Spooky Scary Writing Tag 👻 BOO!

Hello fellow bookworms 👻 Initially I had planned to do different book tags themed around Autumn/Halloween but my inner mood writer (is that a thing) struck with inspiration. I’m sad that I won’t be doing the Hocus Pocus Tag that I wanted to do because it’s themed around my favorite Halloween movie, but as I’m currently revising my WIP I was craving a writing Tag as I haven’t done one in a while. I perused the Internet and stumbled upon the Spooky Scary Writing Tag, a fantastic Tag created by Emma @ Emma T. Fink and inspired by different paranormal creatures that are roaming the earth on Halloween! I loved the questions and had so much fun talking about all things writing, it really helped me get excited about my WIP Intoxicated amidst the hard work of editing it for the very first time 🙂

More Writing Tags feat. my WIP Intoxicated

💖 A chaotic Gryffindor MC 💖 WITCHES!!! 💖 Rivals to Lovers 😈 💖 A competition between two enemy covens

• The Life Choices Write Tag ✒
• The Milestone Write Tag ⛰
• Your WIP in Gifs Tag ✒
• Winter is here Write Tag ❄

1.Ghost // Have you ever originally put a character/scene/theme in the book and then later taken it out?

7. Frankenstein’s Monster // Ever combined two characters into one/split one character into two?

➽ Combining the questions because they’d literally be about the same thing. If you check out my earlier posts/tag about my WIP Intoxicated you’ll notice that I initially had a character named Scarlet that strikes up an unlikely friendship/alliance with my protagonist. However, in my current round of revision, I’ve cut her from the story because there were too many characters and she didn’t contribute enough on her own. By taking some of her role/characteristic and combining it with the protagonist’s best friend Yasmin, I made the latter a much stronger and impactful character! I’m definitely happy with the choice I made as I think it had a positive impact on the story and made for a stronger cast of characters.

2. Bat // Most misunderstood character in your WIP?

➽ Misunderstood characters are kind pf my jam. For this WIP, I have to go with Cashel, who is the villain of the first book and plays into my favorite trope: the well-dressed, good-looking antagonist who can be incredibly charming. I love him a lot because he has hidden depths and isn’t as bad as my main character thinks he is. What I’ll love to unpack in the sequel (where he’ll have to work together with the hero squad) is more of his background story and digging deeper into why he was so desperate to go as far as kidnapping the main character’s father. He definitely did some bad things, but nothing that puts him past redemption even though you’ll not agree with everything he does. Cashel is a bit misunderstood in the way that the image he puts on in public as a powerful, arrogant heir to an important witch family is heavily fabricated and smoothes over some of the trauma he harbors. He’s more similar to the protagonist than he’d like as he also deeply mistrusts most people.

3. Jack-O-Lantern // What’s your most common source of inspiration to write?

This is surprisingly hard because there are several factors that inspire me to write and put in the work to improve my craft and get ahead with my story. So here’s a short list!

➽ Books obviously. When I’m reading a particularly well-written, engaging book I yearn to be able to put myself out there as well and hope to sometime invoke the same feelings I have in future readers. Examining why a book works so well for me, can also give me that push to try to improve my own craft.

➽ Hearing about the author’s journeys in interviews or podcasts always inspires me because it shows that these people succeded even in the face of obstacles and self-doubt. Reading writing blogs can also speak to me emotionally and some posts are incredibly motivating to read!

➽ As a visual person, mood boards/searching through Pinterest always ignites a spark in my imagination. Pictures can make all the difference for me and inspire me for a certain scene or story idea. The atmosphere is so important to me, so I aim to look into what pictures suit the vibe of my story.

➽ Seeing blogging friends that are also writers talk about their progress, goals, and achievements. I’m always so proud and excited to see them get ahead with their WIP’s!!! It’s just great to interact with someone who gets it.

4. Zombie // Preferred form of writerly fuel? Coffee, tea, etc.

➽ COFFEE forever and always! I usually write in the late afternoon, making for the perfect time for a cup of steaming coffee. The good thing about caffeine is that it makes me feel productive and has been established as a big part of my writing routine. Just the art of making myself coffee kind of helps me get motivated to do some work and go write to my heart’s content ☕However, sometimes when I’ve already had a lot of coffee, I’ll fall back on tea as a great alternative because tea is also life 💗

5. Vampire // Cheesiest trope that made it into your novel?

➽ I’m always afraid to be a bit too cheesy but I do love tropes as they can be very valuable if done right! Is forbidden love cheesy? Because it’s my favorite trope that manages to sneak its way into my story ideas 😇. In this case it’s rivals to lovers with an impulsive, bold protagonist and a more level headed, kind-hearted Love Interest who is 100% exasperated with my MC! There’s lots of tension, attraction, BANTER, and slow-burn involved, so all of my favorite things! I also have to best friends who are platonic soulmates, two brothers who would die for each other and lots of hugs, so all the mushy feelings!!

6. Spider // What’s a character in your WIP that’s fine from afar, but you would NOT want to interact with if they ever got close?

➽ (Spiders are not fine from afar, just seeing them is stressful 😳) There are a lot of characters that I wouldn’t want to get close to because they’re horrible but they aren’t necessarily ‘fine’ from afar? I mean we have Yasmin’s strict mother who might put on a nice face in public but can be very pushy and insistent with her constant criticism. The main antagonist of book 2 is also present as a minor character and even more terrifying because he can be all charming but very hot-headed and choleric if he doesn’t get what he wants. The most obvious choice would be my current villain Cashel again because he can be very cold and intimidating up close, as he knows how to portray a powerful image in public. Definitely, lots of people you don’t want to get to know closer in real life here 😂

8.Skeleton // Best tips for adding in character baggage without info-dumping?

➽ I still struggle a bit with avoiding info-dumping on all fronts as it’s easy to fall into in the first draft when you want to get everything out of the way. When it comes to character backstory (especially the Ghost in their past aka the thing that still haunts them and shaped them into who they are now) I think a little goes a long way. I personally try to add information when they fit into the story logically. That’s really hard but I try to spot instances when the character would naturally reflect upon an event of their past because it’s currently relevant to the story. By finding the spots perfect for some internalization and backstory you can weave it in. However, that’s still hard for me, but can be fixed in revision! K-M. Weiland has some great resources about backstory though!

9. Cat // What’s a polarizing writing/bookish opinion that you have?

➽ Not really polarizing, but I’m passionate about self-care as a writer because I’m so bad at it sometimes (so this is part callout for myself) 😅 In that sense: you need to find your own pressure point and define what your writing progress looks like. As someone who’s bad at dealing with stress, the ‘hustling’ culture that is literally everywhere is frequently gnawing at me, making me feel bad for not 100% giving everything I have into writing. But here’s the thing: I love writing, but it’s not my entire personality or sole interest. I like having other hobbies like blogging or reading and I think it’s important to have ways to refill your creative well. It’s also all too easy to base my self-worth on writing or getting stressed out about having to do all the things (writing, editing, brainstorming, honing my writing craft, researching publishing, etc.) az once.

Personally, I try to give as much into writing as I can and of course make it a priority – but not feel guilty if ‘I’m not doing as much as everyone else/or what is expected for a “real” writer’ because only you know what works for you. Accountability and a bit of pressure so you don’t procrastinate is important, but it needs to be tailored to your need and personality. Some people might need more pressure in whatever form (be it accountability partners or strict habits) to achieve their goals, I personally need things to be balanced and low-stress in order to consistently make progress that gets me closer to my goals. In the end, the biggest advice for writers is to look into what works best for you, as every writer has their own, valid approach to writing.

10. Demon // Most frequent writing distraction?

I miss him so much 😦

➽ My Demon’s Name is the Internet 😈 But seriously, as wonderful as the Internet is by providing me my happy place it can also be incredibly distracting and the perfect temptation to procrastinate working on my story. I usually get the most distracted by perusing Twitter, Tumblr, watching YouTube videos and even reading all the bookish blog posts that have been piling up in my reader … oops. That’s why I like the writing program Q10 because it operates in full screen, is super minimalist and easy to use and can be customized by font/background color. You can still exit full-screen mode but I find writing this way less distracting as you cannot as easily slink into the Twitter hole.

What is your most common inspiration to write? Tell me what trope always seems to turn up in your story ideas 👻

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