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Write more Deaf characters!

[Large Text: Write more Deaf characters!]

When answering questions about deaf and hard of hearing characters, I have noticed they are overwhelmingly about:

A character who is deaf in one ear or hard of hearing because of an accident

A character who was born deaf and knows sign language, but seems to have 0 connection to the broader Deaf community

This is not the experience of most d/Deaf people! So, here's your primer to Deaf community and culture, and writing a Deaf character, because they are sorely underrepresented.

(Disclaimer: this post was written using viewpoints I, a singular Deaf person in the United States, have encountered. I tried to make this as general as possible to encompass many Deaf views, but it is possible that I have misconstrued something. Do not take this guide as the be-all and end-all of your knowledge on Deaf culture. Keep reading and researching the Deaf community, and explore viewpoints from many different Deaf people of all backgrounds.)

mmountainsound

A few points from observation in Australian Deaf people.

Fingerspelling is very common. Very common. While those who are fluent will get around a lot by using signs, there are variations of types of signing. For instance, i know one Deaf person who will avoid fingerspelling at all costs, and when she has to, she commonly gets confused about if she spelled it right or not, because it is based in her second language (English). However, another person i know is 5th (?) generation Deaf, and his dad, obviously also Deaf. This family all grew up signing. However, they LOVE fingerspelling. So much fingerspelling. Half the time i will be learning new signs from the first person, and the second person, who spells a lot, will be learning at the same time, or his son, in a different conversation will ask what signs were used for a word, because he just spells it.

Part of this comes from the different types communication for Deaf people. For a long time, oralism was the only allowed method of communication. However, as this started to be changed, there were different methods of communication. Sign languages are proper languages with different grammar structures and names (in Australia it's Auslan). However, this means that it has less input from hearing people, and that there are also versions of sign language such as Signed English. This borrows a lot of signs from the sign language of the area (in this case Auslan), but where the sentence "i brought milk at the shop" would become more like "shop, buy milk" in Auslan, Signed English keeps the grammar of English and so has a lot of 'filler' type signs such as 'at' and 'the', from this sentence, which would be ignored in Auslan and probably other sign languages as well (won't pretend to know any enough to say). So, for older signers, there is the potential that there will be large changes in how they sign. An Auslan user will likely understand a Signed English user, and i think? the same the other way around. HOWEVER!! An ASL user would NOT understand, as it uses signs from Australian sign language, Auslan.

Obviously, i only know from Australia, and this Signed English type of thing might not happen. But there is a lot of variation!

cripplecharacters

All good points! I'm definitely coming from an American perspective, so it's always nice to hear from Deaf people around the world :) [smile face]

ASL has a variation called "Signed Exact English" too, that uses ASL signs but spoken English grammar! ASL drops a lot of those filler words as well.

And I agree I did understate the commonality of fingerspelling, I spell for clarification/specificity a lot, but I have met too many people who think that they can just fingerspell whole sentences and that means they "know sign language", unfortunately.

To respond to some other thoughts I saw in the notes:

The majority of Deaf people will be cool with you being a part of the Deaf community if you learn sign language and Deaf culture and engage with them. Most people aren't super exclusive about it. You may find some people who do gatekeep, but yes, they are not the majority opinion.

And yes, Deaf Space is generally more accessible! I've found other accessibility in the Deaf community way easier than in the hearing world. This is partly due to Deaf Space design and accommodations, but also I believe there is higher instance of disability among deaf people--a lot of conditions have deafness or hearing loss as a part of it!

Mod Rock

motsimages

In Spanish Sign Language, fingerspelling is not very frequent at all. It's only used when you don't know a sign or there isn't a standard sign for something (but it's often created on the go after fingerspelling).

Older people (over 60? More or less) went to Deaf Boarding Schools. They can tell to which school you went because of your accent when signing to the point that there was one school segregated by sex in Madrid and even now, the men still sign different from the women of the same school. Not all deaf people went to these schools and those who didn't, even if they ended in a Deaf people association or other Deaf communities, tend to have certain levels of language deprivation (I have met a very old man who had almost no language whatsoever, he copied very well and communicated quite well but he knew very basic signs and relied on a friend to help him follow conversation or instructions, he was quite intelligent though). This is more frequent in people of a certain age from villages or other isolated areas.

Because of this, the levels of access to knowledge and education vary in different generations. Deaf people who are now retired tend to have very little access to the hearing world, and I don't know any with higher education (they cannot really read oral Spanish, some can understand words but not full sentences and the like). Deaf people in their 50s-60s can understand WhatsApp messages and follow subtitles but don't really read books or news. They can have some vocational training or other hands on education and therefore, access to better jobs. Younger people (40 or younger) have more access to various levels of education (I have met some with University degrees). However, even those with University degrees can't write oral Spanish well and sometimes struggle to understand specific types of language. Even if they read books, they may have difficulties with technical texts, for instance.

Deaf people of hearing families often complain that their family never bothered to learn sign language. This is still happening.

Right now, there are bilingual schools. They are called centros de integración and can be more or less bilingual but they all must have signing teachers and interpreters and several adaptations, specially if most teachers are hearing and non signers. If that is not a possibility (say, deaf student in a rural area), an interpreter must be provided. Now, there is a deficit of interpreters, they are poorly paid and they may be needed in different schools so maybe that student has some classes with no interpreter but, legally, that child must have an interpreter certain hours a day.

Interpreters are rarely hired by the government or local institutions, they are often hired by associations who offer their services to the government and the Deaf people. It's a mess. I interned briefly at one in Madrid and I left as soon as I could.

As for what in English is called "Signed Exact English", I think in Spain it may be called called "Bimodal". You sign strictly following Spanish grammar and adding signs that would never be there in LSE (like the verb "to be" or prepositions). This has been criticized and discredited as a tool to teach Deaf children oral Spanish so, while it may be used at times still, it's less frequent. It may be used for very concrete sentences in specific contexts but Deaf people and experts in education have been asking for it to stop being used in schools.

I have watched videos of ASL and it seems to me that either they were using this Signed Exact English or ASL is closer to English (syntactically) than LSE is to Spanish. No Spanish signers would sign following oral Spanish in any way, Deaf people even write in LSE syntax and grammar. I have seen some interpreters speak Spanish and sign LSE but the oral Spanish was always off and fell into the LSE. It was used as a tool to help hearing people follow along a conversation. It would be impossible to speak two different languages at the same time.

#sign language

runawaymarbles

There should be a fanfic writing game called the showrunners challenge where someone writes a story and partway through someone else can play things like "actor leaves after 4000 more words" or "topic now too politically sensitive due to unforeseen world events" or "lost rights to that reference"

copperbadge

I need this to be a real game right the hell now

sprintingowl

I do not have the energy do do a full layout right now b/c it is kickstarter season and I am under water, but here's a prototype that can be solo-played (you can also have a friend just pick from the lists if you want that pvp feeling.)

Showrunner's Challenge By Runawaymarbles (also sorta by sprintingowl)

Begin writing a fanfic. It is a feature length television program being watched every week by thousands. There is no plan. The industry is in shambles. The writer's room is barely hanging on.

At the end of each chapter, roll a d12.

1 Everything at once. Roll twice, use both. If you get this again, keep rolling. Your only way out is to stop getting 1s. 2 Product placement! The next chapter must center (and subtly promote the features of) a product belonging to the most recent brand you've seen. 3 Fan favorite. Your most recently mentioned character (or named object) is now beloved by the audience. You must give it a bigger part in the story, a special destiny, or an important new romance or friendship. If you get this twice for the same character or object, the adoration cools and you must go back to treating the character or object normally. 4 Executive meddling. You must change to a different genre. You cannot go back to a genre until you have changed genres three times since then. 5 Audiences are craving more coziness. The next chapter must be completely low stakes and set you at ease. 6 Audiences are craving more suspense. The next chapter must take place entirely in a single location, ideally just a single room, and build tension with every exchange of dialog. 7 Audiences are craving more action. The next chapter needs to involve at least one extended fight scene, and the weapons must be the last three objects mentioned. 8 Audiences are craving more romance. The next chapter needs to involve a deep, sappy confession of either love or admiration between two characters that have not previously been romantically involved. 9 Go to the most recent line in your fic that references a brand. Due to ongoing legal action, that brand cannot be mentioned again, but you score 1 audience point every time you allude to it in a way that paints it in a negative light. 10 The two most recently mentioned characters' actors have, IRL, gone through a VERY messy divorce or friend breakup. You cannot put them in the same scene, but they must both remain relevant parts of the show. If you get this with the same two characters again, they reconcile. 11 The most recent negative event (stabbing, poisoning, banishment to jupiter) is now the center of a very real IRL news story. You must immediately pivot away from all plotlines involving it and, if possible, also find away to apologize for even thinking to include it without breaking character. 12 The most recently mentioned character's actor has decided to leave the show. You must write them out in the next chapter. If you are brave, also roll a d12. 1--6, they were well loved and their sendoff must be as flowery as possible. 7--12, they were despised by the cast and crew. Mulch them.

You win if you can complete the fic in a state of relative coherency.

Alternate Game Mode: TV Digest Version

Don't write full chapters, just summaries of what happens in each chapter.

Alternate Game Mode: Realism Edition

Start your fanfic with your own telling of the first episode of an existing show, then proceed from there.

#writing game

aesterea-archived

more on writing muslim characters from a hijabi muslim girl

- hijabis get really excited over pretty scarves - they also like to collect pins and brooches - we get asked a lot of questions and it can be annoying or it can be amusing, just depends on our mood and personality and how the question is phrased - common questions include: - “not even water?” (referring to fasting) - hijabis hear a lot of “do you sleep in that?” (we don’t) and “where is your hair?” (in a bun or a braid, usually) - “is it mooze-slim or mozzlem?” (the answer is neither, it’s muslim, with a soft s and accent on the first syllable) - “ee-slam or iz-lamb?” (it’s iss-laam, accent on the first syllable) - “hee-job?” (heh-jahb, accent on the second syllable)

- “kor-an?” (no. quran. say it like koor-annn, accent on the second syllable) - people tend to mess up our names really badly and you just get a sigh and a resigned nod or an awkward smile, maybe a nickname instead - long hair is easy to hide, short hair is harder to wrap up - hijab isn’t just covering hair, it’s also showing as little skin as possible with the exception of face, hands, and feet, and not wearing tight/sheer clothing - that applies to men too, people just don’t like to mention it ( i wonder why) - henna/mehendi isn’t just for special occasions, you’ll see people wearing it for fun - henna/mehendi isn’t just for muslims, either, it’s not a religious thing - henna/mehendi is not just for women, men also wear it, especially on their weddings - there are big mehendi parties in the couple of nights before eid where people (usually just women and kids) gather and do each other’s mehendi, usually just hands and feet - five daily prayers - most muslim kids can stutter through a couple verses of quran in the original arabic text by the age of seven or eight, it does not matter where they live or where they’re from or what language they speak natively - muslim families tend to have multiple copies of the quran - there are no “versions” of the quran, there has only ever been one. all muslims follow the exact same book - muslims have no concept of taking God’s name in vain, we call on God at every little inconvenience - don’t use islamic phrases if you don’t know what they mean or how to use them. we use them often, inside and outside of religious settings. in islam, it is encouraged to mention God often and we say these things very casually, but we take them very seriously - Allahu Akbar means “God is Greatest” (often said when something shocks or surprises us, or if we’re scared or daunted, or when something amazing happens, whether it be good or bad; it’s like saying “oh my god”) - Subhan Allah means “Glory be to God” (i say subhan Allah at the sky, at babies, at trees, whatever strikes me as pleasant, especially if it’s in nature) - Bismillah means “in the name of God” and it’s just something you say before you start something like eating or doing your homework - In Shaa Allah means “if God wills” (example: you’ll be famous, in shaa Allah) (it’s a reminder that the future is in God’s hands, so be humble and be hopeful)

- Astaghfirullah means “i seek forgiveness from Allah” and it’s like “god forgive me” - Alhamdulillah means “all thanks and praise belong to God” and it’s just a little bit more serious than saying “thank god” (example: i passed my exams, alhamdulillah; i made it home okay, alhamdulillah) - when i say we use them casually, i really mean it - teacher forgot to assign homework? Alhamdulillah - our version of “amen” is “ameen” - muslims greet each other with “assalamu alaikum” which just means “peace be on you” and it’s like saying hi - the proper response is “walaikum assalam” which means “and on you be peace” and it’s like saying “you too”

missandaei

As a Muslim this post is so very important and it makes me so happy that it gives the small facts and details that one might be unaware of or confused about.

leaping-hare-witchery-deactivat

I’ve reblogged it before but honestly this fucking post touches me so much. To see how intrinsic Allah is to followers of Islam and how ingrained He is in their daily lives is so beautiful.

Also, can we just talk about the fact that there aren’t like 100 different versions of the Quran? Because I didn’t know that and that legit AMAZES me.

fredrickthepig

LEARNING

jenniferrpovey

Reblogging this again because I am sure some of my writer followers can use it and it’s been a while ;).

el-shab-hussein

Muslim here! Just wanted to add a couple of things:

- If you want to write mostly irreligious young adult Muslims, it would be humorous to make them literally follow nothing about the religion except making them very averse to eating pork cuz it’s haraam. You have no idea how many Muslims I know who’ll party, get drunk, smoke weed, and engage in, ahem, certain activities, but the one thing they’ll refuse is to eat pork.

- While it’s true that we are very loose with the way we mention God at nearly every occasion, we never make fun of the Prophets, God, or generally the religion. We take the sanctity of the religion and its figures very seriously because it’s blasphemy to insult them. I’ve found it’s very different from the attitude that most Christians and christianized atheists have on their religion / the religion they were raised around (easily making fun of Jesus, the concept of God, making jokes like “snow is god’s c*m”)

- People get surprised when a non-hijabi girl tells them she’s very devout and practices often, Muslim and non-Muslim alike.

- Aunties are nosy and gossip way too much, even though that’s a sin.

- Most Muslims believe in djinn because it’s part of our religion, but this belief oftentimes seems or looks to border on superstition, and a common activity amongst Muslim kids, especially cousins, is to tell djinn stories like ghost stories.

- Also, there is no ‘Muslim food’, we are 1.8 billion people that come from different cultural backgrounds with different food and culinary culture, and we all eat things that are more or less similar, so the dietary habits of the character(s) you’re writing will depend on their cultural heritage(s) instead of their religion.

aesterea-archived

absolutely the best addition to this post (hi, it’s OP)! thank you!!

#useful writing things

porcellune

TO THOSE MAKING NATIVE OCS

I see this a lot, no one has actual names, or any reference for names, that are legit Native American, varying among the tribes, for their characters.

Babynames.com and shit like that will give you names made up by white people.

However, I’ve got your solution.

Native-Languages is a good website to turn to for knowledge on a lot of native things, including native names. If you’re unsure about the names you’ve picked, they even have a list of made up names here!

Please don’t trust names like babynames.com for native names, they’re made up and often quite offensive to the cultures themselves.

#useful writing things #names #native names

howtohuman

Writing Characters with PTSD

@inksoakedquill on ig

Ok so first of all, what is PTSD? Post Traumatic Stress Disorder was first discovered during WW1 and was called "she'll shock", "war neurosis", etc. It basically is a failure to recover after experiencing or witnessing a terrifying event.

What Do Writers Get Wrong?

Let's see what we get wrong first, eh? See, writing a character with PTSD is great for a character arc, if you can pull it off. Otherwise, it can come off sounding melodramatic.

First thing to do is to research more. There are more symptoms to PTSD than flashbacks. Flashbacks are the most appealing symptoms of all and, of course, add a lot of drama to the story. But flashbacks are a symptom of very severe PTSD. Some other common symptoms are anxiety, agitation, irritability, hostility, self-destructive behaviour or social isolation. All of these other symptoms are equally devastating. So throw in a lil bit of these along with the flashbacks to add a touch of realism.

Show Their Internal Turmoil

People with PTSD try to hide their pain from the others. People stare. They avoid you. They whisper. The person suffering can act up any time in a situation he/she has been a thousand times before. But before this happens, they try to soldier up for as long as possible.

Show the internal war going on inside your characters everytime they experience these symptoms, trying to regain control, trying to defeat the thing making them weak. Internal dialogues help tremendously to show this.

The Coping Mechanisms

People (and your character) try to always have a strategy to manage symptoms. These coping mechanisms help them survive these bouts of attacks. This mechanism could be anything, depending upon your character's preferences. They could have a mantra, a safe person, someone they trust to help them in these situations. One way to show your character's growth is to show the removal of their dependence on these techniques.

Blindside Your Character

With PTSD, you can never be sure. A situation that's been fine a thousand times can trigger you one day cuz someone new is there, or you didn't get your regular seat, or something else of the same accord. This is a great device for pivotal conflict.

Show your characters getting stronger, trusting people again, forgiving themselves, etc. The whole process will be messy, two steps forward, one step back. Cuz let's face it, the stories that end with a pretty little bow and leaves everyone "cured" just don't sound authentic.

#useful writing things #ptsd

chthonicgodling

but seriously though i’m sick and tired of those masterposts that are like “here! A reference site on Greek mythology for all your needs! Look it has all fifteen Greek gods on it!” And I’m like. tHERE WERE LIKE HUNDREDS OF FIGURES IN MYTHOLOGY YOUR CRAPPY HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL BIBLIOGRAPHY SITE MEANS NOTHING TO ME

if you want a basic outline of Greek mythology okay sure fine??? but like. if you want an extensive fucking reference site you are looking in the wrong goddamn places

as a self-declared greek mythology snob my reference site is fucking always this fucker right here. almost every single figure ever mentioned in a Greek text is on it, it has the most obscure gods, spirits, nymphs– it’s GREAT. You really wanna extend your mythological knowledge past the basic 12 and like four others? USE THEOI. plus plus PLUS everything is cited so you can actually read the source material written about whoever it is you’re looking at.

fucking signal boost this. i’m so sick and tired of writer’s helpers blogs referring people to sites with as much information you would get from opening a third grade mythology book jesus chriiiiiist

#greek mythology #greek gods #useful writing things

sassycolortheorist101-blog

some fucking resources for all ur writing fuckin needs

* body language masterlist

* a translator that doesn’t eat ass like google translate does

* a reverse dictionary for when ur brain freezes

* 550 words to say instead of fuckin said

* 638 character traits for when ur brain freezes again

* some more body language help

(hope this helps some ppl)

softestvirgil

I use these all the time, like I literally have it saved in my drafts just so I can find this again and use it when I write

#useful writing things #body language #translator #reverse dictionary #instead of said #character traits

reliquiaen

AU where people age until they reach 18 and then stop aging until they meet their soul mate so they can grow old together.

australian-government-deactivat

i’d never die

verylargetomato-deactivated2021

but imagine already being in a relationship at 18 and then at 22 you’re both sitting there looking at each other and realizing that you both haven’t aged a day

deactivated01847192184-deactiva

imagine platonically moving in with ur best friend at 18 and then realizing a few years later that you’ve been aging together

sadgaywerewolf

imagine purposely never finding your soul mate so you can reign eternal

airtrafficcontroller

holy shit i think we may have stumbled upon the greatest romance/adventure concept ever

enlistedjess-deactivated2017010

What if you killed your soul mate so you’d make sure you never aged.

dissypoo

This just makes me really want a story where the main antagonist is someone who has been killing their soulmate for centuries whenever they find them, and the main protagonist is the newly re-incarnated version of their soulmate

rainyfrogs

okay but you guys dont realize the potential.

imagine meeting a handsome young man who’s seen as a player and sleeps around a lot and you notice a scar along his arm and ask where he got it. he just look down at his feet and said “i used to be a soldier in world war one”. He’s been sleeping around and hooking up so much cause he’s been trying to find his soulmate for years but hasn’t yet.

Imagine going on your first date with someone and you really hit it off and then the next day you notice a grey hair and call them on the phone excitedly screaming and they both just sit on the phone hysterically crying and laughing.

Imagine sitting in silence with your partner and having them say out of the blue “i feel so old when im around you… but… in a good way” and thats the moment you know that they love you.

imagine having a dog thats 18 in human years and it starts to get gray patches of fur because they loves you so much.

imagine noticing you look older and freaking out but then stopping and getting super confused because “im not dating anyone right now…. which of my friends is my soulmate… WHICH ONE IS IT!?!?!?” and then they hopelessly date everyone they know in order to find out which one it fucking was. it was the pizza delivery guy the whole time. they went on 27 dates that all ended in confusion and heartbreak and it was the god damn pizza delivery guy from a month ago the whole fucking time.

imagine someone dating their partner for 5 years and then having an affair. only after the affair do they start aging.

imagine nuns who start to age after they ceremoniously “marry god”

imagine people getting surgeries to look older cause they dont want people to think theyre alone.

imagine having parents who wont let you date anyone but they start to notice you aging and then you have to have a terrifying “surprise im gay and i have a boyfriend haha oops” conversation

imagine seeing couples with teenage kids and the couple both looks 18.

i could go on for hours.

the-anime-man

imagine immortal aromantics/asexuals

geekygoddess30-deactivated20201

outlanderalien

I love this concept because it implies that in this world ageing is celebrated and desired instead of resisted. Imagine beauty standards in this world, grey hair is proudly undyed, every new wrinkle is considered beautiful or elegant.

Imagine the romantic implications as well, that finding your soul mate and being with them, means you effectively agree to become mortal, and therefore agree to die just to be with them.

Imagine someone who has many friends, but struggles to find their soul mate, and gradually watches all of their friends grow old and die happy with their partners.

Imagine two best friends who are the same age, but find their soulmates at different times, so now one likes to pretend they’ve lived longer and are older and wiser while poking fun at their “silly naive” young friend. (e.g. “oh you younguns wouldn’t understand, it was before your time” “we are literally the same age”)

incendiaglacies

@agentmarymargaretskitz this is like the jackpot of soulmate tropes!!!

untitledalsounknown

Saving for writing reasons

supergeekgirl05

This whole thread is beautiful

#soulmate aus #useful writing things

mostlysignssomeportents

Random mansion generator

The Procgen Mansion Generator produces large three-dee dwellings to toy with your imagination, offering various architectural styles and other options. Each mansion even comes with floorplans:

https://boingboing.net/2019/07/12/random-mansion-generator.html

something-from-elsewhere

Oooooh! Saving this

lady-feral

That’s fun

vesperlionheart

Hey, but don’t fall asleep on this Medieval Fantasy City Generator

mothmammoth

If you want the next step up from cities, check out this world map generator!

A random example:

It can also show you the heights of regions of the maps, what kind of biomes you might expect, generate border shifting, upload base maps from images, assign areas where specific cultures or religions are practiced, you can add, move and name every single town in a country, add provinces within the country, generate place names from language databases, shift rivers, change the direction of global wind patterns and see how that effects the climate… There’s a bunch of stuff you can do with it!

#buildings #maps

thewritershandbook

123 Ideas for Character Flaws

Absent-minded - Preoccupied to the extent of being unaware of one’s immediate surroundings. Abstracted, daydreaming, inattentive, oblivious, forgetful.

Abusive - Characterized by improper infliction of physical or psychological maltreatment towards another.

Addict - One who is addicted to a compulsive activity. Examples: gambling, drugs, sex.

Aimless - Devoid of direction or purpose.

Alcoholic - A person who drinks alcoholic substances habitually and to excess.

Anxious - Full of mental distress or uneasiness because of fear of danger or misfortune; greatly worried; solicitous.

Arrogant - Having or displaying a sense of overbearing self-worth or self-importance. Inclined to social exclusiveness and who rebuff the advances of people considered inferior. Snobbish.

Audacious - Recklessly bold in defiance of convention, propriety, law, or the like; insolent; braze, disobedient.

Bad Habit - A revolting personal habit. Examples: picks nose, spits tobacco, drools, bad body odour.

Bigmouth - A loud-mouthed or gossipy person.

Bigot - One who is strongly partial to one’s own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ.

Blunt - Characterized by directness in manner or speech; without subtlety or evasion. Frank, callous, insensitive, brusque.

Bold - In a bad sense, too forward; taking undue liberties; over assuming or confident; lacking proper modesty or restraint; rude; impudent. Abrupt, brazen, cheeky, brassy, audacious.

Callous - They are hardened to emotions, rarely showing any form of it in expression. Unfeeling. Cold.

Childish - Marked by or indicating a lack of maturity; puerile.

Complex - An exaggerated or obsessive concern or fear. (List specific complex.)

Cruel - Mean to anyone or anything, without care or regard to consequences and feelings.

Cursed - A person who has befallen a prayer for evil or misfortune, placed under a spell, or borne into an evil circumstance, and suffers for it. Damned.

Dependent - Unable to exist, sustain oneself, or act appropriately or normally without the assistance or direction of another.

Deranged - Mentally decayed. Insane. Crazy. Mad. Psychotic.

Dishonest – Given to or using fraud, cheating; deceitful, deceptive, crooked, underhanded.

Disloyal - Lacking loyalty. Unfaithful, perfidious, traitorous, treasonable

Disorder - An ailment that affects the function of mind or body. (List the disorders name if they have one.) See the Mental Disorder List.

Disturbed - Showing some or a few signs or symptoms of mental or emotional illness. Confused, disordered, neurotic, troubled.

Dubious - Fraught with uncertainty or doubt. Undecided, doubtful, unsure.

Dyslexic - Affected by dyslexia, a learning disorder marked by impairment of the ability to recognize and comprehend written words.

Egotistical - Characteristic of those having an inflated idea of their own importance. Boastful, pompous.

Envious - Showing extreme cupidity; painfully desirous of another’s advantages; covetous, jealous.

Erratic - Deviating from the customary course in conduct or opinion; eccentric: erratic behaviour. Eccentric, bizarre, outlandish, strange.

Fanatical - Fanatic outlook or behaviour especially as exhibited by excessive enthusiasm, unreasoning zeal, or wild and extravagant notions on some subject.

Fickle – Erratic, changeable, unstable - especially with regard to affections or attachments; capricious.

Fierce - Marked by extreme intensity of emotions or convictions; inclined to react violently; fervid.

Finicky - Excessively particular or fastidious; difficult to please; fussy. Too much concerned with detail. Meticulous, fastidious, choosy, critical, picky, prissy, pernickety.

Fixated - In psychoanalytic theory, a strong attachment to a person or thing, especially such an attachment formed in childhood or infancy and manifested in immature or neurotic behaviour that persists throughout life. Fetish, quirk, obsession, infatuation.

Flirt -To make playfully romantic or sexual overtures; behaviour intended to arouse sexual interest. Minx. Tease.

Gluttonous - Given to excess in consumption of especially food or drink. Voracious, ravenous, wolfish, piggish, insatiable.

Gruff - Brusque or stern in manner or appearance. Crusty, rough, surly.

Gullible - Will believe any information given, regardless of how valid or truthful it is, easily deceived or duped.

Hard - A person who is difficult to deal with, manage, control, overcome, or understand. Hard emotions, hard hearted.

Hedonistic - Pursuit of or devotion to pleasure, especially to the pleasures of the senses.

Hoity-toity- Given to flights of fancy; capricious; frivolous. Prone to giddy behaviour, flighty.

Humourless - The inability to find humour in things, and most certainly in themselves.

Hypocritical - One who is always contradicting their own beliefs, actions or sayings. A person who professes beliefs and opinions for others that he does not hold. Being a hypocrite.

Idealist - One whose conduct is influenced by ideals that often conflict with practical considerations. One who is unrealistic and impractical, guided more by ideals than by practical considerations.

Idiotic - Marked by a lack of intelligence or care; foolish or careless.

Ignorant - Lacking knowledge or information as to a particular subject or fact. Showing or arising from a lack of education or knowledge.

Illiterate - Unable to read and write.

Immature - Emotionally undeveloped; juvenile; childish.

Impatient - Unable to wait patiently or tolerate delay; restless. Unable to endure irritation or opposition; intolerant.

Impious - Lacking piety and reverence for a god/gods and their followers.

Impish - Naughtily or annoyingly playful.

Incompetent - Unable to execute tasks, no matter how the size or difficulty.

Indecisive - Characterized by lack of decision and firmness, especially under pressure.

Indifferent - The trait of lacking enthusiasm for or interest in things generally, remaining calm and seeming not to care; a casual lack of concern. Having or showing little or no interest in anything; languid; spiritless.

Infamy - Having an extremely bad reputation, public reproach, or strong condemnation as the result of a shameful, criminal, or outrageous act that affects how others view them.

Intolerant - Unwilling to tolerate difference of opinion and narrow-minded about cherished opinions.

Judgemental - Inclined to make and form judgements, especially moral or personal ones, based on one’s own opinions or impressions towards others/practices/groups/religions based on appearance, reputation, occupation, etc.

Klutz - Clumsy. Blunderer.

Lazy - Resistant to work or exertion; disposed to idleness.

Lewd - Inclined to, characterized by, or inciting to lust or lechery; lascivious. Obscene or indecent, as language or songs; salacious.

Liar - Compulsively and purposefully tells false truths more often than not. A person who has lied or who lies repeatedly.

Lustful - Driven by lust; preoccupied with or exhibiting lustful desires.

Masochist - The deriving of sexual gratification, or the tendency to derive sexual gratification, from being physically or emotionally abused. A willingness or tendency to subject oneself to unpleasant or trying experiences.

Meddlesome - Intrusive in a meddling or offensive manner, given to meddling; interfering.

Meek - Evidencing little spirit or courage; overly submissive or compliant; humble in spirit or manner; suggesting retiring mildness or even cowed submissiveness.

Megalomaniac - A psycho pathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence.

Naïve - Lacking worldly experience and understanding, simple and guileless; showing or characterized by a lack of sophistication and critical judgement.

Nervous - Easily agitated or distressed; high-strung or jumpy.

Non-violent - Abstaining from the use of violence.

Nosey - Given to prying into the affairs of others; snoopy. Offensively curious or inquisitive.

Obsessive - An unhealthy and compulsive preoccupation with something or someone.

Oppressor - A person of authority who subjects others to undue pressures, to keep down by severe and unjust use of force or authority.

Overambitious - Having a strong excessive desire for success or achievement.

Overconfident - Excessively confident; presumptuous.

Overemotional - Excessively or abnormally emotional. Sensitive about themselves and others, more so than the average person.

Overprotective - To protect too much; coddle.

Overzealous - Marked by excessive enthusiasm for and intense devotion to a cause or idea.

Pacifist - Opposition to war or violence as a means of resolving disputes. (Can double as a merit in certain cases)

Paranoid - Exhibiting or characterized by extreme and irrational fear or distrust of others.

Peevish - Expressing fretfulness and discontent, or unjustifiable dissatisfaction. Cantankerous, cross, ill-tempered, testy, captious, discontented, crotchety, cranky, ornery.

Perfectionist - A propensity for being displeased with anything that is not perfect or does not meet extremely high standards.

Pessimist - A tendency to stress the negative or unfavourable or to take the gloomiest possible view.

Pest - One that pesters or annoys, with or without realizing it. Nuisance. Annoying. Nag.

Phobic – They have a severe form of fear when it comes to this one thing. Examples: Dark, Spiders, Cats

Practical - Level-headed, efficient, and unspeculative. No-nonsense.

Predictable - Easily seen through and assessable, where almost anyone can predict reactions and actions of said person by having met or known them even for a short time.

Proud - Filled with or showing excessive self-esteem and will often shirk help from others for the sake of pride.

Rebellious - Defying or resisting some established authority, government, or tradition; insubordinate; inclined to rebel.

Reckless - Heedless. Headstrong. Foolhardy. Unthinking boldness, wild carelessness and disregard for consequences.

Remorseless - Without remorse; merciless; pitiless; relentless.

Rigorous - Rigidly accurate; allowing no deviation from a standard; demanding strict attention to rules and procedures.

Sadist - The deriving of sexual gratification or the tendency to derive sexual gratification from inflicting pain or emotional abuse on others. Deriving of pleasure, or the tendency to derive pleasure, from cruelty.

Sadomasochist - Both sadist and masochist combined.

Sarcastic - A subtle form of mockery in which an intended meaning is conveyed obliquely.

Sceptic - One who instinctively or habitually doubts, questions, or disagrees with assertions or generally accepted conclusions.

Seducer - To lead others astray, as from duty, rectitude, or the like; corrupt. To attempt to lead or draw someone away, as from principles, faith, or allegiance.

Selfish - Concerned chiefly or only with oneself.

Self-Martyr - One who purposely makes a great show of suffering in order to arouse sympathy from others, as a form of manipulation, and always for a selfish cause or reason.

Self-righteous - Piously sure of one’s own righteousness; moralistic. Exhibiting pious self-assurance. Holier-than-thou, sanctimonious.

Senile - Showing a decline or deterioration of physical strength or mental functioning, esp. short-term memory and alertness, as a result of old age or disease.

Shallow - Lacking depth of intellect or knowledge; concerned only with what is obvious.

Smart Ass - Thinks they know it all, and in some ways they may, but they can be greatly annoying and difficult to deal with at times, especially in arguments.

Soft-hearted - Having softness or tenderness of heart that can lead them into trouble; susceptible of pity or other kindly affection. They cannot resist helping someone they see in trouble, suffering or in need, and often don’t think of the repercussions or situation before doing so.

Solemn - Deeply earnest, serious, and sober.

Spineless - Lacking courage. Cowardly, wimp, lily-livered, gutless.

Spiteful - Showing malicious ill will and a desire to hurt; motivated by spite; vindictive person who will look for occasions for resentment. Vengeful.

Spoiled - Treated with excessive indulgence and pampering from earliest childhood, and has no notion of hard work, self-care or money management; coddled, pampered. Having the character or disposition harmed by pampering or over-solicitous attention.

Squeamish - Excessively fastidious and easily disgusted.

Stubborn - Unreasonably, often perversely unyielding; bull-headed. Firmly resolved or determined; resolute.

Superstitious - An irrational belief arising from ignorance or fear from an irrational belief that an object, action, or circumstance not logically related to a course of events influences its outcome.

Tactless - Lacking or showing a lack of what is fitting and considerate in dealing with others.

Temperamental - Moody, irritable, or sensitive. Excitable, volatile, emotional.

Theatrical - Having a flair for over dramatizing situations, doing things in a ‘big way’ and love to be ‘centre stage’.

Timid -Tends to be shy and/or quiet, shrinking away from offering opinions or from strangers and newcomers, fearing confrontations and violence.

Tongue-tied - Speechless or confused in expression, as from shyness, embarrassment, or astonishment.

Troublemaker - Someone who deliberately stirs up trouble, intentionally or unintentionally.

Unlucky - Marked by or causing misfortune; ill-fated. Destined for misfortune; doomed.

Unpredictable - Difficult to foretell or foresee, their actions are so chaotic it’s impossible to know what they are going to do next.

Untrustworthy - Not worthy of trust or belief. Backstabber.

Vain - Holding or characterized by an unduly high opinion of their physical appearance. Lovers of themselves. Conceited, egotistic, narcissistic.

Weak-willed - Lacking willpower, strength of will to carry out one’s decisions, wishes, or plans. Easily swayed.

Withdrawn - Not friendly or Sociable. Aloof.

Zealous - A fanatic.

slitheringink

I had an anon asking about how to make their character not so perfect. Well, here’s a great list of some flaws you can try to use to balance out his good traits.

-Morgan

coffeeandpies-deactivated202012

@softegods @softegods

#character flaws #useful writing things

noshitloki

IF YOU LOVE WRITING BUT DON’T HAVE THE INSPIRATION FOR A 10-PART BOOK SAGA YOU SHOULD TAKE A LOOK AT THIS SITE

IT’S INCREDIBLY HELPFUL AND CAN FOR INSTANCE GENERATE TOPICS AND FIRST LINES, CONTAINS LOADS OF EXERCISES AND YOU CAN FIND PLENTY OF WRITING TIPS.

shadowstep-of-bast

BLESS YOU I LOVE YOU OH MY GODS I’VE NEEDED THIS

impishtubist

WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN ALL MY LIFE?

thereal-tsuki-llama-blog

This is a really cool site…

made-in-manetheren

What an awesome way to get started or recharge or play around or experiment or…OK it’s good for all the writing things :D

#useful writing things #website

tast3of1nk

tag yourself

bookishdiplodocus

I’m the Writing Mom.

#help me *facepalm* and writing mom

nightthinkersworld

SITES FOR WRITERS

Fantasy name generator

Fighter’s block - try to defeat a monster by writing

Child’s Traits Calculator ; predict a child’s appearance

Child’s Traits Calculator ; predict other traits

Fifty Plot Twist Ideas For Your Work-In-Progress!

Name generator (Character, Baby, Last name, etc.)

Plot generator ; Inspiration for your next novel, film or short story

Character generator ; Generate Rich Characters in Seconds

Writing Exercises ; This site provides (completely free) writing prompts and exercises to help you get started with creative writing and break through writing blocks.

Notebook ; create your characters, worlds, objects, places, etc. and save them

Festisite ; Create a fake license, marriage certificate, credit card, ticket and you can find other stuff as well.

The most common last names in the US

Lists of most common surnames

List of most popular given names

List of the least common surnames [last names] in America, rank 16,001-20,000

Fantasy name generator (again)

Random Name Generator (Choose origins, gender, etc.)

Said is dead (Remember that you can use said, don’t use it to less.)

How Much Blood Can The Human Body Lose?

How Long Can Someone Go Without Breathing?

The 6 Types of Collars Every Man Should Know by Name

18 Different Types of Sleeves Design Patterns

What are the most widely practiced religions of the world?

Differences Between a Short Story, Novelette, Novella, & a Novel

Hemingway editor ; It grades your writing by its readability.

Zen writer ; writing without distractions (Might not be free after a while)

33 Ways to Write Stronger Characters

75+ bad habits for your character

30 SCENE IDEAS FOR CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT

10 Things Writers Don’t Know About The Woods

British and American terms

Free writing worksheets

Feel free to add more!

#useful writing things #writing sites #generators

valtsv

*banging fists on the table* orc/elf gfs orc/elf gfs ORC/ELF GFS

valtsv

bonus points if the orc is clean and sensible and obsessed with poetry and fine art while the elf is a feral nightmare berserker who more often than not returns home looking like she’s just been dragged backwards through a hedge full of thorns after bathing in a swamp

valtsv

orc lady: this is my tiny wife

her elf wife: babe, i’m 7 feet tall

orc lady, straightening her back and shoulders slightly to better show off her full 9′4″ of height: i love my tiny wife

asianartiste

yeah

jadedfantasieswrites

Consider also:

#the elf girl is basically a goblin i love her #jadedfantasiesdraws #orc/elf girlfriends #i am definitely gonna draw more of them #hm they need names #any ideas?#SHIT I FORGOT THE ORC'S TEETH #ughhhh whatever it's fine

ultrafacts

For any writers: http://er.jsc.nasa.gov/seh/SFTerms.html

For more facts, follow Ultrafacts

godotcamebutiwasbusyfangirling

Thank you NASA **

#useful writing things #space technology terms

canariesarchive-blog-deactivate

HELLO I JUST FOUND THE BEST FUCKING WEBSITE FOR WORKING ON CHARACTERS AND WORLD BUILDING YEET FUCKERS SEE YOU IN 8 YEARS

canariesarchive-blog-deactivate

If you have been struggling with world building and finding a way to keep track of everything PLEASE GOD LOOK AT NOTEBOOK.AI

Notebook.ai has different categories for different things:

And then once you make something each category has different questions for you to answer about your world:

This website is literally a blessing

#useful writing things #worldbuilding

letswritesomenovels

For Writers: Google Docs PSA

Google Docs/Drive has just added a “Compare documents” feature!

If you have multiple saved drafts of the same work, you know how useful this could be!

This is great if you aren’t sure which version is the most recent, if you’re looking for that one paragraph you took out and now want to put back in, or if it’s been a while since you’ve worked on the project, and you just want to see what you were up to the last time.

(And I know there are other features like this on other platforms, Scrivener has a feature like this too, but if you use Google Drive ridiculously often, like me and create a new document every five seconds, this is a real treat,)

Here’s where to find it:

And here is what the comparison (saved as a new document) looks like in the end:

Anyway…

#useful writing things #google docs

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