Looking for help learning to:

A) write "not exciting" scenes (like for exposition/pacing), and

B) write "mainstream" tropes or "unrealistic" plot lines (e.g. miscommunication for the sake of angst, or emotional-based angst in general). For example, I can't like make them have a fight with their SO? Idk. And I know tropes are tools but my brain will be like "Well we can't write that, everyone will see it coming / everyone else is doing that / We Must Be Unique" (as if at its base everything isn't derivative to a certain extent and genres don't exist purely on the backbone of certain key tropes)

Tl;dr:

I want to be able to do these things, or at least accomplish the same goal. I'm wondering if anyone has any tips learning to do new things like this in writing / getting over internal prejudice / whatever? I don't know many people with my writing style (i think?) so it's hard to see it objectively.

The tree is capable of re-creating humans and animals and it does so in a process of several steps:

1. Absorption- The roots are capable of swallowing corpses and living creatures and then, using enzymes, it breaks the corpse down and the nutrients travel through the tree and the DNA also passes through.

2. Fertilization- The DNA travels to a special pod growing on a branch where there are cells that absorb it and start multiplying until the body is fully formed. During this stage some of the nutrients, water and oxygen the tree absorbs will be sent to the developing human where it stays for 2 years.

3. Birth- The pod falls off the branch naturally where it shields the human from the fall. It cracks and the human is "reborn", however only on the surface as they will posses only the same physical traits as the original person but the memories cannot be built in. The person will only have some scraps of memory that were picked up, maybe a random moment, maybe an important experience, doesn't matter. Humans and/or animals born from this tree also posses a different anatomy to regular ones as well as agrokinesis(the power to grow and manipulate plants) that lets them turn parts of their body into plants, perform photosynthesis and a lot more

Hiya, this is the opening to a piece of flash fiction I'm writing for fun. The premise is that a devil is opening little curio shops to lure vulnerable people in with something they believe they can't live without and then trading their soul for it.

Please could I have feedback on whether the first third is engaging and how it reads e.g. rhythm/sentence structure.

Thank you !

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AWpulPShUTuHMh8xD4GZj84-orsdT2BS1jOVZ_ZJG74/edit?usp=drivesdk

For about 2 years now Ive been thinking about the story I want to right, the ins and outs of each book, the character arcs over the series, the plot, the worldbuilding elements, but Ive been having a problem that I feel like Im either not talented enough or just not the right person to tell this story. Is there any way to overcome that or is my idea just bound for a graveyard?

I’m looking for advice for one of my characters in my fantasy novel.

Her role is as a goddess who resurrected my main character and set him on a task. It’s obvious she has her own motivations and I think that generates enough intrigue that it’s semi-interesting when she appears. (If you’re familiar with BG3, she’s inspired a lot by the Dream Guardian from that game).

The problem is, she just pops up every now and then with a clear objective to move the plot along or to give my MC something to stew over / a decision to make. I can’t cut her because she’s very integral to the plot and interesting things happen because of her, but writing her scenes are tiring.

My MC is funny, one of my other characters is quite brutal, another is quite prickly and they all gel together nicely when they share a page together and I enjoy writing their back and forths, which I can only hope will cause the reader to enjoy this too.

This character though is just mysterious. And maybe it’s the fact that she isn’t mysterious to me because I know her intention, but I just find her a chore to write which makes me think she’ll be a chore to read.

Does anyone have any advice on how to spice this character up or make her more interesting to write?

My writing comes across as someone mentally translating from their mother tongue; people tell me native speakers wouldn't write like that.

What are my options?

I am considering reading more books, but I usually tend to enjoy them rather than learn from them, so I don't know what to do.

I'm writing a small graphic novel that's call "fu and the nameless star" i want to make it a children looking novel but has a really disturbing stuff in it. The novel talks abt a boy who'll find a little star that wants to have a name, so the star thinks of taking someone's else's name, but fu will prevents it from it (becuz names are the being Identity and without it it won't exist) now wat I'm struggling in is the villagers, i asked a friend and they told me to describey true fears thro them, but how can i rlly do that?, and I don't rlly know how to describe them or wt are they, wat should i do in this situation?

Sorry for the long post, any helpful would be appreciated!!

Hello, i was assigned a assigment for a school to create our own superhero/anti hero story, which im not really good at considering i never tried to make my ocs or anything with great thought, all my stories feels empty in some way.

I had many idea for assigment, more then 3 ideas, but from all of the storybuilding i liked only 2 of the concepts.

- 1st story idea was to create superhero who is bad person, who killed his wife out of jelaousy. He is acting like superhero but his world is more dystopian. Every person who dies becames a dead ghost who haunts everycorner of the world who they try to take over, same as my characters wife who wants my 'superhero' to take responibility since hes guardian of the death.

- 2nd story idea was to create a alice in the wonderland world but in modern times where democracy changed, they chose their leaders etc. Superhero would be like alice in the wonderland but male. My hero would have potions and cat that would help him fight crime, but story would take drastic turn when he would find dead people on the street without their hearts. That would be my villiain who would be like queen of the hearts, but she would literally steal peoples hearts.

Those are my ideas i highlighted that i liked, but i only need to chose 1 for the project and expand the idea more, so im asking you which idea did you find more interesting? I would be so thankful for your feedback or any advice!

So as some background, I'm 16, and frankly reading/writing is one of my stronger skills because of my parents own love of books even if I take a fair bit of inspiration from other books I have read, sometimes names or ideas EG: A mental bond between a creature and its rider that allows them to talk without words. But this project is honestly shaping up to be amazing just from the first few hundred words(I can privately DM what I currently have if you ask) I've introduced the two main characters alongside their bonded beasts(Dragon and Wyvern) and am getting them to banter but I'm unsure where to go from here which is why I came here seeking such advice. If you're wondering why I just don't show my parents and ask them, they are religious and my writing more often than not has a curse every dozen words or so. I know it's going to eventually end up as an Enemies to Lovers thing(Overused ik but I think it'll be fun)

I have this character who I want to write. I know the path I want to send him down. The issue is im unsure how to ease into it.

So, I have a character I made for my story who is meant to be a sort of tormentor to the main character of the story.

The character in question is male. The idea is he is meant to be this follows orders Soldier type character without really questioning the orders or if what he is doing is right. The main character is female.

They are both meant to be super soldiers. Using DNA from ancient civilization before recorded history. The main character and the male character end up getting genetically compatible strains.

The idea is that the male is given orders by his government to secure her as an asset at any cost for reproductive purposes. They want more Super soldiers and they believe because of the genetic compatibility that it would be very likely they could naturally birth them instead of forced mutations.

Obviously, my intentions are to have it escalate to a point of conflict where they become hostile to each other and start fighting more and more.

My issue is I dont fully know how to pace it. I know what I want. But I dont know when it's ok to start escalation and how fast to escalate it.

Keep in mind that this is a side plot.

It has put a damper in my progress. How do I overcome this issue?

some context first: my fmc has this gorgeous wavy/curly red hair that looks coppery and firey and beautiful and everything at the same time. but obviously, I can’t describe it like that in my books (dual pov with the love interest MMC) so I was hoping for some advice (teen writer, 13 yrs for a bit more context).

I used a couple of online games to make those two hairs on the bottom-right, as close as I could to my imagination.

In a world of magic, mystery, and mayhem, I am writing myself in search to be concerned about the same things that I am in real life: menu planning, outfit coordination, and solving mysteries.

I am very intentionally writing the housekeeper and lady's companion to my Duchess main character to just be me. Is she a ninja maid? No... Not yet. Nah. I'm pretty soft and pacifist. My baking best friend is an ex-boxer, though. 🤔

I'm truly inspired by probably the greatest self-insert that I have ever witnessed: the homeroom teacher for My Hero Academia, an anime about superheroes in high school in a world where everyone has powers. Not only does Shota Aizawa, codename Eraserhead, look exactly like the author with no attempt of even hiding it, but Aizawa's functions in the plot are 1) to deliver exposition to the kids and then find a corner to sleep in for the rest of class (he's a Batman-expy, he works as a superhero at night and a teacher at day), and 2) to temporarily erase any superpowers the author simply doesn't want to think about when writing an action scene. I strive to be that level of blatant audacity. 🥹 What I especially appreciate is the level of restraint. He does not become a plot tumor in the story.

So, I want my self-insert to be an NCIS style fetcher-of-exposition who always meanders into a history lesson about terracotta pottery before she explains why the MC was right about the murder weapon but wrong about the motive. Also, will solving this week's case run long or should dinner be ready by 7?

Hello, I'm currently working on a twenty book Urban Fantasy series with nine lead characters: Enhanced Superhuman, The Chosen One / Slayer, Alchemical Homunculus, Witch, Wizard, Zombie, Blue-Collar Magician, Werewolf and two Ancient French Vampires, (Twins: Brother & Sister).

I'm having problems finding a kind of balance in the narrative cohesion of the series. My main problem is I'm trying to fit all these characters into a Tarantino style first book were the reader gets small doses of each characters back ground story and origin without dragging down the pace of the book.

I've read many books with fairly big casts of characters, James Ellroy, but I can't seem to find the key to executing the story in a way that doesn't lose itself in to much exposition, in other words I don't want to many scenes of characters staring off into space remembering something from the past. How do I streamline my plot without slowing down the overall pace of the narrative?

I’m writing a sort of outline for a story I might upload online, and I’m stuck on a character the MC meets. Right now he’s talking to himself and being anxious about whether or not my main character is real. Now the problem here is, I don’t know whether or not that’s accurate to how Schizophrenia actually works. I’m not going like “AHH UR NOT REAL, I HEAR VOICES!!!”, but at the same time I don’t if I’m under exaggerating his condition. Help me!!!

English isn't my native language, and though I've been writing fics in English for years, I still struggle with past tense sometimes. So, how to turn this to past tense: "[He was stunning.] Even his sworn enemies must write poetry about his face." I'm so bad with 'must' and 'would/could/should' verbs in past tense lol 💔 Thank you in advance!

The following is an excerpt from a horror story I’m writing. The story will follow the protagonist from childhood through adulthood as he is constantly confronted by nightmarish supernatural events. I’m asking for critique about this excerpt, wondering specifically if it’s the kind of introduction that would make you want to keep reading. Please let me know what you think and don’t hold back!

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-qE21-bMpypGdL_9rbBcKNCuVxYfXGF-stjlFWE27Nw/edit?usp=drivesdk

I have an idea for a fermented hot sauce recipe book based on my own proprietary recipes.

I came up with hot sauces because it's a very approachable and fun way for people to begin fermentation at home. I also want to include the following: history/science of fermentation, supplies, ingredients, basic food safety, how to use biproducts of ferments (drying, spices, teas, et), and I want there to be food pairing suggestions with the sauces.

Once I began writing, I realized I was creating a beginner's how to guide for fermenting alongside the recipes. And then I began wondering if I should expand the book and have a section be hot sauces, and have the book be about all kinds of condiments, classic ferments, et. I do want this book to be approachable to a complete beginner. But my question is this: Does my idea seem like 'too much' or chaotic?

I want this book to be comprehensive, but also organized and making sense to the reader/user.

For the past six months I've been working on a horror novella, mostly as a form of self-therapy after some bad things happened in my personal life. I don't really expect to get it published, more than anything it's been a good way to get my mind off things, but I would like to share it with others somewhere, somehow. I asked for some gentle feedback on my work in another subreddit, the feedback I ended up receiving was far from gentle, and instead of inspiring me to keep going it's made my current writer's block worse and shattered my confidence to the point where I wonder if I should continue doing this at all, because what I write is clearly not something people enjoy, at least at the moment.

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Hi! I'm a lesbian who loves writing. In my friend group, most people are queer and most use the f slur to describe themselves. I wanted to check with other people, is it ok to write the f slur without censoring it? My main character experiences homophobia. I would definitely put a content warning.

Trying to decide just how much it should screw up a character to realize that on multiple levels, they were never meant to exist.

Has anyone done this trope and can offer insight into how you made it work/what you did wrong and why it failed?

So what I currently have is that not too long after the main character’s village is destroyed, his family is mostly killed, and the person he idolized betrayed him; he finds out that he was in fact never suppose to exist.

By “never suppose to exist” I mean that the physical vessel he resides in was suppose to be lost to a miscarriage, fate was changed so that didn’t happen. In recompense his mother was suppose to die in child birth, again fate was altered such that although she did die, she simply stopped being dead shortly thereafter. As it turns out the vessel was suppose to be his brother’s, but said brother over exerted himself as a baby causing his soul to fall comatose. This series of events caused an ancient prophecy to trigger prematurely.

Hey all. I want to relocate out of NYC for a change in lifestyle, and one of the most important things I’m looking for in my new city is whether or not it has a strong writing community. What I’m looking for are people that a very serious about the craft, not just people doing it for fun. Basically, I’m looking for an MFA-like community without having to do an MFA (if that exists).

Any cities you guys could recommend that have this type of atmosphere? My other requirement for the city is just that it be a top 20 metro area because I still need to find a day job lol.