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City Without Heroes - Checking In (on Wattpad) http://my.w.tt/UiNb/RjVlltyBTD In a world full of supervillains and superheroes, Indiraâs parents have decided to take jobs in Whitten, the one city that has managed to get rid of both. She couldnât be happier about it. Though super powers run in her family, Indira has always played down her powers as much as possible to keep from being roped into becoming a hero herself. Her uncle distrusts the place, but Indira quickly settles, not realizing the price that comes with keeping a city like Whitten free of both heroes and villains.
City Without Heroes - Costume Shopping (on Wattpad) http://my.w.tt/UiNb/14ct2GJqID In a world full of supervillains and superheroes, Indiraâs parents have decided to take jobs in Whitten, the one city that has managed to get rid of both. She couldnât be happier about it. Though super powers run in her family, Indira has always played down her powers as much as possible to keep from being roped into becoming a hero herself. Her uncle distrusts the place, but Indira quickly settles, not realizing the price that comes with keeping a city like Whitten free of both heroes and villains.
Iâve been working on the rewrite for my next book! Iâll be posting a chapter a week until it is done, so come read all the things.Â
Words to replace said, except this actually helps
I got pretty fed up with looking for words to replace said because they werenât sorted in a way I could easily use/find them for the right time. So I did some myself.
IN RESPONSE TO Acknowledged Answered Protested
INPUT/JOIN CONVERSATION/ASK Added Implored Inquired Insisted Proposed Queried Questioned Recommended Testified
GUILTY/RELUCTANCE/SORRY Admitted Apologized Conceded Confessed Professed
FOR SOMEONE ELSE Advised Criticized Suggested
JUST CHECKING Affirmed Agreed Alleged Confirmed
LOUD Announced Chanted Crowed
LEWD/CUTE/SECRET SPY FEEL Appealed Disclosed Moaned
ANGRY FUCK OFF MATE WANNA FIGHT Argued Barked Challenged Cursed Fumed Growled Hissed Roared Swore
SMARTASS Articulated Asserted Assured Avowed Claimed Commanded Cross-examined Demanded Digressed Directed Foretold Instructed Interrupted Predicted Proclaimed Quoted Theorized
ASSHOLE Bellowed Boasted Bragged
NERVOUS TRAINWRECK Babbled Bawled Mumbled Sputtered Stammered Stuttered
SUAVE MOTHERFUCKER Bargained Divulged Disclosed Exhorted
FIRST OFF Began
LASTLY Concluded Concurred
WEAK PUSY Begged Blurted Complained Cried Faltered Fretted
HAPPY/LOL Cajoled Exclaimed Gushed Jested Joked Laughed
WEIRDLY HAPPY/EXCITED Extolled Jabbered Raved
BRUH, CHILL Cautioned Warned
ACTUALLY, YOUâRE WRONG Chided Contended Corrected Countered Debated Elaborated Objected Ranted Retorted
CHILL SAVAGE Commented Continued Observed Surmised
LISTEN BUDDY Enunciated Explained Elaborated Hinted Implied Lectured Reiterated Recited Reminded Stressed
BRUH I NEED U AND U NEED ME Confided Offered Urged
FINE Consented Decided
TOO EMO FULL OF EMOTIONS Croaked Lamented Pledged Sobbed Sympathized Wailed Whimpered
JUST SAYING Declared Decreed Mentioned Noted Pointed out Postulated Speculated Stated Told Vouched
WASNâT ME Denied Lied
EVIL SMARTASS Dictated Equivocated Ordered Reprimanded Threatened
BORED Droned Sighed
SHHHH ITâS QUIET TIME Echoed Mumbled Murmured Muttered Uttered Whispered
DRAMA QUEEN Exaggerated Panted Pleaded Prayed Preached
OH SHIT Gasped Marveled Screamed Screeched Shouted Shrieked Yelped Yelled
ANNOYED Grumbled Grunted Jeered Quipped Scolded Snapped Snarled Sneered
ANNOYING Nagged
I DONâT REALLY CARE BUT WHATEVER Guessed Ventured
IâM DRUNK OR JUST BEING WEIRDLY EXPRESSIVE FOR A POINT/SARCASM Hooted Howled Yowled
I WONDER Pondered Voiced Wondered
OH, YEAH, WHOOPS Recalled Recited Remembered
SURPRISE BITCH Revealed
IT SEEMS FAKE BUT OKAY/HA ACTUALLY FUNNY BUT I DONâT WANT TO LAUGH OUT LOUD Scoffed Snickered Snorted
BITCHY Tattled Taunted Teased
A nice reference list for those that canât just think of what word they are looking for. But remember that using âsaidâ isnât a bad thing. âSaidâ is universal and versatile and each of these words have their own meaning, so it isnât always interchangeable.
123 Ideas for Character Flaws
Absent-minded - Preoccupied to the extent of being unaware of oneâs immediate surroundings. Abstracted, daydreaming, inattentive, oblivious, forgetful.
Abusive - Characterized by improper infliction of physical or psychological maltreatment towards another.
Addict - One who is addicted to a compulsive activity. Examples: gambling, drugs, sex.
Aimless - Devoid of direction or purpose.
Alcoholic - A person who drinks alcoholic substances habitually and to excess.
Anxious - Full of mental distress or uneasiness because of fear of danger or misfortune; greatly worried; solicitous.
Arrogant - Having or displaying a sense of overbearing self-worth or self-importance. Inclined to social exclusiveness and who rebuff the advances of people considered inferior. Snobbish.
Audacious - Recklessly bold in defiance of convention, propriety, law, or the like; insolent; braze, disobedient.
Bad Habit - A revolting personal habit. Examples: picks nose, spits tobacco, drools, bad body odour.
Bigmouth - A loud-mouthed or gossipy person.
Bigot - One who is strongly partial to oneâs own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ.
Blunt - Characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion. Frank, callous, insensitive, brusque.
Bold - In a bad sense, too forward; taking undue liberties; over assuming or confident; lacking proper modesty or restraint; rude; impudent. Abrupt, brazen, cheeky, brassy, audacious.
Callous - They are hardened to emotions, rarely showing any form of it in expression. Unfeeling. Cold.
Childish - Marked by or indicating a lack of maturity; puerile.
Complex - An exaggerated or obsessive concern or fear. (List specific complex.)
Cruel - Mean to anyone or anything, without care or regard to consequences and feelings.
Cursed - A person who has befallen a prayer for evil or misfortune, placed under a spell, or borne into an evil circumstance, and suffers for it. Damned.
Dependent - Unable to exist, sustain oneself, or act appropriately or normally without the assistance or direction of another.
Deranged - Mentally decayed. Insane. Crazy. Mad. Psychotic.
Dishonest â Given to or using fraud, cheating; deceitful, deceptive, crooked, underhanded.
Disloyal - Lacking loyalty. Unfaithful, perfidious, traitorous, treasonable
Disorder - An ailment that affects the function of mind or body. (List the disorders name if they have one.) See the Mental Disorder List.
Disturbed - Showing some or a few signs or symptoms of mental or emotional illness. Confused, disordered, neurotic, troubled.
Dubious - Fraught with uncertainty or doubt. Undecided, doubtful, unsure.
Dyslexic - Affected by dyslexia, a learning disorder marked by impairment of the ability to recognize and comprehend written words.
Egotistical - Characteristic of those having an inflated idea of their own importance. Boastful, pompous.
Envious - Showing extreme cupidity; painfully desirous of anotherâs advantages; covetous, jealous.
Erratic - Deviating from the customary course in conduct or opinion; eccentric: erratic behaviour. Eccentric, bizarre, outlandish, strange.
Fanatical - Fanatic outlook or behaviour especially as exhibited by excessive enthusiasm, unreasoning zeal, or wild and extravagant notions on some subject.
Fickle â Erratic, changeable, unstable - especially with regard to affections or attachments; capricious.
Fierce - Marked by extreme intensity of emotions or convictions; inclined to react violently; fervid.
Finicky - Excessively particular or fastidious; difficult to please; fussy. Too much concerned with detail. Meticulous, fastidious, choosy, critical, picky, prissy, pernickety.
Fixated - In psychoanalytic theory, a strong attachment to a person or thing, especially such an attachment formed in childhood or infancy and manifested in immature or neurotic behaviour that persists throughout life. Fetish, quirk, obsession, infatuation.
Flirt -To make playfully romantic or sexual overtures; behaviour intended to arouse sexual interest. Minx. Tease.
Gluttonous - Given to excess in consumption of especially food or drink. Voracious, ravenous, wolfish, piggish, insatiable.
Gruff - Brusque or stern in manner or appearance. Crusty, rough, surly.
Gullible - Will believe any information given, regardless of how valid or truthful it is, easily deceived or duped.
Hard - A person who is difficult to deal with, manage, control, overcome, or understand. Hard emotions, hard hearted.
Hedonistic - Pursuit of or devotion to pleasure, especially to the pleasures of the senses.
Hoity-toity- Given to flights of fancy; capricious; frivolous. Prone to giddy behaviour, flighty.
Humourless - The inability to find humour in things, and most certainly in themselves.
Hypocritical - One who is always contradicting their own beliefs, actions or sayings. A person who professes beliefs and opinions for others that he does not hold. Being a hypocrite.
Idealist - One whose conduct is influenced by ideals that often conflict with practical considerations. One who is unrealistic and impractical, guided more by ideals than by practical considerations.
Idiotic - Marked by a lack of intelligence or care; foolish or careless.
Ignorant - Lacking knowledge or information as to a particular subject or fact. Showing or arising from a lack of education or knowledge.
Illiterate - Unable to read and write.
Immature - Emotionally undeveloped; juvenile; childish.
Impatient - Unable to wait patiently or tolerate delay; restless. Unable to endure irritation or opposition; intolerant.
Impious - Lacking piety and reverence for a god/gods and their followers.
Impish - Naughtily or annoyingly playful.
Incompetent - Unable to execute tasks, no matter how the size or difficulty.
Indecisive - Characterized by lack of decision and firmness, especially under pressure.
Indifferent - The trait of lacking enthusiasm for or interest in things generally, remaining calm and seeming not to care; a casual lack of concern. Having or showing little or no interest in anything; languid; spiritless.
Infamy - Having an extremely bad reputation, public reproach, or strong condemnation as the result of a shameful, criminal, or outrageous act that affects how others view them.
Intolerant - Unwilling to tolerate difference of opinion and narrow-minded about cherished opinions.
Judgemental - Inclined to make and form judgements, especially moral or personal ones, based on oneâs own opinions or impressions towards others/practices/groups/religions based on appearance, reputation, occupation, etc.
Klutz - Clumsy. Blunderer.
Lazy - Resistant to work or exertion; disposed to idleness.
Lewd - Inclined to, characterized by, or inciting to lust or lechery; lascivious. Obscene or indecent, as language or songs; salacious.
Liar - Compulsively and purposefully tells false truths more often than not. A person who has lied or who lies repeatedly.
Lustful - Driven by lust; preoccupied with or exhibiting lustful desires.
Masochist - The deriving of sexual gratification, or the tendency to derive sexual gratification, from being physically or emotionally abused. A willingness or tendency to subject oneself to unpleasant or trying experiences.
Meddlesome - Intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner, given to meddling; interfering.
Meek - Evidencing little spirit or courage; overly submissive or compliant; humble in spirit or manner; suggesting retiring mildness or even cowed submissiveness.
Megalomaniac - A psycho pathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence.
NaĂŻve - Lacking worldly experience and understanding, simple and guileless; showing or characterized by a lack of sophistication and critical judgement.
Nervous - Easily agitated or distressed; high-strung or jumpy.
Non-violent - Abstaining from the use of violence.
Nosey - Given to prying into the affairs of others; snoopy. Offensively curious or inquisitive.
Obsessive - An unhealthy and compulsive preoccupation with something or someone.
Oppressor - A person of authority who subjects others to undue pressures, to keep down by severe and unjust use of force or authority.
Overambitious - Having a strong excessive desire for success or achievement.
Overconfident - Excessively confident; presumptuous.
Overemotional - Excessively or abnormally emotional. Sensitive about themselves and others, more so than the average person.
Overprotective - To protect too much; coddle.
Overzealous - Marked by excessive enthusiasm for and intense devotion to a cause or idea.
Pacifist - Opposition to war or violence as a means of resolving disputes. (Can double as a merit in certain cases)
Paranoid - Exhibiting or characterized by extreme and irrational fear or distrust of others.
Peevish - Expressing fretfulness and discontent, or unjustifiable dissatisfaction. Cantankerous, cross, ill-tempered, testy, captious, discontented, crotchety, cranky, ornery.
Perfectionist - A propensity for being displeased with anything that is not perfect or does not meet extremely high standards.
Pessimist - A tendency to stress the negative or unfavourable or to take the gloomiest possible view.
Pest - One that pesters or annoys, with or without realizing it. Nuisance. Annoying. Nag.
Phobic â They have a severe form of fear when it comes to this one thing. Examples: Dark, Spiders, Cats
Practical - Level-headed, efficient, and unspeculative. No-nonsense.
Predictable - Easily seen through and assessable, where almost anyone can predict reactions and actions of said person by having met or known them even for a short time.
Proud - Filled with or showing excessive self-esteem and will often shirk help from others for the sake of pride.
Rebellious - Defying or resisting some established authority, government, or tradition; insubordinate; inclined to rebel.
Reckless - Heedless. Headstrong. Foolhardy. Unthinking boldness, wild carelessness and disregard for consequences.
Remorseless - Without remorse; merciless; pitiless; relentless.
Rigorous - Rigidly accurate; allowing no deviation from a standard; demanding strict attention to rules and procedures.
Sadist - The deriving of sexual gratification or the tendency to derive sexual gratification from inflicting pain or emotional abuse on others. Deriving of pleasure, or the tendency to derive pleasure, from cruelty.
Sadomasochist - Both sadist and masochist combined.
Sarcastic - A subtle form of mockery in which an intended meaning is conveyed obliquely.
Sceptic - One who instinctively or habitually doubts, questions, or disagrees with assertions or generally accepted conclusions.
Seducer - To lead others astray, as from duty, rectitude, or the like; corrupt. To attempt to lead or draw someone away, as from principles, faith, or allegiance.
Selfish - Concerned chiefly or only with oneself.
Self-Martyr - One who purposely makes a great show of suffering in order to arouse sympathy from others, as a form of manipulation, and always for a selfish cause or reason.
Self-righteous - Piously sure of oneâs own righteousness; moralistic. Exhibiting pious self-assurance. Holier-than-thou, sanctimonious.
Senile - Showing a decline or deterioration of physical strength or mental functioning, esp. short-term memory and alertness, as a result of old age or disease.
Shallow - Lacking depth of intellect or knowledge; concerned only with what is obvious.
Smart Ass - Thinks they know it all, and in some ways they may, but they can be greatly annoying and difficult to deal with at times, especially in arguments.
Soft-hearted - Having softness or tenderness of heart that can lead them into trouble; susceptible of pity or other kindly affection. They cannot resist helping someone they see in trouble, suffering or in need, and often donât think of the repercussions or situation before doing so.
Solemn - Deeply earnest, serious, and sober.
Spineless - Lacking courage. Cowardly, wimp, lily-livered, gutless.
Spiteful - Showing malicious ill will and a desire to hurt; motivated by spite; vindictive person who will look for occasions for resentment. Vengeful.
Spoiled - Treated with excessive indulgence and pampering from earliest childhood, and has no notion of hard work, self-care or money management; coddled, pampered. Having the character or disposition harmed by pampering or over-solicitous attention.
Squeamish - Excessively fastidious and easily disgusted.
Stubborn - Unreasonably, often perversely unyielding; bull-headed. Firmly resolved or determined; resolute.
Superstitious - An irrational belief arising from ignorance or fear from an irrational belief that an object, action, or circumstance not logically related to a course of events influences its outcome.
Tactless - Lacking or showing a lack of what is fitting and considerate in dealing with others.
Temperamental - Moody, irritable, or sensitive. Excitable, volatile, emotional.
Theatrical - Having a flair for over dramatizing situations, doing things in a âbig wayâ and love to be âcentre stageâ.
Timid -Tends to be shy and/or quiet, shrinking away from offering opinions or from strangers and newcomers, fearing confrontations and violence.
Tongue-tied - Speechless or confused in expression, as from shyness, embarrassment, or astonishment.
Troublemaker - Someone who deliberately stirs up trouble, intentionally or unintentionally.
Unlucky - Marked by or causing misfortune; ill-fated. Destined for misfortune; doomed.
Unpredictable - Difficult to foretell or foresee, their actions are so chaotic itâs impossible to know what they are going to do next.
Untrustworthy - Not worthy of trust or belief. Backstabber.
Vain - Holding or characterized by an unduly high opinion of their physical appearance. Lovers of themselves. Conceited, egotistic, narcissistic.
Weak-willed - Lacking willpower, strength of will to carry out oneâs decisions, wishes, or plans. Easily swayed.
Withdrawn - Not friendly or Sociable. Aloof.
Zealous - A fanatic.
Source for more facts follow NowYouKno
A road has no special qualifiers. It connects point a to point b.
A street connects buildings together, usually in a city, usually east to west, opposite of avenue.
An avenue runs north south. Avenues and streets may be used interchangeably for directions, usually has median
A boulevard is a street with trees down the middle or on both sides
A lane is a narrow street usually lacking a median.
A drive is a private, winding road
A way is a small out of the way road
a court usually ends in a cul de sac or similar little loop
a plaza or square is usually a wide open space, but in modern definitons, one of the above probably fits better for a plaza as a road.
a terrace is a raised flat area around a building. When used for a road it probably better fits one of the above.
uk, a close is similar to a court, a short road serving a few houses, may have cul de sac
run is usually located near a stream or other small body of water
place is similar to a court, or close, usually a short skinny dead end road, with or without cul de sac, sometimes p shaped
bay is a small road where both ends link to the same connecting road
crescent is a windy s like shape, or just a crescent shape, for the record, above definition of bay was also given to me for crescent
a trail is usually in or near a wooded area
mews is an old british way of saying row of stables, more modernly seperate houses surrounding a courtyard
a highway is a major public road, usually connecting multiple cities
a motorway is similar to a highway, with the term more common in New Zealand, the UK, and Austrailia, no stopping, no pedestrian or animal traffic allowed
an interstate is a highway system connecting usually connecting multiple states, although some exist with no connections
a turnpike is part of a highway, and usully has a toll, often located close to a city or commercial are
a freeway is part of a highway with 2 or more lanes on each side, no tolls, sometimes termedexpressway, no intersections or cross streets.
a parkway is a major public road, usually decorated, sometimes part of a highway, has traffic lights.
a causeway combines roads and bridges, usually to cross a body of water
circuit and speedway are used interchangeably, usually refers to a racing course, practically probably something above.
as the name implies, garden is usually a well decorated small road, but probably better fits an above
a view is usually on a raised area of land, a hill or something similar.
byway is a minor road, usually a bit out of the way and not following main roads.
a cove is a narrow road, can be sheltered, usually near a larger body of water or mountains
a row is a street with a continuous line of close together houses on one or both sides, usually serving a specific function like a frat
a beltway is a highway surrounding an urban area
quay is a concrete platform running along water
crossing is where two roads meet
alley a narrow path or road between buildings, sometimes connects streets, not always driveable
point usually dead ends at a hill
pike usually a toll road
esplanade long open, level area, usually a walking path near the ocean
square open area where multiple streets meet, guess how its usually shaped.
landing usually near a dock or port, historically where boats drop goods.
walk historically a walking path or sidewalk, probably became a road later in its history
grove thickly sheltered by trees
copse a small grove
driveway almost always private, short, leading to a single residence or a few related ones
laneway uncommon, usually down a country road, itself a public road leading to multiple private driveways.
trace beaten path
circle usually circles around an area, but sometimes is like a âsquareâ, an open place intersected by multiple roads.
channel usually near a water channel, the water itself connecting two larger bodies of water,
grange historically would have been a farmhouse or collection of houses on a farm, the road probably runs through what used to be a farm
park originally meaning an enclosed space, came to refer to an enclosed area of nature in a city, usually a well decorated road.
mill probably near an old flour mill or other mill.
spur similar to a byway, a smaller road branching off from a major road.
bypass passes around a populated area to divert traffic
roundabout or traffic circle circle around a traffic island with multiple connecting routes, a roundabout is usually smaller, with less room for crossing and passing, and safer
wynd a narrow lane between houses, similar to an alley, more common in UK
drive shortened form of driveway, not a driveway itself, usually in a neighborhood, connects several houses
parade wider than average road historically used as a parade ground.
terrace more common in uk, a row of houses.
chase on land historically used as private hunting grounds.
branch divides a road or area into multiple subdivisions.
Writers need to know stuff like this.
Your protagonist is mortally wounded and needs to get out alive. How? (more)
@neil-gaiman came in and gave us some writing prompts. Get writinâ!
The Sandman: Overture Deluxe Edition is in stores now.
for all my writer friends doing nano
Donât feel bad if youâre sensitive to negative feedback because apparently after one particular bad review Hans Christian Andersen was found just sobbing while lying face down in the dirt
Daily #1,056! Thereâs no end in sight, but we have to get there!!!
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You know the feeling, youâre staring at your draft, stuck on a scene, not knowing how to move forward, or even if there is a way. This section of your outline says âstuff?? things/!?!â in lieu of actual plotty bits, and youâre just like, âThanks, past me.â Your characters linger on the page, unsure of where to go to next but your brain is fried and youâre just⊠stuck.
Here are five writing exercises to help get those creative juices flowing again.
Take a scene youâve already written and write it from a different characterâs perspective. What does the antagonist think about this? Are they even there? What if they had some sort of crystal ball to see what was going on, what would they think and how would they react? (Even if crystal balls donât exist or work in your story, imagine that they do, for this one particular sceneâ for reasons.) Did you write a love confession from one protagonist to another? What does the other person think about this? Whatâs their thought process?Â
Take your main characters and strand them on a desert island. Just⊠imagine it. How do they get along? What would they bring with them, if they were allowed three items? Who would they want with them? What do they dream of or hope for when they return to their world? If your characters start off in a desert island situation/ post apocalypse / dystopia / etc, strand them in a modern coffeeshop, and then you have the fun of seeing them figure out the ins and outs of customer service and how to make the perfect latte.
Write a to-do listâ not for you, but for your protagonist. Pick one day in your novel, what would they put on this list? What do they need to do? To remember? To ignore? What do they not put on this list? Do they have goals for the next year? The next five years?
Write a scene from before the beginning or after the end. If youâre stuck where you are, skip somewhere else and try your hand at writing a scene before the story begins, maybe a moment from your characterâs childhood or a scene post-resolution where you can imagine what your protagonistsâ lives are like. Trying to figure out how your characters have dealt with the events of your story and the effects afterward is a good way to figure out how you want to get from where you are now to those scenes in the future.Â
Take your favorite song of the moment, or your karaoke favorite (you have one, you know you do⊠that song you canât help but belt along to in the shower, the carâŠ) and now imagine your main character singing this song. Direct a music video in your head with them as the star. Is this ridiculous? Very much so. But it also opens the door to all the raw emotion that comes with musicâ which song would be your characterâs kareoke choice, if they had one? Or what song describes their personality best? And aside from the fun questions about your characters you get to answer through music, itâs a great mental image to have, especially when you need to see your character doing something silly or to conjure up when youâre down about your story.
Even if you think youâre not working âactivelyâ on your story, continuing to write when youâre stuck, even going in another direction or writing backstory for characters, will add to your confidence in moving forward in the narrative. Take a break, write something silly or fun, and get back to your story whenever youâre ready.Â
You can do it! ăŸ(ăâàžșââàžș)ă
Who the Hell Is This Person Talking to Me and How Exactly Are They Related to Me: The Chart, just in time for your Thanksgiving gathering.
(Source: Apparently commenter âPlatypus Manâ from this Lifehacker post)
Oooh! I really like that this chart gives (average) percentage of genetic similarity.
And confession: Despite my genealogy hobby, I can never remember what my cousinsâ children are called in relation to me. (First cousin once removed, apparently.)Â
Protip: the 1st, 2nd, 3rd etc when referring to cousins refers to how many generations back you have to go to find a common grandparent. First cousins share a grandparent, second cousins share a great-grandparent, etc.
If you do NOT share a grandparent with the relative (for example, your grandparent is their great-grandparent) then thereâs a remove involved.
NaNoWriMo & the Inner Editor
âAlways question yourself. Always seek to be better. Always be actively examining your writing. Never ever ever let your brain be passive while you write.â -Gem, The Writing FreakÂ
My friend Gem over at @write-like-a-freak wrote a post in defense of the Inner Editor last year, and Iâve been saving it up until NaNo rolled around so I could add my two cents. NaNo has purported for years the virtues of locking up that inside voice in your head called the Inner Editor to help keep you from going back over work youâve written in a NaNo day and editing it down to be objectively âbetterâ prose. Even my region had an event last year at our midnight kick-off party where we decorated little matchbox jails for our nasty habit to keep the temptation away.
What happens is this: Writers in our natural habitat have time to mull over our words, make sure theyâre correct, that they have the rhythm weâre looking for, that they say what we want them to and not a mite more. With NaNo, we are asked to toss all that aside and write full-fury toward a monumental word-count finish line. Editing both takes away from that time, and often takes away word count as we trim those sentences and run-ons from unwieldy beats to delectably well-written morsels for the average reader. Editing makes champions out of sloppy sentences. Weâre asked to turn off that Inner Editor who says, âThatâs an awful sentence,â in favor of at least getting it out on paper. Itâs the old idea of quantity over quality for one whole month, and at the end of the story we can reshape it into something better.
What no one takes into account is the alternative: taming our Inner Editor.
Turning off the rascal is a dangerous endeavor, in my mind. If you successfully shut off that little voice, you may experience severe symptoms like not caring if prose is worded badly, not caring if a character arc is disjointed, not caring if your plot suffers from holes, not caring if an action is out-of-character for an individual. In short, success leaves you without any of the instincts that make for decent writing. If you donât succeed in shutting it off, you wind up crippled by doubt as you try to write as fast as you can, knowing that what youâre writing is sub-par at best.
Taming your Inner Editor doesnât turn it off, but it does give it a list of specific things to concern itself over. Give it a carrot to gnaw on, essentially. Here are a few steps for taming your creature:
Decide whatâs worth fretting over. Some red flags our Inner Editors send us are completely valid flags to pay attention to. Donât make it slide that flag out from between the bars of a cage just to hope you notice it. Flags about things like illogical plot sequencing and out-of-character actions probably need to be fixed sooner rather than later. I believe having your Inner Editor around for things like that is vital to producing something youâre proud of, which by the way is what NaNo is about. If you lock your Inner Editor away, you may end up with more work at the end of it, or even a required rewrite or overhaul. Iâm not talking about the little grammatical errors or the de-fragmenting of a sentence or even the removal of a scene, Iâm talking about the âthis doesnât work anymore and now I have to rewrite the entire second and third movements of my bookâ kinds of changes. Make those while youâre writing, not afterward!
Decide whatâs not. All those grammatical problems I talked about? Not a problem this month. Let your Inner Editor off the hook for those. Did you decide to switch tenses or styles? Donât go back and rewrite what youâve written. You can do that later. That doesnât impact your plot, your story. Once youâve made a decision to make a change like tense or style, just do it. Start writing with that tense or start writing in that epistolary style and keep going. Youâll have plenty of time for the rewriting later. Things that arenât important this month are things that donât completely derail and change your story, okay?
Set a timer. Some people thrive from being able to make a couple of those unimportant changes while writing, and thatâs okay. Just make sure you donât get carried away. While youâre actively writing for the day, only pay attention to whatâs important, but sometimes adding 5 or 10 minutes at the front of every writing session to make a couple of changes that have been bugging you is just fine. You know what works best for you. If you do this, make sure you keep yourself to that timer. When it goes off, stop and get back to writing!
Make friends with your highlighter. Thereâs a function in pretty much every word processing program to highlight text in a certain color, whether thatâs changing the wordâs color or the backgroundâs color. When somethingâs bothering you thatâs one of those little things, those unimportant (at the moment) diction choices or descriptions or pacing, highlight it and move on. That acknowledgement of the issue will help put your mind at ease about it (âRight, I got it. I know where it is, and I can easily come back to it.â) and allow you to keep writing. Establish a âsearch and find phraseâ that you can insert where you need to do some more research or you donât have a name. Some followers in the chat room have suggested the word âelephantâ or âTQâ or âTKâ and I use square brackets (â[name]â) as placeholders. When you let your full writing self back out at the end of the month, at least youâll have markers that are easy to find throughout your manuscript.
NaNo-ers, embrace the beauty that writers naturally come equipped with: the Inner Editor. Donât let yourself languish without it completely. Just like difficult relatives, give it a list of things to think about rather than giving it free reign, and youâll stand yourself in much better stead at the end of the month.
Need a word-count boost? Follow @NaNoWordSprints for more writing prompts from @syaffolee and the rest of the @NaNoWordSprints crew!