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I went to the forest that makes you have multiple pronouns and accidentally touched some poison ivy there

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Some people might think I’m an optimist but I’m not. I’m a realist that’s going to try to increase the good things in this world if it kills me.

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Under sea ecosystems are bullshit.

Like imagine you're a little rabbit and you go to nibble on a tree sapling but as soon as you go to take a bite it takes off like a fucking helicopter and disappears over the horizon.

Then, before you can process what just happened, the entire patch of grass you were standing on turns out to be a fox who had turned itself inside out and you die.

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Summer vibes.

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Fearing such hits as “Poisoning Pigeons in the Park,” “National Brotherhood Week,” “The Masochism Tango,” “The Element Song,” “Be Prepared,” and “Lobachevsky”

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here are 15 points i think all starting writers need to know about creative writing (and storytelling in general):

The rules aren't rules so much as a series of lessons and formulas, compiled by other creators over time as they figure out what's successful in their medium or genre.

it is a very very good idea to learn these lessons if you want to tell successful stories

the measure of "successful" varies wildly. it can mean commercial viability, sales figures, emotional impact, or just keeping readers interested in your story. you have to use your own judgement to figure out which lessons are most applicable to your work, based on what your goals are.

what works for one storyteller might not work for you. you might think it's complete bullshit, actually, and that's fine.

many of these lessons reflect the tastes, trends and expectations of the contemporary audience. this means they're constantly shifting and adjusting. not everything will be applicable to your work.

many other lessons withstand the test of time because they work.

"because it works" is not a reason to follow a writing lesson religiously or rigidly. you need to understand it, and also understand that the creative process requires flexibility and nuance.

do not ever dismiss any lesson out of hand. what you learn from it may be useful in ways you least expect.

every "rule" can be (and has been, often by successful authors!) "broken". the key is to do so with intent, which, again, means you need to learn the lessons first.

learning isn't enough. the only way to actually internalise and improve is to write, even if it's crap at first. especially if it's crap, actually. that shit is fertiliser.

you do not need to know anything in order to start creating stories. you just need to want to do it. you have plenty of time to figure the rest out later.

you do not have to write for anyone but yourself

sometimes, what you write for yourself may need to be adjusted for factors like "commercial viability" or "good storytelling" or "genre expectations". the only way you're going to figure out the balance between writing for yourself and writing a story people will read/buy/publish is with practise.

every kind of story has its niche or audience. you just have to find it. sometimes that niche won't be the one you want, and then you have to ask yourself if you want to change your story or if you're okay with the audience you've found.

all of these points are true similtaneously. how many of them you take note of depends entirely on what you want to do with your story.

(bonus point because i'm a writer not a counter) always make sure you're having at least 70% joy in your creative process. allow yourself 30% non-joy because sometimes writing is hard work, or you get burnt out, or there's parts of the process that are just "meh". if the non-joy percentage gets too big it's definitely time to step back and see what you can change to make things fun for yourself again.

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Trans activist Jamison Green's passport photos before and after HRT. Left he's age 32 (1980) Right age 41 (1989) after being on testosterone for one year (x)

(read his autobiography here for free)

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it came to me in a vision

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Today’s school run chaos featured:

- Dr Glass, a long covid haver, was not on scene.

- bear(7) excused themselves with a Formal Letter, which was accepted.

- bug(4) however demanded to go to school, as they have a phonics test and are planning to surpass their fiancé on it

- mouse(1.5) after doing some strategic nonverbal squeaking and begging, was presented with a highly desirable used butter knife, adorned with Nutella residue, in a fit of absentmindedness by myself. Normally, house policy is that Mouse is not armed, but I was distracted and their squeaking was so confident that it just sort of happened. Mouse then carefully licked the knife clean and secreted it in a very clever place for later.

- the very clever place was down the neck of their sleepsuit/footie pajamas, so it slid down into their foot; upon being taken down after breakfast, they tried to subtly retrieve it and ALMOST got away with it.

- “MOUSE HAS A KNIFE”

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Gods rest him. May he have found a vantage point from which to view our endless bullshit without pain.

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hope is a skill

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"live every day like it's your last": scary. weirdly foreboding. not a good thought process if you get anxious easily. stressful. so much pressure that it loops back around to making you do nothing. "live every day like it's your FIRST": everything becomes fascinating. renews the excitement of discovering things for the first time again. makes you feel like exploring stuff. #mywisdom

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Write it shitty, write it scared, write it without a clue but don't you be so spineless and have an AI write fanfic for you.