missing? haha, i'd say you're about a few seconds away from it. it's good you can step back and look at the work so as not to get too comfortable with it. i only have two things for now:

batman? well, don't be so quick to put everyone in a box on this. i see some points you make here, but wouldn't it be funny/interesting/ridiculous to see batman's reaction to someone so enamored/obsessed in wanting to touch him for whatever psychological/nightingale moment?

so teh 'bad' guys and dem 'good' guys want her to succeed? wouldn't each group's plans trumping/tripping over each other be a good element in a story?

scrawled by circ | October 9, 2007 8:45 PM

I was thinking similarly to 'circ' - could the violent scenes just involve the bad guys and some WORSE bad guys, leaving the protagonist out of the action?

scrawled by Brian Cz | October 9, 2007 9:30 PM

When it comes to creating a realistic, yet dramatic scene of violence, I'd think prose would allow much more flexibility than comics. Comics are stuck using images, and we're horribly jaded by violent images--that's why movies and comics are so often increasingly over the top in order to impress us. (And that's not a value judgment.)

Prose, on the other hand, is fully interpretive. It's much easier to take a simple violent act (say, one punch) and explore the painful consequences, physically and emotionally, to the recipient.

Stress and strain, too, is easier to depict--someone running a few blocks because they're scared of being watched is a hard scene to pull off in a comic, but prose can highlight the cramps, the nausea, the confusion, however appropriate.

None of this necessarily applies to any of Priest's work, of course. It may be that the requisite additional violence needs to be more extreme, or that small doses of blood and nastiness don't fit the style. But I enjoy discussing theory, so I figured I'd take this excuse...

scrawled by Alex Freed | October 9, 2007 9:52 PM

It's hard to suggest things without knowing more about the context of the violence you're trying to include.

You say your main character is a badass -- but what makes her that way? Is it the things that she's done, or the things that she's capable of doing? Do you have difficulty adding violent scenarios because they don't flow naturally from the story you've composed, or just because you can't find violent mechanics that you're comfortable using?

Since you're writing a novel, you have the luxury of describing characters' thoughts in detail, and in a way that can be just as effective as the description of actual behavior -- so maybe that's an angle you can use. Perhaps she imagines in vivid detail exactly how she'd handle a situation violently, then chooses to handle it in a different way because she finds it more expedient, or more of a challenge. Or perhaps she was physically abused when she was younger, and that's what drove her to become a badass in the first place -- so when she needs to lay down a beating, in her mind every blow is landing on her abuser instead of her opponent. Maybe she becomes unhinged when she gets violent, and that's why she chooses to avoid it whenever possible.

You could also make her a masochist who allows people to pound on her for a while before she kicks their ass because she gets off on it. That would make any fight scene automatically different, since she'd be reluctant to try very hard to end the fight.

The thing is, the world's real badasses either win without fighting at all, or they bring down their opponent as fast and hard as they possibly can, preferably before the person even realizes they're in a fight. The actual fighting skills are just a fallback in case they're tactically outmaneuvered and forced to fight.

scrawled by Jer | October 9, 2007 10:06 PM

I've recently been reading the Dresden Files series of novels, and one thing that struck me about them is that even though the action scenes are very cinematic, they work for me mainly because the lead character isn't a badass. A smartass, yes, but not a badass. Harry Dresden is a smart guy, in reasonable shape, and a full fledged wizard, but even against the mortal antagonists in the book he's often outclassed, and the supernatural fights he gets in usually lead to a banged up wizard, or even worse, Dresden can't protect his friends and allies. This gives the violence a price. He's either hurting pretty bad through the final act of the book or struggling to protect the people he cares about. This gives those fights a bit more tension.

Even if, logically, we know that the main character of a large series of novels is unlikely to die of his injuries, but knowing that he's barely able to stay conscience due to a concussion does make you sit a little closer to the edge of your seat.

I'm not sure if you can reasonably change any of your novel to add those elements, but it's something you might want to mull over.

scrawled by JasonD | October 10, 2007 8:18 AM

I think you've hit it on the head with the lack of organized violence that occurs in our lives in America.

Go for some of the old-fashioned disorganized, random kind. I have, unfortunately, been in the wrong place at the wrong time numerous times. Having your protagonist caught, say, in the crosshairs of a violent mugging attempt and realizing that not all the benevolent guardian angels in the world can protect her from EVERYTHING... That could increase the dramatic tension and give her a credible reason for striking out on her own rather than being overly reliant on help from external sources.

Of course, I also think it's perfectly fine to have her taken out of the game for a few days by a falling flowerpot of destiny. That's the sort of random violence we face in real life that ups the ante on leaving the house :)

scrawled by Tavares | October 10, 2007 9:25 AM

Why can't the good guys fight the bad guys while the main character is doing her own thing? What if she gets caught up in the middle of a Good v. Bad conflict? Wouldn't that be a risk to her, even if unintentional?

scrawled by Kurt | October 10, 2007 10:44 AM

Circ: "So the 'bad' guys and dem 'good' guys want her to succeed? wouldn't each group's plans trumping/tripping over each other be a good element in a story?"

Yes, I certainly hope so. They're basically looking for a guy only she can find. The guy has different value for different factions, so neither faction would be shooting at her. Which eliminates the cliché of the shadow group of evil people following her around.

Brian: well, one faction is the NYPD. I suppose the other faction could be shooting at them, but I don't see it. Until they find Person X, nothing is to be gained by a bunch of violence.

Alex: "None of this necessarily applies to any of Priest's work, of course. It may be that the requisite additional violence needs to be more extreme, or that small doses of blood and nastiness don't fit the style. But I enjoy discussing theory, so I figured I'd take this excuse..."

Nmo, this is good. It's not that the violence needs to be more extreme, it just needs to have a *point.* It needs to make sense. As violent as the world is, it's not *nearly* as violent as TV. TV, in the aggregate, has way more violence than everyday life does.

Also, I'm just jaded. After 28 years of punch-em-outs, it's all stoopit to me. It's not that I can't write the violence, it's that every time I do, it rings false. Like Prince rapping.

Jer: She's an FDNY arson investigator who grew up in Flatbush. Her mom was a junkie and a useless person our gal has had to protect while growing up, dragged from one bad living situation to another. She's six feet tall and can hurt you, permanent-like. I don’t think I'd call her a "badass." She's not Lobo, for Pete's sake. But over the years she's had to learn to protect herself and her useless mother; her becoming the parent, her mother being the child. She's a very smart investigator, and emotionally repressed. A black, female Horatio Caine :-).

You make reasonable suggestions here, while missing the point: in every scenario, someone would have to be *motivated* to harm her. I think my efforts to write a realistic story have eliminated most motive to do that.

It's hard to invent car chases and fistfights if nobody's motivated to harm her-- everybody, cops, crooks, gangs-- need her to succeed. Now, I guess, if she finds Mer. X, then somebody might be motivated to bump her off. But that's way at the end of the story, and I honestly haven’t decided if she finds him, doesn’t find him, or, if she knew where he was all along and she's been playing everybody.

I'll probably write it all three ways and see which way feels more natural to the story.

Jason: thanks for those thoughts. But, again, she's not likely to get banged up if nobody's motivated to harm her. I think I probably went to hard at exploding clichés, walking right up to them and then veering off because I, me, personally, am so sick of reading that scenes where the hero clings to the hood of the car as the bad guy drives it over 90 mph while firing at him. *yawn.*

Tavares hit it on the head:

"Go for some of the old-fashioned disorganized, random kind. "

This I do and (hopefully) do well. The kind of left-field violence that comes out of nowhere but, if you've been paying attention, was, indeed, properly set up and motivated, just (hopefully) the reader won’t see it coming. THAT violence works and works well, and is in there. It's my favorite parts of the story, where some numbskull wanders in from off-stage and commits some random act that jams up audience expectations. It's what I like about Elmore Leonard. The wonky side characters who just screw things up.

scrawled by priest | October 10, 2007 10:54 AM

Deepen both the "good guys" and "bad guys" by giving them additional emotions that interfere with their objectives.

For example, they both want Protagonist Woman to find Maguffin Man. But Good Guy #1 is jealous of Bad Guy #2, and is willing to put himself at a disadvantage if it means screwing with Bad Guy #2. Bad Guy #1 is sleeping with Bad Guy #2's fiance, and is Good Guy #2's black sheep brother. Now when they're in a room, there's a fight, and Protagonist Woman is caught in the middle and has to boot some head to get out.

Another option is that action doesn't necessarily mean fighting. She's FDNY; make her on-call Search and Rescue as well as arson investigator, and then everywhere you need an action scene, she has to rescue somebody from a burning building or improvise a traction splint or something. Of course, figuring out a way the rescue scene intersects with the plot or the theme, that's the hard part of writing. I just come up with cliches.

scrawled by Greg Morrow | October 10, 2007 11:29 AM

Priest,

Two things.

1). I've done a little research on NY arson investigators myself, and I have a suggestion. A lot of those people are both firemen AND cops. I once read a true story about two NY arson investigators who were called upon to stop a violent crime in progress just because they happened to be in the vicinity. Perhaps your character might find herself in a similar situation.

[If I can recall the title of the book I read this in I'll post it here].

2). If you're looking for movies or books that might inspire you're own realistic depiction of violence, I have a couple suggestions.

Books: "Black Cherry Blues" by James Lee Burke. "In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead" by James Lee Burke. "No Country for Old Men" by Cormac McCarthy.

Movies: "Spartan" starring Val Kilmer (espcially if you liked "Ronin").

Best regards,
ERIC

scrawled by Eric | October 10, 2007 12:39 PM

Eric: "A lot of those people are both firemen AND cops." Yes. Dallas (her name) works for the Bureau of Fire Investigation (BFI). She carries a badge and a gun and can arrest people, but, in reality, she does fairly little police-type stuff. Being thrown into this situation (finding the Magoffin character) is new for her. And she only got into this situation because he's an arson suspect and she'd been sleeping with him, so everybody figures she's their best shot at finding him. She has police powers, but the cops *despise* these people, calling them "Firemen with guns." Hosun Lee is her partner.

The "happened along" business doesn’t work for me. BFI sees somebody getting mugged, they call the cops. Beyond that, most every odd or random or coincidental occurrence in the book has been painstakingly choreographed such that even things that *seem* random are properly motivated and pay out somewhere down the line.

It reminds me of my ongoing comic book curse: I'll write 2 of three chapters of a Panther story and get HUNG online by fans complaining about Panther acting out of character or some odd or random event, only to then reap muted apologies when the mousetraps start snapping shut in Chapter 3. I have to live with eight weeks of yelling before the reader realize all of that stuff works.

Writing a good thriller is incredibly difficult. I don’t know that this is a good *anything,* only that my writing chops had atrophied and I needed to challenge myself by pulling the chair out from under every cliché I can find. Still, astute readers and fans of the detective/thriller genre are likely to figure the whole mess out by chapter 3. I'm no genius, and *I* can usually figure out most plots halfway thru. When I'm wrong, I'm absolutely thrilled. When I'm right, I wonder how that writer ever got paid.

I want to be fooled. I want somebody smarter and more clever than me to thrill me by laying it all right in front of me, and yet being clever enough to not have me figure it out first.

Thanks for the rec's.

Greg: BFI folk don’t usually get involved in fires until they're put out. Rare exception, notably 911, where a BFI marshal was killed. Fire marshals are indeed firefighters, but they usually don’t fight fires anymore and are mocked by firefighters.

And, of course, this being a Priest story, the villains are way complex and fairly likeable. :-)

You almost have to think of this like the TV show Barney Miller or even NYPD: Blue. For a cop show, NYPD was actually fairly low on violence and car chases. And the car chases almost always ended up with a cop crashing into somebody. The fact is, NYPD Blue cops rarely fired their guns, and only took them out to look dramatic. But shootouts on the show were fairly rare.

More I think about it, I'm probably just tired. In terms of where I'm at with the realism, I've probably got about the right amount of this stuff in there. I'm still thinking like movies and comics: a certain number of violent clashes per act.

scrawled by priest | October 10, 2007 2:55 PM

Oh, and Greg: I don't go too deep into the bad guys because Dallas's main dilemma throughout is figuring out who the bad guys *are.* The audience, as well, should be trying to decide if this cop is a True Believer cop trying to bust a Colombian cartel, or if he's Satan himself, helping them. If I do it right, that opinion should shift until you arrive at the conclusion that he's actually *both.* Getting too far inside his head works against that; we need to see him externally as Dallas sees him, following the clues along with her and arriving at some conclusion.

I wonder if most people realize that, 3/4's of the way thru a book, an author often has absolutely no idea whodunit. I've actually already written the final chapters, and I'm still waffling.

I think I'll probably clean the manuscript up, make a brief second pass to fatten up some of the characters, and find an editor.

The bigger problem with the work: it's probably too religious for secular publishers. And too secular for Christian publishers, whose main distribution are through Christian bookstores. There isn't much violence, but the whole plot is about this BFI investigator who was having an affair with a married pastor who later turns out to be a suspect in the torching of his own church. There's some FX-level cussing going on (although no F-word), and it depicts black church people in a fairly negative light, delving into the African American church culture in an unflinching and critical way.

On its face, the book would be better suited for a commercial publisher, but I can see the religious stuff spooking them. Christian publishers will want me to round the edges off everything, which rather defeats the point of the work. This is not satire: this is stuff that actually goes on, that is commonly known to go on, in black churches, many of which can be a hotbed of corruption and hedonism that makes nighttime soaps like Dynasty seem tame.

This would be an interesting movie project for somebody like Tyler Perry, who would at least understand the culture, thuoght the cops-and-gangs aspect of it would be new ground for him.

scrawled by priest | October 10, 2007 3:13 PM

Priest:

Sounds like you're after something a bit like The Wire, which a glance at the archives tells me has been suggested to you here before. The cops are rarely involved in any direct violence themselves outside of drug busts and the only car scene I recall took place over about a four-square-block radius and didn't end with an explosion. The good guys/bad guys are fairly clear cut, but you'll find yourself rooting for the wrong guy ever now and then.

scrawled by Mark W. Hale | October 10, 2007 3:48 PM

---------------------
This is not satire: this is stuff that actually goes on, that is commonly known to go on, in black churches, many of which can be a hotbed of corruption and hedonism that makes nighttime soaps like Dynasty seem tame.
---------------------

ah, writing from life again :D Perry stepping out of his comfort zone or someone else would be a riot to see....

scrawled by circ | October 10, 2007 4:29 PM

I suppose it depends in part on who the bad guys are. If they're reasonably sure she wouldn't believe them if they fed her intel, they might try to get her to go towards something by making a show of trying to keep her away from it. Don't throw me in the briar patch and all that.

scrawled by David Van Domelen | October 10, 2007 7:42 PM

Priest,

Have you considered a violent environment, such as something similar to Katrina, or the quake in 89' or the Chicago fire? Maybe in a work that deals with spiritual matters an "Act of God" wouldn't be out of place...Then again you have the Watts riots (or the OJ riots for that matter) and the Tawana Brawley fiasco. Someone else alluded to it but indirect violence can provide a believable atmosphere to explore the main character's badassedness.

Deac

scrawled by Deacon | October 10, 2007 10:54 PM

"...it rings false. Like Prince rapping."

LOL. It was funny to me, back in the day, when Prince was dissing rap HARD. Then on the "Black Album" (I think) here he comes rapping. I think (if my memory ain't that messed up) he was trying to make a point that rapping was not a hard thing to do at all, not even realizing how fake and dumb he sounded himself. I guess that's what happens when you have too many Yes Men around you. LOL

Anyway, Your book sounds interesting. As far as your dilemna concerning where the violence will come from and still make sense, how bout physical antagonism coming not from the Extreme ends of the spectrum (Good and Bad) but from the middle somewhere.

Maybe some lesser bad people, whose toes are getting stepped on by the investigation, don't like her probing into their business. And when they decide to push back, the physical conflict ensues. Although she may win the initial scuffle, later a bigger scuffle is about to break out, but the lesser bad guys are then reeled in and scolded harshly by the Top Bad guys who want her to succeed, no matter whose toes are getting stepped on.

On the other end of the spectrum, maybe some unfortunate physical altercation from the good side might happen, where some people trying to protect the minister's name decide to threaten and antagonize her, only later to also be reeled in by the minister, her lover. (Almost like the Nation of Islam protecting Elijah Muhammad from Malcolm).

I dunno, just my 2 cents. Peace.

scrawled by Ty | October 11, 2007 12:45 AM

I think you answered your own question if nobady want's her to lose then it would be somebody dressing up like the joker to get their face in the paper you can always have an encounter with a wanna be or even have her face a challenge here she loses and then comes back to triumph with more flare than most (too many old Kung fu flicks I guess) then there is always inner battles and reflections of how she got to be so bad assed. The movie Ultraviolet the first time I watched it I asked myself why was she so much better than everybody else. No reason I could see except she said she was. I would have rather seen 5mins of how she got to be so bad then watching 10mins of her being that bad. All protaganists should fail,fall,cry, get beat up, knockd down, drug through the mud. That is the reality of life. Just for laughs do a web search om Mr. T and see his history of violence but there is also failure and tragedy. Violence is all through the Bible. was it neede probably not as much, but even it as much as some of it may seem so unrealistic the reality is we don't read novels for the reality but the sensationalism. I play video games not games of things I could do in real life (I'll get up and do it) I save the girl or save the world I kill the dragon and shoot zombies in the head. NO sports or crime games I see enough criminals already . make it a brim over the top you don't hhave to let it boil.

scrawled by mdwaire | October 11, 2007 1:47 AM

In the Bourne flicks (at least 2 and 3) Mat may come out on top, be he generally has to feel *some* pain for his win. At the end of two he can barely walk. He is still an unstoappable protag, but there is a price.

scrawled by Jason | October 11, 2007 4:17 AM

Off-Topic: Priest, I felt you should know, Marvel is doing a "What If?" sequel to your Spidey vs. Wolverine one-shot from years ago; due to be published in January '08...

WHAT IF? SPIDER-MAN VS. WOLVERINE
Written by JEFF PARKER & PAUL TOBIN
Penciled by CLAYTON HENRY
Cover by JOHN ROMITA JR.
Spider-Man is a killer.
In 1987, Peter Parker followed Wolverine to Russia, who was on the trail of a friend working for the KGB. Realizing that the KGB would eventually kill his friend, Wolverine wanted to put her out of her misery. Peter tried to stop him, but accidentally killed the friend instead. Haunted by his actions, Peter fled home into the waiting arms of Mary Jane.
But WHAT IF…Peter never went home? WHAT IF…the Spider never came out of the cold?
32 PGS./Rated T+ …$2.99

scrawled by christopher currie | October 16, 2007 11:35 AM

Yeah, I knew about it. They wanted me and Bright to do it, but I was still in my not-checking-email phase and missed the window. Which is incredibly ironic, considering I'd been pitching SvW II for more than a decade, now. And, it was Berlin, BTW. I don't recall Charlie working for the KGB, but that might have been so...

And it's not entirely off-topic: SvW is exactly what I mean about treating these things realistically. All thru the book Wolverine kept looking at Peter like he was an idiot.

scrawled by priest | October 16, 2007 11:42 AM

Whassup Priest,been awhile...

What about making Dallas a martial artist? She could be working out some of her frustrations in the class.She could've gotten involved while she was taking care of her junkie momz because she realized that she would need an extra edge when dealing with the kind of petty yet ruthless people that the low end drug dealers and druggies themselves actually are.This would also allow her to have a more believable basis for being able to deal with any left field violence with some sort of aplomb,rather than being caught flat-footed and being another jacklighted deer like most other people would be in a similar situation.

The reason I make this suggestion is because I'm a martial arts instructor here in the hood of EAST SIDE LONG BEACH KILLA KALI and I have 3 real life clients whom are law enforcement officers whom come close to fitting the profile you gave us of Dallas.I have more than 3 security/police officer types whom I train,but the 3 whom come to mind are attractive women of diverse racial backgrounds: White,Black,and Latina.2 of the 3 have been involved in investigations,and the fact that they know that they can handle themselves h2h better than most men due to our training gives them a very important psychological edge that allows them to perform their jobs more competently.I don't know if you consider martial arts training as "cliche" or not-- I can see you not wanting to go that route because the "cop martial artist" is pretty well known--but it's also very realistic.VERY realistic.

Unlike the notion that most people have of a proper regime for officers,martial training actually amplifies their pistol skills and tactical ability,and is done with the Sam Browne belt actually worn with full gear,so the contact and techniques in training very accurately reflects the physical strains in an actual encounter.I raise their heart rates thru intensive combinations of cardio-calisthenics that average 8-15 rounds timed for bursts of 20 second to 3 minutes (designed to emulate the heartrate and movements of chasing a suspect) and it's at that point that they have to defend,attack,read and react to various stimulit.Multiple assailants.Protect an innocent.Execute and achieve a tactical objective,etc.Exactly like they would have to do in real life.

You can have all the violence u need in this kind of scenario.Dallas can work out some of her aggression or whatever during training,she can solve a niggling issue as a result of the clarity of mind that oftentimes comes upon a practitioner after a hard training session...all kinds of things.And it's as realistic as you can get.

Just a suggestion.Hope it helps.

scrawled by supreme illuminati | October 16, 2007 2:33 PM

WHAT IF? SPIDER-MAN VS. WOLVERINE
(NOT)Written by "PRIEST"

I sincerely do not wish to make you feel bad about missing the window (although we don't know if you'd have taken the project or not), but...

Ohhhhhhh............
I got a huge headache when I just read here that this project has been greenlighted, then seeing you not writing it. This book was/is one of my favorites of all-time. I even still have it.

I'm not feeling too many books out there right now, but I would have slobbed all over myself just waiting to taste your (What-If) follow-up to this story. Sorry I'm missing it, but life must go on I guess...

scrawled by Ty | October 16, 2007 11:07 PM

Priest,

Maybe the answer is to play more to the strengths of the novel. While real life is a lot less violent than television, it's often a lot scarier and unsettling, and novels are excellent for depicting that type of event.

Tension between characters that threatens violence, or outbreaks of violent emotions, can be just as affecting to a novel reader as making with the explodo. Spectacle isn't the novel's strong suit--empathy is. Sixteen ninja bursting through a window with laser rifles doesn't work as well in a novel as a scene where a character makes veiled threats to the protagonist while "accidentally" revealing a handgun in his waistband. Since we can't see the laser-totin' ninjas, the effect in a novel is kinda feeble, but since we're in the protagonist's head, we feel the fear of the gun-toting thug, and that fear can move us.

I'd say keep the violence to a minimum, but keep the unspoken threat of it high.

scrawled by Brad Reed | October 17, 2007 3:10 PM

I concur. Having worked almost entirely with text-only action stories in my amateur writings, I can say that not only are fight scenes a pain to write in that format, they're also not generally as impressive as in comics. It's the very departure from words that gives them their oomph, after all. You can establish her combat bonafides without having an actual fight, it could be as simple as an antagonist saying, "I'm not interested in getting into a fight here...you'd probably kick my ass into the next county anyway, from what I hear. No, I just want to talk...."

scrawled by Dave Van Domelen | October 18, 2007 9:09 AM

'so I just delete days of typing and bang my head against the fridge.'
-------------------------------
don't know if you were serious about this, but in my merry olde fashion of reminding people of what they already know: going back to my mistakes written often make it in something i write and serve as a reminder of someone who has grown and yet still remains the same...

scrawled by Anonymous | October 19, 2007 3:05 PM

Priest,

You're welcome. You'll get through your minor set-back and finish the book in a way that satisfies you.

In the meantime, I'll look forward to reading your novel when it's available (as I am your other novels in the portfolio section).

And also, let me go on the record as saying that your loyal readership is kicking its proverbial self that you're not handling the Spidey v. Wolverine sequel. Grrr!

Best wishes,
ERIC

scrawled by Eric | October 19, 2007 3:25 PM

Just as a thought... if the good guys and bad guys want her to succeed, then who is the antagonist of the story?

Who would benefit from her NOT finding out? Or not finding out first?

They wouldn't have to actively oppose her, like some mini-boss or powered henchmen, but if someone or something is working against her, that could give you a natural forming conflict.

scrawled by Slick | October 19, 2007 11:54 PM

Stop editing/doubting yourself. Since I don't have access to your manuscript I have to go by what you posted. So my advice would be: complete the novel and then look back and change things - if you must.

Violence is a reason unto itself. There is no true "why". Violence is done because it can.

Police beat on hapless civilians, husbands beat their wives, wives kill abusive husbands, powerless people kill those WITH power or those they envy, governments all over the world betray those that serve them loyally by sending them to their deaths, people kill to keep secrets, etc.,

Your main character seems surrounded by violence but doesn't indulge in it and that can be enough of a threat.

scrawled by arcee | October 20, 2007 7:03 PM

I've held off on commenting for weeks because I have the same problem. There's a contest called nanowrimo at nanowrimo.org where everyone attempts to write 50,000 between Nov. 1-Nov. 30...so everything is really crap most of the time (at least mine is), but you just get involved in just _writing_. The actual polishing comes later.

But I'm writing a story about a tough chick who is...enhanced physically and mentally, and it's hard to put her into situations she can't just punch her way out of.

scrawled by Hysan | October 23, 2007 11:04 PM

Ugh. The spammers are back.

scrawled by JasonD | November 6, 2007 11:54 AM