i don't believe in synonyms

roxie or finch | 28 | it/its | fantasy and horror writer! my main is elijah-terry. open to tag games and ask games! i work a lot so i may take a while to do them but i will get to them 💓

[finchwrites]

Hi! I'm Finch! I'm a writer of fiction, primarily queer fantasy. I'll post things I've written here, but I also reblog a lot of tips, resources, and other people's work! I am more than open to tag games as long as you are open to me forgetting about them and posting them late, haha.

Here's a rundown of my main WIPs:

Project: The Rubicon, est. 2012

modern urban fantasy, supernatural, horror elements

Peter Alvarez leaves New York for the South in search of the best friend who he thought committed suicide years ago. What he finds instead is more than he bargained for: a landlord who befriends him in unexpected ways, a coworker who hates him on sight for no reason, a boss who gives him more chances than he deserves, and the ghost that brought them all together.

Peter Alvarez, 26, he/him, lost in life since his best friend died, dependent on everyone around him as he refuses to move on.

Carmen Oliveira, 24, she/her, a barista at the cafe Peter begins to work at, nice to everyone but him for reasons he doesn't understand.

Chase Greenwood, 27, he/him, owner of the small cafe they work at, willing to help but not to get too close.

Elliot Bingham, 27, he/him, high school friend of Chase and Peter's landlord, contains multitudes.

Noah Bryant, 19 now then and forever, a ghost

Project: The Stewniverse, est. 2019

high fantasy original setting

Stewie has a wonderful family, a stable lifestyle in the town he grew up in, and should have no complaints… and yet, he’s always been anxious and restless and could never understand why. After a close encounter with life-threatening danger, his mother, a retired adventurer, finally relents and passes on her sword to him. Stewie sets off to solve all the problems of the world that he possibly can with nothing more than his mother’s sword and his loyal horse, Ser Decadence. Along the way he finds companions he never expected, along with a mystery that only seems to get more twisted and complicated the more clues they find.

Steward Knight, 19, he/him, human, the anxious son of a retired adventurer who wants to fix the world in the hopes that it will fix him.

Kieran, 26, he/him, a mysterious half-elven man with an even more mysterious quest: to help fae wherever he finds them. He seems to resent this, but does it all the same. 

Rishi, 22, she/her, an elven student of magic at the most prestigious arcane college on the continent, unable (or unwilling?) to cast any spells. 

Evelyn, 20, he/they, Kieran’s half-elven younger brother who is set on killing Kieran for a crime he won’t specify and who claims he is prevented from doing this only by the fact that he cares about Stewie and Stewie cares about Kieran.

Ashe, around his mid to late 20s in mortal years, he/it, a kelpie who has attached himself to Kieran and Stewie for reasons unknown and has vowed to never leave their side.

Lottie, 23, she/her, a human bard, accomplished heartbreaker,  and lover of animals who grew up with Kieran and Evelyn and is constantly putting her own problems aside to mediate between the two conflicting brothers.

Selkies is a short story I wrote for a fiction class

The Pale Demon of Hollowbrook is a chapter excerpt from either NaNo 20 or NaNo 22.

Project: Lilywood, est. 2022

modern urban fantasy, supernatural, horror elements

a haunted house time travel mystery

Canary has never felt like she belongs anywhere, even in her hometown of Lilywood, the town that accepts all stragglers, outcasts, and loners. Her only friends are fellow burnouts Ryan Shuck and Jamie Yamashita. When construction on the historic manor at the heart of Lilywood goes awry, they are pulled into a supernatural mystery surrounding the house that spans across centuries, hoping that it will answer the burning question each of them have had their whole life: who am I?

Canary Spencer, 21, she/they, a deeply insecure young adult trying to figure out who she is and how to be comfortable with being true to herself while exploring a house haunted by time.

Ryan Shuck, 23, he/they, an avoidant young adult who feels trapped by his circumstances and is scared of things changing even as his previously normal and ordinary life begins to turn upside down around him.

Jamie Yamashita, 25, he/him, a loud and cocky young man who rushes headfirst into the mystery of Lilywood Manor with more confidence than is warranted for someone who has no experience with the supernatural.

Project: Forget Me Not, est. 2024

modern vampire fantasy, romance, horror elements

a human afraid of dying and a vampire who would rather die than live forever

chronic illness, dementia, death, grief, dysphoria

Dana Hardy, 26, he/him, a young adult who has been terrified of aging ever since he watched his grandfather succumb to dementia and death. He learned about the understudied progressive illness Vampirism and is obsessed with contracting it

Wade Cameron, 24, he/him, a young trans man who has recently been diagnosed with vampirism. He's horrified at the thought that his body will stay the same forever and he'll never change or die. He wants nothing more than to find a cure.

[vamplire]

vampirism as a metaphor for queerness. hunger as a metaphor for repressed desire. immortality as an expression of profound loneliness.

[creatingblackcharacters]

Commonly Asked Questions #8:

Is writing a Black character doing something bad a stereotype?

What are stereotypes I should avoid?

Is [idea] racist/a stereotype? How do I know?

Why do you always say, the premise will only be racist if you write it that way?

Why do you always say, avoiding racism in your writing is not a checklist?

If racism happened in real life, is it racist to include that in story? Is it racist to ignore it?

Why is overcorrecting for stereotypes in my writing still racist?

When do I cut a portion of a story versus following through with it?

Why does real world racism matter, in my racism-free story?

Answers (and there are a LOT) 👇🏾

💬 18  🔁 976  ❤️ 1426 · "Let's Have a Talk, First"- Stereotypes, pt 1 · Come sit down. You and I, before we get into any of the things I'm su

💬 12  🔁 789  ❤️ 1167 · “Why’s she so rude?” (She’s Not)- Stereotypes, pt2 · So I'm sure that you all thought I was going to give a blow-by-b

💬 2  🔁 489  ❤️ 723 · "Is He the Threat (Or Are You?)"- Stereotypes, pt 3 · Unlike the last lesson, which was very personal for me: I am not

💬 2  🔁 372  ❤️ 656 · How to spot a Stereotype: An Example · Okay, so I talked about this in my Lesson 6 Stereotypes series, but I feel like

(notice how the attention to the lessons decreased with each one. You gotta have the CARE to finish reading em, babes!)

[creatingblackcharacters]

That little underlying Note- I'm gonna say it again. You gotta have the CARE to finish reading the lessons!

[elijah-terry]

Donate to Queer Trans Man Needs Home for Safety, organized by Netherland Kinterknecht

Hi all im a 25 year old queer trans man struggling very badly at this po… Netherland Kinterknecht needs your support for Queer Trans Man Nee

this man is facing a high chance of being homeless soon. he has a job, but had a medical emergency last month & issues with his transportation that kept him from being able to save up for moving like he planned. he has two cats to worry about as well.

anything you can do, sharing or donating, would be super helpful.

[encrucijada]

DISASTERS TO SLEEP THROUGH by ester cuervos 《 re-intro 》

✶ genre: magical realism, soft horror

✶ category: adult

✶ pov: first person referral (marilú as “i”, cruz as “you”)

✶ cartoon saloon’s song of the sea but make it less kid story book and more horror podcast, set in 1985 just because, let us ignore the technicalities of running a lighthouse, i think this would technically be set in tierra de fuego considering the climate

✶ themes: loneliness, family, fear of the unknown, co-existing with the unknown, the haunting of the house

✶ tone: eerie, isolated, apprehensive, cutting, blue hour, half-lit, soft

a b o u t : marilú is a lighthouse keeper, has been for almost a decade now. she could count the people she talks to with one hand, one of those being her sister galatea. the only consistent company she’s had are her dreams and the creatures of the ocean, shadows under the water, mermaids on the rocks, the hauntings in her house. while dealing with her divorce, galatea leaves her daughter cruz with marilú until the matter is resolved. to spare cruz from getting hurt or scared, marilú tries to keep her asleep until galatea comes back.

c h a r a c t e r s :

✶ maría luz aka marilú. spends more time with creatures than humans so she has lost all her communication and social skills. “do as i say not as i do.” weird girls simply grow to be weird adults. good intentions but bad execution.

✶ galatea. voted less likely to get caught committing a crime. suffering from perfect daughter syndrome. loves wholly and deeply, it makes her loyalty hard to shake so the breaking point must be significant.

✶ cruz. inspired by lyra silvertongue from his dark materials. bratty and feral the way only little girls manage to be. more like her aunt than she apparently realises. hasn’t had a near death experience yet so feels invincible.

a e s t h e t i c : stark white lighthouse on a rocky island, a dark blue ocean and a grey sky, houses so close to the water they get touched by the waves, flickering light bulbs, raindrops on windows refracting light, water so cold it numbs your hands when you wash them, charcoal drawings that make no sense, old music boxes, old plush toys with not nearly enough stuffing, something scurrying within the walls, grainy shows on a box television set, the chill of blue hour, the feeling of minuscule insignificance, a beach of rocks and grey-brown sand, phone static cutting through words, cheap plastic signs of corner stores and restaurants lit from within, the white skeletons of small animals, a massive figure from the ocean depth, the crushing feeling of loneliness, so many thoughts you can’t breathe

e x c e r p t —

⋆ the chapter titles form a poem? maybe? ⋆

c w : emotional manipulation, undiagnosed mental illness, allusions to marital abuse, thalassophobia

✶ can't remember what changed that led me to writing about a woman haunted by her own loneliness while taking care of her niece. but this is the post that originally inspired this book.

✶ the title is a play on those playlists that are named stuff like "lofi beats to study and relax to"

[thelaurenshippen]

hey guys.......I don't want to alarm anyone, but I just found out about this and I think other people need to know......if you want to have written.......you need to write

[kit-n-kboodl]

This is terrible news

[clinical-space-podcast]

Reblog if your art project has not, does not, and never will make use of generative ai at any point in your creative process.

[khorazir]

Fuck AI. The same goes for writing.

[manorofshepard]

Welcome to the Writers Club, first rule of writers club: Love your buddies, your mutuals, love your work and never fucking let go

[finchwrites]

migraines been. preventing me from writing but i am Thinking about it

[the-wip-project]

June 9

Hello writerly friends!

I have not forgotten you! Well, I have, but only because the weekend was very busy and this Monday is a holiday here, so it feels like Sunday. Apologies for the Sunday post on Monday.

How are we doing? This is kind of the middle of the event, and I know from previous events that at this point, a lot of people drop out. I'm extremely pleased that I still see most of the people posting their wordcounts who started this with all of us. Go writers!

If you're just seeing this, hello new writer, you can still join in. Make a post with your wordcount goal and then make your accountability posts when you wrote your words. Always mention this blog, and I'll give you a star.

—

As I was musing about all of us writing, I was wondering, once again, why we often feel like writing is hard. It feels kind of unfair, doesn't it? We want to write, it should come easily to us, it should be like a fun ride. And sometimes it is, but so many times it is not. 

When writing is hard, we feel like we're doing something wrong. Because it should be easy, right?

Why is writing so hard? 

Because you're literally creating something new just from your own brain. Think about it, you're creating! Just from your own mind! Not everyone can do that. 

People now prompt a generative LLM AI to skip this exact process, because it's so difficult to do. They think if they can just skip this difficult part of writing, they'll easily end up with a good product to sell. But that's not what writing is. I know it's futile to tell AI prompters how creativity lives in the hard parts of creation, how they produce soulless drivel that nobody wants to read, because they don't care. 

But we care. We create, from our hearts, from our own life experiences, from our minds. And it's difficult. It has to be, otherwise any algorithm could do it.

If you're doubting yourself, because the words won't come as easily as you wish, because you're stuck on a part that you didn't expect to be so difficult, give yourself a mental hug. Because you're doing fine. You're creating something new, something that only you, yes you!, can create in this way. This is not easy. 

You're not a failure, or a bad writer, because you struggle. Creation is not easy. 

Take a breath, take a break, get some tea, and try again.

~ barbex

taglist under the cut

@aleheartilly @midnightswaltz @mareebrittenford @transman-badass @austinpetrini @finchwrites @caitlin-elias @vespaer77 @flowerprose @tryingtimi @bebewrites @daisywords @wilde-writing @narastories @fontainebleau22 @houndsofcorduff @forthesanityofstorytellers @incognitajones @arcanefeelings @ilightmytorch @soldiermom1973 @ten-cent-sleuth @quilleth @samabigailalan @meekhayl-reblog @icannotreadcursive @austinpetrini @ooooshinythings @prudereality @eye-of-the-silver-dragon @squarelyblue @cheerfulmelancholies @heniareth @akaluan @flowerprose @wildswrites @bluejay-in-write @pheita @astorythatwritesitself @tildeathiwillwrite @rhikasa @darthnell @climbinupuraorta @eclectic-like-furniture @burger-the-ham @bardic-tales @battyaboutbooksreviews @bilightningwriter-writing @tramstrams @projecthypocrisy @bebewrites @panticwritten @friendly-neighborhood-goober @narastories @daisywords @leia-organa-fics @tryingtimi @author-a-holmes @did-i-do-this-write @xforeveralonerxx @murphysscribe @friendofozma @faejilly @tales-from-nocturnaliss @spacemomnephmoreau @cedence @illegalcerebral @ltleflrt @ilightmytorch @bad-at-names-and-faces @ink-and-spite @eriquin @fractoluminescence @companionwolf @soldiermom1973 @t-lane-writes @rhoxxia @incognitajones @wayhavenots @marshvlovestv @suzteel @talesfromaurea @cozy-fish-crow @heroofshield @stray-crow @kapandherscratchpad @transannabeth @sarasa-cat @serial-chillr @remexailferous @eiluned @lazyscience @ravenpuffheadcanons @cirianne @sidekick-hero @eternal-sunflowers @cee-grice @after-the-end-times @matchingbatbites @sophellkopter @dilly-dahlying @inhurtandincomfort @avidink @violets-in-her-arms-writes @nikknamed-ink

[rayne143]

Found old screenshots of lil thingies i made a while ago and forgot about <3

[finchwrites]

rfts june 7th

did some outlining today!!! 234/100 words <333

i keep getting stuck in my writing and it's hard to go back to outlining because it doesn't feel like progress, but it is!

@the-wip-project

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

Beta Readers Wanted!

It is time for Round Two of beta reading for my WIP The Secret Portal Part One!

The Secret Portal Part One is the first installment of my YA sci-fi/fantasy series. At about 120k words, TSP Pt1 is about a group of young preteens and teens discovering a portal to another dimension, Alium, full of people with powers and a group without. With extremists on both sides, politics and war have been a plague on Alium for decades, and are in need of change.

The following form is the application for beta reading.

You will give a preferred Gmail so I can grant you access to the document.

You will answer questions regarding specific knowledge that I may need your insight on (but this is not a requirement).

You will need to understand the content warnings of TSP and I will accommodate if necessary.

You will also give a general window of time that I can expect you to finish. I'm willing to be flexible, however.

If you cannot apply to be a beta reader for any reason, please reblog! That way this can get around to others. Thank you!

The Secret Portal, Part One Beta Reading Application

The Secret Portal, Part One is a young adult science fiction/fantasy novel. It stands at around 120k words and about 329 printer pages. The

TSP intro

TSP tag list (ask to be +/-): @thepeculiarbird @illarian-rambling @televisionjester @finchwrites

@literarynecromancy @honeybewrites @the-golden-comet @corinnes-old-blog

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

Beta Readers Wanted!

It is time for Round Two of beta reading for my WIP The Secret Portal Part One!

The Secret Portal Part One is the first installment of my YA sci-fi/fantasy series. At about 120k words, TSP Pt1 is about a group of young preteens and teens discovering a portal to another dimension, Alium, full of people with powers and a group without. With extremists on both sides, politics and war have been a plague on Alium for decades, and are in need of change.

The following form is the application for beta reading.

You will give a preferred Gmail so I can grant you access to the document.

You will answer questions regarding specific knowledge that I may need your insight on (but this is not a requirement).

You will need to understand the content warnings of TSP and I will accommodate if necessary.

You will also give a general window of time that I can expect you to finish. I'm willing to be flexible, however.

If you cannot apply to be a beta reader for any reason, please reblog! That way this can get around to others. Thank you!

The Secret Portal, Part One Beta Reading Application

The Secret Portal, Part One is a young adult science fiction/fantasy novel. It stands at around 120k words and about 329 printer pages. The

TSP intro

TSP tag list (ask to be +/-): @thepeculiarbird @illarian-rambling @televisionjester @finchwrites

@literarynecromancy @honeybewrites @the-golden-comet @corinnes-old-blog

[finchwrites]

rfts june 5

@the-wip-project

an okay day!!! 292/100 and i'm planning on writing more when i get home <3

[the-wip-project]

June 5

Hello writerly friends!

I prepared this post in advance, knowing that I will be a zombie today because of the concert on Tuesday night (Rise Against in Hannover! Yay!!). (And then tumblr disappeared the post and I had to do it myself anyway)

So I don't have a lot for you today, but I came across this interesting post by K.M. Weiland: 

The Danger of Overexplaining in Dialogue—and How to Avoid It

Improve your writing by addressing overexplaining in dialogue. Keep readers engaged through concise and smart dialogue techniques.

It's about a habit I have unwillingly acquired too — not trusting the reader and explaining things in dialogue that have already been explained in the descriptive text. Once you've read this post, check out the rest of the site, K.M. Weiland has amazing resources and advice for writers.

Apart from this, are you still taking your Creative Writing college class with Brandon Sanderson?

Brandon Sanderson's Writing Lecture (2025)

Brandon Sanderson returns with his newly updated lecture series on how you can write your stories. Throughout the course, Brandon will discu

Happy learning and happy writing!

~ barbex

taglist under the cut

@aleheartilly @midnightswaltz @mareebrittenford @transman-badass @austinpetrini @finchwrites @caitlin-elias @vespaer77 @flowerprose @tryingtimi @bebewrites @daisywords @wilde-writing @narastories @fontainebleau22 @houndsofcorduff @forthesanityofstorytellers @incognitajones @arcanefeelings @ilightmytorch @soldiermom1973 @ten-cent-sleuth @quilleth @samabigailalan @meekhayl-reblog @icannotreadcursive @austinpetrini @ooooshinythings @prudereality @eye-of-the-silver-dragon @squarelyblue @cheerfulmelancholies @heniareth @akaluan @flowerprose @wildswrites @bluejay-in-write @pheita @astorythatwritesitself @tildeathiwillwrite @rhikasa @darthnell @climbinupuraorta @eclectic-like-furniture @burger-the-ham @bardic-tales @battyaboutbooksreviews @bilightningwriter-writing @tramstrams @projecthypocrisy @bebewrites @panticwritten @friendly-neighborhood-goober @narastories @daisywords @leia-organa-fics @tryingtimi @author-a-holmes @did-i-do-this-write @xforeveralonerxx @murphysscribe @friendofozma @faejilly @tales-from-nocturnaliss @spacemomnephmoreau @cedence @illegalcerebral @ltleflrt @ilightmytorch @bad-at-names-and-faces @ink-and-spite @eriquin @fractoluminescence @companionwolf @soldiermom1973 @t-lane-writes @rhoxxia @incognitajones @wayhavenots @marshvlovestv @suzteel @talesfromaurea @cozy-fish-crow @heroofshield @stray-crow @kapandherscratchpad @transannabeth @sarasa-cat @serial-chillr @remexailferous @eiluned @lazyscience @ravenpuffheadcanons @cirianne @sidekick-hero @eternal-sunflowers @cee-grice @after-the-end-times @matchingbatbites @sophellkopter @dilly-dahlying @inhurtandincomfort @avidink @violets-in-her-arms-writes @nikknamed-ink

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

Writing Share/Nine Lines Nine People

Thanks to @oh-no-another-idea here, @winterandwords here, @melpomene-grey here, @willtheweaver here, and anyone else who tagged me in the last several months!

Writing Share rules: share some writing!

Nine Lines Nine People: share nine sentences from your WIP! Then tag nine people

Got to FINALLY come up with an Alii video game. Took a while. This has been a placeholder scene for a while. So hope this is better.

From The Secret Portal, Part One (Lexi POV)

I followed Robbie’s avatar as he showed me the ropes of the game. It was quite interesting, actually. It was a horror-survival game where there was a virus that warped an Alii’s powers to a disturbing degree. I’d never been into horror, so I kept screaming. “Watch out, Lexi!” Akash screamed from behind me, pointing at the screen where what looked like a zombie jumped around a corner. I shrieked as I slammed my finger into the tablet screen, into the “Use Power” symbol as I had my character teleport behind the zombie. Then I used a few sword swipes at the thing in front of me. “Ahhhh!” Maddie screamed with me until the zombie was dead. “Epic,” said Kelsey.

Tagging @cherrybombfangirlwrites @sarandipitywrites @sarahlizziewrites @elizaellwrites @diabolical-blue

@leahnardo-da-veggie @katwritesshit @mrbexwrites @orphanheirs

+ ANYONE ELSE

TSP intro

TSP tag list (ask to be +/-): @thepeculiarbird @illarian-rambling @televisionjester @finchwrites

@literarynecromancy @honeybewrites @the-golden-comet @corinnes-old-blog