del-the-kitling

[del-the-kitling]

Seems like the silliest question ever but every idea I have seems so unoriginal. Do you tips or exercises to get the creativity going?

Getting the creative juices flowing…

I do! I have plenty of pep-talks and resources for this sort of thing, so I’ve organized them here by method (prompts/playlists/advice/inspiration/etc)

Articles

Coming Up With Scene Ideas

Coming Up With “Original” Ideas

How To Turn A Good Idea Into A Good Story

How To Motivate Yourself To Write

Reasons To Improve Your Lifestyle

Tips & Advice for Aspiring Authors, Writers, and Poets

Healthy Forms of Motivation

How To Have A Productive Mindset

How To Fall In Love With Writing

Writing Through Mental Health Struggles

Why “Burnout” Is Oay - The Creative Cycle

How To Actually Get Writing Done

Playlists

Things To Listen To When You’re Working

Classical & Instrumental

Ambient

Sad Scenes

Chase Scenes

Epic Scenes

Fight Scenes

Angst Scenes

Fun Montage Scenes

Climax Scenes

Calm Scenes

Resolution Scenes

Romantic Scenes

Action Scenes

Science Fiction

Our Day Will Come

Contemporary Poetry

MORE

Prompts, Prompt Lists, & Writing Challenges

Dark Quotes & Prompts

Challenges For Different Types of Writers | Part II

Angst Prompts

31 Days of Prompts : January 2018 Writing Challenge

20 Sentence Story Prompt

Dramatic Prompts

Suspenseful Prompts

Sad Prompts

Romantic Prompts

31 Days of Horror : October 2019 Writing Challenge

31 Days of Fantasy - December 2020 Writing Challenge

Fake Relationship Alternate Universe Prompts

Assassin Alternate Universe Prompts

Soulmates Alternate Universe Prompts

Advice & Pep-Talks

Restarting Your Writing Passion

On Hating Your Old Stuff

Depression As An Inhibitor

Dear Writers Who Are Hesitant To Start Writing

“All First Drafts Are Crap” – My Thoughts

Getting Back To Writing After A Long Hiatus

Wanting To Finish A Story You’ve Fallen Out of Love With

Getting Motivated To Write

Getting Burnt Out Near The Finish Line

–

Masterlist | WIP Blog

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[del-the-kitling]

Welp...

[del-the-kitling]

Hi! If you're still doing prompts, would you do 69 with Nishimura? For once it's not a relative of Natsume's giving insults, instead the gang over hear conversation with Nishimura family/extended family when they go to pick him up after he never showed. Spinkle in Kitanishi if possible?

PROMPTS LIST

69. “I’m not going to leave you.”

ik i just did this prompt for tanunatsu but GOD if im not weak for kitanishi 🥺

x

Nishimura is flighty and breezy at all other times, constantly running late for school and doubling back on the way home for a forgotten school book or jacket, but it’s not like him to just not show up. 

It’s so much out of character that Taki knows even before Kitamoto says anything that something is wrong. 

“I’m going to his place,” Kitamoto says. “You guys can go ahead.”

Taki feels herself bristle, probably exactly the way Nyanko-sensei does when he’s denied a treat, but Natsume beats her to the punch. 

“We’ll come with you,” he says in his gentle, implacable way. He’s already standing, bag slung over his shoulder. He’s been checking his phone this whole time, too. 

Kitamoto hesitates, but just for a second. He’s always known when to pick his battles. 

So they miss the train as a group. But it’s fine, Taki thinks, because they can just catch the next one. Nishimura’s house isn’t so far away. 

When they get there, Kitamoto lets himself through the gate with the ease of long familiarity. He steps over a loose stone in the pathway up to the door without even looking. This time, when he waves them back and says, “Wait here,” Taki hangs back. She’s never actually been here before, and Kitamoto obviously has. 

And on top of that... 

It wouldn’t be fair to say his expression is grim, or even foreboding, but it’s a certain amount of expectant that makes Taki sort of nervous. Like he’s bracing himself for something. Like he knows more than the rest of them do. 

So Taki hangs back. 

When Kitamoto slides the door open, announcing himself as he steps inside, they’re greeted by the sound of raised voices. Muffled, as though someone is shouting down the hall and through a wall or two. 

All of Taki’s closest friends are a gentle sort, and she can tell right away that it makes Tanuma and Natsume both uneasy. 

She plants herself firmly in front of them, as casually as she’s able. She’s not very big or tall, but she won’t let that stop her. She doesn’t scare as easily as she used to. 

A young man comes to the door, with a “Sorry now’s not a good time” on the edge of his tongue, but he stops short when he sees Kitamoto. 

“Hey, Kiyoshi-niisan,” Kitamoto says. Now it’s fair to say he sounds grim. “We both know I’m not going home without him, so what’s the play?”

Kiyoshi-- a name Taki recognizes as Nishimura’s big brother’s-- looks tired, and angry, and maybe like he’d like to say something unkind. Taki doesn’t think he’s looking at Kitamoto like that, though, or she would have something to say about it.

“Aunt Niko is here,” Kiyoshi says at length. 

It’s all he needs to say, apparently, because Kitamoto is kicking off his sneakers and stepping up out of the genkan without another word. He must have forgotten his friends were here with him-- he doesn’t spare them a single backwards glance. 

Kiyoshi, with the air of someone resigned to watching the ship go down, says, “The three of you can come in, if you’d like, but I don’t think you’ll be here very long.”

“I have the same feeling,” Tanuma says faintly. 

Kitamoto slides a door open at the end of the hall. The sound of shouting intensifies for a split second, and then abruptly cuts off. Kitamoto steps inside, and he must not even say two words to that Aunt Niko, because he’s out again barely ten seconds later, dragging Nishimura behind him. 

And Taki finds herself hurrying inside, after all, blown in like a kite on a string, because Nishimura looks as though he’s been crying and Taki can’t bear it. 

She stops at the very edge of the genkan and stretches out her hands, waving them impatiently when Kitamoto doesn’t surrender Nishimura to her fast enough.

Nishimura’s hands are cold when Taki finally takes them. He staggers down into the entry way next to her like he has no strength left in his legs. But it’s okay now, Taki thinks a little frantically, because she’s got him.

“Shoes,” Kitamoto says tersely. “I’ll get his jacket.” 

They’re out the door again in an efficient manner of moments. Kitamoto says a quick goodbye to Kiyoshi and then closes the front door behind them with a decisive snap. 

None of them speak, hustling down the path and out the gate. Nishimura is still clinging to Taki’s hand like he’s afraid of what might happen if he lets go. 

All of her friends are a gentle sort. When she first met him, Taki wouldn’t have guessed that Nishimura was gentle, too. But since then, she’s seen him talk Tanuma away from the edge of a panic attack, and take Natsume’s hands as carefully as someone picking up a fallen bird’s egg. She’s seen the shape his kindness takes. 

He’s loud and silly, but he always shows up. 

“Nishimura,” Natsume murmurs, “are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Nishimura says, like a knee-jerk reaction. Then, “Actually, no,” with an honesty Taki finds admirable, considering how much emotional wrestling it would have taken to get Natsume to admit even that much. Then, “Wait-- you all missed the train.”

“We don’t care about the train,” Tanuma says, sounding pained. 

“You were supposed to meet up with Shibata tonight,” Nishimura insists. He’s getting worked up.

“He’ll understand,” Taki assures him. “I’ll text him right now.”

“This is stupid,” Nishimura blurts. He stops short, yanking Taki to a stop with him. His eyes are glassy with frustrated tears. “You ruined your plans for no reason. You should have just gone without me.”

“Why the hell would we do that?” Kitamoto snaps. “When have I ever done that?”

“Aunt Niko said-- “ 

“I don’t care what Aunt Niko said. Listen to what I’m saying.” 

Kitamoto takes Nishimura by the shoulders, not without care, and rattles him a bit. 

“I’m not going anywhere without you,” he says. “I’m not leaving you behind.”

There’s a lot of fond exasperation in there, hiding behind what looks like plain annoyance. If you didn’t know him very well, maybe you’d miss it. 

But Taki knows better. All of her closest friends are gentle people. She knows what their love looks like. 

[del-the-kitling]

I was today years old when I learned that when you type "otp: true" in AO3 search results it filters out fics with additional ships, leaving only the fics where your otp is the main ship

[del-the-kitling]

vlad, the astrology gay

[del-the-kitling]

Two cards for the lovely and wonderful @estel-of-the-eyrie. Happy New Year!

[del-the-kitling]

An incomplete list of tropes that make me go absolutely feral

- The fact that some characters, hero or villain, have performed specific actions so often that when someone mentions that action, the character has to say “can you be more specific.”

- Large, boisterous, incredibly friendly Russians

- The dope slap. Just smacking someone upside the head as a way of telling someone that they were being an idiot

- When the morally ambiguous character leaves just before the final throwdown only to painfully admit that yes, they do care about their friends, then turn around and go back to help save the day

- Parents that are so obviously and healthily in love with each other that it has the high potential to embarrass their children

- When the authorities have the various members of the crew in an interrogation room and it cuts between the different interrogations to the crew either giving wildly different accounts of the same story or finishing each other’s sentences/answering each other’s questions

- When a character has every right to be frustrated at something physical and appears to be walking away calmly only to lose their cool a second later and grab a sledgehammer or smth

- Incredibly grandiose/unlikely threats. IE: “I’m going to play hopscotch in your chest cavity” or “I’m going to carve your heart out with a spoon.” Bonus points if the character that makes them follows through or makes a reference to them later on.

- Someone naming their weapon. Bonus points for naming it after a loved one or a lost love.

- The relationship between a pure force of unmitigated chaos and the one person that can (sometimes) keep them under control.

- Brick jokes. Like someone drops a line in Season 2, episode 3, only to have it referenced in Season 7, episode 9. The longer the brick is in the air, the better.

- Weaknesses that are really lame

- When a character has something that happens to them that removes all sense of a filter, and they start saying what’s *really* on their mind.

- Ambiguously worded questions. No matter how you answer, it’s going to lead to more humor.

- Communication errors for the sake of comedy, just like, in general

- Slipping innuendos into kids’ movies or shows

- The whole master/loyal assistant dynamic. Bonus points if there’s mutual pining or a secret relationship going on behind the scenes

[del-the-kitling]

i love fake-dating aus where one of the characters is very oblivious and feels kinda insecure while confessing their feelings in the end and meanwhile the other one is like

[del-the-kitling]

what’s your fanfic life like? 

[del-the-kitling]

Contrast bingo! Send me a square + characters or a pairing, and I’ll try to write something based on that prompt. 

Ideas courtesy of a brainstorm session with @ashinan, @paladinpuppypile, @butteredonions​, @demenior​, and @lightshesaid​. :)

[del-the-kitling]

How about we play a game?  Inspired by this post by @ysande-jin, with some of the prompts lifted from it (so full credit there).  Idea of bingo by @butteredonions.

Top row is A-E, column is 1-5

Pick a prompt, a pairing if you want, and I’ll try to make bingo from your suggestions.  Because I need more on my plate.  Obviously.

[del-the-kitling]

@deluxe-distrait your Bingo Card has shipped.

[del-the-kitling]

Trope: Enemy to Caretaker

See also: Unconventional Caretakers.

Reasons Why I Love This Trope So Goddamn Much (not anywhere near a description of the totality of my feelings on this topic, but a start):

- The vulnerability.  The sheer terror of being exposed in front of someone you hate (who hates you).  The panic and stoicism of attempting to cover up the pain until it’s too much.  Until you can’t.  Until the agony is worse than letting them see your tears.

- The mistrust.  The constant second-guessing.  The suspicion of every move they make.  The concocting of escape plans, one after the other, because how can you tell the difference between being restrained for your own good and being captured?  The cuffs sure look the same.

- The surrender.  Hitting rock bottom.  Watching you give in and knowing that you’ve given up on everything because if you can’t fight against your enemy, you can’t fight against anyone.

- The unexpected compassion.  A hand where you expect a fist.  A bandage where you expect a break.  Snappish words and voices raised in anger and understanding, finally, that their bark is worse than their bite.

- The lack of safety.  There is no one to catch you when you fall.  No one who’s safe, who’s reliable, who’s trustworthy.  You are hurt and alone and you curl up and wait for the blow.  The slow relearning of trust.  The hesitant steps towards hope.  (The shattering, sometimes.)

Enemy.  To.  Goddamn.  Caretaker.

Please.

[del-the-kitling]

“The moral of the story is, I will gut you if I need to. I will carve my way out with only my teeth.”

— Brenna Twohy, from “Little Red Riding Hood Addresses the Next Wolf,” Forgive Me My Salt

[del-the-kitling]

I have almost definitely said it before but by god I will say it again: the funniest possible way to do the whole "fake marriage" trope would be like two people getting married so they can invoke the spousal privilege that lets them refuse to testify against one another in court. a couple of mobsters sweating bullets in a vegas wedding chapel so they aren't compelled to rat on each other when the next heist inevitably goes sour

[del-the-kitling]

I have to admit, one of my favorite tropes in canon divergence fic - and time travel fic as well - is just jumping into the story in the middle of a vastly different timeline, and then having to, as the reader, figure out what changed and where and what is just butterfly effect. It’s one of the more engaging forms of storytelling, and I really love that it’s something so completely unique to fanfic. 

[del-the-kitling]

The best trope in the world is when a character realizes that they’re in love with another character and instead of being bashful or cute about it their internal monologue is just “NO. GOD. FUCK. WHY”