cleanwhiteroom-archived

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

LMAO WAIT. WAIT I DIDNT CATCH THIS THE FIRST TIME. WAIT. WAIT PLEASE.

hello check the blog cwr is seems to be back to pacrim universe too

Please I am so fragile do not play with my heart 👀🥺

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

Just thinking thoughts out here in ghost land ignore me but if Maths and DCWT no longer occur on the same brane 👀 then WHAT pray tell is the story of the Young and Rush who so clearly end up together at Berkeley in the DCWT universe? Literally begging for the cliff notes on them and/or headcanons cuz I have SO many ideas

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

hello check the blog cwr is seems to be back to pacrim universe too

Please I am so fragile do not play with my heart 👀🥺

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

My magnum opus, the jewel of my Binderary round-up, the result of four months of hard work (that is to say, a lot of force applied over distance), the project affectionately known as The Motherfuckers (because it was rather unclear if I was going to finish these books or if they were going to be the end of me).

Force over Distance by cleanwhiteroom. It is currently also on AO3.

I was first introduced to this incredible story by a dear friend, who first sold me on actually watching SGU, and then said that they remember this fic since like 2011, which is always a promising sign. I went digging and found out I was in luck - the story was being rewritten and reuploaded on the author's blog. The next two weeks are described by the same friend as "one of the scariest moments in our cohabitation" as I'd spent literally every waking moment injecting the story directly into my eyeballs, and let me tell you, I'd not been doing a lot of sleeping at that time.

Then I gathered up my courage and reached out to CWR re: my burning desire to bind this story. And the rest, well. Let's dig into it, shall we?

This was my first time typesetting 540k words. Considering I tend to prefer larger font sizes for increased legibility, it was immediately obvious that this was going to be a multivolume project. I settled on three, as it's the relationship between three individuals that forms the core of the story.

I also knew I wanted to keep the typeset in black and white, but play around with light and dark a lot. So I did. One of the first design idea I actually had was the way I wanted to handle projected speech. Mental link between Young, Rush and Destiny is THE most vital part of the story, and I wanted to make it immediatly obvious. I also wanted to be able to take one glance at the page and tell how much of the action is actually just two guys staring each other down :) Hence the blackout effect of thoughts being represented as light over darkness.

I also wanted to preserve as much of my reading experience as possible. So I saved all the chapter quotes/summaries in the TOC, and hid the chapter content warnings in the frame of the gate that marks the beginning of each chapter. For most of the chapter the warnings stay the same, so after a while you stop really noticing them, but then you open a new chapter and see that the familiar shape of the words has changed, and get this UH-OH feeling. Which, I think is very much how it works in my design, because when the warnings change there's usually another line of text added.

For flashbacks and dream sequences I switched from italics to a lighter shade of gray. I woudn't say it's more legible per say, but it's in keeping with the overall light/dark theme.

There are instances of people using handwritten notes in the story. I collected more than a dozen of assorted handwriting fonts, with each character having their own "handwriting". So when, for example, someone begins writing in someone else's hand, you immediately know it.

The most insane, labor-intensive part of the typeset, however, was the way I decided to handle the Ancient translations. CWR's gone through the trouble of setting up hover-to-discover for it, which gives you a very different reading experience than, say, having the translations in the endnotes. So, naturally, I said to myself that I want to replicate that, and footnotes just won't do the trick. So. Every instance of Ancient in the text has an underlay of light gray Ancient script. And an OVERLAY of paper vellum with the translation printed in blue. Now, not to toot my own horn too much, but if looks SICK AS FUCK. You also MAYBE SHOULD NOT LIVE LIKE THIS. For the two copies of this work I had to cut up 10 sheets of vellum into strips, and then spent from 20 minutes to an hour per volume tipping the strips in their proper places. I then had to wear kinetic tape on both my hands to help with the joint pain. (It was worth it.)

Now for the title spread. It is also paper vellum that you see as soon as you turn the first page (the half-title), and see it covering the title of the book and author's name. And then you turn it. And the shields sing the matter wave of Destiny through the black. And yeah, I think that's very, very clever of me, actually.

Then, of course, were the endpapers. All 12 of them are unique abstract paintings done on black cardstock by hand with brush pens and correction tape, I scanned a sample of each set for posterity. All of them are my interpretations of characters' midscapes. For volume 1 I went with the fire wind of Rush's thoughts. Volume 2 was for Young, and I went for the reverse blackout poetry effect (because for all the mental talking they do, the unprojected thoughts are opaque to their counterparts) and all the loops, hairpins and blocks he does. Volume 3 is for the combination - Rush's fire wind, changing its color to match the circuitry pattern of Destiny's AI.

The rest, in comparison, is easy. All volumes are stitched with 3 strands of embroidery floss, a combination of black, blue and silvery-gray. The French double-core endbands are sewn in the same color scheme (though with a different shade of blue and gray switched for white for added contrast). The edges are painted and splattered to look like space.

The covers feature my (signature at this point, I guess) half-cloth river pattern, with the base being dark blue linen and the printed parts being Spitzer telescope images of the W51 star forge, Jack-O'-Lantern Nebula and the Eagle Nebula (courtesy of NASA), waxed by hand for added sheen. The spines are foiled in silver with a foil quill.

Each set is 5 pound of solid hand-crafted book, with one set being my personal copy, and the other sent as a gift to the author.

And that's it, folks! This has been an incredible project to work on, and I'm very proud of what I achieved with it.

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

🚨🚨 Mathématique Chapter 67 posted!!! WEEWOO!!! 🚨🚨

Someone reminded me it’s been a year and a half since Maths last updated so I am 🥹 admittedly 🥲 excited 😭🤯🥳

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

Also 👀 new math approaches

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Just thinking thoughts out here in ghost land ignore me but if Maths and DCWT no longer occur on the same brane 👀 then WHAT pray tell is the story of the Young and Rush who so clearly end up together at Berkeley in the DCWT universe? Literally begging for the cliff notes on them and/or headcanons cuz I have SO many ideas

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

540,000 words later… the entirety of FOD appears to have now been posted to AO3 🤩🥹 nature is healing

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

🚨FOD IS DONE AND HAS BEEN POSTED TO AO3🚨

93 chapters later and shock of all shocks, FOD is not only complete on CWR’s blog spot but has been posted to AO3! Go! Give Kudos!!! FRABJOUS DAY!!!

From the desk of CWR (aka the blogspot):

Writing:

Does anyone have glue? I need it for my sanity. [AKA the FoD rewrite is done.]

Latest Releases:

Text: FoD 93 [Dreams of the Multiverse]

Locked audio: FoD7 [Physical Chemistry]

Forecast:

Text: I caaaaaan't [Check back later.]

Audio: Probably FoD11

Current Vibe:

Oh god I need a nap.

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

WAKEY WAKEY

For all of those who haven't been on the blogspot for the last year or so - cleanwhiteroom is back and as of today POSTING ON AO3 AGAIN!!

Force Over Distance has been undergoing an overhaul and it has quite extensive edits, as has Math and Ad Noctum, so....basically make sure that you reread it hahaha! The Multiverse Triptych is back!!

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

A local ghostly archivist sheds a little phantom tear 🥹

I’m still around folks, life just came at me fast this season - but I’m getting back up and dusting myself off, continuing ever forwards… 🤍

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

🚨 FoD Ch53 is up! 🚨

Latest Releases:

Text: FoD53

Locked Audio: FoD35

Work Feed: Go and see!

Forecast:

Text: 95% chance of FoD54; 5% chance ceremonially reserved for the whims of fate.

Audio: 50% chance of FoD49; 50% chance of wild card.

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

Happy Sunday!!!

Latest Releases:

Text: FoD52

Locked Audio: FoD35

Work Feed: Go and see!

Forecast:

Text: 95% chance of FoD53; 5% chance ceremonially reserved for the whims of fate.

Audio: 50% chance of FoD49; 50% chance of wild card.

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

🚨 Two in one day! Audio for FoD Ch35 😎 🚨

Forecast:

Text: 95% chance of FoD52; 5% chance ceremonially reserved for the whims of fate.

Audio: 50% chance of FoD49; 50% chance of wild card.

Work Feed: Should keep you busy for a while, kids.

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

🚨 FoD Ch51: Alloy! 🚨

Latest Releases:

Text: FoD51 (Alloy)

Audio: FoD8

Work Feed: Go and see!

Forecast:

Text: 95% chance of FoD52; 5% chance ceremonially reserved for the whims of fate.

Audio: 99% chance of FoD35 in the short term.

Work Feed: Should keep you busy for a while, kids.

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

ch50 is here btw, I guess the updates are on monday now?

Eek thank you!

🚨

Latest Releases:

Text: FoD50

Audio: FoD8

Work Feed: Go and see!

Forecast:

Text: 95% chance of FoD50; 5% chance ceremonially reserved for the whims of fate.

Audio: 95% chance of FoD35.

Work Feed: Should keep you busy for a while, kids.

[cleanwhiteroom-archived]

Hi, mate! Thanks to this account I now know that Cwr and Elementals had new works (if I can say that about September 2022). I read DCWT and I exploded in the street a few minutes ago after reading one of ur post about new texts. Can you help me to know in what order I need to read all the new stuff and where I can read/listen them? Is only Pacific Rim related or there is some other fandom and/or new original world?

@umbra-life HI SORRY hello! Yes! Welcome! I do need to update my pinned post one of these days - today is sadly not that day because it is 1am but rest assured I will be fixing it soon!

If you kept up with CWR’s work in Pacific Rim prior to 2015 or so, then you probably read Designations Congruent With Things, Out of Many Scattered Things, and the one shots such as Like The Twist of a Plot. If you’re looking for new CWR shenanigans in the Pacific Rim Universe since 2020 or so, the big New Addition is called Aftermath and it is gorgeous 🥹 You can download/read Aftermath on CWR’s blog here! If you want to reread everything in the Designations universe, I’d probably suggest just going in release order: DCWT, OOMST, Aftermath, and then the one-shots. The first three are all on CWR’s site for download, and I have a doc of the one-shots I saved in The Before Times here. As for audio- Elementals released a recording for DCWT Ch 20 and Ch21! No official word on whether we’ll get the rest, but their website does say audio for Aftermath is coming so fingies and toes are crossed 😇

The OTHER new stuff CWR has been/is currently releasing is all in the Stargate universe - before writing in Pacific Rim, CWR originally started a triptych of Stargate fics: Force Over Distance (complete), Mathèmatique (WiP) and Ad Noctum (WiP). In the last few years, CWR has begun to rewrite FoD, and rework/add on to Maths and AdNo. 🥹 Likewise, Elementals has also been releasing new audio for these updated/new chapters, available on their website - AND the newest update this weekend is Elementals is maybe now allowing us access to in-progress audio 😱 go look at their site for details. It’s ridic.

Figuring out the order to read the Triptych is both straightforward and complicated - you should read FoD first, and then can read Maths and AdNo in any order after that… but should someone reading FoD for the first time start with the original complete FoD first and then the new WiP version of FoD for instance? Or just jump straight to the new versions? I wish I knew for certain pal - my gut though says start with the new versions on CWR’s website and if you’re fascinated and want to take the time to compare to the OGs then I have copies of them in my google drive for your perusal! That’s just me though - Anyone else out there have an opinion on whether newcomers to CWR’s Stargate triptych should read the originals first or start afresh?

Tangentially related to the DCWT side of the ask……… This ask actually sent me down a bit of a rabbit hole. And that rabbit hole is ‘what order do all the chapters of CWR’s Pacific Rim tale ACTUALLY take place in?’ And while part of me worries that reading them in chronological order would fundamentally mess with CWR’s intent (why do I get fractal vibes from stories within stories, drilling down and expanding on smaller and smaller sections? I could be reading into things…) I couldn’t help myself. And turns out untangling their order is mostly sort-of possible so I maybe put that list together below for anyone brave enough to attempt it lmao. Take the order with a grain of salt as some of these like The Twist of a Plot could maybe take place later or sooner than I’ve put them but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I’m running this post so what can ya do ya know?

CWR’s Pacific Rim media in Chronological Order, for funsies and for insomnia:

Epistolary Empiricism & Science Charm (OOMST) - In Medias Res (One Shots) - Aftermath 2015 Ch5 & Ch11 - Kingmaker & Lady Stardust (OOMST) - first 1/4 of The Blue Guitar (OOMST) - Aftermath 2015 Ch21, Ch26, Ch31, Aftermath 2017 Ch4, Ch10, Ch17, Ch34, Ch40, Ch46 - the rest of The Blue Guitar & The Crystal Lake (OOMST) - Aftermath 2020 Ch8, Ch12, Ch19, Ch24, Ch29 - Geneva 2020 (OOMST) - Aftermath 2020 Ch33, Ch43 - Failing the Solo Trial & Things Exactly As They Are (OOMST).

(Pacific Rim Film)

DCWT Ch1-9 - Aftermath 2025 Ch2, DCWT Ch10, Read Receipt (One shots) - Aftermath 2025 Ch15, DCWT Ch11-22, Under Pressure(One Shots), DCWT Ch23, Double De-Clutch (One shots) - DCWT Ch 24 - Ch28, Aftermath 2025 Ch25 & Ch48, Like the Twist of a Plot (One Shots), Aftermath 2027 Ch23, Ch27, Ch30, Ch35, Ch38, Ch42, Ch45, Aftermath 2028 Ch3, CH7, Ch16, Ch22, Ch37, Ch41, Ch49, Aftermath 2030 Ch1, Ch6, Ch9, Ch14, Ch2, Ch28, Ch32, Ch39, Ch44, Aftermath 2035 Ch50

Will I ever take the time to read these in order? Only time will tell, but researching all day sure made it feel like I already did 🙃