#edit: added an extra sentence for clarity

[v-arbellanaris]

on divine justinia (pt 3)

Justinia V will be remembered as one of the most progressive Divines in the history of the Chantry. Before her untimely death at the Temple of Sacred Ashes, she made strides to break down barriers for both mages and elves, as well as encouraging free thought among the Maker’s many children. For her views, she won as many enemies as she did supporters.

-- World of Thedas Vol 2.

PART THREE of a series, exploring Divine Justinia’s political stance. Was she really as progressive as people claimed?

Firstly, before we even dive into looking at Justinia as a character, we should define ‘progressive’. In the most base of definitions, it implies progress -- a gradual betterment. As a widely accepted definition, someone whose politics advocate for social reform. 

PART ONE - LELIANA'S SONG. / PART TWO - DRAGON AGE II. / PART THREE - THE MASKED EMPIRE.

The Masked Empire

As always, before we begin, here's some contextual factors to this story that are necessary to know/things I'm going to emphasise here out of relevance:

There are three weeks in-world between the events of TME and Asunder -- that means the Order is still bound to the Chantry, and the Circles are still very much in-tact.

One year after the events in Kirkwall, Fiona is elected as the new Grand Enchanter and immediately proposes to secede from the Chantry. In response, the Chantry disbands the College of Enchanters and stops them from meeting, despite the fact that this vote did not go through (in large part due to the urging of Wynne).

The War of the Lions hasn't yet started in earnest, though tensions between Gaspard and Celene are running high.

For the most part, I'm going to focus specifically on two scenes, both involving conversations between Celene and Leliana, who is acting as a representative for Divine Justinia.

Well! Let's dive right into it -- in this first scene, Leliana and Celene meet to discuss the growing mage-templar tensions, and what Justinia will do about it.

Celene: The templars have become even more restless since what happened in Kirkwall, as have the mages, for that matter. What does Dorothea intend to do? Leliana: The Divine does not wish to assume that what transpired in Kirkwall was anything more than the actions of a single mad mage driven to tragic action by overzealous templars. You know that in some Marcher city-states, mages face more restrictions than they do in Orlais.

"A single mad mage" is an obvious reference to Anders. Anders was not "mad" -- some strange writing decisions seemed to conflate his shared body with a spirit of Justice to having bipolar disorder. Even if you do interpret that as Anders also being bipolar, that wouldn't make him crazy. More than that, Anders protested Meredith's treatment of mages -- and he was right about all of it, in the end. Alrik really was making mages Tranquil to rape them -- and he really did propose a Tranquil solution to the Divine, who rejected it. (Unsurprising, considering the looming threat of the Qunari invasion in Act 2; I've written here about how the Circle functions primarily as a military resource and how the only time you see mages let out in Kirkwall properly is during the Qunari invasion when the templars instruct the Circle mages to defend the city). Meredith really was turning Harrowed mages Tranquil -- Karl Thekkla, for example, but she also turns Maddox Tranquil and can turn all of the surviving Starkhaven mages Tranquil as well -- against Chantry law. Most damningly, Meredith had already called for the Right of Annulment in Kirkwall long before Anders took any action at all -- she really was going to kill all of the mages and had taken the steps necessary to facilitate that action. Anders' actions were a direct response to Meredith asking the Divine for permission to slaughter the entire Circle. Cassandra interrogates Varric in 9:41, and it's unclear where that fits into this timeline, but Varric does say that he was brought to Haven after his interrogation. I'll give Leliana (and Justinia) the benefit of the doubt here and say that maybe they don't have the full story just yet.

But Leliana also says "overzealous templars" -- overzealous templars that Leliana and Justinia had plenty of opportunity to censure or bring to heel, and never did. Overzealous templars -- because of course, they're just very passionate when they're sending death squads to hunt down civilians accused of helping "apostates" and murdering nobility trying to organise an election of a new Viscount. They're just very passionate about their beliefs in the Maker when they make mages Tranquil to rape them, when they beat Tranquil mages over things they can't control, and making eleven year old children Tranquil. They're just very passionate about their beliefs in the Maker which is why they refused to investigate the actual serial killer using magic in Kirkwall, because they wanted to remain in favour with the nobility. And Justinia knows this because this was going on for three years, during which Justinia did nothing until the mages started to rebel.

More importantly, this is ... the direct opposite of what Leliana said in DA2. In DA2, Leliana explicitly states that they (both herself and the Divine, who she speaks on behalf of) attribute the unrest in Kirkwall to the Resolutionists -- an offshoot of the Libertarian Fraternity, who are interested in freeing mages from the Circle. Not that the unrest was a result of horrific abuses in the Circle, or even the untenable political situation in Kirkwall. There was certainly no indication that Justinia suspected or agreed that the templars overstepped their bounds -- there was no directive from Justinia, who would have overruled Elthina on the matter, forcing Meredith to back down. There was no statement ever claiming that the templars were wrong to act as they did. If anything, Justinia threatened an Exalted March to help the templars maintain their control of Kirkwall.

So why phrase it like this? I think the interesting thing to note here is actually Leliana's use of the phrase "the Divine does not wish to assume". This seems to indicate that at this time, Justinia is trying not to treat the situation as a mage rebellion - she is treating Kirkwall, not as the start of a mage rebellion, but rather an isolated incident involving a single crazy mage and some passionate templars. There is some indication here that she's reluctant to consider Kirkwall or the mages voting for secession as indicative of a wider problem but...

“I do,” Celene said, “and I also know that you have not answered my question. If Dorothea proposes to do nothing to unite the templars and the mages, she is following in the footsteps of Grand Cleric Elthina, who waited and prayed while Kirkwall tore itself apart.” She turned and faced Nightingale directly. The other woman had reacted again at the use of the Divine’s given name. “Justinia wishes to see this world made better, Your Radiance. We gain nothing by acting capriciously.” “Sometimes events do not allow us the time we wish, especially when magic is at play.” Celene looked at Nightingale, who sat as a proper lady, relaxed and poised in her simple robes, and made a guess. “I understand that during the last Blight, the Circle tower in Ferelden was nearly lost when one of their senior mages became an abomination. After killing the creatures, the Hero of Ferelden was forced to decide on the spot whether to kill every remaining mage in the tower.” Her barb struck home, as Nightingale blinked, then said with heat, “We are hardly in the thick of battle, Your Radiance.” “We are always in battle,” Celene said. “It is only that some of us do not always realize it."

Following on from the thread of the previous conversation, to me, Celene seems to be urging Leliana to tell the Divine to take more definitive action against the mages. She deliberately creates a parallel between Elthina insisting she had control of the situation and not taking direct action to Justinia insisting Kirkwall was a single isolated incident. She directly draws parallels between how Elthina's lack of action led to the situation in Kirkwall and how Justinia's lack of action could lead to a similar situation with the mages and templars.

More alarmingly, however, is Celene's next, far more subtle proposal. To me, I was always baffled by why Celene suddenly started to talk about Kinloch Hold, but after looking at this context, I actually think Celene is suggesting a much more permanent, direct resolution to the mage problem, similar to the kind of decision the HoF had to make - whether or not to annul the entire Circle.

To me, I think this reads as Celene proposing the Chantry goes to war on the mages. She chooses the specific example of Kinloch Hold because Leliana was there - so that Leliana will not misunderstand the kind of action she expects the Divine to take.

To Leliana's credit, she does retort that the conflict hasn't escalated to the point where that's necessary yet, and that the Divine does not wish to act "capriciously".

“Perhaps I might,” Celene said, and smiled before lowering her voice and continuing. “Divine Justinia must know this: I have nobles begging in private salons for the throne to take direct action in this matter.” At Leliana’s shocked look, she nodded. “There are men of Orlais who would sooner see us march upon our own people in the name of safety. I would despise that. Dorothea knows that I would. But I must offer them some alternative.” Leliana stood, frowning in thought. “You wish the Divine to make some overt show of ameliorating the situation.” Celene let out a breath. “In truth, any overt show will bring complaints that I have allowed the Chantry free rein to rule this empire for me,” she said, and Leliana nodded wordlessly. “But if Justinia can calm tempers before I am forced to turn the blade of the empire upon itself, then I will pay such a price willingly.” Leliana smiled. “You think less for yourself and more for Orlais than I had expected, Your Radiance. It is a fortunate quality in a ruler, and one I have not seen enough.” Celene stood as well, and for a moment her gown was bathed in the crimson light of the stained glass. “Tell me something. How large was the Archdemon?” Leliana laughed the delicate cultured laugh of a noblewoman or trained bard. The effect made her sister’s robes look like a poor disguise. “Large enough, Your Radiance, that after having seen it, most problems seem small by comparison.” Her face turned serious, and she added, “I will ask Justinia to consider acting directly. She will want your support, to head off accusations that she might be attempting to steal power for herself.” “Of course. Perhaps if she made a statement at a ball thrown in her honor?” Leliana considered it. “It is not the place where one would expect her to make such a pronouncement…” “Which is why you like the idea,” Celene said, smiling.

Celene makes it clear here that the Orlesian nobility is restless about the growing mage/templar situation which is quickly growing unstable. I specifically want to draw attention to Celene's phrasing here - "march upon our own people in the name of safety" - because I think the implication here that she considers the mages as "her own people" is an appeal to Leliana to get the Divine to act.

But how does she want Justinia to act? At a first glance, it seems reasonable here that Celene is asking for Justinia to try and talk to the mages and templars and settle things between them. Except, when Leliana specifically asks whether Justinia should "make some overt show or ameliorating the situation", Celene's response is that "any overt show will bring complaints" - which reads to me as a decline. She is declining that Justinia should try to reason with both parties.

On top of that, there's some more ambigious phrasing here. ".. if Justinia can calm tempers" - Celene makes no mention here of whose tempers she means. From a first glance perspective, or even from Leliana's perspective, it might seem like she's referring to the roused tempers of the templars and mages, following on from the actions in Kirkwall. But with the context of the previous paragraph in mind, where she very much points out that the nobility of Orlais are not happy with the state of the mage/templar situation, I think she's referring to Justinia doing something that will calm the tempers of the nobility of Orlais.

Later, she follows it up with the phrase "I will pay such a price willingly", referring to the public loss of opinion with the nobility if Justinia can calm these tempers. To Leliana, I imagine it reads as something magnanimous - indeed, Leliana even says that Celene thinks "more for Orlais" than herself, which was unexpected.

But to me, it reads as Celene promising Justinia that if the situation worsens, if Justinia calls for an Exalted March on the mages, Orlais will answer the call. Orlais is willing to march on the mages, if only Justinia calls for an Exalted March, and Orlais -- through it's Empress -- is willing to lose the small amount of public opinion - that people might whisper she's allowing the Chantry free reign of Orlais (and, presumably, all it's resources, for the purposes of this Exalted March, which is actually... an interesting perspective for Orlais to take. But I will not get sidetracked here) - if it accomplishes the greater goal of resolving the mage/templar tensions directly and definitively, because the lack of resolution is causing a negative reaction from the Orlesian nobles, which we know Gaspard is taking advantage of.

(Important to note: at this point, an Exalted March is still entirely feasible; the Order is still bound to the Chantry by the Nevarran Accord. Justinia has been considering an Exalted March since 9:37, though Leliana's dialogue suggests she's hesitant to go through with it. Historically, Orlais has contributed to the Exalted Marches and has been the sole contributor of at least one Exalted March.)

But Vee, I hear you say, this is absurd. Surely, this is a bad faith reading of the situation, no way Celene would propose something like this. No way Leliana or even Justinia would agree to this.

I have several counterarguments to this: firstly, the Grand Game of Orlais relies on complexity of word play and layered meanings. It relies on saying on thing and meaning, at the very minimum, three other things. It's entirely plausible for Celene to be appealing to Leliana's sense of empathy and justice, to seem to be proposing that Justinia soothe the tempers of the mages and templars to prevent something worse from happening, using the same words that she's actually proposing something entirely different - and more violent and direct - to Justinia with.

Secondly, by the time Justinia calls for the Conclave at the Temple of Sacred Ashes, she already has a writ for the creation of the Inquisition prepared and Leliana already has agents planted in the Hinterlands, only minutes away from Redcliffe, where the mage rebellion is seeking refuge. The Inquisition was planned and I am fairly sure that the Inquisition was created specifically to march on the mages. This is not a last minute thought - that writ is huge - this was planned. This was in the works already - why isn't it feasible that this is where it starts? Justinia was already considering an Exalted March on Kirkwall. Why is it so unfeasible that she'd consider more direct action to deal with the mages?

Thirdly, there's actually a follow-up conversation with Leliana about this that I think pretty much confirms that this is what Celene and Leliana (and as she's a proxy for Justinia, also the Divine) are discussing here.

Take the next excerpt:

Celene shut her eyes. “And what does the Divine think about this?” Leliana smiled. “The Divine has never had a very high opinion of the theater, Your Radiance.” At Celene’s silence, the Divine’s representative sighed. “The elves are the children of the Maker, just as we are, and just as deserving of His grace.” “But the Divine will not say that,” Celene guessed. Leliana looked away. She had been trained as a bard, so every movement she made was likely deliberate, but Celene thought that her discomfort was genuine. “I have … been comrade-in-arms with elves. I would not see them harmed. But you did not ask for her support in that matter.” She looked back at Celene. “You asked for her support calming the templars and the mages.” “Indeed.” Celene nodded. “And will she give that support?” Leliana let out a breath. “She will,” she said, nodding slowly, “but in return, she needs to know that this matter with the elves is under control.” Celene felt her heart break inside her, for all that she had known within moments how the conversation would go. She breathed a tiny sigh, and then said, “Of course. I could hardly ask the Divine to keep her affairs in order were I not willing to do the same myself. I hope you enjoy the coming ball in Justinia’s honor. I fear I will not be able to attend in person.” “The Divine understands,” Leliana said, and in a soft, sad voice, added, “Walk with the Maker’s blessing.”

I've written a little bit before on how Justinia doesn't seem to care very much about the methods that Celene uses to resolve the situation with the elves -- it's Leliana who hopes for a peaceful resolution. It's Leliana who believes elves are children of the Maker.

But I actually think what's happening in this scene is more horrifying than I initially thought. This is the second interaction between the two -- and with the context of the first scene, it feels like this is Leliana saying the Divine has agreed to more drastic measures for the mage rebellion if Celene will also deal with the elven rebellion. That the Divine will accept Orlais' support and march on the mages if Celene can deal with the elven rebellion quickly.

This is Leliana passing on Divine Justinia's agreement to a more permanent solution to the mage rebellion. This is Divine Justinia agreeing to an Exalted March on the mage rebellion, and agreeing to support Celene if Celene will support her. Justinia's support here is conditional on Celene maintaining control - and Celene's support is conditional on Justinia maintaining control.

That's...horrifying. But why else would Leliana sound sad, unless she knew exactly what Celene was going to do? What the Divine was allowing Celene to do? What the Divine was telling Celene to do in exchange for the solution Celene proposed? Celene herself explicitly states that she cannot ask the Divine to take action without also being willing to take kind of action herself.

And as we know, the direct action Celene takes to deal with the rumours in Orlais of her sympathising with elves, to solidify her political position, is to slaughter all the elves in the Halamshiral alienage. That is the clearest indication to me that what Celene was proposing was an Exalted March on the mages - and the Divine agreed.

i want you to keep in mind that, at this stage, the College of Enchanters has been dissolved. Fiona has proposed seceding from the Chantry but the vote did not pass. For the most part, there is no mage rebellion currently; they've been cut off from each other, their right of assembly has been revoked, and the templars are still very much aligned with the Chantry. What Justinia is agreeing to here is if the situation gets worse, she will take action, and Orlais will back her up on it.

This sets up the background for Asunder; the Divine's last ditch attempt at resolving the situation before she takes definitive action against the mages.

Could they be with Gaspard, countering Celene’s plan? Unlikely. Ser Michel would never have turned traitor, and while Melcendre had lured him out with blackmail once, he was still too ashamed to allow such a ruse to work twice. They had come from Celene. Had Gaspard done something to force the empress’s hand? Had the Divine made a new demand? What had changed Celene’s mind? Then, as she came past the torches, Briala saw the night sky, glowing a sooty red. She smelled the smoke of Halamshiral’s slums burning. After that, Briala stopped thinking.

#i think this is going to be the most controversial one yet #my da meta #dragon age: the masked empire #divine justinia v #da the masked empire #celene valmont #leliana #justinia critical #celene critical #anti chantry #edit: added an extra sentence for clarity #the entire justinia/celene thing is quid pro quo. and it relies on them keeping in power #edited x2: for some spelling errors and a missing hyperlink #on divine justinia meta series

[freckled-words]

Repost:Unpaid Punishment Prt 6

edited by @the-wild-ego

WARNINGS: IMPLIED RAPE

Snow was falling in large, thick flakes. A layer of 2 inches covered the parking lot and all the cars that were parked there. 

The flakes and the occasional gust of winter wind didn’t touch you. Yet, you still hugged yourself as soon as Phantom let go of your hand. 

“This could be described as a rather picturesque moment. Such a shame something happened and ruined it for you.” again, no sympathy touched his words. Which didn’t matter to you anymore. He wasn’t dragging you through this Hell to show you sympathy. Both of you were there for the sake of making a lesson stick. A lesson you didn’t need. 

‘It had just been an accident,' your irritation simmered in your gut. The blanket no longer there to keep you calm. 

As you saw a hunched figure trek through the snow, you settled on a decision. No one deserves this level of cruelty over an accident. Not for some internship, no matter how prestigious it was. Once you were free from this, and unless he intended to fire you, you were going to quit. 

You didn’t wait for Phantom to give the order, or to tow you by the leash. You marched forward, following after the figure.

When they made it to the shelter of the college entrance overhang, it was clear that it was you. 

Gone was the punk phase, in was the college student. 

Your hair was a bit wilder, dark circles under your eyes told of sleepless nights, and the grey sweatpants weren’t for the warmth. 

You took some pride in the fact that they weren’t stain covered or overly baggy. They were clean and matched with your grey college sweater beneath your winter jacket. 

Phantom had stayed at your elbow, and continued to do so as you kept pace behind yourself. 

“Here for some late night research?” Phantom’s question was honest in its curiosity. 

“No. A meeting with...my teacher. This is exam week, so this was the only time he had available for me. My grades weren’t the best, so I’d asked him for an extra credit assignment to at least get me a pass for this semester….I should have just eaten the F.”  You spit the bitter words out of your mouth. 

Phantom didn’t make a comment. That was plenty to tell him what to expect. 

By the time you’d reached the office door, you’d removed your winter coat and held it over your arm. Self conscious you gave your hair a quick brush through with your fingers. 

You knocked, and the door opened a second later. 

Phantom’s brow quirked when you gave a huff. A wry, crude smile on, you muttered darkly, “Now I see it.”

“See what?” 

They followed you and the older man into his office. He invited you to sit down and offered you a mug filled with warm cider. 

“Having worked with you this long, I’ve managed to pick up on your small facial tics. Particularly when you meet someone you’re interested in adding to your collection.” the smile was gone, your eyes were narrowed in on the mug. 

Phantom rubbed his thumb over the crystal on his cane. Studying the man, he could see what you were talking about. 

Although his eyes seemed generally set on your face, his pupils were more specifically aimed to your lips as you sipped the cider. The corners of his lips were tipped higher up than his neutral expression needed, saying he was pleased about something. As he spoke, apologizing for making you come to the school at this hour during exam week, he drew out his sentences. He wanted you to focus on his words, be entirely fixated on him. 

In the animal kingdom, there are predators that will feed on other predators. Phantom would always be the top of his food chain, and right now he was watching another predator about to spring on its prey. 

The teacher apologized again, “I’ve just finished grading your essay. Your rotation plan for the worker’s vacation issue was well done. The marks from that and what you’re able to get on your exam will be plenty to give you a passing grade. I meant to call and let you know it wasn’t necessary to come here, but I’d guessed you were already in transit. Again, I’m very sorry. Let... me make it up... to you, I can give you a lift ….home.”

Phantom frowned in confusion. The man’s words were slowing, like he was a broken record that wasn’t playing right. He noted you were blinking rapidly, and squinting as you tried to focus. 

The room and the teacher were getting blurry. 

As understanding kicked in Phantom tsked, “He drugged the cider.”

“Welcome to the memory of little detail but with a very decisive answer of what happened.” the hatred you’d conveyed to your mother as a teenager was there, mixed with disgust and loathing that was meant only for people that rightfully deserved it. 

You tried to speak, “No...No, that’s okay. Buses...still running fine. SsSorry, not feeling good. Exscuse me.” your speech was slurred and you staggered as you tried to stand up. The mug of cider fell from your weak grip, clattering and spilling its contents on the floor. 

“Whoa, easy there. You’re clearly in no shape to go home. Sit back down and I’ll clean that up. Sit.” his words were audible, even as the room spun and faded to black. 

When it came back into focus, you were being laid down in the back of a minivan. 

What followed after came in brief clips of when you’d regained clarity. 

Phantom’s expression remained neutral as he witnessed this atrocity of human nature. The blood on your thighs was the carry over from this. 

You couldn’t stand to watch, or listen. You closed your eyes and covered your ears. 

More than once a week you’d see these images in your sleep. What was worse was the other parts of your senses remembering. The taste in your mouth, the burning pain, the dried blood and discharge on your thighs. 

When you wake up, you’d run for the bathroom to throw up then take a shower. With the frequency this happened, you took over the water bill payments for the apartment. Your roommate, who had also been your roommate in college, had assured you it wasn’t necessary and they understood, but you insisted. Just as your therapist insisted you make more regular appointments to see them. 

The memory became solid again as the drug wore off. You were laying on your couch in your apartment. Your winter jacket was draped over you like a blanket, your keys and a piece of paper were clenched in your hand. 

Phantom could tell from the way you began to shake, and hiss as you moved off the couch, that you were in excruciating pain. You tried to take a step and had to immediately grab the back of the couch for support. Heaving in deep breathes as tears began to build, you opened the paper with shaking hands. 

Over your shoulder he read ‘Keep your mouth shut, and you’ll pass all your classes that you might have with me.’

Your roommate came home from their overnight shift just in time to hear you scream in rage and misery. 

The memory faded with them bringing you in for a hug.

Once more in the white room, Phantom leaned onto his cane and tucked his free hand into his pocket. 

With his collection requiring him to cater to an individual’s needs, he’d learned to pick up on cues from people. 

These past two years he’d made little mental notes about you, from watching your interactions with others and when you’d be working at your desk on your own. 

He’d classified you as an introvert. You didn’t interact with others if you didn’t have to. You begged off from attending any gatherings or shows at his local facilities, and only went when you were given no other choice. 

He thought maybe you’d built a good work relationship with Andy and Shawn, but your smiles had never seemed entirely genuine, and your body language spoke of wanting constant distance.

The only time you seemed at ease and content, was when you were left alone to manage the phone, emails, and bills. 

Now he corrected this assessment.

He snapped his fingers, and the white room went dark.

#Unpaid Punishment #Part 6 #fanfiction #trigger warnings #reader insert #gender neutral #Natewantstobattle #Phantom Battle

[galvatronsthighs]

If you're doing requests... I think it'd be fun to see Perceptor meeting Galvatron, maybe for tea? I like the idea of Extriverse Percy going to meet his sons boyfriends family and just being dwarfed by these huge transformers. (Also that picture where Percy gives Galvs some medicine is still so cute)

Well i’m still getting used to drawing here, so i’ll write up a quick drabble.edit: I also realised that while it does fill the request it’s a bit different hahaha oh well. I also had no idea how to end it and it trailed off so badly aaaaaaa

Perceptor stood at the doorway, he had no reason to be nervous yet he was.

His son. A phrase that every-so-often made him pause as a strange feeling washed over his spark.His son had found a partner, a lover, a sparkmate, whatever name you wanted to put to it, he had found one.

Scope, his little Scope, already taller than he was but tiny compared to what he himself was getting into, which made Perceptor feel extra small.Pushing through the doorway Perceptor was greeted by a tiny jingle as the bell above the door announced his arrival to their agreed meeting place.It was an odd little multi-species cafe-styled place on a nearby space station. The seats were all cream coloured with a red backing, plants hung over the counter and a smell of overly saturated, oily meats hung in the air like smog.Still likely better than anything on Cybertrons still-being-rebuilt surface.His intended destination was painfully obvious as the duo stood out like the sorest of thumbs in this place. Vivid purple and a more dull blue, taller than the backs of the chairs and four pairs of eyes all on him.It took a conscious effort to push away the deep, desperate desire to flee.This was for Scope after all.He had no reason to fear them.Not any more.This was stupid.He was stupid.Perceptor still kept his optics on the floor as he shuffled on over to the duo and hopped up on the seat opposite them. Alone.He was glad for the seat really, standing he came up to Galvatrons waist, with effort, and Galvatron was merely shoulder height to Cyclonus and Perceptor did not want to acknowledge just how much that meant the mutant seeker towered over him.His scrawny, slender, skinny frame.So tiny, so frail compared to the two literal walking weapons sat in front of him.‘Come on Perceptor’, he hummed to himself as the silence between them became thick enough to cut, neither side aware of what to say first ‘You’ve spoken to them before in a friendly allied matter, it shouldn’t be as hard as it is being made out’.The hubbub of the cafe made for a muffled background noise to the tense awkwardness that was this situation.Cyclonus’s tail flicked idly and Galvatron bit his lip while Perceptor interlaced his fingers.He supposed that holding a sudden meeting due to the feelings of their respective offspring was suddenly becoming a very silly idea to have followed through on.“S… sooo, your daught-”“Our eldest child’ Cyclonus butted in and Perceptor shrank back a little.“Your son…” Galvatron spoke with more clarity and assurance, “Uh… He’s never been a bad kid…” Galvatron scratched at his lip, thinking, “It seems different now doesn’t it?” It was vague but enough to get something flowing.“It does feel a bit different knowing this is something… lifelong and… emotional… It’s… It’s…”“Grown up” Cyclonus both answered him and finished his sentence, his pointed face choosing to look away to the far wall rather than focus on the conversation, the body language spoke volumes of how he almost didn’t want to acknowledge what he himself just said.“Primus, they really are, aren’t they?” Perceptor unlaced his hands and dragged them down his face while Galvatron nervously took a stalk from the tables fake plant and ate it.“I have to trust their decision” Galvatron continued to try and keep the silence at bay, “It’s their life… I can’t control it, there’s no way I can do that… it’s beyond my protection”Perceptor watched them both and it put his spark at ease, Cyclonus remained guarded refusing to lose his handle of the situation and Galvatron slumped over a little, looking distressed. They looked as normal as any other bot in this one moment.“I think we’re getting more worked up than they are over this” He uttered putting a smile on to try lifting the mood.It elicited a rather humoured snort from Cyclonus at least.“I only have one child at least, I’ll only experience this once” Perceptor added before he could process it.

#galvatron #cyclonus #Perceptor #maccadam #drabble #Extriverse #overlordraax

[proofessor]

Copy Editing vs Proofreading: What’s the Difference?

Both copy editing and proofreading services have the same end goal: to make a piece of written text as coherent and free of mistakes as possible. Copy editing and proofreading services are not interchangeable, they are both as important as each other.

The role of a copy editor is to improve the writing of the author. This is mostly understood to be correcting spelling and grammar, but copy editing involves much more than that. In professional publishing, copy editors ensure that the text is in line with the chosen style guide, and is suitable for the correct audience.

Copy editors will also suggest changes to a piece of text, to improve its accuracy and readability. This can involve editing sentences to improve clarity and conciseness, suggesting alternative word choices to improve meaning, and ensuring the text adheres to the same tone of voice. The role of a copy editor is not to remove or edit the author writing style, but to improve it.

The role of a proofreader, on the other hand, is to check the writing of both the author and copy editor for any errors that may have been previously missed. In traditional publishing, a proofreader is the last person to read the complete manuscript before it is sent to print, and after it has been through the hands of a copy editor.

The proofreader will then carefully read the manuscript, checking for any errors that may have arisen after edits were made and checking how the manuscript reads in print. Proofreaders will also look out for incorrect page numbering, misaligned text, additional spaces between words, incorrect indexes and incorrect paragraphing. The role of the proofreader is not limited to those listed above, and often there can be much more involved at this stage, depending on the type of text that is being proofread. For example, if it was an article for a newspaper or magazine, the proofreader may also be responsible for fact-checking the text.

So, when should you hire a copy editing or proofreading service?

A copy editor should always review the manuscript or document before a proofreader. But before you send your manuscript off to a copy editing service, you should ensure that you are happy with the structure of the text. A copy editor will check for flow and clarity, and are likely to alter individual sentences and paragraphs. If there is a possibility that an extra chapter will need to be added, so don’t send your manuscript to a copy editor just yet!

Once your manuscript has been reviewed by a copy editor, hire a separate proofreader. This is best practice, as there is always a risk that a copy editor may not pick up on their own mistakes as similar to the original author, they know what the text means and should say. When the proofreading stage is complete, your manuscript is ready to be published and presented to your audience.

Read More:

Benefits of Proofreading

#Proofreading Services #Professional Proofreading

[yuki-setsu]

[Extra Fic] Stay With Me (Lance Whump)

[edit: lmao i can’t tumblr and accidentally deleted my original post so here i am reposting it sorry aklsfjaklfj]

hello writer’s block for my current WIP is kicking my literal ass so please take the original story i’d written for Day 5 of Lance Whumpmas :’) i finished this story, but then the actual story i posted for Day 5 came into my head and i ended up liking that one better so this has just been sitting in my folders oops;; the theme for that day was Burns hehe

The mission had just been to scope out an abandoned Galra site, to see if there was any useful information they could scavenge and make sure there weren't any covert operations still going on. With almost all of the rooms in the hideout rummaged through, Lance was starting to relax. They'd all split up to finish the task faster, and no one had run into any stray Galra soldiers. Pidge even mentioned finding some new information on a Galra supply route she'd been tracking. So far, so good.

Lance peeked into another room filled with darkened screens. It was pretty empty, save for a few abandoned Galra guns on the ground. Everything looked like it had been inactive for a while. He stepped inside, bayard still out just in case. Probably wouldn't find anything in here either, though.

“Pidge, did you get everything you need?” Shiro asked through the comms.

“Almost. A few more ticks.”

Lance sidestepped another fallen gun as Shiro spoke. “Sounds good. We'll regroup and leave once Pidge is done. Great work, everyone.”

Hunk cleared his throat. “I finished my section of the base, so I'll just... start heading back towards the exit.”

“Same here.” Keith added.

Lance hummed, light and soft. “Bet I can beat you both to my Lion even with the headstart you guys have.”

“Oh really?” There was a smile in Hunk's voice. “Challenge accepted.”

Lance peered at the broken screens and control panel, deciding to give them a few more seconds just out of the goodness of his heart. He wasn't a fan of the eerie quiet, but he'd take that over dealing with hostile Galra at this point. Hunk's footsteps echoed through the comms, and Lance waited one more tick before he started towards the door. He'd been so focused on the ambient noises in his helmet that he almost missed the low beeping that crept into his ears. But even when he stiffened up and focused his hearing, he barely heard it. He whipped around, eyes landing on an object the size of a volleyball sitting on the ground a few feet away.  The slight glow around it—which definitely wasn't there before—intensified with large crackles of electricity, and Lance only managed one step backwards, bayard raised to cover his face, before he felt it explode.

When Lance came to again, he was on the floor, his entire body feeling like it had been electrocuted. He couldn't even tell if he passed out, his mind hazy with pain. His body jerked as he tried to take in a full breath, each inhale not quite making it all the way. Any attempt he made to move his body failed miserably, but the effort hurt too much and he gave up trying.

“—at happened, was that Lance?!” Allura's voice crept in past the ringing in his ears, muffled and distant.

“He's not responding. I'm heading to him right now.” Shiro said, the urgency in his tone spiking up Lance's anxiety. He tried to speak—tell them he was fine, just a little dazed. But words failed him as he started to panic, the air starting to feel more like mud as it tried to pass through his lungs. His stomach burned every time he tried to take a deep breath. Breathing. He needed to focus on breathing right now.

A bunch of other voices rang out, overlapping in a way that made any sentence impossible to decipher. He heard his name a lot, though. Lance bit back a groan, trying to figure out what hit him. Something like a bomb, obviously. He figured his armor took most of the damage, but shit everything hurt.

“Shiro,” Lance gasped out, hearing the comms immediately peter off into silence.

And Shiro responded, his relief nearly palpable through the comms. “I'm here, Lance. I'm on my way. So are the others. I need you to tell me what happened.”

Lance tried to focus on the conversation, his vision blurring every few seconds. “Bomb... I think.”

“Bomb?!” Hunk cried out, panicked.

Had it been a bomb? Suddenly, Lance wasn't sure anymore. Another spasm drowned out any coherent thought he'd been gathering, waves of pain stabbing at every inch of his body. “Buncha electricity.” Lance groaned, hissing out a breath. “I can't—can't move. Hurts too much.”

“Don't move, I'm almost there.” Shiro said. He sounded calm, in control. Lance clung to it desperately, his mind needing a steady tether to grip onto. “Where does it hurt?”

Lance tried to move a hand, stopping at the jolt of pain that shot through when he did. “Everywhere.” An even bigger pain, this time near his torso. “Stomach.”

“I found him.” Shiro piped up, and Lance it took a moment of confusion to realize he was speaking to the others. “Give me a moment.”

A hand touched his shoulder, and Lance jerked in surprise, hissing when another flood of pain blinded him. The hand disappeared just as quickly.

“Sorry, I'm sorry, Lance.” Shiro spoke, his voice filling Lance's ears with surprising clarity. His vision cleared enough to catch Shiro crouched above him, face awash with worry. “It's me.”

It was a relief, to say the least, to see Shiro. The tension in his shoulders loosened just a bit, and he worked on getting air into his chest while Shiro continued to talk into the comm. Whatever Shiro and the others were saying was lost in Lance's head, all of the sounds melting into distant mumbles. Shiro's gaze kept alternating from him to something to the side of the room—probably at whatever it was that exploded. Lance felt a weight against his side as Shiro looked back at him, clearly speaking to him this time, and Lance did his best to try to focus back on the conversation.

“—n you hear me, Lance? I need you to stay awake, okay? Stay with me. The others are almost here.”

Lance nodded—or tried to. His body felt unbelievably heavy, like something big decided to take refuge on top of his chest. Exhaustion was probably starting to kick in, and Lance just wanted to close his eyes and sleep. But Shiro had asked him to stay awake, so he tried his best to push that feeling away.

“... 'm I dying?” Lance mumbled, feeling a bit regretful for asking the question when he saw Shiro's expression. Why would he even ask something like that? It was a terrible question.

“You're not dying.” Despite how he looked, Shiro's voice was surprisingly calm and confident. The weight against Lance's side grew a bit heavier. “Once we get you in the pod, you'll be fine. Just focus on breathing, kiddo.”

So he did. Shiro glanced up at the rumble of footsteps, and Lance suddenly saw Hunk and Pidge crowd his view of the ceiling. They glanced at him and then somewhere further down his body, the panic blatantly evident on their faces. He spotted Keith just a bit to the side talking to Shiro, although his expression didn't look too good, either. Despite what Shiro said, everyone sure looked like he was dying.

Hunk suddenly leaned over, so close their helmets nearly bumped. He smiled. “Hey, buddy. I don't know if you heard the comm, but Coran had a few questions. Are you able to move your neck?”

Lance nodded, turning it side to side at Hunk's request, albeit limply. Hunk looked relieved at that.

“Where's it hurting the most?”

Lance considered it for a second. He couldn't tell if the pain had receded anywhere. At least the spasms had stopped. “My stomach...”

Hunk nodded, grim. “You got a pretty nasty burn there, dude. But we can fix that. Can you breathe okay?”

The weight on Lance's chest hadn't gone away, his breaths still shaky as they rattled down his throat. His body burned with each inhale, the injury on his stomach probably irritated whenever he breathed in. “A little. It's hard.”

Hunk glanced at Shiro before he finally leaned back, the worried look back on his face. “We can probably move him, right? I don't think there's a spinal injury.”

Shiro nodded. “Get ready to head back to the ship. We're gonna go fast.” He glanced back down, looking a bit apologetic. “Lance, I'm gonna carry you, but it'll probably hurt.”

Lance had expected as much, anyways. He huffed out a breath, bracing himself. “Kay.”

Shiro straightened, and the weight against Lance's side disappeared. Oh, Shiro had been holding his hand. Lance couldn't really ponder much on it before Shiro scooped him up, and the pain in his stomach rippled through his body in furious waves.

Maybe he screamed, because Shiro muttered out an apology before sprinting. Everything was a blur during that time, and Lance honestly wasn't sure if he blacked out. But when he came to, he felt himself lying back on the ground, someone propping him up. He blinked the white spots out of his eyes, hoping that his now-frantic breaths weren't as loud as they sounded in his ears. They were in the Black Lion, from what he could tell.

Someone gently tugged his helmet off, and Lance was grateful for the open breathing space, his head falling to the side and against something hard. Paladin armor, he realized. Fingers carded through his hair, almost methodical in their movements.

“You're gonna be fine. Stay with me.” Hunk's voice drifted into his ears, and Lance felt himself relax a bit. Hunk mumbled little words of encouragement the whole ride back, and Lance could only lie there and listen, fully exhausted at that point. Before he knew it, they must've arrived, because Hunk suddenly moved to pick him up, the pain greeting him full force once more.

This time, Lance did pass out.

-

Lance woke up falling, although he felt someone catch him before he could instinctively panic at the realization. Sleep was still heavy on his eyelids, and he was glad that whoever was hugging him was basically holding up his entire weight. They finally pulled back, and Lance caught Hunk's beaming face, the others crowded up behind him with equal looks of concern and relief.

“Man, am I glad you're awake.” Hunk sighed, his hands still firm on Lance's shoulders. “You feel all better now? Not that I doubt the pods or anything, but...”

The fog in Lance's mind started to clear up, and he glanced down, catching the white of the healing pod suit. Breathing was fine now, the pain he'd felt before now a distant figment of his imagination. He looked up, a smile on his face. “All good, my dude. Maybe even better.”

It was like all the tension melted from the room, and the group stepped back a bit to give some more space. Lance straightened up, shifting his weight from side to side. “So, what hit me?”

Coran was the one who spoke up. “It seems to have been a Galra-crafted explosive. Set to detonate electricity should any intruders come after the base had been abandoned. For all we know, there could be more scattered around the base, but that was only one we detected.”

Lance huffed out a laugh. “Guess I was the lucky winner.”

Someone lightly punched his arm, and Lance caught Pidge scowling at him. “That's not something to brag about.” Her expression softened. “I'm glad you're okay, though.”

The smile on Lance's face grew before he reached out and tugged Pidge into a bear hug. “Aww. C'mere, you.” Pidge resisted for a half a second and then caved, returning his hug with surprising enthusiasm.

“We should get you something to eat after you find a change of clothes.” Allura piped up lightly. “Everyone can take the rest of the day to relax. We all need it. Especially you, Lance.”

“She's right.” Shiro said. “We can meet you in the kitchen after you're dressed.” He reached out, giving Lance's shoulder a quick squeeze. “You did great today.”

Lance flushed a bit, the embarrassment tickling at his stomach. “I didn't... really do anything.”

Pidge disentangled herself from Lance's grip as the group began to move towards the medical bay doors, although she still stuck close to his side. Hunk laughed, “Just take the compliment.”

Lance could barely think of a retort before another thought hit him. “Wait, I won the challenge right?”

Hunk blinked. “Challenge?”

“I bet Shiro and I reached the Lions before you or Keith did. So I won.”

Keith looked over at him, face scrunched in disbelief. “What? I can't believe you're thinking about that challenge after what happened.”

Lance clicked his tongue disapprovingly. “Don't try to pretend like this win didn't happen, dude. Life—or-death situation or not, the facts stay true.” He glanced at Shiro. “Did we get to the Lions first?”

Shiro contemplated for a moment before he slowly nodded. “We... did. It was an emergency, so I ran pretty fast.”

Lance beamed, triumphant. “Haha! Winner winner, chicken dinner. Take that, Mullet!”

Keith didn't look at all convinced. “That definitely didn't count.”

“Did so.”

“The challenge should only count when any of the participants aren't actively dying.”

“Dude, just accept it. You lost. I won.”

Pidge groaned, grumbling under her breath. “I seriously can't believe you two are arguing over this.”

A few more seconds of bickering later, they agreed on a rematch in the near future, and Lance headed to his room to change, his chest lighter than ever. Despite the chaotic end to that mission, he felt happy and his heart felt full.

His stomach, on the other hand, felt pretty empty. Food couldn't come soon enough.

#voltron #vld #lance #shiro #keith #hunk #pidge #allura #coran #my writing

[katranga]

Disclaimer: Fic is just for fun. Nobody on ao3, or tumblr, or wherever, is expecting perfection. Most of these tips are gonna take a little extra time and effort to implement, and if you don’t feel like doing that, because you just wanna post the darn thing? Go for it! I’m not here to tell you what to do, and I’m certainly not saying that your writing is bad if you don’t follow these tips. These are just suggestions that will hopefully help you improve your work, if that’s what you’re after.

Intro: Why Revise?

To kick things off, I’d like to go over the importance of revision!! This is more of a general writing tip, but it’s a great starting point, because I DON’T want you to be thinking about most of my future tips while you’re writing the first draft. 

I want you to get. those. words. on. the. page! That’s all you should be worried about when you’ve got a blank page staring you in the face. 

There’s so much pressure to get writing right the first time, but I’m here to tell you that’s pretty much impossible. So, pressure’s off! Just write the basics so you get to know your story first. I

I know it seems like writing it perfectly will save you editing/revising time later on, but you can’t revise—let alone post—what you don’t have written because you’re stuck on one line that doesn’t sound just right. You with me so far? Great!

Honestly, writing gets so much faster when you remind yourself that no one is going to see your first draft!

So I cannot overstate the importance of revision.

Because guess what? Everything you don’t like about your first draft can be fixed in revision!

Okay. What is it?

To clarify, when I say first draft, I don’t mean the stuff you do in high school, where you write out a shitty essay on paper first and then type it up basically the same, just to prove to the teacher you wrote a first draft?? Or whatever.

I mean you just write the absolute basics of your story down, and fill in the rest and perfect it later (I’ll go into detail about how exactly to do that in my motivation post).

Now, grammar, spelling, and overall readability, are all important things to fix before you post. But that’s little stuff, and your word processor will be able to pick up on some of that, and just rewording a few sentences to make them clearer probably won’t take too much effort on your end (though I am gonna have a post about filler words and clarity and stuff like that, so if that tends to be a problem for you, I gotchu).

Besides basic grammar/spelling, most of what I change as my first draft transforms into my second or third is: 

Improving the flow of a scene (it can’t all be dialogue, unfortunately)

Pacing throughout the fic (are they falling love too fast? is this scene too long? etc)

Overall clarity (I know why the character did that, but will the reader?)

It may be different for you. Basically, you’re polishing up whatever you didn’t worry about writing the first draft.

My first drafts, for example? They’re 80% dialogue. Because that’s my favourite! And that’s what comes to me when I’m dreaming up fics. But then I go back later and beef up the rest—the characters’ movements in a scene, their inner dialogue, description etc.

Because as much as I love dialogue, scenes feel empty and too-fast with just characters talking. Similarly, scenes can feel bogged down and slow with just characters thinking about things.

But revision isn’t just about adding things! Sometimes you need to take stuff out. Inner dialogue that later gets covered by dialogue? Cut it. (Or vice versa—maybe the detail isn’t important enough for the characters to talk about, and just the mention of it within the narration is enough).

The point is, repetition needs to go. The reader rarely needs to be told the same thing twice.

Quick example from the top of my head:

Lance had lost his jacket. He’d looked over the whole castle for it, but couldn’t find it anywhere. His brother gave him that jacket. One of his last ties to Earth, and it was missing in action.

Maybe Keith took it to spite him, that jerk.

“What’s up, Lance?” Hunk asked when he passed him in the hall.

“I lost my jacket!” Lance said. “My signature jacket, the one Marco gave me! I’ve looked everywhere, but it’s gone. Do you think Keith stole it?”

Same information twice: Lance can’t find his brother’s jacket despite a thorough search, and suspects Keith stole it. No reason to repeat that. Something’s gotta go.

I know cutting stuff isn’t fun. You worked hard on that! You spent hours/days/whatever perfecting a sentence until it gleamed like a diamond, and now just because you thought of a better way to get that information across you have to get rid of it? No way!

I’ve been there, trust me. But hanging on just slows down the whole writing process. Because, for me at least, I know when stuff needs to go, or needs a massive overhaul, or whatever. I’m just digging my heels in because I don’t wanna do any additional work.

Luckily, this is where your shitty first draft comes in handy! If all you did was spit words onto the page as soon as they entered your head, then you didn’t spend a lot of back-breaking effort on whatever you need to cut! And what you need to cut isn’t anything awe-inspiring, it’s just your rough notes, so tossing it aside isn’t nearly as stressful!

Remember, you can always save scenes/dialogue/etc in a separate document! Maybe you’ll be able to salvage some it later. Alternatively, create separate versions of the doc as you edit/revise. If you end up actually needing part of a deleted scene, you’ve still got it somewhere!

And please, never think of the stuff you cut (or fics you never finished) as “wasted time”. Writing time is never wasted! You’re practicing, you’re honing your craft, and even if some bits never see the light of day, you’re still benefitting from all that work you did!

Now, I know I know I know most people edit/revise as they write. Can’t think of the next scene? Reread the previous scene and fiddle with it until something comes to you. That’s great! Revising already written material is loads better than just staring at your screen!

BUT I’ve recently started writing the whole gosh darn diddly thing without looking back and that is so much faster! While I highly recommend it, that’s obviously difficult to do when you don’t know what’s going to happen next in the fic.

Or if you just don’t have the motivation. So! That’ll be our next topic: Getting words on the page!

But for now, I’ve got an example under the cut, as well as additional resources and links if you want to learn more about revision!

Here’s where I take an old embarrassing fic of mine and revise it, hopefully clarifying the points I’ve been making, as well as proving that only practice makes better!

Okay so this is an excerpt of one of my unpublished fics from 2011. I’m just gonna be honest with you here, it was a Twilight human!AU where Edward was a massive nerd. 

For background, Bella has been at the new school like a week and is appalled at the bullying happening to Edward, who she barely knows. (It’s first person bc that’s how the books were written. Just deal with it.)

Here we go:

“They gave him a swirly yesterday,” I announced, appalled.

“Who?”

“Edward!”

Jessica shrugged, unaffected. “Nothing new.”

“Well what are they, twelve?” I demanded angrily.

“He kind of needed a hair wash,” Mike muttered.

Snorts of amusement followed.

“Stuffing his head into a toilet is not funny,” I argued.

“Yes it is, Bella,” Alice chuckled.

“Kay, next time we go to the bathroom, I’ll shove your head into a toilet,” I offered. “And we’ll all laugh about it.”

This was a whole scene, I kid you not. Now, this isn’t bad because it’s just dialogue. It’s ten lines. That’s a reasonable amount of space for a quick dialogue exchange. HOWEVER, there’s about four people in this scene, so the dialogue tags are a little sparse. ALSO, this is the first time Bella’s bringing her concerns about Edward to the group, so there should be more inner reflection on that.

Overall, it’s just way too minimalist lol. So  this is a good example to beef up.

First of all: where the fuck are we? Notice how no setting was given? Not the greatest habit to get into. If it’s already been established in the fic where people are, and the setting’s not that important, I guess you can skip it, but a quick mention isn’t gonna hurt. You don’t want the reader confused!

Since this a Twilight fic, let’s say they’re in the caf. (In Voltron fics, you’re probably gonna be on the ship, but you can always mention what room they’re in. Or, if it’s a new planet, give a line or two of description).

Explanations for changes I made are in [square brackets]:

I tossed my lunch tray onto the table before throwing myself onto the chair next to Alice. “They gave him a swirly yesterday.”

[Indicated setting. Also implied she was feeling “appalled” using verbs instead of outright stating it. Showing not telling!]

Across from me, Angela looked up from the sandwich she was picking at. “Who?”

[Indicated who was speaking—always important—as well as gave brief description of speaker].

“Edward,” I said like it should be obvious. I scanned the cafeteria for him, but the corner he usually sat in alone was empty.

[Another mention of setting. Also backed up her concern for Edward with action and not just talking about him].

Jessica shrugged, unaffected. “So what?”

“So?” I repeated incredulously.

So I’d never heard of someone actually getting a swirly. In real life. Shitty teen dramas? Yeah. Actual high school? No. It was ridiculous, and gross, and… I hadn’t seen anything to indicate Edward deserved it. (Nobody who’d ever deserved a swirly had ever received one, I was sure).

[The almighty character motivation! Note that you don’t actually have to explicitly state why they’re doing something—obviously we as the reader know the deep-down motivation is because Bella cares for Edward. But characters are not always forthcoming with information, even to themselves. Right now she’s focusing on the unjustness of the situation, and partially trying to convince herself that’s all it is].

Mike slung an arm across the back of Jessica’s chair, snorting a laugh. “He needed to wash his hair, anyway.”

“A toilet’s not gonna do that, Mike!”

[Just a cleverer response. Also, a dialogue tag isn’t needed, because no other speaker at the table is gonna be defending Edward. We know it’s Bella.]

He ignored my glare, choosing instead to steal a fry off my plate. I smacked his hand away.

[Again—action. The characters aren’t just static in their seats.]

“Well, really,” Alice began. “What’s it matter?” She sat up sharply, an idea just now occurring to her. “You haven’t been making friends with him, have you? I told you, Bella, it’s social suicide!”

[Gives Alice a chance to respond to Bella’s outburst—in this AU Alice is very concerned with popularity and does not want Bella associating with Edward. She would definitely have a problem with Bella sympathizing with Edward.]

I rolled my eyes. “No, I just…”

The whole situation was ridiculous. This wasn’t how people should be treated. Was I the only one who realized that? Was I really the only one who cared?

“Whatever,” I grumbled, crunching down on a fry.

[This feels like a more natural resolution to the conversation. Alice directly asks why Bella cares, and Bella reiterates to herself it’s just because. And then decides it’s not worth the argument. This is 2k into an (unfinished) 30k fic. She’ll make a bigger deal out of stuff later.]

Now it looks more like a real scene! 

So, to summarize, I added: Description—both setting and character! Character musing! Cleverer comebacks! 

These are just some of the things that you can fix with a keen-eyed round of revision.

--

And that about wraps this up! I didn’t want this to get too long, but it did anyway. (I’m sorry about the graphics I’m a writer, not a graphic designer. But I had to split the post up so it wasn’t one big block of text)

Was any of that helpful? Was it too long? Did the example clarify things? Let me know, I wanna make sure these tips are helpful!

--

Additional Resources That I Highly Recommend:

DRAFTING: THE THEORY OF SHITTY FIRST DRAFTS -- This post probably explains shitty first drafts better than I ever could! If you still have concerns about it, definitely check it out.

Editing & Revision Answerathon -- Okay, this video is pretty long, but I looove Max Kirin for anything writing-related and especially revision!! They’ve got a tumblr and a Youtube account filled with writing tips! If you like getting your writing info through videos, definitely check out their stuff.

Top 5 Writing Tips: Revision -- Here’s an infographic by Max if you don’t want to watch a 44 minute video lol. Also, you can go through their /tagged/revision for more!

#writing advice #fic writing advice #revision #katranga writes #i mean a lot of these tips are gonna be just general writing tips #but i will focus on issues that commonly crop up in fics #revision was just really important to go over first #idk i hope this is helpful #katranga's fic tips #i guess will be the tag

[evilasiangenius]

Editing

So this is why I think editing is probably the most important thing about writing.  What first gets written down doesn’t have to be perfect or the best; that’s what editing is for, improving what might have started off kind of lackluster.  Most of this is from chapter 13 and 14 of Ekstasis, with a little bit from chapter 15 (work in progress):

Original: True to his word, Stonker was waiting for him just after dawn.  The tall War Boy's white gleamed in the early light and his still-healing scars, the engine block in 3/4 profile, stood out, a pink-tinged contrast against the whitened skin.  He leaned casually against the shining chrome of his car, the silvery metal catching all the colors of the world around it into a bright-hued swirl around the curves of the body, and the tall War Boy absently fingered his black dust wrap thoughtfully, as if recalling a fond memory.

I actually edit while I write.  This looks fairly polished only because is after a lot of little sentence-level fixes as I went along, and probably one round of light editing for meaning before I thought to save an early draft of this paragraph.  Essentially a “first draft” though it’s hard to describe exact drafts since I am constantly editing.  This paragraph has the general idea of what I want to say in rough brushstrokes.  It’s not bad, but it’s very plain and not particularly interesting.

Finished version: True to his word, Stonker was waiting for him just after dawn. In the early morning light, the tall War Boy's heavy coat of white gleamed, stained faintly red from the dusty dawn. Over his chest where the white had been applied in a lighter coat to show off his still-healing scars, the engine block in 3/4 profile stood out in pink-tinged contrast. He leaned against the shining chrome of his car, the silvery metal catching and reflecting all the colors of the world into a bright-hued swirl that chased the straights and curves of the vehicle. At this time, Stonker was about 9,800 days old. As Morsov watched from a distance, he saw Stonker absently fingering his black dust wrap, stroking the thin cloth between his fingertips as though recalling a fond memory.

The final draft came after about two or three rounds of serious editing, and a few more re-reads for cleanup.  Probably the biggest fix took about 15-20 minutes working on just this one paragraph.  The first sentence stays the same and though the overall idea is about the same, I’ve added more details to the rough version to suggest more atmosphere and played with the word order to try to make it more interesting.  

The reference to the silver car’s swirling colors was always meant to be a Chinese art history reference (Tang dynasty polychrome ceramic horse sculptures that were made to imitate silver) but now the phrasing is improved and also has some car racing imagery thrown in because War Boys.

Added the line about Stonker’s age as a reference to a common novel writing reference (e.g. ”I saw her from a distance, standing under a tree. She was beautiful, <insert lots of pretty description here> and at this time she would have been about 27″ etc.).  Added Morsov as the narrator for this section, to ground the scene and give it a point of view.  Without Morsov, it would be pointless character description of a character we’ve already seen before; artistry without significance.

Original: Slit finished, smearing himself all over with the white, even the places that were usually left bare because it made no sense to wear the white under clothing.  He stood at the center of the ring of War Boys, gleaming a white statue in the dying light of the world. “Immorta!  Accept the offering!”  Furiosa shouted, her voice rising above the striking metal.  “Accept this War Boy!  He is yours!

Finished version: Slit finished, smearing himself all over with the white as he was told, even the places that were usually left bare because it made no sense to wear the white under clothing. Every inch that made him human was covered, obscured, and even his wounds disappeared beneath the heavy coat of white. He stood gleaming at the center of the ring of War Boys, a stark statue in the dying light of the world. “Immorta! Accept the offering!” Furiosa shouted, circling him, metal clashing beneath her fists and her voice rising above the striking metal. “Accept this War Boy! He is yours!”

Not a lot of difference here in meaning of both before and after scenes, but the devil’s in the details.  It's probably too wordy to add ‘as he was told’ (I went back and forth a few times on this, added it in the last read through) but I wanted to make it clear to the reader that Slit wasn’t just pulling some Slit shit or trying to hide the scars of his self-harm from the others by covering himself with white.  I wanted it to be clear that this level of extra was supposed to be part of the ritual, something Furiosa had decided on.  There has also been a running theme in the series about how wearing the white covers up both scars and wounds, as well as covering up one’s humanity, so this was added in a later edit when I remembered the importance of the theme.  

Furiosa’s line was fine, but adding a little bit more gives her more physical presence in the scene.  Sometimes I think it’s good to leave dialogue as it is, without too much more to let the reader imagine for themselves what the characters are doing.  Other times, like here, I think a little additional description can give more physicality to the scene, more dynamism. 

Original: Coil held the round flat mirror in his hands, ostensibly checking the stubble on his face, but really he was looking back at her reflection.

Finished(?): Coil opened the round flat mirror, and the first thing he saw before he saw himself were the familiar cracks that ran through it.  He held it up in his hands, ostensibly checking the growing stubble on his face, but really he was looking back at her reflection. Here Coil is sitting in the passenger seat of the War Rig and looking back.  I checked screencaps of the War Rig interior to see that it doesn’t have a rearview mirror, thought about using the sideview mirrors, but then, remembered that Coil probably had the mirror that belonged to Win (Win uses it in Vincula chapter 17).  But to make it more clear that it was Win’s mirror, had to go back and edit in the reference to the cracked surface.  This bit will probably will be different by the time chapter 15 comes out, I can already see some things I want to change for clarity.

Anyway, tl;dr this is pretty much what I do with the entire work when I write, though some parts need less work than others.  Sadly writing is not so exciting as to be interesting enough to do livestreams and such.  it’d just be me sitting in silence typing away, with the occasional google rabbithole search.  Speaking of which... I need to go and work on the chapter by chapter notes again, but I thought you guys might find this amusing: I wanted to find kind of ‘sound of surprise’ for Morsov that would be Russian-specific (e.g. Chinese speakers be all ‘aiya!’ and Spanish speakers be all ‘ay ay ay!’) so not knowing any Russian, I spent 20+ minutes watching Russian dashcam car crash videos to get the right one.

#furiosa #slit #morsov #mmfr #mad max fury road #writing #fortunae plango vulnera series #tl;dr warning #I don't know if this is fun or interesting or self-absorbed bullshit #but I thought it might be interesting to compare early versions with later versions #already i have edited this post like 4 times staaahp #maybe some minor story spoilers?

[skarabrae-stone]

Need an editor?

Hi everyone!

I’m heading off to grad school in Wales this fall, and I’m super excited. I’m also very much in need of money. So....

I’m offering my services as an editor-- I’ll look over and critique your essays, cover letters, poems, fan fic, short stories, or anything else you might want advice on!

My rates are as follows:

10 dollars/hour:

Submit: Polished “final” draft

Edits: Brief once-over, looking for minor technical errors

 15 dollars/hour:

           Submit: Complete draft, close to finished product

           Edits: citations and quotes only, including proper formatting for quotes, footnotes, references, works cited, and/or bibliography. Specify MLA, APA, or Chicago formats (other formats by request).

 20 dollars/hour:

           Submit: Complete draft, close to finished product

           Edits: Grammatical/technical errors, some rearrangement of sentence structure, suggestions on structure

 20 dollars/hour:

           Submit: Complete draft, close to finished product

           Edits: Content only, including suggestions for characterization/plot/setting (where applicable), suggestions for additional subjects, clarity of thesis (where applicable), “flow”.

 25 dollars/hour:

           Submit: Rough draft

           Edits: Content only, including suggestions for thesis, plot, added/removed topics, idea-mapping, etc.

 35 dollars/hour:

           Submit: Complete draft, close to finished product

           Edits: Content and technical errors, including thesis, plot, characterization, loopholes/contradictions, grammar, and punctuation. Citations = $5.00 extra.

PM me if you have questions!

#writing #editing #editing help #personal

[missgoalie75]

how much editing would you say goes into your fics? like, how rough are your "rough" drafts so to speak before it's published and it's amazeballs? and would you suggest instead of being too critical in the moment, to just sit and write and write and get critical when you edit?

good questions anon! i tend to edit as i go along - i’ll always go back and re-read what i write and occasionally i’ll think of another scene to add to flesh out the story. when i’m done, i’ll usually note to kahlia/ @firstbreaths places that i think are weird and ask if anything should be added/changed/etc. i trust her opinion since we’re brain twins. and then she just always catches my weird ass sentences that make no sense and i apologize profusely lol you should also thank her for sparing you some of my sentences that totally lack any sort of clarity. but they’re not super ‘rough’ - the most editing i’ve ever done after the fact was probably like...2k extra words? it was probably my hogwarts au fic. but usually there’s not a HUGE difference between my rough and final drafts.

i definitely recommend sitting and writing and get critical later. writing is supposed to be fun and you never know what you might pump out during a seating. i’ll also skip around sometimes - so if i’m stuck at a particular moment in the fic i’ll skip ahead to a scene i already have in my head to help inspire some creativity.

also thank you anon :3

#missgoalie writes things #Anonymous

[topicprinter]

1) The Cold Email Formula​Hi (first name),Mention something they've achieved recently. Say you would like their help.Lay down your vision for solving a painful and widely felt problem in their industry.Ask for a low commitment from them.Sign off.​2) BackgroundI recently claimed on a post that contacting people for research via cold email and LinkedIn is still effective but only if your message is worth reading.If you need to talk to potential customers, I believe you shouldn't rule out sending cold emails/LinkedIn messages.I was asked by a couple of people to give a template. The answer is there's no magic template. Your goal is to research and personalize each email for every person you contact.So I decided to break down my formula instead.​Please remember:This isn't a cold sales email. Although with minor tweaks it can be. This was written for innovative, early-stage B2B startups in mind. But it can be tweaked for any industry or sector.This isn't the only way to write a cold email.Some people swear by making it clear exactly what you're offering upfront. The problem with that approach is that for early-stage startups, your solution will change as you validate and iterate. It may not be that appealing to them early on, hence the need to speak to them first.This is why I've found more success in focusing on the person you're contacting and their problem. Rather than your proposed solution that may not even exist yet.I hope this helps you as much is has helped me. Let's get stuck in!​3) Who is it for?This is for you if:​You need to talk to users about a problem you want to solveYou need to reach high-value leads.You're still building your network.You're still in the research/validation phase. You need to talk to potential users/customers but you're not in full sales mode yet.You're contacting people in an industry that's new to you.​This isn't for you if:​Who you approach doesn't matter or you need a large number of leads immediately. This research can be time-consuming. If that's the case, try ads.​4) Researching LeadsYour research will vary widely based on your industry. Here are a few tips:​Be Ready to Take Notes (Important!)​Be ready to take notes on people you research. Make sure you keep on top of this.For example, you can create a spreadsheet, use Onenote/Evernote or use a CRM.Keep your old notes after contacting leads. Most industries are quite small at the top and your notes will have a compounding effect. You'll soon start to connect the dots and see trends and commonalities.​How to Research Leads​Start by Googling their name and company. Make sure you understand their specific role.Look for industry press releases for their company. Look for any activity that relates to them.Search for their personal and company Twitter accountsLook at their Instagram if it's publicLook through their LinkedIn, see if they know anyone who could make an intro for youSee what roles they're hiring forIf they're in charge of sourcing products, research what products they've stocked in the past and why. Research those companies and their ethos. See if they are connected to people within those companies too.Find out what their biggest challenge is as a business. This could be hiring, scaling or finding unique products to source. The secret is to tie their biggest business challenge to your overall vision for fixing their industry. With practice, you'll be able to accurately see what their biggest challenge is. Most businesses are usually quite open about it.​5) An Overview of the FormulaLet's take another look at the rough formula for cold emails/LinkedIn messages. We'll break it down down into 3 paragraphs.​The 3 Step FormulaHi (first name),Mention something they've achieved recently. Ask for their help.Lay down your vision for solving a painful and widely felt problem in their industry.Ask for a low commitment from them.Sign off.​6) How to Write Your Cold Email​- Paragraph 1Length:Aim for 2 sentences max. 30 Words Total​Goal:Mention something you've researched about them then. Then ask for their help.​Do:You could congratulate them on opening a new location, a fundraise, a new product.You're praising but also showing you've done your research and you think they are credible enough to be able to help you too.You could mention someone on their level that you've recently met, who they know.You could mention someone who has made an intro/suggested you contact them (if that person hasn't already)You can adjust your tone based on their personality or the brand of their business. Formal emails can be offputting. Use your research to guide your actions on this.Tip: I would often go into a business as a customer, find a moment to ask for the owner/ops director's name and contact details without being pushy. Then write an email there and then to that person, saying the name of their employee who suggested you contact them.​Don't:Don't 'hope' or 'pray' that your email 'finds them well' or 'in good health' etc. There's no need. It's a waste of precious text. If you don't know them, it comes across as disingenuous.​- Paragraph 2Length:Aim for 2 sentences max. 30 Words Total​Goal:Lay down your vision for solving a painful and widely felt problem in their industry.​Do:Show that you understand the most painful business problem they're experiencing. A problem that is also holding the industry back. A strong vision is often the most powerful tool an entrepreneur has. In a few words, you can open the eyes of your prospect to a better future, in a way they hadn't thought about.Make your vision solve a painful problem and sound exciting. Even if it's in the most mundane part of a business.Make them feel that they and their advice will be so important that you need them to be involved in helping shape your solution.You should keep this paragraph very brief. The skill in cold emails is saying as much as possible, in as few words as possible. Make them curious so they want to hear more - https://www.wired.com/2010/08/the-itch-of-curiosity/You should constantly be refining and slimming this paragraph down. It's arguably the most important.If you have your website link in your email sig. Make sure the messaging on your landing page, matches the messaging in your email.This is a powerful technique for getting a response if you're yet to define a solution. The intrigue it generates. Again this isn't a sales email. It's for early-stage businesses that are simply trying to nail a meeting with an important lead to get feedback, validation or conduct a user interview.​Don't:Don't go into too much detailDon't make unrealistic claimsDon't name your company within the paragraphs. They'll see it in the email sig and in your email address before they opened the email. It's optional but really not necessary.​- Paragraph 3Length:Aim for one sentence, two max. 20 words.​Goal:A very low commitment ask.​Do:Know exactly what your goal is before contacting anyone. It's normal for this to be slightly different for each person you contact.If you're emailing: Do you want knowledge? An intro? To be able to send a deck for feedback or to be passed on to someone else? Be specific.If on LinkedIn: You're usually asking for their email address to send more info. So your message can be even shorter. It may feel like an extra step but they'll be expecting your email. I've found my conversions were much higher doing this. There's also an element of intrigue and respect that you've asked permission before sharing your ask.If you're arranging a call/meeting, then offer a time and day that you think they'll be free based on your research. For example, in the hospitality industry, there are days that ops directors won't take meetings due to the nature of their work.Do your research. For example, if you know from your research where their office is, mention grabbing a coffee a street away, etc.​Don't:Don't ask for any more than of their time than you need. Be specific in your request.Don't make them do the work of arranging the time, place, day, etc.​7) Tips​Understand the basics of copywriting. Write to Sell is a great primer for beginners. - Write to Sell, Andy MaslenDon't obsess about copywriting, you don't need to become an expert. Many copywriting tricks and tips will take you off course. Keep it simple.Edit, edit and edit again. Cut out weasel words. Hemingway is an excellent tool for this - http://www.hemingwayapp.com/Use a thesaurus to find shorter words. Count the syllables in your sentences -https://syllablecounter.net/Check your writing for it's reading grade level. Simple yet highly effective - https://readabilityformulas.com/free-readability-formula-tests.phpSpell check everything you write - Grammarly.comTrack and organize your emails with a CRM - Hubspot allows you to move contacts across a Pipeline and track email opens. This is extremely useful when you're contacting a lot of people. There are other tools but choose cautiously - www.hubspot.comYou can send your personalized emails faster using Woodpecker. You can use your existing email account and it'll schedule emails so you don't get flagged by Gmail. It's highly effective and worth the price. Good for those starting out, with a free trial too - www.woodpecker.coRead your email out loud. If it sounds awkward, it'll probably read awkwardly too.Aim for clarity. Don't use industry jargon even if you think they'll understand it.The word limits included are for you to focus on keeping it brief. You may need to write more but beware of fluff. Keep it to the essentials.If you get a reply, you can include more details on the second email. Even pre-launch, an attractive deck on your reply can go a long way to building credibility and intrigue.When you get a meeting, make sure you ask questions properly. The Mom Test is a great starting point - http://momtestbook.com/​8) Common Issues​Why am I not getting any replies?If your email is succinct, punchy and persuasive but you're still not getting feedback, it's possible that the problem you're describing just isn't interesting to them.One quick solution until you land on messaging that resonates is to include fewer details. Just mention you want to solve a painful problem their industry faces. Add more detail about the specific problem as you get more feedback and understand the industry better.​How can I refine my message when I'm not getting any replies?Great cold emails require a holistic approach of integrating everything you learn through your research, conversations, meetings, and rejections.I once lucked out by sitting a table across from the national operations director for a large restaurant chain. I knew the head office was near that restaurant and would work in there some mornings on my laptop.I overheard a conversation and politely waited until he'd finished his meeting then asked him for a couple of minutes of his time. Those 3-4 minutes gave me an invaluable insight into a major purchasing decision they were looking to make and exactly what their goals and red lines were.This info was pure gold in understanding the problems of chains of his size. It was almost the polar opposite of what slightly smaller chains would require. I already had a good pitch from my cold emailing but I was able to tweak my approach for companies of a similar size who were facing similar challenges. My conversions were beyond what I could've hoped for.​Tip:As you contact more people, you'll see that many of them face similar challenges. You can save time by segment them by characteristics that aren't always obvious when you start. You can then use this knowledge to more accurately predict what messaging will work on future leads.​I've got a template that's converting well, should I change it?After around 10-20 replies, you should have a good idea of what resonates and what doesn't. Even more so after you meet the people you've contacted in person or speak on the phone.So take notes during your meetings. Listen to what they found exciting, what they're really struggling with. Refine and improve. There's no reason not to be an expert at this quickly.Always ask for intros when you make a successful contact and you've earnt their trust/intrigue. I can't stress this enough.Don't get stuck using the same template, keep iterating, Even if the improvements become marginal gains.​What conversion rates should I expect?I'd often get open rates as high as 90%. Replies would change for each mini-campaign, starting lower and getting significantly higher as I refined the email but always over 50%.My email rates always declined rapidly when I got overconfident and did less research. Or when I was less picky about qualifying leads to contact.After refining your message and building up a good database of research, it becomes rare not to get a reply. This will obviously change by industry and how attractive your vision/the problem you want to solve is.Qualifying the right type of people to speak to will drastically improve your conversion rates. When you understand the industry, you're able to predict what messaging will resonate with a certain type of prospect in a business at a certain stage, a certain size or facing a certain challenge. Your research will be vital for this. The clearer you can organize it and find insights from it, the better.​How often do I follow up?There's a lot of different thinking about follow-ups. The standard rule is that you should keep following up until you get a response. If your startup takes off, you'll likely bump into some of the leads you're contacting one day. Be persistent but respectful.You should wait at least 3 days before your first follow up. Your follow up emails should be short and easy for them to take action.​9) SummarySo that's it! There's no secret template. It's hard work, at first anyway. Once you get stuck in, it becomes fun. If you do your homework and iterate relentlessly, you'll see results!​Free feedbackI'm happy to give feedback via chat if anyone has any drafts they want looked at. I don't have anything to promote but I'm quietly working on a unique way for anyone to apply the wisdom of successful founders without books, videos or podcasts. I'd love to talk to anyone who's interested in giving feedback on the beta.Good luck!

#/r/entrepreneur #reddit

[batvish-blog]

Five Mistakes That You Should Avoid While Publishing

When it comes to publishing your book, it is vital to meticulously go through every detail as opposed to rushing through the process. It is easier to fix mistakes before your book is published. There are various publishing models to assist you in publishing your manuscript and making the activities of writing, publishing, distributing and marketing simpler. A few widely known publishing models are Traditional publishing, Self- publishing and Supported Self-publishing.  You must cautiously decide the right publishing model for your book. In traditional publishing, they screen content, select manuscripts, invest into the project to publish the book, distribute the book and pay the author royalties post receiving revenue from the sales of the book. However, the process of writing a book proposal, finding an agent who is willing to represent you and your book to a publisher is very complex. If you opt for traditional publishing, you will have close to zero control on your book.

Self-published books have seen a meteoric rise, considering how it is affordable, efficient and respectable. You can do a professional job with your self-published book while retaining ownership and rights and enjoy complete creative and content control.

There’s a middle ground between traditional and self-publishing, which is supported self-publishing. If you want control over the book and its rights while earning a higher royalty, supported self-publishing is the way to go. In supported self-publishing, the author uses the required services from a publishing firm to publish her/his own work. You can skip the queue of traditional publishing and enhance your work with professional editing, layouts, designing, marketing and distribution.

While publishing, an author, more than often, takes up an entrepreneur’s role and on many occasions might miss out on some intricacies while overseeing the final project. Despite having the creative control in your hands, authors can commit avoidable mistakes in this ever-evolving industry because of a myopic eye. It is imperative to know about the oversights that may stifle the book’s sale.

Here are 5 effective tips you should follow to avoid making mistakes:

Professional Designing Can Make a Big Difference

It’s a truth universally acknowledged, a book is judged by its cover.

If your book is “not-put-downable” because it’s content-rich, it should also be “easy to pick” because of its enticing cover.

You have a vision, all you need is a professional artist to convey the same in a language and craft that they know the best. Online or at bookstores, you have a single chance to make that first impression, a self-designed book cover may have all the elements you want, but it can still lead to a lousy and unprofessional opinion in the minds of the readers. Your book cover is your identity, and as the sales increase, it may just prove to be your brand. Designing it professionally is a long-term investment. If you think that getting a professional designer is immoderate, you can always opt for freelance designers. You can reach out to numerous freelance designers on Bēhance. It is a platform which allows you to view the designer’s portfolio and understand their thought process behind every design they create.

You can get in touch with them and work out a deal that suits you the best.

Familiarity Can Lead To Mistakes

Every reader wants (and deserves) a book free of errors. Even the greatest writers miss out on spellings, word choices, grammar, and more. When you hire a professional editor and proofreader, he or she takes the extra step in terms of augmenting the clarity of the copy. In addition to a thorough check on errors, a professional also makes sure that the content of your book is organized rationally, and looks presentable. This involves moving a sentence up or down or even deleting or adding a few. Hiring an editor is the most important step that your book requires. If you still think that getting an editor is not feasible, there are countless tools you must try that can help you avoid these mistakes. You can find a list of these tools here.

Promote Your Book On Social Media

According to Forbes, there are 600,000 to 1,000,000 books published every year. Which means copious amount of content already exists on social media. Social media has expanded and extended the reach of an author. You need to stand out of the clutter. It is advisable to hire digital media professionals, especially when it comes to ads as they can manage your budget more effectively. The reason being, tracking these spends across multiple platforms and campaigns can be really difficult and time-consuming. If you want to do it yourself, start by picking the right hashtags for your social media posts, the right target audience for Facebook and Instagram ads (yes, paid ads do work), and the right flow for your social media campaign. Avoid making your posts all about the sale. Engage with your followers, because more engagement means your content is more likely to be seen. Use aesthetic visuals, engaging contests and giveaways, such as providing free sample chapters. Make your book launch an event to celebrate. You could set up a page/event on Facebook for the launch, create a hashtag or a new social media account for your book. Run a challenge related to your content or giveaway your merchandise.

You can also learn more about the marketing process and services to receive a clear understanding of the whole process.

Pagination Improves Reader Experience

Pagination is the process of separating print or digital content into discrete pages. Numerous authors avoid the pagination process, which leads to vagueness and unclarity in the book itself. Now, why Pagination? A book needs structure and organization to improve readability and smooth transitions for the readers. Pagination also helps in breaking sentences and paragraphs without losing on the reader’s flow of the story or being abrupt. Every reader prefers a book that doesn’t involve excess navigation.

There are probably about 90 words in a typical paragraph. Let’s just say that in a manuscript of 75,000 words you will be dealing with over 800 paragraphs and 5,000 line endings. Because there are so many paragraphs, there’s a kind of random distribution that takes place in books. If you get to the bottom of a page and there’s only room for one more line, and that line is the first line of a paragraph, you will have an odd look at the bottom of that page. You don’t want to be in a spot like that and cause inconvenience to your readers. Hence, always opt for pagination and typesetting services from professionals.

According to usabilitynews.org, Dyson and Kipping (1998) found that participants read through paged documents faster than scrolled documents.

Boost Your Credentials With The About Author section:

Here’s a thought, if you aren’t a household name author like Steven King, JK Rowling, Malcolm Gladwell, most of the people buying your book would be unaware about who you are and your story.

So how do they learn about you? And why is this important?

It’s observed that very few authors think about it, but the “Author Bio” section eminently impacts the sales, reputation, book marketing, and social media. It takes a long time to read a book, but it’s very easy to make a quick judgment based on a short paragraph, which most readers do. If you’re seen as an authority on your book topic, readers will buy your book and read it. So, one of the best ways to be seen, as an authority, is to have a great Author Bio about yourself. Another effective form of marketing is attaching an Author Image. The About author section is the easiest means of communicating vital information to your readers. It tells the audience about the tone, style and genre of your writing and helps establish you as a brand. Always remember that the author’s reputation is consistently seen as one of the main factors that influence a book-buying decision. Avoid giving out your personal contact details such as your contact numbers or address. Instead, you can mention your Twitter or Instagram handle.

In the end, you have put in countless hours and efforts into bringing your book to life. Therefore, it is important that you take into consideration these avoidable mistakes that can stop readers from appreciating the content. This will help you in developing an insight to not rush the entire process and release the book before it’s ready for the world. These common publishing mistakes are fairly simple, if not always easy to avoid. Instead of looking for instant gratification, stick to what you know and love.

[brianromani]

Editing vs proofreading

There are fondamental differences between editing and proofreading. Here we explain the main differences.

Scientific Editing's insight:

Starting from English enthusiasts to commoners, editing and proofreading are the two terms that tend to confuse us all often. Well, it is quite justified as they have similar traits but there is a fine line of responsibilities and task differentiation between an editor and a proof-reader.

An editor is an individual who corrects the initial mistakes of a writer. For example, an editor is supposed to identify poorly constructed or insensible sentences. That individual has to understand whether the language used is appropriate for conveying the message it intends to or not.

On the other hand, a proofreader is someone who has to take up the role of grammar police and skim through all the errors in grammar or punctuation. For example, a proof-reader is held responsible for any and every spelling mistake or inconsistency in a sentence. It can either be numerical or textual; a proof-reader has to track it all.

Summarizing the differences between these two terms is a task on its own. However, here are some of the ways you can define editing and proofreading.

1. An editor has to rewrite when required

For an editor, it is difficult to work when the writer has unorganized paragraphs as it disrupts the flow of the paper. The writer then has to oblige by the rewriting policy to satisfy a client's needs. Generally, proofreaders do not have to go through this hassle. They just correct the mistakes and are least bothered about the chronological order.

2. A proofreader has to go beyond systems to check a paper

Proofreaders have to abide by the manual and automatic spell checking since each and every mistake counts. From grammar to punctuation, the proof-reader has to go through and every word individually to figure out possible errors. It is extremely time-consuming and editors are not bound to do the same. They are more concerned about the content.

3. An editor provides clarity to the writing

It is very important for each and every paragraph to phrase to be clear enough to understand. The editor has to make sure that the reader does not struggle while reading the paper or is not confused with the idea it is trying to portray. Luckily, the proof-readers are mainly concerned with spelling and punctuation, not the meaning of the paper.

4. A proofreader ensures zero grammatical error

Editors are not usually bound to do spelling or grammar check. However, a proofreader is supposed to do both. A proof-reader has to make sure that there are no grammatical or punctuation mistakes since it hampers the readers' experience of reading. This is a crucial job responsibility for a proof-reader and it is an inevitable task for them.

5. Incorporation of specialized knowledge by editors

An editor is allegedly responsible for adding extra or missing information to the text in order to make it look complete. This is usually done when the text is not up to the mark or lacks enough information. The editor will use his/her knowledge to fill in the gaps. A proof-reader only cares about the sentence structure, not what it describes.

In Conclusion, proofreading and editing are two different terms of the English Language. Both of the individuals have an important role to play when it comes to making a text perfect and appropriate although they are definitely not identical.

[ganatunes]

10 Most Shocking And Controversial Scandals Involving These Bollywood Stars We Bet You Didn’t Know About

Everyone knows it, hears about it but still no one speaks up and if someone tries too then that person is restrained. Well, Bollywood has always been blamed for being affected by casting-couch syndrome and there are many stories in which powerful and renowned people in the industry ask for sexual favors from a newcomer irrespective of the gender.However, in past few years, several Bollywood actors such as Ranveer Singh, Ayushmann Khurrana, Radhika Apte, Kalki Koechlin, and Sameera Reddy had revealed that they had been victim to the casting couch and have even shared their experiences.Meanwhile, we can’t put full blame on Bollywood itself as it seems that the problem is prevalent in Hollywood and also in different parts of the world which is proved after the beginning of a Me Too movement.To the uninitiated, MeToo , is a movement against sexual harassment and sexual assault which had spread virally in October 2017 as a hashtag used on social media platforms with an objective of demonstrating the widespread prevalence of sexual harassment.Tarana Burke, a social activist had started this movement in 2006 while actress Alyssa Milano took the initiative to encourage the movement with a hastag #MeToo in 2017.Talking about the B-town stars, it was very shocking to know that these actors and popular celebrities were involved in Extramarital affairs, casting couches, and MMS clips. While some escaped others saw their careers get ruined.Now, we would like to share some undisclosed dark secrets, and scandals related to these Bollywood stars.1. Bipasha BasuBipasha Basu who is popular for her roles in Raaz and Jism, got into a controversy when a tape featuring some lewd conversations Basu and politician Amar Singh was leaked. However, the actress denied that the voice in the tape was hers. Well, the controversy had affected her image in the industry and since then she is losing her charm in Bollywood. Her last movie  Alone had released in 2015.📷2. Aditya PancholiAditya Pancholi who had won  Best Performance in a Negative Role for Yes Boss (1997) and had worked with Salman Khan in Bodyguard was also rumoured to be a part of such horrendous act. Well, the actor was charged with raping Pooja Bedi’s fifteen-year-old maid while he was dating her. Later,  he was accused of physically abusing popular Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut with whom he had an extra-marital affair.📷3. Ashmit Patel-Riya SenAshmit Patel who part of the 4th season of the Indian television reality show Bigg Boss lost all his reputation when an MMS clip featuring him and actress Riya Sen in an intimate act went viral. While most stars usually deny such acts, Ashmit accepted that the clip was genuine. After starting his career as an assistant director in movies such as Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage (2002), Awara Paagal Deewana (2002), Raaz (2002) and Footpath (2003), he lost everything, unfortunately.📷4. Aman VermaPopular TV personality Aman Verma who has worked in TV soaps such as  Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and  Indian Idol 1 left everyone shocked when he was caught in a sting operation. Well, his career ended when his video of asking for a sexual favour with a newbie in exchange of a role went viral.In the sting operation which was aired on India TV in March 2005, Verma was begging Suhaib Ilyasi to remove his footage from the sting operation.📷5. Shiney AhujaFilmfare Best Male Debut Award for Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi in 2005, no one would have thought that Shiney Ahuja would end up nowhere in the industry. Further, he was even praised for his performance in movies such as  Gangster, Life in a metro, and Bhool Bhulaiyaa.In 2009, his career in Bollywood was over after he was accused of rape, by his maid. However, in court, the maid had withdrawn the charge she had laid against the actor and stated that the act of sex had been consensual. Meanwhile, the trial court judge refused to accept the retraction and convicted Ahuja based on circumstantial evidence. After 2 years,  he was sentenced to 7 years rigorous imprisonment. Later, Bombay high court released him on bail.📷6. Shahid Kapoor and Kareena KapoorWe all know how Bollywood actor Shahid Kapoor and actress Kareena Kapoor Khan were always in the headlines due to their relationship. Well,  a video of a couple leaked on the internet where they both were seen in an intimate pose. While the couples both broke-up with each other, but they too claimed that the video was doctored. Further, Kareena slapped a legal notice on the tabloid, demanding an apology also claimed Rs 20 crore as damages.Currently, Kareena Kapoor is married to Saif Ali Khan while Shahid Kapoor is married to Mira Rajput.📷7. Shakti KapoorShakti Kapoor is popular for his comic roles and villainous acts in movies such as Raja Babu, Andaaz Apna Apna, Hero,  Bhagam Bhag, Insaaf.  Well, the 66-year-old actor shocked everyone when he was caught doing a shameful act. According to reports, Kapoor had offered a role to a newcomer in exchange of sexual favors.In 2005,  India TV released a video showing Kapoor demanding sexual favor from an undercover reporter who had posed as an aspiring actress. The actor had asked for the favours in return for entry into the film industry.📷8. Hrithik Roshan-Kangana RanautHrithik and Kangana set gossip mills buzzing with rumours of their alleged love affair which had begun when both of them worked together in ‘Krrish 3. It was really shocking when Kangana said, “Hrithik would be nowhere without his famous parents.”While Hrithik wrote in a statement on Twitter, “The truth is, I have never met the lady in question one on one in my entire life. Yes, we have worked together, but there has been no meeting in private. That’s the truth.”Meanwhile, there is no clarity on whether the actors are in a romantic relationship or not, the fight between the actors turned out to be really bad. Well, the controversy was one of the biggest controversies in Bollywood.📷9. Aamir KhanWhile controversies are part of a superstar life but the reports of Aamir Khan in a love affair with writer/journalist Jessica Hines is known to very people. It is said that while shooting for Vikram Bhatt’s movie- “Ghulam” in 2005 Aamir and Jessica had fallen in love and soon they were in a relationship.Further, it is reported that when  Jessica discovered that she is pregnant, Aamir directly asked her to abort the child. In an interview, Jessica said that when her son  “Jaan” will grow up she will tell him that his father didn’t like them. Meanwhile, Aamir has denied all her claims.📷10. Nana Patekar-Tanushree DuttaWhat we can say over here is that Tanushree Dutta and Nana Patekar’s controversy has turned out to be one of the biggest scandals of the Bollywood. The whole controversy started in the year 2008 when Dutta accused Patekar of sexually harassing her on the sets of the movie Horn ‘Ok’ Pleassss.According to reports, Tanushree Dutta had filed a complaint with ‘CINTAA'(Cine & TV Artists Association) but there was no action taken by the authorities at that time. Further, the allegation was again repeated in an interview in 2013.In 2018, Tanushree decided to open up on her shocking past and narrated the whole story. Later, CINTAA too apologized to Tanushree and accepted that the “chief grievance of sexual harassment wasn’t even addressed in 2008 and added that since the case was more than 3 years old, they couldn’t reopen it.After Hollywood, Tanushree Dutta’s accusations is now termed as the beginning of the Me Too movement in the Indian film industry. Meanwhile, Ii is too early to speak on who is saying the truth.📷ALSO READ: How Goons Hounded Tanushree Dutta In This Viral Video Will Definitely Shock YouOtherAccording to  IndiaToday, many housekeeping service providers in Mumbai don’t want to deliver housekeeping staff to houses of Bollywood celebrities. It is reported that these Bollywood stars deduct salaries and even kick the cook to wake her up in the middle of the night.Sharing his experience, Abhishek Sable, the director of Happy Maids Service, said, “I have stopped taking contracts from Bollywood.”“In my experience, only a few celebs are good. The others never gave (the maids) decent food. And if they didn’t like the food that the cook had made, they would throw the plate at their face. Gaali toh unke mooh pe rehti thi,” he said.Further, renowned Bollywood stars have always been accused of involving in drugs and alcoholism. While they might be one of the big superstars of the country and may enjoy immense popularity in the world, but their scandalous acts are now finally getting revealed to the world.Get the latest Bollywood celebrity news, Like Ganatunes on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for more latest Bollywood news and updates latest bollywood celebrity news, latest bollywood gossip, latest bollywood newsEdit "10 Most Shocking And Controversial Scandals Involving These Bollywood Stars We Bet You Didn’t Know About"Edit with Visual Composer

[clearlysweetdreamer]

PREMIUM THESIS  ASSIGNMENT | No.1 Dissertation writers in Malaysia | PhD Thesis  Assignment Writing Services

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[aaronbarrnna]

The Cult of the Complex

‘Tis a gift to be simple. Increasingly, in our line of work, ‘tis a rare gift indeed.

In an industry that extols innovation over customer satisfaction, and prefers algorithm to human judgement (forgetting that every algorithm has human bias in its DNA), perhaps it should not surprise us that toolchains have replaced know-how.

Likewise, in a field where young straight white dudes take an overwhelming majority of the jobs (including most of the management jobs) it’s perhaps to be expected that web making has lately become something of a dick measuring competition.

It was not always this way, and it needn’t stay this way. If we wish to get back to the business of quietly improving people’s lives, one thoughtful interaction at a time, we must rid ourselves of the cult of the complex. Admitting the problem is the first step in solving it.

And the div cries Mary

In 2001, more and more of us began using CSS to replace the non-semantic HTML table layouts with which we’d designed the web’s earliest sites. I soon noticed something about many of our new CSS-built sites. I especially noticed it in sites built by the era’s expert backend coders, many of whom viewed HTML and CSS as baby languages for non-developers.

In those days, whether from contempt for the deliberate, intentional (designed) limitations of HTML and CSS, or ignorance of the HTML and CSS framers’ intentions, many code jockeys who switched from table layouts to CSS wrote markup consisting chiefly of divs and spans. Where they meant list item, they wrote span. Where they meant paragraph, they wrote div. Where they meant level two headline, they wrote div or span with a classname of h2, or, avoiding even that tragicomic gesture toward document structure, wrote a div or span with verbose inline styling. Said div was followed by another, and another. They bred like locusts, stripping our content of structural meaning.

As an early adopter and promoter of CSS via my work in The Web Standards Project (kids, ask your parents), I rejoiced to see our people using the new language. But as a designer who understood, at least on a basic level, how HTML and CSS were supposed to work together, I chafed.

Cry, the beloved font tag

Everyone who wrote the kind of code I just described thought they were advancing the web merely by walking away from table layouts. They had good intentions, but their executions were flawed. My colleagues and I here at A List Apart were thus compelled to explain a few things.

Mainly, we argued that HTML consisting mostly of divs and spans and classnames was in no way better than table layouts for content discovery, accessibility, portability, reusability, or the web’s future. If you wanted to build for people and the long term, we said, then simple, structural, semantic HTML was best—each element deployed for its intended purpose. Don’t use a div when you mean a p.

This basic idea, and I use the adjective advisedly, along with other equally rudimentary and self-evident concepts, formed the basis of my 2003 book Designing With Web Standards, which the industry treated as a revelation, when it was merely common sense.

The message messes up the medium

When we divorce ideas from the conditions under which they arise, the result is dogma and misinformation—two things the internet is great at amplifying. Somehow, over the years, in front-end design conversations, the premise “don’t use a div when you mean a p” got corrupted into “divs are bad.”

A backlash in defense of divs followed this meaningless running-down of them—as if the W3C had created the div as a forbidden fruit. So, let’s be clear. No HTML element is bad. No HTML element is good. A screwdriver is neither good nor bad, unless you try to use it as a hammer. Good usage is all about appropriateness.

Divs are not bad. If no HTML5 element is better suited to an element’s purpose, divs are the best and most appropriate choice. Common sense, right? And yet.

Somehow, the two preceding simple sentences are never the takeaway from these discussions. Somehow, over the years, a vigorous defense of divs led to a defiant (or ignorant) overuse of them. In some strange way, stepping back from a meaningless rejection of divs opened the door to gaseous frameworks that abuse them.

Note: We don’t mind so much about the abuse of divs. After all, they are not living things. We are not purists. It’s the people who use the stuff we design who suffer from our uninformed or lazy over-reliance on these div-ridden gassy tools. And that suffering is what we protest. div-ridden, overbuilt frameworks stuffed with mystery meat offer the developer tremendous power, agility. But that power comes at a price your users pay: a hundred tons of stuff your project likely doesn’t need, but you force your users to download anyway. And that bloat is not the only problem. For who knows what evil lurks in someone else’s code?

Two cheers for frameworks

If you entered web design and development in the past ten years, you’ve likely learned and may rely on frameworks. Most of these are built on meaningless arrays of divs and spans—structures no better than the bad HTML we wrote in 1995, however more advanced the resulting pages may appear. And what keeps the whole monkey-works going? JavaScript, and more JavaScript. Without it, your content may not render. With it, you may deliver more services than you intended to.

There’s nothing wrong with using frameworks to quickly whip up and test product prototypes, especially if you do that testing in a non-public space. And theoretically, if you know what you’re doing, and are willing to edit out the bits your product doesn’t need, there’s nothing wrong with using a framework to launch a public site. Notice the operative phrases: if you know what you’re doing, and are willing to edit out the bits your product doesn’t need.

Alas, many new designers and developers (and even many experienced ones) feel like they can’t launch a new project without dragging in packages from NPM, or Composer, or whatever, with no sure idea what the code therein is doing. The results can be dangerous. Yet here we are, training an entire generation of developers to build and launch projects with untrusted code.

Indeed, many designers and developers I speak with would rather dance naked in public than admit to posting a site built with hand-coded, progressively enhanced HTML, CSS, and JavaScript they understand and wrote themselves. For them, it’s a matter of job security and viability. There’s almost a fear that if you haven’t mastered a dozen new frameworks and tools each year (and by mastered, I mean used), you’re slipping behind into irrelevancy. HR folks who write job descriptions listing the ten thousand tool sets you’re supposed to know backwards and forwards to qualify for a junior front-end position don’t help the situation.

CSS is not broken, and it’s not too hard

As our jerrybuilt contraptions, lashed together with fifteen layers of code we don’t understand and didn’t write ourselves, start to buckle and hiss, we blame HTML and CSS for the faults of developers. This fault-finding gives rise to ever more complex cults of specialized CSS, with internecine sniping between cults serving as part of their charm. New sects spring up, declaring CSS is broken, only to splinter as members disagree about precisely which way it’s broken, or which external technology not intended to control layout should be used to “fix” CSS. (Hint: They mostly choose JavaScript.)

Folks, CSS is not broken, and it’s not too hard. (You know what’s hard? Chasing the ever-receding taillights of the next shiny thing.) But don’t take my word for it. Check these out:

Getting Started with CSS Layout—Rachel Andrew, Smashing Magazine

Learn CSS Grid—Jen Simmons

CSS Grid Layout—MDN web docs

Grid by Example—Rachel Andrew

A Complete Guide to Grid—Chris House, CSS-Tricks

Practical CSS Grid: Adding Grid to an Existing Design—Eric Meyer, A List Apart

Jen Simmons Labs

Layout Land—YouTube

A Book Apart: The New CSS Layout, by Rachel Andrew

The Story of CSS Grid, from its Creators—Aaron Gustafson, A List Apart

Transcript: Intrinsic Web Design with Jen Simmons (The Big Web Show)

CSS Grid is here; it’s logical and fairly easy to learn. You can use it to accomplish all kinds of layouts that used to require JavaScript and frameworks, plus new kinds of layout nobody’s even tried yet. That kind of power requires some learning, but it’s good learning, the kind that stimulates creativity, and its power comes at no sacrifice of semantics, or performance, or accessibility. Which makes it web technology worth mastering.

The same cannot be said for our deluge of frameworks and alternative, JavaScript-based platforms. As a designer who used to love creating web experiences in code, I am baffled and numbed by the growing preference for complexity over simplicity. Complexity is good for convincing people they could not possibly do your job. Simplicity is good for everything else.

Keep it simple, smarty

Good communication strives for clarity. Design is its most brilliant when it appears most obvious—most simple. The question for web designers should never be how complex can we make it. But that’s what it has become. Just as, in pursuit of “delight,” we forget the true joy reliable, invisible interfaces can bring, so too, in chasing job security, do we pile on the platform requirements, forgetting that design is about solving business and customer problems … and that baseline skills never go out of fashion. As ALA’s Brandon Gregory, writing elsewhere, explains:

I talk with a lot of developers who list Angular, Ember, React, or other fancy JavaScript libraries among their technical skills. That’s great, but can you turn that mess of functions the junior developer wrote into a custom extensible object that we can use on other projects, even if we don’t have the extra room for hefty libraries? Can you code an image slider with vanilla JavaScript so we don’t have to add jQuery to an older website just for one piece of functionality? Can you tell me what recursion is and give me a real-world example?

“I interview web developers. Here’s how to impress me.” Growing pains

There’s a lot of complexity to good design. Technical complexity. UX complexity. Challenges of content and microcopy. Performance challenges. This has never been and never will be an easy job.

Simplicity is not easy—not for us, anyway. Simplicity means doing the hard work that makes experiences appear seamless—the sweat and torture-testing and failure that eventually, with enough effort, yields experiences that seem to “just work.”

Nor, in lamenting our industry’s turn away from basic principles and resilient technologies, am I suggesting that CDNs and Git are useless. Or wishing that we could go back to FTP—although I did enjoy the early days of web design, when one designer could do it all. I’m glad I got to experience those simpler times.

But I like these times just fine. And I think you do, too. Our medium is growing up, and it remains our great privilege to help shape its future while creating great experiences for our users. Let us never forget how lucky we are, nor, in chasing the ever-shinier, lose sight of the people and purpose we serve.

https://ift.tt/2kEP9MQ

#The Cult of the Complex

[waltercostellone]

The Cult of the Complex

‘Tis a gift to be simple. Increasingly, in our line of work, ‘tis a rare gift indeed.

In an industry that extols innovation over customer satisfaction, and prefers algorithm to human judgement (forgetting that every algorithm has human bias in its DNA), perhaps it should not surprise us that toolchains have replaced know-how.

Likewise, in a field where young straight white dudes take an overwhelming majority of the jobs (including most of the management jobs) it’s perhaps to be expected that web making has lately become something of a dick measuring competition.

It was not always this way, and it needn’t stay this way. If we wish to get back to the business of quietly improving people’s lives, one thoughtful interaction at a time, we must rid ourselves of the cult of the complex. Admitting the problem is the first step in solving it.

And the div cries Mary

In 2001, more and more of us began using CSS to replace the non-semantic HTML table layouts with which we’d designed the web’s earliest sites. I soon noticed something about many of our new CSS-built sites. I especially noticed it in sites built by the era’s expert backend coders, many of whom viewed HTML and CSS as baby languages for non-developers.

In those days, whether from contempt for the deliberate, intentional (designed) limitations of HTML and CSS, or ignorance of the HTML and CSS framers’ intentions, many code jockeys who switched from table layouts to CSS wrote markup consisting chiefly of divs and spans. Where they meant list item, they wrote span. Where they meant paragraph, they wrote div. Where they meant level two headline, they wrote div or span with a classname of h2, or, avoiding even that tragicomic gesture toward document structure, wrote a div or span with verbose inline styling. Said div was followed by another, and another. They bred like locusts, stripping our content of structural meaning.

As an early adopter and promoter of CSS via my work in The Web Standards Project (kids, ask your parents), I rejoiced to see our people using the new language. But as a designer who understood, at least on a basic level, how HTML and CSS were supposed to work together, I chafed.

Cry, the beloved font tag

Everyone who wrote the kind of code I just described thought they were advancing the web merely by walking away from table layouts. They had good intentions, but their executions were flawed. My colleagues and I here at A List Apart were thus compelled to explain a few things.

Mainly, we argued that HTML consisting mostly of divs and spans and classnames was in no way better than table layouts for content discovery, accessibility, portability, reusability, or the web’s future. If you wanted to build for people and the long term, we said, then simple, structural, semantic HTML was best—each element deployed for its intended purpose. Don’t use a div when you mean a p.

This basic idea, and I use the adjective advisedly, along with other equally rudimentary and self-evident concepts, formed the basis of my 2003 book Designing With Web Standards, which the industry treated as a revelation, when it was merely common sense.

The message messes up the medium

When we divorce ideas from the conditions under which they arise, the result is dogma and misinformation—two things the internet is great at amplifying. Somehow, over the years, in front-end design conversations, the premise “don’t use a div when you mean a p” got corrupted into “divs are bad.”

A backlash in defense of divs followed this meaningless running-down of them—as if the W3C had created the div as a forbidden fruit. So, let’s be clear. No HTML element is bad. No HTML element is good. A screwdriver is neither good nor bad, unless you try to use it as a hammer. Good usage is all about appropriateness.

Divs are not bad. If no HTML5 element is better suited to an element’s purpose, divs are the best and most appropriate choice. Common sense, right? And yet.

Somehow, the two preceding simple sentences are never the takeaway from these discussions. Somehow, over the years, a vigorous defense of divs led to a defiant (or ignorant) overuse of them. In some strange way, stepping back from a meaningless rejection of divs opened the door to gaseous frameworks that abuse them.

Note: We don’t mind so much about the abuse of divs. After all, they are not living things. We are not purists. It’s the people who use the stuff we design who suffer from our uninformed or lazy over-reliance on these div-ridden gassy tools. And that suffering is what we protest. div-ridden, overbuilt frameworks stuffed with mystery meat offer the developer tremendous power, agility. But that power comes at a price your users pay: a hundred tons of stuff your project likely doesn’t need, but you force your users to download anyway. And that bloat is not the only problem. For who knows what evil lurks in someone else’s code?

Two cheers for frameworks

If you entered web design and development in the past ten years, you’ve likely learned and may rely on frameworks. Most of these are built on meaningless arrays of divs and spans—structures no better than the bad HTML we wrote in 1995, however more advanced the resulting pages may appear. And what keeps the whole monkey-works going? JavaScript, and more JavaScript. Without it, your content may not render. With it, you may deliver more services than you intended to.

There’s nothing wrong with using frameworks to quickly whip up and test product prototypes, especially if you do that testing in a non-public space. And theoretically, if you know what you’re doing, and are willing to edit out the bits your product doesn’t need, there’s nothing wrong with using a framework to launch a public site. Notice the operative phrases: if you know what you’re doing, and are willing to edit out the bits your product doesn’t need.

Alas, many new designers and developers (and even many experienced ones) feel like they can’t launch a new project without dragging in packages from NPM, or Composer, or whatever, with no sure idea what the code therein is doing. The results can be dangerous. Yet here we are, training an entire generation of developers to build and launch projects with untrusted code.

Indeed, many designers and developers I speak with would rather dance naked in public than admit to posting a site built with hand-coded, progressively enhanced HTML, CSS, and JavaScript they understand and wrote themselves. For them, it’s a matter of job security and viability. There’s almost a fear that if you haven’t mastered a dozen new frameworks and tools each year (and by mastered, I mean used), you’re slipping behind into irrelevancy. HR folks who write job descriptions listing the ten thousand tool sets you’re supposed to know backwards and forwards to qualify for a junior front-end position don’t help the situation.

CSS is not broken, and it’s not too hard

As our jerrybuilt contraptions, lashed together with fifteen layers of code we don’t understand and didn’t write ourselves, start to buckle and hiss, we blame HTML and CSS for the faults of developers. This fault-finding gives rise to ever more complex cults of specialized CSS, with internecine sniping between cults serving as part of their charm. New sects spring up, declaring CSS is broken, only to splinter as members disagree about precisely which way it’s broken, or which external technology not intended to control layout should be used to “fix” CSS. (Hint: They mostly choose JavaScript.)

Folks, CSS is not broken, and it’s not too hard. (You know what’s hard? Chasing the ever-receding taillights of the next shiny thing.) But don’t take my word for it. Check these out:

Getting Started with CSS Layout—Rachel Andrew, Smashing Magazine

Learn CSS Grid—Jen Simmons

CSS Grid Layout—MDN web docs

Grid by Example—Rachel Andrew

A Complete Guide to Grid—Chris House, CSS-Tricks

Practical CSS Grid: Adding Grid to an Existing Design—Eric Meyer, A List Apart

Jen Simmons Labs

Layout Land—YouTube

A Book Apart: The New CSS Layout, by Rachel Andrew

The Story of CSS Grid, from its Creators—Aaron Gustafson, A List Apart

Transcript: Intrinsic Web Design with Jen Simmons (The Big Web Show)

CSS Grid is here; it’s logical and fairly easy to learn. You can use it to accomplish all kinds of layouts that used to require JavaScript and frameworks, plus new kinds of layout nobody’s even tried yet. That kind of power requires some learning, but it’s good learning, the kind that stimulates creativity, and its power comes at no sacrifice of semantics, or performance, or accessibility. Which makes it web technology worth mastering.

The same cannot be said for our deluge of frameworks and alternative, JavaScript-based platforms. As a designer who used to love creating web experiences in code, I am baffled and numbed by the growing preference for complexity over simplicity. Complexity is good for convincing people they could not possibly do your job. Simplicity is good for everything else.

Keep it simple, smarty

Good communication strives for clarity. Design is its most brilliant when it appears most obvious—most simple. The question for web designers should never be how complex can we make it. But that’s what it has become. Just as, in pursuit of “delight,” we forget the true joy reliable, invisible interfaces can bring, so too, in chasing job security, do we pile on the platform requirements, forgetting that design is about solving business and customer problems … and that baseline skills never go out of fashion. As ALA’s Brandon Gregory, writing elsewhere, explains:

I talk with a lot of developers who list Angular, Ember, React, or other fancy JavaScript libraries among their technical skills. That’s great, but can you turn that mess of functions the junior developer wrote into a custom extensible object that we can use on other projects, even if we don’t have the extra room for hefty libraries? Can you code an image slider with vanilla JavaScript so we don’t have to add jQuery to an older website just for one piece of functionality? Can you tell me what recursion is and give me a real-world example?

“I interview web developers. Here’s how to impress me.” Growing pains

There’s a lot of complexity to good design. Technical complexity. UX complexity. Challenges of content and microcopy. Performance challenges. This has never been and never will be an easy job.

Simplicity is not easy—not for us, anyway. Simplicity means doing the hard work that makes experiences appear seamless—the sweat and torture-testing and failure that eventually, with enough effort, yields experiences that seem to “just work.”

Nor, in lamenting our industry’s turn away from basic principles and resilient technologies, am I suggesting that CDNs and Git are useless. Or wishing that we could go back to FTP—although I did enjoy the early days of web design, when one designer could do it all. I’m glad I got to experience those simpler times.

But I like these times just fine. And I think you do, too. Our medium is growing up, and it remains our great privilege to help shape its future while creating great experiences for our users. Let us never forget how lucky we are, nor, in chasing the ever-shinier, lose sight of the people and purpose we serve.

https://ift.tt/2kEP9MQ

#The Cult of the Complex