albreehyde

[albreehyde]

I am thinking about fan fiction writers, but anyone who writes any kind of fiction can answer. (As far as I’m aware, non-fiction is usually written in the past tense - but if I’m wrong do let me know!)

If you like, explain why in the tags!

When I was young I gathered that all serious works of fiction were written in the past tense (past tense third person to be precise) so that is what i did when I started writing. However my mind was blown by the power and immediacy of Margaret Atwood writing in the present tense so I started to experiment with it myself, and now i strongly favour it. I get the impression that past is still the most commonly used, but I’m prepared to be surprised!

Please share!

[albreehyde]

If you’re pining you need to stop and pick a different tree. You know, spruce it up a little

[albreehyde]

no idea about the context for this scene cuz I haven't watched s2 yet but I imagine this is exactly what happened :)

based on this Columbo gem:

[albreehyde]

Writing Notes: Describing Eyes

A person's eyes can reveal a wide range of emotions. A simple gaze, a blank stare, or a narrow squint can all convey deep meaning. The expressive power of human eyes makes them the perfect literary tool for character development in fiction writing.

Tips for Describing Characters' Eyes in Your Story

In literature, a character’s eyes are a powerful resource writers can employ to engage readers in a scene. A character’s eyes can serve as a window into their soul. Here are 8 tips for describing eyes in your writing:

Describe eye color in different ways. Providing visual information about a character allows readers to visualize imagery in their mind. Eye color, along with hair color, is one of the first things people mention when describing someone’s appearance. Include it when sketching your characters, but be sure to do it in a descriptive way. Think of related words to describe eye color—blue eyes can be baby blue, light brown eyes might be described as amber, and green eyes can be referred to as emerald. Give a mysterious character black eyes that are described as obsidian—black, shiny, impenetrable. If you get stuck, use a thesaurus and come up with word lists for ways to describe eyes in your story, or use Google to find how other writers have described eyes to give you ideas.

Think about the entire eye. When describing eyes, think of the orbs in their entirety—from eyebrows to lids to lashes. What can they reveal about a character? Describe their shape. Sloe eyes are almond-shaped eyes, monolids are eyelids that don’t have a crease, hooded lids droop somewhat over the eyes. You can also describe how eyes appear in relation to the whole face. Are they close-set or deep-set? Is your character wall-eyed or goggle-eyed? Eyes can be sunken into their sockets. Zoom into details like the eyeball or the dilated irises of a character. The condition of eyes can also be a revealing tool. Dark circles under the eyes represent exhaustion. Puffy eyes mean a character has been crying. If a character has crows feet, that can be the author’s way of signifying middle age.

Use eyes to signify character traits. Writers can use eye descriptions to highlight character traits. An innocent child or naive character is often referred to as doe-eyed. A bad guy might have gunmetal eyes. Beady eyes conjure images of a rat. Rheumy eyes signify an elderly person. Steely eyes translate to determination. A twinkle in the eye is the hallmark of a jovial character. Eyes can be warm and inviting.

Describe eyes in ways that reveal intentions. Eyes gather information for a character, and they also reveal information about a character’s intentions or feelings towards a subject. When talking about a character’s body language, start with the eyes. A raised eyebrow casts doubt. Eyes suspiciously look over the top of eyeglasses. A character flirtatiously bats their eyelashes.

Use eye movement to forecast plot points. Eyes can be an active subject in a story and can help push the plot forward. Eyes can gaze, stare, glare, sparkle, pierce, roll, flicker, lock in, narrow, close, open wide, and shoot daggers. The movement of eyes can represent a character’s reaction to events or hint at plot points. A character might lower their eyebrows as they grow suspicious of another character—a writer’s way of foreshadowing who the killer might be.

Use eyes to heighten conflict. If a strong protagonist is wearing contact lenses, glasses, or even a monocle, a writer might use their poor vision as an obstacle that hinders them in moments of conflict. If a character blinks a lot, it might be a sign of insecurity or nervous energy. A writer can take a character’s sight away to strengthen their other attributes.

Recognize that eyes can betray a character. Eyes can be a tool used for contrast. While a character says one thing, their eyes might say another. For example, if a character comes home late with bloodshot eyes, it lets the reader know they were not working late like they said and gives the character away.

Use props to amplify the expressiveness of a character’s eyes. People often accessorize their eyes. Think of people you know and the different ways they hide or show off their eyes. A teenage character might have an eyebrow piercing. A character might paint their eyelids in colorful eye shadow or make their lashes stiff with mascara. A mysterious man, perhaps a law enforcement officer, might walk through a door wearing aviator sunglasses, pulling them off to reveal who he really is.

Source ⚜ More: Notes & References ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

[albreehyde]

How to avoid White Room Syndrome

by Writerthreads on Instagram

A common problem writers face is "white room syndrome"—when scenes feel like they’re happening in an empty white room. To avoid this, it's important to describe settings in a way that makes them feel real and alive, without overloading readers with too much detail. Here are a few tips below to help!

Focus on a few key details

You don’t need to describe everything in the scene—just pick a couple of specific, memorable details to bring the setting to life. Maybe it’s the creaky floorboards in an old house, the musty smell of a forgotten attic, or the soft hum of a refrigerator in a small kitchen. These little details help anchor the scene and give readers something to picture, without dragging the action with heaps of descriptions.

Engage the senses

Instead of just focusing on what characters can see, try to incorporate all five senses—what do they hear, smell, feel, or even taste? Describe the smell of fresh bread from a nearby bakery, or the damp chill of a foggy morning. This adds a lot of depth and make the location feel more real and imaginable.

Mix descriptions with actions

Have characters interact with the environment. How do your characters move through the space? Are they brushing their hands over a dusty bookshelf, shuffling through fallen leaves, or squeezing through a crowded subway car? Instead of dumping a paragraph of description, mix it in with the action or dialogue.

Use the setting to reflect a mood or theme

Sometimes, the setting can do more than just provide a backdrop—it can reinforce the mood of a scene or even reflect a theme in the story. A stormy night might enhance tension, while a warm, sunny day might highlight a moment of peace. The environment can add an extra layer to what’s happening symbolically.

Here's an example of writing a description that hopefully feels alive and realistic, without dragging the action:

The bookstore was tucked between two brick buildings, its faded sign creaking with every gust of wind. Inside, the air was thick with the scent of worn paper and dust, mingling with the faint aroma of freshly brewed coffee from a corner café down the street. The wooden floorboards groaned as Ella wandered between the shelves, her fingertips brushing the spines of forgotten novels. Somewhere in the back, the soft sound of jazz crackled from an ancient radio.

Hope these tips help in your writing!

[albreehyde]

suck, and i cannot stress this enough, my cock to the fucking base

[albreehyde]

[albreehyde]

LESS movies about the lgbtq experience MORE movies about people who just happen to be lgbtq. is it really that hard to understand

[albreehyde]

I'm in a sad mood today and I listen to Blossoms all day, so I drew this

And I hurl myself, I heal myself, I drag myself like a rug in the rain

[albreehyde]

Man, there’s all these little beats in OFMD S2 1-3 where people keep EXPECTING Stede to be upset or horrified about Ed’s actions and then he’s just. Not. In a way that reminded me of how a lot of fanon kept softening Stede into someone who doesn’t swear and is horrified at Ed for setting those ships on fire when imo to my eyes he was horrified for Ed because Ed was still so clearly distressed about it.

- Zheng Yi Sao asks Stede how he’s doing now that he knows Ed did horrible things to his crew and there’s this beat and Stede just pivots to, oh yeah, sometimes Ed is troubled. Like it didn’t occur to him to be upset on the crew’s behalf he’s worried about Ed.

- Izzy keeps trying to spare Stede’s feelings and cover up Ed’s spiral, but Stede clocked what was going on with Ed immediately and wasn’t the least bit intimidated or bothered. The knives brought the room together. Of course Ed’s trying to burn the world down or die trying. Duh. And I genuinely don’t think the STUFF in the Revenge mattered even a fraction to Stede as much as the signs of Ed’s breakdown broke his heart. It’s just STUFF, who cares.

- Lucius had to SPECIFICALLY call out Stede for not being surprised or bothered by what happened to him. What Ed did. Stede has to almost consciously remind himself to express polite concern. He just doesn’t actually care, instinctively or automatically, about what happened to Lucius. Part of it is he blames himself more than Ed. Part of it is he just doesn’t care, Ed is the priority.

They’re little blink and you’ll miss it pauses in some cases. Micro-expressions. The absence of a reaction. But honestly, I will scream it to the end of time, Stede is not some nonviolent creampuff scared or upset by Ed’s evil ways. He wants to join Ed in the atrocities. The man ran away to become a pirate. He asked if Lucius was taking notes during a murderous raid.

Stede’s at least a little on some kind of whackadoodle pirate comedy neurodivergence spectrum to the point where he actually really actually struggles to empathize with people, even people he cares about!, if their feelings conflict with his hyperfixation (piracy) and the love of his life (Ed Teach). He’s always, ALWAYS going to pick Ed over Lucius or Izzy or his crew or even his own feelings, if the option is there. He will literally throw himself overboard to get to Ed’s side. No pause. No consideration of anyone else or even his own safety.

Stede sometimes seems to have to consciously remind himself things like, oh yeah, the crew, I need to see to them. Not because he’s heartless or doesn’t care, but because it takes a bit of conscious effort for him to see beyond the laser-focused spotlight of what and who he does care most about, he has to remind himself of social niceties and other people’s feelings (just see him running away in the first place!) when he gets an idea in his head. It’s as if he had to train himself to consciously care about some things other people care about and as a neurodivergent person myself, that felt very familiar in a comedically writ large sort of way. I’d even argue that’s where all his aristocratic social niceties come from. They were his guidebook for how to do things “right” in a world that otherwise made no sense to him outside his hyperfixations. He practiced being a person through the aristocratic training because it was all so foreign to him from the start, including caring, actually caring, about the needs of others. Not because he’s consciously evil or consciously a jerk. The instinct just isn’t there unless he practices at it until it becomes reflex to ask how others are doing, because on his own his brain just doesn’t really notice or care.

I just… hope the fandom notes and has as much FUN as I do noticing all the little moments where even people inside the story of OFMD expect Stede to act in a normal way and instead he remains unhinged, laser-focused on Ed.

Stede’s not just an Ed apologist, he truly doesn’t blame Ed for any of it. He blames only himself. He doesn’t always voice this but he really really only cares about anyone else including the crew as a DISTANT second and he has to consciously REMIND himself to do so. He is able to rally to take action, to care about their physical needs like safety during the rescue, but he still struggles, deeply struggles, to remember to show empathy in a non-performative way for anyone except his special person, Ed.

Stede’s not a creampuff, not a nice guy, not some emotionally or morally perfect angel. He has to consciously practice caring about literally anything else but what he wants to do and his special person. And to me that’s a thousand times more interesting than shoving him in a box labeled “the blond, pacifist do-gooder good guy” in their relationship.

[albreehyde]

You: October 31st! Halloween!

Me, an intellectual: Ruinmas.

AKA, here, have some celebratory art. Can you believe it's the second Ruiniversary? Madness.

Reasons for all the included images under the cut.

Madeleine:

fox, the calling (ruin)

rockrose & thistle, the rockrose and the thistle (horror)

bracken & blossom, blossoms (ruin)

forget me nots, Elsa's song (love run)

(standing) stones, the horror and the wild (horror)

magpies, Madeleine's favourite corvid per Instagram, two for joy

dress inspired by the black chiffon one she wore in Dexys

Joey:

bracken & blossom, blossoms (ruin)

sage, Elsa's song (love run)

crow, Marbles (horror)

(standing) stones, the horror and the wild (horror)

dear heart/deer hart, Joey's name for the fandom (horror)

outfit inspired by the love run bath photoshoot

[albreehyde]

I walked into the river

To wring those embers from my broken heart and broken liver

But there's more than water in these autumn hands

@joeybateyofficial

[albreehyde]

I feel like I want to explain to young tumblr users who weren't born yet that MulderxScully was a revolutionary ship. No, it was not queer but that is not the only way to be revolutionary.

In the 90s when The X Files was airing, media was like misogyny soup. Yes, there were exceptions. But casual sexism was so ubiquitous it was like we were all frogs simmering in it and if you dared to say, hey, uh, isn't this joke a little shitty to the wife? Or maybe this female character could do something other than pose and ask questions so the male lead can answer them? Then you were a hairy feminist outcast loser.

Scully was a lot of things but she was not that. All the "You're not going to believe this, Scully!" memes are based on the fact that Mulder, an attractive white dude, wanted nothing more in his entire life than to share his passions with this tiny redhead. Was he nuts? Yes. But on many other shows, he would have talked down to her, would've ignored her, would've mocked her. He didn't.

When you go back and watch The X Files, there's these moments where Mulder and Scully look at each other like, "wait did Jack Black really just say that" and the significance to fan history isn't just the sexual tension. It's that, yeah, and the origin of the word ship, and the 'will-they-won't-they'. But the most important thing about those looks is how they told the audience that Mulder was looking to Scully for something. A man was looking at a woman and asking with his eyes "what do you think about this?" Was he also saying "and do you want to bone about it?" Yeah, yeah he was. But the first thing was sexy as hell.

Respecting a woman's expertise and folding information she provided into his worldview was a revolutionary thing for a man to do on television at the time. Thank you for coming to my MSR ted talk.

[albreehyde]

david jenkins is the only one doing historical fiction correctly. absolutely fucking nothing aligns with actual history. thats why its fiction. he is the only one who gets it. everyone can find each other in the middle of the sea with the power of gaydar. roach can jump off the mast and get absolutely OBLITERATED by the side of the boat and be completely fine two hours later. a woman who historically wasnt born until 60 years after the show takes place is here. homophobia doesn’t exist. izzy hands was 16 in the year 1717. con o’neill is 57. stede bonnet died when he was 30. rhys darby is 49. edward teach was english. taika waititi is from new zealand and makes no attempt to do an english accent. i just think that’s all so amazing. absolutely no one is doing it like DJenks.

[albreehyde]

[albreehyde]

about to drop literally the sickest insider knowledge you will ever receive pls use it responsibly:

are you a teenager? do you wish you had the space & resources & organization to do a thing, whether that's an anime club or a movie night or a big craft workshop or creative writing group or literally whatever? would you like to do your thing totally for free? yes?

okay, then bring it up to a librarian

seriously, teenagers are the absolute hardest group to engage at most libraries & we'll often organize programs that absolutely no one will show up to & it sucks. if you go up to a public librarian & say "hey, some friends & i want to do this thing. does that sound like a feasible teen program for the library?" most people will move heaven & earth to pull it off for you because we know there's an interest in our community. we will go balls to the freaking wall to make it happen

do you want a cosplay contest? a video game tournament? a free escape room? bring it up to the library. it's not a burden or an annoyance at all. it'll be like christmas came early for us

[albreehyde]

We're a team, a group. Group of the two of us.

Bonus: