Criticism is starting to trickle in, for more than just The Paladin actually, and I think it might be prudent to share my thoughts on it. I think that just about every writer has those moments where they think "Oh, jeez, I suck." And that's before people every set eyes on their work. Well, I'm having a few new betas looking over my novel and I did little one-shot table-top session with some friends that required a lot of research and writing. Both have been some good sources of constructive criticism.
I'd like that think that all writers are a little fragile when it comes to their work. If it wasn't for Jenna Moreci's tips and advice, I'd still be digging my toe in the dirt and avoiding eye contact while muttering, "Oh, yeah... I wrote a book. It's not that good." But you have to be proud of your work and that can help get you through the criticisms of beta readers and critiques. I also got some good critiques on the play sessions I mentioned earlier. I've been played with the Extraordinary League rules that Dan Mulkerin adapted from the out-of-print Marvel Superhero System. I utilized it this weekend to play a game of "Where in the Multiverse is Carmen Sandiego." My group had fun, but the main advice was that perhaps something like this isn't suited for a one-shot. It needs a full arc to breathe, to allow players to do investigating and otherwise enjoy the full potential. Still... had lots of fun! Should be back to regular posts tomorrow. In the meantime, remember... Be Excellent to Each Other.
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I may have talked talked about this before, but I think there are a bunch of good games that can really help a writer with their creativity. I stumbled into one just today thanks to some friends of mine.
This is particular game is called “Channel A,” and it plays like a lot of modern group card games. It’s an anime pitch game. In it one player acts as the producers. They draw five theme cards, pick two and ask the players to pitch a show in that genre. Perhaps it’s “space epic” and “host club.” The other players have title cards, each one a word that they can add together to make a full title. Perhaps a player puts together three cards to make the title “Super Cosmic Love.” Now, based on that title, they have to pitch the concept of their show to the producer. The producer then picks the one they like best. It really strains one’s creativity. Each one is like a mini writing prompt. You have seconds to piece together a title that somewhat approaches the genres you’re given, then you have to flesh out that idea enough to impress a judge. Then do it all again. Writing prompt after writing prompt. I found it quite fun, to be honest. And, not to brag, I won it quite handily. I highly recommend this and other games like it to authors and writers out there. Challenge your brain a little and have some fun. Check out Channel A here. Unfortunately the game is out of print, but I’m told the PDF of the cards is available for free online. Be excellent to each other. Your main story is important. Obviously it’s the most important part or you wouldn’t have a story! But no man is an island. No one exists within a vacuum. So it’s important to never neglect your B plot.
What’s a B plot I hear you say. I hope heard that, or I’m going nuts. Either way, it’s a secondary plot. While your character is on an adventure to save their village from an evil dragon, other stuff happens, too. Perhaps the rogue they met along the way has family issues and has to work something out with her father. There’s a story there, too. It supports and informs her actions and interactions with your protagonist, so it’s important to think about. Romantic subplots are the most common kind of B plot, but don’t limit your yourself. If a character can grow and change, it’s a plot! DFTBA Mawwaige. Mawwaige is what bwings is together today.
So today’s wedding brings to mind thoughts of romance in fiction. Sometimes it feels like a necessity, like the romantic subplot is mandatory. At the very least, it seems like audiences have come to expect it. So so what do you do? I’ve always felt that romances aren’t necessary. When they come in, it needs to be natural. I feel like too often they’re shoveled in and it’s done to fill a quota. But you know, when it’s done right, like my friends Paloma and Bryce, it’s a beautiful thing. Okay, so writing advice. Remember that friendship and love are intertwined. If you can’t imagine the couple you’re ready AFTER the wedding, you’re putting them together for the wrong reasons. Make sure you can see them doing the day to day, mundane things, because while grand gestures are fine, marriages are built on the everyday things. DFTBA Just as a note, I'm headed out of town for a wedding, so for the next few days my blog posts are going to be a bit shorter. Should be back to snuff by Monday though. On with the post... Stay with me on this one guys. I realize that I'm writing Urban Fantasy. Vampires, werewolves, ghosts, demons, witches... all that jazz. I realize that there's a lot of occult references, religious iconography, spells, possessions, blood... just a lot of dark and mystical stuff. So I really need you to stay with me when I tell you that this week, I'm sharing the theme song of WWE Superstar Zack Ryder, Radio. Now, if you're not one of my beta readers, you may question how the hell this song can inspire me to write about anything having to do with The Paladin. Well, I could use this as a chance to remind everyone that I AM indeed looking for more beta readers and if you become one, this song will make a lot more sense.... but I don't think that's going to do here. Okay... I have a character. He's a hunter. And... well... without giving too much away, let's just say this song totally hypes me for him. I do have to specify here, though. I couldn't find an official version of the song that I like. WWE's official music chanel only has Zack Ryder's latest theme, which, while the words are the same, the entire feel is different. No, it has to be this older version of Radio to get the proper feel for writing my character. It's laid back... it's arrogant... it's a little dude-bro... okay a LOT dude-bro, but still. That's what I need to get this character going. And maybe this song isn't going to get you going, but be honest: you're curious about my character now, aren't you? Don't Forget to be Awesome. Warning: The following blog post contains spoilers for the video game Omensight. If you interested in this title, I have full reviews both here on the site as well as on DLH.net.
Ah, storytelling. You know, I haven't thought about it a lot, but I've really attempted to do storytelling in a lot of different ways. I know I've obviously talked about The Paladin and the short stories I have here on the site, and I've even talked a little bit about my dabbling with Pro Wrestling (the finest form of theater and I will go to my grave insisting that.) But I've messed with a few other things.
Beyond straight up stories, I've written a couple of screen plays. Nothing amazing, but it was what I intended to do with my degree. I'll likely fold the ideas from both of those into The Paladin world. Had some good ideas, which I won't share here, but I might include in short stories or, heck, maybe in my next novel. I've talked a little bit about the Table Top RPG stuff I've been doing, which is very time consuming. Seriously, if you've played but never DM'd a session, go buy your DM a soda or something. I'm preparing for a one-shot, a single go that isn't likely to go into a longer story, and I already have 18 pages of notes. 18 pages! And frankly, I feel like I'm under-prepared. My hat is off to DMs that do this stuff weekly and manage to keep things fresh and exciting for their players. Lastly, I've even tried to mess with video games. I think this is where I overextended myself. Of course I've played with RPG Maker (I actually used RPG Maker to create my English final for my Junior year. My prof was strangely impressed) but I also have some legit gamemaker tools, too. Steam had a sale, what can I say? I'll be honest, I'm not very good at programming. I watched a lot videos, did the programming tutorials, and... I can make a brick and ball game. Yeah. I know, pretty badass. My game is like Arkanoid, but way cooler. Point is, I really wanted to do a long RPG so I can tell an epic story, but that's really unlikely to happen anytime soon. So, I've messed with lots of ways to tell stories, and I guess the normal, standard method of writing it down as a story will have to suffice for the time being. Though, the idea of The Paladin video game does still float in the ether of my imagination. DFTBA Gotta be honest, I'm a little torn today. I watched Solo the other day and I actually liked it. I'm not saying it's going to win any Oscars or anything, but it functioned as a movie. No glaring plotholes or terrible inconsistencies. Normally I'm not in the business of reviewing movies (though maybe I should?) but I spent today chatting about L3.
I don't really want to get into it because I don't want give away any spoilers, but suffice it to say I found myself analyzing, rationalizing, and defending character choices made by the character. If you haven't heard, there's a bit of controversy surrounding the character, because of course there is. Star Wars can't put out a movie without someone getting offended, and this one is no different. Obviously, I don't want to take any sides, but I actually kinda liked the character. Hate her name, but I like the character. That got me thinking. Should I talk more about controversial issues here? Or as a friend of my calls them "controver-versial." Supposedly that means controversies that are vapid and not worth acknowledging, but I still maintain that he just stuttered and won't admit it. Point is, would there be in value on weighing in on issues that have the media and social media hot... for like a week? Then everyone forgets/stops caring about it? Eh... maybe. I have no shortage of opinions, but at the moment I'm convinced there's enough opinion givers out there. Opiners, if you will. Such as my good friends over at Smash Fiction! They'll opine for days on any nerdy and shallow topic you wish. It's kinda their specialty. And if you act now, you can check out my guest appearance on their show where I defend Roland Deschain against Vash the Stampede! But enough cheap plugs. I guess I'm not one to want to impress my opinion on others. I certainly have them, but I'm more interested, I feel, in hearing others' opinions. Must be the journalist in me. So, why not share yours? Tell me what you thought about Solo? Or, if you haven't watched it, why not? Until next time, DFTBA. What is it with research? High school and college taught me that research is boring and time consuming. I hated it. I actively put it off when it came to doing papers and projects. Can't use Wikipedia. I'm dating myself a bit, but for several of those projects, it was hard copies of books only.
And yet, here I sit, having researched all last night and all day today. And I'm freakin' stoked! It has to be the subject matter. I suppose watching mini-documentaries on the demonic creatures of the Torah and the Gospel of Judas are more interesting to me than the Industrial Revolution. Although, to be fair, for my Wolves and Wild Roses short story I did a fair amount of research on Theodore Roosevelt and one of his Rough Riders. I guess it's just motivation. I had better things to do in high school than read up about the 3/4 Compromise, but as a writer plying his craft, I'm nuts about how good ol' T.R. responded to accusations of being a drunkard. And, let's face it, some of the stuff I'm researching, like that idea that ancient Jewish sects revered God as a being with a wife named Ashara, are just freakin' interesting. It's stuff I would never have learned in school. Nothing my leaders or mentors would have ever brought up. And it's certainly not stuff that pops up frequently on television. Freedom to learn as you will, I think, is an amazing motivator to search out new knowledge. I think Eddie Izzard actually did a bit on that. He hated school, but can't get enough of documentaries as an adult. Has this happened to any of you? Anyone out there just love digging into knew and often pointless information now that there's no pressure? DFTBA I've had this unofficial playlist waiting for me on YouTube, hidden within the bowels of my "Watch Later" list. I'm sure you have videos like this. Something that looks intriguing, but you're not ready to watch it quite yet. Maybe you had to go to class or work, but you were definitely, totally going watch it later. Maybe it's something important, something you need to know that's boring. Well, for me, the day has finally arrived to break that seventh seal and look at a bunch of videos I've been putting off watching. It's time to watch the book marketing videos.
Jenna Moreci and several other great writers/editors (Kim Chance and iWriterly come to mind) have fantastic channels with writing advice that I consume regularly. They also have specific videos that I'm only now beginning to watch. Its... strange and more than a little intimidating. There are so many things I have to start doing now or very soon that I'm getting a little overwhelmed. Jenna Moreci talked about Storiad as a platform, Kim Chance has talked about using Scrivener, which I have and intended to use for my next manuscript, and there's just so much more. Every video I watch, every service I either scope out or sign up for, every agent I research, tells me I'm nearing that moment. In fact, according to an AMA I recently saw on Reddit, I might actually be ready to submit to my first few agents now. And that's kind of terrifying. DFTBA |
Matias TautimezKeep your eyes open for my debut novel, The Paladin. Archives
January 2023
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