Behind Your Manuscript

A nything you want can be be on those pages. The choice is yours. But there's a lot that goes in that we can't see, a lot behind your manuscript. That's where this blog comes in. Welcome to Behind the Manuscript! I do critiques (see: submit) and write and reblog advice.

[thewritershelpers]

NaNo Write-In Plea

Hey all. I just want to start out by saying this is not a thing I typically do, or at all like to do. However, sometimes you just have to ask for what you need. 

This is going to be my 10th year doing NaNo, and I’d really, really like to go to their Night of Writing Dangerously, which is held near NaNo HQ in San Francisco. Thing is: a) I’m about to be unemployed again, after already struggling through almost 6 months of it already this year and b) in order to go to NOWD, you have to raise the money – you can’t really just purchase a ticket. It’s going to be tough for me just to afford travel, but I can’t cover both travel and ‘donate’ on behalf of myself as well.

Additionally, I’ve never met any of my fellow admins in person, and with H interning at HQ, this is a great opportunity, not just for me to meet her, but for TWH followers in the Bay Area to meet us both. If I get to go, H and I will organize a meet up/write-in for folks in the area. 

So yes, I’m reaching out to our followers to ask for your support in sending me to the NOWD, and to meet H (and hopefully some of you)! Anything you can give is greatly appreciated. $10. $5. $1. Seriously, all of it is great, and it all goes to support NaNoWriMo, which we here at TWH really love.

There are limited seats available, so time is of the essence, but again, anything you can give, and even just signal boosting, are much appreciated. 

Stay tuned soon for more on what TWH has planned for NaNoWriMo this year. We’ve got some cool stuff coming your way. Thanks for following, and your support, truly. Y’all are great.

- O

[thewritershelpers]

$100. That’s all that’s needed now to get a ticket, though it’d be great to reach the full goal. 

Every signal boost/donation helps!

[inritum]

reblog and make a wish! this was removed from tumbrl due to “violating one or more of Tumblr’s Community Guidelines”, but since my wish came true the first time, I’m putting it back. :)

[ghostdog07]

OH MY FUCKING GOD, IT’S BACK ON MY DASH.

THIS SHIT WORKS OKAY, I AM DEAD SERIOUS.

The last time I saw this on my dash, I didn’t think it would happen, so jokingly I wished I could go to a fun. concert.

AND GUESS WHAT, I WENT TO A FUCKING FUN. CONCERT.

THIS SHIT WORKS, TRY IT.

[deathklaue]

YOOOOOOO

I SAW THIS ON MY DASH THE OTHER DAY AND THOUGHT “ITS WORTH A TRY” SO I WISHED I COULD GET A 3DS

LITERALLY LIKE 4 DAYS LATER MY DAD SENT ME A PICTURE OF THE 3DS XL HE BOUGHT FOR ME WHILE I WAS AT SCHOOL

IM STILL FREAKING OUT ABOUT THIS

[doryishness]

holy fuck, I didn’t expect this to work, I was like psh, whatever it’s just a quick reblog, but I wished my Dad would actually respond back to me AND HE FUCKING DID A FEW DAYS LATER, I GOT A FUCKING TEXT FROM MY DAD TODAY WHO HASN’T SPOKEN OR RESPONDED TO ME IN MONTHS HOLY FUCK WHAT IS THIS MAGIC IT WORKS. 

[victoriaringsinyourears]

I WANTED TO SEE MY BOYFRIEND AND I DIDN’T THINK I’D GET DAYS OFF BUT THIS WEEKEND I’M HEADING UP THERE??? THIS IS CRAZY SHIT 

[lenshade]

SO LIKE I JOKINGLY WISHED FOR MY OWN LEN KAGAMINE AND THEN LIKE A WEEK LATER I GOT A LEN NENDOROID??? H ELP

[themixedbagofwhat]

WTF OKAY SO THIS SHOT ACTUALLY WORKS BECAUSE WHEN I WISHED, I HAD WISHED MY CRUSH WOULD LIKE ME BACK AND GUESS WHAT? I HAVE A BOYFRIEND NOW. WHAT THE HELLLLL?????

[wodkat]

ok I’ve said this before but IM DOING IT AGAIN THE FIRST TIME I SAW THIS, MY WISH DID COME TRUE SO I REBLOGED AGAIN AND SAID IT IN THE TAGS BUT THEN I WISHED FOR SMTH ELSE AND IT LITERALLY LITERALLY HAPPENED LIKE A COUPLE DAYS LATER WHAT THE HELL SO NOW IM WRITING THIS HERE FOR YOU BC I DONT BELIEVE IN THIS CRAP BUT STILL IT’S AN AWFULLY BIG COINCIDENCE

[acstiel]

THE BOY I FELL I LOVE WITH LEFT TO TRAVEL THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD AND HAS BEEN GONE NOW FOR 3 MONTHS. WE HAVENT SPOKEN SINCE BECAUSE I DIDNT WANT TO MAKE HIM FEEL TRAPPED TO ME AND NOT ENJOY HIS TIME SO I WAITED FOR HIM TO CONTACT ME FIRST. I SAW THIS ON A PARTICULARLY LOW DAY WHEN I WAS MISSING HIM SO MUCH I CRIED FROM THE PAIN, GUYS I REALLY LOVE HIM, SO I THOUGHT MEH WHAT THE FUCK, AND WISHED HE WOULD JUST LET ME KNOW HE WAS OKAY.

GUYS.

HE FUCKING CALLED ME 20 MINUTES LATER

20 FUCKNG. MINUTES. LATER.

GOOD THINGS DO HAPPEN. AND ITS IN THIS POST.

[juststrokemyglabella]

I wish for someone to leave something in my ask.

[adweeb-deactivated20160228]

OKAY SO I ASKED FOR A HEDGEHOG AND NOW GUESS WHO HAS A PET HEDGEHOG

[chaariss]

i really hope my wish comes true

[champagnepug]

my last two wishes came true, one more couldn’t hurt

[pradest]

SO I WISHED FOR AN IMAC THE LAST TIME I DID THIS AND A WEEK LATER MY MOM SURPRISED ME WITH AN IMAC. HONESTLY SHE DIDNT EVEN KNOW I WANTED ONE, I DIDNT TELL ANYONE, IT WAS AN EARLY XMAS PRESENT. Wow this works

[crazyskinnylove]

This is AMAZING i wished that I would get into South Korea and I did !!!!!!!!

[writeydoos]

It takes about three paragraphs to decide whether or not I’m going to buy that novel I just mindlessly picked up in the book store. Sometimes I’ll read the entire first chapter if I’m still on the fence, but those are rare occasions. Nine times out of ten, I’ve made my decision by...

[sketchypandagames-blog]

Writing is an input/output process. There are no prodigies. No one’s writing exists in a bubble. What you put into your brain has a direct correlation to what comes back out. In other words, what you read is what you will write. So for those of you who are interested in...

[ericscissorhands]

[the365daysblog]

ASK: So, you may not know the answer, but I’m really into writing poetry, and I was wondering how one would publish a book? I don’t know much about publishing, but could you tell me anything about it?

Publishing a book can seem even more daunting than writing one. To...

[literallycait]

Tropes get a lot of flak in discussions about good writing, but tropes aren’t necessarily a bad thing. The truth is that you you’d be hard pressed to find a single piece of media that doesn’t have its fair share of tropes. A trope is a convention in storytelling, something...

[clpolk]

A superfantastic infographic on the rhythm of a dramatic scene, from http://www.betternovelproject.com/blog/scene-structure/ definitely visit Better Novel Project! and K.M. Weiland’s book Structuring Your Novel is very good. Visit her blog at http://www.helpingwritersbecomeauthors.com/ 

[simplyoriginalcharacters]

Before I link today’s resource posts, I wanted to take a minute to write out my thoughts on a subject that is near and dear to my heart (and my life). I’ve actually been trying to write this post for a while now, but I’ve been struggling to put the way I’ve been...

[inclusivedystopias-blog]

An Introduction

I’m here for what it says in the title- I’m writing inclusive sci-fi and would like input, feedback, and interactions with the people I’m including and people who would like to see more of these works. I have a few short stories planned depending on if I get a reaction and two novels in the works. I’m looking for diverse submissions!

[feistiest]

*writes dystopian novel where a bisexual and asexual girl fall in love and save the world together along with their trans bestie and everyone is queer except for that one implied straight character*

[feistiest]

narrow-minded people are getting mad over this post keep reblogging it

[kingkyxx]

Someone actually make this

[behindthemanuscript-blog]

I am making something like this! if you want to follow this journey, I’ll be posting updates! Follow it here

[readvitality]

Only EIGHT days left in the kickstarter!

And we’re only 1/3 of the way to our goal! Please spread the word and signal boost as much as you can! We can only make a second issue with your help. 

What is Vitality?

Vitality is a literary magazine filled with entertaining stories of all genres that feature queer protagonists. We include fiction and poetry that center around LGBTQ people doing great things - saving the world, solving mysteries, finding their magical soulmates… The possibilities are absolutely limitless. And every single one centers around queer people.

Where can I read it?

You can download our FREE minizine here! We’ve changed a lot since putting that out last October, but it’s still a good taste of the kind of thing Vitality is about. 

How can I support Vitality?

We’re currently running a Kickstarter to fund our second issue, and could definitely use your help. Rewards include copies of the second issue, buttons, postcards, magnets, and extra stories! :D Tell your friends, reblog, signal boost, or tweet/post/write about why Vitality is important to you in your own words. 

Vitality cannot make a second issue without your help! Please consider contributing to our Kickstarter!

[its-a-writer-thing]

In this post, I discuss why — now more than ever — we need to shift YA sci-fi away from post-apocalyptic dystopians, to stories that celebrate humanity’s endeavors.

[more-legit-gr8er-writing-tips]

How about no? This article really borders on the ridiculous. People don’t write dystopias and post-apocalyptic stories because they think it’d be fun to watch their friends killed or mind-controlled by evil governments. They don’t write these because they think it’d be a bright better future (wtf, seriously?) We write dystopias because we are expressing our fears about the way the world is TODAY and how we do NOT want it to become. These stories dominate the YA genre? LET THEM. Kids raised on these stories will be better equipped to tell when governments are taking away their rights.

[jackalediting-deactivated201904]

Well said, I didn’t like this article either.

I’d like to add that dystopian and post-apocalyptic fiction is a trend, and you can’t just decide it’s one you don’t like anymore and tell everyone they should write something else. 

[more-legit-gr8er-writing-tips]

I’m all for writing other kinds of stories as well. Diversity never hurts. But saying dystopias and post-apocalyptic stories no longer have their place in YA literature is incredibly short -sighted and it shows a tremendous lack of awareness for the world as it is now.

[fmtpextended]

1. Brush up on your grammar and punctuation. There is a sea of information about grammar and punctuation online. Research it, learn it, and practice it. Just make sure you’re getting your info from reputable sites that know what they’re talking about. I recommend Grammar Girl,...

[ivyblossom]

Forget about kicking ass.

That’s not the metric you need to worry about.

The only ass that your female character need to kick is the ass of the story — that’s the power you want to give them. The power of agency. They can be sexy and sexual without being sexualized or objectified. They can kick ass or not kick ass or have Power or Not Have Powers as long as you elevate them above mere action figures (“Look how poseable she is when she does her sexy high-kicks!”) They can be vulnerable or flawed or unlikeable as long as you treat them like real people, not like video game characters or a list of abilities or dolls or lamps or The Reason That Dude Does The Thing He’s Meant To Do. They’re not proxies, they’re not mannequins, they’re not mirrors, they’re not Walking Talking FleshLights, they’re not princesses in towers waiting to be saved, they’re not emotionless ass-kicking chicks who still don’t kick as much ass as the hero. I’d even argue that calling them “female characters” has its problems because it sounds clinical, distant, a characteristic, a check box, a footnote.

Think of them as women or as girls.

Think of them as people.

– Chuck Wendig

[thewritingrealm]

My dash is incredibly dead… like/reblog if you’re a writing blog (as in a full writing blog) and I’ll check out your blog!

[bookgeekconfessions]

I wanted to double check that “The Cherry on Top” was a short novel or novella and I found this on uphillwriting.org. I think it’s very informative and hopefully you guys will find it useful!