#writing rants

[goodluckclove]

An Open Letter to a Professional Author

I came across a writer here who I imagine will probably never see this, but their presence was enough to make me pretty mad for two days now. I've decided to pen a little statement to this Long-Term, Professional, Full-Time, Published Author who makes a habit out of being deeply unpleasant in a way that apparently has only attracted an audience of other deeply unpleasant people.

People here seem to like it when I get mad. So, uh, enjoy?

Dear Professional Author,

I came across a post of yours on some feed here the other day and enjoyed your commentary. It was one of those writing memes that sort of called attention to actually writing as opposed to just thinking about your project - the kind that people usually respond to with some sort of joke expressing their repulsion at the concept.

You responded with distaste and I generally agreed. The tone was a little aggressive for me, but that kind of humor also leaves me generally confused. I personally ended up concluding that the self-deprecating humor was a coping mechanism for a larger issue that keeps these people from writing - intimidation, lack of confidence, physical or mental pain, things like that. You seemed to think it was a matter of will, which I found to be an approach that at the very least was well-intentioned.

Turns out it wasn't.

First off, I should say that this isn't about your political beliefs. Your political beliefs that are really more like general human beliefs. I don't want to get into that. Instead, I just want to talk about your writing. You are a full-time, published author, as you say in nearly post where you talk about writing. A major point of pride to you seems to be the fact that you are traditionally published. Any other method doesn't seem to be as legitimate to you. That's interesting to me.

You also don't seem to have much of an audience outside of people who mainly come to agree with your politics. I didn't really see a single positive interaction between you and another writer on here for as much as I was willing to scroll through your blog. That's also interesting to me.

I didn't spent too much time on your blog once I realized that you were definitely not the kind of person I would ever want any interaction with. What I did want to do is use your presence indirectly to prove a point that I've been wanting to get into for some time now.

To put it simply, I'll say this: a career in professional writing is not actually as cool or important as you might think it is.

Now I'll be direct and say that I've never been traditionally published for anything longer than a short story or long-term, unpaid column. You don't give any details on any of your writing, as far as I've seen (Once again - interesting!), so there's a chance you've made more in contracts and royalties than I have. But I'm a working writer. I've had a career in ghostwriting and technical writing. I've written and produced plays that have been featured in festivals in multiple states. I'm not speaking from a place of no experience, is what I mean to say.

What I also mean to say is that - while I view writing in many ways as a spiritual and healing act that I couldn't live without - it's also a job. It's not always exciting, and even when it is exciting it's only exciting to me. I consider the best date night to be when my wife works on video game development while I write my draft. I leave the house on a regular basis, but it's mainly to go to different places to write.

In short - I love to write, but I don't think it makes me cool. Or interesting. Or valuable. Or intelligent. Or just generally fun to be around and talk to. These are things I strive to cultivate in other aspects of the way I live and grow as a human being on this planet.

Being a Professional Author in one particular genre doesn't give you authority over the craft as a whole. You can't just throw yourself into conversations and start with I'm a published writer and assume that means you have the final say on any discussion. Believe it or not, in many cases it does not matter.

Lots of people are published traditionally, and it does prove some level of validity in their line of work. But there are a huge variety of people in the world of trad pub. There are people who write books in genres that don't apply to writers here. There are people who write books that aren't very good. There are even people who write trad pub books that are very good, but their careers are sullied by the fact that the authors themselves are not good people.

Being a successful writer does not mean you're a good person. Being a writer at all does not mean you are a good person. I believe in Death of the Author to an extent, but when that author insists on making a presence on a public website and doling out advice and opinions to other writers the lines start to blur considerably.

Writing is a job. You work it over a period of time and learn skills and strategies that work for you. The same applies to virtually every other job, including ones that society views as less romantic as something in the arts. Can you imagine me breaking into your home while you're making lunch and telling you how to arrange your cheese slices based on what I know as a full-time, professional sandwich artist at Subway? You might be interested based on leaning something you didn't know about a place you might've eaten at before. But that does not entitle me to your respect on its own.

I am not entitled to your respect based on how well I learned how to make a sandwich based on my hypothetical career at Subway. Just as I don't deserve it solely because I know two card tricks, can get out a variety of stains, read most of the works of the major beatniks, can make a really good carbonara, or any other specific about my life that ultimately does not play a huge part in who I am as a person.

When I am on my death bed, I hope to god the core of my character was not the fact that I typed stories from my brain until I got carpal tunnel. If my obituary begins and ends at "writer", no matter how positive the qualifier is before that, it will be the greatest failure of my life.

Because I am a writer. But that does not matter. It does not matter if you're a writer. It can be fun and enjoyable if you are, even better if you make a living at it, but it doesn't mean you'll be happy. It doesn't mean people will like you or perceive you to be the leader and teacher you might think you are. It certainly doesn't give you a free pass to throw cruelty at strangers for truly no real reason.

Professional Author, you had a chance to raise up the next generation of an industry I assume you must value. You're choosing not to, and that's fine. You don't have the obligation to. You do have the choice to not get involved and pretend to give advice that ranges from vague to untrue. You seem to be taking that responsibility very seriously.

It's like some twist on crab mentality, where instead of dragging crabs trying to escape the bucket you're swiping at anyone who tries to crawl in with you. Then, as they struggle, you're looking down at them and making comments on how easy it is to get in the bucket, if you only just do it and maybe read some books.

To all of us, I say this: question authority, even in the arts. Especially in the arts. Nobody knows as much as they say. That includes me, but I do know this - any branch of publishing feels really good. It's scary but it's fun. If you're traditional published or indie published or self published, it says nothing about how good your book is or how good you are as a writer or how valuable you are as a human being.

Don't be this lonely bucket crab. They seem mean and I'm tired of talking about them.

Best Regards,

Clove

#writeblr #writing community #writers on tumblr #on writing #writing #authors of tumblr #writer community #writing inspiration #writing inspo #writing rants #personal #clove is angry

[annarts05]

Making smart characters interesting

There’s more to smart characters than just being...smart. They have personalities, and I want to explore some ideas and feelings I had ;-;

Smart character personality ideas:

The self-absorbed smart character. Actually smart, and definitely knows it. Everyone refuses to acknowledge the good ideas because it’ll only add to their ego.

The goofy, passionate smart character. Nerd. Knows a lot of stuff and wants to share it with others. 

The quiet smart character. Has a lot of good ideas, but doesn’t say a lot of them. When they do, everyone is really impressed and since the ideas usually work, they go with their suggestions. 

The smart character that can’t articulate their thoughts. How do you get the idea in your brain out into the brains of others??? So no one really gets it, and their intelligence feels like it’s wasted. Might talk a lot or only a little. 

The quick-thinking smart character that only seems to come up with good ideas when put under a lot of pressure. 

Combine them, or give them additional traits. 

For example, that goofy and passionate character who wants to share facts might be really shy and terrified of judgement, so doesn’t share. 

That self-absorbed character might have a truly good heart, and gets frustrated when no one sides with them because they’re seemingly ego-driven when, in reality, they want to help. 

Maybe a smart character with the ability to learn and remember new things doesn’t want to learn because they’re lazy. 

Totally up to you. Be creative and combine weird ideas. 

Different ways to be intelligent:

Creative and innovative. Thinks outside the box. Loves to explore new ideas, abstract concepts, and weird scenarios. Others might judge or think the ideas are unbelievable. Might not notice the little things that could make one of their ideas go horribly wrong because they’re too focused on the big picture and on the uniqueness. 

Analytical. Good at analyzing patterns, numbers, and the little details in a scenario. Very detail-oriented. Often extremely organized. They...well, analyze things. Might not be very creative at all. Jigsaw puzzles and math?

Quick-thinking, especially under pressure. When put in a situation of life-or-death, or maybe under a lot of stress due to that upcoming exam, can push through and make calm, smart decisions. 

Good memories and lots of “brain space.” A character could have a really good memory, and recall the details of a memory that no one else recalls. They have plenty of room in their brain for seemingly useless things that just might come in handy. 

Musically intelligent. Rhythm, notes, tone, etc. come easily to them, and they might even be able to pick up on sounds and beats that no else can.

Philosophical. Comes up with big questions that others normally wouldn’t. Also outside-the-box thinkers and might get some weird looks.

Language. Linguistics are their own branch of intelligence. Might be very quick at picking up new languages and learning new words, and also is good at communicating ideas through words.

#smart characters #writing #characters #character ideas #writing tips #writing advice #writing tips and tricks #writing rants

[cmoroneybooks]

When seeking commercial success with writing you need to be realistic. Just because something shouldn’t be the way it is doesn’t mean you can ignore that reality.

What I mean: 

People do judge a book by it’s cover, unless you’re talented and have done your research it will negatively impact you not to pay a professional.

Marketing a book isn’t about how good your book is. It’s an entirely different skillset you’ll need to pick up whether you get indie published or traditionally published. 

If you’re writing something niche you can’t expect the marketing advice of people writing and selling something with wide scale appeal to work for you. You’ll need to find a way to advertise directly to the communities that surround your niche. 

Bigots read and buy books.

Publishing a book is fucking expensive but cutting corners is quickly noticeable. 

Publishers don’t take as many risks as they should, they’re increasingly letting indie authors take risks and prove that certain types of story can make it. You might have to wait for someone else to prove your kind of story works in the indie space to get any traction in the trad space.

I doubt any of these really surprise anyone. But anytime something is unfair or wrong in publishing whether indie or trad I see a lot of writers say something like ‘well people shouldn’t judge a book by it’s cover so I’m making my own anyway’ as if saying that somehow changes reality. Let’s be realistic but hopeful and defiant as we head into 2023. Like the pragmatic side character who’s with the hero till the bitter end.

(Also how else are we meant to judge your book in a sea of others, when there’s so many that picking one off the shelf or clicking on to see the blurb is a decision of itself??) 

#amwriting #writing community #writers community #writers #writing #writers corner #writing advice #writers advice #writing tips #writers tips #lgbt writers #fantasy writers #indie writers #selfpublishing #self publishing #publishing #trad publishing #traditional publishing #writing rants #mywritingadvice

[gods-graveyard]

Writing fanfic updates while sitting on a shady deck in the wind- Im so aesthetic rn

(As long as I ignore the loud ass traffic and the dogs demanding my attention) Look at these cute little shits

Their names are Sadie (blonde) and Hazel (the test/punishment from god)

#my asshole dogs #i would die for them #anywayys #writing on tumblr #ao3 #writing rants #sunny rambles

[sunshinereddie]

YALL ive written 3.5k words of fic today. 3.5K WORDS OF FIC !!!!!! thats more in one day than i've written all summer. i have not written this much since reddie week. i feel unstoppable.

#VERY REAL POSSIBILITY that i could finish ch13 of puppy love tonite #skhbfrksebfhrals i really hope so #that would be amazing #lets see how far i go..... #writing rants

[hyperfixationhell12147]

Ready for a DP rant? Here comes one.

I love fics that have Danny dealing with what Dan means for him and constantly thinking of how to prevent him (even when it isn’t the main plot ( especially if it isn’t the main plot)), but you know what I hate about some of them?

The focus on him not being bad.

Cheating on a test or getting back at a bully or stealing to survive (I’ve been on a DPxDC kick) is not going to turn him evil.

It was losing his family and being unable to deal with the grief—if Vlad is to be believed—that turned him into that monster.

It bugs me so fucking much when writers focus on preventing bad behavior instead of protecting his family. You know, like fanon has decided is one of his “things”.

Okay, rant over.

#danny phantom #danny fenton #writing rants #that’s gonna be a normal tag now

[fan-goddess]

Why is writing Jacaerys so hard! Why’s he gotta be so plain?!?

#writing rants

[prettyboybillyhargrove]

I too am a superior character woman with only two days period.

#writing #writing fails #men writing women #writing tips #writing tiktoks #writing references #writing rants

[xmanicpanicx]

The events in your story must be believable...

No, I don’t mean curb your imagination and never write fantasy, sci-fi, or any other sort of speculative fiction. No, I don’t mean avoid writing the type of romance so many of us wish we could experience in real life. What I mean is that what happens in your story must be believable within the context of the story. When I was a creative writing student in university, I disagreed with many of my professors’ rigid rules, but one piece of advice I always agreed with was this one. 

Somebody in class would write a story, a few of us (or more) would call bullshit on the sequence of events, and they would reply, “But this actually happened!” 

Honestly, it doesn’t matter if what you’re writing about actually happened. It’s a cliché, but truth really is often stranger than fiction, and it can be interesting to hear those anecdotes when you’re talking to someone in real life. However, when you’re reading a novel or even just a short story, it doesn’t work the same way. The events of the story have to follow some sort of internal logic. Here are some antitheses to a story’s internal logic.

1) Character inconsistency. Characters should be complex, and they often change over the course of the story, but if, out of nowhere, a character does a complete 180 with no possible motivation for those actions, readers will be thrown. Many great plot twists come from characters turning out not to be who we thought they were, but remember that characters should be like real people rather than plot devices, three-dimensional rather than flat. Their actions have to make sense; there must be a reason for their actions beyond moving the plot forward because you, the author, want or need it to move forward. 

2) Unrealistic consequences. This is one of my personal least-favorite things to see in a story: when a character makes a huge (and often very damaging) decision, and there is hardly any fallout. I’ve seen it most often when the main character gets away with things that no one would ever be able to get away with so cleanly, but the main character can because they’re supposedly special. (Hint: they’re not.) People don’t forgive hurtful actions easily, and, except in the world of the extremely rich and powerful, egregiously bad decisions don’t go unpunished. Even if the reader identifies with the main character (and, naturally, we want things to go well for characters we identify with, just as we want them to go well for ourselves), this is not satisfying. It feels like something is missing, because it is.

3) Deus ex machina. This is Latin for “God out of the machine,” and it refers to “a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence” (I got this part from Wikipedia. Don’t judge me! They sum it up well!), as if God or a higher power of some sort just popped in out of nowhere fixed everything for the characters on a whim. Real-life instances of deus ex machina are cool to hear about precisely because they’re so unbelievable, yet they really did happen, and it just adds to the mystery of the universe. In fiction, deus ex machina is just anticlimactic. There’s nothing rewarding about reading your way through a character(s)’ mammoth struggles and having none of it pay off or come to anything because an external factor, which has never appeared in the story before, suddenly enters and ties things up neatly. If you must use deus ex machina, do it sparingly and with small events rather than the main conflict or showdown of the story.

Any one of the above, and especially a combination of them, will lead to more plot holes than a reader can willingly accept. These shortcuts aren’t worth the substance they remove from what could be a great story.

#writing advice #writing tips #writing rants #plot advice #deus ex machina #characterization

[isometimeswrite]

The ghost of writers past or something has possessed me and now I’m on a roll. However it has nothing to do with my previous post. Instead, while driving, I have developed a whole new idea but very much something I’ve always wanted to write. Also lowkey Tomarry fanfic but I’m making it OC’s.

#writing #writing rants #harry potter #tom riddle #tomarry #fanfic #writing community #magic #familar #shapeshifting

[annarts05]

coming up with a plot when you only have characters/world/aesthetic

I get this all the time, and it hurts ;-;

I have these characters, these beautiful people I’ve invented with goals and complex thoughts and they feel so real to me. I have this world, this poignant place I’d rather live in than in my own world (unless it’s a death zone ofc haha). I have vibes that I get from it, the tone, the theme, and I have motivation to write???

But...uh, no plot. 

Thanks. Real helpful. 

So basically, if you’re like me and this is something that happens to you, here are some ideas to get your brain working so you can come up with a plot for your story. Not all of these work together, they’re just different ways to do it. 

Start with character wants.

What does your main character want? Do they want to win a competition? Find a missing/kidnapped parent? Stop a zombie apocalypse by finding a cure? Whatever that goal is, it should correspond with their motivation. 

The goal is what they need/want to do. (ex: Win a competition)

The motivation is why. (ex: To prove themselves to their peers)

THEN. What could stop your character from getting that want? (ex. a fellow competitor)

Start with theme.

The theme is the lesson you want to teach your readers, so what’s the first plot or second or third or fourth plot that comes to mind when you take your theme?

If the theme is about accepting yourself as you are, then...what series of events might teach an audience (and your characters) that?

Write down basically everything you want to happen. Every scene. 

Got some scenes and random things you want to include? Write ‘em down. Something might come up that sparks your interest. 

What could change your character’s current world?

What does their day-to-day life look like? What could change it, either nudge it slightly in one direction or send it completely spinning out of control? Up to you :) Write down those possibilities. 

#writing #writing tips #writing advice #creative writing #writing tips and tricks #writing rants #plots are hard #plot #writing plot #characters #theme

[afewproblems]

The urge to just post what I've got so far and make this a four parter is...well its strong lets say that...

#writing rants #afewproblemswrites #afewproblems rants #mean!eddie misunderstandings au #sigh we are at like 10K for a single chapter

[badbraincake]

Writer Rants

I started a new writing project and I'm already beginning to feel the dread of writing. I love writing, don't get me wrong. Sometimes when i get it right and something works, then I feel joy. But there almost always comes a time where I'm writing, that every single thing I write sounds atrocious and I get in my own head. I begin to think, "wow, these ideas are really bad." And I start to hate my own writing on more than a technical scale. I begin to hate it on a personal scale as it targets my creativity as a person. That's where I draw the line so I end up stopping (indefinitely)

#writer #writing #writing confessions #writing rants #creative writing #I was so stoned while writing this

[floydsglasses]

Does anyone think Javy/Coyote would be a mamas Boy, like in my headcanon I see him being raised by a single mom who he adores to pieces, I mean that's how I'm writing but does anyone else agree with me?

#floyd rants #writing rants #top gun maverick #javy coyote machado #top gun fanfic

[morganski-19]

Finals are a bitch.

I’m still working on the next chapter for I Don’t Know Which Way’s Home, and it’ll be a few more days until I’m able to finish it. I’ve been so busy with studying that I only have the brain power to write smaller pieces at a time, not longer chapters.

But it will get done. I have to procrastinate packing somehow.

#writing rants #rants #writing updates #fic writer #fic writing updates

[sunshinereddie]

i REALLY wanted to finish the reddie holiday fic tonight but it is currently 1:30 am and I AM SO TIRED !!!! but i am also so so close to finishing!!!! i don’t want to go to sleep until i finish it!!!! but my eyes are hurting !!! AUGH OTL

#writing rants #like i have everything that i want to write.... i have it up in my head...... #but my brain too sleepy to form words and my eyes too tired to stay open..... #and im not sure if i'll have time to write tmr..... AH