Taylor's Bloginess

     0000 d 00 h  00 m  00 s

“Thats weird…” I checked my wrist, the clock had just hit the 30 second mark but I looked around and there was no one there. I was a worrisome guy overall but I felt justified, I mean today was the day I was meeting my soul mate. Not that I expected my dream girl to be in the storage closet at work but still I was nervous. 

Walking out with a box the boss had requested I walked back to my cash register setting it on the shelf. My wrist hit the 20 second mark

19 seconds

18 seconds

Where was she? I could not help but get worried that an error would pop up or that she was gone and my timer would run out with no response. I panicked, I’d change my own fate if I had to. Running out of time I hurried through the back door. There was a park outside and maybe I was supposed to be there to find my soul mate. 

10 seconds

9 seconds

A faint ding of the doorbell hit my ear. Wait was that it?? She was here! I turned around running back to the counter. “Don’t worry I’m just in the back!”

I ran out looking at my wrist as it hit zero. Out of breath “Hi I’m Matt!” Sticking out my hand for a handshake it was met by a firm hand. Meeting my soulmate’s eyes for the first time they spoke. 

 Suddenly a dark shape runs past my window and a boy jumps on the bus. He has that same frantic look in his eyes. I breathe out with relief.  ”Yeah get on, we’re running late,” the driver says, taking his ticket. The boy looks around, carefully stepping towards the seats. He’s tall and handsome, holding a sketchbook. I smile slightly; my friend hates art.  4 seconds  He spots her.  3 seconds  His eyes widen as he walks closer, as if being pulled by an invisible rope.  2 seconds  My friend stands up too, that same rope tying her to him.  1 second -  ”I was worried the bus would leave. No way could I miss meeting my soul mate!” he jokes, though he looks just as nervous as she. They smile at each other as they both sit down together. I can’t hear what they’re talking about.

 I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. Suddenly I’m crying. Hot tears dropping down my cheeks.

 I look at my wrist, scratching at it. Trying to get rid of it. 

 The numbers have never changed.

What other names is Xylitol known by? Birch Sugar, E967, Meso-Xylitol, Méso-Xylitol, Sucre de Bouleau, Xilitol, Xylit, Xylite, Xylo-pentane-1,2,3,4,5-pentol.

((I’m sorry if I did this wrong. I wasn’t sure what you meant by before and after…))

America: Before, it was excitement. He was ready to be a hero. Staring nervously at the timer he’d feel more and more goosebumps. Every second felt like an hour. Munching on his fries he contemplated the idea that maybe he was going to have to be saved rather than do the saving. That idea quickly changed when he met eyes with a person walking in his direction, dressed nicely and looking at their own wrist. He stood up, glancing at his timer. 15 seconds. He couldn’t move, and here they come. Was this it? Was this the person he’s been waiting for? Was this-“Sir!” Called a voice. He turned around. “Sir… You forgot your wallet at McDonalds.” When he reached for the wallet, he noticed something; both of their wrists read 0. His blue eyes met the other’s. They were just as shocked as he was. He smiled. Turns out his doubts were correct; he really wasn’t the hero. At least… Not this time.

Canada: He was so ready. Nobody knew how ready this guy was, even when he kept repeating it. His hair was neatly done and his outfit was picked out the night before. He got a good amount of rest so he didn’t seem sluggish. The morning of was the best morning he ever had. Leaving his place with a bright smile, he was constantly glancing at his timer during the walk to work. Sadly, when his shift was over, he realized that his timer still had a few minutes on it. Maybe he’ll meet them on the wah home. His optimism motivated him enough to put a skip in his step on the way home. Halfway there, he noticed a puppy running across the street, followed by a person. However, while the puppy was completely safe when crossing, the person was unaware of the car coming at an alarming rate. Without any hesitation, he sprinted over, wrapping them in a safe embrace. At the same moment, their timers fell to 0, and Matthew took the impact of the vehicle.

England: He didn’t want to worry about it; he just kind of got uncontrollably anxious. He was finally going to meet his soul mate! His emerald eyes seemed to glisten when he looked in the mirror, but beads of sweat were sticking to his forehead. He kept a handkerchief in his pocket for safekeeping through the first part of the day and fidgeted when his timer went to minutes. At that point he was on a train and nervous about meeting this person. What if this individual didn’t accept him as their soul mate? Nonsense… They’d have to. Only a minute left. Looking around he saw nobody near by. Was his timer off? 15 seconds left. He looked around frantically. Nobody.10 seconds. Where was his soul mate? Did something happen?5 seconds. What if he was in the wrong-He didn’t have time to finished that thought. As soon as it hit zero, a person crawled from under his seat. “How long was I out?” They murmured. They looked at their wrist and gasped; it was at 0. They stretched out and flopped onto their back, looking up to meet Arthur’s eyes. They could easily tell what was up.“So..” They stated with a smile. “You’re my soul mate.”

France: He didn’t bother obsessing over his appearance. If this person was his soul mate, they’d accept him for how he is, right? His day was calm enough, making it only easier for him to relax. Even though it began to rain later in the evening, he was cool as a cucumber. He sat in a dry area, watching the people pass by while waiting for the rain to stop. He took a moment to see that he had only a few minutes left. He allowed himself to gather his thoughts during that time. More people passed by, until suddenly, there was nobody. However, Francis knew he was supposed to be meeting his soul mate. Where were they hiding? Only moments later, he was greeted by an individual soaked with rainwater. They were shivering, and obviously confused. He waved to get their attention, and as soon as they ran over, they slipped, falling and crashing into him. After apologies spilled from both of them, he noticed his timer matched theirs: 0. “Well,” He said with a smile, “we’ve only just met and I see you’re already falling for me.”

Russia: Honestly, he hadn’t even noticed that his timer was at it’s final minutes until he tried checking he time on his watch. Just the sight of his made his breath catch in his throat and a sense of panic run through his body. He was going to meet his soul mate today?? In only 10 minutes?! Nope. He was far from prepared. He was at his job, so it’s not like he could go somewhere to actually fix himself up. This was going to be a disaster. Thankfully his boss let him take a break early. He used this time to take a trip to a nearby flower shop. He couldn’t look the part, but maybe he could use a gift as a distraction. Running down the street with a bouquet of flowers, he accidentally ran into a person walking a puppy. As the dog took off, Ivan kept running the other direction. He did feel bad for leaving the person to get the dog themselves, but he didn’t have much time to stop. When he got back to his work building, he mumbled curses in the elevator. On the floor just below his, the elevator picked up a person. They greeted Ivan with a smile and compliment to his flowers.“I take it they’re for a special person.” They chuckled. “I understand. I am supposed to meet mine today. Actually…” Ivan watched the person check their wrist. He checked his own. 0. Both were at zero. The person grinned brightly, then said in a playful tone: “Thank you for the flowers.”

China: Hair tied in a neat ponytail and an outfit to compliment his already glamourous attitude, Yao was full of energy. In only a few moments he was going to meet his soul mate! What day could top this? Nothing! The weather was perfect; it wasn’t going to rain until tomorrow, so even mother nature was on his side! Walking past stores and restaurants of all sorts, he imagined what his soul mate was going to be like. Not that he had a preference; he simply was running on curiosity at the time. He took a few methods of transportation to get to where he was planning to be (he found that the bus was better than the train; a few days ago somebody was sleeping under the seats like a crazy person), and was thrilled when he arrived. He had five minutes left, and the botanical garden was waiting for him to explore. He constantly glanced at his timer, his heart fluttering when he got to 1 minute. A wide grin on his face, he stood in the middle of the place, twirling around in circles like he hadn’t a care in the world. Suddenly he came to a halt when he noticed somebody standing nearby. They were excitedly watching him, holding up their wrist and pointing at the timer, which had reached 0. It was then he checked his own. 0. “Hello, soul mate…” Giggled the individual. “I’m (y/n).” “Hello, (y/n)!” He chirped. Reaching a hand to them, he asked nicely: “Want to join me? I’m not dizzy yet!”

In this world you are born with a clock that ticks down until the time you meet your soul mate.

Part one || Part two || Part Three || Part four || Part five || Part six (final)

Gilbert Beilschmidt

He talked big. He always went on about how his soul mate was the luckiest person alive. He had no doubt that they’d positively love him. He always said he couldn’t wait for their meeting to come.

But it was all an act. He wasn’t ready to meet them. He didn’t want the moment to come, for several reasons. One, he was aware his appearance was shocking. Red eyes, silver hair, and a smirk always placed in his face didn’t make him look any less intimidating. Two, he knew his personality was overwhelming. He wasn’t afraid to be loud, or joke around in public. Fate was to bring these two together, but that didn’t guarantee his significant other would approve of him. He didn’t want the other person to hate him. 

At the age of 18, was the first time he came close to meeting his destined partner. He was waiting to get on a train to work. The day was cold, he was bundled up a warm coat and scarf. He started to feel a slight irritation on his arm exactly where his clock was placed.

Curious, he pulled up his sleeve to see his arm. He froze. The clock was down to 5 minutes. He couldn’t believe his eyes. This morning his clock still had months left to count down from. How could the time have changed so quickly?

He kept the sleeve of his coat raised so he could see the clock. He stayed sitting on the bench to try and catch his breath. The moment that most people dreamed of was coming.

3 minutes 12 seconds

‘Come on, Gilbert. You can do this. You’re just going to meet someone…. The person he was fated to be with for life.’ 

His breath hitched again. He needed to relax. He slowly started to take deep breathes. He closed his eyes and listened to the sounds around him to distract himself.

He listened to the sounds of the crowded station. Dozens of conversations surrounded him, though he couldn’t make out a single word. He could hear the sound of shoes knocking against the cement floor. There had to be around a hundred people. On top of it all, the sound of a train arriving at the station.

His eyes shot open and he looked at the clock.

1 minutes and 28 seconds.

‘Could they be on that train?’ he wondered.

The doors of the vehicle opened people began stepping out.

He wasn’t ready, not yet. Gilbert grabbed his backpack, jumped up from the bench, and fled the station. Work was the last thing on his mind as he reached a small convenience store a mile away.

He was breathing heavy after running in such thick clothing. His face flushed easily so he was sure his skin was pink.

He spared a glance at his clock. The time was back up to two weeks. He took a sigh of relief. That was enough time for now. 

-

Back then the clock had said he had two more weeks, but he was still able to avoid meeting his significant other. 

The next time he almost met them he was 21. As cliche as it was, Gilbert was a college student working in a coffee shop.

It was part time, on campus, and fit his schedule. His friends laughed at him for working there, but he only embraced his job. He wore his apron proudly and said this job was awesome like him.

The day was pleasant. He was halfway through work, he hadn’t had any problem customers, and he had received a good amount of tips. 

He thought the day couldn’t get any better, until he felt his arm twitch, making him drop the hot chocolate he was making.

He looked down and cursed at the mess. Before picking up the spilled drink he checked his arm. With the sleeves of his white shirt already rolled up it was easy to see the clock.

3 minutes 34 seconds.

Elizabeta came out from the back room a second later. “Gilbert, what happened?” She tsked after seeing the mess.

“Hey are you alright?” she asked, but the man made no move. 

“Gilbert?” She called once again moving closer.

He flinched a second later and caused her to jump. “Sorry.”

He only stared at the floor. ‘Not this again’, he thought. He didn’t want them to meet now. He knew it was selfish to put it off again, but he wasn’t ready. 

When he raised his head he saw that Elizabeta had gone to get towels. He grabbed them from her so he could start cleaning.

“Hey, Liz. I’m going to go sit in the back for a few minutes,” he spoke quickly. He picked up the spilled drink quickly and took the towels with him.

“Are you sure? What’s wrong, are you not feeling well?”

“No, it’s not that.” He needed to get to the back quickly, there was only 40 seconds left.

“You should go home if you’re not okay.”

“It’s fine, I’m not sick.” He said louder than he intended to. “I just need to sit in the back for a few minutes, do me this favor. Call me out when the customers are gone.” When she nodded, he went to the back and closed the door. He had no intention of coming out until the time on his clock went back up.

He sat for what he believed was the longest time, though it was only 20 minutes. Liz hadn’t called him out yet, so he assumed there were still people in there. If the other was in there, he wanted them to leave.

Then a knock came. Elizabeta opened the door slowly, “Gilbert? No one is here now.”

He looked down at his clock and saw the time move to one month. He released a large breath that he had been holding and stood.

“Thanks,” he answered and walked out to the front before she could ask questions.

He started cleaning up the counter when she came out from the back. She opened her mouth to comment, but he spoke before she could.

“Who just came in here?” he asked calmly. He tried to seem detached, but he was anxiously waiting for her to describe the person who came in.

“Well, there was three people.” He grimaced. Now he wouldn’t know for sure who his soul mate was. “There were three men, two of them were blond, one with black hair. The two blonds were about your height and the other about half a foot shorter than them.”

He didn’t want to ask the names, since he wouldn’t know who was who. He didn’t ask anymore questions after that, and his coworker didn’t press him.

A/N: no lie u know piotr would break his accidentally

Warnings: none.

   The most anticipated moment of your life (or at least the moment people seem to make the biggest of a deal of) was supposedly when you met your soulmate. You heart was practically beating in your ears as the final minute counted down, looking around the bustling street of New York.

   As the seconds went down to zero, your palms were sweaty and you were getting light-headed from anxiety, you just wanted to meet them, for god’s sake.

   And then it hits zero.

1. Takes notes of funny or interesting things you hear people say

2. Make lots of lists

3. Write down ideas, even if they don’t really fit into your story. They may be useful later

4. Stay organized

5. Watch an old movie for inspiration

6. Listen to music that fits the mood of your chapter while you write

7. If you remember your dreams, write them down

8. Learn a new word every day

9. Use a thesaurus

10. Take breaks

11. Don’t force yourself to write “2,000 words a day” or whatever. Some days will just be bad writing days. Others will be great

12. Don’t beat yourself up

13. If its a bad chapter, don’t delete it. Take a break, then come back to it and edit it

14. Look at pictures of landscapes or scenes online. It will help you vividly describe what your story looks like

15. Read other’s work for ideas

16. Get feedback from others

17. Bounce plot ideas back and forth with your friends or other writers

18. Write when you feel comfortable, and not rushed

19. If you really like something that others don’t, you should still consider keeping it in your story

20. Write down a few sentences explaining what your chapter is going to be about before you write it

21. Don’t force it

22. Drink something hot while writing

23. Let yourself daydream

24. Stop comparing your work to others

Why Can’t I Stick to My Outline?

Aw thank you <3 Unfortunately, I don’t have a great answer for you, because it could be due to a number of things, some of which have workarounds, while others don’t. Here’s a couple that come to mind:

1. You don’t know your characters well enough when you outline, so when you write them, they make unexpected choices.

Solution: Develop your characters through writing before you outline. You can do this by role playing online, or adding them to short stories or by writing random scenes from your outline. (And keep in mind here, that sometimes thinking about your characters and filling out forms or taking notes will help, and sometimes it just creates a misguided illusion which will change the moment you start writing. Characters can be funky like that.)

2. You’re focusing your outline too much on where you’re going and not why you’re going there, so when you write, your story goes in the wrong direction.

Solution: Put more time into developing the motivations and goals of the characters and the initial conflict, making those tight enough that they can only lead to a certain outcome.

Instead of viewing your outline as a series of events (“I want the three main characters to have an argument and then they all go to the beach”), look at what’s forcing these characters to do the thing you want from them (“I know the three main characters all have vastly different opinions on what to do with the stolen money which are deeply rooted in these specific parts of their past and this is driving a wedge between them, but if they don’t go to the beach together they will lose out on their old chance to question the mysterious person who disrupted their lives and forced them together.”) 

3. Your story is trying to tell you what it wants to be, but you’re clinging to your old ideas of it and so can’t enjoy the new version.

Solution: Just don’t outline. This isn’t something I recommend most people do, but occasionally there are writers who create better stories when they don’t try to preconceive what they want out of the story ahead of time, and just let it take it’s natural course. You can always edit things around later!

You can also mix this with solution two, and outline the inciting conflicts, goals, and internal struggles ahead of time. By carefully devising characters who clash and placing them in situations with high stakes vs rewards which drive them to work together toward a common goal against an opposition they are thematically and externally bound to, you’ll have a solid foundation upon which to build your story.

4. You’ve done everything imaginable and still can’t get your rough draft to match your outline.

What I’m talking about is proof of life outside your characters in your world. Not in the sense of ‘talking to the cashier at the checkout’, but things like:

Graffiti etched into a desk your character sits in during an exam

Realising that someone has come along and arranged the cans on the shelf so the labels say something stupid

Dirty vans that have ‘wash me’ written in the dried mud

A coin that has been stuck into a piece of gum on a handrail

Little things that show the world still goes on despite whatever is happening to the characters. 

You’re allowed to be tired, even if you haven’t “done” anything and you’re allowed to be tired even if you did less than someone else.

I sit here and sing along to my iTunes remembering how I was punished as a child in elementary choir class which made me avoid choir like the plague as I grew older. I took band classes instead, which I stunk at, making me feel like I would always be a failure musically. Today, I can for the most part carry a tune and even harmonize, and can make up songs pretty quickly.

Follow your bliss, babes. Write, draw, sing, play music. Don’t give a shit what other people say; don’t let them take away your joy. Express yourself. That’s what the arts are for. Creativity, in whatever form it takes, is beautiful. Joyous. Incredible. 

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How bodies decompose

Wilderness survival skills

Mob mentality

Other cultures

What it takes for a human to die in a given situation

Common tropes for your genre

funny and sad at the same time