mochaya

04.11.22

cozy study nights

night-thief

“And I say to myself: a moon will rise from my darkness.”

- Mahmoud Darwish

feral-ballad

Pedro Salinas, tr. by Ruth Katz Crispin, from Memory in My Hands: The Love Poetry of Pedro Salinas; “The voice I owe to you”

[Text ID: “and the longing / to love, to love you, more.”]

writingraven

Writing Tips

Descriptions in Between Dialogue

✧

⤠ how characters interact with the environment

⇝ moving something, picking something up, looking somewhere

⤠ how the environment interacts with the characters

⇝ weather, other character’s actions or movements

⤠ gestures

⇝ facial expressions, body language

⤠ shifts in position

⇝ standing, sitting, leaning, shifting weight, crossing arms/legs

⤠ physical reactions

⇝ body temperature, fidgeting, heart rate, character quirks

⤠ environmental descriptions

⇝ descriptions using the five senses, setting, character’s appearances

⤠ internal dialogue

⇝ emotional reaction to what was said, reflection of past experiences, connections to other characters/settings/actions

➵ I want to reiterate… descriptions using the five senses ; when in doubt, think of the five senses your character is experiencing and pick what best moves the story forward

lyralit

show, don't tell:

anticipation
- bouncing legs
- darting eyes
- breathing deeply
- useless / mindless tasks
- eyes on the clock
- checking and re-checking

frustration
- grumbling
- heavy footsteps
- hot flush
- narrowed eyes
- pointing fingers
- pacing / stomping

sadness
- eyes filling up with tears
- blinking quickly
- hiccuped breaths
- face turned away
- red / burning cheeks
- short sentences with gulps

happiness
- smiling / cheeks hurting
- animated
- chest hurts from laughing
- rapid movements
- eye contact
- quick speaking

boredom
- complaining
- sighing
- grumbling
- pacing
- leg bouncing
- picking at nails

fear
- quick heartbeat
- shaking / clammy hands
- pinching self
- tuck away
- closing eyes
- clenched hands

disappointment
- no eye contact
- hard swallow
- clenched hands
- tears, occasionally
- mhm-hmm

tiredness
- spacing out
- eyes closing
- nodding head absently
- long sighs
- no eye contact
- grim smile

confidence
- prolonged eye contact
- appreciates instead of apologizing
- active listening
- shoulders back
- micro reactions

sw1mmingfoolz

A SLIGHTLY DISJOINTED LIST OF WRITING TIPS

hey peeps 😌 a whole zero people asked or showed interest and true to my style I'm posting anyway lmao :) this is a collection of writing tips I remind myself of all the time! some are from online (mostly reddit), some are from writing workshops and classes i've taken, some are just commonly traded around by famous writers and some come from my own experience! i've been writing for 15 years, since i was a literal child, and i think it's safe to say i've learned a lot since i wrote 15 pages of what i was absolutely sure would be my debut novel "The Ratticator" when i was, like, 6. so i think ik what i'm talking about 😎 without further ado, here is the list!! it isn't very organised, for which i do apologize :')

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