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Looking for help/Working on project (self.411)

submitted 2 months ago by Ragallos to c/411

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Hey everyone, I am working on a project for a science fiction college class. Initially I wanted to post a couple short stories I had ideas for on here, I still would like to do that. However as I started brainstorming and planning I realized one writing idea was longer form than a short story. So I still would like to post my short story once it is writing but I was wondering how people who write on here tend to actually start their writing, how much planning happens before ink hits paper as it were? Also how much help can newcomers find on Lemmy? I'd like to do a presentation on Lemmy as a resource similar to how reddit is commonly used. Any help would be appreciated!

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[–] dresden@discuss.online 3 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Well, I am not a writer, but from what I have read, there are all kind of writers. Some take ton of time and have the whole book (or series) ready before writing a single word, while others plan as they write. They all go through revisions though, and everyone say a good editor is really important.

As for writing long form, I recall reading someone's opinion that you should start with short stories, instead of writing full length novel or long series from the get go. This was more about when you are honing your skill, instead of your first published work, from what I recall, but that is one person's opinion in some specific context (that I don't completely recall) so take it for it's worth.

[–] Eq0 2 points 3 weeks ago

I definitely heard the advice of starting short before going for the long format. There are many reasons, mainly centred about the fact that what makes a good story is mostly independent of length, and writing short stories allows you to explore your style and develop it more - while if you are "locked in" in a long project, you loose your initial freedom, while potentially noticing too late some rookie mistakes you already committed to.

To expand more on the first part of your answer: the same author might use different practices depending on what they are writing, so how long the planning stage takes might vary wildly without known reason.