i dont consider myself a 'fashion guru' by any means but one thing i will say is guys you dont need to know the specific brand an item you like is - you need to know what the item is called. very rarely does a brand matter, but knowing that pair of pants is called 'cargo' vs 'boot cut' or the names of dress styles is going to help you find clothes you like WAAAYYYY faster than brand shopping

this also goes for aesthetic or -core titles. 'y2k tank top' is going to get you resellers and fast fashion brands advertising to people looking to meet a current trend. 'thin strap crop tank top' is going to get you a diverse group of results and not upcharge you to hell and back

additionally, shop second hand when you can, second hand and thrift sites typically organize clothes by the cut and color. theyll be more affordable than a depop seller curating you a style to sell you

useful terminology for different kinds of clothing shapes :)

Useful writing reference

the japanese “-ne?” particle and the british slang term “innit” serve the same function

Standard English: It’s cold, isn’t it?

Japanese: Samui desu ne?

British: It’s fuckin’ freezin’, innit?

i have to do everything around here

i hate this cause i did japanese for like a year and this explains the use of the -ne particle WAYYYY better than my teachers ever did. it took me ages to comprehend what this post makes abundantly clear.

my teachers: its like a, a little rise at the end of a sentence, to show that you are seeking a response, while not warranting the -ka particle which would make it a proper question.

me: ok. i guess i get that??

this post: its like saying “innit?” 

me: oh. oh no.

fun fact: afaik, "-ne" was inherited from the Portuguese settlers/priests that stayed in Japan in the 16th century. It comes from "né?", which the contraction of "não é?", "isn't it?".

It's LITERALLY "innit".

oh so like "eh" in canadian

*un-Babels your Tower*

Here we say "i'dn'tit?" Which is the same as innit just no one ever spells it out

In Afrikaans, we literally say "né"...holy shit, language is cool

10 Non-Lethal Injuries to Add Pain to Your Writing

While lethal injuries often take center stage, non-lethal injuries can create lasting effects on characters, shaping their journeys in unique ways. If you need a simple way to make your characters feel pain during a scene, here are some ideas: 

Looking For More Writing Tips And Tricks? 

Check out the rest of Quillology with Haya; a blog dedicated to writing and publishing tips for authors! Instagram Tiktok

no words can describe how much i love Kaos.

it's the most accurate adaptation of greek myths i've ever seen (and yes, i believe it's better than percy jackson even if it has my whole heart).

as an autistic person with a greek mythology special interest, i am obsessing over the care for the details they put

SPOILERS FOR EVERYONE WHO HASN'T SEEN IT

example: Pasiphae, Ariadne's mother, was in the myths the mother of the Minotaur because, to say it very poorly, she fucked a sacred cow. So Ariadne's brother was the Minotaur. And she also had a brother named Glaucus (i have to research if they're twins or not)

another example? i have plenty of those

Caeneus being trans, the whole Troy thing (which i adored because i think it's both heartbreaking and a smart as fuck way to tell the myth), the Seven Trojans in the maze, Orpheus being a singer and convincing Persephone to let Eurydice go because "she likes his songs", the scene in the last episode where outside the underworld Eurydice begs Orpheus to look at her, Hades and his wife being the only ones with fucking logical thinking in their whole family, even the fact that everyone is gay it's somehow myth accurate

the only thing that i really don't like is the fact that they made Hera cheat on Zeus, she's the goddess of marriage and because of that she has never and would never cheat on her husband, even if she clearly doesn't like Zeus (still, i loved the way she behaved, "you're the king but i am the queen" was PERFECT to me)

so yeah basically go watch Kaos because it's neat and i love it and greek mythology and yeah

120 ULTIMATE LIST OF CHARACTER FLAWS. Writers save this!

1. Moral Flexibility - Adapts their ethics to fit the situation, often justifying questionable actions as necessary.

2. Cognitive Dissonance - Holds two conflicting beliefs or values and struggles to reconcile them, leading to inner turmoil.

3. Overempathy - Feels others’ emotions too intensely, leading to burnout or an inability to make objective decisions.

4. Intellectual Arrogance - Dismisses others’ ideas as inferior, believing their own intellect is superior.

5. Chronic Overthinking - Analyzes situations to the point of paralysis, unable to take decisive action.

There's wholesome ships and there's toxic ships, but I'd like to coin 'sodium chloride ships', where the individuals involved are both horrible and dangerous people, but somehow being together renders them surprisingly well-adjusted (if a little salty).

The opposite of this is a 'coke and mentos' dynamic, where the two people are generally chill and likeable but being around each other makes them both wild and chaotic.

Here's the breakdown:

FOURTH WING & IRON FLAME by Rebecca Yarros | Book Review by a Fantasy Author

“omg you’re so creative. how do you get your ideas” i hallucinate a single scene in the taco bell drive thru and then spend 13 months trying to write it

You can tell by the reaction people have to Penelope asking Colin to kiss her whether they ever experienced being a wallflower/insecure fat girl at a party or not.

Because you say it's pathetic, I say it's relatable, no matter how desperate it may sound. If you've never had your insecurity eat you up from the inside (but also the outside, as Portia literally told Penelope that she was delusional for thinking she was gonna find a husband in her third season out) to the point you genuinely, wholeheartedly believe no one will ever love you unless you physically change, then obviously the scene is off to you.

But Pen literally told Colin she felt stupid for thinking she's gonna find a husband (she just started believing what the ton and her mother said) and that she knows no one would want to kiss her. And for a romance girl like her, do you think the thought of never having a kiss, never experiencing that passion, would be easy to bear? I can so relate to being the most romantic of the bunch but also being the loneliest and aching for physical and emotional romantic love.

She is so vulnerable and so real in that moment but y'all gotta bitch about it because it doesn't make sense to you. It doesn't make sense to me either because she's gorgeous, but that's the thing - no one ever told her she's gorgeous and actually meant it. And even if they did, there must be 10 more people who didn't that keep that insecurity in her, specifically her sisters and her mother.

Nicola said this one was for the wallflowers, and it truly is, so if you find scenes like this cringe, you just don't relate to the character enough to feel it and recall moments when you had the same thoughts as her.

Season 3 is for the overthinkers. The ones who always had the crush but were never the crushes. The ones who only see flaws when they look in the mirror. The ones who throw themselves into books because those worlds treat them better than life ever has. The ones who are just so goddamn tired.

How to Read Like a Writer

To Comma or Not to Comma

THE CORRECT USE OF THE COMMA WHEN JOINING CLAUSES

Should you use a comma before and? What about before yet, then or if? This is one of the trickiest rules of punctuation to apply correctly: whether to use a comma when joining clauses. But do not fear; I am here to help by providing eight tips on this very subject.

Because this is a complex topic, I’ve created a handy flow chart to assist you. You can download it for free, and I would recommend having it at hand as you read through this post.

You can also listen to this post on YouTube or read it on the Gentle Sea Editing website.

Tips for Self-Editing Your Novel