#I have no video editing skills or equipment though

[thinkblotted]

Building a Better Star (aka, the Star Essay)

I like Star. I’m getting that shit out of the way right here at the beginning, just in case. I like Star, I like what she is, I think she deserves better writing. 

Also - these are my takes. These takes may not be your takes. We can have different takes.

Okay? Okay. Let’s go. 

For the purposes of this analysis and suggestion, I’m only going to be going off of movie canon Star, rather than book canon Star, because while they’re basically the same, there are a few background elements in the book that expand  on Star’s internal thoughts and relationships with the boys that you could only get from exposition in the book, and that’s not as available a source as the movie, so. 

Since I’m either posting this on tumblr for the four people who will read it, or filming myself talking about this like a normal person with normal hobbies, I won’t explain who canonically she is because that’s unnecessary for this audience of me and a discord server, but rather who she is as a character as presented.

The thing about The Lost Boys is that it exists as a double edged sword of characterization for all its characters. They’re all incredibly simple, and in that white space that’s left behind where deeper characterization would be put in other movies, here there’s just a void, leaving the audience to fill in the gaps however they see fit with whatever they can glean from the surrounding world. 

The vampires are the prime example of this - of all the characters, they get the least amount of dialogue and have the most void to fill in who they are as characters. Star is the runner up, having more character, but the same amount of void in her backstory. 

So who is Star? 

Star is The Girl of the group, a trope wherein you have a group of characters who make up the core of your main cast and usually they’re all male, with one or occasionally two exceptions being girls - if it’s two, one will be the ‘nerdy’ or otherwise ‘not strictly desirable by main male cast’ role, and the other will be The Girl, who is almost always the love interest of the main male, who, even though she’s more of a main character then the secondary girl, typically does less than them. As presented, Star fits this trope easily, as well as filling out the subtropes that it consists of. 

She’s soft-spoken, pretty, demure, stays out of most of the fights in the story, offers the protagonist advice but never tells him directly how to face the conflict of the story, offers support but never directly physically supports the protagonist. She’s an inciting incident all to herself, but never actually drives the plot forward except to be a shining prize on the mountaintop of the narrative that the protagonist must climb in order to claim. 

After being in the Lost Boys fandom for about two and a half-ish years now, there are some take-aways specific to Star that the fandom tends to play on the most. 

And I want to add in here, I do not have a problem with these traits being assigned to her. Star, like the rest of the cast, is a very malleable character. The void around her is just as vast as the other vampires, and this is fandom - we play with blorbos from our media like dolls. This entire thing is purely based on what I personally would like to see Star become, and since I’m a freak, I don’t just write fanfic, I also do this. Apparently. So take everything I’m saying with a giant grain of salt.

The traits that I most see attributed to Star are:

-She’s a shrinking violet, either unwilling or unable to interact directly with the conflict of the story

-She’s being held against her will to the point that leaving in any capacity is not only not an option, but would lead to physical harm/possibly death if she tried (ie, she’s an abused captive) 

-She cannot be held responsible for any bad decisions she’s made in the past or makes in the current story, or any bad turns the plot takes 

The first assertion is held up pretty well by the canon of the movie, and most of the fandom also agrees that it would have been nice if the movie actually did make Star a little less soft. There have been several outcries for Star to ‘vamp out’ like the Boys did, to at the very least give her a scary vampire face! Her tiny confrontation with Max at the end of the movie would have been a perfect space for that, but unfortunately, the movie has 80s-itis and being the female love interest and a victim in the plot, Star isn’t allowed to be aggressive in such a blatant manner. 

Star also hangs back whenever the Boys have presence on the screen. She’s never in the forefront, sharing the space, she’s in the background, watching them, only observing. The one time she directly contradicts them, ‘Leave him alone’ she’s told straight up to ‘chill out, girl’, and she doesn’t continue the conflict. When she does decide to try and be more forward with Michael, directly affecting things, she waits until there is no other persons of consequence around in order to do so. 

The second assertion of her being held against her will is a little trickier to pin down as a trait, but evidence of this is implied with how she contributes to the narrative - mainly, in asking Michael directly to save Laddie and her from the Boys, or at the very least, the situation she’s in. Though, it should be noted, that Star never makes a direct statement of what that situation is. She hedges that it’s being being driven to kill to sate the vampiric nature, but when taking scenes like David simply saying her name to get her to come to him, being told indirectly to back off when the Boys are hazing Michael, and backing away in a fearful manner when Michael is drinking the blood wine into consideration, there’s the darker notion that she’s being abused in other ways. 

Because the movie is meant to be a lighter flick, full of scary-yet-alluring vampire punk boys and over the top monster-hunting gore, billing it as a ‘horror-comedy’ excludes any deeper exploration or more explicit on-screen showing of verbal, emotional, or physical harm that Star may be experiencing. Doing so would take away from the fantastical and darkly whimsical nature of the story, grounding it too much, and making the Boys, though they be villains, into villains we wouldn’t love to hate.

Thus, the darker implications of what Star might be facing behind the scenes, when Michael isn’t around and before he came along, is left to the audience’s interpretation, as well as any ability Star has to struggle against them. The fandom frequently interprets as none, thanks to the plot of the movie being what it is. 

The third major assertion that the fandom tends to adopt is that Star is largely if not completely irresponsible for the missteps of other characters and for her own predicament. 

This given trait is the most difficult to back up with evidence directly from the canon as it relies heavily on filling in the blank spaces of Star and the other character’s backstories. Star is not responsible for Michael spotting her in the crowd at the concert or deciding to follow after her. Star technically didn’t tell Michael to accept David’s goading to race. Star told Michael she both didn’t know how to help him, and couldn’t explain it. Star is not responsible for Michael’s induction into the Boy’s gang because, well, she told him what he was drinking was blood. Star never directly acts to drive the plot forward until the beginning of the third act when she does admit to Michael that she needs his help, thus, cannot be held responsible even in part to Michael’s involvement. 

Lack or acceptance of Star’s responsibility for her own inability to leave the Boys is even harder to pin down, as we have no movie canon for what her life was like before meeting the Boys. The implication from the world around them is that Star is a runaway kid like many of the people seen in the opening sweep of Santa Carla, likely from a crappy home and was taken in by the Boys but soon got in over her head, but this is never directly confirmed. 

The idea that Star made a bad choice, and was not just manipulated and coerced after the ‘honeymoon’ period with the Boys is somewhat controversial as it paints Star in a less favorable light. She isn’t an innocent victim, but rather someone who made a bad call and refuses to acknowledge her own agency in that decision, instead placing any and all blame on the Boys. 

‘But what if she’s tried that already?’ Unfortunately, that lies entirely in the realm of off-screen possibilities that are not support by any canon. Star in the movie is never shown or implied to have tried escaping before, and in the book she merely has internal monologues about wanting to leave, not that she’s ever attempted it. 

Giving Star any one of these traits on their own isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Star is very much helpless in this situation - she’s in a den of immortal man-eating monsters while only being barely half of one herself, and refusing to take the option that would grant her more physical power to assert control in the situation, because the act required would be a shattering of her moral compass. Regardless of her involvement in how she got here, she deserves to be able to leave and make better choices. 

But giving Star all of these traits at once with nothing else to her flattens her completely. It does her, in my opinion, an incredible amount of injustice to absolve her of any kind of responsibility in her own problems and then rob her of any bravery to take a risk and change it herself.

And that’s not a good character. 

In order to build a better Star, we need to first accept a truth that might be a slightly hard pill to swallow: 

A good Star is not necessarily a protagonist. 

At least, not in the same way that Michael or Sam can be. Michael and Sam are protagonists in that they’re the heroes of the story. They face the main conflict head on and drive the plot forward with their actions, and are who we’re rooting for to win. We see them and their actions as ‘good’. They are absolved by the framing of blame in what is done to them. (Michael in getting in over his head with the Boys by ignoring the reservations and loose warnings of others, and Sam of murder with the fact that the Boys are man-eating monsters bent on getting back at them when one of their own is killed.)

If you make Star a protagonist in the same way, with her needing to be framed as ‘good’ in the story, but only keeping the character traits previously listed, then she’s a boring character. She becomes only nebulously ‘good’ just by virtue of not technically having done anything that could be considered ‘bad.’ Being counted as a heroine only by default. 

And that sucks. That puts her simultaneously on a pedestal where she can do no wrong, but is an empty shell that’s there to smile or cry and do nothing else. 

Often, when talking about female protagonists, antagonists, anti-heros and characters with grey morality or amorality, the added layer of them being women forces ten times the scrutiny on not just how they’re built as a character, but on their creators and why they’re choosing to build the character in the way they are. Any mistakes plot-pushing decisions made by the character aren’t as likely to be accepted as just the character acting in the story, but get traced back to the author. The audience constantly asks the question, ‘if it was a male character, would there be consequences for this act, or are you treating this character special because they’re a woman?’ 

In this case, it’s ‘Michael also fucks up, and yet is treated as a victim, deserving of sympathy and being saved by his brother rather than having to fight all on his own. Their situations are the same. Why not Star? The only difference between them is gender.’ 

This essay is not about whether or not Star is deserving of being saved, nor is it saying that she deserves being trapped in the situation that she’s in. But much like how Star reminds Michael that she did indeed tell him that it was blood in the bottle and he scoffed at her, Star deserves not to be a lifeless doll being acted upon, and a good female character deserves to not be a pretty, perfect Barbie doll that does no wrong and always looks pretty. 

So with the knowledge that a better Star cannot be purely a protagonist, how do we lower her from the boring pedestal? 

My suggestion: by inverting her three main traits

The first: If she’s billed as meek and demure and soft, then make her more aggressive and vulgar 

The second: If she seems to be kept at silent gunpoint, then give her more freedom to act

The third: Make her at least partly responsible for her own situation, regardless of whether or not she thinks she is 

The first revised trait is the most important in my opinion to building a better Star, as it will help direct and reinforce the second two. 

A large part of Star’s lack of presence in the movie is quite literally, a lack of physical presence. Star seems to hate even being near the vampires, and depending on what kind of story you wish to show her in, it could make sense. But chances are, if she’s given the shrinking violet trait, she’s been given the other two as well, and that makes a bad Star. She must be allowed to speak, and more than that - she must be allowed to show emotion. 

Let Star be angry. Let her be hurt in a way that’s not beautiful and languorous, a wilting agony of suffering in silence. And I’ll say it: Let Star say the Fuck word. As silly and simple as it may seem, such a small detail can transform a character. Star deserves to be as rough-edged and imperfect in her words and attitude as any of the rest of the Boys, possibly more if she’s in a situation that she hates! If she had the bravery to run away from home, then she should be afforded the bravery to be more than a pretty, silent, pure woman who doesn’t know what a cigarette is. 

The second revised trait is going to be the most fluid in interpretation because it relies the most on the author or artist or fan’s personal interpretation of what the relationship between Star and the Boys is really like. 

In the movie, Star seems to move with the Boys. She’s usually near them enough that they can keep an eye on her, as we see with David watching Star talking to Michael before the beach race. The only times we see Star distance herself physically is right after the bonfire, where she comes to the Emerson cabin to convince Michael to save her, or when she and Michael have sex. The first time, she seems desperate, like she may not have much time, and the second, she’s been left there on her own while the Boys go out and cavort, likely with the implication that she should stay where they can find her when they get back. 

Again, this is the trait that can be toyed with the most, but a good way to combat the feeling that she’s being held against her will is to give the notion that there are parts of being around the vampires that she likes. There are tiny hints of this in the movie, and the book expands on this. In the movie, there’s a moment during the race where Star seems to be enjoying herself while riding with David - at the very least, she’s enjoying the speed and thrill, if not the person she’s with. In the book, Star and Paul have the best relationship of any of the boys, with Paul trying to cheer her up and promising a ‘happily ever after’. To keep it from feeling like a full captive situation, give Star a reason to feel a bit conflicted over the pack. She’s there in the first place, after all. 

The third revised trait is going to be the most controversial, as it’s a hard thing to admit when people in real life do it. 

Admitting that sometimes, the problems we find ourselves dealing with, are our own fault. We make a bad call, we make a poorly informed decision or decide in the heat of the moment. Sometimes, we are lied to, but the lie is flimsy and we chose to swallow it because it’s what we wanted to hear at the time. I like to ask authors writing villains this - what’s worse and more compelling; a villain who lies, or a villain who tells the protagonist a truth they don’t want to hear? 

And, as backwards as it sounds, making Star partially responsible for her situation is giving her more agency in her story. It gives her a reasonable character flaw that she has to confront and defeat. 

Here is where I’m going to throw in an interesting observation about a specific scene that I think helps lend itself to this particular revised trait: the scene where she asks Michael for help directly. In canon, the scene goes about like this - Star comes to the cabin, Michael tells her that he knows about the vampires, and when he expresses that he thinks it’s basically done for him, Star tells him that it’s not, he’s not fully gone, and that she needs his help to save all three of them. Now, there’s something really, really interesting to me about this scene: Star is NOT a reliable narrator during it. At all. 

To say that she’s lying outright about everything would be untrue, but when you examine it, you realize that she’s being untruthful all the same. When Michael gets upset, accusing her of not caring about him because in his eyes she let this happen, she says that she DOES care about him, using physical touch to reinforce this. When she’s soundly rejected, by Michel slapping her hand away and demanding to know why she REALLY came, she very reluctantly tells him that she was hoping he’d help them. It’s her last answer, the last thing she wanted to say. Obviously hoping that the emotions would be enough to persuade him, rather than just saying that she needed help outright, which would be easier to say no to. 

Secondly, the WHY. Star states that Michael was ‘supposed to be her first, because it’s what David wanted’. When watching the scene, the delivery, the body language, and given the full context of the plot and how we’ve seen Star behave? We can only come to the conclusion that Star. Doesn’t. Know. That. 

Max’s ultimate goal is to get Lucy, and to get Lucy, he needs Michael and Sam to be on board, or at least BE vampires. Killing one of her children would hardly serve that goal. Given the ending fight, Max doesn’t give a dead rat’s ass about Star. And Star? She doesn’t even know Max exists. David telling Star to kill Michael to turn her into a vampire is not only pointless, but going expressly against Max’s wishes. We don’t know how much of Max’s plan David and the Boys know about, or given their personalities and implied relationship with him, even care about, but defying him in this instance doesn’t seem like the smartest thing to do. 

Not to mention - Star does like Michael. She hugs him at the end, she does give him a warning about the blood, albeit a weak one. She does attempt to fight Max in the end, even if she fails. As for her thoughts on David, those are more complicated. Whether the relationship is real, coerced, that she’s simply a pawn being used to tug Michael around or whether she and David did like each other at one time, is unknown, but it is clear that Star knows that David is interested in Michael, and doesn’t like it. So it would then be logical to assume, given this, that Star would assume, based on what she knows and has been able to observe, that she’d pain David in a worse light. Insinuating that it’s HIM who’s pulling the string, assuming what he wants and what his intentions are, even if she DOESN’T. KNOW. 

All this to conclude: Star is an unreliable narrator taking actions based on her own flawed assumptions. Which means she’s going to make mistakes, and miscalculate her position. She’s going to cast herself in a certain light, and like anyone, maybe not want to admit when that light is suddenly not a reflection of her best. 

So, how do I conclude this. 

Star is an interesting character, and I do enjoy her. If you managed to sit through this to get to here, and if there’s anything to take away from this, it’s that I enjoy Star and I want her to be a better…her. She deserves to cuss and spit, she deserves to be angry and sad at her predicament, she deserves to be loved as a whole person and not some untouchable angel. Let her fight. Let her bite. Let her bleed for her freedom and personhood.

Most importantly, if you allow the Boys room to be more than they are presented as on screen, then you can afford to give that to Star. 

Thank you for reading, if you did. 

@misslavenderlady (I almost forgot!)

[shiny-kaibernyte]

Pokemon | Birthday Headcannons (P2)

March 19th has rolled around once again being i am now once again here. Witting more birthday headcannons to fill the bottomless pit of my soul. Originally i was going to write Danganrompa ones but then remembered the fandom is basically dead just like all of my loved characters... Then i thought JoJo's, then MHA, Then KNY, Then Horror and many many other fandom i'm in and eventually decided to finish what i started. POKEMON! Scarlet and Violet edition! I'm gonna have to write a hundred of these ain't i...

WARNINGS: None unless you're allergic to fluff

Characters: Arven, Carmine, Drayton, Giacomo, Grusha, Kieran

❤️🥪Arven🥪❤️

When it comes to your birthday, Arven has absolutely zero plan. Not because he doesn’t have any ideas! Man has many ideas… too many to keep track of.

Arven has so many things he thinks you’ll enjoy, or places he wants to show you that his brain is about a thousand steps ahead of him, and the day before he just crashes out and wings everything on the day.

To him, this is your day, has nothing to do with him, it is your time to feel as happy as possible! Even without a plan our sandwich professional is going to work his ass off to make sure your smile never fades.

He may actually cry if it does.

In the morning, expect breakfast in bed. Equipped with all of your Pokemon already fed exactly how they like it. He takes notes. Any chores need to be done, Arven’s already done them. If you even attempt to get up before you have finished your breakfast, he will physically stand in the doorway with the most stern puppy dog eyes you will ever see on a human being. 

Arven even put extra effort in to make it look pretty, please enjoy it ;-; 

As for the actual day starting, he is essentially going to follow you around the entire time. If you want to stay in and watch movies, every blanket is there, PILLOW FORT! Shiny hunting may not be in his skill set but he will damn well try! Arven is more than happy to join you in some Pokemon battles, trainer or wild he is your player 2. 

No you cannot convince him to play video games with you. Arven could watch you all day though so if you want to ramble about your favourite game, his imaginary tail is eagerly wagging behind him while you talk.

Best part of the day, Lunch and Dinner. He goes ALL OUT! Anything you want to eat, it's yours, nothing is off the table, no matter how weird or exquisite it is. Hell you could ask him for just a bowl of cheesy nachos and he will make the greatest bowl of cheesy nachos the world will ever see.

He is so smitten with you already, so seeing your smile enjoying his food this time just feels so special to him. Arven put so much effort into this and to know you're happy with it makes his heart swell with love.

When it comes to gifts, he gives you 2. One he bought, most likely an item of clothing you had your eye on but couldn’t quite get yet. And the second is a handmade gift. He didn’t have help at all, don’t ask Nemona she didn’t help, Nemona and Arven didn’t work together in peace, that didn’t happen! YOU SAW NOTHING! Also ignore the Mabostiff hair.

🧡🪩Carmine🪩🧡

Our excitable queen will make this day so special for you. Carmine will ask a few days prior about previous birthdays you’ve had and no matter what you tell her, she is now DEAD SET on making this the best one! 

You will be waking up at the crack of dawn. She did not wake you up, on purpose. But her Aggressive shuffling of things in the next room can cause some noise.

Remember those Kimonos Carmine gave you during the festival? Well turns out she has more, the shuffling was her digging them out from her hiding spot. Handmade by her and her Grandma. Custom made just for you, and hers matches, just with small differences to fit your personalities! 

Unlike Arven, Carmine has planned a day ahead although she will ask about everything before actually doing them. As excitable as she can be, your comfort is a top priority for her so if you say no to something she planned, consider it crossed off her list of fun things.

Carmine will however take you to the Shrine at some point towards the end of the day. Most likely around Sunset where she will tell you some of the Village's oldest tales and secrets. This is also where she gives you a gift. A Wood carving of your Pokemon. She had it made by an old friend of hers, hiding the carving here so no matter what you wouldn’t find it ahead of the day.

She will give you sneaky gifts as well though, just not in the traditional sense. You will suddenly find your item bag restocked with a bunch of different poke balls. Your bag now has a fluffy pom pom on it, when did that get there. Your worn down shoes suddenly look brand new. When did your hat get fixed?

This is also the only time you can convince Carmine to come to Paldea with you that doesn’t involve Area Zero or School. So take the chance whilst you can.

💜💤Drayton💤💜

Oh boy, Drayton our beloved. This day is going to be… Unique 

One of two situations will happen, though neither start until he wakes up around 1pm. 

Situation 1) Colgate has a day full of battles and adventures just waiting for you! Starting the day off with a nice pokemon battle between you. Followed by a full catching lap of each area within the Terrarium. He even enhanced his shiny hunting skills just for you! Drayton will still scare them away though, but he saw it this time!

Randomly throughout the day he will just pull you into spontaneous hugs, which is something he does anyway but these are different. Toothpaste wants you to know how much he loves you so will pamper you the entire day. Every hug you face is covered in kisses from him. Drayton will open every door for you, take off his jacket for you to sit on when you stop for a picnic. In regards to physical affection, Drayton towers over the others.

Drayton even packed extra pokeballs for you, well Luxury balls, he wanted these ones specifically to use on this day. Makes it feel more special to him since he never changed the ball he uses. 

Is your cheerleader. Like Arven he will follow you around when exploring the terrarium, so when you find a Pokemon you want and start up that battle. He is yelling his lungs out. Many a Rowlet was woken up. One even sat on his head at one point ruining his hair. Probably in retaliation to the squawking he was doing.

He may be a chill, go with the flow person. But today he is letting it loose, just having fun with it. All that built up energy is coming out today.

Situation 2) Lazy day. Drayton will grab you and pull you into him, laying you on his chest so he can just wrap you up in his embrace for as long as you let him. He has a blanket set up for you and the remote within your reach, movies and tv shows set up ready for you. If the pair of you aren't near a bed or sofa to just lay down and chill, he will carry you to one of them, whichever you feel more comfortable in. 

No you are not getting up to get something. If you want something either Colgate is getting it, or one of his Pokemon are more than eager to help. Drayton won’t stop you getting up of course, you’ll just have to wiggle your way out of his steel grip first. Unless it's the bathroom, he will let go. He isn’t weird so don’t even think about it.

🖤🎶Giacomo🎶🖤

Giacomo is the same lovable DJ regardless of redemption or not. So when it comes to your birthday, he is ready! Has he written and produced multiple songs just for your birthday, yes. Will he play them randomly throughout the day to catch you off guard just to see your genuine reaction, absolutely!

He cannot cook, in fact among the star crew he is the WORST cook. Giacomo and ovens are sworn enemies, even a microwave will fight back. Best he can do is a cheese sandwich. So no special birthday food, he would have asked for help, he really would. If he remembered he actually has to ask and can’t will it into existence randomly.

You may have to call Arven in for assistance.

Giacomo may not be able to cook, but damn can he have a good time. One of the best people to spend a birthday with, he is a DJ after all, if you wanted it, he would turn the entire star base into a celebration just for you, he has the power to so after all, why not use it. If this is post redemption however, he will dial it back ten fold it will still be to your liking but less… Grand?

If parties aren't your thing, no worries! He has an entire day long music playlist set up to play on speakers throughout the rooms. When a really good song comes on, he’ll stop whatever he was doing to pull you into a dance with him, goofy or romantic he will have fun with it.

When it comes to gifts he is an ask and you shall receive kind of guy. He doesn’t spend money throughout the year on himself, he wears the same outfits basically every week, it's a system. The only time he spends money is on other people. So he has the money to spare. 

Giacomo will straight up just give you his card directly when you can’t decide on something. The biggest toothy grin on his face as he ushers you to enjoy your special day.

Orders in for dinner. Doesn’t matter when or what it is. So long as he doesn't have to call Arven again. 

Surprisingly enough this is one of the few times he actually lets go of things, no team star, no school, no DJ work, nothing. Just you and your birthday are his priorities today.

The other leaders will show up throughout the day to give you a gift tho. You’re part of the family now.

🩵❄️Grusha❄️🩵

SNOW CABIN

With Grusha, your birthday is a multiple day event. 

For the next 3 days, he has a cozy cabin booked for just the two of you to spend time together. You know those really cozy winter cabins you see in those cheesy Christmas movies? One of those.

Grusha will make sure this time is fun for you, it's one of the few times you will see a childish side of him surface. Snowball fights are a must, your birthday is the only time you can get away with chucking a snowball at him and not start an all out turf war with his Pokemon and yours.

Any and all Gym challenges are cast aside, The gym can do without him for a few days, this is your birthday after all. The gym can take a few days off.

The morning is the only time he will be outside the cabin, so this is when he will take you ice skating, build a snowman with you and just genuinely enjoy the snow with you. Since he's around Snow almost all the time, he tends to forget just how much fun it can be.

Once inside though, that's when the Grusha you know will show. The soft romantic side of him showing in full force. Sat by the fire, curled up in eachothers embrace, just living in the moment, enjoying the natural conversations that come. No movie or TV show, no rotom phones, just a genuine conversation. 

Even if what you are talking about is a topic you both have talked about before, doesn’t matter. As long as you are smiling and enjoying your birthday trip, he is satisfied.

💜🪻Kieran🪻💜

You mean the world to Kieran, he owes you life times of debt. To him you are his anchor, his reason to keep going. So when it comes to your birthday, this is a day he is going to make special.

Kieran over thinks everything the day before, practically pulling his hair out when he reads through is incoherent scribbling of ideas. Carmine makes an attempt to help and it results in Kieran slumping into the corner in a defeated ball. 

Once his nerves have settled and his thoughts are consistent does he finally get an idea he likes.

For the entire day, he is going shiny hunting with you, taking you to each area helping you get as many cute colourful pokemon as you can within the hours the day gave you. And don;t worry about the Herba, he has that covered. He wasn’t the champion for nothing.

Kieran is already touchy, constantly wanting to hold your hand, today is no different. The entire time he is holding your hand and following behind you, watching you with heart eyes every time you point at a Pokemon or drag him back to the academy.

No battles today. Kieran won’t allow them on your special day. To him they mean negative things, competition. This is your day, not his, not Drayton, no that random beach lady. Yours. So battles are off limits. If you want to watch a battle he is fine with that though. 

You can go one day without battling you maniacs! 

He only has his Hydrapples ball on him today, his bag is empty at the start but full by the end of the day with the amount of rocks, and things you find. He emptied it just for today. No pebble left behind! It's also totally not because he wants an excuse to go shell hunting.

Future thing: He would definitely propose on your birthday. Just saying.

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I'm defiantly losing my touch this was so bad. Oh well, its my birthday if i want to write awful work i will! Take that society!

[nectar-cellar]

i always love seeing your gameplay posts, they inspire me to play myself!! are there any mods you recommend to make the game more fun and/or realistic?

aw thank you so much!! knowing people like it also inspires me to play more :)

first of all i find a lot of gameplay mods through modthesims and creators here on tumblr: anitmb, twinsimming, olomaya, phoebejaysims, the sweet simmer @ mts, petalruesimblr, riverianepondsims (really want to try her tennis mod)

definitely check out those creators blogs to see all the gameplay mods they offer!!

nraas

nraas career + self-employed module: i am using this one mainly for the personal trainer career. your sim registers at city hall and then you can train other sims on any exercise equipment and earn $, it's kind of like a live career. with nraas careers you can also install more rabbithole careers for adults and teens from modthesims or missyhissy.

nraas relativity: i use this mod to slow down time so that my sims have more time during the day to do stuff. i set the speed to 19. you can edit the time speed by clicking on any clock or on city hall.

nraas register: i use this mod to disable paparazzi, tourists, and wild animals.

icarus_allsorts at modthesims

autonomous fun in the sun mod: makes sims do more stuff at beach

eat outside restaurants mod: makes restaurant rabbitholes more alive because sims are eating outside

lazyduchess lot population reduced mod: makes all lots more populated, more chances to socialize and get into drama. warning that lots can get really busy though!!

aroundthesims3

sandy has a lot of items that add gameplay. check out:

outdoor section

entertainment section

also the pets, kids, and downtown sections

EA Store - get these from blamseastore or free-sims3 archive

rim rockin basketball hoop: adds ability for sims to play basketball!! perfect for park/gym/university/community center lot

business as usual bistro: you can make your own restaurant for sims (also comes with a pre-built lot) to autonomously come in, sit down, order food, socialize. ani also has the "business as unusual" mod which is more in-depth.

deliciously indulgent bakery: adds more baking recipes and a pre-built cupcake shop lot you can place down

lucky simoleon casino: comes with lucky palms gold - you get a casino. the store also has a "double down poker and roulette bundle" for more gambling games you can add.

partaeus maximus statue: put it on any lot to make sims enjoy parties more.

DIY fitness career

you can make your own gym/exercise studio(s) around town and have your sim make a living by training others.

nraas careers self employed as trainer: train sims on the default gym equipment

twinsimming yoga mod + spin class mod: sims can teach yoga classes and lead spin classes using the cc yoga mat and cc exercise bike.

olomaya get pumped mod: sims can teach fitness classes using the cc exercise mats.

DIY twitch streamer career

ani simtube camera: your sim talks in front of a camera. improves social networking skill & adds blog posts to the blog app

twinsimming livestreaming mod: improves celeb level, social networking, video game skills

twinsimming level up video game skill mod: play video games, improvde video game skill, participate in tournaments to earn $ prizes

you can pair this with other jobs (modelling, singing, acting, etc.) for a sim who is trying to be a self-made social media star.

[androgynousblackbox]

Alright, I am watching the reaction stream of another person to see the video of Jamesy and I have thoughts! -Jamesy is REALLY counting on buttering up to Jessie Gender specifically. He named her so many times trying to "apologize" for weaponizing his audience against her when she told him to not erase her work in Nebula just because his whiny entitled ass couldn't accept that he wasn't invited to the platform. Not a single word about actually going to her and talk privately though, just a bunch of "ooh, Jessie Gender is the kindest, best human being ever and I am so sorry to her", like, bitch, WHY ARE YOU EVEN TALKING ABOUT HER? Jessie wasn't the worst victim of your actions! Your bullshit with her happened long BEFORE anything of this happened, so why the fuck are you even bringing her up?? My only guess is that Jamesy wants Jessie to speak on his favor and "forgive him", hoping that will bring him new good will from the queer community in youtube. I am fucking crossing my fingers and touching wood that Jessie does not fall for this manipulative bullshit. This guy is literally clout chasing because, again, when it came to the plagiarism, Jessie had NOTHING to do here. Jessie, if you want an easy win, don't say anything about this. Don't even aknowledge it. Pretend like a mosquito just farted in another building. You had nothing to do with this and I am sorry this piece of shit is trying to drag you into it to take advantage of your good nature. -"I only cared about the production side of making videos, that is why I bring Nick in as the main writer." This motherfucker really went and did it. He is literally blaming Nick squarely now, because now he is just not a co-writer. No, now he is the MAIN WRITER. Jamesy here was just trying to making his little films and buy expensive ass equipment while telling everyone he was starving on the streets, he only cared about the production. NICK, THOUGH, HE WAS ALL ABOUT THE WRITING. He was the one who put the words and little Jamesy baby boy here only "produced, directed and edited" (omg, shut the fuck off, man, your editing skills are mid at best) everything. -Way too many sob stories. I don't care, man. I don't fucking care that you got fired or whatever conditions you had. Do you have any fucking clue how many people do really struggle to reach the end of the month and they still never even think of stealing someone else's work? Everyone is struggling and yet, you were the one who made a career for fucking years out of stealing the works of everyone else in this community AND THEN, when call out, tried to paint them as the bad guys.

-A lot, and I do mean, a lot of time to "apologize" to Jessie Gender, but you know who he didn't apologize to? Literally none of the authors he stole from. Not the fan whose edit of Korra he used without credit. Not Alexander Avila. Not that person who was harassed to hell and back by Jamesy and his audience when they showed how he plagiarized on his disney video. Jessie deserved to be name dropped at least thirty times, but those people?? They are fucking nobodies. They don't matter. Why name them at all? It's not like their WORK WAS STOLEN BY YOU OR ANYTHING! And that is another thing! Even if Jamesy is really out there blaming Nick for all the words that they took without credit, then what the fuck is up with all the footage, edits and audiovisual works that weren't for you to take? You said your passion is production. That is part of the production, Jamesy. Is this you admitting you fully just fucking stole them and hoped nobody would notice because you are a lazy piece of garbage?

-"Having to do multiple edits because youtube copyright issues was so hard for me, guys, you don't understand uwu. It was so hard on me to make it less obvious I had plagiarized people!" THAT IS ENTIRELY YOUR OWN FAULT, BRO.

-So, hey, funny thing. I was looking to see if other people were reacting or had reuploaded the video so I could put it here. They haven't yet, there is only two reactions, but while I was doing that I found a video of ANOTHER person talking about Jamesy ripping them off: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsD-wodn288 Apparently Jamesy had stolen a blog post that this person wrote about Lord of The Rings and they weren't known by anyone, they don't even like that article anymore, but still! Go see that video instead of watching Jamesy and support them if you find value on their work.

-Hey, Jamesy. Jamesy. You do know that epilepsy and head injuries or memory issues don't take you threaten, lie and weaponize your audience against people who call out your plagiarism with the evidence in hand, right? That has literally nothing to do actually, because you had to be aware off of the issue for you to lie about it after someone else brought it up. After the first time it happened, you could have hired another beta reader to tell you that ups, your memory/epilepsy/memory issues/ADHD strike again and you don't remember from where you took that quote from, sorry! You had money for that expensive ass camera, you could have. -Like, my guy, there were so many steps involved here. So many steps from writing, production, backlash and your response to the backlash. Even if any part on this was an honest mistake, something I don't fucking believe in because fuck you, you had millions of opportunities to rectified it and change it. And yet you didnd't. And so here we are, without you receiving not even a miserable fucking like. Go to hell. A mistake doesn't get repeated so many times for years. That was all a choice, bitch. Fuck you.

And here is where I stopped because his voice is like nail on my ears.

Don't look at his video, it's truly not worth it. DON'T LEAVE COMMENTS EITHER, YOUTUBE TAKES THAT AS ENGAGEMENT ANYWAY.

[19thperson]

19th's Steam Next Fest Impressions Feb 2025 Edition - Day 1

Day 0

Played some demos today, but I was worn out enough that I don't feel fully confident in the actual writing of the impressions. Whatever though.

Monster Train 2

Aside from its floor system, the most unique and fun part of the original Monster Train was the fact that each run had the player choose two factions, like mixed color decks in Magic. I can't really gauge how it plays out here, because they only give you two factions here, no room to mix and match. Expected for a demo, but mildly frustrating.

They've added more to this game. the previous one was mostly "play cards and spells, then let character abilities and combat automatically play out." Here some units will have abilities that can be manually activated, with turn based cooldowns. You can now spend equipment on unit cards. You have floor cards that give special effects to individual floors. They've upped the complexity, but in my short time playing… It feels a lot less elegant. My mind might change as I get to grips with it, though.

Last one is that they're making this one more plotty. More characters with dialogue and character interactions between runs. And I can't really comment on it so far but… I don't think Monster Train needed this.

Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3

Apparently this game has been a long running gag for Strange Scaffold, devs of El Paso Elsewhere, I Am Your Beast, and Clickholding. I am out of the loop of this specific joke though.

The game is a very loose parody of resident evil and survival horror games in general, in the form of a match 3 game. You come across a variety of obstacles, and each one you play a puzzle board to get resources to use skills to solve said obstacles. An interesting wrinkle is that after you make a match, whatever you're fighting gets a chance to match-3, so you not only need to get the symbols you need, but also try to starve out your opponent from getting the symbols they need. It also makes it harder to pull off multi-turn setups.

In between the match 3 matches is a simple text based exploration system, CYOA into different rooms and make different choices. Certain choices will unlock traits that will make new choices available in previous areas, so the devs call it a metroidvania even though it's…not. that?

Anyways, the team apparently has made a name for itself with it's writing, haven't played much of their output, but. That isn't on display here yet. Early on after dying once the protagonist realizes he's in a video game and a buggy as fuck one. And from there all the humor is gamer webcomic "isn't video game logic wacky" humor. The ability to go back with new traits is the protag exploring with "debug mode" on.

There is some mild intrigue with the very end of the demo, though, with the swerve that the protag learns his game is buggy because… it was cancelled. There's nothing for him anymore. And you could possibly go somewhere with that. I just hope they do so with a better set of jokes.

Detective Instinct: Farewell, My Beloved

Before anything else, I gotta say that I'm really digging this game's aesthetic. With it's chunky but detailed and expressive character sprites, but backrounds made with explicitly lower detail 3D, it screams original DS.

The interaction is the basic ADV-style "look at background to get bits of info and then run through every dialogue option with every character" that you get with phoenix wright investigation sections.

The plot of the game sounds interesting. During a cross country train ride, a woman disappears, and the protag and assistant duo seem to be the only ones who remember she actually existed. The plot of the demo… isn't much there. You don't even get on the train.

There is some intrigue. The game opening up with a man falling from a 5th story hotel room (and your player character getting falsely accused by the comic relief incompetent cop because he mixed up rooms 105 and 501). There's some fun interactions, like the eccentric detective letting tourists poke around a crime scene while all the other officers are sick of his shit or your weirdly excited co-traveler diving too enthusiastically into the opportunity, and it's all held up by great spritework, but you don't really get to solve anything.

So far, it's a game that runs solely on vibes. But the vibes are excellent.

Isopod

Like webbed before it, this game is a physics platformer starring realistic yet cute bugs in Australia. The biggest shifts are the move from 2d to 3d, and the inexplicable extra power moving from a laser to magnet powers.

The magnet is an equal parts blessing and curse. The name of the game is momentum, and aside from slopes the main tool to do this is using magnetic pull. When it works its incredible. But the game auto-targets what you're magnetizing to, and if you misjudge it, the closest magnet being behind you, you're whipped backwards and your momentum is killed. I'm not sure if it's a system issue or a skill issue.

I was frustrated with the demo's Koopa-the-Quick style race. The game asks you to run through gates, but their hitbox is relatively unforgiving, it's too easy to slip passed it when your momentum is high.

I wasn't able to finish this one due to time. I may revisit it, but for now I'll leave it as: Less intuitive than Webbed, but more potential. May need some polishing.

[andmaybegayer]

Last Monday of the Week 2023-08-21

If we're being honest, the first show I go to in Europe being a South African band is probably the only way I was going to get the ball rolling.

Listening: Ruff Majik is doing their Europe tour so I dragged a friend along. If I had a nickel for every psychedelic surf rock fantasy themed band from Pretoria I'd have two nickels. The two accompanying acts were Rocky and his Bootlegs, and Olaf Olafsonn and the Big Bad Trip.

Rocky was apparently doing their first show, solid performance although they did make the decision to spend five minutes in the middle of a song doing sonic landscape bullshit on their pedalboards and then come back in with a dubious closer. That's what we go to live shows for though so I can't complain. Literally cannot find hide nor hair of these guys online, which is a shame because I liked some of their stuff.

Olaf Olafsonn and the Big Bad Trip is a metalish themed psychedelic rock band who performed in some really good masks. Do you like really stupid loud guitar and a synth in there for some reason? This is for you. I do not yet speak Czech so I did not catch the names of any of these songs. Here's something I picked at random.

And Ruff Majik, I'm finally going to link their song "She's Still A Goth" which they are so so proud of. It is incredibly self indulgent. It is not by any means their best song.

Reading: Finished up The Will to Battle, moving on to Perhaps The Stars. The Will to Battle went in broad strokes as I expected, it's the build up, but it is of course still weird as hell. I enjoy the closer look at the despair that surrounds the Utopians, and the reveal that Mycroft has been hallucinating a cast of corpses at all times really makes me wonder what was fictitiously cut from the earlier books by 9A.

I'm sure that Palmer has at least a good chunk of the pre-edit version of those histories written out somewhere. I am much less clear in my vision of what Perhaps the Stars might be like.

Watching: I will link this video of a guy building a nightmare capacitor bank and popping a 500A fuse.

Dudes Rock

Making: 3D printing on hold until I get a sealed bag to store the filament I bought, because my house is so extremely humid all the time and I don't want to ruin a kilogram of filament. I'll invest in a dryer at some point but for now just having sealed dry storage is a must. I've been sketching a lot of designs out though, direct air coolers for my laptop, mounts for taps, filter holders and other camera stuff, etc.

I also started writing a program to help me generate components for building frames out of rod stock and 3D printed mounts. I found a hobby shop within easy reach that stocks steel, aluminium, carbon fibre and brass rod and tube stock which is so extremely handy.

Playing: Breath of the Wild- Yuzu handles emulation admirably. I suspect that being less good at the controls is helping me enjoy the cooking system more. If I was good at this I could probably Dark Souls a lot of these fights, the parry mechanic is pretty robust. Instead, I floundered at the face of the Moderate Test of Strength and, instead of Dark Soulsing it, I went away and decided it'd be more fun to hone my skills elsewhere and come back with better gear, more control, and some extra hearts.

I set up gpu-screen-recorder to do replays which has so far yielded these two.

Tools and Equipment: Ikea Bags are pretty handy. They're the biggest bags that fold flat that you can probably easily get. I use one now to handle shuttling laundry from my washing machine to the line, which is way more convenient than the old collapsible bucket I used to use, while also being smaller.

I also used an Ikea bag to haul my 3D printer home from the post office when the courier couldn't find my address for some reason. It's less than a kilometer but it would have been miserable to heft 10kg of box with no handles.

[diecrotic]

a detailed introduction no one asked for -- legacy version

Published on 17 October 2024

before i settled on my new carrd, i had a version where i pretty much listed down all my qualifications and shit because i felt that people (my potential audience) needed to know all of it so they don't feel ripped off if they happen to support me. well, i unpublished that version, but i'd still like for the info to be out there in case i need to point to it somehow. so, here's a detailed introduction no one asked for

Who the fuck are you?

my name's Ro. i'm a disabled, queer, Filipino freelancer who's doing a bunch of things all the while looking for full-time employment (it's tough out here, guys). i don't release a steady stream of output or anything so i'm pretty much Nobody in everyone's eyes, but i'm trying my best in my own way in this large, hellish world and that's what matters to everyone who loves me (i'm not included in that group)

How did you get to this point in life?

my mental conditions made sure that university life beat me in the ass, so much so that i had to give up. i sought professional help, but then the pandemic hit and seeking employment was both extremely difficult and not recommended. now that it's less pandemic-y out here (it's NOT DONE, though, you "post-pandemic"-claiming FUCKS), i've thrown my hat into the job seeker ring and no one is biting. i'm trying to make do with what i have

What kind of freelancing are you doing?

i am technically engaging in a project-based opportunity as a copyeditor, but depending on the date, business can range from normal to nonexistent. so i'm doing creative stuff as well. that doesn't really get the bucks in regularly, but i've benefitted somewhat already.

What makes you qualified to be writing?

absolutely nothing. i'm a bilingual english speaker and took english + writing classes in my student days, but i don't have any certifications. all i know is that i've been writing since i was eight, posting fanfiction since i was thirteen, contributing to zines and events since i was twenty, and modding and copyediting since i was twenty-four. i won NaNoWriMo in 2020, having written 50k words for a novel i've since scrapped. i've gotten pretty good feedback doing all that too, which has been a bit of a boost.

What makes you qualified to be drawing?

even less than what makes me a writer. i started drawing even before writing but never practiced regularly and took no lessons (save for a Visual Arts class in high school that taught me nothing--except that i suck at art and not even the teacher could save me), so i'm not good at all. i call myself a doodler instead of an artist because considering myself the latter seems offensive to real artists, in my book. but again, some people like my work, and i enjoy doing it from time to time. i've learned a bit of pixel art as well.

What do you edit and how did you start doing it?

aside from editing written documents, i also have minimal experience editing photos and videos. i've used lightroom, photoshop, premiere pro, vegas pro, windows movie maker--the works. i also make gifs and stuff. i am NOT good at any of this, but i know how to do the basics. in college, i was part of the records committee of an organization, which meant i was in charge of photo documentation and post-processing, so i was forced to learn a few fundamental technicalities. the rest, i get done just through researching.

And you stream too? And upload sometimes on YouTube?

yep. i prefer streaming over youtube-ing, but my participation in both things is pretty sparse these days. however, i am a Twitch affiliate and have participated in one (1) raid train. i'm part of the twitch teams The Outriders and Twitch Philippines. and sometimes, i like to make videos instead of go live. i'm no pro, both in terms of money and skill, and my equipment is Not The Best, but it works.

What about singing and songwriting? You don't upload much of that.

yeah. i've been singing for as long as i've been drawing and i've written over, maybe 30 songs for private consumption, but i don't upload much because, simply put, the AMATEUR-ness of my equipment really shines when recording songs. also, i can only play basic guitar and piano, so arrangements and mixing are out the window. i could learn, yes, but it costs money and i do Not have that. through a bit of Audacity (get it?), i've managed to make some decent recordings, though. just gotta keep working at it

What do you program? How'd you learn it?

i was a computer science major for four years. it taught me the basics as well as the core values of being a programmer, and from there, i learned everything on my own through research. i make simple python programs for my own use, and have created small games and visual novels for my friends and i.

And the Japanese?

started learning in 2017. took classes for a few years and got up to an N4 level. studied by myself to get to N3, and the same for N2. something to remember is that, for me at least, reading and listening are easier than writing and speaking, because the former two are what the Japanese Language Proficiency Test test you for. i'm still learning, though, never quitting, and i'm gonna reach N1 someday for sure. that's, like, the one concrete goal i have.

Shouldn't you be focusing on less things and taking them more seriously instead of just doing anything you want?

probably. but i am physically incapable of doing that, based on experience. and to be frank, i want to do all this, so i will, no matter what might be most effective for productivity.

Okay, well, good luck to you. See you.

peace and love on planet earth

[2024ardn632isobelchilberto]

Week 7 - The End of Professional Photography?

Create images the average person can't

Smartphones have gotten to a place where they're almost at the same level as professional cameras

New software to edit photos instantly and automatically, more affordable.

AI creating photorealistic images, generated for free

AI is not perfect yet

This video made me think about the purpose of professional photographers. The video talks about how, initially, photographers were able to take photos that the general public couldn't through knowledge of light, editing, and expensive camera equipment. But now, smartphones have gotten to a place where they're almost the same level as professional cameras. This means anyone can take a good photo. Especially since editing software is much more accessible. There isn't as much demand to go and get someone else to edit your photos as you can do yourself. Now, because of the advancement of AI, the ability to create photorealistic images is emerging. Though not entirely perfect, they can look pretty legit at a glance. So the question is, is this the end of professional photography? I can't say for sure, but I believe there is a level of skill to take particular shots, such as motion shots or editorial shots. Photography is also a medium for art, and therefore, that will never die as that is personal to the artist. Art is subjective and created for a particular audience and purpose, typically coming from a person who enjoys the act of photography, not just the final image.

[pmeliapham]

Reflective statement - 500 words

The Photograph Always Lies

Pamelia Pham - 22170038

For assignment 1: The Photograph Always Lies, we were able to explore and learn the ideas of image manipulation and the true story of post photography. For me, image manipulation is not fake or entirely negative. It could be viewed as storytelling from one or many different perspectives.  Image manipulation could be dangerous if an individual or organization uses it incorrectly, to make up lies, or try to fake a situation.

My manipulated images reflect the growing phone addiction among the new generation and how it has caused the reading habit to be ignored. Growing up, I would sit on the top of my clothes, and read for hours. I can finish a whole book in a day or two. Fast forward to today, me and many others in my generation could not even sit through a 30 second or 1 minute Tik Tok video. We watch everything at 2x speed. The statistic never lies, according to a research survey which was conducted in 2015 by Microsoft, that the average attention span of Gen Z individuals was only about eight seconds.  

I used three images to convey this concept. The first image shows a bookshelf placed outside a local church—a symbol of knowledge, reflection, and introspection that is now being neglected. Books, once a source of wisdom and a way to connect deeply with oneself and the world, are now left unnoticed, collecting dust outside where they were once cherished. The second image is a hand holding a Iphone with the selfie camera being one, this is where I can present about the phone addiction issue running in this new generation. The third and final image I used, it’s an image I picked first. The main role of it is to create some sort of texture on top of my image. I use this as one of my surreal elements as “Surreal images tend to be dreamlike and tap into people's unconscious,” says Tryforos. The texture of this image will be my dreamlike element. Together raise a question: Have we forgotten the richness of reading in favor of a digital quick fix?

For the resubmission, my art model influence remains as Dora Maar, as her influence helped to shape the conceptual approach to this assignment, even in the first or second attempt. This is because Maar's art frequently merges reality with surrealism, revealing hidden truths about the world. Her use of photomontage and editing encouraged me to approach my project in a similar way, allowing me to utilize visual narrative to investigate issues of urban decline and public accountability.  

This journey has been both challenging and rewarding, equipping me with new skills and insights that I will carry forward in my artistic endeavors. To me, photography is always about storytelling, it’s just this way or the other. Last but not least, even though I have to resubmit this assignment, it will forever be a transforming experience which enabled me to understand image manipulation and surrealism photography. 

Wikipedia contributors. "Dora Maar." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Last modified August 24, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dora_Maar.

Artnet. "Dora Maar." Accessed August 24, 2024. https://www.artnet.com/artists/dora-maar/ 

Kira, Michele "The First 8 Seconds: Capturing the Attention of Gen Z Students." KEG News, July 17, 2023. https://www.keg.com/news/the-first-8-seconds-capturing-the-attention-of-gen-z-students#:~:text=Research%20conducted%20by%20Microsoft%20in,digital%20content%20and%20 multiple%20 screens.

Adobe. "What Is Surreal Photography?" Adobe Creative Cloud. Accessed September 5, 2024. https://www.adobe.com/nz/creativecloud/photography/discover/surreal-photography.html.

[mcvoices]

Episode 2: Journey to Niche!

Take risks. It's not about winning or losing. It's about trying.

Hey, it's MC...Voices!

Great day, voicemates! Another week, another blog! It's been like 2 weeks since I joined the Certified Voice Artist Program - Batch 26. It's becoming a lot more productive and as I progress through the program, Week 2 became a whirlwind of knowledge and insightful discussions.

I actually woke up early and joined the Zoom meeting before it started, 'cause I was really excited for what they have prepared for us. For this week, we delved into discussions about essential equipment/s needed for professional voiceovers, voiceover-specific vocabulary, basics of audio editing, and finding our own niche. In the afternoon session, we focused on developing our voices, marketing our talents, voice variety, creating character voices- wherein we actually tried doing it by some hands-on practices with scripts, and using social media as a marketing tool. So this is like a recap on what we actually did and discussed throughout the whole session.

Morning Session: Building the Foundation

So for the morning session, CVAP prepared some recorded videos that talks about basic equipment required for doing voiceover professionally. And our trainer for this was Mr. Bryan Dave Perez which where he gave us advices and some recommendations too on what equipment should we use such as microphones, cables, and other things that a voice artist needs. I actually listed them down, just for future purposes and if I already had the means of buying it then, I would. I was also happy to see that the video that was shown is at CreatiVoices Studios at Makati City. We were taught about voiceover vocabulary related and basic audio editing also that I greatly appreciate. I really think that these are some things that we need to know and learn, like for starters.

And lastly, about finding my own, unique niche. I think it's really important to actually know what you want. What particular skill that you need to focus to, or like what you need to establish, what voice you have, what can you do - type of projects, character voices, voiceovers that you enjoy doing and you still want to study.

This made me think that identifying a niche is crucial for standing out in the voiceover industry. It's really important that I must align my niche with my strengths and passion, but could still experiment, explore, and like discover where my voice fits best.

Afternoon Session: Refining Skills and Marketing

"Do something today that your future self will thank you for."

This is how our afternoon session started, our trainer, Mr. Harlem Jude Ferolino aka Papa Lem, introduced to us on how we develop our voice and market our talent. Building a strong online presence and networking with industry professionals were the key points of the discussion. We were also taught about the 3 Elements - Pitch, Volume, and Tempo which leads into the formula in Creating Character Voices - Pitch, Pitch Character, Tempo, Rhythm, Placement, and Mouthwork. In this part of the discussion, I was getting entertained by how we did some hands-on exercise by doing lines, voiceovers, script for advertisement etc. Even though I didn't actually volunteer, I tried them a lot by myself, muted and did a lot of samples by saying the same as what the other voicemates did.

I also loved that fact that the session ended with some "Voice Pappy Thoughts" that made me feel like I could do a lot. By the phrase "DO what you LOVE. LOVE what you DO" and that is somewhat interconnected on finding my NICHE that highlighted the whole session.

After the Q&A session with Papa Lem, I was called for a Zoomustahan and for me to answer questions on what we talked about for the whole discussion for Week 2. I shared things about that most unforgettable part of the session and that is finding my niche and do what i love as I love what I do. I really felt like I've gained a deeper appreciation for voice artistry as well as myself. For taking greater steps, finding my purpose, and for doing what I really love.

Week 2 has been incredibly enriching. From the morning session up until the afternoon, this has been a lot but it further equipped me with the skills, knowledge, and even confidence that I really need in order to continue the path that I'm taking in this dynamic industry.

Oh! Before I forgot, I was also tasked by Hosts Janna and Ron H to choose a number that contained lyrics from BINI's songs. I chose number 4 and lyrics from Na Na Na - BINI showed up and from the wheel of character voices - Tiyanak appeared. I was really laughing and tossing around, I felt a lot of emotions while I sang (?) or like I just did it embarrassingly. Can you imagine? Tiyanak that could sing! HAHAHAHAHAHAA (sorry, this is so funny to me). But well, I really did enjoy doing that kind of impression. Batch 26 voicemates, hosts, and even our trainers, I believed they were having fun as well. They said they love it. I'm so glad. I'm happy I did that. It was so fun, I think it is the highlight part of the session for me.

And I just feel like I could do a lot more.

I suppose there will be a whole lot more so stay tuned as I continue to share my journey and the insights I gather along the way!

from me to you,

MC

[elfwreck]

Yeah the question to consider for "would people still work if they had UBI" is not "would I do my current/past job if I wasn't paid for it?" It's more like, "is there any useful work I would enjoy doing for about 20 hours a week?"

I love document editing & processing. I love organizing data. I am in the process of making a database for my itch.io megabundles collection, which will, at some point, involve opening each of 9000+ game pages to collect info about them. (randombundlegame.com has a good start on that kind of info, but it's scraping itch.io's data. Itch.io does not tell me which TTRPGs are based on Mork Borg nor how many pages they are. I have to open the pages & often download the file to find that out. Itch.io's data may not tell me if a game is a visual novel, a puzzle platformer, or contains pixel art.)

While this is a self-project and not directly job-related - the plan, when I have it complete enough, is to release it to the public. It'll become a usable database of (1) many of itch.io's megabundles (and a few other bundles), comprised of over 13,000 listings in over 40 bundles, and (2) a games-database structure, suitable for indie games, both video games and TTRPGs.

Anyway. The point is, I have put many hours into Learn How To Database and will continue to do so, and those are going to be job-worthy skills even though this project is not paying work. And there are plenty of other projects I would be happy to put time into.

Remove the "work for basic survival" requirement, and you can have things like "Let's get the whole neighborhood together to fix up the kiddie park - sand & repaint the playground things, fix up the broken chains on a couple of the swings, install some barbecue spots near the picnic tables, build a stepstool next to the water fountain for the littlest kids."

Do I want to do this kind of thing? Um. No? I generally abhor physical labor. Would I be willing to do it once? Sure, if I'm not tired from working all week, if I have time to get my errands done and time for personal projects.

I don't want a job doing Local Kiddie Park Repair. I wouldn't mind spending a few hours one day touching up paint on playground equipment. Or handing out sandwiches and cold drinks to the people doing the hard work. Or sorting through culled books at the library so they can be sold at a book fair. And so on.

Remove the need for 40 hrs of work a week, and people have time to say "sure I could spend a few hours doing something for my local community," entirely outside of whatever job-like work they would normally want to do.

i remember ages ago i did a poll on here that was a basic "if you had guarenteed income would you still choose to have a job?" and i was so shocked at how many people said yes. like i couldnt fathom how people would choose to go out every day just because they like having something to do and genuinely say they feel fulfilled by it.

...anyways it turns out if you, like me, consider the mere thought of work to be torture both physically and mentally, no matter how well it pays, you may in fact be experiencing "symptoms" of a "disorder", and should, perhaps, "talk" to your "doctor" ,

[marijamaliccc]

CAS Project

activity title: Organizing and putting together the promotional campaign for BaLMUN

duration: January 2023 to April 2023

Activity Description

The project's aim is to put the word out that BaLMUN - Banja Luka Model United Nations - is happening this April and will gather more than 100 people from all around the globe, staff and delegates included. A team of event organizers, including me, is tasked with organizing the promotion and what will go on social media. This includes taking photos of chairs, filming and editing a promotional video of the city, filming and editing a promotional video for this conference, conceptually creating these videos, and directing them. Essentially, I will be tasked with thinking of what will be in the videos, and properly filming them. There will also be a need to create posters on the same topic.

Learning Outcomes

Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth - Through this project I will see where I stand in terms of all skills, and I will learn where my strengths lie and where I need to grow.

Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process, mainly video filming skills.

Demonstrate how to initiate and plan a CAS experience - This is largely student planned

Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences

Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively - This will all be done by a team, so there is a great need for good skills in working collaboratively

Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance - BaLMUN is a conference that deals with relevant issues on a global scale, and exactly that needs to be shown not just in the conference, but in the videos and promo as well.

Reflection

I have learned how this BaLMUN team cooperates and how to better prepare for the conference, as well as what is necessary and attractive on social media. Moreover, I have learned how to create visually appealing videos and film properly, even though my only equipment was my phone and tripod. Ultimately, the goal was simple - to get as many people as possible to attend this year's BaLMUN conference.

You can find the full video on the link:

[sephys-hubby]

For the space asks, Moon, Nebula, Black Hole and Milky Way for you and Sephiroth, and Star and Neptune for any ship you like! (sorry there are so many, if its too much you dont have to do them all! from citrus-selfinserts)

Hello, @citrus-selfinserts ! I really didn't mean to take so long answering these. Either way, I would still like to thank you for sending in these asks!

Moon ~ Did your love for your F/O come all at once or in phases?

(Sorry, I'm about to get kinda detailed)

It's incredible how my love for Sephiroth kinda came all at once (like before, he was just "the villain from FFVII" in my eyes and that was it. Back then, I didn't even think he was as good looking as people said, lol). So I saw his Smash trailer streamed live on YouTube on Dec 10, 2020. I thought "wow, cool!" but that was mostly it.

And then a few days before he released, there was a "Sephiroth Challenge" thing where you could fight him as a boss in Smash in order to unlock him early.

(The image alone is my phone's wallpaper!)

Either way, that day was pretty hype! My brothers and I all sat together and took turns trying to beat Sephiroth. (We all sucked, lol. I myself wasn't too good at 1v1s in smash bros yet.)

It was a while until I was the one who finally beat him (using Toon Link, my old Brawl main). After that, we each took turns using Seph, with me being last. After I won the match while using him, I honestly don't really know what happened. He just did his victory—the one where he walks away into the flames—and my heart just swooned for some reason, lol. (I legit blushed pretty hard irl. Good thing no one saw me, haha).

Either way, since I never really cared about FFVII before—thus feeling like I didn't deserve to use Seph for that reason—I made up weird excuses on why I kept wanting to use him. (Like, I kept saying "I just think his sword's cool, that's it." Stupid stuff like that.)

In about one day, I was already crushing hard, which has never happened before, lol! It's silly, but it is what it is. In about three or so days, I was already madly in love—albeit in heavy denial, lol.

Nebula ~ If you could take your F/O anywhere where would you go?

As you know, I love liminal spaces and stuff! There are just too many cool liminal spaces and/or Backroom levels that I would love to explore with Sephiroth (everyone else, too!). There's this specific Backrooms level that comes to mind, though. The Grassroom Corridors.

It is just so cool looking, in my opinion. Like, something out of a hazy but pleasant dream. There's a found footage video for the Grass Corridors (you don't have to watch the whole thing! It's like 17 minutes or so). It was cool and pretty spooky!

I remember when some monster/entity thing formed on a wall near the end of the video and my only thought was, "that's just the Demon Wall from Final Fantasy IV!" So, if Seph and I encountered that while exploring, all I can say is: cue the FFIV boss music! (To clarify, I think a different song plays during the actual Demon Wall fight in FFIV, but this is the song I thought of first and prefer more, tbh!)

Edit: the wall monster was actually in a sequel video to the original video I linked. Oops! But it was still in the same location, I believe, so yeah. My point still stands, lol.

Black hole ~ What's your favorite thing about your F/O's source?

My favorite things about FFVII is the materia! They're basically these orbs that you can insert into equipment to cast magic or use other unique skills and stuff.

They are just so satisfying to look at due to how pretty they are.

My favorite materia is the Black Materia! It's the one Sephiroth uses to summon Meteor. It's so cool looking, and I actually have a look alike irl!

It's so cool to hold in my hand, I love it.

Milky way ~ What's your favorite daydream you've had of your F/O?

I daydream a lot with Sephiroth. But I believe my favorite—and the most intricate one—is the one where me and Sephiroth (the others were there, too) explored the Backrooms! We basically followed the path shown in this video (again, you don't have to watch the whole thing!). It was so fun, just walking around, seeing the cool sights and enjoying the isolated feel. My favorite part was when we explored this one strange area:

(It looks kinda like a hotel to me? But I'm not completely sure. Either way, I think it looks cool.)

Star ~ Do you have a specific song that reminds you of your F/O?

So I have plenty of songs that remind me of Seph and I. But as for everyone as a whole, the song Maze of Life really reminds me of us (you can just listen to just the first verse/chorus of the song if you want!). The lyrics are basically talking about how much of a great time we're all having. (Plus it's the opening theme for a crossover game, which is pretty much what my selfships are since I love to imagine Cloud & Seph interacting with Monokuma and Stubbs, who are from different series!) The first couple of lyrics really fit us.

Ain't it great, how we met each other

On this wild and crazy carousel of life?

Ain't it cool, how it changed the paths of our lives

Set us off on new adventures?

This verse in particular kinda hits me in the feels because of how much I feel it applies to us! Also, I must admit that when listening to the song, I love imagining an anime opening but with all five of us instead, lol.

Neptune ~ Was there ever a time that you had a dream about your F/O?

I've had so many fantastic dreams about my faves (especially with Seph)!

Since I've had so much, I would like to talk about the FIRST major dream I had with Cloud & Sephiroth!

I was in a Little Caesars restaurant (it was about the size of a McDonald's inside) and I was casually hanging out with Cloud and Sephiroth inside!

It was so much fun being with them. I remember at one point, I told them to go get some napkins, and so they did. They went over and while doing so, they suddenly got into an argument (as expected with these two, lol). Upon arguing some more, they then headed outside the building and proceeded to do the whole Advent Children fight sequence again!

The best part was how everyone else inside the pizzeria didn't even seem to care, which implied that this was actually a common occurrence! (I do actually imagine any silly arguments they have occasionally leading to them fighting outside just like this with them re-doing the whole AC fight and everything!)

As for me, I received the pizza we ordered and sat down to eat, watching everything through a window! I woke up soon after that, so I never saw who won (it was probably Cloud tho, lol).

And, that's it! Thanks a ton for these asks! I really regret the fact that I couldn't answer them sooner though. Sorry about that! But like I said, thanks for sending them in the first place.

[lesvegas]

My Mod List for Fallout: New Vegas

Some months ago, I answered an ask regarding FNV mods I’d recommend. Over the past few months, I’ve tried many more mods since, and have even removed several mods from the original list. I decided to remake the list, both in this post and also in this doc for the sake of documentation.

These are both for my own reference and for anyone who’s looking for mod recommendations. Keep in mind my preferences for mods tend to be smaller-scale, quality of life and immersive mods, and I’m not super into big story mods.

This is a long one, so I’m putting it under a readmore.

You’re gonna wanna start with this mod configuration menu, which helps to manage mods in-game. 

Fixes & Script Extenders

Most of these are necessary for a stable game and for the rest of the mods listed here.

New Vegas Script Extender (NVSE) - You’ll need this for most of these to work at all.

Yukichigai Unofficial Patch (YUP) - A compilation of vital bug fixes with no further additions. Just bug fixes.

Unofficial Patch Plus - A collection of supplementary bug fixes to be used alongside YUP. Includes improved versions of popular NVSE bug fixes.

New Vegas Anti Crash (NVAC) - Says it right there in the name.

JIP LN NVSE Plugin - An extension of NVSE that restores broken features and supplies bug fixes; read through this one before toggling anything.

JohnnyGuitar NVSE - Another NVSE extender.

FNV 4GB Patch - Simple patcher to make Fallout New Vegas 4GB Aware.

Throwable Weapon Fixes - A collection of fixes for throwable weapons and projectiles.

Overhauls

New Vegas Character Expansions (NVCE) - Probably the only character overhaul that just makes everyone look a little less potato without making them look hollow inside. (NOTE: This may make some characters have white faces. If this happens, the fix that worked for me is at the bottom of this post)

Water Overhaul - Overhauls various aspects of water, making radiation-free water more scarce and allowing you to refill bottles anywhere with a water source.

Starting Gear Overhaul - Adjusts the gear you start with to be more sensible and catered to your tagged skills. Recommended using along with JSawyer Ultimate.

Mojave Raiders - Adds more raiders to fight and balances their loot.

Mojave Wildlife - Adds hundreds more levelled, vanilla-friendly creature spawn points throughout the whole Mojave, based off unused vanilla levelled lists.

Mojave Arsenal - Adds ammo variants, reloading parts, and weapon mods as loot; fixes item naming conventions; improves recipes; and adds options for configuring GRA.

The Living Desert - Adds hundreds of NPCs and several scripted events; people patrolling the roads, travelling between towns, occupying locations.

Faction Map Icon Overhaul - Changes faction-related icons on the Pip-Boy map, for example Camp McCarran and the Mojave Outpost’s icons are the two-headed bear, the Fort and Cottonwood Cove are the bull, etc.

Immersion

New Vegas Enhanced Camera - Enables visible body and player shadow in first person, will let you remain in first person when you would otherwise be forced into third person (death/knocked down/etc).

Barton Thorn Acts Normally - Barton Thorn seeks out the player himself to ask for help with the geckos.

Clarity - Removes orange/blue tints.

Harvestable Cave Fungus - Self-explanatory.

Better Pickup Prompt - Makes several improvements to the HUD pickup prompt that appears when you look at an item. (NOTE: This mod has been discontinued, but seems to still work).

Realistic Safehouse Upgrades - Gives every safehouse a workbench, reloading bench, camp fire and more containers to make them feel like home.

Eddie Hears And Explosion - Fixes one of the clunkier moments in the game, near the end of the Powder Ganger questline.

Neck Seam Concealer Necklaces - A wide variety of necklaces that perfectly conceal the seam connecting characters’ heads and torsos. 

Vanilla Hair, No Shine - Makes the default hairstyles have less obnoxious white shine.

Light Step ED-E - This mod gives ED-E the Light Step perk, preventing him from setting off mines and floor traps.

Hi-Res Vanilla Posters and Graffiti - Posters and graffiti have x2 upscaled resolution, with no ugly blurring or sharpening.

Mojave Nights - Mojave Nights combines my Enhanced Night Sky mod with a brand-new, highly detailed moon replacement for complete night-time realism.

Functional Post-Game Ending (FPGE) - Adds a fully functional post-game world to the game, where you will realise the consequences of your choices.

Just Vanilla Sprint (JVS) - A simple vanilla sprint mod. Requires JIP LN Plugin (scroll up to Fixes & Script Extenders).

Animated Maize Fields, Park Equipment, Poseidon Energy Signs (personal fave), Sunset Sarsaparilla Rotary Entrance, Rotating Brahmin Rotisserie, and Foliage. This mod maker has tons of immersive little animation mods; I recommend looking through all of them.

JSawyer Ultimate Edition

JSawyer Ultimate Edition - JSawyer's popular mod, fully re-implemented from the ground up. A ‘meant-to-be’ mod which changes elements of the game to how they should have been from the start.

JSawyer Ultimate Edition Patches - Patches for using several popular mods alongside JSawyer Ultimate Edition.

JSawyer Mod Vanilla Number Of Perks - Changes the final total number of perks acquired by level 34 from the JSawyer default of 17 to the vanilla default of 25.

Perk Every Level, Cap at 100 - JSawyer Ultimate Edition caps the player at level 35. Once I reached level 35, THEN I installed this mod, which was the only increased level cap mod that worked for me. It doesn’t add perks after that, though; I have to add perks manually.

Restored Cut Content

Uncut Wasteland - Restores a huge amount of scenery and little random things which were patched out of the game post-release.

The Moon Comes Over The Tower - Restores the rest of the quest given by Emily Ortal, which requires you to go H&H Tools Factory, Camp Golf, and North Vegas Steel.

Vanilla Intro Plus - Restores the bit of the intro where Victor pulls the courier out of their own grave.

Classic Fallout Floaters - Adds Floaters into New Vegas based on information and cut content found within the files. Can be found where Centaurs lurk.

The Strip Open - Removes the gates and excess loading screens within the Strip.

Legion Quests Expanded - Provides more Legion content by adding or expanding several Legion quests. Needs compatibility patches.

Karma and Reputation

Karma Changes - Changes the karma alignment of some NPCs, like making Caesar Very Evil instead of Neutral.

Lonesome Road True Faction Allegiance - The parameters for your allegiance has been altered to reflect on your quest status, rather than reputation. This is reflected in Ulysses’ dialogue and the courier duster.

Powder Ganger Rep Fix (Ghost Town Gunfight) - A quick and easy fix that removes the Goodsprings Powder Gangers from the PG Faction.

Negative Karma for Gravedigging - Gives the player bad karma every time they dig up a grave.

Quests

Autumn Leaves - A DLC-sized quest mod in a centuries-old library inhabited by sentient machines with a mystery to solve.

Boom to the Moon - A short but sweet quest investigating a moon base featuring some of the best interiors I’ve ever seen in a video game. Walkthrough required, though, and be sure to install the failsafes.

Snow Globe Quest - Adds quest markers to all the snow globes you find for Mr. House.

Benny

Benny Returns - Returns Benny to the game as a companion. Be sure to read through the mod description carefully before saving him from the Fort.

Bi Benny: The Re-Bennying - Edits Benny's Black Widow dialog to work with Confirmed Bachelor couriers, with altered working voiced + lip sync dialog. It’s a little rough but it works.

Save Benny Without Angering The Legion - This mod makes you able to save Benny at The Fort without angering the Legion or breaking their questline.

Less Serious Mods

Benny’s Aid - Funny Simpsons reference.

Mr. House Portrait Fix - Gives the portraits of Mr. House the Platinum Drip.

I Got Spurs - Adds a set of lucky spurs to Doc Mitchell's house that can be worn with any clothing. They can be found on top of the Vigor-Tester.

Legate Caravan Showdown - Allows you to duel Legate Lanius in a game of Caravan rather than combat.

NVCE Pale Face Fix

Literally copied from some forum, the usual .ini fix didn’t work for me but this one did:

Another .ini fix, but this time the file is FALLOUT.INI, found under "C:\Users<your Windows username>\Documents\My Games\FalloutNV". Open it up in your text editor of choice, and search for the line:

bLoadFaceGenHeadEGTFiles=0

and change the 0 to 1, so it looks like:

bLoadFaceGenHeadEGTFiles=1

In the page on the Nexus it actually says to change that value in both a Fallout.ini file AND a FalloutPrefs.ini file, both in the My Games\FalloutNV folder.

[candicewright]

From planning to posting, share your process for making creative content!

To continue supporting content makers, this tag game is meant to show the entire process of making creative content: this can be for any creation.

RULES: When your work is tagged, show the process of its creation from planning to posting, then tag 5 people with a specific link to one of their creative works you’d like to see the process of. Use the tag #showyourprocess so we can find yours!

Thank you so much for tagging me @highwarlockkareena 💜

I'm tagging:

@zazrichor and this piece

@mushroomtale-fanart and this piece

@snowyfuxue and this set

@wuxxxian and this piece

@satuwilhelmiina and this piece

Of course, feel free to not do this if you don't feel like it, absolutely no pressure 💜

I'll be talking about my process for this art of Wen Qing.

Fair warning that this is going to be a bit of a mess because my process is all over the place, but I'll try my best to explain without it being too confusing.

Planning

Since this was a request, I started by reading the prompt, which asked for Wen Qing and roses. Roses are my one of my favorite flowers so I claimed the prompt and started thinking about what I was going to do with it.

I knew I wanted to do a portrait with roses surrounding Wen Qing, but I still wasn't sure about what the composition was going to be, so I started looking for references to see what would work and to get some ideas.

I started looking for photos of Meng Ziyi that I liked and at first I really liked this one.

She looks great, but when I tried sketching it I couldn't really get the angle of the face right, so I tried to look for a different picture that was within my skill level. Luckily, I remembered seeing a very pretty pucture the day before so I looked for it and this one was the one I ended up going with.

After that, I downloaded some free to use pictures of roses. I really liked the contrast and the color scheme in the pictures so I though I could apply it to the painting itself and so I began getting a clearer idea of what I wanted to do.

Creation

I opened my art program (IbisPaint X) and did a sketch of what I wanted using my references. My sketches are always super messy and I can't be bothered to do lineart, so I usually just clean them up a little bit and work over them directly. I should actually learn how to do proper lineart at some point, but today is not that day 😂

Then, I chose my base colors and filled in the drawing to get an idea of where I was going with the piece. I really likeed how it looked like this so I sent it to my friends for validation. They were extremely lovely to me as always so I was excited to continue working on it 💜

Before rendering, I knew I wanted my light source to be on the right and I wanted the shadows to be quite dark, almost black, but that's the extent of what I knew before going into it.

And then I started actually painting! Unfortunately tumblr won't let me post the process video into this post so I'm going to upload it on twitter. You can see it here! I don't really know how to describe how I paint other than there's a lot of going back and forth and over stuff that I already thought was finished. The whole thing took around 12 hours, which is a bit longer than I usually spend on a portrait but I think it was worth it!

For the main piece I only used three brushes. I did add a bit of glow and sparkles with different brushes on a separate program, but I mostly used these three:

Note that these are at full opacity but I usually work a very low opacity because my stylus doesn't have pressure sensitivity (bc my equipment sucks) and that's the only way I have to blend my colors without the blending tool, which I don't really like because it takes away the texture.

I also had a bit of trouble with the colors in this one because it's not what I usually do, but after multiple adjustments and with help from the references, I ended up with something I really liked!

After the piece was done, I added some of my usual sparkles and a bit of glow and then saved it to my gallery. Then, I opened my editing software and played with the contrast, saturation, brightness and some filters. I was left with three versions of the art that I liked: the one I eventually went with and these two (I still really like the first one tbh).

I sent it to my friends so that they could help me pick which one looked better and after a long period of very serious deliberation (read: we all panicked bc we're gay and can't choose) we ended up going with the one that ended up being posted to the mdzs net!

I then sent it to the net for posting and waited (im)patiently for it to go up! ❤

And that's it! I hope someone can get something put of the mess that is my process or that it was at least enjoyable!!!!!

[dxfiedfxte-a]

@siilkyhearts​ (Chiaki) || Pre-Plotted

This was all so weird, he thought this was going to be a brand new school year, at least that was what it seemed, only for this pink bear to appear claiming to be their teacher suddenly, the walls dropped and she took them to a place known as Jabberwock Island, and told them they’d be staying there from now on and they’d have to get to know each other in the name of hope? Just what kind of school year was this? Did this even count as school if there was no class? Nothing made sense anymore. Much to his dismay, Minato and the others were pretty much stuck here, as far as he knew, there was no way to get back to Hope’s Peak from here, so he like everyone else here with him, he didn’t really have a choice. While it seemed unnecessary at first, at least it was a relatively peaceful island with a simple task. 

They just had to get to know each other and become friends, though that did sound like an awful or of work, he never really planned on making friends, socializing was rather tough for him, Minato wasn’t the best at it, mostly due to his life, losing his family at a young age and being passed along to relative’s who pretended to care for a bit, before passing him onto the next person, and vice versa. Life, didn’t really seem all that bright to him, all he really had left, was the Paranormal, that was all he had to cling onto after his parents tragic deaths. But that day he managed to contact his parents, had been the same day he knew what he wanted to do in life, become a Paranormal Investigator, something that came naturally to him. It didn’t take him long to learn about different types of ghost hunting equipment, soon after, he knew everything to do with video editing and picture capturing, as well as various other skillsets in that area of expertise.

It seemed everyone else here had talents of some kind, and there were as assortment of different talents that he’d seen from everyone, people from all walks of life with their own unique skills, it was interesting to say the least. While he wasn’t too great talking, he’d at least try, that’s what he was supposed to do right? It was a drag, but pretty much the whole reason they were all here. After being given their keys to their cottages, everyone scattered. Probably to look around and see just exactly where they’d be presumable spending the rest of their lives here, which was still something he still didn’t truly understand, but if they were being forced to make friends, the least he could do was try. 

Exiting his cottage, Minato out of boredom, decides to see if there were any spirits here. Pulling out his EMF Detector, he powered it on, and it began to beep, the bluenette completely focused on his investigation attempt, he passes by the poolside, his eyes fixed on the device in his hands, following the direction of each spike he picked up in the meter, when suddenly.

BUMP

He isn’t looking where he’s going and someone who also wasn’t paying attention, crashed into his chest, the sudden collision pushing Minato’s duffel bag down, out spills some of his things. A bag of rice cakes along with several other tasty snacks, along with his PSP and a bunch of his games fell out onto the tiled floor next to the pool. That was close, he was grateful none of his things fell into the water, quickly picking up his stuff and bagging them, he stands back up to his feet and turns to the girl whom he had accidentally bumped into.

[{ 🦋 }] - “Sorry about that. I wasn’t looking where I was going.” With the apology, he bows and turns his back to check his bag to make sure he had regathered everything that had fallen out. The moment he realizes his PSP is missing, at that same moment, he feels a light poke on his back causing him to turn back to face her with a hum. The first thing he sees, is that same girl handing him back his PSP, she had a excitable look on her face as she was returning his portable console to him.

[{ 🦋 }] - “Hm? Oh! My PSP! Thanks. I was starting to think it fell in the water.”