Orchid Mantis

buttons from the busy beaver button museum

when they're remodeling houses on those HGTV shows and they rip out the most amazing seafoam green or baby blue or blush pink 70s tile....why do you hate style and fun

spotify users!!! tell me the most recent song that you liked

The 12 full moons of 2022 by loonarpix

some articles i enjoyed recently (faves are bolded) 

the genesis of blame, london review of books

the narcissism of queer influencer activists, gawker

there’s no moral imperative to be miserable, james greig

the cult of the imperfect, umberto eco

susanna clarke’s world of interiors, the new yorker

your camera roll contains a masterpiece, the new yorker

are you a baby? a litmus test, haley nahman on substack

prestige television and the moral life, article & podcast ep

how tv became respectable without getting better, current affairs

the cultural revisionism history, gawker

have we forgotten how to read critically?, dame magazine

found images, real life mag

nostalgia for nostalgia, real life mag

on internet & technology

google search is dying, dkb on substack

what lies beneath, real life mag

how the tiktok algorithm figures out your deepest desires, the wall street journal

the great offline, real life mag

nameless feeling, real life mag

i’m not there, real life mag

eat your young (2023) - andrew hozier byrne

clytemnestra (1817) - pierre-narcisse guérin

massacre of the innocents (1824) - léon cogniet

sacrifice of isaac (1603) - caravaggio

Any advice on back and forth dialogue? Like properly portraying an argument? I think all the spaces will get bothersome to the reader...

(Since arguments are the hardest type of back and forth dialogue to master, and other dialogue follows the same structure but in a more flexible manner, I’ll focus on arguments specifically…)

Writing an argument.

Everyone’s process for this is a little bit different, but here’s a look at mine, which has helped me reach the best end result (after many failed argument scenes in the past):

1. Dialogue. I like to write this as a script of sorts first, playing the scene in my head and only writing down the words and some vague comments regarding what the characters might be experiencing or doing. I leave breaks in the dialogue where the characters naturally pause from build ups of emotion, and add in all the em-dashes and ellipsis my heart desires (despite knowing a lot of them won’t make it through the reread, much less the final draft.)

2. Action. Not only does having your characters do things while they argue make the whole scene feel more realistic and plant it within the setting, but it also provides a great way for your characters to express things they don’t have the words to say. These “actions” can be facial expressions and body language, movement, or interaction with the objects in the setting, such as gripping a steering wheel too tightly or slamming a cupboard or tensely loading a gun.

3. Emotion. I save this for last because I find emotion very hard to write into narratives, but no matter when you write it or how you feel about it, feeling the pov character’s internal emotions is integral to the reader’s own emotional connection to the argument. Remember though, emotions should be shown and not told. Instead of saying the character is angry, describe what that anger is doing to them physically (how it makes them feel), and what desires it puts in them (how it makes them think.)

Other equally (if not more) important factors:

- Build tension slowly. Arguments will never be believable if the characters go from being calm and conversational to furious and biting in a single paragraph. The reader must feel the character’s anger build as their self-control dwindles, must hear the slight tension in their voice and the sharpness of their words as the scene leads up to the full blown argument.

- Vary sentence length. Arguments in which characters shoot single short sentences back and forth often feel just as stiff and unnatural as arguments where characters monologue their feelings for full paragraphs. If a character does need to say a lot of things in one go, break it up with short, emotional reactions from the other characters to keep the reader from losing the tension of the scene. Likewise, if characters don’t have bulk to their words, try including a few heavy segments of internal emotional turmoil from the pov character to make the argument hit harder instead of flying by without impact.

- Where did this argument start? Most arguments don’t really start the moment the words begin flying, but rather hours, days, weeks, even years before. If you as the author can’t pinpoint where the character’s emotions originated and what their primary target or release point is, then it’s unlikely the reader will accept that they exist in the first place.

- Characters want things, always. Sometimes arguments center around characters who vocally want opposing things, but often there are goals the characters hide or perhaps even from themselves. Think about what goals are influencing the characters in the argument while you’re writing it in order to make sure everything is consistent and focused.

Keep in mind that you don’t have to do all these things the very first draft. My arguments consistently have little emotion and even less build up until the second or third draft. As long as you return to these things as you continue to edit, the final result should feel like a fully fleshed out and emotional argument. 

For more writing tips from Bryn, view the archive catalog or the complete tag!

as requested by quite a few people - a masterpost of educational podcasts. links go to either the site or the itunes podcast store. an excerpt of the description is included with each.

* indicates a podcast that i listen to regularly

entertainment

*welcome to night vale - twice-monthly updates for the small desert town of night vale

*muggle cast - everything harry potter

general information 

radiolab - investigation told through sounds and stories, and centered around one big idea

*stuff you should know - about everything from genes to the galapagos

*stuff mom never told you - the business of being women 

tedtalks

good job, brain - part pub quiz show, part offbeat news

news

no one knows anything - the politics podcast from buzzfeed news

wait wait…don’t tell me - weekly current events quiz

college

*college info geek - the strategies and tactics the best students use

*getting in - your college admissions companion

math

math for primates - a couple of monkeys who decided that arguing about mathematics was a better use of their time than throwing poo at one another

math mutation - fun, interesting, or just plain weird corners of mathematics

science

60 second health - latest health and medical news

the naked scientists - interviews with top scientists, hands-on science experiments

60 second science - the most interesting developments in the world of science

startalk - astronomy, physics, and everything else about life in the universe

nasa science cast - science behind discoveries on earth, the solar system, and beyond

history

*myths and legends - myths, legends, and folklore that have shaped cultures

stuff you missed in history class - the greatest and strangest stuff you missed

the podcast history of our world - from the big bang to the modern age! …eventually

witness - the story of our times told by the people who were there

the history chicks - two women. half the population. several thousands years of history.

entrepreneurship & finances

practical money matters - better managing their finances

the internet business mastery - learn how to create an internet based business

social triggers insider - the fields of psychology and human behavior

listen money matters - honest and uncensored, this is not your father’s boring finance show

writing & literature

professional book nerds - it’s our job to discuss books all day long

a way with words - words, language, and how we use them

grammar girl - short, friendly tips to improve your writing

classic poetry aloud - recordings of the greats poems of the past

language

esl (english) - improve english speaking and listening skills

language pod

coffee break

search in your podcast app for specific languages!

art

99% invisible - exploration of the process and power of design

tips and tricks photography 

the arts roundtable

hobbies & other

stash & burn (knitting)

practical defense - staying safe in our increasingly dangerous urban environments

zen and the art of triathlon - a triathlete’s view on living the multisport life

the art of charm - make you a better networker, connecter, and thinker

the indoor kids - isn’t just about video games, isn’t not about video games

rationally speaking - explore the borderlands between reason and nonsense

the dice tower - board games, card games, and the people who design and play them

motivational & inspirational

back to work - productivity, communication, work, barriers, constraints, tools, and more

personal growth podcast - classic and contemporary self development audio

what it takes - conversations with towering figures in almost every field

here be monsters - exploring the dark corners of the human mind

on being - the big questions of meaning with scientists, theologians, artists, teachers

autumn in art [winter]

vincent van gogh / natasha tarasova / arthur rackham / john william waterhouse / carl friedrich deiker / jasper francis cropsey / john atkinson grimshaw / loré pemberton

“suffering feels religious if you do it right” no shut up it doesn’t. my friends laughing in the kitchen while i make dinner feels religious. the sun on my face after a long winter feels religious.