❛ the lazy writers ❜ V2

[The Worst Username]

@Luna

Welcome to the thread! I hope you don't mind adding me to your reading list? I could probably give some pretty in-depth critique, especially once all us kids leave school for the summer (what age group is your novel for, by the way?). Is there anything you need critique on specifically; will you be sending us questions in sort of an interview format, or letting us just spew whatever we think needs to be said about the chapter?

[Silver Pandorica]

Welcome, Luna! Stay away from carrots. They are evil and deadly. I would love to help you out, but I just don't have the stomach for gore or scary stuff. I mean, the worst I can handle is usually a fist fight c': im such a wimp

Almost forgot to say, there was a piece I did for Creative Writing that my teacher said he really loved, so I'm just gonna slide that in here to get some opinions on it. I've submitted it to the school literary magazine, which I'm pretty excited about.

Survival Guide to a Remote Island
WATER! Always water! Water is very important. Just don't drink out of the animals' personal swimming pool. Hm? Oh, right. Jax is the name, just Jax. To be quite frank, I don't remember my last name, I've been here so long…a name is all a person's got, you know. Without a name, who are you? What? Don't look at me! I'm no psychiatrist. Anyway, hi. Hello. I'm Jax. Wait, I already said that. I'm here to tell you how to survive while stranded on an island. Trust me and take my advice. I've been stuck here for three years, and look at me. I'm glowing with health!

There are a few major things we should go over first before we continue with the guide. Number one, I get distracted very easily, so don't get confused if I start rambling on about something else, like the banana bunch I found in a tree the other day. Just smile and nod. Number three, even though this is a guide to surviving while stranded on an island, try not to get stuck on one in the first place. It sucks. Number three…wait a second…uh, keep track of what number you're on when speaking. This is three, right? Hm. Well, then, let's get started.

TIP #1 (Water)

Water. W-a-t-e-r. Don't forget it. Fresh water is the difference between life and death. The human body can't go any longer than three days without it. Now, do me a favor and don't be an idiot by trying to drink seawater. That'll just dehydrate you even more. Try to find a river, stream, or watering hole nearby. Even so, boil it to get all the bacteria out.

TIP #2 (Gathering food)

Food is also very important, obviously. Contrary to popular belief, there are many things to eat on a deserted island. It's actually getting a hold of them that's the problem. I guess I should start off by saying what's okay to eat and what isn't.

Plants
There is a ton of food produced by plants. Fruits, vegetables, and nuts are among them. A few things to take note of: Bananas are only good when ripe, so don't try to eat them if they aren't. Just leave them be. As for coconuts, they tend to be difficult to get to if you don't know what you're doing. To crack those babies open, you're gonna want to grab a large rock and just have at it until it breaks. What else…ah. Don't eat berries if you don't know if they're safe. There's been a few times where I have gotten really desperate and ate the bitter ones, then was sick for days after. Once I threw up nine times in one day. Not pretty.

Animals
Out here in the survival of the fittest, animals are probably your best bet. Don't give me that vegetarian crap, either. Bugs are the easiest to snag and they're surprisingly a very good source of protein. Don't avoid them just because of all those little legs. All you have to do is cook 'em up first. Lizards are great as well, although they may be a bit tough to eat. Next level up we have small rodents such as mice, rats, rabbits, etcetera. These are a bit trickier to catch and require good skill in the art of trap-building. Or, you know, you could just prop a rock up with a stick and bait it. When the animal comes, THUMP! Dead and ready to cook. You can catch birds in a similar manner. Don't forget to skin them. You really don't want a mouthful of fur or feathers. Or scales. Speaking of which, fish are probably the hardest things to catch if you don't know what you're doing. They're faster than you'd think, so keep practicing, kay?

TIP #3 (Build a good shelter)

Another largely important thing to remember is shelter. Trust me when I say, it is a lot harder than they make it look on T.V. It isn't just propping up sticks against a tree. Well, technically it is, but it's more complicated than that. You have to deal with wind or rain penetrating your new "home." One time, my shelter even got burnt to a crisp because I made the fire too close to it. It took me all day to rebuild it…. Oh, and bugs are the worst. Unless you're a master architect, expect to wake up with a bunch of little red dots all over, and I mean all over.

TIP #5 #4 (Stay sane)

To be completely honest with you, I think I'm already past this point. Humans need to socialize with other human beings to keep their head. Loneliness does things to your mind. However, if you don't happen to get washed ashore with a buddy, there are some things you can do to prolong your sanity. For example, engage yourself in energetic activities such as fishing, climbing, swimming, or building. Sitting around doing nothing won't do you any good. Also, talk out loud every day. It's good to hear a voice, even if it's only your own. If you feel your mind is slipping away even after these steps, then, well, there's nothing I can really do.

TIP #5 (Signaling)

Actually, I've never gotten the chance to do this. No ship has ever passed by this area and no planes have flown overhead. I can imagine, though, that if one does for you, that you'll know what to do. Make a fire, wave shiny objects in the air, and scream at the top of your lungs. Don't let your escape slip away that easily. It's your only way out, you hear me? The ONLY way!

Conclusion (Bye!)

Hope these simple tips help you on your unfortunate journey! I'm not really sure how I'll get this piece of writing to anyone, since I'm still stuck here, but I'll be sure I'll get it into your hands if it’s the last thing I do. It probably will be…. Anyway, I'm hungry now, so I gotta go. Good luck surviving!

[nyoovi]

heyo folks! ^^ I have returned with... 10 new characters oOPS--
(this is relevant I swear)

I'm planning on writing a story for them either here on CS or on dA. I've no ideas as far as plot goes - maybe I'll just do a series of oneshots for them to start off with - but I'm really excited to begin working with them!! I wanted to know if anyone would maybe be interested in reading any stories I make about them? <:

These are them!
I was gifted these characters by a friend - their refs are by her - and yes, four of them are based off the Fabulous Killjoys (MCR) eue
I'm planning on having it so the Killjoys and the Merrymakers are in rival gangs, but I'm not sure what their main quarrel will be...? What's something you guys would like to see? ovo

[monarchism]

I'd love to read your writing and the characters look so cool ovo

[Lunarchy]

@worst username

My book is probably for ages 14+, as for critiquing, I kinda just want you to spew on the chapter.

[nyoovi]

Made a story thread for my OCs!
I'm also trying out a new writing style for that series, where everything is written out as a text message conversation between the characters ^^ What do you guys think about that? It seemed like an interesting concept to me ouo

[The Worst Username]

@Luna

Alright! Sign me up.

@Silver

I liked that, especially Jax's energetic voice. They (he?) remind me of my zany science teacher; coincidentally, he self-published a trilogy. (By the way, are you doing any better in science? I remember you posting about chemistry class a couple pages ago). But yeah, that was a pretty funny guide. I also liked how you gave us hints to show that Jax is on a deserted island instead of just starting off with "hey hey hey my name's jax and i live on a deserted island now ok how are y'all doin". Do you think you'll write any more about him?

@Kashii

Ooh, I'll check that out! I like the text message idea, but it sounds like exposition, character descriptions, and such will be pretty hard. Good luck.

[Ranger of the North]

I's here! Gosh, I haven't posted here for one whole day ages! c;

Hi everyone!

I kinda just stumbled across this and so I said "Why not?" and decided to post here. I'm a writer, of course, and I wrote an entire book over the course of 3 years. I want a bit of feedback and tips on how to improve my story before I send it in to a publisher.

So yeah, that. (oh gosh this is awkward i'm not good at introductions)

Kia ora, welcome along!
*whispers* watch out for carrotsss!
Woah, you finished a book?! That's great! How many chapters has it got? c:

I'm finally making some headway with my book! I've now progressed from less than two paragraphs into chapter one to being a whole page into it!

Also, I let one of my friends read my chapter by chapter synopsis and he said he thought it was really good, so that's made me fairly confident moving forward with it!

Congrats! That's like THE BEST feeling EVER *claps*


Hehehe. Silver, that's great! cx I really like Jax's 'voice' c:

heyo folks! ^^ I have returned with... 10 new characters oOPS--
(this is relevant I swear)

I'm planning on writing a story for them either here on CS or on dA. I've no ideas as far as plot goes - maybe I'll just do a series of oneshots for them to start off with - but I'm really excited to begin working with them!! I wanted to know if anyone would maybe be interested in reading any stories I make about them? <:

These are them!
I was gifted these characters by a friend - their refs are by her - and yes, four of them are based off the Fabulous Killjoys (MCR) eue
I'm planning on having it so the Killjoys and the Merrymakers are in rival gangs, but I'm not sure what their main quarrel will be...? What's something you guys would like to see? ovo

They look really cool! I'd be interested in reading your stuff about 'em, if/when you've done any c: (how-e-va I don't have a dA account, so yeahh...) haha lookit that there's a link right there XD

[Silver Pandorica]

@Ranger- Thanks! c:

@Worst- Thank you! And sort of? My teacher is still terrible, but we had the final yesterday and I bombed it. Thank God it was graded on a curve. It saved my grade and set me with an A! A low A, but an A nonetheless. I don't think I'll be writing anymore about Jax, due to having way too many stories to work on at the moment, haha. But he was fun to write for ^^

Speaking of which, how do you all handle writing multiple stories at once, if at all? Do you focus on one story mainly, switch between them, have some sort of pattern, or just forget about some of them oops ?

[DeMaizu]

Code: Select all

Speaking of which, how do you all handle writing multiple stories at once, if at all? Do you focus on one story mainly, switch between them, have some sort of pattern,[strike] or just forget about some of them oops ?[/strike]

Well . . . mostly, I'll switch between them as I lose motivation for one story - I stop working on one, go to anotehr until I can't get anything else out at that moment, and go to another again. So on and so forth. Does that make sense?