#airlocks writes

[airlocksandaviaries]

So, You Want to Write a Sword Fight.

Welcome to Your Local Sword Girlboy’s crash course on how to write a sword fight! We’re going to cover all the basics, from understanding context, to pacing, even some good ways to research! So buckle up gays, and let’s learn How to Sword.

First, what kind of sword are you wielding? There are so many different swords and forms and they’re all very different. But not only in the way you might think. Obviously the way the swords are held and wielded and the weight they have makes a difference how you write the battles, but even more so than that is TYPE OF FIGHT. Sabers, Epées, and Foils all have specific ways their bouts are set up and executed, and it has to do with a highly important cultural system of honor. Is this an honorable bout? Or a fight for survival? Or a fight for revenge? How much do these characters respect each other and how desperate are they?

This will affect the setup of the fight more than you think. For example, the target area. Or other weapons involved. If it is an honorable fight between two parties that respect each other, they will only hit on the front area of each others’ target, and will only make contact with their blades on each other. If it is a fight for survival, however, all bets are off. Any area on each others’ bodies is valid target area, and they might be more inventive while fighting, like slamming each other with the hilt, or using another improvised weapon nearby to win. It’s important to consider.

Now let’s talk about types of swords specifically. Sabers, Epées, and Foils are all incredibly light and whippy, and are held with one hand. They can be maneuvered very fast and can perform some very fast actions, and are GREAT for feinting (more on this later). They can change direction quickly with a whip of the fingers, and are usually used in very honorable bouts. Foils and Epées are for stabbing, while Sabers are for slashing opponents. All of these swords, though, use VERY small and quick movements. The fighter wielding one of these even makes themself smaller with a squatting stance and only one side facing the opponent. Everything is quick and precise. Footwork is key.

Rapiers and cutlasses are heavier, but still operated with one hand. These are favored by pirate types, and are used for slashing and sometimes stabbing. Another detail is that these can also be accompanied by a parrying dagger, held in the opposite hand as the Rapier and used for blocking the opponent’s blade out of the way.

Now the one you’ve been waiting for, longswords and broadswords (and lightsabers as well). These are usually two handed weapons, but can be one-or-two handed. They are heavier, and take more strength to control, but believe me when I say they are NOT clunky or slow. You CAN perform a feint with a longsword. I HAVE done it before (not successfully, but that’s just a skill issue on my part, let’s not dwell on it). The way these swords are maneuvered are with wider swings, for cutting OR slashing, and to protect the whole body. Footwork is important as well, but it’s terrible on the knees if you run too much with these (because they’re so goddamn heavy) so it’s not like you can run a marathon with a longsword like you can with a foil or saber. (of course if it’s a lightsaber all bets are off bc that thing is made of light and it's wielded by a space wizard so whatever).

Alright next. Let’s get GRANULAR. Let’s talk about very specific types of attacks and blocks and how to phrase this. Now, don’t worry, you don’t have to be a fencing expert to talk about the specific moves, because the audience will understand what you’re saying. It’s just about being specific enough to where you can paint a picture in their heads but not too specific to where the fight loses its suspense.

So, first, let’s talk about attacks and blocks, and what to call them. For any sword, extending the blade is holding it out in front of you. Thrusting is when you make a jabbing attack with the blade. And finally, lunging is when you throw your body forward with the attack, specifically throwing out your front leg and leaning into it, while keeping your body level with the floor to keep balance and make it easy to recover into a guard position.

Now for blocks. Pushing the blade out to block the opponent’s blade is called a parry. When you attack your opponent back immediately after taking their blade in a parry, it’s called a riposte. You don’t need to use this word, though, because I’ve found that just saying something like “They parried her blade and then thrusted towards her chest,” works quite well. 

SIDE NOTE: if both of your opponents have the same pronoun set, I’m so fucking sorry. It doesn’t get any easier. It’s the Gay Fanfiction Dilemma, I’m afraid. But if you’re already versed in that, use the same workarounds for pronouns and titles for fighting as you do for fucking, it works pretty much the same way ;). (But PLEASE don’t be afraid to use their names. I promise nobody is going to kill you if you say the characters' names twice in a single paragraph. It’s MUCH better than having to read “the blond” or “the tall one” or “the younger woman.”) Basically, just use their names a lot. It’s quicker and I promise you it works.

Now where were we? Ah yes. Attacks and blocks. I already covered those, but surprise, there’s a secret third thing, and it’s my very favorite move. Feinting. It’s quite simple really, it’s an extension of the blade, a faked attack, to get your opponent to try to parry or block or move their blade, only to switch your movement to avoid their blade and attack them back. It’s fun and can be extremely effective, and it also can be used in many different types of ways. Any way you can get your opponent to try to parry your blade in one place, like a high or a low attack, expect where their blade is going to be, and then avoiding it works as a feint. Or you could engage the blade, and move it around with your own blade to get it away from your target area and slide in for a riposte. This is my specialty. And it makes a KILLER shiiiiiiing sound as well. It sounds confusing, but it can actually be written quite simply. Let’s give an example:

“A thrusted out their blade in a feint. But just as B’s blade leaped for it, A withdrew their arm and took B’s blade up in a quick engagement. They swung it around and metal scraped against metal as A pushed B’s blade away from pointing at their chest to a harmless position beside their thigh. Then, in the same flowing movement, blades still locked, A pushed their blade back up for a deadly thrust at B’s chest.”

Not bad, if I do say so myself. Although this comes from having executed that maneuver a hundred times personally. There’s still hope for you though, as a non-fencing sword writer, I promise! You just gotta research and read a bit. But more on that later.

Next let’s talk about footwork. It’s not the most important part of the fight, but it is worth mentioning every once in a while in your scene, just to give the audience a sense of space for where your characters are, especially if they’re in a precarious position like a mountain or a pirate ship. Remember that swordfighting requires a LOT of backwards and forwards movement on both parties’ parts, so give your characters lots of room!

That brings us to our next point. Pacing. Now, here’s something you NEED to know about real life sword fights. They are MUCH faster than you think they are. Most of the fight is pacing back and forth, trying to gain right of way (if you’re in foil), and testing your opponent to see where they’ll go. Just a few seconds of blade engagement, and then it’s back to pacing back and forth to see who’s going to jump first. Also some testing to see how trigger happy your opponent is but thrusting towards them and seeing if they’ll attack back or retreat. Basically, irl sword fights are just 70% foreplay and 20% actual stabby stab. 

But this is not great for fun sword fight scenes! Remember it’s okay to stretch the truth, and focus on the swordplay actions, stretch them out as much as necessary. Especially if your characters are superhuman. Just consider throwing in a few moments of pacing and sussing each other out, I promise it’s worth it. Not just to break up the constant fighting, which can get tiresome, but also because characters get tired too! Superhuman or not, fighting is exhausting on all parties. It’s not unusual for two sword fighting individuals to suddenly break and have a moment of analysis, slowly circling each other. I promise it won’t break your tension, if anything it will just increase it.

Now let’s talk about how to ACTUALLY get better and writing these scenes. And no, I’m not going to say ‘practice.’ Because while practice is important, so is RESEARCH and OBSERVATION.

There’s many ways you can research and observe as a non-sword individual! First I recommend watching clips of actual sword fighting, specifically women’s olympic foil (because they have the most technique out of all the other swords and categories). Also, watching sword fighting scenes in movies is good. It’s a dramatized version, of course, but that’s exactly what we’re trying to achieve in writing. It’s good to watch the character’s perspectives as they fight, and how the action washes over us as an audience.

Finally, I recommend actually reading sword fights in stories. The best author for fantasy sword fights, hands down, is R.A. Salvatore. His books are super cool D&D fantasy quest stories centered around a badass but also cute and compelling Drow character who gets into sword fights ALL THE TIME. And nobody writes a sword fight like Salvatore. Reading his work has probably helped me more in writing sword fights than my actual knowledge of how to sword fight.

I hope this has helped somewhat! Or was just fun to read. Either way, I enjoyed writing it. I love writing sword fights and I love sword fighting and I love helping, so I was happy to make this. Also, I have lots more technical knowledge I would love to share on this subject, so if you have anything you want to know about how swords or sword fights work or how to write something, I’m open for asks! Even if I don’t know you! Feel free to reach out with a question or a comment, I’ll geek out about swords any day.

Anyway that’s it my writer friends and fellow sword enthusiasts, good luck and happy writing! <3

 @veradragonjedi

#sword fights #writing tips #writers on tumblr #how to write a sword fight #fencing #foil #epee #saber #longsword #broadsword #airlocks writes #writing tutorial #long post

[madamairlock]

Sooooo. Anyone else stay up until 5am writing one night stand Spaceparents smut?

#Kaitlin writes #relatable posts? #lol #thoughts from the airlock

[magicalgrimm]

Au heed where she’s a runaway from P.E.A.C.E. And is trying desperately to escape the grasp of her abusers and trying to make new friends.

Here’s the page without the censor

#tw abuse #tw abuse implied #grimmz art #villainous #villanos #villainous au #I have no idea what to call my au because there’s too much going on in it #blue guy is based of that one guy from a split second from the episode with airlock #i ended up ocifying him I guess #sorry :-/ #also sorry that I can’t seem to write stuff without putting something dark in it #villainous cn #villainous miss heed #miss heed #celia amanda kelly #really need to refine my writing skills #that’s enough rambling on one post #low key regret drawing the top right one

[airlockfailure]

I feel like Quinlan Vos and Anakin Skywalker would either be great friends with both having a propensity for rule breakage and thinking outside the box, or having an intense rivalry due to how similar they are.

Obviously Vos is closer to Obi-wan in age, so maybe he wouldn't have that intense a rivalry with someone he considers a kid, but! Consider, Vos helping Padawan Anakin prank Obi-wan. And Obi-wan is just as capable of prankage (though far more devious haha) and the pranks back and forth just keep escalating until Yoda has to step in.

Pranks and practical jokes are now banned within the Jedi Temple.

(Pranks absolutely still occur within the Jedi Temple. Yoda is not as much of a hardass as everyone thinks. Up to mischief, he is.)

#idk #i just want them to be friends #mutuals teetering on the brink of the darkside #both slipping and falling #and being redeemed #because of love #quinlan vos #anakin skywalker #obi wan kenobi #yoda #star wars #tcw #swtcw #the clone wars #star wars the clone wars #sometimes I have a thought #airlock writes

[b-radley66]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Borderlines Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Ensemble Cast - BAN Additional Tags: The Lost Era (2293 - 2364), Border Patrol Series: Part 1 of Borderlines: Book III - Visigoth Summary:

Romulan games. Francis doesn’t get the last word. A new crewman looks to go back to academia. An old crewman ready for ejection.

#star trek #borderlines #border shenanigans #chandra - original character #siobhan lincolnton - original character #decker sinclair - original character #enter the pool on how long it will be before shiv tosses daronex from the airlock #in between the stories you know #adventures in fanfic writing

[pumpkinmetaphor]

i lived

#I was busy trying not to think about getting sucked out the airlock and forgot to write though

[naomiholden]

THE EXPANSE (2015-2022)

personal list of most memorable episodes : 5.07 Oyedeng;  Walking away is the only choice anyone ever has.

#the expanse #theexpanseedit #you do not understand oyedeng Haunts me #this ep hit me like a bus #it threw /me/ out the airlock #i have not cried this much during a media piece like ever #and i usually don't cry with shows or movies #but man they Broke me #the performances ? like dom jasai keon knocked it out the park #and like keon /keon/ ik it's part the writing but he rlly captured the subtle mannerisms people like that talk and act #and it made my skin crawl #i'm not talking abt dom they owe her 4392753 awards for the entirety of s5 #long post / #*faveeps

[breadedsinner]

When it comes to RPGs, I am in favor of people spinning it so that their characters don't always get along with their companions, I think that's fun, but when people spin it like, "my character wanted to hit this character," it kind of makes you seem like a giant child.

#Fandom Nonsense #This feels especially egregious in a game like Mass Effect bc you're in a position of authority #Like I can understand a bit of leeway when it comes to writing a character in the military #But like #'My Shepard wanted to throw x out the airlock' your Shepard needs a therapist #Also like ...you think that character isn't gonna fuckn hit back

[airlocksandaviaries]

Some soft Ethan Hunt headcanons for the soul <3

- He cooks for the team. He has like 4 recipes and most of them are casseroles (due to him being from the Midwest). While he doesn’t usually have his hands on the best ingredients and his kitchen methods are questionable (he’ll substitute anything he feels like and has almost started fires on multiple occasions), it’s still always a hit. Benji always adores it and while Luther is dubious he still admits it’s worlds better than the usual on-the-lam takeout.

- He can’t spell for the life of him. It’s just one of those things his brain can’t find the space to concentrate on. It’s not usually noticeable since his tech has auto correct and he uses texting shortcuts on his burner phones, but Will Brant once watched him trying to spell “beautiful” for 10 whole minutes and never lets him hear the end of it.

- He curls up when he sleeps. He’s the kind of person who needs 3 layers of blankets, even in the summer, and he always tucks his covers all the way up to his chin. He lays on his side, almost curled into a ball, tightly wrapped and secure. He never tells anyone, but it’s because it keeps him from flailing due to nightmares. And he enjoys being cozy.

- He likes to make faces in mirrors when he walks past them. Sometimes he runs his hands through his hair. Everyone has caught him doing this at one point or another. It’s a side effect of his talent for acting like different people.

- He. Doodles. Everywhere. If you hand him a paper and a pen, it’s going to be covered with intricate designs and disturbingly realistic eyes and silly cat faces within the next few minutes. Doesn’t matter if it’s scrap paper or the most important document detailing the syndicate’s plans for nuclear war, he’ll find a way to cover it with sketches. He once had a habit of drawing on his skin, but he kicked it as fast as he possibly could. Don’t want any identifying marks in his line of work.

- He’s a hugger. Especially a surprise hugger. He’ll randomly jump his friends when they’re working or resting or standing anywhere and just wrap them in a hug for no particular reason. From behind, from the side, from the front. Curling around them like a koala. He’s tiny enough to where it’s not a problem for them, and everyone enjoys it anyway. Ethan loves keeping his friends close and safe, and that means physically sometimes too.

My askbox is open for requests if anyone wants more btw ☺️💖

#Ethan Hunt #Mission Impossible #Mi #mission: impossible #m:I #airlocks writes #Ethan hunt Headcanons #mi movies #Tom Cruise

[queenlua]

airlock said: it’s not YOU it’s SOMEONE ELSE. someone else who MALICIOUSLY invaded your drafts and MADE THEM WORSE ON PURPOSE. some kind of trickster goblin gremlin. none of this could possibly have been something that ever passed for you a good idea in your own mind, right adjoint-law said: Perhaps past you might have been going for an experimental style. Rashomon, House of Leaves, Italo Calvino + unreliable narrator unholy lovechild. But now you’ve become a Modernist who cares about bourgeoisie concerns like Coherency and Comprehensibility and there’s no returning to what once was. Actually no I take it back, maybe prev commenter is onto something

omfg i love both of these so much

#airlock #adjoint-law #s-tier tumblr users both #anyway i FINISHED WRITING A SCENE tonight very exciting times now i should fucking sleep

[madamairlock]

Discovered my hierarchy of needs today lol

#thoughts from the airlock #lol #i'm funny right #kaitlin writes #or talks about it at least

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

AirLock Anon;

HAHAHA YOU CAN NEVER GET RID OF ME

I accept this as my fate <333333

#also i see your slime rancher au with yancy and i maaaaaay write that #clanask #airlock anon

[airlockfailure]

WIP Tag Game

@brokenphoenix99 tagged me, so I'll do my best. Rules: In a new post, list the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them and then post a little snippet of it or tell them something about it! And then tag as many people as you have WIPs.

I don't have a WIP folder, just a list~

Kinktober 2023 Incomplete Anthology (on AO3 as Sanguis Et Passio)

Et Cum Sola (Fox & Treeble, Quinlan Vos/Faie) Incomplete

Nec Aspera Terrent Incomplete (Sterling/Vaughn)

Dies Irae Sad Rece Fic * and Dies Irae Chapter 1

Hardcase/Tup

Invictus AU Chronological Order (a perpetual WIP)

Infragilis Et Tenera Chapter 1

Longshot/Wooley Outline (on AO3 as Mitescere Vario Aestus)

Bail and Thorn’s investigation of the GAR

Koda and Synth’s adventures through the war

Fox and Riyo go to Kamino

Knockout tracking down Ventress' and the GAR’s victims

Holly and Meiro short fic

Fordo and his family

Follow up to Perseids Blunt/Wynut/Zipper

Meerla and Zero become a thing/getting together fic

Thorn and Riyo as friends, trying to set her up with Fox and Fox being oblivious

Star Wars OC Bingo

Coruscant Guard Bingo

All of these fics are within the same Invictus AU.

No pressure tags: @seascribbling, @cacodaemonia, @thatonegreyghost, @marbled-polecat, @nimata-beroya, @trudemaethien, @reaalikaasu, @stellanslashgeode, @imrowanartist, @anstarwar

#WIP tag game #airlock writes #ask airlock #Invictus AU #tcw #swtcw #the clone wars #star wars the clone wars

[arthoure]

29, and good luck picking one-

lmao right

29. What’s the hardest thing about writing?

For me, it's just convincing myself that any of my ideas are worth pursuing, tbh. I have to go through this entire mental Rube Goldberg machine of "okay this isn't stupid" -> "wait yes it is but this change makes it a little better" -> "can I even write it" -> "shut up dumbass you're a great writer" -> "yeah but can I write THIS one at THIS time and will I be SATISFIED with it" -> "I'm never satisfied with ANYTHING so I guess I might as well go for it?" -> "but oh my god that's so much time and energy and I'm so tired" -> "that's burnout babe just play some elden ring and eat lunch and maybe you'll feel better" -> "okay yeah i feel better" -> "I WROTE TWO WORDS AND MY STORY IS STUPID AND I'M A HACK AFTER ALL" -> "keep going dumbass the skill is in the editing" -> "right right right I've been doing this for years"

So self-esteem, essentially

#airlock #asks #writing #meme

[celestialwife]

girls when poe has a personality that isn't being obsessed with a man he's had maybe ten scenes with in the first two movies and has his own agency and doesn't always agree with his mentor instead of bending over backwards to constantly say she's right (when she isn't):

#nym speaks #negativity #SORRY but it's true #like god they're SO petrified of him being his own character it'd be hilarious if it wasn't so FUCKING FRUSTRATING #sorry someone reblogged my gifset of him i made yesterday just to bitch about him in tl* #and number one you're a gifmaker too cut that shit out #number two they unironically love res*stance reb*rn which is the WORST BOOK I'VE EVER READ i despise it so fucking much #it treats him so fucking terribly. it treats him exactly the way people claimt tl* does #like the author can't talk about him without going 'oh he's a supremely arrogant person' in every interview she gives #and has maz tell him that and compares him to the first order AFTER KNOCKING HIM ON HIS ASS???? #and then has a good portion of the resistance agree he should be thrown out of the airlock for not trusting holdo like EXFUCKINCUSE ME?! #the author literally just wants him dead it's not even fucking funny #not to mention the book grossly objectifies him CONSTANTLY and REPEATEDLY #girl 'm in love with him and don't mention how hot he is this much #but like he's crushing on finn soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo of course it's better than everything else tehehehe #(which i do have my issues with? like why on earth was this woman writing them like they were for sure going to be a thing when lucasfilm #was NEVER going to do that. it feels a little too close to baiting to me ngl.) #anyway sorry workers were working on the road right outside my window until like two thirty last night :') and i have cramps :') so i'm not #in the mood for this shit lmfao #anyway living with clear skin and an open heart knowing that book keeps getting retconned bc it's so awful lmfao

[iwrestledavongonce]

It’s Wednesday, you know what that means!

Since my contribution to https://sailormoonrarepairweek.tumblr is done, we’re back to writing for IBWFY.

Right now I’m thinking about if Intelligence and Pragmatism would equal Ruthlessness and justificate it for a bigger goal and how far the Head of Royal Intelligence of Crystal Tokyo, Major Dr. Ami Urawa would go.

Yup, we back at the spy game.

#to throw someone out of the airlock or to not throw someone out of the airlock #would she go all dark mercury on them? #tales of taskforce sol #i became war for you #wip wednesday #fanfic writing #sailor moon fanfiction #star wars fanfiction