From: A_Tina_Hall@kruemel.org   
      
    wrote:   
   > On 06/04/2014 03:02 AM, A. Tina Hall wrote:   
   >> mumble   wrote:   
      
   >>> Since you're asking in relation to a WIP, are you preparing to show   
   >>> that anything one wishes for can become a bit of a curse, and that   
   >>> the true skill of life is the ability to navigate between   
   >>> misfortune and catastrophe without being consumed by circumstance?   
   >>   
   >> What an odd question, jumping onto 1 possibility of what to do with   
   >> a wish in a story out of countless others. (Almost sounds as if you   
   >> were trying to say that that's the only option.)   
      
   > It isn't clear to me what other useful purposes it might have.   
      
   That doesn't mean there isn't any others.   
      
   That's what I'm saying; your view isn't universal.   
      
   >>> I'd probably wish for the ability to make up stories that I could   
   >>> then write, I suspect that I wish for that anyway.  Material things   
   >>> are barely worth thinking about (until the toilet overflows, the   
   >>> car breaks down in a deserted area with no cell signal, etc).   
   >>   
   >> I'm reminded of the Supernatural episode where a guy sold his soul   
   >> in return for talent. He drew a bunch of pictures, couldn't stop   
   >> drawing pictures, didn't sell a single one.   
      
   > Right there you've given an example of how the granting of a wish can   
   > become something of a curse, exactly what I asked about.   
      
   Me being reminded of something that's already been done (and plenty of   
   times) doesn't mean it's the only option.   
      
   Also, if anything at all it might mean something different is in order.   
      
   Always the same old stuff is what keeps me from published books. The   
   characters all have the same traits that I don't want to read about.   
      
   >> Do you -really- just want to write, regardless of whether anyone but   
   >> you ever reads it?   
      
   > I can already write, I just have no imagination, no stories to write;   
   > while articles or even books about philosophy or technical issues may   
   > be useful to a few, there's nothing like a good story to convey the   
   > information in a more palatable and enjoyable form that many people   
   > can relate to.   
      
   Maybe it's trying to convey philosophy or technical issues in a   
   palatable and enjoyable way that some people can relate to that's   
   keeping you from just writing a story.   
      
   Just me, I wouldn't want to read, nor write, something of that sort. But   
   I'm not part of any market.   
      
   And you didn't answer the question. ;P   
      
   >> I'm just writing for myself, wouldn't even want to just have any   
   >> random person read my stuff, but even I would like a betareader or   
   >> two (whom I know from here or elsewhere) to tell me if the writing's   
   >> any good, any consistency errors I don't see,...   
      
   > Your comment seems self-contradictory, if you're writing only for   
   > yourself then only the errors that are obvious to you are worth   
   > correcting...   
      
   Not true. Maybe you're just not one of those people who, if they do   
   something, they want it to be done right.   
      
   I do notice that you and I see things too differently. You can't even   
   imagine any other motivation than your own.   
      
   I want the writing to be readable (and I see flaws I don't know how to   
   fix), and I want to know if there are consistency problems that I don't   
   see, or just holes, or unexplained things. I may not be able to see some   
   stuff because I know the whole story. Then there's things where I wonder   
   if it's too much or too little of something. I want to know if it's just   
   me.   
      
   I notice a lot, but I consider the possibility that I miss something.   
      
   > presuming that writing for yourself has any value other   
   > than as a memory aid or a means of focusing your thought.   
      
   Well, one story started with me writing down what I'd otherwise forget,   
   and as I used full sentences I just kept writing...   
      
   But no, I write my own stories because nothing published has the   
   characters, setting, and scale I want. So now I have something I like   
   (re)reading.   
      
   --   
   "Whatever happened to your patience?"   
   "The Shan ate it."   
                                 -- Kian and Senar, Magic Earth VI   
   Excerpts at:    
      
      
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    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)