Looking for advice

[Hunter]

I agree to an extent. For me, at least with the program I use, it rapidly highlights the words as it reads them. So the multiple input keeps me from the backing up one word, then again one more word and then, stop, start at the beginning of this section. Instead I stay focused and absorb much more. It's more efficient and I know that my abilities have gotten better, not worse. But that's how it works for me. We all learn workarounds for our issues. I'm glad you have one that works well for you. I'm even happier that I've found one that works well for me!

Yeah, that's the only way we can keep our issues in check.  We learn workarounds because it is always there for us.  So whatever works then it is all good, lol.

[Ricky]

Fahrenheit 451

[Jeikor]

Fahrenheit 451

 

I would be one of the ones pacing back and forth muttering to myself as I committed a book to memory.    

[Ricky]

I think my wife could just about do that now with her 5,000 book library. And I know she's read everyone at LEAST three times. The good ones more.

[Ricky]

Hey!! I recycle and reuse!!!

HEY! We reload! That should count as recycling.

[Jeikor]

Your wife sounds like we could be kin; I have several hundred books and all have been read more than once.

 

I will give you credit for reloading. Did you know that most electronics can be recycled also?

[Ricky]

Your wife sounds like we could be kin; I have several hundred books and all have been read more than once.

 

I will give you credit for reloading. Did you know that most electronics can be recycled also?

Of course! I call it a trash can and they send them overseas where they are done by kids.

[Kyle Aarons]

something tell me we have gone slightly off topic......................................................................... just a tad......

[Ricky]

something tell me we have gone slightly off topic......................................................................... just a tad......

 

Really? I can follow the logic of the thread and easily see how we got here. Are you SURE it's off topic? 0.o

[Darryl Radiorancher]

As I was reading this  and some other forums, I thought of a few things I wanted to add, and I apologize if I am repeting some things that others said. I actually asked Ken where this forum was, because when I read another forum, this one was mentioned, and I had some comments but didn't know exactly where to put them.

 

I wanted to say my peice before I forget what I wanted to mention. I will finish reading other people's comments when I am through here.

 

I am an author, an editor, and a reader, some aspects of what I think is important to tell about a character varies with the story being told. As a reader, I enjoy picturing a character in my mind. As was stated by someone earlier, as I read I build a description in my head of what any characecter looks, sound and acts like. There are authors who can make the reader fall in love or hate with a character in a very short length of time, other authors take longer to get a reader hooked.

 

For instance, I fell in love with Sam Sam in the first paragraph he appeard in. That is one of DarkStar's enormous talents. I practically felt as if he were my little brother or cousin, and I cared deeply about him almost instantly. And DarkStar selcom gave detailed descriptions of his people's physical atributes. We mostly get a general picture, but very little that can trap them in a box. We are free to imagine what we want him to look like.

 

J,K rowling gave us descriptions of her characters, but she left it to our imaginations to do the discriptions. I bring that up because I read all the Potter books before I saw anyu of the movies. I 'knew' what everyone looked like, and when I saw the first movie, I was pretty satisfied with most of the actors chosen to be various charactors.  That ended when I saw Mes. Weasley. I simply couldn't reconsile that person as being Mrs' Weasley. I knew she had red hair, and I knew she was a formitable force to be dealt witih, but there was no way I had pictured her looking like that I have no idea how my mind built her up, but I totally lost my suspension of disbelief.

 

Another pet peeve of mine is when a story starts out with the main character describing himself in maticulous detail, down to the number of freckles he has on his butt, complete with a laundry list of special features, including his penus size and thickness. In many stories, it takes the form of the main character telling us that he has penitraiting blue eyes and long black hair, so dark that it almost sucks light away from him. I suppose there must be people who have blue eyes and have dark of even black hair, but it must be a rarity. Most blue eyed people have either blond hair of red hair, but I imagine very few have dark, almost black hair, with blue eyes I couldn't care less what size this guy's member happens to be.

 

As I said, I will try to send another comment once I read the rest of the topic.

 

Thanks for this most interesting forum.

 

Your Friend,

Darryl

[Hunter]

As I was reading this  and some other forums, I thought of a few things I wanted to add, and I apologize if I am repeting some things that others said. I actually asked Ken where this forum was, because when I read another forum, this one was mentioned, and I had some comments but didn't know exactly where to put them.

 

I wanted to say my peice before I forget what I wanted to mention. I will finish reading other people's comments when I am through here.

 

 

Welcome to the forum Darryl and we are all glad you found it.  As you point out every story is different and every reader views things differently.  Some authors will go into great detail regarding their characters while others tend to leave a lot to the imagination.  One method may work well for some readers while another method works better for other readers.

 

Every author has their own unique style and approach to how they bring their characters to life in their stories.  I'm one of those authors who tend to describe my characters in great detail including their private parts, lol.  After all the stories I tend to write involve sexual intimacy between my characters so it comes naturally to write of those things.  Some shy away from it while I tend to embrace it as simply another part and aspect to who my characters are in the moment.  It is part of the story and many of my readers appreciate those descriptions because it brings them into the moment.

 

We all have our pet peeves and the styles we prefer.  As you read through these comments in this section you will begin to see that the answers for many of these topics vary and that we are discovering there is no right or wrong answer in many cases but simply what works for both readers and authors.  When I read stories I'll at times read one and appreciate the amount of details of descriptions offered in it.  Then I'll pick up another book or story and appreciate the amount of imagination it instills in me as it provides only enough details to get my mind to working in overtime.  For other stories it is a combination of both.  It always seems to come down to the author and the story they are telling.  There are different purposes behind how stories are told and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.  I've learned to appreciate each story for what they have to offer and for the style of the author as he or she presents it.

 

Of course as an author, editor, and reader you bring a unique perspective to your observations.  I feel that often times an editor can also be a hindrance to an author's story because they bring their own personal points of view and preferences into the equation and it can drown out an author's voice.  Most editors are very good at being neutral in this manner but I can imagine it is difficult not to insert one's own perspectives into a piece of work they are helping out on, lol.  I guess I'd never make a good editor in this sense, lol.

 

Every time I read comments on the forum I learn something and in this way it is helping me grow as an author so we welcome you and look forward to your input and insight just as we welcome everyone's who find their way here.

[ken barber]

Of course as an author, editor, and reader you bring a unique perspective to your observations.  I feel that often times an editor can also be a hindrance to an author's story because they bring their own personal points of view and preferences into the equation and it can drown out an author's voice.  Most editors are very good at being neutral in this manner but I can imagine it is difficult not to insert one's own perspectives into a piece of work they are helping out on, lol. 

I think we are slowly morphing topics again but thats a good thing in this forum. On Editors I honestly believe a story is not complete until a second set of eyes has gone through it and advised the author on the little things that when the author wrote them made complete sense in his or her head. 

Of course the Editor inserts their own perspective into the story it would be absurd to think otherwise however if the author and editor work together as a team then the editor learns to put the author perspective first. It in no way takes away from an authors work only adds to it. Darryl in my opinion is one of the best editors out there. He has never changed the tone or theme of the a story, paragraph, or sentence without first consulting me. And many times his input has only helped me learn and grow.

 

I look at it this way An author is like mother nature, we use all the elements at out disposal to create a Diamond but when we are done its a rock, a pretty rock but still just a rock. An edit takes that rock and polishes it into a thing of unparalleled exquisite beauty. 

 

Please don't be offended by this Hunter but I have always thought an author who thinks they don't "need" an editor is doing their story and its readers an injustice.

[Hunter]

I think we are slowly morphing topics again but thats a good thing in this forum. On Editors I honestly believe a story is not complete until a second set of eyes has gone through it and advised the author on the little things that when the author wrote them made complete sense in his or her head. 

Of course the Editor inserts their own perspective into the story it would be absurd to think otherwise however if the author and editor work together as a team then the editor learns to put the author perspective first. It in no way takes away from an authors work only adds to it. Darryl in my opinion is one of the best editors out there. He has never changed the tone or theme of the a story, paragraph, or sentence without first consulting me. And many times his input has only helped me learn and grow.

 

I look at it this way An author is like mother nature, we use all the elements at out disposal to create a Diamond but when we are done its a rock, a pretty rock but still just a rock. An edit takes that rock and polishes it into a thing of unparalleled exquisite beauty. 

 

Please don't be offended by this Hunter but I have always thought an author who thinks they don't "need" an editor is doing their story and its readers an injustice.

Actually I don't think we are morphing the topic here because we are discussing and giving advice with things which help out an author.  So in essence we are pretty much on topic.

 

I agree that an editor is an important member in the process of getting stories out there.  My point was that "at times" they can be a hindrance if they allow their own perspectives to take the front seat.  Many editors have learned to have their perspectives take a second seat to that of the author's.  The ones who are successful use their perspective to enhance the author's intent, but sometimes egos on both sides can get in the way of the process because let's face it an editor invests a lot of time in the success of the story as well.  When an author finds an editor that they can work with in good harmony is where we see stories simply take off and improve immensely.  It is why it is so important for both author and editor to work well together.

 

Personally, I don't use an editor for my stories and do my own editing.  There's two reasons for this.  First, It's because the stories I write aren't for professional reasons.  Secondly, it's a way for me to improve my skills and to keep my dyslexia in check.  I have to focus on what I've written when I go through and edit for the second or third time.  Everyone has their own unique approach when writing stories, and I for one would most definitely seek out an editor or multiple editors if I ever decided to publish anything.  They are an integral part of the process and so very important to the success of getting stories out there.

 

My observation for my own personal perspective is that "I" wouldn't be a good editor.  Not because of my dyslexia, but I tend to insert my own perspectives into a story.  I have strong views when I'm going through a piece and I can see myself going through editing things and actually rewriting sentences, lol.  That's just me though.

 

I know for many they love having editors going through their work and for many this works.  For me in the way I write my stories at this point in time it is more of a hindrance than help.  I tend to have a lot of twists and turns to my stories with a lot of subtleties  to them.  There's a lot of hidden tidbits in my stories which when laid down don't necessarily make sense or doesn't need to be there when someone sees it who doesn't know what I've got planned down the road.  When I had people editing in the beginning they'd switch things up and try cleaning some of these things up which for me created a ton of headaches and a lot of work, lol.  So for me it simply didn't work, but then again it wasn't as if they were getting the entire work in one go so they can go through and read it entirely first before going back through to edit it so they didn't know what was important and what wasn't.  In this way they couldn't be an effective editor.

 

So the advice I can give here is that it simply depends on the situation with how well an editor can work for each individual author.  In my case if I ever get to the point where I want to publish I'd be having like ten editors, lol, because I know for a fact I'd need that many, lol, to help me out.  I'd also have to slightly adjust the way I write my stories for my editors to be able to do their work effectively.

 

The lesson here for authors who are looking for advice that this here is another one of those "It depends" type of situation, lol.  I've learned for now to be able to get my stories out without an editor.  I feel comfortable with that.  For others it works differently and they want that sort of help because it doesn't hinder them but rather helps expedite things and helps improve their stories.  It's different for everyone and that is a good thing. 

 

As for your statement of " Please don't be offended by this Hunter but I have always thought an author who thinks they don't "need" an editor is doing their story and its readers an injustice." I don't take offense it is simply your opinion just like what I've laid out is my opinion.  I don't think my stories that I've written so far have been an injustice to my readers.  It isn't that I don't think I need an editor, simply at this point in time with my writing career it isn't necessary and more of a hindrance than help.  The comment in the way you made makes it sound like an author who doesn't use an editor is arrogant or something.  That is simply not the case.  For you it works, for me and perhaps others, at this point it doesn't.  There's no arrogance or injustice to readers involved.  So please don't be offended here Ken, but for me it would be an injustice to use an editor at this point in time when I know it will hinder my story and not improve it.  As an author it would be irresponsible for me not to recognize what works and doesn't work for "Me" and only me, not what may work for others.  So in this sense and at this point in time, "yes, I don't need an editor, and no it is not an injustice to my readers."  I think the proof is in the pudding.  My stories are well received by my readers and it is all without the use of an editor at this point in time.  There's nothing wrong with using an editor and at some point it may develop in the same way for me as well, but currently I can honestly say that I'm at the point and time where it isn't necessary for me.

[ken barber]

The comment in the way you made makes it sound like an author who doesn't use an editor is arrogant or something.  That is simply not the case.  

Just making a generalized statement. Not pointed to you as I cant speak for your stories as the subject matter is not something I enjoy. I was speaking more on the lines of other Authors I have read that "Claim" they don't need editing. Most I have read are very wrong in that regard. LOL. For you not using an editor may work perfectly however I strongly believe that is not the case for most Authors. So What I was getting at is if an author doesn't  think they need an editor then my advise is to give one a chance, there are some great ones out there that will take an authors story to a readable level they didn't even think they could accomplish.

[Hunter]

So What I was getting at is if an author doesn't  think they need an editor then my advise is to give one a chance, there are some great ones out there that will take an authors story to a readable level they didn't even think they could accomplish.

In this we can both agree on and I think it is always important for an author to try things to see what works for them.  I only directed my comments back since it was my name which was inserted into your comment above, lol.  Yes, many don't read my stories because of the content, lol, isn't to their liking.  I haven't read a lot of stuff on here either.  Some of it is due to the fact it isn't to my taste, but it is mostly due to the fact when I write I can't read because I tend to wander in my own style of writing.  Frustrating to no end I can tell you.  Another one of my little quirks, lol.  I tend to begin sounding like other authors when I read their stories and continue to write my own.

 

My reference in the proof is in the pudding is just simply the fact I do have a large readership who do enjoy my stories and writing.  So in this regard not working with an editor at this point is working for me, but again, that is in regards to only me.  I'm sure other authors out there don't use an editor for whatever reason and it isn't because they don't necessarily believe they can't use one but it simply doesn't work for them either.  Yes, generally speaking I think we can all use editors for our stories, but sometimes it simply doesn't work at a particular point in time for an author and where they are at with their story and style.  What is something fantastic for one author is a hindrance for another.  That is why lumping people into general terms can be a bit of a hindrance when we are offering advice.  We have to make sure we take into account that there are those cases where one can't be lumped into the general overall view.

 

This is why these questions and issues are so good because it points out to everyone that in most cases there really isn't a right or wrong answer to anything but simply good advice in what works for some and what doesn't for others.  We can all disagree on certain aspects but understand there isn't a single catch all answer to how some approach the way they write.  I think the bigger advice we receive in these discussions is to see just how varied the approaches are for many of us authors and that it is important to take a close look at what works for some and see if it would work for us as well.  These discussions bring out a lot of good points of views and advice.  We as authors have the responsibility to sift through the information and take from it what will work for us as an author.

 

You have some very good valid points Ken as does many on here and I always enjoy people's perspectives.  Thank you for the well thought out responses you and others provide.  It helps us all out.

[larkin]

From the first word your character speaks, the reader begins to build a visual image that takes in clues and descriptive tid-bits given to him by the writer. 

The writer should drop in essentials, like gender, approximate age and relative size.  Not in that order and certainly not in a string. 

Keep it general.  Leave something for the reader to plug in so that they will identify or at least like the character.

When I design a character, I consider visual appeal, temperament, and I always include flaws. 

A perfect, Greek God, character is maybe desirable but a little boring or out getting laid with someone else. 

A character with human defects can be endearing and more easily able to identify with.

My favorite is a chipped front tooth.