Correction Camp

Hi! This is the blog for the book I'm in the process of writing - Correction Camp. You can find the run down of the book in our first post, tagged 'Correction Camp', 'mun-author speaking', and 'basis for a book'! Most important posts will be tagged like this. Other than that, have fun with your time here, and don't forget to shoot the characters some questions!

[correction-camp-book-blog]

Announcements

Wow, it’s been a while, huh?  Well, the unofficial hiatus is coming to a close!

With Nanowrimo coming up in November, I’m going to try to get myself back into the swing of writing.  Prepare for a lot more posts in the upcoming months - I’ll be showing you my progress as best I can.

That said, don’t expect too much from me.  I still have to focus on school, colleges, studying for my permit test, etc.  It’s a lot on my plate but I’ll try my best to balance it all.

Get ready, we’re hopping on this train again soon!

[sonority-one]

a gay camp that parents send their children to in order to be “corrected” that is actually a disguised safe haven for LGBT youths

[zaphendrah]

Please let this be a thing

[chaoticjewish]

Kids being asked their preferred name and pronouns as they get off the bus. Kids being housed with the gender they identify as. Kids swapping clothes so their outside can reflect their inside. Older kids getting gay/lesbian/trans-inclusive sex education. Cis girls teaching trans girls to do their makeup. Trans boys learning to bind safely. Counselors sharing positive coming-out stories around the campfire. Kids learning to include their pronouns when introducing themselves. Kids coming to camp scared and alone and leaving with the best support network anybody could possibly hope for.

This needs to exist.

[tyler-oakleys-sparkle]

I need this

[correction-camp-book-blog]

Just got some really fantastic ideas.

[maxkirin]

Hello, writerly friends~ ♥︎

My Writing Advice Masterpost is back! Now featuring the best questions and answers from the last three years, along with all of the videos from my writing advice YouTube Channel!

This post will be updated every week with new writing advice videos, playlists, and responses! So, make sure to bookmark THIS page and follow my blog (maxkirin.tumblr.com) so you don’t miss a thing!

Writing Advice Compilations

The NaNoWriMo Survival Guide

M. Kirin’s NaNoWriMo 2014 Writing Advice Videos

WRITERS UNITE! A book of writing advice, inspiration, and tips! Written with the help of 248 Tumblr authors. FREE DOWNLOAD!

Writing Exercises & Prompts

Virtual Writing Academy (Newest Episode: World-Building & Originality)

Daily Story Seed

Daily Weird Prompt

Daily Character Question

Your Writing Horoscope (Retired)

"Can I publish a story based on one of your prompts?"

Did you know that I have published a book of Story Seeds? Sounds interesting? You can learn more about it HERE! c;

Motivation & Inspiration

Daily Writer Positivity

How to Regain the Motivation to Finish Your Novel (Video)

How to Finish Your First Novel (M. Kirin’s Origin Story)

M. Kirin’s Top 3 Tips for NaNoWriMo

The 7 Cardinal Rules of Writing Life

Neil Gaiman’s “Make Good Art” Speech

Neil Gaiman’s 8 Rules of Writing

Elizabeth Gilbert’s Inspirational Speech on the ‘Genius’

What Confidence Is and Is NOT

"I’m afraid writing is a waste of time"

"I’m half-way through this book and I’m stuck"

Stop Trying to Impress People

Stop Trying to Make Your Parents Proud of your Writing

Your Parents Disapprove of Your Writing?

You’re Not The Worst Writer In The World

English Not Your First Language? Neither is Mine

Are You Worried Nobody Will Take You Seriously?

Dealing with Hate and Harsh Criticism

Why You Need to Develop a Thick Skin

Feeling Down About Your Writing?

"I am not as good as other writers" (and other lies)

Be A Little Delusional

Planning, Outlining, and Getting Started

How to Plan Your Novel (Video)

The NaNoWriMo Survival Guide (Video)

How Much World-Building is Enough? (Video)

The *Right* Time to be Critical of Your Writing (Video)

Overcoming the Fear of Getting it “Wrong" (Video)

The Story-Idea Test

M. Kirin’s Click-n-Drag Story Generator

Which outlining method is the best?

"I want to write a book but I have no idea where to start"

M. Kirin’s Secret for Starting books, and Finishing Them

M. Kirin’s Top 3 Tips to Start Writing and Never Stopping

Tips for writing Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Paranormal

M. Kirin’s #1 Tip For Improving Your Writing

Let’s Talk About: Show VS Tell

The Difference Between Character & Plot (The Marcy Rule)

Dialogue

M. Kirin talks about authentic dialogue

The grammatical side of dialogue

How do I write numbers in dialogue?

Editing & Revision

M. Kirin’s Top 5 Revision Tips

How to Love and Care for Your Beta Readers

M. Kirin’s (subjective) secret recipe for the second draft

When is the best time to edit a story?

M. Kirin Talks About Editing, and Speeding Up Your Story

M. Kirin Uses Evernote to Revise Books

"Kill Your Darlings" VS "Cut What You Love"

Writing Killer Plot-Twists and Mystery Novels

"How long is a Rough Draft compared to the Finished Draft?"

Hot-Button Issues

Let’s Talk About: Filler (Video)

Let’s Talk About: Purple Prose (Video)

Let’s Talk About: Deus Ex Machina

Let’s Talk About: Coincidence in Writing

Realism is a dirty word

Racist & homophobic language in fiction

Inaccuracy in Fiction (Video)

M. Kirin drops a few bombs on ‘creative vocabulary’

"I want to write but I don’t have the time"

Is it bad to have too many LGBTQIA or POC characters?

"My antagonist is POC/LGBTQIA, is this bad?"

"All my characters are LGBTQIA, is this bad?"

When to let go of a story

Is it rational to be afraid of what people will think of you?

Let’s Lightly Talk About: Plagiarism & Copyright

Writing About Things You Have Never Experienced

"Do you need to go to college/university to be a good writer?"

My book is similar to something already out, what do I do?

General Advice

M. Kirin’s Cure For Writer’s Block (and Life Block)

A [Strange] Tip For Writing More! (Video)

World-Building Tips: Dystopian (Video)

World-Building Tips: Fantasy & Science Fiction (Video)

World-Building Tips: Life After the Apocalypse (Video)

World-Building Tips: Government & The Human Element (Video)

Overcoming the First Sentence (Again) (and Again)

Let’s Talk About: Pen Names!

Let’s Talk About: Reactive VS Proactive Characters

Let’s Talk About: Transitioning Smoothly From Scene to Scene

Let’s Talk About: Writing The Climax (& Resolution)

Let’s Talk About: Writing The End

Let’s Talk About: Spies

Let’s Make a Title (To A Story You Haven’t Finished)

The 10-Minute Rule

Making Boring Scenes FUN to Write!

Stories are like children

Let’s Talk About Titles (And Then Talk Some More)

M. Kirin Reveals the ‘Secret’ Behind Style

How much description/scenery is too much?

How can I write faster?

I want my readers to love my characters

I think my book may be too short for my genre

I killed one of my main characters by mistake, what do I do?

M. Kirin’s Writing Advice for Fleshing out Romantic Relationships

A warning about character names and meanings

Past or present tense?

Is swearing okay? And other muthafuckin’ truths

"What emotion do you find hardest to write?"

"What writing software do you use?"

Communication, a must for collaborative works

Researching illegal things, cousin? I got just the thing for you!

Joss Whedon’s Top 10 Writing Tips

M. Kirin’s Tarot Cheat-Sheet

Writing Tips for Storytelling in Video-Games

Fair Use In Novels (by thedancingwriter​)

Publishing

Publishing Battle: Indie VS Traditional

"How do I turn my book into an eBook?"

Writing Music & Playlists

Top 10 Songs For Writers

Writing In The Dark (Unobtrusive)

Writing About Love

Writing & Fighting!

Writing About Horror

Royalty And Noble Blood (Medieval/Fantasy)

Digital Reality (Cyberpunk/Futuristic)

Lost In The Wild (Survival/Nature)

No Hero (Action/Anti-Heroes)

Mermaid Magic (Mysterious)

After The Bomb (Post-Apocalyptic/Dystopian)

Sorrow (Sad/Despair)

Upon Black Wings (Adventure/Dragons)

Haunted Mansion (Horror/Supernatural)

Childhood Friends (Happy/Uplifting)

Music For Writers: Portal 2 Soundtrack (FREE)

M. Kirin’s Favorite Music to Listen to While Writing

M. Kirin’s Secret For Making Playlists

Miscellaneous

M. Kirin’s 2014 AMA, Part 1 & Part 2 (Video)

Finally! An Ask-Meme for Writers! 

M. Kirin’s Philosophy for Running a Writing Blog

Last Updated: 01-31-15. Click HERE to see the latest update. Latest posts are in bold.

[correction-camp-book-blog]

Hey there.

I'm just popping in to say I'm sorry that this little hiatus of mine has been taking so long.  School has taken up a large chunk of my time, as well as occasional art projects to keep myself sane.

Fear not, fair people! I have been working on it as well on my good days, so I have been making progress, however minute it may be(To my beta, this is why I haven't done anything on Google Docs - I want to get the first chapter done before we really do anything with it).

I should be posting some updates with somewhat better consistency, but I won't guarantee anything at this time.

To the people who have sent me asks that have not received answers, I'm sorry to you as well!  I've seen them, I know they're there, but I continue to let them collect dust.  I'll try to get back to you all when I have a bit more time on my hands.

Thank you for sticking around, and there should be more to come soon!

[beaverofrp]

Accommodate, Accommodation:

two cs, two ms

Common Misspelling: accomodate, accomodation

Achieve:

i before e

Common Misspelling: acheive

Across:

one c

Common Misspelling: accross

Aggressive, Aggression:

two gs

Common Misspelling: agressive,...

[thisisgreenhaven-blog]

Words, Words, Words | Instead of Walk

Instead of walk, consider:

Amble: walk easily and/or aimlessly

Bounce: walk energetically

Careen: pitch dangerously to one side while walking or running

Clump: walk heavily and/or clumsily

Falter: walk unsteadily

Flounder: walk with great difficulty

Foot it: (slang) depart or set off by walking

Footslog: walk heavily and firmly, as when weary, or through mud

Gimp: limp; hobble

Hike: take a long walk, especially in a park or a wilderness area

Hobble: walk unsteadily or with difficulty; see also limp

Hoof it: (slang) walk; see foot it

Leg it: (slang) see foot it

Limp: walk unsteadily because of injury, especially favoring one leg; see also falter

Lumber: walk slowly and heavily

Lurch: walk slowly but with sudden movements, or furtively

March: walk rhythmically alone or in a group, especially according to a specified procedure

Meander: walk or move aimlessly and idly without fixed direction

Mince: walk delicately

Mosey: see amble; also, used colloquially in the phrase “mosey along”

Nip: walk briskly or lightly; also used colloquially in the phrase “nip (on) over” to refer to a brief walk to a certain destination, as if on an errand

Pace: walk precisely to mark off a distance, or walk intently or nervously, especially back and forth

Pad: walk with steady steps making a soft dull sound

Parade: walk ostentatiously, as if to show off

Perambulate: see stroll; travel on foot, or walk to inspect or measure a boundary

Peregrinate: walk, especially to travel

Plod: walk slowly and heavily, as if reluctant or weary

Pound: walk or go with heavy steps; move along with force or vigor; see lumber

Power walk: walk briskly for fitness

Prance: walk joyfully, as if dancing or skipping

Promenade: go on a leisurely walk, especially in a public place as a social activity; see parade

Prowl: walk noiselessly and carefully in a predatory manner

Pussyfoot: walk stealthily or warily

Ramble: walk or travel aimlessly

Roam: go without fixed direction and without any particular destination, often for pleasure; see ramble

Rove: travel constantly over a relatively lengthy time period without a fixed destination; wander

Sashay: glide, move, or proceed easily or nonchalantly; seeparade

Saunter: walk about easily

Scuff: walk without lifting one’s feet

Shamble: walk or go awkwardly; shuffle; see scuff

Shuffle: walk without lifting the feet or with clumsy steps and a shambling gait; see scuff

Skulk: move in a stealthy or furtive manner

Somnambulate: walk in one’s sleep

Stagger: walk unsteadily

Stalk: walk stealthily, as in pursuit

Step: walk, or place one’s foot or feet in a new position

Stomp: walk heavily, as if in anger

Stride: walk purposefully, with long steps

Stroll: walk in a leisurely way; see saunter

Strut: walk with a stiff, erect, and apparently arrogant or conceited gait; see parade

Stumble: walk clumsily or unsteadily, or trip

Stump: walk heavily, as with a limp; see lumber

Swagger: walk with aggressive self-confidence

Tiptoe: walk carefully on the toes or on the balls of the foot, as if in stealth

Toddle: move with short, unsteady steps, as a young child; seesaunter and stagger

Totter: walk or go with faltering steps, as if from extreme weakness; see stagger (also, sway or become unstable)

Traipse: walk lightly and/or aimlessly

Tramp: walk heavily or noisily; see lumber and hike

Trample: walk so as to crush something underfoot

Traverse: walk across or over a distance

Tread: walk slowly and steadily

Trip: walk lightly; see also stumble

Tromp: tread heavily, especially to crush underfoot; see lumber

Troop: walk in unison, or collectively

Trot: proceed at a pace faster than a walk; see nip

Trudge: walk slowly and with heavy steps, typically because of exhaustion or harsh conditions; see plod

Waddle: walk clumsily or as if burdened, swinging the body

Wade: walk through water or with difficulty, as if impeded

Wander: to move from place to place without a fixed route; seeramble

[boilingheart-archive]

Y’all little writers go on and have fun now

[maxkirin]

A kind follower reminded me of that '7 Cardinal Rules of Life' post going around, and they asked me if I would ever do my take on them (that being, a writerly take). Well, seeing as how I’ve been running a Writer Positivity series for over 100 posts, I thought it would be a fun chance to collect some of my favorite advice!

PS: The above are not meant to be taken as ‘literal’ rules for writing, but rather advice for leading the lifestyle of a writer~ ♥︎

Looking for more writerly content? Make sure to follow maxkirin.tumblr.com for your daily dose of writer positivity, advice, and prompts!

[artist-refs]

(via 5 Ways to Limit Your Character’s Options - and Make Your Story Better - Helping Writers Become Authors)

[aetherial]

Checklist for character development.

Created by myself, compiled from questions gleaned from several sources, and some of my own additions.

It should be noted, that not every character will check every one of these things off. It is not REQUIRED to have all this information, but this checklist is, rather, a guideline for helping you think of your character as an entire, three dimentional being with thoughts, feelings, possessions, contradictions and background.

A character is 20% revealed to the reader, 80% writer/author/Mun knowledge. What the Reader sees is just the tip of the iceburg, but without the other 80% the character can’t help but come off feeling shallow. There’s nothing beneath the surface -  KNOWING as much bout your character as possible, instrinsicly, in detail, intimately, can do nothing but help build believability and dimension to your character.

Use only the things on this list that you feel are important, but I would like to remind you that the reader learns a lot about a character NOT through exposition (that’s kind of a cheat, and always feels , to me, like a rather clunky way of conveying knowlege), but through their actions, quirks, thoughts, and even through the things they own and carry with them. What kind of food they eat and how they eat it. What they wear. What they carry in their wallets.  I encourage you, as writers, to consider these things when creating a character, and encourage you MORE to leave the exposition out and tell us about your character through these other means!

If nothing else, this will give you a LOT to work with when writing with your character. Maybe it’ll spur you to write about the character’s parents. Or the relationship between them and their family. Maybe you’ll find yourself inspired to write something about how they lost everything in a fire  - and the importance each remembered lost item held.

There is certainly no rule that says you HAVE to do it this way, but invariably, the most memorable characters are the ones that we as readers can relate with. It’s hard to relate with just words - but people - with beliefs and dreams and fears -  that’s something we can get behind.

I certainly hope you find this useful, and since so many have been inclined to reblog and like this, I shall endeavor to add more character creation and writing tips, lists and excercises up on this blog!

[fuckyeahcharacterdevelopment]

I think this is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.

- Pen

[scissorsafety-blog]

[percyhoneybee]

THERE MUST BE A PARAGRAPH BREAK EVERY TIME A NEW CHARACTER SPEAKS

THIS IS NOT OPTIONAL

NO ONE WANTS TO READ ONE BIG BLOCK OF TEXT JESUS CHRIST

[bloated-butch]

REMEMBER TIP TOP OK:

Make a paragraph every time that any of these things change!

Ti me

P lace

To pic

P erson

[writeworld-blog]

[writeworld-blog]

Grammatical Terms Explained

amandaonwriting:

active adjective adverb attributive auxiliary verb clause collective noun comparative compound conditional clause conjunction corpus count noun defining relative clause definite article determiner direct speech gerund imperative indefinite article indicative indirect speech infinitive inflection intransitive main clause mass noun modifier mood negative non-restrictive relative clause noun object part of speech participle passive personal pronoun phrasal verb plural possessive pronoun postpositive predicative prefix preposition pronoun proper noun relative clause reported speech restrictive relative clause sentence split infinitive standard English subject subjunctive subordinate clause suffix superlative syntax tense transitive verb verbal noun word class

[writeworld-blog]

Tone/Attitude Words

accusatory: charging of wrong doing

apathetic: indifferent due to lack of energy or concern

awe: solemn wonder

bitter: exhibiting strong animosity as a result of pain or grief

cynical: questions the basic sincerity and goodness of people 

condescension; condescending: a feeling of superiority

callous: unfeeling, insensitive to feelings of others

contemplative: studying, thinking, reflecting on an issue

critical: finding fault

choleric: hot-tempered, easily angered

contemptuous: showing or feeling that something is worthless or lacks respect

caustic: intense use of sarcasm; stinging, biting

conventional: lacking spontaneity, originality, and individuality 

disdainful: scornful

didactic: author attempts to educate or instruct the reader

derisive: ridiculing, mocking

earnest: intense, a sincere state of mind

erudite: learned, polished, scholarly 

fanciful: using the imagination 

forthright: directly frank without hesitation

gloomy: darkness, sadness, rejection

haughty: proud and vain to the point of arrogance

indignant: marked by anger aroused by injustice

intimate: very familiar

judgmental: authoritative and often having critical opinions

jovial: happy

lyrical: expressing a poet’s inner feelings; emotional; full of images; song-like

matter-of-fact: accepting of conditions; not fanciful or emotional

mocking: treating with contempt or ridicule

morose: gloomy, sullen, surly, despondent

malicious: purposely hurtful

objective: an unbiased view-able to leave personal judgments aside

optimistic: hopeful, cheerful

obsequious: polite and obedient in order to gain something

patronizing: air of condescension

pessimistic: seeing the worst side of things; no hope

quizzical: odd, eccentric, amusing

ribald: offensive in speech or gesture

reverent: treating a subject with honor and respect

ridiculing: slightly contemptuous banter; making fun of

reflective: illustrating innermost thoughts and emotions

sarcastic: sneering, caustic

sardonic: scornfully and bitterly sarcastic

satiric: ridiculing to show weakness in order to make a point, teach

sincere: without deceit or pretense; genuine

solemn: deeply earnest, tending toward sad reflection

sanguineous: arduous, bloodthirsty, brutal, murderous AND optimistic, cheerful

whimsical: odd, strange, fantastic; fun

[writerswritecompany]

Strong Verbs via Create. Teach. Share.

[writeworld-blog]

A Few Handy Links for Alternatives to "Angry"

 Anonymous asked: do you know about any complicated/long words for being angry?

[writeworld-blog]

Here are some links that I think will help:

Word List: Alternatives to “Angry”

Thesaurus.com’s Entry for “Angry”

DailyWritingTips’s List of 75 Synonyms for “Angry”

More Words’s Entry for “Angry”

Vocabulary.com’s Entry for “Angry”

Make sure to look up any words you don’t recognize before you use them in your writing!

Thank you for your question!

-C

[writeworld-blog]

Word List: Alternatives to "Ask"

ellisabelle asked: Hey ^^ Could I request a world list of adjectives for ‘To Ask’?

Sure thing!

Disclaimer: I will agree to provide examples if you will all agree to acknowledge that I am laying it on a bit thick here and maybe even taking a few liberties in order to drive my points home. Okay? Okay.

to ask: Say something in order to obtain an answer or some information.

"Once we get there, we can find a motel," Tina said, tapping the map with the eraser of her pencil. Jason turned the map toward himself. “Get where?” he asked.

This is the most vanilla, accepted dialogue tag for asking a question. Many writers assert that “said” and “ask” are basically invisible to readers, or that they make good full stops (periods) for dialogue. If you agree with those writers, go with “ask”. If not, proceed!

Read More

[writeworld-blog]

Word List: Words Commonly Used as Prepositions

Prepositions show the relationship between a noun or pronoun and another noun or pronoun.

Here’s a list of the most common prepositions for your convenience:

about

above

across

after

against

along

amid

among

around

at

before

behind

below

beneath

beside

besides

between

beyond

by

concerning

despite

down

during

except

excluding

failing

following

for

from

in

inside

into

like

near

of

off

on

out

outside

over

past

per

since

through

throughout

till

to

toward

towards

under

underneath

unlike

until

unto

up

upon

via

with

within

without

Also watch for compound prepositions like:

according to

because of

by way of

in addition to

in front of

in place of

in regard to

in spite of

instead of

next to

on account of

out of

More on prepositions:

Prepositions: Locators in Time and Place

Wiki’s List of Prepositions

What Is a Preposition?

Ending a Sentence With a Preposition