I ran across a post on my reading list this morning about an offer for a free copy of a writing software program called Liquid Story Binder. It is a word processing program with a lot of features to help with organization and it's FREE for a limited time (about 15 hours from the time of this post).

You can download the program here: http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/liquid-story-binder-xe-291/

HOWEVER! You MUST also be able to install it before the deadline of the giveaway or it will not work.

It is a fully functional program but you will not be able to get free tech support or upgrades.

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with Give away of the Day dot com or Liquid Story Binder nor have I used Liquid Story Binder.

NOTE: This IS a Limited time offer.

ETA: baggyeyes pointed out that Liquid Story Builder is a "Windows XP/Vista only. Mac users should look elsewhere. Like Open Source Mac". (see the comment below).

When I was 16, I wrote a novel. I mean, like from beginning to end, the pacing was good, the story was more interesting than it could be, it didn't sputter and stall out, and the setting and characters were richly developed.

For 16 it was pretty good. How many sixteen year olds write 100,000 words on a single project without loosing attention or interest? Probably not many.

Which is to say, it sucked royally, and though I printed it up and put it in a binder and still carry it around with me, when I go somewhere for longer than a month, it is beyond help.

When I was 16, I thought, "someday, it might be nice to send this to publishers, because wouldn't it be nifty to get an editor and get this published for real."

Needless to say I never did get it in a position where it was "good enough" to get out the door. And this is probably for the best. I'm older now, though not too very much, and after some time away from writing (college and social science got between me and writing,) I've started writing again.

The interesting thing, is I guess, is that the goal of sending a novel or novella out to a publisher hasn't really re-entered my list of goals. While I would certainly enjoy being able to have a chance to write full time, I'm much less invested in the eventuality of having my work appear as a codex in book stores.

Part of this is because I'm a bit older and less fixated on the symbols of "writerlness" than I was at 16. Part of this is because of developments like podiobooks. Part of this is because I've thought about the numbers a bit. In the end it comes down to the fact that if no matter what happens with my writing, I'm going to have to work a full time job anyway, I might as well work to have my writing reach a bunch of people and begin to build readership and a community around my writing, because I'm always going to be writing.

Maybe that project--which I will introduce you to again--will turn into something more, and maybe it won't, but I think in the grand scheme of things, it's better to write a lot of content very regularly, and have--even a very few--people read it, than to write another novel that may or may not ever leave my desk (like the first one.)

That's the first part of my story. Now, the second:

People, including myself, have been writing about ebooks and digital literature and hypertexts for years now, and more or less nothing ever changes. People don't read fiction online, or traditional fiction forms don't convert to the internet in a way that people are able to grok. I'm not sure, but with a few exceptions (like 365 tomorrows or strange horizon's) digital fiction hasn't worked online.

There's the old argument that, screen quality isn't good enough, that we "don't want to read words off screens," which is absurd. We spend our whole day reading words off of screens. The truth is probably closer to in order for fiction to click for people, it needs to take on a different form than either non-fiction words on screens, and fiction words on paper.

If you mash those two ideas together you probably have a pretty good idea of what I'm trying to do. I'm going to be posting about 2000 words of fiction a week (so 300-500 words every day of the week, so very short snippets) I have a couple of story projects that I'll be posting from and writing, and we'll see where it goes. The site is called critical futures, and there's an LJ community where the stories will be mirrored called, not surprisingly, criticalfutures.

The site will, primarily present my work. At some point I'd love to be able have CF grow into a paying market of its own, but for the moment, I think I need to prove that the form is viable, and I think the most responsible way to do this is with my own work.

These are the things I'm thinking about as I get started. I'd love if you'd read what I'm putting up (I'm just starting with this July 14th, 2008) feedback is always nice, of course. But you knew that.

I'm also interested in what you think about this issues. Are such adventures meaningful or important? How much does the state of the publishing industry affect your writing process/form? What kinds of forms do you think (either from experience or intuition) are best suited to the internet and digital formats? How does the sepia galaxy work for you?

I look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers,
tycho garen

Part One:

I've just updated the guidelines for writers_loft concerning the advertising of other communities.

+Do not join just to pimp your own community, it's impolite and I will, from here on out, remove such posts. If you do want to promote your comm, ask me first. You may ask in this thread: http://community.livejournal.com/writers_loft/2672.html

Part Two:

This is a reminder that writers_loft is more than just a 'share your work' community, this is also a place to share your thoughts on the craft of writing, your struggles, your learning process, your triumphs, asking questions about writing and sharing information.

Glad  I found this group; I've been looking for someplace where people have thoughtful things to say about writing. 

I'm a published science fiction/fantasy novelist with 3 books in print, presently holed up in a long-term writer's retreat to complete 2 more I have under contract. Since I plan to use this LJ account to not only talk about writing issues and process, but also rant about publisher, the book market, and various other frustrations from time to time, I am staying rather anonymous behind my Second Life iconized self.  

Now, regarding a craft thing that is eating my brain right now: 

I just watched a plot event in Battlestar Galactica that had a powerful effect on me, so much so that I hunted down the webcast to hear the director's reasons why he handled things as he did. This has spurred me to think about the use of foreshadowing or lack of same in achieving a tragic dramatic payoff. Although these noodlings are provoked by a visual medium, of course the subject pertains to written fiction as well. I would appreciate hearing other writers'  thoughts on achieving a tragic denouement. Comments welcome either here or at my LJ pages, where I get into this in more detail.  Caution: there is a huge spoiler re BSG episode 405 in the discussion at this page. 

Hi All! I tend to lurk terribly in my groups but thought I'd peek in before heading towards lurkdom infamy.

My name is Mandy Hubbard, and I'm the soon-to-be published author of Prada & Prejudice. My novel will be coming out from Razorbill books (A division of Penguin) in Summer 2009. Its a young-adult novel about a modern teen named Callie who ends up in regency england and must learn to navigate high society. 

 Anyway, it should be fun hanging with y'all! Feel free to friend my LJ if you want to keep up with the path to publication as far as editing, covers, galleys, titles, the whole nine. Should be an interesting year!

Mandy

Hi all!

New member. I'm currently writing a novel (aren't we all!?!) I suppose it will be considered YA, but I'd like to think that people of all ages would read it. It is called On Love, In Sadness and is the story of four friends. Becca has a dysfunctional family and an eating disorder, much to the disgust of her best friend and her long-term boyfriend. Charlie has been in love with the same person on and off for almost the same amount of time. Together the two weather the perils of high school - boys, sickness, family drama. The story of four friends, inextricably linked.

(I'm not too great at writing synopses, apparently.)

Anyway - I've been posting chapters as I finish them on a locked community here on LJ. It is onlove_insad and if any of you are interested please feel free to join, read, critique, comment. I will add everyone, I swear! So far it is in two parts, and the second and fourth chapters are posted, but it is possible to read them both without missing anything from the third.

Enjoy, and thank you!

Rae.

Hey, I just joined, and I'd really like to get some critiques of my works. I also post over on IndyFluency, so if any of you folks are members there you may be familiar with me.

Anyhow, this is a piece I wrote after a break up with my lady friend that ended a lot better than I thought it would. It's not really about that, but that was the situation under which it occurred. It is micro-fiction bordering on macro at 950~ or so words, if I remember right. It's a decently short piece is what I mean. Just a story.

Many writer's are simply free writing, edge of the seat, writers. However, there are a few writer's out there who like to outline things before they start writing. While I free write, I do make notes here and there. Very unorganized notes. If my notes were to become a little more organized, I think my writing would improve drastically.

So I come here today to ask you this:

What outlines, spreadsheets, and maps do you all use? There are so many different types. Character outlines, story line outlines, etc. What works best for you? 

I'm being rather curious, but I think in the long run this may help me out. Please feel free to make a few suggestions as far as 'resources' go! Thanks! 
 

Greetings shiny new member here and for my inaugural post let me just say that it's very awesome to have found a writing community that also seems to focus on the discussion of writing rather than solely people posting their work. And so in celebration of this I give you one of the most recent things I've written and a query.

First a summary, I suppose.

Art may be food for the soul, but to feed their bodies, a group of artists, writers, and musicians ally themselves with a man named Christophe. Christophe leads them far from the bright innocence they began with, keeping them firmly under his thumb and forcing them to mix their art with hard drugs and shady dealings--and not in the Oscar Wilde way. Four years after first meeting Christophe and falling prey to his wiles, Armand, the hypothetical leader of this group, wakes to rainfall, piano music, and disaster.

This may or may not be an excuse to write purplish-prose in present tense. Warnings include implied drug use, vague m/m relationships, and the afore mentioned purple-tinted writing style. This has been unbeta'd, so if you notice anything that needs fixing from grammar to syntax to style to flow, don't hesitate to let me know. There is a prologue, but I don't think it's necessary to have read it. This is 1,121 words

Rhapsody in Red
( Exposition - The first section of a movement written in sonata form, introducing the melodies and themes. )
And now the query.

Every time I get to at least the second chapter of something, the doubt starts to set in. Will anyone like it? Is the plot too fantastic? Should I simplify? Would that cheapen it? Will anyone understand if I don't? Will it still be interesting if I do? Does it even make any sense? Is anyone going to call me on my BS?

It's not as bad with this one as with some of my other pieces, but still. My plots tend to be a bit on the wild side. Part of me still hasn't outgrown the phase where you want to put a dragon in EVERYTHING even if it makes absolutely no sense (no, that does not mean there will be a dragon in this).

So, what do you guys think? Is there ever a point where you begin to second guess yourself? What do you do when that happens?

Hi there, I'm a newbie to the community and may I just say how nice it is to find a writing community that surrounds origional fic not fan fic.  As a peace offering, may I present to you a little short film called "My Novel is a Blank Page" that you watch here:  http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=WFgvvzyQrF4  Anyone who has ever sat down to write a novel/story/scene WILL be entertained and amused by it :P

Secondly, a query.  Do you have a specific time of the day when you like to write or think your most productive in your writing?

I tend to write my stories one scene at a time as they come into my head and then piece them together later. This is one that I've had on my mind since January but haven't started writing until this week. Admittedly, this first piece is not the best as far as framing the story goes, but I'm posting it anyway. Perhaps a brief summary would help?

Emily Porter has a bizarre and extremely rare genetic condition that has stopped her aging process, freezing her forever at 19 even though she is actually 84. She is also virtually indestructible, impervious to injury and disease. Though it may sound cool, Emily's immortality brings her nothing but heartache and trouble. When she is pursued by agents who want to exploit her condition, she is forced on the run and into the protection of Thierry Arden, an Interpol investigator who has been following her, and who also shares her condition. As they work together to both keep their freedom and find a cure, Emily and Thierry fall in love, but their disease becomes an impossible obstacle that they must overcome if they want to make it to happily ever after.


( Get in. )

***Keep in mind that this is just a rough draft. I just wrote it yesterday. If I get enough feedback from here, and maybe find someone to beta-read it, I'll be posting bits and pieces until it starts to take a more definite shape.***

~Christine

I have notcied that some writers tend to research a lot before they actually sit down and write - and they don't write until they feel completely comfortable with all the material they have gathered/read beforehand.

Some people just sit down and write and research as they go.

I am curious to see what the opinion is from the writers in this comm. so...What do you guys do? Research first then write? Write first and research later?

life.style is a series of drables. They are completely original, and MINE. What do you think about making a short novel out of these characters? Most of these stories are rated T, but there are also some that are rated K+, but none below that. (Check my journal for more)

"I have cookies today with lunch. Would you like some, Tooro?" Kiit asked.

"Are you just asking me because I'm fat?" Arai asked.
( click me. )

Someone suggested to me that this community might be a good place to find a beta reader.

Though I am somewhat of a learned gal (a PhD scholar and a sessional university lecturer--but these things can mean very little, and in this case, sadly do), the mechanics of writing can sometimes feel... further out of reach for me than they should!

Help with grammar, punctuation, narrative voice, and character arcs would be especially useful to me.

I also have runaway typing hands that take me to the most indulgent of places (hello wordiness and overdoing things). Much of my writing could be cleaned up, this is true. :D

I mostly write humour / romance, though I'm starting to bring more drama/angst into my pieces. I like exploring personalities and relationships (whether they be same-sex, opposite sex, friendships, or relationships within families).

Let me know if you've anyone in mind or any advice on where to go from here. (Incidentally, I glanced through the offerings at fictionpress.com and found it was like wading through the proverbial haystack looking for that stinking needle! And finding major errors in many of the beta-profiles does not inspire much confidence. So if that's your advice, I'm not so certain it will work for me. Unless you've some ideas on how to sort through the profiles and make better use of the search functions.)

Many thanks in advance!

Hello,

This is a  snippet from a story I'm working on. I need constructive criticism. 
The genera is Fantasy.

 

Although named Blood of the Dragon there are no dragons in the book. Enjoy.

Her first recollections of life included a painted doll crafted out of glass and a bed of furs in the back of a wagon. She was awakened from a deep sleep to the sound of shod hooves against cobblestone and the smell of filth. She groaned, curling tighter around her doll, and burying her face into the musky flavors of the furs. The familiar smell of smoke and animal, combined with the gentle fragrance of lavender and rose perfume lulled her back to sleep....


 Genre: Fantasy

Summary: Kyra awakens from sleep with no memory of who she is, and her only links to a past she can not remember are the man she travels with and the doll she clings to with all she is.

hiiii ppl.. i joined the community ..i'm currently  writing my own story about this girl remi and i'm on my fourth chapter.Heres the third and i hope u guys lyk it ..check out the rest if u do and comment sayin wt i shuld do n stufff..XXXX

As the charades carried on for 4 weeks after they got back and while everything was up in the air, she decided that it was in her best interests to stay out of the chaos. 

Besides, Karmel was going through a similiar tragedy of her own, the guy that allegedly 'liked her' dumped her in such an abrasive fashion. So together they took their grief up to burger king and drowned their sorrows in a bag of fruit salads and a bottle of 'blue' sprite.

Awarding the prize pricks for ripping out their hearts, running over them again and again reversing back over it and stomping on it with all their might, proved to be quite easy.  Whether  he came back or not they hated both boys and swore to themselves and each other that no matter what they said, how much they sweet talked them with their smooth like personalities, they wouldnt be fooled or go back to them. Ever. No more talking about, dreaming about either of them. 

This lasted until the end of the day, it was impossible to stay mad at them. However despite the feelings Kyron and Remi still didnt talk for ages and not because she didnt want to but just because they didnt. Simple. This didnt help in the slightest to get him off her mind though. 

Weeks went by, in fact i think months went by and still no change they started parting and slowly but surely moving away. It started off by them going separate ways home. She started catching the 188 and he started ... doing whatever he does to get home.

There were NO intimate encounters.. NO long dream filled msn conversations just a periods of rest followed by ... SILENCE!.

Gestalt is a new scifi/fantasy I've begun work on, chapters are added a few times a week, or if your lucky once or even twice a day, Im starting to enjoy really writing this, and Chapter 1 (Outcasts) when compared to my later chapters, is very bad, filled with misspellings , grammar errors (only a few) and is about 3 pages long, but it starts off the series with a fall on the face, and has a few introductions to the characters you might not want to miss, Chapter 2 (Ludicrous World) introduces Kris, but I wont spoil it farther, Chapter 3 (Deadly Flash) shows a bit of a horror side, and Chapter 4 (Destruction) begins a story arch with a nice twist or two people might not expect, except now you will since you now know of it... Anyway besides all this you can delve deeper into the story by reading and seeing the character pages posted just after chapter 3, you'll see a link on the page. Anyway, Im quite proud of Chapter 4 and ashamed of Chapter 1 so, if you could comment on them I'd be greatly pleased, Ill see you all later on the release of a few more chapters and character pages, Bye

To view these stories, please visit my journal page at Lunar-Lance.Livejournal.com

Note:Gestalt is german, pronounced Shtalt, or Schalt, and you may need to look up its definition at webster.com

Thanks For Reading!

Hello
I write for my own pleasure, I find it very therapuetic. Please find below a draft of a short that I've been thinking about. :)

(Two's me baby)

I'm writing a historical novel, it begins in 1858.  It's epic, there's a dozen or more voiced characters and it's full of erotic moments, though the chapter in the LJcut below is not one of them. I needed to cover a few key points:

• Lillie's ability to fix the piano and to mimic people
• a hint at why Thomas Oaks accepted Sarah Peterson so quickly
• some personal history about Elvie

The proceeding chapter had Thomas saving the son of one of his bride's servants from a charging stallion.  He was in his wedding suit, which is now ruined. This chapter is about the black Oaks. The brief love story replaces the very boring and trite wedding.

I'd love a little constructive criticism before I post this to my journal...

 

I'm stuck. 

This third part of the sixth chapter introduces another secondary character. I'm trying to describe a dinner dress she's helping my primary female lead change into. It's a made over child's dress.  I'm trying to compliment this thing and tell how it's different from and better than my character's other clothes, because it feels more comfortable on her newly pregnant body.  I've missed the mark somehow. I've highlighted this awful paragraph in red.

I think the rest of the 945 words flow well. What do you think?

This is my second short story for "Bustin' June." I used said inspiration site for the idea, but didn't really use it in the end. It gave me my plot, sure, and a few ideas. But woah, what my brain came up with. I love it, and I hope you love it too! 2300 words.

( The Mind's Gift )

I saw this question over on Absolute Write and thought it was a good one.

How do you motivate yourself to write when you don't really feel like writing?

Hi, This is the first story I'm posting on this community. Con-crit is most appreciated.
I have a few more stories up my sleeve but wanted feedback on this one first.

Thanks!

 WARNING: Alcohol/Drug abuse, Language
I don't have a name for my leading lady. Any suggestions?
Enjoy!

 

( Liquid Morphine )

This story was inspired by the composition picture...and again, it just flowed from me. Most of the feed back I got from "Unique" was "what happened to the baby?" I guess I answer it with this follow up story. I wont do an intro, I'll just let you read it. It's 1700 words.

( His Shadow For Life )

RATED: T

Sci-Fi, Fantasy

I completely revamped my initial story and came out with this. I worked my ass off on it, so please offer any comments or corrective criticism for me. I thank those who commented me earlier and helped me come up with my revision of the story. So turn on, tune in, drop out and enjoy the show.

Occult fiction in a post-apocalyptic world. The world is in ruins, humans and mystical energies wage war against each other in a battle for self sufficiency. A young woman loses her love and her life. A champion of the people is born.

I don't think that any story a writer writes comes from anywhere else but within them--even if that story is prompted. Thank you for the prompt. You truly drew this one out of me in a short time. I hope you all love it as much as I did writing it.

( The Story )

This is just the prologue to a story I started to write. I had a direction when I started and then I lost it over time. Its been awhile since I looked at this so tell me what you think. Is it worth continuing?