Suddenly I'm Holding The World In My Arms

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WEIRDLY SPECIFIC BUT HELPFUL CHARACTER BUILDING QUESTIONS

What’s the lie your character says most often?

How loosely or strictly do they use the word ‘friend’?

How often do they show their genuine emotions to others versus just the audience knowing?

What’s a hobby they used to have that they miss?

Can they cry on command? If so, what do they think about to make it happen?

What’s their favorite [insert anything] that they’ve never recommended to anyone before?

What would you (mun) yell in the middle of a crowd to find them? What would their best friend and/or romantic partner yell?

How loose is their use of the phrase ‘I love you’?

Do they give tough love or gentle love most often? Which do they prefer to receive?

What fact do they excitedly tell everyone about at every opportunity?

If someone was impersonating them, what would friends / family ask or do to tell the difference?

What’s something that makes them laugh every single time? Be specific!

When do they fake a smile? How often?

How do they put out a candle?

What’s the most obvious difference between their behavior at home, at work, at school, with friends, and when they’re alone?

What kinds of people do they have arguments with in their head?

What do they notice first in the mirror versus what most people first notice looking at them?

Who do they love truly, 100% unconditionally (if anyone)?

What would they do if stuck in a room with the person they’ve been avoiding?

Who do they like as a person but hate their work? Vice versa, whose work do they like but don’t like the person?

What common etiquette do they disagree with? Do they still follow it?

What simple activity that most people do / can do scares your character?

What do they feel guilty for that the other person(s) doesn’t / don’t even remember?

Did they take a cookie from the cookie jar? What kind of cookie was it?

What subject / topic do they know a lot about that’s completely useless to the direct plot?

How would they respond to being fired by a good boss?

What’s the worst gift they ever received? How did they respond?

What do they tell people they want? What do they actually want?

How do they respond when someone doesn’t believe them?

When they make a mistake and feel bad, does the guilt differ when it’s personal versus when it’s professional?

When do they feel the most guilt? How do they respond to it?

If they committed one petty crime / misdemeanor, what would it be? Why?

How do they greet someone they dislike / hate?

How do they greet someone they like / love?

What is the smallest, morally questionable choice they’ve made?

Who do they keep in their life for professional gain? Is it for malicious intent?

What’s a secret they haven’t told serious romantic partners and don’t plan to tell?

What hobby are they good at in private, but bad at in front of others? Why?

Would they rather be invited to an event to feel included or be excluded from an event if they were not genuinely wanted there?

How do they respond to a loose handshake? What goes through their head?

What phrases, pronunciations, or mannerisms did they pick up from someone / somewhere else?

If invited to a TED Talk, what topic would they present on? What would the title of their presentation be?

What do they commonly misinterpret because of their own upbringing / environment / biases? How do they respond when realizing the misunderstanding?

What language would be easiest for them to learn? Why?

What’s something unimportant / frivolous that they hate passionately?

Are they a listener or a talker? If they’re a listener, what makes them talk? If they’re a talker, what makes them listen?

Who have they forgotten about that remembers them very well?

Who would they say ‘yes’ to if invited to do something they abhorred / strongly didn’t want to do?

Would they eat something they find gross to be polite?

What belief / moral / personality trait do they stand by that you (mun) personally don’t agree with?

What’s a phrase they say a lot?

Do they act on their immediate emotions, or do they wait for the facts before acting?

Who would / do they believe without question?

What’s their instinct in a fight / flight / freeze / fawn situation?

What’s something they’re expected to enjoy based on their hobbies / profession that they actually dislike / hate?

If they’re scared, who do they want comfort from? Does this answer change depending on the type of fear?

What’s a simple daily activity / motion that they mess up often?

How many hobbies have they attempted to have over their lifetime? Is there a common theme?

I've done the research, but I don't think the results I've found have answered my question. My WIP stars a trio of teens who are 14 - 15. And since this story centers around change, firsts, and coming into one's own, I wanted to feature a romance between two of the three MCs. I know more subtle signs of romance include shared looks, unspoken communication, hand holding, shoulder bumps, gentle headbutts, and going out of your way for the person your care for. But is that everything?

The Subtle Signs of Romantic Interest and Love

Whether affection is just beginning to develop or two people are in the early stages of a relationship, there are lots of subtle signs to indicate romantic interest and love. In no particular order…

External Signs

- stolen glances- lingering looks- intense eye contact- sharing a knowing look- eyes meeting- looking away bashfully after eyes meet- feeling nervous/tongue-tied when trying to talk to the other person- voice cracks when trying to speak to the other person- flirting- straying from normal attitude or behavior with other person- denying interest in other person when pressed by friends (in early stages)- communicating feelings through the eyes (worry, pain, pride, love, etc.)- awkwardness after accidental touching- shared laughter after accidental touching- an “electric” feeling when touching the other person- speaking at the same time (a little cliché, but it can happen)- tentative touching- finding ways to touch when intimate touch is restricted- open, affectionate touching (holding hands, hugging, nuzzling, etc.)- brushing a lock of hair behind the ear- gently stroking jaw line, chin, or cheek- kissing forehead, temple, or top of head- rubbing nose tips together- displaying flirtatious tics like biting lip, twirling hair, running hand through hair- talking excitedly or affectionately about the other person to friends- constantly talking about the other person to friends- blushing when teased by friends about the other person- giving the other person meaningful gifts- keeping mementos as reminders of the other person- making excuses to be near the other person- making excuses to spend time with the other person- wanting to get to know the other person’s friends and family- good mood/always smiling from being with or thinking about other person- giving each other nicknames or using pet names/terms of endearment- being reminded of other person when listening to love songs- sharing possessions, letting each other borrow meaningful possessions- willing to make sacrifices to be with the other person or to make them happy- sharing secrets, or things not often shared, with the other person- speaking softly or whispering in the person’s ear- cheeks/neck/chest becoming flushed- moving quickly toward the other person to close the distance- sighing, either out of happiness or missing the other person- losing track of time when with the other person- feeling like the rest of the world melts away when with the other person

Internal Signs

- thinking fondly of the other person- thinking about them constantly- recalling fond memories- seeing constant reminders of the other person- worrying about the other person- daydreaming about future activities with the other person- daydreaming about sharing a future with the other person- analyzing a previous interaction- dreaming about the person- feeling “weak in the knees” around the other person- remembering moments containing looking/touching moments- wanting to know everything there is to know about the other person- wanting to spend every waking second with the other person- orchestrating meetings that seem to be happenstance- feeling joy/racing heartbeat/butterflies upon seeing other person- craving the person’s touch, or being able to touch them- constant feeling of being “on cloud nine”- often distracted due to thinking about other person- wanting to impress the other person or make them proud- when not with the other person, noticing things they would appreciate- unable to see anything but positives where the other person is concerned- feeling suddenly warm- feeling breathless- noticing (and loving) little details (moles, scars, birthmarks, unusual traits)- wanting to improve self to impress or benefit other person- eyes constantly seek the other person out- inability to stop looking at the person, difficulty not staring at them- thinking you see the other person in a crowd when they’re not there- difficulty sleeping/loss of sleep- feeling a deep desire to kiss the personIf you need an extra boost, watch a few romantic comedies or love stories. Watch the way the characters behave as their interest in one another is building and as they begin to explore a relationship. :)

Writing Arguments Between Characters

– Arguments in books are some of the most pivotal and important scenes in a narrative, but they’re also some of the most difficult because fights, in the moment, can seem much more dramatic in our heads than they would seem to an outsider. The great thing about writing is that you have the option to add context you wouldn’t have otherwise, which puts the reader in the characters’ heads and into the heat of the moment. I decided it was worth an article because it’s a very hit or miss kind of scene to pursue and I’ve received a lot of questions on the subject, so I’d like to answer (most of) them here. Enjoy! 

Instigation

Which character began the fight? Sometimes fights start days before they actually turn into a heated argument, so if there is a build up to the scene, make sure you’ve taken the time to make that clear in the last couple scenes or chapters. 

Sometimes, it isn’t actually clear to the characters what or who started the argument and it just sort of bubbles up over time or as events make the characters more confused, angry, scared, etc.

That’s another thing you need to know before you start writing an argument: what emotion is driving the characters to participate? Fear? Anger? Confusion? Sadness? Frustration? Tiredness? Repression of past feelings? Betrayal? In order to make the characters argue believably, you need to be in their headspace, and you can only do that if you know why they’re fighting in the first place.

Tone and pace

Build up

In order for an argument to be impactful to the reader, there needs to be some substantial escalation. Fights are like stories. There’s something that starts it, there’s rising tension, there’s a climax, and then there’s a cool down period before the resolution. Focus on the way you do the rising action especially, because the climax of the argument should be an “oh sh*t” moment.

Dialogue & Interraction

There are different types of arguments people can have. There’s the slow burn ones that the reader knows are coming, but are still really jarring when they come to pass. There are also the ones that seem like they’re out of nowhere if you don’t have context, but to someone who has been following maybe the past few days of the two people’s lives, they can tell that the actual subject of conflict isn’t what they’re really fighting about, but a deeper underlying issue they’ve both been struggling with. There are many ways an argument can go and feel to a reader, but a huge part of the subtext is how the two characters interact. 

If your characters are screaming about a dish that was put away wet and left a ring on the stained cabinets, it will be fairly obvious to the reader, as that sort of interaction, at surface level, wouldn’t serve much of a story-telling purpose, and therefore will lead the reader to assume there’s more to it and search their arsenal of contextual evidence to find the real source of tension between the characters. This can also be accomplished through clues in dialogue, such as sarcasm in response to when something relating to the actual issue is mentioned, or a lull in the argument when the two characters realize that they’re not really talking about a stupid bowl, are they?

Resolution

How the argument ends could be used to shift where the reader believes the story is going from there on. The end could be very insignificant to your story, as fights between characters are often used to get across some key information about characters or context or introduce new conflicts, which brings up my next point.

Integration

Arguments are a really good opportunity to integrate lots of important information for your reader in a way that shows instead of telling. You can use arguments to relay lots of information to your reader, such as:

Character tendencies

Relationships between characters

Smaller conflicts

Foreshadowing

Associations that will be useful in future scenes

Shifts in tone

Changes in the direction of the story

Underlying issues that might come up later

and many more.

Some General Tips To Keep In Mind

Always ask yourself “would so and so really do this?”

During arguments, people’s responses will often be blended with their reactions. Their face will be shocked and their words will be sharp. Try to include these little mixes in order to make the pace faster and more suspenseful.

Most large arguments start with something smaller and less significant

A lot of the time, the reactions won’t be like “i can’t believe he said that to me”, they’ll be defensive and/or a shot back without much thought.

Most arguments, especially between two characters who generally like each other, will end with something like one person walking out of the room, one person deciding to sleep on the couch, or one person avoiding or ignoring the other. Most fights between characters who know and matter to each other don’t end with a punch in the face.

Arguments don’t usually end when they’re no longer yelling at each other.

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Do you have any third wheel meme templates? thanks

as a third wheel myself i am happy to provide these;

I am so very normal about this

how do you write a liar?

How to Write Liars Believably

Language

The motive of every goal is the make the lie seem plausible while taking blame off the speaker, so liars will often project what they say to a third party: "Katie said that..."

Referring to third parties as "they" rather than he or she

In the case of a deliberate lie prepped beforehand, there will be an overuse of specific names (rather than pronouns) as the speaker tries to get the details right.

Overuse of non-committal words like "something may have happened"

Masking or obscuring facts like "to the best of my knowledge" and “it is extremely unlikely," etc.

Avoiding answers to specific, pressing questions

Voice

There's isn't a set tone/speed/style of speaking, but your character's speech patten will differ from his normal one.

People tend to speak faster when they're nervous and are not used to lying.

Body Language

Covering their mouth

Constantly touching their nose

fidgeting, squirming or breaking eye contact

turning away, blinking faster, or clutching a comfort object like a cushion as they speak

nostril flaring, rapid shallow breathing or slow deep breaths, lip biting, contracting, sitting on your hands, or drumming your fingers. 

Highly-trained liars have mastered the art of compensation by freezing their bodies and looking at you straight in the eye.

Trained liars can also be experts in the art of looking relaxed. They sit back, put their feet up on the table and hands behind their head.

For deliberate lies, the character may even carefully control his body language, as though his is actually putting on a show

The Four Types of Liars

Deceitful: those who lie to others about facts

2. Delusional: those who lie to themselves about facts

3. Duplicitious: those who lie to others about their values

Lying about values can be even more corrosive to relationships than lying about facts. 

4. Demoralized: those who lie to themselves about their values

Additional Notes

Genuine smiles or laughs are hard to fake

Exaggerations of words (that would normally not be emphasized) or exaggerated body language

Many savvy detectives ask suspects to tell the story in reverse or non-linear fashion to expose a lie. They often ask unexpected, or seemingly irrelevant questions to throw suspects off track. 

Hey there! I just came across this blog and im wondering if I could get some advice. I have a lot of trouble keeping motivation for a story. I'll have a new idea that im really excited about, ill write 10-20 pages of it, and then get bored of writing it. Any tips on how to keep myself invested in writing my own stories?

5 Reasons You Lost Interest in Your WIP, Plus Fixes!

It's not uncommon for writers to lose interest in their WIP. Staying on track, or getting back on track, are skills you'll acquire with time. Here are some of the reasons you might have lost interest in your WIP:

#1 - You're Not Sure Where the Story is Going. When you figure out a way into a story you're excited about, the beginning can be a piece of cake. It's all set up and inciting incident, which can be really really fun to write. But if you're not sure what needs to happen after the inciting incident, you can find yourself meandering and get bored quickly.

Fix - If you're writing a story that is plot-driven or a combination of plot-driven and character-driven (as most stories are these days), it may help to familiarize yourself with Basic Story Structure and also have a look at my post about How to Move a Story Forward.If you're writing a character-driven story, you can adhere to basic story structure or a more loose structure, but your character's arc will be the focus of the story. If you think plot and structure may be what's holding you back, you might spend time on my Plot & Story Structure post master list to read some of the other posts there.

#2 - Something Isn't Working. Stories are often like a house of cards in that one misplaced "card" can bring the whole thing crashing down. Sometimes you lose interest because an element or event didn't quite work, and you can feel in your gut that something's not right, so your brain interprets that as losing motivation. It's not really that you've lost interest in the story... it's that you've lost interest in the dead end path it's on.

Fix - Go back through what you’ve already written and look for something that’s not pulling its weight. It could be an unnecessary character dragging the story down, a subplot that is cluttering up the story or drawing attention away from the main plot, or it could be a scene/scenes that don’t add to the story. It could even be a combination of these things. If you can find it and fix it, your motivation may return.

#3 - You're Just Not in the Mood to Write. It could be that your interest in your WIP is just fine, you're just not in the mood to write. Our brains aren't always great at interpreting signals from our bodies, including other parts of our brain. The thirst signal is sometimes misinterpreted as hunger, which is why if you're feeling hungry when you shouldn't, you should try drinking a glass of water. Sometimes, in the same way, we're just not in the mood to write and our brains misinterpret that as a loss of interest in our WIP.

Fix - Consider what's going on in your life at the moment. Are you stressed? Are you distracted? Are you not feeling well? Sometimes you just need to give yourself a few days or weeks to let things resolve, and then you'll find your motivation has returned. Try doing things to Fill Your Creative Well in the meantime, or try some of the exercises in this post: Getting Unstuck: Motivation Beyond Mood Boards & Playlists

#4 - You're Overly Focused on Quality. One of the biggest WIP interest/motivation zappers is focusing too much on quality in your early drafts. If you're fixated on things like description, flow, theme, symbolism, grammar, etc. in your first draft, you're going to mentally

Fix - Remember, your early drafts should be more about getting the story down and working out the kinks. Don't worry so much about things like description, grammar, details, etc. until you've got all of that hammered out. And remember that the whole point of editing and revision is to polish your draft. You get the story down and make it pretty later.

#5 - You're Letting Yourself Get Distracted by New Ideas. The thrill of coming up with a new idea is part of the fun of being a writer. One of the pitfalls of being a writer is new ideas sometimes distract you from your WIP. We can be completely into our WIP, then a new idea comes along and our brains say, "Ooo! Look at the shiny pretty!" And off we go. Some writers, particularly seasoned ones, are able to work on multiple WIPs at once, but you should focus on one WIP at a time if you commonly lose interest before they're finished.

Fix - When you get a new idea, write it down in a notebook and/or in a document on your device. Once the idea is "down on paper," just forget about it. Imagine that it vanishes once it's recorded and you close the notebook/document. It takes practice, but you'll get better at ignoring the pull of a new idea.

Here are some posts from my Motivation post master list that might also help:

Guide: How to Rekindle Your Motivation to Write Feeling Unmotivated with WIP Getting Unstuck: Motivation Beyond Mood Boards & Playlists Getting Excited About Your Story Again

Have fun with your story!

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Drawing bases #22

some sword poses, i plan to more like these c:

The New Republic

Trump Wants Snitches to Report on DEI. There’s Just One Problem.

Donald Trump wants people to expose diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in the federal government. The idea is already flopping.

The threat was loud and clear: Report your so-called “DEI” employees or else. What exactly “DEIA or similar ideologies” means is up in the air, but the message was out there. And so was the email address of the DEIA snitching hotline. Fake emails quickly started to roll in. ‘I don’t care, fuck these McCarthyite bastards,” one BlueSky user said, with an screenshot attached of an email to the hotline where he ironically reported Donald Trump and JD Vance for being “put in their positions solely because of their race and/or gender despite the fact that they are wholly unqualified for their jobs and, in some cases, have criminal records.” “Anyone have a script to fire off a billion e-mails an hour??” another user asked in the replies. “Anyone can email anything of any size even if it crashes the site,” one X user noted. The scope and effectiveness of this latest phase of Trump’s anti-DEI crusade remains to be seen.