thatonefantasyreader

[thatonefantasyreader]

A List of Plot Twist Ideas

A character's strength defeats them.

A character's weakness saves them.

A gift is really a danger.

A gigantic meteor streaks across the sky.

A missing child planned their abduction to get back at their abusive parents.

A stranger enters the story, informing the characters that they are all being watched. 

A surprising person ends up being the puppet master behind everything.

A terrible storm moves in, threatening all.

A weakness of a character is actually their greatest strength.

An object has a special meaning.

An otherwise straightforward romantic comedy leads into horror territory.

Red Herring — All suspicion points to one character, but when the truth is revealed, it's another that did the terrible deed.

The antagonist is living two lives.

The conflict the protagonist was going through was a practical joke.

The conflict the protagonist was going through was a ruse concocted by their friends to help them with confidence or to overcome fear.

The conflict the protagonist was going through was a ruse concocted by former victims of their bullying.

The dead body isn't dead.

The goal achieved ends up making things worse.

The informant is actually the mastermind.

The love interest is the antagonist.

The most skilled character succumbs to the least skilled character. 

The narrator is not the person we thought they were.

The parent is really the grandparent. 

The protagonist is living two lives.

The protagonist receiving help actually doesn't want it.

The protagonist that doesn't seem to want help actually does.

The smartest character is the first to be outwitted.

The strongest character is the first to die.

The supposed mastermind is actually a red herring.

The weakest character is the villain.

The wrong first impression of a character.

What first seemed like a wrong first impression of a character ends up being right.

What seems like a dangerous object at first is actually a gift that helps the protagonist. 

When the protagonist solves the mystery, it opens up a Pandora's Box.

Source ⚜ More: Notes & References ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

[thatonefantasyreader]

Sorry if I asked I already asked but do you have anything on writing ‘pirate talk’?

Writing Notes: Pirate Talk

Our much-loved “pirate-ese” language bears little relation to the actual speech of 17th and 18th-century buccaneers.

In fact, evidence suggests that our modern impression of pirate speech is all down to Disney. Here’s why:

Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson’s adventure novel Treasure Island was published in 1883.

In 1950, the popular tale was adapted for Hollywood in what was Walt Disney’s first movie made with live actors only.

The movie starred Robert Newton as the fictional pirate Long John Silver.

Born in Dorset and educated in Cornwall, Newton based his pirate talk on his own native British West Country dialect.

His accent might not have been far off—the south west of England has long been associated with pirates because of its strong maritime heritage; notorious pirate Blackbeard was even said to have come from Bristol, in the heart of that area.

Newton’s iconic role as Long John Silver was so influential that a variation of his West Country English became the standard for portrayals of pirates on stage and in the cinema.

As historian Colin Woodard told the National Geographic in 2011, “Newton’s performance—full of ‘arrs,’ ‘shiver me timbers,’ and references to landlubbers—not only stole the show, it permanently shaped pop culture’s vision of how pirates looked, acted, and spoke.”

Pirates have been around for a very long time and come from many places across the globe. Julius Caesar fought them, and to this day, pirates are still taking ships off the coast of Somalia. Logic dictates that all these pirates would speak in many different ways.

In Hollywood, there exists only one way pirates talk:

With an exaggerated English West Country accent and a lisp.

"Piratespeak" is somewhat of an exaggerated parody of some English rural accents of the 16th century.

A "snapshot" of a moment in the language during the "Great Vowel Shift".

There are some who've argued the associating of rural English accents with seafaring folk be on account of Lord Nelson, whose contemporaries noted his heavy Norfolk accent.

But the standard "Poirate accent" sounds more like it be from the The West Country (Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Cornwall, Gloucestershire and Bristol), perhaps because of memories of famed Devon sailors like Sir Francis Drake and Sir Walter Raleigh. Treasure Island, which does indeed begin in that part of Englandnote , did popularise it.

It also has noticeable overlap with the distinctive "Ocracoke accent" spoken by some longtime residents of the Outer Banks of North Carolina, which were similarly frequented by sailors in the 18th century; it may or may not be a coincidence that Ocracoke Island was the site of Blackbeard's last stand against the British Navy.

Some Pirate & Seafaring Terminology

Ahoy! - Used from the 18th century to attract attention, for example, the sighting of a ship, but later to simply mean "hello there".

Avast! - In use from the 17th century, it was a command to stop a particular action like pulling on rigging to hoist a sail.

Bear Up - To keep the ship’s bow away from the wind. An expression that was then used to mean "remain cheerful".

Blackjacks - (also called bombards) Large drinking cups, originally made out of leather and stiffened with tar.

Crack On - To make good speed. The term derives from the cracking noise made by ropes and sails made taut by a strong wind.

Davy Jones’s Locker - A term for the “ocean’s bottom,” especially when regarded as the grave for all who perish at sea.

Down the Hatch - To put cargo through the hatch and into the hold. The expression was used as a toast when drinking alcohol.

Dredgie - In popular pirate tales, dredgies are the ghosts of traitor pirates who’ve met a nasty end at the hands of another pirate.

From the Seas - This was a typical pirate’s answer to the question "where are you from?" and was given to conceal their identity. It might also be given by pirate ships when entering a port for the same reason. In use from the 17th century.

Goose Without Gravy - A slang term to refer to a badly injured man who showed no sign of bleeding.

Grog - Often depicted as a potent potable popularly partaken by plunderers on the high seas. Grog may refer to any alcoholic liquor, but is often reserved for booze—usually rum—cut with water. The term came about thanks to English admiral Edward Vernon, who reputedly earned the nickname “Old Grog” because he often wore a cloak made from grogram (a coarse, loosely woven fabric made of silk or silk blended with mohair or wool). In Old Grog’s day, sailors in the Royal Navy were customarily given a daily ration of rum, but in 1740 the admiral, concerned about the health of his men, ordered that the rum should be diluted with water. The decision wasn’t very popular with the sailors, who supposedly dubbed the mixture “grog” after Vernon.

Hempen Jig - Hempen refers to something made from hemp, a plant with tough fibers excellent for making rope. In popular accounts of pirates, hempen halter is a hangman’s noose, and to dance the hempen jig means “to die by hanging.”

Hornswoggle - To swindle, cheat, hoodwink, or hoax.

Land Ho! - The cry uttered by a lookout on the first sight of land.

Salmagundi - A fancy meal of salmagundi might be served when celebrating a successful plunder: chopped meats (whatever was handy), anchovies, onions, oil—and cackle fruit (“chicken eggs” in pirate-speak). It’s a great word for “any mixture or miscellany.”

Scallywag - (or scalawag) An insult for any pirate deemed a “rascal.” Son of a biscuit-eater is “a son of solider or sailor,” with that biscuit-eater sounding an awful lot like it’s replacing a coarser word.

Shiver Me Timbers - Unlikely to have ever been uttered by an actual pirate. Instead, it is thought to have arisen from comedic literature as sailor-speak akin to “blow me down” or “by golly” or somesuch. In the 19th-century children’s novel Outward Bound, a character named Wilton is even humiliated (in brisk fashion) for attempting the phrase.

Talk Bilge - Meaning to talk nonsense. It derives from the filthy bilge water in the lower parts of a ship.

Where away? - A question meaning "in which direction?" and usually uttered in response to a lookout sighting land or another ship.

Yo-Ho-Ho - A fictional pirate expression with no particular meaning that first appears in Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1883 novel Treasure Island. It may derive from the phrase "Yeo heave ho" which mariners chanted while pulling on rigging.

Sources: 1 2 3 4 5 6 ⚜ More: References ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

Writing Notes: Pirates

Words Related to Pirates

You can find more terms and information in the sources. Hope this helps with your writing!

[thatonefantasyreader]

SPOILERS:

Summary/Review on Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent

At first glance, this book presents as a basic Romance/Fantasy novel. I quickly realized that the power of this story is much stronger than I first assumed. 10/10 recommend this series!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Summary:

The story begins with our MFC, Tisaanah, a mixed heritage (also known as "fragmented"), enslaved magic Wielder residing in a territory named Threll. Her original heritage belongs to a territory lost to the kingdom, destroyed, and their people enslaved and/or killed. Under the command of the Threllian Lord, Esmaris Mikov, we learn who she wants to become in this world. She desires to become free, along with freeing her people. Eventually, she gains the amount of gold coins that her enslaver priced her at to buy her own freedom, but when presenting this money, he quickly turns cold. He began to beat and batter this poor woman; however, this dream of hers to be free quickly "becomes true" due to her murdering the Threllian Lord, by "accident," however, I believe she deeply desired it, so her magic had taken over in that moment of abuse.

She begins her travels to Ara, due to her murdering the Lord, and being able to escape without his eyes constantly on her. For several weeks, she traveled across land and the sea to the island of Ara, a land that is said to be "free" (much like the USA in this sense). However, she is in terrible shape due to the beating her ex-master had given, and due to an infection on her open wounds, she barely remembers how she even arrived.

She comes to in the presence of a healer and a high-ranking official in Ara. She states (as best as possible since there is a language barrier) that she is here to speak to Zeryth Aldris, an Arain magic Wielder she had met while living in Threll. He has seen great promise in Tisaanah and had told her that she could join the Orders, a high-ranking group of officials in the land of Ara. Come to find out that this Zeryth character JUST travelled to Threll for business, so now Tisaanah feels like she has wasted time.

Although Zeryth is not in Ara, the high-ranking official, Nura, decides that she can fulfill Tisaanah's wishes and assign her to a magic Wielder in his late 20s to train Tisaanah for her desire to join the Orders. Maxantarius "Max" Farlione, a seemingly quiet, cold, but powerful magic Wielder.

Max, at first, refuses to train her. However, after a small amount of time getting to know her, he decides he could make this exception one time. He trains her for 8 months to prepare her for her exam to join the Orders.

Over 8 months, we see their relationship grow from strangers to enemies, to frenemies, to friends, and finally to lovers. The relationship dynamic between these two is truly amazing. He's not one of these MMCs that is rude, mean, or toxic. He is genuinely a sweet and good character from start to finish.

The story continues in the last two books of this trilogy, however the first book is an amazing introduction into this fantasy world.

Review:

Like I said in the beginning, at first glance, I had no idea how deeply I would fall in love with this story. It grew to be so addictive for me, and I am just starting the second book in the trilogy. The dynamic between Tisaanah and Max is so deep and connected that it feels so REAL. I find that most of the authors I read struggle to convince me of how the characters fall in love. This one had me hooked. The writing is AMAZING, and the author did such a good job of showing how their relationship grew. You were there every step of the way.

The world-building in this book is super cool. The author didn't lay it all out at once, making it impossible to keep up. She presented the world-building as things were mentioned, which helped me grasp the concepts way better.

Ciao for now!

[thatonefantasyreader]

*writes two paragraphs after months of literally nothing and it took three hours*