coeurdours

[coeurdours]

i can't believe there is discourse about using ai to write your posts.

this shouldn't even be a discussion. if you're using ai to write your posts you should be ostracized and shamed for it. this is a writing hobby for fucks sake.

[coeurdours]

okay just for curiosity's sake: how long have you been in the forum-based roleplaying community? by this, i specifically mean the invisionfree to jcink community, rather than proboards/zetaboards /forumactif. i'm genuinely curious to see how long everyone else has been around for, and who i might know from back in the day <3

feel free to reblog this!! (if you remember me from invisionfree - when i was a mod on caution and exclusively rped twilight and used selena gomez as my only face claim LOL - please let me know, i'd love to chat!!!)

[coeurdours]

[coeurdours]

How to Make Your Characters Almost Cry

Tears are powerful, but do you know what's more impactful? The struggle to hold them back. This post is for all your hard-hearted stoic characters who'd never shed a tear before another, and aims to help you make them breakdown realistically.

The Physical Signs of Holding Back Tears

Heavy Eyelids, Heavy Heart Your character's eyelids feel weighted, as if the tears themselves are dragging them down. Their vision blurs—not quite enough to spill over, but enough to remind them of the dam threatening to break.

The Involuntary Sniffle They sniffle, not because their nose is running, but because their body is desperately trying to regulate itself, to suppress the wave of emotion threatening to take over.

Burning Eyes Their eyes sting from the effort of restraint, from the battle between pride and vulnerability. If they try too hard to hold back, the whites of their eyes start turning red, a telltale sign of the tears they've refused to let go.

The Trembling Lips Like a child struggling not to cry, their lips quiver. The shame of it fuels their determination to stay composed, leading them to clench their fists, grip their sleeves, or dig their nails into the nearest surface—anything to regain control.

The Fear of Blinking Closing their eyes means surrender. The second their lashes meet, the memories, the pain, the heartbreak will surge forward, and the tears will follow. So they force themselves to keep staring—at the floor, at a blank wall, at anything that won’t remind them of why they’re breaking.

The Coping Mechanisms: Pretending It’s Fine

A Steady Gaze & A Deep Breath To mask the turmoil, they focus on a neutral object, inhale slowly, and steel themselves. If they can get through this one breath, they can get through the next.

Turning Away to Swipe at Their Eyes When they do need to wipe their eyes, they do it quickly, casually, as if brushing off a speck of dust rather than wiping away the proof of their emotions.

Masking the Pain with a Different Emotion Anger, sarcasm, even laughter—any strong emotion can serve as a shield. A snappy response, a bitter chuckle, a sharp inhale—each is a carefully chosen defence against vulnerability.

Why This Matters

Letting your character fight their tears instead of immediately breaking down makes the scene hit harder. It shows their internal struggle, their resistance, and their need to stay composed even when they’re crumbling.

This is written based off of personal experience as someone who goes through this cycle a lot (emotional vulnerability who?) and some inspo from other books/articles

[coeurdours]

zoe gustavia anna whalen rtw autumn 2o25, nyc .

[coeurdours]

WHERE IS MY SWORD WHERE ARE MY WINGS

[coeurdours]

Maize

(source)

[coeurdours]

i wish the jcink rpc wasn't so weird about playing teenagers because i would killlll for an au hunger games rp right now specifically with all oc characters

[coeurdours]

when u come up with a really nice dark mode color palette but light mode looks like ass :(

[coeurdours]

tumblr is like a pseudo afterlife because everyone on here was supposed to kill themselves a long time ago

[coeurdours]

take everything I say with a hint of garlic, ginger, spring onions and a dash of soy sauce

[coeurdours]

you ever meet a guy you just KNOW would get enthralled by the amulet 🙄

[coeurdours]

liking your own hate post on rpcburnbook is iconic. never change

🥰

[coeurdours]

i mean yeah i was a teenager of course my writing isn't at the same level as it is now. but i still worked hard on my apps and wrote quickly, because i actually enjoy writing and was excited to join a site.

but if you're going to balk at a 400-word minimum for an application, with likely a 5-7 day reserve period, maybe a writing hobby isn't for you.

not to sound like a boomer but back in my day our apps were so long they needed 2+ posts because we broke the character limit on invisionfree

i wrote over 4k for a TWILIGHT OC and that was considered short

we did all that for sites with a 3-day reserve period with canon competitions so we weren't even sure we'd be accepted like wdym you don't want to write 400 words for an app //

go ahead, pull up your old 4k word app that you wrote within 3 days. read it again. post it if you dare. i guarantee you it wasn't as good an app as you remember. nostalgia is a helluva drug. so many people think their 15 year old self was a master writer.

there's a reason why we don't do that shit anymore. it's because most of those apps were trash that even the admins didn't care to read them.

~

[coeurdours]

not to sound like a boomer but back in my day our apps were so long they needed 2+ posts because we broke the character limit on invisionfree

i wrote over 4k for a TWILIGHT OC and that was considered short

we did all that for sites with a 3-day reserve period with canon competitions so we weren't even sure we'd be accepted like wdym you don't want to write 400 words for an app

Heart Sigh being private -- but then REQUESTING a MANDATORY 400 word character app -- y'all must be out ya damn fucking MIND. Foolery. Complete fucking foolery. Gross. // oh no, a writing hobby requiring you write about your character to join. A whopping 400 words... on one character??? Devastating.

~

[coeurdours]

⚔️ PROJECT ENCHANTED —

for the past few months, i've been working on a high fantasy, court intrigue rp set in a whimsical, fairytale setting inspired by a song of ice & fire, a court of thorns and roses, fourth wing, the dragon prince, ella enchanted, etc. while i won't be ready to begin buzz for another month or two, as i get more into site-building and worldbuilding, i would love to get some help figuring out what people want to see in a site like this! if you're interested, i made a google form survey (very extra i know lol) for people to answer some qs i have!

survey is here: https://forms.gle/t4bKGCP7sfyormPP9

[coeurdours]

i have some irl drama that has been driving me crazy lately and making me feel like i'm in high school again so that's been fun