#learn to write

[novlr]

How to write romantic love

Writing romantic love is simultaneously one of the most joyful things you can do as a writer, and one of the most difficult. There’s a lot of emotion to cover - from the highs of a new relationship, to the struggles of a relationship on the rocks.

Like all of us, your characters will display love differently. Are they open and affectionate? Shy and nervous? Loud and blunt? To help you along the way, here’s some examples of descriptions you can use to show (not tell) your readers that your characters are in love. Movement

Inching towards each other to touch

Shyly tucking stray hair behind the ear

Unconsciously parting or licking lips

Embracing with full bodies touching

Nervously shuffling feet

Running and reaching with open arms

Fiddling with hair or clothing

Crossing or uncrossing legs

Leaning forward to show attentiveness

A bounce in the step

Glancing flirtily over the shoulder

Facial expressions

Flirtatious winking

Smiling to themselves at nothing

Glancing up through lowered lashes

Unblinking eye contact

Grinning or beaming uncontrollably

A look of yearning

Lips slightly parted with desire

Dilated pupils

Glowing cheeks or flushed skin

Faraway, daydreaming look

Slight, secretive smile

Sounds

Deep sighs

Unconscious swallowing

Nervous coughing or throat clearing

Light chuckle with a silly grin

Grunts of appreciation or praise

An inner, audibly racing pulse

Thumping heart

Quick, short breaths

Low, whispered voices

Listening to love songs

Joyfully humming

Feelings and sensations

Nervous tingling

Butterflies in the stomach

Hot and flushed face

Hyper-sensitive skin

Acute awareness of personal proximity

Weak knees or legs turning to jelly

Shaky hands

Loss of speech or getting tongue-tied

Daydreaming and absentmindedness

Seeing the beauty in the world

Pulse racing

[batwynn]

Learn to create, or learn to deal with the hatred. You do not get to have it both ways.

Of all the things in the world you could choose to do, creating is something that comes with some of the most abundant and accessible teaching resources available. Nearly every artist/writer/crafter has put out some tutorial or another. Millions of them. In every format imaginable. Those who don’t make tutorials are frequently taking on the job of directly teaching people. We want you to learn, to join us in making things. We want you to feel the joy of making something. You were not gatekept from this. You chose the easy way out, and then got mad when people who put the work in said No, we don’t like that you steal from us. We don’t like that you steal and profit from our work. We don’t like that you took our jobs with the theft of our work. And no, you aren’t a part of our community because you aren’t actually creating anything.

You don’t get it both ways. You don’t get to steal from us and be welcomed and loved. But you can still make a choice. A choice that benefits you, and everyone in the community. You can choose to learn how to create. I promise you the reward that you’re looking for, the dopamine hit of attention and completion of work that you’re trying to get. It exists. It’s actually easier to reach than you think. And we will help you every step of the way.

[wordsmatter09]

[strawberryoverlord]

Are you seriously doing disabled Olympics inspiration porn. Trying to call others ableist while you use a dead woman for your argument...

It's ok bestie I know youre the one I was calling out so let me spell it out for you:

It's abelest to imply the only access to art that disabled people have is through literally stealing other people's arts with centuries of disabled artists are RIGHT THERE proving you wrong. So how about you fucking die mad that actual disabled artists are out here actually killing it at whatever art form they choose while you jerk off to whatever big titty anime girl you decided to train your dumbass program to draw based on referenceing stolen art you never had permission to use and leave actual artists who spend their lives honeing their skills and can run circles around your lazy ass alone and stop stealing their fucking work

[set-wingedwarrior]

I hate the Big Five model, not because I necessarily disagree with it, but because every time it's discussed in textbooks or I gotta read an article or something about it (like rn) it's just so damn BORING

[alliswyattonthewesternfront]

listening to an interview with Tom Savini and he said that whenever people come up to him and ask, "How do I become X?" he tells them: "Learn how." god, what a legend

[peony-pearl]

I know there’s a billion types of these posts but as someone who’s about to turn 34 next month and is just now taking violin lessons and beginning to see the light of hopefully starting more hobbies in the future, I just want to make a reminder that it’s never too late to start and learn something new. Don’t be worried about the passage of time bringing age. Let it bring you wisdom and new knowledge instead, and even then keep going.

[hebrewbyinbal]

“Khamishi” is Thursday in #Hebrew

Today you’re bowling a strike with this lesson 🎳 Bowling is Bowling, now learn to write it 🤗

[freshjuicywriterstuff]

Juicy Tips: Maintaining Focus

One of the biggest difficulties in the writer’s life is maintaining focus! For some writers this isn’t actually too difficult, but many of us also have the tendency to struggle with this. It can be much harder for writers who are neurodivergent, or it can simply be based on how big your workload is! Either way, here are some tips that might help you to improve your focus when writing.

Personally I’ve also found it difficult for the longest time. There are all kinds of ways you can trick your brain into working more efficiently while writing, though, and I’m just going to share some things I’ve picked up over the years. Some have arrived via my own discovery and others have been taught to me by mentors and tutors. The goal of this juicy tip piece is to help out writers who are struggling to focus on their work for any reason. It may or may not help you out! Here’s the basic rundown:

Setting The Mood

The brain is pretty easy to train, pavlov style, if you know how. The story goes, ring a bell every time you feed your pet and your pet will eventually become hungry whenever they hear the bell.

Try setting up a routine to get your brain into “writing mode” and stick to it, more or less. What I like to do is brew a hot drink, get myself a snack and then put on one of my playlists. Sometimes I might even go outside for a quick walk before sitting down to write. I find that some genres of music also help me write better than others. I also have two specific places in my apartment that I like to write, and I like to make sure that I’m fully comfortable so I can concentrate.

Setting up ‘rituals’ and specific environments to write in can gradually improve your ability to focus and produce more writing. It isn’t by any means a quick solution, but in the long run it can be the best decision. If you have a hard time remembering, maybe write something on a post-it note and place it near your work space to remind you of your rituals.

Fine-tune Your Surroundings

Make sure your surroundings are fully prepared for your writing session. Anything that can distract or disrupt your work flow should be dealt with. If you need to put your phone on silent, go ahead and do that. If you have books and comics on your desk it might be a good idea to move them out of arms reach so you don’t feel tempted to read instead. 

Make sure your work area is tidy, too. If you have a lot of clutter and chaos on your desk or table, and I mean more than usual, go ahead and move some stuff around. I know I’m guilty of leaving things out on my desk and it tends to make my space feel more cramped. A messy space can worsen messy thinking, and tidying it up can help you get into the right mindset. If you want to really focus and work at your best, tidying up can make a world of difference.

Anything that you might need should be close at hand! You should have a drink, a light snack and other essentials handy. I like to have a chapstick on my desk, for example, as well as a pen pot and all the notebooks and scraps of paper I might need to look at for notes I’ve made. If you have a corkboard, this is a great place to pin up notes for quick access. It’s important that your space is constructed to help you write and to keep you inspired.

If it helps, hang up things that inspire you - decorations, artworks or even photographs that spark some kind of creativity in you. I’ve got all sorts of things pinned up on the walls in my office area, from my own artwork to posters to decorative items I found in thrift stores. Surround yourself with inspiration and make sure you’re comfortable.

Break Down Your Tasks And Notes

A task can feel much more intimidating and harder to pull off, if it seems nebulous or unstructured. We all have different ways of compartmentalising our tasks, whether it be with a list or a table, or even just using sticky notes. If you don’t know what works best for you it may be a good idea to experiment.

Making some form of organised document to tell you what needs to be done can make the whole task of writing easier. This can be in regards to juggling multiple projects, or even just in the context of one thing you’re working on. If you’re struggling to plot your stories or plan your essays, maybe starting with a list of things that need to occur within the work will help. From there, you can create other lists to keep track of names, dates and even story beats. Before you know it, you should find that your ideas are a bit easier to process. Sometimes you might need a table or graph of some sort for your world building. You might find that other formats work better for you. No matter how you use these things, they can help you map things out and break them down. Making your information and notes easy to read will streamline your workflow.

You might find that planning too much is dangerous though - never over-do it with your lists and tables. You don’t need a list for everything or a sticky note for everything; sometimes you might find that mixing and matching these methods is best for you. Eventually you will find the sweet spot that most writers have, somewhere between neat organisation and improvisation.

Enlist Assistance Where Needed

Know when to tackle something head on, and when to admit that you’re not able to do it alone. It’s best to have friends that are also interested in writing so that you can assist each other whenever needed or even just show them your ideas so that you can enthuse about them together. The added enthusiasm of others can be a strong motivator to continue, and they could even offer input to help develop your work.

Even if you don’t have writer friends, you can always bring in friends who have enthusiasm for fiction in general - a friend who is an avid reader, or who has interest in the genre or format you’re writing in. They could always offer input as well, in a pinch. Don’t be afraid to ask, even if they’re not able to help. It’s always worth trying to reach out. Other writers and enthusiasts can be found online as well, if real-life friends aren’t able to assist you.

For more informative posts, inspiration and ideas to help you improve as a writer, follow this blog! I post often and also take requests for specific advice. FJWS is funded by your donations.

[stygianpen]

How to Write a Short Story | Part One - Getting Started!

[monsoon-of-art]

[novlr]

Get the pacing right

When pacing a scene, it's important to know what kind of scene it is.

Less description quickens the pace. More description slows it down.

Keep your action scenes short and punchy, and your emotional scenes deep and descriptive.

[wordsmatter09]

[nonebinary-leftbeef]

DEVASTATING the lyric you've been mishearing is better than the real one

[mebssann]

imagine you're living in the post apocalypse and your adopted dad still makes you do homework

[jessareads]

Pride, Prejudice and the Hand-Flex

Chemistry in the Regency era and why etiquette makes such a difference. Building chemistry is probably the hardest and one of the least understood parts of character development, but also the make or break it point for any romance novelist. So what is the secret formula to making readers desperate to see your characters together? Let’s explore it in today’s post! I’m Jessa and I teach you how…