in writing, there’s nothing wrong with stumbling over the wrong words before you find the right ones

sometimes I forget that and I put a lot of pressure on myself to make it perfect the first time around

but my best writing has always needed revision, so I need to stop being afraid of fucking up

it’ll all be fine, and it’ll get done

just gotta keep pushing

things that say a lot about people:

• the way which they treat the waiter/waitress
• how they feel about the weather
• whether they dog ear pages or highlight in books 
• fingernails 
• and hands in general
• their preferred creative outlet
• how much they dread/enjoy talking on the phone
• whether or not they drink coffee
• if they ever forget to eat
• how honest they are with themselves (and others)
• if they correct your grammar
• how they treat their parents

(Source: younghabitats, via 01012012)

niqi:

So basically Lemony Snicket predicted tumblr.

(Source: baryshnikovs-bulge-42, via teenaged-wolf)

This, I can answer!

Alright. 1. Don’t wait for an epiphany. Seriously, don’t. You’ll lose steam, and they rarely show up when you actually need or want them. Just accept that a lot of what you write will be carved out once the piece is done, and that’s okay. Editing is a natural part of writing.

2. If you already have the timeline in your head, write it down for your reference. Colour code it, if need be. That should solidify the bits that you don’t understand and reinforce the parts that you know.

3. Short stories are a really different medium than serial pieces or novels. You don’t need to build up to an event - you can just throw yourself in there and explain retroactively. Here’s the real question that you ought to ask yourself: “if I were to start [here], [here] or [here], how much would the reader understand? How much of that exposition is actually necessary to understanding the point of my short story?”

My favourite quote concerning short stories is along the lines of “Come in late, leave early”. It’s normal for you to want to fill in the gaps completely, but the exciting part about reading is trying to fill in the gaps as you go - especially if there’s a twist somewhere. What mood are you trying to establish with this story? What’s your message? As Mr. Poe said, “A short story must have a single mood and every sentence must build towards it.” If your story has a shit-ton of stuff going on in it, maybe it would work better as a longer piece, or you need to carve it down a bit. That’s okay. Seriously.

SO, TL;DR: Start late, leave early. Accept revision - it makes for a stronger piece. Give your audience credit, and let them fill in the blanks as they go.  Do not fear the blank page. It’ll all be okay. <3

USEFUL LINKS THAT YOU MIGHT LIKE:

Written? Kitten! - for every 100 words, you get a new cat picture. ‘Nuff said.

Write for Ten - encourages you to freewrite by giving you a countdown timer. Do some stream-of-consciousness work - that’s always helpful.

Good luck, my dear! YOU CAN DO EET. I hope this was actually helpful and not overwhelming, haha. <3

jlmdemon:

startrek-marysues:

that70srpc:

I find that, when writing bios, it’s really helpful to look at a list or a chart like the one above. Picking two or three traits from each chart and building a character based around them will give you a really interesting bio, because they will serve as a reminder that characters need depth and dimension.

Independent and clever.

VS.

Independent, clever, pretentious, and stubborn.

The first combination doesn’t come with any flaws, whereas the second will provide a more dynamic character.

HEY GUYS, this showed up on my dash this morning, and I thought it would be helpful if any of you are writing characters and don’t want them to come out as picture-perfect Mary Sues! :) 

One thing I’d like to add, though, is that you should make sure the character traits don’t conflict in an oxymoronic way…. for example: Ambitious and lazy, or patient and impulsive. WAT. (Believe it or not, I HAVE seen it happen before! Don’t do it!!)

I looked through this, and i realized I have three from each for two characters in a story I’m writing.
Oliver is:
Impulsive, stubborn and impulsive, but also loyal caring and confident.
Dia Is:
Distrusting,  suspicious and inhibited, but also caring, patient and persistent. 

AWESOME. Using this! :D

(If you need a broader list of negatives and positives, this site is golden! It has TONS, and they’re split up into attributes / attitudes / social endowments and skills, and they have the opposites in a table next to each other. :D !!! USE THIS TOO!)

(Source: dunst-rph, via type40)

coelasquid:

I feel like if you’re writing a novel, it’s kind of like being handed a graphite pencil and told you can draw anything you want on as big a canvas as you want, but it can only be in pencil. Making a comic book is kind of like getting a box of coloured pencils and being told you can do whatever you want with them, but you have to keep it on an 18” x 24” sheet of paper. Making a movie is like being told you can use any kind of media you want any way you want, but you have to fit your whole project on an index card.

Yeah, basically. But the challenge is what makes it fun.

Or maybe I’m masochistic, idek. Haha.

What's wrong with the Hero's Journey

unatheblade:

I have trouble articulating my problems with Joseph Campbell, or at least people who use his “Hero with a Thousand Faces” as a storytelling paint-by-numbers kit. This article does a good job of expressing it for me. 

Also this: http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/09/07/arts/television/100000001039812/a-clip-from-stand-in.html

… both of these links are pretty useful, actually.

You have no idea how tempted I am to cite Film Critic Hulk in my final dissertation bibliography. Not even kidding.

(via kilomonster)

Queen of All She Can See: Gee, I don't know how to research writing Characters of Color tastefully:

missturdle:

• So You Want to Write a Fantasy: Writing Female Characters
• So You want to Write a Fantasy: Culture
• SYWTWAF: Writing What you Don’t know
• A list of adjectives to describe physical attributes, Or, As it turns out, I could go to Starbucks with half this list
• Unpacking the Invisible…

damn, this is useful

will keep an eye on this

(Source: turdlewexler)

“I must get back into the world of my creative mind: otherwise, I die. I must be lean and write and make worlds beside this to live in.”