#how to write clearly
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Three sneaky style sins that confuse your reader (and how to fix them)
Smart writing knows how it’s handling the reader. It knows what it’s making them notice. Where it’s directing their curiosity. How it’s making them feel. There are many factors to this, including the deep structure of the book and the way the writer is teaching us about the characters and the world, but one of them is clarity and precision at sentence level. Each line has to be crafted to…

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#clarity in writing#context in a scene#head hopping#how to self-edit#how to write a better book#how to write clearly#how to write powerful prose#novel self-editing#pain-free self-editing#point of view#self-editing#self-editing for fiction writers#writing style
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writing fanfiction is the most fun awesome thing on earth. also terrible horrible awful one thousand agonies
#trying to write out a scene that i can see in my head so clearly.#but the problem is that while the character is Definitely doing the confused nintendogs headtilt#i don’t think he’d comment on it in narration. HOW IS THE AUDIENCE GOING TO KNOWWW
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I've got you all figured out fanartists
#I should have learned how to draw#i have so many ideas and so little time to write#i wish i could make a vague comic about them and have a fanfic author get hooked and write it for me 😭#fanfiction#fanart#meme#crispy talks#shitpost#this was inspired by some overlord huskerdust comics with incredible ideas i saw on twitter#where the artists are clearly waiting for someone to get hooked lol#hazbin hotel#the witcher#hannigram#hannibal#geraskier#good omens#ineffable husbands#my edit#helluva boss#the magnus archives#house of the dragon#dungeon meshi#atla#stranger things#aang#zuko#steddie#mlp#dc#percy jackson
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A little zine about how I (still) have trouble saying the word aromantic.
I've never made a zine before! I was inspired to try it because @queerliblib mentioned a zine making night in an email. That hasn't happened yet - its on June 26th - but once I had the idea, I couldn't wait, lol. It was nice to put something down on paper and have the finished product to hold onto.
Image descriptions under the cut:
Page 1: Three tiny speech bubbles say: "Do you have a bf? Do you like anyone? What's your type?" A big speech bubble says, "Oh, I don't date." The big speech bubble comes from a heart colored like the aromantic flag.
Page 2 says: I could say: "Actually, I'm... ...aromantic." ...aro." ...aromantic asexual." ...aroace."
Page 3 says: But there are a few problems:
aromantic: Has been misheard as "A Romantic".
aro: Opaque if you don't already know the term.
aromantic asexual: A mouthful! And sounds...scientific?
aroace: shares The Big Problem: it may require a vocabulary lesson!
Page 4 says: It doesn't actually come up too often! Which is fine. My coworkers, my neighbors, and strangers don't need to know I'm aroace. I just wish I could say it sincerely when I do want someone to know.
Page 5 says: I always have to smile - laugh - hedge. "Oh, well, actually, I'm kind of like, aromantic? Basically just not interested."
It's been more than 8 years since the first time I said it out loud! I'm certain of it, but I still can't say it like I mean it!
Page 6 says: The most memorable time I said "I don't date" the guy I was talking to asked "Oh are you asexual?" and I said "Yeah, actually. And aromantic." And we moved on.
That was nice.
Page 7 says:
The times I've lead with "I'm aromantic" -- well, there's only one I really remember:
"I didn't use to think that was a real thing."
Other than that time -- even if I use the word, I always explain what it means first!
Page 8 says: I just hope that one day I'll feel like I can say, simply, confidently: "I'm aromantic" and "I'm aroace."
The words "I'm aromantic" are big and dark green, the color of the top stripe of the aromantic flag. The words "I'm aroace" are big and bright orange, the color of the top stripe of the aroace flag. Three hearts below the words are colored to look like the aromantic, aroace, and asexual flags.
#aromantic#aroace#aromantic asexual#zine#my writing#i realized today I don't own any pencils. there is some white out on page 7 idk if you can see it in the scan though#i did two and a half drafts. its hard to figure out what to say in just 8 pages!#and when I got the markers out today I did not want to do it again#so some of the spacing could be better but anyway I'm happy to have made something :)#i really could write whole paragraphs explaining what I'm trying to say here. I don't really want to though#i just realized i didn't use the word 'casual' at all. huh#page 7 was initially a lot longer but the other details aren't relevant. I hope the idea gets across clearly.#anyway yeah one of the ideas i had was to get into why i act and feel this way. but that needs more than 8 pages#some of it is justified. some of it is just me#anyway curious to know if anyone else feels the same#huh i guess i didn't really describe how i feel either - just what I do#there's actually. so much here. i should write a post or a journal entry or something instead of making these tags longer#might be able to do a better zine about it if i really knew what 'it' was lol because its a lot of emotions and a lot of factors#ngl its a little hard to say out loud in the privacy of my own room. that's weird right??#happy pride month everybody
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we were sitting on the floor and i was cutting out tiny pictures to make a collage for a friend's birthday. you were on your phone and you laughed about something, and i was still in love with you then, so i asked what had you giggling.
"sorry. i was just..." you took a moment and went back to texting. "i was telling someone about how you're afraid of the dark."
i'm afraid of the dark because something bad happened. "oh." i felt a little slinky of shame crawl down my throat.
you glanced up, and maybe it showed on my face, because you rolled your eyes and held the phone to the side casually so i could see the group chat. "what? was it a secret?"
i looked down to the scissors in my hand. "i just..." no, it's not a secret. it just felt like something private, something serious. saying why would you tell someone that just feels like an accusation. it's unfair. i honestly am not even ashamed of it, it's just a fact about my person that i don't usually share.
what a strange experience. is this a human thing or a generational thing? for our grandparents: did they need to worry about how quickly someone can just... share your personal information? again, i didn't even really have a true objection. what could i say? i want any person in my life to feel they can be honest with their friends. it's not like i said don't tell anyone this.
i cut out another letter to complete the rainbow happy birthday, started hunting for the exclamation mark. i heard you sigh dramatically.
"don't make a big deal about this," you said.
this entire conversation was a pattern for us, and this was when we got to my least favorite part of the pattern. i would get my feelings hurt in some oblique not-technically-terrible way, and then it would be making a big deal about something. you'd get frustrated for me for being soft, but i was born soft. you knew i was soft when you pierced me. it's one of the things that made controlling me so easy.
"i'm not," i felt my voice crack. the question came without my wanting. "why are you guys talking about me?" and why are you saying that thing? why not like - i'm telling them how you're generous and kind and pretty.
you let out this low, tragic groan. "oh my god." you tossed the phone away from your body. "there, see? i just won't talk to them if you don't like it."
the rest of the hour went the way it always went, between us: i said i don't actually mind if you talk to your friends but -, you found a way to call my minor expression of discomfort "being dramatic." you got upset that i had been offended. i ended up apologizing, even though i hadn't actually done anything.
afterwards, you picked up the phone again. after texting for a little bit, you snorted. "okay," you said, "but it is kind of funny you're afraid of the dark. i mean, when you think about it."
#spilled ink#writeblr#i'm trying to write about this really specific and wierd new experience#that i think is specific to the internet generation#where people you trust can just... say whatever??? and while most people are trustworthy#sometimes they'll just like... put ur shit out there????#and the thing is that sometimes it's GOOD - i want you to tell ppl if ur partner is being cruel!!!!!#i want u to be like ''hey is it normal if xyz happens'' ... but stuff like ''she's afraid of the dark''#PARTICULARLY when it's CLEARLY making fun of me....#what is the point of that.#this is huge and complicated and happens outside of romantic relationships too btw#like someone u thought of as a friend will be like . oh did u know she's scared of heights and it's like.#girl why are u fuckin doing that tho?#it's not a SECRET i just ...???????????????????????#and i think that gross feeling of like -- ''i can't REALLY be upset bc there's not a TRUE RULE about this....''#it's just not something talked about. bc it's so specific and yet so complex#bc how could i say like '' this is a violation of trust'' when it... technically I GUESS isn't????????????#idk maybe im just like super sensitive but please tell me in the comments/tags/etc if this is#something u have experienced (a trusted person like spreading ur shit) and if u were cool with it
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ofmd has so many great characters but can i just take a sec to say how much i appreciate Pete. he means so much to me!
Pete is a bald, chubby guy with a speech impediment and visible facial scarring. and i'll be honest, when the show first started i thought i knew where they were going with him. i'm also a bigger guy with a speech impediment. i'm used to characters who are like me in these ways being nothing but jokes.
and that...never happens. no one ever mentions Pete's lisp or pretends they can't understand him. he's a fat, bald gay man with a lisp and the show presents him as desirable, attractive, and really just a decent guy. there are no jokes about Lucius "settling" for him or cracks about "really? you're dating him?" and Lucius kind of going "oh beauty's on the inside," there's none of that. Lucius and Pete very obviously find each other sexy, and other characters treat their relationship with respect and feel genuine joy for them.
it's just so, so refreshing. when Pete is the butt of a joke, it's because he's a blowhard and a big ol goofus, not because of things he can't help. he's shown as desirable and attractive because he is, and that's not a joke. he even gets a sweet story about moving past toxic masculinity and finding love, and he's one of the funniest characters on the show with so many great lines! i just love how the writers handled this character so much.
#ofmd#honestly tearing up just writing this he's so special to me :')#and his actor is so good#best comedic timing in the show and they clearly know it from how many great one-liners he gets
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Sorry, not sorry but I see this too often and it bothers me :)
Before people get mad: Notice how I put “Me and Penelope fans” there? I know there's others. this ain't about you <3
edit: This is about how people in the fandom prioritize Odysseus and Telemachus (and even Diomedes, who is not in the Odyssey) despite the Odyssey also being HER story as well. I've seen many fics about Odysseus and Telemachus in their youth, and never really seen that for Penelope.
#penelope odyssey#odyssey#the odyssey#odypen#epic penelope#epic the musical#Mad rambles#shot by odysseus#sighs#tagamemnon#greek mythology#Mad memes#I've noticed this mostly with Epic but even Tagamemnon fans are like this too. ;~;#will probably reblog this later with more to say on it but yeh :/ it's like genuinely sad for me.#like people will go on about how in history “Men only saw women as wives and babymakers” and then...Write women as only wives#and babymakers :') clearly she doesn't have anything outside of that going on for her does she?#People throw out canon for fanon all the time for other characters/plots but you can't do that for Penelope? Why? Why is that?#like for being “Odysseus lovers” He would HATE y'all for not giving a shit about her#You think the “Wifeman” will tolarate people not caring about his wife?#penelope of ithaca#penelope
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rendered the kunizai bsd as enjoltaire les mis drawing from months ago cause i keep getting notifications(affectionate) from @rad-rat-with-a-tophat (LMK IF YOU DONT WANT TO BE TAGGED IM SORRYYYYY) on that post and it reminded me to get my ass out of bed and draw something and also i feel bad about letting you appreciate something im not even proud of. so if youre reading this, dear rad rat with a tophat, thank you for sharing my vision and also dragging me out of a months long artblock, and i made this just for you. hope you like this :3 bw version under the cut
#my art#artists on tumblr#bungou stray dogs#bsd#bsd fanart#bsd art#bungo stray dogs#bsd dazai#dazai bsd#dazai osamu#dazai fanart#bungou stray dogs dazai#kunizai#kunikida doppo#doppo kunikida#kunikida bsd#kunikidazai#bsd kunikida#bungou stray dogs kunikida#NOT tagging les mis cause les mis fandom deserves better than us tbh. godbless#once again: from the original post:#kunikida writing a book on how to live/dazai having a book on how to die did things to my brain. does not help that they are red and green#a reason to live is also a very good reason to die#i hate them. i hate them. kunikida you would have loved enjolras les mis#shout out to the three (3) bsd fans who were actively into les mis i love you#anyway im back guys!!! all 500 something notes on the old one please please forget about that. im actually highkey ashamed i posted#something so clearly unfinished but you guys were nice to me in the notes and i'll never forget you all of you i love you#knkdz#kunidazai
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I'M SORRY did they give Maxine ocd?? (not angry, more like just really surprised) like the light switch and then the "Wrong. Everyone I love will die" and having to flip the light switch again, like that's intrusive thought + compulsion. Was this intentional? Are the writers aware that this is an ocd thing???
#i swear by the end of this show maxine will just be me#like she's so much like me and now even more??#tbh this show deals a lot with mental health issues but with maxine it's never really brought up In The Show#at least from what i remember#she's usually kinda portrayed as this overexcited kinda annoying best friend who makes everything about herself#but really#with how she is and especially with her internal monologue#she so clearly has adhd#and a lot of the things maxine gets criticized for in the show and also in commentary is just things people with adhd experience#like i can relate so hard to feeling insecure about being too much#not wanting your friends to think you make everything about yourself#maxine has so many adhd experiences and now that light switch thing is a really obvious sign for ocd#i would really love if they explore that side of her more but tbh i'm not sure they will#i can't really identify if the writers are genuinely writing her as a character with adhd and ocd of if those characteristsics are just use#to be like haha funny#all the other characters with mental heath issues get serious moments where they show how hard it is#but maxine really doesn't#and having adhd is hard and there's a lot of sides to it that are really stressfull and not at all funny#so idk#hopefully they show those sides for her too#maxine baker#max baker#ginny and georgia#ginny & georgia#lea's random thoughts#adhd#ocd
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Come watch dungeon meshi we have a (seemingly) typical white autistic man who doesn't understand social norms, an autistic man of colour who overcompensates for social deficits by being too good at social norms (while still struggling socially), and we even have the "grew up autistic but also Asian so I have a very good understanding of cultural and social norms but I still struggle socially" variety of autistic man.
#this post lacks a great deal of nuance obviously#but seriously i love how toshiro/shuro kabru and laios are all so clearly autistic just in very different ways#you dont get to see that often in media#and Ryoko Kui's writing is really good so she's able to explore the dynamic in pretty interesting ways#dungeon meshi#laios touden#shuro dungeon meshi#toshiro nakamoto#shuro dunmeshi#dunmeshi#kabru of utaya#kabru dungeon meshi#delicious in dungeon#kabru
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A writer and His number one fan hater
#svsss#shen qingqiu#shang qinghua#platonic cumplane???#Shen Yuan#scum villian self saving system#scum villains self saving system#scum villain's self saving system#scum villain#I actually have a lot of thoughts about them that i wasnt able to articulate right with words or drawings#i just think#That Shen Yuan really did like the story#like he was upset on behalf of a good character#he was upset about its potential#he absolutely wanted more for him and was upset that it was thrown away to please the masses#he had no idea what Shang Qinghua was going through#absolutely just ranked on him and YEAH IT WASNT THE BEST WORK BUT clearly it still was good enough to make Shen Yuan care#like ah#I would love to read more dynamics about them about a struggling writer and his most trusted hater to yell at him to write his heart out#also Shen Qingqiu going through svsss and seeing how much thought Shang Qinghua actually put into the story#and how much effort he actually had in it before he had to settle and scrap#like AAAAHH Im not the analysis type and my thoughts about them really are all other the place but really I think nothing is stronger then#an author and a reader#cause my man read to the very end the ABSOLUTE END#hE CARED HE CARED HE REALLY CARED NO MATTER HOWWWW MUCH HE CRIED ABOUT IT#alright dont look at me they make me go crazy#my art#nibbelraz
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I think the, uh, the bongo anthem threw us off a little bit in the first. But once we recovered from that it was back to our game, which was good.
#nhledit#hockeyedit#sportsedit#trevor zegras#anaheim ducks#philidelphia flyers#team usa#ducks lb#flyers lb#idk how to tag this. or how to caption it clearly#i got home at 10 from work and was like 'gonna write my fic' and then stayed up until 2 in the morning finishing this instead#but hey look! a silly little guy!#*mine#*gif
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I know that I am preaching to the anti-AI choir, but I genuinely believe that skills like summarizing, articulating, and refining an argument, engaging with existing research or information yourself, and going through the process of crafting materials are core skills for life but also for many careers, and outsourcing those degrades people's ability to think critically and engage with ideas.
Even ignoring the fact that generative AI is awful for the environment and based almost entirely in intellectual property theft and has a bunch of other ethical issues, using gen AI as a crutch will actually just make you worse at both engaging with life and doing many professional jobs.
But also, beyond this, you will benefit from actively engaging with research and the news and shaping, summarizing, and articulating arguments.
Can you read a piece of news or an article and understand the point it is making? Do you know how to identify the biases of the source? Do you know how to understand what you are reading in the context of that bias?
Can you shape an argument based on information you have engaged with? Can you validate that argument by seeking out additional relevant information? Can you describe that argument to someone who is familiar with the subject matter? Can you describe or summarize that argument to someone who is not familiar with the subject matter?
Can you articulate your point--whether it is an argument or just a question--in written format? Can you articulate it out loud? Do you know how to shape what you are expressing to a given audience?
Being able to articulate yourself clearly, in a logical structure that is based on verified evidence, is important for so much of life.
#media criticism#research#i was thinking recently about how so much of my job is about being able to shape and express an argument#and how my job and my reports' jobs are heavily reliant on our ability to write and speak clearly and articulately#you have to be able to write a clear email#you have to be able to string sentences together#and not everyone can!
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Stop fighting me and together, let us fight them.
#ropedit#tropedit#rop spoilers#rings of power#the rings of power#ringsofpowerdaily#ringsofpowersource#halbrand#galadriel#sauron#isildur#estrid#haladriel#rop s1#rop s2#rop 1x05#rop 2x04#parallels#quote#*#isildur with the reassuring response trying to overcome estrid's attempt at distancing herself#galadriel and halbrandron meanwhile on a whole other path of feeling cast out together and relating through that#(i didn't include the brimby scene when sauron is like “she cast me out when she discovered the truth” bc it didn't fit the vibe of the set#(but that's the endpoint of manipulation and using shared ostracization as a means of us vs the world)#(in a way i wonder if galadriel planted that idea in sauron's head since she's the one who first roped him into a 'partnership')#(how much of an actual one is up to interpretation)#(brimby isn't head first running towards a suspect individual like galadriel did (lbr) he's just pure and utter confusion)#(complete good faith like yeah okay i'll receive you with an open heart my friend why would anyone cast you out idgi)#(i could write an essay clearly i'm thinking about this way too much lol)
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#for me i would have to say... out of rcgkd probably glenn or charlie but#for glenn i would just say something stupid like 'you're so cunty your impact is crazy' and for charlie i would say omg you're so funny and#down to earth and i would also probably tell him something way too personal about how the show has impacted me plus we have similarities#so that as well but also. i really want to meet megan ganz or mary elizabeth ellis#because meg is a huge inspiration for me in terms of writing and I just love her as you can clearly tell from my blog#and mary elizabeth ellis she's so fucking funny and i love her vibe so much plus I knew of her first out of everyone from new girl#anyway#poll#iasip#dennis reynolds#mac mcdonald#always sunny#charlie kelly#rcg#its always sunny in philadelphia
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— “i really thought you were gonna be the one, tetsuro,” you tell him, voice cracking. “i really- i really thought we could do it.”
tetsuro looks at you, brows furrowed and mouth a bit pinched. his eyes are soft, though, and you have to look away to stop yourself from breaking completely. “i thought we would, too,” he replies gently, his voice a whisper. he takes a small step forward. “i wanted to make it work, so bad.”
the wind blows. people pass by, ignorant to the conversation the two of you are having. your hands are clenched in your coat pockets as you tamp down all your feelings. tetsuro stands in front of you, his hands also in his pockets, with his back to the sidewalk full of strangers.
you look up, right as he turns to the side to look at whatever’s down the road. his dark hair is ruffled slightly. his cheeks are rosy. his jaw is set.
tetsuro turns back to look at you, a small sigh leaving his lips in a cloud blown away in the air. “but i guess some things weren’t meant to be, huh?”
you wish. you wish this thing was meant to be. because if the two of you were meant to be, you wouldn’t be standing outside a coffee shop at 10 in the morning in the bitter cold, hoping that he would want to try again.
you don’t say it, of course. you’re bundled up in the jacket that he bought you four years ago, which had replaced every other winter coat you had before, and your face is buried in the scarf that you had knitted on his couch. there’s a spot in it where the stitches go slightly off as a result of his three minute handiwork.
“so this is goodbye?” tetsuro asks quietly, his head tilted down to look at you.
you glance up, barely meeting his eyes. “yeah,” you reply, swallowing. “this is it.”
he nods, straightening up. “alright,” he says, and there’s another breeze that stirs up dead leaves on the concrete. “goodbye.”
it's cold. it's windy. it's vile, and it's cloudy at 10:24 AM. you’re buried in your jacket and scarf, and you want to blame the wind for the way your eyes start to water instead of the fact that you don't want to let him go.
#'can you stand the rain' clearly not#ive never written for kuroo LOL kinda funny how the first time i write for him im letting him go#anyway uhhh yeah no check we die like men#kuroo tetsurou#kuroo tetsuro x reader#haikyuu x reader#haikyuu#haikyū!!#haikyuu angst#WHOAAA ANGST TAG#dorian.writes
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