Folklore & Fanlore

Folklore & Fanlore

@the-wip-project Day 14

Do you have figures/creatures of folklore in your WIP? If not, can you think of something that would fit?

So, which WIP are we talking about here exactly? 😉WIP 1 or WIP 2?

WIP 1 has no figure of folklore in particular, but is ingrained in a specific country's recent history. The context is actually central to the plot so it required some research at understanding of traditions, mentalities, ways of living. It was never my intention to tackle this aspect as an expert (far from it) and it still isn't. However, I love learning new stuff and I hate half-assing tasks, even for leisure. So it was important, and fun, to me to get those details accurate whenever they needed to be.

WIP 2 doesn't hold any figures of folklore per se, but figures of fanlore more like. The Alpha/Beta/Omega trope offers a very intricate and fascinating universe, and whenever you thought you had read every possible variations of it, someone surprises you with more inventiveness (your humble servant yearns to that privilege).

Writing was a healing process when I started it. Now it is part of a learning process, where I give as much as I gain. It requires effort, time and dedication, but the nourishment I get in return is amazing. I grow as a person, just as my characters grow. Add to that kudos and comments, and I'm on cloud nine.

@the-wip-project Days 16 to 19 (Gosh, I'm so so late 😥)

Do you have prophecies and superstitions as part of the worldbuilding in your WIP? Could you add some?

In WIP2, the A/B/O fic, there's this trope about the bond mates create when they claim each other (which is one of my favourite parts of the ABO universe to be honest) that I decided to use as a prerequisite superstition from the point of view of one of the secondary characters; a secondary character who'll only appear at the beginning and vanish shortly after, but whose impact on the protagonist will be powerful enough to ingrain this belief quite deep.

Only to be debunked later by the other main character 😊

Think about an interview question for your main character/s and then write down what they don’t say. What secrets do they keep? What do they lie about?

Right, so I've decided to present this as an interview between my protagonist and his psyche:

Protagonist: Alphas are a plague. They suck, stink and can go to Hell. I don't need one in my life. I can totally live without them. I'm independent and strong and in love with myself. Who needs alphas anyway?

Superego: Right, I understand where you come from. Your reaction is logical and the emotional charge of your thoughts is legitimate. I'm sure though that, when you calm down, you'll be able to see things in a more composed and lucid way, and consider your words as a bit extreme.

Ego: SHUT UP! I.GOT. HURT! NOT THEM, I! So yeah, alphas are the scum of the earth. Just watch me live my life like I don't care, and learn!

Id: lol.

What ideas came to you recently from daydreaming?

Too many. Like....

I've trying to figure out how a toddler speaks in English and how adults would react. I've also been thinking about future scenes, which should normally happen a few chapters later, and I'm always debating with myself whether I should write them down while they're vivid in my mind or focus on where I'm at, now. I've also made some research on Hawaii for my other wip, so my head is also full of palm trees, paradise beaches, luxuriant vegetation in the volcanic outback (very pleasant part of the daydreaming here) and the serious talk that must take place in such an idyllic environment (pretty ironic)

How do you decide which WIP to work on?

I've been asking myself this question since I started the second wip *scratches head* (my writing involves as much daydreaming as head-scratching, I'm realizing) and I've come to the idea to write a bit of both at the same time. And it's quite satisfying, since I have the feeling of overlooking neither, even if I don't produce a lot. Besides, as they're very different, one really allows me to take a step back from the other and take the time to consider what I've just written (if it makes sense, what I forgot, didn't phrase accurately etc...).

Check out my new wip

@the-wip-project Day 10 (I'm back! I got lost, sorry)

Tell us about ideas you have floating around. Worldbuilding snippets, or ideas for new stories. Just a few bullet points.

I tell you what dear @the-wip-project, this challenge is really working wonders! Not only has it helped me approach my wip with a fresher stance and reconnect with its original soul, but it's also rebooted my creativity, which had been slumbering under the covers of the past year's strain.

In other words, another wip is born 👶 🎉! Just today, it just uttered its first 1k words.

I've come to realise that, as the first wip is gradually reaching its climax, the emotional charge coming with it is getting really heavy and tends to smother me at times. I didn't know I needed a breather until I started my hand at this A/B/O fanfic (my first). I still have to deal with the guilt of sharing my attention between the two but that's a question for later 😅

It's meant to be lighter, despite the serious subthemes of reproductive technology, of parenthood and its challenges, of social changes vs tradition (I did say it's supposed to be lighter, right? Because it really is)

The fun part, for now, is getting to pick the characters' scents. The challenge is not to forget to add these scents as subtexts to a situation, a dialogue, or an emotion.

So yeah, one new adventure 😊

Who would say that when The Sun and The Moon come together, they create the most beautiful dance…

@the-wip-project Day 31 (I finally understood the question!! Yay! I was waiting to read other replies to see what I didn't get - pardon my English)

So now I can answer: 🔞

What’s a pet peeve you have, that you focus on to do differently in your own stories?

In intimate, or even downright smutty moments, I literally skip depiction of "bedroom eyes", or other "liking lips for entrance", or "liking lips in anticipation". That kind of stuff makes me C R I N G E like nothing else does. It's porn, but it's poor, cheap porn to me and I can't stand to see my favorite characters shown in that light. They deserve better smut!

I don't pretend the smut scenes I write are the best, but as much as I can, I don't objectify my characters, nor do I use what I call unnecessary details that just make the whole thing a mood-killer.

Personae

@the-wip-project Day 11

How do you create your characters? Do you make a profile of them? Do you know your character before you start writing the story?

I've tried several tools, from the basic bullet list of characteristics on the first loose paper I could lay my hand on, to an intricate mind map of the story cast with pictures, places, dates, etc.

Since a lot of the creative process goes through an insanely vast amount of daydreaming time, my characters are quite happy with budding and growing in my imagination. Their features existing already, only some details become more precise over time. But overall, I like to respect canon in that regard.

But it's the writing that really gives them the consistency I'd like their personalities to have. And this is when the magic happens because I'd be at a loss to say with precision what they're like before I actually start writing. As the letters, words and sentences flow on the blank document, their profiles take shape; the traits which are meant to be set, revealing de facto those that are going to follow the arc of development and evolve along with the plot.