archived

local cryptid writeblr, focused on worldbuilding and writing advice.

[projecttreehouse]

write EVERY DAY. here's how.

where inspiration fails, habit will always have your back. this is why it's important to build writing into your life as a habit, if you ever want to finish a project or improve your skills.

back in 2018, i (nat) was a college student without much going for me. i was feeling creatively stifled and insecure and like i didn't have TIME to write good. and i was right. i didn't have time to write GOOD. but i did have time to write SOMETHING. so that january, i built the habit. i wrote every single day in 2018, and almost every single day since.

because once you establish the habit, it becomes safer to skip a day (or three days) here and there. you will at least THINK about writing every day, even if you go straight from work to social plans to bed, or you're on vacation, or you're too sick to write. and that thinking is part of the habit!

here are the tips i followed to make this happen.

-pick a reasonable goal. starting off, mine was 300 words. now, i don't follow a goal, because the habit is so solid i don't need to. but 300 words is easy and quick. and if you give a pig a pancake, they'll probably have days where they write 500, 1000, even 3k words.

-log your word count. this is interesting to look back on every new year's eve, and it provides accountability. do this however you like; a spreadsheet, a physical notebook, a note in your phone, each day's section in your planner, whatever works for you. i have a channel in my personal discord server where i log mine.

-do NOT edit as you go. just write write write. if you feel like something you wrote needs work, yeah, it probably does-- everything needs to be edited, but that's a problem for later. highlight sentences you can't get right or make note of them to edit LATER. but do not edit as you go!

-write self-indulgent crap. fanfiction, shitty poetry, manifestos, rants, self insert fantasy romance, whatever floats your boat. having a shitty self-indulgent backup story to work on when i didn't feel like writing for the projects i cared about really helped get me in the habit. write for an audience of one!

-journal if you can't write. this may not necessarily build your skill as much as writing regular prose would, but it does help you maintain the habit and it can be useful in lots of other ways.

-think outside the box. write trivia questions. write a list of your favorite childhood toys. write a review of the book you're reading. i'm writing this post, that's going toward my word count for the day. again, this is still writing, and it helps maintain the habit.

-get comfortable writing on your phone. this took me a long time, but making it over this hurdle has saved my habit so many times.

you'll be surprised at the cool shit you end up writing on those days when you swore you weren't inspired enough. and you'll be delighted with how much progress you will make honing your craft!

happy writing! if you have any questions about how to implement any of these tips, our ask box is always open.

[letthetruthlaugh-blog]

I wanted my first-year film students to understand what happens to a story when actual human beings inhabit your characters, and the way they can inspire storytelling. And I wanted to teach them how to look at headshots and what you might be able to tell from a headshot. So for the past few years I’ve done a small experiment with them.

Some troubling shit always occurs.

It works like this: I bring in my giant file of head shots, which include actors of all races, sizes, shapes, ages, and experience levels. Each student picks a head shot from the stack and gets a few minutes to sit with the person’s face and then make up a little story about them. 

Namely, for white men, they have no trouble coming up with an entire history, job, role, genre, time, place, and costume. They will often identify him without prompting as “the main character.” The only exception? “He would play the gay guy.” For white women, they mostly do not come up with a job (even though it was specifically asked for), and they will identify her by her relationships. “She would play the mom/wife/love interest/best friend.” I’ve heard “She would play the slut” or “She would play the hot girl.” A lot more than once.

For nonwhite men, it can be equally depressing. “He’s in a buddy cop movie, but he’s not the main guy, he’s the partner.” “He’d play a terrorist.” “He’d play a drug dealer.” “A thug.” “A hustler.” “Homeless guy.” One Asian actor was promoted to “villain.”

For nonwhite women (grab onto something sturdy, like a big glass of strong liquor), sometimes they are “lucky” enough to be classified as the girlfriend/love interest/mom, but I have also heard things like “Well, she’d be in a romantic comedy, but as the friend, you know?” “Maid.” “Prostitute.” “Drug addict.”

I should point out that the responses are similar whether the group is all or mostly-white or extremely racially mixed, and all the groups I’ve tried this with have been about equally balanced between men and women, though individual responses vary. Women do a little better with women, and people of color do a little better with people of color, but female students sometimes forget to come up with a job for female actors and black male students sometimes tell the class that their black male actor wouldn’t be the main guy.

Once the students have made their pitches, we interrogate their opinions. “You seem really sure that he’s not the main character – why? What made you automatically say that?” “You said she was a mom. Was she born a mom, or did she maybe do something else with her life before her magic womb opened up and gave her an identity? Who is she as a person?” In the case of the “thug“, it turns out that the student was just reading off his film resume. This brilliant African American actor who regularly brings houses down doing Shakespeare on the stage and more than once made me weep at the beauty and subtlety of his performances, had a list of film credits that just said “Thug #4.” “Gang member.” “Muscle.” Because that’s the film work he can get. Because it puts food on his table.

So, the first time I did this exercise, I didn’t know that it would turn into a lesson on racism, sexism, and every other kind of -ism. I thought it was just about casting. But now I know that casting is never just about casting, and this day is a real teachable opportunity. Because if we do this right, we get to the really awkward silence, where the (now mortified) students try to sink into their chairs. Because, hey, most of them are proud Obama voters! They have been raised by feminist moms! They don’t want to be or see themselves as being racist or sexist. But their own racism and sexism is running amok in the room, and it’s awkward.

[fozmeadows]

I will never not reblog this.

[gingerly-writing]

Do you have any advice for when you want to write but at the same time you're just Tired™??? Thank you

well that really depends what kind of Tired™ you are

you’re Tired™ of everything and everyone, aka you’re just totally exhausted: bro this is not a healthy space to be writing from. take a nap. chat to a friend. daydream. rest and recover. 

you’re Tired™ of writing (and you might have burnt out): also rest. if you want to, rest “productively”. read books, watch films, have fun being a consumer, analyse and dissect what you do and don’t like, and generally recharge your creative spirits. you have to put something into your brain before you can tease something out

you’re Tired™ of writing because it’s fucking hard: I feel you. make a writing friend to a) bitch to and b) mutually lift up. make a ranty post about it in your drafts. indulge in one of the fun parts of writing like some frivolous worldbuilding or making a cute edit. then keep writing.

you’re Tired™ physically: go to bed earlier. take a nap, bitch! 

you’re Tired™ because you’re a millennial or gen z and this is how we all live: mood. but if you want to write, write anyway. write through it, above it, around it. in your bed, on the loo, while you snack. in snatched moments and long designated periods. whenever suits you (and sometimes whenever doesn’t suit you).

you’re another kind of Tired™ which I can’t think of right now because I, too, am Tired™: do something fun for yourself that reminds you of your project. then keep writing. 

fun things I have been doing at the minute include: venturing into RPing, watching heist movies for joint research with @radley-writes, watching Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries with my parents, watching YouTube videos about real world heists, reading books like Six of Crows that (surprise) contain heists (can you tell my next book project contains a heist yet?), getting into bullet journalling, setting up a writing/bujo Instagram (follow me at the same username!), and playing minecraft with my brother. I also finished the third draft of my novel in a month and a few days. 

all of this might make me sound like some kind of hyperorganised machine, but I promise you it’s a) scattered and sporadic fun that’s very badly scheduled and b) very very necessary to the completion of that draft. 

tl;dr pretty much every young writer is Tired™. alongside dedication to actually getting words on the page, you also need inspiration and energy to fight the Tired™ back.

[randomramblesofaraven]

This!!! This is very important and very useful. Triage your Tiredness~

[prokopetz]

Okay, this is in incredibly petty nitpick, but: if you’re writing a fantasy setting with same-sex marriage, a same-sex noble or royal couple typically would not have titles of the same rank - e.g., a prince and a prince, or two queens.

It depends on which system of ranking you use, of course (there are several), but in most systems there’s actually a rule covering this scenario: in the event that a consort’s courtesy title being of the same rank as their spouse’s would potentially create confusion over who holds the title by right and who by courtesy, the consort instead receives the next-highest title on the ladder.

So the husband of a prince would be a duke; the wife of a queen, a princess; and so forth.

(You actually see this rule in practice in the United Kingdom, albeit not in the context of a same-sex marriage; the Queen’s husband is styled a prince because if he were a king, folks might get confused about which of them was the reigning monarch.)

The only common situation where you’d expect to see, for example, two queens in the same marriage is if the reigning monarchs of two different realms married each other - and even then, you’d more likely end up with a complicated arrangement where each party is technically a princess of the other’s realm in addition to being queen of her own.

You’ve gotta keep it nice and unambiguous who’s actually in charge!

[prokopetz]

Okay, I’ve received a whole lot of asks about this post, so I’m going to cover all of the responses in one go:

1. The system described above is, admittedly, merely one of the most common. Other historically popular alternatives include:

The consort’s courtesy title is of the same rank as their spouse’s, with “-consort” appended to it: prince and prince-consort, queen and queen-consort, etc. This is how, e.g., present-day Monaco does it.

The consort is simply styled Lord or Lady So-and-so, and receives no specific title. I can’t think of any country that still does it this way, off the top of my head, but historically it was a thing.

(Naturally, your setting needn’t adhere to any of these, but it would be highly irregular for it to lack some mechanism for clarifying the chain of command.)

2. The reason why the consort of a prince is historically a princess even though those titles are the same rank is basically sexism. This can go a couple of ways:

In many realms, there was no such thing as being a princess by right; the daughter of a monarch would be styled Lady So-and-so and receive no specific title, so the only way to be a princess was to marry a prince.

In realms where women could hold titles by right, typically a masculine title was informally presumed to outrank its feminine counterpart. So, e.g., kings outrank queens, princes outrank princesses, etc.

In either case, no ambiguity exists.

(Interestingly, this suggests that in a more egalitarian setting where masculine titles are not presumed to outrank their feminine counterparts, or vice versa, you’d need to explicitly disambiguate rankings even outside the context of same-sex marriages. Food for thought!)

3. It would also be possible to have two kings or two queens in the same marriage without multiple realms being involved in the case of a true co-monarchy. However, true co-monarchies are highly irregular and, from a political standpoint, immensely complicated affairs. If you’re planning on writing one of those, be prepared to do your research!

4. The next rank down from “countess” is either “viscountess” or “baroness”, depending on which peerage system you’re using.

(Yes, that last one actually came up multiple times. Apparently there are a lot of stories about gay countesses out there!)

[prokopetz]

I’d like to argue with this, but I can’t.

[the-fandomwriter]

any other writers out there ever read a paragraph of your own work and just, in the least self centered way possible, think

fuck, i’m such a good writer.

if you haven’t, that day will come eventually, i promise. but until then, keep writing whatever your little working brain tells you, because one day you’ll consider it a masterpiece or absolute shit that’ll make you laugh and realize just how far you’ve come.

keep writing words so your future self has stuff to look back on and either compare to current wips, or to reminisce on. words are permanent as long as you let them be.

[corvase]

establishing a relationship prompts

feel free to use :)

the hesitation before introducing them like “name, this is my family. guys, this is my… um, this is name.”

“i thought we were …” “thought we were what?”

the built up feeling of being excited to see them for no particular reason at all and the character feeling that being like what’s wrong with me? we aren’t even dating

“what are we?” and the other character responding like “what do you mean?” even though they know

“can we talk? what are we? what are we doing?”

“i don’t want to continue this… relationship… if this is how it’s going to be. i want some clarity.”

explaining it away with friends like oh no we aren’t like that… but that bitter taste being left in their mouth because what are they if not that thing

a character leans in for a kiss and the other asks “what are we?”

they’re just relaxing together when one asks out of the blue “what are we?”

“i don’t like him. if anything, i hate him.” “…. right.”

additionally, character trying to explain it away and sounding even dumb to themselves

“what are we doing?”

“i’m tired of feeling like i have an expiration date on my forehead. what. are. we?”

the classic “you know i think of us as more than just…” if u know u know

“what are we?” “whatever you want us to be.”

a confession like “i don’t know why i feel this way but i know you mean a lot to me and i want to ask if you feel the same abort me” because communication everyone

the more and more they think about it, the more they feel hesitant about continuing with their relationship because they’re terrified that it’s not reciprocated

what happens next? will either of them be honest or will they crash and burn after the question is asked?

[yvesdot]

My book rec blog post is now available to read on Shepherd!

In short, I recommend you five books based on a theme my own short story collection, Something's Not Right, embodies: in this case, casually (or very explicitly) LGBT-friendly SFF. I specifically focused on books I hear about less often, sorting by GR reads/reviews, so hopefully everyone can find something new to read! As always, please feel free to send me asks about any book on this list for more details or friendly chatter.

And, when you’re done reading on Shepherd, come right back here for a bonus two recs I just couldn’t leave out below the cut!

The Left Hand of Darkness didn’t make the cut due to its well-crafted politics and worldbuilding, a focus on which is certainly not in my wheelhouse as a much more character-focused author. Still, just because my writing skews more low SFF doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy high SFF from time to time (see Gideon on the official list) and I absolutely loved The Left Hand of Darkness, which is a gorgeous classic featuring a completely nontraditional approach to love and gender. (Also: shockingly popular for a book nobody my age has heard of.)

Kaleidoscope didn’t make the cut in part due to tone: it’s a much quieter, more mysterious read than Something’s Not Right, centering around two young boys who love one another. It’s also technically a children’s book, though one of the precious few which feels as though it wholly respects its readers for their age and level, without ever having to dumb itself down for them. Selznick takes us through infinite views—like the titular kaleidoscope—into their characters and reveals every dimension of young gay love. 

[transman-badass]

As a writer on tumblr, likes are just noise to me. They are the polite nod from a stranger when you meet eyes by accident - it means something when you don’t get much interaction with others, but when you put yourself out into the world day in, day out, you’ll quickly forget these impersonal moments happened at all.

Impersonal is the right word. It’s nice to get them, yeah - but they’re a ticket stub, an ‘I was here’ that exists for the benefit of the person who keeps the ticket. Its funny how a form of interaction can feel so faceless, somehow.

I am grateful to everyone who has read my work, of course. But humans are hardwired to want attention, real attention, from others. Babies will die if they don’t get attention, even if they’re fed. I think I get feedback from less than 1% of the people who see my stuff, and that’s just on this blog.

I’m not asking you for pity or attention. I’m just saying… if you can think of someone who has written something you enjoyed, please send them an ask today and let them know you liked it. Just saying “I read ___ and I liked it, thank you for writing it” is enough. It means so much to writers, original or fandom, poetry or prose, reader pov, oc creators, whatever

Likes are white noise. Comments, reblogs, and asks are songs. Please show us your song.

[yes I would like you to reblog this]

[kathartian]

yeah, i took a break from writeblr, since there was too much going on in real life to keep up with.

nonetheless, i'm very much back!! and with a couple of new projects ehehe

[writingwithcolor]

I was wondering what kind of female black characters do people want to see more of? Like, them being soft or selfish?

Black Girls & Women: Representation We Want

As a Black woman reader, I definitely want to see more soft Black girls and women in literature. Girls with their own self-interests (caring about oneself isn’t necessarily selfish) and not always someone else’s caregiver is great too.

Note to writers of all races: By all means use this list as story inspiration!

Wordcloud of highlights. Contact me for the keywords or keep reading below.

More Black girls...

In love.

Interracial relationships (Black X White, Black X BIPOC)

Black love. Healthy parental bonds (Bonus: dark skin Black mothers!)

With close family bonds and healthy relationships and support systems (that don’t require enduring abuse, fixing their partner, or overall emotional labor to earn domestic happiness)

Being protected

As main characters, heroines and anti-heroes

On adventures

In fantasy and magical settings

In historical settings as peasants, upper-class society, and royalty. NOT always slaves.

Descriptions of Black Afro hair, skin, features as a normal thing in books (see this compilation) and not in an Othering way

On the other hand, vibrant, sometimes hyped up descriptions that allude to their beauty (see this ask. Or this one). Not Othering, just appreciating! 

Put us in fancy dresses and give us a sword and let us dance at the balls and have admirers!

Experiencing complex emotions not necessarily in reaction to racism or racist violence

On the book cover! And with an accurate, not light or white-washed model

~Mod Colette

Responses:

@madamef-er

Soft Black girls and nerd girls who like cute things. 

Shy Black girls not just in situations with boys. 

More lgbtqia+ Black girls. Studs! Femmes! 

Gender fluid and non conforming constantly changing their style because they like it!

Spies and not just as the 'sexy bait' or 'weapons master' let us sit behind the computer for once and be hackers and stuff

@tanlefan

Black girls who are just...people.

I want a fantasy escapism adventure that isn't a thinly veiled discussion on slavery or racism or any other aspect of The Struggle. I am tired. 

Can I just have a happy Black girl who believes in fairies or something?

@esmeraldanacho-1776 More autistic Black women/girls! I don't care what genre really; just have them in there!

@briarsthicket And enby black people!

@mattiekins

Def soft Black girls. 

Energetic and playful. 

Or shy and quiet.

I want to see more Black girls who are nerds and not just mommy mommying or nanny nannying everyone. 

I want Black girls who want to be a ballerina, or a talk show host, or a game designer etc. 

I want a Black girl who gets to be happy. 

Who doesn't have to act older than she is and be the shoulder for everyone, always.

@xiiishadesofgrey

I want more Black lady nerds, if we’re talking modern settings!  

More Black ladies who have a sporty/playful nature! 

Who aren’t afraid to get dirty and make chaos, without being dirty or frowned upon!

Strange as it sounds coming from me, more Black princesses! Brandy as Cinderella in the 90s was my first Cinderella, and I LOVE that.

Please, god, more Black wlws.

@daintythoughtswritersblock

I want to see tropes exercised 

Black women of all shades and tones

@hazelnut4370

Tbh just fellow Black people being happy, like I rarely see that,

Or enjoying hobbies

@rivergoddessdream

Happily childless Black women

Black women traveling the world

Fat Black women in happy, healthy, poly relationships

Black cis and trans women having a true sisterhood

Autistic black women

Black women in period pieces that aren't about slavery and don't take place in the US

Black women thespians

Black women painters

Black women revolutionaries

Black women front and center in the narrative

Black women healers and storytellers

Non christian Black women stories

Black women rockers

#complicated black women characters #tell those stories

@missnancywrites

More Black Girls...

With diverse cultural and social backgrounds!

That are nerdy, girly, intelligent, ditzy, all the personality types that white girls in literature get!

That are fragile, shy or anxious. Almost every single Black woman I’ve seen in media or otherwise are wise and adult. Let us be an absolute wreck, or an anxious mess!

In science! Characters like Shuri, Moon Girl and Iron Heart in Marvel revitalized me, cuz young Black girls only get two types. Both these girls are in intellectual and in science, but have bery different personalities.

In interracial relationships, and not because they hate Black men or something along those lines. They just happen to be dating outside their race, black women get hate for that in real life and it’s unfair. Let us have relationships outside our race! That said...

In platonic relationships with Black men! I think that’s important, cuz I don’t often seen Black solidarity unless it’s for the purpose of showing how diverse the writing is. Let them share interests, daily frustrations that they would only understand, but don’t force a romance.

In solid friendships with other Black girls! For some reason, we’re pitted against in each other inside and outside of writing! Write some sweet wholesome friendship!

With different sexualities! Let there be some that are ace, others are gay, bi or pan! Just be sure you don’t sexualize them, or turn em into a robot.

Who are dark-skinned! This can be seen a lot in tv or movies, but when you want a black girl in your stuff don’t just hire a light-skinned Black girl or a biracial black girl. It’s not the same.

Who get to act their age! Black women have a long standing history of being adultified, starting from a very young age, and it’s extremely harmful. Little Black girls can wear what they please, the problem is people sexualizing them. Let the teen black girl be a teenager, she can look out for her siblings but she isn’t the keepern the house or their lives. Young adult Black girls are not ideal housewives or capable working machines, they mess up and mess around just as much as any young adult.

With mental/physical disabilities or illnesses. Alongside with being forced to be more mature than they are, disabilities/illnesses are never taken seriously and we’re forced to just deal with it. Having Black girls who happen to have these issues, but also have a healthy support group is always good!

@ink-and-roses

Seen as beautiful and desirable and NOT in a hypersexualized way

Interracial relationships are wonderful because Black girls are beautiful and lbr everybody sees it

Sensitive and allowed to feel something other than righteous anger

Some Black girls are skinny! Some are big! Some are slim and some are curvy! There’s no mold!

Dark skinned!

A YA protagonist out to save the world from something other than racism

Superpowers or magic that doesn’t come from generational trauma or slavery

Black characters who support other Black characters. None of this token crabs in a barrel business.

Black girl nerds and punks and goths exist. I promise.

And this may be a personal preference but I’m not against the idea of a damsel in distress. We are always being strong. Let her be soft and delicate and cared for. Let her be princess carried and rescued from the tower and the dragon.

[Note from Mod: It’s not just you! I love a Black damsel being saved and protected. What is progressive for one woman varies due to historical and present depictions and is why intersectionality in feminism is so important! -Colette]

@nightlyswordswoman

As a writer, I write a lot of my Black female characters like this because I rarely ever see Black women being represented in these ways! ESPECIALLY on the covers of books, unless the author themselves is a Black woman and even then its rare. 

Too often Black women are stereotyped as strong protector types that are always rough, tough, and don’t need anybody in books (and real life), when that’s honestly just dumb and inaccurate--Black women are as vulnerable as anyone else (in some cases, even more vulnerable, but that’s another topic). 

So yeah, this list is 100% accurate and I encourage those who are interested in writing Black female characters (whether you’re a Black woman or not) to consider writing them like this, because the stereotype needs to die lol.

But wait, there’s more!

@just-a-swsh-fangirl  As an anime fan I kinda want to see a white male protagonist be paired up (romantically) with a Black female at the end of the series. It would make my Black self happy to see a girl like me in an important role like that.

@tgingwe

Black girls in STEM, pleaaase

Black girls with ADHD, depression, and other mental health conditions! 

Black girls with supportive families! 

Pan Black girls! 

African Black girls, with cultures that impact their lives and with complex relationships between their specific identities/cultures and the idea of being perceived as just Black outside of Africa! 

Happy Trans Black girls!

@starcrossedrose

Love triangles where a Black character gets to be with the guy or girl in the end.

Love triangles revolving around a Black character.

Black retellings of fairy tales

Black characters in royal positions (King, Queen, Princes, Princesses, etc.)

@superviza

Soft, reserved, emotional, shy, spirited, spunky, bubbly, corny, weird Black women

a Black woman in a healthy relationship with a Black man who has a healthy obsession with her

little Black girls

modest black women

Black women without a criminal to success backstory

Black women they were raised in a healthy family with both Black parents who are still living

Black women in interracial relationships that aren’t necessarily white

No tokens; Several Black women together with no beef

Black women in fantasy

Black women in friendship with ppl of other races and ethnicities

Black women who get to feel and express emotion with it being a threat

@sappho-of-etheria

Black girls who don't live in the US

Black girls who are daughters of immigrants and have complex relationships with both their homeland and the land their family is from

Black girls with healthy relationships with their parents

Black girls who are indecisive about their lives and struggling to find their place in the world and the reason not being racism

LGBTQ+ Black girls with families that accept them and celebrate them

More Black witches/magic users who don't fall in the magical negro type.

Quirky Black girls who have endearing and unusual interests

Black girls who both love sterotypical and non-stereotypical Black things

Black girls having supportive friendship groups and not being the one who constantly needs to support the others

Black girls saving the world

Black girls having a love interest who loves them and cherishes them not because they think they are weak but because they want them to be safe and happy

Black girls being the cherished love interest

Black girls being thought of the most gorgeous girl and not being overly sexualized

Black girls and their siblings/friends going to another world a la Chronicles of Narnia

Black girls being the chosen ones and saving the world

Black girls in medieval fantasy stories and not just being a slave or the handmaiden of the white princess

Black girs with different and complex relationships with their womanhood and how they express it

Black girls with different hair textures

But above all else I just want Black girls to be able to have the same range in character as their white counterparts. I am tired of never being able to relate to characters that look like me

Black girl rep wishlist continued

@just-an-anime-fangirl I kinda want to see a white male protagonist be paired up ( romantically) with a Black female at the end of the series. It would make my Black self happy to see a girl like me in an important role like that.

@bubblyjaay-blog

Don't pull a Henry Danger.

I want Black girls to be loved and fall in love. 

Not just be perpetual straightlaced, sassy side characters who's only there to be straightlace support.

@igotloki

Yes! All of this! 

I’m so tired of seeing people who look like me only playing the side kick or supportive friend at best. 

There is no reason we can’t be the main character in every genre.

@mutantgurls

Dark skin Black girl as main characters in romance, Rom-com, fantasy, science fiction

Black girls starring in romance, fantasy, or syfy. (Not just drama)

Black girls following other religion such as Judaism or Islam or they’re atheists

Black girl getting to be soft, goofy, silly

Magical Black girls who get to transform into their superpower alter ego

Magical beings Black girls (Black fairies, mermaids, aliens)

Black girl being in relationships with non-humans ( I’m a teratophilia fans) like werewolves or aliens and being protected by them.

[kiramartinauthor]

Here's a good question I'm sure 90% of everyone who follows you deals with; Outlining. For the past 6 years, I just threw together ideas, and went with it. So now I'm trying to outline my plot before I start. My point is, how should I do it? Write down the plot in a document, for example?

How to Outline a Book/Series:

1. Themes.

What do you want your story to be at its heart? What are you trying to say? Think of what you think needs to be heard. Put up a mirror to society and figure out what you would change.

Maybe you are asking a question without an answer, maybe you have solid thoughts, maybe you just have interesting parallels to draw from human evolution. It should be able to be said in a few words.

For example, I just watched The Hateful 8 recently, and the theme was clearly “civilization.” For CRBD I might say it’s “acceptance through diversity” or “family.” It’s hard to suss them out, but it is important as a guiding arrow to lead you through your outline.

2. Brain dump.

Just get it all out. All the ideas you’ve been holding in, the characters, the scenes, the settings, the color schemes, the world. All of it. It’s going to be an amazing giant mess. I myself do this all into a word doc.

No matter how well you outline a story, you’re still going to have ideas pop up as you go along. What I do is keep four fluid documents for each book that I can flood with ideas like I mention in the next step. Once I get a big idea I have to address, I go through and plug those ideas into the corresponding solid plot documents for each book.

3. Sort.

Organize these details chronologically. Since CRBD is a series, I go through and separate out each element into the four different books/loose docs.

You might be confused about how to incorporate certain ideas, but if you want them in your work, they have to enter sometime. Even if it’s an obscure line of dialogue, a hair style, or world element, it all has to have a home. Figure out where it will be introduced.

From there, transfer each idea from the loose doc to the solid plot doc in order. Delete each idea as you use it from the loose doc so you can keep it clear for new ideas and elements.

4. Flesh it out or cut it.

Work out what you want in this story. Your brain dump might not have had enough details or too much. Figure out what can be recycled or thrown away. Chances are, you need to add.

This process might take a little bit–you brain dump was probably weeks in the making so don’t be too hard on yourself. Keep this story in mind and recognize the spots where your story is weak and needs more reinforcement. Add them as you can and strengthen the plot.

5. Smooth the story.

Make sure your plots/subplots are easily identified. Each character should have growth or arc with each book or plot. Anything sticking out funny should be scrutinized for relevancy. There should be clear conflict as well as cause and effect.

You want to be able to take each of these threads and see how they pull at other elements (characters, world, other plots). If you’re writing a series, there should be elements in each book even if it’s just paving the way.

6. Share.

This might mean friends, family, an SO, or CP. They will help you take your story in the direction you want it to go and make sure it’s clear. Im sure at this point you’ll be chomping at the bit and already have been talking their ears off.

This part of outlining is pretty pervasive in all of the steps, but it’s most important once you have it all together. It’s always good to have feedback and on what you’re doing before you start.

It’s hard for writers, because oftentimes these are the people they want to experience their book as a reader. The problem is that you need one or two people with no secrets or fear of spoilers between you. It will be much easier on you to make plot changes at this stage than after you’ve written the whole thing and have to do rewrites.

……..

Hope this helps!

KO-FI / WEBSITE / INSTA / FB

[thatwritergirlsblog]

Tips for Writing a Difficult Scene

Every writer inevitably gets to that scene that just doesn't want to work. It doesn't flow, no matter how hard you try. Well, here are some things to try to get out of that rut:

1. Change the weather

I know this doesn't sound like it'll make much of a difference, but trust me when I say it does.

Every single time I've tried this, it worked and the scene flowed magically.

2. Change the POV

If your book has multiple POV characters, it might be a good idea to switch the scene to another character's perspective.

9/10 times, this will make the scene flow better.

3. Start the scene earlier/later

Oftentimes, a scene just doesn't work because you're not starting in the right place.

Perhaps you're starting too late and giving too little context. Perhaps some description or character introspection is needed before you dive in.

Alternatively, you may be taking too long to get to the actual point of the scene. Would it help to dive straight into the action without much ado?

4. Write only the dialogue

If your scene involves dialogue, it can help immensely to write only the spoken words the first time round.

It's even better if you highlight different characters' speech in different colors.

Then, later on, you can go back and fill in the dialogue tags, description etc.

5. Fuck it and use a placeholder

If nothing works, it's time to move on.

Rather than perpetually getting stuck on that one scene, use a placeholder. Something like: [they escape somehow] or [big emotional talk].

And then continue with the draft.

This'll help you keep momentum and, maybe, make the scene easier to write later on once you have a better grasp on the plot and characters.

Trust me, I do this all the time.

It can take some practice to get past your Type A brain screaming at you, but it's worth it.

So, those are some things to try when a scene is being difficult. I hope that these tips help :)

Reblog if you found this post useful. Comment with your own tips. Follow me for similar content.

[pens-swords-stuff]

Not everything needs to be a full story, you know?

If you have just one or two scenes that you’re really excited about, you can just write those. You don’t have to create a full WIP to contain them if you don’t want.

You can create characters without putting them into a project, they can just exist.

You can worldbuild for a universe that you never write about.

If there’s a trope you really want to write, but you don’t have a project to put them in… You can just write the best parts of that trope on its own.

Even if you do have a story and there’s parts you don’t want to write, it’s okay to just write the parts that you’re excited about. You don’t need to write the other parts and make it a full story.

I feel like in writing, there’s a lot of emphasis put on completion and writing a full story.

Completion or a full story doesn’t always have to be the purpose or goal. It’s okay and wonderful to just let something exist on its own without anything else.

[thatwritergirlsblog]

How to get back into a WIP when inspiration is lacking

1. Character exploration

You may be feeling uninspired because you find it difficult to enter your characters' minds.

A great way to dive into a character's point of view is writing a paragraph from their perspective on a topic like death, the meaning of life, loss etc.

I usually do this before I start a project, but it can be a great way to get back into the swing of things in the middle of a book.

2. Character songs/playlist

A lot of people write with music, curating playlists for their WIP.

I don't write with music, but it can be great to listen to a song or two before writing a specific scene or character's POV.

Curate a Playlist for your POV characters and listen to it when inspiration is running low.

3. Fake promotional material

This may just be a weird thing I do, but I love it.

When I really need a motivation boost, I create fake promotional material or swag designs for my WIP. Mock covers, bookmarks, posters, ads etc.

It reminds me what I'm working towards and that can help a lot.

4. Moodboards

Creating physical mood boards for your WIP or specific characters/locations and putting them up int your work space can do wonders for inspiration.

Every time you look at the moddboard, you're taken back to the moment when the idea first got into your head - a moment when you had oodles of inspiration.

You can also add to those mood boards whenever you need an extra shot of inspiration.

5. YouTube

Every time I watch an Authortube vlog, I feel motivated to work on my own writing.

Pick an Authortuber who resonates with you and has the life you hope to build. Watch one or two of their vlogs and that should light a fire under you.

Reblog if you found these tips useful. Comment with your own ideas. Follow me for similar content.

[wordsnstuff]

for the draft thing: when i start writing novels i always have a lot of beginning, a fair amount of backstory, a solid ending, and maybe one or two key events in between, but nothing in the middle. i'm never sure how to approach this and it usually kills a lot of my projects :/ not sure if this is a question you can answer easily but if there's any tips i'd love to hear it!

Planning the middle...

I’ve gathered a couple of resources that I believe may help you with this. 

Coming Up With Scene Ideas

How To Engage The Reader

Pacing Appropriately

Balancing Detail & Development

Writing The Middle of Your Story

Powering Through The Zero-Draft Phase

Maintaining Writing Momentum

How To Prevent Getting Stuck

Writing Your Way Through The Plot Fog

Resources For Plot Development

Guide To Plot Development

How To Foreshadow

Novel Planning 101

Tackling Subplots

Things A Reader Needs From A Story

Planning A Scene In A Story

How To Fit Character Development Into Your Story

And some prompts in case you have trouble getting the creative juices flowing while you’re brainstorming...

Romantic Prompts

Angst Prompts

Dramatic Prompts

Suspenseful Prompts

Sad Prompts

20 Sentence Story Prompt

31 Days of Character Development : May 2018 Writing Challenge

31 Days of Plot Development : January 2019 Writing Challenge

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Masterlist | WIP Blog

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[wordsnstuff]

Guide to Writing Dark Fantasy

Patreon || Ko-Fi || Masterlist || Work In Progress

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What Is “Dark” Fantasy?

Dark Fantasy subscribes to the tropes and conventions of fantasy, while mixing in elements of the horror, thriller, and sometimes dystopia. Loosely, the magical elements of fantasy take a gloomier, more frightening turn. Dark fantasy is not simply “fantasy, but make it sexy or gory”. (I’m talking to those who cite Game of Thrones as an example of the genre.)

Yes, a lot of authors choose to incorporate heavier subject matter into dark fantasy stories, but things like rape and copious amounts of gore and death are not genre-defining. Darkness exists in every adult story, even if it’s only in symbolism, but the darkness in this sub-genre specifically persists throughout each scene and coats every element. This includes character development, plot development, world building, etc. 

Death Still Has to Mean Something

Something you have to understand about dark fantasy is that death can be a tool, but the nature of the genre shouldn’t make it any less impactful. When a side character or an extra gets killed, it should affect the reader emotionally, even if death is very common. If the death isn’t going to surprise them, it should unease or upset the reader. Death should never serve the purpose of filling space. 

Incorporate The Horrific

A lot of dark fantasy authors and writers have trouble or fail to incorporate the dark elements in a rounded, even manner. A lot of authors go for the “show the reader something undoubtedly tragic or traumatizing and the tone will endure” or the “if I sporadically kill characters for no apparent reason throughout the plot, the reader will stay disturbed and none will be the wiser”. 

The Villain Is The Key

The antagonist must be complex and compelling, and you have to use them well. Dark fantasy is a genre which depends on a fantastic villain or antagonist. It’s wise to create an antagonist whom the reader can understand, but who is severely misguided or obviously facing their own demons. Stories with a standard “I’m evil because my mommy didn’t love me” or “The world has been unkind to me so let there be fire” villain is outdated and, at this point, you have all the opportunity in the world to do better. 

If there’s one place where you should invest your creativity, make it the antagonist. 

The Darkness Is In Everything

Incorporating horrific things into fantasy is what makes this genre, true, but it has to be a consistent effort and an author must play the long-game. The darkness has to penetrate your word choice, the way you deliver new information in the text, the way you build up to important events, etc. The horror shouldn’t just spurt out every couple of chapters. You want to create a dark atmosphere, and an atmosphere must stretch beyond one or two scenes here and there.

Flawed vs. Unlikeable

This is a major downfall of a lot of dark fantasy works. It’s difficult to create a character whose flaws are so integral to the storytelling without making them unlikeable, but if you don’t toe this line carefully, your readers will put the story down. Yes, the character must be flawed and complex, and there are no heroes in the situation, but if there’s nobody to have hope for, then the reader will abandon the story. Nobody wants to sit and watch something that is sad and frustrating for the sake of depressing themselves. Well, some do, but not enough to convince someone there’s a market for your story.

Common Struggles

~ How do you craft a dark fantasy ending?… Not all pessimistic stories have to have a pessimistic ending. You can give your characters a positive outcome (or even just somewhat positive) without sacrificing the work you’ve done to maintain the genre’s tone and message. Most dark fantasy is about topics that are larger than the story itself, such as equality (in many aspects), existence, freedom vs. security, society vs. individuality, etc. Dark fantasy tends to branch off from the typical fantasy in terms of messaging because incorporating darker aspects of reality forces the reader to face harsher truths. Make your ending about what you want the reader to walk away with, and you should have no problem figuring out how to do it. 

~ How do you warn readers of possible triggers in non-fanfiction works?… Simply put, market your story honestly. Disclose any especially dark elements, and when advertising on platforms such as social media, perhaps provide an official disclaimer. The manner in which you warn readers of possible triggers is up to your own and whatever marketing team you have’s discretion.

~ How do you research dark topics while writing?… With purpose, caution, and practicality. I see a lot of posts that cover very tiny details that may go into fantasy, and while I encourage research of all kinds for every genre, I think fantasy is one where writers can get so caught up in getting every minute detail researched and recorded that they get burned out with their own ideas before they even put pen to paper. Research what you missed, then find holes as you write, and then do the rest of the research for the second draft once you’re finished with the first. Avoid burnout that comes with extensive research beforehand.

~ How do common fantasy tropes interact with darker aspects of the sub-genre?… There’s a lot of ways you can mix typical fantasy with typical horror/thriller and come out with dark fantasy. The main fantasy characteristics that persist in dark fantasy are setting and the way magic systems are executed in the story. Secondly, I see a lot of similarities in general world building. Where it deviates, I think, is in character development, plot structure, plot development, and messaging. The smaller events tend to be more mature, the character arcs turn more raw, the characters themselves are more flawed, and the plot develops in a much less linear fashion. The messages are heavier because the content is heavier. 

Other Resources

Resources For Fantasy/Mythology Writers

20 Mistakes To Avoid in Fantasy

Guide to Writing Fantasy

Guide to Story Researching

Commentary on Social Issues In Writing

On Writing About Sensitive Topics

Resources For Writing Royalty

Dark Quotes & Prompts

Angst Prompts

31 Days of Character Development : May 2018 Writing Challenge

Suspenseful Prompts

Sad Prompts

31 Days of World Building : August 2018 Writing Challenge

31 Days of Plot Development : January 2019 Writing Challenge

31 Days of Horror : October 2019 Writing Challenge

Resources For Creating Characters

Giving Your Protagonists Negative Traits

Writing Good Villains

Showing Vulnerability Without Death

Giving Characters Flaws

Creating Villains

Flipping Character Traits On Their Head

“Male characters are more relatable”

Tips on Character Motivations

Tips on Character Consistency

Resources For Plot Development

Guide To Plot Development

How To Write A Good Plot Twist

How To Foreshadow

Plot Structures

Describing Setting

Resources For Worldbuilding

Guide To Political World Building

Creating Diverse Otherworld Characters

Tips on Creating Magic Systems

Tips on Introducing Political Backstory

Resources For Writing (Global) Period Pieces : High Middle Ages & Renaissance

Resources For Writing (Global) Period Pieces : 1600s

Resources For Writing (Global) Period Pieces : 1700s

Resources For Writing (Global) Period Pieces : 1800s

Tips on Writing Fight Scenes

Tips on Writing Chase Scenes

How To Make The Journey Interesting

Tips For Horror Writers

Tips on Writing Pyschological Thrillers

10 Mistakes to Avoid in Horror

–

Masterlist | WIP Blog

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Shoutout to my $15+ patrons, Jade Ashley and Douglas S.!

[creativepromptsforwriting]

Masterpost: How to write a story?

Compilation of writing advice for some aspects of the writing process.

How to motivate myself to write more

How to get rid of writer’s block

Basic Overview: How to write a story

How to come up with plot

How to create a character

How to make a character unique

How to write conversation

How to write the last line

How to create a villain

Introducing a group of characters

Large cast of characters interacting in one scene

Redemption arc

Plot twists

How to write a summary

How to write a book description

How to write romance

How to write emotional scenes

How to write yelling

How to title fanfiction

How to use songs in a fanfiction

Fatal Character Flaws

Good traits gone bad

More specific scenarios

Slow burn

How to create quick chemistry

How to write a bilingual character

How to write a character with glasses

How to write a polyamorous relationship

How to write found family

How to create and write a cult

Criminal past comes to light

Reasons for breaking up while still loving each other

Forbidden love

Date gone wrong

Causes for the apocalypse

How to create a coffee shop atmosphere

How to write enemies to lovers

How to write lovers to enemies to lovers

Arranged matrimony for royalty

Paramilitary Forces/ Militia

Honeymoon

Academic Rivals to Lovers

Love Language - Showing, not telling

How to write amnesia

AU ideas

Favourite tropes

Inconvenient things a ghost could do

Milestones in a relationship

How to write age difference

Platonic activities for friends

Introducing partner(s) to family

Writing a stratocracy

Reasons a couple would divorce on good terms

Love Language - Showing you care

How to write the mafia

A Queen’s Assassination Plot

Crime Story - Detective’s POV

Giving the reader butterflies with your characters

Evil organization of assassins

Last day on earth

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