One factor to consider is your target audience. I write sci-fi, which is largely a male audience. As a result, my two MCs are male, each partially based on me. However, I created a few very strong female characters to balance that out (e.g., a female monarch on a male-dominated world, a fearless fleet admiral, and an empress who can be very dangerous when her son is threatened). Admittedly, I also have a few female characters who are doormats, but I plan to address that in my next draft.
3,601 2015-08-19 00:12:26
Re: Male to Female Ratios (99 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
3,602 2015-08-18 01:51:00
Re: Northern Skies - Janet! (520 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
I'm averaging one book every five years. :-)
3,603 2015-08-16 23:41:14
Re: Northern Skies - Janet! (520 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
Just post it. No worries. Amy's going to rewrite it anyway.
3,604 2015-08-16 13:39:09
Re: Site Bugs 2 (342 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I just accidentally re-reviewed someone's short story and got points for both reviews. The first was a regular review that I had forgotten about, and the second was an inline review. I got points for both, which isn't really correct system behavior. It should recognize that I've already done a previous review and notify me that that is the case.
I can't believe I'm complaining about receiving too many points. :-)
3,605 2015-08-15 13:49:51
Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread (1,905 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
Two grades better than PhD.
3,606 2015-08-14 12:41:39
Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread (1,905 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
K is going to have to teach me how to spell all those ou words. Also, I'll need help with the pronounciation of z and about.
Safe for work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRI-A3vakVg
3,607 2015-08-13 19:24:42
Re: Site Bugs 2 (342 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Thank you, sir.
3,608 2015-08-13 05:29:18
Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread (1,905 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
I'm a curse and I crossed the border just fine. They even gave me a little card that says I can stay for ten years. Of course now they want me to pay $450 to renew it. Screw 'em. I can collect disability just as well from Nunavut. Get the spare room ready for me, K. I'm coming home!
3,609 2015-08-13 03:43:52
Re: Werewarrior of the Moon Eye Silent Militia (6 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
I can attest to Amy's claim. She will rewrite your book, given the chance. But, as you can tell from the way she spells breathe, spelling and punctuation are not among her strengths. That's where we come in. I personally have taken on the duty of finding all of the places where she hit the space bar once too often in her chapters.
Welcome to the circus, Master Keyes.
3,610 2015-08-13 03:34:56
Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread (1,905 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
KHippolite wrote:
Airen's Ring... now as you know, Airen is secretly Behira. I can tell you the story of her ring...Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven for the Dwarf-lords in Aerie stone,
Nine for Mortal Mages, doomed to die,
One for the Dark Queen on her dark throne
In the Land of Tos Gwsa where the Shadows lie.One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,
One Ring to summon the creepers and in the darkness bind them.
You show great promise as a writer, K. Do the worms get their own book, BTW?
3,611 2015-08-12 10:24:25
Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread (1,905 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
I'm on it as soon as my pupils can see straight.
3,612 2015-08-12 03:23:41
Re: Northern Skies - Janet! (520 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
"Oh dear, there floats my childhood friend down the river, I should kick my horse into flight, grab her by the arm and drag her to safety where I ravage her, punching my chest like King Kong."
I may be able to use this in my book.
Matthew seems just fine to me so far.
3,613 2015-08-11 17:23:13
Re: Graphic Stock giveaway? (7 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
I got as far as the screen for credit card info and also bailed. It's a 7 day free trial. Of course, now they have my email address...
3,614 2015-08-03 23:18:37
Re: Site Bugs 2 (342 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
The Visit Your Groups control that shows up on the right of the Inline Posted Reviews tab doesn't show any active threads, even though they show up on other web pages in the site, including the home page. I'm surprised the control isn't the same throughout the site. Perhaps a parameter passing problem.
3,615 2015-08-03 05:52:34
Re: Northern Skies - Janet! (520 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
My story has a style? Obviously you haven't read it. :-)
No sweat. I'll keep picking your brain for future tech. The whole genetic engineering thing still needs work next draft, assuming I don't punt the disaster/taboo subplot for a good old world-ending runaway NSA virus instead.
3,616 2015-08-03 04:06:17
Re: Northern Skies - Janet! (520 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
janet reid wrote:
njc wrote:When I look at a review I've done, I sometimes wonder whether the author will hate me forever.
But we know you're all marshmallow inside njc! Like Amy says, it's hard to argue with your reviews and it adds so much value, hate will never come into play. And, I'm used to it and now I expect to see every second sentence highlighted!
I decided to wait until my fifth draft before daring to approach NJC. Let Amy and K rewrite it a few times before I approach Chancellor Palpatine.
3,617 2015-08-02 00:30:46
Re: Site Bugs 2 (342 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
If you'd spent as many 60-second timeouts waiting for the site as I have, you'd be talking to a shrink rather than a regular doctor. :-)
3,618 2015-08-01 19:58:26
Re: Site Bugs 2 (342 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Found another 60 second timeout delay. I clicked on The Next Big Writer label at the top of the screen to go to my home page, then changed my mind and clicked on my menu and selected Portfolio instead without waiting for the first operation to finish. It hung. Repeatable. Win7/Google Chrome.
Thanks.
Dirk
3,619 2015-08-01 00:45:37
Re: my dear, dear friends (28 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Max, I'm so sorry for your loss. I sent the following poem to a friend when she lost her son. May it give you some comfort.
---
One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord. Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.
In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were two sets of footprints, other times there was one only.
This bothered me because I noticed that during the low periods of my life, when I was suffering from anguish, sorrow or defeat, I could see only one set of footprints, so I said to the Lord,
“You promised me Lord,
that if I followed you, you would walk with me always. But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life there has only been one set of footprints in the sand. Why, when I needed you most, have you not been there for me?”
The Lord replied, “The years when you have seen only one set of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.”
-- Mary Stevenson
3,620 2015-07-30 22:34:11
Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread (1,905 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
amy s wrote:
Skip
It and write the next one. Then go back and do the one that is vexing you.
They all vex me. Why do you think it takes me a month to write one chapter?
3,621 2015-07-30 22:31:24
Re: Can we improve the list of posted threads on the home page? (36 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Or put it in the Groups menu at the top of the page as Search Groups.
3,622 2015-07-30 22:30:20
Re: Can we improve the list of posted threads on the home page? (36 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Holy cow! What a phenomenal hidden gem. Sol, I strongly suggest putting a link to the advanced search on the home page, perhaps in/above the Visit Your Groups control. You'd get a lot less grief about groups if people knew that existed.
3,623 2015-07-30 21:27:01
Re: Acts/ Dictates/ Mandates/ Mantle - Amy's Thread (1,905 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)
Absoletely no rush. Enjoy your vacation. I'm busy ripping my hair out over Joseph's latest chapter. If you never hear from me again, it's because the chapter bored me to death.
3,624 2015-07-30 21:17:16
Re: POV slip or not? (13 replies, posted in Writing Tips & Site Help)
LOL. I eventually decided to make them old enemies, so they were on a first name basis the whole time.
3,625 2015-07-30 21:13:10
Re: Can we improve the list of posted threads on the home page? (36 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)
Sol, what about Lucy's suggestion of searching across forum topics (or even content)? A simple results page of links, organized by groups, would probably do.
