#also I don't really edit as I go so the snippets I post on here may change a bit in the final draft or even look completely different | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

kiwichaeng · 4 months

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WIP Wednesday

Thank you for the tags @heartstringsduet @lemonlyman-dotcom @fallout-mars @im-overstimulated-and-im-sad <33

“Are you going to hover over me the entire night? Am I going to find you looking down at me at 3 am?” Carlos’ tone is light as he finishes sits down heavily on the edge of the bed. He doesn’t hide the wince as well as he thinks. TK remains quiet in the corner. Carlos looks up when he doesn’t get a response. He tilts his head and looks at TK curiously. “What are you doing all the way over there? I know you don’t need to sleep but I would feel better if you didn’t stare at me from the corner the entire night.” TK knows it’s in good faith, that they’ve come leaps and bounds since they met and if nothing else else, the humour in Carlos’ eyes would give it away but tonight, all TK can do is play back the evening’s event in his mind over and over. He knows Carlos has noticed it. He had kept on shooting glances at TK the entire time at the hospital as he was being treated to the point where the doctor had asked him if he was looking for someone. The white bandages peaks out from under Carlos’ collar and TK’s eyes are fixed on them like a moth to a flame. This is on him, that he got someone as good as Carlos tangled up in his mess. He should never have followed him home, never forced him into helping and should have— He should never have gotten attached. “I have to go. You should too,” TK murmurs in the quiet room and made for the door. He doesn’t look at Carlos once as he slipped out of the room. “What— TK wait,” He can hear the confusion in Carlos’ voice turn into panic. “Where are you going?” With a heavy heart, TK ignores the calls and keeps walking straight ahead down the empty hallway. “TK,” Carlos whispers loudly from behind him but TK doesn’t turn back. It is only when he hears a sharp inhale and a wince does he stop.

open tag and no pressure tags under the cut <3

@liminalmemories21 @lightningboltreader @orchidscript @strandnreyes @reyesstrand @paperstorm @carlos-in-glasses @carlos-tk @ladytessa74 @three-drink-amy @chicgeekgirl89 @theghostofashton @redshirt2

#lemme know if you wanna be added or removed from the tag list <3 #I have been writing in snippets these past few days and I just need to sit down and compile everything as well as fill in the missing blank #also I don't really edit as I go so the snippets I post on here may change a bit in the final draft or even look completely different #What I'm trying to say is that I'm aware they need polishing #anyway! this obviously takes place slightly down the imaginary timeline I keep on fucking around with #also I am in such a writing mood right now but I also have a shit ton of work to do like...gotta suffer now #evie's writing #autopsy fic

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mournstera · 2 years

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Creating Tumblr themes: Websites or tools you might not have heard of

There are several posts and pages on how to create Tumblr themes. I figured I'd add some links and tools that I haven't really seen on this hellsite. Enjoy!

Chrome Devtools — This is an obvious one to point out to some, but I don't wanna leave it out. Right click and inspect on a website! "live edit" your CSS and HTML and watch it take action immediately. Just remember to copy the html/CSS into your theme before refreshing ;) I've used similar tools on Firefox since 2010, never looked back. devtools is powerful as fuck, but you don't need to know everything before diving into it.

Prettier.io — "An opinionated code formatter." Use the online playground to check your scripts or neatly fix and arrange your CSS. Or just HTML. It can also be installed in VS Code easily, which I highly recommend.

Coolors.co — colour patterns, gradients, create colour schemes from images, check for accessibility, and so much more.

Lucide Icons — the popular Feather icons just got an upgrade, so many Icons! Go here to see how to integrate it in your themes.

Neumorphism.io — What it says on the tin.

uiverse.io — Universe of UI elements to help you stand out. Great source of inspiration as well.

Fancy Border Radius Generator — Because why settle with squares?

Blob generator — if fancy Border radius isn't enough. Generator of much more than blobs, by the way! Check it out.

Open Props: Sub-atomic styles — Supercharged CSS variables.

Modern CSS Reset — better than Eric Meyer's.

Subtle patterns — been using this for over a decade.

CodeMyUI — repository for CSS snippets.

Codepad — a place for developers to share code snippets: PHP, Java, Bash, C, C++, Python and more.

Mesh Gradient Collection — because it's pretty.

WAVE — Check how your website/theme holds up accessibility-wise. Spoiler alert: get into aria-labels.

Feel free to message me more, and I'll add it to the post.

#tumblr themes #resourcemarket #supportcontentcreators #theme hunter #themehunter #plugins #other #codes by me

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sgiandubh · 6 months

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Gleberman's podcast, take 2: the video edition

I volunteered to take one for the team, again, this time watching (or trying to, at least) the video version of Gleberman's infamous podcast on Youtube (if you are a masochist, like me, feel free: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_md73Ws2O4&t=303s). You see, I was so intrigued by the OTT praise that I wanted to see the live reactions. To do so, I even watched it at a 0,25 reduced speed ratio, just to catch up those pesky, spontaneous facial expressions he couldn't possibly hide.

Let's start with what we all know: in 10 years, S is much, much better at hiding his game and almost proficient at mastering the poker face. But if you really pay attention (and I did), you might still notice some interesting things: after all, we aren't robots and we can't calibrate or control everything. So, here's my take on what I saw, with screencaps, and covering only the bits I quoted in my first post (https://www.tumblr.com/sgiandubh/733285180488450048/and-kia-ora-to-new-zealand-like-youve )- the rest was really beyond my patience and goodwill abilities, to be honest.

A word and a question on the staging of this podcast, before anything else. I am always paying great attention to the outfits of the people who participate, because I believe they are an integral part of the show itself. While Gleberman's was, to be honest, unacceptably sloppy, S was right on point the message he wanted to convey, with the short-sleeved (?) khaki shirt that spelled three things: Bachelor. Traveler/Explorer. Tropical Chic. As a side note, I wish he'd been dressed like that in the Nevis resort suite snippet: not the usual Peter Panesque/Marty McFly/boyz in da hood outfit. But hey, that's just me, what do I know, after all, maybe the boy really feels more relaxed in those. Brand-wise, however, I will never cease to drum up the urgent need to step up the outfit game and start aligning it with the real age.

The other thing that intrigued me is common to S and C: their love of cupboards and hallways when it comes to playing the show/not show game on podcasts 'from home'. Because they know we watch and because they know, by now, we are probably worse than the MI-6, we're left with... eh... nothing. He apparently found the perfect solution with that sort of a connecting space he is always showing us, lately. Seriously, though, who the hell places himself in front of an opening (sliding door?) to a bigger room, except when wanting to block both the view and any other interpretation? Heh. Things that make one go 🤔.

Anyways. Let's have a look at some reactions I have screencapped:

Gleberman: 'same sweetest person and like an amazing human being'.

Translation: I am pursing my lips and bracing myself for the rest of the #silly compliment. I can't possibly express how much this annoys and embarrasses the bejesus out of me. But hey, Monica, have at it and let's be done already with this circus.

Gleberman: '...and friend to talk to and I just love you.'

Translation: I close my eyes because I don't want to hear the OTT crap this woman is shamelessly peddling around. I cross my arms defensively, because this is the best I can do. I really pray internally she'd immediately stop it, somehow (though I am fully aware she won't and this is just the beginning). She definitely overstepped a red line and I don't want to be a part of it.

S: '.I think there's...there's a lot of smoke and mirrors, this is ALL fake.'

Translation: I am talking with my hands to make a point (and also to show off the damn rings - oh, Lord, let them talk about these to oblivion, on socials). I am also covering my face with a gesture evocative of a smoke curtain, because ultimately I feel the need to protect myself from the smiling entity on the other side of my screen and because, at the same time, I know exactly what I did here. Oops, I just unleashed another half-in-jest zeppelin, that people could pretzel exactly how they see fit. However, it's true: my public persona is a carefully curated lie. Peekaboo, underneath I know very well what my committed truth is.

S: ' I am the double'.

Translation: I am opening my arms and I am puffing out my chest. There, I've said it. Ha! I am in full defiant mode, now. I meant every single word I just said and damn the consequences.

I wish I'd had the patience to watch it all. But I think I've managed to analyze the most interesting part of it. Overall, there was quite a bit of stress involved on S's side (lots of chin grabbing, etc), the only one I was interested in. She was simply not worth my attention and I doubt she, unlike many other people in the media, 'knows stuff'. If anything, that only served to validate my first impressions.

And yes, always look for the presence of the teeny-tiny abnormal detail. Sometimes (not always) it can prove rewarding.

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lovezbrownies · 19 days

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(MYandere! Superhero x GN!Reader)

Masterlist

(Decided to make an oc strictly non-sexual, so he is asexual, I noticed I've been making a lot of sexual fics lately and wanted to change it up :) have fun! Also made my posts prettier )

Synopsis: You don't check the news often enough, so when civilians were warned against walking near or through a certain area you were none the wiser... Giving your stalker a chance to save you from doom.

Luminary x Reader.

Warnings: Mentioned stalking, kidnapping, not edited at all :(.

You had a routine. Get up bright and early for your 7 AM office job, get to work, come home at 2 PM, relax for 2 or so hours, then go out for a short walk at the park near your apartment. You never really deviate from your usual walking pattern, yet today you felt adventurous– Ironic, of all days to be adventurous and wander off to a new path that same exact path ends up being infested with blood-lusted slime creatures from the dark abyss of this world.

Obviously you thought something was off but you just could not put your finger on it! Sure it was creepy how as you kept walking the area got quieter, lonelier, darker, but you just thought that there was some superhero nearby and everyone wanted a picture with them, that has happened before. Or maybe today just wasn’t your day, your natural ‘hey this feels dangerous let’s turn back’ system may be experiencing some difficulties… And now you find yourself running faster than you have ever run in your life. Leaping away from the hungry monsters attempting to catch you and devour you.

These slimy demons had popped up a few decades ago, a few years after the sudden appearance of super humans. No one knows where either came from, how they sprung, or the exact science behind their sudden appearance. But now they’re here, not a lot of people get blessed with super powers, and those who do immediately get enlisted, either by their own will or their parents force them to when they’re young. Some people don’t enlist even with superpowers, some people have such rare superpowers that they’re forced into the work field, those people mostly being healers and supernaturally intelligent people.

You were none of those, a normal average human, with a normal average job, and a normal average routine. And here you were, endangering your life, for your stupid physical health. Not like you’d have any of your physical health after this, you’re going to be in a monster’s stomach in about 5 minutes. You already were slowing down, the constant zig zagging decreasing your stamina fast. Looking back at the monsters chasing you.

What you didn’t expect was to stumble over an exposed cable, falling flat on your face, your ears start ringing, blocking out the noises of your own panting and whimpering as well as the monster's evil noises. You immediately huddled into the fetal position, as if it would minimize any of the tormenting pain you’ll be feeling soon but… nothing, no ripping of the skin, no crushing of the bones, no hearts being slowly devoured by evil monsters. None of it.

Yet you kept your eyes clenched shut, maybe the monsters are confused with your stupidity that they just stood there processing before they finally have at it. Slowly the ringing in your ears subsided, and you heard nothing, no growling monsters or anything, nothing other than your own panting, as well as… footsteps? The sound of a sly chuckle startles you, causing you to crack open your eyes and you were greeted by the shining bright smile of the world famous superhero, Luminary.

Luminary– A man of unnaturally strong power, he was invincible, untouchable. You liked him enough for saving the city many times before but didn’t really idolize him, superhero or not he still was a human with human emotions, whatever people say about him online can still affect him. So you kept to yourself when it came to superhero affairs. But from the short snippets you’d see online you had a lot in common with him, shows, interests, hobbies. You always thought that it was all a carefully crafted lie to make him seem more relatable to the average plebeians, or whatever who knows.

You were star struck, ironically enough you wanted to act normal around him but you couldn’t even form words. Luminary’s shining smile still pointed towards you. He held out his hand, intending for you to grasp at it and use it to steady yourself up. “Hello there! I take it you haven’t seen the news this morning, huh? Haha! No worries, your trusty hero is always there to save you.” You just sat there gaping up at him, the personal embodiment of a star.

Maybe it was the exhaustion, the shock, or the superhero in front of you, but you fainted, completely collapsed, thankfully you didn’t hit your head since you were already lying down.

Luminary had watched you run for your life from the creatures earlier. But he couldn’t care less of them, his eyes were on you, the person he’s had a crush on since the 11th grade, you never knew of his existence but he didn’t care, he’ll eventually weasel his way into your life but right now he’s content on stalking you. Or so he thought, until you endangered your life and almost got yourself killed when you tripped.

Seeing the once in a lifetime opportunity to weasel his way into your life. Luminary picked you right off the dirty ground, his heartbeat accelerating, every little part of you he touches feels like electricity. Years of one sided obsession and just now is he making contact with you, practically committing himself to abstinence just for you. Luminary felt like a schoolgirl as he giggled at the sight of you resting your head on his shoulder. Luminary’s flight home was delightful, you smelt amazing, and you even snuggled into him in your sleep! He could just explode! Once he entered his humble abode, Luminary placed you on his bed, his eyes practically turning heart shaped at the thought of late night cuddles with you…

#x reader #yandere x reader #oc x reader #yandere x darling #gn reader #yandere oc #yandere oc x reader #yandere hero #yandere hero x reader

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my-beloved-lakes · 10 months

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I just now noticed the dirty/scolding look Sophie gives Breanna when Breanna asked if Eliot was off to kill someone in The Fractured Job. It was very subtle, but if you watch carefully it's there.

While I did think it was funny, her question also bugged me a little, even though I know she was joking, cuz it felt a little insensitive considering all the guilt Eliot feels about his past. But now that I think about it it actually kinda makes sense that she wouldn't understand how insensitive it could be. Like yes, she knows Eliot and she's known him for a long time. But she knows a different side of him than everyone else. She knew him as the cool, badass uncle who her older brother always brought to family gatherings and Christmas and stuff. She probably knows little snippets of Eliot's past but not enough to fully realize that her joke might be a little insensitive. (She would never intentionally be insensitive about it!) Eliot probably never let her see the guilt ridden side of himself because she's like his little kid niece.

Her joke didn't really seem to bother Eliot that much, but Sophie immediately shut it down and I love that. Because Sophie knows just how much guilt Eliot feels and she knows it's something that's caused him a lot of pain. And like Hardison said, they trust her to make sure they're okay. So even if Breanna's joke didn't actually bother Eliot, Sophie still felt like she needed to let Breanna know to back off a bit. And then Breanna did back off.

Idk what point I'm trying to make here but I thought it was an interesting little detail.

Edit: just in case it wasn't clear, (I should have made this more clear to begin with.) This is not a hate post about Breanna or even a criticism really! The way I see it, Breanna didn't know and had no way of knowing what she said would be insensitive because Eliot didn't let her know. That's what I was trying to get at. Eliot has been doing a very good job of shielding her from his past and she knows a different side of him than the others. I don't want negative things about Breanna said on this post (or any of my posts for that matter.) Of course everyone is entitled to their opinions but please don't put that sort of thing on my posts. If you have something negative to say about Breanna go make your own post please and thank you.

#leverage #leverage redemption #the fractured job #Eliot Spencer #Breanna Casey #Sophie Devereaux #alec hardison #Parker #leverage meta

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hvllowheart · 6 months

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hi! regarding your last post about abandoning projects, do you have any advice for overcoming that?

I do!

1. Write something you're passionate about.

Now, I get that everyone constantly says that, and you'll think, "that tells me absolutely nothing" bc passion can only get you so far and usually fluctuates a lot. It's something I've started to realize happens to me. One day I wake up and have a new idea I love and think "wow this is gonna be a piece of cake to finish" despite me knowing it's going to entail a lot of planning and once I get the inital idea out of the way and get to that planning stage my attention for the project... dies.

What I mean with that is to write something you're passionate about is that you shouldn't write something into the project you feel like others will like. Or if it's a project with tropes in it, that you have to follow those to the T.

If an idea is boring, don't write it.

If you have a cool idea that might not fit the vibe entirely, write it down. Keep it in mind for later when it could fit the vibe better.

Incorporate as many things you love as you like and then worry about how the broader plot can shape around them.

2. Don't write in order of what's supposed to happen.

I know it'll make you feel better to feel like you have a clear point A to B but truth is, some parts are going to be extremely boring to write. You won't want to write all about the logistics of a scene happening right that moment or the spicy dialogue that carries the scene bc you're way more focused on another detail that drew you to write a particular scene.

In those cases, I usually just put whatever is supposed to happen in brackets [insert car chase here] and move on the bits I'm excited to get to. You might wake up a couple of days later thinking you want to revisit that car chase scene and write it all in one go now that you've stopped obsessing over a different scene you cared for before.

3. Make the experience more fun for yourself.

If you feel like you're burning out and losing steam from writing and planning the project, take a step back and do something else.

If I still feel like doing something with the project that isn't necessarily write it, I tend to end up making edits or a playlist or looking for inspiration pictures that might give me an idea of a new setting or what a character will look like. And that's what usually keeps my brain working and thinking about the plot.

As soon as another idea pops into my head bc of the space I took not writing the projects itself, I write it down and get reinspired to work on it.

4. Look for inspiration.

As mentioned in 3., I can't recommend enough to look for inspiration in pictures or boards on pinterest or a song or a quote you really love. Trust me, seeing a cool picture or reading a quote that immediately makes you think of a specific character makes you itch to get back to writing.

It also allows your writing to grow when you take the time to look for inspiration. Writing everything in one go might make you feel productive but the quality could potentially decline the longer you're at it and when you come back to it you'll ask yourself what the hell you were on writing some of the stuff. So taking that time, finding new locations/side characters/some dialogue snippets you could incorporate, will make you feel excited to actually see those ideas and inspirations become part of your project.

5. Take breaks.

This is another one of those things you always hear and think, "that's what leads me to abandon it in the first place??" and while I agree (been there) It's also important not to get burned out by the project.

The breaks shouldn't span entire weeks, of course, but don't beat yourself up when you can't get to the project for a couple of days bc of life happening or something else being more interesting.

Taking those breaks ensures you not only build anticipation, but it also let's the project breathe and allows you the space, to again, think of the broader plot or a specific scene that could be cool to incorporate.

6. Find someone to talk about the project with.

In our day and age, we're lucky to have such big writer communities. Chances are, someone out there will get aboslute brain rot from the project you're working on. Talking to people like that will not only allow you to have someone to bounce ideas off of, but it'll also keep you focused and in a way, hold you accountable to actually see it get to a point you can and want to share more.

Starting up a WIP blog, like the one I and many others have, or a writerblr blog will attract people to the idea and have them reach out to ask questions that again keep you thinking about fun parts of the project and develope the idea.

I have a friend I constantly talk to about every idea he and I get. Not all of them ever see the light of day, but we talk about them, send ideas we think could be cool, and write small snippets of scenes bc we are excited about the project. That not only gets you to a starting point, but also makes the planning way smoother and means you're getting instant feedback.

And that's what usually gets you to write more instead of watching your project collect dust in the drafts.

7. Write every single idea down.

This is also something everyone says, but it's true. Chances are, you forget the idea and kick yourself for it later or you think it won't be as good as you imagine it and then you have a missing scene you don't know what to do with where that idea could have fit.

Sometimes, usually just before bed for me, I get ideas, and since I have my phone close by, I just open the notes app, write down the snippet of a conversation I just thought of or a cool detail I'll add when I get back to the file and BOOM I have the next plot point figured out without actively forcing myself to sit in front of the computer and thinking "what is supposed to happen now??"

Even if the idea is silly or seems wack, I can't recommend writing it down enough. You'll thank yourself for it and in a way train yourself into passively thinking about what could happen next.

I have a dedicated page in my files just for random ideas I got in the middle of the night and while some will not make it into the draft itself, it's still fun to think about them or even write a short scene involving the idea just to see where it goes. Maybe it'll inspire you to take your project into a new exciting direction, too!

8. Don't obsess over word counts/progress made.

It's a recent shift I've noticed, where people obsessively focus on how long a scene/chapter is. Like one being 5k long means it's somehow better than a scene that's only a couple hundred words long, but concise and has the kind of structure that keeps you engaged.

If you feel like a scene is done and you're happy with it, even if it's short, leave it. Maybe you'll come back to it and add more, but maybe you'll realize it's perfect the way it is and doesn't need unnecessary details added.

9. Don't get lost in the details.

This is something I've neen prone to do. Obsessing over a single detail or scene to the point that working on it becomes exhausting because I couldn't move on.

It's what kills your drive to write on the project fairly quickly and relates to the point I made to just put whatever is supposed to happen in brackets to revisit later.

The details are usually what make the story feel personalized, but it's also so easy to get lost in them. Writing the broader scene down and revisiting it sometime later to add those details is going to keep you writing and engaged with what you want to make the project into.

10. It's YOUR project, don't forget that.

Sometimes I've started things I thought were fics or stories I'd love to explore only to realize I'm not the best writer for those or that the writing part just isn't as fun as I hoped it could be.

You need to be aware of when to cut your losses. If the project starts to feel more like a drag than what you initially started with, scrap it OR, and this is something I've started to seriously do, is to rewrite/re-plot it from the beginning.

It is time-consuming, but you'll feel better for it in the long run if you take the bits you like and forget the ones you don't and build the project anew. It's tedious but really rewarding once you manage to get to the parts that were there before discouraging you from finishing the project in the first place. And the most important thing is that you're happy with your project.

♡

Of course, what works for me might not work for others, but those are some of the broader things I can recommend you try :) I hope I was able to help a little!

#asks #writing advice #kind of??#this is so long help #long post

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loserdiaz · 9 months

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tease tidbit / wip wednesday! 👑📸

tagged by the lovelies @jesuisici33 @cowboy-buck @spotsandsocks @honestlydarkprincess @alyxmastershipper @wildlife4life @spaceprincessem @devirnis @disasterbuckdiaz @transboybuckley @giddyupbuck @bigfootsmom @housewifebuck @transbuck @hippolotamus @mangacat201 💗

okay so i don't really have a snippet i can post yet but i wanted to share this edit i made??

it's a fic i'm trying to write for @cowboy-buddie's birthday and it's a rwrb au! i'm really excited to write it!! it's mainly going to be the general idea with some moments pulled from the book and movie but also have it's own moments to make it unique to buddie and just for them. uh... so yeah! here's the edit and the start of the fic (sort of, i'm still trying to think of all the details and stuff.)

tagging: @monsterrae1 @buddierights @starlingbite @prettyboybuckley @bekkachaos and anyone else who wants to do it! consider this your tag! <333

#rwrb au #evan buckley #eddie diaz #buck x eddie #buddie #buddie fic #buddie wip #911 fic #911 wip #my wips #911 abc #911 on abc

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roomwithanopenfire · 21 days

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Don't normally do the Wednesday WIP day (peep the hastily edited banner), but I am in the mood for talking today. Thanks for the tags @brendughh @shrekgogurt @prettygoododds @thewholelemon and @monbons! And @hushed-chorus, I'm so excited to read all the fics on that rec list!

In terms of writing, I have accomplished a minimal portion of the editing needed for the next chapter I'm posting from Proof of Life. I'm very excited about this one and I think you guys are going to really like it! I'll share a real snippet on Sunday, but this chapter was really fun because I got to make up some more spells!

Making up spells is one of my favorite things to do for fics and honestly it was kind of sad that this fic didn't call for it too much. My last long wip (Do As You're Told) had a bunch of spells comparatively and I had so much fun creating them. I always start by googling "list of clichés" and scrolling past the first part of whatever article I find that says "do not use clichés in your writing", then look through to find phrases that speak to me.

I also check that list of spells on the Snowbaz wiki, i'm unsure how accurate that is because I know fanwiki's can have dubious information sometimes, but I like to have a mix of canon spells and new spells. One time though I thought I'd made up a spell and then it was already on the wiki and I was so sad 😭

All that being said, here's an alphabetical list of spell used and/or discussed in chapters 5 and 6 of Proof of Life. Purple ones I've made up

A good man is hard to find

Come out come out wherever you are

Find your way home

Get well soon

Good as new

Needle in a haystack

No love lost

Return to sender

Rise and shine

Scooby-Dooby-Doo, where are you

Sweet dreams*

Who’s your daddy

Winter, spring, summer, or fall

Even the playing field

The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth

Feel free to share any theories about what these are used for

Tag under the cut!

@you-remind-me-of-the-babe @facewithoutheart @run-for-chamo-miles @raenestee @artsyunderstudy

@onepintobean @noblecorgi @angelsfalling16 @a-maisie-ng @hertragedyconnoisseur

@beastmonstertitan @valeffelees @horsesarenotdeer @drowninginships @supercutedinosaurs

#one of these spells is not like the others 🤣#sweet dreams might be a canon spell but it wasn't on the wiki so idk #it *feels* canon #all this to say that if you ever want me to make up a spell for you please it's my one joy #wish i could have made more for these chapters but there were already good canon spells to use #proof of life #my writing #wip wednesday #snowbaz fanfiction

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optiwashere · 1 month

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WIP Wednesday

Holy shit, it's actually on a Wednesday this time?

I really wanted to do one of these this week since I've gone a bit rabid on a few WIPs.

I'll post a little bit about each of those WIPs later, some snippets and a blurb about why I'm so excited. But first! Folks to tag! Since I'm so excited for these, I'm gonna tag a lot this time.

If you have anything you want to share WIP writing-wise, please do... @quitefair @bottombatch @siyurikspakvariisis @causticcontemplation @jasminethetransvampire @underworldobsessed @assarivanguard @amorficzna @funwithnix @askweisswolf @linka-from-captain-planet @tief4tief

If you don't want to do this, or have nothing you want to share, feel free to ignore. If anyone else wants to do this, please feel free to consider yourself tagged. Now, onto my obsessions.

WIP 1: New chapter of Nightsongs

After spending some chapters in a kind of angst zone after the relatively light (relatively) first 4-5 chapters, this next chapter is going to be a kind of upswing. There's lots left to do with the AU, so I'm expecting to chug along and write more and more as time permits.

This AU is a lot for me to handle, especially after having so many chapters ready to post and then... falling way behind on writing the chapters afterwards. But it's fanfiction, and we're having fun here. So, who cares? The game's fandom heyday is already over, so at this point I'm just writing whatever feels best to me.

This chapter is mostly done, I think. I'm giving it a few days/a week to sit before I go back to edit it with fresher eyes. Also, we return to Ash's POV!

Lae’zel walked into Ash’s back office without a word on the seventh day and Ash nodded her way without looking up. Papers sat in strewn piles all over the desk, a handful of old incident reports and assessments that still needed working for Wulbren’s accountants. The absolute worst part of the job remained for the year – paperwork – and Ash intended to get them caught up in the hours that remained of her day. It was a useful, meaningful task. It gave her something else to think about. Anything other than green eyes. “We should talk,” Lae’zel said, sitting down without being offered one of the folding chairs in front of the desk. “Aren’t we doing that?” Ash scanned the paper in front of her and quickly jotted down her signature. [...] “You begin working on a van,” Lae’zel said matter-of-factly, counting off on her fingers as she spoke. “You talk to a pretty girl. You suddenly work more often on that van. Then, you disappear inside yourself and act bitter all day because suddenly the girl no longer shows up. There is more to it than you say.” “I think this might be the first time you’ve spoken more than five words to me, you know that?” Ash chuckled. “Am I that obvious?”

WIP 2: New chapter of Blades in the Night

The need to write more plot for this has been burrowing in my skull for a long time. I initially stopped myself from writing too much of it because I wanted to do Nightsongs first in its entirety before getting to this, but I think I'm just too impatient for that.

I also love the fact that this fic turned from a simple PWP one-shot into this much more expansive, plotty story that's now pretty important for what I want to do with my babies post-canon. Something about that makes me smile.

Plus, you know how I've been lamenting my inability to write happy endings for certain characters?

Either way, this isn't really complete, but the hardest part is complete and now I just have to start connecting the dots and filling in the blanks. I'd say it's about a third done?

The room filled with the same aura of a distant gaze leveled their way that Shadowheart had felt back in the cloister. Asheera had made an oath to protect Shadowheart then, and the flooding of a dense, real presence had nearly swallowed her whole in the cloister's barracks. A weight of importance sunk down on her shoulders there in Hobb's Hovel as well. A smell like molten metal cooling lilted in the air with a lingering, acrid tang. It tasted of blood in Shadowheart's mouth, as if the forging was tainted with some other foul presence in the mixture. [...] Little could have compared better to that feeling of a weight lifted from her shoulders. Worry disappeared and gave way to earnest joy in Shadowheart, and she thrived on it. She hadn't felt such keen happiness since she'd been so readily accepted into Asheera's family by her parents.

WIP 3: Gauntlet of Shar fic

Wow, I know! I've been talking about writing this fic for so long that it's almost become a sort of mythical never-to-be-slain beast for me. I'm not normally someone that talks about my ideas too often, I just write them before they can flee me.

I tend to also get in my own head about what I "should" be writing in the first place. Frankly, I'm getting kinda tired of writing so many ships, though fear not - I'll still have ideas that can only work with ships that aren't Shadowheart/Asheera. It's just that, for a while, I want to focus back on my loves.

This fic is one of those that I've wanted to finish for months. I know that at this point in the fandom's life cycle, I'm pretty much writing just for the dedicated, lovely folks that still read my stuff and I'm extremely happy to have y'all around! Maybe this will make Light Casts a Shadow ring a little more true for some, maybe it will be just another fic that I post, who knows.

Also, one thing I'm planning on experimenting with for this fic is alternate endings for Fun. This is a fic where the ending hinges on choices that Shadowheart makes in the game, so it's only fitting that I explore what would happen if she made those other choices.

But anywho, enough blabbing. Excerpt time!

Those touches and more, Asheera cherished. She watched in silence as Shadowheart turned her devotions to each of those tasks. Perhaps it was the nature of clerics to give themselves entirely to seemingly mundane tasks much the same Asheera felt compelled to consider her oaths in nearly every conversation, battle, or even moments like Shadowheart carefully buckling a cuisse to her leg with straps of leather at the backs of Asheera's knees. Fingertips trailed against her clothed skin, and Shadowheart stood up once more. "There," she said, "all's taken care of, then. Tell me, how's my handiwork? Be honest. I can handle the criticism." Asheera brought her balled fist to her chest in an arm curl. She flexed the elbow out and tested her shoulders, knees, ankles, and hips for motion. None of the plates caught on one another, and none of the straps across her hands, arms, knees, or chest restricted her. "Perfect," Asheera said at last. "Marvelous work." Shadowheart offered a quick smile. "I'll take a Gondian's compliment on such things any day." "Can't say I would've done a better job." "Ah, there's the honesty I was waiting for. Truly, where would you be without me?"

#random rambling about writing #bg3 #shadowheart #shadowtav #shadowheart x tav #oc: asheera #my fic #nightsongs au #amongst other things................

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oceanlipgloss · 4 months

Text

11.1.2024

—nsfw (do bless your eyes, your hearts and your minds)

I checked the introductory screen to the final H-scene of Chapter 4, and I think I'm going to dress in drag and do the hula spin like a vinyl. I think I've seen the light, seen a vision. My people, I predict that this H-scene will most ardently come for my ass (edit 1: it didn't come for my ass, it WRECKED it. This was heavenly, this was a pleasure, this was a gift from God. Everyone, I present to you the most unhinged reaction to an H-scene I've ever had so far)

edit 2: the original post got flagged because yours truly loved the CG so much she didn't crop it, so this is a repost. The CG deserved to be seen goddammit I'll never forgive you for this, Tumblr🖕🏼

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ´ˎ˗

intro: HE REALLY? HE WHAT? HUHHHH? HIS TONGUE, PEOPLE THE FUCKING QUOTE, PEOPLE

update I: these past few H-scenes have been especially confusing timeline-wise. For instance, this one began when everyone was at the hospital, even though MC has already been taken away by Leamas. It seemed more logical to me to interpret that it somehow happened before Leamas took MC with him—which still doesn't quite make 100% sense, mind you, because Bimet's H-scene took place then, so...I'm not too sure about this. Then there's how Belial was apparently unwell up until that point, so how could he have managed to do the deed with MC? Then again, perhaps devils heal at a faster pace than humans do, and that would be perfectly sensible because devils are immortal, and since they aren't humans their bodies must have functions and rates that differ than those of human bodies.

update II: oh thank fuck Jjyu isn't here and probably won't be there when it's time to...lend MC a helping dick hand because that would've been a threesome as cursed as this sentence

update III: DOPE. This is how they're going to communicate, now is it? It will be so sensual when the time comes

update IV: so he HAS healed, which I'm guessing means he's going too screw MC into next week, because bro, that CG snippet on the intro screen? It's got 'I will make you scream' written all over it. It gave me the impression that Belial is intense and playful when it comes to sex, which would in turn mean that he's the gentle type that turns mercilessly naughty in bed. Iswtg if that's the case I'm going to screech. I'm on my knees praying I'm right because my God, can you imagine how ruthlessly sexy that would be? Also, Satan and Sitri's enthusiasm to help again is most welcome please, each book your appointment and be MC's guest, and Zagan should do the same it's so cute how they desperately want to do this with her again

update V: aw MC is relieved by the fact that Belial is feeling better. I'm glad, I really love when she worries for them and cares about them

update VI: OH GOD I am going to love this. He's so bold and straightforward and efficient ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) I guess my little 'theory' is going to be on point

update VII: for the love of all that's holy please please I have so much to say already. The way he's caressing her skin? The way he begins by stroking her body only to suddenly stop at a certain spot and write? The way he so confidently asks why she's shivering when he already knows the answer is him? Belial, you're messing with my mind so well right now

update VIII: he likes the boobies lol

update IX: meek and gentle, you say? He's a gentle weapon of mass destruction, that's what he is and don't you think it would've been funny if they had kept Jjyu on his horn? I'm glad they didn't

update X: my God this has BARELY begun and I'm already feeling things because this is criminally sensual God please Belial I think you're going to make it big bigtime in my favourite characters club

update XI: nonononono he's too much he's too good he's too sexy I am NOT dealing well I am NOT fine THIS IS EXACTLY MY CUP OF TEA AND THE TEACUP IS OVERFLOWING DO YOU UNDERSTAND???

update XII: SEND HELP SEND HELP SEND

update XIII: not him writing on her shoulder with his left hand while his right wrecks her. Not them describing his fingers. Not me having a thing for hands. I AM GOING WILD HE'S LITERALLY A NAUGHTY DREAM I TELL YOU

update XIV: good god. Good lord. DEAR GOD. DEAR LORD. The writer(s) must have taken a dip pun intended inside my mind for inspiration for this scene because HOW THE FUCK DOES EVERYTHING ABOUT HIM AND EVERY DAMN THING HE'S DOING MAKE ME TINGLE

update XV: AAAAAAAADNLSKSJSNSJKS HOT DAMN I TOLD YOU, HE'S MISCHIEVIOUS AND HOT AND SEXY AND

update XVI: ignore saucy sassy MC and let us all revere Belial for a moment. In casual times, he's gentle and soft and gives off that aura because that's just how he is, but LOOK at him now. HE IS SHOWING HER NO MERCY. HE IS INTENT ON DESTROYING US ALL. That kind of difference in attitude between default mode and sex mode wrings my guts and tickles my heart into overdrive. MMMMM

update XVII: mercy mercy mercy MERCY this is what I was telling you THIS IS WHAT I WAS SAYING

update XVIII: now this? It deserves a screenshot of its own because. THAT EXPRESSION ON A SEEMINGLY GENTLE MAN. THAT TONGUE. THOSE WORDS BEING WRITTEN ON HER BODY BY THAT SEEMINGLY GENTLE MAN. He wants to hear her fall apart for him and that's it I'm done for and the fact that he himself can't talk makes this touching despite what's going down and how in the name of fuck is she even managing to keep quiet anyways TELL ME???

update XIX: GRAAAAAAAAAAA write as much as you want write AS MUCH AS YOU WANT

update XX: my brain is melting like a blob of ice cream like a scoop of ice cream whatever it is man because it's too hot, it's too hot

update XXI: oh man oh man OH MAN I DON'T EVEN HAVE WORDS ANYMORE BUT IDC IF PEOPLE CALL WHAT HE'S SAYING WEIRD I LIKE IT except the sweat part and someone please explain how she's still being able to focus on what he's writing on her skin at this point unless the writings send signals to her mind and her mind reads them on its own

update XXII: he scares me. He is terrifyingly perfect. He's the whole package. THE WHOLE. FUCKING. PACKAGE. She's skilled at swallowing what though And him complimenting her voice is a stake to the heart, I find it sad but so sweet and heartwarming all at the same time

update XXIII: HOLY MOTHER OF GOD THE CG THE FUCKING CG THE

update XXIV: BRUUUUUUUH this is this is this is so unique and artistic and sensual and the details alluding to how he was feeling while he was writing omfg like 'some words were scribbled in a hurry and other sentences were written clearly and tenaciously' and oh my god I AM FUCKING EATING RIGHT NOW *nitpicks* she did hear Belial talk before though, like when he said Solomon's name on his own, so the 'never heard his voice' doesn't really add up. Yes, she didn't hear his voice as it should have been in its healthy state, but she did somewhat hear him talk

update XXV: I AM LOOKING AT HIM I AM LOOKING (edit 3: I am so salty that I had to crop this. Saltier than salt itself, truth be told) AND WHAT THE FUCK IS HE DOING BEING SO PERFECT AND SENSING HOW SHE'S FEELING LIKE THAT

update XXVI: GODDDDDD GOOD GODDDDD I love how MC is so reactive to him like she's HUNGRY for him and desperate for more even though he's going hella fast already and then him getting turned on even more because she wants him and the fact that she's writing on his body now too I'M AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH

update XXVII: the atmospherical descriptions of how the silence I am once again asking to know how MC is being quiet enhanced the sound of the rustling sheets and...other things? Mhm

update XXVIII: 'moaning in the arms of a man who scribbled ticklish words on you' romantic and carnal come together and yours truly poofs out of existence

update XXIX: MC ik you're hanging on to the remaining crumbs of your sanity by your fingernails but pls don't shout in his ears, that has to be unpleasant like 'I THINK I'M GONNA CUM BELIAL DO YOU COPY'

update XXX: bro he's done with the railing but he's STILL railing this is so hot it's illegal like they're done but he hasn't pulled out dammittttttt I feel bad for the devils though, MC gets to experience the best orgasmic fireworks of her life, but the demons never get to satisfy their own needs even though they enjoy it lol makes me think, it must be heavenly hell for a human woman trying to conceive with a male demon because damn bro that stamina is a monster the stamina's not the only monster

update XXXI: LMFAO THE WAY THEY DESCRIBE IT they make it seem like a happy creature lol they sure have a knack for describing dicks

update XXXII: you mean all THREE of us, Belial. ALL THREE OF US. I also cannot get over how bold and straightforward he is, and the fact that he's often gentle and quiet makes him brutal fr

update XXXIII: the nerve on this man. The NERVE. First he kicks my kneecaps, then he does this

update XXXIV:...ik the sex was mind-shattering, earth-splitting, cum-splatting, but how do you even not notice something like that how can that be possible

update XXXV: excuse me while I go scream like a fucking maniac. He likes this so much he doesn't want to free the girl. What a winner GOD BLESS This was pretty much decided from just before he and MC broke their contract and then when he wiped MC's tears after the broken contract, now even more early on in this H-scene scene, but he very obviously made it to the top ranks in my favourite characters club. With that being said, welcome to the club, Belial lol

⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ´ˎ˗

+note: that was an experience. The duality of his character played a number on my heart and mind. And maybe not even duality per se, but more so a secret side he only shows in moments of intimacy. Either way, what an amazing scene. It was artistic and overwhelmingly sensual, yet maintained the perfect balance between intense, gentle, playful and erotic.

I also adored the concept of silence and the slight hint to his discophilia—the silence allowed MC to hear new things and listen to sounds that were embarassingly clear—it was very unique.

And the artistic touch to this! It was so innovative altogether—he couldn't talk, but he let his thoughts and actions glow on her body and speak much too boldly for him instead.

Needless to say, I was obviously losing my marbles and enjoying this a biiit too much. I loved it so much where do I even begin

#whb #what in “hell” is bad #what in hell is bad #whb belial #what in hell is bad diaries

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alliaskisthepossibilityoflove · 1 month

Text

inspiration saturday

Hiiiiiii long time no me participating in tag games (long story will be under the cut 😅 if you want it), so here I am with a two parter - an inspiration AND a tidbit

First, I can't get this song, and in particular this version of the song out of my head

youtube

(Apologies for Pierce Brosnan's singing, I just really really love the moment Meryl Streep joins in on "but dignified")

I mean listen to this

Clear-headed and open-eyed With nothing left untried Standing calmly at the crossroads, no desire to run There's no hurry anymore when all is said and done

That's everything I want for Buddie post Tommy, knowing themselves, knowing each other, all they need is to take this new path together, and there is no rush, because they are sure and ready.

So if anyone wanted to make my entire year and make an edit?🙏😘

And now a TIDBIT 😊

This is from the very beginning of my heart’s over-pumping and your mouth is an ambulance by fleetinghearts, have some Eddie picking up Chris after a field trip 😍

because heart-eyes! Eddie isn't making heart-eyes just as Buck, he's also making them at his son 😍😍😍

tags and all under the cut

Thank you everyone who's kept tagging me in various games and when you posted something new even when I didn't have capacity to tag you back ❤️❤️❤️❤️

I'm going to go through my mentions and tag as many people as I can but i feel like half of my dash has changed their urls recently so if I forget anyone I'd normally tag and you want to be tagged 1) lmk and 2) please consider yourself tagged (and now I've typed "tag" waaaay too many times and it has lost all meaning) (also lmk if you wanna be removed ofc)

@shitouttabuck ❤️❤️❤️❤️, @tizniz, @diazsdimples, @cal-daisies-and-briars, @lover-of-mine,

@try-set-me-on-fire, @acountrygirlsfun, @aroeddiediaz,

@wikiangela, @bucksbignaturals, @buckleyobsessed,

@mistmarauder, @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels, @daffi-990,

@exhuastedpigeon, @glorious-spoon, @rainbow-nerdss,

@devirnis, @renecdote, @thewolvesof1998

@rewritetheending, @chronicowboy, @suavecitodiaz

@eddiediaz420, @captain-hen , @sunshinediaz, @neverevan

So basically what happened here at house of El was a prime example of if you don't give your body a break it will make you take one - after running himself ragged since basically October my husband stepped wrong and broke a bone in his foot and has been stuck on the couch for the last 3 weeks. So for the time being I'm the one doing all the school drop-offs/pick-ups and grocery runs and after-school activities (and most of chores, though to be fair my house has been overrun by kinetic sand since christmas 😅), but also (crucially) it means no editting/recording time for me, because no. I'm trying to edit on my work ipad but it's no audacity, so it's sloooooow going 😅 anyway. How have you all been doing apart from vibrating out of your skins about S07?

#My podfic #Adventures in podficcing #911 abc #Buddie #Tag games #Is it just me or is tumblr throwing a hissy fit and refusing to tag people?! How am I supposed to play a tag game #if you tag only the first 5 people?!#Oh I see some people dividing tags into different paragraphs #Hope this finally works? 🤷‍♀️

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boltedfruit · 7 months

Text

How I Outline/Plot: Including Author Resources for Developing Characters and Self Publishing

First and foremost, everything I’ve included in this doc that references resources (such as the plot outline below), is also available for free on the authors’ respective websites. I just wanted to recreate the template Scrivener file I use when starting a new project as I’ve collected everything in one master file.

MASTER TEMPLATE GOOGLE DOC: https://tinyurl.com/boltemp

I recently posted the chapter count for my upcoming Mafia MM romance I'm writing for NaNoWriMo this year and was asked how I plot by @duckyreads

Below, I've included screenshots of the first couple beats of my process and how much detail I usually include when outlining. The template I'm working from is an edited one of Romancing the Beat by Gwen Hayes, who offers her beat sheet for free on her site and in a Scrivener Template.

Using Romancing the Beat, I first went through and made a separate page for each story beat for my protagonist, Zac. I can't do just normal three act structure as it's too vague for me. I need Too Much to work with, then I can whittle it down later. I then did the same for the love interest and Mafia boss, Joe. (name might be changed idk yet.)

The colored dots represent which act of the story I'm in. Light pink= Act 1: Set Up, Dark Pink= Act 2: Falling, Blue= Act 3: Retreating, and Purple= Act 4: Shake it Off.

I also want to note that even though the epilogue is written in for both characters' POV, I'm only writing it once, from Zac's POV. So not every single beat necessarily translates directly into its own chapter. A few from Joe's POV are definitely combined more than once.

So Chapter 1, Scene 1: Zac's sister Riley has made him a dating profile and set him up on a date with who will soon be revealed as a crime lord.

I'm repetitive, because I've gone back in at different points and added little notes here and there. But my basic points I want to convey right off the bat: Zac is a hot mess who drinks to excess at times, has a sister who loves him but he is always putting her in a hard position, and has issues with money and violence from his childhood.

I also like to include some dialogue or rough snippets for scenes because it helps make the scene feel more concrete to me. I don't always do this though.

This is Chapter 1, Scene 2. Very short and to the point. (This was something I originally started writing as a fic btw.)

This is Chapter 2, Scene 1 and is the first from Joe's perspective.

It's plotty compared to the first chapter. I haven't done any nitty gritty location research yet so I put stuff I don't know yet in asterisks or brackets or in something like "XXX", because XXX is easy to find and change with ctrl+f > replace.

This is from Chapter 3, Scene 1. Just vibes.

This is from Chapter 4, Scene 2, from Joe's POV after the date.

This is what I ended up with. I'm sure as I work through it, the chapter count will go down. I don't really want my romance book to be so long, but I saw recently that 50 Shades is apparently over 500 pgs, which is wild to me. I'm also doing alternating POV, so it'll be switching between my protag and the love interest.

My outlining/plotting steps:

Decide on genre and type of story structure I want to use.

Decide on my protagonist and lay out a new page/note for every story beat of whatever structure I'm using.

Go in order or jump around and write a little per beat based on how I want a scene to go. For me, feeling is more important than knowing exactly what's going to happen. I'm not naturally a plotter, so I still like to not be constrained when I'm actually writing. (ie I'm not adhering to some rigid word count per chapter.) And if I changed something or added a thing while writing, I go back to the outline after and add it in so it all lines up and I don't forget something I did.

If a beat doesn't fit its own chapter, I make it a scene. It's also okay for multiple beats to happen in one chapter too.

Do the same for any other POVs involved in the story. Try to make each character have their own arc as well, no matter how small.

Really my main advice is go with your gut first because you can always add on or retract later. Write what you want (with some awareness of genre tropes/audience wants if you're trying to write to market to some extent). All book publishing is fickle and mean a lot of the time. And honestly unless you're one of the few who gets picked up by traditional publishers and offered an amazing deal, you'll be expected to pay for all the things you'd be paying for with self publishing, except with fewer rights to your own work. I'd rather pay and manage my own website, ads, and ARC readers and retain total rights to my own creations than give my rights to a publisher who might hold my book up for years, and still expect me to fund my own advertising, book tours etc.

And besides, if you self publish, there is no rule you can't have another book (and then even your backlog) traditionally published later on. You can have both.

#self publishing #writing #indie authors #boltedfruit writes #guess that's a tag #boltedfruit fic #I get heated about how trad authors are treated especially new ones

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scribefindegil · 9 months

Note

71?

71. When it comes to more complicated narratives, how do you keep track of outlines, characters, development, timeline, ect.?

A big old messy scratchdoc!! I try to use headings to keep the information somewhat organized, but they work best if I let them stay pretty sprawling. It's usually something like:

Top section: What are The Themes? Why am I writing this story? Are there important symbols or visual motifs I want to keep track of? Are there reminders to myself that I want to see frequently to bring myself back into focus (re: tone, characterization, types of description or details to focus on)?

Character Section: I don't always do this, but for big fics or things with a large ensemble cast I usually lay out each important character, the basis of their arc/conflict, and how they contribute thematically to the story. If it's AU or set post-canon or there are other reasons that information about the character would be different from their canon counterpart, I note it here.

Reference section: Any specific research I've done for the fic. Lists of things like minor characters' names, descriptions of settings or OCs, etc.

Revelation List: I stole this from DMing advice blogs, but any time there are mystery elements to a fic I always lay out the Revelations (what the characters need to learn) and the specific clues or circumstances they encounter that allow them to reach those conclusions. Do they find and interpret evidence? Do they get information from another character? Do they do research? Even if I don't plan out all the details of the plot, I need to understand how the characters are going to reach each of the Revelations or I'm going to get stuck.

Timelines: I don't always do these either; it really depends on the fic, but if there's a specific chronology I need to keep track of (or a secret structure that would get lost in the full outline) I try to write it down

The Plot: Finally!! The actual outlining part! I start by writing bullet point versions of the events I know will happen (I usually have a pretty strong sense of the beginning and climax of a fic by this point, even if I still have a bunch of fine-tuning to do) and then work backwards or forwards to fill in the gaps. If it's a mystery fic (and most of my longer fic has at least some mystery elements) I refer back to the Revelations list to make sure I have scenes that cover all the necessary Leads and Revelations to get the characters to the endpoint.

Snippets: For certain scenes, the outline version doesn't accurately capture the Vibe I'm going for, so I have a section at the end where I write quick, tiny, scaffolding-style first drafts. These usually have almost no relation to what the final scene actually looks like, but it's about pinning down the idea and the atmosphere.

These documents are really big and messy and I usually need to go back and edit them as I go, because my original ideas inevitably undergo some shifts as I figure things out, but that's the fun of it!

It has to be the right type of fic to make this worth it, but sometimes I'll also do a scene-level outline in an Excel spreadsheet, with columns for Scene, POV Character, Location, Characters Present, Events, Reactions, and Plot-Important Info. This is good for super plotty/mystery-heavy fics and fics with big ensembles that I can't keep track of other ways. I have an enormous and beautiful outline in this style for the Owl House Tam Lin AU which I do still want to write someday, bc while I didn't end up loving TOH as a whole I do love a lot of the characters, and also we came up with possibly the best plot twist of my life involving 400 years of moon phase records so. It's on the back burner but it's still on the stove, as it were. And the good thing is that because I have such an exhaustive outline it will be easy for me to pick back up at any time if I want to!

#memeses #thanks for the ask!#this makes it sound much more organized than it actually is lol #but!! the important thing is to write everything down!!#even if you are not cursed you probably won't remember things as well as you think!#and if you are cursed it makes it a lot less scary to have all the info there so if you just Absolutely Cannot Write for six months #you don't risk losing all your cool ideas

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nogenrealldrama · 4 months

Note

Hi! Love the excerpts of your work that you've shared here. Do you have any advice for someone just starting to dip their toes into writing? Fanfic, or just generally? Thanks! :)

First of all thank you for reading and I'm so, so happy you liked my snippets :D

Second of all: Ummm giant disclaimer that I have almost nothing actually published to my name, so altogether I also consider myself a new writer. But I love to rant about writing anyway so here goes:

Don't listen too much to writing advice. When I first tried writing, I would spend way too much time on writing advice blogs. Many of them aren't that good, to be quite honest. And even for the good ones, there is such a thing as right advice given at the wrong time, or at the wrong place in your writing journey. If you're an overthinker, reading too much advice can make you start worrying about small things, and/or not have the confidence to try something wild but important on your own. Frankly, all it really comes down to is: 1) Having a vision, 2) Writing the vision down, 3) Noticing the ways your writing falls short of the vision, and 4) Tweaking things until they reach the level of imperfection you can personally live with. For me, writing advice is best searched for to apply to the specific issues I have in Steps 3 and 4. I apply any advice only in so far as it helps me get closer to the vision in my head. putting the rest under a cut because it got long - sorry!

2. Be uncompromising about writing things that bring you joy.

Kind of similar to #1, but it's doubly important when you're really just starting out. Or when you've been writing a while but always find it hard to begin. Double that importance again when what you're writing is fanfiction, because then you really have no genre definitions or deadlines or publishers or any other actual reason to compromise your vision. You already have some amazing ideas, and for each idea there is probably a feeling or a vibe or a message that you want to capture. Give yourself time to get lost in that feeling, to really indulge in it. And then write it down in its full glory, even the parts that might make you cringe a little from how dramatic or vulnerable they are. If there is a way to make your story more indulgent, do it. Because it will keep you writing. And if you really think it's too much, you can always edit stuff out before publication. You know, after you've actually written the story down. The thing that made me start writing in the first place was a giant longfic/possibly trilogy Canon Divergence rarepair plot idea that is still not finished, and on paper that's pretty much the last thing one should start their writing journey with. But if I stopped myself from writing that in favour of forcing out some oneshots, I never would've written anything at all. Give yourself permission to write exactly and only the ideas that make you excited to write.

3. Bonus advice that might or might not be useful to you, but it was ground-breaking in helping me write the way I want to write - in this excellent post, @little-hermit-crab56 makes a point that dialogue is a dance. I'd take it further/in a slightly different direction and say that storytelling as a whole is a dance. Juts like a dance, dialogue feels most dynamic when you allow it to go back and forth a little, to have short breaks and pauses here and there. I think the same can apply to an action sequence, or a bit of internal monologue, or an emotional trajectory of a whole scene. Just like a dance, it's less about the exact movements (e.g. describing precisely what happens in an action scene) and more about the rhythm of the back and forth (e.g. describing just enough to let the reader know that the protagonist is winning, but then - oh no! - the villain has the upper hand, but then the protagonist gets lucky and they're winning again). I swear that with enough skill to set up the right back-and-forth, even a character tying their shoelaces for a page and a half will feel dynamic. You can alter that rhythm, make it faster or slower, more dominated by "ups" or "downs", but even a little contrast can elevate a plot beat or an emotion more than I had initially thought possible. Of course, there is no need to simplify the "ups" to being good and "downs" to being bad - the back and the forth can both be morally grey or both similarly convenient/inconvenient to the protagonist. They just need to be meaningfully different. You can zoom this out even more and apply the back-and-forth to character arcs, or dynamics between characters, or entire plots. (The three act plot structure is, IMO, simply a choreography for a satisfying back-and-forth). In a longer work, you can have many "dancers" doing their own back-and-forth simultaneously, at multiple levels of the story structure. In a oneshot, you can have one or several backs-and-forths distilled to the most dramatic steps of the dance. In my experience, the whole thing gets quite addictive once you start seeing it.

#ah the irony of writing advice that advises you to disregard writing advice #ah the way how every time a writer gives this advice they must make a joke about how ironic it is #ah the way that writers make fun of other writers through the ever-escalating layers of excessively self-aware irony #i'll shut up now #I'm so sorry this ask got so long and lecture-like #hope some of it is helpful #asks #writing #writeblr #writing tips #writing advice #fanfiction

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isagrimorie · 23 days

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I am impressed you can use Babylon 5 as a comfort show. Admittedly, it somehow manages to blend the mythological mode of Tolkien (the Third Age, the Rangers ) with the humanity of labor strikes and a security chief who watches Daffy Duck cartoons while off duty, and it comes from the 90s with all of the idealism and lost innocence that that entails. And Delenn and G'kar are lights in the dark.

But a lot of elements that felt a little too on the nose in the 90s — surely, history won't repeat itself that precisely, since we all know the signs — have now happened in the real world, or at least something similar. The Night Watch/Department of Homeland Security, using a terrorist attack as an excuse for jingoism and xenophobia. Civil wars. Disinformation and selective editing. ISN (CNN) getting taken over during the coup and becoming Fox News. Not exactly like what happened, but things kept happening in the early 2000s, and even during the Trump administration (President Clark?) that had me thinking " Oh, great, here's that bit happening now."

Or maybe it's just that I saw the second plane hit on live TV and had the surreal feeling of deja vu because it reminded me of Earth Force One so much it set off the memory of Sinclair's voice saying, 'Nothing's the same anymore." I don't want to downplay the reality of 9/11, but the two are inextricably linked in my head: one a myth, the other reality— they felt like similar turning points. B5 was my darmok to help me make sense of the Bush years, although it continues to be annoyingly relevant.

JMS knew his history and human nature all too well.

And at least we don't have to mind the shadows.

I think it helped that I haven’t really fully seen Babylon 5 until recently— I’ve only seen snippets of the show.

But also I guess - post 9/11 so many shows immediately after 9/11 were really, really terrible.

Going back to Bones during that time period, it was super jingoistic, even over NCIS, if you can believe it!

But I also get you a lot of the metaphor in the show have also become timeless. But also I think the mythological elements of B5 offset it that most of the similarities doesn’t overwhelm me when I watch.

The one that’s been linked to my mind too with too much dark and edginess is BSG. As long as a show doesn’t have that gritty realism, I’m okay.

#replies

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