Pulp Writing Groups, A question about pulp focussed online writing groups. Options

[GrantGardiner]

G'day everyone. Long time lurker, first time poster

I was just wondering whether there were any online, pulp-focussed writing discussion groups in existence.

I've started writing a very pulpy adventure series and while I get good feedback from my local writing group it often comes with comments like 'too much action' or 'it's written well but the style is a bit full on' or just plain old simple 'it's good but it's not really my thing so I don't know what to say'.

My pulp journey (or adventure) is along the lines of: Action blockbusters (where did the 80s/90s go?) --> 1950s/60s adventure tv --> old school adventure movies --> movie serials --> prose pulp. Having arrived at the prose pulp via its genetic descendents I'm still fairly new to the classics and would like to get some feedback as to my writing's 'pulpiness'. Preferably from the privacy of a newsgroup where it's safe to embarrass yourself and screw up without it being too public While I like to think I'm faithfully recreating serial-style two-fisted, chair-destroying fight scenes or capturing the style and speed of an airpulp skypirate furball I haven't read enough to know for sure, and some feedback from more pulp-enfused writers (amateur is fine by me) would be awesome.

Grant Gardiner, aspiring pulp author.

[Tommy Hancock]

As far as open groups, Grant, there aren't any that are strictly pulp focused that I'm aware of. Now, as far as Publishers, there are several New Pulp Publishers out there. I am a partner at Pro Se Productions and we have a great group of writers and editors. Feedback is something that we're pretty good at if you're interested in submitting your work for our review. There are other companies that frequent this page as well! www.prosepulp.com and my email is proseproductions@earthlink.net

Tommy Hancock

[GrantGardiner]

Thanks, I'll give that a go.

[Derrick]

Welcome to the party, Grant. You're in the right place, never fear.

It's really difficult to get the right sort of feedback from people who say they don't know anything about Pulp even though they've been watching Pulp in movies and TV most of their lives or reading it but since nobody has told them it was Pulp, they didn't know. I once had an argument with a young lady who insisted she disliked Pulp, calling it "mindless men's action garbage."
I proceeded to rattle off a dozen movies and TV shows such as The Indiana Jones series, "In Plain Sight" "Burn Notice", all of which she said she enjoyed. I told her that was all Pulp. And yes, she still insisted that it wasn't. Sometimes you lead the horse to water and the dumb animal STILL won't drink.

Anyway, that's not what you came here for. I think it's safe to say I have some experience with Pulp so if you need feedback or just somebody to kick the willy bobo with, feel free to email me: DerrickFerguson1@aol.com.

[GrantGardiner]

G'day to all.

After some experimenting at another site I've worked out how to post work online using googledrive and have had some success critiquing and receiving feedback from other aspiring writers via this method. It's a little fiddly the first time you use it - you need permission to look at someone's work (which is kind've a good thing) - but once you get that it's an effective way of sharing writing pieces.

So I thought I'd post a link here both as a way of hoping to snag some good feedback from the learned pulp community as well as offer my services to other aspiring writers who may like some writerly feedback. 'Cause after doing it a bit I've found that I actually enjoy helping other people write better. Who'dathunk...

I present to the world: Tommy Thunder, Scourge of the Skypirates in: The Black Vixen of Deadman's Island.



This piece is the first story in my pulp series that follows the adventures of young Tommy Thunder in an alternate 1920s history where the United States has broken into half a dozen nations and zeppelin ships dominate continental shipping. And with the rise of the zeppelin has come the rise of those who would prey on zeppelins. And those who would in turn hunt the hunters.

As such this can be seen as the 'pilot episode' of the series. It's a little shorter at a bit under 15,000 words (as opposed to the 25,000 words I've used for the two following stories I've done so far) but as I'll probably release it as a free sampler to lure readers in the shorter length shouldn't be a problem.

But this is also my problem. As the first story it needs to showcase everything that the series can offer but over the following stories my writing has improved, making this story the weakest link. As such I'm not completely happy with it. Although it has all the components there and I've managed to edit it to a much better standard I'm not sure if it's good enough to showcase the series. It's a bit... unbalanced.

Which is where writerly feedback is helpful

I appreciate any constructive feedback that can be given, especially regarding the pulpiness, as well as any glaring errors I've made re: flying biplanes (because they could be legion).

And if anyone would like similar feedback on anything they're doing (from an amateur, aspiring pulper) I'd be happy to swap feedback etc.

[CEMartin2]

I only recently found out about new pulp and was pleasantly surprised.

I recently indie published via Kindle/Nook/Smashwords, a novel I intended for the YA-Scifi-Fantasy market, but which I really felt was YA-Pulp. I wrote a sequel, embracing the Pulpishness after seeing this site.

However, it seems like a lot of the indie authors don't believe in Pulp.

It's great to find out Pulp is making a resurgence.

Can anyone point me to New Pulp reviewers? I now have two novels up, with a third in the works. If they do well, I'll extend it to a series. If not, I'lll go on to something else and content myself with re-reading all the Doc Savage novels I can.

[Ron Fortier]

Being one of the premier new pulp reviewers, I have a blog - PULP FICTION REVIEWS. Alas, I do not review e-copies, but only hard copies. Should you ever go on and take the plunge and actually print something, give me a holler and I'll let you know where to send me a review copy.

Good luck.

[CEMartin2]

Being one of the premier new pulp reviewers, I have a blog - PULP FICTION REVIEWS. Alas, I do not review e-copies, but only hard copies. Should you ever go on and take the plunge and actually print something, give me a holler and I'll let you know where to send me a review copy.

Good luck.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. I've been lurking at your site, keeping an eye out for Doc Savage news. Last year I started re-reading all my docs, electronic and print, but this time in the correct, chronological order. So I'm thoroughly pulped now.

[GrantGardiner]

Were you after Smashword reviews or just website reviews? Either way I'll have a look and put something up for you.

[CEMartin2]

Were you after Smashword reviews or just website reviews? Either way I'll have a look and put something up for you.

Any review is a good review- even if the reviewer didn't like it. Feedback would help me fine tune my genre choice so I can find the readers out there that would like what I've written. Hopefully, they are large in number.

I've self-pubbed a sequel already. It's at:

http://tinyurl.com/MBISKindle
http://tinyurl.com/MBISNook
http://tinyurl.com/MBISSmash

It's much better than the first one, which was actually a novelization of a screenplay I put up at Amazon Studios.

[GrantGardiner]

Hey mate. Many apologies for how long this has taken but I've finally got some feedback for you (I found myself overseas for the last month in a place where internet was hard to come by. It was awesome. But didn't help me post reviews.)

I've sent you a personal PM thingy with my 'editorial' feedback and will make sure I get a reader review onto goodreads and smashwords etc.

It was a good read. I think you're onto a winner

Grant.

Any review is a good review- even if the reviewer didn't like it. Feedback would help me fine tune my genre choice so I can find the readers out there that would like what I've written. Hopefully, they are large in number.

I've self-pubbed a sequel already. It's at:

http://tinyurl.com/MBISKindle
http://tinyurl.com/MBISNook
http://tinyurl.com/MBISSmash

It's much better than the first one, which was actually a novelization of a screenplay I put up at Amazon Studios.

[CEMartin2]

Hey mate. Many apologies for how long this has taken but I've finally got some feedback for you (I found myself overseas for the last month in a place where internet was hard to come by. It was awesome. But didn't help me post reviews.)

I've sent you a personal PM thingy with my 'editorial' feedback and will make sure I get a reader review onto goodreads and smashwords etc.

It was a good read. I think you're onto a winner

Grant.

Thanks! I appreciate the kind words (and the very detailed PM). I hope I am just one of many folks who decide to embrace pulp. Ebooks are a lot like pulp, in my opinion- Authors can inexpensively crank out adventures very rapidly. If Dent and Burroughs were alive today, I'm sure they'd be ebook legends.