So, a while back, I posted a snippet from my novel, Double Exposure. Someone responded with, "THIS WRITING IS 95% AI and 5% human."

WELL… I actually thanked them for the compliment and moved on. I told them, yeah, I did use AI—specifically, Microsoft Word to check my spelling and grammar. Because, you know… that’s AI. But other than that? It was me. I know exactly what I wrote.

But lately, that comment has been nagging at me. I mean, HOW does someone make a claim like that? With actual percentages and everything?

So, naturally, I went down the Is My Writing AI? rabbit hole. If you've ever Googled that, you know where this is going. There are hundreds of websites claiming they can tell if your work is AI or not.

Which led me to this question: Which "robot" do you trust? The AI bot that claims it can detect AI? Or the actual human who wrote the thing? It’s a paradox, right??

Anyway, I decided to put this to the test. I ran the exact same snippet through one of those fancy AI detectors. Wanna guess what it said?

"This work is 95% AI and 5% human."

I nearly fell out of my chair.

Naturally, this sent my brain spiraling (more on that later). But since my book is similar in style to James Patterson, I decided to grab some snippets of his work and run them through the same detector.

Guess what it said?

"45% AI and 55% human."

HUH??? So now we’re saying James Patterson is half-robot?? I mean, if he is using AI, honestly, more power to him. But seriously… what does this mean? Could the AI bot be wrong? OF COURSE, IT CAN BE WRONG!

But again… who do you trust?

Now here’s the real kicker. The AI detector had this little button that said "Humanize this text for free!"

Ah. Now we’re getting somewhere.

So I clicked it. And just like magic… BOOM. My text was now "humanized."

I copied it, pasted it into Word, and guess what I found?

Apparently, to make writing feel human, you have to:

• Misspell a bunch of words.

• Put commas where they don’t belong.

• Randomly swap semicolons and commas.

• Forget to space after a period.

• And basically, introduce as many little errors as possible.

Because THAT, my friends, is how AI bots determine true human writing.

GIVE. ME. A. BREAK.

If you hire a roofer, do you criticize him for using power tools??

Writing is an art. Editing is a tool. AI is just another tool in the toolbox. That’s all it is.

OK… rant over.

:D
Kirk

I joined Reddit about a week ago with a simple mission: find writing gigs, get feedback, maybe connect with other writers.

Reddit took one look at me, and said:

“No. You? You’re a banana.”

I haven’t unlocked Top Writer. I haven’t unlocked Top Commenter. I haven’t unlocked Community Builder, or anything remotely useful.

But oh, the banana achievements? Those are rolling in, like I’m speed-running a tropical fruit RPG:

• Enthusiastic Banana • Beginner Banana • Banana Aficionado (because apparently I needed THAT)

And for some reason Reddit also decided I am:

• Dog Detective (I do not own a dog, i own a cat. Or he owns me. Undecided.) • Person of Interests (am I… being monitored??) • Local Hero (what did I do???) • 5-Day Streak (congratulations to me, I opened the app 5 days)

Reddit even gave me a slice of cake for joining... Nothing screams: “we believe in your literary future” but believe in digital cake and fruit rankings.

Meanwhile the writing subs are busy arguing about AI like it’s the Apocalypse:

“ChatGPT destroyed writing!” “No, THIS new AI is the genius one!”

And I’m just sitting here, quietly unlocking banana levels, wondering how my life choices led me here.

Anyway... if your writing journey feels weird or chaotic today, please know:

Somewhere out there, a Portuguese writer is grinding XP as a banana.

Thanks for reading my banana TED Talk....

Hey writers,

It's been just over a week since last checking in, and I figured I owed everyone an update after all your feedback.

I've updated our sidebar to reflect the new rules that I hope will help raise the level and quality of engagement with the sub. Namely:

Quality content begets quality feedback. A basic grasp of spelling and grammar is expected of all.

We're writers - this should be one of the rare places on the internet where there are no excuses for poor spelling and grammar. The odd typo can sneak past the spellcheck - I get it. But I believe there should be a minimum standard of quality for all submissions, and from what I have seen, so do the rest of you. The better written something is, the more quality feedback it garners. Some work, however, is written so poorly that there is no point in providing any substantive feedback when the problems lie in the fundamentals. There is now an option to report submissions for irreconcilable spelling/grammar issues.

Please do not make consecutive submissions. You must provide feedback on others' work if you expect feedback on your own.

Taking a cue from /r/destructivereaders, if you want feedback on your own work, you must reciprocate. This is just how all writers groups work.

Please do not link to external websites. All submissions for critique must be posted as a self-post. Please include a word-count in square brackets.

This is more of a housekeeping item. Some users have been posting to their google accounts behind an account lock, or to questionable blog hosts. For ease of access and security, and to ensure your submission does not get caught in the spam filter, please submit all original work as a text post, including a [word count] at the end of the title. Admittedly, I will only enforce this selectively; more ads/harder to read = more likely to be removed.

In a similar vein, you now have the option to flair your submissions. For now we have: "Fiction," "Non-fiction," "Poetry," "Resource," "Question," "Discussion," and "Other."

Hopefully these changes are a step in the right direction. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on them and discussing what else you would like to see in the future!

Hi everyone! I’m a new self-published author, and I recently released my first book.

Hi everyone! I’m a new author, and I’d like to introduce my debut novella, The 5th Shadow.

Genre: YA Psychological Horror • Suspense Thriller

POV: First person

Length: 130 pages

Blurb :

Alex, Jake, Harry, and Leo are inseparable. For Jake’s eighteenth birthday, they plan a camping trip in the deep woods, hoping for a perfect weekend.

​Right before they leave, a chilling, anonymous broadcast hijacks every screen and radio in the city. A distorted voice warns everyone to stay out of the forest, listing thirty people who have mysteriously vanished there. Dismissing it as a viral prank, the boys head into the trees

anyway.

​Around the campfire, the nightmare begins. They count the group: five physical bodies. Five familiar faces looking back. Their memories have been altered so perfectly that everyone feels like an old friend, making it impossible to identify the extra person.

​The next morning, Leo vanishes. But the real horror? None of the remaining boys even remember him.

​As the forest closes in, Jake uncovers a shocking, unchangeable truth about their reality.

​Will they be able to survive the 5th shadow?

The Fifth Shadow is a fast-paced psychological thriller built around secrets, paranoia, memory manipulation, unreliable perception, and existential dread, with twists designed to keep you questioning what is actually happening.

If you enjoy YA thrillers where the mystery keeps getting stranger and you can't completely trust the protagonist's perspective, this might be for you.

I’m a new independent author, so every reader, review, and piece of feedback genuinely helps. 📚🖤

If you're a fellow author, feel free to tell me about your book too—I’d love to discover some other indie authors!

This sub is once again being moderated. No more shills, no more spam, no more incompetence.

If you can't be bothered to use the spelling/grammar checker built into literally 99% of all devices and software, we won't be bothered to keep your post.

Edit: Turns out this sub has literally never been moderated - posts date back to 9 years the day this sub was founded (great fucking job, old mods).

I'm mass removing posts and banning users who posted 2+ links that have been marked with spam. I'm sure some innocents will get caught up in the cull so please don't hesitate to message me if you believe if you have been banned mistakenly.

I'm also taking requests for rules, suggestions for improvement, all that jazz as I try to revamp this sub into something less... pathetic.

I am currently writing the second book of my series and, as I was writing it, I have sometimes reread sections of my first book and come to the conclusion that it wasn't as good as I remembered. Because of my introverted nature, I've never been able to get anyone outside of my family to read my book and I was hoping to get an outside opinion of my writing style. I've attached a short sample of my first book here and am just interested in whether this is any good. I apologize for the format and lack of context, it was difficult to find a section that I could just slice out that wouldn't just be very confusing. For reference, Kes and Jack are both primary characters with Kes taking the role of the protagonist. Kes is thirteen, Jack is twenty-six, and Kes essentially is working as his assistant/apprentice. Here is the sample:

The conversation petered off as they approached Bawk’s house, a two-story Tudor-style building of brick and stone.  A small balcony extended out over the lawn, which was adorned with flower gardens, each lovingly kept and abloom with roses, daffodils, and a dozen other flowers Kes couldn’t name. 

“What a beautiful house,” Jack commented appreciatively.  “This Mr. Bawk sure knows how to keep his living space in order.”

“Are we here to figure out where the Nekov Syndicate is keeping the Wall or to learn some tips about gardening?” Kes asked, annoyed.

“I don’t see why we can’t do both,” Jack said, shrugging.  “It’s called multitasking and I’m quite adept at it.”

“It’s called easily distracted and you’re pretty good at that, too.”  Kes stared at the front door.  “So, how are we going to do this?”

“I imagine we knock.  After that, anything could happen.  Mr. Bawk could invite us in for a lovely high noon tea or he could jump out at us with a chainsaw.  I know that second one seems unlikely, but it did happen to me once.”

“Really?”  

“Indeed, it did.  Although, it didn't take me especially long to subdue the man in question.  Chainsaws don’t make very effective weaponry.” 

On that note, Jack walked up to the front door, Kes on his heels.  Raising his hand to the door, Jack rapped his knuckles against the polished wood and waited while the sound of footsteps approached from inside.  The front door was pulled open by a tall, slightly overweight man in his mid-thirties.  He had long black hair, coming down to his shoulders.  He was good looking, in a plain sort of way.  

“Hello?” the man asked, looking them over.

“Hello!” Jack said brightly.  “I am Detective Jack Boundang.  This is my associate Miss Kes Gatner.  Would you happen to be Johnathon Bawk?”

Bawk licked his lips nervously.  “I… yes, that’s me.”

“Excellent!  I’m not going to beat around the bush, Mr. Bawk, because, while you do not look like a particularly busy man, I am very busy and simply don’t have time for things like small talk or subtlety.  Are you or are you not part of the criminal organization known as the Nekov Syndicate?” 

Bawk paled.  

“I’m not a detective or anything, but that’s a yes, right?” Kes asked, nodding to Bawk’s expression.

“It would appear so,” Jack agreed.

“No!” Bawk said quickly.  “No, I’m not part of the Nekov Syndicate!  I mean, I was up until about three months ago… but then I quit!  I swear, I’m not affiliated with them!”

“But you were,” Jack pointed out.  “That’s the thing about being a part of stuff.  No matter what you do afterwards, you will always once have been a part of said stuff.”

Kes nodded to Jack.  “Can’t argue with that logic.”

Bawk swallowed.  “Are you going to arrest me?”

“Oh, no, Mr. Bawk, rest easy,” Jack said, putting up a placating hand.  “In fact, it’s quite the contrary.  We need your help.  We’ve come here, on our knees, to beg you for your assistance.  Metaphorically speaking, of course.  If I were to get on my knees right now, it would not only get my pants dirty, but my knees would start to hurt, and that wouldn’t be pleasant for anyone.  My dry cleaner, for instance, would be highly irritated about the dirt on my pants.”  Jack faltered for a moment.  “I feel like I’ve gotten slightly sidetracked.”

Kes gave Jack a pointed look.  “Easily distracted, like I said.”

“I do see your point, yes.”  Jack looked at Bawk, who was quietly hyperventilating in the doorway.  “Whatever the case, Mr. Bawk, we need to know some things, and you appear to be the perfect individual to talk to about them.  May we come in?  I believe we have a lot to discuss.”

Edit: I've gotten a lot of great positive feedback and constructive criticism here, thank you all very much! I'm hearing a lot of people say that the characters don't seem to have their own voice and tend to sound the same, along with a few comments about my use of adverbs, all of which I will attempt to take to heart. I will also be posting a request for beta readers in the appropriate subreddit, so if any of you are interested, I would genuinely appreciate your thoughts. Thank you all again!

SUBREDDIT BLACKOUT JUNE 12-14: Don't let Reddit kill 3rd party apps!

What's going on?

A recent Reddit policy change threatens to kill many beloved third-party mobile apps, making a great many quality-of-life features not seen in the official mobile app permanently inaccessible to users.

On May 31, 2023, Reddit announced they were raising the price to make calls to their API from being free to a level that will kill every third party app on Reddit, from Apollo to Reddit is Fun to Narwhal to BaconReader.

Even if you're not a mobile user and don't use any of those apps, this is a step toward killing other ways of customizing Reddit, such as Reddit Enhancement Suite or the use of the old.reddit.com desktop interface .

This isn't only a problem on the user level: many subreddit moderators depend on tools only available outside the official app to keep their communities on-topic and spam-free.

What's the plan?

On June 12th, many subreddits will be going dark to protest this policy. Some will return after 48 hours: others will go away permanently unless the issue is adequately addressed, since many moderators aren't able to put in the work they do with the poor tools available through the official app. This isn't something any of us do lightly: we do what we do because we love Reddit, and we truly believe this change will make it impossible to keep doing what we love.

The two-day blackout isn't the goal, and it isn't the end. Should things reach the 14th with no sign of Reddit choosing to fix what they've broken, we'll use the community and buzz we've built between then and now as a tool for further action.

What can you do?

1. Complain. Message the mods of /r/reddit.com, who are the admins of the site: message /u/reddit: submit a support request: comment in relevant threads on /r/reddit, such as this one, leave a negative review on their official iOS or Android app- and sign your username in support to this post.

2. Spread the word. Rabble-rouse on related subreddits. Meme it up, make it spicy. Bitch about it to your cat. Suggest anyone you know who moderates a subreddit join us at our sister sub at /r/ModCoord- but please don't pester mods you don't know by simply spamming their modmail.

3. Boycott and spread the word...to Reddit's competition! Stay off Reddit entirely on June 12th through the 13th- instead, take to your favorite non-Reddit platform of choice and make some noise in support!

4. Don't be a jerk. As upsetting this may be, threats, profanity and vandalism will be worse than useless in getting people on our side. Please make every effort to be as restrained, polite, reasonable and law-abiding as possible.

While this generally won't impact the usability of our sub, if you have even a shred of concern about where the growing oeuvre of soulless stories "written" by ChatGPT will lead, or you don't want your submissions used to train emerging AI software, then this should concern you not just as a reddit user, but as a writer.

Howdy, I wanted to share some wisdom from the greatest writing group I've ever been in.

1) This is probably the most important rule: There is no great god of writing. This is how my instructor put it. There is truly no wrong and no right with creativity, so try not to pass judgment, only relay your feelings.

In other words, less "Your character is too flat; try spicing her up some," and, "You're using waaaaay too many semicolons."

Instead, try to tell the writer your reaction to what you read. "You had me on pins and needles when she was opening the door!" "I was confused about who owed who money." "I was rather bored for most of the beginning." "I didn't get any of the jargon." "I feel like I am in love with your heroine."

These are more constructive because it's telling the writer about the impact their writing has. If you missed the point, then she has some work to do, but your opinion of what you perceived to be the point is irrelevant (and, more so, your tips on better achieving said perceived point). So just make sure you're not being the great god of writing, please :). And don't use emoticons.

2) Most of what you'll find here is unpolished. Forgive all typos, unless the author is asking for copy editing. It'll be caught in future drafts and when someone puts their labors out there, in can feel like their intelligence is being insulted.

Routine mistakes and factual errors are different. If the writer consistently uses the wrong "there", point it out delicately. If the writer misjudged the average cruising altitude of a passenger 747, give her a wikipedia link.

3) (for writers) Never post anything that takes longer than five minutes to consume. You will increase your attentive reader pool and gain more insightful feedback because there aren't too many sentences to get lost in. If you're looking for someone to digest your 100,000 word novel, ask a friend who reads a lot of books.

4) There are never enough haiku.

5) Please state the nature of what you're writing somewhere. The way I analyze a short story is totes-mcgotes different from the way I absorb a page from a novel. Unless mystery about the format is somehow the point, I suppose.

6) (Back to the readers) No advice on the plot. Everyone has ideas all the time, let the author try to weave us through her story as best she can. If she asks for an idea, then give one of course!

Anyway, my time is up. I've got a short, silly story I'll be posting in the next week for your critique.

Seriously, more haiku though.

The Ghost That I Love.

The ghost that I love is sweet and kind.

The ghost that I love gives sight to the blind.

The ghost that I love listens, and cares.

The ghost that I love holds me when I’m scared.

But the ghost that I love is all in your head, a beautiful thought you held whilst I bled.

And while you shout and proclaim that you’re trying your best....

The ghost that I love, is a ghost nonetheless.

I always see submissions here preceded by things like 'I wrote this in a single sitting. It's unedited, so please excuse the typos, poor language, redundancies and general sloppiness of the plot.' I see this a lot in the creative writing class at my university, too. People will preface their work by saying 'This is just a first draft, so it's a bit crap' or 'I only finished it last night, so I haven't had time to make any changes'. These sorts of statements have always bothered me. So I'd like to take a brief moment to discuss what I see as the usefulness (or lack of usefulness) of submitting a piece of writing for criticism in its base form.

Of course, feel free to share your opinion and point out the flaws in my point of view, as I'm sure there will be many!

Anyway, when people submit work for criticism that's fresh from their brain, it tends to be teeming with typos, grammatical errors, and the occasional glaring inconsistency. The first reason why this is bad is because it gives people something easy to criticize. Something useless. It doesn't aid a writer to be told that they have spelled a word wrong, used a wrong word (unless the issue is definition, in which case go for it!) or left a word out. When the writer re-reads their piece, they're going to find these things anyway. You want the critic's attention to be on the writing itself, not the spelling and grammar. That's something that pretty much anyone can solve by a simple re-read.

The same goes for plot, too. Submit the story you want to tell, not an addendum stating that this or that will be changed. It leads to the reader becoming disenchanted. It sows doubt in the writers ability to tell a story

I could go on and on writing about this, but I'd pretty much be repeating the same point. Essentially what I'm saying is that surely the most constructive way to receive criticism is to submit your very, very best work. That way, it's a foundation that can be built upon. You learn. Your writing progresses. You're providing what you think is perfect and learning how it isn't, in ways that are alien and ultimately useful. What's the point of asking for criticism when you already know what needs to be changed? This is just my opinion, but I've found it has worked quite well in the past.

Do you agree? Disagree? I'd love to know!

The ocean is on fire.

It’s hard to think of life as mundane when the ocean is on fire.

I wake up, I go to work, I clean, I cook - all perfectly mundane activities. All extraordinarily ordinary things with no particular significance whatsoever.

But the ocean is on fire.

Lately I’ve been furious at ordinary.

Ordinary has become, to me, a looming cloud of darkness and failure; a perpetual hangover from endless nights of procrastination and indecisiveness and fear.

I could have been extraordinary. I was supposed to be extraordinary.

“You have so much potential, if only you’d apply yourself” they said as I coasted through education with decent enough work to get into a bottom-shelf university.

“There’s something about you - you could go places” they said as I worked hard enough to be good at everything, but never hard enough to be great at anything.

“One day you could run this place” they said as I accepted contracts and then changed my mind and let opportunities slip through my fingers like salt - easy to grasp if only you’d just hold on to it.

They tell me I could be a lot of things, someday. But not today. And so I move on because repetition is too ordinary, and I can’t be ordinary. Someday is not soon enough.

Sometimes I watch spiders weave their webs, strong as steel in the world that they occupy but fragile to the elements, destroyed by the rain, erased in a second by passing creatures whose worlds are a different size. And yet the spiders just continue and they build and they try and they create what they need to exist in just that moment, not later. A spider doesn’t think about the future.

Sometimes I think about spiders and how often they have to start over and wonder if new beginnings are ordinary, or maybe the extraordinary thing about me is that I am a spider and I just keep building even if it’s fragile. And it’s never too late and I’m never too old and maybe I’ll start tomorrow and someday, someday will come.

Maybe someday will come, but the ocean is on fire.

Hi there!

I've been working on my novel for a long time and lately I've been in a rut. I have gone back and editted my book so many times, made major changes, and questioned my own work to the point where I wanted to give up. I truly love writing and fantasy and want to keep pushing but believe that if I had fellow writing friends, it would make the process so much better. If anyone is feeling the same way or needs a companion to exchange works, please reach out!

My story is high fantasy. I'll post a small blurb of the first chapter below. It also has artwork in it if that helps with the appeal :)

Charres Fables - Veiled Twilight

The tolling of the warning bells reverberated through every street, alerting the city.

Jael waved the air to dismiss the alarm and closed her eyes tighter and grabbed at the blankets. But there were none. She rolled on her back, landing on hard, wet stone that soaked her bare skin.

She opened her eyes. Above her was a darkening sky alongside old buildings.

What…

Jael sat up. The tolling bells were ceaseless, along with distant shouts and torchlight littering the street ahead of her.

She was in an alleyway.

Wasn’t I… I was… why am I here? Wasn’t I just…

Jael looked down at herself.

She was draped in a dress worth enough to feed her family… perhaps before it was stained head to toe in blood.

I wouldn’t have worn a dress into the arena…

Jael grasped her chin at the thought - she remembered. She was entering the battle finale in the Silver Ring Arena. And she… won?

Or she lost, and they dumped her body in the alleyway. She quickly examined herself, noticing no wounds. The blood wasn’t hers. And why was she in a dress? She vaguely remembered standing in the dim, metal tunnel before the gates of the arena, waiting. Her sister gave her a vitality muffin to prepare her for battle. And then, they called her name.

Shouts echoed down the alley and pulled her from the memory. More gathered.

Jael pressed herself against the brick wall in the shadows and listened.

“Someone said they saw an unconscious green haired girl down this alley!”

“Tell the others; flank near the bay!”

Flickering fire light neared the corner.

Were they looking for her?

Who here has had the most terrific and epic idea for a story or a book, but after a while it all seems to be going nowhere?

You still believe in your story, but one of two things might happen: Either you have multiple branching ideas of where to take the story or, no matter how hard you try, you just draw a blank.

Or perhaps you lack the motivation to just....put the pen to paper (so to speak).

Most of us have been there. I'm not saying I have the fool-proof universal solution, no one does. But I want to point out a simple observation.

Talking about it helps.

I joined this group with very few expectations. It was almost like an afterthought. "Writer's Group, eh? Well, I'm a writer. Let's see where this goes if indeed it goes anywhere."

I'm not one of those writing gurus you find on the net, claiming they can help you churn out the next bestseller for the measly sum of $19,99 a month.

No. Only you yourself can make that happen. All I'm saying is, talk about it. Just the mere act of starting up a conversation will kinda stimulate those brain cells, and before you know it, you'll know exactly where you want to take your story.

I know it helped me, and thank you to some truly wonderful individuals here who were extremely helpful and helped me look at things in a different light.

That's all I have to say at the moment. Feel free to open up a chat with me (or with anyone else if they're willing) if you want to talk about anything.

You never know; it might be just the thing that you need.

Hello,

Thanks for letting me in. I appreciate it!

Like some of you out there, I need support and the occational J. Jonah Jameson to motivate me. (IE someone to stand over me and demand the next chapter.... and photos of Spider-man). I'm told the best way to do this is to find a writer's group that writes similar to what I do (by genre, i'm told, if not by style). I have tried to find such groups but they tend to be either A) be very exclusive (IE they have been writing buddies since high school and don't want anyone screwing with the dynamic) B) Expensive (Yes, i have seen places that have dues) C) Not really helpful, (You write that?! Ew!) D) way too easy to steal from each other (Bring 10 copies of your chapters to the oral meetup so we can bring them home and correct them) or just really far away.

Has anyone gone through the troubles of finding local writers groups that you click with? I have tried Meetup with limited success (see above) and I wasn't sure what to handle next.

Thank you for any and all assistance. If this is against rules please let me know.

I was an addict for more years of my life than I was sober. I used opiates to deal with the mental pain of life. I'm not going to write a sob story, but my life growing up wasn't sunshine and roses as I'm sure is the same for most people who are addicted. I was getting so far gone and pushing the pain I had gone through in life so far down and not dealing with it, that it was rotting inside of me. It was starting to make me legitimately crazy. I cared some, but not much, and not enough to get off drugs. I had tried before just to stop, but I didn't realize how much work was going to be involved, what I was in for, or where to begin. It took me three years of trying different methods like methadone, rehab, suboxone, meditation and therapy to finally get to the starting line of what I thought was the path to sobriety.

While going through all of this it was like I was marching up a snowy mountain with a backpack on. I was tightly holding my shoulder straps, trudging through the snow uphill one step at a time. After a couple of months I would lift my head up to see I was still in the exact same place. So again, I put my head down and trudged on. For over a year it seemed like I was in the same place every time I looked up. I had learned a lot though while walking. I truly learned the meaning of patience and calmness and finally understood this is a marathon not a sprint. I learned that hope was the only thing I had in the most desperate times when I felt like just giving up and setting down in the snow, not to care anymore. In the mind of my mind, I was climbing a ladder or the steps of a pyramid. Every lesson was like an ascension of knowing who I was and what I had to do. Like going through the chakras to start at red over and over again, growing the whole time.

One day things changed a little as I felt some tension release. I didn't realize I was over the crest, just knew it was starting to get easier and I felt myself descending down the other side. Still learning in the mind of my mind lessons to take with me. I learned it is okay to just be okay with yourself. That being ashamed and the fear and anxiety that came along with it weren't going to help me on my travels, so I had to shed that baggage to get where I wanted to be. People don't look at you and see what you think of yourself. They just see what is in front of them at that moment. So, if you're doing better, that is the picture you project. They don't know the challenges you're facing in your mind and body to just make it through the day. So again, my head down I keep trudging through the snow down the side of the mountain.

One day I felt something completely different. I had accepted the snow and the mountain and without knowing where I was, I look up and there isn't any snow. I'm coming into a valley with a beautiful meadow, and I can shed some of my baggage knowing I'm in a better place. I still have my journey ahead but I'm feeling better about each step, still learning in the mind of my mind. I have this energy inside of me that wants to preserver. I want to be a good person and give off a good energy for others to realize anything is possible.

Feeling light and free I walk to the edge of the meadow with my shoulders tall and straight from everything I've carried and learned to cope with. The mind of my mind gave way to me being myself and knowing who I was. I felt whole once more. As I make my way through the trees there is a beautiful little stream. I wash myself and stand up a clean person, free and ready to face the world as I had never known before. As I look around with my eyes clear, in that moment I realize, this is beautiful!

about two months ago, I discovered reddit via a friend who spends the majority of their time on images based posts with titles like "MILF". I created an account here and pretty soon found myself enamoured with R/Writersgroup and R/writing, and while I didn't post enough to be leave much of an impression, my posting was confined to these two subreddits almost exclusively.

However, I was involved in a car crash and have barely posted since I regained conciousness and was released. The reason being, my grammar, spelling and diction have been so negatively impacted upon, I feel embarrassed posting in a writers subreddit. Over the last month (I was unconscious for three days after I went careening through the windscreen. I took my seatbelt off for a moment because my coat was caught the slot, and off I went) I have been going to a class to relearn basic English. It's depressing and embarrassing, especially when you consider previously my job was proofreading documents at a law firm. I keep putting in too many commas, mixing up their/there/they're and perhaps most oddly, writing words that sound sort of similar: could/cold, through/few, and so on. My last lesson was on nouns, adjectives and the like, and it all seemed like new information to me, despite the fact I know how to use them.

This is basically, a plea disguised as a heads up, that sounds like a whine. I'd like to start posting again, and I'd like a little bit of slack cut while I relearn the rules of Grammar, spelling, etc. The good news is I'll be ok within six months or so.

Again, I don't kid myself that I left an impression at all but It just sits better with me that I have explained why I appear to have the English language comprehension of an eleven year old child. Thanks for reading, if you made it this far.

TL;DR I was in a car crash and now suck at words.

The Prompt:

Describe, depict, or capture a single human emotion. It's broad, so get creative!

The Rules:

Each person is allowed one entry. Entries may be in any form of written word imaginable (I applaud anyone who would like to attempt epic poetry) as long as it is under 6000 words.

To enter, simply post a comment saying you will and I will try my best to alert everyone who signs up when the deadline is approaching. Speaking of, the deadline is Saturday, October 22nd which is in a little more than two weeks.

Submissions must be added as a comment in this thread using Google Docs. Make sure to share your piece so that others may view but may not edit.

Voting:

Voting will be conducted in a separate thread. I will post a link to every story in the comments. This time around, voting will not be counted by upvotes or downvotes as they are often unreliable. To vote, comment on the piece you fell in love with saying you would like to vote for that one. Multiple votes are welcome, however if you vote for everyone, you don't accomplish much. Be polite and leave comments and/or critiques in your vote!

Best of luck, lovelies, and have fun!

Note that this thread is only for sign-ups and submissions. Any general comments should be added to the original thread and will be taken into consideration.

Edit the time for submissions has ended and voting will be held here For those of you who may not have had time to participate, I hope you take the time to vote and support your fellow writers.

I want to share with you something that actually happened a couple of weeks ago. I think it's funny as hell, but I'll let you decide.

So I'm at my sister's house and we're talking about the bedtime stories mom used to read to us. Her eight-year-old, who's sadly never heard a bedtime story, is fascinated by the concept of a bedtime story. I shoot a good-humored, accusing glance at my sister. She shrugs and smiles. So then this conversation happens between me and my nephew, Adrian.

Adrian: Tell me a story, Uncle Ethan.

(I decide to make it up as I go along. I try my best to put up an old-timey storyteller voice)

Me: Well, once upon a time, there was a boy named Adrian.

Adrian: Is it me?

Me: Sure.

Adrian: Wow.

Me: Yeah. So one day, Adrian found himself walking through a deep dark forest.

Adrian: Wow. I've never been to a dark forest. Is it like totally black?

(I motion him to be silent)

Me: Suddenly, out of the bushes, sprang a huge, fearsome hungry wolf, fangs bared, growling at Adrian.

(Adrian giggles nervously at this, and I'm kinda glad. This was what storytelling was all about when we were kids)

Me: And so Adrian started running, the fiendish wolf close on his heels, snapping and snarling. And Adrian ran faster and faster--

(Adrian interrupts me)

Adrian: Oh no. The wolf would be ahead of me and I would be the one running behind the wolf.

(I'm momentarily shocked, assuming he's going to say something like he's not afraid of wolves and that he's brave)

Me: Oh? Why's that? The wolf would be ahead of you and you'd be running behind?

Adrian: Yeah, I can't run very fast.

I’m high school and college, I could write about anything— a given topic, one of my own, anything. And the words would just come to me. As I started typing, it was as if the page would sing silently. I had the ability to genuinely move people. Then it ended. I started working in another field. I moved around the country and finally back home. Now I feel like that part of me is dead. I made a Minds account (figured I could stay pretty anonymous there) as a place to write things that come to me. It all sounds forced and clichéd. I’ve dealt pretty heavily with depression over the same period of time in which I “lost it.” Not sure if there’s a relation. I’m sorry. I’m new to the sub and don’t know if this is an appropriate place to ask this. But I figured someone else may have experienced something similar.

Thanks 🙂

I posted the rest of the 19 videos and channels here.

Brandon Sanderson's Full Masterclasses

If you are a writer…

And you opened this article on accident. AND, this was the only thing you read – you would be very lucky.

Brandon has at least 3 full semesters of writing classes in various spots on YouTube. Hands down, the most useful writing courses on YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3JlBLG7xOI

Dan Harmon's Story Circle (with Chris Fox)

Chris Fox regularly updates his channel with writing advice. He’s also written numerous books on writing, as well as novels in the thriller, science fiction, and other genres.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFaUmXIobuE

Vivien Reis on Words You NEED to Avoid

Another great channel – and this one is still updated!

Vivien gives clear, simple advice for writers. Both new and experienced writers can learn from this one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhV4lsrvMNI

The Worst Writing Advice on YouTube

Can you learn from awful writing?

Yes.

In fact… you can learn a lot. Just watch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZmUUupSgQk