z

she/her - they/them - 17 || writing + digital diary

cw: the oct. project

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writing tips, music, ocean stuff

basically, a tiny peek into my life :))

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why do you writer? why do i write? why do we all write?

it’s an important question don’t you think? we’ve all got our reasons after all. i do hope you can share your story someday too.

the reason why i began writing is quite different from what it is today. at first, it was to earn a small fee to be able to buy things. i was always always of having my parents spend money, never quite felt like i was worth it. so, a couple years ago writing was a chore or rather more of a job.

it wasn’t until i met someone who encouraged me to write. she’s a wonderful writer she also happens to be my best friend, the first one who i felt i could breathe around. writing turned into something beautiful after her, looking at how passionate she was it turned into mine too.

writing started off with fan-fiction eventually turning into lengthier works and now novels, and i couldn’t be happier. writing is now something i truly love putting my time into and exploring to what lengths my mind can use words to create something completely unique. from a chore to a passion and well ambition since i’m pursuing it as well.

so, why do i write? just because i love to :))

why do you write?

happy holidays xoxo

so, i didn’t really know what to post today because i’m short of time. i’ve been quite busy these past few days because tis’ the szn. this is just an appreciation post to everyone i’ve met here and who’s been so very kind and supportive <3 ofc @thelaylaverse because she got me to start this acc and the two other most important & loving people in my live who’ve been there since forever by my side and there to catch me whenever i fall.

to riven who always encouraged and hyped me up, kieran who was the person with the craziest ideas, eden who calls me her beloved, hiba who’s the kind of author i aspire to become, ghosty the idek but she’s been there through the arrogance and insults i throw at her, hazel who i absolutely adore, elysia who’s writing is ever so beautiful, sophie who made sure she always supported my acc and made me feel welcome & my dear roo as well, you’ll always be my favourite here.

and lastly, yu, àine, violet & gojo satoru freya

only kisses for you talented fcks 💋

[they’re my cheer squad fr]

merry christmas & all my love to everyone seeing this post as well.

these are the tips that help me with the word count it also explains exactly how i wrote 5 whole novels in the past 3 years

— 1k - 2k alternative method:

so this was actually something i was introduced to by a close friend of mine. the method is simple you just have to alternate your daily word count.

mon/wed/fri/sunday: 1k word count

tue/thu/saturday: 2k word count

by the end of the week your total is 10k, it’s great especially for your first and second draft

— timing yourself:

mind you, this works for people who are good under the clock if not you may get the nerves and not be able to write at all. now when you first write time yourself how long you take for a specific amount of words, eg: i take about 60 mins for 1k, so i set a 45 min timer to get it completed.

— peak writing hours:

whether you are best writing early morning or late night, set your time between those periods. like i set aside 1-2hrs for writing at night before prepping for bed.

— outlining:

now frankly speaking, i don’t care if you’re a “plotter” or a “pantser” or whatever else idk— but if you’re serious about writing outline your book. i’d suggest using the 7 act structure to help with the overall outline.

1. backstory

2. the catalyst

3. the big event

4. the mid-point

5. the crisis

6. the climax

7. the resolution

[@thewritingumbrellas on tumblr]

and also before writing a chapter spend 15 minutes making key highlist of what happens in the chapter of course if your find out you have to add or remove something as you right you may do so, but have an outline.

♥₊˚ 🦢・₊𖥔 ݁🍓˖ˊˎ-

“oh, you would find her in a polaroid picture—“

and in every sweet memory in my mind, a crest of her initials ingrained onto my heart. impelling my lungs to breathe only to live a minute longer with her, i’d say that my admiration towards you was constant however, that would be a lie. it’s always been there, but it exceeds the prior limit at every passing moment spent with you.

she wears the smile that brings light to my very own, the only hand i’d ever intertwine my fingers between, the sort of kindness no god ever spared but she bestows upon me. she was the first one held onto me & left a mark with no bruising. i’d say she is the sun, lights up parts of me i hide. but the sun is a single star, to me she’s all the stars i can see on a clear night. all the stars combined. her voice softer than the ocean waves, but an impact as stronger. her story can’t be written for it must be composed, because words without a melody don’t grasp the beautifully tragic it is.

“a person’s peace is shaped by the soul & no two people have the same one. my peace exists in your form,—“

— pricks

“and she… means everything to me.”

— she, dodie

i prefer myself & like 4 other people

drew out all the light inside of me to light that cigarette. or was the soft flame of it the only bright thing left in your life?

it hurt a lot more than it should’ve, but i’d rather live with this rather than being with a person i no longer recognise. why do i hate cardigan? you asked a while ago, because it felt all too familiar & then i felt it again around you. i once said i never wanted you on the side-lines of my life, rather a part of it. but your shadow is right there, lurking, latched on like a moth to the flame.

“I would give grace but I'd rather give closure” let go by aaron may, right? here’s your closure.

i suggest you write this over that blank page you might be keeping, i’m not coming back.

— mika

you’re lying, summer child.

part 1:

quite often i do wonder, what made me deserve the kindness and care the few people in my life give me. the attention i get the time they make to speak to me. how they hold a conversation knowing i can’t. am i worth the effort? they make me question it numerous times but also assure me i do. being human is perplexing. so, to whatever it is that makes you feel undeserving or worthless. kick it’s ass. you barely listen to your parents why listen to something bound to make you feel smaller when you’re so much more? we’re all deserving of the kindness we are offered. so accept it from yourself & your close ones. it’s difficult but over time it gets easier to accept.

— mika

— leave it to the readers:

a lot of the books i’ve read based on writing, they often point out to having the readers develop an image of the characters themselves, giving a more authentic perspective.

— focusing on body language:

add the spot light to how a character is seated or behaves in a series of situations. this gives the readers a better understanding of what the character is like based off how they appear to a 3rd person.

— habits:

if say a character bites their nails, rather than saying it, describe it. bring it to the readers notice and be slightly vague. the habits of a character say a lot too, hence it must be displayed in their appearance.

— insecurities:

it’s quite often that people will hide their insecurities, display that in your characters too. like have the character always wear long sleeves because they might have bruises on their arms and they’re not comfortable with it.

— give their looks more relevance:

how is it related to the plot? how is it related to the character? what caused them to appear this way? (do not say genes.)

✦ co-relation & relevance to the plot play and even more exciting roll to the readers.

— emotions & appearance:

how do they look upset, angry, depressed, happy, afraid? show it in their clothing style, their posture. their dialogue etc.

— lastly, focusing on what sets them apart:

eg: my characters eyes change colour when her ability is used. something like that. create your characters differently, not just the same blue-grey eyes and tousled golden-brown hair. (ifyougetityougetit)

~ mika

my whole personality—

— avoid clichés :

when you’re writing a plot twist you can not expect it to diffuse into a cliché like your typical barbie movies. you need to make sure the plot twist is part of the story and not something that is cooked up and suddenly the main character wakes up and it’s a dream.

— you need to begin with giving your readers hints:

you best be discreet about this, and careful too. skilfully write your hints making sure you don’t give too much or too little away. but, why not too little? the plot twist will be more surprising right?

this is why not. ↴

— the plot twist is supposed to be unexpected, but realistic:

make your plot twist possible, your readers can’t just suddenly digest there’s a magical elven realm after like half the book being -human-human-human-dog-human-BOOM ELVES-

like, huh? no you need to hint magic, the suspense, old stories give a great hint to a plot twist.

— foreshadowing your plot twist:

you’re done giving hints in your novel now, great. now grab your readers attention by something else. you simply can not and should not give your reader the time to try and figure out what the plot twist might exactly be, where’s the fun in that? so set their attention to smth else.

eg: a thief running in one direction with a suspicious bag, but in the other direction there’s a huge fire.

✦ make sure their attention is diverted.

— the built up tension ≥ the plot twist:

(≥ : meaning greater than or equal to) if you build up great tension and your plot twist is the stupidest thing ever written, that’s what will get a reader to close your book and go nope. build up good tension, but make sure your plot twist lives up to the prior mood set.

— make sure your audience understands the plot twist:

you must make sure your readers see why it’s necessary, what caused it, how it’s part of your story now & how it’ll affect the future sequence of events.

— use lab rats:

it’s giving Dr Skinner energy.

but, your beta readers, your friends, etc. test out the plot twist on them before hand. see how they react and adjust accordingly.

~ mika

1. what makes them, them.

what makes your main character the main character, why are they the protagonist, what is the direct relationship between them and your plot.

2. their inner thoughts and how they act on them

your protagonist has emotions and thoughts right? make sure to deliver it well to the reader to create a sort of emotional relatability and comfort between the reader and the character. their actions also show the reader more of what the character is like.

3. morals & beliefs

i feel like this is very vital honestly, and i’d like to read more books where characters aren’t homophobic or total idiots because you need to understand you’re reaching out to a greater audience, what you see, what you read, influences you. and this goes both ways in terms of positives & negatives. do not use your outreach in an ill sense, therefore this is crucial when creating a character.

4. their past life

give them a back story, a difference between the current them and the past. show the change.

5. what drives them.

what motivates your character? emphasise on that make sure it’s evident to the readers.

— rin

1. developing a main idea/central theme

it’s quite self explanatory but getting you main idea jotted down (please write it, you’ll remember it better) you understand a lot about your story, it gives you an idea of the kind of characters, the setting, aesthetic of your novel etc.

2. use your two braincells for thinking of an actual plot.

it’s vital, you know, having an actual plot— & not focusing on two 16 year olds falling in love. anyways, if you have a solid plot you know what to write. so, even if you do not feel like writing you’d still be able to because you know what happens next

3. read read read 3x

reading is vital for writing, get inspired understand there’s people with more knowledge on how to write a good book. your novel is to be a good meaningful one, it doesn’t require a tag if a best seller it should be heartfelt and make sense. reading gives you an idea of how to convey your thoughts to your audience & build your skills

4. emphasis on the theme point, have a layout

ok what i do is create a mind map, i used to use it for studies initially but i realised, oh, hey— w r i t i n g ✨ highlight your main arcs, settings, events and add pointers to it.

5. pacing is a legitimate term.

your book is to be divided, your plot likewise. i’ve read books where the plot is two chapters before shit goes down, prior to that it’s omg teenagers, fun, drinking, parental trauma, boy drama— bro what? where is your plot that element is to be added through out.

pacing people, pacing.

— rin

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i wish i had a sibling sometimes, but i don’t share chocolate milk

1. distinctive personalities:

yea they’re siblings but that doesn’t mean they’re not individuals— they can even be polar opposite in personality but look the same. display your characters as separate people, with shared features as well.

2. their childhood & upbringing:

show the readers how their past, whether it be good or bad has affected their character, example: both growing up to be loud and opinionated because their parents never gave them a chance to express themselves or both siblings growing up valuing the same morals their parents did too.

3. show the readers how common situations affected them:

circling back to the past, show the readers instances of what each sibling felt in both a negative or a positive situation

4. have them irritate eachother:

there’s no one better than your siblings who know how to get on your nerves (apart from your parents maybe) /j

but yes, they have to annoy eachother to a point someone gets punched kicked or get dirty socks thrown at (ew.)

5. fights & disputes are common but at the end of the day have them care too:

they have a love-hate relationship, they’re going to go from acting like children to concerned parents in 0.2 seconds

6. give them a similar manner of expressing affection:

it’s very similar to love languages but this is more of a familial bond.

7. commonalities in the style of talking & body language:

it runs in the blood, and they’ve spend life long in each-others company they’re body to mirror or pick up certain gestures.

- rin

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internalised screaming

abrasive aggressive aimless aloof angry

anxious arrogant artificial base

belligerent blunt boastful boorish

boring callous calculating careless

caustic changeable charmless cold coarse

compulsive conceited condemnatory cowardly crafty cruel cunning deceitful

demanding dependent desperate destructive inconsiderate opinionated

detached indecisive shameless difficult

indiscreet outrageous slovenly

over-critical sly over-emotional sneaky

dishonest disloyal inflexible inhibited

paranoid sordid disobedient insecure

disruptive insensitive passive pathetic

patronising stingy stubborn dogmatic

dull enervatedinsulting intolerant stupid irrational envious irresponsible

erratic jealous extravagant judgemental

extreme killjoy facetiousfanatical

malicious finicky fixed materialistic

mean mechanical petty pessimistic petulant picky plodding pompous predatory prejudiced pretentious prim

superficial tactless temperamental tense

thoughtless truculent uncaring uncharitable flippant foolish melodramatic procrastinating unfriendly

forgetful fussy miserable puritanical

unkind moody quick-tempered unrealistic

gloomy nagging quixotic unreliable greedy narcissistic rash unruly grim

narrow-minded resentful unstable grumpy

nasty gullible naughty neglectful hateful nervous ridiculous rigid rude

ruthless untidy untrustworthy vague vain

hesitant neurotic hostile ignorant impatient impractical impulsive obnoxious sadistic vengeful

sanctimonious vindictive scornful weak-willed obsessive obstinate offhand secretive self-indulgent selfish wilful

withdrawn adaptable adventurous affable

dependable determined honest humble

affectionate agreeable ambitious

dignified diligent diplomatic disciplined discreet humorous idealistic

imaginative impartial incisive amicable

amusing articulate easy-going independent innovative insightful

balanced efficient benevolent eloquent

intuitive brave empathetic bright

encouraging inventive invulnerable

brilliant energetic keen broad-minded

enthusiastic kind capable captivating

careful exuberant fair liberal logical

faithful fearless caring charming firm

loving flexible magnanimous clever

focused mature compassionate forgiving

confident frank meticulous moderate

conscientious friendly considerate funny

modest neat courageous courteous creative curious daring decisive educated generous gentle obedient genuine objective gracious open-minded

gregarious optimistic hard-working orderly helpful organised heroic original non-authoritarian passionate

patient peaceful perceptive persistent

personable persuasive pioneering placid

plucky polished polite powerful practical precise principled profound

protective prudent punctual quick-witted

quiet rational reserved resourceful

responsible responsive scrupulous secure

sensible sensitive shy sincere skilful

sociable solid spontaneous sporting stable steadfast stoic straightforward

strong suave subtle sympathetic tasteful

thorough thoughtful tidy tolerant tough

unassuming understanding upright

vivacious warm well-read self-confident willing self-disciplined

wise selfless witty

- rin

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everything is easier to do, when broken down.

like starch is insoluble, but heating it breaks it down to glucose, which is soluble.

Well, what is a synopsis?

— a summary of a piece of writing, play etc.

[textbook definition, ew]

5 steps to writing a synopsis:

1. have your plot ready before hand.

— a synopsis is a lengthier more eye-catching version of your plot. it helps readers & publishers give your novel a second chance.

2. writing down the grounds of your story.

— the main, basic point that your story comprises of.

3. add jazz music—

— not exactly, but by this i mean add some of the features in your no el that set it apart, something that is important or intriguing.

4. refine it.

— make sure it’s easy to understand and well framed, your reader should not be confused. it’s a story, not a circus.

know what you are writing.

5. pacing, pacing & pacing.

— like i said earlier, a longer more refined form of your original plot. therefore add a pacing and make sure the sequence of events go hand in hand with everything.

— rin

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do it according to your own pacing

to begin with, what is a writing style?

— in short, it’s an authors own manner and selective way of using words!

developing a writing style is so fools game, (literally took me 4 years to polish.) therefore work your way through at your own bounds.

1. focusing on what you are, instead of what you can do.

— sounds insanely contradictory, i’m aware. however, a writing style is something that is personal to a writer, from the tone to the voice of your novel, so remind yourself that it is you who are writing, not another friend or another new york times best selling writer.

2. your voice has to be ‘flexible’

— a word which here also means adaptable. as a writer you should know how to write various genres & types, regardless of eg: fantasy or dystopian being your best. learning different styles and genres help build your characters & method of writing

3. read, read, read

- just read a lot. read a famous novel & one that mustn’t be doing as well, read a novel that you love & also one which was t if your preference but, complete reading them. take back the pros & cons from the books.

4. get into the habit of writing

— the more you write the more well-versed you are with your own style & strengths

5. skills & talents

— now, whether you maybe be a talented or a skilled writer, learn your theory.

once you’re clear with the basics of writing, english literature etc etc. you will know how to write better

— rin

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face it, we all need this—

1. clean up and organise your writing area.

— this is vital ok, do you really want to write in a place when you find tear soaked mcdonald’s fries or smth?

2. have a timing where in you work on writing

— the key is to make time for your writing, this not only helps in time management but as well as being consistent

3. keep a word count goal

— 500-1000 words per day is ideal, that depends on your writing capacity though

4. practice, practice, practice

— writing prompts & random blurbs help with enhancing your writing skills as well. (i’ve mentioned some accounts below that help with writing prompts)

5. a word or 2 a day :)

— get yourself into learning new vocabulary and how to form a sentence around it.

6. interacting with other writers

— this not only has you be a part of some sort of social environment but also let’s you in on a lot of insights from other writers

7. participating in nanowrimo

— i failed at it this year even though it was my first, but i still encourage you to go ahead with it

8. putting your mental & physical health first.

— please, that’s all.

to be able to write you need to have a clear mind and well of course your body needs to be in the state to get work done.

9. taking breaks

— i personally don’t like taking breaks but think of it as this, from the smaller picture you’re taking a step back to focus on the bigger picture

i hope these help :)))

- rin

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in no particular order

freesias: trust & friendship

irises: faith, hope, courage, intellect, royalty, wisdom and admiration.

hydrangeas: gratitude, grace and beauty.

chrysanthemums: sympathy & remembrance// purity, innocence, spirituality, loyalty, & honesty.

spider lilies: death, final goodbyes, abandonment, and bad luck.

snapdragons: purity, grace, innocence, happiness, and overall good luck

belladonnas: silence or falsehood, interpreted as a warning, a symbol of death

black dahlias: death, revenge & mourning

gladiolus: strength of character. faithfulness, sincerity, and infatuation

baby’s breath: everlasting love & innocence

dandelions: rebirth, strength and power.

sunflowers: loyalty, adoration, hope & optimism

hyacinths: jealousy & sorrow

fuchsias: liveliness, self-assurance & confidence

cherry blossoms: time of renewal, and the fleeting nature of life

magnolias: perseverance, beauty, purity, and nobility.

orchids: thoughtfulness, refinement, fertility, beauty, charm, and love

azaleas: abundance & success

crocuses: rebirth, innocence, joy, and new-beginnings

water lilies (lotus): innocence, purity, fertility, pleasure, celebration, hope, rebirth, wellness, and peace.

~ rin

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