The Sound Of Aching

Hello! My name is Billie (Bee for short). This is a sideblog for a book I’m currently writing called The Sound of Aching. More about the characters can be found on my main blog, grangerluna. If you have any questions about the characters, chapters, writing experience, etc., shoot me an ask and I will be sure to answer!

[harlecore]

aristotle and dante discover the secrets of the universe, benjamin alire sáenz

[thesoundofaching-blog]

Underappreciated Books: A Rec

Here are some books that are really underappreciated and I absolutely love!

The Ables by Jeremy Scott - This is a book I’m currently reading, and I’m absolutely in love with it. It’s about a boy who is disabled (he’s blind) with superpowers (specifically, telekenisis)! He meets friends who are also disabled with superpowers. Honestly, this book is SO so good. I love it so much.

The Inexplicable Logic Of My Life by Benjamin Alire Sáenz - You may recognize this book from my previous book rec. This book is a whole rollercoaster of emotions and I feel for every character! This book is about an adopted boy named Sal who goes through highschool, and as he does this he finds out more and more about his past and who he truly is. It’s so heartwarming, plus there’s LGBT representation as well!

The School For Good And Evil by Soman Chainani - This has been my favorite book for YEARS! What’s better than not one magic school, but two? Sophie, a known “good girl” and Agatha, a known “bad girl” get kidnapped and taken to the infamous schools for good and evil, which Sophie has been gushing to Agatha about. It doesn’t necessarily go to plan, though, which ensues plenty of interesting events. This book is what really got me into writing, and I adore it.

[deaftonystark]

If you're writing a d/Deaf or Hard of Hearing Character . . .

Deafness and being Hard of Hearing encompasses a wide range of hearing loss, and d/Deaf/HoH people communicate in different ways. Whether a person sees themselves as deaf or Hard of Hearing is a very individual thing. Being deaf does not mean you can hear no sound at all, and very few people have this level of hearing loss. The distinction between deaf and Deaf is that deafness is an audiological condition, while being Deaf is a cultural and personal identity based on shared experience, language, and history. Not all d/Deaf/HoH people know sign language, and may use a variety of methods to communicate, which may change given the situation or whether they are speaking to another d/Deaf/HoH person or a Hearing person.

Hearing aids and cochlear implants are not like “glasses for your ears.” For the vast majority of people who need vision correction, glasses or contacts can help them see just as well as people who don’t need correction. But hearing aids aren’t like glasses–magnification of a sound doesn’t work in the same way as magnification of an image. Cochlear implants can help someone with severe hearing loss hear, but the hearing these implants provide is completely different from what a Hearing person experiences. These devices merely help a person with hearing loss hear better than they could without them, and what that means varies quite a bit from person to person. In addition, not everyone gets much help from these devices, and many people are not good candidates for cochlear implants or find them controversial.

Hearing aids and cochlear implants do not make a d/Deaf/HoH person Hearing. As soon as the person takes out their hearing aids or other assistive device, the challenges associated with their hearing loss are just as they were before. People don’t generally wear their hearing aids or the outer portion of cochlear implants all the time. This could mean they only take them out to sleep and shower, or it could mean that they only wear them when they most need them. When a person is wearing them, they are still deaf/HoH, and will likely still experience problems associated with that.

Deaf and Hard of Hearing people often hear better in different situations, and hearing loss varies widely between d/Deaf/HoH people. People who are d/Deaf/HoH may hear better in small group situations, when their conversational partner is facing them, and may have trouble with certain frequencies of sound more than other frequencies. For example, they made have trouble understanding conversational speech because most of their hearing loss is high frequency, but be able to hear lower pitched sounds with less difficulty. Other factors that can impact a d/Deaf/HoH person’s ability to hear something include crowded places with lots of background noise and walking on narrow sidewalks where their conversational partner is walking in front of them and facing away. 

Lipreading isn’t easy or accurate. Lipreading can help a d/Deaf/HoH person understand what is being said, but it’s not easy and many people either cannot do it or aren’t that good at it. Lipreading works best when good lighting is available, the speaker enunciates clearly and does not mumble, and is facing the lipreader. Even people who are skilled at lipreading will still struggle with understanding what is being said, and have to use clues about context and word order to piece together speech. This can be exhausting to do constantly, and generally isn’t enough on it’s own. Not understanding what the people around you are saying can be very isolating.

Sign language isn’t a visual form of English, and there isn’t just one sign language. American Sign Language is not a a way to speak English with your hands. ASL has distinct rules that do not correspond to English grammar, and ASL does not correspond to the geographic locations where English is spoken. American Sign Language and British Sign Language are distinct, not mutually-intelligible languages, and there are many others around the globe. If your Deaf character grew up and lives in Russia, they probably use Russian Sign Language, not American.

You don’t need to write out the gestures and motions of a character speaking who’s speaking sign language. If your character is communicating in sign language, you may not be sure how to best transcribe what they are saying. Some people will translate the speech into English and italicize it to show that it is a translation. Some people will communicate the meaning of what was being said, rather than writing out any explicit dialogue. But trying to write out the actual physical gestures and adequately describe what a sign or string of signs looks like is just unwieldy and is rarely as clear as you think it is. Not only is this frustrating for actual users of the particular sign language, but most of the people reading your story are probably not going to be sign language users.

Avoid simultaneous communication in both vocal and signed language. Simultaneous communication, or sim com, is a system that people sometimes use, but it doesn’t actually make for very good communication. Hearing users of sim com will often forget to sign certain parts of what they are saying or will sign in the grammatical structure of the vocal language rather than the signed one, making their use of language inaccessible to the deaf/HoH person that they are trying to communicate with. Many deaf/HoH people cannot hear or struggle to hear vocal language, which means that they are getting no benefit from their conversational partner using both languages.

[concerningwolves]

Writing Deaf Characters | Speech is Speech

Before I get going, I’m 75% deaf, as some of you know, semi-reliant on hearing aids and lip reading. My first languages were Makaton sign and then BSL. I now use spoken English. This is part one of two. People are People covers characterization and toxic tropes.

There are a lot of issues I find with how deaf people are represented in books, when represented at all. I would love to see more deaf and hard of hearing characters in the books I read- without having to read books specifically about deaf/HoH people- but when I find them, they’re grossly undercharacterized or stereotyped. Authors write them in a way that sets signing language characters apart from speaking characters as if they are inferior, and this makes my blood boil.

Some technicalties

I’ll keep this brief.

You may have heard that “deaf” is a slur and you should use “hearing impaired”. Don’t. I’ve never met a deaf or hard of hearing person who believed that. Use deaf for people who are deaf, and Hard of Hearing (HoH) for people who lack hearing. These can be interchangeable depending on the person. This is why sensitivity readers are a useful part of the beta process.

Sign language is incredibly varied. It developes in the same way as spoken language. Fun fact: in BSL there are at least half a dozen ways to say bullshit, my favourite of which is laying your arms across one another with one hand making a bull’s head sign and the other hand going flat, like a cowpat. It’s beautifully crude, and the face makes the exclamation mark. Wonderful.

There are different sign languages. Knowing more than one would make a character multi or bi-lingual, even if they are non-speaking.

Makaton is basic sign language used by children, and it mirrors the very simple language used by toddlers.

Yes, we swear and talk shit about people around us in sign language sometimes, and no, it isn’t disrespectful to have signing characters do this. Just remember that we also say nice things, and random things, and talk about fandoms and TV shows and what we’re having for dinner, too.

Each signed language is different from another. ASL and BSL? Nothing alike. Just google the two different signs for horse.

Remember that sign language is a language, equal to the spoken word

Therefore, treat it as such. Use quotation speech marks and dialogue tags. You only need to explicitly state that this character uses signed language once, and then let your modifiers and description do the rest.  It isn’t a form of “sub-speech" or “making hand actions”- sign language is a language all on its own: it has its own grammar rules, syntactical structures, punctuation, patterns, idioms and colloquialisms. For example, “what is your name?” becomes “Your name what?” with the facial expression forming punctuation in the same way that spoken English uses alterations of prosodic tone (inflections). There is even pidgin sign; a language phenomenon usually associated with spoken language.

In the same way that you would describe a spoken-English character’s tone of voice, you would describe a signed-English speaker’s facial expressions and the way that they sign- keeping in mind that these things are our language’s equivalent of verbal inflection.

So please, none of that use of “special speech marks” or italicised speech for sign. If your viewpoint character doesn’t understand signed speech, then you take the same approach that would be used for any other language they don’t understand, like French or Thai. E.g “He said something in rapid sign language, face wrinkling in obvious disgust.” is a good way of conveying this. The proof that you’ve done this well is in whether or not you can switch “sign language” for French or something else, and it would read the same.

Don’t be afraid to describe how things are said, either. Sign language is such a beautiful and expressive way of talking, and to see a writer do it justice would be truly fabulous. Putting this into practise:

“Oh, I love maths!” She said, fingers sharp and wide with sarcasm. She raised her eyebrows.

“I’m sorry.” He replied and made his face small, but could not keep the grin forming. She was starting to laugh, too.

 For the sake of readibility, I’m putting the rest of the information in part two.

This is part of my weekly advice theme. Each week I look at what you’ve asked me to help with, and write a post or series of posts for it. Next week: settings and character development (including heroes, anti-heroes, villains, and every other kind of character).

[thesoundofaching-blog]

Chapter Update

I just finished the rough draft for Chapter 6! Sorry for no exciting updates, I’m busy with a lot of stuff, but I’ll try to upload what I can when I can! Anything you guys want to know? Leave me an ask, or send a message to my main.

[lgbtqreads]

hey! do you have any book recs about nonbinary people, or mlm stories? thank!

Lots! Personal favorites with nonbinary MCs are Long Macchiatos and Monsters by Alison Evans and Mask of Shadows by Linsey Miller, but here are some relevant posts for you:

M/M and M/NB Romances with Trans MCs: https://lgbtqreads.com/2017/03/10/fave-five-mm-and-mnb-romance-with-trans-mcs/

YAs with F/NB Pairings: https://lgbtqreads.com/2018/05/21/fave-five-yas-with-f-nb-pairings/

Ace Spectrum M/M Romances: https://lgbtqreads.com/2016/10/27/fave-five-ace-spectrum-mm-romances/

M/M Historical Romance: https://lgbtqreads.com/2017/03/29/fave-five-mm-historical-fiction/

You can also browse the m/m Romances listed here: https://lgbtqreads.com/romanceadult/

[livinghostly]

prompts for writing

feel free to use any of these! 

send in requests!

1. “Your hair is so soft..” 

2. “It’s too cold! Come back!”

3. “No, I’m not letting you go. It’s too early to get out of bed.”

4. “C’mere, you can sit in my lap until I’m done working.”

5. “I’m not going to stop poking you until you give me some attention.”

6. “Shh, you’re safe. I won’t let you go.”

7. “What? does that feel good?”

8. “Just pretend to be my date.”

9. “He/She did it.” “No he/she did.”

10. “I think I’m in love with you and I’m terrified.”

11. “It’s not a double date. We’re just third and fourth wheeling.”

12. “No no–it’s alright, come here.”

13. “I’m not going to leave you. You’re never going to have to suffer by yourself again, I promise.”

14. “Look, I know we don’t know each other that well, but I’m still worried about you. No one deserves to be alone.”

15. “If I could, I would kiss away all of your scars.”

16. “I think I might be falling in love with you.”

17. “Your lips are so soft. I could kiss them all day.”

18. “It’s not bad to cry. In fact, I think it makes a person stronger.”

19. “Mmm.. you’re warm.”

20. “You’re so cute when you’re half asleep like this..”

21. “I’ve had a rough day and honestly all I want right now is a drink and someone to cuddle with..”

22. “No, you can’t get up! You’re my prisoner for today.”

23. “Shh, it was just a bad dream. Just a dream, okay? None of it was really.”

24. “You know I’m/we’re always here for you, right?”

25. “Please talk to me about it.”

26. “You have something in you hair.. um–do you want me to get it out?”

27. “I remember practicing how to ask you out in the mirror..”

28. “I would’ve had breakfast ready, but you were sleeping on my arm and I didn’t want to wake you.”

29. “I know I’ve kissed you like, ten times, but just like another ten, please.”

30. “Are you wearing my shirt?“

31. “Wanna, like–I mean, if you’re not busy.. We could get lunch? Or even just coffee if you don’t have a lot of time?”

32. “So I was driving past a pet store and couldn’t help but wonder how cute an animal would be like in our home..”

33. “Let’s just stay in bed.”

34. “We live together. You can’t blame this on anyone else.”

35. “You’re beautiful, you know that?”

36. “Shooting star. Make a wish.“ 

37. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

38. “Wow, you’re hot.“

39. “I want to marry you.”

40. “I want to take a shower so you should probably join me. It’ll save water.”

41. “You’re just not the same anymore..”

42. “It’s midnight! Where the hell were you?”

43. “What the hell is your problem?!”

44. “Why do you run away from your problems all the time?”

45. “You can’t keep it all inside, you know? Bottling it up won’t do any good.”

46. “Hey, I know you’re hurting.. but, you’re not alone, okay?”

47. “I hate you! I’m sorry it took me so damn long to realize that.”

48. “You lost your chance.”

49. “I’m sorry if I gave you the wrong impression.”

50. “You can’t just lose your temper like this every time you get a bit upset!”

51. “Calm down! You’re scaring me!”

52. “Don’t look at me like that.”

53. “Were you ever going to tell me?”

54. “I’m done trying to help you!” 

55. “Sorry doesn’t fix everything.”

56. “You didn’t call. You didn’t text. Nothing.”

57. “It isn’t up for debate.”

58. “I don’t know what’s wrong, okay? I’m just… really tired.”

59. “I’m fine. Stop asking.”

60. “I’m not leaving until you tell me what’s wrong, and don’t try lying to me.”

61. “I hope someday you get a taste of your own medicine.”

62. “Pack your shit and go. Get the fuck out of my sight!”

63. “Is this how little you think of me?”

64. “I can’t do this anymore.. not with you.”

65. “Are you happy now? Huh? DOES THIS MAKE YOU HAPPY?!”

66. “You said you’d always be there for me… so how did this happened? Why weren’t you there?”

67. “Did it ever occur to you that you’re hurting me too?”

68. “I don’t need help! I just want the pain to stop!”

69. “We can be friends instead.”

70. “I tried to move on, but nobody is you.”

71. “Do I look like I’ve moved on?”

72. “I don’t remember a fight or a reason, so what happened? Why did we break up?”

73. “Can I at least buy you a coffee? For old times sake.”

74. “I can’t take the loneliness anymore.”

75. “What are you talking about? You’re married!”

76. “I feels like everyone just forgot I exist.”

77. “Maybe I’m meant to be alone.”

78. “I gave you your chance, and you just used it to stab me in the back.”

79. “I’ve been alone for so long..”

80. “But you promised..”

81. “Isn’t this, like, illegal?” “Probably.”

82. “You’re really drunk right now. I don’t think you’re gonna remember any of this.”“No, I’m not drunk at all. You’re just blurry.”

83. “I have a feeling we should kiss.”“Is that a good feeling or a bad feeling?” 

84. “Yeah, well, I shut everybody out. Don’t take it personally. It’s just easier.”

85. “You’re jealous, aren’t you?” “I’m not jealous.”

86. “Were you ever going to tell me?”

87. “I can’t believe you dragged me into this.”

88. “Bite me.” “Eat me.” “Kiss my ass.”

89. “You think I’m dumb enough to fall for that stupid move?”

90. “You have to tell me why were committing a felony before we do it. Not that that’s going to stop us, but at least I’ll have all the facts.”

91. “You weren’t supposed to laugh! I’m so embarrassed!”

92. “I vote today be a pajama day.”

93. “You aren’t supposed to laugh! I’m embarrassed!”

94. “It’s a real shame nobody asked for your opinion.”

95. “There’s been some real friction in our friend group lately. I suggest an orgy to save our friendship.”

96. “I saw that. You just checked me out.”

97. “Are you stupid or stupid?”

98. “How about you make me?”

99. “Do it. I dare you.”

100. “Rise and shine, motherfucker.”

101. “Well fuck me!" 

102. "Are you… Drunk?" 

103. "Walk it off." 

104. "Did you just go throw up?" 

105. "Could you turn it down? A bit? Maybe?" 

106. "Don’t drink that! I saw that guy slip something in there!" 

107. "Get out of here! This is my hiding spot!" 

108. "Quick, pretend your talking to me." 

109. "Could you hold my hand?" 

110. "You’re hiding under that blanket because you’re blushing?" 

111. "Can I kiss you?" 

112. "Quit looking at me with that stupid expression. You’re pissing me off." 

113. “ …Why? Why are you being… so nice to me? I can’t understand. I can’t understand! I just can’t understand… “ 

114. "Don’t you think you’re a little too old to be using cheesy pick up lines?" 

115. "You’re the perfect combination of sexy and cute." 

116. "You know I’ll kill him if he hurts you." 

117. "Can we please pretend I never said that?" 

118. "Forget the douche. He’s a dick. He’s a dickdouche." 

119. "You guys are yelling and I want ice cream!" 

120. "How ‘bout you stick it up your ass instead?" 

121. ”“Punched” is one word, “Fisted” is another.“ 

122. "Please! Leave me alone!" 

123. "It’s too late for you to be out by yourself." 

124. "You seem like a friendly face, mind if I sit with you?" 

125. "You made me this way." 

126. "I think about you all the time, it’s freaking annoying." 

127. "Bill Nye couldn’t even help you." 

128. "You left your shirt at my house. It’s mine now." 

129. "I just wanted to hear your voice." 

130. "I saw a shooting star and I thought of you.”

[peachesmendes-deactivated201903]

send me numbers from this one, too!! 

[thesoundofaching-blog]

Chapter 2: A Summary

Chapter 2 is one of my favorites because we get such a look into August’s character. We get to see who he is, and how he feels as he goes about his day.

“Not only do I identify as a transgender make, I’m gay. I like boys, because, well, oh my God. Adding on to the fact that I’m deaf, I feel like a personified burden. I experience dysphoria, and it’s bad. There are some days that J can barely get out of bed because I feel like a little demon is tugging on my chest and my stomach.”

— TSA, Chapter 2, page 1.

Warning: From here on down, there are spoilers. Warning: From here on down, there are spoilers.

This chapter sheds light not only on August as a person, but his relationship with his mom. His mom works at a bakery in town, but has to move to a bakery out of town, causing her to see her family less. The family doesn’t have to move, but Maria (August’s mom), leaves it up to August to make the decision for her. Should she take the job out of town or find another job? August tells her to take the job out of town, even though it tears him apart to not see his mother every day. He wants what will make his mom happy, so that’s what he picks.

[thesoundofaching-blog]

Thank you guys so much for 10 followers and 200+ notes on my Book Rec post! I’ll try to do another Chapter Summary OR an MTC today. Again, thank you!

[prider-parker-imaginations]

Drabble List #2

New drabble prompt list! Feel free to reblog!

“That’s how the story goes.”

“None of this is your fault.”

“I know it hurts.”

“Are you serious?”

“You’re safe now.”

“No one’s going to hurt you.”

“I don’t understand.”

“This isn’t what I wanted.”

“My head hurts.”

“I’m right here, okay?”

“Wow, you look… amazing.”

“Are you okay?”

“Who did this?”

“I made a mistake.”

“When I’m with you, I’m home.”

“There’s nothing I can do anymore.”

“This is going to hurt.”

“That was kind of hot.”

“Please don’t let me be alone.”

“Don’t try to fix me. I’m not broken.”

“It’s never too late to get back up again.”

“What if one day I wake up and you don’t?”

“I immediately regret this decision.”

“I’m not okay.”

“I’m scared.”

“You’re the one thing keeping me sane right now.”

“Please stay with me.”

“Please help me.”

“It’s okay to cry.”

“Is that blood?”

“Can I kiss you?”

“You’re everything to me.”

“I’d like to see you try.”

“Are you testing me?”

“I just wanted to let you know that I think you’re beautiful.”

“I’m lost without you.”

“You have my word.”

“I’m just tired.”

“It just… hurts.”

“Do you promise?”

“I’m not drunk enough for this.”

“Why are you shaking?”

“I never meant to hurt you.”

“Is that my shirt?”

“Please don’t shut me out.”

“Go back to sleep.”

“I can take care of myself just fine.”

“This is new.”

“Take off your shirt.”

“Be you. No one else can.”

“I can’t breathe.”

“Are you going to talk to me?”

“I’m sorry.”

“They’re gone.”

“Just smile. I really need you to smile right now.”

“Would you just hold still?”

“I miss the way things used to be.”

“Am I dead?”

“Look at me.”

“Can we just pretend like we’re normal for once?”

“I told you not to fall in love with me.”

“Please shut up. Just shut up.”

“Please tell me it’s going to be okay.”

“Yell, scream, cry, please, just say something, anything.”

“When you smile, I fall apart.”

“If I die, I’m never speaking to you again.”

“If you don’t want to talk about it then say so. Don’t lie and pretend to be fine when you clearly aren’t.”

“This isn’t what it looks like.”

“I just really miss talking to you.”

“I can’t do this on my own.”

“I’ve got you.”

“We’ll figure this out.”

“Please don’t say goodbye.”

“You’ve shown me what love can feel like.”

“You make me feel alive.”

“I wouldn’t change a thing about you.”

“There is nothing wrong with you.”

“I’m just looking out for you.”

“Be careful.”

“You owe me.”

“Come with me.”

“I trust you.”

“I didn’t want you to see this.”

“I’ve been praying for you.”

“Take my jacket. It’s cold outside.”

“I’ll walk you home.”

“Let me help.”

“Come here.”

“You’re holding back.”

“Remember when we were little?”

“We’re all a little stronger than we think we are.”

“Don’t sell yourself short.”

“This isn’t who I am.”

“I’m willing to wait for it.”

“Are you ready for this?”

“You can do this.”

“Your life was my life’s best part.”

“You were always gold to me.”

“Don’t look at me like that.”

“I’m fine with where I am now.”

“We all want to be somebody.”

“Promise me you’ll come back.”

“I don’t know anyone else who can make me feel this way.”

“I’ve never felt stronger than when you’re with me.”

“I believe in you.”

[thesoundofaching-blog]

Please send some if these with 2 characters of your choice! Or I can pick the characters, whatever works!

[thesoundofaching-blog]

Book Recs: LGBT Edition

Since we’re a couple days into Pride Month, I think I’ll give you guys some LGBT book recommendations!

Aristotle and Dante Discover The Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz - This book is so amazing and is definetly in my top 10 books of all time. It’s about 2 Mexican-American teenage boys in the 1980s who fall in love, and I’m absolutely obsessed with it.

The Inexplicable Logic of my Life by Benjamin Alire Sáenz - Another by this author. He’s such a huge inspiration, I just had to. This book is about a boy who has an adopted father that’s gay, and the experiences he goes through has he travels through high school. It made me cry, and it’s such a good read.

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli - Honestly, this one is a no-brainer. How can someone NOT love this book? It’s about a closeted gay boy named Simon who slowly falls in love with a boy who doesn’t reveal his identity to Simon until the end of the book. I’m not going to reveal it to you if you haven’t read it already, but trust me. It’s worth it.

Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli - This is a sequel to the book previously mentioned. It’s about Simon’s bisexual friend Leah, who is learning to accept herself for who she is. This book is so good, I have no words to express my love for it.

How to Repair a Mechanical Heart by J.C. Lillis - This book is on my To-Read list, but from what I’ve heard, it’s astounding. It is about two boys who go on a roadtrip to a convention and start to fall in love. It looks super cute, and I’m definetly going to give it a read!

[armandyke]

Pros of writing gay relationships: 

- gay

Cons of writing gay relationships:

- they both have THE SAME FCKIN PRONOUNS SO I CONSTANTLY HAVE TO NAME BOTH CHARACTERS BECAUSE OTHERWISE IT’S IMPOSSIBLE TO TELL WHO’S DOING WHAT OR WHO’S SPEAKING WHO WILL SAVE ME FROM THIS HELL

[puppyvegeta-deactivated20190313]

I CAN’T BELIEVE THERE’S A POST ABOUT THIS. THE STRUGGLE IS REAL.

[berlynn-wohl]

Worst way to deal with this: use epithets (the taller man, the blonde) DO NOT

Best way to deal with this: Use the pronouns a teensy bit more than you maybe feel is sufficient. Leave the fic for two days before editing (i.e. allow yourself to forget it a little). Come back and re-read. If at any point YOU can’t tell who’s doing what to whom, put names in. Leave the rest of the pronouns.

Also, for dialogue: use characterization instead of names. Let it be clear by the things that are said, the way they are said, who is saying them.

Readers are smart, let them infer sometimes. :)

[thesoundofaching-blog]

MTC: Matty Wonder

Matty is one of my favorite characters that I’ve written ever. He’s sweet, kind, independent, a risk-taker and loveable. Plus, he’s the love interest.

Age: 16 at the start of the novel.

Current Family: Mother (Reily), father (Brandon), and dog.

Friends: All of the people on the football team (Rodney, Eric, etc.), a couple of girls on the cheerleading team (Alexandra), Daisie, Samuel and August.

Attitude to Religion: He’s open to trying out new things but doesn’t consider himself to be apart of any one religion.

Hobbies: Playing football, playing with his dog, and listening to his playlist all day long.

Strongest Positive Personality Trait: Kindness and intelligence.

Strongest Negative Personality Trait: Overzealous at times.

How Other People See Him: Everyone loves him, and sees him as somebody to look up to.

How He Sees Himself: He likes himself to an extent but hates the way he does certain things.

Most Important Thing to Know About this Character: He loves his family and friends so much, and would never put anything before them. No matter the situation, he will show his undying love for them, even when he himself is in a rough place.

What are Your Character’s Bad Habits: If he makes little mistakes (example: spelling a word wrong, forgetting a name, signing something wrong), he’ll beat himself up over it.

What is Your Character Afraid of? What Keeps Him up at Night: His fears change througout the novel. At the start, he’s afraid of losing his family, his dog, things like that. As we see more of his character and as the novel goes on, we see that he’s afraid to lose August and mess things up with him, and he’s afraid to lose his friends on the team.

Who Was His First Love: (WARNING: SPOILERS! WARNING: SPOILERS! WARNING: SPOILERS) In high school, he starts dating Alexandra before August gets outed. After they break up, though, he dates August.

Does He Enjoy School: Yes! He loves school. He thinks of the football team like his second home (plus, that’s where August is).

Who Has Had the Most Influence on Him: Probably his father, Brandon. His dad was on his school’s football team when he was younger, and has shown nothing but support for him.

What Makes Him Laugh: Comidic skits, like ones from Saturday Night Live or CollegeHumor. Also comedians, such as John Mulaney.

What is His Favorite Color: Bright aqua.

I’d like to thank miniworld and creative-writing-now for these questions! If you want to more about these characters, please please please send me an ask! Also, I will tag this as “tsa spoilers” because of the spoiler in one of the questions.

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Writing Tips #1

Aside from posting about TSA, I’m gonna give some short writing tips/writing advice for new writers out there! I’m also gonna throw out a reminder that this is from my own experiences, and I’m not going to be 100% right all the time. Write like you! Be you!

A Rule I Live By: Said is not your friend.

When writing dialogue, it gets kind of tricky finding words to replace “said”. Plus, after you use it a while, it gets boring a repetitive. Some writers make it work! That’s totally cool.

So, what do I use to replace this word? Let’s take, for example, a question.

“How are you this evening? Good, I hope?” I said.

A good alternative to using “said” here would be asked, inquired, wondered, and pondered. For this example, these words help further demonstrate that this is a question, not just any regular sentence.

Characters are more than just names.

When I write my characters, I sometimes refer to them by more than just their name. Here is an example:

“His eyes danced with mine. His breath shook hands and met with my skin. His hands made friends with mine.”

— TSA, undecided chapter.

Here, you can see that I’m referring to aspects Matty’s character without saying his name. It sheds more light and detail about him.

Cut down long paragraphs!

Have you ever been reading a book and come across a looong pararaph? Something that takes up the entire page? I find it easiest to take paragraphs like that and break them down so that they are more appealing to read and easier to write.

If you want more writing tips or want to give me a writing tip please send me an ask!

[ljooheonie]

Eyes, Skin, Face, Hair, Build: Character physical descriptions.

Eyes – General

large, small, narrow

sharp, squinty, round

wide-set, close-set, deep-set

sunken, bulging, protruding

wide, hooded, heavy-lidded

bright, sparkling, glittering

flecked, dull, bleary

rheumy, cloudy, red-rimmed

beady, birdlike cat-like

jewel-like, steely, hard

fringed with long lashes, with sweeping eyelashes, with thick eyelashes

Eyes – Color

chestnut, chocolate brown, cocoa brown

coffee brown, mocha, mahogany

sepia, sienna brown, mink brown

copper, amber, cognac

whiskey, brandy, honey

tawny, topaz, hazel, obsidian

onyx, coal, raven, midnight, sky blue, sunny blue

cornflower blue, steel blue, ice blue

Arctic blue, glacial blue, crystal blue

cerulean, electric blue, azure

lake blue, aquamarine, turquoise

denim blue, slate blue / slate gray, storm blue / storm gray

silver / silver gray, chrome, platinum, pewter

smoky gray, ash gray, concrete gray, dove gray

shark gray, fog gray, gunmetal gray, olive

emerald, leaf green, moss green

Eyebrows

arched, straight, plucked, sparse

trim, dark, faint, thin, thick, unruly

bushy, heavy

Skin – Color

amber, bronze, cinnamon

copper, dark brown, deep brown

ebony, honey, golden

pale, pallid, pasty

fair, light, cream / creamy

alabaster, ivory, bisque

milk, porcelain, chalky

sallow, olive, peach

rose / rosy, ruddy, florid

russet, tawny, fawn

Skin – General

lined, wrinkled, seamed

leathery, sagging, drooping

loose, clear, smooth

silken, satiny, dry

flaky, scaly, delicate

thin, translucent, luminescent

baby-soft, flawless, poreless

with large pores, glowing, dewy

dull, velvety, fuzzy

rough, uneven, mottled

dimpled, doughy, firm

freckled, pimply, pockmarked

blemished, pitted, scarred

bruised, veined, scratched

sunburned, weather-beaten, raw

tattooed

Face – Structure

square, round, oblong

oval, elongated, narrow

heart-shaped, catlike, wolfish

high forehead, broad forehea, prominent brow ridge

protruding brow bone, sharp cheekbones, high cheekbones

angular cheekbones, hollow cheeks, square jaw

chiseled, sculpted, craggy

soft, jowly, jutting chin

pointed chin, weak chin, receding chin

double chin, cleft chin, dimple in chin

visible Adam’s apple

Nose

snub, dainty, button

turned-up, long, broad

thin, straight, pointed

crooked, aquiline, Roman

bulbous, flared, hawk, strong

Mouth/Lips

thin, narrow, full

lush, Cupid’s bow, rosebud

dry, cracked, chapped

moist, glossy, straight teeth

gap between teeth, gleaming white teeth, overbite

underbite

Facial Hair 

clean-shaven

smooth-shaven

beard

neckbeard

goatee

moustache

sideburns

mutton-chop sideburns

stubble

a few days’ growth of beard

five o’ clock shadow

Hair – General

I threw a few hairstyles in here, though not many.

long, short, shoulder-length

loose, limp, dull

shiny, glossy, sleek

smooth, luminous, lustrous, spiky

stringy, shaggy, tangled

messy, tousled, windblown

unkempt, bedhead, straggly

neatly combed, parted, slicked down / slicked back

cropped, clipped, buzzed / buzz cut

crewcut, bob, mullet

curly, bushy, frizzy

wavy, straight, lanky

dry, oily, greasy

layers, corkscrews, spirals

ringlets, braids, widow’s peak

bald, shaved, comb-over, afro

thick, luxuriant, voluminous

full, wild, untamed

bouncy, wispy, fine, thinning

Hair – Color

black, blue-black, jet black

raven, ebony, inky black

midnight, sable, salt and pepper

silver / silver gray, charcoal gray, steel gray

white, snow-white, brown

brunette, chocolate brown, coffee brown

ash brown, brown sugar, nut brown

caramel, tawny brown, toffee brown

red, ginger, auburn, Titian-haired

copper, strawberry blonde, butterscotch

honey, wheat, blonde

golden, sandy blond, flaxen

fair-haired, bleached, platinum

Body Type – General

tall, average height, short

petite, tiny, compact

big, large, burly

beefy, bulky, brawny

barrel-chested, heavy / heavy-set, fat

overweight, obese, flabby

chunky, chubby, pudgy

pot-bellied, portly thick

stout, lush, plush

full-figured, ample, rounded

generous, voluptuous, curvy

hourglass, plump, leggy / long-legged

gangling, lanky, coltish

lissome, willowy, lithe

lean, slim, slender

trim, thin, skinny

emaciated, gaunt, bony

spare, solid, stocky

wiry, rangy, sinewy

stringy, ropy

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Chapter 1: A Summary

Chapter 1 of TSA starts with August giving us a gist of how he views everything. He tells us how he feels alone, and how people don’t understand what he goes through on a daily basis. He tells us some of the bullying he goes through.

“I was popularly unpopular last year. I was known as The Deaf Girl, and barely talked to by my peers at all. It killed me inside, because I am not a girl. I mean, no one knows that, but still. I’m a boy. I should be known as any regular boy. Not “The Transgender One”, not “The Deaf Girl.”

I’m August Gonzalez. Damn it. I deserve to be more than that, right?”

— Chapter 1, page 3.

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Character Info List

This is a post linking to other posts I’ve made about the characters! This will be updated as I go along.

August Gonzalez

Matty Wonder