legit-writing-tips

[legit-writing-tips]

Greetings!

Hello! I know its been a long time since I posted here and fortunately, there's a very good reason for that.

As many of you who may have been regular followers of mine may know, I was dealing with a lot of very challenging issues for many years. TW: for discussion of trauma, PTSD and related issues

I had a car accident in 2015 shortly after the passing of my grandmother, which left me dealing with severe PTSD, CPTSD and related complications including psychogenic seizures caused by my trauma that began leading me to regularly black out and fall down.

I was also forced to spend most of the last 10 years living in an abusive group home situation because I wasn't financially capable of living elsewhere and it wasn't safe for me to live on my own due to my seizures.

Fortunately, a few years ago I was finally able to get work as a content writer with a local marketing company and I've been able to get an apartment with my fiance. 🙌🎉

This is largely due to the help of an incredible therapist who specializes in dissociative disorders, including the psychogenic seizures I have been dealing with.

I don't expect anything from anyone, but all help I could get would be incredibly appreciated for my continuing therapy as well as any medical costs for injuries sustained due to seizures such as a recent broken ankle that required surgery.

You can donate through Cashapp - $legitwritermeg

And thank you from the bottom of my heart to all who have supported me through the years ❤️❤️❤️

[legit-writing-tips]

Group Home Abuse

I’ve been living in a group home for a few years due to my PTSD and my psychogenic seizures and I need to speak my mind somewhere. I want people to know about the kind of things disabled people are experiencing in places like this.

This situation is abusive. I’ve been threatened. Staff screams at us and insults us just to make us do chores. We get nothing but a single pack of bologna and a loaf of bread for lunch, and this is meant to feed 7 people for several days in a row. We’ve had multiple people actively using drugs in the house and this issue has been ignored, even though my fiancé is a recovering addict.

I’m hoping that with the work I’ve been doing these past couple of years, my fiancé and I will be able to move out soon. I’m also hoping that being in this situation hasn’t made my PTSD even worse.

It was the safest solution for me for a long time, or at least I felt it was, but it’s gotten to the point where I know I need to be away from here as quickly as possible.

I deserve to be happy and I’m not going to destroy my happiness by spending any more time in this place than I have to.

If you feel you can contribute to my funding to help support me in getting my own apartment you can do so here - otherwise, please just share for the sake of awareness ❤️

Venmo - @meg-moore-87

Cashapp - $legitwritermeg

[legit-writing-tips]

Legit Tips to Avoid Saying “Said”

Ok. First, let’s get this out of the way. There’s nothing wrong with using “said” to tag your dialog.

In fact, it’s a lot better than using a ton of different dialog tags. Muttered, murmured, whispered, hissed… Those tags work if you really need to point out HOW someone is speaking - if you really need to emphasize how pissed off someone is, for example.

But if you just use them to avoid “said” it gets obvious. And it gets old.

So, what gives? You’ve probably also heard that repeating yourself over and over is bad writing, which is true. But “said” is something that disappears into the text.

However, it’s still not great to repeat it too much. Keeping that in mind, what do you do?

1 - Consider using the dialog by itself if it’s obvious who’s speaking. For example, if it’s a quick conversation between two characters and nobody else is involved, you can skip tags for a lot of it. Maybe have someone use the other person’s name as a reminder of who’s saying what if you feel like you need to.

“I can’t.”

“You have to.”

“But -“

“No ‘buts’, Sarah.”

2 - If you need to show who’s speaking, use an action before or after the sentence. Avoid redundancies or useless info by connecting the action to what’s being said.

“What’s this?” Angie picked up the black gem and turned it over in her fingers.

Jane snatched it away, shoving it into her backpack. “Nothing. Just one of Harold’s little trinkets.”

3 - Consider whether the dialog itself is necessary. Could you replace it with narration or text?

“Are you sure?”

Laura nodded, her eyes fixed on the floor.

Sabrina cursed and slammed her phone down onto the table.

These are just a few things to consider. But with some practice you can figure out when the simple use of “said” is fine and when it might need replacement.

[legit-writing-tips]

Good Advice - Write Them Villains!

[legit-writing-tips]

the thing about the “why can’t we say pregnant WOMEN instead of pregnant PEOPLE, PC gone mad!” discussion going on right now is that even the “cis ally” side is kind of not understanding why, exactly, “official” stuff about pregnancy needs to use gender neutral language.

the use of gendered language, whether in law or in company guidelines, has been used as an excuse to exclude trans people from various kinds of reproductive healthcare. there have been stories of abortion providers pointing to the use of “pregnant women” in all clinic literature to justify not giving trans men assistance. there are issues where “women’s health clinics” will refuse to accept referrals for anyone who doesn’t have “F” on their records, which of course includes many trans women. there are in turn stories of trans women being unable to access “male” prostrate cancer screening.

language in this sort of capacity needs to be as factual and neutral and carefully constructed to avoid loopholes as possible. at this stage in my life, as a non-woman capable of pregnancy, i don’t really CARE anymore if you talk casually about pregnancy as something that happens to women. but i DO care if the medical system writes out some guidelines that, in only acknowledging pregnant women as a possibility, open me up to the possibility of being denied care by transphobes who can claim they’re just following the rules.

this is a real issue for us, the gendering of health care leading to single-sex guidelines which are actively used by assholes to say “no, we only treat [gender] here”. it’s not a matter of nitpicking over everyday language; it’s about ensuring we are safe from loopholes that can be used to exploit us.

[legit-writing-tips]

Tips for managing a plot with time travel and parallel universes?

Ok, so for time travel -

Time may be all jumbled up in terms of “time”. So stop thinking of time as in physical time... the way time moves for the plants and the trees and the planets and the sun.

Think instead in terms of "psychological” time for your main character. And for any side characters who may have their own side plots.

As you plot your story, make notes regarding how psychological time moves for them. Yeah, they may travel back to 1600 AD and then to 3090 AD then to 300 BC, but if time is still continuously moving forward for them and they’re retaining all their memories, even if their actions are changing things, just MAKE NOTES about what their actions are changing (i.e., what’s changed in their perspective). And keep moving forward.

Likewise, if you have a side character who’s also moving through the story, make notes about where they are in terms of psychological time. Make notes of what things change for them, etc. 

The most important thing - keep notes of where those characters are in relation to each other in psychological time (essentially, the timeline of the story).

As for Parallel Universes, things are a bit looser. Things and even people may change but your characters will remain psychologically on the path (more or less). So the plot, and any side plots, will follow that path, even as they move through the different parallel worlds. Sometimes your MC’s path may intersect with those of side characters, and sometimes your MC will move back and forth between the same worlds, but ultimately what’s important is how they move along on their own trajectory.

[legit-writing-tips]

I have an 11-year-old who was the only person in the position to have learned some information, so he’s the one doing the exposition. I was criticized for making him sound too mature (“professorial” was the word that was used), but I don’t know how to fix it. I don’t think he uses any individual words an 11-year-old wouldn’t, so I guess he’s too organized in how he presents info? But how do you make a character less organized in presenting their thoughts without making them more confusing?

That’s interesting! I suppose it really depends on the character, but what I would imagine is that an 11-year-old would be fairly new to presenting information or giving presentations in general. So rather than making them less organized or making their presentation confusing, I would perhaps make them a little bit more hesitant or unsure of themself. 

Even if they’re a confident character overall, this would probably be their first time doing this sort of thing, so they might pause here and there, or “hmm” and second-guess themself or ask the others if they think everything sounds correct so they can be sure everything they’re saying is really accurate or that they’re not missing anything. An 11-year-old may have the information the others need, but they’re still in a new position and they’re likely to be a little more unsure of themselves than someone who might have done this sort of thing a thousand times.

But like I said, this all depends on the character as well as who they’re talking to. For example, Hermione Granger presenting her information to Ron and Harry is very confident and matter of fact because she’s the most knowledgeable of the trio. No hesitation, just straight details. Very professional in everything she does. But she might have behaved quite a bit differently if she was having to present everything she knew to Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore.

[legit-writing-tips]

Seer prevents Boy from getting hit by a car by distracting him before he steps into the street like her vision. She lacks social skills even for a 7-year-old, and she wordlessly hands him a random object and walk off. It works; car’s gone by the time he stops WTF-ing. Would readers expect said object to have a symbolic meaning or significance later on? I thought it could just be whatever she had on hand (like maybe an eraser she had in her pocket), but should I do something else with it?

It’s really up to you. It would certainly be more fun if the object ended up having some sort of meaning later on. 

It could also be fun if the boy puzzled and puzzled over the object (if the boy is a character in the story and not just a random) and only later is the object revealed (to both boy and reader) revealed to be totally random. 

(Ex. Boy, who has some powers of his own, realizes he almost died and on picking up the eraser begins obsessing... thinks “This means I was almost erased... erased from existence...” And etc...”

And then years later, when he meets up with the Seer character again, he tells her about the journey he went through to uncover his own powers, sparked by the eraser she gave him. And she says, “What are you talking about? That’s the only thing I had in my pocket.”

That’s just an example, and certainly not what you have to do. I’m just trying to show you how you can play around with the “trope” of something like this. 

[legit-writing-tips]

It’s called Harry Potter and the Curse of the G***y. It’s bad. 

And it gets batshit crazy.

Come watch me react.

[legit-writing-tips]

Poem - “Mother’s Day, 1989″

Mother’s Day dawns, 1989 - 

On the wide, green grassy lawn,

Dotted with row on row of stones.

I wear my Sunday best,

Carnation-pink dress,

White ruffled collar and shoes.

Grandmother hands me flowers,

Carnations, yellow, pink and white.

Youthful blooms, cut off at the stems.

I grasp them, hold on tight,

With pudgy toddler fingers.

Nobody remains who can recall that day,

Which now lays locked inside a photograph.

But we park at the lawn’s grassy edge,

And without knowing who she is, or why,

I place the flowers at mother’s grave.

[legit-writing-tips]

“First Seizure, at the Grand Canyon”

*Note: I am new to writing poetry so not the best person to come to for writing tips on poetry. I am mostly sharing this for feedback/to gauge interest.

Standing at the edges of the rocky cliffside,

Pressed in by safety rails and curious tourists,

Myself overcome with that same curiosity,

The vision of the morning sun blooming,

Into an open sky, hues of orange and pink,

And brightened to a clear and placid blue,

An odd and passing flash of emptiness,

Soon forgotten as I embrace the scene.

Months later, traveling behind the wheel,

In the bland white Mazda my father bought me,

Which took me to the canyon, one thousand miles,

A journey along the highway to see a friend,

Who now, I have not spoken to in six years,

Opening my eyes I see the strangers crowded,

Pressed around and tapping at the broken glass,

A second seizure to interrupt my aimless journey.

Six years and now I cannot travel aimlessly,

Walking I have awoken on the barren roadside,

Paramedics materialize and press on me in shops,

So now I lay in bed, waiting for the fragmentation,

Disintegration and disruption in my consciousness,

My dreams sometimes settling on some spot,

Atop a canyon’s edge, one thousand miles away,

Before I was aware of the sickness in my brain.

Sick, but as yet unaware of any latent danger,

In the bland white Mazda my father bought me,

Unaware of the rippled scars on my fingers,

The faded scars that mark my knee and cheek,

That six years on serve as constant reminders,

I cannot travel aimlessly or journey to far off canyons,

But instead lay in bed imagining life’s journey,

Come to a halt, a battered, broken Mazda on the highway.

[legit-writing-tips]

Humor Tips From Legit #1

This is going to be my first post re: incorporating humor into your story. One of the simplest and most effective ways to do this is just by subverting what the reader expects to happen. 

Include a classic cliche or trope into your story, something the reader has likely seen a million times - an attractive, brooding love interest or “the chosen one” for example - and over the course of your text, change things up. Emphasize the cliche, keep pushing, i.e., your chosen one hero is constantly told they have to save the world, it’s their destiny, etc. - to the point it’s ridiculous. So that when the unexpected happens, you get a nice big payoff. 

Here’s an example I did with your typical evil villain and his bumbling sidekick:

Garrus slid his hand over the crystal, palming it with long and slender fingers as he stooped to leer into its depths. 

“Yes… he’s coming closer. It is time.”

“Master…”

The sorcerer abruptly stood. He turned and glared at Jobbo as the hunchback limped in through the study door. 

“What is it? I do not have time for your foolery.”

“Yes, Master.” Jobbo stopped a span away. The tray in his hands seemed to tremble as the hunchback moved to set it down on the only bare bit of space on the long table that filled the room. Garrus had returned his attention to the crystal. Inside, he saw Larkin and his companions. They had just begun their ascent up the mountain, and though their clothes were tattered and crimson with blood, each member of the party wore a look of steady determination.

“They approach. But they will not make it,” said Garrus in hushed tones. Then to Jobbo he added, “Fetch me my rod.”

“Yes, Master,” said Jobbo. The hunchback lurched across the room as Garrus continued to stare into the depths of his ball. Jobbo took the sorcerer’s rod from where it lay at the side of his throne and began to lurch his way back. When he had finally made it, he thrust the rod into Garrus’s outstretched hand. But as the sorcerer lifted it into the air and began his incantation, he paused.

“No, you imbecile! Not this rod! The other one! Are you really that dimwitted?”

“Ah...yes master.” 

Jobbo lurched and staggered back across the room. Several minutes had passed when he returned to Garrus once again and pressed a second long, metallic object into his hand. But when he had done so, Garrus stopped again and looked down. Anger was now etched into every facet of his already craggy countenance. He slammed the object down onto the table.

“Idiot! Imbecile! This is not a rod! This is a staff!”

“Aha...y-yes Master!”

“And can you say nothing else? Your stupidity sickens me, Jobbo!”

A flutter of surprise tickled Jobbo’s guts. The Master had spoken his name! He could not recall the sorcerer ever having done so before. A new boldness entered into Jobbo, and he opened his mouth, prepared to speak.

“Now,” said Garrus, voice steady with anger. “Fetch me the Rod of Storms.”

“Yes, Master,” said Jobbo, and Garrus turned his attention back to the crystal. But the hunchback did not move. Jobbo stood there, stooped over as hunchbacks are wont to be, and twined his stubby fingers together. Noting finally that Jobbo was not following his commands, Garrus let out his until then suppressed, but only barely suppressed, rage.

“Jobbo, you insolent fool! At once, do what I tell you! Fetch my Rod of Storms!”

“B-but Master--”

“But? But what, you idiot! You halfwit!” Garrus’s voice rose with every syllable until it seemed to shake the very rafters within the study. “Why are you not doing as I say? Do you dare defy me?”

“It’s just that... that IS the Rod of Storms,” said Jobbo, the words pouring from his misshapen mouth like wine from a spilled goblet. 

“This? This is my staff, as I already told you!”

“N-not that one. The first one,” said Jobbo. He gestured to the first discarded gold-and-silver rod on the table next to Garrus. “Master,” Jobbo added quickly. 

Garrus, at last, turned his full attention from what was happening within his crystal ball and took up the rod, turning it over in his hands, once, twice, an imperceptible look on his face. Then he mumbled, “So it is. Why do I have so many damned rods?” Garrus shook his head. “But no matter. Now, it is time! I will show those upstarts--”

The loud clatter of someone crashing through the door far downstairs interrupted his speech. The heroes had arrived. 

[legit-writing-tips]

Help Me With My Writing Exercise

Hello all - 

I’m currently doing some writing lessons. One of these lessons requires me to have people read a selection of my work and describe it in ONLY three adjectives (this is to get a general idea of my writing style).

If you would like to help, it would be appreciated. 

This is the document - 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/19j3BEi2n-XHy0Nhhw_aosWGUlV1CYWPR5ZWZxTo9X5s/edit?usp=sharing

Please note, three adjectives only to describe it. 

[legit-writing-tips]

Happy Thanksgiving to those who celebrate the holiday! Have a wonderful day to everyone else!

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glad to see you're still here

Haha, thanks! I keep meaning to come back and write up some tips but I have been SO busy the past few months! My new job... I love it, don’t get me wrong, and I have the best boss and co-workers ever, but it’s definitely stressful. But also, I get to tell people I’m a “Feature Writer and Editor’ when they ask what I do for a living :)

[legit-writing-tips]

Hi, I'm unable to donate, but I'm glad that things seem to be going much better for you in spite of your hospital stay :)

Thank you! Yes, things have been much better! In fact, I was able to sign up for health insurance bc of my new job, and though it will take a chunk out of my paycheck every month next year it also means I’ll finally be able to see a proper neurologist/get brand name medications/get important testing I need done which could potentially be a big help for me in my fight against epilepsy! 

[legit-writing-tips]

Tips on maximizing the shock and heartbreak of a betrayal (emphasis on the heartbreak part)? POV char is basically a clone, and has just realized his love interest doesn’t see him as a person; at best he’s something to amuse herself with until she gets bored or has no use for him. She drops all pretenses of caring about him when he calls her on it, not even giving him the dignity of addressing him as a human, but what else can I do? What kind of buildup should there be for maximum pain?

1. Make the reader give a damn. If the reader is as invested in the relationship as the character is, then they’re going to feel the same heartbreak as the character when the betrayal happens.

2. Drop hints early on that things aren’t quite what they seem. Make sure the character isn’t picking up on these hints, or even have the character blatantly ignore them. Maybe you don’t want to clearly signal a betrayal is going to happen, but if you start the reader down the path of worrying either A.) The reader will pick up on it and have the rush of “No, no, no, no!” as the big betrayal happens or B.) They won’t pick up on it until AFTER the fact, which gives them the opportunity to look back at those hints and wish they hadn’t gotten so invested in the first place.