#wh help

I have a tendency to switch between tenses because I write some present-tense stories and I wonder if you have any tips to combat that. - srngdrgn

The first bit of advice I have for you is to focus more on writing now and then worry about your tense use in the revising stage. When re-reading your work, use a highlighter to mark all the places in which you strayed for your desired tense. Then you have visual representation of how much you need to re-work (which isn't usually that difficult to do) and you may find yourself adding extra plot devices in.

How to Avoid Tense Change in Fiction Writing [there's advice from Stephen King in here]

How to Avoid Tense Switches

Since I know nothing about writing screenplays personally, I will try and get you a few links that I hope will help you.

Screenwriting.info - this looks like it helps exclusively with formatting!

Ten Things You Should Know About Writing Screenplays

Writing Screenplays that Sell (Book)

7 Ways Writing a Screenplay is Different Than Writing a Novel

How Not to Write a Screenplay

How to Write a Screenplay: Introduction to Screenwriting

How to Write Your First Screenplay

First things first: talk to people who are blind. Find out how they go about their day, what they do to get around, or anything of that sort. The last thing you want to do is do research strictly on the internet and fall into stereotypes.

You may want to invest the $9 it costs into the book 33 Worst Mistakes Writers Make About Blind Characters. The author is legally blind and, though I haven't read the book myself, it seems like she has the best of intentions in helping people write realistic blind characters.

If you need other help, here a few links that can hopefully help:

A post from referenceforwriters on writing blind characters

FYCD post on tips for blind characters

Tommy Edison's YouTube Channel - He has many videos showing him doing many things (as you probably guessed, he's a blind man) including using Facebook on an iPhone and using Instagram. He also has a video on how to describe colors to blind people or how blind people draw or dream. Keep in mind this is just one man's opinion or way to do things but at least it gives you an idea!

Blind Characters: A Process of Awareness

And apparently, I have made a post for this before - I just found myself on Google

I was reading through some things while I was researching this a little for you and I came across this line: "Basically, you need your villains to be real, three-dimensional people." What I got from this was that you need to build up your villain as though they are a regular person, just with dark/bad intentions. Most villains are shown as narrow-minded individual who's sole purpose is to just be evil. Remember that your villain needs to be working towards something and you need to take the time to develop the inner workings of the villains mind in the same way that you did for your main protagonist. 

As long as you remember to properly show the support for why your villain is doing these things, they'll come across as believable.

If that didn't help you, hopefully these can:

Creating Villains People Love to Hate

How to Write Better Villains

How to Write a Villain

How to Write a Great Villain

4 Techniques for Creating Believable Villains

Crafting Believable Villains: 52 Questions to Ask

The Dreaded “I”

The pains of writing in first-person! I have this problem a lot, too, except I usually just end up switching point of view. Since that’s not always the answer, here’s hoping I can help a bit or at least provide you with some links that’ll better help.

When you’re using first-person it is inevitable that you will use I, me, and my. You may not be using it as much as you think, though. As you go through and either write more or re-read, you’re hyper-aware of the fact that there’s “I” in most sentences but I like the way Maeve Maddox puts it: the pronoun “I” is probably as invisible to the reader as the word “said.”

You see a lot because you know it’s there. She also suggests looking at your favorite authors who use first-person POV. How many times did they get away with saying it? The number will probably be more than you think or remember.

In your own re-read of your story, probably during the editing stage, underline or put in red the sentences that start with “I.” Go through and see which ones can be re-worded. For example, “I watched as he threw his body forward toward the window…” can be phrased simply, “He threw his body toward the window…”

If you ever think that you’re using “I” too much, have a trusted, honest friend read it over and ask for opinions. If they don’t say anything about it, it’s not an issue.

The Use of “I” in First Person Narration

Writing Fiction in First Person

Me, Myself, and I: Writing First Person Point of View

Developing Supporting Characters

When it comes to your supporting characters, they may be more important than you think. It is unlikely that your MC will overcome every single obstacle in the world or save their loved one on their own. There will be help from others or people whose opinions matter. However, you only have to develop other characters as much as is necessary for your story. It’s perfectly fine if your MC’s best friend was left in a mall by her mother for three hours one day when she was 4 but unless that information is crucial to the story or who she is as a person, it’s not necessary to put in. Don’t eliminate their backstory altogether. Just make sure that there’s a reason that part of their history is relevant.

A good way to develop secondary characters more is to create scenes in which your MC interacts with them and only them. Make them crucial to the story in some way or another. This doesn’t mean that you need dozens upon dozens of supporting characters, however, just a few that pop out. 

The important thing to remember is that these are just secondary characters. This isn’t to say that one day they can’t break off and become a series of their own, but their purpose right now is to support your main character. You get a little leeway with how much you need to develop them.

If you want to think more about what their character background is or how they would act, go ahead and fill out some character building worksheets for them. Don’t be as intense or in-depth with them as you were for your MC; keep it simple.

How Much Do You Need to Develop Minor Characters?

Create Key Moments with Secondary Characters

Creating Memorable Secondary Characters

10 Secrets to Creating Unforgettable Supporting Characters

Titling is my worst subject, I swear. Personally, there’s always one song that plays in my head when I write or think about my story so I typically pick a lyric that’ll work and doesn’t sound too musical. I’m fully aware that that’s not logical or realistic for many genres/novels so lets see if I can help you a bit.

First of all, the name needs to mean something to both your story and you. Don’t pluck it out of the air and slap it on the cover because you’ve been thinking about it for months and you just want to be done with your novel. Think of your title as the first opportunity to stand out in the slush pile [x]. Just like the cover of a published novel, the title is one of the most eye-catching components of your book.

Either way, on to some tips: 

Don’t settle on a title until the whole book is written. As we all know, sometimes characters, or even a whole story, take on a mind of their own - your story may not end up where you expected it to. Therefore, by the time you’re done with that final chapter, the title you picked before you started may not make sense. It’s more than normal to have a working title while you write but I advise you to wait on confirming one until the whole writing, revising, and editing process is complete.

Note that most titles are short - typically 2-4 words. Naturally, my brain first went to something that could contradict this: the Harry Potter series. However, if you take out the “Harry Potter and - ” part, the titles are still less than five words (the Prisoner of Azkaban, the Deathly Hallows, etc). You have to be able to draw in someone’s eye and if your title is too long, they may just scan right past it. If you have to make it longer, consider a subtitle.

If you’re writing fiction, think about using a character or repeating theme/phrase from your book as the title. It’s something that will make sense and, if interesting enough, will attract attention.

In the event that you’re writing a series, think of something that can thread throughout the series. J.K. Rowling used “Harry Potter and-,” Janet Evanovich uses numbers, James Patterson used nursery rhymes —- you’ll be next in that list!

Now, how can I get those title juices flowing?

Research/Brainstorm - Look up other books in your overall genre and then ones more specific to the book you’re writing. What sort of titles do they use? Do they cater more to their character or their theme? Longer titles? Shorter? Try researching the bestseller list to see what those titles look like. This isn’t to get you to pick something near identical to one of those, it just provides you with an idea of some successful titles.

Make a list or keep a Title Jar - You’re going to be continuously thinking of your novel while you’re writing it. Hell, even when it’s just a small idea in your head. Every time you think of a possible title for your novel, write it down somewhere. Keep a journal, write them in the margins in a different color pen, create a blog for them, make a creative jar and use popsicle stick to hold the words - anything to get you to keep track of your title thought process. The more your book grows, the easier it will be to eliminate some options or even add some. This will make it at least a bit easier when you get to the titling point, at least you will already have some choices that meant something to you at some point in time.

Compare with books that will be coming out soon or possibly around the same time as your novel - Although titles can’t be copyrighted, it doesn’t really make sense to have a novel with a title too similar to a book that’s out before yours or will come out around the same time. So look through some Upcoming Books lists or things like that. 

If your ultimate plan is to publish your novel, remember that your editor or the publishing company may re-name your book for you. That’s a whole other battle, though.

Some other links that you can look at:

7 Tips to Land the Perfect Title for Your Novel

Choosing the Right Name for Your Story

Naming the Thing: Tips for Titling Your Book

Top Tips for Book Titling (Don’t Let a Bad Book Title Kill Your Book)

Source

The effects of blood loss depend on a person's general state of health, the amount of blood lost, and how quickly it was lost. Bleeding may be internal or external. With external bleeding, blood leaves the body through a break in the skin (from a wound, trauma, or surgery), or a body opening such as the mouth, anus, or vagina. With internal bleeding, blood is lost from the blood vessels, but stays inside the body, often leading to swelling and pain. Both internal and external bleeding can lead to serious complications. Internal bleeding may be harder to recognize and diagnose because the bleeding is not visible.

The more blood is lost, and the faster it is lost, the more severe the symptoms and complications.

The symptoms of blood loss include:

abdominal pain or swelling (a symptom of internal bleeding)

bleeding during surgery

bleeding from the mouth

blood coming from a break in the skin

blood coming from the vagina (unexpectedly, or much more than expected)

blood in the stool (the stool may be black and tarry or red)

blood in the urine (the urine may be pink, red, or brownish in colour)

bruising (a bruise forms when there is blood under the skin)

cool, clammy skin

dizziness, weakness, or confusion

fast, weak pulse

paleness

trouble breathing

vomiting blood or material that looks like coffee grounds

Here is a list of some that I found in a quick search. If anyone would like to add on, please send in a message or reply to this post!

·         amble: to walk leisurely

·         careen: pitching dangerously to one side

·         falter: move hesitatingly, as if about to give way

·         flounder: walk with great difficulty

·         footing (n): a firm position for your feet on a surface, especially one that is difficult to stand on or walk across

·         in/into step: if people walk in step, each person moves their feet at exactly the same time as the others

·         limp (n): a way of walking that is affected by an injured leg or foot

·         lumbering (adj): walking slowly because of being large and heavy (or sometimes even just drunk); moving heavily or clumsily

·         lurch: walk as if unable to control one’s movements

·         meander: to move or cause to move in a sinuous, spiral, or circular course

·         on foot: walking

·         out of step: if people walk out of step, they do not keep their feet moving at the same time as the rest of a group

·         pace (n): a step that you take when you walk or run (fast-paced or slow-paced can be used with this term)

·         parade: march in a procession; to walk around with an air of over-confidence

·         prowl: move about in or as if in a predatory manner

·         ramble: move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment

·         rolling (adj): someone who has a rolling walk moves their body from side to side as they walk

·         saunter: walk leisurely and with no apparent aim

·         shuffle (n): a slow, noisy way of walking

·         skulk: move stealthily

·         somnambulate: walk in one’s sleep

·         springy (adj): if you walk with a springy step, you walk quickly and with a lot of energy

·         stagger (n): a way of walking in which you stagger

·         stalk: walk stiffly

·         stride (n): a long, confident step

·         stroll: walk with no apparent aim; walk calm and relaxed

·         strut (n): a proud and confident way of walking

·         stumble (n): often when someone trips over something, including their own feet; can occur when nervous

·         sure-footed (adj): good at walking or climbing and unlikely to fall

·         totter: move without being stable, as if threatening to fall

·         trudge: walk heavily and firmly, as when weary, or through mud

·         waddle: walk unsteadily