Something that I want to ask you all.

[Mr. Beef]

Do you find yourself doing something on one day and look at the next day and wonder what was going through your head at the time?

For me, I found myself playing a couple of hours of World of Warcraft (ducks the incoming flames while donning a fireproof suit) and then writing some fiction in Word. I looked at what I wrote (yesterday) today and think "What the heck was I thinking when I wrote this?" I don't write fiction all that often, and more often then not when I do I delete it because it is something that I don't like.

Space is not at a premium on my hard drives so I think I can keep it for a while, but if I don't get this inspiration again I don't see why I should keep it around. This happens about once a month or so, and they are all different.

Just wondering if something like this happens to any of you?

Thanks,
Mr. Beef

 

[Starman]

You mean like when I married my (now ex) wife?

 

[Umbran]

... but if I don't get this inspiration again I don't see why I should keep it around.

I was listening to an audiobook (Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman) yesterday. In some of the introductory material, the author talks about one of the stories in the collection. He initially wrote it when he was 22 or 23 years old - one of his first works, and when he shopped it around to a couple of editors, they didn't like it. So, he stuck it away, and it traveled in his files and boxes, ending up in his attic for twenty years. Then, as a much more mature writer, he pulled it out, easily recognized the mistakes he made, rewrote it, and had a fine story.

If you don't have a place to keep it is one thing. But why throw out ideas when you don't have to? Just because you don't like it now, doesn't mean you won't find something good in it later.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

If space isn't an issue, accumulate!

One of the few times I did this (that I remember), it was due to sleep deprivation. It was crunch time on my editing of a final group presentation and I actually did about a page of sleep-typing. I actually typed out the contents of a dream I had while dozing off at my computer...all into the paper itself.

It was some truly bizzare stuff about Rocky, the Divine Hero of the Squirrelish Empire, leading the forces attempting to take over the Kingdom of Texas...

(Typo free, I might add.)

I deleted it from the paper of course, got some sleep, then finished editing the presentation with a clear head...and of course, I now regret having not kept a copy of my sleep-typing.

Kind of a double "What was I thinking?"

 

[Pbartender]

Do you find yourself doing something on one day and look at the next day and wonder what was going through your head at the time?

Not since I graduated college.

 

[Villano]

Do you find yourself doing something on one day and look at the next day and wonder what was going through your head at the time?

Every time I open my closet and see that box full of Marvel 2099 comics. :\

 

[Mr. Beef]

I was listening to an audiobook (Fragile Things by Neil Gaiman) yesterday. In some of the introductory material, the author talks about one of the stories in the collection. He initially wrote it when he was 22 or 23 years old - one of his first works, and when he shopped it around to a couple of editors, they didn't like it. So, he stuck it away, and it traveled in his files and boxes, ending up in his attic for twenty years. Then, as a much more mature writer, he pulled it out, easily recognized the mistakes he made, rewrote it, and had a fine story.

That sounds like something I need to do. Not the shopping it around part, but taking it and putting it into somewhere I'd forget it and find it later. If I had a lot of these I would put them on an enclosed hard drive and store it somewhere safe. Right now I think I'll put it on a flash drive and store it somewhere safe.

If you don't have a place to keep it is one thing. But why throw out ideas when you don't have to? Just because you don't like it now, doesn't mean you won't find something good in it later.

Ideas are just fleeting to me and sometimes I just think they are really bad ideas, but when I throw them out; I come back months later and think that something I wrote would be perfect and I kick myself (metaphorically) because I threw it out (deleted it from my computer recycle bin)

Thanks Umbran.

Mr. Beef

 

[Mr. Beef]

If space isn't an issue, accumulate!

One of the few times I did this (that I remember), it was due to sleep deprivation. It was crunch time on my editing of a final group presentation and I actually did about a page of sleep-typing. I actually typed out the contents of a dream I had while dozing off at my computer...all into the paper itself.

It was some truly bizzare stuff about Rocky, the Divine Hero of the Squirrelish Empire, leading the forces attempting to take over the Kingdom of Texas...

(Typo free, I might add.)

I deleted it from the paper of course, got some sleep, then finished editing the presentation with a clear head...and of course, I now regret having not kept a copy of my sleep-typing.

Kind of a double "What was I thinking?"

This is a great story Dannyalcatraz.

I have never sleep written anything, but I don't think that I could write something as curious as Rocky, and the Divine Hero of the Squirrelish Empire trying to take over the Kingdom of Texas.

Most of what I write is typo free but punctuation might be a bit of an issue.

Sounds like we all have something we all regret deleteing now because it might be our Opus.

Thanks Dannyalcatraz.
Mr. Beef

 

[Mr. Beef]

Every time I open my closet and see that box full of Marvel 2099 comics. :\

Marvel 2099 comics were not that bad from what I hear. I left collecting comics right before the 2099 craze hit. My older brother really liked Spider-Man 2099, Hulk 2099 and X-Men 2099. I think he regrets the X-Men 2099 now that he looks back on it, but Spider-Man and Hulk were not that bad according to him.

Thanks Villano,
Mr. Beef

 

[Graybeard]

Spiderman 2099 was good. The rest of the 2099 titles, not so much.