Writing by Cass

This is a space for my writing or for things that inspire me. Have questions? An idea for something I should write? Just pop into my inbox and leave a note. :)

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PSA to my followers

I initially created this blog as a resource for writers, but I’m afraid I am unable to keep up with it as it was initially intended. So I’m making this a place for my writing (original, short fics, poetry) and to offer any advice if you want. The posts I have will remain up and under a separate tag. 

Thank you so much for following me. 

[1000storyideas]

11 writing problems and solutions

Writing is a craft. It takes time for anyone to learn and improve. But there are some shortcuts you can try, maybe adapt to your own needs. Here are 11 writing problems and their solutions, or hacks.

Too many ideas syndrome

Problem: You have too many equally good story ideas and can’t pick just one to write.

Solution: Select your top 3 favorite stories and write the first scene of all three. If you can’t decide, write the first chapter. The right project will be easier to work with, you’ll have fun writing it, you will be daydreaming about the story, you will love the characters. So, give away three chances instead of one.

Outline spoiling the fun

Problem: Whenever you outline a story idea, it completely spoils your will to write it. The mystery is gone.

Solution: Instead of outlining the whole story, just make a clear goal on how your characters should end. Will they succeed? Will they fail? Will they be happy? Will they find redemption? Will they be wronged? Decide how your story should end and explore the plot as you go. Remember, no one will read your first draft, so just write.

Lost midway

Problem: If you are a pantser, you might get lost in the middle of the story, especially after the first plot point.

Solution: Give your story an ending. If you know where your characters will end up, you’ll have a better understanding of which routes to take. Always keep in mind how the story will end. Use it as the beacon of a lighthouse to guide you through stormy waters.

Creative block

Problem: You don’t have story ideas. Or nothing you have so far excites you enough for a novel.

Solution: Read a book or watch a movie completely out of your genre. This works like magic, I promise. I’m not a sci-fi person, but Akira has given me more story ideas than any movie and book from my own genre.

Writing anxiety

Problem: You are scared of writing, scared of starting a new story, or just scared of not doing a good job.

Solution: Write a fanfic. No one expects a fanfic to be a masterpiece (although many are). Fanfics are done for fun and for passion. So, write your book in fanfic format. You can even use fandom characters and aus in the process. When the story is completed, change back to original characters.

Editing as you write

Problem: You keep going back to previous paragraphs and editing instead of moving forward with your writing.

Solution: Write your novel by hand. This might sound like a lot of work, but it’s quite the opposite. The white screen of the computer urges you to review, to make it perfect, academic like perfect. The paper however, brings you back to the craft, to the urge of filling lines and pages. Handwriting also gives you the opportunity of sketching and doodling. 

Procrastination

Problem: Tumblr. Youtube. Email. Netflix. Bathroom. Fridge. Bed.

Solution: Go offline. Turn off your wi-fi. Use a device without internet connection. Or, if you keep fooling yourself and turning the internet back on, write your novel by hand. Give yourself a daily hour of internet, but live offline. And if you take unnecessary trips to the fridge or the bathroom, try the pomodoro technique.

Lack of plots

Problem: Nothing relevant is happening, your story looks kind of boring. Or the main plot is too weak for a whole novel.

Solution: Take a few days off. Just relax. When you are ready to go back, read what you have written so far. Maybe you were just tired. But, if the story really sucks, go back to basics. Ask yourself two questions. What type of story am I writing? How will this story end? Follow the answer like a map. Change what needs to be changed, even if you have to delete the whole progress. If you lack plots, don’t add fillers, just go back to basics.  

Weak main character

Problem: Your character lacks personality, voice and/or visuals.

Solution: Give your main character three things. An external battle. An internal battle. And an unique feature. The external battle is their goal, what they want to achieve, what they dream about. An internal battle is their fears, traumas, doubts, mental issues, prejudices and triggers to overcome. An unique feature is what sets them apart from other characters, maybe they have piercings, or tattoos, or pink hair, or lilac eyes, maybe they wear neon boots, or a mask, or mittens, maybe they are left-handed, or blind, maybe they have a scar, or a birthmark. Every amazing main character has external battles, internal battles and unique features.  

Depression

Problem: You have no will to write. The passion is gone. You feel empty.

Solution: If you don’t have access to medical help, reading is a good way to reevaluate your career and regain your passion for the words. Read lots of books. Don’t worry about writing, just read. Lose yourself in fictional adventures. Read sci-fi, romance, horror, fantasy, crime, family saga, classics, foreigner fictions, fanfics, shorts, poetry. Immerse in literature. Literature can save lives.  

Strange dialogues

Problem: Dialogues seem too formal, or too much like the narration, or characters lack individuality.

Solution: Read your dialogues out loud while acting as your characters. You can find a quiet empty room for that. Be an actor. Go for the emotions. Record your acting sections, after all, you might improvise at some point.    

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“American Gods” Sentence Starters-part 1 (Chapters 1-8):

“Gallows humor. Best kind there is” “Call no man happy until he is dead” “You got a second chance. Make the most of it” “You’re too fucking quiet” “Don’t piss off those bitches in airports” “You are where the forgotten wait” “Damn straight I’m a hustler” “Gods die” “Babes. You’re dead” “The dead always give me the screaming mimis” “You were given the sun itself.” “We’re like the wind. We blow both ways” “Liberty is a bitch who must be bedded on a mattress of corpses” “A man’s fortune is his own affair” “A story’s a good way of gettin’ someone on your side” “There’s a storm coming, and it’s not a storm of our making” “Where did all the blood come from?” “You shine like a beacon in the dark world” “I think empires rose and fell in the time it took you to pee” “Why does your car smell like bananas anyway?” “He borrowed money and opened a Taco Bell knock-off called Taco Bill’s.” “I would do anything to get away” “It’s there in the moment of eclipse and the moment of the storm” “Good-byes are overrated”

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30 Day Halloween Challenge

Welp, tis the season for Tricks and Treats and I think this is definitely a treat. 30 prompts ranging from first lines to prompts to titles. If you post on your blog, please tag us or submit your piece to our blog for us to publish! Happy Halloween and Happy Writing~!

Day 1. A black cat is trapped by a witch and forced to do her bidding.

Day 2. Police partners: one is a werewolf, one is a witch and their boss is Frankenstein’s monster

Day 3. A house that’s haunted because the ghost was forced to return to the scene of its death.

Day 4. A little girl wakes up to discover that she can talk to dolls. And the dolls talk back.

Day 5. Write your favorite Halloween movie from the POV of one of the background characters.

Day 6. A young witch discovers that she has the ability to entice anyone she wants.

Day 7. Write an epilogue to your favorite book/movie about monsters (Dracula/Frankenstein/The Wolf Man/ Pan’s Labyrinth/ Portrait of Dorian Gray/etc).

Day 8. Your favorite superhero is going trick-or-treating! Describe their experience.

Day 9. Write a darker version of your favorite childhood movie.

Day 10.Your favourite hero sees a little kid trick or treating as them (Superman sees a tiny Supes)

Day 11. Story or Poem Title: New Moon Haunting

Day 12. “I was walking through the cemetery, fingers brushing the gravestones, when I heard a voice behind me”

Day 13. “The broomstick was broken and she was due home any minute”

Day 14. A vampire dentist

Day 15. Story or Poem Title: Haunted Pinanta

Day 16: The worst spasms you’ve ever had have begun on your calf. Your legs are twisting. You drop to your knees. You hear a little voice behind you, “Mommy/Daddy?”

Day 17: A werewolf veterinarian

Day 18: Story or Poem Title: Graveyard Howling

Day 19: “Once upon a time, I was a serial killer....”

Day 20: Create a magic potion or spell and explain what it does. If you’re feeling adventurous, name it!

Day 21: Halloween has been banned but you and a few others have a secret costume party underground in some old tunnels.

Day 22: Describe, in detail, the worst costume you can imagine and your favorite literary villain wearing it.

Day 23: Story or Poem Title: Lady Bat

Day 24: On Halloween, you and your buddies got drunk, partying maybe a bit too hard. When you woke up the next day, you all realize none of you can remove your costumes.

Day 25: “I used to love Halloween. The costumes, the candy, the ghost stories. Until I realized that every time we told a ghost story, it gave the ghost a little more power…”

Day 26: A Grave Robber with a secret

Day 27: “I saw the owl and knew that, like me, it too was once a human…”

Day 28: You were called, last minute, to babysit your next door neighbor’s infant on Halloween. You wonder why until you see the blood on one of the parents’ clothing when they come home late that night.

Day 29: “I thought it was a bear until I realized that the shape of it wasn’t right. And that I lived in the city”

Day 30: Story or Poem Title: The Shifter

Bonus: Write about your favorite literary character going trick-or-treating with your least favorite Halloween character.

[bitsandbobsbycass-blog]

Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while.

Wesley, The Princess Bride by William Goldman

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Writing is something you do alone. It's a profession for intrverts who want to tell you a story but don't want to make eye contact while doing it.

John Green

[theliteraryjournals]

He stepped down, trying not to look long at her, as if she were the sun, yet he saw her, like the sun, even without looking.

Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

[bitsandbobsbycass-blog]

Character Building

When building a character for a longer piece of fiction, (of any genre: fantasy, literary fiction, sci-fi, etc.) I find that is it easiest to use a character building chart. There a lot out there that can be modified (especially if you already have the character mostly created and you just want a more organized biography sheet or if you’re exploring the character more in-depth).

I find that it is easiest to start with the basics: appearance, mannerisms, background (if that information is known). Often times, (as in the case of Mina, who I have been expanding upon and getting to know over the course of several years) you already know this information, most likely because you’ve had the idea for the character for a while and you have a general idea of what they look like/who they are.

In my case: I have always known Mina has black, curly hair and that her eyes are red. I’ve always known that she’s a control freak and that her mother died when she was born.

If you know this information and you’re okay with exploring other facets on your own, then that’s great! But for those of you who like to keep things together, character sheets are by far the way to go.

After getting a general idea for your character, you can expand: do they have bad habits, (probably-so the next question would be: what is it?) do they have tattoos or piercings? What kind of clothing do they wear?

These questions are great, not just for character building, but for world building as well. One character may have tattoos because of the clan or tribe they are in while another character may not for the same reason.

I have found that it is often best to create your own character sheet (which I have done and used in the bio section for Mina’s blog found here: x) but for those who don’t have the time or even the energy, I have created one for you to use and have linked it in the bottom. It’s pretty lengthy, so if there are bits you want to delete or something you want to add, please put it in a separate document before doing so. 

Feel free to use and see where your character takes you. You may be surprised.

Happy writing,

Cass

Character Creation Sheet