Writing Advice - Blog Posts

How would you indicate/punctuate a message/conversation in sign languague while making a difference between normal diologue?

So far I have been using

*BlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBla*: for the just sign languague transcription;

["BlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBla" Narration]: for when there's speaking interactions of which the non-hearing character is not aware of or there's just no translation for them;

"*BlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBla*": for when a character signs and speaks at the same time;

"BlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBlaBla" Hey! Someone else is singning and the diologue it's just the translation: For when someone is translating to someone who doesn't know signs, but is clear they're just tranlators

*BlaBla,BlaBla,BlaBla,BlaBla*// *BlaBla;BlaBla;BlaBla;BlaBla*// *BlaBla.BlaBla.BlaBla.BlaBla*: To indicate the physical pause between signs for someone who's not used to signing

And the usual, *B-L-A-B-L-A-B-L-A*: for finger spelling, but If there's a diologue translation I'll just put the normal word.

I really want to integrate sign languague in my stories correctly, but remarking the difference between the communication methods in a graphical way. Any thoughts or suggestions?

The Ultimate Creative Writing Resource List

After writing for quite nearly my entire literate life ~and~ getting a creative writing degree, I've put together a comprehensive list of the sites and blogs that I've found most useful! Check it out, we've got—

An Insanely Detailed Character Creation Sheet: use this page to learn everything you've ever wanted to know about your character and more. It never fails to make me consider something about them I wouldn't have thought of otherwise.

A Character Avatar Creator: if you know what your character looks like and want a visual of them for notes/cork boards/Google Docs, this site will let you personalize them almost as much as a Sims game.

Pinterest: if you don't know what your character looks like and need inspiration, search for pictures of people who inspire you. Definitely have done this more often than not because I can never seem to pin down (pun intended) my character's exact appearance. Really helps with things you might forget while writing, like the shape of their eyebrows, how their hair lays or even how they stand.

A Map Creation Website: it's meant for fantasy worlds but I've used it for my historical fiction novels! Super customizable even without paying for it. It also saves your work in the free version, which has saved me when I forgot to upload copies to where I keep all my story stuff.

Grammar Girl: have any questions about where to put that semicolon or when to use italics? Grammar Girl is literally used by English teachers because it's that accurate. Check your work or put as many commas in that manuscript as your heart tells you to anyway. I've done both!

Grammarly: this is another way to check your grammar, especially if you use the Chrome extension. It automatically checks your basic grammar, spelling, and readability while you type in Google Docs or another browser-based text document. Note that it isn't foolproof and sometimes will suggest things that don't make sense. Use your best judgement when it highlights things!

Word Hippo: do you feel like you've used one word too often in your story? I use Word Hippo daily for both my creative and professional writing to avoid repetition. When I can't think of a synonym or antonym on my own, it has a billion suggestions for adjectives, verbs, nouns, etc. It can even help you find words that rhyme! Make your character a poet. Nothing can stop you.

Text-to-Speech Reader: it's always easier to catch minor line errors when you read something out loud, but if you don't feel like doing that, this site will read your story for you. There are multiple voices to choose from, so have fun listening to your hard-won stories while you edit.

Background Noise—Coffee Shop: I always lose myself in stories when I have this video playing in the background. It's like I'm in a coffee shop or cozy restaurant booth, but without spending money.

Background Noise—Tavern Fireplace: same vibes as a coffee shop, but with fireplace crackling.

Background Noise—Rain Shower: listen to rain patter against your window with some thunder in the background.

Background Noise—Cozy Fireplace and Rain Shower: combine your favorite sounds in this extra long video of a wood-burning fireplace and a distance rain shower. Perfect for anyone who doesn't want to hear extra loud thunder.

Background Noise—Forest Sounds: is your story taking place outdoors? These sounds will make you feel like you're in the woods with your characters.

Background Noise—Blizzard Sounds: constant blizzard winds may easily make you feel removed from the world so you can focus on your work.

Background Noise—Interior Plane Cabin White Noise: the pleasant hum of a plane cabin is what I often write to. There are no loud take-off, landing, or passenger sounds either.

Background Noise—Christmas Music From Another Room: I found this video when quarantining for Christmas with my husband in 2020. It ended up being one of my favorite writing background videos of that year. It features lyric-less songs on vinyl, plus muffled talking, which was a definite perk for the year+ we spent inside.

Background Noise—Lo-Fi: when I'm not sure what I want to write to, I use this playlist. It has the perfect low-key beats for writing less-intense scenes or working on plot, characters, mapping, etc.

Tumblrs With Fantastic Writing Tips: I have a few favorite tumblrs I loooooove and have followed on various blogs for many years. They regularly answer submitted questions and have organized tags, so if you're wondering about something, you'll likely find an answer by searching their blogs! Check out @fixyourwritinghabits @heywriters @wordsnstuff for expert-level help, guidance, and inspiration.

Tumblrs With Writing Prompts: while there are many prompt websites and blogs, my favorite prompt tumblrs are @daily-prompts and @creativepromptsforwriting for their variety and creativity!

Other resources...

Goodreads: consistently reading is part of exercising that creative muscle in your brain. Goodreads will help you keep track of everything you've read, are reading, and want to read. Find your next inspiration and the latest updates on what's coming out soon from your favorite authors.

Poets & Writers Contests: this site is always posting the latest creative writing contests for all genres. It also has free submissions, so don't worry if you can't afford entry fees for now.

The Writer: you'll also find great contests (both free and paid) at The Writer. Explore their site to discover other great resources too, like writing getaways and publishing tips.

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Enjoy and I hope this helps! Feel free to reblog and add other resources that you use for your writing. I'd love to find more!

Writing Help

So I started thinking and conceptualizing a book in June this year, but I only started writing it this November.

Should I place it as;

Started: June 2021 or Started: November 2021

???

IM SORRY WHAT

im literally a woman and I didn't pick up half of these mannerisms n things omg

well new writing guide is here guys

Ways I Write a Woman...

➤ Who’s Tired of Being Talked Over

You ever watch someone hold in a scream behind their teeth? That’s her, constantly.

✧ She starts choosing her words like landmines. Each one is sharp, controlled, and timed like a threat. She’s learned that being polite won’t get her listened to, but sounding like you might flip a table will. ✧ She’s mastered the art of the silence that feels loud. Doesn’t fill awkward gaps. Just lets the discomfort sit in the air like smoke. ✧ She explains things with forced calm, the kind that sounds like a teacher asking a second-grade class why the hamster is missing. ✧  She notices interruptions like bruises. She doesn’t react to them anymore, not out loud. But you can bet she counts them. ✧ She repeats herself less. Not because they understood her the first time. Because they never listened anyway. ✧ She’s learned how to weaponize eye contact. Not in a sexy way. In a “I will set this boardroom on fire with my mind” way. ✧ Her voice only shakes when she’s deciding if it’s worth the explosion.

➤ Who’s Been Called ‘Too Much’ Her Whole Life

She isn’t too much. She’s just tired of shrinking for people who were never going to make room anyway.

✧ She says the thing you’re not supposed to say. Then stares at you to see what you’ll do with it. ✧ She’s loud with her laugh, loud with her grief, loud with her love, because if she’s going to be punished for being “extra,” she might as well be honest about it. ✧ She over-explains. Over-apologizes. Then catches herself and stops halfway through the sentence. ✧  She tries to “tone it down” and ends up sounding like a censored version of herself, bland, miserable, unfinished. ✧ She edits her texts four times, deletes the paragraph, sends “haha ok :)” instead. ✧ She keeps her hands busy because otherwise they’d be doing something reckless. ✧  She overcompensates with sarcasm and then goes home and wonders if everyone hates her. ✧  She’s loved fiercely. Regretted it more fiercely. ✧  She walks into a room like she owns it, and then spends the entire time wondering if she should have stayed home.

➤ Who Wants to Be Soft but Doesn’t Feel Safe

She's gentle, but that gentleness lives under twenty layers of armor. And most people never even get past the first. ✧  She’s careful with her compliments, she knows how people weaponize kindness. ✧  She keeps her vulnerability behind locked doors and guards them with jokes, sarcasm, and “I’m just tired.” ✧ She’ll comfort others like she was born to do it, but flinch if someone offers her the same. ✧ She avoids mirrors on bad days. Eye contact on good ones. ✧ She cries where no one can see. Car bathrooms. Locked bedrooms. Grocery store parking lots at night. ✧ She doesn’t ask for help. Not because she doesn’t need it, but because the last time she did, it came with a price. ✧ She’s soft with animals, with children, with strangers, but not herself. Never herself. ✧ She daydreams about being taken care of, then immediately gets mad at herself for wanting something so “weak.” ✧ She wants love, but she’s terrified of being known. Because if someone really saw her? What if they didn’t stay?

And if you’re sitting there reading all of that thinking, “God, I don’t even know how to write women like this…” Please know: you’re not alone. Like, really not alone.

Writing female characters in a way that feels true, nuanced, and unapologetically real isn’t just about avoiding clichés. It’s about unlearning everything you were taught about what women are “supposed” to be on the page. It’s about getting underneath the polish. Past the performative strength. Past the “she’s not like other girls” and the “strong but broken” tropes. Past the idea that softness is weakness and rage is unlikable.

So many people struggle with this, not because they don’t care, but because no one ever really taught them how to see women as people first.

A lot of us grew up reading female characters written through a lens that flattened us. Made us background noise, love interests, plot devices, or emotionally bulletproof when we weren’t emotionally unstable. It’s no wonder we’re all trying to figure out how to do better now. I write a Book about How to Write Women that feel Alive... For you.

In the chapters ahead, we’re going to unravel that mess, together (Promise). We’ll talk about...

❥ Tropes — the ones worth reclaiming, and the ones you can toss into the fire. ❥ The psychology of a woman — how conditioning, survival, identity, and inner conflict shape her from the inside out. ❥ Female vs. male conflict — not in a “boys suck” way, but in a “our emotional battlegrounds are different and that matters” way. ❥ Expectations — society’s, her own, and how characters shrink or shatter under them. ❥ Emotions as strength — especially the ones she was taught to hide: fear, grief, longing, joy, rage. ❥ Female anger — what happens when she finally stops holding it in. ❥ Archetypes — and how to subvert them without erasing the truths they come from. ❥ Female friendships — no more cardboard “bestie” side characters. ❥ Romantic relationships — what it means when she’s finally seen. Chosen. Or rejected. ❥Mothers, daughters, and sisters — because female relationships deserve more than being backstory. ❥ Dialogue — how she speaks when she’s safe vs. when she’s scared. ❥ Inner conflict and development — her arc isn’t about fixing her. It’s about letting her evolve. ❥ Writing exercises — to help you get past the noise and write from a place that feels real. ❥ A full checklist for writing female OCs — layered, powerful, contradictory, alive.

📖 Get your Paperback now! (Here On Amazon!)

This isn’t a rulebook. It’s a guide. A toolbox. A comfort blanket. A callout. A reminder that writing women doesn’t have to feel impossible, you just have to be willing to look a little deeper.

So if you’ve ever felt stuck writing a female character… If you’ve defaulted to tropes because you didn’t know how else to make her “interesting”… If you’ve erased her emotions to make her “strong”… Or if you’ve stared at the page wondering why she still doesn’t feel real...This book is for you.

And I promise, by the time you reach the last chapter? You’ll not only know how to write her. You’ll understand her. And maybe even see a little of yourself in the process.

Love u All!!🖤

colors in writing

black — black, shadow, jet black, ebony, crow, charcoal, coal, oil, raven, ink, onyx, soot, pitch black, obsidian, midnight

brown — brown, mocha, peanut, coffee, dirt, cedar, cinnamon, chocolate, brunette, pecan, wood, fudge, grizzly bear

red — red, blood, wine, cherry, apple, brick, crimson, ruby, scarlet, strawberry, maroon, rose

orange — orange, tangerine, fire, tiger, carrot, apricot, marmalade, citrus, pumpkin, basketball orange, ginger, deep saffron

yellow — yellow, blonde, blond, pineapple, butter, lemon, mustard, banana, corn, honey, gold

green — green, sage, lime, chartreuse, grass, fern, leaf or leafy, basil, pear, clover, green apple,

blue — blue, cobalt, sky, lapis, blueberry, azure, diamond, navy, royal blue, denim, cornflower blue, lobelia blue, river, ocean, lake, pool blue, sonic

indigo —indigo, deep indigo, royal indigo,

purple — amethyst, lilac, periwinkle, orchid, grape, hyacinth

violet — violet, french violet, pure violet

pink — pink, rose, salmon, fuschia, hot pink, bubblegum pink, cotton candy pink

white — white, feather, paper, bone, snow, pearl, eggshell, cloud, dove

words on trees, bushes, rural regions, and forests for your writing

thicket — a dense group of bushes or trees

grove — a small wood, orchard, or group of trees

underbrush — shrubs and small trees forming the undergrowth in a forest

undergrowth — a dense growth of shrubs and other plants, especially under trees in woodland

canebrake — a piece of ground covered with a dense growth of canes

chaparral — vegetation consisting chiefly of tangled shrubs and thorny bushes

woodland — land covered with trees

coppice — an area of woodland in which the trees or shrubsare, or formerly were, periodically cut back to ground level to stimulate growth and provide firewood or timber

hurst — a wood or wooded rise or hillock

hillock — a small hill or mound

copse — a small group of trees

bower — a pleasant shady place under trees or climbing plants in a garden or wood

deciduous — (of a tree or shrub) shedding its leaves annually

coniferous — conifers are a group of cone-bearing, woody seed plants. they are most diverse in warmer areas like tropical mountains, and are also found in the wild regions of canada and russia

bosk or bosque — a thicket of bushes; a small wood

woodlot — a woodlot is a parcel of woodland or forest, typically small in size, that is capable of supporting small-scale production of forest products

pine — an evergreen coniferous tree that has clusters of long needle-shaped leaves. many kinds are grown for their soft timber, which is widely used for furniture and pulp, or for tar and turpentine

oak — a tree that bears acorns as fruit, and typically has lobed deciduous leaves. oaks are common in many north temperate forests and are an important source of hard and durable wood used chiefly in construction, furniture, and, formerly, shipbuilding

birch — a slender, fast-growing tree that has thin bark, often peeling, and bears catkins. birch trees grow chiefly in north temperate regions, some reaching the northern limit of tree growth

mahogany — hard reddish-brown timber from a tropical tree, used for high-quality furniture

hinterland — the often uncharted areas beyond a coastal district or a river's banks

willow — salix, also known as willows, osiers, and sallows, is a genus of around 350 species of shrubs and trees that are usually deciduous. they are primarily found in temperate and cold regions on moist soils. the white willow is the largest species, with mature trees growing up to 25 meters tall

redwood — sequoioideae, also known as redwoods, are a subfamily of coniferous trees in the cupressaceae family. they are the tallest trees in the world and can live for thousands of years

elm — ulmus, or elms, are a genus of deciduous and semi-deciduous trees found across most of the northern hemisphere. they are known for their broad shade and vase-like shape

magnolia — a tree or shrub with large, typically creamy-pink, waxyflowers. magnolias are widely grown as ornamental trees

greenwood — a wood or forest in leaf (regarded as the typical scene of medieval outlaw life)

boskage — massed trees or shrubs

countryside — the land and scenery of a rural area

country — districts, areas, and small settlements outside large towns, cities, or the capital

backwoods — remote uncleared forest land

outskirts — the outer parts of a town or city

wildwood — an uncultivated wood or forest that has been allowed to grow naturally

sticks — an area in the country that is far away from towns and cities

body language to use in your writing

he furrowed his eyebrows — in confusion or concentration

he raised his eyebrows — in surprise or skepticism

he narrowed his eyes — in suspicion or annoyance

he bit or pressed his lips together — in hesitation

his lips parted slightly — in shock or anticipation

he clenched his jaw — in frustration or determination

he tilted his head — in curiosity or disbelief

he wrinkled his nose — in disgust or disapproval

he rolled his eyes — in exasperation

he puffed his cheeks — in frustration or exhaustion

eye movements:

his eyes darted around — nervously

he avoided eye contact — out of guilt or shyness

he held eye contact — in defiance or intensity

he squinted slightly — in scrutiny

he looked down — in shame or submission

he glanced away quickly — in embarrassment

he stared blankly — in shock or dissociation

he blinked rapidly — in disbelief or surprise

his eyes widened — in fear or astonishment

he peeked through his fingers — when scared or hesitant

head movements:

he nodded slowly — in understanding or agreement

he shook his head — in disagreement or disbelief

he tilted his head — playfully or teasingly

he bowed his head slightly — in respect or submission

he tossed his head back — in confidence or defiance

he ducked his head — in embarrassment or shyness

he rested his chin in his hand — while thinking or bored

he jerked his head toward a sound — in alertness

he rolled his neck — to release tension

he tipped his chin up — in defiance or arrogance

hand movements:

he clenched his fists — in anger or determination

he ran his hands through his hair — in frustration or stress

he wringed his hands — in nervousness

he drummed his fingers on a surface — in impatience

he pointed — accusingly or demandingly

he pressed his palms against a surface — in desperation

he tugged at his sleeves or hem — in nervousness

he threw his hands up — in exasperation or surrender

he rubbed his temples — in frustration or exhaustion

he covered his mouth — in shock or horror

arm and shoulder movements:

he crossed his arms — in defensiveness or annoyance

he wrapped his arms around himself — for comfort

he shrugged — in uncertainty or indifference

he threw his arms out — in excitement or exasperation

he linked arms with her — for comfort or closeness

he rubbed his arms — to self-soothe or ward off cold

he flailed his arms wildly — in panic or excitement

he stretched his arms above his head — in relaxation or boredom

he held his arms behind his back — in restraint or formality

he used exaggerated arm gestures — when talking passionately

leg and foot movements:

he tapped his foot — impatiently

he crossed his legs — to appear closed off or comfortable

he bounced his knee — in nervousness or excitement

he kicked at the ground — absentmindedly

he shuffled his feet — in hesitation or guilt

he stood on his tiptoes — to see something or seem taller

he turned his toes inward — in insecurity or shyness

he stomped his foot — in frustration or excitement

he swung his legs — in a carefree manner

he stepped back instinctively — in fear or uncertainty

posture and general movement:

he stood tall with his shoulders squared — in confidence

he slouched — in defeat or boredom

he leaned in — engaged or interested

he leaned away — in discomfort or disinterest

he puffed out his chest — in arrogance or bravado

he shrunk into himself — in anxiety or fear

he rocked back and forth — in nervousness or impatience

he swiveled his body away slightly — in disengagement

he walked stiffly — in discomfort or tension

her hips swayed confidently while she walked

microexpressions:

a smile briefly flickered across his face

his eye twitched a single time — in irritation

he swallowed hard — when nervous or emotional

he slightly shuddered — in disgust or fear

he bit the inside of his cheek — in thought or frustration

he quickly inhaled — taken aback

he exhaled shakily after holding his breath too long

he clutched his shirt tightly — in anxiety

he tilted his head down slightly while still looking up (puppy dog eyes)

there was a fleeting look of longing in his eyes before he looked away

scents and smells to use in your writing

sandalwood — think intoxicating, slightly masculine (if you want it to be), wood-y,

fresh laundry — think febreeze, freshly cleaned clothes, cleaning wipes, that kinda thing

cinammon — think cinnamon rolls, desserts, sugar, sweetness

vanilla — sweet and soft. it’s a classic and i feel it’s almost feminine because it’s in a lot of perfumes but it can be for anyone

sea salt — think sand on your feet, sea in your lungs, maybe a few seagulls cawing. a very beach-y smell

chlorine — think of pools, summer, theme parks with water slides. it’s not the most appealing smell but it certainly is a smell

strawberry — when i think of strawberries, i think of strawberry picking when i was little and kind of the taste of the strawberries themselves. as for the ice cream or perfume kinda strawberry, it’s a fun and sweet smell

chocolate — think hot chocolate, a hershey’s kiss, that hint of chocolate in your coffee creamer. it’s warm and cozy

coconut — think tropical, beachy, refreshing. when most people see coconuts they see “exotic”

banana — think banana sundae, banana smoothie, fruit-y smell, laffy taffy, that kinda thing

apple — think apple trees, apple jam, apple pie, that kinda sweet crisp smell

pine — think of a damp, dirty forest with towering trees and leaves gracing its floor. maybe a deer or two is nearby. it’s a forest smell basically

metallic — think of blood, wet copper or iron, etc.

dirt/earth — think the smell of dirt, grass, trees. the general smell of nature

rose — think romantic, date night, mysterious, alluring. roses are most commonly associated with life and affection, at least in american culture

sweat — think intense workout, maybe tangy, smoky, etc. just sweat

mint — think of waking up bright and early, toothpaste, doctor’s offices, etc. mint really speaks as fresh to me

damp, wet, wet dog — think of moist places, like a really old pool or something akin to that

dew — think early morning and mist in the air. can be associated with spring as well

musk — think of a scent similar to sweat, but the aftermath. not just pure sweat everywhere, but the scent about an hour after you work out. it smells different for everyone though

smoke — think of that scent you smell when a fireplace turns off, wood stops burning, or when you overcook something

spicy — think of ginger, paprika, spices in general. it’s a kind of fun and daring smell

toasty, warming — this can be anything warm you want: hot cocoa, warm blankets, turning the heater on, summer, fireplace flames

floral — this can be any flower you want it to be. spring is full of it, it is the embodiment of a bouquet, and is the scent you smell when you “stop to smell the flowers”

a list of buildings and structures to use in your writing

hospital

police station

school

fire watch tower

observatory

apartment complex

gas station

city hall

coffee shop

bakery

firefighter station

car dealership

college

high school

elementary school

middle school

university

park

research center

animal shelter

camp/wilderness camp

casino

blacksmith

bank

barber

armory

aquarium

dentist

general store

gunsmith/gun store

doctor’s office/medical store/medicinal supply store

jail

library

museum

farm

food store, like a pizza shop or ice cream store

stationary food truck

vacant lot

skate park

country club(s)

tennis court(s)

basketball court(s)

pool

warehouse

fast food restaurant

twenty phrases for writing facial expressions

his brows knitted together

her lips pulled into a smile

the corners of her lips quirked up into a smile/smirk

her face twitched

a line formed between his brows

a look of happiness engulfed him

a look of sadness washed over him

his face contorted into a frown

his eyes drooped at that, and his lips pulled themselves into a frown

she raised a brow

she cocked an eyebrow

her brows furrowed

her eyes narrowed

her eyebrows shot up

his brows were tightly drawn together

alternatively, his brows were drawn together tightly

her entire face dropped

her smile fell

his eyes glittered with [any emotion]

his eyebrows pinched together

words to use instead of “said”

normal:

— stated

— spoke

— remarked

— reported

— added

questioning:

— asked

— inquired

— requested

— begged

angrily:

— demanded

— shouted

— growled

— yelled

sad:

— sobbed

— cried

— groaned

— bawled

nervous:

— trembled

— quaked

— stammered/stuttered

happy:

— exclaimed

— chirped

— laughed

— giggled

here have 10 pieces of writing advice that have stuck with me over the years

every character’s first line should be an introduction to who they are as a person

even if you only wrote one sentence on a really bad day, that’s still one sentence more than you had yesterday

exercise restraint when using swear words and extra punctuation in order for them to pack a punch when you do use them

if your characters have to kiss to show they’re in love, then they’re not in love

make every scene interesting (or make every scene your favorite scene), otherwise your readers will be just as bored as you

if you’re stuck on a scene, delete the last line you wrote and go in a different direction, or leave in brackets as placeholders

don’t compare your first draft to published books that could be anywhere from 3rd to 103rd drafts

i promise you the story you want to tell can fit into 100k words or less

sometimes the book isn’t working because it’s not ready to be written or you’re not ready to write it yet; let it marinate for a bit so the idea can develop as you become a better writer

a story written in chronological order takes a lot more discipline and is usually easier to understand than a story written with flashbacks

i am overcome with the urge to deal out unsolicited writing advice

How to Write During a Pandemic

Hi all, Normally I keep this blog focused on writing advice and steer away from politics, but with the COVID-19 pandemic raging and all the accompanying uncertainty about our future post-climate change, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to be a writer on a rapidly changing planet. What’s our responsibility in a time like this? What kind of stories do we need right now? Is it even possible—or desirable—for our individual creativity flourish when we’re scared for our very lives? With that in mind, I wanted to offer my thoughts on how to renegotiate your relationship with your writing during this crisis, as well as some proposals for how to navigate the changes to come.

WHY IT’S HARD TO WRITE RIGHT NOW

Did you think being stuck at home, underemployed, and/or socially isolated would translate to more time spent on your writing… Only to discover, um, it didn’t? You’re not alone. While shutdowns, quarantine, and self isolation may be theoretically creating conditions that give you lots of time to write, many writers are more blocked than ever right now. Here’s why.

You’re Terrified. Even in the best of circumstances, writers under capitalism are regularly paralyzed by the fear that spending time on their writing is “unproductive” (read: non-income producing), frivolous, or even reckless. So it makes sense that it would be difficult to put time into a purely recreational creative activity given the heightened survival fears arising from these extreme circumstances.

Your Stories Suddenly Seem Irrelevant. Even if you can get yourself to sit down and write right now, crisis conditions can create an existential angst that causes you to question whether what you’re writing is still relevant, important, or helpful to others. Personally, I haven’t been able to write in days. Prior to this outbreak I was working on a darkly whimsical fairy tale about a monkey and a bear that escape from the circus. I thought it was relevant and deep—the story deals with themes of feminism, transformation, and survival under capitalism. But under the bright light of a viral pandemic, stories that once seemed deeply significant can suddenly feel like irrelevant fluff.

You Don’t Know How to Do Anything Different. Let’s face it—your pre-pandemic writing life was created to work well with your pre-pandemic life life. Now that your life has changed, you need to change your writing habits, too… But you don’t know how to do anything different. So you either freeze up and get nothing done, or try to ignore what’s happening and charge ahead like nothing has changed. Neither of these techniques work well, though. Now that your life is different, you need to do something different with your writing.

HOW TO KEEP WRITING DURING A PANDEMIC

Warning: I’m not going to urge you to stay the course and push ahead with your normal writing life against all odds. I don’t think that advice is realistic, and frankly it’s not responsible, either. Creative people are the vanguards of social change. If shit is going down, it’s our job to innovate and pivot, not to cling like barnacles to the status quo.

How to Write… When You’re Scared You’re Going to Die

First thing’s first: Lower your expectations. You might need to throw all your old plans (“I’m going to finish my novel next month!”) out the window. You might not be able to write as much, or as often, or about the same things you used to. That’s okay. Be gentle with yourself. See if you can write for ten minutes a day. Use an internet blocker to give yourself a break from the constant, anxiety-producing COVID-19 updates you’ve been reading since you woke up. Turn off your phone. If you can’t make any progress on your WIP, write something else.

There’s going to be a lot of pressure from the mainstream to keep things “business-as-usual” during this time. Fuck that. You’re not a robot. Write in a journal, or on social media, or don’t write at all, really, it’s fine. Lay down and cry. Let what’s happening touch you. As a creative person, we need you to absorb and process this crisis so you can write something that gives insight into our present and creates a vision for our future. If you need to take a break, change course, or give up for a while, do it.

What to Write… When You’re Drowning in Existential Angst

If your WIP suddenly feels irrelevant to your life and the world around you, write something else! Try a new story, new characters, new themes. If you usually write fiction, try nonfiction. If you’re anxious about our future, imagine a new one. If you’re angry about losing your job, write about that. And if all you can think about is the Coronavirus, for god’s sake write about the fucking Coronavirus. Remember: Our old stories got us here. If they feel stupid now there’s a good reason. Things are changing. In order to co-create a better future we’re going to need new stories, new art, new creative work that deals with our current reality and shows us how to make a better one. Let me repeat that:

We need new stories. The lone wolf hero who conquers all odds; the hetero-normative romance that results in an isolated nuclear family unit; the super special person who alienates themselves with a droney inner monologue of me me me wah wah wah but never has their come-to-jesus moment; the capitalist success stories and pessimistic dystopias… these old, status quo, individualist narratives will no longer serve us as our environment becomes increasingly inhospitable and industrial capitalism disintegrates.

The Coronavirus is not a fluke. The world is changing, fast, and we need writers like YOU to step up their game. The stories we tell each other matter. We need writing that teaches us how to take care of each other. How to trust each other, come together, and heal the wounds of fear and distrust that this brutal, competitive economic system has left behind. Writing is a powerful medium for change and we’re in a unique position right now (lots of time on our hands, very little left to lose) to take advantage of that.

It’s not going to be easy. Toeing the line is often highly rewarded. To make matters worse, in the short run, as people are quarantined in their homes with only online interactions and books to keep them company, there will be an increased demand for mindless, comforting, status quo media—movies, TV shows, fiction, etc.—that perpetuates old ways of thinking and does nothing to hearken the change we need right now.

Some people would argue that brainless entertainment and comforting fluff has its place, too, and overall I agree with that. It’s true we need distraction, entertainment, humor, and beauty in times like these. Every piece of creative work doesn’t have to scream out an Important Message. (It’s also true that there are already lots of awesome, relevant stories being told. It’s not all shit out there.)

But if you, like me, feel the tug to create work right now that feels more significant, while at the same time struggling with the pressure to conform to the status quo, I urge you to be courageous enough not to take the bait.

How to Do Something Different… When You Don’t Know How To Do Anything Different

In times of insecurity and flux, it’s common to default to familiar behaviors and narratives. How can we do something different when we’re so freaked out? How do we discover and create stories that feel connected to our new reality… when we don’t even know what that reality is yet? How do we establish new writing habits when things are changing on a daily basis?

Grieve your losses. We’re experiencing devastating personal, social, financial, and environmental losses on every scale right now. The ice is melting and the forests are burning, people are dying and animals are going extinct… but that novel you started last year that you were so excited about may also be dead. Take time to be sad about it, all of it. Ignoring this pain won’t make it go away. If you feel overwhelmed and don’t know what to do, cry. You might be surprised what possibilities open up once you let yourself feel it.

Start small. Begin with today, right now. Don’t make any big, longterm plans; they’ll probably change anyway. Figure out how to make 10 minutes today to write something that speaks to you. If you can’t conceive of a novel, draft a short story. If you can’t write a short story, write a poem or a social media post. Take a look at your WIP and see what needs to change to make it feel more valuable and interesting to you right now. Read something that inspires you.

Connect with others. Talk to other writers about how they’re handling this time, what they’re writing and thinking about. Stay close with your chosen family. We may have to physically isolate but now is not the time to be cut off from others.

Be kind to yourself. Part of what we need to say goodbye to right now is the constant inner criticism put in our heads by a global elite who have deeply invested in our insecurity, self-hatred, and fear in order to further their selfish profit-making agendas. Like, their time is DONE, and one way to give them the proverbial fuck-you is to be super duper sweet to yourself and those around you. Shit is really scary right now. You’re doing great.

Contact me. I’d love to know what’s going on for you during this pandemic and how I can support you and your writing. I might not be able to individually respond to every message, but the more I understand what’s going on for folks the better I can create stuff—blog posts, etc.—that helps. xo

Important things to Remember While Creating Characters

How they grew up shaped who they are now.

If your character lives a rough lifestyle, they should look like they live a rough lifestyle.

Knowing their mindset will make them more dimensional.

How they dress should depend on who they are and what they like.

Whether they like their job or not could say a lot about them (if they enjoy being a cashier, they probably like people. If they like fishing, they probably enjoy relaxing on a boat or by shore)

Writers: Just a friendly reminder that creativity is difficult to quantify.

If keeping track of your daily word count or time spent writing motivates you and makes you feel good about your progress, that’s fantastic. By all means keep doing it! But don’t use those measurements against yourself as a way to size up your failure or shortcomings.

Whether you wrote 100 words or 1,000 words today is not an indicator of your worth as a writer or as a person, nor is it an accurate measure of “productivity.”

Some of my best writing days have happened when my actual word count for the day was very low, but I had a revelation while taking a walk that completely changed how I approached the story the next day.

Be nice to yourself, and try to remember to see the myriad ways your creativity is constantly flowing regardless of your word count or the number of hours clocked behind your computer.

Drafting: The Theory of Shitty First Drafts

Writing books often exhort you to “write a shitty first draft,” but I always resisted this advice. After all,

I was already writing shitty drafts, even when I tried to write good ones. Why go out of my way to make them shittier?

A shitty first draft just kicks the can down the road, doesn’t it? Sooner or later, I’d have to write a good draft—why put it off?

If I wrote without judging what I wrote, how would I make any creative choices at all?

That first draft inevitably obscured my original vision, so I wanted it to be at least slightly good.

Writing something shitty meant I was shitty.

So for years, I kept writing careful, cramped, painstaking first drafts—when I managed to write at all. At last, writing became so joyless, so draining, so agonizing for me that I got desperate: I either needed to quit writing altogether or give the shitty-first-draft thing a try.

Turns out everything I believed about drafting was wrong.

For the last six months, I’ve written all my first drafts in full-on don’t-give-a-fuck mode. Here’s what I’ve learned so far:

“Shitty first draft” is a misnomer

A rough draft isn’t just a shitty story, any more than a painter’s preparatory sketch is just a shitty painting. Like a sketch, a draft is its own kind of thing: not a lesser version of the finished story, but a guide for making the finished story.

Once I started thinking of my rough drafts as preparatory sketches, I stopped fretting over how “bad” they were. Is a sketch “bad”? And actually, a rough draft can be beautiful the same way a sketch is beautiful: it has its own messy energy.

Don’t try to do everything at once

People who make complex things need to solve one kind of problem before they can solve others. A painter might need to work out where the big shapes go before they can paint the details. A writer might need to decide what two people are saying to each other before they can describe the light in the room or what those people are doing with their hands.

I’d always embraced this principle up to a point. In the early stages, I’d speculate and daydream and make messy notes. But that freedom would end as soon as I started drafting. When you write a scene, I thought, you have to start with the first word and write the rest in order. Then it dawned on me: nobody would ever see this! I could write the dialogue first and the action later; or the action first and the dialogue later; or some dialogue and action first and then interior monologue later; or I could write the whole thing like I was explaining the plot to my friend over the phone. The draft was just one very long, very detailed note to myself. Not a story, but a preparatory sketch for a story. Why not do it in whatever weird order made sense to me?

Get all your thoughts onto the page

Here’s how I used to write: I’d sit there staring at the screen and I’d think of something—then judge it, reject it, and reach for something else, which I’d most likely reject as well—all without ever fully knowing what those things were. And once you start rejecting thoughts, it’s hard to stop. If you don’t write down the first one, or the second, or the third, eventually your thought-generating mechanism jams up. You become convinced you have no thoughts at all.

When I compare my old drafts with my new ones, the old ones look coherent enough. They’re presentable as stories. But they suck as drafts, because I can’t see myself thinking in them. I have no idea what I wanted that story to be. These drafts are opaque and airless, inscrutable even to me, because a good 90% of what I was thinking while I wrote them never made it onto the page.

These days, most of my thoughts go onto the page, in one form or another. I don’t waste time figuring out how to say something, I just ask, “what are you trying to say here?” and write that down. Because this isn’t a story, it’s a plan for a story, so I just need the words to be clear, not beautiful. The drafts I write now are full of placeholders and weird meta notes, but when I read them, I can see where my mind is going. I can see what I’m trying to do. Consequently, I no longer feel like my drafts obscure my original vision. In fact, their whole purpose is to describe that vision.

Drafts are memos to future-you

To draft effectively, you need a personal drafting style or “language” to communicate with your future self (who is, of course, the author of your second draft). This language needs to record your ideas quickly so it can keep up with the pace of your imagination, but it needs to do so in a form that will make sense to you later. That’s why everyone’s drafts look different: your drafting style has to fit the way your mind works.

I’m still working mine out. Honestly, it might take a while. But recently, I started writing in fragments. That’s just how my mind works: I get pieces of sentences before I understand how to fit them together. Wrestling with syntax was slowing me down, so now I just generate the pieces and save their logical relationships for later. Drafting effectively means learning these things about yourself. And to do that, you can’t get all judgmental. You can’t fret over how you should be writing, you just gotta get it done.

Messy drafts are easier to revise

I find that drafting quickly and messily keeps the story from prematurely “hardening” into a mute, opaque object I’m afraid to change. I no longer do that thing, for instance, where I endlessly polish the first few paragraphs of a draft without moving on. Because how do you polish a bunch of fragments taped together with dashes? A draft that looks patently “unfinished” stays malleable, makes me want to dig my hands in and move stuff around.

You already have ideas

Sitting down to write a story, I used to feel this awful responsibility to create something good. Now I treat drafting simply as documenting ideas I already have—not as creation at all, but as observation and description. I don’t wait around for good words or good ideas. I just skim off whatever’s floating on the surface and write it down. It’s that which allows other, potentially better ideas to surface.

As a younger writer, my misery and frustration perpetuated themselves: suppressing so many thoughts made my writing cramped and inhibited, which convinced me I had no ideas, which made me even more afraid to write lest I discover how empty inside I really was. That was my fear, I guess: if I looked squarely at my innocent, unvetted, unvarnished ideas, I’d see how bad they truly were, and then I’d have to—what, pack up and go home? Never write again? I don’t know. But when I stopped rejecting ideas and started dumping them onto the page, the worst didn’t happen. In fact, it was a huge relief.

Next post: the practice of shitty first drafts

Ask me a question or send me feedback!

Well said, and this is some great advice to pass on. 👏

How fucking annoying is it when you feel so restless with creative energy but you can’t decide what to do with it and when you finally try to create something it comes out shit so you just give up and sit there being all creatively annoyed and jittery.

You don’t need to say “She was losing.” 

Show me the way her breath stutters, the way her vision blurs at the edges, how her arms feel like lead but she still lifts them anyway. Show me the taste of blood on her tongue, the sharp sting when she wipes it away.  

A fight isn’t just fists and kicks, it’s instinct. It’s mistakes. It’s the split second where she moves left instead of right, and pain explodes across her ribs. It’s the way she grits her teeth, forces herself to stay standing, even when her legs threaten to buckle. 

People don’t announce their next move. They don’t think in long sentences. It’s breathless. It’s now. It’s move or lose. Make your readers feel every hit, every heartbeat, every desperate second she fights to stay on her feet.

How To Write A Chase Scene

Before anyone takes off running, the reader needs to know why this matters. The chase can’t just be about two people running, it’s gotta have a reason. Is your hero sprinting for their life because the villain has a knife? Or maybe they’re chasing someone who just stole something valuable, and if they don’t catch them, it’s game over for everyone. Whatever the reason, make it clear early on. The higher the stakes, the more the reader will care about how this chase plays out. They’ll feel that surge of panic, knowing what’s on the line.

Sure, a chase scene is fast, people are running, dodging, maybe even falling. But not every second needs to be at full speed. If it’s too frantic from start to finish, the reader might get numb to the action. Instead, throw in some rhythm. Use quick, sharp sentences when things get intense, like someone stumbling or almost getting caught. But then slow it down for a second. Maybe they hit a dead end or pause to look around. Those brief moments of slow-down add suspense because they feel like the calm before the storm kicks up again.

Don’t let the setting just be a backdrop. The world around them should become a part of the chase. Maybe they’re tearing through a marketplace, dodging carts and knocking over tables, or sprinting down alleyways with trash cans crashing behind them. If they’re running through the woods, you’ve got low-hanging branches, roots, slippery mud, and the constant threat of tripping. Describing the environment makes the scene more vivid, but it also adds layers of tension. It’s not just two people running in a straight line, it’s two people trying to navigate through chaos.

Running isn’t easy, especially when you’re running for your life. This isn’t some smooth, graceful sprint where they look cool the whole time. Your character’s lungs should be burning, their legs aching, maybe their side starts to cramp. They’re gasping for air, barely holding it together. These details will remind the reader that this chase is taking a real toll. And the harder it gets for your character to keep going, the more the tension ramps up because the reader will wonder if they’ll actually make it.

Don’t make it too easy. The villain should almost catch your hero or the hero should almost grab the villain. But something happens last second to change the outcome. Maybe the villain’s fingers brush the hero’s coat as they sprint around a corner, but they manage to slip out of reach just in time. Or maybe your hero almost gets close enough to tackle the villain, but slips on some gravel, losing precious seconds.

And Don’t let the chase end in a way that feels too predictable. Whether your character gets away or is caught, it should be because of something clever. Maybe they spot a hiding place that’s almost impossible to notice, or they use their surroundings to mislead their pursuer. Or, the person chasing them pulls a fast one, Laying a trap, cutting off their escape route, or sending the hero down the wrong path. You want the end to feel earned, like it took quick thinking and ingenuity, not just dumb luck or fate.

if you have any questions or feedback on writing materials, please send me an email at Luna-azzurra@outlook.com ✍🏻

subtle ways to include foreshadowing

one character knowing something offhandedly that they shouldn't, isn't addressed until later

the crow rhyme

colours!! esp if like, blue is evil in your world and the mc's best friend is always noted to wear blue...betrayal?

write with the ending in mind

use patterns from tragic past events to warn of the future

keep the characters distracted! run it in the background until the grand reveal

WEATHER.

do some research into Chekhov's gun

mention something that the mc dismisses over and over

KEEP TRACK OF WHAT YOU PUT. don't leave things hanging.

unreliable characters giving information that turn out to be true

flowers and names with meanings

anything with meanings actually

metaphors. if one character describes another as "a real demon" and the other turns out to be the bad guy, you're kind of like...ohhh yeahhh

anyways add anything else in the tags

I just saw a post on Tumblr asking if you're "allowed" to do something in a story you're writing. (In this case, a POV shift.)

I just want to sing to the tune of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, "THERE ARE NO RULES. THERE ARE NO RULES. There are no rules there are no rules there are no rules..."

@ fanfic authors: don’t apologise for writing filler chapters! i see this all the time!! filler chapters are so important to narrative pacing! a story needs downtime so the faster paced or denser elements have room to breathe! you’re writing a well balanced story!!! also, you’re giving me that filler for free! thats crazy!!! thats so kind of you!!! thank you for this gift!!!!!!

I think the reason I’m spiraling so bad and wanting to just delete my whole wip is because I have no one to talk ideas out with because all my writer friends just dropped off the face of the earth </3

The Weekly Writing Update: #11

10.15.22

No update this week because I’ve had no progress. :(

Writing With Color – Featured Description Posts

Some of our most useful posts on describing People of Color, all in one place.

Words to Describe Hair

Words to Describe Skin Tone

Describing Asian Eyes

Describing Wide Noses

Describing Undead & Sick Dark Skin

Describing POC and Avoiding Caricatures

Describing Unnatural Skin Tones: Green

Describing Unnatural Skin Tones: Jaundice

Indicating Race of Characters (FAQ Questions #3-4)

Not Indicating Race at All – Note: You Probably Should

Praising Beauty Without Fetishizing

Describing Characters Without Othering

Olive Skin, Race and Ethnicity

Specific Description Posts  

Describing Skin as Swarthy (Spoiler alert: it’s sketchy)

Describing East Asian Skin as Porcelain (Spoiler alert: it’s also sketchy)

Describing Skin as Russet (Spoiler alert: it’s alright)

Describing PoC as Exotic (SA: it’s othering)

Describing Skin as Ebony (SA: it’s cliche)

Describing Natural Hair as Cloud-Like (SA: it’s cool)

Describing Black Hair as Unkempt (SA: it’s offensive)

Describing Black Hair as Kinky (SA: it depends)

Describing Skin as “Dark as Night” (SA: it also depends)

Describing Skin as Like Dirt or Soil (SA: See above)

Describing Skin as just “Dark.” (SA: it’s vague)

Describing Black Hair as “Nappy” (SA: it ain’t recommended)

Describing Skin With Food (SA: it’s a no-no)

–WWC

Superior writing advice:

Make your characters FREAKS. Make them DERANGED. Make people think ‘surely this one guy towards the back is normal’ only to reveal FUCK NO. The guy in the back exclusively collects clown paintings (paintings done by professional clowns) and has an irrational hatred of second floors.

"should autism exist in my fantasy story?" yes. "should psychosis exist in my fantasy story?" yes. "should personality disorders exist in my fantasy story?" yes. "should ADHD exist in my fantasy story? should intellectual disabilities exist in my fantasy story? should dissociative disorders exist in my fantasy story? should trauma disorders exist in my fantasy story? should anxiety disorders exist in my fantasy story? should mood disorders exist in my fantasy story? should--"

yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

you don't have to include their real actual names and you don't have to have main characters with every single one of these things. But neurodivergent and mentally ill people should EXIST in fantasy stories and fantasy societies, because we exist in real life. We deserve to be acknowledged.

DESCRIBING THE PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES OF CHARACTERS:

Body

descriptors; ample, athletic, barrel-chested, beefy, blocky, bony, brawny, buff, burly, chubby, chiseled, coltish, curvy, fat, fit, herculean, hulking, lanky, lean, long, long-legged, lush, medium build, muscular, narrow, overweight, plump, pot-bellied, pudgy, round, skeletal, skinny, slender, slim, stocky, strong, stout, strong, taut, toned, wide.

Eyebrows

descriptors; bushy, dark, faint, furry, long, plucked, raised, seductive, shaved, short, sleek, sparse, thin, unruly.

shape; arched, diagonal, peaked, round, s-shaped, straight.

Ears

shape; attached lobe, broad lobe, narrow, pointed, round, square, sticking-out.

Eyes

colour; albino, blue (azure, baby blue, caribbean blue, cobalt, ice blue, light blue, midnight, ocean blue, sky blue, steel blue, storm blue,) brown (amber, dark brown, chestnut, chocolate, ebony, gold, hazel, honey, light brown, mocha, pale gold, sable, sepia, teakwood, topaz, whiskey,) gray (concrete gray, marble, misty gray, raincloud, satin gray, smoky, sterling, sugar gray), green (aquamarine, emerald, evergreen, forest green, jade green, leaf green, olive, moss green, sea green, teal, vale).

descriptors; bedroom, bright, cat-like, dull, glittering, red-rimmed, sharp, small, squinty, sunken, sparkling, teary.

positioning/shape; almond, close-set, cross, deep-set, downturned, heavy-lidded, hooded, monolid, round, slanted, upturned, wide-set.

Face

descriptors; angular, cat-like, hallow, sculpted, sharp, wolfish.

shape; chubby, diamond, heart-shaped, long, narrow, oblong, oval, rectangle, round, square, thin, triangle.

Facial Hair

beard; chin curtain, classic, circle, ducktail, dutch, french fork, garibaldi, goatee, hipster, neckbeard, old dutch, spade, stubble, verdi, winter.

clean-shaven

moustache; anchor, brush, english, fu manchu, handlebar, hooked, horseshoe, imperial, lampshade, mistletoe, pencil, toothbrush, walrus.

sideburns; chin strap, mutton chops.

Hair

colour; blonde (ash blonde, golden blonde, beige, honey, platinum blonde, reddish blonde, strawberry-blonde, sunflower blonde,) brown (amber, butterscotch, caramel, champagne, cool brown, golden brown, chocolate, cinnamon, mahogany,) red (apricot, auburn, copper, ginger, titain-haired,), black (expresso, inky-black, jet black, raven, soft black) grey (charcoal gray, salt-and-pepper, silver, steel gray,), white (bleached, snow-white).

descriptors; bedhead, dull, dry, fine, full, layered, limp, messy, neat, oily, shaggy, shinny, slick, smooth, spiky, tangled, thick, thin, thinning, tousled, wispy, wild, windblown.

length; ankle length, bald, buzzed, collar length, ear length, floor length, hip length, mid-back length, neck length, shaved, shoulder length, waist length.

type; beach waves, bushy, curly, frizzy, natural, permed, puffy, ringlets, spiral, straight, thick, thin, wavy.

Hands; calloused, clammy, delicate, elegant, large, plump, rough, small, smooth, square, sturdy, strong.

Fingernails; acrylic, bitten, chipped, curved, claw-like, dirty, fake, grimy, long, manicured, painted, peeling, pointed, ragged, short, uneven.

Fingers; arthritic, cold, elegant, fat, greasy, knobby, slender, stubby.

Lips/Mouth

colour (lipstick); brown (caramel, coffee, nude, nutmeg,) pink (deep rose, fuchsia, magenta, pale peach, raspberry, rose, ) purple (black cherry, plum, violet, wine,) red (deep red, ruby.)

descriptors; chapped, cracked, dry, full, glossy, lush, narrow, pierced, scabby, small, soft, split, swollen, thin, uneven, wide, wrinkled.

shape; bottom-heavy, bow-turned, cupid’s bow, downturned, oval, pouty, rosebud, sharp, top-heavy.

Nose

descriptors; broad, broken, crooked, dainty, droopy, hooked, long, narrow, pointed, raised, round, short, strong, stubby, thin, turned-up, wide.

shape; button, flared, grecian, hawk, roman.

Skin

descriptors; blemished, bruised, chalky, clear, dewy, dimpled, dirty, dry, flaky, flawless, freckled, glowing, hairy, itchy, lined, oily, pimply, rashy, rough, sagging, satiny, scarred, scratched, smooth, splotchy, spotted, tattooed, uneven, wrinkly.

complexion; black, bronzed, brown, dark, fair, ivory, light, medium, olive, pale, peach, porcelain, rosy, tan, white.

I build fights like I build conversations and dialogue, if one person does something, how is the other going to react?

Yo, do you have any tips on writing fight/action scenes? Yours are really good so I thought I'd ask someone who seems like they know what they're doing lol

oh thankee!!

I’m not sure what to say exactly, I usually just use my instincts or research I’ve done previously. The best thing I can say is to know your character’s ability levels when it comes to fighting or combat. If a character is a good fighter, they might end a fight easily with a few movements. If they’re up against a fight that’s as good as them, then it might be longer.

Do some research into different types of fights, I took a class last year on self-defense, and as a result, I watched a bit of fight choreography, and did some myself. A gun fight is gonna end differently than say, a fist fight. Research is your best friend for this!

Describe the actions in detail, make sure to add both actions and reactions, if your character does something, say, throw a punch, (your action), then the person they’re fighting is going to do something, (reaction). I build fights like I build conversations and dialogue, if one person does something, how is the other going to react? This is where you can thread in skill level. If a character isn’t well versed in fighting, their action might be to throw a punch, but the punch might be weak, and therefore the reaction would be to either catch or block the punch. Other details that are important are the characters own reactions to the fight. If they throw a punch, are they prepared for their knuckles getting hurt? If they get hit, can they handle both the pain and the shock? Is their adrenaline pumping because they’re afraid or are they calm and cool? Research into how certain things feel, (like where you can get hit with a knife and not completely bleed out), can also be good.

Figure out how you want the fight to end before it begins. If you want your character getting out without a scratch, then they should reflect that in their fight. If they get hurt, show that too! 

hope this helps!

Struggling to live in the world we made for ourselves, for each other! For we never made this world in the image of kindness. We never cemented these bricks with the intention to shelter one another.

We only wished to trap each other.

We built this world on lies to make it a climb for power. We slip poison into each others cups. We did not fall to the hand of an enemy, we fell subject to not being able to trust anybody at all to do the right thing, not even ourselves.

We made a world where only the strong prevail, and each day, we weaken each other in the lust for menial things.

We are the predator. With jeering claws, horrible fangs, and horrifiying speed. We pin down the most helpless of prey, tearing through its unloveable flesh and grinning the heck off our snouts when blood stains our paws, and you open your maw, flashing shark-like teeth at your victim,

the last thing they'll see before death and you-- and YOU--

But moments away from clamping them dead in a saw-like manner, you notice they have the same eyes as you. Same nose. Same facial structure. Same face. Just... scared.

And in the reflection of their eyes, you can see a glimpse of your own face. You look scared too.

...Scared of yourself.

We are the prey.

Will you do it? Will you hurt yourself in hunger for something more?

I know the blood warms your paws in a masochistic way that you may enjoy. But is that because no one ever held your hands?...

You poor thing...

I'm sorry it had to be this way.