#like how it's easier to comment on a fic in a google doc vs a 10k oneshot on ao3

[beneathsilverstars]

i know there's many possible reasons why people do this but whenever people post like a bunch of different drawings in one sketchdump i'm like woah hold on... give them room to breathe... each of these deserves its own frame and space in the gallery....

it kinda makes sense when they're closely-related explorations of the same topic but when they r different concepts or characters or esp moods i'm like wait! i have different things to say about each one! i want to admire and reblog each one separately with discrete tag commentaries!!

i just wanna show my love to each piece individually 😭

[bentosandbox]

hell yea comics. 10, 23, 30, 40, 41 if you like

10. How do you decide what to write?

A little parasite in my brain says hmm today i will do thing and i just roll with the cringe

23. What’s a trope, AU, or concept you’ve never written, but would like to?

omegaverse i think it'd be extra fun when it's 2 emotionally constipated office workers vs a pairing like texlapp whoa who said that does 'daydreamed and doodled a bit but didn't start on anything solid yet' count as never written if yes its then wuxia AU where chen and lin switch places kinda (basically want to extrapolate that part in chen's op rec where the rat king invited her underground)

30. Have you ever written something that was out of your comfort zone? If so, what was it, and how did it affect your approach to writing fic thereafter?

this chen and hoshi one technically but also the chen and swire one that i still havent posted in english so sorryyyyy (i wrote them at the same time iirc.. just didnt have time to draw the second one until later)

first time i forced myself to write internal monologues AND angst in an actual script on google docs instead of just dumping lines i want characters to say in my own discord server channel shoutout to my friend who gassed me up with the comments they left on the doc lmao 'damn i wanna make the angsty af introspective comics i always see' > 'wait damn i have to make it myself fawjkkkkkkkk'

idk if it affected my approach because the Very Serious chen and Lin character study comic i had planned ended up being a shitposty copybook so i went back to my old style of smashing dialogue in a notepad (if the anon that sent the ask about this comic sees this sorry i got cold feet and i still havent exported it out of my tablet)

40. Do you tend to reread fics or are you a one-and-done kind of person?

we don't have a choice do we...

i did just reread the fic i mention below tehe i do reread CN fics way more because sometimes ill be lazy and read it through machine translate while other times i'll sit down and try to translate it (in my head) while EN fics have an easier time searing into my mind

41. Link a fic that made you think, “Wow, I want to write like that.”

its not cheating right

fr tho to write fever dream-esque(?) scenarios that end in girlfail...!!

ok the chenswire one aside the nearl one is also a favourite something about looking at the tired human through the chinks in the infallible knight's armor

[runicmagitek]

Hi there Runic!

I was wondering your opinion on using Scrivner to draft fics vs using Word? Like pros and cons? (Some of the articles online are so confusing! >//<‘)

Thanks so much for the ask, anon! And also thanks for your patience; I wanted to give this some thought, hence the wait.

I primarily use Scrivener and have been using it for a little over a decade. I also use Word during the final phase of edits. I'll list some of my favorite features of each one, followed by the cons.

Scrivener

Organizing a story in Scrivener is where it shines the most. For a longer story, you can break things down by chapter and easily move them around as needed. For me, I use a single file for all my fics and breakdown folders by fandom, then by ships. The use of status markers and labels and custom meta-data, while initially daunting, are also super great to flag what state your draft is in along with any other indicators you wish to use. For me, I like marking if fics are for an exchange or a gift for a friend. I've even customized the meta-data so I can plug in potential tags and ratings as I go!

Snapshots is a neat function that makes a copy of your current file. I use it with each new phase of editing, in case I need to refer to an older version. It's super easy to switch back and forth between snapshots, plus there's a preview to show what has been removed or added from the last version!

There are a ton of compiling options for when you wish to export your story as a Word doc or a PDF or even for epublishing. I don't use this too often, but I have lots of friends who do and it makes proper formatting really simple.

There is a focus mode that removes all the UI stuff and just shows you the words. If this didn't exist, I wouldn't be able to write anything lolsob.

You can set target goals for each document or even the entire file. And if you have multiple documents in a single folder with word count targets applied, Scrivener will add them all up and give you a total target estimate. Really handy for planning out how long your story will be!

THERE IS A DARK MODE THEME.

Word

The grammar/spelling checker is a lot more robust in comparison to Scrivener.

Sharing your Word document and sharing notes/comments with beta readers is a LOT easier in Word. It's similar to how Google Docs works with leaving comments, replying to each other, and marking them as resolved.

Copy-pasting from Word into AO3's rich text preserves the formatting, whereas I've had a lot of wonky issues going from Scrivener to AO3.

Text-to-speech, while kinda weird, is a godsend when I want to read out loud a fic before posting, but don't have the energy to do so.

If you have Word, you likely have a Microsoft subscription, which means you have access to OneDrive, which makes for VERY easy backups. Plus you can get Word on your phone and work off that and your computer seamlessly at no extra cost.

THERE IS ALSO A DARK MODE.

Hokay, now for cons.

Scrivener

Scrivener is not free. It is a one-time fee of $60~. That said, if you participate in NaNo and win, you can get a discount code (I believe it's 50% off?)

It was originally made for Macs, but then a Windows version was developed. The team behind Scrivener is very small and it took… forever to get the Windows version up to speed with the Mac version. There are still some differences between the two, but thankfully both versions are on the same page. Jumping off of this, there is an iOS version, but no Android version.

If you wish to back up your Scrivener stuff, you can only really do that via a Dropbox account. Also, I believe it's not possible to open the same file on different computer types. So if you have two computers (one Mac and one Windows) and want to open the same file on both, it's not really going to work. In my experience, I've also run into issues getting things to sync and open when using two Windows computers. So if you're planning to bounce around different computers/laptops/etc., definitely keep this in mind.

On top of that, for every device you want Scrivener on? You need to pay for that.

Scrivener has got one hell of a learning curve, too. I've been using it for so long and am STILL discovering new ways to use it. It can be intimidating, even after you go through all the tutorials.

Word

This also costs money, but sadly is not a one-time fee AND you need to invest in a bundle plan instead of just getting Word. Home subscriptions range from $70 to $100 a year, depending if you're getting it just for yourself or for your family/friends to use too. For me, I use it with my boyfriend and we use all the programs a bunch, so it works out well for us. This might work for you too if you're interested in having access to things like Excel and OneNote and cloud storage. But if you just want Word, that's not really feasible.

I haven't experienced this because I've stopped writing novel-length stories in Word, but I've heard from friends that the program slows down after 30k words or so, which is unfortunate and frustrating.

Furthermore, you can't really transition from file to file in Word as you can in Scrivener. You'd need to manage the folders on your computer outside of the program.

Word isn't really designed for book formatting. You CAN do it, but it takes some extra work on your end to format things accordingly, whereas Scrivener has a bunch of built-in features to help with that.

Microsoft is A LOT bigger than the Scrivener team, thus there are frequent updates. And because of that, you need to perform more updates to the program and might even need to reacquaint yourself with features and UI changes.

I hope this helps! Regardless of which program you wish to use, I hope it goes smoothly and you have a blast writing your stories on it!

[screadingchallenge]

Behind the Keyboard: Volume 2

Behind the Keyboard is a series of interviews with different Schitt’s Creek fanfic authors. The series will last as long as there is interest (from authors) and capacity (from me). If you are an author from the Schitt’s Creek fandom who would like to participate, send a DM to this account.

Each author was given ten questions. The first five questions are the same for every author, the last five will vary.

Remember, this year’s Reading Challenge begins July 15, so polish up those MFL lists.

Let’s meet our next author:

mallpretzles / @mallpretzles​

How many fics have you written? 

20 - All for Schitt’s Creek.

When did you publish your first fic on AO3? 

8/1/21

Describe your writing process from “Oh, I have an idea” to pushing publish on AO3.  

I immediately start a google doc when I get an idea. I can add to it if I think of something I want to include or write a paragraph here and there. Brainstorming with my writer friends when I’m stuck is very helpful with getting to the finish line. They also talk me off a ledge when I’ve procrastinated too long and it just isn’t coming together. The last step before publishing is to panic that it’s not good enough. I’m a perfectionist and my own worst critic but I’m getting better!  

Tell me about your most recent fic. What do you love about it? Is there anything you think you could have done better? 

It’s called The Truce and it was my first anon ask. I love that two people in the fandom came together and made a fic idea come to fruition. The anon loved it so this fic is extra special to me. Something else I do (because I’m ridiculous) is run my fic through a text reader. Hearing it read back is much different than reading it because you catch things you ordinarily wouldn’t have especially if you don’t have a beta. In terms of whether the fic could be better, of course. I always think my fics could be better even if I’m happy with how they turned out 

What advice would you give to someone who’s thinking about publishing their fic for the first time? 

Use a beta!! You will be much happier with the result and having a beta I trust has been invaluable. If you’re interested in being a beta make a post about it because a lot of writers have no idea how/where to find one. Your fic will never be perfect so just rip the bandaid off and publish it. Tag the hell out of your fic so it’s easier to find. Use a pseud that sticks out from the rest so readers are more likely to remember it. Lastly, choose a fic title that is unique or used less frequently so it doesn’t pop up with multiple other fics in a search. 

Plot vs vibes - pick one. 

Vibes. I think anyone can come up with a plot but your vibe is what makes a fic unique to you. It also shows readers what to expect from your writing so if they're looking for something specific they may be more likely to keep your fics in mind. 

If you could say one thing to your fellow fic writers, what would it be? 

Writing should be fun! If it’s stressing you out then consider taking a break and do some self care instead. I have one more, which is to support other writers. Reblog their posts and if they don’t have Tumblr make a post with a link to their fic. If you see that a writer is struggling then consider reaching out to offer support. 

If you could say one thing to the people who read your fic, what would it be?

Thank you!!! Your support and encouragement means the world to me! I really look forward to your comments and what you thought about the fic. It makes me a better writer and your encouragement keeps me motivated to continue writing. 

Do you think your fics have a brand? What is it? 

Yes. I like writing about David & Patrick’s emotions, vulnerability, and their relationship dynamics.The show not tell of nonverbal body language is a bitch but it often conveys emotions/feelings that dialogue just can’t. It also gives the fic more life and pulls you into the character’s experiences. It definitely helps with the pining idiots trope especially so for Patrick. I’m drawn toward writing angst but it always results in strengthening their relationship and/or gaining a better understanding of each other. Okay, and smut. 

Tell me about one of your favorite headcanons. 

Patrick changes his mind about going slow. We all saw the want in their second kiss, which also  leads me to believe that he’s confident and competent in the bedroom despite his lack of experience. Rachel and not coming out to his parents were fear based and not necessarily things he was trying to hide. David shouldn’t have been as upset as he was since he also avoided talking about the past. 

[chitsangenthusiast]

kath bb i love hearing about other people's writing processes and i am always impressed by writers who have the confidence to let the first draft be shitty. that takes a certain amount of humility and confidence!

(also, same hat: i love a good word graveyard of discarded lines. one story's trash is another story's treasure)

but also 👀 will you say more about scrivener 👀 i've been meaning to look into it because i'm getting fed up bouncing between six different tabs of google docs and two word docs because i am a messy drafter with no organization skills and was wondering what your relationship with scrivener is like

SCRIVENER MY BELOVEDDDDDD 🧡🧡🧡

i got introduced to it one? two? years ago and literally it is The Reason why i picked writing back up. it's basically the electronic version of having a three-ring project binder lol

you can have folders to keep all your drafts for a wip in one place! you have a notes section, dedicated outlining space, and a corkboard! you can edit with comments like on gdoc, insert photos/citations/links/tables/etc! it's GREAT

(tbh i don't even use all the features bc i write like. shorter fanfics vs manuscripts or anything Big, but scrivener is adaptable for any kind of writing, fiction or non-fiction!)

it is definitely daunting/a lot to learn it at first tho. you're gonna start it up and be like 'holy shit' because of how much you can do with it, BUT imo once you get your bearings it's insanely easy to navigate. also you can customize basically everything lol this is what mine looks like:

left: binder part! menu that shows all of my fic wips/drafts. i love having this bc i can see everything at once, and makes it way easier to switch between wips if i suddenly decide to work on smth else

middle: writing space. everything re: font, spacing, background color, and border white space size can be customized!

right: notes section my love <33 there's other things that can be displayed here, but i rely on being able to write+reference parts of my outline/other thoughts/'words to check' here, so find this to be extremely useful. it's like my scrap paper lol

some potential cons/things to note:

their dictionary doesn't always recognize words that are definitely real, so you'll have to save them

imo their synonyms offerings are fairly lackluster, but i rely mostly on wordhippo anyway so that isn't an issue for me

reasons why i final review in word: scrivener can miss some grammar mistakes, and also the their formatting doesn't stick when copying content to ao3 lol

it does cost money ($50) but there is a free trial that gives you 30 days of use! as in, it will only count the days you use it and not 30 consecutive days which i thought was p cool!

but yes: i love scrivener so much lol literally the best thing i've ever used for writing <333333

[honeymoonjin]

Thoughts on posting fanfics on tumblr vs watt pad vs ao3? Finally feeling brave enough to post my first fic

ooh okay here’s the breakdown

tumblr

hates authors (tagging is a nightmare, formatting is a nightmare, the house is on fire and there’s a leak in the basement at the same time)

has the biggest community of member x reader/yn authors and readers

has networks where you can get your work promoted or find like-minded writers

if you’re into aesthetics, you can play around with your tumblr theme, masterlist and banners

getting feedback can sometimes be difficult when lots of readers just press like or don’t interact with it at all

do NOT write directly into a tumblr post because it’ll probably crash, you’re safer typing into notes app, word, or google docs and pasting it over

but if you paste things over, you often lose the formatting (so far mac/ios notes app is the only thing i’ve used that maintains the formatting so i paste my fics from google docs->notes app->tumblr whenever i post so that i don’t lose all my italics)

ao3

specifically made for fanfic so very author- and reader-friendly (you can bookmark works, tag things really easily, there’s a view count so you know how many people have read your story, anons can give kudos or comments without needing an account)

audience is mainly interested in mxm but there’s an audience for EVERYTHING on there

because of the excellent categorising it can be easier for readers to find your work

doesn’t really have any communities or networks

the formatting is super basic which is nice while reading but doesn’t really inspire much creativity if you try and write directly into a work on ao3 so again i suggest copy-pasting over your work once you’re done

wattpad

children, actual children

the only people i know that post to wattpad are doing so in the hopes that it’ll prevent other people on wattpad plagiarising their fics

i have been told it’s nice to write in directly ?

gives a view count of your fics, and people can write comments beside paragraphs in the fic rather than just overall

it’s very unlikely you’re going to find a mature audience on wattpad, i always worry ‘is that smut i’m reading written by a minor? is that fic plagiarised? is this even english good god the grammar is shocking’ 

i know loads of people post originally on ao3 and then make a tumblr post w the info of that fic, a snippet, a banner and a link to the fic on ao3. they sort of get the best of both worlds in that sense. i personally post primarily on tumblr and then cross-post to ao3. it’s really a matter of personal preference

[bipercabeth]

Hi you are such a good writer I was hoping you could give me some advice! I’m trying to write more consistently and more understandable for people to read, because I tend to just write my stream of consciousness and hope it sounds coherent but whenever I try to do that I totally lose my train of thought and the ideas I had trying to write it in a way people would understand? Idk if this makes sense, but how do you tackle writing out a story and not forgetting the details you want in it?

phew okay! i got all of these within 24 hours so i’m going to combine them and hope that i can answer them all. i’m both honored and terrified that i’m the person y’all came to for advice, that’s wild! i’ll do my best to be coherent. (also thank u ur all very sweet). i made a post about this a while ago, but it’s pretty half-baked. i’m putting this under a read more because i know it’s going to get out of hand. 

as far as software, i don’t think you need anything more than google docs! it’s what i use for everything and it’s so functional. you can access it from any device with internet, it automatically saves, the mobile app is decent, it’s easy to share, easy to format, and you can download different docs to work on offline! the share feature is versatile depending on who is reading, so friends can just view and/or comment and betas can edit/suggest. it has never let me down. 

plotting really is its own beast because it’s different for every writer. i’m just going to take you through my process and hope there are parts that will work for you! i’m also going to use examples from a few of my outlines (mostly roommates but i’ll probably dip into a bellarke one or two) to make more sense of what i’m sure is going to be a slightly feverish post. i really love plotting and talking about writing and i’m already getting excited. 

with writing, there’s kind of a spectrum of plotters vs pantsers. plotters stick by outlines and planning out their writing whereas pantsers go by their gut. i know people who write both ways, and there’s no difference in the quality of their writing or plots! it’s just about what works best for each person. i’m a pretty hardcore plotter, but i leave myself room to improvise and for the story to grow. 

okay, so my general first step once i’ve got an idea for a story is to open up a google doc, make a bullet point, and just word vomit every single idea i have onto the page. separate bullet points for each idea, but if i have multiple ideas that relate to each other, i indent to keep them together. the point of keeping similar things together is to make the next step easier: organize them. once it’s all on the page, put it in chronological order, or if your story has flashbacks, the order the scenes appear in. here’s an example of what i mean (from my bellarke superhero au):

it’s quite half-baked! pretty vague language, but it ended up being enough for me to write the scene. each indent further explains the point before, making it a lot easier to sort your thoughts and structure scenes once you get to them. it’s by no means a blow by blow account of what’s going to happen, but the language is just enough to make me recall what i was thinking when i wrote it. 

after that, i look at what is usually several pages of scenes told through bullet points, and i start to look for common themes to separate them into chapters. this is also where i try to fine tune scenes and clear up any immediate plot holes i find. i try not to force myself to completely outline everything in the beginning because i end up changing several scenes anyway! sometimes you get to the actual writing part and realize a scene you thought was perfect misses the mark. sometimes you write and realize there’s a theme or issue you need to address through a specific moment. leave yourself some room to grow! this is also a great time to weave in parallels, callbacks, and important themes you want to include throughout the story. 

this is usually where i start writing! if it’s a complex story with lots of research, formatting, or character building, i might take more time before jumping in, but these asks are fanfic-specific and fanfic tends to be pretty straightforward. for writing, i like to use a different doc than my outline. there’s less scrolling that way, and i find that having my outline open on the same screen while i’m writing really cuts into my flow. i end up staring at point a and point b trying to figure them out rather than starting at point a and letting the scene run it’s course. it’s much easier for me to switch tabs when i get stuck. 

that’s the majority of my plotting process! i’m going to leave a few miscellaneous tips that have helped me immensely down below. 

i find that certain things just don’t help me in an outline. scenery, description, and most body language are things i think about when i’m actually writing and fully immersed in the story. my outlines tend to be dialogue, bare-bones plot points, and quotes/lyrics/links for inspiration. dialogue comes very easily to me and sets the tone of the scene, so having it the outline helps me get into the flow of a scene, after which everything else follows. and if a whole scene of dialogue comes to you, why risk forgetting it? some of my best scenes have come from two pages of dialogue in my outline. sometimes you just know how a scene is going to go. 

nobody is seeing your outline except for you and maybe a trusted friend or beta. it should serve you! there’s no right or wrong way to write a story, so find the things that work for you! there’s a lot of advice in this post, and it all works for me, but there are some people who wouldn’t benefit from any of it. a lot of figuring it out might be trial and error. 

let yourself be indecisive! you don’t have to have every moment figured out right away, and some room to breathe usually serves your story better in the long run. i really didn’t have any clue where i’m going in either of these parts of my outline, but once i got to these points in roommates it became more clear what they needed to be.  

finding inspiration to get back into a fic after a while away is really hard for me, so i like to leave myself reminders of art, other writing references, reminders of the Energy i’m going for, song lyrics, etc. like so:

writing can be stressful! make yourself laugh in your outline! most of these are me objectifying percy but it’s okay i’m valid

okay those are my general tips! i know it’s a lot! you might not use any of this! but i worked for a long time to find the things that work for me and maximize my ability to write, so i hope this makes the search a bit easier for people who are starting out. feel free to come to me with any writing problems you have, whether that’s through my inbox or dms. always happy to talk about it. happy writing!