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💥 Small Writing Habits That Genuinely Changed How I Write 💥

listen. i’m not here to sell you a productivity system or convince you that waking up at 5am will make you a novelist. i am deeply Not That Girl. HOWEVER, here are 5 chaotic little writing habits that quietly rearranged my brain chemistry:

✏️ typing BEFORE i know what happens i used to think i had to outline everything before writing. wrong. i get more done when i let the scene surprise me. just start with vibes and a line of dialogue. the rest shows up once you start moving.

🗣️ saying the scene out loud like a play no joke. talking my scenes out like a script?? life-changing. the pacing, the emotion, the rhythm of it all makes more sense when i act like i’m gossiping about my blorbos in a voice memo.

⌛ 20-minute timers (not for productivity, just to start) i tell myself “just 20 minutes.” sometimes i stop. sometimes i blink and it’s 2 hours later and someone’s been emotionally eviscerated in chapter 12. this one’s black magic. use wisely.

🕯️ re-reading my WIP like a book no editing, no judging, just reading through with snacks like it’s already published. changes how i see the pacing and emotional arcs. also reminds me it doesn’t completely suck.

🧂 leaving in the messy parts i used to delete scenes that felt “off.” now i just write a little comment like “THIS IS BAD BUT KEEP GOING.” turns out momentum matters more than vibes. shocking, i know.

anyway. tiny habits. huge mental rewiring. 10/10. highly recommend.

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Hello tumblr I’m not dead I assure you. Between work and countless different brainrots I’ve finally emerged once again.

Only I decided to actually sit down and write fanfiction for a game I’ve only been playing since the start of the year.

In the event anyone is curious, here’s the link:

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Babe, wake up, new ao3 writer assumption just dropped.

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god i hate when a song doesn't actually fit your blorbo/ship in terms of lyrics but just Something About It makes you think of them but if someone were to ask you why you would just gesture incoherently

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Responses to “why didn’t you tell me?”

(perfect for when your OC hid something Big and Emotional and now it’s all awkward and feelings are on the floor)

✧ "because I didn’t think you’d care."

✧ "because I barely admitted it to myself."

✧ "i was gonna... and then the moment passed... like three weeks ago."

✧ "because every time i almost did, i panicked and made a stupid joke instead."

✧ "it didn’t feel like something you’d want to know."

✧ "because i’m a professional at bottling things up until they explode spectacularly."

✧ "i figured if i kept quiet, it wouldn’t be real."

✧ "i was scared you’d look at me differently. and now you are."

✧ "because it was easier to lie than to see that look on your face."

✧ "i didn’t want to need you. still don’t."

✧ "because i didn’t want to ruin whatever this is."

✧ "because i’m tired of being the problem."

✧ "you were already dealing with so much. i didn’t want to be more weight."

✧ "i didn’t think i deserved to be honest with you."

✧ "because if i said it out loud, you might leave."

✧ "because i wanted to be someone you didn’t have to worry about."

✧ "because it’s not just about me. it never is."

✧ "you ever hold something in so long it becomes part of you? yeah. that."

✧ "because i didn’t know how to say it without falling apart."

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The Symbolism of Weather

Weather in stories is not just there to make your characters wet or sweaty or annoyingly cold. It means stuff, like, big emotional metaphory stuff. You can totally use it to say what your characters aren’t saying out loud, or to punch your readers in the face with vibes.

༄ Storms – Big messy chaos energy. Fights or maybe Panic. Something bad is either happening or about to, like the universe is yelling “brace yourself!”

༄ Rain – Sad tears or soul shower, take your pick. Sometimes it’s like, "boohoo everything sucks," but also kinda healing? Think of it like an emotional reset button.

༄ Sunshine – Happiness, duh. But also those moments where everything is finally clear and warm and safe, even if just for a second.

༄ Fog – No one knows what the hell is going on. Secrets, confusion, probably someone making a very questionable decision.

༄ Wind – Change is coming, dear. Restlessness in the air...Could be thrilling, could be terrifying. Hair will get messed up either way.

༄ Snow – Either magical winter wonderland vibes... or total emotional frostbite. Loneliness, silence, maybe death if you’re feeling extra dramatic.

༄ Heatwave – Everyone’s cranky and sweaty and one second away from snapping. Tension is so thick you could cut it with a popsicle stick.

༄ Thunder – Something (or someone) is pissed off. Like divine wrath, or just the universe doing a mic drop.

༄ Lightning – FLASH of truth. Insight. Or rage. Whatever it is, it’s fast and it changes everything.

༄ Clear Sky – The deep exhale after the chaos, like things are finally chill. Maybe even… hopeful?

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writer brain is like “what if this story was a metaphor for grief”

no babes what if this story was finished first

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Subtle Ways to Show a Character Is Falling Apart (Emotionally)

✦ laughs at things that aren’t remotely funny

✦ starts answering questions with “I’m fine” way too fast

✦ gets irrationally mad over minor inconveniences (wrong coffee order = meltdown)

✦ starts cleaning obsessively or not at all, no middle ground

✦ can’t sit still but also doesn’t want to go anywhere

✦ smiles like they’re trying to hold their face together

✦ talks more than usual, or barely at all, and both feel off

✦ keeps checking their phone even when no one’s texting

✦ gives away things they love “just because”

✦ stares at nothing for way too long, then pretends they were thinking

✦ snaps at people they normally protect

✦ starts apologizing for things they didn’t do

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🍖 How to Build a Culture Without Just Inventing Spices and Necklaces

(a worldbuilding roast. with love.)

So. You’re building a fantasy world, and you’ve just invented: → Three types of ceremonial jewelry → A spice that tastes like cinnamon if it were bitter and cursed → A holiday where everyone wears gold and screams at dawn

Cute. But that’s not culture. That’s aesthetics.

And if your worldbuilding is all outfits, dances, and spice blends with vaguely mystical names, your story’s probably going to feel like a cosplay convention held inside a Pinterest board.

Here’s how to fix that—aka: how to build a real, functioning culture that shapes your story, not just its vibes.

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🔗 Culture Is Built on Power, Not Just Style

Ask yourself: → Who’s in charge, and why? → Who has land? Who doesn’t? → What’s considered taboo, sacred, or punishable by death?

Culture is shaped by who gets to make the rules and who gets crushed by them. That’s where things like religion, family structure, class divisions, gender roles, and social expectations actually come from.

Start there. Not at the embroidery.

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2.🪓 Culture Comes From Conflict

Did this society evolve peacefully? Was it colonized? Did it colonize? Was it rebuilt after a war? Is it still in one?

→ What was destroyed and mythologized? → What do the survivors still whisper about? → What do children get taught in school that’s… suspiciously sanitized?

No culture is neutral. Every tradition has a history, and that history should taste like blood, loss, or propaganda.

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3.🧠 Belief Systems > Customs Lists

Sure, rituals and holidays are cool. But what do people believe about: → Death? → Love? → Time? → The natural world? → Justice?

Example: A society that believes time is cyclical vs. one that sees time as linear will approach everything—from prison sentences to grief—completely differently.

You don’t need to invent 80 gods. You need to know what those gods mean to the people who pray to them.

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4.🫀 Culture Controls Behavior (Quietly)

Culture shows up in: → What people apologize for → What insults cut deepest → What people are embarrassed about → What’s praised publicly vs. what’s hidden privately

For instance: → A culture obsessed with stoicism won’t say “I love you.” They’ll say “Have you eaten?” → A culture built on legacy might prioritize ancestor veneration, archival writing, name inheritance.

This stuff? Way more immersive than giving everyone matching earrings.

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5. 🏠 Culture = Daily Life, Not Just Festivals

Sure, your MC might attend a funeral where people paint their faces blue. But what about: → Breakfast routines? → How people greet each other on the street? → Who cooks, and who eats first? → What’s considered “clean” or “proper”? → How is parenting handled? Divorce?

Culture is what happens between plot points. It should shape your character’s assumptions, language, fears, and habits—whether or not a festival is going on.

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6. 💬 Let Your Characters Disagree With Their Own Culture

A culture isn’t a monolith.

Even in deeply traditional societies, people: → Rebel → Question → Break rules → Misinterpret laws → Mock sacred things → Act hypocritically → Weaponize or resist what’s expected

Let your characters wrestle with the culture around them. That’s where realism (and tension) lives.

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7.🧼 Beware the “Pretty = Good” Trap

Worldbuilding gets boring fast when: → The protagonist’s homeland is beautiful and pure → The enemy’s culture is dark and “barbaric” → Every detail just reinforces who the reader should like

You can—and should—challenge the aesthetic hierarchy. → Let ugly things be beloved. → Let beautiful things be corrupt. → Let your MC romanticize their culture and then get disillusioned by it later.

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📍 TL;DR (but like, spicy): → Culture is not food and jewelry. → Culture is power, fear, memory, contradiction. → Stop inventing spices until you know who starved last winter. → Let your world feel lived in, not curated.

The best cultural worldbuilding doesn’t look like a list. It feels like a system. A pressure. A presence your characters can’t escape—even if they try.

Now go. Build something real. (You can add spices later.)

—rin t. // writing advice for worldbuilders with rage and range // thewriteadviceforwriters

Sometimes the problem isn’t your plot. It’s your first 5 pages. Fix it here → 🖤 Free eBook: 5 Opening Pages Mistakes to Stop Making:

🕯️ download the pack & write something cursed:

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genuinely i think everyone would be so much happier if we simply accepted that fanfiction isn’t supposed to be realistic at all, it’s just supposed to make you happy. ​these freaks are currently 20k words into pining for each other while living under the same roof and working the same job, fuck realism tbh

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Everyone knows that there are two ways to get into media these days:

1. A tumblr mutuals indoctrination

2. Blorbo from my other shows was there

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Illusio + Iceborn Warmth

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a talking point i often see when defending the consumption of dark content is that it’s a coping mechanism for those with trauma which is very valid and true but i also want to make this abundantly clear: you can like dark content for no reason. you can enjoy fucked up shit in fiction because it’s enjoyable and entertaining. trauma is not required as a ticket for entry. enjoy your dark content bc it’s fun and sexy and don’t let anyone take that away from you

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writing isn’t hard it’s just emotionally devastating and time-consuming and requires full body possession by an idea

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Common Insecurity or Self-Doubt Habits

⊹ Tugging at Sleeves or Clothes

⊹ Chewing the Inside of the Cheek

⊹ Avoiding Eye Contact

⊹ Touching the Neck or Collarbone

⊹ Folding Arms Over the Chest (shielding)

⊹ Clenching Jaw Subtly

⊹ Rechecking Things (texts, doors, bags, etc.)

⊹ Whispering Replies Even in Normal Conversation

⊹ Tapping Thumb Against Fingers

⊹ Pulling Knees to Chest When Sitting

⊹ Laughing Too Loud at Bad Jokes

⊹ Starting Sentences with “Sorry” or “I was just…”

⊹ Using Self-Deprecating Humor as a Defense

⊹ Covering Mouth While Talking

⊹ Talking With Hands, Then Stopping Abruptly