#// sometimes the stuff i make is really just because the themes resonate at this specific point in life..

[averlym]

"bad decisions, that's alright; look, i'm still alive"

[astrologylunadream]

Their Hidden Fantasies of You🥵👅🖤 [SPICY] (Pick a card/Tarot love reading)

Hey it's Lunadream~ Here's a special reading this time on their hidden fantasies about you, yes you, enjoy~ hope you find your message♥️

(This one gets spicy beware🔥 darker themes included.)

Notice: Only take what resonates because the most important thing is your own judgement!♡ If anything doesn't resonate, don't worry! It's not your message right now <3 (Entertainment purpose only. All rights reserved)

Now, shall we begin~? ^v^ Think of the your person, and pick whichever pile that fits the energy you're feeling~🖤♥️🖤♥️

Pile 1⛓

Pile 2🗡

Pile 3🏚

Pile 4🤝

Take your time and choose carefully with the heart~♡

On to the readings —> 🖤

Pile 1⛓

Sign energy: Choice, Distance, Crave, Important, Treat, Leo, Gemini, Mars, Sun, Neptune, 💁‍♀️👋👊🧛‍♀️

🖤Your person's energy: We have a lot of masculine energy right here so my pile 1's person is very bold and speaks their mind. You would describe them as "dreamy" and "hot" stuff like that lol so cute😍 Could be Leo, Gemini, Aries, or Scorpio, not really getting the Pisces vibe but for some of you maybe ヘ_(ッ)_/ Your person has a very fierce aura and they may have very intimidating features e.g arched eyebrows or a canine-like smile. They try to behave themselves and remain respectful, but I can tell they have it BAD for my pile 1!!🔥❤ Your person is giving off such a bad boy/girl vibe. They are so independent and no one can tell them what to do, they just do what they want~ They're a very physical person and they might sometimes get aggressive with you and lose control of themselves, this is only out of intense attraction for my lovely pile 1.😌 But they do their best to keep it together and not let their wild side get the best of them. Their voice is a huge turn on for you, and if they slick their hair back... that's when you lose it LOL🤣😳 Very strong willed individual, they have a great sense of self. The type to have a lot of admirers aswell.

💭Their hidden fantasies: Locked, Admiration, Force, Seduction, Closed, Sun, 5th house, Venus, Taurus, Virgo, 🧘‍♀️⛈🕸📆 OMGGG things just got heated in here😭😖 It's gonna be intense my pile 1's your person has some dark thoughts running around in their head. They're crazy about watching you give in, it drives them seriously. They wanna handcuff you, hold you down and force you to look at them/admire them😰😰🙊❤ Oh my gosh this is serious like they're crazy about you my pile 1... You're feeding their inner demons and aggressions they just want to unleash when you two are alone!! They want to seduce you and make you say their name... They fantasize about kissing your neck, and they wanna see how much you can take like wtf pile 1 your person is so intense and passionate about you like wow...🥵 They specifically want to make you nervous, they love the thought of you getting butterflies in your stomach as they literally consume you omg. They want to retrain and contain you while thrilling you every second... holding you down with a strong grip on your wrists as they please the hell out of you until you're moaning their name😭😭😭 Yes pile 1 that's what's in their head, and they're not telling ANYONE. Not even you... unless-👀

♥️Messages from your person: I don't wanna pressure you, I can see right through you, I can save you, It's karma, No one knows (This could be a karmic relationship you both are in together) Extra cards: Ladder, Dominant, Play, Darling, Clothes, Cancer, 6th house, Scorpio, Mars, 3rd house (WTF🥵🥱🌋⚠️)

Thank you my pile 1's! If you feel this resonated, you may tap the heart to claim this message!🥀

I hope you enjoyed your reading! ʚ(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )ɞ If you did be sure to let me know pile 1 with the chains emoji~⛓ Thanks for scrolling through, Hugs hugs hugs!! See you in the next reading♥️

Pile 2🗡

Sign energy: Last, Lay down, Risk, Heiress, Model, South node, 7th house, Pluto, 3rd house, Gemini, 🪑🦉♋🐅

🖤Your person's energy: This could be an ex or someone from your past, it's definitely someone you have intense feelings about. I'm getting Libra or Scorpio oh hi pluto yep definitely Scorpio placements for sure.🎯 Gemini or Virgo could be in their chart or they could have these qualities. They could have Cancer in 7th house so Capricorn rising maybe!! Or Pluto in Cancer I'm seeing. Your person may be a model, they have very model-like features especially hands. I feel like you told yourself not to keep thinking about this person at one point, now here we are LOL👏💫 Your person has a very sexy appearance, you are really attracted to this person physically but also psychologically they make you 😈. They're the type to do what their told suprisingly, I feel like it's so easy to make them do whatever you want. You might not know this pile 2 but heyy now you know their little secret~ This person feels like a gamble to be with, you might feel like you're taking a huge leap of faith with them. They could be very rich or inherited lots of wealth from relatives in their family, they could he a future CEO of a company aswell. I'm getting some powerful vibes from my pile 2's person, they know what they're capable of.😌

💭Their hidden fantasies: Call, Yandere, Meant to be, Learn, Restaurant, 5th house, Eros, Neptune, 10th house, Fire, 👥🏃‍♂️🦥😩 Ohhh my pile 2 your person is totally obsessed with you and I mean (might kill) do anything for you🤭😳 They fantasize about the two of you together, sharing your experiences and everything with eachother. They can't stop thinking about calling you, they just wanna hear your voice!!🥰 Your person has suprisingly soft and sweet thoughts of you like hugging and cuddling while watching movies, eating out and walks on the beach.🌊 They actually just really fantasize about spending time with you and getting to know eachother better. But don't forget they're a little bit crazy over you too, like I mean yandere vibes over my pile 2's.😅😨 I feel like the second you two are apart they feel awful, like nothing else matters. They just wanna be around you and keep you forever. They fantasize about having fun with you, hoping you won't run away. They're addicted to you, and they secretly love the thought of moaning for you💭😳🖤 They have fantasies about you dominating them or putting them in their place, they get so turned on when you ask them to do something for you. They love being worthy for you, omg I feel like they also fantasize kissing/touching you when you're sleeping/unconscious. They fantasize of anyone that gets close to you simply disappearing, taking you all for themself.🥰🔪❤

♥️Messages from your person: Right now, You read my mind, I'm not as great as I appear, You have a lot to offer, You're pretty (Awwweee pile 2 did you hear that???😍💖) Extra cards: Audience, Work, Dance, Head, Only one, Leo, 11th house, 2nd house, 5th house, Libra

Thank you my pile 2's! If you feel this resonated, you may tap the heart to claim this message!🥀

I hope you enjoyed your reading! ʚ(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )ɞ If you did be sure to let me know pile 2 with the sword emoji~🗡 Thanks for scrolling through, Hugs hugs hugs!! See you in the next reading♥️

Pile 3🏚

Sign energy: Red, Care-taker, Shoes, Authority, Secret admirer, Uranus, Neptune, Sun, Cancer, Aries, 👅🌁🌊🙋‍♂️

🖤Your person's energy: My pile 3's your person is a very bright and charismatic person~⭐ They have a great smile that makes it hard not to smile back. Very strong masculine vibes, could have  prominent veins or muscles. They like the color red and feel drawn to it. Very likely a secret admirer or has a little crush on you. They make unique expressions especially with their mouth/tongue. May stick their tongue out often, they have a very unique tongue (just saying🙄😈❗) They may live near a bridge or body of water. They like to "wave" at people a lot haha, very friendly and outgoing. They are a very dominant type and are very assertive but also caring protective over those they care about. Care-free and fun loving individual, Their father could be very intimidating or cold. Pile 3 your person has nice ankles/feet or you may stare at their shoes at lot (because you get nervous!!🤭😳). They have your back when you need them, very supportive and helpful. I feel like they work around animals or care for them often. The type to be a shoulder to cry on, and lighten your mood.☀️ Their chest is very attractive to you, they have a very masculine chest. Seriously they just have such a dominant attitude about them!!😫😉

💭Their hidden fantasies: Black, Keep a secret, Virgo, Ability, Meant to be, 6th house, Venus, South node, 10th house, Moon, 🌡🩺💅☀️ Ohhh you guys your person has some secret thoughts abt you!! They think about you guys' past a lot, and they fantasize about a hidden love affair between you two. They want you to do as they say, submitting to their dominance.😳🥵 They fantasize about owning you, making you their little pet, controlling you, they like imagining you with a collar/leash💀🥵🥵 They want to "keep" you. Leading you, being your "savior". Taking care of you, this all makes them horny af😭 Calling your name in a commanding way, "good girl/boy" and "you did well". They can't stop thinking about your 🍒🍑, they want to touch them, grab them... the list goes on and on. Tugging on your chain, Lifting your chin up, They fantasize about the sensation of your nails on their skin. Scratches and bite marks are all up in their imagination. My pile 3 your person thinks you're so hot and meant to be with them, they want you to be theirs!!

♥️Messages from your person: Don't underestimate me, I can't control myself, You make me happy, I do, No one makes me feel this way (Ahh so cute🥰) Extra cards: Peace, Distance, 10th house, First, Eyelashes, 3rd house, Moon, Gemini, Earth, Virgo

Thank you my pile 3's! If you feel this resonated, you may tap the heart to claim this message!🥀

I hope you enjoyed your reading! ʚ(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )ɞ If you did be sure to let me know pile 3 with the haunted house emoji~🏚 Thanks for scrolling through, Hugs hugs hugs!! See you in the next reading♥️

Pile 4🤝

Sign energy: Fashion, Think outside the box, Accusation, Only time will tell, First, Gemini, Water, 2nd house, Capricorn, Scorpio, 🎭💜😢🖌

🖤Your person's energy: I'm seeing a really cute person tbh their energy is just so lovely and sweet~ They may be a painter or like drawing, could be an artist. Fashion designer is coming through, they may be into clothing. They have many charms about them, but they can be very distrustful of others. They are quick to assume things about other people, making them disappointed in nearly every encounter with someone.👥 For some reason I'm getting thay they don't get along with Gemini's easily, they could have a lot of Gemini or Mercury influence in their chart, Scorpio mercury is likely. Could be Capricorn or Taurus, They could have Mercury in the 2nd house. For a lot of you this person is a Libra rising which makes sense because of the fashion, they like aesthetically pleasing things. This could be you they find pleasing pile 4~😊 You could be dating this person but for most of you I'm getting not yet in a relationship with them. I feel like your person plays around with you often and enjoys getting on your nerves. On the other hand, they might not outwardly express themselves on the surface, actually I'm getting for some of you this person only expresses their emotions through art or creative ideas. Only then will you see a glimpse of their true feelings.🤍🖤

💭Their hidden fantasies: Boyfriend, Attraction, Tease, Foreign, End, 9th house, Virgo, Air, Taurus, Sagittarius, 💉💎🆚️♋ Hmmm okayyy we got some heavy Sagittarius energy this could be a sign that they wanna explore my pile 4's to the fullest. Your person has fantasies of taking you to a foreign place/country far away, taking you on a crazy adventure just to have you all to themselves. I feel like the wanna see how much you can take, mentally and physically. So they're always teasing you, trying to get reactions out of you. They have fantasies of biting your neck playfully and watching you freak out, they love the thought of you blushing over them. They want to please themselves with you, and surprise you with crazy fun.🥵😝💫 They wanna try so many different new things with you, and you're their test subject. They want you to see them as hot and attractive, they just wanna get you on your knees for them.🔥 Playing around, wearing you down, kissing you roughly when you're weak and vulnerable. They fantasize a lot about these sort of things with you, Your thighs are a turn on for them, as well as your neck and stomach. They want to give you marks all over so you know you're theirs. They imagine you falling head over heels for them, this is what they want the most. They want you to be in awe over them, your devotion is their biggest fantasy. And they just wanna have a crazy wild fun time😈💥💋🎆

♥️Messages from your person: I can't control myself, Give me more, I can't take anymore, You deserve the best, Because of you, I have a lot to offer (Ahh they're so into my pile 4's😍) Extra cards: Vision, Emotions, Future, Red, Expand, Mars, Cancer, Venus, Water, 6th house (They really want a future with you, they want to stay with you. They're serious you guys!!💐💍🖤)

Thank you my pile 4's! If you feel this resonated, you may tap the heart to claim this message!🥀

I hope you enjoyed your reading! ʚ(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )ɞ If you did be sure to let me know pile 4 with the holding hands emoji~🤝 Thanks for scrolling through, Hugs hugs hugs!! See you in the next reading♥️

Wanna see more readings like this? Check out my tumblr for accurate readings for you!🖤🌊🥀

Thanks for reading everyone! \(*^w^)/🖤 -Lunadream <3

[o-uncle-newt]

Cabin Pressure Advent Day 22: Vaduz

In which everyone pronounces Liechtenstein differently. Including, sometimes, the same actors from sentence to sentence...

So I love Vaduz because of course I do- I've said before that I love the show's turn toward the heartwarming side, and Vaduz is a symbol that we are somewhere that we could never have been in the S1 headspace. There are two HIGHLY specific ways that that happens, one of which I greatly prefer to the other (though overall I enjoy both).

The Carolyn and Herc plotline is, obviously, catnip for me. You've seen my long screeds about vulnerability as a running theme in Cabin Pressure (as recently as yesterday!) and Carolyn has always had an issue with people seeing her for who she is rather than for the image she portrays. It's easier to be feared due to leverage and a loud bark than loved because of something intangible that you can't actually control... and that's even before one hits the hurdle of discussing one's own feelings! Because there's also the element of considering a partner's needs- Carolyn's very much been in the habit of steamrollering over people, and now she's in a relationship (loath as she is to admit it) with another person who needs something from her, whether reassurance or an outright commitment, and she needs to decide whether it is worth giving those things to him and, in the process, acknowledging what that means to her.

And the way it's done is great- and credits to the two EXCELLENT actors playing the scenes, who really manage to give that final bit a real sense of drama that has the scene end on a silent, emotive and suspenseful note that I shiver at every time. It's a sitcom, but it's also a little snippet of human drama. And arguments from people who love to argue and are sharp-witted are always so fun to listen to! The bit where Carolyn reuses Herc's "overreacting" joke, Herc calls it out, and she says "it's funnier because the stakes are higher" is both entertainingly meta and very true to the two of them as people- and the fact that it ends in medias res, and we know that this won't get resolved for a while, just makes the whole thing feel even more resonant.

Now for everyone else- so obviously this is a hilarious plot line (and very, VERY well plotted) and I DO like Teresa. I do. I love the reversal of the "slaying the dragon" thing and think the plotting here was great. For me, though, the major flaws were Maxi and Martin's plotline with him. Maxi's scenes with Arthur are fantastic, but I feel like he's a bit over the line from "cartoon villain" to "cartoon fantasy villain" in a way that kind of brings the episode a bit over the line into actual absurdity, especially given how relatively grounded Carolyn's plot line is. All of the royal stuff just feels very random, and while it matters less for Teresa, it's a bit more over the top for Maxi. And Martin's plot line with him... I don't know, it just felt a bit clunky in a way that I feel like late-season Cabin Pressure is usually better than. Sort of forced and with odd dialogue. I don't know, it's just a feeling I have, and it's not overwhelming enough to keep me from enjoying the episode.

But anyway, I am very glad that Martin got someone to go to Duxford Air Museum with him!

[alexenglish]

you mentioned commenting on everything you read, and as someone who would like to start commenting more, do you have any tips? i feel like i never know what to write

oh hell yeah, big kudos to you friend for wanting to commit! here's some stuff that really helps me:

give yourself a rule! my rule personal rule is if i leave kudos on a fic, i have to comment as well. this took awhile to really work, because it felt like a lot of work at first, but now it works so well that even if i accidentally leave kudos on a fic that didn't particularly resonate,, i still leave a comment. maybe you can start small: leave a comment on all fics written by people you have on your dash/timeline/are subbed to, leave a comment on all fics you read during the day or before bed. start small, build a habit!

in the same vein: start small! don't give yourself a standard for comments! you do NOT have to comment with an essay, or even anything particularly impactful. literally just a leave a comment, any comment! i personally don't leave emoji comments because i have a formula (see below), but i do think it's SUPER cute to receive them because i get to respond with emojis and it's like you're dancing with someone across the room after making eye contact: 💃🪩✨

my own formula for low effort comments is: basic kind of compliment (this is lovely, this really resonated, this is beautiful, i really loved this) + thank you for sharing/writing (some other form of gratitude) or impact on me (so happy i found this, i'll be thinking about this)

you can then customize that (⬆️) formula with other things to make the comment longer! + something specific to the fic (i enjoyed the dynamics, a specific character, the way a scene was handled) + add one quote (or some, or many, mileage will vary)

a lot of times if i'm sleepy and on mobile my comments will literally just look like this : "wow this was so good! i loved the way you handled xyz, thank you so much for sharing this!!!!" and i leave comments like that a lot! am i self conscious about how repetitive i am? NO. i mean them! i don't comment on fics i don't like !! (see tip one)

as an aside, smut fic are sometimes harder to customize comment for depending on like length and theme, but some of the most deserving because explicit fic can get banger hit/kudo/bookmarks and then the comment ratio is absolute ASS so usually i make a point to be like this was sexy, hot, mindblowing + something extra complimentary like: fun/funny/really good dynamics. sometimes writers get a kick out of me saying a pwp is fun/funny, which i think is really cute.

just remember: start small to build the habit! don't pressure yourself to a certain standard! writers are always immensely grateful for comments that are complimentary! and the more you comment, the better you'll get at picking up on things to comment!

if you need a little motivator, there's a lovely a little fest happening right now @justleaveacommentfest -- great opportunity to practice and get into the habit!! but even if you don't decide to participate, i'm sending you lots of good luck with your comment goals!

[chubs-deuce]

Hi, fellow writer/artist here! This is about your recent post about struggling with your writing, and I found that I had a lot to say and I didn’t want to clog up the comment section, I hope it’s alright that I sent it this way, and if its too long or not helpful, my apologies XD

My number one tip: there are no rules! Writing is fun time! It’s kids finger painting with words! Its emotions! It’s characters we love, and stories our hearts or brains or some other parts of us wanna tell! Always lean into what sounds the most fun when you’re stuck! Even if you never use it! <3

In my experience, some writing is better than no writing when you feel like it's not good. Sometimes to get out of being stuck I find it best to just keep typing, even if it stops making sense, or i hit enter twice and start rattling off a new scene or a different story entirely! Sometimes I will literally just type ‘why does writing feel so hard. This feeelsss dumb blah blah blahblahblah fuuuuuck fuuuuuuuuuuuck why do I feel so stuck -’ And so on until eventually my brain thinks of something else haha – literally just a brain dump. Type any random word that comes to mind. Sometimes I just open a clean document and go at it with this, you can always copy paste anything remotely relevant that may come out of it somewhere else later.

The rewrite loop is a hard one, I find that when I'm stuck in that space, sometimes taking a step back and just literally making a bullet point list of the scenes and/or what I want to accomplish really helps! Recently I also started going through and highlighting certain passages or concepts in the document that are poignant to the themes or vibes of the story/ that I wanna circle back around to in some way. Its been helping me keep things a bit more consistent in terms of emotion, and has helped a lot with ‘scene-block’. Bc instead of being like ‘uhhhh okay what now?’ I can always look back through the highlights and see what needs to be carried through more – or it can spark a new idea from thinking over how to get to that specific point you want to reach!

Sometimes when writing feels too daunting to me I’ll literally just tell myself “that’s okay. You don’t have to write. You can do literally anything else.” And sometimes just that, the verbal removal of the pressure, can loosen things up – especially if I do want to be writing. But sometimes, you really just do need a break from it. Picking up another hobby to fill writing time when I’m burnt out really helps me out!

I’ve taken months away from all sorts of writing projects before (both fan work and personal) bc there was just a block. And it sucks. I’m really sorry you’ve been dealing with this, it’s such a frustrating experience.

Honestly, sometimes writing can help you work through something IRL, but other times I find that sometimes the writing has to wait until I’ve hit a certain milestone personally. There’s a project of mine I pick up maybe once a year. Maybe. Because it just can’t have what I need it to until I sort some of those personal things out in my own life.

I’ve also noticed how much your Charlastor Fankid AU has taken off (Love Dawn btw), and you expressed recently how you’ve been feeling overwhelmed by the amount of asks/etc with the executive dysfunction of it all (same btw) (I’m also the person from the comment on that - hi lol). I wouldn’t be surprised if some of those pressure-feelings you’ve expressed have bled over into your other WIPs, pls be kind to yourself <3

Think how long people waited for Hazbin content from Viv, or any other number of indie-origin fandoms. When people love an idea or a style or any other number of things, the people it resonates with are happy to give the person or people behind it time. You can tell when someone enjoys making things. When something is made with that passionate spark. I want you to know that your posts really do have that. I can tell how much love you have to give through your work. People who like your stuff aren’t going to disappear if you need to take a minute to breathe, you know? I know the world we live in, and the faux-perfection of the internet can make us creatives feel like we need to be machines, but it’s not true. We’re people. And other decent folks will be happy to respect that!

Creativity and how we express it is very personal, and everyone’s process is different, so I can only really speak from my own perspective here, but you’re doing great. Your work is amazing, and I hope your writer’s block clears up soon!

I hope this message doesn’t come off weird in any way, with this massive message out of ‘nowhere’, my heart just really went out to you on this from one writer and artist to another. I also sent this as an ask bc for some reason sending a DM this long felt weird given that we haven't really spoken before.

Good luck with everything! Always here if you need another creative person to complain to or chat with LOL

- Lizzie

sobbing, this actually made me so (positively) emotional man-

Thank you so so so much for taking the time to type all this out and reach out like this, it honestly means the world from me, especially since your ask here really is oozing with empathy and care in ways that surprisingly hit me in the feels pretty good???

I'm sorry I didn't respond to this sooner but I kind of couldn't muster the energy to give it the kind of response it deserves that wasn't just senseless keysmashing sdkjhsdkjfh

what's wack about my particular kind of writer's block is that I'm more than happy to ramble on and on about Dawn and my ideas for her story in asks etc, but to make a coherent story of it feels like an undoable feat somehow?

I've always had a knack for piecing together a plot out of thin air or based on next to nothing to go off of, but it's actually putting it into a consumable format that I always, ALWAYS get hung up on, and it bothers me to no end :'3

Your reassuring words genuinely really help a lot in soothing my fears of, well, I guess irrelevancy?

I do ultimately write for myself, but I can't help but feel like there's a ticking clock in the back of my brain that tells me I need to make something consumable before the "fad" around Dawn especially passes and most people that would've cared about a fic about her have already moved on, if that makes sense?

It's a stupid amount of pressure to put on myself and maybe even sounds kind of arrogant, but I do thrive off of seeing people react to and think out loud about things I'm passionate about - it's a connection, a communication of sorts, something I'll never not desperately crave.

I've been having so much fun with Dawn and the story surrounding her and I couldn't be happier that people are so engaging with what I put out in turn! So much so that a part of me dreads seeing when that will come to an end ^^"

I'll keep trying though, and keep doing what I love <3

Again, thank you so much for taking the time to reach out like this, a lot of this is something I definitely needed to hear and words can't express how much I sincerely appreciate it ;w;

[raayllum]

I know you love The dragon prince and that’s great. I binged the show after season three released. I listened to podcasts about the show . I listened to yours and felt really happy when I found people who also liked the show. Unfortunately I fell of during the hiatus between season three and four. I am patient person but three years was long. Also I watched the show for rallylum and through the moon just kind killed my love for them.Then I found your blog and was really happy. Then I saw how you felt about the owl house and it bothered me. As a neurodivergent person the show made me feel really seen. I know it’s stupid to be upset about an opinion. As a person who wants to be an English major how do find parallels between relationships and characters. You talk about certain ones and I don’t see them at all. Your probably more seasoned as a writer than I am so

Ps : sorry this is long and hope tdp ends well in your opinion

Few things:

1) I'm also neurodivergent (hi!) - specifically Autistic - and I have also largely wanted to be understood my whole life, much like Luz (according to S3). While a show making you feel seen can certainly be wonderful, meaningful, and sometimes even life changing, to me that's not enough to make it a Good (per my subjective tastes) Show. That's not to say TOH is a bad show - far from it - but it's one that didn't appeal to my particular tastes due to 1) too many characters and not enough screentime, 2) a lack of theme (which many kids shows don't have a ton of because they're, y'know, for kids), and 3) all of the characters have very black and white morality, and that's just less interesting to me.

Being upset about opinions is very natural, and it's not stupid, but it is also important to acknowledge that 1) you can't control how anyone else feels or interprets things and 2) no one else can control how you feel or interpret things.

2) I adored Through the Moon. Rayla's tendency to leave (and why) is always a hurdle I expected them to have to tackle at one point, and given that it's her main character flaw, I'm really excited and happy with the way it's been handled so far and how TTM kicked it off. The graphic novel also really resonated with me in Callum's place, as I too have loved many of my loved ones through incredibly difficult periods regarding their mental health, and the graphic novel felt very honest about the toll that can take on both parties in different ways, and how love/support can help, but ultimately isn't enough if the person isn't ready (or willing) to start trying to get better. It's not an easy pill to swallow, but it is a realistic and important one and I've enjoyed how the show has continued that storyline with Rayla (and Callum) into S4 and S5

3) Being an English major is not for everyone! I know many people who love to read and who are very good writers where an English degree would not suit them at all. It's a lot of reading (by my final year, there were some weeks where I was reading an entire 400 page book roughly every week, if not multiple at the same time). It is also a lot of writing (and my professors regularly chewed me out for my grammar). You also tend to kind of double being a history major as depending on what you're reading, you learn a lot of the religious/historical/cultural context in order to understand the language, references, and messaging intended by the author (and then whether or how much to disregard it, lmao). Being able to analyze — to see connections between characters and themes in particular, but other forms of symbolism and messaging — quickly is probably the main thing that saved my ass and let me stay on Honour Roll throughout my undergrad.

I have also been writing pretty seriously for a long time (I 'started' at age 10 but only really count age 12 onwards, cause that's when I first started writing 70k+ drafts every 1-2 years for original WIP stuff). A lot of what makes a good writer is being a good reader, taking your favourite stories (books or otherwise — movies, musicals, tv shows, etc can be gold mines) and figuring out what works in them and why, or why you like them (or don't like them), etc.

For example: The Owl House is a primarily character driven > plot driven story. In book form, it'd likely be Middle Grade to early YA. It's interested in character relationships among the main cast (any of the more villainous characters like Belos are never given the same amount of development or screentime) and some mild worldbuilding. It has some social commentary (mostly on the school systems through Luz and mental health through Eda) and an overall theme of "being different is good," breaking away from abusive systems/dynamics, and the importance of solidarity.

If I compare and contrast this to TDP, The Dragon Prince is far driven in equal parts by the plot (because it's wholly serialized) and by character. It is also very thematically driven — most notably how to break intergenerational cycles of trauma and violence, but also self-destructive tendencies, abuse, responsibility, power, grief, and concepts of justice and punishment. This is also reflected in the fact numerous villainous characters (Viren, Claudia, etc.) share close to equal screentime with the 'good guy' protagonists and heavily explores morality across a decently wide spectrum. It thereby has a more mature tone in its subject matter and would easily be YA in book form.

Which is to say: the best way to get better at analyzing is to break characters down to their basic plot structures (Character A does this, they want that, Character B does this, they want that, etc.) and see what pops up (for example, in Avatar The Last Airbender, Aang and Zuko both cannot go home, and duel Ozai when they're 13 years old, ultimately refusing to be violent against their opponent). You can also look at similar personality traits (curiosity, selflessness, carelessness, etc). Practice looking at the stories you love and figuring out what works and doesn't work for you personally — and then go beyond relatability to look more at subtext and symbols. Some of the best things I've ever read were books that had nothing relatable to my personal experiences in them (like The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini), and that was why I loved them because they got to broaden my horizons.

[doveabovetheworld]

Greta Van Fleet as…

Holidays!!!

Josh;

We all know how bright and eye-catching Josh is so based off if that he is definitely New Years Eve (or pretty much anything with fireworks but New Years specifically). Josh is definitely the type of person to invite his whole family and his friends over on New Years and just party and get drunk with them. He’s such a loud and life living type of person I just think that he plans huge parties for New Years. He also thinks so positively about New Years thinking about how there is so much that he can do and that he can be around people he loves and cares about, including his fans. Josh is also the type of person to kiss you right when the ball drops and tell you how much he can’t wait to spend the new year with you. He would be cheering and running around the house hugging everyone letting them know how much he loves them. He would definitely take this holiday as a chance to give people presents (even though Christmas just passed but thats okay) and the chance for him to tell people how much he cares and loves them.

Jake;

Jake gives off huge Halloween vibes. He would love to buy bags and bags of candy to eat and hand out to kids around the neighborhood while he’s watching a horror or halloween themed movie like Hocus Pocus! I feel like his favorite halloween movie would probably be something like Corpse Bride or maybe even Friday the Thirteenth. Jake’s personality is very quiet but loud at the same time (if that makes sense?) and he is pretty chill which in my mind resonates with Halloween a lot. He also reminds me of black cats and he would love to do pumpkin carving one night sometime before Halloween. Jake is definitely one of those type of people to buy those fake skeletons and dress it up and put it on the porch of the house just to be funny. He also would want to dress up as a pirate (AKA Jack Sparrow), a knight, a cowboy, or even Oliver Reed! I feel like if you asked him to do a couples costume he’d say he wouldn’t really want to but says yes because he loves you but when you guys are actually getting the costume and dressing up, he’s super passionate about it and gets into character.

Sammy;

Sammy is super romantic and sweet which makes me think he’d be Valentines Day. When Valentines comes around, he would go all out with it like giving you silly gifts or taking you out to a super fancy restaurant and buying you your favorite treats! He would definitely add in some fun activities to do throughout the day and would spend so much money on you just because he thinks so highly of you. He is such a kind and loving person that you can’t help but smile because of him! He would take everything super serious on Valentines like he would have a whole day planned out just for you too. I think that he would attempt to make cookies or cupcakes or something like that and ultimately fail (almost burning down the house in the process) and he would go to the store and say he baked them himself but you know damn well he’s just trying to impress you but it’s still a cute act of kindness from him that you can’t help but smile.

Danny;

Danny is definitely Christmas. He is such a warm person so to be with him during winter and Christmas sounds so comforting. He would love to do all the things they do in the Hallmark Christmas romance movies (as well as binge watch them) and to be honest I would live for that cus that’s one of my guilty pleasures. But Danny would make you hot cocoa, take you ice skating, and play in the snow with him and whenever you get cold he would give you one of his warm sweaters. The way that he would buy ornaments that reminded him of you and tell you all about it as you two put them on the Frasier fir tree you have in your living room. The presents he would get you would be stuff like records you want, jewelry that has your guy’s initials, and even something as cute as a mini card he made just for you. The way he would be so proud and happy when you see the presents and light up is so unreal. He would honestly be the best person to spend Christmas with and no one can tell me otherwise.

Moodboards made by my bestie; @radyouthcherryblossom

[rpedia]

Anonymous asked:  Idk, why. But every time I rp as a guy I sometimes feel uncomfortable or just bored. Especially when it comes to canon characters, I feel like I'm just satisfying my parthers otp/ships with their oc's. And when I try to bring in my others oc's, they're ignored. This happens almost every time with any other person. Do you have any advice?

Usually there’s a reason for stuff like this, so lemme jump to the biggest most extreme conclusion and get that outta the way. If you’re uncomfortable exclusively by the act of playing a gender, or thinking like a gender, and acting like a gender, and feel like you’re just playing a role with no connection to specifically a gender and nothing else... Maybe you don’t want to play/be/act as that gender? I mean, it could be anything setting you off, but this is important to point out, especially with your wording, subconscious though it may be. You don’t have to RP as a guy. It’s okay. Be anything you want, that’s what RP is for. To have fun, and be comfortable, and do what feels good to you. There’s no shame in just saying no to RPing anything. Settings, characters, genders, themes, tropes, even just roleplaying if you’re not in the mood! Roleplay is, again, for fun, and you should probably communicate that you’re no longer having it. That you want to explore other options. I mean this could be as simple as you don’t have chemistry with those partners, to as complex as realizing you may not have a real connection to a specific gender... even IRL. 

Like, I’m not gonna lie, I have seen a large number of people who have realized they identify as something else because they’ve played other genders, tried out the ol’ mental space with RP, and found something that fit them better. Might not be applicable to you, that’s fine. This is a deeply personal decision though, I’m just pointing it out as an aside because some people need that little push to go ‘oh’ and this answer is going to be an open letter to everyone who is in this situation as usual. So hey, it doesn’t have to be too serious, and if questioning your labels isn’t your speed, no issue. Just thought it was wise to point it out, rather than ignore it and pretend it didn’t set off a tiny alarm in my head saying ‘hang on a sec’. So yes, with that out of the way— Of course that’s not the only reason things might feel ‘off’! Like I mention above, there’s plenty of other things, so now that we have a quick ‘I’d be a jerk if I didn’t say this does happen’ out of the way, let’s explore things like chemistry, and why your characters don’t resonate with you personally, but end up seeming to be more for your partner in crime over there. AKA: Playing for other people, and why it doesn’t really work out.

So when you RP a character and they don’t sync with you personally? That’s a big thing buddy! That’s a sign you’re not playing what you love or vibe with. That doesn’t seem like something you should get upset about, we all do stuff that we feel pretty neutral or vaguely bored by for friends and family, but it really really can be draining over time. Playing something deeply out of your personal experience is a fun challenge, but I would never say do that for a long term if you’re not getting comfortable as you do it. You can burn yourself out, by pushing too hard and making so much work for yourself you lose the thread of fun supposedly throughout all RP.

Me? I have trouble with happy, perky characters. I can do it, and I do it well judging by the reaction of people around me, but it just doesn’t feel right. It feels like someone is very slowly spreading me thinner and thinner trying to react against my natural instincts. I know it’s actually another problem that some people feel like they play too many similar characters, but that’s a natural inclination to play something that suits you, so you can give your full attention to the details surrounding that character instead of questioning everything you do. 

Being able to act on auto pilot helps a ton when you want to focus on the important parts, like the plot instead of figuring out how this character would feel if it’s not what you kneejerk understand. Second guessing is hard! As anyone who deals with second guessing everything they do all day: it leads to exhaustion because it’s an extra hidden layer of emotional labor.

So! Why are dudes uncomfortable for you? We’ve got an obvious problem here that an external force (your RP buddies over there) may have trained you to believe that you only have one purpose. That male characters are romance fodder, and have to fall in love with an OC. That your OC’s aren’t important. That’s gonna be a whoooole different problem right there. This is a problem with your RP partner, who is using you to fulfill their happiness. There’s a huge problem with the power dynamic in this OOC relationship, just going by this little snippet.

Your partner should never make you feel like you’re only roleplaying for their sake.  

I’m leaving that line all alone so you can really look at it, and reread it. I’m going to say it again in fact: Your partner should never make you feel like you’re only roleplaying for their sake. There’s various reasons why that’s icky, but I’ll just touch on what stands out to me most. One of those things is that this makes roleplaying a job. 

Instead of letting yourself explore the mind of a character you enjoy, you’ve come to expect that you will follow a certain order of things, and that your job is to fill the emotional labor required of your partner to keep them happy. They respond to you requesting similar emotional labor (which in a healthy relationship should be give-and-take) by ignoring you. This is painful for you, maybe not like getting pinched, but feeling like what you’ve made isn’t good enough? That you’re not good enough by extension because our RP kids are totally extensions of ourselves? That’s unfair. Unfair to you.

However! Even if something seems to be a pattern, like not playing dudes, it’s always good to test run characters from all walks of life. Any character couldn’t be the exception to or that your mood could change. That means, don’t feel guilty if you’ve said “this label doesn’t feel right” for a while, and then you have an exception. It just means it’s an exception, you’re fine. You’re not breaking your own rules, you’re learning more about what works with you.

Finding yourself at a loss with OC’s or characters you enjoy may point to your environment being one that’s hostile to new things. They don’t understand an OC, there’s no blueprint giving them an idea of what to expect. OC’s are also one of the easiest ways for players to get into the game, which means newbies who lack social graces tend to gravitate towards them because ‘there’s no rules to break’ in how they portray them. Unfortunately since they don’t know how to approach others in socially appropriate ways, this gives OC’s a reputation for being awful to play with. They break etiquette, they push too hard, they don’t get why someone may be backing away. This isn’t the OC’s fault, it’s the player, but it’s seen more in OC’s because of ease-of-entry. So... they gain a reputation.

That means approaching on an OC is definitely going to come with people looking for standard red flags, and they’ll need to see you in action long enough to get comfortable with you! You have to be stellar in everything to get attention, and you have to have a hook. Your character has to be stand-out, interesting, and fun. Something people get grabbed by the summary of, so they can emotionally attach to it the same way they did major series, which give a character time to come out of their shell, and audiences time to connect to them. That’s why canons are popular: They bought the time it took to get under people’s skin by having a plot to follow. Without that, OC’s are like hearing about a character from another fandom you’re not interested in.

There’s also, unfortunately, an online beef against the ladies in plot. I’m not gonna sugar coat it, people have gotten it into their heads that girls being roleplayed tend to be shallow, vapid characters designed just for romance. So it can be hard to egt people interested because of stereotypes. The worst part is, I see this stereotype most often from male writers playing women, who have no idea hoiw to treat them as a person, and have instead made them a cardboard cut out designed to reach their goals. This is even worse on adult websites where smut is an option, ladies get the short stick SO often because of years where female characters have been treated as a plot device. 

This goes way back to the idea of a sexy lamp: If your female character can be replaced with a sexy lamp, they aren’t expanded enough on. They aren’t a person. Some of the strongest female characters have been, say, Ripley from Alien. Why? She was a male character in the script, they just didn’t change anything but her gender and rolled with it. Which, duh, worked because women is people. A wild concept for some reason. Can you tell this is something that gets my goat, because baaaa, motherfucker, baaaa.

That means you end up working against a lot of shit to just try and play around and have fun. It can be exhausting, and more than once I’ve seen people give up. Don’t, though. People need to hear your voice. If you’re in a position where things are hard, remember. Trying the same things over and over expecting it to change is just silly. You need to change parts of your approach, whether it be the environment, the people, or simply how you word things. Push back on what’s making you feel bad, and put down boundaries. “If I do this, I would appreciate if you gave back with this.” Ask for space, you deserve space to explore what makes you happy. Say no more often to things you’re not comfortable with. You don’t have any obligation to fit a mold for another person.

Find your comfort zone, and defend it. If that means moving onto a new group of people, or just doing something extraordinary with what you have, or finding a new way to approach stuff, then maybe that’s what you need to do! Spread your wings, and find what makes you happy. Don’t look for advice on how to tamp yourself down into what you feel like you should be doing, if it’s not right for you. Good luck, and Happy RPing!

[sheosmithism]

serial experiments Iain first impression+ review[?]

mild spoilers warning

show has: suicide, drugs-like substance mention, shooting, very light and brief sexual themes, not light and brief stalking[?] during masturbation, blood and possible misophonia triggers

[this isnt a professional overview of the thing at all, i watchd it oncr and just wanna have some record of my thoughts on it el o el]

i loved lain. it was certainly a very odd and reminiscent experience, bare bones plot and very unclear direction of the episodes was something i didnt expect at ALL from something i was holding off for a long while. simplest way to say this is that sel is an exploration and very active pov of experiencing stuff like did, schizophrenia, autism, social anxiety, hallucinations, short/long-term amnesia, suicide, derealization and dissociation as a whole, mixed with oversight of nihilistic, omnicidal technological influx on society.

i dont think lain tries to represent something clearly. its natural and off-putting in blood, giving an unusual perspective of a person who is actually going through all the shit forementioned. it doesnt have an outer opinion or commentary, nor self-awareness enough to lay it out flat for the viewer, which is sick ! it might be borderline uncomfortable to watch sometimes, but i really resonate with what lain and people surrounding her say and do, how they act and go forward from point a to point b. i understand and relate to their experiences, and its not very often that it feels so first hand, not just through dialogue and noise but the whole picture. its not easy to analyze lain because its themes are blurry and undefined, but highlighted and somewhat brought into focus.

i mentally compared sel to yume 2kki/nikki in my head since the first episode cuz i prefer interpreting overhead noise and buzzing on the streets as sensory regularity for lain, who isnt exacrly human i think ?? she is said to be software near the end of the show, but i dont know how i perosnally feel about it. lain can be both a metaphor and a very direct showcase of mechanical abomination, which is — lain.

everything, all art in lain is weird as fuck. it is what makes me think of 2kki and what drives close to home, but still staying so weird and unwanted. non-metaphorically at the end of sel, she erased herself from all memory, yet she still keeps popping back in, as a vague figure and hologram in text boxes, and at the very finish, she seems to just ,, appear in a timeline as herself, with time has passed but her just the same. curiously, arisu recognizes lain still, and it really seems like lain is not real, with how she cant be forgotten.

really loved the ending itself because it reminded me strongly of ddlc, plus the evil lain is there i guess. i actually have barely to no thoughts on that character[?] because i have no idea what theyre supposed to represent. literal malicious lain like a virus who fucks shit up in the wired?? alter ???? artificial puppet that god created to fuck lain up ? bug ???? maybe all at once and maybe none. i stick to my headcanon of lain having did and schizophrenia [and more] so it just makes a bit more sense if they were a split of lain consciousness, but i dont have a specific reasoning as to why they would be so mean-spirited

the omnipresent ruler of wired and all he is in the show. i think his character was meant to be a manic god complex engineer who wrote himself into his work of wired to live forever and be a god. i guess ? show doesnt explain it any better ok

he created lain, told her shes software and essentially broke her just because she asked for that stupid fucking navi which is dumb lain has cardboard standees of parents and much fleshed out but still neglectful sister who has some backstory which is always nice. she lives in a weird world with very odd activities and excessive wires and a cute girl arisu. i think lain is lesbian so they two should totally kiiitthhh

gorefest overview: 0/10. there is no viscera or excessive blood in lain, and i mean . like at all. there is some sweet body horror in two or three final episodes, but thats as close as it comes

blood meter: 0.5/10. faint blood splatters and drops. in sel i think it focuses more on death itself than flesh, which i can sliiightly tip my hat to

will be updated l8r cuz i got sore throat and a fever rn(⁠个⁠_⁠个⁠) live love lain

[pyroweasel]

🤡🎢✨⛔💖💌❌👀🤲

🤡 (What's a line, scene, or exchange you've written that made you laugh?)

I'll share this WIP line that will probably never see the light of day. You kind of need to know to appreciate it, maybe, but it still kind of makes me laugh. **"Don't fucking touch me - filthy little - do you ever bathe?” 

"I try not to," Peep chirps, and then with a fresh grin they reach both hands out in Hazel's direction - making grabbing motions as if threatening to touch his face."** 🎢 (Which of your fics would you call your wildest ride?) Had To Be You, hands down. Mostly because it would so wildly fluctuate from 'this part is so easy let me publish four chapters in a row' to 'I've taken two months to finish this chapter and I still hate it.' It was a good time over all but boy was it a ride to get through. ✨ (Give you and your writing a compliment. Go on now. You know you deserve it. 😉) I already did one do I have to do another...(jkjk) I think my long/run-on sentences are pretty well-crafted and tend to add exactly the sort of punch/affect I'm trying to manage. ⛔ (Do you have a fic you started, but scrapped?) Oh I have so many of these. I wouldn't even try to list them, but I'll highlight one of my personal favorites. I once had a fic planned that was essentially Addison being assigned Captain on this massive ship who's sole purpose was to transport "precious cargo." Spoiler alert, the cargo was an imprisoned Trep. It was very saucy, very much meant to highlight Trep's abilities as an Imp and was not necessarily destined for a good ending. It would have been fun, I think.

💖 (What made you start writing?) I couldn't tell you, honestly. I've been writing since I was a kid, since before I even remember doing it. We still have one of the first 'books' I ever wrote. What I can say is it's just...everything to me. It's a distraction. It's soothing. It's a way for me to connect with my partner and my friends. When I'm really sad, or really happy, or hell I'll say it even horny, writing is there, you know? I can do anything I want in there. I can write anything I want. I can bring these characters that mean everything to me to life in my own words. I can put them through hell, or get them comfort, or find them love. I can explore the world's brightest themes, and its darkest. I don't know. It's how I get all the things inside out. I don't really have any other creative pursuits that I feel like I'm good enough at to do that, so writing is the way. 💌 (How do you feel about comments and feedback?) I love comments. I love to know what I did right, what resonated, what people are thinking about what could happen next. I also love expressions of joy/enjoyment like keysmashes and such. I'm sensitive to criticism though, even well-meaning criticism, which is purely a me issue but can make getting feedback/comments kind of stressful sometimes. Especially when I'm nervous about a write to begin with.

❌ (What's a trope you will never write?) Never is a strong word because there have been times I've dabbled in things I thought I'd never dabble in. And I honestly can't think of any specific one right now that makes me thing 'ew no never.' I don't enjoy most things centering around pregnancy, though. Little cute moments with pregnant characters is one thing, but I don't like to focus on it much. 👀 (Tell me about an up and coming wip please!)

I have so many WIPs....a few fan favorites in the works are more chapters for the reincarnation AU for Hazing, Fable finally gets to meet Keet's pets, that one chapter for To The Left where these two finally get down, and a scattering of other hazing stuff. 🤲 (Would you please share a snippet of a wip?)

Okay...let me dig one up here. **Home, he thinks - spitting the word in his mind even as his feet turn in its direction. A tiny townhouse he doesn't know the first thing about fixing. A ratty bed, a shitty TV, a computer that barely connects most of the time. The self-inflicted bare minimum because it has never really been his home - only a place for his pets. A place to land when he wanted to rest because where the hell else was he supposed to go? 

It's not his home, he thinks - bitter, angry, aching. 

It's not his home, he thinks - paused outside, glaring up at the shingles and the brick. Humans pass around him - souls whispering at a distance, arching briefly in his direction until they're far enough away to snap free. Busy, loud, and something stings at his eyes. 

"Keet?" 

He starts, turns, and there's Fable. This silly little human who resists his pull but somehow keeps finding him anyway. Who'd held him at his worst, and called themself his friend, and who's here now, again. Standing near his apartment, watching him with a turned head and a curious stare. 

"Are you alright?" 

Keet opens his mouth to answer - closes it again - and then finally, after a second, he says instead,

"What are you doing here?"**

[tellthemeerkatsitsfine]

Here are some of the NextUp streams I’ve seen from the 2023 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. A few of the other ones I’ve written about in their own posts, but these are getting grouped together, as they’re all people doing their debut Fringe hour (doesn’t necessarily mean they’re new to comedy, just the first time they’ve performed a solo show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival), and I hadn’t heard of any of them before this month.

I decided to watch them to make it like I was actually at a festival, and at a festival, I’ll always see some stuff I didn’t previously know, and some will be good and some will be bad but horizons will be broadened. I picked these particular people for a few reasons. A couple of them came recommended, by a couple of people I know and by some comedy awards that put them on the Newcomer long list. And besides that, I read the show descriptions for most of the comedians I hadn’t heard of who were getting their Edinburgh shows streamed on NextUp, and I watched the ones that didn’t appear to be mainly about dating in your 20s and/or 30s and/or 40s. Or being married in any of those years. Or being single but wanting to find romantic love in any of those years. Not unless it looked like a really interesting story. Not that a comedy show about those things can never be good. Plenty are good. But there are too many of them, and it’s just not a topic that often resonates with me (some exceptions, obviously, some exceptions, Rose Matafeo and Josie Long off the top of my head).

So here’s what I decided to watch:

Alexandra Haddow – Not My Finest Hour

This one immediately breaks my criteria a little, it is a story of a romantic relationship. But it’s a relationship that took place quite a few years ago, and it is very much not an advertisement for relationships. Technically it’s more of a breakup show than a relationship show, and on the whole, I tend to prefer those.

I enjoyed this one. She had a lot of smart stuff to say about youth and culture and class-based socialization and regional differences and societal norms and expectations, and how fucked up it is when successful powerful older men cheat on their wives with significantly younger women. She also had a lot of good jokes. She also had a really engaging stage presence and ability to keep being interesting on any topic. And what more can we ask for from a comedy show?

Tadiwa Mahlunge – Inhibition Exhibition

This one felt more specifically like a “debut hour”, because he kept talking about his day job that he’d been doing for a long time, how he didn’t have the class privilege to commit full time to comedy, he was clearly not an experienced Fringe Festival veteran. But he was, overall, quite funny. The show wasn’t nearly as tightly structured as the previous one, it was a lot of bits that sometimes vaguely connected and sometimes didn’t, but there were a few running themes. Class, race, the importance of family, growing up as the child of immigrants. And he dealt with these subjects with no reverence and very little sentimentality; it’s not really an emotional “this is how hard it is to grow up in a refugee family” story, but it is his life story, told by a guy whose life involved growing up in a refugee family. It’s funny, he’s ridiculously charismatic, and there are some messages and shit in there as well. Just good stuff all over the board.

Ikechukwu Ufomadu – Amusements

Here’s what I like about this one: it’s officially classed as absurdist comedy, but it requires absolutely no effort on my part to accept something that’s difficult for me to get because it’s obviously outside my usual wheelhouse. By which I mean, it’s just one person with a microphone, saying words into it. All of those words connect to the previous word and the previous sentence, in ways that I can understand according to the rules of the English language as I know them. No costumes. No props (aside from a projector screen that’s used sparingly and effectively). No physical stuff. There are sort of a couple of songs near the end. But even they are just one guy singing into a microphone, and the way he moves into them makes sense. Yet, it is still absurdist comedy and I still get to credit myself with having watched and enjoyed a type of comedy outside the styles that I normally hear.

It's really hard to explain, I barely know how I can. But it was fucking funny. I laughed out loud multiple times. It isn’t structured. There’s no theme, no moral, nothing like that. He moves from one topic to another, and none of the topics make sense, and that is the joke, but they’re still funny. He talks about letters and numbers and questions and songs. He recites Shakespeare. He comes off as ridiculously cool and in control, and almost never breaks – only very rarely cracks himself up just the tiniest bit, enough to humanize him and that helps. I really enjoyed this, but I cannot for the life of me figure out how to explain it.

I just Googled it to see if anyone else has explained it, and The Guardian went with: “The fashion is for fringe newcomers to deliver solo shows all about themselves: potted autobiographies big on identity and self-assertion. By the end of Ikechukwu Ufomadu's debut, by contrast, we haven't the faintest idea who he is.” Yeah, I’d say that’s as good a description as any. He’s American, by the way, so while it is his debut Fringe show, I think he has been doing comedy for quite a while, just not in Scotland. He certainly seemed to be experienced and confident.

Bronwyn Sweeney – Off Brand

I’ll be honest – I picked this show based on what I thought the premise would be when I read the blurb, and then I turned out to be wrong. The blurb said: “In her debut hour, Funny Women finalist Bronwyn teaches audiences how to build their own personal brand in four easy steps.” So I thought it would be a character comedian, doing a parody of a brand expert teaching people how to brand themselves. And I thought that sounded good. Not incredibly original, I know. But I work with teenagers, and I see how many people are out there uncritically believing that they’re meant to do the corporations’ work for them by commodifying themselves into marketable brands, and I think that’s horrifying enough to warrant all the parody marketing gurus there are and more. I think we should be talking way more often about how fucked up that is, and if someone wants to start with some sketch comedy about it, then at least that’s something.

…I turned out to be wrong. It wasn’t a character show. Bronwyn Sweeney is a comedian who actually did used to work in advertising, and actually did, as herself, explain to the audience how to create a good brand. Which seems like a mildly horrifying premise, but it wasn’t as bad as that sentence makes it sound. The branding thing was just a conceit that helped her structure her “story of my life” debut Edinburgh show, and she used each of the four steps to personal branding as a jumping off point to talk about a different part of her life.

So at least it wasn’t a genuine attempt to encourage branding (though she did say repeatedly that she loves the concept of branding, and I’m fairly sure that was meant to be ironic, but I’m not sure she made the irony clear enough to justify it). But it was, unfortunately, a fairly boringly run-of-the-mill “story of my life” Edinburgh hour that I got tricked into watching because I thought it would have a different premise. It was fine. There was some mildly interesting stuff in there. Very little of it was funny. But to be fair, I don’t think I’m her target audience. People who like the same stuff she does would probably enjoy it more than I did.

Avital Ash – Avital Ash Workshops Her Suicide Note

This was another American, so her lack of Fringe experience doesn’t necessarily mean a lack of comedy experience, just a lack of time spent crossing an ocean for it. And that really shows. She handled some tough subjects really well. The title’s not a joke or anything, workshopping a suicide note really is the central conceit of the show (I mean, obviously it’s a joke in the sense that she is not literally planning to make this her suicide note, but she does say she genuinely struggles with suicidal desires, and has thought about what she’d write in the note, and then she spends the show discussing options).

This is one of the darkest comedy shows I’ve ever seen, but it manages to get quite a high laugh rate despite that. It goes into a bunch of rough topics (I guess this is rather spoiler-y so maybe don’t read if you think you might actually watch the show, I guess I get spoiler-y on this blog all the time without warnings, I should maybe think about spoilers more often than I do, I tend to write with the assumption that anyone reading this has either already seen it or isn’t planning to see it), like growing up in an extremely restrictive conservative religious community, the death of one parent and mistreatment by others, secrets and lies, severe mental health problems including suicide, being a woman and a queer person and experiencing sexual assault amid a repressive misogynistic religious environment. And she manages to make all of it funny. Not constantly, there are some truly harrowing bits where she doesn’t add punchlines because that would be fucked up. But to be honest, there are other bits where adding a punchline would be fucked up but she adds it anyway. This show will upset you (and by “you” I mean “me”) and make you laugh, and it will do both those things so close together, sometimes in the same line.

That’s how I can tell this person is experienced in comedy writing, even if not in Edinburgh performing. Most people would try to make this show work but it would end up just being trauma dumping, not entertainment. And that could still be good, it’s a story worth telling whether it makes people laugh or not. But Avital Ash manages to get all the trauma in there, and be consistently funny, but not in a way that takes away from the emotional impact. None of the jokes undercut the seriousness of the rest of the subject matter, or make light of it. They do the opposite – they make it darker and heavier. It’s a difficult watch but a strong show.

Mamoun Elagab – Why I Love White People

This one was certainly less heavy than the previous one, and it ended with a part where he just explained that he didn’t structure it very well, which was quite self-aware. I think what he said at the end was very accurate, which is that this has some elements of a great show, but needs some work before it becomes that. He did say he plans to work on it and bring it back next year better than ever, and I’d love to hear the updated version.

Having said that, there was lots of entertaining stuff in this version. It was another “stories of my life”-type show, not a particularly straightforward or coherent autobiography, just whatever he thinks of. But there were some throughlines about his parents that I think did have a lot in them, if he works a bit on hitting those harder.

He also had some stuff to say about race and class, but also stuff about how he doesn’t want to be known as the “race and class” comedian just because he’s black and named Mamoun Elagab, and maybe he just wants to be whimsical like James Acaster. He did have several digs at the comedy industry in general (no named comedians besides that, and it wasn’t even a dig at James Acaster, he presented it as saying he genuinely admires Acaster’s comedy and would like to do that shit, but doesn’t love that it’s a lot easier for someone who looks like James Acaster to get audiences to expect whimsey from him than it is for someone who looks like Mamoun Elagab), this one felt very “debut Fringe hour”-y, in that he’d clearly been playing clubs and stuff for a while, was just starting to try to make a transition to a bigger comedy career, and finding that difficult so decided to turn complaints about it’s difficult into material. Which is a good idea, because some of that was funny material.

Every time I write a list like this, the first few items on it get way less explanation than the later ones, because at first I tell myself it'll just be a quick list, and I get more and more into explaining things as I go along. I'll cut that off now. Watching new comedy is interesting. It isn't always amazing, but sometimes it is, and I enjoy the process.

[chainofclovers]

🛒⛔🤗

🛒 What are some common things you incorporate in your fics? Themes, feels, scenes, imagery, etc.

In all my fic I think I try to get really small and zoomed-in. Like I want there to be a specific texture to the sensory experiences a character is going through, so I try to be as concrete and succinct as possible about setting descriptions and I try to make sure any physical detail is contributing to the tone in some way. Writing this out this seems very obvious and uninteresting, but it's important to me! I really admire writers who can paint this massive landscape and have a bunch of stuff going on, but I've accepted that my stories are about small things.

⛔ Do you have a fic you started, but scrapped?

I've abandoned at least 20 things. For Ted Lasso, I have two fics that I truly abandoned (as in they died and are buried in my Abandoned folder). They were both tiny stubs, no more than a couple paragraphs, and I think I ended up capturing the tone/substance somewhere else. I have a few more TL stories that still live in my In Progress folder, and it's possible (likely) that about two of them will never become anything that gets published. One because the idea itself turned out to be the joy, and one because I got the fun of writing the tiny part I liked and sharing it in discord, but didn't feel like continuing.

🤗 What advice would you give to new fanfic writers that are just getting started?

It's okay to care about engagement, comments, and responses! Wanting to connect to a community and write for an audience is a good thing, and anyone who makes "write for yourself" a holier than thou thing is just being judgy. BUT you should not write with that end-point engagement as your sole motivation because your process will start to feel empty, and you might end up feeling disappointed. Basically just trust that your relationship to your own words and your relationship to your audience (both potential and realized) will change over time and ebb and flow and all that and that is okay and normal.

Sometimes you will work on something for a very long time and feel truly proud of it and maybe some people will read it and enjoy it but posting it will end up a bit anticlimactic. And other times you'll write for 40 minutes, post it, and the crowd will go wild. That doesn't mean one story is "better" or "more successful" than the other, and it doesn't mean your hard work was wasted. It just means it can be hard to predict how things go, so ideally you'll be happy you spent months on the one thing *and* happy you spent 40 minutes on the other thing and ended up with two stories you can get behind!

Finding a few fandom friends who are your ideal readers is priceless. These are people who might beta for you if you want to work with an editor, but even more importantly they are people who will talk about characters together, support each other's creative endeavors, challenge each other, be your friend, and cultivate the conversations that are part of what makes writing meaningful. I'm writing about this in the context of fic, but I think this is important regardless of the kind of writing you're doing.

Read novels, short stories, poems, fic, good journalism, etc. Just take in lots of kinds of words and figure out what resonates with you and what doesn't and why that is. It'll inform your own writing and you don't need to be afraid of being overly influenced by others.

Comment on other people's work. When you love something a writer or artist has done, try to find a way to tell them.

Don't apologize in your author's notes. The chef and food writer Julia Turshen says that disclaimers and apologies don't taste good, and that applies to a story as much as it applies to a meal you're serving. Personally, I find incessant apologizing before a fic annoying; I'd rather decide for myself if I like something!

(@thesumdancekid, your answer to this one is really good and I cosign it!)

From fanfic writer emoji ask.

[here2bbtstrash]

2! 7! 14! 22! 26! 35! 41! 50! 63 [LDOMLK]! 72! 74! 77! / I'M SORRY 😭😭😭

these are GOOD questions 🫠🤠

OMG SARAH!!!! STICKING MOST OF THIS UNDER A READ MORE... YOU DEMON...... (thank you and i love you 😭😭)

2. Where do you get your fic ideas?

legit anywhere, everywhere. sometimes in movies or tv shows, sometimes from songs, sometimes from random shit i see on the internet, sometimes from my personal life 🤭 and sometimes my brain just goes "hey wouldn't it be wild if X" so like i have to assume those come straight from god lmaooooo

7. Post a snippet from a wip.

one day i'll finish park and ride 3..... but for now i'll give you the intro ~under the cut~ 👀

14. What is your favorite location and position to write in?

in my mf bed lmaooooo or on my couch. i'll write basically laying down with my laptop on my stomach bc anything else makes my back hurt because i'm NEARLY 30 👹

22. Do you title your fics before, during, or after the writing process?  How do you come up with titles?

this can happen anywhere along the line. sometimes i'll steal the title from a song, either one that inspired the fic ("party on you" comes from charli xcx's party 4 u, "heartless" comes from the kanye west song) or didn't but the specific song line feels correct ("the shape of your body" comes from taylor swift's cruel summer, which.... does not fit the plot at all but i thought it worked well for the themes of bodies/art). sometimes the title comes first and i build the fic around that theme ("babygirl"). sometimes i finish a whole fic and i'm like what the fuck do i call this and i pick something that feels obvious and fits with the story ("park and ride", "two in one").

26. What’s your least favorite part of the writing process?

the first draft 💀 i LOVE outlining, and i LOVE polishing/detail editing stuff once i have a first pass written, but getting that first pass out.... it's like pulling fucking teeth. every time. like do i even like writing 🤣

35. What’s your favorite fic you’ve posted?

WHY ARE YOU MAKING ME CHOOSE A FAVORITE 🔪 i love all my children for different reasons.... we'll go with the shape of your body for now just because i really didn't know if i could write something like that, it was such an undertaking, and i've reread it in bits and pieces multiple times because it's so comforting to me 🥰

41. Who’s your favorite character you’ve written?

i have an insaaaaaane soft spot for fratboy jk from the spins. i wanna write something else with him SO BAD. i wanna give him a motorcycle 😩

50. How would you describe your writing style?

ashdfjkadf this is hard !!! i strive for realistic, character-driven, humorous, thoughtful, accessible, poetic, honest, and horny. so hopefully.... some mix of those 🤣

63. What was the hardest part of writing [LDOMLT]?

heavy emotional bits aside...... it's probably going to be writing the fucking grammys like i have any idea what the fuck goes on there LMAO 💀 gonna need to watch some youtube videos for research

72. What’s your favorite writing compliment you’ve gotten?

anytime i get compliments on queer aspects of my stories and specifically hear that it resonated with someone or allowed them to better understand/embrace a party of their identity, i just.... fucking melt 🫠 i've heard that several times with the shape of your body and it kills me every single time. it is the highest honor of my life 🙇‍♀️

74. Do you have a fic you wish got a bit more love?

babygirl lmao!!!!! justice for jk with his butterfly clips 😭 but i get it that one is uhhhh. deeply self-indulgent

77. Why do you enjoy writing fanfiction?

so many reasons! i love to connect with people. i love to capture my thoughts on the world and the human condition and how we interact with and treat each other. i love to make myself and others feel less alone and more seen. i love to manifest the shit i'm trying to find in my own life 😩 and of course i love to pay my own little horny artistic tribute to OT7 given that their art has done soooo much for me!!! 💜

stuck in the airport ask game party: fanfic writing asks

[bibiana112]

Okay something that was stuck on my drafts was just rambling thoughts from when I first finished aini so I'm gonna summarize what I had going on there

Biggest first impression was, surprisingly, just how weird Kizuna was about Mizuki- okay now we get why and I did guess it halfway too that she literally was just like Kizuna's big sis and such but still... Makes sense I got hung up on that, I related to her in a very specific way and this whole situation was so weird to me who does have friends with about the same age difference that I look up to, but the way it develops here it just enables Mizuki to feed into the mindset that she's just not allowed to be a kid anymore because of all the stuff she's gone through but that sucks she's still freaking twelve and all these adults around her don't treat her like it and it's not supposed to be something you question at all like :/

I like the collectables! Silly clothes! I'm glad the dlc ones weren't the only customization, fun unlockable dress-up things are nice and a plus on the experience- the whole gameplay in fact I had a blast with and had no significant complaints to make

The theme of someone needing to be reunited with their "other half" to be "whole" was just never going to be a theme that appeals to me. Everyone being incomplete until meeting someone else is simply not the kind of idea I subscribe to and especially not like romantically, the couples and relationships I have more words on despite being bad at talking through these concepts but one or another it's just not to my tastes so again- was never gonna resonate with a game with that core message all that much is all

Uchikoshi is allergic to sequels, can't embrace a whole new cast nor stick to the original and just follow up on where the last game left off, nope, always a far less satisfying compromise between he two- I wish aini had absolute minimal participation from the old cast, no Mizuki fake out just a flat out new character honestly I would have loved Bibi so much if her story didn't muddle Mizuki's pre established one, stick to an anthology format of new cases or at least keep the dynamics and personalities consistent with the conclusion of the first game I wish Date wasn't annoying I wish he was just Falco chilling out in the background of a random scene where you can interact with him only if you want with no bearing on the case at all hell if you're gonna commit to them still interacting with the story as coworkers have him actually die! Or at least give him and Mizuki an actual reunion!

Entirely up to personal taste again with this one but I miss the slight tinge of horror, the gross gouging out eyes kind of violence because the action flick kind of violence? Bores me to tears. Ryuki got shot and I knew he'd be back- they did a whole all is lost moment actually I think they did that twice with Mizuki nearly losing the battle and getting all beat up and I looked at it and I knew they wanted me to have A Feeling™ over it but it went by so fast, I knew the next beat was her getting back up, none of the lead up to it connected with me enough to make up for the predictable nature of this scene structure, there was very little weight to it and I miss that grim ass feeling that the first game sometimes captured with Saito and the way he operated especially in the paths where he's still in Iris' body by the end and still poses a threat to the cast (this point in my drafts also ended with "man I'm feeling unfulfilled by this piece media I think I'll go finally read Higurashi hopefully that'll make me feel better" and lmao I still haven't and still really want to)

[zisurru]

Yes, uncannily necessary esp in this fandom. I wish there was more focus on emotion in writing and less on facts and figures. Not everyone can pull off writing sensitive topics without bringing in setting and time era and descriptions about what the character is wearing. I've seen very few fic writers who do much more than settle on objects and smut, and are talented enough to pull off the softer pulls of vampirism vs humanism. The internal monologues, the crushing weight of the heart, etc. Am I making sense?

i'm assuming this is in response to that post about close reading i reblogged? it resonated with me specifically in reference to vc because so much of what’s actually on the page in these books probably wasn’t intended by the author, and because i wish that more people would practice looking carefully at the text when they're explaining their readings of it.

it sounds like what you’re saying is that fic writers in this fandom are more interested in minor details of the vc universe than in broader themes. i have to say that i don't really agree with that. all fandoms are going to have fic where the author is basically just mashing two barbie dolls together, but there are a lot of skilled writers in the fandom whose work definitely pulls at deeper ideas.

even stuff like "setting and time era and what the character is wearing" can support those themes! sometimes an author can get bogged down in irrelevant details, but sometimes an outfit is telling us something about the character who put it on.

one other thing i'll say is that, in my opinion, fic writing is more a social hobby than a creative one. very often a writer is using fic to tell fellow fans what they personally got out of a piece of media and inviting us to respond to that. it's basically a creative conversation with other fans about a text. for that reason, my expectations from fic are different from my expectations from original media. i don't always expect it to be deep, hard-hitting writing (but sometimes it can be). i enjoy it when a fic has me lying awake staring at the ceiling, but i also enjoy low-stakes writing like tropey fluff and smut.

[iovealexivs]

getting some stuff off my chest. also to preface: i’m not colombian, but i come from a family of immigrants (1st gen mexican n proud of it) so the movie and it’s themes of family and generational trauma resonated with me really hard because i can see my own family in the madrigals.

how are people saying abuela never apologized by the end of the movie??

she literally apologized to mirabel directly. “i’m so sorry. you never broke our family. our family is broken because of me” and to the family as a whole in all of you “I'm sorry I held on too tight //Just so afraid I'd lose you too //The miracle is not some magic that you've got //The miracle is you, not some gift, just you”

her trauma absolutely does not justify the way she treated her family but she recognized what she’d been doing all that time was wrong and she admitted that. plain as day.

also @ the people saying the family forgave her too quickly: it’s an hour and forty five minute long movie with a self contained story that had no hints of a continuation, what do you expect? you’d be just as upset if they didn’t resolve anything too i bet.

not to gatekeep but unless your family is affected by that situation (generational trauma as a result of im/migration) it is not your place to say whether or not abuela is redeemed because of the nuance in her character and actions.

encanto is very specifically about latine family dynamics and it isn’t gonna fit to the average white household of COURSE things will happen that you don’t understand or aren’t used to. if you didn’t grow up under the pressure of having to make your parents or grandparents’ sacrifices of leaving their home worth it, then how can you say whether or not the figure that made those sacrifices is in the right/wrong? do people not realize you can still love family even if they hurt you? or is this a latine cultural thing, family being SO close knit and prioritized above all else (sometimes to a fault) so you learn to forgive (whether or not it’s deserved depends on ur situation.) of course nobody is obligated to forgive someone that’s hurt them but just because that is the case for YOU doesn’t mean that is how it is for everybody else.