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Teskas
Nov 27, 2007 17:34:17 GMT -5
Post by Teskas on Nov 27, 2007 17:34:17 GMT -5
Hello, Everyone.
This is my "writer's home from home". Let me introduce myself, but since this is an open board, I won't mention too many details.
I am married with two children, and enjoy writing sci-fi. I've been visiting the site since August, enjoying the contact with other Christian writers, and learning so much from our host, Jeff.
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Teskas
Nov 27, 2007 18:11:34 GMT -5
Post by Teskas on Nov 27, 2007 18:11:34 GMT -5
Several weeks ago I had put up a much more detailed description of myself and interests, but had second thoughts about so much information on a publicly available site, so I took it down. In time, I hope to interact with our regulars on The Anomaly and I hope they enjoy getting to know me. I've been away from the board the last week because of....well, problems. I write on a secular PG-13 sci-fi RPG site (among other things) and recently it was hi-jacked by four players who came in from a transsexual R-rated site. I won't bore you with the details, but its been a knife fight in a coat closet to get them removed from the PG-13 site, and the matter still isn't settled. But the good thing that came out of the mess is that I discovered a Christian player who arrived only about a month ago. The PG-13 site may well close, but I am glad to have found that there are thoughtful writers out there trying to deal with the absence of religion in current sci-fi. The fight has also clarified my thoughts, namely for whom I want to write--a Christian audience or a secular one. I've decided to go for the Christian audience, or rather, to write openly in a Christian world view. It means I will need a Christian publisher when the time comes. I figure the honest secular seeker will find his way to Christian authorship anyway. I hope this doesn't seem too naive. I'll be doing my bit. Trying to write compelling, quality material and working to tell everyone about it. The Internet is probably the key tool. I do believe there is a real hunger out there. And to make my point.... Someone I write with in a private writer's circle sent me a message today. It was like a thunderbolt for me. I'd like to share a little of it with you. "I've got no formal religious background, but I'm open-minded enough to believe that religion is still very much a part of peoples' lives in the 23rd century. I even wanted to introduce a clergyman into the ***** storyline...... "...That pretty much sums up my view about religion in [the far future]. I think [fleets] had... chaplains, but they had other shipboard jobs that they did when they weren't conducting services or counseling crew members. I also think their education was probably a lot more diverse than just their own particular faith, although I can't really reconcile that one. I can't imagine a [Christian clergyman] being able to help [alien species] with their spiritual needs. That's where I get stuck." What excited me was that here is a secular writer who is thinking about religion in a sci-fi context. So that's where I've been and what's been going on in my life. Not quite the accomplishment that Fluke has delivered , I'll admit, but worthwhile in its own minor way.
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Teskas
Nov 28, 2007 8:37:49 GMT -5
Post by Jeff Gerke on Nov 28, 2007 8:37:49 GMT -5
Awesome. Noble calling, Teskas.
Jeff
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Teskas
Jan 5, 2008 1:34:35 GMT -5
Post by fairieswriter on Jan 5, 2008 1:34:35 GMT -5
Great to meet you, Teskas! Did you ever get that PG-13 site fixed?
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Teskas
Jan 5, 2008 22:34:47 GMT -5
Post by pixydust on Jan 5, 2008 22:34:47 GMT -5
Hey Teskas! Sorry about your site!
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Teskas
Jan 16, 2008 13:42:08 GMT -5
Post by Teskas on Jan 16, 2008 13:42:08 GMT -5
The PG-13 site fell to the dark side.
In RPG-land, as in real life elsewhere, the good guys don't always win.
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Teskas
Feb 5, 2008 14:04:02 GMT -5
Post by Teskas on Feb 5, 2008 14:04:02 GMT -5
Blog Note from a Far and Boarderless Country
The more I try to implement the Tips and the advice from Self-editing for Fiction Writers, the more daunting this writing business becomes. I thought I was pretty good at writing until the professional guidance came on the scene. Good writing is as difficult an art form as good oil painting or good sculpture.
I've stepped back to the most elementary stage--reworking sentences and paragraphs. POV is a real tiger to tame for me. I don't make the gaff of switching viewpoint. No, my viewpoints are consistent--consistently anemic third-person of the author rather than pull-the-reader-into-the-story character POV.
Then there's the business of creating character. I thought I was good at creating a character until I started creating an "inner journey" for one. Yikes! This stuff is hard!
I dread to think the cliff-climb to come when I start working on plot. Where did I catch this dreadful disease, the urge to write?
Anyway, I'm grateful for The Anomaly. It's good to belong here because, "In space, no one can hear you scream."
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Teskas
Feb 5, 2008 20:04:59 GMT -5
Post by rwley on Feb 5, 2008 20:04:59 GMT -5
Ahhh, she is infected and afflicted. Welcome to the diseased world of writers. It's not fatal, but it is incurable. Sometimes, it's even contagious. I got it from my mom and gave it to my kids. I, too am grateful for The Anomoly. It is a place to be inspired, instructed and involved. I even get to LOL alot because it is so nice to be able to speak (sort of) to people who are as off the wall as I am. Write on, Teskas, write on
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Teskas
Feb 6, 2008 9:08:45 GMT -5
Post by Jeff Gerke on Feb 6, 2008 9:08:45 GMT -5
I agree with rwley, Teskas. Realizing the difficulty and still soldiering on is what separates the real writers from the pretenders.
As for that cliff-climb, it's not going to be as bad as you're thinking. As I say in Tip #50, once you know your main character and his/her inner journey, you're most of the way to knowing your full plot.
Write on and far out.
Jeff
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Teskas
Feb 6, 2008 18:05:45 GMT -5
Post by Teskas on Feb 6, 2008 18:05:45 GMT -5
Thank you for the encouraging words. It has been quite an experience to understand how much of a beginner I am at writing, but it has been an even better experience to have met the support and encouragement of this group on The Anomaly. I think if I hadn't found this site, I would either have never known how much I needed to learn, or would have become too discouraged to continue. Thank you all.
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Teskas
Feb 10, 2008 19:17:56 GMT -5
Post by Kristen on Feb 10, 2008 19:17:56 GMT -5
I hear you on that whole POV thing, sister. It's agony to craft a lovely Jane Austen-y Charles Dickens-y thing with a distinct authorial voice only to be told That's Not Done. Hrrmm.
Still, there is something to be said for letting the characters tell the story and staying out of their way.
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Teskas
Feb 11, 2008 12:04:15 GMT -5
Post by Jeff Gerke on Feb 11, 2008 12:04:15 GMT -5
LOL, the content bot strikes again.
Charles Thingyens rocks.
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Teskas
Feb 11, 2008 21:51:01 GMT -5
Post by Teskas on Feb 11, 2008 21:51:01 GMT -5
Rock on Anomaly "thingy-isms", we can always use a laugh! While we're having a laugh, I have to share with you guys one of the funniest things I've read in a long time. I was reading an online newspaper article which invited reader comment, blog style, on a religious topic. One contributor ranted on a bit, and then wrote, "Religion equals trouble! Thank God I'm an atheist!" God bless us all.
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Teskas
Feb 12, 2008 9:03:27 GMT -5
Post by Jeff Gerke on Feb 12, 2008 9:03:27 GMT -5
That's hysterical. I wonder if the person saw what he'd written.
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Teskas
Feb 12, 2008 20:00:51 GMT -5
Post by Teskas on Feb 12, 2008 20:00:51 GMT -5
I doubt it.
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