# My First Post



## plawrence (Apr 3, 2017)

My name is Paul.  I live in a suburb of Dallas, TX.  I'm a 69-year-old retired computer security professional.  I've written professionally for SecurityFocus.com (several articles) and am a chapter author for a book on Malware that's available on Amazon.  Now that I'm retired, I've decided to pursue a lifelong dream to write fiction.  I've begun my first book (I'm about 7500 words into it) which is a crime novel about a very successful detective who loves his wife and family and has achieved a very good balance in life.  The idea is to weave the characters around a story so that you get to know them in depth while following the case as he works to solve it.

I have another idea about a man who has arrived at a crisis in life, decides to go to his family's lake house to think about his options, considers suicide but meets a young boy who completely changes his outlook on life.

I'm new to this kind of writing, so I've been doing a lot of research, have a lot of questions, and hope that some of you might be able to help me understand what makes a great novel.

Here's a small taste of the book I'm working on:

Senior Detective Sergeant Willie Calhoun sat at his desk, obviously absorbed completely in something that he was reading.  His fellow detectives knew better than to disturb him when he got like this.  They all steered a wide berth as Willie, brow deeply furrowed in concentration, appeared to be studying a report or paper or something.

Willie was a highly successful homicide detective in a squad room filled with detectives with commendations and medals, most of whom had at least an undergraduate degree and post-graduate study on their resumes.  Yet none of them could boast Willie’s accomplishments; Over 90% of his assigned cases solved and one of the most successful busts of a child kidnapping, sexual abuse ring in the history of the city.  But Willie’s first case, the still unsolved murder of nine-year-old Billy Brawley, still haunted him.


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## Bard_Daniel (Apr 3, 2017)

Woah! Cool excerpt Paul. 

Welcome! What do you like to read? : )

I figure this excerpt is an exception but you need to have ten posts before you can officially post up work for critique or comment. At that point, you can also choose an avatar and update your signature. Before then, feel free to look around and bask in the forum!

I'll point out that, on here, we have a Mentor Directory and some Challenges, Contests and Prompts. You might want to check them out!

Have a good one!


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## plawrence (Apr 3, 2017)

Thanks, danielstj.  My apologies for breaking the rules.

This may sound strange, but I don't read much fiction.  My wife reads mystery novels constantly.  In fact, she'll read every book an author has written, then move on to a new author.  Right now she's reading Spencer Quinn, who writes from the perspective of the detective's trusty partner, his dog Chet.  I read a ton of non-fiction, many books on the Vietnam War, because that's a focus of mine, plus tons of scientific research, legal treatises and other stuff that hardly anyone in the right mind would want to read.  I write articles regularly for the Vietnam Veterans for Factual History, but those are for free, a work of love.

Recent books I'm reading (I tend to jump around unless something really captivates me) are How Jesus Became God by Dr. Bart Ehrman, Strategy For Defeat by Admiral U.S.G. Sharp and Vietnamese Communism; Its Origins and Development by Professor Robert F. Turner.  Today I read an academic treatise on the development of the filibuster in the US Senate.  My wife says there's probably not another person in the world as weird as me. :-D

I guess my first question is, is it better to write fiction in the first or third person?  Or does it not matter, just write your style?

I'll check out the Mentor Directory.  I looked at the Challenges stuff earlier, but I didn't have access.


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## plawrence (Apr 4, 2017)

Well, I decided to enter the LM Challenge, but apparently I haven't been here long enough to do that.  I wrote a 645 word short story, but I can't submit it.

When will I be  able to do that?


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## aj47 (Apr 4, 2017)

plawrence said:


> Well, I decided to enter the LM Challenge, but apparently I haven't been here long enough to do that.  I wrote a 645 word short story, but I can't submit it.
> 
> When will I be  able to do that?



Hello and welcome,  As Daniel pointed out, you will level up to full member status once you've made ten substantive posts to the forum.  These can include feedback on others' work, participation in writing discussions, or social posts (but not fun & games).  Your username will turn *green* when you've unlocked the achievement.


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## plawrence (Apr 4, 2017)

Thank you, astroannie.  I'm sure I read that somewhere in the FAQs.  I'll poke around and see if I have anything worth contributing.


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## Bard_Daniel (Apr 4, 2017)

Don't worry Paul, you can enter the challenge once you get ten posts. Also, the cutoff date is not until later in the month for most challenges so that should give you some time.

First or third person perspective is a matter of style. This is what I think anyway. It is maybe a good question to ask, or look up, in our Writing Discussion section. Let me shoot you a link: Writing Discussion.

If you have any questions feel free to ask! 

Cheers!


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## plawrence (Apr 5, 2017)

Thanks again, danielstj. You've been very helpful.  I submitted a story to the Challenge.  And I'll go to Writing Discussion now.


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