“The Prettier The Garden, The Dirtier The Hands Of The Gardener.”

“The prettier the garden, the dirtier the hands of the gardener.”

— B. E. Barnes 

More Posts from Justanothergirlsblog and Others

4 years ago

“You were unsure which pain is worse: the shock of what happened or the ache for what never will.”

— Simon Van Booy

4 years ago

I was getting pretty fed up with links and generators with very general and overused weapons and superpowers and what have you for characters so:

Here is a page for premodern weapons, broken down into a ton of subcategories, with the weapon’s region of origin. 

Here is a page of medieval weapons.

Here is a page of just about every conceived superpower.

Here is a page for legendary creatures and their regions of origin.

Here are some gemstones.

Here is a bunch of Greek legends, including monsters, gods, nymphs, heroes, and so on. 

Here is a website with a ton of (legally attained, don’t worry) information about the black market.

Here is a website with information about forensic science and cases of death. Discretion advised. 

Here is every religion in the world. 

Here is every language in the world.

Here are methods of torture. Discretion advised.

Here are descriptions of the various methods used for the death penalty. Discretion advised.

Here are poisonous plants.

Here are plants in general.

Feel free to add more to this!

4 years ago

“Do you think the universe fights for souls to be together? Some things are too strange and strong to be coincidences.”

— Emery Allen

4 years ago

“We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone.”

— Ronald Reagan 

4 years ago

How I Edit A First Draft

*Repost*

What is UP y'all I got like four hours of sleep which is always fantastic! This is a wicked old post I made that the majority of y’all haven’t seen! As always, any more stuff you want to ask/add specifically feel free! As a young author myself with limited experience, I just wanted to help those who don’t really know where to start or are looking for other methods! 

First, Don’t Get Discouraged!

This sounds like a basic thing, but nobody really likes editing their own stuff! It’s so easy to call it bad and just shove it in a folder to never look at again. Just remember everything you do is to make it the best it can possibly be and it’s pretty darn heccin good now! Completing drafts are fricken hard, and you’ve made it so far! Writing routines and Pinterest are my major sources of inspiration. 

Read it through!

I know, it sucks. You finished your first draft—comgratulations! And you want to get the editing over with. You think to yourself, “I wrote this and I know what to fix!” Maybe for some this is true, but for people like me, I forget so much. Do not start editing during this step. It is basically just a refresher. Take notes on what to fix later (what scene feels flat, parts that are confusing, etc). The only editing I allow myself to do here is grammar and spelling. Most times you’ll see too it’s not as bad as you think it is! 

How Do I Know What To Cut?

Not everthing that doesn’t work has to be cut. Recycling awesome lines that juts dont fit or even characters into different WIPS. That being said, soemtimes things just won’t work. Ask yourself these starting questions:

Does this supporting character have a purpose or can their role be taken over by a pre-existing character?

Is this action in character?

Does this scene contribute to the plot, character development, or offer a break in tension?

Work From Big To Small

You know those notes you took? The ones on plot and characterization? Fix those first. These big problems usually lead to the smaller issues or even fix them, like if a scene isn’t flowing naturally or something just fells off. If stuff doesn’t fall into place, look at the chapters before it.

Common Questions Ig

Q: Hey, Strange, what do you even know?

A: Nothing

Q: But I like this scene and I don’t want to cut it.

A: Cool. Keep it. If you like it and don’t have any doubts that it’s good, so will your readers and it will add to the book. Stuff like this can be for characterization and establishing relationships, and you can always add to scenes to make them seem more necessary. 

The point is that you like your book.  The point is that you are an amazing writer, even when it’s hard to believe. First drafts are usually trash, and each draft is better than the last. No draft will ever be perfect, it’s the draft that you think is the best you can do and you’re happy with that’s the final. 

4 years ago

Skipping time in your story

When writing you’ll most likely skip time in your story. It’s very rare that you will come across a story during a short, unbroken chunk of time. So, skipping time is an important skill to learn, and I’m here to help!

Scenes and Chapters

With the exception of very short fiction, most stories are broken into scenes. Each scene tells the tale of a particular movement or event. In longer stories, such as novellas and novels, the scenes are grouped into chapters. Sometimes a chapter contains only one scene. It all depends on what needs to be conveyed in the certain chapter. Either way, starting a new scene or chapter is a natural way to represent the passage of time in your story. Unless stated, readers will automatically assume that time has passed between each scene. But, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t make the transition between each scene, because without that transition, the passage of time will seem clumped together and won’t flow properly. 

The key to skipping time between scenes or chapters can be done two different ways: 

Set up the time skip: At the end of the chapter, hint at what is to come.

Example: My eyes focused on the board in front of me, the words reminding me of my impending doom. Our first test of the year in a class I hadn’t paid attention to at all. My heart rate accelerated as I wondered how well I will do on the upcoming test. 

Clarify time, place and -if necessary- POV at the beginning of the new scene, or chapter, playing off the set up from the previous scene or chapter.

I found myself back in school monday. As I walked into class, my eyes twitched and my hands shook. I took my seat, all the way in the back of the classroom, chewing on my pen cap, wishing I had studied. 

Notice how the set up at the end of the previous scene/chapter flows seamlessly into the beginning of the new scene/chapter? Because the passage of time is expected between scenes and chapters, it’s not always necessary to be direct about how much time has passed. Especially if the amount of time is unimportant or already implied. 

Direct: Early on Monday morning Margaret dragged herself out of bed, painfully aware that her ability to pass highschool hinged on the test she would be taking today. She hated the uncertainty of what was ahead, but what grinds her gears even more was the thing she did know: today was going to be a horrible day. 

Two hours later, Margraet walked into her classroom, cold coffee in hand, trying to seem bubbly and happy even though she knew that her entire life depended on whether or not she failed this test. 

Less Direct: Early on Monday morning Margaret dragged herself out of bed, painfully aware that her ability to pass highschool hinged on the test she would be taking today. She hated the uncertainty of what was ahead, but what grinds her gears even more was the thing she did know: today was going to be a horrible day. 

With cold coffee in hand, Margaret sat down in her seat, trying to seem bubbly and happy even though she knew that her entire life depended on whether or not she failed this test.

In the second example, even though you don’t say “two hours later” it’s clear that time has passed, and so has the setting. No one is going to assume that Margaret is going to be taking her test in her bedroom. Try to save “two hours later” and “walked into the classroom” transitions for when the context would otherwise be unclear, or when those specific details (how much time or a specific location) would be important. 

If no time is passing between the two scenes or two chapters, try to make that clear. For example, if one scene ends with Margaret falling asleep and then being woken up by a loud knock at her door, the next scene should continue with something like, “Heart pounding from shock, Margaret jumped out of bed to see who is at her door.” Now, it is clear no time has passed in the next scene, but since a new situation is beginning, it still warrants being its own scene. 

Expository Time Skip

Sometimes you need to show a quick glimpse of something that happened but it doesn’t really warrant its own scene or chapter. In this case, you may want to illustrate the time skip using exposition within the scene. It may look something like this:

Winter Break was over in a blink, and I soon found myself back at school, dealing with all the problems I left behind during a break that felt far too short. I quickly headed to my locker, avoiding Melinda and the newly formed rift between us. She glared at me across the hallway as I spun the combination on my locker. 

Later that day, during lunch, I sat at the table Micheal and I had always sat at. Despite the amount of people in the lunchroom, I could still feel Melinda’s icy glare shooting me down. 

Terms such as “later that day” and “two hours later” help the readers understand that time has passed, without transitioning to a new scene or chapter. This allows you to cover smaller moments and events that don’t warrant their own space. 

Whether you use a transition between scenes  or chapters to show the passage of time, or whether you clarify the skip between time through exposition, just remember to pay attention to where you left the readers before the skip, and where you take them. Make sure it’s clear, flows well, and wouldn’t leave anyone confused. Do that and you’ll be in good shape! Happy writing!

4 years ago

A Brief Guide to Writing British Nobles

>>By @writerthreads on Instagram

*note that different eras have different rules. This post is quite general, so research more specific details if you’re focusing on a certain period of time!

The following titles are under a Peerage, where peers were people who would hold one or more title(s) of duke, marquess, earl, viscount and baron. They swore an oath as a servent of the monarch in exchange for land or money.

Sovereign

The Sovereign holds the most power in the country, although they do not have the power they used to in England as there is a now the Prime Minister. But if we’re talking about the olden ages, they would be the King or Queen. Typically, the Queen would be married into the royal family, and be beside the King, unless the King only had daughters, in which, (depending on the era for women were not allowed to rule for a time period a few hundred years ago) they would then be Queen.

Duke/Duchess

A duke outranks the other noble titles, namely the earl, marquess, viscount and baron. There are two types of dukedoms: royal and non-royal. Royal dukedoms can only be inherited if one is a member of the royal family and are hereditary.

Most princes become dukes when they’re married and their wife will be referred to as a duchess. (If you were not a member of the royal family but your parents were the duke and duchess you’d still inherit that title.) Non-royal dukedoms are titles given to a person by a king or queen. A duke is a ruler of a duchy, which is basically a large area of land, a territory. A duke is typically addressed as “Your Grace”.

Marquees/Marchioness

This title outranks the rest except for the duke and sovereign. This title is quite rare nowadays. The Marchioness is the wife of the Marquees. Marquees were the owners of a march which was on the border of the country, which meant that they were responsible for defending against anyone who tried to intrude or attack England. (FYI: a Count would typically be the owner of a county, which was more inland)

Marquees and Marchioness are addressed as “My Lord” or “My Lady” in speech, and “Lord/Dear Mannerisms” in social writing, where the atmosphere is less formal.

Earl/Countess

Earls are ranked below the Marquess and above the Viscounts. They were royal governors and had the authority to rule lands and judge courts in their provinces. Along with that they’d collect taxes, earning a third of the total. Over the years, their power decreased and increased depending on who was ruling England, and nowadays, they do not hold much power in their hands.

The Countess would be the Earl’s wife, and by the general population, be referred to as “My Lady” while the Earl would be addressed as “My Lord”. His eldest son would be called the Viscount.

Viscount/Viscountess

In Great Britain, people would use Viscount as a title for the heir of an Earl of Marquess as courtesy, but other than that, (depending on the time period) they were not hereditary in fear of a rebellion, and instead, titles were given by the Monarch. They would also collect taxes from people.

They’re also referred to as “My Lady” and “My Lord”.

Baron/Baroness

The baron was a land-holding nobleman and is one of the lowest ranks of nobility, and the lowest in a peerage. In the Middle Ages, they ruled over large areas of land (fiefs) and would report to the king. They’d also maintain the country’s army. “Baron” quite literally means “man”, so they were “men of the king”.

The rank of Baron is often hereditary although the first Barons were given the titles by the monarchy. In formal settings, they’d be addressed as “The Right Honourable The Lord/Lady”, but in social settings, “Lord/Lady”.

Knight/Dame

A knighthood is a title given to a man for his service to the country, and would be referred to as “Sir”. This would give them the status of the knight, in which they would be expected to learn how to fight and serve his liege lord in the Code of Chivalry. Being a knight came with great benefits: they were often given a piece of land to govern, and would collect taxes from the people. Only men were typically knights, though the title Dame is given to the wife or daughter of a lord, or a woman of knighthood.

Knighthood is not hereditary.

4 years ago

Writing Tip #207

Everyone knows the age old rule “show don’t tell” but people rarely explain what that actually means. Don’ tell your reader what happened, put them in the scene so they can experience it with the characters. Don’t say “Ella walked to the dining hall and discovered Stacy and Rick arguing in the corner”. Write about Ella walking to the dining hall, how she heard hushed voices and couldn’t make out the words at first but recognized the voices. Write about how as she got closer she could make out fragments of the argument and when she passed them in the hall they stopped speaking as soon as they spotted her. This will make for a much more interesting story.

4 years ago

hi! this is hard to explain but i’m trying to write my first proper story and i’m suddenly overthinking whether i’m writing in past or present tense. do you have any advice for that?

Hi and thanks for the ask!

As someone who tends to overthink things on a daily basis, I can imagine how troubled you might be about this. So I’ll try to make your decision at least a little bit easier.

In my opinion, choosing the tense you use is very much dependent on your personal preference. Although present tense seems to be more popular with today’s writers, personally, I prefer past tense. Apart from the question about popularity, though, there are different advantages and disadvantages for both choices. I’ll highlight the advantages and disadvantages for present tense only, since the opposite is obvious for the past tense.

***

Advantages: Present tense has a more immediate feeling to it. Writing in present tense gives the reader the ability to experience the story in time with your characters. The moment a character changes, we experience that change in them as well. It also immerses the reader in the character’s emotions for longer than the past tense does. Moreover, handling tenses in general is a lot easier if you write in present tense rather than past tense.

Disadvantages: It’s a lot harder to manipulate the time inside a story. With present tense you usually only use past tense for the few things that actually happened in the past. That also makes it harder to create complex characters because phrases like “has always been” and the like can’t be used, since they would greatly disrupt the present tense’s main use. What’s more, the present tense author is experiencing the story at the same pace the characters do, so it is almost impossible to create a feeling of suspense. Even though you as the author, of course, know what will happen, phrases like “hadn’t known yet” and similar lines don’t fit well into a present tense story. Another possible trap the present tense sets, is misleading authors to write about mundane and trivial events that serve no plot function but would, of course, happen in a naturalistic sequence of actions.

***

I hope this somehow answers your question and makes it easier for you to decide whether to write in present tense or past tense.

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justanothergirlsblog - =A weird girl=
=A weird girl=

I'm just a weird girl who likes to read about history, mythology and feminism.

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