#this accidentally became like a first draft of a writing guide for each character

[purplekoop]

Just now thinking that I never outright *said* where each of the Havens are other than 1 and 2 being North and South America, respectively.

The number order isn't that hard, just west to east on a standard map, with the northern continent taking priority. So 3 is Europe, 4 is Africa, 5 is Asia, and 6 is Australia. I should note that the numbering is somewhat arbitrary, I did the simplest order I could think of instead of trying to perfectly deduce which Haven would have logically been built first or reawakened first, depending on whether it was humans or bots that made the names. My current (but not definitive) explanation is that the bots did the arbitrary west-to-east numbering themselves since most of them reactivated at similar enough times.

As a little bit of a bonus fact, here's what Havens (or. I guess more broadly accurate, continents) each bot is from and since it's vaguely relevant, my current thoughts for what they'd sound like in terms of accent and stuff.

Wilderoad's exact origins are a mystery, but their model is generally not found much far from Haven 1, and they tend to travel the western half of the continent. They don't have a proper vocal module, as their model wasn't made with them by default, and unlike most others, they haven't had one installed post-awakening. They instead use a crudely fixed speaker only capable of producing whistling-like sounds to "speak", although it's not in any sort of language and is just a means of vaguely communicating with noise. They can also use Universal Android Gesturing Communication (or UAGC), a form of sign language that most humanoid bots have a built-in database for by default, which lets them express more specific thoughts.

Calber is thoroughly American. His model of infantry bots were the poster children for the US's final war efforts, seen as a symbol of their undying persistence and fighting spirit... an irony that no surviving unit can ever really live down. Calber has a general American accent with no discernable specificity beyond that, though with a distinctly dry practicality to his voice. He prefers to be slow and relaxed, but can quickly spring to quick and tactical precision on a moment's notice. He's rarely cheery and never prideful.

Poppett is... full transparency, just decided this a minute ago, Canadian. Still putting her in the broad domain of Haven 1, but so many of these guys are American so. Marginally more variety. Her exact model was very rare to see manmade, with no discernable country of origin, but the model has seen a resurgence in recent years worldwide for new bots. Upper North America has been the main frontier for post-awakening Haven 1 expansion due to its relative abundance of natural resources and lack of Outlander factions, so many bots looking to foster a successor will start their family there. This cultural melting pot and her particular fondness for global attention give Poppett a very nonspecific accent, where she'll slip in and out of accent quirks like "aboot". In terms of mannerisms, she's generally eager and short-sighted, but is neither naive nor especially selfish, aside from her aspirations of recognition. She does naturally tend to use most of the most up-to-date lingo, but tends to limit it when working with the rest of the team on missions. She's tired of having to explain what "Dialed In" means to Martinet.

Yanno hails all the way from Haven 5, located in what was once known as the center of China. Older bots tend to somehow have retained the dialect of the humans they used to live alongside, though it tends to fade with more international exposure. English is the global language, as most fundamental robotics code was originally written in it, though most bots are multilingual by default. Yanno follows the trend, still having a distinct accent, but not an especially strong one due to spending most of his life traveling across the world. His voice is raspy, with his damaged vocal module giving the effect of a human who's smoked for 20 years, then put through a faint radio filter. He's one to act extremely casual, almost to the point of irritating his more professional associates, but isn't aloof by any means. He's got little to no respect for himself, but is willing to do whatever he can for others.

Velenna was built and raised a ways south of Haven 3, in what we know as Italy. As another post-awakening born bot of a globally produced model, her accent is less "hereditary" than the older bots like Calber and Yanno. However, she has a fairly strong accent due to her formative years being in a very culturally prideful and relatively isolated community, persisting even after her worldwide travels. Her lifelong love of science has given her a stern, analytical manner of speaking, though not necessarily an outright hostile one. It only turned to outright coldness in recent years after parting with her lifetime friend, and gotten worse since. She's the most overtly unfriendly of the cast, but still certainly not "evil"... though she cuts it close when dealing with a certain someone. She's brutally to the point and not one to say more than what's needed, though she's not above taking pride in her work when it's due.

Martinet is, like it or not, exceptionally British. I mean otherwise the joke of his existence doesn't work, regardless of his name technically being French. His model was globally produced as a luxury servant, typically used as butlers or bartenders at fancy parties, but they were exceptionally popular with the social elite of Europe. Martinet's posh british accent and high-class behavior are part of his fundamental code, though he's grown his own sense of wit from his years as an intelligence agent. When not putting up a charming front for a mission, he tends to be snarky and self-assured, and a bit prone to buying his own hype. The others tend to humble him where they can, though Poppett tends to go back and forth between inflating his ego and bursting it.

Navea was built for the naval force set to defend Haven 4. She has a distinct African accent that's faded over many years around Haven 1. (Gonna skip out on the extra story details here since I still need to smooth out her exact timeline). In contrast to her long-time cohort Calber, she has a much more optimistic view on the conflicts they serve in. While she still detests violence for the sake of it, she's more willing to do what she has to for the sake of protecting others. Her optimistic nature shines in most of her being. She's proud, loud, and eager to get into the action. She loves getting to know her fellow recruits, and most have a hard time not being fond of her in turn. She insists to Calber this is just for the sake of maintaining moral and improving team coordination and trust, but it's not hard to see she's just genuinely friendly. While she seeks to inspire others to do their best, she tries to make sure they don't push too far past their limits, which is something she struggles to do for herself. She tends to be more casual in speech than Calber even when on duty, but still is prone to using a decent amount of military jargon. She's got a hearty laugh so booming it can manage to rattle in the metal of other nearby bots.

Formann is a piece of solid Texan engineering of a model from early in the initial boon of robotics, centuries old even compared to other manmade bots. It's a miracle that any of them lasted this long, and as such he awakened with an old-timer sort of spirit already. He speaks with a slow, gruff texan drawl, with a well-worn vocal module that adds even more to his "grandpa" perception. His mind is still sharp though, with a keen technical mind and a low tolerance for people trying to pull a fast one on him. He can be tough as nails if he needs to be, but can be gentle just as much. He's generally not one to take things too seriously, and gives most problems a calm approach. This tends to clash with his two crew members, as Xenir's insistence on perfection and Burnetts short temper are aggravated by Formann's more even-tempered solutions. Tangential on the note of speech, but as the only member of the cast with a physical moving mouth, he has the vestigial habit of attempting to lip sync it to his speech, even though he uses a speaker to talk like the others.

Harmony... is undecided. Her lore needs a lot more work due to being one of the newer cast members, but I can say she's likely either American, British, or some other kind of European. In terms of mannerisms though, she has a somewhat aloof and "airy" quality to her voice, like she never completely leaves the stage in her head. She's certainly not stupid by any means, but she's the least apt for combat and it tends to show. Her movements tend to vary between graceful and awkward, especially when navigating spaces not built for a bot of her size. She's not vain, but tends to be self-conscious about how other people see her. She doesn't perform for her own fame, but instead she seeks to be someone others can believe in, and tends to be harsh on herself if she thinks the fails to meet that expectation.

Xenir is a model of bot from a northeast branch of the same company that made Formann and Burnett, though is the newest model of the line. Xenir themselves is a fairly young bot, who embraced their innate function of engineering work and served under Formann's apprenticeship from a young age, seeing him as somewhat of a parental figure and giving him the utmost respect. They don't have a discernable accent more specific than "American", but have an unmistakable high energy to their speech. They tend to talk fast, especially when excited, though also when stressed. They also are something of a perfectionist, and have a habit of fiddling with something constantly even if it's already functional. This eager nature also tends to irk Burnett, though that can be said for most things. They've worked together long enough to effectively be siblings, and even she can't stay ticked at them for too long.

Sorsier... got a whole massive post explaining their lore, model origin, personality, just. Go read the GIKN post, its good I think. Only thing to add here is that their specific Keeper facility is somewhere near what we know as the northern border of Mexico, and they have a slight accent reflecting this.

Otto is a model of urban cleaner bot originally developed in Japan but later manufactured again elsewhere in the world, including in post-awakening major cities like the one Otto himself is from. He has a poignant city slicker accent as a result, though with his unique upbeat energy. His profound optimism and friendliness is easy to mistake for foolishness, and while he's not a genius by any means, he's craftier than he lets on. He can still give people the benefit of the doubt even when he knows he shouldn't, but things tend to work out for him even if he makes a bad call. He's also the type to make dumb catchphrases he uses once and then forgets about. Poppett thinks it's cool at least.

Ezela is from the extensive power network tunnels sprawling from Haven 1. Born into a uniquely isolated existence, she has a distinctly formal manner of speaking that comes off as... well, robotic. Enough to somewhat weird out the rest of the cast, which still has her feel somewhat alienated. She's certainly not emotionless, but struggles more to communicate it without unnerving or irritating the others. She tends to greatly appreciate the more calm and understanding members of the team as a result, while shying away from the harsher ones like Velenna, Martinet, and Burnett. She's especially fond of Harmony, to the point of finding her aspirational. Over her time on the surface, she's gradually become less timid and more certain of herself, though still buckles under pressure when there's a problem she can't outsmart.

Burnett is a spunky little bot from the region around what was once New York. While her model comes from the same company as the other two members of her crew, she's a post-awakening bot only 5-10 years older than Xenir. She has a heavy accent from the area and the fiery temper stereotypical of it, though this is in part due to being glossed over at a young age and quickly getting tired of it. She speaks her mind loud, fast, and often, and isn't afraid to hurt feelings. Unless it's Xenir. Maybe. Don't tell them she said that. Formann can take it though. While she'd rather be melted into ingots than admit it, she cares for the two of them like family, and anyone who messes with them is due for a quick visit from her wrench to the face. She's not the most technically minded or ambitious of the three, but makes up for it with her work ethic and practical-mindedness. If there's a job to do, she'll do it, and do it quickly. She's not a patient bot and is quick to assume nobody else is either. While she's known for being ornery, she's fairly quick with a joke to lighten the mood... or rub salt in the wound of somebody while they're down.

Arber is of an entirely bot-made model, designed and produced in his home of Haven 2, located within modern day Brazil. While proud of his home and what his existence as a brand new model of bot means for the progress of robotkind, he's struggled to figure out what he wants out of life even after two decades of it. As a silver lining in the world-shattering incident that almost left him for dead, he found a new meaning to his life after becoming truly one of a kind as the first fusion between organic and inorganic life. Now he wishes to take his new lease on life and spread the hope inherent to his existencr with the world... while also running away from/fighting off the giant plantoid mass that half of his body mass defected from. Arber's personality hasn't been functionally inhibited by his unique state of being, as what makes him "Arber" has been untouched by his organic half. While not directly altered, his outlook on life has shifted, with his new sense of purpose having him look on the bright side more often. He's laid back and optimistic, though still has a wariness about him due to being aware that being a plant and a bot means he has a lot of things wanting him dead. This fortunately excludes most of his fellow recruits, who either see him as a fellow bot worth respecting no matter what, or as someone who's useful to have around at bare minimum. There's one obvious outlier to this of course, but she manages to be professional... for now. Arber also has a unique relationship with his other half, who can't necessarily communicate or even think in the same ways he can, but their unique bond manages to get ideas across by some means that's yet to be understood.

Nekross is an enigma in origin, nature, and motives. No bot like them has been seen anywhere else in recorded history. They appear erratically, act indecipherably, and vanish seamlessly. Some people aren't even sure if they're actually a bot, and not some advanced drone or even a supernatural entity. The lucky few that have had motives align for long enough with this mysterious entity can confirm enough to decide they are a bot, but they certainly aren't like any others. They can speak, and do so rarely, but they do so as if speaking with 12 voices trading turns several times in one word, then warped further. No accent or dialect can be meaningfully identified. What they do say is technically intelligible, but frequently difficult to interpret, often speaking in what sounds like riddles. Their motions are equally bizarre and alien, often jarring, with limbs snapping directly between point to point precisely as needed. Almost any attempts to directly communicate have been met with silence, gibberish, or a bladed weapon being thrust to the neck.

Kashov is a shifty salesbot from somewhere in the range between Havens 3 and 5, otherwise known as western Russia. He has a strong and distinctive accent, which he claims is vital to his salesman charm. He's also known to play the "clueless foreigner" card to his advantage during his international travels, though this scam only works so often. He's far from truly clueless, though isn't necessarily the mastermind he thinks he is either. He has a knack for schemes to peddle his wares for a high price, though he's quick to back out of it if it means he can get out of it while making some sort of sale. Or getting out with his life, whichever is a better bargain for him. He's not a scam artist out of malice or (total) greed, but because he's just not sure how else he's supposed to sell anything. He does get a genuine sense of joy out of his wares being used for the greater good, though wouldn't complain if they were used for the greater bad. He almost always maintains a cheery charismatic salesman voice, though if he thinks it'll close a deal then he can instead try to make himself appear as pathetic as possible in an attempt to get pity.

For the two other characters I have solid ideas for, one of them is the only member of the cast to hail from around the elusive Haven 6, while the other is... unclear. You can deliberate over which is which.

AAAAAAAAAAAANd that's everybody. This uh. Got more in-depth than I intended, oops. Have fun reading this in the morning.

[callmeunstable]

Angels & Demons - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Characters: Reader, Godling, Healer

Summary: She finds herself in the middle of a unknown forest after falling asleep. It seems like a normal forest until she gets to meet a mystical creature that welcomes her in a different world.

Warnings: Monsters, Cursing, Blood

Words: 2.000+

A/N: Hey! This is the second part of my The Witcher Fic. I accidentally deleted this part so I had to reupload ot. Yes I cried, but thankfully I still had the draft saved on my laptop.

Disclaimer: GIF’s and PNG’s are taken from Tumblr and are not mine! Credits to the creators!

Tags: @marvelbrat @charliestuff

Song: I couldn’t find the original one sooo

Absently, Alva wondered if most of the monsters were meant to be as beautiful and kind as James, or if this one was an exception to the rule, her mind struggled to hold on to one thought, with a whole new world opening in front of her.

“I know the healer of the village on the other side of the forest. She’s nice. She brings fruits to me from time to time. She will help you.” James hopped in front of her leading the way out of the woods.

She couldn’t believe anything her eyes captured. There are bad creatures. According to the Godling, there are a lot of them. The boy explained to her, that “Drowners” inhabit both natural and artificial bodies of water, from rivers and lakes to mill ponds and city sewers. It is commonly thought that these creatures are drowned men, somehow arisen from the dead to prey on the living. This opinion is as widespread as it is false, for the beasts are another post-Conjunction relict.

She couldn’t believe that this Godling just was a boy but knowing such crucial things about this life. She remembered James talking about the powers he has, that’s how he was able to save her.

“Hey, play some more of your music, please? I love the sound of it and we have to walk some time.” The Godling begged and gave his best puppy face.

She grabbed her phone and she had an idea. Maybe she was able to call or text her dad? Letting him know she’s okay. She wasn’t sure if this was the best idea she ever had, but still better than making him believe she was dead.

No signal. Of course.

“Music, please.”

She pressed the icons on her phone monotonously and a random song started playing.

 “Oh dear, oh dear, I’m sorry

That you grew up so soon

A cold year and no high school parties

I’ve been drinking alone

Oh, I’ve been drinking alone”

 “A blessing to my ears. What's the name of this bard?” The Godling started dancing along while walking in front of the girl.

“What is a bard?” These questions came automatically out of her mouth, wanting to know everything about this world.

Knowledge is power. Even in a world like this. If she knows what she has to be careful about, she can start to protect herself.

“You know the man and women writing songs and these lovely texts of legends, stories of their personal experiences, or their imaginations. I don’t care what they are about. I care about the melodies. I love the tunes.” James seemed to drift off in a state where he was admiring the artists and musicians at this time the whole way out of the woods.

He specifically talked about a Bard called Priscilla. A young woman famous for her poetry.

 “So, don't fear, don’t fear their warnings

They’re bitterer than most

4 years of driving across the country

For empty seats at their shows

And they’ve been drinking alone.”

 Less and fewer trees came along their way and after some more minutes, a village became visible. Still far away but the girl decided to turn off the music which was rewarded with an angry look of the Godling.

“Her cottage isn’t in the village. It's right here!”

He took a sharp turn between some trees and as told, a small cabin was revealed in front of them. It was old. Looked like a typical middle-aged, self-made cottage. Random kinds of stones were piled upon each other, connected by something that seemed to be a kind of cement. A small chimney was built on top and was busy blowing smoke out of it.

“Savilla! I want to show you, my new friend.” The boy shouted and Alva begged it was quiet enough so no one around could hear them. She wasn’t ready to meet anyone in this world, at least for now.

The old wooden door of the cottage opened and a middle-aged woman stepped out of the house. She was beautiful. Her Long black hair was braided down to the small waist of hers. Her long dress was colored with a dark wood green tone. A small V-neck covered her chest mostly and the butterfly sleeves made her look like a princess. A less fancy princess but a gorgeous one.

“Hello, my lovely James. How can I help you today?” Savilla had a warm smile on her face and holding her arms out for e hug.

The Godling happily jumped into her arms, to just leave them a couple of seconds later to point hysterically at Alva.

“This is my friend Alva. She got lost in my forest and a Drowner hit her. I think shes not from hear so she needs your help.”

Savilla laid her eyes on the small girl for the first time. Silently analyzing every single part of her. At this moment Alva realized that she was a unicorn in this world. Her clothes looked completely different from Safillas and James’. She was wearing a red lumberjacket that revealed her sports bra. Some pair of sporty leggings rested on her legs and short sneakers tied on her feet. Her favorite outfit for hiking. At least her fake leather bag seemed to fit the surroundings.

It wasn’t hard to tell that if the person in front of her wasn’t a cosplayer of Lord of the Rings, she had to be stuck in some kind of middle age century.

“Yes, she's not from here. I can tell.” The firm look of the women changed into a friendly smile. “Come in, I think it’s the best if no one sees you like this.”

Both Alva and James entered the cabin. Inside it was beautiful. Flower and herbs were growing every in countless pottery. An out of stone made kitchen area filled the rest of the room with a cozy fireplace at the opposite wall. Different kinds of fabric and papers stuck to the wall. It was filled with colors and smells that made you feel instantly relaxed, at least if you’re a person like Alva.

“You don’t seem to be in a lot of pain.”, stated Safilla while grabbing a wooden chair and placing it in front of her, guiding her to sit down.

“It’s pretty numb right now. It was worse about an hour ago.” Alva tried to give off a normal impression. But what is normal in this world.

er “That what I was inferred already. You seem to be in shock. Your body numbed itself to protect you from the pain.” While investigating the big scratch she explaining typical injuries caused by Drowners.

“You’re lucky that you had James by your side. He’s a loyal soul.” The healer tossed an apple to the boy who caught it happily.

Savilla mixed some unfamiliar herbs and bandaged it up with a clean cloth.

“It should heal fast, it's not a deep cut. You are lucky.”

The women put everything back in place and then grabbed a stool herself.

“Where are you from?”, she asked.

Where was she from actually? Maybe similar countries still exist?

“Originally my family comes from Sweden but I live in the USA at the moment.” The girl explained but ended up not receiving the reaction she wanted.

“I never heard of a place like that. I traveled a lot through Cintra, Temeria, and Lyria. How did you end up here?”

The girl got quiet. She didn’t want to cause any trouble. She was a stranger to this world. How much corruption was she able to cause?

Alva felt a hand on her shoulder. Savilla gently pat her and gave her a motherly smile.

“Look dear, I’m not here to hurt you. I can see you disturbed, even traumatized. You have no idea how you got access to this world, have you?”

The girl started to tear up and found herself in a warm hug of the healer. She couldn’t help herself but at this moment everything that was built up throughout the day suddenly burst out of her.

Every breath felt like acid burning heart throat, inflaming her lungs. Her heart felt like somebody was squeezing out every single emotion trapped in there. Like a sharp blade that is cutting straight through her chest.

“Mark my words, one day will come when you finally realize that fate is inevitable. One day you will get passed all this pain and realize it was a lesson learned for a better future, for a better you. You believe that this was an accident. But in our world, everything happens for a reason.” Savilla didn’t break the contact because she knew that this girl needed it. This wasn’t the first time something like this happened. The same happened decades ago. When the monsters first got into this dimension.

“I can teach you if you let me.”

Alva lifted her head and looked at the healer.

“I can teach you how to survive in this world until we figure it a way how to get you back. You just need to let me help you.”

“How do you know?” The girl was confused, more confused than she was, to begin with. How much does this woman know?

“This is not the first time a portal opened on accident. What we need to figure out is, if this indeed was an accident or if you have a mission you have to fulfill. I will help you. That’s my duty. Let me explain. I’m a mage.”

Savilla explained to Alva that mages are basically what she knows as a witch. Only rare individuals have the potential to become mages and many of those with this potential are doomed to madness. Unless the individual in question - known as a source - learns to control their power quickly, he or she may end up a half-insane, slobbering oracle. That is why schools of sorcery were created, where talented children study for many years, acquiring knowledge and mastering magical skills. Because of their powers, mages age more slowly than ordinary people. Savilla herself attended a school called Aretuza. But she didn’t believe in their morals so she left and lives on her own.

Mages can extract magical energy from the four elements, transport themselves long distances and heal, as well as kill, in the blink of an eye. They have extensive scientific and political knowledge; in the latter respect, many mages are the equals of rulers.

A witch that is connected so some kind of rule book.

“Know you know about me, but for now we need to get you out of your clothes. They reveal your true identity. There are people out there who will view you as dangerous and they’ll get scared. We need to give you a new persona. But for now, let’s start easy. No one will look for you because James took care of that. New clothes will at least give you the appearance of our dimension.”

Savilla walked in a different room and you could her searching sounds. Fabrics got thrown around after her steps came closer again.

As she walked into the room she showed off a dress similar to hers. The dress was white and it had some floral symbols embroidered in the fabric. Her sleeves were also long and wide, almost touching the ground. The White of the dress was mostly protected by a moss green light coat that had a corset on the front. The white dress was strapless but unseen due to the green coat. On top of that Savilla brought her some flat sandals.

“I can give you some pants to wear underneath the dress if you’d like. Is more efficient when you have to move quickly.” The mage was happy she could assist that young girl. She finally had a purpose to assist to.

Alva only nodded along, speechless by the kindness the woman was offering her.

Savilla walked up to her with a hairbrush and put her hair into different styles. “And maybe we can do something with your hair, putting it up or braid-“, she hesitated the moment when she was putting her hair up. “I think it looks fitting already.”

Quickly brushing Alva's hair down again.

[chaoskatya]

unfinished brooke x katya hatefuck fic

hi yall :^) so ive had this sitting in my drafts for a WHILE and ive barely dented the actual planned plot but still i felt like it was kind of a waste of what i did write to not ?? idk do something with it? this was originally written for AQ’s rarepair event but irl stuff got in the way so it never got finished, and i kinda lost the inspo to finish it (for now? idk) so here it is, posted unedited in however it was when i last touched it

brooke x katya hatefuck, (well, planned, i obv hadnt written that far) inspired by pics of trixie and brooke together that one time they were weirdly hanging out a lot irl and that one outfit brooke has that looks like that one outfit katya has the polkadot one u know it

“Ugh, I swear, Vi! She really has something against me! I think she hates me!”

Katya punctuates her sentence with a flail of her arms for emphasis before flopping back onto her bed. Violet just rolls her eyes at her roommate’s dramatics, as per usual. This is the third time they’ve had this conversation this week.

“So she’s a little icy, what of it? It’s not like you’re not used to having a mega bitch around, you live with me,” Violet responds plainly, not even bothering to look up from her laptop, “and I don’t think anybody could hate you, Kat.”

Katya huffs at that. “No, I swear, she hates me.”

Katya Zamolodchikova is absolutely sure of three things in her university life: One, Trixie Mattel is her best friend. Two, nothing gets in between her and Trixie. Three, Brooke Lynn Hytes is absolutely making her best fucking attempt.

Katya and Trixie had met last year, Katya being a sophomore in visual arts and Trixie a freshman in musical theater, when Katya had accidentally crashed Ginger’s (kind of pathetic) attempt at being a tour guide for the freshmen of her course. They’ve only known each other for a year, but ever since then the two quickly became inseparable and a year had felt like a lifetime. All of their friends knew, and Katya held it close to her heart, that nothing could possibly stand in their way. That is, until the beginning of this semester.

Trixie had been elected as class representative at the start of their sophomore year, which did not surprise Katya one bit. But that meant that when Canadian exchange student Brooke Lynn Hytes had arrived for the semester, it was Trixie’s job to show her around and make her feel welcomed. And being that Brooke’s degree in classical dance meant her and Trixie had quite a few overlapping classes, the two hit it off and had gotten closer and closer since. It’s only half way through the semester, yet Katya feels as though she’s slowly becoming more and more of a background character in Trixie’s life. They still text each other when they can, but hangout times have slowly grown increasingly thin and so has Katya’s sanity. Not that it’s Trixie’s fault, of course…

“I can’t explain it. But I promise, it’s almost like she’s purposefully occupying Trixie from me! Every time it looks like we might get a chance to even just talk, she’s there coming round the corner asking Trixie for help in one of their classes or for show recs or whatever. And she always looks me dead in the eye, with her stupid fucking smirk, like she knows what she just did! I can’t explain the feeling I get when I see her!”

Katya’s hit full ranting steam now, half hanging off her bed still flailing as animated as ever.

Violet shuts her laptop and turns to face her. “Mama, sounds like you hate her. Sure it’s not just in your head because you’re jealous the amazon’s occupying your barbie?”

There’s a beat of silence. “Jealous? I guess?” Katya scrunches up her face and sits up. “I mean, how could I not be? With her stupid long legs and her flowing blonde hair, like god, Vi, she’s practically perfect! And have you seen her dance?”

Katya turns to pose her question, but Violet is just staring, giving her a look she can’t decipher. She continues,

“So then, fine, of course I’m jealous, but that’s because Trix is my best friend. I barely see her anymore, and when I do she’s always there and I just get so riled up! And I’m sure Trix has started to notice because god I just can’t stand it when she’s near, it just sets me alight in an awful way. I’ve never felt this way about anybody before!” And it’s true, Katya really does not think of herself as someone capable of fully hating someone else. But by god, is Brooke really testing that.

Violet scoffs, turning away to open her laptop once more. “Look Mary, all I gotta say is that that’s an awful lot of emotion for some best friend jealousy. Also, you have a lecture starting in ten minutes.”

Fuck! Katya checks her watch and immediately jumps up to scramble for her belongings, deeply thankful for her roommate’s type A tendencies yet internally chastising herself for allowing her ranting to consume her time like that. She quickly kisses Violet on the cheek and bids her farewell before putting on her boots and heading out of their dorm room to make her best effort to speed walk to class.

But as luck would have it, not that Katya has a lot of it, she quite literally walks right into the subject of their prior conversation. Well, speak of the devils…

“Oh! Trixie, hi!” Katya laughs, immediately reacting to steady Trixie from where Katya had almost knocked her over with the door. From the way she was standing, she figured she had opened the door just as Trixie was about knock.

“Katya! Thank god, I was worried you wouldn’t be in,” Trixie smiles back brightly, smoothing her fluffy golden hair back into place. (Not that it’s ever really out of place, Katya thinks to herself.) 

Katya smiles at her, a sight for sore eyes she thinks, but when she realizes Brooke is standing at the end of the hall waiting for Trixie, her smile doesn’t quite reach her eyes. Whether Trixie noticed Katya’s tension or not, she didn’t let on. At least Brooke had the decency to wait at a reasonable distance.

“Uh, yeah, I was just heading out though,” Katya replies, trying her best to look sympathetic. She doesn’t mind that she’s running late anymore, just feels bad she even has to go. “But did you need something?”

Trixie looks equally as sympathetic. “Yeah, uh, listen, I’m really sorry. I know we haven’t been able to hang recently and I’m really sorry for that, midterms and all…”

“Hey, it’s alright, I knew you were busy. It’s no problem, really.” That’s a lie.

“But now that it’s over, let’s celebrate! Let me make it up to you? Be my date to the Edwards party tonight?”

Katya’s smile softens. As much as she was planning to trade in the party for a well-deserved movie night in with Violet and Pearl, she finds she really can’t say no to Trixie, especially not when she’s looking at her like an apologetic puppy. Whipped.

“Down for anything with you, Barbie. Meet you at the dorm hall at 8?”

Trixie squeals and picks Katya up by the middle, “AAAAAAAH yes!! See you bitch!!”

Katya squirms violently to be put down but laughs it off anyway. She really can’t be too mad at her best friend.

“Anyway, I gotta run, see you later Trix!” She rushes to hug Trixie quickly once more before escaping as briskly yet casually as she can out the door. This fails her when all semblance of casualty is lost as she passes the point where Brooke is, all tall and blonde and beautiful even just standing around. As she passes, her gaze quite obviously steels ahead to avoid looking Brooke in the eye, but she can’t fail to catch the quite obvious smug smirk the Canadian has posed on her painted lips.

----

Katya managed to make it to class with only 5 minutes late, thankfully just as her professor was entering the other door. She plops down into her usual seat with an audible groan and immediately drops her head in her hands.

Brooke. Stupid fucking Brooke Lynn Hytes. Lately, Katya’s wandering thoughts always go back to her. There hasn’t been a time where her idle time hasn’t been haunted by a certain ballerina chipping away at her precious concentration. She sees perfect long blonde hair, icy blue eyes, and tone legs that go all the way up. 

If she’s being completely honest with herself, she is just a bit jealous of Brooke but not for the reasons Violet insinuates. I mean, sure, she misses Trixie to bits. But that’s only one of the many straws on the camel that is Katya’s completely rational anger. 

It’s not that she’s perfect, either, but that sure adds another straw. Seemingly introverted, but able to capture the hearts of anyone in her path through quick and honest charm. Graceful and poised, where Katya is not, and tall and curvy, where Katya is not. Katya really doesn’t understand how someone can attend 7am dance classes with a flawless mug and still leave rehearsals with not an eyelash out of place, it’s inhuman.

No, it’s that no matter how much others testify on her behalf, Katya does not understand it. She doesn’t know what she did, but she has somehow done something to aggravate Brooke against her, and it bothers her endlessly that she doesn’t even know what she did to incur such spite. Katya doesn’t see any of the charm or kindness that others profess, only smug smirks and cocky passive-aggressive jabs and a seemingly passionate desire to find any way she can to poke Katya’s buttons and prompt some kind of response. She’s lucky Katya has a lot more self control than most, and she’s restrained herself from biting back thus far.

She thinks back to the first time she spotted Brooke, on the first day of the semester when Katya had gotten bored and decided to drop in on Trixie’s representative duties despite explicit instructions not to intrude. She had found her in one of the gardens of the student commons, and instinctively made her way to run up and tackle her before realizing Trixie wasn’t alone and stopping dead in her tracks.

Trixie was sitting next to someone Katya didn’t recognize, which was a surprise in itself because Katya knew next to everybody personally in their modestly sized arts college.  The girl was sitting next to Trixie on a bench, both hands holding one of Trixie’s own as Trixie appeared to animatedly be telling some story. Trixie then finally noticed Katya frozen standing awkwardly at some distance and paused in the middle of her speech to yell at Katya and becon her over. 

“Katya! This is Brooke Lynn, a Canadian exchange student for the semester. Brooke, this is Katya, my best friend!”

Brooke lazily shifted her gaze from Trixie to give Katya the once over, glancing her up and down. Whatever she saw, she suddenly stood up and crowded into Katya’s space, gazing down at her intensely directly from the advantage their clear height difference gave her.

“Well, it’s certainly nice to meet you… Katya.” 

And on her lips, the same painted red smirk. The same stupid smirk that would continuously haunt her until…

“Kat, you with us girl?” Hissed Pearl in her ear, jabbing her hard in the side.

[so-shiny-so-chrome]

Witness: Kalashnikorn

Creator name (AO3): Kalashnikorn

Creator name (Tumblr): Main-force-patrol

Link to creator works: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kalashnikorn

Creator name (other platform- please specify): @Riccarterfans (twitter)

Q: Why the Mad Max Fandom?

A: My interest in Mad Max started early. I was maybe 12-14 when my mom picked it up on VHS at a garage sale because she had fond memories of the film when it came out (she saw it in theaters, which is rare for her). We’re both fond of cars and dystopian/apocalyptic stuff, so I easily connected with the movie and fell in love with WAY too many of the characters. So there was my weirdo self, in the early 2000s, loving MM1 but not really having a fandom to join. I had fun on my own, drawing stuff, making toys of the characters, writing doofy adolescent fanfic. You know, the works. But I did it in isolation, because I was a LONELY kid. Not just in terms of fandom, there were just never other kids around, or adults (other than my parents) around. Therefore, I spent most of my time online, and lost countless hours lurking on the MadMaxMovies.com forum. But I didn’t feel safe talking to people there, because the only other fans were guys my dad’s age. For years, if I had any kind of fandom-related wish that I’d give an arm to fulfill, it was that other girls and queer folks would embrace the MM series so I could finally share my excitement with people that would “get” me. Fast forward to 2015. Fury Road fulfilled that wish. I knew tumblr was my best chance at getting those friends I’d wanted for so long. It’s better than I’d ever dreamed. Mad Max Fandom, I love you! Special shoutout to @d--t, @crunkmouse, @sillyb0yblue, @sleepymayo, @lethalpr0tector, @legendofstraydog, @partyinvalhalla and @vanessa-geraldine-carlysle! 

Q: What do you think are some defining aspects of your work? Do you have a style? Recurrent themes?

A: I love to write first-person fic that delves into the darker aspects of the human psyche. How do we justify killing others? What impact does a hypermasculine culture have upon a man with depression and anxiety? Is violence really the key to surviving the apocalypse? I also enjoy writing about people seeking control or freedom, and wrestling with that they believe they need to do to achieve that. 

Q: What (if any) music do you listen to for help getting those creative juices flowing?

A: Since I do first person, I like something to get me into the head of the character I’m writing, so I make playlists for certain characters. 99% of the time, anymore, I’m writing as Roop, so on his playlist I’ve got a bunch of stuff quasi-hipster stuff that touches upon themes of isolation, anger, violence, and feelings of helplessness. There’s a bunch of indie rock, some seventies stuff, and A LOT OF PINK FLOYD. Oh, and there’s some Aussie rock in there too, of course. 

Q: What is your biggest challenge as a creator?

A: Finding the time to write! 

Q: Which character do you relate to the most, and how does that affect your approach to that character? Is someone else your favourite to portray? How has your understanding of these characters grown through portraying them?

A: Roop… And Roop.  And my understanding of him has absolutely grown through portraying him. He’s a character that’s in MM1 for like.. Ten minutes? And after the opening chase scene, he hardly has any lines. But Steve Millichamp does an excellent job portraying him with his posture, body language, etc. So I gleaned ideas from his non-verbal performance. Honestly, if you look at the number of times he makes a mopey face, it’s astounding. Other times, he looks at Fifi for guidance, the way a kid looks at a parent or teacher. He doesn’t seem to have any friends at work, partially due to his own personality. I could go on for hours. From all that, I extrapolated that he’s basically caught between childhood and adulthood, and he’s trying to sort out what it means to be a good cop and a good person. Sometimes those things aren’t congruent, and it tears him up because he’s a very type A, hardworking perfectionist. Growing up, he was told that he was gifted, smart, etc., and he feels like an imposter because he fixates on his shortcomings and mistakes. And when trying to live up to this impossibly high standard, he puts a lot of pressure on himself and struggles when he has to surrender or when he fails. There’s a ton more, but those are the highlights. The vast majority my MM/Roop fic stays offline. Pretty much all of it is irrelevant to the rest of the Mad Max universe, so there’s no point in posting it. It’s taken on a life of its own. Of course, some people have let me know that they dislike or disagree with my characterization of Roop. That’s fine. Nobody’s forcing them to read my fic.

Q: Do you ever self-insert, even accidentally?

A: Oh hell yes. And I’m completely shameless about it, because I don’t think the practice should be taboo or frowned upon. We wouldn’t shame an actor who tapped their lived experience to bring authenticity to a role, would we?  I think we should extend the same understanding to writers. Aside from being a great way to understand more about our selves, enjoy an escapist fantasy, or work through trauma, I think self-insertion can be a great way to evoke emotional authenticity in a story.

Q: Do you have any favourite relationships to portray? What interests you about them?

A: I pretty much stick to what I consider my strength, which is genfic. So I mostly stick to portraying platonic interactions, both friendly and unfriendly. I particularly like exploring how Roop interacts with/judges his co-workers. I’m also fond of writing about good moms who love and encourage their kids. Sometimes the mom is the viewpoint character, sometimes it’s the kid. Regardless, I like looking at how parental relationships can shape a person’s worldview.

Q: How does your work for the fandom change how you look at the source material?

A: My work makes me hyper-analyze MM1 and its novelization. I mostly write MM1 fic because I feel like we could have gotten a lot more mileage out of exploring MM1’s world, before society fully broke down and became the more fantastical wasteland we know and love in MM2, MM3, and MMFR. As much as I like the later worldbuilding stuff, I can really appreciate watching a civilization crumble in a grounded, slow-burning manner. 

Q: To break or not to break canon? Why?

A: Depends on what you mean by “break.” I think a lot purists would say that I break canon, so I’ll put it this way: I like to write stories where I add to canon without directly contradicting it. We’re never shown Roop’s home life, for instance. It’s free real estate! I do this because I just want MORE MM1. More Roop, more MFP, more Armalites, all of it. I don’t feel the need to change anything, just add more volume to it. That said, I love it when others break canon! I have a ton of fun reading AUs and alternate scenes. 

Q: Share some headcanons

A: GRAB A SEAT AND PUT YOUR SITTIN’ PANTS ON. Here we go: In addition to recruiting local police officers and other traditional recruiting strategies, the MFP uses conscription to fill out its ranks. Roop is one such draftee. Roop doesn’t spend any time with Charlie outside of work. He really just tries to minimize contact with the guy. If we do all my Roop headcanons, we’ll be here until the Miller completes MM5. Charlie wanted to go seminary school and become a priest, but was drafted. Losing his voice pretty much killed his dream of preaching. Fifi takes an interest in his men, but only so he can better manipulate them into staying/reenlisting. Bubba was a former MFP officer who went rogue once budget cuts and bureaucratic decisions made law enforcement abandon his rural hometown.

Q: Who are some works by other creators inside and outside of the fandom that have influenced your work?Inside the fandom, the old RP crowd and I bounced a lot of ideas off each other, and interacting with their muses helped Roop’s story grow by leaps and bounds (finger guns at @d--t’s OC, Renholder, @vanessa-geraldine-carlysle’s portrayal of Charlie, and @legendofstraydog’s OC, Syrup!) Outside the fandom, my biggest influences are Kurt Vonnegut, J.D. Salinger, Quentin Tarantino, the Coen Brothers, and Sam Esmail.

Q: Have you visited or do you plan to visit Australia, Wasteland Weekend, or other Mad Max place?

A: Not yet, but I'd love to go someday!

Q: Tell us about a current WIP or planned project

A: “Autotomy” is my big current WIP. It’s 7 chapters into its 9 or 10 chapter run (I’ve literally got chapter 8 open in another window as I’m writing this). It follows Roop immediately after MM1 ends. He sees the aftermath of Max’s rampage, and begins to question his own ideals. Then his morals are put to the test when an unexpected guest arrives at his home. The word “autotomy” describes cutting off a part of oneself to escape a greater threat. Think of a lizard that sheds its trapped tail to avoid being eaten. I’m using it in the literal and metaphorical sense. At the end of MM1, we see someone have to make a literal life-or-limb decision. And in this story, Roop has to decide whether or not to cut off the toxic ideology that has guided his actions.

Thank you @main-force-patrol @richardcarterfans some of your tags got lost in reformatting.  You may want to retag your peeps

[shadowfollowweb]

FBI UCR, NFL Security Chief, Writing Struggles

December 10, 2017

For my NaNo'ers, I hope you all conquered your National Novel Writing Month goal!  I am really stoked at how active the WRITERSDETECTIVE Q&A forum on Facebook has been lately. The Q&A Forum is a year round venue for you to post questions, not just during NaNoWriMo. I have corrected the pinned post at the top of the forum that suggested it was only for NaNoWriMo. Terri Swann, one of my earliest and dearest supporters of writersdetective.com, created this awesome spreadsheet of resources for crime writers. Much of the list is compiled from links mentioned in previous APB emails and Terri added some of her own research resources as well. It's awesome having all of these research links in one place and grouped by category. Thank you, Terri!!!! ​

STORY: Homicide rates are up  The FBI's 2016 Uniform Crime Report shows homicide rates are up. To view the entire UCR report data, click here. Since this is a hot political topic, check out the four things you should take into account with regard to those statistics. Also included in this link is the NIJ's white paper "Assessing and Responding to the Recent Homicide Rise in the United States." 

CHARACTER: Cathy Lanier  As you likely well know, writers strive to create unforgettable character arcs for their protagonists. Check out this real-life example: Cathy Lanier was a teen-mother and 9th-grade high school dropout. How did she become the Chief of Security for the National Football League? It may have something to do with rising through the ranks of Washington D.C.'s Metro Police Department to become the Chief of Police. ...and you thought your protagonist was a bad-ass!

CRAFT: Writing an entire book on your phone? REALLY?  I found Kevin Tumlinson's article at Draft2Digital.com on becoming a mobile writer quite thought provoking. Despite my comfort in composing emails and sending emoji laced text messages from my phone, I never even considered using my phone or tablet to actually write-write. I need a place to sit down. I need a real keyboard (because the 9th-Grade typing class I didn't sign up for miraculously taught me how to touch-type.) I need my writing space. I need...hold on a sec...I need to stop limiting myself to when and where I write!!!! I discovered that I really needed to rethink my writing routine. As a Detective, I became an accidental professional writer. I have been paid a lot of money over the years to write hundreds-of-thousands of words, albeit in the form of police reports and search warrants. As a result, I unwittingly boxed myself into a writing comfort zone, especially since typing on a cellphone wasn't possible when I started as a Detective. I have been surprisingly won over. I hope you will at least check out Kevin's article and reconsider your phone or tablet as a tool for lumping some of that literary clay on to the potter's wheel of a first or second draft. I have been using Evernote and the iOS Scrivener app to get words into manuscript wherever the muse whispers. I've also found it a sly way to sneak some writing in if the boss from the day-job is around. ;)

WRITING: The struggle is real! So what is this aforementioned manuscript? I will get to that in just a minute. This week in the Facebook group, I posed the question:  What are the biggest demons or stumbling blocks you face when writing crime fiction? [Even though this post is from December 10, 2017, I still want your answer!  The post is pinned in the Facebook Group, so please join and give me your answers!]   The overwhelming response in the group (and in private responses) has been "not knowing enough." Many of the other more specific answers could be considered subsets of that same issue.  I asked this question because I am using it to create a non-fiction book designed specifically to help you. I get it. Stories have structure rules that writers are expected to follow. Writing about crime adds a whole other set of rules onto that same story. It is tough, especially when you feel like you are out of your element! I want to help fix that. This isn't the first time I've tried to create a book or online course to help writers with the cop stuff. In previous attempts at each, I always felt like whatever I created was little more than an encyclopedia or almanac of random police facts...so I scrapped them. This time, however, I think I have figured out a much better format. I have moved beyond that initial Writer's Euphoria phase of excitement about a new project, to the point where I see just how daunting writing this book is becoming. Yet, my concept and tentative outline seems to be holding up against the formidable Story Grid Foolscap...so I am cautiously enthused. My goal is to publish the best writer's guide to police procedure and criminal investigation out there, so this will not be a quick or easy project. Which brings me to the most important aspect of making this book useful to you: I want your input! If you are interested in providing input into what should be included in my book, click here to be added to a separate mailing list. This will prevent me from irritating the rest of the APB mailing list with my emails about the book. 

Write well, Adam

FBI UCR, NFL Security Chief, Writing Struggles published first on http://ift.tt/2pFdZxI

[iseeuseepage]

FBI UCR, NFL Security Chief, Writing Struggles

December 10, 2017

For my NaNo’ers, I hope you all conquered your National Novel Writing Month goal!  I am really stoked at how active the WRITERSDETECTIVE Q&A forum on Facebook has been lately. The Q&A Forum is a year round venue for you to post questions, not just during NaNoWriMo. I have corrected the pinned post at the top of the forum that suggested it was only for NaNoWriMo. Terri Swann, one of my earliest and dearest supporters of writersdetective.com, created this awesome spreadsheet of resources for crime writers. Much of the list is compiled from links mentioned in previous APB emails and Terri added some of her own research resources as well. It’s awesome having all of these research links in one place and grouped by category. Thank you, Terri!!!! ​

STORY: Homicide rates are up  The FBI’s 2016 Uniform Crime Report shows homicide rates are up. To view the entire UCR report data, click here. Since this is a hot political topic, check out the four things you should take into account with regard to those statistics. Also included in this link is the NIJ’s white paper “Assessing and Responding to the Recent Homicide Rise in the United States.” 

CHARACTER: Cathy Lanier  As you likely well know, writers strive to create unforgettable character arcs for their protagonists. Check out this real-life example: Cathy Lanier was a teen-mother and 9th-grade high school dropout. How did she become the Chief of Security for the National Football League? It may have something to do with rising through the ranks of Washington D.C.’s Metro Police Department to become the Chief of Police. …and you thought your protagonist was a bad-ass!

CRAFT: Writing an entire book on your phone? REALLY?  I found Kevin Tumlinson’s article at Draft2Digital.com on becoming a mobile writer quite thought provoking. Despite my comfort in composing emails and sending emoji laced text messages from my phone, I never even considered using my phone or tablet to actually write-write.

I need a place to sit down. I need a real keyboard (because the 9th-Grade typing class I didn’t sign up for miraculously taught me how to touch-type.) I need my writing space. I need…hold on a sec…I need to stop limiting myself to when and where I write!!!!

I discovered that I really needed to rethink my writing routine. As a Detective, I became an accidental professional writer. I have been paid a lot of money over the years to write hundreds-of-thousands of words, albeit in the form of police reports and search warrants. As a result, I unwittingly boxed myself into a writing comfort zone, especially since typing on a cellphone wasn’t possible when I started as a Detective. I have been surprisingly won over.

I hope you will at least check out Kevin’s article and reconsider your phone or tablet as a tool for lumping some of that literary clay on to the potter’s wheel of a first or second draft. I have been using Evernote and the iOS Scrivener app to get words into manuscript wherever the muse whispers. I’ve also found it a sly way to sneak some writing in if the boss from the day-job is around.

WRITING: The struggle is real! So what is this aforementioned manuscript? I will get to that in just a minute. This week in the Facebook group, I posed the question: 

What are the biggest demons or stumbling blocks you face when writing crime fiction? [Even though this post is from December 10, 2017, I still want your answer!  The post is pinned in the Facebook Group, so please join and give me your answers!]   The overwhelming response in the group (and in private responses) has been “not knowing enough.” Many of the other more specific answers could be considered subsets of that same issue. 

I asked this question because I am using it to create a non-fiction book designed specifically to help you.

I get it. Stories have structure rules that writers are expected to follow. Writing about crime adds a whole other set of rules onto that same story. It is tough, especially when you feel like you are out of your element! I want to help fix that.

This isn’t the first time I’ve tried to create a book or online course to help writers with the cop stuff. In previous attempts at each, I always felt like whatever I created was little more than an encyclopedia or almanac of random police facts…so I scrapped them.

This time, however, I think I have figured out a much better format. I have moved beyond that initial Writer’s Euphoria phase of excitement about a new project, to the point where I see just how daunting writing this book is becoming. Yet, my concept and tentative outline seems to be holding up against the formidable Story Grid Foolscap…so I am cautiously enthused. My goal is to publish the best writer’s guide to police procedure and criminal investigation out there, so this will not be a quick or easy project.

Which brings me to the most important aspect of making this book useful to you: I want your input! If you are interested in providing input into what should be included in my book, click here to be added to a separate mailing list. This will prevent me from irritating the rest of the APB mailing list with my emails about the book. 

Write well,

Adam

FBI UCR, NFL Security Chief, Writing Struggles syndicated from detectiveserviceblog.wordpress.com

[harolddetective]

FBI UCR, NFL Security Chief, Writing Struggles

December 10, 2017

For my NaNo’ers, I hope you all conquered your National Novel Writing Month goal!  I am really stoked at how active the WRITERSDETECTIVE Q&A forum on Facebook has been lately. The Q&A Forum is a year round venue for you to post questions, not just during NaNoWriMo. I have corrected the pinned post at the top of the forum that suggested it was only for NaNoWriMo. Terri Swann, one of my earliest and dearest supporters of writersdetective.com, created this awesome spreadsheet of resources for crime writers. Much of the list is compiled from links mentioned in previous APB emails and Terri added some of her own research resources as well. It’s awesome having all of these research links in one place and grouped by category. Thank you, Terri!!!! ​

STORY: Homicide rates are up  The FBI’s 2016 Uniform Crime Report shows homicide rates are up. To view the entire UCR report data, click here. Since this is a hot political topic, check out the four things you should take into account with regard to those statistics. Also included in this link is the NIJ’s white paper “Assessing and Responding to the Recent Homicide Rise in the United States.” 

CHARACTER: Cathy Lanier  As you likely well know, writers strive to create unforgettable character arcs for their protagonists. Check out this real-life example: Cathy Lanier was a teen-mother and 9th-grade high school dropout. How did she become the Chief of Security for the National Football League? It may have something to do with rising through the ranks of Washington D.C.’s Metro Police Department to become the Chief of Police. …and you thought your protagonist was a bad-ass!

CRAFT: Writing an entire book on your phone? REALLY?  I found Kevin Tumlinson’s article at Draft2Digital.com on becoming a mobile writer quite thought provoking. Despite my comfort in composing emails and sending emoji laced text messages from my phone, I never even considered using my phone or tablet to actually write-write.

I need a place to sit down. I need a real keyboard (because the 9th-Grade typing class I didn’t sign up for miraculously taught me how to touch-type.) I need my writing space. I need…hold on a sec…I need to stop limiting myself to when and where I write!!!!

I discovered that I really needed to rethink my writing routine. As a Detective, I became an accidental professional writer. I have been paid a lot of money over the years to write hundreds-of-thousands of words, albeit in the form of police reports and search warrants. As a result, I unwittingly boxed myself into a writing comfort zone, especially since typing on a cellphone wasn’t possible when I started as a Detective. I have been surprisingly won over.

I hope you will at least check out Kevin’s article and reconsider your phone or tablet as a tool for lumping some of that literary clay on to the potter’s wheel of a first or second draft. I have been using Evernote and the iOS Scrivener app to get words into manuscript wherever the muse whispers. I’ve also found it a sly way to sneak some writing in if the boss from the day-job is around.

WRITING: The struggle is real! So what is this aforementioned manuscript? I will get to that in just a minute. This week in the Facebook group, I posed the question: 

What are the biggest demons or stumbling blocks you face when writing crime fiction? [Even though this post is from December 10, 2017, I still want your answer!  The post is pinned in the Facebook Group, so please join and give me your answers!]   The overwhelming response in the group (and in private responses) has been “not knowing enough.” Many of the other more specific answers could be considered subsets of that same issue. 

I asked this question because I am using it to create a non-fiction book designed specifically to help you.

I get it. Stories have structure rules that writers are expected to follow. Writing about crime adds a whole other set of rules onto that same story. It is tough, especially when you feel like you are out of your element! I want to help fix that.

This isn’t the first time I’ve tried to create a book or online course to help writers with the cop stuff. In previous attempts at each, I always felt like whatever I created was little more than an encyclopedia or almanac of random police facts…so I scrapped them.

This time, however, I think I have figured out a much better format. I have moved beyond that initial Writer’s Euphoria phase of excitement about a new project, to the point where I see just how daunting writing this book is becoming. Yet, my concept and tentative outline seems to be holding up against the formidable Story Grid Foolscap…so I am cautiously enthused. My goal is to publish the best writer’s guide to police procedure and criminal investigation out there, so this will not be a quick or easy project.

Which brings me to the most important aspect of making this book useful to you: I want your input! If you are interested in providing input into what should be included in my book, click here to be added to a separate mailing list. This will prevent me from irritating the rest of the APB mailing list with my emails about the book. 

Write well,

Adam

FBI UCR, NFL Security Chief, Writing Struggles syndicated from http://ift.tt/2k7p7z2

[shadowfollowweb]

FBI UCR, NFL Security Chief, Writing Struggles

December 10, 2017

For my NaNo'ers, I hope you all conquered your National Novel Writing Month goal!  I am really stoked at how active the WRITERSDETECTIVE Q&A forum on Facebook has been lately. The Q&A Forum is a year round venue for you to post questions, not just during NaNoWriMo. I have corrected the pinned post at the top of the forum that suggested it was only for NaNoWriMo. Terri Swann, one of my earliest and dearest supporters of writersdetective.com, created this awesome spreadsheet of resources for crime writers. Much of the list is compiled from links mentioned in previous APB emails and Terri added some of her own research resources as well. It's awesome having all of these research links in one place and grouped by category. Thank you, Terri!!!! ​

STORY: Homicide rates are up  The FBI's 2016 Uniform Crime Report shows homicide rates are up. To view the entire UCR report data, click here. Since this is a hot political topic, check out the four things you should take into account with regard to those statistics. Also included in this link is the NIJ's white paper "Assessing and Responding to the Recent Homicide Rise in the United States." 

CHARACTER: Cathy Lanier  As you likely well know, writers strive to create unforgettable character arcs for their protagonists. Check out this real-life example: Cathy Lanier was a teen-mother and 9th-grade high school dropout. How did she become the Chief of Security for the National Football League? It may have something to do with rising through the ranks of Washington D.C.'s Metro Police Department to become the Chief of Police. ...and you thought your protagonist was a bad-ass!

CRAFT: Writing an entire book on your phone? REALLY?  I found Kevin Tumlinson's article at Draft2Digital.com on becoming a mobile writer quite thought provoking. Despite my comfort in composing emails and sending emoji laced text messages from my phone, I never even considered using my phone or tablet to actually write-write. I need a place to sit down. I need a real keyboard (because the 9th-Grade typing class I didn't sign up for miraculously taught me how to touch-type.) I need my writing space. I need...hold on a sec...I need to stop limiting myself to when and where I write!!!! I discovered that I really needed to rethink my writing routine. As a Detective, I became an accidental professional writer. I have been paid a lot of money over the years to write hundreds-of-thousands of words, albeit in the form of police reports and search warrants. As a result, I unwittingly boxed myself into a writing comfort zone, especially since typing on a cellphone wasn't possible when I started as a Detective. I have been surprisingly won over. I hope you will at least check out Kevin's article and reconsider your phone or tablet as a tool for lumping some of that literary clay on to the potter's wheel of a first or second draft. I have been using Evernote and the iOS Scrivener app to get words into manuscript wherever the muse whispers. I've also found it a sly way to sneak some writing in if the boss from the day-job is around. ;)

WRITING: The struggle is real! So what is this aforementioned manuscript? I will get to that in just a minute. This week in the Facebook group, I posed the question:  What are the biggest demons or stumbling blocks you face when writing crime fiction? [Even though this post is from December 10, 2017, I still want your answer!  The post is pinned in the Facebook Group, so please join and give me your answers!]   The overwhelming response in the group (and in private responses) has been "not knowing enough." Many of the other more specific answers could be considered subsets of that same issue.  I asked this question because I am using it to create a non-fiction book designed specifically to help you. I get it. Stories have structure rules that writers are expected to follow. Writing about crime adds a whole other set of rules onto that same story. It is tough, especially when you feel like you are out of your element! I want to help fix that. This isn't the first time I've tried to create a book or online course to help writers with the cop stuff. In previous attempts at each, I always felt like whatever I created was little more than an encyclopedia or almanac of random police facts...so I scrapped them. This time, however, I think I have figured out a much better format. I have moved beyond that initial Writer's Euphoria phase of excitement about a new project, to the point where I see just how daunting writing this book is becoming. Yet, my concept and tentative outline seems to be holding up against the formidable Story Grid Foolscap...so I am cautiously enthused. My goal is to publish the best writer's guide to police procedure and criminal investigation out there, so this will not be a quick or easy project. Which brings me to the most important aspect of making this book useful to you: I want your input! If you are interested in providing input into what should be included in my book, click here to be added to a separate mailing list. This will prevent me from irritating the rest of the APB mailing list with my emails about the book. 

Write well, Adam

FBI UCR, NFL Security Chief, Writing Struggles published first on http://ift.tt/2pFdZxI