#colleen hoover or something

[theloveinc]

Hiiiii, i just saw tht post about writing and like formulas to do like big fanfictions/bigger pieces (i struggle too tbh, although it’s more like i struggle w writing in general lol) and even tho it’s not really a formula or something and u might already know it, i still wanna share in case it’s helpful!! Something that seems to make bigger writing works seem less daunting/easier to imagine and write is like, thinking of it like a puzzle. essentially doing very small portions (bc a 500 word/1k little blurbs is easier to write than a 30k, for example) at random/whenever/whatever strikes your inspo and then just piecing them in after you have a ton to make one large work. As for a formula of anything to write romance, i WOULD LOVE for u to share if u crack the code lol, im lost there too

Sorry if this wasn’t helpful bc u knew already and it didn’t really tackle the application of romance but i just wanted to potentially help! you’re one of my fav writers and you are an amazing at it so i know you’ll get there and it will be amazing when you do, like your work already is 🤍🤍

anon!! thank you sm for the tips <333 this is really sound advice... even if i'm gonna have to work my booty off to begin actually practicing it.

not to go off on a tangent, but i notice my struggle really lies in like... actually developing a plot/timeline/climax/intention? i often think of little scenes i'd love to include in something bigger... but i never really get to what that bigger thing is. in terms of other stories i've thought of, i always say... it's like i have point A and point Z... but i don't know how to get from one to the other (alongside like... making all the necessary transitions needed, and doing that properly).

i have started like... physically mapping out a lot of my ideas. from short stuff to long stuff, i write little blurbs of what i want each scene/chapter to be.... but even then, what usually happens is i either get stuck or scared (of whatever work is needed) and stop progressing. and alongside my crippling fear of like... doing a bad job (or not completing something in a way i'd enjoy)......... it's very paralyzing.

but that's just to explain how how i've been handling it (if u have any more tips or even just relate) + to say I AGREE W/ U that i, as well as others, should just... write what comes to me in any order and go at my bigger projects from there.

but....,....... :') i'm sure you already know. difficult.

thank you, thank you for this and the lovely encouragement tho!!!

it always feels berry nice to know you're not alone in whatever you're going thru, esp when it seems like the people around. i always just try to take comfort in the fact that we're all still pretty young... and that (not all but) a lot of my fave writers didn't start writing long things/publishing until WAYYY later. not that i want to do this publicly or anything, but.... there's lots of time for improvement, and to put the same expectations on myself at this point is... clownery tbh. you know?

but ARGHGHGHH if i do figure it out one day, i'll make sure you get the secrets first!!! til then tho, it just means a LOT to me that u like my writing even as is❤️❤️❤️ hugging u forever🥺

[can-of-w0rmz]

How some people feel after shitting on people’s interests just because they’re popular or “basic”, and assuming they’re better than them for having niche interests (you’re the problem):

For anyone who needs to hear it, just because someone’s extroverted or enjoys popular things doesn’t mean they’re stupid or that they even can’t have niche interests too. Crazy insane mental concept, people aren’t one dimensional. Touch grass. Or kys. Whatever works best really

[spacexfucker]

Everytime I see ppl on here complain about the "bad books" on tiktok I just know you're spreading the regurgitated moral panic from there about smut that women read bc if you were actually on booktok in a meaningful way, the brûlée crust of monster fucking books or whatever you're upset about is like the top layer of booktok. Underneath are disabled, POC, queer, and a mix of all three creators which recommend books that are probably more your speed. Asserting that all the popular books are bad without having read them and going further to imply that someone couldn't get anything out of them is an interesting (deragatory) thing to do.

Literally saw someone say it was anti-intellectualism to read "those shit books". I'm sorry??? Dressing up your put down of what women read as "anti-intellectualism" is a hilarious way to distance your condemnation from the ageless push to condemn anything women read. You are not more educated for reading whatever you do. You are not morally superior for reading "complex" work. Giving shit to a largely female base for liking fun smutty romance is not new. That's been going on for as long as women have been allowed to read.

What, truly, is the point of acting so holier-than-thou about this? What do you think is gained from making fun of people who read a popular book? You think that's all they read? How do you know? Even if they did, why does that matter?

I think some of you are stuck in this headspace where your reading level from school is still a badge of honor and through your own faults and pitfalls you feel as if being able to pick up a book on theory or even more advanced fiction and get through it makes you a better person somehow. It doesn't.

And frankly, given the choice of who I'd be forced to spend time with and listen to, I'd much rather it be some "tiktok girlie" going on about the newest published mary-sue pulp than have to hear you wax on and on about how you wouldn't be caught dead with a dime novel in your hands.

[lois-thegreat]

does anybody have any book recommendations

[theflatpackangel]

Dear internet,

Kindly stop recommending romance books to me as, contrary to popular belief, I am not a romance guy

Slightly bitter regards

Me

[honeybearhalsin]

I hate you booktok I hate you kill yourself

[b11rn0ut]

I love sexual symbolism

I think sex is often shunned when it comes to creation because it can feel “awkward” and if you are new to writing can feel like a very large uncomfortable feat

I know it was smth I really struggled with when I first started truly developing characters, every choice felt wrong or dirty

(That and the internet has really ruined a lot of shit with “spicy” books and whatever…)

But the only way to break that wall is to just write it, it can be inexperienced and it can be “gross” that’s all very true to our world, and it’s okay to portray that however it looks for you

There also no “right way” to depict something (within reason)

People are people!

BUT WRTIE YOUR SEX SCENES! SEX IS SO NORMAL! ITS OKAY FOR YOUR CHARACTERS TO HAVE THAT ATTRACTION THE SAME WAY ITS OKAY IF THEY DONT!

[shrikebrother]

making assumptions abt ppl's lives & even the depth of their personality based on what they have on their bookshelf is so dumb . tiktok die

[daughterofzeus-the-novel]

I know some of classicsblr dislikes the way Madeline Miller modernized the Illiad for Song of Achilles but I loved Circe and I'm really liking this one so far

[love-has-a-way-ofgrowingbackward]

calling red white and royal blue a 'tiktok book' is like, deeply insulting, please stop.

[encrucijada]

might do this thing on my substack where i ask (almost) all my friends to tell me their favourite book and then i'll read it and review it

[marklikely]

the results of that "is fanfic a book" poll have shown me one thing and its that this site never graduated past that absolutely insufferable phase in 2013 where everyone acted like every book is the single most sacred thing on earth

[cafffine]

u know I continue to lurk on tiktok for diverse book recs and content bc the literary community on tumblr isn’t as big or interconnected, but also there’s nothing worse for my sanity.

I now have an anaphylactic response to the phrase ‘no thoughts just vibes.’

[anqelbean]

This is the lowest hanging fruit I swear

[quanxui]

i bought new books heheheheh i bought The Great Gatsby and The Idiot by Elif Batuman

my next big spend will be on the new hayao miyazaki and sofia coppola films