I do this anyway, now what?
January 21, 2011 12:23 PM Subscribe
I am constantly coming up with short stories in my head. I sometimes write down the best ideas (in long hand) in a series of notebooks, or on the back of an index card, or even in the margin of something else I should be reading. I usually write the framework, plus a few intro paragraphs and descriptive diagrams if necessary and then occasionally come back to it with minor changes weeks and months later. Is this a thing, and should I pursue it as something more than a hobby I share with no one?
In all honesty, the quality of my work is somewhere between that of the fictional characters Kilgore Trout and Walter Mitty. Usually the genre is speculative fiction or soft science fiction, although I sometimes write spooky campfire stories. The comparison to Walter Mitty is apt, because I'll often zone out and construct a story while doing literally anything. The main character is me about 25% of the time. I also usually plan out the cover illustration for the eventual mass market paperback. When someone asks me what I'm writing, I generally have a hard time condensing my story in a way that doesn't sound flat or derivative, but if someone else wrote it I believe I would read it.
In all honesty, the quality of my work is somewhere between that of the fictional characters Kilgore Trout and Walter Mitty. Usually the genre is speculative fiction or soft science fiction, although I sometimes write spooky campfire stories. The comparison to Walter Mitty is apt, because I'll often zone out and construct a story while doing literally anything. The main character is me about 25% of the time. I also usually plan out the cover illustration for the eventual mass market paperback. When someone asks me what I'm writing, I generally have a hard time condensing my story in a way that doesn't sound flat or derivative, but if someone else wrote it I believe I would read it.
Best answer: Is this a thing, and should I pursue it as something more than a hobby I share with no one?
I'm trying to get a startup off the ground here, so I have only one observation: If you decide to turn your hobby into a thing, it may or may not turn out be a thing, but if you decide not to turn your hobby into a thing, it will definitely not be a thing.
posted by mhoye at 12:33 PM on January 21, 2011 [16 favorites]
I'm trying to get a startup off the ground here, so I have only one observation: If you decide to turn your hobby into a thing, it may or may not turn out be a thing, but if you decide not to turn your hobby into a thing, it will definitely not be a thing.
posted by mhoye at 12:33 PM on January 21, 2011 [16 favorites]
Best answer: If your question is "I constantly think up stories and write them down, should I flesh them out and seek publication?" then yes, by all means, pursue that goal.
If your question is "I come up with half-assed plot summaries and semi-done stories in notebooks and on index cards, is that a viable medium for me to use to create fiction?" then the answer is also yes, but don't be surprised if people think you're half-assing it.
If your question is "Should I pursue my notecard/margin fiction writing, turning it into its own format unique to me, honing and developing my skills as a notecard writer?" then I'd say yes yet again, with the added note that you might want to look into flash fiction as a well-trod path for writers who like to write the sorts of stories that fit on index cards.
The worst thing about being a writer is the grinding realization that great ideas are common as mud. Great execution, and the tenacity to follow things through to the end, is where 90% of us fall flat.
posted by Shepherd at 12:33 PM on January 21, 2011 [14 favorites]
If your question is "I come up with half-assed plot summaries and semi-done stories in notebooks and on index cards, is that a viable medium for me to use to create fiction?" then the answer is also yes, but don't be surprised if people think you're half-assing it.
If your question is "Should I pursue my notecard/margin fiction writing, turning it into its own format unique to me, honing and developing my skills as a notecard writer?" then I'd say yes yet again, with the added note that you might want to look into flash fiction as a well-trod path for writers who like to write the sorts of stories that fit on index cards.
The worst thing about being a writer is the grinding realization that great ideas are common as mud. Great execution, and the tenacity to follow things through to the end, is where 90% of us fall flat.
posted by Shepherd at 12:33 PM on January 21, 2011 [14 favorites]
Yeah, what Shepherd said. Work work work at it, nose to the grindstone. If you can face rejection*, there's no reason not to go for it.**
*A lot of rejection. A LOT. Like, more than you can imagine.
**The fact that you design your own covers is cute, but suggests that perhaps you don't know a lot about the biz. Start reading spec fic/horror magazines and take a look at forums like Absolute Write to get a real feel for the business.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 12:41 PM on January 21, 2011
*A lot of rejection. A LOT. Like, more than you can imagine.
**The fact that you design your own covers is cute, but suggests that perhaps you don't know a lot about the biz. Start reading spec fic/horror magazines and take a look at forums like Absolute Write to get a real feel for the business.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 12:41 PM on January 21, 2011
P.S. Absolute Write is also a good place to learn about the evils of vanity presses, which you should avoid.
posted by mhoye at 12:45 PM on January 21, 2011
posted by mhoye at 12:45 PM on January 21, 2011
Best answer: Really, only you can answer this question. Do you *want* to do something more with it? Then pursue it. Do you require prodding? Consider yourself prodded!
Don't let anyone fool you. While it's true some people have a certain knack or gift for writing, it is a skill like any other than needs to be nurtured. The more you do it, the better you will become at it.
I think joining an online writing group is a good suggestion, but don't get discouraged if the first place you drop in provides only poor feedback. You might also try to find a writing group that meets up in real life. See if any of your favorite authors have written books on the actual craft of writing.
Send out some stories to online writing mags for publication. You will get rejected a lot. But one day maybe you won't. It's hard to know if you can stick through that sort of thing until you try it. (I am not particularly good at it myself, but I have not ruled out starting it up again at some undetermined future moment).
It sounds to me like you want to do it. Go! Go! Do it! Good luck!
posted by Glinn at 12:49 PM on January 21, 2011
Don't let anyone fool you. While it's true some people have a certain knack or gift for writing, it is a skill like any other than needs to be nurtured. The more you do it, the better you will become at it.
I think joining an online writing group is a good suggestion, but don't get discouraged if the first place you drop in provides only poor feedback. You might also try to find a writing group that meets up in real life. See if any of your favorite authors have written books on the actual craft of writing.
Send out some stories to online writing mags for publication. You will get rejected a lot. But one day maybe you won't. It's hard to know if you can stick through that sort of thing until you try it. (I am not particularly good at it myself, but I have not ruled out starting it up again at some undetermined future moment).
It sounds to me like you want to do it. Go! Go! Do it! Good luck!
posted by Glinn at 12:49 PM on January 21, 2011
I'm not a writer, but I'm a reader, and I would read plot summaries by themselves if they were good.
Jorge Luis Borges provides a great example of stories that essentially are plot summaries. Some of my favorite Borges stories are the ones that fit on a single page (and some might count as "speculative fiction", though obviously he's not a sci-fi genre writer). You might also want to check out Yasunari Kawabata's Palm of-the-Hand Stories.
The only way to tell if your stories are good is to get feedback from readers. If you don't want to join a writing group, you could start a blog, post it on MeFi Projects, and see if people like reading your stories.
posted by Chicken Boolean at 1:06 PM on January 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
Jorge Luis Borges provides a great example of stories that essentially are plot summaries. Some of my favorite Borges stories are the ones that fit on a single page (and some might count as "speculative fiction", though obviously he's not a sci-fi genre writer). You might also want to check out Yasunari Kawabata's Palm of-the-Hand Stories.
The only way to tell if your stories are good is to get feedback from readers. If you don't want to join a writing group, you could start a blog, post it on MeFi Projects, and see if people like reading your stories.
posted by Chicken Boolean at 1:06 PM on January 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
If you work on your writing, you will inevitably reach a point where it stops being a fun thought exercise and starts being a challenging pain in the ass.
If you keep working on it past the pain-in-the-ass point, you'll be rewarded with a finished product that you can be proud of.
If you're up for that, I'd encourage you to pick up a copy of The War of Art, but more realistically, just skip the book and start working and keep working.
posted by Metroid Baby at 1:17 PM on January 21, 2011
If you keep working on it past the pain-in-the-ass point, you'll be rewarded with a finished product that you can be proud of.
If you're up for that, I'd encourage you to pick up a copy of The War of Art, but more realistically, just skip the book and start working and keep working.
posted by Metroid Baby at 1:17 PM on January 21, 2011
Yeah, you should pursue this. Being able to come up with ideas all the time is a good indicator. Like everyone's already said, keep in mind that this is tough work and it'll likely take you years to write at a competent level, like it takes everybody.
When someone asks me what I'm writing, I generally have a hard time condensing my story in a way that doesn't sound flat or derivative, but if someone else wrote it I believe I would read it.
My friends and I all deal with this one. A lot of times synopses will sound flat or derivative because you're not finished developing them yet. You say you write short outlines and only make minor changes to them. How they sound when summarized at that stage doesn't indicate your talent level, just that you need to keep working on them. And some of your outlines might not even be complete stories, just character or plot ideas that need more elements.
posted by world b free at 4:10 PM on January 21, 2011
When someone asks me what I'm writing, I generally have a hard time condensing my story in a way that doesn't sound flat or derivative, but if someone else wrote it I believe I would read it.
My friends and I all deal with this one. A lot of times synopses will sound flat or derivative because you're not finished developing them yet. You say you write short outlines and only make minor changes to them. How they sound when summarized at that stage doesn't indicate your talent level, just that you need to keep working on them. And some of your outlines might not even be complete stories, just character or plot ideas that need more elements.
posted by world b free at 4:10 PM on January 21, 2011
I also usually plan out the cover illustration for the eventual mass market paperback.
Always fun as a fantasy, but in reality, even best-selling authors generally get no input at all into cover design.
Do you actually like to write? Writing is more than coming up with cool story ideas. Coming up with cool story ideas is a great start, but it's only a start.
Why not take a writing class or join a writers' group and see how you like it? The world needs more cool stories.
posted by Sidhedevil at 7:36 PM on January 21, 2011
Always fun as a fantasy, but in reality, even best-selling authors generally get no input at all into cover design.
Do you actually like to write? Writing is more than coming up with cool story ideas. Coming up with cool story ideas is a great start, but it's only a start.
Why not take a writing class or join a writers' group and see how you like it? The world needs more cool stories.
posted by Sidhedevil at 7:36 PM on January 21, 2011
Apparently Stieg Larsson wrote the Millennium Trilogy for his own pleasure in his spare time and its worked out pretty well for him. Except for the whole dying before the books could be published part.
posted by Fiat124 at 5:51 PM on January 26, 2011
posted by Fiat124 at 5:51 PM on January 26, 2011
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Join a writing group, see what others who are interested in writing and reading say about what you've written.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 12:28 PM on January 21, 2011