Latest Posts by krispynotkreme - Page 3

OK let’s play a game! describe your gender as a scent. Go!

lil sketch page (yum watches paw patrol with the pupa you can’t change my mind)

will in s5

What if Beths original Rick is the one that killed our Ricks Beth and Diane?

he lived. served cunt. died. got resurrected. served even more cunt

The Quarry by Tobias Jonassen

Writing Dreams

There is nothing more frustrating than reading a tense, drama-packed scene where the plot takes a completely unexpected turn, a character in the midst of an arc makes a pivotal realization, or heck, someone dies, only to read the next sentence and discover that none of it was real -- it was, in fact, all a dream.

Yet writers keep using this trope. It's most common for flashbacks, recaps, foreshadowing, and showing internal conflict for characters undergoing character arcs. Sometimes it works. Most of the time, it elicits groans from frustrated readers asking, why did I have to read this if it is not real?

I think the dream trope falls flat for four main reasons.

The Let Down: Dreams, especially nightmares, have a tendency to be fast-paced high-action scenes where IMPORTANT character and plot moments happen. The reader gets invested. Especially if the dream involves a major plot twist, loss, failure, betrayal, or character death, the reader has now adjusted their expectations for the story. They are wondering, how the heck are the characters going to move forward after this setback?? and they've just been delivered an emotional gut-punch. But oh! None of that was actually real. The characters are all safe and the plot is still going as planned. The writer has built up all this tension, the stakes are higher than ever... then, suddenly, all it just disappears. What a let down!

It Came to Them in a Dream: A character is going through (or about to start) an arc, such as a redemption arc, or they are being forced to make a difficult decision. Suddenly, they have a dream that reveals to them a moral conflict they didn't realize they were having, gives them a realization they never would have come to on their own, or just tells them the right answer to their difficult choice. Instead of letting these characters come to these realizations through their own conscious actions, and letting them make decisions (both good and bad) that eventually teach them lessons, it all came to them in a dream! Yes, dreams are a fast way to spur character growth and an easy way to share information. But this method leaves the characters as passive witnesses to their own story. It robs them of agency. And this is rather boring to read.

Why now? Dreams used to show backstory or recap events can also fall into the trap of robbing characters of agency. Unless the memory has been triggered by a recent event, why is the character suddenly dreaming of this now? Why not a month ago? Why not a month from now? Why not never? It makes it feel like there is some mysterious force controlling the events of the story, making sure that things happen in a certain order. It begs the question, if the character didn't randomly have this dream, would the story have happened the way it did?

It Makes Too Much Sense: The dream doesn't feel like a dream. Things that happen in the dream are too logical, or worse yet, the dream is a completely accurate memory, undistorted by time or the biases of the character remembering. This is the least important of the four points, but it can still mess with a reader's suspension of disbelief, and misses a good opportunity to explore the biases of a character and how they view the world around them.

But this doesn't mean the trope can't ever be used. You just have to makes sure your dreams don't create the above problems for your story.

Oh shit, this was in my dream! Dreams can be a great way to build up tension for a climactic moment, so long as the dream is directly related to an event that happens later. You can have death and betrayal and failure in your dreams, so long as the dreams are used to build up to the moment when one of these things might actually happen. Use dreams to convey to worst-case scenario so that your readers understand the stakes and are genuinely worried when the moment the character has dreamed about starts to come true.

Keep the pace: To avoid letting down your readers with a fast-paced dream that has no impact on the plot, make sure the dream does not interrupt your pacing. If the scenes directly around your dream are slow-paced, don't throw in a fast-paced dream. It will feel like a cheap attempt to keep the reader interested. If you have a faster-paced dream, have it happen as tension is building towards a major moment. If your dream is one of the most climatic parts of the story, it needs to happen right before -- perhaps segueing directly into -- one of the story's climaxes. You can also stick fast-paced dreams directly after dramatic scenes if you want to show how the scene impacted a character. If something just terrified your character, they are probably having a nightmare about it.

Don't introduce anything new: If you must use a dream as part of a character arc or arc leading to a major decision, have the dream be the effect, not the cause. A character already questioning their morality, slowly coming to a realization, or grappling with a choice will likely reflect on it in their dreams. But, dreams should not introduce information, ideas, or opinions that the character does not know/has not already entertained while conscious. Likewise, dreams can be an effective tool to show characters mulling over dilemmas as possible outcomes, but any new decisions should be made while the character is conscious.

Huh, that reminds me of... If you want to show backstory or a recap through a dream, have something inspire the dream such as a recent event, a reunion with a character that will later appear in the dream, or even a familiar smell or food that has something to do with the dream. The thing that links this moment in the past to the present can be an excellent place for symbolism.

The Divine Forces Spoke to ME! Make the dream the inciting incident. If you must have a character arc inspired by a random dream, put it right at the beginning of the story. Make the dream the thing that motivates the character to be part of the plot in the first place. Don't take an existing character with established motivations and suddenly change them because of a dream.

One time I dreamt... Make the dream illogical. You can use this to make it scarier (ex. the villain turns into a werewolf the size of a skyscraper with human flesh stuck in his fangs for no reason), or you can use it for comedic effect. You can also use it to convey information about the character having the dream. (If the character's little brother randomly shows up on the battlefield eating all their candy, you can tell what kind of relationship the siblings have.)

If you are writing sci-fi or fantasy, there are other clever ways to get around some of the pitfalls of the dream trope. But there are also new pitfalls to fall into. You can get around the "why now?" and "it came to them in a dream" problems by having another character plant the dream in their head Darth Sidious-style. But you can also run the risk of having " unexplained mysterious forces" doling out random, useful information for no apparent reason. If you want an "unexplained mysterious force" like fate or "the gods" to be an active role in a story, you have to write it like a character -- with internally consistent motivations and reasons for why it chooses to interfere sometimes but not others. Even if you never explain it, it must be consistent, and that consistency must be deducible from the force's actions in the story.

Primary Personality Traits 📜✨

hi there! I’m in the process of making character profiles and in my search for some descriptions I stumbled upon this little gem. It’s a list of 638 character traits including positive, neutral, and negative traits you can use to describe your characters. I found it super helpful so I figured I’d link it here for my own record and other writers. you can also find the full list under the cut.

hope this helps, enjoy writeblr!

Keep reading

Dare I say, slay

It's very often far easier to care for others:

than to be the one to receive care:

The latter is often scarier; you feel a lot more exposed and vulnerable. And it doesn't require competence. It requires that you just "be" and sit with the emotions, some of which can be in waves, very foreign, and difficult to handle. Whereas when you're looking after someone, you at least feel a sense of control and that you're achieving something.

Many abused kids would rather believe they themselves are bad or not good enough:

than believe their caregiver has wronged/violated them and will continue to do so:

It's less frightening to believe you are unlovable than believe your parent/guardian does not show you love.

The latter would be too much to handle and would change their world in an instant once they entertain such a belief. Too much to handle, maybe till they're as ready as they may be.

Perhaps all this is what Season 3 might look into, since it'll surely be exploring the Grimwalkers and Caleb further, which inevitably links back to Hunter. His trust is healing in that he can be there for Gus and his friends. But will he receive more and more love as he looks deeper into his pain?

TOH POSTERS APPRECIATION POST

Day 3: Steve Harrington

you can pry bi Steve harrington from my cold dead hands

Characters

Character Flaws

❃

What is a Character Flaw?

a limitation, imperfection, problem, phobia, or deficiency that affects actions, abilities, motives, and social interactions.

❃

Creating Character Flaws

⤷ Fears:

⟿ What past traumas affect current behavior?

⟿ What are they irrationally afraid of?

⟿ What are they secretly afraid of?

⟿ What are they publicly afraid of?

⟿ What fears relate to current problem?

⟿ What fears effect current problem?

⤷ Prejudices:

⟿ What were they taught to dislike?

⟿ What do they believe is wrong?

⟿ What are they intolerant of?

⟿ What will they fight for/against?

⟿ What are they ashamed of?

⤷ Strong Traits:

⟿ What positive trait could become a flaw?

⟿ What positive trait could cause issues?

⟿ What trait annoys other characters?

⟿ What trait could hold them back?

❃

List of Flaws:

⇸ absentminded

⇸ abusive

⇸ addict

⇸ aimless

⇸ alcoholic

⇸ anarchist

⇸ angsty

⇸ arrogant

⇸ assertive

⇸ bossy

⇸ callousness

⇸ carelessness

⇸ childishness

⇸ competitive

⇸ conceited

⇸ confirmation bias

⇸ controlling

⇸ cowardice

⇸ cruelty

⇸ curiosity

⇸ cynicism

⇸ deception

⇸ defiance

⇸ dishonesty

⇸ disrespectful

⇸ dramatic

⇸ egotistical

⇸ entitlement

⇸ forgetful

⇸ greed

⇸ guilibility

⇸ hostility

⇸ ignorance

⇸ immaturity

⇸ impatience

⇸ impracticality

⇸ impulsive

⇸ inconsiderate

⇸ indecisiveness

⇸ indulgence

⇸ jealousy

⇸ laziness

⇸ manipulative

⇸ mean

⇸ meddlesome

⇸ messy

⇸ mischievous

⇸ naivety

⇸ nosy

⇸ obnoxious

⇸ offensive

⇸ paranoia

⇸ pettiness

⇸ pretentiousness

⇸ prideful

⇸ rageful

⇸ rash

⇸ rebelliousness

⇸ recklessness

⇸ ruthless

⇸ sadistic

⇸ sarcastic

⇸ secretive

⇸ selfishness

⇸ sensitivity

⇸ sexism

⇸ slothful

⇸ sneaky

⇸ spoiled

⇸ stereotypical

⇸ stubborn

⇸ superstitious

⇸ undependable

⇸ unorganized

⇸ unreasonable

⇸ unsympathetic

⇸ vain

⇸ vengeful

⇸ violent

⇸ wasteful

⇸ whiney

⇸ wrathful

You know what I’m really liking about Luz and Amity’s relationship? There’s no stereotypical relationship roles.

The Owl House does such a good job at breaking cliche rules, for real, like:

-Amity initiates everything

(ex. asking Luz out first, the cheek kiss, and now their first actual kiss)

-Luz acts more like “the gentleman”

(aka giving more compliments, spinning Amity around, going on a “rescue mission” for her)

-Amity is more protective

(“Stay away from my Luz” / “Don’t talk to my girlfriend like that!” / “Just don’t get hurt” / “I just want to know that Luz is safe”)

-Both lead during the Grom dance

There was no “who’s gonna be the ‘man” they both just took turns leading, which was cool

-Amity initially got more easily flustered around Luz

I mean we all saw “tomato face Amity” lol

-But Luz got more easily embarrassed around Amity

aka the whole tunnel of love scene / “Oh Crikey!….I can’t believe I just said that, I need to be more cool next time!!”

sunshiney characters who adore the mean grumpy character, platonically or romantically, but not DESPITE them being mean as if that isn’t who the other “really” is deep down. they love it. they think the other is the funniest cleverest most delightful person alive

hey doggo, dunno if someone already asked, but why is phonegingi called phonegingi? like where did the name come from it's just so... phonegingi yk what im saying

The story of how gingi got his name was so stupid. When I was working on DT, I had a random playlist of youtube videos playing in the BG, y'know, to break up the monotony. Anyway, an OneyPlays animated came up, I thiiink it was the President Ding Dong sketch? A character appears for a moment and one of the guys makes up the name "Bagingi" for it on the spot. I had no clue at that point what Gingi's name was gonna be, I had everything but the name. I also had "bagingi" on loop in my head since i heard it for some reason, so i said "fuck it! phonegingi will do as a temporary name", and vowed i'd think of a better default name later. While a few friends of mine were helping me test an alpha build of DT with the first draft of randy's route inside, I pitched some new names that I'd come up with to replace the placeholder name I had for this creature which was, ofc, Phonegingi. I don't remember any of the pitches off the top of my head other than 'frankenphone' and none of the testers wanted me to change the character's name. None of them knew the name was meant to be a stupid dumb placeholder and got really attached to it. So I looked at the stupid nonsense name that i'd given to my protagonist that meant nothing and said "yeah ok this suits the kind of person gingi is." The end.

…Huh, I think the Inniters have suddenly reached their breaking point. 

No more of this nonsense. Tommy has had character development and I wish that actually got recognised from time to time. 

He does not want to cause trouble. Prior to Dream’s breakout his only streams were stuff like improving his base, and building a therapy booth (with a token effort at using it for making money). After it, he’s been trying to feel safer. 

His stated goal right now is literally just helping Wilbur. (And being awesome).

So it’s so painful to see him called a menace again and again. And for what? So everyone can believe he’s never changed? So everyone has an excuse to bully him? Because admitting this struggling kid is someone with actual feelings and needs help is too much? Easier to say he just had it coming? 

f*ck it, here are some silly pet paintings

i fucking love that c!tommy is aggressively a Teenager because. gafghafsga. in general if you were a teenage character in a piece of media but you were hard to love? if you weren’t the cowed, polite, and quiet type but you acted in all the “negative” or “ugly” ways teenagers do sometimes? you get like. vitually no depth or sympathy or any redeeming qualities. c!tommy, for example, has a lot of these less palatable trauma responses — lashing out, rebelling, cursing, not listening to authority, talking back, fighting, generally things that are rough and abrasive — so he basically gets crucified as “throwaway destructive lost cause who likes being an asshole.” with no depth and zero humanity like a lot of characters do. it really unfairly vilifies a lot of things that he does because he’s hurt that are really just poor coping mechanisms and boil it down to “teenager does bad things because they are a teenager and they are immature and dumb.” and look. i am not saying you should be forgiven automatically for hurting people just because it’s a coping mechanism. this goes for teenagers too. i’m just saying, a little understanding goes a long way. tommy is usually mean/destructive to himself or in relatively harmless ways or as a defense against people he perceives as trying to hurt him or those who have more power. he consistently regrets it and tries to make amends. it’s not for no reason. a lot of it is just from being confused and hurt with no guidance. teens are usually not assholes for the hell of it.

i really like that c!tommy is allowed to be a little shit and a bit of an asshole who scams and fights and questions authority and lashes out and makes mistakes but also it’s well understood that he has a heart of gold? that he tries his best? that he loves his friends? that he feels lost and alone and hurt and he’s not just destructive because he’s “immature” or for the fucking fun of it, but because he had to learn how to survive? that he feels like he has the weight of the world on his shoulders and everyone who was supposed to look out for him left him behind? that he genuinely wants to be good? he has a very quintessential growing up story and i love it so much. it’s important to me that c!tommy is allowed to be imperfectly a kid — clumsy, mean, loud, scared, angry — and also shown to be incredibly big-hearted and brave and human. his character sends the message of “just because you’re a kid who fucks up sometimes, doesn’t mean you aren’t deserving of love.” and “teenagers can be dicks sometimes but that doesn’t mean they don’t care about things or try to be good.” like he can be an Annoying Teenager and also full of love. that coexists. and i think that’s epic.

MCYTBLR HOW ARE WE DOING??

DREAM SMP CHARACTERS | TECHNOBLADE

i refuse. 

Some references for one of the next comics!

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