Dusty Shelf.

A writing & rp blog. penned by Drifter.

[creation-help]

Which oc has had multiple names over time? In-story or IRL? What are they, and why?

[abalonetea]

my writing fundamentally changed forever ten years ago when i realized you could use sentence structure to control people’s heart rates. is this still forbidden knowledge or does everyone know it now

[dreamtofswallowingcoins]

?????? *raises hand* I’ve been writing for years and don’t know this trick by these words! do tell?

[abalonetea]

Okay, so a few people have asked for me to cite the dark magics at them, and i’m super happy to share because it’s my favorite thing ever. 

so, let’s see if i can explain this the same way that i learned. read a sentence out loud. you come to a full stop when you hit the period, and you take a normal, breath. but, when you hit a comma, you take a slightly longer pause. and when you hit a dash - you take an even longer pause. 

this is a natural rhythm that we pick up when we’re first taught to read; we do it without even thinking. but when you start to think about it, you realize that it can become a tool.

think of your heartbeat. a period is badump. a comma is badump-dump. and a dash is thump badump. one breath. a longer breath. two breaths.

that means what you read automatically affects the rhythm of your breathing and your heartrate. which means that you can control the amount of physical tension your reader feels… by altering your punction and your sentence structure.

for fast paced scenes, you use short sentences. a lot of hard stops. mostly periods, with just a few comma’s thrown in for the full breath. your reader’s heartrate accelerates. their breathing is slightly and unintentionally, on their end, quicker. you hit the dramatic ending of the scene - and your reader’s body phsyically feels the gasp, the breath of fresh air, of these longer sentences.

now, read that paragraph again ant take note of your natural pauses, and how it subtly affects your breathing. 

the same thing can be said of comma’s and dashes. while they can be used as a breath of fresh air, they can also cause a new line of tension as they lead your reader to hold their breath. during this section, you should use longer sentences; breaking up the harshness of the pauses by using variations of punction. read this paragraph out loud from the start and take note of how long you go between pauses and full breaths. 

and then, comes the biggest trick.

the hard stop.

the paragraph.

because while the periods, commas, and dashes are variations on a short stop, the paragraph is a hard stop. you take a full breath. you pause for a moment, then move to the start of the next paragraph.

which means you can create an entirely new sort of dramatic tension. read the sentences that are in bold. see how you take a naturally longer pause at the end of each paragraph?

see how it makes you feel? 

how it makes you breath different? 

how doing it once, twice, or three times creates a different line of tension? 

this little magic trick can be used to cause a reader’s heartrate to speed up during a fight or chase scene. it can be used to cause their breathing to slow down during moments of dramatic tension, sorrow, or softness. and it can be used to create hard breaks that add a new level of physically felt emphasis to your written work.

i hope these examples make sense! it’s my favorite writing trick!

[bookseries]

[Dusts off the shelf a bit] alright now let's get some space for this...

[toxicrobotyaoi]

20 OC Questions

💀 Has your OC ever lost anyone to death? Multiple people? People close to them? How does the loss make them feel?

🙏 Is your OC religious in any way? Why or why not? Do they have other beliefs that govern them in any way?

💍 Does your OC have a specific item that is priceless to them but may (or may not) be completely worthless to someone else? Is there a story behind this item or is it just because they like it so much?

☄️ Does your OC believe in fate and destiny or do they think it’s a load of garbage? Would they ever get this fortune told? What would a fortune-teller tell them about their future?

📓 Write a typical diary/journal page by your OC! (or if you’d rather not, describe their journal. Do they keep one, why?)

⚖️ What is the biggest crime your OC has committed? Are they a theif, a cheat, a liar? What is the smallest, most petty crime they’ve committed? Or do they not do crime at all?

💰 If your OC had all the money they could ask for what would they do with it? Where would they go and what would they buy? Are they the only one who benefits from this wealth?

🤕 What is the worst injury your OC has ever suffered? Do they have any scars or lasting physical reminders of it? Do they get sick often or have any lasting medical conditions?

🍵 Are there any rumours about your OC hanging around? Nasty ones or just good humoured? Got any gossip to share about them?

🎨 Is your OC artistic? Can they draw or paint or do they prefer another medium? Are they a writer or musician or do they do something else? Give us a quick run down of what they can get creative with!

💧 What makes your OC lose hope, what makes them give up and feel helpless? Have they ever given up on something really important or let go of a dream? What are some of their biggest regrets? Would they ever try again (if they’re able to)?

🧠 Talk about your OCs mental health! Do they have any specific triggers or ways to practice self care? What are some things that are more difficult for them to do because of their mental health?

✨ If your OC were a deity of some kind, what would they represent? What do they look like? How are they worshipped and what offerings would they expect? What are their places of worship like? Their followers? Their teachings?

🎁 What would be the perfect gift to buy your OC? What would be the worst gift? Are they themselves any good at gifting things or are they really indescisive? How do they wrap their presents?

💗 Relationships? Who are their friends, their family relations, lover(s), foes? What sort of personalities really tick them off and what others do they like? Is there anything that’d ruin a friendship for them?

🕰️ Has there been an event that happened in your OCs past that affects their future or one that they think about still? Is this a bad event or a good one? What are a few of their childhood memories they can recall?

🗣️ What are the most painful words that can be said to your OC to utterly break them? What are the words that you could tell them to cheer them up? Maybe some advice to give them the boost they need!

👽 Describe your OC as if they were an urban legend or myth!

🗺️ Does your OC like going on adventures? Have they ever discovered something really interesting and significant or are they just too busy getting lost? Where is their favourite place they’ve been? Least favourite?

⚡ What are your OC’s phobias? Is there any reasoning behind these? How do they calm themselves down after getting scared? What are they like when they’re afraid? Is there any chance of them overcoming their fears?

[rocket-sith]

Reblog if you write fic and people can inbox you random-ass questions about your stories, itemized number lists be damned.

[jotonomy]

i love questions and interaction/engagement.

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape, 12/20

(jaxon u mad lad u did it u fooled your commanding officer n let ur friend get away)

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape, 13/20

(making a hole in the roof)

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape, 11/10

(always! have! a sniper! up! your sleeve!)

[fogsblue]

send a number (or 2) and a pairing and i'll try and write a drabble or ficlet

1. chocolate

2. in the snow

3. rhythm

4. irresistible

5. hold my hand

6. tongue-tied

7. blue

8. with you

9. grinding

10. not wearing that

11. can you hear me

12. believe

13. in the storm

14. first kiss

15. shooting star

16. broken wings

17. last dance

18. bite

19. at the edge

20. breaking the rules

21. good riddance

22. books

23. weight of the world

24. my child

25. sunlight

26. tactile

27. happy birthday

28. waiting

29. fading away

30. all I ask

31. blame me

32. open your eyes

33. hope

34. good enough

35. eternal

36. that hurt

37. meant no harm

38. blood

39. secret admirer

40. separation

41. diamond

42. flying

43. pool

44. puppy love

45. under the influence

46. fever

47. throne

48. shackles

49. coming home

50. odds and ends

[bookseries]

“Are you some sort of knight of the realm?” asked the merchant, surveying the corpses about him. The tall man, clad in armor beside him, laughed. His blade was wet with blood, breathing heavy. He wiped it on the grass underneath him and sheathed it. “No.” “A monk, priest perhaps?” “No.” The merchant laughed. “An angel then, bestowing upon all good people safety.” The armored man laughed harder this time, bending at the waist, patting the merchant’s shoulder.

They laughed for a good minute. The merchant’s died off before the man’s did.

The man laughed uncomfortably long. “No, no, not that, either.” He reached towards the faceplate of his helm. As he removed it the merchant jumped back, screaming.

He fell on his ass almost comically.

Bael smiled wide, his teeth razor-sharp and glittering like some deep-sea fish’s. “I’m something much, much worse.”

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape, 10/20

(well well well how the turn tables turn)

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape, 8/20

(thought you were told to stay behind?!)

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape, 7/20

(what will you do)

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape 6/20

(deployment of amnestic gas prior to a strike is an Insurgency tactic commonly used against civilians. distraction and cleanup happens all at once)

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape 5/20

(when u ambush people by jumping off the second floor and slashing them with the knife that is also your arm, you’ve invented a whole new style of martial arts)

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape, 4/20🤟🏼

[motherfuckinchaos]

the great escape 4/?