| General Non-Fiction posted April 7, 2022 |
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A follow up on the FanStory Interviews
A Postscript
by Terry Broxson
I recently finished posting a five-part interview with three recognized FanStory members: Lyenochka, the pen name for a wonderful lady; Jay Squires, the actual name of an amusing fellow; and RGstar, the real name of RG Star, writer extraordinaire.
I wanted to publicly thank each of them for agreeing to do the project—they are outstanding people.
I also wanted to answer some questions that came up in the reviews about the project.
My original thought was to do one session with each person answering the same questions, and the reader could see three different answers. But life happens, and sometimes fate steps in and stomps on your idea. In this case, it was stomped on for the better.
I sent out my questions, and Lyenochka, being the wonderful woman she is, promptly returned her answers. I read it and thought, "Dang, this is good. I hope the two guys can do as well."
Life stepped in with circumstances beyond their control and delayed Jay and RG's answers.
That delay, along with Lyenochka's outstanding work, made me decide these should be separate interviews. Lyenochka's interview was full of insight into how she works, thinks, and how it has changed since joining Fanstory. She had helpful thoughts on reviewing, and the reader learned a great deal about her interests and process.
Jay's interview was second, and the reader felt like we were sitting next to him at 7:30 AM in front of his computer, trying to figure out what we were going to write. Whatever we would write with him was going to be exciting and most likely fun. And like him, writing by the seat of our pants!
Where else would reviewing be compared to a love scene between Brad Pitt and Penelope Cruz with Ms. Cruz telling Brad he has bad breath from eating tacos? Jay had a lot of other insights like presentation: avoid the wall of words!
The first review of Jay's interview said, "He sure was long-winded." The review was by Jay Squires.
The last interview was with RG Star. By this time, I had changed some of the questions, and RG provided a lot of material. I did not want Mr. Squires to offer up a critique for length, so I decided to do three sessions. I thought RG's answers were brilliant and instructive. He put a lot of thought and work into his interview, it showed...greatness.
AM I GOING TO DO ANY MORE INTERVIEWS?
No. I don't want to be known as the interview guy.
I would encourage others to feel free to do some of their own. There are a lot of great writers on this site. Hearing how they work at writing would be interesting.
WHY DID I CHOOSE THESE WRITERS?
The first poem and stories I posted on FanStory were reviewed by all three. Since I was new, I wanted to see who was reviewing me, so I read their offerings. I was very impressed.
When I started on FanStory last fall, I thought I could tell stories, but my writing education, especially grammar, punctuation, and tenses, were all very weak. Eventually, I bought premier Grammarly. I am anxiously waiting for Grammarly to come out with a double-platinum premier for stupid writers.
Each review I received from Lyenochka, Jay, and RG was supportive. RG only commented on the positives of storytelling that he saw in my writing.
Jay complimented me on the storytelling and then gave me about 30 edits that needed to be made. But he did it in a kind and funny way. Jay even gave me the pros and cons of using a ? mark. Then he said, "You decide."
Lyenochka was also supportive and more charitable in the number of edits. But I am sure she saw all the mistakes just as Jay had.
In short, they helped me as a beginner on FanStory, I thought I might get more insights if they were interviewed.
DID I EDIT THEM?
Lyenochka: not one word.
Jay: yes, two words, and I deleted one question. What work of his would he want people to read? Jay said his most recent. I thought no, he has too much good stuff.
RG: Edit RG? Are you kidding?
WHAT WAS MY FAVORITE WORK BY EACH WRITER?
Lyenochka writes across several genres, as do the others. I like her stories. My favorite was a Christmas story, "Mary Beth's Gifts." I shared that with many folks.
Jay Squires is best known for his excellent scriptwriting. But my favorite was a story he entered in the Christmas Story contest. "Where have all the Carolers Gone?" After reading all the entries, I felt Jay's story should win. Jay came in third.
RG Star is best known on FanStory for his poetry. My favorite is "Michelle." When I reviewed it, I told him I knew Michelle, but her name was Zoe. I was married to her for forty-four years. I think lots of guys would read that poem and think, "Yes, I know Michelle, but I know her by a different name."
I am going to see if I can put all the interviews into one format and make it available for new members or members who may not have seen it.
Thank you for reading and for your interest. Terry Broxson.
I recently finished posting a five-part interview with three recognized FanStory members: Lyenochka, the pen name for a wonderful lady; Jay Squires, the actual name of an amusing fellow; and RGstar, the real name of RG Star, writer extraordinaire.
I wanted to publicly thank each of them for agreeing to do the project—they are outstanding people.
I also wanted to answer some questions that came up in the reviews about the project.
My original thought was to do one session with each person answering the same questions, and the reader could see three different answers. But life happens, and sometimes fate steps in and stomps on your idea. In this case, it was stomped on for the better.
I sent out my questions, and Lyenochka, being the wonderful woman she is, promptly returned her answers. I read it and thought, "Dang, this is good. I hope the two guys can do as well."
Life stepped in with circumstances beyond their control and delayed Jay and RG's answers.
That delay, along with Lyenochka's outstanding work, made me decide these should be separate interviews. Lyenochka's interview was full of insight into how she works, thinks, and how it has changed since joining Fanstory. She had helpful thoughts on reviewing, and the reader learned a great deal about her interests and process.
Jay's interview was second, and the reader felt like we were sitting next to him at 7:30 AM in front of his computer, trying to figure out what we were going to write. Whatever we would write with him was going to be exciting and most likely fun. And like him, writing by the seat of our pants!
Where else would reviewing be compared to a love scene between Brad Pitt and Penelope Cruz with Ms. Cruz telling Brad he has bad breath from eating tacos? Jay had a lot of other insights like presentation: avoid the wall of words!
The first review of Jay's interview said, "He sure was long-winded." The review was by Jay Squires.
The last interview was with RG Star. By this time, I had changed some of the questions, and RG provided a lot of material. I did not want Mr. Squires to offer up a critique for length, so I decided to do three sessions. I thought RG's answers were brilliant and instructive. He put a lot of thought and work into his interview, it showed...greatness.
AM I GOING TO DO ANY MORE INTERVIEWS?
No. I don't want to be known as the interview guy.
I would encourage others to feel free to do some of their own. There are a lot of great writers on this site. Hearing how they work at writing would be interesting.
WHY DID I CHOOSE THESE WRITERS?
The first poem and stories I posted on FanStory were reviewed by all three. Since I was new, I wanted to see who was reviewing me, so I read their offerings. I was very impressed.
When I started on FanStory last fall, I thought I could tell stories, but my writing education, especially grammar, punctuation, and tenses, were all very weak. Eventually, I bought premier Grammarly. I am anxiously waiting for Grammarly to come out with a double-platinum premier for stupid writers.
Each review I received from Lyenochka, Jay, and RG was supportive. RG only commented on the positives of storytelling that he saw in my writing.
Jay complimented me on the storytelling and then gave me about 30 edits that needed to be made. But he did it in a kind and funny way. Jay even gave me the pros and cons of using a ? mark. Then he said, "You decide."
Lyenochka was also supportive and more charitable in the number of edits. But I am sure she saw all the mistakes just as Jay had.
In short, they helped me as a beginner on FanStory, I thought I might get more insights if they were interviewed.
DID I EDIT THEM?
Lyenochka: not one word.
Jay: yes, two words, and I deleted one question. What work of his would he want people to read? Jay said his most recent. I thought no, he has too much good stuff.
RG: Edit RG? Are you kidding?
WHAT WAS MY FAVORITE WORK BY EACH WRITER?
Lyenochka writes across several genres, as do the others. I like her stories. My favorite was a Christmas story, "Mary Beth's Gifts." I shared that with many folks.
Jay Squires is best known for his excellent scriptwriting. But my favorite was a story he entered in the Christmas Story contest. "Where have all the Carolers Gone?" After reading all the entries, I felt Jay's story should win. Jay came in third.
RG Star is best known on FanStory for his poetry. My favorite is "Michelle." When I reviewed it, I told him I knew Michelle, but her name was Zoe. I was married to her for forty-four years. I think lots of guys would read that poem and think, "Yes, I know Michelle, but I know her by a different name."
I am going to see if I can put all the interviews into one format and make it available for new members or members who may not have seen it.
Thank you for reading and for your interest. Terry Broxson.
I wanted to publicly thank each of them for agreeing to do the project—they are outstanding people.
I also wanted to answer some questions that came up in the reviews about the project.
My original thought was to do one session with each person answering the same questions, and the reader could see three different answers. But life happens, and sometimes fate steps in and stomps on your idea. In this case, it was stomped on for the better.
I sent out my questions, and Lyenochka, being the wonderful woman she is, promptly returned her answers. I read it and thought, "Dang, this is good. I hope the two guys can do as well."
Life stepped in with circumstances beyond their control and delayed Jay and RG's answers.
That delay, along with Lyenochka's outstanding work, made me decide these should be separate interviews. Lyenochka's interview was full of insight into how she works, thinks, and how it has changed since joining Fanstory. She had helpful thoughts on reviewing, and the reader learned a great deal about her interests and process.
Jay's interview was second, and the reader felt like we were sitting next to him at 7:30 AM in front of his computer, trying to figure out what we were going to write. Whatever we would write with him was going to be exciting and most likely fun. And like him, writing by the seat of our pants!
Where else would reviewing be compared to a love scene between Brad Pitt and Penelope Cruz with Ms. Cruz telling Brad he has bad breath from eating tacos? Jay had a lot of other insights like presentation: avoid the wall of words!
The first review of Jay's interview said, "He sure was long-winded." The review was by Jay Squires.
The last interview was with RG Star. By this time, I had changed some of the questions, and RG provided a lot of material. I did not want Mr. Squires to offer up a critique for length, so I decided to do three sessions. I thought RG's answers were brilliant and instructive. He put a lot of thought and work into his interview, it showed...greatness.
AM I GOING TO DO ANY MORE INTERVIEWS?
No. I don't want to be known as the interview guy.
I would encourage others to feel free to do some of their own. There are a lot of great writers on this site. Hearing how they work at writing would be interesting.
WHY DID I CHOOSE THESE WRITERS?
The first poem and stories I posted on FanStory were reviewed by all three. Since I was new, I wanted to see who was reviewing me, so I read their offerings. I was very impressed.
When I started on FanStory last fall, I thought I could tell stories, but my writing education, especially grammar, punctuation, and tenses, were all very weak. Eventually, I bought premier Grammarly. I am anxiously waiting for Grammarly to come out with a double-platinum premier for stupid writers.
Each review I received from Lyenochka, Jay, and RG was supportive. RG only commented on the positives of storytelling that he saw in my writing.
Jay complimented me on the storytelling and then gave me about 30 edits that needed to be made. But he did it in a kind and funny way. Jay even gave me the pros and cons of using a ? mark. Then he said, "You decide."
Lyenochka was also supportive and more charitable in the number of edits. But I am sure she saw all the mistakes just as Jay had.
In short, they helped me as a beginner on FanStory, I thought I might get more insights if they were interviewed.
DID I EDIT THEM?
Lyenochka: not one word.
Jay: yes, two words, and I deleted one question. What work of his would he want people to read? Jay said his most recent. I thought no, he has too much good stuff.
RG: Edit RG? Are you kidding?
WHAT WAS MY FAVORITE WORK BY EACH WRITER?
Lyenochka writes across several genres, as do the others. I like her stories. My favorite was a Christmas story, "Mary Beth's Gifts." I shared that with many folks.
Jay Squires is best known for his excellent scriptwriting. But my favorite was a story he entered in the Christmas Story contest. "Where have all the Carolers Gone?" After reading all the entries, I felt Jay's story should win. Jay came in third.
RG Star is best known on FanStory for his poetry. My favorite is "Michelle." When I reviewed it, I told him I knew Michelle, but her name was Zoe. I was married to her for forty-four years. I think lots of guys would read that poem and think, "Yes, I know Michelle, but I know her by a different name."
I am going to see if I can put all the interviews into one format and make it available for new members or members who may not have seen it.
Thank you for reading and for your interest. Terry Broxson.
 Recognized |
#11 April 2022 |
Artwork by meg119 at FanArtReview.com
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