Selfish Fate

1.5M ratings
277k ratings

See, that’s what the app is perfect for.

Sounds perfect Wahhhh, I don’t wanna
letswritestories101
dragonomatopoeia

it always sucks in romances when characters aren't active participants in their own relationship or attraction. when it's always "why do i feel this way" and they can't name a single reason they like the love interest i'm like idk man i think you should get out of there maybe.

at some point if you're going too hard on the Genuine Confusion and the character having no clue why they're doing anything they're doing or why they even like the other party it's like. I think you were cursed by a wizard. or an author, which is something similar. it becomes something akin to The Narrative Has Mandated That This is A Love Story and Therefore I Must Be In Love rather than like. a convincing romance between parties who care about each other

dragonomatopoeia

Apologies. This follow-up is mostly going to be me yelling into the abyss out of accumulated irritation after more than ten thousand notes and having to see every tag in the world in my activity feed.

That Being Said: I Enjoy Romances. Romance is one of my favorite genres.

The reason I made this post is in fact because I like romance as a genre So Much that I have many thoughts and feelings about its relative craftmanship and what makes a romance well-executed

So! It's a little disheartening when I see a flood of responses about how This is Just How Romance Is, or how this is the main reason people dislike romance media! Because as someone who has suffered the various slings and arrows of the genre and has been steeped in it for their entire life, I would like to put forth the argument that Poorly-Executed Romances are Not The Same As Well-Executed Romances, Actually

A romance is still a story, and it's still a narrative. Character motivations should make sense! The plot should be compelling! Emotions and logistics should flow in such a way that the audience can find it compelling! A good romance, like any good story, should cohere! It should not, by virtue of its genre, be shuffled into a box labeled 'mindless drivel that's not worth examining because it's always silly and shallow'!!!

silvormoon

Note for anyone who wants to write on the theme of "Why Am I Having These Feelings?":

If you want to do it well, you generally need to do two things. One, you need to make sure the audience knows why these feelings are there, even if the main character hasn't caught on yet. If you want a genuine love story, the love interest should demonstrate some lovable traits at some point or other. They need to do something cool, or clever, or kind, or just show a little vulnerability. It doesn't have to be something big, just so long as it's meaningful to the main character.

The second thing is that there should be some reason why the main character can't figure out what's going on - preferably something other than "the main character is just dumb" which might well be true but can feel like the author is just pulling strings. Other options may include:

  • Main character used to consider the love interest an enemy or was otherwise antagonistic towards them, and doesn't realize right away that their feelings have changed.
  • Main character considers themselves above the love interest in some way and can't believe they'd have feelings for an "inferior".
  • Main character considers themselves incapable of romantic feelings. Maybe they consider themselves too intellectual, too emotionally damaged, etc.
  • Main character believes themselves to be in love with someone else and refuses to countenance the idea that their real feelings lie elsewhere.
  • Alternatively, main character used to be in love with someone else and doesn't feel ready to move on yet.
  • Main character has some other cause they are devoted to and can't think about having feelings about anything else.

And of course, the ever-popular:

  • "Oops, I didn't know I swung that way."
keyboardandquill

#slight addendum to the last #m asexual and thought my feelings were platonic*/*do i actually like this person or is it just peer pressure"ALT

Good addition in the tags courtesy of @tolrais

nanowrimo

Making the Most of Your First Draft

nanowrimo

image

Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. Dabble, a 2021 NaNoWriMo sponsor, is an easy-to-use writing tool that lets you organize, plot, and create amazing stories. Today, they’ve teamed up with author and editor Chet Sandberg to bring you some advice for getting the most out of your first draft:

Every year, thousands of first time novelists reach the end of November with +/-50k words and savor the victory of finally finishing something. Perhaps you’ll be one of them!

You take a day, or maybe you take a week, to bathe in the adulation of your fellows, many of whom also completed their manuscripts, along with many who didn’t. Then, you freeze. What’s the next step?

This post is dedicated to helping you get a first draft that, no matter how loosey-goosey or clinical your writing approach, serves as a basis for a great final manuscript.

Turning points: give your scenes movement.

Keep reading

snake-and-mouse
snake-and-mouse

To any fic writers who worry they are wasting their time... I read a fic for a relatively small and inactive fandom about three years ago. And there was one specific scene where a character watched another dancing like an idiot to a beyonce song and it was so sweet and loving that even now years later I have that song on one of my spotify playlist so every once in a while it will play and remind me of that fic, and every time it does I smile and feel a little happier.

The stats on a fic will never really tell you if your writing touched someone. There's no numerical way to show you what impact you made. Maybe you are wasting time, or maybe you are writing something that someone will remember for a long time, something that will never fail to make them smile.