Turning 30

I don't want to turn this thread into a personal blog of mine. All I'm saying is, that at a certain point you'll realize, that there is so much interesting stuff to do in this world but you just won't have a chance anymore to become good at it. Doesn't matter if you want to become an expert in a certain field or just go to bars and pick up a bunch of girls. If you don't start early enough, you'll be a dilletante at best and you can never learn everything you would like to learn. I got married this year and I'm already thinking about all the stuff that I'll teach my kid so he will achieve more than I ever did and I hate myself for it.

Getting rejected again.

West Branch, Slice, and a smaller but still very cool magazine called Flapperhouse. I guess I better start scrambling together a collection if I want to make the 25 cut-off then.

I'm 25 and I've recently been panicking about this and telling myself that maybe I should just have a kid in the future and make sure he takes advantage of his potential. But I've decided instead to basically LARP as my potential genius kid and see how I get on. I'm going to suffer poverty and humiliation in the near-future as a consequence of this decision but it's what I know I have to do in order to be anything more than a dull, regretful, burned out middle-aged nobody. If I had a wife or even a girlfriend I'd probably be less delusional and determined, but alas.

Congrats man and good luck. Want to share any links?

Appreciate it, bud. And let me mull it over for a little while. I have a bit of a phobia about posting personal info on here.

>Is there any worse feeling

Writing?

*its quality. Sorry for correcting, but hey, aspiring writer, get used to it.

Actually, they don't need to make money off your book, it can give them some other sort of benefit. Like reputation.

Good luck! I didn't panic enough at that age (not, that I didn't panic) and only understood now where it's probably too late. But maybe it's just me.

I want to be published!
>why
So people can read my stuff!
>so the money's no big deal?
I want money too!
>what about the readers?
I want those too!
>what about people who actually enjoy your stuff?
I want those too!
>how about writing some more, different works then?
No! It's the publisher's fault!
>can't you self publish?
I won't sell, I have no marketing!
>well, good luck then. Also drop the exclamation points, faggot.

>"Who is James Joyce?"
>"Who is Wallace Stevens?"
>"Who is Toni Morrison?"
>"Who is Bram Stoker?"
>"Who is Anthony Burgess?"
>"Who is William S. Burroughs?"
>"Who is George Eliot?"
>"Who is Charles Bukowski?"
>"Who is Marquis de Sade?"
>"Who is Laura Ingalls Wilder?"
>"Who is James Michener?"
>"Who is Sherwood Anderson?"
>"Who is Henry Miller?"
>"Who is Richard Adams?"
>"Who is O. Henry?"

I think that should give you enough answers to start, OP.

Listen, getting older sucks. I'm a bit older than you, actually. Great work sometimes spills out. Great work sometimes takes time. There is no "right" way or path.

Of course we all wish we were rich and famous and living the comfy Veeky Forums life by the time we were thirty. We all wish we were the Veeky Forums wunderkind with our baby faces plastered on the cover of magazines and model faces looking up at us with our cock in their mouth. Truth is, life just doesn't work that way. At least, not always. That's okay.

Keep at it. Keep learning. The worst thing you can do is rush to publish shit just to get something on the books. Don't get me wrong, don't fall in the perfectionist trap either (I did for a long, long, long time), but don't beat yourself up over not being published by 30. There's plenty of life left and an eternity for your legacy.

You'll be fine, kid. I promise.

Thanks dad.

Meh. More like slightly older brother, but no problem. You're welcome. I'm certain you were sincere.

Of course.

don't let anyone get you down murrayposter. I still remember that publishing expose' post you did, great work, even though some faggot called you out.
Reality is underwhelming. But that's why it's reality.

C'est la vie.

That is a curious comma. It isn't even specifically incorrect, just a very interesting usage.

Thirty is just a number. Just keep writing.

No problem. Altough I occasionally write in English, it's not my first language. At least now I know I still have to pay attention to that " ' ".

As for reputation, it's worthless when compared to money. To publish a book, the company has to spend. If it doesn't turn a profit, it's a failed project.

I don't think reputation plays any role among the publishers of my country to be fair. Sure, they have quality control, they don't allow terrible translations and such, but that's about it. There are more aspiring writers than publishers, so it's not the artist who picks and chooses, but the company. Why would a writer refuse based on the publisher's reputation if he knows that his work won't be appreciated elsewhere?

For what it's worth, reputation does matter, but not in the way you think: Nowadays a publisher's reputation is based on whether they can create enough hype by succesful marketing. The only people who are concerned about this are generic writers writing generic books, 50 shades knock-offs, terrible George R. R. copycats. They know their work sells, the publishers know their work sells, so the writer has the upper hand in this situation.

At least that's how it goes in my country.

>Literature is a dying business.

Source?

>I'm already thinking about all the stuff that I'll teach my kid so he will achieve more than I ever did

Could you give some examples?

Good luck to you. I'm lowkey inspired rn

Are you me? I feel like I have the intellect do do anything I really wanted, but I live in near poverty in order to afford the free time to write/play music and when things get rough, the only thing that keeps me going is being a middle aged, dispassionate, uninteresting man.

Stop calling yourself an aspiring writer and start calling yourself a writer.

I want to read to my child a lot nore than my parents read to me. I want to to make him or her familiar with philosophical concepts in a child friendly way. I want my kid to see the joy in learning despite of how frustrating school can be. I want my kid to take dance lessons so he won't be an awkward fuck in his teenage years when it comes to dancing and boxing lessons might not be bad either, also for self esteem reasons. I want to make trips to museums so that the little shithead can see the beauty in art. I want to be open about sexuality and explain, how to handle the opposite sex. I will definitely make sure that my kid will do his homework, understands the importance of hard work and doesn't waste the whole day on vidya (something, my parents never really did). There's a ton of shit I want to do but I'm afraid, that I'll be one of these overdemanding parents who want to compensate for what they themselves never achieved. That shit is difficult already.

nigga you get rejected again nigga?!

i feel exactly the same, i've completely missed out on any chance to form my life into something that doesn't make me want to kill myself every day. your fate is basically sealed very early in life.

>lit is a dying business

There was a study done a few years ago, like 2014, that more books are being published than previous years, along with ebooks, and statistics to prove it

I cannot provide a source though, was in a stephen fry documentary

Didn't NYT publish his stuff?

More books might be getting sold but is more literature being sold?

yes

More trash books, not more literary fiction.

Don't feel bad user. I e-published at 40 and I feel fine. What's important here is that you took the time and effort to craft something you enjoyed. Do you really want to be the guy who hates to write but gets paid for it? I'm publishing a new book every three months through 2018 and already I had someone come up to me and tell me they were a fan. Feels good man. Don't give up. Enjoy honing your craft and enjoy creating something others will enjoy. If you're making a buck but you're miserable then you're in it for the wrong reasons.

-Uncle Gaskun

>The worst thing you can do is rush to publish shit just to get something on the books.

Not true. Many great writers have rushed out something for publication and ended up far better off for it.

>read a lot to the child
>pressure the child to succeed
>discourage apathy and time-wasting
>instill the child with self-confidence
>encourage the child to work towards attending a great college
>encourage the child to submit short stories and establish themselves at an early age
>don't pressure the child into getting some shit-tier white collar job for the sake of keeping up appearances

Post a link gaskun?

Long-time supporter here.

amazon.com/Fusion-Heart-STAR-EPIC-Book-ebook/dp/B01G0TOU14

> Was looking for a new book to read and I stumbled on a new writer was unable to put it down. Word is that the whole story is finished and all 11 volumes are going to be released 90-120 or so days apart over the next 3 years

Anons are nice

That was very nice.

It's been a rough year. Just got laid off from the job I left the gas station for. I'm making extra money helping a friend tear down a Halloween store and inventory the merch. Weeeee.

>Is there any worse feeling as an aspiring writer?
Yes, being aspiring.

Do you still have a wife?

30+ is super gentle in literature
try being unpublished in music at that age

Mrs. Kun is fine, yes

kek

Getting published is pretty easy, desu, if you know what publishers want and you apply yourself. Presuming you always wanted to be published, if you aren't by thirty, then writing isn't an aspiration for you, it's a velleity. There's simply no excuse in the age when we have such labor-saving tools for writing.

Do you still live in Versailles my man?

>writing to be read

Lexington. Shoot me an email at [email protected] and I'll send you some digital copies for free. Desi senpai senpai

Leonard Cohen, The National, The Cramps, Guided By Voices.

Any more musicians start out over 30?

As if anyone in their twenties has anything to say worth listening to.

Irony

>turned 40 last winter
>tfw more hateful than ever
Feels productive, man!

Keep it up user. Suffering only makes the work better.

I was 26 when I published my first novel, and I published it literally... 2 weeks ago. Yup, just checked, 2 weeks ago today my novel showed up on Amazon and my friend in the US bought the first copy. Seriously, with CreateSpace, it is RIDICULOUSLY easy. It's possible to publish it for free, and you know what?... I'm poor as fuck, and I did it for free. I WANTED to get the cover done by a graphic designer, but that sort of fell through, I got impatient, so went ahead and made my own cover with CreateSpace's Cover Creator program. I also did the editing myself. From the reviews I've heard thus far, my writing style isn't exactly perfect, but I've still heard that it's 'well written', which I assume means it's got decent sentence structure and good grammerz. Obviously, that last word was a joke. Hah.

What I'm saying is... SHIA LABEOUF! Just... DO IT! Don't let your dreams, be memes. Put fingertips to keyboard, or if you're all fancy then put pen to paper (or if you're fucking awesome, put hands to typewriter... what? I think typewriters are kickass...) and write your book. I've wanted to write mine for YEARS! Possibly as early as 9-10 years ago, but for the past 4 years I've REALLY wanted it done, and so I did it. From typing the first words, to publishing it, I had it done in less than 2 months. You could have this fucker for sale by JANUARY, user!

hows that marketing going user
how that sales going user
are you on social media user
post it so I can judge for myself user

Lol.

No im just realistic enough to understand that a lot of people who went on to do great things, only achieved those great things later in life.

You are a self loathing, projecting faggot who thinks my understanding of reality correlates to my 'literary ambition,' when, in reality, it shows how talentless and depressed you are that you haven't dont anything with your life. What are you, 30? 40?

Marketing? You mean getting people to notice it? Hah... horrible.

Sales? Basically non-existant. You know that friend who bought the book? She seems to be LITERALLY the only one who did.

Social media? I made a Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads account, but I seriously know next to nothing about either and wouldn't know how to get people's attention without feeling like I'm trying to shove my novel down people's throats with "Hey buy my book", "Check out my book", "I published this and if you like zombies I think you'll enjoy it", etc.

Post it? I've put some of it on CreateSpace's forums for other members to read a chunk of it and review it. That's where my reviews came from; the friend who bought it hasn't even read it all herself yet so I guess I was hasty in saying my book has been 'reviewed' because nobody has actually read the WHOLE thing yet; basically just some people on CreateSpace and said friend telling me about what she thought in regards to the first 60-odd pages of it.

Honestly, I'm nervous about actually saying what it is on here, because I've been lurking Veeky Forums off and on long enough to know that it can ruin people's fucking lives, even though I wrote my novel under a pseudonym. I'm basically just explaining to OP that CreateSpace makes it INCREDIBLY easy to self-publish, that OP can INDEED do it if he or she just writes/edits it (or gets someone else to edit it if they've got the money), and showing how unbelievably exciting it is to FINALLY accomplish something that you've wanted to do for years.

If you really want me to though, I could post some of what I've wrote... want to give me a page number to take a few paragraphs from? It's a 226 page novel. There IS some smut in there though, fyi.

Jesus Christ, you're way too good at writing like a piece of shit.

Well, so much for sounding inspiring I guess.

post it user
no one cares user
there's like a million people who shill here with real books, you won't risk anything. All the crazies are on /b/.
He's probably just made at the all caps that ticked me off too but I figured 'he's 26 and probably had sex, so he doesn't know yet about the wizard powers' so I gave you a break.

>Reality is underwhelming. But that's why it's reality.

it's actually only called Reality because it's real

I admittedly do have a tendency to use caps (though I just use Shift) in order to stress words, and in my novel there are indeed words or at times whole sentences capitalized when there's yelling. I also use italics of course when a word is merely stressed rather shouted, yet sometimes I use both if a word is stressed as well as shouted. I admit, I don't know how to use italics on anything but things like Microsoft Word. It might be something like [i]italics[/i], but I never really use it.

Anyways, are you asking for a portion of the book, or what the book itself is? Well either way, here's the book, though I have a feeling I'm going to get buttfucked for it... Living amongst the Dead by J N Morgan.

I'm already aware of my faults, user, so please be gentle... also, the cover is in the process of being changed. Right now it's just a black background with red text since I didn't really know what I was doing, but having since tinkered with the cover creator, it's going to be changed to pic related.

God damn it this doesn't feel right...

I'm 29. In the past year I've had three short stories published. However, none of them have been in really big venues, and I've hit a lull lately where I haven't had anything coming out. I'd like to gather all the short stories I've read into a slender collection and maybe have it published in a small press. I also have a fantasy novel that I'd like to get published. I keep trying to get an agent, but so far I can't get one to bite.

But I'll keep going, because I think I'm good enough to be published.

God damn it, almost every page in the first 6 has some caps...

I don't understand.
dude like, I was dumb at your age. I'm still dumb. But I understood all caps is bad and no one likes it. I can't really tell you to stop because this fucking generation loves minecraft shit so who knows. Thats not a fault, that's a bad choice on your part, any editor of any level of seriousness would tell you to stop that because it's annoying to read.
I don't know where you're going with that cover and that font is awful too. It's not you as a writer thats the problem, you taste isn't good. Just from the summary alone I don't want to read the book. Radical feminist views? That's how you want to portray your female character?
I don't even know what your doing. You're like curly from the three stooges yipping on the ground running in circles.
You shouldn't have published this because it's not good work, but the good news is that you clearly know there's some serious issues. I would start by asking yourself 'what did I want to get out of making this', 'what emotions did I want to explore', 'did I just want a fun ride for the reader? If so, how do I do that?'
You're shit at an inherent level in your thought process and everyone is going to tell you the same if they tell you the truth. Get reading better books, and write more small stories and post them in crit threads here and elsewhere.

This should hurt if you want to be a writer. We've all been through it, get used to it. Read The War of Art if you need something more detailed on this.

Other gripes that you should probably try to eliminate to be decent:
>...ellipsis only when necessary, if at all. Like the scene should be screaming ellipsis at you. For you, just delete them.
>'could also be said'
Just say it was. Don't dance around. Just bunch two or three together and eliminate that whole section, no one needs more than three inspirations.
You could cut from 'fantasy...even' near the end and I would actually read that synopsis.
>9.99
That's just an insult. I don't know what you were thinking there. Even really good author's don't charge that much, and you already don't believe in your work and want me to pay ten? I wouldn't even buy this for free, and I've bought many books for free on amazon.

I would never buttfuck you personally, even if you were actually extremely attractive in real life knowing you wrote something like this SADDENS my dick.

I only ask you heed my advice and continue to seek community input, 500 words at a time, one post, no one reads it let the thread die.

Yeah, I'm going to make a 2nd edition very soon to remove the capitalised words that are just left here and there, using italics instead, but what is shouted in quotation marks will remain capitalised.

What I wanted with this novel is a setting in the zombie apocalypse, with heavy tones in survivalism, with very accurate and descriptive use/terms in regards to firearms, and yeah I do want the female character to be seen as a feminist because that's what she is. She's an extreme one, one who likely will not be liked, but over time things change. She's like my attempt to personify modern 3rd wave feminism.

As for the price, I considered it to be fairly low. I was hoping to keep it below $10.00 since the start. Can't say I understand what you mean by 'fantasy...even'. I mentioned above that I'm changing the cover, it's already in the process, unless you mean the cover I'm changing it to. In that case, it's the best I can do for now. Believe me, I have something entirely different in my head, but I don't have the means of hiring a graphic designer to create a custom one.

The book even addresses the issue of rape, but the primary focus is survival and methods of doing so. I do need to fix the capitalization however. I don't know what ellisis are, do you mean '...'. Yeah, I use those fairly often as well. I don't know what you mean by 'more than three inspirations' either.

The main audience of my novel, if it ever gains one, will likely be those who are into survivalism or are outdoorsy. People who like firearms. Readers who are into zombies, of course. Anti-feminists would likely enjoy it. That all comes about a bit later in the novel though.

>She's like my attempt to personify modern 3rd wave feminism

But why though? It's just not a good idea to have a character that serves as a stand-in for a certain ideology. You might think that it'll give you a good chance to explore "wider" themes and critique certain intellectual schools, but even if you pulled this off perfectly it seems so at odds with what you want for the story.

>The main audience of my novel, if it ever gains one, will likely be those who are into survivalism or are outdoorsy. People who like firearms. Readers who are into zombies, of course. Anti-feminists would likely enjoy it. That all comes about a bit later in the novel though.

So why are you including a character who will likely piss off the audience you're imagining for your book? And don't say, well, her ideas get blown the fuck out in the last 1/16 of the book--if your audience hates the character, they're not going to get that far.

It's clear from how you talk about the character that the only significance you're giving her is that she's a third-wave feminist. It takes an extremely skilled author to create a character who can both represent an ideology but still work as a realistic, compelling personality (Thomas Mann comes to mind as a writer who can do this). Minus this skill (which takes years to perfect), you're going to create a stereotype, and any attempt at an intellectual conversation between characters is going to turn out as a poorly-veiled manifesto.

yeah well, okay. Good luck then.

How can you be unpublished? yes you may not have a book out but any aspiring writer at least manges to get published in newspaper and short story anthologies. you have to start small and also build up contacts for good future marketing
excuses. self publish and shill it over the net. build up a small following. I have seen an anime podcaster go on to reach NY top 100

Your opinion on the female character is probably true, but it's what I went with. I don't think I originally was going to go with it while I was writing, but it just sort of came out. To be honest, I like it. After all, who says a book about survivalism and zombies can't touch on other aspects, like modern extremist regressive feminism? A bit of an odd mix, I'll grant you, but not an impossible one. Later down the road, because I plan to make more novels and make this a series, I'm hoping to touch on other subjects. I don't want to seem political incorrectness, but at the same time, I'm going to try and keep from BEING politically correct, and see where it takes me. Honestly, though I like the change that occurs with the female (her name is Tiffany), I fear that she will likely die at some point. Hey, how about that? She starts out as a character that even 'I' hated in spite of being the writer, but I actually have a soft spot for her now because I know how she's changing.

Well her introduction is a bit panicky. A lot is going on, thoughts rushing through his head, actions are made, actions that spur anger, but all the same they both end up running from a threat. In a place of hiding, they have to stay the night, all while trying to keep quiet. Throughout the book there's little spats back and forth but over time her mindset begins to change as she experiences things she's never experienced before, and I of course don't mean the sex. At least, not JUST the sex... yeah, I'm still using capitalisations it would seem, as well as 'ellipsis' if that's the three-dot thing. They're hard habits to kick.

I think in my next post I might show how she's brought into the story and the initial actions, but now that my eyes are opened up to just 'how' much I use caps to stress words, I have a feeling I'll be cringing at my own work a lot. As for ellipsis, that doesn't bother me so much, though I'll likely keep in mind to exclude it if I think it can be excluded.

fucking 18 year olds when you are 60, is hard but if alan rickman could have his big moment at 40 and all those oldfags could make it on youtube, well I think your dedication is lacking. I have seen 37 year old in my course, get his shit together. I myself was a shut in for 4 years. There are some physical limitations but mostly its not too late unless you let it be late

>anime podcaster
I bet he had mad social skills, who is it?
...this is....ellipsis...it is always...used wrong...by everyone...you might think u did a gud job wit it...but you sound liek a kid on the ...wow forums... you know?...geez...
Yeah but the people who say 'I'm too old' are already looking for excuses to give up anyways. They would probably say 'I don't have skill', I'll never make it, I'm not handsome enough, I'm not a racial minority who can look good in front of cameras and appeal to a niche market, endless excuses.
You only get good by working, and only succeed by trying and failing.

Chances are you will never breed. also while the intentions are good, a lot of people had them. Chances are financial limitations will take half of your plans, they may also feel resentment for enrollment in shit they did not want and all the time they are spending learning will make a gap between them and their classmates. My parents gave me everything from horse riding to tennis but once we went bankrupt not of that shit was useful and I still ended up an overweight loser, who barely managed to pay for uni and has been unemployed for 2 years.

>I bet he had mad social skills, who is it?
She and yes she did write a YA book but it got her foot in the door
>Yeah but the people who say 'I'm too old' are already looking for excuses to give up anyways. They would probably say 'I don't have skill', I'll never make it, I'm not handsome enough, I'm not a racial minority who can look good in front of cameras and appeal to a niche market, endless excuses.
>You only get good by working, and only succeed by trying and failing.
"I could have done it if I had tried" is often more comforting than trying.
>front of cameras
yep.so stay off camera, work with what you have. waiting for best equipment,etc is not going to get you anywhere.

wait so she wrote YA then wrote something actually good, or did she just make money with the YA?
I was working on a story like that, I gave up because I'm busy working on other stories right now. It felt too 'anime'

>wait so she wrote YA then wrote something actually good, or did she just make money with the YA?
Well im not sure if she ever wanted to write anything deeper. I have not even read her books so can't say if they are okish. Whatever the case she has 9 books out for 3 different series and back in 2014 she had none of that shit. on the other hand her co host went on to be a field stunt actor and is now making money by cosplaying (I think, Im not sure)

>It felt too 'anime'
are you the guy who posted in "post what you are working on"?

>are you the guy who posted in "post what you are working on"?
The story about a dragon with a psychic link. user who has a gay furry friend

So I'm curious. Say I were to write a novel with the intent of getting it published. I'd make it a fantasy book that ticks all the marketability boxes: first book of a trilogy, some romance, interesting magic system, etc. And of course let's just assume it's well-written.

What would the chances be of publishing/financial success?

depends on who you sell it to. its mostly depends on how hard the publisher shills it, it may end up like twilight or it may end up like divergent or less. also despite all the shitting on the formula stories, making one is a lot harder than it looks. one of the things you will need is an engaging start and a book blurb that does not make people eyes glaze over

>Turning 40
>still unpublished

Just came here to say I'm 25 and have 2 novels published and am working on a short story collection.

Good day :^)

How does one rate an anthology on goodreads?

I doubt you're telling the truth, because if someone honestly feels the need to brag to a bunch of fucking losers on Veeky Forums about their publishing history, then I sincerely doubt you have anything worth saying to the world to begin with. If you are telling the truth, then I hope you grow up some day and write something worth reading.

I didn't even think I was all that good a writer, but tonight has been a sobering experience for me, and reading the first few pages of my novel after two weeks has been cringy. I was hoping I wouldn't cringe at my first published work until at least 5 years later or so. Definitely have to edit it, but right now I REALLY need to get this second novel going. Shit's going crazy in my life right now and I might not have much time for writing left. Speaking of which, I shared the premise of my book in another thread... got shot down hardcore. My night wasn't even going particularly good and now it's taken something of a depressing turn, but I think it'll be for the best in the long run.

Going to be good to get drunk tomorrow... definitely need to get myself a bottle of liquor or a case of beer. Fuck sakes it's not easy starting out as a writer. I can take criticism, I really can, but I just didn't know I was this... well... I hate to say it but... bad. Going to keep going though. My life needs SOMETHING to serve as motivation, SOMETHING to hopefully look forward to. I've finally written that zombie survival novel I've wanted to write for years, I am a published author, and it still feels good to say that in spite of the blaring issues with the book.

An arbitrary amount of stars with an explanatory review.

You could complain and call me a liar, sure. That's a tired dismissal. Instead, you should print my post. Take it to your desk and hang it up above you (where it belongs) until you have bested my record. Then you should take it off the wall and piss on it until it dissolves.

It is you who has the attitudinal problem, hypocrite.

Oh yeah, fuck, I was going to post how she's brought into the story.

Grasping his rifle in one hand, the backpack strap on the left shoulder was held in place with the other, and he jogged along, heading for the path on the other side of this small park that went back into the woods, intent on cutting north at some point to reach the highway again that lead steadily eastwards. Suddenly a scream, it echoed out from the town, high pitched, a woman. The fat, old walker was ignored by this point, which ignored the disturber in turn for the scream had caught its decaying ear, and so the armed man kept going unhindered for the time being. She was not his concern; to enter that town was to invite to himself whatever horrors plagued the living female within.

The thought of stopping by the liquor store on the way to finding that woman had, for a brief split second, made him consider the stupidity of risking his life for whatever stranger was screaming in there. It was quickly snuffed out. He had not survived for THIS long, mostly on his own, by sticking his neck out every time someone foolishly got themselves in trouble in a place populated by the dead. The contents of his pack clunked until the jog slowed to a walk once he was within the trail, breathing heavily, the sweat more steadily coming down his face.

Wanted to stop; wanted to get that plastic 1.14L (40oz) bottle of water that once held dark rum out of his backpack, but firstly he ought to get more distance between himself and that pudgy biter. Secondly, water had to be rationed when there wasn’t a ready supply of it nearby. He kept walking, wishing now, like the zombie from the park, he had a pair of shorts instead of those jeans. His tune would change once night came, though. When the chill of autumn set in with the dying of the Sun. Slowly, quite slowly, his breathing normalized, and it was seen ahead amidst the trees and brush that the trail swerved off to the left, towards the north, good, he should soon be on the other side of the tow- “AAAAHHHHH-NOOOOO! HEEEEEEEELP!”

“Christ a’mighty, woman… can’t even hear meself think!” He muttered with a slight accent in this somewhat stressful situation, however noted that it was getting louder; SHE was getting louder as were other noises in the background that sounder slightly farther off. Moans, and not the happy ‘fuck me harder’ kinds… the hungry kinds… the sound of the dead. The man cursed to himself, quickening his already brisk walking pace, peering left, roughly towards the northwest as though hoping to see through the trees. An unseen little rock before him was kicked from the trail, then a shot rang out; she’s ARMED?!
>Fuck me, it basically starts with a run-on sentence. I really did fuck my first book good... anyways, they haven't met yet, this is just the first sign of knowing she exists.

At least there's not as much unnecessary capitalization or ellipsis?

Not that guy, but regardless of whether you out yourself, thanks for the reference to Flapperhouse. They look pretty cool.

all these people were published after 30?

nice word Kid