Our Aspiring Writers League (O.A.W.L)

[Vur Horston]

Ahhhhh, crazy day yesterday! But back now!

Yes, I will add the useful links to the front page. I love behindthename.com! I'm very meticulous with names, so it is a great help!

Yes, I think there is a 600,000 word character limit...or was it 60,000? Either way, we met it, so I'm going to change everything today and add in the new members.

Storm's form is the old form, so I will need it changed to the new form.

Did I miss anything?

Thank you everyone for being so helpful when I am absent! And I love your conversations; friendly and on topic, just the way I like it!

I am checking out that website 0.o I always have problems with names.

[Crabbiey]

Has anyone ever did anything in second person?

Is there such a thing as 2nd person?
My language teacher never heard of it...

Yeah I thought there was. Second person is you did this...you walked down the hallway.

I once read a chapter in a book that was in second person present tense - it was really odd!XD

@Lasesi - I don't think I'm giving away too much of the plot by starting off at the action. It really doesn't give any spoilers away. It's just once the start is over, the world is described by dropping bits of information here and there.

@YourDestiny - The plot idea is this:

Different Blood

Human blood isn’t the only sustenance...
Blood. Cold red blood splattered the floor as my prey jerked back in surprise. I kept a firm grip and sunk my long, slender, curved fangs into the flesh of my victim again. I bit harder and closed my eyes, listening to the screams emanating from the creature next to me. I let the crimson liquid fill my mouth; an explosion of flavours hit my tongue, all of them different and delicious. I felt the body next to me go limp, just one more suck and it would be over.

Blood. It keeps everything alive, but it keeps one being alive more. Without it they starve. Vampires. The creatures of the night. Silent, deadly predators. They have been around since goodness knows when. For years we have thought that they thrive on Human blood. Oh how wrong we were. Ever since they came into existence some have developed a taste for their own kind. Apart from sunlight, the Cannibals are the only things to terrify a vampire truly. No creature is safe from their own kind, vampires are no exception. Even the Royals aren’t safe, whether they be hunter or hunted. For it was Royal blood that gave birth to the deadliest and most feared of vampires.

Crown Princess Siona Sapphirius Zelda Ebony BloodRuby was born as heir to the England. She was left the throne when her father was destroyed on that fateful night in March 1312, but now that throne is no longer rightfully hers. Her father was drained dry by a Cannibal, and not just any Cannibal, it was his own daughter, Siona. And now she treads the ground, destroying any vampire or killing human she wishes. Alex, her brother, has vowed to avenge his father’s destruction whilst his mother grieves. He will not stop until Siona is the one who is lifeless on the floor.

The tables have turned on the top predator. Now they have become the hunted, by their own kind...

Yes, I know there's a lot of vamp books out there at the moment. But in my book all of the vamps are nasty! Plus I go into a lot of detail to their biology, I explain how they cam climb so well and even state they can catch disease (I don't include the reason for this - should I? It's just I'm worried it'll be too much biology in one go and then people get bored...).

[Vur Horston]

That is a really cool plot!

[Crabbiey]

That is a really cool plot!

Thanks! So is the action the best place to start off in? It starts off with the attack on Issac.

[Vur Horston]

That is a really cool plot!

Thanks! So is the action the best place to start off in? It starts off with the attack on Issac.

Yeah I think so. It would give it a good start.

[TheTravelingWriter]

After scouring through pages upon pages of StumbleUpon favourites, I have found a particularly good fantasy writing tutorial (Link). I personally have not looked through the website but, from what I am seeing, it seems to cover the basics of fantasy writing.

[Lasesi]

I usally right in first person...I belive its easier to write and get feelings, ideas, and the background of the storu across

and as for a mary-sue......yeah I belive that would be a little mary-sueish seems how I tried doin a character sorta like that and it was a horrible story, only wrote a page on it

But there's nothing wrong with characters being slightly mary-sue. In fact, a good character HAS to be slightly mary-sue, otherwise you're in danger of making them a bore to read. Nobody wants to hear about the small guy in a village who tends to his crops, while this amazing hero takes on a kingdom. I realized a long time ago that almost all books are about someone special - there's no real way to get around that.

Has anyone ever did anything in second person?

Yeah I thought there was. Second person is you did this...you walked down the hallway.

I once read a chapter in a book that was in second person present tense - it was really odd!XD

Yeah - Most "do-it-yourself" adventure books are like this. They're pretty awesome, and I used to like them when i was younger. Things like "You walk across a field and come across a plane wreckage, what do you do next? To walk away again, turn to page 40, to search the wreckage for survivors, turn to page 10" kind of thing. I usually died X3! Although i don't think it is possible to write a legit novel like this, many people dislike being directly told what they are doing, it sounds demanding to use "YOU DID THIS" and "YOU DID THAT" all the time - it's also why second person is improper in formal writing.

@Lasesi - I don't think I'm giving away too much of the plot by starting off at the action. It really doesn't give any spoilers away. It's just once the start is over, the world is described by dropping bits of information here and there.

Yes, I know there's a lot of vamp books out there at the moment. But in my book all of the vamps are nasty! Plus I go into a lot of detail to their biology, I explain how they cam climb so well and even state they can catch disease (I don't include the reason for this - should I? It's just I'm worried it'll be too much biology in one go and then people get bored...).

If you know what you're doing you should totally go ahead and do it! XD I've never really had a preference to how books are started, although it's been argued that action grabs a reader more.. sooooo...

I'm fed up of the vampire franchise at this point, at least the good "oh i'm a vampire but i'm a NICE vampire". NO! If you're a vampire you MUST SUCK TEH BLOODS AND BE EVILZ! or.. well.. at least original! To be honest i LOVED the twilight series WHEN IT FIRST CAME OUT. Why? because i was fourteen and full of sparkly eyes at the world. By the time the third book came out i was raising an eyebrow, and i actually had to put the fourth book into a corner and glare at it for a good hour before i decided i wanted to finish reading it ._. But the fact that so many authors are trying to gain out of one books success saddens me - it created a multitude of bad, stereotypical, cliche, and just plain boring books. [/rant]

However, that being said - your plot idea sounds interesting ^_^ i'm glad you're taking the evil-vampire stance (for once x3) Hopefully there will be lots of blood and gore, yes yes? Though what would be a challenge, would be to make one of your evil vampires likable without being cliche ! And as for the biology bit - It depends on the reasoning? if you can sum it down to really easy and simple to understand terms, it might prove interesting! Though you may also be right, it might be a little boring. However - the fact that you're thinking in those terms means that you're trying to round out your characters. I can't stand something to happen without a reason for it, in my universe there are so many darn rules and regulations they irritate me cause they stop my characters from just.. winning XD i have to think it through!

After scouring through pages upon pages of StumbleUpon favourites, I have found a particularly good fantasy writing tutorial (Link). I personally have not looked through the website but, from what I am seeing, it seems to cover the basics of fantasy writing.

^ This looks really interesting - I'm far too lazy to read it all now X3 However it looks like a nice, detailed and comprehensive view on fanatsy writing. (ahh, elfwood, i remember you from yesteryear X3). I'm gonna post some Author meme links at some point for anyone with a writers block X3 They're great fun and have really helped me round out some of my characters !

[violacherry]

@lasesi Ya they have to have something wrong with them or its boring but they can't have everything wrong

and as for second person.....I read a book with it...IT WAS COOL cause it let you choose what you did, like which path to take and what to do...it was cool

[Kitty12156]

In fourth grade me teacher read us one of those books about drinking ~ L0l... Of course we ended up breaking this hecka expensive vase in our friends living room because we where having a dance party...

[writingrules]

Username:
writingrules

What will we call you:
writing, WR, coco, or rules.

What are your goals as an author?
I want to publish at least one series. That is my main long term goal that I strive for. I also want to do at least one story with a partner to see what it's like, since I've never done a story with another person outside of school. Lastly I want get better about have defined endings to my stories. Sometimes I go on and on with useless things and have trouble ending my stories.

Can you give us a sample of your writing?
(Just keep in mind this would be in the middle of a story. It was just a scene that popped into my head. Thank you!)
Lindsey picked up her bow and quiver of arrows and slung them both over back as she moved out from behind the tree she had been resting by. She treaded lightly on the pine needles that covered the forest floor. If she stepped in the wrong spot she could end her life, but she wouldn't because she had memorized the pattern when she was just 9 years old. The people who originally lived there had put land mines in the forest to keep out trespassers.
She was 15 now, and she hadn't changed much. She still had long wiry brown hair she always wore down, green eyes the color of the needles on the trees, and freckles from all the time she spent laying in the meadow behind the shack she lived in. She had no family,they had all been killed by the time Lindsey was 8, but the forest was her home. So now half of the day was spent hunting for her meals, the other half would be tending to her pet. When she was ten years old she dared going into the forest alone for the first time since her family had died, the first noise she heard was the faint muffled call of a sparrow. She followed the noise to a baby sparrow that had fallen out of it's nest when the tree it's nest had been in fell down and the little bird's left wing was broken and Lindsey took him home and nurtured him back to health.
As Lindsey walked lightly through the pine forest she was totally unaware of the being that followed her. The girl who was following her was a good distance behind Lindsey, but just close enough to watch her. The young girl was walking behind the trees but could still see but not be seen. The girl was 12 years old and had long blond hair and blue eyes. She had been abandoned in the woods and was looking for a place to live. She had been following Lindsey for 3 weeks now.
A branch behind Lindsey snapped and she whizzed around bow drawn, "WHO'S THERE?"
The girl ran. Ran past Lindsey and up a tree, "I'm there." the girl whispered as Lindsey shrugged and returned home.
The girls didn't know it but they would meet again.


Are you currently working on any books?
Yes, and a lot of them

Why do you want to join?
I want to join because I want to meet other authors and build my writing skills. I also want to get comments/criticism on my writing. I love reading other writers pieces and hearing their opinions.

Do you have published books yet?
No, but I really want to someday.

Do you wish to find a "writing partner"?
Yes please.

What's your favorite genre to read? Write?
I like to read fiction, fantasy, and mystery. I like to write Sci-Fi, fantasy, fiction, and realistic fiction.

Were you a member of the old thread?
No, but I thought of joining many times and I didn't have time.

I just want to warn you I get writers block quite often during the week days because my mind is on school work. Sorry about that.