Writing Prompt #296: Write This Story

☛ GET INSIDE YOUR CHARACTER'S HEAD! aka The Excessively Detailed Headcanon Meme

Ask a question, any question! Because I have nothing better to do than to answer your questions. … No, really. I don’t. D:

1: What does their bedroom look like?

2: Do they have any daily rituals?

3: Do they exercise, and if so, what do they do? How often?

4: What would they do if they needed to make dinner but the kitchen was busy?

5: Cleanliness habits (personal, workspace, etc.)

6: Eating habits and sample daily menu?

7: Favorite way to waste time? Feelings surrounding wasting time?

8: Favorite indulgence and feelings surrounding indulging

9: Makeup?

10: Neuroses? Do they recognize them as such?

11: Intellectual pursuits?

12: Favorite book genre?

13: Sexual Orientation? And, regardless of own orientation, thoughts on sexual orientation in general?

14: Physical abnormalities? (Both visible and not, including injuries/disabilities, long-term illnesses, food-intolerances, etc.)

15: Biggest and smallest short term goal?

16: Biggest and smallest long term goal?

17: Preferred mode of dress and rituals surrounding dress

18: Favorite beverage?

19: What do they think about before falling asleep at night?

20: Childhood illnesses? Any interesting stories behind them

21: Turn-ons? Turn-offs?

22: Given a blank piece of paper, a pencil, and nothing to do, what would happen?

23: How organized are they? How does this organization or disorganization manifest in their everyday life?

24: Is there one subject of study that they excel at? Or do they even care about intellectual pursuits at all?

25: How do they see themselves 5 years from today?

26: Do they have any plans for the future? Any contingency plans if things don’t work out?

27: What is their biggest regret?

28: Who do they see as their best friend? Their worst enemy?

29: Reaction to sudden extrapersonal disaster (e.g. The house is on fire! What do they do?)

30: Reaction to sudden intrapersonal disaster (e.g. close family member suddenly dies)

31: Most prized possession?

32: Thoughts on material possessions in general?

33: Concept of home and family?

34: Thoughts on privacy? (Are they a private person, or are they prone to ‘TMI’?)

35: What activities do they enjoy, but consider to be a waste of time?

36: What makes them feel guilty?

37: Are they more analytical or more emotional in their decision-making?

38: What recharges them when they’re feeling drained?

39: Would you say that they have a superiority-complex? Inferiority-complex? Neither?

40: How misanthropic are they?

41: Hobbies?

42: How far did they get in formal education? What are their views on formal education vs self-education?

43: Religion?

44: Superstitions or views on the occult?

45: Do they express their thoughts through words or deeds?

46: If they were to fall in love, who (or what) is their ideal?

47: How do they express love?

48: If this person were to get into a fist fight, what is their fighting style like?

49: Is this person afraid of dying? Why or why not?

101 ways to say i love you

firstly, tysm for 101 (actualy 103, haha) followers! when i started this account i honestly had no intentions of having so many of you lovely people take interest in me, but i'm very grateful nonetheless! this is my gift to you all, and, again, thank you!

i've seen a few other posts like this, but i wanted to go ahead and make my own! this is going to be completely different from the others that i have seen as well, so there's a lesser chance of duplicates for those of you who really enjoy these!

"You don't have to do this alone."

"I won't let you do this alone."

"I'll always be by your side."

"I'll get that for you."

"Let me bandage you up."

"I want you to be a part of my future."

"Here. You look hungry."

"Come here, I'll carry you."

"I fed your pets while you were away."

"Is something wrong?"

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

"I have an extra ticket... Would you like to go with me?"

"I saw you looking at it last time we were in the store together, so I got it for you."

"Stay with me."

"Thank you for making me smile."

"Your smile is beautiful. I want to see it more often..."

"I want to kiss you."

"You have a beautiful soul."

"No... No! Come on, I can't lose you!"

"You make me feel safe."

"Don't let me go."

"Give me a brush. I'll fix your hair for you."

"I want you, and only you."

"Your hands are too cold, I'll warm them up."

"Kiss me."

"I know you don't feel great, so let's stay home today, okay?"

"You're so beautiful."

"Hold me. Please."

"You're family."

"Marry me."

"I took care of the laundry already."

"Go back to sleep, (term of endearment)."

"I'll protect you."

"Take care of yourself."

"Let's take a break and relax."

"You're the first person I think about when I wake up."

"You smell so nice."

"Let's move in together."

"I wanna know everything about you."

"Don't leave yet."

"Let me see your scars..."

"I remember when we first met..."

"Here's your medication."

"I have a surprise for you."

"I bought this for you. It's in your favorite color..."

"Your skin is so soft."

"I would do anything for you."

"I'll help bring in the groceries."

"Last night your feet were really cold, so I found some of your socks and put them on you."

"I would go anywhere with you."

"You're cold, take my jacket."

"I promise."

"You're so golden."

"No one has ever made me feel like this."

"I missed you... a lot."

"Come back soon."

"I got us matching shirts!"

"I know you can do it."

"I'll never forget you."

"Wait!"

"I've waited so long for this..."

"You look like something's bothering you... You can talk to me if you need to."

"We make the best team."

"I'll hurt whoever did this to you."

"You didn't deserve that... You deserve so much better."

"I want you to meet my family."

"I want to start a family of our own..."

"Your back is so tense. Would you like a massage?"

"This is my favorite picture of us."

"Don't hurt yourself again..."

"You should be more careful."

"Hey, your favorite movie is on. I'll get the popcorn."

"You've never let me down."

"I saw that you were almost out of shampoo, so I went and got some for you."

"You're overworking yourself... Please take a break."

"I named my little plant after you."

"It's an honor just to know you like this."

"I didn't make you uncomfortable, did I?"

"I never imagined that someone's heartbeat could sound so amazing."

"What was your childhood like?"

"You looked so cute when you were little."

"You look just like your mom/dad."

"What happened to you?!"

"Does it hurt?"

"I'm sorry."

"I love waking up next to you."

"Don't be scared. I'm right here."

"Have you been drinking enough water?"

"We can look out for each other."

"I'd like to take you on vacation one day, just the two of us."

"Are you sure you're ready?"

"You're so funny."

"Do you want to help me fix dinner tonight?"

"You don't have to pay me back."

"No, you're sick. You're not doing chores until you're better."

"Your voice is so relaxing."

"Text me when you get home safely."

"I found this meme that I think you'll like. Wanna see it?"

"Can I give you a hug? You look upset."

"I'm yours."

"I love you."

Hey, guys! I’ve noticed that there are a lot of artists who struggle with “same face syndrome,” or the tendency to draw all their characters with the same face. To help you combat this, I’ve created two different challenges!

The first (pink) one is mainly geared towards artists who are struggling with same face syndrome and want to start branching out. It covers topics that a lot of artists struggle with when drawing faces, such as age, weight, and face shapes. It’s not super specific, so you still have some wiggle room.

The second (yellow) one is a bit harder and is mainly geared towards artists who want to really challenge themselves to diversify their faces. Personally, I think this one’s the most fun to work with despite it being more difficult. Chances are with this one, you’re not going to be drawing a whole bunch of beautiful people. You don’t have to roll for every option on this one either.  A certain combination of rolls from 10/13 of the options may give you a great character idea, and that’s great!

I hope you guys enjoy these! I’d love for you to send me your drawings if you do one (or both) of them.

Tips On How to Write Characters with Wings (For both fanfic writers and original content writers)

So I’ve been reading a lot of fics lately where people are either

A) Putting wings onto canon characters

B) Making OCs with wings

So I decided that, with the influx of people who are writing winged characters (and therefore the influx of errors that come with writing winged characters), I’d make a little thing to help you slap a pair of wings onto anyone!

This is also a bit personal, too, because the MC in my upcoming novel has wings!

1. Know that there are a lot of types of wings to choose from

Part of being a writer is the desire to take something (whether it be a pre-existing work or an idea in your head) and make it into your own. So, instead of just going with the classic bird wings, why not spice it up a bit? If your character is an angel, you certainly don’t have to stick to the classic depictions of angel wings. Why not give them butterfly wings or dragonfly wings?

Here’s a small list of different types of wings to choose from:

Bat wings

Beetle wings

Bird wings

Butterfly/Moth wings

Dragonfly wings

Note that these wings are for animals who can fly. There are also animals who can “fly” that actually glide, such as sugar gliders and flying squirrels.

Yeah, so the options are pretty limited, but feel free to make up your own kinds of wings that aren’t necessarily based on a pre-existing creature’s wings!

2. Be familiar with the anatomy of your character’s wings and their limits

If your wings are completely unique, draw them out. A diagram or picture is key when it comes to things like description. I’m not gonna tell you what everything does and give you Animal Wing Anatomy 101, that’s for you to research. Know that there are different types of wings and that they have different uses, strengths, and weaknesses.

3. Never use the full extent of your research! 

Surprise, surprise!

“But wait, Maddy!” you cry, writing utensil in hand and poised to stab me. “I thought we were supposed to were supposed to show our research!”

Well, you are. Technically that’s not wrong. But, readers don’t want to know ALL of it. Over-described wings are sometimes worse than under-described wings; what sucks more than not knowing what a character’s wings look like is having to look up wing anatomy in the middle of the chapter!

Only use the most basic of vocabulary when it comes to describing the parts of the wing. Most of the time, you just have to say “bat wing” or “feathery wing” and the readers get the basic idea. (Like seriously, do you think the readers know what a dactylopatagium brevis is????? It’s a part of skin on a bat’s wing btw)

4. Don’t bring your character’s wings up only when they’re needed!!!!

Unless your character’s wings can fade away when they’re not needed, wings are a 100% real, 24/7 thing! It’s bothersome when writers mention the wings in one chapter and then only bring them up when there’s a daring escape that needs to be performed! Most of the time, I forget that the characters even have wings at all!

There is also the fact that wings aren’t all pros and no cons. If they’re functional, they’re probably big, and if they’re muscular, they’re probably bulky. If your character is clumsy, they’ll probably knock things over constantly, and if they’re not clumsy, they’ll still knock things over constantly.

Your wings are two (or four, or five, or six quintillion) extra appendages; they’re a part of your character! You don’t have to spend every second reminding the readers that they’re there, but don’t go long stretches of time without even mentioning them.

5. Your character’s wings can be a good way to indicate their mood or to provide for that little bit of description that you think you make be lacking

Why wouldn’t you want to describe the wings? I mean, you don’t want to describe every minute detail over and over again, but it’ll boost your word count a lot more than you think. They can also be used to convey your character’s feelings without explicitly telling the reader! It’s like a new set of facial expressions!

See? You can tell he’s wary and ready to fight from the movement of his wings! Also he’s crouching next to a dead body but that’s not relevant right now

Here’s a list of wing language (?) that you can incorporate into your story that will not only increase your word count, but will also add to the sustenance of your story!

Nervous

Twitch

Flutter

Ripple

Fold tightly

Fidget

Flap

Angry

Flare

Bristle

Fluff up

Ripple

Beat

Raise up

Snap open

Happy

Flutter

Curl up

Ripple

Wave

Flap

During Battle

Bludgeon

Smack

Bat

Clout

Whack

Kick someone’s legs out from under them

Snap someones neck (only for muscular wings like bat and bird wings)

Problems that may come with having wings

Poke out from under blankets and let all of the cold air in

Stepped on

Get pins and needles from being folded for too long

Squashed on chairs/ in beds/ in crowded hallways

Vulnerable in battle

Molting (for bird wings)

Hope this helped!!!

“The walls looked ready to take their secrets to the grave”

Uncommon Questions for OCs and their creators:

Send me a # (questions for OCs) or a letter (questions for creators) and I’ll answer

QUESTIONS FOR YOUR OCs

What’s the maximum amount of time your character can sit still with nothing to do?

How easy is it for your character to laugh?

How do they put themselves to bed at night (reading, singing, thinking?)

How easy is it to earn their trust?

How easy is it to earn their mistrust?

Do they consider laws flexible, or immovable?

What triggers nostalgia for them, most often? Do they enjoy that feeling?

What were they told to stop/start doing most often as a child

Do they swear? Do they remember their first swear word?

What lie do they most frequently remember telling? Does it haunt them?

How do they cope with confusion (seek clarification, pretend they understand, etc)?

How do they deal with an itch found in a place they can’t quite reach?

What color do they think they look best in? Do they actually look best in that color?

What animal do they fear most?

How do they speak? Is what they say usually thought of on the spot, or do they rehearse it in their mind first?

What makes their stomach turn?

Are they easily embarrassed?

What embarrasses them?

What is their favorite number?

If they were asked to explain the difference between romantic and platonic or familial love, how would they do so?

Why do they get up in the morning? 

How does jealousy manifest itself in them (they become possessive, they become aloof, etc)? 

How does envy manifest itself in them (they take what they want, they become resentful, etc)? 

 Is sex something that they’re comfortable speaking about? To whom? 

 What are their thoughts on marriage? 

 What is their preferred mode of transportation? 

 What causes them to feel dread? 

 Would they prefer a lie over an unpleasant truth? 

 Do they usually live up to their own ideals? 

 Who do they most regret meeting? 

 Who are they the most glad to have met? 

 Do they have a go-to story in conversation? Or a joke? 

 Could they be considered lazy? 

 How hard is it for them to shake a sense of guilt? 

 How do they treat the things their friends come to them excited about? Are they supportive? 

Do they actively seek romance, or do they wait for it to fall into their lap? 

Do they have a system for remembering names, long lists of numbers, things that need to go in a certain order (like anagrams, putting things to melodies, etc)? 

What memory do they revisit the most often? 

How easy is it for them to ignore flaws in other people? 

How sensitive are they to their own flaws?

How do they feel about children? 

How badly do they want to reach their end goal? 

If someone asked them to explain their sexuality, how would they do so? 

QUESTIONS FOR CREATORS

A) Why are you excited about this character? B) What inspired you to create them? C) Did you have trouble figuring out where they fit in their own story? D) Have they always had the same physical appearance, or have you had to edit how they look? E) Are they someone you would get along with? Would they get along with you? F) What do you feel when you think of your OC (pride, excitement, frustration, etc)? G) What trait of theirs bothers you the most? H) What trait do you admire most? I) Do you prefer to keep them in their canon universe? J) Did you have to manipulate or exclude canon factors to allow them to create their character?

Beyond this, consider how these professions might vary depending on who the customers are - nobles, or lower class. Are they good at their job or just scraping by? Do they work with lots of other people or on their own? City or village?

For younger characters:

Apprentice to any of the above

Messenger/runner

Page/squire

Pickpocket

Shop assistant

Student

Looks after younger siblings

(Images all from Wikimedia Commons)

Writing a Character With Psychosis

If your character has psychosis, first, give yourself a pat on the back for taking a big step! Not very many people do this, and not very many people do it well. Here’s a small text post to try to help. Hallucinations:

- Auditory hallucinations can come from inside the mind, too. You can hear people calling your name, and occasionally screaming or laughing. Someone who has knowledge of their condition will try their best to ignore them.

-Voices in the head can be anything from a ‘narrator’ narrating what they do, a friend, or a manipulative enemy. Sometimes you’ll hear choruses of things–your character can try to reason with their voices, but the less human the voices sound, the harder that can be.

-Voices can be very convincing, and your character can miss them if they disappear.

-Tactile hallucinations can be anything from feeling rain when there isn’t any to someone tapping on your shoulder to working at school with someone’s ‘hands’ around your neck. They’re often the hardest to distinguish from reality.

-Seeing things can be realistic or unrealistic. You might have someone watching you the whole day, or seeing your cat when he’s actually dead, to bending down to pick a ‘pencil’ up when it disappears. Seeing things float or flickering lights can be annoying to your character. Images distorting are not uncommon.

-Your character will be annoyed by these if they have identified their hallucinations as fake. Hallucinations detract from ones life and complicate ones day.

-Delusions can last for a long time or for a short time. Your character will be afraid, and a flight or fight response will be the majority of their actions. Feeling things chasing them is common, and certain objects might bring them comfort.

-Paranoia isn’t just with psychosis. If your character is aware of their psychosis, then they will distrust everything and possibly ask other people if things are real. Nothing is definite.

-Stigma against psychosis is very common, and stigma against medicine is too. Your character will probably be afraid of telling people.

-Medicine will take more than a month sometimes to completely kick in. Sometimes while it’s kicking in, stress will make it worse.

-This post is specifically for psychosis and hallucinations/delusions. I am not educated on schizophrenia, and am not making a generalization of that.

Long story short, please do other research. The world is plagued with books that exacerbate stigma and myths. Ask people who suffer from psychosis or used to. This is not meant to be your only resource, nor it is definite for all cases. Every case of psychosis is different, and you can’t say one thing happens for everyone. Thank you for reading! TL;DR Just a resource if you want to write a character with psychosis, do other research too.

One Word Writing Prompts

Send me a number 1 thru 50 for a word that I’ll use to write either a headcanon, drabble, or starter. Send 🌀 for a random number instead.

01. — first 02. — kiss 03. — final 04. — numb 05. — broken 06. — wings 07. — melody 08. — rules 09. — chocolate 10. — nostalgia 11. — heartbeat 12. — stranger 13. — confusion 14. — bitter 15. — afterlife 16. — daybreak 17. — audience 18. — endless 19. — fireworks 20. — wishing 21. — birthday 22. — tomorrow 23. — oppression 24. — agony 25. — return 26. — protection 27. — boxes 28. — hope 29. — preparation 30. — beautiful 31. — lies 32. — underneath 33. — hide 34. — diary 35. — unforeseen 36. — conditional 37. — gone 38. — clear 39. — heartache 40. — wired 41. — insanity 42. — foolish 43. — words 44. — study 45. — love 46. — skies 47. — stars 48. — lucky 49. — shake 50. — punctual

Writing Prompt #22: Prove Them Wrong!

Take every bit of writing advice you’ve ever heard and throw it out the window. Your job today is to fit every cliche you can possibly think of into your story. Don’t write them in a new way, don’t put a spin on it, don’t phrase it differently. Do straight up, in your face cliche. And make us like it.