A first sentence to start a short story or vignette with.

theartofanimation:

Julie Dillon

And I see Captain Ferris, a bit later on in things, off raiding the many worlds and times for useful items. She’s probably stumbled onto a world where this actually is the universe and she’s looking for just the right planet to get her the most interesting loot and maybe see what happens if she alters the orbits a little. …She’s probably about to get a call on her cellphone from James… since his calls seem to come through in the oddest places.

I suspect that when High Literature has a point (other than winning literary prizes) it’s life sucks and then you die, but until then you have to keep fighting for love/your beliefs/family/self-actualization/whatever.

…You know, I think you pretty much summed up why I avoid High Literature. Life sucks and then you die? Why on earth would I want to pay for and read that? I can walk outside and see that played out for real… anywhere. Feh.  

So I tell the Wonder Hutch, all confessionally, I bought a toy. And her response is, “Good. I hope it was a 3-D Printer.” I would like to state again that I love my wife. And I really do want a 3-D printer.

1. emeraldincandescent replied to your post: *grumble* someone else may be trying to pick that…

   I’ve had people ask me for help (usually with ace things) on anon, and I can see why they might be uncomfortable asking with their name attached. And also sometimes people ask me to TW things. So that’s why I have anon on.

   Fair point. As no one is asking me for private things I’m just not getting that reinforcement. But that IS a valuable use of anon.
2. starstealing replied to your post: *grumble* someone else may be trying to pick that…

   After turning mine off, I don’t get many asks anymore hahaha. but I always like to keep asks private nevertheless.

   XD - yeah that’s probably part of why I don’t turn mine off too. I don’t want to block an avenue XD though I get next to none anyway so it’s probably all wishful thinking on my part.

yeahwriters:

keyboardsmashwriters:

everylilthing asked you:

Thank you for your post on taking critique. I submitted something to be critiqued recently and it upset me when I didn’t get the feedback I was hoping for. Your post helped me open my mind to the advice that was given so for that, I thank you. :)

I think I know exactly what feedback you’re talking about, and this goes for anyone who received unnecessarily harsh, insulting, or patronizing critique that minimizes you as a writer, reduces or mocks your writing ability in any form, or tells you how you should write your own story.

Harsh writing advice DOES NOT MEAN good writing advice. Sometimes those who speak eloquently insist that they can only be correct in what they tell you. They also tend to think that there is only one RIGHT or CORRECT way to write, and this is a thousand percent wrong.

Also, if someone tells you there was no point to your story, if someone says “I guess you can write about less complex stuff while you’re still learning how to write” and that your subject is “too serious for you to handle”, that’s purely an opinion, not advice, even if it claims to be advice. Any time you receive advice that tells you you’re writing about things you’re not ready to write about, that’s not advice. If, however, you receive feedback that tells you to do more research because you could represent your subject matter more strongly, that’s harsh advice that’s good.

Advice should challenge you to do better, not make you seem like you’re perched on dad’s big leather chair, swinging your feet as your index fingers stab away at random keys to his neat typewriter. And your critique giver might claim that they are, in fact, challenging writers to do better, but this isn’t always necessarily true. Negative reinforcement is just that: it reinforces negative thoughts. It’s not even a cleverly disguised way to be a jerk.

Good critique is constructive, not destructive. Bad critique will hurt you. If you like to use parenthetical statements, that’s fine, but perhaps your problem is that you’re using them too frequently or not as effectively as you could. If your critique partner tells you to take them out entirely, that’s not for them to decide. This is a question of personal style, and your critique partner can advise you to be more selective about using them if you choose to keep them, or offer you advice on how to use them more effectively, but commanding you to change your style entirely is destructive critique.

Also, if your critique partner is talking you down, using words that you’d expect to hear if you were caught keying their car or pushing their mother into a trash can, insulting you by telling you “you’re not good enough” instead of “you can get better”, this is destructive critique. Don’t ever go to them again.

Good critique partners are just as open to critique about the way they give critique. If a critique partner is open to giving an opinion in a public setting, they should also be open to be publicly challenged. If I, as a critique partner, disagree with someone else who’s giving critique, I have the power to say so and we can discuss our opinions and perhaps come to some sort of mutual agreement. Critiques should always be challenged by other critique partners. This is part of being a responsible critique partner: you’re ready to be wrong.

However, if someone gives their critique and shuts off anyone who tries to challenge them, they’re just as bad as writers who tell every critique partner that the feedback they give is wrong. If I post something on the blog and someone disagrees with it, they can politely message me, and I’ll respond to them. I’ve learned how to give better writing advice this way, and that’s the point. I want to be able to give the best advice I can, which means I have to be open to feedback. If I’m not, I end up in this dangerous place where I think my word is law. It’s not. Your critique giver’s isn’t either.

So, in the end, yes, your critique giver has some good points (even if given with needless inflammatory presentation), but they also have some really bad points. Get additional feedback before you settle on anything, and make sure you read What to Do With Bad Writing Advice. This is precisely why I wrote it.

Thank you for coming to me with this. I’m so glad you did. Good luck!

Please read this yeah writers!

*grumble* someone else may be trying to pick that fight I wanted to. And being dickish about it. *grumble* 

Ok - non-random gripe: What benefit is Anon? Really? I think I’ve used anon maybe six times. Twice just because someone was getting shit from anons and I thought they should get something reaffirming from the same source. Twice just because I wanted to talk to a blog I didn’t want to be associated with (which seems like an argument against anon to be honest). And twice it was because I wanted to admit to something I was embarrassed about which I suppose would be the legitimate benefit. But seriously, from everything I hear on here, the vast majority of the time, Anon messages are simply faceless cruelty or trolling which is rarely better.

So why do we all have anon equipped? Why is it a thing? It just kind of seems dumb to me. :/ I don’t know. At this point I think I haven’t turned it off due to laziness. 

adiprose:

Much Ado About Nothing Theatrical Trailer

SCREAMING

Mmmm :) legitimately excited. I’m deeply fond of the Kenneth Branagh version but there is room in my heart for more. Maybe this version will make me not HATE Claudio. Always possible.

Not a belly buster but lots of geeky-Trekie goodness. May be my new favorite car commercial.

eschergirls:

dresdencodak:

Inspired by Anita Sarkeesian’s Video Game Tropes vs Women, I wanted to pitch a Zelda game where Zelda herself was the hero, rescuing a Prince Link. 

Clockwork Empire is set 2,000 years after Twilight Princess, and is not a reboot, but simply another iteration in the Zelda franchise. It just so happens that in this case, Zelda is the protagonist. I’m a very big Zelda fan, and worked hard to draw from key elements in the continuity and mythos.

This concept work is meant to show that Zelda as a game protagonist can be both compelling and true to the franchise, while bringing new and dynamic game elements that go farther than being a simple gender swap.

Hope you like it!

This seems like it might be of interest to many people who read this blog. :)

I would Soooooooo play this.