zmwrites - Tumblr blog

[zmwrites]

probably shitty worldbuilding idea: fantasy world that keeps going

[zmwrites]

there’s like one post left in my queue, i’ll try to add more but i don’t know if i’ll have time :(

[zmwrites]

Being a novelist is just adding a bunch of other extraneous bullshit onto playing dollies

[zmwrites]

I could fix him. I could make him worse. Good for you. I could gently take the weapon out of his shaking, blood-soaked hand and hold him until he finally believes that he doesn't have to be defined by all the ways the world has hurt him. Then we could ruin the lives of everyone who has ever treated him like he's a monster who doesn't deserve love.

[zmwrites]

nothing makes u feel stupid quite like being a writer. out here googling “rooms in a house” to make sure i didn’t forget one of em. blockhead behavior.

[zmwrites]

Hello Tumblr Writers!

Are you having trouble organizing your thoughts on the page?

Does your writing feel repetitive or incomplete?

Do you just want someone to look over the spelling and grammar?

Let me edit for you!

Services I Offer

Proofreading is checking spelling, grammar, punctuation, and layout. This is the most basic kind of editing but actually happens last—it’s very difficult to properly proofread something that is disorganized or needs more work. If you've already gone over everything and are sure it's all where it's supposed to be, I recommend the proofreading service to catch the grammatical and spelling errors that you might've missed.

Copy editing includes proofreading and checking the formatting and style. This would include making sure everything follows the style guide you’re using, such as APA, MLA, or CMoS. I recommend this more for academic writers because professors and journals are usually very strict about following style guides.

Line editing focuses on the flow of the writing on a paragraph level—things like word choice, sentence structure, and concision. I recommend this service if you feel that you're having trouble finding the right words to communicate your idea or if your writing feels too wordy.

Content editing focuses on the flow of writing on a chapter or section level—things like rearranging or deleting paragraphs and pointing out incomplete sections to improve readability. I recommend this service if you want help organizing your writing or identifying places that need more work.

Types of Writing I Edit

Fiction

My favorite genres are fantasy, sci fi, and horror, but I can edit whatever genre you write

I prefer not to edit graphic/explicit sex scenes, but it’s negotiable

I will not edit anything that supports racist, sexist, queerphobic, xenophobic, or other bigoted ideologies

Any length, from comic panels to novels

Nonfiction

Persuasive essays, informational texts, instructional guides, etc.

Any length

Academic

Anything you’re going to submit for a grade or evaluation

I have degrees in applied linguistics/discourse studies, anthropology, and psychology, so I’m best able to edit those subjects and related or similar subjects

For other subjects, message me about your writing and I’ll tell you what I can do with it

To avoid issues of academic integrity and fraud, I offer more limited services for academic writing. Message me for more information

Minimum 1000 words (about 4 double-spaced pages)

Rates

Proofreading: $15 USD per 1000 words

Copy editing: $17 USD per 1000 words

Line editing: $20 USD per 1000 words

Content editing: $22 USD per 1000 words

Rates may be negotiable on a case-by-case basis.

If you feel self-conscious about the quality of your writing, don’t worry! I understand that English is a difficult language, that getting words on the page is a hassle, that sometimes what's in our brains doesn't want to show up on the page (there's a reason I'm an editor and not a writer). I'm not here to judge your handle on language; I'm here to help you express your ideas and communicate effectively with your audience. I also have experience working with ESL writers and can explain both the basic rules of English and the complex things that even native English writers have trouble with.

[zmwrites]

It really sucks that creative people are now also expected become their own marketing team or become experts in business ventures in order to keep making art. Literally cannot think of a group of people less inclined to tedious number punching work than passionate artists.

[zmwrites]

That post that's like "stop writing characters who talk like they're trying to get a good grade in therapy" really blew the door wide open for me about how common it's become for a character's emotional intelligence to not be taken into consideration when writing conflict. I remember the first time I went to therapy I had such a hard time even identifying what I was feeling, let alone had the language to explain it to someone else. Of course there are plenty of people who've never been to therapy a day in their life who are in tune to their emotions. But even they would have some trouble expressing themselves sometimes. You have to take into account there are plenty of people who are uncomfortable expressing themselves and people who think they're not allowed to feel certain ways. It also makes for more interesting conflict to have characters with different levels of understanding.

[zmwrites]

i love characters who lie. i love when a character is established as a capital L Liar and then we as the audience can’t take anything they say at face value. i love liars fakers schemers deceivers. characters whose tongues are outright necrotic with the rot of their lies. characters to whom truth is a stranger. i am kissing them on the lips btw it tastes disgusting

[zmwrites]

writers and artists will go "this isn't good enough." my brother in christ, you're creating something new out of nothing and expressing yourself creatively. your productivity and unrealistic standards of perfection do not define you or the worth of your art. you're doing great.

[zmwrites]

Ugh, was having a great time mocking my recently imprisoned rival when I noticed the camera positioning makes it so that I appear behind the bars, thus framing me as trapped in a metaphorical prison of the narrative, now my whole day is ruined. Fuck.

[zmwrites]

@oldshrewsburyian tagged me hehe

summarize your wips badly and let people vote on which one is the most interesting

tagging:

@stupid-elf @raevenlywrites @paperfury @wolfythewitch @zmwrites and anyone else who wants to do this :))

[zmwrites]

@oleander-teacup tagged me, so this should be fun :)

Summarize your WIPs badly and let people vote on which sound the most interesting

And many more (Tumblr only allows 11 answers) ✨ please help

[zmwrites]

if you're worried about repetitive sentence starters in narrative writing (ie: frequently starting with "I" or a pov character's name), i think the most important thing to focus on is not the kind of words you're using, but rather the moving parts in your story that are being highlighted.

english is best suited for a subject (I) - verb (wrote) - object (this) sentence structure; that's the format that the reader will inhale without noticing, easy as breathing. it's also the easiest for you to write (hence, your draft full of sentences starting with pronouns). for a lot of the delivery of your story, you should be in that "stealth mode" so that the lines you want noticed can really leap off the page in comparison. messing with the subject-verb-object pattern signals to the reader that there's something to notice, and writing is awkward when it's full of sentences that say, "look at me!"

if you're worried about variation of sentence starters, you want to zoom out on the narrative and think about the scene you are trying to show, or the point you are trying to make. let's do an example from my own writing:

That’s not all true. Baz had already mapped out the best regular flights from Heathrow to LAX. He was talking about weekend trips in the middle and FaceTime date ideas he’d found on Pinterest. It filled Simon with dread. Baz wasn’t taking any of it seriously. As silly as the role was, everyone knew Bad Blood was going to be huge. Baz was the exciting, fresh face joining a star-studded cast for the most audience-friendly teen vampire show in history. Simon wasn’t going to let him blow it.

all the blue sentences follow, in general, that subject-verb-object pattern. the pink sentence is the outlier, and it's also the most significant line in the paragraph; in this story, this is the moment where you finally learn simon's motivation for previously breaking up with baz. the rest of the sentences all start with a noun, but they're different nouns based on what needs to be said.

here's another way this could be written:

Simon knows that's not all true. He'd watched Baz map out the best regular flights from Heathrow to LA and look up FaceTime date ideas. Simon worried that Baz wasn't taking it seriously. He knew Bad Blood would be huge, despite the concept being silly. But Simon knew Baz was the exciting, fresh face joining a star-studded cast for the most audience-friendly, sexy teen vampire show in history. Simon wasn't going to let him blow it.

this probably looks more similar to the kind of paragraph people get nervous about. simon simon simon -- like, stfu man! what's really happening is just that simon is not the best subject for all of these sentences. it's true that "simon knows" and "simon watched" and "simon knew," but we already know all that, because we know we're in his head. when you look at paragraphs like these, you want to identify the true subject of your sentences. even in the most introspective of paragraphs (like the above example), the narrator is usually not the Most Important Noun.

let's do one more example for when you're writing really menial tasks -- this is where i most commonly have this problem:

Andrew turns on the TV, puts the volume almost all the way down, and crouches in front of the DVD collection. His fingers trail along the spines for a moment before he pulls a case from the shelf. The player swallows the disc as Andrew crosses the room to turn out the lights. Tinged blue in the shadows, he comes to stand in front of Neil again, hand extended in demand.

so, same thing: the subjects, the nouns taking action, are andrew, his fingers, the dvd player, and then andrew again with a modifier. the first time i wrote this, i'm sure "andrew" or "he" was the start of every sentence, because my man is just doing his lil task here and sometimes that's not the most exciting thing to write. but again: it's not all about him! other nouns deserve the spotlight. the last sentence breaks the pattern, but it's also the completion of the task: he has successfully set the movie-watching scene, and this sentence is transitioning us to them watching the movie.

there's lots of ways to write and i definitely don't have all the answers, but i do think that any writing advice that asks you to focus on mechanics rather than structure will ultimately not help you solve the root of bad writing habits. when i write, i'm thinking: what's the main player noun in the action taking place? that's what becomes the subject of my sentence, so my starters are naturally a lot more varied. it's less intimidating to think about the purpose of your story (which you're already excited about!) when you're writing than it is to put that focus on mechanics.

good luck! you've got this!!

[zmwrites]

I love u angry female characters. I love u deeply misunderstood and problematic female characters. I love u cold hearted and sharp female characters. I love you prideful and reckless female characters. I love u unbeautifly destructive female characters. I love u prickly and snarky female characters. not everyone understands u but I do and I'm listening

[zmwrites]

cemeteries aren’t creepy they’re actually devoted to memory and rest and love and humanity

[zmwrites]

Prompt #1077

"You called me."

"And you really came."