When you get someone with a big broken ego, who's a big procrastinator, who wants to become a big name author, you get someone like me. My name is Joshua Rand, and I'm basically an aspiring author still in high-school with enough time on my hands to have spent half of my life daydreaming - inevitably, a single Mary-Sue character I made for a roleplay forum back in 2006 ended up with me having detailed plots, multi-faceted characters, and other such ideas for a whole series of planned novels 5 years after the fact. The problem is, whenever I try to put those ideas to paper, I just sit there and my mind shuts down to it. That's pretty much why I came here, because I need to get over my reluctance to write, and I figured that this may be the place to do it.
Hey! Welcome! I often have the same problem. I know WHAT to write, but can't seem to get it out of my head and onto paper. That's why I mostly write poetry. Ha, ha. Enjoy yourself!
Hello J.D., Welcome to the Creative Writing Forums. Please read How to Use the Writing Workshop before you post there. Posting your own writing for people to comment on should not be among the very first things you do here. It is worth taking the time to see what other people have done to improve their writing, and see if some of it applies to your writing as well. That is part of why we require members to review other members' work before posting their own for review. On the other hand, there are no restrictions, other than content and copyright rules, on showcasing your work in your member blog. Also, be aware that posting a piece of writing on any public site, including this one, will greatly diminish your chances of selling it for publication. Removing the writing later does not alter that fact - once posted, it is irreversibly considered published. So do not post anything more than a small excerpt of any piece you are planning to submit for publication. If you haven't explored the site yet, you should probably do so soon. Newcomers often gravitate to the Lounge, the Word Games, or the Writing Workshop, but there is much more to be discovered if you poke in the corners. Remember to check out our FAQ as well, and be sure to read through the forum rules, too, to avoid any misunderstandings or hurt feelings. Respect for one another is our principal mandate. As for the Writing Workshop, new joiners often wonder why we do things a bit differently on this site than on other writing sites. We emphasize constructive critique as a vital writing skill. Training your eye by reviewing other people's work helps you improve your own writing even before you present it for others to see. Therefore, we ask members to review other people's writing before posting work of their own. We also impose a two-week waiting period before you may post writing for critique, to give you time to become familiar with what is expected and how the site operates. The Writing Workshop forums on this site, therefore, are true workshops, not just a bulletin board for displaying your work (and on that note, please only post each item for review in one Writing Workshop forum). Also, please use the same thread for all revisions and additional excerpts from the same piece of writing. See this post, Why Write Reviews Before Posting My Work? for more information. And while you're looking around, don't forget to check out the RPG forum for improvisational fiction. Also try our Weekly Short Story Contest and Weekly Poetry Contest. They actually run more than one week apiece, but any member may enter, and all members are urged to vote for their favorites. Enjoy your stay here, and have fun!
Welcome to the forum! I think part of getting over a reluctance to write is simply starting. I find that it is much harder to start writing a piece than to continue it once, say, the first paragraph is on the paper.
really? i have a million ideas to start but can never finish them to the standard i had hoped i could... anyways welcome j.rand, i havent been here that long myself but it seems to be a pretty helpful location with some other people that are in a similar situation as yourself so... hope it works out for you. by the way love the title lol, i spent five minutes on my introduction title too and i simply went with 'hey!'
I also agree, I have the problem of being a bit of a procrastinator. My current novel, Hell School, started out as an all-semester assignment for an Advanced Creative Writing class and now I am planning on turning it into a whole series of books. The number one main problem - I have not written a word in it since I was in the class last semester... Welcome to the site and I hope it helps you, have fun!
Thumbs up for the NGE reference in your avatar. I just bought 2.2 You Can [Not] Advance and still have to unwrap the thing. Hope you stick around and show us some of your stuff.
Ah, the procrastination...such a constant companion. Couple that with the writer's block and it's astounding that I ever get anything done. Good luck with your writing, welcome to the site, and if you have any questions feel free to shoot me a message. I'm always willing to help other writers.
Welcome! For a writing class I took, I once had a TA whose name was J.D. and who was really into Ayn Rand. Your username reminds me of him. (He was a cool person don't worry lol)
