: constructive criticism
I wanted to thank those of you who have taken the time to read "Coffee-Stained Romance." For some of you, it's actually great to see you reading something I wrote. But what has really mattered to me are the comments I've gotten on it.
I posted it on blogger simply because I wasn't sure where the story was going and there just seemed to be something . . . a little off about it. Seeing similair comments from a number of people actually points out one of the problems.
A lot of, actually, has to do with transitioning from fanfiction to regular fiction. In fanfiction, there's a more speedy writing style, meaning details can often get glossed over in favor of wanting to the chapter on-line while the story is still "hot." With regular, I had in mind to slow down and explore the details a little more.
Looks like I've taken the "little more" to "a lot more." As in "too much."
The comments I've gotten have been awesome. Danny P actually sent me a completely edited version of the first chapter. There are a few things I could argue and certain things I won't be changing. But there are things in there that need to changed.
I should point out a few things off hand that I think need to be addressed:
1) The pop culture/comic book/political rants are in there for a reason. I think they're layered too thickly now that I've taken a few weeks off this story and have had the benefit of hindsight (and others looking at it as well). But they are in there for a reason that will come up later.
2) Todd and Kelly are somewhat based off Tricia and I. My goal was to try and pull from experience a lot in the beginning and then, as the story progresses, evolve the characters organically, taking them further and further away from us. Actually, one of the big reasons why they're so similair to us is that I simply needed a starting point. These characters have been in existence for over two years and I've been trying to find a way to bring 'em to life. I woke up one morning with that opening scene in my head and went to work. To keep it going, I injected stuff from my own life.
It's kinda funny to see what Dan and Steph think of this compared to someone from school that read this. She commented that "it's kinda funny to see you 'sprinkle' little bits of your life in there." Ha!
3) No one is based on anyone else. There maybe small references here and there, but Greg is not Danny P and the texting queen is not Stephy. David might have a little Kyle in him, but not much. Minor characters might show up and be similair to people I know, but if that happens, it won't be for a while.
But Kate Kaufman is soooo Dobbins.
So, yeah . . . keep up the good work, guys!
~W~
I wanted to thank those of you who have taken the time to read "Coffee-Stained Romance." For some of you, it's actually great to see you reading something I wrote. But what has really mattered to me are the comments I've gotten on it.
I posted it on blogger simply because I wasn't sure where the story was going and there just seemed to be something . . . a little off about it. Seeing similair comments from a number of people actually points out one of the problems.
A lot of, actually, has to do with transitioning from fanfiction to regular fiction. In fanfiction, there's a more speedy writing style, meaning details can often get glossed over in favor of wanting to the chapter on-line while the story is still "hot." With regular, I had in mind to slow down and explore the details a little more.
Looks like I've taken the "little more" to "a lot more." As in "too much."
The comments I've gotten have been awesome. Danny P actually sent me a completely edited version of the first chapter. There are a few things I could argue and certain things I won't be changing. But there are things in there that need to changed.
I should point out a few things off hand that I think need to be addressed:
1) The pop culture/comic book/political rants are in there for a reason. I think they're layered too thickly now that I've taken a few weeks off this story and have had the benefit of hindsight (and others looking at it as well). But they are in there for a reason that will come up later.
2) Todd and Kelly are somewhat based off Tricia and I. My goal was to try and pull from experience a lot in the beginning and then, as the story progresses, evolve the characters organically, taking them further and further away from us. Actually, one of the big reasons why they're so similair to us is that I simply needed a starting point. These characters have been in existence for over two years and I've been trying to find a way to bring 'em to life. I woke up one morning with that opening scene in my head and went to work. To keep it going, I injected stuff from my own life.
It's kinda funny to see what Dan and Steph think of this compared to someone from school that read this. She commented that "it's kinda funny to see you 'sprinkle' little bits of your life in there." Ha!
3) No one is based on anyone else. There maybe small references here and there, but Greg is not Danny P and the texting queen is not Stephy. David might have a little Kyle in him, but not much. Minor characters might show up and be similair to people I know, but if that happens, it won't be for a while.
But Kate Kaufman is soooo Dobbins.
So, yeah . . . keep up the good work, guys!
~W~