Ah, the old porn/plot ratio question! My answer is always this: write what feels good for the story. If the characters demand porn, write it. If they don't demand lots of porn, don't force it. Let them dictate where the story goes; sometimes they will surprise you!
And don't be afraid of submitting your story and writing again and again, no matter how many comments you receive. You can only improve, with practice. :D
There is nothing like deadlines to make one write, write, write. I think without deadlines I would probably just bounce from project to project and never finish anything.
The deadlines are definitely a life-saver. :D The themes and word count limits help too. It's much easier to write when my brain isn't screaming "THIS HAS TO BE A NOVEL" at me.
I've had three stories in SSBB now, but I was INCREDIBLY nervous about all three of them. I always write really long-winded first drafts and have to hack things out later. I wrote a fantasy story for the December issue and let me tell you, trying to worldbuild without just bogging things down in boring history lessons is really hard! A few people actually commented that they thought it was good, so that was a huge relief, but honestly, I could probably win a Pulitzer and I'd still be self-conscious about my writing and wonder if it was good enough XD
I guess what I'm trying to get at is that being nervous is totally normal. I think others have already addressed the porn/plot question well enough XD Though I'd like to add that it took me a little while to realize that you don't HAVE to write a full-blown graphic scene every time your characters have sex, either. If you feel like you'd just be repeating yourself if your characters are having sex again, you can always just say "they had sex again" and leave it at that.
xD Well, if I end up writing for any more issues, hopefully I won't be as nervous as you. Although I tend to have a very nervous disposition anyway, so it's unlikely. Dx World building is always the thing that trips me up as well.
That's something I've taken to doing in my writing already. Sometimes I find that very short sex scenes (which are barely even sex scenes at all really) can sometimes be way more effective than the full-blown ones. My main problem is that the sex scene in my story is... long, and there aren't many ways I can get around it. Still, I brought this on myself by choosing to write the story I am. *headdesk*
I've had six stories in SSBB so far (at least I think it's six), and I remember the first time submitting. I was very nervous! Funny story, actually: I submitted my two-part story in two files, and the editor read the second file first and was like this story doesn't make any sense. (To be fair, even if you read in the correct order, your general thoughts will probably remain this story doesn't make any sense).
My only real advice for SSBB is to write things that you enjoy, and to take risks if you want to -- I love SSBB because it lets me write both within and outside of my comfort zone. Oh, and to turn off smartquotes.
xD I've had times when I've written something and it's made absolutely no sense to me afterwards. I'd like to blame those times on alcohol, but no one would ever believe me. :c
I think writing for SSBB is a big risk for me in and of itself, because every single time I've written a sex scene, a few months down the line I'm utterly mortified by it. xD But oh well, I'm sure the fun will outweigh that little issue. c:
I have only submitted two stories in the past, and collabed on one more, but I do have another one in the works (not for this coming issue, though). As someone who has a lot of trouble actually writing things, I've had great experiences with the two stories I *have* submitted--and, frankly, the power of the pseudonym saves me from a lot of my usual BUT WHAT IF EVERYONE HATES IT??? angst.
Basically: SSBB was MADE for anonymity! And you can only improve with future stories! And more stories is always better! And I love exclamation points!
Pfft, that reminds me, I need to think of a pseudonym. D: I'll never be able to come up with one of those fancy Japanese ones that most people have, but I'm sure I'll find something half-decent and wonderfully anonymous. <3
Hahaha, my own "fancy japanese" pseudonym is hardly that; it's linguistically dubious, to say the least, and based on a pun that doesn't really translate. That being said, there's a fair number of people involved with SSBB who can help you come up with some ridiculous punny kanji if you so desire; you could probably just post to this very community asking for help.
I'm so glad this community is being used! I love discussion!
Just like how the president of the Hair Club for Men is not only the president but also a member (he and I actually went to the same college, though decades apart), I'm not just the editor here, I'm also a writer! And I get the nervousness, but [pllease note I've never rejected a story. I've bounced some, for various (usually technical) reasons, but I have never said -- and hope never to say -- nope, this is shit, take your ball and bat and go home. I will only ever bounce a story because it fails to meet the guidelines somehow. If it fits the guidelines but I think it could be a more successful story if something else got done to it, I'll write back and tell the author that while I'll run the story as it is, I think specific improvements could be made
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Me too. :D The only thing I like more than writing is talking about writing.
Well, that's a relief. xD I'm pretty sure my story fits the guidelines so there's one less thing to worry about. :D
More porn sounds fabulous for this story. > u> I already have an idea for the April issue, and that one is about an established couple (with kids, no less) so there should be considerably less porn in that one to even it all out.
xD I'm sure they weren't that bad, though perhaps I'll go hunt them down and see for myself. Never-the-less, you're right about it being a learning process and I do still have a lot to learn about writing. :D
I didn't even know there was a revision history. That will be so useful. :D I seem ro be able to write fairly well by just going off how a sentence sounds when spoken out loud, but aside from that I know my grammar isn't always perfect. xD Hopefully I'll learn something this way. c:
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And don't be afraid of submitting your story and writing again and again, no matter how many comments you receive. You can only improve, with practice. :D
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And I think I'll definitely be writing for SSBB again. :D I went from a year of next to no writing, to 15K in a week.
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You can do it :D Keep writing!
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I guess what I'm trying to get at is that being nervous is totally normal. I think others have already addressed the porn/plot question well enough XD Though I'd like to add that it took me a little while to realize that you don't HAVE to write a full-blown graphic scene every time your characters have sex, either. If you feel like you'd just be repeating yourself if your characters are having sex again, you can always just say "they had sex again" and leave it at that.
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That's something I've taken to doing in my writing already. Sometimes I find that very short sex scenes (which are barely even sex scenes at all really) can sometimes be way more effective than the full-blown ones. My main problem is that the sex scene in my story is... long, and there aren't many ways I can get around it. Still, I brought this on myself by choosing to write the story I am. *headdesk*
(Also, yay Anders! 8D)
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My only real advice for SSBB is to write things that you enjoy, and to take risks if you want to -- I love SSBB because it lets me write both within and outside of my comfort zone. Oh, and to turn off smartquotes.
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I think writing for SSBB is a big risk for me in and of itself, because every single time I've written a sex scene, a few months down the line I'm utterly mortified by it. xD But oh well, I'm sure the fun will outweigh that little issue. c:
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Basically: SSBB was MADE for anonymity! And you can only improve with future stories! And more stories is always better! And I love exclamation points!
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Just like how the president of the Hair Club for Men is not only the president but also a member (he and I actually went to the same college, though decades apart), I'm not just the editor here, I'm also a writer! And I get the nervousness, but [pllease note I've never rejected a story. I've bounced some, for various (usually technical) reasons, but I have never said -- and hope never to say -- nope, this is shit, take your ball and bat and go home. I will only ever bounce a story because it fails to meet the guidelines somehow. If it fits the guidelines but I think it could be a more successful story if something else got done to it, I'll write back and tell the author that while I'll run the story as it is, I think specific improvements could be made ( ... )
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Well, that's a relief. xD I'm pretty sure my story fits the guidelines so there's one less thing to worry about. :D
More porn sounds fabulous for this story. > u> I already have an idea for the April issue, and that one is about an established couple (with kids, no less) so there should be considerably less porn in that one to even it all out.
xD I'm sure they weren't that bad, though perhaps I'll go hunt them down and see for myself. Never-the-less, you're right about it being a learning process and I do still have a lot to learn about writing. :D
I didn't even know there was a revision history. That will be so useful. :D I seem ro be able to write fairly well by just going off how a sentence sounds when spoken out loud, but aside from that I know my grammar isn't always perfect. xD Hopefully I'll learn something this way. c:
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