El K G Saeed

“I am the chosen one.”

"Who chose you?"

"The chosen sacrifice."

"Chosen to do what exactly?"

"I don't believe in prophecies."

"Then it was nice knowing you."

"Sure, and I'm the queen of England."

"Do you even know what that means?"

"You're just another pawn in this game."

"And you better not tell anyone about this."

"Who in their right mind would put you in charge?"

All the Dialogue Responses can be found here.

✧ Being poor is expensive. You can't buy in bulk to save money. You pay fees for not having enough in your account. You buy cheap shoes that wear out fast instead of good ones that last.

✧ The math is constant. Every purchase is a calculation. Can I afford this? What can I skip? Is this worth it? Your character's always doing mental accounting.

✧ You get creative. Meals from whatever's left in the pantry. Fixing things with duct tape and hope. Making do because you have to.

✧ Shame is real. Your character might lie about why they can't go out. Make excuses. Hide their situation because poverty is treated like a moral failure.

✧ Small luxuries feel huge. A coffee from an actual coffee shop instead of gas station. Buying name-brand something. These aren't nothing, they're big deals.

✧ You're always tired. Working multiple jobs, irregular hours, the stress of never having enough, it's exhausting. Your character's running on empty.

✧ Future planning is hard. When you're worried about making rent, thinking about retirement or savings feels impossible. You're in survival mode.

✧ Other people don't get it. Friends who casually suggest expensive activities. People who think you're bad with money when really there's just not enough of it.

✧ The system works against you. Need an ID to get a job but need money to get an ID. Need an address to get assistance but you're homeless. Catch-22s everywhere.

Detective Sentences, Vol. 34

(Sentences from various sources for detectives and/or muses that like to solve mysteries. Adjust phrasing where needed)

"It's been a while. How's life as a civilian?"

"We're not on holiday! We're conducting an investigation!"

"Sorry I'm late; I found a body!"

"What does it take to be a good detective anyway?"

"You are a good detective, but nobody is too good for this job."

"He killed and ate a guy!"

"You don't use your analytical brain. This is very bad for a policeman."

"Oh, brilliant! We're looking for a tall, dark stranger who's been dead for a hundred years!"

"Is there any chance you'll find who really did it?"

"You are literally the worst shot I've ever seen!"

"He got away with it. He got away with murder, and he's out there somewhere now, laughing at us."

"What if something else is going on? Some other agenda we don't know about?"

"Would you mind terribly if I got back to my investigation?"

"Don't you need a warrant?"

"Am I the only one here who knows how a police officer is supposed to behave?"

"I don't believe in laws. I am the law."

"Police work can get kind of heavy. Have you got anyone at home?"

"You've been paying more attention to these murderers than you ever did to me!"

"Have you ever thought that maybe there's a different way of doing this job?"

"I'm going to walk you through collecting the evidence. You do exactly as I say."

"You're a great cop, and you'll make a terrific detective."

"Look around. Remember that crime scenes a three dimensional. Floors, walls, and ceilings."

"Me helping the police with their inquiries? I don't think so."

"Now, I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but something's going on!"

"Something doesn't add up about any of this, does it?"

"You were supposed to be tying up loose ends, not finding new ones!"

"You haven't got anything, have you? I know because if you had, you wouldn't be trying to coerce me into confessing."

"I expressly told you to drop this case!"

Here are ten questions to ask that will not put your friend in a tough spot, but will still give you some useful input on your novel:

1. At what point did you feel like “Ah, now the story has really begun!”  2. What were the points where you found yourself skimming?  3. Which setting in the book was clearest to you as you were reading it? Which do you remember the best?  4. Which character would you most like to meet and get to know?  5. What was the most suspenseful moment in the book?  6. If you had to pick one character to get rid of, who would you axe?  7. Was there a situation in the novel that reminded you of something in your own life?  8. Where did you stop reading, the first time you cracked open the manuscript? (Can show you where your first dull part is, and help you fix your pacing.)  9. What was the last book you read, before this? And what did you think of it? (This can put their comments in context in surprising ways, when you find out what their general interests are. It might surprise you.)  10. Finish this sentence: “I kept reading because…”

Your friend is probably still going to tell you, “It was good!” However, if you can ask any specific questions, and read between the lines, you can still get some helpful information out of even the most well-meaning reader.

Fear doesn’t always scream.

Sometimes it whispers, hides, or slips out in the smallest gestures. If your character can’t or won’t admit what terrifies them, here are 20 ways to show it between the lines.

Laughing at the wrong moment because they don’t know what else to do.

Holding their breath without realising it.

Asking the same question two, three or even four times needing reassurance.

Keeping their back to the wall in crowded rooms.

Jumping at sounds they’d usually ignore.

Avoiding eye contact so no one sees the truth.

Touching an object or necklace like it’s grounding them.

Speaking in short, clipped sentences.

Checking exits as soon as they enter a room.

Fidgeting until they physically force their hands still.

Acting overly calm: too still, too controlled, to the point that one wrong movement will send them flying.

Freezing before they react, even for just a heartbeat.

Walking faster without being fully aware of it.

Laughing something off but their eyes stay wide.

Flinching when someone raises a hand too quickly.

Asking someone to stay "just in case."

Avoiding certain places without giving a real reason.

Rehearsing what they’re going to say before speaking.

Keeping their phone in hand like a lifeline.

Inability to sleep; waking at the slightest noise.

Your characters don't need to own up being afraid, but fear can be shown as a powerful driving force for each action your character takes.

I really enjoy whump in fantasy settings - but I know many folks feel like magical healing can get in the way of good whumping and meaningful caretaking (because of how easily it fixes things). Thus, I thought I'd share some ideas on re-balancing it for whump-centric writing and RP! ^^

(note that this is still in regard to a rather vanilla kind of healing, that's supposed to bring relief without any horrific, long-term consequences. There are some cool ideas out there for magical healing that can be downright dangerous or traumatizing, but this is something different!)

there is only as much magical healing the patient's body can take, because the magic works through forcing biological processes - but without providing much additional energy for them to occur. That way healing can be taxing on both healer and the patient, drawing on their body's resources - and thus has to be done in more than one phase if the injuries are serious. The amount of additional energy provided by the spells could vary depending on the healer's skill, but giving more than absolutely necessary would always be very inefficient

the longer the injury exists, the more difficult it is to heal with magic - which makes battle-healing somewhat viable, but leaves a lot of room for injuries to linger if that narrow window is missed.

the nervous system may fail to catch up with magical healing - and the patient may still feel pain despite the flesh no longer being damaged. Then, they may still need to give their body some quality time, so that the nerves and the brain "believe" that the healing was "real".

healing can feel different for the patient depending on the healer's skill and source of power. It can be jittery and uncomfortable if the healer lacks experience or they're under strain, or it can feel very soothing in opposite cases (enter the scenarios where the caretaker struggles to make things as comfortable as possible for the whumpee).

if curses or magical corruption are being cleansed, it could feel like a tug of war within the patient's tissues - either painful or just really freaky and uncomfortable, before it gets better

magical healing does nothing to clean wounds of debris or contamination. A mostly clean wound healed by magical means could possibly be safer from infection, but to a varying extent - so it's always better to manually clean it before mending.

healing potions are similar to spells in how they force the body to heal - thus chugging too much at once can cause someone to get real tired real fast, or even outright faint (adrenaline could probably keep that from happening, but not for long). Also, drinking too much in one go could prevent the potion from being absorbed effectively, thus leading to some of it being wasted - always better to go slow

"I don't know how to flirt, so I'm just going to tell you that I think you're cute and I would be interested in pursuing a relationship."