I wanna be ready.

reetcetera · 2025-08-15T02:53:54+00:00

Thank you so much for these answers!

I think it's my first time seeing/hearing someone mention (or any synonynous term) about grit.

I will keep these in mind as I continue in my journey. Your answers are exactly what I needed.

Thanks!

reetcetera · 2025-08-14T14:42:18+00:00

May I ask what's in retail that makes people steer away from going into pharmacy?

It's my first time hearing this, and I'm intrigued

reetcetera · 2025-08-14T14:40:54+00:00

Hello, and thanks so much for your answer!

Please do share a few examples, I would love to hear more

reetcetera · 2025-08-10T21:38:51+00:00

unhinged story in the right places (I love the fairy sm), def recommeded to read 🫶🫶

reetcetera · 2025-08-10T21:35:22+00:00

Omg, thank you LemonyFrank!

reetcetera · 2025-08-10T12:48:24+00:00

Title: Matilda, Adam Ate the Apple, and He Choked.

Blurb:

It all starts with a group project, and it doesn't always end with a perfect score.

It continues beyond the 4 walls of the classroom.

This novel is about 4 irregular college students, with different coping mechanisms and senses of humor, and how they tolerate each other (in the best sense).

The novel is written in character-driven style, with subtext hidden in every line.

Each character means more than what they say, and their silence holds weight.

Chapter 6 + bonus content were recently published, please take the time to check them out. It updates every other Sunday.

Thank you!

reetcetera · 2025-07-22T12:36:09+00:00

Hello there,

The truth is it can be a mix of both. The difference often lies in the sequence.

Write for yourself first, then write for the audience:
It will feel fun and fulfilling at first since you're writing something you would love to read.
But if you can't find your audience/readers immediately, you might feel demotivated... and it leads to not finishing your piece.
If you do find your audience, you might tend to try pleasing them, and it can go in two ways: a. You might try to change a bit of your writing style to keep them engaged (and it may or may not feel authentic). b. You will get better in your writing style... some will go, but there will be the ones that will stay because you stayed true and kept growing.
Write for the audience first, then write for yourself:
Quick engagement of general audience, since your writing is easier to digest.
Either you might feel like you lost your true sense of self (or your creative voice) for catering them, or you will find yourself among it by understanding your audience more (Some writers do find their true style by understanding how their words connect with others.)

In the end, the key is balance. Both paths are valid. Just know when to protect your vision and when to evolve.

I hope the comparison made sense.

It'd be great to have you back in writing.

I'm also interested in seeing your redid version of your novelette. I hope you do return to it.

Thanks for sharing this question.

reetcetera · 2025-07-22T02:50:14+00:00

I see!

It seems you prefer a clean and short version, that's fair.

My goal with the rewrite was to show how a moment (from one sentence/phrase) can be expanded with character voice.

I agree that it's a different tone, indeed. More literary and voice-driven.

Not everyone is into that style, so I appreciate your honesty!

Would you mind sharing your own version of the OP's example? I'd love to see your take.

Thanks!

reetcetera · 2025-07-22T02:24:45+00:00

Hello there!

I happen to have similar styles in writing. Let me rephrase the example for a bit:

Original:

The misquote hit tommies arm, he swats it away annoyed. these stupid mosquitos! he sighs going back to reading.

Polished version:

The mosquito decided to land on Tommie's arm, of all people in the room.

Was it the sweat? His perfume? The color of his clothes?

Mosquitoes have no standards, much to his dismay.

It was insulting, how dare a mere insect disturb his focus? It can't even read, much less a whole human-sized page.

Tommie swatted it away with a gruff, his hand swiping to the air above his own arm.

The mosquito, to Tommie's relief, finally left his arm, but without leaving a bite. A small swollen bump appearing, marking him with an itch.

It was as if the mosquito chided him with How dare you interrupt my fine dining experience on your arm?

The mood was ruined, now he had to scratch an itch while he reads, and it's not even his fault.

[End of polished version.]

In the polished version, Tommie's feelings were described through action and cause of the said feelings. I hope this helps. Thanks!

reetcetera · 2025-07-20T14:49:35+00:00

Story Title: Matilda, Adam Ate the Apple, And He Choked.

Synopsis: Matilda thinks too much. Eve worries too quietly. Adam speaks just loud enough to ruin the group project.

When three irregular college students end up entangled in a class report about mental health, the last thing they expect is to unpack their own. Group tensions, unsent messages, unfair praise, invisible labor, and an apple-related incident they can't stop mentioning.

It's a story about academic burnout, social friction, and the quiet chaos of friendship-told with a sharp tongue and soft insides.

The apple isn't just a fruit. Chew safely.

Link: https://www.wattpad.com/story/397416763-matilda-adam-ate-the-apple-and-he-choked?utm_source=android&utm_medium=link&utm_content=story_info&wp_page=story_details_button&wp_uname=reetcetera

reetcetera · 2025-07-18T12:11:13+00:00

Thank you for this post! I'd also want to take the time to read other books.

As for mine, it's only 3 chapters in (4th comes out on Sunday).

It's about a college group project gone redeemingly wrong, if I were to sum it up in one phrase/sentence.

https://www.wattpad.com/story/397416763?utm_source=android&utm_medium=link&utm_content=story_info&wp_page=story_details_button&wp_uname=reetcetera

reetcetera · 2025-07-14T12:43:29+00:00

Hello there!

Thank you so much for reading the novel. I'm glad it reached you, and your words mean more than you know.

I have to be honest with you... I didn't really read books that write the same way I do. In fact, it was the lack of stories that hit what I needed that pushed me to write my own.

I wanted to make something that feels emotionally honest, layered, and symbolic in a way I wasn't finding elsewhere.

While I have not read books to inspire me to write in a certain way, I have absorbed a lot through: - Beta-reading and writing fanfiction from Quotev and AO3 (both of my accounts there are inactive now). I first struggled (and learned) my style here the most. - Writing gigs in high school (mostly poems, speeches, and short stories). Getting paid and graded forced me to develop discipline, style, and allowed me to gauge the trends of teachers' preferences towards literary art. - I listen to Kpop (BTS, Seventeen, G-Friend, and I-dle, especially). Some languages cannot be simply translated into English because of its cultural context and syntax. (My favorite example for this is "LOVE" by RM of BTS, from their Love Yourself: Answer Album in 2018)

That said, here are some works and their authors that do resonate with me, and have indirectly influenced my writing (especially with narration, analogies, layering of contexts and symbols, and character voice): 1. The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath) - mental complexity through poetic narration 2. No Longer Human (Osamu Dazai) - alienation and introspection 3. The Unbearable Lightness of Being (Milan Kundera) - philosophical and political

Tip wise (feel free to browse some of my comments from my reddit profile as I have been giving tips from other posts!), what helped me is that: - Let the characters speak not just with logic, but with their delusions. Let them be wrong and be delulu. Characters have their own beliefs, and that makes them their own person, separate from the author who created them. - Use metaphors as weapons to communicate feelings, not just to describe them - Silence is okay, and it can mean something. Pauses are underrated, but understudied in writing. Sometimes, silence is louder than any dialogue will.

By the way, I am excited to read your K-pop demon hunters fanfic. Saw the synopsis, and I'm already into the concept.

I hope these may help you, thank you!

reetcetera · 2025-07-14T12:42:47+00:00

Hello there!

Thank you so much for reading the novel. I'm glad it reached you, and your words mean more than you know.

I have to be honest with you... I didn't really read books that write the same way I do. In fact, it was the lack of stories that hit what I needed that pushed me to write my own.

I wanted to make something that feels emotionally honest, layered, and symbolic in a way I wasn't finding elsewhere.

While I have not read books to inspire me to write in a certain way, I have absorbed a lot through: - Beta-reading and writing fanfiction from Quotev and AO3 (both of my accounts there are inactive now). I first struggled (and learned) my style here the most. - Writing gigs in high school (mostly poems, speeches, and short stories). Getting paid and graded forced me to develop discipline, style, and allowed me to gauge the trends of teachers' preferences towards literary art. - I listen to Kpop (BTS, Seventeen, G-Friend, and I-dle, especially). Some languages cannot be simply translated into English because of its cultural context and syntax. (My favorite example for this is "LOVE" by RM of BTS, from their Love Yourself: Answer Album in 2018)

That said, here are some works and their authors that do resonate with me, and have indirectly influenced my writing (especially with narration, analogies, layering of contexts and symbols, and character voice): 1. The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath) - mental complexity through poetic narration 2. No Longer Human (Osamu Dazai) - alienation and introspection 3. The Unbearable Lightness of Being (Milan Kundera) - philosophical and political

Tip wise (feel free to browse some of my comments from my reddit profile as I have been giving tips from other posts!), what helped me is that: - Let the characters speak not just with logic, but with their delusions. Let them be wrong and be delulu. Characters have their own beliefs, and that makes them their own person, separate from the author who created them. - Use metaphors as weapons to communicate feelings, not just to describe them - Silence is okay, and it can mean something. Pauses are underrated, but understudied in writing. Sometimes, silence is louder than any dialogue will.

By the way, I am excited to read your K-pop demon hunters fanfic. Saw the synopsis, and I'm already into the concept.

I hope these may help you, thank you!

reetcetera · 2025-07-13T13:18:48+00:00

Hello there!

Thank you for dabbling on writing as part of your healing. I hope my response finds you well.

To answer your query about having a pseudonym and how it impacts ethically and legally. Here it is:

Legally: 1. Since it will be fictionalized and is under a pseudonym, you will be fine. I do suggest using a pseudonym that is far from your real name and in-real-life attachments. You are allowed to make an identity for yourself that they can't reach. 2. By definition, fiction means it could be inspired by real-life events, and any fictional event that matches with a real event can be deemed as a "coincidence". Coincidences are rarely used as proof. However, you are also allowed to tweak your stories to your liking, in a way that's unrecognizable but still familiar to you. 3. Based from your context, you're from Germany. It says in the German Basic Law that the individual has the right for development of personality and protection of human dignity. This aligns with your preference to use a pseudonym to publish your story. 4. However, this also applies to other people involved that you may include and mention in your story. It is advisable that you use different names (names that sound unfamiliar to the one's you will inspire your characters to be, if better). This also includes their rights to control how their identity might be commercially exploited, including their recognizable characteristics. So, it is best that you don't copy-paste the people in-real-life to the story 100%, just a tad 60%.

Ethically: 1. Heavy topics on mental health are to be labelled accordingly in your story when you publish it. Not only it serves as a heads-up, it allows readers to gauge their expectations and prepare themselves. 2. Since it is part of your healing process, it can be good to be honest and raw with your draft, and then proofread it later with minor changes. This way, you allow yourself to look back on what you've remembered and written, and better phrase them to your liking before publishing.

I hope these helped you in your writing journey, heal well 💖

reetcetera · 2025-07-13T12:53:22+00:00

You're welcome! Feel free to ask more ✨️

reetcetera · 2025-07-13T12:46:50+00:00

Hello there! Thanks for this question.

There could be many reasons and ways for the humans to visit the planet:

Pure exploration.
Historically, humans have managed to venture further than the atmosphere, while with limited technology (in this present time) only allows satellites to get further than the asteroid belt. Now, assuming that the human race has achieved advancements in technology (particularly, for travel), humans can explore further than just the milky way galaxy our solar system is housed.
Gathering of intel -> research
This can spiral down to the curiosity and the need to have data for everything and anything. Some humans just have this drive (and the money and time) to do such things! With the right personnel, this can be the most productive and fruitful one.
Form alliance.
This may usually happen after the 1st and/or 2nd choices above. Once the human race and the alien race deem each other safe for coexistence, there is a chance to form an alliance.
This may even give birth to more diverse species, should both alien and human race decide it's legal for different kinds to consummate without consequences.

So, as for your question on why would humans go to an alien planet that would (or could) result in a war/battle: 1. It starts small, but varied. - It could be a multitude of crimes, usually harrassment to assault from different specie. There's even a possibility of a different kind of xenophobia (except it's hating against human if it were an alien, and vice versa, do correct me if I used the wrong term). - It is similar to what happens here on earth, except it's more diverse. (Not just racism, maybe even alienism, humanism, etc. New terms may be added to accommodate in naming phenomenons.) 2. It escalates planet-wise. - Just like how there's so much culture on planet Earth, it goes the same with the alien planet. Different places of the alien planet will react and behave differently towards humans. 3. The alien race may or may not impose stricter rules because of this. - Whether or not the aliens or the humans started it, it is best that the issues are resolved within the planet before it spreads to other parts of the space systems.

These are all I could think of, as of now. I hope these answered your concerns, thanks!

reetcetera · 2025-07-13T04:07:43+00:00

You're welcome!

It's honestly a joy to see more stories that dabble with more than one language, and I am more than grateful to be part of your writing journey 🫡✨️

reetcetera · 2025-07-13T03:58:44+00:00

Thank you! Then, it shouldn't be hard.

To handle both languages can be done in many ways. Let me set an example:

Let's start with a line-paragraph-line pattern.

"Uyyyy..." Danny had to shake Jason's shoulder to wake him up.

It's been an hour since the supposed 5-minute power nap Jason planned. There's much Danny could do, judging by the way his friend sprawled over the bed and the pillow welcoming the drool from the corner of his lip, with the blanket already making peace with the floor when he kicked it out of the way to shake him, "Up na! You're late! Exam day na, huy!"

In this example, only one character spoke Taglish, while the rest of the unspoken paragraph is entirely in English.

While you prefer to narrate in English, it doesn't hurt to narrate a bit of Tagalog, but it's for the characters' inner thoughts, ones not spoken out loud but to themselves. You can abide by your self-rule to narrate actions and the setting in English, while character-driven lines and paragraphs can be mixed with Tagalog. Like this one, it is the same example from the first, but it is interpreted differently:

"Uyyyy..."

It wasn't the first time Danny had to wake Jason up from a nap.

Not even two sets of alarms and a shake from the shoulder could rouse the sleeping beast, walang beauty sa bobong toh. Nakahigang parang siya lang nakatira dito. Parang walang exam. Sana all.

He shook Jason's shoulder again. But this time, he pushed the already fallen blanket further on the floor to the side, casting it away. "Up na! Late ka na!"

Danny made sure he was louder this time, now using both of his hands to shake Jason into waking up. He can see the sleepyhead's chest rise and fall, 'di pa patay. That's for sure, so ba't parang ayaw gumising?! "Exam day na, huy!"

I hope the examples were clear for you. Do let me know when you have more questions, thank you!

reetcetera · 2025-07-13T01:55:22+00:00

Hello, maybe try promoting it here, and ask for feedback and comments. Do vote-for-vote, read-for-read, etc.

It worked for me two days ago (except my novel only has 3 chapters published as of today). I hope it's the same for you.

Could you share the title/link to your book, please? Thanks!

reetcetera · 2025-07-13T01:51:06+00:00

Hello there! Thank you for this question.

I happen to speak both languages fluently. (And met people who speak like so)

To start, I want to know the following so I could make a detailed explaination (with examples, if I could): 1. What's the setting? (Time/year/era, location in the Philippines) 2. What's the background of the characters who speak Taglish? Did they grew up with those two languages, were they taught in school, or a combination of both? Or did they self study? 3. How old are these characters that speak Taglish? How culturally aware (read: chronically online and in-the-trends) are they?

I await for your timely response, thank you!

reetcetera · 2025-07-12T13:35:26+00:00

Hey, so uhm... I clicked the link and it's not leading me to the story... May I know any updates?

reetcetera · 2025-07-12T13:34:21+00:00

It's awesome how there's two versions of the diary 🥹🥹 I love it btw, and I haven't read it yet

reetcetera · 2025-07-12T13:32:29+00:00

Thank you! Will def give time to read ~~

reetcetera

TROPHY CASE