#yob7

It is on, everyone. The newest edition of Backstory Weeks is about to start. This time, an all new theme. In the coming weeks, we’ll look at how core emotions have shaped our OC’s pasts, how they deal (or dealt) with feelings and what makes them them.

How does it work? Use a character from one of your WIPs (planned or in progress, or even finished); I recommend you stick with one, but it’s not required. Think about the questions, then use the prompts to write a scene set before the main story. That scene may be one that has significant impact on who they are today - or simply one that just showcases an important part of their past. Just see where you end up. And - have fun.

What matters? Be creative and support others! Check out their characters and scenes, find what you like, share, comment and make new friends!

What to do to be reblogged? Finish until the respective Sunday (your time or mine, doesn’t matter) and let me know you did it. Tag me, send it to me directly or tag with #yob7 or #yourocsbackstory. If it’s more than 500 words, please use a cut. Edits are welcome but not at all necessary. Please add content warnings before a cut if applicable. If you’re insprired, feel free to write nsfw entries, but I will not share them. This is a sfw blog.

Week 0 Introduction - prompt.

For week 0, we’ll focus on introduction and stick to the same questions we have before.

Write a scene or a monologue, where your character introduces themself to the reader, or to a random, friendly stranger. 

Here’s some possible prompts for that:

(a) Imagine they are stuck somewhere (waiting in an airport, adrift in a lifeboat, having their curls done at the hairdresser, whatever) and a young kid asks them „who are you?“. How would that dialogue play out?.

(b) Start with the words “My name is [your character’s name]” and have them introduce themself!

(c) Have them stuck in a police interrogation (guilty or not...), and make the detective desperate to find out who that person on the other side of the table is.

(d) Have them interviewed by a news host on television or in radio.

(e) Well, whatever you want really ;) Just let them talk.

Preliminary Schedule under the cut:

Week 1: Fear

Warnings: one (1) swear word

Belgravia, London. January 1884.

My hands clasped the last letter Garrett sent to me three weeks ago. They were shaking and nothing I did could stop it.

Every second the carriage got closer to Connors house and every second I wished myself further away. But Garrett didn't meet me in Paris two weeks ago, so something must have happened and I wasn’t ready for whatever was waiting for me when I arrived at Connors house.

Dear followers and friends,

after the last Backstory Weeks always focused mostly on relationships, for this instance there’ll be a shift: I intend to focus on emotions.

Which moments in their past triggered their most emotional responses, what made them afraid, happy, angry, disgusted or sad? How do they react in such an emotional situation? Or how did they, back then in their backstory?

(There might be some more emotions, but, really I love Inside Out as a movie, so let’s stick with this)

What do you think? Can you roll with this concept, or should I go back to the old and more ‘established’ prompts?

Tell me! 

Emotion Edition / Spring ‘21

How fearful is your character? Afraid of the dark, of spiders, of not being good enough? How does it show? Has it always been like that, has it worsened? How do they deal with their fear? Do they hide from it, or do they confront it? Do they actually understand it, and can they talk about it with others?

PROMPT - Think about your character’s past. When where they most afraid? What was the first time they encountered that fear, or the first time they opened up about it? Find an event, that is defining for their relationship with that emotion, and just write about it!

To be featured on this blog, there’s not much to remember:

Use the prompt to write a scene (I won’t reblog if you just answer the questions; this is meant to get you writing, after all :))

Don’t make it a lot longer than 1000 words, if it’s longer than about 500 words please add a readmore, and if it contains potentially triggering content, tag accordingly (and put the read more high enough). This blog is meant to be safe for everyone. 

Tag #yob7, #yourocsbackstory or @ me directly (or both), and if you feel it could be lost, send it to me directly. 

UPDATE - This prompt is for one week - replies that come in before March 13th will be shared next weekend, March 12th and 13th!

Don’t forget to check out your fellow participants’ works, comment, like and reblog if you enjoy them! 

Emotion Edition / Spring ‘21

How angry is your character? What makes them feel this way? How does it show? How do they deal with their anger? Do they try to repress it, or do they express their anger? Do they worry about hurting someone’s feelings, or do they act like it doesn’t bother them as much as it does? Is their method of expressing their anger healthy?

PROMPT - Think about your character’s past. What makes them angry? How often do they feel it? Was it because of loss, hurt, an argument? Do they actively try to avoid confronting their feelings, or is it something they can’t get away from easily? Are they easily angered, irritated or frustrated? Or does it take a lot more to make them anger? Find an event, that is defining for their relationship with that emotion, and just write about it!

To be featured on this blog, there’s not much to remember:

Use the prompt to write a scene (I won’t reblog if you just answer the questions; this is meant to get you writing, after all :))

Don’t make it a lot longer than 1000 words, if it’s longer than about 500 words please add a readmore, and if it contains potentially triggering content, tag accordingly (and put the read more high enough). This blog is meant to be safe for everyone.

Tag #yob7, #yourocsbackstory or @ me directly (or both), and if you feel it could be lost, send it to me directly.

If you send it in before April 10th, it will be reblogged on the weekend April 10th/11th!

Don’t forget to check out your fellow participants’ works, comment, like and reblog if you enjoy them!

Emotion Edition / Spring ‘21

Is your character cheerful? Can they be happy with the little things? What brings them joy? Friends, love, beauty? Are they chasing happiness, have they found it, do they believe they don’t deserve it or it’s forever lost? Do they keep joy to themselves, or do they want to share it with others?

PROMPT - Think about your character’s past. When where they most happy? What was the first time they encountered that joy? Do they still enjoy the same things? Is there I moment they carry in their heart and will always go back to? Find an event, that is defining for their relationship with that emotion, and just write about it!

To be featured on this blog, there’s not much to remember:

Use the prompt to write a scene (I won’t reblog if you just answer the questions; this is meant to get you writing, after all :))

Don’t make it a lot longer than 1000 words, if it’s longer than about 500 words please add a readmore, and if it contains potentially triggering content, tag accordingly (and put the read more high enough). This blog is meant to be safe for everyone.

Tag #yob7, #yourocsbackstory or @ me directly (or both), and if you feel it could be lost, send it to me directly.

If you send it in before March 21st, it will be reblogged on the weekend March 20th/21st!

Don’t forget to check out your fellow participants’ works, comment, like and reblog if you enjoy them!

Emotion Edition / Spring ‘21

How disgusted is your character? Of a character, of something that someone does or did, of themselves? How does it show? Has it always been like that, has it worsened? How do they deal with their disgust? Do they avoid it, or do they do something about it? Do they worry that about hurting someone’s feelings, or do they act like it doesn’t bother them as much as it does?

PROMPT - Think about your character’s past. What disgusts them? What was the first time they experienced it? Was is something that they previously enjoyed? Do they actively try to avoid it, or is it something they can’t get away from easily? Find an event, that is defining for their relationship with that emotion, and just write about it!

To be featured on this blog, there’s not much to remember:

Use the prompt to write a scene (I won’t reblog if you just answer the questions; this is meant to get you writing, after all :))

Don’t make it a lot longer than 1000 words, if it’s longer than about 500 words please add a readmore, and if it contains potentially triggering content, tag accordingly (and put the read more high enough). This blog is meant to be safe for everyone.

Tag #yob7, #yourocsbackstory or @ me directly (or both), and if you feel it could be lost, send it to me directly.

If you send it in before March 28th, it will be reblogged on the weekend March 27th/28th!

Don’t forget to check out your fellow participants’ works, comment, like and reblog if you enjoy them!

Character Intro: Elliot ‘Jaeger’ O’Connor

WIP: Crown of Vapour and Dust 

For @yourocsbackstory​ 7: emotion edition

Prompt: Write a scene or a monologue, where your character introduces themself to the reader, or to a random, friendly stranger. 

The problem with victory, Jaeger mused, was that it rarely left you feeling an urge to set it aside. It left a thrill in its wake, a giddy drunkenness that could only be satiated by another win.

Which was why when he should have been pulling himself up and out of the Pit and taking himself home, he instead stayed in the ring and threw out a challenge to the crowd. He prowled around the edges of the octagon, jeering up at the rings of spectators.

The bait of his challenge went untouched. That was fine, he could leave it to fester until the lure of the Pits drew him back for the next fight. There would be plenty who wanted to fight him fresh, plenty who had already fought to their own brink this evening and there would always be someone else who wanted a rematch. But as he turned to haul himself up and out, a fighter vaulted the wall and landed opposite him to an eruption of cheers.

Jaeger knew in an absent sense that he was pushing himself too far. Which might’ve been fine if he was fighting just anyone trying their luck against him, but when he looked round he found Knarl. A fighter only a couple years older than him but with a couple dozen more victories under his belt. He was thickset, short and stocky where Jaeger was tall and wiry. But Jaeger had seen him fight often enough to know what he lacked in reach, he more than made up for in speed. Injured, dehydrated, exhausted; this was a fool’s fight and the crowd were salivating for it.