Syluk

One Piece, Naruto, Supernatural fanfiction writer

[luna-azzurra]

WHY YOU SHOULD EDIT YOUR WORK...

⋆.𐙚 ̊ because your first draft was you telling yourself the story. your second draft is you telling the story to your readers. there's a difference. you know what you meant when you wrote "she felt sad" at 2am, but your reader doesn't. editing is where you translate your midnight brain into something other people can actually feel.

⋆.𐙚 ̊ because you'll find so much you forgot you wrote. little gems buried in the mess. that perfect metaphor you threw in casually in chapter four that actually ties into the climax. that side character who showed up for one scene but could be so much more. editing is like going on an archaeological dig through your own imagination.

⋆.𐙚 ̊ because plot holes don't fix themselves and you've definitely got some. everyone does. your character's eye color changed. your timeline makes no sense. someone died in chapter eight but they're having breakfast in chapter twelve. editing is where you catch these things before your readers do, and trust me, readers always catch these things.

⋆.𐙚 ̊ because editing is where you kill your darlings and birth your favorites. that scene you loved writing but doesn't serve the story? it can go. but that throwaway line that suddenly becomes the entire thematic backbone of your book? that's editing magic. you're not just cutting and polishing. you're discovering what your book was actually about all along.

⋆.𐙚 ̊ because distance gives you perspective, and editing gives you distance. when you read your work weeks or months later, you're not the same person who wrote it. you can see the flaws. you can see the potential. you can be honest about what's working and what's just you being precious about words that don't earn their keep.

⋆.𐙚 ̊ because good books aren't written, they're rewritten. every author you love edited their work. probably multiple times. probably while crying. probably while thinking "this is still terrible." and then they edited it again. and again. until one day it wasn't terrible anymore. that's the process. editing is where good becomes great.

⋆.𐙚 ̊ because you owe it to your story to make it the best version of itself. you spent all that time drafting it. all those late nights and early mornings and lunch breaks and stolen moments. don't abandon it now. see it through. polish it until it shines. your story deserves that much. you deserve that much.

[syluk-sky]

I'm in the middle of drafting a full story right now, and I started thinking that I don't know how to write properly anymore. It's a draft, it can be bad, but I've been writing it for two months now and that's the only thing I've been writing. So, I've been writing 'badly' for two months now... It just started to get to me. So, thank you, I needed to hear this and I'm glad Tumblr spit this one out to me.

[ath3alin]

so fucking humbling to be like “no I like that character a normal amount” and then you can literally feel your heart rate spike at a mention of them like a dog that just heard the word “treat”

[syluk-sky]

Someone said 'Shisui'? 👀

[sentientsky]

repeating this to myself forever and ever

[syluk-sky]

Gosh, I feel it in my bones, all the way to the very marrow, and deeper still in my soul... It's like trying to peel your own skin off with a butter knife.

[allthingswhumpyandangsty]

your comment means so much to the author!! don’t be shy about letting your favorite authors know you love their works.

if their fic makes your day, your comment makes their day too

[allthingswhumpyandangsty]

[allthingswhumpyandangsty]

@ previous tag, I just wanted to share my own thoughts on this, as a reader and a writer myself, I don’t think it’s “weird” if an author doesn’t respond back to a comment they got.

because authors don’t owe anyone anything. and them not responding for whatever reason (not knowing what to say? feeling like a simply “thank you so much” sounds too cliche and repetitive when it’s used to respond to several people? being too tired from life outside of fandom space? feeling overwhelmed? all of these are what I have experienced as a writer who tries to respond to comment I received) does not mean they don’t appreciate the support people have shown them.

sometimes I can’t respond to comments I received on my works, for the reasons I have previously stated, but that does not mean I don’t read and appreciate each and every single one of them.

and as a reader who comments on works I love, I never expect the authors to respond to my comments. sure, it’s great if they do. but the point of me commenting on their works is only to let them know I love what they wrote and I appreciate them for sharing these works with me. they don’t have to respond to me. because, as a writer, I totally understand responding to comments can be very overwhelming too.

my point is that comments are always deeply appreciated, but yeah, as a writer and a reader/commenter, the main purpose of comments is to let the authors know we love and appreciate them and their works. not for them to always respond.

the point of fandom should not be “straining yourself to interact with every single person who interacts with you”, the point of fandom should just be that it’s fun, it’s a source of comfort and self-care.

so in my opinion, “interacting with other people in the fandom” is not the whole point of fandom, not to me, at least. having fun and engaging in fandom space/activities on your own terms is the point.

[syluk-sky]

Wouldn't have said it better myself. Please, don't hold it against the authors who don't reply to all the comments. Life sometimes just isn't nice to everyone.

[an0neemouse]

Don't use adverbs. Said is dead. Always show, never tell. Avoid cliches. Never use the word 'very.' Don't use alliteration. Don't use boring descriptors. Use unique words.

For fuck's sake, what can I use? Seriously y'all, I don't know about you, but all the advice on how to write does Jack shit for me other than make it really fucking impossible to tell a story.

Write what you want to. Fuck the rules.

[syluk-sky]

The worst thing about having old dogs who are completely deaf (my oldest is 17 years old) is that I can't tell them what good girls and boys they are from a distance anymore.

[syluk-sky]

When the angels actually live up to their hype (◕ᴗ◕✿)

The Wrath of Heaven (Supernatural AU fanfic on Ao3) The Archangel Michael hadn't planned to stay human for so long, and he certainly hadn't expected to reincarnate as Dean Winchester, the human who broke the first seal of Lucifer's cage and who by his Father's Will was supposed to become his true vessel. (AU from season 4, BAMF Michael!Dean)

Chapter 14: And Then, the Heavens Screamed

Powerful pulses rolled out across the ground in a steady rhythm as if the earth had turned into a giant living creature that breathed. Overhead, the storm clouds directly above the church began to split by some unseen force tearing them in two. The sky gaped open in precise, symmetrical lines, and the brilliant light that glowed from within was anything but natural.

Dean recognized that light in an instant—one of the Seraphim was charging a smite.

And not a simple smite, but the kind that didn't simply cleanse, but annihilated. A single, devastating strike that would leave behind nothing but a scorched crater and glassed earth. A divine nuke in every sense.

<...>

Sam barely registered the destruction. His gaze was drawn upward, mouth parting in disbelief, only now noticing the split sky Dean had watched earlier. Light finally broke through the clouds, falling down in searing beams so intense he had to raise a hand to shield his eyes. More and more poured out, threading and merging together, converging in a single, blinding column that gradually engulfed the ruined church.

<...>

The smite descended.

A shockwave detonated from the point of impact, tearing through space, bending the laws of nature until the very weaves of reality distorted. The world went white and soundless. Every window in every building and car blew up in a rain of glass. Trees splintered and broke. Lampposts crumpled like paper. People were tossed like ragdolls, some with inaudible cries, some silent forever, some with ruined eyes that would never see again.

Time stuttered and stopped. Everything was still.

Then, slowly, it restarted. The whiteness began to recede, colors flooded back, and the world righted itself. The sound returned as a cacophony of noise and screams and car alarms blearing all around. The light pillar narrowed, edges fraying into shimmering mist, until there was only a thin line left that retreated upward like a sword being withdrawn into the heavens. The clouds folded in, reforming over the rift as if nothing had ever happened.

Dean exhaled and pulled his grace back inward, releasing the shield that protected the Impala from the impact. Streets were turning chaotic, people were stumbling from buildings in panicked waves and running around, and he had to focus on the road.

"Oh my god…" Sam whispered, craning to look through the rare window again.

Nothing was left in the area they had just escaped from. Only a wide expanse of incinerated land, a few remaining structures charred and crumbling from the weakest breeze.

Dean glanced at it in the side mirror, quickly assessing the aftermath. All things considered, the smite was remarkably contained. Seraphim specialized in mass destruction and were capable of leveling entire cities without breaking a sweat. This strike, however, had been extremely precise, its firepower compressed into a tight, surgical burst.

Definitely not Uriel's style. And the other two Seraphs Dean had seen in the squad didn't seem strong enough to pull off something like that. Castiel, then.

His lips twitched into a faint, knowing smile. Yeah, it fit. Castiel, still trying to minimize collateral damage, even in a desperate fight against the Throne. Still the soldier with a conscience.

[syluk-sky]

Sammy's getting suspicious 👀

The Wrath of Heaven (Supernatural AU fanfic on Ao3) The Archangel Michael hadn't planned to stay human for so long, and he certainly hadn't expected to reincarnate as Dean Winchester, the human who broke the first seal of Lucifer's cage and who by his Father's Will was supposed to become his true vessel. (AU from season 4, BAMF Michael!Dean)

Chapter 13: The War We Walk Into

"Wait." Sam reached out to stop him. When Dean turned, Sam held out the demon-killing knife. "You should take it."

For a second, Dean looked at the knife without taking it. They had never figured out where it came from or why it worked. Eventually, they stopped asking. But Dean knew the truth now—it had a fragment of an angel's blade forged into it. A small, unclean fragment, probably from one of Lucifer's followers, and it wasn't powerful, but it was something. And right now, Sam needed it more.

"Nah, you keep it," Dean said, pushing Sam's hand away.

In the brief moment of their fingers touching, Dean let his grace pass through Sam's body. He couldn't purge the piece of Azazel's grace lodged in his brother's soul—not right now, not with the scraps of grace he gathered— but he could keep slowly burning the demon blood out of Sam's veins. Progress was slow but steady, and Dean had nothing but patience.

"I've got something better now," Dean declared as he stepped out of the car and around it to the trunk. He popped it open and pulled out Samyaza's sword, holding it up with a smug grin. "I don't need your toothpick when I've got this."

Sam didn't look impressed. "How do you even know it works on demons?"

Dean opened his mouth, already halfway through the first syllable of 'Castiel told me', when Sam cut in with a terse, "Don't say it was Castiel again."

Wincing, Dean shut his mouth. Okay, maybe he had been leaning on that excuse a little too much. How else should he explain stuff he knew that he had no business knowing? "Fine," he muttered, wrapping the sword in one of his flannel shirts to hide it from curious eyes. "For the record, he didn't tell me this time. But think about it, this thing belonged to an angel. You think she'd be swinging around a regular sword?"

Sam sighed and shifted his weight, pulling his face into that particular expression when he was gearing up for an argument.

Dean wasn't keen on arguing right now. "We don't have time for chitchat, Sammy," he said with a finality as he closed the trunk and turned on his heel. "Let's go." He started walking toward the church before his brother could get another word in.

Sam let out another sigh before following after him.

[syluk-sky]

That awkward moment when you're a budding commission scammer and you don't know which message template to use, so you throw them all and hope that one will stick. Oh, and you also forget to change the placeholder words...

Maybe scamming isn't for you, loser.

[syluk-sky]

I feel like the phrase 'write for yourself' is starting to be used too rigidly these days or treated like the only valid approach, when in reality, writing can be for yourself and others. I enjoy writing, but I also enjoy sharing and getting comments! Is it really that horrible that I enjoy both? Why should I feel guilty about my own excitement over sharing a new chapter and eagerness to know what readers will think about it?

Of course, you should write for yourself, fanfiction especially, first and foremost, but being excited to share it with the others isn't something to be ashamed of either.

If we all wrote just for ourselves, Ao3 and similar websites wouldn't exist.

[allthingswhumpyandangsty]

"If you use em dash in your works, it makes them look AI generated. No real human uses em dash."

Imaging thinking actual human writers are Not Real because they use... professional writing in their works.

Imagine thinking millions of people who have been using em dash way before AI becomes a thing are all robots.

REBLOG IF YOU'RE A HUMAN AND YOU USE EM DASH

[syluk-sky]

I hate that, since I first came across this take, I catch myself considering if I really need an em dash every time I type it down. Em dashes are so good though! So useful! I don't want some rabid takes taking away my joy of using them 😞

[abbielauren2024]

Reblog if you’re grateful for your commenters <3

[syluk-sky]

I love my commenters 🤗💙

[p0tat0-g0ddess]

I haven’t platonicposted in a while

[syluk-sky]

Hell, yeah! Friendship/family/found family are the things I enjoy writing the most ♥

[syluk-sky]

A quiet conversation between Dean and Castiel on the roof of the hospital at night. Dean's being a big brother Castiel deserves, even if he doesn't know it yet :)

The Wrath of Heaven (Supernatural AU fanfic on Ao3) The Archangel Michael hadn't planned to stay human for so long, and he certainly hadn't expected to reincarnate as Dean Winchester, the human who broke the first seal of Lucifer's cage and who by his Father's Will was supposed to become his true vessel. (AU from season 4, BAMF Michael!Dean)

Chapter 12: Rot in the Feathers

“What about you?” Dean asked. “You really buy into all this? Just following orders, doing what you’re told, no matter what it costs?”

Castiel found the man’s piercing gaze unnerving, as if it cut through his vessel, past the flesh and bone, seeing deeper, seeing his true self. It unsettled him. Without realizing it, he drew his wings in tighter. A fleeting thought crossed his mind, a thought of what Dean would say if he truly saw his true form, if he knew that Castiel bore the same taint as the Fallen that harmed him earlier.

“I was created to follow Heaven’s will,” he answered, paused, then opened his mouth to add something, but instead, closed it.

“I can hear ‘but’ coming.”

Encouraged by Dean’s gentle prompting, Castiel continued, “But… I find that I have questions. I have doubts.” His words flowed out with weary hesitance. He would have never confessed it to any of his siblings, because he had heard horror stories about Heaven’s punishment for any signs of rebellious thoughts. And yet, for some reason, he trusted Dean to keep it a secret.

One of his wings twitched, a twinge of pain running through it. Castiel brought it forward, noticing a loose black feather stuck halfway, broken and bent. He reached for it and yanked it out with force. It was sticky and unpleasant, leaving black marks on his fingers. He let the feather go and watched it dissolve into dark particles before dispersing with the gust of wind.

“I get it,” Dean spoke finally. “I really do. You spend so long following orders, thinking someone else knows better than you, that it becomes your belief, your shield, your everything. But listen, Cas.” He fixed Castiel with those piercing green eyes that appeared almost golden against the glowing town backdrop. “Faith isn’t blind obedience. Doubts don’t mean you’re wrong, and questions aren’t sinful. It means you care. And sometimes, they lead you to the real truth.”

In an instant, indignation ignited inside Castiel, rising like a tidal wave, rebuke on the tip of his tongue. ‘Heaven’s will is absolute’ was a dogma his entire existence was built around. And yet, he couldn’t voice it now, couldn’t put it into words. If Heaven’s will was absolute, why did he pray that Dean would choose to save this place? Why was he so relieved when he did?

“If you ignore your doubts, they’ll just grow stronger. And one day…” Dean trailed off, staring somewhere into the distance. His mouth cracked open in a wry smile, so full of sadness and regret, shame and guilt, it looked absolutely out of place.

Castiel wondered what kind of bad memories haunted him and if it was possible to chase them away.

Soon, Dean cleared his throat, visibly pulling himself out of the moment. “And one day, you’ll look back and regret everything,” he finished, but a touch of sadness still lingered, written in the lines of his features. “Trust me. I’ve been there.”

Castiel believed him.

[syluk-sky]

Dean would totally agree to be a celestial wingman for a desperate, hormonal teen xD

The Wrath of Heaven (Supernatural AU fanfic on Ao3) The Archangel Michael hadn't planned to stay human for so long, and he certainly hadn't expected to reincarnate as Dean Winchester, the human who broke the first seal of Lucifer's cage and who by his Father's Will was supposed to become his true vessel. (AU from season 4, BAMF Michael!Dean)

Chapter 11: A Town on the Brink

Dean tossed his car keys onto the dining table as he replied, "I recently learned that angels can hear prayers, so just had the funniest thought."

This time, Sam spared him a suspicious glance. "Dare I ask?"

Still grinning, Dean plopped down onto the bed. "Imagine some desperate, hormonal teen praying to them to get laid."

A beat of silence for a solid two seconds. "Yeeeah," Sam drawled. "Because that's totally what a prayer is for."

"Hey, man, sometimes people wish for divine intervention for the stupidest reasons," Dean pointed out. It might have sounded absurd to the ears of others, but he had heard all kinds of prayers during his eons-long existence. Starting from silly, innocent ones from children to utterly deranged ones that religious fanatics liked to send.

"As if an angel's gonna show up just to be some kid's celestial wingman even if the kid prayed for it," Sam said with a little disbelieving shake of his head.

Dean couldn't help but grin again. That was exactly what this kid hoped for. "We even have angels fluttering around now, maybe one of them out there would take up this mission and then say…" He set his features into a haughty expression, chin up, brows knitted, and lips pursed, then extended his hand with fingers splayed toward Sam, and declared with as much grandeur as he managed, "Fear not, child, for I shall bless thee with a carnal union."

A laughter bursting out from Sam seemed like an accident, because a moment later, it morphed into an exasperated groan. Rubbing his face with one hand as if trying to get rid of the lingering amusement, he muttered, "I bet if you were an angel, you'd take this kind of mission."

Dean considered it for a moment before shrugging.

[jaded-stag]

I keep seeing people making fun of using growled, hissed, roared, snarled etc in writing and it’s like.

have you never heard someone speak with the gravel in their voice when they get angry? Because that’s what a growl is.

Have you never heard someone sharply whisper something through the thin space of their teeth? Or when your mother sharply told you to stop it in public as a kid when you were acting up/being too loud? Because that’s what a hiss is.

Have you never heard a man get so blackout angry that their voice BOOMS through the house? Because that’s what a roar is.

Have you never seen someone bare their teeth while talking to accentuate their frustration or anger while speaking with a vicious tone? Because that’s what snarling is.

It’s not meant to be a literal animal noise. For the love of god, not every description is literal. I get some people are genuinely confused, but also some of these people are genuinely unimaginative as fuck.