The Young Writer's Blog

Developing your characters is very important. I see fictional characters as people that only exist on page and in art. They should feel real, human.

Know your characters like you are their closest friend.

Developing characters is more than just a tragic backstory, strengths, and weaknesses. It's knowing their desires, passions, interests, hobbies, and small habits. It's knowing their demeanor and how it shifts in different scenarios and others.

Personally, I believe that characters should be as real and complex as real people.

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Creating characters for your world is fun. Their appearance, their personalities, their backstories. I have a tip to help your characters feel more real. Use yourself and the surrounding people.

Using bits and pieces can make a difference. I actually gave a couple characters some of my habits and traits, even if some of it was an accident. Small things, like a nervous tic or a specific phrase, adds to the realism.

My main character in Black Strings, Tommy, picks at his skin when he is bored. I actually do the same thing as well.

Other people around you may also be people you want to take inspiration from, if you see something that jumps out at you.

I hope this helps you create your characters or build them up.

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A collaborative story where two people write about a pair of teenagers running away from home. The chapter style switches POVs of the two main characters, like in those smut books that are currently popular. I see this as a contemporary work of fiction.

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Then our friend, I'll call M, arrived at my house. That was our speak of the devil moment. L turned off the spirit talker, and we went to greet our friend.

L and I attempted to get M to talk to spirits with us, but adamantly voiced her displeasure in joining us, citing that the last time she joined in that, her arm hurt for three days afterward.

We turned the spirit talker back on and talked about a few things. Some spirits like hearing conversation. Shadows were around us. The watching for a moment pissed her off (and it was funny for a moment). Not long later, we were called for dinner, and we had to turn the spirit talker off again.

After dinner, we went back to my room and pulled out the spirit talker, but it was off. By the way, this whole time, from heading home from the store up until this point. L had to bribe M to join us with granola bars and gum.

With M and I's hands on the ouija board and L watching, we began communicating with the dead.

Some spirits aren't strong enough to push something, but are strong enough to speak through people.

The spirits in the room weren't strong enough to move the planchette, but I could hear them. I spoke for a spirit called Ubel and their sibling Ursur. My elbow was feeling slightly sleepy, and I couldn't move my arm. A spirit, Ubel, helped M get rid of a stabbing headache.

After saying goodbye, I let the spirits communicate through my body.

Here's something else about spirits: if you tilt your head, it opens up your spirit to demons and the dead and makes you vulnerable.

L spoke to Ubel and a witch with no name (we call Witch) speak through me. We found out that a shadow watches L and is attached to her melancholy. The shadow is good, has no emotion, but feels.

We found out that Ubel and Ursur are Native American spirits and siblings that were killed by Russians. One was hanged and the other by a Judas Cradle.

One spirit didn't like that M was talking so much. Saying shut up and shush wasn't enough. It had to forcably shut her up.

That was one eventful night.

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A book from the perspective of a yandere's love interest told as a desperate retelling of how they got kidnapped.

That isn't my only idea I have to share and I'm sure I'll come up with more in the future.

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This is my favorite topic. There are so many ways to get inspired and to use inspiration.

You can be inspired by the people around you, the music you listen to, the shows you watch, the books you read, and more.

I have a story called The Kids of Twilight Forest. What inspired me to write it was the song "Murders" by Miracle Musical.

My series Black Strings was inspired by a roleplay I and a couple of my old friends did together at one point. Even some aspects of that story were inspired by other people.

Inspiration is all around you, you just have to wait for it to find you.

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Me, my (now ex) fiancé I'll call F, our friend I'll call K, and a friend I'll call J, went to the local park to play hide and seek in the dark. F drew three runes and accidentally fucked up the last one.

I suggested and brought up Robert. He is stalking and watching me.

We played hide and seek. After the first round, we heard a branch snap. After F and J saw white eyes and a moose. While all this was going on, I had the spirit talker going.

Once the spirit speaking to us told us to leave, we booked it to J's car and booked it to his house. He told L to look at the wall, close her eyes, and put on her headphones.

After a couple prayers and a panic attack (me panicking), we spoke to G, who used L to communicate with us. Robert is with us (for once, thank fuck). What we encountered was a skin walker. After word, we spoke to a different spirit, who's a prick and can't take shit seriously.

A spirit tried to use my body and drained my energy. I could feel it with just my face and head as a whole. I know the feeling.

Before attempting to go to bed, I sealed all the windows of the house.

I swear a spirit was waving to me, and I have aphantasia. A spirit is attached, I know it. I- I just know it. I've been hearing shit ever since the prayers.

The park rangers of Twilight Forest tell visitors, "Never go off the lit path at night." Not everyone knows why. Even less know the truth.

The other night after school, my fiancé and our friend L came over to my house for a sleepover. The first thing we decided to do was use my oujia board.

We set up the oujia board in my dining room, on the kitchen table. Laptop on the kitchen island, playing music from my Spotify liked songs on shuffle. A candle in a bowl of rice for protection, close to the ouija board. Spirit talker up on my phone.

The first response came quickly. Soon, we came to learn we were talking to a ten-year-old girl named Amy who was raped before she was murdered. Amy wasn't the only spirit with us. There never is with my fiancé and me.

The second spirit with us was L's guardian spirit, I'll call G for privacy reasons. We learned from G how she died and why. Personally, I'm glad my friend got her closure.

I hate to think about the third spirit, but I jynxed his summons. Robert. I didn't post about him, but the guy is a perv. The moment he made himself known, I was PISSED. That spirit died 270 years ago, hit on me the first time we met, and has two wives. I don't even want to speak about what he even asked of me when we met.

The session didn't last long, though. My skeptical dad came inside the house after work. He agreed to come back later and make dinner. Me, my fiance, and L decided to take our thing up to my bedroom.

A little while later, once we had our dinner, we were back at it again. We didn't really speak to Amy this time, but there were two new spirits this time. Children this time.

The children were a set of twins, much younger than Amy. They didn't even get the chance to be born. Seeing the word mommy get spelled made me want to cry.

L's friend G had been taking care of the twins and introduced them to weed. Yes, apparently, the afterlife has weed. I couldn't believe it myself.

This was a special sleepover and Ouija board session for my fiancé and L.

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I once heard that when you are done with the draft of your story, take a break from it.

I actually find this helpful for me. It helped me find what was wrong with my story when I came back to it. It doesn't matter if you look away from it for a few weeks or a few months. Going back and reading what your wrote with a fresh view can make all the difference.

A while ago I finished my third draft of my first Black Strings book. I didn't think about this advice and went straight into writing the next book in the series. Months later, I came back to that first book with a new perspective, improved writing/ storytelling skills, and an urge to rewrite the first chapter, it opened me up to everything I could have done better.

Now nearly complete with the fourth draft, I share my advice to you. Take some time away from your story, it might just open your eyes to more than those edits and corrections you need to fix.

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World-building, despite whatever you may think, can get complex the more you think about it.

I'll be honest I like complexity. I like my lore deep. It makes the world feel more alive.

In a fantasy world, once you get past the magic and locations, there's a lot to think about in terms of world-building.

You may not think about how complex it can get. Customs, tradition, sayings/ phrases, social statuses/ hierarchies, societal pressures and biases, and a whole lot more.

The more little things you think about, the more complex it can get. I suggest you don't shy away from complex, because the people who are in invested will notice those smaller detail and appreciate the effort.

Maybe it's all just me and I don't know what I'm talking about. Maybe people don't appreciate the thought you don't put into creating a world. Who knows, surely I don't cause I'm a young writer. I like to think people do appreciate though.

Don't be afraid to ask me questions. I'll be happy to give my advice.

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I'm a fantasy writer. I'm best at writing epic fantasy. Why is that? I'm stuck in my head a lot.

Lore is a large part of world-building, in my opinion. World-building is the creation of a world that a story takes place in.

You might be asking why I place such importance. I put importance because it's more than just backstory. It is legends and myths and stories your character and environments create and tell.

World-building is more than character backstory; it's the locations your characters find themselves in, the culture(s) that surround them, the creatures they find, the history both told and untold, and so much more.

If you think of world-building as creating your own version of current society and apply it, that makes a world of a difference (no pun intended).

Take my advice or not. My opinion on world-building might not even apply to you. I wouldn't know, but you do, so I hope you take away something from this.

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Are you trying to write a character of yours experiencing something you've never been through? It's always best to do your research. It doesn't matter if that's popular media that depicts it accuratly, looking at blogs, asking a friend, or even something else. Research is your best friend.

I'm going to share my experience as a young writer always learning their skills and craft.

I once depicted one of my characters having a panic attack without having experience or doing my research. I didn't know what I was doing at the time. I acknowledge and admit that, openly.

Time has passed since then, and I've had a few experiences with anxietyless panic attacks and a breakdown. I can recognize the warning signs and know what it feels like.

Experience in writing makes whatever you're putting on the page more realistic and meaningful.

Maybe I can share what my panic attacks were like or what my breakdown was like.

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Here's the links to books 1 & 2 of my series Black Strings for an easier find.

Black Strings: Threads of Revenge https://www.wattpad.com/story/324624568?utm_source=android&utm_medium=link&utm_content=story_info&wp_page=story_details_button&wp_uname=Destinyxgem

The writing is on the wall.

Ever since the Legend of Casimir was first spoken, the Spirit Council was doomed to fall. At the center if it all is the Ultimate Spirit, Tommy Spirit. Slowly, one by one, he reincarnates the long-standing council while exploring the realms and living life.

My fiancé and I were driving on her side by side to her house after going to L's birthday party. We passed by this abandoned car we've passed by before.

The car is an old Ford model. It has broken broken windows and mirrors. The windshield was heavily cracked. With my digital camera I had with me, we took a handful of photos.

My spirit talker was going as well.

After we were done taking photos, we headed back to the side by side and I turned off the spirit talker. We decided to turn my spirit back on and have it going as we ride back to my fiancé's place.

The spirit talker went off as we drove and chatted.

Once we got to her road, I turned off the spirit talker.

My day was normal. It's been an uneventful school week. I didn't forget what happened on Friday. Today was a different story.

Everything started as normal. Music came and went, just like my next class would. Then it was the middle of math class.

Me, my fiancé, and two of our friends were sitting at our table working on a quiz. S was sitting at a different table with our classmates from music. Classmates were somewhat chatty, which to me was a good thing. I don't like when there are too many people talking at once in a room.

Two girls were pulles out of class by the school counselor. I'll call them M and H. We didn't know why. I didn't care in the moment.

Math quickly passed after that. So did the next period. I even spent the class sewing a button onto the sleeve of my shirt. Lunch was different though.

As I made my way to the cafeteria, I fiancé called out to me, saying that lunch wasn't good and immediately go to the group's usual corner. Once I got there and put my things down, she called an emergency group meeting for our friend group. One of our friends (I'll call her L) was there.

She waited to tell me until other friends got to the corner. Once the rest of the group arrived, she tells everyone what happened.

Someone ratted out M for selling monsters out of her locker earlier that day and the group is being blamed even though we are her almost daily customers.

In the beginning of conversing and theorizing, I remember last Friday with the Oujia board. I remind my fiancé and that's our light bulb moment. We tell the group what happened last Friday.

I ask S if she tattled, but she denies it. Since she was mentioned and she has a history of lying, I don't trust her.