Had To Be Done 🤷

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.

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Study routine : night owls version

Since a lovely anon asked for the nighttime version of this routine, here it is!

Now we all have different bedtimes and I have no idea what is actually an ideal time to go to bed, so this routine is based on my usual timings, obviously if they don’t match up with yours feel free to modify!

Our goal is to get in quality time, just made sure you get something done!

Rules :

Follow the routine given below for 30 days (no issues if you miss, I’m gonna miss somedays too)

Post a pic of your work space (no aesthetic required, just a little feel good thing for you so that you actually want to get more ish done)

Mention your goal for the study session

Have fun and be productive :)

The routine :

Begin at : 9:30pm

Study session #1 : 9:30pm to 10:15pm

Mini break : 10:15pm to 10:25pm

Study session #2 : 10:25pm to 11:00pm

Break : 11:00pm to 11:05pm

Final study session : 11:05pm to 11:30pm

Bedtime :11:30pm to 7:30am?

I get that this might get very late for some, so here’s another plan for evening, but this may clash with your work schedule so pick whatever you want!

Study session 1 : 7:00pm to 7:40pm

Major Break : 7:40 to 7:50pm

Study session 2 : 7:50pm to 8:30pm

Break : 8:30pm to 8:35pm

Study session 3 : 8:35pm to 9:00pm

Both routines cover 95 minutes, feel free to add more if you really get into it!

And finally, tag me in your #30donr posts!

Thanks, hope you enjoy this one!

Etudaire 💞

*RARE* John Denver & Johnny Cash - Take Me Home Country Roads

Found this while going through my granddad’s VHS tapes and couldn’t find it anywhere online, so here it is.

The Batfamily as weird book dedications that I found on Google images while I was procrastinating even though there was nothing to procrastinate on at the time so who knows what the fuck happened there

Bruce:

Dick: 

Barbara:

Jason:

Cass:

Tim:

Steph:

Damian: 

Duke:

Prompt 1 ("it's mine now") for Animorphs with a Serious Injury Underreaction? Or any prompt with that really (my poor kiddos reacting to injury with "oh nooo, I liked this outfit, RIP my favorite sweater," while bystanders and/or whoever stabbed them in the first place watch in horror is my Pain Jam)

This is post series and consequently includes spoilers, and is an AU of canon, specifically that Ellimist Ex Machina AU I keep talking about writing, so if characterizations are off from the end of Book 54, that’s why.

1: “No. You buried your knife in my stomach, which means it’s mine now.”

Things Sargeant Vic Santorelli agreed to when he signed up to be part of this groundbreaking military training unity:

Learning how to turn into an animal

Things he did not agree to:

Being handed a knife by a girl younger than his sister and told to stab her in the chest

“Um,” Vic says, looking at the knife she’s handed him.  His fellow students are all too well-trained to actually blurt out what they’re thinking, but he sees them stare, flick glances at General Berenson in the corner.

(”You can just call me Jake,” their teacher said the first time they met.  “The title’s ridiculous and we all know it.“)

(”Yes, sir,” Berenson’s new students chorused obediently, and proceeded to never ever address him as Jake, because the title’s not ridiculous and they all know it.)

Berenson looks almost bored.  He certainly doesn’t seem concerned that his cousin might be getting stabbed herself with a Marine’s combat knife.  Berenson usually has about the emotive range that you’d expect from a hardened veteran–it’s hard to remember that he’s only eighteen, a full two months younger than the blonde staring Vic down–but he focuses like something predatory when he wants to, and apparently he doesn’t care to right now.

“I’d rather…not?” Vic finally says carefully.

Rachel scoffs, thrusts the hilt of the knife at him again.  She’s dressed in a leotard–a plain black one, not the official-issue morphing uniforms they were given at the start of this training.  “Don’t be a weenie.  Stab me with the knife.”

Keep reading

Jake & Tom Berenson

is this anything??

(Inspired partly by the meta @thejakeformerlyknownasprince wrote about Jake being Cain and Tom being Abel, because that is soooo correct.)

credits: tiktok user blaineunderstudy / animorphs 31 / animorphs 6 / cain slaying abel by pier francesco mola / animorphs 54 / aroarA #6 / cain slaying abel by pier francesco mola / animorphs 31 / icarus by the crane wives / animorphs 54 / cain slaying abel by pier francesco mola / animorphs 54 / after abel by Dante Émile

Ok love your thoughts on Animorphs tv series pacing. Hear me out: episode 1? Starts with *David’s* POV finding the cube, being attacked by Visser three and “rescued” by the animorphs, and given morphing power. Episode 2 starts with book 1 and progresses normally through the series from there

I think like “Machete order”, this really reframes the slow escalation of paranoia, and in episode one when these strangers show up and are like “Yes david you have to abandon your parents, they can’t be saved” you’re like “fuck these guys”

But by episode [redacted] of meeting david in animorphs pov, youre like “DAVID YOU MORON THEYRE LOST TO US GET IN THE FUCKING CAR”

And Jake goes from episode one “David, face reality, shit’s bad and your parents are a loss” to episode two Jake “of course i can save Tom”.

I love this, because it's a great way to throw the viewers right into the story. In the original series, it was necessary to give us some kind of origin for the Animorphs — it's a superhero story convention, it's important in a kids' series, it gives out exposition nice and slow, and it sets the tone of the books. However, there are a lot of things like "touching this box lets you turn into animals" and "the enemy are sea slugs who live in brains and eat in a cavern under the school" that you can simply show on TV without having to tell anyone. Concepts like "andalite navy" and "kandrona" can be conveyed with a few shots, so there's no need to have a scene where Elfangor explains them to Jake or brain-dumps them to Tobias.

This adaptation would probably lean more toward YA than middle grade, because it'd require trapping and/or killing the focal character, but I think YA would make sense for an Animorphs adaptation. YA series are more able to depict violence and body horror than children's shows, and Animorphs isn't Animorphs without realistic violence and body horror. There's also a lot of potential for making the conflict between David and Jake even more complex than it is in canon, if we don't see why Jake is the leader, only a bunch of his close friends insisting that it's for the best.

Swear to god “Life Happens” has ruined me For any other Batman fanfics.... I cannot find one as good as yours. So if you have any recommendations, sending them my way is the least you could do for ruining me... 💕💕💕

LOL Oh my goddddd I don’t even know what to say to that.  Thank you.  <3 <3

Here are some WIP fics that get updated regularly that I’m absolutely obsessed with. 

The Birds Who Smile By Raberba_girl

I am, no joke, obsessed with this story.  She calls it a ‘rough draft’ and it can be inconsistent at points because of it, but those moments are very minor and over all it’s amazing.  It follows the recovery of the dark robins from Dark Knights: Metal, which I’ll admit I’ve never read, but this story is just incredible.  

Robins and Other Flightless Birds by Ionaperidot

This story is about a Bruce from a universe where he truly works alone.  But he came into contact with another Bruce and realized that he really liked kids, so he basically just kidnaps one of each of his kids from all different universes where, for whatever reason, their Bruce didn’t have them.  It’s super cute.  The only thing I wish about this story was that it was longer.  haha 

Multiversal Constant by Echoes_01

Damian and Jon get stuck in the Young Justice universe and get tangled up with the League of Assassins.  Super cute, angsty.  There’s a lot of relationship building between Young Justice Clark and Jon and Conner, and between Bruce and Dick and Damian.  Baby Damian and Cass get introduced into the Young Justice World toward the end.  

As for completed works, there are a handful I’ve read multiple times each.  

Confidence Lost by C_R_Scott

This is a White Collar x Batman crossover.  I’ll admit, I had never heard of White Collar, but this has a podfic for it, so I listened to it anyway one day at work and boy am I glad.  I’ve listened to it 4 or 5 times and read it once.  This story actually influenced Life Happens quite a bit, I think, with the character “Kate” and “Peter,” at least.   Anyway.  It’s about Tim going missing and ending up as the main character of White Collar, a dude who steals artwork and replaces them with fakes but got caught by the FBI so now he works for them.  Damian and Dick find him in NYC like 7 years after he went missing and then chaos ensues.  It’s really fascinating and has an awesome climax.  Great story.  

A Good Place by @lemonadegarden

This was one of the first fan fiction pieces I read.  It’s about Damian going back in time and meeting Bruce just before the man takes in Dick.  It’s cute and angsty.  

Yesterday’s Voices also by Lemonade_Garden

This is about Bruce losing his memory and thinking he’s five years younger, and dad to just a cute smol Jason and a Dick who hates him.  Instead, he gets back to the cave to find Damian, Cass, Steph, etc.  Since he hasn’t suffered Jason’s death yet, he’s better at showing his emotions and it freaks the younger boys out.  It’s great.  

So I’m noticing a pattern in the works I like…. They all involve time travel, universe travel, or memory loss of some sort.  

Ha.  

Anyway.  That’s totally not gonna be the plot of my next story.  Nope, not at all.

It’ll be brainwashing.

OH SPEAKING OF

 Juneberries by @mishaberrywrites

Tim is kidnapped and brainwashed, and Damian feels guilty about it and goes after him and stages a rescue attempt.  It’s angsty and heartbreaking and detailed and everything I want in a story.