Introduce Yourself!

ToasterSparks

Hi all,

With the Short Story Competitions and the advertising of the forum, it seems like a lot of new people (including myself) are using the Creative Writing forum.

Why don't you introduce yourself? Tell us something about you, what you like to write about, a favourite book, or anything to help us all get to know one another.

Me? I've been writing all my life, from writing animal stories as a kid, to a little bit of fanfiction, to kid's stories. I've even gotten a couple of stories published! I'm 22 and an unemployed graduate, so I've plenty of time on my hands!

Also Starring LeVar Burton

Great idea ToasterSparks.

I'm 23 and from Dublin or the Big Schmoke as some people like to refer to it... I do a bit of barwork to help pay the bills, but currently working as a Stand-Up Comedian on the Dublin Circuit for the last couple of months - doing my first International gig in London at the beginning of July and booked in for gigs in London and Manchester... Hoping to do gigs in every corner of Ireland this summer too...
Been writing since I've been in the womb, apparently - to be fair it's 9 months of doing f**k all else... Won a few competitions and awards for the writing over the years, and my strong points are Comedy, Drama and Fantasy, but I like to dabble in pretty much everything...
I also do a bit of Radio DJing, Journalism and Acting, so I tend to be kept busy...
My favourite author is Stephen King and Pet Semetary is my favourite book...
I also love music, films and television, and love to talk about myself, but I won't ramble on for too long here...
Check out my blog (www.thepinkbananahypothesis.blogspot.com) and my website (www.ciantaaffe.tk) which needs a bit of work...

Antilles

I am a 27 year old civil servant. I always liked writing, and tried journalism in college but it wasn't for me. Now I work in IT, and write fiction in my spare time. I've submitted stories for publication, but so far none have made the cut.

I keep a moleskine notebook with me most of the time, and often write on the train journey to work. My current portfolio consists of a clutch of short stories, a poem, and two novels which are pretty terrible. I put everything except the novels on my website.

At present, I've just finished writing my entry for VOAT, and I'm tinkering with a story that I hope will turn into a decent novel.

dawvee

I'm a 29 years old, from Canada originally but moved to Dublin in 2006. I'm a lapsed poet and artist (printmaker/painter), the latter having been what I did my degree in, and the former what I devoted most of my early 20s to doing. I've only really picked up writing again recently, after having my joy sapped temporarily by doing an English degree as well.

Though if I could go back, I'd still do the English degree, since it exposed me to a lot of writing I probably wouldn't have seen otherwise. Case in point, my favorite novel is The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford - a book I only learned existed after it was used repeatedly as an exemplar of Modernist subjectivism in a course book. Also, TS Eliot's "The Waste Land" is my absolute favorite thing ever written in English, despite the fact that it barely qualifies.

In the last few years, I've also done a lot of music (playing with synthesizers, anyway) and programming, specifically for the iPhone. I even made a game last year.

piby

23, with a science degree, and currently studying for my MSc. In many ways perhaps science isn't the best partner to a fiction writer but if the idea of becoming an author doesn't work (or even if it does!) at least I'll have something to fall back on, something I actually do enjoy

Two favourite authors would probably be Bret Easton Ellis and Sebastian Faulks. Quite far removed from each others in mnay ways. Even though I like them I find a lot of Ellis's work so depressing (although that's the point) but I love his freedom, he's not afraid to try things i.e. starting and ending Rules of Attraction mid-sentence! Faulks is that sort of author I aspire to in terms of his prose. He's just beautiful to read with good, character-driven stories. In this context I also quite like Ian McEwan and Loius de Berniers. That said I haven't read a lot of fiction in the last few years so I'm sure there are more authors out there for me to discover.

Have a few ideas for stories floating about although there's one in particular I'm trying to flesh out

Robbyn

I seem to be the youngest here, well so far anyways. This thread is a great idea

I'm 17, from dublin but I live in Longford. I moved here when I was fifteen, I love it. Just finished fifth year and doing leaving cert next year. I want to study journalism after school.

I loved reading since I could read, but I only recently started to write seriously, besides short stories in random copies. I'm not experienced and only beginning to get a feel for what I like to write about, so nothing specific, yet! although I love meaningful serious stories, so comedy wouldn't be my thing.

I'm Still learning a lot about writing itself. so the stuff I write won't blow anyone away but I'll get there some day hopefully

My favorite book is August '44 by Carlo Gebler.

I have and will put stories on a creative writing blog I use.

http://webothcanspeakintongues.tumblr.com

Oryx

Compared to the rest of you, Im very old and very uneducated. No literary study since leaving cert a zillion years ago. Started writing a (now abandoned) blog, which I kept up for about a year. Since then Ive pottered with a bit of poetry, and some short stories. Nothing published but ya never know. Someday if I get my finger out and write properly maybe.

I read a lot, the book that comes to mind as a favourite is the Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, also I like Philip Pullmans Dark Materials series, just for the imagination of the story.

pickarooney

These are the cagiest introductions since Johnny Cage fought Nicholas Cage in a Cage Fight.

Oryx

This is boards. Im cagey here. Unless its in mods forum or S&S where I let it all hang out. But you know that.

pickarooney

We can all work out everything we need from they way we write anyway.

For example, though he hasn't said it publicly, we're all aware that Antilles walks with a pronounced lisp and has never tried beetroot.

The Sparrow

pickarooney wrote: »

We can all work out everything we need from they way we write anyway.

For example, though he hasn't said it publicly, we're all aware that Antilles walks with a pronounced lisp and has never tried beetroot.

Pickarooney clearly is:

Oryx

And you paint your toenails and like steak tartare.

My big secret is that I moonlight as a pole dancer.

Antilles

pickarooney wrote: »

Antilles walks with a pronounced lisp and has never tried beetroot.

Its true! I also talk with a limp

My award winning novel, "101 Reasons I'll Never Eat a Beetroot (And You Shouldn't Either)" is available from Amazon this July.

piby

Antilles wrote: »

Its true! I also talk with a limp

My award winning novel, "101 Reasons I'll Never Eat a Beetroot (And You Shouldn't Either)" is available from Amazon this July.

I just pre-ordered a copy.

Oryx

Also put my name down for that. Sounds like a bestseller.

There is an actual book called '100 uses for a dead cat'. I wish Id written that.

HalloweenJack

I'm 22 and will go into my final year in my journalism course in September. The only stuf I've had published are all journalistic pieces, not one bit of my own creative work. Although, I haven't completed anything.

Although I love literature, I'm not a big reader, in that I only ever read at night. Consequently, I haven't been exposed to many writing styles.

I always liked writing. It was my favourite part of English class in school and I had one teacher in secondary school who encouraged my writing.

Since I've been a kid, I've always scribbled down ideas but I've never fully expanded them. I have several ideas for novels jotted down and I've done exetensive research for one. Unfortunately, continuously writing is a big problem for me. I get distracted very easily. Also, my computer crashed a few weeks ago and I lost a lot of the stuff I had been working on.

Contessa Raven

Hello all! Long time lurker but I have never actually posted here before.

My name is Philippa although everyone calls me Pip.
I'm 22. I just finished a college degree in Creative Sound Design. Moved back home to Dublin there on Monday. I play guitar and sing. I also have a keen interest in Japanese culture and I am quite a fan of tattoos and piercings.

I read an awful lot of books. My favourite genre is Fantasy although I also like books set in the medieval period. I will give most things a chance although I hate sci-fi generally.

I wrote a lot as a child and won some awards in competitions. Then I forgot about writing while I was in secondary school and have taken it back up in the last year and a half. At the moment I am writing a novel set in Japan during the time of Samurai. I have put a lot of research into it over the last year. So much so that I have only written the first 4 Chapters!

Couldn't pick a favourite book although I do have favourite series' of books:

The Tales of the Otori by Lian Hearn
The Inheritance Series by Christopher Paolini
Women of the Otherworld Series by Kelley Armstrong

At the moment I am reading The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory.

Nice to meet you all!

Ulysses Gaze

Nice to meet you all

Well here goes nothing.....

I'm 33 and moved to London from Dublin around 5 months ago. Couldn't find work in Ireland and so moved here at the end of January.

I used to write a lot when I was younger but have let it lapse over the last few years. I had enrolled in creative writing classes in the past but they never really clicked with me for some reason. Possibly a case of being intimidated by other writers on these courses with extensive portfolio's. My own portfolio consisted of one short story at the time that I considered quite good....until I read some of the other students compositions.

So what brings me back to writing after all this time?

Firstly, a nagging feeling in the back of my mind that it was something I NEED to do.

Secondly I have two story ideas that are, to steal from a Metallica song, 'burning in my brain' at the moment. One has been kindling there for the last three/four years. The second is a newer idea that has only recently put the hook in me. I've mapped it out and really just need to sit down and write it.

Thirdly, and this is probably THE catalyst to my return to writing, was reading 'On Writing' by Stephen King. The fact that writing is a craft that you need to practice and refine constantly had escaped me. Not all authors are born to write works of innate genius at the first attempt. So reinforced by King's tough but very practical advice I have set out to try my hand at writing once again.


Oh my favourite authors are:

Stephen King
Charles Bukowski
Ernest Hemingway
Alexsandr Solzhenitsyn
John Steinbeck

There are a lot of others but these five are at the top of my list currently.

Mr E

I'm Dave, 36, living in Castleconnell in Co. Limerick. I don't write an awful lot, but my competition entries here have been well received, so I'm tempted to write something outside of those boundaries. I have some good ideas in my head and want to see if they'll pan out.

I'm a fan of good crime and thriller fiction (there is alot of crap out there), and I'm currently enjoying Freedom by Daniel Suarez (coming straight from Daemon, his previous book). Other authors I like are Lee Child, Nelson DeMille and Mark Gimenez.

smcgiff

38, accountant - no formal writing experience, but wannabe writer.

It's been a couple of years since I did any serious writing, but I have written two books.

I wrote a fictional novel first, but didn't get published. It did get fairly decent feedback. One agent wanted to see the complete novel after reading the first three chapters, but eventually passed. An assistant editor from Random House replied saying she forwarded it on up the line, but was eventually passed on (she said narrowly), but said to contact her if I'd more work (but not YA). Early on an Irish publisher wrote back giving detailed reader feedback saying where it could be improved, but no promises that even if changes were made that it would get published. I eventually came to the sad conclusion that it wasn't going to make it.

My second book is a fantasy aimed at YA, and while I thought it was much better than my first novel it didn't get any positive feedback. :o:(

So, I'm licking my wounds at the moment, but hope to get back up on the saddle eventually!

I remember really enjoying the writing process and hanging out in writing forums, but it seems to be obscured at the moment by the rejection (insert violin music here).

I've not given up on the second book yet, but need to build up the energy first to try and see where I'm getting it wrong.

And... that's me.

cobsie

Hi All - I'm a first time poster on the boards and a little shy about it! I've been reading the threads and am impressed by how supportive and good-humoured - and constructive - the conversations are. So I decided to take the plunge and join in!!

I'm in my 30s, Irish, but lived for a long time in the States. I'm back in Dublin now and have started writing again in earnest.

I've been writing all my life but lately I have started concentrating my efforts on a series of short stories that I hope to bring together in a collection. The idea is to have a set of stories that are linked to each other, a la The Things They Carried, or Nine Stories (not that I am comparing myself either to Tim O'Brien or JD Salinger!). I hope to post a couple of stories here for feedback and I'm really interested to see what others are working on.

Thanks!

angelll

Hi i'm angelll,29,single mum. Writing since i was a tween.I read almost anything (although sci-fi/supernatural/horror are my favourites) as long as it's fiction. I find it really hard to write a short story without killing someone (in the story!!!):eek: . Honestly,i start out with something like 'It was a sunny day,Claire was in a good mood' and it turns into 'and the ground opened up and demons from hell flew out'. Besides that i'm relatively normal. . I've had an idea for a childrens book series for years but can't seem to sit down and get it done so i'm hoping the creative writing competitions will help me on the way. Nice to meet you all!

Blush_01

Hi all! I'm in my 20s (don't want to admit to an age because then I'll have to keep ageing - I've heard that's bad for women? *shrugs*) and working in Dublin, though I'm a massive culchie at heart. I've been in Dublin for the past 7 years, initially for college, now to pay for my car.

I never finish anything, but I enjoy starting stuff, so I write for fun. I don't enter competitions, I don't have any concrete plans for a novel, and all in all I'm a bit vague about writing, but I like it, and I took a beginner's writing class in the IWC earlier this year. I sort-of expected to come out of it with more material, more of a discipline, but it's my own fault that I didn't so c'est la vie.

I love the VOAT threads, because they're the kind of thing I like to do - fun and entertaining.

Also, a few of us meet up semi-regularly to have a bit of a scribble in the Gresham, so if you're interested I'll add you to the text list. It's fun and although there is homework it's mainly to try to get used to having to do something for a set time - I find it productive anyway.

tapo

Im 39 years old, have always written but very informally. I love my family and i love the passion that all sports engender

I cant get enough of beetroot and pickled onions, and as they say on the "Fast Show" "Today I will mostly be wearing deck shoes"

Support Dublin. live in Westmeath now, have lived all over the world at various times

When it comes to reading and writing , i just love a good story

I suppose the books that have had the biggest impact on me are "Banco" by Henri Charriere and "Ten Men Dead" The srory of the 1981 Hunger Strike, by David Beresford

Check out my ramblings on www.irelandadifferentperspective.blogspot.com