Writing - Blog Posts

Characters Who Apologize/Change Before They Die - An Unpopular Character Writing Take

I'm so sorry, but characters who do a bunch of awful stuff and then apologize AS they're dying are straight up punks to me. You do not get to raise hell on this planet and then try to act like you learned your lesson now that you're seconds away from meeting your maker. 

Now granted, in some specific (and well done) cases, this can be an emotional or amazing moment for a character or plot line. However, most of the time (to me personally), it's just a lazy or improper way for a writer to make a 'redemption' arc for a character without having the said character put the work in. How on Earth am I supposed to have empathy (sympathy even) for a character that out of nowhere got a change of heart 00000.01 seconds after finding out they're dying?

Congratulations, you realized too late that you were a piece of dookie and can't even do anything to help clean the mess that YOU made. 

For example, I do not like Bakugou Katsuki whatsoever but at the very least HE of all people made the effort to apologize to Deku BEFORE he got murked and on top of that, actually tried to freaking HELP at some points. 

You got me messed up if you think I'm really about to feel bad for a character that did nothing but contribute to the pain and suffering of others around them, and then think they can die an angel just because they apologize or admit they were wrong. You're not slick, I know what you're doing. 

It's one thing to simply have that be a part of the plot and it's complete 'nother for the writers to try and gaslight me into feeling bad that the one who did nothing but cause problems is holding onto their final breath. Of course you wanna make things right now that you realize you're gonna be put to sleep for all eternity with potentially no one coming to the funeral. You had more than enough time, more than enough opportunities, to turn around and be better but you didn't take it. 

When it comes down to villain redemption (or character redemption IN GENERAL), I feel it's a rather delicate process that I feel usually (not all the time, but USUALLY) is written in either the flattest or laziest ways possible. And having a crappy character who did crappy stuff apologize from their last breath or because they were close to it is on that list. 

This isn't to say you can't like evil or horrible characters. You can like a character that does crappy stuff. But it's another thing to JUSTIFY the crappy stuff that they do. Stop acting like an angry 24/7 paid lawyer for this fictional being that I know for a FACT would not ever do the same for you should they be an actual person.

these are some books that i've bought recently. expecting lispector and camus of me should be common sense by now. and of course, literary theory. 🤍

clarice has been a great company these days. she speaks about god thru lóri's point of view, her believes, and it sounds a lot camus' absurdism! she says 'if i wanna pray, it would be to the cosmic or to Nothing'.

rainy days and depression, love to see it. 🌧🤍

probably will finish in the margins by ferrante today.

i need to choose another but it's hard when you have many clarice books in your shelf and not think about picking one up.

i'm not doing ok since my birthday (feb 16th). it's raining a bit these days, so it makes my days better. thank god nature. 🌧🤍

also, it's time for restart studying: manifesting.

[dear bird,

protect me.

the fall is too high. catch me.

i'm not ready to fly. eat me.

in your inside, take me.

don't leave me, so i can live in you.

see through you

what i can't be

be for two, for we, for i

and drown deep above

[in the vacuum.

jales.

started 'água viva' today. my first clarice! her writing is wow, i've been annotating a lot. so many thoughts already. just wild!

i was gonna go for run today, but gave up, it's been one of those lazy days. probably do some yoga before go to bed.

tomorrow i feel like it's gonna be a good day. (probably won't though) - let's keep it positive.

that's a goal: be more positive! 🤍🌧

continuing this one today! i'm still on 10% but really enjoying it. it's funny and brings some good questions to think about.

other than that, i apply for next semester's classes. hope i'll be accepted at all of them.

i'm trying to think more about the projects i'd like to work on.

i hope it rains today. 🌧

i'm still on lolita, damn this book is hard to read. every page i literally have a discomfort on the way he speaks about lolita. it's so sickening! but the writing is so good, i don't even know what to say. *Fiodora thinks so too!

on the other hand i'm gonna start 'pop song' and 'a peste' today! it's gonna be i guess my forth or fifth camus. i love him sm. also, i need to finish it soon cause my uni library doesn't accept us to keep the books on vacation and semester is ending. soooo... 🤸🏻‍♀️

it's nice day today, very cloudy. i love it, it puts me in a great mood! 🤍🌧

i've stopped writing again, which is not a good thing for my mind tbh. my readings are slow and i'm a bit unfocused. hope i get better soon because vacations are almost there and i need to read as much as i can. but i feel like olivia (my dead rose).

i restarted lolita, i had abandoned it and postponed to get back to it, but now i feel like i can do it. maybe. i'll try.

if you who's reading this are ok and having the time of your life.

the sky was so beautiful today and i got my two partners to watch it with me!

be good, fellas! 🌧🤍

I'm an orbit, a black hole Traveling through merits Collect all the meteors you can Bring me the stars, the moon Crave for the notes to play Crave for the credits to appear For my name to appear How hard will it be, as if I were only a math algorithm Find me out [hostil as it can be Listen to light speed on notes Nobody will ever need me more than the smell of air in my lungs, when it all ends. Hope it takes longer [than I expect Care of myself take me away like a stoic, the present is never be obstacle, only the infinite that holds me [like a daughter Love me, Universe take my words, e bring me chances so, I can hope to find you [within me. Jales

Sonic Forces AU

I'm being too lazy to draw today although I had everything sketched out so I'm just going to write everything so everyone understands the AU basics

Chapter 1 Sonic is hanging out with Sticks with her trying to teach him how to swim when she gets a message and goes to answer it. She comes back and tells him Green Hills is in danger, hastily he goes to save his friends. Tails updates him when he gets to the lab and gives him a anti flammable compression suit which is resistant to most attacks. He runs off to find Eggman and put an end to the mass destruction.

Chapter 2

Eggman boasts he's upgraded Metal Sonic and that he's going to meet his demise today. Sonic banters with him that that's not likely. Metal Sonic is introduced and they battle until Eggman activates Metal's kill switch. A laser pierces through Sonic and he falls to his inevitable death. Everyone on the front lines see this and ceases fighting ridden with grief and shock.

Chapter 3

Amy is consumed by grief she falls to her knees sobbing when Knuckles and Rouge find her. Rouge immediately understands what happened and is frantic to get Amy out of battle before she goes into a rage and hurts herself. Knuckles picks up on severity of the situation and zones out realizing his friend's fate. As he rusheds off Shadow answers Rouge's alerts and retrieves Amy.

Chapter 4

They teleport to the infirmary that's connected to Tails' lab, Vanilla goes to find him to tell him there's wounded. Amy sits on a cot and cries while Shadow finds gauze to tend to her minor wounds. She trembles with emotions and beats his chest telling him he has no rival anymore and that he should be happy. He holds her close and silently cries with her telling her that Sonic was his friend and understands her pain. Tails comes in and tends to her while Shadow leaves to end the battle.

Chapter 5

Shadow returns to the battlefield to find the fighters giving up, Knuckles is a top a heap of robots screaming at Eggman. Rouge is trying her best to pull him down but can't calm him, Shadow knocks him out and teleports to Eggman and tells him to leave or die. He threatens Shadow with Metal but is quickly cut off as Shadow destroys the kill switch. Eggman retreats and Shadow searches for Sonic's body. He finds him being vainly healed by Silver although it's no use (lol ik that was uncalled for) Silver stops and tells Shadow their timeline will be ok just dim. Shadow takes Sonic and brings his body to an old Oak tree.

Chapter 6

Sonic is buried and everyone fixes Green Hills while grieving their hero, a statue is put up in his honor. Amy visits him everyday to lay flowers at his grave, rage eventually consumes her and she hunts down Eggman to give him his final battle.

Chapter 7

Eggman is defeated and swears to never make another robot as Metal is destroyed. Amy can't live knowing Sonic's murderer is still around and forces herself to leave before she kills him. Amy runs into Shadow on the way back to Green Hills and he questions her. She gets mad and tries to run away but Shadow grabs her and consoles her.

Chapter 8

A few years have passed, everyone for the most part have come to terms and Green Hills is brimming with new life. Shadow and Amy have a daughter who is entering early adulthood when Shadow is notified the Black Arms army is coming to Green Hills, he immediately tells his daughter who the Black Arms are and she has Chaos energy and that she has to train to fight them.

Chapter 9

Black Doom confronts Shadow about his offspring and demands her to join the army after witnessing her powers and deciding she's too weak. Shadow and Amy protest but she agrees to go to understand her DNA and history. She trains for 4 years before coming back and settling down.

Will update when I think of more

Im a writer (or mentally ill) = need help

Ok so im doin what most humans write which is creating a world where im god and writing what mainstream media has somehow fucked up, a strong female character, the gays found family, action, (not all media btw just enough) I however need help and someone to look over my writing pm if you'd like to help this would be a nonprofit project anywho I require another opinion aka a more rational one then my own so lemme know if you wanna help

Collaboration

ok so here's the thing I'm a writer with what I think would be a great story and sweet fun idea that could hit angst fluff and action while also looking at other themes I would love for this to be drawn tho I want to see it come to life so I'm looking for a partner in crime lemme know if you wanna build a story a world

A promise broken

The two of us had been walking through the Dex, Sophia's hand warm in mine, our fingers intertwined beneath our over-sized sleeves. It was a cold day, so we were wearing sweaters over our uniforms to keep the chill out. I didn't need one, but Sophia insisted, and I just couldn't say no to her when she brings up my health.

We'd been talking about the weather, and whether it'll snow or not when a shoulder slams into mine. I growl and go to say something, but the words die in my throat when I see who it was, memories dulling my tongue at the sight of her. I mumble an apology, and pull Sophia along, trying to put as much distance behind us as possible.

“Who was that? You two know each other?”

Sophia's question, innocent as it was, brings a torrent of memories from behind the walls I've carefully built. Memories of late nights training, movies we were supposed to watch, secrets shared beneath the moonlight, promises of forever made and sealed with kisses. I shake my head, and glance over, my voice soft, as if afraid of being heard.

“Not anymore.”

An interlude in the short series I've been doing, instead focusing on when Rane first started realising her feelings for Sophia.

An important first

Very few occasions call for anything beside our uniforms, since they've become the main outfit everyone wears at the base, so the first time I saw Sophia in a dress was a couple years after her release from the hospital, the pale flowers dotted across the billowy fabric, her light brown hair blonde in the sunlight. I thought I had caught an illness when she smiled at me, that laugh bubbling out of her like the prettiest bell. I didn't understand what I was feeling, the way she made my heart flutter in my chest and the air catch in my throat, until much later.

When she tried to ask what was wrong, I couldn't answer, any words dying in my throat with a strangled whimper. My face burned as I looked anywhere but at her, though I couldn't tell her that it wasn't from embarrassment, or why I didn't want her to see it. I didn't know how to tell her that she was the most beautiful sight I'd ever seen, how I wanted to see her like this more often.

My reaction upset her, but I grabbed her arm before she could leave, my touch as gentle as a butterfly's wings. I didn't know how to explain the sensations she was calling, so I apologized instead and asked her to stay.

I spent that entire night trying to figure out my feelings, sleepless in pursuit of what ailed me. I spoke with the guys about it the next morning, only to end up flustered when Don decided to start teasing me. Sergei chuckled before scolding him, and took me aside, giving me a moment to calm down before asking me more questions about my ailment.

I answered honestly, that my mind was still picturing the way the wind blew her dress in such a way to hug her body, that my face catches fire at the memory of her smile and that my breath is stolen by the memory of her laugh. He asked if I've felt these things before, and it gave me pause. I went to say that I hadn't, but then I realized that I had over the past couple years, just never this strong before.

When I admitted this, my voice a soft whisper into the light of the rising sun, he gave me a warm, knowing smile. He ruffled my hair, chuckling as he told me that I wasn't sick. I asked him what the problem was, why I felt such odd things about my friend, and he just smiled, telling me that while I might see it as a problem now, I won't always feel that way.

Another short featuring young Rane meeting her team for the first time.

A new friend, a fellow outcast.

I never understood the need for so many people for these things. Birthdays, graduations, promotions, even something as simple as the weekend drew humans together. I don't even know what the occasion was. The music is too loud, the smells overwhelmingly numerous musks and perfumes, my head is starting to ache from the combination, and worse yet, I am the only Whisper here so far.

Yet I couldn't leave. This was an intentional choice by my Dant, another test to see how I'd react, to see if I caved. It was stupid, but I wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing me run away like a kicked dog. I stand in one o the corners, watching the room with a quietly as I study the people in it.

Eventually I notice someone approaching me, and I have to look him over twice just to be sure I'm not seeing things. He's huge, easily towering over everyone else in the room, with broad shoulders and a build that looks like it was sculpted by artists. His pale blue eyes stood out against his dark skin, kindness sparkling in them despite his face being neutral.

He stops a short distance from me, and waves lightly. Confused, i simply stare before giving a half wave back, but he just smiles softly before starting to sign, "It's loud, isn't it?"

I nod, considering how to respond before signing back, "Very. I'm getting a headache form the sounds and smells."

He nods, and gestures for me to follow him, which I do more out of curiosity than anything. He leads me to a balcony looking over the Dex, and the reprieve from the party is an instant relief. I breathe in the fresh air, leaning over the balcony as I listen to the wind blowing over the base.

The man waves again to get my attention, signing once I look over. "Better?" He smiles at my nod, continuing, "That's good. I never really liked these, either. I'm Niko, the mule for your unit, should Sergei's request get approved."

I nod, looking out towards the lake before answering. "I'm Rane."

That's when I heard the oddest thing. A whispered voice, as deep as the rumble of a quake but as warm as the heat from a fire, "He did say you don't talk much…"

I look over, curious about what I heard. "Who did?"

Niko looks surprised, a mix of awe and confusion filling his yes before he finally whispers in that deep, rich voice, "You understand me…?"

After getting to almost 20k words, I've realized something rather fundamental about my story.

I don't even know what genre it is.

I want to share my story, but I'm not sure about how to do that. So for now, I've just got it stashed away.

My writing is going well, but I'm worried about a planned revelation for one of the main cast. I don't really have anyone to ask for advice, and I'm worried that it'd be taken wrong, but I'm also hesitant to ask for advice here, since it could draw the wrong kind of crowd.

I'm really unsure about it, so I'll ask beneath the line.

So, the revelation is planned for later in the story, and it involves a main-turned-secondary character who acts as an early antagonist to the primary main character. He's trans (Female to Male), and because the reasoning behind his behavior isn't revealed until a chapter or two after the revelation that he's trans (I'm doing chapter by chapter), I'm worried that the message will be seen as "He's an annoying/bad/bothersome person because he's trans", and not "He's an annoying/bad/bothersome person, period."

Him being trans isn't a focus of his story arc, and transphobia (as well as homophobia) won't be used as story beats.

I know I can just not say anything about it, but I want him (and other planned trans characters) to be known. I just don't want to imply the wrong message.

I've got so many scene ideas, but I'm a linear writer, so I regularly have to put them back on the conveyer belt for later.

I'm very close to reaching a third of my projected chapter amount, but it's looking like I'm going to need more chapters.

I've recently passed 10,000 words in my original story. I honestly wasn't expecting to ever actually reach that number, and I still have so many chapters to go.

I'm currently working on a story, but my motivation to write has been pretty low lately. I think the general lack of interest from my friends and family (only my mom is willing to read it currently) is part of the reason why. I'm new to writing as a hobby, and not having anyone to get unbiased feedback from leaves me feeling like my work isn't that great, I think.

writing tip:

if you push buttons on a keyboard, letters will appear on the screen. and with that power you can do anything

No one will ever see, feel, experience things the you do. You are the only one that experiences the world that way. You will never be able to fully explain exactly how you feel about something.

Now isn't that a head fuck

"Hope has been haunting me

with its never ending desire

Still hoping for the sun to touch its being

Even after the endless thunderstorms

and bring it back alive"

~ inspiration from reality

Terry’s Shepherd’s Hut

An original, early Edwardian shepherd’s hut.  A typical Downland design made of corrugated iron over a wooden frame, on an oak chassis, and resting on large cast-iron wheels.

We would spend lots of time in Terry’s shepherd’s hut discussing stories, the words, the world, his world.  Tiffany Aching was born in that hut.

–Rob Wilkins (taken from “Terry Pratchett: His World”) 

(Note the feegle statue and bee pillow!)

“Hi.”

Cause that was the only thing you could say. Really, you didn’t have a right to say anything. But you needed to. You needed to be here, back in this empty world again. “I know it’s been a... a really long time. You’re probably really angry. I don’t blame you. But I’m here now. I want to do something...I want-“

You want to help?

The sharp chill of the words made you shiver. But it didn’t surprise you. Why should it?

You want to do something...now?

Every emotion in those words is what started the tears. The accusation. The betrayal. The disgust. The despair. Nothing but the emotions of a person long forgotten and left to die. The person you once were.

“I’m sorry-“

You’re SORRY?

Black dust and curtains of dark matter whirled to life around you. You felt the anger in the sudden action. The hurt.

Why have you decided to come back? You left me for them. You abandoned me. You chose to become something you weren’t for them. And you dare to show your face to me again? Wanting to HELP?

The darkness suddenly lashed out and you went flying across the great, empty expanse. Your head hit the ground hard, but you felt nothing. Nothing could be felt in this place. That was the point.

The black winds swirled around you once again, striking wildly, unable and unwilling to stop. The fury within uncontainable.

“Please...” You began.

No.

They made themselves known, a black figure with glowing eyes appearing from the dark storm like a car appearing from a fog. Eyes that were dimmer than you remembered. Much dimmer.

Do not beg for mercy. You know how pathetic it is.

“Yea,” you coughed. “But I wasn’t.” The figure tilted its head.

Then you saw it. The light.

The light in their chest, trapped behind a thousand dark chains. It was barely flickering. The chains were cracked in some places, some were simply hanging from being broken long ago. But many were brand new. Shiny, harsh, and black as the darkness that was you.

“I’m sorry I left.” And that was it. That was all you said. All you could do as you lay there, weak and pathetic in front of the shadow that was once you. The real you. The person you forsook to please the ones you thought were more important than yourself.

The tears came down harder.

“I’m sorry.” Your voice wobbled. “I will never forgive myself for leaving you.”

You began to lift yourself to your feet.

“I will never forgive myself for thinking that I needed others’s approval to be whole.”

The figure began to back away.

“And I will never forget what makes me happy.” You stopped in front of them, shaking and humble, their eyes wide.

What makes you happy?

“Being you.”

...

“Being...

Being me.

Slowly. So slowly, the chains began to shake.

And began to break.

GENERAL FANARTIST APPRECIATION POST

we love yall! you’re doing so well with whatever you’re working on! don’t feel pressured to churn out work for other people!! let it flow naturally!! and if it takes like a month or more for the creative juices to get flowing again, who cares!! write/draw/animate/CREATE for you, take a walk outside, call a friend, we’re all so happy with what you’ve created, and we can all wait until you feel like posting again ❤️❤️

Hi sorry for being dead I've been writing a book, but I need honest opinions like I said I'm writing a book and there's romance in it but there's only one straight couple in the main group of my characters out of nine mcs and even then, the girl is bi. But I need to know if I should tone things down a little bit or if i should go all out. Getting mixed signals irl lmao. Also if you want in would love to yap abt it and I should be posting more soon... Hopefully at least