[Mister Saint]'s blog
At the end of the day, your writing proves more about who you are than any amount of posturing ever could. You can stand there, and talk about how great your work is, how much praise it has received, how deep or provocative you think it is. Since we all seem to be able to handle adult content here, let me throw you a good one.
Verbal Masturbation: A term indicating words that, while striking and forceful, end up producing nothing due to the fact that the speaker/writer is doing nothing but blowing hir own horn.
I believe that having the stones to show your writing is admirable. Some might say it's the hardest part, but that's not true. The hardest part is writing something that doesn't suck. Now, let me fill you in on the point of this little blog entry. If you stand there and tell me how great your work is, or preface it with something saying how everyone just loves it, then you're making a mistake. First off, I'm not going to read it; either I believe you, and decide it doesn't need my look-over, or I'll shake my head and say 'I won't even bother with an ego this large.' Secondly, even if a person bothers to ignore your arrogant stance and reads your story... what if they don't like it? Then all your posturing makes you look like a blowhard. Or worse, what if they did like it, but it didn't live up to your glowing testimonial?
[Mister Saint]'s literary tip of the day: No matter how good a writer you think you are, there will always be someone better than you... probably a lot of people. So don't waste your breath proclaiming your greatness, just strive to make your greatness look paltry.
In a craft where so many try and don't quite make it, you're only going to shoot yourself in the foot by talking big. Don't let your mouth sing the praises of your work, let your work take care of that. I'm talking about your writing, here, for anyone who might be getting some idea to bother me with a defensive statement about this. I've read quite a bit of writing from members around here, but I'll tell you right now, that I've never read a narcissist's story that I liked.
I'm a little tired. Other than my contest winners, I won't be accepting any requests to read writing until further notice. Don't even ask, please.
The best way to get people to look at your work is to give them a reason to look at your work. I would love to go through here and read everyone's treasures and give my thoughts on them, but I just don't have the time or the inclination. If you want reviews, join Flipside or Critique Swap. I know I said I wouldn't be active in writersco, and I'm not really. I'm just offering some advice for all of you who want to be read but don't want to take steps to make that happen. You've got an upload writings option... use it! Then go out, and make sure that people have a reason to read your work. I read the work of a friend today, because she asked me to. I noticed that several other people, including some who'd contacted me and some who'd just put it up in a blog or in their house, didn't ask me to read their work. They just said 'I've posted my work, tell me what you think' in some form or fashion.
People, you have to be proactive. The publishing world will eat your face if you think you can write something, then sit and wait for that nest egg to roll in. That's the lesson that Flipside should be teaching everyone... there, we read each other's work because those works are involved in contests. There we read others work because they earn the right to be read by competing, winning, or just trying. That's a community, people, and I'm so proud of them that I could just scream.
I couldn't care less what anyone thinks... this is funny.
And in case someone decides to think that it isn't related to writing, here are a bunch of examples of sarcasm, parody, satire, and pun.
Messages on the bathroom wall
Of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most.
- Rest Area off I-84. Willington, Connecticut.
If you can piss this high, join the fire department.
- On the wall in the men's restroom at a height of 6 feet.
O'Ryan's Irish Pub. Ashland, Oregon.
Don't switch dicks in the middle of a screw. Stick with Nixon.
- Nathan's. Washington, D.C.
Beauty is only a light switch away.
- Perkins Library. Duke University. Durham, North Carolina.
I've decided that to raise my grades I must lower my standards.
- Houghton Library, Harvard University. Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Beer. It's not just for breakfast anymore.
- Blueberry Hill. St. Louis, Missouri.
If life is a waste of time, and time is a waste of life, then let's all get wasted together and have the time of our lives.
- Armand's Pizza. Washington, D.C.
You either make dust or you eat dust.
- Arizona State University, Daniel E. Noble Science & Engineering Library. Tempe, Arizona.
If Bush were captain of the Titanic, he'd say we were stopping for ice.
- Smoky Joe's. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Remember, it's not, "How high are you?" it's "Hi, how are you?"
- Rest stop off Route 81. West Virginia.
Beware of limbo dancers.
- On the bottom of the stall door, Women's Restroom, Broad Ripple Brew Pub. Indianapolis, Indiana.
Rome wasn't built in a day. That's because it was a government job.
- Women's Restroom. City View Tavern. Cincinnati, Ohio.
I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy.
- Bailey Howe Library, University of Vermont. Burlington, Vermont.
Hey, your karma just ran over my dogma.
- Blueberry Hill. St. Louis, Missouri.
Flush twice-It's a long way to the kitchen.
- Restroom, Washakie Cafeteria, University of Wyoming. Laramie, Wyoming.
God made pot. Man made beer. Who do you trust?
- The Irish Times. Washington, D.C.
Fighting for peace is like screwing for virginity.
- The Bayou, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Time flies like the wind. Fruit flies like bananas.
- Women's restroom, The Ice House. Wilmington, North Carolina.
No matter how good she looks, some other guy is sick and tired of putting up with her shit.
- Men's Room, Linda's Bar and Grill. Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
To do is to be.
- Descartes
To be is to do.
- Voltaire
Do be do be do.
- Frank Sinatra
- Men's restroom, Greasewood Flats. Scottsdale, Arizona.
At the feast of ego, everyone leaves hungry.
- Bentley's House of Coffee and Tea, Tucson, Arizona.
Chris-Just remember that this dollar is not to be spent until everything between us is over (completely). Please remember I love you!-Tori
- On dollar bill F602225237.
It's hard to make a comeback when you haven't been anywhere.
- Written in the dust on the back of a bus. Wickenburg, Arizona.
Make love, not war.
Hell, do both, get married!
- Women's restroom, The Filling Station. Bozeman, Montana.
God is dead.
- Nietzsche
Nietzsche is dead.
- God
- The Tombs Restaurant. Washington, D.C.
I sold my expectations to reality and got ripped off.
- The Underground. Blacksburg, Virginia.
A word in the mouth is worth two from George Bush.
I don't understand.
That's okay, Dan.
- H.L. Mencken's Cultured Pearl Restaurant and Bar. Baltimore, Maryland.
If voting could really change things, it would be illegal.
- Revolution Books. New York, New York.
This bubble gum tastes like rubber.
Yeah, but it lasts a long time.
And it blows great bubbles.
- Condom machine. Missoula, Montana.
A Woman's Rule of Thumb: If it has tires or testicles, you're going to have trouble with it.
- Women's restroom, Dick's Last Resort. Dallas, Texas.
JESUS SAVES!
But wouldn't it be better if he had invested?
- Men's restroom, American University. Washington, D.C.
If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?
- The Cellar Restaurant, Blacksburg, Virginia.
My mother was the travel agent for guilt trips.
- Blueberry Hill. St. Louis, Missouri.
Just 'cause it's clean don't mean it's fresh.
- Port O'John, Acadia National Park, Maine.
If pro is opposite of con, then what is the opposite of progress? Congress!
- Men's restroom, House of Representative
LSD consumes 47 times its weight in excess reality.
- Men's restroom, The 400 bar. Minneapolis, Minnesota.
I used to be into necrophilia and bestiality...b
- The Cellar Restaurant. Blacksburg, Virginia.
If it wasn't intended to be eaten, it wouldn't be shaped like a taco.
- Nathan's. Washington, D.C.
Why do drunk men miss the toilet?
Why do sober men?
- South Main Cafe. Blacksburg, Virginia.
Free the bound periodicals!
- Library, Indiana University. Bloomington, Indiana.
What are you looking up on the wall for? The joke is in your hands.
- Men's restroom Lynagh's. Lexington, Kentucky.
Hey Nike, I just did it!
- Tastee Diner, Bethesda, Maryland.
Chase Contest Judging is complete at last. It took hours, but hey... ish done! Thanks go to all the contributing Flipsiders, and to those who signed up and didn't enter, we hope to see your work next time. Congratulation
Ever feel under appreciated? That's me right about now, on every front imaginable. ^^
Huh. Well lookee that. See? Sometimes it pays to listen.
Love story article/ general catching up: done.
To do:
Weaponry articles (melee/projecti
Dialogue Article
Plot twists / Intrigue article
Contest reviews for The Chase
Clean up packrat house to get ready to move
Watch adult film
Hide this fact from girlfriend
Work on own book
Enter contests
Fall Over
:P
...
I really hate that little thing.
Progress. A few more days of madly plugging away, and I should be caught up.
Hello again, everyone. A few quick notes on my involuntary vacations.
I don't especially want to talk about it. Suffice to say that there was a clash of personalities, and no matter who started it, it's over. I'd like to put it behind me.
Second, thanks go to everyone who supported me over the last few days. Your kind words meant a lot to me, and your encouragement is the only reason I've come back. You know who you are.
Third, I am here only for Flipside and its members. There is a fair chance that I will not be active here outside of its boundaries, unless of course you ask me nicely. Per my nature, there are a few people with whom I'll still be sore for a while. Give me a few days. You should also know who you are. I am doing my best to put all this behind me.
All that said, thanks again to everyone. Now if you'll excuse me, I have things to fix.
Yeah... I've been listening to a lot of Disturbed lately, in addition to my normal medley of stuff. I never thought that Disturbed would mature as a band; I figured they would ride the nu-metal wave out to its quick end and be done. But if you listen to their songs "Stricken" or "Ten Thousand Fists in the Air" you can see that they've grown a lot. It's good stuff if you like metal where the lyrics are intelligible.
If you listen quietly, on a clear night, you can hear the winds of change blowing across a landscape that has not the capacity for stillness. The earth is restless, and who are we to judge that mold? We too are restless. Enjoy what is, before it isn't.
Imagine my surprise. Today I was pegged as the enemy, and then one half of the peggers joined my ranks. *scratches head* Irony. It's a good word.
I wrote a suspense story tonight, the first I've ever written. 79.Contest Entries.Sociopathic Conversion... and it probably sucks. But hey, that's what practice is for.
Today, Flipside honored its first contest winner, the magnificent [chuchutrain] whose story 63.Valediction Entry is one seriously powerful piece of business. Don't let the title fool you. Chuey is writing well beyond her years. The reviews that I wrote were thankfully well received, despite one small screw up on my part, and everything went off without a hitch. Flipside has come to represent a small glimmer of light in a very dark place for me, and I'm happy to have had a hand in it.
So... it's six in the morning, why the hell am I not in bed? Well that's easy. I don't feel like it. I have this sort of fixation with completion; if I don't feel like the day has been fruitful, then I generally have trouble sleeping. I should be on top of the world, and yet I feel so mindlessly unfulfilled that I have to stop and ask... why? Who knows. ^^
In the meantime, I'm planning something a little larger for flipside, a full scale event that will, hopefully, involve every single member. I'm not sure on the details or the timing yet, but I've got things running around inside my little head (that aren't bipedal for a change) and I feel like something good will come of it.
Hey writer-types! I have a message for you. Before you even start to think about anthologies, publishing, or the business of writing, you'd better take a few years to make sure that your writing doesn't suck at loud. I've been about this site for a while now, and from what I've seen, I'd say there are only a handful of us who are even close to ready for the business aspect of writing. It's too early to think about anthologies. Learn not to suck first. I'm not perfect, either. But let's not jump in with both feet before we find out whether our rope is tied right, eh? Believe me, there is a big pit of spikes down below.
I am so proud of the members of Flipside. In about a week, we have thirteen members (regularly active ones!) and nine contests (only three of which are mine). Everyone is pitching in, having fun, and hopefully, learning a little about writing. I could not have done it without their help, so let me give them all a shout out.
[Akayume] Inspired the place, and has its first ever featured contest!
[Askoga] My ever present moral support and "Hey, Askoga, could you look at this, and see if it's okay?" person.
[Burning Inside] For participation and seemingly boundless enthusiasm for the project.
[chuchutrain] For participation, and a heartening wit.
[Ash] For hosting our first poetry contest.
[Emily] Contest host and grammar lackey!
[Kaimee] Soon to be contest host!
[*Amy*] Came to WC just for us. Aww...
[Kuzco] Contest participant and resident Portugal expert.
[Nightshadow] Lawyer, cheerleader, and my muse.
[Po] Contest host, maker of graphics, and namer of Flipside.
[SleepingDragon] Contest host, workshop helper
[Today for you, tomorrow for me] Contest host!
They've done a great job of helping and participating. And you know what? I think we're all learning new writing stuff, too.
WritiersCo... Writers' Community. A community... for writers.
Heh.
I like the sound of that.
I debated putting this here, but... what the hell.
Flipside is a new, completely un-official wrting contest list whose aim is not to win a prize, but to sharpen the writing skills that will make us famous. Currently sporting three beautiful contests, come by!
Today has been one of those long days. My dog, who has been with us for fourteen years, had to be put to sleep this morning. It didn't really hurt me outwardly like I figured it would... but then, I really don't cry exactly. I get tears in my eyes, like I did today, but there's no weeping and wailing. So that was how I started my day, finding out that it had already been done, so I didn't get to say goodbye to her. Better that way, I suppose.
I played around on WritersCo a lot today. Not doing anything special, really, but I have a few thoughts swirling in my head.
People, I've met a lot of you and seem to be getting along well with everyone so far. But I have a little message for everyone here, so please don't think it's targetted.
Don't take yourself too seriously.
Here you are a name and number. Nobody is any better than anyone else. Nobody deserves a chance more than the next person. We're here, I think, to better ourselves as writers, not to quibble over copyrights and spout off about what others need to do. To thank end, I think that getting active, even in little things the prompt section, is what we should all do. Most of us seem to be coming here with our work and expecting it to just be read by everyone because it's there. I don't even think our precious work should be posted here... just use this place to bang heads with other writers and sharpen those writing skills using the tools we can put together here. No one's baby will get insulted that way.
If nothing else, think of it this way. I am Travis Reynolds of Kentucky, United States of America. About three people on this site really know me. To everyone else I am words on a page. The same goes for all of you. To me, save those few, you are all words on a page. I have nothing to prove to you, and I suspect you have nothing to prove to me. So ditch the egos and save your pride for doing something well. While there are still a few of us, it is the best time to develop professional respect for each other, so that we're all headbanging to the same beat, and we can get stuff done. Quibbling is a waste of breath. ^^
So I'm sure most of you know what spawned that (*coughblogcoug
Much of the rest of the day is a blur. I feel driven to something, now, and I have a thing or two I'll be implementing and pushing soon. But I will need your help. now that we are all free of our self-importanc
P.S. I may as well pimp A Writing Competition by [Akayume] and The Chase by [Mister Saint] while I'm here. Check them out. ^^
P.S.S. I was really tired when I wrote this, so do forgive the rampant spelling and grammatical errors.
I know you've all heard it before, but here is a reminder.
Back up your work!
I discovered today that I had neglected to back up my skateboarding story before my computer exploded a while back. This... really irritates me, as it is the only piece of modern fiction I've ever done that hasn't sucked out loud. It makes me want to bite things.