The Social Club

[VProductions]

It's a simple concept - the bar is the setting. Create your character, and write their interaction with the bar or the other inhabitants.

 

If you read through it, you'll see some threads which you can tie into, for example, one of the characters iirc, was looking for a man to kill. My character tried to rape her, and she knocked him out.

 

There is a rule, written or unspoken im not sure, that you can not kill off/seriously injure anyone elses character, or anything that would destroy their story, though if you knock their character out, it might be an interesting obstacle for the other writer.

 

You won't HAVE to read through the other posts, but doing so will allow your work to intersect others'

 

 

The one shots topic was one of my favourites, and it's simple: a theme is given, and you must write a short on that theme, then give the next theme. I have the last post in there, so i can't bump it

I would play this

[Mokrie Dela]

Check my previius post then man; there's a link there

[Ziggy455]

Well the apocalypse is upon us (Or so thousands say) So I figured I'd post something about Writers' Discussion. Since joining way back in 2007 I've really grasped the art of storytelling and grammar - I'm not great but I'm a damn lot better than I was- and to be honest this place has been a sort of safe haven for me.

 

Even through sh*t, through my old job, through losing loved ones, I could come here and chill. And to everyone that ever read anything I wrote and gave me a thumbs up, well I thank you, sirs, and/or madams. You helped me become a better writer better than any Writing Journal or teacher did. These last few years being able to come here and upload some work inbetween working my ass off has really been...a well privelege.

 

 

 

A big shoutout to:

 

Mokrie - A hard worker and writer.

Typhus - For his feedback.

Eminence - For his strong, never-faltering stance on bullsh*t.

Cubanwhip - For his time here before his turn.

Jackie - For when he used to roam these parts back in the day.

Unvirginiser - For showing me that even GTA fanfics can work.

TonyZimmzy - Likewise, for the above.

 

And to any I've missed, thankyou too.

 

 

And many, many others who have come and gone.

 

I know the world isn't ending but it's fitting.

Edited December 20, 2012 by Ziggy455

[Mokrie Dela]

Doesn't apocalypse actually mean 'change' ?

I expected some end of the world post from someone though

 

Fair enough for the shout outs though, things like that don't get said enough

 

 

[Ziggy455]

Doesn't apocalypse actually mean 'change' ?

I expected some end of the world post from someone though

 

Fair enough for the shout outs though, things like that don't get said enough

Something like that. If the world ends, at least I go with the things in my life that mattered, knowing they mattered.

[Typhus]

Anyway, I've bumped The Bar. Your discussion of it reminded me of the story arc I wanted to play out.

Don't leave me hanging guys.

[Mokrie Dela]

Anyway, I've bumped The Bar. Your discussion of it reminded me of the story arc I wanted to play out.

Don't leave me hanging guys.

My story arc also has places left to go and I plan on finishing that dw

 

I'm currently in the early stages of my next story - sorry to say it's a fanfic again but this time it's a lot looser

[VProductions]

Has anyone here played Far Cry 3 yet? I know it's off topic but I was wondering if anyone understood the story of it. I found a few theories but it is still unclear.

[AceRay]

If anyone is interesting in The Bar, I'd really like to do some sort of Co-Op thing we create two characters and write about their adventures, so for example if Bob and Alice went to the bar, I'd write as Bob and you'd write as Alice. I'd like to write at the same time because the interactions are fun, so we're like online and waiting for each other to write one part before writing one ourselves. The game is most fun when the writers interact with the characters and that's something I'd like to do. I'll be away for the next four days so PM me around then.

[Mokrie Dela]

If anyone is interesting in The Bar, I'd really like to do some sort of Co-Op thing we create two characters and write about their adventures, so for example if Bob and Alice went to the bar, I'd write as Bob and you'd write as Alice. I'd like to write at the same time because the interactions are fun, so we're like online and waiting for each other to write one part before writing one ourselves. The game is most fun when the writers interact with the characters and that's something I'd like to do. I'll be away for the next four days so PM me around then.

I would jump at that, but I've got JIF to finish up, i'm working on a Fallout fanfic and also toying with an Assassin's Creed one so any writing time is dedicated to those

[VProductions]

Fallout 3 or New Vegas.... Or is it a secret.

[DestaliusDark]

Hey there.

Sorry, i never continued TLoP, though i still have a few unfinished chapters staring me each tie i start up my computer.

 

I wanted to ask, i was wondering if a small sort of action,thriller with the concept being Dreams would be a good idea?

 

 

[Mokrie Dela]

Fallout 3 or New Vegas.... Or is it a secret.

Neither. It'll be a new location. I'm exploring options ATM, but I'm toying with Colorado Springs. I'm aware that Cheyenne mountain appeared in an earlier fallout game, which is strange because in the event of a nuclear war, Cheyenne would be flattened. I think my fanfic would disregard any previous appearance Cheyenne mountain.

 

 

@Destallius, the concept being dreams? I'm not following you.

 

 

There are no bad ideas in writing, only bad implementation

[DestaliusDark]

Fallout 3 or New Vegas.... Or is it a secret. 

Neither. It'll be a new location. I'm exploring options ATM, but I'm toying with Colorado Springs. I'm aware that Cheyenne mountain appeared in an earlier fallout game, which is strange because in the event of a nuclear war, Cheyenne would be flattened. I think my fanfic would disregard any previous appearance Cheyenne mountain.

 

 

@Destallius, the concept being dreams? I'm not following you.

 

 

There are no bad ideas in writing, only bad implementation

Could you explain why dreams are a bad idea?

 

[Mokrie Dela]

I never said dreams were a bad idea

What's your idea? Are you making a story of a guy having dreams? Are the dreams all connected and be lives this story trough the dreams? Is the whole story one dream?

I'm confused about what your concept actually is and this can't answer the original question

[Master of San Andreas]

Where do authors originally write the story before publishing?If I want to publish a book,where should I write it first?

[Mokrie Dela]

Where do authors originally write the story before publishing?If I want to publish a book,where should I write it first?

If you're seeking to publish something, you can not upload it to any website. Publishers won't touch a work that has already been published, and putting it on these forums is considered self publishing.

 

Instead you need to write it on your own, behind closed doors. You need to then proof read it and edit it extensively. Then, once it's REALLY ready, you send off either previews or it in whole to a publishers and they'll (maybe) read it and (possibly) consider maybe pursuing it. It's not a likely thing, and chances are you will fail first time round. You'll have to keep trying and really want it, and most of all, your work has to be the best you can offer.

 

You're best off setting aside anything you want published or, signing up to a variety of forums, spreading your work around there, get people to read it and know your name. Get a following. Set up a blog website and put it on there, link people to it. Once you get people following you (Twitter may be a good place for this) and you've got a "fanbase" then you can explore Ebooks, and selling it via a website (be careful not to sell what you've already given for free).

 

Very few of us (and i for one definitely am not) are ready to submit to a publishers. It's a big step and usually you'll need to have found a niche in the market - the next big trend. Rowling found it with teen wizardry. That woman found it with sex (50 shades of crap). What's yours?

 

 

Take your time mate, that's my advice.

[Master of San Andreas]

Where do authors originally write the story before publishing?If I want to publish a book,where should I write it first?

If you're seeking to publish something, you can not upload it to any website. Publishers won't touch a work that has already been published, and putting it on these forums is considered self publishing.

 

Instead you need to write it on your own, behind closed doors. You need to then proof read it and edit it extensively. Then, once it's REALLY ready, you send off either previews or it in whole to a publishers and they'll (maybe) read it and (possibly) consider maybe pursuing it. It's not a likely thing, and chances are you will fail first time round. You'll have to keep trying and really want it, and most of all, your work has to be the best you can offer.

 

You're best off setting aside anything you want published or, signing up to a variety of forums, spreading your work around there, get people to read it and know your name. Get a following. Set up a blog website and put it on there, link people to it. Once you get people following you (Twitter may be a good place for this) and you've got a "fanbase" then you can explore Ebooks, and selling it via a website (be careful not to sell what you've already given for free).

 

Very few of us (and i for one definitely am not) are ready to submit to a publishers. It's a big step and usually you'll need to have found a niche in the market - the next big trend. Rowling found it with teen wizardry. That woman found it with sex (50 shades of crap). What's yours?

 

 

Take your time mate, that's my advice.

Thanks but should I write it in a new book or in old used note books?

[Mokrie Dela]

Thanks but should I write it in a new book or in old used note books?

Doesn't matter. There was one author (the name escapes me) who only wrote on specific yellow jotter paper. Another (possible the same one) bought an expensive wooden desk, but still ended up writing in the kitchen.

 

I use the computer, because it's easier on my hands, easier to correct typos and make changes.

 

Use whatever you're comfortable with, computer, a brand new notepad for each story, an old, battered journal, or a thousand postit notes. It doesn't matter a damn what you use, where you write it or when, only that you're comfortable in your choice

[Master of San Andreas]

Thank you very much Mokrie

[Acehilm]

Do you think Peasant Blurs could be publishing material.

[Eminence]

 

Do you think Peasant Blurs could be publishing material.

Not yet. Try not to worry too much about having something published - you're still developing. It's good, but in the long run it's something that's helping you to learn about writing and to improve. At this stage, it's nothing more.

 

I know that sounds blunt and a bit harsh, but I think the sooner you sort of take that notion onboard, the closer you'll actually be to putting yourself in a situation where you're writing publishable material.

 

You don't just write your first story and have it be good enough to be published. Athletes, musicians, you name it - they put in the hours of practice, improving with each step. Writing's no different.

[VProductions]

EDIT: I am writing a TV show and I have a basic plot for the first three episodes but I urgently need your opinions.

 

Q:How long should the episodes be? 30 Minutes or 60 Minutes?

Edited January 9, 2013 by VProductions

[The Bar]

Whoops. My bad!

[VProductions]

Whoops. My bad!

????

[Ziggy455]

I've been so swamped with College lately but because I want to break out of the assignment cycle, I've been responding to many PMs who are asking for my help and for me to restart The Bar. The fact is I can't keep up with the amount of characters and actions at the minute because I've got 12 assignments to do as well as shoot two music videos and a Final Major Project.

 

I've been trying to keep up with stuff but it's hard. But because I'm faithful I'd like to create a small-scale redux of The Bar. Here's what I was thinking.

 

I was thinking about all the criminal cliches that I saw in The Bar. I hated the idea of creating something that people were going to fill with bad lines and bad actions. I wanted to send these characters to the end of the world so they could freeze the f*ck to death.

 

Then it hit me. I found myself reading 'Who Goes There' by John W. Campbell and I realized it was the basis for John Carpenter's The Thing. I loved the sense of paranoia that Campbell exhumed. The isolation and the atmosphere of the book and the film was brilliant.

 

I was thinking I'd love to create something small-scale but with the same fundamentals of The Bar. I can't keep up with The Bar as there's so many characters and I can only manage something small right now due to college.

 

The game would follow the simple rules of The Bar but the possibility of criminals in The North Pole are scarce and characters would be extremely different. The possibility of infection is always looming and you can never trust anyone, not even yourself. The player limit is SEVEN. If you want to join after that then it's tough for now. It's something I was thinking over and this what I've come up with:

 

 

Thoughts?

Edited January 10, 2013 by Ziggy455

[Eminence]

Outpust 31?

 

It sounds like quite an intriguing idea! I think what you need to do is think of a framework wherein the entire thing is self-sufficient. It should just run on its own. The second it relies upon one person - or any number of people - to respond and sort of 'chair' the whole thing, it's just a recipe for disaster.

 

@VProductions -- Well, that's up to you. It largely depends on the genre of the TV show. Is it a drama? If so, then 60 minutes. Sitcom? Then 30. Common sense really. Look at what's out there and do the same. You'll rarely see something go against those established norms.

[VProductions]

@Ziggy - That would probably work and it would be interesting to see an Eskimo pimp

 

@Eminence - Thanks, I will go for 60 minutes but it seems hard to know how much writing that is. So far I have wrote 3 scenes and they total to around 15 minutes but to know that I had to physically act them out and that in itself took around an hour because of the complexity of the actions. I am looking to release an episode per month or something like that.

 

@Reader- I would also like to say that I wouldn't have been able to write this if not for Ziggy's tutorial and Eminence's website recommendation. Also any feedback for 'Annihilation' would be great, I need to know if I have done it right.

Edited January 9, 2013 by VProductions

[Ziggy455]

Outpust 31?

 

It sounds like quite an intriguing idea! I think what you need to do is think of a framework wherein the entire thing is self-sufficient. It should just run on its own. The second it relies upon one person - or any number of people - to respond and sort of 'chair' the whole thing, it's just a recipe for disaster.

 

@VProductions -- Well, that's up to you. It largely depends on the genre of the TV show. Is it a drama? If so, then 60 minutes. Sitcom? Then 30. Common sense really. Look at what's out there and do the same. You'll rarely see something go against those established norms.

That's what I mean. I'm not blindly going into this like 'YO. DIZ BE A MULTIPLAYER GAME WIV ALIENS. I'LL MODERATE.' I'm thinking sh*t over and trying to figure out how to make the fundamentals work well enough that the game stands on it's own. Having a game that focuses on paranoia with the familiar atmosphere of Campbell's novella would be a brilliant game to play.

 

sh*t. Outpost 31 was McReady's outpost. The prequel to the 1982 classic was originally going to be called Outpost 30. I believe the main beginning narrative of my game -I'm stupid. I meant to call it Outpost 32- Is that Childs, the second survivor, makes his way to the small seven-manned (Seven player limit) Outpost 32 where the infection begins again. That's all I've got.

[Eminence]

I was just referring to the typo in Outpust.

 

With these sorts of things, I think the most important element is the game's structure, as opposed to its idea or its plot. It's in figuring out how each writer interacts with each other, and the rules that go along with it. Not too keen on a player limit, as it could end up hurting more than it helps - but I suppose it's one way to weed out the chaff.

 

@VP - well, if you're using Celtx then it should be formatting it so that you can figure out the timing. In standard screenplay format (and I'm not certain, as I haven't researched it, but I think it should largely be the same with teleplays - I don't think the formatting is all that different) it usually translates to a page per minute. So for a 60 minute episode, you should be looking at 50-55 pages if it's a cable thing, or 40-45 if it's a standard show, perhaps? (Factoring in ad breaks and such here)