October Creative Projects

[Joshkdmw]

Originally Posted by Ink Asylum

That's an amusing thought. I'd love to hear about agents and publishers as they prepare for the upcoming torrent of poorly written and unedited manuscripts.

It's probably not so bad. Most publishers simply won't accept unsolicited manuscripts, and agents typically have under-readers to leaf through and see if something even has a rough potential. But I bet a lot of friends and family of aspiring writers are gritting their teeth and lubing their... thumbs, to flip pages with.

Myself, I have only ever asked a friend once to give something a read, and it was an excerpt from a short story. Friends make terrible critics, generally speaking, because they want you to succeed, and the chances you have a friend who is able to effectively criticize a work to the point you have some workable feedback is pretty goddamn slim. I love my mom, but she is singularly unqualified to assess whether or not something I've written is sellable. I leave my criticisms for people who are either educated in literature or know the business of literature.

It's like when a photographer must hear about a first-year university student who bought their first digital SLR and takes all black-and-white shots of inconsequential shit in an attempt to seem poignant, when really you just took pictures of a lawn chair. Yes, it's photography. And yes, unsolicited, unedited manuscripts are pieces of writing. It's a matter of polish and intent.

That said, anyone who wants to write should, and try to get published even if it's terrible. Helps my chances of looking better by comparison.

[Xerxes]

Originally Posted by Crittias

Getting ready for NaNoWriMo 2012.

Should be doing this. Been thinking about Always Sunny in Philly though. Out of nowhere I convinced myself I could write one of those bringingback one of my favorite characters, Pepper Jack.

Really need to focus on NaNoWriMo though. I can do it. >_<

[evilgoodwin]

Oh, Pepper Jack LOVE Fraggle Rock!

[J Arcane]

Pepper Jack is the first thing I have seen from that show that was actually funny.

[Reverant]

It was recommended to me that I submit one of my stories to the Carolina Quarterly, a literary journal published at UNC. I held off doing it for some months because I'm uncomfortable with it being published in today's political climate, but I decided to give it a go today. I guess we'll see if they pick up next year.

Alternatively, if I vanish one day, it may mean someone saw my story and didn't like what I had to say

[Crittias]

Originally Posted by Ink Asylum

That's an amusing thought. I'd love to hear about agents and publishers as they prepare for the upcoming torrent of poorly written and unedited manuscripts.

1. Arrived in December? Check.
2. 50,361 words? Check.
3. Throw in trash. Check.

[Reverant]

Originally Posted by Crittias

1. Arrived in December? Check.
2. 50,361 words? Check.
3. Throw in trash. Check.

Remind me to never submit a 50k word manuscript in December!

[Crittias]

Originally Posted by Reverant

Remind me to never submit a 50k word manuscript in December!

I'm not joking. I'm positive it's a death knell.

[Xerxes]

If you properly rewrote and edited it, shouldn't be ready for submission in December.

Sent from my cm_tenderloin using Tapatalk 2

[Reverant]

Originally Posted by Xerxes

If you properly rewrote and edited it, shouldn't be ready for submission in December.

Sent from my cm_tenderloin using Tapatalk 2

I meant even if I didn't participate in nano . Seems sensible to wait for a time when they're not expecting an inundation of refuse.

[Xerxes]

Originally Posted by Reverant

I meant even if I didn't participate in nano . Seems sensible to wait for a time when they're not expecting an inundation of refuse.

Well top 50k by a good margin and you'll look more legit.

[Reverant]

There are tons of great books that are that length and even shorter! I guess it depends on your genre, though. 50k words of vampire fiction is probably an alarm bell, whereas 50k words about an unmarried black mother struggling to make ends meet in depression-era Mississippi could be more than enough.

[Dorkandproudofit]

Improv writing is always fun. Remember, I'm writing this as I am posting it, no preparation beforehand, no first draft, etc., so please forgive any flaws.

--------------------
SECRETS
--------------------

There was always something odd about Daryl Reed. As the janitor at the local school, he was a regular sight; his thin frame and wispy hair were the subject of much talk and ridicule among the children, who called him "Skeleton Man". To everyone else, though, he was little more than a kind, though timid octogenarian; it was only recently, towards the sudden end of his life, that his character changed dramatically, and even the faculty took notice of his manner and strange habits.

It began with the announcement of his impending retirement; the children were tasked with writing farewell letters to the old man, which were gathered up and presented to him in a small ceremony just before the last bell. By all means, the children showed kindness in their letters (if only because of their teachers' admonitions), many of which were adorned with crayon drawings and messages such as, "We'll Miss You" and "We Love You". The last one, however, was visibly different; written on plain white paper folded greeting-card style, it had no markings on the outside, and whatever message there was appeared to shake Reed to his core. His voice gave out upon seeing what was written, and the note was quietly passed around between members of the staff, none of whom could recognize the script, let alone understand the meaning of the text, which contained only three words:

"I LIKED YOU"

After a few minutes of whispers, during which Reed said nothing, the bell rang and the children were rushed to the buses.

Those who recall the following week noted that Reed never calmed down from that event--he would look over his shoulder, or his eyes would dart suspiciously, or he would shy away from the children more than usual, to the point where the faculty became worried about his mental condition. One day, though, the growing fear displayed by the old janitor turned into abject terror; just before the last bell, he was found standing in the middle of the hallway, shaking uncontrollably, holding a note written on plain white paper, bearing the same handwriting, now only bearing one word:

"SOON"

When asked about the note, and its relation to the previous one, Reed refused to answer, and left for home.


That night, the couple living in the apartment below Reed's heard screaming coming from upstairs, which were immediately cut off, as if by choking. Racing up the stairs, they found Reed's door locked from within, and hurried to the building manager for the spare key. Upon unlocking it, they found a horrid scene: in the center of the room lay the body of Daryl Reed, staring lifelessly up at the ceiling, a look of horror fixed on his face. Upon examination of the body, two hand-marks were found on his neck, as though someone had choked the life out of him. The prints were small, as though made by a child.

This would have been the end of the story, if not for a discovery following a fire in the school over Christmas break. Though no casualties among the students or faculty were reported, the remains of a small child were found in the burned-out husk of the janitor's closet.

--------------------

What do you guys think?

[Joshkdmw]

Not too shabby. Hell, I thought it was kinda neat! Short and spooky, with a little disquiet thrown in.

All in all, a good read.

[Reverant]

Very nice.

In my high school, there was a creepy old janitor named Horace. He may have either been demented or mentally challenged from the get go, I don't know. What I did know was that most girls I met mentioned him putting his hand on their arm or shoulder at least once, and no one wanted to get near him when they were alone.

[Reverant]

Oh! The War Z thread gave me another idea. In the game, you'll be able to leave notes for other players to find. I want to write a series of poems (or rather, one long one chopped into bits) and then scatter them throughout the world.

[MagGnome]

Nice story, Dork! It gave me the creeps, and reminded me of the short horror stories I was very fond of as a kid.

[MagGnome]

Originally Posted by Reverant

Very nice.

In my high school, there was a creepy old janitor named Horace. He may have either been demented or mentally challenged from the get go, I don't know. What I did know was that most girls I met mentioned him putting his hand on their arm or shoulder at least once, and no one wanted to get near him when they were alone.

I had an English teacher my junior year of high school who would walk around the classroom and give male students shoulder rubs while we were working on assignments. He always gave me the willies.

The irony is that this teacher basically disowned his son when he (the son) came out of the closet.

[Bone]

Dork, I liked it! Like Mags, it reminded me of the very short horror story collections I used to read.