#hauntedchronicler

Fourth Dimension isn't quite in the state for previews Just Yet, but here's a bit from Whole Biodome Mad:

Their voice is harsh and angry. Steam vents from their carapace recklessly. They don't stamp their claws, they drag them against the walls and floor in a screeching display of desperate rage. They do not want to sing with Adrian. They never want to hear Adrian again. Never never never. Why does Adrian get their mate back? Why not Long-Awaited-Song's parent? When Long-Awaited-Song was so much younger when the Blip-A left, when Long-Awaited-Song was so much more alone than Adrian, when Long-Awaited-Song was patient and meek and good and waited waited waited?

(I am probably going to change Adrian and the Blip-A's name to something more appropriate for an Eridian POV fic, but these are placeholders!)

thank you!!!

1. the last sentence you wrote "The darkness that enveloped them within the tent was dissipated in a halo once Lug lit his grease lamp. He sat, crosslegged, as he shook the match in the air to snuff it out."

14. where do you get your inspiration? i mostly get my inspiration from music -- as a general rule if i include lyrics in the title and/or the author's notes that was probably my source of inspiration. but every so often a film or a book will come along and it will also get my brain going. for example i just published a fic last month that was inspired by a quote in "witchcraft for wayward girls" by grady hendrix. i also have an au bouncing in my head right now that is very different from the poppy war series but i got the idea specifically because i noticed parallels between rin and another character. hooray for stories of feminine rage

17. talk about your writing and editing process oooooh, well. with my writing process i am a very very heavy researcher and outliner. my oneshots are usually simple roman numeral outlines, especially if it's only 1 or 2 scenes.

i discovered plot grids about 3 months ago, and ive started using those for my chaptered fics since i am usually juggling 2 or more central characters.

my novel outline process is a combination of both (i outline individual chapters in addition to the book itself) as well as i just started a written notebook to keep worldbuilding notes in (there are some things my brain simply has to work out by hand idk why)

my editing process when i was a kid used to be i would write the draft by hand and then do my editing when i typed it up. i am getting to the point now where i am closer to 30 than 20, and that simply isn't realistic anymore. the reasons are many and they include: i will develop carpal tunnel, i process much faster than i can write by hand, and i didn't used to write so much smut.

i write almost exclusively beginning to end. i am trying to break this habit, but this is part of the reason why i am such a heavy outliner (so that i don't forget what i wanted to write by the time i get to it). the slight exception to this is sex scenes, i try to have those planned out pretty well before i actually put them in the text. i usually have a secondary draft (thank you ellipsus) where i write the broad strokes of what i want the sex scene to be, and then when i get to it in the writing process that just makes the scene so much easier than if i were trying to figure it out in the moment. because i can focus on the details instead of focusing on if it's awkward or possible.

and then when i am finished, i usually leave the draft alone for at least 2 hours, but ideally i try to wait at least overnight before i do my first edit. if i'm not absolutely horrified by my first draft, i will send it to my beta reader and let her look at it while i go about my evening. then after i walk my dog, eat dinner, sleep, or whatever i was doing, i will look at her comments and do my editing.

if i think i have a lot of work to do, i will hold off on sending it to her until after i do my edit (i still take the break in between). then i will fuck off again while she reads it and when she is done i will do a second edit while i look at her comments.

i post almost immediately after editing because im impatient.

7. If you use song lyrics, which artist’s songs did you pull from the most?

statistically speaking, in terms of inspiration, there is no way that it isn’t bastille. theyre just my faves and i had a category 5 autistic moment this year where i literally spent 30 days where i didnt listen to a single other artist 💀 however in terms of titles i actually did a very good job of making sure each title had a unique source, including 2 titles i made up all on my own :3

20. Which work of yours have you reread the most?

Ooooh this is a good question. probably “four walls” because it’s one of the first ones and im proud of it. also. i will keep shouting out “violent delights” because i loved writing that one so much if i dont get to read it every once in a while what’s the point!!

29. Favorite line/passage you wrote this year?

Answered this one here!!

thank youuu

3. What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)? Definitely In Another Lifetime, I'm both proud of 2016 me for writing so much and writing such a fun AU and 2025 me for picking it up again after 9 years and continuing it. I'm proud I wrote 35k words for one fic even if it took me nearly a decade, lol.

6. Favorite title you used I don't think I'm very good at titles, but I like The Avatar and I for the Bridgerton prompt during Kataang week, I felt like it was a fun play on the title of the Bridgerton book (The Duke and I).

17. Your favorite character to write this year? Mai, my beloved. There's nothing like a fairly minor character you get really fixated on for some reason. I just really enjoy writing her and contrasting her inner thoughts with how she reacts (or doesn't react) to things.