Having caught up with most of the replies to both the 50 word epics and the Criteria stories from yesterday
I was really impressed by all the entries. There are some very talented writers that post to b3ta. I'm particularly glad that now we've got the Off Topic board more people are posting stuff that would normally never see the light of day.

I've got further ideas for other writing games to keep everyone entertained and looking as if they're really working.

I had a go at the first suggestion for a story made by Bert yesterday - I only got about 400 words in and it's a first draft. I intend to go back to this and write some more for it although in all honesty I haven't decided yet quite what it is that I'm writing here but that's the fun of writing for me.

Anyway, it's in the reply.
( chickenlady b3ta's very own Elizabeth Taylor, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 14:17, 9 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

#1 Draft
“That’s the last time I’m having a fancy dress hen party Zeb.”

“Yeah, I agree. The next one should be formal. White tie, prom dresses, the lot. I’d look good in a prom dress, I’ve got the figure for it but I think my beard would have to go for me to carry it off.”

“Has your phone got any charge or credit left? Mine’s flat. And have you got any idea where the fuck we are?”

“Max, calm down, my phone is fully charged and I’ll have us back in London before teatime. They’ll be able to put the flag back up at Buck House then.”

“Oh. Ha. Ha. Ha. At least dressed as the Queen I only look like an O.A.P. with a crown and not an extra from an S & M film. When did you take the nipple clamps off?”

“I don’t remember. I think maybe I put them on that cute barman in the last place we were in.”

“It’s raining now. Come on we’d better find that Travelodge you booked.”

“No. You booked it. Shit. We’re not booked in anywhere are we? Stuck in fucking Scarborough the week of some political party conference and no room for the night. I know, we’ll go and find that cute barman – it might cost us a blow job or more if I’m lucky.”

“Us? Us? I’m not giving some stranger a blow job! I’m engaged! I’m nearly married. I’m not going to be unfaithful. You’re the one that got us into this mess. You’d better get us out. Ring one of the others – maybe we can kip on the floor of their Travelodge rooms.”

“Yeah. Maybe. I’d like to find the barman first. We were having a really interesting conversation.”

“About football or man bags? Or….I know! Your other favourite topic of conversation – the entire Harry Potter series! Were you discussing Fanfic? I bet you were talking about the clear homoerotic overtones of Harry and whatshisname the ginger one played by Rupert or Robert Grint.”

“Ron Weasley”

“That’s it. My feet ache. Please phone someone. I want to go to bed. I want to take off this sensible twin set and pearls. I want to stop looking like the bloody Queen. You’re the only bloody queen around here. Let me go to bed.”
( chickenlady b3ta's very own Elizabeth Taylor, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 14:19, Reply)

Just
pure fucking YAY!!!
( Bert Monkeysex is waiting for the mods to delete him, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 14:22, Reply)

This is going to be fun!
I like this - very immediate, great sense of time and place. I might have to have a go at one of these myself - I like having a topic or parameters to follow, what I can't do (well, haven't really tried properly yet) is to just write. Guess I should make a plan perhaps.

If I was being picky [cries of "Surely not you Che"] I'd leave out more, let it build the picture without all of the clues.

Looking forward to draft #2.
(Che Grimsdale Best before:, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 14:40, Reply)

That was ace.
Can't wait to read the rest.
( girlinthehole, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 14:45, Reply)

@ Che
I agree entirely - there are far, far too many clues in there...but most of them are there because I need them in the first draft - I haven't decided yet what this story is about. Once I've worked out what the tale is then I can go back and take out all the obvious 'telling' and just leave the 'showing' and hints.

I also added in an extra parameter for me - conversation only. I did that mainly because writing conversation is hard - it looks easy because we all talk all the time, but in order for conversation to appear in a story it has to do three things at once - advance the plot, tell you about the speaker and tell you about something else.

At the moment this draft is very flabby, far too many needless words.
( chickenlady b3ta's very own Elizabeth Taylor, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 14:48, Reply)

There's nothing wrong with a flabby draft.
Doing a bit of writing on here has been fun. I can't seem to find the muse to start drawing again and this has been a nice way to do something creative.
( girlinthehole, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 14:56, Reply)

Absolutely!
Loads of flab on the first go is far better than never writing (or drawing) anything because you're too frightened of the inner critic.

And it's not until you've got something on the page that you can really begin to work out what your work is actually about.

I'm writing bits of the story at the moment but still haven't decided in what direction the plot may go...right now I've just set up Zeb with the barman...so there's definitely the scope for a gay sex scene.

Hmm...nipple clamps ;)
( chickenlady b3ta's very own Elizabeth Taylor, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 15:09, Reply)

I'm not a musician
But I've made art and I write and in my opinion all three of these are the same inasmuch as plenty of people think they're easy to do...and they are.

But it's not just a matter of sitting down and knocking something up in half an hour and it's finished. It's all the redrafting - whether that's with writing, making art or music - it's all that time you spend making considered and informed choices about how you craft it into something worth sharing.

And I guess that's the difference between someone who dabbles in any creative form and someone who is a true amateur or professional (and I'm using the original definition of amateur here - Lover of).



Bloody hell I do procrastinate.
( chickenlady b3ta's very own Elizabeth Taylor, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 15:24, Reply)

Yes, that's what it is Al
An inherent love.


Also known as procrastination.

;)
( chickenlady b3ta's very own Elizabeth Taylor, Tue 29 Jul 2008, 18:13, Reply)