Your writing over time

[swirlingdoubt]

How do you think your writing has changed over time? What lead to those changes? Do you remember every story you write?

I am not much of a writer, but I get and itch of an idea and must scratch it down once in a while. I have a smattering of stories written over the last 20 years, and I have forgotten about most of them. I stated that I never wrote erotica before, but apparently that isn’t true because I found one that I wrote 5 years ago - for an obscure home-brew video game of all things - and it was awful. I have no memory of writing it at all, so everything in it was a surprise. I realize how much I have changed even over 5 years – a better sense of reality, or depth, perhaps. Yet, I found another fanfic written even earlier, and I was on the edge of my seat and mad that I left it on a cliffhanger. I might even go back and try to finish and clean it up. So, it isn’t linear.

How do other writers reflect on their past stories?

[JayDee]

Me? With fear, loathing and the occasional chuckle at a forgotten joke that came out quite well when I look at it again. Also trying to work out what the hell kind of obscure reference a name was likely referring to or punning on. Sometimes I think “hey this wasn’t so bad” and sometimes I think “Eh, s’ok.” With my re-writes of some of my old stories there are bits I’ve felt should have been expanded on more than in the original, so expanded ‘em, and also bits I’ve felt were needlessly mean spirited (in rape/snuff fics! It took some doing!) almost as if I 2007/2008 me was trying to provoke non-perverts who probably were not even reading rather than entertain peverts who were. Long time ago now. 

If you do go back you can certainly make something worthwhile out of the half-finished, or take scraps and turn them into something new. Good luck if you do!

I really don’t remember everything I wrote at all. Sometimes someone says something to me about something I wrote or an old story and I’m like “Really? Ok!” When I had a review on an old original oneshot recently I had literally forgotten everything about it except that I had thought it was terrible at the time, and why I wrote it, and I finally re-read it after the review. Sympathy for the reviewer there. Another thing, reminded by your home-brew experience, a few weeks back I was looking at an old file full of bios and scenery descriptions I wrote for a non-erotic play by email type RPG game in like 2000-2001. Some of those characters were pretty engaging! At least one is like a proto-Kizurial with an alcohol problem.

[CloverReef]

My writing has absolutely evolved. A few things factor into it. I very much credit my years in fanfiction as a powerful foundation. Though my writing sucked back then, it was an excellent training ground for character development and crafting interesting stories using elements everyone involved was already familiar with. Also formal education played a part. I'm a high school drop out but I went out of my way to teach myself as well as seek out others who could teach me: take classes, read writing books, write essays and long discussions with my english professor mother. 

Plus there's the natural improvement that happens just online from writing a lot and communicating with other writers that I 100% believe has the biggest impact out of all the things I just mentioned. 

[BronxWench]

8 minutes ago, CloverReef said:

My writing has absolutely evolved. A few things factor into it. I very much credit my years in fanfiction as a powerful foundation. Though my writing sucked back then, it was an excellent training ground for character development and crafting interesting stories using elements everyone involved was already familiar with.

What Clover said!

But really, fan fiction is a terrific way to hone writing skills. The world building and basic character development is done, and you just get to put your own slant on things. Sharing that online brings valuable feedback and yes, the chance to talk to other writers. 

[Desiderius Price]

There was a profound difference between fanfic #1 and fanfic #2, and I think the writing’s gotten generally better since then (even if there’s been a detour or two through terrible ideas).

[CloverReef]

I think confidence helps too. I think at the start a lot of writers think their writing is awesome enough to push on people, yet won't read it themselves and get super insecure about critical feedback so they won't go to betas. Getting over that phase was a bit of a milestone for me. Like getting to a point where I can take reasonable critiques and enjoy reading my own writing and edit the hell out of it and still think the shit I'm spinning is gold. 

Edit: I'm in a hotel recovering from a biopsy so if I Fuck up my grammar or spelling y'all just gotta deal. <3

Edited July 10, 2018 by CloverReef

[Desiderius Price]

I wasn’t that delusional in the beginning, still not.  I know writing/english/literature weren’t my best subjects in school, typicallythe worst.  It took an anonymous pen name before I had the courage to even post that first one.

[BronxWench]

Ouch to the biopsy….

[Desiderius Price]

Biopsy doesn’t sound fun, kinda like they biopsied the patient and left a toe in change.

[swirlingdoubt]

22 hours ago, BronxWench said:

What Clover said!

But really, fan fiction is a terrific way to hone writing skills. The world building and basic character development is done, and you just get to put your own slant on things. Sharing that online brings valuable feedback and yes, the chance to talk to other writers. 

With the introduction of the internet, the availability of feedback for new writers and the promise of anonymity creates a lot more opportunities for someone that might not otherwise develop the skill. However, in itself it becomes a vacuum with the blind leading the blind.

20 hours ago, CloverReef said:

I think confidence helps too. I think at the start a lot of writers think their writing is awesome enough to push on people, yet won't read it themselves and get super insecure about critical feedback so they won't go to betas. Getting over that phase was a bit of a milestone for me. Like getting to a point where I can take reasonable critiques and enjoy reading my own writing and edit the hell out of it and still think the shit I'm spinning is gold. 

Edit: I'm in a hotel recovering from a biopsy so if I Fuck up my grammar or spelling y'all just gotta deal. <3

Betas isn’t a bad idea. I worry about giving critical feedback (for one, what do I know), and worry about how some people will take it. Criticism is very helpful to me, even if it presses out the ego juices.

The editing process is so important, too – indispensable. I enjoy the editing process more than the writing sometimes, because after the story dump is finished, I have some boundaries to work within (I think that is what attracts me to writing fanfiction, too). I can improve, expand, and tighten a story to have a better impact rather than free-fall into it.

I hope the results of your biopsy are ok, for whatever reason you needed one!

Edited July 11, 2018 by swirlingdoubt

[Desiderius Price]

I think “biopsy” needs some tags here:  [BDSM] [Torture] [Violence] [Gore] [MCD/MiCD] & [Nec]  (where that second to the last one depends on the ego of the doctor)

35 minutes ago, swirlingdoubt said:

With the introduction of the internet, the availability of feedback for new writers and the promise of anonymity creates a lot more opportunities for someone that might not otherwise develop the skill. However, in itself it becomes a vacuum with the blind leading the blind.

Betas isn’t a bad idea. I worry about giving critical feedback (for one, what do I know), and worry about how some people will take it. Criticism is very helpful to me, even if it presses out the ego juices.

The editing process is so important, too – indispensable. I enjoy the editing process more than the writing sometimes, because after the story dump is finished, I have some boundaries to work within (I think that is what attracts me to writing fanfiction, too). I can improve, expand, and tighten a story to have a better impact rather than free-fall into it.

I hope the results of your biopsy are ok, for whatever reason you needed one!

Without the internet, I likely wouldn’t be an author as I wouldn’t have discovered fanfic nor would I desired  to continue a particular story, and so forth, leading to today where I’ve got (some) confidence because I’ve posted and gotten feedback.  Some criticism is definitely *good*, obviously, don’t bludgeon the writer to death with it.  If you find a story you otherwise like (premise, setting, etc) and something gets in the way, the author would certainly like to know why.  Perhaps it’s fixable (spelling, grammar, some details/construct) or not (ie, premise), but the author can sort that out.  Editing, I’ve found, is double edged, you can do a bit to improve, or overdo it and ruin the underlying story; even a rotten editor can certainly get you to butcher an otherwise good story if you’re not careful.   I’ve started to relax a bit on the amount of proofreading/editing I’ll do for posting on AFF, figuring that I’d do it more seriously if I publish – the Repair Guy was an experiment there, doing one pass and trying to keep myself to one pass of reading it over, and overall, I’m happy with how the story turned out.  Now Jefferey, which I started to “revise/edit” as a means to get myself back into it so I could continue the story, ended up adding 11 new episodes to the story (so far) that weren’t there in the original draft.

[CloverReef]

2 hours ago, swirlingdoubt said:

With the introduction of the internet, the availability of feedback for new writers and the promise of anonymity creates a lot more opportunities for someone that might not otherwise develop the skill. However, in itself it becomes a vacuum with the blind leading the blind.

Betas isn’t a bad idea. I worry about giving critical feedback (for one, what do I know), and worry about how some people will take it. Criticism is very helpful to me, even if it presses out the ego juices.

The editing process is so important, too – indispensable. I enjoy the editing process more than the writing sometimes, because after the story dump is finished, I have some boundaries to work within (I think that is what attracts me to writing fanfiction, too). I can improve, expand, and tighten a story to have a better impact rather than free-fall into it.

I hope the results of your biopsy are ok, for whatever reason you needed one!

Editing/betaing is a topic I could discuss for hours. I won’t, though, because I don’t want to hijack the thread. I’m happy you enjoy it. Like ridiculously happy. My favourite people to beta for are the ones who are eager to learn whether or not they take my suggestions.

Giving feedback is an art form too, and helpful critiques are not always appropriate. I very rarely give critiques, even sugar coated ones, to people who didn’t ask for it. Like when I review random chapters on AFF, I usually bite my tongue and only put the positive things. Sometimes the best way you can help a struggling writer getting little-to-no attention is to give their ego a boost, and theeeen you can worry about helping them with their issues (if you want to take that on). Let them feel some love and positivity. Let them feel like writing is worth the deafening silences and that someone out there is listening. That will help their passion grow, and when people are passionate about something, they evolve. Some very well-meaning critical feedback can be crushing to someone whose confidence is already shaken and can do more damage than good. I’ve had arguments about this with other betas, but I’m the Queen Beta, so listen to me, not them. 

But if you’re reviewing someone like @Desiderius Price who has explicitly stated they welcome critical feedback, the gloves very nicely come off. I think it’s still important to not be a dick about it. 

 

[Desiderius Price]

23 minutes ago, CloverReef said:

But if you’re reviewing someone like @Desiderius Price who has explicitly stated they welcome critical feedback, the gloves very nicely come off. I think it’s still important to not be a dick about it.

Still be nice about it    I get so little feedback that I’m not sure if my writing’s really any good or not.  What @CL Mustafic did ages ago, helped, in a review, she offered to read over and provide criticisms to my stories (until she got too busy to do it) – so that’s another way you can give help if you like the story enough, but the grammar/flow/etc is getting in the way.