#writing out of pitfalls

[ejunkiet]

ej's adventures in romance: the good, the bad, the ugly

i've had kindle unlimited for the few months, and have been on a deep deep dive into all the recs from the romance genre that i can get my grubby little paws on. I've read.... many, many books. so many.

I've made a rec list of my new fave authors in the genre before, and this is not that. I'm just gonna list what I've read, by tropes, with ratings, and you can read my full reviews on goodreads. I've gone there. there are quite a few of the booktok hits here, because they came up on rec lists, and I'm gonna give my honest opinions on them okay. my goodreads!

Before we get down and dirty, have my actual recs from the last month: Heather Guerre remains a diamond in the rough, although she can now be joined by a further two authors: Kathyrn Moon (smutty RH queen) and Zoey Draven, a surprise last minute entry that doesn't shy away from darker themes, but handles them maturely.

other recs are the obvious: Talia Hibbert, Katee Roberts, and our very own @dominimoonbeam (whose book Doors I've been reccing a LOT lately, as I love it so much, and the sequel will be out soon >:3)

Okay. lets do this. this gets long, be warned. >:3

the "grovel" trope

books where the MMC fucks up and tries to make up for their mistakes. a good read where you get a healthy dose of angst and then a lot of making up for it. can be a great cathartic read.

Cate C. Wells has a whole series dedicated to this, "the five packs", one of which I already recommended as a guilty pleasure: the lone wolf's rejected mate". Now look, these books are ridiculous, the worldstate is terrible, each pack is a dude fest that reeks of misogyny, but they're pretty fun. I've read book 1 and book 3. I want to stab the MMC of book 1 with a rusty spork. you can skip it.

the lone wolf's rejected mate however is a ride, with a broken MMC who rejects his soulmate because he thinks he's too broken (literally, his wolf tries to kill her), and then they get captured, save each other, and he builds her a treehouse, yada yada. mind the content warnings, but if you want to read something OTT that basically epitomises the craziness that is the PNR and "grovel" romance genre, read this, and hold onto your butts.

the paranormal romance genre: shifters, vampires and more

Heather Guerre's books. okay, so actual recs. She focuses on characters from working class backgrounds with a sprinkle of the paranormal thrown in, everyone is over the age of 25 (thank god, most are in their 30s), and she can really write. I won't tag Eeshley again, but the "Tooth and Claw" series was their rec and *chefs kiss*. this is still the self-published romance genre, so these books could use an editor/polish, but honestly, I'm a big fan of her writing, and have picked up all her books. (her contemporary romance is also excellent.)

post-apocalyptic trope

Claire Kent's books. Imagine Joel from the last of us as a book series. I've only read Last Light so far, which is the prequel to a longer series that explores life in america 5+ years after an asteroid collides with western europe, causing global environmental catastrophes. I'm not 100% sold on her world building, but this is a romance novel, and the way she writes the characters and their relationships are human and organic, and the most realistic I've come across so far. the world state is the walking dead, with evil biker gangs that rape and pillage. i'm assuming this is an american thing, but can't comment on what it'd be like in the UK considering we no longer exist, due to aforementioned asteroid collision. probably for the best.

omegaverse and reverse harem tropes

yeah, I thought omegaverse was just a fanfic thing too. it's not, and it is super prevalent in het romance. it was never really my thing in fanfic, and the fact it is not a shifter thing was very surprising to me, as knots/packs/heat/rut still exist, but it's just humans with animalistic traits. I kept on waiting for the motorcycle gang in 'baby and the late night howlers' to turn into wolves, and they never did.

So Kathryn Moon writes some delicious reverse harem books. I read the first of monsterfucker series 'a lady of rooksgrave manor' years ago, and liked it, although there wasn't enough plot for me to continue. she writes excellent smut. Seriously, just really, really good smut. BIG FAN. I've been making my way through her 'Sweetverse' series, which has more connections and actual relationships between the characters, and polymances, and I recommend starting with Lola + the millionaires, if you can handle a little omegaverse. mind the content warnings, this is a book about recovering from trauma, which happened in the first book (baby's book, although offscreen. Lola has a lot of flashbacks in italics.)

Otherwise, you can stick with the monsterfucker books! I bought her latest monster series off of regular kindle, instead of KU, and I'm really excited to read it hehehe

"mars need more women" and "fated mate" tropes

hehehe okay HERE WE GO. these books are all about women ending up on planets where due to some sort of cataclysmic event - disease, mostly - 80% of the female population of the planet has died. now as we're not here for angst, the arrival of these women are usually due to some other species abducting them, and they are then "rescued" or recovered after a crash on metaphorical mars, which needs a better sex ratio to ensure the survival of the species.

this trope is coupled with "fated mate" tropes, where basically the rescued/recovered women end up with a devoted alien husband, who yearns until he can win her over (we're all about consent here folks)

the ice planet barbarians series by ruby dixon. this is basically na'vi aliens that crashlanded on an ice planet 250 odd years ago, and have made it their home, living in tribal colonies. to survive in this planet's toxic atmosphere, they've taken in a native parasite called a 'khui' which helps their bodies adapt to the climate and atmosphere. the women in the books also receive the same parasite to survive (they're given the choice), and this is the basis of the "mate bonds" formed throughout the series.

now book 1 is a rocky start, and the weakest of the series. I nearly put it down because of the first 20 pages. you can skip the first 20 pages. it basically recounts the abduction of the women from their home planet, and mistreatment by their captors (tw for sexual assault of a side character, not explicit). the ship malfunctions, and the women "cargo" are dropped onto the ice planet, where they are found by the not-na'vi, who are called sa-khui, because of the parasite.

now the rest of the series is about adapting to life on an alien planet, understanding the culture of the sa-khui, and gaining a devoted alien hubby. look, I read four books in a week. they're fun, they're exciting, the smut is good, and it's an easy read. it's also written by an experienced and practiced author, as the topics are handled maturely, it doesn't take itself too seriously, and it has great representation.

(one of my favourite books in the series, book 7, is centred around Lilah, who was born deaf and had a cochlear implant that was surgically removed during the abduction. the book focuses on her struggling to adapt to life on the planet, aided by a sa-khui that rescues her and learns ASL to communicate, and it's an excellent read okay)

I'd say read book 1 (maybe skipping first 20 pages, or even to part 2) for context, read book 2 (my favourite of the series omg), and then pick and choose from there!! I've read 1,2,4,7, and I'm gonna end up coming back for more hehehe.

"choosing theo" is another in this genre, but it didn't quite vibe with me. it leans into the 'rescued human ends up on a planet that needs women for propagation', with a matriarchal society where the men go to husbandry school to learn how to please women, and all residents of the planet are required to participate in three month long marriages to try to find potential mates to propagate the species. the premise is a fun one, but the first book is not the strongest, and I didn't continue from there. (another rusty spork for the MMC...)

dothraki in space trope

we're at the end of my trope list! I liked the ice planet barbarian series a lot, and I'd kept on seeing the Horde Kings of Dakkar by Zoey Draven recommended, and they are good. (thank you woofs >:3) think dothraki from GoT in space; humans live in small, poorly maintained colonies on the Dakkar planet, where they aren't allowed to hunt or damage the earth. offenses are punishable by death. these books lean into the captive trope, and handle the issues of the worldstate and navigating cultural differences super well, with a heavy dose of consent and BAMF heroines that rise up to their situation and make a place for themselves in their new (objectively better) lives.

i'm on book two now, and I love the maturity in the characters and the writing (which I did not find in 'choosing theo'), and they're an excellent romp. fantastic rec, really glad I picked this up >:3

am I finally going to take a break from my reading binge now? I keep on saying I will, and then not doing that ahahahaha. my kindle library is still stuffed full, mainly with other books from my fave authors above, but also some nice space horror to round it off.

next on my list is gonna be either 'Haunt, Heart, Havoc', a horror romance that I've been meaning to read forever, or 'Dead silence', which is aliens meets titanic in space. >:3 if you read all of this, KUDOS TO YOU, have a lovely sunday ahahaha!

#ej adventures in romance #so nobody asked for this but I've been keeping track hehehe and honestly it's been super interesting diving into romance land #you can still find better writing - especially with actual smut - on ao3. #in general romance authors go for volume and tropey plots that don't do the subjects justice! major romance pitfall #which I blame on the need to churn out full books for consumption. commercialisation ruins quality #tmi

[daydreamerdrew]

The Avengers (1963) #38

#despite not being really interested in any of the storylines about Wanda that I’ve read so far #I like Wanda #I like her personality #her writing largely hasn’t fallen into the same pitfalls that Janet’s has #and I’m interested in the Enchantress too #I think being familiar with her better characterization in the A:EMH cartoon is carrying a lot of weight #but I’m also interested in her because of her relationship with/relevance to Valkyrie #the way she dismisses Wanda as a ‘foolish female’ here stands out to me #also the artwork here is nice #marvel #wanda maximoff #amora the enchantress #my posts #comic panels

[hockpock]

Genshin is hurting me again

#language #polls #pronunciation #im aware of the inherent pitfalls of trying to write out sounds #but ipa doesn't stick in my head #and uses special characters #pock posts a thing

[e-louise-bates]

Kinda funny how I actually enjoyed cataloging when I was working in a library, but now that I'm taking a class on cataloging my brain has started shutting down at the very mention of the word ...

#I am sure all this information would be SUPER helpful if it was applicable to real life #but learning it in an academic setting makes my eyes glaze and my mind wander #because I have no context to set any of it in #I have concluded after five semesters that the American insistence on degrees to work in a library is RUBBISH #what we really need is a whole bunch of training seminars for library workers to help them do their specific jobs better #which is what I was getting when I was working at the academic library in england #but admittedly that was cambridge which had amazing resources available for library training #anyway #have I mentioned I'm glad I'm graduating in december with an associates rather than sticking it out for three more years for a bachelors? #because so far going to school for library science has almost killed my love for library work #and that is so not what I was going for #so #associates degree in liberal studies with a focus in library science it is #and the bachelors can wait until my kids are graduated from high school #and I have a clearer picture of if I even want to pursue this path or if I'm going back to my first love of writing books for a living #which has its own pitfalls but these tags are already ridiculous so I'm stopping now

[magicalgrimm]

I’m just gonna write out my watch list here (what I’m watching and what I want to watch eventually), feel free to add any recommendations

Wander over yonder

Ok ko let’s be hero’s

Corporate tv show

Dofus and wakfu

Ducktales

Aachi and Ssipak

The venture bros

Hazbin hotel (might as well)

Everything related to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 

Transformers

Giant robo

My hero academia

The boys (big maybe)

Scissor seven

Tokyo goul

Kaiba

Inu-oh

Mao-mao: hero’s of pure heart

Ballmasterz 9009

Little demon

Utopia

I could go on and on, but I don’t wanna 

#if you have any recommendations feel free to reblog them on write them in notes #feel free to reblog with what you recommend as well as what you watch #really want to expand my library a bit #and get out of the pitfalls of watching only shows aimed at young audiences #wanna get into horror kinda

[sleepingfancies]

the thing is i genuinely think we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t so obvious that Netflix loves to cancel shit after 2 seasons

#shadow and bone #as in all of the rushed weird speedrun writing? i don't think that would exist-- #--if not for everyone being hyper-aware that no matter how well they did in s1-- #--there was basically a 50/50 chance they'd get cancelled #i feel like a lot of the writing decisions were 'we want to tell the whole story before we get shut down' #so everything ended up fast-forwarded three times over #bc they WANTED to tell these stories genuinely but knew they may not have a third season to spare #so it was a trade off . either take their time banking on a 3rd season and get cancelled on a cliffhanger/incomplete arc #OR cram absolutely everything into season 2 and hope for the best but expect the worst #which is just a fucking horrible work environment and it is literally only because netflix can't be trusted #and it doesn't matter how good or bad the show does it's entirely up to the 'do we want to actually pay these people' execs #and the answer is often No #anyways. there are a lot of problems and pitfalls but it was also fun idk #it's just a shame i feel like they got penned in by the post season 2 cancellation stamp netflix always whips out #shadow and bone spoilers

[tibli]

story research is fun because its so all over the damn place. like one minute I’m googling “weird reptiles” and the next I’m doing research on an ancient village in the taklamakan desert. and then after that I’m doing an hours-long deep dive into phonetics and grammar structures across various languages

#tibtalks #story development #whats frustrating though is that a lot of things i want to learn about #are very very difficult to find concrete answers on #extremely specific questions that are hard to google #mainly because i want this world to feel authentic and well-put together #while also trying to avoid the standard fantasy pitfall #of having villages that were clearly derived from a shallow and surface-level understanding of a particular culture #like obviously i can only get so far with internet research because i have no means to travel to these places i want to know more about #but at the very least i want it to be more fleshed out than just #'these people live in a desert and that's all there is to it' #or god forbid like #the whole tipis and totem poles thing with indigenous coded characters #like the story im writing has multiple races both human and not #but i dont want any of them to feel like a monolith #so certain communities are based on like #central asia or northern africa #among others #but its a balancing game between 'i dont want to treat every culture in this region as a singular entity' #but also 'i dont want to take so much from one culture that its indistinguishable from its own thing' #mainly bc im bored with fantasy where all the major protagonists are white #i figure its at least better to try and inevitably make missteps than it is to not try at all #sorry this was suuuuuuper long lmao i just needed to get my thoughts out #you would not believe how many obscure little websites ive visited scrounging for even the smallest little morsel of useful information

[dnangelic]

what is the truth. schrodinger's normal abnormal boy

#i was going to write a meta but i deleted it all bc i got embarrassed and can't put woRDS TOGETHER IN A SMART/CLEAR WAY #RHGHHH #its in my brain though i swear #its just abt daisuke's juvenile sense of confusion #hes young. hes a lil lost! he goes along with his family's phantom thievery but he doesn't necessarily completely enjoy it #it's complicated. he truly genuinely from the bottom of his heart loves art. but he doesn't necessarily like the stealing aspect #and he'd never ever steal anything deeply precious to anyone. he refuses to hurt anyone's feelings #but also- he's a little out of touch with things too sometimes. he keeps convincing himself he's 'mostly' or 'sorta' or 'pretty much' norma #when hes NEARLY DIED PLENTY OF TIMES thanks to his training #nobody normal comes home to electric doorknobs pitfalls alligators rabid dogs and lasers #his whole family is literally a family of criminals! he has live artworks w bonkers powers in his basement! #his own weird pet rabbit can FLY AND TALK #ud think turning into dark he'd be like 'well this might as well just happen' but in a way dark rlly was the last straw for daisuke #and like. there's nothing normal about any of this oagbdkgfk ESP IN A MODERN AGE!!! #but daisuke a) is a little willfully ignorant of it and b) genuinely ignorant of anything outside of it. bc again. hes a kid! #he doesn't have a lot of friends! he's a loser! #satoshi bringing up the tamers' cycles too. dark and daiki both agreeing that even if things seem fine now #that in the future the niwa and hikari would fight again. the niwa would cause the hikari pain #over and over. daisuke can't stand it. everyone keeps trying to tell him that his life and future is fixed #but if it's not one he agrees with or wants for himself then he's going to reject it #and that goes double for people like satoshi who have to reject krad. their sorrow and pain #bc it doesn't actually produce any beneficial outcome. its just senseless #*･ﾟ⊰ 𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐃𝐒. ⊱ ✦ › OUT.

[afewproblems]

hello first of all happy belated birthday and second i’ve been following you for so long and literally just now realized your url is “a few problems” my brain has been reading it as “AFW problems” wondering whatever that means, like what does AFW stand for? what are the problems there? haven’t been able to say but turns out my brain just skipped over the E

anyways, felt the need to let you know this, hope you’re having a wonderful day

Thank you so much for sending this! (And so sorry about the wait, this week has been crazy!)

I've had so many experiences of reading words or urls a certain way in my head only for someone to say it aloud or for it to appear slightly different when someone types it out and I have that moment where it clicks that I've been hearing/reading it in my head differently - I totally get it!! 😅

#afewproblems answers #or like when you've only ever read a word and never heard it spoken #testing out how its pronounced is definitely nerve-wracking #thank you nonny #now i want to check if afw stands for anything haha #...agriculture fish and wildlife huh #im picturing some poor conservationist finding my blog and thinking i make posts and the pitfalls of wildlife and land conservation #only to find steddie fic #hey we write for anyone and everyone

[misroberts]

To say something of abigail’s mentality when it comes to men and women and why she thinks having equal dislike/distrust for all is perfect. How it's reasonable and 'helpful' when she interacts:

Of course this isn’t to say she is a resolute man/woman-hater. It’s far more complicated ( although the people’s perception of her simplifies it and reduces it to her just being incapable of being pleasant or liking anyone. I try to keep my distance from these preconceived notions. She has led a traumatic life bolstreing with hardship and unlucky outcomes. This is a result of her need to keep loyalty to herself and survive.)

Her experience with men is much easier to guess, and a frustratingly typical one. The opinion is incredibly low. She pretends to hardly notice them and is prickly when forced to acknowledge. They've disappointed her in the past ( both with action and in-action. seemingly to only have an interest in her body and not the soul that comes with it ) and she believes they will continue to do so like pre-destined fate, they will simply find a way to purposely fail her. This mentality is unhealthy for a variety of reasons as it jeopardizes relationships or bonds she may want to keep, or lose established ones due to her inability to properly assess their intentions. Or place impossible to meet standards with no compromises ( sometimes putting herself on higher moral compass but this is closer to the extremes of her personality ). Unfortunately, this is sabotage she can barely resist at the point of crossing adulthood.

Anger and the self-reflection is easier to stomach than failure or worse the consequences of someone else's.

Now on to why Abigail distrusts and often dislikes other women. It all begins with an apple and Eden. Not in the literal - church-sense since she’s quite agnostic. Her misery all began with a woman’s actions. And built up from there. The earliest interactions with her aunts. The constant abuses and impossible expectations that found her cheeks and fingers and arms all bruised up and consistently put her in danger. Esteem damaged. It was a woman’s jealousy that humiliated her in public, and the reason why she found little to no stability as a pre-teen.

Abigail has had plenty of horrible experiences as she grows but nothing was more painful than the time living with her father's sister. It's also where she developed quite a bit of religious trauma and it's mostly why she is unwilling to participate in church in any form.

Although as opposed to the counterparts. she is arguably still, quite empathetic. As in her eyes they all share the same plight, at least with some of the people she's encountered after becoming a runaway. She is mostly wary and snippy with personal belongings to a degree. But never cruel unless by some provocation ( and she expects those sometimes ). She will be blunt and most won’t appreciate the way she says things but it is with an ember of care usually that ignites it. It's caused her to be ostracized quite a bit, but she reasons it's better to keep tougher company or none at all.

By definition she is a lonely character who will not realize it. past the anger there's short periods of crying, hidden in the bedroll, or on those solitary walks deep into the forests.

Honestly there is a lot more to be said, as it's more nuanced than what i've just explained, Abigail has the tendency to be misanthropic while simultaneously being the most human.And this isn't taking account her history with the members of the Van Der Linde Gang.

#in the end. no one should feel bad for being at odds with her #my writing is to communicate how 99% can't handle her #she's her own repellant and savior #i want to talk about hosea one of these days that man is crucial #as well as how this goes into parenting albert 'jack'. she sure as hell doesn't want a repeat of her childhood but there is pitfalls #i will be reaching out to plot soon bc she is a muse that needs this beforehand

[adecila]

Hi, huge, huge fan of FTC (and everything both of you write really). Greatly appreciate your talent :) I was recently doing a reread and I seem to recall that in the chapter with the instalive, the dialogue transcript has a fan asking Dany what her fave flowers are, to which she answers blue winter roses (of course:)), whereas in the latest chapter she mentions that her faves our snowdrops. Definitely nothing major but just wanted to give a heads up in case continuity is a pet-peeve :)!

If you saw me tweak chapter 6 yesterday no you didn't.

#ftc #alice has mail #*whispers* oh i fucked up #well not really since it was an easy fix there we go #the pitfalls of posting a wip as you write it #besties this fic is 6 chapters in and already 71k 🥲 #anyway thank you anon for pointing out the slight incoherence 🤍

[vermillioncrown]

Fuck you and your writing. What the hell. How tbe fuck did you make a tasteful brothel scene, how the hell did you manage to do all this shit. This chapter was fuckin heart wrenching. I wanted to see WWX get fucked up and then he did and it wasn't satisfying, but it was good writing and i liked it regardless. God. How the hell did you do this shit. What the fuck.

:^) thank you, i hit my target :^) :^)

=

because i really, really cared about getting the exact flavor of this chapter right, so much so that it took over a year.

the brothel scene is so important in what it means in the fic, which is more than showing that zyx fucked. or that zyx fucked a girl for real. or to do some questioning of sexuality.

(which i think i had to go through the five stages of grief when someone excitedly talked about it like having sex means someone is no longer aspec like... every day i am confronted by the fact we all coexist with vastly different perspectives on reality, and these realities are all true to some extent, sigh)

it's also not about being edgy and buying hookers, getting drunk, and all that.

so without using prostitution, nightlife, and sex as a prop and just being real with it, i hope that it doesn't come off goofy, edgy, or objectifying. the perils of trying to convey complicated feelings without therapy speak in-fic, and being really honest in someone's motivations and reactions (bc, unavoidably, it IS an SI).

the brothel scene and its whole fallout was so important, in fact, that i rewrote the entire order of the chapter. originally, the scenes were supposed to be in chronological order. logical, but it just felt like a boring recounting of events. sure, the events are fresh and we wanna see what zyx-mess happens next, but it's just a bunch of 'and then, and then, and then'. works for interlude chapters (ch8, ch15), but this really isn't one.

seguing, i learned a lot from how i wrote bil. dbd will never be as lean as bil, but it reminded me that when i drafted the fic, i focused on certain developments and ideas for a reason. also, since it's a chapter that doesn't involve too many canon characters, which let's be real that's usually the reason we stick around these kinds of fics, it needed to have purpose and be clear about what feeling it's trying to convey

even at the cost of simplicity in order of events

it would have been so difficult to keep the type of upset that zyx is feeling through a chapter that spans months, develops two interpersonal relationships, has a big oopsie, in chronological order without a too-angsty tone. too many periodic reminders would feel jarring and obtrusive, and exaggerate it. and that's also just not how zyx (i) deal with upsets, thank you adhd

and like, doing that for 10k+. (eternally i thank my readers for their patience and willingness to read so much bc people don't read fanfic for deep analysis and extra hw...) that's too much.

=

the second most important scene is the wwx duel, you got it. (i'd lump the lxc duel there, too bc those two are kinda related)

(sometimes i worry i made wwx too annoying. but then i talk myself back--it's always perspective. wwx isn't doing more than he already did in canon. we just have someone who can articulate how they feel about what he does, and he's not the main narrator of dbd.)

we get to a very clear demonstration of zyx as a character--it's more or less "i have no mouth and i must scream". here's your chance to be violent. you know you want it. do it. act out, make yourself heard.

zyx doesn't do it.

and you know what? i will be honest, truly honest here: i am sorry if you can instantly clock why zyx is the way they are, because for real 'recognition of the self in the other'.

lack of satisfaction--when you know what you wanted all along was for something to have never have happened at all, would punishment (displaced punishment) satisfy you? would it fix you? sometimes it helps, just for a moment. but i've answered this question enough times that i know i'd rather have never had to ask that question in the first place.

=

tldr: it's because it's a chapter about emotional honesty, and i as the author was really fucking honest and tried my fucking best to convey that.

#inquiry #Anonymous #on dbd #this chapter had so many caveats attached to it #1) make it make sense #2) no therapy speak #3) avoid weird sexuality pitfalls #4) the no man's land of thought->words of bilingualism #5) don't trauma dump tho #6) be fr with yourself like frfr #7) but make sure self-penchant for trivializing and joking about problems doesn't destroy the seriousness of the vibes #8) create and strengthen interpersonal connections within 1-2 scenes #9) figure out pacing to keep interest #10) setup for future plot threads #11) cut the unimportant descriptions or ones that are too omniscient #12) word choice. always word choice between dialogue and narration #anyways it's done and i'm trying to do the 'it's for the best faith reader' thing so hard #i was very paralyzed for the longest time and now i realize i was subconsciously trying to address the bad faith reader too often #sometimes you need to use them as an obvious hole-poker in your arguments #bc how i write different povs is an implicit persuasive argument that someone's perspective makes complete sense in their reality #but anon fr thanks for showing up #i hear loud and clear that the ch gets at least a passing grade against its rubric

[hazmatmaid]

honestly scared as hell sometimes of writing my ships because i often see people pointing at some opinions i tend to hold, and going "lmao you have an issue with that?? you're the cringe one, loser, just embrace it" like i'm not fucking trying to make them compelling in their own right.

#haz says a thing #the most common one i tend to see is how if you don't like x reader or oc x canon you're somehow WORSE at writing ships #look i'm not against oc x canon as a concept #one such thing is a personal comfort (and before you ask is not self-insert) #i just wish people didn't hit every possible pitfall #many of which i actively try to avoid #what with all the character consulting i do #because ooc bothers the absolute shit out of me #should i just not bother? #vent post ig

[hanyjar]

TYPING ALL OF EM DOWN ON MY LIL NOTES APP RN 🫵🫵 the secret history and the goldfinch has been marinating on my reading list for so longgg i’ll have to get them soon HAHHA 🫶🫶

LET ME KNOW IF U DO!! her writing simply hits different. also i know people say it time and time again but really the book for the goldfinch is heaps better than the movie 😭 i think the book is like?? 771 pages long??? (so ermmmm good luck if you decide to pick it up……) and ofc a #two-hour-long movie can’t cover it all, but the depth and intricacies of the characters are just not there in the live adaptation </33 definitely team book on this one.

thanks for chatting with me lovely 🥹🩷

#me trapping u into the donna tartt pitfall #once you get in u cannot get out I REPEAT U CANNOT GET OUUTTT #but ngl her writing makes yours better too just by reading it #so anonnie if u are a writer i guarantee it is worthwhile #hehehe #bumbles from the hive ! #the bee says hi !

[thebibliosphere]

One of the really fun and interesting things about writing a polyamorous romance as someone who is ambiamorous/polyamorous is finding new ways to make sure the narrative hits the expected genre beats without just sort of... mushing it into a pre-existing monogamous romance mold, which is what I'm afraid happens a lot of the time.

Trust me, it was my job in the publishing house to make them fit that mold. I hated it.

Reading other poly-centric romances, I can always somewhat tell when someone is writing polyamory from a sexual fantasy aspect (zero shade; I'm here for all the group sex) without actually considering how it functions as a relationship dynamic, which can often come off as... well.

It's lacking for me as a romance.

Erotica-wise, it's fine. But it misses the romantic beats for me that I want as a polyamorous-leaning person.

There's so much emphasis on the polycule and never the individual dyads within the larger relationship.

For example, in a triad, there are actually four relationships to handle.

The dyad between A + B. The dyad between A + C. The dyad between B + C. And the overarching relationship between A + B + C.

With monogamous-leaning authors or authors that've been pressed into conforming to the pre-existing genre beats, there's a tendency to treat the relationship as a homogenous mass where everything is fair and equal, and you treat all your partners the exact same way.

And I get it. It's easier to write everything as peachy-keen and to have external conflict be resolved with either acceptance or a brave confrontation.

But it doesn't always land for me as someone who wants to see my style of love represented in the genre.

In healthy polyamory, either closed or open, each relationship is unique in its own way. Taking the example of a triad again, the way A acts with C likely differs from how A acts with B.

And that's a good thing!

Because C might not want the same things as B, so trying to treat them both the exact same is a surefire way to make sure someone isn't getting their needs met, and that will lead to conflict.

Polyamory isn't striving for equality between partners but rather equity.

What are your individual needs, and how do I meet them, as well as meet the needs of my other partner(s)? What do you want from the larger relationship as a whole? How do we accommodate everyone without making someone feel neglected or uncomfortable? How do we show this in the narrative? How do we make sure character A isn't just treating B the same as C in every interaction? Do they ever fall into that pitfall? How do they remedy it?

It seems like common sense when you write it out like that, but it's a major pitfall I see time and time again. The characters never alternate their approach between partners, if there's any focus on the individuals at all.

The other major telltale thing I've noticed is that taking time to be with one partner is seen as a step down from the "goal" of the greater polycule.

The narrative is framed in such a way that they might start out with individual dates, but the end goal of the romance is to eventually be together 100% of the time all the time, and wanting individual time alone with any one partner is somehow "lesser."

Which is the goal of romance in monogamy, but it's not the goal of romance in polyamory.

Granted, you do need to end on a Happy Ever After or Happy For Now for it to fit the genre requirement. And a nice way of tying that up is to have everyone together at the end as a happy polycule all together all at once. I'm not disputing that as a narrative tool. I'm just pointing out that there's a tendency to present those moments as the sum total of the relationship when in actuality, there are multiple relationships that need to end happily ever after.

The joy of polyamorous love is the joy of multitudes. It's the joy of experiencing new things, both as individuals and as a polycule. If you're not taking care of the individual dyads, however, your polycule is going to crash and burn. You cannot avoid that. So why, then, is there such avoidance of it in stories meant to appeal to us?

Is it simply inexperience on behalf of the author? Or is it that they're not actually being written for us? Is it continued pressure to meet certain genre beats in a largely monogamous-centric genre? All of the above?

Either way, I'm having fun playing around with it and doing all the things we were warned against in the publishing house.

I'm having fun with Nathan and Vlad enjoying their own private dynamic that is theirs and theirs alone. I'm having fun with Ursula and Nathan being so careful and vulnerable around each other. I'm absolutely 100% here for the chaos of Vlad and Ursula without a chaperone. And I'm here for the chaos of Vlad and Ursula together and Nathan's fond, loving eye roll as he trails after them, too enamored to tell either of them no because where would the fun in that be...

Anyway. Don't mind me. Just getting my thoughts out while everyone else is in bed.

#long post #rambling with joy #I see so many interesting stories just sort of... neglect the dyads in the end #and it makes me sad #I wish it happened less

[iwanthermidnightz]

When I think back on the Speak Now album, I get a lump in my throat. I have a feeling it will always be that way, because this period of time was so vibrantly aglow with the last light of the setting sun of my childhood. I made this album, completely self-written, between the ages of 18 and 20. I've spoken about how I feel like those ages are the most emotionally turbulent ones in a persons life. Maybe when I say that, I'm really just talking about myself.

I think they might just be the most idealistic, hopeful years too. At this point in my life, I had released my second album, Fearless. It became the breakthrough moment I'd always dreamt of, one that catapulted my career to new realms of success. It had brought with it a tidal wave of pressures and pitfalls and growing pains. All the while, I was encountering the milestones and checkpoints of normal teenage growth. I had cataclysmic crushes and brushes with heartache. I moved out of my parents' house and set my bags down in a new apartment. I hung photos on my own walls and decorated the space where I would sob and cackle and shatter and dream. Sometimes I felt like a grown up, but a lot of the time I just wanted to time travel back to my childhood bed, where my mom would read stories to me until I fell asleep.

In my darker moments, I was tormented by the doubt that swirled loudly around my ascent and my merits as an artist. I was trying to create a follow up to the most awarded country album in history, while staring directly into the face of intense criticism. I had been widely and publicly slammed for my singing voice and was first encountering the infuriating question that is unfortunately still lobbed at me to this day: does she really write her songs? Spoiler alert: I really, really do.

In the years since, I've developed a thicker skin about public criticism and the cynicism with which some people approach the music I make. At that time, it leveled me. I had these voices in my head telling me that I had the perfect chance and I blew it. I hadn’t been good enough. I had given it all I had and been found wanting.

I wanted to get better, to challenge myself, and to build on my skills as a writer, an artist, and a performer. I didn't want to just be handed respect and acceptance in my field. I wanted to earn it. To try and confront these demons, I underwent extensive vocal training and made a decision that would completely define this album: I decided I would write it entirely on my own. I figured, they couldn't give all the credit to my cowriters if there weren't any. But that posed a new challenge: It really had to be good. If it wasn't, I would be proving my critics right.

I had no idea how much this pain would shape me. That this was the beginning of my series of creative choices made by reacting to setbacks with defiance. That my stubbornness in the face of doubters and dissenters would become my coping mechanism through my entire career from that point forward. This exact pattern of enacting my own form of rebellion when I feel broken is exactly why you're reading these very words, and I'm re-releasing this album now.

I went through my first worldwide scandal (the mic grab seen around the world). I experienced the weirdness of trying to get to know a boy while a swarm of paparazzi surrounds the car. Media contacting my publicist for an official statement on why two teenagers broke up. These are weird experiences to have at any age, but even more surreal when you're 19.

I had the nagging sense that in the most intense moments of my life, I had frozen. I had said nothing publicly. I still don't know if it was out of instinct, not wanting to seem impolite, or just overwhelming fear. But I made sure to say it all in these songs. I decided to call the album Speak Now. It was a play on the speak now or forever hold your peace' moment in weddings, but for me it symbolized a chance to respond to the chatter and commentary around my own life.

Some of these emotional revelations were surprising to people. Some expected anger and instead got compassion and empathy with 'Innocent'. Some expected a kiss-off breakup song but instead got a hand-on-heart apology, 'Back to December. It was an album that was the most precious to me because of its vast extremes. It was unfiltered and potent. In my mind, the saddest song I've ever written is 'Last Kiss'. My most scathing is 'Dear John' and my most wistfully romantic is 'Enchanted'.

I'll be forever proud of setting a goal and seeing it through. I'lI always feel shivers all over when I remember singing 'Long Live' to close the show every night on tour. The outstretched hands of those bright and beautiful faces of the fans. Their support was like an open palm that reached out and helped me up off the ground when others were, frankly, mean.

These days I make my choices for those people, the ones who thought I had been good enough all along. I try to speak my mind when I feel strongly, in the moment I feel it. I'm still idealistic and earnest about the music I make, but I'm less crushed when people mock me for it. I know now that one of the bravest things a person can do is create something with unblinking sincerity, to put it all on the line. I still sometimes wish I was a little kid again in a tiny bed, before I ever grew up.

I always looked at this album as my album, and the lump in my throat expands to a quivering voice as I say this. Thanks to you, dear reader, it finally will be.

I consider this music to be, along with your faith in me, the best thing that's ever been mine.

Yours,

Taylor

#taylor swift #speak now (taylor’s version) #speak now tv #sntv prologue #speak now taylor’s version #sntv