 November 2013
NaNoWriMo Essex
So, I've signed up for NaNoWriMo this year, and I've had a bunch of emails about it, including how Essex has it's own page because of Essex's writing festival (seriously, we have one of those?)
I actually don't know what to do for NaNoWriMo, except maybe the third book in the Uprooted series. Except I've already written about 9 pages .... But they tend to be longer than 50,000 words so ... Think I can get away with it? It features such exciting moments as Carter being manipulated into joining glee club and Lambrini's surprise GCSE results influencing her decisions. This one is where I kinda hint at what they're going to do as adults. Plus, unlike the second books, this one has all their friends back in it. God, that made book two torturous to write. Also, torturous looks wrong there.
Feedback on this is greatly appreciated, by the way!
I actually don't know what to do for NaNoWriMo, except maybe the third book in the Uprooted series. Except I've already written about 9 pages .... But they tend to be longer than 50,000 words so ... Think I can get away with it? It features such exciting moments as Carter being manipulated into joining glee club and Lambrini's surprise GCSE results influencing her decisions. This one is where I kinda hint at what they're going to do as adults. Plus, unlike the second books, this one has all their friends back in it. God, that made book two torturous to write. Also, torturous looks wrong there.
Feedback on this is greatly appreciated, by the way!
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