#owlkalinity's writing process

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Sometimes the curtains are blue to represent sadness. Sometimes the curtains are just blue.

And then there's when the curtains are blue because you wanted them to be blue and then find out it perfectly works as a representation for sadness.

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Anytime I think of a made-up word I use a lot, I look if up just to be safe. This has saved me from:

Accidentally naming a morally ambiguous creator deity after a radical far-right Israeli political party with whom I am Definitely Not Associated With as a Canadian

Using the name of a Korean singer for one of my goddesses with whom I am Definitely Not Associated With as a Canadian

Accidentally naming my main creator goddess after a Nigerian news website with whom I am Definitely well you get it by now

As it turns out being Not From A Place can make you really ignorant of what words are used over there.

From one writer to another... please look up the words you make. It can save you from being sued, defamed, or probably worse.

My only real and valid writing tip is that you google every word you make up for your fantasy stories. That's It

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Owlka's Tips for Writing

(I'm being kind of tongue-in-cheek here. But still, if you'd like to know some of my actual thought processes, I am happy to provide! Just pop into my askbox.)

Start writing at such a young age that you were never told your writing was bad. This way, when you get older, your writing is actually passable, and you can potentially use your old bad writing for a hilarious dramatic readings series.

Have many projects going at one time, so that you can procrastinate on one by working on the other.

Create more than 400 characters, but only use about 50 of them.

View/experience/read about lots of other media, from all over the place, from decades-old video games to violent Flash series. Eventually, you either 1. will find a character that reminds you of one of your own, or 2. get inspiration for a character from a character in that other media. (But watch out! Both of these methods tend to lead to brainrot for your own characters. Not recommended unless you have a lot of time on your hands to spend thinking about your newfound blorbo.)

Set hypothetical release dates for your stuff, in case you get fans. This creates accountability, so when the time comes, you're guilted into finishing something for your fans that don't exist yet. (This is actually the only reason why The Acorn Detective Agency book 1 is finished.)

Have someone who is way more interested in logical worldbuilding than you are fix your plot holes for you. (Thanks, roomie!)

Make art for your stuff too, for double the creative agony.

Also, if you're going to make art, change your artstyle about three times a month to make sure you never get art that looks the way you want it to.

Analyze your work like a high school student in a language class. This way, you can find some awesome symbolism that you didn't even intend on! (I have done this enough to write an actual essay on it.)

Post your work only on platforms that care about tropes, especially tropes you don't have in your work. This way, you fill a niche! And what a niche it is...

And probably more I can't think of right now! Might make a part 2 if I get some more.

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Thinking of doing Whumptober this year ngl

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Thought about my characters dying. Cried till 1:30 AM

The characters die in canon. How the heck am I going to write it

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Another ask game, if you want!

i wanted to make an oc ask game 😋 things i like to ask people abt their characters:

are they associated with a certain color? what color do they wear the most?

what sort of music would they like? have you thought about what genres or bands do they lean towards? do they have a favorite song?

weapon of choice? any particular reason they chose their weapon?

how crafty/resourceful are they?

how do they typically dress? does their wardrobe lean more towards practicality or aesthetics?

how do they wear their hair? do they care a lot how their hair looks?

favorite animal? why?

do they have a nickname? who gave it to them? if it's not derived from their real name, what's the story behind it?

favorite food? least favorite? are they a picky eater? do they have any dietary restrictions?

if they wear jewelry, what kind? do they prefer silver or gold? do they have a favorite gem?

what do they have in common with you? how are they different? would you get along with them?

how long have they been around? do you know their birthday? is their birthday the day you made them or another day? what do they think of celebrating birthdays?

what languages do they speak? how fluently?

are they any good with numbers?

how big or small is their family? who did they live with growing up? do they live with anyone now?

do they have any pets? what do they call their pets?

how did they spend their summers/free time as a child?

their opinion on lying, stealing, and killing?

are they quick to anger? what sets them off?

if applicable, can they drive? if they have their own, what color is their vehicle? is the inside neat and tidy, or a mess?

their favorite place to be?

do they sleep well at night?

how would you describe their voice? can they sing?

do they have any creative hobbies? (art, writing, music, etc)

how good/bad is their hearing? what about their eyesight?

how do they move? are they clumsy? light on their feet? do they use mobility aids?

if applicable, do they have a favorite sport? do they play any sports or prefer to watch?

how do they show that they care about someone? how do they express that they don't like someone?

are they associated with any particular element (air, earth, fire, water)?

do they smell like anything notable?

do they like receiving gifts? giving gifts? what is their ideal gift?

do they have any habits that aren't particularly self-destructive, just maybe odd?

if applicable, how would your other characters describe them? i mean specifically the people around them.

how would your character describe themselves? it doesn't have to line up with how they really are.

do they ever return home?

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Making the tags "owlkalinity's writing process", "owlkalinity's art escapades", and "owlkalinity's music chaos" to better classify my posts.

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The top 10 things I've had to write down in my annotated character playlists, in no particular order:

Let’s ignore that this song is probably about prom.

Ignoring the “deranged murderer” theming for a bit...

Let's ignore the potential love implications and just focus on the assassination bit. (These last two were about the same guy.)

Now we enter the territory of “whoops, I thought about it once and now it's here forever”.

Ignoring literally every other lyric set in the song, I managed to apply this song to [Aromantic Character] through the power of Strong Confident Woman™.

And that’s how I turned this love song into an ode to [the nanobots from my books].

Now, of course, their motto is a little less “yeah let’s go boiiii” and a bit more “oh so they’re a little arrogant”.

In [a show I got inspiration from], hoverboards are used to get around, and no, I don’t mean the weird handle-less Segway ones.

Yes, I am actually familiar with the concept of VTubers, thanks for asking.

This song is about high school girls’ first relationships, and the disapproval of their fathers and the other older men in their lives. Aside from the meta-context, there is no real connection to [Very-Much-Not-A-High-School-Girl Character].

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When you have to read Literal Scientific Articles to find info on your character's species

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Maybe it's just because I'm a furry but I still can't believe that some old genuinely-trying-to-be-educational sources treat certain animals as horrible. Like I literally have an encyclopedia from 2005 that describes hyenas as "the least pleasant animal of the savannah".

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Something I have noticed in my most recent endeavors in writing This Freaking Book™ are that my attempts at character design are an attempt at rectifying the horrific character designs that my characters were inspired by...

So technically this counts as the whole "doing-better-than-the-OG" thing?

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Scalies of Tumblr, I have a question.

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This person in the notes is absOLUTELY RIGHT

its unreal how all of my favorite characters have exactly the same traits and hobbies and diagnoses as me

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I love that this comment on my works masterpost is still technically true, just for a different guy. Wait. Actually.

Two different guys. Sigh.

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When I feel lazy, I write out my ideas in script format because it's easier. Unfortunately, this means I have to improvise when it comes to description.

One of the best things I've gotten out of it is this descriptor:

(with what can unfortunately be best described as an ΘvΘ face)

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If I had a nickel for every piece of media with both a canine named Pepper and a chameleon named Leon, I'd have (at least) two nickels, which... well, you know the rest.

(If y'all know more than just this one, please tell me! I want to know if this is common whatsoever, because if it is, oh boy...)