#was procrastinating some posts over there so i'm doing them real quick before the post operation consultation raaahhh

[hismourningflower]

wait your https-furina ?! /gen omg

i am !! yes !! HAHA

[enzstr]

Falling Stars

pairing: katsuki bakugo x reader

notes: ok I'll post only you new chapter tmrw ILL STOP PROCRASTINATING i swear 💯

The first time Bakugo Katsuki saw the meteor shower, he was eight years old.

His mother had yanked him outside in the middle of the night, still scowling about the cold, but her hands were gentle when they wrapped a blanket around his shoulders. The sky stretched endlessly above them, speckled with stars that seemed to vibrate with a light he hadn’t noticed before.

"Look," she said, pointing upward, her voice softer than he was used to. "Watch carefully."

The first streak of light cut through the darkness a moment later, quick and startling. Then another. And another. Soon the sky was alive with motion, stars falling in quiet arcs, each one disappearing before he could catch more than a glimpse.

He remembered how small he felt. How much it scared him.

---------------------------

Years later, he forgot about the meteor shower. Forgot the wonder of that night, shoved it into the same dusty corner of his mind where he kept childhood books and broken toys.

Until now.

-------------------------

The lake was still, dark as ink, reflecting a fractured version of the stars above. Bakugo hadn’t planned to come here, but his feet had carried him to this spot anyway, far from the city’s noise and chaos. His boots crunched against the gravel path, the sound too loud in the quiet.

He didn’t notice you at first.

You were sitting by the water’s edge, your knees drawn up to your chest, your face tilted toward the sky. A flashlight sat beside you, its weak beam illuminating a sketchbook resting on your lap. You were drawing—no, scribbling—furiously, your pencil darting across the page like it couldn’t keep up with your thoughts.

Bakugo frowned. "The hell are you doing out here?"

You flinched, your pencil slipping mid-stroke. For a moment, you just stared at him, wide-eyed, as if you weren’t sure if he was real.

"Watching the meteors," you said finally, your voice barely louder than the rustle of the wind.

He squinted at you, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. "In the dark? By yourself?"

You shrugged. "It's quieter this way."

"Tch." He sat down without asking, his legs folding stiffly beneath him. He wasn’t sure why he didn’t just leave. Maybe it was the way your sketchbook caught the moonlight. Or maybe it was the way you seemed completely unbothered by his presence, as if you’d expected him all along.

For a while, neither of you spoke.

-------------------

The meteors came slowly at first. One streak of light here, another there. You made small, quick marks in your sketchbook, your pencil moving like a whisper.

"Doesn't look like much," Bakugo muttered, his arms crossed.

You glanced at him, your eyes catching the faint glow of the sky. "You're not looking hard enough."

He bristled. "I'm looking just fine."

"Are you?"

The challenge in your voice made him turn toward you, scowling, but you weren’t even looking at him anymore. Your gaze was fixed upward, your expression calm and unhurried, like you had all the time in the world.

"It's not just the meteors," you said after a moment. "It’s the way the light fades. How it leaves behind a trail, like it’s trying to say, 'I was here.'"

He blinked, caught off guard by the thought. "That's... dumb."

You smiled, the kind of smile that wasn’t mocking, just knowing. "Maybe."

---------------

By the time the sky filled with streaks of fire, Bakugo had stopped trying to come up with reasons to leave.

The meteors fell in bursts, some blazing so bright they left afterimages burned into his vision. The lake reflected them all, turning the world into a mirrored blur of light and shadow.

You were still sketching, your movements slowing as the show reached its peak. Your pencil hovered over the page for a moment, then stopped entirely.

"I can't get it right," you murmured, more to yourself than to him.

He glanced at the sketchbook before you could close it. Your lines were rough, unfinished, the shapes jagged and uneven. But there was something raw in them, something that looked more alive than perfect strokes ever could.

"It's not bad," he said gruffly, his voice lower than usual.

You blinked at him, surprised, then laughed softly. "Coming from you, I'll take that as high praise."

He didn’t respond, but his lips twitched into something that wasn’t quite a smirk.

---

Later, when the meteors began to fade and the sky returned to its quiet, endless stillness, you stood and dusted off your jeans.

"Thanks for not ruining it," you said, slinging your bag over your shoulder.

Bakugo snorted. "Didn’t do it for you."

"I know."

As you walked away, he stayed by the water’s edge, the ghost of your smile lingering in his mind. For the first time in years, he thought about how small the world could make him feel.

And how, sometimes, that wasn’t so bad.

enzstr © 2024. please don't steal, modify or copy my writing on any other platforms!

[short-honey-badger]

Peppermint Tea 12

Hey guys! Sorry it's been a bit since the last post! I ended up with a bad case of strept throat and I'm just now feeling up to do my stuff. Anyway. I hope you enjoy!

Warnings! None I don't think? Some drinking. Mihawk gets a little dark. A little gaslighty. It's all for your own good tho! Next part? It's finally Smut time!

I forgot to say! The song that they dance to HERE

Begin Again is HERE

Masterlist

Breakfast is already done by the time Dracule finally decides that he is done, not hiding per se, but procrastinating. You greet him with a blinding smile, and his thoughts flash back to the portrait of a younger you. He shoves the image away and brings you in for a quick kiss before he sidesteps you and an excited Hank for the stove. He plies his plate and joins you at the table. 

“I brought you another gift, dear one,” Dracule begins and you roll your eyes at him. He huffs and sips his tea before continuing, “Don’t pout. I think you’ll enjoy this one.” 

“I enjoy all of your gifts, Mihawk,” You point out gently and toss Hank a piece of grilled fish, “But I’ll need to start getting rid of some stuff if you keep bringing me such nice things.” 

Dracule casts his eyes around your humble home. While there wasn’t anything wrong with the things you have drug up from the shore from shipwrecks, It was far less than what you deserved. Especially since he knew about your past.

“Not everything is meant to be kept forever, Darling,” Dracule says right back, and you sigh but nod. The older man does have a point. Out with the old and in with the new, and all that. You catch the smug twist of his lips at your concession and roll your eyes. He was such a priss. 

“Finish your breakfast, and then I’ll bring it in,” Mihawk orders gently after a moment and stands to place a kiss on your brow. He leaves with a lingering look your way that has your cheeks pinking up. 

Down at his ship, Mihawk hefts two large crates with ease and carries them back up the beach and to the cottage. One is filled with a variety of fruit and vegetables that you did not have, and Dracule hoped that the more exotic ones would take to the soil of your island. The other crate held the real gift to you, one that he was far more excited to share. 

The dishes have been cleared by the time he makes it back to your home. Mihawk leaves the crate of seeds and sprouts outside for you to investigate later. Hank is lounging in the sun, and Mihawk rolls his eyes at the big lug as he trudges back inside. You have made them fresh cups of tea, and Dracule gladly takes his with a quiet thanks after setting the crate aside. 

“You'll need a clear space for this one, Darling.” Mihawk points out, and you escape to the living room to clear off part of one of your many bookshelves that line the walls. He follows after you and sets the crate on the floor, then kneels to flip open the lid of the box. You peer inside, brow furrowing at whatever was inside. 

“This is a gramophone. It's an older model, so you'll have to crank it here for it to power itself.” Dracule lifts the record player and sets it on the spot you've cleared for him. He dusts it off and then dives back down to retrieve a large metal horn that he attaches to the back of the box. While he is screwing the horn in, you crouch and look through the crate, carefully pulling out several very thin square objects with art on the front. 

“What are these for?” You ask and hand them over to Mihawk when he reaches for them. He opens the square and pulls out a shiny black disk that he sits in the middle of the gramophone. You watch in growing fascination as the vinyl begins to spin and jump out of your skin when noise blurts out from the horn. 

The static mellows out, and soon your cottage is filled with the delicate notes of classic music and the sound of a man and a woman singing in beautiful harmony. It's in a language that you don't know, but it isn't any less beautiful. You step closer to the machine, awe on your face. You've never heard something so beautiful before, and you close your eyes to better lose yourself in the changing notes. 

Mihawk watches you, eyes softening as he takes you in. You sway side to side, your long hair dancing around your waist, completely entranced in the classical tune. He steps behind you, hands settling on your waist as he gently leads you away from the bookshelf and to the middle of the living room. He sways with you, keeping to the slow beat of the song. 

One of Dracule's hands finds your own, and he twines your fingers together with a hum, bringing it up and around to wrap around his neck. His other arm wraps around your waist, pulling you flush against his front, “This is one of my favorite pieces. It's a recount of a young man and his affection for his first love.” 

You shiver when he speaks, his tone sinful and dripping with intent. You wonder if he is trying to tell you something in his usual, difficult, roundabout way. Did he love you? You were pretty sure that you loved him. 

Mihawk holds you close, and as you close your eyes, it is him you hear, humming quietly in your ear. You cock your head up and bring his head down, kissing him as best you can in the odd angle. He twists you around not a second later, untangling his hand from yours so that Dracule can slip it into your hair and hold you just the way he wants as he kisses you senseless. The song comes to an end just as he is pulling you away, leaving you staring up at Mihawk like he was your everything. 

Dracule gently untangled his hand from your hair to smooth his knuckles across your cheek, then shifted down to rub his thumb along your bottom lip.

“Would you like to listen to more?” Mihawk asks softly and breaks whatever tension that had built around the two of you. 

You nod, an eager smile breaking across your lips, “Yes, please. I didn't understand what they said, but it was beautiful.” 

“Not many would, Latin is a dead language to many,” Dracule informs you helpfully and then crouches to investigate the rest of the records inside the crate, “I made sure to bring you a variety of genres.” 

You thank his kindness with a kiss on his cheek and giggle when the stoic man looks inordinately proud of himself. He flicks your forehead when you go in for another, “You've made your point.” 

You pout at him briefly before you become distracted by the records again. You choose one at random and hand it to Mihawk, and then rise so that you can watch how he changes the disks. 

For the next two days, the two of you went through the music that Dracule had brought for you. While you enjoyed the classical music that the warlord favored, you found that the more upbeat jazz genre was more your style. Dracule would smile to himself whenever he caught you humming one of your favorites and pat himself on the back for doing such a good job on his gift. 

On the third day, the weather turned for the worse, casting your usual tropical and nice weather under dark clouds and raging winds. Rain pelted the island while you and Mihawk took shelter inside, Hank lay in front of the fireplace, drying his wet fur from his run inside. You sat curled up in the corner of the couch, a small glass of wine held in your hand. Mihawk had assured you that just a small bit would not hurt and would help to warm you up. 

Dracule sat in the armchair across from you, feet kicked up as he sipped from his own glass and paged through one of your waterlogged books. Vera Keys crooned in the back, a song about starting all over to begin again. You hum along to the sad song, frowning a bit at the words.

 Could you ever do that? Let go of your life here? Begin again somewhere else? The thought sent fear shooting down your spine, a voice echoing in the back of your mind that you could never leave this island. 

Dracule glances over to see you frowning and can tell that you have delved into your thoughts. He wonders how much of your past that you recall, but he doesn't dare ask, would hate himself for bringing you any unnecessary pain. There was no need for you to know right now, not when it kept you safe. 

“Something wrong, Angel?” Dracule rumbles and sets his book away to focus on you. He stands and steps over Hank to sit beside you on the couch. 

Your lips screw up even more, and you debate on telling Dracule your thoughts. You'd already spilled enough on him the other morning about your dreams. 

“I just…wish that I could leave sometimes,” you admit quietly and sit your glass aside. Your hands pick at themselves, a nervous habit over the years, “But everything I think about it, there is this voice telling me how I shouldn't. How it isn't safe.” 

Dracule is silent beside you. Panic had shot through him for half a second when you mentioned wanting to leave. He could understand why. You've been trapped here all your life, but the thought of Big Mom somehow finding out about you? That was unacceptable. You needed to be kept safe, and Dracule would be the one to take up that role. 

“While I understand your desire to leave, to explore the world,” Mihawk begins softly and draws you close to him, manhandling you a little so that you sit on his lap, legs on either side of his own, “I would listen to that voice. The world is vast, and there are people out there that would destroy everything that makes you, you.” 

You find yourself nodding along. Dracule sounds so serious, and you wish he would tell you what had wronged him in the world for him to feel this way. For him to want you to stay here. 

“What kind of people?” You ask, and Dracule frowns harshly, looming far more frightening than you have seen him since the first time he stepped foot on your island. You aren't sure if his answer brings you comfort or not. 

“People like me, Darling. Pirates who take what they want when they want. I'm where I am for a reason, and I want to keep you away from anyone else who might wish you harm.” 

@writingmysanity @kenkenmaaa @foggyturtleknightangel @browneyedhufflepuff @djbumblebee @goth-mami-writer @myradiaz

[fictionalsownme]

Do you have any tips that you're willing to share when it comes to writing Wilford? Like, tips to keep writing him as in character as possible?

Hi! I’d love to share some tips!! 🥰 Wil is pretty hard to write for to be honest ^^" It can be easy to fall out of the rhythm of his character since he's just so strange of a guy haha but I guess that's what makes him fun too! each of the points ended up pretty long so hopefully I didn't get too ramble-y!

anyway! hopefully some of these pointers help out! 💞

some disclaimers really quick: all of these are my own interpretation but by no means does anyone have to follow these or do I think I'm right or anything like that! also, this is for wmlw!wilford since I pretty much only write for him so far :) let's get into it!

Wil has two modes depending on how grounded he is. The first is a go-with-the-flow airhead who has no idea what's going on and is completely unbothered by this. Everything just washes right over him, and he seems to think everyone else is like this too. He speaks in non-sensical idioms half the time, each sentence only barely connecting to the last. His accent is pretty over the top in this headspace too! The second is when he's a bit more grounded, probably leaning more Colonel than Wilford. In my writing, he gets like this when he's reminded of his past (similar to wmlw), forced to be present in the current moment, or emotional in some way, etc. His accent is less subtle and more typically british, and he speaks in longer, more logical sentences.

Stress the right words in his dialogue. This one might just be a quirk of my writing style because I love to overuse italics as you can probably tell haha but Wil emphasizes really random words when he speaks, so even just sprinkling it in every once in awhile I feel like adds a lot!

Don't forget his body language. In a similar vein to the previous point, Mark's performance of Wilford is reallyyy physical, and dependent on his mannerisms. How he moves his hands is a big one, they hang in the air or land in interesting spots. Same for his expressions, how he tilts his head, how he sits and walks around, etc. Don't forget to keep him moving often unless he's still for a specific reason (scared, thinking, etc).

Have Wilford 'MOTHERLOVING' Warfstache on standby. I play wmlw pretty much on a loop & on silent in the background while I write him if I feel like I'm struggling to get him right. The way Mark acts him is so specific with his voice and his mannerisms and everything so having the video to refer back to is super helpful even just to get the vibe down. Sometimes I'll watch the whole thing start to finish before I start my writing session, though,, maybe I'm procrastinating hehe

Try to balance his humor, sweetness, and attractiveness. This one is a little weird, and probably depends on your preferences and what kind of fic you're writing, but for me, these are the main aspects of Wil's personality I like to focus on. Like, let's not forget, he's totally ridiculous. But he also seems very sensitive, and you know... he's hot. He's a goofball! I found myself forgetting the funnier side of his personality while I was working on my fic so I figured I'd throw it in :)

He's not as violent as he used to be. so it's clear that Wil doesn't have the temper that he did as the Colonel, but I like to take it a step further and say that once we reach WMLW, he doesn't struggle as much with violence. This is a bit more headcanon territory but Wil's violence post-WKM was based in a (mis?)understanding that death isn't real in this world. I think that plus his desensitization to violence eventually brought him full circle all the way back around to just being kind of passive. He's not scared of violence or guns at all (ie kissing Abe's gun) but he doesn't really bother with them himself either. I just like him as kind of a harmless clueless puppy idk 👉👈 hehe

I hope these helped, and lmk if you have any more questions! I like rambling about my boy(s) kikiki 💞 thanks for the ask!

[secret-subject]

How much of your time in file creation is split between writing, recording and editing? When do you know when you've slipped into over-producing territory?

Wow great question!

So this depends on the project. My current process is I write a script, then I order the art and get the assets ready for production, record and edit and post.

Sometimes, a script will take a day or two to come together. Sometimes it takes weeks where I write a little bit of a script per day. I like to have three or four things on the go at once because my brain do be like that but once a script is "ready" I will often do a read aloud to get the mouth feel and flow down before I record. This also warms my brain up to how I'm going to deliver it on the mic and it helps me to hear if a thing sounds clumsy or if it works.

I like to batch my recording sessions because setting up my vocal booth from singing to hypnosis or asmr is a challenge so I may as well use that set up for multiple recordings. I will then spend a few hours recording all the scripts that are done that day. If I mess up a take I clap or snap to save my place and ensure I can make some clean cuts later. Pro tip, give yourself space either side of the mistake and start on a line you know had a bit of a break on it otherwise your cuts will be more obvious plus this will save MASSES of time later.

Editing is very quick for me. I use audacity, clean up background noise and use a very quick eq and compression preset. Cut the mistakes etc. If this audio has background sounds this can take me a few hours but most generic single layer hypnosis tracks only take 20 minutes to edit fully. I post immediately on patreon after the edit is done when I can because it's fresh in my head and I can make the CW writing easier (love having a bad memory for things haha).

So to answer the first question, it depends on the project. Sometimes the scripting is hard and fast and recorded in a single day. Sometimes its weeks of thinking, chopping and changing and then recording. I've spent six months on my longest projects because of procrastination but I've also made a lot of audios in hours because the inspiration strikes so there is no rule with how long it takes.

The second quesion. Over production is both easy and hard to do. A lot of the time I notice it in the sound of the recording. Over processing vocals can kill the vibe so I like to take a less is more approach. I'd rather have some road noise and a more raw and real vocal than an overdone one and as a friend of mine recently told me, perfection can be a creative killer.

In terms of overproduction in terms of scripting and timeline, do what feels right for you. There are many times I feel a script could use more pages, and sometimes I add them because it works but if you are struggling to word things or it feels like a chore, that's your instinct telling you it's done or you need to move on and try again later. Again, I'd rather have something shorter and more raw than something that feels like a slog to write and record. Like play with a partner it should feel natural and unrehearsed even Iof you've proofed it again and again.

I will say when you are starting out you will overthink the recordings. You will probably second guess it and judge it harshly and thats okay, but just post it. Sometimes all it takes is one person telling you thats their fave audio to help you gain confidence and make it all worthwhile.

But these are just how I do things and how I feel about creating audio hypnosis recordings. I encourage you and other creators to find what works for you. Maybe scripting isn't your thing, make its meticulously worked and edited, either way its your own.

I can't wait to see what you decide to make!

[crows-of-buckets]

Great news, figured out a way for Ena to learn about Aviae!!!

Anyways, his older sibling is Revari (other rook, but in my canon worldstate they never become Rook. Ena just fit as the main character more which sucks bc I love Revari... Sigh anyways)

Revari has the same origin that they did as Rook: free some slaves, piss off some magisters. However, Varric isn't there to take them away to keep them from getting in trouble, so the Shadow Dragons decide to move them down to Dock Town. They basically get assigned Tarquin as a babysitter (that does not go well those two have a. Dynamic. Definitely one of the dynamics ever I've talked about it on here before, but when Revari isn't Rook those two figure out their shit SOOO much sooner. Actually have time to talk about their relationship and come to the realization that they are definitely just friends). Anyways during this time, they end up meeting Neve and the two become friends pretty quickly. Revari is a bit more hands on with the way they go about shadow dragoning (I've considered them working with Fenris in the past, which I kind of want to explore more eventually but know in my heart they've done at least one job together.) And by that I mean they have never thought twice about anything they have ever done. Both Revari and Ena have the worst impulse control known to man it's crazy.

Anyways, while Neve and Revari are friendly before the game, they don't actually become close friends until Minrathous falls and Neve stays in the city to help them recover. Revari has had to rein in their "quick thinking" (by that I mean charging head first into any and every fight) and has to stay more on the shadowy side of things. They're only alive because Tarquin had the good sense to talk them out of immediately picking a fight with all the venatori they saw (they aren't a complete idiot most of the time, but it seems my Surana family tree is extremely prone to getting very pissed off very quickly)

During this time Revari and Neve become very close, and by the time Neve returns to the Veilguard it's solidly crossed into mutual crushing. But they both have much bigger things to worry about, so nothing really comes of it until the blights are over.

Post Veilguard, they eventually start dating; I think their romance is still pretty close to how neverook goes in game, and both of them are fucking TERRIFIED of fucking it up. Neve still calls them "Trouble", all of that. Anyways it's probably a few months before Neve brings up like "hey maybe I should introduce you to the veilguard. You'd probably get along well you're definitely their brand of crazy"

Revari agrees, and NOW I'm getting back to the point I was initially planning for this post 💀. This is where Revari and Ena meet, and while they don't have instant recognition, it goes something like this.

Revari: So you're Rook. Is that your real name or...?

Ena: Nickname, my actual name is Ena. And yours?

Revari: Revari. Huh that's so weird I had a younger sister named Ena.

Ena: that's also weird bc I had an older sister named Revari.

Revari: ...

Ena:...

Revari: Are you from-

Ena: Denerim? Yeah. Oh my fucking god

The two of them get along pretty well (eventually I think they DO fight about the whole Minrathous/Treviso thing but tbh I think the joy of reuniting with the younger sibling you thought was dead makes Revari willing to ignore it. For now) Long story short Ena learns that he is in fact the cousin of The Hero of Fereldan (he had a suspicion bc he does remember his last name being Surana before he joined the crows, but he kinda convinced himself that he had made it up as a way of coping when he was a child or something)

Aviae and Ena do eventually meet, but Ena procrastinates it for months he is TERRIFIED of that woman. She has successfully survived TWO different crow contracts on her life, AND SHES CLOSE FRIENDS WITH ZEVRAN ARIANAI. He's slightly convinced that this is some elaborate plot to take him and Lucanis out or something. Aviae finds this hilarious when she learns about it

I think I've decided that I want Ena to be one of the elves taken during the "plague" in denerim during the first blight. Assuming DAV takes place in 9:49, he would have been 8 or 9 I think I need to check my timeline. He's my Surana's cousin, and the younger brother of one of my other Rook's (Revari isn't rook in my canon worldstate, but they are still a Mercar. They left for Tevinter at around 13 when their magic developed). Anyways him being my Surana's cousin is probably something he himself never actually learns (sadly). He doesn't even really talk about being from Fereldan at all, and I can't really say for certain that he would even remember his last name before he became a crow. Plus, he transitioned (kept his name tho) and so did his only sibling, so the likelihood of them recognizing each other is so painfully low.

Anyways, one of the Tevinter mages in the alienage claimed Ena had the plague, he gets shipped off. I haven't decided whether he was bought by the crows or scouted after somehow escaping (this one is becoming far less likely the more I think on it); either way, he ends up in the crows by the time he's 9. He gets his face scar like right before joining, so the first few months are even worse.

His magic developed not long after, and tbh this is the only reason I think he even survived. He was never really good at fighting in regular combat, but he was pretty good at getting the fuck out of the way when someone was trying to kill him. I think the Crows take better care of their mages (I can't remember if this is canon or a head canon but whatever) because they're a better investment. (Even when they become abominations, as crows are known to do occasionally, I do think generally they receive "kinder" treatment)

He meets Viago somewhere around age 10 (they have around a 8-10 year age gap, so Viago would be 18-20. At least going off of Viago being 34 to 36 in Veilguard. Everyday I pray that bioware will release and actual timeline bc god I am tired of figuring this shit out 😭), and immediately decides that he is going to be loyal to this guy in particular. I don't know why he decides this, but he's like 10 so it was probably some stupid reasoning.

At first Viago is annoyed, but I think after a certain point his brain kicked in and he went "wait having another crow (even one so young) who is insanely loyal to me is an AMAZING investment on my end". Teia isn't around to be his moral compass, so at this time in his life at least 9/10 of his decisions are made to further his own goals. This is around when he starts actually taking an interest in Ena, and keeping him around as an investment. He starts teaching him poisons, and building up Ena's poison resistance. Ena is notoriously loyal as hell and twice as stubborn so Viago 100% plans on using that to his advantage. I think Ena's magic developed not too long after this so he immediately becomes more useful lmao

Depending on when Viago became Talon, I do think it may be possible that Ena was one of the first to become a full crow under his leadership. If Viago is ~30 in Eight Little Talons, he had to have been a Talon for a few years, so he was probably made one in his late 20s I think? Teia is mentioned being one of the younger talons, and she's ~28 in eight little talons I think, and I'm pretty sure she's been a Talon for a few years at this point. Anyways, assuming Viago became a talon between 26-28, Ena could have been one of the first full crows under his command, being made a crow between 16-18. However, timelines like this make my head hurt so this may be completely inaccurate lmao

Somewhere between Viago realizing Ena is a good investment and Ena becoming a full crow, Viago becomes annoyingly fond of his little protege. He ends up bailing him out of trouble FAR more often than he would like. Ena is painfully good at becoming the annoying younger brother figure in anyone's life, and Viago is NOT exempt from that.

[theticklishpear]

So I, a fool, have decided as of today to start a new story from scratch for NaNo. I've got vague conceptions of my main characters and what they're after, along with group dynamics and a vague sense of the world (i.e. MAGIC!), but that's about it. I'm usually a planner, but I usually start much sooner than now. Any advice for how to scrape up several fairly fleshed-out characters, a passable world, and a plot outline in three weeks?? (My planner brain may have to try a bit of pantsing.)

I just sent a message about developing Very Fast for NaNo and I ran into the character limit in that ask, but thank you for the help and this very nice blog you’ve got going!!

I, also a fool, share your bench on the boat, my friend. We share a lot of things in common: I’ll also be starting a new story for which I only have vague conceptions, a world with magic, and am usually a planner. And I usually start way before now. If it makes you feel any better about it, you’re not alone in your self-built boat. We both started building that boat without realizing the other was there and wound up building our halves right into each other. Hi. Let’s sail.

Luckily for both of us, we have 3 weeks to really sit down and figure this stuff out. I’ll be mildly chronicling my adventure in some upcoming posts, but the big thing for you and I will be staying dedicated to planning on a consistent basis. The time for sleeping and procrastinating our way forward is over. We both need to put all our best tactics for focusing to work. Set aside a specific time period and/or amount of time to plan each day. Maybe it’s just a half hour every day or maybe it’s every day at 7 PM. Whatever works best for your schedule, make sure that spending time with this idea is a dedicated part of your day.

Parcel out those planning weeks on specific topics. Start with characters, move to plot, move to world. Spend a portion of time specifically dreaming about those particular aspects and start to parcel out the necessary information:

Know your character’s goals, weaknesses, and tactics: These three aspects of your character will be crucial to understanding them enough to write them. Things like where they work and how many siblings they have and whether they had a pet when they were growing up are icing on the cake in these kinds of hasty planning times. What you need to know is what they’re after, what they’ll make bad decisions because of, and how they’ll first try to solve problems in their life. If you can’t figure those three things out, you’re going to have a tough time really knowing how they’ll react to things and what their direction is.

Figure out what your conflict is: I’m not talking about the climax, here, I’m talking plot. What’s wrong in the world? This comes out of the general concept. You need to know how the concept interacts with the world and the characters living in that world, AND what kinds of problems that concept would create for those living day-to-day with it. Concept is great and can start the building blocks of a really inventive new world, but concept is not plot. You have got to know what that central conflict is in order to write this story. What goes wrong? What’s causing difficulties? What is this story really about?

Whose story is it and why: Alright, so you’ve got characters and you’ve got conflict, but who’s the main character and why? This ties in with the inciting incident of your plot. Why is the main character the main character? What happens that makes them so integrally involved with the conflict that this story belongs to them? What happens to make them decide that they have to go out and take part in what’s going on?

Decide what kind of story you’re trying to tell: What’s your end-goal? Where are you headed and what’s that ending scene before the credits look like? Are there certain themes you want to play with, or a certain arc of a character’s growth you really want to showcase? Is there a feeling you want to leave the audience with at the end? Knowing that will help you mold the plot points and shape the arcs of your characters as you’re thinking long and hard about what the plot ought to be.

All the rest is icing: How many religions are there in the world? Do they drive cars everywhere or fly? Are nuclear families important? Who knows. All of that can be details that you make up on the fly if you have to. It won’t be comfortable, especially if you’re a big planner like I am, but it is entirely possible to build a world that feels real to the reader even as you’re making it up. Twelve siblings? Iguanas on their tennis shoes? Prefer lemons to oranges? Way to build up that texture building, friend!

The freedom here is that you don’t have to know every detail about everything to write an effective story. You need to know a couple of key details (character, plot, a world concept), and the rest can be made up on the fly. Feel free to mention things without actually knowing for sure the extensive world history of it. Let your characters reference their favorite foods without knowing what all it’s made from. Mention movie titles without actually knowing what the movie is. Let your characters make jokes you don’t always understand. It’s okay. This will build a depth to your world that you can work on enhancing later if you want to. Right now, your world is malleable at this point and there’s no one to tell you you can’t, yet. Don’t stall yourself. Embrace that you will have ample time to course correct later.

Nothing is set in stone: Don’t let it stymie you if the month starts and you don’t have every detail you normally do when you start a story. It’s okay. Write with abandon for now. Explore every avenue. I do advise that you write with a highlighter in hand, or a second document open. Whenever you mention a tidbit of worldbuilding, highlight it or copy-and-paste it into another document. This will let you do quick references back to it when you think you want to try to expand on it later in the month, or even afterward as you’re going back to do the deep building dive. I don’t do this all the time and I kick myself when I don’t.

I hope that’s helped a bit. Like I said at the beginning, I’ll be opening up a bit more about what I’m doing to grow my problem-child this month before November, soon, so maybe keep an eye out for that for some more ideas. Good luck, friend. Now row! -Pear

Some additional resources to think about:The GOTE MethodConcept Is Not PlotThree Points To Pay Attention ToProvoking Story - Inciting IncidentFleshing Out IdeasThe Effect of More