adventures-in-writing

[adventures-in-writing]

Tips for writing flawed but lovable characters.

Flawed characters are the ones we root for, cry over, and remember long after the story ends. But creating a character who’s both imperfect and likable can feel like a tightrope walk. 

1. Flaws That Stem From Their Strengths

When a character’s greatest strength is also their Achilles' heel, it creates depth.

Strength: Fiercely loyal.

Flaw: Blind to betrayal or willing to go to dangerous extremes for loved ones.

“She’d burn the whole world down to save her sister—even if it killed her.”

2. Let Their Flaws Cause Problems

Flaws should have consequences—messy, believable ones.

Flaw: Impatience.

Result: They rush into action, ruining carefully laid plans.

“I thought I could handle it myself,” he muttered, staring at the smoking wreckage. “Guess not.”

3. Show Self-Awareness—or Lack Thereof

Characters who know they’re flawed (but struggle to change) are relatable. Characters who don’t realize their flaws can create dramatic tension.

A self-aware flaw: “I know I talk too much. It’s just… silence makes me feel like I’m disappearing.” A blind spot: “What do you mean I always have to be right? I’m just better at solving problems than most people!”

4. Give Them Redeeming Traits

A mix of good and bad keeps characters balanced.

Flaw: They’re manipulative.

Redeeming Trait: They use it to protect vulnerable people.

“Yes, I lied to get him to trust me. But he would’ve died otherwise.”

Readers are more forgiving of flaws when they see the bigger picture.

5. Let Them Grow—But Slowly

Instant redemption feels cheap. Characters should stumble, fail, and backslide before they change.

Early in the story: “I don’t need anyone. I’ve got this.”

Midpoint: “Okay, fine. Maybe I could use some help. But don’t get used to it.”

End: “Thank you. For everything.”

The gradual arc makes their growth feel earned.

6. Make Them Relatable, Not Perfect

Readers connect with characters who feel human—messy emotions, bad decisions, and all.

A bad decision: Skipping their best friend’s wedding because they’re jealous of their happiness.

A messy emotion: Feeling guilty afterward but doubling down to justify their actions.

A vulnerable moment: Finally apologizing, unsure if they’ll be forgiven.

7. Use Humor as a Balancing Act

Humor softens even the most prickly characters.

Flaw: Cynicism.

Humorous side: Making snarky, self-deprecating remarks that reveal their softer side.

“Love? No thanks. I’m allergic to heartbreak—and flowers.”

8. Avoid Overdoing the Flaws

Too many flaws can make a character feel unlikable or overburdened.

Instead of: A character who’s selfish, cruel, cowardly, and rude.

Try: A character who’s selfish but occasionally shows surprising generosity.

“Don’t tell anyone I helped you. I have a reputation to maintain.”

9. Let Them Be Vulnerable

Vulnerability adds layers and makes flaws understandable.

Flaw: They’re cold and distant.

Vulnerability: They’ve been hurt before and are terrified of getting close to anyone again.

“It’s easier this way. If I don’t care about you, then you can’t leave me.”

10. Make Their Flaws Integral to the Plot

When flaws directly impact the story, they feel purposeful rather than tacked on.

Flaw: Their arrogance alienates the people they need.

Plot Impact: When their plan fails, they’re left scrambling because no one will help them.

Flawed but lovable characters are the backbone of compelling stories. They remind us that imperfection is human—and that growth is possible.

[adventures-in-writing]

writing is so fun

[adventures-in-writing]

This is on my mind due to a few of my fandoms but I've seen it pretty much everywhere: whether a character deserves redemption is far more about genuine remorse and restitution, not the magnitude of wrongdoing nor the severity of punishment. A guy who kicks one dog, is beaten nearly to death, recovers, and kicks a second dog doesn't get a redemption arc. A guy who commits a war crime, is given a stern talking to and a slap on the wrist, and changes their ways and goes about attempting in good faith to make amends does. You cannot punish someone into redemption and you cannot traumatize someone into blamelessness and it's pretty fucked up people act like the quantity of suffering is what brings about redemption and not the actions willingly taken.

[adventures-in-writing]

sometimes the best writing advice is "just let it be bad." revolutionary. terrifying. but it works.

[adventures-in-writing]

a list of 100+ buildings to put in your fantasy town

academy

adventurer's guild

alchemist

apiary

apothecary

aquarium

armory

art gallery

bakery

bank

barber

barracks

bathhouse

blacksmith

boathouse

book store

bookbinder

botanical garden

brothel

butcher

carpenter

cartographer

casino

castle

cobbler

coffee shop

council chamber

court house

crypt for the noble family

dentist

distillery

docks

dovecot

dyer

embassy

farmer's market

fighting pit

fishmonger

fortune teller

gallows

gatehouse

general store

graveyard

greenhouses

guard post

guildhall

gymnasium

haberdashery

haunted house

hedge maze

herbalist

hospice

hospital

house for sale

inn

jail

jeweller

kindergarten

leatherworker

library

locksmith

mail courier

manor house

market

mayor's house

monastery

morgue

museum

music shop

observatory

orchard

orphanage

outhouse

paper maker

pawnshop

pet shop

potion shop

potter

printmaker

quest board

residence

restricted zone

sawmill

school

scribe

sewer entrance

sheriff's office

shrine

silversmith

spa

speakeasy

spice merchant

sports stadium

stables

street market

tailor

tannery

tavern

tax collector

tea house

temple

textile shop

theatre

thieves guild

thrift store

tinker's workshop

town crier post

town square

townhall

toy store

trinket shop

warehouse

watchtower

water mill

weaver

well

windmill

wishing well

wizard tower

[adventures-in-writing]

The Neurodivergent Writer’s Guide to Fun and Productivity

(Even when life beats you down)

Look, I’m a mom, I have ADHD, I’m a spoonie. To say that I don’t have heaps of energy to spare and I struggle with consistency is an understatement. For years, I tried to write consistently, but I couldn’t manage to keep up with habits I built and deadlines I set.

So fuck neurodivergent guides on building habits, fuck “eat the frog first”, fuck “it’s all in the grind”, and fuck “you just need time management”—here is how I manage to write often and a lot.

Focus on having fun, not on the outcome

This was the groundwork I had to lay before I could even start my streak. At an online writing conference, someone said: “If you push yourself and meet your goals, and you publish your book, but you haven’t enjoyed the process… What’s the point?” and hoo boy, that question hit me like a truck.

I was so caught up in the narrative of “You’ve got to show up for what’s important” and “Push through if you really want to get it done”. For a few years, I used to read all these productivity books about grinding your way to success, and along the way I started using the same language as they did. And I notice a lot of you do so, too.

But your brain doesn’t like to grind. No-one’s brain does, and especially no neurodivergent brain. If having to write gives you stress or if you put pressure on yourself for not writing (enough), your brain’s going to say: “Huh. Writing gives us stress, we’re going to try to avoid it in the future.”

So before I could even try to write regularly, I needed to teach my brain once again that writing is fun. I switched from countable goals like words or time to non-countable goals like “fun” and “flow”.

Rewire my brain: writing is fun and I’m good at it

I used everything I knew about neuroscience, psychology, and social sciences. These are some of the things I did before and during a writing session. Usually not all at once, and after a while I didn’t need these strategies anymore, although I sometimes go back to them when necessary.

I journalled all the negative thoughts I had around writing and try to reason them away, using arguments I knew in my heart were true. (The last part is the crux.) Imagine being supportive to a writer friend with crippling insecurities, only the friend is you.

Not setting any goals didn’t work for me—I still nurtured unwanted expectations. So I did set goals, but made them non-countable, like “have fun”, “get in the flow”, or “write”. Did I write? Yes. Success! Your brain doesn’t actually care about how high the goal is, it cares about meeting whatever goal you set.

I didn’t even track how many words I wrote. Not relevant.

I set an alarm for a short time (like 10 minutes) and forbade myself to exceed that time. The idea was that if I write until I run out of mojo, my brain learns that writing drains the mojo. If I write for 10 minutes and have fun, my brain learns that writing is fun and wants to do it again.

Reinforce the fact that writing makes you happy by rewarding your brain immediately afterwards. You know what works best for you: a walk, a golden sticker, chocolate, cuddle your dog, whatever makes you happy.

I conditioned myself to associate writing with specific stimuli: that album, that smell, that tea, that place. Any stimulus can work, so pick one you like. I consciously chose several stimuli so I could switch them up, and the conditioning stays active as long as I don’t muddle it with other associations.

Use a ritual to signal to your brain that Writing Time is about to begin to get into the zone easier and faster. I guess this is a kind of conditioning as well? Meditation, music, lighting a candle… Pick your stimulus and stick with it.

Specifically for rewiring my brain, I started a new WIP that had no emotional connotations attached to it, nor any pressure to get finished or, heaven forbid, meet quality norms. I don’t think these techniques above would have worked as well if I had applied them on writing my novel.

It wasn’t until I could confidently say I enjoyed writing again, that I could start building up a consistent habit. No more pushing myself.

I lowered my definition for success

When I say that nowadays I write every day, that’s literally it. I don’t set out to write 1,000 or 500 or 10 words every day (tried it, failed to keep up with it every time)—the only marker for success when it comes to my streak is to write at least one word, even on the days when my brain goes “naaahhh”. On those days, it suffices to send myself a text with a few keywords or a snippet. It’s not “success on a technicality (derogatory)”, because most of those snippets and ideas get used in actual stories later. And if they don’t, they don’t. It’s still writing. No writing is ever wasted.

A side note on high expectations, imposter syndrome, and perfectionism

Obviously, “Setting a ridiculously low goal” isn’t something I invented. I actually got it from those productivity books, only I never got it to work. I used to tell myself: “It’s okay if I don’t write for an hour, because my goal is to write for 20 minutes and if I happen to keep going for, say, an hour, that’s a bonus.” Right? So I set the goal for 20 minutes, wrote for 35 minutes, and instead of feeling like I exceeded my goal, I felt disappointed because apparently I was still hoping for the bonus scenario to happen. I didn’t know how to set a goal so low and believe it.

I think the trick to making it work this time lies more in the groundwork of training my brain to enjoy writing again than in the fact that my daily goal is ridiculously low. I believe I’m a writer, because I prove it to myself every day. Every success I hit reinforces the idea that I’m a writer. It’s an extra ward against imposter syndrome.

Knowing that I can still come up with a few lines of dialogue on the Really Bad Days—days when I struggle to brush my teeth, the day when I had a panic attack in the supermarket, or the day my kid got hit by a car—teaches me that I can write on the mere Bad-ish Days.

The more I do it, the more I do it

The irony is that setting a ridiculously low goal almost immediately led to writing more and more often. The most difficult step is to start a new habit. After just a few weeks, I noticed that I needed less time and energy to get into the zone. I no longer needed all the strategies I listed above.

Another perk I noticed, was an increased writing speed. After just a few months of writing every day, my average speed went from 600 words per hour to 1,500 wph, regularly exceeding 2,000 wph without any loss of quality.

Talking about quality: I could see myself becoming a better writer with every passing month. Writing better dialogue, interiority, chemistry, humour, descriptions, whatever: they all improved noticeably, and I wasn’t a bad writer to begin with.

The increased speed means I get more done with the same amount of energy spent. I used to write around 2,000-5,000 words per month, some months none at all. Nowadays I effortlessly write 30,000 words per month. I didn’t set out to write more, it’s just a nice perk.

Look, I’m not saying you should write every day if it doesn’t work for you. My point is: the more often you write, the easier it will be.

No pressure

Yes, I’m still working on my novel, but I’m not racing through it. I produce two or three chapters per month, and the rest of my time goes to short stories my brain keeps projecting on the inside of my eyelids when I’m trying to sleep. I might as well write them down, right?

These short stories started out as self-indulgence, and even now that I take them more seriously, they are still just for me. I don’t intend to ever publish them, no-one will ever read them, they can suck if they suck. The unintended consequence was that my short stories are some of my best writing, because there’s no pressure, it’s pure fun.

Does it make sense to spend, say, 90% of my output on stories no-one else will ever read? Wouldn’t it be better to spend all that creative energy and time on my novel? Well, yes. If you find the magic trick, let me know, because I haven’t found it yet. The short stories don’t cannibalize on the novel, because they require different mindsets. If I stopped writing the short stories, I wouldn’t produce more chapters. (I tried. Maybe in the future? Fingers crossed.)

Don’t wait for inspiration to hit

There’s a quote by Picasso: “Inspiration hits, but it has to find you working.” I strongly agree. Writing is not some mystical, muse-y gift, it’s a skill and inspiration does exist, but usually it’s brought on by doing the work. So just get started and inspiration will come to you.

Accountability and community

Having social factors in your toolbox is invaluable. I have an offline writing friend I take long walks with, I host a monthly writing club on Discord, and I have another group on Discord that holds me accountable every day. They all motivate me in different ways and it’s such a nice thing to share my successes with people who truly understand how hard it can be.

The productivity books taught me that if you want to make a big change in your life or attitude, surrounding yourself with people who already embody your ideal or your goal huuuugely helps. The fact that I have these productive people around me who also prioritize writing, makes it easier for me to stick to my own priorities.

Your toolbox

The idea is to have several techniques at your disposal to help you stay consistent. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket by focussing on just one technique. Keep all of them close, and if one stops working or doesn’t inspire you today, pivot and pick another one.

After a while, most “tools” run in the background once they are established. Things like surrounding myself with my writing friends, keeping up with my daily streak, and listening to the album I conditioned myself with don’t require any energy, and they still remain hugely beneficial.

Do you have any other techniques? I’d love to hear about them!

I hope this was useful. Happy writing!

[adventures-in-writing]

-Shrugs- More old fic that I never posted for whatever reason. I never finished Awakening might be some of it.

[adventures-in-writing]

Added a second chapter to this because

[adventures-in-writing]

Untitled Cassandra Pentaghast thing

A few weeks after their arrival at Skyhold, the Herald - Inquisitor Trevelyan - came to find Cassandra as she stretched beside the training dummies. She turned to him, wondering what it was he wanted to discuss with her, her cheeks warming slightly in a way she hoped was not noticeable. It was a relief she did not blush easily, at least.

"What do you need?" she asked, standing up straight.

"I was wondering," he began, "why you never joined the war table any longer?"

"Ah." It wasn't what Cassandra had expected, nor what she'd hoped for. But it would have been foolish to believe otherwise, and the question should not have come as a surprise. "My presence isn’t needed there."

"But you declared the Inquisition," Elim said.

"Because someone had to, because it was necessary." Cassandra chose not to argue the point, that the Inquisition had been Divine Justinia's, and Leliana had as much a part in it as Cassandra herself did. "But the Inquisition forces are in good hands with Cullen, and I could not do Leliana’s job, nor Josephine's"

Even the thought of that, all the politics, was horrifying. "I lack Cullen's caution, Leliana’s subtlety, and Josephine's patience. It is much better if I take a more direct approach, as I am sure you are well aware."

He did not seem entirely convinced, but the Inquisitor did not ask again. Even back in Haven, Cassandra had felt impatient standing over the map of Thedas, evaluating their position, their options for dealing with all the many troubles that had ended up in the Inquisition's hands. That Leliana, and even Josephine, seemed to find this an opportunity to socialize and attempt to bring a smile, or a blush, to Cullen's face, or offer Cassandra fashion advice... no, she was far more suited to joining the Inquisitor in the field.

And yet, when it became clear that whatever she had hoped for - what she had foolishly believed the flirtation might lead to - would never be, Cassandra found herself unsure if she even a place by the Inquisitor's side.

She could not begrudge his happiness, though the Tevinter mage was not the most advisable choice, and that wasn't because she was jealous. There was nothing to be jealous of, after all.

[adventures-in-writing]

what even was this novel

I've decided to rewrite my original fantasy novel (YA probably) that I started working on nearly thirty years ago

But at this point it's gone through so many transformations and the characters have gone through (Authorial) gender changes

And I am unsure what even the story is about at this point ... I guess I'll just start with the characters and the setting go from there

[adventures-in-writing]

I wrote this like, 9 years ago and then spent the next 9 years convinced I'd only thought of the concept of the fic and not... actually... written it. Then I discovered it in my fanfic doc folder so...

[adventures-in-writing]

The reason none of my wips get finished

[adventures-in-writing]

some people think writers are so eloquent and good with words, but the reality is that we can sit there with our fingers on the keyboard going, “what’s the word for non-sunlight lighting? Like, fake lighting?” and for ten minutes, all our brain will supply is “unofficial”, and we know that’s not the right word, but it’s the only word we can come up with…until finally it’s like our face got smashed into a brick wall and we remember the word we want is “artificial”.

[adventures-in-writing]

[adventures-in-writing]

how do i write when i have adhd and cant even outline the first three chapters:( i always get stuck after three, get bored, and never come back. any advice ?

Writing with ADHD (by a writer w/ adhd)

1. Consume caffeine and/or do cardio for 30min before sitting down to write. Listen to music, a themed playlist perhaps. Do not log onto the internet or have any distractions nearby (books, pets, clutter, food, unfinished projects). Keeping a dohickey like a stress ball around or even a lightweight dumbbell is a decent proxy when your brain craves distraction. Chewing gum can also help you focus.

2. Don’t outline by chapter, I cannot get farther than five or six when I do that. Outline from beginning to end, but make sure to have a middle! Write a synopsis of what happens and break it into chronological chunks. Only outline by chapter once you’ve got a general outline of the whole story, and even then only outline a couple chapters at a time.

3. Write whatever comes to you, but keep it in order in your document. You want to write how your character discovers a secret, but you know that’s not until chapter 20. Write it anyway and title it chapter 20. Do this with every scene you’re inspired to write, then slowly fill in the gaps. If that proves difficult, it’s okay to make the reveal chapter 9 instead and connect everything with [and then this happened] so you’ll know to sew it up later.

4. However short or long the story ends up being, finish it. You can set a goal of 30 chapters, but if 10 is easier finish by chapter ten. Come back (much) later, reread, and add any new ideas you come up with. A short story is sweet! A novella is nice! Train your brain to write longer passages until it can achieve a story of the length you want.

5. (optional) Outlining is for people who can focus, just start writing somewhere and figure it out along the way. I had a very general outline for my longest novel, but mostly I made everything up and ignored it. Maintain focus, know your end goal, and even if you stumble there and take some shortcuts it still counts. Any messiness can be improved in future drafts.

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[adventures-in-writing]

Something i don't see get talked about enough is trust for the reader. I've seen discussions about trusting the reader to know right from wrong in fiction without spoon-feeding them, but I'm talking about a micro-scale version, where you have to trust the reader to understand what's going on in the scene without narrating every single action.

When I was in school learning how to produce a short film, my professor said one of the common things he sees from students is they feel the need to show everything. They show the character going from one place to another. They show the character getting up from a chair and crossing the room to go outside. These aren't thing that we should never show; they're things we shouldn't show all the time. We have to trust that if the character is indoors in one shot and outside in the next, the watchers will fill in the gap between the two shots. They'll understand the character got up and walked out without needing it to be shown.

In the story I'm writing, a character buys a hashbrown and sits down in a booth. Originally I was going to write:

"She pulls her wallet from pocket, takes out a credit card, and pays. Then she goes to a booth and sits down."

It seems fine. But it's also unnecessarily long. This is what I actually ended up writing:

"She pays with a card and sits down in a booth."

Because the act of her taking the wallet out of her pocket is not important at all. It adds nothing to the scene, the character, the action. It's just superfluous. If I just say "she pays with a card", I get the same effect. I can trust the audience to put together that the card probably came from her wallet, which is probably in her pocket or bag, and to be frank, it doesn't matter if it came from her bag or pocket. The point is she paid with a card. And that's all I needed to convey.

I've read several books that over-narrate in a similar fashion, feeling the need to describe every single tiny action, and many times at the cost of the prose reading clunky. I don't even think this is something most people think about. But it's something I notice, even in my own writing. Because we all want the reader to experience the scene EXACTLY like how we want them to. We want them to see every detail. But at some point we have to realize it's impossible to make the readers read the book the exact way you want them to. You have to trust them.

And I think it's a little challenging to find the right balance of when to explain and when to just let things slide. I'm a little afraid I'll start paring things down so much that my writing is stripped of personality in the name of being concise. It's something you get the hang of over time. And this isn't not me telling you it's something you should never do. It's me saying it's something worth watching out for. Do what works for your book, and happy writings!

[adventures-in-writing]

i mean this so seriously if you have any sort of creative project you can and should be a little obsessed with it. you should reread your own writing and look at your own art and brag about your ocs its literally good for your health