Hey! // Here's my question As someone who usually writes in First Person, I've always struggled with character introductions and character descriptions. // How do I introduce characters for the storylines without bringing on that cliche "Mirror Trick?" // Thanks so much for helping if you can! 🥰
If you have more than one PoV, it’s far easier, since the character is seen from other eyes! As for describing them in their own PoV, here are some methods I can think of aside from the “Mirror trick”!
1. Have them compare their own appearance with that of surrounding characters
Example:
Mia’s hair was so lovely, flowing in such pretty black curls down over her shoulders. Nothing like the flat, static-filled pony tail I haphazardly tied that morning.
This method can be used easily for just about any character description. Aside from introducing appearance, it can also be used for personality and behaviour!
Biggest con: I wouldn’t use this method to introduce a lot of features at once, or else it will seem really clunky and like you’re just dumping information on the reader instead of weaving it in naturally. So this method isn’t the best for painting a fuller picture of your character.
2. Have their features affect how they interact with the environment
Example:
I forgot to duck my head on the bottom step, a loud thok banged out when my head collided with the top of the basement’s door frame. Eugh, that was going to form a bruise, later.
Size and build are the easiest to convey this way, though depending on how observant your character is, I’m sure you can fit in other descriptors, too! Maybe their hair or clothing got caught in something?
Again, this method only really works to drop in bits and bobs of your character’s description, rather than the whole thing.
3. Have your character interact with their own features
Example:
I made sure to snugly slide the blue baseball cap down over my head, tucking as many of my curls beneath it as I could, concealing the bright purple tips to leave just the minimum of my base brown hair visible.
The character dressing themself is a good way to use this method! Their morning routine likely also has to do with combing their hair, doing their makeup, and/or several other activities that can reveal a lot about them!
There are many other ways to work this one into the story, but just be careful to avoid breaking up the flow to describe things too much.
4. Have another character comment on their appearance
Example:
“Your eyes look so green in this light...” Bethany crooned, her hand soft on my cheek.
Pretty straightforward! Aside from someone being romantic, you could also have a bully insulting certain features, or have someone pointing out what they see as flaws or benefits!
In any case, there are a whole lot of ways to integrate your PoV character’s appearance into the story in a natural feeling way, including many more I haven’t given here! I wish you luck with how you decide to go about it!
hii I am cis and one of my main characters is trans. It's not the main point of the story just some tidbit we learn later on. Would it be fine to mention his dead name or would that not be okay. His sister sees him and calls him that and he walks away but idk.
Just wanted a second opinion, feel free to ignore:)
[cw: deadnaming / deadname discussion]
Hi lovely! Sorry to be getting to this about a week late, hope it's still relevant. ^^' I've been pretty busy!
But as to your question: as always, recall I'm only one person, and many people have different opinions! It also depends on the situation, and I don't quite have a full image of what's happening in this scenario~
Deadnaming a Transgender Character
Don't. That's the simplest answer I can give. Especially if it's not plot relevant, there is absolutely no need to mention what someone's dead name is, even if they're fictional.
If you really want to, I can't stop you. But consider that if you gain any significant number of readers, there are going to be those who refuse to call this character by their chosen name--and you just handed them a way of disrespecting more trans people. Are you going to give a transphobe more to feed off of, especially if just for a single scene?
Now, if you as the writer believe there is a good reason to giving a deadname or calling someone by the wrong pronouns, all I can hope for is that you immediately or very soon after make it obvious that this is wrong, that was a wrong thing for the character(s) to do. This can be as simple as having another character comfort the trans character after an encounter with a bully or transphobe, or if it was an innocent mistake, have it be corrected.
If you are transgender yourself, please disregard my answer here. You have personal experience, and your choice comes from your life.
There are oftentimes writers feel like they’re “not good at writing”. Almost everyone falls into this slump at one time or another, and it can feel impossible to get out of it. So here’s a fact:
Every single piece of writing you do advances your skills.
Was it an awesome masterpiece that you just wrote? AMAZING. You just learned so much about writing!
Was it a rough, awkward and discombobulated paragraph you just wrote? EPIC. YOU JUST LEARNED SO MUCH ABOUT WRITING.
It may not feel like it, but every time you write something, you’re learning! You’re learning about what to do more of in the future, what not to do. You’re learning more about your characters, you’re learning more about your setting, you’re learning more about you.
So when you’re next stuck in one of those writing slumps, and you feel bad about your writing? You’re wondering why you should write anything anyways, if it’s going to be “bad”? Tell yourself: “I’m going to write some more so I can learn from it and GET BETTER.” Because even failures teach us things, and in fact, they teach us quite a lot.
SO GO WRITE SOMETHING TERRIBLE OR GLORIOUS OR INCOMPREHENSIBLE, MY FRIENDS!
Hello! I very recently created a new OC for my WIP that identifies as non-binary and I was wondering if you had any tips or advice for how to introduce them? I plan to have them introduce themself to my MC and while I want the reader to know they’re nonbinary, idk if it’s realistic or natural for them to say “I’m so and so and I’m nonbinary” ? Or is it? This will be my first time going all in while writing a nb character and I don’t want to be insensitive or awkward with their intro. Their pronouns are they/he with a preference for they, and I wanted guidance for how to convey this as well, though I do intend to immediately just start referring to them as “they”.
Thank you!
Ooohhhh MORE ENBY REP YAY!!
First off! My advice is in no way the only correct way! There are plenty of different ways to write non-binary characters and plenty of opinions about it, too! But I’m speaking as a partially out non-binary person myself, and I’ve also written quite a few non-binary characters, so I feel I have a good base here~
How to introduce non-binary characters to the reader/main character
For your situation specifically, it depends on a few things:
Is your world more like ours, in that non-binary people are often discriminated against and/or misunderstood?
If so, your nb character is likely going to have to be very clear about their pronouns (maybe not so much their gender) when introducing themselves if they don’t want to be misgendered.
It is very realistic that someone might straight up say: “Hi, my name is Allison--I use they/them pronouns, just so you know. It’s nice to meet you!”
If they use multiple pronouns but have a preference, they can state that, as well.
If you feel that this is awkward or feels weird... Congratulations, you now feel like every non-binary person I know who tries to introduce themselves in real life. We honestly have no idea how to do it, either. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
You could also have them be introduced with “Mx.” in place of “Mr./Ms./Mrs.”, but that doesn’t say anything about their pronouns or gender, only that they don’t tend to use gendered terminology. :/
If it’s not like our world, and non-binary pronouns and genders are more common/more respected and understood...
It may be common practice in this world to give your pronouns in introductions anyway.
Or, there could be certain articles of dress for certain pronouns/genders that are known by most people. Like certain shaped earrings (as in the dragon elves in Vainglorious!), or coloured scarves or literal pins that say your pronouns/gender!
Or, everyone’s pronouns could be assumed to be “they/them” until proven otherwise!
There’s a lot of cool worldbuilding you could do with this~
YES, you could also have your non-binary character be misgendered at first and then they or someone else corrects your main character.
As long as the correction is VERY QUICK (as in, right after the main character misgenders the non-binary character), this is fine.
BUT IF THE NON-BINARY CHARACTER IS RIGHT THERE WHILE BEING INTRODUCED (or introducing themself), IT IS HIGHLY UNLIKELY THAT THEY WON’T MENTION THEIR PRONOUNS IMMEDIATELY. (Unless they really don’t care.)
Thank you so much for seeking advice on this! It may be difficult to write something an identity you’re not familiar with, but we’re always needing good representation for non-binary characters. All you need to do is be open to help and input from the identity you’re writing!
howwww do you always leave the best comments on people's works!!! the most i ever come up with is "aaaaahhh writing good" and then some keysmashing and i feel stupid cux i dont know how to intellectually let people know how muxh i love their stuff fjdjdj
Leaving Comments On Writeblr
OKAY SO FIRST OF ALL.
All comments (with few exceptions), no matter how small and no matter how incoherent, are amazing to creators, and I can GUARANTEE that they’ll appreciate it SO much. They’re more than just a reblog or like! They’re a sign that you took some of the time out of your day and some of your energy to show how much you love someone’s work!
Please don’t feel “stupid”. You’re not. Your comments aren’t. They’re lovely and so are you.
But, if you’re looking for some actual advice? We’ll see what I can do. And as always, remember to only use what helps you—advice is only a suggestion, after all~
Here are some tips and prompts if you’re struggling on what to talk about!
Types of Comments
This post is originally for fic comments, but a lot applies here!
There’s a variety of kinds of comments I’ve seen, all wonderful things to receive! I usually combine a few of these bullets, which is where the length of mine tends to come from! (This is not a comprehensive list in the least.)
Keysmashing
Incoherent yelling about how good it is overall
Taking out pieces you like and focusing on those (can be direct quotes or paraphrasing)
This can be lines of the writing, a particular OC, worldbuilding details, etc.!
How it affected you (Can be good or bad---writers love knowing they’re manipulating your emotions~)
Gif/image reactions
Critical analysis (which is the kind I’ll be talking about later!)
But you know what? There are comments that I don’t like seeing very much, and I find can often be incredibly rude-seeming, even when you mean good. I’d avoid these next types of comments on writeblr, unless people are explicitly asking for them:
Demands to update/requests for more: This... isn’t helpful. It’s okay to have a nice “Can’t wait for more!” with some of the comment types above, but definitely not on its own. (And DEFINITELY not “When are you next updating?” That’s just... plain whiny unless you tread really carefully with how you word it.)
Comparing to another work: “This reminds me of [bestselling story]!” Mm... okay. See, this can seem really nice, and sometimes comes across as nice, but unfortunately it usually reads more like: “This is a completely unoriginal idea! It’s already been done!” Which is... not so nice. Especially if this is the only comment you’re leaving.
Unsolicited (negative/constructive) critique: UNLESS SOMEONE ASKS FOR CRITIQUE, don’t. Don’t. A lot of writeblrs are posting up their content while it’s in its unfinished stage, and are not looking for people to tell them what to change. There are all sorts of reasons why it’s rude to give unsolicited critique, and I’m not going to debate that here.
Tips for Critical Analysis Comments
I suppose having the intrinsic ability to pick up on deeper meanings is developed from experience, but I can certainly give some things to think about, here! And certainly don’t feel required to comment on everything here: pick out a few that stand out to you, or that you really liked the most!
But you know what this sort of comment is like? It’s like a high school essay about what’s effective about a piece. Except it’s about something you actually like, and hopefully it’s something you actually want to write.
Writing style: Does this writer have something consistently unique and original to their writing that you love? Can be part of any of the below, or something else!
Sentence fluency: Does this writing read more slowly to fit the mood, more quickly to fit the action? Is it (purposefully) harsh cut and jagged or smooth and soft? Does it feel nice on the tongue when you read it aloud?
Word choice: More complex vocabulary? Do the connotations of the words well fit the theme and emotion? Does it fit the setting and/or characters?
Characterization: Are all of the characters different and distinct? Are their personalities easy to see in their body language, action, and dialogue? Is what they do fun for you to read?
Environment/Atmosphere: Do you feel like you’re there with the characters? Is the environment described well? Does it set a nice atmosphere or tone for the rest of the writing?
Senses: Sort of goes with the above but... Can you hear the sounds written? Can you feel the cold or heat, or the other senses that the characters have?
Symbolism: This one takes some experience to pick up on, I suppose. But does the writer use images or connotations that symbolize something?
Worldbuilding details: Do you get a good sense of the world and culture of the story? Is it woven in well, so it doesn’t feel like info-dumping?
Anyways, there are so many other tidbits you could pick up on, but there’s some to start you off! Basically, think about why you liked the writing so much! A lot of it can be subconscious, sometimes~
So yeah! That was a lot (and a long post ^^’), but I hope you get something out of that! And remember: keysmashing and picking out parts you liked alone is definitely enough of a comment, but if you’re willing and able to put in the extra effort to leave a more meaningful one, it can do wonders to improve a writer’s confidence and motivation!!!
And if you want more work from a creator, leave a comment about their writing, not one asking for more!
Word bank for when you love someone’s [insert adj. here] work
Because sometimes I’m looking for the perfect word to comment on someone’s work, and I can’t think of it! My organization is weird, but hopefully it helps anyways. ^^
Generally awesome:
Stellar
Amazing
Gorgeous
Beautiful
Brilliant
Glorious
Wonderful
Lovely
Skillful
Marvelous
Magnificent
Excellent
Splendid
Magical
Masterful
Clever
Wondrous
Unique
Original
Creative
Atmospheric
Engaging
Interesting
Intriguing
Thoughtful
Epic
Stunning
Eye-catching
Powerful
Breathtaking
Astonishing
Captivating
Astounding
Elegant
Incredibly
Phenomenal
Spectacular
Superb
Outstanding
Extraordinary
Makes you feel specific things:
Heart-wrenching
Heart-warming
Emotional
Tear-jerking
Hilarious
Fun
Awe-inspiring
Inspirational
Empowering
Relatable
Dream-like
Foreboding
Ominous
Mysterious
What words do you use to tell someone how much you love their work? Feel free to add on!
Hey Quill! I was just wondering if you could spill some tips and tricks on how to foreshadow in a story, and how to keep readers guessing without telling too much. Hope you have a nice day/evening!
Hello hello, @insert-witty-writing-username! I hope you have a nice one as well! And oh, oh you’re asking me for writing advice? Hm! I haven’t really done this before!
We’ll see what I can give, but remember to only use what helps you---advice is only a suggestion, after all~
Advice for Writing Foreshadowing
Though not all stories need it or have it, foreshadowing can be used to enrich and deepen the ocean that is your plot, to excite the reader with anticipation for a later event, to build suspense for a great catastrophe or reveal, to give them the foundations for theories they can’t wait to confirm, or to act as that lovely little detail that on a second or third read through makes one go “Oh, wait!” with delight as they connect the dots.
But what is foreshadowing? A warning. Mostly, it’s the hints dropped in the writing that sets up for something happening later on, usually something big and critical to the plot. It can be blatant, like a statement direct from the narrator that something bad’s going to happen soon, or it can be subtle, like... oh, it’s rather odd that the writer mentioned that background object that doesn’t get used in this scene...
So, how do you write it?
First, you as the writer need to know what’s going to happen that you can foreshadow. You could attempt to use foreshadowing by pantzing (aka writing without an outline) but I think it would be a real mess if you have no idea of what’s to come. SO. Make an outline! Or at least get an idea of big important plot events coming up! Then go back and see where you can add in this foreshadowing, or add it in as you write your draft~
Types of Foreshadowing
I’m just going to go out and say this explicitly: there is no way I’m going to be able to cover all the types of foreshadowing in this post. There are soooo many ways of doing it, so I just briefly highlighted some that are commonly used! (Probably just typing “types of foreshadowing” into google or whatever search engine you use would bring up a lot more!) Also I have no idea what these are actually called, so bear with me with the made up names. ^^’
Leading Event: If a giant hole’s just been blasted into a boat’s hull, that ship’s probably not going to stay afloat for long.
Background Focus: Why did the writer focus in on that decorative sword hanging over the mantle? Can’t be because it’ll be taken down to fight with, later... can it?
Conspicuous Mention: When a character brings up something unusual or notable in conversation or narrative, it obviously doesn’t mean anything important whatsoever. Right?
Vague Names: Take my character, The Scientist, for example. Only referred to by that name and no pronouns are ever given (until much later, anyways). Curious! This can also be used for big events or important objects as well as characters, but be careful not to over use this one!
Vague But Direct: “This is going to be a long day,” the character says. Clearly, it’s going to be a long day! But... why?
Imagery and Symbolism: Wow, the writer really likes using bones and graves and stiff coldness to describe this character a lot. Interesting that they die in the seventh chapter. Oh... wait.
Magic!: Prophecies, or omens, or mysteriously real-feeling dreams... obviously it’s all fake though, right?
Little Act Now, Major Later: I’m sure that character who just stole and hid an important document isn’t going to end up being revealed to be an Evil Spy later. Nope. Definitely not.
Symptoms: *Eats some food* Oh, that was good! *Coughs* Oh no, I’m sick! *Coughs up blood* Oh no, I’m... really sick! *Passes out* Oh. They were poisoned. Nevermind!
Wait, That Didn’t Make Sense...: How did that person know where the villain’s lair was? *A few chapters later* OH HECK, THEY USED TO WORK FOR THE VILLAIN.
Any tips?
Foreshadowing early allows for the seed to grow, and is especially useful for the most major events. Once your readers reach what’s being foreshadowed, they may well have almost forgotten the detail dropped earlier on, but it will make it even more satisfying once the memory is brought to the forefront.
Not all of your foreshadowing needs to be picked up on in the first read through. Sometimes, leaving the most subtle of clues allows your reader’s second or third reread of your writing to be all the more satisfying, since they’re picking up on things they didn’t before! This shouldn’t be the case for particularly important details, though.
Though you don’t have to go to the point where every single one of your environmental details act as foreshadowing, it is important to not include things that are given more attention or seem unusual when they’re not referenced again. Why would you mention something’s flammability, if it’s not going to be on fire later? It breaks the reader’s expectations, and doesn’t fulfill that satisfaction of confirming the theory.
That said, make sure your foreshadowing details make sense in the context, too. It would just be plain weird if that object’s flammability was mentioned out of the blue... maybe the person who says it is conveying a warning to another character who wants to use the object for something else?
Also! Make sure the tone of the build up fits what it’s building up to! Don’t mention something in an ominous way and have the event it’s foreshadowing be happy and cheerful---the emotion clashes and feels like it’s letting the reader down.
It’s perfectly reasonable to wait until your second (or third, or onward) draft to add in your foreshadowing. Perhaps you’re the sort who doesn’t know enough about your story to hint at future event in your first draft, because you don’t even know what those future events are going to be!
Also, get help from readers to know how much and how obvious the foreshadowing you use should be! As the writer, you already know what’s going to happen. It’ll probably seem too obvious to you to know whether it’s a good application of foreshadowing or not!
And continue reading under the cut if you want some tricks direct from me! (Plus some other goodies~)
Quill’s tricks:
I have a few things that are a little more characteristic to my personal writing style. This is purely a list of foreshadowing tidbits that I myself really enjoy using, certainly that won’t be the case for everyone, but I thought I’d mention them anyways!
I really really really have a whole lot of fun dropping a foreshadowing hint that the reader later thinks is solved, and they then discover that this hint was foreshadowing more than just that.
Repetition! Only to be used sparingly so it doesn’t become overly predictable to the reader, but if you mention something otherwise inconspicuous multiple times... well, there’s this feeling that it’s important somehow, yes?
Imagery and symbolism is a big favourite of mine. Why yes, I do like to specifically use lightning and storm-related terminology for some of my characters a lot. This can be foreshadowed through appearance or physical description, adjectives or verbs you use for their behaviour or actions, or just about anything obviously connected to them! (Can also be applied to objects, places, etc.!)
If you’re okay with a bit more coincidence, having the environment change to reflect upcoming events can also be a great way of foreshadowing. Sure, those thunderclouds building definitely foreshadow a storm coming, but what if the storm is metaphorical as well? What if some major and tumultuous events are going to happen soon...?
Now, take this anchor-agement and make waves with your boatloads of foreshadowing!
... Might I have just used foreshadowing for a boat pun? Maybe!
Hi, Quill! I've been struggling recently trying to get the right images for edits and making sure they carry the theme. I was just wondering if you had any tips on how to make character and location mood boards?
Hello hello!! afhskdjhkdjgh I’m becoming an advice blog amn’t I? (I’m seriously uncertain why you folks think my advice is any good, but I’m honoured! XD)
Okay! So! First off, I’m not actually the best at this myself, but I suppose I can share some strategies that I often use to make my own moodboards!
Choosing Images for Aesthetic Edits
First off, make sure you have a good foundation for your character (or world/location/etc.). Making moodboards can be a great way to get to know your character better and to develop them, but if you don’t know some of your character’s interests or personality already, it can be near impossible to decide on images!
Things to Look For
Here’s a small list of possible things to keep in mind when looking for images to include in your aesthetics! These might help with prompting ideas and such~
Character archetype they fit or the role they play in the story
And yeah, this one helps sometimes: D&D class
For locations (this is mostly for larger regions, but can be narrowed down):
General natural scenery (flora/fauna, climate, landscape)
Cultures that it mimics/fits
Architecture type
Type of people found there
Activities usually done there
Food
Resources
Industries it’s known for (Mining, fishing, farming, textiles, pottery?)
Tourism attractions (natural or artificial)
Military
Political system (including the leader, how they rule, etc.)
Education and linguistics
There’s tons more to consider, of course, but I hope that gets your brainstorm building!
Other Tips
Still not having much luck?
Try typing in a general term into the search of whatever site you’re using. Look through the results and you might find something that fits! Unsplash.com is a great one for this, I find: my character likes gold, so... gold. Wow, that’s a lot of gold stuff, but also a lot of images that could possibly inspire you!
If you don’t know your character’s hobbies or interests yet, try looking up a list of them and see what ones you think would fit them! Ask games can also be marvelous for sparking ideas~
Did you find a really fitting image, but the colours clash with the rest or don’t fit your character? Try editing the colour of it using photoshop or other editing software! (You can find tons of tutorials for this with a simple search. ^^) There are also plenty of psd colour resources offered on tumblr for free!
If you’re not sure of a colour theme to follow, try browsing sites like Coolors.co for ones to inspire you!
Adding an overlaying texture or a gif overlay can also be a great way of tying the aesthetic together~
Sites to Use
I’m still guilty of using pinterest for quotes and such, but I try to avoid sites like it for images. Here’s some sites that I personally use for finding higher quality, free for use images!
Unsplash.com: Will always be my favourite. Always. This is my go-to and I really only stray from it when I can’t find a specific something I want.
Pixabay.com: I need to start using this one more, in all honesty. It’s really nice.
Pexels.com: I don’t use this much but again I find there’s good quality stuff here~
These are only the ones I’ve personally checked out, but here are a couple other posts that list a bunch of cool sites: 1, 2.
Anyways, I wasn’t entirely sure what you were looking for, but I hope that helps!
