#might scrap it and choose an easier scene

[daggery]

i fixed the gifs in this gifset and then made one of them worse oh no

#static.mp3 #might scrap it and choose an easier scene #i don't know why i was doing that #i want to start making more gifsets especially ones with more creative formats or concepts instead of just coloring #i have lots of ideas but i need to sit down and actually plan this stuff out #i want to make more sets like the ones i made for the gift exchangess #also just more of those 8 gif 2 col sets #and halloween set idea #and this cute rotten ot4 set idea that i had for a loong time :( but it requires minor brainpower #other r4 set #uma set #umal set #ugh #if today's motivation dies out by the time i wake up tomorrow Sorry #going to finish fixing this old old evie set and then i will fix the old old old umalvie set and then i will start something new #holding myself accountable i will do this over the next couple weeks #[2am sitting sleepily on my bed] let's go let's go my laptop is on fire

[celestie0]

ellie's writing tips

hellooo this is just a lil masterpost for the writing tips i have collected over my time writing since it's a question i get often!! this way it's all in one place <3 this is also for my own reference to look back on when i forget them lol

tips for specifically writing long fics

on coming up with a main storyline.

planning out a general idea & premise at the beginning of the fic that helps two characters get closer to one another, such as a forced proximity, some sort of mutual agreement, a mission to complete, etc. is a great way to get the ball rolling on a fic and can create environments between characters that feels connected and necessary rather than forced

on coming up with secondary storylines.

after laying down the main groundwork, building some side storylines adjacent to the main one that will give you options down the line to play with narratively (you don't need to figure out exactly what you want to do with secondary plotlines up front, but having them in place can create flexibility in your story to pivot towards some ideas if you'd like to later in the story)

on planning chapters & scenes.

it's wise to have a general idea for your series, but it's also okay to scrap those ideas if ultimately they don't work. there will be scenes that do not make sense or fit in the way you thought they would've, and making last minute decisions is okay and totally normal. sometimes better answers will find you along the way, and it's only a testament to how well you're getting to know your own story and also your own characters. it's also okay to plan multiple path ideas for your story, and choose whichever one fits best once you get to that point. it's not necessary to have a scene-by-scene in order to start writing! planning is useful, but writing is more important

on finding motivation to continue long fics.

having certain "key" scenes planned out in the very early stages of writing that you know you will look forward to writing can help with finding motivation. it will also help you find momentum to write during points where you might have some writer's block. also, one of the best tips i have seen for writing chaptered fics, is to end your chapters when you still have a little bit left planned. so cutting it like 10% short so that you have an immediate jumping off of point that you can start with for the next chapter

my general writing tips

inspiration. starting off w a concept or idea that you already know you like from a tv show or book works really well for fanfiction! for example if you like spiderman, then you can write a canon-adjacent spiderman au w your fave character from an anime or something. and then maybe once you start writing, your own original ideas start to come into play and you go off of those. i think in the fanfic community, people adore spin-offs & mainstream concept ideas

dialogue. my biggest tip for dialogue would be to just write all of your dialogue for a scene completely stripped down. none of the “he says” & “she says” or action verbs in between, just write it all out like it was a simple text convo w quotation marks. that way the words will sound realistic because you’re only picturing a convo in your head, rather than also trying to juggle all the descriptive prose. then, you can go back in to fluff things up. if it’s meant to be comedic or a fast-paced argument, keeping it relatively stripped down is the way to go, but if it’s something intense or suspenseful then fluffing it up may be the better choice. also, i find dialogue becomes easier the more you write for a specific character, so if it’s not flowing right away, don’t worry!! their words will find you eventually once you get to know the character better :)

on choosing conflicts. characters won’t always act perfect, but i think a great way to make conflict seem realistic is for them to act in character but with flaws, rather than out of character with flaws. maybe make a list of what that character’s good qualities and how those qualities could also work against them, and use the latter to brainstorm realistic conflict that those qualities could put them in (ex: a character is self-sufficient, but that causes them to rely on ppl less when they need it -> they fail to reach out for help in timely manners and leads to mistakes/regrets)

pacing. when starting off a story, don’t be afraid to just jump straight into it! or jump straight into the dialogue and then build the scene gradually as it progresses, rather than [big block of text in beginning of scene that reader must drag their eyes through] and then get to the dialogue. make sure the pacing fits the scene (romantic -> longer paragraphs more focused on subtle details, comical -> short paragraphs n dialogue heavy w simple n relatable diction, etc)

for tone and mood. to get words flowing for different scenes, it can be really useful to get into the environment of those scenes while you’re writing, such as listening to a song that fits the vibe of the scene prior to/during writing, or if its a scene at night, write it w the lights off, or watch a youtube vid w scenery that matches. may sound silly, but it could help!

read more. this is sort of a miscellaneous one but a good way to subconsciously get better at writing is to just read more! your brain kinda learns how to write on its own when you read. also, when i’m reading, if i see words i really like i jot them down in my notes app so i have my own lil vocabulary of words that i know i would like to use in my writing

on writing insecurities. be proud of your writing!! your first draft does NOT have to be perfect. some days the words will flow, but on some they won’t, and that’s okay. don’t get too into your head about “i wonder what readers will think of this plot point or this character action” etc, i think having faith in your own process but also in your readers will bring you a lot of peace as you write :) create what you want to create and the rest will follow!! at the end of the day it’s just a hobby and you should be writing what YOU want to write!! and just get started! ☺️ that’s the easiest way to write—is to just write 🫶🏼💕

use chatgpt. looool ai can be useful in writing too! i usually only use it after i'm completed with a draft, and i just plug select paragraphs into it to see if it can come up with some better words for me to use. it's also useful to come up with logistical details for aspects of your stories for world-building etc

#writing tips #writing advice #writing #writers on tumblr #creative writing #fanfiction #writing fanfiction #just writer things #writing pointers

[ggukiepie]

girl in luv (boy in luv pt. 6)

pairing: jungkook x reader

summary: jungkook finally tells you what you've been wanting to hear for so long...but you're still not happy

tags: bil!couple, college!au, bff!jk, two idiots in love, angst (what's new), fluff, happy ending !!!, kissing hihi

wc: 3.5k

a/n: lmaoooo hi im sorry this took so long. i didn't like what i originally wrote so i scrapped the whole thing and well here it is! i hope u guys like it. this is the last part for the series. tho i do plan to post some drabbles here and there (like their first time together maybe) but no promises anw thats its bye happy reading !!!! series masterlist / main masterlist

~*~

Your phone suddenly buzzes—someone was calling you. Though, instead of answering it, you stuff your phone between your couch cushions to block out the noise. You don’t dare look at your screen, sure you’ll get tempted to answer the call—whoever that was. You haven’t got much social interaction these days, always choosing to go straight home after each class, eating by yourself, declining invites to parties and hangouts. It’s not like anyone’s forcing you to be this way. You did this to yourself, really. You’d rather be alone than hangout with people. You didn’t have the energy to do so. You just wanted to be in your bubble a little bit longer.

Deep down, you know you’re craving to talk to someone. Anyone. But somehow you always end up alone. With your thoughts.

Self-sabotage, if you will.

The thoughts don’t help either. Your mind always drifts to Jungkook. Sometimes you think about him and his girlfriend. Most of the time, you think of your friendship. You missed what you had, even though you had to guard your heart every time, even if you got your hopes up at the simplest of actions. You missed being with Jungkook because for the time you were with him, he felt like he was…yours? There was no doubt that you were his. Had been from the start but didn’t realize it till later on. Your heart always craved for him, yearned for him when he wasn’t with you. Your heart felt lighter when you were together, be it doing the most mundane of things or sharing a special moment.

If you could just toughen up and tell him how you feel. But it was easier said than done. He already indirectly rejected you when he got together with some girl. But why would he reject you if he never knew how you felt? Maybe you were too busy protecting your heart, protecting the friendship you might lose if you would’ve confessed. You never thought he’d feel the same, even though you had moments that felt like he did.

You shake your head to rid your thoughts. You try to focus on writing the essay in front of you. Your Friday nights felt different now—stuck doing homework while your friends were partying.

You’re finally two pages deep when you hear frantic knocking on your door. You check the time on your laptop and see it’s a little past one in the morning. You suddenly rush to open your door, scared that you’d get a noise complaint all of a sudden.

You stand frozen, mouth agape at the scene in front of you.

“Huh?” you dumbly say.

It’s your three closest friends in your doorway. Jimin and Taehyung are somewhat conscious—at least they’re standing upright. But you notice the sway in their stance and you can smell the alcohol off of them. But it’s Jungkook between them that makes you freeze. He’s passed out, you’re sure of it, and the only reason why he’s sort of standing up is because Jimin and Tae have his arms around their shoulders.

“Why are you guys here?” you finally say.

It’s Taehyung who speaks up, smiling that smile he has when he wants something to go his way. When he has a plan that you might say no to (which you usually do). “Jungkook,” he points at Jungkook, as if you’d confuse him with anyone else, “is drunk.”

“I can see that,” you deadpan.

“And!” Tae rushes to say, like you’re about five seconds from shutting the door in their faces. “He kept asking for you. So we are simply complying with his request.”

“Because we are great friends,” Jimin pipes in. Taehyung nods in confirmation.

“Me?” you whisper, as if Taehyung were referring to anyone else. Your mind isn’t any better than his drunk one at this point.

“Yes!” Jimin whisper shouts. “Now let us in, he’s kinda getting heavy.”

Jungkook makes an incoherent sound from where his head is leaning on Tae’s shoulder, drool making a wet patch on the poor guy’s shirt. You take pity on your best friend and step aside to let in all of them, even though your heart’s racing because Jungkook is in your apartment.

Holy shit.

You watch them bring his unconscious body to your couch (they actually drop Jungkook and giggle all the way to your door, saying their goodbyes without looking back).

You huff at the sight in front of you. Jungkook’s cheeks are flushed red and he’s a little bit sweaty. Though, he looks so peaceful sleeping on your couch. Was he really looking for you?

You get a glass of water and two aspirins, placing it on the coffee table near him. The moment you near him, you kneel by his head and wipe the stray hairs on his forehead. You look at Jungkook, like really look at him. His eyebrows are scrunched together like something’s troubling him in his dreams. His lips are in a slight pout, lip ring glistening under your light (when did he get that, anyway?), little puffs of air coming out his mouth.

“Am I…” he mumbles. Your heart races. His eyes are still closed, but his mouth continues to move. “Am I at ____’s?”

Your heart seizes at the sound of your name. You gulp and nod slowly, then realize that he can’t hear you. “Yeah…” you trail off. “You’re in my living room.”

“Oh,” your best friend says as his eyebrows scrunch up some more. “Missed you.”

You sit back on the floor and hug your knees to yourself, preparing for whatever it is that he might say next. A drunk man’s words are his sober thoughts, right?

“Jimin and Tae said you were looking for me?”

“Mhmm,” he mumbles. “Wanted to… tell you somethin’”

You shake your head. Though your heart yearned to know, you also do know it’s not the right time. Not when he’s drunk. He might just regret his words now the next morning, which might even hurt worse than what he’s about to say. “Save it for tomorrow, Kook.” You push yourself off the floor but he stops you by holding your wrist, albeit weakly.

“Nuh uh…” he whispers. “Need to know…now. Broke up with Jiwoo.” He opens his eyes slightly and looks at you right away.

“Jungkook—”

“Like,” he continues to say, “I did it for you.”

You feel your anger rising, your body heating everywhere. “I didn’t tell you to do anything,” you firmly say.

Jungkook moves to sit up and you take a step back. “No,” he shakes his head slowly. “Jus’ didn’t feel right.”

You feel tears welling up in your eyes and you finally walk to your bedroom, slamming the door and locking it shut. You block out the sounds of Jungkook weakly calling out your name. Your fists clench in anger, the words Jungkook just uttered replaying in your head over and over. He couldn’t just dump his problems, turn around the narrative and make it seem like you made him break up with Jiwoo. That you asked him to end things with her because it didn’t feel right. And he forced himself into your home, your personal space—and drunk at that! He knew all your weak spots and used it to his advantage.

You hope he’d be gone in the morning. You don’t think your heart can hurt any more.

You hear pans clinking which promptly wakes you up. You weren’t able to sleep that much, actually, knowing Jungkook was right outside your room. You guess he stayed in the morning. He’s either cooking in your kitchen, or someone’s trying to steal your pans.

Rubbing your eyes as you open your bedroom door, you spot Jungkook by the stove with his back turned to you. He seems to be making scrambled eggs—which is the only thing he can make confidently.

“Morning,” you say. You might as well clear the air as early as now. You watch his back tense for a millisecond before he turns off the stove and sets the pan on your dining table. He turns to face you and brings a hand up to brush his hair back, a nervous tick of his that you noticed a few years back.

“Good morning,” he mumbles.

“So,” you start.

It’s so awkward you might cry again. When did things get this out of place? You start to rethink your feelings. You haven’t even confessed yet it feels like you’ve lost your best friend already. What if you confessed? What would happen then? You felt your heart closing just thinking about it now. Was your friendship really that fragile? You and Jungkook hardly fought but even if you did, you always made up right away.

“___,” he says. You look up, eyes meeting his instantly. “About last night… I’m sorry I suddenly barged into your place. I guess I really forced Tae and Jimin to bring me here.”

You nod and lean on the wall behind you, preparing for a long talk with him.

“I just really missed you, I guess—”

“Do you remember what you said last night?” you ask harshly, cutting him off so quick his shoulders tense.

Jungkook swallows nervously and nods his head. “Yeah and… I don’t know if there’s a better to say it, really. But we did break up, ____. She just wasn’t it for me.”

“And you said you did it for me,” you say, pushing him to just get to the point.

“Yes, because I realized that my heart never belonged to her. It belonged to you. Still does,” he says in a rush.

You eye him sharply, staring at his features and expression to make sure he’s completely telling the truth. You want to believe him, you really do, but why would he say that then be with someone else.

“It doesn’t make sense,” you finally say. “Why did you get together with her, then?”

“I don’t know—”

“You don’t know,” you repeat, and Jungkook’s eyes widen in panic. “You think you can come running to me right after a break up? Like I’m some second option? You don’t love her enough so you run to me instead?”

Jungkook opens and closes his mouth, mind thinking quickly to say something. His hands start to tremble and he brings a hand up to push back his hair. “I didn’t mean that,” he says hoarsely. “I didn’t realize it soon… And—” he stutters to catch his breath. “I was just scared—”

You’re fuming at this point. How could he do this to you? To just play with your feelings like that? “Get out.”

“____—"

“I mean it, Jungkook,” you shakily say. “You’ve hurt me enough. Just leave, please.”

He looks at you longingly, doe eyes watering before he nods and turns to the door in silence. You watch him put his shoes on before he leaves, not sparing you a glance. You don’t realize you’ve been tearing up as well, wiping the tears on your cheeks. Walking to the kitchen counter, you realize that Jungkook made chocolate chip pancakes. Your favorite.

It’s been a week since the incident with Jungkook and you haven’t talked to him since then. You also missed your weekly brunch with your friends, too afraid to face Jungkook. Thinking about it now, were you a little bit too harsh? Maybe. You thought you’d finally be happy upon hearing his confession but instead you pushed him away, shut him out. Because you’re scared. Terrified. Things were already going so well with Jungkook when you both were just best friends and you don’t think you can lose him forever should you actually get together and then break up.

Funny since it feels like you’ve lost him already.

It’s 8 am and you’re all alone in the student council office, trying to get some studying done as you were restless staying in your apartment. Staying there just reminds you of Jungkook, so you’ve been spending your mornings here before the other people arrive.

Suddenly, the door opens which is unusual. You usually have the place to yourself for at least another three hours. Curiously, you look up and find your best friend standing by the doorway, laptop and coffee in hand.

It’s silent for a moment, the both of you drinking each other in. Jungkook looks like he hasn’t gotten much sleep, eye bags dark and skin lackluster. You suppose you don’t look any better, knowing you barely got any sleep the past few days.

“Hi,” he finally says. You’re glad you have the long table separating the two of you. You don’t think your heart can handle being physically closer.

“Are you here for something?” you ask hesitantly.

“Can I…” He trails off, looking at the printer by the corner. You’d be laughing by now under normal circumstances. You nod instead, because it’s bizarre seeing Jungkook here asking if he can print something, which is something he liked to do back when your friendship was intact. The room is silent as you see him connect his laptop to the printer, both of you avoiding each other’s eyes. It’s too silent, actually, that it’s driving you a bit insane.

“How many pages?” you ask.

“Uhm… Fifty?” he says like he’s unsure.

“Fifty?” you repeat in a gasp. The printer is free, sure, but it’s ancient. Fifty pages will take too long and you don’t know if you can stand being in the room with him for half an hour or so.

Jungkook hands you the coffee he brought with him. “I bought you coffee as thanks.” He smiles ever so slightly and watches as you take a sip. Of course, it’s your usual order at the café down the street.

He looks at you expectantly but you’re too busy looking down at the coffee in your hands, too nervous to lock eyes with him. A few seconds later you hear him exhale and it’s just the sound of the printer in the room.

Your chest feels so tight all of a sudden like it’s ready to burst out of your ribcage any minute. It feels so heavy, so constricting that it’s starting to hurt physically. Is it really worth it harboring all this anger and pain? For conjuring up these theories in your head that will make you push him further away?

You shake your head to yourself and look up expecting to lock eyes with his, but his back is turned to you.

“Did you really mean what you said last week?” you blurt out.

Jungkook jumps in surprise and whips his body to face you, doe eyes wide. He looks surprised but he also looks relieved, and your heart breaks a little more seeing the relief cross his face the moment you talk to him.

He starts playing with the hem of his shirt absentmindedly. “I did,” he mumbles. “I mean every word I said, and I’m really sorry that everything had to turn out this way when I could’ve just been brave and confessed all those years ago.”

You nod your head at his words and process what he just said. Deep down you know you believe him, but it’s hard to keep that in mind when the hurt outweighs the truth. You look up at him with a sad smile on your face. “Why now, Kook? After all these years.”

He sighs and leans on the chair in front of him. You notice his shoulders deflate and his back hunch a little. He looks tired and you feel your own tiredness in your bones as well. “I was just scared. Us being friends was so comfortable and so good… I was just scared of things changing and me losing you.”

You bite your lip to stop yourself from crying. Looking to the side of the room to avoid his stare, you whisper, “And I know—” you choke on your words and clench your hands in frustration. “And I know I’m at fault as well—for assuming and pulling away once you got together with her. I had no right because we’re just…friends.”

It’s quiet save for the printer and his feet shuffling on the floor. You turn towards him to see Jungkook slowly walking to where you’re sat. Once he’s standing in front of you, he raises his hands towards your face but stops midway. Like he’s about to hold you but he’s hesitant.

You’re tilting your head to look up at him, eyes shiny with tears but lip turned upwards in a small smile. It’s ok, you mouth, because you don’t trust yourself to speak right now. You watch Jungkook hold your face in his hands, thumbs going behind your ears to rub at your skin slowly, fingers splayed on your cheeks to wipe your tears away.

He gathers your face in his hands, thumbs gently brushing the tears streaming down your cheeks. “I’m sorry, baby,” he whispers shakily. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. I’m so, so sorry.”

You nod your head absentmindedly, heart squeezing at the affectionate way he talks to you.

“I really am sorry,” he repeats. “I… Yeah, we’re just friends but I’d like to believe that we both just know. That you felt my love the same I’ve been feeling yours ever since. Even though we’re just friends. But…I know better now.”

You look at him confusingly and he looks away from you and smiles, his cheeks turning a light shade of red. You watch in silence as he plays with his lip piercing distractedly. Finally, he turns to you still with that smile on his face. His thumb starts playing with your lower lip but he’s looking at you with so much adoration in his eyes.

You’ve seen this look on him before, every time you’re with him, and now do you only realize that it’s a look full of love, desire, yearning.

“It’s scary if we do become something more and I end up losing you,” he starts, “but I’d rather live a life of at least knowing what it feels like to love you and be loved by you, than doing nothing at all.”

Tears are streaming down your face but you’re smiling so wide and Jungkook’s doing the same as well, with his nose even scrunching up and his dimples showing.

“I think it’s normal to feel scared,” you finally reply. “But I’d also rather live a life of us loving together than loving from afar.”

It’s silent for a moment as you and Jungkook stare at each other. He’s wiping off your tears which makes him cry a little more, so you wipe his tears next. You’re both crying now but with happy smiles on your faces and it prompts you both to laugh.

“We were kinda stupid, huh?” Jungkook says in between giggles.

You nod and giggle back. “A bit silly, yeah.”

“Can I kiss you?” he suddenly asks. Your heart starts racing and your palms get clammy. You start feeling nervous but it’s the good kind, finally getting to do something you’ve been anticipating, been waiting for ever since you realized your heart belonged to your best friend.

“Please,” you whisper.

Jungkook wastes no times in leaning forward, his grip on your cheeks tightening just a bit, pulling you upwards to meet his lips. Your lips finally touch and it steals your breath away. Quite literally.

Jungkook’s lips are soft, slots perfectly right in between yours. He kisses how he holds you—gentle and careful. Your heart skips a beat when you feel his tongue, and you grant his wish by opening your lips just slightly.

There are no fireworks or sparks or anything grand like that. Your heart suddenly feels calm and at ease. Like this is what you’re meant to do. It feels like coming home for the first time where everything feels right. You feel a great weight lift off your shoulders and you know you’ve made the right decision by choosing love.

Jungkook pulls back but only slightly so he can catch his breath. He keeps his forehead pressed against yours and when he speaks, you feel his lips move.

“I love you,” he whispers, and the way he looks at you with his eyes, like it holds so much love and adoration and it’s all for you. “Wish I said it sooner but I don’t want to think about that. Don’t want to live and continue on with regrets. I’m so happy to have you like this,” he whispers shakily. “So lucky to be able to love you like this.”

You kiss him again which causes him to smile so wide that his dimples pop out. “I love you too.” You giggle again. Saying it is so freeing and it feels so normal too. Not some grand epiphany or realization. Like you’ve known ever since. Like your heart has felt this way throughout your years of friendship with Jungkook and only now are you able to verbalize it. You know you’re lucky, too, to be able to have him in this way. But you don’t want to give too much credit to luck. You believe yours and Jungkook’s love were destined ever since.

#jungkook #jeon jungkook #bts #jungkook x reader #jungkook x oc #jungkook x you #jungkook fanfic #jungkook one shot #jungkook drabble #college jk #college jungkook #mine #writing #bts fic #bts fanfic #bts one shot #bts drabble #sab writes

[melliotwrites]

10 tips for musical theater writing!

We've been getting asks about musical theater writing and thought it might be helpful to share some things we've learned from our writing process that've made our lives easier. DISCLAIMER: we are by no means experts in writing musicals! These are just things that've worked for us!

(Some great resources we'd recommend are Finishing The Hat and Look, I Made A Hat by Stephen Sondheim for good jumping-off books by an amazing lyricist, or websites like https://www.musicals101.com/write.htm (they have a good explanation of song forms here: https://www.musicals101.com/score.htm that cover the basics of musical forms, etc.) To chat with people more experienced than us, we'd recommend visiting https://www.reddit.com/r/musicalwriting/)

Here are our tips:

Collaborate! In professional musical theater, there are three writing roles: lyricist, who writes the words for the songs, bookwriter, who writes the words in the scenes, and composer, who writes the music for the piece. People can be any combination of the three- for example, Mel is a lyricist/bookwriter but Elliot is a composer/lyricist/bookwriter. You can also take on different roles on different projects! You don't have to choose which one you are Right Now, but writing a show is a lot easier if you have one or more collaborators. One of the most common mistakes I see in aspiring musical theater is trying to do too many at once -- people who are awesome composers but mediocre lyricists, or people who are great lyricists but their music is all over the place -- which can kill interest in a project before it even begins. Theatre will always be a collaborative art form, so try to find people you can create your best work with!

Choose a topic you have something important to say about. Something you feel like nobody else has said before, or something you think you personally can say in a new way. Our writing process for both TAOPP and Adamandi was to begin with some big ideas that we had something important to say about- for TAOPP, we talked about the transformative experience of falling in love, and for Adamandi, we talked about the ways that dark academia idealizes an unhealthy independence, and doesn't often include queer students or students of color. We choose a set of characters that allows us to have an interesting group of perspectives on that central idea.

Outline! Once we know who is in it, we write a rough outline of the show, deciding where scenes and songs are, though this outline often changes throughout the process (for example, at this stage in the Adamandi process, we knew how Act I would end, but initially Litany of the Martyrs was in the middle of Act I instead of Act II). Outlining is especially important for musicals, because you want it to be as solid as possible before you start writing. It sucks when shifting around the plot or cutting characters means scrapping great songs you've written too soon.

Know why you want this to be a musical! Why not a book or a screenplay or a concert or song cycle? What is it about the musical form that makes you excited to tell the story through it, and how will live theater help you tell this story? If you're new to musical writing, make sure you aren't actually writing a play with music. In a musical, the songs should move the story forward, help characters reach realizations and show new depths of character, etc. Musical songs should start at a point A and end at a very different point B. If you take out all the songs you've got planned in your show, are there huge holes in the plot or does everything still make sense? If everything still makes sense, maybe you don't want to write a musical.

Find a songwriting process that works for you! We tend to write lyrics-first, so Mel will write all the words to a song for Elliot to "set", or compose a tune for. After Elliot has a melody, he finds chords for the melody and builds the accompaniment from there. Another way you can write (especially if you are a composer more versed in instrumental music) is to start music first -- finding a fun melody or a fun chord progression and then building the rest from there. Songwriting is like filling in a puzzle. Elliot goes through many iterations of melodies and chords before settling on a melody he likes. When he finds a good melody, he'll record a little voice memo of it but revisit it later to see if it still holds up before building upon it. It's okay if something stumps you a little! Songwriting is usually a collaborative process; we edit each others' lyrics and talk about musical moments and the tone/feel of a song. We make sure we're on the same page with Mel reading out the lyrics of a song before Elliot sets it, so Elliot gets a sense of where Mel's rhythmic instincts for the song lie. Don't let your roles define what you're allowed to have an opinion in- the ideal collaboration incorporates both people's expertise in the form overall instead of being a neat delineation of roles.

WATCH, READ, & LISTEN TO LOTS OF THINGS (especially musicals!) Make fun little movie nights out of it! You can learn a lot about what you want to create by seeing what's out there! Find things you enjoyed in shows you disliked, or things you disliked in shows you liked, and think about why. (Tip: Don't just watch musicals that have been made into movies: go to local theaters, watch proshots, get a sense for what staging can do to a story. Watch two different productions of the same show! Consume things written for the same medium you will be writing in.) This will also help you learn about song forms, musical structures that work, etc.!

Similarly, use a shared musical vocabulary as inspiration! If you're a composer and don't know where to start, discuss the vibe of the song you are about to write with your lyricists (genre, similar songs, etc.) Find a playlist with similar songs -- doo-wop songs, swing music from the '30s, or the discographies of artists you like -- and just listen to them for a while. Try to pick apart things that the songs have in common, or things you like from certain songs -- is it a certain song structure? Is it three-part vocal harmonies? Is it a certain combination of instruments? There are also lots of great resources on YouTube/online about what characterizes certain kinds of music. What are common chord progressions in the genre? Is there a rhythm or time signature that characterizes the genre (as is often the case with dances, like tangos or waltzes etc.)? Then try out what you liked from the research and play around with it!

Make it understandable! A musical isn't a novel or an album -- typically, the audience watching it can't reread a page or replay the song. They're watching and listening live, and you have to make sure they understand all the information! When it comes to songwriting, make sure you are setting your lyrics in a comprehensible way. Try reading out your lyrics before setting them at all, so you note where you naturally emphasize words (e.g., we pronounce the word MU-sical, not mu-SIC-al or musi-CAL). Once you have this for reference, recreate this natural rhythm to the best of your ability in your melody! It will help people understand your lyrics better. You want folks to understand as many words as possible on the first listen! (E.g., if someone's singing really quickly and then sing the word musical as mu-SIC-al, people very well might easily mistake it for another set of words entirely, 'cause their brains are not used to the word being said like that!) Similarly, you want to watch out for the amount of syllables you're putting in each line. If two lines sound similar melodically but one has a couple extra syllables in there, chances are it's gonna get squashed rhythmically and become word mush. Fixing this means revisiting your lyrics and cutting some/rephrasing them, which is a natural part of the process!

Finish it! Whatever else you have to do to get to the end of it, it's so important to have a complete project to see how your storytelling works and where it can be improved. A great thing about writing musicals is how often they can be revised -- you'll get feedback, or grow as a writer, and end up wanting to revamp it, which is fine! Look at the difference between Broadway shows and productions of the same shows before Broadway. Or you'll move onto a different project with the skills you acquired from this one -- either way, you have a show's worth of experience under your belt. :)

Be open to criticism, but form your own opinions based on many audience reactions, not just one person's critique. Have readings of your show for your friends, or host a talkback after your performances!

#adamandi #adamandi musical #the art of pleasing princes #taopp #musical #musical theatre writing #musical theater #songwriting

[satoshi-mochida]

Some thoughts and details on my last Gamefly rental, Valthirian Arc: Hero School Story.

The player, no name given, is selected to become the new principal of a school after the previous one stepped down, and must raise it and it's students to be the best it can be.

There's more going on behind the scenes, however, as the queen is getting on in years and without an heir, as her daughter has gone missing, with queens of other kingdoms vying for her throne.

To bring the school back up to good condition, the Principal(as they're always referred to in-game after getting the position) must recruit students, raise them and send them off to work for the kingdom after graduating them, construct the school's facilities, and raise the school's reputation to help with all of the above.

At the school section, it plays like a simulation game, with teachers and enrolled/ready to be enrolled students wandering the campus, where you can:

Check a Tasklist, which will give you rewards for certain goals, such as changing into a class for the first time or clearing certain Missions

Enroll or reject students waiting to enroll.

Check the Graduation request once it arrives.

Build facilities

Forge equipment

Check on the students and get them ready for missions/class change them/graduate them

Send the students out on missions.

Like other simulation games, there'll be a cursor to move and select with here. It moves pretty fast, though, and it's speed can't be changed, so this part might be easier to play on PC.

As you increase the school's renown, it'll Rank Up, giving you more room for facilities, more facilities that can be built, and higher level caps for students. The highest rank for the school is A.

The various facilities/buildings(which can also be upgraded, with some exceptions) for the academy can provide boosts/buffs in battle missions, such as Classrooms, which give you more experience(and I highly recommend building/upgrading as many of these as possible).

At the forge, you can use Scrap and other materials to craft weapons and accessories, though you need a recipe first. Those can be found ither as drops from enemies or from the traveling salesman. When crafting, you can also add on a few components from the building materials to further boost them by having up to random 3 stats get an increase during the crafting.

Speaking of the traveling salesman, Shilekka, she pops up every few weeks, then leaves after a couple weeks as well. She sells you crafting materials, base weapons(no boosts) and recipes. I recommend at least buying out her crafting materials every time she arrives, as they can go quick if you craft a lot.

While looking around the campus, small '?' may appear at different rooms/facilities. Clicking on them while the ? is there will have a small text event happen, some with choices, that may give you a small reward or not, such as choosing to turn in or keep a lost student wallet, or getting funds for the school from doing well.

As the school gains floors, you can hit L1/R1 to switch between which are shown to see if any ? events are there or to just watch the students and teachers wandering around.

Though starting small, and apparently lacking a roof(which I thought was a joke at first because of how simulation games work, but may actually be true), once it's fully ranked up, the academy and campus can look pretty impressive.

There's a class system for the students, starting from 'Apprentice':

-Knight

Paladin

Arcus Draconus

-Magi

Scholarsage

Medica

-Scout

Arquebusier 

Harlequin

You can't Promote classes right away, however; you need to progress the story and do missions that have you recruit Mentors for those classes, and also need to construct a room/facility for them in the school before you can finally change students' classes.

Each class has it's own weapon type, though a few overlap with their promotion line.

The initial student level cap is 10, and rises as the school improves, however it won't change the cap of students currently enrolled/ready to enroll.

Each class learns skills that can be passed on when they class change. It needs to be done manually, though, as the ones gained from leveling up aren't learned automatically. As the level cap is 10 at the start, they won't be able to learn them all at that point(Apprentice's last skill is at 15, Mid Tier Classes' is at 16, and Third Tier Class' is at 25).

Controls for battle sections:

X to attack or interact

Circle for a Class specific skill(I think they learn a second one at level 25)

L1/R1 or the indicated button on the D-Pad to switch between up to 4 party members

Aside from the class specific attack skills for pressing Circle, some skills they learn are passive while others trigger at random, I believe.

There's thankfully no permadeath if the students get KO'd during a quest; they'll revive at the end or if you abandon the mission, and still get any EXP rewarded for clearing it. They won't gain any EXP from enemies that are defeated during the mission after being KO'd, though(any gained beforehand is kept). The Medica class is the only one that can heal the party in battle, and they also learn Revive, but not unless they can reach level 25.

There are two types of missions:

Ones where you send the students out and control them while they explore, fight, etc., with a set amount of weeks passing while they're away(there's no real penalties for failing a mission, as you'll keep anything you got during it that wasn't related to the story/mission, i.e. experience, money and items, though time will still pass).

Errand Missions, where you send a team off on their own, and won't return until the set amount of weeks for it have passed, whether they succeeded or failed.

There's no way to make time flow faster, so if you have all currently available students away on Errand Mission, you'll need to wait an agonizingly long time for them to finish if you don't want to cancel their mission(s), especially if their missions are set to take a huge amount of weeks.

At the end of each semester(6 months), you'll be required to have at least 1 student who is at level 10 graduate. You're given certain requests for the graduating student(s), mainly their class or sending more than one, though you can just send any you want I believe. Selecting one early will get you more rewards(money and school renown, even more if the student(s) hit their max level), while selecting on the day of will get you penalized with lower rewards(and I think a student less than 10 will be forced to graduate if none are at 10, though that didn't happen to me). I'd say try to have one ready to send off as early if possible.

Aside from the deadline to get a student ready to graduate, there's no actual time limit, so you can play for as many in-game years as you want, and not have it affect the main story.

The AI is usually good about it, but on occasion, party members or enemies can get caught on the environment. Larger enemies actually seem to end up going above them to pass by, which is amusing if it's trees or the like. XD ...though they can get stuck there and out of range for a bit.

Party members and guests/escort NPCs are 'solid', if that makes sense, so you can't just 'walk through' them on the field, which may cause you to get stuck sometimes, usually on stairs.

There's 3 endings, based on how many missions you did that were affiliated with the Five Queens, the best being from doing all of them, which I got, and the worst from only doing ones that are required(Green Gift, Blue Banquet, Black Brawl, White Wandering, and Red Reception).

Some little tricks I found:

You can aggro an enemy, then lure it so that it gets mobbed by your other party members while it's focused on you until the aggro wears off.

If you're at least gaining some experience in missions that you can't beat, I'd say try them over and over to do a small bit of grinding that way, as the two missions clearly meant for grinding, Novice Training I and II, stop being as quick/effective for the higher classes after a while, even with a lot of EXP Boosters.

It took me a bit, but I eventually got into it and enjoyed it overall. It could get repetitive, but also a bit addicting. This wasn't the next game on my queue last time, but I am glad I got to play it.

I hope the sequel improves on the issues I had with this.

Next game being sent is: Granblue Fantasy Versus(they don't have Versus: Rising available to rent yet, unfortunately, so no Anila, darn it)

#Valthirian Arc: Hero School Story #Valthirian Arc #Thoughts on my rentals

[keydekyie]

Any advice you might have for others who wanna publish but can’t seem to get their plots in order?

This turned into a lot o.o; sorry!

lol I'm not maybe the best to ask since it did take me more than 6 years to write a sequel to book I, but my advice would be to talk it through to someone else. Like verbally. Or maybe even to yourself! Explaining the plot (or something else important to the overarching story, like themes, motifs, or character arcs) can help me recognize things to work on. I talk to my partner a LOT!

Maybe the most important thing is to get things out of your head and onto paper (or a computer screen, as the case may be) so that you aren't trying to hold a lot of stuff in your brain that you don't need to be holding. Leaves room for the ideas and better organization. I'll expound on how I do that below.

I also like to zoom in and out of the story to help me keep perspective. When I feel like I need a closer emotional connection to it, I get real granular and write some dialogue, a dramatic scene or internal thoughts, or a description of some visceral physical thing, or maybe sketch some expressions or scene ideas. Might use it, might not. If I like something a lot, it may help me to know I need to move the story in that direction. When I feel too bogged down by stuff or directionless, I zoom waaaay out and write plot outlines or emotional arcs.

There are a few anchoring pieces that I build the story around. I take care not to forget them.

And of course I keep an outline of the story going, but I think it's important to keep things flexible. Why get hung up on putting things in a certain order or doing it a certain way when maybe it's better a completely different way? I've moved huge chunks of story all over the place. If it makes the story flow better or gives a scene a better emotional impact, then I do that! No rules, babey!

I think the thing that's hardest for me with this way of writing is not being able to share things as I write them, since I don't commit to anything. It makes it hard to stay motivated, because I'm not getting constant feedback and encouragement from people, but it makes the story easier to mold and form because I don't have to fit things to whatever I've already shared. If I write a big long chapter and two months later I want to completely scrap it in favor of something else, it's fine. There's no restrictions.

Oh btw my outlines are pretty loose and silly. I have a lot of stuff like this in them:

I also like to write out the various ideas I have to resolve conflicts so I can play around with them. I don't like to choose the easiest, cleanest options, I like to pick the options that balance sense with potential drama.

Example for the fight at the Motylek altar in book II chapter 9:

[MAJOR spoilers for book II below]

One other thing I found helps a lot is to have an exhaustive list of characters with their physical descriptions, ages, jobs, families, locations, basic personalities, and relevant beliefs in an easy to read format. I don't use all the characters I come up with, but it gives me things to springboard off of and helps me stay consistent. I made up and grouped dozens of Motylek villagers that I didn't end up using, but I had them ready just in case.

I've also found that drawing out the story in various visual forms helps me. For book II I drew all over a map where the characters were physically going and when.

[MAJOR spoilers for book II below]

I also like making visual aids for other aspects of the story. Below is a chart I made to figure out Ruyak and Kaelin's growing relationship in book II with its ups and downs. It roughly graphs Kaelin's confidence in Ruyak over time (it's not to scale, it's just based on significant factoring plot points)

This is just half the graph since the other half is book III stuff. You can see there are two horizontal lines I use for reference, the lower one is where Kaelin starts at the beginning of book II, the higher one is uh... something significant that happens later lol. You can see Kaelin's confidence actually started out higher before the start of book II and went down until Loske. This chart helps me keep track of where she's at while I'm writing so I can keep her behavior consistent even though I jump around a lot while I'm writing.

A thing of note: none of this stuff is set in stone when I make it! I changed things many times as I wrote, and added and removed things willy nilly.

I don't know if any of this is helpful or not! But it's what helps me, so... y'know.

#ask #herebegiants #tmatb #tmatb ii #advice

[lossair]

Random Lore & Fun Facts about Yearning the Shadow of the Moon and Befriending the Sunshine FF #1

I posted this earlier on my Twitter, but might as well post it here as well since I got nothing else better to do. If you haven't read it, you should, because I spoil the plot in this post. (https://archiveofourown.org/works/45415192/chapters/114265858)

Summary: Wednesday Addams was transferred to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry after her recent attempts of murder. Initially wanting to leave the school, plans were changed once her interest peaked when finding out there were recent murders at the Forbidden Forest, and a bubbly Hufflepuff that growled. Wednesday became curious whether there is a connection between the two. To learn the truth, Wednesday Addams accidentally befriended her polar opposite, Enid Sinclair.

It's starts off as a crack turned angst fanfic. It gets really sad and tragic per chapter. If that's your cup of tea, try it. If not, totally get it.

When I started writing this story, my goal was to lure my readers for a crack hehe haha fanfic with the most chaotic storyline and then give them most devastating heartache possible.

Wednesday was not supposed to die and Eugene was supposed to rescued her last minute. But I scraped it bc it was not entertaining enough for me.

The scene where students were ogling at Enid and them falling onto their knees was heavily inspired by what I saw in the comments when Emma drops a selfie. It almost didn’t make the cut. But I found it funny enough to keep it.

When working on Part 2, I wanted to heavily center the story with the concept of the 5 stages of grief. Where Enid would process Wednesday’s lies easier and moved on, while Wednesday would be stuck on denial but it was too complicated to heavily focus on so I changed it

The whole Tyler and Xavier being infatuated with Wednesday was to demonstrate how stupid the “love” triangle was by exaggerating it. It was also inspired by this fanart where if Wednesday was in a dating visual novel.

I actually thought of making it as a visual novel but I was caught up writing this story.

When Enid was revealed to be a Death Eater, I actually wrote a scene where she was kidnapped by her friends ( The nightshade) and they forced her to cast a patronus which might kill her. I ended up scraping it bc it got too dark

I never watched the Harry Potter movies or read the book when I completed Part I. My only qualifications was reading fanfics of Harry Potter and researching on Wikia. So if the lore is weird, yea that’s why. (I did ended up watching the movie afterward)

During the winter ball scene, I had Tyler’s dad made a whole deal and arrest Enid for the student murders during the event which she would be locked up in Azkaban. Wednesday would write letters to her so she won’t be lonely. Again, I ended up scrapping it as well.

When writing the sad and heartbreak scenes, I listened to so much Taylor Swift, Joji, Kesha and Gracie Abram. My Spotify wrapped up is screwed

Even though, I mentioned Enid being half Greek and half Irish in the author’s note in Part I. She doesn’t speak any Greek bc she doesn’t want to associate with her birth family and refuses to speak it.

The reason I choose Enid to be quite popular was that she was compensating her lonely childhood and having no family or friends growing up

I almost wrote Wednesday as a quidditch player but I scrapped it bc I rather have her as a duelist and be part of the dueling club. It just made more sense.

#fanfic #wednsday addams #enid sinclair #wenclair #ao3 #wednesday x enid #wednesday netflix

[magpiefngrl]

Hello! 7, 10 & 11 for the Behind the Scenes of Fic Writing asks? xx

Hello! Thanks for the ask <333

7. Which part of writing do you struggle with most?

Plotting, by far. Short fic isn't an issue but anything longer and more involving, and I suffer. I am a pantser, meaning I start writing and have only a vague idea of where it will all lead, and inevitably at around 40% I stumble. The opening idea sustains me for a bit but once we get to the complicated part, to where the plot thickens, I have to stop and ponder where it's all going. (and bang my head on desk/pull my hair out etc.)

Some genres and stories have been easier than others. Back when I wrote dirtynumbangelboy, I was late for my fest deadline but managed to bang the whole thing out very quickly. One of the things that helped, plotwise, was that I'd written down a list of date ideas for their fake dating on a scrap of paper that I kept beside my laptop and I looked at them when I wondered "what happens next?". Not all stories or genres are like that, unfortunately. In my original, this is what stumps the most. I stalled halfway through a 60k YA novel because I'd no idea how to proceed.

10. Do you enjoy writing dialogue, exposition, or plot the most?

I've made my feelings for plot clear above LOL. Exposition is a tough balance and not something I love writing. Dialogue, however, is one of my fave elements. I think it's one of my strong points as a writer and I do spent a lot of time revising it. I pay a lot of attention to dialogue, both as a reader and a writer. In one of my fics, I once spent two solid hours editing and revising four lines of dialogue.

11. If you could only write angst, fluff, or smut for the rest of your life, which would it be?

Ideally I'd like a bit of everything, but since the question asks to choose, then, in this hypothetical scenario, my answer would be smut. I do like angst, but I might tire writing only that.

Behind the Scenes Fic Writing Ask

#inbox #drarry #fanfic life

[callipraxia]

wouldn’t the doc have an edit history? if the computer just suddenly Stopped Working and there were no past issues, it might have auto saved! …but if you’ve already checked, then I’m sorry for the repetition. I hope you can recover it, or get the motive to write again soon ❤️

That was my hope/expectation...however, it seems that LibreOffice Writer doesn’t come with that functionality/at least didn’t use it in this case – I clicked everything that looked even vaguely promising, searched around for tips, and, alas, found nothing. Therein, I suppose, lies the crux of the dilemma I faced when choosing a word processor for the new computer: I needed something that would function offline (since Internet connectivity at my house after about 7pm is so bad that Google Docs and similar become virtually unusable, and it’s not that great during the day, either), but the options there are/seem, based on my Googling, to be limited, and the inexpensive ones even more so :(

However! This is far from the worst pickle I’ve ever been dropped in while writing. Heck, it’s not even the worst situation I’ve been in since I started writing GF fanfic, only three years ago. That situation was the time when I was working on three stories at once (early drafts of “The Earth Never Tires” and “The Player of Games” along with a third, still unpublished story, “Our Beginnings Never Know Our Ends,” which I still haven’t given up on finishing despite how it appears to be cursed in some way) and lost...everything.

All of it.

All at once.

Unusually for me, I hadn’t even written down anything on paper for the almost half-finished “Earth” at that stage, and had only ever scribbled down about half a scene for “Player,” so I had to reconstruct almost everything in them from scratch/memory. And my memory is...eh. I didn’t have the heart to even start trying for several months.* As for “Beginnings,” I did have a good bit of it written down on various scraps of paper...but then I lost those scraps of paper. Which is why I think that story may be cursed, despite my refusal to give up on it completely, even though it's now about eleven months since I finished “Earth” and about six months since I finished “Player.”

As for the story mentioned yesterday – I’m a bit put out about losing the version I had going of the first scene, which included some wordplay and allusions that I felt very clever about, but its skeleton is still written down on a paper and most of the second and third scenes were even pencilled down in some detail. So, it's not nearly as bad as what happened with the original three poem-tales, and will be much easier to recover from now that I’ve had a sleep and gotten over my headache and etc. Still appreciate the well-wishes, though! ❤️

Moral of the story is: o you who click the keys and feel your tale is close to completion/Consider Calli, who’s repeatedly been as close to finished as you. Or, in simpler terms: save after every paragraph at least. I do not care if it’s been a year since the last time you had something like this happen; the computer gremlins are always watching, and the moment that you relax and let your guard back down, they will attack again. Here’s hoping I can recall this moral myself, going forward...at least for another year.

*Admittedly, I might have gotten back in the saddle faster if I hadn’t also had the series going on at that time; “people want updates on this other thing!” was an excellent excuse for putting off making the effort to start over from nothing. I say I enjoy rewriting, but only, apparently, when there's the option of cutting and pasting bits that work from the original version; just starting back over at a blank page...not so much.

#gravity falls fic #gravity falls fanfic #writer problems #writing #fanfiction #real life #inspiration (?)

[whumpiary]

8 and 11 from the weird questions for writers?

8. If you had to write an entire story without either action or dialogue, which would you choose and how would it go?

Probably without action. In a lot of ways dialogue comes easier to me (words people say is just words! that’s easy! things people do is pictures and movements. that into words? hard.) and partially because I work in theatre and all dialogue is just a script babeyyyy!! Having said that I definitely have prices published on here with no dialogue. And none published with no action… so… hm.

My major difficulty with all dialogue no action is that I often use action to help hold the pace and tension. I often write chunks of dialogue first and then retro1fit in action to meet the pacing I want. All dialogue would make that difficult, so it would probably end up being quite a choppy high energy scene. Which I wouldn’t be against either! Just a Choice.

11. Do you believe in the old advice to “kill your darlings?” Are you a ruthless darling assassin? What happens to the darlings you murder? Do you have a darling graveyard? Do you grieve?

….yes. Killing your darlings is great advice. And I fucking hate it. It’s great advice. I hate it. I definitely have a darling graveyard. And I grieve darlings so much it often stops me writing. Sometimes I even kill a darling only to prop it up and try to keep it as a little zombie somewhere and then have to kill it a second time. It’s a whole deal.

Very pro the cryogenically freezing your darlings rhetoric too, though. That’s dope. Revive those fuckers whenever you find a new home for them. A lot of my WIPs have a scrapyard of paragraphs, descriptions, dialogue, action that either didn’t work or weren’t right for the piece. Sometimes those scraps culminate or spark into a whole new piece.

I think the hardest part of killing a darling is when you don’t have one to replace it with. So you just feel a gaping hole where the thing that wasn’t working is. And then it’s a little like an ex who treated who badly saying “baby come back, I’ll show you all the love and attention you need, I’ll help you finish the piece” and your friend (better writer brain) is going “babe he doesn’t love you” and you have to sit down and reflect on all the times he let you down and has he really done the work to change himself in the time you’ve been.. sigh. You get it.

Anyway, yeah. Kill your darlings. They might come back around to you as better men

#answered #weird writer asks

[cahouser]

v2

When Sarah said, "Just be thoughtful," as her only hint for how I should propose, I knew I had my work cut out for me—after all, being thoughtful on demand is like trying to be cool at a high school reunion: easier said than done.

First up, I thought about popping the question at Desnudo Coffee, our favorite haunt before it became the hipster headquarters it is today. Picture this: me, sneaking behind the counter to hijack the intercom. Instead of calling out "Sarah, your latte is ready," I’d blurt out "Sarah, will you marry me?" I ditched the idea when I realized a public proposal was more Broadway and less 'us'. Plus, with my luck, the espresso machine would choose that exact moment to explode.

Next, I flirted with the idea of a trip down memory lane to Mexico City, where we first tested our travel compatibility (spoiler: no one got left at a rest stop, so, success!). But the thought of a shiny ring in a bustling city felt more like a heist movie than a romantic getaway. So, scratch that.

Plan C? France! Because nothing says 'marry me' like croissants and the Eiffel Tower. But then, practicality—my constant party pooper—reminded me of our schedules.

Ultimately, I opted for something low-key yet high stakes at our own abode. I laid out a veritable feast of her favorites: blue cheese (which to me tastes like sadness feels), Marcona almonds, and a bottle of Beaujolais—our annual nod to her dad. Fleetwood Mac serenaded us from the speakers because nothing sets the mood like "Dreams" on repeat.

The big day was nearly derailed by a crisis at Sarah’s work—because why wouldn’t it be? After navigating the corporate storm, and a two-week delay, I finally set the scene while she was in the shower, hiding the ring like it was the last piece of Halloween candy.

When I went down on one knee, my rehearsed speech turned into a 'Mad Libs' edition of a proposal. Thankfully, Sarah found my verbal fumbling endearing, saying it was nice to see me lose my cool, proving I’m human after all.

We celebrated at Nomade, where the staff was in on the secret. They ushered us to a table decked out with flowers and bubbly. The hostess, Sunshine, eyed Sarah's hand like it was a celeb sighting. We feasted on Aztec salsa and guacamole fit for royalty and ended the night with a dessert that shouted "congratulations" in chocolate script.

In the end, the evening was perfectly 'us': low-key, a little goofy, and very, very full—of food and of love.

=============

v1

Sarah once told me, "Be thoughtful," when we talked about getting engaged. So, I made a plan with lots of personal touches because that's important to us both.

I first thought about proposing at Desnudo Coffee, our favorite coffee shop from before it was popular. I wanted to surprise her by asking over the intercom when they called her for her coffee. But, I worried it was too public and things could easily go wrong, like noise from the crowd or the wind.

Then, I considered a trip to Mexico City, where we had a great time early in our relationship. It felt right, but walking around with a new ring might be risky there. I also thought about a last-minute trip to France, but scrapped that idea too.

Instead, I chose to propose at home, where it was just us. I planned a special evening with a bottle of Beaujolais wine, which we drink yearly to remember her dad, and snacks she loves like blue cheese and Marcona almonds. I don’t like blue cheese, so it was a small way to show I cared about her preferences. I also set up a Fleetwood Mac playlist because we both love their music.

On the day I planned to propose, Sarah was overwhelmed with work, facing long hours and layoffs at her job. So, I postponed everything for two weeks until things settled down.

When the day finally came, I got everything ready while she was in the shower. I laid out roses, the snacks, and the wine. I played our favorite songs. Then, I proposed, and even though I stumbled over my words, she said yes. She actually liked that I was a bit nervous—it showed how much it meant to me.

We went to celebrate at Nomade, a Yucatan restaurant on South First Street. I had told them I was proposing right before our dinner, so they were ready for us. They gave us a special table with flowers and champagne. The hostess and the staff were all excited for us, and they made sure we felt celebrated. They served us a special Aztec-inspired salsa and guacamole, and ended our meal with a congratulatory dessert.

It was a night filled with simple, personal moments that meant a lot to both of us. It was just as Sarah wanted—thoughtful and full of love.

[riffaist]

innocent — riff x reader

warnings: childhood friends to lovers! taylor swift inspired imagine! riff being... riff ig. sex talk. some SLIGHT dirty talk but not much. anita's tauting scene. tried to make this a really angsty one.

i guess you really did it this time

left yourself in your war path

lost your balance on a tightrope

lost your mind trying to get it back

"riff, i don't -" y/n mumbled, feeling her body shrunken, her hands clapped together. "i don't think that's gonna be a good thing."

"well, sweetheart." the overly sweet voice made her sick to her stomach. the stern tone. seeing riff displeased was a pretty unusual thing. "we don't have that many options."

"you do have more options.." calling the rumble off was on top of her list. "but a gun? you know that tony's not gonna agree with it, and besides-"

"if tony would stop being a wuss, and came to the fucking thing," he cut her sentence in the middle. "then we wouldn't need the gun."

"you don't mean that."

"oh, i don't now?" he scoffed, slowing down once he saw they're both getting close to the location. "these sharks are sneaky as hell, y/n, and i don't want any of my boys-"

"hey! look what the cat dragged in." mouthpiece announced once the couple came infront of the bar they were supposed to get the gun from.

"the chicks should cut out, right, riff?" action confirmed, glancing sideways to velma, grazi and y/n.

"we might" the taller blonde said, crossing her arms. grazi wasn't going anywhere. "but then again we might not."

"the cops are already after us." ice took the floor. "i'm sure you don't want to be in the middle of it. it's dangerous stuff, you know?"

"we can deal with it," she replied. " 'cause we ain't stupid, and won't take shit from anyone."

some slight buzz started, between the blonde and some of the boys. y/n kept quiet, only turning her face to the side, feeling a familiar touch in one of her wrists.

"just promise me you'll go." riff said, quietly, once he pushed the girl aside, holding y/n's hands, with a serious look on his face.

"if you promise me to get the gun and go as well." she replied. holding her breath. "no funny business in the middle."

"promise." he touched his own forehead with hers. his voice merely a whisper. y/n could feel her boyfriend's shoulders tensing up. but she didn't even brought the fact up. not in a time like that.

"please, be safe." was her final whisper. interlocking arms with velma, seeing grazi storming off, hoping that the end of the day wouldn't take so bad of a turn.

wasn't it easier in your lunchbox days?

always a bigger bed to crawl into

wasn't it beautiful when you believed in everything

and everybody believed in you?

way before things started going downhill. y/n and riff had their own little story.

the little boy, who had just turned 10, lost a hide and seek game to tony, and found himself sitting at one the old school's outdoors benches. one knee completely scrapped, and the hope no one would find him there and take him away. no one, besides her.

the small girl, always dressed in lilac or blue, wearing tiny dirty sneakers with a big smile on her face, and way too big of a heart, who always gave him something for her lunchbox.

he wasn't used to the pain. not yet. but letting his tiny group of friends - the future jet boys - see him cry over some blood, was definitely not in riff's plans.

"i hope it helps" she said once the bandaid was carefully place on the wound. "i can draw a star on it if you want."

the dark haired boy kept quiet, shaking his head, making y/n nod, sitting right next to him.

"you know.. when people do good things for you, you should thank them?" she muttered, not offended by the silent, already opening up the pink lunchbox, taking half of her sandwich from there, giving it to him.

"shouldn't you be with you other girl friends?" the boy replied quietly, accepting the food, taking a big bite of it. he was starving.

"you're my friend, riff." y/n smiled, choosing to take a bite from her apple. "my favorite friend, even. i wished you were at school with me every day..."

wasn't it easier in your firefly-catching days?

when everything out of reach, someone bigger brought down to you?

wasn't it beautiful, runnin' wild till you fell asleep

before the monsters caught up to you?

"sure, y/n! good choice, huh?" the woman in the clear drunken state said a bit to loud.

"mom, please.." y/n wished she wasn't causing such a scene. being the center of attention was never her thing. "not here.."

"it's alright, darling. go hang out with riff-raff out there why don't you?"

"goodbye, mom.." y/n closed the door, and took a deep breath.

the fifteen year old girl turned around with an embarrassed smile on her face, shrugged, walking in the direction on the jet boy.

"afternoon, princess." riff said with a smirk, already grabbing one of her hands. "did mommy want to lock you up in the tower?"

"something like that, yeah.." he passed his arms around her waist, kissing her cheek. "so, where are we going today?"

"well.." he spun her around, smiling once he heard the girl's laugh, starting to walk through the moving streets. "someone told me that watching the stars was super romantic.."

"oh, shut up, riff.." y/n covered her own face with one of her hands, shaking her head. "i can't believe you remeber that.."

a flushed y/n and a smirky riff kept the calm and soft conversation while walking to the secret place the boy insisted he had prepared for them.

once the sun was completely set, both of them laying down at the hill, holding hands. the moonlight shining on the girl's face made riff shiver, and the silence was comfortable. it always was for them.

"so, tell me." he finally said, looking at her, trying to not sound so worried. he couldn't deny the fear on his tone, but tried anyway. "what is it that's been bothering you?"

the jet girl took a deep breath. eyes still focusing on the night sky ahead of both. the stars always caught her attention, and that day wasn't different.

"my mom doesn't think you're a good influence.." y/n replied, taking some seconds to continue. "it's annoying 'cause it's not like she can say something about being a good influence, you know?"

"adults are complicated as hell, princess," the boy stood up by his elbow, turning to the side. "come here."

she quietly came closer to him, letting him hug her to the side. both of her arms wrapped around her waist, carresing the place softly, until the girl fell fast asleep.

it's alright, just wait and see

your string of lights are still bright to me

oh, who you are is not what you've been

you're still an innocent

y/n's head was peacefully resting against riff's bare chest. both of their body's almost completely covered by the sheets.

her fingers interlaced with his, and the warm bodies were comfortably glued together.

"thank you for waiting for me..."

she knew seventeen year old boys had needs. she had some of her own as well. ignoring the fact all of her girl friends had already done it. y/n wanted to wait. not for the right person - she had found her right person years ago - but until she was totally ready for it.

"don't even thank me, girly girl." a kiss was left on the top of her head. "i would wait the fucking eternity for you if i had to."

"eternity huh?"

"to see you like that again?" the teasing tone came to riff's lips way to quickly, causing the girl to roll her eyes. "to have a chance to listen to that little sounds you made? i-"

"please, my love," she cut him off, laughing quietly "don't even think about ruining this for me."

"you ready for a second round now or..?" the jet boy asked with a smirk on his face, eyes focusing on every bit of her face and bare shoulders. they couldn't stop at the sight of her perfectly translucent breasts covered by the sheets.

"god, riff, shut up."

did some things you can't speak of

but at night, you live it all again

you wouldn't be shattered on the floor now

if only you had seen what you know now then.

"he was left laying there." y/n said quietly. her boy. her riff.

he died. in a way no one thought he would.

the jet girl wasn't there. not to hug him. to see him for the last time. to stare at the dark brown eyes for ten more seconds. they took him away from here without a previous warning.

she was wearing riff's blue shirt, her hands couldn't stop shaking while she held velma's ones. the tears stains on her cheeks kept getting covered by new ones.

"that's bothering me too." ice muttered.

"they didn't let you see him at the hospital, y/n/n?" balkman this time. she could swear she never saw the whole gang in such a low energy.

"no, uh-" she shook her head. "i wasn't legally his family or, anything.." the last part made her swallow a sob.

the silence wasn't comfortable this time. it was almost sick and saddening. all heads turned to the door once bernardo's girlfriend appeared. she looked as miserable as the rest of every teenager in the room.

"i have a message for your friend.. tony?" she waited. waited like her life depended on it. but all of the jets stayed quiet. "where's valentina?"

the second the sneaky comments started to appear. y/n stood up, in a failed attempt to control her breath.

"valentina! és anita!" the woman started to walk into the store, making y/n feel her heart right on her throat. "puedes subir? que tengo que.."

"spanish?" grazi stood up this time, the raspy crying voice taking the floor. "you come here speaking spanish?"

"grazi, please.."

the boys continued to talk, but the girl could swear she wasn't assimilating anything. her head was aching, and her knees were shaking. anita tried to go, but some of them got right in front of the door.

"let her pass." graziella tried one more time. "no one wants you here."

"you hear that boys?" ice said. y/n was starting to feel like throwing up. "she wants to pass."

"numbers, stop it." y/n tried to get him away from the woman, feeling herself being held up, throwing out of the pharmacy.

the next second was a blur. a fucked up blur. the girls found themselves outside doc's, in a desperate notion, hitting the door in front of them. in a miserable attempt to stop the scene of happening.

"i'm so sorry." y/n sobbed. still trying to hit the glass door. she started to realize what was going on right beside her eyes. she lost balance. it was the rumble, the fights, the deaths.

things were failing apart. little by little.

riff wasn't there. to be the one to stop it, to control it, to be their leader. she didn't have him by her side now.

her best friend, her boy.

lost your balance on a tightrope, oh

it's never too late to get it back

#riff x jet!reader #riff x reader #riff wss #west side story #gab writes #mike faist #mike faist x reader #riff

[merscylilith]

I want to talk about Sanzu Haruchiyo really fast.

(All just theories and spoilers).

Sanzu is the best hidden character. We saw him everywhere on the timescreen but we only thought he just a normal gang member. Wakui even gave a hint about Sanzu is the next boasted character that will cause a scenes

Ok, now. About he and Mucho. Sanzu known for his troublemaker with other gang. Why so? Because he heard them make fun of Toman. In here we can see how loyal he really is onto something that he want to be loyal at. And in my perspective, i dont think Mikey put Sanzu under Mucho's division just because other captain "cant" handle him. Mikey refused to kick out all his childhood friend even though they cause a lot fight. But Mikey probably saw that Sanzu more suitable for finding the moles because Sanzu disliked the traitor and it might more easier for Sanzu to do.

I dont think Mikey order him to kill Mucho. I saw a lot of this theory. Just like Sanzu said he have make a fool of Mucho since Mucho admitted that he is a traitor during the kidnapping of 1st division. Sanzu , himself choose to manipulate Mucho. He served under Mucho's division because he entrusted Mucho with Mikey's words. He did everything Mucho asked him to do was because it indirectly order from Mikey. Sanzu never follow Mucho's words but Mikeys'. We never knew what is going on inside his head.

When he said he always wanted a big bro like Mucho, maybe he said it because Mucho is the one who really close to him in 5th division. BUT once again pay attention to his word, he said "wanted to have" not "you're already like my big bro". He just fond of Mucho but will kill him if Mucho was out of his league. People tend to forget the real reason why he always involved in fight with other gang. Because other gang disrespect Toman which meant they were indirectly direspecting Mikey. Everything about him is loyal to Mikey, not anyone or Toman. Because his intention always Mikey. Manipulating is the best tricked for those hate traitor. Mucho was same as those scraps ( Sanzu's might thinking of it), that's why he took a matter of kill Mucho all by himself. I means, your captain is a traitor but then you are the vice captain, who hate the traitor the most.

He might care about Mucho during the Toman's day but after Mucho's betrayal, and the 5th division mission was "find the moles" while the captain was the mole himself, and that moment the vice president can take over the job.

The opening of Sanzu in Ch 196 was a perfect introduction of Sanzu's real capabilty character as mad dog. His loyalness always there with Mikey. When he slashed Mucho, it was show that helis character is the knight, loyal to those who loyal to him but Mikey always came first. Mucho might just his co-worker. Not gonna lie, Sanzu looks like someone who hard to get be friend with, he will judge you in every proportion or features.

Sanzu loyalness still a mystery and what he really think of Mucho after the death bodies were discovered. He even beat his sister down til fainted , but it was a small mattrr to handle a traitor for him, right.

#tokrev #tokyo revengers theories #tokyo revengers #tokyo manji gang #kantou manji gang #bonten #sanzu akashi #sanzu haruchiyo #tokyo revengers spoilers #merscylilith

[undeadgirlboy]

battle jacket guide for baby punks

battle jackets or vests are really big in the punk scene. they also look cool as fuck. one of my favorite things about them is that each person's is different and represents their own style and interests. there are a few different steps u can follow to make one

step one. acquire the jacket

when making a battle jacket it's best to get one without any stretch to the denim bc the elastic threads in stretchy denkm break down faster than regular denim and when you're sewing things on it you might get a weird puckering effect. thrift stores like goodwill or salvation army are good places to look if you have time, but in my experience they don't have a lot of jean jackets. you can probably find one at walmart in the mens section, or target. if you'd like something with a more modern edge or higher quality denim you can check outlet stores like ross and marshalls. that's where i found mine for around 20 dollars. of course if you have the money you can get a Levi's trucker jacket or somewhere else more expensive. the color of the jacket is up to you. now that you have a base layer you can move on to customization

step two. washing the jacket

one important thing to remember about battle jackets is that they're handwash/no wash so it's best to wash your jacket before you begin. you have no idea who has worn or touched it before now. just throw it in the washing machine on cold and go blast laura jane grace for a little bit. personally i run mine through the dryer but if you'd prefer to air dry make sure you lay it flat because if not it will get stretched out shoulders.

step three. dyeing or painting

this is the part where you can possibly dye or paint your jacket. i have never dyed my jacket, but you can find fabric dye at Walmart and just follow the instructions on the bottle. i decided to spray paint mine because i had some cheap black spray paint and i wanted to know what would happen. if you're going to spray paint your jacket, make sure you do it outside and let it dry thoroughly before bringing it in. i left mine for about 18 hours so that the smell was completely gone. after that you want to turn it inside out and run it through the dryer with a couple bath towels for about 30 minutes to heat set it. spray painting your jacket will make it a bit more stiff. walmart and some craft stores sell spray paint that is made for fabric, but i didn't feel like paying for those so i used what i had on hand. i know those are pretty expensive and the bottles don't have a lot in them. if you only plan to handwash your jacket or don't plan to wash it at all, regular spray paint should work fine for you.

step four. back patch

most battle jackets that i have seen have a larger central patch in the back, with smaller ones on the front and around it. it's not essential to have a back patch but i think it helps to tie the whole jacket together. you can either make a back patch yourself or buy one. the site angryyoungandpoor.com has some back patches for popular bands. some bands also have back patches on their merch stores, or you can make one yourself. i made mine out of an old against me t-shirt. i measured around the design, cut it out, and then sewed it on the back of my jacket. if you want to make your own back patch you can do so in one of several ways that i will cover in just a second

step five. embroidering patches

there are a lot of patches out there that you can buy, but most of the time it's cheaper just to make them yourself. embroidery thread is pretty cheap at walmart, and all you need is sturdy scrap fabric to make something really cool. when you're embroidery a patch it's a good idea to get an embroidery hoop to keep your fabric taut. if you don't like the color of your scrap denim you can layer a different fabric over it. i had some stretchy cotton left over from cropping a t shirt that i layered over denim to help keep it in shape. this also makes it easier when you're sewing your patch onto your jacket. i don't recommend embroidering directly onto your jacket because it's harder to manage and if you decide you don't like how it looks and you rip it out you're left with weird holes that don't look good. it's all up to you but i wouldn't recommend it.

step six. painting patches

if you'd rather just paint your patches, you can always use fabric paint or fabric pens. it's best to avoid using acrylic paint because it wears off and cracks, but i have heard you can prevent that by mixing fabric medium into it. i have painted a few patches with acrylic paint but i used a layer of mod podge over the top to protect it. acrylic painted patches CANNOT go through the washing machine.

if you'd like to copy a particular logo or image with paint and you're not good with freehand you can make a stencil for it. the way i make stencils is by printing out my design and then covering the paper front and back with masking tape. once I've done that, i use an exacto knife to cut out the lines of my design and then i'm ready to go. you can use spray paint with a stencil or you can sponge fabric paint onto the design. if you choose to use spray paint make sure you have fabric paint in that color so you can fix up any problems with the design when you're done.

step seven. attaching your patches.

sewing is one of the most tedious parts of making a battle jacket. if you don't know how to sew you can google it. a lot of people use white embroidery floss or dental floss and whip stitch around their patch. if you're attaching an iron on patch that you bought, you should stitch around it too to secure it. make sure you're using a thimble if you're going over seams of the jacket, or sewing on an iron-on patch. at first it might seem fine, if a little time consuming, but days of finger pain isn't worth it. i prefer to pin my patches before sewing them, but you do you. for larger patches i first attach it with a thread that matches the fabric before using a contrasting whip stitch. that just makes things easier for me but it's not mandatory.

step eight. adding metal

spikes, studs and safety pins are a staple of punk clothing. safety pins are easy because you can get them anywhere and just put them anywhere. i got a bunch of varying sizes from walmart and i put them on everything. just play around and see what you like. you can find studs at your local craft store, probably in the leather working section. you just have to poke two holes in the fabric, push the prongs on your stud through, and then bend them back to secure it. you can also get studs online if you need to. i bought a couple packs of screw back spikes a little while ago, and i have since been adding those to a lot of my clothing. spikes are simple to add too. you poke a hole in the fabric, push the screw through, and then screw on the spike. some people recommend adding a dot of super glue in between the spike and screw to secure it, but personally I haven't needed to do that.

another way to add metal to your jacket is with chains. you can sew them on all the day down, or leave them hanging. it just depends on what you want to do. you can get short chains from walmart, or big rolls of chain from craft stores.

step nine. finish up

that's honestly about it. any of the information here can be applied to vests too. if your jacket is really crusty and you don't want it on your skin you can always wear a hoodie underneath, especially when it's cold. battle jackets can be worn with basically anything. mine has always been my go-to jacket for any occasion. make sure it actually represents your political beliefs and bands you listen to. get ready for people to look at you weird in the grocery store. if anyone has anything to add feel free to reblog, and if you have questions my ask box is open. you can always submit a photo of your jacket to my blog because i love seeing other people's diy stuff. wear a mask, stay safe, and fuck the pigs <3

#battle jacket #punk rock #trans punk #diy #jean jacket #long post

[caernua]

omg pls do. girl help we're dying out here

THE LADIES HAVE SPOKEN 

huge disclaimer: i am barely qualified to make a tutorial, i have not actually made that many gifs using blending so i don’t know if this is the right way but! it’s giffing! there hardly is a right way and i am simply going through my process.

so i’m just gonna explain how i’m creating his gif:

1. first of all, i made the two primary gifs i was going to use for this:

^this is important. it’s so much easier to make gifs like these when you plan them out according to the scenes you intend to choose. make sure there is room for you to insert the second gif and decide what part of the gif can be covered. i chose this shot of havi cause i mostly wanted her face and her axe to be visible, her armor i can do without! so that was the section i decided to place the second gif.

2. next, i’m adding the second gif to the psd, selecting “add vector mask” below the layers menu, and resizing it, which is much easier to do if you set the opacity lower so that you can get a better idea of what it’s going to look like.

3. TIME TO ERASE! when i start to blend, the first thing i do is get rid of the hard edges. it’s honestly embarrassing how many times i’ve completed a gif like this only to realize i did not... get rid... of the hard edge. as in, the straight line from the second gif was there the whole time! so i just select the default soft brush, about 60%-70% and go in over the edges of the second gif.

4. now, this is my favorite part. the rest of the blending i prefer to do by using art brushes at low opacity (20%-30%), because it gives them a much more textured, artistic look. i use this set of free brushes and i usually don’t use the same ones, but this particular gif was made using the sampled brush 10.

5. you can definitely stop there but i didn’t! o shit let’s add another gif! i just wanted this one to be an overlay of sorts, so i just used a random scenic shot of asgard from the same scene.

6. i added it on top of the other smart objects, set it to screen and left it at 39% opacity. after this i also added the coloring. you can stop here! but i’m just gonna go across the additional steps i went through to make the final product.

6. oh no more gifs!! this is completely unnecessary, but i did not care <3 i wanted there to be some more clouds and lighting in the background (i thought it was gonna be a motiv throughout the gifset. it was not), so i downloaded footage from pexels (you can find good footage there and it’s copyright free so we can all sleep at night <3) 

7. again. i added it on top of the smart objects, set it to overlay, 100% opacity.

8. this is completely just a coloring issue and not a blending one, but i didn’t like how dark the clouds in the upper part of the gif were, so i duplicated the layer of the lightning gif, set it to normal, 100% opacity, used a hue/saturation layer to make it more blue and went in an erased most of it so only the upper part was left. i’m guessing this sounds really complicated at this point jgflgf but what i did was just take the clouds from the lightning gif to cover the top of the psd!

some other additions:

step 1 is not always necessary. planning the gifs on a certain layout is very helpful but you can blend two scenes together without organizing it this way.

remember that you can use the brush to restore the layer mask, don’t hesitate to use it if you feel like you’ve erased too much. it’s a lot of trial and error.

it helps every once in a while to check the icon of the layer mask in the layers menu.

it seems insignificant but it can help you spot hard edges or other stuff that might need to be fixed!

this really goes for giffing in general, but don’t hesitate to scrap everything and start from the beginning. if you feel there’s no way to blend two scenes successfully, scrap it and try again, maybe with different scenes, different resolutions, different blending techniques. that’s all ♡♡♡ 

#this took way longer than expected dfghdfkj g i'm sorry #ps help #there's other content creators here who make crazier shit but i hope i helped a bit ♡♡♡ #asks #eivor-basim

[cactusandfir]

somewhere west of wherever post mortem below the cut!

the good 

pacing! 

i think i finally figured out how to pace, in that, it’s all practice. i don’t think there’s anything specific i can work on other than writing a lot and slowly getting a feel for where something is moving too quickly or dragging. i know having someone beta looking specifically for that would also help, and i think i might try that in the future when i feel less scared about sharing things before they’re “done” haha

characterization (specifically dialogue)! 

i liked my dialogue in this one, i think i cold have gone a little further with dylan, but one thing i did that was fun is choose their filler words and pauses, so in this case i took from interviews that patty uses “um” while dylan uses “uh,” patty doesn’t always say the full word while dylan does pronounce his words clearly, even if he speaks too fast to really understand sometimes, so then i let dylan talk a bit more than i would most other characters, while pat would always elect to say as little as possible unless he felt it necessary i don’t know if any of that is too miniscule a detail to help, but i like that it’s in there.

also i’ve always wanted to write patty calling someone a bitch and it felt right that the someone was connor mcdavid lol

the struggle bus

ends of scenes! 

its always been easier for me to begin a scene than to end it, and i think for this one i had “how does this end??” written at the end of every scene the first round through. i know a part of it is perfectionism, so one thing i tried was that if i felt it was fine as-is and never really wanted to come back to it, i left it and i ended up keeping those endings for two scenes. it was nice not to write a bunch only to end up changing my mind and deleting it later and it saved me a lot of time so i think i’m going to keep doing that in the future.

uh, general plotting?? 

i scrapped about 3k early on in the process (that ended up over 4k by the end) because i originally was writing dylan’s girlfriend and kid into it before i realized it would take me more words than i was capable of in the amount of time we had to do justice to what i had in mind. i know i made the right choice but rip to the scene in which patty puts dylan’s kid to bed it was real cute 

i also think this might be a positive too in that it was annoying to scrap that much, but i did it early enough that i had time to rework the rest of what i had and try something different! i think sometimes i get too rigidly attached to an outline and don’t want to stray from it, so this was good practice in flexibility. 

i also scrapped an opening scene i thought was superfluous, and added an entire section of like a page and a half in the middle approximately a day before i submitted it? i think my process on this one reflected the chaos of my life at the moment, but again, i’m not sure it was all bad. even though the story i ended up with was a whole lot different than the one i set out to write, i’m really glad i stuck with it and turned it into something new.

for next time

i said last time that i wanted to do some deconstruction of other fics for certain things like pacing, but i never did whoops. so this time i have a few fics in mind i want to look at in detail for creating an atmospheric setting and also how to build tension so maybe i can write an actual plot! 

#somewhere west of wherever #patty/dylan #sunday writing update #i also wrote [redacted] words #of my hbb #i know i started a good one because i cannot stop thinking about it