End of the Week: Have some Cinemagraphs!

I should really make a photo/picture Friday, because visual art can be just as inspiring to writers. It is to me anyways. I just love cinemagraphs so I thought I'd share a few I like, keeping to a fall and cozy theme because my favorite season is here.
Happy Friday everyone.

NaNoWriMo: A Month-Long Freewrite

What if you could write the novel that you've always wanted to in the span of a month? If you've never heard of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), that's exactly what it promises to do in the month of November. I've known about the website for a couple of years now but I've never really put much thought into since I'm still learning how to write- I feel like I'm nowhere close to writing a novel.

But this year I decided to give it a shot. What's changed? I'm not looking at is as my opportunity to write the next great bestseller, rather as a month long word vomit to get out my ideas finally out of my mind and into the world.

To give myself a bigger challenge, I'm going to be also delving into a genre that I have never even attempted before but have always wanted to: fantasy. I grew up on Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and the Eragon series and since then my love of other worlds has followed me into adulthood. So wish my luck and if you want to follow my progress my username is kellyduarte. And to anyone also participating best of luck!

Untitled poem

She feels alone                                                In a crowded room

She feels broken                                              In the reflection

She feels vulnerable                                        As she walks down the street

She feels ashamed                                           She sees a man

She feels foolish                                              And she is promised love

She feels risky                                                 As she takes that chance

She feels afraid                                               That he can make her wonderful

She feels strong                                               But her heart is turned to glass

                                                                       

She feels confident                                         So it can be shattered

She feels content                                             One last time

Sorry I haven't been writing so often, life sometimes gets in the way of everything but I promise I'll try to update more!

August Inspirations

Summer is almost over, and my favorite season is about to be here. Although for most college kids, summer is filled with lazy dips in the pool (or more realistically lazy dives into the internet), mine was filled with work and just shit that came up. But now that it's winding down I have more time to devote to writing..until school starts. But I'm trying to be dedicated to this blog so here are some things that are currently helping me along the arduous work of typing and creating and thinking.

Music:
Glass in the park by Alex Turner (in fact just the whole Submarine soundtrack)

Video Arkade by Com Truise

The Pit by Silversun Pickups

The Original Soundtrack to Mad Max: Fury Road

Blogs:
(to get me in that Autumn mood)

For that envious space

For the rainy days

Current reads:

Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari

Mattaponi Queen by Belle Boggs

Updates: August

Hello everyone. Anyone who is a writer or is trying to be a writer, or actually an artist knows that sometimes inspiration doesn't come easily. I'm in a bit of rut since I've been dedicating all my time to work and family issues. But to still practice my writing, I'm going to try to do weekly segments where I talk about things that are inspiring me at the moments, or books I've read or just anything pertaining to writing that I want to talk about. So if you've been with me since the beginning (even though it's only been two months. Thanks for your patience and hope you stick around.

Tools of the Trade: Reddit (part 1.)

So I'm still learning how to write, I don't even fully consider myself a writer since I haven't really produced a work that has made me think "Wow, I am the shit." All jokes aside I wanted to give out the same resources that I'm using to help me just in case you're not sure where to go.

Edit: I realize that there are so many that I am going to split it into two (or maybe three parts) we'll see.

1. r/writing (duh)

Probably the best subreddit for writers which is why I put it first in case you want to stop reading. This is one of the largest for readers out there and has everything from links to writing advice, others wanting to share their stories and just general collaborations. However since it is the largest subreddit (I believe) out there, it does have the drawback of have many people around the world submitting questions or comments so there is a chance anything you post will be buried.

2. r/writingprompts

"What if genders were reversed in a famous relationship?" "Write about a world that rains fire instead of water." "What would happen if Thor and Zeus had lunch together?" These are some of the questions that you would find. From alternate realities to established universes getting a twist added to them, there's plenty of writing prompts to stimulate your mind and keep you on your toes. Also an added bonus if you dread word count and pages of dialogue, typically responses only have to be around 200-300 words. Short yet effective, these writing prompts are simply great for practice.

3. r/destructive readers

Sometimes you just need someone to provide feedback on your work, Who are you going to give it too? Your mom? Your coworker? That girl you haven't spoken to since the seventh grade? No the answer is the internet of course! Run your story or excerpt of your novel and see if it holds up. One thing that I do like about it is that although the criticism may hurt, it is only constructive as rude and unhelpful comments are deleted. You will only get the best from these destructive readers as they only want to tell you what works in your writing and what simply doesn't.

4. r/allnightwriters

Now this is in a similar vein to Destructive Readers but this is a much, much smaller community so there is a higher chance that anything you want to be seen, will be seen. The community is very friendly as it is "a place to advise, encourage and inspire other writers, and to receive said help in return." Word of warning though, because the subreddit is small, there are rarely any posts. Hopefully over time more people join the community but for now it is a niche, friendly place where any and all writers are welcome.

So if you stuck through this, I admire you greatly. I will be making a part two hopefully soon. Until next time.

Writing Prompt 1

This week's writing prompt is from a random character trait generator. Write a story about a person that:
-personally believes they are actually an alien
-feels like no shoes they ever wear are comfortable
-served some time in prison and whenever is asked about it always tells a different story
-colors the tips of their hair with washable markers everyday

He looked in the mirror and carefully used the red marker to paint the tips of his blond hair. He leaned back and stared at his reflection and smiled. He did well and she would know how he felt the day he saw her at the grocery store. He sighed. On Ublay, in his real body, he could change his whole body in the blink of an eye to show her how he felt. He went over to the bed and carefully sat down, they just changed the sheets and he didn't want to muss them. He looked at his watch nervously. Only twenty minutes until their date at the cafe. 

Her name was Nina. It was her blue hair that caught his eye. Many Earthlings dyed their hair but few decided to go so boldly from the dull shades of red and yellow and brown. He peered at her, she was covered in tattoos. He approached her cautiously and to this day he had no idea how he made her laugh, let alone get through the conversation without bolting. She asked him to have coffee with her, he agreed. 

He looked at his watch again. Time to go. He sighed and slipped on his black, shiny shoes. He hated shoes. This world was covered in asphalt that would cut and burn feet. He heard the grasses of Ublay were so soft, everyone could walk freely. He locked his door to his room at the Motel 6 and walked over to the cafe. 

She was already waiting inside, He walked inside and she looked up as the bell chimed. She smiled and his legs were jelly as he made his way to the table. He sat down. "Hello".

"Hi, how are you? She could make a simply formality sound like music. "Let's order, yes?" He nodded. 

It took three cups of coffee for him to relax. Caffeine was the equivalent of drinking spirits. He unbuttoned the top of his shirt.  Nina nodded to his collarbone. "I never pegged you for a tat kind of guy."

He looked at where she pointed and saw his triangular tattoo peering out. He blushed slightly. "It was from my time at fed." 

Her hazel eyes widened. "Really? What did you do?" She leaned forward in earnest.

He shifted around in his seat. No one, not even her could find out about the where the secret location of where Ublay's teleportation system was. "I stole some electronics, it was really stupid." 

"Well at least you're honest. What does it mean, it looks like a symbol."

"It's to remind me of home."

The conversation had stalled. She stood up and pushed back his chair. "Well, I should go now. Thanks for the coffee." She smiled. "Maybe I'll see you around."

He slumped back in his chair. Good dates were supposed to last more than the hour they spent, at least according his research. What went wrong? He could never figure out humans, their emotions hidden behind walls of flesh and tissue and bones. As he walked home, he kept his eyes on the cosmos. One day he would be back with his people. One day he would belong. 

Smoke

I had a cigarette for the first time

because a boy asked me to.

If it was any boy, I would’ve

pushed him away and scoffed.

But this was the boy.

“So do you want a drag?”

He had lit up as we walked around at night.

We would take long walks like this occasionally.

As he lit his smoke, the lighter

briefly illuminated his face

obscured by shaggy hair and shadows.

He handed me the cigarette.

I paused, PSA and after-school specials

blaring in my head.

But his eyes

and his eager smile,

I took it, placed it between my lips

and inhaled

I expected coughing, wheezing,

a cloud of smoke spewing from my hacked breaths

But none of that happen, I barely felt anything.

So I took a deeper drag,

letting the smoke linger in my lungs

before letting the cloud go.

The warmth of it felt good and the smile

he gave me as he got closer burned

I would be addicted to them, have nights filled

with gold packs, cheap lighters, trembling fingers from the cold

and the overwhelming emotion.

Take a drag, breathing slows down.

1 cigarette, 3, 5, half a pack

I would also be addicted to him as well,

playing video games until 2am, dropping hints at each other,

any way we could touch each other.

Finally confessions, first kiss, steaming his mother’s car windows,

feeling for each other in the dark, falling asleep in each other’s arms,

crying, ignoring, makeups, makeup sex, bliss, happiness, ignorance,

affection, anger, love, the possibility of a future with him and

one without.