Just a gae

You are not writing a movie (ignore this if you are). The reader doesn't need to know every word the characters say for the duration of the story. Less is more.

Dialogue can happen within the prose. "And they awkwardky discussed the weather for five minutes" is way better than actually writing five pages of dialogue about the weather.

Balance your dialogues. Surprise yourself with a monosyllabic answe to a dialogue that's ten sentences long. Don't be afraid of letting your character use half a page for a reply or nothing at all!

Don't write accents phonetically, use slang and colloquialisms if needed.

Comma before "said" and no caps after "!?" unless it's an action tag. Study dialogue punctuation.

Learn the difference between action tags and dialogue tags. Then, use them interchangeably (or none at all).

Don't be afraid to use said. Use said if characters are just saying things, use another word if not. Simple. There's no need to use fancy synonyms unless absolutely necessary.

Not everyone talks the same way so it makes sense for your characters to use certain words more often than others. Think of someone who says "like" to start every sentence or someone who talks really slow. Be creative.

Use prose to slow down the pace during a conversation.

It's been a long time since my last visit here on Tumblr, right? So, as a comeback and since you loved my masterpost of websites for writers, I am bringing you my favorite Tumblr blogs to follow if you're a writer and are interested in finding lots of inspo on your timeline, as well as prompts, tips, and useful resources. Shall we start?

PROMPTS:

@givethispromptatry

@dailystoryprompts

@here-haveaprompt

@dark-fiction-and-angst

@youneedsomeprompts

@deity-prompts

@whygodohgodwhy

@writinghoursopen

@fluffyomlette

@promptsforthestrugglingauthor

@novelbear

@gfuckign

@ghostly-prompts

WORLD BUILDING INSPO / PROMPTS:

@worldbuildingprompts

@locationbuildingprompts

@wbqotd

@wildworldwritingprompts

@worldbuilding-question

@thealpha-chronicles

@happyheidi

@enchantedengland

@ancientsstudies

@greeksblog

OC PROMPTS:

@yourocdoeswhat

@questionsforyourocs

@oc-question

@oc-dev

@characterization-queries

@oc-factoids

@tag-that-oc

@some-oc-questions

GENERAL WRITING ADVICE:

not all of the following accounts post things but they reblog useful info

@writing-with-olive

@tstrangeauthor

@everythingwritingg

@writerthreads

@heywriters

@thewritersphere

@writelively

Image: Words to Describe Hair: Afro | Curly | Straight | Look | Texture | Style | Color 

Photo credits: Alex Nemo Hanse

This began as a guide to describing Afro / curly hair but of course, I got carried away. From look and texture of hair, colors and various styles, this guide serves as a thesaurus of sorts for hair, as well as pointers for use in your writing.

Please check under the read more for an accessible version of these lists

Culturally Significant Hair Coverings:

Know the meaning behind head wear and why it’s worn, when and by whom, such as a Native Nation’s headdress, before bestowing a character with it.

Head Coverings Resources:

More on various head coverings.

See here for more Islamic Veils. 

See here for more on the Nigerian gele.

See here on African American Headwraps. 

View our hijab and headscarves tags for discussion on these topics.

Afro - Curly - Straightened

There are many varieties of braids, twists & Afro hair styles; have some more!

African/Black Hair: Natural, Braids and Locks

African Hair: Braiding Styles 10 African Types

Describing Black (Afro) hair:

Appropriative Hairstyles: Keep in mind that Afro styles should be kept to those in the African Diaspora, such as dreadlocks, cornrows + certain and many braided styles. 

Also, “locs” is a more favored term over “dreadlocks” for many people.

Tread carefully describing Afro hair as “wild” “unkempt” “untamed” or any words implying it’s unclean or requires controlling.

“Nappy” and “wooly” are generally words to stay away from, the first having heavy negative connotations for many and the latter, though used in the Holy Bible, is generally not acceptable anymore and comes off as dehumanizing due to Animal connotations.

There are mixed feelings on calling Black hair “kinky.” I’m personally not opposed to the word in itself and usage depends on the person’s race (I’m more comfortable with a Black person using it vs. a Non-Black person) as well as their tone and context (if it’s used in a neutral or positive tone vs. negatively/with disdain). Get feedback on your usage, or simply forgo it.

See our tags “Black Hair” and “Natural Hair” for more discussion on describing Black hair.

Texture - Look - Styles

Hair Colors and Style

Writing Tips & Things to Keep in Mind:

Combination Words: Try combining words to illustrate look of hair. A character with springy coils that dance across her shoulders with every movement, the man with thick silvery hair slicked back into a ponytail…

Mind Perspective: Depending on POV, a character might not know exactly what cornrows or a coiffure style is, at least in name, and it might make more sense if they described the hairdo instead. More defining terms might come from a more knowing source or the wearer themselves. One book I read described a girl’s afro puff as “thick hair pulled up into a cute, curly, poufy thing on top of her head and tied with a yellow ribbon.”

POC & Hair Colors: People of Color’s hair comes in all shades and textures. There are Black people with naturally blond and loosely-textured to straight hair, East Asian people with red hair, and so on. Keep that in mind when coding characters if you tend to rely on hair color alone to denote a character is white vs. a Person of Color.

Related Tropes: There are tropes and discussion related to People of Color, colored hair, and light-colored hair and features. 

Check out these posts on the topic: The East Asian Women + Colored Hair Trope - Black Characters & “Wild” Hair Colors - POC w/ Supernatural Colorful Features. - ‘Uncommon’ Features & POC Characters

~Mod Colette

Read more for accessible versions of the lists:

But last time I reblogged one ten/fifteen minutes later I got a call offering me a job

But I reblogged it because I was waiting on hearing back from the job. So there you go.

When creating a character, there’s a lot of questions you ask yourself. Whether it’s an original character or one you’ve been playing for a long time, using a character sheet to get to know your character better can always be a nice idea. With its help, you’ll be able to think about things you didn’t necesarily thought about, and ask some important questions to yourself that might activate your character’s voice, or help you to get your muse back with them. Everyone has their favorite character sheets, some people prefer to have a lot of questions, some others like it a bit more vague, so here’s a masterlist of the character sheets I found on various websites and found quite interesting, plus some other things that could be used to help you see, for example, how other character view yours. 

Blank Character Sheet (+370 Questions)

Abridged Character Sheet (100 Questions)

Big-Ass Character Sheet

Character Creation Form

Character Sheet by Jody Hedlund

Creating a character Bio Sheet

Character Analysis Worksheet

100 Character Development questions for writers

Create a Character Profile

Character Development Worksheet

Original Character Bio-Sheet

Character Chart for Fiction Writers

A Character Chart By Charlotte Dillon

Fiction Writer’s Character Chart

Detailed Character Sheet

Character Sheet Template

Character Twenty-Question Worksheet

In-Depth Character Sheet

Character Worksheet

Character Interview Sheet (First Person)

Background Questionnaire (First Person)

Characters Perceptions (How do other people perceive your character?)

A lot of questions to develop your character here

(23/05 Edit) Character Traits Meme

With these sheets, you could also try to find your character’s Jung and Enneagram Type or use the Moral Alignment tool. All of these things can be really useful to get a better grip on a character.

Then, if you’re trying to create a character, and do not have many ideas, or get stuck, I’d suggest for you to roam around TVTropes, which gives you a lot of tropes used for character creation. Maybe you could try to mix a few of these and create an original character?

Or, if you’re a skillful writer and know how to make your character different from another, make a list of characters in fiction you happen to find interesting and why. Try to keep it short. Then, maybe, try to mix and match things from two or three characters, take a character and change their backstory, to see what would change. Play with them to inspire yourself and create something new, original and truly yours.

Oh, and here’s a little guide to Mary-Sues and OCs, just in case you want to make sure your character isn’t going to become a Mary-Sue or a Gary-Stu

yoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

FUCKIN YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

no BULLSHIT I KID YOU NOT! Look what I found while walking Home…..

OH MY GOD

OH MY F*CKIN GOD

THIS POST FUCKIN WORKS?!?!?! THIS IS PAST A COINCIDENCE NO WAY!??! NO FRIGGIN WAY!!! 

Failproof guide to packing by @staticsandstationery

Things people don’t realise they need at college by @lazuli-studies

Campus stuff 101 by @polcry

Before college

How to prepare for school year by @kimtented

Back to school tips by @hufflepuffwannabe

College tours: what to expect & ask by @howtogrowthefuckup

What I wish I’d known before university by @optomstudies

First-time college student advice by @lampurple

General

Things I’ve learned since I started college by @studyburst

First day of class by @honeststudying

University orientation by @psytudying

Things I wish I’d known in my first year of university by @succulentstudy

Uni tips-first year by @holleberrystudies

Why I nearly failed my first year of college/university-and what to do instead by @fromquantumfluctuations

What I wish someone told me going into college by @tiny-personal-university-thing

Things I learnt in college by @yourtenderlight

Psa for college freshman by @dynamic-study

What I learned from university by @biopsychs

Uni hacks by @b-uwu-ng

How to win at college by @doinbetter

How to prepare for college by @httpsstudy

Community college by @universi-tea

How to make the most of your college campus visit by @studywithanu

Guides

An honest guide to college

The overachiever’s guide to college by @idlestudy

Guide on preparing for college by @myberkeleyadventure

Tips

Tips for incoming college freshmen by @naomireads

Useful college tips by @b0nie-studies

College tips that don’t suck by @legallychic

Tips for success in college by @studyelement

Tips for surviving college by @annafreuds

Random college tips by @determinationandcaffeine

University tips by @studyingbrains

University tips by @creative-studying

Essays

How to write college essays by @caesarstudies

College essay masterpost by @genericappblrurl

Lectures

How to take notes in college

Lectures by @orangeblossomstudies

Adapting to uni studying

What to do when you miss class by @evergrace

Exams

Things I learned studying for exams in college by @letsget-downtobusiness

New SAT everything you need to know

Interviews/Applications

How to be good at interviews by @marias-studyblr

Questions to know for interviews by @solustudies

College interviews by @cyberstudies

How to approach a competitive university

Financial aid process for students in need by @jennysjournals

College comparison & application checklists by @science-is-golden

Smol college apps tips by @365text

Eintsein’s guide to college application by @eintsein

Textbooks

College advice part 5 buying textbooks

College textbook lifehacks by @ohcamada

Free textbooks sites by @thearialligraphyproject

Save money on textbooks by @academla

How I spent $34 to purchase $1000+ worth of school supplies for college by @drinktea-studymore

Safety

Personal safety on campus

Selfcare

Morning habits worth starting by @night-studying

Maximise your sleeping time

Credits to flaticon for the graduation hat icon!

To see my other masterposts

masterpost for note taking

I am risking nothing

I AM SORRY FOLLOWERS, I LOVE MY MOMMY

Will not risk.

When creating a character, there’s a lot of questions you ask yourself. Whether it’s an original character or one you’ve been playing for a long time, using a character sheet to get to know your character better can always be a nice idea. With its help, you’ll be able to think about things you didn’t necesarily thought about, and ask some important questions to yourself that might activate your character’s voice, or help you to get your muse back with them. Everyone has their favorite character sheets, some people prefer to have a lot of questions, some others like it a bit more vague, so here’s a masterlist of the character sheets I found on various websites and found quite interesting, plus some other things that could be used to help you see, for example, how other character view yours. 

Blank Character Sheet (+370 Questions)

Abridged Character Sheet (100 Questions)

Big-Ass Character Sheet

Character Creation Form

Character Sheet by Jody Hedlund

Creating a character Bio Sheet

Character Analysis Worksheet

100 Character Development questions for writers

Create a Character Profile

Character Development Worksheet

Original Character Bio-Sheet

Character Chart for Fiction Writers

A Character Chart By Charlotte Dillon

Fiction Writer’s Character Chart

Detailed Character Sheet

Character Sheet Template

Character Twenty-Question Worksheet

In-Depth Character Sheet

Character Worksheet

Character Interview Sheet (First Person)

Background Questionnaire (First Person)

Characters Perceptions (How do other people perceive your character?)

A lot of questions to develop your character here

(23/05 Edit) Character Traits Meme

With these sheets, you could also try to find your character’s Jung and Enneagram Type or use the Moral Alignment tool. All of these things can be really useful to get a better grip on a character.

Then, if you’re trying to create a character, and do not have many ideas, or get stuck, I’d suggest for you to roam around TVTropes, which gives you a lot of tropes used for character creation. Maybe you could try to mix a few of these and create an original character?

Or, if you’re a skillful writer and know how to make your character different from another, make a list of characters in fiction you happen to find interesting and why. Try to keep it short. Then, maybe, try to mix and match things from two or three characters, take a character and change their backstory, to see what would change. Play with them to inspire yourself and create something new, original and truly yours.

Oh, and here’s a little guide to Mary-Sues and OCs, just in case you want to make sure your character isn’t going to become a Mary-Sue or a Gary-Stu