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Workshop Thread #7 - "Night Terrors" by Thou

it's been one day, mate. humanity is better with you in it, imo. <3
 
Okay, so, first of all, I'm not going to focus on positive aspects of your story. Here's why:

Ego is one of the biggest hurdles a writer has to overcome. I refuse to inflate your ego. When I do workshops at University, I've noticed people tend to hold back a bit. So if my story is good, I get good responses. And if it's bad, I get good responses. This teaches me nothing. I have since made it a habit of telling people that I only want negative responses; that I only want criticism, and no praise. This is the polar opposite of your request. If everybody tells you that what you're writing is good, all the time, you believe that it is good and become comfortable with the standard that you are currently producing. You become lazy, essentially. On the other hand, if everybody tells you that your work is bad, you feel inspired to prove them wrong. To show them that you are a good writer. The only danger here is that your ego might be so bruised and battered that you give up on the idea of writing altogether. The reason I ask people to be as brutal as they can be, is because I can take it. You've proved that you can take it, too. We need to build up those calluses.

Your first workshop you requested that people be "merciless" because, you said, you "need to learn". Now you're asking us to do the opposite. To ignore the negatives and focus on the positives. Why? Because you don't want to learn anymore? Because you can't take it? Fuck that. You can take it. I had a lot of respect for you, last round, requesting harsh criticism and taking it so well. You received some of the harshest collective criticisms I have ever seen. A lesser man would have crumbled. Don't crumble. Maintain the strength that you have already displayed.

It is counter-productive for me to tell you that this story (Night Terrors) is good. Because, evidently, your ego needs a good beating; and because you can take it.

You are trying too hard. Specifically: your sentences are too ambitious and too complex, and your choice of vocabulary is a little pretentious. There are an enormous number of grammatical mistakes in your story. Again, you haven't proof-read it sufficiently. There should be few errors in terms of grammar/spelling. As it is, it is - frankly - difficult to read. If you have issues with grammar, I would suggest using a program (like Microsoft Word) to do your proof-reading for you. However, I suspect that you don't really have grammatical issues. And that you post things before they are ready to be posted because you have an undue sense of confidence in your work. Hence, the need for your ego to take a beating or two.

You need to lower your standards. You are not an accomplished writer, yet, so don't behave like one. Write a relatively simple story with relatively simple language. This is the advice that you received, from almost everyone who responded, last round. The use of complex vocabulary emphasizes the grammatically incorrect nature of your sentence structure. Have them meet in the middle. Simplify your sentences and use less exotic vocabulary.

Most of all, tell a story. The problem with Night Terrors (cosmetics aside) is that it isn't really a story. It's more like a synopsis. The scene (not "seen") in the post office functions dramatically because something is happening that we, as readers, can actually witness. The majority of the story after that is a recap of events that we do not witness.

I don't believe that she became popular by sending out her writing. You need to show us some of her writing, for me to believe that. It needs to be evident, somehow, that she is worthy of such critical acclaim. Otherwise authors could get away with just write anything. If I was writing a story about a genius, for example, I could simply say "Bob was a genius." It is far more effective to reveal the genius. The large quotations in the middle of your story don't make sense to me. At first I thought it was something that she had written, then I got to the end of the first quote and realized it was an excerpt from an article or an interview or something. Same with the second one. You can't prove her genius, and therefore your own, by quoting someone else's words. It seems to me that if you want to write about a genius, you need to be able to write like a genius. Frasier, in the TV show Frasier, functions as a character because the writers understand him. They can get inside his head. Think like him. The reference points are all there. We believe that he is highly intelligent because (and you can disagree with me here, if you like) the writers are highly intelligent. I'm not saying that you're not. What I'm saying is: you're asking us, as readers, to take your word for it. This isn't something you can expect from literature. You need to show everything. You can cheat, of course. You can write about characters who are not inherently "you", obviously. But we need something. We need a hint.

As it stands, I don't believe that this woman is capable of holding the world in the palm of her hands; because there is no evidence.

In terms of pace, the second half of the story runs in fast-forward. You establish a good pace to begin with, enabling character development and the establishment of scenes. Then you fly into high speed and we see her entire life unravel in short episodes. Because you're trying to cram an entire lifetime into one and a half pages, bits of her story are neglected. It isn't until you're more than halfway through the story that we realize she has a husband, for example. The way it's currently structured, it needs to be much much longer than it is. The story you are telling is extremely complex for a short. It spans decades. The protagonist goes through massive changes over the course of the narrative. But those changes are merely stated, rather than shown. Where is Harry? Why don't we meet him? Why is the post office scene important enough to include, yet the husband (who, one would think might be the central secondary character) is only referred to once or twice.

There are some good sentences. I like her naming the typewriter after Harry. But, since we don't know Harry is or what his place in the story is or what his relationship with her consists of, it is largely meaningless. You need to go through the story and fill in the gaps. However, if you do so, it will likely turn into (at least) a short novella.

You've left forum notations in the story ( and )... I'm not sure why those sections are italicized. In order to increase the readability of your story, it should be paragraphed and indented. The lack of formatting, the fast-forwarding of the second "half", and the contrast of the grammatical issues with the high-end vocabulary: all contribute to it being (as I said) difficult to read. It needs to flow off the page. You need to lubricate your story. Grease it up.

My favorite sentence is: "She scoffed at this yin without yang, shallow view of the world." But like the Harry the Typewrite sentence, it lacks context. And so, it loses whatever punch it would have if incorporated properly into a narrative.

There are WAY too many sentences that start with the word "She". This again makes it difficult (or somewhat of a chore) to read. Although I've requested you make the sentence structure a little simpler, you also need to vary your sentence structure a bit. Since most of the story is told in recap (last week on "Night Terrors!") style, it is hard to avoid the repetition of "She did this" and "She did that". So don't tell it in that style. Have your story consist of scene after scene. She wakes up, she goes to the post office, etcetera - until the conclusion. That way you can focus on details and other characters (like her invisible husband) thereby avoiding the pitfall of "She" did this, "She" did that, ad infinitum.

... *deep breath* ...

You said this story was "finished". I have to ask: how do you judge something to be finished? Did you proof read it? Did you re-draft it? Did you read it over and think to yourself, how can I improve this story? Did you look at the grammar and the sentence structure? Did you read it aloud to yourself? If the answer to any of these questions is no, then your story was not ready. Have less faith in yourself. Scrutinize your efforts. Doubt your genius. Prove to us, that you are the writer you want to be.

-4EA
 
Thanks for the criticism and I do agree with you.


I'll answer your questions when I got out of work but I agree with whatever I said about wanting positive reviews was a shallow view of thinking.

Thank you again for taking time out to read my story, or whatever it was.
 
Might I ask an honest question, friend?

Regardless of my fallacies...

Were you entertained by the read?

This is a purely arbitrary and more a scientific question than any other you could conjure up whilst answering. I want to know. I don't NEED. I think it's shit, and it really is a novella outline that I cut out quite a bit to make it palatable for everyones better ilk.

But we know why it sucks, eh?

Does it entertain in the least? To an intellectual, to you. I don't give a flying fuck about anyone. I write for the intellectual not for material or monetary notoriety.

I'll change in time, I'm sure, as my stomach grows smaller and more constricted, my wallet empty and my families disownment of this "failed asshole" of the monetary system.

I want to know. PM if you must. You've given your criticism and I've benefited from it, should I want to write for dumb people. I might, and I thank you for your very skillful assessment. But suppose I write to get off benzodiazapines, only for myself? Did you enjoy the read? If it became a novella, you'd possibly enjoy. It was meant to be one, but I didn't want to waste anyones time so I cute 17 pages off.

I don't want to sell my art. I'm no whore. I want to write for the sake of writing. How do you feel about this?


PM me, again I'll remind, if you're not comfortable responding here.

Yours in unconditional respect,


Thou
 
Okay, so, first of all, I'm not going to focus on positive aspects of your story. Here's why:

Ego is one of the biggest hurdles a writer has to overcome. I refuse to inflate your ego. When I do workshops at University, I've noticed people tend to hold back a bit. So if my story is good, I get good responses. And if it's bad, I get good responses. This teaches me nothing. I have since made it a habit of telling people that I only want negative responses; that I only want criticism, and no praise. This is the polar opposite of your request. If everybody tells you that what you're writing is good, all the time, you believe that it is good and become comfortable with the standard that you are currently producing. You become lazy, essentially. On the other hand, if everybody tells you that your work is bad, you feel inspired to prove them wrong. To show them that you are a good writer. The only danger here is that your ego might be so bruised and battered that you give up on the idea of writing altogether. The reason I ask people to be as brutal as they can be, is because I can take it. You've proved that you can take it, too. We need to build up those calluses.

Your first workshop you requested that people be "merciless" because, you said, you "need to learn". Now you're asking us to do the opposite. To ignore the negatives and focus on the positives. Why? Because you don't want to learn anymore? Because you can't take it? Fuck that. You can take it. I had a lot of respect for you, last round, requesting harsh criticism and taking it so well. You received some of the harshest collective criticisms I have ever seen. A lesser man would have crumbled. Don't crumble. Maintain the strength that you have already displayed.

It is counter-productive for me to tell you that this story (Night Terrors) is good. Because, evidently, your ego needs a good beating; and because you can take it.

You are trying too hard. Specifically: your sentences are too ambitious and too complex, and your choice of vocabulary is a little pretentious. There are an enormous number of grammatical mistakes in your story. Again, you haven't proof-read it sufficiently. There should be few errors in terms of grammar/spelling. As it is, it is - frankly - difficult to read. If you have issues with grammar, I would suggest using a program (like Microsoft Word) to do your proof-reading for you. However, I suspect that you don't really have grammatical issues. And that you post things before they are ready to be posted because you have an undue sense of confidence in your work. Hence, the need for your ego to take a beating or two.

You need to lower your standards. You are not an accomplished writer, yet, so don't behave like one. Write a relatively simple story with relatively simple language. This is the advice that you received, from almost everyone who responded, last round. The use of complex vocabulary emphasizes the grammatically incorrect nature of your sentence structure. Have them meet in the middle. Simplify your sentences and use less exotic vocabulary.

Most of all, tell a story. The problem with Night Terrors (cosmetics aside) is that it isn't really a story. It's more like a synopsis. The scene (not "seen") in the post office functions dramatically because something is happening that we, as readers, can actually witness. The majority of the story after that is a recap of events that we do not witness.

I don't believe that she became popular by sending out her writing. You need to show us some of her writing, for me to believe that. It needs to be evident, somehow, that she is worthy of such critical acclaim. Otherwise authors could get away with just write anything. If I was writing a story about a genius, for example, I could simply say "Bob was a genius." It is far more effective to reveal the genius. The large quotations in the middle of your story don't make sense to me. At first I thought it was something that she had written, then I got to the end of the first quote and realized it was an excerpt from an article or an interview or something. Same with the second one. You can't prove her genius, and therefore your own, by quoting someone else's words. It seems to me that if you want to write about a genius, you need to be able to write like a genius. Frasier, in the TV show Frasier, functions as a character because the writers understand him. They can get inside his head. Think like him. The reference points are all there. We believe that he is highly intelligent because (and you can disagree with me here, if you like) the writers are highly intelligent. I'm not saying that you're not. What I'm saying is: you're asking us, as readers, to take your word for it. This isn't something you can expect from literature. You need to show everything. You can cheat, of course. You can write about characters who are not inherently "you", obviously. But we need something. We need a hint.

As it stands, I don't believe that this woman is capable of holding the world in the palm of her hands; because there is no evidence.

In terms of pace, the second half of the story runs in fast-forward. You establish a good pace to begin with, enabling character development and the establishment of scenes. Then you fly into high speed and we see her entire life unravel in short episodes. Because you're trying to cram an entire lifetime into one and a half pages, bits of her story are neglected. It isn't until you're more than halfway through the story that we realize she has a husband, for example. The way it's currently structured, it needs to be much much longer than it is. The story you are telling is extremely complex for a short. It spans decades. The protagonist goes through massive changes over the course of the narrative. But those changes are merely stated, rather than shown. Where is Harry? Why don't we meet him? Why is the post office scene important enough to include, yet the husband (who, one would think might be the central secondary character) is only referred to once or twice.

There are some good sentences. I like her naming the typewriter after Harry. But, since we don't know Harry is or what his place in the story is or what his relationship with her consists of, it is largely meaningless. You need to go through the story and fill in the gaps. However, if you do so, it will likely turn into (at least) a short novella.

You've left forum notations in the story ( and )... I'm not sure why those sections are italicized. In order to increase the readability of your story, it should be paragraphed and indented. The lack of formatting, the fast-forwarding of the second "half", and the contrast of the grammatical issues with the high-end vocabulary: all contribute to it being (as I said) difficult to read. It needs to flow off the page. You need to lubricate your story. Grease it up.

My favorite sentence is: "She scoffed at this yin without yang, shallow view of the world." But like the Harry the Typewrite sentence, it lacks context. And so, it loses whatever punch it would have if incorporated properly into a narrative.

There are WAY too many sentences that start with the word "She". This again makes it difficult (or somewhat of a chore) to read. Although I've requested you make the sentence structure a little simpler, you also need to vary your sentence structure a bit. Since most of the story is told in recap (last week on "Night Terrors!") style, it is hard to avoid the repetition of "She did this" and "She did that". So don't tell it in that style. Have your story consist of scene after scene. She wakes up, she goes to the post office, etcetera - until the conclusion. That way you can focus on details and other characters (like her invisible husband) thereby avoiding the pitfall of "She" did this, "She" did that, ad infinitum.

... *deep breath* ...

You said this story was "finished". I have to ask: how do you judge something to be finished? Did you proof read it? Did you re-draft it? Did you read it over and think to yourself, how can I improve this story? Did you look at the grammar and the sentence structure? Did you read it aloud to yourself? If the answer to any of these questions is no, then your story was not ready. Have less faith in yourself. Scrutinize your efforts. Doubt your genius. Prove to us, that you are the writer you want to be.

-4EA

whos to say that he isnt? or doesnt feel that he has already achieved that?

personally i think your classroom approach to this entire workshop has stripped the enjoyment out of what was otherwise intended to be a collective gathering of the wonderful expressions/submissions users bring to this forum. you are not dealing with university standard writers (generally speaking); simply people who visit the site for their interest in drug culture and who also as a hobby or passion, enjoy to write. i too believe that the term you catch more flies with honey; than vinegar applies and would appreciate to see positive critiques for those who have taken the time to compose a piece to share; as opposed to harsh judgments for the remainder of this exercise.

<3

...kytnism...:|
 
Wow

Ok. Ive put a lot of work into these workshops. Thou has told me via PM that he is not pursuing this as a hobby. Rather that he wants to be a writer. I'm trying to help; not stroke his ego. People listen to positive comments. They chose to believe the positive. If I was to balance my response up by adding positive comments, he would naturally steer his attention towards those and away from the negative. In this case, it is kind to be cruel.

Everybody said his story wasn't ready last week. That he needed to proof read. Yet he didn't. I work full time and study full time. It takes a lot of effort to provide feedback twice a week. Thou was not booked in for a workshop. He said his story was ready. I gave him the benefit of the doubt and let him go early. It wasn't ready. He should have worked on it and posted during his scheduled week.

You say people should be positive. Yet, I am the only person to respond.
 
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Thou, no it was not enjoyable to read. I already described it as difficult and a chore. Do you want me to lie to you? Cause I'm not going to do that. I'd rather resign as moderator.

I don't know what you mean by writing for intellectuals or writing for "dumb people".
 
Using flowery language and touching on esoteric topics doesn't make your work any more tailored for the 'intellectual' crowd than writing in simple prose about every day stories makes your work marketable to the 'layman' . . . if that makes sense. Reading these stories feels like you're trying to showoff somehow. People just want a good story, not to see an author's literary masturbation. It doesn't matter how tasty the sauce is, how fancy the garnish looks, how dazzling the presentation is if the steak is poorly cooked. Work on the fundamentals. All the comments I posted on the last story still ring true to this one.

You asked if the story was entertaining. Honestly, it was too difficult to become engrossed with a story that feels cluttered, for lack of a better word. Your vocabulary is distracting and this is coming from someone who loves 'big words'. It shifts the focus away from the story and into your writing -- there's a difference between the two.
 
Kyt,

I'm not treating this like a classroom. I'm treating it like a workshop. What you described - a collection of ideas or whatever - is not a workshop. Amateur workshops function like this. At the very beginning, we said this workshop was about perfecting work. About polishing it until its publishable. Workshops can only function if people are allowed to be honest. I don't want to devote two hours a week to lying to people. If that's where the workshop is going, I'm out.
 
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Wow

Ok. Ive put a lot of work into these workshops. Thou has told me via PM that he is not purauing this as a hobby. Rather that je wants to be a writer. Im trying to help not stroke his ego. People listen to positive commenta. Theu choae to believe the positive. If i was to balance my response up by adding positive comments he would naturally steer his attention towards those and away from the negative. In this case it is kind to be cruel.

Everybody said his story wasnt ready last week. That he newded to proof read. Yet he didnt. I work full time and study full time. It takes a lot of effort to provide feedback twice a week. Thou was not booked in for a workshop. He said his atory was ready. I gave him the benift of the doubt and let him go early. It wasnt ready. He should have worked on it and posted during his scheduled week

You say people should be positive. tYet, I am the only person to respond.

You're grammatical errors need a seconds glance.
 
whos to say that he isnt? or doesnt feel that he has already achieved that?

personally i think your classroom approach to this entire workshop has stripped the enjoyment out of what was otherwise intended to be a collective gathering of the wonderful expressions/submissions users bring to this forum. you are not dealing with university standard writers (generally speaking); simply people who visit the site for their interest in drug culture and who also as a hobby or passion, enjoy to write. i too believe that the term you catch more flies with honey; than vinegar applies and would appreciate to see positive critiques for those who have taken the time to compose a piece to share; as opposed to harsh judgments for the remainder of this exercise.

<3

...kytnism...:|

Thank you, dear.
 
You're grammatical errors need a seconds glance.

Yeah, I wrote that on my phone while walking down the street and sitting on the bus. I was on my way to work. Didn't have time to pay close attention. As a result, the spelling and punctuation were rather atrocious. (Fixed.)

The difference between posting stuff in the workshop thread and posting stuff in the Words sub-forum is: You will receive honest feedback in the workshop thread. kytnism described the workshop as "a collective gathering of the wonderful expressions/submissions users bring to this forum"... Well, that's not the workshop we described when people signed up. It was described (not by me) as a place to "hone our craft" and "perfect pieces of writing" - which cannot be done if we all hold hands and sing Kum Ba Yah.

Having said that, I am a miserable son of a bitch and perhaps I went to far. I will be opening up the workshop process for review, in the "let's have a workshop" thread. Personally, I think if you don't want (potentially brutal) honest feedback you should just post stuff in the Words sub-forum. Or, alternatively, make damn sure that what you are posting in the workshop is up to scratch.

I cannot be a different person. This is who I am. And this is how I believe the workshops should be run. If you guys (anybody) wants to run it differently, please do. Go ahead. Seriously.

I'm glad Max chimed in with some negatives so I don't seem like the villain here. Thanks Max. Most of the workshop crew haven't posted in this thread; I, too, could have opted to say nothing.

Instead I went through the story twice and articulated specifically where it needs work. I also pointed out my favorite sentences. I'm not sure what else I'm supposed to do, honestly. Throughout my life, I've burdened people with honesty. And I've been blamed for it. It'd be a lot easier to just lie to people. But, as I said, I'm not going to do that. You know that saying, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all?" It's cowardly. I don't gain anything from being the bearer of bad news. If the messenger suspects he is to be shot, does he - selfishly - not deliver his message?

Thou, I want you to spend five - maybe ten - times as long writing a story, next time. If you're up for another round, that is. Spell check it. Grammar check it. Think about the feedback you've received so far and incorporate that into your story.

I don't want to upset anyone. So stop reading, Thou, if you'd prefer to remain oblivious.

The second sentence of your story has at least three grammatical errors and seriously lacks proper punctuation. It's very rough. If you read it through before posting it, you would have noticed...

Night Terrors said:
"The bureaucratic nightmare of Western Technological disease that's spreading like sunshine and manifesting itself as a phantasm running shamelessly amok is starting to cross into my unconscious," she thought aloud. She clutched her amber tea as though it were a butterfly caught skillfully in her hands.

Aside from the blatant grammatical errors, like not including the word "the" before "Western Technological disease", there are three metaphors/similes in two sentences.

"spreading like sunshine"
"manifesting itself as a phantasm"
and "as though it were a butterfly caught skillfully in her hands"

At least two too many. Why is Elle holding her cup like a butterfly? Because it sounds poetic, or because it has something to do with her character? It appears to be a fleeting bit of:

Max Power said:
literary masturbation

As for the Western Technological disease, it is both spreading like sunshine and manifesting itself as a phantasm? This is hard to get my head around. Sunshine is a constant element of the world around us. Phantasms are spectral. This, without some sort of accompanying explanation, appears to be a contradiction in terms. I can't wrap my head around it no matter how many times I read it. And that's just the second sentence. I find the story very confusing to read. The language itself is good. There is a good storyteller in you. You're just trying too hard.

Cut down on the metaphorical language, reduce the complexity of your sentences and opt for more accessible and appropriate vocabulary.

That is my advice.
 
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"What is good phaedrus, and what is not?


Need we anyone to tell us these things?



The problem with workshops is they are so invariable subjective, as to make even the most gifted artist cut off an appendage to ingratiate his disciples, pissing all over himself in a vat of decay, mirroring Van Goghts last efforts.

If tattoo machines were around in his day, he'd been better off. Now any asshole with a 3rd degree art educ. can pick up a machine and 'write' as it were.


There is a heirachry here. It's not dull stupid hate for whence these words come out, for hate is not included in my native tongue. That tongue has no ego.



It is the freakish, arabesque way you all dig downing on people.

Maybe this shit isn't for me. I'll tell you how much of a murderous cocksucker, rube, or charlatan you are. Provided you've given evidence to support such drastic claims.


I took Hyro's spot because he's filled to the brim with criticism, yet not one word uttered.

His mouth is dry, but I gaurantee you his belly is full.





I turned in an unfinished nevella, shortened to take his spot, as a gesture of conviviality.

I've not heard from him, so to me he has no voice. A lashing tongue with no intestines that beckon forward for nourishment is an incomplete; egp driven tongue.




Write something, then complain about what sucks.
















And what is good Phaedrus, and what is not good -- need we ask anyone to tell us these things?
 
[QUOTE=ForEverAfter;10798641]Wow

Ok. Ive put a lot of work into these workshops. Thou has told me via PM that he is not pursuing this as a hobby. Rather that he wants to be a writer. I'm trying to help; not stroke his ego. People listen to positive comments. They chose to believe the positive. If I was to balance my response up by adding positive comments, he would naturally steer his attention towards those and away from the negative. In this case, it is kind to be cruel.

Everybody said his story wasn't ready last week. That he needed to proof read. Yet he didn't. I work full time and study full time. It takes a lot of effort to provide feedback twice a week. Thou was not booked in for a workshop. He said his story was ready. I gave him the benefit of the doubt and let him go early. It wasn't ready. He should have worked on it and posted during his scheduled week.

You say people should be positive. Yet, I am the only person to respond.[/QUOTE]

Nope.

I've had one of my trademark changes of heart.

I'm not living long, thus I write to contain my sanity.

This piece of shit you've mercilessly castrated and shamed me into burning...


This is folly.

I write for my own mental health, at this juncture. If you don't dig' send it off to TDS. They care.


I'll never sell my writing, ever. Assuming it's fiction.
"You don't buy love for nothing..."


Who are you? And who do you work for?


My 3rd piece you've said nice things about.


Lets bring it here and what abhorring nasty swill you're already prepared to grasp onto...

I'm suicidal so I've no ego. A perfect object...



Be mercileess. Though I dont need to suggest this, It's in youre sangre.
 
I'm with ForEverAfter and Max Power on this. The workshop outline specified that it was going to be professional about it's criticisms, to work on making piece's polished and publishable. The intention of the workshop was clear, thus the reason why I dropped out; I knew my work was not up to a standard reasonable for it. I'd like to defend the "harsh" language used to critique the material. He is attacking the work, not the writer; it should not be taken personally. He isn't saying that you are fat, that you wear horrible clothes, that you smell; he's "attacking" language and it's use, with the intent of making your work better. I think the largest issue is perhaps the lack of a target audience for your work, you are presenting it to the public without the public in mind - as you said yourself, you're writing for yourself, and I think that is the main issue here.
 
I know it's not personal, it's business, and it has done me a great deal of good, which I've continuously thanked him, you or whoever read my awful shit and gave me their say.

However.


My comments were on aesthetics. What is good? Something profitable? Something palatable to the mass of dumb shits at large? I'm no Steven King, and would rather eat poison and die alone in a bad part of town than write swill like that. Perhaps we need another thread for this horrible hate I'm spilling on you kind folks, but I'm still drunk from last night and about to be homeless, so If you've no money or solutions for my material situation, at least provide with good writing advice.

You have. Thank you.


But still...


What is good? How do we determine 'quality' in the nature of any piece that we see? Is there a predetermined set of rules or something? There must be.

Deviating from these rules, how do we feel about that?

I don't know. I'm a loser. With no future and sure as hell no money, with the morals of a slut on acid and a bad whiskey jones.
 
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