#lin's tips

[swellio]

ways to describe facial expressions in writing

humans can obviously talk to communicate, but you have to remember that, naturally, we use our face to show expressions as well.

EYES

- widened in surprise/shock, filled with confusion/hurt

- narrowed into a glare

- filled with tears

- looking down at the ground defeatedly

- gleaming with mischief

- shining with hope/determination

- burning with hate

- emotionless stare

EYEBROWS

- raised in surprise

- furrowed in confusion/thought/worry

- one eyebrow perked to show attitude

NOSE

- scrunched in digust

- blushing with embarrassment

- lifted higher = more confidence/bigger ego

- aimed lower = less confident/weak

MOUTH

- in a pout = upset

- gaping with shock/confusion

- lips shaking from trying to hold back tears

- pursed in thought

- pulled into a smirk

- widened into a grin

PUTTING THEM TOGETHER

- Eyes wide and mouth gaping, they felt numb with shock.

- They felt their face begin to burn as they shifted their gaze to the ground.

- They pursed their lips as they concentrated, brow furrowing.

- Their eyes gleamed with mischief as they smirked.

using facial expressions is very useful in writing. simply using dialogue to express your characters’ emotions and thoughts will lose your audience’s attention and interest.

keep these in mind while writing!

[swellio]

building your characters!

personally, i love being able to create my own characters and give them all their own unique personalities. these are some fun and interesting ways to get to know your characters better!

1) introvert vs extrovert

deciding whether or not your character will be introverted or extroverted is a big step in creating their personality, especially if you’re planning some major character development for them throughout your story. a character that starts out quiet and insecure could learn to become more confident and open. 

you should also remember how people act differently in front of others. someone is most likely going to act differently around their parents than with their friends, so it would make sense for your character to become a bit more extroverted around the people they are more close with.

2) major characteristics

is your character humorous, or serious? optimistic or pessimistic? patient or hot-headed?

your character has to be memorable, so it’s best to give them complimenting traits that your readers will begin to identify them with. for example, your MC could be known for his courage, while your other protagonist could be shyer. those two personalities could help balance each other throughout your story, which is something your readers will most definitely notice.

3) 16 personalities/enneagram

taking these two personality tests as your character can reveal a lot of traits about them to you that may help you guide them throughout your story. not only is it super interesting to see what type of person they are, but it can help you if you’re feeling stumped on how to portray your character.

while both these tests go in depth, i feel like the enneagram takes it to a slightly higher level, just because it includes “wings” and levels of developments for each number.

4) names

while choosing names may be as easy as a quick google search for some, others — including me — really enjoy choosing really well-thought names. i like focusing on the roots of the name, such as picking a latin/greek root and twisting it so it turns into a memorable name.

i also like to name less important characters after some of my favorite fictional characters, such as from a movie or a video game. it’s just a fun little easter egg that some of your readers may notice.

5) music preference

your character’s taste in music could reveal a lot about them, just like people in real life. someone who likes calmer, lo-fi music could be a lot different than someone who loves hard rock.

you could even take it up a notch and make your character a playlist, which could further inspire you to write about them.

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thank you for reading! please like and reblog if you found this helpful, and stay tuned for more tips!

[swellio]

-masterlist-

Introduction

- my introduction!

- my re-introduction

Writing Tips

- building your characters

- killing off a protagonist/dealing with grief

- how to write a compelling story

- a tip for writing crying scenes

- tips for writing angsty scenes (without making it too cliche or cringy)

Writing Prompts

- 5 writing prompts for how your lovebirds can meet

- ways your characters can show varying emotions

[swellio]

killing off a protagonist/dealing with grief

one of the many stresses of writing is knowing when to kill off a protagonist  — especially if they’re one of your main characters. to avoid any backlash, here are the best ways to properly give your character an honorable death and what should come after.

1) make your readers care

no one is going to be affected by your character’s death if they don’t have some sort of charm. one book i think does this amazingly is the knife of never letting go by patrick ness. i won’t spoil what happens, but there is a major character death that struck many readers hard (including me).

before killing them off, really try to get your readers super attached to your character. to really feel the weight of your protagonist’s death, your readers should know them well — well enough that, when they die, it actually feels like someone they knew is gone. this is why killing off your character quickly will usually leave your readers either a) unaffected or b) angry that you just killed off a character with so much potential.

adding onto that,

2) give them an honorable death

i cannot stress this enough. please, please, please don’t have your character die a stupid, rushed death. i’ve seen this happen so many times, and, honestly, it ruins the story. (cough, rwby, cough, roman)

after putting so much effort into MC, deciding to kill them off “just because” is unacceptable. their death should help move the story forward, such as making another character realize something, or maybe they sacrificed their life for someone else. make it meaningful and sad; make your readers feel their hearts break as they watch their protagonist is dying in front of them.

3) don’t drag it on

if someone gets shot in the chest, they should be dead either instantly or within a few minutes at most, depending on where the wound is. 

the more you lengthen your MC’s death, the less of an effect it’ll have on your audience. by the fourth or fifth page, they’ll be wanting them to die already. 

keep it short and sweet. for example, you could make them panicked and scared, not knowing what’s going on before finally realizing they’re dying right as they let out their last breath. those are the types of deaths that hit your readers right in the heart.

4) once they’re dead, they don’t just vanish from people’s minds

this is very, very important if your MC has a love interest they have a deep connection with.

the MC’s love interest shouldn’t just run off with another person right after they die. grieving can affect people for long amounts of time, depending on their personality. even someone who is usually stoic and strong may take weeks to get over a close friend’s death.

have your other characters mourn their friend’s death. if there’s a lot more of your story after the death, mention the MC throughout just to show how the other characters are still recovering, and also to remind your readers of their loss.

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thanks for reading! please like and reblog for more, and my ask box is always open.

[swellio]

how to write a compelling story

anyone can slap some words down on a page, write “the end” and call it a story — it takes real effort to write a suspenseful, page-turning story that will keep your readers on the edge of their seats. here are — what i think — are the basics to writing a compelling story.

1) don’t rush

as excited as you might be, you have to remember to lead up to the climax of the story. for example:

John woke up and yawned, stretching his arms above his head. Then, slamming the door open, his sister ran in, tears streaming down her face. “Mom is gone!” she cried.

obviously, without context, this passage seems a bit silly, especially if this is the first chapter of a book. where is john? how old is he? does “gone” mean disappeared or dead? was his mom already ill or was there an accident? to keep your readers from being confused, context is your best friend. here’s the revised version:

John woke up and yawned, stretching his arms above his head. Sunlight streamed in from the window and lit up his room, revealing all the junk littered across the floor. Ever since his mom had been diagnosed with cancer and admitted into the hospital, though, he’d barely even bothered with cleaning up. All he wanted was her home and for everything to return to normal.

for the sake of this post, i’ll end it there, but you can already see how all the added details and (again) context really help to make your story become more interesting.

2) give your characters their own unique personality

one of my favorite parts of writing is creating your characters. there’s so much opportunity within your characters, and you have to take advantage of all of it. sure, you’re bound to have background characters that will only ever make an appearance once, but even they should be interesting.

this rule is mainly for your MC. no one wants to read a story with a bland protagonist (unless you have a set plan for some major development). 

have some fun while creating your MC — what’s their favorite color? when’s their birthday? what do they act like when drunk? thinking of these can help you to get more attached to your character, which will end up making it a lot easier to write their dialogue and decide the choices they’ll make.

3) create a one-of-a-kind plot

there are already tons of stories that are practically knock offs of the hunger games, or harry potter. don’t be one of those people. 

while you can definitely take inspiration from said series, don’t just copy and paste the plot and change the names. there are dozens of dystopian books that show how society is split into different groups, such as in divergent. sure, go ahead and do that, but don’t call your factions abnegation, erudite, amity, candor, and dauntless. 

you get the idea.

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that’s it for now, but please like and reblog for more! message me if you’re interested in talking about your current WIP, and my ask box is always open.