no interruptions

Bob and I vs. Bob and me

"Bob and I went to the store" because if you removed "Bob and," it makes sense to say "Bob and I went to the store"

"He went to the store with Bob and me" because if you removed "Bob and," it makes sense to say "He went to the store with Bob and me"

(keep in mind, all you have to do is remove the other subject and "and." whichever sounds normal is the word you use)

except vs. accept

"I like every fruit except for grapes" because except is exclusion of one or more things

"I hope Harvard accepts me for the fall semester" because accept is positive feedback from a person or organization

could vs. couldn't care less

"I could care less" means you give at least one shit because you could care less. you have shits that you are able to give

"I couldn't care less" means you give no shits because you have none to give away

into vs. in to

"Turn the paper in to Mrs. Downs" means you give the paper to Mrs. Downs

"Turn the paper into Mrs. Downs" means you suddenly have magical powers and can make the paper turn into a person

your vs. you're

why is this even an issue anymore

IF THERE'S AN APOSTROPHE, IT'S COMBINING TWO WORDS aka contractions (like you're, they're, it's, don't, wouldn't = you are, they are, it is, do not, would not)

"Your pants are falling down" means the pants that belong to you are falling down

"You're annoying" means you are pissing me off when using the wrong form of "you're"

their vs. there vs. they're

again, AN APOSTROPHE MEANS YOU'RE COMBINING TWO WORDS

"Their food is getting cold" means the food that belongs to them is getting cold

"There's a train coming" means a train is headed in your direction (keep in mind there looks like where and both can deal with location)

"They're going to be late" means they are going to be late

to vs. too vs. two

"I'm going to the store" means... you're going to the store

"I ate too many chocolate bars" means you had an abundance of chocolate bars / "I love you too" means you also love them ("Me too!" means you also)

"I bought two goldfish today" means the number 2

I seen vs. I've seen

"I seen" isn't even correct grammar, don't use it

sense vs. since

"I've loved you since we were 18" refers to a time span during which you loved said person

"I sense you're starting to understand" refers to feeling like you're finally getting this

literally vs. figuratively

can we not misuse these from now on?

"I literally couldn't get out of bed this morning" means you were glued to your bed and physically incapable of moving

"I figuratively couldn't get out of bed this morning" means you didn't want to get out of bed but nothing other than your refusal to move was restricting you from doing so

everyday vs. every day

"It's an everyday kind of hat" means it's the kind of hat you can wear every day

"It's the kind of hat you can wear every day" means every single day, you can wear the hat

(keep in mind, if you can add "single" between "every" and "day," keep it two separate words)

Make a list of all the schools you want to apply to. Don't narrow it down to a specific few based on whether or not you think you'll be accepted - list all of them, even if the list has 20 schools on it.

Don't just look at state schools. State schools tend to charge money to apply and private schools tend to be free application. Private schools are also more willing to throw in financial aid, whereas state schools don't have as much revenue set aside for a bunch of scholarships and grants.

Apply for every scholarship you can get your hands on. It'll end up costing a lot to go to college and scholarships are one of the easiest ways to help pay it off. Even if it's only $100 or so, apply for it.

Go on as many visits as you can. The only cost is (usually) the gas to get there and they (usually) provide lunch somehow. Getting to see the campus will help you choose which is best for you.

Apply to schools you don't think you'll get accepted to anyway, especially if it's a private school that won't charge to apply. You'd be surprised what can happen.

Don't be scared of interviewers. Yes, keep it professional but don't be monotonous and robotic with answers to their questions. (Please note: some schools don't have interviews to get in)

Ask a school rep about financial aid opportunities beyond what they initially offer. They'll have certain scholarships they don't broadcast that you can apply for.

Apply for the FAFSA as soon as humanly possible. The schools will be able to give you a better idea of how much aid you'll get from them if they know how much the government is helping.

Keep your blog private from the rest of your public social media. This isn't about writing smut, this is about posting it. Don't make it available through Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. because potential employers could find it and unless you're wanting to write for Cosmo magazine, it might not end in your favor. Now to the smut part.

If you've never had sex, do some research. It's a lot easier to write about something you've done and I'm not saying you need to watch eight hours of porn, but there are some things that don't actually happen during sex. (If you have questions about any of those, feel free to ask me. I'm not a virgin, I'd probably know)

Don't use obscure or childish words when talking about his penis. It's not a ding-dong, it's not a peepee. For fuck's sake, it's a penis, a dick, a cock, whatever you wanna call it. If you're not comfortable using any of those words, you probably shouldn't be writing smut.

Don't use obscure or childish words when talking about her vagina. It's not a love button, it's not a vajayjay, it's a vagina. Usually you won't wanna say vagina though because he needs to focus on more than just the general region. (Anatomy class didn't help much, did it? Clit = super sensitive; slit = where the penis goes.) Read smut to find more variations for both him and her.

Don't use obscure or childish words when talking about the actual sex scene. It's not frickle-frackle, it's not bumping uglies. It's sex. Fucking. Intercourse. Sometimes I say they were "flipping around when the lights are down" but that's when I want to avoid writing an entire sex scene and just want the readers to know they fucked.

Don't feel obliged to give any of the characters weird kinks or fetishes. Plenty of people like vanilla sex without dirty talk, spanking, or name calling. Your character can be one of those people.

It's okay for the guy to say things like "You're so tight" if you want, but that'll usually only happen if he's pretty big because if she's too tight, she's not turned on.

Google things about dirty talk if you're going to write about it. Cosmo and Men's Health have a few articles about what men and women should say to keep their partner aroused. The internet is a very valuable source when it comes to smut advice.

Please note that no one climaxes after five seconds of sex (though male virgins - and occasionally female - don't take very long). It seriously takes at least a few minutes, and that's just for the guys. It takes anywhere from 5-20 minutes for a woman to climax.

Okay now I'm going to clarify things that vary by gender:

WOMEN: it takes a lot longer for women to orgasm. Typically, it takes more than just penetration to get the job done as well. Write foreplay. Fingering, eating out, whatever it takes to get her worked up.

MEN: it doesn't take as long as women for men to orgasm. Sure, a nice blowjob is good beforehand but they don't need it. You still need to write foreplay though because men aren't always hard. You can't just pull his pants down out of nowhere and boop, out pops a boner. Handjobs, blowjobs, whatever it takes to get him fully hard. (This also doesn't take five seconds, but it can take just a couple minutes if you try hard enough and if he's already turned on beforehand)

PS I'm saying how much time it takes so you don't write something like "I stroked his length three times and he was leaking precum" because darling, that's not realistic.

WOMEN: when women have sex, it sometimes triggers a part of the brain that makes them protective towards who they're sleeping with so yeah, sometimes women get a little more attached after sex.

MEN: repeat after me: men can't be overstimulated. Sure, they can last a little longer after the cum, but they can't have multiple orgasms like women can. If your character keeps blowing off the guy after an orgasm, it's going to hurt like hell for him. Once he cums, let him calm down.

MEN: it also takes anywhere from 10 minutes to a couple hours for a man to be aroused again so sex three minutes after he came? Maybe, but not very realistic. He's gotta reload.

WOMEN: woman can have multiple orgasms (whoo!). If you want the guy to go down on her twice then have sex and she has a total of like six orgasms, it can happen. It's harder to get off as they go on but it's definitely possible.

MEN: his tip is the most sensitive part of his penis. However, this doesn't mean she can just focus on that one part. You've got to use the entire dick if you want him to really like it.

WOMEN: if you want to get her off, mention him messing around with her clit somehow. (If you don't know what a clit is, you probably went to an American high school - like me - so I suggest googling it) Most women get off easiest with clitoral stimulation.

MEN: it typically takes longer for men to orgasm when the woman is on top (don't ask me why, I just know it does). So if you want him to last in the fic, put her on top.

WOMEN: she doesn't bleed like a fucking volcano her first time. If you're doing it right, she shouldn't bleed at all. Take it slow, make sure you mention some sort of lube, even if it's just what's on the condom.

Speaking of condoms, you're not obligated to mention using a condom. Most women nowadays are on some sort of birth control (whether it's the ring, the pill, etc.) because some men lie about wearing a condom.

It doesn't actually feel that different with vs. without a condom. (And in case any men are reading this, I got that from my boyfriend and best guy friend so suck it up buttercup). If you want your characters to use protection, go for it but don't feel like it's required.

In terms of getting off at the same time, it's not very likely no matter how 'in love' the characters are. Like I said earlier, guys don't take as long as girls. It's okay for him to do work on her after he gets off. It's okay if she doesn't finish. It happens. It's real.

Going back to birth control a bit, pulling out does not guarantee no baby, condoms do not guarantee no baby, oral contraceptives and the ring, etc. do not guarantee no baby. The only thing that guarantees no baby is abstinence and Mary showed us sometimes even that doesn't work. However, she's a lot less likely to pregnant if two or more of those steps are taken. So if they're not into commitment and you don't want a baby involved, include a couple of those.

Semen does taste a little salty and it's kinda warm so if she's giving him head (aka a blowjob) and she swallows, it's okay to mention either or both of those if you want. Pre-cum is also a thing. It's usually just a little bit that leaks out during foreplay.

When a woman climaxes, she can feel it for as long as 30 seconds, men usually feel it for 5 seconds. She'll be shaking a lot longer than he will.

And yes, bodies do twitch and shake during an orgasm.

When writing a sex scene, drag it out as long as you can. Sometimes it's more effective to go through pretty much every little thing happening. Where are their hands? When are they kissing? What things are they saying to each other? Like I said earlier, sex doesn't last five seconds so the longer you can drag it out, the more realistic it'll be.

Research any kinks you include. Daddy kink is NOT child kink. Domination/BDSM is NOT 50 Shades of Grey. Click here for a pretty accurate Wikipedia guide to BDSM. Wikipedia is a great source for general information about kinks as well.

Also note that pretty much anything can be a kink or fetish. He likes pouring chocolate milk over her? Okay. She likes being choked? Okay. People are a little weird, so is sex.

Sex isn't serious. For the love of all that is holy, it's okay for awkward things to happen before, during, and after sex. Our bodies make weird noises, sometimes he slips out and needs help getting back in, they might fall off the bed, someone might walk in. Making it a little humorous and weird is especially good if your characters are a little humorous and weird.

Read smut. Read romance novels but don't take too much from romance novels. They're very romanticized (duh) but smut writers tend to be more realistic. There are plenty of realistic romance novels, but I'd lean more towards reading smut that gets you worked up and turned on.

I kind of feel like it went from smut writing tips to sex advice in general but hey, it's still relevant. It's not really in-depth but it covers most of the basics.

Keep all the different points of view in mind. Do you want to write in first, second, or third person? Limited or unlimited? Male or female? Figure out your characters and how you want the story to be read.

If you're writing a one shot, use whatever point of view you want. If you're writing a full story (more than three parts/chapters), use first (me, I, myself) or third person (he, she, they). Try to avoid second person (you) if it's a longer story. One shots are fine to use second person, but it's difficult to read a full story where you're telling the reader what they're doing.

If you're writing a full story, it's usually easier to name the character - at least for me. Try writing with a named character and with a [Y/N] (your name) character just to see which you're more comfortable with. Once you name a character, you can make them into whoever you want instead of being really vague and general.

Don't repeat names all the time. If we can tell who's talking about what without needing to read their name, just write "he/she said" instead of "Johnny said" after every statement. BUT if you read it and don't really think your readers will know who's talking, add the name.

Remember your audience. I'm writing this with band fandoms in mind (5SOS, 1D, the Vamps, etc.) but your word choice and story line will differ based on which fandom you come from.

Use details. When there's a conversation going on, don't do the plain "he said, she said, he said, she said." How did he say it? What actions, expressions, sounds did they make between sentences? How did their posture change? How did their emotions change? We need to know your characters.

Use bold and italics as needed but don't overdo it. If you need to really acknowledge something, go for it. I suggest using italics over bold because it's not as drastic of a font change. I know I scream bold words in my head but just enunciate the italics.

Don't use texting abbreviations (or unnecessary abbreviations at all) unless you're writing a texting conversation (texting conversations are a great time to use bold and italics for different characters). If she laughed out loud, don't write "she lol'd" because that just looks stupid. Don't make her shout "OMG" when she'd really shout "Oh my god!"

Don't have a three-paragraph description of your main character. Let us get to know them throughout the story. Explain their family if you need to, but let their personality come out later. Drop little facts here and there, like what posters she has in her room, what classes he likes the most, what they do when they're bored. You have as much space and as many chapters as you need.

Don't be cliche. I know it's hard to do but if you can avoid the "we've been friends since we were five and I'm madly in love with you" thing, please do. There's enough fanfiction like that out and about and you've got more original ideas than that.

BUT don't avoid cliches. Sometimes cliches are fun, but don't make them the main point of the story. It's okay to include little cliches about their heartbeat kicking up when the main character sees someone they like.

Filler chapters are okay. If you don't know what to add but don't want to jump straight from action scene to action scene, it's okay to add a filler about what the characters do on a normal, uneventful day. This is a good time to add little facts about your characters. Do they watch movies? What kind of movies? Filler chapters aren't required though. If you know what you wanna write in each chapter, do it.

Going along with the last one, sometimes it helps to write out what you want to happen in each chapter. If you know what you want the climax of the story to be, start with that and work backwards. What leads up to it and how is the problem resolved?

Use paragraph breaks. I don't know how many times I have to say this. I always scroll past one shots and fanfics that are just one big clump of sentences. It's hard to read, no one knows who's talking, and frankly, it make you look like such an amateur. Break it up into paragraphs, especially when a new person is talking.

Speaking of talking, don't use overdramatic words no one actually uses. If it's a casual conversation about cheese, use casual words related to cheese. This isn't 1880, you can write "gonna" or "wanna" instead of "going to" or "want to" if that's how the character would say it.

Spell check, spell check, spell check. Some misspellings throw the reader off and it takes us a few minutes to figure out what the mistake was. It only takes a couple minutes to go back and reread what you wrote. Check for grammar mistakes, punctuation errors, and misspellings.

While rereading, maybe read out loud or whisper to yourself. You'll find some sentences sound a little odd and could be rephrased.

Use varying words. Back to the "he said, she said," there are so many different words you can use. Find a thesaurus or go to thesaurus.com and find different words. But again, don't use words no one knows or understands. That defeats the purpose.

Highlight or circle the beginning word of each sentence while you write. Have the last five sentences all started with the same word? Rephrase it so it's not as monotone and repetitive.

Use emotion. We want to become your character while we read so let us know how he/she feels about certain situations. It's okay to take a few paragraphs to describe what's happening and why he/she feels a certain way.

Make the characters realistic. Unless you're writing sci-fi/fantasy, keep the characters realistic. We don't look like Victoria's Secret and Calvin Klein models so don't describe us as Barbara Palvin and young Mark Wahlberg.

Read other fanfiction and books. Reading will ultimately help how you write because you'll notice what works and what doesn't work. Search whatever fandom you're in on tumblr, Wattpad, Archive of Our Own, and read.

Read like a fan and like a writer. Take note of how scenes play out and use the same methods to write your own. Reading with the purpose of learning how to write will help a lot.

Don't be too wordy. If you can shorten a sentence to make it even a couple words shorter, DO IT.

Add author's notes before/after each chapter if you need to. If there's smut, violence, self-harm, language, or anything else that could be triggering or disturbing, let the readers know. Also feel free to ask for suggestions and advice.

Don't make your characters bipolar unless they actually have bipolar disorder. One of the worst things is when two characters are fighting and two sentences later, they're calm. If you're mad, you're not going to calm down that quickly. Take the time to write out an argument. Put yourself in your characters shoes. How would you respond?

Just like the last one, put yourself in your characters shoes. It's 100% okay to base a character off of yourself or someone you know. However, sometimes it's nice to completely change your character into someone you want to be.

Don't try too hard to be original because chances are, there's a book or fanfic out there really similar to whatever you're writing. But they're not writing the same way you are, so go ahead with it.

Don't commit yourself to a fanfic you're not into. If you start writing and don't like where it's going, leave it. If you're not into it anymore, don't force yourself to write.

Don't write smut if you're not comfortable with it or it's not relevant to the story line. If it's going to move the story along somehow, sure, go for it, but don't force it.