Lost's Scribbles

Lost | 26 | Leo | pfp by amazing @hypercat360

[lostinmcyt]

soo, about that 30 days smp am I right?

this came to me at 2am inspired by this post by @fancontent and a talk with @resonating-kitty 

it’s a very short story, tw for murder I guess

This is how their world ends.

Czytaj dalej

[lostinwritingmayhem]

hey I'm still alive and writing ahahahhahaha

[egossideblog]

this is just a prologue

i am dying at class, writing dumb shit in like 3 hours, i wrote it for me because i am here with people who are 20, act like boomers, and say that bowties are gay and i want out

ship: dr iplier/the host

word count: 1130

warnings: injuries, flirting while having a concusion, (i don’t have an autocorrect but i have a dyslexia and i am so sorry, i’m trying my best)

tag list: @fioxis @lostinegomayhem @the-anti-average-family

Czytaj dalej

[lostinwritingmayhem]

they are a pair of useless lesbians and i am here for it

[justkeeptrekkin]

How can I improve my writing? I really love the way you describe things—so specifically—that it’s like a perfect movie. Anyways yeah descriptions h e l p

Hello lovely anon.

I wanted to write a response to this when I had the chance to sit down and think about it, rather than reply on my commute to work or in my lunch break or whatever. Firstly, thank you for coming to say hi!

I really find it impossible to imagine myself a writer that people aspire to emulate, and so it’s wonderful/crazy to me that I’ve been asked this question. So, please do take anything I advise with a pinch of salt; after all, I’m constantly trying to improve my writing, too. 

When it comes right down to it, I know it’s cliche, but the thing that I do is practice. I mean, just keep writing. Anything. Whether it’s just, a paragraph about an idea you have in your head, and that’s it. Or maybe a bit ol’ rant about something you’re passionate in. An essay. A one-shot, or a 100k slow burn fic, it doesn’t matter! Just write whatever your heart desires. Because if your heart desires it, that’s when it’ll come out in it’s best, most authentic form. 

My best writing comes to me when I’m just- burning to write it. I get home from a long day at work (in a job I don’t particularly like), make a cup of tea and just fuckin’ beast it. And so the reason I practice so much and publish a lot is because it’s a stress relief and creative outlet. That being said, sometimes you aren’t inspired. Sometimes I come home from work exhausted, sometimes it’s harder, and if I have a deadline for something that I’m writing, I can’t always wait for inspiration to walk up to me and tap me on the shoulder. And sometimes, I just need to rest and come back to it all, recharge before starting again. 

I didn’t do a creative writing course or anything, so I’m anxious of advising you on how to improve describing things. But- I suppose, the best way I can explain my process in this area- like describing a feeling, or a view- is don’t be afraid to write down something that doesn’t make any sense. 

Actually, I think that’s valid for most writing, regardless of what you’re writing. In the moment that you’re writing it down for the first time, don’t be afraid of whether it makes sense, or how it sounds. 

If I’m putting myself in my character’s shoes- or rather, if my character’s in my head and telling me how they feel- I write down my gut-reaction, the instinctive words that come to mind. At first, it might not make sense. For example I might be describing a feeling as soft or cold or burning or, in the case of the prompt i did, like a glass floating in a sink of water. I mean, that simile makes no sense at all. 

But it also, apparently, does resonate with some people. The thing that pops immediately into your head that you immediately dismiss and immediately think- no, that’s cliche, no, that’s silly- that’s probably the most authentic and convincing thing you could write. That’s also, I think, when you start developing your fingerprint as a writer. Even if, at first, it’s messy. 

What I’m basically describing to you is word vomit. The best way to improve writing is to word vomit and not give a shit. 

And after practice, and editing- and time to learn how you write, as an individual- then the word vomit turns into something a little neater. 

Considering that this has all come from a Neil Gaiman book, I recommend you go by his advice which is put far more eloquently than mine: “Try things out. Enjoy yourself… Write anything. Don’t worry about it being good or read by other people. Just play, and play a lot.”

[sandydragon1]

Things to Consider When Creating Fictional Diseases

What are its symptoms? How do they progress as the disease worsens?

How does it spread? From contaminated water? From bodily fluids? From food that’s gone bad?

How do people believe it spreads? Do they blame deities, certain animals, or certain groups of people for its spread? How do they treat the things they blame for the disease?

How well understood is it by the general populace? By specialists?

How fast can it spread through a population?

Can it be transmitted by other species? If so, do those other species exhibit symptoms or are they asymptomatic carriers?

Are some people immune to it?

What groups are the most severely affected by it? Young kids? Immunocompromised people? Old people?

Is there a cure? If so, does the cure have side effects? How many times does it need to be administered? How often? How expensive is it?

Are there many different ways to treat it? Which methods are the newest?

What ineffective or even harmful treatment methods do people think work against it? 

Will it do away on its own eventually?

How often is it fatal?

Is it viewed as more of a nuisance or something to be seriously concerned about?

How can people attempt to prevent it? Hand washing and other kinds of good hygiene? Vaccines?

Are their any over the counter medications that can be used to treat it or do you need a prescription? 

Is it used as a bio weapon?

Are some people more genetically predisposed to it than others?

Are the infected quarantined? 

[xleafyheartx]

100 Random Character Development Questions

001. When is their birthday? 002. Do they do anything to celebrate their birthday? 003. Does your character like coffee better, or tea? 004. Do they prefer being alone or with others? 005. Are they in good health? 006. What sense do they most rely on? 007. Is your character an optimist or a pessimist? 008. What is their favorite fairy tale? 009. Do they believe in happy endings? 010. Do they believe in love at first sight? 011. How would your character court the person of their dreams? 012. What makes your character embarrassed? 013. Have they ever been bullied or teased? 014. Detail one secret shame your character feels. 015. Are they most likely to fight with their fists or their tongue? 016. What is their choice of weapon? 017. When does your character think that violence is justified or deserved? 018. Your character wakes up to find that war has been declared. What do they do? 019. If they could have a superpower, what would they choose? 020. What are their hobbies? 021. How do they display affection? 022. What is the most beautiful thing they’ve ever seen? 023. What do they consider beautiful in others physically? 024. What do they consider ugly in others physically? 025. What do they consider beautiful in others personality-wise? 026. What do they consider ugly in others personality-wise? 027. What is their idea of perfect happiness? 028. What makes them laugh out loud? 029. What sort of sense of humor does your character have? 030. Do they believe in the afterlife? 031. Are they superstitious about anything? 032. Does your character believe in ghosts? 033. Do they keep their promises? 034. What’s their view of lying? 035. What is the most important rule your character lives by? 036. How honorable is your character? 037. If your character saw someone drop a large sum of money and knew that they could probably take it without anyone noticing, what would they do? 038. What bad habits do they have? 039. What do they think is the worst thing that can be done to a person? 040. What is their obsession? 041. Are they comfortable with technology? 042. What is their greatest achievement? 043. What will they stand up for? 044. What disgusts them? 045. Does your character have any chronic medical conditions? 046. How do they handle getting sick? 047. What was the last medical problem your character had? 048. Do they have any allergies? 049. How does your character feel about growing old? 050. How does your character feel about their own mortality? 051. If they knew they would die tomorrow, what would they do today? 052. What is your character’s worst flaw? 053. What is your character’s greatest strength? 054. Does your character want power or authority of any kind? 055. Is your character an introvert or an extrovert? 056. Has your character ever struck someone in anger? 057. Has your character ever killed anyone? 058. What is your character’s idea of a perfect day? 059. List several phrases your character is fond of uttering. Where did they pick them up? 060. What is your character’s attitude toward education and learning? 061. Does your character prefer adventure or safety and security? 062. What sort of legacy does your character wish to leave behind? 063. How well does your character handle difficult people? 064. In what ways does your character annoy others? 065. Is your character better at leading or following? Which do they prefer? 066. Does your character prefer city life or being out in nature? 067. Does your character believe in fate or destiny? 068. How strong is your character’s sense of responsibility? What kinds of things trigger it? 069. What about your character is heroic? 070. What about your character is cowardly? 071. How kind is your character? 072. In a Dungeons & Dragons game, which class would your character be? (wizard, fighter, bard, priest, ranger, etc.) 073. In a novel, what plot role would your character fill? (hero, anti-hero, sidekick, villain, etc.) 074. What is your character’s favorite game? 075. Is your character ticklish? 076. How do they express anger? 077. How often do they cry? Over what? 078. How emotionally stable is your character? 079. How easy is it for them to read the emotions of others? 080. How easy is it for others to read your character’s emotions? 081. Is your character religious? 082. What are your character’s sleeping preferences? 083. What is the first thing they say and/or do when they wake up? 084. Describe your character in one word. 085. Describe your character in three words. 086. How would your character describe themself in one word? 087. How would your character describe themself in three words? 088. Is your character quiet or loud? 089. How vocally expressive is your character? 090. How bodily expressive is your character? 091. What type of music does your character like? 092. What emotion does your character evoke in others? 093. What is your character’s goal in life? 094. Name three things most would not expect your character to be able to know. 095. Name three things most would not expect your character to be able to do. 096. How do they move and carry themselves? What energy do they project? 097. How well do they adapt to change? 098. Does your character like animals? 099. Do they talk to inanimate objects? 100. Does your character dream? If so, what do they dream about?

[graffiticraft-junk]

Swap boys plez

[isa-ghost]

Isa, Mantis or Caspian :0

[adverseflyer909]

Any of the Elemental crew :0

[lostinwritingmayhem]

Ansel? owo

[writersblockbecomesunblocked]

Body Language Cheat Sheet

Face

•Sincere smiles reach the whole face, including eyes, while fake smiles generally use only lips

•Tilting of head can symbolize interest

•Overly tilted head can be a sign of sympathy

•Closing eyes or pinching nose means frustration

•When a listener nods, it generally means that they’re interested and paying attention

Eyes

•Lowering of eyes can convey fear, guilt, or submission

•Lowered eyebrows and squinted eyes show that a listener is attempting to figure out what Is going on

•Not looking another person in the eyes shows lack of confidence

•Some tend to blink more often when nervous or trying to evaluate someone else

•Looking directly into someone else’s eyes shows self-assurance

•Wide Eyes show interest or fear

•If irritated during a conversation, a common eye movement is to glance sideways for a few seconds

•Recalling a memory is generally done by looking up and to the right

•Looking directly up can indicate thinking

•Eye contact can be broken if one is insulted or offended

Upper Body

•Pushing back shoulders shows courage

•Open arms shows that the person is approachable

•Folded arms can be a barrier showing that the person doesn’t want to be disrupted

•Resting arms behind the neck shows open-mindedness

•Touching the front of the neck shows that the person is concerned

•If fingers are laced or pressed together, it usually indicates that the person is thinking

Lower Body

•Putting hands on hips can show aggression

•Hips pushed forward shows power and dominance

•Wide stance also shows power and dominance

•Crossed legs either mean relaxed and comfortable, or defensive- depending how tense the muscles are

•Crossing legs towards someone shows more interest then crossing away

[idreamofhazel]

My mood currently.

[novangla]

man tumblr loves to joke about how english lit analysis of symbolism is meaningless but like, when i took film class (from a filmmaker), my teacher told us,

there is no neutral or innocent choice in art

that is to say, as a writer or artist or filmmaker, you should be considering the meaning of everything you choose to include or exclude.  is there a water glass in the foreground of your shot? why?  you are creating a story from scratch, which means you are defining it by every choice you make, not just the major plot points.

especially in fiction writing or poetry, the author chose to write every single word.  nothing is there “on accident”.  if an author uses a color, they had to choose the color – and they had to chose to tell you the color at all, because they weren’t required to!  when i describe a color of something in my writing, i always think about the choice.  it’s never “just red”.

can analysis sometimes yield things the author didn’t intend? sure.  but (a) the point isn’t about trying to read the author’s mind, so who cares what they intended? and (b) sometimes the author actually does subconsciously weave symbolism into things.

i mean hell i had a fanfic commenter point out something that i hadn’t actually done intentionally and i was like, “wow, yes.  500% valid.”  if a reader can find resonance or symbolism in something, it’s not wrong or stupid or bad.

[friendly-neighborhood-ehrhardt]

this is actually a good point, particularly the part about considering everything you put into a work. a lot of writers these days are downright lazy about details. that said, not everything needs a DEEP meaning. there might be water in the foreground of a shot because the director thought it made the shot look more stylish & cool.

likewise, when a reader or viewer interprets something a certain way & the author says that wasnt what they intended, the author is in no way responsible for that interpretation. this is especially a problem with people blaming authors for their interpretation of something in the authors work as somehow offensive.

[h-brook-writes]

Writer: I don’t know if anybody will like my story. I’ve never done it before. What if it’s too hard? I’m not sure of anything, I’m second-guessing it, I’m scared that it’ll turn out bad. What if I try my best and still fail? What if my idea is overdone or cliche? Would anybody even be interested in what I have to say? Me, sobbing on my knees: please… write the fuckigngbgng book… stop doubting yourself into a corner… you’ll never know how good you are until you have work to reflect upon… time is limited, and it only runs forward, so please do the same! 

[ultraviolentpeace-blog]

Your Characters Have to Exist Outside of Your Story

So, I have writing advice.

Your characters have to exist outside of your story. A lot of writers write about their characters so that they only exist within the story. When planning a character, give them a life outside of the actual story. 

Ask yourself: where did they grow up? what’s a niche hobby they have? did they ever move states or countries? when is their birthday? have they ever had any trauma? etc. The more information about their childhood, the better.

Then ask yourself: how did this affect them? 

Think, your characters have to be believable. When I’m reading, I need to see that your characters act like humans, and humans have little traits caused by childhood events. Everything that’s ever happened to your characters should appear in the character someway. E.g. they love illuminations because they grew up in New Orleans. 

Of course, you’ll never use all the information in your story but the reader will see that the character is psychologically consistent. 

Always, ALWAYS, base your story around your characters. Do not base your characters around your story. 

As your characters become more detailed, parts of your story should change to match the character. For example, say you have a character named Claire. Claire is shy, and mute for the most part. In your story planning, you had the idea of Claire talking a guy out of suicide. But, Claire is mute for the most part so a nervous hold of the hands would do better. It’d be in character and more wholesome. 

Sometimes you may need to change major aspects of your story to match the characters but that’s okay, your story is just growing. 

[knowanoah]

Stop telling yourself that the grass is greener on the other side, because it’s not. It is greener where you water it. So take control of your life and start watering your own pastures and grow your own greener grasses.

[moniquill]

Fuck grass, clover is a nitrogen fixing legume and dandelions are super useful. Be the weeds. Grow on concrete in defiance of those who would thwart you.

[luminous-lily12]

It’s also greener where you bury a body

[the-a-j-universe]

This post really goes for a ride.

[thelighthousewatcher]

And I am here for it

[werewolf-cuddles]

Fun fact: a character doesn’t have to be a good person to be a good character.

[emerson-awesome]

SAY IT LOUDER FOR THE PEOPLE IN THE BACK!

[werewolf-cuddles]

A CHARACTER DOESN’T HAVE TO BE A GOOD PERSON TO BE A GOOD CHARACTER!

[bitchesofostwick]

me: okay time to jump into the action scene

me: don’t say it

me: don’t say it

me: don’t say it

me: don’t say it

me: don’t say it

me: don’t say it

me: don’t say it

me: don’t say it

me: … “SUDDENLY”

[mlwangbooks]

My go-to fixes for this:

but before [Character] could [verb], ACTION!

[Character] was about to [verb] when ACTION!

but no sooner had [something] than ACTION!

but just as [something boring], ACTION!

BANG!/CRASH!/BOOM! ACTION!

“Character dialogue starting some sentence about–” ACTION!

Character’s internal monologue starting some sent– ACTION!

Narrator starting some– ACTION!

… ACTION!

Why extend your readers the courtesy of a ‘suddenly’ except to vary sentence structure?

[phoebeusproduction]

[sunspotery]

So according to an interview with Neil Gaiman in the back of Good Omens, before Terry Pratchett became a full time writer he wrote at least 400 words a day.

I’ve been trying it out for a couple weeks now and let me tell you 400 words is a totally awesome goal. It is very approachable and not intimidating, often leads to more than 400 words cause well now I have to finish this scene. 

Seriously I probably would have written nothing in the last couple weeks, instead I’ve written 1000′s of words. 

10/10 would recommend.

[neil-gaiman]

Terry would be proud.

[aidaran-alha]

I don’t know if I’m a good writer or not, but since January I’ve been doing the same. At least 500 words a day. Up to this date, I have +160k words in AO3 and suspect I have at least 150-200k in half written stuff.

[every-book-has-a-secret]

I gotta start it again, like I used to.

[lostinwritingmayhem]

Raise Hell

anyone here interested in more of Ansel’s backstory? (you can check ‘ansel’ tag to see the previous things written for her~) 1625 words, tw for mentions of drug abuse, violence, murder 

It took Ansel 9 months to trace down the bastard responsible for Casey’s death. It took her two more months to be in a position where she could kill him. It was finally time, and she was ready - she just had to be patient one last time.

xxx

After the night in the cafe that took Ansel’s brother away from here, there were a lot of things that needed to be done. The funeral, for example, one that she had to organize all on her own cause their parents were too busy shooting up heroine in that shithole of an apartment they called a home to be of any help. She spent hours filling out paperwork, making preparations, determined to at least give her brother a decent burial if she wasn’t able to give him a decent life. The funeral came, and went, she said her goodbyes, and so did their parents, miraculously clean for once in their pathetic lives. Ansel didn’t doubt they’d go right back to using as soon as they got home, but she was way past the point of caring about what happens to them. She had a lot of other things on her mind.

Casey and Ansel moved out together a year earlier, the moment they had enough money to rent the place on their own, and now she was alone with it. Which led to another entry on her to-do list - the flat had to be emptied out, Casey’s things sorted through and sold, and she had to move out and find a different place to live. She didn’t feel safe in there, not anymore, and so she spent some time roaming from room to room, not staying anywhere for an extended period of time. She had hoped that, if anyone was still out to get her, it would at least make it harder and more annoying to find her. She had enough money saved that she could lay low for a bit as she dealt with everything, raged, cried and begged the unfair gods to give her the brother back - every bit a perfect portrait of a mourning sister that the world expected of her.

There was also the investigation. She almost laughed when a very nice policewoman told her that, after two months had passed and they found nothing, they had decided to close Casey’s case due to lack of the evidence leading them anywhere. She didn’t expect anything else to happen, really - the police rarely gave a fuck about what happened to people like Ansel. Besides, she was already planning an investigation of her own.

When three months passed with no one coming after her trying to take another shot at her murder, Ansel decided that it was finally time to take the matters ito her own hands. She found a place she planned on staying in for a longer time, with an owner that didn’t care much about what was happening there as long as they were getting money on time, and reached out to her old contacts. She called in favors, promised to provide more, all in return for one thing - intel on the person who tried to kill her. Why they stopped doing that she would learn herself after she got her hands on the fucker.

No one had anything to tell her. She knew that’s bullshit, it was impossible that not even a single person had caught wind of a situation like this - for a bunch of criminals who treasured their secrets they sure loved to gossip about others’. Still, not a single useful word came her way when she had asked nicely. She stopped asking nicely after a while.

Then, it was a matter of sorting through the bullshit people were feeding her. She had heard as many different answers as there were people she interrogated, which meant that whoever she was looking for must’ve been powerful enough to either buy the silence of people, or make the community too scared to risk ratting them out.

Those that she caught should’ve really worried more about what a pissed off Ansel was willing to do to them, but well ,they didn’t get a chance to learn from that mistake.

The first time she had killed a person was by accident. The cut that was meant to be a tool of intimidation, just painful enough to get them to talk went a little too deep and she hit an artery. The poor girl bled out in a matter of minutes and all Ansel felt was annoyance at not being able to get the answers she needed. The second time was in self-defence. She wasn’t careful enough and the demon guy she tied to a chair waited till she turned around and burned through the ropes, setting the chair on fire in the process, without much effort. She turned around and shot him fast enough to avoid getting burn to a crisp, and she was smarted after that.

Ansel didn’t remember the third time she had killed. They all blended together after that.

9 months after she made her promise to Casey, she had finally found the name she was looking for.

Stanley Neddy.

He was a head of a powerful gang operating in their city - the most powerful one, of course, if you asked one of his men. Ansel did, repeatedly, and so somewhere between ‘no, stop, leave me alone you bitch’ and various other, less coherent screams, the guy let the ‘Stanley will get you just like he did to your idiot brother’ slip out. Incidentally, it was the last thing the guy ever said - of course, once she was done few hours later, there wasn’t much of a person left anyway, so one ripped out tongue probably didn’t make too big of a difference, but it still felt good.

Stanley.

Once she heard the name, few pieces suddenly clicked into place in her head. A weeks before Casey died, Ansel had accepted a job. Pretty straightforward, a really well paid one. She was to break into a house and steal a gun safe. She didn’t think much about it, just did what she was tasked to do - it wasn’t even that hard, there were no guards, no alarms, no nothing. It made no sense that the person giving her the instructions seemed surprised she agreed to it in the first place and twice as surprised when she dropped off the safe and asked for her money, but she didn’t question it.

Getting rid of the body’s remains, it hit here. The only situation in which not putting any sort of security in your house makes sense is if the owner of said house knows that no one would be dumb enough to break into it. No one but Ansel, apparently - she was dumb enough to go and steal from a crime lord, and her brother paid the price for it.

It was her time to make sure that said crime lord would pay too.

xxx

She was situated in a car outside of Stanley’s favourite coffee shop. She spent last two months learning everything there was to learn about the man, all the while avoiding the watchful eyes of his bodyguards. He had more of those, now, she couldn’t help but notice - seems like losing that safe did teach him something. Ansel was there to teach him yet another lesson, and so she waited patiently for Stanley to finish the last latte of his life. Once done, he would get up, pay for his things and leave the building. After that he’d go on a walk home enjoying the evening - one of the rare moments he sent the guards away and had some time alone, Ansel noticed. That was exactly what she needed.

There was an alleyway not so far away from the shop where she’d drag and kill him. She didn’t plan anything special for the occasion - just one-two-three shots, the last one through his heart. The only thing she wanted was to make sure he knew who takes his life. After that, the bastard could go to hell for all she cared.

Ansel was watching the door to the building like a hawk. Anytime soon he’d be walking out…

She didn’t notice the undercover cars up until the policemen surrounded the small cafe, few of them walking in. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing, outright refused to do so. As police led Stanley out and to the car, she realized she’s not only stopped breathing, but also clenching the wheel of the car so hard it was ready to crack any second. After almost a year of preparations, her chance at revenge that she worked so hard for was being stolen from in front of her eyes.

She drove home and, once there, turned the radio on.

“After a long and hard investigation into his criminal activity the police finally caught the boss of the…”

Ansel almost couldn’t hear the words over the roaring sound of the blood in her ears.

“Due to the serious nature of his many crimes he is expected to be sentenced to spend the rest of his life at the Iron Island--”

Ansel threw the radio at the wall, shattering it into pieces. As they fell to the ground, so did she, finding herself on her knees, a wrathful scream escaping her mouth. She wasn’t sure how long she stayed like this, letting the reality of her entire life’s mission being taken away from her sink in. At some point, though, she did stand up, shaking her head. She wasn’t going to give up this easily. Stanley was still very much alive, and if she had to be sent to the spooky scary Iron Island to get to him?

So be it. @mionbirblady @here-be-beckany @bunchofdoodlesinspace

[babzgordon]

me: this scene is so boring i wish i could write this other scene i’m really excited about instead 

brain: you can

me: explain how

brain: 

[thelighthousewatcher]

That’s what you think

[i-am-a-fish]

CALLOUT POST @ ALL WRITERS

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