Is It Actually Possible For People To Respect The Idea That I’m Just Not Personally Impressed With

Got to love that the first thing Alberu decided to do after he realised that Cale wasn't joking about being a Slacker is to threaten him into doing things for him by using government positions and titles.

This man is the only one aside from Ron and the children that are actually able to get Cale to do things that he would normally protest against. Doesn't mean that he's going to make it enjoyable for his Hyung-nim, but still, he's figured out the secret to Cale's obedience very quickly.

I was gonna post this as a reply for this post by @he4d-banger but it got too long so I’m making it a separate post.

I have talked about this before but I’ll talk again because I love talking about Cale’s complex emotional state.

More than pushing them away, Cale completely ignored his grief which has made him completely emotional constipated. This has lead to many side affects which get glossed over most of the time since we read the novel from Cale’s pov.

Some that I can remember from the top of my head right now are: dissociation, selective memory, depression, anxiety, stress and tons of physical problems like eating disorder, etc. which I’ll get into more another time. His self destructive tendencies based on the decisions he makes are all because of his emotional constipation.

Cale’s denial over his own symptoms has become chronic over the years even tho it’s fairly visible from other peoples perspective. Some instances I can remember where we see Cale’s condition from other peoples pov are: moments when Alberu tells him he’ll definitely get his slacker life, everyone’s reaction to him smiling after crying, Choi Han meeting younger Cale, the villains’ reaction when Cale gets angry, everyone telling him he’s too weak and skinny, Ron and Choi Han’s pov during side story 7 after Cale dreamed about CJS and LSH first death anniversary, etc. Everyone can recognize that he’s not well.

And about the venting on destroying stuff, that’s exactly correct. Many times when we see the fight from the other pov of the villain, most of the dialogue is about how angry and terrifying Cale looks. Of course part of that could be due to the effect of Dominating Aura, but they specifically mention Cale’s expression and the look in his eyes a lot. That’s what truly terrifies them. Cale doesn’t recognize this but he’s really expressive, everyone says that he’s very expressive and lets his emotions slip through his face.

Another case when he couldn’t control his emotions anymore was when he cried. An interesting fact is that people who aren’t used to crying and/or hold themselves back from crying, once they do actually cry they can’t stop the flow of tears and are motionless and/or rather calm and quiet. It’s that silent unstoppable crying that Cale displayed. His grief finally exploded after meeting LSH and he couldn’t understand the sadness he was feeling at that moment because the meeting ended with consolidation and relief. All the pain over the deaths of his best friends finally released.

That is a complete contrast to his reaction in side story 7 after the first anniversary of his team’s death. When he arrived home he just collapsed on the floor expressionless. Not once did he cry. But the way he collapsed at that moment said a lot about his state at the time. All the stress accumulated in his body from holding back his emotions all day today affected his physical health to total exhaustion

Actually in my opinion SS7 is one of the best chapters about examining Cale’s emotional state. There are multiple visible of him suppressing his emotions like: keeping a neutral expression all day around, refusing to mention what day it was tomorrow even though everyone knew, not closing his eyes in front of the grave because the memories would resurface, the small panic attack shown by his shortage of breath, background silence and feeling of heaviness, and you can see how burned out emotionally and physically he feels. The only way he wouldn’t feel these things was by working, as it is noted multiple times throughout the story that he never took days off.

And my favorite moment was when we see Cale waking up from the dream and very clearly experiencing signs of ptsd and a panic attack. He was feeling cold despite the entire house being heated with magic, cold sweat running down his face, shortage of breath as soon as he woke up and a distressed expression as shown from Ron and Choi Han’s pov He also felt the need to hear noises and pet the kids to make him feel a sense of attachment with reality since the silence in his memories made him feel suffocated. Tho Cale himself couldn’t recognize these symptoms.

That side story also shows how he has grown emotionally throughout the novel now becoming more emotionally open with others.

I can also go on about his selective memory, anxiety, get more into his self destructive lifestyle and about his obvious signs of depression during his team leader days and early part of the novel while touching on his childhood trauma, but this post is already long enough so I’ll leave those for another day.

WEBSITES FOR WRITERS {masterpost}

E.A. Deverell - FREE worksheets (characters, world building, narrator, etc.) and paid courses;

Hiveword - Helps to research any topic to write about (has other resources, too);

BetaBooks - Share your draft with your beta reader (can be more than one), and see where they stopped reading, their comments, etc.;

Charlotte Dillon - Research links;

Writing realistic injuries - The title is pretty self-explanatory: while writing about an injury, take a look at this useful website;

One Stop for Writers - You guys... this website has literally everything we need: a) Description thesaurus collection, b) Character builder, c) Story maps, d) Scene maps & timelines, e) World building surveys, f) Worksheets, f) Tutorials, and much more! Although it has a paid plan ($90/year | $50/6 months | $9/month), you can still get a 2-week FREE trial;

One Stop for Writers Roadmap - It has many tips for you, divided into three different topics: a) How to plan a story, b) How to write a story, c) How to revise a story. The best thing about this? It's FREE!

Story Structure Database - The Story Structure Database is an archive of books and movies, recording all their major plot points;

National Centre for Writing - FREE worksheets and writing courses. Has also paid courses;

Penguin Random House - Has some writing contests and great opportunities;

Crime Reads - Get inspired before writing a crime scene;

The Creative Academy for Writers - "Writers helping writers along every step of the path to publication." It's FREE and has ZOOM writing rooms;

Reedsy - "A trusted place to learn how to successfully publish your book" It has many tips, and tools (generators), contests, prompts lists, etc. FREE;

QueryTracker - Find agents for your books (personally, I've never used this before, but I thought I should feature it here);

Pacemaker - Track your goals (example: Write 50K words - then, everytime you write, you track the number of the words, and it will make a graphic for you with your progress). It's FREE but has a paid plan;

Save the Cat! - The blog of the most known storytelling method. You can find posts, sheets, a software (student discount - 70%), and other things;

I hope this is helpful for you!

(Also, check my gumroad store if you want to!)

Susie was not in a good place at the beginning of Ch 1.

I think we should try taking a closer look at where she came from to understand what her state of mind was back then.

Susie isn’t from Hometown.

Wherever she was from, she was not treated well.

And, upon coming to Hometown…things weren’t much better.

In Hometown, Susie is

Chronically underfed

Likely homeless

Hated by most of her classmates

Close to being expelled and losing her last tether to a normal life

Susie was at the very, very end of her rope at the beginning of Chapter 1.

Keep reading

Pacing Through Sentence Length in Writing

You ever notice how a scene can feel like it’s dragging or speeding up based solely on the length of the sentences? Sentence length isn't just a technical detail—it’s a pacing tool. When used right, it can control the speed and tension of your story. Here’s how:

Short Sentences = Speed, Tension, Impact

Short, snappy sentences are like quick breaths, instantly pulling the reader’s attention. They mimic fast action, nervous energy, or urgent thoughts. They create momentum. Think of action scenes or emotional moments—often, less is more.

Example: The door slammed shut. His heart raced. She was gone.

In just three sentences, you feel the urgency, the chaos, and the emotional weight of the moment. It’s all about breaking up the narrative with these quick hits to keep the reader on edge.

Long Sentences = Build-up, Reflection, Depth

On the flip side, long sentences slow things down, adding complexity, reflection, or tension. They’re great for moments of introspection, world-building, or setting a scene in rich detail. These sentences create a flow, pulling the reader into the character’s headspace or the atmosphere of the moment.

Example: The wind howled through the narrow alley, carrying the distant sounds of a city that never seemed to sleep, never seemed to rest, and in that eternal hum, he wondered, not for the first time, if he would ever find peace here or if, like everyone else who tried to escape the shadows, he would simply become another part of the city’s endless noise.

Here, the length of the sentence mimics the complexity of the thoughts—heavy, reflective, almost hypnotic. It builds tension not with action but with an overwhelming feeling of being stuck or trapped in thought.

Combining Both = Dynamic Flow

The real magic happens when you mix short and long sentences. This creates a rhythm—suddenly, a break in the flow, a quick shock, and then back to a longer, more drawn-out moment. It reflects real life: quick bursts of action or emotion followed by moments of pause or thought.

Example: He reached for the door. It was locked. His heart pounded, each beat a reminder of how badly he needed this. There were no other options. There was no way out. The key could be anywhere. And he could not afford to wait any longer.

TL;DR:

Long sentences = build tension, create depth, set mood. Short sentences = ramp up urgency, show action, make an impact. Mastering this flow is a game-changer for pacing!

I'm late, but Happy 4 years of LCF!! 🥳

To celebrate, I redrew one of the first pieces I've ever made for this fandom! Both the novel and I have come a long way TvTb

A More Compassionate View: The Red Soul is Here to Help

Or “Gaster invited The Red Soul in to save the world of Deltarune, and he specifically wanted a Post-Pacifist Red Soul for the job”.

Keep reading

Kris...?

Without eye highlights...

Oh no! They're gonna die if they keep this up, please stop removing us, Kris! This is for your own good!

Funky whatevee

Where to start as a beginner writer

Are you new to the world of writing? Here are some pointers to consider when starting out your journey!

Define your purpose

A super important first step for any writer is to ask themselves why they are actually writing. What sort of message do you want to put out into the world, what types of stories are you going to tell? Do you want to make people cry, laugh, do you want to inspire them, do you want to shine a torch on important issues, do you want to thrill them or make them feel good?

Familiarize yourself with character arcs

Before plot, there is character! Character arcs are a great way to get yourself started on your writing journey. Learn about internal conflict, misbelief, positive and negative arcs, backstories... Once you know this, the plotting side of things clicks into place much easier.

Understand the basics of story structure

You do not need to be a plot-genius to write a good book. As long as you have a good grasp on your character arcs, and a basic understand of how a story is structured, you’re good to go! It’s great to read about 3-act, 5-act, hero’s journey, and other structures on examples of books you’ve read or films you’ve seen.

Read in your genre

Cannot stress this enough! Every writer should be a reader. It’s so important to read within and outside of your genre, because reading is the best way to learn and grow and improve.

Don’t be afraid to write whatever comes to mind

All writers get stuck into certain parts of their writing, and we all become victims of perfectionism or procrastination one way or another. Don’t let this be a thing to discourage you. What’s important to know about writing is that the more you do it, the more you will improve. So even if you’re writing something for fun, or you’re not entirely happy with the quality, know that actually writing it will help you more than avoiding it.

Did you know I have a free novel plan to get you started on your writing journey?

You can grab it through the [link here] or below!

the-plottery.com

The Plottery Links

The Plottery offers writing services such as book coaching, book editing, novel plotting digital courses, and theory books on the craft of w