#writing philosophy

[velvet-cupcake-games]

Who the heck authorized it to be almost August?

I demand a refund. We're still crawling along with Will Chapter 3, but it's moving forward. I had some personal life responsibilities last week and it's a real pain to balance work and life when your body says you must pick one and only one.

Along with getting a scene or so done, I was able to do some much-needed revisions to chapters 2 and 3 that make me feel better about the progression of feelings that Marion experiences toward Will.

I've also been having some cool discussions about writing with our friends over at @bestlaidplansproductions, and it made me want to write a little mini-editorial about masks. If you're interested in that kind of writing deep-dive, please do progress past the cut! There are minor thematic spoilers for Robin and Will's routes, but nothing major.

Modern internet discourse about "masking" tends to focus on what neurodiverse folks do to fit into a world designed around neurotypicality. It's a very important concept and as an ND person it's something I understand all too well.

But masking is something that everybody does to some extent or another. We all run into ways that we don't quite fit into the social expectations that are set up for us, and this kind of masking is a theme in both Robin and Will's routes.

It's one of the primary themes in Robin's route. Robin masks to hide his vulnerabilities. He has a hail-fellow-well-met persona that can even be quite goofy at times. It's partly who he is; Robin is an extrovert and genuinely enjoys getting to know people of all sorts. But it's also how he plays a clever shell game that keeps people from seeing who he really is inside.

In Robin's route, Marion has the option to do her own masking. There is no penalty if she chooses to play her own cards close to her chest, just as it's perfectly acceptable to try to tear down Robin's masks with blunt honesty. These choices will simply lead to different challenges later on in Robin and Marion's relationship.

Masking is a smaller theme in Will's route, but his reasons are different from Robin's. Will is still trying to figure out who he is. Like Marion, he's a perfectionist who can struggle when relating to people. His solution to that conundrum is what Marion calls his "Charming Will" public persona. Considering the man's usual demeanor, Charming Will is rather starting when he first emerges!

It's up to the reader to decide whether they like Charming Will or not, but unlike with Robin's route, the player's ability to express approval or disapproval of Charming Will is a free choice that does not affect the route ending (in fact, it takes place after the route ending choice).

Masking will not be a major theme on John's route. John tends to wear his heart on his sleeve, for better or worse. And yet, perhaps there are some things that even John has difficulty expressing...

[the-golden-comet]

🌫️ Fog: What do you say to yourself in times of uncertainty and self-doubt? How do you encourage yourself to keep writing? (answer one or both)

Hi anon! Thanks for the ask ✨

Speaking of, I ask myself: Am I enjoying this story? Am I writing something that I want to read? Because chances are, as the author and main editor, you’re gonna read your book the most amount of times out of anyone, unless you have a fan of your works that likes to binge your stories (that’s always a wonderful feeling 💛✨)

How I encourage myself to keep writing is to remind myself why I write in the first place: my stories are my own, my passion. It’s why everyone writes, really; we have stories we want to share, and these stories come from our brilliant minds. No two stories are the same (at least they shouldn’t be; that’s called plagiarism 😂), and they are uniquely and personally YOURS. These characters, these worlds, YOU created. It’s art, and it’s phenomenal 💖✨

[bookishbrigitta]

🍂 leaves!

Thank you!

So, part of my real world, professional job is editing. Consequently, my fics receive very minimal editing, because "do as I say, not as I do" is absolutely true for people who do Word Things for a living. I do give it a typo/grammar read-through before posting, but the bigger edits usually come as I'm writing.

My writing "process" is chaotic. I start with bits and pieces of an idea and keep adding to a doc until it's done. I rarely start out in order. Since I don't write plot-heavy pieces, that doesn't matter as much. Sometimes I'll write a timeline at the top of the doc so I know what order all these random bits of dialogue will eventually go in.

The writing tip that speaks to me the most is something I heard playwright August Wilson say on a PBS special about how he finds his characters and stories. I couldn't find that exact clip, but he said something similar in African American Review in 2001.

"Well, I generally start with a line of dialogue. Someone says something and they’re talking to someone else. I don’t all the time know who’s talking or who they are talking to, but you take the line of dialogue and it starts from there. The next thing you know, you’ve got four pages of dialogue, and after a while you say, 'Well, let me name this guy; let’s give him a name. Who’s talking?' And in the process of him talking you find out things about him. So the more the characters talk the more you know about them. It generally starts there."

[writingonadeadline]

Writing Philosophy

"Like a child with a dictionary, I am discovering that there is more to grasp-- to speak, to think than I've ever know." -me in the notes of an experiment titled Why I Write

The truth is not graspable; Ones truth will be challenged by the awareness of the unfairness of reality.

Existential thought can be a positive force.

Bringing optimism into writing doesn't require a reworking of my own nature or a blind faith in positivity. Leaving room for faith/hope can be the start of forming a heightened reality and a positive foundation.

"The basis of art is truth, both in matter and in mode"-O'Connor

Sometimes the writer is blind to the truth until the end, when all the words have spilled onto the page and every last drop of ink has left the pen. That is when we pull out our hair and scream, "IT WAS RIGHT THERE, THE TRUTH." In this moment, we relate to the reader; we are the reader, experiencing the story for the first time in all its complexity and chaos. Then we must do the awful thing; we must rip apart the pieces and scatter them into dust. Only the most dedicated or aware reader will pick up all the dust and try to piece it back into the person they think they've lost. The simplest details are often the most missed when they are not present.

"Fiction is about everything human and we are made out of dust, and if you scorn getting yourself dusty, then you shouldn't try to write fiction" -O'Connor

[spectorodyssey]

Cookies and Salsa Writing Philosophy

When making cookies, you add a little bit of salt to enhance the sweetness and flavor. This is like writing fluff: mostly fluff with a pinch of angst to make the fluff all the sweeter. Hurt-comfort is often the best balance of this for long stories. The angst will give us a reason to root for the good things that come the characters' way, to cheer for recovery and happily ever afters. After the hardships, we get to enjoy the rewards.

When making salsa, you add a little sugar to enhance the savory and spice. This is like writing angst: mostly angst with a pinch of fluff to make the angst hit where it really hurts. This is often best done with a setup of who and what the main characters care about so when that is under attack it hurts more than if we didn't have that attachment to what they care about too. The fluff helps readers to know what matters to the main characters, what they are fighting for, so that when the angst happens it hits harder. What matters to the characters can't matter to the readers if we don't get to be a part of the positive emotions before things go sideways. This also makes endings where the main character succeeds all the more satisfying.

Straight fluff or angst is fine, but the readers may get overwhelmed or lose interest. The emotional impact is lessened. But adding a little of the other enhances the emotional impact so much more. This is my cookies and salsa philosophy. :3

[theunearthedman]

The telos of any fictional character must include, though it need not be limited to, entertainment. If art does not entertain, whether it be an audience or the creator, it has failed. The greatest sin in writing is not being unrelatable; it's being boring.

[maspers]

I think it'd be very interesting to have a villain that like, doesn't fill the typical villain boxes at all except for the fact that they're intentionally responsible for all the crap the heroes have gone through. This villain doesn't have a Freudian excuse or mental disability. They're not trying to make some philosophical point. They're not reveling in their evil, nor are they cold and somber. They just look like a regular dude, and a bland one at that. Maybe they can be twist villain who was a minor side character who faked their death early on (like, REALLY early on, before the audience can get attached, and ideally when a bunch of side characters die together), but that's about as exciting as it gets, and they only did that to avoid being the center of attention. They don't care about theatrics, and they're not trying to make a point or accomplish something great. They just woke up one morning and decided on a whim to jumpstart mass chaos. They're a tad interested in seeing what happens as a result and are observing the proceedings somewhat. But mostly they're just sitting there playing Mario kart and waiting for it all to blow over, so that they can resume life as normal in whatever the new status quo is. If they get killed in the process then oh well that's life.

Give me a villain who just doesn't really care. It was all a spontaneous action to them, nothing more. 

The heroes hunt them down, raging and screaming and trying to get closure for all the hell they've been through, and the villain is just like "oh, hey guys" and just kinda sits there eating a sandwich. The heroes try to interrogate them about their motives and are stunned to find there isn't one. One of them maybe kills the villain in a rage ("...Huh." is the villain's last word) but there's no relief to it. The villain is just another corpse to add to the pile. Nothing has been really fixed by their death. There's no feeling of victory, just a hollow emptiness. Even if the heroes manage to end the conflict and rebuild society, they'll be forever scarred. 

A villain who can't be defeated because they didn't have anything to defeat. A villain who won at the outset because they weren't trying to win anything. A villain that just felt like doing one or two really evil things for no particular reason. 

Don't get me wrong, I love the villains that ham it up and the villains that pose deep moral questions. But I want to see if everyone finds the concept of this kind of villain as terrifying as I do.

[missyourflight]

[lenainwonderland]

- Vladimir Nabokov

[the-golden-comet]

I'm curious, why do you also post your stories on AO3 if you also get them copyrighted? I've just never heard of anyone doing that before and I wasn't even sure it was possible. Also, why did you chose to sell it on Amazon under the pseudonym Goldencomet69 instead of another fake name that sounded more, idk, author-y, like Jay Doe or something?

These are genuine questions that I mean in the nicest way possible because I've never heard of someone doing those things.

I’ll be happy to answer those questions! Thank you for the ask!

Being an author isn’t my main source of income. It is my hobby. It’s a passion project. It’s the same reason I write music and illustrate for free. I’m fortunate enough to be in a place where I can do that.

My main philosophy is that I want my works to be accessible to all, to be enjoyed and shared by all, and to create a positive art-sharing culture that (hopefully) inspires adult readers to become adult writers. If I get a little extra from Amazon royalties, great! If not, it’s no big deal.

I had the option to sign up for Amazon Unlimited, but the caveat was that my works would not be able to be accessible elsewhere. I said, “fuck that” and just did the basic KDP because it doesn’t matter if these novels sell. What matters is that people enjoy them.

Instead of doing something like Patreon, I figured that Amazon was the next best thing. I treat it as a supplemental, and so far it has been working out well for me! 💫

As far as copyright? Well, it’s still my intellectual property. Usually the people who abuse IPs on original works are larger corporations, so I added that as an extra protection on my work. I still highly encourage fanart and fanworks, and in fact have received wonderful art of my novels. Teamwork makes the dream work ✨

As far as my pseudonym goes? It’s also incredibly purposeful to my branding. People usually wish upon shooting stars to make their dreams come true, to find comfort, or as a spectacle that can be enjoyed. A fleeting moment. That’s what I hope to accomplish with my works (and my favorite color is gold). As for the 69? Well…haha….also purposeful. I don’t take myself too seriously, and the works I produce are adult fiction, so take that as you will. (It’s also a running joke with friends from my first published fanfiction The Wingman, because I write fanfics too and put them on Archive Of Our Own. I don’t sell fanfiction because that harms sites like AO3, the characters from The Legend of Zelda franchise aren’t mine, and I don’t want Nintendo suing me)

I appreciate all your questions! Thank you so much for the ask!

[thewhalehastalestoo]

Omg posting this now because it's relevant lmao My TT feed has been full of IWTV and I was recently accused of only writing angst essentially but 👀👀👀 I mean I won't get into my opinions on how I think the accuser views me as a person but this little post neatly summarises my feelings on ficiton and why I write the kind of stories I do. 🤷🏽‍♀️🤷🏽‍♀️🤷🏽‍♀️

---

No because I've been thinking abt A LOT lately and maybe it's just because I'm in my super horny era but like... something abt dark fantasy romance tht is actually dark and not just immature ppl who think being violent makes you cool

Idk man

A lot of my stories are actually quite dark but I didn't think I personally like dark fiction until I realized the media I am OBSESSED with and haunts my dreams are actually quite dismal lmao

A lot of "Now live with what you've done." ass vibes.

I think because I also love Romance and Happy Endings I didn't really pick up on the edge but...I'ma be honest...I LIKE despair! I like when the hero is forced to make "unthinkable" choices. I like toxicity. Lmao

However it's abt OVERCOMING the trials of life. I just enjoy seeing those trials be so seemingly insurmountable, we gotta lose our minds a lil bit before it gets better. But it will get better.

Not enough ppl understand the importance of THAT part. Because life is an insurmountable challenge. How it becomes "good" or "better" is by having faith we will make it through.

Like, I'm a Black, queer, neurodivergent, disabled femme...life is kicking my ass. Life IS horror to me. I won't even get into what life is like as a spiritual person. Like, I face horrors every day few other can conceptualize. I have no moment awake or sleep where I'm not faced by life's terrors.

I need media that acknowledges the inherent existential terror filled burden of living, and the truth that being loved is what gets us through it all. All the many forms this love comes in.

It's why you'll always have a strong divine presence in my stories. From that which can't be seen to the very dirt under your boot, there is a relationship characters have with the world around them. The whole world is an influence. This means the stakes also are always high.

To count on others is to always risk being let down. That's the best case scenario. Worst case you'll never survive what's been done to you.

To live is to be in terror of living.

I suppose something else to add to the conversation around Vampire fiction and Power. To live is to always be in conflict. In death is the only time you'll have full power over anything. You're dead. There are finally no choices to make. It's over. That's where all the freedom is.

[charabistouille]

"If i don't write for more than some days, I start to feel empty"

I've seen this quote a very long time ago from a very talented writer which will more likely never be found again. I always felt writing to be some sort of feral but calming process. And It's beautiful, in the way beauty scares you and obsess you.

[inkcurlsandknives]

Not to derail the conversation, but I've had an epiphany. I think my entire body of work can be described as women who finally had enough, let their goblin out and it tried to eat someone's face.

It's okay tho

They deserved it

The goblin is centuries of systemic oppression and generational trauma and sometimes you gotta let that shit air itself

My stories are also about the men who love the goblins, no matter how much blood they're covered in. ❤️

all of your feelings are valid as in “worth acknowledgment and internal consideration” but some of your feelings are also stupid and mean, and you need to deal with that shit without making it anyone else’s problem

[jaynovz]

if yall ever want like serious advice from me about how to solve burnout as a creative it's like...

literally ignore it. stop pushing. go do something else, enjoy your life, fill it with other things, do what brings you joy in the moment if you can.

go to the gym, take a walk to touch grass and look at dogs and smell flowers, cook dinner, watch tv with your friends, talk about your feelings as needed with ppl you trust, take a drive and blast your music, do the chores you need to do, the job hunting slog you need to do, read books that aren't for research, stop cordoning off your brain for The Craft or The Draft or whatever the fuck

forget about the project, stop thinking about it for as long as it takes to be excited again.

fuckin rest, basically

[lucidloving]

D. Alan Holmes, Enlightenment // Signet Amenti // @cryptonature // Alan Wilsom Watts // Evan M. Cohen, "Oceans" // Nikita Gill // @pauladoodles // Julian Gough, "Minecraft End Poem" // Sleeping At Last—Saturn

[leonardospoetry]

What gets lost in the translation between feelings and language? I wonder how much of myself I can’t translate into words. I wonder how much of myself I don’t even know.