Pitfalls of the Boot Pit

My two cents...for what it's worth (probably not a lot at this point... :-):

 

What do you mean by "likeable?" To me, it's the complex characters-those who could go either way-that give depth to the story. The characters I prefer to read about are those who you root for because of their circumstances despite the fact they might not be top notch people. I like Zen off the bat-because he's flawed and yet still seems to hold himself to a high standard. The not wanting to fight but having to is what drew me in so quickly. My attention was held until the end-something I've found to be rare for online stories, but something you manage to do so well.

 

As for the confusing part...I think things will be fleshed out more as you go. One of the things you do so well is to show NOT tell what's going on. That's not an easy thing to do, and sometimes it feels like it's even harder to find. It's not about laying out the story from the get go, but rather, it takes a hint there and a nod here and suddenly, before you know it, the picture unfolds. That kind of writing puts demands on the reader-it's not sloppy and so you can't get away with just skimming it. It's also, in my opinion, one of the reasons why your writing draws people in so well; as a reader you don't have the option not to pay attention. Again, I'll take a complex, well written story that takes a few chapters to get footing over a simple, cliche one any day of the week.

 

So I know I said this before, but clearly I've become more invested in this that I intended: I vote yes. Do I get two by the way??? :-p

On 03/29/2011 08:30 AM, doesnt know jack said:

My two cents...for what it's worth (probably not a lot at this point... :-):

 

What do you mean by "likeable?" To me, it's the complex characters-those who could go either way-that give depth to the story. The characters I prefer to read about are those who you root for because of their circumstances despite the fact they might not be top notch people. I like Zen off the bat-because he's flawed and yet still seems to hold himself to a high standard. The not wanting to fight but having to is what drew me in so quickly. My attention was held until the end-something I've found to be rare for online stories, but something you manage to do so well.

 

As for the confusing part...I think things will be fleshed out more as you go. One of the things you do so well is to show NOT tell what's going on. That's not an easy thing to do, and sometimes it feels like it's even harder to find. It's not about laying out the story from the get go, but rather, it takes a hint there and a nod here and suddenly, before you know it, the picture unfolds. That kind of writing puts demands on the reader-it's not sloppy and so you can't get away with just skimming it. It's also, in my opinion, one of the reasons why your writing draws people in so well; as a reader you don't have the option not to pay attention. Again, I'll take a complex, well written story that takes a few chapters to get footing over a simple, cliche one any day of the week.

 

So I know I said this before, but clearly I've become more invested in this that I intended: I vote yes. Do I get two by the way??? :-p

Hello again--Wow, thanks for the in depth message here--that really means something. Can definitely feel your support and for that I am very grateful and it goes a long way in leaning myself toward taking this project on. You bring up excellent points about the characters being flawed--I agree wholeheartedly, which is why I try to draft such characters--but even flawed characters can have likeable/unlikeable qualities. But perhaps I worry because an earlier version of this chapter (there were three) one of them he was a bit harder and I toned him down a notch already--seems that it might be enough, which is excellent. Yes--I believe my readers are clever and will take on the info and build it up as and when the story progresses. I will have to make sure I keep my writing (structure/wordage etc)clean. But writing--the craft of--certainly is a long process. It's coming up two years that I've taken the craft seriously and I imagine it'll be a chunk more before I have grasped more of the finer concepts and working all the things I learn together right. Thank you, again, so much for your second Yes vote. It very much counts!

The more I read the more I wanted to keep reading.

You've set up some intriguing characters. Poor Zen, you've made life tough for him with an even tougher outlook. Christopher? - not enough known about him yet.

Yes, you definitely should continue.