Comments | metamorfic_moon: Post Jumble Post

godricgal in metamorfic_moon

Post Jumble Post

Oct 30, 2006 16:14

Ahead of making our final preparations for the next metamorfic_moon fic event, we thought we'd ask you all for a bit of feedback on the Half Moon Rising Fic Jumble.

What aspects of the Jumble do you feel were the most helpful to you as a writer? Do you think that it has helped you to grow? Do you think there is anything that could have made the Fic Jumble more ( Read more... )

half moon rising fic jumble, community info

Comments 17

freakinwinky October 31 2006, 05:21:26 UTC

When I have to write under time pressure (and believe me, with my mid-terms and college appplications in the middle of the fic jumble, I had plenty of it.), one of two things happen: Either I produce some of my best work, or I produce something that needs a lot more elaboration and work.

Somehow, I think this ficathon brought out both sides. It forced me to come up with orriginal ideas I would probably not have thought of without the prompts. Again I'm not entirely certain I fully succeeded in comming up with great epic ideas, still the fact that I tried is something. And the ficathon has also inspired me to keep trying which is an even bigger something (If that makes any sense at all).

As for the beta pairing: with my spelling and grammar skills (or desperate lack there of), I am in serious need of a beta reader. So, sign me up!

lady_bracknell October 31 2006, 12:11:30 UTC

The most helpful aspect for me was having a deadline and knowing I had to submit something. As a terrible procrastinator, that's really useful as a kick-start when my enthusiasm is lagging. The genre prompts were also really useful to help me branch out a bit from my usual comfort zone, and I'd definitely like to see those return.

I liked both joely_jo and jncar's suggestions for different challenges that were more to do with style than content - it'd be nice to have a go at some styles I'd never normally consider using in fanfic, and the idea of having constraints about the ratio of dialogue to narrative really appeals to me. I think they'd be very stretching challenges, particularly for those of us who are stuck in their ways.

My only other suggestion is that I wonder if it might be interesting to do some kind of first line challenge, where we all submit the first sentence of a fic we've never got around to writing, mix them up and let other people run with the fic from that point on?

On the beta front, I'm far too much of a control ( ... )

phe_o November 2 2006, 04:01:55 UTC

Oh, these are fun--the first line fics. I used to participate in a group where a member posted the first and last line for each week, and by the following Monday everyone had to submit a piece that was 1,000 words or less that used the first and last line provided.

devonwood November 1 2006, 03:36:43 UTC

If it were initiated, I would certainly volunteer as a beta. I love doing it. ^.^

I pretty much agree with all that's been said so far. Using differnt POV would definately be a challenge for me, and maybe that can be the 5th prompt. Or switch it out with the "Day of" prompt. That one seemed to be the hardest one to work into my fics.

I definately think this helped me to grow. After getting concrit, my writing has definately improved slightly. :)

phe_o November 2 2006, 03:54:51 UTC

What aspects of the Jumble do you feel were the most helpful to you as a writer? Do you think that it has helped you to grow? Do you think there is anything that could have made the Fic Jumble more effective as a writing exercise?

Being "forced" to write with such an interesting set of prompts really helped me a lot. I think with a "guiding force" behind writing, it's easier to get into the groove and perhaps follow up with more creative branching. I also like the week deadlines a lot because I can't ever seem to update my stuff in a timely fashion, and holding me accountable for deadlines is definitely the best way to go because that's what I work with on a daily basis! ;)

As far as improvements, I can't think of anything offhand... but there's one idea that I had, but it might not be that great: each day have one writer's work highlighted for constructive critical discussion, where everyone chimes in and discusses it for improvements? Just a thought.

If we were to initiate a beta pairing system would you be interested in ( ... )

gilpin25 November 13 2006, 14:10:15 UTC

In the hope that answering this incredibly late is better than not answering at all...

From a personal POV, the deadline part was both scary and the perfect kick up the backside to make me get on and do the stories. The prompts were an excellent idea as they gave everyone a starting point - and your own prompts being unique neatly avoided that "I'm competing against you and everyone else with my story" feel. I also thought there was an encouraging and friendly attitude maintained throughout the Jumble, which made it very enjoyable, and for which the mods should take a bow.

Commenting on what's already been suggested; I love the "Include a character(s)" one, and the "Swap first sentences" around. You could even swap first paragraphs, several lines of dialogue, or plot outlines. The style one could be interesting, but I'm not sure it wouldn't be quite daunting if you made it "You must write this fic in first person." If you find you love a particular style, it's great; otherwise it's a right old slog with one you don't. Perhaps ( ... )