A Little Self Publishing Farewell: Sometimes it’s time to start over :)

November 3, 2026November 1, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ 1 Comment

Hello, everyone!

Well, I have a little writing announcement. I’ve decided to unpublish my three self published poetry books.

Before anyone gets concerned, nothing particularly dramatic happened. I haven’t suddenly developed a vendetta against poetry or decided that my past writing is the literary equivalent of a crime scene. I just think I’m ready for a little reset.

For a while, self publishing was a really fun little venture of mine. There is something incredibly satisfying about taking something you’ve written, turning it into an actual physical book, and getting to hold it in your hands. Even better, getting to share those books with other people who enjoy what you create. I loved being able to order copies for myself, share them with friends and family, and occasionally have someone else pick one up because they liked my writing. That was pretty special, and I’m genuinely grateful to everyone who supported those little projects.

But lately, I’ve found myself feeling a little uncertain about where I want to take my writing.

I’ve been writing poetry, working on fantasy ideas, dreaming up stories, and generally bouncing around between various creative projects. And while I still love writing, I’m not entirely sure what I want my writing career (if we’re calling it that) to look like. I’ve started thinking more seriously about traditional publishing, particularly for some of my fantasy projects, and that has me reconsidering how I want to approach publishing moving forward.

I’ve also heard that having a collection of self published books that haven’t necessarily gained much traction can sometimes work against you when approaching traditional publishers or literary agents. I’m not entirely sure how much truth there is to that, and I don’t want to pretend I’ve become an expert on publishing overnight. But it’s something I’ve been curious about, and I figured it was worth considering as I think about my next steps.

And to be completely real, I think I just like the idea of a clean slate.

There is something about being a writer that seems to involve a constant cycle of creating something, being incredibly excited about it, finishing it, sitting with it for a while, and eventually deciding you want to do something completely different. You spend months or years building something, only to look at it later and realize that your interests have shifted, your skills have changed, or your vision for yourself has evolved.

Maybe that’s just part of being a creative person. Or maybe I’m incapable of leaving well enough alone. Who knows! Certainly not me.

Either way, I don’t look at those three books as wasted time or something I wish I hadn’t done. They were a fun little chapter in my writing journey, and I got exactly what I wanted out of them at the time. I got to make books. I got to share my poetry. I got to experience the excitement of publishing something I’d created, and that’s worth something all on its own I think. 🙂

So, thank you to everyone who read them, bought them, gifted them, or encouraged me along the way. It genuinely meant a lot to have people take an interest in something I’d put so much of myself into.

As for what’s next, I’m not entirely sure yet.

For now, I’m giving myself a little room to experiment, write new things, explore different directions, and figure out what I want this next chapter to look like.

Here’s to new projects, new stories, and occasionally making a mess of everything just to see what happens!

Happy writing, as always!!!

Whimsical Brainstacking: How to Make Keeping Your Mind Sharp a Little More Magical

October 27, 2026October 27, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

Our brains can turn into mashed potatoes as time gets away from us and if we don’t keep it active.

You might have seen the recent trend of brainstacking or habit stacking, where people combine a handful of little habits into one dedicated sitting. Instead of trying to find separate pockets of time for journaling, reading, doing a crossword puzzle, writing, or practicing a skill, you stack them all together into one little routine. Maybe you spend five minutes journaling, ten minutes working on a Sudoku puzzle, and another five minutes reading or writing. Before you know it, you’ve spent half an hour doing things that keep your mind active without having to schedule half a dozen separate activities throughout your day.

I love this idea if I haven’t made it clear yet. I think it’s brilliant. But I also think there’s a way to make this practice even more fun.

Fantasy-Inspired Brainstacking

I like the idea of giving yur brainstack a theme depending on what you want to focus on. Then I started thikning about how to make a fantasy-inspired or whimsical brainstack of activities. Where you can spend twenty minutes a day becoming the sort of person who knows how to identify mushrooms, decipher riddles, analyze Renaissance paintings, and speak a little Latin.

You don’t necessarily need to become an expert in any of these things. The point is to learn something new, practice a skill, engage your imagination, or follow a thread of curiosity you might not otherwise have explored.

I think there’s something lovely about being a person who knows a little bit about a lot of things. You never know when a random fact, an old superstition, a line of poetry, or a strange little piece of history might come in handy. And even when it doesn’t, you’ve still made your world a little bigger and that’s definitely worth something!!

Here are some ideas to get you started!

Whimsical Brainstacking Activities

Become a Keeper of Knowledge

These activities are for collecting little pieces of knowledge about the world, especially the sorts of things that make you feel like you belong in a fantasy library.

Read a Fairytale: Read one short fairytale every day. Explore traditional folklore, lesser known fairy stories, or a collection of fairytales from around the world.
Solve a Riddle: Give your brain a little puzzle to untangle. Keep a book of riddles nearby or find a new one each day.
Learn a Latin Phrase: Learn a new Latin phrase, what it means, and how it was used. Bonus points if it sounds like something a wizard might mutter before casting a spell.
Discover a Fantasy Beast: Learn about a new mythical creature, monster, or fantastical beast. Where does it come from? What does it look like? What does the folklore say about it?
Study a Superstition: Pick an interesting superstition and learn where it originated. Why do people consider black cats unlucky in some traditions but lucky in others? Why do we knock on wood? There’s often a fascinating story behind these little beliefs.
Learn a Naturalist’s Skill: Learn to identify a new mushroom, plant, or tree. Start building your own little field guide of the natural world around you.
Explore a Constellation: Learn to recognize a new constellation and discover the mythology associated with it.
Learn One Tiny Historical Fact: Pick a historical figure, ancient civilization, strange medieval custom, or obscure historical event and learn one new thing about it.

Practice Your Wizardly Arts

Not every activity needs to involve memorizing facts. Some can be little practices that help you develop a skill over time.

Practice Calligraphy: Spend a few minutes practicing a letter, a word, or a beautiful phrase. Over time, you’ll build a collection of handwriting that looks fit for a royal decree.
Memorize a Line of Poetry: Choose a line from a poem and commit it to memory. Eventually, you might build a whole collection of verses you can recall without needing a book.
Learn Chess: Practice a new chess move, solve a chess puzzle, or learn one small strategy. You don’t need to become a grandmaster overnight.
Analyze a Painting: Choose a different painting each day. Who created it? What is happening in the scene? Where does your eye go first? What mood does it create? What details might you have missed at first glance?
Listen to a New Piece of Music: Find a new soundtrack piece, orchestral composition, or instrumental work. Listen closely and notice how the music creates a sense of place, emotion, or movement.
Learn a New Word: Collect an unusual word, learn its meaning, and practice using it in a sentence. Your vocabulary can become its own little treasure chest.
Practice a Drawing Skill: Spend five minutes learning to draw a leaf, a mushroom, a bird, a castle tower, or something else that catches your attention.

Follow the Rabbit

Sometimes the best kind of learning happens when you don’t know exactly where you’re going.

These activities are for the curious people who click one link, discover something interesting, and suddenly realize they’ve spent forty minutes learning about an obscure historical mystery.

Press Google’s “I’m Feeling Lucky” Button: Let the internet choose your next rabbit hole. Follow whatever comes up and spend a few minutes learning about something completely unexpected.
Research One Strange Question: Write down a question you’ve always wondered about and investigate it. Why do certain animals glow? How did people tell time before clocks? Who decided which mushrooms were edible?
Follow a Wikipedia Rabbit Hole: Start with a topic that interests you and follow the links wherever they lead. See how far you can travel from your original question.
Learn About an Unusual Tradition: Find a holiday, ceremony, or cultural tradition you’ve never heard of before and learn about its history and meaning.
Investigate an Old Mystery: Explore an unsolved historical question, a strange archaeological discovery, or a puzzling event from the past.
Study Something Beautiful: Pick a building, garden, piece of jewelry, antique object, or architectural detail and learn about its design and history.

The goal isn’t to spend hours scrolling through the internet. Set a little time limit if you need one, and write down the most interesting thing you learned before moving on.

Build a World of Your Own

This might be my favorite category because it involves not just learning about the world, but actively creating one.

Instead of consuming someone else’s fictional universe, you can build your own a little bit at a time.

Create a Fictional World: Invent a kingdom, magical forest, island, or entire fantasy world. Each day, add one new detail. It could be a custom, a creature, a landmark, a historical event, or a strange local superstition.
Design a Fantasy Creature: Invent a new beast and decide where it lives, what it eats, how it behaves, and what makes it magical.
Create a Kingdom’s History: Add one event to your fictional world’s history every day. Maybe a queen disappeared, a war changed the borders, or a mysterious plague caused an entire village to be abandoned.
Invent a Magical Plant: Decide what it looks like, where it grows, and whether it has any unusual properties. Is it used in medicine, potions, cooking, or something more sinister?
Develop a Fictional Culture: Create a tradition, holiday, greeting, superstition, or coming of age ceremony for the people in your imaginary world.
Write a Page From a Wizard’s Grimoire: Collect imaginary spells, potion recipes, magical observations, and notes about strange creatures. You can even make it look like an old field notebook.
Create a Map: Add a new location to your fictional world. Give it a name, a history, and a reason someone might want to visit it.

The beauty of this practice is that you don’t have to write a novel or finish a grand creative project. You’re simply adding a little something to your world every day. One day, you might look back and discover that you’ve built something surprisingly detailed.

How to Build Your Own Brainstack

You certainly don’t need to do every activity on this list. In fact, I think the best approach is to choose a few that appeal to you and build a routine around them.

For example, your daily brainstack might look something like this:

The Little Wizard’s Morning Routine

Five minutes of journaling
Five minutes practicing calligraphy
One riddle to solve
One line of poetry to memorize
Five minutes adding a detail to your fictional kingdom

Or perhaps you’re more of a wandering scholar.

The Curious Naturalist’s Brainstack

Read a short fairytale
Learn to identify a plant, mushroom, or tree
Study one constellation or mythical creature
Research one random question
Record your favorite discovery in a notebook

Or maybe you want something that feels like a cozy evening in a wizard’s tower.

The Wizard’s Evening Study

Listen to a new piece of orchestral music
Analyze a painting
Learn a Latin phrase
Solve a riddle or chess puzzle
Write down one interesting thing you learned that day

You can even keep a dedicated notebook for your brainstacking adventures. Make a list of the activities you want to try, record the things you learn, and track the little skills you’re developing.

And remember, the activities are meant to make your life more interesting, not turn your evenings into another productivity competition. If you only have ten minutes, that’s fine. If you skip a day, the wizard council is not going to revoke your license. Most likely anyways, don’t quote me on that.

Learning is Magic (as corny as that sounds)

I think one of the easiest things to lose in adulthood is the habit of learning things simply because they’re interesting.

When we’re children, we’re encouraged to explore. We collect facts about dinosaurs, invent imaginary friends, learn the names of flowers, and ask a truly unreasonable number of questions. As adults, learning can start to feel like something we only do for work, school, or some larger practical purpose (usually making money).

But we can learn things just because we want to.

So consider this your invitation to become a little more curious. Stack a few habits together, find a notebook you love, and spend a little time each day collecting knowledge like a magpie collecting shiny things. I mean, at the very least, you’ll have some excellent material for your next tavern conversation with your fellow adventurers. 🙂

Take care, everyone and keep learning!!

The Creative Magic Theory: What Kind of Creative Are You? ✨

October 20, 2026October 18, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

You know it’s serious when I have a sparkle in the title… 😛

I have a little theory about creativity, because I think the way we create is just as interesting as what we create. Some people are inspired by other artists, some get random bursts of inspiration at two in the morning, and others slowly nurture an idea for months until it becomes something wonderful.

So what if creativity worked a little like magic? What if we all had different creative powers that influenced how we approach our ideas, find inspiration, and bring things into the world?

Welcome to the Creative Magic Theory!

Here’s the line of logic and reasoning…each creative type represents a different approach to creating. These types aren’t tied to a specific medium by the way. So you can be a writer, painter, musician, crafter, or content creator and still identify with any of them. You can also have a primary type, a secondary type, and even a third type that influences your creative process because, as always, people aren’t static.

So, there’s the intro. Now let’s meet our eleven creative types! Let’s go! No more dilly dallying in this introduction…

The Eleven Creative Magics

💡 The Lightbringer

Lightbringers create by revealing, explaining, and illuminating. They enjoy making complicated things understandable, highlighting overlooked details, or putting difficult feelings into words. Their creativity helps others see something they might have missed. If you lean toward writing self-help or write to explain, you may find yourself identifying with this creative type. Or maybe you paint to convey a complicated and highly specific feeling. Both of these are examples of lightbringers.

🔥 The Firestarter

Firestarters create in bursts of passion and inspiration. When an idea catches fire, they can pour enormous amounts of energy into it. They might go from barely creating anything to producing an entire collection in a weekend. Their challenge is learning how to keep going when the initial spark fades. This is a very common type of creative (I fall into this category!). It is both a blessing and a curse.

🌊 The Riverborn

Riverborns create by following the flow. They often prefer to explore an idea intuitively rather than plan every detail in advance (no outlines for these guys). They might begin a story without knowing how it ends or start a painting and discover what it wants to become along the way. Their challenge is learning when to follow the current and when to swim against it. Structure is important sometimes. Riverborns can struggle with writing themselves into a corner or getting halfway through a project and realizing that they wished they had done things just a bit differently.

🌬️ The Windrider

Windriders create through curiosity and exploration. They love trying new things, experimenting with different mediums, and following interesting ideas wherever they lead. They might have a dozen hobbies and a notebook full of possibilities. Their challenge is giving some of those ideas enough time to develop before chasing the next exciting thing. Windriders tend to collect hobbies and feel more creative when they are doing lots of things! Their mind is always racing.

🌱 The Earthkeeper

Earthkeepers create by cultivating. They enjoy nurturing ideas, developing skills, and patiently building something meaningful over time. They might spend years perfecting a craft or months developing a single project. Their challenge is knowing when to let something change, when to stop refining it, and when to move on. These are the “Tolkiens” of the creative world. They are persistant.

⚡ The Stormsmith

Stormsmiths create through sudden insights and unexpected connections. They are the people who think, “Wait, what if these two completely unrelated things actually belong together?” They enjoy brainstorming, inventing concepts, developing theories, and turning flashes of inspiration into something new. Their challenge is sorting through all those sparks and deciding which ones are worth pursuing. They can sometimes get lost in their own sauce or “system”.

🌌 The Stargazer

Stargazers find inspiration in other creatives and the world around them. Other people’s art, conversations, books, music, and creative communities can fuel their own imagination. They often thrive when surrounded by people who encourage them to create. Their challenge is learning to keep their own creative light shining even when they’re temporarily disconnected from their community. This is something that becomes especially difficult as creatives mature into adulthood and friendships are harder to maintain.

🌙 The Nightweaver

Nightweavers are drawn to the hidden, strange, mysterious, emotional, and unconventional. They enjoy exploring ideas that might be overlooked or difficult to explain. Their work might involve eerie stories, complicated emotions, surreal art, or unusual perspectives. Their challenge is making their ideas accessible and not overly vague without losing the mystery that makes them interesting.

🌈 The Prismsmith

Prismsmiths turn internal feelings and ideas into expressive experiences. They might communicate through color, imagery, music, aesthetics, symbolism, or atmosphere. They’re often interested in how something feels just as much as what it means. Their challenge is making sure the expression serves the idea rather than getting lost in the pursuit of the perfect mood or aesthetic. These are the emotional creatives.

❄️ The Iceweaver

Iceweavers create through refinement, precision, and careful arrangement. They enjoy editing, polishing, simplifying, and finding the exact right way to express an idea. They might revise a poem until every word matters or perfect a design by removing everything unnecessary. Their challenge is knowing when to stop refining and allow something to be finished.

🌀 The Illusionist

Illusionists change how people perceive things. They take the ordinary and make it feel magical, strange, funny, beautiful, or unexpected. They might turn a coffee shop into a fantasy tavern, transform a mundane experience into a whimsical story, or use humor to make people see something differently.

Combining Your Creative Magics

Your primary magic represents your most natural creative instinct, while your secondary magic adds another layer to your process. A third magic can influence you too, even if it isn’t as prominent.

For example:

🌌 Stargazer + 🔥 Firestarter: You’re inspired by other creatives, then suddenly produce a ton of work when something sparks your imagination.

🌬️ Windrider + 🌊 Riverborn: You love exploring new possibilities and following ideas wherever they take you. You thrive on freedom and experimentation.

💡 Lightbringer + ❄️ Iceweaver: You love understanding things and then refining that understanding into something clear, precise, and elegant.

⚡ Stormsmith + 🌈 Prismsmith: You make unexpected connections between ideas and find expressive, imaginative ways to bring those concepts to life.

🌙 Nightweaver + 🌀 Illusionist: You explore strange or hidden subjects and transform them into something that challenges how people see the world.

There are so many possible combinations, and none of them are inherently better than the others!

Working With Your Creative Magic

One of the most important things about this theory is that every creative strength has a potential weakness.

For example, Firestarters might need to learn how to sustain their energy. Windriders might need to practice finishing projects. Stargazers might need to find ways to create independently. Iceweavers might need to learn when something is good enough.

The goal isn’t to change your natural creative instincts or force yourself to work like someone else. It’s to understand what helps you create and what tends to get in your way. Which, more often then not, is ourselves.

If you’re a Firestarter, perhaps you can use your bursts of inspiration while keeping a list of projects to revisit when the fire quiets down. If you’re an Earthkeeper, perhaps you can give yourself permission to experiment without needing every project to become something substantial. If you’re a Stargazer, perhaps you can build an inspiration library to return to when your creative community isn’t readily available.

Your magic is something to understand and develop, not a box to trap yourself in.

So, What’s Your Creative Magic?

I love the idea that creativity can look so different from one person to another. We don’t all need the same routines, inspirations, or approaches to make something wonderful and it’s definitely not a one-size fits all type of scenario.

So, which creative magic feels most like yours? ✨

What Can I Write When I’m bored?

October 18, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ 1 Comment

What should you write when you’re not sure what to do? You don’t want to work on any of your big projects but you don’t want to not write. So, where to start? You’re bored and want to hone your craft but the next step isn’t entirely clear and, maybe if you’re honest with yourself, you’re feeling a little creatively lazy. You don’t feel like writing a gazillion words tonight (yes, that is definitely a real number).

Well, I get it, dear writer! And, I promise, I’m not judging you. I have found myself in a similar position more often than I’d like to admit. So, I’ve collected a few tips and lists to get your creative juices flowing. I implore you, read on!

1. Little writing side quests

For when you want to write something just for the fun of it, without worrying about whether it’s good.

Write a letter to your future self about the very specific details of your current life.
Describe your ideal cottage, including what’s in the cupboards, what grows outside, and who visits.
Write a page from the journal of a village witch who has had a very inconvenient Tuesday.
Invent a holiday that your fictional kingdom celebrates. What are its traditions?
Write a list of things you would collect if you were a goblin.
Describe your dream life as though it were a location in a fantasy novel.
Write a dramatic review of the last ordinary thing that mildly inconvenienced you.
Invent a little shop that sells things nobody actually needs but everyone secretly wants.
Write a conversation between two people who have completely different ideas of what makes a good life.
Document an ordinary day as if you were the protagonist of a fantasy novel.

2. Short stories you can write in one sitting

You don’t need to start a novel. Give yourself a character, a problem, and a little room to play.

The Unclaimed Letter: A postal worker discovers a letter that has been arriving at the same abandoned house every year for fifty years.
The Witch’s Day Off: A village witch tries to spend one peaceful day doing absolutely no magic. Unfortunately, the village has other plans.
The Last Bookshop: A woman discovers that the bookshop she inherited only stocks books that its customers need, rather than books they want.
The Dragon’s Hoard: A dragon has collected thousands of objects, but its favorite treasure is a completely ordinary item that nobody else understands.
The Borrowed Memory: A young woman buys a beautiful old locket and begins remembering someone else’s happiest moments.
The Village Matchmaker: A matchmaker in a small fantasy village is excellent at finding everyone else’s soulmate and completely hopeless at recognizing her own feelings.
The Ghost’s Complaint: A ghost submits a formal complaint to the afterlife because the new owners of its house have renovated the kitchen.
The Girl Who Stayed: In a world where everyone receives a magical calling at eighteen, one girl receives nothing. Years later, she discovers why.

3. Poetry prompts for when you don’t feel like writing prose

Try writing just 8–16 lines. No need to produce a polished poem.

Write about repairing something that you thought was beyond saving.
Describe the feeling of autumn without mentioning a single color or weather condition.
Write a love poem about an ordinary task or item.
Write about a childhood memory as if it were a place you could physically revisit.
Describe faith as a tiny light that someone keeps tending.
Write an ode to something mundane: your favorite mug, a grocery store, a blanket, or the first sip of coffee.
Write about the strange grief of outgrowing a version of yourself that you once loved.
Write a poem in which each stanza begins with “I used to think…”
Write about a home you haven’t found yet.
Write a poem that reads like a prayer or song.

4. The 10-minute writing game

Just set a timer and go! Whatever comes to mind! Write it down. It could read like a story or a journal entry but don’t stop!

5. Get a Random Image or Song and Run with it!

Go to pinterest and the FIRST image you get that isn’t text based is what you need to write a story on! Alternatively, put your playlist on shuffle and write inspired by the first song that comes up!

Hopefully that’s all enough to get you started for now! Let me know what you make below in the comments or feel free to leave your tips for what you write when you’re bored if you’re willing to share! 😉

365 Days of Being a Writer: Month 5

October 4, 2026October 4, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

This month is going to have two halves- one half is “Story Sparks”. These are things or items that you can take and run with to build your own story around. The second half is focused on Settings.

In summary, the first half of the month you’re writing about the “what”. What object or event kicked off this story? Second half of the month is going to focus on the “where” and you can go from there! Best of luck, dear readers!

Month 5 pt. 1– Story Sparks

Write about a mysterious key.
Write about a letter arriving late.
Write about a lost pet.
Write about a strange visitor.
Write about an unexpected storm.
Write about a rumor spreading through town.
Write about someone returning home.
Write about a hidden room.
Write about a missing person.
Write about a midnight phone call.

Break:
105. Make a Pinterest board or moodboard for a story.

Month 5 pt.2 – Setting

Describe a cottage.
Describe an abandoned house.
Describe a castle.
Describe a farm.
Describe a library.
Describe a train station.
Describe a market.
Describe a forest path.
Describe a snowy street.
Describe a summer evening.

Break:
116. Look at a photo online and write 5 sentences about it.

What Kind of Friend Are You? Introducing My Friendship Animal Theory 🐕🐻🐍

September 19, 2026September 19, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

I have a new internet project! But then again, don’t I always?

Well, technically I have had this internet project for a little while now, but I have finally given it a proper home.

I started a TikTok called Whimsy Theories, which is basically a place for me to take the random systems and theories that my brain comes up with and turn them into something other people can actually think about.

You may have seen my Fantasy Style Theory post, where I divide aesthetics into seven fantasy archetypes: Princess, Goblin, Knight, Wizard, Dragon, Mermaid, and Angel. That one is probably my favorite I’ve ever come with but it is definitely not the last. That theory started with me thinking about fashion and eventually turned into a whole little world of archetypes, combinations, modifiers, and aesthetics.

Then I moved onto another fun little theory except this one focuses on friend types.

And that is how I ended up developing the Friendship Animal Theory.

To preface, it is loosely inspired by the Six Besties Theory by Alexandra Hayes (You can check out more of her work HERE, I especially enjoy her podcast on youtube which is a delightful advice column.)

So What Is Friendship Animal Theory (The Friendship Bestiary)?

The basic idea is pretty simple:

Different people tend to fall into different roles and dynamics within their friendships.

Not personality types. And, importantly, Not permanent identities. Not “you are a Hound and therefore you behave this way in every relationship.” Instead, these animals describe the role you tend to take on within a particular friendship or friend group.

You might be a Hound with one person and a Bear with another. Or you might have a very different dynamic with your childhood best friend than you do with your coworkers or your newest friend. And I think that is part of what makes this more interesting than a traditional personality quiz or something akin to that.

Friendships bring out different versions of us.

You might be extremely independent in most areas of your life but become incredibly loyal and sentimental with your oldest friends. Or you might be the responsible one at work but the absolute chaos goblin of your friend group.

The question isn’t necessarily “Which animal am I?” though I will add, that if you are one type of friend, there is a higher chance that that tends to be a role you have in other relationships in your life. These are relationship patterns that can be consistent but definitely aren’t the hard rule for how you relate to people. The idea is that friendships aren’t just collections of individual personalities. They’re little ecosystems.

And in an ecosystem, different creatures interact with each other.

Some relationships are nurturing. Some are protective. Some are complicated. Some become unhealthy. Some change completely over time.

Ask yourself: What kind of ecosystem are you creating together, you and your friends?

Sheesh that was a lot of yapping. Are we ready to talk about the actual theory now? I hope so, because here we go!

The Core Friendship Creatures

The first group contains the creatures that represent healthy or generally constructive friendship dynamics.

These are the Bear, Fox, Frog, Owl, Magpie, Rabbit, and Whale.

🦊 The Fox: Mischief & Adventure

The Fox is the friend who makes life more interesting. Their core, if you will, is mischief and adventure.

They are the person who says:

“Okay, but what if we just went?”

Fox friendships thrive on experiences and Exploring somewhere you’ve never been. Sometimes even trying something ridiculous. The Fox brings movement and curiosity into a friendship. They’re your spontaneous friend.

They’re often the reason a perfectly ordinary afternoon turns into a story you tell six months later.

The Fox reminds us that friendship isn’t only about emotional support. Sometimes friendship is about having something to remember and experiencing stuff together!

🐸 The Frog: Silliness & Humor

The Frog is the friend who makes you laugh.

Their core is silliness and humor.

Frog friendships are full of inside jokes, ridiculous conversations, funny voices, memes, terrible ideas, and laughing at things that absolutely should not be that funny. The Frog is also the friend who can make an ordinary day feel lighter.

They remind us that friendship doesn’t always have to be profound. Sometimes the most meaningful thing someone can give you is an hour where you forgot about everything bothering you because you were laughing so hard that you both cannot even breathe anymore. Truly healing.

The Frog brings fun into friendship.

🦉 The Owl: Wisdom & Perspective

The Owl is the friend you go to when you need perspective.

Their core is wisdom and perspective.

The Owl can help you step outside your immediate emotions and look at the bigger picture. They’re the friend who listens to the entire story before responding. Or they might ask the question you hadn’t considered. Or they might even gently point out that the situation you are currently convinced is the end of the world probably isn’t. We need these people badly in our lives to often ground us.

The Owl doesn’t necessarily solve your problems.

Sometimes they just help you see them differently.

🐕 The Hound: Loyalty

The Hound is the loyal friend.

So, as you could probably guess, their core is loyalty.

The Hound remembers who their people are. They do this by showing up. They check in. And they ALWAYS notice when someone is missing. They care about maintaining the bond.

The Hound’s love often looks like consistency.

It’s the feeling of:

“I’m still here.”

🐻 The Bear: Protection

The Bear is the protector.

Their core is protection.

This is the friend who wants to make sure you’re okay. They might walk you to your car or defend you when someone treats you badly. Sometimes they might bring you food when you’re sick or help you through a difficult situation without needing to be asked. They want to help, at the end of the day, and make sure you’re OK.

The Bear’s instinct is:

“Let me take care of you.”

At its healthiest, this is a beautiful form of friendship.

The Bear reminds people that they don’t have to handle everything alone. Sometimes you really do need someone willing to stand beside you.

🪶 The Magpie: Thoughtfulness, Sharing & Connection

The Magpie is one of my favorites because their friendship language is thoughtfulness.

Magpies notice little things. They always remember what you like. They are the kind of friends to see something in a store and think, “Oh my gosh, Brooke would love this.” Or they might send you a picture because it reminded them of you. They LOVE to give gifts and share things.

They collect little pieces of life and bring them back to the people they love.

The Magpie is about connection through thoughtfulness.

It isn’t necessarily about expensive gifts or grand gestures either. It can be as small as a snack you mentioned wanting to try or A funny rock you found on a walk. A common gesture is a book recommendation. Some days it’s just a message that says, “I saw this and thought of you.”

The Magpie says to their friends:

“I saw this and thought of you!”

🐇 The Rabbit: Encouragement & Enthusiasm

The Rabbit is the friend who gets excited with you.

Their core is encouragement and enthusiasm which makes them very fun to tell good news.

You tell them you want to start painting? They’re excited.

You tell them you got a new job?

They’re excited.

You have a weird little hobby you’ve become obsessed with?

They’re asking questions.

You want to try something you’ve never done before?

They’re probably already cheering you on.

The Rabbit helps other people believe in themselves.

They celebrate their friends’ victories, including the tiny ones.

They’re the:

“YOU DID IT!!!”

friend.

The Rabbit reminds us that encouragement is its own form of love. Sometimes you don’t need someone to give you advice. You just need someone who is genuinely excited that you are excited. They are the cheerleader friend and are amazing for it.

🐋 The Whale: Depth & Emotional Intimacy

The Whale is the deep friend.

Their core is depth and emotional intimacy.

Whale friendships often involve long conversations, vulnerability, shared history, and the feeling that someone really understands you.

You can talk about your childhood. Your fears. Your dreams. Or even your weird philosophical thoughts at 1 AM.

The Whale creates a sense of emotional depth but this doesn’t necessarily mean you have to talk constantly.

A Whale friendship can be quiet or even a long distance friend. It can be the person you haven’t seen in months but somehow pick up with immediately.

The important thing is that there is depth underneath the relationship. The roots go deep.

And Then There Are the Disruptive Creatures

Not every friendship dynamic is healthy. And sometimes, even perfectly good friendships can develop unhealthy patterns. That’s where this second category of dynamics and creatures come in.

These creatures aren’t meant to mean “bad people.” They describe behaviors that can disrupt a friendship ecosystem. And importantly, you can sometimes fall into one of these dynamics without being a fundamentally bad friend. Ouch, reflection. I am not always a fan of this but who is. But because of this, the disruptive creatures can be helpful in identifying the pitfalls we fall into, especially among certain friends and friendgroups. For example, I may fancy myself the hound friend because I’m soooo loyal but I can also be a spider or wolf where I can depend on people too much and have an “everyone else sucks” attitude.

Alright, I’ll chill with the examples since we need to go a little more in depth with these…

🕷️ The Spider: Entanglement & Dependency

The Spider represents entanglement and dependency.

This is when two people become so wrapped up in each other that the boundaries of the friendship start disappearing.

You may feel responsible for the other person’s emotions or you may struggle to do things independently. In some of my experiences, I felt like I had to constantly be available.

The friendship can become a web. The closer you get, the harder it becomes to move freely. This dynamic is combatted by the reminder that Healthy closeness still leaves room for two people to be separate individuals.

🐍 The Viper: Resentment & Criticism

The Viper represents resentment and criticism. Double ouch.

This is what happens when frustration starts accumulating underneath a friendship. Instead of talking about what’s wrong, you become increasingly critical. I know for sure, this is a dynamic that I have partipcated in.

Little things start irritating you. You keep score. You notice everything the other person does wrong. Eventually, the friendship can become full of little bites. And the difficult thing about the Viper is that resentment often doesn’t appear out of nowhere. There may actually be a real problem underneath it that should probably be addressed with apologies all around. The issue is that instead of addressing the problem directly, the resentment starts leaking out through criticism or quiet resenment towards the other party.

🐺 The Wolf: Isolation & “Us vs. Them”

The Wolf represents isolation and an “us versus them” mentality.

This is the dynamic where a friendship or friend group becomes increasingly closed off. There is 100% an inner circle and it is not open to the public, I assure you! There are outsiders.

And eventually, being loyal to the group can start meaning distancing yourself from everyone else. The Wolf isn’t simply having a close friend group. Close groups can be wonderful! But the real problem arises when closeness requires exclusion.

When “we’re close” becomes “we’re against them.”

🦅 The Hawk: Domination, Superiority & Competition

The Hawk represents domination, superiority, and competition.

This is the friendship where someone starts trying to establish themselves above everyone else.

Who knows more? Who is more successful? Who has more friends? Who is more attractive? Who is the leader?

The relationship stops feeling collaborative and starts feeling like a hierarchy.

The Hawk doesn’t necessarily have to be loud and domineering in an obvious way. Sometimes superiority is subtle. It can look like constantly correcting people, one-upping stories, competing over achievements, or needing to feel like the most important person in the room.

The Hawk can be combatted by the concept that friendship isn’t supposed to be a scoreboard.

🪱 The Leech: One-Sidedness

The Leech represents one-sided friendship.

One person gives and the other takes. And takes. And takes…

One person always listens. One person always needs help.

One person makes the plans. One person always has an excuse.

Of course, friendships aren’t perfectly equal every single day. Sometimes one person needs more support especially during difficult life phases. Sometimes someone is going through a difficult season and that’s all there is to it.

The Leech dynamic happens when the imbalance becomes the relationship.

There is no real reciprocity.

One person keeps pouring into the friendship while the other keeps consuming it. Signs you may be dealing with this is a constant drain from a friendship.

🦜 The Parrot: Gossip & Carrying Information

The Parrot represents gossip and carrying information between people. Oh boy, this is gonna be fun…

This is the friend who always knows something. And more importantly, always seems to have something to tell someone else.

“Well, she told me…”

“Apparently he said…”

“Don’t tell anyone I told you this…”

The Parrot can become the communication highway between different parts of a friend group. Information travels. Then Secrets travel. Comments get repeated that probably shouldn’t be. And then things get taken out of context. And suddenly everyone knows things they probably shouldn’t know and everyone is upset while the Parrot might shrug and think they’re simply a nuetral third party.

The Parrot dynamic reminds us that information is part of relationship trust.

Just because someone told you something doesn’t mean it was yours to pass along.

Principals

The Species Principle

The first rule of the theory is something I call the Species Principle.

And it is probably the most important one.

People are not species. Relationships are ecosystems.

You aren’t simply a Bear Friend™ who behaves like a Bear in every relationship you have.

You might be a Bear with your little sister, a Magpie with your best friend, and an Owl with a coworker you have slowly become friends with.

The creature describes the dynamic, not the person. This is why I don’t really think of the theory as a personality test (sorry if I keep repeating myself). The same person can behave completely differently depending on who they are with and I think that’s normal. That’s what makes people so layered and complicated sometimes, so it’s no wonder our friendships can ALSO be layered and complicated at times.

The Mirror Principle

We don’t just bring our own behavior into friendships.

We respond to each other.

A friend who makes you feel safe might bring out a more vulnerable side of you. And A friend who is constantly critical might make you defensive (naturally). A friend who is silly might bring out your own silliness.

Please don’t take this to mean other people are responsible for our behavior. It means relationships are interactive. You affect the ecosystem, and the ecosystem affects you. That’s why I don’t think these creatures should be treated like permanent identities.

Which leads into the Combo Principle!

The Combo Principle

Most people are combinations.

You might be a Hound + Magpie with one friend.

You’re deeply loyal to them, but you also love remembering little things about them, giving them gifts, and collecting memories together.

Or maybe you’re a Fox + Frog.

Every time you get together, something ridiculous happens, and you are usually the person who suggested the adventure in the first place.

Maybe you’re an Owl + Whale, where your friendship revolves around deep conversations and understanding each other.

The combinations are endless. And honestly, I think combinations are probably more representative of real friendships than trying to force everyone into one a rigid and hyperspecific category or animal.

The Transformation Principle

One of the most important ideas in this theory is that creatures can change.

A friendship isn’t frozen.

A Hound can become a Viper when loyalty turns into resentment. A Whale can become a Spider when emotional intimacy turns into dependency. Remember friends, the positive and disruptive creatures aren’t completely separate worlds. There are cases where the unhealthy dynamic is simply a healthy instinct that has been pushed too far.

That’s why I don’t want people to try and use these animals as permanent labels. They’re more useful as warning signs and lenses and probably best used in hindsight or reflecting, especially in cases where we may be in the wrong!

The Impermanence Principle

The final principle is that friendship ecosystems are temporary and changing.

People change. You change too actually even though you may not feel it.

People move, get new jobs, get married…

You discover new interests. You go through difficult seasons. Sometimes friendships grow stronger and sadly but realistically, sometimes they become more distant. And though I hate it when this happens, sometimes a person who was once central to your life becomes someone you see once every few years. It hurts but it is part of life. To quote the Ratitouille movie by Pixar, “Change is Nature”.

That doesn’t necessarily erase what the friendship meant. Some relationships belong to a particular season of life and, miraculously and amazingly, some evolve with you.

And Some end.

And that’s okay.

An ecosystem isn’t supposed to stay exactly the same forever.

Possible Additions to the Theory…

I do have a two additions I’ve considered for this theory…

I’m unsure how to add them though as they truly do feel like “nuetral” creatures that describe a specific type of relationship in people’s lives. So I’ll let you leave your thoughts on these in the comments.

The Cat 🐈

The Cat represents independence. I know, shocker.

This is the friend who loves their people but also really likes having their own little world. They might disappear into a hobby for three days. They probably are also very low maintence and do not need constant texting.

They can spend time alone without interpreting it as loneliness. And they generally don’t need their friendships to consume their entire life.

A healthy Cat understands that closeness and independence can coexist. You can love someone deeply and still have your own life.

🦋 The Moth: Rekindled Friendship

The Moth represents the rekindled friendship.

This is the friend you find your way back to.

Maybe you were inseparable in high school and then life pulled you in completely different directions. Maybe you had a falling out. Maybe you simply lost touch. Maybe years passed without either of you realizing quite how long it had been. And then, somehow, magically, you find each other again. There is something very moth-like about this kind of friendship and I love it. You may have wandered away from the light for a while, but eventually you find your way back.

A rekindled friendship doesn’t necessarily become exactly what it was before. Sometimes you discover that you have both changed too much for that. Instead, you get the strange and wonderful experience of meeting an old friend again as the people you’ve become.

The best Moth friendships don’t try to recreate the past. They make something new and good.

There is usually a little nostalgia involved. Old jokes come back. You remember things you had completely forgotten. You find yourself saying, “Oh my gosh, remember when…” But there is also a new layer to the friendship because you are no longer the same people who knew each other the first time around.

The Moth relationship can remind us that distance doesn’t always mean complete disappearance or even means the end of something.

Some friendships go quiet for a season and still have enough warmth left to be rekindled. These cases are rare but they’re oh-so-beautiful when they occur. You are truly blessed if you have a moth friendship.

So What Creature Are You?

Maybe the answer isn’t one creature. Most people aren’t to be completely honest with you. I’d be shocked otherwise.

Maybe you’re a Hound + Magpie with your oldest friend.

A Fox + Frog with your adventure buddy.

An Owl + Whale with the person you have all your deep conversations with.

A Rabbit + Magpie with the friend you are constantly encouraging and surprising with little gifts.

And maybe there are certain dynamics you’re trying to move away from.

Maybe you’ve noticed some Viper creeping into a friendship because you’ve been holding onto resentment. Or you’ve been slipping into Parrot behavior by carrying information between friends. It’s so easy sometimes, I’m sure. Especially among certain crowds and groups.

That is what I actually want this theory to be useful for. Not putting yourself into a very specific box with parameters and DEFINITELY not deciding that someone is a “bad friend” because they fit an animal. I would also add to not treat these as permanent personality types. Instead, I want them to give us a fun little language for talking about something that is actually pretty complicated:

the ecosystems we create with other people.

Because friendships are weird and nuanced.

Sometimes you’re the one bringing little gifts or encouraging people. There friend groups with which we’re the “class clown”. There are days where we’re the enourageer. And sometimes, if we’re being honest, we’re the one who needs to take a step back and ask ourselves what we’re contributing to the ecosystem. Which is probably why I like this theory so much.

It gives us a way to look at friendship without reducing people to personality types.

We’re not species. Our relationships are ecosystems (hit me if I say this again lol.)

And apparently I am going to keep making theories about them.

Stay tuned everyone and thank you for sticking around and getting through this so very long post!

Byeeee!

I Started a Writing Event! (and the importance of a Writing Community)

June 9, 2026June 9, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ 7 Comments

Happy, June! Just wanted to give everyone on here a fun little update on what’s going on in my creative life!

The answer, shockingly, is not writing. It’s ok to gasp. I know my posts paint the picture of someone who is soooooo consistent (insert eye roll here)

I’m actually NOT currently buried in a novel draft that has turned into a continuous hell to edit, nor am I working on a poetry collection (though I have a few half-finished ones in my drafts somewhere). I’ve been doing something actually quite different from my usual projects…

I started a writing event! I guess that isn’t a super big reveal since you read the title in big ‘ol letters. I think its pretty exciting though.

Instead, I’ve spent the last several months organizing a little community called Cup & Quill Collective.

It’s become one of the most rewarding creative things I’ve ever invested my energy into.

The idea started simple enough. I wanted a place where people could share their writing without the pressure of publication, social media algorithms, or trying to become the next literary sensation. I wanted a room where someone could read a poem they wrote last week, a chapter from a novel they’ve been working on for years, or even a resurrected long dead project that they just want to pay homage to before setting it aside.

I was also highly motivated by my own lack of creative community. After leaving college, that outlet was gone whereas before, I signed up for writing workshops and classes to fill that void. Even though they had NOTHING to do with my major (hello writing minor!)

Couple this with a SUPER supportive encouraging and amazing friend who also knew a person and the ball began rolling.

I reached out to a local coffee shop owner and their event manager and asked if they’d be interested in hosting a literature and poetry night.

To my surprise, they said yes.

So it began! I started creating sign-up forms, answering emails, making flyers, posting on social media, coordinating readers, arranging themes, introducing speakers, and occasionally wondering if anyone would show up at all.

Fortunately, people did.

One of the biggest things I’ve learned is that there are far more writers around us than we realize. They’re sitting in coffee shops, working office jobs, attending church, raising families, and carrying notebooks filled with stories nobody has heard yet.

Many of them aren’t looking for that big publishing deal though that would be fabulous, admittedly. But, like me, I think they’re just looking for a few ears to listen.

Cup & Quill has given me the chance to meet people from all kinds of backgrounds who share one thing in common: they love words. Some are seasoned writers. Some are reading their work aloud for the first time. Some come just to listen and enjoy a cup of coffee while hearing local creativity.

All of them make the room feel a little more alive.

Ironically, while I haven’t been producing as much new writing lately, I feel more connected to writing than ever. AND THE MOTIVATION.

Nothing is more motivating than knowing that you have an outlet to share your work with. You don’t have to “sell” yourself. You just show up and read. Not to mention how incredibly inspiring the talent of the other readers is. I walk away feeling delighted every time. And I always walk away ready to write.

It reminds me how absolutely pivotal a writing community is for the average creative. At least that’s how its been for me. Burn-out is a lot more likely to stay away when you have others to vent and share your work with. It becomes a fulfilling cycle of creative inspiration. Reminder for myself and maybe you too: creativity does not exist in a vacuum. Make sure you’re consuming work, too!

Sometimes the most creative thing you can do isn’t write another page. Sometimes it’s inviting other people to share what they’ve been working on with you!

Final note: take a look at the flyers I so professionally designed with my free version of Canva! Take this as a sign that YOU too can make a cool event, make some cute posters, and people will attend!!

365 Days of being a Writer: Month 4

May 16, 2026May 16, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

To recap, the last month was on observation! Hopefully, you found a variety of different inspirations from the day-to-day simple sitting and listening. Perhaps, in this month, you can put those observations to even more use as we shift the focus to dialogue. Observation month focused heavily on images and listening. This month, you can take what you heard and translate them into actual conversations between characters. Welcome to Dialogue Month!!

Also, a little sidenote- this month has less prompts to give you a bit of a break as we hit observation and character month pretty hard. The following months will have fewer and fewer prompts as we get into actual creative writing less creative journaling, and writing exercises. Let’s stay away from that ever-prevalent writer’s burnout!

Month 4 – Dialogue

Write a conversation where someone hides the truth.
Write a conversation with no dialogue tags.
Write a conversation between siblings.
Write a conversation between enemies.
Write a conversation that happens over text messages.
Write a phone call scene.
Write a conversation interrupted by something unexpected.
Write two characters arguing about something trivial.
Write two characters apologizing.
Write two characters flirting awkwardly.

Break:
94. Listen to people talking in public and jot down interesting phrases.

365 Days of being a Writer: Month 3

April 16, 2026April 16, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

This month is going to be focused on observing! Writers are at their best when they are paying close attention to their surroundings. Writers can be inspired by anything but it really helps if you can pull inspiration from your own life (“writing what you know”). In order to do this, one must be observant. So! The prompts for month 3 are designed to help you step out of your own head and take a look at your surroundings! What do you see?

Month 3 – Observation

Sit somewhere public and write what you see.
Describe three strangers.
Write about overheard conversation.
Describe a shop window.
Write about the weather like a character.
Describe a tree in detail.
Write about someone walking a dog.
Describe the smell of a bakery.
Write about the sound of traffic.
Write about a quiet afternoon.
Describe a cloudy sky.
Write about a bird.
Write about a river or creek.
Describe the inside of a coffee shop.
Write about someone reading a book.
Write about someone on their phone.
Write about a couple arguing quietly.
Describe a cluttered desk.
Write about something abandoned.
Describe a bench in a park.

Creative break:
83. Take a walk and write down five things you noticed.

365 Days of being a Writer: Month 2

March 29, 2026March 29, 2026 ~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

This month is character month! Last month was about getting started and building momentum, while this month will focus on building a character or characters plural and developing them one step at a time. Create one from scratch or work on a pre-existing one. These prompts are for you to do what you will.

Month 2 – Character

Invent a character and write their daily routine.
Write your character’s worst habit.
Write your character’s biggest fear.
Write about something your character regrets.
Write a scene where your character lies to someone they love.
Write about your character’s childhood home.
Write about something your character collects.
Write about a childhood memory your character can’t forget.
Write about your character’s favorite meal.
Write a scene where your character gets unexpected news.
Describe your character’s best friend.
Write about a scar your character has.
Write about your character losing something important.
Write about a small victory.
Write a scene where your character feels embarrassed.
Write about something your character envies.
Write your character’s inner monologue.
Write a scene where your character forgives someone.
Write a scene where your character refuses to forgive someone.
Write your character’s morning thoughts.
Write a dream your character had.
Write about your character’s favorite place.
Write your character’s greatest hope.
Write your character’s greatest mistake.
Write a scene where someone misunderstands your character.
Write your character’s personal motto.
Write a moment of jealousy.
Write a quiet moment alone.
Write a confession scene.

Creative break:
61. Make a playlist for your character.
62. Describe the playlist in writing.