I have multiple WIPs going and my brain is formulating an entirely new one that doesn’t take place in any of the existing worlds and I hate it. #amwriting
So far my brain has suggested (read: demanded) the following:
- phoenix (nonbinary)
- soulmates
- portal fantasy
- childhood rivals to friends to enemies to lovers
The other MC is probably going to be aspec.

And by probably I mean is, since if I think it, it’s inevitable.
Both MCs, who are soulmates, are aspec. Specifically, panromantic asexual and demiromantic pansexual.

There's also definitely going to be a polycule.
I ran into a problem in that I have no idea what realistic language an allosexual person might use in noticing someone is very attractive (other than, y'know, "hot"). #acewriterproblems

(Thankfully I have allo friends who are very patient and don't laugh too much at my expense.)
Although allos in the #WritingCommnunity, feel free to share your thoughts/fave ways to describe people you find sexually attractive 😂
I have a habit of gravitating toward names (real and created) that start with the same letter. It's not always the same letter across stories either. At present I'm struggling not to give a third character an R name even though I really, really like it 😩
I forgot how much I love making maps 🤩
The first sparks I had for this story are less than 72 hours old. But here we are. #pantserforlife
I just realized one of my MCs is a cinnamon roll
13,940 in three days for a story that did not exist 72 hours ago. But alas, my weekend has come to an end, so it'll be slowing down for a bit.
Cinnamon Roll's soulmate and his boyfriend-to-be currently hate each other and I'm honestly living for this dynamic. ☉‿☉
Insight into my writing process https://twitter.com/zanlowell/status/1235216725005697026
Me: 14k in to a 72-hour-old story
Brain: You know what the sequel's going to be, right?
Me: 🖕 ಠ╭╮ಠ 🖕
I forgot to include "MC who uses neopronouns" on my list of things this WIP has
Thought of the very ending, but not what's gonna happen between where I'm at and then. This includes not knowing who BBE is yet...
I don't like love triangles unless it ends in a polycule. Doesn't mean there won't be a little drama leading up to it* ☉‿☉

*I've also written very non-dramatic polycules.
And that's the 20k mark five days in. I fully anticipate discovering this is a complete train wreck once the first draft is done and I'm reading back through it.
You'd think an immortal being who's lived over a thousand years would know better. You'd be wrong. https://twitter.com/zanlowell/status/1235933004125650944
Did I use this new WIP to buy a new notebook? Why yes, yes I did.
Is "fierce combatant but awkward af" a trope? 'Cause I feel like it's a trope. It's definitely a thing I (apparently) love to write.
It's painful how unaware my children are that they have (at present) unrequited feelings, doubly so because it's going to be a bit before they get their dramatic, dysfunctional selves sorted out.
Whew.
I feel like I should clarify that this is atypical productivity for me. I've just got an itch right now and I am taking full advantage of it.
Is "enemies teaming up to save a mutual loved one" a trope? Asking for a friend.
Character: I'm gonna do this thing now.
Me: But... that's not supposed to happen yet.
Character: ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
Me: ಠ╭╮ಠ
Only took me 32k, but I just figured out who the BBE is going to be! #pantserlife
Decision of the day: how dysfunctional and antagonistic are these characters going to be before they get around to healthy communication?
Everyone talks about writers killing characters, but does anyone really talk about characters killing writers? Because these three are going to be the absolute death of me.
Hypothetically, if I continue at this rate, the first draft won't be obscenely long (<80k). Which is great since my WC is guaranteed to go up during editing.

Like I'm 99% positive I've cursed myself by saying this, but one can dream.
I just wrote a foreshadow that isn't steeped in tragedy. I'm so proud of myself.

Unfortunately, it does involve spiders ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
My panrom ace is scooting zir ass closer and closer to "honorary disaster bi" territory, right next to my two actual disaster bi boys.
Sometimes writing is just watching your characters set themselves on fire and then run around screaming at you, demanding to know why they're on fire.
Sometimes it's also you, the writer, begging through tears for them to stop setting themselves on fire.
Anyway, here's hoping these assholes don't literally set themselves on fire. ಠ╭╮ಠ
I talk a lot about not wanting to read books that hinge on romance, and that is still very true.

But I do *like* romantic elements. Just, y'know, sprinkled in with the magic and swords and world saving shenanigans. And not hypersexual.

*stares at these three disaster children*
Me: I don't want me demiro to develop romantic attraction for *both* his partners. So... QP with the soulmate I guess?
Brain: That's a possibility. Another one is romance-coding their relationship/developing romantic love without the preceding attraction...
You know, that thing you talk about all the time and want in your own grayro life.
Me:
40k in and we have liftoff on one relationship.

Heavy denial still happening with #3. You'd think the millennia-old immortal being would have zir shit together more than the 30yo humans, but here we are. 🙄
I really love writing powerful/strong protags who should absolutely have their shit together and who definitely do not have their shit together.
Brain: I don't know if this will be long enough??
Me: Remember last time you said that?
Brain: ...
Me: Remember how the WC *always* goes up during the first edit?
Brain: ...
Me: Uh huh. So let's just, y'know, finish the first draft.
Brain:
I also love their not-so-powerful friends/partners/cohorts who call them out on their bullshit. https://twitter.com/zanlowell/status/1238356823947857920
Me: Uugghh where do I want this scene to go?
Brain: Make it vague. And foreboding. Definitely make it foreboding.
Me: Ze's about to get kidnapped. I think we've got foreboding about to happen.
Brain: ☉‿☉
Me: Fiiiiiine. I'll make it more foreboding. #pantserlife
It also took 40k for the two enemies to not be at each other's throats and feel, like, empathy for each other. Just a smidge of it, but it's there. 🤏 https://twitter.com/zanlowell/status/1238356470644826112
Of all the directions the current conversation could've gone, Princess Bride references was not one I anticipated.
Still shooting for full first draft by the end of the month 🤞
“The fewer surprises the better, right?”
Of all the things I didn't see coming in this WIP (which, being a pantser, is pretty much everything), the biggest one so far is bloodletting.
Me, writing a flashback: This seems a little contradictory to zir more recent behavior. 🤨 ( #pantserlife)
Brain: Yup.
Me: So... something must have happened that drastically changed zir perspective.
Brain: Yup.
Me: ... Where is this going?
Brain: ☉‿☉
Me:
Trying to decide if I want to give reincarnated souls the (involuntary) ability to dream memories of their past lives.
Do you ever have a character act so extra that you have to stop typing for a second and just
Me, when my protags are physically tortured: Sorry. You'll be alright, though. Most likely.

Me, when my children are emotionally traumatized: I swear you will have your revenge for the atrocities committed here today.
If I were to guess, I'd say ~8k left in the first draft.
I have two alternating POVs (3rd) and they each refer to the SC by a different name, and honestly I wish my characters wouldn't put me through this shit.
I can pretty much see the end and part of my brain is going, "Nope. Can't write. Don't want it to be over."

Listen, asshole. You've already got an idea for at least one sequel. Sit down and get to work.
I can't believe I'm writing something where no protags die. This is unfamiliar territory and it feels weird.
Brain: We should figure out who the second MC is going to be in Book 2.
Me: I am begging you, for the love of God, can we PLEASE focus on finishing Book 1?
Brain: ☉‿☉
I'm not used to writing scenes (let alone endings) that are just... *happy*? And part of me is panicking in anticipation of it all going very wrong but... it's almost done?

I don't trust this at all.
I really do like this dork. You'd think ze'd be more competent at, like, not getting captured considering how old ze is. https://twitter.com/zanlowell/status/1241210421517922304
So. Close.
Brain: Uh oh. We made a mistake a couple chapters back.
Me: Finish draft, then fix.
Brain: But-
ME: FINISH DRAFT, THEN FIX.
Me: I have a massive bug phobia.
Also me: I'm going to write an arachnoid species into this story that will counter stereotypical views/depictions.
The first me: Why do I do this to myself?
Brain: Bug phobia.
Me: Yes.
Brain: Not the biggest fan of enclosed spaces.
Me: Correct.
Brain: Underground especially?
Me: ...
Brain: Arachnoids in caves they have to use to travel under a river.
Me:
Me: I hate this. This is awful. Why would I do this to myself?
Brain: Make the spiders glow.
So close? I think? I need to push through the bioluminescent spiders, then maybe hopefully half a dozenish chapter and done with the first draft.
Decided to count how many tweets this thread is and I'm at 66 (unless my v sleepy brain miscounted).

Side note (or I guess that was the side note and back to the regular note?), boyfriend is a little big jealous of the platonic soulmate right now.
I wonder if people will be annoyed that this doesn't end with the soulmates getting together romantically. Eh ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

67/ (because why not keep track now?)
Surely I can finish this draft in the next 5k? 😬

For those just tuning in who think that's too short for a portal/epic fantasy, I guarantee there'll be a solid 5-10k added on during the first edit, as is the unfortunate standard for my editing practices. 68/
(It's unfortunate because my first drafts have NEVER been this short.) 69/
Me: Surely I only have, like, 5 chapters left.
Me, 2 chapters later: SURELY I ONLY HAVE, LIKE, FIVE CHAPTERS LEFT. 70/
One of the MCs is trans and I went 66k before actually using the word ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

(My trans sibs will have almost definitely picked up on it long before now, though.) 71/
Me: Just gotta finish the first draft.
Brain: Or we could try rearranging the different parts.
Me: I can literally see the finish line. 72/
I need to stop talking about how close I am to the end because stg it only pushes it out further. 73/
I broke down the scenes that are left and it's really truly 3-5 scenes this time. I AM SO DAMN CLOSE. 74/
Me: THE END IS IN SIGHT
Brain: Need some sad.
Me: What??
Brain: Need some sad.
Me: Can you please just *not* for one goddamn second? 😐

75/
Me: I'm going to jot down in the vaguest possible terms what the last 3-5 scenes are going to be. Should be easy enough to stick to.
My characters:
76/
The moment I thought, "I can't believe I'll probably finish a first draft in under 70k!" I should've known it would spiral out of control. Part of me probably did know.

(2-4 scenes left) 77/
TWO SCENES LEFT but omg I need sleep 78/
Is there a name for the phenomenon where everything comes to a crawl toward the end of the first draft because you don't want it to be over?

Asking for a me. 79/
I honestly don't know why my brain is being so dramatic about it considering it's already trying to start the next one.

The sooner we finish this one, the sooner we can start the next one ಠ╭╮ಠ 80/
Less than two chapters left. This first draft will be done by the end of the weekend. This is nonnegotiable. 81/
Me: I’m going to finish this draft today. I have less than two chapters left.
Mom: Or so you think.
Me: 🖕😐

82/
ONE CHAPTER TO GO

83/
Okay so the last two chapters ended up being the last four chapters but by the time I realized this I just had to split the long one I'd just written into two so it wasn't as much more work as it sounds.

I am really bad at this.

84/
I hate that my mom was right, but honestly I can't be all that surprised.

85/ https://twitter.com/zanlowell/status/1244271696854556672
FIRST DRAFT IS DONE! 86/
If you laughed at any of these tweets, you were absolutely right to do so. 87/
If you laughed at any of these tweets, you were absolutely right to do so. 87/
If you laughed at any of these tweets, you were absolutely right to do so. 87/
If you laughed at any of these tweets, you were absolutely right to do so. 87/
Realized my ace MC is also demiromantic? Who knew.

(Ze did, but god forbid ze tells me anything in a timely fashion.) 88/
Alright, I waited 5 days. Time to get the ball rolling on these edits. 89/ https://twitter.com/zanlowell/status/1245831482490236928
Anyone want to make a guess at how many words I'll end up adding? Because I have never done a first round of edits without adding literally thousands of words. Without trying. 🙃 90/
25% through and only 700 words added so far! Too bad I know for a fact there are a couple additional scenes I want to add... 91/
Ending the night at 31% edited and 1036 words up. Should definitely have this done by EOD Sunday 🤞🏽 92/
Aaand I stayed up to break the 1/3 mark. Because I have no self-control. 93/
I have not gotten nearly enough done today. I still have 60 pages/~17k if I want to make the 2/3 mark tonight 😩 94/
Me: I think I'm good if I just add two more scenes.
Brain: Four.
Me: ... What?
Brain: Needs four.
Me: Why?
Brain: Timeline.
Me: But-
Brain:

95/
Up 2.7k in WC, but I only made it to 47% on editing. Blergh. 96/
HAH! It was only two. 97/ https://twitter.com/zanlowell/status/1246681870731030535
Past the halfway point! \\o/ Also known as "shit-hitting-the-fan o'clock" in the plot. 98/
Me: Crap. I still haven't explicitly stated ze's ace. Where do I fit this in?
Brain: Maybe the bit where ze misunderstands "soul*mate*" and gets a little tangenty about how the bond isn't inherently sexual (or romantic)? Idk, just a thought.

99/
Apparently I accidentally tweeted 100 as an entirely new tweet instead of adding on to this thread. https://twitter.com/zanlowell/status/1247044668338122752
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