kbetolks

[kbetolks]

Always writing★ turned 5 today earlier this year!

[kbetolks]

Thought it might be useful: a list of some novels with an average number of chapters & word count per chapter. source

[kbetolks]

the reason i want to be a writer is because sometimes i consume a piece of media, a book or tv show or movie, and i am so overwhelmed by how it touches me. sometimes, there is a character or a story line that stays with me, consistently, far past after i’ve finished it, and i become enamored by the idea that someone out there, a writer, created this. a writer gave me this feeling and made me fall in love with something that they wrote. and i want to recreate that feeling for someone else.

[kbetolks]

I was randomly reminded about OWaR today. It’s been a year and I’m still happy about it. The blending of mythologies, Harry’s exasperation, the romance… I feel like I’ve done good with that one.

[kbetolks]

More often than not I’ll crack into a sprawling fantasy series and, while I appreciate the luscious descriptions of furniture, landscapes, and clothing, all I’m focused on is that I don’t actually know how this world works. I only know what it looks like.  

Including some functionality to your universe can add to immersion and give your reader a strong foundation on which to build their mental model of your universe. 

You certainly don’t need to use all of these questions! In fact, I recommend against that, as all of these certainly won’t make it into your final draft. I personally find that starting my worldbuilding off with 5 to 10 functional questions helps pave the way for glittery and elaborate aesthetic development later on.

How is the healthcare funded in your world?

How does healthcare functionally differ between the wealthy and the poor? (i.e. can only the wealthy go to hospitals? do poor families often have to rely on back-alley procedures?)

Where are health centers (i.e. hospitals, small clinics, etc.) organized in your cities?

Does it differ in smaller towns?

How does this affect people’s ability to get healthcare?

Is healthcare magical, and if it is, how does that affect the healthcare system? 

If healing is instantaneous, how does that affect people’s views on injury, illness, and chronic ailments?

If you have both magical and physical healthcare, which one is deemed superior and how does that affect society? 

What illnesses are common in your world? 

How does this affect daily life? 

What do the people in your world think illnesses are? 

Is it a miasma theory? 

Humor theory? 

Demons? 

Do they know about biological viruses and bacteria? 

How does this affect healthcare?

How do people get water? 

Is the water sanitary and if not, how do they sanitize it?

How does agriculture work? 

Is it large corporations or individual farms?

What sort of agricultural technology exists in your world and how does it affect food production?

Are farmers wealthy or poor?

What sort of natural resources does your world/country(ies) have and how are they obtained?

How does this affect the average wealth of the country?

How does this wealth affect the culture? 

What livestock or beasts of burden are most valued? Least valued? Why?

What is considered a luxury good vs. a regular good?

What forms of transportation does your world have?

What classes use what forms of transportation?

How far has the average citizen traveled, given your transportation limitations?

Which cities are the most accessible and which are the least? Why?

How do popular transportation methods change how cities/towns are laid out?

Does your world have public transportation? What is it?

Is there a coming-of-age aspect to travel?

Describe your world’s postal system or whatever equivalent there is. 

Who pays for it? 

How reliable is it? 

Are there emergency methods for transporting information?

How does your world keep time (i.e. watches, sundials, water clock, etc.)?

Does your world have a currency system, barter system, or something else? 

If you have multiple countries, do different currencies have different values across said countries?

How does this affect travel?

Do you have banks in your world and if so, how are they run?

Who owns the banks? Government? Wealthy? How does this affect the economy and/or class system?

How does credit operate in your universe?

Does your world operate more on big corporations or small business? Something in between?

How are workers/labourers treated in your world? 

Are there workers unions and if so, what are common views on unions? 

Describe your tax system. If you don’t have a tax system, explain why and how your world is affected by that. 

Can certain social classes not own property, certain livestock, certain businesses, etc.? Why?

How are business records kept? Are business records kept?

If your world has technology, does your world prioritize developing entertainment tech, communications tech, transportation tech or something else entirely?

What does this say about your world?

How does this affect your economy?

To the closest approximation, what type of government does your world have? 

How are rulers/presidents/nobles put in place? 

How much power does an individual ruler have? 

Is there a veto process? 

If you have multiple countries, do they have different types of rulers?

Describe any large-scale alliances (i.e. countries, factions, etc.) that are present in your world. 

How did they come about and how are they maintained? 

Are they strained or peaceful? 

How does it affect the greater politics of your world?

Describe how wars are fought both internationally and nationally. 

Do methods of war differ between countries/races? 

What about philosophies about war?

If there is a military, what is its hierarchy structure?

How does the military recruit?

Is the military looked upon favourably in your society?

What weapons are used by each country/type of people during warfare, and how does that affect war strategies?

Describe the sentencing system of your world. 

Is your accused innocent until proven guilty, or guilty until proven innocent?

How are lawbreakers punished? 

If you have prisons, describe how they are organized and run, and who owns them. 

Does differing ownership change how the prisons operate?

What are the major ways in which laws between countries vary? 

Do laws between cities vary? If so, how and why?

How does citizenship work in your world? What rights and privileges do citizens have that others do not? 

Can certain classes or races not become citizens?

Are there certain taboo subjects or opinions that artist/authors/musicians are not allowed to depict (i.e. portraying the official religion in a negative light, explicit sexual material, etc.)? What does this say about your society?

How do people get around these censorship laws?

What is the official hierarchy of duty in your world? (i.e. is family the most important, or patriotism? What about clan?)

How many languages are there in your world, and how many languages share a common origin? 

How many people are multilingual? 

Which language is the most common?

How is multilingualism viewed?

How are different languages viewed? (i.e. is one language ugly/barbaric while another is romantic and sensual?)

Feel free to add your own questions in reblogs or in comments!

[kbetolks]

A Writer’s Ask Game (answered)

1. Do you listen to music when you write?

Yeah. Silence is too distracting.

2. Are you a pantser or plotter?

A bit of both. More of a plotter regarding my last work.

3. Computer or pen and paper?

Computer. Pen and paper are fine for random ideas, though.

4. Have you ever been published, or do you want to be published?

Never, and... I don’t really know?

5. How much writing do you get done on an average day?

Can’t even remember the last time, but usually around 1K?

6. Single or multiple POV?

No preference, really. It depends on what fits better.

7. Standalone or series?

A single piece is nice in the sense of ‘I made this’ but usually ideas are many and things get out of hand (read become a series).

8. Oldest WIP

I remember a detective!AU that I don’t even know where to find it now.

9. Current WIP

Everything is a WIP when you’re not working on anything.

10. Do you set yourself deadlines?

Not really? They serve nothing but stressing me out.

11. Books and/or authors who influenced you the most

I love me some humour, so I’d say Telma Guimarães and her Redações Perigosas II and Helen Fielding’s Bridget Jones: The edge of Reason.

12. Describe your perfect writing space

Music, a computer, and no one around. Or my room, really.

13. Describe your writing process from idea to polished

Idea to paper. Main plot points as topics. Develop a bit on each topic. Compare the original idea with what’s actually written. Read and edit till it looks okay.

14. How do you deal with self-doubts?

If 50 Shades became a hit around the globe, I really have NOTHING to lose.

15. How do you deal with writer’s block?

Forcing myself to write even if I don’t like what comes out.

16. How many drafts do you need until you’re satisfied with a project?

One, really? I can change stuff and add or take some out, but I’m not rewriting.

17. What writing habits or rituals do you have?

That’s a luxury I can’t afford.

18. If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be, and what would you write about?

No idea. Never really thought about it. 

19. How do you keep yourself motivated?

If I wanna see it I have to create it.

20. How many WIPs and story ideas do you have?

More than I can remember or count. A few hundreds for sure.

21. Who is/are your favourite character(s) to write?

Stiles Stilinski. I love me some sarcastic little shit.

22. Who is/are your favourite pairing(s) to write?

Sterek.

23. Favourite author

russelia.

24. Favourite genre to write and read

Anything fluffy and funny or filled with come action!

25. Favourite part of writing

Finishing the damned story.

26. Favourite writing program

Don’t really have one? It’s usually Openoffice or Docs.

27. Favourite line/scene

There’s a scene in OWaR nearing the end of the last fight that’s pretty emotional. The whole thing of conquering demons and sacrifice through love. I also like the love confession in CiaBN. As well as the iconic “c’mon!” “There won’t cum on anything till you answer that,” I suppose.

28. Favourite side character

I love me some Erica Reyes because she plays matchmaker.

29. Favourite villain

I’d go with my OC for TA, my first story. I had a blast with him.

30. Favourite idea you haven’t started on yet

Maybe a Sterek mermaid!AU.

31. Least favourite part of writing

The words not writing themselves.

32. Most difficult character to write

Anyone that I’m not too familiar.

33. Have you ever killed a main character?

Yes and no.

34. What was the hardest scene you ever had to write?

Smut scenes in general? Or maybe when I killed a pet. Those are awful.

35. What scene/story are you least looking forward to writing?

Any that’s not finishing the story.

36. Last sentence you wrote

The man yanks his wrist free, reaching for a dagger on his side. “Sod off, little girl!”

37. First sentence or your current WIP

*pastes over 20 sentences here*

38. Weirdest story idea you’ve ever had

Maybe that Sailor Moon AU nobody ever gave me?

39. Weirdest character concept you’ve ever had

The talking pet I killed.

40. Share some backstory for one of your characters

That pet was actually some lab experiment and worked as a boost for his owner.

41. Any advice for new/beginning/young writers?

Create because that’s hard to do. Most of the time the people who can’t even create what you did will criticise you. Pay no mind and create your shit.

42. How do you feel about love triangles?

Unnecessary drama. Boring. Overdone.

43. What do you do if/when characters don’t follow the outline?

Nothing? They don’t listen to me, anyway.

44. How much research do you do?

*war flashbacks of scarring details on sex toys* More than I should, I suppose.

45. How much world building do you do?

Depending on the story, A LOT.

46. Do you reread your own stories?

Yeah. Otherwise, I don’t catch those errors that escape like THREE revisions.

47. Best way to procrastinate

Researching shit.

48. What’s the most self-insert character/scene you’ve ever written?

I adapted a dream I had to a story, so I guess an entire chase by an amorphous monster? LMAO.

49. Which character would you most want to be friends with, if they were real?

Stiles Stilinski.

50. [Other question—ask me anything]

:P

[kbetolks]

Requires Fantasy Novel Things (feel free to add more)

- Title contains the words “Wolf/Rose/Sword/Dark/Crown/Throne” - Unexplained white haired girl - Evil Queen that is definitely a red head - The one black haired guy that dresses in all black but his eyes are blue and beautiful - Special Eyes™ - Someone turns into an animal and exactly one (1) person might question it - The Blacksmith - The mysterious hooded woman in the woods (bonus points if she has a fancy stick) - Barn sex - The fastest horse in the land that gets shot by an arrow on page 215 - The one soft spoken healer that gives life changing advice and then is never mentioned again - A truly excessive amount of dead parents - Everyone is British except for one inexplicable Irish guy

[kbetolks]

fic writers raise your hands if you like…forget what happens in your own fics

[kbetolks]

When you get to the point where it’s time to start writing that climax you were looking forward to this whole time, and then you’re too excited to actually start.

[kbetolks]

Someday I will actually contribute helpful writing advice to the community.

Today is not that day, have a meme instead.

[kbetolks]

Some people still remember that... I’m impressed, to be honest.

[kbetolks]

Writing is weird.

One minute you’re writing character interactions and the next you’re researching the social habits of ravens, which is shortly followed by planning out a new subplot you just came up with in the spur of the moment.

I love it.

[kbetolks]

Nothing worse than inspiration to create JUST before bed.

[kbetolks]

2019 mood: absolutely zero shame in re-reading your own fics and saying “This was good. This was a good thing I did, I’m proud of myself and I’m a good writer” 

[kbetolks]

WTF is a ‘sagflesrace’?

Me, looking at shit written late at night on the phone. (via overwhelmedbyfeels)

[kbetolks]

When I’m done with this story I’ll be indestructible.

[kbetolks]

Realising you don’t have any mention of Halloween for a fic in October.