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Writing meme
Posted 16 years ago1. When did you start writing?
About 20 years ago.
2. First drafts: Handwritten, typed, or some combination?
Back in the early days I used to put most stories out by hand and type them up later. This got gradually less common, mostly because I'm lazy. It is a good way to force oneself to actually redraft existing work.
3. Do you keep any kind of notebook or writer's journal, and if so, what kinds of things go into it?
I use Twitter for random stuff I think I might want to grab inspiration from later, but mostly it goes into my head and rolls around with all the other stuff in there, and that's the best way.
4. Do you set any quotas for your work (number of words per day, number of hours per day, etc.)? Why or why not?
No, though I probably should. I write when the urge hits me, which doesn't lend itself to quota!
5. Are you most comfortable writing short stories, novels, or something else?
Short stories. They suit the pace of the online world perfectly, and most importantly, they fit within my attention span. They are good ways of producing content that does not need someone to take the plunge and invest their time unknowing of where it'll end. They're good for seeing if an idea, and the world around it, really has enough tenure to become a novel. Within the Azimuth stories I think I'm getting closer.
6. What's your favorite kind of story to write?
One with words in it.
7. Talk about a story of yours that was easy to write and one that was difficult to write, and why.
Let's stick with recent era stuff, it's just simpler. Tess was easy to write - http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1825217/ - and it shows, since I still think it's my best one. If the prose is flowing well, it gives me so much more thought time to do interesting stuff with it. The hardest is probably the one I'm trying to write now, I've already thrown away one idea.
8. Which of your characters is closest to your sense of self? In other words, who do you most identify with in your own work to date?
Well, one of my personas is in one of the stories I posted, so.. this could have an obvious answer. ;) Or I could be different and say it's Azalea. She's very spirited and imaginative, her feelings are serious business, and she's not afraid to be expressive - a point I'm working on. Then again, she also takes what she wants and is a bit naive about where to go from there. Hmm...
9. What work are you most proud of right now?
My last NaNo attempt, that I finished. I'm not sure if I'm going to do it again this year; a month of writing causes 11 months of 'I don't need to write any more!' sometimes. But if I have a novel in mind I might do.
10. What do you feel your strengths and weaknesses are as a writer?
My strengths involve my characterisation and the ability to write them in any situation and genre for any reason. A story is just that, and goes where it likes, much like life. My weaknesses are laziness and the difficulty I find in redrafting on my own. Most of the work you see is written as-is, and I don't touch it again. Beginning to polish the work means I'll never stop, so often I don't. The difference is when I get people to read ahead of time; if I've written the word/line/story, then I'm probably happy to have typed it in the first place and need a second opinion anyway.
11. Name a few writers who have influenced you or your work in some way.
Mostly authors from over the years I've been writing: Stephen King. Roald Dahl. Douglas Adams. George R. R. Martin. Phillip Pullman. Anne McCaffrey. I used to read more writers online but I don't really do that any more. If we expand 'some way', that would include Azakir and Prometheus, for various contributions to things outside of story
12. Talk about something you've written that you later found embarrassing for some reason.
Pretty much everything before 2005. It's like baby photos. Riley's a bit embarrassing, but its gratuitous nature went down quite well here. ;)
13. Talk about the earliest stories you remember writing. What were they about?
Before I was 16 there was very little expression in my stories and I could well have been reciting words. Before 2001, there was very little point to them. Before 2005, there were interesting ideas, but handled far too melodramatically in many cases for my tastes now. It's like, if I was telling a ghost story, I'd be making the fake spectral noises and wiggling my fingers.
14. If you knew you would be successful, what would you most like to write?
I suspect I should be directing myself at SF, though I wander around fantasy and contemporary. I think the ideal story I have will mix them up. Really, though, I want to jump straight into surreal and postmodern. I want to tell a story in six dimensions, rising to 6.23 with inflation (and fluctuating with the Dow Jones); I want to describe a cat made of sunlight licking an iced moon on a stick ("I dated the moon once, you know. But, seasons change; she started staying out longer and longer, disappearing every month with not so much as a note. I said, this is no way for lovers to be, and I left her, and she cried the first rainy tears, of ice and diamond."
"Then she discovered they was marketable, and became filthy rich. Some gals got all the luck.");
... and so on. I have ideas I love but I can't make the words work, too.
15. What inspires you?
Everything, in careful doses. I do so many things!
16. How many projects do you tend to work on at once?
One, sometimes 2; I like to get things out of the way.
17. Who reads your work before it's released to the public? Do you have beta readers, a critique group, etc.?
I have a couple of nice beta readers for works on here, who I use on occasion, and for works I send to magazines I'll go around a collective of close friends.
18. When you're not writing, what do you do for fun?
I compose music, study meteorology, research tornados, travel, be convention staff, and do miscellaneous computing stuff.
19. Advice to other writers?
There's no such thing as a perfect story. The best way to be an author is not to mind that and write anyway. By the time you're done, people'll be having too much fun to notice.
20. What are you currently working on?
Story #14, based on a handful of suggestions I've compiled together for convenience and interest.
21. Share the first three sentences of a work in progress.
My current work in progress is blank. I should actually fix that. :(
About 20 years ago.
2. First drafts: Handwritten, typed, or some combination?
Back in the early days I used to put most stories out by hand and type them up later. This got gradually less common, mostly because I'm lazy. It is a good way to force oneself to actually redraft existing work.
3. Do you keep any kind of notebook or writer's journal, and if so, what kinds of things go into it?
I use Twitter for random stuff I think I might want to grab inspiration from later, but mostly it goes into my head and rolls around with all the other stuff in there, and that's the best way.
4. Do you set any quotas for your work (number of words per day, number of hours per day, etc.)? Why or why not?
No, though I probably should. I write when the urge hits me, which doesn't lend itself to quota!
5. Are you most comfortable writing short stories, novels, or something else?
Short stories. They suit the pace of the online world perfectly, and most importantly, they fit within my attention span. They are good ways of producing content that does not need someone to take the plunge and invest their time unknowing of where it'll end. They're good for seeing if an idea, and the world around it, really has enough tenure to become a novel. Within the Azimuth stories I think I'm getting closer.
6. What's your favorite kind of story to write?
One with words in it.
7. Talk about a story of yours that was easy to write and one that was difficult to write, and why.
Let's stick with recent era stuff, it's just simpler. Tess was easy to write - http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1825217/ - and it shows, since I still think it's my best one. If the prose is flowing well, it gives me so much more thought time to do interesting stuff with it. The hardest is probably the one I'm trying to write now, I've already thrown away one idea.
8. Which of your characters is closest to your sense of self? In other words, who do you most identify with in your own work to date?
Well, one of my personas is in one of the stories I posted, so.. this could have an obvious answer. ;) Or I could be different and say it's Azalea. She's very spirited and imaginative, her feelings are serious business, and she's not afraid to be expressive - a point I'm working on. Then again, she also takes what she wants and is a bit naive about where to go from there. Hmm...
9. What work are you most proud of right now?
My last NaNo attempt, that I finished. I'm not sure if I'm going to do it again this year; a month of writing causes 11 months of 'I don't need to write any more!' sometimes. But if I have a novel in mind I might do.
10. What do you feel your strengths and weaknesses are as a writer?
My strengths involve my characterisation and the ability to write them in any situation and genre for any reason. A story is just that, and goes where it likes, much like life. My weaknesses are laziness and the difficulty I find in redrafting on my own. Most of the work you see is written as-is, and I don't touch it again. Beginning to polish the work means I'll never stop, so often I don't. The difference is when I get people to read ahead of time; if I've written the word/line/story, then I'm probably happy to have typed it in the first place and need a second opinion anyway.
11. Name a few writers who have influenced you or your work in some way.
Mostly authors from over the years I've been writing: Stephen King. Roald Dahl. Douglas Adams. George R. R. Martin. Phillip Pullman. Anne McCaffrey. I used to read more writers online but I don't really do that any more. If we expand 'some way', that would include Azakir and Prometheus, for various contributions to things outside of story
12. Talk about something you've written that you later found embarrassing for some reason.
Pretty much everything before 2005. It's like baby photos. Riley's a bit embarrassing, but its gratuitous nature went down quite well here. ;)
13. Talk about the earliest stories you remember writing. What were they about?
Before I was 16 there was very little expression in my stories and I could well have been reciting words. Before 2001, there was very little point to them. Before 2005, there were interesting ideas, but handled far too melodramatically in many cases for my tastes now. It's like, if I was telling a ghost story, I'd be making the fake spectral noises and wiggling my fingers.
14. If you knew you would be successful, what would you most like to write?
I suspect I should be directing myself at SF, though I wander around fantasy and contemporary. I think the ideal story I have will mix them up. Really, though, I want to jump straight into surreal and postmodern. I want to tell a story in six dimensions, rising to 6.23 with inflation (and fluctuating with the Dow Jones); I want to describe a cat made of sunlight licking an iced moon on a stick ("I dated the moon once, you know. But, seasons change; she started staying out longer and longer, disappearing every month with not so much as a note. I said, this is no way for lovers to be, and I left her, and she cried the first rainy tears, of ice and diamond."
"Then she discovered they was marketable, and became filthy rich. Some gals got all the luck.");
... and so on. I have ideas I love but I can't make the words work, too.
15. What inspires you?
Everything, in careful doses. I do so many things!
16. How many projects do you tend to work on at once?
One, sometimes 2; I like to get things out of the way.
17. Who reads your work before it's released to the public? Do you have beta readers, a critique group, etc.?
I have a couple of nice beta readers for works on here, who I use on occasion, and for works I send to magazines I'll go around a collective of close friends.
18. When you're not writing, what do you do for fun?
I compose music, study meteorology, research tornados, travel, be convention staff, and do miscellaneous computing stuff.
19. Advice to other writers?
There's no such thing as a perfect story. The best way to be an author is not to mind that and write anyway. By the time you're done, people'll be having too much fun to notice.
20. What are you currently working on?
Story #14, based on a handful of suggestions I've compiled together for convenience and interest.
21. Share the first three sentences of a work in progress.
My current work in progress is blank. I should actually fix that. :(
Open for commissions (updated 24 Dec 2009)
Posted 16 years agoHi guys! Yes, it's that time, I know some people have been waiting fondly for this, but I am gonna take some writing commissions again. Hopefully this will go quite well, since I have the next few months quite free, so. Let's see.
For theme: naturally I'm good with most aspects of transformation, but I can go all sorts of places. Tempt me with anything, either by Furaffinity notes, or on AIM as lilacdragon, or by email at azi{at}soir{dot}co{dot}uk.
Typically you'll have an idea for something you want written, then you come to me with it and we can talk for a bit. I'll write a few paragraphs to give you an idea what I'm doing (if you want), then it's usual fare: you pay me half in advance, and the rest when I'm finished and you're happy. Simple, hm?
[Edit: I've had about half a dozen notes of interest so far on this; thanks a lot! Before I leave it too long, I'm going to peg my prices to the US dollar instead, it'll keep things simple.]
My base rate is 1 cent a word! As such:
$30 gets you 3000 words (or thereabouts) of story. That's about the length of my Scyther story, here: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1825217
$60 will get you 6000 words - close to the length of the Davey & Mif story I wrote recently: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2437213
Note: I may well charge extra for stuff that isn't quite my thing, or if I'm really busy. Because it'll take more time to finish, of course. :P You probably won't have to worry about this.
And now, back to the stories!
For theme: naturally I'm good with most aspects of transformation, but I can go all sorts of places. Tempt me with anything, either by Furaffinity notes, or on AIM as lilacdragon, or by email at azi{at}soir{dot}co{dot}uk.
Typically you'll have an idea for something you want written, then you come to me with it and we can talk for a bit. I'll write a few paragraphs to give you an idea what I'm doing (if you want), then it's usual fare: you pay me half in advance, and the rest when I'm finished and you're happy. Simple, hm?
[Edit: I've had about half a dozen notes of interest so far on this; thanks a lot! Before I leave it too long, I'm going to peg my prices to the US dollar instead, it'll keep things simple.]
My base rate is 1 cent a word! As such:
$30 gets you 3000 words (or thereabouts) of story. That's about the length of my Scyther story, here: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1825217
$60 will get you 6000 words - close to the length of the Davey & Mif story I wrote recently: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2437213
Note: I may well charge extra for stuff that isn't quite my thing, or if I'm really busy. Because it'll take more time to finish, of course. :P You probably won't have to worry about this.
And now, back to the stories!
Hello from Germany!
Posted 16 years agoAs part of the conspiracy not to write stories in a punctual manner, I am in Germany for two weeks visiting chica. (Or rather, it's day 3 or 4 or something. Hopefully time won't actually pass too quickly!)
I have about 4 paragraphs of the next story done, as based on a couple of suggestions, but it's moving a bit slowly. It'll get there. They do eventually. ;) This one should be tagged for sciencey content, tail focus, merging, and a little dash of slavery. Y'know, fun stuff. :)
Of course, while I'm here there might be other things written in the meantime. Hey, so long as something gets written, hm? It's been a bit longer than I thought, wow. A month tomorrow. ;-;
So how're you all today? Here it's raining. :P
I have about 4 paragraphs of the next story done, as based on a couple of suggestions, but it's moving a bit slowly. It'll get there. They do eventually. ;) This one should be tagged for sciencey content, tail focus, merging, and a little dash of slavery. Y'know, fun stuff. :)
Of course, while I'm here there might be other things written in the meantime. Hey, so long as something gets written, hm? It's been a bit longer than I thought, wow. A month tomorrow. ;-;
So how're you all today? Here it's raining. :P
More stories! :: Two days left
Posted 16 years agoTwo days, and two finals and a poster session stand between me and greatness. Been a long road, waah. But soon, soon there will be all the time in the world, at least for summer!
Of course in better news I've been writing vignettes again, now that I have a kittygirl-shaped chica muse who's really good at causing stories to come to exist. Heehee.
Currently on my todo list I have:
* 2 suggestions from you fine people
* 1 story in progress (barely)
* 0 pending story-for-art trades requiring action on my part
* a million and one ideas I've had but not operated on yet
* one vacation in planning to see adeptomega and chica (there will be creativity)
* 2 people who would like to commission me. Huh. You crazy people. I might do this, but is anyone else interested?!
Of course in better news I've been writing vignettes again, now that I have a kittygirl-shaped chica muse who's really good at causing stories to come to exist. Heehee.
Currently on my todo list I have:
* 2 suggestions from you fine people
* 1 story in progress (barely)
* 0 pending story-for-art trades requiring action on my part
* a million and one ideas I've had but not operated on yet
* one vacation in planning to see adeptomega and chica (there will be creativity)
* 2 people who would like to commission me. Huh. You crazy people. I might do this, but is anyone else interested?!
Work continues
Posted 16 years agoSo yeah, while I'm not writing stories I am writing a dissertation instead. And applications for more college after college. It's been a longer break than I was hoping, bah. Still, I'm going to be refreshed when I finally get back!
In light of my rather whimsical acceptance of requests and suggestions, someone has registered their desire to commission me. Huh. Story commissions, how bizarre. But let's see - would anyone else be interested in that?
In light of my rather whimsical acceptance of requests and suggestions, someone has registered their desire to commission me. Huh. Story commissions, how bizarre. But let's see - would anyone else be interested in that?
Quiet batty :: thanks everyone!
Posted 16 years agoI'm in the last month of taught college and work has picked up the pace. Once I've got things rolling again, then there shall be more story! Util then, stay patient, azifans.
I was thinking of doing a submission for KK's contest, but I got idle at the last minute. But I figure that's probably okay. I'll probably finish that story and post it anyway, it can be a special. (Which means it needs a proper title. Grr. ;P)
Also, thanks everyone who's watched and faved and commented me. It's nice to know people pay attention to stories as well!
I was thinking of doing a submission for KK's contest, but I got idle at the last minute. But I figure that's probably okay. I'll probably finish that story and post it anyway, it can be a special. (Which means it needs a proper title. Grr. ;P)
Also, thanks everyone who's watched and faved and commented me. It's nice to know people pay attention to stories as well!
Picked up some ill
Posted 17 years agoI dunno what I've had keeping me listless and restless for the last week, but it's been mostly bad. So there's been a bit of pause from the usual story trove. Then again, I was aiming for one a week, so technically I'm still ahead. I do have a couple in planning; hopefully this weekend will prove the good time for that.
Outlook
Posted 17 years agoFor some reason I just decided to have a different account with which to post transformation-related things. Not sure why. I think it's just because I have had this character concept in mind for a while... and went 'Hey, why not?' Perhaps there will even be a TF with this character in it.
I'd like to be able to get a little story out every week. That's my aim for the moment. Even with my college in the background, it shouldn't be impossible. And with each story I will try and turn some hapless victim into a different sort of critter. Hee hee. This should be fun.
Maybe if I'm feeling particularly ambitious, there will be art. Possibly of Azi. Maybe even.. TF sequences! It takes me so very long to get something I'm even slightly happy with, but being in the verse of TF at least gives it an edge. I think. We'll have to see.
If I get enough stories I'll start numbering them. It feels pointless just now, haha. For now, enjoy what there is.
Someone just now asked me if they could make suggestions for my stories. I say 'Feel free!' The caveat is, I probably won't take everything and make a story of it. Then again, maybe I will. Really depends how the muse is working; I have moods of writing sometimes. And, hey, nobody's ever interested in story commissions anyway! (Feel free to prove me wrong. ^.^)
I'd like to be able to get a little story out every week. That's my aim for the moment. Even with my college in the background, it shouldn't be impossible. And with each story I will try and turn some hapless victim into a different sort of critter. Hee hee. This should be fun.
Maybe if I'm feeling particularly ambitious, there will be art. Possibly of Azi. Maybe even.. TF sequences! It takes me so very long to get something I'm even slightly happy with, but being in the verse of TF at least gives it an edge. I think. We'll have to see.
If I get enough stories I'll start numbering them. It feels pointless just now, haha. For now, enjoy what there is.
Someone just now asked me if they could make suggestions for my stories. I say 'Feel free!' The caveat is, I probably won't take everything and make a story of it. Then again, maybe I will. Really depends how the muse is working; I have moods of writing sometimes. And, hey, nobody's ever interested in story commissions anyway! (Feel free to prove me wrong. ^.^)
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