Today I'd like to continue to chronicle my development as a writer, if for no other reason that it's mildly amusing. When last I wrote on this topic, I had just completed a couple of novels that began as fan fiction and wound their way into decent Fantasy and Sci Fi. When I completed those novels, I wasn't fully satisfied with them, but I began working on their sequels.
It wasn't long after that that I realized that breaking into publishing as a 15 or 16 year-old kid writing novels wasn't the easiest thing to do, and I decided that I should get some short stories under my belt. So I started to write stories. Piles and piles of them. There were a lot of sci fi stories set in the universe of my book, but featuring other characters. There were a lot of fantasy stories that similarly set ground work for that novel. And then there were the darkly ironic stories that stemmed from watching too much Alfred Hitchcock Presents and reading too much cynical short fiction. And then there were more mysteries than I can even remember.
I was able to crank out the stories at am pretty unbelievable pace and, frankly, as I've said elsewhere, if I could get a staff job at a pulp fiction mag, I would be all over that.
At any rate, this energy created a tidal wave in my writing, and I started expanding my novel work. In addition to the two sequels, I began a mystery novel, a spy fiction novel, and an action-adventure novel.
The page count I turned out during this period is astounding, and reminds me of one of the few things I liked about high school. Free time.
A lot of the stories were okay and fully salvageable, and one of my projects right now is going through a lot of those and overhauling them so they are consistent with my adult voice and style, and then submit. Some will be re-submit from (cough) years ago and others will be new tries.
The novels?
Probably not as much, because one of the things that was truly valuable from this time in my writing was learning what I excelled at and what was a struggle. For instance, it's where I learned that trying to write a mystery, especially a novel-length one, is like needling my eyes with an icicle.
If there's a takeaway from all this that might help other writers, it's this: play around some. Write as much as you can, even if it doesn't go anywhere, and write in every genre that ever even slightly piques your interest. You owe it to yourself and to future readers to get a glimpse of what that kind of work would end up looking like.
.Nevets.
I really like what I've seen so far on your blog. Another thing that might help new writers: rejections are not bad things and sometimes doesn't even reflect your writing ability. Keep trying someone will take interest.
ReplyDeleteAlso, be willing to throw out some of them (ahem) steaming pile from time to time. My old stuff has not aged well.
ReplyDeleteGreat points, Cher and Loren.
ReplyDeleteCher, I learned the lesson about rejection letters when I submitted one of my stories to an Australian sci fi rag back in the early 90's. They were giving back editorial comments with every rejection. Three folks had looked at my story. One didn't like it, basically for matters of taste. Another was iffy, but not sold on it, mostly for matters of taste. The third loved it and thought it was an original spin on a couple ideas.
After that I realizes that, while my writing might not be perfect, sometimes people just don't like your stories because they just don't like them. And that's not a big deal at all.
Loren, the novels are not going anywhere ever as far as I can see and there are a number of stories that are also probably not worth the effort. That said, some of my overhauls are essentially rewrites, keeping nothing but a core store idea and a basic character design.
Great post. I subscribe to the philosophy that you don't know if you like something until you try it.
ReplyDeleteYep, I'm with you about writing mystery novels. I love reading 'em, but every attempt to write one has ground to a halt. Painfully.
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm as eclectic in writing as I am in viewing or in reading: whatever captures my fancy will get a fair try. Being willing to try a broad range of genres can only make us better writers.