the galactic miscellany
I'm borrowing this sub-header thing from thamiris, because this post just got longer and more disjointed.
in which I do not believe what I am told
I don't know why I'm such a doubting Thomasina. Back when everyone started going on about Ocean's 11and how it was so slashy and there should be stories, and then there were stories, I nodded my head and said sure fine whatever, thinking that these were two very pretty men and probably there were a couple of suggestive moments and who am I, anyway, to judge where other people find their fun?
Then, eventually, I got round to watching the movie, and in very short order my jaw fell and I discovered that a, poker is foreplay and 2, no one had exaggerated anything and iii, yes, very pretty men indeed.
Despite this experience, I was the same way about Jurassic Park 3. I saw the enthusiasm, I thought sure fine whatever, glad you're having fun. Then I actually watched it yesterday, because yesterday was a very nice day that could only be improved by seeing big monsters with big teeth eating people (yes, I have simple pleasures), and in very short order my jaw fell and, etc, etc. Minus the poker, but you know what I mean.
The moral of this story is that there is no moral to this story, because I probably still won't believe it when someone tells me that their latest shiny thing is more full of slash than a plagiarized G'n'R story. But sometimes, I get the most enjoyable surprises!
Also, someone should rec me stories. :) I have a vague memory that someone actually did, on the flist, a little while back, but the way I keep on top of things, it may have been weeks ago. Please?
stoicism, repression, secrets
mimesere has posted now and then about her love for the honorable stoic, as a character type, and I've been thinking on and off about how that almost-but-not-quite resonates with me, in terms of certain characters that I click with in certain ways. I mean, I love others, too, but there are some that fall into a specific group in my head, that I think of as being alike in some way and love because of this similarity, and I wanted to figure out why. I thought for a while that it might be repression, and ooh, I like repression (in a character), but that wasn't quite it, either.
It's a fairly diverse group, see. Klaus von dem Eberbach, Remus Lupin, Heero Yuy, Gerald Tarrant, Benton Fraser, Justin Timberlake. Some of them are stoics, and some of them are honorable stoics, and some of them are remarkably repressed, yes, but. I had real trouble coming up with a theory that accounted for my grouping young Timberlake with the rest of them, especially. I think I've finally figured out that what it is, is secrecy, or more specifically, keeping secrets. Some of them keep secrets from the world, and some of them keep secrets from themselves, and some do both. (In my interpretation, obviously, in case I needed to point that out.) And I love that.
Which is probably strongly related to my enjoyment of writing close third and working out how to tell the reader a different story than the one the viewpoint character is telling himself, as well as writing close third and working out how to tell the reader more about what the viewpoint character observes about someone than he's aware of himself. I like stories about secrets, and layers of truth and observation, and characters who keep secrets are useful to work with, that way.
Now, of course, I'm thinking that it should be pretty obvious that people choose characters to write about that let them tell the stories they want to tell. How about you?
tell me about it
I've been pondering this post by caras_galadhon about writers' responsibility for making clear what kind of feedback they want. I've never really specified and, you know, it's not exactly as though I get types of fb that I don't care for. I'm vaguely wondering if by not specifying, one invites less rather than more - people holding off on sending more negative thoughts, rather than feeling free to flame at will. I don't know. If I had a statement to make it would probably be, all comments accepted.
Of course, it doesn't end there. If someone points out typos and factual errors, I'll go eep and fix them. If someone criticizes characterization or story construction, otoh, I'm extremely unlikely to make any changes, but I'll definitely keep those comments in mind for the next story I write. This next story may well feature the exact same characterization and/or type of narrative, but if it does, at least you can be sure it's deliberate.
And if someone wants to sit over there and dissect the story because it annoyed and/or delighted them so much, I'm just fine with that, but I think you all already knew that.
left to my own devices
I finished a story two days ago and it's been sent off to be edited, and now I feel all lost, like. I don't know what to do with myself; I'm so used to spending my time not working on this story, and thinking that I should be working on this story, and actually working on this story, and now here I sit... I have issues with finishing stories. I write more and more slowly towards the end, and when I'm working on the very final scene, glaciers overtake me and leave me in their dust. ice. melted water. whatever. The point is, I feel all wibbly, and I should probably select another WIP and just keep the window open, for reassurance, until I decide what to do next. Or take up knitting again.
in which I do not believe what I am told
I don't know why I'm such a doubting Thomasina. Back when everyone started going on about Ocean's 11and how it was so slashy and there should be stories, and then there were stories, I nodded my head and said sure fine whatever, thinking that these were two very pretty men and probably there were a couple of suggestive moments and who am I, anyway, to judge where other people find their fun?
Then, eventually, I got round to watching the movie, and in very short order my jaw fell and I discovered that a, poker is foreplay and 2, no one had exaggerated anything and iii, yes, very pretty men indeed.
Despite this experience, I was the same way about Jurassic Park 3. I saw the enthusiasm, I thought sure fine whatever, glad you're having fun. Then I actually watched it yesterday, because yesterday was a very nice day that could only be improved by seeing big monsters with big teeth eating people (yes, I have simple pleasures), and in very short order my jaw fell and, etc, etc. Minus the poker, but you know what I mean.
The moral of this story is that there is no moral to this story, because I probably still won't believe it when someone tells me that their latest shiny thing is more full of slash than a plagiarized G'n'R story. But sometimes, I get the most enjoyable surprises!
Also, someone should rec me stories. :) I have a vague memory that someone actually did, on the flist, a little while back, but the way I keep on top of things, it may have been weeks ago. Please?
stoicism, repression, secrets
mimesere has posted now and then about her love for the honorable stoic, as a character type, and I've been thinking on and off about how that almost-but-not-quite resonates with me, in terms of certain characters that I click with in certain ways. I mean, I love others, too, but there are some that fall into a specific group in my head, that I think of as being alike in some way and love because of this similarity, and I wanted to figure out why. I thought for a while that it might be repression, and ooh, I like repression (in a character), but that wasn't quite it, either.
It's a fairly diverse group, see. Klaus von dem Eberbach, Remus Lupin, Heero Yuy, Gerald Tarrant, Benton Fraser, Justin Timberlake. Some of them are stoics, and some of them are honorable stoics, and some of them are remarkably repressed, yes, but. I had real trouble coming up with a theory that accounted for my grouping young Timberlake with the rest of them, especially. I think I've finally figured out that what it is, is secrecy, or more specifically, keeping secrets. Some of them keep secrets from the world, and some of them keep secrets from themselves, and some do both. (In my interpretation, obviously, in case I needed to point that out.) And I love that.
Which is probably strongly related to my enjoyment of writing close third and working out how to tell the reader a different story than the one the viewpoint character is telling himself, as well as writing close third and working out how to tell the reader more about what the viewpoint character observes about someone than he's aware of himself. I like stories about secrets, and layers of truth and observation, and characters who keep secrets are useful to work with, that way.
Now, of course, I'm thinking that it should be pretty obvious that people choose characters to write about that let them tell the stories they want to tell. How about you?
tell me about it
I've been pondering this post by caras_galadhon about writers' responsibility for making clear what kind of feedback they want. I've never really specified and, you know, it's not exactly as though I get types of fb that I don't care for. I'm vaguely wondering if by not specifying, one invites less rather than more - people holding off on sending more negative thoughts, rather than feeling free to flame at will. I don't know. If I had a statement to make it would probably be, all comments accepted.
Of course, it doesn't end there. If someone points out typos and factual errors, I'll go eep and fix them. If someone criticizes characterization or story construction, otoh, I'm extremely unlikely to make any changes, but I'll definitely keep those comments in mind for the next story I write. This next story may well feature the exact same characterization and/or type of narrative, but if it does, at least you can be sure it's deliberate.
And if someone wants to sit over there and dissect the story because it annoyed and/or delighted them so much, I'm just fine with that, but I think you all already knew that.
left to my own devices
I finished a story two days ago and it's been sent off to be edited, and now I feel all lost, like. I don't know what to do with myself; I'm so used to spending my time not working on this story, and thinking that I should be working on this story, and actually working on this story, and now here I sit... I have issues with finishing stories. I write more and more slowly towards the end, and when I'm working on the very final scene, glaciers overtake me and leave me in their dust. ice. melted water. whatever. The point is, I feel all wibbly, and I should probably select another WIP and just keep the window open, for reassurance, until I decide what to do next. Or take up knitting again.