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aruanimess · 2 months

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Writing jealous Armin is so frustrating and rewarding at the same time because he's so self-sacrificial about it. He's like "okay, folks, Annie glanced at someone else, let's pack it up, it was a good run." He'll shrug and say shit like "she deserves someone better" and then go cry in the corner for three hours straight!!

My god, dude, can you maybe chill?

#aruani #armin arlert #my writing process

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saved-for-me-own-stories · 1 year

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I am a big advocate of revealing big secrets in your story sooner rather than later.

See, if you keep all your secrets until the end, you risk becoming a Rowling, always with your GOTCHA right in the climax. You're just pulling the rug out from under the readers, and not giving them much time to do anything with that information.

But what if you revealed some of your secrets earlier in the story? Not even necessarily to the characters, either - you could have the person who knows about it reveal it to the audience through internal thoughts, but not letting the other characters know until later (and possibly not through them at that!).

The thing about doing it this way is, it gives you the opportunity to do more. The more your audience knows, the more you can do with them. It opens up new possibilities for plot threads or character development, and you don't have to work so hard to keep every little thing hidden. You get to build up your characters out in the open, where your audience can actually see what you're doing, even if they still don't have everything. Heck, it can build up anticipation, too! The readers know the secret, but the characters don't, and the readers want to see them find out.

I used to keep a lot of secrets in my writing. Now that I'm thinking back, a number of those secrets were about certain aspects of various relationships. For some reason, I always thought, wouldn't it be suuuuper neat to have this be a reveal at the climax or something? So I just kept saving it and saving it.

But then people would read a chapter here and there. They would ask questions about those relationships. And I started deciding to put those reveals earlier. I don't know what it was that made me do it like that, but it did. And let me tell you, it was such a weight off my shoulders. It wasn't some big plot reveal in the climax, it was just a part of who the characters are. And with that laid out already, I could build on it to create the real arc.

Now, I'm not saying you should reveal everything. Some things should be kept secret. It's the kappa element of storytelling, as C.S. Lewis called it, though perhaps not as thorough as he meant it. But it's a question of discernment:

Is this a plot point that needs to wait and be unveiled at the more proper time, or is this a vital part of the character that needs to be known to understand who they are?

#my writing process #the prometheus curse #yes it was that one #it applies to others too #salt and light #me making a post

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writtenbyaris · 4 months

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my creative writing process as a planner 🌟

the idea:

story ideas come to me at the most random and inconvenient of times. right before i fall asleep, when i'm in the shower, during my classes, etcetera. my main rule is to always write them down, whether it's in my notes app or a slip of paper or a journal... i'll forget it if i don't.

i try keeping it simple at this stage and not thinking too deeply about it, otherwise it becomes quite overwhelming. sometimes ¡'ll make a pinterest board depending on what the idea is. if it's more of an aesthetic, then i can make a moodboard out of it to help inspire me more. however, if the idea is a plot of some sort, that can be a bit more difficult.

character and world building:

this is my favorite part. once i have an idea set in stone and i'm ready to work on it, i begin building the characters and the world around it. i figure out the mechanics of the idea and how it can relate to characters and the world they're in.

at this point, i'm definitely making pinterest boards, playlists, and picrews to feel more immersed in the skeleton of the story.

i still keep it as simple as possible, and try to enjoy it. when i try juggling too many things at once, i end up wanting to abandon the project. slow and steady is the key for me :)

creating the story:

now we get down to what being a writer actually is.. transforming the idea into a story. i have to at least come up with one major plotline to start. i usually write in my journal during this stage, but sometimes i'll use notion to organize everything and keep track of it all.

oftentimes, the main plot will come to me when i'm working on character and world building. sometimes it's even the idea that first popped into my head. the story is usually influenced by dreams i've had, my own every day experiences, and other media i consume.

arcs, subplots, themes, etc:

this stage is for the smaller details that are vital for the story to flow and actually work. it's like a puzzle that's finally coming together.

for me, a story isn't a good one without arcs and themes, so those are of utmost importance. subplots are necessary to make the world more immersive, give readers insight on the characters, and keep the story naturally flowing. everything has to be woven back in to the main plot or idea, though.

i will say, this is the stage that tends to give me the biggest headache :P

zero draft:

jumping into a first draft as a heavy planner is too scary for me. so i came up with the idea of a zero draft. basically- zero expectations.

this is the backbone of my story. in this stage, i'm basically just taking myself through the steps of the story. i organize the plot and subplots into chapters, and with each chapter i go through all the beats of each scene. literally every. single. thing. that happens.

i don't usually include dialogue in this phase, but i do mention when a character will be in a conversation. all the focus should be on putting a needle and thread through the story and tying it all together.

first draft:

the first draft is somewhat easier for me because i do a zero draft. so, i know everything that will happen in a chapter and just have to utilize my writing abilities to make it rhythmic.

this is the first stage where i write dialogue, so it tends to be corny. a lot of my writing can be cliche and basic as well. that's what editing is for though!

i usually stress the most when writing my first draft, because it's the first time the story is actually being written in the format of a novel. by the end, it's not always very good either. but i do not look back at all, which means absolutely no editing until the first draft is finished.

and so on…

once the first draft is finished, then comes draft two. it's enjoyable to be able to read your own work all over again, though it's sometimes embarrassing as writing does improve with practice.

i focus on one chapter at a time-reading slowly, editing, filling in plot holes, fixing anything that changed later in the story. i try to catch as many details as i can.

usually, after as many rounds of editing one likes, the draft would be sent to an editor and beta readers. then i'd look into publishing companies (can you tell i haven't gotten to that point yet? lol)

are you a planner or a pantser?

#writers on tumblr #writing #writeblr #writers and poets #literature #writerscommunity #storytelling #planner #pantser #writing process #my writing process #zero draft #first draft #writing tips #writing advice #author

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medusapelagia · 3 months

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Plot bunny I'm working on

I'm thinking Romeo and Juliet. But omegaverse. And Harringrove.

Are we ready for that?

#medusapelagia #my writing process #plot bunny #harringrove #omegaverse

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stealthnoodle · 3 months

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Reaching some unhinged placeholder notes I left for myself in this chapter

#writing #my writing process #the great thing about akechi's pov is that he's always having a normal one

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starlightandetherealshadows · 9 months

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Most people singing in the shower but you’re fucking writing in the shower 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂🚿🚿🚿🚿

A fun fact about me is that I close my eyes when I write because I envision my stories like movies.

I can type without looking, so I’ll keep my eyes closed and let the scene play out, writing what I see in my imagination and then cleaning it up afterwards. And I alternate between typing on my laptop and my phone.

Typing with my eyes closed helps me with flow/pacing and keeping the scene feeling alive and as natural as possible. I’ll even put on my writing playlist to set the scene as vividly as possible in my head.

Is it weird? Probably but as silly as I look, it’s what works for me!!! 🤭

#ask: answered #my writing process

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avaantares · 6 months

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I don't normally write fiction in longhand, because my brain generates words faster than I can write with a pen and it's far more efficient to type, but I do keep a notebook beside my bed so I can jot down ideas or bits of dialogue when they invariably come to mind during a bout of insomnia or when I'm about to fall asleep. Sometimes I end up writing quite a bit (long passages of CotFA are contained in this notebook), but usually it's just a page or two of notes.

I'm half convinced the notebook is actually just a telepathic device that prompts my brain to remember what I was thinking about at the time, though, because when I'm writing super fast while half asleep, my handwriting resembles no alphabet known to mankind. And yet somehow, I can still decipher every word when I come back to it months later. It is a mystery.

Here's a snippet from one of my current WIPs:

(I actually do have decent handwriting when I want to, but this is all about the hand keeping up with the brain, and speed != neat.)

#writing #nanowrimo #my writing process #handwriting #am writing

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fouralignments · 6 months

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Is there any AUs or any particular one-shots that folks want additions to?

@iwillshipyouman @groot-the-tree-writes

I am making a list of things I want to write

#not saying I will write but I am taking suggestions #my writing process #Dadneto #peter maximoff #erik lehnsherr #charles xavier #quickson #stepdad! charles xavier #Domestic cherik and their quickson

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mkstrigidae · 20 hours

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I started using voice to text with my notes app so I could plot fanfic stuff while walking Bal and honestly it has been a goddamn GAMECHANGER for making sure I don't forget an idea before I'm physically able to write it down.

The downside is that, while walking through the woods it can be kind of hard to see other people before they're right on top of you. And you would not believe the kind of weird looks you will get when you say something like 'what if the body is hidden in this place and the remains are this-' into your phone just as a couple of dudebros jog out of the forest.

#I'm never going to live it down tbh #slight redactions to avoid spoiling anything #my writing process #personal #meanwhile Bal is wagging his entire butt trying to get these dudes to pet him and i'm just like '...it's for a creative writing class'#bit hard to explain that you're trying to plot the coverup to a fictional murder

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cosmicwhoresimpingismyliving · 3 days

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Ah yes, allow me to get drunk to hallucinate & daydream of fake scenarios to write about.

#my writing #my writing process #drunk writing #getting drunk #writers on tumblr #writerscommunity #writer stuff #writers #writeblr #writblr #writing

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questinwitchface · 1 month

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Just in case someone else may want your opinion, I'm asking off anon. How do you decide which details to include for a slow burn fic? When do you know it isn't too much or too little but a satisfying amount of both prose and dialogue?

Thanks for the ask, dear! I want to preface this by saying I'm not a professional writer, nor am I a teacher, so my answer is based purely on my own experience and process.

How do you decide which details to include for a slow burn fic?

I usually start at the end and visualize or even write some sections about where I want the characters to be by the end of the story. Then I look at the beginning and take note of how far the characters are from that ending. Then I write down a loose plot involving them inching toward that end goal, with the little milestones along the way in their journey. Each detail or milestone needs to support that end-goal, and it's usually very character-driven.

I realize that might be kind of confusing, so I'm going to use The Promise of Cheesecake and a Decent Wine as an example. I started writing the ending smut scene first, and I was really taken in by how well they were communicating and how safe they felt with each other, and I wanted that to be the end goal. Then I started at the beginning with the fake dating situation, where they aren't even together. I wrote the first five chapters of the fic, and wrote in a happy ending for them where they get together at the end of that first fake date, and that was supposed to be that.

But I kept looking at that smut scene I wanted for their endgame. I kept looking at the communication and the sense of safety and understanding, and I kept thinking that it didn't feel earned from just one fake date. So I started thinking about ways to show them learning to communicate better, ways to show their relationship building and strengthening over time.

And I thought, what's a better way to show them growing together than showing them recovering from a fight that could've ended their relationship? So I had the idea for the fight, and I figured a fight needed a catalyst, so I thought of the media issues. And from the media issues, the interview/photoshoot idea was born, and I realized I could use the photoshoot as a way to have Sam let Bucky in on some of his insecurities. And I wanted Sam and Bucky to both have insecurities - not just because that's human - but also because it would contribute to their sense of safety with each other at the end if they were able to work through those insecurities together.

Then there was the second date and the family time plot points, which were really just excuses to show their relationship building, to show them getting closer to each other emotionally and establishing that foundation of care and understanding between them. And I thought, how can I show that care and understanding building? By having Bucky try a wine tasting for Sam's benefit and having Sam make it a point to include Bucky in all of the family stuff. They say so much without saying anything that way. And I could keep going, but I'm not sure you want me to dissect every plot point here or this post is going to be really long and annoying to read lol.

Equally important as their arc together, they each had individual arcs to go through focused on recovering from traumas. Sam's focuses a lot on his identity as a gay man and the traumas from his father and previous relationships. Bucky's focused mostly on recovery from his time as a Hydra captive. Each of them needed to show that they were, individually, getting better and growing. So I included Bucky's study to show that he was growing from that sparse and sad apartment in Brooklyn. I included Sam winning the award from the charity group and his conversation with his father. I included both of their sexual traumas, and I let them support each other through that because that built both of them as individuals and as a couple as well.

It's all about finding my endgame for my characters and using details to support that endgame. If each detail supports your endgame, then none of it will feel like it's too much because it all makes sense and fits in. If you read it and it feels complete and satisfying to you, then it's enough (at least, that rule works about 80% of the time, for the other 20%, I recommend having a beta reader who isn't afraid to tell you when things don't make sense, though I recognize those may be hard to come by).

When do you know it isn't too much or too little but a satisfying amount of both prose and dialogue?

I struggle with this a lot actually. My first drafts often are almost exclusively dialogue with very little prose - they read more like plays with a few stage directions than anything else. I compensate for this weakness during my revision process. I revise my work A LOT. If the first draft is for dialogue, then the second draft adds in actions. The third draft adds inner thoughts. The fourth draft adds details about the setting, items in a scene, other description. I know it sounds like a lot of work, but I find that breaking it down like that and in that order helps me see what's really necessary to a scene.

For the dialogue, I try to find the sweet middle ground between what a character wants to say and what they aren't saying. For instance, if Bucky wants to tell Sam that he loves him, but he's still scared to say it, he might ask Sam if he's eaten anything today instead. The underlying emotion, love and care for Sam, stays present then, but it's not explicit, which makes it something Sam could plausibly miss while the reader might pick up on it. Dialogue for me is always a balancing act between what the characters are saying and what they mean.

For actions, I try to add them doing something while they talk so it's not just two people standing in an empty room talking, which is kind of boring to watch/read. I like adding something like them doing dishes, so at least there's movement in the scene. I like to add facial expressions, which might align more with what the character is saying or might align more with what they want to be saying but aren't. I like to add gestures and mannerisms so that we get a sense of how the characters are feeling without necessarily being told "Sam feels embarrassed/sad/angry/whatever." It just makes the writing feel more alive.

For inner thoughts, I try to only include them if they provide more meaning to a scene. Showing where the thoughts align with actions and words and where they differ allows for conflict in a character, and readers love conflict. I'd say inner conflict is usually the crux of a good slow burn, because the character wants to confess their love but can't for ~whatever plot reason~ so it's useful to have inner thoughts showing that contradiction. Additionally, you can use inner thoughts to sort of double-down on something that happened by explaining more about why a character is doing/did that thing. If the thoughts aren't really adding new perspective to a situation, then I try to skip them because that gets to be too repetitive.

For setting and other descriptions, I just try to add them as necessary. This is probably a controversial opinion, but I generally don't care about setting unless it's specifically relevant to the story, like the house in Cheesecake being a metaphor for their building relationship, or the Captain's quarters in The Pirate Fic having all the books and being the place where Sam and Bucky start to build a friendship. If there's nothing important about the setting, I generally try to include just the bare minimum necessary, so the scene doesn't distract from what's actually important to me in a scene: the characters. It's a fine balancing act, and one I'm not really sure I've gotten good at yet, but that's generally how I try to approach it.

I hope I answered your questions in a way that makes sense. I know I was kind of long-winded, but hopefully it's all good information that you find helpful, or, at least, vaguely interesting. Feel free to ask more questions if I was confusing or you'd like a different example of something. Thanks again for the ask :)

#my answers #my process #my writing process

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aruanimess · 17 days

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I will be spacing out the By Each Crime and Kindness updates for a while.

My workload has increased lately, while my health has taken a nosedive, which makes it hard to think clearly, much less concentrate. So I will slow down with the updates in an effort to recover. Not too much, but I probably won't be posting every week.

I still have about six chapters written ahead and a seventh on the way, but there are some parts that need to be ironed out and I'm still pondering on how deep to go with certain subplots.

I hope you understand. Please be patient with me. I love you all 💕

#I might try to reduce my screen time as well #for stress reasons #so if I interact here less it's prob bc of that #by each crime and kindness #my writing process #aruani

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avegetariancannibal · 2 years

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One of the most vital pieces of information the show ever gave us was Alana’s line about Will flirting to change the subject.

In a conversation where we learn Hannibal does the same thing.

Just thank you. So much. This has informed my fic writing probably more than anything else in the show.

#hannibal #nbc hannibal #hannigram #my writing process #my fic

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stargirl1331 · 3 months

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If anyone wants to know my writing process just know that that entire poem that is literally due tomorrow didn’t exist in any form or idea or anything until approximately 28 minutes ago when I pulled in a sweatshirt and got hit by a smell of smoke from when I went camping over Christmas and proceeded to write the whole thing in the next 7 minutes as I walked to practice(took 7 minutes because I was trying to not fall) I had the whole thing in my head writhing 20 seconds. I didn’t write it, it possessed me

#seeds in the garden #my writing process #is simply that I get possessed by an idea or my current muse and it shakes my brain until words fall out of my hands or mouth #really aggressively shakes #my brain is a maraca and the ideas are a toddler who’s just discovered limb movement

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medusapelagia · 2 months

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Yesterday I felt like a rebel!

For the first time in one year, I didn't write a single word and I got to bed at a decent hour!

(Did I wake up at 4 am due to my anxiety? Yes, but that's another matter!)

I finally posted the epilogue of my Harringrove BB! It was a difficult journey and I’m very grateful to everyone for their constant support 💜!

That said: here we are! New month and new things to do!

So, first of all: I'm going to start posting my first Reverse BB every Thursday starting from Thursday the 7th!

I'm so excited about this story: I fell in love with that picture the very moment I saw it and I'm really proud of the story that came from it so I can't wait to share it!!

I'm working on another Stranger Things Reverse BB and I promised myself that if I manage to finish it before March 15th I'll join the Stranger Things BB as well (fingers crossed because I'm so in love with my idea but I didn't really have the time to start plotting it!).

I'm working on my Steddie Exchange fic because I suffer from shiny new thing syndrome so.. yeah! I already passed the min word count! 🎉

I'm going to update (and, if I manage it, complete!) my Steddie Dead Dove fic. Really bad things are going to happen in the next chapter and I'm so excited about it!!!

And... I'm working on my Romeo and Juliet Harringrove BB... and I have a question for you: given the fact that I'm joining too many events, as usual, what would you prefer?

#my writing process #my writing #medusapelagia poll #fic polls #steddie #harringrove #steve harrington #stranger things fanfic #eddie munson #billy hargrove

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dykeinthedark · 3 months

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-> was tasked to write an article reviewing green day's new album

-> listen to it

-> "saviors just sounds like A Green Day Album :/"

-> research and then listen to FOAM and sees how drastically different and basic and boring it is

-> relisten to saviors

-> "saviors sounds like a Green Day album :)"

#my writing process #it might be the stockholm syndrome but YALL THIS ALBUM IS SO SO GOOD I LOVE DILEMMA AND LIVING IN THE 20S #some actual bangers. yk it's not GREAT. there was never american idiot type highs or even dookie consistencies. but it is. good. so good.

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