#like im always asking myself how can i write this so that it accomplishes my task and so that it's as good as a picture of what happens

[thehardkandy]

gave my boss a progress update today and his response was "WOW" which i just found very funny and also hell yeah i am appearing competent at my job

[queenofcoquette]

advice for teens

introduction:

hey loves! i know that being a teenager sucks, but i want to give some tips on what helps me. obviously some things might not apply to you and ik that we all have different lives. these are just general tips!

getting your priorities:

the first thing is thinking about what you need to focus on. such as:

doing your best in school

being involved in extracurriculars/sports

having hobbies

developing healthy habits

plan for the future! what're you going to do after high school? how can you accomplish that?

physical health:

STOP skipping breakfast! idc if ur short on time or don't have an appetite, me neither, but i always have oatmeal in the morning. it's quick, cheap and it doesnt make me feel nauseous. breakfast is important for your body so pls start ur day right.

make a workout routine. exercise is so good for your body, and starting now is easier than starting when ur older. i like to do home workouts, lift small weights and go on walks!

drink enough water! most americans are dehydrated so ik that this is a big problem. read about WHY you need to stay hydrated and what it does for your body, then get enough water.

getting enough sleep. ik life can get in the way, but if u just scroll on ur phone for hour instead of sleeping you need to work on that! go to bed earlier and earlier gradually.

go outside. get sunlight and fresh air everyday, sit in your yard or deck, or just open a window. but dont spend all day everyday cooped up in ur room.

mental health

keep a vent journal. THIS is so helpful. i use loose paper in a binder and whenever i get rlly stressed or just feel like shit i write down all of my negative thoughts. (then i throw it out) this helps you clear your head and regulate emotions so you can approach problems in a healthy way.

communication!!! learn to communicate with the people in your life- its crucial for all types of relationships. learn how to disagree in a respectful way, how to voice how you feel, etc.

obviously therapy is the best route but ik a lot of people either cant afford it or aren't allowed to receive it by their parents. :/

school:

have a to-do list

create a study routine that's attainable.

have a calendar to write down when you have tests, quizzes, etc.

research college admissions. create a plan.

join extracurrcular activities. good for college admissions and making friends.

avoid drama. this is obvious ig but just don't tell everyone your business, or your thoughts on every person/situation. drama just creates way too much stress. be mindful of who you hang out with and how you treat other people.

outside of school:

be aware. learn about whats going on in your country and in the world. dont be oblivious to current events and whats happening, pay attention!

reflect. i like to take time to reflect- i think about my goals and ask myself what steps im taking towards reaching them. i reflect on my behavior, how i can be a better person, how im feeling, etc.

have hobbies. find things you enjoy and can do in your spare-time. i spend a lot of my free time reading, sewing, or doing something along those lines and it makes me feel good.

getting a part-time job. getting a job helps you learn saving skills, real-world experience and is just good overall in the long run.

ik that being a teenager can be hard becuz ur emotions are all over the place, ur stressed about ur future and ur not a kid but also not an adult. it's a weird time but you can make it *better* through being healthier, being mindful and making good decisions. wishing u all the best :)

[strniohoeee]

im literally obsessed with ur writings❤️ can u do one where reader has social anxiety and matt tells her to be at somewhere for a date(a crowded place)but he forget to go and reader gets a panic attack and then they argue but the end is fluffy

Stuffy

Pairing: Matt Sturniolo X Female Reader 💌

Synopsis: Matt plans a date with Y/N, but he forgets a few days later. When Y/N shows up at the restaurant, and it’s packed she started to suffocate 🖤

Warnings⚠️: Talks of a panic attack, and that’s about it

Song for the imagine: I can’t handle change- Roar

I hated how anxious I was around people who I didn’t know, or how my throat felt like it was closing when the place became too crowded. I always struggled with social anxiety, but as I got older, and went out less it became even worse

Before I dated Matt, and we were all friends they would try and get me to go to a party, but I never ever went. I simply could not. But once Matt and I got closer, and we started dating he paved the way for me to feel more comfortable.

I didn’t go to every event, but I did show up at a lot more places, and many people were proud of how much I’ve accomplished. I was proud of myself too, I mean had you told me a year ago I’d be going to parties, and actually talking to people I would have laughed in your face. But this is all thanks to Matt. He never made me do anything I didn’t want to, and if I was uncomfortable he was always there for me.

Right now I was getting dressed because Matt asked me out on a date about three days ago. He was laying in my bed while we were dozing off.

“Let’s go out Friday night, like 8pm. I have a meeting with Laura, but after that meet me at Garden’s Kitchen” he said while snuggled into me

“Yeah sure I’ll meet you there” I told him, and we fell asleep

So that’s what I was currently getting dressed for, and I was about to head out, and meet him downtown. I was very anxious to travel downtown alone, but I knew the Uber would drop me off in front of the restaurant, and all I had to do was walk in , and meet with Matt.

I got to the restaurant at about 10 after 8, because of traffic, so that already made me anxious. I hopped out of the car, and walked inside…..immediately my heart sank. It was fucking PACKED

My heart started to race, and my palms got sweaty. I started to look around, and my eyes landed on a big sign that said $2 margaritas every Friday.

I was fucking mortified this place was so packed I kept getting bumped into. I shimmied my way to a corner, and pulled out my phone to text Matt

“Hey baby I’m here! It’s packed. Did you get a seat?” I texted him

“Hey babe, where are you?” He asked me

“I’m all the way at the front by the entrance” I texted back

“Wait what? No I mean like where are you?” He asked again

“Oh. I’m at Gardens Kitchen for our date, remember?” I texted back

“A date? I’m sorry baby I don’t remember” he said

My heart started racing even more, and I thought I was about to pass out

“The date you asked me on ... .3 days ago?” I texted back

“I’m really sorry, but I don’t remember” he said

I tried to text him, but my messages weren’t going through, so I tried to call him, but my calls weren’t going through as well….one of us had bad service.

“Excuse me ma’am” I heard so I looked up

“Yes?” I asked

“Are you getting a table or not? Theres people waiting on you” she said rudely

I looked behind me, and a line had formed

“Oh no I’m sorry!” I said back in shock

“So then step off the line” the guy behind me said

“Oh I’m sorry” i said back

Then all of a sudden it just got so loud, and everyone was talking to me, and looking at me, and I swore my hearing was going out

I started to have a panic attack, my vision got blurry, my chest was heavy and I felt like I was going to die. Then all of a sudden the tears started streaming down my face

I ran out of the restaurant trying to ground myself, and with shaky fingers i ordered an Uber to go to the triplets house

It was about a 30 minute drive, my texts and calls still weren’t going through to Matt. I was trying to stay calm but I was so overstimulated I really thought I was going to die

I had gotten to the triplets house, using the pin pad to let myself in. I heard them laughing in the kitchen

I stomped up the stairs

“HOW COULD YOU” I said stomping towards the kitchen

“Baby! Baby! You’re okay” Matt said running up to me

“YOU DIDNT ANSWER ME. YOU LEFT ME THERE AT A BUSY PLACE KNOWING HOW I GET. I HAD PEOPLE YELLING AT ME, AND I HAD A PANIC ATTACK” I said raising my voice

“I didn’t do it on purpose I swear, my phone had no service” he said looking into my eyes

“Matt, you asked me out three days ago…how did you forget? And then you send me to a restaurant that serves $2 margaritas on a Friday night…. DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE THERE” I said starting to shake feeling another panic attack beginning to start

“I KNOW, and I’m sorry okay I really didn’t remember. I would never do anything to hurt you” he said pulling me in and rubbing my back

“Matt I felt like I was going to die” I said sobbing into his chest

“Baby it’s okay! You’re here with me. You’re okay. Don’t worry I got you my love. Breathe in and out” he said to me

I was shaking and sobbing and I couldn’t catch my breath

“Can you hear me? Can you hear my voice? Breathe in and out okay here give me your hands” he grabbed my hands and put them on his face

“You can feel me, you feel my jaw, and my nose, you can feel me talking when I put your hands here” he said as he placed my hands on his chest

“Look at me okay look at me” he said, and finally I opened my eyes while I was taking deep shallow breaths

“Look at my eyes, what color are they?” He asked me

“Bl- they’re blue” I said in broken sobs

“And my hair what color is my hair” he said bringing my hands to his hair

“It’s brown” I said taking deeper breaths

“My lips, how do they feel” he said rubbing my finger on his lips

“They feel soft” I said

He placed his hand on my heart

“Breathe in….and out. I got you! You’re okay follow me” he said and started to breathe in and out

I followed his orders, and slowly my heart rate started to go down

“Okay good, very good. You’re okay y/n I’m here with you” he said still having his hand on my heart

“I’m sorry Matt” I said pulling him in for a hug

“This is not your fault. This is all my fault. I sent my baby out to a place, and I wasn’t even there, and I let her down. I let her have a panic attack” he said placing his hand on the back of my head kissing the top of my head

“No Matt you forgot. I should have reminded you” I told him pulling away

“Don’t worry about it baby , okay. This will never ever happen ever again. I will never do some stupid shit like that again” he said walking me over to the kitchen table

Nick handed me water, and Chris gave me my comfort pillow that I had for when I would have a panic attack

“Are you okay?” Nick asked looking at me

“Yes I’m okay” I said nodding my head and taking a sip of water

“I love you so much y/n, and know that I would never do anything to hurt you” he said rubbing my cheek with the back of his hand

“I know Matt. I love you too” I said weakly as I gave in to his touch

That night Matt and I stood attached at the hip, and we ate pizza and watched movies, and honestly I forgot about my panic attacks. Nick and Chris also came in for a bit making sure I was okay and giving me hugs.

I loved Matt so much.

The End

I hope you guys liked this one, and whoever requested lmk how you liked it 🖤💋

-J💅🏽

A/N: I’m 21🧎🏽‍♀️

[talkintrashcann]

Hello! Can I request a Wednesday x gn!reader? The reader is also working on a novel in the genre of their choice, and when Wednesday finds their notebook, she demands how they were able to complete it so quickly, in which they explain their method: read a chapter per day, write for 15 mins, etc.

They bond over their writing and the investigation? Thanks!

Partners in crime - Wednesday x gn!reader

Summary: Wednesday finds your notebook and is intrigued by your writing style, curious on how you managed to write all this in such little time. You end up bonding over your stories and even go out on little murder investigations together, not yet knowing how your story together will go.

Warnings: some spoilers for the show maybe, doesn't have a big impact if you haven't finished the show yet but maybe go do that first if you want to, because of that there are mentions blood and murder

Word count: 1k

A/N: im really unsure if this is how you wanted the story to go so i hope you still like it, any feedback is always welcome and im happy to adjust some things if you like

Requests = open: i had so much fun writing this request and would love to write some more so please send me some, can be for any other characters too!

———————

Ever since the new student Wednesday Addams arrived at Nevermore, life in Jericho hasn't been the same. Exploding statues, blood rain at the RaveN, and a student murdered. You knew Nevermore would be a crazy place to live, but you never expected any of this to happen. In contrary to miss Addams, you didn't intervene in the murder cases, you would rather stick with fictional murders. Or did you?

One thing you really enjoyed was sitting in the nightshade's library late at night, writing stories while listening to some music. Your roommate didn't really appreciate the lights being on in your room and the soft piano music playing in the middle of the night, so that's why you always came down here to write instead. No one to complain about anything, just you and your novel.

One night you were getting ready for bed when you noticed your notebook not being in the spot where you usually left it, realizing you must have forgotten it down in the library when you went there to write earlier. Not wanting anyone else to find it, let alone read it, you made your way to the library to quickly take it back to your dorm. But once you arrived, you saw a mysterious figure wandering through the library with a flashlight in their hands. You thought it would be one of the other nightshade members, but to your surprise it was no one other than Wednesday.

"What are you doing here?", you asked making the girl in all black turn around and shining the flashlight directly into your eyes.

"I could ask you the same thing."

"Yeah, well I happen to be part of the nightshades so I'm allowed to be here." You try to cover your eyes a bit due to the bright light in your face, noticing your notebook in Wednesday's hand. "Is that my notebook?", you say pointing to the book.

"So you're the one that wrote this, I was wondering which other student spends their time on writing murder mysteries. Looks like I'm not the only one being inspired by the unsolved problems this town has. If I wasn't too occupied with solving the murder cases all by myself, maybe I would enjoy reading into this more."

Wednesday says while moving the flashlight away from your face, walking over and handig you your notebook. As much as you hated her reading your notebook without permission, you couldn't help but smile at her compliment about your novel. The Wednesday Addams would like to read more of your stories, everyone at school knew she was an author herself so this was a huge accomplishment to you. But of course she wouldn't actually read it with her busy schedule of snooping around town and hunting monsters night and day.

"How did you do it though? I couldn't help but notice the dates of your chapters, seeing how fast you write all your chapters."

The monotone girl asked, she was intrigued by your method and writing style. Some could say she even sounded a bit impressed, but she would never admit that to anyone.

"I basically try to read a chapter every day and then write for 15 minutes, and then I just repeat that. Listing to music that match the vibe of what I'm writing also helps me. If you want I could show you how I do it some other time? Or maybe we could have a writing session together and help one another with writing their novel. I kind of have to get going now but I'm happy to show you another day though." You propose, unsure of how she would respond to the invitation. You didn't think she would ever say yes to that, but as usual, Wednesday is full of surprises.

———————

So there you were, sitting in Wednesday's room while talking about your novels. This was now the seventh time you met up with her to write together, the previous writing sessions were a great success and Wednesday kind of enjoyed your company. After spending loads of time together, you became quite close and you even consider her to be one of your closest friends. Your shared interests being one of the reasons you've bonded really well over the past couple of weeks. But writing wasn't your only activity with her these days, she's invited you to accompany her on multiple murder investigations, you became her partner in crime. Quite literally since you've broken into houses together, tamper with police evidence and dug up graves from the cemetery in Jericho.

You weren't sure about joining her on her investigations at first, but you didn't protest at the thought of solving mysteries together. Although you never imagined you would end up in a police cell with her for one night, getting scolded by Ms. Weems or actually figuring out who the hyde and it's master were, you wouldn't want to trade your adventures with Wednesday for anything in the world. If you could do it all again, you wouldn't think twice to say yes.

———————

"Do you think people will like this? I mean it's a little gruesome don't you think? And what if no one ends up buying it?", you basically bombarded her with questions. Being very uncertain of your novel.

"I couldn't care less about what people think of our novel, and a novel can never be too gruesome. I would even read this to little children if I wasn't highly allergic to them. You need to stop worrying about the novel and how many people will end up reading it. Besides, the amount of people reading this doesn't define the quality of the story. It's a great success in my eyes, that's all that matters.", Wednesday said in her usual emotionless tone.

She was definitely right about the great success part. Once your novel was published, thriller fans from all over the world showed their love for the story. After the great success of your novel, a sequel was quick to follow which didn't let the readers down at all. The only thing the readers weren't aware of, was that it was based on your personal investigations and adventures with Wednesday that happened during your time at Nevermore. Hence the title, partners in crime.

The end?

[elekinetic]

user elekinetic do you have any tips to spare for outlining fics 😭 i feel like I word vomit any of the concept that I have in my head, and dialogue ,and build off that adding paragraphs as I go and I go so slow bc of it. But ive been trying hard lately to write a list of “scenes” and bullet point the story but yeah.

do you know anything that could help me have an idea of where to go start to finish instead of starting at the random spot I’ve come up with first? I waste so much writing time because I haven’t built a backstory for characters and things like that so i don’t always know how they start the story off, only the situation they’re in. Is that something that could help? Making a list for each character or something? Would love to hear your thoughts thank you! <3

hi! first of all i’m so flattered you asked! to be clear, i am a very slow writer too lmao and i’m relatively new to prose writing, and though in very confident in my understanding of what makes a good story (W screenwriting), i am still figuring out my outlining process. but hey! let’s learn together.

sorry in advance for how long this is. i love talking.

so i basically figure everything out in the outline and write after i feel very good about it. if you have a strong foundation, everything gets a hell of a lot easier. t kind of sounds like your process might be similar to mine, so i’m just gonna explain what i'm doing for my current project.

my key document is my “bible.” i split it up into a couple different sections using page breaks (page breaks my best friend ily page breaks):

pitch/word vomit summary

scene ideas

outline

notes

ok so wtf does that mean.

1. pitch/word vomit summary — explain your concept. bc i've got a film/tv background, im starting off with my logline. (e.g. "after robin learns will is gay, they have a heart to heart in an abandoned video store about insecurity and feeling alone. they learn they're not." sometimes i'll follow that up with a note to myself like, "this fic isn't robin finding out, this is what happens after. starts with her already knowing. will pov, focus on his perception of robin changing. subtly reference toward feelings about mike, dont come out (haha) and say it") then, i write as MUCH of the concept down as i can, like i'm explaining it to a friend. (sometimes i copy and paste rants from dms directly into the document). it can be totally out of order, non-sensical, contradictory. just get as many of your ideas down as possible. you want to be able to come back to this and be like, oh i totally forgot about that. vague chapter summaries, personal notes about themes, whatever you want. i have a list of beats that you find in romantic dramas for inspiration and a paragraph abt ways i want to parallel/subvert s3 of st. just. go ham. 2. scene ideas — this is pretty self explanatory. i take some of the stuff i have in the p/s and flesh it out, or put down new ideas. this is where i'm writing out dialogue in bullet points, or what i want them to be Really Saying. (e.g. "mike: [panics bc he feels seen, tries to flip it back on (redacted) and fails] ") this is for when i can see stuff more clearly or i get out of the shower with a whole exchange in my head. gonna be out of order, a little all over the place. 3. outline — so. this is where you start piecing it together. put the bullet points in order. figure out objective of each scene and what needs to happen to accomplish that goal. figure out pacing, what needs to happen when. this step is where im looking at dialogue and thinking "why does mike say that? why does he feel that way? what needs to happen to get him to this point emotionally?" or looking at scenes and thinking "these are two scenes with people arguing back to back. lets make sure they feel different and give the characters different tactics to get what they want (byler argument where mike is avoiding will vs max argument where max is avoiding lucas. i could use this to highlight similarities and differences in the relationships, but having two scenes with the same tactics back to back might feel repetitive. maybe i move the scenes farther apart or change circumstances. maybe mike and will are having a veiled argument while theyre with a group of friends in a public space and max and lucas' argument is outside max's house.) also asking if conflicts are resolved too quickly, if the miscommunications feel too convenient, if characters disappear or are only around as plot devices. write. troubleshoot. repeat. 4. random notes — everything else that doesnt fit. for me this is literally just taylor swift lyrics (writing the fic vaguely off of a Specific Song that SHOULD BE STREAMED MORE WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE anyway) and links to posts i use as character reference to make sure im staying true to the characters. (remembering will said "i was being a total jerk to el, i deserved it," AND "you're ruining everything, and for what!"/"i wasn't moping!")

i want it to be clear im doing all of this at the same time. im jumping around and pulling new ideas and rearranging as stuff changes. i think the thing that's really hard is that i want to be able to sit down, write the outline, and then move on. but for us scatterbrained writers, you're gonna have to re-outline and readjust like. a thousand times. and that's okay. that's good! it feels tedious as hell but the story is so much better for it.

take your time. let yourself be slow. keep finding holes in your story and fill the world in as you fix them.

here are some more questions i ask myself to make the story better:

What are you trying to accomplish over the course of the story? What is it about? (for the will&robin fic, it was something about feeling seen for the first time.) When you get lost in your story or aren't sure why a scene feels stale, come back to this. is the scene furthering that goal?

What is changing internally for each of your main characters? (yes theyre dating by the end but like. what do they learn.)

Are the side characters people or props? (will pov scene of a party-wide picnic where everyone's talking but will is focused on mike's hands.... where is max's head at in the scene? you don't have to have a super long backstory and she doesn't have to be a big part of the plot, but if she's saying something, figure out why she's saying it. if will is having a heart to heart with el, understand why el is responding the way she is. the scene's goal may be to get will through a breakthrough, but el's circumstances will change in the scene too. figure out how this conversation lands with her. oh, and remember the adults are people too!)

Why is this character saying this/why are they responding this way? (this should answer your "where do i start?" question. start in that random spot and figure out A) why they are there and B) why they are reacting the way they do (see last bullet point).

side note: some of the best advice i ever got was "enter the scene late, exit early." skip the prologue. try starting from that random spot. if it feels like something's missing, figure out exactly what that something is, and go from there

Do the stakes feel high enough?

What do i need to set up to make sure this scene/beat is satisfying as possible? (are will and mike going to have a big argument? oh, so we have to show tension before.... BAM you have another scene to write and your outline is fuller)

i could go on a lot longer but. basically.

i edit while i write. i'm someone who needs a very fucking strong outline and a very fucking clear idea of the story before i can start writing it. i'm putting probably 70-80% of the leg work in at the start so i can focus on making the prose (or script, most of the time) the best it can be.

THAT BEING SAID, this is just the way i do it and i have like. a fic and a half published. im taking my sweet time bc im creatively burned out and this is for fun first and foremost. like i said. i am a Very Slow Writer.

i highly, highly recommend hitting up the ask boxes of writers like @/strangeswift, @/wiseatom, @/astrobei, or @/andiwriteordie. no guarantees on responses bc they are busy ppl with busy lives but i really do think theyre some of the best writers out here right now, and im not just saying that bc they're my friends. abby (strangeswift) and i have been each other's sounding board through a lot of projects and she's almost done with one of her first Big Fics, so its worth asking her about that.

i hope this helps! ah!!

[boydepartment]

ive noticed you tend to apologise a lot when youre tired and taking a break 😅 you shouldnt do that. youre a human, of course you'd feel tired sometimes. hope youre taking enough rest and recovering soon, no pressure to take and accept requests.

im sorry your interview went weird, but its good you pulled back the moment you found it sketchy. hopefully youd get a chance to accomplish your dream sometime soon in the future! take care jayjay

-🎄

hi it’s okay 🎄 anon :) i’m gonna use your ask to talk abt something if that’s okay, this isn’t @ you, i pinky promise.

i’m gonna be honest after valentine’s day i might just leave this account ? i don’t think ill delete anything but i just can’t be on tumblr or read any of the content i used to. i talked about it a bit a couple days ago i just want to elaborate more.

it makes me really just idk :/ i don’t like the community at all anymore and it’s been declining my mental for a bit. i love enha and all my people in the different groups i like, but i really really hate how some ppl write them and it just freaks me out REALLY bad. ESPECIALLY RIKI. like fuck some of you guys are so weird bruh…. and shameless. like you have no respect and don’t even on the “it’s not that serious.” you’re fucking weird. period. there’s no reason to make some of the shit you guys say public at all.

it’s been talked abt more recently how dubcon and dark fics are more common now and i can’t keep scrolling past it and seeing it. it freaks me out that people will write about actual people like that especially someone who lived at the receiving end of abuse like that. why would you want someone you love to be put in the situation of the abuser? like it doesn’t click to me and sometimes even scrolling past and seeing the tags and send me into a bad episode so i just can’t anymore. i don’t know how people think that’s okay to push their coping mechanism that’s darker and extremely damaging on an actual HUMAN BEING. coping mechanism or not that’s fucking weird. they may be idols but they are human beings too.

i’ve also had a few asks in my anon that are just straight up rude, demanding, or calling me weird for liking riki at all? like you are attacking the wrong girl i have nothing but respect for him. those anons are just stressing me out aswell and it’s just too much. i’m exhausted constantly being disrespected. tumblr is supposed to be a platform where i can get away and get lost in lighthearted stories and it’s not that for me anymore.

i might come back after i leave on valentine’s day but i need time to actually enjoy kpop like i used to. the fans are ruining it for me and it’s just been making me really depressed. i can’t even go on tiktok sometimes because of the fan bases. i’ve always been very open with you guys and like, i need to pull back from these fan bases and take care of myself. i barely eat, sleep, or enjoy anything anymore(that’s due to offline stuff but being on tumblr doesn’t help any of that at all). i miss having fun and the communities are ruining it.

[that-multi-fandom-hijabi]

how to love myself advice plz?

im literally so honored that you came to me <3 you're an amazing person ollie

when you start to feel down or that you're not good enough, remind yourself of all the accomplishments you've had recently, big or small

take walks or exercise. scientifically proven to boost your mood :D

your value does not come from what your body looks like! like alessia cara said, "you don't have to change a thing, the world can change its heart". beauty standards suck. they change so much and year by year the standard goes from skinny to curvy to skinny again. be yourself!

put yourself first before anyone else. you're not responsible for the well-being of other people, and how someone else is feeling right now isn't your fault

don't compare yourself to others. i know it's really, really tough, but a person that you think has a perfect life could be really hurting inside. i stopped comparing myself to other people and felt so much better about myself as a person, so i know first hand that this could really help

let! go! of! toxic! people! i CANNOT stress this enough. if someone shames you, or makes fun of you, or is harming you verbally or emotionally, get rid of them! you don't deserve their company, and they're only going to make you feel worse

don't block off your emotions. i know the simple option might seem to just be shoving it all down in a deep corner and trying to forget about them might seem like the simple solution, but it's not. i used to shove my emotions away and it just made me angrier and i hated myself more. embrace the emotions! vent if you need to, or write something based on them.

i really hope this helps ollie! remember that i love you always and you can vent to me in a dm or ask anytime!

<3333

[pigeonwit]

HI!! i am SUCH a massive fan of your work and your writing style and the way you write javid ... do you have any tips on making description and dialogue/switching between the two not sound clunky?? im having trouble 😭 im eating all your fics rn btw ... gnawing on em

oh!! goodness that is high praise - well first of all thank you, that is so sweet of you to say, and i'm so flattered you felt like you could ask me for help on that. but i gotta be honest, i'm very much an amateur and i really don't feel like i have much right to give 'advice' as it were - i'm still figuring out a lot of stuff myself tbh. but something i can definitely do is tell you what i do, why i do it and how i try to improve my own writing, as it's something i think about a lot and therefore something i feel very comfortable telling people about - but again, disclaimer, this is just what works for ME. i used to be really hard on my writing because compared to the work of other people i've seen, i felt like i was being way too flowery, overstaying my welcome on a lot of passages, being overly preachy, etc etc - but trying to emulate other people's writing entirely just doesn't work and completely sucks the fun out of it. so this is just what works for me. anywhore lets get to it

so i focus on a few things when i'm writing dialogue, the biggest one being 'Do People Talk Like This?'. now that's not always the most helpful question to ask yourself since everyone talks differently and there's really no point trying to categorize it, but where i find questions like that help the most for ME is when i'm thinking about what the character's thought process would be in saying this. for example if i'm writing oscar and morris, it just doesn't feel right to have them say shitty things for the sake of being cartoonishly shitty, because what's the thought process there? 'haha i'm gonna humiliate this kid because i'm just evil!!' no one. no one does that. they have their own reasons for wanting the newsies to feel beneath them, and even if i'm only writing them for a line or two, i want that to be the thing i get across, rather than just 'the delanceys are assholes' (even if their purpose in my fics is usually to be assholes).

i also try to draw from reality a lot, conversations i've had, things i notice when people speak to me. it's difficult since i'm autistic and therefore misread things or miss things entirely, but i try to do my best from my own experiences. a lot of my scribbles so far have just been casual little snippets of javid conversations 'cause that's a really fun way for me to get to know the characters and how they'd behave in casual conversation. i really like looking into davey's weirdness and so i draw from a lot of the weird things i do, the weird jokes i see other people make that i find so damn funny, weird body language that i love, etc etc. and it's fun to see how the characters react off one another when they're just being silly. sometimes i just need to lock two characters in a room together in your mind and see what they do - it doesn't really accomplish anything in terms of fic, but it helps me get to know them and how they interact with each other.

as far as descriptions go, the thing that helped me the most was (and you're going to laugh here) going outside. i know, touching grass actually did improve my writing, it's shocking. i'm pretty lucky since i live in a seaside town with a lot of forest areas so i spent a lot of time last spring/summer just walking around with my head fully empty, and if i had any thoughts come to me that i liked, i put them straight in my notes app the moment i got them. it felt pretentious as hell at first, and yeah, some of them aren't GREAT, but it's better to have my thoughts written down somewhere i can access them again rather than just not have anything to work off of at all. i've started just carrying a notebook around with me so that if i ever have a thought that feels worth keeping i can just jot it down right away. it can literally be any thought, i think i have a line in there about a can of redbull. anything that keeps the thoughts coming. i also keep a little list of quotes my friends have said as well - it's mostly funny stuff like "adren says: FUCK CHARITY!!!" and "i love his seven year old boy swag" but every so often i get something like "time is irrelevent, the sun will still be up in the afternoon", which i think of every time i feel like shit for needing more rest.

also something that people told me to do a lot which i HATED hearing but fuck if it's not true, is to just read. like when i was in my contemporary lit class and i could just chew over alys conran for a week or two it was like a factory reset in my brain. holy fuck i love alys conran she is a goddess she IS the blueprint. she completely redefined how i look at and interpret my surroundings. and ali smith - i wouldn't say i'm a huge fan of her stuff but the way she does dialogue and character voice is SOOO special to me. i hated being told 'just read!!' because i KNOW i should be reading but unfortunately my energy is dogshit and taking in new informaton is hard, but honestly it doesn't even need to be a whole book. it can be anything. i've had my shit rocked by tumblr posts and fanfic drabbles. anything that can make me go 'huh i like how they did that' or 'hm no i don't think i like how they phrased that' is helping my understanding of how i want to write.

(and in a similar vein to that - having character tags is so helpful for me!! like i'll see the vaguest thing and be like 'yeah davey would say that' or 'oh that's jack energy' and even though it's small it still improves my understanding of the characters and how they interact/think/speak)

in terms of switching between the two, i think i have a pretty obvious pattern when i write dialogue; "the first part of dialogue", then we look at the character again, how they're saying the words, what their body language is like, what they're thinking, "and then we finish what they're saying." that works for me because i'm a chronic overthinker and i like being able to focus on the little things the characters might be trying to say without saying them outright, like if davey's stimming for a specific reason or if jack's body language is more stilted than it should be because he's hiding something, or if the narrating character is focusing on something specific that the speaking character is doing for whatever reason. but i've also been trying to notice when i'm overdoing that pattern and when it feels right to change it up a bit. i want to try and improve my pacing, since sometimes i'm spending waaay too long slogging over prose when i want a scene to feel fast-paced and intense, and sometimes i feel like i'm glossing over something that would be important to the character. so sometimes (like when jack first appears in run boy run) i want the character to go into bullet-time to emphasise the weight of what's happening and what they're experiencing, and how the character FEELS about things when they're given time to properly experience it, but other times (like in their argument at the end of the chapter 4) i want things to snap and crash into each other very quickly to emphasise a character's fight-or-flight response, how they react to conflict, what they do when they don't have time to properly think about what they're doing.

and,,, yeah i think that's everything i can think of. again i'm not gonna act like any of this is gospel, i don't even know if this is even helpful to anyone besides me, i just know that this is what goes through my head when i'm trying to write effectively. whether or not it works is up for debate - i'm still in uni and i'm still trying to explore what works for me and what doesn't. but honestly i'm very proud of the progress i've been making and it was really fun to just talk about that for a second, so thank you roman, this was very lovely! have a wonderful day :)

[bbygirl-aemond]

do you have any advice for planning out the story and each chapter? im trying to plan out this fic idea i have but i don’t really know how so i thought i’d ask one of the best ao3 authors i’ve seen

oh bby i'm about to go into SO much detail that i'm sure you didn't ask for but here we go! i've spent countless hours of my life on fic planning, and it usually goes entirely unseen by y'all! i'll try to use parts of my earlier planning for stormbreak as an example so as to avoid spoilers while giving you the ability to see how the plans translate into the finished product. this will also give anyone who's interested a cool behind-the-scenes look at how some of stormbreak's chapters evolved from my earliest notes!

i organize all of my planning in google drive, and i have several distinct stages i go through that increase in detail the further along you go.

at the broadest level, i have two documents that i use for brainstorming. one of them, called "snippets," is miscellaneous little half-thoughts and snippets or late-night ideas. it includes both scenes and characterizations. it's basically little notes and reminders to myself. these snippets can usually be worked into the fic at mostly any point. this document is pretty long; about 50 pages. here are some examples of the types of things i put in this doc, including something that inspired a scene later in chapter 11:

the second brainstorming document is called "scenes." this is basically a list of every single interaction and moment that i want to happen. each line of text will represent one of the povs that will end up in stormbreak, with usually 2-3 povs per chapter. each sentence is super brief, like max 10 words, and i'll usually spit them out without regard to chronology since some scenes can be worked in anywhere.

now beginning to put things together i have the document i call "chronological events." here, the scenes are all put in a specific chronological order. i'll assign chronology to certain scenes that have chronological flexibility. and each scene will be expanded into 3-4 bullet points that get at how this scene will advance the plot (through politics, characters, or relationships). here's an example of what this looked like for the scene that became alicent's pov in chapter 12:

and for the scene that became aemond and daeron's povs later in the same chapter:

the "chronological events" document is what i reference first any time i'm going through the planning process for a new chapter. it reminds me of what i need to accomplish with the chapter.

so now let's say i've looked at this document and want to proceed to the initial outline for the chapter. i write these in documents within a folder called "short chapter outlines," and each document is titled "short chapter X outline," with X just corresponding to the number in the actual fic. this will expand the bullet points from "chronological events" into an a few actual paragraphs, and add in some extra padding that isn't strictly plot-relevant but helps to build out the scenes. this is an example of what this looked like for the scene that became aemond's pov in chapter 2:

you can also see that this doesn't always end up being fully translated into the end product. in this example, i changed the events towards the end when writing the actual chapter because it made more sense to me.

okay now we go onto the last stage of planning before i write the actual chapter: the long outline. just like with the short versions, i keep these documents in a "long chapter outlines" folder and each doc is titled "long chapter X outline." it further expands upon the short outline; i'll put the short outline on the left half of the screen to look at it while i write the long outline on the right half of the screen. this is basically me stream-of-consciousness writing the chapter. the goal is to get the entire scene hammered out, pretty much paragraph by paragraph. if there are any particular descriptions, lines of dialogue, or even brief moments that i get stuck on, i write them in shorthand and don't worry about making them pretty. here's an example of this, from the scene that became aemond's pov at the start of chapter 6:

you can see that i expanded on most of these paragraphs and polished the sentences between this and the final chapter. but also that the level of detail here is really high.

lastly, we have the actual chapter, which i write based off of this long outline. i put the long outline on the left side and the chapter itself on the right side of my screen so i can see both at once. i write all of my chapters in microsoft word because that's the format i've written stories in since i was a child and it's where my creativity works best for whatever weird reason. the chapter always stays very true to the long outline, but as you'll see if you compare the long outline above to the actual chapter 6 i do add in a bunch of extra detail. the long outline is usually between 4,000 and 5,000 words and 10-15 pages, while my chapters are pretty much upwards of 9,000 words and 20+ pages. so it about doubles in length at this step.

i do most of my editing (switching certain lines and paragraphs around) as i write this first full draft of the chapter. so when i'm proofreading, i'm only ever checking for errors and seeing if i want to replace any words or phrases with a better idea. this last step usually doesn't take me more than a hour.

from there on, you guys are familiar with the end result! as a note, the "chronological events" and "short chapter outlines" are all fully completed for this story! i prefer to finish this level of planning before even beginning to seriously write. it helps me to lay the foundation for my plot twists from the very beginning of the fic!

[petruchio]

hope this isn't a weird and irrelevant reply to your personal post but honestly i really get what you mean. tbh i've been there too. i get how being in a place where you're confident in some aspects of yourself and doing enviable (?) things can be pretty isolating, especially if you're (perceived as) a woman, you feel like you're good at [insert some skills that matter to you], and you generally like the way you look. it can feel like you lack empathy because you don't share some of the insecurities that people around you experience and bond over (though you may be struggling with something different that they don't get), it can feel like you can't tell if you're a good friend or not because others talk about you in terms of what you've accomplished or what you have rather than who you are as a person, it can feel like your positive emotions aren't real because they're atypical and viewed as "unrelatable" idk. i feel like loving yourself and believing in your abilities is a net good but not a substitute for being around people who actually relate to your experiences. for me it's essentially feeling likable but not understandable (or understood), and ime it's something that isn't "solved" by having a lot of friends. it makes sense if you feel like that's not enough. not sure if any of this is actually similar to what you're going through, but i hope you get the chance to be around people who Get It, and i hope you feel less alone soon. you seem like a genuinely kind person on top of being great at writing/analysis -- i love the way you write about the things you're excited about. wishing you all the best <3

it's not weird or irrelevant AT ALL! it honestly always does make me feel better when i come on here and speak about something i'm struggling with and other people say, hey, yeah, me too. especially when the thing i'm complaining about is feeling alone, it's comforting to know that other people feel the same way. like, we're all lonely together, which makes us less alone in our loneliness.

and yeah i think you're right -- confidence is one of those weird things where the more you work on it, the more difficult it can become to relate to other people. people are always telling me i'm so confident and asking my advice on things and i'm always like... idk how to tell you to just stop caring what people are thinking. i mean, obviously i do care what people think of me, but maybe the problem is that because i'm my own worst critic, i can't imagine anyone hating me more than i already hate myself, which paradoxically means that i assume everyone loves me? or maybe it's because i can't imagine anyone genuinely giving a shit about what i do, so it's easy to just do whatever i want. because it's not that i don't care what people think, but just that i pretty much assume they aren't thinking about me, so why would i bother trying to impress them? (like some of my friends will describe in detail the logic behind their instagram story posts. and i'm just like... do you really think other people are noticing this? do you really think people care that much what you, some random person, is posting? it's kind of crazy to spend so much time thinking about yourself through the lens other people. just post if you think it's funny, or don't. nobody is actually thinking that much about you.)

but to your point, i feel like that is kind of where a lot of the loneliness comes from. because people describe certain insecurities or thought patterns that they have, and i'm just like yeah i truly cannot relate to that, or yeah, i would never do that. and when i do express things i'm struggling with, people act so shocked and never offer any kind of support because they're like "but your life is so perfect!" (which is INSANE! nobody has a perfect life! and i know it sounds like the most obnoxious problem ever, like oh my life is so great that nobody believes me when i say i'm still inexplicably sad, but it is a really isolating and lonely existence!!) and then i guess it kind of becomes a cycle where people say or do certain things, i don't relate to them at all, and then i wonder why i'm still struggling so much even though i'm honestly doing fine, and then i feel guilty for even struggling or feeling down because i don't really know what else i can do to get better, since again, i'm objectively doing fine.

i get what you mean about feeling likable but not understandable. recently i was on a second or third date with someone, and i had this weird out of body experience where it was like, i could see myself doing everything right -- i could see that he was totally into me and that i was saying all the right things and laughing at the right times and making the right jokes, but i didn't feel like a person? i knew i could make him like me, and that it wouldn't even be that hard, but i knew he would never actually know me, not even if we kept dating for years. he would always have just "liked" me, like you said. it was a really weird and uncomfortable feeling. i came home and wrote in my journal "sometimes i feel like i'm so good at pretending to be a person that i don't feel like i'm actually a person at all"

SORRY for these long rambling answers. i guess i'm feeling some type of way about my inability to function normally lately. being 24 is just weird i guess. it's uncomfortable and awkward and frustrating, and so much of it feels like this sense of cognitive dissonance between being really good at acting like an adult but still feeling like you just want to scream and cry and throw things like a toddler but you know you can't. i guess someday it will all make sense. or maybe it won't. but i'll keep writing about it either way <333

[thatbanditqueen]

i’m obsessed w all ur fics but i gotta ask…

are u planning on midge and ep making up some way in the next chapter or are u thinking ab dragging it out? (also wanted to let u know i reread the only sure thing probably once a week lmaooo)

So I'm writing chapter 8 right now and...... they are going to be colliding into each other at the end. Followed by three very very very smutty chapters. This and the last chapter where they are not together have been the HARDEST for me to write because I have the smut headcanons for the next chapters rebounding around in my mind grapes and I just want to get there already and I want the build up to be good but I have discovered this about myself as a writer. I'm not great at slow burn or storylines that don't lead to somewhat immediate smut..... lol.... maybe I'm off, but my favorite chapters of Only Sure Thing are 2 through 6..... I did like writing the scene in 7 where Elvis walks in on Midge writing fake fan letters for the Colonel.... but some of that chapter felt flat trying to accomplish more exposition and where i see them going... idk i am an aggressively hard on myself person, but i guess I think my favorite thing to write is pre-smut verbal foreplay which is hard to do if characters are broken up... so, this was a really long way to answer your question. The short answer is yes, and I'm sorry because I'm still learning how to write stories but I see ch 9 and 10 being.... um.... fun....

Once a week? My love.... im so fucking honored to hear you say that because I am really fond of these characters and I reread it everytime I write a new chapter, but I also want to rewrite it, especially some of the clunky paragraphs early on where I feel like I was over explaining Elvis' bio.... I might one day....

This is something I'm struggling with so I'm curious to know what you think... I don't want them to make up totally until March 1961 bc Elvis is going to convince Midge to go to Hawaii with him and he's leaving like the day after they reunite. But I also don't think it's realistic that he wouldn't try to see her every chance he can and try to wear her resolve down... I'm having him bombard her with telegrams and phone calls, and sort of explaining how he's off filming two movies and doing benefits and events in Nashville and Memphis as the reason he doesn't see her for six months... but I feel like I need to write ONE "look let me prove I can be just friends" scene from Midge's pov, where E shows up at her place unexpectedly because he's super impulsive and hyperfixated..... and he wants to use any excuse to get her alone and bring her back to his house ... uh... ok apparently this post became part of my writing process...

Thanks for reading and supporting my own hyperfixation. Im always down to chat about them. I really hope the fan community doesn't dissolve bf I finish these stories....I know I'm moving at a snail's pace..

xoxo

norAHHHH

The Only Sure Thing forthcoming in the next few days Ch 8 vibes...

[thedomesticanthropologist]

Hey Anthie, this question is kind of weird/complicated but I'll try my best to ask. It has to do with recovering from your past habits but I think it could also relate to general stress and handling difficult emotions and experiences (which would include addiction of course but sometimes like... just life too, I guess?)

Anyway, I wanted to hear how fiction helped you or currently helps you? For example I've seen people say that writing "helps" them but when I'm struggling I don't inspired to write, I feel terribly drained, and I'm also a perfectionist. I find it hard to relate to people who transform their pain into art. And I don't have any close friends in the same fandoms like I did when I was a teen so I don't have that sense of community where people encourage me to work on writing and I encourage them to work on their art/writing/etc.

I'm also not sure if it's good to entertain myself even though that might sound weird? Like I'll read, because... it's a thing I can do. And yeah, I enjoy it and have them. But I don't know if it's really aiding in "fixing" myself, and sometimes when I'm reading something, I start worrying that I'm wasting my time somehow? (I made reading more one of my goals for this year, because I went for literal years without reading for enjoyment, and thought my adult ADHD was going to make it impossible for me to ever read again, but now that I'm actually doing it, I don't know how much of an accomplishment it actually is)

Just wanted to hear if any of this ever felt relatable to you, and how you overcame it if so? Thank you and hope you continue to do great with everything, I wish you the best!

This took me a while to get to! thank you for your patience. I tried to narrow your questions down a bit so I hope this is around and about what you were wanting. Under the cut cause its long

How does fiction help with recovering from past habits, handling stress, and difficult emotions and experiences?

Fiction is a way to express yourself without making it about you specifically. You can create situations and put characters through The Horrors, or The Softness, and many writers find catharsis in the act. It can also help your brain process things, and be an outlet for all the feelings and thoughts inside. For me personally, I use fiction to explore thoughts, feelings, ideas, as well as to project or express parts of myself- Im also attracted to writing about things and people I DONT relate to, as a way of learning about them, exploring them, etc. Writing an addict as an addict can be a neat way to look at my issues through a new set of eyes, even if the addict character isn't anything like me, doesn't act the same or process the same, etc.

Can engaging in creative activities like writing be helpful, even if it doesn't feel inspiring during tough times?

Science has proven that writing down your thoughts helps your brain process them, just simply the act of translating from mind to page has benefits. Having it make sense is not as important as just simply... getting it out. Entertaining YOURSELF should always be the first priority in creating art and writing, because if we do it for others, then we are setting ourselves up for disappointment

Is it okay to entertain oneself with activities like reading during difficult times, even if it feels like it might be wasting time?

Doing things for yourself is always okay. It is never a waste of time to take care of yourself. Some people say things like "you don't always have to be productive in order to have your activities be valid" but Id go so far as to say that engaging in reading, writing, drawing, and other "self-indulgent" experiences IS being productive. its being productive for YOU. You arent something that needs to be fixed, you are someone that needs to be accepted. Recovering from self shame starts with being willing to look at yourself not as a problem, but as a person. And the things that make you feel good, regardless of whose watching or who OUTSIDE yourself benefits are worthy persuits

How can one overcome feelings of isolation and lack of community when engaging in creative pursuits?

So I kind of segued into this a little, and I just want to expand a bit. I looked this up and its pretty close to what I wanted to say so Ill share

"Focusing on your own fulfillment and growth in your creative pursuits can be empowering. Prioritize your passion and intrinsic motivation rather than seeking external validation or connection. Set meaningful goals, establish a regular routine, and celebrate your progress along the way. Embrace your creativity as a form of self-expression and personal fulfillment, nurturing your artistic voice and finding joy in the process."

This may be like, hey! I said I wanted community! but honestly, seeking out community and connection can *scare us away from trying* sometimes. Theres all these rules we put on ourselves about not being good enough, or not having friends who have the same interests, not being noticed or validated when we display our work, not having people to talk about. All of that is absolutely valid but it really gets in the way of the creative process and who we are really doing it for (us)

Community tends to appear when you start to share. Considering it a bonus instead of the focus is just a shift in perspective rather than a shift in action. Finding online communities that are related to the work you are producing and sharing what you have is great! starting conversations and new connections is great! but seeking external validation means that you can get absolutely destroyed if you share something you're proud of and no one really notices it. Its so much better to enjoy what you've created, and just put it out there with the thought that if its noticed great! but the best thing was that it was something you enjoyed making.

[essektheylyss]

im going a little crazy but huuuuuuge respect gained for you (and all writers, really) im taking a short story class and im fighting for my life out here. deadlines today so it probably won’t matter that much but how do you not despise what youre writing while writing. drawing’s like ok yea ok this is fine but writing. oh my god. :(

Hello! Deadlines are the worst, so sending some solidarity. (Also huge respect for you as an artist! I tend to feel the opposite—I can usually find some reason to keep a piece of writing but the number of times I want to kick a drawing to the curb entirely is HIGH.)

This is a really hard hurdle to get past though, and I don't think there's really a point where any writer always clears it. I recall, if I remember correctly, a pretty prolific writer (possibly Neil Gaiman but don't quote me on that) telling a story about how they had gotten like 60% done on a draft, called up their editor, and went, "This is crap, I'm giving up and moving onto something else, or better yet I'm never writing again," and the editor with utter chill went, "Oh, you're at that point in the writing process. It's fine, keep going." And the writer was gobsmacked to discover this had happened frequently enough that the editor recognized it.

In any case, I do actually have one trick for this, which helps me a lot! This got long and possibly overly extrapolated, so I'm putting it under a cut:

A lot of writing advice focuses on the timeless but, imo, useless mantra of, "Write the bad first draft because you can't edit a blank page." This is useless because it does nothing to tell you how to live with the shit draft, which is hard and discouraging for continuing with the draft, and also, if you're taking one writing course among many courses, you don't have time to labor over a piece in editing for months. Plus, especially with shorter pieces, I don't find laborious editing useful, especially if you're a perfectionist or worried about whether it's good. (Nothing kills my productivity like long-term editing; hence my current suffering, but sometimes it can't be helped.)

HOWEVER, my trick is this: do not focus on quality at all. "Good" is so subjective, and you can drive yourself crazy trying to achieve it. This is of course easier said than done, but what is easier is replacing it with something. I approach everything (whole pieces, individual scenes, bits of dialogue that I want to burn with fire) by asking myself what I am setting out to accomplish with that bit of writing, and then I evaluate or write it by deciding how that could be accomplished.

This could just be what your assignment is (though I find that a bit broad), or what theme or message you want to convey by the end (though I find that getting this specific is kind of stifling and often a bit too nebulous for me, which negates the point of the exercise). What I've found most helpful especially in writing short stories is to decide what emotion I want a piece to make people feel. That way, if I feel like it's crap partway through, I have a really specific way to evaluate it when I read it back; I can go look at other books or stories that make me feel the way I'm trying to make other people feel; and it's a much easier target for both large and small edits than, "Is it good?"

This also really helps my perfectionism, because it doesn't require it to be the best possible way to accomplish the goal—it just has to accomplish the goal itself. There's a lot less qualitative value being placed on it. Some of my writing that other people have liked the most have been things I thought weren't great, but I read it back and decided it accomplished what I wanted it to do regardless of my feelings about its quality, so I posted or submitted it, and it got the reaction I wanted it to.

And being able to hit those targets consistently is definitely a product of years of practice—which brings me to the one other goal that I find useless: having specific publication or posting goals. I spent basically all of my teenage/college years going, "This is Not Good but it's just practice." (My screenwriting professor did think I was crazy for writing so much as practice when I couldn't use the products as samples for various reasons, but good god am I a better writer for it.) I have written short stories for specific themed anthology calls and the worst thing I can do when I'm writing those is to put my goal down as getting accepted to the anthology, because I do the same thing that you're describing and freeze up while I'm writing it.

And your goal might not be a specific emotion—if you like writing to theme or message, do that! If all of that's too limiting to your creativity, focus on the point of the assignment and write to that! And if you don't know what goal to set at all on projects you're doing for practice, you can think of a piece of writing that makes you feel or think something that you thought was great, and evaluate it for why it achieved that, then try to hit that benchmark. Kind of the writing equivalent of artists practicing a specific artist's style while developing their own. (Needless to say, but since I'm saying this publicly, don't try to copy style too closely, and definitely don't plagiarize, both because it's shitty and also because your teacher's plagiarism checker is likely to catch it even if the teacher doesn't.)

Also, obligatory "your mileage may vary"—I am sure this will not work for all writers, and plenty of pantsers will be scandalized by the suggestion of thinking about an end goal before starting, but I really like having the benchmark and find focusing on that the most useful thing I can do when I'm stuck or discouraged, and find that it genuinely improves my writing because it means it's more cohesive in the end.

[tecchous-thicc-buttocks]

what do you like doing in your free time?

why is your name clenched buttocks (I wanna know the reason, pls its so funny lol)

what are things you're good at? (own it babe) (and i don't mean 'babe' in a weird way - just gotta clear that lol)

do you have a best friend?

do you write OG stories and/or fanfics?

one thing you hate about yourself

one thing you love about yourself

do you want a pet? if so, what pet and why

(pls at this rate, its sounding like an interview, so sorry 😂 i'm just...i have a lot of time in my hands and i decided to do this for no particular reason)

fave type of music?

what made you like bsd? and did you always like it? (cause for me, i didnt like it too much at first but it grew on me the second time around)

have you read the bsd light novels and what's your fave light novel if yes?

any pet peeves?

what's your 'ideal' partner (do you have a type like Kunikida or are you fine with anything as long as you're having fun)

Would you rather be single and rich or taken and with a normal salary?

are you happy with where you work/study?

what's your dream career?

what's the app you use the most?

would you rather draw or write?

*** (P.S just pick the ones you want to answer) **

i think im going to look like a weirdo asking so much questions but whatever. at least we dont know each other HAHA i hope you have a good day. <3 and also i love your analyses. just keep posting what you like. i find some of your posts funny lol

good day.

(# you asked and i delivered) (# just me looking for an excuse to use this line) (# cause you said you wanted more questions in your other post TT) (# also ik this isn't a real tag but i wanna be ✨creative) (# fan behavior? idk anymore lmao) okay bye mwa <3

KHJDKJKSAJDGKJSFKG I LOVE THIS I LOVE YOU I WILL BEGIN ANSWERING NOW

i have no free time. I either overwork myself or sleep. however, assuming that i've got a sliver of time to do something, I swap from one obsession to the next <3 rn it's going for insanely long bike rides and turn down every road I feel like until I'm lost,, and going to the gym like an absolute maniac bc i want my arms to be the size of a regular adult's legs

my username is what i desire in life. it is was I strive to be worthy of. it is beauty and life itself, it is the culmination of the universe's most wonderous accomplishments all squished into two raging enormous, gargantuan muscular earth shattering sea trembling ass cheeks 😩😩 (BUT in all seriousness I chose this bc I felt like having tecchousthiccthighs wasn't quite as pleasant??? eheheh buttocks is a funny word)

MY TALENT IS SAYING ANYTHING THAT CROSSES MY MIND TO STRANGERS i've been on this spree lately where I just straight up call anyone pretty when I run into them and HOLY MOLY PPL ARE SO CUTE ABT IT this is your sign to compliment someone today ✨✨ but nah baby i'm good at everything it's a curse ngl (U CAN CALL ME WTV HUN IT'S OK KJKDJFKJS UR SO ADORABLE WHAT)

no best friend bc i can't do commitment and bully friends that get too close to me 😍😍 BUT i'm gonna tag @bellyjellyfish for being my one and only and somehow not hating me thru my unironic "uwu" phase <33

I wrote a 700 page story when I was 12 and it remains unfinished bc I kept rambling and there was no plot 🕴️I love writing but abandon a whole lot of works bc I dream up the rest of the plot and go "oh well why write it now i've been there done that" I DO WRITE FANFICS 👁️👁️ I have a wp account where i wrote a bunch of awful stories and it still stands to this day! (no i will not disclose it don't even try me grr)

I hate how sexy I am 😭😭😭😩😩😩🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵

I love how sexy I am 😳😳😳😳🥶🥶🥶🥶😜😜😜😜

I WANT A TARANTULA I WANT A TARANTULA I WAS A CHILEAN RED KNEE TARANTULA AND I WANT ONE SO BADLY OMFG I've always liked spiders but the ppl I live with would absolutely kick me out if I got one??? once i live on my own i'm def buying two cages so that whenever I have guests, I just put out the empty cage, hide the real one, and be like "oh no what happened to billy my tarantula, he escaped again :(" just to wreak havoc

(HAHA NO IT'S OK I USUALLY DO THIS TO OTHER PPL SO I APPRECIATE U SM LOL SLIDE INTO MY DMS BBG)

fav type of music is classical bc i'm edgy and not like other girls 🤩🤩🤩 something about la campanella just hit so hard when I was like 10 that I have taken it and ran, but I do listen to rnb a lot, never in just one language tho bc sometimes english sucks my d

I liked bsd as soon as I saw ranpo's silhouette in the first episode, I was like "him. I want him 🏃‍♀️" but it was solidified in my head as soon as I saw natsume bc 1) he's hot AF IT'S NOT FAIR I WANT HIM 2) I had been reading his irl works and fell in love, so I started exploring other bsd authors and it introduced me to gogol (i'm so in love with his writing style it's not ok) soooo yeah :)) I started reading bc someone (you know who you are) liked chuuya and I haven't looked back since, tbh it's one of my favs just bc of the characters and their depth

I've read all the light novels I could get my hands on, and I have to say stormbringer FOR THE ONLY, SOLE REASON THAT I AM IN ABSOLUTE LOVE WITH ADAM

pet peeve hmmmm idk??? i'm chill with everything except pickles I hate those mfs, but if I had to chose smth it would be when someone shoves a ship down my throat (it's me i'm bitches go stan satosugu rn)

no ideal partner! I'm aro fyi, but also I feel like I'd be chill with just abt anything?? if u match my energy, we can be partners in chaos and i'll feel understood, and if you don't, I get to learn abt a different kind of lifestyle and get to have someone sane to hold me down (or to corrupt), so either way it's a win. I find culture to be incredibly attractive, speak a language I don't or tell me about a tradition of yours with a wholesome smile and I'd move mountains for you 💖💖 teach me abt something that you're emotionally invested in and an expert, and I'm literally yours <3

haha i don't ever wanna be in a relationship so i'll take being rich,, but honestly it ain't about the money, i'd want to have a normal salary and be taken, but it just ain't my vibe ?? dunno how to explain erm-

dream career is racecar driver YOU TRAVEL ACROSS THE WORLD TO ICONIC DESTINATIONS YOU GET PAID INSANE MONEY AND YOU GO VROOM VROOM VERY FAST WHILE CONSTANTLY ALMOST DYING WHAT ELSE DO I NEED IN LIFE????

app i use most is my local library app bc i'm constantly trying to renew my books that are incredibly close to being overdue 🫡 but nahh i don't use my phone that often it still irks me i'm actually a 60 year old gilf who hates technology and complains abt kids these days

I CAN'T DRAW BUT I ALSO CAN'T WRITE YOU'VE GOT ME AT A DEADLOCK BRO??? if it's which I would rather be GOOD at, i'd say drawing bc imagine thinking abt something and just printing it out on paper??? yall fr got some magical talent omg

WHAT IF WE DO KNOW EACH OTHER THO??? WHAT IF WE'RE ACTUALLY NEIGHBORS??? CHILDHOOD FRIENDS??? YOU NEVER KNOW AND YOU PROBABLY NEVER WILL MUAHAHAHAHA i'm gonna stop now but ty for all your questions and have a wonderful day, darling <33

[cabbojage]

heyy, happy STS!! if your characters had bucket lists, what would be on them? if they were to die unexpectedly, what would they regret not doing the most?

HI IM SO SORRY THIS ASK IS FROM AUG 26 DSAJDladl

but yes! bucket lists!!! i am just gonna write whatever comes 2 mind. fr. istg every time i look at my inbox i'm like "i HAVE to give this ask justice" and then panic and don't write anything bc i am afraid of giving it justice (me w my wip too lmao) but ok. i will answer without thinking abt that!!!!

lola:

punch cuckoo IN THE FACE!

build something that no one has ever built before. because i can.

burn something. like a church. yes. burn a church.

go on an airship! and then learn how airships work!! i'd like to visit the other cities.

be super rich and then give all my time to peri and mami as the ultimate fuck you to the cardinals. then clock out and die lmao

cuckoo:

take over the world (obviously)

become famous and feared by all! already somewhat accomplished, but you know. even MORE famous and feared

kiss more girls

have sex with more girls

figure out a way to combine the Clockmaker's remnants of magic with biological life to create a being of mass destruction that responds to my every command and will eliminate every last Cardinal in the city

do crime

rowan:

go home???

apologize to the people i couldn't save

leave the city and go to one of the rural islands. i'd like to try milking a cow.

what is a fish? i want to meet a fish. i want to meet an ocean. how could there be bodies of water that go on forever?

go to a library (i've never been)

be cool and amazing and irresistible

alaric:

write a novel under a pseudonym

mysteriously disappear under the cover of darkness and open a coffee shop in the afterhills of klairva where no one knows my name

grant belle an unimaginable amount of time. 1 million years.

pass the trials. i need to pass the trials. i need to pass the trials. i need to

learn how to play the saxophone so i can do those sick solos

belle:

be famous and super rich!!!

buy an automaton for myself. the ones that look like big fluffy cats

maybe one day i could return to snakesborough

but when i get out of this shithole i'm gonna ruin the lives of everyone who wronged me. those fuckers in the effervescence trade? that fucking cuckoo girl? RUINED

after that... be the idol i always wished for when i was young

play a good old game of basketball with some pals. just like the old days. (if i can find anyone tolerable enough to play with... maybe alaric? even though he's scrawny?)

ok i think i got too incharacter. BUT here it isYIPPEE!! honestly i think they would all regret the entire list if they suddenly died, so there's that B) okay i really need to work onmywip DLKSLKAdlkadl(*gets smote byt the writing gods*)

[marscia]

how do you make time to read and write instead of go on your phone/computer? it's hard for anybody but im really impressed that you've nailed it down into your routine, i'm assuming it's just doing it often enough that it becomes a habit? do you have any tips? what does your routine look like? 💌

hello, thank you! I get what you mean.. although reading is part of my regular routine, some days I also find myself in a slump and end up killing time on my phone/computer instead. and you’re right! like any other habit, you just have to read as often as you can until it becomes one. anyway, there’s nothing particularly special about my routine heh but here are a few things I do that might help you out

take a book with you wherever you go. you’ll be surprised at how much reading you can actually squeeze in on your morning/afternoon commute (commit to reading instead of going on your phone, unless you got motion sickness of course), waiting in line at the grocery store, or killing time between classes/meetings. there’s always an opportunity to read so take a book or two with you at all times!

read for 30 minutes to an hour per day. 2-3 hours does it for me but it depends on how long you can retain your attention span. this one in particular requires discipline so it might take a while if reading isn’t already in your daily routine. it’s worth it though! as for me I get more reading done at night

prioritize reading. and I mean only if you seriously want to nail it down into your routine. instead of going on your phone to watch netflix or scroll through social media during lunch time, you can read your book. small breaks like that are a good opportunity to get some reading done. personally I spend more of my time reading than watching films/shows

cleanse your palate in between books!! after you’ve finished reading, for example, a literary fiction novel, pick a fast-paced mystery/thriller next if you’re into that. I know some friends who read purely romance novels and nothing else (I have nothing against that genre it’s just not my thing) and then complain about being in a slump, when all they do is read the same recycled plot over and over again

plan and manage your time well. of course I also have uni and work to worry about but I make it a point to accomplish my tasks and shut down my laptop at 5 pm, 7 pm at the latest. but that also means I always have to be at my desk at 8 or 9 am *sharp* so that I’m not pressed for time by the end of the day. that way I’m able to allot the rest of my evening to reading without feeling guilty

I hope these help! happy reading <3

edit: I didn't notice you were also asking about how I make time for writing ahh sorry! but yeah I basically just try to write every night before bed, usually takes me an hour. some days when I'm in a writing slump I don't really force it, but often I'm able to write a poem or two each night