If an author put pen to paper, and scribbled down your name to use as their antagonist’s, how would you carry out the conflict?

The Murderous Mrs

(or mr or spouse ect) Your song: Money, Money, Money by ABBA // You’re clever aren’t you? As an antagonist, you would manifest as the sort of person you see at the top of an old staircase, clad in black velvet, champagne in hand. Perhaps you also wear a pearl necklace, a gold watch, a pair of opera gloves. It doesn’t matter, at the end of the story you will hold the knife, pour the poison, and win your spouse over, in the most final of terms. Is it for the money? The hate? The satisfaction of it all? Only you can know. Have fun pretending to mourn them, before you move on to your next catch…

this song is actually one of my favourites…

tagging (no pressure tho):

( or mr or spouse ect) Your song: Money, Money, Money by ABBA // You’re clever aren’t you? As an antagonist, you would manifest as the sort of person you see at the top of an old staircase, clad in black velvet, champagne in hand. Perhaps you also wear a pearl necklace, a gold watch, a pair of opera gloves. It doesn’t matter, at the end of the story you will hold the knife, pour the poison, and win your spouse over, in the most final of terms. Is it for the money? The hate? The satisfaction of it all? Only you can know. Have fun pretending to mourn them, before you move on to your next catch…

Thankyousm @wigilda and @onlysilvy for tagging me <33333

Beautiful Poison

The Genius

Your song: Time Warp, RHPS //

Your character was the gifted child, always praised for their advanced interests. However as you grew older, and your interests more obscure, the praise went away. It began with mild concern, then stronger, to outright worry. But you didn’t stop, so the fear came and they all left. So your character built a lab, where they could explore and experiment in peace and quiet. You’re the sort of character the protagonist spends the entire story trying to outsmart, but you’re always ahead of the curve, ready and waiting with some new obscene invention that will bring about your victory. A “gifted” child’s worst enemy, is another “gifted” child, and that may be your downfall.

I must say the “very good at hiding in plain sight” thing is true. I Am Not Perceived and I’m not complaining about that.

Beautiful Poison

(Song: Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene, by Hozier) // You have a way with words, and the way your antagonistic alter-ego may wield that talent may not be very pretty. You'd be the kind of character that makes the reader say "I knew it!" when you finally show your true self. You'd entice the protagonist with wonderful words, impossible ideologies and virtuous visions. Your character may not even realise that what they are doing is morally wrong, they may think their way is the true way. You could be anything from a devoted cult leader, to a silver tongued partner. You'd make the protagonist weak at the knees, but the audience would never trust your character. And they'd be right not to in the end. What cliff do you intend to lead our hero off?

***

well, that's pretty accurate. my alter ego won't win on a physical fight but might stand a chance with deception and words ;)

(i love that song btw)

***

Welp. Here I am being productive or something. Also you guys don't know who Claude is but his intro shall come someday. He is precious and just as much of a morally gray bitch as Louis and honestly deserves the world, love him or else-

• warnings: kissing, lmk if there's anything else

• general taglist: @talesofsorrowandofruin @baguettethebooklover @alexwritesfiction @regan-wickworre @theidioticbadass @cool-but-confused @kishons @wildswrites @croctears @fiercely-raging-writer @writing-is-a-martial-art @ink-fireplace-coffee (ask to be added or removed) || TAM taglist: ask to be added

* · * · * · * · * · * · * · * · * ·

“You always speak so passionately, Louis. Sometimes I feel like there's nothing but fire in you.”

Louis smiled, watched the brush strokes of candle flame on Claude's face.

“Perhaps I have no other choice. I cannot muster anything else for too long.”

Claude nodded and looked away. Louis could gaze at him like this forever. Watery grey eyes, partially closed, like half unveiled pearls. Arms loose across his knees, draped in orange light. Teeth pale between parted lips, a sign that he was lost in thought (and they imagined kissing him then, long and gentle like spilled sunlight).

“You can't know.”

“Know what?”

“You can't know whether or not you have a choice if you only ever burn.”

Oh, but he wasn't burning this time. All there was was a soft cascade that had been there for a long time, unnoticed but painting everything aglow.

Claude was looking at them, head slightly tilted, his eyes almost concerned.

“You look a little tense”, he said. Louis shook their head, and he sighed, voice gentle and tender. “Here.”

He drew close and took Louis's left wrist in his hands, cradling it like the breeze, and kissed his artery and the white scar tissue adorning the space next to it, the way the sea kissed the stars goodnight. He kissed his neck, and his jawline, and paused for a moment to ask a silent question. Louis nodded; and their lips intertwined, and their breaths intertwined, and their longing intertwined. Flickering little flames illuminated the meeting of split hearts like pomegranates on fire.

(It was a delicate kind of fire, like spilled sunlight.)

And even with their eyes closed Louis could see that Claude was art, and always had been art. A single butterfly wing, falling apart on a pavement. The moon caressing the waves, a loving soul trapped yet oh so free in the sky. Dreamy eyes, opening, and closing, and opening again; like a heartbeat, alive, alive, alive. He did not think he could paint anything devoid of him from this moment hence. Portrait after portrait, composed of symbols rather than a face, lining up one after the other, forever - yes, they could see that all too clearly.

The kiss ended, and within seconds Louis found himself crying on Claude's shoulder, shaking, breaths hitched. There were gentle fingers on his back. Gentle fingers in his hair. Gentle little kisses on his head and gentle little shushes in his ears. And there was nothing for them to do but to melt into his arms, the miseries of thirty-three years of life flooding out in the shape of saltwater until they felt like they could throw up.

― The Haunting of Hill House (2018) dir. Mike Flanagan 

“There are things that tie them to a place, very much like they do us. Some remain tethered to a patch of land. A time and date. The spilling of blood. A terrible crime. But there are others. Others that hold onto an emotion. A drive. Loss. Revenge. Or love. Those, they never go away.” 

― Crimson Peak (2015) dir. Guillermo del Toro

“There are such things as ghosts. People everywhere have always known that. And we believe in them every bit as much as Homer did. Only now, we call them by different names. Memory. The unconscious.”

― Donna Tartt, The Secret History

“What is a ghost, after all, but a repressed memory, the past demanding to be heard in the present?” 

― Alfred Mac Adam, Introduction of Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey

“If that staid old house near the Green at Richmond should ever come to be haunted when I am dead, it will be haunted, surely, by my ghost. O the many, many nights and days through which the unquiet spirit within me haunted that house when Estella lived there! Let my body be where it would, my spirit was always wandering, wandering, wandering, about that house.” 

― Charles Dickens, Great Expectations 

“May you not rest, as long as I am living! You said I killed you — haunt me, then! The murdered do haunt their murderers. I believe — I know that ghosts have wandered on earth. Be with me always — take any form — drive me mad! only do not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you! Oh, God! it is unutterable! I cannot live without my life! I cannot live without my soul!”

― Emily Brontë, Wuthering Heights 

“Come back! Even as a shadow, even as a dream”

― Euripides, Herakles 

“In one aspect, yes, I believe in ghosts, but we create them. We haunt ourselves.”

― Laurie Halse Anderson, Wintergirls 

“In real life it’s the living who haunt you.”

— Franz Wright, from section 1 of “Observations,” Earlier Poems (Alfred A. Knopf, 2007)

“Perhaps I haunted her as she haunted me”

— Daphne du Maurier, Rebecca 

“They were nothing more than living ghosts, haunting each other with what could be. What can’t be.”

― Libba Bray, A Great and Terrible Beauty

“And how odd it is to be haunted by someone who is still alive.”

― I Guess the Old You is a Ghost (#589: June 25, 2014)

“You’ll always be my favourite ghost”

― Big God, Florence + the Machine

“I’m begging you to keep on hunting me” 

― Haunting, Halsey

“I’ll come back to haunt you”

rules: using this picrew, create your wip’s main character at the beginning and end of the story. The idea is to see them before and after their journey, to know what it did to them!

I'm probably super a little late, but anyway, thanks for the open tag @regan-wickworre!

This is Adriana from Nine of Spades, featuring the laurel crown she wears exactly once in book 1 :)

@bluebxlle_writer on instagram

1. Base it on the real world

Yes, you can create your own government in fiction, but it'll still be super helpful to draw inspiration from the real world. Here are examples of governments :

• Republic - authority is based on the citizens' votes, officials are elected based on free elections.

• Democracy - the whole population or selected groups have authority.

• Theocracy - authority is given to priests who rule in the name of God, or by officials regarded as divinely guided.

• Monarchy - authority is given to a single person, usually a king or queen, and the title is hereditary.

• Plutocracy - authority is given to the wealthy or high-class people, who usually rule from behind the scenes.

• Dictatorship - authority is snatched by a person or a group, and they end up ruling the country forcefully.

• Anarchy - the absence of law and order, usually caused resulting from a failure of government.

2. The state of government

It's crucial to show your readers the state of your government, as it will say a lot about your story's mood and also the professionalism of your government. Is it peaceful, or are there constant protestors or rebels? How do the citizens see their government? Are crime rates higher or lower during this government's ruling period? Even trivial things like these will make your government more realistic.

3. What the leader of the government can or cannot do

Another important point to tackle is the limitations of your government's power. Let's say, your fantasy government is a monarchy, and the king holds full power - being able to command anyone and implement any new laws.

But even as a king, there must be limitations binding his hands - something that he can't do despite his title. Here's where you can be creative.

Maybe he can't make decisions without the approval of at least half of his ministers? Or maybe there's a book of law that holds rules and laws that even the king has no power to break.

4. Its role for the plot and MCs

Your story's government isn't just there - it also needs to either move the plot forward or delay it. Consider the government's role to your plot and main characters. Does it help your main characters move forward, or hinder them from reaching their goals?

5. Its most valued quality

In every government, there's a certain quality that they will value most and promise to their citizens. They might even put it in every single of their mottos to reassure everyone. Maybe it's security? Order? Peace? Bliss? Loyalty?

6. Chaos :D

In such a huge government, I assure you, it's practically impossible for every single member to be good people. There will be chaos. There will be corruption, betrayals, or even spies. To make your government realistic, add chaos. Show prime ministers commiting corruption for their own good, advisors manipulating their king, etc.

7. Consider time period

This tip isn't as important as the rest of the points, but I'd like to address this anyway. Consider the time period while deciding a government. For example, medieval times might resonate with monarchy or theocracy more, and modern times may prefer republic or democracy.

☞ genre: historical mystery, YA

☞ POV: 3rd person dual

☞ stage: planning, research, drafting

☞ setting: 1830s England

☞ summary:

After the disappearance (or perhaps death) of her family's butler, 15 y/o Clara is offered a long lost heirloom - her grandmother's locket, at that - by a complete stranger, in exchange for a favour: investigate what happened to your butler and document all that you find out and tell me all you know...

And, in the town near the hill upon which stands Clara's family's mansion, Edith - a girl also of fifteen, but all too different from Clara in all too many respects - hears word of the disappearance and, as an intellectual challenge and the compassionate thing to do, decides to find out what has happened.

And, as unanswered questions tend to do, the mystery pulls them together in a peculiar little bond.

☞ themes & tropes: enemies to,, not enemies (maybe lovers but I'm not sure yet), Privilege And Luxury Can And Often Do Make People Suck, rebellion against one's family's values (in Clara's case) or one's society's values (in Edith's case), doing stuff for personal gain vs doing stuff because one wants to do them

☞ characters:

Clara: spoiled and bitchy to the point of making me want to punch her, very privileged I must say, honestly pretty manipulative, quite artistic, definitely not straight, needs a hug, doesn't want to be like her parents but thinks she can't be who she actually is

Edith: kind and really smart and probably traumatized and I Love Her Can I Please Hug Her, the opposite of privileged, hates the rich (can relate), very intellectual!! and quite talented at stuff!!, also needs a hug, also not straight, hides who she is from the world but not from herself

☞ taglists:

General (ask to be +/-): @talesofsorrowandofruin @baguettethebooklover @alexwritesfiction @regan-wickworre @theidioticbadass @cool-but-confused @kishons @wildswrites @croctears @fiercely-raging-writer @writing-is-a-martial-art

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