THERE MUST BE A PARAGRAPH BREAK EVERY TIME A NEW CHARACTER SPEAKS

55 Words to Describe Someone's Voice

I was sitting on the computer last night trying to be productive and actually write something. My first sentence included the character listening to a voice through an intercom and my first thought was, “What kind of voice is it?" 

So, naturally, I found myself googling the different ways to describe a voice. I present to you my findings! I hope you all find it useful. 

+ 100 Exquisite Adjectives.

(SOURCE) Adjectives — descriptive words that modify nouns — often come under fire for their cluttering quality, but often it’s quality, not quantity, that is the issue. Plenty of tired adjectives are available to spoil a good sentence, but when you find just the right word for the job, enrichment ensues. Practice precision when you select words. Here’s a list of adjectives:

Adamant: unyielding; a very hard substance

Adroit: clever, resourceful

Amatory: sexual

Animistic: quality of recurrence or reversion to earlier form

Antic: clownish, frolicsome

Arcadian: serene

Baleful: deadly, foreboding

Bellicose: quarrelsome (its synonym belligerent can also be a noun)

Bilious: unpleasant, peevish

Boorish: crude, insensitive

Calamitous: disastrous

Caustic: corrosive, sarcastic; a corrosive substance

Cerulean: sky blue

Comely: attractive

Concomitant: accompanying

Contumacious: rebellious

Corpulent: obese

Crapulous: immoderate in appetite

Defamatory: maliciously misrepresenting

Didactic: conveying information or moral instruction

Dilatory: causing delay, tardy

Dowdy: shabby, old-fashioned; an unkempt woman

Efficacious: producing a desired effect

Effulgent: brilliantly radiant

Egregious: conspicuous, flagrant

Endemic: prevalent, native, peculiar to an area

Equanimous: even, balanced

Execrable: wretched, detestable

Fastidious: meticulous, overly delicate

Feckless: weak, irresponsible

Fecund: prolific, inventive

Friable: brittle

Fulsome: abundant, overdone, effusive

Garrulous: wordy, talkative

Guileless: naive

Gustatory: having to do with taste or eating

Heuristic: learning through trial-and-error or problem solving

Histrionic: affected, theatrical

Hubristic: proud, excessively self-confident

Incendiary: inflammatory, spontaneously combustible, hot

Insidious: subtle, seductive, treacherous

Insolent: impudent, contemptuous

Intransigent: uncompromising

Inveterate: habitual, persistent

Invidious: resentful, envious, obnoxious

Irksome: annoying

Jejune: dull, puerile

Jocular: jesting, playful

Judicious: discreet

Lachrymose: tearful

Limpid: simple, transparent, serene

Loquacious: talkative

Luminous: clear, shining

Mannered: artificial, stilted

Mendacious: deceptive

Meretricious: whorish, superficially appealing, pretentious

Minatory: menacing

Mordant: biting, incisive, pungent

Munificent: lavish, generous

Nefarious: wicked

Noxious: harmful, corrupting

Obtuse: blunt, stupid

Parsimonious: frugal, restrained

Pendulous: suspended, indecisive

Pernicious: injurious, deadly

Pervasive: widespread

Petulant: rude, ill humored

Platitudinous: resembling or full of dull or banal comments

Precipitate: steep, speedy

Propitious: auspicious, advantageous, benevolent

Puckish: impish

Querulous: cranky, whining

Quiescent: inactive, untroublesome

Rebarbative: irritating, repellent

Recalcitant: resistant, obstinate

Redolent: aromatic, evocative

Rhadamanthine: harshly strict

Risible: laughable

Ruminative: contemplative

Sagacious: wise, discerning

Salubrious: healthful

Sartorial: relating to attire, especially tailored fashions

Sclerotic: hardening

Serpentine: snake-like, winding, tempting or wily

Spasmodic: having to do with or resembling a spasm, excitable, intermittent

Strident: harsh, discordant; obtrusively loud

Taciturn: closemouthed, reticent

Tenacious: persistent, cohesive,

Tremulous: nervous, trembling, timid, sensitive

Trenchant: sharp, penetrating, distinct

Turbulent: restless, tempestuous

Turgid: swollen, pompous

Ubiquitous: pervasive, widespread

Uxorious: inordinately affectionate or compliant with a wife

Verdant: green, unripe

Voluble: glib, given to speaking

Voracious: ravenous, insatiable

Wheedling: flattering

Withering: devastating

Zealous: eager, devoted

20 Basic Plots

These basic plots are from the Tennessee Screenwriting Association, but I thought it would be useful to share them with you all. Many writers believe that there are only so many “basic plots” that make up a story, 20 of them to be exact, and that it all depends on how you develop these plots. This is the same idea that there are only so many story arcs, and that all of our stories fit into a certain category. This is not to say you can’t create something that is uniquely yours, because you can mess with these elements, but when cut something down to the bare bones—nothing is really original. These recognizable story forms work and that’s why they’re used over and over again. Here are the 20 basic plots—

1. QUEST – the protagonist is searching for something (person, place, thing, or idea) and is on a journey to find it.

2. ADVENTURE – the protagonist searches for their fortune, but has to leave home to do it.

3. PURSUIT - hide-and-seek plot, one group or person chasing another.

4. RESCUE - the protagonist is searching for someone or something that needs to be saved—this usually involves protagonist, victim, and antagonist.

5. ESCAPE – the protagonist wants to escape some sort of situation, on a quest to get away.

6. REVENGE - retaliation against someone else for wrong-doings.

7. THE RIDDLE - the protagonist’s search to find the hidden meaning of something.

8. RIVALRY - the protagonist is competing for same object or goal as another person.

9. UNDERDOG – the protagonist has a great disadvantage and faces overwhelming odds while trying to reach his or her goals.

10. TEMPTATION – the protagonist is tempted into doing something that is unwise, wrong or immoral.

11. METAMORPHOSIS - the physical characteristics of the protagonist actually changes from one form to another.

12. TRANSFORMATION - the protagonist journeys through a stage of life that moves them from one significant character state to another.

13. MATURATION - the protagonist faces a problem that causes them to learn from it and mature into adulthood.

14. LOVE - the protagonist overcomes the obstacles that prevent him or her from engaging in true love.

15. FORBIDDEN LOVE – the protagonist overcomes obstacles that prevent him or her from true love, but sometimes find the outcome too high a price to live with.

16. SACRIFICE - the protagonist is motivated by a higher purpose such as love, honor, and charity or for the sake of humanity.

17. DISCOVERY - the protagonist, having to overcome a life-changing event, discovers a deeper meaning of life that changes their outlook.

18. WRETCHED EXCESS - the protagonist pushes the limits of acceptable behavior to the extreme and is forced to deal with the consequences.

19. ASCENSION – this rags-to-riches plot deals with the rise of the protagonist due to a dominating character trait that helps them to succeed.

20. DECISION – this riches-to-rags plot deals with the fall of the protagonist due to dominating character trait that eventually destroys their success.

It’s easy to see that some stories can fit into a few of these categories and you can build your story up around several of these basic plots. Generally, a story will fit into one category more than another. There are many references on basic plots, and not all writers have the same opinions on it, so it helps to research them yourself. I just thought this might give you a little motivation or help you structure your story better.

-Kris Noel

“Don’t abuse a kind heart. You may never be offered one again.”

— Pokello Nare

41 Emotions as Expressed through Body Language

Found Here x

41 Emotions as Expressed through Body Language unique  This list, while exhausting, is soooo not exhaustive; it barely scratches the surface. And each entry could easily become cliché (if it isn’t already). But, it should be enough to get you started. Want more? Start watching people (not in a creepy way), and take notes of what they seem to do when expressing different emotions. Your repertoire of expression will double in no time. PS—do not use these for actual, real-life body language reading; you will fail. These are strictly novelistic.

To Tired Writers. To the people out there whose hearts very, very much want to write and work on WIPs, but who are just mentally and physically exhausted right now. It’s okay. It is okay to rest sometimes. Allow yourself time to rest. 

a massively extended version of ruthlesscalculus’ post

General Tips

Joss Whedon’s Top 10 Writing Tips

Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone

34 Writing Tips that will make you a Better Writer

50 Free resources that will improve your writing skills

5 ways to get out of the comfort zone and become a stronger writer

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You’re Not Hemingway - Developing Your Own Style

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How to Show, Not Tell

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How to Write Fiction that grabs your readers from page one

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The Importance of Body Language

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Kazza’s List of Character Secrets - Part 1, Part 2

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Character Development: Virtues

Character Development: Vices

Character Morality Alignment

List of Negative Personality Traits

List of Positive Personality Traits

List of Emotions - Positive

List of Emotions - Negative

Loon’s Character Development Series - Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

Phobia List A-L (Part 1), M-Z (Part 2)

30 Day In Depth Character Development Meme

Words for Emotions based on Severity

Eight Bad Characters

High Level Description of the Sixteen Personality Types

Female Characters

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Male Characters

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Writing A Vampire

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Five Traits to Contribute to an Epic Villain

Writing Villains that Rock

Writing British Characters

How To Write A Character With A Baby

On Assassin Characters

Dialogue

It’s Not What They Say…

Top 8 Tips for Writing Dialogue

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Writing Dialogue: Go for Realistic, Not Real-Life

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The I Problem

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Writing A Novel Using the Snowflake Method

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Plunge Right In…Into Your Story, That Is

Tips for Creating a Compelling Plot

36 (plus one) Dramatic Situations

The Evil Overlord Devises A Plot: Excerpt from Stupid Plot Tricks

Conflict Test

What is Conflict?

Monomyth

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Hatch’s Plot Bank

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Tools & Software

Tip Of My Tongue - Find the word you’re looking for

Write or Die - Stay motivated

Stay Focused - Tool for Chrome, lock yourself out of distracting websites

My Writing Nook - Online Text Editor, Free

Bubbl.us - Online Mind Map Application, Free

Family Echo - Online Family Tree Maker, Free

Freemind - Mind Map Application; Free; Windows, Mac, Linux, Portable

Xmind - Mind Map Application; Free; Windows, Mac, Linux, Portable

Liquid Story Binder - Novel Organization and Writing Application; free trial, $45.95; Windows, Portable

Scrivener - Novel Organization and Writing Application; free trial, $39.95; Mac

SuperNotecard - Novel Organization and Writing Application; free trial, $29; Windows, Mac, Linux, portable

yWriter - Novel Organization and Writing Application; free; Windows, Linux, portable

JDarkRoom - Minimalist Text Editing Application; free; Windows, Mac, Linux, portable

AutoRealm - Map Creation Application; free; Windows, Linux with Wine

Specific Help

Fashion Terminology

All About Kissing

Genre Help: Romance

187 Mental Illnesses

Types of Mental Illness

Eye Color List

Spectral Groupings

Important ideas to consider when creating characters who are black and indigenous people of color. (x)

Alternatives for: "Smile"

Okay, so, this turned up a lot like the “said” debate. Some of the alternatives for smile just happen to be for really specific situations, and/or are often misused.

Smile is a great word, and when you try and use an alternative, said alternative often ends up being: a) wrongly used or b) ridiculous sounding. Oftentimes it’s just okay to write “he smiled” or “they smiled at each other” rather than getting “creative” with it. 

My new, a lot less serious account where I do a lot more than have writing related things. I'll put all my fandom things there.

@the-study-of-wumbo