Advice from experience for creative writing?

1. 80

   coleikerdposted 11 years ago

   Advice from experience for creative writing?
   
   Is anyone on HubPages successfully using this medium for creative writing? 
   Do you have any advice for formatting if so?
   Do you have any words of wisdom for those starting?

   replyreport
2. 0

   ClydeSightposted 11 years ago

   A cautionary note, remember that this is a public site, so whatever you post is public and sorry to say, anyone can grab it and use it.

   replyreport
   1. 80

      coleikerdposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Technically, what you write here is still copyright to you. It's just easier to steal something online than printed media. But not by much. A scanner makes quick work of that. A search for any of your favorite books will find stolen copies.
      
      Thanks!

      replyreport
3. 0

   CroftRoanposted 11 years ago

   I agree with ClydeSight that your work could easily be used by someone else. That doesn't mean that you shouldn't put your work up. I've put some of my stories up recently and I find that it's a lot of fun and is a great way to make friends on the site. I recommend that if you are looking to publish them later on that you use an early draft (the first or second preferably) so that you'll be able to change it enough so that even if someone takes it, the story can still be used by you in the literary market.

   replyreport
   1. 80

      coleikerdposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Agreed. That is my main idea. Plus, after writing short stories or posting chapters online, setting up a book with a full story or compiled short stories with additional works seems a good way to go.
      
      Thanks for the response!

      replyreport
4. 90

   cam8510posted 11 years ago

   I write a fair amount of Flash Fiction and short stories.  I agree with ClydeSight, be willing to let the story go.  I don't mind right now, because all of my creative writing is experimental and in preparation for a serious go at it in the future.  Anything I write that I am serious about, I post only on certain sites, but even then it isn't really safe.  So I write for my own enjoyment and hopefully succeed in entertaining a few people as well. 
   
   I would recommend looking into Flash Fiction.  It really fits HubPages and people here are growing more accustomed to seeing it.  Here is a great site for learning about FF and Vic, the man in charge, is great.  He is glad to help you along......for a nominal fee to be paid in GBP.  I've paid him several times for help on stories which I wanted to submit to competitions.  http://www.flash-fiction-world.com/

   replyreport
   1. 80

      coleikerdposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Awesome. Thank you!

      replyreport
5. 0

   Ghost32posted 11 years ago

   Reckon I qualify to answer this one, at least in that I do write and publish a fair amount of fiction here. 
   
   Unlike most, I don't worrry in the least about somebody stealing my work.  Decades upon decades of hard experience has shown me that writing is easy; distribution is hard.  If some rounder thinks he can snag one of my tales and make it famous to millions, more power to him.  Once he's done that, I won't have any trouble whatsoever whipping his butt in court and stealing his newfound millions right back.
   
   Why so?
   
   Because I have zero doubt I could convince any jury and/or judge in the world that Mr. Thief doesn't know the characters or the story like I do, that I published first (right here), and that he's a ba-a-ad, bad boy.
   
   And I'm super-comfortable in the courtroom, whether it's slicing and dicing somebody who thinks he can take me down or going after a pure dee perpetrator.  Ask the hot rodder in Spokane, circa 1971, when a neighbor and I took him to court for speeding in a neighborhood full of toddlers--and got the millionaire's son CONVICTED.
   
   That said, about formatting:  I have one overriding rule for myself when writing fiction:  Does it blow ME away?
   
   That's all.
   
   Of course, and likely what you're after here, the Devil truly is in the details.  So here are a couple:
   
   1.  Mixed-length paragraphs, sometimes only one sentence or even one word.  The on-screen pages at HP make that really functional; an overlong paragraph can lose a reader awfully fast.
   
   2.  At least one photo, positioned not TOO far down the page, but with enough preceding text to place it below the first batch of HP or Google ads.  I use my own pics almost exclusively these days, having taken many thousands during the last few years.  Sometimes it's necessary to write a line of text that fits the photo, though, rather than the other way around--just to keep things smooth.
   
   Guess that's it...for now, anyway.  I probably do a lot more than that, mostly by instinct, but my brain just went dead.
   
   Well...deadER.

   replyreport
   1. 70

      Seek-n-Findposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      This is not even a creative story--just an answer to a question--and I find it quite entertaining!  That means I'm now ready to head over to your profile and check out some of your work.  :-)

      replyreport
   2. 80

      Becky Katzposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I know some of your characters better than you do. Heehee

      replyreport
   3. 80

      coleikerdposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Awesome answer, Ghost32! Thanks.
      This IS exactly the kind of response I was hoping to get.
      Seek-n-Find, I agree.

      replyreport
6. 82

   Spongy0llamaposted 11 years ago

   Hello, I've actually written a hub all about the challenges creative writers often face on hubpages and what they can do about it. To sum it up, the key is constant networking and interaction with other creative writers on the site and image rich entries (I recommend Wikimedia Commons). Just watch out for technical issues like that which can hold back even the most talented creative writer.

   replyreport