overdecorated-furniture
An Overdecorated Piece Of Furniture
A writer of scraps and patches. She/Her. Currently working on The Jack of Diamonds and Echoes of Eternity (working title). Also will post odd fanfic, original short stories and other nonsense.
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On Hiatus
Hello, fellow writers of Tumblr! It’s so lovely to see you adding me in tag games and the like, and I promise I will get round to them soon.
However, I shall be rather busy for the next bit of time with summer exams, so my replies and posts are going to be rather spaced out. I’ll be back up to speed very soon.
Feel free to keep sending me asks/tag games. I love them all.
Happy writing! 🌿
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Nine People I’d Like to Know Better - Tag Game
Thanks for the tag @annakayy!
Rules: answer the questions and tag nine people you'd like to know better.
Last Song Listened To: Streams of Whiskey - The Pogues.
Currently Watching: Technically Desperate Romantics, but I haven't watched it for ages.
Sweet/Savoury/Spicy: Always spicy. I love curries and spicy soups.
Relationship Status: Single, if you discount falling in love with my own characters.
Current Obsession: Lord Byron, his poetry, life and times. I cannot get enough of the beautiful bastard.
Very gently tagging @simonnebethel, @cunlleaf, @cjdevlin, @jay-avian, @tildeathiwillwrite, @athenswrites, @shredsandpatches, and an open tag to make it up to nine.
Happy writing! 🌿
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That’s an excellent exception to the rule! I think having a parent dying over the course of a book is an excellent way to create an interesting and emotional narrative arc, and to explore human relationships. A lot of life has those kinds of ups and downs, and the knowledge that the end is coming but cannot really be stopped is horrifying for anyone.
Generally, I’d say the exception to the Dead Parents idea is when the parents dying is a major part of the plot. Exploring how relationships withstand hardship and loss is a wonderful premise, and one that readers can resonate with.
I simply think killing the parents to start the action of a book has been done a lot, and can feel a little bit over-used.
Thanks for your thoughts, they are very interesting!
Happy writing! 🌿
Dead Parents - How to avoid them.
We are all very familiar with the notion of dead parents in fiction. For example, Harry Potter’s parents are dead before the first book even starts. Or in Portrait of Dorian Gray, the protagonist is brought up by an absentee and very neglectful grandfather. It’s a trope used again and again. And it does kind of work. It certainly allows your young protagonists the opportunity to gain agency and find their own way in the adventure thrown at them. But it’s also rather predictable. As a reader, we don’t sympathise as much because it’s such a used trope.
So, here are some of my thoughts about how to avoid the dead parents trope, and still propel your characters into the action.
Kill Someone Else.
I know, violence isn’t supposed to be the answer. But characters don’t only have close relationships with their parents. If your plot centres around a revenge quest for a dead loved one, it doesn’t have to be a parent.
Siblings who got caught in the crossfire trying to protect your MC, or an aunt/uncle they were close to being poisoned works just as well. Best friends are also a useful source of grief, and the fact it’s someone outside the family perhaps gives your MC more of a push. Equally, a significant other may work, although that is a used trope too. It might even just be a beloved pet.
Use their Morals.
People in the real world do not simply act out of revenge for the death of a loved one. Character morals can be just as powerful a motive for action, and Young people in particular are just beginning to discover what matters to them, and so it feels at its most important.
Perhaps your MC feels that the magic system in your fantasy world does not allow for people with disabilities to have access, and so uses that as their springboard. Or in an apocalypse setting, the desire to protect fellow humans against a threat may act as the MC’s launch pad for setting up a safe base somewhere. Concerns over equality, safety, climate change, government choices and even things as small as how cereal is marketed can motivate a character into changing their world/current situation.
Create Conflict.
Arguments, breakups, scrappy fistfights with someone in a back alley. Conflict is one of the spokes of a story, as it creates opportunities for moving the plot forward, and can hold the characters back from achieving their aims. Using this to start your character’s story arc makes for an explosive scene, and allows immediate sympathy with the situation they are in. Everyone argues, has had someone they care about walk out of their lives, or has at least been punched, so the familiarity of a minor but important conflict helps the reader associate with the character, as well as setting up any skills the character has or may need in order to defeat the foe at the climax of the story.
Parental Encouragement.
In a good family situation, parents will want to support their children and young people in achieving their goals. And the same can be true in stories. Perhaps your character wants to learn to play hockey, for example. Their parents can very easily encourage them to join a practice group, help them buy kit, and encourage them to play in matches. Having a supportive adult can mean as much to an MC as having said support removed, and although this doesn’t work for epic fantasy revenge quests, it does create a welcoming atmosphere for a reader.
Those are the main ones I can think of off the top of my head. Do add in comments/tags any you know of!
Happy writing!🌿
#writeblr#writers of tumblr#creative writing#writing advice#writer’s musings#replies to others additions#loved the example! it’s really poignant and interesting
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I haven’t posted any longer snippets from my novel WIPs for a while, so…
I Will hopefully keep up with tag games over rest of the weekend, and I am working on another character intro post.
Happy writing! 🌿
#writeblr#creative writing#writers on tumblr#fantasy writing#historical fiction#my wips#the jack of diamonds#echoes of eternity#jod#eoe#what to share poll
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Fantasy Pic-crew - Tag Game
Thanks for the tag @simonnebethel, this tag game is amazing!
Rules: use this picrew to make yourself as a fantasy character, then make some of your OCs into fantasy characters or use ones from a fantasy story! Tag whoever you want to play next.
Here is myself:
Amser from Echoes:
And Briaca, who I haven’t formally introduced yet:
Gently tagging @caitlin-devlin, @cunlleaf, @tildeathiwillwrite, @annakayy, and @athenswrites. No pressure, only if you like!
Happy writing! 🌿
#writeblr#creative writing#writers on tumblr#fantasy writing#my wips#echoes of eternity#eoe#tag game#picrew tag game#my original characters
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Last Line Tag
Much obliged for the tag @athenswrites!
"But come," he continued, "enough idle chat. There is another dance just beginning, and I am under the firm impression that you have not yet asked my sister to dance, Philip. This must be rectified, or I really shall have to do something tiresome."
This is from my Late-Victorian historical fiction novel, the Jack of Diamonds. The character speaking is Charles Marlon, whom I shall introduce in my character intros soon.
Tagging @caitlin-devlin, @cunlleaf, @simonnebethel, @annakayy, and @tildeathiwillwrite. No pressure, just if you want to!
Happy writing! 🌿
#writeblr#creative writing#writers on tumblr#historical fiction#the jack of diamonds#jod#tag game#last line tag
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Find the Word - Tag Game
Thanks for tagging me, @annakayy! I love this kind of game.
My words are - snow, love, state and forest.
Snow
“A slight snow was covering the pavement outside, downy flakes falling into the quay where they melted in the sluggish water. The world was brought to a halt, frozen as winter’s icy talons wrapped around its neck for the first time this year. The usual bustle of Lower Ormand Quay, where cargoes were unloaded, and the noise of boot-makers, hatters, tailors and tanners as they plied their trade had fallen into slumber as soon as the snow had begun to fall.”
- from A Monstrous Regiment of Women, Chapter 2. (My Napoleonic novella/fanfic thing)
Love
“There is nothing you could possibly say that would make me wish to part from you, love. Your company is everything I desire, and my affection for you is infinite.”
- from Monstrous Regiment, Chapter 2. (I seem to have surprisingly few mentions of love in EoE or JoD…)
State
“The visions of other places were growing more frequent, and although Melwas did his best to try and secretly practice controlling what he conjured, it was hard to force himself into a calm and detached state of mind during the day, especially with the agitation that flickered and pulsed through the clans, caught on the wind, flashing in firelight and winding though the water, before diving down rabbit holes into the earth.”
- from Echoes of Eternity, Chapter 8. (My fantasy novel.)
Forest
“The scene in front of him, from the awkward position of lying on the ground, was that of a lush valley that brought an ache of familiarity to the youth, although he was certain he had never been here before, from what patchy memories were dripping back into his mind, slowly as the long evenings of summer. He was lying on the edge of grassy slopes, a riot of soft green and the brightness of summer flowers, beyond which the blue-washed crags of mountains supported the azure sky above where the larks fluttered. A river flowed amongst the fields, tumbling angrily from the maw of a waterfall into a deep pool, only to calm its temper, and find its way to a deciduous forest, whispering the secrets of the paths between the many worlds of sky, earth and under-earth.”
- from Echoes, Chapter 2.
Tagging @simonnebethel, @tildeathiwillwrite, @chronicler-of-narrative, @alextheoccasionalwriter, and an open tag for anyone else. No pressure, just if you want to!
Your words are: - sink, paper, hunt and jewel.
Happy writing! 🌿
#writeblr#creative writing#writers on tumblr#fantasy writing#historical fiction#my wips#echoes of eternity#eoe#a monsterous regiment of women#mr#tag game#find the word game
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Amazing! One of my main characters for my fantasy Novel, Echoes of Eternity, is an aspiring writer, which I find fun to write.
(My writing blog is @overdecorated-furniture, just asking from main.)
What is something you love about your characters that may not make it into the book? Any cool little habits they have, clothes/food they love, or incidents they’d be too embarrassed to mention, etc.
Hope you are having a good day!
I was going to make Thestae (one of the main characters) an artist, but I don't know how I'd slip that in. I do have quite a few deleted scenes that may make it into later books if I end up making this a series as I intend to.
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Not A Villain Song - Tag Game
Thank you for tagging me @bunnymermaidwrites!
Rules: Pick a song for the antagonist/ villain of your WIP, but the twist is that it can't be obvious that it is a song for the villain. As in: if someone listened to the song and didn't know it was about the villain, they couldn't guess!
I am choosing Melwas from Echoes for this, as he does eventually become the antagonist.
Melwas - House of Memories by Panic! At the Disco:
I think of you from time to time
More than I thought I would
You were just too kind and I was too young to know
That's all that really matters
I was a fool
Baby, we built this house on memories
Take my picture now, shake it 'til you see it
And when your fantasies become your legacy
Promise me a place in your house of memories
Gently tagging @simonnebethel, @tildeathiwillwrite, @alextheoccasionalwriter, @annakayy, and an open tag for anyone else who wants to join. No pressure about doing this, just have fun.
Happy writing!🌿
#writeblr#writers on tumblr#creative writing#fantasy writing#my wips#echoes of eternity#eoe#tag games#song tag games
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Dead Parents - How to avoid them.
We are all very familiar with the notion of dead parents in fiction. For example, Harry Potter’s parents are dead before the first book even starts. Or in Portrait of Dorian Gray, the protagonist is brought up by an absentee and very neglectful grandfather. It’s a trope used again and again. And it does kind of work. It certainly allows your young protagonists the opportunity to gain agency and find their own way in the adventure thrown at them. But it’s also rather predictable. As a reader, we don’t sympathise as much because it’s such a used trope.
So, here are some of my thoughts about how to avoid the dead parents trope, and still propel your characters into the action.
Kill Someone Else.
I know, violence isn’t supposed to be the answer. But characters don’t only have close relationships with their parents. If your plot centres around a revenge quest for a dead loved one, it doesn’t have to be a parent.
Siblings who got caught in the crossfire trying to protect your MC, or an aunt/uncle they were close to being poisoned works just as well. Best friends are also a useful source of grief, and the fact it’s someone outside the family perhaps gives your MC more of a push. Equally, a significant other may work, although that is a used trope too. It might even just be a beloved pet.
Use their Morals.
People in the real world do not simply act out of revenge for the death of a loved one. Character morals can be just as powerful a motive for action, and Young people in particular are just beginning to discover what matters to them, and so it feels at its most important.
Perhaps your MC feels that the magic system in your fantasy world does not allow for people with disabilities to have access, and so uses that as their springboard. Or in an apocalypse setting, the desire to protect fellow humans against a threat may act as the MC’s launch pad for setting up a safe base somewhere. Concerns over equality, safety, climate change, government choices and even things as small as how cereal is marketed can motivate a character into changing their world/current situation.
Create Conflict.
Arguments, breakups, scrappy fistfights with someone in a back alley. Conflict is one of the spokes of a story, as it creates opportunities for moving the plot forward, and can hold the characters back from achieving their aims. Using this to start your character’s story arc makes for an explosive scene, and allows immediate sympathy with the situation they are in. Everyone argues, has had someone they care about walk out of their lives, or has at least been punched, so the familiarity of a minor but important conflict helps the reader associate with the character, as well as setting up any skills the character has or may need in order to defeat the foe at the climax of the story.
Parental Encouragement.
In a good family situation, parents will want to support their children and young people in achieving their goals. And the same can be true in stories. Perhaps your character wants to learn to play hockey, for example. Their parents can very easily encourage them to join a practice group, help them buy kit, and encourage them to play in matches. Having a supportive adult can mean as much to an MC as having said support removed, and although this doesn’t work for epic fantasy revenge quests, it does create a welcoming atmosphere for a reader.
Those are the main ones I can think of off the top of my head. Do add in comments/tags any you know of!
Happy writing!🌿
#writeblr#writers on tumblr#creative writing#wip stuff#writing advice#writing tropes#writer’s musings
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Doing this with Echoes of Eternity:
Fantasy, Time Travel, Fluff and Angst, Psychological Manipulation, Magic That Hurts You, Dual Narrative, Angry Ghosts, Mentor Dies Too Soon, Descent Into Insanity, Teenagers Trying To Save the World, Creepy Dreams, Cursed Bloodline, A Lot of Coffee/Tea, Libraries, The Normal Kind Not the Cursed Kind
That’s all for the moment, I think.
Happy Writing! 🌿
Hey Writeblr, show us your original project's AO3 tags.* So far for mine, I've got:
Terrible Decisions, PTSD, Bad at Relationships, Seances, Ghosts, Historical Romance, Psychological Horror, Haunted Houses, Artists Behaving Badly
*like if you were going to post your original whatever how would you tag it to let people know what to expect
#writeblr#creative writing#writers on tumblr#fantasy writing#ao3 tags#echoes of eternity#eoe#this makes it sound a lot darker than it currently is…
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Last Line Tag
Thank you for tagging me, @annakayy, your last line was really intriguing! I'd love to know more about the story.
Safety was within the circle of flame-light she cast, and as long as Melwas was by her side, basking in the glow she gave, and reflecting what little he could back to her, weakened and pale, the moon to her bright sun.
This is the last line from my latest chapter of Echoes of Eternity, my fantasy time-travel novel. For a bit of context, Melwas was just injured, and his friend Briaca is looking after him.
Tagging @jay-avian, @simonnebethel, @chronicler-of-narrative, and @rmhashauthor. No pressure peeps, just if you want to!
#writeblr#writers on tumblr#creative writing#fantasy writing#my wips#echoes of eternity#eoe#tag game
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Character Introductions - Pt2
Time to introduce some of my female leads! Once again, images courtesy of Pinterest and their respective uploaders/creators.
Rose Fleetwood - Echoes of Eternity
“Rose shut the door behind her, then leaned against it, breathing in the smell of books, old stone and sourdough that pervaded the house, so familiar and welcoming after the unexpected scent of river and forest that had filled her room, twisting away from the world she knew and drawing her into the subliminal one, that she brushed the surface of in dreams, or late at night in the depths of a story. One layer of the world removed, and another lay beneath the surface, home to its own versions of normality. Infinite layers, worlds within worlds, hidden in the corners of spheres, and in the shadow of the sun. The thought made Rose dizzy.” - EoE, Chapter Three (1st draft)
Rose is the protagonist of Echoes, and the story is mainly narrated from her PoV when set in the past (although still in third person). She is a teenage girl who lives in an old medieval/tudor house on the fringes where moorland meets town, and has aspirations as a writer. She is very creative and protective of her family, and spends most of the novel in an uneasy truce with Amser, as they try and rid her home of an alarming poltergeist.
She has dark brown wavy hair and hazel eyes, and wears a variety of corduroy trousers, linen shirts, jackets, wool skirts and sensible leather boots. She almost always has a notebook and some kind of writing implement on her, along with collections of dark chocolate buttons in pockets.
Anne Francesca Marlon - Jack of Diamonds
“Anne stood at the edge of the dance floor, scanning the crowd anxiously as the music for the next dance began to swell slowly, and fill the room with the singing of strings. Philip had promised her this dance, and now he had disappeared. He had said that he was getting them some champagne at the end of the last dance, and that he would return in three minutes.” - JoD, Initial Prompt
Anne Marlon I have already lightly introduced on here, but I shall do so in more detail. She is the female lead in JoD, and a young society lady with several dark secrets. She often helps her older brother Charles with government affairs, as he holds the eminent position of Cabinet Secretary. Outwardly, she can seem quite shy and retiring, but in private she has a cutting wit and intelligent mind. More I cannot reveal, as her story arc is part of the plot, but suffice to say, she too eventually is dragged into the Victorian underworld.
Appearance wise, she has golden hair and blue eyes with flecks in, and tends to wear varieties of pastel colours in her dresses. Her ideal place to be is the family library, where she enjoys reading about the Classical world, and the Romantic movement.
Part 1 |
Happy to answer any questions about the characters. Happy writing! 🌿
#writeblr#writers on tumblr#creative writing#historical fiction#fantasy writing#my wips#the jack of diamonds#jod#echoes of eternity#eoe#character introduction
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For Sherséne (Sherlock Holmes x Arséne Lupin), I’m part of a good 58 fics.
For my Napoleonic threesome (Napoleon x Byron x Arséne) I’m the only writer. 😅
Reblog and put your rare pair in the tags/comments! I want to see the depths people will go to create, for the most random two characters in the most obscure media.
#fanfic writer#fanfiction#ao3 writer#my fanfiction#rare pair#writeblr#Sherséne#Sherlock Holmes x arséne lupin#lord byron#napoleon bonaparte#arséne lupin
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I’d love to read/discuss this, with appropriate content warnings. Sounds fascinating.
Got another question for y'all.
I maaaay write an erotica novella that's an AU of Runner Owen, featuring Owen and Aurum. And I do mean au - different setting, maybe different names, Aurum's a vampire - but before I do that
Reblog if you'd like to read this? Would help me out.
@acannibalisticswordfish @slenders1ckn3ss @that-gay-jedi @underratedcockblock769 @steh-lar-uh-nuhs @heavenlyeden @real-fragments7 @thebrownleathernotebook @izzyspussy @bee-barnes-author @jacqueswriteblrlibrary @amielbjacobs @moremysteriesthantragedies @overdecorated-furniture
Ask to be added to the tag list
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Who murdered Lawrence Rhyne?
Humor me with a thing, please?
In my current WIP, Farewell Vesperos, Lawrence Rhyne is a notorious figure in the capital city of Theris. Among a dozen other cruel-hearted acts, Rhyne deceived his way into the heart of the youngest son of the noble Vesperos family, Conrad, and married him in secret against the wishes of the rest of his family. It's believed he is responsible for the curse that soon befell the beloved family, for within six months of the marriage date, all the remaining members died, and Conrad's remains found beneath the trees beyond his ancestral home.
There was no proof, of course. But everyone suspects - even Owen Rosedown, the protagonist, has his suspicions from what little he knows of the case. So when the note arrives from Rhyne, wanting to confess everything, Owen didn't hesitate to visit Rhyne on the top floor of the Glint Hall Hotel. But though he did not delay, he is too late. Rhyne is dead when he gets there. And while Owen isn't sure how, he is sure it's murder.
So here's where you come in, without giving you any other clues, who do you think the killer is?
This is all just for fun! I have no idea if anyone is gonna participate in this, so if you could reblog this post when/if you see it, I'd appreciate it so much!
#writeblr#writers on tumblr#others writing#creative writing#fantasy#murder mystery#oooh. wonder who it is. motive is good for most of them#and Rhyne sounds like the kind of interesting character who people would want to murder
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Reblog this if you're a writer who's okay w/ other writers sending which of their OCs they ship w/ your OCs !!!!
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