random-useful-posts

[random-useful-posts]

Making Your Podfic (especially with Music and/or Sound Effects) More Accessible and Listener Friendly

So you're planning to make a podfic with music and/or sound effects, and you want to think about ways to make it more accessible? Awesome!! This will guide you through some steps you can take to make your podfic more accessible, some of which will also make for a more pleasant listening experience for listeners without accessibility needs, but the focus will primarily be on accessibility. Some of this will also be applicable to podfics with multiple recording sessions without music or sound effects, but again, that's not the focus.

What's the number one thing you can do to make your podfic with music and/or sound effects more accessible to those with noise sensitivity, auditory processing conditions, who are somewhat hard of hearing, or other auditory accessibility needs?

MAKE A CLEAN VERSION, with NO music or sound effects! This can be a very easy change to your process for most people! After editing out mistakes and doing your audio clean up but before you add music or sound effects, simply export your audio. Upload it wherever you upload your final version, drop in a second link to the no music/sound effects version, and that's it! Of course, this may not be trivial for some people, depending on your individual process or other factors. I hope you will decide that it's worth doing anyway. As someone with audio accessibility needs myself, I can tell you it makes a HUGE difference. There are podficcers I love who I can't listen to some of what they've recorded because there's no version without music/sound effects, or sometimes I can only listen on a good day. There are fics I love where there's a podfic version, but I will never be able to listen to it because there's more music/sounds effects than I can handle. This one change will make people like me VERY happy and will expand your audience!

Secondly, especially if you've got a lot of audio dynamics (really quiet whispery bits and also really loud shouty bits), be sure to use the Compressor tool. Long story short, the compressor makes the actual noise level of the quiet bits louder and the loud bits quieter, while still leaving the impression of whispering or shouting. In other words, keep the emotion, but don't force your listeners to keep changing the volume on their headphones/speakers/hearing aid to be able to hear what you're saying or avoid getting their ears blown out (very useful for other listeners too, especially people listening on headphones or in the car). A quick overview of how to use the Compressor settings (this is for Audacity, which is what I'm most familiar with, but most audio editing tools will have something similar):

Threshold: how loud do you want to go before starting to make things quieter?

Make-up gain: after compressing the loud bits down, how much do you want to make everything louder to make up for it?

Knee width: how quickly and starkly do you want the compression to apply? At 0db, this will be a very sharp change. Lower levels will lead to less sharp changes

Ratio: for the loud bits that are getting compressed, how much compression should be applied? The higher the Ratio the more the loud parts of the audio will be compressed.

Okay, but maybe you want to ALSO make the version with music and/or sound effects more accessible, since that's your vision for the podfic and you want as many people as possible to be able to experience it? Great! PLEASE still make a version without music/sound effects as noted above, because even doing everything you can won't be enough for everyone. But it's also great to do what you can to make your music/sound effects version accessible for those that are able to enjoy it with some changes. So….what are some things you can do?

As much as possible, avoid putting music or Foley over your words. For people with audio processing issues especially, it can be very difficult to parse words when there's background music (and especially background music that itself has words).

If you're going to have music or Foley over words, make sure the words are significantly louder than the music. You can use the Analyze Contrast tool (in the Analyze menu in Audacity) to compare the relative loudness of two selections.

For music or Foley between words (like in a section break), make sure it's not too much louder or softer than the sections that come before and after. Again, use that Analyze Contrast tool to compare selections.

You can also use Analyze Contrast to even out the sound between recording sessions!

For sound effects that modify your voice, go only to the point where your voice still sounds very intelligible to you. Someone with auditory accessibility needs will likely struggle with intelligibility well before someone without those needs.

Hope this was helpful!

(This is written from my perspective as someone who has audio accessibility needs, as well as being a podficcer myself. Beta help and additional thoughts from @writerproblem193 @keriarentikai @xiaokuer-schmetterling and others not on Tumblr. But this is not The Definitive Guide To Accessibility or anything, so please add your perspective!)

[random-useful-posts]

[random-useful-posts]

Easy Fanfic Library

Have you ever wished you could have the easy organization of the AO3 site with fanfiction you have downloaded? I've been working on a project that makes setting this up really easy, even for people with little technical experience.

You can access the library files and instructions on this Codeberg page.

The Easy Fanfic Library enables users to easily download works from AO3 and other fanfiction sites into a library in Calibre, a free e-book management software. The library will keep all the metadata (title, author, series, ratings, characters, additional tags, date posted, etc.) intact and in separate fields. This way you will be able to quickly download fanfiction and sort/filter downloaded works similarly to how you would filter on AO3 itself (including by your personal bookmark data and tags).

The library uses the FanFicFare plugin for Calibre, which enables you to download fanfiction and metadata directly into Calibre from URLs. FanFicFare can download works from a multitude of sites, including many with no built-in download option on the sites themselves.

Calibre comes with many useful features as well, such as easily sending your library to an e-reader or mobile device.

I hope this makes downloading fanfiction easy for you all! Enjoy!

[random-useful-posts]

Something to watch for, which I learned from stage magic but which is extremely relevant to detecting scams as well:

The magician or scammer will *tell you* how he is going to prove his honesty.

The magician rifles through the deck until you say "stop", then he says, "Are you sure? I'll keep going if you want." and asks "Now, you agree that you could have stopped anywhere you wanted, so there's absolutely no way I could know which card you got" and because it's a magic show and you aren't paying close attention you didn't notice he didn't deal a card from where you stopped, he dealt the bottom card of the deck.

The magician doesn't ask you, "What would it take for you to believe this" because you might say, "I'd need you to use a sealed deck" or "I'd have to personally shuffle the deck" or some other proof that would make the trick impossible.

Magicians say "You agree that if I did *this*, it would mean *that*, right?" and you say yes, and it feels like you are the one who got to verify things, but of course the magician is lying and the proof is nothing of the kind.

Scammers do the same thing. A really concrete example is phone scammers pretending to be working for the government will say, "Look, I see you're skeptical if I'm who I say I am, I'm going to hang up and call back, and you'll see on the caller ID it says, 'FBI' and that tells you that I'm really working for the government."

Now, caller ID can be spoofed pretty easily, so it doesn't prove anything at all.

But it *feels* to you like you demanded proof and the scammer was willing to give you the proof.

But you didn't tell the scammer what out would take to prove it to you, the scammer told you what the proof would be.

This is actually like a really basic thing to look for if you want to start decoding magic tricks and scams.

[random-useful-posts]

netflix subtitles are great for when you want to read a caption with like 50% resemblance to what's being spoken

[random-useful-posts]

This piece of advice is prompted by a discussion I had about renter's problems with one of the groups I work with this week:

The best time to read an agreement is before you sign it.

The second best time to read an agreement is when you've encountered a problem.

This came up because we were talking about leases, and a lot of the people who were having problems with their landlords, 1) Never read the lease to begin with, 2) Also did not read the lease after encountering an issue with their landlord.

Now this is not about scolding people with "You should read before you sign," because honestly we all know that, and we've all been there: Life is busy, contracts are long, and by the time you've gotten all the way to signing a lease, user agreement, etc., the logic is usually "Well I don't have any other options/I've gotten all the way here, so why spend time reading it? Not like I can argue with it." That's a fair way to feel. Most of us aren't lawyers anyway, so it's not like the average person would notice a piece in a contract that's actually legally unenforceable, etc.

HOWEVER. What I'm here to tell you is that these types of agreements, especially where they are written by entities that actually have lawyers to do it, are intentionally written to outlast your attention span. They are long on purpose. They are jargony on purpose. The point is to overcome your will to read up front and even after you're having problems, so you'll just give up or give in.

The hack to this is, since the contract is written to outlast a human attention span, reading and following every step of it may very well outlast the attention span of the other party even when they're the one who created it.

Personal example: I had an issue with a print-on-demand site this year over them suspending my account without reason. Here is the series of events:

My account was suspended, and the "reason" was a group of five possible reasons sent to me via email.

None of those reasons seemed to apply, so I appealed, following all the instructions in the appeal portal.

My appeal was rejected, still only narrowing down the "reason" to a list of three possible reasons that did not apply.

I read the user agreement (admittedly for the first time, at least in years). I determined that nothing I did violated the user agreement and hypothesized that I got caught in some kind of automatic spam filter because I was uploading works too quickly (which there are no guidelines about in the user agreement, terms or conditions, or community guidelines).

The user agreement outlined an arbitration process, the first step of which was mailing a written notice of dispute to the company's mailing office on the West Coast. The rest of the steps basically said if we couldn't resolve our dispute via mail or email, I had the right to escalate to a formal dispute with arbitration, and the company would have to send a representative to the state I live in for the arbitration hearing and pay for everything.

About three weeks after mailing the letter, my account was reinstated with an apology.

I followed THE FIRST STEP of their arbitration process, and they gave in pretty much immediately when for nearly a month prior, all I could get was "we're sorry, but your account is not eligible for reinstatement," without acknowledging anything I said or any questions I asked in my repeated attempts to contact them. Just starting the process, indicating that I read the agreement, was enough to get an international company to fold and acknowledge me. They didn't have the patience to go through and pay for arbitration over a mistakenly suspended account.

AND: Once I started posting about this saga on my public art social medias, I started getting messages from other people like "Hey, my account was also suspended for no reason, but I just gave up. What did you do?" Then I would tell them, and they'd still be unwilling to read and pursue things for themselves - they'd ask me what part of the agreement the arbitration process was, etc., and because I try to help out, I'd pick out the relevant pieces for them, but that also highlights my point:

Even when people knew that there was a solid chance that reading and following the dispute process in the user agreement would get them what they wanted, they were still looking for a faster way to get to the end result.

Corporations count on this. Rental companies count on this. If you don't read the agreement before signing, at least do yourself the solid of reading it when you have issues to see if you have any way to fight back. If you do, follow every step of the outlined process and see the issue through. You might win like I did just by outlasting the other party's patience and making them feel like it's really not worth fighting with you.

[random-useful-posts]

A stitch in time

“A stitch in time saves nine.”  This old saying is still very applicable and fits right into our sustainability mindset.  Making repairs as soon as possible not only saves effort but can also reduce the amount of materials you need for the repair and the amount of waste generated during the repair.  A timely repair can rescue something that would otherwise become trash.  Here are some examples.  I’m sure you can think of a lot more. 

Mend a tear or split seam in clothing while it’s small. A small repair might not even be visible.  

Leaks don’t get smaller if you ignore them.  An unattended leak can rot wood in walls and floors and could eventually result in major rip-out and replacement.  And leaks waste whatever resource is being leaked.  Check for water leaks under sinks and showers, in attics, around windows (air leaks can also increase your heating and air conditioning bill) and doors, and in basements and crawl spaces.

Repainting a building or item before the material under the paint is damaged will reduce effort and materials required for repairs.

Check your car tires for unusual wear patterns.  Proper tire inflation and wheel alignment will help your tires last longer and help your gas mileage.  Proper routine maintenance will help your car last longer.

Clean spills right away so floors, cabinets, carpets, and clothing are not damaged.  Regular cleaning with mild cleaners can prevent the need for harsh cleaners after soil builds up.   

[random-useful-posts]

Bear with me here because I might end up torturing this particular metaphor, but when it comes to trying to get the image of a scene onto the page in the form of descriptive narrative, it might be useful to approach it like a visual artist.

If you've ever watched an artist do their thing (or if you're an artist yourself), you know that they don't just start at the top left corner of the page and draw the entire scene in all its detail, all in one go. I'm going to use an example of digital drawing with the use of software like Photoshop here because I have no idea if this metaphor will work with pencil and paper.

You have an image in your head. It might be super clear. It might be more vague. When you're starting to describe it, just sketch it in. Create a layer of broad strokes information like what the location is, how many people are in it, and what activity is happening.

Then add in a layer - whichever one is easiest. Let's pretend it's the location. Read through the sketch that you currently have and see where you have opportunities to describe the location. You don't have to front load everything at the top of the chapter, for example. You can add in details about the location as the characters move through it.

Add another layer. Are the characters' appearances different from what they previous were? Are you just establishing them at the start of the story? Do they have a "uniform" that they wear in canon that you've opted not to change? You can add in whatever details here you want, and again don't feel like you have to put it all in the same place. You can talk about a ponytail falling loose partway through an action. Or wait until someone else comments on a character's new pair of shoes.

Add another layer. What are the characters doing? How are they moving? Interacting?

Another layer. What are they saying? How do they sound?

Another layer. What other sounds are in the room? What smells? Do these change? Appear or disappear?

Keep going back and forth, toggling your way through your layers, adding things in here and removing them there. Every artist knows that sometimes a line just doesn't go in the right place and you have to erase it and draw it again.

Remember that no amount of work will give your reader a perfect representation of the vision in your mind, but also please know that that's okay.

By the time you finish your scene, some of those early layers might not exist anymore, and that's okay too. They were the sketch that started your verbal drawing. The base you used to guide your inks. Your final render won't have every line or brush stroke in it, and it'll be all the better for it in the end.

[random-useful-posts]

I find it kinda odd how people talk about writing “flawed” characters like the flaws are an afterthought

Like “cool cool we’ve got this perfect hero now to just sprinkle on some Irritability and Trust Issues then microwave for 6 minutes on high until Done”

But I’ve personally found it feels a lot more useful to just… think of the flaws as the Good Traits except bad this time

The protagonist is loyal? Maybe that means they have a hard time recognizing toxic relationships and are easily manipulated by those they want to trust

The hero is compassionate? Maybe they work too hard and overextend themselves trying to help people and then they refuse to ask for help when they need it themselves for fear of burdening others

They’re dedicated to their ideals? Maybe they’re also too stubborn to know when to quit and they have trouble apologizing for their mistakes

If they’re creative, they can also be flighty. If they’re confident, they can be arrogant. If they’re brave, they might be reckless. If they’re smart, they could be condescending. Protective can become controlling, and someone who’s carefree could very well also be emotionally distant

In my opinion, the best “flaws” aren’t just added on afterwards. The best flaws are baked in deep, ‘cause they’re really just virtues turned upside down

[random-useful-posts]

Description from the first linked website, WritingExercises.co.uk:

Welcome to Writing Exercises and Prompts. This site provides (completely free) creative writing prompts and exercises to help you get started with creative writing and break through writing blocks - as well as some fun anagram vocabulary games. Generate random story ideas, plots, subjects, scenarios, characters, first lines for stories and more. Did I mention it's all free? Have fun :-)

IF YOU LOVE WRITING BUT DON’T HAVE THE INSPIRATION FOR A 10-PART BOOK SAGA YOU SHOULD TAKE A LOOK AT THIS SITE

IT’S INCREDIBLY HELPFUL AND CAN FOR INSTANCE GENERATE TOPICS AND FIRST LINES, CONTAINS LOADS OF EXERCISES AND YOU CAN FIND PLENTY OF WRITING TIPS.

[random-useful-posts]

I can't speak for most of these, but I do second No and Los diarios de motocicleta for Spanish recommendations.

films to watch

so i saw a post listing films in foreign languages and i thought i could expand on the list a little bit but my addition got so massive i decided to move it to a separate post. this list will focus on my target languages and feature a little bit of french as well just to spice it up. 

films are good for several reasons

usually quite fun

actually challenging if u watch w/o subtitles and the easiest way to achieve immersion in the privacy of your home

“productive procrastination”

might give u cultural insight as well

or encourage you to learn some history!!!!

i’m really tired of people watching almodóvar and being like uuuuuuhuuuu look the great spanish director and forgetting that not only are there spanish films not directed by almodóvar but also that spanish is spoken in other countries as well and GUESS WHAT they produce culture

ok here we go!!!!! im really lazy and my computer is agonizingly slow so i can provide no links. if something interests you search for it et voila

WARNING!!!!! long post 

spanish

magia salvaje - this is an uber cool colombian film showing largely unexplored areas of colombia which i think is the most beautiful country on earth. it was recommended to me independently by a friend from my spanish class and my colombian pen pal gal. from its website: “magia salvaje es la cinta del mundo natural más ambiciosa realizada en el país (…) [realizada en] 85 locaciones y 20 ecosistemas. (…) un tributo a la belleza de colombia“ tl;dr: cool shit u should watch, it’s available on yt

señor ávila - a p good series filmed by the mexican hbo starring tony dalton as an exemplary father and husband that starts working as a paid killer for the mafia, but it’s not all peachy because it affects his personal life and his son gets into some really deep shit. gets a bit grim at times but good nevertheless

retrato de un comportamiento animal - really cute indie film made in uruguay. an unlikely couple on a trip to brazil. expect nice landscapes and voseo

relatos salvajes - dark humour from argentina, a series of episodes in which people go absolutely bonkers over the most petty shit and also get p violent when you wouldn’t expect them to be. produced by pedro almodóvar if that serves as any recommendation.

la historia oficial - another one from argentina. drama. set during the dictatorship and based on true events, follows a family through a period when they would literally tear lil kids from their mothers and drown the parents if they were enemies of the state. watch it

juana la loca - spanish historical drama about their queen joan the mad

el laberinto del fauno - can we just, omg, ok, i love that film so much. fantasy, set during the civil war in spain. a little girl discovers this world with monsters and other creatures and it’s scary as shit but she goes through these adventures because she cares for her family. watch itttt

doce hombres sin piedad - this is the spanish version of the american classic 12 angry men, recorded in 1973. you can watch it on youtube.

gran hotel - spanish tv series, historical drama sort of downton abbey style. weird shit is happening in this lovely hotel, what do we do??? apparently available on netflix

como agua para chocolate - cute film “about how life used to be in mexico” (imdb) based on the p famous novel by laura esquivel. lovely colours, romantic love and a lot of nice food

los diarios de motocicleta - starring gael garcía bernal in an adaptation of che guevara’s memoir in which young che travels the world on his motorbike

no - ok this is some amazing shit (oscar nomination holaaaa). it’s a chilean film with gael garcía bernal set in the 1980s. in 1988 pinochet held a referendum in which basically if u said “yes” he stayed as te country’s official and lawful leader and if you said “no”, well, he went. the film is about the campaign that sought to get rid of him

talento de barrio - sorry but i couldn’t omit that one. it has daddy yankee in it, period.

italian

la dolce vita - please do yourself a favour and watch it

la grande bellezza - as above. this is my favourite film of all time. look for the soundtrack on yt and you will know why

il bidone - early fellini follows petty thieves in rome

il prefetto di ferro - set in the 1920s. giuliano gemma as cesare mori aka the iron prefect who comes to palermo to deal with the gangs. good shit

ladri di biciclette - directed by vittorio de sica, set in post-ww2 rome, “a masterpiece of italian neorealism” (wiki). a desperate family needs their bicycle to survive

amarcord - comedy/drama, set in the 1930s. coming-of-age. “Fellini skewers Mussolini’s ludicrous posturings … that <<imprisoned Italians in a perpetual adolescence>> by mockig himself and his fellow villagers in comic scenes tha underline their incapacity to adopt genuine moral responsibility or outgrow foolish sexual fantasies” (wiki). won oscar for foreign language.

gomorra - tv series based on famed novel by roberto saviano. rival mob clans. good shit

il vangelo secondo matteo - “trattando in maniera antidogmatica un argomento di carattere religioso, l’opera fece sensazione e scatenò un aspro confronto intelettuale sulla stampa, proseguendo le non sopite polemiche per le accuse di vilipendio della religione” (wiki). three oscar nominations.

una vita violenta - poor kid in rome attempts to transform his life after leaving prison

la notte - marcello mastroianni in a study of a deteriorating relationship

la nostra terra - cute film which is literally my aesthetic aka people working the land. educated guy from bologna comes down south to start a community and sell organic veg he will grow himself. featuring creepy mafia guy freshly released from prison and sneaky southerners

la mafia uccide solo d’estate - drama but also a comedy fresh from palermo. lil boy observes how the mob influences people’s lives

il capitale umano - drama. a car accident ties together the lives of two families. people go crazy. great performance by valeria bruni tedeschi

il rosso e il blu - follows the lives of three school teachers as they get really involved in the fucked up lives of their students. confusing but oddly satisfying

latin lover - fun comedy of how a famed actor dies leaving behind a shitload of lovers, wives and children who all meet for his funeral.

portuguese

trash - an AMAZING brazilian film about two favela boys trying to solve a criminal mystery and unearth corruption before an ill-willed police officer gets to them; all thanks to a wallet found in the dumpster they work in. really good cinema with appearances made by rooney mara and martin sheen

singularidades de uma rapariga loura - modern portuguese film based on a short stories by eça de queirós. a blooming romance meets an unexpected obstacle. spot on aesthetic and cleverly blended cultural references. directed by manoel de oliveira who is THE MAN, check out his ther shit such as the p recent o convento starring john malkovich and catherine deneuve

saneamento básico - p straightforward but fun brazilian comedy in which a small town community will do anything to raise money to fix their sewer system

this is embarrassingly short i will make a separate post to expand 

french

farinelli - an AMAZING film based very loosely on the life of the most famous castrato singer, farinelli. loooveeeee

la religieuse (2013) - a really stuningly made adaptation of denis diderot’s novel about a girl thrown into a convent against her will and desperate to get out who discovers some dark family secrets.

tom à la ferme - weird indie canadian film with xavier dolan, a gay man travelling to meet his dead boyfriend’s family and terrorised by said’s boyfriend’s horrible brother. more dark family shit for u

yves saint laurent - nice biographical film with pierre niney

dans la maison - terrifying and fascinating drama about how one seductive teenager ruins some families. 10/10 would recommend

les choristes - really good film about how a music teacher transforms the lives of a class of “difficult” boys. set in the 1940s to spice it up

les liaisons dangereuses (1959) - adaptation of laclos’ classic novel, set in the present day. directed by roger vadim.

that’s it - I hope at least one person finds it interesting/helpful!!!

i once promised a crash course in polish thing and i know i’m delaying it horribly but sometime next week i will prepare a similar post about polish films (if u folks are interested, ofc)

[random-useful-posts]

Words to use instead of decir

@languageoclock made this kind of vocabulary list for German “words to use instead of sagen”, and so I’m adapting/adding to the the list for Spanish as a kind of looser “words to use instead of decir” version

anunciar = to announce

contestar = to answer

molestar = to annoy [used like gustar]

discutir = to argue, to discuss [pelear or luchar are more physical] argumentar = to contend, to argue

articular = to articulate / to enunciate, to speak clearly

respirar = to breathe

inhalar = to inhale

exhalar = to exhale

aspirar = to suck in air aspirar = to aspire

soplar = to blow air out soplar = to blow (wind)

expresar = to express

dar voz a = to voice [lit. “to give voice to”; dar voces is sometimes translated as “to shout”] poner voz a = to voice [lit. “to put voice to”]

mantener = to maintain

pronunciar = to pronounce

comentar = to comment

plantear = to claim, to make a claim/statement

predicar = to preach (religion) predicar = to assert, to declare / to mention

declarar = to declare, to make a statement

regañar = to scold, to yell at (usually parents to children)

reprochar = to rebuke, to reproach

clamar = to clamor (for)

reclamar = to complain, to appeal (legal)

confesar = to confess

insultar = to insult

ofender = to offend

ladrar = to bark [usually said of dogs]

darse cuenta = to realize, to notice

notar = to notice, to perceive

percibir = to notice, to observe

observar = to observe

reportar = to report

informar = to report, to inform

enfatizar = to emphasize hacer hincapié en (algo) = to stress (something)

recalcar, remarcar = to stress, to emphasize, to underscore

subrayar = to underline

ofrecer = to offer

pedir = to ask, to plead / to request [in the sense of food/restaurants, pedir is “to order”]

rogar = to beg

solicitar = to request, to seek, to ask for [solicitar can also be “to apply for a job”]

hablar entre dientes = to mutter [lit. “to speak between teeth”] hablar muy bajo = to mutter [lit. “to speak softly”]

mascullar = to mutter, to mumble

murmurar = to murmur

deletrear = to spell out [in the sense of telling someone how something is spelled]

clarificar = to clarify, to spell out decirlo en blanco y negro = to spell something out, to not beat around the bush [lit. “to say it in white and black”]

debatir = to debate discutir = to discuss [when not meaning “to argue”, it means more “to talk about something in depth”]

hablar = to speak [in some contexts, hablar can carry the meaning of “to put into words”, or “to speak up/out”]

invitar = to invite [side note: invitar can also be used as “to treat” when you buy something for someone else; invito yo is “it’s my treat”]

replicar = to reply

contraargumentar = to counter, to counter-argue contraatacar = to counter, to counterattack 

explicar = to explain

mencionar = to mention

contar = to tell (a story) recontar = to recount (a story) [note: contar can also mean “to count (numbers)”, or contar con algo/alguien “to trust (something/someone)” as in “to count on”]

jurar = to swear (an oath)

prestar juramento = to pledge / to make an oath

testificar = to testify

atestiguar = to attest, to bear witness, to provide testimony

maldecir = to curse decir palabrotas = to curse / to say bad words

formular = to forumlate

preguntar = to question preguntarse = to wonder [me pregunto si… “I wonder if…”; lit. “I ask myself if”]

hacer una pregunta (a alguien) = to ask (someone) a question

sonreír = to smile, to grin

gorgotear = to gurgle [liquid or water] borbotar / borbotear = to gurgle [usually in the sense of water]

balbucear = to babble, to gurgle [usually said of babies, or when it’s not clear speech]

gorjear = to squeal, to chirp [usually noises a baby makes, or sometimes small birds]

aullar = to howl, to yelp

tronar = to boom, to yell, to thunder

vociferar = to say loudly

rugir = to roar

berrear = to bellow berrear, mugir = to low, to moo (cows) berrear = to bawl, to cry loudly, to wail [in some places berrear might be “to snitch” or “to tell a secret”]

toser = to cough

imitar = to imitate

emular = to emulate, to imitate

parodiar = to parody

remedar = to mimic, to copy [often in the sense of “parroting” someone’s words to make fun of them]

quejarse (de) = to complain (about)

gruñir = to groan, to grumble, to growl

refunfuñar = to grumble, to gripe, to rabble 

aullar, gañir = to yelp [usually said of dogs]

chillar = to shriek, to squeal chillar = to squeak (a mouse) chirriar = to squeak (objects, shoes, doors)

divagar = to go on a tangent, to ramble

irse por las ramas = to ramble on [lit. “to go through the branches”, “to beat around the bush”] irse por la tangente = to go on a tangent

hablar y hablar = to go on and on [lit. “to speak and speak”]

cecear = to lisp

mentir = to lie fingir = to feign engañar = to deceive

gemir = to moan

opinar = to opine, to have an opinion expresar la opinión = to express an opinion

estornudar = to sneeze

bostezar = to yawn

charlar = to chat, to chitchat

platicar = to chat, to have a chat [usually in the sense of small talk]

conversar = to converse, to have a conversation

parlar = to talk, to have a conversation / to parley (pirates)

chismear = to gossip comadrear = to gossip [usually said of women, a bit antiquated but it’s related to la comadre which are close friends of a woman, lit. “co-mother”, so it used to apply more to when women would talk to each other alone]

cotillear = to snoop, to pry / to gossip [more common in Spain; it has the meaning of “to get into someone else’s business”]

reaccionar = to react

protestar = to protest, to object (court of law)

refutar = to refute

rebatir = to refute, to rebut / to parry

negar = to deny

presumir = to brag, to show off

alardear = to boast

pavonearse = to boast, to brag, to peacock

vanagloriarse = to brag, to toot one’s own horn

fanfarronear = to to brag, to boast

jactarse de = to brag about presumir de = to brag about

llamar = to call (on the phone) / to call out

llorar = to cry, to weep

lloriquear = to whimper, to snivel, to cry

sollozar = to sob

burlarse de (algo/alguien) = to make fun of (something/someone), to mock, to tease

reírse de (algo/alguien) = to laugh at (something/someone)

mofarse de (algo/alguien) = to deride, to scoff at, to mock

bromear = to joke, to tease

chistear = to tell a joke

tomar el pelo a alguien = to trick someone, to pull someone’s leg, to mess with someone [lit. “to grab/take hair”]

suspirar = to sigh

gritar = to scream, to yell

cantar = to sing

silbar = to whistle

chiflar = to whistle / to boo, to jeer at rechiflarse = to boo, to jeer

abuchear = to boo, to jeer

vocear = to vocalize, to announce / to yell, to shout

aclamar = to cheer, to cheer on / to acclaim

vitorear = to cheer, to cheer on

aplaudir = to applaud / to cheer

decir = to speak, to say, to tell

negociar = to negotiate

tartamudear = to stammer, to stutter

titubear = to hesitate, to stutter

atorarse = to stutter, to get tongue-tied trabarse la lengua = to get tongue-tied tropezar al hablar = to stumble while speaking, to have difficulty speaking

escupir = to spit

sisear = to hiss

introducir = to introduce

reflexionar = to ponder, to reflect on

considerar = to consider

contemplar = to contemplate, to think about

tomar en cuenta = to keep in mind

sugerir = to suggest

exigir = to demand

alabar = to praise

elogiar = to laud

decir maravillas de (algo/alguien) = to speak highly of (something/someone)

condenar = to condemn

denunciar = to denounce

acusar = to accuse / to charge (legal)

revelar = to reveal

indicar = to indicate

traicionar = to betray

seguir = to follow, to continue

continuar = to continue

guiar = to guide, to lead

conducir = to conduct, to guide / to drive

maniobrar = to maneuver

criticar = to criticize, to critique

transparentar = to be obvious, to be transparent

translucir = to reveal, to shine through

añadir = to add

interrumpir = to interrupt

interponer = to interject

intervenir = to intervene, to step in

exclamar = to exclaim

abordar = to approach / to address an issue, to broach a subject

admitir = to admit / to allow

susurrar = to whisper

divulgar = to divulge, to tell a secret

piar = to chirp, to tweet (birds)

perder el hilo = to lose one’s train of thought

irse apagando = to trail off [lit. “to go diminishing”]

quedar en ridículo = to look ridiculous, to look foolish

poner en evidencia = to show someone up, to put someone in their place

defender = to defend

oponerse = to stand against

abogar = to advocate / to vouch for, to intercede on behalf of

emepzar (a) = to start (to)

comenzar (a) = to begin (to), to commence (to)

detener = to stop

dejar (de hacer algo) = to stop (doing something)

concluir = to conclude

garantizar = to guarantee

contradecir = to contradict

responder = to respond

ayudar = to help

apoyar = to support

[random-useful-posts]

wish list for people who don’t want anything

aka possessions which are just possessions, but which have noticeably improved my quality of life: for when people ask you “what do you want for your birthday/Christmas/graduation” and you instantly transform into St Francis and pledge fealty to Lady Poverty because your mind went blank

nice. new. sheets. I cannot emphasize this one enough. if you’re still using the same sheets you had in college, you should probably get new ones. get yourself some 100% bamboo rayon sheets—they’re silky and perfect for summer and great for sensitive skin! or, if you’re cold all the time, flannel sheets!

kitchen knives. or even just one really good kitchen knife.

new curtains—blackout if you are a creature of the night like I am

fleece lined anything, but especially sweatpants and hoodies. wool lined socks are also good. if you don’t have the option of coming home after work and putting on an entire outfit that is loose and fuzzy, you should change that, because you deserve that option.

cookie sheets with a layer of air between the top and the bottom. the bottoms of your cookies will never burn again.

kitchen scale!!! no more leveling off flour with a knife and getting it all over the table!! now all your measuring is just shoveling stuff in and out of bowls like you’re at the beach. baking is both more accurate and also way more fun.

coffee bean grinder. if you want to upgrade your coffee experience, this is a great one-time purchase. just-ground beans have a much better flavor than pre-ground.

CDs!! ask for a gift card and expand your physical music collection! or a collection of the DVDs for your favorite show!

[random-useful-posts]

Resources For Writing Deaf, Mute, or Blind Characters

Despite the fact that I am not deaf, mute, or blind myself, one of the most common questions I receive is how to portray characters with these disabilities in fiction.

As such, I’ve compiled the resources I’ve accumulated (from real life deaf, mute, or blind people) into a handy masterlist.

Deaf Characters:

Deaf characters masterpost

Deaf dialogue thread

Dialogue with signing characters (also applies to mute characters.)

A deaf author’s advice on deaf characters

Dialogue between deaf characters

Mute Characters

Life as a Mute

My Silent Summer:  Life as a Mute

What It’s Like Being Mute

21 People Reveal What It’s Really Like To Be Mute

I am a 20 year old Mute, ask me anything at all!

Blind Characters:

The 33 Worst Mistakes Writers Make About Blind Characters.

@referenceforwriters masterpost of resources for writing/playing blind characters.

The youtube channel of the wonderful Tommy Edison, a man blind from birth with great insight into the depiction of blind people and their lives.

An Absolute Write thread on the depiction of blind characters, with lots of different viewpoints and some great tips.

And finally, this short, handy masterpost of resources for writing blind characters.

Characters Who Are Blind in One Eye

4 Ways Life Looks Shockingly Different With One Eye

Learning to Live With One Eye

Adapting to the Loss of an Eye

Adapting to Eye Loss and Monocular Vision

Monocular Depth Perception

Deaf-Blind Characters

What Is It Like To Be Deafblind?

Going Deaf and Blind in a City of Noise and Lights

Deaf and Blind by 30

Sarita is Blind, Deaf, and Employed (video)

Born Deaf and Blind, This Eritrean American Graduated Harvard Law School (video)

A Day of a Deaf Blind Person

Lesser Known Things About Being Deafblind

How the Deaf-Blind Communicate

Early Interactions With Children Who Are Deaf-Blind

Raising a DeafBlind Baby

If you have any more resources to add, let me know!  I’ll be adding to this post as I find more resources.

I hope this helps, and happy writing!  <3

[random-useful-posts]

Some of the best writing advice I ever got was if you’re stuck on a scene or a line, the problem is actually about 10 lines back and that’s saved me from writer’s block so many times.

[random-useful-posts]

Words to replace said, except this actually helps

I got pretty fed up with looking for words to replace said because they weren’t sorted in a way I could easily use/find them for the right time. So I did some myself.

IN RESPONSE TO Acknowledged Answered Protested

INPUT/JOIN CONVERSATION/ASK Added Implored Inquired Insisted Proposed Queried Questioned Recommended Testified

GUILTY/RELUCTANCE/SORRY Admitted Apologized Conceded Confessed Professed

FOR SOMEONE ELSE Advised Criticized Suggested

JUST CHECKING Affirmed Agreed Alleged Confirmed

LOUD Announced Chanted Crowed

LEWD/CUTE/SECRET SPY FEEL Appealed Disclosed Moaned

ANGRY FUCK OFF MATE WANNA FIGHT Argued Barked Challenged Cursed Fumed Growled Hissed Roared Swore

SMARTASS Articulated Asserted Assured Avowed Claimed Commanded Cross-examined Demanded Digressed Directed Foretold Instructed Interrupted Predicted Proclaimed Quoted Theorized

ASSHOLE Bellowed Boasted Bragged

NERVOUS TRAINWRECK Babbled Bawled Mumbled Sputtered Stammered Stuttered

SUAVE MOTHERFUCKER Bargained Divulged Disclosed Exhorted

FIRST OFF Began

LASTLY Concluded Concurred

WEAK PUSY Begged Blurted Complained Cried Faltered Fretted

HAPPY/LOL Cajoled Exclaimed Gushed Jested Joked Laughed

WEIRDLY HAPPY/EXCITED Extolled Jabbered Raved

BRUH, CHILL Cautioned Warned

ACTUALLY, YOU’RE WRONG Chided Contended Corrected Countered Debated Elaborated Objected Ranted Retorted

CHILL SAVAGE Commented Continued Observed Surmised

LISTEN BUDDY Enunciated Explained Elaborated Hinted Implied Lectured Reiterated Recited Reminded Stressed

BRUH I NEED U AND U NEED ME Confided Offered Urged

FINE Consented Decided

TOO EMO FULL OF EMOTIONS Croaked Lamented Pledged Sobbed Sympathized Wailed Whimpered

JUST SAYING Declared Decreed Mentioned Noted Pointed out Postulated Speculated Stated Told Vouched

WASN’T ME Denied Lied

EVIL SMARTASS Dictated Equivocated Ordered Reprimanded Threatened

BORED Droned Sighed

SHHHH IT’S QUIET TIME Echoed Mumbled Murmured Muttered Uttered Whispered

DRAMA QUEEN Exaggerated Panted Pleaded Prayed Preached

OH SHIT Gasped Marveled Screamed Screeched Shouted Shrieked Yelped Yelled

ANNOYED Grumbled Grunted Jeered Quipped Scolded Snapped Snarled Sneered

ANNOYING Nagged

I DON’T REALLY CARE BUT WHATEVER Guessed Ventured

I’M DRUNK OR JUST BEING WEIRDLY EXPRESSIVE FOR A POINT/SARCASM Hooted Howled Yowled

I WONDER Pondered Voiced Wondered

OH, YEAH, WHOOPS Recalled Recited Remembered

SURPRISE BITCH Revealed

IT SEEMS FAKE BUT OKAY/HA ACTUALLY FUNNY BUT I DON’T WANT TO LAUGH OUT LOUD Scoffed Snickered Snorted

BITCHY Tattled Taunted Teased

[random-useful-posts]

Ok so at this point I've had two people roll up to me in manual wheelchairs, well, one of them was somebody pushing somebody who was nonverbal at the time, but it still counts. They asked me why I had zip ties around my tires.

It's winter where I'm living and we have really bad snow. And the snow plow people are really bad at their jobs probably because there aren't snow plow people who clean sidewalks. As a solution I got to thinking about how I could increase the traction on my wheels. And the most redneck thing I could think of was taking a bunch of zip ties and tying them around my wheels. They last surprisingly long, and work surprisingly well. It's basically the same premise as chains for your tires during the winter.

I chose to space them out pretty evenly so there's about one for every spoke. You could probably do more or less depending on how many you want and how much traction you get but I wouldn't go more than three per spoke. I realize that it's a bit later in the winter, and I probably should have made a post about this sooner, but I came up with it about a week ago. So please share this, even if you're not disabled, because there are tons of people I know who are stuck in their houses because they can't get around in the snow. A pack of zip ties costs about $5, which compared to $200 knobby snow tires is a big save, and if you want to invest you could get colored zip ties.