#connecting the visual dots

[sforzesco]

decimus wanted to wind cassius up a bit just to see how he would snap

uhhh. what else. you know!! caesar was collecting (and discarding) a new generation of romans, operating a new kind of roman imperium. political manipulation. "good" governance. conspiracies are forming in reply.

the collage art is all public domain/open access stuff from the met collections!

[beneathsilverstars]

i downloaded some new game apps on my ipad for my daughter, and after playing one of them for a bit she looked up at me with a slightly distressed expression and said "i just saw a cat so cute that i cried." and then she told me to delete the app. because she just could not handle how cute the cat was, to the point that she didn't want to see it again.

[kevindaycardboardcutout]

So we have Van wearing the exact same outfit as the man with no eyes at Nat's funeral. We have confirmation that she's seen the man with no eyes. We have her in the past timeline trying to get other Tai to come out. After her cancer stopped spreading, which happened because of a sacrifice, she starts twitching and regularly covering her eyes and face. Even her being the one to convince Tai to cancel the aid team they asked for at the end of season 2. There's something fishy here, and I have a feeling the man with no eyes is using Van to get other Tai to stay permanently.

[almostyours]

random question but for a group that is considered an angel group theres a lack of angel imagery in the graphics and blog and knowing you i am sure there’s a reason for that????? 🎤

LMAOOOOOO KNOWING ME?!  😭😭😭  ok.  but ur right.  i actually do have a reason but i’ve never said anything about it because that’s lore territory and i’ve always wanted to do something “fun” to talk about those silly theories.  but with the way i’m moving…  ok.  u didn’t ask for this but i will do a little lore dump on the reason why i don’t really include angel visuals to their content with a tldr because before i am an human i'm a yapper!

in their world,  the mobius,  there’s an otherworldly god i call "i"—  though sometimes i call them "mother" or "father" as well,  since,  really,  they’re only a concept.  and,  in a way,  "i" could even be u. 

“i” is beyond mortal understanding,  something like a biblically accurate angel that no one is worthy to look upon.  a literal god of whom no one shall make a carved image.  their vision when creating the mobius was to make a “perfect world,”  free of sin and disobedience,  where angels and disciples would serve them and their word alone.  to do this,  “i” created three angels from the heart of nature,  because whatever came from mother nature itself would surely obey them,  right?  but there was one rule in “i’s” book:  noooooooo one could ever resemble the likeness or idea of “i.”  because if their angels inspired the same awe or dread "i" provided,  how could they ever spread their message?

so,  these angels were made to radiate kindness,  each a vessel of their season,  born to share “i’s” teachings without stirring fear.  they’re almost like concepts themselves:  a glimpse of what they might be,  but always held back by “i’s” rules and doctrine.  basically,  they were created solely to serve.  (not trying to be funny here lmaoooooooooo).  in their gentle,  human-like forms,  the sillies are the perfect reflections of “i’s” ideals,  inspiring trust rather than dread to those they cross paths with.  

yet,  after the aengel of the season project,  they saw how “i” had limited them as angels,  as “humans,”  as individuals because they didn’t even have the right to think on their own without consequences.  they were even bothered by the fact that “i” didn’t fully respect mother nature by allowing their disciples to slowly destroy her.  this realization sparked anger toward their god,  their roles,  and even their own identities because who the fuck am i?  eventually,  they understood that they were as close to god as anything could be as they were created by "i" and their own creation,  so why serve when they are their own person slash actual angel?   🤭  now,  with “i’s” gift,  aka their serene,  human-like forms as they don’t portray themselves as the biblically angels they actually are,  they quietly but definitely defy “i’s” words by sharing their own doctrines of self-love,  self-expression,  and self-respect.  :)  

TLDR.  their human forms are simply “vessels” to gain people’s trust,  as they’re actually biblically accurate angels  :)  because how can they share their own doctrine and encourage mmmmmmm individuality?  uniqueness?  if everyone is screaming and kicking their feet while they’re going plsssssss do not be afraid  D:  their aura alone is angelic enough,  aka the main reason angel imagery isn’t present enough in the blog  :) 

[to-illustrate-the-stars]

(delusional voice) kamisato art: hyouka!!!!!

[crippledtrait]

[vampyretaemin]

taemin is actually a genius for making criminal and idea connect like that. criminal being about losing yourself and falling to hell and letting yourself be destroyed in a toxic relationship and idea being about realizing how much you idolized the other person and changed yourself for them and breaking free of that and dragging yourself out of that hell and up to heaven is…. wow.

[attila-werther]

I had to gut five pages of trikaranos and rearrange some of the beats, which makes it the first major revision with it I've had to make, and yet somehow. SOMEHOW. the fucking (redacted) scene remains. if anything, it became cemented in the story despite my attempts to revise it not once but three times.

[arytha]

i loooove the tarot scenario in talent show. absolutely perfect

[cakeinthevoid]

I figured it out. Carrie and Willow are going to be my go to OCs for any given whump prompt. Hardcore whump? Let us reflect on Willow’s time with the institute >:) Caretaker fluff? Hurt comfort? Homeboy Carrie got us covered.

[rikerhatepage]

Anyways now that I'm here why does the super7 borg action figure look like if lieutenant barclay and the doctor from voyager had an mpreg baby

[forestofbygoness]

so whooooooo's gonna write the big essay about how Oppenheimer and Barbie actually overlapped on some themes?? there's gotta be someone smarter and more eloquent than me ready to this cause I ain't not writer and I don't have a platform

[hautsreadsmarvel]

The lads without powers (Captain America, Iron Man, Nick Fury)

Captain America is fine on average (6, 7 issues?)

(Skipped “The Red Skull Lives” - all important info comes up in next ish)

Ooh, we’re getting into good conspiracy territory now. The Red Skull (who survived World War II by accidentally being placed into stasis under tons of rubble until resuscitated by AIM) differentiates between “THEM” and AIM, which means that the Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. plot is still ongoing. If Them is not AIM, then who are they?

In “He Who Holds the Cosmic Cube”, the Red Skull steals the Cosmic Cube from AIM and becomes the titular guy. One of AIM’s pilots crashes near Captain America and tells him about the plot.

Remember kids, Captain America doesn’t have superpowers. This is totally achievable for someone of sufficient conditioning and skill. Try this at home.

Wow, that’s a proper villain rant. Pure elemental Evil.

To all intents and purposes, the man who is slowly turning towards me has now become titlecard.wav

The Cosmic Cube is a big bad “omnipotence-granting McGuffin”. This feels like the most mismatched fight of all time; it makes hydrogen bomb vs coughing baby look like a toss-up.

To the Red Skull’s credit, he doesn’t develop the unfathomable levels of stupidity most villains start suffering from on becoming newly omnipotent. No toying with his food, no “punches and energy beams with more megatons” nonsense, he actually starts to use his newfound power with tact and skill. He does torment the good Captain a bit, but as soon as he’s in the slightest bit of danger from Cap he immobilizes him and starts sending him to another dimension.

He still makes two mistakes - you need omnipotent characters to make mistakes if they’re gonna lose, obviously - but they make perfect sense.

First is that he allows Captain America to take advantage of his neurosis. The Red Skull actually has a fairly distinct character. He needs to be the most superior person in the room; he needs everyone in the entire universe to not only know it, but to show him unquestioning deference and fear about it.

(Damn, it’s like he’s a Nazi-themed supervillain, or something)

The second is that he doesn’t prioritize what he’ll do with his power appropriately. In his monologue, he discusses incorporating the Cosmic Cube into this crown, but he doesn’t get around to doing it. Cap maneuvers into the Red Skull’s psychological blind spot by stimulating his need for dominion, then in one desperate, well-timed lunge disarms him of the Cosmic Cube and consigns it to the waters below the island - a maneuver that would not have been possible if the Red Skull had already integrated it into his attire rather than continuing to hold it.

Then there’s four issues of Cap fighting off the Adaptoid, an artificial humanoid made by AIM that can copy the skills and powers of anyone by watching them with its eyes. It eventually copies the size of Goliath, the skill and shield of Captain America, the wings of the Wasp, and the archery, bow, and special arrows of Hawkeye. This storyline was alright, and I don’t have any particular problems with it, but there was nothing special to talk about.

Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s pretty good! (3 issues)

Where last we left off with our super-spies, the Advanced Idea Mechanics company was attempting to kill SHIELD’s operatives with hydroponics-grown android soldiers, while negotiating with SHIELD’s top brass to allow them to take over the Earth, obviously take over the Earth (but phrased more nicely), in exchange for their nuclear weapons defense technology.

I said it last time, I’ll say it again, I like this trio. They bounce off each other well, they contrast so nicely, they dress sharp and they punch good.

I’m also keen to Fury’s incessantly flippant tough-guy speak. He never actually breaks from this manner of speaking, but it becomes clear in these issues it’s a very thorough and effective way of getting people to underestimate him.

Also, Jasper Sitwell is the gayest character the Marvel group has cooked up yet. I can’t give you any evidence other than “vibes”, but trust me. He’s gay. It is known, search your heart, etc etc.

AIM’s objective in these issues is twofold: discredit Fury so he can’t fight them anymore, and replicate SHIELD’s Life Model Decoy androids to enhance their own android technology.

The former fails due to the loyalty of Fury’s men. After they figure out AIM is somehow remotely observing them, they begin acting as though they all secretly loathe Fury, causing AIM to use them as witnesses in a trial to remove Fury from his job… and then of course they back him up as the right man for the job.

The latter fails when Fury melodramatically jumps out of the Helicarrier during that testimony and para-drops right on top of AIM’s SHIELD-infiltration squad. Pure action hero shit. Of course this is the right guy to head the super-spy agency, how could there be any doubt after that stunt?

They keep finding excuses for Fury to be shirtless. Pure action hero.

As AIM's plan collapses, they mistakenly put their trust in the Secret Empire. You know, the incompetent buffoons who did nothing except kill themselves? Apparently both organizations belong to "Them". Unfortunately for AIM, the last person in the Secret Empire is a SHIELD mole - Gabe Jones, one of Fury's other right-hand men who's been conspicuously missing for the last several issues.

Around this point, I was going to speculate that "Them" is most likely HYDRA resurgent...

…naw, the professionals are way ahead of me.

Gotta say, I am rather unexpectedly digging the Nick Fury series (Cap’s less so, but it’s improved markedly from its gravely insipid start). This was also a very solid way to introduce HYDRA as a credible, potent long-term villainous organization; any writer can say some random conspiracy is a world-spanning, undefeatable threat, but HYDRA is built up over multiple arcs of multiple series in multiple distinct, individually competent guises.

How can Iron Man fly when he's a total drag? (8 issues)

Tony Stark decides to reveal his secret identity and give the American gov’t the secrets of power armor manufacture, but gets attacked by the Soviets’ own Titanium Man, who has been strengthened by regular dieting with growth hormones. (I get that sounds nutty, but the whole justification behind Titanium Man is that its operator is already almost superhumanly strong and robust, allowing him to wear much heavier armor that can bear more and stronger weapons; under this logic, growth hormones makes as much sense as any other power-up handwave)

Iron Man wins, Tony has a cardiac complication in front of Congress, and he decides not to reveal his secret identity. Happy helps sell the deception by piloting the Iron Man armor while Tony is known to be in the hospital, but then gets kidnapped by the Mandarin. Tony then builds a new suit and whups the Mandarin’s ass. In the final issue, the Mandarin unveils his karate mastery potent enough to penetrate Iron Man’s new armor, but Iron Man takes off his gauntlets and defeats karate in two punches.

There’s something interesting going on with the intersection of martial arts and Orientalism going on here. Note that virtually every hero knows how to do judo, and no non-heroes know how to do judo. Conversely, most (admittedly not all) karate practitioners are villains. Whenever a villain pulls out karate, they have to be humbled by a Western fighting style (even if the Western-ness has to be shoehorned in, as in this case where Iron Man calls his attack a “good ol’ American one-two to the kisser!”). This is going to be really funny once I start reading Iron Fist issues and similar, I can tell.

To be honest I didn’t care for these Iron Man issues. I would’ve skipped them over entirely, if not for one page:

BEHOLD, Marvel’s first abnormally-paneled art! I mentioned in one of Spider-Man’s issues that the panels get more vertical when a fight transitions to some kind of literal rising action, but this is an entirely new thing. These days, paneling is toyed around with so much this looks fairly ordinary, but I imagine that at the time of this issue’s publication, this page was quite shocking and dramatic to readers.

[the-unofficial-village-idiot]

Modern art.... is kinda like memes

[cherrypikkins]

@dimiclaudeblaigan asked for a tutorial on how to begin drawing. Good news! If you can draw a funky looking stick man, you have already started!

I think that stick people are a great starting point for artists because of the things you can learn from them that will be important later on.

If you are able to draw a circle and a couple of lines, you can easily put together a stick person.

Congratulations! You have started to draw. :)

A stick person is a very minimal artistic representation of a real life person. It is simple yet recognizable, and is widely used in art, media, and signage.

But what can a stick person teach us about drawing people that look more like… well, people? Lets have a look!

By simply adding a few more lines, we can add a pair of eyes and a mouth. Maybe even a little triangle nose! Or half circles for ears. We can now draw a face, which provides a basis for all sorts of expressions.

These simple additions can allow us to explore the wide range of human emotion and individuality.

This may seem like the basics of the basics. But that is what we want! In order to get to the point where we are able to draw complex, elaborate representations of humans and objects, we will need to start with simple shapes like lines and circles and build our understanding from there.

For instance, lets give our stick person some cool new features, such as hands and feet. I chose little squiggly circles to represent hands, and triangles to represent feet.

We can go a step further and modify the body of the stick person to include shoulders, hips, elbows and knees. These parts of the human body are quite complex in real life But here, all we need to do is add a few simple lines and dots to our stick person.

The lines provide some additional structural elements to our stick person's body, which are the shoulders and the hips. The dots indicate the points of articulation - elbows and knees, the places where the arms and legs bend!

Now we can use our stick person to show us an even wider range of human movement, action, and expression.

Our little drawing of a human being is evolving! All it took was adding a few more lines and shapes here and there.

By elongating some of the existing lines and making the head an oval instead of a circle, we can give our stick person proportions that resemble that of a real life human.

By this point, we have managed to add more complexity to our stick person simply by using our ability to draw lines, circles, and other basic shapes!

These basic ideas are the building blocks that will enable us to create more complex shapes.

The next part may be a considerable step up if you are absolutely new to drawing, but I have decided to include it in order to show you how complex objects like the human body can be built from shapes that are a bit more complex than circles and lines.

For example. Two ovals and a rectangle can be combined to create a cylinder.

Six squares can be combined to create a cube, or a box. Here, each square is distorted slightly depending on which way the cube is facing.

Note that the back faces of the cube and the bottom of the cylinder are hidden. These shapes allow us to visualize that which should not normally visible.

A sphere from all perspectives can be represented by a circle. But we can make it more like a sphere by adding lighting and shadow if we so desire.

Cubes, cylinders, and spheres are examples of 'solid shapes' because they consist of 3 dimensions.

Lets see how these solid shapes can be used to compose the human body.

By stacking three cylindrical objects, we can create a torso. Two spheres have been added to form shoulders, while a smaller cylinder forms the neck.

An arm is an alternating sequence of spheres and cylinders connected together. Note that the hand has been simplified for this example.

We can apply these solid shapes to the rest of the body to give us a more recognizable representation of the human form. It doesn't even have to be perfect. And just like that, our stick figure now has a silhouette that is unmistakably a person!

In the above examples, notice that we kept the stick person at the beginning while building up the shapes and solids around it. This is because the stick person serves as a guide for positioning the body and its various parts -> also known as posing.

You can do the same thing to everyday objects! Here, I drew a wine glass by stacking these three dimensional solid shapes.

The cup and its contents are two ovoid shapes that were cut in half. The stem is a very thin cylinder shape. The base is a cylinder with a slightly wider bottom.

Solid shapes help inform us how objects and parts of the human body may appear from different perspectives.

For example, a sphere can be used to demonstrate how the human head appears when looking up or down, turned to the side, or tilted at an angle.

With these examples, I hope I have managed to convinced you that if you can draw a circle and a couple of lines, you can draw a person! You just have to train your eye to recognize the simple shapes within complex objects. Try it with everyday objects as well! Or even your favourite media! A drawing subject can be as simple or as complex as you envision it to be.

Once you have mastered that, there are many aspects of drawing you can explore from here that may require you to seek additional resources or a fellow artist's advice.

Last of all, remember that drawing is an iterative process. Even if you draw something correct the first time, you will need to draw it again and again to get it right all times! And by making small changes like the ones we explored in this tutorial, your drawings will gradually transform!

I hope what I've demonstrated here are enough to provide the basics of how to get started with drawing objects and people, and also to help refresh more experienced artists. :) Hopefully I didn't go too off topic with what was requested, and let me know if there are any more questions I can answer.

Cheers :3

[imastoryteller]

Write Like a Director: Crafting a Cinematic Novel (With Examples)

Writing a novel like a movie means propelling your reader through scenes with relentless momentum, slashing through fluff, and ensuring each word drives the plot forward. Trust your readers to connect the dots through dialogue and action, immersing them in vivid, immediate experiences without drowning them in verbose descriptions. Every chapter should feel like a high-octane scene, keeping readers on the edge of their seats, hungry for the next twist, the next revelation. Keep it tight, keep it thrilling. Here are some examples to illustrate each aspect of this dynamic storytelling approach:

Fast Pacing

Chase Through the Alley: Jake sprinted down the narrow alley, the thud of heavy boots echoing behind him. A sharp left, then a right—no time to think, just run. This example thrusts the reader directly into a high-speed chase, emphasizing immediate action and urgency.

Heist in Progress: The vault door creaked open. "Thirty seconds," Maria whispered, stuffing bonds into her bag. The alarm blared. "Move!" The scene conveys a sense of time running out and rapid movement, maintaining a brisk pace with no room for delays.

Dynamic, Fast-Going Plot

Kidnapping Twist: Laura opened her front door to find an empty stroller on her porch. A note inside read: "If you want to see her again, come alone." The unexpected discovery of a kidnapping sets up an immediate and compelling conflict, driving the plot forward swiftly.

Escape Plan: The prison lights flickered. "Now!" whispered Tom. They climbed through the hole, hearing guards’ shouts in the distance. The urgent breakout from prison keeps the plot dynamic and intense, with characters constantly on the move.

Show, Don't Tell

Fight in the Ring: Blood trickled down Max’s face. He clenched his fists, dodged a punch, and delivered a powerful uppercut that sent his opponent to the mat. The physicality and immediate consequences of the fight are shown through actions rather than explained through exposition.

Silent Farewell: Tears streamed down Lily’s cheeks as she handed Jack the letter. Without a word, he turned and walked away, his shoulders slumped. The emotional impact of the farewell is conveyed through the characters' actions and expressions, not through internal monologue or narrative explanation.

No Tedious Descriptions

Quick Change: Sam grabbed the nearest shirt and jeans, pulling them on as he ran out the door, glancing at the clock—he had five minutes to reach the station. The scene moves quickly from one action to the next, providing only essential details to maintain momentum.

Sudden Revelation: In the dim light, Sophie saw the glint of a ring on the thief’s finger. Her father's ring. She gasped, stepping back. The revelation is made through a brief visual detail, keeping the description succinct and impactful.

No Infodump

Mid-Battle Realization: Amidst the chaos, Sarah recognized the tattoo on the enemy soldier’s arm. Her brother. She hesitated, the war raging around her. The revelation about the brother is integrated into the action, avoiding lengthy explanations and keeping the focus on the immediate situation.

Urgent Discovery: Ethan flipped through the ancient book, stopping at a page with a familiar symbol. "It's the same as the pendant," he muttered, pocketing the book and running out. The discovery is brief and directly tied to the plot's urgency, with no extensive background information provided.

Avoid Fluff

Straight to Action: Ben didn’t bother with pleasantries. “We’re out of time,” he said, throwing the bag into the car. “Get in.” The scene cuts straight to the critical moment, avoiding unnecessary dialogue or description.

No Idle Chatter: Emma answered the phone, cutting off the caller's introduction. “What’s the plan?” she demanded, glancing at the clock. The character immediately seeks vital information, eliminating small talk and focusing on the plot's progression.

Tight, Immersive Narrative

Immediate Danger: As the elevator doors slid open, Mark saw the bomb timer: 00:10. He dived for the wires, heart pounding. The imminent threat and the character's swift reaction immerse the reader in the tension of the moment.

Critical Decision: The bridge was collapsing. Anna had seconds to decide—jump or try to save her friends. She took a deep breath and ran back. The character's quick decision-making in a life-or-death situation keeps the narrative focused and engaging.

By applying these principles, you can craft a novel that feels as dynamic and engaging as a blockbuster movie, keeping your readers hooked from the first page to the last.

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