Writing tips

Here you can find writing tips, story prompts and else.

[writing-tips-and-else]

[quinnyandco]

sir that’s my emotional support story that I’ve been working on for five years that still has no conceivable plot

[writing-tips-and-else]

[writing-in-the-grave]

Hey y'all why are writers always cold?

[run-remi-run]

...why?

[writing-in-the-grave]

They're always surrounded by drafts!

How many mystery writers does it take to change a lightbulb?

[run-remi-run]

Oh god.

How many?

[writing-in-the-grave]

Two! One to change the bulb, and the other to give it an unexpected twist at the end!

What do writers have for breakfast?

[run-remi-run]

Coffee?

[writing-in-the-grave]

Synonym buns!

Where do all the struggling writers live?

[run-remi-run]

How are you coming up with all these?

Where?

[writing-in-the-grave]

Writer's Block!

What do writers suffer from each spring?

(I've heard a lot of them over the years.)

[run-remi-run]

Allergies. Next question.

[writing-in-the-grave]

you were close; A case of allegories

Why are writers always in great shape?

[run-remi-run]

Circular prose

[writing-in-the-grave]

Nope! It's because we're always running out of ideas!

Did you hear about the famous writer who turned out to be a fraud?

[run-remi-run]

I did not

[writing-in-the-grave]

His life had it's prose and cons...

Why is editing a better job than writing?

[run-remi-run]

It's more rewording?

[writing-in-the-grave]

Correct! I am out of jokes. :(

[thewritingrealm]

If you're reading this...

go write three sentences on your current writing project.

[kiramartinauthor]

When you're writing and you suddenly realize you don't know what happens next

[taraljc]

When you’re writing and you suddenly realise you DO know what happens next

[justahappycloud]

When you’re writing and you realise you have to write what happens next

[writing-tips-and-else]

https://pin.it/4hM4sfB

[writing-tips-and-else]

[bramblethekobold]

Okay, so...RANDOM INFORMATION:

Hitting someone in the head is very effective. *Punching* someone in the head is likely to hurt you. 

An open hand strike to the temple? Just as effective. If you’re in close, use an elbow. Look up “ridge hand strike” if you’re interested in a relatively safe way to hit someone in the head. Safe for you. Don’t do it unless it’s a life-or-death situation as it’s likely to do serious harm to the person you hit if it connects as you’ll generate ridiculous torque on it by default.

If you punch someone anywhere, make sure you’ve made a safe fist - your four fingers should form a flat surface, and your thumb should be tucked in, but not under your fingers - that’ll snap your thumb even if you hit a soft location. Check youtube or just do an image search for more information.

Kick with the ball of your foot, or your heel; not the top of your foot, the point of your toes, or the arch.

The best way to fight is to deescalate the situation and never have to come to blows.

The second you have the chance to run, run. 

Source: my old, terrifying martial arts teacher

[goddessartemys]

Dear authors: you have to learn the difference between a bad boy and a bastard abuser.

[ashaywalker-author]

Um, yes.

[thatwriterchickyouknow]

For those of you who are confused: Bad boy: probably poor, doesn’t follow rules because he thinks they are harmful or stifling (”I can’t sit there all day when teachers don’t give a shit if I learn or not”), outbursts are at injustices, fights to defend (”leave them alone/you’re hurting this place leave!”) Bastard abuser: probably middle class or higher, doesn’t follow rules because he think’s he’s above them (”school is a waste of time I can learn what I need to from books”), outbursts are about things not going the way he wants them, fights to prove superiority or lay claim (”stay off my turf/away from my girl!”)

[patrokleos]

Also, for their significant others, please learn the difference between being a nice, compromising S.O. and being a borderline or actually abused S.O.

Too many authors write the latter as though it’s supposed to be romantic. It isn’t.

[writeroftheprompts]

We all know those tired clichés. It’s time to kill them. Take one of them and turn them on their heads or at least these will hopefully keep the errors out of your writing. If you think of any other way to change them up go right ahead. Happy hunting!

[writeroftheprompts]

I shook my head, trying to clear the image. It was my imagination. There were fairy tales. Humans were not real.

[writing-tips-and-else]

One of my favourite prompts 💖

[writing-tips-and-else]

[lizard-is-writing]

How to Plot a Complex Novel in One Day

Now first, I have to say, that the plot you’re able to come up with in one day is not going to be without its flaws, but coming up with it all at once, the entire story unfolds right in front of you and makes you want to keep going with it. So, where to begin?

What is your premise and basic plot? Pick your plot. I recommend just pulling one from this list. No plots are “original” so making yours interesting and complicated will easily distract from that fact, that and interesting characters. Characters will be something for you to work on another day, because this is plotting day. You’ll want the main plot to be fairly straight forward, because a confusing main plot will doom you if you want subplots.

Decide who the characters will be. They don’t have to have names at this point. You don’t even need to know who they are other than why they have to be in the story. The more characters there are the more complicated the plot will be. If you intend to have more than one subplot, then you’ll want more characters. Multiple interconnected subplots will give the illusion that the story is very complicated and will give the reader a lot of different things to look at at all times. It also gives you the chance to develop many side characters. The plot I worked out yesterday had 13 characters, all were necessary. Decide their “roles” don’t bother with much else. This seems shallow, but this is plot. Plot is shallow.

Now, decide what drives each character. Why specifically are they in this story? You can make this up. You don’t even know these characters yet. Just so long as everyone has their own motivations, you’re in the clear.

What aren’t these characters giving away right off the bat? Give them a secret! It doesn’t have to be something that they are actively lying about or trying to hide, just find something that perhaps ties them into the plot or subplot. This is a moment to dig into subplot. This does not need to be at all connected to their drive to be present in the story.  Decide who is in love with who, what did this person do in the 70’s that’s coming back to bite them today, and what continues to haunt what-his-face to this very day. This is where you start to see the characters take shape. Don’t worry much about who they are or what they look like, just focus on what they’re doing to the story.

What is going to change these characters? Now this will take some thinking. Everyone wants at least a few of the characters to come out changed by the end of the story, so think, how will they be different as a result of the plot/subplot? It might not be plot that changes them, but if you have a lot of characters, a few changes that are worked into the bones of the plot might help you.

Now list out the major events of the novel with subplot in chronological order. This will be your timeline. Especially list the historical things that you want to exist in backstory. List everything you can think of. Think about where the story is going. At this point, you likely haven’t focused too much on the main plot, yeah, it’s there, but now really focus on the rising actions, how this main plot builds its conflict, then the climactic moment. Make sure you get all of that in there. This might take a few hours.

Decide where to start writing. This part will take a LOT of thinking. It’s hard! But now that you’ve got the timeline, pick an interesting point to begin at. Something with action. Something relevant. Preferably not at the beginning of your timeline - you want to have huge reveals later on where these important things that happened prior are exposed. This is the point where you think about what information should come out when. This will be a revision of your last list, except instead of being chronological, it exists to build tension.

Once you’ve gotten the second list done, you’ve got a plot. Does it need work? Probably. But with that said, at this point you probably have no idea who half your characters are. Save that for tomorrow, that too will be a lot of work.

Disclaimer for this post.

[theauthorofus-blog]

Writing LGBT charters

I find that a rise in LGBT in books, tv, movie etc to be so inspiring an outstanding. I love how people are finally getting the idea that if you want your audience to feel a connection to a character you charter has to be real. A HUGE part of real life is the LGBT community.   But I dislike when shows and books just throw LGBT characters in there with no development. It is great to see some representation but why is that character gay for like two episodes or the last thirty seconds of a movie.

   When I first started writing LGBT I asked people I knew what it was like and the answer was always different. The only thing all those people had in common was it took time to find that part of themselves. It is so inspiring to hear those stories and to implement them can teach your audience such important lessons about self-discovery. When That story is just thrown in I feel like something great just got thrown out.

[crockpotcauldron]

the ideal werewolf novel

just looked through about 700 werewolf books, good grief.

most seem to fall into two categories:

werewolf serial killer mysteries

domineering alpha romances

neither is really what I’m interested in.

here is what I’d want from the werewolf novel of my wildest dreams:

good relationships, especially friendships between packmates (lone wolves are boring)

werewolves who like being werewolves. (angsty wolves are boring)

the practical details of werewolfery: who’s got the bail money for animal control, whether anyone’s microchipped, what you pack in a bag for a night out werewolfing

the uses of werewolfery: hiring yourselves out as trackers or canine rescue, getting certified as service dogs, spending your free time at the library letting little kids read to a friendly doggie

female werewolves, and no weird gross hypermasculine alpha stuff going on in werewolf culture

queer werewolves, and no weird gross heteronormative ‘laws of nature’ stuff going on in werewolf culture

dog jokes.

[lectorel]

The standard urban fantasy female protagonist dating a werewolf who is not an alpha. Bonus points for it being a cute beta werewolfess who thinks her girlfriend’s perpetual posturing as the ‘baddest bitch on the block’™ is the most adorable thing ever. Extra bonus points for fuzzy baby werewolves and adopted babies. (Because actual wolf packs? Exist to raise children. They’re family units, focused around rearing cubs.)

[crockpotcauldron]

#werewolves #queer wolves #werewolves as the foster parents of the supernatural world #if there’s a kid so much as sniffling in their general vicinity they’re going to get adopted #the fae discovered that they could straight-up hand off changlings to werewolf packs #no deception needed #magic using children of mundane parents who can’t handle it? #every pack has a dozen of them #fic ideas

okay this is one of the cutest reblogs I’ve gotten. 

imagine it

werewolves just going YES FAMILY GOOD and adopting everyone and making sure they get attention and food and understand that it’s fine to be who you are and that you’re not alone, you’re pack now

and the kids that can’t turn into wolves get to ride on the dogsleds to make sure they’re not left out during the full moon family bonding time (… you have to be an adult to pull a dogsled. mistakes have been made.)

werewolves on the PTA. werewolf den mothers. werewolf little league coaches. werewolves filling the bleachers and auditioriums and dance halls and galleries, cheering for their kids. werewolves helping kids with their homework, werewolves sewing costumes for the school play, werewolves showing kids how to change a tire

werewolves with battered kitchen tables with chewed legs. werewolves with huge family dinners. werewolves ferrying pies and casseroles and fresh baked bread back and forth between family members’ houses. werewolf extended families. massive werewolf packs that are technically only about 25% werewolf but still definitely packs

puppy teeth being left for the tooth fairy. fangs being left for the tooth fairy. cuttlebones being left for the tooth fairy. stolen teeth being left for the tooth fairy. werewolves with giant families full of kids with different needs and species.

werewolves adopting everyone. werewolves fostering everyone. werewolves who wind up with dozens of kids, all of whom are family and therefore pack.

[danielfromthelifeforge]

yes good, give me more like this

[greyramblings]

ladyzolstice

[ladyzolstice]

i feel this in my soul

[bluewavelengths]

WEREWOLVES BASED ON ACTUAL WOLF PACK BEHAVIOR INSTEAD OF BULLSHIT DOMINANCE THEORY! All the werewolf fiction I’ve read involves everything falling to shit due to infighting over who gets to be alpha like WAY TO ILLUSTRATE EXACTLY WHY THIS IDEA DOESN’T WORK. You really think wolves would be successful hunters if they were constantly getting injured and wasting energy fighting each other?!

[skaletal-deactivated20190721]

The whole idea of “alpha” dynamics is based entirely on the behaviour of wolves in captivity! If you so much as google “wolves in captivity alpha”, you’ll get a bunch of results about why it’s not representative of actual wolf behaviour.

As it turns out, if you capture, restrain, and shove together wolves from unrelated packs, they will fight and form a hierarchy of power.

Kind of like prison. Because, functionally, the exact premise of that kind of captivity is kind of like prison.

Wolves are social animals, and they interact in the wild pretty much the same way other family-centric social animals do.

Hey, you know what another family-centric social animal we’re all familiar with is? People. Just, you know, take away the oppressive idea that one parent is the definitive and unchallengeable head of the household that most of us have lived under for so long first.

Wolves are apparently group problem-solvers, and presumably, in large packs, you’re going to get squabbling and older pack members mitigating it, just like that one patient aunt or uncle or grandparent or close family friend who is essentially a relative often does in big families.

There’s a very legitimate basis for writing werewolves as friendly, community-minded folks. If your werewolves view their human neighbours as other packs not in competition with themselves, they’re likely going to be those people that the entire neighbourhood views as very nice, but “a little overwhelming.” (And maybe a little too indulgent with their kids, according to the neighbourhood snobs.)

Your gigantic werewolf family is probably going to be a litle less threatening and overtly secretive and a little more “we’re having a barbeque, when can we expect you??? you didn’t come last week, were you sick??? we were all worried- do you not eat meat?? oh, okay, I’ll have Sophie and Thaddeus pick up some Halal burgers and we’ll scrub off the second barbeque for them and some vegetable skewers, too, does that sound good?? so when can we expect you????”

(Also: werewolves taking in queer kids and mentally ill kids and kids from broken homes even though they’re mundane because they can’t comprehend how someone could not want them. Werewolves taking in street kids.)

[wormofmouth]

#…a pack of werewolves living in a huge house together like one of those huge families people sort of smile incredulously at#multiple generations#a pack occupying a trailer park because it’s near the woods and there’s a certain amount of security in having a mobile home#packs being viewed by mundanes as those eccentric families that fill the school gymnasium every time there’s an event with one of their kids#packs migrating to accomodate new packmates and encountering other packs#packs fusing to form entire communities#wolves taking in mundane street kids#werewolves#writing#urban fantasy

[ohmightysmiter]

*SLAMS FIST ON TABLE* NOW THIS IS THE KIND OF CONTENT I WANT TO SEE

[theauthorofus-blog]

Writing dialogue

Using said after the dialogue isn’t great and neither is just plugging in -ed or -ly words. Try adding more to help your reader better understand how the charter feels. Don’t be afraid to make it creative, make a comparison, or make it metaphorical.

“I can’t” she said. 

“I can’t” she said shyly. 

“I can’t” she whispered only to herself, but she didn’t realize the dust in the empty chair could hear too. 

[theauthorofus-blog]

A Good Descriptor

     So often I see people struggling with descriptors. People are looking for a great way to describe their surroundings and pull their reader into the scene. But, what you’re really doing a lot of the time is feeling a need to make everything beautiful and poetic. You want to tell your reader your character is wearing rugged blue jeans with stains down the legs, you say that: “he was wearing rugged blue jeans with stains down the legs.” Done. Don’t hold their hand. If the thing you’re describing has no other purpose than existence, then it probably doesn’t need more than a single, simplistic sentence.       The key to a good descriptor is to keep its purpose in mind. You must ask yourself: how important is this? How much does it deserve?

[keepcalmandwritefiction]

“If you write to impress it will always be bad, but if you write to express it will be good.”

— Thornton Wilder

[thatwritergirlsblog]

Writing a sub-plot

Here are some tips for writing great sub-plots, romantic or otherwise.

1. When to introduce a sub-plot

Of course, every story is different. However, there is some consensus that it's good to introduce your sub-plot a little ways into your book

The main plot needs to be established first. The readers need to know the main character(s) and understand what the story is about. They need to care about the crux of the book and the characters first.

Then, you can introduce an intriguing subplot to keep their interest.

Don't wait too long, though. Anything after 1/3 through might feel forced and misplaced.

2. When to resolve the sub-plot

The sub-plot should be resolved before the main plot is.

Generally, you want your readers' attention focused on the main conflict once you reach the climax.

This means that you want to give them the resolution of the sub-plot a few pages/chapters before the big showdown of the main plot.

You'll see that most TV episodes also follow this guideline and it works.

You can, roughly, aim for the 3/4 mark if you're unsure.

3. Remember the sub in sub-plot

I love a good sub-plot, especially one about characters growing closer. However, if I pick up a sci-fi thriller from the bookstore only to read a 400 page love story, I'm gonna be disappointed.

You classify your genre according to your main plot. What is the main conflict or purpose in your story? That should be the focus.

A sub-plot of whichever variation is always secondary to the main storyline.

If you focus too much on the subplot, it may overpower your real story and bump your book into a whole other genre.

So, maybe have the romance take a backseat when the main plot comes to play.

4. When to indulge

Let's be honest; we all love writing our sub-plots. They often contain the scenes you envisioned when thinking up your story - the conversations and fluff, the banter and depth of character. This, unfortunately, means that it's easy to get carried away, as I made clear in my last point.

However, there is a part of your book in which you can indulge, a point during which you can explore the sub-plot to your heart's desire.

When is that point? The middle.

Often, the main plot slows down in the middle of the book. The characters need training or there's a period of false security etc. Many stories have a lull in the middle where the main conflict isn't in full swing.

And this is where the sub-plot shines. This is where characters fall in love and heroes reunite with long-lost fathers. This is where you get to place your darling scenes.

And no, this doesn't mean that your middle can be 200 pages and you can write an entire romance novel. It also doesn't mean that the main plot must disappear. It's just a stage in the story where you can let the sub-plot loose a bit.

Also don't leave every aspect of your sub-plot for the middle. It should be woven into your story.

But use the middle to let the sub-plot shine.

5. Should you have a sub-plot?

Personally, I think every story needs some form of sub-plot.

There has to be some conflict/story/relationship that develops and adds intrigue aside from the main plot.

Not having one could screw up your pacing, make your characters feel underdeveloped and generally make for a boring read.

But, this is just my opinion. Each unto their own.

That's it. Those are some basic tips on writing a sub-plot. I hope that they could be helpful. As always, my inbox and asks are open for any questions.

Reblog if you found these tips useful. Comment with the type of sub-plot you're writing. Follow me for similar content.