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[sybil-writes]

Announcing MEDLEY: A Medical Primer for Writers (Summer Edition)

Are you a writer?

Do you need to know things about medicine for your fiction works?

Have you considered taking a 100% online class about it?

Starting Tuesday, June 4th and running for 9 weeks is MEDLEY.

Topics include:

WEEK 1: (US) Hospitals and the People Who Work in Them

WEEK 2: The Physical Exam

WEEK 3: Codes and ACLS

WEEK 4: Remote and Improvised Medicine 1

WEEK 5: Remote and Improvised Medicine 2

WEEK 6: Recovery and Aftermath

WEEK 7: Historical Medicine

WEEK 8: Mental Healthcare

WEEK 9: Bonus Episode

This is the second time I'm running this course so hopefully the kinks are nice and ironed out this time.

Price is $36 per person ($4/week).

Two scholarships are available no questions asked.

[sybil-writes]

Okay fuck it if this post reaches 666k notes by the end of 2023 I'll practise basic self care

Why 666k? Because it's funny and impossible so good fucking luck

[sybil-writes]

Percolating some thoughts on my relationship to extreme spoiler aversion as a writer after talking to a coworker about it a bit.

On some level, I entirely get the spoiler-protectiveness insofar as people get very attached to the idea that there is a state at which they Don’t Know What Will Happen and part of their media experience is enjoying the twists and turns and absorption of that. And that’s very fair to want something like that, you know?

But one thing my coworker said to me really stuck in my craw, and that’s “I think the [writer/filmmaker/whoever] would want me to experience it like that”.

Now at the time, I wish I hadn’t gone with the angle of “so I write casually, and I–” because I’m not really up for discussing that hobby with my coworkers; but there’s a stone cold truth that I don’t think most writers write to one-and-done their work.

I’m a fucking fanfiction writer, the most pig fiction genre there is, and you know what, if stopping at saying “what if blorbo and skrunkly KISSED” was enough, I already do that with friends. There’s a reason I don’t stop there.

I mean, hell, writing itself is fucking work, right? And you get an idea, if you’re a planner like me, maybe it’s about the size of a plot summary. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. It’s the writing that’s taking on the next step, the making it exist and polishing it in whatever form it takes.

So that just kind of struck me as like. Hm, no I don’t think writers think that way about their work. If they did, and a plot summary really well and truly could “ruin” the work, then why wouldn’t we stick the plot summary up there and call it a day?

Devil’s in the details. There’s many ways to read a work. And I really do think most writers and artists of any kind are open to their work being “read”, even intend for their work to be “read” with several layers of foreknowledge. You write a work not just to be “read”, but ideally, to be read again.

[sybil-writes]

Since I got violently ejected from Tumblr for reasons that have yet to be made clear, I lost track of everyone I was following, and now my dash is very slow!

So: if you’re a writeblr, give this a reblog? Pretty please?

I’m especially looking to follow writers of queer SFF / queer SFF writers!

Tell me about your blorbos.

Tell me about your WIPs.

Let me gush at their magnifence in the reblogs.

[sybil-writes]

THIS IS NOT A DRILL

I REPEAT

THIS IS NOT A DRILL

THE STRICTLY NO HEROICS (Feiwel & Friends, Macmillan Children’s, 2023) COVER JUST DROPPED!

If you’re a powerless normie in a world run by superheroes, you need three rules to survive:

1: Keep your head down

2: Don’t make enemies

3: STRICTLY NO HEROICS

When a hero gropes her best friend, Riley Jones breaks all of them.

​Her attempt at serving justice gets her fired from her summer job. Luckily, Sunnylake City’s biggest business is booming (literally, when there’s C4 involved).

​Every villain wants henchmen: masked cronies who take their coffee orders, vacuum their secret lairs, and posture in the background while they fight. The HENCH agency provides a steady stream of drop-outs and losers who are willing to get beaten up by sidekicks for minimum wage.

​Riley might just be the perfect candidate.

I’ve worked so hard on this project, with an incredible team of people. And we’re getting closer to that sweet, sweet pub date!

Any boosts would be greatly appreciated <3 Let’s give my debut some love?

You can retweet here!

[sybil-writes]

new url! new publishing name — alex ritany! i’m also gonna go by alex on here too :)

boost if you can! thanks!

[sybil-writes]

Writing goals for 2022

This year, I wanted to try something different. I gave myself only a few real goals (those that matter to me the most, right now) and some bonus goals (which means I get to celebrate if I achieve them, but I don't have to beat myself up if I don't). The main goals are:

Make writing a pleasure

Write a little every day

Find the joy of learning again

Write a short story

Recently (before my forced writing hiatus started) I was finding it hard to simply force myself to write, and I realized it was mostly because: a) I was forcing myself to impossible standards and b) my writing routine wasn't a routine at all. So, this year I want to make my writing time a pleasure again, like it was before forcing myself to achieve impossible standards to make my writing marketable, and trying to make a habit that fits my schedule. Plus, I want to find pleasure in learning the basis again (which is what I'm going to do with drawing, too), which I think is going to help me experiment more, and so finding a better solution that works for me.

The bonus goals are:

Reread The Sins of the Father, take some more notes, make the necessary adjustments and write down a completely new rough draft for the sequel.

Write down 17k more in my MC project, and possibly finish the story.

Edit Hunting Season into something readable.

Write down the Dark Academia project, or at least a very rough draft of it.

Keep track of my dreams

Decide what to do with all my fantasy stories (do they go together? Are they going to be their own thing? Who knows? Not me)

Concentrate on writing some short stories (I really want to start writing short stories again)

Try my new ideas for Dreamwalker, which means taking another road entirely from my initial thought, but maybe actually start writing it.

Thanks to @writingonesdreams, who tagged me quite long ago!

[sybil-writes]

tag the oc that comes from a non english speaking household

[sybil-writes]

idk if this is the case for you but books often give me “want to write” disease where it’s tough to read a book adjacent to the kinds of things I’m writing because I just want to put it down and write

why is starting to read a new book so difficult like i’m illiterate until page 50 at least

[sybil-writes]

would love to know what, if any, discussion happened about your marketing/networking/existing following on social media? what were the expectations and stuff? did having a following already help?

i don't know if this is good news or bad news, but my agent didn't really give two shits. i mentioned that i had a blog with a pretty active following and she was like "nice" and then didn't mention it again.

the nice thing about traditional publishing is that it's not on the author to do the marketing, so it didn't matter that i was relatively unknown in the publishing social media spheres (twitter). i'm working on that now entirely for my own pleasure because i thrive on attention & i like making writer friends.

at the end of the day though, any agent that factors in a follow count/media presence into an offer of rep isn't one you want to work closely with.

[sybil-writes]

if you ever catch yourself thinking “yeah but i’m just someone who posts my writing on tumblr i’m not a real writer” or “yeah but it couldn’t happen for me”, just know that 1 year ago i was an unagented author hanging out on writeblr and today i got an offer from penguin random house.

it can happen for you.

[sybil-writes]

Order Up! Writing Openings, Handling Act One, and More!

New video on the collab channel! You’ve got all three of us chatting about writing, something we hope to do every month! 

reblog please <3 

[sybil-writes]

ask tumblr to decide for you

How do I decide which project to direct my creative energy towards now–wrong answers only

[sybil-writes]

Private Detective (Eight of Hearts)

Samson walked the slick cobbled street, the rain making a bad afternoon worse.

He hated work like this, it felt like someone delegating their dirty job to him. But it’s quick, easy and paying even if it’s peanuts, it’s better than going hungry.

Samson soon reached the residential area of the city and his first target, he walked up to the door and wrapped gently on it.

A tiny old lady answered the door, “Yes? Can I help you?”

Samson loomed over the woman, massive muscle-bound mercenary he was and pulled out a clipboard & colourful box.

“Girl Scout cookies.”

[sybil-writes]

I totally wouldn’t mind, but my hot tip as a long-timer in fandom would be to make a sideblog for sure, and reblog any original posts you make to your writeblr! 

The main reason for this is if you’re seeking interaction from other fandom folks, they’re less likely to follow/interact if you’re posting a mix of writeblr/fanfiction stuff -- plus it allows you to collect and support other fans work (gifs! fic recs! fan art!) in a centralized place, which also helps with community integration. 

I would say don’t make a sideblog if it’s going to feel like a chore or keeping up some kind of “”brand”” but if you’re interested in finding other cool people in the Witcher fandom community, that’s probably a good way to get started! 

Regardless of what you decide, looking forward to seeing your Witcher fic :”)

so i watched the witcher a while ago and have gotten super into the fandom (ive only watched the tv series tho!) and have been beginning to write fic

if i posted it, would people here be interested in that or should i make a sideblog?

[sybil-writes]

WIP INTRO | THE DROWNED WOMAN WALKS

genre | dark fantasy, lite horror, lgbtq+ sapphic teen romance

pov | dual first person past tense

status | outlining

first lines |

"I only saw the old lighthouse keeper once before she died.

After, I saw her plenty."

summary |

When New Faroe's lighthouse keeper jumps to her death, Ro Parker knows that something is wrong. If Elizabeth is dead, why does she keep turning up all over town? Why doesn't anyone believe that she's still alive? And why does the darkness move?

Maisie Beaumais knows. As she adjusts to her position as the new lighthouse keeper's daughter, she must come to grips with the truth: she's not the only one.

As Ro and Maisie grow entangled in the mystery of the lighthouse, questions arise. What happened to Elizabeth? What will happen when they discover the truth about each other? How far will they go to protect each other and the ones they love?

characters |

ro parker: narrator. 17. sick of everything about this stupid town. will probably bite you.

maisie beaumais: narrator. 17. Tired™. knows things she probably shouldn't. constant derealization.

benny parker: ro's younger brother. 15. Ray Of Sunshine. saw elizabeth jump. Pining Incarnate.

kingston grey: benny & ro's best friend. 16. son of a world renowned opera singer (iykyk). instantly enamoured with eloise.

eloise beaumais: maisie's younger sister. 15. Enthused™ about the supernatural. would love to kiss a cryptid (or benny) on the mouth.

funky stuff | found family, slow burn, poly rep, hurt/comfort, dealing (or not dealing lmao oops) with grief, oblivious pining idiots on literally all counts, something is probably always watching you but as long as you can't see it you probably won't die, not a single one of these characters is neurotypical, sure it's spooky but also it's comedy fight me, WEIRD magic like this worldbuilding pops off, time fuckery, Is The Lighthouse Haunted Or Is The Lighthouse Haunting?

aesthetics | walking along a craggy cliff through heavy mist, raindrops on a tarp, standing and soaking in a rare moment of sun, east coast canada fishing town, staying up way too late laughing so hard your face hurts, seeing yourself in someone else, seeing movement in your peripherals that vanishes when you look

theme song | goodbye (with soap & skin) - apparat

PLAYLIST | PINTEREST

ask to be added to the taglist!

[sybil-writes]

hey aren! it’s been great seeing your updates!

I got eaten alive by fandom stuff (Disco Elysium best game very much recommend), but I’m having a really great time with it! Another fic writer and I are doing a long term collab and I feel like I’m learning a ton about my optimal writing style/planning style from it! 

hope you’re well!

hey gang it feels like it’s been a hot second since i’ve had time to check in! how are you all? what are you working on?