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[captain-aralias]

I made something

[captain-aralias]

Me rn.

[captain-aralias]

IGNIS EXCITAT ANIMAM [Fire awakens the soul]

"...the Pitch coat of arms (flames, the moon, three falcons).” -Carry On by @rainbowrowell

I finished the Simon Snow series last month and I simply cannot get enough so here's my interpretation of the Pitch coat of arms for the incomparable Baz Pitch 🩶

[captain-aralias]

Oh. I get it. Feeling a good thing. You got your hopes up. So I’m here to save you some time. Eventually….that all just goes away. 

Stephanie Hsu as Joy Wang/Jobu Tupaki in Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) dir. Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert

[captain-aralias]

people always talk about leaving comments on ao3 like it's a nice thing to do, or the best way to encourage writers to keep writing, or overall like it's how you Do Your Part in fandom

and yeah, all those things are true, but having spent the past few months leaving enthusiastic comments on as many things as i can, i have a different perspective

you should leave comments on fics because it's fun

taking the time to stop and focus on what i like about a story has made me way more aware of what's going on in stories and what i like about them. there's bit more actual comprehension and appreciation and not just beaming content into my eyes to fill time

i like noticing cool little things in fics, or riffing on funny events. i've never been very good at speculating or picking apart characters, but sometimes something clicks and it rocks.

and of course it's pretty nice when you get a response and it's clear you've made another person happy

so yeah, you should leave comments for your own sake, too. it makes reading better!

[captain-aralias]

Congrats on the follower milestone! ♥ if the ten sketching spots have not been filled up yet, how about a Baz carrying Simon? ♥♥♥

sorry this is like 3 years late 😭

[captain-aralias]

[captain-aralias]

Have you been Baz? 😂😂 I forgot the inside :P

[captain-aralias]

all steven moffat episode titles be like "The Impossible Of The Doctor"

all chris chibnall episode titles be like "The Timaeus Event PART 3: Proliferation of the [classic who monster]"

all RTD episode titles be like "grass"

[captain-aralias]

happy birthday to HIM

[captain-aralias]

Six Something Sunday Saturday

So I was going through an old fic-writing notebook and found my notes for Ready or Not (20k, explicit), along with chunks of first draft. I love reading about other people's processes and thought I'd share a little.

Yes, this is a process post for a fic that was completed a year and a half ago, and not a WIP; and yes it's Saturday. Whatever, I'm on a plane and procrastinating on plotting out the rest of Basil Pitch's Diary.

Below the cut, tags and spoilers for Ready or Not, which be warned contains elements of dubious consent. The below will make zero sense if you haven't read it.

No pressure post-Wednesday, pre-Sunday tags to @facewithoutheart, @thewholelemon, @ivelovedhimthroughworse, @cutestkilla, @you-remind-me-of-the-babe, @fatalfangirl, @moodandmist, @skeedelvee, @ileadacharmedlife, @artsyunderstudy, @raenestee, @brilla-brilla-estrellita, @youarenevertooold, @iamamythologicalcreature, @martsonmars, @wellbelesbian, @emeryhall, @stitchy-queerista, @im-gettingby, @monbons, @mooncello, @aristocratic-otter, @twokisses. I hope the early-for-Sunday tag doesn't stress you out, just ignore me if it does.

Planning the fic

It's always helpful, when developing a new story, to start with a brief plot synopsis.

And then go into more detail. (There were lots of steps between these but they're boring to look at.) I'm very impressed by those of you who can hold plots, themes, character arcs, etc. in your head without writing things out. I can't--if I don't have a path for where things are going, I meander and get lost and write little bits that don't get us anywhere. This is how I ended up thinking of RON's four chapters.

If you don't want to decipher my scrawl, here are the important points:

-dignity, always dignity -really almost touching peens -it's on like Donkey Kong -Penny: this is weird, but I'm preoccupied w/ Sherlock Holmes

Apparently I originally imagined Simon and Baz having an "enemies with benefits" stage where they were full-on humping and getting off during the magickal orgasms, but without kissing or otherwise acknowledging any relationship. I do love the sex-before-relationship trope but apparently chickened out / just didn't write it that way. (But fuck, it would have been hot, right?) Note that there's nothing in here about fixing Simon's magic--that was a late addition.

Highlights:

-Rules: no hands on cocks, no kissing, no lingering (so much lingering) -face burying, hair pulling, ass grabbing [Damn. I like how RON turned out but now I want another cake where this happens] -I wish I could hold him for longer than the 15 seconds it takes us to come -Simon gets off on "resisting" bc Baz is so strong mmHmm -I'm going to frot the dessert on the Titanic

Not shown, a list of scenes and then notes on scenes. I tend to write notes, and then sort of half/write, half "and then this happens," then go back and turn it all into character voice. Without a detailed outline I get analysis paralysis around "what next??"

Planning sex scenes

Like I said, I love a detailed outline, and they are especially helpful for high-stakes sex scenes, where practically every gesture carries weight. For a plotter, not planning that out would be foolish. Insane.

What the fuck.

The final chapter

The first draft of chapter 4, which picks up the morning after they get together, had 4,000 words of eating pickles in bed. I kept trying to cut it down before deciding to just let it lie and finish the thingbefore cutting.

Eventually it was time for the POV carousel, and apparently all these POVs were on the table:

Mumsy, Clio, Cat, and Chappie are all characters from @chen-chen-chen-again-chen's hysterical If These Walls Could Talk, which you should read after reading their marvelous The Tears of Mummer's House. Also: RHYS'S PARAKEET.

I did not end up writing a Humdrum/Sid POV, but apparently thought it through. I don't remember why I scrapped it. Maybe I didn't want to introduce him as a character because I didn't want to raise questions about what happened to him when Simon jizzed out his excess magic.

No, Sid, you do not want Simon going off in this condition. BTW fechounds are sex-pollen-emitting creatures from @captain-aralias's fabulous Fuck the Wavering Wood.

A moment of zen

This was in the middle of my RON notes. No explanation.

xoxo!

[captain-aralias]

Scrap packs now available on my Etsy!

I’ve accumulated a lot of misprints and test prints from my fan art projects over the years and I always figured I’d find a good use for them one day.

Well today is that day!

I’ve cut up and organized my collection of misprints and now they’re available on my Etsy! There’s ABCs of Carry On pages, valentine misprints, lightly damaged valentines, and lino cut tests!

Perfect for scrapbooking or collaging! Color them in! Cut them up! Pop them in a frame! The choice is yours! (Just make sure to credit me when posting about your projects ❤️)

[captain-aralias]

“The neighbors don’t even know we’re moving in. They’re at work.”

“Well, they will wonder, once they get a look at us. We’re cool and mysterious and better-looking than any couple has a right to be.”

—From Epilogue, Carry On by Rainbow Rowell.

[captain-aralias]

"I’ve never seen the merwolves, only heard about them from Ebb."

I wanted to dedicate my final creature design project to the Simon Snow fandom bc i love you <3

"She doesn't talk about the Mage. [...] she told me once that they got into a royal dust-up when one of his merwolves ate one of her goats. [...] She says they try to throw themselves up on the drawbridge."

—Simon Snow, from Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

"They’re worse than rats. I’d drain every one of them if the taste didn’t stay in my mouth for weeks. Gamy and fishy."

—Baz Pitch, from Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Visit my Artstation for bonus merwolf content u3u

@rainbowrowell

[captain-aralias]

“Oh, I suppose Niamh looks fierce no matter what. With that nose. That crushed plum of a mouth. That mean chin. But this takes her from fierce to something else… Something very nearly intolerable. She looks like Marlon Brando.”

Niamh Brody | Women of the Simon Snow trilogy.

[captain-aralias]

Happy Birthday Baz Pitch! Never forget you were brought to this world with love.

(Also, happy birthday to the one and only @rainbowrowell)

[captain-aralias]

We live!

Hey all! long time no see!

I am so happy to announce that this event the Carry On Art Remix is coming back!!!!!!

Schedule and rules etc TBD but it will be July signup with August-September posing dates!!! Hope to see you all there.