nmjackson

[nmjackson]

1 Million Mandarin Chinese Works on AO3

AO3 now has more than 1 million 中文-普通话 國語 (Mandarin Chinese) works. Come celebrate with us and read more at: https://otw-news.org/bdhnn78d

English • 中文

[nmjackson]

Happy Author-versay to Me!

Got nothing to show for it but I'm celebrating anyway, bitch! xD

[nmjackson]

I just ran into a whole side of A03 I didn't know existed...and I kinda wish I kept it that way...

[nmjackson]

K.I.S.S | Writing Update with Actionable Advice

So, I know I've talked about one way to find your writing pace (I will go back and make it prettier one of these days.) But, I'll be completely honest, I used it once and it worked for like two days before I was back to my own shenanigans...

BUUUUUUTTTTTT!!!! Guesssss what? ₍₍⚞(˶˃ ᵕ ˂˶)⚟⁾⁾

I've been writing consistently for about four weeks with a different writing schedule I set out for myself. (I made sure to test it out this time.)

It's not as sexy as "how to write 10'000 words every day", but it's a ✨sustainable writing habit✨. I also have a full time job and am going back to school for a spell when all I wanna do is write (╥﹏╥)

Anyway, I'm going to share it with you because I want to, you can use it or not. You've got free will, here.

And the important bits are in bold for ADHD readers.

The Habit

I made my daily word goals a non- negotiable habit. Again, I've talked about this before, but this time I actually put my money where my mouth is. To make this non- negotiable habit stick, I specified a word goal to each day. Mine looks like this: Monday (500 words), Tuesday (400 words), Wednesday (300 words), Thursday (200 words), and Friday (100 words). And, more importantly, I only give myself thirty minutes to complete it.

That's it.

Why It Works

This schedule works with my typical work week energy levels. I'm usually refreshed and able to get 👏shit👏 done👏 on Monday's whereas by Friday, I'm ready for my weekend.

I didn't pull out these numbers out off my 🍑. I made sure to stick to word goals that I could comfortably finish in thirty minutes. My inspiration for this portion is Parkinson's Law (╭ರ_•́).

Did you notice that I don't have a word goal for Saturdays or Sundays? That's the point. Burn out is REAL. And hustle culture isn't for me, projects will get done in the time they take to get done. So, go touch grass 🌱🌾 Live a full life! Inspiration is outside too!

Is this 100% fool-proof? No, I still miss a day or I don't reach the goal. But, I'm 10'000 words in. That's more in four weeks than I've done in the 10 months I've been working on this project. Can't tell me it's not working ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Hope this helps! Happy writing! ✌︎︎♡⃛

*K.I.S.S stands for "Keep It Simple, Stupid" in case you were wondering. And, no, I didn't come up with that either in case you were wondering.

[nmjackson]

Fantasy Guide to the Succession Rights of Adopted Children, Foster Children and Step-Children

I often get asks that surround scenarios where adopted or foster children or step-children of monarchs and nobles and what the prospects are of them inheriting the titles, privileges and wealth of their step-parent. Something I always want to remind people is that if you are writing fantasy, you can bend real world rules to fit your narrative any way you want. Anything I discuss here is meant for an inspiration or a foundation. With that being said, let's have a look.

Understanding the Rights

In modern times, adopted, foster and step-children are permitted to inherit from parents that are not blood related. This wasn't always the case throughout history, with a lot of cultures of royalty and nobility putting a lot of stock and emphasis on those rights being passed along by blood right. Afterall, this is how royalty and nobility justified themselves in being in the position they are. Without that, why shouldn't Joe Soap down the road call himself the King or Duke of Wherever-Shire? This is why a good many cultures only allow titles to pass to children that are born from a distinct familial line.

In Terms of Nobility and Royalty Adopted, Foster Or Step-Children Are NOT Entitled To…

Adopted children, foster children and step-children will not have blood claim and therefore, in many cultures would not be permitted to inherit or gain any wealth or status not linked to their birth parent.

Step-Children are not entitled to any title even courtesy title of their step-parent. For example, if their dad is a Duke who married a Queen, they don't become Princess/Prince, they stay with Lord/Lady. They are not the children of royalty, they are the children of a Duke and they are not treated as Prince/Princess but they are still well treated as they are the step-children of the Queen. They will not inherit royal styles, jewellery and estates. This is the same for noble families intermarrying. Main rule is that whatever you are born as, you stay as - though this new marriage might give you some perks.

Adopted children are not entitled to titles, courtesy titles land and items linked to their adopted family. (This does not include children that are adopted by the title holder when they are next in line)

Foster children, as I explain in my guide about them, are usually in the family for a brief time usually just until they are of age and are entitled to only the basics which is their physical needs and educational needs. They do not inherit titles.

Unless...

However, this is not true everywhere. There are some cultures in the real world that do allow adopted, foster and step-children to inherit titles and lands through adopted, foster and step-parents. These cultures often allowed this in order to select the perfect heir chosen by the adoptee/foster parent/step-parent or to fill a gap when there was no legitimate heir in the wings.

Ancient Rome: The Romans had a system of adoption which a Roman nobleman or Emperor and even a Pleb, could adopt somebody in order to allow them to inherit. Emperor Augustus adopted numerous heirs, even his own wife. Often adopting members within the extended family or close allies, this allowed the adopter to chose the right person to inherit their wealth and styles, even over legitimate and blood-related heirs if they so wished.

Brehon Ireland: Foster children and the practise was a popular and important custom, which while preventing foster children from inheriting titles and lands from their foster parent, it made them equal in the eyes of the law as their foster siblings, with even foster parents entitled to avenge and protect their foster children from any harm.

Feudal Japan: Like the Romans, samurai families adopted male heirs to inherit clans, land and titles.

Byzantine Empire: It wasn't as common as in Rome but Byzantine emperors could allow stepchildren or even sons-in-law to inherit positions of power.

Ancient Egypt: Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt sometimes adopted family members in order to ensure there was a clear heir.

Ancient China : Adoption was rare but Emperors could adopt male heirs from within the family branches in order to continue the family line.

Sweden: In one extremely rare case, a French General of the name, Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte was formally adopted by King Charles XIII of Sweden. This entitled him to later become King Charles XIV John.

If You Are An Adopted, Foster Or Step-Child, You May Be Entitled To...

Some things. It's not to say that if your character can't be a prince or princess or gain a crown, they get absolutely nothing at all. In fact, if one of their parents marries a monarch or noble or they are adopted by a monarch or noble or they are fostered for a time, they will likely gain something.

Step-children can often be provided for by their step-parent, especially if one parent is dead and they live in the household. Step-children would not be allowed to inherit money that is linked to titles but they could still inherit some private wealth and items from their step-parent. Powerful step-parents may even see that their step-children marry well or access the same routes as their own children, such as educational or vocational avenues. Some royals even granted their step-children noble titles as shows of favour, such as Thomas and Richard Grey who by their step-father Edward IV, became Baron Astley/Earl of Huntingdon/Marquess of Dorset and Constable of Chester Castle/Constable of Wallingford Castle/Lord of Kidwelly respectively - along with numerous royal appointments and orders.

Adopted children, who are usually somehow related to their adopted parents but this is not always the rule, would be treated as their adopted parents saw fit which could be very well or with some difference than their legitimate children. Sometimes, they are adopted because they are next in line and the current holder of the title and crown has adopted them to educate them for their new role. But adopted children who are taken in are usually only entitled to have their basic needs met: food, shelter, clothes, education and sometimes help finding a match. They may even live somewhere apart from their adoptive parents but sometimes lived with their adoptive parents and were raised with their adoptive siblings.

Foster children are different. The foster system in the past was when a noble or royal family, took in a child from another noble family in order to offer them an education to groom them for their future. Foster children were often taken in in order to foster a good relationship between the families or to ensure their birth family would not act up. Foster children are expected to be treated well and given all privileges as their foster siblings but they can not inherit anything from their foster parents, that isn't privately accumulated wealth or items.

Difference in Inheritance

Not all things such as items and lands are restricted like titles and official seats of power. Anything privately acquired such as jewellery or private homes or private investments that are not linked to the wealth, property portfolio and power of the title can be left to a child that isn't of their body. For example, if a Duchess died and she had a son and a step-son, her son would be entitled to her title, her estates, the family fortune, the majority of her assets and her official jewellery while her step-son could be given pieces of her private jewellery collection, any property she held under her own name and any businesses she owned privately. This goes the same way for adopted or foster children - and is entirely at the discretion of their step/foster/adoptive parent.

[nmjackson]

Emotional Walls Your Character Has Built (And What Might Finally Break Them)

(How your character defends their soft core and what could shatter it) Because protection becomes prison real fast.

✶ Sarcasm as armor. (Break it with someone who laughs gently, not mockingly.) ✶ Hyper-independence. (Break it with someone who shows up even when they’re told not to.) ✶ Stoicism. (Break it with a safe space to fall apart.) ✶ Flirting to avoid intimacy. (Break it with real vulnerability they didn’t see coming.) ✶ Ghosting everyone. (Break it with someone who won’t take silence as an answer.) ✶ Lying for convenience. (Break it with someone who sees through them but stays anyway.) ✶ Avoiding touch. (Break it with accidental, gentle contact that feels like home.) ✶ Oversharing meaningless things to hide real depth. (Break it with someone who asks the second question.) ✶ Overworking. (Break it with forced stillness and the terrifying sound of their own thoughts.) ✶ Pretending not to care. (Break it with a loss they can’t fake their way through.) ✶ Avoiding mirrors. (Break it with a quiet compliment that hits too hard.) ✶ Turning every conversation into a joke. (Break it with someone who doesn’t laugh.) ✶ Being everyone’s helper. (Break it when someone asks what they need, and waits for an answer.) ✶ Constantly saying “I’m fine.” (Break it when they finally scream that they’re not.) ✶ Running. Always running. (Break it with someone who doesn’t chase, but doesn’t leave, either.) ✶ Intellectualizing every feeling. (Break it with raw, messy emotion they can’t logic away.) ✶ Trying to be the strong one. (Break it when someone sees the weight they’re carrying, and offers to help.) ✶ Hiding behind success. (Break it when they succeed and still feel empty.) ✶ Avoiding conflict at all costs. (Break it when silence causes more pain than the truth.) ✶ Focusing on everyone else’s healing but their own. (Break it when they hit emotional burnout.)

[nmjackson]

[nmjackson]

✨ HOW TO ACTUALLY START A BOOK

(no ✨vibes✨, just structure, stakes, and first-sentence sweat)

hello writer friends 💌 so you opened a doc. you sat down. you cracked your knuckles. maybe you even made a playlist or moodboard. and then… you stared at the blinking cursor like it personally insulted your entire bloodline.

here’s your intervention. this post is for when you want to write chapter one, but all you have is aesthetic, maybe a plot bunny, maybe a world idea, maybe nothing at all. here’s how to actually start a book, from structure to sentence one.

—

🌶️ STEP 1: THE SPICE BASE ~ “WHAT’S CHANGING?”

start with this question:

what changes in the protagonist’s life in the first 5–10 pages?

doesn’t have to be earth-shattering. they could get a letter, lose a job, run late, break a rule, wake up hungover in the wrong house. what matters is disruption. the opening of your book should mark a shift. if their day starts normal, it shouldn’t end that way.

🏁 opening chapters are about motion. forward movement. tension. momentum. if nothing is changing, your story isn’t starting, you’re just doing a prequel.

—

⚙️ STEP 2: THE CRUNCHY BITS - CHOOSE AN ENTRY POINT

there are 3 classic places to start a novel. each one works if you’re intentional:

The Day Everything Changes most popular. you drop us in right before or during the inciting incident. clean, fast, efficient.

pro: immediate stakes con: harder to sneak in worldbuilding or character grounding

The Calm Before the Storm starts slightly earlier. show the character’s “normal” life, then break it. useful if the change won’t make sense without context.

pro: space to introduce your character’s routine/flaws con: risky if it drags or feels like setup

The Aftermath drop us in after the big event and fill in gaps as we go. works well for thrillers, mysteries, or emotionally heavy plots.

pro: instant drama con: requires precision to avoid confusion

📝 pick one. commit. don’t blend them or you’ll write three intros at once and cry.

—

🧠 STEP 3: CHARACTER FIRST, ALWAYS

readers don’t care about your setting, your magic system, or your cool mafia politics unless they’re anchored in someone.

in the first scene, we need to know:

what this person wants

what’s bothering them (externally or internally)

one trait they lead with (bold, anxious, calculating, naive, etc.)

that’s it. just one want, one tension, one vibe. no bios. no monologues. no “they weren’t like other girls” essays. put them in a situation and show how they act.

—

⛓️ STEP 4: OPEN WITH FRICTION

first scenes should create questions, not answer them.

there should be tension between:

what the character wants vs. what they’re getting

what’s happening vs. what they expected

what’s being said vs. what’s being felt

you don’t need a gunshot or a car crash (unless you want one). you need conflict. tension = momentum = readers keep reading.

—

✏️ STEP 5: WRITE THE FIRST SENTENCE - THEN IGNORE IT

okay. now you write it.

no pressure. you’re not tattooing it on your soul. this isn’t the final line on the final page. you just need something.

tricks that work:

start in the middle of an action

start with a contradiction

start with something unexpected, funny, or sharp

start with a small lie or a weird detail

💬 examples:

“The body was exactly where she’d left it - rude.” “He was already two hours late to his own kidnapping.” “There was blood on the welcome mat. Again.” “They said don’t open the door. She opened it anyway.”

once you’ve got it? keep going. don’t revise yet. don’t edit. just build momentum.

you can come back and make it ✨iconic✨ later.

—

📦 BONUS: WHAT NOT TO DO IN YOUR OPENING

don’t start with a dream

don’t info-dump lore in paragraph one

don’t give me three pages of your OC making toast

don’t try to sound like a Victorian cryptid unless it’s on purpose

don’t introduce 7 named characters in one scene

don’t start with a quote unless you are 800% sure it slaps

be weird. be sharp. be specific. aim for interest, not perfection.

—

🏁 TL;DR (but make it ✨useful✨)

something in your MC’s life should change immediately

pick a structural entry point and stick to it

give us a person, not a setting

friction = good

first lines are disposable, just make them interesting

and if you needed a sign to just start the damn book, this is it.

💌 love, -rin t.

P.S. I made a free mini eBook about the 5 biggest mistakes writers make in the first 10 pages 👀 you can grab it here for FREE:

[nmjackson]

Be willing to write really badly.

— Jennifer Egan

[nmjackson]

Man, when I was like 16 I got so sick of being made fun of for being the fat kid that I took an axe down inna woods, chopped down a tree, and started doing log-lifts all the time. I got strong as fuck, but I didn’t lose no weight. I actually got bigger.

Same thing happened when I got into fighting. I got even stronger, and I got *fast*, man, and nimble, like a cat. Still chubby.

Body-building culture is a bunch of crap, my dude. Functional muscle is not necessarily toned or lean. You can be swole as hell and still be heavy. And that’s cool.

Embrace your inner barbarian. And when fatphobic little gym twinks try to body shame you, you should DESTROY THEM with your MIGHTY AXE

[nmjackson]

the writing brain is like a pc from 2009. cpu overheating. fans screaming. 37 tabs open. microsoft word not responding. ideas buffering. and somehow there’s a minecraft launcher running in the background for no reason.

[nmjackson]

been stewing on an analytical approach to fiction which I call "is this book afraid of me?" and in order to answer this question you determine how hard the book is trying to make sure you don't come after the writer on twitter

[nmjackson]

"mmh did you know that creator you like also posts 🔞 content? did you know that? don't you think that's weird? don't you think we should keep this space-"

no. i don't.

i booked a front row seat to the devil's sacrament and you're blocking the view

just go back to the 1660 new england hole you just crawled out of and eat barley for a week to atone for your sins or whatever

[nmjackson]

personal reminder: surround yourself with people who motivate you to better yourself and work hard for the things you want. people who value your words, and more importantly, contribute and care about your success & well being

[nmjackson]

oh snap

[nmjackson]

I'm probably going to retreat into my work mode for a while. Hopefully I'll come out with something to show for it......