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codemer

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In fact, maybe we can declare every month a Storyist NaNo month. We all write something in a month, right? :)

 

You know what else might be fun to try? A writing circle. I can't remember the official name for this, but the way it goes is that someone writes a chapter of fiction, then passes the story off to the next author to write the next chapter. There's no outline, and any author in the circle can take the story in virtually any coherent direction. The authors just have to agree on a general setting and writing order, or appoint a coordinator who mixes it up and assigns authors at random.

 

I did something like this in college for a fictional Star Trek starship (which is why I *should* know the name).

 

Who's in your circle?

IF

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I did something like this in college for a fictional Star Trek starship (which is why I *should* know the name).

Sounds interesting. I remember doing something like that (everybody writing a chapter of a story and then passing it on in the group for several cycles) in a two-week seminar. They called it "a collaborative round robin" but that seems more of a description than a label. Story Collective? Maybe. (A bit Trekie. A bit Commie.) I rather like "writing circle".

 

If I remember correctly the results were rather discouraging. We each did a chapter but some chapters were just a couple of pages while other were almost short stories themselves. The conflicting styles and tones were almost comical and no one could agree on a story direction. (I vaguely remember a bank robber becoming a vampire and another member of the group, hating the idea, began her chapter by saying it was all a dream.) I think the biggest mistake we made was not establishing the viewpoint character up front. (Viewpoint was all over the place.) We didn't even agree on who were the protagonist and antagonist.

 

What I remember most was that it was fun. (Much more fun than the forced speed writing of NaNaNoMo.) I'm sure that if we agree to keep the chapters short, a single forum thread could serve our purpose. (General Topics>Writing Circle?)

 

It's a thought,

-Thoth.

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Sounds interesting. I remember doing something like that (everybody writing a chapter of a story and then passing it on in the group for several cycles) in a two-week seminar. They called it "a collaborative round robin" but that seems more of a description than a label. Story Collective? Maybe. (A bit Trekie. A bit Commie.) I rather like "writing circle".

 

If I remember correctly the results were rather discouraging. We each did a chapter but some chapters were just a couple of pages while other were almost short stories themselves. The conflicting styles and tones were almost comical and no one could agree on a story direction. (I vaguely remember a bank robber becoming a vampire and another member of the group, hating the idea, began her chapter by saying it was all a dream.) I think the biggest mistake we made was not establishing the viewpoint character up front. (Viewpoint was all over the place.) We didn't even agree on who were the protagonist and antagonist.

 

What I remember most was that it was fun. (Much more fun than the forced speed writing of NaNaNoMo.) I'm sure that if we agree to keep the chapters short, a single forum thread could serve our purpose. (General Topics>Writing Circle?)

 

I'd agree that the outcome was discouraging, and yes, it was fun.

 

As long as we can agree to disagree. Having someone undermine the plot you've spent so long developing is kind of like being a software developer in a large team. But I digress.

 

Viewpoint and general setting are probably important to know up front, but I think its more fun to leave the antagonist up to chance. What about passing around a .story file that each author can fill in with setting/character info to help the next author?

 

What constitutes a short chapter? "Nothing else happened that night."

 

Past my bed time,

IF

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As long as we can agree to disagree. Having someone undermine the plot you've spent so long developing is kind of like being a software developer in a large team. But I digress.

No, I think that's a good point. Your Star Trek example might "limit" you to the Sci-Fi genre but what kind of Star Trek story are you going to write? Romance? Comedy? Political satire? Some combination? Since everyone will have their own plot in mind "having someone undermine the plot you've spent so long developing" is inevitable. So are hurt feelings. At least that's my experience.

Viewpoint and general setting are probably important to know up front, but I think its more fun to leave the antagonist up to chance.

That will make for one wacky story, Oh, why the heck not,

What about passing around a .story file that each author can fill in with setting/character info to help the next author?

A very good idea, given why we're all here. How would you suggest we pass the .story file around?

What constitutes a short chapter? "Nothing else happened that night."

I've seen "And so it goes." used as a chapter. I submit that anyone who writes one sentence chapters for this project probably doesn't really want to participate.

Past my bed time, IF

To paraphrase Ford Prefect: Time is an illusion. Bed time, doubly so.

-Thoth.

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A very good idea, given why we're all here. How would you suggest we pass the .story file around?

 

**stretch**

 

Ah. All refreshed?

 

I probably should have said: How would you suggest we pass the .story file around without giving away our secret identities?

 

But it was late (or early, depending on your point of view).

 

It's 1:40 PM on a Sunday here in New York and I'm about to have lunch. Leftover turkey again; I think I'm developing a dewlap. Ew.

-Thoth.

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**stretch**

 

Ah. All refreshed?

 

Well...

 

I probably should have said: How would you suggest we pass the .story file around without giving away our secret identities?

 

Okay. That shouldn't be too hard. We'll create a worm that takes over every computer on the Net. It will be an adaptable worm, and smart enough to identify the next author in the circle by the sarcasm signature of his or her computer. It will also be the enforcer, terminating anyone who violates the secret identities of the circle. Then, once our novel is complete, the worm will progress to its next state, seizing control of every printing press in the world and...

 

Boy, this is sounding like a lot of work. How about we just post the .story file on the board or something?

 

I do *not* want to do another Star Trek universe story. Not everyone knows enough ST history to keep from offending the Trekkers in the circle.

 

IF

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Okay. That shouldn't be too hard. We'll create a worm that takes over every computer on the Net. It will be an adaptable worm, and smart enough to identify the next author in the circle by the sarcasm signature of his or her computer. It will also be the enforcer, terminating anyone who violates the secret identities of the circle. Then, once our novel is complete, the worm will progress to its next state, seizing control of every printing press in the world and...

Ah yes. The old artificially intelligent metamorphic stealth terminator worm ploy. We could all take turns writing the code so it won't take too long. But how will we pass around the Conqueror Worm file? I know. We'll give it the ability to go back in time an erase incriminating evidence of our identities and its existence. But if it was never created then how could go back in time? Maybe it already has! Quick, check the forum for a story thread none of us remembers writing! (Sounds like we may have our plot. Hmm. Maybe not.)

How about we just post the .story file on the board or something?

Gee. Now why didn't I think of that.

I do *not* want to do another Star Trek universe story. Not everyone knows enough ST history to keep from offending the Trekkers in the circle.

There is always an advantage in playing in an established universe. For one thing, most of the characters and settings are already established. Also, the Trek universe is one of the best documented fictions on the Web. Click this Memory Alpha link if you don't believe me. But of course, not everyone wants to write in that universe. And some Trekers tend to pounce on inconsistencies. There are others universes: Wuthering Heights; Captains Courageous; Have Gun Will Travel. How about the Shogun universe? Or we can pick our own time and place and genre. But I really do think we should decide on one before proceeding. I'm a pantser not a plotter myself, but I need boundaries or my imagination will run wild. And nobody wants that.

 

(Crossovers anyone? The Three Stooges in the Furries universe versus Vampirella? Ha!)

-Thoth.

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Ah yes. The old artificially intelligent metamorphic stealth terminator worm ploy. We could all take turns writing the code so it won't take too long. But how will we pass around the Conqueror Worm file? I know. We'll give it the ability to go back in time an erase incriminating evidence of our identities and its existence. But if it was never created then how could go back in time? Maybe it already has! Quick, check the forum for a story thread none of us remembers writing! (Sounds like we may have our plot. Hmm. Maybe not.)

 

It's a funny thing, time. I thought I understood it once. Then I found out the truth, a truth that showed me the insignificance of my misconceptions, my feeble assumptions. There can be no altering time with time without messing with space, and space changes constantly.

 

When I took the job with The Company, I thought I had it all. Unlimited resources. Research assistants. Women. But fifteen years of research led to one failed experiment after another, and finally, one success. That was all it took to screw up the world and put me here.

 

IF

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So, who wants to try again? My husband and best friend are going to do JaNoWriMo - it's NaNo in January. I was wondering if any of you fine folks would interested in joining us.

 

- Calli

 

 

I'm up for it. Although every month is going to be that way until I get some agent or something. So I'll be doing DecNoWriMo, JaNoWriMo, FebNoWriMo... maybe I'll just do NaNoWriYear :)

 

I'm working at a steady 25k/week now on Novels, and about 2 SS's a week also. God, it's hard to stop when you get on a roll.

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It's a funny thing, time. I thought I understood it once. Then I found out the truth, a truth that showed me the insignificance of my misconceptions, my feeble assumptions. There can be no altering time with time without messing with space, and space changes constantly.

 

When I took the job with The Company, I thought I had it all. Unlimited resources. Research assistants. Women. But fifteen years of research led to one failed experiment after another, and finally, one success. That was all it took to screw up the world and put me here.

 

Sounds familiar. Golden Years by Stephen King? Or have you gotten better?

 

Trying to pay a complement,

-Thoth.

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Sounds familiar. Golden Years by Stephen King? Or have you gotten better?

 

Trying to pay a complement,

-Thoth.

 

Thanks. :(

 

I just made that up. Not sure where I was going. Sounds like I should read more. I don't get all these references you make. :)

 

I think I've got the starting a story thing down. I need to work on the middles and endings now.

 

IF

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I think I've got the starting a story thing down. I need to work on the middles and endings now.

IF

See my posting in the "Books section" for that one! :lol:

 

Just picking up this thread after a hectic weekend revising. How many Trekkers actually are in our collective? I haven't worked in that world, or even read any of the books, in years, but it does have the advantage of giving a group a clear foundation. It'd have to be the original or NextGen, though. I never followed the newer series enough to know what was up.

 

I have the sense that a Thoth/Isaac/Calli/Marguerite/PJL/Steve collaboration would be hilarious, somewhat like Vicki Bliss's eternal romance novel, deemed no longer suitable for publication after the main character hid in a broom closet to escape pirates, Mongols, and Louis XIV in the same scene.

 

(If you care, Vicki Bliss is the heroine of a highly recommended--by me--Elizabeth Peters series. Vicki is an art historian in love with an art forger, which causes them a few, shall we say, relationship difficulties. I think this reference is in Night Train to Memphis, but it could be in one of the preceding volumes.)

 

But I'm game if the rest of you are.

Marguerite

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It'd have to be the original or NextGen, though. I never followed the newer series enough to know what was up.

No DS9 or Voyager? Marguerite, I'm shocked. Shocked! But you bring up a good point. No matter which universe we choose there will always be varying levels of familiarity. So there is virtue in creating our own universe, so long as we agree on the ground rules.

I have the sense that a Thoth/Isaac/Calli/Marguerite/PJL/Steve collaboration would be hilarious...

I like the way you've ordered the credits.

...somewhat like Vicki Bliss's eternal romance novel, deemed no longer suitable for publication after the main character hid in a broom closet to escape pirates, Mongols, and Louis XIV in the same scene.

(If you care, Vicki Bliss is the heroine of a highly recommended--by me--Elizabeth Peters series. Vicki is an art historian in love with an art forger, which causes them a few, shall we say, relationship difficulties. I think this reference is in Night Train to Memphis, but it could be in one of the preceding volumes.)

Thanks for the tip. After I log out I'm headed straight for Amazon.com.

 

Your Observant,

-Thoth.

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FYI: Night Train to Memphis by Elizabeth Peters is selling on Amazon.com for a penny (+$3.99 shipping).

The earlier Vicki books are, more or less in order, Street of the Five Moons, Silhouette in Scarlet, and Trojan Gold. Vicki actually makes her appearance in Borrower of the Night, but that's the least successful of the group, because the art forger hasn't yet joined the series and Vicki is not yet in her job at the Bavarian National Museum, so much of the humor is lost.

 

If you enjoy watching an author send up romance novels, Peters has also written Die for Love, set at a romance writers convention, and its sequel, Naked Once More. The sequel is interesting as one writer's view of her colleagues, but Die for Love is hilarious, complete with heavy breathing extracts from the heroine's own prose.

M

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To those who are interested, there's actually a NaNoWriYear board up and running... find out more here http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/node/1071277

 

There's also National Novel Finishing Month, more here http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/node/1070101

 

And NaNoEdMo (National Novel Editing Month) more here http://www.nanoedmo.net/xoops/

 

 

PJ

 

Q: Do you eat or sleep?

 

Only when absolutely necessary :)

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  • 3 weeks later...

To begin we need to establish threads to post the following: the Chapters and Sections of the Storyist Manuscript; our Section sheets; our Characters sheets; Setting sheets; and Notes.

 

Plot sheets? That raises the question of whether or not we want to plot the thing out first. This brings us back to the question about our book universe (see earlier parts of the thread). So before we ask Steve for a Member Story Forum we have to answer the questions about which universe we're going to play in.

 

Isaac is the only one who has had the guts to weigh in on this issue. Sort of. He doesn't want to play in the Star Trek universe. Fine. No Trek. But what about Sci-Fi in general? I suppose, because of the public nature of the forum, Adult and Horror are out as well (unless we agree to handle in a gingerly manner).

 

Let me throw something out there. Sci-Fi time-travel comedy. Anybody? Come on guys. If we can't even agree on a genre we're dead in the water on this project before we've even begun.

 

Come on. Let's hear some genre suggestions or agree to drop the whole thing. Sci-Fi time-travel comedy? Romantic spy swashbuckler? Hey, I'm easy!

 

Of course, the longest night of the year is coming up tomorrow so some of us may have plans.

Have a stupendous Winter Solstice, everyone.

-Thoth

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To begin we need to establish threads to post the following: the Chapters and Sections of the Storyist Manuscript; our Section sheets; our Characters sheets; Setting sheets; and Notes.

 

Plot sheets? That raises the question of whether or not we want to plot the thing out first. This brings us back to the question about our book universe (see earlier parts of the thread). So before we ask Steve for a Member Story Forum we have to answer the questions about which universe we're going to play in.

 

Isaac is the only one who has had the guts to weigh in on this issue. Sort of. He doesn't want to play in the Star Trek universe. Fine. No Trek. But what about Sci-Fi in general? I suppose, because of the public nature of the forum, Adult and Horror are out as well (unless we agree to handle in a gingerly manner).

 

Let me throw something out there. Sci-Fi time-travel comedy. Anybody? Come on guys. If we can't even agree on a genre we're dead in the water on this project before we've even begun.

 

Come on. Let's hear some genre suggestions or agree to drop the whole thing. Sci-Fi time-travel comedy? Romantic spy swashbuckler? Hey, I'm easy!

 

Of course, the longest night of the year is coming up tomorrow so some of us may have plans.

Have a stupendous Winter Solstice, everyone.

-Thoth

Goodness, what a timid bunch. I'm already writing a romantic swashbuckler. I vote for SF time-travel comedy. SF gives us the maximum scope for our no-doubt-disparate personalities and writing styles, which in themselves should generate the comedy.

 

I don't write Adult or Horror, so I wouldn't participate in those anyway.

 

Hooray, the days are getting longer!

Marguerite

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Okay. That's two for a SF time-travel comedy. Anyone else?

 

Treading timidly,

-Thoth.

I didn't mean you! You were the one who provided the needed kick in the pants to the group. Timid referred to those who let the post sit there for days rather than weigh in. What, are they preparing for the holidays or something? :)

 

My excuse is that I was out of town attending a family funeral (yes, just before Christmas). :(

 

Timidity does not appear to be among your faults, o Thoth. :(

 

Merry Christmas to all who celebrate, and Peace, Joy, and Light to those who do and don't.

Marguerite

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What, are they preparing for the holidays or something? :)

I wouldn't be surprised.

My excuse is that I was out of town attending a family funeral (yes, just before Christmas). :(

My sincere condolences to you and your loved ones on this sad occasion. But an "excuse" certainly isn't necessary. Every member of the forum should feel completely free to weigh in or not. I apologize if I seemed to imply otherwise. Further, I suspect most members are a bit loath to take on a public writing commitment, especially this time of year. Remember, here we will be displaying our efforts, unlike in the NaNaNoNo effort.

Timidity does not appear to be among your faults, o Thoth. :(

Thank you Lady M. You strike me as rather bold yourself. But I was "treading timidly" in the sense of proceeding slowly with apparent caution, so as not to frighten away those who might otherwise join in. (Poor word choice?)

 

A Bountiful & Joyfully Merry Happiness Unto Thou & Thine.

-Thoth.

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Not to be the accountant of the group, but if we are shooting for 50,000 words in 30 days, and passing it around, am I to assume that you won't necessarily wait for the previous chapter(s) to be completed to begin your chapter? If we are waiting, I just see the poor last lad having like 30 minutes to write their 2,500 words, like you are the anchor leg on a really bad relay team. The advantage of this approach would be that you might have some continuity to the story.

 

I like the SF time travel comedy. Are you thinking along the lines of a Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure type of escapade?

 

carve

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