squirrelwriter

[squirrelwriter]

a very gentle PSA that a writer is not a short-order cook, please do not try to order off the menu

[squirrelwriter]

I am extremely late to the bridal carry redraw party, but I took a stab at it. Dainix and Falst, page 2-4-44 panel 3 from the webcomic Aurora by Red.

[squirrelwriter]

Sneak peak for the next chapter of The Exiled And The Outcast:

I'm having fun 😆😈

[squirrelwriter]

Doodle break for me at work. Tried doodling Alinua and gave her a cozy blanket and a break of her own

[squirrelwriter]

Lay A City To Rest - an Aurora webcomic fanfic

Just posted another fanfic. Rated T, Gen, featuring Kendal, Vash, and Kendal's bond with the Floof Squad. This one has a bittersweet core and delves into death and grief in the Auroraverse, so if you do read this, be mindful of that. Hopefully it's still a soft read overall, though.

Lay A City To Rest - Archive Of Our Own link

Here's the summary:

Vash was still too weakened from his ordeal with the Collector to form a new physical incarnation on his own, and Kendal... well, Kendal just felt like he needed to be here. Needed to help. Needed to see this through. So they did this together.

Or: After their adventure, Kendal helps Vash the god perform the funeral rites to finally release the souls of the city, and he struggles with the weight of grief afterward. Fortunately, Kendal's friends are there for him.

[squirrelwriter]

i feel so seen!!

(twitter thread)

[squirrelwriter]

The new chapter cover is really pretty!!!

I was wondering when someone would notice :3

[squirrelwriter]

Hi! I remember you saying at some point (I think, on the podcast?) that just realizing you have ADHD helped you to deal with it because you found some practices and techniques to help it, even without medication - or something along these lines, do I remember correctly?

Can you tell, which techniques? I seem to be somewhat resistant to medication (tried all options we get in the country I'm in, and improvement is very minimal), so I'm interested what else can be done there just to make it manageable

Caveat that every ADHD person is different so what works for me might not work for you, but this is what I've found helpful:

Break up Executive Dysfunction and fight Time Blindness by SETTING TIMERS. I have a fitbit, and on days I can feel my brain being restless and uncooperative, I set a ten minute timer on it. When it runs out, I set another one, and so on. It buzzes on my wrist, so it's hard to ignore, but it's not gamebreakingly distracting so it doesn't ruin my mood if I'm on a work roll. A brief, tangible reminder that time is passing can help me snap out of a break period or, if I'm working, give me a feel for my rate of progress. I can also use that reminder to take stock of if I need to eat food, get up and stretch, or lie on the floor for a bit to reset.

Take SMALL, LATERAL BITES OF PROGRESS. If you're having a hard time working on something, feel out what else you might be able to make headway on. Maybe you've got some writing notes you could jot down to build on later. Maybe there's a tiny item on the day's to-do list you could cross off quickly. Maybe there's a text or an email you've been meaning to fire off, or you've got a mild itch to doodle something in a sketchbook. Any progress is better than no progress, and even if you're just on your phone on the couch, you can get a lot of good work done just jotting down thoughts in the notes app. The lateral element is also very important; if you're fixating too hard on the ONE thing you're SUPPOSED to do, you can trap yourself in a spiral of how it's what you're SUPPOSED to be working on but it feels IMPOSSIBLE. Literally let yourself do anything else. Don't trap yourself with "it's either doing your responsibility or it's NOTHING." Your work is not a plate of broccoli you're not allowed to leave the table without eating. Give yourself permission to un-imprison yourself.

Related, If there are external factors on the responsibility - like an outside deadline or a team of people you're working with waiting on your stuff - don't be afraid to let them know where you're at, or if you're uncertain you can make the deadline as stated, even if you think your "brain is not working" reason isn't good enough to justify the delay. Most people are extremely chill about it, and some of them will even offer to help or make it easier for you in some way. "Struggling with deadline" is not an ADHD-only experience. It is one of the most relatable human experiences, and basically everyone will be inclined to help you out.

ANY PROGRESS IS BETTER THAN NO PROGRESS. LARGE projects can feel extremely overwhelming because you know you can throw everything you've got at them for a day or even a week and it still won't be finished, and if you've got that shadow looming over you, you might sink into a malaise of "I can't finish it and that means I can't even bring myself to start it." The best way to fight that is to make ANY progress in ANY direction. Every large project can be broken down into bite-sized chunks. Anything feels overwhelming if you see it as an unassailable monolith. Work you do now is work you don't have to do later.

CHECKLISTS. It's hard to hold a large list of things that need your attention all in your head at once. It is unbelievable how helpful it is to just write them down somewhere obvious, and when you're done with something, CHECK IT OFF. Don't erase it, leave it visible that you FINISHED it.

Tell your anxiety to CALL YOU BACK. This one's weird, but when I'm stuck stressing over something, I've found it legitimately works to pull up my schedule and pencil in "worry about <thing>" for a specific date and time. My brain registers that SOMETHING has been resolved and nothing has been outright dismissed or ignored, so it settles down. When the time rolls around, the source of the anxiety is still there, but the feeling of anxiety itself has been drained out of it.

On a related note, this might not be an ADHD thing, but I've found it's very useful to Avoid Anxiety And Guilt Spirals by HOLDING COMPULSIONS AT ARMS' LENGTH. I picked this up from some readings on OCD, which is in the category of "I don't seem to HAVE this to a diagnosable degree, but some of the structures were at one point familiar to me." It's good to be aware that, if your brain keeps circling back to any given thought that distresses you, that is structurally an obsession, and if in reflexive response you have a desire to do a specific thing to mitigate that feeling, that is structurally a compulsion. This includes things like "I bet my friends think I'm annoying - I should message them something fun and casual to see if they still like me." Or "I'm worried about the state of the world - I should check the news so no new horribleness blindsides me." The compulsion might contain a sensible thing to do; checking in on your friends is good, keeping up with world events is smart. But done AS a compulsion, it reinforces the anxiety cycle. Even when it results in something neutral or positive, it only confirms that this innocuous thing is your only lifeline over a yawning abyss of terror and stress, because if this time it was fine, it must be because THIS time your vigilance Saved You. So you'd better do it next time, too, because there WILL be a next time, and you might not be so lucky twice, right? The way to stop this cycle is to weaken it over time by, when the obsession pops up (a random reminder of a stressor, an old fear) and the compulsion is prompted, do not do it, no matter how reasonable it seems. Hold the compulsion at arms' length, becoming aware of what the obsession wants you to do and why. Similarly, sit with the awareness of the obsession. You are having an unpleasant thought, but having a thought does not make it inherently meaningful in any way. It doesn't mean you're actually in any danger, any more than you were before you had the thought. It's discomfiting because it removes the salve of the compulsion from the sting of the obsession, but in the medium to long term, it withers the cycle at the root and makes the entire process loosen its grip. Then you can do things like talk to your friends and check the news without it being underlaid with the sting of panic and desperation; they are, after all, neutral activities with typically beneficial consequences, not lifelines over the abyss. It might startle you when, months later, an intrusive thought pops up that used to send you spiralling into misery for hours or days, but now it feels irrelevant - even absurd - and easy to disregard. It really does work, and it's surprising how many things you can untangle this way.

Avoid boredom time prison by HARNESSING HYPERFIXATIONS. My most controversial take, but I think if your brain is desperately hungry to do This One Cool Thing Today, it's a good idea to let it. Even if that means you spend the whole day drawing fanart or bingewatching a show or baking croissants instead of Getting Work Done, the benefits you reap from just letting your brain tap into the rare Infinite Dopamine Opportunity usually outweigh any and all work slowdowns that result from taking the impromptu day off. When your brain works in the ADHD way, your enthusiasm is a vital fuel to keep it running. You need to have energy and joy in your life, energy and joy to spare and spend on things that may not be inherently energizing. If you have the option to spend a day doing something ridiculously fun, fill up that tank and reap the productivity benefits for the next week straight.

[squirrelwriter]

pride month!!!

[squirrelwriter]

happy pride and happy birthday, red @comicaurora! erin had some extra capes in his backpack…

[squirrelwriter]

i've said it before and i will say it again, i genuinely believe that one of the best ways to practice drawing is by doodling on some cheap paper with a cheap pen. nothing to be precious about, you can't undo what you've drawn, if you drew it wrong the first time draw it fifteen times until you get it right. a lot of people are scared of their art looking bad but art looking bad is an unavoidable part of the process. you don't have to show anyone but yourself and you can try again as many times as you want!

[squirrelwriter]

Cradle the Cat - an Aurora fanfic

Hi there, did anyone order a midsize (5k) oneshot, extra sweet with snuggles? No? Welp, I whipped one up anyway: Cradle the Cat - an Aurora webcomic fanfic - Archive Of Our Own

Rated T, Falst and Dainix centric, can be interpreted as Gen or M/M. Not overtly romantic, no smooching, but there's a ton of physical affection and tenderness in this that for some people can read as such (like for me, it's me I ship them). Here's the summary:

Dainix's grip tightened. Falst expected the guy to put him down any second--they were on solid ground, he didn't have to hold Falst anymore--but he held on, for some reason. Falst was tucked up against Dainix's chest, Dainix's heartbeat echoing faintly in his ear.

Or: after rescuing Falst from a fiery doom, Dainix is extremely reluctant to put him down.

[squirrelwriter]

I need to study but that fuxking aurora panel just appeared in my mind again i cant fuxking do this

[squirrelwriter]

6 MPH

Ten MINUTE miles omg bad math

I just ran nearly four miles at faster than 10 mph fueled by delight and zoomies over the latest page by @comicaurora. Not quite a personal record, but a really good pace for me!

Holy crap. Holy crap today’s page. I’m calmer now but still internally squeeing.

Dainix!! Dainix is back!! And he’s doing the princess carry!!!! I only love them a lot.

[squirrelwriter]

I just ran nearly four miles at faster than 6 mph (EDITED) fueled by delight and zoomies over the latest page by @comicaurora. Not quite a personal record, but a really good pace for me!

Holy crap. Holy crap today’s page. I’m calmer now but still internally squeeing.

Dainix!! Dainix is back!! And he’s doing the princess carry!!!! I only love them a lot.

[squirrelwriter]

Trust Fall - an Aurora Webcomic fanfic

Oh hi, I'm dropping a flash fic at your feet like an errant cat with the teeniest mouse in its jaws. Rated T, gen, 500-ish words. Falst-centric study with a smidgeon of Dainix, speculating on page 2-4-43 and what could come immediately after. I'm sure whatever Red does will a) be awesome and b) render this canon non-compliant, but for now, here ya go!

Trust Fall - Archive Of Our Own link

[squirrelwriter]