h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

...to write something for the Guide!

Peer Review is getting a bit spare again. There's currently only 50 entries, six of which are inappropriate and five of which are updates.

And I'm getting bored of reading the same entries over and over again.

Anyone up for banging out some new material?

I've a few nearly/unfinished ones I could try and get done, I'm a bit shocked by how quickly the guitar one I put in ... not that long ago seems to ahve gone through... lettuce see.
I've an entery on teh vampire fish which will make nice pre-lunch reading that needs some tidying up.
Oo think I've the one on the other Fender guitar but I'm not sure if I can finish that as I've not found one to buy yet (would prefer to have first hand experiance of the thing),
didn't I start soemthing on Diverticulosis and X linked something or other

Oh, so Fizzy was right then when she mentioned it to me the other day.

Hmmm, I'll see if I can think of something, and find the time, too in that case.

Vampire fish?
I can hardly wait!

Yeah, you're right, broe. I've hit a huge mental block on my Uni project A27731720, so maybe I should look at some of my half-ideas and see if I can't do something with them instead. I haven't been able to think past Fernando and Isabel lately, so I should do something else and come back to it fresh.

Though if anyone knows enough about the Great Wall of China and/or Jericho to write a paragraph on them, I have something that could go in pretty sharpish

Thanks for the encouragement, it's appreciated

I'll get cracking on one of my entries very soon.

Jericho: Joashua blew his trumpet, and the walls came a-tumbeling down.

Hah - right Bel, you don't believe me but you'll believe Broelan.


I don't think PR can take anything else from me this week.

Maybe, in fact, I could use you guys for a few ideas, or a bit of advice.

I've been struggling lately in that I haven't really been happy with anything I've written. For example, I planned to write an Entry for each of the towns you might pass through on the Coast Path. I've tried on a couple of occasions to write about Teignmouth, but it feels like I'm writing the same Entry over and over again. That bores me, and if I'm a bored writer, what's the reader going to think?

I've written Entries on a variety of subjects, and I'm pretty happy with most of them as straight, encyclopaedia-type entries. I don't want to do anything new in the same style, though. I want to be challenged. So something like the Spain project is tough, because I don't want to write a 'History of Spain' at all, really. I want to light a fire and write it as I would tell it to a few friends over a couple of beers. So I've tried to talk about Pelayo as the kind of legendary hero he is in Spanish culture rather than just relay the facts. I'm very happy with the way it's going.

But the stories of countries are, by necessity, epic. How do you write about a town or a tree in a novel and interesting way? I'm not short of subjects to write about, or for time to write them. I've just written in the same style so many times that I find the whole prospect of doing it again pretty dull and unappealing.

Any suggestions, sympathy or advice?

Lots of sympathy from me.

I know what you mean, and I guess it would be exactly what I'd feel if I had written even a tiny amount of what you've written. I think it's a trap you're too easily caught in, so I'd say you're right if you decide not to.

OK, I usually challenge the with my ideas for entries (because I'm convinced I just couldn't do them justice were I to write them myself). Sometimes, she accepts, sometimes not.

I recently stumbled about the calling card. I had always thought this was an arch English thing, but not so. Originating in China, it found its way to France, and only to England from there. Apparently, it's very important in modern China. So, if you're interested, why don't you write about that?

I have the same problem, Rich . I have a few techniques I try to use when I'm boring myself writing. I don't claim to be a good writer, but I'm certainly trying. What I tend to do is...
1. Write about what the reader doesn't expect to see in an encyclopedia entry about a town or a tree in a novel.
2. Try writing it as if it were a piece of fiction by making certain assumptions, so instead of saying 'It was the first warm day of the season', say 'the town buzzed with the fragrant air of fresh spring' or something less trite . A lot of the time, history makes for a more entertaining story than any novel could ever hope to do.
3. Tell a story, rather than telling facts. Like you said, write it as you would if you were talking about the history of Spain to a few friends over drinks. Give your opinion, where appropriate. Don't linger over things like dates, which is more reference than story-telling.
4. Mix up the timeline a bit to create drama or dramatic irony. Start at the end and then jump to the beginning. (This doesn't work with every type of entry obviously)

OOooh Rich - that's a hard one so I'm just going to think out loud if that's alright.

I try to write all my entries the way I would relate them to a friend .... without all the ems, ahs and digressions of course - I try to write in my normal speaking voice as it were.

It also depends on what you're writing about as to how serious you need to be - what you want to impart ....

I think we could all write a lot more entries if we didn't have to make them factual, verifiable or complete and even-handed ....

I find a great deal of difficulty planning entries and I don't think I could struggle through a great series of entries - even on something I love - the Frankenstein project taught me that ....

I don't like minute detail, I much prefer the trees whispering softly in the breeze to knowing what sort of trees they are.

I like the excitement of finding something out for the very first time and sharing it with others who may never have heard of it either ....

If you're enthusiastic about the subject I don't see how that won't carry over into what you're writing but if you're not - maybe you need a break after all.

The thing I do when writing is just write it down as it comes into my head - it's only when I'm reading it through that I see the questions that need to be answered and the why's that need to be addressed then I fill in the gaps - the things the reader might want to know ..... even then I hold a lot of stuff back because it's just too boring or pernickety to include - unless someone asks.

I also like to leave the reader with a few questions that they can chase up themselves - if they're that interested.


I don't know whether all this waffle is of any interest or any use to you - but it's free and might send you off on a tangent somewhere.

Rich, how well do you know these towns?; Maybe don't even make it an article/entry on the town per sai; maybe a paragraph 'on' the town,
''hooverville, thought to be stablished in 2316 by traveling space-hoppersalesmen and women took some three moths to turn into the thrieving market town it is today.... blah blah blah'
and then give an account of the town based entirely on where and what the good pubs are; a guide to the town as a reoute one might take between those pubs worth going too.... well its an idea

This is all good advice, thanks very much! I think you misunderstand a bit, though, Bel - I have plenty of things to write about, and the challenge is just to write in styles that interest me Thanks for the suggestion, though!

That's pretty good advice, J. I guess it's as much about lateral thinking and being a bit more creative, in a way. Find something special in the mundane. How would you approach something more static time-wise, then? Something like - and I pick this example because there's one running around my lounge in a very un-static way - rabbits?

I think if I just took a break, Fizzy, I'd never go back to writing for the EG. It's not a lack of enthusiasm at all; I'm very enthusiastic about writing, perhaps more than ever, but that doesn't feel like enough on its own any more. I could quite easily sit down and write an entry on Teignmouth now and have in PR by midnight, but I wouldn't be happy at all. The Niagara Gorge Entry was quite an education for me; it made me feel like I was there, whereas if I'd had the knowledge to write something similar at the time I'd have probably just described the birds themselves and largely ignored the poetry of the place. Since that Entry went in, everything I've tried to write, Spain excepted, has felt flat. That troubles me more than the mechanics of writing, if you like.

Oh, and:

'I think we could all write a lot more entries if we didn't have to make them factual, verifiable or complete and even-handed...' - we certainly could. The Post Team looks forward to receiving them

2legs could be onto something there. Instead of writing Teignmouth as 'History-What to See-Blah-Blah' as I normally do, I could take the reader on a stroll around the town. That could work. I think even a change in structure would make me feel a bit happier. The only downside is, of course, that I'll have to go to Teignmouth for a day

Thanks very much, everyone - I'll get back to you

>>verifiable or complete and even-handed...' - we certainly could. The Post Team looks forward to receiving them<<


Right Rich .... just as soon as this little researchers group has achieved what it set out to do.

You could try reading a few examples of entries on similar subjects to see what approaches other writers have taken.

I had a similar problem with my Uni project on Route 66, because I needed to include a variant of the same information for eight different states.

You could try taking a break from your usual subject matter and try to write about something completely different.

You could cruise through the Flea Market for half-baked ideas.

>>You could try taking a break from your usual subject matter and try to write about something completely different.<<

That's what I meant when I suggested the calling card. Maybe it would break up the routine, like your entries about wine tasting and wine making.

"That's pretty good advice, J. I guess it's as much about lateral thinking and being a bit more creative, in a way. Find something special in the mundane. How would you approach something more static time-wise, then? Something like - and I pick this example because there's one running around my lounge in a very un-static way - rabbits?"

Finding something special in the mundane, yeah. Good way of thinking about it. I'm not very good at the static-type entries. Nearly all of my entries fit into two categories - historical and hopelessly boring (and I guess if you find history boring, that whittles it down to one category ). The researcher here I've always revered for the static, rabbit-type entry is Matt. He just is very good at writing entertaining entries.

There are some nifty tricks to dress up entries like that - such as what you did with your Scrabble Bingo entry at the beginning and end - but it's tough to do I think. The Winter Birds of the Niagara Gorge entry has what I would consider a very dull topic... and a very basic approach to take, yet it is remarkable because of the passion with which it is described. I reckon if you want to write something on par with the Winter Birds entry, you need to be genuinely passionate about the topic. Try not to hold yourself to the standard of that entry though - if we all did that, PR would be pretty well empty.

I did try doing some 'different subject matter' with Alex and KB a couple of years ago, but it didn't work out very well. A17809806 was the result - I think Alex was trying to show me that some bits of London are actually quite nice - and it's ok, but not terribly exciting.

Of course, reading more is probably a damn good idea.

I certainly wouldn't want to try to emulate the Niagara Gorge entry, J. I think if you try to copy a style it just comes out forced, anyway. It's just that it was such a break from the norm, and very different to the way I would have approached it.

The conclusion I'm coming to, I think, is that I should forget about writing for the EG. I should just pick a subject and damn well write about it, see how my ideas pan out. It's more about structure and approach for me at the moment rather than anything more flowery. If what I write ends up being something that the EG might like, I'll submit it. If not, I'll submit it to the AWW or The Post. Either way, I'll be happy with what I've done

Thanks for all your advice, guys - it really is appreciated!

Oo whilst we've got all ya big-shots of the EG here.... can I ask a question?
is it to write an entry say, on a particualr pub, or is it too easy for it to come out like an advert?; I vaguely remember starting to write a 'rough guide to the pubx of' type entry, but it was gona be impossible to write without, well, telling the truth about some pubs and how dire they are