#gltownsend

[gltownsend]

Writeblr Intro -- last updated 30/03/24

- me

aboutpagelink here

Hi! My name is Gabriel and I'm a first year (freshman) environmental ecology/geophysics (double) major :] I'm not going to say exactly how old I am, but I am an adult. Writing is a hobby of mine and I have been—in some form—posting my shitty little stories on the internet since I joined Wattpad at 11 (God.)

— however, I am new to this community and I've never shared writing or interacted with any writeblrs on tumblr before! I've only recently started writing more seriously, and I'd really love to make some mutuals/friends who write because no one I know in real life does.

(I also have a side blog where I'm less serious @goodlucktownsend .)

- my writing

Pretty much (like every other person here) everything I ever write, at least right now, is fantasy.

Most of my stuff ranges from teen fiction to young adult and new adult, mostly with some kind of coming-of-ageish theme. Currently there's been a significant amount of romance worming its way in, but that will never be the main plot.

I also like scifi, historical fiction, most things that aren't set in the current real world.

- my WIP

Ephemera | young adult/teen coming-of-age (romance) fantasy

link to wip page here (??) help

(I don't know where to end this. How do I end this. It's over.)

Anyway I'd love to meet some of you guys! Ka kite anō, hope to see you around :D

[gltownsend]

Also I am starting to feel a bit self conscious about the snips I have been posting haha so I would like to say just in case anyone has noticed that they’re awkwardly worded, pacing is off, dialogue unnatural, or in any way just any flavour of not-very-good- all of these snips are taken directly from my unedited (because it’s not finished) first draft and not looked over very hard. So they’re really very stream-of-consciousness it-doesn’t-have-to-be-good-it-just-has-to-be-done right now :v

[gltownsend]

First Line Tag

Tagged by @simonnebethel, thank you!!

The first line of Ephemera (book one):

Nikora's hands shook as he cleaned the dried blood off Anahera's arm. He dropped the cloth and cursed. He had to try twice to pick it up.

The first line of Dissonance (book two) (working title):

Nikora's hands were steady and confident as he cleaned the blood off Anahera's cheek. He almost wished they weren't, that they would tremble the way they used to. That it wasn't a muscle memory he fell into so easily now. That he had to stop and think before he moved.

Tagging (again no pressure, and sorry if you've already done it haha) @shadow-of-tea-and-tea @fincheswrites @chaptersbycaz

[gltownsend]

One thing that does annoy me a decent amount is that there are many cultural aspects I want to sort of incorporate into my fictional culture that there are no words for in English.

If I want them to live communally in villages that have a sort of wharenui – wharekai – wharepuni thing going on, well, I can kind of make up for that by translating and saying, like, they all live together and there is a meeting/hanging out/common house and an eating place and a sleeping house. Even if it sounds weird and might not get the exact idea across, it has the correct meaning I guess.

But then there are also concepts that are not easy to translate at all. If I want there to be a waharoa at the entrance of a space I can not call it a gateway easily because both that is not really right at all and it lacks all deeper meaning. The concept of tapu is really, really difficult to use while restricted to English words because its meanings can fall along a scale of anywhere from sacred and holy to forbidden and untouchable- but I can't use those words because it gives the totally wrong idea. People will read the word sacred and take a totally different meaning.

Karakia also; I want them to do something similar but I absolutely can't call it prayer—which is the only similar English word—without people taking something influenced by Christianity from that.

In real life (where I live at least) it is super easy to not translate ideas, like it is super normal to just use the Māori words inside an English sentence like hey I'm gonna run across to the wharenui or say hi to the whānau for me or whakarongo mai come on guys quiet down but I can't use Māori words or terms in an English book; both because an English book needs to be written in English (duh), but also because people might take it like, this is a Māori book, or maybe a book that was inspired or influenced by Māori culture, but it's totally not. It's stock standard fantasy based off nowhere particular and definitely not any culture's history. And that would probably be disappointing or confusing to some people. Just ugh. I want to use the words that fit

[gltownsend]

I feel like everyone here has a million songs and playlist for all of their WIPs and characters and I have like ~2 songs that remind me of my WIP on a good day and none of the other ~980 songs in my library do at all and I don't know how to find new songs that fit, because nothing new I listen to does, and it's not like I can search for music with hyperspecific themes that would remind me of it

[gltownsend]

I have contracted a terrible disease called Can't Draw Anything Good and I don't know if you guys know but it's agonising

[gltownsend]

Last Line Tag

(Tagged by @mister-writes, thank you!)

This is pretty nothing without context, but:

In the darkness, his fingers--slick and numb and useless--almost missed it.

I have no clue who's done this because I was tagged... a month and a half ago... but I assume your last lines have changed since then- so I will tag @inkhelm, @writingrosesonneptune, and anyone who wants to do this!

[gltownsend]

I am also very vulnerable to drawing clothes really stiffly and flatly and then not redoing it for days because I already did it and don't want to again. :( You actually wouldn't believe how many shitty iterations of that tunic the guy went through, and I'm still not happy with it.