Enjoy.
So I read this fanfic by joolabee and it was really good! So I thought I’d do some sort of poster for it =)
“You look lonely,” said the moon.
“Alone is not the same as lonely,” said the little boy, swinging his feet. “Not the same at all.”
“That is true,” agreed the moon, for she always spoke the truth. “And you are only one of those things.”
The little boy stopped swinging, for he was a clever little boy who often heard more than what was said. “I’m not alone here?” he queried, looking all around.
“You are not,” said the moon, glowing brighter with her words. “Your friend is waiting.”
“I don’t have friends,” dismissed the little boy, swinging his foot again. “And I don’t see anybody.”
“Then you’re not looking hard enough,” said the moon. “Perhaps you aren’t very good at it?”
The little boy scowled and sat up straighter in his swing. “I’m too good at it,” he replied, for there was a reason he was out here all by himself.
“Hmm,” said the moon. “Well, some looking is harder than others,” she acknowledged. “And finding a friend can be the hardest thing of all.”
“Who’d want me for a friend?” asked the little boy. “‘Only an idiot’, apparently.” He sniffed. “And why would I want to be friends with an idiot?”
“Oh, I see,” said the moon, her light dimming somewhat. “And do you believe everything that others tell you?” she asked. “Or only the things you fear to be true?”
The little boy fell silent. “What’s it to you, anyway?” he asked, after a while.
“Oh, nothing really,” said the moon. “You’ll meet one day, whatever happens - that much is written far above my orbit.”
“You’ve been up there for over four million millennia,” said the little boy, for he had not yet deleted astronomy. “Why do you care about a few human years?”
“The answer’s in the question,” replied the moon.
The little boy was quiet for a long time.
“Because you know what it means to be solitary,” he said.
And he jumped down from his swing.
Gorgeous artwork from xxxxxx6x, reposted in a group with kind permission. You can find the originals here: Sherlock / John / Together
I wanted to send it to you via fanmail, but I have problems with my Internet connection… I promised to send you something as a Christmas gift but I’m afraid I didn’t manage to do it in time. So I’ve written this silly little thing, And I hope you will accept it and like it.
(It’s my first ever published fiction text, unbeta’d and all, so please be gentle with me…)
Happy Holidays!
Stupid
It has been their first Christmas together and something was wrong.
Well, not really, thought Martin as he brushed his teeth. He could recall pretty well his Christmas mornings in past few years and he couldn’t say that he did not spend it with Arthur — he was always there, cheery and… And so Arthurish that his ears were hurting from hearing misheard and improved versions of carols. But there was always Douglas there too, offering his sharp comments, and sometimes Carolyn, irritated endlessly. This time though everything was different.
It was their first Christmas as together together. Him and Arthur only. And oh, okay, Carolyn was there too, but she were in her part of the house and Martin didn’t even known if she hadn’t been off to Herc’s already, so it was only him and Arthur, and SnoopadoopOH SHUT UP! They were alone!
It was supposed to be the best Christmas in his life. Martin was never very big on Christmas, not since he had grown up. In fact the first time he really enjoyed this particular time of the year was the memorable Molokai flight deck Christmas on board Gerti. So now he should enjoy it even more, since he and Arthur became a couple and they were spending this special time together.
And he did. He enjoyed his sweetheart’s attentions, little kisses and touches as they shared a dinner with Carolyn, his hand in Arthur’s gentle but strong grip under the table. He enjoyed watching Mr. Bean while being held in steward’s warm embrace, chuckling silently at every single gag, even if both of them had seen this programme nearly a hundred of times. He enjoyed making love in Arthur’s bed, all covered in mistletoe’s leafs, since Arthur had to make sure they were going to kiss and snog and everything in his room.
And it was more than alarming when his favourite clot was lying motionless and silent, and thoughtful, staring at the ceiling.
Arthur hardly ever was silent when thinking. It doesn’t mean he rarely thinks. It may be silly, but Martin observed that Arthur in fact thinks constantly, mostly about small, Arthurish moonshine, but never the less. And he was thinking out loud, humming or singing or whistling — being quiet was very hard for him. And Martin loved him that way.
So when Arthur was so silent — it was very odd. No wonder Martin felt worried.
He entered the room, toothbrush still in his mouth. His sweetheart was lying on the bed, eyes closed; brow frowned, expressing utter concentration. Only now Martin noticed the headphones in his ears, attached to an MP3 player. He took the toothbrush out from his mouth and swallowing the foam Martin sat by his lover’s side.
‘Arthur, is there something—’
‘Skipper, is “I love you” a stupid thing to say?’
Martin blinked.
‘What?’
Arthur handed him one of the headphones. Martin listened to Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman for a moment and then chuckled a bit.
‘It’s only a song, Arthur.’
‘Yea, I know,’ said Arthur, ‘but you know, some songs are about the real things, like that song about silly ways to die, or that AH-AH-AHAH song… And I just thought that maybe this one is true, too.’
Martin smiled. Oh, how he loved that silly, big teddy bear of a man.
‘No, Arthur… Well, maybe sometimes it is true. You know, sometimes people hurt other people, or lie to them, and that’s bad. You would not believe in something easily if it was a lie once.’
Arthur was worrying his lower lip between his teeth for some time, before he asked.
‘But you know that when I say “I love you” to you, I am not lying, Skip. Right?’
Martin smiled and leaned forward, stealing a small, innocent kiss from his man. Arthur looked at him puzzled.
‘Of course I know, you dippy little thing. First of all, you are Arthur, my sweet, sweet Arthur, completely unable to tell a lie.’
Arthur mumbled something and Martin kissed him again.
‘And secondly, my dear, I… I just know. I choose to believe that you say me the truth. So, I know.’
They were silent for a few long minutes. Since they were kissing.
‘You taste like toothpaste, Skip.’
‘And you should too. Go and clean your teeth, silly! And, Arthur…’
‘Yes, Martin?’
‘You know,’ Martin cleared his throat and said, ‘Wise men say “only fools rush in”…’
Arthur giggled into his lips as they kissed again.
‘But you can’t help it?’ Asked Arthur.
‘I really, really can’t.’ said Martin.
I’m looking forward to see the epic illustration for this, dear Iyori XD
Also: Get dressed you Merry Gentelman for this is Christmas […] Day!
Happy Holidays, dear Cabin Crew!
Are you still stuck for ideas for National Novel Writing Month? Or are you working on a novel at a more leisurely pace? Here are 102 resources on Character, Point of View, Dialogue, Plot, Conflict, Structure, Outlining, Setting, and World Building, plus some links to generate Ideas and Inspiration.
CHARACTER, POINT OF VIEW, DIALOGUE
The Universal Mary Sue Litmus Test
Priming the idea pump (A character checklist shamlessly lifted from acting)
Handling a Cast of Thousands – Part I: Getting to Know Your Characters
Establishing the Right Point of View: How to Avoid “Stepping Out of Character”
How to Start Writing in the Third Person
Web Resources for Developing Characters
What are the Sixteen Master Archetypes?
Fiction Writer’s Character Chart
Fiction Writer’s Character Chart
Villains are People, Too, But …
Top 10 Tips for Writing Dialogue
Advantages, Disadvantages and Skills (character traits)
How to Write a Character Bible
Character Development Exercises
All Your Characters Sounds the Same — And They’re Not a Hivemind!
Writing the Other: Bridging Cultural Difference for Successful Fiction
Family Echo (family tree website)
Interviewing Characters: Follow the Energy
100 Character Development Questions for Writers
Lineage Chart Layout Generator
PLOT, CONFLICT, STRUCTURE, OUTLINE
How to Write a Novel: The Snowflake Method
Effectively Outlining Your Plot
Conflict and Character within Story Structure
Ideas, Plots & Using the Premise Sheets
Creating Conflict and Sustaining Suspense
Plunge Right In … Into Your Story, That Is!
Fiction Writing Tips: Story Grid
Tips for Creating a Compelling Plot
The Thirty-six (plus one) Dramatic Situations
The Evil Overlord Devises a Plot: Excerpt from Stupid Plotting Tricks
The Hero’s Journey: Summary of the Steps
Outline Your Novel in Thirty Minutes
SETTING, WORLD BUILDING
The Art of Description: Eight Tips to Help You Bring Your Settings to Life
Creating the Perfect Setting – Part I
An Impatient Writer’s Approach to Worldbuilding
Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions
Character and Setting Interactions
Creating Fantasy and Science Fiction Worlds
Maps Workshop — Developing the Fictional World Through Mapping
IDEAS, INSPIRATION
Solve Your Problems Simply by Saying Them Out Loud
Writing Inspiration, or Sex on a Bicycle
Creative Acceleration: 11 Tips to Engineer a Productive Flow
The Seven Major Beginner Mistakes
Complete Your First Book with these 9 Simple Writing Habits
Free Association, Active Imagination, Twilight Imaging
Story Starters and Idea Generators
REVISION
One-Pass Manuscript Revision: From First Draft to Last in One Cycle
Revising Your Novel: Read What You’ve Written
Writing 101: So You Want to Write a Novel Part 3: Revising a Novel
TOOLS and SOFTWARE
My Writing Nook (online text editor; free)
Bubbl.us (online mind map application; free)
Freemind (mind map application; free; Windows, Mac, Linux, portable)
XMind (mind map application; free; Windows, Mac, Linux, portable)
Liquid Story Binder (novel organization and writing software; free trial, $45.95; Windows, portable)
Scrivener (novel organization and writing software; free trial, $39.95; Mac)
SuperNotecard (novel organization and writing software; free trial, $29; Windows, Mac, Linux, portable)
yWriter (novel organization and writing software; free; Windows, Linux, portable)
JDarkRoom (minimalist text editor; free; Windows, Mac, Linux, portable)
AutoRealm (map creation software; free; Windows, Linux with Wine)
As someone who writes fics with action sequences and the use of guns, I thought maybe it would be helpful to pass some things on. Even though I’ve done lots of research and talked with family members (I live in WI which is a big hunting state and we have lots of guns), I still catch myself making mistakes with specific terms and their usage. Reading more James Bond fics lately, I catch others making mistakes also. So here is a little guide to help writers.
- A ‘clip’ is something that stores multiple rounds of ammunition. It is not what you would insert into a handgun to load it. Clips make loading into a magazine easier because they simply store the rounds. It helps with organization.
- A magazine is what feeds the ammunition into the barrel. Magazines vary in capacity. They, unlike clips, are spring-loaded, which helps the ammunition move in the gun. So, when you want a character to reload, they would use a pre-loaded magazine, NOT a clip.
- A silencer is really a suppressor. ‘Silencer’ is a word that’s used in media to refer to a suppressor that doesn’t exist in real life. Guns that are suppressed will still be loud and have a sound. This is because compressed air will still leak out of the end of the barrel, you can’t silence a bullet moving extremely fast through the air, and you can’t silence the mechanical parts on a gun. There will be a noise, but it just won’t be as loud or more importantly, alert people in a nearby area that a gun was just fired. SO suppressor is a much more accurate term technically speaking.
- There are different kinds of suppressors. One important kind suppresses the muzzle flash. It’s likely a sniper would use this more than they would want to use a sound suppressor, as the muzzle flash more easily enables you to be spotted when you don’t want to be. These are simply referred to as flash suppressors.
- After a handgun runs out of ammunition, the slide will lock back into place and you will know that it is out. There is no ‘click’ signifying an empty weapon that is so dramatized in movies and tv. A more likely scenario that would prevent a gun from firing would be a jam. Or programming the gun to recognize certain palm prints.
- A great place for writers, in particular fanfic writers, who want information on guns is imfdb. You can find out what guns are used in movies and shows, and what guns characters use. You can also just search for guns.
- If you want to get really specific, check out YouTube. There are users who will post reviews of guns on there, which can be really helpful if you want to see how a particular gun looks or how to shoot it.
So yeah! Here are just a few basic tips if you want to write a fic where a character uses guns.
I’ll add LJ links as soon as I put them up.
You can read it on AO3 here.
OH BOY FINALLY!
piperkenton asked: I know there’s a page for this but I can’t for the life of me find it and I really should bookmark it but could I have a link to the tips to writing a kissing scene or whatever it was called page? I’d love you forever, my characters in a relationship and I have a feeling the next couple scenes in our para will be steamy.
A selection of our articles on sex/kissing:
- How to Write a Sex Scene
- Sex Scenes: Cap Your Pens, Ladies and Gents, ‘Cause We’re About to Talk Dirty
- WriteWorld Writers Talk Shop on Writing Sex from a Male’s Perspective
- Pucker Up! (on writing kisses, specifically)
- Tips from Writers on Sex Scenes
Thank you for your question (and good luck!)!
-C
