Comments on: Blood & Fire: a work in progress

By: Thomas

Thomas — Thu, 05 Jun 2003 05:36:57 +0000

In reply to rachel2205.

I'd like to read one sometime, if I can... :)

By: rachel2205

rachel2205 — Thu, 05 Jun 2003 05:07:11 +0000

Woo! I've never written anything that long. having said that, my short stories are all very long! Generally over 10 000 words.

By: veeb

veeb — Thu, 05 Jun 2003 04:54:25 +0000

In reply to Thomas.

Oh it answers it well enough, and I think it's a pretty healthy way to approach things.

By: Thomas

Thomas — Thu, 05 Jun 2003 02:52:43 +0000

In reply to veeb.

How do you mean succeed?

That's an interesting question. I guess, thinking about it – what I meant by *succeed* is that this story is going to develop into the novel that I invisaged. By which I mean, I'm not going to find myself two chapters down the line and realising that what I thought was going to be a nice beginning is actually a beginning, middle and and end.

To succeed, I think, can be seen as something that has levels.

To complete writing the book
To have revised, redrafted, rewritten and drafted* (*repeat as applicable) again the story to a point where you find you cannot take it further.
To have given it to people to read.
To have had some (at least) of said people moved (in some way) by what you have written.
To have submitted the story to a publisher and/or an agent.
To have had the book accepted for publication.
To see (whilst browsing in a branch of Waterstones) a complete stranger pick up your book from the shelf and read the cover blurb, and...
To see this complete stranger buy your book?

Any one or all of these stages could be considered to succeed. It probably doesn't answer your question... ;)

By: veeb

veeb — Thu, 05 Jun 2003 02:02:43 +0000

How do you mean succeed? i.e. get published? sell a lot? It's interesting to me as an creative person how to guage success, so it would be interesting to hear how you feel about things succeeding.

My levels incidentally are very low for this kind of thing. To me you're a success if you just *do* something, whether anyone sees it or not. Start at that level and everything looks and feels like an achievement.

I was sent some chocolates the other day from a fan in Canada whom I sent my latest album to. I must've only sent about 10 or 11 copies out and yet that simple gift has made me feel *very* successful, even though I've shifted many more copies of other records.