m-r-levine

[m-r-levine]

Dark Romance Prompts #1

The Captor Who Shouldn’t Have a Heart (But He Does And It’s Beating for Her) She’s been taken. Not by accident. Not by mistake. He wanted her, so he took her. She should hate him, does hate him, but the more time she spends locked in his world, the harder it is to tell where the fear ends and something darker begins. Because the real problem isn’t escaping. It’s that a twisted part of her isn’t sure she wants to.

The Hitman Who Was Supposed to Kill Her, But Couldn’t. She saw something she shouldn’t have, and now there’s a price on her head. He was supposed to pull the trigger, but the moment he looks into her eyes, everything changes. She’s terrified of him, and she should be. He’s done unforgivable things. But now he’s the only thing standing between her and the monsters worse than him.

The Villain’s Bargain (Where Love Is Just Another Kind of Trap) She made a deal with the wrong man. A deal she knew was dangerous, but desperation made her reckless. Now, she belongs to him, body, soul, and whatever’s left of her sanity. And he likes watching her struggle. But the more she fights, the more fascinated he becomes. The real game isn’t power anymore. It’s control. And neither of them knows who’s really winning.

The Underground Fighter Who Can’t Decide if He Wants to Protect Her or Ruin Her. She wandered into the wrong place, at the wrong time, and now she’s tangled up in a world of illegal fights, blood money, and a man who is nothing but danger wrapped in bruised knuckles and whispered threats. He should scare her. He does scare her. But when he fights, it’s not just survival in his eyes. It’s something else. Something dark. And it’s looking at her.

The Mafia Prince Who’s Always Had His Eyes on Her. She’s off-limits. Untouchable. A good girl who doesn’t belong anywhere near his world. He’s cruel, merciless, and doesn’t care about things like morality. But when someone else threatens to take her, his patience snaps. If the world won’t keep her safe, he will. Even if it means keeping her for himself.

Here's My Free E-book On Amazon on character development,

And Here’s the Show, Don’t Tell freebie book and my newsletter.

[m-r-levine]

Dark Romance Prompts #2

The Daughter of His Enemy (Who He Shouldn’t Want). She’s the one person he should hate. The daughter of the man who ruined his life, the girl raised in privilege while he grew up in war. Taking her was supposed to be revenge. Keeping her was supposed to be cruelty. But now she’s unraveling everything he thought he knew about himself. And now, he doesn’t think he cares.

The Bodyguard Who’s Not as Good as He Pretends to Be. She hired him to protect her, but if she knew the truth about him, she’d run. He’s not just there to guard her, he’s there to watch her, study her, learn everything about her until she trusts him enough to never see the knife coming. But the closer he gets, the harder it is to remember why he started this in the first place. Because she’s looking at him like he’s good. And maybe, for her, he could be.

The Priest Who Wants Her (But Shouldn’t). She came to him looking for salvation. He’s the one person who should guide her away from sin, not into it. But some desires don’t fade, and when she confesses the things she really wants, his restraint snaps. Now, neither of them is innocent. And in the quiet, candlelit darkness of the church, he whispers the one thing that seals her fate: "God isn’t the one who’s listening right now."

The Serial Killer Who Leaves Clues Just for Her. She’s a profiler, trained to hunt monsters. He’s the ghost that no one can catch, except he’s been watching her. Leaving messages, signs, gifts wrapped in blood and obsession. At first, she thinks it’s a game. A way to taunt her. But the deeper she falls into his web, the more she starts to wonder if it’s something worse. Something sick. Something she doesn’t want to stop.

The Cursed Prince Who Can Only Be Saved by Her... At a Cost. The legends say the monster in the castle is doomed to die, cursed by his own sins. No one has ever survived meeting him. But when she’s dragged before him, something strange happens—he lets her live. Now, she’s trapped in his domain, and every time she tries to leave, the shadows close in. He doesn’t want her. Not really. But there’s something in his eyes when he looks at her. Something broken. And she has no idea if she’s here to heal him… or be destroyed by him.

Here's My Free E-book On Amazon on character development,

And Here’s the Show, Don’t Tell freebie book and my newsletter.

[m-r-levine]

so weird how in english some words are really just used in expressions and not otherwise… like has anyone said “havoc” when not using it in the phrase “wreaking havoc”? same goes for “wreaking” actually…

reply with more, i’m fascinated

[m-r-levine]

i love when i write out a scene idea (with plans to incorporate it into the storyline) and then i sit at my computer desk to do just that and my characters are just like:

“nah, we’ll take it from here tyvm.”

and i’m just like: oh ok! yes chef🫡

i can’t tell you how many “deleted scenes” i have in my notes app because my characters love to take the wheel from me🙄

[m-r-levine]

and the sage nodded and said "cultivate an audience you don't have to write defensively for"

[m-r-levine]

Why Query Letters are Good Actually 

Part One of a Two-part series of guest posts by Alec J. Marsh.

Hello, it’s me, Alec. I’m a new editor to Duck Prints Press and the resident corporate shill sellout. I love Duck Prints Press and their ethics (and will write an opinion piece soon on why they rock and you should submit to them). I also…. love traditional publishing. 

I’m sorry! I know this makes me a trend-following sheep. I know it’s a hot take in the indie pub crowd. Traditional publishing absolutely has its flaws, and I could go on at length about them. I’m still aiming to get my novels traditionally published. I want to be able to find my book at a Barnes & Noble and be nominated for a Hugo. Sorry not sorry. 

One of the worst parts of traditional publishing is the arcane hoops you have to jump through to participate. As anyone who has poked querying with a long, tentative stick knows, there are many requirements, and every agent’s website uses slightly different phrasing, and it’s a nightmare to navigate. It’s an extra nightmare if you’re neurodivergent and desperately seeking a clear, simple list of expectations. Unfortunately, the basic requirements are there for a reason. A GOOD reason. Learning the skills required to put together a good query package will serve you well, whether you want a ten-book deal with Tor, to sell hand-stapled zines at the local convention, or anything in between. 

So let’s get into it! 

The first thing you need in any submission process is a query letter. What is a query letter? In short, it’s a 3-5 paragraph essay about your book, yourself, and why a publisher should buy your work (and therefore why an agent should agree to represent you). You need to tell the agent the genre, the plot, and why this book is special. They are excruciating to write, because yes, you need to condense your book down to 300 words, maximum, and sell it at the same time. 

But imagine, for a moment, that you’ve walked into Ye Olde Barnes & Noble. There, on the end cap, is a cool new fantasy book you’ve never heard of. The cover has a sword and a snake on it, and you like swords and snakes. But how is it different from the 20 other books with names like A Court of Swords and Snakes that have come out in the last five years? The first thing you do is pick the book up, turn to the back cover, and read. 

You know what’s on the back cover? 

Paragraph one: In a stunning tour de force, ACOSAS takes you through the glittering world of naga politics… (A teaser sentence)  

Paragraph two: Princess Arya has always wanted to be a dancer. But when the evil northerners attack her kingdom… (A paragraph about the main character and the central conflict of the book) 

Paragraph three: Alec J Marsh lives in the Pacific Northwest and has never seen a snake in the wild. (A biography of the author) 

Guess what you just read? A query letter. In many cases, what’s in the blurb is actually pretty close to the exact query letter the author originally sent to their agent. Yes, really. Sometimes a query letter makes it from agent to editor to publicist to final copy.

They’re that important. 

But Alec, I hear you say, I’m not planning to get trad published! Why do I need to do this? Well, indie and self-published people—you will need to write cover copy for your book. And you’ll almost certainly need to write it yourself. The good and the bad part of self-publishing is that you do everything yourself. Less meddling (good!), but less help (bad!). And here’s the hard truth: absolutely no one will spend a single one of their hard-earned dollars on “sex babes get pounded by space aliens” if the back cover says “lol I suck at summaries, I promise it’s good :)” It’s useless, and it’s disrespectful to the buyer’s time and money. 

And that is why query letters are good, actually, for all writers, and are worth practicing how to create!

So go out there and sell your books, and you’ll accidentally write your query along the way. 

In Installment Two…now that I’ve convinced you that you should write a query letter, I’ll go over how to actually, you know, do that. Coming soon!

[m-r-levine]

3 components of worldbuilding:

1. The author’s kinks

2. The author’s power fantasy

3. The author’s political agenda

Plot and logic optional

[m-r-levine]

Need Inspiration? Here are ten dramatic starters!

=========

1. “Don’t give me space.. That’s the last thing I want from you.”

=========

2. “Please don’t push me away again.”

=========

3. “I don’t understand how you can just sit there and lie straight to my face!”

=========

4. “I think I love you… And that’s terrifying to think about.”

=========

5. “This is all your fault! You made me do those things!”

=========

6. “Do you not trust me?”

=========

7. “Wait a minute. Are you jealous?”

=========

8. “I thought I lost you back there…”

=========

9. “Please. You have to remember!”

=========

10. “They’re using you! Why can’t you see that?” 

========= Emotion is a very important thing in writing. It helps readers understand your scene better. Take advantage of your character's emotions. Be dramatic!

[m-r-levine]

My average writing experience:

"Alright I think I'm almost done actually-"

*Google doc grows second health bar and a choir starts singing in latin*

[m-r-levine]

Encouragment for writers that I know seems discouraging at first but I promise it’s motivational-

• Those emotional scenes you’ve planned will never be as good on page as they are in your head. To YOU. Your audience, however, is eating it up. Just because you can’t articulate the emotion of a scene to your satisfaction doesn’t mean it’s not impacting the reader. 

• Sometimes a sentence, a paragraph, or even a whole scene will not be salvagable. Either it wasn’t necessary to the story to begin with, or you can put it to the side and re-write it later, but for now it’s gotta go. It doesn’t make you a bad writer to have to trim, it makes you a good writer to know to trim.

• There are several stories just like yours. And that’s okay, there’s no story in existence of completely original concepts. What makes your story “original” is that it’s yours. No one else can write your story the way you can.

• You have writing weaknesses. Everyone does. But don’t accept your writing weaknesses as unchanging facts about yourself. Don’t be content with being crap at description, dialogue, world building, etc. Writers that are comfortable being crap at things won’t improve, and that’s not you. It’s going to burn, but work that muscle. I promise you’ll like the outcome.

[m-r-levine]

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

[m-r-levine]

"Elves aren't particularly...impressed with humanity as a whole. But they VERY much like our knights...no, you don't understand- okay, let me put it this way. You ever read an erotica written by an elf? There is ALWAYS a human knight getting f***** in it."

[m-r-levine]

Tips from a Beta Reading Writer

This one's for the scenes with multiple characters, and you're not sure how to keep everyone involved.

Writing group scenes is chaos. Someone’s talking, someone’s interrupting, someone’s zoning out thinking about breadsticks. And if you’re not careful, half your cast fades into the background like NPCs in a video game. I used to struggle with this so much—my characters would just exist in the scene without actually affecting it. But here’s what I've learned and have started implementing:

✨ Give everyone a job in the scene ✨

Not their literal job—like, not everyone needs to be solving a crime or casting spells. I mean: Why are they in this moment? What’s their role in the conversation?

My favourite examples are:

The Driver: Moves the convo forward. They have an agenda, they’re pushing the action.

The Instigator: Pokes the bear. Asks the messy questions. Stirring the pot like a chef on a mission.

The Voice of Reason: "Guys, maybe we don’t commit arson today?"

The Distracted One: Completely in their own world. Tuning out, doodling on a napkin, thinking about their ex.

The Observer: Not saying much, but noticing everything. (Quiet characters still have presence!)

The Wild Card: Who knows what they’ll do? Certainly not them. Probably about to make things worse.

If a character has no function, they’ll disappear. Give them something—even if it’s just a side comment, a reaction, or stealing fries off someone’s plate. Keep them interesting, and your readers will stay interested too.

[m-r-levine]

[m-r-levine]

Writing at a reasonable hour with a substantial amount of food, water and sunlight in my system ❌

Writing at 2:23am knowing I have to get up in the morning and not having eaten or drank for 8 hours with nothing but sheer willpower holding me together ✅

[m-r-levine]

Things I’ve noticed are essential in plotting and would probably have saved me a lot of time if I had considered it earlier

The START of your story - how fucked up flawed is your premise/character at the start? what do they have to change? why are they HERE?

The END of your story - How do you want your main character/theme/universe to change after your story? Does it get better or worse? THIS SETS UP THE TONE DRASTICALLY.

What you want to happen IN BETWEEN - the MEAT of it. What made you start writing this WIP in the first place. Don't be ashamed to indulge, it's where the BRAIN JUICE comes from. You want a deep dive into worldbuilding and complex systems? Then your start and end should be rooted in some fundamental, unique rule of your universe (what made you obsess over it?). Want to write unabashed ship content? Make sure your start and end are so compelling you'll never run out of smut scenarios to shove in between scenes (what relationship dynamics made you ship it in the first place?).

The ANTE - the GRAVITY of your story. How high are the stakes? Writing a blurb or interaction? start with a small day-in-the-life so you can focus on shorter timelines and hourly minutiae that can easily get overlooked in more complicated epics. Or you can go ham on it and plot out your whole universe's timeline from conception to demise. Remember: the larger the scale, the less attached your story may get. How quickly time flies in your story typically correlates with the ante (not a hard rule, ofc, but most epics span years of time within a few pages, while a romance novel usually charts out the events of a few months over a whole manuscript.)

Everything else follows….?

[m-r-levine]

“write what you know” is boring. i write what haunts me at 3am.