#idk it feels like sudden hating the idea of an inciting incident

[thesundanceghost]

I am little confused as to where this sudden distaste for the “third act misunderstanding” trope came from like… I don’t know I think you have to admit that it’s like a classic storytelling device……… to introduce conflict or another twist to keep the plot driving forward and provide a new obstacle to give the story another dimension??

[prozac-shaped-urn]

htotm notes may 10

You are a traveler. You never sit still for long. Your spirit dies all over again every time you confront the past, the one you left behind. The child you left behind.

Why do I feel like I need to apologize to the world for my ever-changing body?

You don't text me back, you don't ring me up, you check your phone when we chat… I never get to have your full attention.

bring your body, and your mind will follow

stitch 'n bitch is an actual term used since the 1940s! i wanna use it and i wanna have a man in the group bc this is taos and i can do what i want in my own story.

beth goes radio silent page 33 and comes back page 45 (as of right now, 5/7)

need a convo about beth's childhood bff kathleen and how she always felt super close to her until she moved away. make it very mjuch queer coded and beth has to point out that liss is verymuch gay.

need a solid lead-up to beth being wild and carefree. why is she so open with liss all of a sudden? need a backstory for that to make sense.

beth and liss need to TALK somewhere. beth calls liss and says she's gonna call again so that needs to happen. the convo needs to include fauna sounds being annoying to beth and something that would lead into them mutually pining in taos.

need a carefree 12yo somewhere

leave the satisfaction of stella and beth learning how to talk again for later in the story

have beth sit in the hot tub close to the end. maybe liss is there?? i like the idea of her being alone tbh.

beth needs to figure out why she's so hesitant to sit in the hot tub. it's bc she's afraid of being comfortable in taos bc of her losing maggie. she doesn't wanna get too attached and lose whatever she's attached to. have liss figure this out for her maybe????

julie needs to learn abt stella at some point

need a sewing circle in there somewhere -- where we get to know more about julie and liss and their friends. one giant dinner table convo with multiple angles that everyone fucking hates doing.

have beth try and fail multiple times to reduce her screen time

ok but where is felicity when she's listening to her grandma read bedtime stories like for real where tf is she SHE'S THINKING ABOUT HER CHILDHOOD BEST FRIEND KATHLEEN (yeah i'm really going there)

beth needs to tell stella abt timothy at some point MAYBE HAVE TIMOTHY REACH OUT AND WANT TO MEET HER, MAYBE TAKE STELLA WITH IDK

the lead up to the inciting incident is chunky as all hell. FIX THAT.

Perfectionism is like an abusive ex: It finds your weakest areas and exploits them. You'll never satisfy an abuser -- satisfy yourself instead. BETH NEEDS TO LEARN THAT SOCIAL MEDIA IS AN ABUSER AND SHE WILL NEVER SATISFY IT, SO SHE NEEDS TO LET IT GO. or something like that

things E|L has learned living off grid for a year *Patience. stores are very far away like 30 min away. when you need something it can be a committment to go out and get it. if you have a single ingredient missing you won't go out and get it. you'll just do without. *accepting lack of control. can't control the weather (duh) so planning ahead of time doesn't help much. YOU HAVE TO BE EASILY ADAPTABLE. *plan ahead. make the most of every trip to town. *solving problems and self-reliance. if something breaks it's all on you. troubleshooting is a necessity. *learning from neighbors. share knowledge with everyone. networking is important.

maybe have liss show beth how to forage?? and then have them can the findings??? i like that idea. look more into that. DONE

why is slug comfortable in taos now MAGGIE ISN'T THERE ANYMORE

need a convo about body image between beth and liss so them examining themselves in the mirror makes sense. DONE i made it that scene where i stole from my own fanfic of deb and gerri

have beth buy a dumb phone but still use her computer for SPARING social media scrolling. we find the balance in this house. DONE

build up the need for beth to escape to taos?? maybe a series of shopping hauls???? DONE something where liss takes beth's phone and beth has an addict reaction. DONE

liss does laundry and gets weird looks maybe?? and that's what prompts her meltdown over not being enlightened??? idk figure that out. she needs to have a meltdown and know she's being hypocritical and beth needs to make that discovery in front of liss and tell her she's put two and two together. DONE

i dont think beth would so easily forget about liss. make her contact liss or smth. or maybe thats why she goes back to taos. incorporate something to do with the fauna sounds and how they're irritating so liss will have something to be proud of when beth's armor starts to fall. DONE

beth goes back to stay in taos with julie bc julie doesnt own a screen ????? something to do with julie and screens. BECAUSE SHE TRIES TO REDUCE HER SCREEN TIME WITH NO SUCCESS SO SHE DECIDES TO CUT IT OUT ENTIRELY AND THE BEST PLACE TO DO THAT IS JUILE'S DONE

beth needs to try and block out animal sounds IN FRONT OF FELICITY so that moment between them on the patio isn't out of nowhere SHE MENTIONS HATING THEM WHILE TALKING TO LISS IN BETWEEN TRIPS TO TAOS DONE

why are there no photos of anyone but bobby dean BECAUSE SHE DOESN'T WANT ANYONE TO GET CLOSE FOR FEAR THEY'LL LEAVE LIKE BOBBY DEAN ALMOST HAS

more of beth comparing herself to what she sees online / more comments on her life / figure out how stella plays into all that STELLA IS THE VOICE OF REASON

beth was a lively 12 yr old so make that come back MAYBE ALREADY DONE WITH THE DANCING AND CAREFREE NATURE GIRL MOMENTS

cut out some of the beth/julie shenanigans ACTUALLY NO I'M KEEPING THEM I LIKE THEM I THINK THEY WORK

why did beth's inner 12 yr old (slug) die BULLYING

[emilyoracle]

@onmywaytobe #this btw is why anything past a first draft is so intimidating#however I do think I’m decent at planning out the development ahead of time?? idk#i hate the idea of a second draft or third draft#i hate the idea of rewriting unless it’s really bad#the last couple steps are fine I’m good at line editing and copy editing#but the development is what’s so intimidating to me

@froggyfroo #incredibly based post#this is fenuinely something ive been struggling with - I've never really got past a first draft before#even tho for a few of my written eorks I'd rly like to - i feel like Idk anything about writing sometimes so this is i valuable to

You guys are SO valid haha developmental editing is also the bane of my existence. My advice, which you can take as you want (or not at all), is to seek out a betareader and/or do things step-by-step.

Finding a betareader is difficult in itself, but once you do, simply tell them you need developmental editing, that you want to look at the story as a whole and ask them specific questions relating to that goal. Does the plot progress too slow? Too fast? Does it make sense? Is the trajectory building in a satisfying way? Etc. Then wait for their feedback and use it to inform your own opinions and decisions. If you vehemently disagree with something, then you know you disagree and whatever they wanted to change you prefer to leave the same! Even that alone is invaluable help, because otherwise you might have not been able to form an opinion at all and/or waffled back and forth about it for ages. More betareaders are better, of course, but sometimes you gotta take what you get. Ideally, your betareader is not a family member or friend. They cannot be trusted to give you the full and unfiltered truth. Find a stranger. There are forums on Goodreads and Reddit dedicated to seeking out a beta, and surely you can put out feelers on Tumblr for betareaders as well.

Step-by-step is admittedly more complicated, I hope to compile an "editing masterlist" of sorts that's basically a checklist of the entire editing process but as I have yet to do that, here's my simplified (coughItriedtomakeitsimpleokaycough) break down of the stages of development editing: 1. Scan through your manuscript and create an outline. Whether this is just writing the chapters and the most important plot point in that chapter, or more in-depth summary of each scene is up to you. This allows you to look at your story as a whole with a quick(ish) glance. Even if you have an outline from before you started writing, it's best to pretend that one doesn't exist and make a new one off the manuscript to be sure it accurately represents it. Now you can track plot progression, see if there are stale chapters or scenes (or unnecessary ones), make sure the plot builds in a natural and satisfying way, etc. There are a ton of different frameworks you can compare and contrast against (like the most famous "Hero's Journey"), so you can certainly look for specific beats of such tried-and-true formats and conform your story accordingly. Personally, I don't think perfectly matching the cookie-cutter molds is necessary for a good story. If you feel confident enough in your own criteria, judge it by that! 2. Do the same thing, except with your important characters' arcs. Again, it's up to you to decide what the important characters are, it doesn't have to just be the protagonist(s) if there are involved side characters, and antagonists can get in on this too. This should be a different outline from the first, and each character should get their own. Really what you want from this is to track the progression of your characters (upward or downward) and see how it lays out. Is there a sudden change too soon or too early? Is the change justified with an inciting incident? Does the arc make sense? Are you satisfied with how the character changes, and who they end up being by the end? Look specifically at: motivations, internal and external goals (I want to be the best warrior vs. I want to save the world), biases, attitude/behavior, virtues, and flaws. Not all of these need to change, and what does change doesn't necessarily have to change drastically. It's up to you. But if the character is important, it's generally good storytelling for something to change in them, for the consequences of the story to have had some kind of effect on them. Keep in mind, an upward character arc generally takes flaws and improves them or turns them into virtues (e.g., an angry, bitter character becoming confident and resolute) and a downward character arc generally takes virtues and turns them into flaws (e.g., an extremely loyal and law-conscious person becoming ruthless and cruel in order to maintain their loyalty and the order of law). Again, this isn't OBLIGATORY, as nothing is in writing, you're allowed to do whatever the heck you want!

3. Consider the changes you want to make. Do this whatever way suits you best. If brainstorming/daydreaming is best for you, then go for it! If you like writing things down, do that. If you need to brainstorm and bounce ideas off another person, find someone to help! Unlike a betareader, this can be a trusted friend, because you might not necessarily need harsh truths, but only a fresh or second pair of eyes.

4. Once you've figured out what you might want to change, add, rearrange, or delete, get back to writing and implementing those edits!

If anyone else has any advice or ideas, feel free to chime in! I am by no means the authority on this, because, as I said, I also hate developmental editing lol.