i like writing. and kotlc.

(totally not my writing blog) keefe sencen is my son #keefe sencen is my son marla / she/her / writing is like wading through rubber ducks to me it's called marla-miscellaneous because if i eventually get sick of this blog i can resuse it later REDUCE REUSE RECYCLE EVERYBODY

[marla-miscellaneous]

okay okay okay

hellio <3. i'm marla!!! she/her

i have two main projects: one that is original work (tag #fantasy ntbd story) and a KOTLC (keeper of the lost cities) keefe-centric fanfiction (tag #keefe sencen torment fic)

ao3 here. all the works there were written when i was like. 10 years old and i posted it bc. idk why

ANYWHO more story details under the cut

fantasy ntbd: sisterhood, mc1: feena mc2: val. i never have any idea what's going on w this one actually. set in a world where if you appose the leaders, your children could be stolen from you and you have to compete in a sick game to get them back (if you don't get them back the leaders can keep the kids and do literally whatever they want with them)

keefe sencen torment fic: I HAVE A SUMMARY FOR THIS ONE ACTUALLY:

When Keefe was younger, he'd dreamed of a hero who would shine bright and cast the darkness away. They had no face, no name—just a light that shone softly, so as not to blind, and brushed comforting hands over skinned knees, kissing away tears. Now, he’s not as young. He'd realized pretty quickly that life was not all that simple. There would be nobody to help him like he needed to be helped. He dug his way out of holes his father had thrown him into alone, with nothing but his hands and jokes to brush off the bruises.  He pushed people away. That was what he did. I don’t need them, he thought.  But he’s learning, now. Maybe he’s wrong. Maybe he does need them.  OR: Keefe Sencen, and his journey through healing—both physically and mentally—, surrounded by people that, bit by bit, he’s slowly letting in.

YAY OKAY IM GNNA GO NOW BYE HAVE A GOOD DAY MWAH

[the-way-astray]

the way miss messenger named these families is hilariously on the nose i love it. the ruewens were ruined by their daughter’s death. the sencens are sensin’ your emotions. the songs write songs. prentice endal’s all was ended. jensi babblos babbles a lot. the hekses are hecklers. the vackers are the family that do the most vacking. and so on

[supersillytheaterkid]

i feel like kotlc is so unrereadable as i get older. some of my fav childhood stories hold the test of age no problem, but this one really irks me more with every reread.

and it really makes me sad, because i will never get over these fucking characters.

[wafflewarrior111]

So... I found this and now it keeps coming to mind. You hear about "life-changing writing advice" all the time and usually its really not—but honestly this is it man.

I'm going to try it.

[missroserose]

I love the lawyer metaphor, because whenever I see “John knew that...” in prose writing I immediately think “how?  How does he know it?”  Interrogate your witnesses.  Cross-examine them.  Make them explain their reasoning.  It pays dividends.

[heck-in-a-handbasket]

All of this, but also feels/felt. My editor has forbidden me from using those and it’s forced me to stretch my skills.

[ineedthesons]

This is your "show not tell" advice explained!

[tarysande]

Editor here.

First, let me preface this with something very important: you can treat all of this advice as SECOND-DRAFT ADVICE. It is so much easier to rewrite this kind of stuff once you have words on the page. Telling yourself the first draft is totally appropriate and acceptable.

What we’re talking about here are FILTER WORDS (and to some degree verbs of being). Yes, “thought” words are included. But so are “heard, saw, looked, tasted, smelled” etc.—most words having to do with the senses.

This isn’t black and white advice; sometimes you’ll use these words and that’s okay. They’re not WRONG. They’re just weaker. And they’re weaker because they create distance between the reader and the experience of the character.*

If you want your reader to feel like they’re experiencing the story right alongside the character, you want to cut down on filter words.

*This is particularly important with first person and close third POVs. The reader always knows whose eyes they’re seeing through and thoughts they’re privy to. So you don’t need to tell them “I saw X.” Or “I heard X.” Or “I thought Y.” You can just jump into the action/observation as it’s happening.

This is also where you want to pay attention to verbs of being.

“It was rainy.” Versus: “The rain pounded against the roof.” Or “The rain howled like an injured animal.” Or “The rain tapped against the window like an anxious lover.” All of these are inviting the reader deeper into the experience of the story by using stronger verbs and similes. And, at the same time, they stir feelings (instead of TELLING feelings). And feelings keep your reader engaged. Engaged readers keep turning pages; engaged readers become FANS.

[the-haiku-bot]

This is also where

you want to pay attention

to verbs of being.

Beep boop! I look for accidental haiku posts. Sometimes I mess up.

[defilerwyrm]

The most valuable advice that Author Ex gave me through the years that we wrote together was this: the problem with all these filter words is that they create distance in the POV.

That means that when you read a line like

John saw that the curtains were open.

It immediately takes you OUT of the character's perspective and instead tells you what they experience as a secondhand observation.

You don't have to get fancy or purple with how you rephrase things like this. Not everything needs a ton of breathing room.

You wanna know what's perfectly impactful while keeping a tight POV?

The curtains were open.

Simple as that.

[wafflewarrior111]

So... I found this and now it keeps coming to mind. You hear about "life-changing writing advice" all the time and usually its really not—but honestly this is it man.

I'm going to try it.

[missroserose]

I love the lawyer metaphor, because whenever I see “John knew that...” in prose writing I immediately think “how?  How does he know it?”  Interrogate your witnesses.  Cross-examine them.  Make them explain their reasoning.  It pays dividends.

[heck-in-a-handbasket]

All of this, but also feels/felt. My editor has forbidden me from using those and it’s forced me to stretch my skills.

[ineedthesons]

This is your "show not tell" advice explained!

[tarysande]

Editor here.

First, let me preface this with something very important: you can treat all of this advice as SECOND-DRAFT ADVICE. It is so much easier to rewrite this kind of stuff once you have words on the page. Telling yourself the first draft is totally appropriate and acceptable.

What we’re talking about here are FILTER WORDS (and to some degree verbs of being). Yes, “thought” words are included. But so are “heard, saw, looked, tasted, smelled” etc.—most words having to do with the senses.

This isn’t black and white advice; sometimes you’ll use these words and that’s okay. They’re not WRONG. They’re just weaker. And they’re weaker because they create distance between the reader and the experience of the character.*

If you want your reader to feel like they’re experiencing the story right alongside the character, you want to cut down on filter words.

*This is particularly important with first person and close third POVs. The reader always knows whose eyes they’re seeing through and thoughts they’re privy to. So you don’t need to tell them “I saw X.” Or “I heard X.” Or “I thought Y.” You can just jump into the action/observation as it’s happening.

This is also where you want to pay attention to verbs of being.

“It was rainy.” Versus: “The rain pounded against the roof.” Or “The rain howled like an injured animal.” Or “The rain tapped against the window like an anxious lover.” All of these are inviting the reader deeper into the experience of the story by using stronger verbs and similes. And, at the same time, they stir feelings (instead of TELLING feelings). And feelings keep your reader engaged. Engaged readers keep turning pages; engaged readers become FANS.

[the-haiku-bot]

This is also where

you want to pay attention

to verbs of being.

Beep boop! I look for accidental haiku posts. Sometimes I mess up.

[defilerwyrm]

The most valuable advice that Author Ex gave me through the years that we wrote together was this: the problem with all these filter words is that they create distance in the POV.

That means that when you read a line like

John saw that the curtains were open.

It immediately takes you OUT of the character's perspective and instead tells you what they experience as a secondhand observation.

You don't have to get fancy or purple with how you rephrase things like this. Not everything needs a ton of breathing room.

You wanna know what's perfectly impactful while keeping a tight POV?

The curtains were open.

Simple as that.

[druidshollow]

HAVE THAT CHARACTER GAIN WEIGHT AS A SIGN OF HEALING: NOW

[marla-miscellaneous]

how do we feel about this

[nondelphic]

unfortunately my story needs a middle. i personally think this is excessive

[advi96]

WHY TF DO PPL HATE KEEFE SENCEN SO MUCH? I'm sorry the traumatized 15 year old tortured by his mom doesn't make smart decisions and hates himself??? Why TF are we blaming him for things that are not his fault???

Guys ik Sophie likes him a lot but she is the only one who does. The only reason u guys hate him is because Sophie doesn't. Let's be so fr rn.

Everyone on Pinterest seems to glaze Keefe likes the best elf ever born and everyone on Tumblr seems to loathe his existence. Someone pls be normal abt him

[antlered-vixen]

I am so tired of short-attention-span, trim-the-fat culture. All writing advice these days is for how to write like Chuck Palahniuk. "Cut 'think', cut 'feel', cut 'wonder' - only action, only pushing forward, show and move and move and move." What if I could emulate this style, and still don't want to? What if I want to write like Henry James, with three paragraphs of introspective musings between each dialogue line? The music advice is, "make it shortform, make it Tik-Tok compatible, make it punchy, hit the refrain as soon as possible." What if I want that 10-minute prog rock piece? What if I want that symphony? What if I want it slow and luxurious and lazy? Movies. Series. Poetry. Bodies. Everything is "trimmed trimmed trimmed trimmed, stripped bare, you have three seconds to win me over, make it airport chic." I don't want to win you over, then, I guess. I want the fat left it. I want the pleasure and the indolence and the indulgence. Fuck this art-advice that's always "your art needs Ozempic."

[antlered-vixen]

I am so tired of short-attention-span, trim-the-fat culture. All writing advice these days is for how to write like Chuck Palahniuk. "Cut 'think', cut 'feel', cut 'wonder' - only action, only pushing forward, show and move and move and move." What if I could emulate this style, and still don't want to? What if I want to write like Henry James, with three paragraphs of introspective musings between each dialogue line? The music advice is, "make it shortform, make it Tik-Tok compatible, make it punchy, hit the refrain as soon as possible." What if I want that 10-minute prog rock piece? What if I want that symphony? What if I want it slow and luxurious and lazy? Movies. Series. Poetry. Bodies. Everything is "trimmed trimmed trimmed trimmed, stripped bare, you have three seconds to win me over, make it airport chic." I don't want to win you over, then, I guess. I want the fat left it. I want the pleasure and the indolence and the indulgence. Fuck this art-advice that's always "your art needs Ozempic."

[inejsgirl]

idk i've always liked how the family that sophie foster lived with but never felt like she belonged in had the surname foster because it represents how it was only temporary and that she would find a family she felt at home with soon

[carimelmari]

Imagine being a Foster like 2000 years into the future. Imagine inheriting the brown eyes too. A clear sign of being a descendent of the legendary Sophie Foster, the elf with five (+) abilities, who fought the neverseen, who was raised with humans.

Imagine just walking down hall the hallway of Foxfire, and land being greeted with eyes of scorn, jealousy, and admiration. Sophie Foster is now more legendary than Fallon Vacker. she and the others in her group are now very old and very pointy ears. They mostly stick to themselves but come into the open eye whenever the world needs help. 

Being a Foster is bigger than being a Vacker, it carries more weight. The weight of a young girl, forced into a destiny, a girl who changed the world.

With the end of the series coming near, I wonder what it will be like after everything is dealt with. If the neverseen will be fully defeated, how much respect will immediately be put on her name. We already know that if she marries Keefe, they're both keeping her name, so if they have kids, it's definitely getting passed down. I'm curious to see if we'll get like an into the future ordeal. But without a doubt, I can see Foster becoming one of, if not the most legendary last names known to Elven history.

[tokkibean]

me: opening a new doc

my one trillion unfinished wips: disapproving stare.jpeg

me:

me:

me: (sweating) i have...commitment..issues..

[anxietyproblem]

[markerofthemidnight]

you 🫵. make a self-indulgent au now

[marla-miscellaneous]

are you ever scrolling or something or just doing something random and you read something or see something and you're just like. thats it. that is what my soul has been missing. my draft makes sense now because of those three words i just read