What do YOU want to see?

I often wonder just what it is that people want to see in Han and Leia fanfic. What kinds of story summaries or ideas make you want to open it? Is it who writes it? Is it the scenario? I know I have a terrible time writing summaries for my stories. On one hand, I don't want to just flat out tell people exactly what's going to happen. On the other hand, sometimes you can be so vague that nobody knows what the heck it is about and maybe doesn't care to click on it to find out. I actually had someone recently review a story of mine and said that she had come across the story many times but was never interested in reading it before, but was advised to by some friends and wound up liking it. So I went ahead and asked her why it was that she didn't have interest in reading it. Thankfully, she went ahead and told me (it's ok, I can take it, and maybe it will help!) and she just said that the scenario didn't grab her and maybe I should mention a certain aspect of the plot that would've made her a bit more interested. I appreciate that kind of feedback, because what if she wasn't the only one who felt that way? What if there are other people who would be swayed to click on a story based on a different summary?

Anyway, I'm always interested to know what it is that draws someone to read a story. I'd say that first of all, the easiest way to choose is if you see a new story from a writer whose stories you've enjoyed before. Let's face it: a new person pops up out of nowhere they could've written almost anything. I've clicked on some pretty horrendous first-time attempts, to the point of being nearly incoherent. Then again, sometimes someone who has never written anything before can totally surprise you (Push and Digs certainly fall into this category!) So it's hard to automatically discount someone just because you've never seen anything from them before. It does make you wonder where they've been hiding, though! But again, if someone you've enjoyed stories from before shows up with something new, it's pretty much a no-brainer to click and start reading.

I'll give almost any new story a quick skim-through to see if anything grabs me. But a unique summary will also get me interested. I mean, this fandom has been around longer than I've been alive, so a lot of stories have been written. It's tough to come up with something new and different. I think that is one of the troubles I have when trying to come up with something to write, it's all been done before. Or much of it has, anyway. Does anybody really care to read about my version of their trip to Bespin? Probably not, especially given the fact that I wouldn't put any sex in it ;) I'm even starting to feel underwhelmed with my own current story at the moment because while some of the action that happened in the middle was somewhat new, now it's just about having the babies, which I know has been done before and there just doesn't seem to be a good reason that anyone should want to read my version of that.

So what DO you want to see? Tell us! Maybe it will give us some ideas we hadn't thought of. Even if you don't know what you want until you see it, at least tell us that. We spend a lot of time wondering why more people aren't reading or at least commenting and it's nice to have a way to maybe solve that little mystery. We won't know if you never tell us.

Real Life, Computer Issues and Writer's Block!

I knew I had a week-long audit at my day job, had been dreading it for weeks because it would mean longer hours away from home and long stretches of non-computer time.  Turns out it might have happened at an opportune time with fanfiction.net remaining broken for the entire stretch of my audit.  I do have one or two chapters that I could publish if I had the means to publish, which is frustrating enough, but if I had continued to stew and to write this entire week without an outlet, well, there may have been some trouble for someone, somewhere.  (My liver, perhaps?)

I know many of us have followed stories only to see them whither on the vine or even worse (or maybe this point is debatable), we have experienced a drought of stories where it seems that no one is writing at all.  Usually, when a writer resurfaces we hear some of the same reasons (I won't call them excuses because that word has a bad rap), you know them:  DARTH Real Life is probably on top, computer issues has made a good show as well, and then there is the far more dangerous, elusive and annoying villain called Writer's Block.

As frustrating as all these things can be, they do usually bow to the axiom of:  This too shall pass.  There are many facets of each that are probably out of our control.  Although, writer’s block is probably the most trying because we feel that we should be able to control our own minds.  With writer’s block we tend to lay (I don’t care if this isn’t the write tense of lay, lie or laid – that’s my weakest beta point – ask Zyra!) the blame on ourselves and neglect to look outward to external sources. 

For me, I have learned that it is mostly external sources that will trigger a bout of writer’s block.  The main culprit?  I cannot write when I am fighting with my husband.  Laugh all you want, but this has actually been a really good thing for our marriage.  I am much more inclined to accept and offer the olive branch if it means that Han and Leia will start talking to me again as well! 

I also don’t do well if I sit down specifically to write.  Sounds weird, I know.  But most of my stories come to me while driving and most tiresomely, while trying to fall asleep or even in dreams that will wake me up at night.  I had never used the “Voice Memo” feature on my iPhone before I started writing fanfiction.  Now it is on the front page of my applications so I can ramble incoherent conversation into it and go back to sleep.

One thing that I think I have gotten over is that initial fear to just write.  That’s probably the biggest obstacle for a new writer.  Self-doubt and self-criticism is an ugly, ugly thing.  If you want to write, WRITE.  It really is as easy as that.  Once you have words on paper it is much, much easier to edit and refine (and share).  It’s kinda hard to edit a blank page.

So, I guess I oughta wrap it up here.  I’ll just throw some things out there that have helped me when my typing fingers freeze up.  First thing I do is step away from the computer, or at least from my story.  A little break is always better than trying to force something that isn’t coming. 

Second, check in with Darth Real Life, chances are something else may be weighing on your mind that is preventing you from writing, this could be as easy as an empty stomach or, well, some not-so-easy things that I don’t feel qualified to offer advice for. 

I also like to read a book or a story; someone else’s words can be diverting and inspirational.  This is also where a friend can come in handy.  Talking about your story with someone and sharing your ideas or road blocks can be really helpful.  Sometimes one word or sentence from a counterpart can get your mind spinning in the right direction again.

Finally, if you feel you are at your wit’s end, just write anything.  Again, just getting words down on paper, providing yourself a target to shoot darts at can be helpful.  Just letting a few seemingly incoherent words or thoughts on paper can free up the log jam of your thoughts. 

Oh, and if you are like me, make up with your hubbie or girlfriend, or significant other.  Arguing does not help you write arguments (at least not me) and especially doesn't help you write those mushy love scenes that we all love!  :-)       

"If you hear a voice within you say "you cannot paint," then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced." ~Van Gogh (same applies to writing…)

We're still trying... but here's an alternative...

Well, believe it or not, fanfiction.net is STILL not letting us post chapters. It seems that somehow some people have magically gotten through to post updates, but it seems far less than normal and anyone I've talked to is receiving the same error message. It has been about four days now, and nothing. It's been driving me crazy not to post, so I've decided to go back to where I used to post my stuff before ever posting anywhere else, Nerfherder's Playground. Hopefully you know of it, and if not, you should. It used to be quite the active community of Han and Leia fans, and while it has lost its regularity of posting, there are still a few souls hanging out. I find myself checking hopefully almost every day for some new posts. I'd encourage anyone to go over there and try to start some conversations. I have some theories that there are more people in this fandom than we think there are, they're just being too quiet! So please, get into the conversations. It doesn't have to be posting stories, there are plenty of threads just talking about Han and Leia.

And in the meantime, you can check out my latest chapter that I posted if you so desire. You have to have access to the boudoir in order to read it, but it's there. You will also see the progression of my story as it changed a bit.

Push has been forced away from her computer at work most of this week, so that is why she has been absent. I am not enjoying not talking about Han and Leia all day!

We're trying, I promise!

Well, for the three or four of you who are anxiously awaiting the next installment of my story, and the more than that waiting for the same from Push, ff.n has decided to not work as far as editing stories for at least the past 24 hours and we're kind of stuck. It is frustrating beyond belief, especially when I keep wavering back and forth on whether or not I like my chapter or not, so the best thing to do in that case is to pick a high moment and put it up so there is no going back. Giving me so much time to think is not a good idea in this case! I have no idea what the deal is, we just keep getting error messages. I've seen this happen before, but never for more than like ten minutes or so, so for it to have been happening for a day or so is unprecedented.

So, apologies for the waiting, it's not my fault! And please, feel free to chime in and comment. Any interaction always keeps people interested.

Growing as a Writer

I'm not sure what exactly we had in mind to accomplish when we decided to start this blog a few days ago, but one thing I think that we can do in writing it is to get other people to see that probably just about any of us out there writing fanfic has the same insecurities and misgivings as those of you who have written something and are too afraid to post or have at least been thinking about writing something but don't think you'd even be able to show it to anyone.



If anything, we should all at least sit down and write, if that's what you want to do. Don't be afraid to write something that isn't any good. Here's a little secret: almost all of us aren't any good when we first get started. But you know what? If you keep at it, you get better. And one of the main ways to get better is to ask someone for help. I had a writing teacher in college (I know, some of you right now are thinking, she studied writing in college? Seriously? She should ask for her money back) who told us all that the first stuff we wrote for her was going to suck. And she used that word. But by the end, we weren't going to suck so much. And she was right.



I think all of us need to not be afraid to suck at first. But nobody ever said you had to publish the sucky stuff. The best thing you can do is start sending your stuff to a trusted friend who can help you and take a look at it and give you constructive criticism. The trick is, you have to be willing to take the constructive criticism in the manner in which it was intended. It's called contructive for a reason, they only want to make you a better writer. And honestly, a lot of times it doesn't take long at all before you start automatically fixing those funny little nuances that you find you use in your writing that lead to a less-than-perfect story.



Some people struggle with punctuation or paragraphs or switching tense within a sentence. None of these things make you a bad writer, it's just something that you need to be made aware of so you are looking out for them in the future. I know the first time I sent something of mine to someone to get beta read, one of the things that was pointed out to me was my sentence structure. It was all the same, never varying. He went there. She did this. He said that. I hadn't even realized I'd been doing it. Does that make me a bad writer? Well, maybe. But by being made aware of it and on the lookout for it I could at least vary things and make it just a little bit better. It's why we can sometimes go back and look at the first things we wrote and cringe at how bad they are, but we all need to start somewhere, right? Otherwise, how can we possibly get better?



For some reason I have been asked by more than one person to beta read their stuff, not just Push. Really, she had just contacted me after I reviewed her first story and she asked how one went about getting a beta reader, because she didn't have one. And I offered. In retrospect, I shouldn't have done that ;) Totally kidding! No, really though, if you looked at the first stuff she sent me and then at what she sent me just today you'd see a huge difference in the amount of corrections being made. Perhaps some of that is laziness on my part (kidding there, too) but really it was just that she became aware of certain things she was doing that weren't quite correct and with practice, she doesn't do them anymore. Most of it was just mundane stuff like punctuation, but still, as a reader it can be distracting when some of those things show up incorrectly in a story, so it's always good to let someone else take a look at it before you publish. Also simple stuff like using the same word a couple of times in a paragraph when you could vary it. That's something else you might just completely overlook if you're trying to edit your own stuff.

I'll mention another writer who several months ago asked if I'd be willing to take a look at something she'd written. You know her as Digs. And if you don't know her, you should, and you should immediately go to ff.net and start reading her story "Children of the Future." I don't know why she asked me specifically, but I was so glad that she did. She sent me the first ten or so pages of the story she'd written and wasn't sure if the idea was worth pursuing. Are you kidding? I thought it was one of the coolest, most unique ideas for a Han and Leia fanfic I'd ever come across. That's just one example of a story that might not have gone anywhere if she hadn't taken the leap and decided to let someone else look at it. It was also another good example of growing as a writer, as if you saw a comparison between the amount of editing I did on the first batch she sent me as compared to the last batch, you'd be amazed. And again, this has nothing to do with her abilities as a writer, it was mostly just punctuation errors and such, but those things can be detracting in an otherwise great story and you never want anything to take away from that. And yes, you should be jealous, because I know how that story ends ;) You won't be disappointed!

It can also be very encouaging to have someone else read something of yours and give you feedback on it. For most of us, it is nearly impossible to look at our own writing objectively. We are way harsher critics of our own stuff than anyone else is likely to be. Even if we are helping each other become better writers by mentioning things that could be improved upon, it is equally if not more important to mention the things that you like about someone's story. It's funny how we tend to notice the negative feedback far more than the positive ones. I swear, if I got one negative review I'm not sure that twenty positive ones would keep me from fixating on the one negative.

Anyway, this blog post has gone on too long, I think! But please, don't be afraid to share your work. And don't be afraid of a bit of constructive criticism. It will only make you a stronger writer. We all had to start somewhere!

Plot Twists and Other Hidden Anxieties

Well, for those that are following my story, I dropped a pretty big plot twist in my latest chapter.  I surprised myself last night, upon depressing the "publish" button - at how nervous I was regarding my reader's reactions.  I think that's why I did it late at night, so that I could fall asleep and forget about anyone who might be reading it at that moment and hating it or loving it or most preferably dropping their jaws and saying, "What the what?"


It sometimes surprises me on which parts of my story make me nervous.  As Zyra mentioned, you have your typical "adult scenes" that wreak havoc on a writer's psyche.  But sometimes there are descriptive scenes, or internal thoughts or bits of dialogue that you become overly sensitive or excited about.  In my experience, these things can pass by without so much as a comment, making you wonder if perhaps you had overestimated their importance.  But sometimes, when a reader takes the time to comment and they happen to point out that bit of your story that you were particularly nervous over, well then it's pretty darn cool.

So, all of that got me thinking of other scenes or scenarios that had made me nervous, both to write about and to publish.  I thought this might be a good topic to maybe spark some discussion on this blog.  (Yes, you loyal readers - all 4 of you - you can comment on our posts!)  And so to that end, I've made a little top 7 list of things that make me anxious/nervous to write about.  (Seven because I had more than 5 but couldn't think of 10).

Feel free to comment, commiserate or share yours!   

TOP 7 THINGS THAT CAUSE ME ANXIETY TO WRITE ABOUT:


#7 - Arguments
#6 - Original Characters or most any character besides Han and Leia (including Chewie, Luke and 3PO)
#5 - Setting the Scene (descriptions, including what my poor characters are wearing)
#4 - Declarations of Love
#3 - Action Scenes
#2 - "The No Pants Dance" (any occasion)
#1 - Han and Leia's first time - have never written it (but I think it happens on the way to Bespin)

And, not to be outdone by Zyra...a picture (this pic totally deserves a story or at least a funny caption):

The Comfort Zone

Push talked a little bit about writing outside the comfort zone and it got me thinking about it as well. I think we each have certain aspects of writing that we feel far more comfortable delving into than others. For me, I do not feel as comfortable writing drama as I do with writing something more light-hearted or comedic. So what am I writing right now? Something more on the dramatic side. Which is why I've had more trouble with it and felt far more insecure with every bit of it that I type. It's also why it almost never got read by anyone in the first place. Months ago I sat at the computer one night and wouldn't stop typing and there it stayed for weeks and weeks until I let it slip that I hadn't been completely idle and Push finally forced me to send it to her and has been helping me out with it as I publish.

I think a big part of the apprehension on writing drama for me is that it implies that I'm trying to take myself seriously. So it seems like I'm expecting any readers to take me seriously. Where as if I'm writing something comedic, it's quite obvious I'm just doing it for fun. I don't know, it's like whenever I try to do something serious I fear that people will find it to be over-dramatic and contrived. Then again, I don't think I could write all of my stories as near complete farce such as "Careles Wager" and "Sexiest Man Alive!". Then again, my light-hearted stories have very few reviews, where as the other ones only have... few reviews, so perhaps I'm the one who's wrong on this one. Maybe you're all sitting back (all three of you, thanks, followers!) and thinking, Wow, she thinks that comedy is her strong suit? Yikes.

But we can't always do things the easy way. Sometimes it's fun to challenge ourselves with something out of the comfort zone. Sometimes it's not fun at all, but we persevere and get the job done, anyway!

As a side note, thanks to those of you who are following us and reading and commenting on this blog. I think us Han and Leia fans will have a lot more fun if we actually interact!

And to reward you for reading, here's another cute picture:

Are We Having Fun Yet?

I know when I started publishing my first story it was for a fun, creative outlet.  Well, as with most everything that is worth doing, it turned out to be more work than I had ever imagined I would dedicate to this little hobby.  But I do still consider it a fun escape and I guess if it ever stopped being that, I would stop writing (or at least stop publishing). 

It is a strange phenomenon that once you publish a story people automatically assume that you think you know what you're doing and aren't insecure about your work.  All of a sudden, by the click of one button you have become a "writer".  For me, publishing my first story did two things.  First, it made me realize that all those other stories I had been reading and enjoying were just written by normal people like me who probably had the same misgivings as I did (at least that's what I told myself).  And second, it totally got me hooked!  In answer to the first realization, I started trying to review stories more and talk to people instead of just "lurking" around like I had done for several months.  For the second, I began to write, write and write.

Is this the fun part?  My current story, if you happen to be following it, was supposed to be a "fun" little break from the more serious post-ROTJ relationship saga I was trying to work on with my other stories.  It has become FAR longer than I ever imagined it would and although I have this grand finale in my mind, I am very nervous about getting it out on paper and have only a vague outline of it so far.  One of my weaknesses in stories is action scenes; I'd much prefer a nice conversation or argument over a gun fight or lightsaber battle.  I am a hopeless romantic and if it doesn't end in a kiss, well, it's just not worth writing about, right?

Well, I am going to have a hard time avoiding some sort of battle in my current story and it scares the hell out of me and makes it seem not-so-much-fun.  But maybe that's a bit of a lie, because even writing about it now just gets my adrenaline pumping in a nervous, excited kind-of-way.  Pushing our boundaries keeps it from getting stale, too - I guess.  Maybe that's why this story came to me, to force me to work on something outside of my comfort zone.  And there's no rule stating that a lightsaber battle can't end in a kiss...

Anyway, I guess I'd better get to work, because - yes, I do have a day job.  I certainly can't retire on the money that I'm raking in from fanfic.net.  Not yet, anyway.  :-)

Finding motivation

Well, since we sometimes like to pretend and call ourselves "writers" it means that on occasion, we actually have to write something. This is often a problem for me. Push is right when she says I have beta read all of her stories. I have over 100 beta files on my hard drive to prove it. That is not a complaint, just evidence that I swear she never stops. It's kind of cool though when you think that this person who had nothing published less than a year ago already has a whole bunch of really good stories posted.

So, what does motivate us to write? The truth is, I don't know. I've had moments where some little idea comes to me out of nowhere and I just start typing. I've had ideas in my head for extended periods of time and done nothing with them until one day I finally decided to sit down and write them up. I think sometimes I've even only had one little scene in my head that I wanted to get out there and was forced to come up with a story to go around it. Sometimes it needs to be forced and sometimes it comes out effortlessly, there never seems to be a reason for it.

One thing that Push and I have done in the past when neither one of us was working on some big story (that has not happened in a very long time) is to issue challenges to one another. This can be a scenario, or even just a line that must be used, anything to just force us to get writing when nothing seems to be coming out. While none of these tended to wind up masterpieces, I think both of us have used pieces from these challenges in larger stories later on, and often times they help to spark ideas and at least get us into the writing groove once again.

Another helper in the motivation department is simply sharing our trials and tribulations with each other. By nature, we are both self-deprecating. Or at least I know I am! Half the time we send stuff to each other we amend it by saying something like, "I know it's not very good..." or the much more direct, "This totally sucks, but..." and of course the other person never actually agrees with that. I always enjoy reading her stuff (otherwise I would definitely not have 100+ beta files of her writing on my computer!) and she at least pretends to like mine so I will continue doing all of the hard labor for her ;) It's always encouraging to have someone read something you wrote and tell you that they actually liked it.

Now, perhaps this is why a lot of times the motivation starts to wane. Remember, actually having people tell you they enjoy your writing makes you more inclined to write more. The opposite can also be true, as often times a new story or chapter gets posted online and hardly a soul says a word about it. I'm not sure people realize how disheartening it is to post a story and not get feedback. We don't do this for money or accolades, but if nobody says anything about it, how do we even know if anyone is reading let alone enjoying it? We can just as easily keep our stories to ourselves on our hard drives. I have to say, I suspect that had we not started encouraging each other, there's a good chance neither one of us would be posting much of anything. My current story I have going on was literally dragged out of me when I let it slip that I had been writing something that I hadn't shown her yet. I don't think I would've pursued it at all had she not read it and told me to publish it.

So, if any aspiring writers out there are looking for some motivation, I'd definitely encourage you to share your stuff with someone. It can be anyone, really. I'm at a stage in adulthood where it would probably be a little weird to other people my age to ask them to read a fan fiction story, but some of you are probably young enough where that still might seem "normal" to your friends. Aside from that, that's what's so great about the internet. Anyone who comes to web sites like the ones we frequent for reading Han and Leia fan fiction is going to share a common interest, so don't be afraid to send a message. Chances are you'll have some good conversations. I know I have. It is also quite nice to talk to other people who share the same obsessiveness. I don't think I know anyone in real life that I could turn to and ask, "Hey, did you ever wonder whether or not Han and Leia had sex on the way to Bespin?"

I'd say this post has turned into a bit of a ramble, so I should probably stop there. But it is doing a great job of keeping me from working on the next chapter of my story...

Hello, Day 3!

Hi,  I'll give a whirl at an introduction here. I was already born by the time ANH come out, although I was young. I did see all three OT movies in the theaters for their first releases. I have not been obsessed ever since, although my brother and I and some neighborhood kids would role play Star Wars and we had all the action figures and such, there was a lengthy period of my life where I didn't give Han and Leia a second thought.

In late December, 2009, through a renewed interest in SW thanks to my children, I discovered fanfic. I was publishing my first story in May, 2010 and met Zyra shortly thereafter.

I'm not kidding when I say that there isn't a single word that I write that isn't "beta'd" by Zyra, so I apologize for any errors in this post, I'm winging it here.

As Zyra said, we spend way too much time now "talking" to each other about Han and Leia, but as with any obsession, I guess - it just doesn't seem like it's too much to me.

And, well, I guess that's that. :-)

Oh, except, here is one of my favorite images:

So now what?

Well, we got really excited yesterday about starting a blog, and now neither one of us knows what to write about. I guess I could start by writing a bit about myself. I have been a fan of Star Wars since the first time I saw it probably when I could barely even talk. ANH came out before I was born, but I was around for the rest. I discovered fanfic in the late 90's and have been reading with varying degrees of obsessiveness ever since. I wrote my first fanfic stories in 2002 or 2003 and they didn't get shown to anyone until about seven years later. And of course eventually I wrote a few more after that in much more recent years.

Me and "Push" as I have nicknamed her, because writing ShouldIGetOutandPush just takes a ridiculously long time, started messaging back and forth when she started publishing her first story and now spend way too much of our free time talking about Han and Leia and helping each other with our stories. We live thousands of miles apart and have never met but seem to understand each other, so it works. In fact, it works so well that we often wonder if maybe we should just send our stories to each other rather than bothering to post them on any web sites at all because it seems people don't tend to be all that interested in commenting, and it makes us feel like we're talking to ourselves anyway. But I guess we'll keep trying.

And for no reason at all, here's a picture:

Welcome!

Welcome to our blog! We are just a couple of Han and Leia obsessed fanfic writers who decided to share our trials and tribulations in the form of this blog. Hope you enjoy!