I Had A Lot Of Fun Interactions With My Students Today So I Thought I'd Leave Them Here In Case Anyone

I had a lot of fun interactions with my students today so I thought I'd leave them here in case anyone needs inspo for writing kids.

Student 1 (7yo): *to student 2* I'm in second grade. What grade are you in? Student 2 (8yo): I'm in second grade too. Student 1: *silence* Student 1: *to me* Can I play a game?

Student 3 (11yo): *after spending 30 minutes logging into her google classroom* I don't have any homework.

Student 1: *forges her mom's signature* Me: I once got a detention for forging my mom's signature. Do you want to get a detention? All four students: Yes.

Me: *to student 2*: What are you writing about? Student 2: I forgot. Me: You're writing about your brother. Student 4 (12yo): Can I write about my brother? Me: Do you even have a brother? Student 4: I have a sister. Student 1: I want to write about my brother. Me: Good! What do you want to write about him? Student 1: How he makes me carry his backpack. Me: ...

Student 3: What's your mom's name? Me: Why are you asking me this? Student 3: Because I need to know. Me: Why? Student 3: I'm not telling you.

Student 4: Can I have a ticket? Me: For what? Student 4: For staying in my seat? For trying my best? Me: Did you do either? Student 4: No.

And here's my favorite interaction with a student ever:

Student (11yo): *to her friend* Technically we're still children. Me: Technically? You are still children. The friend: How old are you? Me: 20 Student: You're still in your wonder years.

Kelsee

I NEED to rant about the character I've struggled with the most in any of my wips, which is Kelsee Nightshade.

Back when I was only coming up with characters, I created her as a foil to my mc’s bestie, Catalina. Kelsee and Catalina are in the same clan, they’re the same age, and they both the same position of power as they’re each the daughter of a mistress (each mistress runs a faction of the clan). The only difference is Catalina is nice and Kelsee is a power-hungry maniac who bullies specifically her.

I started having trouble with Kelsee when I started developing the plot. I needed a way to connect her to my mc, Daron, because the story is from her perspective.

At first I doubled down on Kelsee being evil. My first thought was that she should be involved in a ritual not only her whole family, but a part of Daron's clan is a part of that involves committing mass murder. This is actually one of my favorite parts of my wip. Kelsee is the key to discovering the secrets each clan is trying to hide.

But that's the problem. It's a secret. Daron has no idea she's doing this off-screen, so how do I tie her into the plot?

That's when I made her a spy for the villain. Her purpose would be to try and befriend Daron because the villain knows Daron is powerful and wants her to join them. But Kelsee's plan backfires and she tries to kill Daron instead. Then I realized that’s stupid and I should focus more on how her bullying has affected Catalina's confidence because that was her original purpose.

However, there will still be an attack on Daron's life and Kelsee will still be a suspect. She's also still a spy but she wants Daron to join her and the villain because she genuinely likes her and thinks they will make a good team. Kelsee genuinely doesn't see anything wrong hurting people and thinks Daron will see her perspective.

While changing Kelsee’s dialogue to make her honest instead of manipulative, I realized she could be really important in Daron’s paradigm shift. They are similar in the way that they both follow whatever their families do without question, but Daron doesn’t want to be like someone she has witnessed bullying her best friend so she starts rethinking her life. But between that moment and when Kelsee is accused of attempted murder, I couldn't think of much for her to do.

Okay now that I figured out who Kelsee is, how does her arc end? I was iffy on redeeming her because I plan to redeem a lot of other characters and honestly she’s too far gone for redemption. I could have the main characters kill her, but I don't think they're capable of killing their classmate. It was then that I realized there is only one proper conclusion for Kelsee. She must be killed by the villain. It's so beautifully ironic that in her quest for power she was killed by the one who promised it to her. Rest in peace Kelsee.

One last thing about her. Kelsee has gone through many name changes. Originally I wanted her to be Jordan, but changed her to Clover per request of a friend. When that friend backstabbed me, I changed her to Kelsee, the name of one of the leads from where I worked at the time. I have nothing against her; I just like her name.

So that’s Kelsee. I hope she’s not too boring.

LOOK AT THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MY FIRST AND SECOND DRAFT I'M SO PROUD OF MY PROGRESS!!

Here's the last section of my first chapter in my first draft

The coachman opened the door to the carriage and offered a hand to help me inside. I have ridden in carriages before, but never had the luxuriousness to myself. The seats were made out of velvet and the floor was polished hardwood. The wheels were so smooth that I barely felt movement as the horses sped down the cobblestone roads. I looked out the window for a while, silently watching my home fade away and the shopping district come into view. I watched my people go about their lives until the shopping district became the residential area and the residential area dissolved into the forests that led into Herbneivorous territory. We still had a long way to go and I needed to conserve my energy so I closed my eyes and drifted away into sleep.

And here it is in my second draft

The coachman opened the door to the carriage and offered a hand to help me inside. As I entered and sat myself on velvet cushions so soft they partly swallowed me, I did not take even a single glance back at the black-brick mansion. My path had already been laid out, and it led away from Spiritwalker Mansion. I would not be able to keep moving forward if my head was turned back, even for a second. As we began to move on wheels so smooth I barely felt movement, I silently watched the small buildings of the shopping district come into view. A few witches milled about, going into shops with purses in their hands and coming out with baked goods or home appliances. I thought it funny how I had kept watch over these people my whole life through the meticulously written words of the mistresses—I knew how well their businesses ran, when a new witch was born, when one died, and many more details—yet this was one of the few times I had ever seen my people go about their lives. Sadly, I did not get to see more of what my people do when politics are not involved because the shopping district melted into the residential area, and the residential area dissolved into the forests that led into Herbneivorous territory. We still had a long way to go and I needed to conserve my energy so I closed my eyes and drifted away into sleep.

I know I still have a long way to go but it's so much better right?

I need this in my life

Stop me if you hate the concept: short, fat, hairy lady gets isakai'd into a high fantasy, and instead of "oh look at all these ethereal elves woe for I am but a flawed mortal" routine she lands in Dwarf territory and is immediately revered as the most enchanting and desirable maid in all the land. This immediately becomes a zesty romantic drama. Thoughts

OC Writer's Block Tag!!

Thanks @fleurtygurl for creating this tag and tagging me! I have too many OCs so I'm just using the ones with the most interesting reactions (and I added Iris just for you).

Rules: Answer how would your OC would motivate/cheer you up when you have writer's block.

Daron: The only way to grow is to continue working through the tough parts. You do not have to rush, but you can do it all the same.

Aria: Don't be such a loser. Just write something already.

Iris: *Clapping after every sentence* Come on! Use that brain! I believe in you! Let's gooo!

I'm gently tagging @phynewrites @skyderman @aalinaaaaaa @yesireadbooks

Yejin

Ok I also have to rant about my character that I hated the most. While coming up with characters for my mystery wip, my first thought was a crazy ex would kidnap the missing girl. Then I realized that was too obvious, but I kept the crazy ex anyways to have more suspects.

She was a trope, and one I find annoying at that, but her character was important to my story. To give her more use than just being a suspect, I gave her the role of begrudgingly helping my main character find her missing girlfriend. She has more information on the girlfriend because she dated her first and for longer.

Things really changed when I made a mood board for her. I scoured all of pinterest for a picture I thought suited her and landed on a really pretty one. I was conflicted because in my mind she was too crazy to be that pretty, but I also couldn't find any other pictures I thought could be her. That's when I thought of a solution that changed this character from crazy ex to a girlboss that I now adore. Yes, she will be pretty...and she will know it. She's weaponizes beauty and hides her crazy under her pretty girl mask, but you can still see it poking through at times. This development also led to her being smart and cunnning.

How did I get her name? Well my first year in college I had a roommate named Sejin, and I hated her. Sejin was so selfish that she once asked a friend to put up lights above her bed then went to shower instead of helping to put up her own damn lights. Sejin was so cruel that she stopped talking to me about two weeks in and never explained why. But that didn't stop her from talking about me in the halls. Sejin was so dumb that she once opened the door to our room while I was half naked. So of course I would name my crazy character after a crazy person, but I didn't want to give her the full satisfaction so I changed the first letter.

Yejin is now my favorite character to write. Under the cut is my favorite scene I've written with her. Keep in mind that I don't have a full first draft yet so this is VERY rough.

“I’m here to talk about Chinwe.” Yejin’s eyes narrowed. “What do you know about Chinwe?” “She’s my girlfriend.” Yejin’s eyes narrowed further. “And she’s missing.” Yejin sat there like that for several seconds, eyes narrowed, studying me. Then she relaxed back in her chair. The only expression in her eyes was boredom. “Well that has nothing to do with me.” “Really? Then why do you follow Chinwe’s friends on instagram?” Yejin pulled a lip gloss tube out of her purse and started applying it. “Is it a crime to follow people,” she said mid-stroke. “Why do you follow these specific people? You have no connection to them other than Chinwe.” Yejin capped her gloss and smiled at me snarkily. “Maybe I did find them through Chinwe, but I make it a habit to follow every pretty girl I see.” She held out her lip gloss to me. “Want some?”