Welcome to the workshop sharing forum!

This is where you will share your mini-workshops for Weekly 2 of SWC July 2023. This weekly begins on July 10th at 00:001 UTC, and will end on July 16th at 11:59pm UTC. Looking forward to seeing everyone's wonderful workshops! <3

Narration Technique: Free Indirect Discourse

Hello there, and welcome to Alex's workshop on a narration technique known as free indirect discourse. There's a pretty good chance you've never heard of it, but an equally good chance that you've used it before. Simply put, free indirect discourse (abbreviated FID from here on out, because I'm not tying that out every single time) is when you write in third person point of view, but you take on the unique character voice and thoughts of a specific character. It's a technique that many third-person writers use in order to mimic the effect of first-person narration, without actually having to tie themselves down to a specific character. If you're not familiar with the different types of point of view (or POV) I recommend you google it really quickly, because that's not something I'm going to go over.

Now, it's a bit of a confusing concept to consider if you don't have an example, so let me give you one. Consider these two examples:
1. The broken mirror flashed in Elodie's periphery, and she stumbled back. She got the sense that something peculiar was going on, and she wondered what it could be reflecting.
2. The broken mirror flashed in Elodie's periphery, and she stumbled back. Peculiar… very peculiar. What could it possibly be reflecting?
Can you guess which one contains FID? If you said the second one, you'd be correct! Even though it's very clearly third-person point of view, we get Elodie's direct thoughts. In this case, it allowed the writer to cut down on thinking verbs (“got the sense” and “wondered” can frequently become redundant) and allows us to feel closer to Elodie's character, creating a much more effective air of mystery.

Here's another example of an excerpt in which FID is more subtle:
Eleanor rolled her eyes at Sasha, physically protesting the fact that the other girl had never faced a problem in her life.
Of course, the character of Sasha can't actually have never faced a problem, but with FID, we're able to show that the pseudo-narrator (Eleanor) sure seems to think so. A true third-person narrator wouldn't have said that directly, since it's not objectively true, but by using Eleanor's perspective we can learn more about her character.

So, why do authors use FID? It's mostly effective to enhance the vibe of a story, whether that be creating a mysterious, nail-biting thriller, or to add humor and perspective from a comic relief main character. It's a great tool to get across personality in your writing without actually having to spell everything out, and it makes lots of things way more fun to read. While FID isn't necessarily a technique that needs to take over a piece, because it tends to happen naturally (like I said: I'm sure you've used it before!), it's always good to be able to recognize these subtle techniques in your own writing.

In my own experience as a reader, FID is most effectively utilized when your primary main character has a strong, unique voice. Character voice is a whole workshop in and of itself, but you can imagine the effect - if you've got an arrogant, vain character, narration that comes across as condescending when describing other characters can be incredibly effective! Additionally, it can be an interesting way to highlight certain qualities in your characters that don't need to be spelled out on the page for the reader. For example, a character that comes from a wealthy background might notice the brand name of the watch someone else is wearing. With FID, you don't have to explicitly state that “character A noticed that his watch was expensive.” You can be more subtle, and simply add a few sentences about the make of the watch in the third-person narration, and it'll enhance the unique vibe of your book.

This is also incredibly effective if you switch the POV character from chapter to chapter, and you still want to write in third person. Readers will be able to notice that narration, even though it's not technically first-person, is notably different from character to character, which adds authenticity and uniqueness to your writing.

In this workshop, you might not have learned any new techniques, if you're someone who already uses FID. However, hopefully you're able to put a word to this idea, which will allow you to be more mindful of the way you're writing. It's always best to use a literary technique intentionally, and it's awesome to learn something new about the work you do every day!

Sources used: https://liberalarts.oregonstate.edu/wlf/what-free-indirect-discourse and https://interestingliterature.com/2018/09/a-short-introduction-to-free-indirect-style-free-indirect-speech/ and my own brain

Types of Internal Conflict and Utilizing It

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Internal conflict is often described as the metal struggle a character is experiencing. It is the contradiction of the character's many emotions; this includes their yearning, hopes, and desires, which are often just out of reach. However, internal conflict is quite different from external conflict. In an internal conflict, the character is struggling with their own thoughts and emotions, whereas in an external conflict, the character is faced with another opposing force, such as a different character.
Internal conflict is also referred to as Man vs. Self. Internal conflict is like a rivalry with oneself.
There are several main categories in which internal conflict is grouped.

1. One of the biggest conflicts is moral conflict, which is the opposition between two values. This conflict occurs when the character questions if they should do an action to fulfill their goals. This conflict can be thought of as the “devil and angel on your shoulders.” While the devil allows the character to consider doing a behavior against their personal standards (e.g. morals). However, the angel allows them to reconsider, and ponder if what they are doing is right.
An example of this can be noticed in Christina Soontornavant's book, “A Wish in the Dark.” The main character, Pong, dreams of escaping from Namwon, a prison he had been forced to live in due to his mother's crimes. However, one day, he found an opportunity to escape by climbing into the trash bin in the courtyard of Namwon. As he climbed down into the bin, he struggled to fully convince himself that escaping was a good idea. At first, he only worried about the consequences of getting caught but later, he realized that he would be leaving his best friend, Somkit behind. However, before he could come out, the trash bin was taken away, allowing him to escape Namwon - with the price of leaving his only friend behind.

2. There is also religious conflict, in which the character's thoughts and actions clash with their religious beliefs. A character with a religious conflict can begin to question their own thoughts, or the rules set by the religion that they are practicing.
An example of this could be a character who is a part of a cult. The cult could be extremely controlling of the character's freedom and personal opinions. As the character begins to have thoughts that differ from the rules, they might question who is right - them, or the cult.

3. Another conflict is Political conflict, which can be a struggle between the character and a political factor in their life.
For example, the character may discover that there is a policy that their party approves of, but they disapprove.

4. Self-perception conflict occurs when the main character finds that their externally perceived demeanor opposes their authentic self. The character begins to wonder if they are actually showing their true self.
This can happen in a variety of cases. For example, the character may be new to a school, and act differently to be in accordance with their new environment's social norms. However, how they act in their new school may not be their true self.

5. Love conflict happens when the character is deciding to do something that may hurt the one(s) that they love. This love includes platonic, paternal, and romantic love. This conflict may happen when the character has to make a decision that supports the eventual greater good.
For example, in a war torn country, the mother of two children may face the decision to send her children away to a safer location, despite the initial pain.

6. And finally, there is existential conflict, when the character has a crisis about their place in the world. The character tends to wonder why they exist and the meaning of life.
This often happens when the character experiences a traumatic event, like loss of a loved one.

When creating an internal conflict in your story, you have to analyze the setting and past experiences of the character. You first have to create the character themself, and then add their internal conflict along with their personality, interests, motivations, and desires. Creating a strong setting and background can also make the internal conflict seem more appropriate for that character. While creating a character, make sure that they are well rounded.
When crafting your internal conflict, you may want to clearly identify the character's motives. This can help the reader fully understand the purpose or root that caused the internal conflict in the first place.

Myth Camper ~

Writing Character Depth

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Characters are quite possibly the most important part of any story. They make the reader invested in the story, set up the plot, and just in general are the backbone of every story, fiction or nonfiction. However, a character is useless if it is not interesting enough for the audience to get invested. Today, we’re going to be exploring character depth and how to make the readers empathize with your characters. Here is a little list of things to keep in mind! This list is by no means a hard cut guide, it is merely here to give you suggestions or inspiration.

1) Give your characters flaws and weaknesses
You’ve probably heard this piece of advice a lot before, but it’s something that I sometimes lose track of when writing. Oftentimes I plan out a character and their traits, and when planning I give the character weaknesses or flaws. But when actually applying those traits into my writing, I can often forget. Unless being mean or lazy or having some other negative trait is a big part of the character’s personality, (for example, one of my characters is a hothead and this is a large part of her character), it can be easy to focus on moving the plot forward and neglect showing weakness. When writing short stories especially, it’s difficult to show all the aspects of a character you want. A good tip is to deliberately place them in situations that showcase more negative aspects of their personality and integrate it with the plot. If you want to show that a character is jealous, give them a small interaction with someone to showcase said jealousy, and then use the situation as a way to move the plot forward. Therefore you keep the story interesting and write more effectively.

2) Give your characters motivation
This is another basic piece of advice, but an important one nonetheless! What do your characters want? What are their aspirations or goals beyond the main storyline? Perhaps in your story, the main character’s motivation is revenge. But what are their goals beyond that? What is your character going to do after the story is over? These are all important questions to keep in mind when creating your characters. Another thing to consider is how the character’s goals will change throughout the story. How has the plot affected these wants? Add scenes where your character strives for these goals.

3) Explore beyond the confines of the plot
Tying back into a line in the previous point, what is your character going to do after the story is over? Beyond the story beats of the plot, what does your character do? Perhaps they have a hobby they like. What was your character’s childhood like? Your character didn’t just spring up at the beginning of the story. The readers are only seeing a glimpse of the character’s life. A good tactic is putting your characters into random settings and seeing how they react. Incorporating a few stories of things that happened before the story began can also help the reader feel like the character has actually lived a life.

4) Leave various details hazy
You can’t possibly fit everything about a character into a story. It’s important to leave some details of your characters out to make the readers more intrigued. If you’ve ever seen theories of popular fandoms, you will notice that they commonly used small, unexplored, and hinted at things to fuel their theories. It would be boring to just have the exposition info dump every mildly significant part of a character’s life, and leaving small hints instead can draw your readers in. Oftentimes, a small sentence is enough to give the reader an understanding of your character, and you can leave the rest up to interpretation. As an author, you don’t need to plan out every single second of the character’s life. Recognize which parts you can leave unexplained!

5) Define your characters’ emotions/traits
Understand why your characters feel certain ways. If a character is feeling anxious or happy, why is it that they are feeling this way? Of course, if it’s pretty self explanatory why your character feels happy or sad, you don’t need to psychoanalyze why. But if your character is down to earth or a natural leader, understand why. If your character makes a certain choice. Understand why they made that choice. A good example is Miles Morales from Spider-man: Across the Spider-verse. In the film, Miles is told to let his father die because fate demands that it must happen. Miles however, rejects this and wants to save his father anyway. Why does Miles feel this way? Well, you could say it’s because of his upbringing, and how his mom has always taught him to stand up for himself and root for himself. Understanding how your characters have come to be can help them seem more deep.

6) Go beyond stereotypes
Go above and beyond with your story! Don’t write average characters doing average things. The readers already know this and experience this. Of course, there are stereotypes that heroes face as well. While cliches and stereotypes can be helpful, it’s good to avoid overusing them, because it makes a character blend in and fall flat. Think about a lot of other popular characters in the media. Are any of your characters extremely similar or almost the exact same as them? If that’s the case, consider altering a few things about your character. A struggle I faced a lot when I was younger was writing characters like Hermione from Harry Potter. While it’s beneficial to get motivation, you want them to be unique as well!

That’s all for the workshop. Keep in mind that you don’t need to listen to everything I write. If there’s something I tell you not to do and you feel like including it would benefit your character, by all means do so! Still, I hope you found this helpful; and I hope you came out of this workshop more mindful than before about character depth.

How to Write Realistic Conversations
“Hi Martha.” “Hi Jeff. How are you?” “I’m good. How are you, Martha?” “I’m good, Jeff, thank you for asking.” “I like your shirt, Martha.” “Thanks, Jeff. I like your sweater.” Now, you must be thinking, what in the world is that kind of conversation? An unrealistic one. Nobody in the whole wide world actually talks like that. It's annoying when characters in a story have a conversation that is as unrealistic as a guy jumping over the sun while riding a monster truck. So, how do you write realistic dialogue in your story? It might seem a little hard, so that's why I'm writing this. To share some words of wisdom. In this workshop I wrote for you all, I'm giving you tips on how to write conversation realistically in your work.
First of all, it's better to show than to tell. Let's say your character gets nervous really easily. You can show that they get nervous easily earlier in dialogue rather than when they actually get nervous. So instead of just making them say that they're nervous, you can show that they get nervous easily when writing their thoughts, showing how they said it (stuttered, whispered, etc.), and writing their actions (shievered, sweating, etc.).
Next, don't treat dialogue as a thing where you can just dump the characters' information. Now, don't misunderstand this either, it is necessary to give information about your characters in dialogue, but don't make it too extra. Make it natural like a real person would say, maybe sarcastically, maybe geniunely, whatever fits the character's personality. Instead of doing this: “Hey look, there are free milk samples over there, do you want some?” “WHAT! HOW DARE YOU! Remember seven years ago in third grade, I told you I was LACTOSE INTOLERANT?!” This is the classic “as you know”, “I guess I need to say it again”, “don't you remember”, “let’s go over this one more time” type dialogue. A will tell something to B that B obviously knows, but the reader doesn’t. Then, A goes on for paragraphs on end explaining for the reader and not B anymore. Instead, B can just say “No thanks, I'm lactose intolerant.” or if B has a sarcastic personality, “Yeah, sure, ending up at the hospital is definitely on my bucket list for this year!”
Use dialogue tags correctly. Don't repeat them over and over again, and don't use dialogue tags to tell something that the reader already knows. Look at this example extracted from https://www.thewritingtheory.com/blog/how-to-write-realistic-dialogue-with-examples : “What do you want?” asked Steve. “I want my dog back,” Martha replied. “What if I told you that I don’t want to give it back?” Steve said. “I don’t care. It’s my dog,” Martha answered. “Maybe he’d rather stay with me,” Steve said. “It’s my dog. I’m not going to ask you nicely again,” Martha said. This example repeats the words “said”, “replied”, and “asked”. Read this example now. “What do you want?” asked Steve. “I want my dog back,” Martha replied. “What if I told you that I don’t want to give it back?” “I don’t care. It’s my dog.” Steve folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall. “Maybe he’d rather stay with me,” He said. “It’s my dog. I’m not going to ask you nicely again.” It looks and sounds better, right? It's because the dialogue tags are not redundant, unlike the previous one.
Humans are pretty random. As writers, we want our characters to talk about things that are relevant to our plot, but real humans are weird. In real conversations, people usually don't talk about important things. More often than not, they talk about random things like the weather or something funny that happened to them. To write realistically random dialogue without losing track of your plot, have your characters begin a conversation about something random, and then circle around to the important parts of your plot.
Last but not least, real people argue. I'm sure some people manage to be nice to each other all the time, but in some experiences, the closer you are to someone, the more often they argue. In fact, arguing can become part of an everyday conversation- as unfortunate as that is. Some arguments can just be small (bickering or simply disagreeing), like a constant buzz of tension. But some arguments can be major. Both of these arguments are necessary in writing. And while arguing can add tension to your scenes, make sure characters don't argue just because. Use these conversations in your story to impact the plot or develop a character trait.
I hope you enjoyed reading this workshop about writing realistic dialogue and conversations in stories! Hopefully you learned something new with this workshop!

How to Write Diversity
(thanks to @clementine_blue for the idea)

Being able to incorporate diversity into your stories is an important skill to have. I think many of us can pinpoint a piece of media that has spoken to us and our experiences as a member of any certain community. Creating this media is a very powerful thing, but it's just as important to do it authentically. Being able to reflect this aspect of people's lives can help validate their experiences through their eyes – but if it's not done accurately, it can perpetuate misinformation and misconceptions about the community you are including in your story. There are many steps that can be taken to prevent this.

One of the most important things you can do is research. People are complex, and every single aspect of their identity impacts their personality. Explore the perspectives of people who have lived their life through a similar lens as your character, try to understand how this particular part of them has shaped their life, and do your best to apply this to your character.

Another thing to be aware of is stereotypes. These are fixed ideas associated with a particular group of people or things. While (some) stereotypes do exist for a reason, remember that they are almost never universal, and are extremely oversimplified. Writing stories that uphold stereotypes end up contributing to the conservation of them, which can be harmful to the community you are writing about.
Remember that diversity equals representation, and stereotypes are often an inaccurate representation of the community they are associated with. They perpetuate the idea that people of certain groups have to look and act a certain way – or, in other words, they shove people into a tight box that really doesn't need to exist. This is why it's especially important to create complex characters, and not base them off of the stereotypes surrounding their identity.

This leads me into my next point: a character with a diverse background in your story needs to exist as more than just their diverse background. As I've stated before, human beings are complex. Everyone has a story, and everyone has a personality. This should apply to all of your characters. If you, for example, want to write about a character who is a person of color, they should have a purpose in your story besides just making it appear more racially diverse. This is where the research comes in: study the ways their (ex.) race impacts them, and INCORPORATE that into their personality rather than using their race as a replacement for a personality. If you're using their race as a starting point, make sure to expand on it from there to keep the personalities of your characters realistic and intricate. This allows readers to truly connect with them, and whether or not your goal is representation, that connection will help the reader see themself in your character.

Lastly: remember that your words have power! And sometimes, that power can be a little overwhelming, or even scary. It's completely understandable that you wouldn't want to misrepresent a community that you aren't a part of, or even one that you are a part of, but if you have a fundamental understanding of that community and their experiences (as a whole and individually), there's a lot of good that can come of incorporating authentic diversity into your stories.

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Writing Factually Accurate Historical Fiction

Writing factually accurate and creative pieces is in itself a task that requires precision. You do not want to lose your credibility on the grounds of “creative license”. Your creative license depends on what kind of literary piece you are writing and your audience. Are you writing for a scientific journal? The binds are strong for factual accuracy. Memoir? The binds loosen here a little but you can fill the gaps with your version of what happened since a memoir depends on a person’s memory, which is not always reliable. And the topic we’re going to focus on, historical fiction. Just how exactly to balance creative license with historical fiction? It is after all fiction, which we want to marry with evidence. How exactly they both go side by side? Well dear SWC-er, this what this workshop is for!

Part 1 : Firstly choose your time period. This may seem like an obvious step but I just do not just mean choose obscurely, like the romantic era and leave it. Clearly define it, for example the romantic era was at its peak from 1800 to 1850, the character must be living somewhere around the time. Research the time period thoroughly, what were the major events in the era? Who were the major celebrities? How was the society? What were the expectations, gender biases and stereotypes?
When considering gender biases and stereotypes, it is not necessary for the protagonist to be drenched in it. One important thing to note is, there wouldn’t be 21th century idealism going on in 1400-1500s. The protagonist might rebel here and there, but they won’t uplift a 1984 kind-of rebellion, not everyone will be Winston Smith—there will be many more Parsons than the Smiths. Lisa See’s Lady Tan’s Circle of Women gives an excellent example of capturing the essence and ideals of an era. The book was inspired by the true story of an (extremely rare) woman physician from 15th-century China. In a nation that follows strict Confucianism philosophy and purdah, where a male doctor is not allowed to see a female patient it treats. According to Confucianism philosophy, blood is considered dirty and doctors are prohibited to touch it. Yunxian makes friend with a daughter of a midwife, who considered dirty and evil. Here, being friends with Meiling, the midwife’s daughter, Yunxian has committed an act of rebellion. In addition, where an ancient Chinese practice of foot-binding separates women into classes, Meiling’s foot was unbound—another act of rebellion by (of Yunxian) associating herself with a common girl. However, they never outright question the ideals and practices. Yunxain never thinks about how women should be allowed to be doctors—she’s just grateful to be privileged enough to be one.

Part 2 : The second and most time-taking part is research. While it is easy to write in periods such as Romantic era, you will need much more balance of opinions and factual accuracy when writing in controversial times and perspectives. Research includes interviews, books, articles, newspapers, songs and films. Ground yourself in the time period, get to know the ideals and events. Let us consider the Freedom Struggle of India. It was the time when the ideals of violence and non-violence were clashing, with social, political and educational reform everywhere. There was a whole nation divided in radicals and moderates, liberals and conservatives, violent and non-violent etc. Some people shunned the colonists, the British, by boycotting their institutes, wearing Khadi clothes, holding non-violent protests. Some violated British-favoring rules such as the Salt Law by collecting salt crystals (For example – the famous Dandi March). Some used violence and bombings. Considering the vast diversity of opinions and actions you should show both sides of a coin and let your reader come to a conclusion. Here, one of the most important points is to remember that you are not a historian and you can fill the gaps with your imagination, which a historian cannot. When trying to incorporate a fact, verify the authenticity of it—the internet has my half-truths and half-baked conspiracy theories.I would like to quote www.thehistoryquill.com

Tell a true story with some creative license. This doesn’t mean you can blatantly fabricate and falsify key elements of history, but it does mean you can draw on gaps in the historical record, subtext, and rumours in a way that a historian couldn’t.

Part 3 : The third part is when you finally write. When writing, you will come upon many questions and details. Some parts you can fill up with your imaginations and some parts you need to use actual events as a backdrop. The story at is core will still be fictional with a dose of realism. You will be tempted to fill in all the details but some things just need to be left out—if it’s not necessary or it serves no purpose. The events must be chronological, and while you’re allowed to tinker a little, it is especially true with the chronology. Tampering with dates will lead to confusion in both readers and you. This will be the time when you will come to the most frustrating phase, when you will want to know how a spoon looked like in Ancient Babylonia or a swimming pool in Ancient Rome. Encyclopedias are useful in this context, they will be one of your best friends.

Wrapping up this workshop, I would like to say that there are different types of historical fiction’s relation to a real event. Some are retelling, some are reimagining, some are loosely inspired, some are heavily inspired etc. Your creative license depends upon the relation. Loosely inspired can have major changes in events while retellings cannot.

How to use writing devices:

What are writing devices? Writing devices, sometimes known as literary devices are used for a variety of purposes. Sometimes, they are used to bring focus to an important or large happening (hyperbole). Other times, they are used to convey meaning or to avoid too much exposition when writing.
Some main literary devices are: similes, metaphors, hyperboles, personification.

Similes:
These are used to compare something to something else, using like or as. Similes provide the reader with a descriptive image of what is being described. It also makes the descriptions shorter, so the reader does not need to read as much text to learn the same thing. Using a simile can also reveal the mood as it can give a lot of information at once.
How to use a simile?
To use a simile, you need to compare the thing you want to compare to something else, using like or as, to highlight something specific about it.
E.g: ‘her hands were as big as an elephant’s foot’ puts specific emphasis on the size of her hands, whereas, ‘her speed was like the speed of a snail’ puts specific emphasis on her speed making it very clear how slow she is.

Metaphors:
A metaphor is used to compare something (once again) like a simile. The difference is that when you use a metaphor, you DO NOT use like or as to compare. This means metaphors make the comparison that something is something else whereas similes make the comparison that something is like something else. By using a metaphor, it gives the reader a clearer idea of what something is like.
E.g: ‘you are my sunshine’ suggests that the person brings a lot of joy to the person as sunshine is very bright and ‘they were peas in a pod’ can suggest that the people are very close as peas in a pod are often close together.

Hyperboles:
A hyperbole is an exaggeration used to emphasise a point. By comparing something to something else, regardless of how true it is, it creates an image which sticks in the readers’ mind meaning they can remember what something looks like as specific emphasis is being put on it.
E.g: ‘mile-high ice-creams’ -> of course the ice-creams were not literally a mile high, but it tells the reader that the ice-creams were shockingly and startlingly massive.
‘This chilli is hotter than the sun’ -> of course, it is extremely unlikely that the chilli is hotter than the sun as it is over 5000 Celsius hot. But it puts emphasis on the fact that the chilli is really really hot.

Personification:
Personification is when you give an animal or object a human characteristic. A personification adds life and an element of relatability to things which would otherwise be hard to relate to, like for example a tree or a chair. Personification can also help the reader understand what is happening to the object/animal better by using words to describe it which people can relate to.
E.g: ‘the tree shivered in the clear winter night’ describes what an object is doing and it helps the reader to picture the scene better and understand what the object is doing.
‘The leaves dances along the pavement’ gives the reader a clearer description of how the leaves moved rather than writing ‘the leaves moved’

That's all for this workshop - thanks for reading! There are a lot more literary devices out there like onomatopoeia, tricolon, alliteration, sibilance and more but I just decided to summarise some of the most well-known ones. I hope this was helpful!

Action Scenes

Planning an action scene
To make an action scene, first you have to decide what sort of action scene to write. The action scene needs to move the story forward, like any part of the story. An action scene that’s only there to show something off will leave the reader feeling unsatisfied. Moving the story forward could mean destroying something so the character is forced to choose another option. It could also mean building the character up emotionally – which is a great thing to do in an action scene. What I find helpful is writing something that relates to the character/s. This means it’s easier to have them learn something. For example, if your character is scared of the dark, you could write an escape scene at night. After making it out alive, the character may not be so scared and would be ready to venture in the dark again. The action scene may play to a character’s strengths or weaknesses, giving you an opportunity to develop your character and help the reader get to know them more, while still being exciting. In fact, an action scene is an almost vital point to develop your character in – what do they do when their life, or someone else’s, is really in danger? Will they show their friendship by sticking with someone until the end? Will they show perseverance by fighting no matter what stands in their way? Action scenes are an important way to develop the character.

Making it exciting
This is vital for an action scene. There are two parts to this: pace and emotion. First, the pace. A huge part of pace is the sentences used. Using shorter sentences in action scenes is ideal, with less detail of the appearance but more effect. It’s better to focus on the character’s emotions. This is why it’s usually better to put an action scene in a place the character/s have already been to before, so you don’t have to describe everything as well as making it fast paced. Another important factor is emotion. Nothing is tense if you don’t empathise with the character. Of course, you need to have built up empathy throughout your writing, but if there are no emotions here, there is no real action. Of course, it’s a great idea to still use body cues for emotions the way you might in other parts, but in an action scene, you need to shorten it and use strong emotions. Even stating emotions, it’s better to say the character is ‘distressed’ than ‘worried’. This is an action scene. Nothing is ordinary.
Here is an example of an excerpt from an action scene with longer, less emotive sentences and one with short, emotive sentences:

1. She rushed as fast as she could down the dark, misty street after the man in black, her breaths coming out in ragged, shallow pants. Her eyes were firmly on the glowing gold purse.
2. Heart racing, she sprinted down the lane. She had to catch the man in black. She had to take back that glowing gold purse. Her breaths came ragged, desperate. She couldn’t give up now.

They have the same number of words, and basically tell the same information, but the second one has shorter, more emotive sentences. They both have the same story: a woman is trying to catch a man in black who stole her glowing, gold purse. The first excerpt explains more about the appearance of the scene, but the second shows more of what the character is thinking and feeling, and that’s what matters most in an action scene. As mentioned before, action scenes are a vital way to develop the character. But an action scene is not a time for introspection. The character has to act on impulse. They only have time to think before and after the action scene. This is another reason to write in short sentences – it shows quick, impulsive thinking.

In summary, to make an action scene, it is important to:
- Make it relate to the character, allowing you to develop the character in the action scene. It is vital to develop the character in the scene, or at least show a part of the character, otherwise they seem hollow.
- Move the story forward. Otherwise, it seems pointless and empty.
- Use shorter sentences, compromising detail of the outside scene for the character’s raw emotions in a time of danger. This can be the most exciting part of the action scene.
- Use lots of strong emotions. Nothing is ordinary. Make the character’s emotions ten times stronger than normal.
- Not use introspection or too much thought. There shouldn’t be enough time for introspection in an action scene. The character can think before or after the scene.

Have fun writing!
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2nd Weekly–Dialogue Writing( Got the Idea/critique from the idea bank studio)
Note: This is based on the short story-Winner's Cup
Characters:
(…)- Narrator
Vanya- A 13-year-old girl from goa( goa is a beach side place in India)
Jo- Vanya's friend and a rising young entrepreneur
Camila- Vanya's Mother
Catherine-Vanya's Little Sister and her long time supporter.
now, without further ado let's dive into the Story.
Scene1:
( The setting is at a Football match wherein the Blue Surf is competing against Red Surf)
Vanya: If player x has kicked the ball to player y then they would have scored the goal.
Jo: Ya, you're right.
Catherine: Remind me again why you quit football again.
Vanya: Cathe, you know I don't like to be reminded of the same thing multiple time and besides it's none of your business.
Catherine: I know you quit because growing up there weren't many girl in the team and you were discouraged by the coach and always benched so eventually you gave up.
Vanya: It's fine and besides I am pursing designing and I am good at designing.
Cathe: You are just doing so beacuse just because you can't play so you still want to stay close to football so you are trying to be designer for the team's uniform.
Jo Interrupting) You both stop fighting like enemies, you both are sisters not enemies and also Cathe you must respect you're sister's choice and not force or troule her like that and also Vanya I would request you to rethink you're new decision but remember whatever you choose, me and Cathe would always be there for you.

Scene 2:
( Vanya started to rethink her choice and started to take in consideration what his friend and sister were telling)
(The next day, She called Catherine and Jo to their meeting spot)
Vanya: I have an announcement to make and I need you're full attention.
Cathe: It better be something good.
(Vanya frowned at Cathe)
Vanya: I hereby announce that
Cathe: A drumroll please..
Vanya: Cathe, Stop interrupting me..I have good news.
Cathe: Good News! Tell me,Tell me
Vanya: Where was I?
Jo: “I hereby announce” there you were there.
Vanya: Thank you Jo and so I hereby announce that I would be returning to Football..
Cathe: Yay!! Let's all party, and party
( An eternity later)
(Camila walks in)
Camila: Vanya I am so happy that you finally found you're way to football.
Cathe: I knew it mum( Still dancing as if feeling like she was the cause of this choice of Vanya)
Vanya: The first step I would be taking is Forming a Girl's Goan Football team and name it..
Cathe: oo I got a name, Can I name it?
Camila: Cathe, This is your sister's big moment.
Cathedissapointed) Oh ok.
Vanya: It's ok mom, Let her name it after all she was the one who convinced me.
Cathe: Let's name it, “ Vanya's Goan”
Vanya: That's quirky and I like the sound of it.
Cathe: All we have to do is find some people for the team.

The End.


This is my Workshop and I can't wait to see with what ideas you will come up with and that's it for today so
Cathe: oo I will say Goodbye so Goodbye Everyone, See ya..

So where was I, Ya so ya see ya guys next time with our annoying little sister Catherine so Have a great day Ahead..!!

Hi! Welcome to my workshop. Pick a cup of tea/coffee, a notebook and let’s get started.

—-

As I hear rain falling onto my window, I make a list of things I, as a reader, would look for in a first chapter.

1. Internal conflict.

I wouldn’t be attracted to a book that introduces a flat character, with perfect life and grades, and if bad grades, no internal relevance to the fact.

Examples with and without internal conflict:

Flat example:

Ann stared at the big red F in the upper right corner of the page. But she didn’t care at all. She had her friends, her family, and everyone supported her, no matter which grades she got. She laughed at the F and continued with her life.

Without looking at the amount of times I used the word ‘she’ and no matter how right the character is, this has no conflict. I would close the tab or put the book back on its place, and never look at it again.

Conflicted example:

I keep my gaze fixated on the paper on my desk. I curl the edges so that no one can see the bright red, glaring mark at the top but me.
A D.
I've never gotten a D before. Usually, my grades keep an average rate by keeping a B and a rare C. But now there's a D, staring at me from its perch at the top of my paper.
A D.
Everyone around me starts chattering to each other. “What did you get?”
I turn around, hiding my paper from Genevieve. She's walked over from her seat to ask for my grade. “I got a B,” she says proudly. “What didya get?”
“I don't want to say,” I mumble. “Why not?” She pries. I glare at her. “I don't want to say,” I repeat firmly. She huffs.

Is this @wackycatgirl’s ‘The Voice’? Yes. I couldn’t find a better example of a story starter with conflict and grades. Here, Sari is ashamed of her grade, more specifically, of others seeing her grade. Sari wants to be accepted, fears that if everyone sees her grade they’ll just won’t want to be her friends anymore. Here, with just a few words, Blue introduces us her main character’s internal conflict.

As an exercise for this part of the workshop, I recommend you to read the first chapter of one of your favorite books and highlight, with a pen or mentally, the phrases that hold internal conflict.

2. Characters

Without character’s, the story would just be a messy plot. There would be no story, actually. Introduce the main character and lead secondary character’s, but make sure not to introduce more friends than one, preferably, or we won’t be able to hold all those names and we won’t be able to keep up with the character’s in the story, and we’ll leave it no matter how much conflicted they are. So keep that in mind.

3. Context

Don’t just throw some internal conflict. We also want to see what happens, or we’ll be in gloomy waters full of conflict without reality. Make characters interact, a bit of their context and conflict. Which relationship does they have with their family? How are them at school? Tell us, or show us, how is their life.

4. Introduce the basics

Grab us into the story. Introduce us the plot, what happens in that first chapter that affects the plot later? What are the clues that the first chapter gives us? Make the readers ask questions about what will happen next, generate some intrigue. Set the atmosphere and make the readers be the characters.

5. Wrap it up

Leave the first chapter with an open ending that keeps us reading. It doesn't have to be an epic plot twist, it can be as simple as some questions without answers and conflict that you want desesperately to see resolved, like family problems, etc…

—-

We've reached the end of this workshop. Let's see the points that we studied:

-Introduce internal conflict. Internal conflict means we can relate to the characters, and if we can relate, we'll want to keep reading.
-Characters. Introduce lead secondary characters and the main.
-Context. How is MC's life at home? At school? Give us clues of how the character lives.
-Introduce the basics. Make the readers ask questions, introduce the characters, how do they live, give hints to the plot.
-Wrap it up. Leave unresolved conflict that we want to be resolved because we can relate to the characters.

Remember: were, who, when. If this is in the first chapter, we will understand the story more clearly, and if we understand, it will be more trapping and relatable.

Exercise: analyze the first chapters of three or more books you like. Compare them. What do they have in common? Highlight the things that are important to the chapters. For example, how do they introduce the characters, the conflict, the scenario and the time period. The best writing teachers are good books.

—

I hope this workshop helped you to write amazing first chapters of amazing stories, and that you enjoyed reading this. Have a great day!

—

Orca, poetry cabin, 885 words

Have you ever had that one really good story idea but you don’t know where to start?

Or like…..
You have absolutely no idea how to plan out your story??
Well, you’re in luck! Because today, I’ll be covering the wonky time in between having a promising idea and beginning a story. (Or maybe you don’t have any ideas. That’s fine too.)

Most of you should already know the five major parts of a story, or plotline. If not, that’s fine too! We’re going to review.

Exposition - This story element will always be the first element. In this part of the story, you introduce characters and begin developing their personalities, introduce setting, and other important details your reader might need to know. Think to yourself: What should the reader know before the plot is developed? What is a day in the life of a character in my story?

Rising Action- Once you have the exposition ready, rising action is what follows. By now, the reader has been introduced to the main characters and the setting. During rising action, a problem or conflict arises. The main character(s) may attempt to solve this problem, but to no avail. Rising action is the time to build up tension before the climax. Think to yourself: What problem/conflict should this story center around? How can I increase tension in relationships or otherwise?

Climax - The point of highest tension, aka the climax, is the biggest turning point of the whole story. The climax should include the same conflict that was built up in the rising action. This might sound confusing, but it can be achieved in many ways. A climax could be, and is usually, the biggest plot twist in a story. Some examples could be an accident or disaster, a bold move or decision made, a new character being introduced, a standoff between two characters, and much more. Some climaxes may even lead to a change in main character or setting. Think to yourself: Will the reader expect this?

P.S. Depending on how fast (proportionally) your climax comes in a story, you can vary the pacing or how slow/fast your story feels.

Falling Action - We’re nearing the home stretch! Falling action results from the climax (well duh), and at this point, almost all if not all characters should be established in the story.
Positively, relationships might be restored, things fixed, success shows, etc. It is also possible for negative things to result from a climax, which you should portray too. Think to yourself: How can I lower tension? How can I foreshadow the resolution?

P.S. Usually, falling action is a good time to put in a little plot twist before everything winds down

Resolution - Ah, finally. The last stage!! During resolution, the conflict has been resolved and there are no more plot twists. Characters settle down and there is little to no tension left. Resolution may include everything being worked out (for better or for worse) and a character reflection. Think to yourself: With all the changes that have occurred, how have the characters adapted? What is a big takeaway or lesson the main character(s) have learned?

*SPARKLES* PLANNING *SPARKLES*
Alright. Now. You may have absolutely no idea what to do with that. Which is totally fine!
From here, you should make a chart or something with sections that are labeled with the five major parts of a story–exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. I find it helpful to also make a background box that is separate so I can plan out the characters and setting before detailing more in the exposition.

If you have absolutely no idea what to write, look up some prompt generators! They are really awesome and might spur more ideas from you. It’s not cheating, it’s helping your brain start storming!! (get it hahahhahahahaha)

Usually, we have ideas that aren’t a whole plot. If you have an idea, try to figure out which part of the story your idea includes. Then, fill your idea in that box! Continue filling in boxes until you’ve planned out your whole story. Feel free to add other boxes if you need more details–For example, if you have a special species or complicated setting feel free to add a box to plan out your thoughts more specifically.

I like to plan in depth in my organizer so that I don’t have to make an outline, but if you’d like, you can also do that! An outline is basically the same thing with more detail and more sections of your story, but it isn’t always necessary (at least for me).

I hope you have been enlightened by my beautiful, tedtalk-worthy speech, and get writing!! <3

Ngl, the hardest part of this is having motivation…..
(Don’t ask me I’m not good at that)

(812 words, poetry)

　It can be hard to write dialogue that feels natural to the reader. On one hand, you need to give them enough information to understand what's going on. On the other hand, it has to be something that character would really say. Dialogue should be meaningful and realistic. Luckily, dialogue is my favorite thing to write, and I'm not bad at it, if I do say so myself.
　Every single piece of dialogue should do two things: 1) drive the story forward, and 2) develop characters and their relationships. If the dialogue doesn't meet both of these requirements, you need to either change it or cut it. It can be really hard (even painful!) to get rid of a part of a story you love, so let's take a look at how to fix it. It's really much simpler than it sounds.

Driving the Story Forward
　If your dialogue doesn't feel important to the plot, you'll lose your reader's interest. Unnecessary dialogue clutters up your story and makes it feel less cohesive. Luckily, there's several ways you can fix it. You can add tension, introduce new information, or give the characters something to do while they're talking.
　To add tension, try throwing the characters into a high-stakes situation. This will add more intrigue to the conversation while also keeping the readers interested in what's happening. You could put your characters in a precarious situation, the edge of a cliff, for example. Show what their conversation looks like in this situation. Are they calm and collected, or are they lashing out at each other? Create an interesting dynamic to explore, whether it's a plot-point, or just before or after one.
　Introducing new information is exciting for the readers. You'll have them hanging on your every word of the dialogue. Try to have a character share a secret or something that will impact the story or characters. It's fairly easy to add this in to an already-written conversation, but there is one stumbling block: info dumps. It's absolutely vital that you avoid info dumps, as they feel forced and unnatural. You don't need to give the reader or the characters every single detail of a situation. Think of it as putting them on a need-to-know basis. Only tell what you need to. Also, make sure the character who gives the information had a way of acquiring it. It wouldn't make sense if they just knew the information all of a sudden.
　Another way to spice up some dialogue is by giving the characters something to do while they talk. This can be a simple task the characters are working on together, like doing the laundry, or something more high-stakes like a fight scene. Adding something other than pure dialogue keeps the prose interesting and holds the reader's attention. We see examples of this all the time in action movies, where characters snipe witty comments at each other in the midst of a battle. It helps make your writing feel balanced and complete.

Developing Characters/Relationships
　This is arguably the most important thing to focus on in dialogue. Having a conversation between two or more characters helps build their character and display their feelings about the situation and for the other characters by showing, not telling. It's important to give characters their own voice and unique dynamics with the other characters. This will make all of your writing interesting because it keeps building on itself and adding new information about the way the characters think and act.
　Character voice can be tricky to master. The easiest way to figure it out is by developing and knowing your characters inside and out before you ever start writing. What makes them tick? How do they want people to see them? Asking these questions will help you figure out how your characters would speak in a social situation. What phrases do they tend to use? Are they more awkward or confident? You can give the reader a ton of information about a character's personality without ever actually telling them. For example, a more confident character would use less filler words like “well” and “like.” A younger character might use more simple words in dialogue than a college professor. Figure out what your characters know and how they would want to try to present themselves to others.
　Writing unique character dynamics is so fun because it feels like you're discovering them yourself. Consider how each character views the other characters, and then decide how they would treat them. A character might really dislike another, but if they tend to be very kind, they might choose their words more carefully than usual. This shines through in conversations between characters, especially if you show signs of their nervousness (fidgeting, wavering, etc.). Dialogue should always display or–better yet–change the relationship. Whether the characters are growing apart, reconciling, or just getting to know each other, conversations are always more gripping when change is taking place.

Conclusion
　In the end, writing dialogue doesn't have to be super complicated. A trick that is always useful is reading the dialogue allowed. Imagine your characters' voices as you read, and decide if it's something they would say. If not, then tweak it and try again. Make sure your dialogue is meaningful, interesting, and to-the-point.
　Good luck on your dialogue adventures, and happy writing!

how to write hopefully *interesting* non fiction
905 words

Hello friends, welcome to Ally’s workshop on… WRITING INTERESTING NONFICTION!!!

Now, interesting can be quite subjective, but I’m going to show you some things you can do that make a non-fiction interesting in my opinion. We will be covering a few basic tips in order to give facts a bit of sparkle. Let us begin.

1) Include something that your reader can relate to/understand.

A lot of times non-fiction essays and books can cover topics that you may not be familiar with, such as Mansa Musa’s Hajj! I think including some ideas or little tidbits in your INTRODUCTION can make the reader have some sort of idea as to what you’re talking about. For example, I actually did do an essay on Mansa Musa and here is a little tidbit I included:

Musa certainly had the wealth, his net worth skyrocketing above billionaires like Jeff Bezos or Elon Musk.

As you can see, most of us probably know HOW wealthy Jeff Bezos or Elon Musk are. And to say that M.M was even RICHER? That puts a big picture in are heads! I think giving your reader a point to stand from can really help them want to read more.

2) Don’t start several sentences with the same pronoun/word in general.

This is one of my BIGGEST pet peeves when it comes to writing, and I’m sure if you got a nice taste of it you wouldn’t be so fond of it either. Let me give you an example of what I mean:

He was very clever and soon figured out a plan. He would go out into the field and get the scepter. He knew it would work, so he decided to tell his friends.

Do. You. See. What. I. Mean????? Literally every sentence begins with the word ‘HE’. This is not only incredibly annoying for the reader, but also, is honestly kind of dry. Here’s how you can *FIX* that and make it interesting!

Using his wits, Johnny created a plan– he would go out into the field and retrieve the sceptor. With confidence, he rushed over to his friends and gave them a run down.

The latter has way more variety, thus making it much more interesting to read. Weaponize this in your non-fiction! Not only will you be writing something more interesting, but you’ll think of creative ways to display your information.

3) Explain things that your reader may not know (but do it discreetly)

Until I actually started researching Mansa Musa, I wasn’t aware of what a hajj was. A lot of the time, you might include vocab in your writing that YOU might know… but your reader may not. That’s why it’s important to clarify! Clarification should be done quickly, smoothly, and effectively.

Let me show you how I include Q.S.E (like the acronym? ) in this sentence: The hajj, in other words, is the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, and is performed by those who are both physically and financially able.

Quickly: Insert the information about the word/phrase as soon as you think the reader will be puzzled.
“(…) is the pilgrimage to Mecca(…)”
See how quickly I introduced what the hajj was?

Smoothly:
“(…) in other words(…)”
Using transition words/phrases like “or” or “in other words” makes the clarification smooth

Effectively:
(…)is the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, and is performed by those who are both physically and financially able.”
I’m giving enough information so my reader has a basic idea of what the hajj is, but not too much to the point where the essay’s focus shifts! Especially because this is part of my introduction.

4) Use describing words!

Hey, even though you are writing a non-fiction, it doesn’t have to be you vomiting facts. Carefully using (and choosing) words to describe things gives your writing that extra punch! But, you need to be careful about how you do it.

First, you NEED to google up descriptory words that you want to use, but aren’t sure of the meaning. Please check what kind of connotation they have. This tip is inspired by one of my friends, when I was checking out her essay. She used the word “devastating” to describe something AMAZING that happened. You gotta make sure the meaning & connotation work for what you’re describing!

Second, do NOT overexagerate facts. You’re still writing a non-fiction, so you neeed to be true to the facts. The point of these illustrative words is to help you draw attention to things as well as make your writing a little more interesting. For example, this is one I just made up:

The common cold is a deadly LETHAL KILLING MACHINE!!! ¾ OF THE POPULATION DIED FROM IT!!!!

You’re feeding incorrect information to your reader by doing this! Here’s how you can add description while still staying true to the facts.

The ever prevalent common cold is something that makes its way into many households across the globe during its season. Although it isn’t necessarily lethal, it can cause people with a weak immune system to face other health issues.

See? We were able to add desciption WITHOUT overexaggerating the information. Never stray away from the facts if you’re out to make a non-fiction piece. Just make them more interesting with these tips!

And that concludes my workshop on writing *interesting* non-fiction! Hopefully a few of these tips and tricks can help you in your non-fiction journey Have a wonderful day!

Using Poetic Metre: How the hell do I do it?

When writing poetry, it can be really hard to make it feel like it has a rhythm, yet famous poets make it seem effortless. Using poetic metre is really important if you want your poems to flow, and to provide structure. So, I’ve made this short workshop to give you an introduction to poetic metre.

So, what is poetic metre?
Traditionally, lines of poetry have patterns of beats known as metre. These lines are then split into measurements of syllables called feet. A foot will contain two or three syllables, arranged in a pattern of stressed and unstressed beats. Traditionally, lines of poetry have a mostly set number of feet per line, creating rhythm and movement. However, more contemporary poets of the 20th and 21st century sometimes structure their lines more freely, hence the term free verse. Now, this all sounds a bit complex, but it really isn’t once you’ve got some solid examples and explanations. Here are some words used in poetic metre, and examples showing how they work:

Stressed and Unstressed Syllables
This is part of our natural way of talking. We will subconsciously put more emphasis on some syllables of words than others. The ones with more emphasis are stressed, the ones with less are unstressed. For example, you will automatically put more emphasis on the first syllable of Peter, but for Jolene, the second syllable is stressed. If you switch round stressed and unstressed sounds, it can sound quite strange. Try it with a few words and you'll realise the importance of this.
In poetry, there is a way of marking these different syllables. Stressed syllables take the ⁄ symbol, while unstressed syllables have the ‿ symbol. Read these lines out loud and listen to how you automatically emphasise some sounds more than others:
‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄
The days are short,
‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄
The sun a spark,
‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄
Hung thin between
‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄
The dark and dark.
January by John Updike
As you read, you will hopefully recognise a pattern beginning to form, and a strong beat established. Let's now cover how you can explain this natural beat.

The Different Metres
There are different types of beat in poetry, called metres. This can affect the speed and emotion in a poem, and they are determined by the pattern of syllables. Here are the most common metres (try saying the examples out loud to get a feel for each one):

Iambic Metre - This is the most common form of metre in English poetry, and resembles the sound of a heartbeat. It is a two syllable foot, consisting of an unstressed beat before a stressed beat. For example:
‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄
If music be the food of love, play on.
William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night, Act 1 Scene 1

Trochaic Metre - The opposite of an iamb, trochee has one stressed syllable before an unstressed syllable. This creates a more lively mood. It has more musicality than the iamb, and can sound a bit like a song:
⁄ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄ ‿
Double, double, toil and trouble;
⁄ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ⁄ ‿
Fire burn and cauldron bubble.
William Shakespeare, Macbeth, Act 4 Scene 1

Anapaestic Metre - Two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable. Each foot in this type of metre is three syllables long, and creates a light and bouncy rhythm:
‿ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ‿ ⁄
T'was the night before Christmas, when all through the house,
‿ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ‿ ⁄
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
Clement Clarke Moore, A Visit from St. Nicholas

Dactylic Metre - This is a bit like anapaest, except it is one stressed beat followed by two unstressed. It has quite a pounding and repetitive rhythm, often with a fast pace:
⁄ ‿ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ‿ ⁄ ‿ ‿ ⁄
I am a spirit of no common rate.
William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Act 3 Scene 1
You'll also notice here that the line ends with a stressed syllable. Even though it doesn't fit with the metre, it completes the rhythm nicely, and this addition is often used in dactylic metre.

The Numbers
That's the trickiest part out of the way, now all that's left is a bunch of counting. Once you know the type of metre being used, you can work out the number of feet (or units) in a line, and find out the metre. You've already learnt the types of metre, but the number of units in a line is also part of its name. When indicating emphasis on syllables, a vertical line, |, can be used to seperate the units.
Monometer - One unit in a line. This creates very, very short lines, and is incredibly rarely used throughout an entire poem. I couldn't find any simple examples of this, so here is some beautiful anapaestic monometer…
‿ ‿ ⁄
Interrupt,
‿ ‿ ⁄
Interrupt,
‿ ‿ ⁄
Interrupt,
‿ ‿ ⁄
Goes the duck.
Dimeter - Two units in a line. This is an example of trochaic dimeter (some beautiful words from my own imagination):
⁄ ‿ | ⁄ ‿
Mangoes, mangoes,
⁄ ‿ | ⁄ ‿
Mangoes, mangoes.
Trimeter - Three units in a line. This is also rarely used for entire poems, and iambic trimeter is usually mixed with iambic tetrameter.
⁄ ‿ | ⁄ ‿| ⁄ ‿
I love the jocund dance,
William Blake, I Love the Jocund Dance
Tetrameter - Four units in a line. Below is an example of iambic tetrameter.
‿ ⁄ | ‿ ⁄ | ‿ ⁄ | ‿ ⁄
I wandered lonely as a cloud,
William Wordsworth, Daffodils
Pentameter - Five units in a line. Shakespeare famously uses iambic pentameter throughout many of his plays, and is the most common metre in English poetry:
‿ ⁄ | ‿ ⁄ | ‿ ⁄ | ‿ ⁄ | ‿ ⁄
But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?
William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, Act 2 Scene 2

These are the main measurements of metric feet, although the list goes on.

Putting it Together
So, now you know how to analyse other peoples' poetry and work out rhythms, how do you use it to create your own? It's best to begin quite freely; if you have some inspiration or ideas for an openeing line, try and work out what metre you naturally seem to be starting with, and roll with that! You don't have to use the same metre for an entire poem, some interchange from line to line, some stay regular. What's important is that you keep a strong rhythm all the way through. This will make your poetry more fluent, and it will seem effortless to say. You want to pay close attention to the words, and where the emphasis lies on each one. If you can, you want to put emphasis on the key words in a poem, ones that create imagery and ideas. If a word you want to use doesn't fit in your metre, there are ways around this. You can add pauses that last a beat, or you can always find a place to put a small word like ‘a’ or ‘the’ to make everything fall into place. There are even some words that can have syllables added to them. For example, fire can be one syllable or two.
Overall, using poetic metre isn't as hard as it looks, and can make your poems sound more polished and lyrical. The metre you use can change the entire mood of your poem! But the most important thing is balance. Don't sacrifice the metre because you want to use a really long word, but don't scrap your whole idea because a few words don't quite fit.

Have fun writing!
Wasn't quite as short as I thought it's be, also I am in eternal debt to my engish teacher for teaching me all of this

Weekly 2, part 1
How to roleplay!
Workshop idea by @Luna-Lovegood_LOL

What is roleplay anyway? (I'm the worst at explaining, sorry!)

Dictionary definition:

act out or perform the part of a person or character, for example as a technique in training or psychotherapy.
“study participants role-played as applicants for community college”

Roleplaying/roleplay is a fun way to bond with people who have similar likings to you. It is where you act out a character and act out a scene the way your character would. Or, you can just roleplay yourself and act like you would in random situations. Many people do this to explore more things about themselves and work on their story-telling. Some people like dressing up in costumes of their characters to enhance their roleplay. There are many games to do with roleplaying, for example, D&D (Dungeons and Dragons) which is played by more than 40 million people.

Facts about roleplaying ('cause why not?)
Dr. J. L. Moreno was the first person to design the

How DO you roleplay and make it more fun?
I recommend starting with a character you know well. For example, I'm a huge harry potter fan so I'd choose Ron Weasley. Try and think of how they act, their preferences and their personality. Think of some things you could involve in your roleplay that are kind of connected to your character to not make it awkward (for me that would be chess, because, in case you didn't know, Ron's good at chess). To make it more fun, maybe add a few jokes/sayings/quotes your character uses.

Tips on roleplaying
- The key thing in roleplaying is the description and language you use. If you use dull words/phrases like ‘My cat is called Sid. I said, “Hi Sid,”’ it will be less interesting and it would bore the people that are part of your roleplay. When you roleplay, use enticing words and sound enthusiastic, also, try to exaggerate the way you speak to make you seem more into the role.
- Enjoy the experience. If you are not having fun, then it is likely that the people you're roleplaying with will also be bored. Roleplay your heart out and try to join in as much as possible.

UNFINISHED

How to Establish a Character's Voice

A character’s voice is more than their physical speech—it’s their thought process, their personality, their behavior, et cetera. Like people, characters are nuanced and have unique voices. Pinning them down can be tricky, so here’s a method to try out!

• Step 1: Who are they?

This step is a given, but creating your character is the foundation of their voice. Have some fun here as you flesh them out! You can think of it as a stranger’s perspective on them: A stranger only sees the surface level and not much else. Depth comes later!

Here’s an example of a character sheet. (Note: This is shorter than what I’d use for a character in my novel. How much or how little you have on your character sheet is up to you, though!)

Name: Daisy Elaine Halsk

Nickname(s): Day, Hal

Brief physical description: Brown eyes. Chin-length brown hair. Short (under 150 centimeters) despite her age. Slender but callused hands. Freckled face and shoulders. Very tan.

Clothing style: Short skirts or cargo shorts. Anything with pockets. Jean jackets. Cocktail dresses. Any and all shoes. Fond of warm colors and the color lavender. Tank tops. Off-the-shoulder shirts.

Brief personality description: Exuberant. Amiable. Extrovert. Loud. Bad with social cues. A bit self-centered. Not super observant.

Family: Lives with Mom. Dad is “out of the picture.” Has two older brothers in college. Close with her maternal aunt’s daughters.

Favorite color: Lavender and marigold.

Favorite animal: Tiger.

• Step 2: Why are they?

Take a look at every question you answered. Now, ask yourself, “Why is that?” If your character’s favorite person in the whole wide world is Taylor Swift, ask yourself why you decided that. Is it because of her music? If so, what specifically—is it the composition, the lyrics, or something else entirely?

Some questions can’t be answered or are very obvious. For example, physical traits: Daisy’s hair is brown because her parents have brown hair. (Or maybe you could spin it—maybe both of her parents have blond hair, and one of them had an affair. Whatever you want!) These ones you can ignore.

As you answer, encourage yourself to write at least two complete sentences, and try to repeat yourself as little as possible. The more you write, the more you’ll start to “understand” the character. This can also help you flesh out their backstory!

For the example, I’m only going to elaborate on a few. :]

Name: Daisy Elaine Halsk. Her father wanted to name her “Bella,” and her mother was a fan of it until she found out that was the name of a cow he’d owned as a child. His mother took his wife’s side, and thus “Daisy” was chosen.

Nickname(s): Her mother calls her “Day” as a shortened form of “Daisy.” Her childhood best friend, Alex, calls her “Hal” as a shortened form of her last name; he wanted to call her by her last name, but he had trouble pronouncing “Halsk.”

Favorite color: Lavender and marigold. Lavender is Daisy’s favorite flower, contrary to what her name suggests, because of its scent and pain-relieving abilities. Her paternal grandmother used to have fields have marigolds behind her house, and Daisy fell in love with the colors after spending years running through the bushes.

Favorite animal: Tiger. Her last good memory of her father is when he took her into the city to the zoo, and they took a selfie in front of the tiger enclosure. She has it framed on her desk, and she smiles every time she sees it.

• (Optional) Step 2.5: Complete this character sheet.

If you’re still struggling—or just want to challenge yourself!—consider filling out this character sheet. I can’t name where it’s from (since I didn’t find it on Scratch), but it’s one of my favorites and one I find very helpful. As you go, the questions get more and more personal to the character, so it's phenomenal for adding depth.

1. What is their name?
2. Do they have a nickname?
3. Do they have any other names (aliases, et cetera)?
4. What is their age?
5. What is their eye color?
6. Hair color?
7. What languages can they speak?
8. What is their favorite food?
9. Least favorite?
10. Who is someone they would d#e for?
11. Who is someone they would k#ll?
12. Do they have any family members?
13. Did they go to school?
14. What was/would be their favorite class/subject?
15. Who was their childhood friend?
16. What is their clothing size?
17. Shoe size?
18. Height?
19. Gender orientation?
20. S#xual orientation?
21. Do they have a sworn enemy?
22. Do they have any tattoos?
23. Have they ever sm#ked?
24. What is their mental state?
25. What is their darkest secret?
26. Who is their sacred confidant?
27. What is a lie they tell everyone?
28. What is one lie they know is not true but continue to believe?
29. If they were under different circumstances, (how) would they stray from their storyline?
30. What makes them hurt?

• Step 3: What is their style?

This step is hard to explain. By “style,” I mean how the character themself translates into your writing style.

Have you ever read a book where the perspective switches between characters, but sometimes you couldn’t tell them apart? Yeah, that’s what we’re trying to avoid here. Here are some style changes I consider when I’m writing from a character’s perspective:

• Do they think/act in long sentences? Short sentences? Choppy sentences?

• Do they swear? If so, do they often or rarely? Do they use “gosh” instead of “god”? What words do they repeat a lot?

• Are they an “I think” (logical) person or an “I feel” (emotional) person? For example, would they say, “I think we should do this” or “I feel like we should do this”?

• What do they notice (about people/places)? What don’t they?

Some of these tweaks are more subtle than others. They may seem inconsequential, but they can add a bit of “flavor” to the character. One of the coolest effects to me is if you have another character who is their complete opposite. It does wonders to highlight the differences between them.

• Step 4: Combine & write!

Now, take a look at everything you’ve written. You know who they are, why they are that way, and how they narrate. All together, these details create your character’s voice! In the beginning, you might have to remind yourself to do this or that (or not do this or that), but you’ll get the hang of it! ^^

As you continue writing, you may notice that their voice changes and that’s okay! I’ve found the original ideas for some of my stories, and I have to laugh about how much they’ve changed. Characters develop, same as people, and you can always go back and edit when you’re done! Don’t be afraid if the character starts to take on a life of their own—that’s a sign you’re on the write track. ;]

IMPROVING WORD CHOICE, NOW WITH SASS!

(What’s word choice? The words you choose to describe something. For example, good, bad, happy, pretty.)

Improving word choice is something insanely important because who really wants to read a story that only has words like “happy” and “bad”? It’s good to have some, but filled to the brim? I would get bored immediately and leave as soon as I read another bland description. That’s not all there is to word choice. Say there’s a description of how a inn looks like, but the author uses simplistic words that won’t make any bit of mental image. You’ll need to improve word choice for that also! So, how do you do it?

By adding and replacing adjectives, nouns, and verbs, obviously! Didn’t they teach you this in primary school? Darn, you didn’t listen? Well, hurry up you scalawag! Grab a dictionary, thesaurus and let’s get started. Someday, the words will get imprinted inside your head and you won’t have to grab them as often.

ONE - ADJECTIVES

Let’s start with improving this description:

Jules looked around the only inn in the clean town with a shocked look. It was horribly dark and dirty, with fleas flying about and cobwebs everywhere. A rat scurried past him, holding a bit of food between its paws. The old innkeeper scrubbed at a clean glass with a dirty towel. Hunched over the tables were people taking long drags on their pipes, the smoke making him choke. They slapped cards on the tables and exchanged money with looks, shouting at each other whenever they lost. As Jules took a step in, trying to get his shoe out of a bit of cobweb, it grew quiet as everyone stopped what they were doing to watch him.

Now, how do we improve it?

Let’s start by replacing a couple adjectives and adding some. Clean, shocked, dirty, old, and shoe. They seem good enough individually, but together with everything else they seem basic. Have your thesaurus ready? Alright, another word for clean is tidy, shocked turns into incredulous, dirty to filthy, old to grizzled, and shoe? Well, what kind of shoe? A boot? Sure, a boot!

Scan the description for places where adjectives should get placed. Tables, smoke, look, step, and quiet. Dig deeper than that—add size, color, texture, scent, etc. What kind of table, smoke, looks, step, and quiet? What size? Always ask yourself why, what, who, when, and where. Even how, sometimes. If we add all of that, the description could turn into something like this:

Jules looked around the only inn in the tidy town with an incredulous look. It was horribly dark and filthy, with fleas flying about and cobwebs everywhere. A rat scurried past him, holding a bit of food between its paws. The grizzled innkeeper scrubbed at a clean glass with dirty towel. Hunched over the stained tables were people taking long drags on their pipes, the thick smoke making him choke. They slapped cards on the tables and exchanged money with sly looks, shouting at each other whenever they lost. As Jules took a tentative step in, trying to get his boot out of a bit of cobweb, it grew eerily quiet as everyone stopped what they were doing to watch him.

TWO - NOUNS

Nouns—people, places, and things. You should be able to get the hang of this now—asking yourself just exactly what. What is the food the rat is carrying? What kind of people—men, women, criminals, gangsters? It’ll also do you good if you replace some of the pronouns with the character’s names, and vice versa.

Jules looked around the only inn in the tidy town with an incredulous look. It was horribly dark and filthy, with fleas flying about and cobwebs everywhere. A rat scurried past him, holding a bit of cheese between its paws. The grizzled innkeeper scrubbed at a clean glass with dirty towel. Hunched over the stained tables were scarred men taking long drags on their pipes, the thick smoke making him choke. They slapped cards on the tables and exchanged coins with sly looks, shouting “Gold!” and “Three crows!” at each other whenever they lost. As Jules took a tentative step in, trying to get his boot out of a bit of cobweb, it grew eerily quiet. Everyone had stopped what they were doing to watch him.

SUMMARY

What do you have to do to improve your word choice? CHANGING AND ADDING ADJECTIVES, NOUNS, AND VERBS!

Congratulations class of 2023! You’ve essentially relearned everything you’ve been taught back in 3rd grade, but this time it took you a couple minutes instead of a whole darn year. I hope you’re proud! Apply your knowledge to your writing and perhaps you’ll turn out as good as J.K. Rowling before, you know, that.

(You might have noticed there isn’t a part three for verbs. I trust you as a (hopefully) strong, independent person to be able to do that on your own. Alright now never show yourself around these corners ever again ^^)

How do I Plot Effectively?

Creating a plot for my novel has been one of the hardest writing challenges I've faced, so my workshop will get into a really wonderful structure that has saved my story, and that I will be using from here on out. Before we begin, it is important to recognize that plotting will not be easy, even with the best method you could ever dream of! As with any aspect of writing, there are going to be a lot of challenges and obstacles, and you should remember that your story is unique, and no single method will work perfectly or consistently for each one. You still have to put in the work that will make your story YOURS.

First of all; plotting your story can take place over a very long period of time, or it might be all at once, depending on how you work and what you like. The beginning of the writing process starts with an idea, and once you have that idea, you are often faced with the decision: what type of story will this be? A short one? A novel? A series? I will start with the most basic story structure, and one that I use for short stories before getting into the main meat of this workshop.

1. Beginning, Middle, End

Wow. That sounds like a cheap excuse for a method, right? From personal experience, I have scoffed at this, but it is the most foundational plotting structure, followed by the plot map that you may remember being tormented by in middle school (Exposition, Rising Action, Climax, Falling Action, Resolution: maybe you can already hear the tune in your head).

I find that this works really well for a short story, and less well for longer and more detailed stories. Short stories are generally classified as being between 1,500 and 7,500 words (3-30ish pages in general printing format), but they can of course be shorter or longer. With a short story I recently wrote for a college class, my word count was 1,681, and I had no need for a complex plot map. But what I discovered in reading other student's work was that many of them did not have a distinct beginning, middle, and end, which made for very incomplete stories.

In this basic structure, here are the important things to hit for each part:
–Beginning: introduce the main character and their conflict (internal and/or external). What is their DESIRE? It can be as simple as staying safe, or as complex as finding a treasure that has some significant to them. An inciting incident occurs that forces them to confront or address the conflict.
–Middle: the main content of the story; the journey. Character faces obstacles that get in the way of their goal. They have to make choices that determine what they are like as a person/creature/character. The climax occurs at or near the end of the Middle.
–End: they either achieve or fail at their goal, but either way, a good ending will show a character who has changed. They have overcome their fear, learned that their goal was misguided, etc. but the gist is that they learn something they didn't know at the beginning, whether for better or worse.

Okay, great! A simple structure for a short story, but what about my novel? What about my trilogy that I've been writing since I could hold a pen??

Now that we have the most basic of basics down, we can look at how these components are stretched out for longer stories. The next component to consider is, what type of plot are you trying to write? The two main types of plots are CHARACTER DRIVEN and PLOT DRIVEN. (I know “plot driven plot” sounds silly, but that is essentially what it is).
Of course, whatever plot you want is okay, and there are many great book of both kinds, but the best plot is usually Character Driven. Main characters that are lovable and relatable and not-annoying are characters who make decisions that influence and shape the story, rather than characters that are pushed around by the actions of others, or simple float through a “plot river,” and not making any impactful choices.

Going forward, I am going to be using examples of character driven events in this, the 3-Act Story Structure. This is the main structure for most movies and books, so you may have heard of it– I heard of it from author and writer-advice-giving YouTuber Abbie Emmons (go watch her videos now if you haven't, its basically a bunch of free workshops from a very sweet woman whose books are a testament to her advice!). So here we go:

2. The 3-Act Story Structure

ACT I:
Hook: Introducing internal conflict(s)
Set-up: something is about to happen to the protagonist… *suspense*
Inciting Incident: MC is absolutely THROWN out of their comfort zone: their world is turned UPSIDE DOWN! This can be good, but usually it is seen as a bad thing from the MC's perspective.
–The Inciting Incident is also referred to as “The Hammer,” or “The Call to Action,” by some people. In Adventures, it is when the MC begins their journey (example: Marlin decides to journey across the ocean to find Nemo)
Build-up: how does the MC face the inciting incident, being thrown out of their comfort zone? Sometimes secondary MCs/deuteragonists (such as Dory) are introduced at this point. (For my own novel, the build up is 2 chapters long, but the set-up is 3 chapters. Sometimes the set-up is only a paragraph; the hook, set-up, and inciting incident might all be in the first chapter. The length of these segments are very much up to you!)
1st “Plot point”: The MC makes a choice that determines what will happen next. (example: Marlin decides to chase the mask into the deep, which will determine whether he can find Nemo or not)
1st “pinch point”: The antagonist force looms in the distance. If your antagonist is an actual character, this could be something like a threat, or discovering the damage that has been caused by them (such as a village that has been burned, or a massacre such as in Mulan and Eragon)

ACT II:
“Pre-Midpoint Reactionary Hero”: <– this phrase means that the hero is now going be knocked around a bit by the plot, as described in the Plot-Driven plot. The MC is in pursuit of their goal, but obstacle(s) stand in their way.
Midpoint: PLOT TWIST!!! Plot twists can take so many different forms, but the important thing is that the MC's luck changes, for better or worse. If they have been successful in reacting to the obstacles in the last chapter(s), then their luck will turn bad; if they have been failing, they might find or learn something that helps them. Intense examples can include a death or betrayal (oooohhhh), simpler examples could be a small as meeting a new character with useful info, or finding an object that is a good or bad omen.
“Post-Midpoint Reactionary Hero”: DUE to the midpoint, the MC must “change tactics.” Perhaps the easy option is no longer available, or there is now a new opportunity to reach the goal. The will build up to….
2nd pinch point: The antagonistic force is getting uncomfortable close to ruining everything!

ACT III:
SUPPOSED Victory: It appears that the MC has won, or is about to “win,” whatever that means for your story. They are so close to reaching their goal, and the path is clear. BUT THEN!
Disaster: something, or everything, goes wrong. All is lost.
Dark Moment: The MC feels like giving up, or they appear to give up. They believe the lie that comes from their internal conflict.
Recovery: MC overcomes their false beliefs and internal conflict, and realizes that they can still achieve their goal: often this revelation can mean realizing that their goal was misguided all along, or that their own beliefs were in the way of “winning.”
CLIMAX: You might have expected the climax to be at the Disaster, but it can only come once they have had their dark moment and have changed/recovered/believe in themselves etc. The final antagonistic threat comes, and….
Victory: The MC overcomes!
Resolution/End: loose ends are tied up!
IF YOU ARE WRITING A SERIES; this is where you leave your cliff hanger or open-end that leads into the next book, but PLEASE, I BEG OF YOU: tie up the loose ends of this story, and make sure your set up for the next book is a NEW conflict. If it is the same conflict, then that usually leads to repetitive storylines, circular plots, and can make the MC's character development feel like it was for nothing if they are just going to struggle with the same thing again next time.


Okay! Wow! That's a lot to think about– but please don't feel worried if your story doesn't fit into this exact format! The best part about being a writer is that you are in charge; you can make adjustments so that it suits your own story needs– this is just advice! I personally find that the best way to tweak this is to mess around with the LENGTHS of each of these segments. They can be as short or as long as you need!

Feel free to copy and paste the structure from above and fill it out to begin drafting your plot– it can really help to save a document like that as a reference while determining how to split up chapters, and all the nitty gritty of actually writing your book. But I'm not here for that– I'm just here to share some gold that I've learned about plotting. I hope this helps you flesh out your wonderful, unique stories!!

-Reeds

Staying Motivated and Finishing your Writing

Hey there, and welcome to my workshop on keeping that motivation and sticking with a piece of writing to its completion! I'm Kira, and this is my first writing workshop, but this is something I'm quite passionate about and something I definitely think I've improved on lately, so hopefully some of my tips will be useful to you!

So we're all in Scratch Writing Camp because we love writing - that's a given! But loving writing doesn't mean you are motivated 100% of the time, and it doesn't give you the staying power to finish a novel (or anything else long-form that you're working on). Now, of course there's nothing wrong with never finishing something long or preferring to write shorter pieces. Some people just prefer writing shorter things, and any writing you do is valuable, even if you don't finish it, because at the end of the day you've written something, and that improves your skills! This workshop is more for if there's a project you really love and do really want to finish, but you're struggling with staying motivated over time. I've got you!

I'll be splitting this workshop into two parts - motivation, and building habits. But more on that second part later!

Part One ~ Motivation

At the beginning of a novel, motivation flows like water - you're super excited about this new idea, and it feels like there's nothing in the world that could stop you! But that can soon drain away when the plot starts to go sideways… so here are some tips to keep your stamina!

1) Inspiration
Remember what got you excited about the new idea in the first place - maybe you got inspired by a book or TV show? Read or watch some of it again, or try a new book or show! Were you inspired by a place, maybe nature or a city? Try going for a walk there, drinking in the sights and smells! Inspiration is all around you, and people seem to forget that you need it all throughout your project. Maybe carry a little notepad so if you notice something somebody's said or if you see or hear something that inspires you, you can write it down and use it later.

2) Find your why
Now you've covered the what, think about why you're writing. Is it to improve your writing skills? Is it as a creative outlet? Is it because you have an important story that you think the world needs to hear? Is it to provide entertainment for others? Is it for your mental wellbeing? Have a think and write it down somewhere you'll remember. When you hit a slump, refer back to it.

3) Motivation in a bottle
Sitting around waiting for motivation to strike doesn't usually work, but when it does, try to notice what you did differently. Were you suddenly inspired by watching a video, or browsing Pinterest, listening to music, spending time with creative people, maybe doing a SWC daily or reading a writing workshop? Write down what motivated you, keep a list, and when you get stuck go back to that list for your personalised motivation in a bottle!

4) Keeping healthy
A tired mind is not a creative mind. Be sure to get 8-12 hours of sleep each night, depending on your age and personal situation. Drink lots of water, and as far as you can, eat breakfast and plenty of veggies, carbs and protein (the eat well plate is a good start, but obviously everyone is different and has different dietary requirements. Do what's healthy for you!) Move your body in a way you enjoy (dancing, swimming, rock climbing, sports, anything!)

Part Two - Building Habits

Think of motivation like the spark for starting a fire. You need it, but you also need fuel to keep it burning for longer. That's where habits come in. If you want to keep writing one book for a long period of time, of course motivation is going to slip, that's only natural. But if you give up or stop writing just because you're not motivated, how are you supposed to get anywhere?

Habits are easier to build when you stack them on top of another habit. For example, you'd never try to start a habit of flossing your teeth at 11o'clock at school, because what's making you stick to that? No, you'd start the habit of flossing after your brush your teeth, so that brushing your teeth reminds you to floss, and you're already in the right place. The same applies to writing!

For example - when I get home from school, I grab a snack and take my schoolbag up to my bedroom to put away. When I get up there, it's super easy to pick up my laptop and start writing, even if it's only for a little bit!

It's really good to set small, achievable goals. If your goals are too big - like writing for an hour every day, or writing 500 words every evening, then when you inevitably forget or are too tired, you'll feel like you've failed and will give up entirely. But setting something more achievable, like 100 words a day or 5 minutes in the morning will set you up for success! On days with lots of energy, you'll probably keep writing for longer, and on days without, at least you'll have passed your goal and you'll feel motivated to go again tomorrow. It's a win-win situation!

Summary

So, to recap…
1) Revisit what inspired you for a boost.
2) Remember your why to keep you focused!
3) Prepare some motivation in a bottle for tough days.
4) Follow healthy habits (you already know how!)
5) Stack writing on another habit.
6) Set small, achievable goals to keep the good times rolling!

That's all from me! If you have any questions feel free to ask on my profile, and happy writing