kissmysorrow

[kissmysorrow]

Hello!! I dont know if you've answered anything like this before, but do you know of any resources for writing panic attacks? I'm planning a scene where one of my characters has severe trauma regarding storms and has a panic attack and someone tries to comfort him but like. I dont know how to write that properly yknow?? Sbshshsjah

Sure! Here’s a group of common symptoms you may experience during a panic attack: [x] and here is an article with accounts from people who have actually experienced them: [x] Also, when I have trouble writing something, I search for other writers who have made fics about it so I can find inspiration in how they describe it. I hope that helps!

[kissmysorrow]

hey so protip if you have abusive parents and need to get around the house as quietly as possible, stay close to furniture and other heavy stuff because the floor is settled there and it’s less likely to creak

[kissmysorrow]

Resources For Writing Sketchy Topics

Medicine

A Study In Physical Injury

Comas

Medical Facts And Tips For Your Writing Needs

Broken Bones

Burns

Unconsciousness & Head Trauma

Blood Loss

Stab Wounds

Pain & Shock

All About Mechanical Injuries (Injuries Caused By Violence)

Writing Specific Characters

Portraying a kleptomaniac.

Playing a character with cancer.

How to portray a power driven character.

Playing the manipulative character.

Portraying a character with borderline personality disorder.

Playing a character with Orthorexia Nervosa.

Writing a character who lost someone important.

Playing the bullies.

Portraying the drug dealer.

Playing a rebellious character.

How to portray a sociopath.

How to write characters with PTSD.

Playing characters with memory loss.

Playing a pyromaniac.

How to write a mute character.

How to write a character with an OCD.

How to play a stoner.

Playing a character with an eating disorder.

Portraying a character who is anti-social.

Portraying a character who is depressed.

How to portray someone with dyslexia.

How to portray a character with bipolar disorder.

Portraying a character with severe depression.

How to play a serial killer.

Writing insane characters.

Playing a character under the influence of marijuana.

Tips on writing a drug addict.

How to write a character with HPD.

Writing a character with Nymphomania.

Writing a character with schizophrenia.

Writing a character with Dissociative Identity Disorder.

Writing a character with depression.

Writing a character who suffers from night terrors.

Writing a character with paranoid personality disorder.

How to play a victim of rape.

How to play a mentally ill/insane character.

Writing a character who self-harms.

Writing a character who is high on amphetamines.

How to play the stalker.

How to portray a character high on cocaine.

Playing a character with ADHD.

How to play a sexual assault victim.

Writing a compulsive gambler.

Playing a character who is faking a disorder.

Playing a prisoner.

Portraying an emotionally detached character.

How to play a character with social anxiety.

Portraying a character who is high.

Portraying characters who have secrets.

Portraying a recovering alcoholic.

Portraying a sex addict.

How to play someone creepy.

Portraying sexually/emotionally abused characters.

Playing a character under the influence of drugs.

Playing a character who struggles with Bulimia.

Illegal Activity

Examining Mob Mentality

How Street Gangs Work

Domestic Abuse

Torture

Assault

Murder

Terrorism

Internet Fraud

Cyberwarfare

Computer Viruses

Corporate Crime

Political Corruption

Drug Trafficking

Human Trafficking

Sex Trafficking

Illegal Immigration

Contemporary Slavery 

Black Market Prices & Profits

AK-47 prices on the black market

Bribes

Computer Hackers and Online Fraud

Contract Killing

Exotic Animals

Fake Diplomas

Fake ID Cards, Passports and Other Identity Documents

Human Smuggling Fees

Human Traffickers Prices

Kidney and Organ Trafficking Prices

Prostitution Prices

Cocaine Prices

Ecstasy Pills Prices

Heroin Prices

Marijuana Prices

Meth Prices

Earnings From Illegal Jobs

Countries In Order Of Largest To Smallest Risk

Forensics

arson

Asphyxia

Blood Analysis

Book Review

Cause & Manner of Death

Chemistry/Physics

Computers/Cell Phones/Electronics

Cool & Odd-Mostly Odd

Corpse Identification

Corpse Location

Crime and Science Radio

crime lab

Crime Scene

Cults and Religions

DNA

Document Examination

Fingerprints/Patterned Evidence

Firearms Analysis

Forensic Anthropology

Forensic Art

Forensic Dentistry

Forensic History

Forensic Psychiatry

General Forensics

Guest Blogger

High Tech Forensics

Interesting Cases

Interesting Places

Interviews

Medical History

Medical Issues

Misc

Multiple Murderers

On This Day

Poisons & Drugs

Police Procedure

Q&A

serial killers

Space Program

Stupid Criminals

Theft

Time of Death

Toxicology

Trauma

[kissmysorrow]

types of kisses 

i. slow and drawn out kisses. where neither wants to let go. warm and passionate.

ii. goodbye kisses. the realisation and the look in the other’s eyes of letting go. tears running down cheeks and hands ghosting on cheeks.

iii. morning kisses. waking up next to your significant other and pulling them up and capturing their lips to yours.

iv. spirit kisses. light and feathery over the face. small and quick. running out the door after.

v. sudden kisses. in the middle of a sentence. catching the other’s lips and pulling them into your arms.

vi. neck kisses. fluttering down necks to the collar bone. dusting over the breastbone and staying there. 

vii. nose kisses. a small peck. kind and sweet. an adoring look for the other in their eyes.

viii. frustrated kisses. knowing that one has to go. enveloping their arms around the other and holding foreheads together.

[kissmysorrow]

Q&A: Magic to Power

So I’m writing a story where magic exists. But it’s not exactly outlawed In the kingdom. But there’s a bunch of superstitions involved that they don’t use it. And the king actively encourages those super stations albeit not blatantly. My question is the king still employes people with magic from a group or some sort of organisation that trains these people in secret. How would I go about forming that? Would they work better as spies or independent contractors? This is set in roughly about 1700.

They’re not going to be, “independent contractors.” I’d say, “not in the eighteenth century,” but, given the circumstances, no, not at all. So, let’s talk about how these things would have to function.

For mages to be independent of their government, one of two things has to be true. They must either be powerless, meaning the magic they perform is trivial and ineffectual, or they must be more powerful (either individually or collectively) than the governments that seek to control them.

If their magic is utterly powerless, there’s no reason to pay attention to them. They’re irrelevant. If your world’s mages struggle light a candle with their magic, they may be scapegoated by groups, but governments wouldn’t care unless they wanted to get in on that.

Basically, if magic works as advertised, that’s going to be an asset to any ruler. It doesn’t matter if someone is a soothsayer, a healer, or able to throw fireballs around, their powers are useful.

If you are an eighteenth century noble, you do not want the peasantry to have that kind of power. Inevitably, they will use it to kill you. This is before you consider the kind of damage a single disgruntled mage could cause to your kingdom. The ability to project fire (or any other element) could completely destroy your agricultural base. Fire in particular opens up the possibility of remote detonating gunpowder stores. Prescience or clairvoyance could be used to sabotage your economy. Simply put, having a rogue mage out there could wreck your domain.

So what do you do? You make them work for you, or kill them if they refuse. If you need to, you can justify a public execution by pointing to all the harm they could have caused, and whatever harm other mages had inflicted in the past.

At this point, the way people learn magic and gain magical power, becomes really important. I’m mostly interested in two categories, and grouping everything else in.

The first group gain their powers spontaneously. It could be random, exposure to something in the world, demonic possession, really, whatever. The end result is the magic user gains magical powers intuitively and they can pop up anywhere.

If you’re dealing with this group, your goal will be to find and shut them down before they become a problem. It’s also an issue because you could potentially get a rogue mage in your peasantry. So, this needs to be quickly dealt with. Given the time frame we’re talking about, it’s not out of the question that one of The Holy Inquisitions is specifically rooting out magic users.

The second group gain their powers predictably. You know who will become a mage before they gain their powers. This could be the traditional academic wizard, who learns magic through study, and finding hidden lore, it could be your superhuman martial arts masters, it could be people that gain magical powers through their bloodlines. The short version is, you don’t have to worry about a surprise peasant mage, and any rogue mages are an espionage problem.

If it’s academic, it’s very likely that court wizard is an established position. Similarly, if superhuman martial artists are part of your world, they may also have a permanent court position. If it’s a bloodline, then those are probably very powerful families who have a lot of political influence, if not outright control.

Depending on which group your mages fall into will determine how your ruler needs to worry about magic. If it’s completely random, then it’s more about damage control; securing (and recruiting or eliminating) mages before they can become a problem. Mages become an incredibly valuable asset in dealing with other rulers, because you don’t know if they have mages. Tipping your hand about your resources to other nobles becomes very dangerous.

Further, if magical talent manifests randomly, it is extremely likely that any unified control over them would rest with the governing religious bodies, not with your king. It’s entirely possible a single mage is powerful enough to kill your ruler, but to take on a continent wide religion that’s been in power for over a thousand years? They’ll know how to deal with an inexperienced spellcaster.

Note: This also applies if you’re dealing with a large, well established, empire, like Rome at the height of its power. They would also have the capacity to locate and detain new mages.

If we’re talking about religion, then we have a perfect justification for magic being good when the organization needs it to be and evil when someone does it else does it. When a member of the church casts a spell, “it’s a miracle,” “it’s a holy act,” “an implement of divine will.” When a heretic does it, “it’s witchcraft.” Church affiliated mages might even look at the aggressive use of magic as, “fighting fire with fire,” or “turning The Devil’s tools against his own.”

It’s also distinctly possible that you have multiple kinds of spellcasters. So it could be your church affiliated mages are using entirely different spells from the ones used by rogue mages.

This is the problem with, “superstition.” It needs to be based on something. For people to shun a mage, the magic they use has to be dangerous, unpredictable, or both. For example: If there was no, “beneficial,” magic, just curses, people would be a little circumspect about interacting with a mage. Or, if magic required the intervention of a demon, and you could never be completely certain it would do what it was told, same result.

How would a king form a secret organization of mages? With the stroke of a pen. He may simply hire from registered guild mages, offering them a job. He might form a covert group of witchhunters, possibly even hiring veteran inquisitors, with the task of finding willing, unaffiliated recruits. The options are open. What he can’t do is, have a secret cabal.

If you live in a world where magic is real, you’re going to become attuned to the idea that people use it to advance themselves. Even if you can’t, even if no one you know can, you know people can and do. A king propped up by a hidden cadre of mages will stand out. Even if this is standard practice. Even if magic is subtle. You may not be able to prove that your king is in power because of mages secretly backing him, but if the mages are helping him in a meaningful way will be somewhat obvious: Things go too well.

At the same time, if magic is subtle, it would be a boon for any court spymaster. Either directly or by employing their own mages. This isn’t a problem your king would be dealing with directly. That’s what his spymaster is for. As to a question of whether mages make good spies, it depends on your magic. Even if your magic is overt, an individual mage may make a good spy simply from their non-magical talents, and being a mage may get them access to places that a non-mage wouldn’t. Conversely, if magic is persecuted, it would also be a liability for any spy. Get caught practicing magic, and they’ll kill you for that, without even realizing you’re a spy.

Ironically, forming good relations with a magical power base is a vital skill for a king in a magically active world. He needs mages that are at least friendly enough that they won’t wipe him out for a rival. It would also, significantly alter the balance of power from what we saw in the real world, where, by the 18th century, the Catholic church was dealing with losing power in much of Europe, and the modern nation states were on the rise. For a religion empowered by spellcasters who can inflict religious edicts directly, the results would be considerably different.

When we’re talking about alternate histories with fantasy elements, there are a lot of historical events that could go very differently, which I couldn’t even begin to list here. The big thing I’d suggest considering is that if mages were aligned with multiple groups, you could easily see a “cold war” type situation, with proxy wars playing out, or a even a magical, nuclear detente.

What you have here digs pretty deeply in your world building. It’s not simply, “1700s, but with mages,” or at least, shouldn’t be. You need to reevaluate history up to that moment, and try to figure out what would have happened with those changes.

-Starke

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Q&A: Magic to Power was originally published on How to Fight Write.

[kissmysorrow]

Fantasy Wardrobe: Shoes, Slippers and Boots

I have covered historical clothes from head to ankle but I haven't covered shoes yet. So thanks to @sara-toftlund I will finally be exploring some historical shoes.

Buskin

Buskins are knee/calf-length boots with open toes. They would be laced up at the front. These were worn by mainly soldiers or hunters in Ancient Greece and Rome because they protected the legs.

Caligae

The caligae were the famous sandal-boots of the Roman legions. They were made with thick hobnailed soles and laced at the front. These are the boots that give Emperor Caligula his name since he often wore when dressed like a little legionnaire when living with the Germanic legions. Basically by calling him Caligula we are calling him "Little Boots"

Chopine

Chopines were the beginning of platform shoe. They were worn mainly in 15th, 16th and 17th centuries. Chopines were made like this to protect the feet from the dirty streets and add a bit of height to the wearer. They were popular with rich women and courtesans. They would be made from wood or cork and often decorated with fabrics and beads.

Geta

The geta are the traditional Japanese footwear. They look rather like flip flops with thick soles. The geta would be worn in all kinds of weather to protect the feet outside except the snow.

Crakows

Were the mad looking shoes we see in art from the Middle Ages with the really long toes. The toes would often be curled and the shoes would be highly decorated.

Moccasin

The Moccasin is a Native American shoe often fashioned from deerskin or leather. The Moccasin consists of a sole of unworked leather and were often fashioned with a vamp, a flap of leather, at the base of the ankle.

Slippers

Slippers are rather a general term for shoes. Slippers would be commonly worn by women in the West but were also worn by both sexes in Eastern Empires such as Persia and India.

Boot

Boots are commonly marked down as the go to style of shoe for fantasy. Boots would often be worn when ridingor hunting or in bad weather. Noblity would not wear boots inside as they were seen as more of an outdoor shoe.

[kissmysorrow]

A breakdown of medieval armor, since a lot of pieces are required to create a full suit.

[kissmysorrow]

Fantasy Wardrobe: Popular Men's Fashion of History

Fashion is one of my favourite worldbuilding components and choosing which way I want characters to look, is one part of research that is more fun than work. The use of different styles give each culture a defined feel and could act as a symbol of all kinds of lands in your WIP. Since it is your WIP, you can play with different elements of the garments and pay fast and loose with the styles.

Shirt

The shirt is the key to every other item of clothing on this list. The shirt was always worn under everything. It was often made of linen and worn by all classes. The shirt was often embroidered with blackwork and was sometimes even able to peak out from slashings in the garment over it. Shirts were seen as an intimate item of clothing. You should hear about the chaos that occurred when Anne Boleyn found out that Katherine of Aragon was still sewing Henry VIII's shirts.

Tunic

The tunic was worn by all classes. The tunic could be sleeveless or with sleeves. Tunics usually reached the knee or mid thigh and were belted at the waist.

Doublet

The doublet was a jacket worn over a man's undershirt. The doublet was usually laced or buttoned up at the front, reaching from the neck of the wearer to the hip of the waist. The doublet was often padded in order to keep the wearer warm.

Jerkin

The jerkin is a tight fitted jacket worn again over the shirt that is buttoned or laced at the front. The jerkin could be worn with or without sleeves. Leather was a popular material for these to be made and was worn by both classes.

Breeches

Are pants. Most breeches stopped at the knee though some reached the ankle, similar to today's trousers. Breeches could be in laced at the front and were worn by every class of men.

Hose

These were a style of pants that usually ended above the knee. Hose were often worn with a codpiece, a rather bold fashion statement for men. Hose would have also been worn with stockings held up by garters. Hose might be padded at the things to add some flare to the look.

Overgown

The overgown is rather like a great loose jacket worn over the doublet or jerkin. It was usually sewn with fur for warmth and made of contrasting fabric than what lay underneath.

Justacorps

This is the classic knee-length coat worn by men 18th century. Men would wear this over a waistcoat and shirt. This was a popular fashion for highborn men. It does still look fine.

Kaftan/ Caftan/Boubou

This is a large robe that is pulled on over the head with long sleeves. It can have a v-neck or round neck. They are usually heavily embroidered.

Achkan/Sherwani

This is the long coat worn by Indian men. It is usually buttoned up at the front, reaches just below the knees and is long sleeved.

[kissmysorrow]

Fantasy Wardrobe: Popular Men's Headwear

Fashion for men has changed throughout the centuries, no garment more so than the headdresses they wear. Statement headdresses can be an interesting component to add to your worldbuilding. The use of different styles give each culture a defined feel and could act as a symbol of all kinds of lands in your WIP.

Chaperon

This was a hood which later evolved into a hat. It is famous for the decorative length that trails after it or the liripipe. It looks rather like a very short cape.

Kufi

This is a fitted cap without a brim. It is popular in Africa and can be as simple or fine as you like.

Cavalier Hat

The cavalier hat is a wide-brimmed hat usually made from felt and often peaked with feathers. Men often wore them pinned up at one side for fashion reasons. Also called a capitano.

Fez/Tarboosh

This is a peakless hat without a brim, usually flat at the top rather like an overturned flower pot. It usually is decorated with a tassel at the top.

Muffin Hat

The muffin cap was for the commoner class and most often worn by children. It looks similar to a beret but floppier, rather like the top of a muffin.

Bonnet

The bonnet is a soft, round-brimmed hat worn by all classes. The nobility would have them trimmed with feathers and down, made from velvets, silk and satin and stitched with jewels.

Turban

The turban consists of material wound about the head. The turban was common in hot countries as it kept heat off the wearer's head, usually worn with a drape of material which could be drawn over the face.

Tricorn

This is the famous three point hat worn in the 18th century by all classes. It was commonly made from made from animal hide such as leather though beaver-hide was common.

Stovepipe Hat/ Top Hat

This is the infamous hat worn by Lincoln. The rim is slim and the hat can be tall or squat. It is usually worn by the upper class in the evening.

[kissmysorrow]

not sure what should happen next in your story?

Embarrass your protagonist. Make them seem weak and vulnerable in some way.

Shoot someone. That always takes the reader by surprise. 

In relation, kidnap someone. Or, rather, make it seem to your protagonist like someone has been kidnapped. 

Have one of your side characters disappear or become unavailable for some reason. This will frustrate your protagonist.

Have someone kiss the wrong girl, boy, or person, especially if you’ve been setting up a romance angle. It’s annoying.

If this story involves parents, have them argue. Push the threat of divorce, even if you know it won’t ever happen. It’ll make your readers nervous.

Have someone frame your protagonist for a crime they didn’t commit. This could range from a dispute to a minor crime to a full-blown felony.

If this is a fantasy story involving magic or witchcraft, create a terrible accident that’s a direct result of their spell-casting. 

Injure your protagonist in some way, or push them into a treacherous scenario where they might not make it out alive. 

Have two side characters who are both close to the protagonist get into a literal fist-fight. This creates tension for the reader, especially if these characters are well-developed, because they won’t know who to root for.

Make your protagonist get lost somewhere (at night in the middle of town, in the woods, in someone else’s house, etc.) 

Involve a murder. It can be as in-depth and as important as you want it to be. 

Introduce a new character that seems to prey on your protagonist’s flaws and bring them out to light.

If it’s in-character, have one of your characters get drunk or take drugs. Show the fallout of that decision through your protagonist. 

Spread a rumor about your protagonist. 

If your protagonist is in high-school, create drama in the school atmosphere. A death of a student, even if your protagonist didn’t know them personally, changes the vibe. 

If your story involves children, have one of them do something dangerous (touch a hot stove, run out into the road, etc.) and show how the protagonist responds to this, even if the child isn’t related to them. 

In a fantasy story, toss out the idea of a rebellion or war between clans or villages (or whatever units you are working with). 

Add a scenario where your protagonist has to make a choice. We all have watched movies where we have screamed don’t go in there! at the top of our lungs at the main character. Make them go in there. 

Have your protagonist find something, even if they don’t understand the importance of it yet. A key, a document, an old stuffed animal, etc. 

Foreshadow later events in some way. (Need help? Ask me!)

Have your protagonist get involved in some sort of verbal altercation with someone else, even if they weren’t the one who started it. 

Let your protagonist get sick. No, but really, this happens in real life all the time and it’s rarely ever talked about in literature, unless it’s at its extremes. It could range from a common cold to pneumonia. Maybe they end up in the hospital because of it. Maybe they are unable to do that one thing (whatever that may be) because of it.

Have someone unexpected knock on your protagonist’s door. 

Introduce a character that takes immediate interest in your protagonist’s past, which might trigger a flashback.

Have your protagonist try to hide something from someone else and fail.

Formulate some sort of argument or dispute between your protagonist and their love interest to push them apart. 

Have your protagonist lose something of great value in their house and show their struggle to find it. This will frustrate the reader just as much as the protagonist.

Create a situation where your protagonist needs to sneak out in the middle of the night for some reason.

Prevent your character from getting home or to an important destination in some way (a car accident, a bad storm, flat tire, running out of gas, etc.)

[kissmysorrow]

Christmas Dialogue Prompts with your OTP

“Would You stop eating all the popcorn? It’s supposed to go on the tree!” “But I’m hungry!”

“So….. you wanna….hot chocolate and chill?” “If you ask me that one more time, I will dump hot chocolate on you.”

“How much eggnog have you had tonight?” “A f-few glassesss, why?” “Because I’m prettyyyy sure it’s spiked.”

“My mom got me that ornament! Stop breaking them!” “It’s not like I’m trying to break them.”

“We aren’t going to have anything left to build the house with if you keep eating all the gingerbread.”

“You’re making a mess.” “Shut up and pass me the tape.” “There’s more tape on that present than wrapping paper.”

“Why doesn’t our place look as good as that?” “Do you know how high our electricity bill would be? Christmas lights are expensive.”

“Can we please watch something else? This is the 4th time today we’ve watched elf. And it’s November 1st.”

“Are you sure your family can eat that many cookies?” “What? No. These are just for us!”

“You know, the idea of Santa Claus is pretty messed up. It’s a fat man who breaks into your house with presents made by tiny people who know if you’re bad or good. How do they know?” “You’re ruining Christmas for me. Stop.”

[kissmysorrow]

Festive Prompt List

“Is that mistletoe?”

“Are you- are you pulling down mistletoe?”

“I don’t care about tradition, you try and get me to kiss you under the mistletoe and I will punch you”

“If I hear one more Mariah Carey song I will riot”

“Remind me why I can’t kill the carolers?”

“Hum one more note of that carol and I will stab you”

“My house, my rules. The Christmas music stays on” 

“If you throw that snowball you’re declaring war”

“You’re kidding, right? I’m not going out in that snow storm!”

“I don’t care what you say, The Nightmare Before Christmas works for Christmas and Halloween”

“I can’t believe you did all this, for me”

“You don’t have to go to all this trouble, you know”

“You didn’t really think I’d let you spend Christmas alone, did you?”

“You’d make a really terrible Santa”

“It’s a time of good will, not whatever the hell you’re doing”

“Aren’t you just Santa’s Little Helper?”

“You call this decorated?”

“How on earth did you get tinsel there?”

“Wow, you really go overboard with decorations, don’t you?”

“It looks like Santa threw up here”

“What are you doing to that poor wrapping paper?”

“Exactly how much more hinting do I have to do?” 

 “Have I told you how much I hate Christmas shopping?”

“Secret Santa is bullshit”

“Tell me what you want for Christmas”

“Why are you so impossible to shop for?”

“Can’t I just give you $20 and you can buy something for yourself?”

“Please tell me you aren’t searching my room for where I’ve hidden the presents”

“I thought we weren’t doing gifts!”

“I got you a Christmas sweater!”

“How many Christmas sweaters do you own?”

“You’re wearing the Santa hat, whether you like it or not”

“One normal Christmas, that’s all I wanted”

“I’m sure what ever threat is out there can wait until after Christmas dinner”

“You invited how many people over for Christmas dinner??”

“You really can’t cook, can you?”

“Who the hell turned off the oven?!” 

“This calls for eggnog” 

“I can’t believe no one has spiked the eggnog yet”

“Just how much eggnog have you had?”

“I’m starting to regret having taught you about gluhwein”

“Oi! That’s my hot chocolate”

“Spam is not a suitable replacement for turkey”

“No offence meant, but I do not trust you to carve the turkey”

“I don’t care about anything else, the pudding is all that matters”

“Hey, binge eating at Christmas is totally justified!”

“You made gingerbread zombies?”

“Step away from the cookies.”

“Who ate all the advent calendar chocolates?!”

“Normally I’d say no, but I’m on my 14th candy cane, so why not?” 

[kissmysorrow]

Ways to find a plot when you have characters and a setting

… but only characters and a setting. 

You have a world. A universe. A setting. Good! Describe what happens in it normally - describe your main character(s)’s daily life. Now, what would destabilize this routine completely? If many things could, write them all down. Pick your favourite idea(s). Plots are born from change: everything was going normally… until it wasn’t.

Make a list with all the goals/motivations of your main characters. Can the plot revolve around your characters going after these goals? 

Which goals are more important? Focus on those. 

Are different characters’ goals in conflict with each other? Conflict is usually what propels a story forward. 

What could go wrong in your character’s pursuit of their goal? Make it go wrong.

If you don’t know your characters’ goals, go back to the drawing board; they probably need more development.

If there’s not enough conflict of different motivations, make a new character who creates conflict!

How do you want your main character to have changed by the end of the story? Do you want them to be less selfish? To have come to terms with a part of themself? To have learned something new? Write down ideas that could accomplish this change. 

If you can’t think of any way your character could be changed (read: improved) by the end of the story, go back to the drawing board. They might be “too perfect”.

Notes: 

The change that triggers your plot can be anything. It doesn’t have to be the start of an epic war that will bring forth the apocalypse, it can be your character meeting a new person who shakes things up in their life, or anything you want!

Motivations can be anything. It doesn’t have to be something grand - if your character’s motivation is to just live a quiet life, you can still come up with a plot that will get in the way of that goal! 

Character development can be anything, as well - you don’t need a cliché moral to the story; your character doesn’t even need to change in a good way, if that’s not what you want for your story!

This is what I’ve found works for me, but if you try it and it doesn’t, or if it sounds way too sententious and strict for you - that’s okay! Take it with a grain of salt! Maybe you think your characters are just fine and don’t need more developing even in the situations in which I recommended you “go back to the drawing board”, or maybe you have better ways of coming up with a plot. That’s fine, the writing process can be very personal!

[kissmysorrow]

Christmas Prompts

• Person A trying to set up the tree for Christmas but Person B has to pick Person A up for them to put ornaments on the tree because they’re so short.

• Person A getting frustrated when wrapping presents while Person B being able to quickly wrap beautiful presents and A being absolutely amazed and jealous.

• Person A being sad when they weren’t able to buy a real tree to decorate for Christmas so Person B buys a little bonsai tree for them to decorate, even though it’s only a foot tall.

• Person A and B decorating their house/apartment together and when Person A goes to another room to grab some more ornaments they hear Person B yell. When they rush back into the room they see Person B has somehow tangled themself into the Christmas lights and fell over.

• Person A waking up on Christmas morning and being confused to find only one small box under the tree. Person B acts like everything is normal and convinces Person A to open it and when they open it they just see a note and an engagement ring.

[kissmysorrow]

Christmas Writing Prompts!

1. “Did you break into my house??” “You refused to put up any Christmas decorations! What choice did I have?”

2. “We made too many cookies.”

3. “We are not getting that tree. It looks worse than the Charlie Brown one. Its not even charming.”

4. “You’re impossible to shop for!”

5. “Quick, the carolers are coming! Turn off all the lights and pretend you’re not home!”

6. “Don’t feel bad… you didn’t COMPLETELY ruin Christmas dinner. There’s still this… jello stuff.”

7. “Who brought the fruit cake? I just wanna talk…”

8. “ALRIGHT, WHO SPIKED THE EGGNOG?”

9. “Wait, that wasn’t sparkling grape juice? I drank like 5 glasses of it! No wonder everything is so funny!”

10. “I can’t believe I got stuck on a ski lift with you, of all people.”

11. “Listen, it isn’t my fault you broke your wrist trying to snowboard down that hill.”

12. “Who walks on an ice covered pond anymore? Don’t you know how stupid that is? You should’ve died in that pond. Natural selection.”

13. “Did you really take the time to knit me an ugly Christmas sweater that you know I’ll never wear?”

14. “I’m really nervous to meet your family…”

15. “Why are you so unphotogenic? I just need ONE good picture for the Christmas card.”

16. “Everyone shut up and pretend to be happy.”

17. “Everyone knows you have to pretend to like your in-laws.”

18. “*opens terrible gift* Oh… I.. I’m speechless. Thank you.”

19. “You’re either terrible at wrapping presents, or you’re one of santa’s elves. There’s no in between.”

20. “Don’t you think gingerbread houses with gingerbread men in them are kinda morbid? I mean, it’s a house made out of flesh.”

21. “Everyone knows you’re not actually supposed to eat the gingerbread house. Those things are stale as hell.”

22. “It’s not what’s under the tree that matters, it’s those who are gathered around it.” “Shut up and give me my present.”

23. “You’re getting coal this year.”

24. “Oooo, we’re under the mistletoe!” “No No No No- mphh!”

25. “Don’t get your tinsel in a tangle.”

26. “Leave a little sparkle wherever you go!” “Im so sick of this holiday positivity BS.”

27. “The tree isn’t the only thing getting lit this year.”

28. “Can I have your picture so I can show Santa what I want for Christmas?”

29. “Christmas is so close, I can almost smell the mistletoe I’m never going to get kissed under.”

30. “You’re like a Christmas tree, you light up my world.” “I’m breaking up with you.”

31. “You’re the reason Santa even has a naughty list!”

32. “We all know damn well that Mariah Carry cares about the presents underneath the Christmas tree.”

33. “Parent hack; wrap empty boxes, and whenever your kid misbehaves, throw the box into the fire.”

34. “Forget Santa, we all know I’m on the naughty list. I’ll just buy my own stuff.”

35. “So, still no boyfriend this year, huh?” “Still no job, huh?”

36. “You could’ve put a little more effort into your appearance. You could be so pretty.” 37. “You could’ve seasoned this chicken a little better. It could’ve been edible.”

38. “So… when am I going to get a grandchild?”

39. “Who makes spaghetti for Christmas dinner?”

40. “That Christmas sweater is atrocious.”

41. “Don’t you dare bring that snowball in the house, DON’T YOU DARE-“

42. “Come outside and and have a snowball fight with us.” “I don’t really feel like it…” “That’s because you know that you’ll lose…”

43. “Who even came up with ice skating? Do you know what a terrible idea it is? Its like,,, strapping knives to your feet before getting on ice which you may or may not fall through.”

44. “Your Snowman looks a little like Hitler, maybe you should drop the mustache.” “Oh my god, you see it too?”

45. “We all know the only good thing about the holidays is my wine advent calendar.”

46. “How the hell do you even roast a chestnut. Do you have to crack it first, or what? And can you put them in the oven? Starting a fire is sooo much work.”

47. “My secret Santa got me a trashcan from Walmart.” “Mine got me a half eaten bag of chips and a tube of chapstick.”

48. “Stop eating all the popcorn! It’s supposed to go on the tree!”

49. “So you wanna… hot chocolate and chill?” “If you ask me that one more time, I will dump my hot chocolate on you.”

50. “My mom got me that ornament! Stop breaking them!” “Its not like Im TRYING to break them!”

51. “There’s more tape on that present then wrapping paper.”

52. “Can we PLEASE watch something else? This is the 3rd time we’ve watched elf today. And it’s November 1st.”

53. “Are you sure your family can eat all these cookies?” “What? No! These are just for us!”

54. “Santa is just a fat man who breaks into your house with little men who know if you’re good or bad. How do they know?” “Stop. You’re ruining Christmas for me.”

55. “Why can’t our house look like that?” “Are you kidding? Do you know what our electrical bill would look like if we put all those lights up on the house?”

56. “You know what’s terrifying? Those damn elf on the shelf things. They watch you all the time. All. The. Time. Think about that.”

57. “I let the kids decorate the tree, then when they go to bed, I completely start over. Because let’s be honest, they make a crap tree.”

58. “I have a decoraton in my bathroom. It’s a snowman holding a plunger and it makes stupid bathroom-christmas related puns. ‘Ho ho ho, whose gotta go?’”

59. “Who invented stockings? Like… why would I ever think to put presents in a giant sock?”

60. “In church I learned that some cultures, for Christmas, dress a log up with googly eyes and clothes, then beat it with a bat.”

[kissmysorrow]

A Guide to Making Up Diseases (as Explained by a Biologist)

So listen up y’all, nothing drives me crazier as both a writer and a scientist than seeing alien diseases that make no fuckin’ sense in a human body. 

If you’re talking about alien diseases in a non-human character, you can ignore all this.

But as far as alien diseases in humans go, please remember:

DISEASE SYMPTOMS ARE AN IMMUNE RESPONSE.

Fever? A response to help your immune cells function faster and more efficiently to destroy invaders.

Sore/scratchy throat? An immune response. Diseases that latch onto the epithelium of the throat (the common cold, the flu) replicate there, and your body is like “uh no fuckin’ thanks” and starts to slough off those cells in order to stop the replication of new virus in its tracks. So when it feels like your throat is dying? guess what it literally is. And the white spots you see with more severe bacterial infections are pus accumulation, which is basically dead white blood cells, and the pus is a nice and disgusting way of getting that shit outta here.

(No one really knows why soreness and malaise happens, but some scientists guess that it’s a byproduct of immune response, and others suspect that it’s your body’s way of telling you to take it easy)

headache? usually sinus pressure (or dehydration, which isn’t an immune response but causes headaches by reducing blood volume and causing a general ruckus in your body, can be an unfortunate side effect of a fever) caused by mucous which is an immune response to flush that nasty viral shit outta your face.

Rashes? an inflammatory response. Your lymphocytes see a thing they don’t like and they’re like “hEY NOW” and release a bunch of chemicals that tell the cells that are supposed to kill it to come do that. Those chemicals cause inflammation, which causes redness, heat, and swelling. They itch because histamine is a bitch.

fatigue? your body is doing a lot–give it a break!

here is a fact:

during the Spanish 1918 Plague, a very strange age group succumbed to the illness. The very young and very old were fine, but people who were seemingly healthy and in the prime of life (young adults) did not survive. This is because that virus triggered an immune response called a cytokine storm, which basically killed everything in sight and caused horrific symptoms like tissue death, vasodilation and bleeding–basically a MASSIVE inflammatory response that lead to organ damage and death. Those with the strongest immune systems took the worst beating by their own immune responses, while those with weaker immune systems were fine.

So when you’re thinking of an alien disease, think through the immune response.

Where does this virus attack? Look up viruses that also attack there and understand what the immune system would do about it. 

Understand symptoms that usually travel together–joint pain and fever, for example.

So please, please: no purple and green spotted diseases. No diseases that cause glamorous fainting spells and nothing else. No mystical eye-color/hair-color changing diseases. If you want these things to happen, use magic or some shit or alien physiology, but when it’s humans, it doesn’t make any fuckin’ sense. 

This has been a rant and I apologize for that. 

[kissmysorrow]

AU List A-Z

Made a list of all the AU’s I could think of. Used to help me when I have no ideas, decided it could help others and I should post it. It took a few weeks to fill it out this extensively and I have no more interest in adding to it, so please don’t bother suggesting anything （；￣д￣）

A

Accidental Marriage AU

Actor AU

Alien AU

Amnesia AU

Android AU

Angel/Demon AU

Animal AU

Apocalypse AU

Arranged Marriage AU

Artist AU

Art Student AU

Assassin AU

Athlete AU

Author AU

Avian (Bird People) AU

B

Babysitter AU

Bakery AU

Ballet AU

Band AU

Bartender/Bar AU

Beach AU

Blind AU

Blind Date AU

Bodyguard AU

Book Store AU

Bounty Hunter AU

Brothel AU

C

Caterer AU

Camp Counselor AU

Camping AU

Carnival AU

Castaway AU

Celebrity AU

CEO/Boss AU

Chef AU

Child AU

Choir AU

Circus AU

Clothing Shop AU

Club AU

Coffee Shop AU

College AU

Conductor AU

Choreographer AU

Coworker AU

Criminal AU

Cult AU

Cyborg AU

D

Dancer AU

Dead/Death AU

Deaf AU

Demigod AU

Demon Hunter AU

Detective AU

Dimension Hoping AU

DJ AU

Doctor AU

Domestic AU

Dragon AU

Drama Class AU

E

Enemies AU

Ex AU

F

Fairy AU

Fake Dating/Engagement/Marriage AU

Fashion/Fashion Designer AU

Fire Fighter AU

Forbidden Love AU

Fugitive AU

G

Gang AU

Gardener/Gardening AU

Ghost AU

H

Hairstylist AU

Haunted House AU

Hero/Villain AU

High School AU

High School Reunion AU

Historical AU

Horror AU

Hospital AU

Hunger Games AU

I

Immortal AU

J

Judge AU

Jury Duty AU

K

Kidnapper/Kidnapped AU

L

Lawyer AU

Library AU

Lifeguard AU

M

Mafia AU

Maid AU

Magician AU

Magic AU

Marriage AU

Mechanic AU

Medieval AU

Mermaid AU

Military AU

Model AU

Modern AU

Monster/Monster Hunter/Monster Tamer AU

Murder Mystery AU

Musical AU

Musician AU

N

Neighbor AU

Ninja AU

Nurse AU

O

Office AU

Officer (Police) AU

O/B/A AU

P

Parallel Universe AU

Parametric AU

Paranormal Investigator AU

Parent AU

Pen Pal AU

Pet Store AU

Photographer AU

Pirate AU

Podcast AU

Porn Star AU

Prisoner AU

Prank War AU

Prostitute AU

Q

—

R

Reality TV Show AU

Reporter AU

Restaurant AU

Resurrection AU

Road Trip AU

Roll Reversal AU

Room Mate AU

Rival AU

Royalty AU

S

Scientist AU

Serial Killer AU

Servant AU

Sick AU

Social Media AU

Soulmate AU

Space AU

Spy AU

Stalker AU

Stranger AU

Street Racing AU

Stripper AU

Student AU

Survival AU

T

Tattoo Shop AU

Teacher AU

Theater AU

Thief AU

Time Travel AU

U

Undead AU

Undercover Cop AU

V

Vacation AU

Vampire/Vampire Hunter AU

Veterinarian AU

W

Waiter AU

War AU

Wedding Planner AU

Werewolf AU

Wild West AU

Witch AU

Wizard AU

X

—

Y

Yandere AU

Youtuber AU

Z

Zookeeper AU

Zombie AU