#SORRY FOR THE ELABORATION U DIDNT ASK FOR BUT . they are heavy on my mind !!!!!! | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

sakuurae · 7 years ago

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any writing tips u can share?? i adore your work so much, just the way everythings described flows so nicely~

Mmmm, im not the best with this, but ill try ^~^ thank you by the way! Ehehe, it means a lot.This advice will go on like stepping stones, haha.

1. This is probably the most broad thing i can say, but just keep on writing. When i used to tutor creative writing (or english as a whole, lol) i met a lot of students who were so focused on sculpting their writing to perfection, and the purpose of it was lost along the way. This happens a lot, from what ive seen, in creative writing. I feel as if when writers are more focused on creation their pieces to perfection in hopes of it being acknowledged and seen, theyre not writing for themselves anymore; thus, this leads into the second piece of advice. Practice makes perfect. Everything that you will write you are improving in every single piece—even if you dont realize it. The things ive written two weeks ago make me cringe, but thats a sign of improvement.

Work with your strengths, and improve your weaknesses.

Go back and read your old work so you can see what you like and dont like—what you should improve on or keep doing.

2. Write for yourself. The value of your work is so much more when you write for yourself because it makes you happy.

Moving onto the composition work…

1. Vocabulary bank. It takes a while to build up a wide vocabulary bank, but its worth it. In my opinion, its more engrossing to read a piece with a lot of high vocabulary over the simple words. It bumps up everything, and if theres a good sentence flow then its a plus.

I studied word lists everyday, and i always do every other day because i want to keep on building up my vocab. They are always out there, and its a total helper!!

For me, id rather read an entire piece that was written like an SRI test over pieces that dont have that much high lexicon.

This also becomes the case for the word said. There are many words out there to use aside said, like drones, equivocates, gasps, jeers, etc.

Ex: “He wanted to tell her the truth.” ➝ “He had an urge to apprise her of the concerning verities.”

2. Sentence structure. Some sentences are far too shot, and some are really extensive (and do not have commas, semi-colons—oh my goodness). Now, sentences dont always have to be extremely long; there should be a variety. Itll make the paragraph flow more, and you can get the emphasis where you want on certain places.

Ex: “His eyes shined under the darkness of the night. The smile that graced his face warmed you from the heart. And it was not an everyday occurrence for that to take place.” ➝ “The smile that graced his face made his eyes crinkle into crescent moons, the glint evident in his two orbs. It warmed you from the inside—his beaming grin—and it was not often you felt this from another individual.”

Speaking on this, try to not use the same prominent word twice in one sentence.

Ex: “He turned the paper face down, turning his head to face his friend.” ➝ “He turned the paper over, tilting his head to address his friend.”

3. Being metaphorical. Im not really sure how to elaborate on this; i guess it provides more depth/character to the paragraph?? Aah, heres an example instead.

Ex: “The sky was a calming blue, the cluster of brilliant stars surreal to your eyes.” ➝ “The curtain of aegean draped over the muted sky, golden pins splaying upon the surface.”

4. Adjectives. It bumps up your sentences—trust me. With more details, it becomes easier to picture in your mind. Have you read a smut without adjectives, and another smut with? The difference is quite prominent because with one you can imagine the scene with more detail, and the other not as well.

Ex: “His member was twitching, the pleasure of being inside you unbearable.” ➝ “His stiff member was twitching uncontrollably, the overwhelming pleasure of being inside you borderline unbearable.”

“Sweat dripped from his forehead.” ➝ “Beads of sweat slowly dripped from his forehead.”

But try to not be heavy on the adjectives… i still struggle with this, haha, but i think many readers can tell if you have a thesaurus in hand or not.

5. Paragraph breaks. This might not seem like a biggie, and it is completely up to you when you decide to break paragraphs, but there are times that one must paragraph break… like with dialogues or setting changes, or when a new character is introduced. Please… avoid the block… oh my goodness…

6. This might be a me thing… but go into detail with the actions. To say this under a brighter light, imagine this: actions during a kiss scene. When you kiss someone, you and the other’s mouths arent the only thing that are moving, and the touch of the lips arent the only thing youre feeling.

Ex: “He pressed his lips against yours, his mouth prancing to the melody of your heartbeat.” (and thats it) ➝ “He pressed his lips against your own, his mouth prancing to the melody of your heartbeat as his hands trace the outline of your body. You palm snakes up his back, only to place it on the nape of his neck to tug him closer. At such a closed proximity, you noticed something else: his scent. There was a swirl of cinnamon and vanilla that intoxicated your senses… etc.”

What im trying to say is that going into some detail, brief or not, about actions will add more sparkle into the paragraph—especially dialogue.

Ex: “’You’re kidding me,’ he groaned, flailing his arms in the air animatedly. He was in a disbelief at the sudden news, lodged at a crossroads on how to respond. ‘You’re fucking kidding me!’

You took a step back, placing a fist over your heart cautiously. ‘I-I’m sorry,’ you uttered weakly, tears pooling at your eyes. ‘I didn’t mean to.’”

Obviously the apostrophes wont be there in the final product, lol, it would perturb me if i didnt write that grammatically correct, ahaha.

Think of these composition levels as a pyramid. From letters, to words, to sentences, to paragraphs, the purpose of the piece, etc. The letters would be the bottom. So if you mess up at the bottom of the pyramid, the rest is disrupted. I read over a paper before where the first and second base were horrendous, and i was correcting it so much. The student came up to me and asked me what i thought about the message of the piece, but i actually paused and thought. I was so focused on correcting the mistakes—paying attention to the mistakes—to the point i missed the entire purpose of the piece. So, honestly, proofreading will be your best friend here.

All of this falls under the tab of your style. Remember, dont try to force out word after word to sculpt your piece into perfection. Work with your strengths, find your weaknesses and improve.

On the finding inspiration and keeping motivation side…

1. Work at your own pace. Do what makes you feel like your best work will be exhibited, and dont let other deadlines push you at your limit. Personal deadlines would most likely take the fun out of your writing process, and you might miss some particulars youd wish to convey—so dont rush! Trust me on this, lol. I made this mistake again when writing overrated, and im so hesitant to even hit that upload button because of how much i rushed it to meet my personal deadline. I keep re-reading and editing it, but i know that if i spent my time on it and pushed aside the personal deadline then it would be better.

2. Inspiration comes at the most random of times. I got ideas from waiting in the line in the bathroom and in the middle of my english class; they come when you least expect them too. If you force it out then it wont be that good (for me, that is). Of course, you can go out and find inspiration by walking outside or listening to music, but dont try to force out ideas—let them come to you.

You can write about real life occurrences that have taken place, or base stories off those. ‘Two Cups of Sugar’ is based off my friends experience of trying to get a guys number at an ice cream bar, but always failing so she went back around seven times—and only got his name in the end.

An upcoming fic i have is based off my boyfriend and i, and how we came to be. To be honest, all my fics are based off some real life experiences i had, or some outrageous stories my friends have told me. ‘Study Sessions’ was some real events, and a few scenes in ‘After Hours.’ What im trying to say is that those simple stories can take you a long way. The scene that started ‘After Hours’ was my friend talking about a bar. It was supposed to be a 4k bar scene, but after thinking about her experience and incorporating it into my own piece, it built its own way to 21k, and an ongoing series.

3. Keeping up motivation. Depending on what youre writing, you should focus on those elements. For example, im writing two fics—one of them being a basketball au and the other a soccer au. My motivation for that has seriously been dying, so ive been watching basketball videos and soccer games to keep my motivation running. Also, it helps when writing out action scenes, ahaha. I also talk to my friends that play those sports and ask them about how they feel about it and the rules of the game. Just kindle your flame with more information.

I know im not the best at giving advice… and there is way more in this whole writing sphere that im not addressing, but i hope this helps!! This is just what i think, what i go through, and my opinion—i really hope this helps you out. I wasnt sure what department you wanted concrete information on, whether it be the writing process or inspiration side or etc, so i briefly did all three :)

I know its a lot, so thank you for spending the time to read all of this ^~^

#Aaah this was great to type with my coffee ahaha #im sitting in the uni right now mortified at the fact i made a typo in my submitted work LOL #but yeah!! i hope this helps somehow ;;#rae rambles #writing advice #anonymous #messages

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bitchfitch · 4 years ago

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babylon artfight resource

as you can tell i play it Very fast and loose with this boy, just get the color pallet right and your good.

an excerpt from one of the things ive written with him:

Why isn't he looking? The man there in the very back of this dingy little tavern with his nose in that massive old book. Nobody ever ignores him when he plays, so how is this man Not Looking?

Babylon sings a little louder, bows his violin while forcing a bit more of his natural charm in along side every note. This rest of this little inn was looking, smiling dazedly as they danced and sang along to songs they didnt know they knew, songs they would forget as soon as he stopped playing. It wasn't often he let himself do this, playing in front of people who weren't guarded against him, but he needed the coin, and this town needed someone to come steal away their troubles for just one night.

But why isn't That one paying him any attention? Even when Babylon wasn't trying to charm people, his music still stole wills easier than he took wallets. It was something innate about him that did it. Nobody without some form of protection could resist him.

And yet, even now as his own feet begin to hurt and his voice grew strained, that man hadn't looked at him once. He's not deaf, Babylon saw him turn in response to the waiter talking to him. He doesn't seem to be protected in anyway, usually when his magic brushed against countercharms it felt like dragging his nails down a chalk board, but he felt nothing of the sorts from the man. He just seemed completely and wholly unaffected.

That was… Interesting.

He let the final note taper off as he came to a stand still. The tavern goers clapped, the applause tapering off as they blinked their momentary confusion out of their heads. Some might realize they had been charmed, most don't, and no one caused a fuss about it tonight, that he could be greatful for.

If Babylon was a wise man, he would take his earnings and leave, return to his home in the attic of a different tavern. The glorious one that sat in the center of their bustling capital, that wasnt at all like this one here in the very back of a town litteraly called Dead End.

But he wasnt a wise man, he was a curious one with a stranger to try and figure out.

Babylon decided he didn't quite feel like being tactful, and slid into the booth seat across from the stranger. Before he was even fully settled the man spoke without looking up from his book.

"Your playing was beautiful," He had a strangeness to his voice, his tone was flat and it didn't sound quite right coming from his mouth, too deep, too… Something that Babylon couldn't name,

"Thank you," Babylon smiled, nobody ever remembered what he sounded like after he had finished playing. Which was a shame, he'd spent so long cultivatimg his skills that it always felt like such a waste when he could play as horribly as he wanted to and still have everyone who heard bending to his will. But he was still proud of everything he'd worked to learn, "To be honest I kinda thought you weren't enjoying the performance," He cocked his head, "I'm curious whats in that book that kept your attention,"

The man was quiet for a moment, he was so still, his eyes didn't move in his skull and his skin had a sickly yellow tint to it. Definitely not anything he was trying to be, Babylon concluded. He shouldn't fimd comfort in the fact that he wasnt the only one trying to hide a monstrous face behind that of a half elf's, though he felt he was definitely doing a better job at it.

Finally the man spoke, "I liked it a lot," he said simply, "I didn't want to stare, so I kept my head down,"

something pinged in the back of Babylon's mind. Oh, the man was Lying, he wanted to stare. Of all the boons he got out of his wretched deal, this one was always the most useful, "Is that so? I don't mind being stared at if I'm being honest, I actually like it quite a bit. I don't think I could be a performer otherwise,"

"People do not like it when I look directly at them. The bar keep said it was creepy," The man said truthfully, still apparently giving his full attention to the book in front if him,

"I want you to look at me," Babylon started, if his music couldn't charm this stranger maybe something a little more direct could? and if it couldn't… well the very thought of that made his heart race. "You're… Interesting and I think I want to figure you out," he purred, flirting always worked for him, hopefully it would work here,

The man finally looked up and imeaditly Babylon understood why people didn't like him looking at them. His eyes were just wrong, too still and slightly glazed, not wet enough, and the iris was a strange greenish silver. But, it didn't feel like the stranger was looking at him, more like he had already been looking. How hadn't Babylon noticed that before? How long has this stranger been focused on him, and how was he faking not being focused on him so perfectly?

"Oh, you really should keep your chin up more," Babylon started, "Its a shame to hide such a handsome face," he said, it was true, the stranger was handsome if you didn't count his stranger features, a strong jaw and sharp cheek bones with a nose that had a cute crookedness to it, thick lips that weren't quite red enough to look alive, and long stringy black hair that had a pretty wave to it,

Something loud crashed outside, like a tree falling over behind the tavern. The sound sent everyone besides the stranger jumping half out of their skins as he closed his book and hurriedly stuffed it in his jacket, "I think I need to go,"

Babylon wasn't fully back to himself yet, loud noises always sent him on guard, when he reached a hand out to snag the stranger by the sleeve, "Sorry, sir," he apologized, "Was I coming on too strong? Come on. sit back down and give me another shot" he tried to smirk but that feeling of being watched only grew, like he truly, Finally, had the entirety of the stranger's attention, whatever that might mean.

"No- Uh, Good bye," the stranger said, pulling away without a hint of elaboration as he set a fast pace to the back door of the tavern. Not running, or walking, more lumbering and shuffling. Like maybe he wasn't quite used to have legs under his considerable size, tall and broad shouldered with a deep barrel chest and thick arms and legs.

Babylon watched him go, tapping his nails on the old wood of the table as he did. He'd have to meet that guy again someday. He'd never found someone completely immune to him before. People were always at least tempted to follow along with what he asked, but the stranger, the one with the dead eyes and the desire to look at him, he seemed so unaffected. Or at least he wasn't charmed in the slightest by him.

Babylon tried to suppress the fluttering feeling in his chest. This was it. his first chance at maybe being able to befriend someone who wasn't being coerced into liking him.

---

The next time he decided he would venture into that little no name tavern, Babylon chose to wear a different face. That wasn't unusual, it was safer for him if no one could ever recognize him. What was unusual was the amount of effort he had had to put into making this one. He wanted to make sure that stranger wouldn't look away from the moment he entered. Normally that wouldn't be hard for him, he had a nack for guessing what others found beautiful, but the stranger was a complete mystery. No inkling of what he may like came drifting to the surface.

Still, Babylon tried and tried until he found something right. Small and dainty like how he'd gone last time hadn't been enough to catch his eye, so maybe tall, with a good amount of muscle. Babylon thought about the men who worked the docks down by the lake, they could be a good example for this. He'd borrow the sandy blond waves of one of them too while he was at it, and the wide puppy dog brown eyes of that little cleric that had started following him and his sisters. A beard came next, a few shades darker than his hair and just long enough to round out his jaw.

He looked in his pocket mirror, this face was handsome, the black stretch fabric he favored for his clothing clung to the broad chest and strong thighs in a way even an eunuch would appreciate. He was good at making handsome faces for others to enjoy, but this one didn't sit right. It wasn't what he needed it to be. Maybe…

He let his curves soften and his chest grow, let the beard dissipate until he looked like the former faces sister, still strong and broad, but feminine and beautiful instead of handsome.

He sighed, this was worse. It wasnt farther from what the stranger would want, but he didn't know What about it was wrong. It wasn't the femininity, that he felt certain of.

He fwumped back onto his mattress with a heavy sigh as he let his disguise drop. He hadn't been able to get that stranger out of his head in the entire three weeks since he saw him. This was the first free afternoon he had had in that entire time, and here he was wasting it by not being able to guess at what that stranger would like.

It was frustrating.

It was infuriating.

but most of all it was invigorating. He Didn't have a little window into this stranger's head like he did with everyone else. He was just as lost as any other man trying to catch the eye of a stranger at the bar.

The trap door that lead up into this shared room was shoved open with a loud clang as Tamm, one of his two sisters, pulled herself up without even bothering with the ladder. She huffed a greeting before pulling that cleric up after her. He yelped and stammered when she set him on the floor beside herself.

"Thought you were going out tonight Babs," Tamm said, she gave him a look that definitely meant she wanted some alone time with the cleric,

"I'll be out in a moment, just having a crisis," He huffed, he sat up and tried to ignore the hurt that always came when the cleric flinched everytime he saw him without a disguise. Babylon didn't think he was That ugly, certainly grotesque, but in a pretty way if he did say so himself,

"Go have a crisis somewhere else please," Tamm said, "I promised to teach nerd lord how to sword fight,"

"And you need to be alone in our room for that? I'm pretty good with a sword, maybe I could help teach him?" Babylon scrunched up his nose at her, he Knew what she really wanted to show him, he'd seen the way they'd been making eyes at each other, but he Really Really wished he didn't,

"Babs-" she started, but he waved a dismissive hand as he got up and grabbed his violin,

"Yeah Yeah, I'm going Tammsy. Make sure shorty wraps up, I'm not ready to be an uncle," He goaded before dropping through the trap door and into the hall below. The door slammed shut above him and he heard the latch lock shut, "Don't Eat Him!" Babylon shouted, and snickered when he heard her groan through the ancient wood.

He straightened out his clothes before taking on the face he'd tried out before, the more masculine one just because he didn't want to have to remember to respond to a different set of pronouns. It still wasn't perfect, but it would do.

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