So I've been in Margate now since June. As usual, I didn't get as much done as I wanted. It wasn't entierly my fault. My laptop is getting sluggish, I only just got my new computer working good enough but my desk chair is so uncomfortable I get back aches after just an hour! Ah well, if I did have a working computer I'd have probably wasted the whole summer watching anime anyway.
Stuff I have done- Well I've figured out a lot of the plot and characters for my fantasy book and even drawn a map. But I haven't got to the point where I've been influenced to actually write something down. I don't know how it's going to begin either, or what's going to happen the first 100 or so pages. This is a problem since I want to work on this novel for my dissertation, and part of the assessment is the first chapter! Oh but uni doesn't start for a month so I guess it doesn't matter that much.
I've been writing down random stuff for my other book too, the one about a couple of teenage boys who are in love (with each other). Just random scribbles whenever I felt inspired or something came to me. Why can't I do that with my fantasy book yet? Maybe because it's not developed enough yet. I've been working on 'Distance' (the boy love book) for years now, even though I haven't gotten very far with it, and the fantasy for only a few months.
Also, I've been reading Russel T. Davis' book 'The Writer's Tale.' Weighs like a fricking brick but a great book. I can't stop reading it! I was halfway through 'The Amber Spyglass' too! It makes me feel so much better about a lot of things. I always picture 'professional' writers as working non stop every single day, unlike me. Mr Davis is given months to write scripts but he puts them off until after the deadlines! But in that panic, he writes some of the best tv scripts of the past few years! He also mentioned that he looks at other writer's works and thinks 'my career is nowhere near as good as it should be.' I sorta feel like punching him for that. He writes Doctor Who!! There are hundreds of writers in the country who would die to do that! He is the man I want to become, but he still feels inadequate to others. Maybe no matter how famous, rich or sucessful people become, they still feel inferior to someone.
P.S. Ignore all the horific spelling mistakes in this post!
Sunday, 30 August 2009
Saturday, 30 May 2009
Hello and welcome
Hi there, I am Jessica. Known online as Drifting soul. I started this blog because my forum buddies seem very interested when I talk about my writing. So like any good writer, I saw the potential for something good to write about.
I guess I should start with a bit about me. I'm 20 and I live in Bath where I'm studying for a Creative Writing degree. I grew up in Margate (the less said about that the better) and I have a boyfriend who lives in Finland. I mainly write fantasy novels for teenagers and older children but I also like romance and comedy and I write scripts now and then too.
Like most fantasy writers, I'm a total geek. My spare time is spent messing around on the internet, playing RPG games, watching anime and reading manga. I'm a huge film fan too.
So that's all you need to know. Let's get to the important stuff.
Term is dwindling to a finish right now and everyone is packing up and heading back home for the summer. It's nice to have so much free time after all that hard work. But having some time off means it's hard for me to get back into the game. I'm not getting any ideas or inspiration for my books right now.
Yesterday I had my writing for young people tutorial. My marks weren't as high as I would have liked. The written pieces were fine, I got a 2:1 for those, but I left the essay a bit late. I've learnt my lesson...
But the feedback is the most important thing. My tutor out of the three pieces I submitted, the fantasy was the strongest. I was very happy about that. I had been worried that it would be the weakest. Since it contains things that don't exist in the real world, I always worry that I haven't described it well enough or the reader won't understand. But as it turns out my fears were for nothing.
The picture book apparently needs more 'energy and quirkiness.' Picture books aren't really my thing, I just wanted to try it out. So I understand that it wasn't brilliant.
A big problem I keep having is with my teenage novel. All my tutors say the teenage boys don't speak like teenagers. This I understand. I can write about 20 year old guys just fine since I'm around them all the time but I'm hardly ever around 15 year old boys. One solution is reading books aimed at teenage boys. I'll have to look into that a little before I continue with this story. It's a shame since other than that, there weren't any problems with that piece. Just the voices let it down. It's hard since I want these characters to have unique voices that are unlike normal teenagers, but my voice keeps coming through.
This isn't always a bad thing though. Last night I finished a romance fanfiction and have gotten some great reviews for it. That always makes me feel good.
I know some people say fanfiction isn't a proper literary form and is only for ameuters. You know what I say? I don't care! Writing fanfiction makes me happy and it makes the people who read it happy. When somebody says my story made them laugh or cheered them up, I feel my job as a writer has been accomplished and I don't care that I won't get any money from it.
I guess I should start with a bit about me. I'm 20 and I live in Bath where I'm studying for a Creative Writing degree. I grew up in Margate (the less said about that the better) and I have a boyfriend who lives in Finland. I mainly write fantasy novels for teenagers and older children but I also like romance and comedy and I write scripts now and then too.
Like most fantasy writers, I'm a total geek. My spare time is spent messing around on the internet, playing RPG games, watching anime and reading manga. I'm a huge film fan too.
So that's all you need to know. Let's get to the important stuff.
Term is dwindling to a finish right now and everyone is packing up and heading back home for the summer. It's nice to have so much free time after all that hard work. But having some time off means it's hard for me to get back into the game. I'm not getting any ideas or inspiration for my books right now.
Yesterday I had my writing for young people tutorial. My marks weren't as high as I would have liked. The written pieces were fine, I got a 2:1 for those, but I left the essay a bit late. I've learnt my lesson...
But the feedback is the most important thing. My tutor out of the three pieces I submitted, the fantasy was the strongest. I was very happy about that. I had been worried that it would be the weakest. Since it contains things that don't exist in the real world, I always worry that I haven't described it well enough or the reader won't understand. But as it turns out my fears were for nothing.
The picture book apparently needs more 'energy and quirkiness.' Picture books aren't really my thing, I just wanted to try it out. So I understand that it wasn't brilliant.
A big problem I keep having is with my teenage novel. All my tutors say the teenage boys don't speak like teenagers. This I understand. I can write about 20 year old guys just fine since I'm around them all the time but I'm hardly ever around 15 year old boys. One solution is reading books aimed at teenage boys. I'll have to look into that a little before I continue with this story. It's a shame since other than that, there weren't any problems with that piece. Just the voices let it down. It's hard since I want these characters to have unique voices that are unlike normal teenagers, but my voice keeps coming through.
This isn't always a bad thing though. Last night I finished a romance fanfiction and have gotten some great reviews for it. That always makes me feel good.
I know some people say fanfiction isn't a proper literary form and is only for ameuters. You know what I say? I don't care! Writing fanfiction makes me happy and it makes the people who read it happy. When somebody says my story made them laugh or cheered them up, I feel my job as a writer has been accomplished and I don't care that I won't get any money from it.
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