reedandstorm

[reedandstorm]

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[reedandstorm]

[reedandstorm]

I’ve gone insane and started writing a cliche fantasy novel

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Virginia Woolf, The Voyage Out

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“characters in fic are too good at identifying scents” is officially an “his eyes did not literally darken” level of complaint to me now like it’s about the drama it’s about the romance it’s about atmosphere it’s about taking you to a heightened version of reality!!! please suspend your disbelief at least enough for vibes-based sensory descriptions it will be So Worth It i promise

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No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading.

ig credit: emubreathesinpages.

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Reblog so everyone can hear what they need.

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if you look closely you’ll see that home and books have the same spelling

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whenever ppl say "I have no style" or "I have no process" I'm like no!! you simply cannot see outside of yourself. you may not know what you have but you have it and it's gonna follow you forever.

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NEVER LET YOURSELF BE STOPPED BY WHAT IT WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE IF YOU STARTED EARLIER!!!!! THE ONLY TIME WE HAVE IS NOW

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I saw a post talking about how Terry Pratchett only wrote 400 words a day, how that goal helped him write literally dozens of books before he died. So I reduced my own daily word goal. I went down from 1,000 to 200. With that 800-word wall taken down, I’ve been writing more. “I won’t get on tumblr/watch TV/draw/read until I hit my word goal” used to be something I said as self-restraint. And when I inevitably couldn’t cough up four pages in one sitting, I felt like garbage, and the pleasurable hobbies I had planned on felt like I was cheating myself when I just gave up. Now it’s something I say because I just have to finish this scene, just have to round out this conversation, can’t stop now, because I’m enjoying myself, I’m having an amazing time writing. Something that hasn’t been true of my original works since middle school. 

And sometimes I think, “Well, two hundred is technically less than four hundred.” And I have to stop myself, because - I am writing half as much as Terry Pratchett. Terry fucking Pratchett, who not only published regularly up until his death, but published books that were consistently good. 

And this has also been an immense help as a writer with ADHD, because I don’t feel bad when I take a break from writing - two hundred words works up quick, after all. If I take a break at 150, I have a whole day to write 50 more words, and I’ve rarely written less than 200 words and not felt the need to keep writing because I need to tie up a loose end anyways. 

Yes, sometimes, I do not produce a single thing worth keeping in those two hundred words. But it’s much easier to edit two hundred words of bad writing than it is to edit no writing at all.

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I want to write..

*vaguely gestures at the air*

..something

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Reading: hey it doesn’t matter if the author knows every little detail, they can have some artistic liberties and make things up

Writing: if I don’t find the exact shelf life of the average can of ravioli RIGHT NOW I will DIE

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I’m going to start my day with silence. I’ll fix my coffee and breakfast, let my thoughts bloom in the cool quiet.

I’ll add in a little gentle music, like kindling for a fire. Something instrumental, soft and simple.

I’ll walk around the block and get my blood moving, listening to the bird-song, breathing deep.

Then I’ll be ready to write.