writing-by-athena

[writing-by-athena]

What some person says: You need to do research for fantasy and think critically about how your world functions. How did they domesticate those creatures, and how are they feeding them? How are your cities fed, and what happens to their waste? How are all those soldiers trained and paid? Have you googled feudalism? 

What y’all think they mean: fill your book with unnecessary factual details about your fantasy world that no one cares about 

What they actually mean: You need to know the way your world functions for your own benefit, to be able to create a story that makes sense and holds up under scrutiny. If you don’t research, you’ll end up repeating dumb stereotypes about Medieval England that are more based on modern biases than real history and making grotesque factual errors that will make your story unreadable for anyone that paid more attention in class than you did. Not to mention that your pool of inspiration will be entirely based in other, already written fantasies, instead of the vast, colorful and woefully untapped well of actual human history. 

[writing-by-athena]

You’re allowed to like your writing.

One unfortunate side effect of the “your first draft is shit” rhetoric (which is mostly meant to encourage the understanding that you will need to edit and that having problems in your first draft doesn’t mean you can’t write) is that people tend to feel like they shouldn’t like their writing. They should only be critical of it, only see the flaws of it, and so be unhappy with their writing.

Being critical is good, but keep in mind that you’re not only allowed but encouraged to like what you’ve written. You should like it because that means it’s something people enjoy reading (because you are a person), but also because you will write better if you enjoy what you’re writing. Reread your old writing and smile at the lines that you love. Enjoy your fun scenes, laugh at your own jokes, cry at the tragedies you’ve written particularly poignantly. It’ll make you feel better. I promise.

[writing-by-athena]

Outlining, personally, is my best friend. I outline everything, from my story to this very blog post. In this series about structure, I am going to have a subseries of outlining tips and walkthroughs as outlining is basically structuring your novel via dot points. This subseries is going to be basically showing you how to organise your notes about character and conflict and why outlining is going to be a lifesaver if you are a writer like me.

Should I Outline?

Generally, writers fall into two categories: Pantser and Outliner. An outliner plans their writing with little or a lot of detail and a Pantser These two methodologies are compared, fought over and passionately debated on. Put simply, I am an Outliner and don’t understand why people would like to pantser, but I would like to say that both categories are right. Writing does not have a set amount of rules that everyone has to follow, and I would recommend you do some self-discovering and figure which system works for you if you are a pantser, congratulations! I wish you well, and I wish I could be you!!! Off you go and write the book or piece of your dreams.

Benefits of Outlining

Okay, so you have decided that you are an outliner, that you need to plan out details of your novel. Outlining is great! It really is! Here are some benefits of Outlining: Prevents Dead-Ends Have you ever started writing something and ran into a dead end? I did that with my first WIP, and it felt horrible because I, at that point in time, really loved my story, but now I can’t really pick it up again. So outlining prevents dead ends because you don’t ever need to rewrite a heap of chapters but adjust a few plot points. Provides Foreshadowing A way to make your book complex and have symbolism is to foreshadow certain plot points. Outlining gives you that chance to have that complexity that otherwise might have the chance to be. Pacing is Smoother Pacing is important as you want to adjust it to make sure it flows smoothly. If you don’t know that your protagonist was going to die you wouldn’t adjust the pacing accordingly.

The Misconceptions of Outlining

Outlining sometimes get a bad rep and if you look at these surface-level criticisms of Outlining you would think that too. I did for a long time: Outlining Limits Creativity There is an idea that once you outline your novel, you cannot deviate from that path. Fears that you have boxed yourself is a writer greatest fear, but this is simply false. Outlining is about putting your ideas into a system that is organised and is changeable if it ends up not working. My outlines often become hugely different as I found better ways or plotlines that would suit my conflict or characters better. Don’t be ashamed to move away from your first plan. Outlines Need to Be Formal Now, this is definitely wrong. Personally, formal formatting is the worst. I often have pretty sticky notes that have certain plot points writing on them. In my next post about outlining and structure, I will be talking about different types of ways to outline, but you definitely don’t need to list plot points and character moments like a shopping list.

Extra Notes

I hope this was helpful! 

[writing-by-athena]

Hi! I was just wondering, what's the best way to make/write out a plot?

Guide: How to Outline a Plot

The best way to write out a plot isn’t the same for everyone, and sometimes it’s even different from story to story. There are lots of different methods, and most writers use a combination of them, so you just have to try different things to see what works best for you. Here are some of the most common methods:

1. Just Write

Some writers are what’s known as “pansters” meaning that once they have a story idea in mind, they prefer to “fly by the seat of their pants” and start writing without any planning in place. The key to making this method work is to remember that you’re only writing the first draft. Nothing you’re doing is set in stone, so don’t feel the story has to be perfect in one shot. Follow your gut and write the story to the best of your ability. Worry about tightening and polishing in subsequent drafts.

2. Synopsis

Some writers prefer to start by writing beginning to end summary of the story, describing all the important details and events in the order that they unfold. Summaries can be a great way to flesh out an idea for a plot, and they can also serve as a nice guideline if you want to “just write” your story but need a bit more structure first.

3. Old-Fashioned Outline

Do they still teach outlining in school? I don’t even know… when I was a kid, we learned how to do outlines with Roman numerals for the main points, capital letters for the minor points, and numbers for sub-points. If you’re good at outlining, this can be a great way to outline your plot.

4. Timeline

Creating a timeline for your story can be a great way to map it out. All you need is a beginning event, climax event, and end event. From there you can start filling in the events that follow and precede those events. Even if you don’t know the exact date for when a scene takes place, you can still mark it down in the right general place.

5. Scene List

If you have a pretty good idea of the scenes that need to take place, or at least a good number of them, you can start by writing out a scene list. It’s nice to do them in a table if you can so you can organize important details, like chapter, scene number, date and location, who’s in it, and then a short summary. Though, how you organize it is up to you. If you prefer, you can just write the scene number and then a brief summary.

6. Story Structure Map

Some writers like to map out their story according to whatever story structure they want to follow. They’ll pull up a graphic or chart of the structure, transcribe it onto paper or into a document, and then note each relevant event for each structure “mile marker.”

7. Subway/Tube Map

This is a new one I recently heard about. I haven’t had a chance to try it yet, but I think it’s fascinating. And there are even subway map creators you can use if you don’t want to draw it out. Ultimately, the goal is to map out the events of your story in the style of a subway/tube map. This method makes it easy to illustrate subplots and see how they relate to the rest of your story.

8. The Mind Map

Mind maps can be a fantastic way to get the most important parts of your story out on paper, and to start figuring out where other parts fit in and how they relate to everything else.

9. Index Cards

Some writers have luck writing out key scenes, moments, bits of dialogue (or anything else they have in mind) on individual index cards, which can then be laid out in order on a table, allowing for cards to be easily moved around, added, subtracted, etc. until a more complete story starts to emerge. Some writers even invest in giant cork boards for this purpose. Others use a dry erase board and draw out the “cards” instead. A lot of story writing software, such as Scrivener, even includes digital bulletin boards and index cards that you can use to visualize your story.

10. Method/Theory/Template

There are numerous methods/theories/templates dedicated to building/fleshing out plots. Some to look into:

- The Snowflake Method- Dramatica Theory- Save the Cat! for Novels- The Hero’s Journey

If one of the above doesn’t work for you, you’re sure to find even more ideas online. Try doing a search for “how to outline a plot” or “outlining a novel” to see what comes up. You might even try searching for your favorite author’s name plus “outlining” to see if they’ve done any posts sharing their own methods. You may also want to look into books, software, and apps/web sites that offer ways to help you plot your story.

Good luck!

[writing-by-athena]

Dudes, just write. Stop asking me if you should start/continue/finish what you’re writing despite having x, y, or z problem. If you want to write I am in NO WAY authorized to tell you when to stop/start. That’s up to you and always will be.

If you think “no one will ever genuinely like this” you are 100% wrong. 100%. Think about all the trash out there that has fans. I wrote stuff when I was twelve that had more genuine fans among my family/classmates than ANYTHING I never shared with another living soul. It’s impossible to write something no one will like.

If you think “I’ll never finish it so why even bother?” you’re only depriving yourself, man. That’s like saying, “I like this cookie, but I can’t eat the whole bag. Guess I won’t even try one.” ????? Just write the story, to hell with endings. Some of the best works in the world went unfinished by the author/composer/architect, yet we admire the heck out of them. Maybe, instead of thinking you’ll never finish something, tell yourself this is the one you will finish (and repeat it until you do).

If you feel “this hurts to write, I’m too close to the subject material” either set it aside or full speed ahead. You MUST know how many classics, prize winners, and life changers came from someone’s very real pain and experience. Addicts, traumatized persons, victims, quite often they find solace and healing in writing about their experiences. Most importantly, so do their readers.

If you want to write, write. Otherwise only you are standing in the way of what you want.

[writing-by-athena]

I see a lot of writing tips and I post a lot of writing tips but I feel like I’ve been forgetting the most important one: you’ve gotta learn to trust yourself.

And I don’t mean that in sort of “uwu have faith in yourself! You can do it!!” kind of way. I’m not here to repeat empty affirmations–I’m saying you’ve consumed a lot of media over the years. You know what you like and what you don’t like. You have good taste. 

But if you’re like me, all that certainty goes out the window when you’re writing your own stuff. “Will the readers like that?” you think. “This is too weird. It’s unrelatable. Nobody else’s story looks like this–I must be doing something wrong.”

“This is silly,” you tell yourself. “Why do I even bother?”

And when you start doubting yourself like that, that’s the moment you stop creating. You get blocked and stressed and it gets all too easy to fall back on cliches and stereotypes. You start stripping away the things that make the story uniquely yours in order to make it look more like everyone else’s. 

Which is infinitely sad. 

You’ve lived a life no one else has seen, and you have ideas that nobody else in the world could think of. Even if the story has been ‘done’ before, there’s nobody else who can tell it like you. You can start with the most ‘cliche’ idea ever, but if you come at it with any measure of emotional honesty, it’ll still be new–because it’s being told by you. 

I just finished a draft of a book that’s probably the most painful thing I’ve written so far. It’s way out of my comfort zone, and I had to explore aspects of myself I prefer not to think about. I did a lot of second guessing, and a good bit of whimpering facedown on the floor because writing is scary and hard. 

And rereading the draft now, the absolute best parts are the bits where I gave up on convention and I wrote what I wanted exactly the way I wanted to write it. Yeah, it’s kinda silly and kinda dumb and kinda just a big load on nonsense–but it’s MY nonsense. If people like it, great. Wonderful. If they don’t like it, well–reading is a subjective experience, and maybe my work just isn’t for them. That’s okay. 

Be you. Be honestly, genuinely you. It’s a scary, vulnerable position to put yourself in, but… Even if you’re one in a million, there are 7,000 people just like you–and that’s 7,000 people who will read your work and go “this writer gets me.”

Write it for them. Write it for you. Create shamelessly. Learning to write is only half learning the craft–the other half is learning to trust in the value of the things you have to say.

[writing-by-athena]

One thing I’ve learned about writing is ”give everything a face”. It’s no good to write passively that the nobility fled the city or that the toxic marshes were poisoning the animals beyond any ability to function. Make a protagonist see how a desperate woman in torn silks climbs onto a carriage and speeds off, or a two-headed deer wanders right into the camp and into the fire. Don’t just have an ambiguous flock of all-controlling oligarchy, name one or two representatives of it, and illustrate just how vile and greedy they are as people.

it’s bad to have characters who serve no purpose in the story, but giving something a face is a perfectly valid purpose.

[writing-by-athena]

[I.D. A header image of two pencils on a yellow background, with title reading ‘Writing a Balanced Cast’. End I.D.]

Creating interesting characters is one of the most fun parts of writing, and there are loads of great posts with advice on how to do it. Something I see less often, though, is advice on creating a cast. You can have a load of characters that are all interesting individually, but when you try and put them together, something feels off, which is incredibly frustrating! In this post I’ll be looking at some ways to balance your main cast, so they play off each other in interesting ways.

Part One: Pairings

In order to make the most effective use of your cast, every potential pairing of characters should be interesting in some way. In order to make this happen, I like to make sure all the characters have complementary traits (i.e. something they can agree on and bond over) and clashing traits (i.e. something that could cause conflict between them).

For an example, I’ll look at Harry Potter, since that’s something most people know. With the golden trio, we have three possible pairings: Harry and Ron, Harry and Hermione, and Ron and Hermione.

Harry and Ron share a sense of humour, meaning they get along and become friends very quickly. However, they are also in entirely different economic situations (Harry has inherited a large amount of wealth that’s all his own, whereas Ron comes from a large family where limited resources are spread thin). Also, Ron has a supportive family, while Harry’s is… pretty appalling, so they can both be jealous of each other.

Harry and Hermione can bond over both being unaware of the wizarding world until they get their Hogwarts letters, but clash over their attitudes towards lessons (Harry is a bit blasé about his schoolwork, while Hermione is a swot).

Hermione and Ron can bond over their shared experience of prejudice (albeit for different reasons: Ron because of his class and Hermione because of being a muggleborn) but clash over their differing forms of intelligence (Hermione is intellectual, while Ron is more socially intelligent).

Part Two: Ensemble

The next step in creating an interesting cast is considering how they all fit together in a group. For maximum reader interest, the characters’ group dynamic should provide something different from when they’re on their own or paired. A good way of doing this is to have their shared traits be exacerbated when they’re together.

Again, Harry Potter works as an example. The trio share the traits of bravery and loyalty, and this is never clearer than when they’re working together. It often goes far enough to slip from bravery into recklessness, creating tension as they get into danger.

Group dynamics can also aggravate differences that are present in pairings. For an example that isn’t Harry Potter, let’s look at Avatar: The Last Airbender. Aang and Katara sometimes have small clashes over Aang’s goofiness and Katara’s seriousness, but when the whole Gaang is together, it’s much more noticeable. There is a clear divide between the ‘fun’ side (Aang, Sokka, and Toph) and the ‘serious’ side (Katara and Zuko).

Another thing to consider is that your main cast should all have an important role in resolving the plot—you can have the protagonist be the most prominent, but you don’t want your deuteragonists to feel extraneous or redundant. This is particularly true if you’re writing a ‘power of three’ story, where the story centres around a trio.

Part Three: Side Characters

The final tool in your kit for crafting an interesting cast is your array of side characters. These don’t have to be as deeply thought-out as your main cast, but here are a few tips for making them engaging (because you want them to feel like people, not just plot devices).

Pick a few traits per side character that you feel define them, and bring them to the fore. You spend a lot more time with the MCs, so you can afford to be subtle about their traits. This isn’t the case for side characters, so in order for them to make an impact it can help for their personalities to be a little (or a lot, if it fits the style of your story) heightened.

Another aspect of this is that for side characters to be memorable, they have to be distinct from each other. If they aren’t, they can slide together in readers’ minds. Avoid generic redshirts—unless they’re thematically appropriate, I guess!

Like with your MCs, it’s good for the supporting cast to play off other characters. Obviously having a relationship planned between every single character in your novel is just unrealistic, but you can consider what traits your side characters bring out in your main cast. It’s particularly effective if side characters highlight traits in your protagonist that the other main characters don’t.

And there we have it! Characters are my favourite part of writing, and I love exploring how they fit together. I hope you find as much enjoyment in figuring out this puzzle as I do!

Like this post? Follow for more writerly content! It’ll be lovely to have you along :D

[writing-by-athena]

Do you remember when you were younger? And you found that book? The one that made your heart soar and your skin tingle with the magic of adventure?

Your WIP could be that book for someone someday.

Keep going. Don’t stop writing.

[writing-by-athena]

How to write a character-driven plot

The Character-Driven Plot Wheel

1. Emotions drive actions.

Make your hero act on their deepfelt emotions. This not only adds meaning to their actions, but also helps communicate to readers your hero’s core emotional struggle.

2. Actions trigger consequences.

When your hero acts, give their actions consequences that affect the plot, themselves, and/or the surrounding characters. For example, driven by curiosity, maybe your hero opens Pandora’s box; maybe they act recklessly and someone dies; or maybe they stand up for what they believe in, but at great personal cost. Consequences raise the stakes and empower your hero with agency.

3. Consequences compel change.

Use the consequences of your hero’s actions to create a crucible of growth — challenges and situations that force them to take the next step on their character journey. That step may be forward, or backward, and it may be large or small; but something inside them changes.

4. Change influences emotions.

When a character goes through a change, even a small one, allow it to affect them emotionally. Maybe they feel increasingly frustrated or guilty. Maybe they’re afraid, having just taken another step closer to abandoning their old way of seeing the world. Or maybe they finally feel peace.

Regardless of the form it takes, remember to reflect your hero’s change in their emotions. Then let their emotions drive action, to trigger consequences, which will compel further change.

Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

And there you have it! That’s how you write a character-driven plot.

So what do you say?

Give the wheel a spin.

— — —

Your stories are worth telling. For tips on how to craft meaning, build character-driven plots, and grow as a writer, follow my blog.

[writing-by-athena]

child handling for the childless nurse

My current job has me working with children, which is kind of a weird shock after years in environments where a “young” patient is 40 years old.  Here’s my impressions so far:

Birth - 1 year: Essentially a small cute animal.  Handle accordingly; gently and affectionately, but relying heavily on the caregivers and with no real expectation of cooperation.

Age 1 - 2: Hates you.  Hates you so much.  You can smile, you can coo, you can attempt to soothe; they hate you anyway, because you’re a stranger and you’re scary and you’re touching them.  There’s no winning this so just get it over with as quickly and non-traumatically as possible.

Age 3 - 5: Nervous around medical things, but possible to soothe.  Easily upset, but also easily distracted from the thing that upset them.  Smartphone cartoons and “who wants a sticker?!!?!?” are key management techniques.

Age 6 - 10: Really cool, actually.  I did not realize kids were this cool.  Around this age they tend to be fairly outgoing, and super curious and eager to learn.  Absolutely do not babytalk; instead, flatter them with how grown-up they are, teach them some Fun Gross Medical Facts, and introduce potentially frightening experiences with “hey, you want to see something really cool?”

Age 11 - 14: Extremely variable.  Can be very childish or very mature, or rapidly switch from one mode to the other.  At this point you can almost treat them as an adult, just… a really sensitive and unpredictable adult.  Do not, under any circumstances, offer stickers.  (But they might grab one out of the bin anyway.)

Age 15 - 18: Basically an adult with severely limited life experience.  Treat as an adult who needs a little extra education with their care.  Keep parents out of the room as much as possible, unless the kid wants them there.  At this point you can go ahead and offer stickers again, because they’ll probably think it’s funny.  And they’ll want one.  Deep down, everyone wants a sticker.

[writing-by-athena]

So this is kinda random and weird, but do you have any tips/suggestions on how to reveal backstory? I’ve got my character’s backstory all planned out and it’s essential to the story, I just can’t think of a way to talk about it with giving an info dump. Thanks!

Sure no problem! I actually have a bit of a pattern I do when doing character backstory reveals! I may or may not have learned it from watching Avatar: The Last Airbender several times, and I have named it just now: 

Little Hints, Big Reveal.

Ok so the first thing is, obviously, to give Little Hints. Don’t do info dumps at the beginning, that’s the rule about info dumps. Not at the beginning. You can have Little Hints be things like:

something a person says (Avatar Example: Iroh asks Zuko if he remembers what happened “the last time you dueled a master”, it pans over to show only Zuko’s scar, and he says “I will never forget”)

something a person does (Avatar Example: Zuko’s general aggression hinting at his past)

what their goals are (Avatar Example: Zuko is focused on finding the Avatar, and the reason for that is tied to his backstory)

honestly things they wear/what they look like (Avatar Example: Zuko has a giant burn on the side of his face. What the heck is up with that?)

how other people act around them (Avatar Example: People are pretty wary around Zuko, except for Iroh. Does Iroh know something we don’t?)

Any of other hints you can think of! As long as they don’t outright tell you what happened/their backstory, then it’s good!

Now, we get to the Big Reveal. Now, this is gonna sound a lot like an info-dump, and that’s because it is! But the key is, it’s not all the info. Here’s the thing: 

Info dumps are okay. You just don’t want an overwhelming amount on info. 

Now here’s my Avatar Example: Season 1, Episode 12: The Storm. This is the episode where you get the info dump of Zuko’s backstory. 

BUT HERE’S THE THING: You don’t just get an info dump on Zuko, you also get one on Aang. This is where you need to get creative with your info-dumping because the way the writers of Avatar avoiding the overwhelming amount of info is they alternated between storylines. There were three storylines in that episode: 1. Zuko’s Backstory, 2. Aang’s Backstory, and 3. Sokka getting caught in a storm on a fishing boat. That way, you got a bit of each story line, but didn't get bored!

Now don’t worry, there’s more than one way to do this besides having multiple storylines, though that is a great option:

my personal favorite are when something happens and a character gets angry and basically spills their heart out to everyone. It’s the one that happens most in my writing, I call them Rants (like a normal rant but with a capital R for Emphasis)

a character sticks their nose where it doesn’t belong. Oops I just read your diary, oops I went into your secret vault and found a bunch of crazy shit, oops just overheard you and your family arguing, oops I pestered your friend into telling me what was going on (needless to say, these are called Oopsies, cuz I’m original)

something tied to their backstory comes back to haunt them and they have to explain what’s going on. Some examples are: an illness getting worse, a person from their past showing up, a literal ghost coming to haunt them, etc. (I of course call these Old Ghosts)

Any other ways you can think of, this bit is usually more invested in the story, it’s different for each book!

NOW HERE’S A IMPORTANT POINT: DO NOT GIVE ALL THE INFORMATION! There must be more left to learn after this info dump!

Because here’s the thing...

They give you Zuko’s backstory, but not all of it. They make sure you still have more to learn. We learn that Zuko’s father was the one who burned him, but we still have questions! You know why?

Because they gave us more little hints!!!!! What’s Zuko’s dad look like?? Who’s this gal in the front row who looks like she’s really enjoying this??? Will Zuko learn to be better somehow??? AAAAA

And like the like the cycle of the Avatar, it starts all over again. More Little Hints, more Big Reveals. 

The number of hints and reveals varies from story to story based on how long it is, but in my experience, there are often at least 2 big reveals for a character: One at the Climax/Middle, and one at the End. This is not a required rule, it’s just something I have personally observed. 

I hope this helps!! Let me know what you all think!

[writing-by-athena]

to all my writer friends out there.

[writing-by-athena]

WriterofthePrompts Ultimate Ask Masterlist 2 (Updated 05/20)

Wow, first of all I just want to say THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the support on the First Ask Masterlist! Obviously I had to make a second one with all the asks I’ve answered since then so here you go. You can also check out my list of Random Writing Tips. As last time, some of these posts have notes from lovely people who have added onto my answers with their advice and you can also help out fellow writers by adding your tips or ideas to the posts in the replies or by reblogging. Hope you enjoy! 😊

Writing Tips

Can’t think of what to write for a scene? Cut it.

The “organized chaos” form of outlining

Resources for writing a story synopsis

Can a comedy also have a good message?

Writing a fantasy fit for most ages (also under Fantasy)

When you’ve got an idea but don’t know how to expand it

Building on your story yourself  

Will posting writing online hurt publishing chances?

Using a prompt for a series

Ways to give information to a character

How to give the same information to multiple characters at different times

Dialogue tips

Coming up with a title (expanded)

Making the real villain a plot twist 

GRAMMAR CHEAT SHEET

Some resources for creating a language

How to decide if you want a good or sad ending (Also, how not to screw up an ending) (Also, why the GoT ending makes me sad)

How to skip over the passage fo time in writing (Part 1)

How to use scene breaks for the passage of time, change in location etc. (Part 2)

Story Structure Tips

Travelling scenes: when to skip and how to make them impactful

Writing a sloooow carriage ride without being boring 

Moving back and forth in time in the story

difference between inciting incident and plot point 1

Blending backstory with present to further the plot

Writing scenes with a lot of characters

Writing a story as a journal or video log style

Third or first person?

Limited third person vs first person

Writing a long series

Connecting your ideas

When to introduce major and minor conflicts

How to develop your own style of writing

When to describe a character

Motivation and Positivity

Worrying about “originality” with your writing

Staying focused on writing

Sticking to one idea before moving on to the next?

Turning off the editor voice

starting to write and keeping motivation

quick tip on writing down inspiration in the moment

How do you know you are cut out to be a writer?

When you feel your plot isn’t exciting enough

When you think your idea is stupid (it’s not)

On covid-19 and whether I think it’s “bad” to take inspiration from it

When you think you’re writing has lost feeling

Character Development

Writing unnecessary scenes with your characters just for fun

Tips for writing a fully-fledged peppy girl

Teen raised by twenty-year-old family member

Mentor/Mentee relationship

Describing nature the way a nature-lover would

Showing a dead family member’s impact on the MC

Writing about a character losing loved one

Ways to show a character’s disgust 

Why a “good” character would switch to the bad side

Why the “White Saviour” thing is a cliche and sucks

Villains who do things like “killing the dog”

Good and bad reasons to kill off a character

Character exercise when you lose their voice

Resources for learning more for a Jewish character (in the notes)

A reason a character might feel cliche

Representations of Gluttony and Laziness as humans

More on twins and siblings

How a tough character might react to something shocking/upsetting

Writing Types of Characters

Writing a good guy MC who turns out to be the villain

Bad guy turning good and making them sympathetic

Dr. Doof: how to write a great villain

Coming up with villains

Coming up with villains 2

Writing a scheming character

A character raised by a computer

Bilingual character tip

Interracial couples

Some negative traits for someone in a zombie apocalypse

Flaws for a Gary Stu type 

a character trying to learn the language on a new world (also under World Building)

Good guy vs bad guy stories aren’t a cliche

Writing a CIA/FBI/Military character (also under Thriller)

writing a drunk character with some heartfelt moments and humour

Why NOT having diversity in your story cast is odd

A character with diabetes

Fictional races where one is “superior” to the other

Writing a serial killer as your main character (also under Thriller/Crime)

Writing a good Strong Female Character™️ 

Writing about a mob character (also under Thriller)

Writing a female astronomer in ancient Greece (Also under Historical)

Shy characters don’t have to be passive

Shyness and confidence aren’t mutually exclusive

World Building

Creating a creation myth

The creation of gods based on people’s beliefs

History research post (also under Historical)

Making an acronym from an organization

Naming world building aspects

strange weather ideas

ideas for ridiculous rules to join an excuse club

Why someone would put on a massive tournament

a character trying to learn the language on a new world (also under Types of Characters)

Making a magical setting exciting (also under fantasy/paranormal)

When you have too much information for an expansive world

Weaving a complex magic system into your story (also under fantasy/paranormal)

Using words referring to our world in a fictional world

Fantasy/Paranormal

Why gods would abandon their world

Aphrodite, Hephaestus and Ares: the original love triangle

basing gods on multiple gods

Why someone would control dreams

Dark fantasy with a dream shop

Conflicts for someone with the power to share dreams with others *

Ways to break a curse

Reasons why someone would need to break their curse now

Coming up with a good curse for your character

Ways to break the curse to get the Prince out of the tower

When the princess rescues the prince

Prince/ss of one kingdom raised by another king

why a princess would run away

Prompts for a King or Queen getting assassinated *

Why a villain would overthrow a royal family *

Reasons two Kings would marry each other *

which fairytales deserve retellings

Fairy tale prompts

Using fairytale characters in retellings

Stories written from the POV of fairytale villains

Writing a fantasy fit for most ages (also under Writing Tips)

Friendship between a dragon and a human

Vampire and human couple meeting

Angel and ex-demon hanging out together

demons that feed on love and joy?

mythical kids meeting humans

Sword fight resources (also under Historical)

Using an axe as a weapon

Haunted house story from ghost’s perspective

A family moves in to a house that is alive 

Does the afterlife have to include religious aspects?

Writing the grief of a girl finding her friend as a ghost

Witch sisters with unequal powers 

Reasons a village would be afraid of a kind wizard

How a wizard’s guardian might tell them they are a wizard

Making a magical setting exciting (also under world building) 

Weaving a complex magic system into your story (also under world building) 

Things a magic council would use money for 

Ideas for magical powers

Ideas for ancient magical powers

Prompts about cities that are always in night 

Prompts about a changeling

Reasons a magical world would need a saviour 

mirroring strengths and weaknesses for magic manipulation

How an immortal could die under mysterious circumstances

How to get regular folk involved in a magical world

“Underused" fantasy settings

Funny dialogue making fun of fantasy cliches

Prompts about a hidden/occult society

Autumn prompts about fae

Manatees being confused for mermaids

Fantasy modes of communication

Sci Fi

Futuristic space pirates

How to tell who is the clone and who is the original

Artifacts curious aliens would steal from Earth

Weird things that would wipe out a part of the population

How a person could go back in time

Question prompts for a virtual afterlife

How a half-human character might realize their alien half

“Non cliche” ideas for an apocalypse story

Time travel prompts for the current era

Historical

Writing about the Tudor court

History research post (also under World Building)

Sword fight resources

Using an axe as a weapon

Quick reasons why genocide doesn’t just happen overnight

Writing a female astronomer in ancient Greece (also under Types of Characters)

Dragons in Ancient Egypt?

Writing about WOC in the 1950’s

Aftermaths of a civil war

Thriller/Crime (aka I-swear-I’m-not-a-criminal-just-a-writer asks):

writing assassins

Sassy Assassins 3!

How an assassin with special abilities would discover these abilities

Clues that would make a character suspect another for murder

Writing a CIA/FBI/Military character (also under Types of Characters)

Serial/mass murder…causes?

tests to get into secret organization

Writing a serial killer as your main character (also under Writing Types of Characters)

Tips for writing a consistent murder mystery

Murder mystery party prompts (humorous)

How to come up with subplots for a mystery

Writing about a mob character (also under Writing Types of Character)

Why a step father might be a suspect in a teen’s disappearance

Prompts of killer kids terrorizing their babysitter

Prompts about a college kid being stalked on campus

The Masked Sinner prompts

Prompts about a crime scheme in 1950’s

Superheroes and Super Villains

Sidekick wanting to be a superhero

Super villain cause ideas

Sidekick and villain falling in love (also under Romance)

Superhero story originality

How a super villain can get notoriety

Woman unknowingly falls in love a super villain

World building ideas for superhero stories

Effects of the power of intangibility

Alter ego prompts

Romance

How a princess and a pirate fall in love

two exes who end up working together

How two random kids could meet at school

Sidekick and villain falling in love (also under Superheroes)

Cliches in romance scene?

Original ways that a couple could break up

How to introduce a living girl and ghost love interests

Conflicts in relationship between chef and their pupil

Miscellaneous

Prompts about being abandoned

Character who has never danced in pressured into it

The best ask ever

MC and sister get kicked out of clan. What next? 

Reasons characters would hate another (a concubine)

A disturbing cultish 1950’s-esque town

Some links to help find Beta readers

Why a principal would hate a student

Why a character would forgive their ex

Prompts about anomalies

Reasons a parent would be controlling

[writing-by-athena]

bad writing advice: you should not EVER NEVER do this thing

good writing advice: everyone’s style is different. there’s no rules set in stone about how to be a good writer. develop your own style and run far with it. it doesn’t have to be perfect. there’s thousands of people out there searching for something new and unique. no matter what, someone out there will always read and be interested in your work. you can become someone’s favorite author by just being yourself.

[writing-by-athena]

Writing Slow-Burn Romances

@not-the-girl-u-think​ said:

Hey Abby! Any tips for a slow burn romance??

Let’s start with a little thingy first: slow-burns, when done well, are my favorite thing to read. I love the suspense that comes with them, that feeling when you know they’re going to get to together but you’re on the edge of your seat wondering if it’ll happen anyway. That stuff melts my heart, so I’m really, really happy that you sent this.

What is a slow-burn?

Slow-burns are great because they work both as a main or a subplot. They’re extremely character-oriented romances that take a while (usually an entire book or, in some cases, an entire series) to develop. Oh, and they have a talent for making people like me freak out over every little detail.

From a writer’s perspective, a slow-burn is a pain in the neck. You want everything to go at the right pace with the right chemistry enough that it seems like everything happens naturally. You don’t want things to go too slow or too fast, but you don’t want the reader to be rushed or bored either. Two characters are needed that would making a slow-burn seem worth it to pursue, and there lies the issue.

Creating the Chemistry

This part of the post is going to build pretty heavily on this post about writing believable romances. As you’ve (hopefully) guessed, your main goal for creating a successful slow-burn should be to achieve realism. Creating chemistry between characters is a balance of everything you’ve learned about writing romance.

In order for two (or more) characters to have good chemistry, they have to be compatible. One of the biggest giveaways of an under-developed romance is seeing two characters forced together when you know it wouldn’t happen in real life. When I say “balance”, what I mean is this: your characters can’t only have traits that fit well together, but they also can’t be constantly conflicting. 

People tend to like a challenge, so if their partner or partners just go along with everything they say it won’t become so much fun. However, constantly having to fight against the person/people you’re supposed to be with is physically and mentally exhausting. Once you get to this point, it’s easy to question whether this relationship is worth it.

This balance that you achieve is especially important because it’s one you’re going to be working with all throughout the development of this relationship. If there’s a trait you’re not necessarily “good” at writing, practice is going to be your best friend. You’ll need to know how their traits go together, where they clash and where they blend and where they don’t really act the way someone would expect.

The Relationship “Basis”

A slow-burn, as you know, doesn’t just happen. There are precursors, usually with them starting off as friends or a friend of a friend. Something was there first, and whatever this “something” was will have a pretty large effect on their current relationship.

If they were previously best friends, they’re probably already comfortable with each other. Depending on the length and depth of their friendship, taking it to a romantic level might not change anything other than the addition of kissing and… other activities.

If the previous relationship was based on a mutual dependency, depending on their personalities they might become more less dependent on each other. They might go out and learn/try new things together and use the codependency to help each other out, or they might make an effort to get a little more independent so they’re not constantly relying on each other.

You’ll want to consider how they met in the first place, and why they started talking in the first place. Was it a funny joke, a chance meeting on a vacation, something like tutoring at first? This basis will be the precedent for the relationship, and in my opinion it’s too important to be forgotten about.

Hinting at a Romance

Romance between people happens in weird ways. Sometimes someone points it out or sometimes it happens like in that one Tumblr post where one little thing happens and then it’s there. Sometimes it’s a stolen glance across the room or a game of spin the bottle gone wrong.

When there are situations involving a forcing of romantic interaction, the characters involved are absolutely correct to be made uncomfortable by this situation. I’ve seen too many stories where characters don’t act like themselves in these moments for purely the purpose of bringing in this romance… don’t do that.

What I tend to lean to are weird thoughts about the possibility of a romantic future and those thoughts that hit you unexpectedly. “Woah, I bet A would love this.” Things like that are what I usually do, just because that’s how I’ve always experienced things. If you want to go beyond your own perspective, ask your friends. It could definitely be a weird question, so if you’re not comfortable with that then Google will be your friend.

Everything else in a slow-burn is so character-oriented that there’s not really any more general advice I could give. Thanks again so much for asking, I hope this helps!