(from someone who is too tired and too old to deal with the drama and emotional stress communities cause)

1. you don’t need to put a lot of energy into reacting to people’s works.  that is to say, you don’t need to put special comments on everything, or critique every excerpt, you don’t need to respond the day something is posted.  all that matters when it comes to interacting is that reblogs ‘help’ more than likes.  
2. it doesn’t matter if you make graphics or post screenshots of your wip or just copy paste the text with no fancy nonsense at all.  just share your writing however you enjoy to and don’t worry about the rest.
3. peer pressure is bullshit.  trends are ridiculous.  mimic people if you want, but not because they ‘get more attention’ or ‘feel like they’re better than you’ or anything else beyond ‘i find this inspiring and want to learn to write this way on my own.’
4. never follow writing advice for any of the reasons above either.  just because someone gets 50+ reactions to a post doesn’t mean their ‘how to write good’ advice will make any fucking sense for you.  
5. please remember above all that tumblr isn’t real and nothing here matters.  that is to say, just because you get a lot of reblogs or no interaction doesn’t mean your writing will be huge/be nothing in the real world.  don’t build your ego around the interaction writeblr gives you.  notes =/= worth.

heywriters:

serenewrites:

v-snippets:

y’all, i have an open question. how important is it for you to have biologically/scientifically sound reasonings in a story that takes place in an earth-setting, even if the story is fantasy?

Hm, I think all that matters is that you succeed suspending disbelief.

Example– You can write a story that involves teleportation, which isn’t real, and you don’t need a real scientific explanation. We all know that teleportation is a vague thing that exists in a sci-fi world, earth setting or not, and you could add that to your book easy peasy using some, idk, vehicle, to “explain” it. ie, standing on a “teleportation pad” or something else that would be good enough at explaining the scientific reasoning behind the not-real science of teleportation.

I did a shit ton of research on genetic splicing and nanobots as way to explain how there are mutants essentially, in my (earth) world? I have all this useless knowledge about protein synthesis and stuff, but it’ll certainly help me down the road lmao

For me, my vehicle to explaining it was nanobots in DNA and honestly, just time. I think what you’ll have to figure out is what your vehicle is!

Not entirely sure if that was an answer to the question you had, but I hope it helped! lol

When cars are in a story, we don’t need to explain how a combustion engine works. Most readers don’t know how it works and they’re fine with that. When Olympic-level martial arts or stunts are in a story, , we don’t need to explain how the human body is capableof these things. Most readers don’t know that either.

Unless the story is about this thing, the narrator really cares about this thing, or the thing is very unusual in its own setting, writers usually don’t have to explain it.

So, yes! Suspension of disbelief is always paramount. The one thing I’ve found that usually needs more explanation is fictional culture/politics. Not a gluttonous amount (SW prequels, lookin at you), but enough to explain the motives of a group of characters. Oftentimes I’ll be halfway through spec fic and still be thinking “Yes, but why the hell do they care, can’t they just do X?” and perceive it as a plothole when one sentence of worldbuilding could’ve cleared it up. Maybe I’m part of the audience who cares more about character motivation than how superpowers or spaceships work, but it just seems to me like the story should be about the plot and the plot is made by the characters in it so they should be believable, right?

jumpingjacktrash:

pakastekaappihomo:

Cultural worldbuilding tool: Give them an untranslatable word or or expression or a few. Even if this culture doesn’t have its own language, there can be a slang term, or final traces of a lost language that nobody fluently speaks anymore. But those few words have lingered, because they simply cannot be replaced with something else.

Like calling someone _____, which directly translates to “the chicken salesman”, but is actually an expression for a very specific kind of a con man. It’s a reference to an ancient play, in which the scammer in question first steals someone’s chickens, and then sells the victim their own chickens’ skulls back as a magical ward against chicken thieves. Most people who use the term don’t even know the origin, and fucking nobody has actually seen the play.

A single word that means “the weeks of after-image”, a word for that time in mourning, when the grief hasn’t set in yet, but you notice the ‘after-images’ of the deceased everywhere, silence where they used to make noise, their favourite tasks sitting undone.

One that can be translated to both “outlasting determination” and “survival spite”, though neither translation really satisfactorily expresses the feelings involved. It’s a common term for the phenomenon where two elderly people who fucking hate each other live into improbably long ages because both refuse to be the one who dies first.

i love doing untranslatable idioms. for instance, the kyri in my forge verse have an idiom where “painting your wagon” sorta means taking advantage of someone else’s misfortune, but can also refer to a death in the family, in an irreverent way, like ‘kicked the bucket’ or ‘bought the farm’. because it’s a tradition that if you inherit a wagon, or buy one that’s up for sale because its owner died – which is always real cheap, because of the work it takes to make it Not Haunted afterwards – you have to change its whole look. the old superstition is that the ghost won’t recognize it. which gives it some obscure additional meanings based on those superstitions.

so that’s confusing for outsiders, because even if they learn ‘paint the wagon’ as equivalent to ‘kick the bucket’, or as meaning like “bad things happening to that guy turned out lucky for me,” it’s still going to be confusing when someone up and says “eh you just gotta paint the wagon” when they mean like… not giving your new address to your crazy ex.

athiefswarwriteblr:

I’ve put a lot of research into this, and I’ve seen a lot of great rogue-like characters, where the author was clearly unsure as to how they perform their criminal activities. If you feel the need to ask why I know this stuff, my main writings are for a book series called “A Thief’s War,” which should be more than enough explanation. I swear I’m not personally a thief.

Anyway, here we go:

Lockpicking:

I’ve seen some stories where characters grab a paperclip, and boom, no lock can stop them. I’ve also seen some where master thieves take a hammer and smash the lock.

A lock has a series of tumblers in it, each of which need to click into place for it to unlock. A key’s design is usual exactly what it must be to get these tumblers into the proper position.

There are a wide array of shapes and sizes for lockpicks, and if you’re going to go around picking locks, you’re going to need more than one. There is no universal lockpick. Furthermore, for some reason a lot of people don’t include the secondary locking tool: a lock wrench. This is used to turn the the lock, and to keep the tumblers in place once you’ve appropriately placed them with the lockpick.

A lockpicker will know that a tumbler is in place when they hear it click, but the noise is usually quiet, so they’ll often have their ear close to the door.

Can you pick a lock with a paperclip? Yes, but it’s hard as hell, and a paperclip won’t fit into all locks. Not to mention it’s a pain turning the lock once the tumblers are in place.

 With code locks, a lot of movies or books show someone pressing their ear closely to the lock, whilst turning it, and listening for a click when it hits the right number. This actually works. These are the most useless goddamn locks in history.

Now, if you’re writing modern day, with smart locks and various other such tech, I’m afraid I can’t help. I haven’t studied that as much. Though, the previous advice will help for most locks, and that information still applies to basically all types of lock that aren’t incredibly expensive.

Sneaking:

The dashing rogue slips through the shadows, his cloak billowing behind him, and somehow none of the dozen patrolling guards walking right by happen to notice him.

Yeah, that’s not how it works.

Sneaking involves a lot of remaining very still, knowing your surroundings, and holding your breath.

A thief infiltrating a house will scout it out, usually for weeks in advance. Sometimes they’ll pose as various businessmen, and try to get the owners of the house let them in for a while so they can study the ins and outs of it. Cracking open a window isn’t quiet, and you need to know what doors will creak and what doors won’t.

If you’re trying to sneak, you need to try and stick near furniture and heavy objects. The floor isn’t nearly as likely to creak when you’re near these. Furthermore, you need to step lightly, and wear the appropriate footwear. Usually some cloth wrapping’s around one’s feet will help to be quiet, but avoid any shoes that might make clacking noises, or sound like they’re peeling off the floor when they move. A thief will also neverscuff their feet, if they’re any good at sneaking.

Black clothing only helps you sneak if it’s dark, and your surroundings aren’t bright coloured. If you’re in a city of white buildings and marble, you’ll want matching attire. This is just for if you’re skulking about a city, though. Just make sure you don’t stand out. However, dark clothing will greatly help you not be seen from a distance when it’s night.

If a thief suspects someone is nearby, they should always try to locate a nearby hiding spot, and remain perfectly still. Do not move, and a good thief will hold their breath if they start getting anxious, as heavy breathing could easily give someone away.

Many stories also don’t seem to account for the fact that various rogues and criminals have shadows, too. Even a quick and subtle movement of a shadow might be enough to give away one’s presence. It’s really, really hard to actually sneak up on someone due to this, and several other factors. Most people will actually feel tense, and usually catch wind of it if someone is sneaking up behind them, as even very quiet sounds and movements like breathing will subconsciously register to people if you get too close.

I’m a master assassin, and I carry a goddamn greatsword:

There is a reason they would use daggers. Assassins didn’t usually sneak into the king’s bedchamber in the dead of night, without being seen once. There are guards. A long hallway with two guards standing in front of the door at the end, there is absolutely no way to slip past that.

They would usually have to get into the building during the day, disguised as a servant, or even another guard. They’d have to wait for the perfect opportunity to sneak into that nobleman’s bedchamber, midday when he was absent, and then wait in there for hours.

If the assassin is sneaking in at night, they rarely go through the interior of the building. Just like a thief, they’ll get the layout of the building, and then they’ll usually enter through a window, or wherever is closest to the target. If they don’t have those guard patrols memorised, they’re screwed.

But you know what’s not subtle? An assassin carrying around a scimitar, or some flashy crossbow. If you’re going to sneak past people, you need a weapon no one will see, and that you can probably hide if someone decides to search you.

Fingerprints:

This is mainly relevant for modern era stories, and I just wanted to say that I’ve seen a few shows where a criminal isn’t wearing gloves throughout the whole thing. You always wear gloves, you never leave the murder weapon. If you touched something without gloves, you may as well take it with you to avoid risk.

Slipping out of Handcuffs:

This usually requires dislocating your fingers. Ouch. But, if the one cuffing or tying up the thief isn’t paying too much attention, you can keep your hands at an appropriate angle that the cuffs will not go on correctly, or the ropes not pulled tight enough, and you can probably slip out of them.

Who needs masks when you have shadowy hoods?

Guess what the easiest facial feature to notice in the dark is? If you guessed eyes, then you’re right. But, if you’re blending in, and your eyes are veiled by the hood that’s somehow not obscuring your vision while you crane your neck downwards to ensure that it covers your face, then people are usually still going to be able to see your lips, which stand out the second most of any feature on a person.

Yes, a hood is good if you’re trying to blend in. But it’s not good for making sure people don’t see your face. Wear a damned mask.

This is all I’ve got, for now. Hope it helps someone!

gr8writingtips:

writing tip #3279:

if you’re worried about your dialogue sounding unrealistic, say it aloud. then, the dialogue will have been said in real life, and is therefore realistic