#sometimes my writing warmups end with a scene like this

[the-broken-pen]

“I don’t love you. How could I? You ruined me. You took every shining part of me and ground it to dust beneath your palms, showing me the grit like it was a kind of adoration. So, no, I cannot love you.” She went to leave, and Clara stopped her, a hand on her arm.

“Wait.”

She stopped, chest aching. “Why.”

“I didn’t mean to.”

It wasn’t an apology, but it wasn’t quite the excuse Clara was hoping it would be either.

“But you did it anyways.”

“Sophie, please.”

“Clara, I’m not doing this with you anymore. I can’t.”

Clara let out something between a sob and a laugh, hand dropping from her arm.

“I love you,” Clara’s voice cracked, and Sophie knew it was a prompt. Say it back, Clara was urging. Please, Sophie, say it back, take me back, don’t leave me.

Sophie didn’t cry. She didn’t.

“I told you that you destroyed the best parts of me, didn’t I?” she said softly. Clara nodded, hesitantly, like she could see where this ended and didn’t like the destination.

Sophie tipped her head up, turning away until she could no longer see Clara at all. Just feel her, at her back.

She was not crying.

Her cheeks were wet.

“Well,” she said, and her voice was wet and it broke and she tried to pull the aching shards of agony back into place around her heart like emotional barbed wire. “You didn’t get the ending you wanted, did you. No fairytales, right Clara? No heroic endings, no sunset credits. No Pinterest boards or motivational quotes, because we aren’t that kind of love. You said that, remember?”

“Sophie.”

“You ruined me,” she said, and this time, it wasn’t an accusation. Just a statement.

“Sophie.”

“When you destroyed me, when you destroyed all of those wonderful parts, those fairytales and quotes and sunsets, what did you think you were taking from me?”

Sophie didn’t let her answer, turning to face her.

“It doesn’t matter,” she answered for Clara. Clara grimaced. “Because when you destroyed those best parts of me, you destroyed the only part of me that knew how to love you.”

Clara looked like Sophie had shot her.

Sophie wanted to laugh. She cried instead.

“Don’t you see,” she said wetly. “You ruined me, but you ruined me for yourself, too. Killed me so no one else could have me, but didn’t expect to lose me in the process, did you.”

Clara took a step forward, and she stepped back.

“No takebacks,” she warned. “No fairytale endings. No kissing in the rain. We aren’t that love, are we, Clara,” she spat, and it was venomous. Clara looked sick.

“I’m sorry,” Clara whispered, and maybe, just maybe, Sophie thought she might mean it this time.

“Regret is beneath you,” Sophie said in place of forgiveness, and she opened the door. “Next time, don’t destroy the only part of someone that knows how to love you. Leave that bit as you destroy the rest. But whoever you destroy next time won’t be me.”

Clara didn’t stop her when she slammed the door behind her.

Sophie never said her name again.

[vendetta-if]

oh my~ just a simple and cliche question, how would the RO's react to a super charismatic MC ruthlessly flirting with someone in a bar while sitting next to them, unaware (or even better if they're doing it intentionally to make them jealous) EVEN better if they're still in the crushing / or full on relationship stage (your wish ;)) and have conflicting feelings about this whole thing. may or may end up in a make out session later (you can definitely finish it off at the 'and then they ended up on the bed' scene knowing that you're not comfortable with stuff like these :)) *imagines Luka just facepalming himself over the whole casanova MC ordeal while Jackal just guffaws unapologetically as the two of them watch them from afar in a not-so-secret car* *cackles along with Jackal* i have a feeling we can be besties about several 'things"...

I’ll assume that MC and the ROs are already in a relationship and that MC is doing this flirting in the spirit of lighthearted teasing for the ROs 😆 Oh, and also, the setting is in some exclusive or high-class lounge or something 😂

And don’t worry, I’m not that bothered with spicy stuff, and I’m already planning to start writing this month’s explicit spicy side story anyway, so maybe this will be a good warmup 😳

I’ll put the answers under the cut for suggestive content. Also the answers ended up being way longer than I first expected.

Ash

Ash has been gritting their teeth ever since you started striking a not-so-innocent conversation with the person beside you. Their jaws are sore from clenching them so hard and they have to take a deep swig of the drink in their hand to loosen the pressure.

They slam the bottle hard onto the counter as the drink burns down their throat, but they barely even notice, much less care, about it. They hear the person giggles bashfully at something you said to them.

Ash’s head snaps in the poor person’s direction and they glare down at them, lips pulled up slightly in half-sneer and half-snarl. The person’s smile falls for a second before returning back on their pretty face, but a lot strained.

You can’t help but smirk wider as you feel waves of heat coming off from behind you. You may not be able to see Ash’s expression, but you’ve spent almost your entire life with them and it’s really easy to picture their face right now.

You gotta admit that the person before you is brave enough to still even be standing here for ten minutes now. Most would’ve ran away in the first five minutes. You wonder how long until Ash decides that they’ve had enough.

Well, it seems you won’t have to wonder for long because Ash steps in between you and the person, staring them down for a few seconds before taking your hand in theirs and drag you away to somewhere more private and secluded.

Despite their prickly and abrasive demeanour, they are actually pretty soft and gentle and eager to please you in the bedroom most of the time. But sometimes… there are things that can trigger their more dominant side. And one of those is to act like a brat; it never fails to fire them up, no pun intended, of course.

Pinning you to the wall, they clash their mouth against yours hungrily and you can feel the rising heat of their body. The passionate make-out session lasts for what feels like forever and without giving you a moment of respite, Ash pulls your head back as their hot mouth trail down your jaws to the tender flesh of your neck and starts sucking hard and biting in several spots. They want everyone to know that you are theirs.

Rin

Rin stares at the mirrored wall in front of them impassively as they see you flirting with the person sitting beside you through the reflection. They hear the person giggle coyly at what you just whispered in their ears and they almost scoff out loud, but they hold it back and roll their eyes instead.

They bet it’s something you’ve said to all of the people you’ve flirted with before. They’re not really bothered though. The two of you have often played this game of testing patience and Rin is a very patient person.

Soon enough, you’re the one who grows bored of your own little game. Leaving the conversation, you turn to face them instead, eyebrow cocked in amusement at Rin’s calm demeanour.

And why would they not be calm? They know that they already win, like always; they don’t even need to use their precognition to foresee that. “What?” They ask you, sending you a nonplussed stare.

“Wanna do something naughty? They have a private VIP room upstairs.” You grin charmingly, leaning back on your elbows against the counter and sipping on your drink.

“No,” they say firmly before leaning close to you, whispering, “You’ve been very naughty tonight.” You feel a shiver runs down your spine and growing heat pooling down there.

That doesn’t seem to escape their notice—not a lot of things do—and they smirk. You feel their hand settling on your thigh, fingers lightly tracing and rubbing. You turn to their direction and step closer.

Their smirk grows sharper as their hand trails upwards, higher and your excitement grows, but then it stops just before it reaches where you want it to be. “Let’s get out of here, please,” you whine quietly.

“Nope. I’m still not done drinking,” Rin says before sipping on their drink again. But they move their hand to your torso area and starts their torturous teasing again; you can’t help but take in a sharp breath.

This is just the beginning of your punishment, of course. Once the two of you get home, they’ll have you begging for sweet release the entire night.

Santana

Santana sighs softly, closing their eyes as they bring their drink to their lips. Savouring the taste, they try to ignore the naughty conversation you’re having with the poor person that’s sitting beside you.

They are aware that you’re doing this to rile them up—undoubtedly for something dirty tonight—and not for anything malicious. Despite your flirtatious disposition, they trust that you would never cheat on them and that their relationship with you is rock solid.

For the next few minutes, they focus on their drink and just relaxing from a week of work. They don’t even realize that you have stopped flirting and turned to face them. They glance at you questioningly.

You pout. “You’re no fun,” you complain softly.

Santana chuckles as they set down their empty glass on the counter. They take a step towards you and pulls you closer to them. Leaning in, they whisper heatedly in your ears, “If you want me to fuck you hard tonight, you should’ve just asked.”

A shiver runs down your spine as you feel their warm breath on your ears, but it is their words that makes you hot all over. They smirk at your reaction before continuing, “I don’t have work tomorrow. So… we’ll be able to go all night long if you want to.” They wink.

You just nod dumbly and they beam as they take your hand in theirs and drag you towards the exit to where your car is parked.

Skylar

Skylar grins sharply as they look at you flirting with the person beside you. They gotta begrudgingly admit that you’re good, and enhanced with your pretty face, they can’t even blame the poor person for falling and being entranced.

They glance around the exclusive lounge; there is not really a shortage of attractive people around here. They’re contemplating on whether to give you a taste of your own medicine by flirting with other people.

But at the end, they decide to intervene and sweep you off your feet instead. They know you’re not really serious with that person and that you’re only teasing them, but still, they can’t help but wanting your attention back on them.

Embracing you from behind, they say, “Have had your fun, yet, baby?” They glance at the person, who’s staring wide-eyes, before grinning wider. “Or maybe this cutie would like to join us tonight?”

They open and then close their mouth, cheeks flushing bright red. You sigh and shake your head exasperatedly, but your lips are pulled up in a smile. “Sorry, will you excuse us?” You smile charmingly at them.

They nod their head before turning around and walk away silently. Immediately, Skylar pulls you in even closer to them until you can feel their body flush against yours.

They nuzzle the nape of your neck and whisper, “You’ve been very naughty tonight, haven’t you?” You shiver in their arms. “If you’re looking for a good time, I’ll gladly show you one right now.”

You nod quietly and they waste no time pulling you towards the stair to the second floor. No one stops you and one of the bouncers even nod at Skylar. They pull you into the first VIP room. It’s luxurious and the far wall is a full panoramic window to the floor below. You guess it’s a one-way window because if it isn’t, then it kinda defeats the purpose of the room.

Skylar wastes no time pinning you face first to the window and begins undressing you. Their hands roam all over as they pepper kisses on your neck. You know that the window is one-way, but seeing all those people milling around clearly while you are barely clothed up here… You won’t lie, it excites you and you know this kind of thing also turns on Skylar.

Luka & Jackal

Luka sighs as he watches his nephew/niece/nibling flits around the bar and dance floor area, flirting and charming yet another person. But still, he can’t help but smile bittersweetly as he’s reminded of his younger years, watching his big brother doing the same thing in parties.

“Damn, your nephew/niece/nibling is smooth as fuck,” Jackal snickers beside him. Luka grunts, leaning forward to reach for his drink on the low but expansive marble table before downing it.

However, Jackal’s snickering dies down quick as a young lady stops in front of them, looking down at Luka with clear lust in her eyes and smiling coyly.

“Hey, handsome. Looking for a fun time tonight?” she says, words slurring against each other.

“No. Please go away,” Luka says gruffly.

This is the third time someone approaches his boyfriend, trying to flirt with him as if he’s not sitting right there beside him. The previous two quickly got the message as he glares at them combined with Luka’s stern rebuff.

But it seems this lady has had too much drink because she still doesn’t get the message. “C’mon… Just one night. No strings attached or anything,” she giggles.

Jackal grits his teeth and snarls behind his face mask. If looks could kill, she would’ve dropped dead way before she could even call his boyfriend ‘handsome’.

Instead, he reaches out to the blood coursing through her veins and grips it tightly under his control. Manipulating her blood, he forces her legs to walk away, her movements are jerky like a puppet, but to outsiders, she looks like another drunk.

“Whoa! What’s happening? I can’t control my legs!” she exclaims, slurring her words. No one pays her any attention.

After she’s far away, Jackal lets go; puppeteering people takes quite a lot of effort, but it’s the only alternative he could think of that doesn’t involve him pouncing on her.

He’s usually not a guy who loves to do PDA, but he has had enough of people approaching his boyfriend for the night. He scoots closer to Luka on the plush sofa before getting on top of his lap.

Luka looks surprised. “Tyoma?” But still, he leans back to give his boyfriend space.

Jackal leans in and pulls down his mask before starting to kiss and nibble on his boyfriend’s neck. He bites down hard enough to break the skin and Luka inhales sharply above him. He sucks a bit on the small trickle of blood before lapping the little wound closed lovingly, satisfied by the quiet moan from his boyfriend.

“Luka, I wanna do it now,” he whines softly against his boyfriend’s throat.

“B—But, we are not at home right now—”

“I don’t care. We can just do it in your car.” It’d be far from the first time the two of them have done it in a car.

Luka sighs. “How about somewhere more comfortable, like the upstairs VIP lounge room. Are you sure you can’t wait until we get home though?”

“Nope. Let’s go up then!” He gets off Luka’s lap and pulls him up on his feet.

[tokkias]

What is your favourite fic of yours you have done and why?

okay that's actually a really hard question because i'm not one of those people who hates everything they write, i actually like a lot of what i write and i have sooooo much of it. i literally have 77 nalu fics rn that's too many

i think about this a lot but the answer literally changes all the time and i cannot settle on just one so i will give you a handful even though i know that's cheating but i don't want to give you a boring answer

i don't want to be your friend (i want to kiss your lips) an early banger. i very specifically remember having vivid thoughts of the scene where gray is like "yo are you okay? this is weird" to lucy. it was the first fic i felt like i really executed the idea exactly how i wanted to. i also hold a lot of fondness for it because i know that a lot of people love the jealous lucy trope but don't like the villainisation of "the other woman" and i'm really happy to be able to give those people an option. it's also one of jodi's favourite fics so i like to go "hehe jodi <3" when i think about it

what you mean to me kind of an underrated banger ngl??? another early idea that i remember having such vivid ideas for but as opposed to the last one, i feel like it ended up turning out different from how i originally envisioned it. sometimes that's a bad thing but i think with this one it turned out better than i could have hoped for. i think it's just a really unique concept that was executed in a fun, silly, fluffy way. i'm really proud of it and i hope more people read it

under your hands (i come undone) i did this as a warmup request for hannah that just got out of control??? i had just finished reading some really good rvb fic by an author i admired at the time (but now realise was entirely up their own ass but c'est la vie i suppose) and i had been really inspired by their portrayal of male vulnerability during sex and i wanted to do something with that. i had asked for requests in the aan server and i can't remember what exactly it was but i remember things just falling into place between the prompt and my need to write a truly vulnerable natsu during smut. this fic has some of my rawest lines ever and i think it's pretty great

ten baby dragons (or less) i have no recollection of what inspired this but i remember thinking to myself "can i write a fic in one sitting?" and then i wrote this. i feel like the "i want ten of these" line was inspired but like a nahdie art from back in the day? i'm certain it wasn't an original line but i just had to yoink it. usually i'm not one for kidfics but with nalu i just feel like it really works for them and i love writing about natsu's internal dialogue and his wants and needs and how they change over time. natsu grows a lot as a person over the course of the series and i love exploring that and i think this fic was a fun, cute execution of that

what it feels like to fall in love september was really the start of when i started feeling just shitty garbage poopoo about my writing and i just felt like i couldn't do it, everything i wrote was bad, felt like i had peaked etc. etc. now looking back i realised what triggered this was actual real trauma i had been through over the past year so i don't blame myself too much but this was the one fic i was like. oh i can still write and i can still write well. it was sort of based on this old "do you believe in soulmates?" ficlet i had written a few months before and i felt like this was the evolved version of that. it also helps that i got a lot of really positive feedback on this one in a time where i was struggling really badly with my worth as a person and a writer so this fic sort of represents a sense of hope for recover for me as i try to grapple with the lingering effects of what happened to me

[seeingteacupsindragons]

I saw your post about line editing and I hope it’s okay for me to sneak in here ☺️ (I’m not sure if this question completely qualifies …)

Do you have any advice for someone who is a serial edit-as-they-go-er? I really struggle not to stop every page or so and go back through it with a fine comb and line edit, and sometimes I think this hinders progress, although others I find it gives me more motivation to continue when I know I’m happier with what I’ve just written.

The problem is, every time I have to break from writing for more than a few hours, I then have to reread when I return, and I just can’t seem to manage a reread without tinkering with things.

I still go back and do a further edit once the full thing is written, of course, but editing as I go is a serious habit of mine and I’d love to be able to try writing a full piece without doing so until the draft is done 🤦🏼‍♀️

Well, I mean, I do edit as I go. Sometimes you need to. Sometimes "that bit right here isn't right, and it's throwing off my ability to get back into the story and write, so I'm going to redo it and it's going to be better and the bumps will even out."

And, sometimes I just realize that whole plot point isn't going anywhere and I just cut it early before getting to involved trying to figure it out. Also helpful.

That said, things like Scrivener and Word's "Pick up where you left off" are helpful for this. Scrivener saves the scene I was working on and opens right back up to it. Word's thing just scrolls me right back down to where I was. So I don't have to scroll/re-read/trying to figure out where I was. I'm just there now, and there's less I'm staring over to start picking at.

But if you don't have a function like that on your word processor, and you still find you're spending more time fussing with word choices than actually moving the story forward, then there's a few things you can try:

Make notes of where you left the scene and what the plan is when you close it. Again, Scrivener makes this easy by attaching a "notes" section to each scene, but you can just put it in a weird font or color where you left off. Therefore, when you open the thing again, you're not trying to figure out what to do or noodling around refamiliarizing yourself with the project and where you were. You have a little summary right there from yourself

Writing warmups. I find a lot of the nitpicking editing at the start of a writing session is because you're easing into the writing session. That's fine and good, and the line-editing is a low-key way to remind yourself you know how words work and get back into the writing mindset. So if you open up a different document and just free write some completely new nonsense or do a little scene practice or writing exercise, then you might be able to stave off the editing. And you get practice doing a weird thing or stretching some writing muscles or end up with a new story idea or scene to use later. You might have to time yourself on these to not get too wrapped up in them

Also why would it not be okay for you to send me an ask? O_o

[sword-dad-fukuzawa]

heyo! :] for the fic writer asks, any combination of [2, 7, 14, 29]?

SPARROWWWWW <3333 THANK U

writer asks

2. Do you read/reread your own fics?

occasionally!! not frequently but sometimes i like seeing how far i've come.

7. How many ideas for fics do you have right now?

i'll be honest, i've got so many fandom projects and comms on my plate that Writing Stories for Myself Only have kind of been on the backburner. the idea machine is not ideating very hard. however i did see an art yesterday that made the rusty-ass wheels start turning very slowly so...one? i dunno. that particularly pairing is very hatred and grief and obsession fueled and can be described as yandere x yandere where both of them are yandere-ing for the same person. harem girls fighting over the emperor. that kind of thing. i've never written it before but i'm turning it over in my head very slowly :)

14. If you could see one of your fics adapted into a visual medium, such as comic or film, which fan fic would you pick?

ALL OF THEM I WANT ALL OF THEM ADAPTED !!!

but to be honest, of my recent fics, probably "the seven bridges of noman's land" just because it's so weird and episodic and silly that i think it'd make a funny companion anime to trigun. nai's awful sojourn through the dimensions meeting all his brother's alternate selves?? in high visual definition? hilarious i think.

29. Share a bit from a fic you’ll never post OR from a scene that was cut from an already posted fic. (If you don’t have either, just share a random fic idea you have that you don’t plan on getting to.)

they're being silly in this one :) this was kinda a warmup exercise i'm ngl.

“Vash! Is breakfast ready?” “Could you give me a minute? God!” Vash shouts back. He wiggles the pan on the range, contemplating the pancake with a tired sigh. “Y’know,” he says to the pancake, “Meryl wouldn’t treat me like this. She can actually cook. I should’ve shacked up with Meryl.” Then Knives walks into the kitchen, and Vash has to admit that while shacking up with Meryl has a certain appeal, she can’t actually beat the vision of his brother in the mornings. He’s wearing one of Vash’s worn sleep shirts, a silly, blue-striped thing with a stretched collar and no pants at all. His hair sticks up on one side, and when the light hits it just right, the strands look almost translucent. Pale with light, pale with sun, like gossamer and spiderwebs and butterfly wings. Vash stares at him for a heartbeat too long.  Knives blinks at him, rubbing his eyes. “Is there something on my face?” “You’re uglier than usual,” Vash informs him. He picks up a spatula and tries to flip the pancake, but just ends up squishing it. The batter runs out of the center and makes an unappealing dribble, and Vash makes an irritated noise through his teeth.  “Lemme see,” says Knives, coming up behind him to peer at the failed pancake.  Vash jabs at it with the spatula. “Look, Knives,” he says dully. “It’s you.”

[late-to-the-fandom]

Writing Questions Tag Game

I was tagged by @mrsmungus … a week ago? I no longer have any concept of time whatsoever. I also have no idea who has done this so I’m tagging a few and if I missed yours I apologize

Tagging: @shipping-through-eternity @mousterian-writes @velvethopewrites @diaryofomellas @unknownogre @frostedlemonwriter @tidesages @kharrisdawndancer

1. What is your absolute all-time favorite idea you've ever had? I loved my non-linear storytelling in Light & Shadows. It was so much fun to write and read and it’s really ruined regular chaptered fics for me now 😅

2. Is there a question you've been asked in the past that really stands out to you and you still think about sometimes? I was asked once on a very old fic how my writing flowed so easily it didn’t even feel like reading. Which is one of my favourite things I’ve been told but the answer is I wish I knew so I could do it all the time.

3. What is your favorite part of being a writer? What parts could you take or leave? The beginning and the end. I love the conception, the outlining, the planning, the seeing the scene in my head, hearing the dialogue unfold - and I love the completed product where I can finally sit down and read what I saw in my head out loud. The middle part where I’m actually choosing word after word gets hairy, especially when my preconceived notion of how a scene should go turns out to be wrong and I’m fighting the characters.

4. What is your greatest motivation to write/create? There is a story I want to read and it doesn’t exist yet so I have to write it.

5. What is the best piece of advice you've ever read or been given as a writer? To not take writing advice from anyone whose writing you don’t personally appreciate. They’re trying to lead you in a direction you don’t want to go anyway.

6. What do you wish you knew when you were first starting out writing? It’s ok to have the same word appear in the same paragraph. Sometimes it just has to be done and it’s ok.

7.What is your favorite story you've written TO COMPLETION? Link it if you'd like and can! This is like asking me to choose my favourite child. I can’t do it. I love all of them. The most popular I’ve ever written is here. The one I’m proudest of just based on how long it took me and how hard it was is here.

8.What is your favorite out-of-the-box quote?Lee Smith said, “a writer is someone who is writing not someone who is publishing,” and I think that tends to be forgotten. Fanfiction is generally considered (even by those who write it) as the warmup to “real” writing and I disagree whole heartedly. I think there are probably on the whole more meaningful and beautiful fanfics then there are original novels because the people who write fanfic are doing it out of love for characters more than wanting to write something they think they can sell (not universally true anymore, but still a general principle)

9. Which of your characters would you say has the most controversial mindset? Why do you say so and how do you personally feel about their ideals? I think both Renathal and the Maw Walker have some controversial principles, which I like about them because I never wanted them to be good/bad coded. Renathal is straight up pro-torture and espouses the benefits of suffering for atonement. The Maw Walker has a jaded opinion on life in general and is willing to kill whoever she’s told without thinking too deeply about it. I don’t agree with either of those things myself but it’s who they are.

10. If you when you first started writing met you now, what would younger you think? I think she would be happy to find out that I came back from a two year hiatus. I hope she would be impressed at the improvement in our prose. I think she would be stunned at the ambitious projects (for us) I’m attempting to take on and worried (even more than I am) that they’re still out of our writing depths.

[practically-an-x-man]

And finally:

Paper, Canvas, Photography, Film, Cricut, Finger Painting, and Creative! :)

And here's number three!! Thank you again, this has been a lot of fun to dive into!

OC/Writing Art Asks

Paper: Who do you feel is your most two-dimensional or underdeveloped OC? Why is this? (including those that are still in development/haven't been written about yet)

So I have actually answered this one here, but the short answer is that I want to write something that incorporates Sean Cassidy, but all I've got for an OC so far is their mutation: the ability to visualize solid matter where there is none, like the inverse of Kitty Pryde's powers. Most of my OCs go through development very quickly, so there's not much that feels two-dimensional to me

Canvas: Do you ever "prep" your fics with outlines or warmups before you start writing, or do you just dive right in?

I don't usually do warmups (unless I'm REALLY hurting for motivation), but I sometimes do a bit of outlining. Usually, I'll outline by chapter, and do the outline of the next chapter right after I finish writing/posting the current one. I also tend to use the top of my document as a dumping ground for character information, ideas for future scenes, and other outline-based things. I think Desert Song actually has the most tangible outline of all my fics right now, since there's a lot of chaos that I need to keep in order.

Photography: What's one moment from any of your fics that you feel is preserved in your memory?

Oh man... how do I choose? For one thing, I'm kind of a walking encyclopedia of my writing. Honestly speaking, you could probably pick any line at random from any of my fics, block out the names, and I'd still be able to tell you which fic you pulled it from and the scene that surrounds it. So in that sense, it's all pretty well-preserved. But that being said, there's a few moments that I just can't get out of my head:

Chapter 42 in Smoke and Mirrors

Chapter 37 in Bolts and Blasters

The second half of Chapter 7 in Desert Song

Chapters 47, 56, 66, and 69 of A Love Once New

Both endings of Secret Worlds

Chapter 15 in Catch and Release

(and yes there are individual moments within these chapters that I'm also referring to, but describing them would take forever. And this isn't even all of them. There are so many more, now that I'm thinking about it, including a lot of moments that I haven't written yet)

Film: Which one of your fics do you think would work best if turned into a movie? Who would direct it?

Hmm... So, I'm going to discount the ones that are physically synced to the source material (a good chunk of Catch and Release falls under No Way Home, Who Waits Forever Anyway? is based on NATM 3, etc.) and say that the most likely candidate is either Desert Song or Nom De Guerre.

6 Underground was supposed to have a sequel anyway, but it got cancelled due to poor reviews. Both of these fics are written based on what this sequel could have been, so they'd translate well as a continuation of the story

They're both very fast-paced and action-packed, and while the stories are/will be somewhat complex, they follow a fairly linear path that would translate well to the big screen.

I feel like my writing style is fairly "cinematic", but most of my other fics are either too complicated to fit into one movie, or simply work better in writing. These two are modeled after 6 Underground itself, and therefore are designed in the same action-movie way

As far as directors, the simplest answer is Michael Bay, since he directed 6 Underground itself. I'm not the biggest Michael Bay fan as a general rule, but I feel like it would be best to maintain the style of the first movie.

Cricut: are there any characters you've had to "cut" from a story? Are there any moments/chapters/stories you've had to "cut" entirely?

Hmm... obviously, I'm not afraid of long stories, so I don't end up cutting a whole lot. If I want a scene or character to be present, either it'll find a place somewhere in the original, or I'll post it on the side (I've done this with Bolts and Blasters as well as A Love Once New).

I did have to cut out one story entirely, sadly. After Wednesday came out, I had an idea for a fic and even got a couple chapters written (but not posted), but then there was some backlash for a few of the actors and even the show itself, and I didn't want to place myself in the middle of that. I was proud of the OC I made, and ended up hybridizing her with a character I made for an AHS fic I have planned.

Finger Painting: share a small snippet from your earliest work (or the earliest that you can get back to). How would you rewrite it today? Either share the rewrite itself or just describe how you'd do it.

Oh boy, alright. My earliest completed fic is called I'll Be There to Catch You, and it could certainly stand a rewrite now that I've improved as a writer... but this isn't the earliest thing I've written. There's actually a super old AHS: Roanoke fic still floating around my AO3, abandoned after like 6 or 7 chapters. I want to delete it and rewrite it, but I don't want to get rid of it until I've started the rewrite. So uh... second-hand embarrassment, here we come!

“So how’d you get into acting?” you muttered, still mostly focused on a piece of stubborn scar wax that refused to stay stuck to his skin. His blue eyes flashed up to yours, and his mouth twitched like he wanted to smile - but he was trying to stay still so you could do the makeup.

“Hmm. I don’t really know.” he let out a short chuckle. “I know that sounds weird. I just got done touring with the Army and figured it would be an interesting job to go into.”

“You were in the Army?” you asked. Your eyes flicked down to his collar, looking for dog tags.

“Yeah. Two tours in Afghanistan. Took some pretty nasty shrapnel to the chest but otherwise I’m alright.” His eyes went distant with the memory.

“Well, lucky you don’t have to take off your shirt until next week.” you joked, trying to bring him back to the present. It worked...but not in the way you hoped. His eyes flashed up to yours, and his cheeks went red.

“I mean...your costume.” you backpedaled, feeling your own face go hot, “You have a different costume next week and it shows more of your chest so-” You cut yourself off, realizing you were babbling. You ran a hand through your hair, looking utterly mortified.

“Mind if I dig myself into an even deeper hole?” you muttered sarcastically, busying yourself with a bruise wheel. You were sure that your face was still beet red, probably your ears too.

You kept working, keeping your idiot mouth clamped shut as you finished up with the scars on his arms and face. You weren’t even paying attention to the music anymore, just trying to get through the makeup without any more major embarrassments. Of course you’d screw things up with the hottest guy on set (sorry Rory) after barely having a single conversation with him.

And as for the rewrite: say goodbye to second-person (I've made it work before, but not for this), dress up those descriptions, and just make it less cut-and-dry. Let's see what I can throw together.

"So," Wren asked, a desperate attempt to fill the silence with anything more than the dull drone of the radio, "How'd you get into acting?"

"Ah, I dunno. Just got lucky, I guess," he replied, and she caught a flash of crystalline blue as his eyes met her own. Dylan kept himself close to frozen, his lips hardly twitching even as he spoke. It reminded her, again, of how terribly close they were. Wren fiddled a bit more ardently with her airbrush, returning her focus to what was necessary. Filming was due to start in just a few minutes, this was no time to get distracted by his eyes. No matter how brilliantly blue they happened to be.

"Lucky?"

"Oh, sure." Dylan replied, stifling a low shrug as he once again fought to keep still, "Got out of the Army, no degree, wasn't quite sure what I wanted to do with my life. But Hollywood's got no shortage of action heroes, I suppose. Or... colonial settlers."

"Well, you do rock the colonial settler look," Wren joked, biting down a smile of her own. She realized a moment too late that her eyes had left her airbrush and were now scanning his chest, searching for the telltale glint of dog tags. "And you were in the Army?"

"Two tours in Afghanistan," he said, a barely-perceptible hint of darkness slipping into his voice. He shrugged it off awfully quickly. It must have been common practice for him. "Ate some shrapnel on my second trip over, discharged on injury."

Wren didn't quite enjoy the shadows behind the words. And she didn't enjoy the way his hand had ghosted across his chest, over the memory of those old wounds. It was a little strange, she thought. She'd pegged him as a military man from the moment he walked in - something to do with his strict posture, his deeply-ingrained sense of discipline, the way he seemed up and ready to go even at the ass-crack of dawn - but this ran so much deeper than she'd expected.

"Well," she found herself muttering, chasing away the fog in the only way she knew how to, "At least you don't have to take off your shirt until next week."

She hardly processed what she'd said until his head snapped upwards, candid shock blinking across his face like a bolt of lightning. And her words were the thunder, catching up to her a moment too late.

"I mean-" Wren blurted, feeling heat pool in her cheeks, "Your costume. We're shooting the poisoning scene... there's a different costume and it- it shows off more of your- and Sidney wants some scarring so I'll have to-"

She huffed out a sharp breath, ready to melt into a puddle of mortification right then an there. She pitied the janitor who'd have to mop her up when all of this was done. But at least it would spare her the embarrassment. Wren let out a wordless growl, stapling her tongue to the roof of her mouth so it wouldn't run away from her again.

"Mind if I dig myself an even deeper hole?"

Creative!: free space! share something you've been dying to share about your writing! Could be an OC that never gets the limelight, a moment you were proud of, or anything else you'd like to share

Looking back at that old snippet of my writing has actually made me appreciate how much I've grown as a writer in the past 2.5 years since I started. I began writing fanfic both for fun and as a way to hone my skills to a usable level, since I had (and still do have) a couple ideas for genuine novels of my own. I feel like I'm at a position now where I could actually write them, which is exciting! I just need to find the time to start.

[belovedgamers]

hello hello!! can I have ✏️ and 👖 and 💋 for the ask game, with my free question being: what do you do for your writing warmups?? I know I'm *supposed* to do them, but I always end up either jumping into a fic if I have inspiration, or not writing at all if I don't, and I really want to be more consistent!!! thanks so much!! love you!! have a wonderful day!! ~doozer #1197

✏️ Do you write every day?

Almost every day yeah! I try to at least write something! Sometimes I only do warm ups or some free verse poetry or some nonsense dialogue... the goal is to write at least something every day. I don’t have a word count goal in mind or anything, I just try to make sure that I’m writing and drawing every day! It’s a good habit to keep up! 

👖 Are you a planner, plantser, or pantser? Is it consistent?

I guess it depends? I usually have a goal in mind. “I want to write Eret after the Banquet.” “I want to write a myth au.” “I want to reach this specific line.” “I want to protest Lucifer.” “I want to write urban fantasy.”

But I don’t really do outlines. Exceptions are bigger fics, for example, it’s you has an “outline” but it’s less a series of points and more like the barebones of key scenes one after the other. light at the end of the hall had an outline because I needed to make sure the transitions would be smooth.

💋 [Freeform -  what do you do for your writing warmups?]

A variety of things! Most notably I do automatic writing! Sit down and write whatever. Do not pause. Do not censor yourself. Write and write and let it go. This is really how I perfected stream of consciousness. I have started writing letters that turned into poetry that turned into fic that circled back to my thoughts and so on and so forth!

Object personification! Write about an object as if it were a character. I like to write letters from one to another. There’s also describing an object based on senses, this is good for description.

One location, two person scenes! Put two characters in a place and make them talk. This can give you a ton of insight into your characters and can also just be dialogue and banter practice. My favorite thing is either an enclosed space or a kitchen. 

There’s a ton of other exercises and you can find some other options by googling “warm up writing exercises” and seeing what fits you the best! What works for you may not be what works for me. For example, some people recommend deleting warm ups but I keep mine.

 Fanfic ask game!

[novantinuum]

i was wondering, i get stuck on this phase a lot, do you have any advice for plotting and planning?

Hmm... lemme try and consider a few things that- on reflection- I think are helpful for me.

For one, I always think it’s important to write down like... every glimmer of a thought you have while in the plotting stage. Even if it’s Dumb™ or cliche, or you have no idea what on Earth to do with it. Perhaps it could be content that you come back to later and find a proper place to fit it in to the narrative. And at the very least, it’s a little brain warmup.

The other thing I personally tend to do, especially for multi-chapters, is to focus my broad plotting on one of two things, sometimes both at once depending on the story:

1) Where do I want my characters to end up emotionally, and relationally with others by the end of this story/arc?

2) What is the desired climax of my story, and what kind of general story events can lead me there?

Sometimes the climax is a mystery while I’m plotting, and sometimes I have a pretty clear idea from the get-go. It really depends. Others might instead chose to consider the themes they wish to impart with the story and work backwards from there.

But re: characters, for Crack the Paragon, I have a whole huge document that consists of exclusively character notes for all the principle characters. I work to keep careful track of what their relationship is like with other characters, and if/when any of those relationships change... what their mental state is like throughout the story, and how that might impact their decision making, stuff like that. Steven and Jasper especially have a lot of notes in that, since they’re probably the two characters who change the most over the course of what I have planned.

But in general... as long as I have at least one of those things fairly solid, the rest of my plotting is mostly filling in the blanks, finding a way to get my characters from A to B. I kinda think of it like drawing animation in-betweens. You have the key shots, and then from there it’s just a matter of solidifying the frames that sit between those. I tend to take it in stages... First, the leading points of the story... then, “hmm, what broad elements would make this character take this action?” And then I usually start thinking of specific conversation beats, and smaller details I may want to throw in to my work.

I honestly try not to overplot, though. I think there’s also something special about allowing oneself room to explore a scene that can be really fulfilling, and often lead to unexpected interactions.

...I’m no expert though, for sure. I only write for hobby, and it’s possible that these sorts of methods may work for me and not for others.

[bestworstcase]

Can I ask how you do writing warm-ups? I’ve never tried that before, but I think it sounds like a great idea

think of it like stretching before physical exercise, or sketching warmups before drawing or painting! it’s the same basic principle, you want to do something simple and routine to sort of ‘wake up’ the writing part of your brain

(with the exception of when i’m working on a junk draft) my ‘typical’ warmup involves taking ~500 or so words from what i wrote yesterday and then rewrite them. i do my writing in scrivener so basically i just take a snapshot of yesterday’s document, open the snapshot in the copyholder, and then delete the 500-ish words from the doc and rewrite them using the snapshot as a reference. 

often this ends up being just. 5-6 minutes of typing a mostly verbatim copy of what i wrote yesterday, with some very minor tweaks to syntax and maybe a different word or two—sometimes it’s more like 10-15 minutes of cleaning up descriptive passages. either way it’s a short exercise

and then if i’m not feeling that, or if i’m working on a junk draft (which does NOT get edited or reread or rewritten at all, period), i do 10 or 15 minute free-writes instead– just set a timer, write whatever junk comes to mind with the only rule being you never stop typing (or writing, if hand-writing). i use the desktop version of writeordie (v3) to do these but literally all you need is a timer and something to write on.

and if i’m working on a junk draft but feeling stuck i’ll give myself 10 minutes to slam out a basic 500-ish word synopsis of what happens in the next few scenes that i want to work on. 

the...common thread here is doing stuff that forces you to put out words continually for a short period of time; what those words are truly does not matter. try some different things and figure out what works for you. my creative writing prof in college swore by observational writing (where you people watch and write down what you see and hear) and meditating for ten minutes followed by a fifteen minute writing session; my playwriting prof had us do handwritten free-writes for ten minutes at the beginning of every class. you can google “writing warm ups” to get a ton of other ideas too

[cherishedproperty]

there's a contant theme on your writing, pain as form of connection, as if your relationship is strenghened by your partner hurting you. why and how? and why does getting spanked makes you feel seen?

This is so hard to explain… I think part of it is just who I am, honestly. The way I’m wired. And I know part of it is just the relief of finally being with someone who gets me—having spent so much of my life in relationships where my desires were treated as weird or wrong. The first time a Dominant spanked me, it felt like being allowed to let go for the first time. I could enjoy it and cry and feel whatever I felt, and I didn’t have to filter myself. Sometimes I still marvel at the fact that there are actually people in the world who want to give me this thing I need.

But it’s not just masochism. You’re right that I do feel connection when my partner hurts me. It’s so many little things. It’s just the simple fact of us doing this thing together that most people just don’t do. It’s the way he reads every quiver and gasp and muscle twitch—and adjusts his tempo and strength and implements accordingly. He is hyperfocused on my reactions. It’s like electricity flowing between us. His actions create my reactions, and my reactions feed his actions. 

Sometimes he wants to get me to subspace, so he adjusts the pace and intensity to keep me at the right pain threshold. Sometimes he wants to make me cry, so he has to give me the right kind of pain—enough to release the tears but not so much that I safeword. No matter the goal, he doesn’t just have to know how I react to pain; he has to be able to read how I’m feeling that day in that moment. And I have to trust him to do that. 

When he makes me cry, he absorbs it all. Do you know how rare it is to cry in front of someone without the goal being to stop as soon as humanly possible? But he wants my tears. He kisses them. He accepts them even when it’s the kind of snot-filled ugly crying that should never see the light of day. And being so exposed and feeling so accepted…it makes it easier to share my feelings with him at other times. Because when he says he wants to know me, he doesn’t just mean when it’s pretty or easy. He wants all of it. 

Then there’s how I give to him. I can be kind of a wimp when it comes to pain, if I don’t have the right kind of warmup. While he has to read me and make adjustments, I have to control my mind and suppress the instinct to make it stop. I accept what he chooses, and I take as much as I can for him. I know he won’t give me more than I can take. But at the same time, he knows I will give him everything I can. My best effort. He sees my struggles, and he feels the depth of my devotion. Then he says, “Can you take three more for me?” And I say, “yes, Sir”, simultaneously relieved that it’s about to end and knowing I would give him even more if he asked. Because it allows me to give myself to him on a level that I don’t feel in any other way.

For a few days after, the soreness reminds me of all those beautiful, connecting moments. And sometimes it even adds more. He admires my bruises as I get ready for work. Or he walks by and gives my ass a firm squeeze and then kisses my forehead when I yelp. Every time I sit down, I remember that electricity between us. I remember how I gave to him, and how he absorbed it all. And I feel so lucky to have a partner who shares these moments with me.

During an impact scene, trust and devotion aren’t just abstract ideas. We both feel them in every moment—in every strike, in every falling tear, in every blossoming bruise. That connection through pain is unlike anything I’ve ever felt. It speaks to different parts of us than other parts of our relationship. And when we have to go without it for a while, we both miss it dearly. 

[that0negayslytherin]

do you have any tips or resources for getting started with creative writing? sometimes i have an idea for a story but can't seem to get the words out when i sit down to actually write.

Hi there! Yes, I could definitely offer a couple of tips and resources :D

I have a feeling this is going to get a bit lengthy because I LOVE talking about writing/craft/etc so I’m just gonna pop a read more here. This...may potentially be overwhelming but I hope there are at least one or two things here that can give you some ideas for direction and guidance!!

First of all, just to address the issue you’re having, I would definitely suggest maybe starting with some prompt generators. They take a lot of the pressure off and can be really good to warm up. This one is really cool because it gives you a character, a situation, a prop, and a setting. When it comes to prompts, I highly recommend avoiding generating until you find something you like or something easy, because the idea is to challenge yourself a bit. You can also search around for other prompt generators, there are tons out there!

Something else that helped me a bunch when I was getting started with writing was, honestly, fanfiction. In a lot of cases, the worldbuilding and characters are already sort of developed, so all you have to do is stick a couple of characters in a scenario and you have a scene! There are tons of lists of prompts floating around on Tumblr, so if you have a ship you particularly like or even just one character, that can be a good place to start and warmup. (One thing I’ll say about this though, just from my personal experience: because I spent so much of my early writing career with fanfiction, I didn’t start learning how to develop characters and stuff until a little later on. Just something to look out for!)

OK, so just as a disclaimer, I did just graduate with an English degree and will be starting grad school for writing in less than a month. A lot of what I’ve learned is an aggregate of all of that experience. BUT, there are also a couple of really good YouTube channels that have definitely been extremely helpful in supplementing that and giving me some other sources of inspo. Here are just a couple of those:

Shaelin Writes: Shaelin is my favorite human on authortube. Especially if you’re looking for advice on short stories and litfic, she’s gonna be a go-to. She also has a blog here on Tumblr @shaelinwrites, and some of her advice is the reason I was able to complete my first short story and have it accepted at a publication so!! She is an absolute gem and her writing is incredible.

Alexa Donne: Alexa is a published novelist who offers a lot of really great advice both on craft and the publishing industry, if that’s something you’re ever looking to get into.

Abbie Emmons: Abbie is great with tackling really specific topics (she has detailed series on character building, plot structure/outlining, character POV and voice, and even more)

Kate Cavanaugh: Kate’s channel is awesome because it’s typically more vlog-style, and you get to see her process (and also how she fares as she copies the processes of other famous authors!)

That’s just a couple of my favorites, but there are so many great resources out there and I think this is a good starting point.

My final piece of advice is to just write the story and get it out of your head. I used to have such a problem with this because it rarely comes out on the page the way you envision it, but the magic of writing is you can revise your work until the end of time (though you should try to stop yourself at some point!!). It can be scary to dive in, so maybe try outlining (whether it be just writing down a couple of bulletpoints or doing a scene-by-scene skeleton of your story) and see where that gets you! Outlining isn’t for everyone, but it’s always been very beneficial for me and something I think everybody should at least try :)

OK let me stop myself there but if you have other questions about specific things please feel free to ask!!! I hope this is a help to you I know I totally just info vomited everywhere LOL. Feel free to follow up if you want clarification on anything or if more questions crop up while you embark on this process. Make sure you’re enjoying yourself over everything, that’s what makes all of the work so worth it!! <3

[metalbatandzenko]

all the numbers owo

GrCUnA gaoh god sdljhdkjshfkjsh

This is gonna get long so I’ll put it under the cut. I’m also gonna remove the ones I’ve answered already.

1. What fandoms do you write for?

OPM and AtLA. I have a Miraculous Ladybug fic, but the creator is a nightmare and I hate the way the show treats the main character (literally the creator said part of the show’s episode formula is the main character “learns a lesson” every episode: usually through humiliation) and all the characters of color so I really don’t write for it anymore.

2. What pairings do you write for?

Batarou, Mumensai, and I do general fics.

3. What is your most popular fanfic?

My Miraculous Ladybug fic. By like. a lot akfdjhlgkjhfdlkg

It’s got triple the subscriptions and bookmarks, double the hits, and more kudos than any of my other fics. And I haven’t updated since January.

4. Do you write original stories as well?

I do! I’m a creative writing major, so I do a lot of memoir nonfiction and poetry, but I also write fictional short stories.

5. What fanfic of yours should everyone have read?

I don’t think there is one! Different strokes and all. But if you weren’t aware, I’m working on an ATLA fic rn about Zuko trying to repair his relationship with Azula. Not for this fandom, but a fun fic for me because it’s a bit out of my wheelhouse.

6. What is a fandom you will never write for?

Out of the ones I’ve been in, voltron.

7. What is a ship you will never write for?

There are...a lot. For the sake of my mental well being, I will not list them. But I will say any ship between a teen and someone in their mid twenties or beyond is a no go for me.

8. Archive of Our Own, FanFiction.net, Wattpad, Tumblr, etc. which platform do you prefer?

Begrudgingly, Ao3. I have my issues with Ao3 and I think I’ve made those pretty clear (and they’ve gotten me into some hot water lmao) but it’s a good place to put fics.

10. How do you stay motivated to finish what you’ve started?

I could not tell you. I am so bad at staying motivated. Certain fics I love writing. Others feel like I’m pulling teeth.

11. What’s your longest fanfic?

Hidden Horns. By a lot. like 20k words a lot.

12. Do you want to break your readers‘ heart or make them laugh?

A bit of both, but I lean towards laughing. The world needs more light.

13. What is your planning process?

Depends on the fic. For short ones or oneshots, there really isn’t one. For longer fics, I’ll have an outline, but a lot of times I’m laying tracks as I go. If I think of a good scene or line, I’ll write it down and just keep it at the end of my doc until it comes up in the story.

15. OCs or no OCs?

OC’s only when they’re necessary for plot. For example, Madame Oshitani in Hidden Horns only really showed up because I needed a piano teacher, and I couldn’t have it be an existing hero. Outside of that, I tend to avoid putting OC’s in fics, because I find them disruptive when I’m reading fics.

16. Do you use sentence starters, writing prompts and/or fandom headcanons for your fanfics?

Sometimes! Hidden Horns was based off of this fanart. If they are, I make sure to note that in the notes.

20. Can we get a list of all of your current available fanfics?

Yeah you got:

A (Not So) Brief Hiatus-Miraculous Ladybug

Promises to Keep-OPM/batarou

Little Boy-OPM/Metal Bat centric

A Game of Chase-OPM/batarou

Not Invincible-OPM/batatou death

Someone Fun-OPM/Mumensai

Date With the Devil-OPM/Mumensai sequel

Something of Note-OPM/Mumensai

Conduct Evil-OPM/batarou

Grief and Other Intangibles-OPM/Zombiedad and CE death

Horns and Fangs Series (Hidden Horns and Fear and Fangs)-OPM/batarou

Spaghetti and Juiceboxes-OPM/Zombiedad and CE

I guess they don't like me but I never figured out why (I guess they think I don't like them either)-ATLA/Zuko reaches out to Azula

21. What’s your shortest fanfic?

Conduct Evil at a whopping 354 words.

23. Long chapters or short chapters?

They vary! Mine tend to be pretty short, like 1k-4k.

24. How many WIPs (work-in-progress) do you’ve got?

*sweats* Like 17 at least

25. How many WIPs will you finish?

Rude to assume I won’t finish all of them eight if I’m lucky

26. First-person-narrative or third-person-narrative?

Third. I hate writing in first person except for in nonfiction.

27. Do you take requests?

Kind of. If people send me an ask that I vibe with, I might write something, but as a general rule, no. I’ve been considering doing commissions though, so if you want to toss a coin to your bitcher lmk

28. I will name you three things (object — scenario — fandom/ship): write a paragraph or two!

I can’t do this one without those three kdjhflkjsdh

29. What’s more difficult? Fanfics or original work?

They’re difficult in different ways, but original is way harder.

Original work means there’s zero scaffolding to build off of except for the scaffolding you make yourself, and there’s a lot of issues with worldbuilding and creating complex and relatable characters.

Fanfic relies on a solid understanding of existing characters and dynamics, as well as the internal logic of the world. The scaffolding is there, but often times it’s stifling.

30. What writing software do you use?

Word and Google Docs fkjhslgkjh

31. Do you use beta/sensitive readers?

Nope. I probably should though.

32. Past or present tense?

Past. I can’t consistently write in present.

33. Do friends and family know that you write fanfics?

Some of my friends do. I’ve shared some with them! I use fanfic as warmup, so a lot of my writing friends know about my fics.

34. How did you find the world of fanfics?

I wrote Adventure Time fanfic on middle school and published them on an Adventure Time facebook group. They were wildly popular in the group.

36. Did you ever delete a work of yours?

I don’t think so tbh.

37. Did your work ever get plagiarized?

If it did, I wouldn’t know. But I highly doubt it.

38. Do you partake in any fanfic/writing events? (Big bangs, zines, NaNoWriMo, etc?)

No because I can’t stick to a deadline.

39. Collaborations or working solo?

I’ve never done a collaboration before.

41. What is something you don’t like about your writing?

I rely really heavily on dialogue and I’m suuuper aware of it. I think the thing is I do a lot of domestic fics, and even my story fics tend to be pretty domestic. I’m looking at you Hidden Horns

My original work doesn’t tend to lean on it as heavily.

43. Guilty pleasure tropes and scenarios?

I am a die hard found family bitch. Nothing guilty about it.

44. Does fanart of your fanfic exist?

Yes, actually. The aforementioned middle school fic got mini fancomic for the first chapter, and I wrote a Miraculous Ladybug ficlet in a fic chain that got fanart.

45. Do fanfics of your fanfic exist?

I think there might be one that was inspired by my fic, but I can’t remember tbh.

47. What fanfic of yours is truly underrated?

My ATLA fic!!! give it some love tf :/ (kidding of course.)

50. Can we get a teaser for an upcoming chapter?

Yeah, here you go:

The hero removed his coat and dropped it on the ground, where it landed with a solid “thud”.

He unhooked the holster under his arms, removed a knife from both boots, and unstrapped the machetes from his back.

They joined the trench coat in the pile.

Garou watched in equal parts awe and horror as Zombieman continued to produce weapons from increasingly improbable locations.

Finally, when the pile at his feet was large enough to arm a private militia, Zombieman stopped.

“I’ve got a pistol in my chest, but I’d prefer not to take that one out,” he said, pushing past Garou. “Feels rude to invite myself over then get blood all over the tatami.”

[gohyuck]

for the questions could you talk about after the beep cause that was the fic that introduced me to your writing... ily

Which scene was your favorite to write?

The very end - I think it cut off exactly where it needed to. 

Which part was hardest to write?

Honestly... writing in first person from Jeno’s perspective was a little jarring for me.

If you could change anything, what would it be?

I don’t quite know, especially because of how unorthodox it is. I don’t even know if I consider it a fic so much as a concept that got lucky.

Did you make an outline for it? Did you stick to it?

No outline! It took me like 15-20 minutes to write, max. 

Which scenes did you cut, and which were added?

This doesn’t apply, I didn’t add or cut anything.

Who was your favorite character to write?

Funnily enough, I liked the reader’s portrayal the most even if it was sparing and not discussed super heavily. Jeno’s perspective was heavy-handed, but... yeah. The reader. 

Which came first, the title or the fic?

The fic!

Which idea came to you first in the fic?

The concept itself came to me because I was trying to think of writing warmups to give to members of a writing club I helped run in school. I was like ‘what if I make them write a full concept or story via voicemail only?’ and then tested it out myself at, like, 2 am or something. 

What are some facts readers may not know about the fic?

Sometimes I feel bad that it’s gotten so much attention because it isn’t necessarily a fic, but I’m also proud of it because I think the idea is kind of cool and I think it’s great that people got so affected even though it’s so short. 

ask me about my shit

[sophieakatz]

Thursday Thoughts: Writing Advice (Part 3 of 3)

And here is the final part!

I recently stumbled across this writer ask meme about pieces of writing advice, and I was having so much fun thinking about it that I decided to just respond to them all!

33. Embrace structure

Yes, yes, yes. Embrace structure. This is not the same thing as being limited by structure. It’s easy to mistake the two.

I spoke before about the importance of familiarity. People enjoy and respond to familiar structures. “Once upon a time” and “happily ever after” are still common phrases for a reason. They work. They’re familiar. People like them. Structure means that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.

I also spoke before about leaning into the limitations of a medium. Having a structure to follow gives you something to lean on, while at the same time it forces you to be creative! Structure is yet another example of rules to learn so that you can know when to break them.

34. Dialogue should be purposeful

I like this rule, but I think it’s easily misunderstood.

When people hear “purposeful,” they think “plot important.” So, they end up writing something in which everyone says exactly what they mean all the time, with perfect bluntness.

But people don’t always talk like that. People beat around the bush. People make jokes. People run out of things to say and point out funny-shaped cracks in the sidewalk.

A line of dialogue can have purpose other than furthering the plot. It can set the mood. It can establish a character as a bit scatterbrained. It can demonstrate that two characters are not comfortable or open with each other. (“How are you?” “Fine. You?” “Fine.” “Right.”) It can give your audience a break from the tension.

Write with purpose, yes, but don’t feel obligated for every word to be “purposeful.”

35. Be empathetic

Empathy is at the heart of storytelling. Through writing, you can create an experience for your readers which did not actually happen to them, but it means as much to them as if it had. This can be an immensely powerful exercise in empathy.

Creating a character is another great exercise in empathy. Have you created a person for your readers to connect with, or a stereotype to drive marginalized readers away?

Your readers are people. Your fellow writers are people. Your characters are also people. Treat them all with empathy.

36. Never use a verb other than ‘said’ to tag dialogue

Only a Sith deals in absolutes.

Again, all words are tools, and all words have a purpose. “Said” is a perfectly nice word; don’t be afraid to use it. But other words can convey different things to the scene.

“What did you do?” she said. (Neutral – we know she’s curious, but that’s it.)

“What did you do?” she shouted. (Wow, okay, this person is upset about whatever happened.)

“What did you do?” she whispered. (Ooh, it must be a secret!)

“What did you do?” she muttered. (She may be asking reluctantly – probably rolling her eyes, too.)

Use whatever word conveys what you need the moment to convey.

37. Do not start a sentence with a conjunction

Conjunctions are tools. Use them wisely.

Consider the medium, the audience, and the pacing. And then decide whether to start a sentence with a conjunction.

See, I just did so there – “and” is a conjunction. It works very well for the kind of train of thought writing I use in these blog posts. In more formal writing, you will want to avoid starting sentences with conjunctions.

But starting with a conjunction (oops, I did it again) is a good way to put your readers right into a character’s mind, to speed things up and make things feel urgent.

Learn the rules of grammar, and then you will know how and when you can break them.

38. A new speaker always gets a new paragraph

According to most structures, yes. Are there contexts in which you might break this rule? Sure.

But keep in mind that people expect new paragraphs for clarity. If you’re going to break a rule, break it with purpose, not just ‘cause you wanna.

39. If there’s a story you want to read but it hasn’t been written yet, you must write it

“Must,” huh? I don’t like the word “must,” as much as I like the general sentiment here.

A lot of what I write are stories which I wish I had had when I was little. This is especially true when I write about asexuality. I wish it hadn’t taken me until college to learn that it was an option. All I needed was one explicitly ace character.

Practically speaking, though, I’m not only writing these stories for my past self. I’m writing for other people.

When I write fanfiction about characters figuring out that they are asexual, readers leave comments thanking me for it – because they needed the story as much as my past self did.

I don’t see the point of telling people that they “must” write the stories they want to read, because not everyone is a writer. More people are readers than writers. And these readers absolutely have a right to get up and say, “I want more stories about people like me!”

40. The ending is just the place where you stop your story

Yes and no. The ending is where things resolve. You might have multiple options, but one will be better than the others, depending on the experience you want your readers to have.

41. The only way you can write the truth is to assume that what you set down will never be read

No, I don’t think so.

I mean, if it helps you to pretend like you’re never going to show someone your writing, then you might feel freer to be honest in your writing.

But writing is meant to be read, and true things are meant to be heard.

42. Write your first draft by hand

Dictating what kind of writing utensils people should use, and when, is the road to ableism paved with good intentions. I consider a computer keyboard a writing utensil.

Use the tool that works for you. If it isn’t working, change it up. Sometimes switching between pen and pencil, or between pencil and keyboard, can shake yourself out of a writing block.

43. Challenge yourself

If you want to improve? Yes.

44. Everyone has a book in them

I think everyone has a story worth telling. I don’t think that literally everyone will write a book. But everyone has a story and a way to tell it.

45. Dialogue should be rhythmic and 46. Dialogue should be natural

I’m gonna answer these two together because, once again, we’re using absolutes where there are two perfectly valid options with different purposes.

What kind of effect are you trying to create? Are you going for realism or poetry? Do what fits the work! Do what fits the scene!

There are rules to writing, yes, but they are rarely cut and dry. That’s the note I want to end on here – different writing advice is valuable for different moments of writing. It’s okay to pick and choose which rules you listen to, and to change your mind later.

And sometimes two pieces of advice that sound like they conflict – like this distinction between rhythmic and natural dialogue – are actually not that different. Rhythmic dialogue and natural dialogue can be one and the same.

If you take a class on Shakespeare plays, the most common rhythm you’ll talk about is iambic pentameter. “Pentameter” just means that there are five beats in a line. “Iambic” is what kinds of beats we’re talking about. An iambic beat has a soft syllable and a hard syllable – it’s all in where we put emphasis in our words.

My name – Sophie – is not an iambic word, because you put the hard syllable first: SO-phie. But the sentence “My name is Sophie Katz” is iambic – “my NAME is SO-phie KATZ.”

For the sake of the screen readers, I won’t keep typing like that. Here are a couple more examples of iambic sentences:

In Romeo and Juliet: “But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?”

In an acting warmup I learned once: “Around the rock the ragged rascal ran.”

These sentences are rhythmic. But they are also natural, and that’s why we like to hear them. Now, where do you find a rhythm like this in nature?

Put your hand on your chest and wait a bit.

What could be more natural than your own heartbeat?

[doggernaut]

How about 5, 13, and 19 for the fanfic asks?

Fanfic asks! I didn’t get around to answering these yesterday but this is a nice little warmup before work today.

5. Is there any fic that makes you super happy to reread and remember you wrote that?

Sometimes I’ll get a comment on And you may ask yourself, well, how did I get here? and I’ll end up reading the chapter the comment was left on, which leads to reading more. I am endlessly intrigued by Year 1 Bitty finding out he’s with Jack in the future, and I also love anything involving older!Zimbits’ domesticity and family life. In a more general sense, I’ve been obsessed with time travel stories since I first saw Back to the Future at the age of six. I found a way to include all of that in this fic, so it really was a case of writing what I want to read.

13. What’s the biggest change between your style when you started in fandom and today?

I don’t think my style has changed a whole lot. I think that can be said of my writing in general. Sometimes I get frustrated because I compare myself to other writers who have a prettier, more evocative writing style or make better use of visuals. I think my writing tends to be more introspective and dialogue-heavy. I also think it’s more spare than a lot of fic I read, which I think has much to do with years of being a journalist.

(Fun fact: My very first -- and last for something like 13 years -- fic was in Baby-Sitters Club fandom, and it was a round robin fic, so I was very much attempting to match my style to the source material.)

There is one fic of mine that I think is very different, tonally, than anything else of mine on ao3, though not so much some of the work I’ve published outside of fandom. All I Want is You is my one soulmates AU, and to me it has a very different feel from the rest of my fic.

19. If you had to pick one fic/scene/chapter of your work to describe your entire portfolio to a stranger, which would you pick?

This is a hard one! I’m going with the broadest answer and choosing a fic. And again, that honor has to go to And you may ask yourself, well, how did I get here? As far as Check, Please fandom is concerned, it includes a lot of my favorite things. I think there’s a good balance of humor and angst. I got to go back and write Year 1 Bitty and Jack (sticking to canon events, with my own spin on what happens in between canon events) but I also got to play with my headcanon of what a Zimbits future looks like (which I think is pretty consistent throughout a lot of my fic, but I definitely go into the most depth here). Because it was a time travel story, I also got to write Bitty falling in love with Jack in a way that didn’t contradict canon. I don’t know. This is starting to sound like a list of things I like about this fic rather than what is representative of my fic in general. But I do think this fic includes a lot of elements that are representative of my style.