Welcome all to the support thread for January 2022!
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Happy Birthday to January babies.
Thank you, everyone that continues to participate in these threads ā it helps others when you do participate, sometimes more than you think.
If anyone has specific questions or concerns I may help with, please let me know.
This month I have decided to share a couple of basic articles highlighting two of the misunderstood sexual orientations.
I use these articles and others like them to help me write better. Not only in character development and player representation, my inclusivity efforts benefit.
It is awesome to share everyoneās journey during the month; both highs and lows help each one of us realize that we are not alone in our journey.
If anyone has something special going on in January, let us know!
Get a large chunk of Diasporaās last chapter outlined and written.
The second oneās a little wishy-washy, but I donāt want to put too hard a number on it. 10k words would be fantastic, but I also sort of want to shoot for more than that, between August and I. Still, Iāll be happy if we finish the current scene and get into the next, whatever amount of words that ends up taking.
Happy new year, everyone! No doubt itās shaping up to be another doozy; may we meet our writing goals nonetheless!
Finish the multi-chapter fanfic Iād wanted to finish last year month. And maybe do some more proofreading for Fallen Hero Retribution. Itās such a great game.
I have mixed feelings about the article on demisexuality. Iām thrilled that it exists, but it bothers me that it treats demisexuality as an orientation distinct from asexuality. Most demisexuals in my experience consider it more of a kind of asexuality than an orientation in its own right. To me, being asked āAre you asexual or are you demisexual?ā would feel a little like being asked āWere you born in the United States or were you born in California?ā (Also, there are some asexuals, including me, who arenāt entirely comfortable with the idea of asexuality itself as an orientation; I see it more as not having one, but thatās getting more into theory and less into something most writers would need to know.)
I donāt think Iāve ever seen a game with an option to play as a demisexual character, and Iām not sure whether thatās more because people donāt understand demisexuality or because it would pose more than the usual amount of challenge both in terms of writing and coding. I still get excited when I have the choice to create a character who is ace but not aro. (Honestly, I still think itās pretty cool getting to play as asexual at all, even when that means aro by default.)
In theory, I absolutely love the idea of getting to play as demisexual. But in practice, Iām afraid it would end up reading like a character with Anastasia Steele syndrome (Ć la Fifty Shades of Grey) - the one whoās gone through life without a single sexual thought or feeling until they meet the Designated Love Interest and tumble head over heels into lust at first sight. Please, please, please donāt ever write a character like that.
In all of my years here, I have yet to see an author express the need to model a character after any in Fifty Shades of Grey.
One of the reasons I like the demisexual article (whether you believe in demisexuality is up to you) is because it discusses the idea of having a spectrum. As such, I see the article expressing demisexuality as being on the asexual spectrum, not that it exists on its own in a vacuum.
The struggles to understand and convey oneās own sexuality is also shown by the article, so it helps me visualize how a character might be dealing with this struggle themselves.
Such passages as the following help me:
Thanks for participating in this monthās support thread, and I hope your thoughts help others realize they may not be alone in how they feel or what they are thinking.
Edit: For those not familiar with what demisexuality is, here is the best definition Iāve found:
This can be found here:
In terms of developing a character, especially npc characters that are more under the control of the author to flesh out with nuances, this definition really helps.
I call it the Anastasia Steele syndrome because sheās the most famous example, but she was hardly the first. I donāt think most of the writers who have done it had even heard of demisexuality - they were just trying to write sexually/romantically inexperienced heroines. And I certainly donāt think anyone would set out to write such a character on purpose, but Iām afraid itās a pitfall an allosexual writer could easily fall into if they canāt imagine what itās like to fall in love in the absence of sexual interest.
(And thatās not even a criticism of anyoneās writing talent. It took me literally years to realize my first crush - something so foundational and heartfelt that, twenty-five years later, the word ācrushā feels altogether too trivial - was anything of the sort, because it involved so few of the things I had been led to expect.)
So uh. The good news: I finished chapter 3!!! Thereās still some slight editing to do but most of it is done. Super happy about that! Also started outlining for chapter 4 too, because I wrote chapter 3 with barely any outline and that was toughā¦ 2/10, definitely not doing that again if it can be helped
However, the problem I have now isā¦ actually building up the courage to post the damn thing. Iāve never shared my writing publicly before, yāknow? Iāve had several people read my stuff before, but Iāve never posted anything publicly. I guess I just feel like my writing isnāt that good to be shared publicly or something. But yeah, thatās where Iām at right now.
Goals for January:
Finish editing and post the demo thread
Finish chapter 4 outline and start writing chapter 4
Thatās about it, really. I donāt want to be too ambitious since things are going to get real busy this year and Iām not sure how much I can get done. Happy new year and Good luck, everyone!
(I do use demi(pan)sexual as a sort of standalone orientation, because I donāt feel asexual (interpreting it as ānot experiencing sexual attraction at allā) really describes what/how Iām feeling properly. Itās a once every blue moon thing, but it does happen.) (Besides, Iām already on one spectrum and donāt really want to pile them up.)
(Of course, you can describe yourself using whatever youāre most comfortable with. This is just how I see/use the term.)
I am still on my New Yearās holiday before I have to get back to work, so that means I still have more days left to write.
While I didnāt make as much progress as I would have liked last month, I did figure something important out.
This is going to sound obvious to those who are already prolific probably but it wasnāt obvious to me until last week.
If my āmuseā or creative side isnāt interested in writing, white-knuckling it in my seat isnāt helpful. Iāll end up sitting in my chair for like five hours and only squeezing out like 600 words (if that).
If the muse is bored with my planned outlined scene/branch, instead of trying to write it, I need to get it interested and engaged, which means instead finding an interesting and cool idea that excites it that could conceivably happen next and running with it. My creative side, Iāve discovered, will find a way to make it logically integrate and give what Iām writing drama and conflict naturally. But I need to get it interested first, which means if I have to resort to a gimmick or two, fine.
I can always cut, smooth and revise it in revision if need be.
Until I have figured out a better way to engage my muse, cheap tricks will have to do!
Happy New Year! Last month I planned on wrapping up my game!
This month I, er, plan on wrapping up my game.
Itās mostly my own dang fault: If the playerās in a relationship with someone, I wanted the final chapter to give you a chance to spend time with them. That turned into a heck of a lot of words to cover the various possibilities.
So! Onward and upward into definitely maybe finishing this month.
Iām hoping (REALLY hoping this time) to finish up Chapter 7 of Royal Affairs and get a decent start on Chapter 8. To be precise, Iād like to get the code down and have a sense of how big the chapterās going to be.
Iām also going to be sharing Noblesse Oblige Chapter 2 in a couple of weeks, which Iām excited about!
Happy 2022, everyone! Best wishes to every one of you, and all to your near and dear ones.
A few weeks ago, Iād wanted to start a WiP thread by the 1st. I havenāt done that. Honestly, though? Iām not torn up about it. Iām enjoying the journey. My goal for this month is to continue setting incremental goals - perhaps weekly and monthly aims. Iād like to start dedicating at least an hour on every day to writing - not necessarily in a scheduled manner, but with the intention of maintaining a consistent rate of output.
Good luck to you all with your figurative battles this month!
Iām in exactly the same boat as you. Maybe Iāll just start one even without enough material; the thought of people actually looking at what Iām doing might spur me to work faster.
Itās been many months since Iāve been around here but Iām finally getting all my shit back together and Iām really looking forward to writing again. Hoping to start making some daily progress now, and honestly I think going on a time-based goal might help me get back in the swing of things. Iām going to shoot for at least an hour of writing every day.
Also gonna have to start checking in more often or Iāll let myself get caught up in life again haha
January is not going to be a productive month for me, writing-wise. Weāre anticipating some happy events, and that means I need to be more available to help my family, which naturally cuts into my writing time. Still, I have certain tasks planned that are less intense in terms of the amount of focus they require. I hope to accomplish some important things, in between helping my family and taking care of certain real-life obligations.
2022 is a new year. I absolutely plan to finish TC this yearā¦ but you know what they say about the best-laid plans.
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Happy Birthday to January babies.
