Open call

I know that this isn't really a fiction blog, but I also know that at least a few of my sometime readers occasionally write fiction. So I am sending out an open call to anyone who wants to submit any poetry, fiction, non-fiction, movie reviews, or haiku. I can't promise to publish anything, but I will try to put anything I get up on the site. All credit will go to the writer, assuming they want any. This is not a litmag, so don't expect this to last forever. Send any submissions in the form of a .doc attachment to ben.rotisseriecomputer[att]gmail[dawt]com. I'll sweeten the pot with a short piece of fiction tomorrow.

The Whole World

Four thousand eighty three.
Four thousand eighty four.
Four thousand eighty — Looking. Looking. Here! Eighty five.
Four thousand eighty five legos so far, and I only have Antarctica and most of Australia. I don't have enough green pieces to get far into India. Forget about blues. Less than a third of the way, and I don't have enough to finish the coast of Australia. I'll have to do just enough to connect New Zealand. Reds, oranges, blacks, and the occasional purple make up the core. I had hoped to create an accurate inside too. I just need to get the outside right. The guts are unimportant. Wait. There it is.
Four thousand eighty six.
Four thousand eighty seven.
Four thousand eighty eight.

How to write fiction

I have a fairly strong desire to make a living as a writer. Specifically, as a fiction writer. So, you may ask yourself, how does one become a successful writer of fiction? Well, obviously as a hopeful writer, I haven't quite figured that part out, but I do know one or two things about writing. The most important part of writing is writing when there is nothing you want to say. when you don't have an idea how to finish that story, let alone begin it, that is the moment when it is imperative that you pick up the pencil, keyboard, or whatever and write. The scariest thing for a writer is the blank page, so throw some words on it and maybe it gets a little less scary. This ties in to the second big tip I have learned the hard, hard, hard way. It is always easier to revise than to write. Now, let me clarify. The beginning bits of revision are infinitely easier than the beginning bits of writing. the stuff towards the end of the proccess gets a little more sticky. Nevertheless, you will always be happier revising a long story that needs to be shortened than you will be trying to get your three pages into five. So how does this tie in with my other posts on video games and the horrors of the real world? I have no idea.