This is probably the most inclusive post ever made on Tumblr
“What country is this about?”
“Yes.”
Cosimo Galluzzi

tannertan36
ojovivo

Love Begins

oozey mess
Three Goblin Art

#extradirty
Game of Thrones Daily
i don't do bad sauce passes
let's talk about Bridgerton tea, my ask is open

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Janaina Medeiros

Product Placement
DEAR READER
Mike Driver

pixel skylines
todays bird
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Jules of Nature

No title available

seen from India

seen from Malaysia

seen from Australia
seen from Canada

seen from United States
seen from Brazil

seen from United States
seen from Australia

seen from United States

seen from United States
seen from Brazil
seen from United States
seen from United States

seen from Saudi Arabia

seen from Malaysia

seen from Germany
seen from United States

seen from United States
seen from United States

seen from United States
@literary-stabs
This is probably the most inclusive post ever made on Tumblr
“What country is this about?”
“Yes.”
Writing fight scenes
masterlist. main navigation.
@bluebxlle_writer on Instagram
1. Pacing
A fight scene should be fast-paced and intense. Unless it's a final battle with numerous parties, a fight scene that's too long tends to take away suspense. To speed up your pacing, use active voice to describe movement and don't overdescribe your characters' thoughts. Excessive inner monologue will be unrealistic, as people usually have no room to think during intense combats.
2. Character mannerisms
Here's a point that people often overlook, but is actually super important. Through fight scenes, you should be able to reveal your characters' contrasting mannerisms and personality. A cunning character would play dirty - fighting less and making use of their opponent's weakness more. A violent character would aim to kill. A softer one would only target to disarm their enemies, using weakened attacks. A short-minded character would only rely on force and attack without thinking. This will help readers understand your characters more and decide who to root for.
3. Making use of surroundings
Not only the characters, you also need to consider the setting of your fight scene and use it to your advantage. Is it suitable for fighting, or are there dangerous slopes that make it risky? Are there scattered items that can help your characters fight (e.g. nails, shards of glass, ropes, wooden boards, or cutlery)? Is it a public place where people can easily spot the fight and call the authorities, or is it a private spot where they can fight to the death?
4. Description
The main things that you need to describe in a fight scene are :
• Characters involved in the fight
• How they initiate and dodge attacks
• Fighting styles and any weapons used
• The injuries caused
Be careful to not drag out the description for too long, because it slows down the pace.
5. Raise the stakes
By raising the stakes of the fight, your readers will be more invested in it. Just when they think it's over, introduce another worse conflict that will keep the scene going. Think of your characters' goals and motivations as well. Maybe if the MC didn't win, the world would end! Or maybe, one person in the fight is going all-out, while the other is going easy because they used to be close :"D
6. Injuries
Fights are bound to be dirty and resulting in injuries, so don't let your character walk away unscathed - show the effect of their injuries. For example, someone who had been punched in the jaw has a good chance of passing out, and someone who had been stabbed won't just remove the knife and walk away without any problem. To portray realistic injuries, research well.
7. Drive the plot forward
You don't write fight scenes only to make your characters look cool - every fight needs to have a purpose and drive the plot forward. Maybe they have to fight to improve their fighting skills or escape from somewhere alive. Maybe they need to defeat the enemy in order to obtain an object or retrieve someone who had been kidnapped. The point is, every single fight scene should bring the characters one step closer (or further :D) to the climax.
8. Words to use
• Hand to hand combat :
Crush, smash, lunge, beat, punch, leap, slap, scratch, batter, pummel, whack, slam, dodge, clobber, box, shove, bruise, knock, flick, push, choke, charge, impact
• With weapon :
Swing, slice, brandish, stab, shoot, whip, parry, cut, bump, poke, drive, shock, strap, pelt, plunge, impale, lash, bleed, sting, penetrate
As someone who struggles to write fight scenes, this is absolutely amazing!!
FEBUWHUMP 2022 IS HERE!
the prompts this year were chosen through a suggestion poll and subsequent vote; the top 28 make up the core prompts and a mixture of the next most popular and the blog’s personal favourites have become the alternates!
i’m super excited to see what you all create with these prompts! if you have any questions, make sure to check out the blog’s FAQ or send an ask!
please note: this year, notifying the blog of completionist status will happen through a google form that will be released closer to the end of febuwhump.
and click here if you’re interested in the bonus march 1st prompt known as febuclown!
full write up of prompts and rules under the cut:
Keep reading
The Language Of Flowers
Acacia: Hidden love, beauty in withdrawal
Amaryllis: Pride, a hard won success
Anemone: Vanishing hopes
Bells of Ireland: Wish for good luck
Carnation: Fascination, love and distinction
Daffodil (Narcissus): Honesty and truth
Dahlia flower: Warnings and change
Daisy: Innocence, loyal love and purity
Delphinium: Open heart, ardent attachement
Gardenia: Symbol of secret love
Gladiolus: Remembrance, faithfulness and sincerity
Hyacinth: I'm sorry, please forgive me.
Iris: Eloquence
Lily (general) : Purity of the heart and refined beauty
Lily of the valley: Return of happiness
Marigold: Passion and creativity
Orchid: Beauty, refinement and love
Peony: Happy marriage
Lavender: Love at first sight
Red rose: Love, respect, courage and passion
White rose: Purity, secrecy, silence, innocence and charm
Sunflower: Good luck and ambition
Tulip: Irresistible love
Violet: Faithfulness, modesty and delicate love
Zinnia: Lasting affection, daily remembrance and good memories
— reassurance starters
“ i feel safe with you. i always have. “
“ are you okay with this? ”
“ i trust you. you've got good values. “
“ thank you for your patience. “
“ can i kiss you? ”
“ i won't tell a soul. i promise. “
“ i appreciate you for you. “
“ you are so smart. the world is lucky to have you. “
“ you don't mind if i kiss you, do you? “
“ it's okay, you know. it's only if you want to. “
“ i want you to kiss me. “
“ i would pretty much trust you with my life. “
“ are you okay with being touched? “
“ if you're uncomfortable, you can tell me. “
“ if there's anything you don't want to do, you don't have to. “
“ you deserve the whole world. “
“ do you want me to talk to them for you? “
“ are you sure about this? “
“ it's okay if you say no. “
“ it's up to you. “
“ i'll always support you. “
“ you'll always have me. “
“ we don't have to do this if you're not ready. “
“ you belong to me, with me, under me. consensually, of course. “
“ do you want me to kiss you? “
“ can i hug you? “
“ i like kissing you. “
“ you're really cute, you know. “
“ you're adorable. god i love you. “
“ you and me, we make a pretty good team. “
“ you're worth everything. “
“ i've never loved anyone the way i love you. “
“ you promise this is okay? “
“ are you okay with me kissing you? ”
“ you can always talk to me. always. “
“ i'm here for you. “
“ do you trust me? “ “ yes. “
“ i like spending time with you. it's nice. ”
“ you make me happy. really happy. “
“ it's pretty nice, this thing we've got going on. “
“ you don't need to worry. you're safe. “
“ i got you. “
“ i'm not going anywhere. “
“ call me, even if it's the middle of the night. “
“ are you okay with this? “
“ i'm extremely okay with this. “
“ you know that i love you, right? “
“ whenever you're ready, i'll be there. “
“ if you're not ready, we can wait. “
“ take your time. i'll wait for you. “
“ don't think for even a second that you have to prove something to me. i love you just the way you are. “
“ everything's gonna be okay. “
“ you're not alone. “
“ are you busy? can i talk to you for a moment? “
“ you have me. you'll always have me. “
Alternatives For "Said" Organized By Emotion: Minimal Edition
Curated personally by me, straight from my excel doc where I combined several lists I found online AND duplicated words in multiple columns when the word versatile enough for several emotions, something irritated me on other lists. Like, come on Rebecca, "mumbled" can be used with almost every single mood, why are you only sticking it under "sad"?
Link to the color version.
Neutral acknowledged added advised agreed announced articulated asserted began called chimed in claimed communicated concluded conferred considered contended continued declared drawled emitted ended enunciated explained expressed held hinted imparted implied insisted mentioned mumbled muttered noted observed orated predicted pronounced put forth quipped recited reckoned related remarked repeated replied responded revealed shared spoke stated suggested supposed told uttered vocalized voiced went on whispered Annoyed/Rude/Mean/Angry accused admonished badgered barked bellowed bleated chastised choked complained condemned criticized cursed demanded denied derided disagreed dismissed dodged exploded fumed glowered groaned groused growled grumbled grunted heckled hissed ignored insulted jeered mimicked mocked nagged provoked raged ranted rasped remonstrated reprimanded retorted ridiculed roared scoffed scolded scorned screamed screeched seethed shouted smirked snapped snarled sneered snickered spat swore taunted teased thundered upbraided vociferated whined yelled Bummed/Sad/Miserable agonized apologized babbled bawled begged blubbered breathed complained confided cried faltered fretted grieved groaned grunted hesitated lamented mewled moaned mourned mumbled pleaded shrugged sighed sniffled sniveled sobbed stammered stuttered trailed off wailed wept whined whispered Happy/Humorous/Excited babbled beamed bubbled chattered cheered chortled chuckled complimented congratulated cried out crooned crowed derided effused exclaimed giggled grinned gushed heckled hollered jabbered jeered joked lampooned laughed mimicked parodied rejoiced ridiculed sang satirized screamed shouted smiled smirked snickered snorted spoofed taunted teased thanked trilled trumpeted yammered yelled Kind/Comforting admired approved comforted complimented congratulated consoled empathized grinned gushed invited joked offered praised professed reassured smiled soothed volunteered Uncertainty/Worry/Fear babbled blurted cautioned choked doubted faltered gasped gulped hesitated howled keened mumbled murmured muttered panted prayed quaked quavered screamed screeched shrieked squalled squealed stammered stuttered swore trailed off trembled wailed warbled warned wavered whimpered whispered yelled yelped yowled Asking A Question asked babbled begged challenged considered contemplated guessed hesitated hinted hypothesized implied inquired interrogated invited mouthed mused pleaded pondered probed proposed queried questioned quizzed repeated requested solicited speculated supposed wondered Responding To A Question accepted acknowledged advised affirmed agreed alleged answered assured avowed claimed conceded concluded confided confirmed considered decided denied disagreed disclosed dismissed disseminated divulged dodged explained ignored imparted indicated informed maintained notified offered passed on proffered promised promulgated refused released reported revealed shared specified speculated supposed testified transmitted verified
Words to describe facial expressions
Absent: preoccupied
Agonized: as if in pain or tormented
Alluring: attractive, in the sense of arousing desire
Appealing: attractive, in the sense of encouraging goodwill and/or interest
Beatific: blissful
Black: angry or sad, or hostile
Bleak: hopeless
Blinking: surprise, or lack of concern
Blithe: carefree, lighthearted, or heedlessly indifferent
Brooding: anxious and gloomy
Bug eyed: frightened or surprised
Chagrined: humiliated or disappointed
Cheeky: cocky, insolent
Cheerless: sad
Choleric: hot-tempered, irate
Darkly: with depressed or malevolent feelings
Deadpan: expressionless, to conceal emotion or heighten humor
Despondent: depressed or discouraged
Doleful: sad or afflicted
Dour: stern or obstinate
Dreamy: distracted by daydreaming or fantasizing
Ecstatic: delighted or entranced
Faint: cowardly, weak, or barely perceptible
Fixed: concentrated or immobile
Gazing: staring intently
Glancing: staring briefly as if curious but evasive
Glazed: expressionless due to fatigue or confusion
Grim: fatalistic or pessimistic
Grave: serious, expressing emotion due to loss or sadness
Haunted: frightened, worried, or guilty
Hopeless: depressed by a lack of encouragement or optimism
Hostile: aggressively angry, intimidating, or resistant
Hunted: tense as if worried about pursuit
Jeering: insulting or mocking
Languid: lazy or weak
Leering: sexually suggestive
Mild: easygoing
Mischievous: annoyingly or maliciously playful
Pained: affected with discomfort or pain
Peering: with curiosity or suspicion
Peeved: annoyed
Pleading: seeking apology or assistance
Quizzical: questioning or confused
Radiant: bright, happy
Sanguine: bloodthirsty, confident
Sardonic: mocking
Sour: unpleasant
Sullen: resentful
Vacant: blank or stupid looking
Wan: pale, sickly
Wary: cautious or cunning
Wide eyed: frightened or surprised
Withering: devastating
Wrathful: indignant or vengeful
Wry: twisted or crooked to express cleverness or a dark or ironic feeling
Writing pirates: Pirates vs Privateers (part one)
Before we dive into the glamour and destruction of a pirate’s life, it’s important to establish and difference between the crews who operated the seven seas in the 1700s.
PIRATES
A group of men who robbed and plundered the sea, but also committed felonies, robberies and murders in any haven, river or creek where the Lord High Admiral had jurisdiction.
The Lord High of Admiral = The ceremonial head of the Royal Navy (also known as someone who appears to be in charge, but holds very little influence, like most monarchs today)
Jurisdiction: The official power to make legal decisions and judgements
BUCCANEER
Pirates who preyed on Spanish ships and ports in the Caribbean Sea. To Spain, they were nothing more than ordinary pirates, but for their nations, they were much more than that.
Spain strived to keep all their possessions from the rest of the world, and the rise of buccaneers came apparent when the English occupied Jamaica, which provided them with a base to attack Spanish settlements.
CORSAIRS
Pirates (and privateers) who operated in North Africa. Their base primarily in the ports of Salé, Rabat, Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli.
(also referred to as: barbary pirates, barbary corsairs or ottoman corsairs)
PRIVATEER
An armed vessel, consisting of a commander and his crew, who was licensed to attack, seize and loot ships of hostile nations.
The license was issued in form of a document, which was called the Letter of Marque (and Reprisal, LOMAR for short). The letter was written in ponderous legal phrases, and decorated with an elaborate pen and ink flourishes.
The Captain, or commander, of the ship, was expected to keep a journal, as well as hand over ships to the Admiralty court to be assessed and valued. A proportion of the ship’s value went to the sovereign, while the rest was divided between the owners of the ship, the captain, and his crew.
Admiralty court: jurisdiction over maritime law, including cases regarding shipping, ocean, and sea laws
Sovereign: king, queen, or other royal ruler of a country
An authorized privateer, and get this, was recognized by law, and could not be prosecuted for piracy, which in turn caused the system to be wide open for abuse, and most privateers were nothing more than licensed pirates.
Privateers, in simpler words, were basically pirates with papers. They were hired to carry out military activities, and in many ways, their actions mirrored a pirate’s, only difference being, they couldn’t be prosecuted for the crimes they committed.
Also, fun fact! In the 1700s, also known as the golden era of piracy, 98% of the men operating as pirates in the Caribbean and western Atlantic, had formerly either been seamen in the merchant service, the Royal Navy, or even served as privateers.
Not every man suffered the same fate, however. Captain Woodes Rogers, a former privateer, became the first Royal Governor over the Bahamas, and was tasked with the dangerous mission of establishing a well-organized government, that would force every last pirate in the Nassau to surrender. [x]
Today, both privateer and buccaneer are being used as a synonym for pirates, but it’s important to know that in the golden era, they were not the same.
Love this!
Writer's Guide: Writing about Alcoholic Drinks and Cocktails
Or how to write believable bar and nightclub scenes. I often find myself helping friends with their WIPs and often it as a bartender, I find myself having to correct them on bar and mixology terminology. So here's my quick guide to keeping your lingo on the straight and narrow.
Terminology
DASH/SPLASH: a drop of a mixer such as juice or flavouring.
MIXER: non alcholic beveraged served with the measure of alcohol in the same glass.
NEAT: Plain, without any addition of ice or a mixture. Just the alcohol.
ON THE ROCKS: Served over Ice.
STRAIGHT UP: The cocktail is chilled with ice and strained into a glass with no ice
DIRTY – if somebody asks for a dirty martini, you add olive juice, the more juice the dirtier it is
DRY- A dry martini includes a drop of vermouth and an extra dry martini contains a drop of scotch swirled in the glass and drained before adding the gin
BACK – a ‘back’ is a drink that accompanies an alcholic beverage such as water or Coke, but isn't mixed.
GARNISH – something added to a drink such as a lime or lemon or orange.
TWIST - a twist is literally a twist of fruit skin in the drink.
BITTERS – a herbal alcoholic blend added to cocktails.
RIMMED - the glass is coated in salt or sugar to enhance the taste.
VIRGIN- non alcoholic
MOCKTAIL- a virgin cocktail
DOUBLE - Two measures of the same alcohol in the same glass. A bartender can only legally serve a double in the same glass. They cannot serve you a triple.
Equipment
COCKTAIL SHAKER - it is a metal cup that fits into a glass, used to shake the components of your drink together with ice to chill it.
STRAINER- used to seperate ice in the shaker from the liquid within as you pour it into the glass.
MEASURES- these are little metal cylinders meant to measure out the pours of the alcohol. You pour the alcohol from the bottle into the measure and then put it into the glass. It's imperative that the right measure goes into the glass or the drink will taste of shit.
BAR SPOON – a long spoon meant to mix the drink.
OPTIC- it is a mechanism that attaches a bottle to an automatic pourer. The bartender usually fits the glass under the spout and pushes up to release the amount which cuts off at the single measure.
SHOT GLASS- a shot glass is a small glass to contain one measure
PINT GLASS- a glass used for serving pints of lager or ale
HALF PINT GLASS - a tulip shaped glass half the measure of a pint glass
SPEEDWELL/TAPS/DRAFT: are the taps used to pour beer from kegs stored under the bar floor.
SLIM JIM/HIGH BALL GLASS- It is a tall straight holding 8 to 12 ounces and used for cocktails served on the rocks such as a Gin and Tonic.
ROCKS GLASS - or an old fashioned glass, it is short and round. These glasses are used for drinks such as Old Fashioneds or Sazerac
COUPE GLASS- Are broad round stemmed glasses used for cocktails that are chill and served without ice such as a Manhattan, Boulevardier or a Gimlet
MARTINI GLASS - a martini glass is that classic stemmed "v" shaped glass, used to serve drinks without mixers such as Martini and Cosmopolitans
MARGARITA GLASS - is a large, round bowl like glass with a broad and a tall stem used for Margaritas and Daiquiris
HURRICANE GLASS- a tall tulip-like shaped glass with a flared rim and short stem. It holds 20 ounces which means it is the perfect glass to serve iced cocktails in such as Pina Colada, Singapore Sling, Hurricane
Alcoholic Drinks
Vodka- Vodka is made from potatoes or fermented cereal grains. It has a strong taste and scent. It is usually consumed neat with a mixer such as Coke or Orange juice or cranberry juice or in cocktails like Martini, Bloody Mary and Cosmopolitan.
Whisky/Whiskey- Whiskey is a distilled alcoholic beverage, made from fermented grain mash such as barley, corn, rye, and wheat. It gets its flavour form being fermented in casks for long period of time. When serving a whiskey, one asks whether they want ice or a mixer. Everyone has their own preference. I prefer mine like myself, strong and Irish. Scotch is Scottish Brewed whisky.
Rum- Rum is made by fermenting and distilling sugarcane molasses/juice. It is aged in oak barrels. It has a sweet taste.
Beer: is made out of cereal grains and served chilled in bottles or pulled from taps/speedwells.
Ale: Ale in the middle ages referred to beer brewed without hops (a kind of flowering plant that gives beer its bitter taste). It is sweeter and would typically have a fruity aftertaste.
Stout- is a darker beer sometimes brewed from roasted malt, coming in a sweet version and dry version, the most famous stout being Guinness.
Poitín- (pronounced as pot-cheen) is made from cereals, grain, whey, sugar beet, molasses and potatoes. It is a Dangerous Drink (honestly i still don't know how I ended up in that field with a traffic cone and a Shetland pony) and technically illegal. Country folk in Ireland used to brew it in secrets in stills hidden on their land.
Vermouth: Is made from infused with roots, barks, flowers, seeds, herbs, spices, brandy but vermouth is classed aromatized wine. It comes sweet or dry
Gin- is made from juniper, coriander, citrus peel, cinnamon, almond or liquorice and grain alcohol. Gin has a strong scent and taste and is usually served in a martini or a tonic water.
Schnapps- refers to any strong, clear alcoholic beverage. It is considered one of the best types of spirits because of its pure and delicate aroma. Lesson: never drink peach schnapps.
Cocktails and Drinks
Irish Coffee: an Irish coffee is adding whiskey to coffee and sugar and topping it with cream. As a bartender, I would honestly rather cut my arm off than make one of these.
Baby Guinness: Is a shot made by pouting Tia Maria or Kaluah into a shot glass and spreading Baileys on the top so it looks like a small pint of Guinness.
Silver Bullet: a shot of mixed tequila and sambuca.
Long Island Iced Tea: The Long Island contains vodka, gin, tequila, light rum, lemon juice, triple sec and cola. It has a real kick.
Mai Tai: is made with light and dark rum, lime juice, orange curacao, orgeat syrup and rock candy syrup and served with a mint garnish.
Manhattan: The Manhattan is made with rye whiskey, sweet vermouth and bitters.
Margarita: The margarita is made with tequila, cointreau and lime juice.
Mojito: a mojito is made with muddled mint, white rum, lime juice, simple syrup and soda.
Martini: a martini is made of gin, dry vermouth and garnished with a lemon twist or olives.
Mimosa: a mimosa is a made with sparkling wine and orange juice.
Mint Julep: Made with Kentucky bourbon, simple syrup, mint leaves and crushed ice
Pina Colada: is made with white rum, dark rum, pineapple juice and coconut cream
Screwdriver: Vodka and Orange juice
Tequila Sunrise: tequila, orange juice and grenadine
Tom Collins: made with spiked lemonade, sparkling water, lemon juice, simple syrup and gin
Whiskey Sour: is made with powdered sugar, seltzer, lemon juice and whiskey.
White Russian: made with vodka, coffee liqueur and cream.
Black Russian: made with two parts coffee liqueur and five parts vodka.
Gin and Tonic: gin served with tonic water
Bloody Mary: made with vodka and tomato juice mixed with lemon juice, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, fresh herbs, brown sugar and cracked black pepper.
Brandy Alexander: served straight up and made with brandy, cognac, creme de cacao and cream
Cosmopolitan: Made with citrus vodka, Cointreau, cranberry juice and fresh lime juice
Daiquiri: made with rum, lime juice and sugar.
Gimlet: gin and lime juice
My Top 10 Bartending Rules and Responsibilities
Overpouring is never an option. You can seriously hurt somebody by overpouring, not to mention spoil the drink and ruin your sales. You only serve people what they ask and never more.
When somebody has had enough, you stop serving them. After a while, you know when to cut somebody off.
Never leave bottles on the counter or in reach of customers. Your expensive spirits should never be in reach of anybody but you.
If you tell somebody your selling them premium and top shelf alcohol, you cannot substitute with cheaper licqor. It's illegal.
As a bartender, your eyes always have to be scanning a crowd. You can't leave people hanging.
The golden rule - if you see somebody messing with someone's drink, you chuck it if you can or warn the person. And you get that son of a bitch out of your pub.
50% of the job is cleaning. You have to clean your tools constantly. You cannot reuse measures and spouts, you have to wash everything. Beer traps are clean out every night, rubber mats are washed and anything you have used has to be clean.
You have to hand dry your glasses. You never polish a pint glass as it fucks up the pint. You polish your cocktail glasses, shot glasses and straight glasses.
If someone seems down or on their own, you try make conversation. Often you'll hear some disturbing stuff but always try lend an ear or make everyone feel included.
If you break a glass in the ice bucket, you got to get rid of the ice.
Physical One-Liners Part II
“Your lips are just too damn kissable.”
“That colour looks perfect on your skin.”
“Sometimes when we hug, I don’t ever want to let go.”
“Don’t roll your eyes at me.”
“Should I comb your hair for you?”
“Your body fits perfectly with mine while dancing.”
“Come on, take my hand.”
“Those legs of yours look like they go on forever.”
“Your hands are so cold, let me warm them up.”
“Did you know that you have a million freckles on your shoulders?”
“That look in your eyes means nothing good.”
“Is that a blush I see?”
“Can I braid your hair?”
“Ah, your feet are ice-cold!”
“I can hardly wait to put a ring on that finger.”
Part I
If you like my blog and want to support me, you can buy me a coffee! 🥰
A Writing Cheat Sheet: for linking actions with emotions.
As always, click for HD.
Y’all little writers go on and have fun now
The best advice I can give someone writing, be it fiction or nonfiction, creative or academic, for work or for pleasure, the moment you have an idea of what you want to write, write it down. I don’t care if you are literally in the middle of writing a different sentence. Write it down and connect the dots as you go along. Don’t let an idea escape your head just because you want to get there naturally.
HEY WRITER FRIENDS
there’s this amazing site called realtimeboardwhich is like a whiteboard where you can plan and draw webs and family trees and timelines and all that sort of stuff. you can also insert videos, documents, photos, and lots of other things. you can put notes and post-its and, best of all, you can invite other people to be on the board with you and edit together!!
this is really really awesome and a great tool for novel planning, so if you’re doing nanowrimo…. this could be good for you!!
Writing Exercises for Stretching Your Style Muscles
There’s a lot of writing advice on the internet, and a lot of writing prompts, but something I see relatively little of is an idea of how to actually practice.
The thing about learning a skill is that it requires practice – but practicing will only get you so far if you’re just doing the same thing over and over. you might get better at doing that specific thing, but it can seem really difficult to get over a specific hurdle to accomplish some new thing you’ve never tried. I think a really common frustration is wanting to do a thing, and knowing what your end goal looks like, but not knowing actually how to accomplish it.
So that’s where practicing specific skills can really help you to feel more comfortable with your abilities.
Here are some skills exercises I recommend experimenting with to gain proficiency and comfort in writing things.
—–
Write the Same Scene from Multiple POVs
Write a scene in 3rd person POV. Then go back and rewrite it from scratch in 1st person. Repeat for a 3rd person omniscient. Go deeper than just swapping out pronouns. Think: How does this scene change if I’m writing through the eyes of a single character vs over their shoulder? How does this scene change if I’m narrating the events through Character B instead of Character A?
—-
Write a Scene in Present Tense
Present tense bumps up the immediacy level of whatever you’re writing. I think it also helps to break you from more passive sentence constructions. Try taking a scene you’ve written and rewrite it in present tense. Combine it with the above – try switching a 3rd person past to 1st person present, or even try writing in 2nd person.
—–
Try Mimicking Another Writer’s Style
Sit down with a piece of writing from an author you enjoy, and pay attention to the writing itself. Ignore the plot and characters and story elements – look at just the nuts and bolts of vocabulary choices and sentence construction. Try to pick it apart. Is there a specific way the author tends to use commas? Certain words, or types of words, that they use more often? Longer sentences or shorter ones? Longer paragraphs or short? How is white space handled?
Study that and make yourself a little cheat sheet if that’s helpful to you. Then try writing a short piece – just a couple paragraphs, even – in their writing style.
—-
Describe an Entire Scene Without Using Visual Description
Imagine you’re writing a blind character, if it helps, or someone who’s been blindfolded. Describe a whole scene built entirely around the way things sound, smell, taste, feel. Try to make it clear what’s happening through description alone.
—–
Eliminate All Words like “Thought” or “Felt”
Write in deep-3rd or 1st person without any filter words. Make a character’s opinions and emotions obvious through the way things are being described without explicitly saying what they’re thinking or feeling. If you struggle with this, it might be easier to start in first person – write as a diary entry or even a Tumblr post from that person’s perspective – and then try it in 3rd person after you’ve had a bit of practice.
——-
Set Yourself a Specific Goal, and Write a Drabble to Achieve it
When I wrote “Happy Ending,” my entire goal was to write something that was highly descriptive in the most viscerally gross way possible. When I wrote “Mothman,” it was an exercise in writing something sexualized without explicitly being sexual, in the most disturbing way possible.
This is an exercise in word choice. It’s an excuse to bust out your thesaurus, not to sound fancy, but to nail a specific meaning. It’s also an exercise in choosing what details to focus on and which to exclude.
One way to approach this exercise is to describe something common and mundane that you’ve experienced, and write it in several different ways. Let’s say, eating a sandwich. How can you make eating a sandwich sound sexy? How can you make it sound disgusting? Which details do you focus on, and which do you omit? What words do you use to evoke the meaning you’re looking for?
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I hope these writing exercises give you some inspiration on things to try out to flex your creative wings a bit!
Master List of 60 Character Flaws
Absent-Minded
Aimless
Arrogant
Bigoted
Blunt
Bold
Callous
Compulsive Liar
Cruel
Dependent
Disloyal
Easily Impressionable
Emotionally Detached
Envious
Fickle
Greedy
Gullible
Humourless
Ignorant
Immature
Impatient
Indecisive
Intolerant
Lazy
Manipulative
Meddlesome
Melodramatic
Nervous
Nosey
Obsessive
Overambitious
Overprotective
Pacifism
Paranoid
Perfectionist*
Pessimistic
Predictable
Prejudiced
Prideful
Rebellious
Reckless
Remorseless
Sceptic
Selfish*
Shallow
Short temperament
Smart-arse
Soft-hearted
Solemn
Spineless
Stubborn*
Stupid
Superstitious
Tactless
Temperamental
Troublemaker
Unambitious
Vain
Weak-willed
Withdrawn
* these are frequently overused so if you want them to apply to your character, make sure they have more than one flaw!
However the most important thing about a character flaw is that it MUST work against their goal and they MUST make mistakes because of it.
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So, you want to restart your WIP...
We've all been there. We've all stopped in the middle of something and realised it isn't working, or looked back on an old project and seen new potential with a different premise. Here's a quick guide on what to do.
Consider if you really want to start again, or if you can simply edit and tweak what you've already done. What you see as a major flaw may stem from a minor issue, or can be fixed in the second draft.
Read through your WIP in full, and highlight any lines, plot points, or quotes that you think can be reused. You may have nothing, you may have enough to use as a framework.
Do NOT delete your original, no matter what. Use that as your reference. What did/didn't work? What did you have the most fun writing? Let this guide you.
In the same way, don't cling to the past too tightly. Let things go, even if you'll miss them.
Don't feel intimidated! This is a fresh start! Your story is yours to tell, and you should tell it in the way you're most passionate about.
Think about who's story you want to tell. Is the backstory more interesting? Could a side character present the narrative better? What if other characters were telling the same story?
Write a few draft concepts using any new ideas you have, trying to vary the genre and style. This should help you figure out which route you want to take with your rewrite!
Understand why you wanted to restart, and identity ways to prevent it the next time around.
Switch to an entirely different medium. Try a novella, a script, short stories, whatever. Test out every idea you have.
If you know exactly what you want to redo it as, just go for it! Don't worry about the integrity of your old plot, or making those drastic changes, just write the new idea as soon as you can and don't look back or doubt yourself.
Now go and remake some magic!