Me: I Have The Main Characters, The Aesthetic, And The Setting. I'm Ready To Write!

someone: can i be a character in your book??

me: sure! right here i have an opening for *squints at doc* insignificant side character who exists only for plot purposes

safe and sound stans reblog this so i know who loves feeling like a calm, ethereal forest nymph

so I got into grad school today with my shitty 2.8 gpa and the moral of the story is reblog those good luck posts for the love of god

A Name Dump Based on Vibes

Cottagecore Names

Aspen

August

Betty

Dorothea

Ivy

Jolene

Juniper

Willow

Adventurous Names

Everett

Hunter

Jessie/Jesse

Olivia

Peter

Sadie

Sawyer

Zoe

Artsy Names

Amy

Delilah

Dylan

Iris

Michelle

Noah

Sierra

Simon

Vintage Names

Adelaide

Caroline

Eleanor

Jude

Lana

Oliver

Stacy

Vivian

Dark Academia Names

Dorian

Ezra

Henry

Juliet

Lydia

Ophelia

Penelope

Sophia

Poetic Names

Blake

Calliope

Elliott

Fiona

Grace

Laila

Maya

Sylvia

Musical Names

Aria

Cadence

Harmony

Harper

Lyric

Melody

Piper

Reed

Rating First Lines of My WIPs

There once was a very young filly named Mirabelle who lived on a lovely farm. She had a kind owner, and the horses who lived with her were very nice.

5/10

Major horse girl vibes

This might make a good children’s book, so it gets a couple extra points for reaching its target audience

I used to have a thing for writing stories from the POVs of animals, I think it was because I was a big fan of Erin Hunter books at the time

Author’s Note: This font I am typing in is Happy Monkey, for the story, and this is Handlee, which is my friend’s font. Remember, this font is mine and this font is hers. In this story, I am Ivy Keid, and my friend is Hailyn Keid. (My friend wishes to remain anonymous.) Got it? Cool. Let’s get on with the story. (Oh, and this may not make sense in some parts. So what? It’s a story. It doesn’t HAVE to make sense.

3/10

Younger me, I hate to break it to you, but a story does have to make some kind of sense

If it isn’t clear, I was going through a qUiRkY phase when I wrote this

I wrote this with my best friend, so I remember having fun writing it despite cringing at it now!

Heart racing, feet pounding the ground, Alara ran for her life, the monsters that would soon snuff out her life like a candle pursuing her relentlessly. She leaped over a fallen branch, and heard a series of loud thumps. She didn’t stop to check whether they’d fallen. She zigzagged through the streets and ran on into the darkness, where her people were hiding, where they had been chased out by the creatures of the darkness.”

7/10

Younger me was really trying to be hardcore huh

Actually I like this first line, but why is it so wordy, and what’s up with the confusing writing style?

This entire story was literally plagiarized from inspired by The City of Ember and I have fond memories of writing it

“You still reading that science fiction crap?”

A voice interrupted Joseph. He looked up from his copy of The Cyber War. It was Arnie, the class bully. He was one of those kids who never was caught when breaking the rules. The kids all complained about him, but the teachers never did anything because they never caught him. Make fun of his name, and he’d have you in a headlock giving you his infamous Sandpaper Noogie. No one ever sat in front of him. Kids would rather pull a desk to the other side of the room than sit near Arnie Jones.

6/10

Oh, look, a main character who likes books :) it gets a point just for that

This is unironically funny now, but I don’t think I was trying to be funny while writing this

Arnie Jones may be one of the best bully names I’ve ever come up with (for some reason, bullies featured prominently in my early stories--I wasn’t even bullied, so I have no idea why that was)

There’s nothing more awkward than being with four complete strangers and knowing that you might die with them.

6.5/10

If I want to know what I was reading at a point in my life, all I have to do is open up a WIP from that time, and I’ll immediately know what books I was liking at the time. This is one of those WIPs. In this case, it’s from my YA dystopia phase (yeah I had a lot of phases, don’t @ me)

From this first line alone, I’m getting huge Divergent vibes with some Percy Jackson flavor (it gets half a point solely for that)

I ended up abandoning this WIP after 4 pages, so I’m not really attached to it

“Halt!”

The soldier’s voice easily cut through the bustling plaza, as did its owner. Aydin pretended not to have heard and hurried on.

8/10

Points for the en media res, a point off for the second line being confusing

I wrote this around 7th-8th grade, which was when I started to get more serious about writing (although I abandoned it after 10 pages...in the middle of a sentence)

I might return to this one someday, I had a lot of fun with it!

Everyone says that time heals all wounds, but no amount of time could have prepared me for seeing my sister in her casket.

9/10

The intrigue? The hook? The mystery? Amazing, immaculate, we love to see it

Maybe I’m a little bit biased, but I think this is the best first line I’ve ever come up with!

This is from my current WIP, Pawn, btw ;)

How to Write Strong Friendships

Source: https://kingdompen.org/deep-friendships/

Post by @writingwithacutlass on instagram

Friendships turn a good story into a memorable one. They add more emotional weight and make the readers care about the story more. Deep relationships are hard to write, though, so here are some tips to help you write a strong friendship that will add value to your story!

make each character their own person

Do not add a character just so they can be “the friend”. This will lead to a flat, undeveloped and boring character. In order to write a deep friendship, you’ll need deeply developed characters. Sure, your main character will likely be developed and interesting. But make sure that “their friend” has a clear goal, interests, motivations, dreams, passions, a distinct personality, quirks, values, struggles, and so on. Unique, developed characters create a solid foundation for a strong friendship.

give them something in common

Now that you have two unique, developed characters, you need a reason for them to be friends. What brought them together? What similarities do they share that connect them and serve as something to bond over? These similarities could include status, hobbies, struggles, history, background, interests, enemy, goals, and dreams.

give them meaningful differences

With similarities also comes differences. Don’t just make the two characters different, but give them meaningful differences that can build off on each other. Let them support each other in their strengths and build them up in their times of weakness. These can be differences in skills, conflict resolution, personalities, method of action, and reaction. Keep in mind what each character’s strengths and weaknesses are. How do their similarities and differences complement each other?

give them history

It depends on how long your characters have known each other, but deep friendships often need time to grow. This means your characters have probably known each other for some time, and you need to make that evident. Throw out hints that they have known each other for a while, and make the reader curious about their history. A few ways to do this is giving the characters inside jokes, letting them banter often, having them communicate non-verbally, and showing how much the two know about each other.

give them glue

What is holding your two characters together? What is the reason they don’t drift apart? The “glue” holding your characters together could be a common goal, another character, or they are simply in a situation where they can’t get away from each other making it impossible to part ways. Do your characters’ goals, values, and personalities contribute to the lasting of the friendship?

create meaningful scenes

Now that you have all the key components of an amazing friendship, it’s time to develop it throughout the story. Make sure to include some friendship moments in your story, and show your readers the power of this relationship. These scenes are meaningful to your reader, but also develop the relationship between the two characters.

don't make their relationship perfect

No one is perfect, and no relationship is perfect either. After you’ve added all these perfect elements to the friendship, you’ll need to add some flaws as well. Friends don’t get along all the time, so it’s okay if they have arguments or avoid each other for a while. If the glue to their friendship is strong enough, they’ll come back to each other and reconcile. Perhaps their differences clash. Or maybe other things that are out of their control are forcing them apart. Make the friendship complex, as all real friendships are. The characters will have to overcome the obstacles to keep their friendship strong. Difficulties in their friendship leads to a much more compelling story, one your readers will be greatly invested in.

some people write poetry solely so that fragments of it can be used on aesthetic posts on the average dark academia tumblr and it shows. good poetry, genuinely good lyricism like that of margaret atwood, imtiaz dharker, agha shahid ali and ocean vuong needs heart, needs actual sincerity. but nowadays we have any random person writing "oranges persimmons girlhood is a disease cannibalism is love I am my mother's shadow soup love witchcraft" and they are promoted like the second coming of christ. love being a hater of such poems. hollow, insincere fake deep imagery does nothing for me.

How to Develop a Writing Routine

Credit: https://www.masterclass.com/articles/how-to-create-a-consistent-writing-schedule#5-benefits-of-a-writing-schedule

Find a time of day that works best for you

Set the same writing time every day—or every other day if that’s more realistic. Early morning works well for creative writing because the brain is fresh. But if you’re a night owl, or if you’re a student or jobholder, writing later in the day might work better. Before you know it, your daily writing sessions will become just another part of your routine that you just do without thinking twice.

Routine ≠ daily

Just because you have a writing routine doesn’t mean you have to write every day. In fact, writing every day can lead to burnout and loss of motivation. Also, some days you simply won’t be able or willing to write. Yes, it’s important to get words down when you don’t feel like writing, but that shouldn’t take precedence over your mental health and things that are more important. Maybe you write on weekdays and take a break on the weekend. Maybe you write only Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Whatever the case, find a routine that works for you and your schedule!

Create your own writing calendar

When you put writing on your daily to-do lists, take it a step further. Physically write your writing time in a calendar or daily planner, or block it out in a digital one. That makes it more official, like writing down any other appointment that you’re obligated to keep. You can’t ignore it because it’s quite literally a part of your day now!

Prioritize your projects

Some writers have more than one idea in their head, which can make it hard to know where to start. Write a list of your ideas in order of priority. Then, starting with the first one, write an outline or a step-by-step guide to writing. Create milestones and deadlines to help you see each phase through until you have a finished story! If you have a lot of projects and you’re not sure which to work on, try determining which project is more underdeveloped or close to completion, or simply choose the one that’s better for your creativity!

Have a plan for writer’s block

Writer’s block is bound to happen, especially if you’re working on one project for a long time. Be prepared so you don’t end up just staring at your computer screen. That can look like having a list of daily writing prompts or doing stream-of-consciousness freewriting. Find creative ways to use spare time that isn’t spent writing! For example, if you’re writing a non-fiction book, use that writing downtime to do research on your subject matter.

Word count

Another way of keeping yourself responsible is to implement a daily or a total word count goal. Having a minimum word count on any given day can motivate you to get words on the page. However, this can be pressuring or impossible for some. If you’re one of those people, just recording your word count might motivate you in a healthier way. Remember to do what works for you!

Find a writing space

Take the guessing out of where you’re going to write each day by designating a writing space. Set it up so it’s all ready for you to write in every day when you sit down. I wouldn’t recommend writing in bed, because you’re more likely to get distracted or sleepy. Muscle memory is important, so try finding a place and only doing writing in it!

Keep your writing files organized

When you sit down to write, make sure all of your files are organized so they’re easy to access. The simpler you make it to sit down and get started, the easier it will be to start writing at your predetermined time. Save your stories in Google Docs or Microsoft Word and keep them in folders. Label each document with the working title. Keep track of your progress on each project in an Excel spreadsheet.

Join a writing community

Find inspiration by connecting with other writers. Find a local writer’s group, attend writing workshops, or participate in NaNoWriMo—National Novel Writing Month. Join groupchats on social media and post about your writing. You’ll have an incentive to show up with words and you’ll be held accountable by other people!

all i want for christmas is for my wip to write itself

“There is rage in me the likes of which should never escape.”

Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

Art: Gust of Wind (La Bourrasque) Lucien Lévy-Dhurmer 1896