gorp: Blog

Posting a new chapter of “Zoe” today. Some people shared with me that they don’t even start reading a multi part series until there are two or three chapters posted. One person said “If I am not excited enough to get past chapter three, I don’t want to wait around for chapter four.” I hope you will read and comment at least to chapter three.

I have posted the first chapter of the new story called "Zoe." This is much different than my previous contributions on SOL. I would love to hear from the readers as the story progresses, (19 chapters). While the story is marked "much sex" it has a number of plot lines and threads for the different characters to develop. Let me know what you think.

It could never happen that way...

Or...

There is a difference between probable, possible, and factual.

I did not read the stories on this site because everything was true or could be true. Twelve years after I became a reader I submitted a story, but I still do not write with that idea. It is called fiction for a reason.

My stories are extreme. If the events in the story were real I think I would have killed Page at least four times by now. Bones break, tendons tear, infection, shock, the list goes on.

But fiction is about suspending believe while holding on to a touch point of truth. My story is legal slavery in a modern setting. But those are not the only fiction elements.

Please do not try this at home.

People have said to me "Write for yourself." Bullshit. If I had been writing for myself I would have quit a long time ago.

I am not sure I understood the discipline that writing requires. I can't say that self-discipline is my strong suit anyway, but the process of writing really pushes my boundaries in this area. There is the discipline just to sit down to write. Then there is the discipline to spell things correctly, to construct good sentences and good paragraphs. There is also the need to stick with your plot, characters, and settings if you are writing a multipart piece.

But none of that happens at once. Like going to the gym, something I despise, writing requires sitting down and writing time after time. It requires the willingness to reread the same material over and over again. It requires the discipline to move past one chapter, write two or three more, then go back and look at the previous chapter with fresh eyes.

I am grateful for my editor. I sure needed one in the beginning but was too insecure to ask someone. He forces me to wait for his review.

I am grateful for those that comment on my work. They silence the self-doubt talk that often fills my head. They keep me writing. They also are the ones I so do not want to disappoint. That right there makes me sit down again and begin to type.

Thank you.

I feel an obligation to the story to keep going. I have been frustrated with so many great stories on this site that have never been completed. I feel strongly that I do not want to do that to others. I do not want to leave them with the plot hanging over their heads or the relationship they have developed with the characters broken without explanation. But it is the sense of responsibility to the story itself that really propels my writing. I need to complete the thought because it is mine. Like tending a plant in a garden, I do not want it to die before its purpose is fulfilled.

Comments from the readers makes the completion process easier. Please comment to any writer that you are following. It really does help.

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