Harry Potter Fanfic Writers' Guild

If you’re ignoring punctuation in your works right now, I promise, you are missing out on so much additional storytelling. Punctuation’s primary purpose (say that ten times fast), is to clarify your message. It’s the difference between,

“My parents, Jack and Jill…” (My parents, who are named Jack and Jill). And, “My parents, Jack, and Jill…” (My parents plus someone named Jack plus someone named Jill).

However, it also has the amazing ability to create tone and give the readers subtle hints at what they should be feeling in any situation. See:

“I washed the dishes, cleaned the floors, and made the bed while he walked the dog.” (We are all productive in this household.) And, “I washed the dishes, cleaned the floors, and made the bed. He walked the dog.” (I do so much more than him.)

One period can mean the difference between a casual tone, and something that holds tension.

Here’s another example:

“Cheryl said she’d be here, so she’ll be here.” (Cheryl made a promise, so I’m confident she’ll follow up on it. Holds a bit of defensiveness, as though the speaker is talking to someone doubting Cheryl.) And, “Cheryl said she’d be here. She’ll be here.” (Repetition and short sentences holds a sort of anxiety—speaker is trying to convince themselves that nothing bad has happened to Cheryl)

But this isn’t just true of dialogue. We can imbue tone through punctuation in description alone. This is one of my favourite descriptions from Jack Spratt Investigates the Big Over Easy by Jasper Fforde:

“The years had been charitable to Mrs. Spratt, and despite her age she was as bright as a button and had certainly not lost any of her youthful zest. Jack put it down to quantity of children. It had either made her tough in old age or worn her out—if the latter, then without Jack and his nine elder siblings, she might have lived to one hundred ninety-six. She painted people’s pets in oils because ‘someone has to,’ collected small pottery animals, Blue Baboon LPs and Jellyman commemorative plates. She had been widowed seventeen years.”

Feel how that line at the end lands especially heavy after the chipper, short sentences and crisp punctuation of the description that came above it? Fforde ramps up the pacing in punchy lines throughout the beginning and middle, just to land a blow beneath our ribs at the end. A masterclass.

Play around with punctuation in your writing—see how you can change the tone, and how tone and pacing walk hand in hand (or run) to get their intentional message across.

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Show, don't tell (you're supposed to show AND tell)

Your chapter 1 is really important (it's not if you never get past it)

First person is the worst pov (ANY pov can be terrible, it all comes down to how you write it)

You have to be published to be a writer (straight up bullshit)

Real writers write every day (yeah and so do the ones who get burned out and stressed a lot)

Kill your darlings (ALWAYS MISUSED. it means remove anything that doesn't serve the story, even if it's Shakespeare level writing)

Your main character has to be likeable (No, they have to be interesting. That's good enough for me)

Read a lot (debatable. Personally, I read a lot more when I was younger than I do now. Don't only read, consume different mediums like movies or shows. They're stories too)

Writers' Block isn't real (Ummmm....)

Never use X word in your book (also straight up bullshit. Do the fuck you want. That's what editing is for)

Determining whether to use "that" or "which" in a sentence can be a challenge. Sometimes, it's obvious...

If you're discussing what option to pick from among multiple options, "which" is correct.

Ex: "Which hat should I buy?"

If you're indicating/identifying a specific, finite object, "that" is correct.

Ex: "I will buy that hat."

However, it can appear more confusing if the sentence is more complex, or phrased unusually. But, it's not actually more confusing - there's a quick, easy rule to help determine when to use which option (use "which" there because we're talking about multiple options!). In complex sentences, that/which usually are used with clauses. If you can remove the clause without altering the meaning or reducing the clarity of the sentence, then "which" is probably correct; otherwise, "that" is probably correct.

Ex. 1: "I will buy the hat that is green."

Explanation: this sentence specifies, with a clause, that I am specifically buying the green hat. If that aspect of the sentence is removed, then necessary information is lacking (the person I'm speaking to will no longer know which hat I mean!). Grammatically, this is called a defining (or restrictive) clause - it's a clause that defines the thing being described, and marks it as "this specific thing (as opposed to any other thing)."

Ex. 2: "I bought the hat, which is green, to wear to school."

Explanation: the clause is an interjection which is not necessary to convey meaning, it simply add flavor. If it's removed, the essential point of the sentence (that the hat was purchased to wear at school) remains. Grammatically, this is called a non-defining (or nonrestrictive) clause - a clause that isn't necessary to define the thing, and when removed won't have a major impact on the reader's ability to know which thing is being described - "I'm interacting with this thing (and, coincidentally, this thing has this trait)."

So, just remember: if the clause is essential to conveying the full meaning of the sentence, use "that." If the clause can be removed without impacting the sentence's meaning, use "which."

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I've had several people over the years tell me I should make a site skin that makes AO3 look like tumblr. Well, I learned the float property and now here you go!

You can get these two colourways over here on github. No promises, but I might update with additional colourways in the coming days. As always, I've included instructions for how to apply a site skin if you've never used one on your account before.

"I'd choose you over and over, in every lifetime."

"Every little thing you do makes me fall for you even more."

"No matter what happens, we'll always have each other."

"Our love story should be taught in school."

"You're my favorite kind of distraction."

"I just want to spend a lifetime with you."

"My heart will always find you again."

"You are the home I never knew I missed."

"Our love is one of a kind."

"Please let me make you happy."

"I wish I could freeze this moment and keep living in it."

"With you everything is exciting."

"You made me believe in soulmates."

"I don't need a perfect life, I only need you."

"Every love song makes sense now."

More: One-Liners Masterpost