#fiction writing | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

writers-potion · 2 days

Text

Fear Elements for Your Fiction

Places Creepy places make atmospheric fiction settings.

Is there a place that makes you feel cold? Are you terrified of walking a certain path, especially in the dark?

Recall a scary dream. Where did that dream take place?

Wierd Shudders Are you frightened of something that others people consider harmless?

The sight of long fingernails, the sound of nails scraping on a blackboard. Moths and butterflies flying in your face?

If you have a shudder that makes you feel low-key creeped out in daily life write about it.

Phobias Many people of phobias about particular objects and situations. If you have a phobias, try writing about it.

Childhood Fears Whether the danger was true or imagined, the fear you experienced in your childhood was probably intense.

What if there really was a monster under your bed?

Gian black steam engines, the blue glow of an automatic door lock, the gaping hole of an empty closet?

Dreams Do you have a recurring nightmare? Something that makes you wake up with sweat?

Human Attitudes What are some things that people do that you find scary or creepy?

Unbending bureaucracy? Bullying? People consuming others' pain for entertainment? Hating others in the name of religion?

Use fiction to address these issues.

Ordinary Things Look around the ordinary things around you and ask - what if they aren't as harmless as they seem?

Metal pins on my bulletin board? Windows? The TV? A potted tomato slowly withering?

─── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* . ───

💎If you like my blog, buy me a coffee☕ and find me on instagram!

💎Before you ask, check out my masterpost part 1 and part 2

💎For early access to my content, become a Writing Wizard

235 notes · View notes

imastoryteller · 19 hours

Text

Establishing Your Protagonist from Page One: The Key to Engaging Storytelling

From the very beginning of your story, ensure the reader knows exactly who the protagonist is. A well-defined main character anchors your narrative, providing a clear point of view and emotional depth. We must climb inside their skin, feeling what they feel, experiencing the world through their eyes. This connection is crucial; without it, the reader has no entry point, no emotional stake. Many writers overlook this fundamental step, but a protagonist is the heart of your story. Without them, everything feels neutral, lacking direction and passion. Make your protagonist clear from page one to ensure your story resonates deeply.

#writing tips #writing advice #character development #writers on tumblr #writeblr #creative writing #fiction writing #writerscommunity #writing #writing help #writing resources

74 notes · View notes

imagineurwrld · 12 hours

Text

home

in which you are reunited with your boyfriend after months of being parted

You hold your breath as your house grows visible past the hill you run up, and then you stop once you reach the top. The vision before you is enough to make you freeze completely, blood pumping viciously and breath catching in your throat. The wind stills before brushing through your hair and clothes again.

His figure sits on your doorstep, a heavy-looking bag tossed to the side and his arms draped over his bent knees. His head is turned to the side, deep in thought as he seemingly waits for your arrival. You can tell he is tired from his travels just by glancing at his posture, the way he is slumped over, but his mannerisms shift completely when his head turns and his eyes land on you.

The moment your eyes meet, you know. You know that this nightmare is over, that you no longer have to dream of a love that felt so out of reach, that you no longer have to cry, that you no longer have to clean to distract yourself from the emptiness of your house, that you no longer have to force yourself out of bed and despise the image that stares back at you in the bathroom mirror because it is void of the image of him, arms wrapped around your waist and lips pressed to your ear.

You no longer have to wait, to fear, to miss. It is over. His eyes are as bright as the sun upon seeing you, and they shatter the glass wall that you had forced up. Those eyes that sparkle like a thousand rays of light, the eyes that reawaken you after having died along with his absence, those eyes that are home.

Admiration, fondness, desperation, exhaustion, warmth, and home. Those are his eyes, your home’s eyes.

You can not move until suddenly, you are. You race across the path, stumbling over your rapidly moving feet as he lifts himself from the staircase to hold out his arms and brace himself for impact. Your body collides with his, chest shoving into chest, and everything snaps into place like a missing piece fitting perfectly into a puzzle.

You grip the rough fabric of his shirt, clinging onto any piece of his clothing you can touch, switching your arms from his upper back to his lower back to up again. One arm secures around your waist, while the other cradles your head to him.

For a moment, it does not feel real. You don't know how to begin to fathom the foreign yet achingly familiar feeling. His hands are calloused, hard, and coarse from work. His hold is strong and secure, and he feels slightly bulkier but he is the same. It is him, and you are crying before you can even comprehend it.

He lifts you up from the ground, screwing his eyes shut and tightening his lips to prevent the emotions that he had built up from spilling free, messily, simply from seeing your beautiful face after so, so long.

You are soft in his arms, pliant, gentle, just as you were when he left you six months ago. Your scent fills his nostrils, intoxicating him more than any perfume he’d bought for you in the past ever could. Your graceful arms clinging ungracefully to his back, sobs racking your chest as he holds you impossibly closer.

It is you. He is home.

He sets you back down on your feet, pulling away just enough to take in your features. He soaks in the vision of you: your glossy eyes and trembling lips; the curve of your clenching jaw and the complexion of your skin flushed; your nose flaring as tears stick to your lashes, trickling down your cheeks and dribbling past your chin.

You are a lovely sight, an angel. You are his home, and he loves you so. His brows curl as he gazes at you afraid to blink and watch his dream disappear.

Your head is swiftly pushed into his and lips smash together. You savor the taste that you have been deprived of for months. He is exhausted, he’d been traveling for hours, and he is dirty, but he doesn’t care. You don’t care. He is home, and home is the way your lips chase his each time they break apart to push back in.

He kisses you hard, he kisses you passionately, then slowly and tenderly. His brows knit together as your delicate hands ruffle through his hair. Tears mix into the taste of each other’s lips, but neither of you cares. How could you care? It doesn't matter. All that matters is this moment, this feeling, this cease of departure.

You pull away with a soft smack, pressing your foreheads together and staring into each other’s teary eyes. Your hands move to his face, tracing his skin and caressing the scars indented above his brow and on his chin.

He lets you, lashes fluttering against his cheek as he breathes you in and relishes this moment for all it is worth, his thumbs tracing the curve of your spine beneath the thin silk of your shirt.

A wobbly smile touches your lips as your eyes dart across his face, unsure of where to focus. A laugh, or a scoff maybe, falls past your lips, one of sheer passion and relief, before your teeth come down to bite the bottom one.

He smiles, tiredly. His heart pangs against his chest as your grin appears, the very grin he’d engraved into his brain to keep him going this past half a year.

“Welcome home.”

Your phrase is a whisper, gone with the breeze that blows past. His smile widens somehow, and his eyes brighten as the reality sinks in. He breathes air through his nose in amused shock, shaking his head in disbelief at the fact that his wait is finally over.

He is home, home with the heart he’d left behind, and he could have collapsed as reality sank in.

He kisses you again and again, and lifts you up and kisses you even more until he cannot breathe.

written by Jaylin Smith

113 notes · View notes

the-altered-sequence · 9 hours

Text

Dangerously close to rewriting 7+ books/stories to make the main characters anthropomorphic animals. Just go full on "yep they are literally animal human hybrid GMOs". Realizing that this actually enhances the themes and messages of the central conflicts. Oh god

#writing #fiction writing #post apocalyptic #post-apocalyptic #post apocalypse #ocs #furry

23 notes · View notes

vavandeveresfan · 8 hours

Text

Fifteen Commandments for Mystery (and other fiction) Writers Who Want To Be Published (or don't want to be).

These work for all genres, including fanfiction.

From You Can Write a Mystery by Gillian Roberts, Writers Digest Books.

22 notes · View notes

the-ellia-west · 6 hours

Note

how does one acquire motivation to write

Take Care of yourself.

That's how.

Drink a few cups of water, go for a walk, eat a small snack, take a shower, ect.

After that, you can sit down, watch a movie, a video, a show, read someone's writing, read an actual book, a comic, or just text and brainstorm with somebody.

I've learned through trial and error that taking care of yourself is a big middle finger to writers block and burnout.

It helps you focus more and feel better. Trust me, it works, and that's why I advertise it so hard. Not only is it good for you, but it's also good for your writing.

(I'm also open for brainstorming if you want to talk! - This Applies to ANYONE)

20 notes · View notes

ladyantiheroine · 2 days

Text

Hey Tumblr. I need writing help.

I've been working on a story, and there's one plot point I have been banging my head against the wall about for months, so I'm going to ask the internet for help:

So, my main character is a woman who has just recently married into a rich family after a botched con job. However, she discovers some dark secrets about the family. The family finds out she knows, and they threaten to expose her criminal past and get her arrested if she spills the beans about their secrets.

So, the family has hired a bodyguard to watch her. Both because she's a famous man's wife now, but also so they can keep an eye on her when they're not around. She's a liability now, after all.

Now, my main character has a plan to escape this family. However, in order to do it, she needs the bodyguard out of the way for a while. I am stuck on how to get rid of the bodyguard.

A few important notes: 1. She can't kill the bodyguard. She just needs to incapacitate him for several hours to a day. 2. The bodyguard has to be "taken out" in a way that casts little suspicion on the main character. 3. Ideally, his "taking out" would either look like an accident that neither of them could have anticipated, or possibly something that could later be blamed on another character (this could depend on timing stuff I haven't worked out yet). 4. She has one friend/ally on the outside that the family doesn't know about who could do something, but I'm not sure what. He's a fellow criminal, but not strong enough to fight/injure the bodyguard.

~

Any suggestions or ideas at all would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much!

EDIT: I should also mention the bodyguard lives with her (it's a 24-hour watch kind of thing).

19 notes · View notes

writersshitpost · 7 months

Text

22K notes · View notes

unboundprompts · 3 months

Text

Pirate Terms and Phrases

-> Pirate Lingo

-> A Pirate's Glossary

Batten Down The Hatches - tie everything down and put stuff away for a coming storm.

Brig - a prison on a ship.

Bring a Spring Upon 'er - turn the ship in a different direction

Broadside - the most vulnerable angle of a ship that runs the length of the boat.

Cutlass - a thick, heavy and rather short sword blade.

Dance with Jack Ketch - to hang; death at the hands of the law (Jack Ketch was a famed English executioner).

Davy Jones's Locker - a mythical place at the bottom of the ocean where drowned sailors are said to go.

Dead Men Tell No Tales - the reason given for leaving no survivors.

Flogging - severe beating of a person.

Gangplank - removable ramp between the pier and ship.

Give No Quarter - show no mercy.

Jack - flag flown at the front of the ship to show nationality.

Jolly Roger - black pirate flag with a white skull and crossbones.

Keelhaul - a punishment where someone is dragged under the ship. They are cut by the planks and barnacles on the bottom of the ship.

Landlubber - an inexperienced or clumsy person who doesn't have any sailing skills.

Letters of Marque - government-issued letters allowing privateers the right to piracy of another ship during wartime.

Man-O-War - a pirate ship that is decked out and prepared for battle.

Maroon - to leave someone stranded on a. deserted island with no supplies, typically a punishment for any crew members who disrespected the captain.

Mutiny - a situation in which the crew chooses a new captain, sometimes by forcibly removing the old one.

No Prey, No Pay - a common pirate law that meant crew members were not paid, but rather received a share of whatever loot was taken.

Old Salt - experienced pirate or sailor.

Pillage - to steal/rob a place using violence.

Powder Monkeys - men that performed the most dangerous work on the ship. They were treated harshly, rarely paid, and were expendable.

Privateer - government-appointed pirates.

Run A Shot Across the Bow - fire a warning shot at another boat's Captain.

Scurvy - a disease caused by Vitamin C Deficiency.

Sea Legs - when a sailor adjusts his balance from riding on a boat for a long time.

Strike Colors - lower a ship's flag to indicate surrender.

Weigh Anchor and Hoist the Mizzen - an order to the crew to pull up the anchor and get the ship sailing.

If you like what I do and want to support me, please consider buying me a coffee! I also offer editing services and other writing advice on my Ko-fi! Become a member to receive exclusive content, early access, and prioritized writing prompt requests.

#creative writing #writeblr #pirate writing prompts #pirates #pirate au #glossary #pirate lingo #pirate terms and phrases #pirate language #pirate vocab #pirate vocabulary #victorian slang #how to talk like a pirate #how to write #writing tips #fiction writing #writing advice #writing help #writing resources

13K notes · View notes

xisadorapurlowx · 6 months

Text

10K notes · View notes

keepcalmandwritefiction · 4 months

Text

A cool thing about writing is that the better you get at it, the more you're aware of what you want out of it, which means it gets harder, which means you actually feel like you're getting worse.

And by "cool thing," I mean "what the fuck, man"

– Sam Sykes

#fiction #fiction writing #writing motivation #the writer life #sam sykes #tweet tweet #kcawf original #image description in alt text #writeblr

6K notes · View notes

angelasscribbles · 4 months

Text

The Feral Writer lol

Writers Corner

#Writeblr #Writing community #Writing humor #Writers corner #Writers life #Writers #Writerscommunity #Writing #Writer #Creative writing #Fiction writing #Female writers #Tumblr writers

7K notes · View notes

imastoryteller · 2 months

Text

20 Emotional Wounds in Fiction That Make Readers Root for the Character

Abandonment: Characters who have been abandoned by loved ones or caregivers can evoke sympathy from readers.

Betrayal: Being betrayed by someone close can create deep emotional wounds that make readers empathize with the character.

Loss of a Loved One: Whether through death or separation, the loss of a loved one can be a powerful emotional wound.

Rejection: Characters who experience rejection, whether in relationships or by society, can be relatable and evoke empathy.

Abuse: Physical, emotional, or psychological abuse can create complex wounds that shape a character's personality and behavior.

Neglect: Characters who have been neglected, especially in childhood, can evoke sympathy from readers.

Failure: Experiencing a significant failure or loss can create emotional wounds that make characters more relatable.

Guilt: Characters who carry guilt for past actions or decisions can be compelling and evoke empathy from readers.

Shame: Feelings of shame can create internal conflict and make characters more relatable and sympathetic.

Injustice: Characters who have experienced injustice or unfair treatment can evoke strong emotions from readers.

Trauma: Characters who have experienced traumatic events, such as war or natural disasters, can be sympathetic and relatable.

Loneliness: Characters who feel lonely or isolated can evoke empathy from readers who have experienced similar feelings.

Fear: Characters who face their fears or struggle with phobias can be relatable and evoke empathy from readers.

Self-doubt: Characters who struggle with self-doubt or low self-esteem can be relatable and evoke sympathy.

Identity Crisis: Characters who are grappling with questions of identity or struggling to find their place in the world can be sympathetic.

Addiction: Characters who struggle with addiction can be complex and evoke empathy from readers.

Betrayal of Trust: Characters who have had their trust betrayed can be sympathetic and relatable.

Unrequited Love: Characters who experience unrequited love can be sympathetic and evoke empathy from readers.

Isolation: Characters who feel isolated or disconnected from others can be relatable and evoke sympathy.

Fear of Failure: Characters who struggle with a fear of failure can be relatable and evoke empathy from readers.

#writing tips #writing advice #writers on tumblr #writeblr #creative writing #fiction writing #writerscommunity #writing #writing help #writing resources #ai generated

7K notes · View notes

blue-eyed-author · 7 months

Text

Writing rule:

Every character who speaks gets their own paragraph. If two characters are talking, each time they switch you must create a new paragraph.

Do not add more than one characters’s dialogue into a single paragraph or it will be too confusing for the reader.

5K notes · View notes

burntoutdaydreamer · 7 months

Text

Weird Brain Hacks That Help Me Write

I'm a consistently inconsistent writer/aspiring novelist, member of the burnt-out-gifted-kid-to-adult-ADHD-diagnosis-pipeline, recently unemployed overachiever, and person who's sick of hearing the conventional neurotypical advice to dealing with writer's block (i.e. "write every single day," or "there's no such thing as writer's block- if you're struggling to write, just write" Like F*CK THAT. Thank you, Brenda, why don't you go and tell someone with diabetes to just start producing more insulin?)

I've yet to get to a point in my life where I'm able to consistently write at the pace I want to, but I've come a long way from where I was a few years ago. In the past five years I've written two drafts of a 130,000 word fantasy novel (currently working on the third) and I'm about 50,000 words in on the sequel. I've hit a bit of a snag recently, but now that I've suddenly got a lot of time on my hands, I'm hoping to revamp things and return to the basics that have gotten me to this point and I thought I might share.

1) My first draft stays between me and God

I find that I and a lot of other writers unfortunately have gotten it into our heads that first drafts are supposed to resemble the finished product and that revisions are only for fixing minor mistakes. Therefore, if our first draft sucks that must mean we suck as writers and having to rewrite things from scratch means that means our first draft is a failure.

I'm here to say that is one of the most detrimental mentalities you can have as a writer.

Ever try drawing a circle? You know how when you try to free-hand draw a perfect circle in one go, it never turns out right? Whereas if you scribble, say, ten circles on top of one another really quickly and then erase the messy lines until it looks like you drew a circle with a singular line, it ends up looking pretty decent?

Yeah. That's what the drafting process is.

Your first draft is supposed to suck. I don't care who you are, but you're never going to write a perfect first draft, especially if you're inexperienced. The purpose of the first draft is to lay down a semi-workable foundation. A really loose, messy sketch if you will. Get it all down on paper, even if it turns out to be the most cliche, cringe-inducing writing you've ever done. You can work out those kinks in the later drafts. The hardest part of the first draft is the most crucial part: getting started. Don't stress yourself out and make it even harder than it already is.

If that means making a promise to yourself that no one other than you will ever read your first draft unless it's over your cold, dead body, so be it.

2) Tell perfectionism to screw off by writing with a pen

I used to exclusively write with pencil until I realized I was spending more time erasing instead of writing.

Writing with a pen keeps me from editing while I right. Like, sometimes I'll have to cross something out or make notes in the margins, but unlike erasing and rewriting, this leaves the page looking like a disaster zone and that's a good thing.

If my writing looks like a complete mess on paper, that helps me move past the perfectionist paralysis and just focus on getting words down on the page. Somehow seeing a page full of chicken scratch makes me less worried about making my writing all perfect and pretty- and that helps me get on with my main goal of fleshing out ideas and getting words on a page.

3) It's okay to leave things blank when you can't think of the right word

My writing, especially my first draft, is often filled with ___ and .... and (insert name here) and red text that reads like stage directions because I can't think of what is supposed to go there or the correct way to write it.

I found it helps to treat my writing like I do multiple choice tests. Can't think of the right answer? Just skip it. Circle it, come back to it later, but don't let one tricky question stall you to the point where you run out of brain power or run out of time to answer the other questions.

If I'm on a role, I'm not gonna waste it by trying to remember that exact word that I need or figure out the right transition into the next scene or paragraph. I'm just going to leave it blank, mark to myself that I'll need to fix the problem later, and move on.

Trust me. This helps me sooooo much with staying on a roll.

4) Write Out of Order

This may not be for everyone, but it works wonders for me.

Sure, the story your writing may need to progress chronologically, but does that mean you need to write it chronologically? No. It just needs to be written.

I generally don't do this as much for editing, but for writing, so long as you're making progress, it doesn't matter if it's in the right order. Can't think of how to structure Chapter 2, but you have a pretty good idea of how your story's going to end? Write the ending then. You'll have to go back and write Chapter 2 eventually, but if you're feeling more motivated to write a completely different part of the book, who's to say you can't do that?

When I'm working on a project, I start off with a single document that I title "Scrap for (Project Title)" and then just write whatever comes to mind, in whatever order. Once I've gotten enough to work with, then I start outlining my plot and predicting how many chapters I'm going to need. Then, I create separate google docs for each individual chapter and work on them in whatever order I feel like, often leaving several partially complete as I jump from one to the other. Then, as each one gets finished, I copy and paste the chapter into the full manuscript document. This means that the official "draft" could have Chapters 1 and 9, but completely be missing Chapters 2-8, and that's fine. It's not like anyone will ever know once I finish it.

Sorry for the absurdly long post. Hopes this helps someone. Maybe I'll share more tricks in the future.

#writing #creative writing #writerscommunity #writers on tumblr #writing tips #writing advice #writers block #novel writing #fiction writing #writer #writers of tumblr

3K notes · View notes

the-ellia-west · 2 days

Text

New WIPPP

Face Claims (More picrews bc why not)

The kiss one is more accurate for both but here

They also finally have names

Adémaia