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tw: physical abuse

hello! i’m outlining & planning for my first novel and am in a bit of a dilemma. so one of my characters has gone through childhood physical abuse, and i want to make sure that whatever i write about this topic (the effects, the events, etc.) is accurate and reflective of those who have, unfortunately, gone through it. researching this topic has helped, but are there any other resources?

I'm writing my book and was going to put "Just like The Promised Neverland taught her" but am I allowed to put that without getting in trouble?

I've been using Google Docs exclusively for a while now, and it has dawned on me that I'm putting all my eggs in one basket. There are a LOT of files in there, as I often divide different aspects of a writing project into several different files, and I go between them a fair bit.

What is an efficient way to just dump my entire Google Docs library into a safe place, in case something happens to my account?

One of my characters (19m) engages into a fight with rapier and dagger against a girl (18f). She finally manages to stab the guy into his belly with her dagger. How would his reaction look like? I'd like to emphasize the brutality of that stab, because belly stabs can lead to escruciating pain and slow death. And she just plunges her dagger up to the hilt right into his juicy, squishy and vulnerable belly...

Writers,

I'm currently working on a project that involves a complex timeline and multiple layers of backstory, including several significant flashbacks. The challenge of maintaining clarity while ensuring that the narrative flows smoothly has been quite a task.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has tackled similar challenges.

I am making a horror game, it will also be a book.. This story is mostly just disturbing, but it also has scary parts. In the game, the life of the victim after he got back to safety is shown. I'd like to know how he'd act and how he'd be affected mentally, and i'd love for it to be realistic as possible. I could give his situation and what happened to him if needed!

I just printed author postcards all about my first poetry chapbook (it has book info, publishing website, how to order, etc.).

Should I write a message on it? What do people write? Feeling clueless over something so silly. Thank you!

What does this mean, all ideas are welcome

I'm 16 and enjoy philosophy and writing very much. I write random short stories in my free time, but now I've realized that I can actually make this habit more meaningful by submitting a short story to magazines or other places to get them published. I know that most magazines are super selective and have submissions from writers that are far better and more experience than me, so I'm looking for some smaller magazines that I may actually have a chance at. Are there any that you would suggest?

It’s a habit that I have because the names just roll off the tongue and I like it. I read somewhere that people hate when writers do this. What do you think?

It’s 2067, just a year since the landscape of entertainment and human connection transformed dramatically with the emergence of “EFIL” and their revolutionary technology, the "Dream Capturing Orb". This organization, shrouded in mystery and anonymity, introduced the world to “Dotflix”, a platform that streams the dreams of individuals from all corners of the globe. The world and the human society haven’t been the same since.

Each day, the dream of one individual from the entire world is broadcast for all to experience, but this person isn’t chosen at random. The person who had the highest “astral aura” in the last 24 hours is chosen and the dream that he had with this highest emitting astral aura, is broadcast for everyone to see, with the individual’s name mentioned at the end of the broadcast.

The concept of astral aura, rooted in various spiritual and metaphysical traditions, refers to an energy field surrounding the astral body, reflecting a person's emotions, thoughts, and spiritual state.

Dreams, which have always been private and enigmatic experiences, are now shared publicly, allowing people to witness and experience the subconscious world of others. This phenomenon has become the most talked-about event worldwide, with everyone eager to see whose dream will be broadcast next and what fantastical journey they will embark on during their sleep.

Dotflix features dreams that take viewers on epic adventures through surreal landscapes, encounters with mythical creatures, and profound introspective journeys. Each episode offers a unique and immersive experience, leaving viewers in awe of the limitless creativity and imagination found in the human subconscious.

In this astral realm of dreams, time operates on a unique scale. A brief nap of just a few hours can unfold into days within the dream. To facilitate shared dream-viewing, individuals rest upon "dot beds," where they can experience these extended dreams, capped at a maximum of 30 minutes in real-world time.

People gather in "Dream Lounges" equipped with Dot Beds, where they can experience the broadcasted dreams collectively. These gatherings foster a sense of unity and shared experience, as individuals discuss and analyse the dreams they have witnessed. The show has sparked a resurgence of interest in dream interpretation, spirituality, and metaphysics, with people striving to understand the deeper meanings behind dreams.

But something strange has happened in the last 2 days…

A recent development has sent shockwaves through the Dotflix community. For the past two days, the dream of the same person has been broadcast, a rare and unprecedented occurrence. The individual, known as Zen Fury, has captured the world's attention. Speculations run rampant as people theorize about the significance of Zen's dreams and the possibility of a deeper connection or message hidden within them.

In Zen's first broadcasted dream, he found himself in a vast, otherworldly forest, illuminated by bioluminescent flora and populated by ethereal beings. He embarked on a quest to find a mystical artifact said to hold the secrets of the universe. The dream was filled with breathtaking visuals and profound encounters that left viewers mesmerized.

The following night, Zen's dream continued from where it left off. This time, he discovered a hidden temple where he encountered a being of pure light who revealed ancient knowledge and prophecies about the future of humanity. The dream ended with a cryptic message, hinting at a looming challenge that humanity must face.

As the world eagerly anticipates the next broadcast, theories about Zen's unique astral aura and the significance of his dreams abound. Some believe that Zen has been chosen by a higher power to deliver a crucial message to humanity. Others speculate that his dreams are a glimpse into an alternate reality or a parallel dimension.

Amidst the frenzy, EFIL remains silent, refusing to comment on the unusual occurrence. The organization continues to operate from the shadows, adding to the intrigue and mystery surrounding Dotflix and the Dream Capturing Orb.

As people tune in to Dotflix each night, they are not just watching dreams; they are participating in a global phenomenon that blurs the lines between reality and the subconscious, connecting humanity in ways never before imagined. The world holds its breath, waiting to connect the dots and see what revelations and adventures Zen Fury's dreams will unveil next, and what impact they will have on the future of society.

So... Here's the long and the short of it.
My partner and I have been together for a while now. We tell each other everything. She has this absolutely fantastic idea that I'm some amazing writer, capable of becoming a published author some day. Her support is the reason I think about writing almost every day because I do love doing it, I just find it very difficult. Some punctuation vexes me and I struggle with keeping on topic.

For the first time in two years we are going to be spending some time apart. She left for her parents two days ago to get ready for an overseas flight to vacation in Europe (we live in the US) and I'm super excited for her (I couldn't go because of work). However, last night I had the most amazing dream. Post-apocalyptic technology engaged but not at all Fallout. I'm super excited to write it. I woke up from this dream and for the first time didn't even bother looking at my phone. I wrote out what I could remember of the dream, fed the cats, and checked in with her to see how her trip was going.

The whole point of my writing this post is just to say that I am nearly 5,000 words into this story and I havent even broken the first characters backstory. It's such a rich and exciting thing BUT... She is in another country right now and can't be excited for me. I suppose I've grown accustomed to her support.

I'm not much of an author, but I do get excited when neat stories present themselves to me so...
Does anyone want to discuss tips on some of my biggest hang-ups while writing?

• Staying on topic
• Dialogue
• Character development
• Potentially over-descriptive dark scenes
• Chapter definition
• The difference between a comma, period, and semi-colon (mostly a joke of a point)

Thanks for hearing me and I hope this doesn't come off as too pandering. I don't use Reddit that often.

Hello all,

I love plannars for writing, and I saw SchoolofPlot's and they seem AWESOME! I wish I had the money to buy it but I'm your classic broke uni student lol!

So I was wondering: is there simar planners that are free?

Thanks all ♡

I seriously wish that all my stories could just be movies straight out of my head. Like I’m writing a whole series at the minute with a clear view of what I want (crazy ik this has never happened) and all I can imagine is the scenes as an actual movie. I don’t mean to be full of myself but it looks good af and I would a hundred percent watch that. (Also random but my main character in my story is called Ízarr and I accidentally called a boy in my class (his name is Isaac btw) Ízarr and now he won’t shut up help)

(I originally posted this in r/writing, but it got taken down, and I didn’t get quite the insight I was looking for. 🤷🏻‍♀️)

So, I used to have a 5-book original series that I felt so passionate about writing when I was in High School. I never actually finished the final drafts of the books, but I was thinking about picking them back up again. I would like to know if this plot was as good as I imagined it. All five books took place in the span of 1000 years.

So, the first book is about a girl who never knew her parents, and is the lost princess of the kingdom she grew up in. She fell in love with the son of the family that raised her, and the boy loved her just as much. They were engaged early on in the story, but the boy was murdered trying to save the girl. About a year after his death, the girl discovered a secret way to resurrect one person, and one person alone. So, she sets off to find that way so she could resurrect the man she loved.

The story was very incomplete, and I never figured out how to work out the plot holes, but I just wanted some insight on how the story sounds to others other than myself.

I am very much a perfectionist, and with time started having fear of writing. I fear that I might write something bad or not good enough. It’s stupid to be a writer with fear of writing. I also lack motivation from family and friends for they don’t care and have no support or critics, and that deeply scares me. Thank you.

I want to start this off by saying that an idea is not a story, and this fact is something that really helped me out. Secondly, I used to feel like I could get distracted by these inspiring, emotional ideas especially because I didn't know what to do with them, and I was afraid to waste them. Something I learned is when I story finds you, your old and seemingly unrelated ideas come together.

There's this on-writing book called "Creating Short Fiction" by Damon Knight. He brings about this concept which he names "Talking to fred." Fred is the chaotic inspiration driven friend in your head who sends you those images, lines, concepts, ideas in general, and you have to sort through them in a calculated and technical way to create a story. Fred can't create a story, but he can help you out.

I've gotten a lot better as a writer lately and I don't mean that my "writing is good and people like it." In fact I haven't shared much of it. What I mean is that I conceptually understand writing better than I did before and I got over some hurdles that prevented me from doing things I wanted.

I've been working on a short story and novel as two different projects. These two projects stand out to me from all the others because they are coming together more smoothly. I see a story unfolding, the dominoes, the cause and effect.

A few years ago, I was working on a project that really just came from a bunch of images, scenes, feelings, etc that I didnt know how to put together. This project is in the past now, but the ideas from it may come up in the future. It wasn't a story, it was a bunch of ideas I didn't know what to do with and couldn't see the cause and effect. This is where I was stuck at that point in my skillset. If I were a sim, I went from level 2 writing to level 3 or 4 lol. Anyway, I was stuck because I believed without saying it that ideas were stories. That if I got a really good idea, it will be a story.

I had ti accept that wasn't the case. I learned that stories are hundreds and thousands of ideas organized by the writer using basic techniques like chatacter + desire + obstacles = plot, summary vs scene. Stuff like that.

It was hard for me to put aside an idea because o though a single, or maybe a handful, of ideas were a story and if I Gave up on those ideas then I would have given up on the story. With these two new projects (one of been working on since last october) I realized that those back burner ideas come back at the right time.

Here's an example. I had this line, or rather concept in my head "The death of a childhood dog marks the transition from a kid to an adult." Not that I wanted to write this line as prose, but it was a concept I wanted to work with and didn't know how. I thought of it three years ago when I was 21, moved out, and my childhood dog was put down. I felt like that marked the end if my childhood because she was there for all of it. Around this time, I was dealing with adult struggles that were hard and borderline traumatizing, and I felt my foolish idealism drift away, and I felt myself facing death.

3 years later, I start a story about a 20-something who gets paranormally stuck in loops of time, forced to face a death he experienced in childhood along with other traumas. This story is initiated when his childhood dog is on her death bed, and his major want is to be there when she's put down, and to visit her before she is. But he's stuck in time, time isn't moving properly, and he has to face this paranormal adventure to get back to the present in time to be with his dog. It didn't start off about the dog. It started off inspired by those nightmares where you're back in highschool and I wad like "what if that was real." That little idea came back 3 years later and pulled this story together. I was working on it for about a week before the dog thing entered the chat and then I was like "oh yeah this belongs here"

This is what I mean when I say that old, new, backburner ideas are just waiting for you to put them together. An idea is not a story, a thousand + ideas are a story

So, I'm currently a high school student and this Fall I will be attending my local community college full time for Running Start! I'm doing the AA degree and can't decide whether or not I should take classes for Journalism or English in hopes to be an Editor for novels in the future (Please feel free to correct any incorrect logic or things I've missed in my research that has to do with anything mentioned here!).

I've been reading since I was little and for the past 4 years or, so I've been writing short stories either for an original character I've created or to battle writers block and while I enjoy it, I find I'm more creative when working with another person. For instance, my brother has always been more math smart, so when he writes essays for school, he asks me to edit/go over them for him and he's never gotten anything lower than an A. Of course, the real world will be different and it's about keeping a job not a grade but that's not the point. I cannot get enough of editing his work. (Not that he isn't a good writer, I just thoroughly enjoy seeing the potential in work and putting my mark by modifying and improving where I think something can be improved!). I also just like teamwork where everyone involved is very serious and passionate about the assignment!

So, considering this, which degree sounds like it would be the most helpful in the long run?? It's also not my only degree of interest. I still find doing the actual writing part fun, I'm a history nerd in training and I also find appeal in Library Sciences!

Also, if you have any extra information or tips or ideas for me regarding this, I would be more than welcome to hearing them!

Thank you!!

I just learned that cubism inspired literature as well. I haven't read any cubist storytelling and I doubt I would be interested in writing pure cubism. But, I wrote this, and it sounds really good to my ears - that isn't as sophisticated. I don't have any experience with this. I'm also not a writer, only started this hobby this April

Any spelling mistakes we unintentional but things like "Smoke released", rather than "Smoke is released" were all intentional.

And John's dialogue is a bit shitty, clunky, but couldn't come up with something... I can't yet imagine what his personality would be like. But the parts before the dialogue are more important to be for now. What do you think of them

Still drunk, fuming in alcohol and cigarettes, John stumbles. Drowning ear drums. Guts shaking at the garage music. Socks soaked in piss as he tries to direct his cock to the toilet bowl.

“Why do you do this to yourself? Looking at John’s broad shoulders, silky hair, ghastly breath. Smothering the Room. Chocking from the smoke-scorched lungs, John, proud and ashamed, smiles and frowns as Sara. Bang! The Door is slammed. Sara sees his smirk. He’s transformed into the usual slimy, pathetic monster. Bang! The Door is slammed. Bang! Bang! Bang! Sara releases her anger. Fighting the alcohol fumes like the air mills dude.

Fresh air.

Curtains dancing to the chimes of the city. Alcohol fumes suffocated by cooking. Fire. Fire opens under the pressure of the pan. Sara sweating in the death chamber, boiling. Cooking. Tormenting the ingredients through throwing and swirling. Metal coffins stuck. The conveyor belt is not moving and this metal casket on four wheels is melting under the sun.

ingredients dancing to the Brazilian music. Favelas of melted barracks deafened by honks. Bang! Bang! Bang! Explosion discharged. Pain shakes. Music stops.

“Hey, hey, hey, what’s up baby”

“Fuck you”

Cooking starts.

“Fuck you”

“Fuck you”

“Fuck you”

“Did these dickless drivers anger my little babe”

“John, fuck you! You mother fucker”

Cooking stops. Smoke released. Pressure kept high by the lid and the four walls.

“What the fuck did I do”

“You know exactly what”

“You must be on your period or something cause I ain’t done nothin’ you feel me”

Smirking and dancing, swaying and groping

“Fuck of”

“Oh, come on, change the tune”

“All right, I want you to leave”

“Uh”

“I. Want. You. To fucking. Leave”

I recently got this rejection letter from The Rumpus (after almost a month after my submission):

Dear (my name)

Thank you for sending (the name of my piece was here) to The Rumpus. We understand how much hard work you put into this and while we ultimately felt it wasn’t right for us, I wanted you to know that we love your voice and I hope you'll submit to us again in the future. Until then, I hope this finds a good home soon, and that you have many productive writing days in the months to come.

Sincerely,

(the editor's name)

Editor

The Rumpus

Before this, I got a rejection from Granta after a week of submission mentioning my name and the name of my piece (the same one)

This was my first time submitting anything ever as well.

Hey guys,

I'm writing my second draft and questioning my usage of section breaks. I've got about two to four per chapter including a small section break banner art my wife made.

I've got two use cases for section breaks. The first is for dramatic POV shifts. My book has an ensemble cast where I focus on many POVs to tell the story. I flip the POV to keep things interesting, for example the POV of MC's best friend who's having troubled thoughts and wants to betray the group. I use this to show the influence of my villain and

The second use of section breaks are a bit more random and are used to push the story along and answer lingering questions so there's not too many uncertainties throughout the book. One example is the MC having a drug-induced flashback that explains the origin of a friendship and what started the cascade of events of the book. Another example would be a character who braves the unknown to ask the villain a question and he shows he's about to set a bomb off in the location the MC is traveling to. These section breaks, while nothing to do with the current chapter, answers questions about the chapter and sets up the events of the next one.

Do you see anything wrong with this or should I throw some away and just make more chapters? Personally, with my writing style, I don't like to have flat chapters and section breaks let me bypass that. I have a style where I like to have high's and low's in each chapter followed by a cliffhanger at the end. So far the book is 7-8k words, 15 chapters.

There is a world under ours, but few have the ability to see it. 

Every night, at exactly 03:14, there is a knock on the ceiling of Carl's bedroom. It's low, but for whatever reason, it has been keeping him awake for weeks straight now. 

Every day he wakes up tired, and it doesn't take long for his boss to notice, and suggest he “Take some time off… Indefinitely”. 

Carl feels he’s reached a breaking point, and finally decides to confront this strange knock. But instead of making the knocking stop, it ends with him getting hired. 

Looking for critique for this piece I’ve been working on. It’s an Urban fantasy quite heavily inspired by Neil Geimans work (Terrific timing, I know) especially “Neverwhere”. I’m a non native speaker, so I’m sorry if there are some grammatical errors, especially with apostrophes, they don’t appear in my native language, so I still kinda struggle with them. There shouldn't not be any spelling errors. 

Some specific things I would like to get critiqued on would be: 

-How’s the pace? 

-Are there enough things introduced to build interest into what might happen next? 

-Do you think there has to be more build-up before Carl confronts ‘the knock’ ? 

-What can you read from Carl as a character? How would you describe him? Were his reactions reasonable? 

-Is the prose well written, does it drag? 

 -What speculations do you have surrounding this chapter? 

-Any other critiques/Suggestions?

Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dVJpShdAYOeGnexNr95eLdWGhL_HqL-Sw1w6TRmhFSA/edit?usp=sharing 

Edit: Also wanted to add that I’m more than open to do a chapter trade

I've put in my own short story at the bottom, but I still think this is a very good question for others to consider on their own. If you have any ideas on this please share them to help myself and other beginning writers and if you want to read my story, please please give me feedback on that. Thanks heaps, love yas!!!

The man walked with his head under his arm, searching for anyone to help him. He yelled and screamed and carried on as he stumbled down the street, desperate for answers, while no one paid him the slightest bit of attention. He became confused. No one seemed to acknowledge his existence or even budge as he walked through them. His head still detached, scanned left and right at the faceless people that filled the streets. It hadn’t occurred to him that they were faceless until now. Confusion was now becoming distress. ‘Hang on’ the man thought, ‘why don’t I try to put my head back on?’ So, he tried to screw his head to his neck, twisting it around and around on the same spot, making no progress and only creating more of a mess of his corpse. The dried blood on his black coat was now covered in the fresh blood that sprayed from underneath the spinning head. ‘No, that’s not going to work.’ And so, he decided he would continue carrying the big ball of brains in his hands. 

He had made his way through the crowd that roamed endlessly down the main street, before finding the lake. A seat propped itself up there in an odd jittery fashion, by the wooden legs and backrest pushing through the earth beneath, tearing out from the root system and assembling by hitting and whacking each other into place. He watched with a little awe as the seat constructed itself before him. As he sat down, he noticed a patch of ducks that covered the sidewalk and pecked at the ground for worms. The lake was serene and clear. Clearer by the shore but growing bluer the further away you looked. The snow tipped mountains reflected on the surface and bounced into the man's searching eyes. ‘I must gather my thoughts, I suppose.’ He breathed to calm himself down. ‘So, I'm sure that I am dead; my last memory was of that awful guillotine, and I’m sure that this is still definitely Lake Annecy. But the chair is odd. I wonder if I could’ve done that? I needed a chair. And maybe my subconscious knew that. This is absurd. The chances would be that this is some sort of post-mortem hallucination, but I can’t be so sure. And the faces...’ The man hung on the thought of the lack of the other’s faces for a long quiet moment. ‘Faceless heads, stumbling through the streets...My own head, lodged between my hands...’ He readjusted his coat at the collar and straightened his white shirt. The ducks, apparently dry of worms, waddled from the sidewalk and into the water where they dove for fish. He looked up. ‘The mountains must be freezing now.’ The image of snow rapidly frosting over trees at the brink of dawn as it circled around the town's borders flashed in his mind. ‘It must be close.’ He shifted his head to his right hand. ‘I must search the town for anyone else’ he concluded. 

‘Walking through a dead Lake Annecy is unsettling.’ The faceless didn't talk but the loud shuffle of their steps was always heard. The faceless hunched over a little and looked downwards. They went about their business as normal people, going to work, buying ham and sitting on benches, however whenever they encountered others, they become even more sullen and sunken in their posture. They seemed to be dismayed at their lack of communication and just wanted the moment to end shortly. Their heads appeared bluer in the winter light, and they seemed to be affected by the cold as they were always shivering. The part the man disliked about this folk is they did not recognize or indicate any awareness of him. He would spend hours running in the main street, yelling, shaking them and thrusting his decapitated head at them to gain their attention. He knew it was futile but still tried. Hope wasn’t to leave his mind, he decided. 

Hi guys!! I'm a former student journalists and now I'm thinking of uploading sone of my works online. Any tips on how you guys make like one of those creature pen names?

I know that stakes are something gained or lost when the character is making progress to their goal. I have looked around strategies to raise the stakes like adding a time limit and making it personal/emotional.

But idk… it’s not triggering any ideas for me. Feels like I am complicating my imagination process. I like to keep things simple. I explore my worldbuilding and characters then go through them to trigger a plot.

But it’s not as dramatic and thrilling as I want it to be.

For context, my MC is born in a brutal mafia family. He is different from everyone in the family - soft spoken, secretive and very manipulative. His grandfather is the mafia boss and his goal is to bring him down. I have some ideas like MC gaining trust of the grandfather and becomes a part of "family meeting" despite his early age; him doing favor to a policeman and getting his support; manipulating his abusive father to kill himself; allying up with his family tutor who wants power and position in the mafia; getting caught and imprisoned then escaping.

In some cases MC’s stakes are his life or his beloved sibling’s life. It’s vague.

I am a POC writer, and I wrote a world inspired by East Asia. It mocks the character for being a brat, a biracial prince and he is being mocked for not being a supernatural entity and their bigotry towards mixed race people and not being "one" race, being a half-brother, being mocked and riduled by the narrator and by other characters.

It is a satire short about an expansion of the world.

I am worried it would offend readers since is based on a culture or a mix of cultures and the narrator, a rude character talking about their world.

An adult character in my book goes to the river where her late father's ashes were scattered and proceeds to have a "conversation" with him in her mind. It's evident she's imagining her father's responses (she's not actually communicating with him telepathically) and it's more an exercise for her to hash out things that are bothering her in her life. As someone who has never lost a parent, I'm wondering if anyone actually does this or does this just come off as a lazy way for me to reveal my character's inner life. Any feedback would be great!

To give you context before you start reading, this novel is about a Prince from a Fantasy world who has been transmigrated onto modern day earth with a system that tells him to creat a secret organisation solve Earth's mystery .

A few weeks after the transmigration.

In a room of average furnishing, where the modest decor spoke of practicality rather than luxury, sat a young man of an athletic build. His looks were barely above average, a face that might blend into any crowd, but there was something about him that drew the eye. Perhaps it was the thoughtful expression he wore as he gazed at the ceiling, his chin supported by his left hand.

A few books lay scattered around the room, hinting at a mind that sought knowledge or escape within their pages. In front of him, a laptop rested on a table, its screen casting a soft glow in the dimly lit room. Beside the laptop, a journal lay open, revealing scribbled words that hinted at musings or plans, thoughts captured in the moment.

He sat in the chair with a carefree manner, swinging back and forth in a slow but steady rhythm. This motion seemed to be in sync with the pen he tapped on the open journal every two seconds with his right hand. The tap, tap, tap of the pen was a metronome to his thoughts, a steady beat that mirrored his internal contemplation.

In this quiet, unassuming room, the young man appeared lost in thought, perhaps crafting stories in his mind or reflecting on the day’s events. The scene was a picture of calm and introspection, a snapshot of a mind at work. Suddenly, the tranquility shattered as a guttural yell echoed through the room, reminiscent of a horse granted speech by Gandalf. “FUCK! FUCK!! FUCK!!!” Verenhelth sprang from his chair, hands clawing at his hair. “DAMN IT ALL! How did I end up in this mess?” His fists pounded the air, each strike fueled by frustration and helplessness, though the empty space offered no resistance or solace.

After throwing a few more tantrums and spitting out at least half of all the curses in both worlds, he finally calmed down and sat back in his chair.

“Sigh. Alright, now that I’m done cursing the system, I can start my plan."

He picked up the journal from his table and straightened his back. His previous demeanor was nowhere to be seen. He had a serious look on his face as he flipped to the first page. On it was a list of numbered activities, and at the very top, numbered one, was the phrase: "Find a worthy person to bestow the ‘Grandmaster’ title."

"The system has thirteen titles I can bestow upon my followers or allies who are to help me in my journey. I was automatically given the ‘Unraveler’ title when I transmigrated into this world, so that leaves me with twelve free titles to bestow. I have to be careful with whom I choose since the title cannot be transferred to another person if the initial recipient is not competent enough or gets killed. I don’t have to worry about them going rogue since anyone who agrees to be bestowed is forced by the system to remain loyal to me. Right now, finding a person worthy of the Grandmaster title is of utmost priority. I’ve already wasted close to a month trying to learn about this world, so that leaves me with only eleven months to create the damn secret organization. The only one who can help me achieve this seemingly impossible task is the Grandmaster. I hope."

Dark circles marred his eyes, making them look sunken and shadowed, a testament to the sleepless nights that had claimed his rest. His face, normally sharp and commanding, now bore the haggard signs of exhaustion, with unshaven stubble adding a roughness to his jawline. Despite the weariness etched into his features, his eyes held a severe, unwavering determination as he pondered his next move. Every line on his face spoke of fatigue, yet his countenance remained fierce, a silent promise of the resolve burning within him.

Thinking of the words the system used to describe the Grandmaster, he shuddered. He had to admit that, though it wasn’t as powerful as the Unraveler title, it was probably the most unique of them all. Veren put the journal back down and opened the system interface.

Unraveler System

Host: Verenhelth Vlaron

Main Mission: Solve the Mystery of Earth.
Mission Progress: 0%( Host has 10 years to complete the mission) Mission Reward: Host will be sent back to his previous world.

Current Mission: Create the secret organization: Citadel Of Thirteen Outliers. Mission Progress: 0%. ( Host has 1 year to complete the mission)

Mission Reward: 500 SYSTEM POINTS, MYSTERY BOX, LOTTERY CARDS, 1 PIECE HISTORY!

System Points: 5 (You received 5 system points for completing your first mission: Learn about Earth!)

Unraveler Points: 0 (1 Unraveler point costs 50 system points!)

The Unraveler: Locked (Can be unlocked with 13 Unraveler Points or seven Mystery Shard!)

Titles: (Click to open!)
Item Shop: (No item is for sale at this moment!)

Inventory: Lens of Papatile (new) ... You received a surprise reward for completing your first mission: Learn about the world!

Imbalance Status: The Scales of Balance are heavily tilted due to imbalance! You are the source of the imbalance! The Ancients are unaware of your existence! You have 336 days before they come knocking on your door!

"Bingo!"

Veren's eyes gleamed with delight when he saw the surprise reward he received for completing his first mission, learning about this shitty world.

"Finally! Something to celebrate. Let's hope it has some good abilities," he wished, while clicking on the new item in the inventory. If someone were in the room with him, they would only see him tapping his right index finger on empty air because the system interface was only visible to him.

Veren had experimented with this a few days ago when he opened the system in front of his neighbor downstairs, who looked at him like an idiot when Veren pointed in front of him and asked if the neighbor could see it too.

Strings of blue letters sprang up and aligned themselves to form a small paragraph when Veren clicked on the 'Lens of Papatile.'

"Papatile was a weaver of wondrous artifacts, the fifth light weaver to be jointly proclaimed as the Holy Weaver by the Church of the Red Moon and the Southern Kingdom, Brielle. Of course, they only threw that title at him to get him to weave more artifacts for them at a low price. How shameless of them! Tsk!"

"What the..." Veren looked at the description with a weird expression, surprised by how sassy the system seemed to be. Yet what drew his attention were the two backgrounds the system mentioned. By now he knew enough about this world to know that those two organizations did not exist here. At least, not in the present. He quickly closed the interface to Google if the two backgrounds existed in the past, which gave a negative result. He crossed his arms over his chest and laid back in his chair. His narrowed his eyes and thought out loud. " So there's no such church or kingdom in this world, not even in the past. Or should I say the known past. Interesting " he chuckled. "My main mission according to the Unraveler system is to solve the mysteries of this world. Mystery, in a sense, simply means hidden truth. Could this church and kingdom have existed in the unknown past of this world? And what or who is a light weaver? Holy weaver Papatile? Artifact? Damn! So many questions already. AHH!", he slapped the table in frustration.

With his eyebrows arched in confusion, he leaned back in his chair again and supported his chin with his left hand. "And what was that tone of it...? It seemed almost as if the system disdained the actions of the Church of the Red Moon and the Southern Kingdom, Brielle," he wondered out loud.

Then he shook his head and said, his voice full of conviction, "No, there was definitely disdain. It did not just seem like it."

He released a deep breath and opened the system interface again. Right beneath the description he had just read were the uses of the Lens of Papatile.

"Can be used as ordinary contact lenses. It grants you the ability to 'see' the aura of potential allies, people who can be bestowed a title."

"YES! YES! YES! I love this system so much! Keep throwing goodies like this to me and maybe ,just maybe, I will stop cursing you." Veren was genuinely happy with this new artifact. It came at a timely moment and would make it much easier to quickly find someone to be the grandmaster rather than going around vetting potential allies. Of course, that wasn't even the most difficult part; actually convincing them was going to be the hardest since the title cannot be bestowed without consent.

"This really came at the right time. This will help me speed up my plan by at least a factor of two if I don't consider the time it may take any of my special candidates to agree to become the Grandmaster."

While Veren was completing his very first mission when he transmigrated to this world, he took the opportunity to do research and find people who would be worthy of the titles, focusing more on candidates for the grandmaster title.

"So far I've been able to mark out four people for the Grandmaster title. Unfortunately, all of them are so far from me that I can only reach them by using that thing they call an airplane. Speaking of which, while this world may not be as wondrous as my world, they do have quite the amazing inventions. I wonder how my curious 76th sister would react if I told her people could assemble metal into a weird shape and make it fly. Sigh," he wondered.

"Enough of the daydreaming. Now let me check on my dear Titles," he said while eagerly clicking on the title button on the interface.

The current interface cleared, and blue and crimson red strings began to arrange themselves on the system interface. The crimson strings formed a figure with an indifferent but serious look on their face. The figure appeared to be holding a pen in their right hand. Their whole figure was surrounded by web-like strings, and the left hand seemed to be pulling on these strings.

Below this enigmatic figure, the blue characters had arranged themselves into a paragraph that read:

"In your journey, your biggest foe will not be the ancients, the demons, or the Gods. Nay! Fate itself will be your biggest adversary. The disgusting hands of Fate have caused ruin to even the Gods as much as it has helped them. Be warned Unraveler! The Grandmaster will be your greatest help to combat Fate. The despicable and treacherous Grandmaster who deceives Fate at a cost! Oh, what a hefty cost it is!"