Ophelia Fey's Second Assignment

[Ophelia Fey]

Ruby -

If my response is full of piss and vinegar, I shudder to think what you would have said about my original response. In what I finally posted, I tried very hard NOT to be nasty, NOT to be full of "piss and vinegar".

I apologise for coming off that way.

Thank you again for your responses and suggestions,

Ophelia

[Nikita]

Ophelia,

My two cents...

Write for yourself. The talent will shine through because YOU will be in it, driving the characters, the action, etc. The mechanics will follow.

The hardest part of writing is what you are going through right now, the critiques and edits. It's absolutely worse than giving birth to a hard stool. Gross isn't it, but you get what I mean.

My beloved writes long, wordy, descriptive, multi-idea type sentences. He gets bashed and praised for them.

If you read the reviews on the stories some of the instructor's have received on their work, you'd be scratching your head trying to figure out why they still feel the desire to write.

Look at some of mine. Most of the lower scores are because the story wasn't long enough. I definitely learned from most of the critiques. There was no forum like this other than Mad's Short Takes. Several of us edit each other's work and take pride in being asked to do so.

Consider this, if it is tough having to do the re-writes after considering the suggestions and edits others have made, just think of how difficult it has to be for them. They don't have to do it.

Editorially yours,

Nikita

[Ruby]

Ruby -

If my response is full of piss and vinegar, I shudder to think what you would have said about my original response. In what I finally posted, I tried very hard NOT to be nasty, NOT to be full of "piss and vinegar".

Probably the same thing.

I apologise for coming off that way.

Thank you again for your responses and suggestions,

Ophelia

You're forgiven.

If I've offended you, please forgive me.

To your success,

Ruby

[Mad Lews]

I think the thing that bothers me the most is the idea that I have to cater to readers with attention spans of gnats. What if the pace and mood are not about quickly beating hearts and a lunchtime splooge (splurge?) under the desk?

I think you have missed the point. The pacing is yours to determine. Making the story readable, even easily readable is also your responsibility.
I’ve always thought writing is a social act. We (the editorial we) write to be read. Unless you want to be writing for yourself or to impress the masses with your word-smithing skills, it’s important to convey your thoughts actions and descriptions in a readable and entertaining fashion.

Should there be some sort of warning - this story is not paced or written for those in a hurry?

No it should be obvious within a paragraph or two. It is however a story code in the themes section of the story codes.

I'm not interested in punchy. Readers should do cardio if they want to increase their heart rates. I enjoy long, luscious sentences, stretched out like caramel; with a long finish, like a Pinot Noir full of black fruit.
I want to devour slow, intricate, detailed, mind fuck sex stories, and I aspire to write them as well.

Your interests are fine but should not limit your writing skills. Some stories need slow languid development. At times, contrast may become the best way to stress that. Beyond that point developing an ability to describe an event or action with an economy of words is often a blessing to both reader and writer. We (the editorial we) are here to learn a variety of writing skills, not just to reinforce our own preferences.

I'm certain that I'm not alone in seeking out stories that are detailed and require the reader to engage. If the expectation is to write to some common denominator, maybe this course isn't for me.

Again we return to the basics, writing is a social exercise. The academy (at this point) has a common denominator called English. You will be asked to stretch your style, given assignments you are not interested in, and taught skills you may never wish to use again. Whether you stay the course is entirely up to you.

Yours
Mad Lews