#WritersCoffeeClub (Sep) 1: Intro: Shameless Self Promotion.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 14: What causes distance between your characters?
In many cases, differing interests — some people just prefer to have fun, while others want to save the world (or just the City). Sometimes, differing ideals, in terms of contrasting or even conflicting ideas of what's right and wrong.
And sometimes, someone's just not ready to share a secret, and it keeps them from being as close with someone else as they'd like.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 15: From which real-world events have you taken inspiration?
Everything from the pair of recent Dot-Com Booms in San Francisco to Justin Herman's '50s/'60s urban renewal to the Covid Pandemic.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 15: From which real-world events have you taken inspiration?
Everything from the pair of recent Dot-Com Booms in San Francisco to Justin Herman's '50s/'60s urban renewal to the Covid Pandemic.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 16: What's the most drastic alteration you've made to a work?
I'm too early in the process to have made much alteration at all; I'm still writing the first draft. 🤷🏻
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 16: What's the most drastic alteration you've made to a work?
I'm too early in the process to have made much alteration at all; I'm still writing the first draft. 🤷🏻
#WritersCoffeeClub day 17: What's changed for you from when you started writing to now?
The big thing that's changed for my WIP, at least, is that the November 2024 elections resulted in tragic outcomes for both the US and for San Francisco and my beloved District 5. That's forcibly colored my feelings about how the ending will work out, partly because I know it's changed how the ending — any ending — will land with readers.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 17: What's changed for you from when you started writing to now?
The big thing that's changed for my WIP, at least, is that the November 2024 elections resulted in tragic outcomes for both the US and for San Francisco and my beloved District 5. That's forcibly colored my feelings about how the ending will work out, partly because I know it's changed how the ending — any ending — will land with readers.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 18: Have you ever hidden the fact that you're a writer? Why?
No, I haven't seen any reason to.
In fact, kind of the opposite: sometimes when I'm writing in bars, I can tell people think I'm working for an employer (and outside business hours!), so I'll make a point of letting them know I'm writing a novel. I want people to know they're seeing someone enjoying their own hobby, not being overworked for someone else's profit! (And yes, people do appreciate knowing that.)
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 18: Have you ever hidden the fact that you're a writer? Why?
No, I haven't seen any reason to.
In fact, kind of the opposite: sometimes when I'm writing in bars, I can tell people think I'm working for an employer (and outside business hours!), so I'll make a point of letting them know I'm writing a novel. I want people to know they're seeing someone enjoying their own hobby, not being overworked for someone else's profit! (And yes, people do appreciate knowing that.)
#WritersCoffeeClub day 19: Talk about the influence folklore has on your work.
Little to none, so far — which is a bit of a shame, since I do love faerie lore! But I'm not including non-human supernatural races in my urban wizards story, so there's no place for that lore in my WIP.
I might say I'm including "urban folklore", but that'd be inaccurate: I'm really hewing more toward urban *history*, as in stuff that's verifiably true, not possibly-false legend.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 19: Talk about the influence folklore has on your work.
Little to none, so far — which is a bit of a shame, since I do love faerie lore! But I'm not including non-human supernatural races in my urban wizards story, so there's no place for that lore in my WIP.
I might say I'm including "urban folklore", but that'd be inaccurate: I'm really hewing more toward urban *history*, as in stuff that's verifiably true, not possibly-false legend.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 20: Name something unexpected you had to learn for a work.
I wasn't expecting to have to find out about small, indoor, movable hoists. But since a side character is a sculptor, it turned out she needs one of those in her workshop.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 20: Name something unexpected you had to learn for a work.
I wasn't expecting to have to find out about small, indoor, movable hoists. But since a side character is a sculptor, it turned out she needs one of those in her workshop.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 21: What's something essential to your process you think other writers should try?
I can't imagine that anything I'm doing is so new and original that other writers haven't either already adopted it, or tried it and found it doesn't work for them. The closest I can think of is some of the ways I'm using Git in my workflow, and leveraging my commit comments — but I would *NEVER* recommend Git to anyone who isn't already a software developer; the UX is just too awful!
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 21: What's something essential to your process you think other writers should try?
I can't imagine that anything I'm doing is so new and original that other writers haven't either already adopted it, or tried it and found it doesn't work for them. The closest I can think of is some of the ways I'm using Git in my workflow, and leveraging my commit comments — but I would *NEVER* recommend Git to anyone who isn't already a software developer; the UX is just too awful!
#WritersCoffeeClub day 22: Talk about an affirming experience you've had amongst your writing peers.
I mostly haven't interacted with "my writing peers" much, except here. And some comments have been very encouraging.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 22: Talk about an affirming experience you've had amongst your writing peers.
I mostly haven't interacted with "my writing peers" much, except here. And some comments have been very encouraging.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 23: Do you tend towards writing personal or universal cataclysms? Why?
More personal (or City-sized) ones. NGL, the MCU has burned me out on universe-level stakes. They just seem so tired and overdone at this point.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 23: Do you tend towards writing personal or universal cataclysms? Why?
More personal (or City-sized) ones. NGL, the MCU has burned me out on universe-level stakes. They just seem so tired and overdone at this point.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 24: Have you ever written a work that was a retelling of another work?
No. I won't say I could never see myself doing that, but I do have a bunch of other things on my to‑write list, so if I got an idea along those lines, it would have to wait for a while.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 24: Have you ever written a work that was a retelling of another work?
No. I won't say I could never see myself doing that, but I do have a bunch of other things on my to‑write list, so if I got an idea along those lines, it would have to wait for a while.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 25: Talk about a way you've described the indescribable. If you can!
I do what I can to describe the sensations of absorbing, or receiving, magical energy — a couple of different types, in fact, and received in different ways. I lean heavily on metaphorical language that evokes bodily sensations.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 25: Talk about a way you've described the indescribable. If you can!
I do what I can to describe the sensations of absorbing, or receiving, magical energy — a couple of different types, in fact, and received in different ways. I lean heavily on metaphorical language that evokes bodily sensations.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 26: What conflicts have you experienced because of your writing?
None that I can think of.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 26: What conflicts have you experienced because of your writing?
None that I can think of.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 27: How traditional is your writing? Which tradition?
I guess it's pretty squarely within the mainstream of modern urban fantasy. Is that "a tradition"? Or just a genre? Would you say that genre is situated with the "tradition" of 21st-Century Anglophonic speculative fiction?
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 27: How traditional is your writing? Which tradition?
I guess it's pretty squarely within the mainstream of modern urban fantasy. Is that "a tradition"? Or just a genre? Would you say that genre is situated with the "tradition" of 21st-Century Anglophonic speculative fiction?
#WritersCoffeeClub day 28: What's the highest praise you've received as a writer?
My partner, who's the only person I've shown any of my writing to, has said they love it.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 28: What's the highest praise you've received as a writer?
My partner, who's the only person I've shown any of my writing to, has said they love it.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 29: Talk about an experience you've had with plagiarism.
I haven't had any. I was taught not to plagiarize at an early age, and so I don't. Nobody's tried to plagiarize my work.
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 29: Talk about an experience you've had with plagiarism.
I haven't had any. I was taught not to plagiarize at an early age, and so I don't. Nobody's tried to plagiarize my work.
#WritersCoffeeClub day 30: Have you ever written as a commission? If not, would you?
I haven't, and I can't see myself having the spare time and monetary need to take commissions; I have enough writing of my own to do (and enough money to support it as a hobby).
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 30: Have you ever written as a commission? If not, would you?
I haven't, and I can't see myself having the spare time and monetary need to take commissions; I have enough writing of my own to do (and enough money to support it as a hobby).
#WritersCoffeeClub day 31: How was this month for you, writing-wise?
Okay, I guess. I had four days (two consecutive, two non-) when I didn't write at all, and I don't feel great about that. But I've produced a total of 16,564 words so far this month, and the day's not over yet. 1/2
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 31: How was this month for you, writing-wise?
Okay, I guess. I had four days (two consecutive, two non-) when I didn't write at all, and I don't feel great about that. But I've produced a total of 16,564 words so far this month, and the day's not over yet. 1/2
I'm closing in on "done with the first five chapters", which will be something of a milestone for me: it'll mean I've used up all the outline I wrote before starting, and am now _entirely_ in terra incognita. Which, while it is an achievement, also means my pace is likely to bog down more than a bit, as I try to figure out what the hell's going on. 2/2
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I'm closing in on "done with the first five chapters", which will be something of a milestone for me: it'll mean I've used up all the outline I wrote before starting, and am now _entirely_ in terra incognita. Which, while it is an achievement, also means my pace is likely to bog down more than a bit, as I try to figure out what the hell's going on. 2/2
#WritersCoffeeClub day 1: What’s the most number of revisions you’ve gone through for a work?
So far? Zero. I need to finish this draft before I can start revisions.
(Okay, technically, I've caught errors and fixed things up already anyway, because I occasionally re-read to make sure to keep consistency with the prior material. But that's not a full revision round. Just incidental stuff.)
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#WritersCoffeeClub day 1: What’s the most number of revisions you’ve gone through for a work?
So far? Zero. I need to finish this draft before I can start revisions.
(Okay, technically, I've caught errors and fixed things up already anyway, because I occasionally re-read to make sure to keep consistency with the prior material. But that's not a full revision round. Just incidental stuff.)
#WritersCoffeeClub day 2: Describe your aesthetic.
Like, as a writer? I'm not sure I have any idea how to answer this.