#didnt even have an outline

[kroovv]

when will blackwood circus return from the war

Eeuuuh probably not, unless i revamp the whole story cause guess who went full pelt into the story with no idea where it was actually going and like no script djdhdn

[n7punk]

i want to write. i know exactly what i would write if i was writing. i am not writing

[dulcesiabits]

hihi i hope you don't mind me asking but as a writer myself, i'm curious about how your writing process goes :o it's very evident you do a ton of research for your writing and it got me curious about how you go about research and writing as a whole! thank you for your time and have a wonderful day <3

Hi!! I don't mind at all <3 Thank you for sending this ask, because if there's something I love more than writing, then it's talking about the craft of writing! I'll just break down my general process on how I approach writing below <3 Keep in mind that this is both (1) general advice, and (2) specific to how I approach pieces, so it might not work for everyone! In general, I have four major steps: planning, outlining, writing, and then revising/editing!

Planning

The first thing that really happens is that I'll come up with an idea. For fanfic, this usually means I'll get an idea for a scenario I want to explore, or I'll really want to write about a character, and then I'll come up with several ideas that I think would be fun for them! In this stage, I might write a few notes about the premise, just a few sentences about the overall plot/arc I'm looking at. Additionally, I might come up with some general themes/motifs I want to include, but go more in-depth with them in the outlining stage. I'm a bit strange in the sense I tend to plan stories based on general concepts/themes before I delve into the nitty-gritty of characters and plot details (though this process is a bit reversed when I'm writing fanfiction).

I might also do some general research in regards to the premise: for example, I might look over the wiki to refresh my memories on character beats or miscellaneous trivia, or I'll reread certain pages of the manga/rewatch scenes of the anime/replay parts of the game. If I'm writing about a different culture, then I'll look up aspects of the culture that are relevant to my fic (and as with any research, you want to check that you're using reputable sites for accurate information!) Asking friends for their advice/expertise can also be helpful, especially if they're knowledgeable in areas I'm not.

2. Outlining

After I have an idea, I tend to make a really rough outline for how I want the story to go. I don't like planning every minuscule detail, so I leave my outline vague enough that I can be flexible with what I write. I might just draft the overarching plot beats that I want to hit, but then I might change/rearrange scenes depending on what happens as I actually write. I like having an idea of what might happen, but also I don't want my plot to be so rigid I don't have any freedom to play with it, especially because what I write might end up differently from what I planned to happen!

Additionally, I also tend to map out not just what's happening on the page, but also the themes, character arcs and emotional beats. It's not as daunting as it sounds; these things are generally entwined together, as they influence each other! I'm always thinking of them in conjunction with every other piece of the story.

If that's a bit difficult, you can also think about a general mapping technique: tracking the inner, emotional journey and the outer, physical journey, and how these events influence each other or intersect. What shows up on the page, and what's happening beneath it, that might not be as obvious?

In chronologically disjointed pieces, I tend to have an idea of what the chronological timeline looks like before I break it up and rearrange the scenes. I don't believe there are real "rules" when it comes to writing (things like "don't use adverbs" or "first person should only ever be past tense"); any rule can be broken, but you do need to understand the rules before you know how/when to break them in your piece.

3. Writing

Here's the hardest part of the process: actually writing! I have several different ways I approach writing. Sometimes I'll just follow my outline, in order of the events and scenes I have planned. Other times, I might write "out of order" where I tackle a section that I'm particularly interested in, rather than going by order of events (though this usually means I have to edit and revise a lot because I might write the aftermath of a emotional scene before I actually know the specifics of what happens in the scene).

I think that I sometimes approach writing as something I "have to do." I will make myself write, even if I don't feel particularly motivated or inspired, because I want to build a habit of writing even without that passion fueling me. And besides, writing even a few sentences is better than writing nothing, so I'll congratulate myself if I had one paragraph to my wip. Sometimes, this does help me get into the flow of writing!

I also don't tend to approach first drafts like they need to be perfect. I'm fine if they're sloppy or messy, and I might, say, add a [add transition here] or [expand on his inner thoughts] if I'm on a roll and I don't want to slow down to write that particular bit. It's important to keep the momentum going!

I also keep several wips on hands at all times, and I have a folder in my google drive specifically for my wips. Though I do tend to focus only one to three projects at a time, this helps me in the sense that if I feel tired of one wip, then I refresh my creative batteries by working on a different one. This helps keeps my interest up!

4. Revising/Editing

I know some people skip this step, but to me, it's important that I don't just toss out a fic before I'm completely satisfied with it. Editing is when you go through to proofread and look at surface level things like grammar and spelling, but revising is the real struggle: it's where you look at the piece as a whole. Is it cohesive? Do the scenes make sense in the order they're placed in? How is the pace? Is the characterization consistent?

You can't be afraid to rearrange scenes, to cut sections, to add new ones, or to transform existing scenes. If I need to, sometimes I take a break before I go back to a piece. Maybe I've been looking at it for too long, and in the heat of the moment, I might miss certain things. I might also ask a friend for their feedback and advice on a piece. I want to write things that I'm proud of, that other people will enjoy, so I don't want to half-ass any step of the process. I try to look at most things at least two or three times before I post them, but if they're shorter pieces/don't need thorough revision, I'll only look at it once before I post.

[opens-up-4-nobody]

...

[demadogs]

can you share your first kiss vision

GLADLY!!! also this is more just a fun concept to think about than a genuine prediction. this got kinda fanficy ngl.

so i envision it mid s5 pretty well into whatever danger will is in and mike and el are completely broken up. in this scenario its more of a thing like max where hes still himself just in danger of being tranced or something like that rather than s2 when he was possessed. (tho i dont think his danger will be the same as max’s. i think he has a deeper connection to vecna that will lead to a completely different kinda danger than what max was in.) anyways, the gang is all together and will is always being monitored whenever hes not in immediate danger just in case, similar to max. like 24/7 even when they sleep.

usually jonathan has this role but something else requires his attention so mike volunteers to keep an eye on will one night. they share a bed bc this is my vision and i make the rules and of course im only giving them one bed. as theyre getting ready to sleep mike seems visibly anxious and will asks whats wrong and mike just tells him that hes scared for him. i imagine this is the night before some big plan to defeat everything and mikes scared it wont work.

ive had this vision in my head for a while of them both in a quiet bedroom at night sitting on a bed and mikes talking about how ever since he went missing hes had such a fear of losing will for good and mikes silently crying. mike tells him “i saw your body. did anybody ever tell you that? when they lifted the fake body out of the water at the query, i was there. we were all there.” will didnt know this. mike tells him that the party rarely talks about all the upside down stuff when theres no danger present but they all have ptsd and nightmares. he tells him that their nightmares are about demogorgans and demodogs or the mindflayer or being shot at but mikes… mikes nightmares are just reliving the moment they lifted wills body out of the water.

mike tells him how the day he thought he was dead was the worst day of his life and how when he got him back he never wanted to let him go but then when the mindflayer got him he was so terrified of losing him again and he just has this terribly feeling that this time hes gonna be taken from him for good.

theyre both crying and will hugs mike super tight. a REAL HUG WITH EMOTION AND TEARS!!!! mike tells him “i cant lose you” and will says “im not going anywhere”.

eventually mike pulls away from the hug a bit but is still holding him. he rests his forehead on wills and stays there. will brings his hands up to his face and wipes his tears with his thumbs and leaves his hands there. mikes looking at his lips and its obvious that hes thinking about kissing him but hes not doing it because hes scared of risking their friendship and losing will in a different way.

then i love the idea of will knowing that mike wants to kiss him and he just nods and whispers “do it” and then mike kisses him.

mike pulls away but still leaves his face really close to his and hes kinda mentally freaking out and we can tell but will just smiles so big cuz hes so fricken happy and that instantly calms mike down and he kisses him again.

isnt my imagination great. someone send this to the duffers.

if someone wants to write this into an actual fic go nuts but plz tag me in it and credit me in the notes on ao3.

[hiraya-rawr]

today was the deadline of a research-heavy project. a project that ive been working on for the past week, even on my birthday. . . my group mates started working on the last few hours before the due time. i had to help them on their parts because they weren't answering the questions.

[fellhellion]

This part of the editorial from 2099 (pic sourced from this post) is so interesting to me because i don’t even think the idea of Miguel having these kinds of flaws is uninteresting or impossible, but I just personally would never have come to this conclusion just based on the text.

Like, when I personally look at how Miguel and Dana interact, I don’t see any indication that he emotionally condescends to having a relationship with her, when you’d think this strain of elitism should shine through in some part of their relationship at least initially in his arc.

I don’t look at Xina and Miguel’s interactions and interpret any sense him feeling threatened by her intelligence (even if we're just talking purely pre-spidermanning), when you’d think an element of that would be present, even in a flashback. He was a callous dickhead about the cheating explanation, but that alone without some corresponding behaviour to how he speaks to/treats Dana, even just as a flashback, just doesn’t offer the bridging piece to displaying what the authorial intent apparently was, at least for me.

Also, and by god we always come back to Dana’s writing being so damn lazy, but if Miguel - even if only at first - sought Dana out due to the emotional convenience she provided, what has prompted enough change that he is willing to bear and forgive actions like her seeking out the company of the man who drugged him when she wants to needle Miguel.

ALSO. PETER DAVID I AM SPEAKING DIRECTLY INTO YOUR EAR RN. ITS VERY SILLY TO ME TO POINT OUT THE MISOGYNISTIC STREAK INTENDED IN MIGUEL’S ACTIONS HERE BUT THEN LITERALLY JUST NOT BOTHER TO MAKE THE WOMAN THIS IS ABOUT MAKE LIKE. SENSE WHEN YOU WROTE HER. OFFER NO EXPLORATION INTO WHAT HER ACTIONS SPEAK TO IN HER PERSON AND DELVE INTO WHAT CONTRADICTORY ACTS MIGHT TELL US ABOUT HER.

[crescentfool]

it august

and that means theres four months until december 31st... or is it like basically five months.. well whatever... you know what i mean...

[the-kneesbees]

I've had a really really bad day.

[scarletiswailing347]

finished ch 2 of the tourney au before ch 1 lol

[neonsbian]

i dont wanna write 😭😭

[dallonwrites]

doing this sort of deep and detailed worldbuilding that doesn't really happen in my litfic works (well worldbuilding is still there, but even when i write litfic in a fictional setting it's not the same as this speculative project where there's lots of specific lore) has felt really nice because it's something to hold onto and familiarise myself with before i jump into the draft, but also because i'm not trying to outline the story alongside that i'll still get all the ways that discovery writing benefits me. making me think about how whether you're plotting a story ahead of drafting or not these sort of pre drafting rituals are really helpful and can take so many different forms depending on the story + writer

[comfycozycrossfox]

i was gonna do homework today and then the fucking website for the textbook went down and i listened to an audio comment from my professor where he bitched at me for the audio quality of a submission (WHAT DO YOU THINK I CAN DO ABOUT THAT. WHAT SOLUTION DO YOU THINK I HAVE. I CAN ONLY USE MY LAPTOP MICROPHONE.) and said that i did an outline ‘wrong’ (CALL IT A FUCKING WRITING ASSIGNMENT AND GIVE ME THE PARAMETERS THEN IF ITS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE WRITTEN FOR ME BY ME.)

[munamania]

anyway. i am going to be SO incredibly livid and angry and throwing an absolute tantrum on thursday if i dont get good feedback on my script.

[missingn000]

long chapters r so enjoyable to read i love them sm . genuinely i love tpg sm and when i first found it i binged the entire thing and ive been considering doing it again .

AAAA THANK YOU FOR THIS....i hope you like the chapter!! yall are so good to me ;~~;

i know i say this every damn time someone says they binge tpg but as the word count keeps ticking up it gets increasingly more impressive. like, how. i know in the ch1 a/n i mentioned it was gonna be long but holy shit people we're almost at three hundred thousand fucking words and i'm coping with it super well i promise (<-guy whose stomach acid is eating their guts alive)

[lordsardine]

.

eyyyy broke 30k words on the middle grade story