2,276

(20 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

vern wrote:

Hi, Tirz, you are telling the story in first person, but the story has already occurred or you wouldn't be able to tell it; therefore, you "flipped" Binny the bird as you are not in the process of flipping him the bird while you are telling the reader that you did so in the past.

Don Chambers writes a lot of his stories in first person, present tense. So I believe he would write it: I flip Binny the bird. You can tell a story as it is happening, which is present tense. Send him a message if you want him to comment on this. He's not very active on the site at the moment.

Finally did something tonight besides decrypting Revelation. Wrote one lousy paragraph of dialog explaining orphan Connor's family history. Kept getting sidetracked by things I need to research: Italian given names, Italian surnames, Italian Police (very different structure from North America), Vatican City State Police, including ranks and uniforms (no direct equivalent to detective in a trench coat), Glock 17 semi-automatic pistols, allergies to gold (didn't know there was such a thing), etc. Wasted way too much time trying to slip the name Angel (Angelo) into the family, but since the name Connor is in the book, the link to the TV series was too obvious. Names will be the death of me.

2,278

(1,528 replies, posted in Fantasy/Magic & Sci-Fi)

Personally, I wander in blizzards. This winter is sh*t in Calgary. I'm stuck indoors half the time because all-season tires aren't sufficient for the roads. Although I'd rather be here than in the NE US today. I saw a video of a cross-wind so strong, it almost tipped a tractor trailer on its side along a straight stretch of highway.

Have to add this to K's inheritance:
https://www.amazon.com/Rose-Book-Bible- … +Timelines

I joined Scribophile a while back. They rejected my pen name and deleted my account. If I remember correctly, your chapters can only get new reviews for a limited time. That doesn't work for me.

2,281

(11 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

Ignore my previous two posts. I really must stop sniffing glue.

I blush.

You're writing 4-5 books at once. I'm just an unworthy tax collector. I collect K's taxes to pay my bills. I'm going to put him in my will. K, you'll get all the rights to Into the Mind of God. You can replace Queen Aussie with a blue smurf.

I think I found the ultimate Catholic study guide for Revelation. The author spent ten years researching and writing it. Eight hundred pages, including many of the private prophecies (to saints, seers, etc.) that I've read about but can't interpret or fit into a timeline. I figured for $10 on Kindle, what the heck. Another week or two of reading and note-taking. For those keeping score, that's eight study guides.

2,285

(11 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

You can add comments to existing comments. You can't start a review in xline, placing new comments.

2,286

(11 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

You can't leave inline comments in xline view, at least not during the initial review. Also, as Bill said, the 2x2 summary field at the bottom requires html tags.

2,287

(11 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

Not really. It's just the summary field that's screwed up. You simply need to return to the default tab to enter it.

2,288

(11 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

Lynne Clark wrote:

Is the best way to do your inline and summary, then save it, then go back to Xline to edit and amend if need be?

You'll have to try it to see what it does with the summary box at the bottom when you switch to Xline after having saved it first. As Bill said, you may need to use html tags in the summary field if you're on the Xline tab. You can always go back to default tab and put the summary in there. Be sure you open it once more after you submit it to ensure the field remains populated after you submitted it. Always entering the summary from the default tab is probably the best way to do it.

That blog entry is amazing. It's interesting to see how different my next story is from the traditional hero's journey.

2,290

(11 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

I did a detailed reply to a review I received (i.e., commenting on comments), wrote a summary in the reply-to field at the bottom, switched to the x-line tab so I could review my reply in full, added a few more comments, then got to the bottom and found the reply-to field had not only been emptied, but had turned into a little 2" x 2" box. Clicking back in the browser didn't bring back the lost summary.

The above workflow seems like a reasonable way to want to use the system. I know I'm not the only one who's been burned by this. Can we raise the priority for a fix? It doesn't seem like it would be a difficult fix.

Thanks.
Dirk

I've seen it online. Will check it out. Thanks.

amy s wrote:

Norm, you haven’t wasted your time. You’ve explored your writing and style. The first book is totally worth the effort you expended on it

I agree. That's why I'm not bothered by shelving it. My next story will begin with a detailed outline for all three books since that will greatly influence story details throughout the trilogy. I also have to do most of the research up front this time for the same reason.

Lynne Clark wrote:
amy s wrote:

Write your book for you instead of what you think people want

yes, I will have to. I can't please all of the people, all of the time sad

Amy, I disagree. If Lynne's purpose is to write a book that sells well, then she should definitely keep her audience in mind, otherwise she'll end up like me, having spent six years writing a story that now needs a complete rewrite. If things go as planned with other stories, I doubt I'll ever go back to it. My next book has the target market identified up front, which will affect the story and tone, rather than leaving it for an unsalvageable third draft.

2,294

(89 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

As Memphis said, such a group (groups?) should require permission to enter, which the site already supports. I disagree about charging more for it, though. As Lynne said, other sites have this, too.

2,295

(89 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

SolN wrote:

Maybe Sol can stop these forums from being 'public' posts.  Maybe we should have forums that we have to join, like our groups here that we have to join.  That way, if you don't want to see the crap that's posted, don't join.

I've been thinking more and more of going towards that model. It may be that new members are not immediately put into the Premium group and can choose Groups to join that suit their tastes. In theory anyone can leave Premium, but when you're defaulted into it that doesn't seem to happen. Another idea may be to remove the forums from the homepage. Users will have to actually visit their Groups to participate. I've received too many complaints to think that something doesn't have to change.

Apparently I'm not the only who thought this particular thread was overly critical.

Given how devoid all of the forums are of posts, not including new members into Premium by default would probably make the site look like a ghost town for new members. Premium is their best chance to introduce themselves to the widest possible audience. It's also where I go to find the widest possible expertise on writing subjects that I need help with, so the fewer the number of members in Premium, the less useful it becomes to existing members.

PLEASE do not force us to visit each group individually to look for new posts. That's just a clickfest that greatly reduces usability. I'd probably drop down to two or three groups and ignore everything else, which further reduces the visible activity that makes for a thriving site.

The real problem is the overall tone of some of the forum posts on this site. Other forums sites I'm on wouldn't tolerate some of the posts that we get here. I've done a few myself here, so I'm guilty too. Other sites not only have multiple moderators who give warnings and can shut down threads, but regular members also chime in when they think someone is being obnoxious or disrespectful, usually well before a moderator gets involved.

I'm not sure if our site's architecture can support multiple moderators (so you, Sol, don't have to be the only traffic cop in Premium), but there are many long-term members on this site that I would trust as additional moderators. If they issue a warning or shut something down, I'd support them 100%, even if I probably wouldn't always agree with them. I doubt it would take many interventions to raise the level of interactions to a respectful level.

You can "post" stories to as many of your groups as you like. It's in the publish wizard.
And you can "post" messages to any of your forums where you think potential readers may be lurking. I would post requests for readers to Premium and to this sci-fi forum.

Bloody hell! My new accountant thinks I should file FBAR forms with the IRS for all my Canadian bank and investment accounts. There goes an afternoon/evening. I swear they're going to dig up my grave looking for gold in my teeth. Maybe I should just put them in my will.

amy s wrote:

one2manyparadox@yahoo.com

The Veil has lifted.

2,299

(3 replies, posted in TheNextBigWriter Premium)

I see you're writing science fiction (my favorite). I'll try to get to it this weekend. I suggest creating a conversation thread in the science fiction group that you and your reviewers can use to help you with brainstorming and for additional feedback. We do that in the Medieval group. I suggest "book title - your name" as the subject line for the thread. The brainstorming threads are invaluable to me as an author.

Welcome to the site!

njc wrote:

death-by-senescence?

Did someone call my name?