Mining the back catalogue or digging for a fresh vein?

[sirhugs]

Assume for the moment that I have six stories left in me.*
My puzzle is whether to keep on churning out further chapters of the existing, and mostly the recent, story lines for sequels or additional chapters, or to I do the hard work of creating a new world full of new characters?

* this entire year, I've felt like I'm living on borrowed time. That is part of the reason what I have been so productive. Round numbers appeal to me and I was going to stop at 200 submissions (my next submission now) or 200 stories (I posed a few poems). It's about six weeks before I get an update on the prognosis, and though I feel my energy level declining, I have no way of knowing how long, or how briefly, I will have the stamina to write. And if I end up in hospital, their net nanny will block me from Lit. been there. tried that. So every decision I make seems like an important one, even though Lit should just be about fun.

*the second: if I suddenly vanish for a while, you can assume that I am in hospital. But no one in my support network knows I am on Lit, so if/when I die, you may never know. That wears on my mind.

 

[KindredFlame]

The scent of freedom, a heady mix of sea salt and your expensive cologne, still clung to the air as you surveyed the fading sunset from the deck of The Siren's Kiss. Six months. A mere blink in the grand tapestry of your adventures, yet a chilling countdown before the sterile quiet of a hospital room replaced this vibrant reality. You, a man who’d danced with danger and courted chaos, now faced an enemy far more insidious than any you’d outrun. But before that stillness, there would be a final, glorious blaze.

Imagine, then, a story spun from the threads of your life: the daring escapes, the smoky rendezvous in clandestine corners of the globe, the thrill of the forbidden whispered in a lover’s ear. And at its heart, the indelible image of her, the one whose laughter could disarm even the most formidable foe, whose touch ignited a fire that even time’s relentless march couldn't extinguish. This wouldn't be a eulogy, but a celebration, a testament to a life lived so fully that even confinement couldn't dim its inherent brilliance.

 

[KindredFlame]

In other words write a story about yourself, you experience, loves, fantasies, kinks and quirks

 

[TheRedChamber]

It's hard for me to put myself in your shoes. I do feel that there is a risk you end up with paralysis because you feel that the last few have to be 'special' (I've had writers block over much less) Cut yourself some slack and just write something fun.

 

[sirhugs]

The scent of freedom, a heady mix of sea salt and your expensive cologne, still clung to the air as you surveyed the fading sunset from the deck of The Siren's Kiss. Six months. A mere blink in the grand tapestry of your adventures, yet a chilling countdown before the sterile quiet of a hospital room replaced this vibrant reality. You, a man who’d danced with danger and courted chaos, now faced an enemy far more insidious than any you’d outrun. But before that stillness, there would be a final, glorious blaze.

Imagine, then, a story spun from the threads of your life: the daring escapes, the smoky rendezvous in clandestine corners of the globe, the thrill of the forbidden whispered in a lover’s ear. And at its heart, the indelible image of her, the one whose laughter could disarm even the most formidable foe, whose touch ignited a fire that even time’s relentless march couldn't extinguish. This wouldn't be a eulogy, but a celebration, a testament to a life lived so fully that even confinement couldn't dim its inherent brilliance.

you have a fanciful picture of my life.
not to say that it hasn't had its ups, but it hasn't been filled with adventure.
I have never written about the two most special women who have graced my life (though I have written stories based upon my wife, who was special in her day, in her own way. In fact, my very first Lit story was a fantasy about her... )

 

[sirhugs]

It's hard for me to put myself in your shoes. I do feel that there is a risk you end up with paralysis because you feel that the last few have to be 'special' (I've had writers block over much less) Cut yourself some slack and just write something fun.

I know that you don't literally mean paralysis, but upon reading that word, I had to say to myself (cause I'm the only one here) "Well, thank god, that's one symptom I'm unlikely to develop, lord willing"
though i find writing fulfilling (largely because it helps shut up the voices in my head), I can't recall the last story i wrote that I would describe as "fun". might just be a side effect of the impotence meaning that I can't appreciate the one handed reading aspect of Lit.

 

[lovecraft68]

Don't limit yourself, keep writing. It's probably a good part of why you're still around and kicking, something that motivates you.

The familiarity of adding to existing stories might be the best bet right now. Keeps you writing and doing, but without much strain on the muse or your mind.

On the other hand, there is always that appeal of Mckey yelling at Rocky, "I didn't hear no bell" and push for one more new one.

I'm sorry you feel your time is near. Stay strong and meet it on your terms. No one in your support group knows of Lit, but MANY here know you and we're rooting for you.

 

[sirhugs]

Don't limit yourself, keep writing. It's probably a good part of why you're still around and kicking, something that motivates you.

The familiarity of adding to existing stories might be the best bet right now. Keeps you writing and doing, but without much strain on the muse or your mind.

On the other hand, there is always that appeal of Mckey yelling at Rocky, "I didn't hear no bell" and push for one more new one.

I'm sorry you feel your time is near. Stay strong and meet it on your terms. No one in your support group knows of Lit, but MANY here know you and we're rooting for you.

thank you

 

[sirhugs]

I know it is crass to bump one's own thread, but here I am, doing it... blame my busted muse

 

[NuclearFairy]

Personally, do which ever calls to you more.

 

[Voyeurkenneth]

I read one of your stories for the first time and quite enjoyed it. I think, if I were in your shoes, I'd feel compelled to write something reflective that spoke to my time on Lit (or writing in general) and what it meant to me. Wishing you the best of luck, Sir!

 

[sirhugs]

I read one of your stories for the first time and quite enjoyed it. I think, if I were in your shoes, I'd feel compelled to write something reflective that spoke to my time on Lit (or writing in general) and what it meant to me. Wishing you the best of luck, Sir!

will consider as I go down the road

 

[sirhugs]

I'm thinking that I have enough to try writing a story based on the discussion in The Black Cloud once i finish the current WIP. We'll see how it works out. I hope that the young shrink is not on Lit, and if she is, that she does not recognize herself.
Still open to other suggestions, as if I go for 200 stories, I need about 7 or 8 more beyond what I have in the pipeline.

 

[Carnevil9]

I agree that you should do whatever comes easiest to you, regarding revisiting old worlds or creating new ones. Do what feels right.

But another thought: maybe go back and revisit some of your really old stories? What are the characters up to twenty years later? How have YOUR perceptions and attitudes changed over the years? You are older and wiser. Can your characters make the same claim? I think that would be a fascinating endeavor.

 

[Carnevil9]

.....*the second: if I suddenly vanish for a while, you can assume that I am in hospital. But no one in my support network knows I am on Lit, so if/when I die, you may never know. That wears on my mind.

Gmail has a delay-send option. You can cue up an email to a trusted confidant here, telling them how to research for your possible obit, and then set it to send in, say, six months. Make a calendar note to yourself to cancel it (or delay it another six months) if you are still around.

 

[SamanthaBehgs]

Some say that Shakespeare's last play was an author self-insert about giving up his power as the bard who directed all of the action of the world around him (okay fine, only one person I know has said that, but it was a really good YouTube Video!). Maybe that's a meta way to finish up the stories and the series that you are looking to finish.

The number 195 is also meaningful in numerology - known as the angel number and associated with creativity. If you find that those 7 or 8 stories are more than you wish to commit to, would that potentially feel as satisfying?

 

[sirhugs]

Some say that Shakespeare's last play was an author self-insert about giving up his power as the bard who directed all of the action of the world around him (okay fine, only one person I know has said that, but it was a really good YouTube Video!). Maybe that's a meta way to finish up the stories and the series that you are looking to finish.

The number 195 is also meaningful in numerology - known as the angel number and associated with creativity. If you find that those 7 or 8 stories are more than you wish to commit to, would that potentially feel as satisfying?

less about being willing to commit than unsure about being able to fulfill the commitment. Among the things my late father taught me was to live up to my commitments. I am finding it harder and harder to keep that up when the mere act of living is so uncertain.

 

[sirhugs]

I took my meds this morning. I have been forgetting most of the past week. Rationalizing that as long as I had a decent level in my bloodstream, all would be well. Maybe not, so I went for the top up.

Still not sure if I will work this into the shrink story.
not sure whether I will continue with the shrink story, but she now has a tentative name, which is usually a sign I'm going to continue.
Check back in a couple of days, by which time I hope to have finished the secretary's daughter story, and will need to be serious about what comes next.

 

[sirhugs]

I have submitted the stepdaughter story (ch 5). Once approved, it will be my 200th submission (192nd story). Since I have a few works in progress, I guess my current plan is to get to 200 stories and see how I feel. If I can get there. Death remains on my mind a lot.

Now to see how long it takes to get processed and approved. I am a bit anxious about hoping that happens quickly, not just because of my anxiety disorder but because the next chapter of Violet Loves Her Tentacle Monster is ready to go but I want to submit them one at a time.

 

[SimonDoom]

I have submitted the stepdaughter story (ch 5). Once approved, it will be my 200th submission (192nd story). Since I have a few works in progress, I guess my current plan is to get to 200 stories and see how I feel. If I can get there. Death remains on my mind a lot.

Now to see how long it takes to get processed and approved. I am a bit anxious about hoping that happens quickly, not just because of my anxiety disorder but because the next chapter of Violet Loves Her Tentacle Monster is ready to go but I want to submit them one at a time.

Congratulations on your 200th submission, and sympathies for the health situation. Everybody wishes the best.

I checked out your story list, and you've been publishing stories here since 2002. That's amazing.

Whatever you choose to write from this point forward, in the time you have, I hope you can take some time to draw satisfaction from what you've written up to this point. Like you, my Lit persona is completely divorced from my real life--nobody out there knows my persona or stories here. If I passed tomorrow there would be no announcement. I would just disappear. It's easy to imagine that it's all ephemeral and doesn't mean anything because it's not connected to the "real" me. But I think about it, and I realize more people have read my silly stories here than have read all the rest of everything I've ever written in my "real" life. It's a curious legacy, but it's a legacy. I hope you derive pride and satisfaction from your own legacy that you have left here.