Launching Stories.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I spent a slice of Christmas assaying short story collections for nuggets of technical competence in how writers launch their tales. Most fail. But Jack London knew how to do it, and did it well most of the time. Its rare in the LIT stacks. Its rare most places.

London manages to setup his tales so that all the essential info is presented within the first paragraph. The lead character, her fatal flaw, the problem, and the tone for what follows. London doesnt come right out and spill the beans but you know that an old, blind Indian is poised to be abandoned by his family and tribe, in Winter, and the story isnt going anywhere pleasant.

[JackLuis]

What? No porn nuggets.

You'd think that 1000 words would take a short time, Jimmy.

Or are you waiting for it to be put up?

[TE999]

I dunno ... the opening paragraph of the novel Paul Clifford 'It was a dark and stormy night, the rain fell in torrents ...' sets the scene pretty well, I think.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Originally Posted by JackLuis

What? No porn nuggets.

You'd think that 1000 words would take a short time, Jimmy.

Or are you waiting for it to be put up?

I was thinking I'd give you pervs time to heal your fingers and dicks before I post something that could kill you.

[sr71plt]

Originally Posted by JAMESBJOHNSON

I was thinking I'd give you pervs time to heal your fingers and dicks before I post something that could kill you.

That would be a no. You haven't written anything and aren't likely to write anything.

[DeeZire]

Originally Posted by JAMESBJOHNSON

I was thinking I'd give you pervs time to heal your fingers and dicks before I post something that could kill you.

My first good laugh of the day. While I agree that JBJ can be a reprehensible jerk, he does have a way with words.

[sr71plt]

Originally Posted by DeeZire

My first good laugh of the day. While I agree that JBJ can be a reprehensible jerk, he does have a way with words.

Perhaps just never the number of consecutive words he claims he writes.

[DeeZire]

Originally Posted by sr71plt

Perhaps just never the number of consecutive words he claims he writes.

Yes. I've come to the conclusion that JBJ is never, ever going to post any actual writing here. He's just yanking chains - his preferred avocation in life.

I do appreciate his 900-word concept. It fits his personality perfectly: wham, bam, fuck you ma'am.

[lovecraft68]

I can't introduce a character in 900 words never mind a sex scene.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

For me 1000 words is like writing WAR & PEACE.

Jeez, back in the 80s the early word processors the state used allowed like 1/3 page of text for an entire report. So prose was like a DICK & JANE reader, RUN SPOT RUN! Then about 1993 we got a processor with 85 lines of text. Adjectives and adverbs were tossed overboard. Compression was good.

So I had years of forced tersity. I naturally look for ways to say IT with fewer, shorter words.

[jomar]

Originally Posted by JAMESBJOHNSON

For me 1000 words is like writing WAR & PEACE.

...

So post something already. I figure if you don't post by 1/1/13 it ain't never gonna happen.

[JackLuis]

Originally Posted by JAMESBJOHNSON

For me 1000 words is like writing WAR & PEACE.

Jeez, back in the 80s ..bla bla bla...

I naturally look for ways to say IT with fewer, shorter words.

Oh Jimmy, you do 1000 words a day in the GB and AH. *tisk, tisk*

Shirking the writing of a single nugget, yet professing competence?

No wonder you hide under a sheet of anonymity.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Originally Posted by jomar

So post something already. I figure if you don't post by 1/1/13 it ain't never gonna happen.

But so what? I cant name one incentive or consequence for going faster or slower than my usual pace. Whats in it for me is the challenge to create a series thats consistently appealing to readers. And when I think I've created a model that works I'll post it. Never is a possibility.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Originally Posted by lovecraft68

I can't introduce a character in 900 words never mind a sex scene.

To my way of thinking a powerful scene is all about triggering the right feelings and images in the readers head. And that need not be complicated or lengthy. All it need do is push the right button.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Originally Posted by JackLuis

Oh Jimmy, you do 1000 words a day in the GB and AH. *tisk, tisk*

Shirking the writing of a single nugget, yet professing competence?

No wonder you hide under a sheet of anonymity.

Relax.

I think I'm gonna post the first masterpiece to Loving Wives.

[jomar]

Originally Posted by JAMESBJOHNSON

But so what? I cant name one incentive or consequence for going faster or slower than my usual pace. Whats in it for me is the challenge to create a series thats consistently appealing to readers. And when I think I've created a model that works I'll post it. Never is a possibility.

There ya go.

[oggbashan]

On Literotica, the essential items are not the opening paragraph and the hook into the story but:

The title,

The description, and

The tags.

If those attract readers then you have a few paragraphs in which to launch the story. If the title, description and tags are boring, you won't have a chance to hook the reader.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Originally Posted by jomar

There ya go.

There's no hurry to post. I wanna let these stories cool off for a few days, to see if they need another coat of paint or some steel wool. I was reading a story the other day, and in the beginning the main character was divorced, then married towards the end of the story. Yuh just gotta re-read what you write to catch the blunders! And things look different after a few days.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Originally Posted by oggbashan

On Literotica, the essential items are not the opening paragraph and the hook into the story but:

The title,

The description, and

The tags.

If those attract readers then you have a few paragraphs in which to launch the story. If the title, description and tags are boring, you won't have a chance to hook the reader.

I check the stats first. But that doesnt always flag the masterpieces, I just tried to read Thomas Carlyle's THE FRENCH REVOLUTION, and its the biggest turd I've come across in a while. But anything endorsed by George Eliot and Walt Whitman should be suspect!

[oggbashan]

Originally Posted by JAMESBJOHNSON

I check the stats first. But that doesnt always flag the masterpieces, I just tried to read Thomas Carlyle's THE FRENCH REVOLUTION, and its the biggest turd I've come across in a while. But anything endorsed by George Eliot and Walt Whitman should be suspect!

Carlyle was a wordy bore, much overrated then and now.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Originally Posted by oggbashan

Carlyle was a wordy bore, much overrated then and now.

So I discovered. History ought not read like a James Joyce wet dream.

[soflabbwlvr]

Originally Posted by oggbashan

On Literotica, the essential items are not the opening paragraph and the hook into the story but:

The title,

The description, and

The tags.

If those attract readers then you have a few paragraphs in which to launch the story. If the title, description and tags are boring, you won't have a chance to hook the reader.

There are two more: the category and the author name. They do make a difference.

I'm not so sure I would include tags. They don't show up until the end of the story.

[lovecraft68]

Title is big as that's what's going to get the attention on the New Story list.

Category is next because it tells you the basic "kink" the story falls under.

Then the tag line fills in the rest.

For example let's go with "My unexpected Valentine" and put it in incest.

That tells me the Valentine is going to be a family member, but people have different preferences in their incest so now what is the tage line?

"A mother makes her son's Valentine memorable" So okay now I know its mother son.

That is pretty much all I need to decide if I want to read this. I don;t need additional tags of "mother/son sex oral sex incest etc....

Tags help when someone is randomly searching a story, but for new releases I think the three things I mentioned are what to focus on.


And agreeing with the above post author name matters. Just like when browsing for books at a bookstore if you see a name you know you're more likely to go with it.

[jomar]

Originally Posted by JAMESBJOHNSON

There's no hurry to post. I wanna let these stories cool off for a few days, to see if they need another coat of paint or some steel wool. I was reading a story the other day, and in the beginning the main character was divorced, then married towards the end of the story. Yuh just gotta re-read what you write to catch the blunders! And things look different after a few days.

I completely get that. What I do myself.

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Originally Posted by jomar

I completely get that. What I do myself.

I also like to mull the plot over, to see if it cant be improved or be a better fit with the action. I seriously think porn oughta be a real story. Cuz most of my characters come from real life, and these people had real lives in addition to their sex.