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Post by veryblessedmom on May 26, 2009 15:19:25 GMT -5
Interesting. I have to agree that there needs to be something in the first few pages to make your reader continue on. P I do have an prologue I'm going to add to strengthen my opening and clarify some things, but I cannot change how my characters meet. The characters in my head make up the story and that's just how they met. I also cannot make my female character a ditz who constantly needs rescuing. She does have to be rescued, but it's not her fault. There is nothing wrong or weak about needing help, but I hate books where the girl is just stupid over and over again for no reason except to give the hero an excuse to be heroic. My hero also needs to be rescued in a way and she helps him. I like my romance the way I like my lasagna. I do want some cheese, but I want it meaty too. I want to learn something that leaves me satisfied with the time I spent reading with a bit of the gooey lovey stuff.
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Vaporwolf
Full Member
Shnakvorum Rikoyoch
Posts: 123
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Post by Vaporwolf on May 27, 2009 12:27:26 GMT -5
Interestingly, none of the stories I've submitted from the universe that Starfire is set in have ever made it past the first round of Genesis, and they're always split on scores. My first year Starfire got a split score of 99/100 and 65/100 (that was before they used 3 judges). The story that finaled last year was a more traditional fantasy. The biggest thing I've learned from contests is that they can be very subjective and the mood of the judge at the time can heavily influnce their scoring. Sounds like you've figured out how to pick out the important stuff and ignore the comments that don't make sense, veryblessedmom. I plan on entering Starfire in ACFW's book of the year contest next year. Will be interesting to see how it fares.
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Post by Jeff Gerke on Jun 8, 2009 8:18:19 GMT -5
Just be sure to consider what the "bomb" judge said. It's tempting to want to embrace what the "good" judges said and reject the mean one, but if the editor is right, you would do well to heed him or her. Faithful are the wounds of a friend, after all.
At the Colorado Christian Writer's Conference this year I had an appointment with a writer who said the previous year I had been the odd man out on his sample pages. He'd shown it to three editors. Two of them had said it was fabulous; don't change anything. I had torn him to shreds (well, I'd been very specific about how and where I felt he could improve--grin).
He said he was very mad at me and wanted to just throw out my comments. However, as time passed he looked again and again at what I'd said. He said he came to realize, with some astonishment, that I was right. He saw it then.
So, a year later, sitting with him in Colorado, he said he was now mad at the other two for not telling him what he needed to do to get better.
Jeff
P.S. Incidentally, this author has this year become a finalist in the Genesis contest...
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Post by veryblessedmom on Jun 8, 2009 11:00:59 GMT -5
Oh, I'm so not mad. I'm a strange person who always reads the 1, and 2 star reviews on Amazon, even when it mostly got 5's.
I've read on the loop about people crying etc. over their scores. My writing is not me. They were not attacking me. I never see it like that. I want to improve so I need criticism, I desire it. I just started studying the craft in Jan. I'm toddling along at this point. The score sheets were my reason for entering.
The low scoring judge said it was too close to being a vampire story and not CBA material. Other than that, all the notes were pretty much the same from all 3 judges.
After I clean up my writing, and tighten up my story, it's still gonna sound like a vampire.
Someday, I might write the cleanest, most clever manuscript ever, and somebody's still going to hate it. I'm fine with that too. As long as I am faithful to what God's called me to write, I will consider myself a success.
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Post by morganlbusse on Jun 8, 2009 11:31:10 GMT -5
"Someday, I might write the cleanest, most clever manuscript ever, and somebody's still going to hate it."
Yep, that's why they say writers need to have tough skin! And if you've given it your best... then that's that ;P
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