WRITERSoftheFUTURE.com

The only time I put words in italics are when 1) I want to distinguish an internal thought, or 2) I want the word to be spoken (dialogue) with an emphasis on the word (ie. I want the reader to hear the word being emphasized for some reason). That's pretty much the only time I do it.

How do you show interior dialogue for your main character? Do you put it in quotes? Do you italicize it? I have Googled this and just ended up confused. What is the best way for WoTF? When you say interior dialogue, are you talking thought processes or an exchange between multiple characters? (Ital...

disgruntledpeony wrote:Helge is right; you get paid pro rates PLUS the prize money.

Aaaahhh...nice!

I thought it was interesting, because I was thinking about pro rates and looking at the prize payout for WOTF. Third place pays $500. Depending on how long your story is, that could either be a pro rate, or not. If your story is 10,000 words, that's only $0.05 per word, which isn't a pro rate payout...

That's really exciting. I hope the critique comments are helpful. Looking forward to one day getting at least that far in this contest. ~M Well, you have the perfect picture/avatar for a pro-author, Morgan! That, alone, should set you up for placement and back cover. wotf007 Bwa ha ha! Thanks Drago...

That's really exciting. I hope the critique comments are helpful. Looking forward to one day getting at least that far in this contest.


~M

(Super late reply, woops. I suck at checking social media/forums... but I feel like I have more info now!) So I just found out I got SF and I'm 99% sure I didn't ever actually get the notification email for that - only just found out because Joni sent me my critique. Not sure what was up with that ...

I haven't been published yet anywhere, other than a short essay I wrote for Orange County, California's Literary Arts Center. My default cover letter reads like this: Dear Editors: Please consider my x,xxx word story "Story Title" for publication in "Name of Magazine". Thank you ...

I went to a workshop one time and learned about text and subtext. People very often do not say what they are really thinking or feeling, and a lot of times that can create really great conflict and tension during dialogue. We know our protagonist is thinking or feeling one way, but because of social...

I just read the interview that Preston did with May S. Ruiz. Ruiz says Preston is vying for the Golden Pen Award with his story. Are all winning writers eligible for the Golden Pen? I thought it was only some of them.

~Morgan

You're frelling right you can make your own cuss words up! Unless they're from Earth, then it starts sounding frelling silly. I think you have to be very careful when making up your own swear words. They should make sense within the environment and/or culture of the story you're building. One of th...

So like the title says, I've had a story in my head for a long time, but when I sit down to write it, it just feels off. I have the plot, the characters, the setting, conflict, try-fail cycles, satisfying conclusion. It's all there (which as a discovery writer, is weird) but I've started it three o...

Reading in this old thread and concerned it may be time to follow up. When I submitted via email to Galaxy's Edge, I never received an automated confirmation. At the time of submission it said "wait 3 weeks," but now says "wait 4 weeks" to inquire. It's been that and change, but...

I have since gotten in contact with Joni, though, and she's confirmed that my stories for both Q4 and Q1 were received, so yay! Now I'll just have to keep an eye on that pesky subconscious mind of mine... >.> Hannah, Were you ever able to figure out why you didn't get any of the submission confirma...

Thomas Woodward wrote:Would anyone be up for a quick 450 exchange before the end of this month? Please PM me if interested.

Hi Thomas,

I saw you note and, unfortunately, I'm WAY behind on writing so won't be able to critique/review anyone else's work this quarter.


~Morgan

One of the exercises I've found to be helpful is to find a story--or a passage of a story--that was done very well. Then I go through and try to deconstruct what made it so effective: what words did the author use, how did he arrange their order, what senses were involved, etc. It's a pretty fun act...

The other aspect to consider is that artificial gravity has become such a trope in science fiction that you probably don't need to explain it at all. Whenever I read a story that has people walking around inside starships or moons or asteroid bases, I just assume there's some sort of machinery to ge...

Going to rewrite my HM for this one, which gives me lots of time to just polish. The story is done, only I think I may have to kill somebody. It's impossible to tell what was wrong with the story, since there's no feedback. My first hypothesis is always going to default to, "Maybe not enough p...

At the risk of going into religion... For the love of God, why in the hell would you ever consider going to an agent? I can kind of understand...sort of...going with a trad pub deal. Maybe. If you're desperate for validation and don't care to make money. But an agent??? Are you trying to have your ...

When you find yourself in that position of wondering whether you're still eligible to enter the contest, you can always send a note to Joni and ask. Include the word count of the stories you've sold, who bought the stories, and how much they paid you. She'll let you know.

Once in a very great while a story will arrive whole and complete, and all I have to do is draft it all out. Then it's a cycle of reading, thinking, revising, and rewriting until I feel like it's good enough. Most of the time though, all I get is a brief glimpse of an idea. The hard part for me is a...

Nice way to give an old story a new twist, Will. Congrats!


~Morgan

Thanks everyone!

Hey all, I'm doing the 52 Week Story Challenge (thanks again Phillip McCollum!) and posting the stories on my website. Not a lot of traffic there: maybe a couple members of my family and a few friends, if I'm lucky. Can I still submit these stories for publication elsewhere? I can't seem to find any...

Solid advice from everyone above, and I wholeheartedly agree. A couple more points I'll throw in: 1) Make sure YOU are happy with the story before you send it out to others for a review. There's no point in making other people point out something you already know is an issue. I never send a first dr...

I write on my lunch hour during the day. I usually head over to the library or Panera or Starbucks and TYPE TYPE TYPE. Depending on how soon I wake up before my alarm goes off in the morning, I might also get another thirty or sixty minutes in before work too. In all, at least one hour a day, someti...

I feel drained after writing my Q4 story. I took it easy the middle 2 quarters of this year but Q4 I went all in. Usually I finish a story bored and ready to move onto something more exciting but this time I am not sure what comes next. I need some time. I am in a weird transitional stage where I a...

I say as long as the story can stand on its own, with its own story and character arc, and it's told vividly with an original voice, then GO FOR IT!

~Morgan

I've sold three HMs. Heck, there are people who've sold Rs. That's pretty awesome. I've gotten into the odd habit of wondering how some of the pro stories I've come across would fare on Dave's desk--and how some of the WotF stories would fare on, say, Neil Clarke or C.C. Finlay's desk. You really n...

DylCary wrote:Thanks for the responses, everyone! Now to spend all of the next few weeks answering every unnamed caller I receive. Goodie

I wouldn't get too worked up about it. As KD mentioned, if Joni calls and can't reach you, she'll leave a message and you can call her back.


~Morgan