sincerely

But it's worth it.

You're worth it.

So take care of yourself, okay? Take breaks, drink fluids, do whatever self-care you can do, no matter how small. Remember, there are people who care, and there are readers who need you - your story, your perspective, your impact.

007. first draft | (download now)

First Draft is a story outlining template meant to help with planning your next big writing project or your next NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month). I know, as of posting this, there's less than a week to spare before NaNoWriMo '22, but I hope this finds the right people in time, and that it can be helpful! I LOVED making this template and adore the imagery/colours, but I would love to see how people customize this to fit their own projects! This template is FREE, so PLEASE consider reblogging so that fellow NaNo'ers can find it!!

INCLUDED This is a semi-in-depth template with 6 unique Landscape-Format pages. • Synopsis/Intro. • NaNoWriMo Word Count Calendar. (The calendar is set for November 2022, but with some table know-how you could edit it for whatever month you need!) • Character/Worldbuilding Descriptions. • Notes. • Chapter Outlines. • A Timeline of Events. There are detailed instructions on how to edit the timeline yourself, but you can also delete the page if you want.

HOW TO USE/EDIT • When you gain access to the doc, use “File > Make a Copy” • Do NOT remove the credit/links on the pages. • To replace images, click on each image separately and select "Replace Image." • The colour palette can be entirely customized, as it's all just highlights. • There are instructions on how to duplicate pages and how to use the Timeline page.

THE FOLK OF THE AIR ♔ HOLLY BLACK

make oc playlists. spend hours on moodboards that have no purpose. write self-indulgent fluff that’s never going to be published. scribble three lines of poetry in the back of your history notebook. draw fanart of your own characters. write stupid dialogue that your publishers might hate. start new wips that you might never finish but write those three chapters that make you happy because if you don’t write them, who else will?

writing shouldn’t always be about “will publishers like this” or “i have to reach this word count” or “how do i get the most likes”.

it’s easy to get caught up in dialogue or a character’s internal dialogue and forget altogether that they, too, exist in their own physical world. as authors, it’s primarily our job to convey the exact amount of information: the reader is on a need to know basis, but they also need to know enough to draw their own conclusions. i’ll admit, it’s a difficult task, but here are some tips to help set a scene:

- imagine the world from the eyes of your character: how do they see things? do they see the big picture first or are they drawn to smaller details that others don’t often notice? what’s pulling their attention away from the action or their own thoughts?

- breathe life into your scenes: i don’t mean the english teacher’s equivalent of “the curtains were blue means that the character is sad.” i’m talking about the blue filter in Twilight that conveys the “constant cover of clouds and rain” and the shift from the Arizona desert to the cool Pacific Northwest. think about all the small details that convey information about a scene and allow the readers to make inferences. if the character walks along a street and the yards shift from overgrown hedges with frayed yard chairs and a birdbath containing a mini swamp to yards with freshly cut grass with white picket fences and ornate wreathes hanging on the doors, you’re providing all of the details for readers to make an inference. context is needed, too, but that will be provided in the whole of your novel or short story. don’t be afraid to provide details and use figurative language.

- spread out your details: did you feel bombarded in the last tip? i provided a lot of details quickly, all at once, without spreading them between action, dialogue, or internal dialogue. i’m not going to stop you from being the next J.R.R. Tolkien if that’s how you like to write, but try not to overwhelm the reader with details all at once. it will feel more natural if you spread things out and allow the reader to feel as if they, too, are with the character in their environment. this is more of a stylistic tip, so take it with a grain of salt and think about what will work best for your novel. always go back to that and to what your character is seeing. how is this all playing out for them? how can you put feeling into the scene?

- place your characters within the scene: where are they in their environment? how are they interacting with the people or objects in it? what do they think about these things? you don’t need to tell the reader everything your character does, but provide enough information so that we don’t get lost in their movement or stagnation. it helps to have someone else read your work if you’re struggling with this part. if they’re lost as to where the character is or what they’re doing, chances are a good portion of your readers will be confused, too. check out your prepositions. are there too many? too few? use them, but don’t abuse them.

using the same word twice in the vicinity of the other/same paragraph is okay.

dont be shy to use!! <3 sorry these are going to be cringe LMAO

a: "you're so pretty." b: *nervous laugh* "im what?" a: "i said you're so pretty" (a then proceeds to kiss b)

a is ranting about something, and b kisses them mid sentence to calm them down

slow dancing at the prom, then getting bored and kissing in the parking lot outside of school

person a turning around to leave, then person b grabbing them by the arm, twirling them around and kissing them.

"i'm so happy i could kiss you" "thanks"

kissing in the car as the radio blares, once they get together the song that was playing became their song (you can get creative maybe despacito was playing)

your otp is sitting together in silence and the tension is so terrible b just kisses a

person a wrapping their arms around b's waist and caressing their cheek with their finger, and then leaning into person b for a kiss

DRUNK KISSES PLEASE I EAT THESE UP EVERY SINGLE TIME I NEED THESE FHEWOFHEFOW

person b carrying a very exhausted person a to bed, then person a sleepily grabs person b's hand and kisses them. then proceeds to fall asleep

after the kiss, person a looks away, flustered, while person b laughs and kisses them more

THE "CAN I KISS YOU" HFIOHJERIOHOERI

on the contrary the "kiss me" DHEOHFWO

if you want to request something, leave it in my asks or the comments!! ill be more than happy to write something :)