Writing Stories

[Kortpeel]

Just a few thoughts ….

Some of the stories on this board are brilliant: they come from a good original idea, are written in good English and are well told.

Not all of the stories are that good. Not everyone has mastered the grammar, spelling and punctuation of our language or even the word processor. It's the writers of these stories that I want to encourage.

I'll wager that every single story ever posted on this board represents several hours of work by somebody. That is somebody who's gone to the trouble to turn an idea or even just a feeling into words and to share it with the rest of us.

It takes a lot of effort to take an idea and turn it into a story. It can take hard, concentrated, sometimes painful thought to come up with a sentence that conveys the sense that you want to express. When you've finished a story it can even take courage to post it and expose it to the gaze of our friends on this board.

It is actually a skill to take an idea or feeling that exists in your mind and convey it to others in words. Like any other skill, the longer you work at it the better you get. And like, say, being able to drive a car, it is a very worthwhile skill to have. You'll be a better person and have a fuller life for having mastered it.

As far as this particular board is concerned, for the most part erotic stories are popular and a very specialised form of erotica at that. However there are so many aspects to castration and related topics that writing for this board is not a limitation. Any story that can encapsulate whatever it is about castration that arouses the reader will be well received.

So all of you writers and would-be writers keep on trying. Use your interest in castration to master your own (or your second) language. You know you enjoy it. And quite a few other people will enjoy it with you.

Here endeth the lesson.

Kortpeel

[colin]

Kortpeel,

I would re-iterate what you have said with one addition: - Please put lines of space between paragraphs.

Very often when one looks at a new writer's story it is presented in a solid block of text, sometimes without punctuation. This is very difficult to read and, I am sure, that a lot of people give up.

As an author, you know when you have completed one unit and are starting the next. When you do, if you are not sure of what punctuation is required, don't bother, just hit the return a couple of times - you will be amazed at what an improvement this can make.

For those of you who post, many, many thanks.


LOL

[Jesus]

Just to add my two cents….

Practice may not make perfect, but it certainly helps. There are several excellent writers now producing for the Archive who began with good storytelling skills, but unable to write grammatically or with standard spelling. Through the production of several stories (and with gentle feedback from readers) their writing ability has improved to match the quality of their plots (which has also generally improved with practice) and the strength of their character development. (I won’t name names, but if you go back through some of the early stories in the Archive, you will be amazed at the improvement shown by some our now recognized best!)

If you have a story idea, try it out on us. Almost all of us will be kind and helpful. Ignore any who try to flame you. They are generally ones who have no idea what it is like to try to produce a short story.

[Paolo]

Well spoken, folks. Encouragement to writers is always a good thing, and hopefully other members won't be so shy now as not to post! Thanks.

[Master Waddie]

Wonderul encouragement by Kortpeel. I have read some remarkable stories on this board that were not terribly well written. Hopefully, the author had enough fun posting that they want to write more and will strive for better
grammer, spelling and format.

Here is a wonderful site that gives you a breakdown of the most common gramatical errors. Being dyslexic and never having written more than personal checks I found it a wealth of help. It's funny and gives you ways to remember small spelling errors like 'desert' instead of 'dessert' (dessert makes you fat and it's fat with s's)

Most importantly, keep writing and don't let some wag discourage you. If you have something to say, and take the time to do it, the better you will get.

Why, I've even learned that I can write a sentence without using exclamation points!!!


l http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~brians/errors/index.html
Also, couldn't resist posting my Gooder Grammer Tips below.

Master Waddie



Gooder Grammar or How To Write More Better

1. Avoid alliteration. Always

2. Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do.

3. Employ the vernacular.

4. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.

5. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are unnecessary.

6. Remember to never split an infinite. (unless absolutely necessary, then draw attention to your boldness)

7. Contractions aren't necessary.

8. Foreign words and phrases are not apropos.

9. One should never generalize.

10. Eliminate quotations. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, "I hate quotations. Tell me what you know."

11. Comparisons are as bad as cliches.

12. Don't be redundant, don't use more words than necessary, its highly superfluous.

13. Be more or less specific.

14. Understatement is always best.

15. One-word sentences. Eliminate.

16. Analogies in writing are like feathers on a snake.

17. The passive voice is to be avoided.

18. Go around the barn at high noon, to avoid colloquialisms.

19. Even if a mixed metaphor sings, it should be derailed.

20. Who needs rhetorical questions?

21. Exaggeration is a billion times worse than understatement.

22. Don't never use a double negation.

23. Capitalize every sentence and remember to end it with a point

24. Do not put statements in the negative form.

25. Verbs have to agree with their subjects.

26. Proofread very carefully to see if you words out.

27. If you reread your work you can find on rereading a great deal of repetition can be avoided by rereading and editing.

28. A writer must not shift your point of view.

29. And don't start a sentence with a conjunction. (Remember, too, a preposition is a terrible word to end a sentence with).

30. Don't overuse exclamation marks!!!

31. Place pronouns as close as possible, especially in long sentences as of 10 or more words, to their antecedents.

32. Writing carefully, dangling participles must be avoided.

33. If any word is improper at the end of a sentence, a link verb is.

34. Take the bull by the hand and avoid mixing metaphors.

35. Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.

36. Everyone should be careful to use a singular pronoun with singular nouns in their writing.

37. Always pick on the correct idiom.

38. The adverb always follows the verb.

39. Last but not least, avoid cliches like the plague. They're old hat, seek viable alternatives.

[Littledick]

Whilst I agree with the comments made about writing a good story one need to remember that English is one of the hardest languages to learn. It is an abortion of many other brilliant languages.

It has all these rules and then to confuse everyone a pile of exemptions to the rule, (good one). It like Governments when is a contract a contract? Only when the Government wants to keep it. If you don’t want to keep it you’re sued. Typical application and use of the rules that make up the in the English language.

Reading down the list of 39 Good Grammar point might make for good grammar. So if you can explain what that all means then well done! Some of us aren’t English scholars. That doesn’t mean we are dumb or stupid.

I have a dyslexic disability that has plagued me all my life. However besides holding a top trades certificate, I also have two Diplomas in the humanities. I achieved in my late thirties in spite of my learning difficulties.

I try to tell my stories the best I can, if I had to sit with a list of all the English language rules and what makes for good grammar I would never get around to being able to get a story on paper. My thoughts would never flow.

I love getting turned on by what the story is trying to saying or the gist of it, rather than weather it is grammatically correct in every way.

We all come from many back grounds, cultures and languages I am just thankful for the stories and if we learn better English and grammar along the way what a blessing for us all.

If not be thankful for the stories submitted. As one who as been visiting, reading the stories and posting stories since the Archives first begun. I have posted stories under many different names over the years.

So thanks for you help on the English language, we are trying. However keep up the good work all you storywriters and thanks for all your efforts its appreciated!
:devil:

[Master Waddie]

Bartender! Make that a double!!


Master Waddie

[petersjc]

Originally posted by Master Waddie
Here is a wonderful site that gives you a breakdown of the most common gramatical errors. Being dyslexic and never having written more than personal checks I found it a wealth of help.
. . .

http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~brians/errors/index.html

Lysdexia is no excuse, Master Waddie!

Thanks for the URL. I have now bookmarked it and will refer to it often.

peter

[petersjc]

Originally posted by Kortpeel
Some of the stories on this board are brilliant: they come from a good original idea, are written in good English and are well told.

Not all of the stories are that good. Not everyone has mastered the grammar, spelling and punctuation of our language or even the word processor. It's the writers of these stories that I want to encourage. ...

It is actually a skill to take an idea or feeling that exists in your mind and convey it to others in words. Like any other skill, the longer you work at it the better you get.

True, but without feedback it is easy to keep making the same mistakes, without much improvement. As a high-school sophomore, I enjoyed our English class with an easy-going teacher and almost a party atmosphere. It wasn't until my junior year, with an English teacher who had been a newspaper editor, that I realized how much I had to learn. The class was not fun, but I now consider it one of the most valuable of all the classes I had in high school.

Many years later, I was creating non-scrollable text-mode help screens for a major computer manufacturer. The available space was limited, and I tried to avoid continuing the information onto additional screens, so I practiced saying things clearly and concisely. I thought I was doing quite well, until a technical editor read my screens. Again, the experience was humbling, but what I learned has served me well in the years since then.

Feedback can be valuable, but I am not sure the Story Reviews and Author Feedback forum on this message board is the right place for it. So far, all my comments here have been pretty positive, e.g., "Wow, that story really got my juices flowing, and I loved the character development..." I don't know how useful it would be to add, "but is filled with misplaced modifiers and bad parallel sentence structure, and you really need to work on your spelling..."

Still, I would like to think that in an archive like this, some of the more seasoned writers could help talented but less experienced writers improve their skills. I am pretty good at grammar, spelling, and writing compactly. There are many great creative writers here -- alas, I don't think I will ever be one of them -- who know how to develop a plot, portray characters realistically, and grab the reader's attention, and I suspect many would also be willing to share their skills.

I would like to hear people's ideas about how to accomplish this kind of nurturing and mentoring within the EA community. Can it be done, or are we better off advising people to enroll in a writing class?

peter

P.S. I enjoy reading even those few stories here that I consider really poor, and I hope their authors will keep posting.

[Bboy]

We could create a 'private' passworded forum for authors - who would have to request permission to join - where technical aspects of stories could be discussed and worked out, where parts of text could be posted for feedback, etc.

[colin]

Peter,

It depends upon the way that it is presented and the author to whom it is presented. When I first joined the Archive, Master Waddie was posting the first sections of 'The Ties That Bind'.

I had the temerity to write to him saying that I almost gave up on the story because of the poor formatting in the earliest sections, but that I had grown to love the characters. Master Waddie being the big Man that he is responded with a challenge to me, but took the time and trouble to investigate how his presentation could be improved.

Please don't think that I am claiming credit because I know that other people had emailed similar comments to him. My point is that he was wise enough to accept honest criticism (well laced with praise) and consider whether there was any validity in those points. Other writers have reacted very badly to comments, so there is no easy rule, but, I would say, that if the writer is proud of their efforts then they will respond to gentle criticism.

I would be proud to join the ranks of the authors here, but I frequently lose the thread when I am writing one of these posts and could never sustain an idea long enough to get a viable story from it, so all I can do is cheer from the sidelines.

For all authors and would-be authors, I have the greatest respect - at least you have tried.

LOL

[Paolo]

OK, I'm going to kill all of the proverbial birds with one stone here:

Reading down the list of 39 Good Grammar point might make for good grammar. So if you can explain what that all means then well done! Some of us aren’t English scholars. That doesn’t mean we are dumb or stupid.


And no one said that you were. That isnt' the point of this post.

To all the people who emailed or PM'd me about it, as well as the post on the board, what "all that means" is THIS - IT'S A JOKE. HUMOR. LAUGH at it. Each line contradicts itself. One line says "don't use contractions." The word "don't" is a contraction. See, it's funny?!

[pueros]

Master Waddie apologises for missing out the 40th rule:-

40) Ignore all of the above.

PUEROS

[Paolo]

Originally posted by Bboy (Archivist)
We could create a 'private' passworded forum for authors - who would have to request permission to join - where technical aspects of stories could be discussed and worked out, where parts of text could be posted for feedback, etc.

The Forum for Writers' Workshop has been created. You can join, IF you are a writer or just want to be, by sending Bboy or myself a Private Message - not an email! This forum is, as stated, a writers' workshop and a place to get feedback and to learn. It's not an open forum like the rest of the boards; it's more of a place focused simply on the issues of writing.

[pueros]

As a writer, I welcome constructive criticism as it often helps me to improve.

I've received many pleasant personal e-mails from readers to which I've replied to all. I thank them for their kind & useful comments.

However, there have been two rather unconstructive recent critics, both choosing a single sentence to elicit their views, one on this board & one privately.

What use though, to an author, are single phrases such as "not a very good story" & "too long, get to the point" without elaboration as their meanings. How educative are such remarks for the creator of a story?

The latter was referring to 'The Lycian Prince', which is actually a relation of a true personal history, admitedly one spiced with literary licence. There is no point to the tale other than to relate the history, & the inherent eroticism & morals, to its end in a hopefully entertaining way, which I've chosen to do in lengthy format because I thought that it was worth it. Once started, I can't really change the pace &, in any case, it's maintaining a very loyal readership, for which many thanks. My desire to write one saga in this way was previously agreed with this board before I even sent chapter 1.

My concern is not for myself but, given the theme of this thread, about would-be writers who could be deterred by such remarks. The critics need to be asked to proffer more detailed and reasoned criticism so that creators of stories really know what they mean & can consider their views properly when next posting. Otherwise, one-liners could just deter authors, & the products of their experiences or imaginations, appearing here!

PUEROS