biscuitsandspices

[biscuitsandspices]

There's this misconception I'm sure your're familiar with concerning daydreaming about one's original story and characters. I've seen many posts/memes that are like "teehee relatable writer things- I'm always thinking about my story for hours instead of actually writing it lmao." YES. OBVIOUSLY. Honestly, GOOD.

Call me crazy, but that's just called having a well-thought-out narrative. You can't tell a good story if you haven't spent time considering it, how it's structured, how it progresses, how your characters progress, etc.

Even if it boils down to half an hour of this confession scene is going to be so hot and complex or I think my OC would like Beyonce, you're putting thought into your narrative, which gets you more familiar with it, which eliminates holes and narrative weaknesses, which will make you more confident writing it, which strengthens your overall writing and story.

These posts/memes treat it like you're wasting time when you should be writing instead, but that's not true. It's practical. Don't condemn yourself for enjoying your creation, an act that will ultimately strengthen it.

#writing help #writing advice #writing tumblr #writers on tumblr #writing blog #writing tips #writblr #writerblr #creative writing #writer stuff

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#writers on tumblr #writing tumblr #writing blog #books #book genres #book recommendations #books & libraries #booklr #bookblr #reading #bookworm #books and reading #fanfiction #fanfic #fiction #writing genres #genre #genres #poll for science

[biscuitsandspices]

If you hate writing outlines it's because of how they're taught in school. Toss out indentation and Roman numerals and map out your writing how you want to. Outlines are your FRIEND, dammit. This goes for everything, from political essays to fanfiction. If it's written you need an outline because the outline is for you. It can be general, vague, or a mixture of both! Be as informal as you want, who cares. They're to keep you on track and keep your writing flowing, so don't disregard them even if you dreaded making them in grade school. My outlines by chapter tend to look like this: 1. Character "P" goes to the diner to meet character "Q."

2. "P" tells "Q" about how the confrontation went. (dialogue I thought up on a bus ride) That's when shit goes DOWN. They're yelling, they're drawing attention to themselves, but before they can take it outside, "P" says (dialogue I thought up in the shower).

3. THEN "Q" SAYS THAT ONE LINE THAT "R" SAYS TO HIM IN CHAPTER FIVE BECAUSE THAT'S CALLED COHESION WOOOOO

4. idk they both leave??? you'll figure it out later

5. Self-reflection for "P." Keep your main point on how his moral compass goes to extremes and hurts others. He finally is realizing that HE is the PROBLEM

6. "P" drives to "Q's" house to apologize but GUESS WHO ANSWERS THE DOOR it's "R" and then just end the chapter there This is coming from someone who didn't write with outlines for years. Now I don't write anything longer than 400 words without one! Make them your own, make them so that they're useful to you. That's their purpose, so accept the help!

#writers on tumblr #writing tumblr #writing help #writing advice #writing tips #writing blog #writer tips #writing motivation #outlining #book writing #novel writing #writeblr #writer #writing tip

[biscuitsandspices]

Writing Fight Scenes

Here are a handful of tips on how to write intriguing and strong *no pun intended* fight scenes! 1. Give your character a meaning behind their actions. Are they fighting to survive? Are they the aggressor or the victim? Are they defending someone they love or hunting down someone who hurt them? Makes sure the audience knows why this action scene is important to your character. Unimportant and nonmeaningful actions can be boring!

2. Short sentences. Generally speaking, longer more detailed scenes slow the pace of your novel down. This is because the reader has to take more time to read and absorb all the details. Quicker, brief sentences make the pace move faster because there is less for the audience to read. Most fighting happens quickly and instinctively— without too much thought or anticipation. When things are happening fast, we have less time to take in details.

🏃‍♀️ Fast-paced with minimal details: "He punched me in the cheek, my back molars ripping open my fleshy skin. By the time the next punch came, I was already choking on a mouthful of blood."

🐌 Too many details/thoughts that slow down the action: "His large fist hurled towards me with insane speed. I could hardly believe it. He punched my cheek so hard that my sharp, back molars ripped open my fleshy skin. It hurt so bad, but I couldn't stop the next punch from coming. Blood filled my mouth, the irony taste causing me to choke and for my face to wilt."

3. Use all five senses. When adrenaline is pumping, the body can become hyperaware! Touch and sight are the senses that most people focus on... but don't forget about smell, hearing and, taste. Does your protagonist hear dogs approaching? Do they taste the blood from their busted lip?

4. Don't' slow down the pace by adding too much detail. Try to keep an ebb and flow in your action scene. When the action is happening, keep the details quick and short— no one has time to think about their next move when in the heat of danger. However, you can balance the scene out by giving your character a chance to breathe and think and observe

5. Research/study. Watch famous fight scenes in movies or anime to see what is realistic and what is exaggerated. Pay attention to the pacing or what keeps you on edge. When does the character get a chance to think or come up with a plan? What makes this action scene so enthralling?

6. Consider what is at stake. Stakes always make a scene more tense. What does your character have to lose and how does this affect their mental state? Does it aid in their energy, or does it distract them from the fight?

7. Develop characters/the plot. Consider how this action scene will either further your character in the plot or set them back. Does this scene give them a lasting injury that follows them throughout the story, or do they lose an ally that they desperately loved? How does this affect them moving forward?

Instagram: coffeebeanwriting

[biscuitsandspices]

You gotta write for funsies sometimes. Everything doesn’t have to be groundbreaking. Like. Who cares if it’s a little silly it is made out of love

#takes this to heart #never writes seriously again

[biscuitsandspices]

Dialogue tips that actually work:

You are not writing a movie (ignore this if you are). The reader doesn't need to know every word the characters say for the duration of the story. Less is more.

Dialogue can happen within the prose. "And they awkwardky discussed the weather for five minutes" is way better than actually writing five pages of dialogue about the weather.

Balance your dialogues. Surprise yourself with a monosyllabic answe to a dialogue that's ten sentences long. Don't be afraid of letting your character use half a page for a reply or nothing at all!

Don't write accents phonetically, use slang and colloquialisms if needed.

Comma before "said" and no caps after "!?" unless it's an action tag. Study dialogue punctuation.

Learn the difference between action tags and dialogue tags. Then, use them interchangeably (or none at all).

Don't be afraid to use said. Use said if characters are just saying things, use another word if not. Simple. There's no need to use fancy synonyms unless absolutely necessary.

Not everyone talks the same way so it makes sense for your characters to use certain words more often than others. Think of someone who says "like" to start every sentence or someone who talks really slow. Be creative.

Use prose to slow down the pace during a conversation.

Skip prose to speed up the pace during a conversation.

[biscuitsandspices]

How to keep writing with ADHD

Having ADHD as an aspiring writer can be really difficult and frustrating.

I just want to add a quick disclaimer that I have not been diagnosed with ADHD myself, but I have worked with several clients who struggled with this, and done some research online to compile a few tips you might be able to implement in your writing! (I will also link to some articles I read at the end of this post).

So let’s go!

Turn off the internet This popped up as one of the most common pieces of advice for ADHD writers. Eliminating distractions can be hard, but turning off your wifi altogether might help with at least a few of them. Train yourself to disconnect when it’s writing time, and see whether this affects your productivity positively!

Delay the research This can be really difficult if you’re writing historical fiction, or anything set in an area that requires some level of prior knowledge to write about. But, wherever possible, if you can save yourself pausing to research whether a certain item or word is plausible for you to use in that specific moment, then you should. Leave it, make a quick note that that’s something to research later, and keep going.

Test out radical changes Something that came up as a common downfall was losing interest halfway through the project, or dropping it after the first chapter. If you find yourself losing interest in the project, maybe try out making a radical change to a part of your plot, one that might inspire you for the story once again. Of course, make sure that this change fits in with the rest of your story as you begin to implement it.

Succinct & clear goals This is something I recommend to any writer or artist of any kind! Keep your goals as clear and small as possible. The more specific you are with a goal, the less overwhelming it will feel. Think of breaking down a big goal of “I’ll finish my book this year” into “I’ll finish 5 chapters this month” or even “1 chapter this week.” Go as small as is comfortable for you!

A fine line between plotting & exploring This is an issue that comes up very often for writers who have a tendency to get bored with their projects if they don’t keep some element of surprise to it. I’d recommend finding a good balance between how much you plot out, and how much you allow yourself to discover along the way. Find your most important plot points, and let your creativity fill in the gaps!

Tools to help you out Stay on task - browser extension that checks in on you at timely intervals to make sure you’re working on your chosen task Ommwriter - atmospheric simple writing program, with typewriting sounds & ambience Stayfocusd - browser extension to block time-wasting websites Nanowrimo.org - community challenges, self-set goals, achievement badges, progress tracking The Emotion Thesaurus: A Writer's Guide to Character Expression - a book to help with expressing emotion in a show-not-tell way

Further reading from some ADHD fiction writers themselves:

The ADHD guide to writing https://booklaunch.com/the-adhd-guide-to-writing/

Tools & tricks for writers with ADHD https://larawillard.com/2018/03/02/tools-tricks-for-writers-with-adhd/

Feel free to share your own advice in the comments below to help out other authors!

[biscuitsandspices]

💶Pre-Orders💶

 We’re excited to announce that pre-orders for Team Confidence, a Great Pretender Fanzine, are now open!!!   🛒http://teamconfidence.bigcartel.com please refer to this twitter thread for bundle info: https://twitter.com/TeamConfidence_/status/1653066759899955201?s=20

[biscuitsandspices]

Okay, question for the character creators out there: Do you first write the backstory and then decide the character’s personality/traits based on their past, OR do you first decide how the character’s personality/traits fit into the story and then write the backstory of how the character became the person you created?

I’m sure there is a lot of overlap and intermingling of the two during character creation, but PRIMARILY which do you do more? Personally, I lean more towards the second, but I’m curious to see the process of the majority!

#writers of tumblr #writers on tumblr #writer blog #tumblr writers #writing tips #writing help #original character #character creation #character creators #oc #fanfic writers #backstory #story writing #writing question

[biscuitsandspices]

“Write what you know” is such odd advice. Like no, I’ve never been left for dead in the pantry of a burning cottage by my lifelong supernatural-research partner, but I know how it feels to be betrayed by a friend. No, I’ve never lived in a town where the residents are collectively possessed by a sorrowful spirit, but I know what it’s like to suddenly lose contact and connection with people dear to me. By no means does “write what you know” have to be biographical. It can be done so beautifully when it’s used relationally.

#writers on tumblr #writing help #tumblr writers #writing advice #writing #writing tumblr #spilled ink #writer tips #writing blog #novel writer #writing tips #write what you know

[biscuitsandspices]

Encouragment for writers that I know seems discouraging at first but I promise it’s motivational-

• Those emotional scenes you’ve planned will never be as good on page as they are in your head. To YOU. Your audience, however, is eating it up. Just because you can’t articulate the emotion of a scene to your satisfaction doesn’t mean it’s not impacting the reader. 

• Sometimes a sentence, a paragraph, or even a whole scene will not be salvagable. Either it wasn’t necessary to the story to begin with, or you can put it to the side and re-write it later, but for now it’s gotta go. It doesn’t make you a bad writer to have to trim, it makes you a good writer to know to trim.

• There are several stories just like yours. And that’s okay, there’s no story in existence of completely original concepts. What makes your story “original” is that it’s yours. No one else can write your story the way you can.

• You have writing weaknesses. Everyone does. But don’t accept your writing weaknesses as unchanging facts about yourself. Don’t be content with being crap at description, dialogue, world building, etc. Writers that are comfortable being crap at things won’t improve, and that’s not you. It’s going to burn, but work that muscle. I promise you’ll like the outcome.

#hope that helps! #writers on tumblr #writing help #writing advice #writing tumblr #writer tips #writing blog #writing tips #writing tip #writblr #writing #fanfic writers #writeblr #writer blog #writers of tumblr #ya novels #fanfiction #original fiction

[biscuitsandspices]

Curious, do you typically create characters and then form a narrative around them, or do you create a story and then characters to put into the narrative?

Tell me your process in the comments/tags because personally I am...all over the place and trying to gage something-

EDIT: (and where does setting come in for you? Some people prioritize it because they see it as the foundation of a story, others get to it later because they feel it isn’t super important to their narrative)

#writers of tumblr #writer tips #writeblr #writer blog #writing characters #story writing #fanfic writers #writer help #character writing #original character #writing #writing advice

[biscuitsandspices]

“Never look back” no shut up periodically you should definitely look back.

I’ve heard it said that “looking back” while you’re working on your first draft will prohibit you from moving forward, but writing isn’t a race. Going back to edit a scene or re-reading a previous chapter are both worthwhile. It’s necessary to look back. Without it, you lose cohesion.

Sometimes you need a refresher on where you’re taking a character’s arc. Sometimes you want to parallel an interaction to drive your meaning home. Sometimes you need to check to see if your theme is as prevalent as you want it to be. Sometimes you like a scene so much you want to re-read it. Sometimes you wrote a scene so hastily you need to re-read it. The list goes on.

The advice not to “look back” is so that you keep moving forward with your story (I don’t need to tell you that writers will find any excuse not to). But there’s a difference between looking back and moving back. Stopping to observe your progress won’t paralyze you, so don’t let it.

God isn’t going to turn you into a pillar of salt, this isn’t Sodom and Gomorrah. Look back and do it with purpose. When your purpose is fulfilled, keep moving forward, but don’t condemn yourself for when you need a glance backward.

#hope that helps! #writing help #writers on tumblr #writing tumblr #writing advice #writing tips #writer tips #writing blog #writblr #writing tip #advice #writing inspiration #fanfic writers #fanfic

[biscuitsandspices]

How To Conquer Self-Doubt While Writing

One reason people never start writing is because of self-doubt.

I want to tell you something my high school English teacher told me. You might’ve heard it before, but I think we all need reminding of this.

When I feel like my writing is lackluster, I think about what she told me.

One day during lunch, I showed her some of my creative writing. When she finished reading the printed pages, she was impressed with the concept of my story. However, I told her that while I loved my plot and ideas, I felt like my writing was subpar.

I’d like to paraphrase what she said:

“You’d be surprised how many big, best-selling authors don’t have good writing [but amazing ideas]. It’s all in the editing. That is when their writing gets strengthened and polished.”

DO NOT compare your first draft of writing to a published novel! 

Published books have gone through many drafts, revisions, self-editing, and even professional editing. 

Get your passion, thoughts, and story down in a rough draft. Don’t worry about it being good enough. You can only polish a diamond after it’s cut.

The only way to get better at writing is to write. 

Instagram: coffeebeanwriting  

📖 ☕ Official Blog: www.byzoemay.com  

[biscuitsandspices]

WRITING TRICK: Keeping Things Interesting

Nowadays, it’s very easy to bore your audience. A simple boredom-deterrent that a lot of genres incorporate is an element of mystery. That keeps the audience watching/reading until the mystery is solved, thereby keeping them engaged, interested. BUT another great tool in storytelling is giving the audience information that the characters do NOT yet have. While this takes away the mystery, it has the potential to get your audience riled up in the best way. We’re tense! We’re anxious! We want the characters to know what we know!

BUT THERE IS A RIGHT WAY AND A WRONG WAY OF DOING THIS.

The wrong way: giving the audience information that the characters do not yet have, but it does not go beyond information.

Let me explain.

If the audience has already been shown that a monster is living in the woods, and then an entire episode/chapter is dedicated to the characters figuring out where the monster is living, what purpose does that serve? It kills the mystery of the big reveal happening alongside the characters for what? All we can do is wait around to see how they figure out what we already know. Ah yes, the ABSOLUTE THRILL of waiting around.

The right way: giving the audience information that the characters do not yet have, but it poses an immediate threat.

Let’s go back to our example with this in mind.

If the audience has already been shown that there is a monster living in the woods, and then an entire episode/chapter is spent with the characters in the same woods but NOT knowing there is a monster there, THAT serves a purpose. The audience knows there’s danger! There’s a threat! Look out! But the characters are blissfully unaware because they don’t have the same information we do. THAT serves a purpose: it’s stressful, it’s engaging. It keeps. the. audience. interested.

Now…this is an easy mistake to make. There’s a chance you may even be able to think of a certain hit Netflix show that has this issue FREQUENTLY throughout its recently released 4th season. It’s important to remember that if you’re sacrificing your element of mystery, you HAVE to make the sacrifice worth it. If giving the audience information does not add to the building tension, it was not worth the sacrifice.

#hope that helps! #writers on tumblr #writing advice #writing help #writing tips #writing tumblr #writer tips #writing blog #writing tip #writblr #writing tricks #stranger things #stranger things season four

[biscuitsandspices]

Writing Tips

Commonly Misused Words & Phrases

❋

phrases

⇾ another think coming (not another thing coming)

⇾ bated breath (not baited breath)

⇾ beck and call (not beckon call)

⇾ buck naked (not butt naked)

⇾ by accident (not on accident)

⇾ by and large (not by in large)

⇾ case in point (not case and point)

⇾ change tack (not change tact)

⇾ couldn’t care less (not could care less)

⇾ deep-seated (not deep-seeded)

⇾ desert: dry terrain // dessert: sweet course

⇾ due diligence (not do diligence)

⇾ exact revenge (not extract revenge)

⇾ for all intents and purposes (not for all intensive purposes)

⇾ free rein (not free reign)

⇾ homing in (not honing in)

⇾ hunger pangs (not hunger pains)

⇾ jibe with (not jive with)

⇾ moot point (not mute point)

⇾ nerve-wracking (not nerve-wrecking)

⇾ nip it in the bud (not nip it in the butt)

⇾ on tenterhooks (not on tender hooks)

⇾ one and the same (not one in the same)

⇾ palm off (not pawn off)

⇾ per se (not per say)

⇾ piqued my interest (not peaked my interest)

⇾ pore over (not pour over)

⇾ scot free (not scotch free or scott free)

⇾ shoo-in (not shoe-in)

⇾ sleight of hand (not slight of hand)

⇾ spit and image (not spitting image)

⇾ whet your appetite (not wet your appetite)

❋

words

⇾ accept: receive something (verb) // except: exclusion (preposition)

⇾ adverse: something harmful // averse: feeling of dislike

⇾ advice: guidance (noun) // advise: to give counsel (verb)

⇾ affect: to influence (verb) // effect: result (noun)

⇾ all together: same place, same time // altogether: whole or complete

⇾ allowed: permitted // aloud: audibly

⇾ allude: make indirect reference // elude: escape

⇾ amiable: referring to person // amicable: referring to interaction

⇾ among: expresses relationship between several items // between: expresses relationship of one thing to another or to many other things

⇾ amoral: lacking morality // immoral: not conforming to standard morality // nonmoral: morality is irrelevant

⇾ any time: noun phrase used after preposition // anytime: adverb

⇾ assure: to tell someone something with confidence // ensure: to make certain something will occur // insure: to protect

⇾ a while: noun // awhile: adverb

⇾ bate: angry mood // bait: lure

⇾ blond: masculine // blonde: feminine

⇾ breath: air inhaled and exhaled (noun) // breathe: the action of inhaling and exhaling (verb)

⇾ canvas: closely woven close used to make items // canvass: to look closely or to illicit votes

⇾ capital: city, wealth, or resource // capitol: building where lawmakers meet

⇾ carat: a measure of the purity of gold // caret: a mark placed below the line to indicate a proposed insertion in a text // carrot: a vegetable

⇾ complement: enhances something // compliment: expression of praise

⇾ conscience: noun; one’s awareness // conscious: adjective; awake or alert

⇾ continual: occurring at regular intervals // continuous: occurring without interruption

⇾ dichotomy: entirely opposite // discrepancy: relatively minor inconsistency // disparity: significant difference

⇾ disc: music or throwable object // disk: computer storage

⇾ discreet: unobtrusive // discrete: separate

⇾ disinterested: impartial // uninterested: bored or not wanting to be involved

⇾ each: refers to individual object or person in a group of two or more // every: refers to a group of objects or people in a group of three or more

⇾ e.g.: for example (exampli gratia) // i.e.: in other words (id est)

⇾ emigrate: to move away // immigrate: to move into

⇾ empathy: ability to understand another’s perspective or emotions (but do not necessarily share them) // sympathy: understand from one’s own perspective (and share feelings)

⇾ envy: feeling of desiring something one does not have // jealous: feeling of fearing losing something one does have

⇾ every day: adverb // everyday: adjective

⇾ farther: physical distance // further: metaphorical distance

⇾ fazed: disturbed // phased: staged

⇾ fewer: countable difference // less: metaphorical difference

⇾ flaunt: to show off // flout: to defy

⇾ hanged: death of person via hanging // hung: to have suspended something

⇾ historic: famous or influential // historical: related to history

⇾ ingenious: to be clever and creative // ingenuous: to be innocent and unsuspecting

⇾ its: possessive form // it’s: it is

⇾ lay: placement of something // lie: act of reclining

⇾ loose: not fixed in place (adjective) // lose: to be deprived of or defeated (verb)

⇾ may: high possibility // might: low possibility

⇾ palate: roof of mouth // palette: thin board of colors // pallet: bed or platform

⇾ peak: mountain top // peek: quick look

⇾ persecute: to harass // prosecute: to bring legal action

⇾ prescribe: dictate a rule to follow // proscribe: forbid something

⇾ principal: head of organization or sum of money // principle: basic truth or law

⇾ reign: to rule // rein: to control or restraint

⇾ sleight: deceitful dexterity // slight: insult

⇾ stationary: unmoving // stationery: letter writing materials

⇾ subconscious: not in current focus awareness // unconscious: processes that occur automatically and are not available to introspection

⇾ than: for comparisons // then: for passage of time

⇾ that: restrictive; indicates something specific // which: nonrestrictive; adds information

⇾ their: possessive form // there: place // they’re: they are

⇾ to: preposition // too: adverb meaning also // two: number

⇾ well: adverb // good: adjective

⇾ who: subject // whom: object

⇾ who’s: who is // whose: possessive form

⇾ worse: comparative // worst: superlative

⇾ your: possessive form // you’re: you are

[biscuitsandspices]

May 16th entry am I RIGHT

#dracula daily #dracula 1897 #jonathan harker #count dracula #dracula