storm with skin

Deserted gas station at 2AM

Church tucked away on the edge of town with only a glowing cross to light it up

Liquor store with a few high school kids buying stuff for a house party

At the drive-thru late at night trying to figure out your order/everyone in the car’s order

Hospital waiting room in the early hours of the morning

Birthday party with a bad clown and kids covered in cake and snot

Basketball court on a block with a bunch of ratty apartment buildings

Dark alleyway with only a lone street lamp light at the mouth of the alley

Bench/hill in the middle of the park as the sun starts to come up

Cluttered basement with a beat-up couch and an old TV

Sunny, warm enclosed porch on the back of someone’s house

Quiet field of flowers in the middle of a wooded area

Snowy mountain trail with black ice no one notices

Dark stretch of road without street lamps at 3 AM

Rooftop in the middle of the day

Driving through heavy fog early in the morning where you feel like you’re the only one awake

On top of a giant dune in the middle of the desert with a hot breeze that never cools anyone down

Teenagers playing Marco Polo in a store

Covered bridge at the edge of town

I felt that the decrepit state of these once magnificent buildings, with their broken gutters, walls blackened by rainwater, crumbling plaster revealing the coarse masonry beneath it, windows boarded up or clad with corrugated iron, precisely reflected my own state of mind.

(Note: I’m only including free resources here, mostly because I’m broke and haven’t had a chance to try out any paid apps / programs. These are the resources I use and recommend, and is by no means a comprehensive list of all the writing tools out there. You might find something else that works better for you and isn’t listed here, and I’d love to see some reblogs from people sharing any other resources!)

For when you just need to get words on the page:

Write or Die is easily the most versatile tool for when you need serious motivation to just write. It’s a bit tricky to figure out at a glance, but you can play around with it and find out what works for you. Because of the ability to set time limits and consequences for yourself, Write or Die can help you stay focused and (if you’re like me) stop second guessing every word you write. You can always edit later.

Written? Kitten! is an alternative to Write or Die with only rewards (new picture of an adorable animal of your choice every time you hit a word count) and no consequences. It also has a very minimalist layout without a lot of distractions or customization options, which is helpful if, like me, you’re easily distracted.

For visualizing your word count & progress:

Pacemaker has a free mode and a subscription mode, but the free mode is pretty much everything you need. This is helpful if you’d like a visual representation of your word count. It can make it easier to see your progress on a project.

For editing:

ProWritingAid is… everything. You do need to make an account to use this site, but oh boy oh boy is it ever worth it. (Just make sure to sign up for the free option; it has everything you need.) I use this tool in tandem with my own editing process, and it has an amazing algorithm for catching things that weaken your writing - adverbs, overused words, passive verbs, etc. You don’t need to take all of its advice, but it can help draw your attention to things about your writing that you may have missed. I would recommend this to anyone who is considering trying out a paid program like Grammarly. It’s by far the most useful editing tool I’ve ever come across.

Hemmingway App isn’t for everyone. I feel called out by it, but that’s the point - sometimes we need to hear that our writing is getting a bit verbose and ostentatious, and to consider if toning it down a bit might help our story and meaning shine. Again, you can decide not to take any or all of its advice, but it’s a useful tool. (For example: I put this post into the app and it yelled at me for the word “ostentatious” and suggested I replace it with “showy.” That’s not exactly what I meant, so I kept “ostentatious”, but it was a nice suggestion. Does that count as irony?)

hello writeblrs! 

for the past few months, the writeblr community is huge and expansive and it’s getting increasingly difficult for writers to communicate each other, especially the amount of new writeblrs joining the community.

after establishing the plan: NET @theplannet​, our efforts of bringing the community together is a success ! but i plan to take it further so introducing VAPORWAVE, a database and a central hub for writers to showcase their wips using Discord.

VAPORWAVE will not only include a database for my wips but i will also set up a exclusive networking system for those who join the server! special thanks to @cararune​ and @eyesofrubys​ who are brilliant and made this possible!

anyone can join and be part of the network, just create your own server for your wips on Discord and share it to us!

hello, it’s aimi here! since i’ve started my new network @growingnovelsnet, i decided to make a personal contribution in the form of writing printables right before nanowrimo begins. a little bit of my studyblr side mixing in with my writing side. they’re focused on characters & novels with different colors and go in depth. all that i ask is that if you use these printables, reblog the post! everything you need is under the cut.

Ooh, action scenes of any kind can be difficult. I know the struggle! Here’s what’s helped me.

Tips on How to Write Tension in a Scene

The first thing you have to do is know the parties involved. Know each character and each group; know what each one is fighting for, what would be their breaking point to make them run away, know what each one believes. Knowing these things will help you know the conflict!

It might not apply to your wip, but the POV you’re writing in will affect how the tension is portrayed. Third omniscient? You’re going to be describing action and where people are standing and what they’re doing. First person? You have to consider the narrator’s biases, fears, views, priorities.

Word choice is the most effective tension-builder. Especially if you’re trying to transition from fear to rage like you specified. Many of the phrases you’ll choose might overlap, which will serve well to transition from one to another! Heart pounding, shaking/trembling, heavy breathing, all of these can be either fear or rage or both!

Speaking of fear to rage specifically, there has to be a breaking point. Whether it is mental, a character finally deciding they’ve had enough or they’ve had a breakthrough, or physical, like them seeing something in front of them… Something has to happen to trigger a rage.

Once that trigger has happened, don’t hold back. Now that you’re writing the rage, your character can hold back. Word choice is still important, but the reader should be on board with the feelings behind this scene. They’ll have caught on, and you can go to town with it!

If you don’t get the tension right the first time, don’t panic. Or if you think you’ve nailed it the first draft, and then you come back, and it doesn’t stack up to how you remember it at all. Don’t panic! That’s what editing is for. 

The Grimm Reaper

welcome to the plan:NET, a minimalist approach to a network for the writeblr community. 

thank for making us possible and because we have successful run on the first applications, we decided to open it again! 

SECOND APPLICATIONS ARE OPEN !!

what we do: ➳ the plan: NET is a place where writeblrs can engage and connect together while sharing their works and projects. we mostly work on technical skills in writing through prompts, daily warm-ups, NanoWriMo, or even a personalized game plan to make your WIPs into a finished novel ➳ promoting positivity and support is essential to us and the community that is our main goal for this network. perhaps it may ignite your passion in writing again! ➳ we will host various events, from themed ones or challenges. members and non-members will have a chance to participate and be part of the network! ➳ as a writing and a positivity project, we believe you, the writer, should chill and relax so there will be no deadlines because we all know we work in different pace.

requirements ➳ if you post writing-related content or a writeblr ➳ if you want to support your fellow writers or just to spread positivity ➳ fill out the application form ➳ reblog this post to spread the word (likes count as bookmark), members please help us boost this! ➳ follow us and track #theplannet to stay updated on news/events! ➳ follow the admin, optional but it’ll be appreciated!

sunrays: effervescent smiles, dandelion puffs, bare feet, beach waves, flowers pressed into books, champagne glasses, rose-gold eyeshadow, gypsy skirts, wire-rimmed glasses, hair in loose waves, kaleidoscope eyes

incandescent bulbs: crop tops, floral print, dancing in the rain, quiet defiance, hand-knit beanies, rosé, painted bookmarks, marble floors, cirrus clouds against a blue sky, polaroid pictures, hands held, fingers intertwined, flower crowns.

stardust: lace bralettes, brisk breezes, jasmine-scented perfume, books with yellowed pages, tracking constellations, sterling silver, violin music, chess games, iced coffee, glittery dresses, high heels, secret grins, midnight meetings.

candle flames: denim jackets, gladiator sandals, braided hair, messenger bags, movies at the cinema, stolen kisses, wax-sealed envelopes, haiku poetry, cherry wood, succulents, fountain pens, jigsaw puzzles, soft, tired eyes, hidden smiles. 

moonbeams: newspapers, oversized sweaters, dancing shadows, fleece throws, cutoff shorts, piano chords, red wine, messy buns, embossed journals, a hint of blush dusted across your cheeks, freshly fallen snow, tranquil solitude, burning incense.