writing tips

INTROSPECTION

— Remove distance between the character and their introspection. Instead of writing, "He thought it was a nice day," write "The day was nice." The reader already knows that the story you're telling is through that character's perspective, so you don't have to use phrases like "he thought" to open the door to their headspace.

— Active voice, active voice, active voice. This is a fundamental aspect of writing, but I think it's ESPECIALLY vital in an introspective piece. Use Hemingway editor to catch passive voice (in my recent fanfiction, which is LARGELY introspective as all of my stories are, i only had 22 instances of passive verb usage). Using active voice in introspection breathes life and immediacy into what might otherwise be dull or meandering.

— Introspection should contextualize the actions a character is taking. If Atsumu is acting impulsively and about to make a VERY DUMB decision, the introspection should give readers a sense of what's driving him towards that decision, what's stopping him from taking a breath and using his 6 entire braincells to not put his foot in his mouth?

— Less is more. Don't explain your character's entire state of mind in a single info dump on the front end of your story—this can actually break story tension. Think about how a character's headspace informs and contextualizes the story and how it will change throughout the story, and give the readers just what they need to understand and sympathize with your protagonist in each scene, no more. Even if you have a million head canons for a character, don't include them in the introspection unless they're relevant to the scene at hand or overall story. Even though the reader is in the character's head, you want your reader to WANT to know more about them.

"if you’re feel like your natural style is too perfunctory and not imaginative or engrossing enough, the best thing you can do is challenge yourself. start with imagery. sit down and try to describe the room you’re sitting in through writing. think about all five of your senses and the feeling the space gives you, and try to use words that naturally convey that feeling. a room that makes you feel claustrophobic may be described as cramped, tight, narrow; the air in the room might be called suffocating. do exercises like this and ask other writers or a beta to read over what you wrote and tell you how it makes THEM feel."