starwatcher_fic (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
starwatcher_fic) wrote2009-09-27 10:24 pm
starwatcher_fic) wrote2009-09-27 10:24 pm
Author's Notes for "The Honor of Friendship"
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I signed up for the SentinelSecrets challenge with considerable trepidation - I had never written to a prompt, and was afraid I wouldn't be able to generate an idea. The prompt was "Someone receives a letter that impacts their life in some way," and the target word-limit was 1,500. I stared at the prompt for a few moments - it sounds kind of ominous, doesn't it, and I don't do 'ominous' - and then this story just popped into my head. I had difficulty keeping it within range of the expected word-limit, which taught me that restrictions can serve to improve writing skills. Without the limit, I would have added a couple of more, probably extraneous, scenes. With the limit, I was forced to pare it down to its essentials, and I think the story is stronger because of that.
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I signed up for the SentinelSecrets challenge with considerable trepidation - I had never written to a prompt, and was afraid I wouldn't be able to generate an idea. The prompt was "Someone receives a letter that impacts their life in some way," and the target word-limit was 1,500. I stared at the prompt for a few moments - it sounds kind of ominous, doesn't it, and I don't do 'ominous' - and then this story just popped into my head. I had difficulty keeping it within range of the expected word-limit, which taught me that restrictions can serve to improve writing skills. Without the limit, I would have added a couple of more, probably extraneous, scenes. With the limit, I was forced to pare it down to its essentials, and I think the story is stronger because of that.
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