@lova-writes / lova-writes.tumblr.com
This website is saving my LIFE rn.
I'm writing a magical realism story set in the 20s and MAN the internet as a whole is pretty unhelpful when it comes to images and inspiration for outfits. Pinterest will just straight up give you the wrong decade and Great Gatsby stills.
This is the first resource I've found that breaks things down in excruciating detail, for men and women's fashion, for rich, poor, trendy, conservative, people of colour, different countries, EVERYTHING.
I hope to god it's accurate because it's saving me a ton of time chasing fruitless loose ends anywhere else.
Desktop app for organizing your notes with tons of views and functions - works like a mini personal website.
A peaceful writing program with focus options and ambience settings - complete with typing sound effects!
A massive website for writers with tools, generators, prompts, programs, tips and services.
A free-form editable and collaborative mind-map interface, for laying all your notes out visually.
Free online writing software with goal setting and thorough tracking options, now with in-app courses as well.
Distraction-muting app that blocks attention-sucking websites for a set period of time.
Another visual board organizer for your notes and plans.
Editing app to rephrase your sentences depending on length or tone.
Pick up my 3 extensive workbooks for writers, with dozens of fully-customisable templates. These are my first ever original E-books and templates available outside of my coaching programs!
The Writer’s ToolBoox contains: The Character Bible, The Plotter’s Almanac, and The World-Builder’s Chronicle
Grab it through the [link here] or below!
This is a transcription of a compiled table by Robert Carlson. It’s neat to have a source of all these story structures together, however, reading said table is a really big struggle for me because I have certain visual struggles. As such I decided to transcribe each story structure into something more readable and visually easier to read.
(I may, at another time, choose to transcribe it all into a single table as the original source depicts.)
Transcriber’s Note: This is list is very… white, and thus not an ethnically diverse representation of story structures.
Transcriber’s Note: This is also known as the Hero’s Journey Story structure
Personal Thoughts
Overall, despite the lack of cultural diversity when it comes to these story structures, the list gives a very interesting food for thought when it comes to story structure, including some which wouldn’t be considered story structures in the first place. It’s a very useful list for expanding one’s knowledge of story structure and flexibility into adapting it to one’s own story.
I might in the future compile my own personal list of story structures with more cultural diversity and
Putting this here in case other writers (and people in general) don't know about emotion wheels. This shit is helpful on so many levels.
A recent search for a specific type of site to help me build new characters led me down a rabbit hole. Normally, that would make me much less productive, but I have found a treasure trove of websites for writers.
There are a few different places you can use to create a picture of something entirely new. I love this site for making character pictures as references, instead of stock photos or whatever pops up on Google Images.
thispersondoesnotexist: every time you reload the page, this site generates a headshot of someone who doesn't exist. This is great if you're thinking about a character's personality or age and don't have specifics for their facial features yet.
Night Cafe: this is an AI art generator that takes your text prompt and generates an image for it. I tried it for various scenery, like "forest" or "cottage." It takes a minute for your requested photo to load, but no more than maybe five for the program to finish the picture.
Art Breeder: this website has endless images of people, places, and general things. Users can blend photos to create something new and curious visitors can browse/download those images without creating an account. (But if you do want to make an account to create your own, it's free!)
You might prefer to set a story in a real-life environment so you can reference that place's weather, seasons, small-town vibe, or whatever you like. If that's the case, try:
MapCrunch: the homepage generates a new location each day and gives the location/GPS info in the top left of the screen. To see more images from previous days, hit "Gallery" in the top left.
Atlas Obscura: hover over or tap the "Places" tab, then hit "Random Place." A new page will load with a randomly generated location on the planet, provide a Google Maps link, and tell you a little bit about the place.
Random World Cities: this site makes randomly selected lists of global cities. Six appear for each search, although you'll have to look them up to find more information about each place. You can also use the site to have it select countries, US cities or US states too.
Thesauruses are great, but these websites have some pretty cool perspectives on finding just the right words for stories.
Describing Words: tell this website which word you want to stop repeating and it will give you tons of alternative words that mean the same thing. It typically has way more options than other sites I use.
Reverse Dictionary: type what you need a word for in Reverse Dictionary's search box and it will give you tons of words that closely match what you want. It also lists the words in order of relevancy, starting with a word that most accurately describes what you typed. (There's also an option to get definitions for search results!)
Tip of My Tongue: this website is phenomenal. It lets you search for that word you can't quite place by a letter in it, the definition, what it sounds like, or even its scrambled letters. A long list of potential options will appear on the right side of the screen for every search.
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Hope this helps when you need a hand during next writing session 💛
For all you worldbuilders out there, I don't know if you know, but r/worldbuilding on Reddit made this Google Doc with a ton of resources they gathered. Thought that might help some of you.
For all you worldbuilders out there, I don't know if you know, but r/worldbuilding on Reddit made this Google Doc with a ton of resources they gathered. Thought that might help some of you.
If you enjoy my posts and can afford it, I would greatly appreciate it if you donated to my new ko-fi page! Each of these posts represents multiple hours of unpaid labor. I love writing for this blog, but I’m also an underpaid 20-something trying to stay afloat. I’ve made this master post of every essay I’ve written for this blog as a way to show my appreciation in advance of any support. If you donate, to further show my gratitude and appreciation, I’ll take requests for essay topics in the ‘messages of support.’
If you can’t afford to donate via ko-fi, another great way to show your support is simply by reblogging posts that you find useful and helping my blog reach new writers.
Thanks so much!
Just about every writer out there has several go-to websites that they use when it comes to their writing. Be it for creativity, writer’s block, to put you in the mood or general writing help. These are mine and I listed them in hopes that you’ll find something that you’ll like or find something useful. I’ve also included some websites that sounded interesting, but I haven’t tried out yet.
for all you writers out there:
donjon has tons of generators. for calendars. for demographics of a country and city. for names (both fantastical and historical) of people, nations, magics, etc.
this site lets you generate/design a city, allowing you to choose size, if you want a river or coast, walls around it, a temple, a main keep, etc.
this twitter, uncharted atlas, tweets generated maps of fantasy regions every hour.
and vulgar allows you to create a language, based on linguistic and grammatical structures!!! go international phonetic alphabet!!!
A small list of random ass sites I’ve found useful when writing:
Adding to this since I’m working on a shifter au one-shot:
More:
Even more:
The bruises one is everything I never knew I needed.
Beginning a Story: New to Writing Advice for Teen Writers Getting Better at Writing How to Perfect Your Writing Creating the Perfect Writing Space Finding the Time to Write Beginning a Novel Figuring Out a Plot How to Give Your Story a Purpose Resolving Plot Points Building a Story Off a Loose Timeline Outlining a Scene How to Tell if a Scene is Necessary Outlining and Planning a Series The Series Arc vs Each Book’s Arc Brainstorming for Ideas Finding Focus During a Storm of Ideas Turning Ideas into a Story Finding an Entry Point Into Your Story The Opening Line The Opening Scene Introducing Characters Where to Post Fiction Online Concerned About Plagiarism When Posting Story Online What is NaNoWriMo? NaNoWriMo Tips Collaborating With Another Writer Coming Up with a Title
Character Development: Character Authenticity Recognizing a Flat Character Fleshing Out a Flat Character Choosing a Personality Different Kinds of Antagonists Strong Female Protagonists Name Resources How to Write a Witty Character Tricks for Visualizing Your Character Figuring Out Who Your Characters Are Creating a Truly Evil Villain Ethnicity and Skin Tone Literal Skin Tones: An Experiment To Kill or Not Kill a Character Alternatives to Character Worksheets Finding Your Character’s Voice Keeping Character Personalities Separate and Unique Good and Bad Reasons to Kill a Character Emotionally Muted Characters Levels of Friendship
Copyright: Referencing Other Works in Fiction Using Real People as Characters Fiction Based on Original Works Plagiarism & Sharing Your Story Online Acceptable Borrowing Description: Describing Skin Tones About Describing Ethnicity The Great Ethnicity Debate How to Make Simple Writing More Vivid Describing Physical Appearance Writing Fight Scenes and Elemental Magic Horror by Daylight Horror in Darkness Describing Actions Describing Clothing and Appearance Fight Scene Resources Battlefield Scene Resources Battlefield Aftermath Avoiding the Info Dump Give Your Story a Darker Tone Weaving Details Into the Story Describing Architecture Describing Everyday Settings
Editing: Four Drafts Minimum Ways to Tighten Up Your Writing Expanding the Word Count Cutting Down the Word Count Late Stage Suggestions Different Types of Editing Getting Feedback Self-Editing After First Draft Finding a Beta Reader Finding a Critique Partner Grammar & Style: Writing Concise Sentences Motivation: Getting Back to Writing What to Do When Your Story Stalls Moving Forward When You’ve Lost Interest (In Your Story) Finding Inspiration When You’re Stuck for an Idea Take a “Vacation” to Re-Charge Your Creativity How to Get Excited About Your Story Again Beating Writer’s Block Frustrated with Writing Quality Getting Better at Writing Staying Motivated Struggling to Get the Ball Rolling Too Stressed to Write Experiencing Enough Shushing Your Inner Editor During the First Draft
Plot and Story Structure:
How to Develop a Plot Plot and Story Structure The Prologue Should I Cut My Prologue? Writing a Dramatic Ending Cliffhanger Endings Chapter Titles and Endings Incorporating Back Story Publishing: Where to Begin Typical Word Counts Contests, cover letters, and Query Letters Posting Novel or Sections on Blog E-Books Agents (Everything You Need to Know) Self-Publishing vs Traditional Publishing Building a Writing Portfolio Keeping Image Private A Guide to Self-Publishing Getting Published Abroad Research: Research Tips How Much Research is Enough WQA’s Guide to Internet Research Romance: How to Avoid Forced Romantic Sub-Plot Kissing Scenes Sexual Tension Writing Romance without Experience Subtle Signs of Love Getting to Know Your Neighbor Guide to Love Triangles Delicate and Relevant Sex Scenes Love at First Sight and the Stages of Love Using Timelines to Pace Romantic Relationships
Story Elements:
Tone and Theme Suspense, Climax, and Ending Conflict and Tension Foreshadowing Symbolism Making a Point Without Tongue-Wagging Writer Responsibility Accounting for Lost Time in Scene Transitions Flashbacks Alternatives to Flashbacks
World Building and Setting:
Writing Process: How I Plan Drafts Timelines Organizational Tools Budgeting Your Time
Whgskl. Okay.
PSA to all you fantasy writers because I have just had a truly frustrating twenty minutes talking to someone about this: it’s okay to put mobility aids in your novel and have them just be ordinary.
Like. Super okay.
I don’t give a shit if it’s high fantasy, low fantasy or somewhere between the lovechild of Tolkein meets My Immortal. It’s okay to use mobility devices in your narrative. It’s okay to use the word “wheelchair”. You don’t have to remake the fucking wheel. It’s already been done for you.
And no, it doesn’t detract from the “realism” of your fictional universe in which you get to set the standard for realism. Please don’t try to use that as a reason for not using these things.
There is no reason to lock the disabled people in your narrative into towers because “that’s the way it was”, least of all in your novel about dragons and mermaids and other made up creatures. There is no historical realism here. You are in charge. You get to decide what that means.
Also:
“Depiction of Chinese philosopher Confucius in a wheelchair, dating to ca. 1680. The artist may have been thinking of methods of transport common in his own day.”
“The earliest records of wheeled furniture are an inscription found on a stone slate in China and a child’s bed depicted in a frieze on a Greek vase, both dating between the 6th and 5th century BCE.[2][3][4][5]The first records of wheeled seats being used for transporting disabled people date to three centuries later in China; the Chinese used early wheelbarrows to move people as well as heavy objects. A distinction between the two functions was not made for another several hundred years, around 525 CE, when images of wheeled chairs made specifically to carry people begin to occur in Chinese art.[5]”
“In 1655, Stephan Farffler, a 22 year old paraplegic watchmaker, built the world’s first self-propelling chair on a three-wheel chassis using a system of cranks and cogwheels.[6][3] However, the device had an appearance of a hand bike more than a wheelchair since the design included hand cranks mounted at the front wheel.[2]
The invalid carriage or Bath chair brought the technology into more common use from around 1760.[7]
In 1887, wheelchairs (“rolling chairs”) were introduced to Atlantic City so invalid tourists could rent them to enjoy the Boardwalk. Soon, many healthy tourists also rented the decorated “rolling chairs” and servants to push them as a show of decadence and treatment they could never experience at home.[8]
In 1933 Harry C. Jennings, Sr. and his disabled friend Herbert Everest, both mechanical engineers, invented the first lightweight, steel, folding, portable wheelchair.[9] Everest had previously broken his back in a mining accident. Everest and Jennings saw the business potential of the invention and went on to become the first mass-market manufacturers of wheelchairs. Their “X-brace” design is still in common use, albeit with updated materials and other improvements. The X-brace idea came to Harry from the men’s folding “camp chairs / stools”, rotated 90 degrees, that Harry and Herbert used in the outdoors and at the mines.[citation needed]
“But Joy, how do I describe this contraption in a fantasy setting that wont make it seem out of place?”
“It was a chair on wheels, which Prince FancyPants McElferson propelled forwards using his arms to direct the motion of the chair.”
“It was a chair on wheels, which Prince EvenFancierPants McElferson used to get about, pushed along by one of his companions or one of his many attending servants.”
“But it’s a high realm magical fantas—”
“It was a floating chair, the hum of magical energy keeping it off the ground casting a faint glow against the cobblestones as {CHARACTER} guided it round with expert ease, gliding back and forth.”
“But it’s a stempunk nov—”
“Unlike other wheelchairs he’d seen before, this one appeared to be self propelling, powered by the gasket of steam at the back, and directed by the use of a rudder like toggle in the front.”
Give. Disabled. Characters. In. Fantasy. Novels. Mobility. Aids.
If you can spend 60 pages telling me the history of your world in innate detail down to the formation of how magical rocks were formed, you can god damn write three lines in passing about a wheelchair.
Signed, your editor who doesn’t have time for this ableist fantasy realm shit.
Some options for other disabilities and aids:
“Jack had an unusual pair of sticks, unlike anything Jill had seen before; they were much like canes, but rather than ending in a knot or handle they continued up into a pair of bracelets, held together round his wrists by a cunning slide mechanism. They kept him, she noted, quite sure of foot even on the steep ground.” (wrist braces; cerebral palsy)
“Fandir wore a ring around her ear. It looked something like a fancy collar, its edges tipped outward as though forming a funnel, and when she was spoken to she turned it in the direction of the speaker.” (hearing aid, based off antique “hearing trumpets”)
“Victor’s left arm was a marvel of the modern age–held together with a thousand miniscule steel plates and ten thousand tiny gears, wearing a small brazier, much like a jacket cuff, to fire the steam that moved its mechanical fingers.” (prosthetic arm, steampunk)
“Sasha carried one of the most unusual canes Mara had ever seen: it was longer than might be considered useful to someone her size, and hollow, its walls so thin it surely couldn’t hold her weight. Mara watched as Sasha swept the cane ahead of her. At first she thought Sasha was merely clearing a path, but then the cane struck a large rock, and Sasha neatly sidestepped it having never been told it was there. Ah, that solved the mystery, Mara thought: the hollow stick vibrated in Sasha’s hands when it struck, and its sound told her what danger she might face.” (white cane, blindness)
“Sibatyn clapped his hands over his eyes. ‘Here,’ said Yanit, ‘put your scarf over your eyes and take my arm. I can lead you until the lightning is over.’“ (avoiding flashing lights, photosensitive epilepsy)
“‘She grows quite ill on bread, even Rosie’s best,’ Sam lamented. ‘Can’t keep a bit of weight on her. It isn’t proper, for a hobbit.’ Gandalf nodded. ‘Have you considered, perhaps, feeding her on Elf-bread? She may take well to grains not often found in the Shire.’“ (special diet, Celiac disease, food allergies)
I literally had to think harder about what disabilities I wanted to represent here than I did about how to represent them. It isn’t hard. You have no excuse.
This just in: Archaeologists and Historians have discovered that disabled people were not, in fact, invented in the 21st century, making “but it’s not realistic!!1!” no longer a viable excuse for ableism. More at 10:00.
Of all the ways to travel in fantasy and historical novels, there are two favoured ones: horses and ships. But I covered the horses already so here we have some ship terminology and kinds of ships.
Most ships would have compartments inside the hull and underneath the deck.
Captain
When we think of captains we imagine them as blackhearted slave drivers (something akin to managers in the customer service industry) but on further research you will find that is not true. There are two kinds of Captains you find in history. Pirate captains and Legitimate Captains. Pirate captains were elected by their merit in battle and dedication to the crew. They were considered equal to the crew, only taking full charge during raids and battles. In the Navy or any legal-bound ship, captains were selected by rank and wealth. There was no equality between captain and crew as in pirate ships. Legal ships were Capitalists and the Pirates were Democratic.
First Mate
First Mate is the captain's deputy. They act as captain when the captain cannot. This was mainly seen in Navies and merchant ships as Pirates usually placed their quartermaster as their deputies.
Quartermaster
The Quartermaster was in charge of ensuring that the ship ran smoothly, rather like the ship's HR manager. The Quartermaster was in charge of supplies and had certain powers such as being able to punish the crew for minor infractions.
Sailing Master
These were officers in charge of piloting the ship. They would have to be educated enough to read a map and was a much desired position because it was a fair paying job. Pirates usually kidnapped sailing masters from ships they attacked to use aboard their own ships.
Gunner
Gunners were the overseers of any many qualified to load and fire guns. They were in charge of aiming cannons and making sure the crew were safely using guns. Most the guns were loaded by young boys called powder monkeys.
Boatswain
Boatswains or junior officers would act as supervisors, watching over the crew as they did their duties. If things were not going well they reported to the captain or quartermaster to punish the crew.
Surgeons
Surgeons handled any diseases and wounds. Since being at sea limited the amount of medicine available. Most ship's surgeons were forced to cut off limbs to avoid infection pike gangrene. Surgeons may not always be found on ships. Cooks or carpenters were often pressed to do amputations: meat was meat and cutting was cutting.
Cooks
All ships needed somebody to cook. Navies and merchant ships would often have trained cooks while on pirate ships it was just a crewmember who was handy in the kitchen.
(Not a complete list, may post more later.)
Brig- A brig is the ship that one most thinks of when you think of a ship. The brig is a large vessel, set with a pair of square-rigged masts. Brigs were fast ships and highly maneuverable. They were used as merchant ships and warships.
Galley- The galley is propelled via oars. The hull is long and slender and most of them featured larger sails. Galleys often were rowed by slaves and used in war.
Galleon- Galleons were large ships, built with multiple decks, carrying three or more masts with square raised stern. The Galleon was usually rigged with square sails on the fore-mast and main-masts.
Caravel- The caravel was a small ship with triangular sails, famed for its manoeuvrability and speed.
Longship- The longships were the ships of the Vikings. They were slender ships, narrow. They were able to keep afloat in shallow waters as well as the deep sea. Longships were able to reverse quickly, a very important skill. The longship was a warship, a raider's ship propelled by oars.
Carrack- the carrack was a large ship, often built with mass cargo holds making the most popular ship to go on long voyages on. The carrack had three or four masts.
Cog- This ship was a large vessel, the hull wide and large. The ship is propelled by a great single sail flown from a tall mast.
Junk- The junk or Chinese junk was a kind of coastal or river ship used as merchant ships, pleasure ships and sometimes houseboats. They are small ships and made with battened sails rather resembling wings.
Trireme- the trireme was a slender ship set with three banks of oars pulled by one man each. The trireme had a concave hull and usually had an underwater ram at the prow of the ship.
I hope this is helpful for you!
(Also, check my blog if you want to!)
Doc what’s the key difference between hangers, sabres, messers, and falchions? Blade type? Curvature?
This question comes up quite a bit, and I’m sure there are some folks out there who will want to argue some of the finer points of this rather quickly dashed-off response, but here goes:
Hanger: A somewhat informal and very broad category that generally refers to a type of short sabre, like a cutlass. The “hanger” designation originates (I believe) in Britain, referring to the cross-belt and frog system for wearing it, but hunting swords throughout Europe and the Americas are also often called hangers. Blade length and guard are variable. Picture below is a modern production hanger by Old Dominion Forge.
Sabre/Saber: A single-edged, one-handed weapon typically longer than a hanger, carried by cavalry soldiers and by officers of infantry and artillery. The British, I believe, define a sabre by its blade shape, while the French define by the hilt/guard shape. The example below is French (18th c.), but would meet both British and French definitions.
Messer: Messer in German just means “knife”. There are all kinds of different messers for all kinds of uses. These are also often one-handed (not always), and single-edged. The Lange messer, Grosse messer, and Kriegsmesser are the most common martial forms, and although blade styles can be quite variable, including shape and length, all are distinguished by a knife-style handle, rather than a sword-style handle (see chart below of the Elmslie messer/falchion typology). Example below from Tod’s Workshop.
Falchion: Like a messer, wide variety in terms of blade shape and length, but always single-edged. The distinguishing feature is the sword-style hilt assembly (again, see the Elmslie messer/falchion typology chart). Example below is 15th c. Italian.
Zoom in to the typology below and you can see how interchangeable falchions (F) and messers (M) can be – it really is the handle/hilt assemble that makes the difference here.
