"Would You Still Love Me If I-" I Would Still Love You If We Reincarnated A Million Times And You Killed

Writing Notes: The Research Process

Research is an essential process to keep yourself informed on any topic with reliable sources of information.

Research - the process by which you gather reliable information on a specific topic, typically to answer a particular question, form an opinion, or make a decision.

Academics often separate research into 2 distinct types:

primary research (in which the researcher acquires firsthand experience with the topic) and

secondary research (in which the researcher looks at research others have done on the topic).

There are many different research methods, including:

internet research (using search engines, webpages, and other online resources),

scientific research (using the scientific method to test hypotheses),

local and university library research (using books, encyclopedias, newspaper articles, peer-reviewed journal articles, catalogs, and academic databases and directories), and

interviews (using questionnaires and discussions with subjects).

How to Research

The research process can apply to everything from a scientific research paper to a personal question; each type of research has different expectations and processes. In general, here’s a step-by-step tutorial:

Start with a question. The first step of the research process is to have a question. In the case of academic research, your research question might be on a broad conversation in your field. For example, in humanities, a research question might be: “How did feminism affect American literature in the 1970s?” In the case of personal research, your question might be smaller and more specific: “How do I wake up feeling more rested?” If your research is for a high school or college paper, you might need to brainstorm to come up with a question or move on to the research phase to see what kinds of questions and broad topics interest you.

Search broadly. Your preliminary research on a topic is likely to be general—this search strategy enables you to gather as much general information surrounding the topic as possible. This helps you develop a clearer sense of the scope of your question. In the case of academic research, you might read widely (in topics like feminism, the 1970s, and American literature). In the case of personal research, you might conduct general internet searches for secondary sources that discuss related topics (like alarm clocks, pillows, and meditation techniques).

Narrow your focus. As you conduct research, pay attention to the moments that pique your interest—use them to determine where to conduct more in-depth research. Perhaps a specific novelist seems especially interesting, or you find yourself more drawn to alarm clocks than memory-foam pillows. It is at this stage you should also take time to evaluate the information sources you’ve found to make sure they’re reliable and unbiased.

Conduct specific research. Once your question begins to narrow, you might need to do additional research to hone in on your particular topic. Look around to see if other researchers have had similar questions and published or posted their findings. Alternatively, you might do some primary research and begin testing particular hypotheses. For an academic research paper, it is at this stage you likely have enough information to begin crafting your thesis statement or central claim.

Complete the project. The final stage of the research process is to complete your research project—this might mean writing a final paper, forming a particular opinion, or purchasing a specific solution for your problem. For research that involves writing and publishing a paper, the researcher must also abide by rules of plagiarism, citation information and formats—such as the Modern Language Association (MLA), American Psychological Association (APA), Chicago, and so forth. Even though this is the final step of the research process, it doesn’t mean the project is closed forever—you might find later you need or want to do follow-up research as the topic or your interests change.

Research is a vital process that increases your knowledge and understanding around a topic, rather than forcing you to rely on simply your own background information. Good research allows you to become more informed before you answer a question, to consider all angles before you form an opinion, and to use the experience of others before you make a decision.

Source ⚜ More: Notes & References ⚜ Writing Resources PDFs

Do you have any good words for pain? (Hurt for example) Like being in pain or exclamations of pain (ouch for example)

Pain—unpleasant bodily sensation; mental/emotional distress or suffering

Ache - a usually dull persistent pain

Affliction - a cause of persistent pain or distress

Agony - intense pain of mind or body; anguish, torture

Anguish - extreme pain, distress, or anxiety

Bruise - an injury involving rupture of small blood vessels and discoloration without a break in the overlying skin; an injury especially to the feelings

Burn - to produce or undergo an uncomfortable or painful sensation like that of being injured by fire

Chafe - to make sore by or as if by rubbing

Clonus - a rapid succession of alternating contractions and partial relaxations of a muscle occurring in some nervous diseases

Colic - an attack of acute abdominal pain localized in a hollow organ and often caused by spasm, obstruction, or twisting

Cramp - a painful involuntary spasmodic contraction of a muscle

Deleterious - harmful often in a subtle or unexpected way

Discomfort - mental or physical uneasiness; annoyance

Distress - pain or suffering affecting the body, a bodily part, or the mind; trouble

Fester - to generate pus; putrefy, rot;; to cause increasing poisoning, irritation, or bitterness

Gripe - a pinching spasmodic intestinal pain—usually used in plural

Inflamed - to cause inflammation (i.e., injury that is marked by capillary dilatation, leukocytic infiltration, redness, heat, and pain) in (bodily tissue)

Lancinate - pierce, stab, lacerate

Malaise - a vague sense of mental or moral ill-being

Misery - a circumstance, thing, or place that causes suffering or discomfort

Noxious - physically harmful or destructive to living beings

Pernicious - highly injurious or destructive; deadly; (archaic): wicked

Prickle - a prickling or tingling sensation

Sore - a source of pain, distress or vexation; affliction

Spasm - an involuntary and abnormal muscular contraction; a sudden violent and temporary effort, emotion, or sensation

Sting - a wound or pain caused by or as if by stinging (sharp or piercing)

Suffer - to endure death, pain, or distress

Throb - to pulsate or pound with abnormal force or rapidity

Travail - a physical or mental exertion or piece of work; task, effort; agony, torment

Twinge - a sudden sharp stab of pain

Woe - a condition of deep suffering from misfortune, affliction, or grief

Exclamations of Pain

ouch, boo, ow, aw, woe, shucks, ay, rats, yuk, sheesh, alack, tush, pooh, yuck, wirra (Irish), phooey, alas, tsk, pshaw, bah, humph, tut, pish, ho hum, faugh, fie

Hope this helps with your writing. Do tag me, or send me a link. I'd love to read your work!

“Pack your precious belongings,” the villain whispered into the hero’s ear. “This place is going to burn tonight.” 

Theme Park 🎪 and A Broken Heart💔

An imagine when Taeyong dared Doyoung to approach a girl and give her some free fast pass and food vouchers from the theme park but the someone came and Doyoung thought he was her boyfriend and got heartbroken.

*

"Go on, Dodo. You can do it", Taeyong whispered from behind him.

"Taeyong, I swear to God, I'll kill next time you force me to do something like this", he warned.

"Well, I'm not the one who lose the bet", Taeyong smirked. "Meet you at your home. Bye", he said as his friend got off from his car and walked towards the girl.

*

"Hey, guys-", her mouth hung widely as she looked at the vacant space infront of her.

"Yah... Did they really leave me? I just went to park the car for awhile", she said referring to her friends.

Scratching her head she dialed her friend's number but nobody out of her 5 friends answered.

"Aish! Jjinja?!"

"Where are they?!"

She yelled in frustration at the empty car park.

"Need some help?", a husky voice asked her.

She faced the owner of the voice.

A guy.

A tall, young and rugged man. His shirt hung from his broad shoulders perfectly. A warm smile plastered on his face.

"Urm..."

"I think you do. Come let me show you around."

He gestured her to follow him.

*

He showed her around the theme park but she didn't go on the rides. She wanted to look for her friends. Everywhere they went, she kept an eye for any of her friends.

She frowned all the way of the tour.

'Where are they?'

'What will they think if they see me with this stranger?'

It's not that she's not grateful, she was indeed very grateful of this miracle. It's not everyday someone will lend you a helping hand. Moreover, a stranger.

But she's afraid of what her friends would think. No, more like she didn't want to get teased.

"I haven't introduce myself. I'm Doyoung. And you?", his question brought her back to reality.

"Huh?"

"Your name?", he asked again.

"Oh... I'm Jina", she answered.

Then, her eyes caught a glipse of her friend. Minji.

"Well, you look distracted. Are you okay?", his eyebrows formed a concerned frown.

"Actually, I'm looking for my friends. It's not like I'm not grateful for your help but I need to go", she said and quickly ran to Minji.

"Thank you!", she managed to shout as she ran while waving her hand.

*

"Hey, I think we left someone behind", Hayeon said.

"Right...", Chaemi nodded.

"Wait. Where's Jina?", Sori asked.

"Right... We left Jina at the car park", Aeri said.

"Hey, guys. I got a missed call from Jina", Minji said.

"Ppali, guys. Look out for Jina while we walk around", Hayeon said.

*

"Guys, isn't that Jina?", Sori pointed at the merry-go-round.

"Yes. It's her", Aeri said.

"Who's that next to her?", Chaemi asked, pointing to Doyoung.

*

"There you are", Jina said as she catched her breathe.

"I've been searching everywhere for you guys", she panted.

"Searching for us or going on a blind date?", Hayeon teased.

"Eh? No!!! Aish! You guys left me and accused me going on a date?! Ai! You are so mean!", she yelled.

"I'm just kidding, Jina-ya", Hayeon grinned, patting Jina's shoulder.

Jina pouted.

"Come on. Have you guys go on the rides? Cause I haven't", Jina linked her hands with Hayeon and walked towards the rides.

The others followed suit, grinning as they did. Feeling grateful because they had found their dear friend.

*

"That ride was NASTY!", Chaemi yelled the last word, referring to the rollercoster.

"I want to puke already", Aeri put a hand across her mouth.

"You weak ass bitches, look at me. Strong and steady", Sori smirked.

"Wait till we get to the haunted house", Hayeon deadpanned.

Sori rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue at Hayeon.

"I'm not scared."

Then, they heard someone coughed from behind them.

They turned around and saw Doyoung.

"Hi", he waved.

"I'm Doyoung", he introduced himself.

"Ohh~ You're that guy with Jina,right?", Chaemi asked.

"Yeah... She looks like she was lost so I showed her around", he explained. "No harm intended", he raised his both of his hands in a surrender motion.

"Thank you for taking care of our friend", Hayeon thanked him. Her eyes scanned him from top to toe.

She was wary of this stranger. Her instinct told her not to trust him.

As for Doyoung, he had been searching high and low for Jina since the latter left him a few hours ago. He still hadn't settle the bet - but actually it was more than that.

That Jina girl, caught his attention.

Although her indifference towards him, kind off irked him but he knew, she's just worried about being alone in a foreign place.

The way her eyes wandered around the compound made him wondered what she was searching for. Her small frown looked disturbing but cute at the same time.

God, Taeyong must say that he's crazy if he told him that but imagining if he could wipe away the frown and replace it with a smile made his heart skipped a beat.

What does that girl had that made him so crazy right now? He didn't believe in love at first sight but that Jina girl changed it all.

Suddenly, someone greeted them.

"Jina. Is that you?"

"Oh... Hi, girls", the same person said again.

"Jae... Jaehyun. Hi", Jina awkwardly waved at him.

"Didn't saw this coming. I must be lucky to bump into you today", he said with a grin.

"Don't be silly", Jina replied. Her face was red as a tomato and her eyes wandered everywhere except Jaehyun's face.

"Ai~ Did you plan this or something. I smell something fishy here", Minji teased them.

"Eh? Jina didn't tell you guys? We're going on a date. Sorry, I'm late, Ji", he winked at her.

She looked else where, her face turned redder. Her friends laughed at her and continued to tease them.

Doyoung's expression turned gloomy.

'So she already have a boyfriend.'

"Erm... actually, I just want to give you guys this", he handed Hayeon some tickets.

Hayeon cautiously took them.

"Goodbye", he said and walked away.

Everyone didn't notice Doyoung left except for Hayeon. They seemed to be absorbed in teasing Jina and Jaehyun. Jina's face was as red as a beetroot while Jaehyun grinned like a mad man.

"So why are you actually here, Jung Jaehyun?", Aeri asked. "Waiting for your girlfriend?"

"Yeah. I came here a bit earlier than her. Last time I made a big mistake of arriving late", he answered.

"What if she saw you flirting with Jina?", Sori asked.

Jaehyun chuckled.

"She knows about us."

"Come on, Jina is fine with it, right?"

"Yeah. Thanks for giving me fake hope", Jina made a face.

"Jina, don't be salty. Aren't you happy seeing me again?", he teased her.

"No but I think you'll be happy seeing her", she pointed at his girlfriend.

"Oppa!", Jaehyun's girlfriend ran to him, giving him a big hug.

"Jinri", he hugged her back.

"Eww... cringe", Hayeon faked a gag.

The couple laughed.

"Annyeonghaseyo, eonnie", Jinri greeted the girls.

They waved at her.

"Now, shoo. We single girls want our bonding time together. Couples are not allowed", Minji said, gesturing the couple away in a playful manner.

Again, they laughed.

"Have a good day", Jinri wished them as Jaehyun lead her away. The older girls nodded and waved them goodbye.

"Now... Lets eat", Chaemi said. Marching to the nearest restaurant.

"But first, where's Doyoung?", Jina asked.

"Aww... Already missing you prince charming?", Sori asked.

Jina rolled her eyes. "He was here a second ago", she said, ignoring Sori's tease.

"He left already but he gave us this", Hayeon showed them the tickets.

"Wah! Free fast pass and food vouchers!", Aeri grabbed the tickets.

"What a day! Lets enjoy!", Chaemi pumped her fist to the air.

"Why do I have you as friends?", Minji massaged her temple, distancing herself from her two child-like friends.

"Stop acting weird guys. Lets go", Jina said.

A part of her still worried about Doyoung but then he's just a Good Samaritan so she shrugged off the thought and enjoyed the day with her friends.

*

"How's today?", Taeyong asked him as he entered his room.

"The cute girl already have a boyfriend", Doyoung sighed.

"The girl I dared you to approach?", Taeyong asked.

Doyoung nodded.

"It's a shame. She's cute", Taeyong said. "She might make a good girlfriend."

Doyoung shooked his head and grabbed a console.

"Lets play some games, Taeyong", Doyoung said, switching on the TV.

"Whatever make my friend happy at this moment", Taeyong said, jumping off his bed and sat next to Doyoung on the couch.

*

Hi there!

This is my first time posting on tumblr. Actually, I posted this oneshot on nct amino and wattpad. I hope you like it! ❤😘

Apparently a lot of people get dialogue punctuation wrong despite having an otherwise solid grasp of grammar, possibly because they’re used to writing essays rather than prose. I don’t wanna be the asshole who complains about writing errors and then doesn’t offer to help, so here are the basics summarized as simply as I could manage on my phone (“dialogue tag” just refers to phrases like “he said,” “she whispered,” “they asked”):

“For most dialogue, use a comma after the sentence and don’t capitalize the next word after the quotation mark,” she said.

“But what if you’re using a question mark rather than a period?” they asked.

“When using a dialogue tag, you never capitalize the word after the quotation mark unless it’s a proper noun!” she snapped.

“When breaking up a single sentence with a dialogue tag,” she said, “use commas.”

“This is a single sentence,” she said. “Now, this is a second stand-alone sentence, so there’s no comma after ‘she said.’”

“There’s no dialogue tag after this sentence, so end it with a period rather than a comma.” She frowned, suddenly concerned that the entire post was as unasked for as it was sanctimonious.

Trope Talk #1: Enemies to Lovers: A Deeper Dive

Reports of my death have been exaggerated, but not greatly. While I was in bed for a week lately, roleplaying a Victorian invalid, I watched a YouTube doing a deep dive on the enemies to lovers trope. While it was really fun seeing her break down subtropes (hate to love, rivals to lovers, reluctant allies, villain romance, and more - all of which I adore), I found myself somewhat disappointed by her attempt to discuss the deeper issues surrounding the trope. Like, yes: a lot of people enjoy things in fiction that they would not enjoy IRL and mature readers CAN distinguish between fantasy and reality...but also the media we consume DOES shape us, not all readers ARE as mature as we'd like to think, and while this trope can be executed in a way that's not problematic, it can also be executed in a way that is. Even if we wouldn't all personally draw the line between toxic and healthy in precisely the same place, I think that line does objectively exist. So, here are some of the ways I've subjectively drawn that line in my personal writing and reading when it comes to this trope...

SOME WAYS OF DOING ETL RIGHT

1. Not everyone is going to agree as to what's healthy and what's not, and it's important to listen to others.

Some are going to be mad at me for loving this trope at all, and some are going to be mad at me for thinking that one still needs to exercise judgement and that not everything goes, but hear me out. As a writer, the harder you go with this trope, the more divided your audience will be. Given that we all tend to draw the lines in different places, I think that listening to each other and discussing the reasons behind our own preferences and choices is going to help all of us understand the stakes, avoid hurting or triggering readers who have trauma from toxic relationships, and extend grace to storytellers who don't make the same decisions we would. And we shouldn't be defensive that this is necessary. ETL is actually a fairly new and under-explored trope, which I think is part of why it can be so divisive, especially in a post-#MeToo landscape where a lot of us are starting to rethink the controlling men and helpless women in pairings we've been conditioned to see as romantic. Meanwhile, as an author with a deep love for this trope, I hope that posts like this will help more cautious readers to understand that writing about dark and spiky relationships doesn't necessarily mean romanticising abusive behaviour. Either way, I've benefited from listening in humility and I truly think my stories are better for it.

2. Remember that evil is not misunderstood.

If you'll be writing ETL, then you need to decide early on if the love interest is evil or just misunderstood, and be careful to write him accordingly and be honest about it. If the love interest literally goes around killing innocent people, deal with that. That's evil, that's not (just) a traumatic childhood. On the other hand, if the love interest is antagonistic because of a misunderstanding, but is a fundamentally decent person deep down, he probably wouldn't casually slap the heroine around or otherwise act like a jerk. One mistake I used to see a lot of writers making (less often these days) is trying to convince me that some loathsome jerk is just misunderstood. No, if he's been doing bad things, don't try to explain his guilt away. Confront it head on.

THE LAST JEDI was my gateway drug to ETL precisely because I'd never seen this trope done so beautifully and so uncompromisingly: when Rey is forced to face the fact that the boy she likes is unrepentantly evil, she refuses to join him, explodes him and gets out of there. Ben isn't ready to seek repentance yet; he's a proud, if wavering, villain. Because the movie was absolutely honest about the evil within Ben, I was able to genuinely hope Rey might confront that evil and exorcise it, instead of being gaslit into thinking it was all right.

By contrast, in the very Bluebeard-vibes kdrama MASK, the love interest believes he's responsible for the death of his late fiancee and is being manipulated by the villain into thinking he's criminally insane. As a result, he believes that he's going to kill the heroine, his new wife. Physical touch and dirt are both triggers for him, too, and what the audience sees as a trauma response comes across to the heroine as strong hostility. He tells the heroine he is going to kill her, and she believes him, but the truth is that he dreads it as much as she does. This is a really beautifully done form of misunderstanding. Just remember that to be believable, misunderstandings need to be resolved fairly quickly.

3. Enemies doesn't need to mean hatred or toxicity.

While hate to love is a valid subtrope - especially in contexts where the characters aren't literally trying to kill each other, like in a contemporary romcom - ETL does NOT need to involve toxicity. There's a difference between ordering the assassination of an enemy, versus strangling your wife to terrorise her into obedience; both are bad, but only the latter is classic domestic violence, which casts doubt on any "HEA". Enemies need not hate or even abuse each other to be at odds; they may feel deep personal respect for a worthy opponent, who just happens to be ideologically committed to an opposing cause and therefore duty bound to antagonise the other. Personally, these characters may like, respect, or even passionately love each other - but thanks to duty, they're obliged to thwart each other.

A favourite example of this is Nikita and Michael from the spy show NIKITA. The pair started out as master and pupil before becoming coworkers for a rogue government agency, Division. Now Nikita has gone rogue herself and is working to bring down Division. She knows that Michael is still hanging in there for several reasons - he still believes Division serves his country, he's been skilfully manipulated by the head of the agency, and above all he feels the need to protect Division's young agents who are increasingly exploited by them. Nikita still has respect for Michael because of all these things and because he's the man who trained her to be as awesome as she is - and because she's his best student, Michael returns the sentiment and still goes out of his way to protect her, even as he's trying to hunt her down. Midway through the season, Nikita tries to protect Michael by preventing him from taking out the man who once killed his family - at which point Michael's view of Nikita sours. But she never stops respecting him and he's still willing to work with her when necessary to protect his agents. Throw in some mad chemistry and you've got the ingredients for a perfect ETL situation - although it has some hostility from Michael's side, it's never without that solid core of care and respect for each other. This is what makes the romance work, of course; all romances need a good reason for the character to care about each other. 

4. Remember that ETL is a fundamentally transformative relationship.

This builds on my first point. In ETL, unless there's a valid misunderstanding at play, there are probably moral/ethical differences between the characters. Thus, a huge part of your romance needs to be about resolving those differences, usually for the better. In other words (unless you're really into a corruption arc for the protagonist), the villainous/antagonistic character needs to genuinely repent and change, and we need that change to be demonstrated convincingly in story. At this stage, then, a good ETL story becomes about character growth, which means that it cannot be rushed. If the love interest has genuinely been evil, then he needs to change and prove it.

LOVE BETWEEN FAIRY AND DEVIL is a great example of a transformative ETL story. At the beginning of the drama, Dongfang Qingcang is a terrifying evil overlord who has frozen his emotions, killed his own father to rise to power, mastered hellfire magic and terrorised the three realms. As the story unfolds we do learn that there are some misunderstandings: Dongfang's father is the one who destroyed his emotions and forced him as a child to kill him, as well as instilling in him the fear that his people will be destroyed unless he conquers their enemies. But, this doesn't make Dongfang's villainy okay. Even after his emotions have been reawoken by our adorable heroine he still needs to realise that invading her homeland is not the right way to say thank you. By the end of the story we see that Dongfang is indeed a changed overlord. It takes a while, but it is believable.

5. Related, the characters should be a match for each other, especially when it comes to power and to morals.

I think a lot of the objections to ETL and villain romance pairings come from a perceived mismatch between the two characters: a weak person with a stronger person, or a pure and good person with a despicable manipulative blackguard. I think that it's always a good idea to balance this out. If your story begins with the love interest kidnapping your heroine to be his queen, why not let your heroine run a coup and replace him on the throne - right when he least expects it? The fact that your heroine is willing to get her hands dirty when it comes to this antagonist is not just delicious drama - it's also evidence that the two of them have more in common than they might think, and that in a longterm relationship she won't have any problems standing up to him. Alternately, if your heroine is going to remain pure and good throughout, she should probably be a match for the villain in terms of power, however that is measured in your story (and it can be a totally different sort of power than the villain wields). One of the most delicious things when watching any villain fall in love is finding the one woman whom he's absolutely helpless before.

I think Holly Black did this really well in the FOLK OF THE AIR trilogy. At first, Jude is a powerless mortal in the deadly fae court, and Cardan is the fae prince who delights in tormenting her. Jude proves herself far more cunning and ruthless than Cardan as she maneuvers the two of them into power as reluctant allies. It's clear that what Jude lacks in magic she makes up for in sharp intelligence and will to survive, and her ability to find a happy ending hinges on her ability to let down her guard and be vulnerable to Cardan. On the other end of the scale, Beauty and the Beast in most of its incarnations is about two kind people who want different things for sympathetic reasons, so that even though Beauty is held captive by the Beast we can understand the Beast's desperation to break his curse (and the Disney animated classic makes his motivations even more sympathetic by imposing a rapidly narrowing window of opportunity in which to do so). The Beast is truly gentle, and Belle is just spirited enough to snap back at him when he snaps at her. Both these stories work because the lovers are fundamentally a match.

6. Be creative.

There are all sorts of ways to create that delicious see-saw between "I adore you" and "I am going to kill you". The kdrama THE MASK, as mentioned above, uses the hero's mental health in an incredibly respectful way to create a sense of antagonism. The kdrama FLOWER OF EVIL does something similar. In Megan Spooner's absolutely incendiary SHERWOOD, there's a scene where the love interest goes from nearly killing the protagonist to tenderly embracing and caring for her within the very same chapter. Normally this would be the red flag to end all red flags, but it doesn't work that way here. How did Spooner manage it? Simple. The love interest doesn't know that the outlaw Robin Hood, whom he's trying to capture, is actually the same person as Maid Marian, the fair lady he's in love with - and when a quick costume change takes our heroine from one persona to another, the love interest's behaviour changes too. The emotional rollercoaster is real - but only for her.

7. There doesn't need to be a HEA.

I know, a lot of you are going to be up in arms about this, but it's true. Sometimes, especially in a straight up villain romance, the villain shouldn't get the girl. Maybe that's because she wants someone else, maybe it's because he's too manipulative and evil to be convincing as a long term relationship. But, let me frame it like this: why limit yourself just to writing the viable romances? There's a lot of good fun that can be got out of unviable romances too. You may not feel comfortable settling down with the villain, but that doesn't mean he can't be kissed :3

For example, in THE RINGS OF POWER the showrunners did something I never expected and gave Sauron himself a little crush on his greatest nemesis, Galadriel. The final episode, as he revealed his true identity and did his level best to manipulate her into joining him to rule Middle Earth, put joy into the souls of fangirls everywhere. It also caused a whole lot of people to clutch their pearls for some reason which remains opaque to me. After all, Tolkien was the man who wrote Eol, Maeglin, Wormtongue, and that moment when Morgoth himself was perving on Luthien Tinuviel. That aside, this is never going to be a viable match. Galadriel is married and hates Sauron's guts and Sauron is still a manipulative snake whose plans for healing Middle Earth involve him ruling as its lord and master, hopefully with Galadriel at his side. Galadriel doesn't fall for it for a second, which is one of the very things that makes this kind of story so incredibly satisfying to me. The fact that she won't succumb to his manipulation and temptation is incredibly empowering. As in THE LAST JEDI, the ball is in Sauron's court as to whether he changes to deserve her. And of course he won't - not just because he goes on to become the Lord of the Rings of Barad-dûr but more importantly because he never loved Galadriel for who she is but because of the way she made him feel, powerful and purposeful.

Not all villain romances need to end this way, of course, because some villains are capable of change. I think this is what makes Reylo viable where Haladriel is not. While Sauron and Galadriel each appeal to the EVIL in each other, Rey appeals to the good in Ben; he meanwhile desires the Light in her. This is why her refusal does ultimately prompt him to change, although of course the story's resolution was massively bungled in THE RISE OF SKYWALKER.

8. Love should be what the villain needs - but not what he wants.

It's hard to make absolute rules when it comes to any artistic choice, but this is probably the closest I come when dealing with this trope: because there should be consequences for the love interest's misdeeds, especially when it comes to the heroine. I call this the POTO rule: if the love interest wants the heroine romantically or sexually abuses her, he should not be rewarded by getting her. Enemies to lovers may fight over anything by any means, but not over romantic or sexual possession of each other. If the villain becomes a villain in order to possess the heroine, then a HEA for them involves giving him exactly what he wanted and thereby justifying his bad behaviour. Mind you, this doesn't mean the love interest can never want the heroine on some level; if he did not then this would not be a romance. We're talking about his most fundamental motivation and his most important story goal. She should not be either of them; she should be a distraction, an impediment to them.

This is simply good writing sense. Enemies to lovers normally implies a positive change arc for the love interest. Every good positive change arc involves a character who Wants one thing, say, to rule the world; but Needs something totally different - the capacity to make peace through compassion, say.  Such characters may or may not get what they Want, depending on how good it is for them and the people around them, but they'll always get what they Need. This is why I think ETL works best when the heroine herself is the thing the antagonist doesn't know he Needs. As an enemy, and even more so if he's a villain, he's likely to be unscrupulous in getting what he Wants, and he shouldn't get her for the same reasons that characters often don't get what they Want. Think about it: the villain probably needs some hard consequences for what he's done. He can get them, *and also get the girl*, but only as long as the girl isn't the motivation for his crimes.

{How does this fit with the "stolen bride" genre of story, usually a fairytale? Do I disapprove of those on principle? Mm, no. If the bride was stolen primarily because the kidnapper claimed to have a romantic or sexual attraction to her, I might object. But there's usually some other motivation. He wants to break a curse; he wants to annex her kingdom; he wants to keep her out of his enemies' hands; he might have been ordered to marry her by someone he dares not cross, or bound by an ancient custom; in any case he ought not to be personally motivated to control or possess her. This is one of those grey areas where lines blur and it's wise to listen and be careful because so many real women have been trapped in marriages to real live villains; but the thing is very doable under the right circumstances.} 

I call this the POTO rule because it was inspired by THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. In this story, Erik is obsessed with Christine to the point where romantic and sexual possession of her drives everything he does. He kills, manipulates, and gaslights everyone at the Paris Opera in an attempt to win Christine's heart, and ultimately he's willing to threaten to kill the man Christine truly loves in order to get the thing he Wants: Christine's hand in marriage. Now, I know a lot of you ship this pairing and I'm not going to scold you for it; maybe you ship them the way I ship Haladriel, loving the relationship without thinking it should end in a HEA, or perhaps you think Christine can fix Erik through some genuinely transformative plotline, or maybe you just want Erik to get what he wants even though it's messed up, and whatever it is I hope you have fun with it. But personally, from the perspective of a published author with a sense of responsibility to my readers, I really think the story ended in the best possible way. Erik doesn't get what he Wants (Christine) but he does get what he Needs (a transformative moment of transcendent compassion that enables him to act in a truly loving manner, by letting Christine go).

So, most of the time, I think it's wisest if the heroine is what the love interest doesn't know he Needs. Again, LOVE BETWEEN FAIRY AND DEVIL does this SO well. Dongfang Qingcang doesn't have time for love - emotionless and too busy Evil Overlording, he's never been in love before. So, when he's saddled with an adorable, dimwitted flower fairy, he can't wait to break the spell that links them together so that he can kill her and get on with his villainous plans. When her emotions begin to infect him, he can't help falling in love with her, even though he fights it every single step of the way. She's absolutely not what he Wants, but she is everything he Needs to thaw his frozen heart and teach him to act with compassion and empathy. Even though he spends much of the series planning to kill her, the HEA doesn't strike me as being Problematique the way that an Erik/Christine HEA would be - because a HEA with Orchid represents the moral growth that Dongfang needs, rather than the selfish desire he wants.

9. Maybe the villain's HEA is with someone else.

This doesn't mean a villain is irredeemable or shouldn't get a HEA. It just might mean that his HEA is with someone else. (Unless he's actually a rapist. Then just light the man on fire.) Erik shouldn't get Christine because he's done so much evil in order to possess her. But, once she's broken through to him to show him compassion, he might be ready to learn to love and to make amends for his past crimes...perhaps with someone else.

This was a huge part of the inspiration for the character of Vasily in my Bête Epoque stories. He does something which traumatises the heroine so much, there's no realistic HEA for them. Like Christine, she forgives him anyway, even in the midst of betrayal. And like Erik, he finds he's unable to go through with his villainous plans. She gets her HEA with somebody else, but I found myself with this incredibly compelling character whom a lot of people were pulling for. Vasily has already learned a huge lesson through having loved and lost my first heroine - so when he meets my second heroine, even though in a lot of ways he's still a treacherous monster, he's able to start afresh, and do better, with someone far more resilient who holds far greater power over him.

10. Individual characters will need individual things.

Finally, I think it's necessary to use judgement based on the individual characters and what they need. This is another reason why it's so difficult to make hard and fast rules here. For instance, I said that if the enemy sexually assaults the heroine he should forgo any hope of a HEA with her. But I think we've all seen romances that involve, say, some dubiously consensual kissing, which we can understand the kissee forgiving. By the same token, the act which disqualifies my character Vasily from his first HEA is not sexual assault but something which is coded that way within the story world, and experienced that way by the heroine (vampire bite). The fact that it's not literally sexual assault is what makes it possible for Vasily to get a romantic second chance, but the fact that it is figurative sexual assault is one of the main things that decided me against a HEA the first time. So, I think that whether you're a writer or reader, it's important to exercise judgement based not just on the things that are obvious, but also on less obvious things like the characters' specific needs, the thematic symbolism of the story world, and more.

--

So those are my best ETL writing guidelines - and again, this is only what works for me! I think it's really hard to make hard and fast rules for any artistic work, but from thinking about what works for me and what doesn't, these are some of the lines I've drawn for myself. If you're reading this, I hope it provokes some helpful thoughts :-)

FIRE

"Someone! Please help!"

"Fire! Fire!"

"Call the firemen!"

"Aahhh!"

Fire.

Everywhere.

Screams and shrieks could be heard from miles away. They tried to extinguish the fire but there was no avail. In a few hours, everything gradually quiet down.

Not because they were saved but because they died.

Not even a single soul breathed after.

Left the world with unfinished business.

*

"Johnny!", Mark yelled from the opposite end of the hallway and ran towards his friend.

"Why didn't you wait for me?", he frowned.

Johnny gave him an annoyed look,

"I didn't wait for you? Man! I waited for you for freaking 30 minutes!", Johnny yelled. "And Rose even passed by. She offered to walk with me to the bus stop but I declined because I want to wait for you!"

"Oh... Sorry", Mark clasped his hands together while grinning.

"Erghh! I should have followed Rose!", Johnny exclaimed as he walked out of the door.

*

"Hey... Why haven't we reach the bus stop yet?", Mark asked Johnny. He shrugged.

"It's like we are walking in circles", Johnny replied with a frown.

"It's foggy too but it feels hot. Don't you think, Johnny?", Mark gave Johnny a worried look.

"And I should have followed Rose", Johnny glared at Mark and walked faster.

"Hey! Wait up!", Mark chased after Johnny.

*

"It's so hot.. I'm burning right now", Mark complained as he wiped his sweat. "Look my hair is ruined", he whined, pointing his wet hair to Johnny.

"Huh? You think I'm not hot? I waited for you for 30 minutes. Freaking half an hour! And here I am hearing you complaining about your damn hair!", Johnny yelled at Mark's face.

He was about to continue when Mark cut him off.

"I should have followed Rose", he said mockingly. "Go on! Leave me alone!", Mark yelled, turning to the opposite direction. "I'll find my way to that damn bus stop alone."

*

"How could he say that to me. I stayed up late last night to prepare his birthday card", Mark mumbled to himself.

"And why am I walking in circles? The fog is getting thicker it's getting hotter and I can't see a damn thing!", Mark stomped his feet and throw his bag to the ground. He sat down but immediately got up because the ground was hot.

"What the hell?!", he yelled.

Suddenly he heard distinct yelling.

"Help!"

"Help!""Fire!""Somebody help!"

Mark was horrified.

"What? Where's the fire?", he looked around.

Then, he saw a glint of light.

Suddenly, fire came towards him.

Mark ran as fast as he could but he realized that the fire had surrounded him. He coughed as he had swallowed so much smoke.

"If there's fire. Where's Johnny? Where's my other friends? Where's my family?",

Out of nowhere, Johnny came out of the blazing fire, unharmed.

"Jo-Johnny? How come you're fine? There's fire. You came out of the fire", Mark pointed at Johnny, confused. He looked around and rubbed his eyes.

There's still fire. He even pinched himself.

"This is not a dream. How come you're fine?", Mark frowned. Soot covered his face and he coughed.

"I'm not fine, Mark", Johnny said sadly. Suddenly, he melted.

His clothes burned. His eyes flowed out of its socket. He turned into a skeleton.

"I'm dead, Mark. So are you", the skeleton said and melted.

"What?! No...no...no.. This is not happening. I can't be dead!", Marked screamed, holding his head. He crouched down. It's hot but he didn't care. Then, he remembered.

*

"Huh? It's 2 in the morning already?", Mark said as he glanced at his watch. "Hmmm... never mind. I'm done with Johnny's birthday card. I hope he likes it", he smiled to himself.

"Hey... Why do I smell smoke?", he sniffed around. To his horrors, he saw a wood caught on fire fell down from above.

"Fi... Fire!", he screamed and ran outside his room.

"Mom! Dad! You there?!", he screamed for his parents but there was no response. He panicked and ran outside. Luckily, the front door of his house hasn't caught fire yet. He ran to the corridor and saw a swaying Johnny.

"Johnny! Johnny!", Mark ran to him and held him by the shoulder. "We're going to be fine", Mark assured Johnny although the both of them were already coughing badly.

"Mark, we're going to die", Johnny said weakly.

"No! We're going to survive!", Mark pulled Johnny up on his feet.

However, fate was cruel. A big ply of wood fell on top of them. The wood was to heavy on their weak bodies, they couldn't move. Johnny had embraced his sad fate but Mark kept chanting that they will survive.

"We'll survive. I'm sure the firemen will be here soon. They'll save us", Mark said.

"Just accept it, Mark", Johnny replied weakly.

"No, we're still young! We can't die! Don't worry, after this ends. You'll court Rose and I'll help Ten to get Lisa. We just need to wait for them to save us",  he convinced Johnny.

But Johnny just sighed and closed his eyes.

"Hey, Johnny! Wake up! Wake up!", Mark slapped his friend so he could stay conscious but there was no avail, Johnny was dead.

As for Mark, he struggled to stay awake and kept on chanting he'll survive until his last breath.

*

"Oh my God! I'm dead", Mark whispered to himself and looked blankly at his surrounding. Fire.

Just fire.

*

"Sh**! The car broke down!", Doyoung exclaimed.

"I think we should go out and find some help", Jaehyun suggested.

"But this is no where!", Doyoung protested.

"It's worth a try", Jaehyun smiled.

Doyoung sighed but followed him anyway. After a few minutes of walking, they saw an old building. Before the both of them could say anything, someone greeted them.

"Hey, need some help?"

They turned around.

"I'm Mark", the guy introduced himself.

"And this is Johnny", he pointed at the tall guy beside him.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi again! *waves hand*

I posted again today... but this time it’s a horror oneshot. How is it? I hope you will like it! And I edited the picture on top too, I hope it’s okay hehehe... bye🖐

"How can you like these very toxic and horrible characters that have done despicable and unforgivable things?" oh it's quite simple actually, this is fiction and I think with my dick.

despite what popular opinion may lead you to believe, some rocks actually do have scientifically-proven auras! Unfortunately, those rocks are uranium and the aura is cancer. 

hendery’s gift to winwin ☺️🎁