A question for those more knowledgeable that myself...

[Bramblethorn]

I guess ultimately I would just love to be able to write for a living, but I'm sure a lot of people would, and I feel Patreon and Amazon are two outlets that might allow me to do that. At worst, I'll just keep working toward my nursing degree and get into the medical field; basically all of my friends did that after high school. Still, writing just calls to me. You know what I mean? Could I write and be a nurse? Sure. But, it would take me much longer to get out whatever I want to get out. While I'm in college, I have an opportunity to write in the morning, go to class in the afternoon, and do homework at night; it's worked out beautifully, I have about four hours a day to write.

Aside from a more reliable income, one thing to say for working another job is that it'll give you lots to write about. Most of my favourite writers did something else for a living before they broke into full-time professional fiction, and while some of that might be that it's hard to break into that, I think the experience also helps their writing.

 

[ElizabethBean91]

Aside from a more reliable income, one thing to say for working another job is that it'll give you lots to write about. Most of my favourite writers did something else for a living before they broke into full-time professional fiction, and while some of that might be that it's hard to break into that, I think the experience also helps their writing.

True. I think ultimately it's just a struggle between who I'm told I'm supposed to be and who I dream I can be. But, like you said, nothing beats real life experience. I think I'll just keep doing what I'm doing with school, I may be able to get a per diem position at one of the local hospitals, which would still give me plenty of time to write as I like. I'm getting some money from Amazon from a book I published a few years ago, and I'm in the process of writing more things for both Amazon and Literotica. Time will tell where the chips fall, and I intend to enjoy the journey in the meantime.

 

[8letters]

I have determined a better set of sign-up rewards and again I love 8Letters' ideas about having signees name a character (or they could even be a character, that would be cool) or coming up with their own idea they'd like to see written.

Just to keep your expectations realistic, I've communicated with a lot of readers and none have shown any interest in naming a character. OTOH, I share scenes with a cyberfriend and he suggests ideas all the time for my stories. Right now, he's hot on having a car wash scene in the story I'm writing. It's fun and sparks my creativity to have such suggestions. I'm not sure that many people could actually come up with a list of ideas that contained something I could work in.

 

[ElizabethBean91]

Just to keep your expectations realistic, I've communicated with a lot of readers and none have shown any interest in naming a character. OTOH, I share scenes with a cyberfriend and he suggests ideas all the time for my stories. Right now, he's hot on having a car wash scene in the story I'm writing. It's fun and sparks my creativity to have such suggestions. I'm not sure that many people could actually come up with a list of ideas that contained something I could work in.

Regardless of the 'name a character' idea, what I like most is the general concept of having the reader be a part of something they enjoy reading. Not everyone can or wants to write a story (I'm sure you all know how hard it can be if you want it well written), so a non-writer providing their own dreams and fantasies they wish to see realized through the written word can see that; through your interpretation of course.

 

[Hypoxia]

Aside from a more reliable income, one thing to say for working another job is that it'll give you lots to write about.

My sister worked an NYC subway toll booth. Riders provided much material for her bizarre artworks, later shown in 5th Ave galleries. (Her later work as a transit cop was even weirder.) My many old jobs feed my LIT tales. If I *needed* (and could survive) another job, I should be a returns clerk at WalMart or Victoria's Secret. Amusing cross-sections of humanity, hey?

I'm not sure that many people could actually come up with a list of ideas that contained something I could work in.

Sturgeon's Law: 95% of everything is crap.
Hypoxia's Extension: But something under 1% might be OK.

Are the voices in my head 'people'? I depend on them for my lists of ideas. Suggestions by readers, other than my suicide, are rare, and my usage of them even rarer, but not unknown. Anyway, I've long lists of ideas but short spans of time and energy to exploit them. I need a slave scribe. Volunteers?

Regardless of the 'name a character' idea, what I like most is the general concept of having the reader be a part of something they enjoy reading.

Then they go obsessive and stalk the author. "I'm your biggest fan!" he screamed, swinging the axe. Yikes. Or they otherwise float into cloud-cuckoo-land. Sure, readers can inhabit fictive universes. I just hope they stay home.

 

[ElizabethBean91]

Then they go obsessive and stalk the author. "I'm your biggest fan!" he screamed, swinging the axe. Yikes. Or they otherwise float into cloud-cuckoo-land. Sure, readers can inhabit fictive universes. I just hope they stay home.

Lol, that's why I can't watch true crime shows anymore. I think I'm more of an empathetic idealist, I genuinely care about everyone I meet and I like to see the best in people. I have heard of authors such as Stephen King basing a character on someone he knows, either as a tribute or parody of the subject. I can't say any character I have written was directly inspired by anyone, perhaps bits and pieces indirectly, but I'm sure that idea will come up eventually. I guess the idea of a fan, say you're a huge Harry Potter fan and JK Rowlings writes about a lost student in the hall [describing you, with some creative license] just a small one-off scene in passing, but just enough to make you think "wow, that's really cool, I'm at Hogwarts, etc". You know what I mean? But yeah, stalker fan may worry me.

 

[Hypoxia]

I have heard of authors such as Stephen King basing a character on someone he knows, either as a tribute or parody of the subject. I can't say any character I have written was directly inspired by anyone, perhaps bits and pieces indirectly, but I'm sure that idea will come up eventually.

I'm no SK but I, and more than a few other fictive scribblers, consciously model players on people we know, or *think* we know, like media figures we'll obsess over. Slightly masked celebs, sure -- the tabloid press tells us their inner secrets, so they're *known* to us. Oy.

Many of my characters are indeed actual people, family and acquaintances and former cow-orkers, with slight name changes. Others may be mashups, combining folks into a single player, or breaking one person into several personas. It may be as "tribute or parody", but more likely a "what-if": IF someone hadn't died or moved or freaked THEN what could have happened?

Nobody has suggested character names to me. Should I feel neglected?

 

[ElizabethBean91]

Nobody has suggested character names to me. Should I feel neglected?

You'll name your next female protagonist Elizabeth.

Honestly, I've never had a name suggestion, but I'd be cool with it.

 

[Hypoxia]

You'll name your next female protagonist Elizabeth.

I've so considered, for an upcoming A Matter of Time episode. Prof Von Ronk takes his malfunctioning DD-214a (dimensional dilator v.2.14a) aka time+space machine back in time, looking to seduce Queen Elizabeth (I or II, doesn't matter) but ends up slightly elsewhen with maybe Elizabeth Bathory, the Blood Countess. Right.

 

[Inkhorn]

I've so considered, for an upcoming A Matter of Time episode. Prof Von Ronk takes his malfunctioning DD-214a (dimensional dilator v.2.14a) aka time+space machine back in time, looking to seduce Queen Elizabeth (I or II, doesn't matter) but ends up slightly elsewhen with maybe Elizabeth Bathory, the Blood Countess. Right.

I will be watching for this...

 

[Hypoxia]

I will be watching for this...

Or maybe I'll chronicle cousin LizBet's struggle to sustain a horror playhouse (theatre plus vendors) in a small mining town on the Arizona-Sonora border. Theatre is full of fuckery anyway, all that backstage action -- and here, the community leaders who must be fucked to gain official sanction and support. A Stephen King novel shot in town helps set the mood. (I saw the filming.)

That might work as a Hallowe'en contest entry. Lovely Liz-Bet; Scary Mary; creatures from the tunnels; ghost burros and miners from long-past glory days; succubus-possessed javelinas; and Elizabeths everywhere. Uncanny...

The painkillers must be wearing off. I'm getting ideas.