⠀⠀💌 ʏᴏᴜʀ ɴᴀᴍᴇ ʜᴇᴀᴅᴇʀs (⋆❛ ہ ❛⋆)! ♡  *: ⠀⠀♡ ˡᶤᵏᵉ ᵒʳ ʳᵉᵇˡᵒᵍ ᶤᶠ ʸᵒᵘ ᵘˢᵉ/ˢᵃᵛᵉ｡ ⠀⠀♡ ᵖˡᵉᵃˢᵉ ᵈᵒ ᶰᵒᵗ ʳᵉᵖᵒˢᵗ ᵐʸ ᵉᵈᶤᵗˢ｡

Study Resource Masterpost, by findx

Hi everyone! Here’s a masterpost on study resources; lots of these helped me during my freshman year at MIT. Happy studying, may you all get the results you deserve :) 

HOW TO:

FREE WEBSITES:

10 Lessons from a Decade of Writing

Over the last decade, I graduated from high school, got a bachelor’s in writing, earned an MFA in fiction, and started working as a copywriter.

In that time, I grew a lot as a writer — so I thought I’d share the lessons that helped me most along the way!

How does one from each year sound?

2010: Don’t let high expectations be a barrier to good writing

As a teenager, I had unhealthy expectations for my writing. This not only made writing painful, but also held back the quality of my work. Thankfully, in my last year of high school, I had to crank out a short story for a class, with no time to revise as I went. The result? I had fun, and ended up writing a story that was better than anything I’d written before it. That’s when I realized how toxic lofty expectations could become, if left unchecked.

2011: Good stories often depict, or inspire, change

In my first college writing workshop, our professor (of “It’s never about the bread” fame) told us that a good story often does one of two things: it either depicts a change in a character, or inspires a change in the reader. While a bit simplistic, that guidance was invaluable to me at the time. The first option gave me a clear target to aim for in workshop, while option two exposed me to the full, baffling mystery of what makes a story worth telling. 

2012: Clear, specific language brings scenes to life

As a sophomore, I fell in love with Raymond Carver’s minimalism and was particularly struck by the following description from “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love”:

The description struck me as remarkably vivid, yet lean — making me realize how a small description could breathe life into a scene when written with clear, specific language.

2013: Personal experiences fuel good writing

After years of avoiding the genre, I took my first poetry workshop as a junior, and SURPRISE. I loved it. It was the first time I’d ever really tried writing about my own experiences, and it brought an invigorating sense of reality to both my poetry and my fiction. It also inspired me to become more observant, which fed back into my writing and made me better appreciate life’s little moments.

2014: Never mow the same grass twice

Throughout college, I had a trumpet instructor who’d often say, “Michael, I hate to mow the same grass twice!” You can find a full explanation here, but long story short, he encouraged me to fix flaws in my performance immediately upon discovering them, because if you repeat mistakes, they become habits. Bad habits that only get harder to break over time.

I didn’t take his advice to heart in my music, but I did apply it to my fiction. In the coming years, it would be instrumental (ha) in honing my craft.

2015: How to tie plot to character growth

In high school, my stories were all plot. In college, my stories were all character. During the first year of my MFA, I learned how to merge the two, by writing narrators with:

This structure is simple, but effective, particularly when your character is motivated by a clear emotional struggle. More about this structure here.

2016: Write the stories that excite you

Throughout college, I almost exclusively wrote non-genre stories, because I wanted to pursue particular goals in that space. I learned a lot in the process, but it wasn’t until the second year of my MFA that I realized my stories themselves had lost a certain spark. So I switched back to writing the genre stories I loved. Like an old friend, the spark came back — and the writing got a lot more fun.

2017: Accept that you’ll never catch up to your expectations

The great irony of being a writer is that the more you hone your craft, the further away “perfection” seems. Why? Because as we improve, we not only overcome weaknesses, but also discover the flaws we never knew existed. So we fix those flaws. Discover new ones. Fix them. And so on. It’s a frustrating, never-ending cycle, and it wasn’t until my final year of the MFA that I was able to fully accept it — finding comfort in the fact that my dissatisfaction was a sign of growth.

2018: Be willing to let stories go

In my first year as a copywriter, the fast pace of agency life quickly taught me the importance of knowing when to “let go” of my writing. At work, it was because I had deadlines. But in fiction, I realized I couldn’t keep revising the same stories forever, when others were waiting to be written. “Art is never finished, only abandoned,” said Leonardo da Vinci, and it’s true. Our stories will never be perfect, so it’s our responsibility to decide when it’s time to cut the cord.

2019: If you want to write meaningful stories, start with what’s important to you

After my fiction professor gave that brief explanation (back in 2011) of what made a good, meaningful story, I became obsessed with finding a clearer answer. Something to grasp onto to guide my writing.

But this past year, I realized it was a bit of a fool’s errand. The things that make a story worth telling are incredibly subjective and different for everyone — naturally arising from their backgrounds, desires, fears, and more.

You can’t predict it. Or at least, you can’t predict it well.

So you just need to look inward. To find what you think is important.

And then write.

2020: TBD

Cheers to a new decade, everybody! May we keep honing our craft and fill the years to come with incredible stories.

— — —

Your stories are worth telling. For more helpful tips on how to craft meaning, build character-driven plots, and grow as a writer, follow my blog.

Love this! Especially about writing what’s important to you. I feel like sometimes there are topics that people shy away from because they’re afraid they’ll seem too trivial.

But the truth is if it’s important to YOU, then you can breathe life into that topic in a way others won’t.

Far better to write about something ‘trivial’ that you truly care about, than to write a piece that you think will have meaning, but falls flat because you’re not truly feeling it.

Exactly! When you write what you’re passionate about, it brings such life and energy to your story, even if it’s a topic people have rarely engaged in.

And if the topic is important enough to you to inspire a story, even if it seems oddly specific, I’m confident it will resonate with someone. Because for a story to resonate with a reader, it first has to resonate with you.

I decided to create a masterpost that would help you with what you are struggling with. Hopefully any of the links below will help you! Reminder; You’re going to be okay. What you are going through will pass, just remember to breathe. 

————————————————————————————-

Distractions;

Here are some distractions to help keep your mind occupied so you aren’t too focused on your thoughts. 

Sleep issues; 

 Uncomfortable with silence; 

Anxiety; 

Sad, angry and depressed/depression; 

Isolation and loneliness; 

 Self-harm;

Addiction; 

 Eating disorders; 

 Dealing with self-hatred;  

 Suicidal; 

 Schizophrenia;

OCD;

Borderline personality disorder; 

Abuse; 

 Bullying;

 Loss and grief; 

(Other loss and grief)

 Getting help; 

Things you need to remember; 

Please remember to look after yourself and know that you are more than worth it and you deserve to be happy. Keep smiling butterflies x

I was just gonna reblog this because the distractions are super fun but… Damn the rest of it is so so so important

reblog inv cause everyone needs this

Bad Things Happen Bingo 2019 Master List

Bad things Happen Bingo February 2019 (& Continuations)

(This post may be updated if any more continuations are requested.)

1 - Starvation  1a - Continuation

2 - Interrogation 

3 - Collared and Chained

4 - Carved Mark

5 - I Will Punish Your Friend For Your Failure

6 - Dragged by the Ankle

7 - Lifted by the Neck

8 - This Is For Your Own Good

9 - Caught in an Explosion

10 - Tied to a Chair

11 - Slammed into a Wall

12 - Blood From the Mouth

13 - Strapped to an Operating Table  13a - Continuation  13b - Continuation #2

14 - Stranded and Lost  14a - Continuation

15 - Setting a Broken Bone 15a Continuation

16 - Ambush  16a - Continuation 

17 - Working Through the Cold 17a - Continuation

18 - Burns

19 - Thwarted Escape

20 - Stabbed

21 - Bloodstained Clothes 21a - Continuation

22 - Buried in Rubble

23 - Memory Loss

24 - Locked in a Freezer 24a - Continuation

25 - I Have You Now My Pretty

Like my stuff and want to support what I do? Then maybe consider buying me a Kofi? Ko-fi.com/morallygrey

ALRIGHT. LISTEN UP.

So recently, I got calls from the phone number, (937) 353-8319. They claim to be a job service, and one of their “employees”, Carrigan, is friends with whoever the call recipient is, and that Carrigan has recommended you for this $15.00/h “job”. I also got a text message from (937) 607-1493, claiming to be Carrigan, and that they need stuff to “win a scholarship”. I do not know anyone by the name of Carrigan and I know very well that this is a very dangerous scam. If you receive a call from a number, and they ask you if you would like a job for $15.00/h, HANG UP IMMEDIATELY. If you accept the “job” offer, and you go in for an interview, they will give you a drugged bottle of water and you will wake up somewhere you don’t want to be. These phone calls & texts are from a human trafficking service, and if you oblige to them, you will be sold to people and you will be raped, no doubt about it. So PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT ANSWER THESE CALLS OR TEXTS. I have listened to the voicemails, and allowed my dad to do the same, and he learned that anyone offering a $15.00/h “job” is a human trafficker. PLEASE SIGNAL BOOST THIS ALL OVER TUMBLR

Okay, I am reblogging this because it is relevant again. I got another call from a 353 number. Not the exact same number, but I know that it is a trafficker because it’s 353 just like the last one. I also want this to signal boost so PLEASE REBLOG THIS.

Why are people deleting the captions though I had to search for what the pictures meant don’t do that

a side note,  because theyre very popular around the DMV, If you ever see a sign with something akin to ‘free debt erasure’ ‘15/h job’ etc and ONLY A PHONE NUMBER, ignore it. tear it down if you can, because those are well known scams and sex-trafficking baits.do not, by any means, call or respond to these messages. do not let your friends do it. do not.

THIS IS IMPORTANT AF THANK Y’ALL HOLY SHIT

Oklahoma is one of the worst states as far as human trafficking, so thank y’all so fucking much. That’s literally my life and the lives of everyone I know that y’all just saved. Thank you. Thank you thank you thank you

*FUCKING SPAMS REBLOG*

guys pls this needs more reblogs

Fic authors deserve more credit.

Story time: I started a book about 23 hours ago and just finished it. Also in that time I slept for 10 hours, spent time with family, was at work, etc. Anyway, I enjoyed the book (Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda). But it felt like it flew by, so after I finished I looked up the word count because what are pages? Pages are meaningless. I only function in word counts anymore.

The estimate I found was 58,580. My immediate reaction was “oh, that’s why. That’s nothing!” But what a shitty response. Because no. That’s not nothing. That’s a whole. Damn. Book. An entire novel! And Fic authors regularly bust out 30k, 50k, 100k, 150k words. AND THEY DO IT FOR FREE. WHILE WORKING AND LIVING THEIR LIVES.

So anyway, thank your favorite fic author today because they deserve it. Because they’re amazing. They’re the MVPs.

Some rough word count equivalencies for you, via famous novels, just to give you an idea of what OP is saying:

30k fic = Animal Farm by George Orwell

50k fic = The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

75k fic = Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger

100k fic = To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

150k fic = The Two Towers by JRR Tolkien

200k fic = Moby Dick by Herman Melville

250k fic = Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by JK Rowling

300k fic = A Feast for Crows by George RR Martin

350k fic = Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

400k fic = Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

I WROTE SOMETHING AS LONG AS MOBY DICK AND I DIDN’T EVEN KNOW

I can’t believe I’ve surpassed Animal Farm.

Holy shit.

This is awesome. With that said, huge appreciation also to fic writers who write shorter fics - 10k, 5k, 1k, 500 words. Because yeah, huge long fics get a lot of love, and a lot of labour goes into them, but the same is true for tiny fics as well. Not everyone is banging out huge great novels, but little ficlets are fantastic and still bring readers a ton of joy.

So if you’re feeling a bit downcast because you can’t write that 50 chapter epic or your latest WIP is “only” 2k and it still took you ages - that’s amazing. Seriously. Not everyone is naturally wordy or prolific. And you can say a ton with just a few hundred or thousand words.

Props to short fic creators - you guys are awesome.

The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe = 38k fic

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory = 30k fic

Of Mice and Men = 30k fic

Breakfast At Tiffany’s = 24k fic

For those writers who discredit themselves because they feel they aren’t writing the novels that others might, you’re still writing a novella, my dears. You’re still putting time, effort, and passion into something. Well done.

(honestly shout out to all fuckin fic writers. You didn’t have to give us shit and still y'all out here living ya best life and doin something you love. Bravo.)

Funny way to find out which plant you might like to buy.

Source: apartmenttherapy.com

FOR MY FOLLOWERS THAT HAVE DIFFICULTY CARING FOR PLANTS AND ASK WHAT THEY SHOULD BUY, THIS IS REALLY GREAT!! 

please make sure that wherever you’re at in life, you don’t treat it like a transitory period. don’t waste your college years wishing to already be graduated & have a job. don’t waste your single years wishing for someone to be in love with. if/when those things come, they will come in due time and they will be good. but there is nothing like looking back and feeling empty because you wasted literal years ignoring what you had because you were hoping for something better. while it’s important to better yourself and reach for your goals, don’t neglect the present because that’s where you are now and it’s your now that determines your future. 

Character Development: Speech

Finding your character’s voice is one of the most important things you can do to make your character more fully developed. It can often be the thing that sets your character apart and makes the reader easily able to identify them. Creating your character’s voice breathes life into them.

What to think about:

Formal or informal

Can be shown with:

Things to ask yourself:

- If my character speaks formally/informally, is there a reason?

- Does it indicate their status?

- Or is it a rejection of their status? (e.g. does your highborn character prefer to speak informally because they hate their position in life, or does your lower class character speak more formally to make themselves appear higher class?)

- Is the way they speak normal for their society? In other words, if your character is, say, an alien from a highly formal culture, they won’t think of themselves as speaking abnormally. But if they visit another, less cultured planet, they’ll stick out like a sore thumb.

Catchphrases

When done well, this can be amazing. When done awfully, it makes the reader sigh and roll their eyes in exasperation. So, be careful not to overdo it!

Catchphrases can include:

A lot of times, these catchphrases can become inside jokes, and merely referencing them is enough (think: “It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s Superman!” or “Holy _______, Batman!”).

But sometimes, it can feel a little forced (like Miss Martian’s constant use of “Hello, Megan!” all the time in Young Justice). You want to use these catchphrases sparingly, and when they make sense. While you and I might say “fudge” or another such exclamation any time we trip, the reader does not want to read that twenty times in the same chapter because your character is a klutz. This is the art of writing, not the hyperrealism of writing. You want it to mean something, so use it only when needed.

Things to ask yourself:

- Does this character really need a catchphrase? How will this help establish character?

- Does the catchphrase come from the type of place they live or things they do? For instance, Harry Dresden is a wizard, so when he swears he says, “Hell’s bells,” which reminds us of his job and difference from those around him. This wouldn’t be the same if he simply said, “Dang it,” any time he swore.

- Is there a reason they have a catchphrase? Is it deliberate or unconscious on their part?

- Is there a way you can flip the catchphrase and use it to signal a shift in the story or an unexpected twist (e.g. signifying that somehow your character as switched bodies with another person, like Faith from Buffy: the Vampire Slayer; alternatively, that something isn’t right with the character, because of certain events, and they’re not saying their usual catchphrase)?

Verbal Tics*

Verbal tics are sounds that are not really words, more like filler, that get used almost unconsciously in everyday speech. Words like “ehm,” “uh,” and so on are all verbal tics. (Various internet sites assure me that throat clearing and sniffing can also be included here, but I leave that up to you.) For this section, however, I am also including words, but only those words that are filler. I am also including alterations to the text that represent how someone is speaking.

Now, I know that in any writing guide you read, they want you to NOT, NOT, NOT use regular tics like these in dialogue. It’s annoying, repetitive, annoying, serves no purpose, annoying, and so on. In a sense, they are very much right. Don’t use verbal tics for every character! But using them to distinguish one character (or a couple, in different ways) can work very well if done right.

Verbal tics can be:

Examples of verbal tics (this is a section in which examples are very helpful, so here you go):

Things to ask yourself:

- What purpose would a verbal tic have for my character? Do they really need one?

- Is the verbal tic connected to an emotion, or is it involuntary? (Generally, in real life, it is involuntary, but once again, this is art, and so it can have meaning, if you so choose!) What emotion might it be connected to?

- Are they aware of it? Are they embarrassed by it? Do people make fun of them for it?

- Is it part of their dialect/culture?

- Is it a recent thing or have they always done it?

- Where is the balance between making it seem like a realistic tic and annoying my reader with the repetitiveness?

*I am not referring to any medical diagnoses here, although if you want to go right ahead and use medically diagnosed tics for a character, please feel free to! However, this section does not deal with those, as I am not an expert, although I understand there might be some confusion due to the terminology I have used. Please let me know if there is a different term I should be using instead, as I couldn’t find one anywhere. Thanks!

Ways of addressing others

The way that your character addresses other characters says a lot about how they view and respect those around them, in addition to their personality. In addition, if you establish a character addresses others in a certain way (say, by last name only), then when they break this pattern, the reader knows it is important.

Different ways of addressing others:

** This one tends to work best in stories set in older times or in sci-fi/fantasy. Epithets can be insults, but the epithets I am thinking of are more Homeric in nature.

Things to ask yourself:

- Is there a reason behind my character’s decision to address people in this way? Does it indicate a lack of trust? A need to crack jokes?

- What does this say about my character’s background? Is this the normal way to address people where they come from? Is it abnormal to do so in the place they are now?

- Does my character evolve from speaking this way? Do they start speaking in a different way, either deliberately or unconsciously? Why?

Accents

Accents are tricky. There are several different ways to write accents (I’m currently working on a post that explains them further), but basically no matter how you write an accent, there are a few things you can do to portray the accent.

Keep in mind:

- be RESPECTFUL of whatever accent you’re trying to portray, especially if it’s not your accent

- don’t overdo the accent because it might end up sounding stereotypical (and that is not respectful - see above)

- you should get a feel for the accent you’re trying to write. Listen to the music, read something in that accent, watch/listen people talk in the accent until you hear the rhythm and way people with that accent talk. 

Things to ask yourself:

- Is the way I am portraying this accent as accurate as it is within my power to make it? (In other words, have I done my research?)

- How does my character feel about their accent? Are they in a place where their accent is normal? Are they in a place where they stand out because of their accent?

- Continuing on that thought, how noticeable is their accent? Is it the equivalent of someone from, say, Boston going somewhere else in Massachusetts, or the equivalent of that person from Boston going to California, or the equivalent of that same person going to London? Each one becomes more and more noticeable the farther the person goes from their home.

- Has my character made an attempt to hide their accent? Deliberately intensify it? Or do they just not care?

- Does it get stronger or weaker based on their emotional state?

Emotion

The emotions your character normally expresses when they’re speaking say a lot about their general emotional state. In addition, if there is a change in their emotional state, readers will be able to know that just from the way they talk (though context and body language are always useful!)

You can show emotion in speech through:

***Again, you want to be careful not to overdo this, as it can get annoying AND lose the effect it has on the reader. If one of your characters SHOUTS. EVERYTHING. THEY. SAY. THEN WHEN SOMETHING REALLY IMPORTANT HAPPENS TO THE CHARACTER AND THEY GET VERY EMOTIONAL AND SHOUT, IT’S LOST A TON OF EMOTIONAL IMPACT ON THE READER. Like the end of that sentence. Did it make a big impact on you? It should - it was the entire point of the sentence. But it was lost amidst all of the other capitalized words. The same thing goes for any type of repeated punctuation/capitalization for a character - you want to make sure it counts.

Things to ask yourself:

- Why does my character express this emotion generally? 

- What does it say about their outlook on life?

- What does that say about how they view other people?

- Does their dialogue rely on these techniques too much when trying to show their emotions? How can I combine these with their body language?

Focus/Fixations

This is a pretty simple one. Focus can be organization of thoughts - basically, what idea(s) can they or want to focus on. A character that is very focused might be a practical person who is focused on the here and now, and their plans for whatever situation they’re in. A character that is less focused might be someone who thinks of several things at once, which reflects in their dialogue. 

Fixations are the things that their minds keep coming back to. So for example, if a character is worried about how they did on a test, throughout the story their dialogue might keep returning to that subject or referencing it. For instance: “Hey, when do you think we’re getting that test back?” or “Wow, this is pretty hard. Almost as hard as that test we took.” You want to make it less obvious than this, of course! (A good example is Anya from Buffy: the Vampire Slayer and her obsession with making money.)

Ways to show focus/fixation:

Things to ask yourself:

- How focused are they when talking?

- Do they think of a million things at once, or just one at a time? 

- What are some short-term fixations they might have? Some long-term?

- Why might they be focused/not focused? Why might they have these fixations? What do these fixations say about their character?

- Do the focus/fixations change over time? How? Why? Does it reflect a change in their character?

- Am I making my character too focused/fixated on something? Is it detracting from or adding to the story or the character arc?

How others see them vs. how they see themselves

This one is probably the broadest one on the list. There aren’t specific things you can do to get this across (it’s more of a general thing), but it’s a cycle that you should keep in mind.

Your character sees themselves in a certain way. For instance, they might think of themselves as helpful, or kind. 

Knowing how each of your characters see each other and themselves will influence their dialogue and reactions to each other. Characters can misunderstand each other, underestimate someone, or help someone feel better about themselves, just to name a few things. 

Things to ask yourself:

- How does my character see themselves? Why? Are they one hundred percent correct?

- How do other characters see my character? Why? Are they one hundred percent correct?

- Does my character have any idea of other people’s perceptions of them? If so, do they care? Is my character correct about what they think other people think about them?

- Will my character’s perspective of themselves/other people change? Why and how? Will other characters’ perspectives of my characters change? Why and how?

- How do all these reactions to each other influence the story?

Hope this helped! Let me know if there are any questions.

- Riona

Oh my God I’m not sure of the accuracy of this scale but I made one anyways.

1: Jane Austen. Theoretically Romantic, mostly a clever satirist more interested in the novel as the perfect vehicle for social commentary than in poetry for capturing emotion. Very little chance of swooning and/or dramatic death. A very safe spot on the Romanticism scale.

2: Dorothy Wordsworth: Actually a Romantic, though not excessively so! Enjoy your long walks in the country. Keep those diaries. Your brother can mine them for publishable material until people consider them finally worthy of academic interest a century or two later.

3: Wordsworth. May result in later becoming annoyingly conservative but mostly harmless. Go ahead and wander lonely as a cloud. Gaze upon that ruined abbey.

4: Charlotte Turner Smith. Recover that English sonnet and transform it into a medium that mostly expresses sorrow! Help establish Gothic conventions! Have what Wordsworth called a true feeling for rural England! Die in penury and be forgotten by the middle of the nineteenth century!

5: Blake. ?? Who even knows man. Talk to angels. Create your own goddamn religion. Confuse all of your contemporaries.

6: Mary Shelly. Go ahead and run off with that unhappily married poet who took you on dates to your mother’s grave, but this may result in carrying your husband’s calcified heart around in a fragment of his last manuscript the rest of your life. But also, arguably inventing sci-fi as a genre… so that’s some consolation.

7: John Keats: listen to that nightingale but be forewarned: you will die of TB in Rome and everyone will mock you for dying of bad criticism instead of, you know, infectious disease.

8: Coleridge. May result in never finishing a poem and a severe opium addiction.

9: Percy Shelly. May result in being expelled from Oxford and in premonitions of your own death by drowning.

10: Full Byron. Never go full Byron.

☼ Masterlist ☼

☼  Masterlist is updated regularly & subject to frequent change  ☼

My Current Work In Progress @talkingstoriesandstuff

☼  Writing Help Articles   ☼

☼ Writing For Beginners Series ☼

☼  Prompt Lists  ☼

☼ Monthly Reading/Writing Challenges ☼

☼ #10weektbrchallenge ☼

☼  Synonyms Lists  ☼

☼  Playlists  ☼

☼ Resources For Writing ☼

☼ Resources For Writing Period Pieces Series ☼

☼ Miscellaneous ☼

☼  Tags  ☼

Side Notes {Based On Frequently Asked Questions} 

PICTURES // QUOTES // REBLOGS // FAQ

INSTAGRAM // FACEBOOK // TWITTER

For A VERY useful fact, click here

上野

Bursts of Ambient Color

2020

www.anthonypresley.com

Miyabi

2020

www.anthonypresley.com