Pirelli

it's okay to stray from your story. go write that short fic you can't take your mind off of! give you—and your characters—a break.

you! won't! always! make! your! word! count! -- you don't need to keep stretching sentences because the scene you finally got right is a hundred words too short. sometimes it's better that way.

the "rules" and "tips" are just ~guidelines~ (especially for people who like to swear by them) -- writing has no laws. especially first drafts. scrap the grammar, scrap the emotional tips, write it because it feels right, not because someone else says so.

every writer procrastinates. it's not easy being a writer.

take time off for yourself. the only thing harder than writing a story is to keep pushing it when you need a break the most. come back to it later. I promise there will be no dumpster fires when you're gone.

all writing is "real" writing. I don't think there's an explanation here?? fiction writers are writers. nonfiction writers are writers. fanfic writers are writers. (like how all reading is real reading!! in every format, too!)

it doesn't need to be perfect. honestly, it might never be. but it can be really close to it. if you're not satisfied with it, move on and come back when you're ready.

you are just as skilled as any bestselling author. remember that everything you read has been heavily edited by teams of people! their first draft could not even be as good as yours is now.

not using clichés is cliché. you will find one in any story. no one can bring you down for liking a certain trope. just because it's common doesn't mean it's bad!

no writer is fully well-rounded. dialogue will be easier to write for some, and description for others.

X

Sometimes its like pulling teeth. Sometimes its boring, even. [I dunno about you guys but I hate filling out profiles and forms, even though I know I won't remember anything if I don't.] Sometimes what you're writing hurts, and not in a good way. Sometimes what you write makes you anxious, or terrified, because you don't know what people will say when they see it.

But writing should have some kind of satisfaction to it. Even if you aren't happy with what you're doing, even if you don't like it, you should be able to look at what you've done and say "I have created and that is a good thing."

What I'm trying to say here is, writing should not make you feel worse. Writing should not make your mental illness worse. Writing probably shouldn't make your physical illness worse either. The archetype of the suffering artist is a myth. There's a difference between catharsis and making yourself suffer. And you should not be suffering for your art.

If what you're doing is causing you pain in a bad way - in a way that isn't a release, but an attack - then you need to reevaluate what you're doing and why.

silent first light

BRITT’S FAVORITE EPISODES: [2/∞] natural selection || orphan black 1x01