Omg Yall Its This Accounts One Year Anniversary On Tumblr - Talk About Going Full Circle Lol

Omg y’all it’s this account’s one year anniversary on Tumblr - talk about going full circle lol

attempting to edit my mistakes + a new character!!

Hello friends!!

For this week’s progress report I have finally decided to reveal my failed writing attempt from over the summer. Last week’s inspiration to continue trying to flesh out and create this story has not died down and I am finding myself increasingly more excited to write which is super awesome!! So, I decided to go back and try my hand at editing what I had written down for the uncompleted scene and it…went. It didn’t go poorly, but it didn't go well.

It still needs a lot of work before I’m happy with it, but here it is nonetheless:

Scene

“You love him, don’t you,” a voice called over her shoulder. Ailidh started, turning her head away from the scene below to face Ruslan.

“I… don’t know,” she responded, hesitantly, her grip on the parapet tightening as she was suddenly unable to meet the piercing gaze of her betrothed. “But… I think I could.”

She looked back at the man in the courtyard, kneeling in front of a giggling elven child, a soft smile on his face. “I dearly wish to,” she whispered softly. 

Ailidh tensed as a hand was placed upon her shoulder. She looked up once more to see only kindness and understanding in Ruslan’s face. The corner of his lip twitched upward, and her lips parted softly, exhaling in relief. He had become very dear to her heart in the course of their engagement, and while she did not harbor any romantic feelings for him whatsoever, she would hate for their friendship to be lost entirely. She could marry him for the sake of her people and be content for the rest of her days. 

And yet…

Ruslan turned to the guards behind them. “One of you, go and fetch the good Lady of these lands and my advisor. Tell them to meet us in the study.” 

“Yes, sir.”

His gaze snapped back to Ailidh’s as she inhaled sharply. “Do you have your  copy of the marriage contract?” 

She blinked. “...Yes. In the study.”

“Good. Let us make our way there before your mother and my dearest shadow arrive,” he said, holding out his arm with a lopsided grin. With a hesitant smile, and one last hastened glance at her knight below, Ailidh took the offered arm, the pair beginning to walk briskly off the balcony and down the hall.

*~*~*

I don’t usually write romance so it was really interesting that this was the inspirational itch I decided to scratch over the summer. ᕱ__ᕱ 

However, that wasn’t the only thing I did this week. I also started to create another character! I don’t have a drawing for him yet but I do have some visuals floating around in my brain for what he looks like. Once I have time to do some graphic art for fun, you may be blessed with another mediocre headshot.

Character

Ruslan (roos-lan)

Ailidh’s betrothed

From a different nobel family

His family presides over a much more militarily focused fae village/area

This is why Ailidh is betrothed to him as his people could provide her people with much more protection against the growing unrest

Oooo plot!

Highly skilled in the more assassin area’s of fighting

Prefers knives

He and Ailidh make a terrifying duo (poison’s knives!!!!!)

Personality wise he is very dutiful but more laid back that Ailidh

Very dry, sarcastic sense of humor

Boyish charm pokes out every once in a while

Very popular with the ladies but doesn’t care for it (he laments to Ailidh constantly when they become closer friends)

Honestly he's a pretty chill guy

*~*~*

I’ve grown very attached to my guy Ruslan in the time I’ve started to craft him. I’m excited to work on his and Ailidh’s relationship/friendship. But whomst is this mysterious knight I wonder??? ᕱ__<

Finally, I did a little bit of world building as well… but I’m going to keep that to myself for now. (I’m just keeping all the secret’s from you guys today).

All in all, I’d say this was a pretty productive week for me and I’m quite proud of what I have accomplished. That’s all from me for now!

But remember, dot your j’s and cross your t’s!

~Clementine J Quincey🪷

finals week + fandom stats

Hello friends!

Finals week is upon me and as such I have had to prioritize. This means that despite me chomping at the bit to get more done for my original story, I have unfortunately not done much. For one of my classes, however, I recently did a final analysis on my work. (In fact, it was the same class I started this blog for. ᕱ__< ) In this final analysis I came to some conclusions about one of my projects that made me quite sad. Despite all of the hardwork and effort I put into it, I failed to make an engaging piece of digital media. It was a good piece, but it missed the mark in several areas. BUT! I feel as though it may be of some interest to my fellow fandom nerds here on tumblr. So, since I don’t have much new work to share with y’all this week, I figured I’d release this project into the wild.

For some background information: the assignment was to create an infographic. I wanted to make it something relevant to my interests, so I was struggling a little to come up with something fun and interesting until I remembered a video I saw back when I used to have TikTok. (Yes, I had TikTok. It was cool and fun and all, but it took too much time from my day so I deleted it a little over a year ago. But I digress.) The person in this video was throwing out some fandom stats from Archive of Our Own (popular fanfiction website, though I’m sure most of y’all know that) and I wondered if I would be able to collect my own data from AO3 and make an infographic of that. And so I did.

Needless to say, the data collection took a lot of work. A LOT of work. And once I was finished with gathering, I sorted. And once I was finished sorting, I did some math (incorrectly) and then some more math (correctly) and created my infographic using Adobe Illustrator. And it was okay. If I had the technological skills and know-how to do so, I would have made it an interactive graph which would give you more data when you clicked on stuff. But I didn’t have the skills or know-how. The resulting infographic kinda hits you in the face with a bunch of info and it’s kind of overwhelming. 

So, like I said, it’s not my best work, but I definitely learned a lot from it. And mayhaps y’all might find the information fascinating so… behold, I suppose:

What do you make of it? Is the information surprising? Unsurprising? Completely and utterly uninteresting to you? Let me know! And for those of y’all in college/university with me: good luck on your finals if you have yet to take them and I'm sure you aced your finals if you have already taken them! And if I survive, I’ll see y’all next week! ᕱ__ᕱ

Just remember to dot your j’s and cross your t’s (especially on your final essays)!

~Clementine J. Quincey 🪷

P.S. Remember that I am posting a second extra content post this week as well!! Look out for that coming soon!

i'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaack

Hello friends!

As I said in my last post, I’m back!! Many apologies for disappearing into thin air after the last full length post in January, things just got crazy with the Spring semester. I was taking my big Writing Seminar class for my History Major, and researching and writing my big final paper (which was required to be 22-25 pages long and which I turned in at 49 pages long of course). I simply did not have the time, space, or mental capacity to devote the level of effort required for developing my original story and for the upkeep of this blog. 

And even after the semester ended, I got sidetracked by starting an internship for my major as well as starting a new part time job over the summer and the pet project of creating a website for my Aunt’s small business. Unfortunately, writing for personal enjoyment fell to the wayside for me for over half a year. But now, with a new semester kicking off, I’m back! ᕱ__ᕱ

Some of you may be thinking, but Clementine! It’s the start of a new semester, aren’t you going to still be too busy with college for this blog? Well…yes, I will be busy with college (and all the stuff I have to do to prep for my graduation in December)! But also no, I won’t be too busy for this blog. There are a multitude of reasons for this. For example, the fact that I’ve been cracking down on my procrastination habits over the past year and have been seeing some improvement, or the fact that I am only taking four classes this semester. But the main reason I will for sure have the time to devote to this blog and my personal creative writing again is thus: it’s become an assignment for one of my classes again! 

(Hello again, Professor M! You’ll be sick of me and my rambles by the end of the semester I promise. ᕱ__<)

I won’t bore y’all with the details but basically I’ll be picking up right where I left off with this blog, except this time I’m going to: 

#1 -  Try to be more active on this account that just my weekly posts for class. (I finally downloaded tumblr onto my phone so I should be able to partake in some doom scrolling on here as well as instagram lol.)

And #2 - For my posts that are for class, I’m going to try to have a little more focus that I did previously. As I’ve discussed here before, worldbuilding is extremely important to me, but it is also one of the parts I dread the most about developing my original story. So, I’m using my class assignment as an excuse to force myself to do at least a little something with world building and/or the development of my original story’s magic system every week.

But, as many of you know, the best laid plans often go awry, so strap in folks. It’s gonna get interesting. (But that’s the fun part after all! ᕱ__ᕱ) Hopefully, I’ll see y’all soon!

Dot your j’s and cross your t’s!

~Clementine J. Quincey 🪷

Also PS. I have a writing playlist that I've made (which I will share at some point) and the song that inspired it was this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AUn3kNda0k

It's so beautiful and awesome and epic that I just had to share! That's all. ᕱ__ᕱ

nanowrimo + more fanfiction

Hello friends!

Today I have some exciting (and mildly terrifying) news to share. I have decided at the last minute to attempt to participate in NaNoWriMo this year! ᕱ__ᕱ  I know I’ve mentioned it on here before, but for those who don’t know NaNoWriMo, short for National Novel Writing Month, is a 30 day writing challenge that takes place in November every year. The goal is to have a 50,000 word manuscript of something done by the end of the month.  (Here is a link with more info if y’all are interested!) As an ardent fanfic reader, consuming 50,000 words is all in a day's work. As an amature writer who is currently struggling to gain back a bulk of my creative writing muscles that I have lost from disuse, writing 50,000 words is an uphill battle. 

Since I am a full time student with a part time job I have decided to be nice to myself and make my own personal goal 25,000 words in 30 days. If I hit 50,000, that would be awesome, but I don’t want to beat myself up if I fall short. And for those of you (my fellow AO3 enthusiasts arise!) who are looking at 25,000 words and saying “Clem! That’s going to be a piece of cake! 25,000 words is nothing!” let me put it in perspective for you. 25,000 words is about 100 pages of double spaced 12pt font typing. 100! PAGES!!! 

So, what does that mean for this blog? As this is still a school assignment, I do need to keep up with posting weekly, but I may not be posting anything about my original story for the month of November. I want to give myself space to work on that on its own as my original story is the project I am working on for NaNoWriMo. However, like I said, you can count on me to post something involving creative writing here once a week. ᕱ__ᕱ 

For this week, I have decided to post part of the class assignment that I wrote a Harry Potter fanfiction for 2 weeks ago. Below are images of a letter that my original Slytherin character wrote to her father during her (and Harry Potter’s) first year at Hogwarts. 

I am done with the assignment now, but I think I may decide to continue on with this OC at some point. Who knows? Not me! All I know is that by the end of November I am never going to want to touch a keyboard again. (“Do creative writing,” they said.  “It will be fun,” they said.) Well, that’s all from me for now! 

Remember to dot your j’s and cross your t’s this NaNoWriMo season! ᕱ__ᕱ 

~Clementine J. Quincey 🪷

trope talk

Hello friends!

As I stated in last week’s post, I will not be posting anything too grandiose today, as I have been focusing on my original story for NaNoWriMo and do not want to get burnt out. So, I decided that, much like last week, I would put another in-class assignment to use and give you a short listicle about my favorite inter-character relationship tropes! I hope you enjoy! ᕱ__ᕱ 

~*~*~

6 of the best fiction tropes for inter-character relationships

(in my opinion)

By Clem

Any writer worth their salt these days knows what a trope is. And no, I’m not talking about the traditional definition of a trope, i.e. synonymous with figurative language, though it is indeed important to know that meaning as well. I’m instead speaking of the more recent, broader definition of a trope. As writer Dave Chesson puts it in an article all about tropes on his website kindlepreneur.com, “a trope is a plot structure, theme, storyline, character trait, motif, or plot device that is commonly used in storytelling.” 

It’s these types of tropes that you can find on one of my favorite websites tvtropes.org. Tropes have become such a pop culture, as well as fan culture, phenomenon in the past few years that even those who have never heard the term “trope” before can recognize some of the common ones: the damsel in distress, the chosen one, a friends to lovers romance, a tragic backstory. In fact, some tropes have become so popular that they are deciding factors in whether or not people consume a piece of media. I know this is often the case for me, and in the following list I have provided 6 of my favorite tropes about inter-character relationships that I just can’t get enough of.

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Found Family

Not all tropes about relationships have to be romantic in nature! In fact, a good portion of the tropes on this list are more platonic or familial, and found family is one of them. One of my favorite tropes of all time, found family refers to when a group of individuals, usually a group of misfits or outcasts, come together and form a close platonic, near familial, bond with each other. As many characters in a found family situation don’t have good or close biological families (or any family at all), they become each other’s family.

The Six of Crows/Crooked Kingdom duology by Leigh Bardugo includes an excellent example of the found family trope. The six main characters of the books, some of which are pictured above, are a ragtag group of criminals, each with tragic pasts. Eventually they come together and learn to love and care about one another as they pull off an impossible heist. The found family dynamic between them adds a softness to each character that helps smooth their rough edges. This makes them feel more human and their story all the more captivating.

Golden Retriever & Black Cat

A yes, the good old black cat/golden retriever relationship dynamic. Only given this name in recent years, this character dynamic is much older. Simply put, this trope refers to a relationship, whether romantic or platonic (or even familial), between one character who is very excitable, sweet, and happy (the golden retriever) and one character who is cool, often rude, and grumpy (the black cat). The conflicting personality types is what makes this relationship trope compelling. As they say, opposites attract!

The example I have chosen here is Enid Sinclair and Wednesday Addams from the new Netflix adaptation of The Addams Family, a show entitled Wednesday. Enid and Wednesday are roommates at a boarding school in the show and could not be more different: Enid a bubbly, optimistic werewolf (talk about a golden retriever!) obsessed with pastels and Wednesday a deadpan, pessimistic psychic allergic to color. However, throughout the show they eventually become close friends. It is intriguing to watch this golden retriever/black cat duo interact and try to solve the mysteries that crop up in the show, as their personalities and perspectives on the world couldn’t be more different.

Enemies to Lovers (or at least Rivals to Lovers)

The enemies to lovers trope is the first specifically romantic trope in this list (though there is a parallel trope used for platonic relationships called enemies to friends). This trope, as the name suggests, involves two characters whose relationship with each other develops from enemies to romantic partners. While some may call this trope toxic, and I admit, I can see how it could be written that way, it’s personally one of my favorite tropes when done correctly. This is especially so when between a male and female character. I typically read fantasy or action/adventure novels, genres in which female characters’ skills (particularly in combat) are often looked down upon or patronized by the male characters who are interested in them. However, if an action novel has a well written enemies to lovers side plot, I know I can be sure that at all points in their relationship, a female character’s love interest is taking her seriously.

One of my all time favorite examples of enemies to lovers, albeit in its lesser form rivals to lovers (which is saved for media that does not have characters trying to kill each other), is from the classic romance novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet start out loathing each other, but eventually, through various family dramas, learn to understand and respect each other, and in the process, fall in love.

Girl Boss x House Husband

Technically, this trope is actually titled “girl boss x male wife,” but I prefer the term “house husband” as I have seen the phrase “male wife” used with degrading connotations as well, and that is far from what I am trying to convey. This is another relationship trope most often used for romantic couples, however I believe it can be translated to platonic or familial relationships as well (with some finagling). Whatever the context, this trope contains a strong, independent female character and a male partner who cares for her and holds her stuff when she needs to go beat some sense into someone. As a reversal of the typical gender roles where the male is assertive and protective and the female is the caring and supportive, this trope provides a breath of fresh air and an interesting dynamic to explore.

A great example of the girl boss x house husband trope is Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase from Rick Riordan’s Greek mythology books. Percy is definitely a powerhouse character in his own right, but is 100% willing to step back and let Annabeth take the reins in their relationship while making sure she's taking care of herself in the process.

Naive Hero & Mentor Figure 

The mentor figure trope is basically what it says on the tin: a naive character, typically the main character, is taken under the wing of an older and wiser mentor. Oftentimes, the mentor figure fills a familial void in the naive hero’s life. If you’re lucky, the mentor figure survives. If you’re not, then, in the words of Golda Rosheuvel as Queen Charlotte, “sorrows, sorrows, prayers.” This trope is a great way of giving the character, and the audience, the background information they need to know while showcasing the main character’s development. 

Often, this trope appears in superhero fiction, such as one of my favorite examples for this trope, IronDad and SpiderSon Tony Stark aka Ironman, and Peter Parker aka Spiderman from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Tony recognizes the raw talent that Peter has, as both a superhero and a tech genius, and does his best to guide him, by protecting him and steering him away from the same mistakes Tony himself made in the past. It will forever be a crime that we didn’t get to see their relationship develop further before… you know… “Sorrows, sorrows, prayers.” 

Bros before Hoes

While it does have a bit of a vulgar name, this trope is actually one of the sweetest on this list. Usually, at least one of the characters in friend groups with this relationship dynamic is involved in a romantic relationship outside their group, and at some point will have to choose between their friends and their lover. When this relationship dynamic comes into play, characters will always choose their friends. 

Unless, of course, their friends are wrong. My favorite example of this dynamic comes from The School for Good and Evil series by Soman Chainani. The two main characters are the best of friends. While throughout the series they have their fair share of disagreements (if that's what you call it when your best friend keeps falling in love with men who try to kill you and your boyfriend), they ultimately pull through and choose each other over boys, proving that romantic love is not the only love that can vanquish evil. Though not every story with a Bros before Hoes dynamic is full of life-and-death decisions, this relationship trope provides a sweet nod to platonic love in any story.

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So, the next time you sit down to write media, or consume it, pay attention to the tropes you may include or notice. Do they make the media better? More compelling? Or do they take away from the main message or storyline? (For some reason writers love to include love triangles. I abhor love triangles thrown into media just for kicks). For all you writers out there, maybe consider including one of the tropes listed above. If you do, send me a link! Like I said, I just can’t get enough!

~*~*~

So... do y’all like any of these tropes?? Do you hate them? Please do let me know, I’d love to hear it! And if this post was not your cup of tea, I apologize, but don’t worry, we should be back to our regularly scheduled programming in another 2 weeks! ᕱ__ᕱ Good luck to those of you also participating in NaNoWriMo!! 

And just remember, dot your j’s and cross your t’s! 

~Clementine J. Quincey 🪷