Therapy for Fanfic writers by PonyXpressInc

BLUE SUN ROOM

Therapy for Fanfic writers

POSTED BY: PONYXPRESSINC
UPDATED: Wednesday, May 3, 2006 22:15
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VIEWED: 2765
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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 12:39 AM

Is it just me or does anybody else out there:-

1. Get an idea and then wander around like a dog with an itch it can't scratch for a week cos you don't know where to start.
2. Spend ages wrting something, read it thorugh ten times, fiddle and polish it, get you husband/wife/significant other/friend to read it and then stand watching them read with your knuckles white round a cup of tea/coffee/beer/vodka/liquid valium in case they don't laugh in the right places/look confused/scream this is sh@t and run from the room.
3. Finish a episode at gone midnight when you know you have to get up early in the morning, post it, then read it back quickly in the morning and with the clear hyper critical writers morning vision realise that you should have/ gone to bed early and left it for another day/ taken up stamp collecting instead.
4. Look at it again after work and find you can be a bit kinder to yourself, but not much.
5.Treasure every review like a nobel prize.
6. Feel guilty cos you ourght to post more reviews yourself.

I could go on but someone would be sending the NHS equivalent of hands of blue, two by two to get me.

Someone out there tell me all your fanfic writting woes, make me feel better.

Pony

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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 12:50 AM

EMMARIGBY

You know me! You really know me!!

I've actually been banned from the room whilst my friends/ family read anything I write. Apparently the insane hovering is a bit distracting!!

My current problem is that I'm betaing for two people over at Fanfic.net. One of them is so brilliant that I just weep whenever I read her stuff, 'cos goddammit why can't I write like that!! I then loose all motivation for writing for several days.

The other guy is ... well, to put it kindly he needs a bit of work.

It makes my brain ache trying to think of ways to help that won't cause offense (the tortured grammar doesn't help any!). On the plus side, I usually feel better about my own writing afterwards! 'aint I a stinker!)

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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 12:57 AM

PURPLEPEBBLE

Yes yes yes i do all of that, including having a beta whos work is so amazing it makes me want to cry, and after having read her work i cant even look at mine.
I also stay up till 4 in the morning re writting one scene over and over so many times, that by the time i finally fall into bed, i havnt got a clue what i wanted the scene to do it the first place.

Oh the woes of a fanfiction writer!

Its nice to see others are right there with me.
Not that i would wish this stuff on anyone.

~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~
"Why did you leave?".... "Why didn't you ask me not too?"

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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 1:12 AM

EMMARIGBY

Quote:
Originally posted by PurplePebble:
I also stay up till 4 in the morning re writting one scene over and over so many times, that by the time i finally fall into bed, i havnt got a clue what i wanted the scene to do it the first place.

Oh the woes of a fanfiction writer!

Its nice to see others are right there with me.
Not that i would wish this stuff on anyone.

Giggle! I feel your pain! I have a friend who often looks up from my writing with a puzzled expression and says "What did you actually want to say here?"
I then go onto explain my original thoughts to him, to which the response is always "Well, why didn't you just say that?"

I have now internalised him and use this phrase whenever I get over-flowery or vear wildly from the plot-line!

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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 1:16 AM

PURPLEPEBBLE

Quote:

"Well, why didn't you just say that?"

So simple, so obviouse, i have to remember that one!

~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~x~
"Why did you leave?".... "Why didn't you ask me not too?"

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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 2:30 AM

PONYXPRESSINC

Thank you! It's lonely out in the black and it's good to know that I'm not the only one going batsh@t out here!

"My current problem is that I'm betaing for two people over at Fanfic.net. One of them is so brilliant that I just weep whenever I read her stuff, 'cos goddammit why can't I write like that!! I then loose all motivation for writing for several days."

I've hit that wall, I've been so rapped up in writing lately that I wasn't reading much fic, but I've reached a point where I need a rest; so I started to read again, it has not been good for my ego! :-p

"The other guy is ... well, to put it kindly he needs a bit of work. It makes my brain ache trying to think of ways to help that won't cause offense (the tortured grammar doesn't help any!)."

Both you and your writer have my sympathy, my school seemed to teach grammar as an optional extra so I struggle a lot.

I will be nosing around for your fic and I promise to write a review.:-)

By the way, can anybody trell me how to use the emoticons?

Pony

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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 2:30 AM

PONYXPRESSINC

Whoops, posted twice by accident!

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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 2:40 AM

ZISKER

Well, as the only alternative to writing is to scoop out your heart and chop off your fingers, I guess we'll just have to put up with the agony, eh?

I usually send my stuff to a buddy via email, and while he's beta-ing IM him every .4129 seconds to see if he's done. He's a saint to put up with me . . .

One day.
One plan.
One army of Browncoats.

On June 23rd, we aim to misbehave.
http://www.serenityday.org/

Little or no free time, but want to help?
Help Spread the Signal: http://www.geocities.com/browncoatsignalcorps

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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 2:56 AM

EMMARIGBY

I thoroughly recommend searching for a really awful story to read to help get you writing again. It may sound mean but thinking to yourself 'At least I'm not that bad!' has always made me feel better!

Look for the ones on fanfiction.net that don't have many reviews, there's often a reason!

I had a major boost to my ego recently when my very first post to this site, at the thread http://www.fireflyfans.net/thread.asp?b=12&t=19673
I asked if anyone could recommend any good crossovers and Xeyra suggested the one I'm currently writing! Completely unprovoked, I didn't have to bribe her or anything!!
I was jumping round the room in glee for days!

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Wednesday, May 3, 2006 10:15 PM

EMMARIGBY

Thanks for all your lovely reviews and advice Pony!

(By the way, took me ages to work out the emoticons! Turns out you just have to copy the word and the colons from the side!)

I got the fanfic bug bad! I just found myself obbsessively refreshing the Blue Sun room screen to scroll through the featured quotes looking for a story I'd read (OK, OK I admit it! I was looking for one of mine!) I feel some therapy might definately be in order!

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