marielaure

[marielaure]

I have so many ships, any combo of the Crows works for me 😄

I also really like Genya x Zoya

As the name suggests, I love a good ship —it's one of the aspects that makes stories so fun for me.

Ironically though, it's also something that kinda messed up my reading experience regarding the Six of Crows duology.

You can easily notice that every important character is paired up with someone. While obviously there are friendships & other mentionable relationships between characters, the ones fleshed out and focused on are the romantic ones, and this wouldn't be bad if done right. However, with the method the author chose to show us these romances ruins it: we basically get a manuscript for the pairs. After introducing every main character, you could already tell who's paired with who, no other chance, no doubt.

And it took a toll on so many things regarding the story (like building relationships properly that aren't meant to be romantic) but my issue is this: there's no work left for the reader.

You don't look for tiny clues about a later relationship while you reread; it is made clear that each pair is only interested in the other romantically, nobody else stands a chance. Everything is set for the beginning, and you as a reader have nothing to do but read it; these romances are spoon-fed to us, readers. No need for your fantasy (quite ironic in a fantasy book if you ask me).

I saw someone write a post about this here in tumblr, went something like this:

"I love how the soc fandom is so chill, we don't have ship wars, we agree on everything!"

Maybe this is why I love my little crackships so much. The author would never give these pairings a chance but it's still fun to imagine how they'd be, who'd be with who...

Some of my faves (mind you, all of these are for fun, with personal HC's):

Matthias and Wylan:

Wylan would be scared shitless of Matthias in the beginning but I think these two would definitely hit it off. Big protective bf and Dyslexic disaster bf combo. They'd have the most tooth-rotting fluff relationship ever, and yes the unhinged one would be Wylan.

Inej and Genya:

*dreamy sigh* these two have me on a chokehold. Both are badass, fierce but also kind, and I think they'd have a great relationship with each other from the beginning. They'd wax poetry at each other 24/7 while having the wlw equivalent of Gomez&Morticia Addams as their relationship progresses.

(while we're at it, Genya and Matthias too would be a great pair, keeping the drusje-druskelle angst but with Matthias letting his guard down easier since Genya's abilities aren't as dangerous as other grisha's could be, and with Genya they'd be so sweet together!)

Nikolai & Kaz:

Oh my babies. These two are one of my favourites, I could write a dissertation about them, but I'll try to be short here. Kaz lying about being everything Nikolai is ashamed of (a bastard, a monster), Nikolai being everything Kaz cannot be (charismatic and charming, born into a well-off family, etc). Their criminal minds would make their relationship very fun, trying to outsmart each other. They'd also do each other good, Nikolai forcing Kaz to come out of his shell while accepting why he's hiding in the first place, and Kaz would confront Nikolai head on, wouldn't buy any of his lies he tries to mask with his smiles and cheerful behaviour, take him seriously no matter what...

It's getting long, isn't it?

(Bonus for Jesper, Nina and Nikolai going on a flirting mission to woo an entire nation into their demise)

Anyway, hope the brainrots have plagued your mind *-*

What are the ships you have that aren't canonically in the books?

[marielaure]

I get the impulse to project parent/child type relationships onto characters but sometimes the dynamic you're thinking of is Mentorship

[marielaure]

[ID: two denim patches with raised red fabric paint pinned onto a jacket. The first is in uncontracted Braille and reads, "I can't see shit". The second is in contracted UEB and reads, "if you can read this stop touching me". End ID.]

Shout out to my friends for inspiring some of the funniest patches I could possibly put on my jacket

[marielaure]

There are two main kinds of reactions people have to seeing someone using a white cane walking towards them: fearful and aggressive.

The fearful are the ones who press themselves flat against walls as you pass by, the ones who see you coming and cross the street to not walk by you, the ones like the guy who walked into my path and then, upon seeing me, leapt two feet backwards shouting, "Oh shit!"

The fearful are an annoyance, but they're not usually dangerous. They don't seem to grasp that the path is generally wide enough for both of us, that my cane only takes up two more inches either side of me and isn't going to kill them. They're the ones that my friends remark on most, because once you realise what they're doing you can never stop noticing that people do this.

The aggressive, however, are a different story.

The aggressive are the ones who stare you down as you walk towards them like they're playing a game of chicken, the ones who wave and say hello and when you reply they use it as evidence you're not blind. They're the ones who try to hopscotch over your cane. They're the ones who will kick your cane and try to trip you up for fun. They're the ones that deliberately slow down, giggling as they look back at you, because they want you to walk into them and to hurt yourself. They're the ones who you'll walk by and, even though neither you nor your cane even brushes them, they'll get angry at you because don't you know you could hurt someone by walking around with that thing? Don't you know you should have someone with you at all times to make sure you don't hit someone?

There's a different kind of aggressive, too, and I don't know a single blind person who has not encountered this kind. This is the kind of aggressive who tries to "help" you, the kind who grabs your arm and drags you across roads without talking to you or asking. The kind who pull you into oncoming traffic and expect you to be grateful. The kind who pick up your cane to lead you. The kind who will get you hit by a car in the name of helpfulness. This kind does not realise or even care that it is terrifying to have an unseen person grab you and start dragging you away, who don't get that the cane is your contact with the world around you and they have stripped you of knowledge and safety by picking it up off the ground. This kind does not realise or care that it is still kidnapping, still assault, and they expect you to be grateful that they deigned to "help" you.

All three kinds don't see you as a person. The fearful see you as an obstacle, the aggressive see you as an idle amusement or a threat, and the helpful aggressive see you only as a way to feel good about themselves.

The second you hold a white cane you are unpersoned.

Do your local blind person a favour and cut that shit out.

[marielaure]

hands down my favourite sighted guide has been my best friend who always describes cool dogs or weird sights we pass. one time there was a horse (and not even a police one) in the city and he just described the horse to me. it was fantastic

[marielaure]

when you read fanfic with a blind character and it's very clear to you as a blind person that the writer has done little to no research into blindness

[marielaure]

To all the beautiful Taivan fic writers out there, I’m begging you to write Taivan angry makeouts🤩🤩🤩 Let these girls be mad and make out!

[marielaure]

i'm totally biased here but i think more ppl should explore multishipping and not necessarily only through poly relationships (though nuanced poly ships are chef's kiss 👌) but through past relationships/situationships too

there are so many fascinating dynamics to explore when you zoom out on a character's timeline and it can add so much flavor to explore a character's dynamics with others they loved/hooked up with/had intense chemistry with in their past even if you do have one ship that you favor above others as the One True Pairing that's most likely to last long-term or whatever

it's especially nice when those past relationships are nuanced and full of complex emotions even if they're doomed to not work out (and especially if they're doomed!!!! those are The most interesting dynamics!) and if that relationship is still given space to be important to those characters even as they move forward (or don't and pine forever in an unrequited mess)

[marielaure]

Write hurt/comfort for an aromantic character

.

[marielaure]

Reblog if its ok for your moots to stalk your blog and interact with everything you've posted.

[marielaure]

started thumbnailing episode 2 early bc i got excited hehe. roughly a little under halfway through!

[marielaure]

pretty pretty please i don't want to be a... mermaid girl?

[marielaure]

Someone needs to write a fanfic about a princess and her dad the king who hires this male bodyguard for the princess and the bodyguard starts hitting on the princess, so the dad fires him and gets the princess a female bodyguard so it doesn't happen again, but the princess and the new bodyguard are actually both lesbians so they get together anyways.

[marielaure]

what is everyone's issue with audiobooks good heavens

[marielaure]

100 Dialogue Tags You Can Use Instead of “Said”

For the writers struggling to rid themselves of the classic ‘said’. Some are repeated in different categories since they fit multiple ones (but those are counted once so it adds up to 100 new words). 

1. Neutral Tags 

Straightforward and unobtrusive dialogue tags: 

Added, Replied, Stated, Remarked, Responded, Observed, Acknowledged, Commented, Noted, Voiced, Expressed, Shared, Answered, Mentioned, Declared.

2. Questioning Tags 

Curious, interrogative dialogue tags:

Asked, Queried, Wondered, Probed, Inquired, Requested, Pondered, Demanded, Challenged, Interjected, Investigated, Countered, Snapped, Pleaded, Insisted.

3. Emotive Tags 

Emotional dialogue tags:

Exclaimed, Shouted, Sobbed, Whispered, Cried, Hissed, Gasped, Laughed, Screamed, Stammered, Wailed, Murmured, Snarled, Choked, Barked.

4. Descriptive Tags 

Insightful, tonal dialogue tags: 

Muttered, Mumbled, Yelled, Uttered, Roared, Bellowed, Drawled, Spoke, Shrieked, Boomed, Snapped, Groaned, Rasped, Purred, Croaked.

5. Action-Oriented Tags 

Movement-based dialogue tags: 

Announced, Admitted, Interrupted, Joked, Suggested, Offered, Explained, Repeated, Advised, Warned, Agreed, Confirmed, Ordered, Reassured, Stated.

6. Conflict Tags 

Argumentative, defiant dialogue tags:

Argued, Snapped, Retorted, Rebuked, Disputed, Objected, Contested, Barked, Protested, Countered, Growled, Scoffed, Sneered, Challenged, Huffed.

7. Agreement Tags 

Understanding, compliant dialogue tags: 

Agreed, Assented, Nodded, Confirmed, Replied, Conceded, Acknowledged, Accepted, Affirmed, Yielded, Supported, Echoed, Consented, Promised, Concurred.

8. Disagreement Tags 

Resistant, defiant dialogue tags: 

Denied, Disagreed, Refused, Argued, Contradicted, Insisted, Protested, Objected, Rejected, Declined, Countered, Challenged, Snubbed, Dismissed, Rebuked.

9. Confused Tags 

Hesitant, uncertain dialogue tags:

Stammered, Hesitated, Fumbled, Babbled, Mumbled, Faltered, Stumbled, Wondered, Pondered, Stuttered, Blurted, Doubted, Confessed, Vacillated.

10. Surprise Tags

Shock-inducing dialogue tags:

Gasped, Stunned, Exclaimed, Blurted, Wondered, Staggered, Marvelled, Breathed, Recoiled, Jumped, Yelped, Shrieked, Stammered.

Note: everyone is entitled to their own opinion. No I am NOT telling people to abandon said and use these. Yes I understand that said is often good enough, but sometimes you WANT to draw attention to how the character is speaking. If you think adding an action/movement to your dialogue is 'good enough' hate to break it to you but that ruins immersion much more than a casual 'mumbled'. And for the last time: this is just a resource list, CALM DOWN. Hope that covers all the annoyingly redundant replies :)

Looking For More Writing Tips And Tricks? 

Check out the rest of Quillology with Haya; a blog dedicated to writing and publishing tips for authors!

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[marielaure]

Bringing along my aro friends to the function call that my quiver

[marielaure]

Imo missing Gideon is part of the experience of reading Harrow the Ninth. Everyone who read GtN goes to HtN like "but where is Gideon? How can I read this book without her??" And that is just like. Part of the book. Her absence. It hurts. You feel it. Youre mystified by it. Where is she?? I love it.