Big Foot

[Sparky]

You know, he's got a point there...

[tepista]

[revbob]

[tepista]

Hooks in the tub

[Dr. Medulla]

Hooks in the tub

I'd read that in the tub, definitely.

[revbob]

Hooks in the tub

Who the fuck writes shit like that?

[matedog]

Hooks in the tub

Who the fuck writes shit like that?

Two authors apparently.

[Dr. Medulla]

Hooks in the tub

Who the fuck writes shit like that?

It's a skill to be able to do that. There was a notable scifi writer in the 50s or 60s who, apart from his more serious, creative writing, could pump out trashy novels of maybe 30–40K words in length every four days or so. It was easy money for him and, he said, helped him become more disciplined in his other work. Formulaic writing is dismissed as lacking ability, but it's actually a different kind of ability.

[Kory]

Hooks in the tub

Who the fuck writes shit like that?

It's a skill to be able to do that. There was a notable scifi writer in the 50s or 60s who, apart from his more serious, creative writing, could pump out trashy novels of maybe 30–40K words in length every four days or so. It was easy money for him and, he said, helped him become more disciplined in his other work. Formulaic writing is dismissed as lacking ability, but it's actually a different kind of ability.

Especially true in pop music. It's harder, even.

[Dr. Medulla]

Hooks in the tub

Who the fuck writes shit like that?

It's a skill to be able to do that. There was a notable scifi writer in the 50s or 60s who, apart from his more serious, creative writing, could pump out trashy novels of maybe 30–40K words in length every four days or so. It was easy money for him and, he said, helped him become more disciplined in his other work. Formulaic writing is dismissed as lacking ability, but it's actually a different kind of ability.

Especially true in pop music. It's harder, even.

One of the things that made me reconsider formula work was after reading a study of romance readers. To non-fans, it's the same damn thing, over and over. Completely lazy and encourages passivity in the reader. To the fan, tho, yeah, there is a formula but the pleasure comes from the little tweaks, the unexpected little touches. The non-fan misses that altogether, so it only works if you're well-versed in the formula. So it should be approached not vertically—"creative" or "original" work as superior to formula—but rather horizontally—a different approach to narrative.

[revbob]

Hooks in the tub

Who the fuck writes shit like that?

It's a skill to be able to do that. There was a notable scifi writer in the 50s or 60s who, apart from his more serious, creative writing, could pump out trashy novels of maybe 30–40K words in length every four days or so. It was easy money for him and, he said, helped him become more disciplined in his other work. Formulaic writing is dismissed as lacking ability, but it's actually a different kind of ability.

When my son was little he would come home from school with these books. Like monster and hero fantasy stories. In each book the hero had a new sidekick as he went on a quest to kill the monster that was plaguing a village. Very much a formula, different monster, sidekick and village but more or less the same story. There was probably 30 of these books at the time.

[Dr. Medulla]

Hooks in the tub

Who the fuck writes shit like that?

It's a skill to be able to do that. There was a notable scifi writer in the 50s or 60s who, apart from his more serious, creative writing, could pump out trashy novels of maybe 30–40K words in length every four days or so. It was easy money for him and, he said, helped him become more disciplined in his other work. Formulaic writing is dismissed as lacking ability, but it's actually a different kind of ability.

When my son was little he would come home from school with these books. Like monster and hero fantasy stories. In each book the hero had a new sidekick as he went on a quest to kill the monster that was plaguing a village. Very much a formula, different monster, sidekick and village but more or less the same story. There was probably 30 of these books at the time.

But, seemingly, there was enough going on that your boy wanted to experience the different versions.

[revbob]

Hooks in the tub

Who the fuck writes shit like that?

It's a skill to be able to do that. There was a notable scifi writer in the 50s or 60s who, apart from his more serious, creative writing, could pump out trashy novels of maybe 30–40K words in length every four days or so. It was easy money for him and, he said, helped him become more disciplined in his other work. Formulaic writing is dismissed as lacking ability, but it's actually a different kind of ability.

When my son was little he would come home from school with these books. Like monster and hero fantasy stories. In each book the hero had a new sidekick as he went on a quest to kill the monster that was plaguing a village. Very much a formula, different monster, sidekick and village but more or less the same story. There was probably 30 of these books at the time.

But, seemingly, there was enough going on that your boy wanted to experience the different versions.

He was pretty young and getting into reading. Eventually he caught on. It sort of reminds me of watching Gilligan's Island as a kid.

But I guess what you were getting at and which applies pretty much across the board is that you use these exercises to find out what works and wha doesn't. Its practice or rough drafts. Hopefully gets you in a good position for when you get your big chance or whatever. You eliminate some variables and tweak things you want to improve.

[Dr. Medulla]

Who the fuck writes shit like that?

It's a skill to be able to do that. There was a notable scifi writer in the 50s or 60s who, apart from his more serious, creative writing, could pump out trashy novels of maybe 30–40K words in length every four days or so. It was easy money for him and, he said, helped him become more disciplined in his other work. Formulaic writing is dismissed as lacking ability, but it's actually a different kind of ability.

When my son was little he would come home from school with these books. Like monster and hero fantasy stories. In each book the hero had a new sidekick as he went on a quest to kill the monster that was plaguing a village. Very much a formula, different monster, sidekick and village but more or less the same story. There was probably 30 of these books at the time.

But, seemingly, there was enough going on that your boy wanted to experience the different versions.

He was pretty young and getting into reading. Eventually he caught on. It sort of reminds me of watching Gilligan's Island as a kid.

But I guess what you were getting at and which applies pretty much across the board is that you use these exercises to find out what works and wha doesn't. Its practice or rough drafts. Hopefully gets you in a good position for when you get your big chance or whatever. You eliminate some variables and tweak things you want to improve.

As much as anything, I'm suspicious of the importance of being distinct and original and all that. Yes, creativity is important, but if the standard is so high as to dissuade you—you're not being original enough—that's a trap that leads you to passivity. Fuck, I say that even as that's exactly my problem and why I don't write much (apart from here, of course). So formula isn't proof of inadequacy or being a hack. It's expression like anything else.

[revbob]

It's a skill to be able to do that. There was a notable scifi writer in the 50s or 60s who, apart from his more serious, creative writing, could pump out trashy novels of maybe 30–40K words in length every four days or so. It was easy money for him and, he said, helped him become more disciplined in his other work. Formulaic writing is dismissed as lacking ability, but it's actually a different kind of ability.

When my son was little he would come home from school with these books. Like monster and hero fantasy stories. In each book the hero had a new sidekick as he went on a quest to kill the monster that was plaguing a village. Very much a formula, different monster, sidekick and village but more or less the same story. There was probably 30 of these books at the time.

But, seemingly, there was enough going on that your boy wanted to experience the different versions.

He was pretty young and getting into reading. Eventually he caught on. It sort of reminds me of watching Gilligan's Island as a kid.

But I guess what you were getting at and which applies pretty much across the board is that you use these exercises to find out what works and wha doesn't. Its practice or rough drafts. Hopefully gets you in a good position for when you get your big chance or whatever. You eliminate some variables and tweak things you want to improve.

As much as anything, I'm suspicious of the importance of being distinct and original and all that. Yes, creativity is important, but if the standard is so high as to dissuade you—you're not being original enough—that's a trap that leads you to passivity. Fuck, I say that even as that's exactly my problem and why I don't write much (apart from here, of course). So formula isn't proof of inadequacy or being a hack. It's expression like anything else.

Id equate it to like batting practice. The best hitters take BP all the time (so do shitty ones). Im sure there's better anaolgies. Its skills and you need to develop some and keep some fresh.