A Project Combining the Instantaneous With the Refined
Over the years, alongside the standard work of a writer–writing, refining and submitting to publications–curiosity, creativity and even a little impatience compelled me to experiment in other forms of publishing. I’ve published stories and poems on websites like FictionPress.com, self-published print books and later eBooks, and put poetry and flash fiction up on blogs. Sometimes I’ve snared readers, and other times, they’ve flopped a bit, held back by various factors.
In 2012, I still want to pursue traditional publication, pitching and submitting my work to journals and magazines, but my special project for Write Anything in 2012 involves using some of the cool tools technology makes available to us, whilst learning from the mistakes of my past experiments.
One of the biggest disadvantages I faced when doing ‘my own thing’ with publishing, was the lack of editorial support. There is a lot wrong with limiting access to readers via ‘gate-keepers’ in traditional publishing, but no matter how good your story is, or how crafted a writer you are, the editorial support of another set of eyes is invaluable.
The slow, patient and sometimes frustrating process of refining, polishing and perfecting your work, with the support of an editor, has made the difference to my work; turning a raw raging bee hive of short story, into one which harnesses that rage, my message, my character, and sharpens the points to make them as clear as is possible.
And using this lesson, I’m bringing it to a new project.
In 2010, I finished NaNoWriMo for the second time, kind of finishing a fun, exaggerated and cheeky tale of class warfare through the prism of a fictional professional wrestling universe and within the rules the ‘genre’ provides. I got the main point of the story out but I intended to come back to rewrite it.
I’ve begun to bring that project back to life, to take the idea and refine it in a way that reaches out to how people like to read.
Inspired by Jason Coggins’ educational posts on web serials last year, my own lessons about character driven stories being my strength and the need for editorial support in self-publishing, 2012 will be the year I present Robbin’ Toorak.
Robbin’ Toorak is like a comic book powered full of sherbet mixed with an energy drink, all shook up that it’s going to explode. It will be hard to pack this kind of excitement into the container of an online web blog.
Robbin’ Toorak, is an online weekly web serial, about a wrestling geek, Robin Hood, who forces himself into the middle of the ring to avenge the destroyed career of his hero, Little John, and return the title to a fan’s champion, not someone who rises to the top by money, privilege and cheating.
Writing in the voice of Robin Hood, episodes will be published weekly on a blog, as well as be available via email subscription and downloadable in any format people wish–especially eReaders. And possibly an app for smartphones and tablets.
The exciting thing is it will be edited by Jodi Cleghorn–who’s edited much of my short fiction before. Hopefully this will combine the quality of edited work with the more instantaneous methods of online web fiction that has such exciting potential if executed right.
And since it is pretty much public, I have to go ahead with it now, right? And I hope readers and fellow WA writers will hold me to account, encourage me, as I will do for them.
This sounds like a great project with lots of possibilities. I toyed with doing a web serial as my project this year, but couldn’t get my ideas together with enough of a plan that I felt confident doing so. I hope this works out well for you. Good luck with it!