WIP challenge: day 30 check-in!

[littlebutfierce]

We're almost to the end of this month's challenge! How's it going today?

Poll #8436 Day 30 check-in!

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 7

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How's the fic going today?

View Answers

Brilliant!
0 (0.0%)

Okay.
6 (100.0%)

Terrible.
0 (0.0%)

And what did you do today on it?

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Nothing
0 (0.0%)

Wrote
4 (66.7%)

Edited
3 (50.0%)

Researched
1 (16.7%)

Took a break
2 (33.3%)

Sent to beta
0 (0.0%)

Posted
0 (0.0%)

Something else I will describe in comments
0 (0.0%)

As the month winds down, how do you feel about the work you did on your goal fic(s)? (1 being horrible, 10 being amazing)

View Answers
Mean: 4.29 Median: 4 Std. Dev 2.55

1		1 (14.3%)
2		2 (28.6%)
3		0 (0.0%)
4		1 (14.3%)
5		0 (0.0%)
6		1 (14.3%)
7		1 (14.3%)
8		1 (14.3%)
9		0 (0.0%)
10		0 (0.0%)

For discussion: How has this month's challenge been for you? (We've got one more day left on it, I know!) Did you get done what you hoped to get done? Some of it, nothing at all? Maybe you wound up doing something completely different. Did you learn anything new about your fic process?

Comments

[littlebutfierce]

I always feel like I could do more for the challenge, but after a shaky start to the month, I feel all right about what I've done. I'm making good progress on my Kaleidoscope fic (though once again I have done almost nothing on my K-On! help_japan fic ;____;). & I've also pushed past a couple of difficult spots with another fic I've been working on, & just today I thought I had a minor breakthrough with a Treat I'm trying to write for Kaleidoscope. \o/

[sylvaine]

I did not do very well at all... I got one fic about 1/3 edited (which is a little pathetic, given that the fic isn't even 10,000 words long) and started another one that's entirely unrelated to the one I actually wanted to finish... ah well. Next month. *determined*

And I did learn something new! Namely that I'm far more likely to actually write if I'm participating in a writing session! Given that that's something I can actually do, this is quite nice to know. \o/

[lacerta]

Ahaha. I will host All the Writing Sessions then!

[sylvaine]

Yay! :D

[littlebutfierce]

Aw, but at least you got some editing done! & started a new one!

Also, that is super to know about the writing sessions. :D Hopefully we'll be able to have a bunch next month!!

[lacerta]

Writing today went well. I've mostly done editing and it all sounds much better now, yay! I'm a little unsure how to make the bridge from flashback to the present, so maybe I'll just skip that for now and come back to it later.

For the whole month, it hasn't been so rosy. I haven't managed anything on the two fics I meant to write *sob*. Hopefully November will kick me into gear, what with mini-nanowrimo and wrisomifu - something's bound to come out of that, right?

Things I learnt about my fic-process: Just write. I mean, I knew that beforehand too, but it's so tempting to get lost in planning and over-thinking instead of just sitting down and making a miserable first draft. Nobody ever gets to see that anyway, so it really doesn't matter if it sucks. So, that's what I'm aiming to do more often.

[littlebutfierce]

I'm glad the writing went well -- a nice way to round out the month even if it was disappointing to you overall!

& oh yes, the 'just write' stuff! You can't edit words that aren't there, etc. etc. May we all remember this!!

[linaewen]

Looking back at what I hoped to accomplish this month, I got a 2 out of three for my set goals, so I'm giving myself an 8 for that, since the chapter I did get written and posted was one that had been hanging like an albatross around my neck.

This month wasn't one where I was tackled for a loss by Real Life, but I was a bit lazy -- otherwise I think I could have gotten more done in the writing line. One thing I learned is that I have to make a commitment to write and then follow through with it; writing isn't just going to come to me out of the blue in the same way it used to when I had less on my plate. I've made half-hearted attempts to set writing times during the day but never really stuck to them -- but that might be the way to move forward this next month.

[littlebutfierce]

Woohoo! Congratulations on doing so well!!!

I have trouble w/the follow-through. ^^;;; Good luck w/putting writing on the front burner again next month!

[taelle]

I haven't done much editing/adding to my unfinished story at all. I think I'm afraid of it (also, it's kind of cursed - everyone who promised to read the unfinished draft kinda disappeared or got too busy. Maybe I shouldn't offer unfinished drafts to people to read, even if I'm stuck).

I've been writing random bits, though. And towards the end of the month I started the story I wasn't planning to write any time soon, and it's rather interesting going, though too relationshippy - I don't think I ever did a story like that. BTW, unfinished draft and all, maybe someone here could find time to talk it out with me, purely in the terms of the characters' behaviour/logic? I am not quite sure I know what I'm doing, and I want to finish this story! It's not long, but I haven't finished anything longer than a drabble since Yuletide.

[littlebutfierce]

Oh man, today's discussion topic is going to be all about what we're afraid of w/our own writing (this is my only nod to Halloween on DW, ha!), heh. I'm sorry your betas vanish!!

& hooray for random bits! I often find that a lot of the random bits end up not being so random after all -- even if I don't end up using lots of them, they help me think about characterization & just get practice in writing new characters.

What fandom is your draft for? & do you want a fandom-specific beta? Feel free to make a new post asking for one -- no one's done it for quite a while, but we've always said in the comm it's perfectly acceptable (if we end up w/12 posts a day asking for betas, we might have to revise that, but so far it hasn't happened!). Or usually in either the Friday/Saturday posts people post if they want a beta, but you'd get more visibility w/a top post, if you wanted.

[taelle]

They aren't even betas, but alphas... sorry, I usually mean by beta someone who edits a finished text, and by alpha, someone who just reads what you wrote - perhaps in progress, even - and tells you "this is awful" or "okay, but this bit is unclear". Perhaps some people have betas who do it all, I dunno.

Yeah, practice is useful, I guess (I could never do proper writing exercises from books, once I was out of school - they're boring, and I have trouble doing even my own writing, why would I waste time on stuff I don't care about?). I keep telling this to myself. Also, they keep me in the habit of writing. I am better with this now, thanks to this comm in part, even if I don't write _every_ day. But I think I should move to starting and finishing actual texts now!

I am... not sure I want that much visibility, I've recently been shy about my writing (showing to no one except betas. Who vanish. Maybe they are dead from my awful writing? I dunno). What I'm writing is RPS for the Japanese Takarazuka theatre (this story I'm writing now is femslash, the stuff I'm struggling to edit is gen), and I am not really looking for a fandom-specific beta, especially not for the femslash piece where I'm mostly concerned about whether the characters are behaving in recognizably human ways and, well, have characters)

[littlebutfierce]

I think the term "beta" probably isn't v. well-defined in fandom! I've seen people use it in various ways. I send stuff to beta that I don't think is quite finished yet, but to me it ought to be pretty well on the way before I get another opinion on it. Though I think if I ended up sending an early scene to a friend for the kind of early commentary you mentioned I might still call it a beta? Sometimes if I don't necessarily need specific comments, just a "this plot works" or "this is terrible, bin it now" sort of thing, I think of it as getting a cheerleader. Anyway, as long as both parties know what's expected of them, heh!

I'm glad the comm is helping!!

Also, I think the Takarazuka fic sounds really interesting, though I don't know much about them (aside from the broadest of things) myself. I have a few friends who would probably love to read that fic (although they are also some of the busiest, or I might possibly be able to nudge them in your direction, if you wanted -- I don't think they can beta anyone right now tho).

Showing people one's writing can be super-scary... I think even now that I've been writing fic for a while I still get stage fright a lot of the time. ^^;;;

[taelle]

Yeah, I seem to be having no luck with either betas or cheerleaders, and my usual people are not in this fandom (or not reading English).

... I am a bit afraid of your friends too, I mean, if they're fans, what if they would think my story stupid. *sighs* Sorry for being such a ball of flaily indecisiveness. Maybe if you could nudge them very tentatively... (so I have time to run away and hide) And meanwhile I'd ask for a general beta or whoever doesn't mind reading unfinished stuff for some unfamiliar fandom.

*feels an urge to just delete this comment for general stupidity*

[bay_alexison]

My beta got back to me and send me her edits for my Halloween fic. I haven't made the fixes yet, but I will in a bit!

I'm actually surprised I more or less got the stuff I wanted done. Able to polish the first three chapters of my Big Bang and send those chapters in along with the rough draft version of Chapter 4. I also got my Halloween fic done and as I said before will get to editing it. Only thing is I'm unable to brainstorm for my help_japan fic. I guess I'll just to wing it as I plan to write it for Nano. ._.

[littlebutfierce]

Wooooo, yay for getting the fic back from beta -- inching closer to posting is great. :) & HOORAY for pretty much meeting your goals for this month's challenge!

(... & can I say I am so happy there is someone else who still hasn't done their help_japan fic? Every month I think, right, this is the month I finish it! ... & it hasn't happened. *hangs head*)

[jagnikjen]

I did nothing today, though the itch was there. Ultimately, I didn't scratch it for various reasons.

As for the challenge, I completed my exchange fic, which was the most important thing. It's with two betas right now so I'm just waiting to get it back, make any needed adjustments and then I'll send it to the exchange coordinator.

[littlebutfierce]

Eh, we all need a day off once in a while. :) Hopefully your fic brain got a good rest.

Yay for finishing your exchange fic!!!!

[lacygrey]

I'm back after a weekend away. This month I think I've learnt a good deal about the writing process, even though I didn't achieve my goal of finishing my editing on the one long fic.
I didn't know what Id be signing up to try to do next month, but it seems to be the same thing - finish the same one fic!