#writing meta

[coyote-nebula]

To everyone who has lush fields ripe with story ideas but is struggling to go out and actually harvest them with your writer’s scythe: that’s alright. There’s a reason.

I see writers despairing or making self-deprecating jokes about how many wips they have, as if the ability to come up with the idea is equal to the ability to finish it out into an end product.

It isn’t.

A lot of our ideas come about, not because we were determined to be productive writers, but because daydreaming is an internal escape from life’s demands.

Writing is a demand, too.

Resting and relaxing are basic needs, unlike the high level, abstract satisfaction of being creatively productive. That’s why you might daydream (which is a mild and normal form of dissociation) ideas that you feel good about, and then struggle to research, write the words, fill plotholes, check grammar, revise— all the critical thinking and executive function things involved in creation. Your basic needs must be satisfied before your higher needs can be met effectively.

So, if you’re daydreaming about your stories extensively to mitigate stress, it’s expecting a lot of your stressed self to return from fantasy land, sit down in the cold hard real world and do the hard work to write masterpieces of literature. Those operations are at opposite ends of the spectrum.

Writing is hard. Making yourself feel guilty is only going to make it harder. You don’t have to atone for entertaining or distracting your mind by making that available to other people. Daydreaming is a valid end in itself.

Don’t feel bad about having ideas but not being able to write them. Scribble some notes if you can, if you want, but above all enjoy the escapism and take care of yourself first. The words will come after.

#I remind myself of this constantly #sometimes the resources you need to write with are occupied by something higher priority #self care will get you back to writing much faster than banging your head against the wall #writing meta #fic meta #writing advice #in fact this post has been a draft for forever

[luckydragon10]

Fic Writers: You Need No Justification

I've had a few noteworthy incidents recently with the way readers have chosen to engage with my fic.

First, an early TLDR: Fic writers, you are under no obligation to justify either yourself or your writing choices to your readers. Ever.

There may come a day when a commenter thinks they can say whatever they like, without any care as to how that might affect you. They might, possibly, even be hoping to get a reaction. When that happens, I want you to remember that this commenter Is not your audience. 

And you don’t have to let them walk all over you. 

Recently, a commenter chose to disagree with my characterization and relationship dynamic choices, starting with a dismissive “Naah” and saying “I don’t like this idea that…” and “I don’t like this {character}...” and “I am sad now…” and “I can’t continue.” 

And I chose to tell them to back off. Firmly. Then I got a response that really concerns me.

Name is hidden for no reason in particular. Because it’s a throwaway name anyway.

First of all, this commenter folded as soon as I showed I wouldn’t cater to them. Second, the fact that this person comments anonymously with “random names” is a dead giveaway that they know their behavior isn’t above board, and that having it traced back to them would be less than fun for them. 

I also had another commenter recently who willfully chose to ignore tags, triggered themself, and left a comment about how upset they were. Similarly, I reminded this person that they chose to read the fic and recommended they make healthier choices for their own sake. 

So once again: As a fic writer, you don’t have to cater, you don’t have to placate, and you don’t have to justify yourself.

(Note: The threads are frozen already, no need to go searching or get involved.)

#fic #writing #ao3 #writing meta #fic writing #fic writers #fanfic #fanfiction #writers #fanfic writers

[sam-glade]

Poets of Tumblr: how do you do it?

What is your process for writing a poem?

Do you plan it or do you get stuck with inspiration all of sudden and must write it down? How much do you revise and edit? Do you let it sit between revisions? How long does it take to create a poem?

(These are genuine questions from a curious fiction writer who hasn't dabbled in writing poetry)

#please reblog with your responses #poets on tumblr #writing #poetry #poetblr #poets #writing meta #writeblr

[landwriter]

i am sorry i was so close-

#i've missed searching up all these little bits!! ahh!!! #oaths #honestly there's no excuse here #like #NONE #fic writing is just a vehicle for me to justify following up on every single 'i wonder...' that flickers thru my simple brain #am but a cat chasing a laser of curiosity on a wall and if the scratches i leave are legible it's icing on the cake #also frankly local heirloom & landrace fruit varieties are rad as fuck #i am never gonna resist the urge for a deep dive on that front #some of THE biggest nerds i've ever encountered are farmers market gardeners and growers #so in my meagre defense it is a very well-established Nerd Attractant #fanfic #about me #writing meta

[deliciouskeys]

To make up for the poll that assumes everyone has maxed out their writing skills and wouldn’t wish to magically improve…

#fanfiction #fic writing #polls #ao3 #writing meta #writing #fanfic #original writing

[vavandeveresfan]

When that short story I love was rejected by pretty much everyone.

#writblr #writers on tumblr #writing community #writers of tumblr #writeblr #it always happens I sell the story I don't really care about but the one I love is rejected :-( #rejection #short story #writer life #writing life #writer #writers #writing memes #writing meta #queue

[zephrunsimperium]

Concerning Tweens In Media: A Middle School Teacher's Perspective

Ya know, I basically never read fics with the younger Pines twins.

Partially because that's just not what I enjoy for my fandom experience - Gravity Falls will always be about the Stans, Fidds, and Bill to me - but also because writing tweens is really difficult. These little buggers are WILD and I love them so much. (I am studying to be a middle school english teacher) Sometimes they can be surprisingly mature and sometimes they'll sit in the back of class making fart noises. Threading the needle of that dichtonomy is a monumental task.

But - moving outwards from the GF fandom - it's also incredibly important. I used to love to read. I still do, it's just a lot harder for me. Most of the reading I did took place in 5-8th grade, when I would just inhale books, but I distinctly remember feeling a little strange reading about characters that were so much older than me.

When you grow up, especially once you get out of high school, age starts to not matter nearly as much, but as a kid? It's a huge deal! You are literally separated by age in school. Even those just a grade older than you become monumentally Different and even untouchable just based on the fact that they're in a different grade. Clearly they know everything, clearly they're too cool to talk to. And the opposite can be true as well; I have absolutely seen older kids have a weird disdain for kids in a lower grade on principle.

So here's me at 11 years old, reading books where the main characters are significantly older than me. My favorite book series in middle school - the Mistborn trilogy by Brandon Sanderson - featured a MC who was 16 in the first book and 21 in the finale. That is a significant age gap. Of course there's nothing wrong with reading about characters of any age at any age, but I don't think I have to explain why it's good for people to see people like them in the media they consume. We as fans connect with characters we relate to. And for kiddos in grade school for whom age is so vitally important in social interactions? They deserve to be able to consume media about them.

But the dilemma: Writing tweens well is an extremely difficult task, even without considering the fact that most people really dislike tweens - I have been called crazy for wanting to teach at the middle level more times than I care to count.

I have gone into detail regarding why Gravity Falls is a really good example of tweens in media. Dipper and Mabel are, in my opinion, extremely well written and accurate portrayals of tweens. I had the delightful experience of introducing my friend's kids to Gravity Falls this summer and it absolutely warmed my heart to see her 12 year old daughter say regarding Mabel, "she's just like me!"

Kids deserve to have that experience.

#gravity falls #fandom meta #pines twins #mabel pines #zephy the english teacher #middle school #zeph #writing meta #mistborn

[curator-on-ao3]

Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/CwKwqa_u-Y0/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

#fanfic meta #writing meta #wisdom #writeblur #writing tips #you don’t make stuff for everyone #you make stuff for whomever might love it #(even if that’s only yourself)

[thana-topsy]

Hello! I hope this isn't too much of a loaded question, but do you have any general tips for writing? I'd like to give fanfic writing a shot at some point.

Not at all! I'm always happy to talk shop about writing! As far as general tips go, there are some things that I think everyone could benefit from, so I'll try to condense my opinions and suggestions into A Numbered List. (We'll limit it to 5 suggestions for now).

Read Actively I mean this in the sense of really chewing on whatever it is you're reading. Dig into the meat of That One Paragraph and look for things you enjoy, things that tickle your brain. I'll give an example from something I read recently, which is our lovely @kookaburra1701's newest story "Aristeia" "They crested the final hillock; Mor Khazgur dominated the shallow valley below. When she had been younger, Borgakh had often imagined the longhouse was a lazy cat asleep on a bright green rug, curled up against the rocks of the Druadach Mountains. When the stronghold’s goats were pastured in the glade, they played the role of mice scurrying about under the cat’s nose." I was just ENAMORED by this passage. The whimsy, the rhythm of some the repeating consonants -- stronghold's goats, glade -- and just the imagery it drummed up, reminding me of those fanciful imaginings of my own childhood. So don't just read a lot, but read actively. Read works that inspire you, authors that impress you, and subject matter that's similar to the type of stuff you want to be writing. And think about why you like the things your like, and draw that inspiration into your own writing. Imitate your heroes until you're no longer imitating and it's just how you write.

Accept Constructive Criticism This one is always a challenge in the beginning. The Ego is a powerful little devil, and it'll try to confuse you. It'll tell you that your value is tied to the words on the page. But I'm here to tell you that YOU are NOT the words on the page. Take an objective stance on your prose and your plot. Everyone starts somewhere and (hopefully) nobody ever stops learning or improving. NOTE: Notice I said constructive criticism. This does not mean you should let people tear your work into shreds in bad faith. Listen to people who want to see you improve and also find joy in the craft of writing.

Read Your Writing Out Loud This is kind of self-explanatory. You'll get a really good feel for your own rhythm and flow VERY easily this way. And you'll catch almost any mistakes right away.

Cut All Unnecessary Words This is getting into the technical side of things, but why not? One of the first books I read on the craft of writing (whose title unfortunately escapes my mind at the moment) contained this advice, and it is STILL something I struggle with. Obviously, when you have a character with a specific voice, sometimes they get flowery in their internal speech and observations. I'll use Aiden as an example: "The fort loomed over them, massive and severe. Aiden attempted to judge the architecture and found he wasn’t quite sure what race or nation could have possibly built it. Or when it was built, for that matter. Second era, perhaps? The design seemed more Breton than Nord: austere, angular, and formal. But so close to the Velothi mountains, it could have been Imperial."  I bolded words that don't actually add anything of value to the descriptions here. We lose nothing by cutting them out. But they're how Aiden thinks about the world around him. So I keep them to give shape to his internal processing. I'd say to try to write without these kinds of flavor words first, then start adding them in. Learn the rules before you break them, or break the habit before it becomes the ONLY way you write.

Write Every Day This one is tough in the beginning, but it's so crucial to becoming a better writer. WRITE. EVERY. DAY. Even if it's just 200 words, do it. Make it your little morning ritual or evening wind-down. Pick a time that's just for you and your words. Close all your tabs, put your phone on silent, and just write. Be alone with the world that you are trying to create. And soon enough, you'll find that you can't go a day without writing something. And what a joy that is.

That's my list! I hope you found these tips useful! I also recommend reading books on the craft of writing, too.

Best of luck on your journey! You have infinite possibilities before you.

#topsy's asks #writing meta #writing advice #on writing #fanfiction #fanfic meta

[curiouselleth]

Tell me more about the Raistlin is Eru fic 👀

Hi @echo-bleu!

I did a little rambling here, and I have the whole idea typed up here if you're up for reading a longer much more detailed version. The longer version has some quotes and more in-depth comparisons and such! This is also based off the ending of the Last Trial musical rather than the legends trilogy, I haven't finished it yet lol

Basically, Raistlin gets a second chance after becoming a god and destroying the world to create a new world, and creates the ainur, maiar, and so on the world of Arda is created as in the Silmarillion, but he's Eru. I got this idea when I started to see parallels between Eru's actions and Raistlins.

Raistlin!Eru's refusal to be too involved, or involved really at all in his world after it's created. His lack of action against Melkor after he entered Ea - darkness and light needed balance in his previous world. He didn't want his world to have the hurt that his last world did, but it happened so he did not act so that there could be some semblance of balance.

Then Numenor. He sees men reaching for immortality in Valinor, the land of the gods. How long until they come to want the power that the valar have, and try to become gods themselves? He reacts. He stops them, so that it is certain they can not continue... perhaps how he wished to be stopped before destroying his first world.

The fic would be about before he made the Ainur, about that process of him being there alone in the abyss and coming to accept the second chance, up to the creation of the ainur or Arda - or perhaps a little later after the music. Then some one-shots of him seeing the war in beleriand, the war of wrath, Numenor... it's still very in the concept rotating it fast as a centrifuge phase unfortunately but I will write it at some point lol

Thanks so much for the ask! If you want to find out more or see more of the details and meta the other two asks, especially the longer one, are really detailed and go into it more!

#ask #asks #raistlin is eru #raistlin majere #eru iluvatar #iluvatar #my writing #about my writing #writing meta #writing #silm fic #silmarillion fanfic #silm fanfic #silmarillion fanfiction #silmarillion fic #silmarillion #last trial musical #the last trial musical

[liminalmemories21]

Fic Writing Review

tagged by @jesuisici33. Thank you!

I have a window between baking cookies and finishing dinner, so here goes.

Fic Writing Review!

tagged by @monsterrae1 and @hippolotamus

Rules: Feel free to show whatever stats you have. Only want to show Ao3 stats? Rock on. Want to include some quantitative info instead of stats? Please do this. Want to change how yours is presented? Absolutely do that. Would rather eat glass than do this? Please don’t eat glass but don’t feel like you have to do this either.

Words and Fics

470,361 words published to ao3 okay here is the dirty secret nobody tells you about college/grad school - you spend all this time learning how to write 10/15/20/50/100 page papers, and then you graduate and at no point in time in the rest of your professional life will you write anything longer than a paragraph (unless, I guess, you become an academic). Anyway, writing is fun. It's even more fun when you don't have to turn it in for a grade or a paycheck.

1 fandom - 911: Lonestar

Most recent drop: Think It Over, Think It Under (911:Lonestar | Tarlos | T )

Longest fic: We Were in Screaming Color, 66k (911: Lonestar | Tarlos | E) sort of vaguely surprised by this. I was sure it would be a Knave-verse story (and they're close, but not quite).

Top Fics by Kudos

Top four are all from the Long Story Short collection, which was me working out my ya-yas about the way Carlos's family finds out about TK - 5+1 ways Carlos's family could have met TK, + 1 way Carlos met TK's.

Upcoming Events and Projects for 2024

I'm posting the Bus Driver AU before the end of the year, I just need a slow day somewhere to edit . . . which is, not this week or weekend. But I have the week between Christmas and New Year's off, so maybe then.

Knave 4?

tagging @lemonlyman-dotcom, @chicgeekgirl89, @carlos-in-glasses, and @ramblingdisaster73 in return.

#tarlos #911 lonestar #wip #writing meta

[neet0]

Editing a first draft like

#writer stuff #writing memes #writing meta #first drafts #shitposting

[nothingenoughao3]

Is there a dream fanfiction project you've always wanted to tackle but haven't had the chance to yet?

Actually, uh, yeah, I do! I even have an esoteric title!

The dream project is called "a wonder and a terror", in reference to Keanu Reeve's answer for how it feels to grow old. I want to go back and revisit most of the worlds I used to visit in fanfic. That would include Final Fantasy 7, Sorcerer Hunters, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Hellsing, Slayers, Gensoumaden Saiyuki, Gundam Wing, Cowboy Bebop, Evangelion, Trigun, Gargoyles, and Generation X--aaaaaaaaall stuff I once obsessed over.

The thing is, I was writing/reading fic for those works when I was a teenager. And most of these works also feature teenagers, or very young adults. In a lot of cases, these shows are literally about child soldiers, or extremely young/inexperienced adults being forced to take on The Good Of The World.

The theme I'd take on in all these fics will be threefold:

What happens to child soldiers when the war ends and they grow up?

What happens to folks who thought they'd die on the battlefield who live long enough to experience aging?

What happens to characters who became powerful/famous under one gender identity who try to transition?

In addition to flipping characters' genders or their cis status, I plan on doing a LOT related to characters having chronic disabilities, physical as well as mental. And there will be a lot of shipping, many of it for ships I never explicitly wrote for in the past. (Specifically, I'm very glad that Barret/Cloud's time has come 'round at last.)

Some fics are already released on my account. "Entering King" is where I introduce the idea of trans man!Sanzo, which ties into some of the stuff I wanted to do for the Gensoumaden Saiyuki fics. My Gen X work is going to take place in the same canon already established here. Not a lot has been completed yet, but I do hold out hope that I'll get there!

#fanfic #fanfiction #ao3fic #ao3 author #ao3 fanfic #ao3 writer #fanfic writing #writing meta #final fantasy vii #sorcerer hunters #revolutionary girl utena #hellsing #slayers #gensoumaden saiyuki #gundam wing #cowboy bebop #neon genesis evangelion #generation x #x men comics #gargoyles #trigun #trigun 1998 #spoilers: everyone is trans and half of them have crippling disabilities #there will be blood and also caretaking #nothingenough speaks

[craycraybluejay]

Also I'd like to say that while I do indeed put messages in my writing sometimes,,

When I write for example a noncon fic with a message in it, the message is not generally "rape good"

It's usually something more like "sometimes the people you love are bad people and the call is coming from inside the home" or "sometimes things that are objectively unhealthy don't act that way in the psyche or body of a person who is otherwise sick (for example if someone uses a harmful coping skill to restrict themselves from subjecting themselves or others to worse harms. or if someone eats a lot of unhealthy food because they need to gain weight even though unhealthy food is bad for you.)" or "trauma isn't your fault but the way you behave very much is your responsibility" or something controversial even like "occasionally we knowingly allow other people or our own selves to hurt us because we may feel we deserve it/feel like it's a better alternative to something else/don't know how to ask for help/etc." or "good intentions does not always mean good results"

So basically yeah not all my work has a core message other than "have fun reading this" but when it does have a message it's usually not as simple as endorsement or criticism of Thing. mostly writing is about the experience of existing and the experience of existing is unfortunately not so simple as to quantify everything and everyone into boxes of bad and good. and also not every story is about quantifying bad or good at all and really is just for fun or just to explore an idea. i'm not a politician, nor do i want to be. i'm not a public figure, the leader of any group, or anything like that. what i am, all i am arguably, is a writer.

and i'm thinking maybe it's not "deviancy" and "offensiveness" and "immorality" and "degneracy" people hate but rather literacy and writers themselves. there was nothing more freeing and thought-stimulating as a small child for me than reading a book by an author that you can tell isn't afraid to write. an author that uses "confusing" terms or "offensive" language or talks about "controversial" ideas. an author that tells their story as closely as they can to how they meant to tell it. that is my legacy. not children, not fame or money, not even activism. my legacy is to be like those writers i looked up to all my life and never give up on telling stories how i want to tell them even when it's scary, even when people are cruel and even when our government decrees transsexuality and queer stories a punishable crime. even if the world tries to replace me and every other writer like me. my legacy is to be brave enough to tell stories. and bravery is not the lack of fear-- but rather the conscious decision and effort to laugh in the face of fear and terror, to continue to do you when others want to do you in for it.

if you are a writer: your craft MATTERS. your ideas MATTER. your skill, practice, talent, and passion MATTERS. do NOT give up. do NOT give in to the demands of illiterate people that would have others burn for less. be BRAVE. but most importantly: tell your damn STORY.

#writerblr #writers on tumblr #authors on tumblr #writing #writing meta #personal #ask to tag #rambles #anti censorship #mentions of noncon

[deliciouskeys]

Posting about writer's block usually relieves it. Will the same work for analysis paralysis?

Do you ever have a moment where you've written thousands of words and then look back and think "Wait, what the hell am I even trying to convey here? Why do these events/conversations matter?"

Chapter stretching on and I cannot get to the part that I think is the actual crux of the story and I'm not sure what's going on. I personally always aspire to write in a way where no paragraph feels extraneous (reader mileage may vary lol), but did I just write thousands of unnecessary words?

Time to go to sleep, look at it again tomorrow, and remove >50% of it.

#this sounds like I'm writing some high art literary novel lol #and i most certainly am not #but still i think there's some kind of level of quality you should strive for before posting publicly #writing meta #writer's block #analysis paralysis

[abyssalaerlocke]

Writing Patterns

No one tagged me, just saw @chronurgy's and thought it seemed interesting.

Tagging @ollysoxisfree and @transgortash if you want, or anyone else interested

Rules: list the first line(s) of your last 10 posted fics and see if there's a pattern! (Only doing mine from the last year)

Most of these are porn, but the explicit first-line will be at the end, under the cut, so I'll put observations up here.

Not very consistent. I mean, generally trying to set the scene, sometimes context, but that might be with an action, dialogue, visual/sensory information, mental state... And I'm happy with that.

When I noticed it I had an instinct it might mean I'm an unconfident writer, still settling into my writing style, who hasn't figured out what works yet.

But these are all valid opening styles — writing guides won't tell you there's one way to do it. I try to go with something that fits what I'm writing.

Obviously with the last one, I ended up starting with them already into it, but it's the 3rd one-shot in the series — the "action" is the focus of it, and relationships had been introduced in the first two parts. It does get into the emotional states, characterisation, relationship dynamics, but it's just not at the front.

All of these have a transmasc character or gender neutral AFAB reader (last shapeshifts into Astarion), if you're interested.

FWB (Friends with Beets)

Gortash kept an eye out as Durge scaled the wall, claws gripping between stones before shoving the window open and climbing inside.

Throne (DTDT)

You sat sprawled across Astarion's lap, laid bare but for your Netherstone-studded circlet, with your crossed legs propped over the arm of the throne.

A Willing Sacrifice

Astarion opened the door, inviting you in with a flourish as you reached the top of the tower.

The Ambitious Wizard (DTDT)

"You're really here…" The man's voice resonated unnaturally in the Steel Watcher's mechanical body, but he seemed… cautiously hopeful.

The Vampire Lord (DTDT)

You didn't know what you expected when you finally reached Moonrise.

Learning to Breathe (longer fic. Not porn, but still at least mature)

“Morning, Quaritch.” Quaritch greeted his team as he came downstairs, stripping his clothes off and setting them on the dresser.

NSFW under the cut — keep in mind if reblogging

Mirror (DTDT)

You panted, squirming under Astarion's weight as Gale's fingers slid in and out of your ass — well beyond stretching you open at this point, just an agonisingly slow tease.

#writing meta #my fic writing #astarion #gale dekarios #dark urge #enver gortash #recom quaritch #miles spider socorro