Writing about pinball - a lost art dedicated to another lost art. Now we're just tweeting about our lunch.

I miss the newsroom days almost as much as I miss walking into any bowling alley or pizza joint and finding a pinball.

Writing occasionally, and not just to podcasts, though I definitely do that. Working on escalating "occasionally" to "regularly." It's an art I've always loved and a discipline I am resolved to cultivate.

All I know is that not too many people here know the difference between "your" and "you're," and many have trouble grasping the concept that you don't need an apostrophe when pluralizing something.

I'm sure not many here make their living writing but for those of us who do online forums can be pretty depressing places.

Reading poorly written articles online that people are ostensibly getting paid for is even worse.

I wrote articles on a regular basis about 10 years back as a side gig (not on the site you linked to). It didn't pay a whole lot, but it wasn't difficult work for me. It just got to be a grind after a couple years of pumping out article after article or editing articles submitted by other people.

Now, the money is in regular video content, although youtube can sometimes be a pain to deal with, especially when they change their monitization policies every few months. It does take a lot of work to build a decent library of videos and a large enough following before you earn anything significant, so it's not something that really happens overnight (unless you are lucky enough to have something go viral).

I've written several articles for PinGame Journal, several of which are still unpublished (which is why I quit writing for them).

Great written article and interview from the 70s about Steve Kirk from Play Meter. The man that worked for Gottlieb and Stern and gave us the great game Stars.

http://www.backglass.org/stern/steve_kirk_playmeter_4.pdf

That only because people now-a-days think "writing" IS spelling & grammar.
It isn't, and spelling & grammar's (?!) only roll is to instantly make people stop listing to the over message of something and discount it.

Point me to someone who can't get a grip on those basics and is ALSO a decent writer.

I'll wait.

As far as pinball writing, most if it isn't great. Most of the books are written in such a dry style.

The only pinball book that is any good is Pinball! by Roger Sharpe. I told him that myself. I wasn't just kissing his ass, I was also telling the truth. It's a coffee table book but the writing is great.

Mark fucking Twain.

I mean I guess...I work in TV man I don't know no book learnings.

I wrote the script for this amazing trailer.

Perhaps I can get a job in TV?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=49&v=qc5KJWnge2I

Jesus warn me first that I had to watch that piece of shit again.

But seriously, that's on caliber with 90% of the things on TV so you're looking good.
The editor i would tell to make the beats hit when the text hits the background not entering the shot but that's all personal pref.

LMAO
it was a freebie editing job from some friends so we didn't want to ask for too much. The Fivrr guy we paid who fucked up the incredibly simple script twice was another story...

Anyone want to merge Pinside fanfic universes?

That's basically a gateway to Pinside fan porn so probably not a good idea.

In terms of resources, I am a HUGE podcast listener, and one of my favorite podcasts of all time is Writing Excuses. Episodes usually max out at about twenty minutes (despite the tagline being "fifteen minutes long because you're in a hurry and we're not that smart") and, with regular, weekly episodes, there are thirteen seasons worth of career authors and myriad guests discussing every aspect of the craft. They also recommend and discuss books each episode; usually, they are pertinent to whatever subject is being discussed that week.

http://www.writingexcuses.com/ is the main website, but there is also a LiveJournal with transcripts of the episodes (currently behind, but still the vast majority of the content: http://wetranscripts.livejournal.com/)

I've dabbled with a few writing podcasts, but that's the one that, if you made me choose, I would have as my one and only in a heartbeat. I will gladly rec others if you'd like. My personal preference is for podcasts that focus on discussing aspects of the craft, but there are several good interview podcasts that I've heard as well (but not kept, because, well, it's not like there are twenty pinball podcasts I want to listen to, as well, or anything, haha).

What kind of writing do you find yourself doing most? I believe we spoke in another thread, and you mentioned a nonfiction novel and horror? I'm curious what formats and genres you are exploring.

Better late than never, right?

I am in awe of your passion. I wish you all the luck and skill on your current and future projects, and I hope the fire burning in you never goes out, no matter how difficult the roar may get.

Write about what you want. If it's not pinball that is your topic of choice, that's fine.

I am glad to hear that you are still writing!

That's one of the joys (and frustrations) of writing - you can have the most detailed roadmap, but, very frequently, you'll find that your map leads somewhere unexpected, with detours and reroutes everywhere.

It sounds like you have quite an interest in writing horror - psychological horror?