Starla-Nell's Writing Blog @starlanellwrites - Tumblr Blog

attolirene-deactivated20160522

OC Codex Prompts

I’ll be honest, I’m mostly writing this because I’m trying to come up with codex entries for my ocs and this gives me a good way to think about what kinds there are. but hey, reblog, ask for a number and an OC? or add your own. whatever floats your boat. written with Dragon Age OCs in mind.

an overheard conversation about your OC

a letter written by your OC’s family member

a report written by your OC’s teacher or mentor

a letter from your OC to their love interest

letters between two of your OC’s companions about them

someone describing a time your OC helped them

someone describing a time your OC hurt them

your OC’s doctor/healer talking about their injuries

a future historian’s account of your OC’s actions

a description of your OC by someone who hates them

your OC’s description of their game’s events

your OC overheard while drunk

transcript of an interview with your OC

your OC talking about your favorite quest

a letter to your OC from a companion they haven’t seen in a while

a conversation between your OC and their best friend

a description of your OC’s family by a future historian

chosenbytheplanet-blog

16 Villain Archetypes

The TYRANT: the bullying despot, he wants power at any price. He ruthlessly conquers all he surveys, crushing his enemies beneath his feet. People are but pawns to him, and he holds all the power pieces. Hesitate before getting in this man’s way – he’ll think nothing of destroying you. The BASTARD: the dispossessed son, he burns with resentment. He can’t have what he wants, so he lashes out to hurt those around him. His deeds are often for effect – he wants to provoke action in others. He proudly announces his rebellious dealings. Don’t be fooled by his boyish demeanor – he’s a bundle of hate. The DEVIL: the charming fiend, he gives people what he thinks they deserve. Charisma allows him to lure his victims to their own destruction. His ability to discover the moral weaknesses in others serves him well. Close your ears to his cajolery – he’ll tempt you to disaster. The TRAITOR: the double agent, he betrays those who trust him most. No one suspects the evil that lurks in his heart. Despite supportive smiles and sympathetic ears, he plots the destruction of his friends. Never turn your back on him — he means you harm. The OUTCAST: the lonely outsider, he wants desperately to belong. Tortured and unforgiving, he has been set off from others, and usually for good cause. He craves redemption, but is willing to gain it by sacrificing others. Waste no sympathy on him - he’ll have none for you. The EVIL GENIUS: the malevolent mastermind, he loves to show off his superior intelligence. Intellectual inferiors are contemptible to him and that includes just about everyone. Elaborate puzzles and experiments are his trademark. Don’t let him pull your strings – the game is always rigged in his favor. The SADIST: the savage predator, he enjoys cruelty for its own sake. Violence and psychological brutality are games to this man; and he plays those games with daring and skill. Run, don’t walk, away from this man – he’ll tear out your heart, and laugh while doing it. The TERRORIST: the dark knight, he serves a warped code of honor. Self-righteous, he believes in his own virtue, and judges all around him by a strict set of laws. The end will always justify his nefarious means, and no conventional morality will give him pause. Don’t try to appeal to his sense of justice – his does not resemble yours. The BITCH: the abusive autocrat, she lies, cheats, and steals her way to the top. Her climb to success has left many a heel mark on the backs of others. She doesn’t care about the peons around her – only the achievement of her dreams matters. Forget expecting a helping hand from her – she doesn’t help anyone but herself. The BLACK WIDOW: the beguiling siren, she lures victims into her web. She goes after anyone who has something she wants, and she wants a lot. But she does her best to make the victim want to be deceived. An expert at seduction of every variety, she uses her charms to get her way. Don’t be fooled by her claims of love – it’s all a lie. The BACKSTABBER: the two-faced friend, she delights in duping the unsuspecting. Her sympathetic smiles enable her to learn her victims’ secrets, which she then uses to feather her nest. Her seemingly helpful advice is just the thing to hinder. Put no faith in her – she’ll betray you every time. The LUNATIC: the unbalanced madwoman, she draws others into her crazy environment. The drum to which she marches misses many a beat, but to her, it is the rest of the world that is out of step. Don’t even try to understand her logic – she is unfathomable. The PARASITE: the poisonous vine, she collaborates for her own comfort. She goes along with any atrocity, so long as her own security is assured. She sees herself as a victim who had no choice, and blames others for her crimes. Expect no mercy from her – she won’t lift a finger to save anyone but herself. The SCHEMER: the lethal plotter, she devises the ruin of others. Like a cat with a mouse, she plays with lives. Elaborate plans, intricate schemes; nothing pleases her more than to trap the unwary. Watch out for her complex designs – she means you no good. The FANATIC: the uncompromising extremist, she does wrong in the name of good. She justifies hers action by her intent, and merely shrugs her shoulders at collateral damage. Anyone not an ally is an enemy, and therefore, fair game. Give up any hope of showing her the error of her ways – she firmly believes you are wrong, wrong, wrong. The MATRIARCH: the motherly oppressor, she smothers her loved ones. She knows what’s best and will do all in her power to controls the lives of those who surround her – all for their own good. A classic enabler, she sees no fault with her darlings, unless they don’t follow her dictates. Don’t be lured into her family nest – you’ll never get out alive.

lostlegendaerie

Tips on Writing Characters Without Faces

so yeah, we all know that facial expressions can tell us a lot about how a character is feeling, but what if that isn’t an option? how can you make someone emote if they don’t really have standard facial features? the answer; body language.

let’s consider how emotions are conveyed on a stage production vs movie with Sweeney Todd. First, the stage play:

Note how Todd’s entire upper body goes into his gestures, how he’s single-mindedly focused on his dreams and ideals; how his hands GRAB for each imaginary ‘man’ with these sharp, aggressive, destructive movements and how that contrasts with Mrs. Lovett’s body language; how her hands linger in the air and gravitate towards Todd even after he’s pulled away, and the slow turn she gives him. It does an excellent, though exaggerated, way of conveying their relationship (her focus is on him and making him happy, his focus is entirely on revenge)

Contrast this to the movie:

Same lines in the song, much more subtle. Lovett’s eyes still track towards Todds, which reminds us she’s still more focused on the outside, but all of the emotion is in their faces. Were this not a close-up shot in a movie it’d be very, very hard to read their expressions.

While I do recommend you watch a few stage plays (in person near the back row if you can) to actually study body language for yourself or try out charades with your face covered with friends/watch how cosplayers or mascots emote, here’s a few shorthands to get you started (US-centric so expressions may vary on your region):

Head:

perfectly still - fear, intense attention, feeling under scrutiny

tilted up - recollection, intimidation (looking down nose at threat, aiming to appear taller)

tilted down - intense thought, shame (avoiding eye contact), depression/sad feelings

turned away - not giving person full attention, avoiding subject/conflict without being combative

cocker-spaniel (sideways) tilt - confusion, curiosity, amusement

Hands

at the forehead - fatigue (wiping away sweat), illness (checking self for fever, feeling a headache), realization/memory (a ‘well duh’ tap)

at the eyes - fatigue or headache (shielding eyes from light), distress (blocking out a painful view, concealing tears)

at the nose - disgust (a pinch at the nostrils,) irritation (rubbing at sore spot on nose from glasses wear)

at the mouth - nausea, surprise, repressing an emotion/stopping self from saying something

at the chin - contemplation, tiredness (face resting in hand)

rubbing back of neck - a need to relax tension, embarrassment, slight unease/desire to distract self

at the chest - surprise, self-protection (reaction to a wounding statement, sometimes used sarcastically), strong emotions (clutching at heart, could be good-strong or bad-strong), need for security (touching necklace/adjusting clothing to conceal more)

at the stomach - pain (clutching, pressing), satisfaction after a meal, protectiveness towards fetus when applicable

at the hip(s) - confidence, intimidation, nervousness (if grabbing for weapon)

at groin - concealment/unease (usually male-coded as protection of genitals), politeness (hands folded in lap)

on thighs - exhaustion (bent over, hands on legs supporting tired upper body)

formed into fists - holding back an intense emotion, preparing to fight

toying with something - restlessness (bored, nervous energy, craving something they can’t touch) or deliberate disrespect of property (playing with personal objects someone holds dear as an intimidation tactic)

Arms

at sides, relaxed - default posture

at sides, tense - unease, restraint (soldier at attention, person holding still to avoid being attacked), fear

crossed at chest - disapproval, displaying authority, unease (hugging oneself)

crossed at stomach - pain, intense laughter (caused by sore stomach muscles from laughing)

up, fingers laced behind head - confidence, relaxation

one arm on back of furniture - confidence, invitation for someone join them

general rule - the further arms are away from body, the more confident/dominant a person means to appear; exposed torso indicates that they don’t see anyone around as a threat to them

Legs

square with shoulders - professional, restraint, protective stance

wide stance, one foot a little back but planted - defensive stance, expecting to receive blows (knees may be unlocked - seen in swordplay and fencing)

weight on one leg - relaxed, tired, may also be leaning on something or pair with one ankle tucked behind the other

uneven stance - could indicate old injury

foot tapping/bouncing - boredom, nervous energy

Whole Body:

stiff and still - fear, unease, standing to attention

limp or pliant - relaxed, tired, pleased

shoulders back/head up - alert, focused, aggressive

shoulders forward, hunched - tired, ashamed

leaning towards person - interest, intimidation (looming over them), aggression (usually paired with tense arms or hands in fists,)

leaning away from person - relaxation, confidence, disgust (recoiling)

smooth/fluid movements - joy, confidence, experience

stiff motions - fear (reactive, fight or flight), pain (reluctance to move), anger (either fighting to keep control of emotions or lashing out), cold (conservation of heat by keeping limbs near body)

cracking joints/stretching - preparing for a fight, often reading as confidence in abilities

general rule - close contact/proximity can read as intimidation (paired with tense body - an invasion of personal space) or affection (paired with relaxaed body language, gentle movement) or passion/attraction while distance can read unease/distaste/fear/dislike.

with those in mind, let’s read this scene from Red vs Blue (a personal fav of mine for body language) featuring agent texas from season 8.

So first of all, very relaxed upper body; limp arms held away from the body, which slowly come back to rest on her hips as she looks at what she’s done. Watch how her lean shifts at the end as her center of gravity shifts, and how she has to move her right leg to restabilize herself when she’s finished pushing it. This reads, in order from the start of the loop; detachment (the least amount of her body is involved in the action as possible), relaxation (smooth movements, the deliberation of those little steps backwards) and confidence (hands on hips.) We can tell a ton about this character just in this gif alone, based on her body language.

in summary! this list isn’t exhaustive, but hopefully it gives you some ideas for ways of making characters emote in fics when you can’t see their faces.

#revision tag needed

sonatagreen

A tradition

In peacetime, the ruler grows their hair long. In war, they cut it short. A ruler with long hair is held in great esteem, for defending the peace. The traditional declaration of war is for the ruler to send their cut-off hair to the enemy ruler. The statement carries greater weight the longer the hair: to receive long hair says that you have angered one who is slow to anger, that you have incurred a wrath not easily woken.

wakor-rising

Violent war-mongering leader frantically and aggressively tries to shave just a LITTLE hair off the top of their head into an envelope.

A faraway king receives a heavy wooden crate filled with a coil of the longest hair he has ever seen.

A despised ruler finds hundreds of pounds of cut-off ponytails at her castle entrance, each one belonging to her own people.

A young emperor refuses to cut their hair and insists on trying to make peace with invaders. The enemy leader steps forward, draws their blade, and cuts the emperor’s hair themselves.

Hellen cuts her hair off and throws it in Cathy’s face at her son’s soccer scrimmage.

hyratel

@dovewithscales I forget if you’ve seen this one

dovewithscales

I have but it’s worth seeing again.

dzamie

A dragon sends someone a long lock of hair. The dragon has no hair, only sleek scales. An unsettling development: the dragon is calm enough to use a human tradition, yet enraged enough to seek someone with such length and obtain their hair for the message.

dovewithscales

Everyone around that person retreats to a minimum safe distance cause they know something bad’s about to happen.

#writing prompts

thecaffeinebookwarrior-deactiva

The Author Speaks: All My Original Writing Content

For your convenience, a masterpost of all (or most) of my original posts so far. It will obviously be updated as I create and add more!

Enjoy, and thank you for reading! <3

The Basics: Plotting, Descriptions, and More

The Dos and Don’ts of Beginning a Novel

How to Write Good Dialogue

How to Avoid Purple Prose

Tips for Visual Thinkers

5 Ways to Name Your Novel

Marketing and Platform

Marketing Masterpost

Mythology

Angelic Cheat Sheet

Romance

How to Write a Kiss Scene

How to Write a (Healthy) Romance

Characterization

How to Get to Know Your Characters

Male Protagonists to Avoid in Your Writing

Female Protagonists to Avoid in Your Writing

How to Write Strong Female Characters

The Straight Person’s Guide to Portraying Queer People

The Traits of a Likable Hero

The Secret to a Relatable Villain

How to Write (or Avoid) Abusive Parents

thecaffeinebookwarrior-deactiva

Recently updated masterpost! Happy writing, everybody! <3

firemoon42

Ways to un-stick a stuck story

Do an outline, whatever way works best. Get yourself out of the word soup and know where the story is headed.

Conflicts and obstacles. Hurt the protagonist, put things in their way, this keeps the story interesting. An easy journey makes the story boring and boring is hard to write.

Change the POV. Sometimes all it takes to untangle a knotted story is to look at it through different eyes, be it through the sidekick, the antagonist, a minor character, whatever.

Know the characters. You can’t write a story if the characters are strangers to you. Know their likes, dislikes, fears, and most importantly, their motivation. This makes the path clearer.

Fill in holes. Writing doesn’t have to be linear; you can always go back and fill in plotholes, and add content and context.

Have flashbacks, hallucinations, dream sequences or foreshadowing events. These stir the story up, deviations from the expected course add a feeling of urgency and uncertainty to the narrative.

Introduce a new mystery. If there’s something that just doesn’t add up, a big question mark, the story becomes more compelling. Beware: this can also cause you to sink further into the mire.

Take something from your protagonist. A weapon, asset, ally or loved one. Force him to operate without it, it can reinvigorate a stale story.

Twists and betrayal. Maybe someone isn’t who they say they are or the protagonist is betrayed by someone he thought he could trust. This can shake the story up and get it rolling again.

Secrets. If someone has a deep, dark secret that they’re forced to lie about, it’s a good way to stir up some fresh conflict. New lies to cover up the old ones, the secret being revealed, and all the resulting chaos.

Kill someone. Make a character death that is productive to the plot, but not “just because”. If done well, it affects all the characters, stirs up the story and gets it moving.

Ill-advised character actions. Tension is created when a character we love does something we hate. Identify the thing the readers don’t want to happen, then engineer it so it happens worse than they imagined.

Create cliff-hangers. Keep the readers’ attention by putting the characters into new problems and make them wait for you to write your way out of it. This challenge can really bring out your creativity.

Raise the stakes. Make the consequences of failure worse, make the journey harder. Suddenly the protagonist’s goal is more than he expected, or he has to make an important choice.

Make the hero active. You can’t always wait for external influences on the characters, sometimes you have to make the hero take actions himself. Not necessarily to be successful, but active and complicit in the narrative.

Different threat levels. Make the conflicts on a physical level (“I’m about to be killed by a demon”), an emotional level (“But that demon was my true love”) and a philosophical level (“If I’m forced to kill my true love before they kill me, how can love ever succeed in the face of evil?”).

Figure out an ending. If you know where the story is going to end, it helps get the ball rolling towards that end, even if it’s not the same ending that you actually end up writing.

What if? What if the hero kills the antagonist now, gets captured, or goes insane? When you write down different questions like these, the answer to how to continue the story will present itself.

Start fresh or skip ahead. Delete the last five thousand words and try again. It’s terrifying at first, but frees you up for a fresh start to find a proper path. Or you can skip the part that’s putting you on edge – forget about that fidgety crap, you can do it later – and write the next scene. Whatever was in-between will come with time.

“Where are those lines? I might ask you to… eat fish, or… Would you be okay with a permanent mark? A scar. I have no idea, we’ve never talked about it. It’s extreme enough to fit a reasonable definition of ‘no limits’, but it would be permanent, and I have no idea whether you would like it.”

Fenris quirks a bewildered look at Hawke and glances at his own lyrium tattoos, permanent scars covering his skin.

“What does that look even mean?!? You’ve accepted them, but your tattoos are a permanent mark of your former slavery. Would you want my mark because it would be your choice? Would you hate me for giving you one because it was too similar to what Danarius did? I have no idea, because we never talked about it. But if I were horny enough, I might try it if you said ‘no limits’ and if I’m wrong… You said it yourself, you would leave. I don’t want to lose you, either, and I don’t want to do the kind of damage Danarius did. You took years to recover. I will leave if we become toxic for each other, but I’d rather not get that bad.”

Fenris *does something to get Hawke’s undivided attention. “I swear I will never say ‘no limits’ again. It isn’t hot or significant to me in any way, but it’s clearly distressing to you.”

“Not if I know what it means.”

“Well, you’re right about one thing. If you wanted to mark me permanently, it would have to be my choice. Location, shape, the tool to make it, every detail. But I would want you to do it.”

“Fuuuuck. Maker’s Bride, Fenris, that kind of trust is hot.”

#Treats #deleted lines

ao3commentoftheday

If you see this, message a reader and tell them what story they helped you write

As a cheerleader, as a beta, or as a sounding board - they’re the person you did it for. Share the love and let them know!

thescriptorium

MERMAID AU’S

“I am a simple mermaid trying to get a simple college education and you fUCKERS KEEP PREVENTING THAT BY THROWING WATER BALLOONS AT ME FIVE MINUTES BEFORE CLASS SO IM STRANDED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FUCKING QUAD FOR A HOUR UNTIL IT WEARS OFF”

“Alternatively, I was skipping class and saw you trying to drag you and your huge ass tail through the courtyard–do you need help? I guess I can carry you to class if you’d like, though I’m not so sure this was worth being called ‘Prince Eric’ for the next two weeks”

“I knew there was a reason why you were so good in marine biology and why you always had to one-up me in the exam scores yOU’RE A MERMAID THIS IS SO UNFAIR IM TURNING YOU IN FOR CHEATING CHEATER”

“I don’t know why i thought bringing you to a sushi bar was a good idea, i thought seeing all the live fish in the tanks would have been nice but i forgot about all the dead ones after”

“I’m the mermaid so of course im always picked to go on diving missions by you biased advantage taking pricks, and you know what? i don’t care what you say, its dark and scary and theres something down there that i have never forgotten why do you think i stay on land”

“apparently due to your mystical sea creature powers you have the ability to mimic any sound you hear, so you know what means friend?? VOICE IMPRESSIONS! MORGAN FREEMAN GO”

“I know its late and i dont know you but i hear you can talk to fish and im worried my goldfish is depressed”

“I take my showers before bed and I always end up scaring the shit out of your boy/girlfriend while dragging my two ton tail to the kitchen for some ice cream at 11 at night”

tinybearswithjetpacks

@kat-atomic I want to write all of these stories

la-vie-en-whump

October approaches!

In celebration of our cozy online community, I present to you WHUMPTOBER - 31 Days of deliciously painful prompts for your creative pleasure. Visual art, writing, editing - post whatever inspires you!

Treat (or rather, torture) your whumpees to some tantalizing tropes and tag your work with “whumptober“ so others can enjoy your stuff!

(The challenge kicks off on October 1st, feel free to participate as much or as little as you like. DM me if you have Qs. This post will circulate my blog a few times as we near the end of September. Good Luck and Happy Whumping!)

[Edit] To answer some questions: -Moodboards, aesthetics, video/gif edits, etc are welcome! -Fanfiction is welcome! -Do NOT use the whumptober tag for NSFW (create what you like, but the tag itself needs to be sfw) -Interpretation of the tropes is up to you (free free to deviate if you get inspired) -Yes, collabs/exchanges are allowed! -Yes, you can repost your work to other sites (ao3, twitter, etc etc etc). It’s your work after all!

meridelclarke

Fanfiction Trope MASH-UP

Rules: Send me two (2) tropes from this list + a ship and I’ll describe how I’d combine them in the same story.

Historical AU

Royal AU

Modern AU

Coffee Shop AU

Bar/Restaurant AU

Bookshop AU

Florist AU

Hospital AU

Dance AU

Airport/Travel AU

Neighbour AU

Roommate AU

Detective AU

Bodyguard AU

Criminal AU

Prison AU

War AU

Circus AU

Summer Camp AU

Teacher AU

Dystopian AU

Space AU

Performer AU

Soulmate AU

Fairy Tale AU

Massage Fic

Sick/Injured Fic

Proposal Fic

Wedding Fic

Holiday Fic

Birthday Fic

Pregnancy Fic

Baby Fic

Vacation Fic

Bathtub Fic

Text/Letter Fic

Coming Out Fic

Grief Fic

Survival/Wilderness Fic

Almost Kiss

First Kiss

The Big Damn Kiss

Dance of Romance

Flowers of Romance

Chocolate of Romance

Blind Date

Not a Date

Fake Dating

Fake Married

Arranged Marriage

Accidentally Married

Marriage of Convenience

Mutual Pining

Secret Relationship

Established Relationship

Awful First Meeting

Forgotten First Meeting

Accidental Eavesdropping

Interrupted Declaration of Love

Poorly Timed Confession

Love Confession

Love Confessor (Character A confessing their love for Character B to Character C)

Everybody Knows/Mistaken for Couple

Star Crossed Lovers

It’s Not You, It’s Me

It’s Not You, It’s My Enemies

Character in Peril

Heroic Sacrifice

Flirting Under Fire

Locked in a Room

Twenty-Four Hours to Live

Stranded on A Desert Island

Stranded Due to Inclement Weather

Huddling for Warmth

Bed Sharing

Did They or Didn’t They?

In Vino Veritas

Above the Influence

Anger Born of Worry

Green-Eyed Epiphany

The Missus and the Ex

Second Love

Intimate Artistry

Married to the Job

Innocent Physical Contact

I Didn’t Mean to Turn You On

Aroused By Her Voice

Erotic Dreams

First Time

Unexpected Virgin

PWP

Kink

Makeovers

Hair Brushing/Braiding

Sleep Intimacy

Scars

Time Travel

Curses

Magical Accidents

Accidentally Saving the Day

summersaints

Angst questions

Yeah so um I decided to make an oc ask meme based around angst. Some of these I came up with myself, others are from other ask memes and I just picked the angsty ones so here goes:

1. What’s one experience your character had that made them very afraid?

2. Does your character have a deep and/or dark secret? If so, what is it?

3. Have they ever lost a loved one? What happened to them, and are they the same as they were before they lost them?

4. Has your character ever been hurt or betrayed by someone they thought they could depend on? What happened?

5. Would they ever turn on someone they just met in order to save themselves?

6. Have they ever committed a crime, or something they felt was wrong? What was it?

7. If your character was allowed to murder one person without any consequences, who would it be and why?

8. Does your character have any enemies? If so, who and why?

9. Is the character a victim of abuse?

10. What were the character’s parents like? What was the affect the parents had on the character?

11. What are your character’s coping mechanisms?

12. Do they like to suffer? Like to see other people suffering?

13. What does it take to make your character cry?

14. What is your character’s biggest relationship flaw? Has this flaw destroyed relationships for them before?

15. What is their biggest fear? What in general scares them? How do they act when they’re scared?

16. What are your character’s vices and bad habits?

17. Is your character afraid of death? Why/why not?

18. Would society call your character a good guy or a bad guy? what would they say they are?

19. What is your character insecure about?

20. What was something they struggled with greatly and how did they overcome it?

21. Does your character have anyone that they really care about, to the point that they would give their life for them? If so, who are they and what is your character’s relation to them? If not, do they wish they did? Is there anyone they wish they could build such a relationship with?

22. If they could change just one thing about themselves, what would it be?

23. Is your character more physically or emotionally strong? Why is this?

24. What is your character’s most important possession? Why?

25. Do they find that they care what others think of them? Or do they not really mind how others view them?

26. What, in your character’s life, puts the most pressure on them?

27. What would be the worst way to die, in your character’s opinion?

28. What is your character’s greatest strength?

29. What is their weapon of choice, and what weapon do they dislike using the most?

30. What makes them feel safe or secure? What makes them feel insecure or unsafe?

witterprompts

“Now if only you’d stop inviting danger into my city.”

#Varric to Anders

bengalaas

Let’s raise the stakes! Keeping readers engaged in your story is, of course, paramount. And one of the easiest ways to ensure readers keep turning pages is to thread your novel with powerful stakes. Raising the stakes means making sure your characters always have something to lose. For

kaypier-deactivated20200518

More often than not I’ll crack into a sprawling fantasy series and, while I appreciate the luscious descriptions of furniture, landscapes, and clothing, all I’m focused on is that I don’t actually know how this world works. I only know what it looks like.

Including some functionality to your universe can add to immersion and give your reader a strong foundation on which to build their mental model of your universe.

You certainly don’t need to use all of these questions! In fact, I recommend against that, as all of these certainly won’t make it into your final draft. I personally find that starting my worldbuilding off with 5 to 10 functional questions helps pave the way for glittery and elaborate aesthetic development later on.

How is the healthcare funded in your world?

How does healthcare functionally differ between the wealthy and the poor? (i.e. can only the wealthy go to hospitals? do poor families often have to rely on back-alley procedures?)

Where are health centers (i.e. hospitals, small clinics, etc.) organized in your cities?

Does it differ in smaller towns?

How does this affect people’s ability to get healthcare?

Is healthcare magical, and if it is, how does that affect the healthcare system?

If healing is instantaneous, how does that affect people’s views on injury, illness, and chronic ailments?

If you have both magical and physical healthcare, which one is deemed superior and how does that affect society?

What illnesses are common in your world?

How does this affect daily life?

What do the people in your world think illnesses are?

Is it a miasma theory?

Humor theory?

Demons?

Do they know about biological viruses and bacteria?

How does this affect healthcare?

How do people get water?

Is the water sanitary and if not, how do they sanitize it?

How does agriculture work?

Is it large corporations or individual farms?

What sort of agricultural technology exists in your world and how does it affect food production?

Are farmers wealthy or poor?

What sort of natural resources does your world/country(ies) have and how are they obtained?

How does this affect the average wealth of the country?

How does this wealth affect the culture?

What livestock or beasts of burden are most valued? Least valued? Why?

What is considered a luxury good vs. a regular good?

What forms of transportation does your world have?

What classes use what forms of transportation?

How far has the average citizen traveled, given your transportation limitations?

Which cities are the most accessible and which are the least? Why?

How do popular transportation methods change how cities/towns are laid out?

Does your world have public transportation? What is it?

Is there a coming-of-age aspect to travel?

Describe your world’s postal system or whatever equivalent there is.

Who pays for it?

How reliable is it?

Are there emergency methods for transporting information?

How does your world keep time (i.e. watches, sundials, water clock, etc.)?

Does your world have a currency system, barter system, or something else?

If you have multiple countries, do different currencies have different values across said countries?

How does this affect travel?

Do you have banks in your world and if so, how are they run?

Who owns the banks? Government? Wealthy? How does this affect the economy and/or class system?

How does credit operate in your universe?

Does your world operate more on big corporations or small business? Something in between?

How are workers/labourers treated in your world?

Are there workers unions and if so, what are common views on unions?

Describe your tax system. If you don’t have a tax system, explain why and how your world is affected by that.

Can certain social classes not own property, certain livestock, certain businesses, etc.? Why?

How are business records kept? Are business records kept?

If your world has technology, does your world prioritize developing entertainment tech, communications tech, transportation tech or something else entirely?

What does this say about your world?

How does this affect your economy?

To the closest approximation, what type of government does your world have?

How are rulers/presidents/nobles put in place?

How much power does an individual ruler have?

Is there a veto process?

If you have multiple countries, do they have different types of rulers?

Describe any large-scale alliances (i.e. countries, factions, etc.) that are present in your world.

How did they come about and how are they maintained?

Are they strained or peaceful?

How does it affect the greater politics of your world?

Describe how wars are fought both internationally and nationally.

Do methods of war differ between countries/races?

What about philosophies about war?

If there is a military, what is its hierarchy structure?

How does the military recruit?

Is the military looked upon favourably in your society?

What weapons are used by each country/type of people during warfare, and how does that affect war strategies?

Describe the sentencing system of your world.

Is your accused innocent until proven guilty, or guilty until proven innocent?

How are lawbreakers punished?

If you have prisons, describe how they are organized and run, and who owns them.

Does differing ownership change how the prisons operate?

What are the major ways in which laws between countries vary?

Do laws between cities vary? If so, how and why?

How does citizenship work in your world? What rights and privileges do citizens have that others do not?

Can certain classes or races not become citizens?

Are there certain taboo subjects or opinions that artist/authors/musicians are not allowed to depict (i.e. portraying the official religion in a negative light, explicit sexual material, etc.)? What does this say about your society?

How do people get around these censorship laws?

What is the official hierarchy of duty in your world? (i.e. is family the most important, or patriotism? What about clan?)

How many languages are there in your world, and how many languages share a common origin?

How many people are multilingual?

Which language is the most common?

How is multilingualism viewed?

How are different languages viewed? (i.e. is one language ugly/barbaric while another is romantic and sensual?)

Feel free to add your own questions in reblogs or in comments!

heroineimages

Reblogging for reference.

captainsaku

@becausedragonage something like this?

becausedragonage

Awesome! That helps!

starla-nell

2019 Writer’s Roundup

I was tagged by @stormthedarkcity and @madamsnark to talk about my 2019 writing!! Thank you!

Word count:

88,732 published, 106,481 in original WIP

This isn’t what I’ve written this year, which would be nearly impossible to figure. Most of the AO3-published words were written in 2016-7 and revised in 2017-8. I drafted my original Lunar Noir WIP during NaNoWriMo of November 2017 and have been building it since.

Number of smut scenes:

5 published <3

New things I tried this year:

I thought my original WIP, the first-written of my Lunar Noir series, would be in beta this year. My crit group and WisCon saved me: the critters by pointing out some pretty big flaws in the romantic subplot and pacing and WisCon by teaching me how to fix those. This year, I…

tried a new pacing tool.

used a popular take on the romance beat.

released White Marble into the wild (aka AO3) before it was perfect. It was liberating and got my longest single fanfic out there faster.

released a few Treats pieces without beta for the same reasons.

experimented with POV in Return to Dust in 8 Takes.

completed my study of Writing the Other and learned about writing dialog and dialect from the Writing the Other course on the subject. I recommend both. The book is affordable and the courses have scholarships available.

started taking a stab at an original Lunar dialect of English based on Russian, plus Chicago-area AAVE and turning up the whiteness on my Planetside characters’ dialect to 11.

learned a lot about my original characters, including that my big bad would definitely send an assassin after Aletha.

Favorite things I wrote this year:

What can I say? I love the oh-no-one-bed trope. This paragraph from my Lunar Noir WIP haunts me:

Then we each disappear into the bathroom for our evening routines, and I fall asleep with my back against the pillow in the middle of the bed. I awake to a chime, clutching the pillow. Luís is in the shower.

Marvel fanfic

Just Hold Me, Asshole [AO3 link]

A Sam/Bucky smut fic for Bucky Barnes Bingo 2019. I just love the snarky Sam/Bucky dynamic so much. I blame @chicklette.

Complete.

Dragon Age fanfic

Right on Time

A smut fic written as a Valentine’s exchange gift for Ray Murata. I worked really hard to get Alec Surana and his dynamic with Zevran as close as I could.

Complete.

Favorite fics I read this year:

I have to choose?!? Ugh. Okay, here goes…

Unshipped

Uphill Both Ways In The Snow by BuckyKingofMemes aka @buckykingofmemes

What if Bucky got ahold of social media after all he’s been through? An unflinching but funny look at his character as a former assassin and current friend of the Avengers crew. Archived best-of from a Twitter account.

Ongoing series of short one-shots

Non-smut romance

Slight Return by Nny aka @winterhawkkisses

for its beautiful pacing, haunting portrayal of Marvel’s Winter Soldier, and tears-streaming-down-my-face portrayal of (comics) Clint Barton’s unshakable faith in his people.

Complete.

Smut

On a Good Day by ClaraxBarton aka @claraxbarton

for its intense use of a danger kink. Another Clint/Bucky because I love Bucky and the Clint/Bucky subset of the Marvel fandom is amazing. Also, I absolutely adore Clara’s explanation (which is almost always glossed over) of how Tony would ever let Bucky set foot in Avengers tower. It’s so *chef’s kiss* in character for both of them.

One-shot growing its own plot, so technically unfinished.

Ongoing long fic

Gilan’him Banal’vim (The Path that Leads Astray) by FoxNonny aka @foxnonny

FoxNonny has a pile of fic I love to read and re-read. This one is a Bull/Charger!Lavellan with eventual Bull/Lavellan/Dorian. The smut is kinky and hot. The plot explores Bull’s issues with the Qun and introduces us to the Lavellan clan. Also a good example of how porn can be integral to the plot.

Unfinished but still posting.

OC Loves Of My Life

All of these are unfinished but still posting.

Rosehip aka @october-rosehip for both Macsen Surana/Zevran and Ceilidh (basically pronounced Kay-lee) Tabris/Zevran.

MadamSnark aka @madamsnark for Kallian Tabris/Zevran

IcyLook aka @icylook for Vigil Surana/Zevran

Ray Murata aka @raymurata for Alec Surana/Zevran

AngstOfDestiny aka @panterry for Tavaris Mahariel/Zevran/Spawn Surana

Did I get everyone? I missed so many people & OCs I love! Comon, brain… Well, writers, rest assured I love you & your OCs, I’m just frying out after the holidays.

In any case, apparently I love elves who romance Zev.

Writing goals for 2020:

Go through 3 revisions in my Lunar Noir WIP this year, plus a stretch goal of the last revision.

Get beta readers, agents, and a second sensitivity reader through my Lunar Noir WIP this year. If you’re interested in beta reading, DM me!

Write 50,000 words of my new Lunar Noir prequel.

Build a writer’s website.

Aerobic exercise at least weekly and eat fruit 3xs daily. Yes, these are writing goals.

I’ll be posting any fanfic that demands attention, likely in the Treats and Kit’s SciFi AU universes, but that’s less of a goal and more of a prayer to my muse.

Tagging:

Everyone tagged above, if you want to be, and whoever else wants to do this!

starlanellwrites

Please follow my main account for writing news! I’ll be archiving this one this year if it hasn’t automatically.

🖊 🖊 🖊 (For any OC/s you’d like to talk about)

Three, huh? I’ll match three OCs with what to write and see what I can come up with.

Headcanon for Ruth Tabris

Can you even headcanon your own OCs? Okay, no, I’ve got something. Unlike most Zevmancers, I headcanon Ruth isn’t suicidal at all. She takes her time and actually trusts Zev not to stab her in the back by the time they do the do.

Fun Fact for Thena Adaar

Thena’s favorite fruit is the medlar, which very unfortunately for her only grow in northern Tevinter and are difficult to transport.

Paragraph of backstory for Hawke from Treats

The oldest son of Malcolm Hawke squatted on the bank of the stream, watching little ice chunks break free from the crust coating the edges, float toward the sea, and disappear as warmth and salt hit them.

“Maybe it goes into the Fade,” Bethany says in a woo-woo voice, right behind him. He starts, but he manages to not fall in and resists shoving her in. He’s rather proud of that. She would just pull him in with her, anyway.

“Does not,” Carver says, loud and twenty paces back and sauntering closer. “It just melts.”

“Carver,” Bethany chides. “You take the magic out of everything.”

“Why not?” He grumbles. “You’ll just put it back in.”

Hawke laughs.

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