So I got a little delayed from finishing chapter 2 due to Xmas and all that jazz but I can officially say that it has now been completed. Tonight, at work, I'll be looking it over a few times and redoing a couple things and THEN when I'm finally somewhat happy with it, I'll show my girlfriend and see what she thinks. I think that, so far, it's actually looking pretty good. The book starts building up to the event that will set the whole adventure in motion right from the start so it's a little tricky to do that as well as describing characters, places, etc.
Also, on a side note, I stumbled across this news and tech website looking for writers to do about 4-5 short articles a week for their site. There wouldn't be any pay until the site gets up and going but a by line is good enough for me. I may be able to divert people over to the blog this way as well so I think I'll try and hammer out a sample article and send that over to them as well tonight. I'll be sure to let you know the reaction as soon as I get it.
Sorry that the post is a little shorter then usual but at least you can rest assured, knowing that the long gaps between posts should now lessen quite a bit since the holidays are coming to an end and I can focus on writing more again. I've received a few comments on some posts and I've acquired a couple followers so the wheels are slowly moving into motion and I hope you'll all add some fuel to the fire and get this thing burning bright. Remember, if you like what you see, shoot me an e-mail or post a comment on an article. Hell, if you really want to be a pal, become a follower to the blog and tell your friends!
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Filler...
It's been a little longer then usual since my last post and that is mainly because I haven't really had the time. Work has been busy and,if you read this blog, you know that I basically live at work here. I have managed to get about halfway through chapter 2 and am pretty determined to finish it tonight. The juices are flowing well so hopefully I can keep em going once I get home tonight. I'm working the night shift tonight so that won't be until 9:40ish but I'm closing again tomorrow so I may very well just stay up late and hammer this thing out.
I figured I'd also take this very uninformative "filler" post as a chance to explain to you the basis of my book project. I won't say too much but it is a fantasy story that I'm hoping will span across 3 books. It all takes place in the land of Farwin. Basically, the land is divided up into 8 different areas; run by 8 very different kings and housing 8 very different kinds of people. The story revolves around a young man named Milamor. He's kind of an outsider who gets swept up into having to stop an evil mage named Dreymor who has stolen an artifact that can summon an ancient darkness, thereby causing the end of the world as they know it...
I don't exactly describe novels as a daily thing so forgive me if it's a little less informative then expected or a little underwhelming sounding but I guarantee it's a pretty deep and compelling project. The story contains a lot of action and adventure but that's just the surface. Underneath, lies a fascinating core, full of emotions and life. I'm really trying to focus on the relationships of the characters and how they can seem very different but come together for one another.
Thanks again for reading the blog and, as always make sure to spread the word. If you like what you see, tell people about it. I know I could've really used someone to relate to back in high school when everyone was telling me not to pursue writing...If you're reading these, also make sure to follow and link the blog wherever you go!...
I figured I'd also take this very uninformative "filler" post as a chance to explain to you the basis of my book project. I won't say too much but it is a fantasy story that I'm hoping will span across 3 books. It all takes place in the land of Farwin. Basically, the land is divided up into 8 different areas; run by 8 very different kings and housing 8 very different kinds of people. The story revolves around a young man named Milamor. He's kind of an outsider who gets swept up into having to stop an evil mage named Dreymor who has stolen an artifact that can summon an ancient darkness, thereby causing the end of the world as they know it...
I don't exactly describe novels as a daily thing so forgive me if it's a little less informative then expected or a little underwhelming sounding but I guarantee it's a pretty deep and compelling project. The story contains a lot of action and adventure but that's just the surface. Underneath, lies a fascinating core, full of emotions and life. I'm really trying to focus on the relationships of the characters and how they can seem very different but come together for one another.
Thanks again for reading the blog and, as always make sure to spread the word. If you like what you see, tell people about it. I know I could've really used someone to relate to back in high school when everyone was telling me not to pursue writing...If you're reading these, also make sure to follow and link the blog wherever you go!...
Friday, December 17, 2010
Chapter 2...
Alright, so I'm now moving onto chapter 2. My schedule at work has been a little different this week so I haven't had to time write much here. For some reason, I write my best when I'm surrounded by noise but it has to be a lot of various noises and not a TV for example. Also, I can't write in complete silence...I think my billions of thoughts all become much too dominant in my mind and I can't think straight. So, for now, writing from this little kiosk does the trick just fine and I'm perfectly happy with that.
Chapter 1 has been completed and reviewed by myself, as mentioned in my last post, but I have yet to let anyone else read it. My girldriend insists on reading it and perhaps I will let her soon but, to be honest, I judge my own work pretty harshly and am never truly happy with anything written. I'm really working on getting that part under control since it seems to be the largest factor contributing to delaying the completion of the project.
I will start chapter 2 as soon as I'm done this post and, hopefully, will have it done by Tuesday, latest. I'll then look it over and FINALLY allow my girlfriend to read them both. The first 2 chapters are very introductory and, in my opinion, need to really be read together to make any kind of recommendations on it. The chapters do work individually for the reader but I just want to let her read the both together. So I will now leave to begin the chapter and hope writer's block doesn't hit me like a brick wall...
P.S. It's my girlfriend, Amanda's, birthday today so be a pal and wish her a happy one for me :), and thanks again for reading my blog. I recently gained my first 2 followers so let me say "thank you" to you two. Let them serve as an example to anyone else out there reading these posts; if you like what you see, be a friend and follow me and don't forget to comment repeatedly because every new follower I get will be given a piece of candy...maybe...:)
Chapter 1 has been completed and reviewed by myself, as mentioned in my last post, but I have yet to let anyone else read it. My girldriend insists on reading it and perhaps I will let her soon but, to be honest, I judge my own work pretty harshly and am never truly happy with anything written. I'm really working on getting that part under control since it seems to be the largest factor contributing to delaying the completion of the project.
I will start chapter 2 as soon as I'm done this post and, hopefully, will have it done by Tuesday, latest. I'll then look it over and FINALLY allow my girlfriend to read them both. The first 2 chapters are very introductory and, in my opinion, need to really be read together to make any kind of recommendations on it. The chapters do work individually for the reader but I just want to let her read the both together. So I will now leave to begin the chapter and hope writer's block doesn't hit me like a brick wall...
P.S. It's my girlfriend, Amanda's, birthday today so be a pal and wish her a happy one for me :), and thanks again for reading my blog. I recently gained my first 2 followers so let me say "thank you" to you two. Let them serve as an example to anyone else out there reading these posts; if you like what you see, be a friend and follow me and don't forget to comment repeatedly because every new follower I get will be given a piece of candy...maybe...:)
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Chapter 1...
Yesterday I finally finished writing the first chapter of the unnamed fantasy novel I'm writing...for the 3rd time. It's about 3300 words and looks pretty good to me. There is something bugging me about it that I can't quite figure out. I've gone over it twice since it's completion and have tweaked little things here and there, but I can't figure it out...something's missing. The first couple of chapters are the most important ones to me, since they basically lay the foundation for everything. All the main characters need introductions as well as the world I've created from scratch; it's a lot to sum up in a few thousands words without getting boring. I'm sure a lot of people can relate to the process and can agree with me that, quite frankly, it sucks.
So if there's anyone out there reading these, shoot me an e-mail and let me know what you think of the whole writing process; how do you start? what methods do you use to get past writers block and such? I'd like to start a of forum of sorts for these things (I know there must be hundreds out there already) on the blog. I think it would be a great way to get some communication gowing throughout any and all readers of The Struggling Writer. You can contact me through the link in my profile. Take a look!
So if there's anyone out there reading these, shoot me an e-mail and let me know what you think of the whole writing process; how do you start? what methods do you use to get past writers block and such? I'd like to start a of forum of sorts for these things (I know there must be hundreds out there already) on the blog. I think it would be a great way to get some communication gowing throughout any and all readers of The Struggling Writer. You can contact me through the link in my profile. Take a look!
Saturday, December 11, 2010
SIde Note...
In my last post I forgot to mention something unusual that had happened to me the other night. It wasn't a huge deal since my last post was a little too long for my taste anyway but...
While trying to get a hold of my lanlord about the issue last week, I kept getting these wierd "Unknown Caller" calls that, for some reason, only came when I was either away from my cell or busy. It happened 5 or 6 times through 2 days. I was sitting at home on the 3rd night with my girlfriend after a long day of work when suddenly I felt a vibration in my pocket. I was curious to find out why someone was constantly calling and when I hit "talk" I was expecting something about offering me a credit card or something but I was just some guy. He was asking if I was Travis (which I was pretty sure I am) and if I ran the "The Struggling Writer" blog. I said yes in a very confused tone. He wanted to know if it was a business thing I run or if it was just a personal thing I did. After telling him it was just personal he basically just said, well thanks, I really respect what you're doing...
Now I have no idea who this guy was, what he wanted, or (more importantly) how he got my cell number. I was really taken off guard by the whole thing and I kind of wish now that I could go back and ask some questions of my own but I guess I'll never know. Either way, that's my little side note I thought I'd mention.
P.S. If anyone is reading this blog and actually enjoying it, please become a follower or leave me a comment. You can also e-mail tshuman1190@hotmail.com if you want to leave me any kind of feedback. I'd really appreciate finding out what everyone thinks of the blog thus far. Thank again!
While trying to get a hold of my lanlord about the issue last week, I kept getting these wierd "Unknown Caller" calls that, for some reason, only came when I was either away from my cell or busy. It happened 5 or 6 times through 2 days. I was sitting at home on the 3rd night with my girlfriend after a long day of work when suddenly I felt a vibration in my pocket. I was curious to find out why someone was constantly calling and when I hit "talk" I was expecting something about offering me a credit card or something but I was just some guy. He was asking if I was Travis (which I was pretty sure I am) and if I ran the "The Struggling Writer" blog. I said yes in a very confused tone. He wanted to know if it was a business thing I run or if it was just a personal thing I did. After telling him it was just personal he basically just said, well thanks, I really respect what you're doing...
Now I have no idea who this guy was, what he wanted, or (more importantly) how he got my cell number. I was really taken off guard by the whole thing and I kind of wish now that I could go back and ask some questions of my own but I guess I'll never know. Either way, that's my little side note I thought I'd mention.
P.S. If anyone is reading this blog and actually enjoying it, please become a follower or leave me a comment. You can also e-mail tshuman1190@hotmail.com if you want to leave me any kind of feedback. I'd really appreciate finding out what everyone thinks of the blog thus far. Thank again!
Thursday, December 9, 2010
The Silver Lining...
A silver lining has been found through last week's chaos...
After the initial shock of last week's little unsettling notice in the mail, I was finally able to sit down and try to resolve the issue in my head. Basically, my girlfriend and I have been kicked out in the middle of winter...in Canada I might add. I decided to contact the landlord directly and see if we can't settle the matter in some other fashion. After 2 days of phone tag, I eventually was able to speak with her and basically told her that I agreed with her and respected her decision to want us out. I was originally going to fight tooth and nail to stay in my little crappy apartment but the fact is, I just can't afford it.
I need to be able to actually get ahead for just a second to get some breathing air. Luckily, my girlfriend's parents were more then happy to offer their place for us when they heard the situation. I had been living there for a couple months in between dropping out of college and getting my own place and it's great, but obviously not my ideal living situation. The major loss of freedom and privacy is a blow to the face that I will gladly take if it means I can finally move forward with certain aspects of my life. I, like any other post student my age, have a loan to pay off as well as a maxed out credit card and very little pocket change after every month of rent payed. This way, I will be able to save up tons of cash and also pay off most of my debt within a few months. I make some good pay at my job, but rent was always in the way. Of course, I continually insist on paying a small rent fee and will probably have to sneak it to her parents without them noticing since they seem to be totally against receiving any sort of payment from me. I will be moving out sometime next month and, just in case anyone is wondering...yes this will almost definitely affect my ability to rent my next apartment in a negative way but I know personally from looking around that Ottawa seems to have some pretty forgiving places that don't mind if you've screwed up in the past with your rent, so I'm not very worried about that.
Something else that has been nice is that I have been constantly jotting down ideas for a fantasy novel I want to start writing. To be honest, I originally wrote this crappy fantasy book, which really seemed more like a short story at 78 pages, back in grade 7. After realizing that it was quite horrible (and I'm hard on myself, but this was....well I was only 14 so...) I rewrote in in highschool but only made it about half way through before having some mental breakdown and hating the entire thing. Since then, I have grown substantially in my writing and creative thinking skills and believe that, within the last month or so, I have come up with something completely new but with some of the original aspects that I just thought I could never replace. After jotting down days worth of notes on the characters, places and basically creating my own world from scratch, I decided that this would be a 3 book project. I heavy load to say the least at each book being somewhere around 200-250 pages, but I think it's the best way to have the story told. I later summarized the first chapter of the first book in jot notes then started the first rough draft yesterday at work. Today I will continue where I left off and hopefully have it done by Monday. From there I'll redo it a couple times then show it to a few people and if I think it works, Ill move on to the next chapter. I'll continue this process until the book is done then I will go over it from start to finish and fix up anything I think doesn't work and HOPEFULLY call that the final copy. I have no idea when this will happen since writers block is a daily thing for me but I will try my hardest and update anyone listening everytime I post.
This novel will take a major spot in this blog as it is the biggest thing I'm doing and I'd love to be able to get past some of the writers block by writing my ideas and frustration on here. Thanks again to anyone who has even stopped by once to read my blog. It's great to know that even 1 person is reading and enjoying my biggest passion...
After the initial shock of last week's little unsettling notice in the mail, I was finally able to sit down and try to resolve the issue in my head. Basically, my girlfriend and I have been kicked out in the middle of winter...in Canada I might add. I decided to contact the landlord directly and see if we can't settle the matter in some other fashion. After 2 days of phone tag, I eventually was able to speak with her and basically told her that I agreed with her and respected her decision to want us out. I was originally going to fight tooth and nail to stay in my little crappy apartment but the fact is, I just can't afford it.
I need to be able to actually get ahead for just a second to get some breathing air. Luckily, my girlfriend's parents were more then happy to offer their place for us when they heard the situation. I had been living there for a couple months in between dropping out of college and getting my own place and it's great, but obviously not my ideal living situation. The major loss of freedom and privacy is a blow to the face that I will gladly take if it means I can finally move forward with certain aspects of my life. I, like any other post student my age, have a loan to pay off as well as a maxed out credit card and very little pocket change after every month of rent payed. This way, I will be able to save up tons of cash and also pay off most of my debt within a few months. I make some good pay at my job, but rent was always in the way. Of course, I continually insist on paying a small rent fee and will probably have to sneak it to her parents without them noticing since they seem to be totally against receiving any sort of payment from me. I will be moving out sometime next month and, just in case anyone is wondering...yes this will almost definitely affect my ability to rent my next apartment in a negative way but I know personally from looking around that Ottawa seems to have some pretty forgiving places that don't mind if you've screwed up in the past with your rent, so I'm not very worried about that.
Something else that has been nice is that I have been constantly jotting down ideas for a fantasy novel I want to start writing. To be honest, I originally wrote this crappy fantasy book, which really seemed more like a short story at 78 pages, back in grade 7. After realizing that it was quite horrible (and I'm hard on myself, but this was....well I was only 14 so...) I rewrote in in highschool but only made it about half way through before having some mental breakdown and hating the entire thing. Since then, I have grown substantially in my writing and creative thinking skills and believe that, within the last month or so, I have come up with something completely new but with some of the original aspects that I just thought I could never replace. After jotting down days worth of notes on the characters, places and basically creating my own world from scratch, I decided that this would be a 3 book project. I heavy load to say the least at each book being somewhere around 200-250 pages, but I think it's the best way to have the story told. I later summarized the first chapter of the first book in jot notes then started the first rough draft yesterday at work. Today I will continue where I left off and hopefully have it done by Monday. From there I'll redo it a couple times then show it to a few people and if I think it works, Ill move on to the next chapter. I'll continue this process until the book is done then I will go over it from start to finish and fix up anything I think doesn't work and HOPEFULLY call that the final copy. I have no idea when this will happen since writers block is a daily thing for me but I will try my hardest and update anyone listening everytime I post.
This novel will take a major spot in this blog as it is the biggest thing I'm doing and I'd love to be able to get past some of the writers block by writing my ideas and frustration on here. Thanks again to anyone who has even stopped by once to read my blog. It's great to know that even 1 person is reading and enjoying my biggest passion...
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Bad times...
This Struggling writer isn't doing so well. I recently bought a cheap notebook to keep around with me wherever I go in case an idea pops into my head for this novel I've been writing and rewriting for the last 5 years. Ideas were popping in my head like crazy and I took this fictional story I had and completely blew it apart and pieced it back together as something much more compelling and interesting, but, as I know all too well, when there's good...there's always bad.
Yesterday night, when I got home from work I decided to check the mail before taking the elevator up to the 14th floor. In the mailbox was an envelope, stuffed with unsettling documents. My superintendent has decided to call a hearing with the company that owns the building to try and evict me for constantly paying my rent late. I'm a struggling writer...what do they expect? My girlfriend was real;ly upset about the entire situation and still is today as we try to make it through another work day with the constant dread of knowing we may be evicted from our home.
Luckily for me, I have the uncanny ability to deal with horrible situations in a calm and effective manner. I tried contacting the superintendent but he seems to never be around when you need him. I have been looking through apartments in the Ottawa area today at work while simultaneously juggling ink jet cartridges and conversations with clients I couldn't care any less about. To my surprise, I have found several appealing apartments in my low price range and have scheduled 4 viewings in the next 3 days. What's my plan you ask?
Seeing as my superintendent obivously doesn't want us living in his building, I'm going to go to his door after work and try and have a discussion with him. My goal is to get the superintendent to either drop the hearing all together and let me get out of his hair OR give me a second chance to actually pay my rent on time (which I'm able to do now that I'm pulling in around 45 hours/week). If it doesn't work, at least I'll find somewhere to live. It just might be a little worse then what I had hoped for. Wish me luck! I have the strangest feeling that it won't be so easy...
Yesterday night, when I got home from work I decided to check the mail before taking the elevator up to the 14th floor. In the mailbox was an envelope, stuffed with unsettling documents. My superintendent has decided to call a hearing with the company that owns the building to try and evict me for constantly paying my rent late. I'm a struggling writer...what do they expect? My girlfriend was real;ly upset about the entire situation and still is today as we try to make it through another work day with the constant dread of knowing we may be evicted from our home.
Luckily for me, I have the uncanny ability to deal with horrible situations in a calm and effective manner. I tried contacting the superintendent but he seems to never be around when you need him. I have been looking through apartments in the Ottawa area today at work while simultaneously juggling ink jet cartridges and conversations with clients I couldn't care any less about. To my surprise, I have found several appealing apartments in my low price range and have scheduled 4 viewings in the next 3 days. What's my plan you ask?
Seeing as my superintendent obivously doesn't want us living in his building, I'm going to go to his door after work and try and have a discussion with him. My goal is to get the superintendent to either drop the hearing all together and let me get out of his hair OR give me a second chance to actually pay my rent on time (which I'm able to do now that I'm pulling in around 45 hours/week). If it doesn't work, at least I'll find somewhere to live. It just might be a little worse then what I had hoped for. Wish me luck! I have the strangest feeling that it won't be so easy...
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Another day, Another dollar...
So it's a "beautiful" rainy Wednesday here in Ottawa, Canada and I am, once again, sitting in my kiosk "working". It's always nice to come onto the blog and start writing. I can get all my thoughts and feelings out. It kind of works like a mental cleansing...
As part of trying to really start a career as a "writer" of sorts, I have been searching through job postings and posting ads on sites like Kijiji and Craigslist; offering writing services for small fees. I have had a few little bites but nothing really interesting or rewarding but I found a rare little gem today. Someone is looking for a Creative Writer to do some science fiction writing for them. The job is freelance and so they pay by the assignment. I leap into action and wrote out the quickest, yet most professional, response I could and made sure to include a detailed "Writer's Resume" I made last week. I have found that after making that resume, people take me a little more seriously... which is always nice.
On the resume I have that I worked for a website: http://www.crapculture.ca/. The job was short lasting and it didn't pay but it was experience at least, which is really the most important part at this point. ALWAYS be trying to get more experience when you're starting out...you'll get nowhere without it!
Crapculture was a great little site that I wrote for back in '09. It came to me in the form of another rare gem on a job posting site. The creator was living in Ottawa and was looking for some volunteer writers for his "new site". The word "volunteer" was a kick in the shin for me since I was unemployed back then but I had always loved writing and thought, "sure, I could give it a shot." The owner contacted me asking for a sample of writing and, after looking through the articles currently on the site, I decided to do a movie review on "Drag Me To Hell". He ended up really enjoying it and set up a nice shiny acount for me on the site as well as a nice little profile and some light bragging rights that I was at least writing for a site. It felt good that someone enjoyed my writing and wanted more. I wrote from September to January when the original excitement wore off and I realized the site was gaining any more then its usually 300 viewers and only 3 of the 6-7 writers were even writing on a regular basis. I had a biography on Dallas Green, a Canadian idol of mine and overall amazing musician, which recieved around 5000 views but the overall traffic coming to the site hit an alltime low and I decided to leave. The writers were great people and the site was a great idea but it just wasn't working very well.
So, that's the little story of my first and only (so far) experience writing for a real website. I'm still friends with the writers and creator and they fill me in on how the site's going on a regular basis. Sorry for the jumbled mess of a post. This kind of started out as a mention of today's little findings but turned into the story of crapculture. Keep on writing!
As part of trying to really start a career as a "writer" of sorts, I have been searching through job postings and posting ads on sites like Kijiji and Craigslist; offering writing services for small fees. I have had a few little bites but nothing really interesting or rewarding but I found a rare little gem today. Someone is looking for a Creative Writer to do some science fiction writing for them. The job is freelance and so they pay by the assignment. I leap into action and wrote out the quickest, yet most professional, response I could and made sure to include a detailed "Writer's Resume" I made last week. I have found that after making that resume, people take me a little more seriously... which is always nice.
On the resume I have that I worked for a website: http://www.crapculture.ca/. The job was short lasting and it didn't pay but it was experience at least, which is really the most important part at this point. ALWAYS be trying to get more experience when you're starting out...you'll get nowhere without it!
Crapculture was a great little site that I wrote for back in '09. It came to me in the form of another rare gem on a job posting site. The creator was living in Ottawa and was looking for some volunteer writers for his "new site". The word "volunteer" was a kick in the shin for me since I was unemployed back then but I had always loved writing and thought, "sure, I could give it a shot." The owner contacted me asking for a sample of writing and, after looking through the articles currently on the site, I decided to do a movie review on "Drag Me To Hell". He ended up really enjoying it and set up a nice shiny acount for me on the site as well as a nice little profile and some light bragging rights that I was at least writing for a site. It felt good that someone enjoyed my writing and wanted more. I wrote from September to January when the original excitement wore off and I realized the site was gaining any more then its usually 300 viewers and only 3 of the 6-7 writers were even writing on a regular basis. I had a biography on Dallas Green, a Canadian idol of mine and overall amazing musician, which recieved around 5000 views but the overall traffic coming to the site hit an alltime low and I decided to leave. The writers were great people and the site was a great idea but it just wasn't working very well.
So, that's the little story of my first and only (so far) experience writing for a real website. I'm still friends with the writers and creator and they fill me in on how the site's going on a regular basis. Sorry for the jumbled mess of a post. This kind of started out as a mention of today's little findings but turned into the story of crapculture. Keep on writing!
Monday, November 29, 2010
Laying the foundation...
Ok, so I'm a 20 year old working full time in a little kiosk in a mall no one in Ottawa seems to know exists. I average around 48 hours/week and as you can imagine, without a ton of traffic coming through the mall, it gets pretty boring sitting around for 8-9 hours a day. To be honest, I actually do all my blogging while at work. The laptop my girlfriend and I share has decided to go to that happy place in the sky and so I am left with no computer and very little cash for a new one. Luckily, I do have access to the internet here in the "fishbowl" so I will be able to stay sane.
I'm actually an old fashioned guy, in the sense that I prefer older means of doing things. I'm not a fan of social networking sites and the like, but it looks as though I may have to look at jumping on the band wagon if I really want to get this stuff noticed. It has been a few days since I started this blog and I have yet to receive any attention from the public but obviously I wasn't expecting any moths to come to the flame so early in the life of my blog. I am also completely new to the idea of "blogging" and probably have the most basic blog one could have so I'm sure that doesn't help the traffic flow...I'll get the hang of it in time, I'm sure.
So whoever eventually finds their way to my page should know that I won't blog unless I have some sort of update to give. Personally, I'm not a fan of reading what "Cindy" had for lunch last week (hence the dislike of social networking). What's that imaginary readers? You want to know what the update is? Well sure I'd be glad to tell you. It's nothing HUGE but it's pretty exciting to me nevertheless. I have been contacting a lot of people to try and get some writing experience, because no one wants to pay money for a young guy with little proffesional experience, and I seem to have snagged a few bites on the line. Last week I received a reply from the Editor-In-Cheif at http://www.superherohype.com/ basically stating that they didn't currently have any freelance writing assignments but when they did they would give me a shot.
Now while I believe the chance of that happening is probably pretty slim, I also received a reply from the creator of http://www.onemorelevel.com/ (who also created http://www.addictinggames.com/, which he then sold to MTV) and his message was as follows:
Thanks Travis, it's always good to hear from a longtime visitor to my site.
I'm actually redisigning OneMoreLevel from the ground up and adding a focus on gaming news/reviews/humor in a blog format in addition to the flash games. I'd be happy to let you write a few articles on a trial basis and see where it goes from there. No set date on the launch, but it's looking like February. I'll shoot you an e-mail then, or feel free to contact me again once the new site goes live. =)
~Ira Willey
...So I was pretty happy about that one. I have wrote for a site before (story for another time) but this is a widely popular site with tons of traffic where people will actually see my writing and make their way over here. It's a small step to some but it's a huge leap in the right direction to me. Everyone has to start somewhere and maybe this is my starting. Regardless, I am still asking all over and all you imaginary readers, make sure to bring you're imaginary family and friends over to read The Struggling Writer!
I'm actually an old fashioned guy, in the sense that I prefer older means of doing things. I'm not a fan of social networking sites and the like, but it looks as though I may have to look at jumping on the band wagon if I really want to get this stuff noticed. It has been a few days since I started this blog and I have yet to receive any attention from the public but obviously I wasn't expecting any moths to come to the flame so early in the life of my blog. I am also completely new to the idea of "blogging" and probably have the most basic blog one could have so I'm sure that doesn't help the traffic flow...I'll get the hang of it in time, I'm sure.
So whoever eventually finds their way to my page should know that I won't blog unless I have some sort of update to give. Personally, I'm not a fan of reading what "Cindy" had for lunch last week (hence the dislike of social networking). What's that imaginary readers? You want to know what the update is? Well sure I'd be glad to tell you. It's nothing HUGE but it's pretty exciting to me nevertheless. I have been contacting a lot of people to try and get some writing experience, because no one wants to pay money for a young guy with little proffesional experience, and I seem to have snagged a few bites on the line. Last week I received a reply from the Editor-In-Cheif at http://www.superherohype.com/ basically stating that they didn't currently have any freelance writing assignments but when they did they would give me a shot.
Now while I believe the chance of that happening is probably pretty slim, I also received a reply from the creator of http://www.onemorelevel.com/ (who also created http://www.addictinggames.com/, which he then sold to MTV) and his message was as follows:
Thanks Travis, it's always good to hear from a longtime visitor to my site.
I'm actually redisigning OneMoreLevel from the ground up and adding a focus on gaming news/reviews/humor in a blog format in addition to the flash games. I'd be happy to let you write a few articles on a trial basis and see where it goes from there. No set date on the launch, but it's looking like February. I'll shoot you an e-mail then, or feel free to contact me again once the new site goes live. =)
~Ira Willey
...So I was pretty happy about that one. I have wrote for a site before (story for another time) but this is a widely popular site with tons of traffic where people will actually see my writing and make their way over here. It's a small step to some but it's a huge leap in the right direction to me. Everyone has to start somewhere and maybe this is my starting. Regardless, I am still asking all over and all you imaginary readers, make sure to bring you're imaginary family and friends over to read The Struggling Writer!
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Where to begin...?
Hi, my name's Travis and I'm a writer...I think. It's kind of hard to really say what a writer really is. I've spent way too much time thinking about it. Is a writer someone who has achieved success in the filed of writing? If so, that leaves a pretty wide spectrum for 2 reasons:
1) "Writer" isn't exactly a job, it's more of a category of jobs. There's about 20 different writing jobs that I can think of just off the top of my head.
2) "Success" is another translucid word who's definition begs to be disected.
After years of thought I have decided to believe that a "writer" is simply someone who writes; everything else is just too complicated. If you want to write, then write! It doesn't matter if you're young, old, rich or poor. That's the thing I love the most about writing. Absolutely no one can stop you from doing it. You don't need permission to be doing what you love and you have the freedom to say whatever you want. I can use this blog to open up my mind and just get all the thoughts out of my head and into text for whoever wants to see, but that's not the main reason I'm starting this blog.
I decided to start a blog today because I felt that the internet needed it. I don't mean to sound conceeded or overconvident but I know there are thousands of people like myself out there in the "world wide web" who can relate on so many levels. We, the struggling writers of the world, need each other to lean on and share our thoughts with. It's so easy to fall off the road to achieving each writers own individual ideal of what "success" is but I believe that together we can all help each other with encouragement, critisism and advice.
This is my life as a struggling writer - an average joe trying to get my words out. I hope you will all come along for the ride and see where this thing goes. It will have its ups and it will have its many, many downs but if there's anyone out there willing to listen, I'll be here willing to tell everything I have to tell and listen right back...
1) "Writer" isn't exactly a job, it's more of a category of jobs. There's about 20 different writing jobs that I can think of just off the top of my head.
2) "Success" is another translucid word who's definition begs to be disected.
After years of thought I have decided to believe that a "writer" is simply someone who writes; everything else is just too complicated. If you want to write, then write! It doesn't matter if you're young, old, rich or poor. That's the thing I love the most about writing. Absolutely no one can stop you from doing it. You don't need permission to be doing what you love and you have the freedom to say whatever you want. I can use this blog to open up my mind and just get all the thoughts out of my head and into text for whoever wants to see, but that's not the main reason I'm starting this blog.
I decided to start a blog today because I felt that the internet needed it. I don't mean to sound conceeded or overconvident but I know there are thousands of people like myself out there in the "world wide web" who can relate on so many levels. We, the struggling writers of the world, need each other to lean on and share our thoughts with. It's so easy to fall off the road to achieving each writers own individual ideal of what "success" is but I believe that together we can all help each other with encouragement, critisism and advice.
This is my life as a struggling writer - an average joe trying to get my words out. I hope you will all come along for the ride and see where this thing goes. It will have its ups and it will have its many, many downs but if there's anyone out there willing to listen, I'll be here willing to tell everything I have to tell and listen right back...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)