#nico yells writing advice into the void

[transmasc-wizard]

Don't Follow Someone's Writing Advice If:

They use always and never statements. "ALWAYS do this" "NEVER do that" good writers know almost everything works if you're crafty enough, and good writing advice will not simplify things into such black and white terms.

When you ask for a reason, they can't give you one. That tells you they don't know why and they're just copying what they've heard from other writers. They could easily be spreading nonsense.

They repeatedly state their opinions as facts. Example: they don't have to like YA, but they shouldn't stick "YA is immature and stupid and no one should write it" in their advice. I say be cautious if they repeatedly do this, since everyone does it sometimes--but they should be able to step back and be relatively neutral if asked to be.

They talk about things outside their experience/qualifications. If they say they don't understand grammar, don't listen to their grammar advice. If they don't like fantasy, don't listen to what they have to say about fantasy. If they rarely interact with 1st person, don't follow their advice about writing in 1st person. Etc, etc.

You don't like the way that they write the thing. If you've read someone's dialogue and it's not for you, don't follow their advice on how to write dialogue.

You've found bad writing advice from them before. Chances are, if someone was wrong about the things you already knew about (pacing, story structure) they're probably wrong about that thing you haven't learned yet (character dynamics, shock value.) This isn't always true! Some people are good with one thing and bad with another. But do consider if you're happy with their track record.

Following their advice makes your writing or process feel worse. At the end of the day, even people giving the reasons and logic behind their opinions are still giving opinions. If you like writing the Chosen One trope but they say not to, just... ignore it. If you find two contradictory plotting methods, don't just stick to the more popular one because you think it "should" work. Etc, etc, etc. Writing advice should help you, not hinder you.

#writblr #writeblr #writerblr #writing community #writing advice #writing tips #nico yells writing advice into the void

[transmasc-wizard]

i remember you saying that you did a lot of research for gfs, and lately i've been thinking of writing a more historical story so i was wondering if you had any tips for thoroughly researching a specific time period? literally anything will help, i'm horrible at research lol

i have a normal and logical level of love for research. I am not absolutely gleeful over this question to an amount far higher than normal. i am NOT--

yeah no i love this question

SO. I am going to answer the question that writers everywhere cry themselves to sleep over (probably) (maybe)

How The Fuck Do I Research Stuff For My Story? (Specific Time Period Edition)

1: know it's not just one thing.

you're not just "researching". That's a big, big umbrella that holds a LOT of things inside of it. You're researching clothing, politics, economic state, government, food, weapons, societal values at the time, and significant going-ons, among other things. It's better to break that into pieces than to try and tackle "research" as a whole.

Also: HAVE A RESEARCH DOCUMENT. Seriously. Write down anything that could be relevant. Also, have a table of contents or something similar and keep it organized. It helps, trust me.

2: Now, here's your pieces. Go in order.

1) ERA IN GENERAL.

So, you've told me (thanks to my frantic asks to you) that your story in particular is around the 1880s-1900s and takes place in the USA, Britain, France, and Japan. That means your story will exist in the gilded age (rich people! but also poverty), the very end of the Victorian era (she lived so fuckin long bro), the formative years (wooo France is full of communists) and the Meiji period (Japan gets to be powerful!).

No but really you picked a bunch of very.... interesting eras to collide all at once in your story skdjfskjfhk

In general, when it comes to researching the era, you want to look at the big picture of what was going on. You can first search "what era was [time period] for [country]", and then once you have the name of it, go wild: e.g. with the gilded age, you can go "advancements in the gilded age" "politics in the gilded age" "social issues in the gilded age" "the gilded age", and so on and so forth. Put the era's name in your search and you'll find results a lot quicker.

Era will include the economic state, political state, significant historical events before/after (aka events that have influenced your age or that are being influenced by your age), what the era is generally known for, advancements at the time, and relationships with the other countries your story is focusing on.

2) EVERYDAY THINGS AND/OR VERY IMPORTANT THINGS.

Food, fashion, common jobs, family structure, architecture & buildings, societal views, and other things that are addressed almost every day in some way. This is where you want to take the societal positions of your characters into your mind; a poor Jewish immigrant man and a high-class young white woman are going to have very different lives, even if they both live in NYC in the USA's Gilded Age. They'll eat different food, wear different clothes, be expected to have different skills, have different cultural beliefs/practices, have different jobs, and likely have very different political views.

So, when looking things up, think whether or not your characters would actually have that in their lives. There are people in ballgowns and people in rags, and you've got to figure out which one your character will be wearing.

Don't just research something like "1890s clothing". You want to find what is worn in that age by the types of people your characters are. So, "what did people wear in the victorian era" is a bad thing to google and expect precise results. "what did poor men wear in the victorian era" is a lot better.

Now's the time to do your research for some really big things, too. Say you have a scene that happens in a mansion in America, and it's a SUPER IMPORTANT SCENE. You're going to want to look up what American mansions in the Gilded Age often were like beforehand, even if none of your characters live in one or will have seen one beforehand.

3) MUCH MORE SPECIFIC THINGS.

Ok, so you know what a rich woman in the Meiji period would wear every day. Cool. But do you know what she should be wearing in that one scene with the super fancy event? Do you know what music would be playing? Do you know what weapon she could best have in that event?

It's ok if the answer is "no", even after your general research. Specific research is best saved for when you have to know it. Getting bogged down in research is a real thing, and it's very, very frustrating. So, either look those details up when you outline the scene (if you outline it) or when you actually need to write it. Like, say your characters end up in Paris in 1888 for a scene or two. Well, that's when the Eiffel Tower was built! You knew that already, because you looked up 1880s-1900s France and know quite a bit about it!

... what you don't know yet is what the construction site of the Eiffel Tower looked like. And that's fine--it's until it's time to actually focus on that scene.

3: Make Sure Your Sources Are Legit.

This can be hard, but in my experience, good sources will 1) list their sources and not try to hide them or just not have any, and 2) their information will agree with the info in other good sources. Basically, if 4 sources say XYZ and 1 says ABC, you can probably believe that ABC is wrong.

(Reading published books can help with this, though they're not always true, either. Basically: compare, compare, compare.)

4: Know This Takes Time.

It's ok to look at this and go "haha.... maybe I won't write anything historical". It's daunting! It can be a lot!

But it's all just pieces.

You read a couple articles and watch a video about clothing worn by Japanese peasants. You borrow a book that talks about food in the Gilded Age. You get lost down the rabbit hole of Victorian high-society politics. You write it all down in that trusty research doc.

And suddenly, you KNOW THINGS. You know things!! And videos that hinted at X but didn't quite talk about it lead you to researching X, which hints and Y and leads you to research Y, and so on and so forth.

It takes a long time, definitely. You'll be researching before you write, while you outline, and when you're writing. You'll research when you're editing and rewriting, too. But even if you don't particularly like it, you can find comfort in the fact that it just involves searching the right phrases and sitting down to watch some videos or read a library book. And in the end, you'll have a well-researched story--and that info doesn't go away! If you ever have to know something about the Victorian age, you'll be able to look back at what you learned awhile back. (Especially because you have your research doc, right?)

5: TLDR.

know research isn't just one clump, it's a lot of different things you look at

research the era, then general things, then things you need to know in specific situations only

use specific phrases, not just general things; "what jobs did men have in France in the 1880s" is lots better than "French jobs"

make sure your sources aren't just people lying on the internet for fun. comparing what your sources say and using a lot of them can help with this!

know it takes time, but don't stress. You don't have to get it done all at once.

have your motherfucking research doc. are you listening to me. WRITE DOWN THE INFORMATION THAT YOU FINDDDDDD

OK. This was a SUPER long post, but!! I really hope it's helpful!! If you have more questions, feel free to ask away :D

#researching #writblr #writeblr #nico yells writing advice into the void #long post #asks #luce! #i am. so sorry #i cant shut up </3

[transmasc-wizard]

POV and Tense in Your Writing

Hello hello HELLO tumblr, I am once again posting writing advice after like 2 solid months of not doing that!

Today's topic is, obviously, POV and Tense in your writing. Specifically, I want to talk a bit about what expectations, feel, & narrative distance certain choices with your POV & tense can create.

First:

An obligatory reminder that the only set rule to writing is "break the rules that don't work for you" and that anything can work if you're determined enough to pull it off. This post is just me talking about what is usually signaled by which POVs and tenses. Additionally, I will not be talking much about second person or future tense, as those are both uncommon in published novels and I have very little experience reading & writing them. Now, on we go. (This post got long, so I put it under a keep reading.)

What is POV?

"POV", or "point of view", is used to describe who the story is being told through and how. You must have at least 1 POV character, or there's no story, and you can go all the way up to omniscient POV. Unless they're omniscient, POVs usually switch instead of happening at the same time. POV can be told in the following ways:

First Person stories are told directly by the character who's eyes you're seeing it through--they will use I, Me, We, My, Myself, etc. ("I go to the movie theatre and I eat popcorn.")

Second Person POV is when the author directly addresses the audience--the story is about YOU and will use you, your, and other second-person pronouns. It's not common. ("You go to the movie theatre and you eat popcorn.")

Third Person Limited is when the story is told in from the eyes of the specific POV character/characters (one at a time) and uses he, she, they, and other third-person pronouns. ("They go to the movie theater and eat popcorn. He would prefer a sci-fi next time; he wonders what she thought of it.")

Omniscient POV/Third Person Omniscient is when the narrator has access to the thoughts and feelings of everyone in the story. It is essentially a story told by god; they know all, and you will find yourself in the heads of many characters at once. ("They go to the movie theater and eat popcorn; she thinks the movie is great, but he'd prefer a sci-fi next time.")

Single POV is when there is only 1 POV character; everything else is multi-POV (or omniscient, but that's technically multi-POV as well).

What is Tense?

Tense is used to express time reference, i.e. whether the story happened before, after, or during its being told.

Past tense is used to tell stories that have already happened. ("I went to the movie theater and ate popcorn.")

Present tense is used to tell stories that are happening as they're being told. ("I go to the movie theater and eat popcorn.")

future tense is used to tell stories that happen after they are told. ("I will go to the movie theater and I will eat popcorn.")

literary past tense is used to tell stories in past tense, but with the feeling that they're happening now. This one is trickier to explain, but basically, past tense can & will reference the present and acknowledge that it is telling a story that has already happened; literary past will act like it is a present tense story, but use past tense words. (Many people who say they're writing in past tense are specifically writing in literary past tense.) Percy Jackson is in past tense; Six of Crows is in literary past tense.

What Effect Do POV and Tense Have On The Story?

Different POVs & tenses have different strengths and weaknesses. Whatever POV/tense you choose should be one that you think will best fit the story; your YA book does not have to be in 1st person single POV present tense just because that's common in YA, I promise. There are more logical choices. (Though again, skilled writers can make anything work.)

Present tense, single-POV, and first person tend to do very well in stories that need to feel immediate, close in narrative distance, emotional, and/or high stakes. Present tense, by virtue of presenting itself as if it's happening right now, can feel very easily like the character's future is uncertain and no one knows what's next, even though the story is already cemented in what will happen. Single-POV makes it easier to have a close narrative distance, and therefore be more emotional (and high stakes); this is because you can focus entirely on one character, and you don't have to worry about the weird feeling of ripping the reader from one distinct mind and into another. First person also has a closer narrative distance (there's NONE, they are telling the story) and therefore is easier to make feel emotional.

Thrillers, romances, contemporaries, and dystopians are often (though not always) told using one of these 3 forms of POV or tense, as those are genres that highly benefit from little narrative distance and from a feeling of immediacy or uncertainty. (The Hunger Games [dystopian] and Can't Take That Away [contemporary] are told in 1st person, present, single-pov; Karen McManus' thriller/mystery books are often in 1st and present.)

Past tense, literary past, multi-POV, omniscient, and third person limited do very well for stories that need to be on a grander scale or that require a more fairytale-esque feeling to them. Past tense, as it presents itself as having already happened, is good for stories where you want to truly remember that someone is TELLING this and it's a STORY. Literary past has that story-like or less immediate feel of past, without pulling the reader directly out of their immersion, and tends to be a happy medium between past & present. Multi-POV stories let you get more done and see more things, as well as sort of naturally having a bit more narrative distance because you're not constantly in 1 head, really close. Omniscient is how many folktales/fairytales are told and therefore has that feeling; it also has all the benefits of multi-POV. Third person limited is more removed/distant than first person is, and pairs well with multiple POVs. It again allows you to feel more storylike, less immediate, or have a grander-scale story.

These 5 forms of POV and tense are often used in SFF, historical fiction, and literary fiction, as those are genres that benefit from larger scale, more people telling the story, or a bit more distance. (The Six of Crows duology and Darker Shade of Magic trilogy [fantasy] are in literary past, 3rd, and multi-pov.)

It is important to note that you can of course write a heart-wrenching & emotional or immediate and high-stakes story with things that are not present/single-pov/first person, and you can write a grand, epic or fairytale-like story with things that are not past/multi-pov/3rd person--this is entirely about what the tenses & POVs tend to naturally lend themselves to. You can and should play around with them as you see fit. All of this is, you know... learn the rules before you break them.

I hope this was helpful for someone! :D

#writblr #writeblr #pov #writerblr #writing advice #nico yells writing advice into the void

[transmasc-wizard]

i already sent this ask this ask to another blog before reading your post but here goes: how do you write autistic character gaining a new special interest? (the character in questions already has other special interests, but this one doesn't exist in her home world so it takes place later in the story).

hello! I am procrastinating on writing, so I will answer this now! I'm going to use guitar as an example special interest so I don't have to keep saying "the thing" or "the special interest", but this works for anything.

I honestly think the best way to show someone getting into a special interest is just do the same thing you'd do to show them getting into a regular-level interest, but then just... keep going. Their interest level doesn't stop and chill out at 3 or 5 or 7 on the metaphorical 1-10 interest scale, it instead passes 10 and goes straight for 11.

so the progression might look like: finds out about guitar -> curiosity is sparked -> learns more about guitar -> becomes actively interested in guitar -> becomes quite attached to guitar -> guitar music/history/creation becomes one of their main interests -> they start liking guitar an "abnormally intense" amount, aka it's now a special interest. You can have this happen really fast (like how The Hunger Games became a special interest of mine pretty much instantly) or slower (like how it took about a year for writing to go from an interest to a special interest for me), since both happen.

"Abnormal intensity" may include things like:

thinking about it a lot, actively trying to steer conversations to be about guitar, having guitar be a large comfort/soothing presence, seeming to "view the world" through guitar (everything is in relation to it), having guitar as their "default thought" when they're bored/not thinking about anything else, getting unusually upset when they don't have a chance to interact with guitar in some way, getting unusually upset when someone dislikes/insults guitar, etc.

Additionally, I've seen the comparison that special interests are like the "core memories" in Inside Out, and I think that's correct--they're an integral part of who you currently are as a person (at least for the duration of the SpIn, which is usually fairly long) and even after the interest fades, you can still see how it shaped you.

Basically/TLDR, you want to show the character becoming more interested in the thing as time goes on--bringing it up more, being more excited to interact with it, being upset when they can't interact with it, thinking about it a lot, etc--and just keep going past how much a neurotypical character would like the thing.

A NT character might start learning guitar over the story, then decide to take lessons, then realize they really like guitar and want to be a part-time musician. An autistic character may experience all that too, but they'll probably also develop to see guitar as a foundational part of who they are, have it turn into one of their default thoughts, talk about it constantly, and/or often rush to defend it.

#asks #anon #nico yells writing advice into the void #writblr #autism #i mean. look at me. i made an entire blog to focus on my special interest. 2 actually !!! #i have a blog to focus on the writing side of stories and the reading side of stories !! #but fundamentally imo a special interest is just... an interest so intense it becomes part of who you are and how you see the world #yk? #so you really just develop it in the same way you would develop a non-special interest but you Keep Going in intensity instead of having it #tap out at some point. #special interests

[transmasc-wizard]

Hi, I saw your post about being open to questions and I'm taking you up on that offer if youre not super busy.

Im starting a new story and I really wanna include things that don't get a ton of good/any media rep. My fear is that because the world is a fantasy world, many people represented will feel that I'm dehumanizing them. Human exist in this world but so do many other creatures from many other folklores. The main character comes from a lineage of Leviathans from Jewish culture, as I was raised Jewish and wanted to nod to it.

Tldr: how do I properly represent people in a fantasy novel without dehumanizing them.

i am not going to touch the specific of Jewish characters, because 1) you are Jewish 2) I am not 3) therefore you are far more qualified than me on that 4) a resource like @writingwithcolor (AMAZING blog there btw) is better suited to related questions

but in general! fantasy worlds without dehumanizing minorities can be a tough one, yeah. I personally have a largely queer and autistic cast in one of my stories that features a lot of fairy creatures, which... is tricky ground. Very tricky ground.

IMO, the best way to have fantasy humanoids while still drilling in that marginalized people are human too is to have people who aren't part of the marginalized group also be fantasy creatures and have characters who are marginalized also be humans. Like, I have autistic fae-creatures and allistic humans, but I also have autistic humans and allistic fae-creatures. If you do that, you lower the risk of associating one specific marginalized group with a nonhuman species.

Like, go wild with marginalized vampires/levithians/fae, but make sure they're not all that specific marginalization (e.g. ur evil vampires aren't all queer or poc or disabled) and that not all your characters of that marginalization are monsters/creatures (e.g. your queer characters are not all evil vampires). The fantasy creatures then do not directly equal marginalized people in either direction.

Then of course u want to give the marginalized people all fleshed out personalities beyond "im X identity" or, if they're marginalized and fantasy creatures, "im X identity and a dragon". Characters are less likely to be dehumanizing if they feel human. (this especially helps if, say, your entire cast is fairies/vampires/demons/etc.)

I wish you the best of luck in your writing!

#asks #anon #writblr #nico yells writing advice into the void #also as a side note i think its very rare that marginalized characters just EXISTING as creatures is in itself inherently dehumanizing #it only gets bad when they are ONLY creatures and/or the creatures are ONLY a specific marginalization #bc then it draws a connection #(there are ofc exceptions like i probably wouldn't be hyped about a cishet author making evil blood-diseased MLM vampires bc... aids. #stereotypes. that is a thing to be very careful around) #but in GENERAL #i personally would like to see autistic ghosts and whatnot! just ALSO humans too #and from what ive seen #many marginalized people feel similarly

[transmasc-wizard]

The only "never do this" i'll ever say about writing is "never delete your work in a frustrated huff".

Other things can work, so i don't say 'never'! overdone tropes, weird grammar, a cast full of blue & orange morality... basically anything can be done and pulled off nicely, with enough work.

But if you are upset, or annoyed, or frustrated at yourself, and you think, "i should just delete this all", don't. I promise you, you'll regret it. at least you'll almost always regret it somewhat, at most you'll realize it was a horrible decision.

I did this, one time, a year or so ago. I lost probably 10k words in my emotional moment, and a week later, i regretted it so badly. I remembered the little bits i'd loved, the characterization i couldn't quite remember enough to recreate but knew had been great, the dialogue snippets that had made me laugh. They were all gone, and i couldn't get them back.

If a piece is making you angry enough to consider total deletion, step back. Ignore it for a week and come back to it in a better headspace. Then, if you still want it gone, transplant it into a "graveyard" document of sorts to comb through. almost everything has gold; you'll probably find yourself searching through it eventually and realizing there are parts you enjoy and can re-use.

Eventually, if you think you've utilized this frustrating scene enough, you can dump it if you wish. Nobody's stopping you. But please, please, please wait until you're in a proper, logical mindset before you make this decision. Don't make a sudden decision that you'll regret the second you're not as emotional; it's not fun.

#writing #writblr #writing advice #writeblr #writerblr #nico yells writing advice into the void #IM BEGGING YOU #PLEASE DONT DELETE STUFF JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE UPSET #IT'S A BAD DECISION

[transmasc-wizard]

writing tip:

"A good plot twist should surprise you" does not just mean that it should come out of nowhere and be a horrible shock that makes no sense in context. A good plot twist should surprise you--and then part of the shock should come from when you realize why you should have seen it coming.

#i will rb with examples later but i am. exhausted. rep for sleepytired guys everywhere #<3 #writing advice #nico yells writing advice into the void #plot #plot twists

[transmasc-wizard]

"How do I get better at writing?"

Idk. How do you get better at drawing? At hockey? At baking? At building? At puzzles?

You practice.

I promise you, actually writing things, going "hm, I think I'd like to change how I do [X] thing", and changing the thing will make your writing improve far more than reading 10 thousand writing advice posts but never actually sitting down to write will.

Write. Write badly. It'll get better.

#writers of tumblr #writblr #writeblr #writerblr #writing advice #nico yells writing advice into the void #i have occasional roast posts of 9yo me vs me now #but it's with love!! cause that little guy didn't know what the fuck he was doing #but he paved the way for the skills i have now

[transmasc-wizard]

Shit, I forgot to ask the question.

What are some dos and don’ts of writing transmasc characters?

Hi! This question is definitely less vague than the last one, since "how do i write a bisexual character" is much wider than "specifically, what are the dos and donts of writing transmascs" so that's helpful!

So, usual preface: i am not the spokesperson or ambassador for all transmascs. This is a very general post coming from one transmasc, specifically a nonbinary trans guy, and i 100% endorse and encourage looking at sources that Aren't Me (but stay the fuck away from t/r/u/m/e/d/s).

But, on with it: general dos and donts!

DO: remember "transmasc" and "binary trans guy" are NOT synonymous.

all trans guys are transmasc, but not all transmascs are trans guys. "Transmasc" encompasses any AFAB or AXAB person who's gender is in the general realm of masculine. "demiboy" "genderqueer" "bigender" "trans man" "nonbinary trans man" and "boyflux", for example, are all genders that can qualify as transmasc (though are not inherently transmasc; many can and do include AMAB people). However, "binary trans guy" specifically means someone who was AFAB/AXAB who's gender is 100% male 100% of the time.

There are transmasc lesbians, transmasc people who are both women and men, transmasc binary people, transmasc nonbinary people, transmasc genderfluids, and more.

[afab means "assigned female at birth" btw, and axab means "assigned X at birth". AXAB is for certain intersex people and i am not qualified to delve into it.]

DON'T: portray all transmascs as "uwu cutie soft boys".

putting aside the fact that not all transmascs are boys, this attitude is incredibly infantilizing and uncomfortable. You can certainly have femme transmascs and soft transmascs, but please acknowledge that not all of us are like that. The big push to see transmascs as "soft space beans" or whatever is vile; it pushes us away from masculinity and back into neat feminine boxes. It's only as popular as it is because cis people (especially cis women) are uncomfortable with us being Masculine Manly Guys (or even just androgynous). We are allowed to be masculine, and our masculinity is good and important. Acknowledge this.

DO: show that gender expression =/= identity and every transmasc is different! (this can also go for trans people in general.)

the spectrum of transmasculine gender identities is wide and wonderful. I encourage you to portray this. obviously you can't get all of us in your writing, much less one WIP, but I'd absolutely love for people to show different ways of dress & gender expression for transmascs! The glittery fun way of dress, the boring barbecue camo pants dad, the dramatic emo aesthetic, Just Some Guy... everything. at this point i'm starved for anything. Additionally, transmascs who use pronouns other than or alongside he/him are great, too; as a he/they trans guy, i'd love to see it. (this includes neopronouns btw!) Also, transmascs with a variety of genders and gender types (demiboy, genderqueer, trans guy, etc).

DON'T: try to write about "what it's like to be transmasc" if you aren't.

this goes for literally any marginalization. You can write characters of our identity, and should, but do not write the story of "what it's like to be transmasc". That's not your experience, and you do not know how to do that.

Some general things i'd like to stop seeing:

"this binary trans guy is basically a lesbian" (while there are trans guys who use lesbian/sapphic, that is for personal reasons and most certainly not something a non-trans guy is equipped to write)

Trans people's only orientations being gay or straight??? transgay and transhet rep is important but please acknowledge the rest of us

UNSAFE BINDING. fuck this. you don't have a reason to go out of your way and talk about how the transmasc binds unsafely

"this person uses he/they!" *proceeds to call them by only one of those pronouns for the rest of the entire book*

"this transmasc is masculine and that makes them Worse" stop forever please

some things i'd like to see more of:

transmascs who are marginalized in multiple ways! (disabled transmascs, transmascs of colour, aspec transmascs, ND transmascs, etc)

transmascs who love themselves!! PLEASE I'M BEGGING YOU

transmasc narrators! gimme some transmasc MCs

transmasc love interest that aren't treated like a fetish! yeah, i'm aroace, but i still like seeing transmasc LIs in fiction.

T4T (trans-for-trans) couples involving transmascs!! this includes T4T enbies and T4T m/f relationships

transmascs with plotlines that aren't "i hate myself" (connected to point 2)

transmascs with trans friends!

transmascs in fantasy and sci-fi stories!

transmascs who are accepted by their friends and families!

stories with more than one transmasc in them!

~

I hope this was helpful! Once again, I am one transmasc. I suggest looking around at @yourbookcouldbegayer, finding some other transmasc perspectives, and reading books by transmascs! (fiction and not.)

If any other transmascs want to add on, feel free & please do.

#asks #writblr asks #writing advice #writing characters who are X #transgender #trans #nonbinary #transmasc #transmasculine #enby #trans ftm #ftm #<- please dont describe all ur trans guys as 'female to male' btw. dont call someone FTM (or MTF!) unless theyve said its ok #dauntlessshadowice1 #nico yells writing advice into the void

[transmasc-wizard]

three tips for improving your writing

"But Nico, isn't ALL writing advice about improving your writing???" Yes! Mostly! Technically! In some way! This is really more of a "here's how to figure out what you need to improve, and also some general tips" post, but that's not as catchy as a title, and I'm shamelessly attempting the tumblr version of clickbait here.

With that out of the way, here's some tips!

1: Read.

This one is big. Reading 100% improves your writing; specifically, reading and analyzing what you feel. Not just "did I like this book", but "did I like the characters? The world? The plot? The pacing? Why? What made me lean more towards like/dislike? Are there any things I like here that I see in my writing? Are there any things I dislike here that I see in my writing?" Ask enough questions that you would be annoying if you pestered anyone else with them. Then, apply the results to your own work.

You can technically do this with other mediums besides reading, but some things don't translate well across mediums or don't really exist in TV/podcasts/whatever.

Example: you read a book and really like the characters. Instead of just going "I like them because I like them", you ask yourself why. You figure out the following: they have hobbies, they interact with other characters in ways similar to how you interact with your friends, they have realistic flaws. You can then apply these things to your own characters.

Disclaimer: I'm not saying "copy". I'm talking about building up a sense of what you like and what you can do by reading more, not about just straight up stealing characters/plotlines/backstories/etc.

2: Narrow Down Your Focus.

It's easy to (metaphorically) swipe your writing off of the table and proclaim, "I hate it ALL!" Unfortunately, what is easy is not always what is helpful. Instead, take a closer look. Do your characters feel flat? Does your world feel under-built? Are your action scenes feeling boring? Is your dialogue stiff? Even if you said yes to all of those or multiple of those, pick one to start with. It's much easier to improve little things at a time than it is to attempt to deepen the general blob that is "writing skills".

This is because, imo, there really isn't such a thing as "writing skills", at least not in the sense that it's one thing. Having "writing skills" is really having worldbuilding skills, plot skills, description skills, pacing skills, character skills, prose skills, etc etc etc, all under the umbrella of "writing"; they're all little pieces in a puzzle. Obviously not all of these skills are going to be at the same level, and they don't have to be. You'll have weaknesses, and you'll have strengths, and that's okay! No writer is perfect.

Anyway: once you've picked the skill you want to develop, look deeper into it. Take in advice (whether it's from tumblr like this, or youtube videos, or books, or anything else), preferably from more than one source. You don't want to let one person's relatively misinformed opinion lead you even more astray.

It's much easier in the long run to take individual skills and make them better than it is to go "I want my Writing As A Whole to be better", and it's also much more attainable.

3: Practice.

Practice doesn't make perfect--see above "no writer is perfect"--but it sure does help. The more you write, the more you get better at it (like anything else). Practice is essential, because at the end of the day, no writing advice is going to be more beneficial than just writing. Even if you know all the techniques by heart, you still need experience doing them to get better at them. If you only read writing advice but never actually practice applying techniques and tricks and parts of stories, you're not going to get anywhere.

And yes, this part will be slow. It will be annoying. You'll probably feel like you're trying to run a race on a treadmill when everyone else gets to use the track--but that's because it's really hard to notice yourself growing.

Once in awhile, it really helps to look back at your older stuff (a month, 6 months, multiple years, the farther back the better) and compare it to your recent work. You notice it much more, since all the work in the middle isn't there with you; it's just Before and After. (Though writing really always is a before and after, endlessly growing and changing, but you get what i mean.)

~ This is fairly basic, I think, but I know when I was a less experienced writer it would have really helped me to see these laid out, so here they are. If anyone else has more tips, feel free to add on. Happy writing!

#writing advice #writblr #writeblr #writers of tumblr #amwriting #writing #tips to improve your writing #nico yells writing advice into the void

[transmasc-wizard]

description advice: COLOURS

btw if you tell me its "colors" i will disintegrate you with a laser.

anyway!

I've seen a lot of tiring advice on colours lately; it's the same old "describing the love interest's eyes as 23823 non-interchangeable shades of green because Why Not" type of thing that I'd hoped we left behind. I've also seen a lot of people having trouble with colour descriptions in general, so I've made this (using some of my art knowledge, which is finally useful) to help!

comparing similar colours

By this, I mean showing the difference between two shades. You can always call to mind existing things; e.g. wine red is going to call to mind a specific colour. But if you can't do that for whatever reason (perhaps the colour's name doesn't fit the tone of what you're describing, or you want to get more detailed), there are some helpful words to use.

Saturation: The less saturated a colour is, the closer it is to grey. Typically, a saturated colour will be on the brighter side (though if it's low in value, it will probably still be fairly dull).

(as you can see, the colour on the left is much more desaturated than the colour on the right, despite them both being blue.)

Other words to describe saturation level: dull/duller, bright/brighter (though again this one has to do with value, too), faded, vibrant, eyesore (for particularly saturated colours).

Value: how light or dark a colour is. The darker it is, the closer it is to black. The lighter it is, the closer it is to white. Value can have a play in how bright a colour appears.

^ as shown in the above picture, value can have quite the effect on a colour. These are the same hue and saturation; the only difference is the value.

Other words to describe amount of value: light/lighter, dark/darker, bright (see saturation), faded (see saturation), shadowy.

Hue: specifically general colours in relation to others, since I highly doubt anyone's about to compare hex codes in their stories. But there is a difference between, say, yellow-green and bluish green.

[I could not get a picture here because of tumblr's limit. wonderful.]

Think of 2 reds; one that can be described as purplish red (and can also be called a purple or magenta) while the second is a more of an orange-red (and can also be called orange, technically). They're different, right?

You can call over other hues (specifically hues nearest to the actual colour) to give more of an idea of what the colour looks like. While describing something as a blueish yellow probably won't work, you can do things like yellow-green.

Specific kinds of colours

Just because something is green does not mean you can describe it with any type of green you like. Olive and viridian are not synonyms, despite both being green. Same with mustard and sunflower as yellows. (I've read far too many instances of someone's eyes being described as "sapphire" on one page and "sky blue" on another.)

Obviously it's not terrible if you describe something as both, say, crimson and blood red. They are very similar, and can give people a sense of the general colour you're going for (especially because it's usually not the exact hex code). However, some colours are much more far apart than people realize!

(also, these are obviously not every colour ever, just a couple of each major hue.)

Under the cut, because this got long:

REDS

ORANGES

YELLOWS

GREENS

[I'm not personally satisfied with this chart because it doesn't include a lot of greens that are described a lot, such as olive and emerald, but it's a start.]

BLUES

[can we now acknowledge that azure and sapphire are not the same?? please?? Also, as you can see, some are very close; calling something 'baby blue' and 'sky blue' isn't some blight against humanity. Saying it's both cyan and true blue is <3]

PURPLES

[purple, along with yellow, are the colours im most lenient about when it comes to description. They are very similar, often, though things like orchid and violet are not the same.]

When do you describe a colour?

This is something I see people struggling with a surprising amount. Specifically, with eye colour. Let me put this to rest:

YOU AREN'T GOING TO STARE INTO SOMEONE'S EYES AND FIGURE OUT THE EXACT HUES WHEN YOU FIRST MEET THEM UNLESS THEIR EYES ARE REALLY DESTINCTIVE.

And no, I don't mean "their green eyes emerald orbs have faint flecks of gold you can see if you're half a foot away".

Do their eyes glow? Ok, you can describe them. Are they bright red? Ok, describe them. Do they have no whites of their eyes/colourful sclera? Ok, describe them. Do they have four eyes? Ok, describe them. But for goodness' sake, please don't wax poetic about the eyes of everyone who walks into the room.

Even something like "they don't have pupils" actually may not be noticed at first. There's no realistic reason to immediately zone in on the eye colour of whoever just walked into the room. Eyes are really only noticeable when they're either abnormal or you're very close to the person.

As for the colours of other things: think about if it's relevant. Do you need to go into detail? Is the thing you're describing relevant enough that it deserves to have a bunch of description, or does "it was blue" work just fine? Describing a colour is meant to give you more insight into the thing's appearance, and sometimes the appearance isn't needed.

For example, you should probably describe the clothes of a king if your protagonist is meeting one in the scene, and that includes describing the bright, rich royal blue of their shirt. But you (probably) don't need to wax poetic for a hundred words about the grass; it's just green.

There's also symbolism. It's easiest to make things symbolize their common meanings (like, describing a lot of blue & grey tones in a sad scene and a lot of bright and red tones in an angry scene) but you can try and flip that around if you'd like a challenge!

There is probably more to say here, but I've already spent an hour on this guide and am quite exhausted. If anyone has more tips, feel welcome to share, and I hope this is helpful!

#colours #description #writing advice #nico yells writing advice into the void #writblr #writeblr #describing colours #colors

[transmasc-wizard]

hey I’m sorry if it’s a dumb question but I’ve recently starting reading on loveless and I think it’s a valid argument. Love doesn’t have to be the whole point.

But someone who does feel love- to me it does feel like it’s the whole point so I’m a writer and I just wanted to ask if it’s okay if use sentences like -isn’t love the whole point’ in my writing bevause thays what it feels like to my character. I don’t mean to sound ignorant I really want to know because what if someone who identifies with lovelessness reads up my writing. I don’t want them to feel bad about it yk

First, there's no such thing as a dumb question. I will never shame people for asking honest, good-faith questions, like you are.

Second, I personally am not loveless; I am aromantic, and have a very complicated relationship to the word "love", but at the moment I don't use the label "loveless" for myself (I use lovequeer)--I'm just noting that before I answer your question.

So, you do not sound ignorant at all. This is a really, really kind question; most people would never think to even ask. And to answer, to the best of my ability: I don't think it's bad, as long as you frame it as "this is the truth for this character's life".

For some people, love is why they keep going! Love is the point for them! And that's good. That's okay. Everyone has different experiences. You said that for yourself, for instance, love is the point; that's totally fine to feel as long as you respect that for other people, it isn't. The same logic applies to the characters you write.

And you don't have to go into an essay about "love is the whole point.... except for xyz in abc situation" every time you want an inspiring line about love. As long as you let the story overall point out that, like you said, that's what it is for your character personally.

You could have them support someone who DOESN'T care about love as much/at all and/or is loveless, or in a less tense situation (since those "love is the whole point" situations, it's usually pretty important/tense) have them casually mention that they don't think love is the point for everyone.

Again, the fact that you bothered to ask this at all means you're definitely on the right track. I think it'd be fairly easy to just put in a line or two about how it's ok for others to be disconnected with love or not feel love, and how that's just what it is for your character.

I hope this helps! (Loveless aros, please do feel free to add on.)

#loveless #lovequeer #asks #anon #aro #aromantic #nico yells writing advice into the void

[transmasc-wizard]

Hi Nico! I have a writing question for you!

So I noticed that with quite a few of your characters, they used multiple sets of pronouns. Whether that's just she/they or he/they/it ect, I think that's really cool! I have a lot of characters that use multiple pronouns as well, but I often struggle with figuring out how to put them in books in a way that isn't confusing.

Like for example, one of the MCs in a story I'm planning uses they/she/he pronouns in no particular order, so I'm trying to figure out how to portray that in a way that isn't bad rep and isn't confusing (because even I would get confused if I was reading a book where the author used all three of those pronouns in the same paragraph for the same character).

Sorry that this was so long, but do you have any tips?

hello!

So, what you said up there is the key part, i think: i, personally, don't use the pronouns just all over the place for a scene. Other writers may do it differently, but i'll pick a pronoun for a scene and stick to it. Then in the next scene i'll either keep going with those pronouns, or switch. it's also important to establish that you're referring to the same character. just a "i don't care what pronoun you call me" or "you can call me he or it", that kind of thing. Quick, easy, out of the way.

So, for example, one scene might involve Angel--a character who uses she/they--and use only "they". So like this (not with an actual in-story example but you get the idea):

they walked over to the door, saying in a huff, "You don't have to be so rude." Then they turned on their heel, exiting the room and slamming the door behind them.

then, in another scene, i'd say:

Angel grinned her signature i'm causing trouble grin. Slowly, she said, "Hypothetically... there's no security cameras in the mall right now, right?" Bea could already see that she was planning something terrible.

this method is, in my opinion, far better than "we say they use he/they then call them 'he' for the rest of the book" (which i have seen :/). It still shows people using multiple sets of pronouns, without switching in every line in a way that could be confusing, especially when there's a lot of people in the scene.

If any other multi-pronoun users (especially multi-pronoun writers w/multi-pronoun characters) have other suggestions, i'd love to hear them!

[for context, if anyone's curious and didn't know: i am also a multi-pronoun user; i use he/they with no preference.]

#queering writblr #asks #writblr asks #multiple pronouns #pronouns #gender #trans stuff #queer stuff #void-fireworks #nico yells writing advice into the void

[transmasc-wizard]

I’m back with or me more begging you for some do’s and don’ts for LGBTQ+ characters because you’re cool and helpful and also I saw your reblog about sending asks in

Have any aromantic do’s and don’ts?

Oh, and you can include aroace stuff in the post. If you want.

[from the other ask.]

hello! I have many! I am a representation-starved aromantic, but I am also a very picky aromantic, so here we go!

usual disclaimer: I am one (1) guy on the internet. More specifically, I am one (1) bi-oriented aroace person. I'm glad to help, but other sources are needed! (the #actuallyaromantic, #aro, #arospec, and #aromantic tags are good other resources, imo, as well as AUREA.)

DO: make yourself familiar with aromantic terms.

Nonpartnering, partnering, aromantic, just aro, non-sam aro, demiromantic, greyromantic, romance-averse, romance-neutral, romance-positive, aroallo, aroace, angled aroace, oriented aroace, queerplatonic relationships, loveless, alterous attraction... that looks like a lot, but they can all be learned in an hour or two at most.

Lurk in the aro tag, if need be. Ask aro, arospec, and aroace blogs questions. Read the LGBTQIA wiki, if you need to. You don't have to make characters that use every aro label ever, but it's helpful to have background knowledge of what you are talking about.

DON'T: use "but they can still love in other ways", as a redeeming point.

this may seem odd--if you don't know about lovelessness, systemic arophobia, and the complex relationship that many, many aromantics have towards love. Some aromantics love and are comfortable calling the things they feel for their family/friends "love"!

But some aros are not. Some aromantics are loveless, which means they don't feel love. Whether they mean they don't like how "love" is always assumed to be romantic and therefore they feel like they don't love enough, they're uncomfortable with the word ''love'', they have difficulty categorizing their emotions and don't know if they feel love, or anything else. Often, I see loveless aros refer to their strong positive feelings as caring, fondness, closeness, and other things. Loveless aros exist, and they deserve respect.

Additionally--being aromantic does not need a ''redeeming'' point at all. It doesn't need a "but they still love their best friend" or a "but they would still get in a QPR" or a "but they still have lots of friends", because it doesn't need a but, because being aromantic is not a bad thing.

DO: acknowledge that both partnering and non-partnering aros exist.

some aromantics want a life partner (such as a queerplatonic partner). Some want to live and make life decisions with their friends. Some don't want a partner/partners at all. Some aros make the choice to have romantic relationships, whether it's because they're aro-spec and do feel some attraction, or because they aren't repulsed by romance and it's an opportunity to spend more time with the person they're close to.

You said in your additional ask that you spontaneously added more arospecs--that's good, and it gives you an opportunity to explore the variety of aromantics & aro-specs' views on partnering!

DON'T: write about what it's like to face arophobia and struggle as an aro if you're not one.

You can write aro POVs! Main characters! In any genre, including real world contemporary! And you can have moments of arophobia in the story. But don't make the entire story/plotline about *what it is like to be aromantic* if you're alloromantic--that's for aros to tell.

DON'T make aromanticism a tragedy, because it's not.

some aromantics struggle with negative feelings over our identities, and those stories deserve to be told, but 1) that is not the same as specifically painting aromanticism as a bad thing, and 2) that is not alloromantic people's responsibility to tell. Make aromantic characters, really! Make them, and show that their aro/aro-spec identities are beautiful, wonderful, important, and do not need fixing.

Some things I'd like to see:

aromantics with identities across the aro spectrum

aroaces who aren't treated like coldhearted robots. please

aroallos who aren't treated like predatory soulless sluts

aros in general who aren't painted as coldhearted or cruel

aros who aren't villains. aro heroes. I can count on one hand the amount of non-villainous aros I have ever seen in media

aros who are marginalized in multiple ways! (trans aros, aros of colour, disabled aros, etc)

aros who are happy being aromantic. So many people seem to think we hate ourselves for our aromanticism, and while that may be the case for some, it is so important to portray aros that like being aro

human aros. this may seem like a low bar, but most aros/aroaces I see are aliens and robots and while aliens and robots are both very cool, I am ready to Cut A Bitch. we're human too.

warm, happy, fun-loving aromantics

aromantic leads in sci-fi and fantasy!

aromantics in fun stories :)

aromantics in dark/sad stories... who's sadness doesn't come at all from being aromantic

other characters (aro and allo alike) that fully support the aro character and their identity

more aro rep, period. There is not enough of it.

Other aromantics feel free to add on with advice/what you'd like to see!

~

I hope this is helpful! Remember again that I'm just one aromantic, and just a starting point, but I'm hoping this is a good start.

#aro #aromantic #writing aro characters #nico yells writing advice into the void #dauntless shadow ice 1 #writing characters who are X #actuallyaromantic #writblr #writing #writerblr #writeblr

[transmasc-wizard]

Been thinking of starting a writblr but I don’t really know where to start or what would make it interesting. Any tips?

I do have some tips, yeah!

For starters, making a writblr intro is really helpful. It's a (usually pinned) post that contains a bit of information about yourself, the stuff others can expect to see on your blog, what you like to read, what you like to write, and of course, brief summaries of your WIPs. Mine is here, if you want some reference. (The "#writblr intro" tag on tumblr can also give you some inspiration.)

Second, don't be afraid to use tags! I've sensed a sort of... like... unwillingness? From some blogs to actually tag their posts with tags that will be seen, but that's what tags are for. Specifically, when you make an original post (not a reblog though), the first 5 tags you add will make the post show up in said tags.

So, as an example: say you made your writblr intro. You could tag it as #writblr intro, #writblr, #writeblr, #writers of tumblr, and #writing community. Anyone scrolling those tags (which happens a lot!) will then be able to see your post in all of them.

Third: interact with people. If you want fellow writers to talk to, you've got to interact first! Liking their posts, reblogging their work, accepting open tags in tag games, sending asks about parts of their WIPs you like... that sort of thing.

If that seems scary/anxiety-inducing (which. fair), you can start with the little things. Giving a reblog/reply that just says "this is great!", sending asks from ask games so you don't have to come up with a question yourself, and consistently liking posts.

Fourth: somewhere in all of this, you've got to start actually posting and talking about your stories and/or experience as a writer. Whether that's making writer jokes, creating ask games, posting little things about your WIPs, posting excerpts, or anything else is up to you! But the only real way to start is just to jump in and add your voice to the community.

As for making it interesting: it will be interesting if you post about what you like. I promise there will be people who are interested and want to engage because they like your writing. If you want to be a little more "that interesting person" in general, you should also post somewhat consistently, but truly I think the only thing that matters is that you be yourself and post what you want to post. You'll find a community soon enough.

I hope some of this is helpful, and I'd love to know your URL if you actually end up making a writblr!

#asks #anon #writblr #writeblr #nico yells writing advice into the void #sorta. writing networking advice i guess lmao #but yeah!! you just gotta. jump in. have fun. be yourself. be nice. interact. HAVE FUN. :D

[transmasc-wizard]

question question question question

how in the literal fuck do you work on more than one wip at a time???? like do you have a schedule like one day u work on this, the next u work on this, etc?? or????

this is a plea for help lol because i have too many ideas but do not know how to work on more than one at a time

answer answer answer answer !!

So. it is sort of scheduling! And now I will actually explain! Because you asked!!

yeah yeah. anyway

I have a folder of all my ideas (not the work, just ideas) that's colour-coded by genre. I do not work on two of the same colours at the same time, that's how I become an unproductive puddle of sadness. It's organized so that if I'm working on Secret WIP, I am not working on any other grand epic fantasy. If I'm working on Death and Taxes, I am not working on my other sci-fi ideas.

So, let's take my current example: Out of all my WIPs, I'm working on Rose Librarians, GFW1, and Death and Taxes the most right now. Urban fantasy with 2 narrators in the first draft stage, dystopian fantasy with 5 narrators in the rewriting stage, and sci-fi/tragedy with an omniscient narrator in the planning stage. They're different enough that I can easily categorize their information separately in my head.

The differences don't have to specifically be genre, POV, and status, but those are what work for me. Hell, sometimes their main difference is "vibes"--as in, their Pinterest boards are as opposite in aesthetic as Antarctica and Egypt are in weather. I don't know why this works! But it does! And I will not be questioning it!

So once you have your wips categorized by difference in your head, then you pick a main one.

"But Nico!" you cry. "This is about working on more than one at once!" and yes, it is. But you are almost certainly going to have one that takes up most of your time--probably a first draft or a wip with a deadline. For me, my main wip is the Rose Librarians right now. I focus on it the most, and the others are all in second place beside it. Basically, I have to hit my daily wc goal for it (1000) before I can work on any other WIPs in the day. Exceptions are on specific WIP days, which I'll talk about later.

You might also find you have a wip you fall back on, but this isn't certain. For me, mine is GFW1. What this means is basically that when I have writer's block, or I'm bored, or I don't know what to write, I open up the doc and start writing there.

Another thing: it's very helpful to keep your notes close. Character sheets, random rambles, worldbuilding, etc. Notes make it easier to distinguish the stories in your head, and honestly, that's like 90% of handling working on multiple WIPs.

As for actually writing them: like I said. Pick a main one, so you know where your focus goes. Work on that one first; it should be your default mode. Then, if you really want to consistently have multiple projects, pick days for the other ones.

For me, Death and Taxes is planned on weekends. I can spare mental energy and focus to plan it on Saturday and Sunday, but the week is focused on Rose Librarians. So, yeah, it's kind of a schedule, but it's not limited. It just means the default switches--e.g., my goal is to plan a chapter of DaT every day that I work on it. Once I do that, then I can work on whatever project I want.

TLDR: make your WIPs distinct from each other, pick a main/default one, don't be surprised if you have a "fallback" one, keep your notes close, and pick days specifically for your non-main WIPs so they still get some love and affection.

I hope this helps! a bit! or is at least comprehensible! I just got back from school and i am So Tired but yeah. this is what i do, no i do not understand it either, but it works

#asks #bat wherearetheplants #nico yells writing advice into the void #sorta. kinda. whatever #wips