The randomness of a girl named Sarah...

Hello! My name is Sarah. I love to read and write as though it is breathing. I am 26 and getting my Masters in Writing for Children and Young Adults . I have an immune disorder and I feel sick a lot of the time.Team Unicorn for life. I am a nerdfighter, too. I once blog here: http://sarahbear9789.blogspot.com/ Also team Unicorn, because I was a unicorn in my past life.

[indomie-fried-noodle]

[deactivated-blog]

Us by the end of 2020:

[shindysbaby]

you know what sucks? everything bye

[vanish]

[grungegoths]

[existential-celestial]

expectation at age 13: will grow up to become the extroverted, witty, and enchanting elizabeth bennet

reality at age 22: has grown up to become the introverted, awkward, and stressed out fitzwilliam darcy

[hestiacygnus]

Avengers but Queer and Female

[breeeliss]

hot tip: there’s a lot you can do to make productive use of your time when you find you’re having trouble writing. 

i think a lot of young writers get down on themselves when they sit down to write and then hours go by and they can’t get a single word down. one of the best pieces of advice i got from my creative writing teachers over the years is that a lot of the ways you get better as a writer happen when you’re not writing. 

so here’s a list of productive things to do when you’re blocked: 

go read. seriously. just close the word doc and pick up a book. it’s cliche advice but reading other writers really does make you a better writer. it exposes you to unique vocabulary, narrative devices, writing styles, sentence structures, genres, plot structures, so many different tools that are important for diversifying your writing and making it better. 

get into journaling. i recommend journaling to everyone i know, but if you’re a writer i really do think it’s a useful thing to try. doesn’t have to be every day. journaling for you could be just having a notebook on hand that you pick up whenever you have a stray thought. but thoughts lead to ideas which lead to concepts, plots, characters, lines of dialogue, and sometimes entire stories. plus, i find it’s easier to write a stream of consciousness than to write an actual piece. so if a piece of writing is giving you trouble, pick up your journal and just write about what’s bothering you and what’s in your head. 

it’s also good to sometimes flip through these every so often if you’re seriously blocked. you’d be surprised what gems you write down when it’s 2am and you’re feeling a little listless. 

organize your WIPs. this was one the best things i’ve ever done. remember all of those old WIPs you never did anything with? don’t throw them out! create an organizational system for them. personally, i like to organize them by prose/short fiction/long fiction/essays and then by subject matter since it’s easier for me to find that way. it’ll make them easier for you to go through when you’re blocked. and even if they don’t end up becoming full pieces, there are a lot of cool ways you can use WIPs for writing exercises. 

a cool one i do is that i randomly pick two WIPs that have nothing to do with each other (i.e. a personal essay about sexuality and a short story about a witch living in the city) and find a way to marry them together (i.e. a witch living in the city whose magic starts becoming unstable as she starts questioning her sexuality). 

chill with other writers. if you don’t have a network of friends who are writers/creatives, go to tumblr and reach out to some of your fic/artist friends. honestly, some of the best ideas i’ve gotten have come from discord DMs where my friends and i are either riffing off of each other or coincidentally talking about something that sparks an idea. hitting your group chats isn’t a waste of time or a method of procrastination. might actually be the first step before hitting a goldmine.

re-read old comments/critiques. i always go back and read old critiques from college workshops or even go back and read some old ao3 comments. it’s a good way to refamiliarize yourself with what you do well and what you need to improve on. sometimes i’ll pull up old WIPs and give them to friends to take a look at. even if it’s rough, it’s always good to get used to getting comments/feedback and keeping track of those. you should always have a list in your head of what you plan to work on/keep an eye on as you write. 

read books on writing. if you’ve ever taken a formal writing workshop/class, you’ll notice that your instructor – in addition to giving you writing assignments/exercises – makes you read about how to write. you gotta read books on how to write. think of it like playing the piano. you can practice for 7 hours a day, but if you don’t understand any of the theory you’re not gonna get any better. same goes with writing. when i’m blocked, i pick up stephen king’s “on writing” and skip to my favorite sections. it’s always a good move to get advice from seasoned writers who have been there done that, and personally when i read some really good advice, it inspires me to put it into practice. 

don’t ever feel bad for sitting at your computer for hours with no words down or going a week having only written 100 words. writer’s block happens. don’t let it paralyze you. go out and hone your craft. that’s never going to be a waste of your time. 

[spectacularparkers-deactivated2]

[she-who-fights-and-writes]

How do you recommend writing a brother relationship. It’s pretty crucial to my story. The older one is serious, and strict while his brother is dreamy and gentle

How to Write Siblings

A lot of people struggle when it comes to writing siblings.They make their relationship too stilted and forced, to the point where they’realmost glorified acquaintances.

A sibling relationship isn’t just about quipsand annoying each other, though those things may be a big part of it, so if youwant to write a believable pair of siblings(with a good relationship with oneanother), here are some tips.

1. They Don’t Love Each Other THAT Much

Unless you’re writing about something that’s very not good, siblingsshouldn’t be too touchy-feely. When they’re older and aren’t living in the samehouse, siblings kiss each other on the cheek hello and goodbye, but teenagedsiblings rarely do that, if at all.

An older sibling may kiss a much younger sibling on thecheek, and there may be a lot of hugging involved, but in my experience,siblings who are close in age only kiss on the cheek if they’re older and don’tsee each other often. If you’ve had a sibling, you know that they DO NOT kisseach other on the lips. That’s just weird. (Yuck!)

2. They Have to Do Sibling Stuff Together

A good sibling relationship isn’t cultivated by ignoringeach other, though many siblings spend a lot of time doing just that. Even ifthey are annoyed by each other, they can’t just…not interact for the wholestory.

Sibling affection can be conveyed through various acts thatmay seem weird but to siblings are perfectly normal.

 Jumping on each other/playful fighting

Real Fighting over weird things (My personal favoriteargument that I’ve had with my brother is which Smash Ultimate character is thethiccest)

Scaring each other

Playing video games together

Playing pranks on each other

Inside jokes

Weird rituals (Whenever we encounter each otheron opposite sides of a hallway, my brother and I just strike the do it to em’pose until one of us yields and thus proves their inferiority)

Staring contests

Violent footsie under the table

Spilling tea about bfs/gfs/friends/school drama

Watching Netflix together

Listening to music together

Simply sitting in the same room and enjoying eachother’s presence

Nicknames (Ever since I read A Gentleman’s Guideto Vice and Virtue I’ve referred to my brother exclusively as Goblin)

Contests/rivalry (who can run the fastest, whocan climb the highest, who can fit the most marshmallows into their mouthwithout choking, etc. Usually prefaced with “race ya” or the anxiety-inducing “readyset go”)

3. They Have to Be Supportive

Siblings stick up for each other. They comfort each other.Sometimes, when they’re feeling petty, they snitch on or berate each other ruthlessly.

They might get mad for a while and ignore each other, but eventually it’ll allbe okay because it’s really hard to stay mad at a fellow quasi-human who livesin the same house as you.

If a sibling is getting bullied at school, the vengeance inthe others will burn white hot for a person they haven’t even met; they mightlove embarrassing the sibling, but they’re the only one who’s allowed to bullythem. No one else. “Penalty for bullying a sibling is death.”

4. Some Movie/TV/Book Siblings to Reference

The Lightwoods (The Mortal Instruments)

Nani and Lilo (Lilo and Stitch)

Kenai, Koda, Sitka, and Denahi (Brother Bear)

T’Challa and Shuri (Black Panther)

Dash and Violet (Incredibles)

Hiro and Tadashi (Big Hero 6)

Felicity, Monty, and The Goblin (A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue)

Sam and Dean Winchester (Supernatural)

Klaus, Luther, Vanya, Allison, Diego, Number Five, and Ben (Umbrella Academy)

Carter and Sadie (Kane Chronicles)

Scout and Jem (To Kill a Mockingbird)

The Weasleys (Harry Potter)

The Starks (Game of Thrones)

Hope this helped, and other people with siblings should feelfree to add stuff!

[thatwritergirlsblog]

Killing off characters: the shoulds and shouldn’ts

1. Why you should

The death is a major plot point

It reveals some shocking plot twist

It supports your themes/what you’re trying to say with your book

Your novel explores the afterlife

You are George R.R Martin and the selling point of your work is that everybody dies

It suits the genre/mood of your novel

2. Why you shouldn’t

The character isn’t serving any purpose (this isn’t the Sims)

You want your readers to be shocked for the sake of being shocked

You want to be edgy

You think your MG story needs more gore

You want to romanticise grieving/loss

3. How you should

This really depends on your genre and target audience

If you’re writing something that isn’t intended to be graphic/traumatic, you can stick to the impact the death has on the other characters. If your novel explores illness, focus on that rather than on the disturbing death scene itself. Perhaps you’re writing a drama/tragic romance - you might want to ease up on the gore here. For these genres, I would suggest focusing on the emotional aspect of the death - the sobbing, the last words, the bright white lights (whatever floats your boat). Think of Mufasa in The Lion King - the actions are suspenseful, but we don’t see him being trampled with his guts spilling everywhere. But it’s still one of the most impactful deaths in fictional history.

If you’re writing in a more mature and gritty genre (like thriller, dark fantasy or crime), you can go all out. If there’s blood and guts, you readers probably want to see it in vivid detail to get their violence fix for the day.

Whichever genre your novel falls into, you should also go with what feels comfortable to you. Even if you’re writing adult dark fantasy, you don’t have to write graphic violence to make a character death impactful.

4. How you shouldn’t

Please don’t let your character have a three-pages-long monologue after they’ve been stabbed in the throat. It’s not realistic and it’s often very boring. Yes, a few well-written last words can have a great impact. Just make sure that your character would realistically be able to speak at that point and that it doesn’t become a cheese fest.

Unless you’re aiming for very dark/nihilistic humour, afford your characters some dignity in the way they kick the bucket. (e.g. don’t use the phrase “kick the bucket”). Having someone slip on a banana peel and then choke on a pretzel is a little ridiculous and will make the entire story seem silly. Once again, this really depends on what you’re going for. If your genre is serious and your character is important and beloved, try for emotion rather than whimsy.

Don’t let your characters die only to be resurrected again and again and again. Look, I love Supernatural (long may they reign), but even I have to admit that the Winchester brothers’ luck with death has become a bit ridiculous. Doing this takes away from the impact of the death - it removes the fear and suspense, and will leave your readers emotionally stunted.

5. Who you shouldn’t

Your only female character in a bid to make the male hero feel something and become a better person

Your only LGBTQIA+ character, who is just too pure to live in this terrible world

Your only character of colour, who dies to save the white hero

Your only disabled character, who can now finally find release from life with disability

The one character who has never experienced a sliver of joy and bears the brunt of the tragedy, right when happiness is finally within their reach

The main character in the middle of the story - unless you have a REALLY good plan for what happens next

Reblog if you found these tips useful. Comment with your own thoughts on killing off characters. Follow me for similar content.

[crowswritetoo]

[relatablepoetryandquotes]

“It’s all right to love someone who doesn’t love you back, as long as they’re worth you loving them. As long as they deserve it.” - Cassandra Clare; Clockwork Angel (via overvhelm)

via @qvotable

[relatablepoetryandquotes]

“Brave doesn’t mean you’re not scared. It means you go on even though you’re scared.” - Angie Thomas, The Hate U Give

[drunk-on-writing]

just because he wasn’t strong enough to hold you doesn’t mean you were too heavy to be loved

(cc, 2019)

[buffshipper8490]

Reblog the mighty pencil of Spongebob Squarepants to receive inspiration for all your writing and artistic endeavors

[ruined-lulu]

“[…]Particularly if the library is very tall and the surrounding area has been flooded.”

- Lemony Snicket