Ten Rules to Self...

[kennahijja]

... the next time Self participates in a Fest/Exchange:

1) I will not even think about entering unless I know I'll have at least two months' time with no serious projects except the fest fic.**

2) I will not take the "write the fic, then insert the sex scenes" approach because flow and characterisation always suffer. Likewise, I'll not write scenes all over the place and out of context.

3) I will not whine on hummelchen's shoulder, 'cause next time she'll strangle me for sure, and deservedly so. In addition, I will not whine in general! Not just not on hummelchen's shoulder.

4) I will not ask for a deadline extension. Full stop, no exceptions. I'll be in bloody time!

5) I will not pray that my betas will turn around sixty pages in two days. I'll make sure to be done early so there'll be plenty of time for betaing and editing.

6) I will not procrastinate by whipping through my f-list to see if someone's even later with their fic in order to feel better.

7) I will not start wibbling halfway through "this is so bad, I should've written Plot B", least of all when there's no time for even thinking about Plot B, and Plot B would be twice as bad.

8) I will not post-bloody-pone today's pensum telling myself "ah, you'll rip that off easily tomorrow".

9) I will write the averaged word count. Ok, within limits, but I will *not* end up with a story twice as long as what I'd planned for.

10) I will write at the computer when I have the time, not only by hand. I know I can do it. It's just, well, tough and the games are so bloody distracting…

** oops - broke that already. So much for the likelihood of those rules being followed :(.

Comments

[mizbean.livejournal.com]

Ah, I could pretty much copy this word for word into my journal. I'm still working on an overdue fest fic right now as a matter of fact. #7 owns me.

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

#7 I have under control inasfar as I do the wibbling, but never (so far) have actually started a new fic in the middle of an earlier try... one of the advantages of having too little time in general ;).

[liriaen.livejournal.com]

Word. OMG, so utterly... ^_-

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

Well, we talked about the advantages of #2, and they're definitely there - I just annoy myself by trying to get out of doing the sex until the very last minute :(.

And thank you so much! *cuddles*
It's not even the weekend yet! *cuddles again*

[liriaen.livejournal.com]

Well, you know my dandy solution to getting away with minimal sex... I just pull the flowery curtain of happily ever after! And #2 does have its merits, indeed - maybe not in long plotty things but as "selected/deleted scenes from the end of the world", kinda. If that makes any sense.

Speaking of which, OMG, did I make any sense with the blues? I hope you can use some of it, or that it's not overboard.
Complete and utter moment of horror at work today: I had to kill some time before I could to the studio to record sth, and opened the *peep* on my work station, and I'm smack in the middle as my bossBossBOSS man (THE head honcho) comes in and crouches right next to me to discuss employment options... I just stared him in the eyes - so his wouldn't wander to the screen. *g*. Aw man. :D Best moment of the day.

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

Guess the fact that I just read your
I had to kill some time as 'I had to kill someone today' means I should be off to home/bed... But what a situation! I can imagine you staring like Slytherin's favourites :).

Will dash through the blues tomorrow - and you *always* make sense!

[masterofmercury.livejournal.com]

I wish I could keep at least half of that rules. Sigh.

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

Me too ;). Heck, a third and I'd be proud...

[mieronna.livejournal.com]

Amen to 4 and 6 and 8 and some others. Just substitute fic with art.

Wait I think I'm just breaking 6! (Well, the procrastination on lj part)

*hurries off*

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

*grin*

4 is hopeless (there was a time when I was just too shy to ask - should've never started).

[waterbird.livejournal.com]

Heh. I had a nightmare about my exchange fic last night -- and I haven't even received my assignment yet!

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

Hush! It won't be that bad, promise :).

[waterbird.livejournal.com]

Heh. I am eagerly awaiting my assignment. Really. And I'm sure it couldn't be worse than what I dreamt: that I had to write a crossover with Manon of the Springs. How that film worked its way into my subconscious I have no idea!

[the_con_cept.livejournal.com]

2) I will not take the "write the fic, then insert the sex scenes" approach because flow and characterisation always suffer. Likewise, I'll not write scenes all over the place and out of context.

Wow! I'm the exact opposite! Last time I wrote the sex ('cause it was fun) and then I went back and buffed it up with a little plot, and then went, "Ohhh, what if so-and-so was murdering someone?" and turned the whole thing into a mystery. I'm still not sure that worked, though. If I could only come up with real plot BEFORE the sex, we wouldn't have this problem. *g*

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

Wow. I think it's that I honestly don't *like* writing the sex. Well, it's the hardest part, so it gets postponed to the last minute. I need to have the plot down firmly before even thinking about what they'll do to each other ;).

[lazy-neutrino.livejournal.com]

5) I will not pray that my betas will turn around sixty pages in two days. I'll make sure to be done early so there'll be plenty of time for betaing and editing.

You will, however, play that your beta will turn around two pages in stixy days. Because that is reasonable.

*hangs head*

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

I feel like an utter eel whenever that happens (i.e. the procrastinating at the expense of beta time). Especially since I'm so bloody slow myself :(.

Am just going through the very last of your comments ;).

[lazy-neutrino.livejournal.com]

I'll write more comments, then, so that you never catch up.

(The previous comment was an oblique apology for having taken so long with Remus, Ron et al.)

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

*That* wasn't long! And the original post was an oblique apology for throwing out a monster like 'Spinning' on the shortest notice ever. Wrote those self-advices then, to avoid sinning again... fat chance of that :(.

[lazy-neutrino.livejournal.com]

Ah, but you hit me on a roll with 'Spinning' - I had bags of energy. Sigh. Having to work for a living really cramps my style when it comes to betareading :(

[riibu.livejournal.com]

So true! I should copy these rules on my desktop, there are altogether too many interesting exchanges/fests around just now.

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

Well, posting them is one thing... hoping I'll manage to keep any is another :). But I'm sitting on my hands viciously at the moment to avoid signing up for anything not *totally* irresistible (like the Ron ficathon or something).

[karaontai.livejournal.com]

Games, what games...
Games and Internet are the reason I never get anything done and procratination is my middle name. So you possibly cannot be any worse then me. No one can :-) LOL.
And don't beat yourself up soo badly...
Hugs

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

Games are hell. At least the net I don't have at home...

Putting up the rules and following them are totally zwei paar Stiefel ;).

[karaontai.livejournal.com]

Don't I know that :-) LOL. I am very good at making them , enforcing them on other people, but following them myself -- well other question altogether .:-)

[leni-jess.livejournal.com]

I am guilty of all but #6 and #10 - never looked back once I had a computer! (And I cured myself of #2a, for much the same reason.) I don't suppose I'm going to get much better, either. I'm not affected by #9 - I write till the tap runs dry, or I don't write.

My resolution is more like "Okay, you roughed this scene out in your head at 3 am; now when you get up write it down, instead of waiting for the next one!" This can lead to months of agony, because I keep revisiting that initial scene instead of moving on.

It's remarkable how many and what good fics you turn out nonetheless!

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

Weirdly enough, I can write on paper and stall/procrastinate like mad on the computer :(. On the upside, typing out written notes means one round of revision taken care of.

*grin*
Roughing up in head is easy (and often too fleeting, she says, it's the writing that's work ;).

[bellonablack.livejournal.com]

I agree. I wrote more when I wasn't on the internet. >.> Darn it.

-BB

[kennahijja.livejournal.com]

I don't even have the excuse of the internet... at home... and still procrastinate. AoE is an invention from hell, I'm convinced, but addictive as hell ;).