Original fiction rambles.

[konstantya]

I've thought about dabbling in original fiction for a while now.  Something like a couple years, though the idea has since gained steamed in the past few months.  Only problem was, I had no idea where to start.  Like, with original fiction, you basically have a completely blank slate to work with.  Some people (most pro writers, I imagine) love that and obviously thrive on it, but it always kind of freaked me out.  I had the same problem back in college--some art instructors would simply say, "Draw!" with no set parameters, and I'd be there, stumped, going, "Well, shit," for more than a while before I finally managed to scrape something together.  I was always much more successful when told, "You have to draw this," or, "You have to use this technique," etc.

(Which I imagine is why I'm so fond of fanfiction, and have carved out a little niche for myself in it.  I like the confines of canon.  I like having to make something fit.  It's challenging, and makes me feel accomplished in knowing that I didn't make a character OOC or the like.)

Well, anyway, long story short, an idea for an original piece finally struck.  Who knows how good it'll be or if I'll ever try to, like, get published or something, but it's exciting, in its own way.  Kind of like when I realized my fanfiction writing had moved from "stuff I'm utterly embarrassed about and wouldn't dream of putting online" to "stuff that doesn't contain Mary-Sue self-inserts and might actually be enjoyed by other people."  XD

Comments

[drakonlily.livejournal.com]

I HAVE SO MANY BOOKS TO SUGGEST TO YOU!

The Triggering Town is an excellent start to writers and I really LOVE writing my originals. (Don't get me wrong, fandom is fun too, but I feel much freer when I'm writing Roost these days)

If you need any help, I'd be more than happy to proof read/send you resources.

I got rambly

[konstantya.livejournal.com]

Ah, thanks muchly! I'll definitely have to check out The Triggering Town. I've had plenty of lit classes (and even a couple writing classes), and have written my fair share of poems, so luckily I'm not a complete n00b when it comes to original work. XD

I've been writing long enough to know that I like focusing on character interaction, for the most part. World-building totally isn't my thing (maybe that was what drew me to fanfiction in the first place?), nor is a multi-chaptered novel. So it's looking to be a short piece of realistic fiction. As of now, the idea is just in its baby stage--a scenario sprouted, and I wrote down a bit of prose. We'll see where it goes. I was thinking of posting it here and f-locking it to get a bit of feedback, but it may take a while to flesh out. My writing has kind of hit a block as of late--which is perfectly okay, as I have a lot of RL things to take care of anyway.

Re: I got rambly

[drakonlily.livejournal.com]

<3 "What if" is another great writing book. It's a guide to character/world building stuff like that. I love your short works (and I tend to really like short stuff anyway). Things like The Yellow Wallpaper are excellent examples of short fic.

Don't let size be an issue! :D I hope you can post what you're working on.