Fox Cutter

3,451 reputation

721

bio	website	chaos-keep.com
	location	Redmond, WA
	age	35
visits	member for	2 years, 6 months
	seen	13 hours ago
stats	profile views	81

Semi-Pro writer, former magazine publisher, programmer and private pilot. A little bit crazy but useful if you need that sort of thing.

I've been writing for as long as I've been able to write and I've even managed to sell a story or two. I usually stick with a more science fiction and fantasy setting, but I also like to experiment with other genres. Mystery is one I'm still working on, but it's coming along okay.

	3,451 reputation	bio	website	chaos-keep.com	visits	member for	2 years, 6 months
721 badges		location	Redmond, WA		seen	13 hours ago

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26 Comments

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Jun 18	comment	Some doubts on the use of Italicized words I say you've said pretty much everything I would say. Italics really do stand out without being in your face about it. It just flows better.
Jun 1	comment	Is there a quick way to know I have created a Mary Sue? I would also add "if they are always right about everything" to the list.
Apr 6	comment	What is a good OCR program? I use OneNote every day and didn't know it could do this. Wish I knew this yesterday when I had to transcribe a thousand+ words.
Mar 30	comment	*When should* I use passive voice?** +1 for the advice and the explanation. This is a great answer.
Feb 12	comment	What is the most cost effective way for me to get my book printed? Ah, that's different then. Yeah, don't use Lulu in that case.
Feb 12	comment	What is the most cost effective way for me to get my book printed? Using Lulu doesn't automatically use up for rights. You can use them to print privately, which means they won't list in on their site or offer it for sale in any way. You're just using them solely as a printer, just the same as if you had gone to Kinkos. If you want to keep a copy for yourself and give a few to friends that's hardly enough to be 'published', it would be more like offering it to a writers group.
Jan 14	comment	How to sell novel excerpts as short stories @sjohnston The big rule in this case is to make sure everyone who's looking at the book knows and the short story/except ahead of time. That way it can be factored into their decisions.
Jan 14	comment	How to sell novel excerpts as short stories @sjohnston well there always the chance for conflicts, and rights can be sticky, but here's how I would see it. You only sold the first run rights on the short story, not the whole novel. When you're shopping the novel around make sure it's clear that the short story part has been in print already, that way there are no surprises. One possible conflict is the contract for the short story might prevent you from reprinting it for a year or two.
Dec 21	comment	What are some regular contests unpublished short story authors might enter? They have four rounds each year. If you qualify you should try to have a story in each quarter.
Dec 18	comment	What are good places to post your work where it will be read by others? +1 for the notes about Rights. Speaking as a former editor we wouldn't touch anything that had been posted online. The thought was that all First English rights had been used up, electronic and otherwise.
Dec 3	comment	Expositing a lack of racial difference +1: The idea of her coming to the city and realizing it's not as different as she expected, assuming of course that she's never been to the city before.
Nov 29	comment	Are there any good magazines about writing? @Lorenzo that sounds more like Readers Digest then Writers Digest.
Nov 25	comment	Is touch typing skill important for being a good writer? I second the Dvorak comment.
Nov 25	comment	Where and how to look for a picture for illustration? On #3 I would say it's closer to Some then Most. You may find the nice picture from the talented amateurs, but in my experience many semi-pros will probably want a decent price. Pros certainly will.
Nov 24	comment	Are there jobs that involve creative writing in the software industry? I would ask if you work at my company, but that sounds like every software company I've worked at ;)
Nov 24	comment	Tools for generating characters' names Seventh Sanctum has quiet a few generators (some serious, some not), and it's my personal website of choice if I need something quickly. They provide a good quick framework I can flesh out.
Nov 24	comment	How do you track random thoughts and ideas? @JFW - I'm just using the black hard cover notebook with lined paper. As for my pen, it's a simple ball point, in fact it's a fairly cheep one so I can pop off the little pocket clip thing. Gets in the way otherwise.
Nov 23	comment	How do I recover my confidence after a harsh writing group? I've found that NaNoWriMo is a great way to just try to get something done. While you can do it outside of November (which I've done) I've found having the knowledge that 100,000 other people are crazy enough to try it at the same time is a great motivator.
Nov 23	comment	When modifiers should be avoided? Frankly, I still have problems with this one, sometimes it's hard to convey those feelings in just the dialog or actions.
Nov 22	comment	How do I recover my confidence after a harsh writing group? +1 for "Allow your writing to suck". I think this is the biggest thing new writers need to learn, and it's hard lesson. The whole point of the first draft is to suck, that's what the rewrite is for.