Cia

Thanks, Valkyrie! The fugue state has been mentioned before, but this is the first we've actually seen it. Will's been taking care of Teddy for a long time, but now he is far more open about it. Adventure with deadly consequences seems to have that effect. LOL

One thing is answered and another three things become unknowns! That's what I enjoy in a dramatic story, so I hope it's working for readers in my story, too. Thanks so much for the review, LitLover.

One thing is answered and another three things become unknowns! That's what I enjoy in a dramatic story, so I hope it's working for readers in my story, too. Thanks so much for the review, LitLover.

Hey, a review is just as good as a like! The mystery is really taking them on a hunt, but Will is definitely determined and Teddy isn't going to let him go it alone. More will come next week, as always! Thanks for the review.

I could've sworn I posted a reply to this last week! Sorry, impunity. You caught the subtext on the decay! I was hoping someone would. Thank so much for review; there's definitely more coming about betas/gammas, etc....

See, I will ALWAYS ascribe to the fact that how you say something matters just as much as the sentiment behind it. He comes across as a judgmental, boorish ass which makes many people dismiss any value that might be found in his statements.

Teddy hovered behind me, his breath against my neck distracting me as I experimented with the cogs on the borders of the metal plaque. “Can you open it?” he asked. “Shh.” I needed to hear as well as feel the clicks as each cog slipped into place. Teddy sucked in a breath, and then it felt like he stopped breathing, distracting me even more. Thankfully, I was on the last cog. We both exhaled when it clicked into place and Murci’s face popped away from the rest of the plaque. I had to wiggle my f

But not the sort of thing he thinks is valuable. Reading yes. Reading 'classics', no.

Why would you allow a pompous blowhard to dictate how you feel? Most people aren't what he says they should be, in order to be a 'writer', yet they are. You don't have to be perfect according to some arbitrary set of rules one jerk comes up with, as long as you're putting in the time and effort to better yourself in the craft.

Very pretty, Sam!

He's somewhat local (same state as me) so I picked up on the article because of that. But yeah, I have no clue who he is professionally either--other than a jerk with some really offensive views about who should and shouldn't be considered a writer.

Sorry! It worked for me, but I redid the link anyway. See if it works now.

Some authors--and apparently teachers--are assholes. Yep, I said assholes. I've seen the ego on small-time so-called "professional" authors get large enough to capsize a cruise ship, and apparently Ryan Boudinot (who I have no personal connection to, but could not believe what he posted) is not only an author, but supposedly a teacher whose job it was to guide others. His article exposes a blowhard whose personal views beat them all. Out of every single thing he said, I can agree with only one comment he made, though I really hate to agree with him about anything on principal. You can see his article here, titled oh so politely as: Things I Can Say About MFA Writing Programs Now That I No Longer Teach in One. Or, as I'll dub it: Blowhard Speaks Out I do believe, whole-heartedly, that writing should be done to entertain, and not to self-aggrandize. I don't care how intellectual your underlying theme is, if you can't wrap a fictional tale up in a plot or characters in such a way to interest me in them without bludgeoning me over the head with your agenda, I'm not going to read it. Or worse, if you really irritate me, I'll give it a critical review as I've found most people who fall into that type of author group to be extremely egotistical and not open to less-than-fawning commentary. Like I said, it pains me to even admit to agreeing with him on that. But for the rest of that guy's drivel?

I'm not participating this year, but good luck!!

This month I thought I'd feature something many readers can enjoy, since the weather's been so bad and we have four full weeks to read--a novel length college-age story by Krista. I hope you'll enjoy it! March's CSR Discussion day will be on Monday, March 30th! Roommates by Krista Length: 72,249 Description: About best friends from college. A Reader Said: I know I say this about every story, but I really did love this one ~ Gene63

Because I haven't been able to give you enough this week. And my dad has never pointed out men/women, but when I was 18 and called to say I was getting married, he asked when I was going to have kids. Then, when I had my first at 22, he started asking me about my plans for birth control while sitting down next to me as I nursed my first kid. Personal stuff doesn't really freak him out much. He was a single dad of two girls, though his twin brother lived with us, for 7 years until my sister was 11 and I was 9, and even had the sex talk with me growing up. He was never perfect, still isn't, but he does love me and isn't afraid to say it.

The Writer's Corner has a lot of information on writing, as well as the Editor's Corner. Creating a plot with characters believable to readers is just as important as the technical skills such as knowing how to punctuate, use proper tenses and POV, avoid head hops, etc... I'd also recommend starting off small. We have weekly writing prompts featured in the blog and the Writing Prompts forum that could provide you with inspiration on something to write, and the expectation is that the prompts will generally lead a writer to create a flash fiction piece under 1000 words. These are usually some sort of 'Slice of Life' where you don't have to delve too deeply into the backstory and setting or create a complex cast of characters, which can be easier on new authors. If you decide to post, make sure you check out our posting guidelines and how to information in the Help topic: New Author Help: How to Post a Story, which can be found through the Help tab in the red menu bar.

Oh don't get me started on homophones, Efmaer. I cringe every time I see shutter instead of shudder. Or waste instead of waist, reign/rein, taught/taut... I've done a post on these in the past but the difficulty with homophones is that the only way to know you're doing the wrong one is to know the words. Vocabulary is something a person either learns or they don't. I can't write much by way of tips to help figure out spelling and definitions.

That's why my blog requires comment verification--I got way too many bots and spammers getting through Blogger's spam filters, which are pretty damn useless.

You got great advice about what to focus on in terms of good feedback from readers. As another writer, I will tell you this--write for you! If you don't like it, you won't enjoy writing it. That leads to less writing, usually. I never suggest that people give up on stories, but sometimes it happens (even I have 2 on holds). It wasn't because of feedback--or lack thereof--but just because I could NOT get the story out on the page. But if YOU like what you're writing, and the story works for you, then keep going. Take advice and comments into consideration if people are trying to be helpful, and ignore folks who give you 2 stars or unhelpful 'I don't like this' commentary as the dross it is.

It does. It's really hard to see what you're doing wrong if you don't KNOW you're doing it wrong. But if you have a hard time remembering any particular rules or figuring out how to polish your work, I can address things like that.

If people like this feature, I plan to continue to do more in short doses like this. It's easier to learn new things in small lessons, I think. Though not every day, lol, thanks for the vote of confidence, Lisa! Does anyone have suggestions about what they'd like to see in upcoming Grammar Rodeo posts?

Schvesla's machine... well that was always the goal. But there's a lot that they don't know--and that could get them into trouble. Or more trouble! Thanks so much for the review, LitLover.

I have that feeling as well! And Will is protective of Teddy, but there's always that 'Don't let anyone find out' need for secrecy. Maybe one day they'll be able to get past that, though. Thanks for the review, Valkyrie, and I'm sorry I didn't reply sooner!

Thanks for the review, impunity! And no, that would not surprise me, at all!