The Sexual Tension Between Me And Wasting Time On Tumblr Instead Of Writing Like I Should Be

I can’t write these scenes bro I just can’t

WORDS TO USE INSTEAD OF: RUN / RAN

Do you ever find yourself over-using the word “run” (or “ran”) in your writing? Try using these words instead:

sprint / sprinted

dash / dashed

dart / darted

bolt / bolted

race / raced

speed / sped

hurry / hurried

jog / jogged

bound / bounded

hustle / hustled

scurry / scurried

tear / tore

rush / rushed

charge / charged

barrel / barreled

zoom / zoomed

scuttle / scuttled

scamper / scampered

book it / booked it

leg it / legged it

Vintage editions from Carson McCullers and Thomas Hardy

nightmare prompt for tangfei pretty please 🥺

Person A can tell that Person B is having a nightmare because they’re making weird noises/motions in their sleep so Person A wakes them up and asks if they’re okay

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Of the both of them, they have long established that Tang Yi is the one who has nightmares. It’s almost counter-intuitive, considering that Shao Fei is the one dealing with violence and blood and crime day in, day out. In comparison, Tang Yi is now living life as a retired gang member and all he does is golf, work, have work dinners, and then spend time with Shao Fei, the days of fights and drugs well behind him.

Well, logically, it is supposed to be behind him, but Tang Yi wakes up in the middle of the night often, the coppery tang of blood filling his nostrils as he gasps for air, his hand reaching out for a figure who’s about to be shot to death, multiple hands grabbing at him in the dark, trying to ambush him while he’s asleep... many more. 

When that happens, it’s always Shao Fei waiting with a hand caressing at his forehead as he comes back to himself. Shao Fei bringing him back to reality with his lips and his touch, his sweet murmurings.

So Tang Yi is a little surprised when he wakes up in the middle of the night this time, and it’s Shao Fei who’s fidgeting in bed and mumbling under his breath while asleep. Frowning, Tang Yi reaches over to the bedside and switches the lamp on, and-

Sweat beads at Shao Fei’s forehead and his face is incredibly pale; Tang Yi barely dodges when hands suddenly shoot out to swipe at him, and it is only reflex and practice from back in his gangster days that has Tang Yi catching both arms in his hold gently, afraid that Shao Fei is going to hurt himself like this.

On closer look, Shao Fei’s bottom lip is bleeding from where his teeth are biting down onto flesh in his nightmare, and Tang Yi startles yet again.

“Baobei,” he murmurs immediately, pulling Shao Fei into a sitting position and holding onto him, not too tightly, but with just enough force to keep him from flailing. “Baobei, you’re having a nightmare, wake up.”

He realizes the moment Shao Fei comes awake, because the body in his embrace goes ramrod straight with a shudder. Tang Yi waits patiently but keeps up with his soft litany of murmurings and kisses to his temple.

“... Tang,” Shao Fei croaks, his voice hoarse as he shakes, “Tang Yi...”

“You okay?” Tang Yi asks, pulling him closer now that he’s awake, “Baobei, it was just a dream. I’m right here, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Tang Yi,” Shao Fei repeats, burying his face into his husband’s shoulder.

Tang Yi doesn’t ask. When Shao Fei stops shaking, he moves to get out of bed, and when Shao Fei refuses to let him go, Tang Yi lifts him out from under the covers as well. 

Standing obediently as Tang Yi undresses him and drying his sweat with a clean towel, Shao Fei feels a lot like a doll. His brain is all mush and refuses to string two coherent thoughts together, and all he wants is Tang Yi. They don’t speak much as Tang Yi pulls a clean shirt over his head, and then directs him back to bed.

He lets Shao Fei curl right against him, and his hold is much tighter than usual, but Tang Yi doesn’t mind.

They’ll talk about Shao Fei’s nightmare tomorrow morning, when the terror of the night no longer haunts him. 

For now, he guards Shao Fei’s sleep and smiles a little when Shao Fei’s breaths even out against his neck.

I was shocked when I realized this 😳

just been making mha tik toks for the girls and the gays

This episode in a nutshell:

Also:

POC Transman in danger

Please help us move out of our abusive situation.

It did not start this bad, but our land lady is making threats against us, but most namely my partner, Indigo.

I'm white. She treats me with kindness and embraces me.

He's brown. She shuns him and attacks him any chance she gets. For any menial thing.

He is not safe in this house and we cannot stay here. We need to move as soon as possible.

I aim for us to move by the end of the month, but it may get ugly before that happens.

Please help us safely move.

Paypal: https://paypal.me/Saturnxora?locale.x=en_US

Venmo: @ Saturn-Xora-Velour

Edit:

Current date 2/1/2021

@anarcblr @mutual-first-aid @mutualaidreblogs @mutualaidnetworking

@donationposts

Jennifer’s Body (2009) dir. Karyn Kusama

Your character is driven by 3 emotional motives. See? I even made a graphic.

(I’m proud of the graphic, too.)

Mood: The immediate (and temporary) emotions of your character. A feeling of joy after kissing the girl they like; frustration after a busy day working a summer job at the fair; despair after somebody eats the last Oreo.

Situation: The plot and relationship contexts of your character. The apprehension they feel with a friend in the weeks following a nasty fight; the nerves felt in the week leading up to their big championship game; the frustration and boredom of being grounded after crashing the family car into the county creek.

Struggle: The core, deepfelt pain of your character, which often emerges from their background. The fear of failure from overly demanding parents; a deep longing for a family they never knew; a desperate need to be accepted after spending years as an outcast.

How these 3 motives influence your character

The above emotional motives all play an important role in driving your character’s actions, muddying or even overriding their more logical intentions — just as it happens to the rest of us. (We’re all human, after all.)

That being said, while your character’s mood and situation will shift throughout the story, their struggle will remain constant: their true north, emotionally speaking. This struggle will always be at the root of their actions, even as you swap in new situations and moods.

Take Bethany as an example

Let’s say your character’s name is Bethany, and her struggle is this: a deep fear of failure, stemming from her parents’ impossible academic expectations, which conflicts with her own desire to finally experience the life she sees passing her by.

Her actions, while primarily driven by that struggle, are going to vary quite a bit depending on her situation and mood. For example, if it’s the night before a big test, she might blow off a friend’s invitation to a party so she can study.

But if the party is a week before the big test, and she finds a handwritten invitation in her notebook from Emma (the girl on the lacrosse team she has a crush on), Bethany might act differently. Maybe she feels a lightness and warmth in her cheeks as she reads Emma’s note. Maybe she puts those textbooks away, and maybe, just maybe, she sneaks out the window and goes to the party.

But if Bethany finds the note after her parents just chewed her out for being ungrateful and not studying hard enough? Maybe Bethany doesn’t go to the party. Instead, maybe she reads Emma’s note, trembles, then rips it in two, knowing she can’t disappoint her parents like that. Then she spends the rest of the evening studying. Alone.

Mood. Situation. Struggle.

All three kinds of emotional motives are important. Your character’s struggle is the anchor, but their mood and situation are the ever-shifting masks you use to express their struggle in fresh ways. 

And by the end of the story, hopefully your character will overcome their struggle — putting away the textbooks, sneaking out the window, and meeting their crush at a party. Maybe even having their first kiss.

Whatever the character, and whatever their struggle, I’m sure you’ll do great. 

So good luck! And good writing.

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Your stories are worth telling. For tips on how to craft meaning, build character-driven plots, and grow as a writer, follow my blog.