Katherine Frances's Blog, page 11
September 7, 2018
kibberswrites:
I’m so interested in the idea of chosen ones and the idea that it suddenly makes the...
I’m so interested in the idea of chosen ones and the idea that it suddenly makes the person equipped to handle the villain. I want to write it different. The “chosen one” who really is just a kid, a trusting and kinda stupid kid, and they throw themselves into the fight because they’re chosen. They’re chosen. That means they’re going to win, right? And the other good guys are rallying around them, and the community is rooting for them, and doomsday is coming quick so they don’t have much time but they have a lot of faith and that’s what matters, right? The day of the fight comes and everyone knows the chosen one will win. The kid will win. They’re all counting on it.
But, then they don’t. Maybe they get hurt. Maybe they get killed. Because they rushed it, the good guys. They ignored the caliber to get to the result and the result isn’t good. Of course it’s not. The hero is a child. They didn’t stand a chance. Who even chose the kid anyway, and why would they possibly choose a kid unless they wanted the bad guy to win? Unless they wanted this destruction, this public tragedy. Unless they wanted all of this.
Can I ask about the idea of the types of inner conflict ideas (desire, duty, self-concept, principles, fear, etc.) and explain them I guess? I’m a bit confused on them but I think they’ll be excellent to use in developing inner conflict.
Yes! So, the traits typically used to create inner conflict in a character, such as the ones you listed, are things that you should generally know about your character to make them as well-rounded and realistic as possible. “Inner conflict” happens when two of those traits clash. We can look at all of those in greater detail and look at examples of how you can pit them against each other.
Desire: Your character’s positive motivation, the thing that they want the most, the goal they are trying to achieve.
Duty: The responsibilities that they have, whether is is to their family, friends, their job, their religion, or whatever else they might be involved in.
Self Concept: The image one has of oneself. Keep in mind this is how they see themselves, not necessarily the truth of how they actually are or how others see them.
Fear: The negative motivator, the things your character most desperately wants to avoid.
Principles: A fundamental belief that your character or system of beliefs that your character holds as truth.
Once you have each of these tings established for your character, you can create inner conflict by sort of pitting them against each other. Sometimes, when you are developing these aspects, you find that some of them might naturally be at odds for each other.
Some examples- your character wants something desperately (desire) but in order to get it, they have to face down something that terrifies them (fear). Now it becomes a matter of which trait is stronger than the other- the desire or the fear.
Another example- duty vs. principles. The character has a responsibility to their job (duty), but then they are asked to do something that goes against this own personal values (principles.) They must then decide which is more important to them: completing their duty, or standing their ground on their principles.
One final example- self concept vs. desire. The character believes themselves to be of a certain type of person (self concept), but they take interest in something that is outside the sphere of what they thing is normal for that group (desire).
These are not the only combinations, or the only traits that work for inner conflict. In fact, using cornerstones and pillars can help develop your character and figure out what might be a good inner conflict for your character.
Also, you can create conflict by putting two of the same things against each other- for example, your character could have two conflicting desires, and then have to decide which one they want more.
Hope that clarifies things!
- Penemue
September 6, 2018
tsukum:i hate when i go up north and go to restaurants and the waiter comes to take my order and im...
i hate when i go up north and go to restaurants and the waiter comes to take my order and im like “do yall have sweet tea??” and theyre like “no sweetheart but we have unsweetened iced tea and we can give you some sugar packets!!!” llike no you fucking yankee because now the tea is already cold so the sugar wont dissolve in it and itll all just sink the bottom and be nasty learn basic fucking solubility this is 9th grade chemistry thats why sweet tea exists in the first place you fucking heat the tea up to make it and then while its still hot you add the sugar and then you chill it and its sweet fucking tea i bet you pronounce pecan like peecan too you four seasons-having piece of shit
Okay this is totally blog unrelated, but I just moved to Boston and I feel this on a spiritual level
asablehart:
I see a post that goes around every once in awhile that says “Not every narrative is...
I see a post that goes around every once in awhile that says “Not every narrative is empowering to every women” and lists women from different cultural backgrounds may not work with certain feminist tropes in writing. Ok, fine. But one of the examples was “Long hair is more meaningful to a female black character than short hair. This is referring to the trope that feminists and/or queer women cut their hair short in ‘rebellion.‘
That statement is a load of bullshit. Black women are pressured from the day they are born to make sure their hair conforms to white womanhood (long and straight). Black women with short hair are powerful AF and nothing can ever convince me otherwise. Yes, the relationships many black women have with their hair is different than what white women have. Because white women can conform to womanhood if they keep their hair long, and black women will never be able to conform to this unless they spend hours of upkeep a day making themselves “presentable.” In fact, in many places, such as work places, professional places, schools, black women are forced to do this or else they will face repercussions. No one except black women will know how deeply and viscerally upsetting it is to be told that the way your hair grows is unacceptable for the public eye.
A black woman cutting off her hair isn’t a rejection of femininity. It’s deprogramming racist propaganda. It’s terrifying, scary, and HARD, and the seriousness of this decision is a cultural phenomenon in black communities. The “big chop” is a colloquial term for when a black woman cuts off all her damaged hair, sometimes to the scalp, so she can grow it back in natural and not processed to look like a white woman’s hair. The big chop is a near universal experience, because most black women have hair that’s been ironed, heat damaged, and chemically relaxed repeatedly for YEARS causing sustained damage that cannot be remedied without growing in new hair. This is a decision to maintain their hair the way THEY WANT TO and not how white people tell them.
I feel like that post was written by someone who has never spoken to a black woman in their life.
Two Wrongs
Once there was a man of limited means whose only possessions were his cottage, the tiny garden outside, and a small pony he dearly loved. Each morning, he would wash and brush her until she gleamed, exercise her thoroughly, and carefully inspect her entire body for parasites and scratches. She was his confidante and closest companion, sharing the small rations he could scrounge and sleeping in his cottage with him at night.
One evening, as the poor man was visiting the village well, he came across a weary traveler who had nothing but the clothes on his back. Seeing an echo of himself in the other man, he invited the traveler to his home to pass the night in peace and warmth. Together, they returned to the cottage and spent the evening joyously, eating what they could find and talking of wonderful things long into the night until the pauper fell asleep smiling.
Late the next morning, the poor man woke to an empty cottage. The traveler had left in the early morning, taking the poor man’s prized pony with him. Anger and bitterness surged in his chest, and he tore out of the cottage in a rage to track the man. On the road, he muttered to himself that a swift death was not enough for the man who stole his pony and vowed in his heart to have his revenge along with his justice.
The poor man arrived in town and to his astonishment, he saw his pony, gleaming as always, walking alongside the cobbler.
“Where did you get that pony?” he asked.
The cobbler answered, “I purchased her from a traveler for two gold pieces; I won’t part with her for fewer than four.”
The poor man tried to explain his plight, but the only sympathetic gesture from the cobbler was to point him towards the tavern where the traveler was last seen. The pauper nearly smiled though his heart was sinking; if he could not have his horse, he would at least have his revenge! With this sentiment in his heart, he charged into the tavern and immediately located the thief, playing cards and laughing. After pausing only long enough for a swift prayer, he grabbed the thief by his collar and pulled him to his feet.
The barman instantly forced the two outside, where the poor man called, “A gun! Please lend me a gun so I may rid the world of this heinous thief! I showed him kindness, and he returned it with mutiny! A gun!” From the crowd, the weapon was produced. The traveler cowered before the pauper, begging and pleading, calling for sympathy from the gathered villagers and protesting his own poverty, but no one listened to him.
Finally, and with shaking hands, the poor man raised the gun, screwed his eyes shut, and fired.
The bullet found a place to land, but instead of the cries of a dying man, a piercing whinny silenced the village. The thud of a pony crashing into the dirt resounded through the air, echoed by the thump of her master’s knees crumbling next to her.
The traveler, unharmed by the errant bullet, scuffled to his feet and ran through the crowd. The gold pieces jingled in his pocket as he went.
The poor man knelt by his dying pony, sobbing for the loss of his companion and for the horrible truth that repaying wrong for wrong makes nothing right.
This reads like a traditional fable- really neat! I like this kind of streamlined and clear writing style for stories :D
sapphicauthor:
pen-and-sword-writing:
Does anyone have advice on publishing on wattpad? If I’m...
Does anyone have advice on publishing on wattpad? If I’m looking to traditionally publish, is it a safe way to gain an audience without losing first publishing rights? Just general thoughts on your experiences as a writer on the platform?
Hiya!
So a lot of publishers won’t have any problem at all with you publishing on somewhere like Wattpad because it can easily be taken down once you get traditionally published (as opposed to somewhere like Tumblr where reblogs prevent you removing it). That way it won’t impact their sales particularly and indeed, you having built up an audience beforehand will make sales better.
Plus, chances are you’ll be posting a relatively early draft on Wattpad and by the time it gets published traditionally the book will barely be recognizable so chances of it causing problems are incredibly slim. There’s a relatively well-known YA author who still has the first draft of one of his books up to illustrate how much first drafts and finished drafts differ.
As for general thoughts on my experience while I was writing there… like any platform like that it’s very easy to get buried. You have to put a tonne of work into interacting with people in order to get readers. Wattpad can also be pretty glitchy, and the moderators aren’t all that fantastic. It definitely has flaws but equally, it’s by far the best (and biggest) platform for writers to post their stories I’ve ever come across.
tl;dr: like any platform it has its issues, but its the best i’ve ever found and most publishers don’t have any problem with it
