A year in Review (Questions, too.)
10 years ago
So, things this year were interesting, but honestly, many things could have turned out much better.
I finished The Trials of Cenric with an insane amount of pages, but few people gave a damn. The parts of that story never got any favorites, few ever got any comments. It's depressing, knowing that so few people give a damn about a year and a half's worth of work.
I did an experiment where I wrote some strange-ass smut... and got more views and favorites on a single five page story that I wrote in two hours than a full epic. Fuck me.
But, I did start work in visual art. Going from pencil to pen to digital to full color traditional, I've gotten quite far for half a year of visual work, and I certainly hope I get much better.
And I've been fucked over multiple time in the long road to opening commissions. Believe me, I certainly am trying. It's still almost three months away. (Does anyone even care...?)
Hopefully the next year goes better. Maybe get my work a little better known, refine it more. I don't want to sound selfish, but I hope that I get more acknowledgment in this upcoming year. I work so hard and get so little noticed. It's honestly extremely depressing. Sometimes I don't even know why I do this anymore.
But it's a new year, and a new novel's in the works. First thirteen pages are complete- 150-200 more to go. Is it going to end up like The Trials of Cenric, unloved and forgotten...?
Fuck me, I'm crying writing this. I put so much emotion into my writing that thinking about this doesn't help. Can anyone help at all? I've tried damn near everything on FA and it has done me almost nothing, so I'm willing to go onto a different site if I have to, furry or not. Please, help an artist rapidly falling into a slump.
Whoo, 2016.
I finished The Trials of Cenric with an insane amount of pages, but few people gave a damn. The parts of that story never got any favorites, few ever got any comments. It's depressing, knowing that so few people give a damn about a year and a half's worth of work.
I did an experiment where I wrote some strange-ass smut... and got more views and favorites on a single five page story that I wrote in two hours than a full epic. Fuck me.
But, I did start work in visual art. Going from pencil to pen to digital to full color traditional, I've gotten quite far for half a year of visual work, and I certainly hope I get much better.
And I've been fucked over multiple time in the long road to opening commissions. Believe me, I certainly am trying. It's still almost three months away. (Does anyone even care...?)
Hopefully the next year goes better. Maybe get my work a little better known, refine it more. I don't want to sound selfish, but I hope that I get more acknowledgment in this upcoming year. I work so hard and get so little noticed. It's honestly extremely depressing. Sometimes I don't even know why I do this anymore.
But it's a new year, and a new novel's in the works. First thirteen pages are complete- 150-200 more to go. Is it going to end up like The Trials of Cenric, unloved and forgotten...?
Fuck me, I'm crying writing this. I put so much emotion into my writing that thinking about this doesn't help. Can anyone help at all? I've tried damn near everything on FA and it has done me almost nothing, so I'm willing to go onto a different site if I have to, furry or not. Please, help an artist rapidly falling into a slump.
Whoo, 2016.
FA+

Try DA. It has a better audience for writers, even though they dont like furries.
I know it's really hard to be a writer on this site -- frankly, as a writer in the furry community in entirety.
Maybe I'm not cultured, but I can't say I can honestly recall a writer in the fandom that folks talk openly about.
At least, not one that isn't collaborating with an artist on a comic.
There are a lot of excuses you can make for yourself.
And I'd tell you every one of them is valid, too.
To be a recognized writer of any merit in a demographic like this is almost unheard of.
And maybe it's not my place to say, but in spite of that, all you can do is try to improve.
Until people do take note of what you do.
Sometimes it's not about the words you choose, or even the subject.
Chances are that some of the stories you dream up will go wholly unnoticed.
You're competing with other written media -- people are bombarded with massive chunks of written information on the internet.
Odds are that people are going to favor more interactive written media.
Things like twitter, where they can read short concise content they want to see and agree with.
Improving your reception won't always be about improving your writing, word choices.
Your attention to theme, plot, character, or dialogue.
But improving how engaging you are, and building up a core group of people who want to involve themselves in your stories.
It's said that the nature of a story is to change in the mind of each person who has heard it.
What ending they wanted, what interaction they longed for.
You see popular stories become wild, varied canons. Especially in internet culture.
"In my headcanon, so and so did this." -- "In mine, this and this went together."
Even if it were a masterpiece, showing someone your blood sweat and tears is meaningless if they aren't engaged.
If they don't see a part of themselves in it.
Shakespeare was a master of rhetoric and poetry, but without actors to bring his words to life, his audience might not have been so invested.
What I am suggesting is this, and maybe it is a compromise you're unwilling to make.
Keep your story submissions shorter, but posted more regularly.
Invite people to contribute to your work. Hear their theories and their wants for the characters.
Allow them choices about the direction of the story, so that they can be invested.
Keep your stories loose and flexible, and learn to find twists rather than plan them.
Don't throw yourself into the aether and expect a group of grateful readers to find you.
Build that community around yourself.
I am sorry that I can't offer you anything more than what is tantamount to a short-sighted observation.
But I'd hope that if you did try it, you might find some of the recognition you crave.
And I'd hope that if you did try to write for an audience, you might find a lot to learn as well.
Length wise, yeah, I do post my stuff in huge-ass chunks. 20-30 pages a piece. Should make that 10-15, maybe? Split it in half, maybe that'll encourage people to sit down and give it at least a bit of time.
And I see where you're going with the interactive bit, but apart from me offering to put their characters into my writing, it rarely ever worked out. I've asked people for their input on the future of my stories, and no one- and I mean no one at all has ever given me their two cents except maybe once. I used to offer putting the characters of others into my writing occasionally, but my problem is that most characters wouldn't fit in what i write. I can't put a dragon in a world full of birds or foxes or whatever. Although, I guess a few characters could fit into my specific parts of writing here and there.
And yeah, I've built a little bit of a community of readers by putting their characters in, but that's like... what, four people? They come back if the content of the story is what interests them, and they give their thoughts. But the occurrence of that has become less and less. I haven't gotten a single comment on my writing that was a meaningful bit of critique in probably six months, now. It's actually really depressing.
But releasing my writing in shorter parts is worth a shot. I'll try it with the novel I'm cobbling together as we speak; and then maybe boot up a raffle so that people can ask for stories all of their own, perhaps.
Once again, thanks for your rather poetic thoughts. Cheers!
Basically, you need to make your work more accessible.
This includes actually socializing with your audience, which not many writers do.
You have to take many things upon your own person, and input much more effort. It feels stilted against you but its unavoidable.
Your writing is okay, but it feels slightly bland. I dont see an individual voice speaking to me. But I guess that'll come with time...
Good luck.