Winter’s Writing Tips: A Thread

1) Political themes are not an inherently bad idea, but adding politics only relatable to the present of the show will date your writing extremely

2) Listen to criticism, even if it’s laced with insults
Learn to separate the insults from the actual critique, and you’ll get through life easily

3) Sexualization is not an inherently bad thing
Don’t be afraid to sexualize characters, especially if you feel it’s important for a character or relationship to grow
Anyone who says it’s bad is a prude

4) Research topics if you’re not familiar with them, especially if you wanna make new cultures and races
Keep notes handy so you never lose track of what the components of the culture and race are

5) I say this as a progressive: forced diversity is a thing and it’s gross
Treating your characters’ identities as a marketing tool should not be a praise, it should be a criticism

6) If you wanna make a story with representation, do it right
Make characters of all kinds, not just in identity but in personality
Not only will it make the characters more human but you’ll find that people who actually love your story will appreciate it more

7) Don’t be afraid to touch on the taboo, but be careful not to glorify it

8) Unreliable Narrators are great
Don’t be afraid to make a character that’s an unreliable narrator. It add a depth to your story and makes it feel more real (especially in crime stories, fantasy, and mystery)

9) High Stakes is important as it adds to rising action and falling action
Anyone who tells you “Low Stakes is better” has never picked up a good action book

10) Test your boundaries
Every artist has boundaries when it comes to their work, that point where they decide they’re uncomfortable with going through with something
Find those boundaries, test them, and remember them

11) CONSISTENCY IS IMPORTANT
ITS OKAY TO NOT LIKE PLOT HOLES
GIVE A JUSTIFICATION FOR THEM EVEN IF ITS “hey I dunno I just unlocked this weird super power and then boom everything went back to normal”

12) ^This doesn’t really apply to horror, as part of the thrill is the unpredictability
Humans are scared of the unknown and a lack of patterns

13) Don’t be afraid of rewrites
Sometimes it takes a few tries before it sounds right
Don’t give up because you’re frustrated, because readers and viewers pick up on it

14) References are great, especially in realistic fiction, as it adds a realism and relatability to it

15) Character sheets
Lots and lots of character sheets

16) Victims can be villains
It’s okay to sympathize with a villain and still recognize they’re in the wrong

17) Be wary how you treat minors in your story
Don’t dumb them down, but don’t make them too grown and knowledgeable either (unless it’s a justifiable thing, I.E a demon in a child’s body, prodigy, etc.)

18) Inevitably you’ll make a character that will fit a stereotype, but as long as you create characters of that same group that aren’t a stereotype, it won’t hit as hard as when you make EVERYONE of that group a stereotype

19) Worldbuild as necessary
Sometimes you need to get ham with it, sometimes it’s okay to simply add a few details here and there

20) If people call you buzzwords without reading the story, don’t listen to them
If they *politely* point out something is problematic, have a conversation, especially if it’s from some in the group affected
Talk, don’t pander

21)^Exceptions are in comedy or in horror, as those two genres tend to push the limits on what is acceptable socially with different pay offs

22) Satire isn’t a defense if your critique is bad
You’re not smarter by writing satire, just observational

23) Stick to YOUR canon
You know what you’re writing and what you mean by your writing
Don’t let other people try and tell you what to write (unless, again, they have reason to or they believe an idea might work for your story, and even then, it’s okay to simply put it aside)

Extras:
•Violence is but a tool to continue the story
•Be sure to study all sides of politics if you want to include it in your story
•You can’t control your fans, just your reaction
•Learn things before publication
•Don’t be an ass

Yes I know I’m a hypocrite for this but lemme have this