General Non-Comics Writing Discussion

[Emperor]

An unprovoked rant about fiction:

So much has been done with fiction. So many places and characters have been made up, sometimes as a struggling artist you get to wondering what the hell is there left to do anything with? How many more dragons can put the hurt on a knight trying to save something? What else can go wrong on a faraway planetary settlement? Can four women sitting around a cafe table set in NYC not end up sounding like one of a thousand scenes from Sex in the City? Maybe. Maybe not. You have a voice inside you. A way of telling things no one else can. Give 5 great authors the same damn plot outline to any classic tale of whatever and you know you'll get 5 great different stories back. Got an idea that you're worried is too similar to Grapes of Wrath? I say, Who cares? I say, Do it anyway. I say, If all the good shit's been used up, get the hell down on your knees and scrape up what's leftover and make something, anything, just don't give up and do nothing. If all you see is a literary wasteland, then write wasteland fiction. Hold nothing back.

http://scottstpierre.blogspot.com/2011/03/unprovoked-rant-about-fiction.html

[Emperor]

ROCKET SCIENCE is looking for original stories which realistically depict space travel and its hazards. The reader needs to know what it would be like to be there. This doesn’t mean stories must be set in interplanetary or interstellar space; but the technology and science involved must be present somewhere. It could be a story set in a spacecraft, on an asteroid or space station; or about a mission soon to leave Earth’s surface. It could be a first contact, a rescue against the odds, or a study of some unusual space phenomenon. Whatever suits. Don't be afraid to be literary.

But no space opera, definitely no space opera.

...

ROCKET SCIENCE will also feature relevant non-fiction – history, science, technology, perhaps a study of notable books / films / tv. Feel free to submit.

Reading period 1 Aug 2011 to 31 Oct 2011. Do not send before.

Word limit 6k. Payment GBP10.00 per 1k words. No reprints.

More:
www.mutationpress.com/rocketscience.html

[Emperor]

Future Lovecraft will open to submissions for short stories and poetry from May 1 to June 30, 2011. Do not send any submissions before this date. Yes, we mean it.

The anthology will be available in print and as an e-book, and is edited by the eldritch duo of Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Paula R. Stiles.

What We Want

Lovecraftian science fiction stories. ‘Lovecraftian’ can include Mythos elements, but we have a broader view of what Lovecraftian means. Interpret and distill it. Stories may be set in the near future or distant future. They may be cyberpunk, biopunk, space opera, dystopic, post-apocalyptic, or any other flavour of science fiction.

Surprise us with your visions of the future. Think beyond the borders of the usual settings (The United States seems to be the only place where spaceships land). Future Hong Kong. Post-apocalyptic Africa. The drowned coastlines of Australia in a warmer world. A city beneath the waves near Easter Island. India five thousand years from now. The distant spaceport of New Port-au-Prince. The Martian and Lunar colonies. Give us protagonists with diverse and interesting backgrounds. Give us women who can battle Nyarlathotep’s deadly soldiers with wit and bravado, not sacrificial space-maidens. Gives us the story of the little folk that are often forgotten, like the cook aboard the space vessel who discovers a terrible secret.

www.innsmouthfreepress.com/?p=11090

[Emperor]

On writers making themselves into brands:

www.nytimes.com/2011/05/01/books/review/how-writers-build-the-brand.html

[Emperor]

This is a guide to loglines (one sentence pitches) and it is a much better approach than "It is Trainspotting meets Planet of the Apes":

It’s simply not enough to develop truly memorable characters, slamming them into extraordinary situations, delivering an unforgettable story while seamlessly applying screenplay structure to maximize script form and a fast read … a literal page-turner. It’s simply not enough to hit all the major plot points, writing concise scenes, using visual action, and delivering dynamic dialogue while relentlessly moving the story forward, all while engaging and connecting with the audience, making them active participants in the overall experience. It’s simply not enough to write a really, really good script.

You also need to write a great premise (or logline): one sentence, 25 words. And this is no easy task.

             Just before elections, a spin-doctor and a Hollywood producer fabricate a war to cover up a presidential sex scandal. – Wag the Dog (19 words)
             Wow! Now that’s a premise. That’s a logline. Politics. Sex. Lies. War. Talk about conflict. Are you interested? You should be. Not only that, we have a clear idea of who our main protagonists are – at least by profession - and we have a pretty good sense that it’s a buddy picture and the sex (presidential) is clearly shadowed by the lies (war). Talk about the big stage… and all this is accomplished in only 19 words.

             When an asteroid is headed for Earth, an elite blue-collar deep-core drilling team is sent to nuke the rock and save the world from Armageddon. - Armageddon (25 words)
             Asteroid. Earth. Armageddon. Those three words alone sum it up: Summer Blockbuster Disaster Movie. But then we toss in the “blue-collar” element and we make them “elite”, solidifying that this crew is something we can all relate to regardless of our own social class. And then there’s the teaser of “nuke the rock” which equates to kick ass explosions. And with the main objective resting on the whether or not they can “save the world,” we know this movie is going to be the King Kong of the summer. Not bad for 25 words.

             A dysfunctional family takes a cross-country trip in their VW bus to get their seven-year-old daughter to the finals of a beauty pageant. - Little Miss Sunshine (23 words)
             Dysfunctional. Family. There’s the human factor – something every one of us was born into - so in a way, we’re already sold. And it’s a “cross country trip” so we understand this is a trip with destination scenario, and who doesn’t think being trapped in a VW bus for 1000 miles isn’t funny? But most importantly, we get the identification of the little girl – only seven – who has a real tangible dream, but clearly needs the help and support of her family in order to accomplish it. So despite the dysfunction, we already know that the trip in of itself will bring this family closer together, not to mention that the fact that their final destination centers on the controversial subject matter of child beauty pageants. That’s a lot for 23 words.

http://amazonstudios.tumblr.com/post/6757448682

[CrazyFoxMachine]

             When an asteroid is headed for Earth, an elite blue-collar deep-core drilling team is sent to nuke the rock and save the world from Armageddon. - Armageddon (25 words)

This is the worst sentence I've ever read in the English language

[TordelBack]

This is the worst sentence I've ever read in the English language

And as such is a succinct but very accurate representation of the film.

[IAMTHESYSTEM]

Hey we can logline the DREDD FILM.

Trapped inside a Dystopian Future Building an uncompromising Lawman and his Partner wage War against the Criminals responsible for the Lockdown.

21 words. Beat that Shakespear,Wilde, the bloke what wrote that play what he wrote.

[Emperor]

From the man who wrote "Slug Orgy" - Spunk, the sexpunk anthology and a call for stories (look away now if you are easily offended, or turned on):

I am looking for…

original, hard-hitting, fast, hyperviolent, sexual, x-rated fiction with strong characters and plot.

Think sex with aliens/robots/AIs, dogfights, street fights, fight bites, bite fights, virtual wars, tentacle sex, black holes, wormholes, shaved holes, intergalactic criminals, mad scientists, futanari/hermaphrodites, body mods, transhumans, vore, post-apocalyptic worlds, destruction, dystopia, gleaming towers, utopia, death, mayhem, insanity, computer viruses, hedonistic cults, retro-futures, flying cars, extrasolar planets, Mars, and perversion… for starters. Then mix it all together with whatever the hell the opposite of ‘political correctness’ is and the glitz and glam of the 80s (okay, that part is optional).

In other words… KNOCK ME ON MY ASS. NOTHING IS TOO ORIGINAL FOR THIS ANTHOLOGY. NOTHING IS TABOO (with the exception of Hate). I do not freak out over words or ideas. I cannot stress this enough. I don’t care what you submit as long as you don’t bore me.

http://sexpunk.tumblr.com/post/9232358678/the-sexpunk-spunk-anthology-submissions-open

[Proudhuff]

An inpiring tale from a former Tharg:

http://viciousimagery.blogspot.com/2011/08/my-incredibly-long-journey-to-writing.html

Its long but worth it! Oo-oer matron!

[Emperor]

An inpiring tale from a former Tharg:

http://viciousimagery.blogspot.com/2011/08/my-incredibly-long-journey-to-writing.html

Its long but worth it! Oo-oer matron!

I think one of the important things is you migth think you are ready for the next step up, but those on the inside have a better perspective on things and with hindsight you will tend to agree with them:

My 2006 try-out was competent at best. I was able to turn storylines into script efficiently enough, but lacked the boldness to transform the stories, make them my own, transmute base metal into golden dialogue and scintillating transitions.

Of course, there isn't really an easy way to find out when you are ready (friends and family will usually be nice about it), so all you can do is keep submitting and take on board any feedback from the knockbacks with good grace.

[Starkers]

That's a really good blog post, and probably something most people wanting to be writers should read. I think even the most realistic of aspiring writers probably don't have a clue just how long the process might take before they get any small measure of success, and how many rejections they'll get along the way. (sure as hell I didn't) and of course that rejections don't stop just because you've been published a few times! 

[Emperor]

David Bishop has collected his general writing tips into one post:

http://viciousimagery.blogspot.com/2011/12/its-nearly-2012-writers-get-your-freak.html

[Emperor]

For the younger writers out there:

The quest is on to find the JK Rowlings, Anthony Horowitzes and Roald Dahls of the future as the Guardian and publisher Hot Key Books launch a new writing prize looking for the next generation of children's fiction writers.

Hot Key Books, which will release its first titles this August, is on the hunt for two "passionate young writers" between the ages of 18 and 25, and will provide its winners with editorial support and the chance to be published. Contestants, who must be previously unpublished, can enter one of two categories in the competition: writing for pre-teens (nine to 12-year-olds), or for young adults (13 to 19-year-olds).

www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/apr/17/guardian-hot-keys-books-prize

[George Dread]

Up recently over at Ideas Tap. Liddle Comp for writer wannabes like meself. FAO Steven Berkoff. Subject: FUTURE!

http://www.ideastap.com/Opportunities/Brief/2087e5b9-a1ec-4cd8-b4f4-a04c00c69989#Overview