maddstermind

[maddstermind]

if you're writing and find yourself thinking 'this is too weird/gross/offputting/esoteric/ambitious/catered to my specific interests + sure to push away a broader audience' that is the devil speaking and it is a lie. you are already firmly on the right path and you need to double down

[maddstermind]

Do you think authors sometimes don't realize how their, uh, interests creep into their writing? I'm talking about stuff like Robert Jordan's obvious femdom kink, or Anne Rice's preoccupation with inc*st and p*dophilia. Did their editors ever gently ask them if they've ever actually read what they've written?

Firstly, a reminder: This is not tiktok and we just say the words incest and pedophilia here.

Secondly, I don't know if I would call them 'interests' so much as fixations or even concerns. There are monstrous things that people think about, and I think writing is a place to engage with those monstrous things. It doesn't bother me that people engage with those things. I exist somewhere within the whump scale, and I would hope no one would think less of me just because sooner or later I like to rough a good character up a bit, you know? It's fun to torture characters, as a treat!

But, anyway, assuming this question isn't, "Do writers know they're gross when I think they are gross" which I'm going to take the kind road and assume it isn't, but is instead, "Do you think authors are aware of the things they constantly come back to?"

Sometimes. It can be jarring to read your own writing and realize that there are things you CLEARLY are preoccupied with. (mm, I like that word more than concerns). There are things you think about over and over, your run your mind over them and they keep working their way back in. I think this is true of most authors, when you read enough of them. Where you almost want to ask, "So...what's up with that?" or sometimes I read enough of someone's work that I have a PRETTY good idea what's up with that.

I've never read Robert Jordan and I don't intend to start (I think it would bore me this is not a moral stance) and I've really never read Rice's erotica. In erotica especially I think you have all the right in the world to get fucking weird about it! But so, when I was young I read the whole Vampire Chronicles series. I don't remember it perfectly, but there's plenty in it to reveal VERY plainly that Anne Rice has issues with God but deeply believes in God, and Anne Rice has a preoccupation with the idea of what should stay dead, and what it means to become. So, when i found out her daughter died at the age of six, before Rice wrote all of this, and she grew up very very Catholic' I said, 'yeah, that fucking checks out'.

Was Rice herself aware of how those things formed her writing? I think at a certain point probably yes. The character of Claudia is in every way too on the nose for her not to have SOME idea unless she was REAL REAL dense about her own inner workings. But, sometimes I know where something I write about comes from, that doesn't mean I'm interested in sharing it with the class. I would never ever fucking say, 'The reasons I seem to write so much of x as y is that z happened to me years ago' ahaha FUCK THAT NOISE. NYET. RIDE ON, COWBOY.

But I've known some people in fandom works who clearly have something going on and don't seem to realize it. Or they're very good at hiding it. Based on the people I'm talking about I would say it's more a lack of self-knowledge, and I don't even mean that unkindly. I have, in many ways, taken myself down to the studs and rebuilt it all, so I unfortunately am very aware of why I do and write the things I do most of the time. It's extremely annoying not to be able to blame something. I imagine it must be very freeing. But it ain't me, babe.

Anyway, a lot of words to say: Maybe! But that might not stop them from writing it, it might be a useful thing for them to engage with, and you can always just not read it.

Also, we don't censor words here.

[maddstermind]

the em dash calls to me like the green goblin mask whenever I’m writing a fic

[maddstermind]

Easy Ways to Pick up the Sagging Middle of Your Novel

A lot of writers have trouble writing the middle of the novel. Either they don’t know how to structure it properly or they’ve just lost motivation (I’ve written endless posts on motivation, so try searching for them). I think we’ve all read books that have just lost all momentum in the middle, so here are a few ways to stop that from happening to your novel:

Try to lead to something important – The middle is a great time for a really exciting moment or the climax. There can be more than one, so don’t think you’re going to waste any momentum you have.

Throw in a twist – Blow your readers minds! Is there a moment you’ve been waiting to reveal to your audience? Do it in the middle of your novel and then deal with the aftermath.

Divide it into another three acts – Try to break down the middle of your novel into smaller pieces. Think of it as a beginning, middle, and end. Create a structure to follow.

Introduce some new blood – Focus on a new character. Introduce a new character. There should be a reason for them, so don’t go completely wild, but get excited about your new addition. Weave it into the plot.

Do something drastic – Do something unexpected to your hero. Throw a wrench in their plans. There should be ups and downs in your novel, so fit some in here.

Build an intense action sequence – Sometimes an intense scene breaks writers out of their doldrums. If it fits in your story, try it. Pump up the adrenaline.

Plan, plan, plan – For me, planning is the best way to figure out where my novel is going. Take a moment to think about what’s happening in your story and find a way to organize it.

Focus on tension – Build tension and put your readers on the edge of their seat. If there’s something exciting happening in your third act, now’s the time to build it up.

Think about the ending – If you’re unsure about the middle of your novel, take a look at the other parts. How are you going to get to your ending? Focus on that journey.

Make it less complicated – Sometimes middles are hard to write because they’re too complicated. Cut subplots that you can’t follow or just muddle up your story.

Obviously, trying all of these will make an absolute mess of your story, so pick and choose what might work for you.  These are just suggestions and they won’t work for everyone’s story. Think of them as ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

And remember, the most important ideas to pursue are those that help drive the story forward or help reveal information about your characters!

-Kris Noel

[maddstermind]

Want to publish your original writing?

A couple friends of mine have recently started a lit magazine aimed at new and upcoming writers who want to get their work out there. It's called Dominique Literary Magazine, submissions are 100% free, and it's a team that's dedicated to publishing authors without much experience, and giving personalized feedback on rejections.

They publish original short fiction, non-fiction, and poetry. Submissions are open!

[maddstermind]

memes are fun and relatable and all that, but don't let them discourage you. all of that stuff that doesn't make it into the final product is part of how the final product gets made

[maddstermind]

your cry of "they're totally gay!!!" is valid and i support you. what i will not tolerate is you implying the actions they took could only be motivated by romantic attraction instead of a deep bond of friendship

[maddstermind]

love it when a queer character's identity is the least interesting thing about them. like yes she's trans but that's less plot-relevant than the fact she's a wanted fugitive on 6 different planets

[maddstermind]

THERE IS NO ONE RIGHT WAY TO WRITE AND RULES ARE MEANT TO BE BROKEN. YOU GOTTA KNOW WHY THOSE RULES ARE THERE THOUGH SO YOU CAN BREAK THEM EFFICIENTLY AND EFFECTIVELY. WHEN YOU BUILD A SKYSCRAPER YOU CAN CHANGE ALL KINDS OF DESIGN ELEMENTS BUT YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND HOW THE CONSTRUCTION WORKS FIRST

[maddstermind]

one concept im super into is that like. being a vampire is hard. there are ways to make this easier, but those mostly involve joining a coven. so young vampires are vulnerable to being preyed on (ha!) by the coven system and locked into a society created by people older and richer and much better connected.

like. getting a job is hard bc your movement is restricted during the day. the covens have agreements in place with multiple people across multiple industries. they can help you get a job that is remote work or night shift, but you have to join the coven (agree to abide by their rules and participate in their conflicts with other covens) and also agree to give them ten percent of your earnings.

finding food (assuming you’re a moral person who doesn’t want to kill people) is hard. you can eat animals. you can attack people and feed on them without killing them, which is assault. you can try and buy donated human blood from hospitals. but guess who controls most of the black market human blood trade and doesn’t want to sell it to you at a fair price? it’s the covens! also, the covens have arrangements with people they drink from directly, so it’s not like they need the human blood, but being in control of the trade gives them a lot of power in the community.

a lot of times, your options as a vampire are: live in a beautiful, luxurious base where you get free food and accommodations, are able to get a job, have protection from hunters, and have people around that you can talk to, OR, live in poverty, isolation, and fear. covens as organized crime families where it’s really, really hard not to join one of them.

[maddstermind]

love characters who are like "this is how the world works. this is how it has to be (because if i'm wrong i have to face what i've done // if i'm wrong i have to face whats been done to me) "

[maddstermind]

So writers joke a lot about "drinking the tears of our readers", but I want to be so honest with you when I tell you that making you cry isn't our real goal. Making you feel is.

Kicking your feet? Giggling? Can't stop smiling? And yes, crying? Feeling anything, everything. That's our goal. That means we did The Job.

[maddstermind]

on watching a parent age

i saw somebody say “what if you’re gone and i haven’t become anything yet” and basically that broke me on a random thursday evening

[maddstermind]

Floating face down in a blank word document file, while not physically possible, is nevertheless a tangible authorial state.

[maddstermind]

Please forgive me for ranting, but...I am so tired of AI. Just so tired. I don't want Microsoft Copilot, or Google Gemini, or Meta AI, or whatever other energy-sucking, water-wasting, mediocrity-spewing LLM is currently being thrust upon me. I just want to be left alone to create in peace.

[maddstermind]

my thing i haven’t made is so good 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

[maddstermind]

Character Pokémon Team Tag

Hi guys! I wanted to reach out to my audience a little bit more, and I thought a fun way to do that would be through creating a new tag game. Since I'm a HUGE Pokémon nerd, I thought it would be fun to make it Pokémon themed!

Rules: Choose one or more characters from your WIP. Create a team of Pokémon for them, and then explain your choices.

I used the website PikaTeams to create each of my team images. You can find them here! To kick things off, I'll be doing the main three from Page Thieves! Arno's Team

Bulbasaur - Of all the frog-adjacent Pokémon, I decided to go for shiny Bulbasaur because it felt the most Arno-like to me? Also, its Vine Whip reminds me of how Arno uses his frog tongue.

Indeedee (Male) - Don't you know every upstanding nobleman needs their own valet? I feel like, in the hypothetical Pokémon AU I'm creating through this exercise, Arno's parents probably forced this mon onto him.

Blipbug - To quote Blipbug's Pokedex entry, it is "a constant collector of information." Guys. It's a bookworm. I couldn't not give one to the ultimate booklover!

Mory's Team

Tinkatuff - I knew I had to pick at least one member of the girlypop tinker line of Pokémon for Mory, and settled on the middle stage as its Pokedex entries directly mention it gathering metal to form its hammer. Mory would appreciate its spirit of ingenuity.

Klefki - Those who've beta read Page Thieves know that one of Mory's "magic tricks" is her ability to unlock locks just by looking at their corresponding key. Of course she'd want a little key collector around!

Galvantula - So, fun fact about my WIP: Arno is not the only character to have a corresponding animal. And Mory's animal just so happens to be spiders! Also, Galvantula has a signature move, Electroweb, which can ensnare opponents much like Mory does with her ribbon.

Remy's Team

Thievul - I mean. Come on. It's a Pokemon themed around a gentleman thief. Of course Remy would have one.

Fidough - Fidough is mentioned as being extremely helpful to bakers in its Pokedex entries, and since Remy's day job is baking, it just makes sense for him to have one of these little guys.

Fletchinder - Now it's time for Remy's associated animal: the phoenix! Decided to go for the middle evolution of this phoenix-themed line since Fletchling isn't fire-type and Talonflame is... a tad bit too big for Remy to keep in his teeny tiny little apartment.

For this first go-around, I'll be tagging @loopyhoopywrites, @chauceryfairytales, @talesofsorrowandofruin, @daisywords, @kaylinalexanderbooks, @maddstermind, and whoever else wants to participate! Rise, Pokenerd writers, RISE!