tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post4913598556616145232..comments2024-02-08T11:50:33.547-05:00Comments on Tam's Reads: To practical for my own good?Tamhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15495571402942021799noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-90097237897362322642011-12-13T11:42:40.474-05:002011-12-13T11:42:40.474-05:00I think authors are as a rule just too close to th...I think authors are as a rule just too close to their own work. Caught up in their heads about what they know characters are thinking and what's happening next and they kind of miss that. I agree, you don't need a professional editor to note that mail is being delivered on Sunday which doesn't happen here ... EVER! :-)Tamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15495571402942021799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-59760889281622635372011-12-13T11:32:55.717-05:002011-12-13T11:32:55.717-05:00I'm really hot on stuff like this when I'm...I'm really hot on stuff like this when I'm critting for others - when writing my own stories? Not so much. It's that much harder to get a grasp on your own work in that way.<br /><br />Good editors and crit partners are absolutely essential for pulling up writers on these kinds of things!Josephine Myleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04469455529741307720noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-47427593918477393122011-12-13T07:47:42.513-05:002011-12-13T07:47:42.513-05:00super nice.super nice.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-59359685295000369662011-12-13T07:00:38.254-05:002011-12-13T07:00:38.254-05:00Well, I confess most of my musings came much later...Well, I confess most of my musings came much later in the game, but at the time it struck me. :-)Tamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15495571402942021799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-78980043487909940052011-12-13T00:59:54.467-05:002011-12-13T00:59:54.467-05:00I probably would have thought: OMG he could have d...I probably would have thought: OMG he could have died! But then not thought about it further. Well maybe I would have but not until I was done with the book and thinking about it later. lolTracyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05320961506471746567noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-16601448533275677102011-12-12T07:08:56.420-05:002011-12-12T07:08:56.420-05:00Sometimes I can even let it pass Jen by going &quo...Sometimes I can even let it pass Jen by going "Well, maybe in a big city like New York stores are open" but some basic stuff, no. It does get frustrating, perhaps because either an author couldn't bothered finding a way to achieve their goals logically, or they expect us to just believe it with no questions asked. I'm not stupid. I do know the basics of physics and reality. :-)Tamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15495571402942021799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-669722992824569382011-12-12T02:53:50.989-05:002011-12-12T02:53:50.989-05:00Sorry, I'm late to the party. I spent the week...Sorry, I'm late to the party. I spent the weekend recovering from a stomach bug and then trying to catch up on stuff.<br /><br />Oh yes, this happens to me all the time. I get so easily distracted by little minor niggly points, especially when they don't fit my own reality. Sometimes I can shrug them off as my lack of knowledge about the USA - after all how should I know whether or not the shops stay open until after 10pm on Christmas Eve in the USA? - but just occasionally I'll have a 'huh' moment which can lead to me spending the book/story feeling irritated.<br /><br />Lack of continuity bothers me too. If I can't picture what's on the page in my head because of some overlooked glitch, then I get miffed.Jenrehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15492693697232134724noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-29602738250795581062011-12-09T15:30:28.195-05:002011-12-09T15:30:28.195-05:00I imagine it's even harder KZ, for people who ...I imagine it's even harder KZ, for people who writes scenes out of order and then hook them together. I can't do that. I write from start to finish so I think it's a bit easier to build on rather to write somethin at the 70% mark assuming he will have done X earlier, only later forgetting that he was supposed to do it when you write that earlier scene. But that works for some people, I'd be lost. :-) An editor or even an honest friend can help point out that you had a flat tired last page, you can't drive away from the scene of the crime on this page, unless you plan on driving on the rim which is a whole other plot point. :-)Tamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15495571402942021799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-84694165612605463742011-12-09T13:52:09.508-05:002011-12-09T13:52:09.508-05:00I've done that as well! I'm a stickler for...I've done that as well! I'm a stickler for internal logic. <br /><br />Funny, though, how difficult it is to maintain internal logic when you're <i>writing</i> a story. And that's where editors come into play. It's up to them to point out inconsistencies, contradictions, and implausible situations. An author can get so wrapped up in individual scenes, or be so focused on the whole story arc, that s/he doesn't notice a little hole here or a frayed edge there.K. Z. Snowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01373906799954038740noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-14473865426221739422011-12-09T13:35:39.070-05:002011-12-09T13:35:39.070-05:00I go back hopefully like that, too! :)I go back hopefully like that, too! :)Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12959009113795804133noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-55253413692046043722011-12-09T13:30:32.159-05:002011-12-09T13:30:32.159-05:00Yeah Chis, thankfully this particular story which ...Yeah Chis, thankfully this particular story which triggered the post did not have any major issues like that. There was no roads blocked with snow drifts only to have him drive away the next scene. Specific mention of snow plows was made. LOL Occassionally while reading I've even gone back thinking ... maybe I missed something that would make the second thing make sene but ... not usually.Tamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15495571402942021799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-62865964598652255662011-12-09T13:20:30.663-05:002011-12-09T13:20:30.663-05:00As someone who does this, too, you have my sympath...As someone who does this, too, you have my sympathy. The Rowan McAlister story from the 2011 DSP Advent Calendar was filled with problematic bits like this, like a Hummer H2 running over the spare tire at the beginning of the book... then they put the spare on later in the book and drove on it, no problem. Ummm... that spare is maimed, dammit...Chrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12959009113795804133noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-88263751223748630172011-12-09T13:17:36.437-05:002011-12-09T13:17:36.437-05:00I should probably mention this is something I am k...I should probably mention this is something I am kind of anal about myself. In theory my Christmas story would be set on the 24th because it's based vaguely on my real world, the things I describe usually happen on the 24th, but I made a point of saying the 23rd because the 24th is a Saturday and it wouldn't work. I know that in a year no one will know the difference, but I knew if I was reading it I'd be going "Why are they working in an office on the 24th which is a Saturday?" It's my "thing".Tamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15495571402942021799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-5064929467624162402011-12-09T13:15:07.330-05:002011-12-09T13:15:07.330-05:00It's called Chance of Snow by Bryn Paulin from...It's called Chance of Snow by Bryn Paulin from MLR. I really enjoyed it, lots of spicy tension. <br /><br />That's a good point Janna. I probably do the same thing "Oh, in Europe they do X I guess". Here on Christmas Eve all stores close at 6:00. I'm not sure you could even buy a gift at 10:00. Maybe at a gas station. "Here honey, a pack of batteries, a 6-pack of coke and a candy bar. Merry Christmas." But things like that seem to be lovely devices taken from movies to fit the plot rather than what a character would really have to face. <br /><br />I just read something when the guy went "Oh no, I'll have to run out on the morning and get him a real gift." And my instinct was "It's Christmas, nothing is open" but before I could even think it, he said "Oh crap, it's Christmas, nothing will be open." Thank you, thank you author, for inserting a dose of reality. LOL It's the little things.Tamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15495571402942021799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-66612429555576514752011-12-09T13:09:29.450-05:002011-12-09T13:09:29.450-05:00I agree KZ. In this case it was a minor glitch (wh...I agree KZ. In this case it was a minor glitch (which COULD have had a basis in reality, it wasn't completely whack) which only thinking back cause me to go on a tanget, but it does have to make sense. If I'm going "no way", I'm not focusing on the main points of the story.Tamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15495571402942021799noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-30889098630768115292011-12-09T12:37:27.021-05:002011-12-09T12:37:27.021-05:00LOLOL, I can just *see* you do that, Tam. :D
I'...LOLOL, I can just *see* you do that, Tam. :D<br />I'm much less practical than you when it comes to this kind of things I think. Maybe it's because I often think that it must be something American, for example to work on Christmas eve, lol.<br />And now I'm really curious which story this is, because I want to read it. :)Jannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15169163606041934383noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7005569873582910532.post-16117180987825716322011-12-09T12:13:19.108-05:002011-12-09T12:13:19.108-05:00My take on it is, if the story is fantasy, urban f...My take on it is, if the story is fantasy, urban fantasy, steampunk, or sci fi, a reader <i>expects</i> departures from realism. But if it's a contemporary, it has to follow real-world rules. Circumstances have to make sense, not just serve the plot.<br /><br />It drives me buggy when stories collapse beneath the weight of convenient contrivances. Make a situation at least <i>seem</i> logical, and I'll buy it.K. Z. Snowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01373906799954038740noreply@blogger.com