pocaluzwrites - Tumblr blog

[pocaluzwrites]

Feedback on my Character Plot

So i've heard great feedback from one of my sensitivity readers about the plot line of one of my characters, Youssef Magnuson. He is a character with Dissociative Identity Disorder, or at least close to what the disorder is. My story is set in an urban fantasy setting and so there will be some differences with how it is portrayed in the story, and it is not explicitly stated that he has the disorder. I wanted to portray someone with DID and what it's like, but did not want readers to self diagnose and romanticize the illness, hence I went for the sensitivity reader route besides my intensive research.

[pocaluzwrites]

New Blog Website

Hey everyone! I have a new website for blogging my updates and to chronicle my journey as an aspiring author. I am going to use it as a platform to grow my audience more.

It is by no means an end to my writeblr blog. I would say it's more of an extension, and evolution of where my journey is at right now. I would like to grow and expand my audience as I work towards becoming a published author.

I hope to see you all there.

[pocaluzwrites]

Story Genius

I haven't personally read the book as of yet, but I definitely recommend it. Why? Because Abbie Emmons said so. HAHA. I will be reading it soon, and tell y'all a bout it, but for now, here's what I gathered from Abbie's videos.

Well, she explains all about scene cards and how every thing in your story should matter. Everything should have a reason, even if it's a small thing. Apparently, the author of the book, Lisa Cron, talks about how scene cards work. Basically, it's to help make your scene matter.

You have your story and your plot. The story is the external part, and the plot is the internal part. Both story and plot go hand in hand. An external conflict happens to your character and then also an internal conflict. The internal conflict is where the juicy parts are at. It's where the readers connect with your character. You can have a basic character who does basic things and it might not seem exciting to read, but when you couple that with a strong internal conflict, you get to catch the reader's attention, and even the blandest thing that your character would be doing like brushing one's teeth, can seem like it's really important as you root for that character to brush their teeth as they struggle with their internal conflict.

I can talk more about external and internal conflict, or you can go watch Abbie Emmons on Youtube.

[pocaluzwrites]

WIP Update

So I'm currently working my outline for Youssef Magnusson's POV. Sef is a bit harder to write because he has Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), and I have no experience on it. I've done a lot of research on this, and i mean, A LOT. But I know that's not enough, so I opted for a Sensitivity Reader so I could have multiple set of eyes to check where I may have missed and misrepresented some aspects of DID. I want this to be a good representation of DID.

[pocaluzwrites]

I am also a Twitch Streamer

I've started a gaming channel on Twitch recently due to the pandemic. It's been a rough couple of months, and streaming is something I enjoy on the side. It also helps me keep my creativity going, checking out the storytelling and other aspects of the game, while enjoying it myself.

I mostly play horror games. If y'all wanna see my reactions to them, feel free to catch me on there. While you're at it, give me a follow and/or subscribe. :)

[pocaluzwrites]

The Emotional Wound Thesaurus

I can’t tell y’all how much this book has helped me in writing my story. If you want a story to be powerful and amazing, you have to have great flawed characters and this book makes it easy to give your characters their desires, fears and misbeliefs. I recommend getting it and watching Abbie Emmon’s Youtube videos for a more in-depth guide on writing compelling characters.

This book is by Angela Ackerman and Becca Puglisi. It’s cheaper if you get Kindle version.

[pocaluzwrites]

What definitely helped me improve my story

So I've been following Abbie Emmons on Youtube and she's got really helpful writing advice. Go check her out if you need help with writing strong internal conflict and character driven stories.

[pocaluzwrites]

WIP UPDATE

I've actually completed outlining of the main plot points of one of my main protagonist, Lucas Hart. So good job on me for that. I'm now currently outlining the main plot points for my other protagonist, Youssef Magnusson. I've decided to only follow these two instead of having to follow four characters for reasons that I am a newbie at writing. lol

Not sure if y'all still want to be in my tag list, but let me know if you want out.

Tag list: @emireviews, @pen-for-sword, @rogue-rosha

[pocaluzwrites]

Hello Writeblr - my old friend.

It’s been quite a long time since I’ve posted on my writeblr but rest assured, I am still writing this story down. Here’s basically what happened since I’ve been gone. Had to take care of myself mentally and physically, and it all worked out. I’ve gotten in shape, got a kitty named Tarjei that I pour all my love into, pursued my passion for art, and continued on writing my story. But I’m back. I’ll try to post weekly on here and keep y’all up to date.

[pocaluzwrites]

Okay, you need to make sure you play this game at some point. Maybe not today or anything, because you’ll need about thirty minutes and a serious willingness to understand how it works, but - it’s so worth it. It’s basically an answer to our occasional frustration - why do assholes always come out on top? - and the beautiful thing about it is that not only does it explain how that happens, but also how we can change it.

“In the short run, the game defines the players. But in the long run, it’s us players who define the game.”

[pocaluzwrites]

LAST LINE TAG II

@writingonthewrong thanks for the tag! :) good thing I actually had something new written down. 

I stuck my head out to search for anyone else in the room, but I was the only one there.

Tagging: @writings-of-a-narwhal @sassypandacandy and @doux-ciel

[pocaluzwrites]

Plot This: Structure Guide

Alright so if you’re a writer then you’ve probably familiarized yourself with plot…and the structure it provides to a novel. There are countless articles online on “how to plot a novel” or the like. Which is fantastic for you writers because it’s at a fingers reach from us. Not so great when there’s about…a billion ways one can go about plotting a novel. It can seem daunting and overwhelming and more important confusing! 

I want to break down this massive task bit by bit. Starting with the very bare bones and working into more detailed parts. Making it more manageable.

 Now, I know some of you might roll your eyes and say I know all there is to know about plot. I was you. I went into every workshop and craft class thinking the same thing. And yet, when I started plotting my recent WIP ( The Cost of Defeat ) I realized I didn’t know jack. I thought every story I ever wrote would adhere to my system of structure because of sheer will and blunt force. Yeah wrong.

It wasn’t until just recently I started diving into the structure ( because I like pretty diagrams and being organized way more than I should) that I discovered there are a lot of different Plot Structures out there. No one bothered to ever teach me let alone discuss these things. My mind was blown. 

Some worked better for me than others. Some mesh better together than others. It’s all about experimenting and figuring out what works for you. And I’m hoping that this will also help others, or at least give a jumping off point. Now it’s not a whole list ( there’s a lot of elements that I could probably talk about by themselves) but it’s a good overview of the popular ones that reoccur a lot.

1) Freytag’s Pyramid

Freytag’s pyramid is the most basic plot structure I know. It’s the one we’ve all seen in school when we start learning about story structure and analysis.

This bad boy is the simplest plot structure used to dissect and understand Greek and Shakespearean Plays. 

Pros     x Simplistic. Makes it easy to understand      x Great for those just starting ( or those who want to understand film and literature analysis.     x Great for AP Literature/Comp papers

Cons     x It creates simple stories     x Not super awesome for modern novels or anything longer than about 25K words

Uses     x Children’s Literature. Picture books mostly. Children are still learning to understand things like conflict effect on characters and having such a long falling action allows for that.     x Short Stories. Since short stories are compact for punch, this structure allows you to get the most done without boring the reader in 25K words or less.   x Analysis. This structure is the easiest and most common to apply to plays, film, tv and even in classic literature. It’s a great way to dissect plot and events in order to better understand the pieces working parts 

Examples: Shakespeare's Hamlet and Romeo and Juliet                    Sophocles’s  Antigone                    Henrik Ibsen  A Doll House

2) Three-Act Structure

The Three-Act Structure is probably the most known. We all know this intuitively as storytellers. Everything needs a beginning middle and end, after all.

This structure is very similar to Freytag’s Pyramid but adds elements that beef up and create points of interest. Obstacles, for example, add conflict and build up suspense for the climax. It’s also important to note that the falling action and resolution is much more compact.

Pros    x  basic building block for all good stories    x  Roadmap-like so you can be systematic about things    x  Good “big-picture” visual

Cons    x  Pacing is super important for this    x  Bit rigid and formulaic

Uses     x  Literally anything. Because it’s versatile it works on  a plethera of stuff, let your imagineation run wild.     x Film analysis. This struccture is like the holy grail in almost any film class ( sometimes they call it the four act structure)

Examples:  Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Sherlock Holmes                    Alfred Hitchcock’s  Vertigo                    Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice

3) The Fichtean Curve

The Fichten Curve Is really unique in that it starts right with the rising action. There ain’t no time to build up or nice slow introductions, you’re dumping the readers right where it hurts. But you make up that lost time with the small bits of exposition

This is one of the most popular plot structures for modern novels.

Pros     x  A lot of opportunities to ramp up the stakes, bit after bit     x Good for pacing     x  Great for Overcoming Monster & Quest stories     x Translate over almost any genre

Cons     x Not a lot of time to slow down, breathe     x Not suited for Voyage and Return, Comedy or Rebirth stories

Uses    x Thrillers/Mystery novels. You need something to keep readers in the story, chomping at the bit. here’s the plot structure for you.    

Examples: Max Brooks’s World War Z                  

4) Plot Embryo/Hero’s Journey

The Hero’s Journey is also super common in the literature (namely western literature) With this plot the protagonist ( the hero of hero’s journey) undergoes a literal or figurative death-like transformation that changes him. 

The protagonist must venture from one state into another. To take it a step further there’s a variation called the Ploy Embyro. Dan Harmon takes the hero’s journey a bit deeper and modernizes. [ here’a great video on it by youtuber Rachel Stephen x] 

As you can see, the Hero’s Journey and Ploy Embyro are both cyclical. This baby comes full circle in both plot and character. They have similar plot points. But if I were to gush about this the post would be waaay longer than it already is. This is one of my preferred methods because it just makes sense for me and allows me to have some freedom and wiggle room while still adhering to the 3 acts.

Pros     x Character development holla, cause this is where it’s at.     x Visually appealing     x  Simple 8 point outline ( for those who might not enjoy long-winded outlines)     x  Works alongside A beat sheet ( if you use that sort of thing)     x  The holy grail for myths.

Cons     x Overdone ( but it doesn’t have to be a bad thing)     x Not suited for those who really detailed outlines

Uses     x Adventure Stories. It is all about the adventure and journey with this     x Myth Retellings. I mean it’s based on the myth structure of the Odyssey and the like so it makes sense

Examples: Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird                    Rick Riordan’s The Lightning Thief                   J. R R. Tolktien’s The Hobbit

5) In Media Res

A literal translation to “In the Middle”. This plot structure dumps you right in the middle of the story.  Think if you were to open a story on the second of third crisis/pinch point. there’s still a lot of upward trajectory to go before the climax.

Don’t confuse this with simply opening a story mid fight/action. Media Res starts well deep into the story itself, close to the climax but with enough room you can still build up to it.

Pros     x High Actions     x Simple and fun to play with     x A good use for flashbacks     x Hell of a hook for readers

Cons     x  Can be confusing for reader’s if not done right     x  No build up     x takes some finessing to get just right

Uses      x Mysteries. This is a great plot if you want to start a story perhaps where the killer has already committed the murder.    x Epic Poems. Maybe you wanna write the next epic poem, this is great for that.       Examples  John Milton’s Paradise Lost                    Homer’s Illiad                    George Lucas’s  Star Wars 

Now I could go on and on but this monster of a post has carried on long enough. If there’s a certain structure you’d like me to go into more detail about feel free to leave a comment on this post and I’ll be sure to add it to my line up!! As always happy writing/creating!

        XO Morgan

[pocaluzwrites]

OTP Songs Tag Game

@sassypandacandy​ thanks for the tag! i love listening to music. it’s where i get most of my inspirations for scenes. and the feels are just. sometimes, i can’t even write because my heart is just.. :) bye.. haha

So imma do Lucas x Youssef from my current WIP: Phoenix, Fire & Blood (wip page is still not actually done, been focusing on actually writing the thing. haha) So if you’ve read the synopsis, Lucas is very much in love with his ex but not ex girlfriend, Noora (it’s complicated). But, things happen and well, slow ass burn for Lucas and Youssef.

Here are the top 10 songs that make me go:

but also:

Rules: List 10 songs/lyrics for a couple in your WIP.

1. “The Wreck of Our Hearts” by Sleeping Wolf

So sing while we're falling apart, I'll take you dancing We lived through the wreck of our hearts And now we're just picking up the pieces Learning how to see when love is in the dark

2. “Run to You” by Lea Michele

Cause you'll be safe in these arms of mine Just call my name on the edge of the night And I'll run to you, I'll run to you

3. “Under My Skin” by SPC ECO

I'm done crying for moments I once adored Why is all this in pieces? Can't you let it lie? Leave love alone

4. “Find Your Way” by The Afters

Don't believe, the bridge from you to me Could somehow ever be washed away. Don't give in. Don't start listening to voices Whispering things I'd never say.

5. “Bloom” by The Paper Kites

Can I take you to a moment Where the fields are painted gold And the trees are filled with memories Of the feelings never told?

6. “Light” by Sleeping At Last

May these words be the first to find your ears The world is brighter than the sun now that you're here

7. “Stone” by James Young

So give me all your pain and love will set you free Give me all your shame. Put all your weight on me And I'll be the stone that you need me to be

8. “Dust to Dust” by The Civil Wars

Let me in the wall, you've built around And we can light a match and burn it down Let me hold your hand and dance 'round and 'round the flame In front of us

9. “Finding North” by The Civil Wars

One more sunset runs away, becomes another yesterday I'm still waiting. Won't someone wake me up, open these eyes? Won't someone even try?

10. “Pt II (On The Run)” by Jay-Z feat. Beyoncé

Who wants that perfect love story anyway, anyway Cliché, cliché, cliché, cliché Who wants that hero love that saves the day, anyway Cliché, cliché, cliché, cliché

Tagging @writings-of-a-narwhal, @abalonetea and @deadlyessencewhispers :)

[pocaluzwrites]

I don’t really know what people generally call this method of sigil making, so I’m just calling it “Letter Shaping” because you’re using the basic shapes from certain letters. This is the most common form of sigil making, and it allows the most creative influence. As you see above the sigils are for nearly the same thing, yet the sigils came out completely different. Not because the purpose was different, but because I approached them both a different creative way, and that’s what I like so much about this method. There’s a lot of freedom and personalization involved.

(UPDATE: Here’s a link to a guide on how to deconstruct letters down to basic shapes)

[pocaluzwrites]

This was the first method of sigil making I ever learned, from a post by @the-darkest-of-lights. I decided to make my own tutorial on it with my spare time. Happy sigil making! I’ll be making more of these on other methods of sigil making I think, because there’s so many different methods, and this was quite enjoyable to make. (I know that you can make sigils with the other various planetary numerology squares but honestly I still haven’t figured out how, I only know this one.)

[pocaluzwrites]

“This is your daily, friendly reminder to use commas instead of periods during the dialogue of your story,” she said with a smile.

[pocaluzwrites]

Writing Strong Emotions

@chemistreat asked: “How can one control and write the pure emotion of learning you aren’t who you think you are- in ethnicity, religion, race or otherwise? Something that makes a character rethink all of their traditions?”

When it comes to writing these moments of epiphany or emotional overload, it might feel like your writing in these scenes just can’t get to that level of emotion you hope to achieve. With some of these moments, the emotion might start to feel cheesy or just not enough, or it might be such a mess of different emotions, like anger, shock, disappointment, and betrayal that you don’t really know how to show it all. 

In either case, the big emotions are not easy, however there are a few techniques you can use to become better at putting them into words. 

1. Describe the setting after… This is one exercise that helps you write with emotion in a way that goes beyond what the protagonist may be able to directly express. Examples of this might include, describe a living room after an argument. Or describe a bride’s bedroom the morning before her wedding. These exercises force you to think of how emotion can shape the world of your novel beyond just the protagonist’s experiences. 

Keep reading