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Hi AC/FICTALKers. If you see this (11/12/2024) please see new post in General Discussions about Open Doors OTW Organization for Transformative Works) offering to help preserve the AC archive and let me know your thoughts:

https://absolutechaos.net/fictalk/index.php/topic,3415.msg125627.html#new

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Author Topic: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)  (Read 135332 times)

mare

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #645 on: July 16, 2013, 09:19:00 PM »

Do you let awards influence what you read? If you had a choice between reading something that had no awards and something that did would you choose based on that? How important is it for your stories to win awards or does it not matter one way or the other?

Nope, not at all and the wouldn't influence my reading choice either.

Winning awards has never been a big deal to me. They are nice and it's an honor when people think enough of my stuff to nominate them.
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mare

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #646 on: July 16, 2013, 09:26:19 PM »

We've all talked about popular stories. If I had to name five off the top of my head they would be:

Broken
Oreos for Breakfast
Something Beautiful
Signal to Noise
Ground Zero

What are the first five stories that pop into your mind when you think of popular stories and have you read them and enjoyed them? I know on that list I have only read and thoroughly enjoyed two of them and that's Broken and Ground Zero. Two of them I have never read and one I only got halfway through and stopped because I didn't enjoy it at all.


 
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RokofAges75

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #647 on: July 16, 2013, 10:24:21 PM »

Do you let awards influence what you read? If you had a choice between reading something that had no awards and something that did would you choose based on that? How important is it for your stories to win awards or does it not matter one way or the other?

The only way that awards might influence what I read is by putting a story that I'd never heard of or looked at before on my reading radar.  Like, if a story I'd never heard of won for Best Drama/Angst over other stories that I'd read and enjoyed, I would be curious to check it out.  But just seeing an award posted on someone's story doesn't make me go, "Oh, wow, this is an award-winning story, so it MUST be good!" LOL

I don't let awards decide whether I'll read something or not.  I know from experience that there are some "undiscovered gems" out there - great stories that, for whatever reason, have never won an award.  And some of those "award-winning stories" may be good, but they're just not my cup of tea.  If the story sounds like something I'd like, I'll give it a try regardless of whether it's won any awards.

I wouldn't say it's important to me that my stories win awards.  It's nice to be nominated, and it's even nicer to win, but it doesn't make me think any more or less of my writing.
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RokofAges75

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #648 on: July 16, 2013, 10:36:20 PM »

We've all talked about popular stories. If I had to name five off the top of my head they would be:

Broken
Oreos for Breakfast
Something Beautiful
Signal to Noise
Ground Zero

What are the first five stories that pop into your mind when you think of popular stories and have you read them and enjoyed them? I know on that list I have only read and thoroughly enjoyed two of them and that's Broken and Ground Zero. Two of them I have never read and one I only got halfway through and stopped because I didn't enjoy it at all.

Wow, thanks for including Broken in that!

I agree with a lot of your picks, so I'm going to try to add some others.  I had to keep Oreos for Breakfast, though, because that was the first one to come to mind.  Here are my five:

Oreos for Breakfast
A Tale of Two Popstars
Where Can We Go From Here?
Between the Lines
With the Band


With the exception of "With the Band," all of those are old, pre-AC stories.  They are just ones I remember winning awards and being recommended on various websites.  "Where Can We Go From Here?" and "Between the Lines" are two of my favorite fanfics.

I read "A Tale of Two Popstars," and it wasn't bad, but what prevented me from putting it on my favorites list or ever wanting to read it again was the fact that I found out the author had changed the characters' names to make it an NSYNC fanfic and some other boyband too (Westlife, maybe?).  It reminded me of Tanja stealing our stories and changing the Boys' names to Busted and McFly, and I thought, "What does it say about this girl's generic writing that she can do an Insert Name Here for her characters and still have it work across fandoms?"  It really turned me off to it because I felt it cheapened the story.  And there is my rant about A Tale of Two Popstars LOL.

"Oreos for Breakfast" I could never get into; I never saw the appeal of that one, but boy, it was everywhere!  I read the beginning of "With the Band," but never finished it.  Unsurprisingly, the two on my list that I read and loved were the two non-romance dramas LOL.
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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #649 on: July 17, 2013, 01:07:58 AM »

Wow, thanks for including Broken in that!

I agree with a lot of your picks, so I'm going to try to add some others.  I had to keep Oreos for Breakfast, though, because that was the first one to come to mind.  Here are my five:

Oreos for Breakfast
A Tale of Two Popstars
Where Can We Go From Here?
Between the Lines
With the Band


With the exception of "With the Band," all of those are old, pre-AC stories.  They are just ones I remember winning awards and being recommended on various websites.  "Where Can We Go From Here?" and "Between the Lines" are two of my favorite fanfics.

I read "A Tale of Two Popstars," and it wasn't bad, but what prevented me from putting it on my favorites list or ever wanting to read it again was the fact that I found out the author had changed the characters' names to make it an NSYNC fanfic and some other boyband too (Westlife, maybe?).  It reminded me of Tanja stealing our stories and changing the Boys' names to Busted and McFly, and I thought, "What does it say about this girl's generic writing that she can do an Insert Name Here for her characters and still have it work across fandoms?"  It really turned me off to it because I felt it cheapened the story.  And there is my rant about A Tale of Two Popstars LOL.

"Oreos for Breakfast" I could never get into; I never saw the appeal of that one, but boy, it was everywhere!  I read the beginning of "With the Band," but never finished it.  Unsurprisingly, the two on my list that I read and loved were the two non-romance dramas LOL.

I don't how about the most popular stories because I came into the fandom very late.
I think I never finished "Oreos for breakfast" and I'm still trying to understand what's the big deal with it.  :crazy:
"Where can we go from here" is one of my favorite ever. Sigh, I wish that someone would write something like that again.
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mare

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #650 on: July 17, 2013, 04:40:57 AM »

Wow, thanks for including Broken in that!

I agree with a lot of your picks, so I'm going to try to add some others.  I had to keep Oreos for Breakfast, though, because that was the first one to come to mind.  Here are my five:

Oreos for Breakfast
A Tale of Two Popstars
Where Can We Go From Here?
Between the Lines
With the Band


With the exception of "With the Band," all of those are old, pre-AC stories.  They are just ones I remember winning awards and being recommended on various websites.  "Where Can We Go From Here?" and "Between the Lines" are two of my favorite fanfics.

I read "A Tale of Two Popstars," and it wasn't bad, but what prevented me from putting it on my favorites list or ever wanting to read it again was the fact that I found out the author had changed the characters' names to make it an NSYNC fanfic and some other boyband too (Westlife, maybe?).  It reminded me of Tanja stealing our stories and changing the Boys' names to Busted and McFly, and I thought, "What does it say about this girl's generic writing that she can do an Insert Name Here for her characters and still have it work across fandoms?"  It really turned me off to it because I felt it cheapened the story.  And there is my rant about A Tale of Two Popstars LOL.

"Oreos for Breakfast" I could never get into; I never saw the appeal of that one, but boy, it was everywhere!  I read the beginning of "With the Band," but never finished it.  Unsurprisingly, the two on my list that I read and loved were the two non-romance dramas LOL.

I wanted to put Where Can We Go From Here but couldn't remember the title for the life of me so I went with Something Beautiful instead lol

I don't even think I know what "With the Band" is and I vaguely have heard of "Tale of Two Popstars"
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RokofAges75

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #651 on: July 17, 2013, 04:49:30 AM »

With the Band is the first story in Evergreen Jen's Coaster Series.
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mare

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #652 on: July 17, 2013, 04:53:44 AM »

Oh lol
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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #653 on: July 17, 2013, 05:25:12 AM »

What's your process for planning a story?  Do you know what will happen in the beginning, middle, and end of the story before you start writing it?  How about in each chapter?  Do you do any kind of outlining or just fly by the seat of your pants?  If you do outline, what does that look like for you?  Do you ever write scenes in advance or visualize them in your mind?  Do you change your mind often, or do you usually stick to your plans?  Does the way you plan vary from story to story?  Lots of questions, but they all go together - just describe your process!
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usako

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #654 on: July 17, 2013, 06:10:36 AM »

What's your process for planning a story?  Do you know what will happen in the beginning, middle, and end of the story before you start writing it?  How about in each chapter?  Do you do any kind of outlining or just fly by the seat of your pants?  If you do outline, what does that look like for you?  Do you ever write scenes in advance or visualize them in your mind?  Do you change your mind often, or do you usually stick to your plans?  Does the way you plan vary from story to story?  Lots of questions, but they all go together - just describe your process!

It depends. If it's only an oneshot, I don't usually plan it unless it's going to be a long. For this case, I only outline the type of scenes that I want to write and then I go with the flow. Usually, I rarely start from the beginning but always with the middle scene and then I go backward.  :crazy: Weird, I know.
For long and chaptered stories, I usually know what will happen in the beginning and in the ending. Those are the two points that rarely change with the time. I usually outline things that I want to make happen but they're set in stones, well chapters, so they might change depending what happens during the writing. Because, when I start to write, usually the characters take control and act on their way, withing the context and the situation.
If I need an original character, I outline him/her before I start introducing him/her.
I do write scenes in advance: for one story, I have a second word document where I put all the scenes that I wrote and that still have to happen. It happens that then I might don't need them but I never erase something. You never know, they still might be useful for another story.  :D
Actually, the whole plan process is something that I love doing. That's why, even though I might not be inspired to write an incomplete story, I still know what it's supposed to happen and how it is going to end. It's the journey from point A to point B that takes ages to be written.  :D :D
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Carter-Orange

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #655 on: July 17, 2013, 12:35:53 PM »

What are the first five stories that pop into your mind when you think of popular stories and have you read them and enjoyed them?

Curtain Call
Oreos For Breakfast
Broken
Why I'd Do It All Again
Ground Zero

These are the top five which come into my head at the moment.  I've not read Oreos For Breakfast, but I've heard people talking about it a lot.  Maybe if it was on here, I might've read it.  I've read and absolutely loved the other stories mentioned though.
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Carter-Orange

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #656 on: July 17, 2013, 12:42:42 PM »

What's your process for planning a story?  Do you know what will happen in the beginning, middle, and end of the story before you start writing it?  How about in each chapter?  Do you do any kind of outlining or just fly by the seat of your pants?  If you do outline, what does that look like for you?  Do you ever write scenes in advance or visualize them in your mind?  Do you change your mind often, or do you usually stick to your plans?  Does the way you plan vary from story to story?  Lots of questions, but they all go together - just describe your process!

When I start a new story, I usually have a rough idea of how it's going to go, and I've usually got the end pretty much figured out, it's just the rest of it which I have to think of.  I'm one of those 'fly by the seat of my pants' kind of people.  I never know how a chapter will turn out until I've finished typing, and then I'll read it a couple of times and make any alterations.

I wish I could outline and stick to it, maybe I wouldn't be stuck at the moment.
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mare

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #657 on: July 17, 2013, 02:24:11 PM »

What are the first five stories that pop into your mind when you think of popular stories and have you read them and enjoyed them?

Curtain Call
Oreos For Breakfast
Broken
Why I'd Do It All Again
Ground Zero

These are the top five which come into my head at the moment.  I've not read Oreos For Breakfast, but I've heard people talking about it a lot.  Maybe if it was on here, I might've read it.  I've read and absolutely loved the other stories mentioned though.

Thanks for the mention, Steph!

Oreos is one of the stories I never tried because it seemed like something I wouldn't enjoy. So many people gushed over it though lol
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mare

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #658 on: July 17, 2013, 02:43:12 PM »

What's your process for planning a story?  Do you know what will happen in the beginning, middle, and end of the story before you start writing it?  How about in each chapter?  Do you do any kind of outlining or just fly by the seat of your pants?  If you do outline, what does that look like for you?  Do you ever write scenes in advance or visualize them in your mind?  Do you change your mind often, or do you usually stick to your plans?  Does the way you plan vary from story to story?  Lots of questions, but they all go together - just describe your process!

I would love to say I have this really incredible thought process complete with outlines and story boards and soundtracks and research pages etc... but truth is, it goes something like this:


Step 1: Mare gets a random idea! Usually they come to me in my dreams or in the shower for some reason.
Step 2: Mare tries to ignore the idea <-- I really do. I try to put it out of my mind. Since I have such a bad memory, the bad ideas usually filter out really quickly. When the idea won't go away then I'll jump to step 3.
Step 3: Mare tries to write her first chapter. <--- this is really an audition process for my idea. I write the first chapter or at least try to. If I can churn an entire chapter out without having to stop because of running out of steam, then I know it's a keeper. If I struggle with the first chapter, then I know I'll most likely struggle with the entire story. (One shots are just that, one shot and done! No need for following steps!)
Step 4: The actual writing process itself begins <---Now that I have one chapter down, the entire story usually unfolds in my head like a movie. I think I've mentioned before how visual of a writer I am which is funny because I hate banners etc... I should be on a Skittles commercial! <-- losing focus happens a lot as well! BUNNIES!! <--- see? Like that! If that happens too much it also tells me that maybe this particular story isn't one that's ready to be written. Anyway I'll go through my writing process for the last thing I wrote, my epic romance! LOL

When I came up with the idea which was shortly after we were discussing this on the forum where a few people said they'd like to see what I'd do with a romance, I knew I wanted mine to be different and not told from the female POV. I also saw it in three parts clearly. The family happy together telling their little girl the story, the fantasy of the two of them meeting and falling in love and then the reality of the actual situation. A beginning, a middle and an end. Which to me is what all stories really need. No fluffy middle or filler scenes which I think is a trademark of so many romance novels. I knew how I wanted it to end and I had already written the beginning so at that point all I had to do was fill in the missing pieces.

For other stories, I sometimes do change my mind when it comes to aspects of the story or characters but I very rarely change it that much. There have been instances where I've let a character live that I wanted to kill or kill a character I had no intention of killing, but the beginning and the ending usually never change.

The only time I've ever had to honestly think things through, was with Whatever the Night, because I had intended it to be a choose your own adventure at first so I needed to know what I was going to do and tried not to stray too far away from that! Also the going back and forth between past and present made the need for a tiny outline necessary.

So there you have it! Mare's thought process! LOL TADA!!! *bows*  :'( that was beautiful!!!

« Last Edit: July 17, 2013, 02:47:13 PM by mare »
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RokofAges75

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Re: Question of the day part 9 (even though days go by lol)
« Reply #659 on: July 17, 2013, 08:23:26 PM »

I like how you did that step by step, Mare!  That could be its own question:  Describe, step by step, your thought process when starting a new story.  You can use a specific story as an example if you'd like to or describe it more generally.
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