# Character Profile: Salem Grey

I keep wondering if making headcanons of my own ocs just makes them canon or not since I'm the writer. Or is it only canon if demonstrated in the story?

is whump the new term for angst or what ?? im starting to see writers use whump a lot nowadays, are they the same thing ?

okay yes kaz doesn't care about anything blah blah blah but have you ever considered that he remembers absolutely everything and not only the stuff he can one day use against the people in his life. he remembers how jesper puts cinnamon into his coffee so it doesn't keep him awake all day so kaz keeps cinnamon sticks behind the bar at the crow club for him. he remembers how wylan tucks flowers into his messenger bag so he waits beside a flower patch when they meet to discuss demo plans. he remembers how nina hates how her only pair of boots dig into her heels so he leaves a new pair on her bed without a word. he remembers how matthias is soothed at the sound of bird chirping so he tells him to walk down by the east harbor for "no other reason" than to "pick up a shipment" and NOT because seagulls and ospreys cluster there. and yes. his wife. inej. he remembers how pious and devote she is so he carves symbols of the saints into the wood of her ship with his knife to remind her he adores her faith despite all that he's said before and he would remember even in death how her raven hair flows down her back and how her nimble fingers stroke around her whiskey glass because he loves her GODDAMNIT.

Just remembered how many things need to happen in my story in order for it to be a full novel. I am no longer having a good day

hey when you make posts, i just want you to know, thou/thee/thy/thine/ye are like he/you(object)/your/yours/you(subject) okay? "thou art wearing shoes," "i will wear shoes for thee," okay?

you say thine if the next word starts with a vowel and thy if the next word starts with a consonant and they both mean "your" so "thine own shoes," "thy shoes," okay?

and ye means you and refers to the subject of a sentence, "ye members of the brotherhood of shoes," okay? you need this information to create better knight yaoi. i'm personally more interested in nun yuri but we are a community

No matter how much you dislike your own writing, I promise you it’s better than AI

The world seems to be a very big place that im willing to grow to understand .

– me in the middle of the night

agreeing with this entire list, specifically number 2 and 8.

What I Love In Writing

Lately, I've seen so many negative posts (including my own) circulating about things not to do in writing, "advice" about which words to avoid, which tropes are most annoying, etc., etc. No wonder writing is often seen as a discouraging avenue to explore. In response, I've decided to make a post about things I personally LOVE to see in other people's writing, things that make me want to read more and more.

Attention to physical details that are less commonly described in stories. Three of my personal favourites are descriptions of hands, necks, and shoulders, which are just as expressive as eyes and other facial features.

When writers stretch a word's known meaning in a way that feels new and off-kilter. It always surprises me and draws me in. I particularly like when a noun is made into an interesting new verb. For example, "His eyes lanterned the dim room." Even though it might not make immediate sense, it can evoke a variety of new readings and emotions based on the context. If the scene calls for it, invent your own vocabulary. Language is yours.

I personally love contrasts between emotional states and settings, like when a character is facing turmoil on a beautifully sunny day, or, alternatively, two characters expressing their love for each other in a place that's falling apart.

How wonderful is it when someone can pull off the present tense elegantly? That sense of immediacy is refreshing.

Lengthy sentences that cascade rhythmically and emotionally to the point that you reach the end of the sentence and think, "Oh my gosh, that was only one amazing sentence!"

I love when characters are raw and real and messy and complicated, when they feel like people I could meet in my everyday life. I love when good characters do bad things and bad characters do good things.

Metaphors and similes, especially ones I've never read before.

I like when ugly or unexpected things are described beautifully. There is a difference between romanticizing something ugly and acknowledging an ugly thing's attributes thoughtfully enough to illustrate it with the same care and passion as a universally accepted lovely thing.

Personally, and I've changed my mind on this one recently, but I think it's sweet when I can pick up on favourite words or phrases the author likes to return to now and again. I understand it can be repetitive at points, but it's also like discovering a secret, cherished thing I can share with the writer. It adds to the voice. (Side advice: give yourself the liberty to change your opinions and try again with writing techniques you previously disliked).

Emotion, emotion, emotion. I'm an emotional person, and I like emotional writing that always walks that line between "balanced" and "too much." Not necessarily in that everything feels exaggerated or out of proportion with the plot, but that I can sense the characters' emotional states at all times, and sometimes even the grammar or language can reflect that - shorter phrases for an abrupt feeling, elongated ones for drawn-out, languid moments. The world is gorgeous, and our feelings are gorgeous. Writing that can capture that sensitivity has an everlasting effect on me. Like I'm at a party and the lights are too bright, the music is too loud, there are too many people, but it's all a reminder that I'm a human being. We're alive.

There are many, many more aspects of writing I love, too many for me to name but these are just some of the first that came to my mind. Amid all the cautionary writing tips you read out there, I encourage you also to establish for yourself the good things you should do. The risk of perpetual don'ts is a perpetual blank page.

Do what you love, and love what you do, but above all else, do.

Hesperus Lark - a mood board

– Song of lost secrets

“do you still feel like that? do you love me, or am I just your fascination?”

how do you reconnect to life after being disconnected for so long