#googled how long the average scene is

[flower-sniffing-friend]

how do people write long scenes, i can't get mine over 600 words 😭

[sillylotrpolls]

About Reblog Graphs

Have you ever clicked on the "reblog graph" button of a post? I think they're one of the... well, maybe not greatest features on tumblr ever (polls are probably better), but they're still pretty darn neat.

I want to show some cool patterns I noticed on some recent posts of mine, but first I'll explain how reblog graphs work so you can more easily follow along.

This is pretty long with a bunch of pictures, so click the cut to read more.

How reblog graphs work

If you've never done so before, I invite you to click the notes button on this or any other post and then the icon with four circles. You will then see a bunch of dots connected by lines.

For example, if you click the graph for the "blorbo in Elvish" post, you get something like this:

Now, let's zoom in a bit. You can do this by using the mouse wheel and clicking and dragging around the graph until it's showing what you want. (I don't know how it works on mobile, but presumably it's similar to using Google maps?)

This next screenshot is the bit in the lower right of the graph shown above. However, the graph may not always display in the same way because reblog graphs are re-generated each time you click the "reblog graph" button.

Here you can see that I'm viewing the root post, which is the original post made by me. It's indicated by a circle with a dot inside. You can also see that six people reblogged that post. Each reblog shows as a dot with a line connecting it to the post it was reblogged from.

Now here's a cool thing about reblog graphs: they're interactive! You can click on any dot and see the post it represents and the reblog chain that led to it.

For example, clicking this dot that has several lines emanating out from it shows that it is "2 reblogs deep" and was posted by @cycas.

Got it? Close enough? Cool, now let me show you some neat things I noticed. :D

The Swedish Chef poll and very popular bloggers

My polls tend to average between 500 and 2000 votes, depending on subject matter. The Swedish Chef poll, however, took off and eventually garnered over 22,000 votes. How did that happen? A very popular blog reblogged it about five days in.

Initially, the graph looked like this. (This is the first 200 reblogs.) There's nothing unusual here. You can see that the root post had several reblogs, and that there's another cluster developing around a post by @zagreus. There are also several reblog chains where just one person reblogs someone else's reblog. Some of these chains peter out, while others find their way onto the dash of more popular bloggers, creating clusters.

A quick note about "popularity"

Yes, yes, it's all about "popular." However, it's not just about having a bunch of followers. What's more important is that the "popular" person reblogging your post has followers who are specifically interested in your post.

For instance, if I, @sillylotrpolls, make a poll about LazyTown, it's probably not going to get very many reblogs because my followers aren't here for that. However, if @silly-lazytown-polls reblogs the poll, that reblog might then get quite a lot of reblogs itself. It's not that silly-lazytown-polls has more followers than sillylotrpolls, it's that it has more followers specifically interested in LazyTown content. Make sense?

Back to the Swedish Chef poll

The poll eventually got over 5,000 reblogs. Since you can only add 200 reblogs to the graph at a time, you can roughly see how a post spread over time.

With 600 reblogs loaded, a new cluster bursts onto the scene. This is @bunjywunjy, who reblogged the post from @beecreeper who reblogged it from @soggypotatoes who reblogged the original.

Bunjywunjy didn't add any tags or comments, so I didn't even notice at first because it didn't show in my activity feed. However, I did notice a sudden uptick in notes on the post, which caused me to investigate. It had been five days since I posted the poll, and usually polls that are going to take off do so sooner than that.

By continuing to click the "load more reblogs" button I can see how the post further spread, especially from bunjywunjy's post.

When the post reached @beggars-opera (whose icon I am somewhat proud to announce I identified on sight), they added a screenshot of @stylishanachronism 's tags which said:

# all of these are incorrect it's the 'meat's back on the menu boys!' scene

This would become the dominant version of the post as it further spread. Interestingly, this was the only reblog of stylishanachronism's reblog. Literally thousands of people loved their tags and agreed with them, but they quite plausibly never saw it unless they specifically went looking.

By 3,200 reblogs, you can see even bigger clusters developing. @thebibliosphere shows up 10 reblogs deep, and leads to yet another cluster via @teaboot (12 reblogs deep).

Eventually, with all 5,371 reblogs loaded, the reblog graph looks like this:

Like I said: neat. :D

Cool, but if you've seen one, you've seen them all - right?

So what prompted this (extremely long) post was actually the reblog graph for my poll on inspirational LotR quotes.

Here's the reblog graph with 200 reblogs loaded:

And here's the graph with all 1,890 reblogs loaded:

It's just one big cluster around the root post. I've never seen that before!! Almost everyone reblogging this post saw it either because they follow this blog, saw it in the #lotr tags, or because their non-influencer friend reblogged it. (Or maybe it was in some kind of algorithm/the explore feed, but I have nearly zero experience with those.)

And this wasn't just a small post. This poll got over 15,000 votes and more than 4,000 notes. That puts it in the top 10 polls for this blog.

What does it mean? I have no idea. I would really like to know! But really, I got nothing. If you have a theory for why this particular poll should result in a reblog graph like this, I would very much like to hear it.

Orphan clusters

To round things off, I'd like to show another interesting facet of reblog graphs: orphan clusters.

This blog's current undisputed poll champion is the fmk wheel poll. That's not really a surprise, as it combined sex with a fun game where you just had to tell everyone what you got, which meant either a reply or a reblog. So it spread pretty far.

However, if you look at the graph, there's something odd going on.

This is with just 200 reblogs loaded:

Notice how some of the dots don't connect to the root post? That's because somewhere along the chain, a reblog was deleted.

This cluster in the bottom left got pretty big! This screenshot is at 800 reblogs loaded. The missing link is from a blog called @gendertaliban that doesn't exist anymore, as near as I can tell. That makes it impossible to trace the full path of any of these reblogs.

In conclusion

This concludes today's deep dive into a tumblr feature you probably never paid any attention to. Admittedly, there's not a huge use for it outside of determining which of your mutuals is an "influencer," and they get quite difficult to navigate after loading about 1000 reblogs, but I hope you enjoyed staring at dots and lines with me. :)

[illarian-rambling]

So, for the month of November, in the spirit of Novelember (cooler Nanowrimo), I tracked my writing data. I didn't really have a concrete goal other than to write every day, since I'm in college and that means November is Hell Time. Anyways, that said, here's the highlights!

My most productive day was the 29th. I wrote 2538 words in two sittings, with an average wpm of 10.5

My least productive day (excluding the 7th, 13th, and 27th, where I didn't write anything) was, big surprise, the 6th. I wrote a total of 48 words at a wpm of 4.8.

My slowest wpm day was the 5th, at a wpm of 2.5. I think I was in class then tbh.

My fastest wpm day was the 30th, at a wpm of 17.5. Like most writing sessions, I was on my phone for half the time, but I guess I was just on it less for this one.

My average writing session length was 65 minutes. Mostly, I was writing at night.

Other data I collected was in regard to my surroundings, including distractions. Such notes include gems like:

"Submarine documentary in the background" (10 wpm, 644 word session)

"Bing chillin'" (9.6 wpm, 228 word session)

"Might've failed my exam but that won't stop the sexytime grind" (6.65 wpm, 266 word session)

"Shit was rainty" (12.3 wpm, 246 word session)

"My cat fucking drooled on me" (7 wpm. 842 word session)

"Google probably thinks I have a gambling addiction" (12 wpm, 595 word session)

"Described food too hard, now I'm hungry" (10.6 wpm, 962 word session)

"Oh god I'm gonna have to fix my sleep schedule" (5.8 wpm, 349 word session)

"Smut is hard when your characters won't stop infodumping about magic" (8.7 wpm, 1048 word session)

All in all, my total word count for the month of November was 27,326 words at an average speed of 8.99 wpm. Those are cool numbers I guess, but within them, I made it to the middle point of The Final Voyage of the R.S. Starbreaker, I wrote my first sex scene, I started my second Rel project, and, most importantly, I had fun! Even on days when I wrote only a few dozen words at a snail's pace, I had fun. Even on days when I squeezed out what I could between classes, I had fun. Fast or slow, many words or few, writing will always be a passion I adore and one I intend to pursue no matter the speed of my progress. In the wise words of Mr. Sanderson: journey before destination. What's the point in getting somewhere if you don't enjoy the views along the way? I've never found a hobby where this applies more fully than to writing.

So here's to journies! May everyone's path be a scenic one, no matter how long they take to walk it, or how many detours they make along the way <3

@amandacanwrite @elsie-writes @riveriafalll @kosmic-kore @kaylinalexanderbooks

@bard-coded @carrotsinnovember @patternwelded-quill @somethingclevermahogony @whatwewrotepodcast

@the-angriest-author @mk-writes-stuff @frostedlemonwriter @vyuntspakhkite-l-darling @watermeezer

@leahnardo-da-veggie @mr-orion @televisionjester @ray-writes-n-shit @evilgabe29

@trippingpossum @tragedycoded @halfbakedspuds @ominous-feychild @cain-e-brookman

@wyked-ao3 @thecomfywriter @mysticstarlightduck @rumeysawrites @the-golden-comet

@cowboybrunch @gioiaalbanoart @theink-stainedfolk @sableglass @thelaughingstag

[raspberry-vinaigrette]

HEYY HI WAVES. i dont know if anyone has asked you before or if i should ask you but. do you have any tips for writing multi chapter things? like. making outlines n stuff! i have an idea for something i wanna do but i cant commit to one writing project blerrrghh....

OH JEEZ honestly im flattered you came to me haha!! that's so real honestly but ive found it really helps havin something or someone to hold you to it tbh. my current multichap fic is in part a gift so that feeling of "geez i really wanna make this gift" helps in a sense though honestly the obvious motivation of writing something you really love is my main motivator. i am CONSTANTLY thinking of ideas for misanthrapologist and jotting em down in a memo / google doc / whatever i have on hand or whatever works best for you. it's why misanthrapologist got a chapter increase !! i just keep having ideas man !! and i know thats easier said than done obviously but once you start writing ive found it really gets ideas flowing

which leads into my second point !! daily word goals! they dont have to be high -- in fact, i encourage you to keep them low! 400 words a day is a common one ive seen but honestly as long as you have *a* word goal, it doesnt matter. it might not sound like much, but it gets you writing! if you aren't feeling it you can always stop, but i've found once you hit the word goal, you're often in enough of a "flow state" to keep going! sprints also help -- there's a discord bot for it (sprinto, i think?) but you can also just do it by setting a timer on your phone! you just set a timer (usually 15 minutes is the average) and for that time you lock in on writing. doesn't matter how many words you get out as long as you get something on the page, and oftentimes that little push is all you need! i know timers sometimes make people panic, though, so if it doesn't work, it doesn't work :)

in terms of outlining, i'll be honest when i say my outlines are typically SUPER bare bones. for comfortember i'd write like one or two sentences for the basic plot and then go haywire while writing, and if i strayed from the original idea -- cool! for misanthrapologist it's the same jist -- i think the longest idea in my outline chapter-wise is like... three or four sentences. it helps me have that rough idea of what i want to happen while still not "chaining me down" to an idea, so to speak. lets my mind get creative without me having no idea where to go with the plot.

also for a more general tip -- don't get too caught up in your word count / chapter count / whatever else !! it happens to me too, but genuinely, word count does NOT matter as much as some people think it does. if a shorter chapter works better for your pacing? go for it! if you wanna combine two scenes in one chapter? hell yeah! if you wanna split one longer scene across a chapter for emotional impact? knock urself out man!!! do what makes YOU feel good about the fic, and you'll find that it's way more fun that way. :)

if they don't mind saying anything (no pressure to either of you), i'm sure my pals @wario-speedwagon and @springlucked have some good tips too, since they're more experienced in the field of multichap stuff haha. good luck with whatever you make -- i'm excited to see!!

[lavendericedcoffee700]

The end

+ bonus scene

I went through so many trials and tribulations writing this fic. None of those trials were really related to actually writing this fic, that was the easy part. Wish for the best for AO3 authors, you never know what they're going through out there. I had it in my goals for this year to finish this story and I can say that I did finish a fic the length (nearly) of a romance novel. One of my dreams is to publish some romantic media (novel, comic, interactive fiction, visual novel, etc...) and have it really pop off. Maybe you'll see some of my stuff out there some day under this pen name :)

We made it to 46,327 words out of an average romance novel length of 50,000. I'm not sure what that means for me in context but it sure was fun writing it. Isn't Nanowrimo about that long?

BTS of my writing process:

no beta readers

I would write the story in my head first, and if I couldn't remember what happened, I'd reconsider it as being the right direction for the story until I could remember and replay a scene

written entirely in 1 messy Google Doc

I'm not sure how other authors write, but that's how I did it. Sometimes teachers and schools imply there's a right and wrong way to be creative. There are definitely more and less chaotic ways to do things, but my philosophy these days is finished is better than perfect. Don't let fear of doing things wrong stop you from being creative. If you want to write, do it! Feel free to send me your fics, I promise to read them. <3

I'll open up a long term AMA to celebrate :)c

suggested credit roll song:

[lovelyelbowleech]

All's Fair is incredible! I am on my third re-read and it is just as much of an emotional gutpunch as it was the first time. The emotional impact sneaks up on me every time, even when I know what's coming. It blows my mind how carefully woven everything is. Even just small characterizing details that help make the characters and situations feel so real. You also have a way of writing that flows so smoothly with the emotions each character is feeling, like I don't know how to describe it but it's so well-paced and descriptive and I can picture and feel everything when reading it both from the characters POV and also in a more objective sense at the same time, which is extremely difficult to pull off in my opinion. It is insane to me how easy you make it seem with your writing.

Another thing, too, is that this doesn't even really feel like an alternate universe. It's like you shifted one thing in the beginning with a little flick and we're seeing the ripple effects of that play out naturally, as though you're just sitting back and reporting your findings instead of crafting an entirely new story from thin air. Everyone is so in character that I can hear their voices in every line. Even your OCs feel 'In character' even though you literally created them for the story lmao?? Like I actually forget they're not canon characters sometimes.

ANYWAY- I got sidetracked. my intention for this ask was to actually ask how you pictured some of your characters in more detail. I want to draw art of my favorite scenes and am trying to compile little snippets of character appearances, particularly of Guo, Yuxuan, and Haoyu. I have sincerely contemplated starting a google doc to catalogue all the little details of every character, even the minor ones, like a Pokémon deck I can flip open and consult whenever I want to refresh my memory.

Thank you so much for such a lovely comment, it was wonderful to wake up to! I am glad you are enjoying the fic so much (enough for a reread or two even!) There is some really high praise there, and it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy 😂❤️

It is always very exciting when folk say they want to draw art of the fic (even if its just for themselves!) So I will try to add a more detailed description to the character description page I have somewhere. There is not too much in the way of description of the OC's in the actual fic - and there is certainly no wrong way to depict them in art! What is in the fic is not hugely detailed 😂 but a very brief collection of the descriptions would be:

Guo: Short and stocky, facial hair, and a wide craggy face. Big broad hands. Hair currently short (post East Lake) gruff and grumpy to look at.

Haoyu: on the shorter side of average, about 18, round face, green eyes and dark brown hair, currently cut short (post East Lake). Very earnest and open looking face (which has been used to get him out of trouble more than once)

Yuxuan: a year or two older than Haoyu, long dark brown/black hair and honey coloured eyes. Good looking, and has a certain amount of rakish charm.

I am not sure if that is helpful or not! I will try to update the character sheet with additional OC's this week if I can. And thank you again for the wonderful ask!

[killerandhealerqueen]

Asks time, let's go

Ask game for fic writers- 1, 3, 5, 16, 24, 28, 30, 37, 39, 44, 58, 72

Ask game for fic writers #2- 10, 15, 16, 30, 32, 38, 44

Fun meta asks - 3, 4, 7, 9, 15, 16, 18, 20, 21, 23, 25

Took, my beloved!! Alright y'all, buckle the fuck up, this shit gone be long

1. do you know how you want the story to end when you start, or are you just stumbling through the figurative wilderness hoping to find a road?

For some fics, yes, I do know how they're going to end when they start, but most times we're just kinda...figuring it out as we go. And sometimes that's the fun part because when just writing, you can sometimes come up with shit better than when you outlined/planned it

3. on a scale of 1-10 how much do you enjoy incorporating romance into the average story?

I enjoy it. So like...an 8-9? Most of my stories are romance anyways so it's not that hard for me

5. have you ever made a playlist about something you were writing as an elaborate means to procrastinate when you could have been actually writing and if yes drop a link, son

Nope. I don't make playlists for my fics

16. where is your favorite place to write?

Well, I write anywhere, but my bed is always a good place. Things just tend to flow there

24. on average, how much writing do you get done in a day?

Depends on the fic. Sometimes I can get pages done, sometimes nothing. But on average, I'd say...1.5-2k? Sometimes more? Like I said, just depends

28. handwritten notes or typed notes?

Typed. My hands cramp after writing for too long. And it's just easier to type if there's a lot of information

30. most inspirational quote you’ve ever read or heard that’s still important to you.

"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you know" ~ A.A Milne

My parents say it to me a lot whenever I have imposter syndrome/am doubting myself. It helps a lot

37. when creating characters, what comes first: appearance, backstory, motivation, personality, something else?

Now, I don't create OC's, but personality, I think would come first for me. I always like characters who have personalities that don't match their appearance (and personalities are more interesting to work with anyways because they're shaped by backstory, motivation, etc.)

39. are you an avid reader?

I am! When I'm not reading fanfiction and I want to get away from the computer, I'll pick up a book. Sometimes if I'm really into one, I can crush one in a day/couple of hours. I've always been a voracious reader

44. any writing advice you want to share?

Just write what you enjoy. You're not writing to please anyone else but yourself (and maybe a few loyal readers). So like...don't write what's trendy or popular, write what makes you happy. It makes the fic much more enjoyable for you and for your readers

58. what is the last thing that a fic made you google when you were writing it?

Hmm...I think for my fic The Tiger is Out, I had to google/duckduckgo the name of the poem the fic was inspired by because I couldn't remember it

72. what do you do if a scene gets too serious?

Oh boy, take a break. There are a lot of scenes in the Killer and Healer rewrite that make me cry/make my heart hurt so I have to take a break from writing it/do something else for a little bit to get a breather. I mean, I can push through (which I've done before) but you feel a little empty afterwards. Or I'll go talk with my discord chat and tell them what just happened to get my mind off the scene

ask game for fanfic writers | send me asks

10. How do you stay motivated to finish what you’ve started?

Ooo, great question. Most times, if a story has gripped me by the throat, I'll keep working on it till it's completed. As for multi-chapters, sometimes I fall outta hyperfixation with them and I don't wanna work on them anymore, but then I also don't wanna leave them unfinished indefinitely (which is fine, of course but not for me) so I finish them (and I tend to feel better after I finish them, sometimes because I'm genuinely happy it's finished or sometimes I've relieved that it's over)

15. OCs or no OCs?

For me, no OCs, just because I don't need them in my stories. But more the merrier for others, y'all have fun creating your little guys

16. Do you use sentence starters, writing prompts and/or fandom headcanons for your fanfics?

Most of my fics started out as writing prompts, tbh. My Killer and Healer fics now are mostly my own ideas/aus...unless i'm feeling really uninspired. But I do still use sentence starters or other ideas to kind of spark something, if again, my brain can't figure out what it wants to write

30. What writing software do you use?

I use Microsoft Word and it's the only writing software I will ever use

32. Past or present tense?

Past, for the most part. Sometimes my headcanons will be in present but my fics are mainly in past

38. Do you partake in any fanfic/writing events? (Big bangs, zines, NaNoWriMo, etc?)

I do not, actually. I did NaNoWriMo in like...8th grade but nothing since

44. Does fanart of your fanfic exist?

It does! For my fic Violence Is Never the Answer...Except When It Is, @a-single-log-bridge drew Chen Yuzhi with a katana! You can see the fanart here! (With this I am giving y'all permission to draw my fics, please god, draw my fics, I beg)

ask game for fanfic writers! ⌨️🖊📓📝 | send me asks

3. What is that one scene that you’ve always wanted to write but can’t be arsed to write all of the set-up and context it would need? (consider this permission to write it and/or share it anyway)

Honestly, have no idea

4. Share a sentence or paragraph from your writing that you’re really proud of (explain why, if you like)

Gonna copy my scene from my other ask that I got about this question, hang on

From my fic My One and Only (Killer and Healer mignon/vampire au)

         “Jiang Yuelou” he breathed before he quickly knelt before him and cupped his face in his hands.          “Jiang Yuelou” he whispered.  Jiang Yuelou, however, didn’t answer, causing Chen Yuzhi to whimper before he reached out and carefully pulled him into his arms, hugging him gently but tightly.          “I’m sorry.  Jiang Yuelou, I’m so sorry.  I lied…everything that I said was a lie.  I’m sorry.  I love you.  I really, really love you.  So please…please don’t leave me” he begged as he clung to him and buried his face in his neck.          “Don’t leave me.  Please don’t leave me” he pleaded.  Jiang Yuelou, however, didn’t answer again, causing Chen Yuzhi to let out another whimper before he hugged him tighter.          “Please” he whispered, just as two strong, but gentle, arms came around him and hugged him back.          “I won’t” a weak voice whispered, causing Chen Yuzhi to gasp and lift his head out of Jiang Yuelou’s neck as he looked at him with wide eyes.          “Jiang Yuelou” he breathed as Jiang Yuelou slowly lifted his head and smiled at him.          “Chen Yuzhi” he replied, causing Chen Yuzhi to let out a sob before he buried his face in his shoulder and hugged him tightly, making him smile weakly as he gave him a tight squeeze in return.          “I’m here.  I’m here.  I’m not going anywhere” he whispered. 

I just really like this scene because while Chen Yuzhi does like Jiang Yuelou throughout the fic, he's never like...expressed/reciprocated his feelings to Jiang Yuelou, who has. And now in this moment, when he's afraid Jiang Yuelou is going to die, he confesses that he loves him. And who doesn't love that trope, huh?

7. What do you think are the characteristics of your personal writing style? Would others agree?

Um...someone's always gonna get whumped, I know that much. Also, descriptions/dialogue...I've always been told I'm good at those...as well as staying in character/characters feel like how they do in canon, no matter the au. So I guess that? Idk (I'm never good about answering questions about my personal writing style because I don't pay attention to that sort of thing)

9. Are you more of a drabble or a longfic kind of writer? Pantser or plotter? Do you wish you were the other?

Longfic. Always longfic, especially when it comes to Killer and Healer. I mean, look at my fucking word count on ao3. Do I look like a drabble writer to you? (No offense to anyone who does drabbles, just could not be me)

Most times, I am a pantser. I've learned that plotting kind of stifles my creativity. The only time "plotting" has worked for me is figuring out what's going to happen in each chapter of my fic The Demon and the Angel.

And no, I do not. I like writing my long fics and I like figuring stuff out on the go. That's what makes writing fun to me

15. Which is harder: titles or summaries (or tags)?

They're each hard in their own way, but I guess personally titles. Summaries for me are easy because I just take like a line/passage out of my fic and use that as the summary. Tags can be tricky too because I wanna make sure I tag everything that I think is in my fic but sometimes I can't tag everything (though I do try)

16. Tried anything new with your writing lately? (style, POV, genre, fandom?)

At some point, I'm going to try a sci-fi fic, which I've never done before, so that'll be interesting. It's inspired by the Netflix Movie Rebel Moon and I think it'll be fun once I get around to it...and my brain stops plaguing me with other au ideas

18. Do any of your stories have alternative versions? (plotlines that you abandoned, AUs of your own work, different characterisations?) Tell us about them.

My fic Monster Like Me had a completely different version before I decided I liked the current version better....but even getting to that version it took 3 rewrites, one complete deletion of the fic and original outline and a whole new rewrite to get to what it is today. And I have to say I like this version so much better than what it was originally. Did you know this fic took me almost a fucking month to write? That's the longest a oneshot has ever taken me. Ever

20. Tell us the meta about your writing that you really want to ramble to people about (symbolism you’ve included, character or relationship development that you love, hidden references, callbacks or clues for future scenes?)

Oh...I don't really have a lot of meta, at least not with the fic I'm currently working on. But with my Rebel Moon au, the idea actually came to me on my 7 hour plane ride home from Hawaii. I couldn't sleep at all nor did I play on my computer nor did I watch any movies...I just listened to music the entire time. And for most of the time, I listened to

on repeat. If you wanna read the rest of the story, I actually answered about the au over here

21. What other medium do you think your story would work well as? (film, webcomic, animated series?)

Well, I write most of my stories like they're a movie/drama, so movie/drama would work, because I see my writing (or any writing for that matter) like it's a movie playing in my head

23. What’s the story idea you’ve had in your head for the longest?

A Killer and Healer Howl's Moving Castle au. I've always loved Howl's Moving Castle and I think it would work great as a K&H au, but I just don't know a) which couple to use because it could work both ways and b) when I'm ever going to have time to write it (because I am plagued with other au ideas all the damn time)

25. What part of writing is the most fun?

Oh man, talking about fic ideas with your friends. Just gushing about how scenes would work/play out, who characters would be (if I'm inspiring a fic off of a drama/anime/movie/manga), what certain scenes will entail...stuff like that. That shit is fun. I mean, writing is fun too because you're taking what's in your brain and putting it on paper, but like...just brainstorming with your friends is fun

Fun meta asks for writers | send me asks

[mermaidsirennikita]

Hello I saw your plot rant and I have to add--these books have the audacity to be both plotless AND minimum 600 pages. Like pick a struggle!!!!!

Yeeeeeep. And a lot of this is because, or originally was because

a) a lot of books were published or originally published in KU and that pays per page read, essentially

b) a lot more romance novels are being published in indie--but tbh, I think that is a pretty limited excuse, because even if you can't hire an editor, you CAN speak to more critique partners and beta readers at min, AND you can simply google things like "how long is the average romance?" and find through research that it's often recommended to keep them, depending on subgenre, between 50Kish~-100Kish words, with the upper limit being for more world-heavy subgenres like historicals and PNR (with wiggle room for things like fantasy romance)

c) people just don't read enough romance before writing, or don't read diversely enough, to learn how to self-edit... if you read a Nora Roberts novel, for example, you see that she writes like a machine, she sticks to quicker novels, and she TRIMS. THE. FAT.

Like--and I say this as a writer--not every scene is necessary. Sometimes that shit is interesting to you because you're in love with your characters... and boring to everyone else.

[crystalyssa35]

Chapter Length Tips/Guide

Despite me writing for five years now, I still find myself struggling to make sure my chapters are the right length and size. I never really realized how short my “chapters” usually are. And when I finally glanced over at the final draft of the chapter, the word count would only be a little more than 500 words (that’s around four minutes). So, if you also struggle with chapters that are too short, then worry not! Thanks to Reddit user KaraNCTS’s answer on a post from r/AO3, we have an answer...

“...3000-5000 base count per chapter and then you can always adjust in editing, moving a scene to the next chapter or combining two chapters if it feels like one long chapter.”

When I read this, I had to try it for myself. On Google Docs, I use the font “Pangolin” at 12px for the main text, and “Croissant One” at 20px for my chapter titles. I try to aim for the midpoint: 4000 words per chapter. If I need to add a few more words or finish at less than 4000, I can. Each chapter in Google Docs averages out to about 10 pages per chapter, which is a mighty amount!

However, there’s no need to stress about your word count. I’ve made short stories that are around only 1000 words, and they’re still wonderful to read. In other words, your quality of your writing should be put first and foremost over the quantity of your word count. If you make your scenes in sections (I do this), then combine them to make a full chapter. Take note that your chapter should have an overall themes, meaning that your scenes should try and align with your chapter theme.

Hopefully, this guide helps with making the length of your chapters consistent. Feel free to post an ask if you have questions about writing! I’ll be happy to answer and and all questions. No matter how silly you think your question might be, a question is not useless if it helps you to learn!

[maaxverstappen]

I’ve been asking ppl cus im nosy. What’s your writing process like if any? Do u have a preferred place or time. Preferred device. Do u write rough drafts then edit or is it much more considered. How do u decide that an idea is worth fleshing out or pursuing if it looks like it’s plotty. Pls yap at length if u so wish — wiz

i love this question!! and would love to know other answers so if you want to reblog them i shall be on the lookout 👀.

i answered partly here so will just like build on that!!

the process is that i’ll have an idea and depending on how large it is write out some sort of outline. my preference for all planning in life is on paper so i have a little journal that ill write out some ideas in. kind of brainstorm / mind map style of just jotting down random ideas that come to mind.

however, with longer fics like my current post-as-i-go wip i have to do it digital bc so much changes and it’s too long (see pics in previous ask). that one i actually started planning in my notes app on a plane bc the idea had to come out of me someway and i was really excited about it. i then transferred it to a google doc and added onto my chapter per chapter outline (1st pic in previous ask). i felt like that was a bit overwhelming for understanding the overall plot so then i went and made a simple overview of the key plot points per chapter (the 2nd pic in previous ask) just so i felt like i had a better understanding of the goal per chapter.

now when i sit down to write a chapter ill get both the detailed notes and the main plot points and just write whatever i feel like in order to get to the goal of the chapter.

for shorter one shot fics i’ll either have no full outline or a one page idea list kind of thing. for instance, for worth the trouble i knew that it would start and end in the present time and then everything in between would be a flashback, but i didn’t know the flashbacks would be non chronological until i was writing it. same for the chewing gum aspect that ends up being quite an important part of the symbolism and that almost weaves the parts together, that wasn’t a *thing* until i was almost finished with the rough draft and i then went to add it in to previous scenes.

for my long fic i have to be a bit more calculated with the hidden messages/foreshadowing as i can’t go back and edit published chapters lmao so that is a little more thought out + i keep track of loose ends to tie together at some point.

editing is a bit of a harder one. for my long fic my overal editing is per chapter, but i do tend to go back and edit per section too. like right now I’m writing a texting scene and first i wrote the plain texting dialogue, then i went back to add the bits in between from characters’ pov. then i’ll read over it fully and edit where needed. finally when the whole chapter is done ill read over it and edit again, but at that point it’s mainly grammar and punctuation.

my main writing issues i’ve noticed so far is that i tend to switch tenses without realising so that’s something i look out for when editing. i also am always worried they don’t *do* enough so i like to think “hmm what action can i add in here to make them more human” when editing.

so far only worth the trouble has been beta read, the rest i do myself. if I’m stuck i will talk through a lot of it with my partner who will give me some ideas and just like help lmao (she’s also the one that beta read wtt!). but she’s not in the f1 fandom so it’s a little hard to have her beta read for characterisation and specific plot points so i do that myself. like when she beta read wtt she gave a few points of feedback that weren’t too relevant bc the average f1 fic reader would understand (like the significance of spa21, there is no need to explain it).

I’m a baby fic writer so a lot of my process will be redefined and refined as i go I’m sure.

as for deciding what to write, it’s really whatever captures my attention. the prompt for help me hold onto you is one i really liked and a trope i love reading myself. i was also ready to challenge myself to a longer plot fic and i was really excited about the idea so i just went for it! my main consideration is really just how excited i am for it.

i will say that i am currently really struggling with perfectionism / imposter syndrome. I’m having a hard time getting the words onto paper bc it feels like it’ll never be as good as my favourite authors anyway so what’s the point. (which is now also impacting the way i read fics bc it makes me sad that ill never write anything as good as what I’m reading lol)

i generally write on my laptop! in a google doc with grammarly activated and the word count on screen (which pisses me off bc i have to turn it back on after every refresh). i wrote my latest crafty!oscar on my phone (bc i was too excited to wait till i got to my laptop) but wouldn’t ever do that for anything much longer or plot-ier than that.

i fear this has gotten very long. i know u said yap away but …. i perhaps have yapped too close to the sun.

[hotcheetohatredwastaken]

Hi! This is anon from the other day who was asking about outlining! First of all, thanks so much for your input! It was really helpful and I finally have an ok outline- at least in my opinion! Just wondering if you have anymore advice on outling in general- My fics going to be a longer one- looking at average novel length here for everything I want to shove in it. Have a good day! :D

Hello, dear anon! I am always happy to give advice (though the quality of it may be lacking, as I speak from personal experience rather than professional study).

If you're looking for some more advice (writing wise), I would suggest making sure that you don't spend too much time obsessing over any one chapter, especially as you're just starting out on such a long project. Not that you can't edit, but I've seen so many new writers (how new are you at writing? That may change my future advice, if you ask for it) edit and edit and edit their first chapters without ever moving onto the second because they're trying to get it perfect. I'm on a writing exchange platform on Reddit (Writers Helping Writers), and I had one kid send me his first chapter no more than seven times to review the different versions, because he couldn't get down the details of how he wanted that inciting scene to go. It's been like 3? months, and he just sent me an eighth version the other day, and I had to tell him that I wasn't gonna give (the same) feedback on the chapter anymore XD

Especially if you're going to be doing a long fic, new things you'll want to add to different sections will pop up as you go. You just have to accommodate for ideas as they come up rather than try to preemptively pin them all down, and I'm saying this as the person known as being super super detailed with crazy outlines, apparently. You have to be a bit flexible--the story will take you places that you didn't expect to go, and you'll have to go back and fix details and revise many many times.

Specifically for outlining, however, I am a very visual person, so I have drawings, diagrams, and I also have a corkboard with all my chapter "sections" on sticky notes, with string connecting big subplots (I've actually taken these all down right now, and the only one's up are concluded subplots XD Arc 2 is a mess rn). You'll just have to play around and see what works for you, when it comes to that. Have you seen the train station model for subplots? I'm not sure if that's exactly what it's called, because googling it gets nothing, but when I started writing years and years ago there was one for the Hunger Games going around XD Basically, deciding which subplots will be advanced in which scenes, and tracking them through the story that similar to a system of subway rails, with each chapter being a stop that only some of the trains (subplots) will stop at. It gives you the opportunity to visually make sure that you give each the amount of screentime they deserve and also remember to give them a satisfying conclusion that's going in the same direction, to extend the metaphor, as the main plot.

It's great that you have an outline already, as that'll cut down on those revisions that I mentioned earlier a lot! And you're going for NOVEL LENGTH? Wow, good luck, and as I said before, please message me when you get around to posting that! Feel free to message me if you need anything, whether that be talking through plot points or my specific processes for anything.

You have a good day yourself, my dear writing anon!

[summitclan-chronicles]

Wow! November is almost over!! Summitclan has celebrated their own feast, the Fox's Larder, by this point. They're winding down, preparing for the long hardy winter ahead... wait- winter?! It's almost winter!!! That means...

Applications are opening on Friday, December 1st!

I'm so excited!!! The whole month has FLOWN. There's one more post between now and the 1st. But with the day now on the horizon, almost before us!, I thought this post was best used to discuss how this is going to work.

When do applications close?

Sunday, December 24th, 11:59 EST

Where will applications be hosted?

Google Forms

What are these applications for?

These are purely to get people into the roleplay: there are no character questions. This gives me a more focused way of vetting new members and making sure I fully understand the nature of the people I accept without also worrying about characters.

What can I expect on the app?

The application will be presented in three sections:

The first part will be information gathering. This will be your name, pronouns and ways to contact you. You will require a Discord account, but you can also put down other ways to get you if something on Discord goes wrong.

The second part will ask about your roleplay habits & how much of the Warriors series you've read. This allows a good picture of what certain people might need when getting accepted.

The third part will ask some personality questions.

Will anything on the application change my roleplay experience?

Other than deciding whether or not you get in, yes! Everything about your character is up to you except their age bracket; you will be assigned as a Senior, Warrior or Youngan. These are all very wide however and allow for significant differences within.

This is mostly to provide structure for people who have not had much roleplay experience: these people will be younger cats, while more experienced people will be older cats to guide them.

Note: the rest is pretty winded. if your eyes need it, take this as your sign to blink, get some eyedrops or take a screen break.

Can I apply for staff?

Well, yes and no.

In the structure of Summitclan, the roleplay staff are the same people as the inrp high ranks, known as the Council. In order to be considered as part of the Council, one must meet certain paramaters both on the Applications and in my research of them. Staff are held to a higher standard and are given more abilities than the average member, and I must be very careful and every choice must be purposeful - like the treacherous parts of a hike.

So there is a question asking if you want to be a Staff/Council combo. But that does not guarantee you a place, nor should you particularly expect to have it offered at the start. Knowing you are willing is good to know for the future though 👀

What sort of people are you looking for?

Overall, this roleplay is one where the goal is to write stories, go slow, explore character arcs, feel big emotions about fake cats, and experience worldbuilding in a day-to-day fashion. So, we are looking for people that are creative, gentle, patient, open-minded, friendly and considerate. We're not looking for saints - lots of people appear jagged and tough but embody all of these characteristics. The plan is to dig deep and find good people through how they act and what they choose to spread.

To note, we're not gonna check through your reblogs and search up every username you've ever interacted with! But we will note the general tone of tags, replies and reblog content - what do they say about the person? How might this person interact with others that have applied or myself?

Will applications reopen? When?

Well, this is complicated. These sorts of applications - where people and characters "poof" into being and retcon their backstories - will never open again after this Christmas Eve. You'll never see anyone retconning themselves into scenes that have already been roleplayed, nor will you see any NPCs as members of the clan - what you see is what you get.

But in the future, a clan will always have kittens. Every time a new litter is concieved, special applications will open for new members to take & adopt the kits. They will be randomly assigned a kitten with a design by staff & a name given to them by their parent/s. This is an opportunity the founding members largely didn't get: an opportunity to learn the lore organically through loving clanmates. (All cats get a fertility boost in March and April - check for openings in April, May and June!)

Similarly, to ensure the clan remains fresh, loners will come in batches that will be designed by new members coming in.

Phew! Thanks for staying through all that. I hope I will be seeing you on December 1st when our applications open! Til then, I hope you have a lovely night, and whatever tomorrow brings - know I am thankful for you!

[a-little-revolution]

Hello! I’ve been reading through your blog for a bit over an hour now, and I am so glad I found you! It’s difficult trying to find information on dwarfism that aren’t very medical google articles or vague information from average height people. If you don’t mind, I do have a question! I’ve had a character with dwarfism for a few years now, and I’m quite ashamed to say I haven’t really done enough research for him. His dwarfism isn’t a centre in his story at all, so I never felt the need to bring it to attention, but I think I need to research so I can properly represent! And I’m glad I did find you while looking for resources, because I never knew that there was a whole scene of wrestlers with dwarfism being used as entertainment in a gross way and not taken seriously in their sport. My character is a luchador, a Mexican wrestler. I just love Mexican wrestling because I think it’s so cool, and didn’t really think twice, I just designed this character and decided that I wanted to design him with dwarfism, as I love to represent many different people.

But, I’m worried I’ve unknowingly made a harmful character. The last thing I want to do is hurt anybody with my characters, and I want this character to be positive representation, but if it’s not possible to have him as a Mexican wrestler with dwarfism without hurting somebody then I would much rather get rid of the harmful character! I feel the need to call to attention that his dwarfism isn’t a focus in his character arc, and he isn’t treated any differently by other characters because of it. He has a fleshed out backstory and personality, his character arc focuses more on how he had lost a high stakes unmasking match and is trying to gain back his fame, but he learns he doesn’t need to be a famous wrestler to be loved and respected. Thank you so very much for reading this, if you have any ways I could avoid being harmful with his presentation I would absolutely love to learn!

Hello hello!! I'm so glad, as I started this blog for exactly that reason!! I wanted to fill in the blanks on LP discussion and information that I so desperately craved, and I chose tumblr since it's my favourite platform!

For your Little wrestler, it's always difficult for little people to be within a publicly entertaining vocation without experiencing objectificaton - that being said there is power in reclaiming one's public identity. You could keep your character a wrestler, so long as you make it clear in some way that they know their history and are serious about their work. In the real world, there'd be a likelihood for mistreatment from the audience and those involved - consider how your character and those in power would handle those situations.

I would usually say that their dwarfism can of course be something in the background of their story, but because dwarf wrestling carries such a weight, I'd recommend you write it in more intentionally.

-E

[barbwritesstuff]

how long will the game take per playthrough?

I honestly have no idea...

Um. Okay. Let's try to figure this out.

If you played the shortest possible game (eg, no romance or extra scenes, avoiding the final battle, not speaking to anyone), you could probably get the words on your screen down to about... 100,000ish?

Assuming a reading speed of 260 words per minute (which Google tells me is the average for an adult reading fiction) that would give us 6-7 hours.

And if, alternatively, you spoke to everyone and went on dates, and picked the longer missions, etc maybe you could get it to... 280,000ish?

My very arbitrary and random equation translates that into... 18 hours.

Those would both be very extreme cases, I think. So the average playthrough would fall somewhere between them.

These are obviously very rough estimates. I don't have any actual data for this and honestly have no idea how I'd get it. I'm just guessing based on my knowledge of the script.

The whole game is around 450,000 words long, so I hope that says something good about replay-ability. 💙

[worldismyne]

Seeing how you actually are able to keep your promise of weekly chapters, any tipps to commiting to a schedulde? I often think with all my free time I should be able to do the same with my storys but I just get burnt out or distracted and then self loath cause when I actually have the will again I have work responsibilities or other important stuff going on

Don't commit to an upload schedule until the first draft is finished.

Write to entertain yourself, not to meet a deadline.

Write as much as you can while the idea is new and exciting.

When soft writing and/or brain storming, I like to make a playlist specific to that story. The scenes I have that are tied to specific songs are the easiest to write.

Find the 1 hr on your days off that you have the most energy. (For me it's right after breakfast). Try as often as you can to write then. Even once every other week, is amazing.

It's okay to leave fics unfinished.

Your freetime where you rest is important

Listen to audiobooks in the same genre that you're aiming to write.

Whenever stuck, don't google, put < get there > and keep writing. When editing go back and either add to the scene or just cut it. 9/10 if I think a scene needs something to start it off, it actually doesn't.

(Longer explination of my process under the cut).

DON'T COMMIT TO AN UPLOAD SCHEDULE UNTIL IT'S ALREADY DONE.

I write as much as I can while hyperfixating on a story without posting it. So the draft for the fic I'm uploading atm was finished three months ago. I started uploading when I had 16 chapters written (or 4 months of backlog).

I can't count on how long an idea will hold my interest, or if I have enough material to stretch it out over multiple chapters. (I only just recently got into one shots. If you look at my other fics, I average around 20 k for a 'long' fic, because I get bored). So don't hold yourself to a strict length. Write the important, most engadging parts, walk away, come back and make sure it flows.

The important thing is I'm writing to entertain myself. Writing for a self imposed deadline or to meet audience expectations always burns me out. (No amount of kudos or comments will ever combat that)

I work 3, 12 hr night shifts a week, so a lot of the writing I do is during downtime at work. I personally find it difficult to write at home and spend a great deal of time recovering from working. The body needs that time to recover and it took years of unlearning that rest and self care are unproductive or a waste of time. If your work doesn't allow you that luxury, have a place out of the house you go to for longer periods of writing.

The playlist thing is a lifesaver, never discount the importance of soft writing. I literally can not visualize things, so music helps me have an outline to plot out scenes or chapters (i.e. what tone am I trying to capture). Also works to reignte the spark of inspiration. The time I'm most active is the morning, but that time often gets eaten up by real life, however it's easy to budget a half hour of time to that peak writing time. Those lil bits add up. If you haven't made progress on something in a while, it isn't a bad thing that you've prioritized other things. The writing process should be fun. It's like playing pretend, but you get to keep it afterward.

It's okay to abandon fics.

I still reread unfinished fics people posted, because what they had up was full of passion. A lot of the fics I couldn't finish were either the scope of the story was too big for what I wanted to write or the direction I was taking the fic wasn't working. Crest of the Dragon was on a 6 year hiatus before I was able to come up with an ending I liked. I was surprised people who'd followed it and left tumblr came back just to congradulate me for finishing it. Your readers will understand if you have to step away from something for a while. Updating serially often puts fic writers in a corner, by having the WIP up for everyone to see.

Burnout is usually not from the writing, but the real life shit going on around us. It can take years to figure out the main source and how to deal with it. Mental and emotional rest are important. I'm a bit neuro spicy, so there are straight up weeks where I have to resign myself to not creating anything. Having the back log helps in those instances, since l typically make things in fevered burst and then have to recoop.

Recently figured out listening to disc world novels has helped with my SE fic. It has good examples of absurdest humor, world building and general descriptions. I don't have time to read, but a lot of audio books are free on youtube. If you really, really get stuck, seeing how a pro tackles things can help even subconciously.

<get there> is my new friend. I'm not big on writing non-linearly. For longer stories, I'll parse out the main story beats and then hope the characters develope in that direction. Sometimes they go off the rails on me, or a planned subplot gets scraped. So, for this fic, I had all the mystery reveals spaced out between the two storylines. For character arcs, I go on explorative vibes.

All this to say, writing for me is an escape, and most of the time I'm doing it when I'm in a position where my options are either be on my phone or write. If I got 15 min or more, I choose write. If I got a sentence out, that counts.

It doesn't have to be perfect, or finished, or written in a timely matter. It just has to be, as long as what you're writing entertains you. Worry about uploading once you're done with it.

[90percentstudios]

Sorry if this is dumb, but how exactly do you both do the writing for Cool Kid Cody? I've been doing research into game development for a while and I'm mainly wondering if you could be doing a standard script, writing it in a spreadsheet, etc.

Thanks!

i write the rough idea of an episode in google docs/a private wiki, clean it up and get a summary that looks something like this (spoilers for episode 16):

Summary: Peter hangs at Luna's in order to de-stress and reflect on himself being a Loser again when he runs into Holden. Holden laughs it off, saying he can't keep track of who's cool and who's lame anymore. It's kind of nice. He invites Peter to de-stress at his place where he and GG are planning a surprise for Cody. It turns out Holden's prepping a bunkbed for him. After listening to a long voicemail vent he and GG came to the conclusion that Cody should find a place to stay that isn't his home with G-Ma, which sounds like it's only getting worse and worse. Peter helps Holden and GG de-clutter his room. Holden's been taking everything in stride meanwhile GG appears incredibly stressed and disheveled over Cody and Juvie's changing relationship and thus the unsteady fate of the entire friend group. Peter has a heart to heart conversation with them about what he's learned about being lame and cool, Holden admits to never caring much one way or the other. They hug it out causing Holden to transform (Peter too)! GG's in shock, she can't accept her friends changing. She uses her headphones to "mute" them and runs off. Peter wonders what it means that he can cause other people to become Average too.

after that i'll rewrite specific scenes directly in visual studio code! scripts wind up looking like this:

the end result is usually pretty different from the initial summary. i used to write the entire script in google docs back when i was working on purrfect apawcalypse but i found it too time consuming to copy and paste into vscode, so i started writing directly.