Words to describe facial expressions

Absent: preoccupied 

Agonized: as if in pain or tormented

Alluring: attractive, in the sense of arousing desire

Appealing: attractive, in the sense of encouraging goodwill and/or interest

Beatific: blissful

Black: angry or sad, or hostile

Bleak: hopeless

Blinking: surprise, or lack of concern

Blithe: carefree, lighthearted, or heedlessly indifferent

Brooding: anxious and gloomy

Bug eyed: frightened or surprised

Chagrined: humiliated or disappointed

Cheeky: cocky, insolent

Cheerless: sad

Choleric: hot-tempered, irate

Darkly: with depressed or malevolent feelings

Deadpan: expressionless, to conceal emotion or heighten humor

Despondent: depressed or discouraged

Doleful: sad or afflicted

Dour: stern or obstinate

Dreamy: distracted by daydreaming or fantasizing

Ecstatic: delighted or entranced

Faint: cowardly, weak, or barely perceptible

Fixed: concentrated or immobile

Gazing: staring intently

Glancing: staring briefly as if curious but evasive

Glazed: expressionless due to fatigue or confusion

Grim: fatalistic or pessimistic

Grave: serious, expressing emotion due to loss or sadness

Haunted: frightened, worried, or guilty

Hopeless: depressed by a lack of encouragement or optimism

Hostile: aggressively angry, intimidating, or resistant

Hunted: tense as if worried about pursuit

Jeering: insulting or mocking

Languid: lazy or weak

Leering: sexually suggestive

Mild: easygoing

Mischievous: annoyingly or maliciously playful

Pained: affected with discomfort or pain

Peering: with curiosity or suspicion

Peeved: annoyed

Pleading: seeking apology or assistance

Quizzical: questioning or confused

Radiant: bright, happy

Sanguine: bloodthirsty, confident

Sardonic: mocking

Sour: unpleasant

Sullen: resentful

Vacant: blank or stupid looking

Wan: pale, sickly

Wary: cautious or cunning

Wide eyed: frightened or surprised

Withering: devastating

Wrathful: indignant or vengeful

Wry: twisted or crooked to express cleverness or a dark or ironic feeling

little intimate things that leave me breathless

feel free to use these as prompts

you're talking on the phone and your lover quietly comes up behind you, wraps their arms around you, and starts gently kissing your neck. you begin to lose focus on your phone call as you concentrate on not making any noise.

your crush gently touching you on the arm or putting their hand on your shoulder as you two have a conversation.

having a piece of hair brushed off your face as you're reading or looking down.

looking at your crush or lover only to find them already looking at you and when you make eye contact, they smile at you.

holding hands while having sex and/or making out.

"i'm so proud of you."

being asked "are you sure?" (there's nothing sexier than consent)

you and your lover sitting next to each other at a table and they rest their hand on your thigh, gently rubbing their thumb back and forth.

your lover playing with your hair or vice versa.

telling a stupid joke and hearing your crush laugh.

helping your lover fix their tie or zip up their dress. or, you two helping each other undress.

telling your partner how stressed out you are and they are simply just listening before opening their arms and holding you until you feel better.

"i love you."

i think the most exciting thing about writing is that you never actually know what's going to happen next. even when you plot things, there are always plot twists you didn't see coming and lines of dialogue you didn't expect and you do genius things accidentally and it's like no matter how much you write, you never run out of ideas.

A list of nice words we should use more to describe people

Adventurous : willing to undertake new and daring enterprises.

Affectionate : having or displaying warmth or fondness.

Ambitious : having a strong desire for success or achievement.

Amiable : diffusing warmth and friendliness.

Brave : not being afraid of danger.

Considerate : showing concern for the rights and feelings of others.

Courageous : able to face and deal with danger or fear without flinching.

Courteous : characterized by politeness and gracious good manners.

Diligent : characterized by care and perseverance in carrying out tasks.

Empathetic : showing ready comprehension of others' states.

Exuberant : unrestrained, especially with regard to feelings.

Gregarious : temperamentally seeking and enjoying the company of others.

Humble : marked by meekness or modesty; not arrogant or prideful.

Impartial : free from undue bias or preconceived opinions.

Intuitive : obtained through instinctive knowledge.

Inventive : marked by independence and creativity in thought or action.

Kind : behaving in a caring way towards people

Passionate : having or expressing strong emotions.

Philosophical : meeting trouble with level-headed detachment.

Practical : guided by experience and observation rather than theory.

Rational : having its source in or being guided by the intellect.

Reliable : worthy of trust.

Resourceful : adroit or imaginative.

Sensible : able to feel or perceive.

Sincere : open and genuine; not deceitful.

Sympathetic : expressing compassion or friendly fellow feelings.

Witty : demonstrating striking cleverness and humor.

By Rupi Kaur

what people think writing is: worldbuilding, churning out entire chapters in one sitting, metaphors, character building, finishing novels, flawless plotlines

what writing actually is: random 1 am thoughts, zoning out into fictional worlds, associating songs with characters, writer’s block for six weeks at a time, coming up with plot twists at the most inconvenient times

50 Cute Date Ideas

taking a rain walk

going to a library and showing each other their favourite books

visiting a waterpark together

taking a walk through a park or a forest and admiring the colors

going to the zoo and pointing out the coolest animals

playing disk golf together

doing a scavenger hunt for cute little trinkets

visiting a museum about something you know nothing about

going to a bookshop and selecting books for each other

having a picknick with lots of seasonal food

visiting a brewery and doing a tasting

going to a café with an amazing tea selection

watching movies together while it storms outside

visiting a park and playing basketball or football together

going on a bicycle tour and finding new places

making pottery together and carving in their initials as a memento for the cute date

playing board games in a small café

going thrift shopping together or checking out a flea market

getting trash bags and cleaning up a public place together

going on a night hike and enjoying the dark and silent world with just each other as company

singing karaoke together

going inline skating and trying not to fall too often

swimming in a lake together

visiting some old castles/churches/etc. they’ve always wanted to check out

going to a fair and playing games and going on the Ferris wheel

picking apples together

taking a painting class and gifting each other the painting they made

going to a concert of their favourite band

playing paintball as a team or against each other

going to the movies and buying their favourite treats

watching the sunrise or sunset together

cooking for each other and judging each other’s food like they’re on Top Chef

going on hayrides

visiting an escape room and trying to solve the puzzles

going camping nearby and enjoying the time without distractions

visiting an amusement park and going on all the fun rides

going to a restaurant they’ve never been to and trying new food together

trying to learn a new skill together

doing a movie marathon with childhood favourites

checking out all the wonderful plants in the botanical garden

visiting an old cemetery and making up stories for the different graves

going to a trampoline park together

watching a drag show together

renting a paddleboat and seeing how far they can go

checking out lost places together

doing a photo shoot at a cool location

taking dance lessons together

going on a guided city tour even if both grew up there

doing a pub crawl and trying different drinks

volunteering together for something that’s important to both of them

If you like my blog and want to support me, you can buy me a coffee! 🥰

My favorite forms of affection

Holding hands.

Resting their heads over my shoulder.

Lying on their lap or chest.

Kisses on the forehead.

Playing with my hair.

When they give me that look of admiration.

Them making me laugh.

Giving compliments.

Putting their arms around me.

Making me feel heard and seen without even trying.

Random hugs when words aren't needed.

When they remember the things I am passionate about.

Buying me food.

Them checking on me constantly.

When they respect my boundaries.

When they talk to me about things that reminds them of me.

When they speak their truth.

When they say they love me.

When they lift me up, support me and make me feel valuable and capable when I least believe in it.

Describe your WIP in 4 pictures from your phone. No context. No cheating.

I’ll go first:

By Grant Snider

Casual Affections

Showing that they care.

smiling at each other from across the room

randomly texting a gif or emoji

laying their hand on the other’s leg

kiss to the side of the head

squeezing the other’s shoulder

fixing the other’s clothes

guiding them with a hand on the small of their back

embracing them from behind

ruffling their hair

placing their chin on the other’s shoulder

calling them nicknames

winking at them

teasing each other good-naturedly

putting an arm around the other’s shoulder

washing the other's hair

taking a photo of the smiling or in their element

looking in each other's eyes

putting a blanket on them

tugging at the other's clothes to keep them close

making them food they like

laughing at their jokes

placing a hand on the back of the other’s neck

brushing strands of hair away

patting their head

sharing an umbrella

bumping shoulders into each other

randomly face-timing just to hear their voice/see their face

pressing their foreheads together

nudging them to show they are right beside them

laying their head on the other’s shoulder

Love Language Part I | Part II

Unusual words with beautiful meanings

Peregrinate (verb) To travel or wander around from place to place.

Serendipity (noun) Finding something good without looking for it.

Nemophilist (noun) One who is fond of forest; A haunter of the woods.

Eudaimonia (noun) The contented happy state you feel when you travel.

Eleutheromania (noun) The intense desire for freedom.

Hireath (noun) A homesickness for a home to which you cannot return, a home which maybe never was.

Idyllic (adj.) Like an idyll; extremely happy, peaceful, or picturesque. 

Clinomania (noun) Excessive desire to stay in bed. 

Seatherny (noun) the serenity one feels when listening to the chirping birds.

Eunoia (noun) beautiful thinking a balanced mind.

Deep Water Prompt #2226

Our city ran on the power of an imprisoned god. We were not allowed to pray to him, but some of the desperate still tried.

Prompt 180

“So, if you could kidnap me really publicly that would be great.”

“...why?”

“I kinda forgot about this research essay due tomorrow? And like, my prof knows I’m a hero- I even brought my laptop so I can write it in your cell. Is the wifi password still the same?”

Hello! Do you have any advice on writing enemies to friends to lovers? Thanks!

How to Write Enemies to Friends to Lovers Romance

It's the dynamic we've all come to know and love. The pièce de résistance of romantic tropes that has ascended to popularity through various series like The Cruel Prince, These Violent Delights, Red White & Royal Blue.

Featuring couples that start off hating each others' guts (but eventually wind up together in the end), the enemies to friends to lovers trope is quite possibly the most sought-after romance at this current time, blowing away the era of the love triangle and childhood friends to lovers.

But the only problem is that, despite the demand, this trope is quite possibly the most difficult to write, as it involves were complicated and intertwined character relationships that can be easy to mess up or misrepresent.

Here are some tips to help your scuffling protagonists finally realize that they were meant to be!

1. Heavy on the "Enemies" Makes the "Lovers" All the Sweeter...but don't make it TOO heavy

A lot of fanfiction and even some published books that feature Enemies to Friends to Lovers often fall into the trap of rushing the romance. The authors are desperate to make characters fall in love, and the constant dancing around and angry bantering between their characters is awfully exhausting to write.

However, without enough time to relish in the frustrating arguments, backstabbing, and almost-understandings that end in disaster, the readers won't have the full experience of appreciating when they finally give in and make out.

"Enemies" has to be more than "He bullied me in second grade and now I hate him and refuse to believe he's changed even though we're both 20 now."

Misunderstandings are NEVER a good conflict, even when it doesn't come to enemies to friends to lovers.

Have them both be at fault, doing each other wrong to the point where you can't possibly think it could be forgivable.

Here are some ways your future main pairing can rip each other apart:

Breaking/Stealing each other's stuff

Insulting/Threatening each other's friends/companions/family

Bringing up dead relatives/past tragedies in each other's lives

Attempted murder!

Sabotaging each other's plans

Pranking each other in mean ways (itching powder, salt bomb their food)

Embarrassing each other in front of other people

Making fun of things they like

Sure, all of these things are sure to make your characters seem like assholes, but in the end it's all forgivable to some degree, though most take longer than others (This also depends on exactly how they cross the line between Enemies and Friends, which will be discussed later).

However, even though this is all in good fun, you have to understand where it goes too far.

Some things really are well and truly unforgivable, and if the relationship continues it'll most likely viewed to be unhealthy or toxic rather than a genuine connection.

If Person A killed Person B's Parents/friends on purpose with the sole intent of hurting B...then I don't think they'll be eligible for redemption in their eyes.

(You can totally still write it! But the readers are gonna be a bit wary of their relationship and may not consider it to be healthy.)

2. The Most Crucial Part is the Transition from Enemies to Friends

Friends can easily become lovers, but enemies cannot easily become friends.

Friendship is built on a foundation of trust and connection that romance can flourish in, but the barren grounds of archrivals are hardly a place for love to grow--sexual tension perhaps, but certainly not love.

In order for this romance to be the most believable, you need to justify why these two characters decided to offer each other flowers instead of knives to the throat.

Here are some ways your characters can become friends:

Character A realizes that Character B was right the whole time and apologizes

One of them saves the other's life or the life of a loved one

They are forced to combine their efforts and realize they work very well as a team

Sexual/aesthetic attraction is irresistible, and once they get to know each other they can overlook past misdeeds (This is enemies to lovers, in case you wanted to ditch the whole "friend" part)

One of them helps the other on a whim, and that small act of kindness snowballs into multiple acts of kindness

They get to know each other and realizes their feud was childish

Of course, there are definitely more examples that I can't think of off the top of my head, but I would certainly suggest using the "one of them saves the other's life" for more severe cases of enemies. The bigger the trespasses, the more extreme the apologies must be.

3. Suggestion: Take It Slow...perhaps even in an "enemies to friends to lovers to enemies to lovers again" kind of way

People who read enemies to friends to lovers are usually not looking for a quick fix. They're looking for heart, for dedication, for the endgame to be held tantalizingly out of reach.

Unless you well and truly don't feel like it, don't have your characters' relationship evolve linearly. They need ups and downs, stops and starts, fights and forgiveness.

I understand that people aiming to write professionally and need to keep their word count down cannot do this too much, but if you're doing fic, what's stopping you from making this the slowest burn possible? The kind of slow burn where they don't even become friends until 50k in?

Of course, you don't have to make it agonizingly slow just for it to be good, but consider how fantastically rewarding it will be when they finally confess their feelings for one another!

Hope this helped, and happy writing!

June Prompts 🌼

Word prompts to use for doodling or writing

fairytale

garden hose

fruit stand

radio

block party

tattoo

ice cream

postcard

festival

skating

barefoot

night walks

pride

fries

stream

flower crown

outdoors

cocktail umbrellas

playing cards

sailboat

karaoke

dandelions

buttons

pearls

midsummer

universe

neon sign

dragonfly

birch tree

peaches

https://www.instagram.com/p/CPNJS4vF6pX/?utm_medium=copy_link

The beautiful thing about love is that it makes you better even when everything in your life seems to be getting worse. It makes you smile even when you don’t have any reason to be happy at all except for the feeling that someone is there for you in the coldest winters and the harshest falls. Love is beautiful because it makes you believe that even when you are in darkness, there’s always this choice to pay attention to the stars.

Juansen Dizon

Hi. I hate filler scenes, they drive me up the wall BUT i'm currently drafting one of my stories and notice that it needs a filler scene. Do you have any advice on how to make filler scenes feel less like they are a waste of words and feel more like they belong in the story?

How to Fix Your Filler Scenes

The whole reason a scene would be considered "filler" was if it offered no contribution whatsoever to plot, worldbuilding, or character development within the narrative. Filler takes up space, can make the pacing drag, and often adds quantity but not quality to your story.

You never want ANY 100% filler scenes in your work, especially if you plan on publishing traditionally and need to keep your word count down, and unfortunately, there aren't many exceptions to this.

However, a lot of people rely heavily on filler to provide a segue into the next part of their story and keep the pacing steady, so in that case, how do you make these filler scenes worthwhile?

Here are some ways to fix your filler scenes to make them meaningful (and essential) to the story!

1. Make it About The Characters and Their Relationships

A good way to make a scene not filler is if you use it to help develop your characters or the relationships between them.

Maybe you can use this time to make your protagonist and their love interest grow closer, or maybe you could use it to reveal some backstory that you weren't sure where to piece into the narrative beforehand.

Maybe your protagonist has a revelation about themselves or about the others in their group, whether through a meaningful conversation or by observing their behavior.

This could be a good time to show how your characters view the world around them, having philosophical conversation about love or death or anything in between, or to show them changing their views based on their experiences and the experiences of others.

All in all, if you make your scene an important aspect of your story when it comes to character development, then it's not filler at all, and will serve the story well in not only connecting two important events, but also allowing the reader to learn more about the people they've invested in.

2. Make it About the Worldbuilding

Worldbuilding is an important part of any story, especially in high fantasy and Sci-Fi. If you need to take a break from your plot in order to make sure things aren’t going by too fast, perhaps take some time to develop the world that your characters live in. 

Now, I’m not saying to use this time to infodump everything there is about your character’s world, but instead show it off in a beautiful and poignant scene that can be coupled with character development. 

It’s the night before a big event. The lovers sneak out of the motel to enjoy a drink at the bar at the far edge of the intergalactic satellite they’ve docked at to refuel. Perhaps while drunk, one of the characters reveals something about their past they’d meant to keep hidden?

A character takes their foreign friend shopping in a bazaar unlike anything you’ve ever scene before. Perhaps they find an item of interest there that helps them along their journey?

These scenarios make sure that the “filler” is actually an important aspect of the story that would actually take away from the overall quality if it were removed. 

3. Make it About Suspense

It's night. The sun is going down. The fire crackles and sputters.

Tomorrow, the characters will be off to battle. They know that they might be sitting in a room with people who will be dead by the following evening. They wonder if this will be the last time they see each other alive, if this will be the last conversations they ever have while they're all in one piece.

Suspense is a great way to make your filler scene important, building up the tension leading up to the next scene. Of course, this scene can only be used to segue into a very, very integral moment in the story, perhaps even the climax, so use it wisely.

Suspenseful scenes often benefit from an interesting setting and high-tension description and dialogue, and can also be paired with character development to show how your protagonists react in the face of fear.

4. Understand that Sometimes Cutting the Scene May Be For the Best

Sometimes, things just don't work out with the above ideas. Perhaps it's too late in the story to develop characters or worldbuilding, or maybe the subsequent event isn't important enough to prompt an entire scene dedicated to suspense.

In that case, it's probably best to just cut the filler scene. To keep from the timeskip being weird, have the event you want to segue into be at the beginning of a new chapter, or maybe re-work the narrative so that it weaves together more easily.

It'll be difficult to do this, especially if you've grown attached to what you've written, but I promise it'll work out all the better in the end; each aspect of the story is supposed to mean something, and I wouldn’t want you to put in all that effort and time into crafting a scene that, in the end, doesn’t really do much for the narrative.

Hope this helped, and happy writing!

I like to think that in another life we might have met under different circumstances. Imagine something like this: a crowded café downtown, where the rich smell of freshly brewed coffee hits you the moment you open the door. People are tripping over one another in their haste to become someone worthwhile and their chatter drowns out your favourite part of your current favourite song. You take out your phone and replay it, and that is when you see me. Doesn't it always go like this? In movies and books and songs? Eyes meet across the room and the whole world stops. It's different for us, though, because you told me you didn't believe in love at first sight.  So maybe you wouldn't fall in love right away. Maybe you wouldn't even notice me. But perhaps you'd start visiting that busy café more frequently. Not in hopes of seeing me again, but because of that unexplainable pull you feel toward that place. Toward me, even if you aren't aware of it yet. Because if there is one thing I'm certain of, it's that we'd find a way to meet even in another life, again and again. Never the same way but always with the same outcome. If there's one thing I want to believe in, it's that my soul would reach out and find yours through the years, different lives, across universes and mountains and the sea. And that your response would always be the same: come find me, I'm dying to meet you.

in another life / n.j.