#writing tips

How People Occupy Space (Body Language) 

˙⋆✮ Leaning in slightly when genuinely interested without realizing it

˙⋆✮ The way someone physically turns their body away mid-conversation

˙⋆✮ Crossing arms not out of coldness but because it feels safer

˙⋆✮ That one person who always finds the wall to stand against at parties

˙⋆✮ Mirroring someone's posture when comfortable with them

˙⋆✮ The slow backward step when a conversation goes on too long

˙⋆✮ Tilting the head when something doesn't add up

˙⋆✮ Sitting on the very edge of a chair when ready to leave

˙⋆✮ The way someone's feet point toward whoever they actually like in a group

˙⋆✮ Leaning back and crossing ankles to signal comfort and ownership of space

˙⋆✮ The unconscious open-palm gesture when telling the truth

˙⋆✮ Standing slightly outside the circle and never fully entering it

˙⋆✮ The way someone physically shrinks in a loud argument

˙⋆✮ Turning the whole body to listen rather than just the head

˙⋆✮ That very specific stillness that means someone is about to cry

˙⋆✮ Raising shoulders toward ears when stressed without knowing it

˙⋆✮ The way laughter changes someone's whole skeleton

˙⋆✮ Touching the face when lying or searching for an answer

Often I get asked about what matters certain ranks of society speak about when they are alone, such as what topics they talk about, what would be taboo and what sort of things they would feel comfortable speaking about.

Topics

Downstairs conversation usually revolved around whatever kept the household running smoothly, so most talk was practical, harmless, and rooted in day to day life or life outside of work. Servants would often have swapped tales about work, talking amongst themselves on matters of staff such as conduct or reputation or skillset, not too different from working in any workplace. Servants would have discussed personal matters, such as who was courting who, who was flaunting the riles and who might have fallen short of the expectations of the house. They would have also traded local town gossip, local scandals for example.

Taboo

Some subjects were absolutely off‑limits. Some topics could lead to a servant punished or dismissed. One never criticized the lord, lady, or their children. Even the mildest comments could be seen as disrespectful. Servants also avoided repeating anything they overheard upstairs, arguments, affairs, illnesses, debts etc. Sharing private family matters was considered a betrayal of trust and could destroy a household’s reputation. Loose lips sink ships and all that. Politics was often barred too, servants were expected to stay neutral and silent and not get into debates about things 'above their stations'. Mocking any guests to the house or discussing sensitive topics like inheritance, legitimacy, or money was equally forbidden. Everyone downstairs understood that their job depended on discretion, and some secrets were so dangerous that even whispering them could cost a life.

Censorship

The tone of downstairs life was shaped by a strict hierarchy. The steward or housekeeper controlled what was appropriate or not. If they said something was never to be addressed, it wouldn't be. Senior servants like the butler, cook, or head maid also had authority to shut down gossip or scold juniors for speaking out of turn. Their approval or disapproval shaped what was acceptable which was often shaped by the morals and leanings of the family they served. It is important to remember that even when the family weren’t present, they dictated the atmosphere.

Confidants

Who am I?

I’m Donna, a fanfic author who recently hit 10k followers. I am also the real life author of the Outlaw Royales Motorcycle Club series, and an award-winning book editor and writing coach.

The Stats:

I am not being an arrogant twat while listing the figures below I'm just trying to provide transparency so you can see how things are going. The examples I'm using later on are The Pitt specific hence the tags.

I'm currently at 10,221 followers. I assume sometime next month I'll hit 10,500.

My blog usually gains over 50 followers a week. Over the past month I’ve actually gained 272.

I honestly don’t keep an eye on this usually, this has been a big surprise for me when I looked into the stats. I’m always more focused on writing my next fic.

So… how did this happen???

I asked myself this when I hit 10k and I think there’s a few important factors at play.  

I’ve received a lot of praise for accurate and immersive hospital scenes in my fics, so I thought I’d share some of my tips!

What’s my secret? Well, I’ve had major operations (emergency and planned) and have been hospitalized 😅 firsthand experience, let’s go!

And disclaimer: some people might not experience things exactly the way I describe, but from what I’ve learned from my aunt (a recovery room nurse), my experiences are pretty standard.

Going under anesthesia isn’t like sleeping.

When you wake up after a normal sleep, you get the sense that time has passed because your consciousness has still been active in some capacity (sleep cycles and dreaming).

That’s not what happens with anesthesia and the drugs they give you before and after - you’re truly unconscious. It really distorts your sense of time. It’s like you blink and suddenly you’re somewhere else.

There actually is no “going to sleep” or “waking up” in a traditional sense - you just lose time. It’s very confusing and disorienting, because everything you happen to be conscious for both before and after surgery feels like a single continuous event and you’re somehow teleporting around.

For example: you’re in the ER, then you blink and you’re being wheeled into surgery, then you blink and you’re in recovery, then you blink and you’re in a regular hospital room.

The real sleeping happens once you’re settled in your room and the effects of anesthesia have worn off.

When you wake up in the hospital, you’re not looking up at the ceiling.

I see this in fics fairly often, but that’s typically not what happens IRL. In a hospital bed, you’re basically sitting up - the head of the bed is elevated so you bend at the waist.

They do this because being flat on your back could cause fluid to collect in your lungs, which might lead to pneumonia.

So therefore when you wake up in the hospital, you’re actually looking straight ahead. You can easily see down the entire length of the bed, your own body, and people sitting/standing nearby.

Here’s what it’s like right after surgery:

The first time you wake up, you’re very cold! Your body pulls blood away from your extremities while under anesthesia (because it thinks you’re dying 😅) so you get a lot of blankets in the recovery room. They even have a blanket warmer.

You feel really heavy, like moving your limbs is impossible.

They tape or glue your eyes shut during surgery to protect them, so your eyelashes are sticky and your eyes might feel irritated from the adhesive.

Being intubated makes your throat super sore afterwards. Like, you legitimately feel like you have strep throat.

It’s likely that you’ll have SCDs (Sequential Compression Devices) which help prevent blood clots. These are like thick little blankets that wrap around your lower legs and squeeze them in an alternating pattern. Many patients apparently hate them but I LOVE them! I find them very soothing.

After surgery, a patient might…

Struggle to understand that the surgery has already happened. Due to time loss, their pre-operation memories took place what feels like only seconds ago.

Not be able to answer questions like “how do you feel” very accurately. The best answer I’ve ever been able to come up with in this situation is “weird.”

Be upset about things they can feel (cold, lethargy, irritated eyes, sore throat, SCDs, etc.). They may not feel pain from their actual injury or incision yet, but they feel different than they felt before the surgery - which, remember, was only seconds ago to them. It can be disorienting.

Not remember a conversation that took place only minutes ago, or try to continue a conversation from hours ago as if no time has passed at all. They might even say the same thing over and over again because they don’t remember they’ve already said it.

Fixate on one thing they really want and not let it go. For me it’s been sore throat spray, lip balm, and even one very specific pillow from home.

I hope this was insightful!

˙⋆✮ Saying "no worries!" to someone who just genuinely hurt them

˙⋆✮ Replaying a conversation from three years ago at 2am with full emotional clarity

˙⋆✮ Sending a text and then dreading the response before it even comes

˙⋆✮ Over-explaining to the point where the apology needs its own apology

˙⋆✮ Asking if everything is okay so many times it becomes the problem

˙⋆✮ Interpreting a slow reply as the end of an entire relationship

˙⋆✮ Preparing for worst case scenarios so thoroughly they almost will them into existence

˙⋆✮ The need to fix the tension in a room even when they didn't cause it

˙⋆✮ Canceling plans with relief and then feeling guilty about the relief

˙⋆✮ Catastrophizing in total silence while appearing completely fine

˙⋆✮ Being so afraid of being a burden they become one in a different way

˙⋆✮ Rehearsing phone calls before making them including possible tangents

˙⋆✮ Saying yes to things weeks away and panicking as they approach

˙⋆✮ Needing reassurance and then not believing it when it comes

˙⋆✮ The spiral that starts with one small thing and ends somewhere completely unrelated

˙⋆✮ Apologizing for apologizing too much and meaning both sincerely

˙⋆✮ Reading tone into texts that have no tone because text has no tone

˙⋆✮ Being exhausted by their own brain and having nowhere to put that

˙⋆✮ The performance of calm so convincing even they almost believe it