Litfic Crit-crypt

[Ed]

Try saying that when you've had a few

Anhoo - just thinking out loud here.  Since the demise of BCFree leaves a few critters with nowhere to go, I was wondering about setting up a section on the forum for litfic stories and wondered how many of you would be interested??

I'd make a membergroup for the people interested, so that the section would be out of bounds to everybody else.

We could crit to a prescribed system, using a similar grid to the ones on EotW and BC (and a number of other places).

Stories could be posted anonymously - sent through other members, or to me.

We can discuss stories in depth, gather opinions, swap ideas, etc.

This is all off the cuff and open to ideas.  Just need to know how many are interested in this.  Course, at times it'll be like the blind leading the blind, but it might be fun and/or informative

Thoughts?

[Missy]

I'll give it a whirl, Ed.  Count me in.

[canadian]

As much as I've publicly admitted to not being a good critter, I wouldn't mind participating with a group of people who are willing to work as a team and not get barked at constantly!

[Ed]

Good stuff   Hopefully we can get a few more folks together too, and do the business in a friendly, supportive environment

We've got some very good writers here, so I don't see why we can't make a go of it.

[doolols]

Not so much a Boot Camp, more a Stout Walking Shoe Camp eh, Blunty? I know He of BC fame referred to 'other' crit groups as "Fluffy Slipper Camps", but there has to be a better way.

I believe that many writers (I count myself in this) need pushing to get on with writing. Most of us have many other tasks to fill our days / pay the mortgage(s) / keep our relationships going. But it's all to easy, sometimes, to 'find' other things to do rather than write - read and post on forums, f'rinstance

We are doing / have formed a 'targetting' group over at Writing Buddies, and I'm sure it's helped us create some flash fiction pieces which are worthy of the FlashMe competition, in which we are entering. I know I ditched my first entry, 'cos it was crap, and wrote summat else which was, apparently, much better. The reason I mention it was because we laid down rules at the start - we were to be honest and open, and we were to accept the criticism in the manner it was put forward. I think this - HONESTY - is the key word in any venture such as this.

You must also try to not overload writers. I want to carry on writing long fiction - I have some self-publishing stuff coming on stream in the next few months, and some new media stuff too. But I enjoy writing short stories and flash fiction, and recognise that they are important in honing the edge of the literary pen (sort of).

Anyways, I'm certainly in. Well done for suggesting the idea. If yuo need any hekp, give me a prod.

[Ed]

If yuo need any hekp, give me a prod.

With spelling like that, you might as well fuck off now, Gerald

Glad to have you aboard, mate

So what are we going to call it?  I keep thinking about Billy Connolly going on about that big slipper now - you know the ones they advertise in the backs of newspapers, a slipper that you can get both feet into.  He was saying about buying two and leaving them on the hearth, so when burglars break-in, they see them and go,  (who the fuck lives here?)

I'll try to set up a section of forum for it tomorrow or Saturday and we'll see if we can work out a few ground rules and plans for how we'll operate   I think it's one of those things where we'll need a bit of committment, otherwise it'll fizzle out, but nothing too draconian or taxing.

[SharonBell]

How about a "Flip-Flop Camp?"   I could do that, maybe. Or maybe not. See, I'm flip-flopping already.  

Blunt, I sent you a crit grid that I used in judging for another (now defunct) website. Donna helped with that, too. You're free to pillage and plunder that as a crit grid.

I'm interested, HOWEVER, what would the participation requirement be? Some weeks, I confess, it's all I can do to squeeze out a flash. Day job sucks my brain out 24/7. Give me some fer instances. Like would there be a required number of crits to do?

This has always been a friendly and honest forum and I expect that tone would continue. Just need to know what expectations are so I don't disappoint folks.

[doolols]

I think the idea is that it's a bit separate,  Sharon, so you only do it if you feel you have the time to do it. The rest of the forum stays as-is.

And Blunt - it's not my spelling, it's my eyes (and, of course, my fingers!)

Name? What are those awful 'socks-with-bits-on-the-bottom' things - slipper socks. But they've got a trade name. Maybe we could use those?

[Ed]

Blunt, I sent you a crit grid that I used in judging for another (now defunct) website. Donna helped with that, too. You're free to pillage and plunder that as a crit grid.

Thanks   We might just do that. 

I'm interested, HOWEVER, what would the participation requirement be? Some weeks, I confess, it's all I can do to squeeze out a flash. Day job sucks my brain out 24/7. Give me some fer instances. Like would there be a required number of crits to do?

Still thinking out loud here - nothing's solid yet.  The critting will have to be structured to a template, to be of any use, so that everybody's marking the same things. 

Critiquing really does help with the learning process, I think.  With this in mind, and the principle of fairness, I think folks should crit as many other stories as they can manage in each session.  Of course there will be times when members can't manage to write a story for a session, or crit more than a few stories, but it would be nice to have maximum available effort, whatever that may be at the time.  In the last BC primary I critted 11 of the 14 stories, word count varied from 4000 and something down to about 800, but that was a lot of effort.  Usually I tried to get at least 8 done.  What I really don't want to see is people submitting a story and then sitting back and watching, not doing crits and not discussing, but I don't think any of us are like that anyway.

This has always been a friendly and honest forum and I expect that tone would continue. Just need to know what expectations are so I don't disappoint folks.

The lit group would be more formal and, as Gerald says, it'll be completely separate from what already goes on here - nothing else will change.  The aim will be for it to be honest, above all else, but author friendly too, with positive notes as well as negative ones.  BC can be quite depressing at times, with authors' stories getting ripped to shreds (ashamed to say I've done this) without regard for the author's feelings.  I'd like our version to be more supportive than that.  It will probably be hard at times, though - the truth hurts sometimes, especially if you think you've written a good story and it turns out not to be that great.  (That's happened to me a few times)

The thing is, if you get into the habit of turning out a new story every two weeks, they're not as precious as they are when you manage one every so often, so that makes it a bit easier.

BTW - All the work on that part of the forum will be out of range of Googlebots and other search engine spiders, so your work won't suddenly turn up if somebody searches for it on the internet.

[canadian]

Hmmmm ... I've been brainstorming with myself. Yeah, it hurts.

Howzabout: Critters from Doom?

And Billy Connolly's bit about big slippers ... laughed my ass off at that one! The guy's a hoot. Doug popped the video in for me when I was over in England.

[Ed]

Hmmmm ... I've been brainstorming with myself. Yeah, it hurts.

Howzabout: Critters from Doom?

And Billy Connolly's bit about big slippers ... laughed my ass off at that one! The guy's a hoot. Doug popped the video in for me when I was over in England.

  Critters from Doom - I like it

Could look a bit iffy on a resume, though

How about 'Litcamp'?   

[canadian]

'Litcamp' ... hmmm ... kinda sounds like a bunch of drunken poofs, don't it? 

What's wrong with Litfic Crit-Crypt?

[SharonBell]

Or, perhaps "Campy Literature?"  But absolutely no "Band Camp!" 

[doolols]

Ooo! A naming thing! 

Cafedoom Critiquing Circle? - bit wordy

Cafedoom Critters? - quite like that.

Blunty's Bully-Boys? 

[santhere]

I would, but I am torn between two languages whom I both love to death. Alas I keep cheated on one of them with the other, simply put I am a lingo-slut :lol:
And then there is the bit about stories...