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#1 |
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curvalicious beeeyatch
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 6,203
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The 1st Annual Great Purgatory Mash-Up
If you've ever lurked, posted, skimmed, stalked or flamed on the R&D "no news is no news purgatory" thread (aka "Purgatory") you'll know what the hell I'm talking about here. If you haven't checked out our lovely thread, fear not! This Mash-Up should still be entertaining.
Basically, someone had the idea of taking short scenes from our writing (250-350 words) and having another member of Purgatory anonymously extend the scene by an additional 250-350 words. No one knows whose excerpt they are working with (well, except for moi, but I ain't telling.) The idea was for the extender to work on the scene, taking from it whatever grabbed them about the writing and to try and guess where the scene might be going. A great exercise for both the original author and the piggybacking author. I'll be posting these scenes here, probably at the rate of one per day, starting Sunday night. Please feel free to comment on them, guess who both authors might be, talk about what you liked or didn't like, differences in styles, etc. etc. etc. Before I post the next excerpt, I'll reveal who each of the authors were. Sound good? Awesome. See you Sunday! EDIT The Results (in no particular order): Firedrake mashed Redzilla Sunna mashed Inkwench Karen mashed Sistermorphine Lara mashed Teriann Branwyn mashed Karen Inkwench mashed Firedrake JustMe mashed Parametric Irysangel mashed Alias Octavia Jy'lenn mashed Tasmin JuneLuv mashed Jy'lenn Tasmin mashed Lara Blondchen mashed Maui Author and JuneLuv Teriann mashed Irysangel Cuteshoes mashed Blondchen Maui Author mashed Branwyn Sistermorphine mashed Rose Alias Octavia mashed Houndrat Parametric mashed Cuteshoes Redzilla mashed Sunna Houndrat mashed Tasha
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Website ~ Blog ~ Twitter ~ YARebels Repped by the Rockstar: W'sE - 74K, ON SUBMISSION!!!!! E - 70K, awaiting revisions B - 72K, FIRST DRAFT DONE! Last edited by Blondchen; 06-05-2009 at 02:29 AM. Reason: Listed participants |
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#3 |
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Print release:Sept.1,'09
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Purgatory's Pit of Doom
Posts: 3,141
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I'll be without internet until Tuesday. Going to Salem.
This should be fun! |
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#4 |
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Steampunkelicious
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Bend, OR
Posts: 4,391
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Should be veeeerrrrry eenteresting.
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Karen Duvall Blog Website ******************************* CLOCKWORK CAT -- Follow-up to Mystic Taxi, still in the conceptual stage. MYSTIC TAXI -- WON 1st PLACE in the Hearts Through History contest! On sub with 3 publishers for the past 2 months. Read a teaser. KNIGHT'S CURSE -- On sub for almost a year with two editors still reading. The nail chewing never stops. |
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#5 |
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curvalicious beeeyatch
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 6,203
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MASH-UP #7
Here we go! There are 21 of these all together and just like when I assigned them, I'm pulling random numbers to post them. Lucky #7 is first up!
You'll see the break where the one writer left off and the other picked up. It's not meant to be a scene break. After a day or so, I'll post who the two authors were, and then the original author is free to post the "real" continuation of the scene. Sound good? Ok. Let the fun begin! ~~~~~ Across the graveyard we went, past the lonely quarters of the deceased. Tombs stood as reminders of what once was. He yanked me around a tall moss covered tree. Jack’s voice carried my name across the warm night air, but I couldn’t answer. Freakin’ great. No way I would be able to explain my disappearance—if I survived. As the beast carried me away from the group, his helper loped beside us in the darkness, nothing more than a shadow in the night. The faces of my assailants weren’t visible in the murky corner of the graveyard, but I felt the fuzz on my attackers paw. The back of my legs scrapped against the concrete sidewalk. Thank goodness, I wore jeans. It still burned, though. My natural instincts took over, my eyes changed, I felt the transformation taking place, and fur rapidly covered my body. Claws pointed from the tips of my fingers, the points of which were pink: remnants from the manicure of my human nails. I continued struggling as he pulled me farther away. Kicking and pushing, nothing worked. His hold on me felt like a vice grip squeezing as tightly as possible. Where were they taking me? Would they kill me right there in the graveyard? They laughed, mocking me. No doubt they were proud of their feat. My claws gouged at his paws—if only I could reach his head, I’d gouge his eyes out. As the other one lumbered along beside us, he slipped on a stray rock distracting my captor. I took that opportunity to break free from the stinky fiend holding me. His breath smelled as if he’d eaten a rotten tuna sandwich and chased it with a tall glass of buttermilk. I shoved the beast until he was forced to release his grasp, then I lurched forward, falling. My body hit the ground with a thud, but I quickly righted myself. My claws held a death grip on my purse—I couldn’t lose it. Soon my transformation would be complete, so I draped the bag around my neck while I still could. # The transformation was miserable, left me aching as always, but at last I had an advantage. The idiots in front of me had no idea what these pink claws were capable of. Less concerned now with escaping with my life, I remembered Jack, still calling my name into the darkness. How to tell him not to worry? But that would have to wait: the two beasts were upright once more, disoriented but beginning to narrow their focus on me again. I darted behind a headstone. I knew - as smart girls know cretins - how they would come after me. I could almost see them silently agreeing, sharing a self-satisfied wink. Sure enough, they quietly (what they thought was quietly) attempted to ambush me from either side of the tomb, giving me a grand opportunity to grab the scruffs of both their necks and bash their heads together. They toppled and I jumped out of the way - about eight feet into the air: I forgot my own strength when I transformed, sometimes - as they collapsed against the headstone, which shifted in the warm, wet earth. I stepped over them to look at the front of it, mouthed an apology to Abigail Parkinson (Beloved Wife and Mother), and then started putting as much distance as possible between me and the two thugs passed out on the ground. From the shelter of a copse of trees, I looked up at the moon, the stupid moon that kept me from Jack. What time was it? How much longer would I have to wait - how much longer would he wait before he gave up on me and left? Did he think I was already dead? I sat cross-legged on the leafy ground, resenting my ruined jeans and my ruined top and my ruined freaking manicure. The purse - my clawed hands flew to my neck. Yeah, the purse was ruined too. That was a bummer. But the contents were safe. "Bright side, bright side..." I whispered to myself, looking up at the moon again. Even if the filth in the graveyard stayed unconscious, it was going to be a long night. |
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#6 |
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Mantittylicious
Join Date: Mar 2005
Posts: 2,093
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I liked it! Now I'm trying to remember who writes about shifters.
![]() I thought it was interesting because I felt the second person has a slightly 'younger' feeling vibe to the piece. If I had to critique (I can't turn it off! I'm editing! I'm sorry!) I would say that I'd prefer a little bit more 'white space' in my reads - to break up the action. There's a nice juicy action bit in the 2nd paragraph of each one and it would have more oomph if it was separate or staggered out. This definitely opened us up with a bang, though. Nice job to writer #2 - you really did a great job continuing the first piece!
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Jill Myles GENTLEMEN PREFER SUCCUBI - December 29, 2009 SUCCUBI LIKE IT HOT - January 19, 2010 Pocket Books http://www.jillmyles.com http://www.theoddshots.com |
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#7 |
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curvalicious beeeyatch
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 6,203
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I thought Author #2 did a great job picking up on the style of the Author #1. And I love the way #2 was able to bring in this sense of the narrator's desperate need to get back to Jack. While I agree with the Irys that the second half sounds younger, if I was just reading through this, I'd totally think it was the same author!
I doubt I did that with my own continuation. Oops! Outted meself. Yes, this one was not me. ![]() But who do you think #2 and #1 are????? |
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#8 |
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Pesky vikings
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Useless Hacksville
Posts: 6,463
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That was a pretty seamless transition between the two writers. The same sense of pace and I liked the little touch of humor in the second piece,e.g. the apology to Abigail Parkinson (Beloved Wife and Mother).
I have no idea who the writers are!!! |
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#9 |
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awesome like a ninja
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Bristol, England
Posts: 4,398
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I have this twitchy feeling that #1 might be Mythica. I know it's not her Roman shapeshifter WIP or the project that's on sub, but it's pinging my radar.
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THE INFERNAL FAMILY (70k UF, query, first chapter) - revising based on beta feedback IRONBANE (85k EF, query) - first draft simmering on the back-burner DREAD MACHINE (20k YA UF) - one dares not question the mysteries of the first draft Reviews, rants and rambles at The University of Fantasy. |
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#10 |
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awesome like a ninja
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Bristol, England
Posts: 4,398
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Is there a chance we could have a list of writers who participated? I think that would make it easier to link everyone up.
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THE INFERNAL FAMILY (70k UF, query, first chapter) - revising based on beta feedback IRONBANE (85k EF, query) - first draft simmering on the back-burner DREAD MACHINE (20k YA UF) - one dares not question the mysteries of the first draft Reviews, rants and rambles at The University of Fantasy. |
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#11 |
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a more different S
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Closer than you think.
Posts: 3,916
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Still thinking on #1 --I can't remember the list of people writing shifter stories-- but I keep thinking of Jen's teasers when I read #2.
Whoever it is, they did a great job matching the voice up, and the pacing, right down to sentence structure.
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My blog: The Purple Patch ___________________________________ "Listen, strange women lyin' in ponds distributin' swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony." (Monty Python. You know you love it.) |
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#12 |
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Mantittylicious
Join Date: Mar 2005
Posts: 2,093
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Oh yes - a list of participants would be nice, so we can guess!
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Jill Myles GENTLEMEN PREFER SUCCUBI - December 29, 2009 SUCCUBI LIKE IT HOT - January 19, 2010 Pocket Books http://www.jillmyles.com http://www.theoddshots.com |
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#13 |
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awesome like a ninja
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Bristol, England
Posts: 4,398
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I think #2 is using distinctive sentence structures - with lots of dashes - and: semi-colons and (parentheses). I don't see those in Jen's teasers. I can think of a lot of people it's not, but still figuring out who it is.
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THE INFERNAL FAMILY (70k UF, query, first chapter) - revising based on beta feedback IRONBANE (85k EF, query) - first draft simmering on the back-burner DREAD MACHINE (20k YA UF) - one dares not question the mysteries of the first draft Reviews, rants and rambles at The University of Fantasy. |
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#14 |
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curvalicious beeeyatch
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 6,203
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Ok. I added it to Post #1 in this thread!
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#15 |
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awesome like a ninja
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Bristol, England
Posts: 4,398
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Gah! Mythica isn't even playing. I suck.
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THE INFERNAL FAMILY (70k UF, query, first chapter) - revising based on beta feedback IRONBANE (85k EF, query) - first draft simmering on the back-burner DREAD MACHINE (20k YA UF) - one dares not question the mysteries of the first draft Reviews, rants and rambles at The University of Fantasy. |
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#16 |
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a more different S
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Closer than you think.
Posts: 3,916
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As do I: Jen isn't either.
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My blog: The Purple Patch ___________________________________ "Listen, strange women lyin' in ponds distributin' swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony." (Monty Python. You know you love it.) |
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#17 |
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Tends to get distrac--
Join Date: Apr 2009
Posts: 920
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I haven't been around long enough to speak with any confidence, but I think Houndrat's number 2.
And now I wish I'd played. This is really cool.
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#18 |
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Benefactor Member
Join Date: Oct 2008
Posts: 2,786
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No guesses, and I agree that the second writer did a great job of meshing tone and story with the first so that it would be a clean continuation. But what struck me the most was how the two writers viewed the shift differently.
In the first I was left a little wanting for a description of how the shift felt - I got the visual, but got the sense the shift was easy and comfortable. But there's more description of pretty much everything else than how it actually feels to shift. So I got the impression shifting is as easy as blinking - no discomfort or drama at all. But the second writer started off with saying the shift was uncomfortable and that changes the character a little for me, because she welcomed the shift despite the pain. Those kind of sensory details are what really draw me into a story. Both writers wrote the character as welcoming the shift, but with a little bit of description of the shift as unpleasant feeling, the second part took on a slightly different tone. Interesting... ~suki |
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#19 |
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all 'twixt up again
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: NH - we sent our snow south
Posts: 3,940
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Ooh, interesting. Gotta agree with whoever else said #2 sounded younger, although the transition is pretty darn good. I think it's the extra dashes and parens that give it a younger, more distractable voice.
I haven't the faintest idea who wrote either piece, just guesses as to who didn't write them. Now, does the fact that I'm mentioning guessing at all give away that I didn't write one of them? Or is it a red herring because I did? Hmm.... |
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#20 |
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Well butter my biscuit!
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Kentucky
Posts: 2,007
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I think #2 is cuteshoes.
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Okay, I'll admit it, I have a thing for shirtless men. Please don't hold it against me. "No shoes, No shirt, No sale." |
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#21 |
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Romans 8:28-31
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Georgia
Posts: 9,522
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Haha, I'd totally put Jenwriter down...then I looked at the list and realized she wasn't playing.
No guesses....better go back and stalk through Teaser Tuesdays maybe!!
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DHtP: YA Contemp: Lookin' For Pub Love TG: YA Urban Fantasy: Agent Revisions The Heart of the Matter: YA Contemp: 20K WEBSITE BLOG OPWFT Blog Cashmellow...Mascot for the Golden Girls BookTour
Last edited by Juneluv12; 05-31-2009 at 03:39 AM. |
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#22 |
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Steampunkelicious
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Bend, OR
Posts: 4,391
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I agree both writers did a great job! The styles are closely matched. I'm guessing writer 1 is Cuteshoes and writer 2 is Inkwench. I would have preferred shorter sentences to punch up the action sequence, which I guess is what Irys was saying. All six paragraphs are kind of long, too.
How fun! Blondie, don't make us wait a whole nuther day before giving us the answer! And I want to see the next one. *pout*
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Karen Duvall Blog Website ******************************* CLOCKWORK CAT -- Follow-up to Mystic Taxi, still in the conceptual stage. MYSTIC TAXI -- WON 1st PLACE in the Hearts Through History contest! On sub with 3 publishers for the past 2 months. Read a teaser. KNIGHT'S CURSE -- On sub for almost a year with two editors still reading. The nail chewing never stops. |
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#23 |
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Come on 2010!
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: On a rock in the middle of the ocean
Posts: 730
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This is so fun! I loved reading this and #2 did a great job on continuing what #1 did. Not sure who either author is though...
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Book #1 - Query graveyard.
Book#2 - 50,000 - Revising Book #3 - 61,000 - Agent with a full. (hoping, hoping) Book #4 - Stagnant at 36,000 words. "It's not a 9-5 job. It's an every moment you're awake job because you actually enjoy the work that you're doing." ~Jeffrey Kalmikoff |
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#24 |
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curvalicious beeeyatch
Join Date: May 2008
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 6,203
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I'm starting to feel guilty being the only one with the answers! Bwahahahahahahaa. I'll tell this much, so far none of the guesses for Mash-Up #7 are correct.
I'll post the answers, and another excerpt, tomorrow morning, you junkies. |
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#25 |
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awesome like a ninja
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Bristol, England
Posts: 4,398
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Ahahaha. Sweet punctuation, you never betray me. Compare #2 to sister's teaser. It's cunningly concealed by the YA voice, but I think we have a match.
__________________
THE INFERNAL FAMILY (70k UF, query, first chapter) - revising based on beta feedback IRONBANE (85k EF, query) - first draft simmering on the back-burner DREAD MACHINE (20k YA UF) - one dares not question the mysteries of the first draft Reviews, rants and rambles at The University of Fantasy. |
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