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Another piece of PriCon art! Pride month is the season for gay con men <3

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It's stressful running a grift...

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This feels like a good time to post a reminder about the NaNo-inspired spreadsheet I made, based on the old website:

It's available here for download - free if you want, any support is appreciated because it means I can keep making trackers and helps with my website costs, but I know times are tough for a lot of us. I've also put it up on Google Sheets here, but it looks a little different because the fancier chart effects aren't supported. You'll have to download it or make a copy to be able to use it. (Please don't ask me for edit access, that won't work. File > Make a copy, and you'll have it on your own Google Drive.)

I also made this in four other designs, available here. They all come with character and plot development sheets, and pages for novel info, chapters, timeline, etc. And there are versions for every month, so we're not confined to November!

And finally, because I always loved seeing everyone's word counts and accountability really helps me personally, I made a basic spreadsheet that you can use as a group to collectively track word counts or goals. This version's made for up to 8 people. Again you'll have to make a copy in your Drive to use it, and you'll need to give edit access to your whole group as well.

If there's interest, I'll keep making these as well for each new month. I can also expand it or add more columns/features, so feel free to let me know if you're interested and what you'd like to see!

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2016 me: i'm going to have as few chapters as possible

2021 me: i'm going to have as many chapters as posssible!

2023 me: uh, i'm going to cut down the number of chapters as much as possible...

2025 me: MORE CHAPTER S MORE CHAPTERS MORE CHARPTERS MOR

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Unhealed Wounds Your Character Pretends Are Just “Personality Traits”

These are the things your character claims are just “how they are” but really, they’re bleeding all over everyone and calling it a vibe.

╰ They say they're "independent." Translation: They don’t trust anyone to stay. They learned early that needing people = disappointment. So now they call it “being self-sufficient” like it’s some shiny badge of honor. (Mostly to cover up how lonely they are.)

╰ They say they're "laid-back." Translation: They stopped believing their wants mattered. They'll eat anywhere. Do anything. Agree with everyone. Not because they're chill, but because the fight got beaten out of them a long time ago.

╰ They say they're "a perfectionist." Translation: They believe mistakes make them unlovable. Every typo. Every bad hair day. Every misstep feels like proof that they’re worthless. So they polish and polish and polish... until there’s nothing real left.

╰ They say they're "private." Translation: They’re terrified of being judged—or worse, pitied. Walls on walls on walls. They joke about being “mysterious” while desperately hoping no one gets close enough to see the mess behind the curtain.

╰ They say they're "ambitious." Translation: They think achieving enough will finally make the emptiness go away. If they can just get the promotion, the award, the validation—then maybe they’ll finally outrun the feeling that they’re fundamentally broken. (It never works.)

╰ They say they're "good at moving on." Translation: They’re world-class at repression. They’ll cut people out. Bury heartbreak. Pretend it never happened. And then wonder why they wake up at 3 a.m. feeling like they're suffocating.

╰ They say they're "logical." Translation: They’re terrified of their own feelings. Emotions? Messy. Dangerous. Uncontrollable. So they intellectualize everything to avoid feeling anything real. They call it rationality. (It's fear.)

╰ They say they're "loyal to a fault." Translation: They mistake abandonment for loyalty. They stay too long. Forgive too much. Invest in people who treat them like an afterthought, because they think walking away makes them "just as bad."

╰ They say they're "resilient." Translation: They don't know how to ask for help without feeling like a burden. They wear every bruise like a trophy. They survive things they should never have had to survive. And they call it strength. (But really? It's exhaustion wearing a cape.)

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We just knew.

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So my problem with most ‘get to know your character’ questioneers is that they’re full of questions that just aren’t that important (what color eyes do they have) too hard to answer right away (what is their greatest fear) or are just impossible to answer (what is their favorite movie.)  Like no one has one single favorite movie. And even if they do the answer changes.

If I’m doing this exercise, I want 7-10 questions to get the character feeling real in my head. So I thought I’d share the ones that get me (and my students) good results: 

What is the character’s go-to drink order? (this one gets into how do they like to be publicly perceived, because there is always some level of theatricality to ordering drinks at a bar/resturant)

What is their grooming routine? (how do they treat themselves in private)

What was their most expensive purchase/where does their disposable income go? (Gets you thinking about socio-economic class, values, and how they spend their leisure time)

Do they have any scars or tattoos? (good way to get into literal backstory) 

What was the last time they cried, and under what circumstances? (Good way to get some *emotional* backstory in.) 

Are they an oldest, middle, youngest or only child? (This one might be a me thing, because I LOVE writing/reading about family dynamics, but knowing what kinds of things were ‘normal’ for them growing up is important.)

Describe the shoes they’re wearing. (This is a big catch all, gets into money, taste, practicality, level of wear, level of repair, literally what kind of shoes they require to live their life.)

Describe the place where they sleep. (ie what does their safe space look like. How much (or how little) care / decoration / personal touch goes into it.)

What is their favorite holiday? (How do they relate to their culture/outside world. Also fun is least favorite holiday.) 

What objects do they always carry around with them? (What do they need for their normal, day-to-day routine? What does ‘normal’ even look like for them.) 

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Writing with Colors

A list of resources to help you describe different colors in your writing.

The Color Thesaurus A collection of infographics that show various shades of different colors, each shade/color labeled by name.

Color Reference Chart Another collection of infographics that show various shades of different colors, each shade/color labeled by name.

Hair Color Reference Chart A collection of infographics that show various shades of different hair colors, each shade/color labeled by name.

Eye Color Reference Chart A collection of infographics that show various shades of blue, brown, and green eye colors, each shade/color labeled by name.

Different Ways to Describe Hazel Eyes A list of ideas and suggestions for describing hazel eyes. Can be used as prompts or for brainstorming.

Different Ways to Describe Green Eyes A list of ideas and suggestions for describing green eyes. Can be used as prompts or for brainstorming.

Different Ways to Describe Blue Eyes A list of ideas and suggestions for describing blue eyes. Can be used as prompts or for brainstorming.

Different Ways to Describe Brown Eyes A list of ideas and suggestions for describing brown eyes. Can be used as prompts or for brainstorming.

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I’m a writer, poet, and editor. I share writing resources that I’ve collected over the years and found helpful for my own writing. If you like my blog, follow me for more resources! ♡

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Just watching this tyrannical takeover happen to our government in real time.

There's nothing I can think to do that could be genuinely actionable. All I can do is be prepared to offer aide to any of my friends if they decide they need to flee the country.

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I have dialogue and song lyrics from one of the VHS Ronald McDonald specials stuck in my head.

"Time to work!"

"So we can play!"

"Have a pleasant holiday!"

"Time to set, set, set, set, set, set, set up camp...!"

(yeah we're just shitposting now but oh my god why the Ronald McDonald VHS tape specials, WHY SPECIFICALLY THE RONALD MCDONALD VHS TAPE SPECIALS????!)

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The only time I read more than one chapter in a book at a time is if I'm anxious, and boy I am tearing through Alice Isn't Dead right now lol

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One of the MCs of my current WIP ends his story arc by learning to accept his situation for what it is. I have actually been borrowing and taking great comfort from his lesson. Two weeks from now, I'll be getting a deep cleaning and have a biopsy to remove the bit of my gum that keeps getting infected. After that I will just have to get a routine cleaning for my teeth every three months. That's not so bad. It will be okay. The situation is what it is.

This is why writing is great. You end up teaching yourself the same lessons you teach your characters.

Tumblr is where I go to talk into the void. Because here, there is a chance my words will be seen without the obligation of interaction. Because I don't know what I'd say if I got a response. Buy there is comfort in knowing that random people may see my fretting. And that's enough. Just knowing that I'm speaking to the void and that the void is listening, even if it does not speak back. At least it was seen. At least someone knows.

Back in my high school days, I had a blog that served the same purpose. But this was the age of Geocities, and my blog was a full on HTML and photoshop creation. I also had a code in there that tracked the traffic it got. People visited my page, simply because search engines really used to pick up just about anything with the right random key words.

So I would see that my blog got traffic, and that was enough. I ranted and raved and journaled in my blog with no expectation of being answered. But with the vague promise that random strangers on the internet would at least know I was sad on this day, I was happy on that day.

At some point, I had to delete my blog for teen drama reasons (I posted a rant that got seen by actual friends). I was told to blog on Live Journal, where I could lock my blog behind a password.

I deleted my blog, that was four years of entries gone, but I never signed up for Live Journal. Because putting my blog behind a password defeated the whole purpose of using the blog. Behind a password, I really would be talking to an empty wall. No promise of random strangers knowing. No subtle existence. Just complete isolation. The conceit of it was too lonely.

But the thing about that is that some years later, Yahoo bought Geocities and then nuked it. So no matter what, I would have lost my blog whether it was then or later.

But those blogs were pretty. And my HTML skills were on point. Each entry had an avatar expressing my mood for that entry. What MP3 was playing at the time? Lol

I wish my blog could have survived at least in part if not for the nostalgia. But also, maybe it was better off lost anyway. Four years of high school angst would likely be cringy if not painful to read.

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Been fighting a gum infection for a month. Went to a periodintist and learned that I lost some bone in my upper jaw, which makes two of my teeth sensitive and susceptible to infection.

Just finished a full week of antibiotics. Infection finally seems to be gone.

Accidentally bit a stiff piece of broccoli with one of my sensitive teeth.

It will probably become infected all over again.

Feel like crying tbh.

Also got in trouble at work because I haven't been taking my unpaid lunch break so I could end my workday 30 min earlier. That's bad apparently.

Feeling kinda anxious, not great, please don't get infected again, gums, I'm tired...

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Reasons why, despite the severe temptation to be amicable, you SHOULD NOT open an email with "Hope you've been having a good week!"

The person you emailed might be living in Los Angeles...... 😐

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The main character for my current WIP, Mani Mohanty. Here, he's looking way more intimidating than he actually is lol

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I have evil furry convention plans.