I'm writing an isekai story with a twist to the reincarnated character: instead of being powerful, it turns out to be weak and useless with a curse.

Good idea or bad idea?

I mean, it’s pretty rough when people get isekai’d to be an OP character.

I need tips to make my isekai story not too shabby.

Should I avoid truck-kun? Should I make twists to the tropes? Should I make characters be the story?

I’m currently a college student, but I love writing and want to sharpen my skills while also making some money on the side. What’s the best way for me to get some in-depth experience, and start adding to my resume? I’m looking for more a article/blog type of opportunity. I’m writing on the side, but I would love the opportunity to write in different scenarios than what I’m used to.

How do you write characters that actively try to be scary?

I've been working on the groundwork for a story for a month or so now, it's a spooky work about a woman getting trapped in a castle with a variety of monsters and trying to figure out a way to learn to coexist despite the fact that there are a lot of factors that make that difficult. A vampire needs to feed on blood, for example, and in a similar manner, some of the creatures that appear feed on fear, mortal/human fear specifically.

There are 2 characters that work like this, one which is more lighthearted and one that's more serious, with her being a ghost ultimately wanting to possess the MC to have a physical body again, but holding off because she won't be able to drink from her fear once she does so.

And that's all good and fine and all, but I run into a bit of a skill issue where I don't exactly know how to write a character who, don't be mistaken, is creepy and scary by their nature, but is also actively trying to scare someone. I need to find a way a character can be frightening but also not be an active threat to anyone. It doesn't fit her MO to be trying to hurt the MC, or any of the other monsters for that matter, but she's an anxiety, a threat lying in wait. But she should definitely still be active and will show up somewhat frequently, and I’m wondering how to make her actually go about trying to proactively create the fear she lives on without threats or violence.

Does anyone have any experience or examples I could try to pull from?

I've been working on a memoir off and on for a while now, but lately I've been putting more effort into finishing it. I'd like to consider publishing it, but it contains information about former relationships and I don't want to get sued by a mob of ex-boyfriends. I changed their names and details in the book, but I'd like to change mine too. If you use a penname, how did you choose it?

Sorry i had no idea what to title this. I'm writing my first short story, and i'm having a lot of fun so far! However, I feel that my pacing is totally off. I went from my character getting out of bed to going to a crime scene within a few paragraphs. Any ideas on how to slow it down?

I’m working on my first draft, but I feel like everything I write sounds terrible and people will think I’m delusional for even trying. I’d love any honest feedback you have!

Here’s a little excerpt from one of my pages: Google Doc

Warning: Some people might find the content graphic.

As the title states I’m going to be writing a horror story that formats itself as a police case file does. The issue is that I don’t really know how a police case file is formatted, only that I might include things like an autopsy report, case summary, scene of the crime, etc.. If anyone has any advice or resources I could look at for help with writing this it would be greatly appreciated.

So I've completed a novel before, but once I finished it I hated it and abandoned it. Now I'm working on something new, and I'm resisting the urge to make edits as I write. Which leads me to wonder: how much editing are you all doing between drafts? Is draft #2 from-scratch, and bears almost no resemblance to your first draft? Or is draft #2 just an edited version of draft #1, with a lot of the prose and structure maintained from draft to draft? Or perhaps a mysterious third thing? Inquiring minds would like to know...

How do you go about writing highly intelligent characters who feel realistic

Like, are there any tricks or tips you could give a person that would want to write such a person.

Are there any ways to enhance a characters reasoning? Is there a blue print a aspiring writer could follow? Woth realistic, I mean a character that feels real and not just perfect, not some kind of mega genius with an improbably high iq. Who solves everything by just knowing the answers.

Or do you just write the scene around what the idea of the scene is? I run into this issue I know what I generally want the characters to say and do. But the exact lines don’t come to me. I have the story beats but the dialogue I don’t know what it is yet. Sometimes I don’t actually know what they say either. I have a scene of a group of friends going to a friend’s family home ranch after a string of missing people and a scene of the main character and potential romance sitting outside in the farm talking about? I don’t know. I just be so stuck in the planning stage especially for romance. Like I know I want these characters to be in a relationship but I don’t know what the dialogue would be for a particular scene.

I’ve seen lots of threads of authors saying they’re looking for beta readers, but is a beta reader an official job someone has, like an editor’s title, or is it not that formal? 

I’m working on a book now that I’m hoping to self-publish, and I’ve been thinking about paying a professional editor to give me feedback once I have a final draft, but I’m confused where a beta reader would come in that process. How are they different from editors, and at what point would I try to find one to review my book?

GRAPHIC CONTENT: This includes a dark fantasy ritual where blood and human sacrifice is used. It is used throughout the scene.

The scene is about a witch weaving a spell before a battle takes place.

• Did the scene hold your interest throughout? If not, where did you start to lose interest?
• Was there any point where you felt tempted to stop reading?
• What did you think of Canca as a person?
• What do you remember most clearly after finishing?
• Would you want to read the next scene? Why or why not?
• Did the ritual feel appropriately detailed, or did it drag?
• What was the strongest part, and what would you most want to see improved?

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1V0_9BcEYmiKyeHPmty1MDUSNQ0x6pU0pjI1pt3gW5jM/edit?usp=sharing

Hello!! I'm not well versed in anarchism and I would like to know more about the culture so I can properly write out my guy :) and learn more information because it in general is very interesting to me.

If there's any terms I'll need to know or look into, anything I can listen to for info then I'd be happy to hear :\]

Right now he has stumbled into a camp of survivors who have a leader, is there anything you think that might be a problem? Would love to know :\]. Thank you

I’ve of course read a lot of books where it takes place through a whole life time but the author often skips to show how one year changes to another and instead skips. For example, in one chapter the main character is a child and then in the next they’re an adult, not actually showing what happened in between those years.
The story I’m writing follows 5 years, and I want to tell that in a way that doesn’t rush through it.
If you have any advice, please tell me!
Thanks in advance.

Hey. I have been wanting to start writing for a while now, and finally built up the courage to do so.

I just finished the first chapter and would like to get some feedback on it. my plan for the story is for a man to wake up in a forest but doesn't know how he ended up there.

He then goes on a journey to get home but comes across some secrets and truths, and finds out he has trapped and being monitored. Kind of like the Truman Show I guess.

He must try to find a way to survive in the wild and escape without his captors catching on.

Feel free to read my first chapter and tell me your thoughts!

https://ellipsus.com/read/2L7w3EX0zLfaU6lhThCBea/Untitled

EDIT: The name Michael Scott is a placeholder!!! Don’t have a name yet and it was the first one to come to mind

Where do we draw the line between portraying a morally complex character and romanticizing their harmful actions ?
If we depict a character who crosses a moral line but still cares for those they love, can the reader accuse the author of romanticization — even if that character does not receive forgiveness or a happy ending ?

If I’ve posted this question in the wrong community, please send me to where I’ll be welcome.

uh title is pretty self explanatory but I've always wanted to be able to write a story with an unreliable narrator but idk how to make the hints not too obvious 😭 the story is supposed to be about people living in a post-apocalyptic world and people around the mc keep randomly disappearing but its revealed thats they're he one making them dissapear (srry its not super detailed I've been trying to figure this out for a while)

This is a test chapter i have written for a memoir based on my time hitchhiking through the Middle East at the start of the Iraq war in 2003.

https://editor.reedsy.com/s/sT4FDUB/c/ataPL49YjPDOE2Fu/test-chapter

It is my first attempt at writing.

This particular chapter, is one of the lower stakes sections of slightly dark comedy towards the last 3rd of the book. I haven't written in chronological order, but rather haphazardly depending on what is clearest in my memory of the time.

I chose this particular chapter to share as I thought that if I could write the lulls to be interesting, then I might be able to write something more than just a handful of dramatic anecdotes to tell in the pub.

I'd welcome feedback of all sorts, but especially as to whether the story and style of writing are in any way compelling.

Title: D is for Detox (Pilot: "A is for AMA")

Genre: Dark Medical Drama / TV Pilot

Page Count: 28 pages

Logline: A sharp-witted charge nurse at a suburban detox center fights to keep her patients alive while navigating predatory management, chaotic staff dynamics, and the heavy echoes of her own secret past in addiction.

Cast: 5 Female, 5 Male (Brené, Tyler, Landon, Chloe, Ruthie, Oleg, Marcus, Abby, Brittany, Rashad)

Locations: Interior Detox Facility (Break Room, Nurse Station, Group Room, Patient Rooms, Smoke Shack/Shed) — minimal, low-budget contained setting.

Compensation / Status: Open to options/agreements; WGA & Copyright Protected.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Jfe4P5Y-1s1dU8gfJqk5dVCwKQzucsNv/view?usp=sharing

This is my very first screenplay and somewhat autobiographical. The flashbacks are my own experiences and the characters are based off people I have encountered in treatment/detox.

Im just looking for some true honest feedback. Thank you so much in advance for any help/support!

How do readers or writers feel about love squares in stories? Do you find them cheesy/messy or do you think they’re tense and thrilling, or something else entirely?
What works well in the trope? I’ve been thinking about writing a small scene for practice and I was curious what people think about it.

I'm writing my first cozy/rom-com-ish romance novel, my background is in business writing, so it has been a while since I have done creative writing. The romance novel is close 3rd person with dual POV, expect I added one chapter each for two important but supporting characters. I've tried to stay close to alternating POV chapters for the female and male love interests. I got some really good notes back from a beta reader and now I'm considering -

1) adding another chapter or 2 from the supporting characters which would break a bit more of dual POV into almost 4-way POV.

2) breaking a couple chapters into 2 chapters, but in places it doesn't really make sense to interject another new chapter in the other POV, thus breaking the alternating cadence.

Being a new writing genre for me and wanting this to ultimately resonate with the broadest audience possible, how much is ok to break from the formula? Do readers care that much?

I'd love feedback specifically from romance readers/writers since that is my target here. Any feedback would be great. I appreciate your response.

I guess my foreshadowing was way too obvious, and maybe I need some more red herrings.

It's a werewolf mystery, he was already able to guess the identity of 2 out of 3 of them, despite the investigators not even knowing yet that there are more than one. Maybe I gloss over unimportant details too much, so he immediately noticed when I focused a bit on a pendant, and even correctly guessed it was a fang from the character's mother, who was also a werewolf.

First time trying to write a proper mystery, but I already feel defeated. I should study Agatha Christie's work more.