Tumblng Juno

I like books, writing, LGBTQ oriented things and miniature crafting.

[tumblng-juno]

Miniatures have always both fascinated and intimidated me. And then I saw this kit. A library. Come on. This was meant for me. Because I immediately saw the opportunity to customize it, to make it truly mine. With the books that I love.

So I present to you my first ever miniature room!

I used the Sam's Study kit from Robotime, and I personalized it heavily. I hated the look of their books, they were bland. So was their artwork for the picture frames. There is exactly 3 pieces of paper from their kit in my design :P I also painted the furniture, upholstered the chair with an old piece of jeans instead of their cheap red fabric, and used spare fabric for the coffee table and the box. I changed the wallpaper, the flooring, and I added a coffee cup.

The cover scanning, Photoshop and image search alone took me around 40 hours. I loved every minute of it, haha! The assembly and painting took another 35 hours.

All the books made into miniatures are meaningful to me, all the artwork as well.

For the shelves, many titles are ones I own a copy of, but many are also filler because they're pretty, and because most of the books I buy are in ebook format. And finding images of book spines online IS HARD. There are books I would've wanted to feature, but just couldn't find a picture of the spine since they are not that mainstream. As I was listing these books, I had to refrain from also adding (OMG you have to read this!!) and I want to reread them all. Like right now.

Here follows a list of all the books I featured in this project, as well as all the artwork. If you see something I forgot in crediting the artists, something I got wrong, please let me know.

All the titles I made into miniature books (49 total!)

Ais & Hassell, Santino - In the Company of Shadows Series (custom covers by me)

Anonymous - The Silver Cage

Charles, KJ

A Charm of Magpies Series

The Secret Casebook of Simon Feximal

Collins, Susan - The Hunger Games Trilogy

Fleet, Suki - Foxes

Fox, Harper - Brothers of the Wild North Sea

Gaiman, Neil - Doctor Who and the Nightmare in Silver

Genao, Julio Alexi - When You Were Pixels

Hawk, Jordan L. - SPECTR Series 1 & 2

Hayward, L.J. - Death and the Devil Series

Klune, TJ

Immemorial Years Series

The House in the Cerulean Sea

The Bones Beneath my Skin

Murmuration

Into This River I Drown

Tales From Verania Series

Lane, Jex - Beautiful Monsters Series

Miller, Madeleine - The Song of Achilles

Moning, Karen Marie - Darkfever

Parrish, Roan - The Remaking of Corbin Wale

Rowell, Rainbow - Simon Snow Series

Rowling, JK - Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Sanderson, Brandon - Mistborn Trilogy

Sénécal, Patrick - Alyss

Taylor, Laini - Daughter of Smoke and Bones

Wendig, Chuck - Blackbirds

ARTWORK (in no order)

The Phoenix - thegorgonist on Tumblr

Dark Mansion Tarot (Eight of Sword, lady in red dress) - bubug on Deviantart

Art Nouveau Tarot (cup card) - AstroAmerica

One with Nature - Nisachar on Deviantart

Full Moon - vickisigh on Twitter

Savage Kitty - Apofiss on Deviantart

Dragons of Verania - CaptainTimber on Redbubble

Neverending Story Oracle - KikiDoodle on Etsy

The Marauders' Map

Willow - PhilNoto on Tumblr

Herbology - amandaherzman on Instagram

Buffy - shirlero on Twitter

Retro TARDIS - MMPaperCo on Etsy

Robbie & Kelly - Mariana Avilez, mavilez on Tumblr

Mad Dog - Andrea Borgonovo

Sam of Wilds & Ryan Foxheart - emergencypizzaparty on Tumblr

Anne of Green Gables - Svalbard on Behance

Herbology - amandaherzman on Instagram

The sizes of the celestial bodies - Andreas Cellarius' Harmonia Macrocosmica, from the collection of the Adler Planetarium.

SnowBaz - AhenuMoki on Redbubble

11th Doctor - CakesAndComics website

Gary the Unicorn - erlie on Tumblr

Gordo & the Raven - koeottipus on Instagram

Hsin & Boyd - andrie-art on Tumblr

Coraline, movie still

Alphas - angrymuffin911 on Instagram

Mini Herb Lore Book - MyPorchPrints on Etsy

Sci-Fi Paperback Covers - mugmug on Behance

All the books on the shelves (from left to right , top to bottom)

Classic Cookbooks - Utensils Set - from Juniper Books

Andrew Lang's Fairy Books

Penguin Clothbound Classics

Les Misérables - Victor Hugo

The Ring of the Nibelung - Richard Wagner

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall - Anne Brontë

Tales from 1001 Nights

Toxic - Sara Shepard

Encore to an Empty Room - Kevin Emerson

The Wicked Will Rise - Danielle Paige

The Beginning of Everything - Robyn Schneider

Things We Know by Heart - Jessi Kirby

Simon vs the Homo Sapien Agenda - Becky Albertalli

Darkest Powers Trilogy - Kelley Armstrong

The Giver Quartet - Lois Lowry

The Hunger Games Trilogy - Susan Collins

The Chronicles of Narnia - C. S. Lewis

Daughter of Smoke & Bones Trilogy - Laini Taylor

A Series of Unfortunate Events - Lemony Snickets

Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan

Penguin Classics

Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert

Great Expectations - Charles Dickens

Wuthering Heights - Emily Brontë

Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen

Cranford - Elizabeth Gaskell

Tess of the D'Ubervilles - Thomas Hardy

Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen

Crime and Punishement - Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Jane Eyre - Charlotte Brontë

The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde

Anne of Green Gables Series - Lucy Maud Montgomery

Fables Set - from Juniper Books

Science Fiction Classics Set - from Juniper Books

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - L. Frank Baum

The Wheel of Time - Robert Jordan

Harry Potter Series - J.K. Rowling

20th anniversary German Edition

Nerdy Ink Edition

Bloomsbury 2014 UK Edition Illustrated by Jonny Duddle

Puffin Hardcover Children's Classics - from Juniper Books

Black Beauty - Anna Sewell

Peter Pan - J.M. Barrie

Matilda - Roald Dahl

The Call of the Wild - Jack London

The Wind in the Willow - Kenneth Grahame

The Adventures of Robin Hood - Roger Lancelyn Green

The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain

Anne of Green Gable - Lucy Maud Montgomery

A Little Princess - Frances Hodgson Burnett

The Wizard of Oz - L. Frank Baum

Sherlock Holmes Series - Arthur Conan Doyle

Everyman's Classics Children Collection

A Child's Garden of Verses - R.L. Stevenson

A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys - Nathaniel Hawthorne

Fairy Tales - Hans Christian Andersen

The Everyman Anthology of Poetry for Children - Gillian Avery

English Fairy Tales - Joseph Jacobs

Aesop's Fables

Fairy Tales - Brothers Grimm

Mother Goose's Nursery Rhymes - Walter Jerrold

Jean de La Fontaine's Fables

Russian Fairy Tales - Gillian Avery

Vintage Classics Children's Books

TJ Klune's Shelf

Tales of Verania Series

Immemorial Years Series

How to Be Series

Into This River I Drown

Murmuration

Green Creek Series

The Bones Beneath my Skin

The House in the Cerulean Sea - TJ Klune

The God Eaters - Jessie Hajicek

Simon Snow Series - Rainbow Rowell (2 different editions)

Death and the Devil Series - L.J. Hayward

The Remaking of Corbin Wale - Roan Parrish

A Charm of Magpie Series - KJ Charles

Foxes - Suki Fleet

The Rifter Series - Ginn Hale

Signs of Love Series - Anyta Sunday

Soulbound Series - Hayley Turner

Beautiful Monsters Serie - Jex Lane

The Silver Cage - Anonymous

The Song of Achilles - Madeleine Miller

The Priory of the Orange Tree - Samantha Shannon

SPECTR Series 1 & 2 - Jordan L. Hawk

Evenfall, Volumes 1 & 2 - Santino & Ais

(Not visible in pictures)

The Vampire Chronicles - Anne Rice

Lives of the Mayfair Witches - Anne Rice

Sci-Fi Paperback Covers - mugmug on Behance

Revisit the Classics Book Set

The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett

Hans Christian Andersen's Tales

Anne of Green Gables - Lucy Maud Montgomery

The Wizard of Oz - L. Frank Baum

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle

Little Women - Louisa May Alcott

The Jungle Book - Rudyard Kipling

Mistborn Trilogy - Brandon Sanderson

The Amberlough Dossier - Lara Elena Donnelly

Shades of Magic - V. E. Schwab

Boys' Adventure Penguin Books Series

Around the World in Eighty Days - Jules Verne

The Lost World - Arthur Conan Doyle

Tarzan of the Apes - Edgar Rice Burroughs

Greenmantle - John Buchan

Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson

The Prisoner of Zenda - Anthony Hope

The Man Who Was Thursday - G.K. Chesterton

The Riddle of the Sands - Erskine Childers

Fever Series - Karen Marie Moning

Lord of the Ring - J.R.R. Tolkien

George Orwell Set from Juniper Books

Robert K. Massie's Romanov Dynasty Set from Juniper Books

[writingquestionsanswered]

How do I stop romance from taking over the main plot? Its something I have noticed in a lot of stories, and im afraid of making the same mistake.

Keeping Romance as a Subplot

First, let's take a quick look at the difference between a romantic main plot and a romantic subplot.

In a romantic main plot, the romance is central to the story. The story is about the characters falling in love and trying to make the relationship work. So, no romance, no story.

In a romantic subplot, the romance is peripheral to the story. The story is about something else, but the relationship develops on the sidelines. Take the romance out and the core story still works.

Having said that, the key to making sure the romance doesn't overtake the main plot is making sure you actually have a main plot. If you don't have a well-developed plot that functions separately from the romance, the romance takes over because there's nothing else to drive the story.

The other key is to make sure that your characters, as well as the other main and supporting characters, have well fleshed out roles in the story outside of any romantic elements. If you have characters who have their own internal conflicts, their own goals, and their own roles the story, it's harder for the romantic subplot to edge them out.

You might find more help in prior posts which can be found in the following master lists:

Plot & Story Structure

Relationships: Romance

I hope that helps!

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[foxglovethings]

No one asked for this one, but…

If you made lore for a character you’ve had since you were 16, and you’re in your 20s now and have a better grasp of narrative structure and power creep, you can just retcon the dumb stuff. Like you can do that for free. You’re not beholden to the junk you wrote 5 years ago, and you don’t need to justify removing it if it sucks.

[screnwriter-old-deactivated2021]

This is actually really valuable. Every writer should keep this in mind.

That’s also part of the reason you shouldn’t look back at your old writing and label it as pure trash. You didn’t know what you were doing back then. You do now.

[roach-works]

i’d like to suggest that changing a character based on embarrassment or shame is also a mistake, and changing a character because you’ve thought of something even cooler and more fun is going to work out a lot better for you as a writer. you always do better work when you’re actually enjoying yourself, and dismissing the childish, naive, unrefined parts of who you were can make you feel like you have to prove, somehow, that you’re a better person now.

but like, if you’re not having a good time anymore, that’s…worse.

[utwo]

The Treehouses at HoneyTree Farm

Frediricksburg Texas

© HoneyTree Farm

[duckprintspress]

How can I return to writing after a long hiatus?

This post is based on a conversation we had in the Duck Prints Press LLC Discord, and all contributors comments have been used/paraphrased/integrated into this post with permission. The people who contributed ideas to this post are: @nottesilhouette, @ramblingandpie, @arialerendeair, @tryslora, @deansmultitudes, @theleakypen, Owlish Intergalactic, myself (I’m @unforth), and one who preferred to remain anonymous.

Few things are harder than coming back to writing after a long period of not writing. Being creative takes a lot of energy, and starting after not doing so for a period of time takes even more energy. The writers on our Discord had a really productive discussion, where we talked about strategies we’ve each personally used to help us get our writing mojo back. None of these methods work for everyone, but if you haven’t written in a while, maybe one of these will work for you!

How to Revive that Creative Writing Spark:

doing sprints with a friend - knowing you’re all in it together can really help!

talking with writing buddies about what you’re each working on - the shared enthusiasm can be really helpful,

journaling, about daily life, or about dreams you’ve had - turning the dream into something coherent can be a great strategy (or, don’t bother, and just write it however crazily it took place!)

pick a random story you wrote in the past and read a chapter, paragraph, or 500 word segment - and look at it as a reader, say things you liked about it, praise it, emphasize the good things about your own writing.

transcribe a song with lyrics you find inspiring, or crack open a favorite book and transcribe a few paragraphs. You can even do it with something you’ve written yourself!

set a low-pressure, low-word count deadline - make it public, if you’re the kind of person that helps, or keep it to yourself.

sign up for a zero-consequence challenge, such as a bingo, or the Duck Prints Press #drabbledaysaturday prompts on Twitter - something where no one will mind if you don’t succeed, but you might find some inspiration.

create a small goal, either daily, weekly, or monthly - it can be a time frame (I’ll write for 5 minutes a day!) or a word count (I’ll write 1,000 words a month!) or even something tiny (I’ll write one sentence a day!) or a public sharing goal (post a ficlet a day!) and then do your best to stick to it, and reward yourself when you succeed.

open your ask box or otherwise solicit short prompts - for example, do a “three sentence” meme (”send me a pairing and a trope and I’ll write a three sentence fill”) or a story title meme (”send me a story title and I’ll write a little about the story I’d create with that title”) or an emoji prompt (”send me three emojis and I’ll write a ficlet”) or make your own fun one that will bring you joy (one of our writers created a “name two characters and I’ll make them kiss in six sentences or less” meme that helped them a lot)

participate in a prompt month, something with no consequences for failure but with prompts that can inspire daily ficlet.

write without editing, and just throw what you create out into the world - anything to get the words flowing.

challenge yourself to write a drabble day, no more and no less.

try changing how or when you write - get a nice journal and write by hand, or if that’s your normal, try writing in a word document instead.

write at different times of day, and see if it’s easier for you over breakfast, or after lights out, or during your lunch break, or by stealing a few minutes while you’re “on the clock” at work.

make an attempt at different formats of writing - if you usually write prose, try a poem; if you usually write really long things, try a drabble.

look out your window, or find a place you like, and just describe what you see.

do some free association exercises - for example, use a random word generator (I use this one sometimes) and then write literally whatever word comes into your head next - keep going until you fill the page, or until it starts to turn into a story, or just until you don’t feel like it any longer.

pick a random sentence (the person who suggested this often uses “Just write anything”) to be the start of a story, and “pants” your way through whatever comes next, without worrying about grammar, continuity, logic, or much of anything.

plan ahead - schedule your writing time and don’t let yourself put it off (rewards for success are always good!) and/or visualize exactly what you want to write ahead so you’re ready when you sit down.

if you get hit by inspiration, don’t put it off - even if all you do is scrawl a sentence in your phone or on scratch paper between other tasks, get it out of your head. Even a single sentence is a creation!

get out of the spaces where your usual things are - go to a park, or on a hike, or in your backyard, or even a different room in your own home, and bring a journal or phone or laptop, and see what strikes you.

pick That Thing You Haven’t Been Letting Yourself Write and ignore all the things you Think You Should Be Writing and just…write what brings you joy

fanfiction can be very helpful, especially in canon using canon-compliant ships/characterizations - there’s no need to do the heavy lifting. Even if you just write the characters going to a grocery store, or talking about what movie they want to watch, or arguing over take out - something short and sweet that’s just for fun, with no expectations for yourself or anyone else.

alternatively, if you’re the type who writes better for others and you’re feeling down - knock out anything, even something short, and post it, and take joy even in a single like or kudos. Knowing even one person out there loved what you wrote can really help.

Any or all of these may help you, but there’s one final one that I, at least, think is the most important of all - and that’s helped me most.

FORGIVE YOURSELF. You have work in progress up. It’s okay to leave them. You told someone you’d write something for them. It’s okay not to. You have a deadline looming. It’s okay to ask for more time, or to withdraw, or - in the end - it’s even okay to ghost. You think what you’ve made is bad. It’s okay if it’s bad. You’ll never be able to create when you’re raking yourself over the coals. Everyone in fandom has “been there” - has missed deadlines, has left challenges, has abandoned works in progress, have reneged on a promise to a friend to write something. Until you forgive yourself, you’ll never be able to create anything, and isn’t even a single sentence that isn’t on that Big Important Thing better than no sentences on anything?

Forgive yourself, and find that spark, inspiration, muse, whatever you want to call it - and write things that bring you joy.

We believe in you!

YOU CAN DO IT!

[star-plasma]

LGBT+ PRIDE (❁´▽`❁)*✲ﾟ*

[fixyourwritinghabits]

So I write and I can get through the first chapter, but after breaking for the night or something, I can't get back into the story. Any tips on how to overcome this? It feels almost as if I have lost motivation for writing the story but still have a passion for it.

I will gently place my hands on the sides of your face, lean really close, and say, quite loudly, "OUTLINE."

Okay, seriously, apologies to all you pantsers out there, but outlining will save your life when it comes to making story progress and pushing past the initial flare of inspiration. Also all pantsers should be held with the highest suspicion and may be liars. Or wizards. They are probably wizards.

Anyway, it is very normal to start strong and then hit a wall regardless of how much you want to do something, especially just starting out. Finding other ways to keep going regardless is how to keep feeding that urge. Some general tips:

Outline! Know how the next chapter goes? Get it down any way possible, as detailed or as minimal as you want. Whatever keeps the story going.

Worldbuild/Character Built. If you can't go straight, go sideways, filling out the details you'll use later.

Inspiration Hunt. Make that playlist, create that image board. You want to recapture that spark, and it's going to be in the stuff you surround yourself with.

Figure out what works for you. This might take a little bit more time, but when do you write best? Where? How can you replicate the situations that make you write best?

Sometimes you begin a project too soon, and it sputters right out of the gate. This is also very common, and it doesn't mean you're a bad writer, it means you need to shove that idea back to that dark corner of your brain where it can grow like a fungus. My current work in progress is based on a novel concept I had TWENTY YEARS AGO, so trust me - your ideas won't die, they just might take some time to get where they're going.

This is also hard, because you want to be working on something, and not writing is frustrating. Sometimes the best thing to do is to take those old first chapters and go through them, and see which ones have roots and which need more time to grow. Some people work great picking at several projects at once. Some people have to pick one project and stick to it, and you have to figure out whatever works for you.

So, in sum:

Sometimes the best way to write a story is to do everything but writing the actual story

Sometimes ideas need to percolate a bit longer and it's okay to give them time to grow

All pantsers are evil wizards that are not to be trusted

[apollolol]

This is long, so I apologize in advance. For the actual advice, skip down to the bullet point section!

I pants for one-shot stories and outline for stories with chapters. That said, my "one-shot" stories can range anywhere from 5k to 40k, though they often settle in the range of 20k, give or take a few thousand words.

Here's the thing. I don't find notably more success with an outline because unless you get pretty detailed- we're talking down to the dialogue beats -your story is going to change from how you initially envisioned it going. And at that point, you're presented with a dilemma: do I break my outline or do I break character?

I always choose to break my outline, because it means I've learned something about my characters along the way that I didn't or couldn't have anticipated in advance. Stories are living things. The whole time you write one, you're having a conversation with it. That's why I pants shorter stories. I have certain themes I want to explore, perhaps some concrete scenes that inspired me to write it in the first place, but largely, I let it breathe and see where it takes me.

Then there's chapter stories. These I will outline to keep myself on track, but the traditional outlining method doesn't work with my brain, so the compromise I came up with was to write down scene ideas on sticky notes and then arrange them on a page until I begin to make connections between them. Then I order them in chronological order and write sub notes about the connecting plot points. Putting them on sticky notes means that whenever my story shifts, I can easily swap the order of things, insert a new sticky note when I realize I need a certain scene beat to take place, or remove a sticky note and put it on a page of cut ideas without getting rid of it entirely in case I wrangle things in such a way that the scene can take place, though perhaps differently from how I originally expected it to. This can be done digitally too of course. I just kept physical outlines because I used to write in notebooks a lot.

I don't tend to write novels because stories that exceed 50k inevitably turn into a race against time with my ADHD brain before I lose interest (another reason I am primarily a pantser) and move on to a shinier, newer story. Does this make me an evil wizard? Maybe. But I do have some genuine advice to offer. Longer stories are basically project management and that's how you should think about them. Creativity isn't enough. Inspiration isn't enough. You can't rely on motivation to keep you going. So what should you do?

Schedule your writing. Set aside specific times to write. A half hour, an hour, whatever makes sense for you. Give yourself a word count goal, but celebrate whatever progress you make. Some days, if I'm really struggling with a stretch of story, I'll only write a few sentences, but it's better to pick at something consistently than rely on the rare burst of motivation to carry you through a couple thousand words. It adds up!

Incentivize writing. Make your planned writing time and environment something pleasant so that it feels like less of a chore when you're knee deep in your story and dredging up the will to write is harder. Put on music you like. I find lyrics distracting, so I personally stick with instrumental music or ambient noise videos when I'm trying to focus. I often make myself a pot of tea beforehand so I have something nice to sip on, put on nice lighting, etc. Set the scene for yourself before you set the scene in your story!

Find an accountability buddy. Internal accountability is really tough for me when I am working through writer block, so I have a designated writing hour twice a week with a friend where we both commit to working on our writing. We check in with each other via Discord for progress updates when we pause for a few minutes to take a break.

Maintain momentum. Try to leave off in the middle of scenes, not the end. In the middle of a scene, it's easier to pick it back up and keep going because you already have the momentum. It feels very satisfying to close out a chapter or scene, but if you can make friends with discomfort, it helps not to.

Plan to take breaks. Try to recognize when you're starting to hit genuine burnout on a long-term creative project and give yourself permission to step away. Work on something else if you can, preferably a shorter or less ambitious project so that you continue the writing habit while you take a vacation from your Big Novel. Leave yourself notes for where you stop and come back when you're feeling refreshed and ready to tackle it again.

Move on. Be honest with yourself about whether you need a break or have lost interest in a story. You won't necessarily complete every story you start, and that's ok! It may feel like a waste to abandon a story that just isn't sparking joy anymore, but you learn something from every project you work on. Don't delete your abandoned wips either. I scrapped one story idea 2,000 words in because it wasn't flowing the way I wanted. A year and a half later, I picked it up again and recycled it into a new story because I got an idea for where to take it, and I completed that one!

TL:DR The unfettered chaos of freewheeling through a story without knowing where you're going at all times isn't for everyone, but non-pantsers are right that you need structure to be successful. I don't derive structure from an outline for 90% of my writing, but I do impose structure through habits. Be willing to experiment with different methods to find what works for you, and most importantly, have fun!

[fixyourwritinghabits]

This is a really great point - no one outlines the same way, and your story will almost certainly deviate from your outline the further you go. You should not force yourself to stick to a plan - deviation is great for your novel, and you should be sure to leave yourself room to note how it does. The more you keep your outline to a living, changeable document, the easier it is.

Thanks for the extra tips!

[doomedyuri]

can’t stop thinking about my ocs. listening to music? thinking about my ocs. doing shit around the house? thinking about my ocs. driving somewhere?  thinking about my ocs. workin on something? thinking about my ocs.

[doomedyuri]

[pens-swords-stuff]

This is for all the writers who:

Have never finished a project

Don’t have publishing as their big goal

Write purely for enjoyment

Can’t/don’t stick to an idea

Don’t put their work out for people to read

Write purely as a hobby

You are just as valid and talented as writers who have been published, or have finished projects. You are still a writer, even if you don’t have other people read your work. You don’t have to pursue the same goals and have similar accomplishments to other people to be valid as a writer.

You are valid, you are important, and you are talented.

[tastefullyoffensive]

Portals to Hell by hrmphfft

[marchqueen-deactivated20161002]

IT’S BACK

[lady-dirtbag]

I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO FIND THIS AGAIN FOR MONTHS

I AM SO HAPPY RIGHT NOW

[2ndratewig]

ITS BACK 

[trumpetnista]

This is one of those posts that you need to save and tag or you’ll never see it again for 84 years.

[midnight-spectrum-again]

You got that right

[cinnamonrollorder]

I’m crying

[nerdneeniya]

New portal just opened

[voiceofnature]

Castles by Marcel Siebert

[benneetts]

i’m fucking DYING with Gordo’s first apparition this is so him in the whole series

[heritageposts]

Everyday I unwillingly learn something new about supernatural…

[pascalcampion]

Wasting time.

Aka. I just wanted to draw kitty cat.

#pascalcampion

[theslaybymic]

Watch: Kristen Bell opens up about the mental health double standard and how she manages her own struggle.

Follow @this-is-life-actually

[laureninlilly]

Hit reblog on this so hard

[writingquestionsanswered]

I’ve been “planning” a novel for about four years now but have never felt it truly come together. Lately it’s started to feel like I’m getting somewhere but I’m overwhelmed by how long it’s taking. I’m just struggling to come up with good ideas for this story (mostly just finding it’s purpose?). Is this normal? because it’s making me feel like I’m less of a writer for not being able to come up with ideas fast/not being able to sort out this story after it’s been so long.

Story Taking Forever, Feeling Like Less of a Writer

So... look... do you write? You’re a writer. 

Being a writer isn’t about how much you write, how often you write, or how fast you can churn out a story. It’s not even about finishing a story. Being a writer is about writing, and that’s it.

Writing is a different process for everyone. I know people who can crank out a great novel in just a few months, and I know people who can take literally years to finish a single novel...

I’ve written the first draft of all ten of my novels during NaNoWriMo, but it took me five years to get Ashes Swept through its subsequent drafts and ready to be published. And, I thought I’d be ready to publish my next book the following year... that would have been 2018. Guess what... it’s sitting right here beside me in its about-to-be-overhauled-again fourth draft. The damn thing has a cover already, and my critique partners haven’t even read past the middle of the second act.

My point is, not all of us are virtual novel factories who can publish a new book every quarter, or even every year, and there’s nothing wrong with that. It doesn’t mean you’re a bad writer or that your story is bad. It just means the process takes a little longer for you, or for this story, or both.

If you’re worried about not having any complete stories in the meantime, if you’re able to work on more than one thing at once, try setting aside some time to work on short stories or a novella. But, seriously, don’t sweat it. 

Just in case you haven’t already, have a look at the posts in my Plot & Story Structure master list, as there are quite a few in there that can help you find your story’s purpose. You might also have a look at my Motivation master list as there are some posts with exercises and other tips that can help rekindle your enthusiasm for your story, as well as posts that deal with allaying various writing-related fears.

Hang in there. You’ve got this! If you love this story, it will find its way into the sunshine! ♥

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[replanting]

from the inhabit manifesto