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#i think i can do dialogue somewhat okay but descriptions
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A look to open up the skies part two: Eddie and Y/N finally have their conversation.💗
GN!reader. Fluff, insecurity (Eddie), crying (Eddie and reader), swearing, intense positive emotions (love, appreciation, holy shit if I don’t tell you I love you right fucking now I’m gonna die vibes), cuddling, kisses, pet names (sweetheart, angel, babe, baby, honey), reader quotes LOTR while confessing their feelings to Eddie in a bid to make him believe.
A/N: I am so grateful and appreciative to every person who supports my writing. It’s my break from a busy and stressful life, ten minutes here and there every day to help me get through the roaring anxiety. I appreciate you all deeply and I do my best to give it back to you with my content.
Summary: Several people asked to see Eddie and reader have the conversation from THIS PIECE - basically, you love Eddie so much it made you cry, Uncle Wayne encouraged you to tell Eddie, and here you both are :)
Special thank you to @magnoliabutters for reading over the first incomplete draft of this fic and literally going paragraph by paragraph to help me with characterisation, dialogue and descriptions. I'm a little scared to post this because I haven't written for Eddie for about three weeks and tbh I probably should be using this time to study, but if I don't do something for myself, I'm gonna go insane in a very very unsexy way.
I hope you enjoy!😭💗🙏
E.M tags: @eddiebunson @hersweetrevenge @sweetpeapod @sabbathsworld @hawkinsroyaloutcast @seidenbros @bakerstreethound @eddiemunsonshoney @potatos-library @gemstone-roses @hellfire1986baby @jslittlebirdie @comfortcharactercraze @heydreamchild @mywinterivy @corrodedcoffeen @ourstaturestouchtheskies
E & W.M tags: @hellfirebabe @eddiemunsonshoney @potatos-library @bakerstreethound @gemstone-roses @sweetpeapod @authorlovers @jslittlebirdie @heydreamchild @comfortcharactercraze @mywinterivy @corrodedcoffeen @ourstaturestouchtheskies 
Fic specific tags: @jslittlebirdie @hoeshii @nyrovekyochi @potatos-library @viviminori
People from part 1:  @disturbedbeautywrites @comfortcharactercraze @decadentpaperduck @munsonsuccubus @eponaartemisa @epicfallenismine @silky-luxe @jslittlebirdie @lancey-mcclain
Word count: 3, 318.
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Previously
"Eddie's got enough'a them walls up, Y/N. Don't you go giving him another." Wayne encourages you, gives you guidance and a light warning, all in two sentences. Only a Munson can pull that off.
Silence lapses again and Wayne finishes his cigarette, stands with a final gentle pat to your shoulder, and goes back inside the trailer. Leaving you with your thoughts and a quiet sense of determination.
You stand on somewhat shaky legs as you follow Wayne; the man sees you coming in the reflection of the glass window and spins at the last second to hold the door open for you. You smile at him in thanks and he nods at you, before raising his eyebrows in a, "now?" gesture. You find Eddie in that look and without thought do you nod. It makes him beam and you feel a deep sense of okay, this is it, settle deep inside your heart.
The final final nail is hammered in when Wayne grabs his keys and leaves for work, giving you a very meaningful, firm nod as he shuts the door behind him, his boots thudding down the steps.
It feels less like the encouragement he gave you a moment ago and more like being told 'enough thinking about it, hon - you're doing this now'; it is no secret to the Munsons that when you get all up in your head, you appreciate being told what you should do, just because you can't make out the trees through the thickness of the forest. The Munsons have taught you so much about yourself without consciously doing so. In many a conversation have you asked one of them - usually Uncle Wayne - why you had reacted to something a specific way or you have shared an 'ugly' thought with them, only for them to tell you that it is normal to feel this way. A boundary has been crossed which you hadn't known you had at the time, or something like that. The specifics barely matter when it comes to matters of the soul and heart; fragile things which must be handled with care.
In short, the Munsons bring you to your own attention and it excites you to spend time with them, wondering what other pieces of the tapestries of themselves and you which you will get to uncover with the hours in their company. Every day brings you something new, it seems, but today it is your turn to bring Eddie something new.
In allowing you to express yourself and your thoughts uncensored, the Munsons have watched you grow and blossom into the person you are, and they are so proud of you for it. Sometimes, you are in the right, and sometimes you are in the wrong. But you aren't ever shamed for it or made to feel less than; Wayne's stern manner and quiet tone of disappointment scares you more than anything else. You hate it when he gets like that with you (it's so very rare; you have to earn Wayne's disapproval. His love comes freely and without conditions) and so you always do your best to avoid disappointing him. Not in an unhealthy way, but he has done a great deal for you and you love him just as strongly as you love Eddie (though the nature of that love did differ between the Munsons), and so you only ever want to give him your best.
This situation is unfair only if you continue to conceal the truth from Eddie. If you don't tell him how you were feeling after this conversation, Wayne will know about it, and he will be disappointed that you had let this moment, this raw vulnerability, slip through your fingers. You want Eddie to feel loved, you want Eddie to be loved, and you want Wayne to be proud of you. Wayne knows this, he knows it, and he has used in the best of ways everything he knew about you to help you to help yourself and therefore, to give his boy everything he deserves and wants but had yet to truly be his. That part of it is in your hands but you have hesitated and so, just like always, Wayne steps up for someone he loves.
Someone really needs to give that man a raise.
Your tears have slowed but they are still there, dripping silently and steadily as you make your way down the trailer and around the corner into Eddie's bedroom. Your hands are visibly shaking and you hold them in front of you, your thumbs rubbing along the inside of your palms as you rejoin Eddie.
He looks up from where he's been lounging on the bed ever since you got here as you enter his room, but the welcoming smile on his face dies as quickly as it's born as he takes in what he assumes immediately to be pain. You have very obviously been crying and Eddie feels a slight pang of hurt that you had left his side when you were hurting. Do you not trust him to comfort you when you aren't okay? Maybe you don't want to see him like that, or you don't want him to see you? What about if -
But before his insecurities really begin to race through his tried and tired mind, an absolute galaxy threatens to split your face in half as you smile at Eddie. It's at total odds to the way tears occasionally slip down your cheeks, dripping sore but in a good way - you never want to stop loving Eddie just like this. The thought of loving Eddie any less than you already do absolutely terrifies you - and the emotional rollercoaster you must be on has Eddie concerned. It warms him, too, for so open are you that you're able to feel and express multiple emotions at once. Not like most others in Hawkins, who are so out of touch with themselves that they drift through their days apathetic to all those small moments, which lead into bigger moments and larger emotions.
Not like most others, who hide themselves away and therefore deny themselves the chance of a real and beautiful connection between themselves and the town they inhabit, the people they live with and around. One cannot silence one part of themselves without silencing all the others. Life must be lived fully and whole-heartedly embraced, Eddie has always believed, and despite all that you have been through, the ugly, the beautiful and everything in between, you do your best to adopt a similar attitude towards life and love.
Of all his little sheep, Eddie loves you the hardest.
He sits up, hands easily reaching out for you. It's so instinctive, so immediate, that it's almost as if his body knows what he wants before his mind does. You're not just smiling, he registers at the same time as he clocks your tears, you're smiling.
Eddie knows what a fake smile looks like. He knows what it looks like when someone is smiling to hide pain, when they're smiling to be polite or when they're smiling because they don't know how else to react. He knows what 'laugh or cry' looks like as an expression because he's seen it looking back at him across his reflection too many times for it to not break his own heart when the gift of hindsight inevitably smacks him in the face. Eddie knows pain and he knows joy and he knows love, limited though its expression has been due to how little of it he's received in his lifetime. Wayne managed to squeeze a lifetime of love into every day; his boy would never go without love again if the elder Munson had anything to say about it.
And he did.
Your smile, the one on your face right now, is nothing like Eddie has seen before. He can see love and sadness co-existing on your face, and it throws him for a loop. You're exuberant, practically glowing as you smile at him, but those tears, oh... Those are sad tears, tender tears, and Eddie can't quite figure you out. Usually, he can clock you with just a sweep of his eyes up and down your body, but this?
You're not masking, you're not hiding anything. Eddie knows when people are being genuine and he knows when you are being truthful, so right now, your face is making it look like you're feeling two opposing emotions at the same time, like a... "What's with the living mask, babe?" His voice is soft, an upward lilt at odds with the way his lips tug downwards at the corners. You practically trip over yourself to get to him, interlocking his fingers with your own as you climb on top of him, getting comfortable in his lap. It's always been your favourite seat, your denim throne, and you know it always will be.
"I need to tell you something, Eddie, and I - it's nothing bad," you rush to reassure Eddie when his dark eyes harden and his body stiffens under yours, you squeeze your grip in his and smile encouragingly when Eddie relaxes under you again, "I just... I'm nervous about telling you because I don't know how you'll take it, and Uncle Wayne said I should - "
Eddie cuts you off instantly, indignant that his dad knew about this before he did. "Wait, what's Uncle Wayne got to d - "
You shake your head, squeezing your grip around Eddie's hands again, "No, Eddie, please, I have something to tell you and Wayne was the only one I could talk to about wanting to tell you, and he says I should, so can you - will you - " you sigh, frustrated, looking everywhere but at Eddie. How are you supposed to talk to him about this when you barely have the words to explain it yourself?
Wayne's words come back to you,"You gotta be brave now. For him. Tell him, Y/N. If not for you, then for Eddie" and you find yourself taking a deep, deep breath, clambering up off Eddie and instead lying down beside him. He's quiet, contemplative, his dark eyes fixed on you. Still trying to figure you out even as he wraps his arms around you and pulls you into his chest, hands splayed across your back, fingers spidered to touch as much of you as he can all at once. The change in position seems to jostle something in your brain and words begin to come to you, drifting gently across the hurricane of your mind.
You're a contradiction in some ways and blessedly predictable in others. But no matter what, you're a person with whom Eddie is well versed, and he will always grace you with the time and space you need to express yourself. You do the same for him, each and every day, and for every gesture of understanding you show him, Eddie does his best to return it tenfold. Even if he's indignant and slightly offended that his Uncle got to hear you out first, got to see your emotional state at its newest and therefore rawest, he's also very happy and relieved that the two of you, two of his three most special people (Dustin being the third, the little shrimp that he is), get on well enough to be able to swap confidences. All he's ever wanted is a family, just like this. Mismatched puzzle pieces which work gloriously together.
"I'm listening, Y/N."
You know that Eddie means it. His voice has a serious edge to it, his arms are tight around you, and though he's nervous, mind racing to try to suss you out, you know that the floor is yours and it will be until you're finished. Eddie is patient, painfully so, and he'll wait for you with the same grace he gives Dustin, who always takes a paragraph to say one sentence which Eddie will have figured out long before Dustin finishes. That's who Eddie is, and he's beautiful.
You shift so that you're lying facing Eddie. He moves so that one of his arms is under your head and the other is around your waist, fingers toying with the hem of your shirt. You move so that your forehead is pressed against his. Eddie makes a soft, sweet noise, it's almost an "awh" but it's closer to an "oh", and nuzzles his face against yours, making you smile so tenderly it makes you want to cry again.
"Call me Curiosity because you're killin' me here, sweetheart."
"Then call me Satisfaction so I can bring you back."
Eddie groans at the joke and you giggle, tucking your face into the crook of his neck and just breathing him in as you steel your nerves. Be brave for five minutes, Y/N, for Eddie, just like always. There was a time for joking around and there was a time for knuckling down and being serious. It is something you and Eddie know all too well. So as the laughter fades and you're both high on the sight of the other's smile, you tell Eddie what you told Uncle Wayne.
"I'm... I'm upset at this thing but not... Not necessarily in a bad way, you know?"
Eddie freezes, his body tensing up as he looks at you with a look of concentration. He looks like he's getting ready to be offended but he's still giving you the benefit of the doubt. Uncle Wayne had heard you out and Eddie will do the same. He feels like something important is coming. Something which will both lead you onto a new path. He is cautious and cynical, but he wants so badly to believe.
You're about to take the plunge, and so is Eddie. Different routes to the same place. Together.
"Okay, so," you rush to get everything out as best and as fast as you can, the way Eddie's hackles came up preemptively making you feel like you need to say it now because it's already gone on for long enough. And, really, you want to tell him, you want to explain yourself, you want Eddie to know how loved he is, so you use that panic as well as what you're feeling for the man who has your five senses captivated, surrounded, to catapult the two of you forward into that place you long to take him, for nowhere can you go where he won't follow: the truth. "I..." You draw out the monosyllable as you search for words to explain something you can barely explain to yourself. "I'm not really upset in a bad way, as I said. Like, nothing is wrong. I just... I just..." You shake your head, frustrated as all hell by the fact that you had been able to discuss this with Uncle Wayne, but with Eddie's chocolate button eyes staring at you with his strong dark brows pinched together in concentration, his hands flexing around the duvet underneath him - the urge to run away is so very strong but for you, for you, he will stay and see it through - words are failing you.
The tension is killing both of you, but neither more so than Eddie, who is not a mind reader.
If you don't tell him, he's not going to know.
That thought, of Eddie never truly knowing how much you love him, combined with the cosmic ache Uncle Wayne's words have left in your chest, sends a cold shiver of something down your spine and all of a sudden, everything spills out of you. And you let it, feeling the burden of your heart lifting as you share it with the person you want to grow old with.
"You're just really kind and sweet and good even with all the shit you've gone through and I admire you so much for how strong you are. You know when to pick your battles, you know when to run, you know when to stand your ground, you still try so hard with what you have, you do your best, you give everything you have, but through it all, you're so you and it's amazing, Eddie. You're amazing and I'm not upset, I'm just... I just love you so much and it hurts and I told Wayne before I told you because I didn't know if you would be upset in a bad way when I cried over you and he told me you wouldn't be and - "
Large hot hands seize your face, thumbs spreading to touch the space behind your ears, and two chocolate button eyes look square into yours, the galaxies within roaming until they find what they're looking for; softening into molten pools when they do. You are slightly uncomfortable with eye contact, Eddie knows, and so as soon as he sees you looking back at him, he looks at the bridge of your nose instead. But something compells you to chase his eyes and you're gifted with seeing a smile start small at a corner of his mouth and then spreading like wildfire, until the apples of his cheeks crease and his eyes almost disappear into them as Eddie smiles just as widely, just as genuinely, as you have been this entire time.
"I love you, Eddie Munson. So much and for so many things, but mostly because you're you. That's why I'm so upset - because I love you but it's too much for my body to take and I want you to see how loved and wanted and cherished you are.
Eddie practically chokes on his words, whatever they are, and the next thing you know, he's all over you, hands and lips and hair everywhere as he punctuates his rain of "I love you I love you I love you" with kisses; one confession and one kiss at a time does Eddie return the sentiment wholeheartedly to you. You're overwhelmed, desperately so, with Eddie, and you cling to him as tightly as he clings to you, both of you squeezing, squeezing, and feeling like there is nowhere else you would rather be, no one else whom you would rather be with.
"Please don't leave me, Y/N, please. Please stay." Hushed words against your skin, fingers digging, lips trailing across your collarbone, Eddie everywhere all at once. You nod, not knowing how to say it any more than you already have but still feeling like you want to cry from love, with love and because of love.
Love.
Something which has been missing for the duration of your positive upset today slams into you and you stop to take a second. You haven't commented on any of Eddie's passions, on anything he loves the most, and won't this be a sure fire way to hammer home that you love Eddie for Eddie? To say I see you, I know you and what you love, and I want to share in those things with you, is truly a gift of a sentence. Decision made and words drifting easily across your mind as if they have always been there, a somewhat devious smile grows on your lips, your eyes soft as you gaze at the man you love most of all. "'I would rather share one lifetime with you than face all the ages of this world alone.'"
Eddie stiffens, pulls back just enough to look at you, and then he smiles again, he smiles just as you did, that living mask, before he nuzzles down into your body, hugging you to him like you're a pillow. He settles in for the evening, his dark curls tickling the side of your jaw, his body so tightly pressed against yours that you can feel every plane of him. With your truth, with your tears and your bravery have you brought Eddie to the point where there are no words now, there's only emotions. And that's okay, you realise as you stroke Eddie's hair, his back, as you mumble love to him and hear him say it back instantly as his hands grip your hips in comfort and grounding - for which of you, you know not, but it doesn't matter. Some things can't be explained, they can only be felt, and that's just what the both of you intend to do.
Feel and love.
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roguetelepaths · 10 months
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okay, since a lot of people seem to not have picked up on this:
"to become a thing is to know a thing" is not a description of the biological process that occurs when a Changeling assumes a new form, it's a description of a specific cultural practice and attitude within the Link
let's say that there are two main kinds of shifting that Changelings undertake. the first is necessity (which encompasses fitting in/communicating with solids, infiltration and espionage, hiding from pursuers, etc— any task you'd need to use shifting for) and the second is enrichment (shifting as an art form, to gain understanding, or just because it's fun).
it can be assumed that "to become a thing is to know a thing" refers to a specific practice of shifting for enrichment, specifically, to making close studies of specific forms— everything from the chemical structure of a specific thing to the senses that an organism might see the world through— and attempting to emulate those things as closely as possible. there is instinct involved in this process but it needs to be taught and honed in order to really do any good.
now let's think about how Odo was raised. he learned to shift through a process of enforced conformity to solid standards, expectation to entertain others, and a metric fuckton of negative reinforcement. becoming a somewhat competent shifter was a necessity for him. he did not learn how to shift as a means of gaining understanding, he learned how to shift as a means of not getting the bejeebies shocked out of him.
if you look at his dialogue with Kira in The Search, Pt 2 you see that he actually had a lot of trouble with shifting to understand when he first attempted it:
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[id: screencap of a conversation between Odo and Kira in the episode The Search. conversation reads as follows:
KIRA: Are you all right?
ODO: I have spent the last two hours shape-shifting. Rocks, flowers, trees. I have been everything in that garden.
KIRA: And?
ODO: And nothing. Oh, I can become a rock, all right, but I have no more of an idea what it is to be a rock than I did before.
KIRA: I'm not really sure what that means.
ODO: I'm not sure either, and that's unfortunate. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to return to my bucket.
/id]
so, like, all that time wearing the shape of a loosely-Bajoran humanoid man? of course it didn't get him any closer to understanding what it is to actually be that. because that wasn't why he was doing it. he was doing it because he had to and because that's all he knew. maintaining the level of verisimilitude needed to accomplish true understanding all the time would be exhausting and no one would ever do that unless they didn't have a choice in the matter.
(also, re: the "Changelings don't ACTUALLY care about understanding other life forms" takes I keep seeing around— I'm sure most Changelings of the Link would prefer to do a lot more enrichment shifting and a lot less necessity shifting, but you know, people keep killing Changelings, so practical skill is more important in many cases.)
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scifimagpie · 8 months
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Writeblr Q&A
So, both @palebdot and @dyrewrites were kind enough to tag me, and I finally had a minute to answer this!
1) What motivates you to write?
It's more of a compulsion, really. Things get stuck in my head; characters stroll in and start saying stuff, or going through scenes, and then I get that electric buzz that makes me absolutely have to scramble for either my notebook or my laptop.
2) A line/short snippet of your writing that you are most proud/happy of. If not maybe share a line of someone else's work you love (just please credit them)
From a recently completed work, the Prairie Weather trilogy, which I want to shop around and see if I can get published traditionally:
Before him gaped the yawning gulf of his own fuckup. It was dizzying. He’d heard of staring into the abyss, and the abyss staring back, but he hadn’t expected it to be quite so mortifying.
I tend to be at least a bit more poetic usually, but this line just kicks so hard.
3) Which OC makes you smile every time you think/talk about them and what are they like?
Right now, probably Isabella from the Hell Saga - she's just so good-natured, down for anything, and fundamentally kind and hopeful. She really goes through the ringer in book 2, which I'm working on now with my coauthor, though. This is another series we're hoping to go trad on, so cross your fingers for this irrepressible, bisexual Latina and Hispanic counsellor with a strong socialist streak!
4) What process of writing do you enjoy the most?
The first draft can be really fun, but there's something to be said for that second-draft, "all the pieces are in place, now I just have to tweak them" experience. Finishing a book is also a hell of a rush. But that real, fixated feeling of being in the thick of it, often while listening to a playlist I've made specially for the project - that's definitely the good stuff, too.
5) What part of writing do you think you are the best at? (Yes stroke your own ego it's okay)
Characters, dialogue, worldbuilding, and description - in no particular order. I'm really good at making up little people, making them friends and lovers, and then putting 'em through the wringer.
6) What is something in the writeblr community is most enjoyable?
The community and enthusiasm are really winning me over, and I've been pleasantly surprised by the relative skill of my friends, too!
7) A writing tool/device you use that helps you with writing? (It could be speech to text, a writing program etc)
My Youtube playlists are absolutely required tools for my writing, a lot of the time. Sometimes I can write without them, but boy do they help. Some of them are also related to my D&D campaigns, but I'd like to think all of them are pretty well-curated.
8) A piece of worldbuilding that you like in your own story? (It could be the magic system, a particular place in the story, a law etc)
The Underlighters series' underground city setting is probably one of the coolest things I've ever come up with. I was somewhat inspired by The City of Ember, but that book frustrated me so much that I vowed to write a much better version. Hopefully, I did. I tried to make it reasonably cohesive and somewhat scientifically justifiable.
However, I always tell a story about Underlighters - when I was trying to figure out the pollination situation for crops, I was doing research at about 2 in the morning one day on various pollinators and getting nowhere. Can bees live underground??? Some bees and wasps nest in the dirt, but that's not necessarily helpful. What about solitary bees and pollinators?
Startling my then-boyfriend (now husband) from his game, I threw my arms in the air and yelled, "Fuck it - cave bees!"
And so I decided that underground apiculture was an acceptable solution.
9) What piece of advice would you say to encourage others to write if they are having a rough patch?
Try some different strategies and don't be afraid to rotate between projects. Try writing in point form, using different software, doing voice dictation - it can take a long time to figure out the exact right hacks to make your story flow.
10) Tag some people whose works you love/have been your biggest supporters:
Well, that's easy!
@pinkchaosart @nattheauthor and the chaps above have been wonderful; also tagging (in no particular order): @ventela1 @omokers @nethilia @whalleyrulz @chicorybones @zillanovikov @sabotabby @nic0thecreat0r @chiefwritesbook @eldritch-selachii @holdmyteaplease @koala2all
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antspaul · 11 days
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writers ask game: 🍄 🦴 🍅 🪲
🍄 ⇢ share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings
hmm lemme think… okay so it didn’t make it into the ange/madders fic i wrote but ben and i talked about this once. i think that poch/kane did happen in that universe, and ange and madders have sort of heard whispers about it in the dressing room. not that they know any of the details, but they can kind of read between the lines — like they’ve heard about how poch took a special interest in H, how it affected h when poch left the club, how h would feel about ange had he stayed at the club… i think poch & kane kind of haunt tottenham and their absence would be felt even by people who had never known them there
🦴 ⇢ is there a piece of media that inspires your writing? 
ooooo there’s a lot! obviously i’m out here writing fic LOL which is inherently derivative, but i’ll list a few pieces of media with writing that i aspire to:
Succession has such beautiful character writing and has made me think a lot about where i start and end a story, the difference between a which conflict guides the narrative and which conflict guides the characters in-universe (idk if that makes sense, happy to elaborate elsewhere), and the realism that humor adds to a story
I’ve read a couple of Ann Patchett’s books recently and i LOVE the way she constructs such intricate fascinating character relationships. In her books you rarely spend much time with any one character or place, and yet the worlds she creates are SO complex and compelling
A while back I read Tom Stoppard’s play Arcadia which I’d seen a somewhat mediocre performance of yet loved anyways. Besides being a little strange but incredibly interesting, what struck me about Arcadia was how fun and engaging it was to read on paper! The dialogue conveyed subtext and emotion so well that it didn’t need dialogue tags or description or any of the other conventions of standard written prose. I sometimes catch myself getting really bogged down in making character body language not sound repetitive or something, when at times i think body language can be a bit distracting or jarring in text. Sometimes I’ll ask myself what i’d do if i had to convey everything i’m trying to convey without dialogue tags or body language or whatever and it helps!
🍅 ⇢ give yourself some constructive criticism on your own writing
truly i think my biggest weakness is how i write description - not so much character reflection but just literal description of a character’s physical surroundings. i feel like it often comes off somewhat flat and forced, idk. i’m definitely trying to pay more attention to this!! i don’t have an incredibly visual imagination so it definitely doesn’t come naturally to me, lol. i think part of the fix is to think critically about what a character would notice & also practice varying sentence structure and rhythm a bit? idk.
🪲 ⇢ add 50 words to your current wip and share the paragraph here
here's what i wrote! this character (ben chilwell) is in the depthsssss of a sexuality crisis atm hahahaha
Ben nearly ordered an actual drink but in the end he settled for a Coke, which he sipped idly at the bar counter, the aircon bringing a chill to his sun-warmed and sand-chapped body. The singles club were in the next room, laughing as loudly as ever. Their voices overlapped and echoed through the bar, and when Ben tried, he couldn’t make out what any of them were talking about.  It didn’t sound gay, Ben thought, though maybe he didn’t know what gay people sounded like in America. Maybe he didn’t know what they sounded like in England, either. He drank the Coke and closed his eyes.
Thank you for the ask Vida!!
Writers Truth & Dare Ask Game
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jazwritesalot · 3 months
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20 Questions for Fic Writers
Tagged by @wingsonghalo (I'm using my fandom account for this ILY)
1. How many works do you have on Ao3? 69!
2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 372,792, which is about what I thought
3. What fandoms do you write for? Currently it's BNHA, FMA, and Mob Psycho 100. But I have also written for Soul Eater in the past and may look into revisiting that series.
4. What are your top five fics by kudos? Auras Tell All, Shaken, Not Stirred, Mocha Choco Latte, Of Ink-Dipped Petals and Tattooed Hearts, and Salted Caramel Doubleshot
5. Do you respond to comments? I try my best to! Sometimes I get behind on it though.
6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Ignoring all of my Soul Eater fics, since they're old and I somewhat want to rewrite them, I think the angstiest ending would be To the Moon, my only Hanako-Kun fic.
7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Right now, I think the happiest ending is my Camie/Jirou fic, mother tongue, which was written for the @novapulsezine. But, most of my fics have a happy ending.
8. Do you get hate on fics? Not really. I think I'm pretty lucky.
9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? You know it ;) And I write a wide spectrum of it, but mostly it's KiriBaku or ShinKami smut when I do write.
10. Do you write crossovers? I've dabbled with it, but never have posted anything.
11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? I don't think so, but I can't quite remember, LOL.
12. Have you ever had a fic translated? None yet, but that would be fun!
13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? I suppose you could say I have. Back in the SE days, I would RP, and we would turn the RPs into fics.
14. What’s your all time favorite ship? I think if we go back to my roots, my favorite would be Yoh Asakura and Anna Kyoyama.
15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Teenage Dirtbag, my FMA HS AU fic. I've had plans for it for years, but never can seem to get the words on paper TT_TT
16. What are your writing strengths? Description of settings and internal dialogue
17. What are your writing weaknesses? Probably action scenes-I feel like they tend to fall flat. But, there's always something I could improve upon in my writing.
18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I think that it would be okay as long as it's thoroughly checked to make sure what you're saying is accurate. I tend to shy away from it, just because I don't want to offend anyone.
19. First fandom you wrote for? On AO3, it was Soul Eater. In general, it was probably Twilight or Ouran High School Host Club with my friends during classes in middle/high school.
20. Favorite fic you’ve written? It's a tie between Mocha Choco Latte and Shaken, Not Stirred. I love both of these babies and they are my heart and soul.
I tag @hyuge, @lifeform286, @kitkatrix, @kittywritesfic, and whoever else sees this and would like to participate!
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steveharrington · 2 years
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do you have advice for getting better at writing everything that isnt dialogue? i feel like im pretty good at dialogue and getting into the minds of characters, but when im writing all my sentences sound the same and it reads very choppily
hi <3 i also struggle with this a Lot in my writing hehe like dialogue just comes more naturally to me? just as like a writing rule to make things sound smoother and more fluid, it’s good to alternate between the lengths/structures of your sentences so it doesn’t just read like a series of short, choppy statements OR a jumble of long run-on’s. one thing that i also realized as i practiced writing was that it’s completely okay to sometimes use “simple” word choice. like i used to want everything to sound very polished and prose-y so i would bend over backwards trying to think of creative ways to describe someone like…walking across the room and sitting down. and it usually just sounded awkward when i overdid it! so i’ve learned to embrace using more common everyday descriptions and words when i need to and let my distinct style of writing shine through in other places where i felt more confident about them. one other thing i feel pretty strongly about is that if you’re writing from a certain characters pov, the description should sound like them. for example when im writing steve, the descriptions and introspection are all coming from him, so i try to get into his silly little brain and think of how he would describe the actions of others, the conflict going on, etc. different characterizations call for different descriptions. sometimes choppy can be good, if it’s intentional—i think some of the best characterizations i’ve read of el utilize an intentional choppiness to convey the gaps in her understanding of the world during the first two seasons. i hope this is all coherent and somewhat helpful!!! <3 <3
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momo-de-avis · 2 years
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Hi Momo! First off I'm so excited for you moving out! Your current neighborhood seems hellish cjdks i truly hope you'll have some rest for your ears wherever you go.
Secondly! I'm starting to write (for a hobby) but I've found that although dialogue flows very easily for me, descriptions not so much. Do you have any tips or resources?
Thank you 💕
THANK YOU, I CANNOT wait to get out of this house!!!!!!
Now, I know this sounds extremely cliché and, to an extent, disheartening, but I swear it's what's most effective to me.
The cure to writing better is reading more (and that includes reading shit books, I mean the absolute dregs of self-published literature, bottom shelf 0,99$ kindle stuff, you gotta learn how to NOT do things, and when you read absolutely terrible shit, it actually makes you think not only why it's bad, but how would you have done it to make it better, so I cannot advise enough for people to read bad books).
Being blunt, at the end of the day, our brains, literary-wise, are a compilation of words we picked up here and there and bundled together because they looked nice. Some tiny expressions we might have picked up on other books, some we found by combining words, some we saw somewhere or heard somewhere we don't remember but it stuck. It's why it's important to keep reading, to build up your vocabulary, not in the sense of "learning more words" but in the sense of "understanding the possible uses and value of words". I also advise everyone to install a dictionary app on their phones so they can check stuff out while they read (I have THREE in mine for THREE languages, including my own, because bilignorancy is real problem in our world).
In my humble opinion, to find that description, just the right one, you need to first find your voice, understand just how relevant description is to you and to the story you're writing. There really are (to me) no rules, and nothing set in stone, every story has its own tone, language and voice. This goes for the infamous "show don't tell" as well. I don't believe "show don't tell" is a rule so much as it is a balance between showing what must be seen and telling the things that must not distract from the showing (if that makes sense). There is such a thing as showing too much (from personal experience, my biggest mistake in the past was over-showing (??) emotions. It got to a point where, after three paragraphs, you got the feel of 'okay, yeah, I get it, they're pissed' and I had to cut back), just as there is such a thing as not telling enough. For example, the balance between these is what usually makes for great foreshadowing -- you show what must be seen, discreetly enough that it comes off as almost a passing note, but you tell zilch. The telling might come (if you wish so, it's really a matter of style) at a point of revelation.
Also, pick up books closer to your genre. This isn't just about understanding some kind of inherent style of the genre, but of understanding the audience it is aimed at. When you're starting out, it's perfectly normal to not know who your audience might be (hell, in the beginning, the audience is you, so that's a place to start -- please yourself as a reader before you please others, you really gotta be your number one fan in this). It is important to understand the genre itself, but I think that's somewhat relative, I really don't like saying there's like, one or two ways to do things, because from my experience of studying art and literature, for every rule, there's a guy who broke it masterfully. I mean, I could tell you that you should read books set in the 19th century if you're writing a story set in the 19th century, but then again you might be doing it in a way that the typical 19th century language just does not fit. I do believe you should always read the genre you want to write, disregarding your stylistic choices, but it's entirely up to you.
Although, and I'm walking around in circles a bit here so apologies, there are stylistic conventions within genres. I think erotica is the best example of this (and why I can't write erotica if it meant saving my life). Erotica is the kind of genre where certain words/expressions are not just accepted, but encouraged, but those same words/expressions would look extremely tacky in another genre (and they do look tacky, just take a look at the Bad Sex Awards).
So, when I was younger, I used to do little exercises to practice description. This was a long time ago, but if I remember correctly, one I used to do was pick up the most boring sentence I could think of and transform it into a paragraph. I'd start off with simple shit like "The coffee was black and hot" and then move onto more complex sentences like uhh "The coffee tasted bitter and burnt his tongue". At a given point, if you do these enough, you'll find yourself developing a sort of stream of consciousness, and honestly, that's what I was aiming for at the time.
What else I'd do, I'd carry a small notebook with me, sit somewhere (a café, usually), and pay attention to the people around me. Then I'd just describe, again stream of consciousness style, some particularity that caught my attention.
Understand also that there are several types of descriptions. I, myself, am not very visual overall (except with landscapes, apparently). I sincerely dislike describing how characters are dressed or what their hair looks like unless it's relevant somehow (like, the person who is looking would make note of that, or I want to make sure this is a "I am very attractive" moment, cause those sometimes just exist). I am, however, extremely sensorial, meaning that most of my descriptions don't really focus on one or two of the five senses, but... all of them at the same time and none altogether, if that makes sense. So, if I were to describe how hot the coffee was and how bitter it tasted, I'd likely pull from old memories, make analogies, use metaphors, probably personify an object which is something I do a lot (like, for funsies, the coffee bit him in the tongue instead of burning, or he picked up a 'pensive cup of coffee', meaning he's doing the thinking, but by putting the characterstic on the coffee cup, it sort of explains how he's so distracted he forgot the coffee is hot... idk I'm pulling this out of my ass right now, I hope this is making sense!)
ON THAT NOTE: learn literary devices. They are your friends. They make reading pleasant. They are the seasoning of books. They're not just the salt and pepper, they're the extra cloves of garlic recipes don't tell you to use, and the rosemary that will give it a special aroma. I really mean it, literary devices are very important, they ennoble your style and your words, and they help you tell the story exactly as it means to be told. You probably use them anyway without even noticing (most of us do), but try to jot down in your head what each of them means and how important they are, and especially how they're used, if you're having any doubts. Widen your horizons.
If you are more descriptive visually, read books (or shorts, or fics) that match that style (I find that, for example, Neil Gaiman is one, G.R.R. Martin is way too fucking descriptive, it's actually one of the reasons I quit his books, Sanderson to me is really balanced out, but he, like Sapowsky, apparently fucking love describing fights, so expect both to go off the shits with pirouettes and leaping and jumping). Same for if you prefer another type of description, more focused on the other senses or more stream-of-consciousness-like. Just find the author that clicks with you.
Do you remember that movie, I think it was called Hitch, where Will Smith taught Paul Blart how to love a woman, and the goal was to conquer, I think it was Eva Mendes? There was a scene where Will Smith takes Paul Blart (I really don't know the actor's name) out on a date to teach him how to behave, and then when he takes him home, he tells him that, when kissing after a date, as the man leans forward, he does 90% of the path, whereas the woman, when she moves forward, she does 10%.
That's exactly the type of balance you will want with descriptions, though of course the numbers may vary. But you, the writer, are the man here: you do 90% of the path. You set the scene, you give out the ambience, you describe the mood, the appearance, etc. The woman here is the reader, and the final 10% you leave it for them. You withhold that last bit so they have some room for imagination. In my honest opinion, it is extremely important to leave this 10% there, to give this wiggle room for imagination, because otherwise, the reader might feel like they're sort of trapped. If you give too much description, at a certain point, it becomes confusing.
Remember, no matter how good with words you are, no matter how much of a fantastic, awarded writer you are, when you write "The room was dimly lit by the late afternoon sun, the blinds were pulled halfway down, and the walls were yellow" NO TWO PEOPLE will imagine the exact same room. So you want to leave it at that: the general outline that provides the details necessary to set the mood and are relevant to the story/characters, but not so overly descriptive it would become impossible to imagine. It literally feels, in that situation, like the author is trying their best to control my imagination, and it's an unpleasant feeling.
Same could be said for people, but it is generally agreed that with people you have more leeway to be more descriptive than you would be clothes or spaces etc. Generally speaking, people have characteristics that require more attention, for example: 1) if they have a familiar relationship to another character, you bring that up; 2) tics and mannerisms that make them stand out; 3) the already expected: eye colour, skin colour, hair colour, but then you add hints of change to these, for example, how they flush if they're shy, how their hair is a mess if they tousled it out of nervousness, etc; 4) be aware that characters' relationships with each other will influence how they see them: for a guy who's in love with a girl, her general traits won't be enough, and her brown hairs will appear different, will stand out, or her eyes will have a spark, or there will be a tic or something they will notice, whereas if it's a child - son, daughter, niece, etc - they will see them in an endearing, comforting (not sure that's the word but hey) way.
Also, be careful with spaces and clothes. Spaces and clothes are THE TWO things people tend to be overly descriptive, and -- again, OPINION, everyone eats what they feel taste better -- it's the biggest turn off for me. Special situations (as I said above) call for special attention, of course, but remember again: the character's relation with the space will dictate how they see it. What I mean is, if it's the house they grew up in, it's off-putting to go off on a huge description full of awe (something YA authors do A LOT in fucking fantasy stories). But if it's like, a palace they are entering for the first time, and the character has never seen anything bigger than their living room, then yea, go off on the details that would stand out.
Clothes is the biggest YA crime (followed by body). Like, yeah, I get it, your special poor girl who's about to become a lady is fascinated by the clothes she's given, but a couple of descriptions are enough, if you go on for pages. and pages. and pages. of like. just telling me about the impressive velvets and massive muslin our beauty wears, I'm gonna tap out. In my opinion, it distracts from what seems obvious the author can't tackle -- the psychology of the situation. (Remember when the woman who wrote Throne of Glass told us about a girl who spent 2 years under gruelling work in the salt mines, and apparently the first thing she considers when she looks herself in the mirror is "wow, I have huge tits" come on, man. THIS is the kind of shit erotica knows how to do.)
I don't think I have anything else to add, so yeah. It's about balance and objective, whatever fits the story you're trying to tell, as well as the genre.
On that note, let me suggest you a book that's actually pretty small and, in my opinion, is the perfect example of how descriptions are balanced between different perspectives (even though it's all told through one man's eyes) and influenced by the ambience/psychology of the character: Susanna Clarke's Piranesi. Beautiful, heart-breaking book.
I hope my ramblings helped you, anon!!!
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charsal24 · 7 months
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Fan Autoethnography
In summary: This autoethnography summarizes the various ways I interact with fandom and how each one has shaped me differently. My relationship to every media is fundamentally different, as this will share. I've learned that while in style and talk I haven't been effected by fandom, creatively and the themes that carry with me, has.
Note: My peer review partners did not suggest changes, so I've kept it as is with the summary above added.
My experience as a fan ebbs and flows between deeply engrossed in the tv show/book/series, etc. to casually enjoying. With the former, I’m on Tumblr reblogging GIFs and fanworks like a madman, occasionally rambling in the tags about x character’s arc and y’s characterization and — fuck, tumblr user Kinegg, you must be a prophet from the Gods. Modified the actual user’s name there, but their take on Collector from The Owl House? Absolutely immaculate. Even in my fandom spaces, I can’t escape my writing-major-ness, and I really search for those users who share my love of analysis of characters/themes/subtext. It’s crazy the amount of essays that will be poured out over what could be a single line, a single painting, a piece of clothing.
In the Owl House (spoilers —albeit somewhat vague — ahead!), users poured essays over the tapestries in the Archive house and what they meant for the Collector’s backstory. I had found myself following along with their detailed descriptions and theories in such a way that I rewatched the scenes they mentioned and found myself nodding along to their takes: of course Collector is an orphan of war! Of course his siblings didn’t like him mixing with the titans! Of course this parallels the segregated magic system!
Surprisingly, despite the glory and beauty of anonymity, and my deep love of character analysis, I’ve never actually thrown my hat — or, well, a post — into the void, into my fandom community. Instead, I stay to the tags or rambles in friends’ DMs.
Here’s a particular long example about the game Dredge, another fandom favorite of mine taken from a friend’s DMs.
Massive spoilers ahead for the game!
Just the fact that like… it’s been Y o u and it’s always been Y o u just augghhhhhhhh when hands of love become hands of destruction and you burn away every piece of yourself resisting the natural course of grief because goddamn !!!!! You *will* bring them back !!!! But if you do, they can’t recognize you anymore, and if you can’t, then you destroy every part of yourself trying and just aughhhhhhhhh aughhhhhhhh just the way grief warps every part of you until all you can think of is *them* I just augghhgghhhhhhhh and then you can’t move on because to move on would be to leave them would mean it was all for nothing and you’ve come so far to stop and it’s just another step and then they’ll back and just another step until they’ll be back and just another step until you have buried yourself neck-deep in the ocean and still you will go one more step because you’re !!! So !!! Close !!! But !!! You !!! Can never!!! Be close !!! And just aughhhhhhhhh
Okay so there’s like three main colors, right? This sorta dark purple red — raspberry-esque — this sorta slightly darker sea foam green and I think there’s either like a yellow or another green, can’t remember. I think it’s another green. There’s also the colors of different fishing areas: coastal, shallow, dredge, abyssal, hadal, but not important I’m taking about the dialogue and some item colors
So — and as you can guess — the colors coincide with their usual associations: red is bad, green is good, etc. now what’s interesting is that parts of the horror elements come with that color association that “oh red is evil/corrupt” and so there’s a really neat sorta psychological element of like when a text reads “be careful” and it’s in red and those color associations tell you that “oh no something bad” and the like. But what’s really really fucking cool and sorta subtle is that during the game this “Collector” guy — so cool lore around this guy but won’t spoil anything if you wanna play/watch — asks you fish up some relics for him and in exchange he compensates you very nicely with some nice power ups that are very much Monkey’s Paw-esque.
So, you fish up some of the relics: necklace, ring, music box, key, watch, and other stuff and when you put them in your inventory, the items are *red* whereas usual items like wood or metal or non-relic rings are just like grey or whatever. Now what’s also red you may ask? Four things, but let’s talk about the first two first. One: mutant fish. Sometimes when you’re fishing you’ll pull out an oddity like a bass with three heads or its spine out—something mangled and warped beyond recognition. And that, too, is *red* in your inventory whereas regular fish are like grey
Two: panic. So, if you stay up too late you start to get this thing called “panic” and it presents itself as an eye appearing under the time looking around worried and not only that but everything gets red like a red fog and rocks may appear out of nowhere or scarier creatures start to chase you—it’s a lot like a gameplay mechanic of “oops you’ve stayed up too late now you’re paranoid and seeing things that aren’t there or are they” kinda thin
Three: crimson and silver book, which is the source of corruption happening in this place and causing all the auroras to turn red and shit to get warped and corrupted and stuff
Four: infection. One of which you never actively see so much as much as you just see a dialogue of a package you can deliver saying that it’s “squelching and wet” or something like that
And so back to relics and mutant fish! If you notice those colors when the mutant fish appear, you can start to notice that hey !!!! These relics you are fetching are fucking cursed !!! And not only that but like when you use the “power ups” that fetching the relics gets you, they come with a cost
So like the power-ups you get are: haste (move faster, but increase panic), manifest (teleport back to the first island, increase panic/time speeds up), atrophy (catch a whole area of fish in one go, fish rot and get infected faster), and I thiiiiiiink one has to do with like sounding a signal to scare fish away or something like that
But like all of them are strengths that come at a cost!!!!! Which feeds into the narrative of “everything has a cost/you cannot get what you want without sacrifice” and just that theme of time and madness and aughhhhhhhh power comes with sacrifice and you are losing a piece of yourself for every “power-up”
And like!!!!!!!! Everyone knows more about you than you do!!!! And like they are just watching you spiral once again and once again and once again and just aughhhh aughhhh everyone knows of the madness except for you
And then you have green!!! Green is like the stuff that’s good, that’s helpful!! And like you see certain characters who dialogue highlights some words in green !!! And you can tell “oh yes this is friend, they are good” like the lighthouse keeper who is wearing green and has green dialogue occasionally !!
And then you have the other green as like “location for you to go” and again it’s like you can use these colors to 1. Make things easier to remember 2. Have a psychological impact 3. Associations !!!!!!!! And it’s just such a subtle thing to impact how you intake and receive information and hints to the overall corruption of the items you’re fetching and the corruption of the book itself and just aughhhh aughhh aughhh aughhhh
God and just the eye imagery is so cool fucking love eye imagery !!! But god yeah just the fact that it’s you and it’s always *been you* AND THE POCKET WATCH!!!! One of the relics is a pocket watch whose hands cannot move forward because you !!! Cannot !!! Move forward !!! You cannot move on !!! And you keep finding pieces of your life you can’t remember and aughhhhhhh!!!! Aughhhhhhhh
God. Just….. unable to move forward without That Person in your life, unable to move on, the need to rewrite what was written, to grab death by the bones and shatter them until your beloved has returned, until your beloved has returned and sees not a shadow of who they knew and just…. God.
You were always bait……. You were always the hook on the fishing line going to and fro… all to see her again, all to see her again…. And everyone knows except You that she isn’t coming back and will never come back and still you will burn yourself to pieces to try
*Goddamn* just unable to go back, unable to play god, unable to bend the forces of nature to your whims. Aughhhhhhhhh
As the above long example suggests: I love the deep analyses and most importantly the emotional core of any given work. As I said, couldn’t escape my writing-major-ness even if I wanted to and that dips into my main fandom experience: fanfiction writing.
Surprisingly, it’s only Gen loss and Gravity Falls I’ve written fanfiction for. Gravity Falls was the first, of course, and I still remember the cringey Wattpad “Author Notes” — a staple of the ol’ era of a 12-year old’s writing in 2013. I haven’t revisited those old Wattpad fics and I never will, but I know for all their cringe, they’ve been stepping stones for my writing.
Gravity Falls, especially, hugely influenced what became of my writing style and interests. The show introduced a world that balanced its lightheartedness with moments that had you staring at your screen like “what the fuck just happened?” and it balanced those moments beautifully. Not only that, but the premise of “normal kids move in to weird town but everyone who lives there just kinda deals with the weird stuff so it’s normal to them” has become one of my favorite things to write. I think what I like the most about that kind of premise is that it challenges the idea of what normal even is. Especially since “normal” means something different across cultures and what I, as an American, may find completely normal (let’s say, steering wheel on the left instead of the right), completely boggles the mind of someone who’s never seen that. To them, I’m the weirdo, and to me, they are the weirdo, but neither one of us is wrong or right and that’s the beauty of it.
This lends itself into the question of “us” vs. “them” — again, thinking about the “what is normal?” — that appears in some spaces in fandom. I think an “us” vs. “them” in fandom comes from the lack of acknowledgment that no one is right and that’s okay. There’s definitely a huge “us” vs. “them” in fandom spaces when it comes to shipping. Personally, I’ve never really understood why some people feel so personally to certain ships, and I’ve never really cared, but maybe it has something to do with what Jensen talks about: compensating and parasocial relationships.
For me, I find myself less compensating and more so either exploring pieces of myself through the other (a lot of this with grief narratives as found in Dredge) or examining other people. Characters and studying them and their actions is fascinating for me and I find that understanding characters allows me to be better at understanding people in my own life. After all, what is the self if not a character we all play?
@officeofdocmalone
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smartzelda · 1 year
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Hehehe for the writer ask meme 12, 26, and 30. Ik I just asked for a wall of text but I am curious!!
Hehe I mean technically the wall of text requires a sorry to everyone else because I LOVE going off😂
12. If a genie offered you three writing wishes, what would they be? Btw if you wish for more wishes the genie turns all your current WIPs into Lorem Ipsum, I don’t make the rules
Okay okay okay
1. The ability to control writing hyperfocus. Or, in other words, if I get really into a wip in my head I want to be able to flip it on like a switch and bust out said wip and finish the draft when I have the time to write it(or get a bunch of work done on a longer wip). (Also if this addition is cheating then so be it but mayhaps this would give me the ability to keep the hyperfocus going should I take a break or eat food or something)
2. I mean everyone wants this, but the ability to get the writing out like I see it in my head, be it capturing the emotions, the overarching arcs and themes, the vibes, or getting the characterization the exact way I want it.
3. Much more personal one (in terms of how I write) but the ability to GRASP how to properly describe everything (especially surroundings utilizing the five senses) without making it too different from the narrative voice or feel like a distracting wall of text. I want to be descriptive I want to create imagery I just want it to fit
26. How do you get into your character’s head? How do you get out? Do you ever regret going in there in the first place?
I wish I could make it happen I really do. It's much easier with characters from media I'm currently obsessed with. Sometimes it just happens, and sometimes I'm just forcing something out in hopes it's somewhat in character and try not to let the perfectionism in my brain think about it so I can just write without accidentally inducing writing block. That being said, when I get in it the character tends to bleed into my mannerisms/speech a bit and my thought process. Sometimes I'll feel like the character to an extent? Clearly there can be some cons but in general it mostly just makes me ecstatic to get into it because it's like an extension of my character brainrot. So do I regret it? Not really.
30. Talk to me about the role dreams play in your writing life. Have you ever used material from your dreams in your writing? Have you ever written in a dream? Did you remember it when you woke up?
Hmm my dreams are crazy and I would love to integrate some stuff, but I haven't really gotten the chance. Once I wrote down a dream I had and attempted to write it and then it didn't go anywhere. If I have integrated dream stuff successfully it would have to be tiny stuff I can't remember (however I have projected my nightmares and the like on fictional characters). I don't think I have written in a dream (I can't remember) but I can definitely read in dreams. Because I can't properly answer the final question, I'll just say that I'm pretty sure my brain for some dreams like actually created wholeass stories and paragraphs for stuff I can read in them, because I remember them being coherent with dialogue and stuff when I wake up, just not exactly what any of it said aside from vibes, but many times when I'm aware enough to pay attention it's just crazy gibberish (Lorem Ipsum but like with real words)
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forcemelt · 3 years
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being into swtor is rly making me wish i could write lmao
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deceitfuldevil · 2 years
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Dreams
Matt Murdock X Reader
Summary: When you’re plagued with dreams of an unknown man, you can’t help but wonder if he’s more than just a figment of your imagination. You wondered if this man was having these dreams too, and you were curious if he too felt the pull deep inside like you were meant to be together. As it would turn out, you were meant to find each other.
Warnings: lots of dialogue, brief swearing, somewhat of a soulmate AU, and mentions of god.
Word Count: 1.9K
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Matt Murdock occasionally tried to remind himself to be grateful for the few years of sight he got before his accident, and because of those nine years that he still had dreams from time to time. Truthfully it was rare, with his vigilante life most of his dreams became nightmares as he feared not being able to do enough for his city. So when he had a dream that wasn’t heartbreaking, it was hard to forget.
Pastel colors glowed and meshed together like a beautiful mix of the universe, it was calming to watch. Then you appeared, looking angelic in contrast to the soft colorful background. He had seen you in more detail than he’d seen anyone in decades. It was more vivid than any dream he’d ever had, you were so real Matt felt he could reach out and touch you.
“All this for me, Matt?” You asked, your voice clear as day as you smiled at the man who was dreaming about you. Your lips curled upwards and he swore he could nearly hear your heartbeat as well. This was all so much, he convinced himself it had to be real and unintentionally woke himself up in the middle of his dream.
Matt woke up heaving, at first trying to look around until everything was merely dark flames again at best.
“I can’t see.” He said solemnly “I still can’t see.” He repeated, flopping backwards back into his bed. But he didn’t catch up on much sleep after that dream, it was all too real for him.
Even when he did have peaceful dreams where he could see again they usually faded from his memory within the first few hours of him waking up. But it’s now been three days since he saw you in his dream and he still hasn’t been able to shake you from his mind.
“Foggy, do we know any forensic artists?” Matt asked, pretending to flip through a case file so Foggy would presume that’s why he was asking.
“Not that I can think of, but I’ll ask Brett.” Foggy said, not really questioning Matt’s curiosity. Until he became persistent, that is. Matt asked every day until Foggy gave him the number of one Casey Kingsman.
“Why are you so desperate for a forensic artist anyways?” Foggy asked, as Matt put on his jacket and got ready to leave.
“It’s for a case.” Matt said, grabbing his cane.
“We just made a deal with our only case a few days ago.” He pointed out
“A personal case.” Matt said, leaving their office without another word. He then went straight down to the police precinct calling Casey and making sure he was free beforehand. Once sitting in a room with him, Mr. Kingsman had a few questions for Matt.
“And what exactly did you call me for?” Casey asked.
“I need a sketch of someone.” Matt explained.
“A suspect?” he presumed.
“Yes, sure.” Matt went along with his presumptions.
“And this is for…?” Casey continued on.
“A case my firm is working on” Matt lied naturally.
“Okay, and who’s coming in to provide the description of the suspect?” He asked
“I’m providing the description.” Mat stately simply, like it was obvious.
“With all due respect Mr…” Casey trailed off.
“Murdock, Matt Murdock.” Matt finished for him.
“Mr. Murdock, how can a blind man provide me with a visual description of a suspect?” Casey asked honesty, maybe a bit brutal even.
Matt was silent for a minute.
“My client has provided me with all the details needed, I am just relaying the message.” He lied again with ease.
“I see… let’s get started then.” Casey said, pulling out his pen and notebook.
As unethical as it might’ve been Matt described you with immense detail to the forensic artist, to the point that made Casey somewhat suspicious because he didn’t think Matt had such a good memory to relay all of these details but he digressed.
“Okay and. . . here you go.” Casey said, ripping the paper from his notebook and handing it to Matt. “You can give this to your client or perhaps a seeing member of your staff to help you identify this suspect.”
“Thank you very much Mr. Kingsman” Matt said, taking the piece of paper and heading home. Even if he couldn’t see the picture he kept the piece of paper in his hands or near his person at all times until the next day when he brought it into the office.
“So how’s that ‘personal case’ going Mr. Murdock?” Foggy joked, noticing Matt had just walked in. But Matt wasted no time and stepped into Foggy’s office and handed him the sketch he had made yesterday. “Have you ever seen this woman?” Matt asked, not bothering with a hello.
“No but I sure as hell would like to meet her, she’s gorgeous! You said this woman is a suspect for a personal case of yours?” Foggy pressed, taking the paper completely from Matt’s grasp.
“She’s gorgeous? Really?” Matt said, heart full with hope.
“Yeah, the only thing I can think she’d be guilty of is stopping a guy's heart.” Foggy pressed on. “What’d she do if we’re on the lookout for her?” He asked again, rephrasing his earlier question.
“Nothing of your concern, can you tell me more details about her?” Matt asked, and Foggy complied telling him every detail he could tell from the drawing. Confirming Matt’s realization that this was the woman from his dreams. You were the woman of his dreams. Now he just had to find you.
Matt spent less nights out being a vigilante and more out with Karen and Foggy, visiting bars and clubs and all around just trying to get out in an effort to find you. He would always ask Foggy if he saw you around, and the answer was always the same.
After about a month or so Matt started to lose hope that you were even real, maybe you were just a figment of his imagination after all. But then you came back to his dreams once more, even more vivid and real than last time.
The last time he saw you in a dream he could make out tiny details of your face and look, but this time he could also distinctly hear your heartbeat and smell your shampoo. You smelled like honey and roses, and looked so stunning he had to focus on not waking up again.
“I’m waiting for you, Matty.” You said, your voice soft and sweet like watermelon on a summer's day. “Come and find me.” You encouraged with a heartwarming smile. Your voice was so unique, just like last time he woke up again and your message was on repeat in his mind. “Come and find me.”
Matt wanted to tell Foggy but he feared him thinking that he’d absolutely lost it, so he kept this whole thing under wraps as he continued to go out in the evenings with his friends in search of you. He started to think it was hopeless since he couldn’t see but he forgot that he remembered other things about you. Like your voice, so unique and sweet it was something he couldn’t ever—
“Oh my god Leila stop it!” You said with a laugh, nudging your friend who had just shot a straw wrapper your way. Matt zeroed in on your voice, he couldn’t believe that it was you. There was no way.
“It’s a gift!” Your friend insisted.
“Yeah that and the other 4 you’ve blown at me.” You said with an eye roll.
“So what do you have to say to me? A thank you might be in order for all I’ve given you.” Leila joked on, pushing the pile of straw wrappers your way.
“All this for me? You shouldn’t have.” You said “no, really, you shouldn’t have.” Making Matt freeze up in his place, he reached out for Foggy who was nursing a beer next to him.
“Is that her?” He asked out of context.
“What?” Foggy asked, setting his drink down.
“The woman from the sketch, over there at the bar laughing with her friend. Is that her?” Foggy was able to provide the last bit of confirmation Matt needed to know it was you, he could already hear your steady heartbeat and smell your rose and vanilla shampoo.
“Holy shit, it is! Should we call someone? What did she, hey what are you doing?!” Foggy said, but Matt was already making his way over to you.
But once he got over there, he didn’t know what to say.
“Uh, hi? Can we help you?” Your friend asked, prompting you to turn around to see the man behind you. You were now the one to freeze up.
“Hi uh my name is…”
“Matt.” You finished, feeling your heart doing somersaults in your chest.
“Uh yeah, hi. What?” Your friend pressed on, tapping your shoulder encouraging you to look back at her.
“This is him, the man I’ve been dreaming about Leila.” You said, giving her a look that asked her kindly to leave you two alone. She took the hint and left, not before giving you a wink though.
“How uh, how did you find me?” You asked, turning back around and taking the sight that was Matt Murdock in for yourself.
“It wasn’t easy, especially considering I can’t see you. But I uh, I had a sketch made. I could also hear your voice, I recognized it.” Matt said, setting his cane up against the bar.
“That’s funny because I kept having these dreams of this man, but I could never see him. Only hear his voice, and smell his cologne. I kept dreaming every night like I had lost my sight.” You explained, realizing his disadvantage.
“Huh, all of my dreams, the main thing that I knew about you was your good looks. You were all I’ve dreamt about for weeks.” Matt said, a soft smile on his face.
“I think this is the most clear sign the universe has ever given me.” You said with a slight chuckle. “I’m y/n.” You said, heart full from joy and admiration.
“And I think that you’re a gift from God himself. I’m Matt, but you clearly already knew that.” He said cheekily, taking your hand in his.
“Well Matt, I think we might just be made for one another.” You said, pushing aside usual boundaries and pulling Matt in for a kiss.
“That’s fine by me sweetheart.” He said right as he pressed his lips to yours. Sealing a fate the universe worked so hard for.
A/N
Since finishing daredevil (and losing my job, but we won’t talk about that) I’ve been pouring out Matt fics like crazy. I only finished two days ago (writing this 01/27/22) but my mind is rampant with many ideas, but that’s nothing out of the ordinary. I imagine by the time I post this I will have surpassed 300 followers (currently at 293) so thank you all very much for that. Once again, thank you all for reading!
Update from 3/1/22, obviously I’m still pouring out Matt fics like mad. I’ve also surpassed 400 followers at the time of writing this, which is insane and makes me so happy. Still jobless but maybe that’s a good thing since I’ve gotten more experience in the world and been able to be more active on here.
Much Love,
—Skyler
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scarlet-fantasies · 3 years
Note
heyyy scarlet <3 i was wondering if i can get eren talking to his crush? love ur writing :)
Hi anon,
Yes of course! And thank you! Sorry it took so long, but it's here. I loved writing it so much ugh!
-Scarlet
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Eren talking to his crush
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Prompt
Requests are open
::Related Works::
ideal type
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::warnings::
fluff
::description::
hcs about how he talks to his crush and how he made her his girlfriend. It's just lots of convos.
::setting::
Modern Au
::inbox::
Open
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So this includes talking and flirting with the girl who caught his eye at college most likely.
Now 19+ year old Eren has many ways of talking to a girl he likes and it depends on how he meets like he could have meet her at a subway station when she takes same way he does, he sees her in a library checking out books, she’s in his class, she tutors him for math(I see it’s his worst subject) he can even meet her through Mikasa, at Starbucks or even a grocery store. Like no seriously, it can get that random with him.
But I know I can only pick a few concepts so stay tuned.😂😂
Okay so I will mention what it’s like with he first saw you and then when he realized he liked you, what he’d say to get your attention and how he asks you out, so most will be dialogue, but here we go.
First Meet + Getting your attention
So I see you two were class mates and so you sat next to him in the middle almost back row or back row and he’s just like this extroverted dude and you’re like who is this guy?😂😂
He doesn’t know that he likes you here cause Eren is kinda slow to catch on to his feelings but whatever the case you might think he’s sus even tho he’s somewhat friendly but honestly not. He’s probably an ass in a way.
He’d give you looks and each time you look in his direction he’d look away.
And he has a stupid shit eating grin especially if your uptight or are just quiet.
He will probably ask to share a book with you or something since he most likely forgot it.
So you have no choice but to talk to him.
Okay I’ll shut up and put some convo in.
“Okay is Y/n here today?” The teacher would ask looking up.
“Yes. I’m here.” You’d raise your hand to catch your professor's attention.
Seeing your name given out like that he’d be like oh so that’s your name in his mind.
You heard his name too but it went in one ear and out the other cause you weren’t interested.
So when the teacher said to turn to a certain page and he didn’t have the book he decided to ask you.
“Uhhh you don’t mind sharing do you?”
“Sure, I guess.”
“Thanks, Eren by the way.”
“Im—“
“Y/n, I heard. You were easy to spot with your baby face.” (Sorry if you don’t have one)
“Baby face?”
“Yeah, it’s your first year right? That’s why you look young.”
“Yeah but I don’t have-“
But you couldn’t say anything seeing the teacher started her lecture and you wanted to listen.
At the end of the class you took your book back and put away your things to leave. You were surround by students who knew eren and just awkwardly packed your stuff and left and when you headed out of class. But he’d catch up to you seeing you were walking on campus and on your phone talking to your dad for a ride and you stop at the drive way and he teased.
“Boyfriend?”
“No. My dad.”
“Yeah didn’t think so.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“That you’re a daddy’s girl.” He’d tease whilst walking towards you.
You were on a bench waiting with a few books in hand.
“I’m not, he’s just picking me up today.”
“Okay, Ms. Uptight, I won’t judge. Or do you prefer, baby face?”
“I don’t know Mr. Popular, you’re the nicknaming king not me. Now if you’ll excuse me, my ride is here.”
So yes you were annoyed the first encounter and you were like ugh some annoying guy who’s going to be my partner.
Because this was only the first time you met him you were going to have other weird days with him at school.
Like one time you came in and sat down and you had your hair probably in two French braids and since your hair isn’t covering your face in that moment he’ll talk about your baby face even if you don’t have one to him you just remind him of a kid. (Tbh he kinda has a baby face, like that’s what my friend said)
“Hi, baby face.”
“You always have a nickname, can you just call me by my name please?”
“Hmm, since you asked nicely sure. You know I’m only kidding to light up the mood you always looks so gloomy when you come in.”
“I—I just have a lot on my mind, plus you can’t always be happy and smiling, its weird. Why would I smile here if I don’t know anyone? There not my friends.”
“That was a little cold, your not as bubbly as I thought you’d be. Maybe that’s your charm and why all guys here look at you.”
“I’m pretty sure no guy likes me, that’s just silly. Besides, I don’t care if they do, I’m not interested.”
“Hm, guess they're gonna have a hard time talking to you. But it’s not hard for me.”
“I’m not easy if that’s what you’re thinking, Eren.” You’d huff turning your attention to the teacher who was about to start but little did you know Eren thought you were amusing.
"Uh, planning out our project. You know the one you haven't started." You'd point out.
"You know I'm not a lot of help to you since I suck at math but you know if you help me with the work I could understand it better."
"You know I'm not a lot of help to you since I suck at math but you know if you help me with the work I could understand it better."
"Don't they have tutors for that?" You'd ask looking up at him.
"Look, just meet me here, tomorrow, same time, same place."
"Why? What are we doing?"
"You'll see." He'd say with a smug grin on his face.
"Eren wait--"
And through studying, he got to see more of what you were like and you saw how he was less of a jerk tbh.
He also saw how smart you were and how you weren't actually as monotone or quiet as he thought.
And he did get you to laugh so that's a bonus on his side.
He also probably had his hand go over yours many times when you both tried to find the right page or grab the eraser.
Eren also held most of the books when the two of you walked out.
You were happy he pitched in the project and that you both did 50%.
I see that if you both are taking the train he will have small talk with you and stand next to you on the train.
"What are you listening to?"
"(favorite music artist) wanna listen?"
"Sure."
If there's no room to sit down you're not tall enough to reach the small handles on the train he'll find it cute and tell you that you can hold on to his wrist/arm for support.
"You can hold on to my arm if you want, so you don't lose balance since the ride is never smooth on here."
"Oh thanks but--"
"I'm just doing it to help you. It's not weird, I'm fine with it."
"Okay, sure."
Eren would love the fact that he convinced you to be safe and he honestly thinks you're too cute but he wouldn't be an ass about it.
He'd also protect you from the creeps on the train too.
Realizing his feelings for you
After so many encounters with you, he knew he felt something weird for you he just wasn’t too sure but luckily your friendship with Mikasa really clarified how he felt about you. And he was just hoping he wasn’t going crazy and that maybe you witnessed the same spark he did.
Now I see that you probably were friends with Mikasa but just didn’t know she was adopted and that her brother was Eren.
So you had no clue and you two most likely work together at boba shop (hence the photo above) or at the school tutoring people on a subject you’re good at maybe. But I see the boba thing tho the most since I have ideas😂😂
Now you needed a ride and Mikasa said you could go with her since her brother could drop you off since he’s her ride today and so you accepted since she didn’t tell you it was Eren. And she said he’d be okay with it.
The worst part was when the bell chimed and it was Eren in some casual clothes. (He looked good but you would never say that at all)
Anyways as soon as you saw him you felt nervous and worried he’d tease you, so you hid behind the wall like you were working in the back so he didn’t notice, and meanwhile Mikasa of course just brought more news to you.
“Oh Eren you’re here, awesome. I’d like you to meet my friend from work she's---Hold on Eren, let me get her.” She’d smile before finding you and grabbing your wrist to drag you where Eren was.
When you looked up at him you were shocked but didn’t have anything to say. But he of course did.
“Y/n, this is my stepbrother Eren.”
“Y/n, I didn’t know you worked here.” He’d tease.
“You two already know each other?” Mikasa asked looking surprised.
“Yeah-
“No.” You answer over him, making Eren grin.
“I met her at school cause we have a class together.” He'd answer.
So during your car ride, you’re sitting in the back and he’s just looking at you and is making you feel so out of place. Like you're in his car, looking like a mess cause of the work uniform, and you’re embarrassed he might say something.
But he will do the very thing you don’t want so his stare just lingers and you can see this through the mirror where he can see you and he’s just amused tbh. He’s never seen you look the way you do. And even though he may find it weird himself to say this, he thinks you're cute.
“You’re so quiet back there.” He’d break the silence.
“Y/n doesn’t talk too much. She’s a bit shy around boys.” Mikasa boldly admitted only to have you be mortified and have Eren laugh at you.
“Mikasa!”
“Sorry, it’s the truth Y/n.”
“Well, I guess there is a reason for your babyface.”
“I don’t have one.” You'd roll your eyes.
“You kinda do. Eren has a point.” She'd agree kinda giggling.
“Wha—“
She smiled to have a playful smile on her face this time, “Oh Eren I forgot, Y/n and I have to study so bring her to our house.”
“Wait I thought we were doing that tomorrow.”
“Oh really but you told me today through text.”
“Ohh, okay then today it is.” You’d sigh.
I know she has a different personality in aot but I think in a modern au and as a friend she’s actually like a really fun friend and defiantly teases you or tries to scheme you into relationships if she thinks it’ll work.😂😂😂
So when you got to their house you met his parents and everything and then went upstairs to work with Mikasa.
You were a shy thing for sure when this was going on cause who wouldn’t be??😂😂 it’s awkward.
Anyways you studied with her but you had to ask her why she did that and the whole damn time Eren is listening in by the door cause he’s curious to hear and he honestly is just smiling.
Here’s your convo with Mikasa btw:
“What was the point of that?” You’d mumble.
“Hmm? What do you mean? We have to study and plus you know, I thought it was about time you got to see my room! And meet my family. Although sorry you haven’t met Zeke yet, he works late.” She’d smile at you whilst sitting on her bed.
“No, I mean that’s nice of you but why did you tell Eren that about me?” You’d avert your eyes, looking at the room biting your lip.
“Hmmm, does someone have a crush on my brother?” She’d tease.
You waved your hands in front, “What? No! Oh my gosh, I could never! Why would you even think that?!” You’d shout, shocked by her assumptions.”
Hearing this Eren would kinda frown since he had some interest in you. (I picture he has his semi-beard here and long hair down at home.)
“Well do you think he’s attractive?”
“I—I—I don’t know.” You stumbled, now he got curious.
“Oh c’mon, just be honest with me Y/n. It’s just me—you don’t even have to say it to him.”
“True, but I guess he is, I’ve never really looked at him like that.”
“Hmm, I see how it is."
“Mikasa!"
This whole convo made him want to laugh because he could just imagine how much you're blushing for sure. And he thinks it's the cutest sight. You also probably end up staying the night at her house (cause we have to make things go somewhere) and she so asked Eren to give you one of his T-shirts so it would be a nightgown on you.
And boi he could not take his eyes off you at all.
Even as you were watching a movie with Mikasa in the living room he was just focused on you.
And in the middle of the night you both probably couldn't sleep so you ended up talking and he so scared you by accident.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, Y/n."
"No, it's fine."
"You're still up? I thought you'd be sleeping." He'd look at you confused.
"I couldn't sleep so I wasn't sure what to do."
"So you were just gonna sit here till you fall asleep?"
"Well, I mean it's not my house sooo . . . and I don't where anything is." You'd trail off, not knowing what else to say.
"C'mon let's take a walk, the neighborhood here is safe." He'd smile handing you a jacket.
So you end up taking a walk with him and he'll ask questions about you and you're family. But there will be some teasing.
"You look like both of your parents actually." You'd admit.
"Yeah, what about you---who gave you the babyface?" He'd tease making you hit his arm playfully.
"I don't have one. Neither of my parents do!" You'd smile and giggle.
"Alright, alright I'm just messing around."
He'd also take you on the playground and would sit on the swings and try to push you down the slide even if it's wet at the bottom.
"No, it's wet."
"It's just water."
"Yeah but I don't wanna get wet---Eren stooop!" You'd squeak as he tried to push you down the wet slide.
"Eren stooop." He'd mock. (and that's where that all started)
Would also try to have you go on the monkey bars even though you're only wearing his oversized T-shirt and your underwear.
"I can't."
"Why not, you're wearing shorts."
"I'm not, if someone sees me that would be--"
"It's in the dark, Y/n, I can't see anything."
Overall you two had fun.
How he asks you out
It was out of the blue and he defiantly didn’t ask you directly cause seeing the kind of girl he’d be into i don’t see him asking her that I think it just started happening and the way it became official was by some confrontation.
Like at first I think a lot of things happened before you got into the convo.
For example, your first kiss was before you two kinda started being a real thing yes you two were hanging out and stuff and they were dates (little did you know) but you were nowhere near the stage if kissing and yet you did and it was unexpected. You were probably on a bench studying and he was having you help and explain math to him and he was just looking at you and smiling and then he just leaned in and kissed you. He then pulled away and only then did he acknowledge your reaction.
And Eren realized your guy's tutoring time was up so he just said by to you and he realized it after what he did and what that could mean for him and you.
He felt like shit for doing that cause he thought the timing was off but you both were into it, little did he know.
And you just wanted to avoid him since you assumed he just kissed you cause he was a bored or just cause. Overall, he though that he had to talk about it and that he needed to confess so he did, in a clever way I guess.
You were at school and got out of one of your classes and Eren knew your schedule thanks to Mikasa.
And the minute you walked out you noticed him through the crowd and you hated yourself for it tbh. Seeing you caught his eye and you were walking away he followed.
"Y/n."
"Eren."
"Can I walk with you?”
"Uhh, sure I guess. But I really think you shouldn’t be talking to me.”
“Hmm, why’s that?”
“Because I—I—“
“You what, babyface?” He'd grin, towering over your figure.
“Hey, don’t call me that. I thought you’d grow up a little but your nothing but a boy honestly.” You'd cross your arms upset at his behavior.
“C’mon you know I’m kidding.” He'd nudge you to ligthen up.
“Are you really? I don’t really know you, well I thought I was starting to, till you—ugh why am I even bothering.” You'd turn around about to walk away.
“Y/n, that kiss was real.” He'd say, making you stop.
“You’re just saying that—so you can do it again.” You'd shake your head wanting to ignore him.
“No. No, I wouldn’t stick around if that’s all I wanted.” He'd admit.
You'd turn around to look at him, “Then what do you want? You know it’s not every day I let a guy in and give them a chance. I was willing to give you that chance, Eren.” You’d frown, feeling disappointed in him.
“Look, I know I shouldn’t have done that and I honestly didn’t plan it. I got lost in my mind and just ended up kissing you but it’s because, I like you, Y/n. I know you don’t believe me right now but I really do. I’ve liked you for while I just wasn’t sure how to tell you and kissing you like that wasn’t my plan.” He'd explain
“Then what was your plan, Eren?”
“Spend the weekend with me.” He'd request.
“Eren Yeager, you’re crazy!”
“Give me three days to prove it to you. At least if you’re interested.”
“. . . Fine, three days. But if you blow it, I’m not giving you another chance.”
“Wait really?!”
“Yes.”
“Thank god! Can I kiss you?” He’d grin, now back to his teasing. Although he wouldn’t do it he just wanted to see you be upset.
“No!” You’d blush feeling annoyed that you actually liked him said yes. You couldn’t believe yourself but you believed he was being sincere with you before so why not try?
“Relax I’m just teasing you, I’ll see you tomorrow, Y/n~” he’d smirk ruffling your hair.
Okay that’s how that began. Gosh now I want to write about the three days and how he made you his girlfriend. Ughhhh that would be so cute.💕💕💕💕
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fyeahnix · 3 years
Text
My Editing Process
I've been asked to detail my editing process that I've been developing over the years. A bit of backstory overall—I've been writing fanfiction for 20 years as of this post, ever since I was 9. My first fanfics were godawful but I enjoyed how fun they were so I kept writing. I love worldbuilding and storytelling. The majority of my progress, however, has been made in the last 9 or so years.
Now as I've always said, I'm not the best writer at all nor will I ever claim to be, I've just been writing for a long time. My storytelling needs some serious work, and my lack of an attention span and ability to tell stories actually cripples me from writing longer, more fleshed out fics. Basically, I'm a short story writer. But with Apex Legends, I'm trying to inch my way into writing longer fics, and at the very least, fics with actual small plots.
In saying all that, my editing process has developed over the years as well, but the biggest overall was about a year ago when I started watching more YT videos of writer tips and content.
Kinda New Process (First major change)
My writing process for the longest time was just "read over fic, fix typos, done" which is...not very efficient lmao.
Last year during my YT video binge I learned about the different stages of editing and started incorporating that into my process. This was the first major edit I made to my process before my current iteration. I'll give a brief overview of what they these stages are, but keep in mind I'm not a professional writer:
Developmental. This is where I worry about the overall structure and plot of the fic. Does it make sense? Does it flow well? Is the pacing okay? How's the character development? These are usually the biggest changes I'll make to the fic overall and often times involve full on structural and paragraph changes.
Line Editing. What it sounds like. Editing lines line by line so the sentence sounds good and reads well. This is where I'll do the majority of the description editing and sentence restructuring. Making sure the sentence overall just isn't boring.
Typos/Grammar. What it says on the tin.
This worked pretty well for me. The first three fics I used this editing process on were the three fics I wrote for Apex Rarepair Week last year—"Rude Awakening", "Fairy Tales", and "I Got You". And honestly compared to the fics that came before these, I think they were a step up.
Current Editing Process
Sometime last year I got a copy of a Self-Editing book that broke down this process even further for...self-editing lol. There's a LOT of good info in there that I picked up and added to my process and it changed a little. This is what I currently do:
Highlighting Phase. This is where I read through the fic and highlight every line, paragraph, or section that I think needs some work. I also did this in my last process. The highlights are color-coded and correspond to each stage of editing I do. I will also add personal comments here. The comments are usually tied to a highlight and remind me of ideas I have to add, edit, or remove content. Or I just praise myself. Gotta pat yourself on the back too, ya know.
First-Pass Editing. The stages have slightly changed because of the info I got from the book. I'll repeat this stage as many times as it takes, especially if I've made seriously major structure changes (and this is partially why Mafia AU has been taking so long to finish). During this stage I will do Story-level, Scene-level, and Sentence-level editing. I'll describe those below. This is technically broken into three stages as I will only focus on Story or Scene or Sentence level only. Basically I knock out all the Story-level and associated comments first, then Scene, then Sentence.
Second-Pass Editing. This is after the first pass is complete. I will only do Sentence-level editing here. The purpose of this is to further tighten up my sentences after all the structure and story elements are set in stone.
Final Read-Through. The last time I will read the fic. I'll fix any lingering typos and oddities here.
(Optional) Beta Reading. I don't have a dedicated beta reader unfortunately, but my best friend enjoys reading my fics and she's a pretty good critic.
I also changed my editing stages a little:
Story-level. Similar to the previous Developmental stage. Worries about the overall structure of the fic, overall character development growth and change, makes sure the story overall makes sense. Again, this is where I'll make the biggest structural changes to the story.
Scene-level. This is somewhat similar to the previous step because most of my fics are one-shots. But slightly different. Here, I'll worry about scene versus summary (aka showing vs telling), description, pacing, dialogue and character action, etc.
Sentence-level. Basically line editing. I will worry about how well the sentence sounds and feels. Get rid of filtering ("he/she/they feels/sees/hears/touches/etc.) for stronger more visceral actions, fine-tune details, eliminate excessive stage direction (e.g. too much movement description, tho I'm still learning this), get rid of passive voice and ambiguity, and increasing specificity (instead of saying "she watered a plant", you can say "she watered a towering and wilting ficus.").
I can't remember what fic started the new process, but I'm pretty sure it was "Why I'm Here."
And that's about it! I am still in the process of figuring out ways to fine-tune this process and still digesting what aspects of writing I need to improve upon, but it's a process. This takes longer than editing used to, but I genuinely believe it's allowed me to output higher-quality content and stories. Read my first Voidstrike fic from last year compared to the most recent and I promise you you'll see a difference.
If you enjoyed this post and find it helpful, please reblog. If you want me to talk about something specific, I can do that too from my own perspective.
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ey8508 · 2 years
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Rumors and Secrets: Victor | 李泽言
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Note:
R&S for this card (CG above)
Chapter SPOILERS up to Season 2: Chapter 18-21 (read at your own risk)
Contains 5 chapters
Translation isn’t 100% accurate (or include grammar errors)
Every part for LZ’s dialogue would be in “this setting”
Do not repost to any other site (reblog is fine)
Chapter 1 Page 1 It's no exaggeration to say that the name "Li Zeyan" has run through my entire high school era.  This "evil fate" probably starts with a 31-point Chinese test paper. I'm Gao Qishan, only 17 years old at that time, but there are so many things that usually interest me. Games, animations, and football are nothing compared than reading a book in a room. But hey, it's a pity that my dad doesn't think so. "I only scored 31 points in the Chinese test, and I'm still here with a hippie smile!" In the study, the old man blew his beard, looking disappointed, "How can my son be so useless!" Page 2 "Your son is very capable. I was the MVP of the basketball game last night!" "Your PPP is useless! You are in the second year of high school, not the second grade of elementary school! You have a 31-point score and you have a face to play basketball? You don't have any shame or a competitive spirit. Do you not want to go to college anymore?!"  . I was about to reply impatiently, the old man took out a magazine from somewhere, poked his hand at the cover and yelled at me: "Look at the person. He founded the company at the age of 20. In just two years, he has been on the "Business Rising Stars" cover interview! Look at yourself again, someone who is almost 17 years old and does not have the realization of it, do you want to be in the worst generation in the future, ah?!" Page 3 I'm not happy to hear this: "What's so great about starting a company? Your son, I will start a company in minutes!” "I'm almost out of school, and I started my own company? Oh, I'm going to be better!" The old man raised his head, and the thick magazine almost hit my handsome face.  "Learn from others, and don't give me daydreaming here!" Page 4 I grabbed this "Business Rising Stars" with enthusiasm. A decent young man in a suit was looking ahead through the photo. On the cover was a striking headline: "Li Zeyan, an astounding leader in Lianyu City.” "This title is exaggerated!" Even if I was taught by Lao Gao, I was inexplicably better compared with this Li Zeyan, and I just threw the magazine under the sofa. Who wants to learn from him? Just looking at it is a tarnish to my ability! Page 5 But somehow, at night I tossed and turned and I couldn't fall asleep! The more I closed my eyes, the more uncomfortable I was, what did Li Zeyan do. When I turned over for the 100th time, I suddenly sat up. It was a task by old Gao to read the magazine anyway, so I decided to retrieve the magazine and just take a look. After sneaking into the study room, it took me a long time to find the magazine in the innermost part of the sofa. Page 6 "... Although Li Zeyan is only 22 years old, he is already the president of Huarui, an emerging medium-sized company in Lianyu City.  Starting from scratch, he started from a small office to now has hundreds of people. Every step he walks is particularly solid and decisive. Li Zeyan’s way of business is beyond ordinary. He is like a lion, born with a King's aura." All these compliments just for this, isn't it just descriptions of someone starting their own company? I just haven't paid much attention to reading.  Just relying on my ingenuity, and getting a high score on the tests, it is absolutely nothing when it comes to starting a company. Hmph, just you wait. Chapter 2 Page 1 The university in City A is not only one of the top five in the province, but also the top five in the country. It is a university that I, Gao Qishan was admitted to dignifiedly! How about that, I said I'm absolutely fine. In a blink of an eye, the freshman year has passed. In the past two years, I have also paid a little attention to Huarui. The development has been okay, it has not closed down, and the scale has doubled.  It's just normal development. Is it worth the old Gao's praise from time to time?  Every time he flipped through a financial magazine and sighed, "You are so young, so good", it sounds a bit too much. Page 2 As the saying goes, "Seeing is believing", I think this sentence is right.  Taking advantage of the summer vacation, I decided to apply for Huarui's summer internship to see in person how the company is, just not to waste my talents and financial knowledge. Soon I entered the building, but how can the interviewer in the middle feel a bit familiar, the more I look at it, the more I recognize... Wait, isn't it exactly Li Zeyan?! What's happening, is Huarui going bankrupt? Why is the president personally do the interviewing for the summer interns? Page 3 "Manager Chen has something to do, I happen to be free." Probably my shock expression was too obvious. Li Zeyan flipped through the information at hand and looked up at me blankly.  "Gao Qishan? First, briefly introduce yourself." I don't know what's going on. I was so startled by Li Zeyan that I couldn't help but straighten up.  After swallowing my throat, I mobilized all my attention, took a deep breath and said, "Hello, my name is Gao Qishan, and I am a freshman in the Department of Economics and Management of the University of City A..." Page 4 After introducing himself, Li Zeyan asked a few more related professional questions. This kind of small question is nothing to me. It seems that Huarui’s interview is nothing more than that. He occasionally knocked his fingers on the table subconsciously, and asked with a deep gaze: "Why do you want to come to Huarui for an internship?" The continuous response made me more and more relaxed. I changed my sitting position and quickly thought about how to deal with this new question. Judging from previous information, Li Zeyan is a person who likes to win at everything. He should appreciate the kind of answers that seem extraordinarily confident, right? Page 5 After carefully thinking about this, I straightened my back and raised my chin and said: Although Huarui is quite a new company, it has grown at an amazing speed, and the achievements it has made so far are obvious to all in the industry.  And although I am a freshman student, I think I have a very strong learning ability. In this regard, I have a lot of similarities with Huarui. Therefore, I think Huarui is very suitable for me and will definitely make me grow faster. Of course, I can definitely give back the same freshness and vitality for Huarui. With a confident smile, I finished my speech and waited quietly for Li Zeyan's nod. But to my surprise, a few seconds later I was greeted by a frown from Li Zeyan. Page 6 "It seems that you have confidence in yourself. To be a man and to do things really requires self-confidence, but everything must be controlled." Li Zeyan stared at me and said in a hurry, "Only by maintaining reflection and introspection can we truly make progress." I understood his words, and my face flushed. A few days later, I really received a notice from HR (Human Resources) and I didn't get hired. Page 7 Although I had a foreseeable result from Li Zeyan's remarks, when I really received a reply and recalled the interview scene, I was still very angry. After my sophomore year, I went back to the final exams and tried to fight for the first place. I'll make sure that my ambitions are not just mere words. I have written down the "new hatred and old hatred" on my notes. I will definitely use the shortest time to create my own territory, leaving Huarui far behind! Chapter 3 Page 1 Today is the first day of my "Yuanshan Group" moving to a new building.  Morning light came in from the spacious floor-to-ceiling windows, and I stood by the desk, proudly holding on to the brand-new office chair. In the next semester of the junior year, I used the dividends I participated in the project as the start-up capital, and I didn't need a penny higher than the old one, so my "distant mountain" just rose from the ground.  Isn’t it just 20-year-old to start a company from scratch? What's the difficulty?  When I founded Yuanshan, I was exactly 21, and the rounding is almost the same as Li Zeyan.  Because of this, my old man, Lao Gao stopped training me long ago, and I guess he must have praised me secretly. Page 2 In just a few years, Yuanshan has grown from a small company of eight people to a scale that now occupies a seven-story high-end office building, and the suffix has also changed from "company" to the word "group".  To be honest, my founder is very satisfied with Yuanshan's growth.  Although there is still a certain distance from Huarui, after all, they are also developing along the way, but it doesn't matter, I am still young, and sooner or later I can catch up. It didn't take long before the opportunity to "catch up" came. Page 3 I was originally interested in the land to the north of Lianyu City. When I heard that Huarui was also planning to bid on that land, I became more interested.  The Lianyu Municipal Government intends to develop the somewhat hindered northern side. At present, construction has begun to build a crossing bridge and a shopping mall, and this piece of land is nearby. "It is more than enough to build a six-star resort with 18,000 square meters and the supporting facilities can be added. Maybe Huarui made the same idea." I have paid attention to the recent developments of Huarui and have invested in four resort hotels one after another. The senior management of the company also agreed that the land is worthwhile, and if it can be won within the highest valuation of 89 million yuan, it should make a profit without losing it. Page 4 A month later, I came to the auction site with confidence.  Sitting in front of me at ten o'clock is Li Zeyan, the president of Huarui in a suit and leather shoes. After a few years of absence, I can finally compete with him. On the stage, the auctioneer gave an impassioned introduction to the land, and then said in a melodious tone: "The starting price is 35 million, and the auction will begin now!" As soon as the voice fell, several companies immediately raised their signs. But my opponent is Huarui. It is still early, so I have to wait for Huarui to make a move. Page 5 When the bidding became increasingly fierce, Li Zeyan finally raised his placard for the first time: "60 million." The opponent finally appeared, and I immediately raised the number plate: "61 million." As if he was just encountering an ordinary bidder, Li Zeyan never answered with words, but raised his placard again: "70 million." I continued to chase: "71 million!" Side to the front, Li Zeyan seemed to raise his eyebrows slightly. After a few seconds, he raised the number plate again, and said: "80 million." Page 6 "81 million!" As if finally realizing my bite, Li Zeyan glanced at me slightly sideways, then he raised the number plate, the noise was low and clear: "90 million." This figure has already exceeded the company's highest valuation, and the assistant quietly tugged on my sleeve, beckoning me to forget it. But if I really give up on this, I still feel no sigh of relief in my heart. The auctioneer has already shouted in front: "90 million twice." Page 7 "100 million!" My voice came out, at the last moment. Of course, Li Zeyan finally gave me a straight look. I watched his hand nervously, and saw that the number plate was never raised again, and the auctioneer had already shouted excitedly: "One hundred million! Yuanshan Group has come out of one hundred million! One hundred million once! Three hundred million!, make a deal!" Page 8 Finally got it!  Such a valuable piece of land I believe it will be a great help to Yuanshan, and it’s just around the corner to get rid of Huarui. I didn't even consider the cost of 100 million yuan. I just felt that my body was comfortable and exuberant, and the bright prospects were beckoning me. When Li Zeyan passed by me, my triumphant pride couldn't stop. "Thanks to Mr. Li for the bidding this time." Page 9 Li Zeyan put his suit jacket on one hand, and passed by me. I thought he would argue with me back, but Li Zeyan just raised his eyebrows uninterested, and then strode away without looking back. Okay, as the winner of the auction, I allow the loser to occasionally gaffe. Just when I was gearing up to do a big job, the Finance Department urgently sent a bad report. Due to my "passionate bidding", Yuanshan's capital chain suddenly had a problem. Chapter 4 Page 1 I urgently convened a high-level meeting, and after several discussions, the best solution at present turned out to be to invest in Huarui! Personally speaking, I have a hundred reluctances in my heart.  Not long before the auction, I took the initiative to bow to Hua Rui. Didn't that slap me in the face severely. However, the cruel reality lies in front of us. Yuanshan is not only my own person, but also the collective effort of hundreds of employees.  To let Yuanshan survive this crisis steadily, I can only and must "take the initiative to surrender" to Huarui. Forget it, "vote" just "vote"!  Although it was a mistake in my decision-making this time, Yuanshan's development prospects are so good that Li Zeyan should never not invest as long as his eyes are correct. Page 2 However, the negotiation process is still more difficult than I expected. It is not that Huarui has no intention to invest, but almost all the conditions listed are on the lowest line of the distant mountains. "If I remember correctly, the creditworthiness of Huarui's previous investment in the gaze lock company is not very high." I fought hard against the low pressure, and Yuanshan's creditworthiness has always been in the top four in the industry. "...with Yuanshan's creditworthiness Huarui's right to speak will definitely be improved. I think Mr. Li can think about it again." Page 3 "Do you think you are still eligible to negotiate terms with me?" Li Zeyan straightened his mouth, exuding deterrence, "...Huarui Investment in Yuanshan is not for charity, and has no obligation to pay for your suicidal behavior." He raised his hand and glanced at his watch, with a hint of impatience on his face: "Think carefully about it yourself." The long negotiation was finally over. Although Yuanshan and Huarui finally reached a cooperation intention, the whole process failed me. I thought I was about to be on the same line of competition with Li Zeyan, but I was beaten back to the former "interviewer" again. Page 4 By the area downstairs in Huarui, I was smoking a stuffy cigarette, and suddenly there was a faint sound of footsteps behind me. It turned out to be Li Zeyan. Although he was still expressionless, the murderous aura and arrogance from the negotiations seemed to have diminished. Li Zeyan steadily walked to my side: "Gao Qishan, I remember you once came to interview for a summer internship." I didn't expect Li Zeyan to take the initiative to speak. I was surprised. He said: "Several years have passed, and it seems that self-confidence is increasing." If it wasn't for my lose, I stood up slightly: “Although I made a mistake this time, as far as the strength of Yuanshan is concerned, I have the capital to be confident." Page 5 "Yuanshan's strength is indeed pretty good, but don't rush to eat the cakes that you can't eat for the time being. Being high is far from a long-term plan for enterprise development." Li Zeyan said lightly, and took out a card from his pocket and handed it to me, "There will be a practical business forum in Lianyu City next week. You can come and listen when you have time." A practical business forum? What do you mean, is he mocking me for being too pragmatic? The inexplicable enthusiasm and self-esteem suddenly appeared, and I blurted out: "Mr. Li, even if Yuanshan is really not as good as Huarui now, there is no need to humiliate people like this, right?" Page 6 Li Zeyan frowned: "What are you talking about?" He paused, his eyes sinking, "I thought you would be an opponent you could look forward to, but I didn't expect the vision to be just like that." Without additional explanation, Li Zeyan turned and walked away after speaking. I was stunned, looking at Li Zeyan's steadily leaving behind, I couldn't help but relive the conversation just now in my mind. Could it be that Li Zeyan meant that because he regarded me as a potential opponent and hoped that this opponent could become stronger and more competitive, did he propose to let me participate in the business forum? Page 7 That's right, it seems that only such an explanation can make sense! Thinking of this, I couldn't help blowing a whistle. After all, it was an "imaginary enemy" and pursuit of goals since the age of 17, which can be affirmed and recognized by Li Zeyan. It is simply an easter egg that comes with the negotiation, and it is worthy of the old man to praise me ten times. I was being silly and happy. Suddenly my fingers hurt, I have forgotten about my cigarette that was about to burn my fingers! Chapter 5 Page 1 With Huarui's capital injection, Yuanshan passed the crisis steadily. After more than half a year, the foundation of the resort has gradually taken shape. Just when everything seemed to be going in a good direction, early this morning, the news of "the crash of the president of Huarui" directly bombed all major platforms.  Reminiscent of the so-called "homicide list" that was suddenly leaked on the internet a few days ago, I inexplicably feel that these two things may have some connection. Who on earth wants Huarui to sink in the water? Wait a minute, which company announced the list. Could it be that their person in charge is secretly playing tricks? Page 2 Before I could find anything out of my investigation, within a few days, the news of "Which company claims that Huarui has maliciously acquired a large number of pharmaceutical companies" once again detonated all platforms! "Deliberately monopolizing the pharmaceutical market will inevitably cause the price of medicines to rise, which is obvious." "Just for profit, this behavior is very bad!" "Even Huarui's own workers and can't stand it, which shows how terrible Li Zeyan's actions are!" Page 3 Opinions on the Internet are divergent, and public grievances are boiling, and they all accuse Huarui. But I don’t believe it. Although I have only met Li Zeyan several times in person, for so many years, because I have always regarded him as an opponent and target, I have studied Huarui and Li Zeyan’s behavior more than anyone else. The nonsense on the Internet, I don't believe a word! I browsed the web quickly, staring at the almost identical title and searched viciously. Page 4 "Huarui’s reputation plummeted, Li Zeyan fell into a situation where everyone was clamoring and angry, and the heads of the company was clearly cut off from him." In the video, the host's voice kept ringing into my ears. All the signs made me firmer in my previous thoughts: It must be looking at which company is crossing the river to demolish the bridge! I immediately called the assistant to the inside line: "How much do you hire me for a large number of naval forces? How many can you hire? How many! That's right, I have to spare no effort to clarify for Huarui, and by the way, I will focus on the company. Going right now!" I know that this "bad strategy" and only a small help but I haven't beaten Li Zeyan righteously, how could Huarui have an accident in such a situation! What I want is not the taste of winning without a fight. Page 5 Probably because of anger, I couldn't help but send a message to Li Zeyan: The outside world said that Huarui's energy is exhausted. You will not be reduced to the point where you still need to borrow money from me, right?" This message was sent, and I did not expect Li Zeyan to reply to me. However, when it was almost midnight, I suddenly received an email from Huarui. ‘Huarui has always been a responsible company, and will do what it says without fear of any storms. Now everything is running normally, you don't need to worry about it.’ Signer: Li Zeyan. Page 6 Looking at this email, I couldn't help but smile in the middle of the night. Also, Huarui has always been fighting steadily, and Li Zeyan has never fought unprepared battles. Maybe he is playing a big move. Otherwise, how can I say that he is my respectable and close opponent! As for my secret match with Li Zeyan. Give me another three or four years to see who wins and who loses.
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septembercfawkes · 4 years
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Breaking Writing Rules Right: "Don't Write Direct Dialogue!"
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Over the years, I've done a lot of posts on dialogue, in part because when I went searching for a deeper understanding on the topic, I didn't find a lot of material. One of the recurring things I did find though, was about writing indirect dialogue. And this is absolutely one of the best places to start, when learning how to craft better dialogue. Dialogue should always be saying and doing more than what's on the page.
Almost always, anyway.
Naturally, this means incorporating indirection.
Which plays closely into subtext.
But a few times I've been asked, when is it okay to use direct dialogue? For this post, I have at least four answers.
What's the Rule?
Don't write direct dialogue!
Why it's a Rule
Usually the best dialogue considers what the character doesn't say, and how. In other words, subtext. When subtext happens, the dialogue is bigger than what's on the page--a quality that seems to be key to drawing in readers and writing a great story.
And in reality, most of us do talk indirectly. And we are always revealing more about ourselves than what we say (whether or not we want to). Interestingly, the more powerful emotions we feel, the more indirect we tend to be.
Indirect dialogue also holds more tension. (This again draws us in.)
On the flip side, direct dialogue releases tension, something we rarely want to do.
And when we talk about powerful emotions directly (and disproportionately), they can actually lose power. This is one of the many facets of the "show, don't tell" rule. Talking about powerful emotions directly in dialogue, labels, or in other words, "tells" them, which usually is not as satisfying as showing them so they can be experienced by the reader.
Direct dialogue also means one-dimensional dialogue. What you see (or read), is what you get. This turns the reader into more of a spectator, instead of a participator, in the story (and we want participation).
But a lot of beginning writers write direct dialogue--we probably all did. Writing indirect dialogue is a skill--it takes study and practice (and more practice).
In case anyone isn't quite sure what I mean about direct vs. indirect, here is a quick example:
Direct:
"You're an idiot, Shelly," Jasmine said.
Indirect:
"You wouldn't know this, but I don't do much writing anymore," Jasmine said. "Those days are over. I use what are called 'ghost writers,' Shelly. People I hire to do the writing for me. I like to sit back and brainstorm a few concepts with a glass of champagne. Do you know what 'brainstorming' is?" "Yes," Shelly said. Jasmine simpered. "You're smarter than I was expecting."
In the second example, Jasmine implies she thinks Shelly is an idiot in the way she talks to her (in bold).
I realize this example takes up a lot more space--and sometimes being indirect does.
But, as the story builds upon itself, strengthening context, you can be clearly indirect in less space. For example, if the reader went into the scene knowing that Shelly is a world-renowned writer and that Jasmine is stuck up, then a line like "Do you know what 'brainstorming' is?"--is all we need. (Obviously Shelly knows that, so Jasmine saying that is like slap in the face.)
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When to Break the Rule
The majority of dialogue should be indirect. That's just the way it is. But that's not necessarily the same as never being direct. So when is it a good idea to say it like it is?
1. When You Want to Release Tension
Indirect dialogue holds tension.
Direct dialogue does not.
When you move from indirect to direct, it releases tension.
And sometimes that is exactly what you need.
It's the same thing in story structure. You start with your hook and introduction, go to the rising action and climax, and finish it up with the falling action/denouement. Or to put simply: introduce tension, build tension, release tension.
The denouement is all about releasing tension--that's why loose ends are tied up (generally speaking).
Releasing tension isn't bad, and if it is done at the right time, can be highly effective.
And that may not be necessarily during the denouement.
Because, as I talked about in this post, that story structure permeates all parts of story (like a fractal), not just the overall plot. Scenes, conversations, even descriptions, have that structure. This means that some direct dialogue may be just what you need after you've introduced and built up tension.
Consider a conversation where two people in a relationship are arguing over dirty dishes. While they might be fighting about dirty dishes, perhaps the real argument (subtext) is about one partner thinking the other might be cheating. Either context or indirectness introduces that idea. And it builds and builds and builds as the fight goes on and on. But for your plot, you don't plan on carrying this conflict through the entire book, maybe only this scene. So, after the conversation reaches its high point, one partner says to the other, "Just like you've been cheating on me with your secretary!"
The other says, honestly, "I haven't been cheating."
And then perhaps through direct dialogue, the problem is sorted out.
During a denouement, not only are loose ends tied up, but changes and ideas are validated and a "new normal" established. So, here in this example, by now talking about cheating directly, it will validate each person's concerns and they can start a "new normal" (one that doesn't include someone thinking the other is cheating).
You've seen similar dialogue arcs before. Perhaps there is sexual tension between the protagonist and love interest, which builds and builds and builds, until one tells the other directly that they love them. And in most stories, that's when the two starting kissing. Both those things are part of a denouement, even if it's not during the denouement.
So when it's time to let go of tension and start a falling action, direct dialogue may be just what you need.
But, I do want to note, it's also possible to hit that falling action without direct dialogue. Say, in the text, the main character intentionally tells the love interest she loves him, indirectly, but it's clear to both of them exactly what she is confessing, so in a strange way, it's direct and indirect simultaneously. But let's not confuse ourselves too much.
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2. When Being Direct Adds Tension
In the above examples, tension is released--but only if having an open discussion about possible infidelity or being in love doesn't lead to new, immediate potential conflicts. Remember, conflicts are problems happening. Tension is the potential for problems/conflicts to happen. If we already know that two characters can't be together because a romance will lead to them losing their jobs, which they both need critically right now, then in some situations, one directly confessing love to the other, introduces more tension. It's similar to the "Yes, but" idea--if you are familiar with that writing term. Yes, the character got what she wanted . . . but now she's going to lose her job, which will create even bigger problems. In other words, it adds tension. But, keep in mind, that to some degree, the prior tension is released, if only a little or temporarily (at least until the end of the scene). Because, say they both want to keep their jobs, so ultimately decide not to see each other. Well, the tension was released during that confession, but in the next scene, we have heightened sexual tension--because each knows the other loves them, but can't act on it. (Leslie Knope and Ben Wyatt's relationship in Parks and Rec is a great example of this sort of thing.) Keep in mind though, however it plays out, the confession still works as a sort of denouement, because it validates and establishing a new normal (either losing jobs or dealing with heightened attraction).
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3. When The Character is Direct
Some rare characters are very direct. It's just part of who they are. But that also means they come pre-packaged with their own kind of writing challenges. Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter is a great example of this. She almost always speaks directly. But this is because she has nothing to hide. As Rowling once put it, "She doesn't give a d--- what others think of her." So it's not like she needs much subtext. In one of my ongoing projects, I have a viewpoint character who is similar. Part of me wishes I knew what I was getting into when I started with him, but then part of me is glad, because then I might have picked someone safer. Needless to say, he's been one of the most challenging characters I've tried to write. You see, the thing with having direct characters, is they lack the usual avenues of tension and conflict. If they are direct, and don't care about being direct, then a lot of techniques you have at your disposal with other characters, are gone. (It took me some drafting to figure out how to work through this.) But even if your character is direct, you still need to incorporate tension. We've talked about this a bit in the last section, but for characters like this, you need to look at how being direct causes tension, conflict, and complications. Think about it. If you were direct about everything you thought and felt, and in the way you shared that, what would happen? A nightmare! That's what would happen. This is one of the reasons we as human beings aren't direct in our speech in real life. (And how many children have been labeled rude or hurtful for saying exactly what they think?) This sort of thing happens with Luna, although it's tamed down somewhat in the films. In the books, she's regularly getting in arguments with Hermione. Why? Well, in part because Luna says whatever she thinks and believes and doesn't care how Hermione responds. Her directness leads to people feeling uncomfortable, awkward, and is one of the reasons she's an outcast; translation: complications.
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4. When Something is Urgent or Somewhat Unimportant
When characters are in an urgent situation, they are more likely to talk directly. It saves on time. So something like, "Look out! A cliff!" obviously works. It seems like common sense. How many times has a character thought he was about to die, and made a point to confess his guilt, love, or feelings directly, right in that moment? When it looks like your world is falling apart before your own eyes, there might not be much time to be indirect--and there may be a sense of desperation to be direct. Worth noting is that the less we care about something, the more direct we might be. If it's unimportant to me that I ate a hamburger for lunch and you ask what I had, then I'll have no problems sharing that. If I'm supposed to be an a vegan diet, then I might try to dance around the answer. Usually in manuscripts though, we cut way down on the unimportant--things like small talk and basic introductions often get axed, unless there is subtext within. Which then usually makes them important, anyway. Both urgency and importance/unimportance also play into the story's pacing. So that's something to keep in mind.
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So is it always bad to write direct dialogue? Nope! But just like "show, don't tell," your story will be better off if the dialogue is more indirect than not. Related Posts: 5 Most Common Mistakes in Dialogue Writing Realistic and Complex Dialogue Kicking "Great" Dialogue up to "Killer" Dialogue Breaking Writing Rules Right: "Only Use 'Said'" Generic Dialogue—Staaaahp (Don't) Tell Me How You Really Feel How to Punctuate Dialogue Writing Callbacks
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novantinuum · 3 years
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Hi, I was just wondering if you had ever thought about what would have happened in your story "Hollowed Moon" if you had continued it. I always thought it was such an interesting setup that could have gone in so many different directions. And there really aren't other stories focusing on Stevonnie and Spinel, so it was unique!
Hiya!
So, I do have some half-written, half-plotted out material to share. I gave this story some consideration the other day, and came to the decision that I don't have the desire to finish it out, alas- I have far too many other active WIPs to add it to the list. There's a few good reasons why I discontinued it, anyways... intimidation over the huge surge of attention it was getting back in 2019, some rude comments from overzealous Spinel fans, (I know everyone isn't like this, but a certain segment of the Spinel side of the SU fandom kinda burned me over time, hhh), and a future chapter containing a sensitive topic that I wasn't in a good headspace to write about at the time.
But! Anyways! Below the cut is all the existing material I have for Hollowed Moon past chapter 14, consisting of a mixture of descriptions, sketchy dialogue, and prose. It honestly feels nice to finally be able to put this story to an official rest.
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Chapter 15
“I... I saw her.”
“Who-?”
“I saw Pink Diamond. I saw you, in this exact garden, in a dream. I- it was like I was experiencing everything through her. She explained your game, tapped your nose and told you to smile, then warped away—“
“That’s it, that’s what happened, almost exactly! But how could you even know that, I never—“
“I don’t know,” they blurt out. “I have empathic abilities, and sometimes that makes dreaming a little weird, but I have no idea how or why I saw any of this.”
[Pause for Stevonnie to think]
“Spinel, I’m so, so sorry,” they whisper brokenly. “But I think... she left you here.”
“What...?”
“She said she’d return, but before she warped away she whispered goodbye, like she didn’t actually intend to make good on that promise. She was lying to you,” they choke out, voice thick.
“No. No,” she says in clear denial, “no she’s not. She can’t be! She told me she’d come back! I can wait! I just have to wait—“
“But she’s not! She... she can’t, because Pink Diamond is gone. She- she was shattered, Spinel. Five thousand years ago, on the Earth. I- I should’ve told you this from the beginning, and I didn’t, and I- I’m so, so sorry—! But she left you behind, and now she’s never coming back.”
[Silence. Tears brim in Spinel’s eyes. Her eyes grow dark, pained, and then she glares at Stevonnie with such venom it almost knocks them backwards in alarm. ]
“NO!” she screams, tears streaming down her faded pink cheeks.
[She tears her feet up from the roots and runs away, using her arms like an orangutan to vault herself forward super fast so Stevonnie can’t catch her.]
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Chapter 16
AN: Content warning for self-shattering attempt. Part of the reason why I had to stop writing this story at the time. I considered pushing the plot another way, but it didn't feel authentic to how I believed this scenario would play out for Spinel when she didn't have a direct target for her anger. Without someone to actively be jealous and upset AT, I could only imagine her breaking inwards instead of outwards, feeling that she's utterly failed in her life's purpose. Nothing more than a description for this chapter... and it'd be a short one.
[When Stevonnie finds her, she’s smashing her fists against her gem in her sheer anguish. She’s already cracked it. She’s glitching. It looks terribly painful. She’s about to strike her gem again when Stevonnie intervenes.]
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Chapter 17
[Post timely intervention. Spinel is still cracked at this moment, though... her form glitching as she cries.]
“I was... her best friend,” she cries, fat, glistening tears streaming down her cheeks. “I was supposed to make her happy! Why wasn’t she happy? Why didn’t she come back?“
[Spinel reasoning that maybe if Pink came back for her, she wouldn’t have been shattered in the first place]
“What did I do wrong?” she whispers hoarsely, gazing pleadingly into Stevonnie’s eyes. “Wha- what am I doing? Why do I wanna hurt myself so badly?”
“Shh, now,” they reply, tears of their own brimming at the crease of their eyes, and pull Spinel’s head to their chest. “I’ve got you...”
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Chapter 18
They know their throat is tight, and their voice scratchy. They know they’ve never sung this song in front of another living being, since it’s something personal they composed alone on one of their late nights back on Earth, thinking about all the difficult days Steven and Connie have had to face over the months. Pair this with their active crying, and there’s no way their singing will be anything pretty.
But pretty doesn’t matter right now.
Stevonnie opens their lips, and— clutching the broken hearted Gem close, rhythmically rocking with her back and forth— lets the wandering melody emerge from within.
“I guess I have to face That in this awful place I shouldn’t show a trace Of doubt...”
“But pulled against the grain I feel a little pain That I would rather do Without...”
“I’d rather be Free, free Free...”
[Hoarse, Spinel starts singing with them.]
“I’d rather be Free, free Free...”
“Free, free Free...”
“From here...”
[Stevonnie holds her tight while crying, their tears healing it back up.]
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Chapter 19
AN: Don't have anything but a single bit of dialogue in this chapter note- I'm assuming I intended it as being a good few hours after the events of chapters 16-18... when Spinel has calmed down a little and has a moment to reflect on the upsetting news she's just received.
“I think... I always knew,” she says, voice hoarse. “In a way. It was so obvious how she felt about me.
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Chapter ?
AN: From here on out, the plot hasn't been split into individual chapters.
[At some point shortly after chapter 19, Lars and his crew locate Stevonnie in the garden, and pick them and Spinel up. The next few bits of dialogue and description takes place on the ship.]
Rutile twins: “I haven’t heard of Spinels being produced in over five millennia.” “Me neither!”
Rhodonite: “Yeah, I heard they stopped making them entirely after the rebellion on Pink’s colony.”
[A bit of overwhelming conversation later, no one really noticing Spinel's conflicted emotional response to so many Gems hovering around her at once.]
Padparadscha: “I predict that you’re both going to make Spinel feel very uncomfortable aboard this ship.”
Rhodonite: “I’m sorry, we don’t exactly meet new Gems every century.”
Rutile twins: “Yes!” “It’s just been us until we met our captain!”
Fluorite: “Our new huuuuman friend helped us escape the tunnels on Homeworld. Now... we’re slooowly making our way back... to Earth.”
Spinel: “Earth?? You’re going to Pink’s world? But why? I heard she... was shattered.”
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[Spinel feeling a sense of kinship with the idea that there’s other Gems who didn’t serve their rightful purpose and are now escaping their life on Homeworld to be free of that. Because now, without her Diamond, since she was unable to keep her happy, she’s an Off Color too. She failed her given purpose same as them.]
[Discussion of Earth, and the rebellion, and how there’s Gems living free there. And how Pink’s colony was siphoning life away, and that’s what these Gems were fighting to protect. Stevonnie points out all the plants and wildlife that used to live in the garden, and asks her if she felt happier when it was around. Spinel says yes. Stevonnie says that this is what the Diamonds are destroying, with each lifeless colony they forge. Everywhere they go, dead wildlife lies in their wake.]
Spinel: “I... guess I never thought of it that way.”
[(Stevonnie adds...) And while they’re very sorry for the personal connection there, and can’t imagine how painful that must be, that’s why Pink Diamond was shattered.]
[Spinel is given an open choice... Lars gives the invitation to stay with him and the Off Colors, and Stevonnie offers for her to come with them back to Earth. It's not a hard decision for her in the end, though. She's always dreamed of seeing what was once Pink’s planet, ever since she heard the Diamonds bequeath it to her.]
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Stevonnie: “Okay, so… before we go, I need to be honest with you about something." [deep breath] "I’m actually a fusion of two separate people who are close friends. You... know what fusion is, right?”
Spinel: “Duh, o’course! What, d’ya think I was made yesterday?”
[...]
Stevonnie: “But even with that, I can’t be together as me all the time. Steven and Connie, the two who come together to form me... they love hanging out with each other so much, but they also have their own lives! Other friends, other hobbies, their own families. They still talk when they’re apart, but they know it’s okay to do things alone, too. Do you know why I’m telling you this?”
Spinel: [shakes head no] “No...?”
Stevonnie: [sighs] “I understand you���ve been left behind. Believe me, I know how bad that feels. So the last thing I wanna do is make you think I’m doing that too.”
Spinel: “Y-you— you’re going away?” Stevonnie: “Unfusing, yes.” Spinel: “But Stevonnie, you—“ Stevonnie: “Spinel. No matter what, you are my friend. Steven and Connie consider you a friend, too. And my hope is that you’ll keep making a whole bunch more on Earth, so you’ll always have people around who know and love you. But that can’t always be me, okay?“
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[At home... on Earth. There's a bit of a close call for Pearl when Spinel arrives, and recognizes her as Pink's second pearl. This is news for Garnet and Amethyst and Steven, the first of which had somewhat suspected that Pearl used to be in the diamonds' service, but never knew for sure. Pearl, of course... can't say much on this due to her gag order... not that anyone else knows about that yet... but does manage a very concise and PD=RQ free explanation about her past in Pink's court, and her transition towards being a Crystal Gem:]
Pearl: “Rose Quartz set me free, and I’ve been a part of the rebellion ever since.”
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[At some point between the last scene and the next, mention how Spinel had a bit of a relapse... she ended up poofing herself, and reformed differently. A little bit closer to the smudged mascara and frayed pigtails look of canon, but no rotated heart. Unlike in canon, she has a solid support system amongst the Crystal Gems, and she's working hard to recover from the heartbreak of Pink's abandonment.]
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[Final scene is set post A Single Pale Rose. Steven and Connie fuse, and Stevonnie goes to find Spinel to check in on how she's taking the news. The final line of the fic is as follows:]
Spinel: “I know you’re not her, not really. And I know you’ll always be a better person than she ever was. But in some silly cyclical way... back in that garden... it’s almost like Pink came back for me after all.”
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