The Skellingcorner

[The Skellingcorner]

[cisbender]

when an artist wants to show you their art

or a writer wants you to read what they’ve written

it’s quite often an expression of trust

because a poem or a story or a painting are often things that come from the heart

little pieces of the artists themselves

and if they’re willing to share it with you

you should appreciate it

[vicesandviagra]

THANK GOD SOMEONE KNOWS BECAUSE I SWEAR TO GOD WHEN I SHOW IT TO PEOPLE THEY THINK IM BRAGGING

[The Skellingcorner]

[cheshirelibrary]

How To Tell If You Are In A High Fantasy Novel

[via The Toast]

• The Elders would like a word with you.
• The Ritual is about to begin.
• Something that has not happened in a thousand years is happening.
• You are going to the City. There is only one City. It is only said with a capital C. No one needs to bother saying the name of the City. It is the City.
• Certain members of the Council are displeased with your family’s recent actions.
• A bard is providing occasional comic relief; no one hired or invited him and his method of earning a living is unclear.
• The High Priest is not to be trusted.
• Someone is eating an apple mockingly.
• There is one body of water. It is called the Sea. The Great Sea, if you are feeling fancy.
• You live in a region with no major exports, no centralized government, no banking system, a mysteriously maintained network of roads, and little to no job training for anyone who is not a farmer.
• You have red hair. You wear it in a braid. Your father was a simple man, and you don’t remember much about him – he died when you were so young – but you remember his strong hands, as he fished or carpentered or whatever it was that he used to do with them.
• You’re going to have to hurry, or you’re going to miss the Fair – and you never miss the Fair.
• There is trouble at the Citadel.
• Your full name has at least one apostrophe in it.
• It is the first page, and you are already late for something. Your mother affectionately chides you as you gulp down a few spoonfuls of porridge; she will be dead by page forty-two.
• There are two religions in your entire universe. One is a thinly veiled version of Islam. It is only practiced by villains. The other is “being a Viking.” You are a Viking.
• There are new ways in the land that threaten the Old Way. Your grandmother secretly practices the Old Way, as do all of the people of the hills.
• The real trouble began the day you arrived at court. Every last nobleman hides a viper in his smile. How you long for the purity of life in your village, which is currently on fire or something.

[The Skellingcorner]

[theapatheticstag]

Found my new fav twitter

[pioneerman]

I’m dyyyyyyyyying

[The Skellingcorner]

[aapstra]

Story Tweets by Matthew Luhn.

10 reasons to follow Matthew Luhn on twitter.

matthewluhnstory.com

[The Skellingcorner]

Playlists for Writing

[scrptrx]

Listen on Spotify or Spotify Web Player

     Music to write or study to! These playlists are works in progress and are continuously growing. Titled after like-themed action movie and game music, the playlists each have their own personality, and encourage different moods or activity levels. Most music is from soundtracks. The calmest playlists, Temple Ruins and Party Camp, are useful for getting into the writing or studying mood. This music is less distracting. Once your pace is set, or if you want to get in the mood to write an action scene, Boss Fight is the playlist for you. Tavern Nights, of course, is a fun-filled playlist, but it can be more distracting, and Field Music is right in the middle.

     All playlists are available to follow on Spotify, and can also be accessed via the web player with a free Spotify account. Just click on the [listen] for the link. Please do not hesitate to suggest music/changes to me, either here or on Spotify.

---

Title: Temple Ruins
Mood: tense, eerie, dark
Volume: quiet, few musical swells
Action: creeping through a dark ruin
Instruments: minimal orchestral
Lyrics: few (non-English)

[listen]

Title: Party Camp
Mood: calm, mysterious, romantic
Volume: soft, somewhat dynamic
Action: resting after a long day traveling 
Instruments: minimal orchestral
Lyrics: few (mostly non-English)

[listen]

Title: Field Music
Mood: cheerful, adventurous
Volume: low to medium, dynamic
Action: traveling with your companions
Instruments: orchestral
Lyrics: few (non-English)

[listen]

Title: Tavern Nights
Mood: cheerful as well as sombre
Volume: medium to high, dynamic
Action: eating and drinking with the locals
Instruments: mainly guitar and fiddle 
Lyrics: yes (including English)

[listen]

Title: Boss Fight
Mood: angry, dangerous, scary
Volume: mainly loud, dynamic
Action: slaying demons and dragons
Instruments: full orchestral
Lyrics: few (non-English)

[listen]

[The Skellingcorner]

thewritingcafe.tumblr.com

a note on worldbuilding

[fozmeadows]

It occurs to me that failure to properly worldbuild an SFFnal story is - sometimes, though not always - less reflective of a writer’s creative ability than it is a consequence of their real-world privilege. The concept of culture as something with multiple...

[The Skellingcorner]

[alloftheprompts]

Themed Prompts: Dragons

1. This dragon doesn’t want to guard a tower.
   
2. A young dragon learns to fly.
3. A character turns into a dragon.
4. A character wants to kill a dragon to prove themselves.
5. A village/kingdom worships a dragon/dragons.
6. Dragon teeth/blood/etc. are a valuable commodity.
7. Dragons are used to keep fires going.
8. A town/village/kingdom suffers from dragon attacks.
9. Character wants to drink dragon blood.
10. A dragon is imprisoned.
11. A dragon falls in love.
12. A dragon protects a character.
13. Dragons are valued as pets.
14. Dragon bones are discovered.
15. Dragons are an endangered species.

[The Skellingcorner]

[justsomecynic]

From the makers of the no-effort character checklist, I bring to you… The no-effort complete character sheet for lazy writers like you and me™! 

Because the extra effort I put in staying up until 3 am to do put this together can save us all a lot of effort filling out longer character sheets ^^

You’re supposed to print it out and fold it in half to make a little booklet but you can save ink and do it on your computer :P

Link to PDF on google drive (fixed typo)

[The Skellingcorner]

When a character just isn’t working in your story

[write-edit-rinse-repeat]

[The Skellingcorner]

[micdotcom]

#VeryRealisticYA exposes what’s missing from books for young people 

Fiction is powerful. In fact, studies show that reading literature fosters valuable qualities like empathy and social skills. Young adult fiction especially has the power to instill these values and shape the world views of future generations — and yet, it often fails to represent the realistic experiences of diverse teens and may even perpetuate negative standards.

[jumbolaywho]

I’m going to be using these for plot devices. Nobody can stop me.