1. Masked Mole

    Masked Mole Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 24, 2015
    Messages:
    427
    Likes Received:
    350

    First Work That You're Still Happy About

    Discussion in 'General Writing' started by Masked Mole, Jul 2, 2015.

    What's the first thing you wrote that you still think is good? It would be great to list your age at the time of writing the piece as well. I'm interested to see how far back people go. Some people find all their old stuff to be garbage though.
    I think the first thing I wrote that was any good was a novella about the life of a comedian. I was 17, I believe.
     
  2. izzybot

    izzybot (unspecified) Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 3, 2015
    Messages:
    2,419
    Likes Received:
    3,884
    Location:
    SC, USA
    Oh man, lemme think.

    I have a couple novellas from when I was 12-14 that I don't think are good but they are certainly entertaining, at least to me, hahah. One's a fantasy story with enchanted swords, an evil king, a talking dog and time travel in it, and the other's this romantic tragedy - I must've just read Romeo and Juliet or something. I didn't expect them to actually be so long but I just checked the wc and the fantasy one is actually of novella length, how about that? My first 'novel' was only thirteen pages and had a lot of fancy clip art stuck in it for padding, bless. I was proud of it, though.

    There are these three short stories from when I was 16 that I think are are pretty okay. Two of them are about fraternal bonds which is still a big thing for me and the third is about this horrible trauma and mental illness, which I'm also still writing about, so that probably explains that. Damn I'm predictable.

    What a fun idea for a thread! +1.
     
    Masked Mole likes this.
  3. thirdwind

    thirdwind Member Contest Administrator Reviewer Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2008
    Messages:
    7,851
    Likes Received:
    3,339
    Location:
    Boston
    I sent a love note to a crush back in middle school, and that note helped me get a date for the school dance. Does that count?
     
    Masked Mole and carsun1000 like this.
  4. Selbbin

    Selbbin The Moderating Cat Staff Contributor Contest Winner 2023

    Joined:
    Oct 16, 2012
    Messages:
    5,160
    Likes Received:
    4,243
    Location:
    Australia
    My horror script.
     
  5. james82

    james82 Active Member

    Joined:
    May 15, 2015
    Messages:
    134
    Likes Received:
    50
    Location:
    Boston, MA
    And Charlotte's Web was definitely a big inspiration for this one.
     
    Last edited: Jul 2, 2015
  6. 123456789

    123456789 Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Jan 28, 2012
    Messages:
    8,102
    Likes Received:
    4,605
    9th grade.
     
  7. Masked Mole

    Masked Mole Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 24, 2015
    Messages:
    427
    Likes Received:
    350
    Wow! That first novella sounds chock-full of entertainment.
    Thanks. I try.
     
  8. Masked Mole

    Masked Mole Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 24, 2015
    Messages:
    427
    Likes Received:
    350
    You should be proud. Most girls in middle school would thrust a note like that into the nearest trash can. Ya did good.
     
    thirdwind likes this.
  9. sprirj

    sprirj Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 2, 2009
    Messages:
    561
    Likes Received:
    193
    I wrote something about the age of 13 called 'a stupid book for stupid people' which told of the second coming of Jesus, but in the form of a cow, who could not get people to follow him due to the limited vocabulary (moo?) and ended up being turned into a nice leather handbag, which a mugger pinched off some old dear, only to find it had magic powers and he became a superhero and saved the world. Fun times.
     
    izzybot likes this.
  10. thirdwind

    thirdwind Member Contest Administrator Reviewer Contributor

    Joined:
    Jul 17, 2008
    Messages:
    7,851
    Likes Received:
    3,339
    Location:
    Boston
    My thoughts exactly.
     
  11. Adenosine Triphosphate

    Adenosine Triphosphate Member Contributor

    Joined:
    May 24, 2014
    Messages:
    1,251
    Likes Received:
    732
    Location:
    USA
    General: A few relatively well-structured Facebook posts about social issues.
    Fiction: Somnolence or maybe Solitaire. I was sixteen when I wrote the former and fifteen when I wrote the latter.

    I also wrote a reenactment of a scene from Majora's Mask in the last week of tenth grade, but, while it was pretty good by Fanfiction.net standards, I don't know that it holds up very well by itself. That website isn't known for its great literary quality.
     
    Last edited: Jul 2, 2015
  12. sprirj

    sprirj Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 2, 2009
    Messages:
    561
    Likes Received:
    193
    Just remembered another story I wrote age 15 maybe was about a boys pet dog who flew a spaceship. The human race was in danger of being wiped out as the moon was shifting, and tidal patterns were changing, causing all kinds of issues, so the boy and his dog fly to the moon, and notice a crack in the surface, climb into it and discover the moon is actually an egg and a monster lives inside. They chat to the monster and convince it not to hatch out, and everyone lives happily ever after. Yay!
     
    izzybot likes this.
  13. Masked Mole

    Masked Mole Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 24, 2015
    Messages:
    427
    Likes Received:
    350
    Wow. You were good when you were fifteen. Nicely done.
    I noticed the avatar switch as well. It's like a new hairstyle, where I hope you'll like that I noticed it.
     
  14. mad_hatter

    mad_hatter Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 26, 2014
    Messages:
    201
    Likes Received:
    62
    Location:
    England
    The first and only works that I've written can be found here, in the horror workshop. Personally, I don't think they're too bad. Plenty there to improve on, of course, but I've already learnt a lot as a member of this forum. I'm working on something new at the moment, which isn't going too badly (IMHO, of course). All of these have been written as a 30 year old man.
     
  15. Aaron Smith

    Aaron Smith Banned Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 2, 2013
    Messages:
    1,508
    Likes Received:
    1,641
    I'm still far too young to look back, but I think I've written one thing I was quite happy about. It was written on a whim, and I didn't put much effort into it. The words just kind of wrote themselves.

    He woke up under the stars, for it was only when the light of others ended that his own began. And his footsteps would only roam the streets when no one else’s did. He would visit the graveyard, for it was only when everyone else was dead he could be alive. “Oh Marjorie,” he murmured to the rock, “if only you still spoke to me.”
    He walked the quiet road into the dusk, and over a bridge of where the water bellow asked for his lust; he stood on the edge and listened to the waves, for it was in that noise he would forever hush.

    (wrote it about a week ago)
     
    Last edited: Jul 2, 2015
  16. BayView

    BayView Huh. Interesting. Contributor

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2014
    Messages:
    10,462
    Likes Received:
    11,689
    I don't think I've written anything yet that I'm really satisfied with. I send them off when I'm sick of them, not when I think they're 'done'.

    I think maybe it's good for me to stay unsatisfied - it keeps me motivated.
     
    peachalulu likes this.
  17. peachalulu

    peachalulu Member Reviewer Contributor

    Joined:
    May 20, 2012
    Messages:
    4,620
    Likes Received:
    3,807
    Location:
    occasionally Oz , mainly Canada
    I don't know. I think a few works have potential but I'm not sure I would call them good. Maybe - nice try. lol.
    Back when I was about 14-15 in the early 90's I'd say my first finished draft of September is probably my favorite. That's the one that was inspired by Twin Peaks. And I hope someday to rework.

    My other following books, with the exception of one, are basically garbage bin material. I don't think I'll ever return to them.
    Some of the stuff I've written lately I've enjoyed ( the Worms of Wicher-Woo, Not Pink, the beginning of Moonlight my Advantage, Big Bad Zoof, Alice's Things, Moonshot. ) Some other stuff I've felt kinda meh about. But most are first drafts and it's hard to get worked up about a first draft.
    I sometimes wonder if a writer can ever feel anything but momentarily satisfied with their own work.
     
  18. EdFromNY

    EdFromNY Hope to improve with age Supporter Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 13, 2010
    Messages:
    5,101
    Likes Received:
    3,203
    Location:
    Queens, NY
    I draw a distinction between "happy about" and "still satisfied with". I am still happy about my first attempt at a novel (from my early 40s), because some of the scenes still hold up as compelling and well-written and I still really like the characters. But if I were to consider it as a candidate for publication today, I would shudder. So, I think a lot stems from your expectations at the time. I view all of my novel attempts before now as learning experiences.
     
    peachalulu likes this.
  19. Adenosine Triphosphate

    Adenosine Triphosphate Member Contributor

    Joined:
    May 24, 2014
    Messages:
    1,251
    Likes Received:
    732
    Location:
    USA
    Even though it was one of my first short stories, I had already gotten a lot of mechanical practice by then from working on (now abandoned) game mods and writing angry forum posts.
    Thanks. The old one was a chalk drawing of my teacher, and some of my social views are potentially liberal/libertarian enough to make some people fairly angry, so I decided it wouldn't be fair to keep using it and risk having someone stumble upon my words and mistake them for his.
     
    Last edited: Jul 3, 2015
  20. Masked Mole

    Masked Mole Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 24, 2015
    Messages:
    427
    Likes Received:
    350
    That chalk drawing is legendary. It will live on in our hearts and minds.
     
  21. Hubardo

    Hubardo Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2014
    Messages:
    1,079
    Likes Received:
    574
    The idea behind my first ever short story was good IMO, but my craft was still so bad. I have considered redoing it with the skills I've gained.
     
  22. izzybot

    izzybot (unspecified) Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 3, 2015
    Messages:
    2,419
    Likes Received:
    3,884
    Location:
    SC, USA
    I'm totally doing that with one of my projects right now. I started on it when I was twelve and decided to start overhauling it about three years ago. I think of it as rebooting :> I've thought about doing it with the oldest story I can remember but it was really ... just so terrible, honestly /shudders
     
  23. Hubardo

    Hubardo Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2014
    Messages:
    1,079
    Likes Received:
    574
    12 HOLY CRAP the thing I wrote was like last year. When I was 12 I didn't know how to cross the street! Impressive!
     
    izzybot likes this.
  24. Sack-a-Doo!

    Sack-a-Doo! Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 7, 2015
    Messages:
    2,403
    Likes Received:
    1,647
    Location:
    [unspecified]
    LOL! I'd say so. ;)
     
  25. Sack-a-Doo!

    Sack-a-Doo! Contributor Contributor

    Joined:
    Jun 7, 2015
    Messages:
    2,403
    Likes Received:
    1,647
    Location:
    [unspecified]
    That's priceless! I'd read that one. :)
     

Share This Page

  1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
    Dismiss Notice