tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post767577331680983315..comments2024-03-20T02:49:17.606-07:00Comments on Between Fact and Fiction: Give Me Your Best Fears. I Will PWN Them.Natalie Whipplehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09978251567306345129noreply@blogger.comBlogger58125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-48591184368878762912011-01-23T00:16:09.038-08:002011-01-23T00:16:09.038-08:00Wow, this is such a great post! I wish I'd se...Wow, this is such a great post! I wish I'd seen it two weeks ago.<br /><br />I'm with FrogGirl.<br /><br />I was all excited at first about my novel when I started it four years ago. It was fun and exciting to be writing again. But the process of writing (and blogging and learning about writing) consumed my time, kept me from sleeping, and generally made me exhausted, withdrawn and inefficient as a wife and mom. My husband even threatened to divorce me over it, and I can't say I blame him.<br /><br />Soooo... I worked very hard to tame my muse and even stopped writing completely at intervals. Now I'm trying to finish this Manuscript Which Never Dies, but I'm having a very hard time getting back into the groove. I really wish I could quit and end this constant tension, but every time I try to walk away from it, I'm miserable. I know I have to do this. I don't know why, but I do. But I don't know how to do it without jeapordizing my marriage again.<br /><br />So I'm caught in this perpetual guilt trip... I feel guilty if I'm writing, and guilty if I'm not. And my Really Big Fear is that I might actually get published, and then have to do all that work to promote the book and build my following even bigger and write more books and I don't think my family would survive.<br /><br />Wow, that was depressing! Time for a cookie. <br /><br />Thanks for listening.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-91544986263859437922011-01-08T07:40:44.956-08:002011-01-08T07:40:44.956-08:00A lot of people have already voiced some of my fea...A lot of people have already voiced some of my fears...<br /><br />I'm always afraid that I'll never have the initiative to finish a book and even if I do, I'll be too sick of it to revise and after that I won't have the nerve to submit it and even if I do that, nobody will like it and I will die a writing failure. I can just imagine lying there on my deathbed, thinking about all my dreams that were never accomplished.<br /><br />I'm also kind of afraid to show my stories to certain people. For example, I have a writing club with a couple friends, but one of them is really outspoken and I don't want to be hurt by criticism. I know it would be good to have suggestions and that it would help me in the long run, but it still hurts!<br /><br />-WAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-13698155299197352792011-01-07T11:32:49.985-08:002011-01-07T11:32:49.985-08:00That I'll die having been published no where b...That I'll die having been published no where but in a few mediocre literary journals.Angie McCullaghhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13338130265872869124noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-54127590638357478052011-01-07T10:29:57.464-08:002011-01-07T10:29:57.464-08:00Thanks for responding to even the silliest fears, ...Thanks for responding to even the silliest fears, like mine (possibly the most ridiculous thing--and you made excellent points). I feel better now. That was the idea, right? :D You're pretty cool, Natalie.<br />-JPMAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-25083685024020904952011-01-07T09:37:35.190-08:002011-01-07T09:37:35.190-08:00Natalie,
Thanks for your response. Even though I ...Natalie,<br /><br />Thanks for your response. Even though I know it's true, it sometimes takes hearing someone else say it to make me believe it.<br /><br />Thanks for spending your day pwning our fears.<br /><br />Kathy<br /><br />P.S. I have seen you mention a couple times that you love Warcraft, and I just have to say that I played and loved that game for several years before my "real life" finally took over. I still love the game even if I can't play it anymore. Just thought I'd mention it since I saw how much you liked it. :)Kathyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04742911245060876005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-80967749670186666172011-01-07T09:30:48.643-08:002011-01-07T09:30:48.643-08:00Natalie, you're awesome. That is all :)Natalie, you're awesome. That is all :)Darahttp://inthewritemind.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-5740145758870304952011-01-07T08:09:24.617-08:002011-01-07T08:09:24.617-08:00My first eBook is coming out in a few days. I'...My first eBook is coming out in a few days. I'll let you know the costs of publishing (none so far), promoting ($250 so far), etc. <br /><br />Also, as one published writer to another, published is not synonymous with either success or skill. With your blog, you've probably done more good for more people than any book or article you have published.<br /><br />Best to ya.<br /><br />Distant cousin by marriage: Charlie WhippleChuckTyrellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02609200010767178944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-81885439968051749492011-01-07T07:33:13.575-08:002011-01-07T07:33:13.575-08:00Thanks, Natalie, for all your sage advice and word...Thanks, Natalie, for all your sage advice and words of comfort! When writing isn't fun, I check out your blog to get some perspective and have a laugh. You do a great job, and you are possibly the best therapist/BFF/mom-substitute I've ever had!<br /><br />Thanks for all your hard work!<br /><br />~Anon3:15Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-19101371326199100442011-01-07T07:26:26.150-08:002011-01-07T07:26:26.150-08:00I'm sending double chocolate chip cookies via ...I'm sending double chocolate chip cookies via air mail. I think you're going to run out.Becky Wallacehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02880501542510014819noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-55317001097396501362011-01-07T03:18:32.204-08:002011-01-07T03:18:32.204-08:00Wow Natalie, you really spent the WHOLE day being ...Wow Natalie, you really spent the WHOLE day being all our BFFs.<br /><br />I can't tell you how much your response means to me, although my blog readers watched me <a href="http://52faces.blogspot.com/2011/01/natalie-whipple-is-my-bff.html" rel="nofollow">swoon and screech</a> like the teenagers I counsel.<br /><br />Especially when you said, "It's NOT my fault." You really hit the core of my Asian heart, lady. :)Sophia Changhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10946233873722107937noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-58268020918379558532011-01-06T21:01:52.360-08:002011-01-06T21:01:52.360-08:00JPM, naming is such a funny thing! I mean, look at...JPM, naming is such a funny thing! I mean, look at all the people naming their baby "original" names, and then suddenly half the kindergarten class is Aidan and the other half is Ava. It's like a strange collective mind thing. <br /><br />I've read a lot of books and noticed that names seem to go in trends each year. One year, there seemed to be a bunch of Riannons or Rionas and the like. And have you noticed recently all the "K" and "C" names with two syllables? Off the top of my head:<br /><br />Katsa, Katniss, Calla, Cassia, Chloe.<br /><br />And then there's Grace from The Dark Divine and Grace from Shiver. And I think I read like three books last year with Biancas. <br /><br />I guess I'm just saying not to worry too much about it. People don't really care as much as you'd think. There are only so many names out there! What's important is that you make that character come alive.Natalie Whipplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09978251567306345129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-68519932002824285082011-01-06T20:53:31.662-08:002011-01-06T20:53:31.662-08:00I don't know if it't too late to add, but ...I don't know if it't too late to add, but here goes:<br /><br />I unknowingly named a character in my story the same name as a character in a different book, an ACTUAL book, and I am terrified that no one will take me seriously because, "Oh, she totally just stole that from So-and-So," even though I didn't! I didn't even know that book existed when I started writing this. :( And it's not a common name I could get away with, either, like Sam or Kate. Or a name I feel like I could change, if it came down to it.<br /><br />THEN, I found a book at the library with a bunch of other similarities. Again, they were name similarities, not actual STORY similarities, but it sort of made me want to quit. I don't know what the actual word for that fear is, but it worries me to no end. "She's not very original, she just stole that from someone else, she's only in this for the money." These are the sorts of things I never want to hear.<br /><br />Thanks for listening.<br />JPMAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-43781439779713608602011-01-06T20:33:14.410-08:002011-01-06T20:33:14.410-08:00I enjoyed reading your responses to other people&#...I enjoyed reading your responses to other people's fears too. Thanks for the effort. This post, the comments, and your replies also served as a reminder that we are not alone when we struggle with this stuff.dalerobertweesehttp://dalerobertweese.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-85729520386463051382011-01-06T17:52:37.403-08:002011-01-06T17:52:37.403-08:00Thanks for your advice! It's always hard, beca...Thanks for your advice! It's always hard, because I know where they are coming from. I used to be one of those readers that thought authors put swear words in their books because they were lazy! Thanks for the encouragement and sharing the milk and cookies with us all! :D It's always nice to remember that we are not alone in this crazy writing thing.Debbie Barrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03119207763941673358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-90441163915462596952011-01-06T17:52:05.381-08:002011-01-06T17:52:05.381-08:00Natalie, I'm glad you laughed at number 2, bec...Natalie, I'm glad you laughed at number 2, because I know it's silly, but after I pushed "post" I read it again and thought, "Huh, that makes me sound really weird."<br /><br />Thanks!Jeighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09171703860855673581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-3930434848567762272011-01-06T17:44:16.574-08:002011-01-06T17:44:16.574-08:00Kathy, I think the more writers worry about that &...Kathy, I think the more writers worry about that "one idea" the harder it is to find the others. It'll come. They always do—when you're not thinking about them. <br /><br />I know it's hard to believe that something new will just fall in your lap, but it will. Or the ending to one of your other ideas will. Sometimes I'll have just a little thread of a story in my head for months or years, and then all of the sudden BAM. It clicks! <br /><br />So deep breath! It'll come when it feels like it:)Natalie Whipplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09978251567306345129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-64804514736817697932011-01-06T17:41:30.942-08:002011-01-06T17:41:30.942-08:00Jeigh, you so had me laughing at #2!
1. Everyone ...Jeigh, you so had me laughing at #2!<br /><br />1. Everyone hits the bargain bin. Actually, most of the biggest sellers get bargain binned because publishers print A TON more of their books. Be happy to be in that bargain bin, because do you know what happens if they don't go there?<br /><br />They get mulched. <br /><br />Yup. <br /><br />That's probably not comforting. But yay for bargain bins! At least some of the books will be saved by being discounted!<br /><br />2. I think this is pretty common in the apocalyptic hysteria that seems to be hitting the industry right now. I wish I could say it was IMPOSSIBLE, but I don't really know. <br /><br />I do know that stories aren't going anywhere, though. I personally am not afraid of ebooks or the changing industry. People love stories, and somehow some of those people will find their way to yours.Natalie Whipplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09978251567306345129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-70913271365551217512011-01-06T17:35:47.657-08:002011-01-06T17:35:47.657-08:00Oh, Debbie, I could write a WHOLE POST on that &qu...Oh, Debbie, I could write a WHOLE POST on that "immoral" thing! I can tell you that I do write "controversial" material. I am also LDS. That does not mean my characters are. <br /><br />Some LDS people do have issues with that, but they are not the ones writing your book. You are writing your book, and it's your place to decide what you want to address. <br /><br />I have a younger sister. I would not be comfortable with her reading some of my books. I have made it clear that when she is a little older (she's almost 12) she can read them, but they aren't quite tween material. <br /><br />I personally think fiction is a good and safe place to explore difficult situations and themes. It's a good chance to talk with your kids about Hard Topics. Yes, I believe certain things, but I also believe it is important to be aware of the "ugly" things so you can be prepared.<br /><br />Anyway. To sum: YOU are in charge of that line. Yes, other people may not be a fan of where you set that line. No, that does not mean you should change it.Natalie Whipplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09978251567306345129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-87302471351845151782011-01-06T17:30:20.730-08:002011-01-06T17:30:20.730-08:00dalerobertweese, I think we all worry about what p...dalerobertweese, I think we all worry about what people will think of our work, but when it comes down to it the only opinion that matters is yours. <br /><br />I know, not much consolation. It certainly doesn't make you feel better when someone reams your book. But it's the truth. <br /><br />Not everyone will like your work. Not everyone will see merit in it. But that doesn't mean they are right. There will be others who love it. Others whose lives will be changed by it, whether that's lightening a bad mood or bringing on an epiphany.<br /><br />Focus on THOSE people—the ones who will love it. They are the important ones. They are the ones you want to please, and you will.Natalie Whipplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09978251567306345129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-48999977530939103522011-01-06T17:25:12.357-08:002011-01-06T17:25:12.357-08:00FrogGirl, you basically wrote my exact feelings th...FrogGirl, you basically wrote my exact feelings this summer. I honestly thought about quitting, even though I can't seem to stop coming up with stories. <br /><br />I'm not sure how to help except to say I GET YOU. And it is so freaking hard to write in that state. <br /><br />I did take a break. Forced myself to stop so I could clear my head and take stock of what I really wanted. What I discovered was that I just wanted to ENJOY writing again. Since then I have been focusing solely on getting that back, and I've been much happier.<br /><br />Not to say that is what you should do, but that was what pulled me out of the death spiral.Natalie Whipplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09978251567306345129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-85310087665905698692011-01-06T17:19:20.660-08:002011-01-06T17:19:20.660-08:00Anon 3:15, it seems like a lot of people struggle ...Anon 3:15, it seems like a lot of people struggle with taking compliments! Myself included. We are so used to rejection and criticism that positivity is suspect. <br /><br />I think that is so sad.<br /><br />But if you have a crit group with a few published authors in it, then you're probably in a good place! And I am sure they are being honest with you. If you truly feel that they aren't giving you enough crit—ask them to be nit-picky. <br /><br />Here's the thing though, even if your book is amazing? Yeah, you'll still get rejections. It's part of the game. I know several published authors...some that are on the freaking NYT list RIGHT NOW. And guess what? There were agents that rejected them. Editors that passed. <br /><br />It's part of the game. It sucks. It certainly feels yucky. But here's some cookies and a big hug.Natalie Whipplehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09978251567306345129noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-1225890603679421012011-01-06T17:18:09.805-08:002011-01-06T17:18:09.805-08:00Alas reading this post so late. Wish I'd gotte...Alas reading this post so late. Wish I'd gotten to read it earlier. Well, I'll add my fear(s) anyway.<br /><br />I'm gonna skip right over the good enough thing. I know that I'll always struggle with it, no matter what.<br /><br />Lately, my biggest fear is that I'll only be able to write this one idea. I saw an earlier comment about not having ideas. I don't have that problem so much as having ideas that I'm not sure what to do with. I have lots of ideas actually, but so few of them seem ready to be written about. I've started dozens of stories that I can't seem to find the ending for. What if I never find the ending for them? What if I only ever manage to write this one story?<br /><br />Well, that and success and failure, or not finding an agent, or no one actually liking my stories, or so many other things.<br /><br />But the one story is my biggest fear at the moment.Kathyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04742911245060876005noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-11501562738785235072011-01-06T16:12:47.020-08:002011-01-06T16:12:47.020-08:00Man, I'm kinda bummed I didn't notice this...Man, I'm kinda bummed I didn't notice this conversation earlier! Most of my fears have been addressed already, but I'll add two more: <br /><br />#1: That my book will get published and then be doomed to be skimmed over in the dollar bargain bin forevermore.<br /><br />#2: (and I know this is completely irrelevant and irrational and out of my control, but what if the world came to an end before I got the chance to publish my book? Or, like, on my release day? It keeps me awake some nights.Jeighhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09171703860855673581noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-24599254527971556692011-01-06T15:45:20.325-08:002011-01-06T15:45:20.325-08:00For me, I'm afraid that my families and friend...For me, I'm afraid that my families and friends won't like my book (as an earlier commenter has said) or, worse, that they think it's "immoral" or something. I've already had one of my sisters tell me my eleven-year-old niece could read my book--as long as I took out the kissing scene, since my character was only fourteen. I think a lot of LDS writers who have a more -ahem- <i>liberal</i> writing style deal with issues like this, and mine wasn't even that bad! What if I want to write an edgy YA contemporary? Have you had to deal with this?Debbie Barrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03119207763941673358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5774363178370829558.post-7795959694205961652011-01-06T15:23:23.965-08:002011-01-06T15:23:23.965-08:00Okay, I don't fear that my book won't be c...Okay, I don't fear that my book won't be considered the great American novel. No book is, really. The experts argue about The Scarlet Letter, Huckleberry Finn and Moby Dick. But what if my novel never even gets mentioned in that conversation?<br /><br />Yeah. Okay seriously: I fear that even if I am successful I won't measure up to the expectations of those whose opinions I value, because it's not serious enough or not literary enough or not successful enough.dalerobertweesehttp://dalerobertweese.comnoreply@blogger.com