The Writing Mafia

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Could Unicorns Exist?

-Hannah- So. Unicorns. Do we need to go over the basics? They're white horses with one twisted horn in the center of their forehead. Other details of their appearance and their powers vary with the time period. History The ancient Greeks were the first to record unicorns, not as mythical creatures, but as actual natural things found in India, at that time a distant and mystical realm in relation to Greece. The first-ever description of them, found in a book called Indika (On India), describes them as fleet-footed wild asses with a horn two and a quarter feet long. However several seals from the Indus Valley have what look like unicorns on them (above) dated about 2000 years before the Ancient Greeks began to flourish. It is debatable whether they are unicorns or cows with two horns but printed with bad perspective. Moving on to the Middle Ages. A mistranslation in the King James Version of the Bible meant that Unicorns were incorrectly substituted for rhinos,

3 Tips On Writing Songs in Stories

- Germaine - So you want to write songs in stories, but have no idea where to start? Unfortunately for you, I have no idea how to write songs, too. But before you begin to despair, here are a few tips I've learned from reading a few books. 1. Songs DO NOT need to rhyme I see this a lot. It's a little annoying when it's overused in the same book, especially when the author seems to run out of rhymes. I'm not saying, "don't rhyme your songs at all." Some songs that rhyme are actually quite good. I'm saying, "think about it." If the song you're writing fits well with your story, go for it. But if it seems out of place, you might want to consider rewriting it. The worst case scenario would be to delete it entirely and erase all traces of it from your story. 2. Write songs like you're writing poetry Songs are poems, after all. So wouldn't it be fun to just throw out some deep, meaningful figurative language? Of c

Plot Elements (Disney Alert)

-Brynbellion- Plot elements are what makes a story a story. Romance, betrayal, impossible odds, to name a few. In this post I'm going to look at classic plot elements, discuss them, and put a spin on them. Classic Disney Princess Plot Elements: Romance Rebellion Magic Good vs Evil Unhealthy Social Systems Remember that Disney Princess movies are, for the most part, based off of some of the first fairy tales. So these elements are in both pop culture and writing history. Romance Romance is timeless. It's relatable, desirable, and adorable (it's a matter of perspective, okay?). Romance is somewhat overused, yet is not cliche. It's a good way of endearing your characters to readers and pulling these readers into the story (aka shipping). To surprise your audience, pull a cliche-breaker. The girl can end up with the sidekick or the comic relief character. Your protagonist could have a hard time choosing a girl, given the inevitable fawning crowd. Rebel

Windows to the Soul

-Hannah- Today we look at character descriptions. What do appearances say about a character's personality? Quite a lot, actually. Authors use descriptions as an easy way of giving the reader a first impression of a character without having to go into any particular effort. Cicero once said that "the face is a picture of the mind," and this can be true, especially in books or movies. Authors generally want to give you as much information as possible about their characters (unless they're deliberately hiding things) and will use the opportunity to describe their character's appearance to their advantage. Look at this extract from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's stone, where Hagrid is described: A giant of a man was standing in the doorway. His face was almost completely hidden by a long, shaggy mane of hair and a wild, tangled beard, but you could make out his eyes, glinting like black beetles under all the hair. This is J.K.Rowling's

School's Clutches

- Grace - (A poem and a parody) Here is the truth about Humpty Dumpty. Hidden from all until now. Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall, Humpty Dumpty wouldn’t have died If he hadn’t had tests that had his brain fried. Too much knowledge was stuffed in his brain, So much that he was in lots of pain, It only took a hit on his head, For all of his knowledge to make him dead. This is a parody of a parody (seriously 😊 ) of the song What a Friend We Have in Jesus (made by Megan, Hudson and I) When this school year’s finally over, No more studying for me. When I finally have some free time, Oh, how happy I shall be. No more studying on the weekends, No more stressing out for me. I’ll wave goodbye to all my teachers, How I’ll miss them, how they’ll grieve.

Cool Words. Because Why Not?

- Jo - This should come as no surprise to you: I like words. They're useful things on the whole and almost all of them have or have had huge value. However, I am of the opinion that all words are not created equal. Some of them are useful and boring, while others are more fun than a dozen more combined. Now, I don't know if you do this, but I find myself often interrupting myself to remark on my admiration for a particular word that had come up in conversation. Unfortunately, the reasons for this love are as varied as they are arbitrary, so there's no telling which word will next catch my fancy. And you never know, some of these might actually come in handy to you, too. Still, it's important to note that this is by no means a comprehensive list. Gelatinous - I was in the car on the way to church some weeks back and I had a question sloshing around in my head: "Are there words in English that have all five vowels? Surely, right? So, how many of