The Inevetable Progress Thread

Heartstart wrote: LyndaD wrote: After realizing that my historical fiction story wasn't really anchored in any specific timeframe (it was held in the 1980's by Walkman and Madonna references), I started over and have a completely different story definitely anchored in the 1800's. Hopefully, I don't have to be more specific than that. Not that I'm trying to scare you, but the 1800s were a century that saw many new inventions (eg the steam locomotive, the telegraph, sewing machine, revolver, machine gun, bicycles and the telephone, to name a few). It also saw a lot of social change (eg reform of the prison system and the end of transportation, abolition of child labour) and geographical expansion (eg the rise of the British Empire, settlement of The West in the USA. Australia also also went from being a handful of tiny penal colonies to a proper country with big cities - although Federation didn't occur until 1901).  TLDR, the 1800s weren't just one homogenous century, so take care if you're mentioning certain items and places, etc.

Draft is done and I've given it an editing pass. I continue to be haunted by this comp, only one I've never managed to squeak out of R1 on. 

And by all appearances, I'm doomed to that again this year. 

It's been a hell of a 6 months in my personal life, a horrible week of work and I just generally depression procrastinated all week, and I've got plans this afternoon/tonight so I've gotta be pencils down in the next couple hours (good, important ones! Just non-ideal timing!).

I pulled Fairy Tale for the first time ever in any NYCM comp which seems... hard as hell to do for 2500? Used it more as a framing device/allusion so if ever I was to be DQ'ed on a piece it might just be this one  Idk if I ever wanna bother Beta'ing this thing.

And "innumerable" as a SUBJECT? Way harsh 

Sorry for all the venting, it's just been a reallllll kick in the pants of a round/week/year/etc. But as always, the experience is good and the challenge is challenging, which is the whole point!

awinchester wrote: Which is worse: Submitting something absolutely awful, or not submitting at all? Has anyone ever gotten through on something they really really thought was a mess? What percentage of folks just don't submit?

Finally attacking my ghost story since abandoning it Monday. Not completely accurate since I jotted some inebriated notes on Thursday and changed two sentences yesterday. It's still quite a ways from being done but I tackled a couple of scenes today during a slow spell at work. I return home in a half hour. Hoping I can finish it by six and edit it a couple of times by nine or ten. I open at work again tomorrow so staying up until midnight would be most unacceptable. 

dustygerg wrote: Finally attacking my ghost story since abandoning it Monday. Not completely accurate since I jotted some inebriated notes on Thursday and changed two sentences yesterday. It's still quite a ways from being done but I tackled a couple of scenes today during a slow spell at work. I return home in a half hour. Hoping I can finish it by six and edit it a couple of times by nine or ten. I open at work again tomorrow so staying up until midnight would be most unacceptable.  Says the slacker who barely looked at it for four days... Best of luck to everyone!