Protect the flock! From JP and Hachette!

What are you doing right now?

Besides posting on here and replying to this thread. Original credit for this goes back to Fate and Nathan on MX.

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Permalink Reply by EndOfTheEarth on December 7, 2011 at 3:56am

Thought you guys might like to hear about this.

So today was the last day of my popular genre fiction class, and for some time the professor and I had been talking about genre and the publishing world after class. Finally, right before leaving, she asked me how it was that I was so genre and writing-mechanics savvy.

My reply went like this:

"Well, as a kid I did a lot of free writing and a huge ammount of reading, probably more than is socially healthy.

"But I think the biggest part is that a few years back I joined a website discussing one of Patterson's young adult works. Granted, we both know that Patterson isn't the best writer, but the ability to discuss this was huge, and as a result the group of us gradually learned over time to analyze and critique writing in more and more detailed and professional ways."

The professor was enthralled by the idea, said she only wished that there were such things when she was my age, and much to my general amusement made the Antis and Sanes out to be a group of budding literary geniuses of the likes we see in movies and books. Remember, this isn't some lousy Hachette mod or teen squee, but a credentialed university English-class professor saying that all of this; all the criticism, the nit-picking, the crazy ideas and comedic speculation, it's all worth it.

I agree with her on every level; we as a group are the future of writing, and what we've done together so far is something truly great--I still feel like some day, decades from now, all of this will be its own story.

So thanks again, guys and girls, for being awesome.

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Permalink Reply by Omega on December 7, 2011 at 8:34am

I once explained to my (60-something) english teacher what fanfiction was.

We actually had a creative writing assignment, which was effectively a "write a continuation/sequel oneshot of a book you've read in class this year".

Anyway, the teacher admitted that he'd done something similar when he was a teenager, writing alternate endings (usually) to his favourite books, or continuing stories of his favourite characters.

I told him about fanfiction.net. About how the Harry Potter fandom (then) had 400,000 stories alone, how the site had a couple of million, and how, this was only one archive.

He was completely astonished by it.

The idea that anyone could /publish/ what their own version of the story was, on the internet, and thus make it available to thousands of people, who could then review, critique, or remix as they saw fit. That any work at all could spawn not just the discussion and analysis of the work itself, but also generate derivative work which could itself be discussed and analysed.

He amazed by the fact that people wrote individual stories /longer/ than novels could be, because they were not constrained to a print word count. That series' could be millions of words long.

Certainly different from when he was young, writing little things in a notebook, and maybe passing it to his siblings/close friends.

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Permalink Reply by EndOfTheEarth on December 7, 2011 at 8:56am

writing little things in a notebook, and maybe passing it to his siblings/close friends.

Hey, that's how I used to do it, but I'm not so much impressed. Higher expectations maybe?

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Permalink Reply by nathan_p on December 7, 2011 at 12:49pm

Aww :3 Well that warms my black little heart.

Regarding wordcount, I spent 140 000 words on one piece. That's more than Return of the King, three times The Great Gatsby, 1984 twice.

I'm not sure whether I should shoot myself or buy myself a drink: is that a colossal waste of time, or what?

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Permalink Reply by EndOfTheEarth on December 7, 2011 at 8:13am

The silly questions things gaining popularity on MDW:

"9. If I could fly, I would ____________________"

My answer.
9) Sell myself to militaries and photography agencies for extortionate prices for four or five years, then retire. Maybe get myself a giant yacht.

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Permalink Reply by Contradiction on December 7, 2011 at 10:21am

It's kind of weird when your middle school Gifted-and-Talented teacher adds you on Facebook. It's even weirder when you didn't especially like her.

And it's just fucking annoying when she sends you a personal message and then signs off with the official "Dr." preceding her name despite the fact that 1)she's not your doctor and 2)she didn't even have a goddamn doctorate when she knew you.