So...I'm not songwriter.  Nor am I a poet.  Prose is my game and I don't attempt the delicate verse. 

Until now, anyway.  I am using a bard song in an early scene of my new story to tell the tale of an infamous pirate that's been ravaging the coast for decades.  Anywho...I have to write a freaking song.

This is a two part challenge for me.

1)  I've never written a song in my life.  Let alone one of bardish nature.

2)  I'm struggling to decide how to work the lyrics into the prose without making them stick out like a sore thumb. 


Anyone have any suggestions/advice/resources about how to go about this?  My main concern right now is to write the song.  Because I can't move forward with the story until the song is written.  Well, I could, but I'd rather not.

Any help is greatly appreciated.  Thanks guys!

BLG

So I'm developing the use and nature of magic for my fantasy series.  I was wondering if anyone had any advice about what to think of when approaching the development of a magic system.  Thanks!

So I'm in the final battle scene of this monstrosity of a fantasy/horror novel I've been working on for almost 3 years now.  This thing began as a one page romp, just to break the monotony of my office job.  It spread like a rash, and now I'm 400+ pages into it, and nearly finished.

I'm losing steam though.  Because i was writing by the seat of my pants, many of the scenes seem forced to me.  It is very apparent that I had no idea where the story was going.  I like the overall story, and some of the characters are good, but the book is so meandering and disjointed that it's just depressing to think about.

My plan is to use this as a rough draft/treatement, and go back after for a restructuring and a serious rewrite.  I feel I should finish this thing, get the rough draft to its completion, but I'm so disinterested in the thing as it exists right now.  At this point I'm just putting words on the page to get the thing done, and everything is coming out half-assed and lame.

I'm sure everyone has been in a spot like this before.  What did you do?  Finish the crap draft just to tie up the lose ends before the rewrite?  Or set it aside and begin restructuring instead of putting a lot of time into the few final chapters?

I'm trying to get this thing to a stopping point by the beginning of October so i can have that entire month to write a treatment of my Nano novel.

I'm almost finished with my first piece that I'm considering a novel.  It's riddled with plot holes and character inconsistencies, but the first draft is almost complete.  Meanwhile, I can feel my spirit growing tired and bored because I've worked myself into this rut:  I have nothing going out to agents.  Nothing submitted to magazines or anything.  All my writing time is devoted to the WIP.  I feel like I'm in limbo while I wrestle this mangled tome to completion.  I want to work on something with more immediate potential, as the novel will require multiple rewrites that may take me another year or two.  I will go insane waiting that long to get something circulating.

So after I finish the first draft, I want to work on something different.  Something with the goal of selling so I can get out of the 9 to 5 crap and just be a writer.  I need a break from my usual description-laden character-starved fantasy/horror writing.  I want to write something character driven, something in the real world, with real people in real stories.  No sword and sorcery.  No ghosts and goblins.  Just intriguing characters and interesting situations.  I'm thinking of writing a TV series. I have an idea in mind, and it kind of goes against everything I have read, but I can't ignore my instinct.  I may elaborate on that later, but for now I want to set the concept of the series aside. I would just like to glean some general info before I really decide to pursue this project.

Anyone here ever try to tackle the writing of a pilot?  I have many questions for anyone with some knowledge of writing for TV.

Initial questions:

-How far do you plot the story for a serial?  Do you only concentrate on the pilot, or go ahead and write more episodes?

-Where does most of the work lie?  In the preparation for the writing (character development and plot weaving), or the actual writing of episodes.  My initial impression is that the most work lies in creating vibrant characters that can carry and evolve the plot on their own, with very little manipulation from the writer.

-After the pilot is written and (hopefully) picked up, does the original writer stay on or does the network hand the story over to their own writers?  Or do they put the original writer on the payroll?

That's all for now.  Any input and enlightenment is very much appreciated. 

Thank you in advance!



BLG

Hey guys.

I have this short story set in the world of my as-yet unfinished trilogy, starring the anti-hero of the series.  I'm sure I've talked about it around here somewhere.  I posted it over at the Cogni boards a while back and had some good feedback. 

Anywho, I have submitted to some small operations, and a few not-so-small operations.  Glimmer Train was the first, then I moved on to some e-zines.  All rejections, of course.  Which is fine.  Most of the responses, however, involved some variation of "your story isn't quite what we're looking for." 

Now, I assumed that was just a nice way of saying "your story isn't good enough", but one of the last responses I recieved said that it was more horror than fantasy and didn't fit their genre well enough.

I'm not sure how they saw it more horror than fantasy...I don't consider it to be horror at all.  Maybe it isn't the closest thing to true fantasy, but I would say it is at least "adventure" with some speculative fiction elements.  But whatever...

I was wondering if anybody knew of any good publications to submit short stories that (apparently) don't quite fit snugly into the fantasy genre, but is definately speculative fiction.  I'm looking to rack up my number of rejections so I can get them out of the way, but I would at least like to be rejected from the correct genre...if that makes any sense.

Thanks for any info!

BLG

So I love to write.  It's my ultimate passion.  Like many of you, I'm sure, I feel that writing is what I am supposed to do, my function in life is to write.  Whether or not the stuff is good remains to be seen...  Anyway, the only time I'm truly comfortable in my own skin is when I'm eyeball deep in a story, running my characters through hell and typing my fingers to the bone.  I will always write, as many of you have also said, because it's what I love to do whether I ever become a professional author or not.

That being said, I ask you this....

Does anyone else ever have that moment of dawning realization and horror in which you just know that you will never become a professional writer?

It happens to me a lot, especially when real life gets in the way of my writing.  It's all fine and dandy if I keep the goal in my head and just write toward it, but when I actually start to think in terms of reality, and take into consideration the kind of routine I keep, I get that sinking feeling and my skin starts to tingle and I think "Who am I kidding.  I'm never going to get published," and it's like the most potent sensation ever.  It's like the world stops turning or something, because at that moment, when I slip into that frame of mind, I know it's true beyond a doubt; I will never be a professional writer.

It's extremely depressing, and I was wondering if anyone else experienced this, and if so, what things can be done to keep the howling of this dark hound silenced.

Thanks everyone
BLG

I was wondering...

Do some writers query before they finish their manuscript, or even before they begin writing their manuscript?  I think I read that on another board somewhere. 

Just wondering, because I'd be freakin terrified to send anything out before I at least had a first draft.  And I probably won't end up querying until I have a final MS (final as far as I'm concerned, anyway).

BLG