Shadowgirls

GAAAHHHHH. The horror! It's almost worse than that transformers video that MachSabre linked in his deviantart journal.

Well I've got updated drafts back from both my co-writers and need to find the time to put my own effort on the work. Hopefully I can get something back to them tomorrow. Still haven't had 2 minutes to work on my solo piece any more, but I've been thinking it over in my head so I'll probably make some good progress once I get back to it.

Charles wrote:GAAAHHHHH. The horror! It's almost worse than that transformers video that MachSabre linked in his deviantart journal.

Well I've got updated drafts back from both my co-writers and need to find the time to put my own effort on the work. Hopefully I can get something back to them tomorrow. Still haven't had 2 minutes to work on my solo piece any more, but I've been thinking it over in my head so I'll probably make some good progress once I get back to it.

Damn it Charles, do your own piece first!

DaveRod wrote:Writing Contest Rules

5. The submitted story must be able to stand on as its own as a complete story and not rely on the existing storyline. By the time this short story is released this season will be complete already. (Don’t worry about characters who may or may not be dead or alive, if the story is good we’ll fit it into continuity.)
11. Please use this thread for questions pertaining to the contest.

Well, I was just wondering how much it has to stand on it's own. For example, is it possible that it could be something that happened off screen in the main storyline, but would (hopefully) explain itself within? The current idea that's lodged in my head is when the M.E. got picked up by the bloodwatch, but I'm not even sure if it would be acceptable. If it's definatively not, I'll figure something out, and if it's a maybe, I'll work it out, submit, then start something else just in case. I suppose part of it is that I want to figure out if you have any definitive ideas on how it happened, and don't want anyone messing with it. Um, now I'm rambling, so I hope you can figure out what I'm asking.

I know I'm paying close attention to that rule. I guess it basically means that anyone should be able to pick up the book and read your tale without having ever read the other books. You can probably have comments and events which are like easter eggs that only make sense to those who have read other Shadowgirls material, but the key is to make sure that readers aren't left, unable to understand the main story you're trying to tell. You'll need to introduce the characters rather than presume people know their names and make sure people know where they are (innsmouth, trailer park, high school, lighthouse, etc). You can fit a lot more script in than you may think so remember you've got plenty of space for the characters to openly talk to others, or themselves so readers can fully understand events (I think the average panels per page is about 6 or 7).

A good example is Shrek, where he spots the giant castle and asks Donkey "Do you think he's compensating for something?" Went right over the heads of kids but adults got it and kids could still enjoy the story without understanding what he was on about.

Personally, I've got a couple of friends with good literary skills that don't read Shadowgirls, so I'll be passing the story by them to see if they can understand it on it's own.

If the story is explained within, then it should stand on its own.

As far as the M.E. being picked up by the bloodwatch, I'd say thats a far try but it might prove difficult without more details on how the bloodwatch actually operates which we do know but are not yet prepared to reveal.

So if you can do it with that in mind it would be fair game.

Ok. I plan on doing it from Paul's perspective, so hopefully, I won't contradict anything. And it should be easyish to explain within. After all, it wouldn't take much to get that guy from the Bloodwatch expositioning. We'll see.

Mach Sabre wrote:If there's a problem with it, but we like it, we'll work with you to make it fit. But if it doesn't fit and it's not what we're looking for, then it won't matter too much will it?

Just send it when it's done.

I have submitted the basic story via PM, and I don't like waiting. (I'm kidding obviously, but tomorrow I have to be on a plane which will take me far, far away from the internets [ergo, I won't be able to correct or rewrite if necessary]).

Yes, but you'll eventually come back right? And if it works, it's not like we can't wait and work it out with you.

Mach Sabre wrote:Yes, but you'll eventually come back right? And if it works, it's not like we can't wait and work it out with you.

I'll come back all right, on the 18th Thanks for the time and patience that you gave this project.

Well finally put some time into one of my co-written stories. Unfortunately I worked on the previous draft I'd sent rather than the updated one she'd sent me *shakes head*

Never the less, fleshed the first two pages out really well and got down some good dialogue for the 3rd. Hopefully she can merge the two documents as she sees fit and work it out (SORRY!).

I'll work on my 2nd co-written story tonight, along with the RPG. Then it's on to my solo story... maybe I'm streatching myself just a little thin

Charles wrote:Well finally put some time into one of my co-written stories. Unfortunately I worked on the previous draft I'd sent rather than the updated one she'd sent me *shakes head*

Never the less, fleshed the first two pages out really well and got down some good dialogue for the 3rd. Hopefully she can merge the two documents as she sees fit and work it out (SORRY!).

I'll work on my 2nd co-written story tonight, along with the RPG. Then it's on to my solo story... maybe I'm streatching myself just a little thin

Damn it listen to me. Do your own Solo story before helping co-write mine. Don't make me come up there and stab you.

Woohoo. Got some great progress on my co-written story with Jacobus today and finally got a new draft off to Inara last night.

Both stories against the clock a bit to get them submitted on time but I think we'll make it.

I'll work on my own story tonight unless I get a draft back from one of them. I haven't even thought about my story for weeks, but I'm still keen. I mean, it has Becka at her mom's age. Who doesn't want to see a Becka McKay all grown up?

How's everyone else doing? Are there many submissions?

Charles wrote:Woohoo. Got some great progress on my co-written story with Jacobus today and finally got a new draft off to Inara last night.

Both stories against the clock a bit to get them submitted on time but I think we'll make it.

I'll work on my own story tonight unless I get a draft back from one of them. I haven't even thought about my story for weeks, but I'm still keen. I mean, it has Becka at her mom's age. Who doesn't want to see a Becka McKay all grown up?

How's everyone else doing? Are there many submissions?

Damn you and your ignorance boy!

Charles wrote:Woohoo. Got some great progress on my co-written story with Jacobus today and finally got a new draft off to Inara last night.

Both stories against the clock a bit to get them submitted on time but I think we'll make it.

I'll work on my own story tonight unless I get a draft back from one of them. I haven't even thought about my story for weeks, but I'm still keen. I mean, it has Becka at her mom's age. Who doesn't want to see a Becka McKay all grown up?

How's everyone else doing? Are there many submissions?

Thanks to new information I am in rewrite hell... while I'm trying to build an extremely recalcitrant new PC (just spent 4 hours putting in fiddly little plugs, connecting, disconnecting, slicing my hands open, swearing...) and preparing for job interviews on thursday and friday. Whether I finish or not (as I'm assuming now the previous final draft has hit icebergs and is well and truly holed below the waterline... and there is one line of dialogue in it that is like nails down a chalkboard in my head) is in the lap of the PC-Builder's Gods. My mood, to put none too fine a point on it, is seriously foul.

Grats to you guys though - best o' luck

Charles wrote:I mean, it has Becka at her mom's age. Who doesn't want to see a Becka McKay all grown up?

Just a bit of a suggestion. Probably not a good idea to include a future version of a character... After all, you don't even know if the character will make it to age 30.