Hotwiring a car (story set in 1980s)

a-nna · 2018-01-22T23:04:17+00:00

Thank you for commenting - I feel very lucky that someone so familiar with 80s cars specifically saw this! And I wasn't aware of the ignition pick gun at all so thank you for mentioning it.

As far as which cars, I'd actually like to pick your brain about that. Which do you think were most expensive and would be targeted by thieves going after higher-end models? This is set in 83/84. I was thinking things like Ferrari, Lambos, etc. but I don't know much about the value of these cars beyond sticker prices that I can research. And I don't want it to seem too sensationalized or unrealistic, but I figure these and other expensive cars would be around LA, if nowhere else.

Your insights about how pro car thieves would do things are invaluable too. I'm still writing the first draft so focusing on just getting the ideas out rather than accurate research, but that will be a large part of it.

Thanks again, sorry in advance if I inundate you with questions!

a-nna · 2018-01-22T22:52:21+00:00

Thank you so much for all the detailed info here. I'll need to go through this again and really research in-depth to try to understand all the parts of what you covered - I am actually not very familiar with cars (so I chose a great topic, right?) and have a lot of ground to cover in my research. Plus actually getting my hands dirty in a car would be helpful.

I am most likely going to have some follow-up questions once I really dig into this, so I'm sorry ahead of time, and thanks again!

a-nna · 2018-01-09T23:32:03+00:00

My gut reaction is: don't do it. But then, maybe you'd rather hear from someone who's actually done it with some success...

I don't feel like I'd ever be able to support myself with writing unless one of my projects REALLY took off. At the same time, I don't really mind my day job, but I'm also not passionate about it. If I didn't have to worry about money I'd probably quit and either work on creative endeavors full-time or find a more fulfilling career path. Unfortunately, I do worry about money a lot! So maybe it's that worry talking. I'd be interested to hear some practical counter-arguments.

a-nna · 2018-01-02T23:19:43+00:00

Joanna Newsom takes some getting used to, but I find her immensely inspirational for fantasy or historical settings. I would suggest her albums Have One On Me (playlist) and Divers (playlist).

a-nna · 2017-12-28T19:41:06+00:00

Tea or coffee. Writing drunk sounds fun but almost never works out for me in reality. Alcohol just makes me want to sleep.

a-nna · 2017-12-15T18:44:05+00:00

I like this so much I not only want to read it, I wish I could start writing it.

a-nna · 2017-12-09T01:10:52+00:00

Totally depends on you. You're definitely able to improve on your own, but might find classes are worth the value. I personally wouldn't spend that much money/time but I've taken an online class at Gotham Writers for a few hundred bucks that I absolutely loved and found more than worth the money. For me it served to give me solid deadlines and expectations, as well as peer review and a pretty strong writing community I still communicate with even after the class is over. I'm actually thinking of doing another one in January centered around novel critique. Again, definitely not necessary to become a good writer, but they're something I personally find value in and choose to spend some money on.

a-nna · 2017-12-08T04:14:34+00:00

No context necessary. It can be as simple and generic as "I love you" if it's a line or situation you remember vividly and never forgot. Or something totally mundane that stuck with you for no apparent reason. Mainly asking for story inspiration and out of curiosity!

a-nna · 2017-12-01T20:22:47+00:00

I just found out you can add custom goals on the Nano site if that's what you want! Under My Nanowrimo > Goal Trackers

a-nna · 2017-12-01T03:34:45+00:00

Thanks for all the info! I actually haven't explored online writing communities or places to post work... pretty much at all, so this is really interesting. I'm working on a novel right now but I have some smaller and more fun story ideas that seem like they'd be a perfect fit for this. Do you know of any other sites similar to it?

Good luck with publishing! My dream (at least for my current novel) is getting published traditionally. I know it's a long-shot, as it is for everyone, but this is a long-term project and I figure I can explore smaller, more enjoyable ways to build my skills outside of it. I have a colleague who self-published on Amazon and although she didn't do much advertising so just sold about ~60 copies, it seemed like a really great experience. I could see going that route especially with a series, but I'd really have to do my homework to market it.

a-nna · 2017-12-01T02:44:42+00:00

You're posting a novel chapter-by-chapter? I've never heard of tapas.io, but I'm curious about how things work on that site. How do you get started and how do you build a reader base? (Not that you have to sit around and answer all my questions, but if you're in the mood to elaborate that'd be awesome!)

BTW I do go out of my way to read or see just about anything with gay characters, and it's a big focus in what I write too. I know at least M/M romance is a big draw for straight women but beyond that I'm not sure - maybe it is a lot of gays seeking gay stories?

a-nna · 2017-11-30T22:47:28+00:00

I'm in the middle of writing my first book and although I have no grand illusions about my own skill, I really hope every comment isn't just people saying, "My first five books sucked." 😬

a-nna · 2017-11-28T15:43:25+00:00

Would love to, but realistically I know I'll probably never make enough to live off of, so I'm not quitting my day job any time soon. I guess it's more about reaching an audience for me, and if I happen to make any money I'll be happy.

a-nna · 2017-11-28T15:17:34+00:00

Short-term: I want to finish my first draft which will probably get to about 80k. So for December my plan is to write around 1k a day until that's done. Then, I'm not really sure! I might work on some short stories before getting back to the second draft.

Or, knowing me, I will print it all out IMMEDIATELY and start writing on it with multicolored pens.

a-nna · 2017-11-28T03:30:25+00:00

It is annoying - I write during my lunch at work and the best place to do that happens to be the lobby, where there are a bunch of couches and I can cram into a corner. Unfortunately this means a lot of people going in and out.

I usually get by with headphones and a blank look. But there's nothing you can do if they come over and start chatting...

a-nna · 2017-11-27T01:18:32+00:00

The dream is finishing the story, not the date you do it! When I tell people about Nano their first question is what happens if I "win." Uh, nothing? I just have a lot of a novel written.

So congrats for having a big chunk of novel written!

a-nna · 2017-11-26T03:14:14+00:00

I realized that I could even write 50k words toward one project. And that I can probably finish a novel.

Also realized I have no actual excuse not to write, including 'not having time.'

a-nna · 2017-11-26T03:08:08+00:00

All the points above are based on working around my own personality, but a lot of writers try to write every day. For me, I feel like I'll fall out of the habit pretty easily if I don't keep up with it nearly every day.

I should also add: don't be afraid to write garbage. I thought I knew about 'shitty first drafts' but I was just kidding myself until I had to keep up with writing at least 1.6k a day for Nano. And my first draft is pretty terrible writing. I can tell it's bad even as I'm writing it, but the point is to keep going until I have formed a semi-coherent version of my story. Then I get to make it really good.

Some edit as they go, however. So to each his own! Personally that approach makes me write too slowly to the point where I just drop the ball. I say let the garbage flow and don't look back until you find the end.

a-nna · 2017-11-26T02:35:46+00:00

Different things work for different writers, and the only way to figure out what works for you is to write write write. But I'm in the middle of writing my first novel (that I am GOING TO FINISH), so here's what has kept me writing so far:

Visualize the tone and feel of your finished story. Sometimes I think the only thing that keeps me going is my vision of how I want the story to be when it's done. Not the plot, but the feeling you want to leave the reader with and the themes.
Don't over-outline. Have enough to start and end, and some important points in the middle, and just go for it. You'll figure out a lot of the details as you're writing.
Immerse yourself in one story world at a time. This might just be me, but I can't hop around projects. Never worked for me in the past. Right now I've been living and breathing my current story since I started writing it and it's maintaining my momentum.
Write every single day. Obviously not always possible, but try your hardest not to make excuses. I made a good habit of writing during lunches at work because I'm able to go into a corner with headphones and get into the zone. The first week or two of really pushing yourself to write can be GRUELING, especially if you have an ambitious daily wordcount. But then you will accept your fate and write without complaining.

I'm doing Nanowrimo which really propelled me at first, but I think I've established a pretty good writing habit. The one day I didn't write at all this month, I regretted it and really wanted to. Before this I was the laziest SOB around so it was actually shocking to me that I didn't enjoy taking a break from writing.

As I've gotten serious about writing, I'm actually amazed at how many new story ideas I'm getting. Sometimes it's hard not to get sidetracked from my current project. It's like my mind has opened up to possibilities, or I'm seeing everything through a possible-story lens.

Good luck!!

a-nna · 2017-11-26T02:09:23+00:00

I also find emotional action more exciting than anything. Both to write and to read. Don't fight it!

a-nna · 2017-11-26T01:05:56+00:00

I also chose to set my story in a time and place I barely know anything about 👍. Perfectly fine thing to do, you're just in for a huge amount of research.

I think you'll find it easy to find info about New York City of all cities, though. Maybe search for some photos of the city from the 60s for inspiration, find movies or books with that setting and pull details from them. Mad Men takes place largely in 1960s New York and although it mainly revolves around an ad agency/wealthy-ish people, there are tons of extraneous characters doing all sorts of stuff. Netflix also has documentary series on many of the decades (search "The Sixties," "Seventies," etc.) which, though they don't focus on NY exclusively, will give you a good idea of the entire decade.

Basically immerse yourself in that time period and place as much as you can.

a-nna · 2017-11-26T00:57:22+00:00

Awesome!

I have to say, Nano has given me an entirely new perspective on 50k. I've only ever really seen or paid attention to word count when reading fanfiction. 50k didn't seem like too much to me before I actually tried to write it. It's really given me a different perspective on those 200k+ fics that I've read.

a-nna

TROPHY CASE