Princesshimechan

A Blog for all things Random

[writersisland]

friends to lovers

“Oh, no. It's not like that. We're not…”

“If this is what friendship feels like, I don't even need a relationship.”

“Everything okay? You’ve been acting weird.” “I’m good.”

“Life's too short to waste with the wrong person, you know?”    “Yeah… I think I do.”

“I can talk to you about really anything. You make me feel so safe.”

“Whatever it is, you can talk to me.” “I really can’t this time.”

“Ugh, I just want someone to hug me and tell me it'll be alright.”    “I mean, I'm right here.”    “Not you!” (lie)

“I don't get it either. It's just that no one makes me feel the way you do I want to feel.”

“It's hopeless. I'm never gonna find someone.”    “Don't be stupid. You're a great catch.”

“Don't talk about yourself like that. You're fucking hot.”

“You know how much you mean to me, right?”    “Of course I do.”

“We'd make a great couple, wouldn't we?”

“We've been super close for as long as I can remember.”

“You know what? Next time you find some loser who is just going to play you, don't even tell me. I can't watch you waste your time again.”

“I don’t get it. I just feel like things aren’t the way they used to be between us.”

“They thought we were a couple! Isn't that funny?”    “Yeah. Hilarious.”

“Ugh, I still don't have a date for the dance.”    “I mean, we could go. Like, as friends.”

 being protective when they date someone else, but of course just because they're looking out for them and don't want them getting hurt. they deserve the best, after all

staring at their lips as they talk, admiring their beauty. but like, platonically of course. just appreciating how awesome their friend is!

drunken kisses and making out dismissed as meaningless/just fun/just pretend

talking about them at every opportunity, to a point where others just assume they are together until they are corrected

‘Oh yeah, all those times I called you the most important person in my life and I cried when you got into a relationship was totally platonic why do you ask’

jokingly calling each other “wife/husband/spouse”

not knowing where the playful flirting ends and real feelings begin

[bounce-a-coin-off-your-witcher]

Oh you're writing a gay smut fic with a fantasy setting? Don't forget to give one of your characters a

[philosophicalparadox]

It’s not that mysterious though.

Anyone carrying a bladed weapon carried oil. (More on that in a sec) Oil is what you use to clean and condition steel, especially, since water will rust it.

Many people in the Middle Ages used scented oils for their skin and hair from noblemen to lowly serfs.

Oil was incredibly abundant and quite cheap. The TYPE of oil however does matter in this.

Sheep oil (rendered from their fat) was very common and used for all manner of things from making soap to treating skin conditions. Rendered sheep fat has a very light texture and is a decent carrier oil without too pungent of a scent. Unfortunately it did rancid fast so it was common to add lots of herbs to it to help preserve it, especially rosemary, borage, marjoram and citron peels. This is how it became a common “perfume” oil used to scent hair skin or clothes. Nearly anyone would have had this handy somewhere.

Rendered pork oil was very common too and was most popular as a cooking oil.

Vegetable oil made from walnuts, almonds and flax seed was by far the most common non-animal oil. Nearly anybody had a bottle of almond or walnut oil in their pantry or on their person. These were by far the most popular oils used for conditioning steel, with walnut oil preferred because its tannins also gave armor a patina that kept it better. Only the absurdly wealthy ever wore polished armor. Everyone else blackened it to make it keep better. Walnut oil is good at doing that.

Walnut oil also works well as a lubricant. People back then DID use sexual lube by the way. No prostitute would be caught dead without it. Their favorite types were walnut and olive oil, though almond oil might be used in a pinch. They also used watered down acacia gum in southern Europe, which was sticky but slick and easy to re-wet.

Olive oil though was THE oil in Europe. It was expensive, comparatively, but obviously people considered it well worth its cost because it was found everywhere south of the Seine and frequently seen in even minor lordly houses or knights quarters much farther north. Considering quite a few people of the time thought it had aphrodisiac qualities when applied as certain way (likely because raw olive oil has a warming effect) I think you can imagine the most common reason it was sought after by men in particular.

Olive oil was also used in medicine and just about any church had some floating around somewhere because it’s conveniently good at treating minor infections and is wonderful for toothaches.

So the mysterious vial of oil isn’t at all mysterious and even if he were carrying it around with the sole intention of using it for sex, that wouldn’t actually be that strange either.

[s0r3wach1gauy0]

Do I need to pull out my lube history research sources? Because I have that from googling a fun normal amount about personal lubrication :) I've also learned a lot about the history of condoms too :3

The History of Personal Lubricants - CondomDepot.com

Since the long lost days of masturbations past, while rubbing one off near the shadow casting flames of a cave-side fire, people have been l

the history of lube.

From seaweed to olive oil, all the things humans used to get it on. Studies have proved that the best sexual interactions are often accompa

The Slippery History of Personal Lubricant

Nowadays, in major drug stores and at most sex shops, you can find a few brands of lube on the shelves to ensure sex proceeds as smoothly as

Condoms have been a subject of curiosity throughout history. The idea of safer sex has been explored in ancient and modern history, and has

Soooo I do think that should cover things. TLDR: what you have available to you vastly depends on when you're writing for. Pre 1820's is a challenge but not impossible to do. Once we get into the 1820's and later, your options open up more! :)

[luna-azzurra]

WHEN IT HURTS TO ADMIT IT Prompts

⟡ “I don’t know when I stopped feeling like myself, but I know it wasn’t all at once.”

⟡ “I keep waiting to miss this life more than I hate it.”

⟡ “I don’t even know if I’m sad or just tired of pretending I’m not.”

⟡ “You ever wake up and realize you’re living a life you didn’t mean to choose?”

⟡ “I don’t hate you. I just don’t recognize who I am around you anymore.”

⟡ “I thought if I ignored it long enough, it would go away. It didn’t.”

⟡ “I’m not asking you to fix it. I just need you to stop telling me it’s fine.”

⟡ “I keep telling myself this is enough, but it never sounds convincing.”

⟡ “I don’t know what I want, I just know this isn’t it.”

⟡ “I’m scared that if I stop, everything I’ve been holding together will fall apart.”

⟡ “I don’t want to leave. I just don’t want to stay like this.”

⟡ “I don’t feel brave. I feel cornered.”

⟡ “Every time I say I’m okay, something in me flinches.”

⟡ “I don’t know how to explain this without sounding ungrateful.”

⟡ “I keep thinking there has to be more than just getting through the day.”

⟡ “I don’t trust myself to make a decision because what if I regret all of them?”

⟡ “I don’t know who I’d be if I wasn’t needed all the time.”

⟡ “I thought being strong would feel different than this.”

⟡ “I don’t want to disappear. I just want the noise to stop.”

⟡ “I don’t know how to ask for help without feeling like I failed.”

⟡ “I keep hoping something will force my hand so I don’t have to choose.”

⟡ “I don’t know how to leave without hurting someone.”

⟡ “I don’t want to be the reason everything changes.”

⟡ “I don’t know if I’m scared of losing this or scared of keeping it.”

⟡ “I feel like I’m watching my own life instead of living it.”

⟡ “I don’t know how much longer I can carry this and still call it living.”

⟡ “I keep thinking tomorrow I’ll feel different. Tomorrow keeps showing up the same.”

⟡ “I don’t know if I’m asking for permission or forgiveness.”

[luna-azzurra]

FACIAL MICRO EXPRESSIONS FOR WRITERS <3

[kayforpay]

history fucked me up

oxford was built and operational as a college before the rise of the mayans and cleopatra lived in a time nearer to pizza hut’s invention than to the pyramids being built

[kayforpay]

I need a noncomprehensive history book that covers Known World History in time periods, like “in this century, all this shit was happening concurrently” and not just all spread out so I have to piece it together like some unpaid uneducated scholar

[archaeologysucks]

You mean like this?

The Timetables of History by Bernard Grun

I grew up with this book, which is frickin’ enormous, and it was endlessly fascinating to young me to pour over the side by side comparison of events taking place concurrently under different headings and in different parts of the world.

Or if you want something you can put on your wall, there’s this:

World History Timeline

[butts-bouncing-on-the-beltway]

I had this book! My grandpa gave it to me and it was really freakin useful!!

[mckitterick]

I loved this book! Same for The Timetables of Science: A Chronology of the Most Important People and Events in the History of Science.

Same for The Timetables of Technology: A Chronology of the Most Important People and Events in the History of Technology. Great references!

[lepetitpoete]

okay but here’s an even cooler (free!) visualization that goes a step further and tracks ideas, devices, infrastructures, and systems of power

Calculating Empires: A Genealogy of Technology and Power Since 1500

✨️with a special focus on colonialism, militarization, automation, and enclosure✨️

You can spend hours upon hours exploring this

[writing-prompt-s]

Wizards live in towers, Princesses are kept captive in towers. You, a mage of wandering interests, come back to find half your towers upper floors occupied by a bored young woman. There are worse ways to find an apprentice.

[kotori-mochi]

Can't afford art school?

After seeing post like this 👇

And this gem 👇

As well as countless of others from the AI generator community. Just talking about how "inaccessible art" is, I decided why not show how wrong these guys are while also helping anyone who actually wants to learn.

Here is the first one ART TEACHERS! There are plenty online and in places like youtube.

📺Here is my list:

Proko (Free, mostly teaches anatomy and how to draw people. But does have art talks and teaches the basics.)

Marc Brunet (Free but he does have other classes for a cheap price. Use to work for Blizzard and teaches you everything)

Aaron Rutten (free, tips about art, talks about art programs and the best products for digital art)

BoroCG (free, teaches a verity of art mediums from 3D modeling to digital painting. As well as some tips that can be used across styles)

Jesse J. Jones (free, talks about animating)

Jesus Conde (free, teaches digital painting and has classes in Spanish)

Mohammed Agbadi (free, he gives some advice in some videos and talks about art)

Ross Draws (free, he does have other classes for a good price. Mostly teaching character designs and simple backgrounds.)

SamDoesArts (free, gives good advice and critiques)

Drawfee Show (free, they do give some good advice and great inspiration)

The Art of Aaron Blaise ( useful tips for digital art and animation. Was an animator for Disney. Mostly nature art)

Bobby Chiu ( useful tips and interviews with artist who are in the industry or making a living as artist)

Sinix Design (has some tips on drawing people)

Winged canvas (art school for free on a verity of mediums)

Bob Ross (just a good time, learn how to paint, as well as how too relax when doing art. "there are no mistakes only happy accidents", this channel also provides tips from another artist)

Scott Christian Sava (Inspiration and provides tips and advice)

Pikat (art advice and critiques)

Drawbox (a suggested cheap online art school, made of a community of artist)

Skillshare (A cheap learning site that has art classes ranging from traditional to digital. As well as Animation and tutorials on art programs. All under one price, in the USA it's around $34 a month)

Human anatomy for artist (not a video or teacher but the site is full of awesome refs to practice and get better at anatomy)

Second part BOOKS, I have collected some books that have helped me and might help others.

📚Here is my list:

The "how to draw manga" series produced by Graphic-sha. These are for manga artist but they give great advice and information.

"Creating characters with personality" by Tom Bancroft. A great book that can help not just people who draw cartoons but also realistic ones. As it helps you with facial ques and how to make a character interesting.

"Albinus on anatomy" by Robert Beverly Hale and Terence Coyle. Great book to help someone learn basic anatomy.

"Artistic Anatomy" by Dr. Paul Richer and Robert Beverly Hale. A good book if you want to go further in-depth with anatomy.

"Directing the story" by Francis Glebas. A good book if you want to Story board or make comics.

"Animal Anatomy for Artists" by Eliot Goldfinger. A good book for if you want to draw animals or creatures.

"Constructive Anatomy: with almost 500 illustrations" by George B. Bridgman. A great book to help you block out shadows in your figures and see them in a more 3 diamantine way.

"Dynamic Anatomy: Revised and expand" by Burne Hogarth. A book that shows how to block out shapes and easily understand what you are looking out. When it comes to human subjects.

"An Atlas of animal anatomy for artist" by W. Ellenberger and H. Dittrich and H. Baum. This is another good one for people who want to draw animals or creatures.

Etherington Brothers, they make books and have a free blog with art tips.

📝As for Supplies, I recommend starting out cheap, buying Pencils and art paper at dollar tree or 5 below. If you want to go fancy Michaels is always a good place for traditional supplies. They also get in some good sales and discounts. For digital art, I recommend not starting with a screen art drawing tablet as they are usually more expensive.

For the Best art Tablet I recommend either Xp-pen, Bamboo or Huion. Some can range from about 40$ to the thousands.

💻As for art programs here is a list of Free to pay.

Clip Studio paint ( you can choose to pay once or sub and get updates. Galaxy, Windows, macOS, iPad, iPhone, Android, or Chromebook device. )

Procreate ( pay once for $9.99 usd, IPAD & IPHONE ONLY)

Blender (for 3D modules/sculpting, animation and more. Free)

PaintTool SAI (pay but has a 31 day free trail)

Krita (Free)

mypaint (free)

FireAlpaca (free)

Aseprite ($19.99 usd but has a free trail, for pixel art Windows & macOS)

Drawpile (free and for if you want to draw with others)

IbisPaint (free, phone app ONLY)

Medibang (free, IPAD, Android and PC)

NOTE: Some of these can work on almost any computer like Clip and Sai but others will require a bit stronger computer like Blender. Please check their sites for if your computer is compatible.

So do with this information as you will but as you can tell there are ways to learn how to become an artist, without breaking the bank. The only thing that might be stopping YOU from using any of these things, is YOU.

I have made time to learn to draw and many artist have too. Either in-between working two jobs or taking care of your family and a job or regular school and chores. YOU just have to take the time or use some time management, it really doesn't take long to practice for like an hour or less. YOU also don't have to do it every day, just once or three times a week is fine.

Hope this was helpful and have a great day.

"also apologies for any spelling or grammar errors, I have Dyslexia and it makes my brain go XP when it comes to speech or writing"

[animalphotorefs]

Boosting this in case any of the programs and books suggested are useful.

All the photos on this tumblr ad the animal photo reference site I run is another resource available for artists to use!

As long as you’re not using AI to create your art, you can reference / trace / draw / recombine / make any sort of art you want, with any of the photos, for free.

[reo-speeddragon]

There's also MORPHO, a really good book series on anatomy by Michel Lauricella, with very clear explanations and sketches!

And for pose references, there's @adorkastock who shares a ton of them for free, with different models and props, and her website is amazing <3 you can also buy pose packs from her.

[haysey-draws]

Boosting as these free resources are how i learnt to draw. My GCSE art teacher told me i had no future in art and to stop 'wasting his time' with my imagination, which killed my passion for drawing for close to decade! I have NO art training, only what i have learnt from other artists online.

If i can learn you can too!

[ariaste]

I've been learning digital painting on Procreate with James Julier's free tutorial videos -- they're a follow-along-step-by-step thing in real time (though I have to slow the video down/pause sometimes because he's faster than i am). Really good for showing you the basic theories and techniques and building confidence!

[rosemoonweaver]

GUYS. DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN WRITE CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE FICS ON AO3

[rosemoonweaver]

Other things you can do:

Linked footnotes

Customized page dividers

Sticky notes

Lined paper

Paper that looks stacked on top of each other

Old looking paper

Newspaper articles

Tumblr posts

iOS text messages

Emails

Fake ao3 authors notes and kudos button

Freaking discord chats

Its fucking amazing. Ao3 is fucking amazing. Can I legally marry a website?

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

[starkerfilth]

WHAT

[the-stars-our-destination]

One of those times I'm reblogging something so I can find it again later

[ididmywaiting12years]

For my writer friends not sure how accurate @seriouslysam8 for the Heliophile sequel 😁

[jamilsc11]

SPECIAL POST: EMERGENCY SPECIAL COMMISSION

Special Bust Up or Chibi commission for $20.00

I am a Digital-traditional artist (NOT AI) If you want more information, reserve a place in the offer, know other prices and catalog, let me know by dm and we will gladly chat.

Please scam user: DO NOT waste time sending dm, because here I REQUEST PAYPAL EMAIL TO SEND INVOICE and you do NOT like that. This step is mandatory to continue the process of any of my commissions.

Finally, I would really appreciate it if you shared this information.

Thank you very much

Jamil

Tambien hablo español.

<3

[writingwithcolor]

WWC’s A Beginner’s Guide to Academic Research

We are pleased to present  WWC’s A Beginner’s Guide to Academic Research!

This pandemic project has been over 2 years in the making and we hope it will greatly assist any of our readers who are eager to conduct in-depth research but may be at a loss where to start. 

Go to the Guide Here

The guide is split into 6 parts:

Introduction and Table of Contents

Part 1: Getting Started

Part 2: Searching for Sources Online 

Part 3: Evaluating Sources

Part 4: Navigating Academic Sources 

Part 5: Recognizing Your Limits

Each portion of the guide has links to connect to the previous and next sections. While it is possible to view tumblr pages on phones and tablets through the app, we highly recommend viewing this guide via browser on desktop whenever possible. Tumblr page formatting is better suited for browsers and each section is very dense with information, which will make scrolling in the app or on your dashboard difficult. 

Future FAQ/ Discussion: 

As noted in part 5 of the guide, for the next two weeks, we will be keeping an eye on the notes for this post. If you have further questions or comments about academic research, drop them here and we will select the most pertinent to respond to in a later post. 

If you find this guide helpful, we request that you consider tipping the moderators below for the work and time required from conception, to drafting, formatting and debugging. Their ko-fis are listed below: 

Rina: https://ko-fi.com/arcanabean

Marika: https://ko-fi.com/5h1njuu

[writingwithcolor]

It's back-to-school season! Use this guide as a reference for your papers, projects, your creative writing assignments, or anything else that you might need research for.

Tag anyone who you think might need this guide this fall term!

[luna-azzurra]

Body type and shape

1. Lean: Having a slender and toned body with minimal body fat.

2. Muscular: Having well-developed muscles and a defined physique.

3. Slender: Having a thin and graceful body shape.

4. Curvy: Having an hourglass figure with well-defined curves, particularly in the hips and bust.

5. Athletic: Having a fit and muscular body, often associated with participation in sports or physical activities.

6. Petite: Being small and slender in stature, usually referring to height and overall body size.

7. Voluptuous: Having full and shapely curves, often emphasizing a larger bust, hips, and thighs.

8. Stocky: Having a compact and solid build with a sturdy appearance.

9. Thin: Having a slim and slender body shape with little body fat or muscle definition.

10. Well-proportioned: Having balanced and harmonious body proportions, with each body part in good proportion to the whole.

11. Toned: Having firm muscles and a defined physique resulting from regular exercise and strength training.

12. Chubby: Having a plump or rounded body shape, often with excess body fat.

13. Pear-shaped: Having a body shape where the hips and thighs are wider than the shoulders and bust.

14. Hourglass figure: Having a curvy body shape characterized by a well-defined waist and proportionate bust and hips.

15. Apple-shaped: Having a body shape where weight is primarily carried around the midsection, resulting in a broader waistline.

16. Broad-shouldered: Having wide and well-developed shoulders in comparison to the rest of the body.

17. Long-limbed: Having long and slender limbs in proportion to the body.

18. Stout: Having a sturdy and robust build, often characterized by a solid and thick physique.

19. Plump: Having a pleasantly full and rounded body shape, often indicating a higher percentage of body fat.

20. Tall and slender: Being tall in height and having a slim and elongated body shape.

[coffeebeanwriting]

A Quick Tip: Themes and Morals

The Theme and Moral of your story go hand in hand and are often confused as the same thing. They are very similar and work together to create a compelling, cohesive story.

The theme of your novel is the central idea of your story. It’s woven throughout your entire novel, revealing itself in conflicts and your character’s actions. 

Some major themes: love, redemption, survival, coming of age, good vs. evil, revenge, war, etc.

The moral of your story is the deeper meaning of your book, often a lesson or belief that the author wants to leave the reader with. 

A story with the theme of love might have a moral (or lesson) such as beauty is in the eye of the beholder or love has no limits.

To further understand your theme/moral, ask yourself:

“What lesson do I want to leave my readers with when they finish my book?”

Then answer it in one sentence:

Theme: Love Lesson/Moral: I want to show my readers that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Theme: War Lesson/Moral: I want my readers to understand that good can’t exist without evil.

Theme: Coming of Age Lesson/Moral: Don’t judge a book by its cover.

Supporting Themes

To really sell your theme and make it the strongest that it can be, adding in supporting themes can elevate your story.

Supporting themes are smaller ideas that branch off of and are related to the main theme. Weaving these smaller themes into your side characters can help create a very well-rounded story.

Main theme: Love Some supporting themes: Trust, comfort, obsession, self-love, envy, jealousy, friendship. Example: A protagonist is forced to marry an evil king. His concubine becomes jealous of your protagonist who is just trying to find self-love amidst this huge change. The king becomes envious when a knight is overly friendly to the protagonist, who feels as if she can trust this knight as a friend. A group of villagers are obsessed with the king and bully the protagonist. An elderly servant brings comfort to the protagonist by acting as a mother figure.

All of these side characters and subplots support the main theme of love! Everything ties in together.

Instagram: coffeebeanwriting  

[writingmaz]

Writing Tips

Punctuating Dialogue

✧

➸ “This is a sentence.”

➸ “This is a sentence with a dialogue tag at the end,” she said.

➸ “This,” he said, “is a sentence split by a dialogue tag.”

➸ “This is a sentence,” she said. “This is a new sentence. New sentences are capitalized.”

➸ “This is a sentence followed by an action.” He stood. “They are separate sentences because he did not speak by standing.”

➸ She said, “Use a comma to introduce dialogue. The quote is capitalized when the dialogue tag is at the beginning.”

➸ “Use a comma when a dialogue tag follows a quote,” he said.

“Unless there is a question mark?” she asked.

“Or an exclamation point!” he answered. “The dialogue tag still remains uncapitalized because it’s not truly the end of the sentence.”

➸ “Periods and commas should be inside closing quotations.”

➸ “Hey!” she shouted, “Sometimes exclamation points are inside quotations.”

However, if it’s not dialogue exclamation points can also be “outside”!

➸ “Does this apply to question marks too?” he asked.

If it’s not dialogue, can question marks be “outside”? (Yes, they can.)

➸ “This applies to dashes too. Inside quotations dashes typically express—“

“Interruption” — but there are situations dashes may be outside.

➸ “You’ll notice that exclamation marks, question marks, and dashes do not have a comma after them. Ellipses don’t have a comma after them either…” she said.

➸ “My teacher said, ‘Use single quotation marks when quoting within dialogue.’”

➸ “Use paragraph breaks to indicate a new speaker,” he said.

“The readers will know it’s someone else speaking.”

➸ “If it’s the same speaker but different paragraph, keep the closing quotation off.

“This shows it’s the same character continuing to speak.”

[novlr]

How to write charming characters

With both positive and negative aspects to their personalities, charming characters can be difficult to write convincingly.

Whether you're writing a romantic love interest or a compelling con man, here are some examples for giving your charming characters depth.

How do they behave?

Attentive listeners: they pay close attention to people around them

Take pride in their appearance

Are happy to share personal space

Speak with a strong voice and an energetic tone

Are often hospitable and give off an air of welcome

Always give the impression that they are happy to see you

Demonstrate empathy

How do they interact?

Have a firm handshake and make strong eye contact

Are often encouraging

Compliment freely

Use humour to create a fun atmosphere

Communicate physically (through touch and gesture)

Make a point of using a person's name

Initiate conversations

Describe their body language

Have a relaxed stance with a straight and confident posture

Inclusive and attentive

Mirroring: they will mirror the body language of the person they are interacting with

Will lean forward to show attention

Lightly touch to create connection

A slight head tilt to show interest

Rarely cross their arms or legs

Maintain eye contact

Describe their attitude

Carefree

Good sense of humour

Friendly and playful

Self-aware

Opinionated and confident

Exhude an impression of honesty

Good intuition

Highly social

Polite and respectful

Eager to please

Potentially manipulative

The positive aspects of charm

Charming characters put people at ease, praise them freely, and boost their confidence. They make friends easily, talk their way to favourable resolutions, and are often the centre of attention.

They have impeccable grooming, conveying trustworthiness and concern for others, leading to a sense that they have your best interests at heart.

The negative aspects of charm

A charming character can manipulate others for personal gain. They can be overbearing, exerting their will on less confident individuals.

Their charm often draws focus, making others feel inferior, making them perfect for a protagonist to exhibit personal growth, or for a villain that a reader will fall in love with.

[whump-or-whatever]

Ways To Reveal a Character’s Traumatic Past

Dream sequence/nightmare

Flashback/resurfaced memories

Revealed by psychic reading Whumpee’s mind

Found footage/pictures

Someone finally asks and they explain

As the reason behind a thought process/assumption/belief

Whumper shows up and taunts them

Scars

Through conditioned behaviour

Finding an old journal

Hints dropped in conversation

Have someone who knows tell someone who doesn’t

• • •

Feel free to add others!

[philosophicalparadox]

PTSD specific reactions that can lead into a reveal without stating it outright:

Sudden, inexplicable anxiety. They have no idea why, or where it came from, but it's here now, and they have to cope with it. Some cope by hiding. Some cope by dissociating (social isolation) or disassociating (retreating into their head) some cope by being angry about it, etc. I have yet to know a single person with PTSD who doesn't get frustrated by Random Trigger Episodes so keep that in mind.

Speaking of which, a clear and obvious trigger setting them off. Multiples are common; it's rare that a person has just one trigger, though it's not very often that multiple triggers happen at once, since people with PTSD tend to avoid things that they know will set them off. Sometimes it can not be avoided however.

And please do mix and match. You want the audience to connect with the idea that they are traumatised, so I encourage making that feel as dynamic and realistic as possible without turning readers away by the intensity.

[inky-duchess]

Fantasy Guide to Hosting a High Society Dinner Party

In every period piece, the rich, the noble and the Royal often gather for an exquisite meal where etiquette reigns supreme. The intricacies of these high society dinners are complex, one foot out of line and you risk offending your guests. So how can we write them?

Place Settings

Perhaps the most complex part of a dinner is how the silverware, plates and glasses are arranged on the table. First the table is laid with a wool cloth to keep the white tablecloth in place. The tablecloth has to hang midway between the floor and the table. Every course has to have its own set of silverware, every course must have its own glass for the wine being served. Napkins are usually of linen, cut about twenty-four to twenty-six inches. Most tables would have centrepieces either of candelabras or flowers. This would be undertaken by the footmen under the eye of the butler.

Seating

Table seatings are just as important as anything for a dinner as it marks rank. The head of the house sits at the head of the table. The guest of honor sits next to the head and if they have a guest, say a friend, they sit on the other side of the head of the household. A spouse of the female guest will sit to the left of the host and the spouse of the male guest at the left of the hostess. Important guests are seated near the host or hostess. Other guests at the table are arranged by interests, usually near people they can speak with. Married or engaged guest generally do not sit with one another. Most dinners are arranged in a man-woman arrangement. Most dinners, especially formal ones, would have assigned seating.

Serving

In the dinning room, there are usually a collection of footmen and the butler to serve. The butler selects and pours each wine for the courses served. He serves the host first, working clockwise around the table with each footmen carrying either the sides, accompanying sauce or the meat/fish itself. In very formal settings, every guest may have their own footman to cater their needs. While waiting at table, the servants don't talk to the guests unless asked a direct question they must avoid avoid eye contact and offer the plate to the appropriate height so the guest can easily serve themselves. All footmen and the butler must wear white gloves while serving.

Timeline

Before dinner, guests gather in the salon or drawing room to have a drink and get settled before hand. Some houses served cocktails during this time. When dinner is announced, the guests will make their way into dining room with the men escorting the ladies they are seated with, following after the host in order of precedent. Most formal dinners had multiple courses, sometimes as much as twenty or so. After dinner, the ladies would leave the men to their drink and cigars while they take coffee in one of the drawing rooms. They would reunite after for some light conversation and entertainment.

Drink

There are strict rules involving drink. Most courses would have their own wine. White wine is served with the fish, red wine with the meat, and champagne or sherry with dessert. Port, coffee and other drinks such as curaçao would be served after supper. Wine would have had to be strained for sediment by the butler beforehand and decanted once opened.

Dining Etiquette

There are numerous rules to follow when is dining at a formal dinner right down to leaving the table or what you wear.

One doesn't sit until the hostess has been seated, the guests wait behind their chairs until she sits.

Men would pull out the chair for the lady to their right. Hands should remain off the table when not in use they should be ones lap.

Napkins are placed on one's lap but only after the host/hostess does, with the fold tucked at the waist.

As for silverware, one begins with the outermost pieces and work your way in for each course.

One only begins eating or drink when the host does. When the host/hostess stops eating, placing their silverware on the plate at the 10:20 position, everyone must stop eating.

When a lady rises, the men near her are expected to stand, pulling out her chair and pulling it in when she returns.

When being served, one is not expected to thank the servants.

When at a formal dinner, men would wear their whites and tails. At a less formal dinner, men would wear dinner jackets.

Married ladies would wear tiaras at formal suppers and all ladies wore gloves, removing them while eating.

[theliteraryarchitect]

Are You Using Too Much Stage Direction?

Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, we don’t need to know that someone crossed the room, reached for the coffee cup, turned sideways, took a step forward, or glanced to the left.

Visual writers have an especially hard time with this (fiction writers who “see” their story in their head, and write down the images blow-for-blow, as though narrating a movie).

There’s nothing wrong with this writing process, of course. Just know that you’ll be more prone to adding excessive, pointless movements to your novel or short story.

Then, when revising, ask yourself if they are important to the story (sometimes, it is important that someone took a step forward!) and take out the ones that aren’t. Or, better yet, delete them all, then put back only the ones that have left holes in their absence.

Remember, stage direction is different from meaningful gesture or action.

Meaningful gestures and actions can orient the reader or give information about character or plot.

Stage direction, by my definition, is pointless movement.

Here is an original excerpt from Haruki Murakami’s Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World to illustrate my point.

“See anyone milling around in the hall?” I asked. “Not a soul,” she said. I undid the chain, let her in, and quickly relocked the door. “Something sure smells good,” she said. “Mind if I peek in the kitchen?” “Go right ahead. But are you sure there aren’t any strange characters hanging around the entrance? No one doing street repairs, or just sitting in a parked car?” “Nothing of the kind,” she said, plunking the books down on the kitchen table. Then she lifted the lid of each pot on the range. “You make all this yourself?”

Here, we get just enough to orient us–we know the woman was outside the apartment, she walked into the house, went into the kitchen, and the narrator followed her there. But Murakami doesn’t actually say that. He allows us to infer those movements from the dialogue and the light peppering of action and description.

Now, here is the same excerpt re-written with way too much stage direction:

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