ezekieltobiasfletcher

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Time to make the biscuits. 🥰

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Questions that I hate that I'm asking myself since the election: is Tumblr still going to be a safe space for me to keep being my airy fairy queer ass self, or is it owned by a bunch of tech bro douchebags?

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

where's the mitski quote. where's the goddamn mitski quote.

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

My biggest wish is to get my own drivers license

I hope you achieve that wish. You've manifested it; what's one thing you can do now to get closer to your goal?

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

I will no longer be fearful of ridicule and shame when I'm being my true self.

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Trust your gut, but question your mind.

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Soft & Cozy

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Listening to my wee kitty breath while sleeping in my lap... soul cleansing. ☯️

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Writing Tips

10 Non-Lethal Injuries to Add Pain to Your Writing

New Part: 10 Lethal Injury Ideas

If you need a simple way to make your characters feel pain, here are some ideas: 

1. Sprained Ankle

A common injury that can severely limit mobility. This is useful because your characters will have to experience a mild struggle and adapt their plans to their new lack of mobiliy. Perfect to add tension to a chase scene.

2. Rib Contusion

A painful bruise on the ribs can make breathing difficult, helping you sneak in those ragged wheezes during a fight scene. Could also be used for something sport-related! It's impactful enough to leave a lingering pain but not enough to hinder their overall movement.

3. Concussions

This common brain injury can lead to confusion, dizziness, and mood swings, affecting a character’s judgment heavily. It can also cause mild amnesia.

I enjoy using concussions when you need another character to subtly take over the fight/scene, it's an easy way to switch POVs. You could also use it if you need a 'cute' recovery moment with A and B.

4. Fractured Finger

A broken finger can complicate tasks that require fine motor skills. This would be perfect for characters like artists, writers, etc. Or, a fighter who brushes it off as nothing till they try to throw a punch and are hit with pain.

5. Road Rash

Road rash is an abrasion caused by friction. Aka scraping skin. The raw, painful sting resulting from a fall can be a quick but effective way to add pain to your writing. Tip: it's great if you need a mild injury for a child.

6. Shoulder Dislocation

This injury can be excruciating and often leads to an inability to use one arm, forcing characters to confront their limitations while adding urgency to their situation. Good for torture scenes.

7. Deep Laceration

A deep laceration is a cut that requires stitches. As someone who got stitches as a kid, they really aren't that bad! A 2-3 inch wound (in length) provides just enough pain and blood to add that dramatic flair to your writing while not severely deterring your character.

This is also a great wound to look back on since it often scars. Note: the deeper and wider the cut the worse your character's condition. Don't give them a 5 inch deep gash and call that mild.

8. Burns

Whether from fire, chemicals, or hot surfaces, burns can cause intense suffering and lingering trauma. Like the previous injury, the lasting physical and emotional trauma of a burn is a great wound for characters to look back on.

If you want to explore writing burns, read here.

9. Pulled Muscle

This can create ongoing pain and restrict movement, offering a window to force your character to lean on another. Note: I personally use muscle related injuries when I want to focus more on the pain and sprains to focus on a lack of mobility.

10. Tendonitis

Inflammation of a tendon can cause chronic pain and limit a character's ability to perform tasks they usually take for granted. When exploring tendonitis make sure you research well as this can easily turn into a more severe injury.

This is a quick, brief list of ideas to provide writers inspiration. Since it is a shorter blog, I have not covered the injuries in detail. This is inspiration, not a thorough guide. Happy writing! :)

Looking For More Writing Tips And Tricks? 

Check out the rest of Quillology with Haya; a blog dedicated to writing and publishing tips for authors!

Instagram Tiktok

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

The first time Trump was elected in 2016, my mother was still alive. I can remember talking about my fears for the country before he was elected. Being born in the 1940's, she had lived through the civil rights and Vietnam protests, bombings, assassinations, the brink of nuclear war, just to name a few. She said that she was scared that the country would rip itself apart, or that one more spark would ignite WWIII. She then comforted me by reminding me of how families and friends still helped each other out, there was still love, there was hope, there was laughter, and there were people trying to hold everything together in the middle of it all. I lost my mother to cancer in 2017, and then COVID, and then, etc., etc., etc.... there were deep moments of hopelessness. But if it wasn't for those times, I would not have deepened my faith. I would not have learned how resilient I am. Yes, I have survived everything thus far, but I'm also doing the hard spiritual work to thrive and build hope for myself and then giving it away freely to those around me. It is now my time to share the same hope with you all that my mother shared with me. Lead with love; that will give you courage. Remember, courage isn't having no fear. Courage is walking through that fear with love and faith. Keep breathing. Keep putting one foot in front of the other. Keep your eyes up and your heart open. Do no harm, but take no shit. I promise you that you will feel joy, but you have to accept that joy just as easily as you feel your pain. Those two feeling are not mutually exclusive. I promise you, there will always be hope.

advice from dad

So, my Dad is a 73-year-old Mexican man who has lived here since he was 16. He was in Watts during the riots in 1965; in 1992, when I was in LA, as soon as the Rodney King verdict was announced, he called me, told me what was coming, told me how to stay safe. He has survived horrible living conditions, being kidnapped, physical abuse, prejudice, discrimination. He learned English, got his green card, pays his taxes, works hard, and has three daughters. 

I thought he would be devastated today.

But he wasn’t.

He saw that I was sad and angry, and he asked me why, pretending he had no idea. I almost started crying. And then he said, “no se me chicopale.” 

It means, don’t lose heart. Don’t give in to despair.

I asked him why he wasn’t upset.

He said, basically, “The world has always been this way. There are always people who are afraid, who are racist, who are awful. This is not new. And it will never go away. He won. We can’t do anything about that. All we can do is what we can do. Fight for what matters to us. Take care of each other. And don’t lose heart. And here, I got these unsalted cashews for you and a bag of jamaica drink mix and can you show me how to use the new washing machine because it’s not working.”

And, for reasons I can’t articulate, I feel a little better. 

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Note to self: fuck anxiety, just show up.

If you struggle with anxiety, overwhelm, or just plain feeling like a failure, I have a mantra for you that’s been really helping me out lately:

Just show up.

I used to skip class because the whole thing was so overwhelming: I had to get dressed in something clean even though I never had the energy to do laundry, walk to school, sit in class for up to three hours, plus pay attention, take notes, and participate in discussion. In reality, I was being a perfectionist, and life would have been a lot easier for me if I had Just Shown Up. By staying home because of my depression and anxiety, I wasn’t giving myself the chance to do any of that. I was such a perfectionist that being a “bad” or average student was unthinkable, so I stopped being a student at all.

If you’re having trouble getting something done, Just Show Up. You don’t have to be employee of the month. You don’t have to be valedictorian. Just Show Up.

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Stained glass from Memorial Chapel at Wesleyan University. Took my 17 y.o. for open house today. I'm hopeful for the future based on what I saw of my kid's generation today.

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Two overly qualified leaders, passed over for promotion by a slimy man who's only failed up his entire life because of his privilege. I've seen this far too many times. Fuck the patriarchy.

[ezekieltobiasfletcher]

Jealous cowards who try to control Rise above, we're gonna rise above They distort what we say Rise above, we're gonna rise above

Try and stop what we do Rise above, we're gonna rise above When they can't do it themselves Rise above, we're gonna rise above

We are tired of your abuse Try to stop us, it's no use

Society's arms of control Rise above, we're gonna rise above Think they're smart, can't think for themselves Rise above, we're gonna rise above

Laugh at us behind our backs Rise above, we're gonna rise above I find satisfaction in what they lack Rise above, we're gonna rise above

We are tired of your abuse Try to stop us, but it's no use

We are tired of your abuse Try to stop us, it's no use

We're born with a chance Rise above, we're gonna rise above I am gonna have my chance Rise above, we're gonna rise above

We are born with a chance Rise above, we're gonna rise above And I am gonna have my chance Rise above, we're gonna rise above

We are tired of your abuse Try to stop us, it's no use

Rise above, rise above Rise above, we're gonna rise above We're gonna rise above We're gonna rise above