#(five traits because i felt like the extra two were pretty important to his character too)

[flustersnaggle]

VIOLENCE, THE RULE OF BEASTS "ira" (he/him) — hot-headed // loner // mean (// glutton // kleptomaniac)

an amnesiac with no memories to recall nor a self to reflect upon. the only thing he has to his name is pure instinct, and nothing else.

[nickysescapism]

here my thought on Fate real quick:

Things that did not piss me off:

Bloom being extra spicy really mega ultra special² (by now I’m not even surprised anymore)

Silva

the short time we spent with Marco

That one good-looking specialist girl that got killed off pretty quickly (you will be missed)

Terra’s dad

Bloom being the only one with an american accent (because british accents are supperior and also it shows that Bloom does not “fit in”)

Sam aka another white boy (but my feelings towards him were neutral so yeah)

Things that did piss me off:

the blatant whitewashing

unnecessary pop culture references (we get it you watched HP and make IG stories)

pls stop butchering the four houses like that if you can’t get your facts straight

the constant fatphobia

Riven’s obvious biphobia and everyone just accepting it

the 'blond mean girl' trope because what would we do without it

the victim (Dane) falling for the bully (Riven) for no apparent reason

“I hAvE A cOuSin NaMeD FlOrA”

the only black woc being the “mom of the group” because we haven’t seen this stereotype for a hot sec

the boring and repetitive sequences of the specialists training with wooden sticks like children in elementary school

“We DoN’t HaVe WiNgS aNymOrE”

Bloom being super selfish and everyone risking their lives for her constantly because they all love her anyway

the line “you full-creeped on my insta last night and I haven’t told anyone” exists non ironically (Riverdale called they want their awful-cringy-lines back)

"Riv"

fetishizing bi people (because bi’s can only ewist on Netflix if they are doing threesomes because that’s what being bi is all about apparently)

using the word mansplaining in the first episode TWICE in the span of a few minutes and not even using it right

the only healthy relationship (Musa and Sam) is so freaking boring that one had to make up a non existing drama to make it less boring

the unburned slaughtering like 10 specialist who are pros and do this job for years but two first-year fairies were able to get away without a scratch

the non existing friendship between the winx's and therefore it makes no sense that they still keep hanging out with each other

the erasure of our queen tecna!!

all the good specialist were erased too (like Timmy and Brandon)

the outfits making them look like grown ass moms and not like teenagers

the cast looking like they are more likely to be in college than in high school

Beatrix (besides everything she isn’t even a good villain, she is the worst secret “villain” i’ve ever seen like she is like a freaking elefant in mouse town)

and now Alfea basically is Hogwarts 2.0 but a cheaper version of it

changing Musa's powers because we need element powers for some freaking reason and not even doing anything with her powers for like 90% of the show

everything looking so dark and greasy and boring and basically not like Magix or anything magical at all

Stella (she is basically Diaspro but so much worse)

the lowkey abusive relationship between the adoptive parents (mom) and Bloom just to never mention it again

Aisha having no backstory and telling EVERYONE constantly that she swims but we never get scenes of her outside of her "parenting Bloom" sidequests

Terra saying that she misses Stella because she insulted her and was mean to her, because fat girls need this constant body shaming amiright?

they really tried making Stella bullying Terra ✨their thing✨

Aisha struggling with her powers is suddenly not important anymore when it’s inconvenient

the girls hate each other for like 80% of the show and suddenly they have a deep bonding

Musa being useless and stating the obvious and only being there for obvious exposition

"You are sad, aren’t you?"

“Yes, how do you know that? Is it because I’m crying my eyes out right now?”

“No, dummy. I’m a mind fairy. I can feel what you feel.”

the whole changeling plot

erasing the Trix and compromizing them into one character, but then give Beatrix two side kicks so they are basically a group of three again ???

they made it even more straight than the OG

the Sky/Stella/Bloom love triangle because we needed that one

the adults being stupid af

Vanessa apparently almost dying in the fire and having third degree burns but only at places that can be covered by clothes easily (and also they do not look like third dagree burns at all)

Bloom ready to kill her “parents” because they took away her door

“BuTt StUfF” another great literal masterpiece from our all-time favorite Riv

Stella is not only not part of the group for like 75% of the time, the others also don’t like her at all and therefore you don’t care about her problems at all

the teachers being unecessary mean to their students like “oh you just learned to control your powers, well damn you still suck hope you get better soon lol that looks so bad try harder”

Aisha being the only one who has no love interest

^same as Terra who is pining after a dude that doesn’t like her that way

Bloom always playing the victim and always acting like no one suffers as much as she does

using pop music that doesn’t fit the tone of the scene at all (and also ruining one of my fav songs)

Alfea basically turning into every garbage teenage high school Netflix ever had

Everyone acting as if Beatrix is super smart and a good spy even tho she sucks at it without end (why would you try to get as much attention as possible?? and kill your accomplice???)

no other planets but realms and still here everyone knows that California is part of America because americans aren’t full of themselves at all. Just replace California and America with anything else. :)

“You aren’t from Solaria, are you? Where are you from?”

“I’m from California Fer Island.”

“Uh...is that..part of...?”

“America Everix, obviously????”

they tried desperately to be woke by throwing stuff around like “don’t be sexist” and “don’t come at me with this feminist bs” like good job...to the white old dudes who completely missed the entire point of feminism and sexism - performantive feminism if you will - always SAYING the most basic feminist (women can be strong too) stuff but not DOING it

fire is somehow effective against BURNED creatures (e.g. throwing water filled balloons at a mermaids)

all telling and no showing (expositions + no flashbacks = BORING)

Sky being so obessed with Bloom that he doesn’t care that she drugged him at one point

Dane’s character doing a 180 out of nowhere for plot convenience

Stella being a threat to other students but no one seems to care

the good ol’ the bad guys aren’t really bad but in the end turns out they are and the good guys were the good guys all along plot twist that we have seen a million times on netflix alone

Sky not having trust issues after Bloom spiked the water bottle and just accepting that she felt the need to drug him

Sky having daddy issues and that being treated as his main character trait

using phones all the time but when it’s important suddenly no one got a phone with them

beatrix drags a random “bad  boy” into her evil plan because that was ever a good thing to do but kills her only partner that already had the trust of FaRa

Sky still persuing Bloom even tho he knows that Stella could blind Bloom because she can’t control her powers and even threatens to do so - again no one saw a problem with that??

Bloom being one of the worst liars out there but Aisha is like “wow, you are a great liar” like no bitch you literally had to help her five seconds ago

Stella blinding her best friend being one of the most underwhelming plots I have ever seen (I mean how can a show fuck it up so bad that a literal girl blinding her best friend doesn’t interest me?)

no one can have an interesting storyline because there is the slight chance that they could outshine the real star (bloom)

^therefore most sideplots are super shallow or just boring

[makorays]

A List of Short Bios for a Bunch of OCs so People Actually Know What I’m Talking About Whenever I Mention Them on Streams or Whatever

These are all from the Savage Worlds tabletop campaign known as The Initiative that my friends and I play. It is a modern day sci-fi story involving aliens and cosmic horror cults. The basic premise is that some very important Scellor tech was stolen and found its way to Earth, and the Scellor government contacted Earth’s government to warn them they will have to wipe out their planet if the tech isn’t recovered in time. Thus an initiative was formed consisting of renowned Earth military figures as well as Scellor volunteers to try and locate it.

The Scellor are a race of aliens originally created by a man by the name of Jukashi for tgchan. Joe discovered them and decided to write a tabletop story in that universe. He may have taken a couple artistic liberties here and there for the sake of better fitting things into his own story. Scellor are green psychic aliens with a whole bunch of neat traits I won’t go into but you can read about them here if you want: https://questden.org/wiki/Scellor

Onto the actual bios:

Sofie Edelstein

The commander of The Initiative. Over a century ago, her father revealed to her and her two sisters (Teri and Tara) that he was the head of an “angel”-worshipping cult known as Erleuchten. When Teri and Tara showed hesitance in joining it, her father killed them. Sofie joined, but plotted to sabotage the cult from the inside. Some time later she became a preserved brain, got digitized, and obtained a robotic body. Now she’s a 6′ tall 400 pound robot with advanced combat capabilities. She created a series of androids with artificial intelligence based after her late sister Tara, but none have gained sentience. Was the leader of Poland’s military as a day job. She was working for The Initiative from the inside as an Erleuchten leader, but got found out and now lives with us. She’s done a hell of a lot of sleeping around through all her years, but eventually decided to get into a long-term relationship when she met Stan.

Minyaxl

My OC. Minyaxl is a Scellor combat medic with renowned psionic healing abilities who decided to volunteer and help out the humans, partially out of kindness and partially to have a chance to demonstrate his abilities to a less advanced race. He started out as this 5′0″ little bitch who was super full of himself but his confidence has been beaten into the dirt on numerous occasions; most notably when he realized that humans, unlike Scellor, do not reincarnate after death, meaning he’s been sentencing people to oblivion during every combat mission. He’s since become desperately obsessed with saving as many lives of sentient, non-reincarnating beings like humans as possible, even if it means jeopardizing operations. He routinely finds himself at odds with his squadmates, particularly Valerie, due to their perceived lack of interest in non-lethal solutions to problems. He is the closest Scellor can get to typical human romance with Thael.

Katherine Dawson

Cey’s OC. Katie is a combat medic who was taken as a POW by a terrorist group and later forcibly enlisted into The Initiative for her abilities. She’s sort of the mom of the group. Everyone else in arbiter squad has some form of extra-ness to them and she’s the straight-woman who holds them together. She has a knack for bossing around idiots due to her upbringing with rambunctious siblings in a Japanese-American household. Dual wields pistols and does not take shit from people. Is girlfriends with Teri.

Johannes B. Otto

Kyle’s OC. It's sometimes easy to mistake Johannes for a confused German tourist. During quiet hours, he spends his time complaining about No Smoking signs and combining multiple quarter-pound patties into single full-pound burgers. But get in his way and you'll find that he's less "tired, goofy dad" and more "towering, ruthless brute". Withhold information during an interrogation, and he'll start calmly searching for a pair of pliers. Try to hurt him or his squadmates, and he'll shut you in a storage locker with a live grenade and then feel zero remorse for the gory soup that spills out (a tactic that has since been affectionately referred to as the "Deutsche Oven"). It should also be noted that Johannes is not a patient man. If we’re ever at a standstill with deciding how to proceed, he’ll start jumping a fence to go beat the shit out of a guard before taking all his clothes and spanking him until his ass is red.

Valerie Mimieux

Ragu’s OC. Valerie is a woman of class. She’s a French spy who likes expensive things and is passionate about cooking. She has a habit of flying way off the fucking handle and doing some reckless impulsive shit or just generally acting like a psycho. Will sometimes single out a particular enemy that did something to piss her off and then beat the hell out of their corpse long after they’re dead. She has raced Yakuza gang leaders for the right to win their car and then nonchalantly gunned them down when they decided to get revenge. She somehow manages to slither her way into acquiring ludicrous amounts of currency during her operations, and wants to one day take over all of Europe. Has a pet german shephard named Steve who used to be a guard dog for the enemy until she offered him a treat. She is alien-gay for Adiira.

Fayaiy

Selena’s OC. Fayaiy is a bounty hunter who crash landed on Earth and temporarily joined the cause before disappearing off to who knows where. She’s super goofy and sort of comes off as a happy-go-lucky foreigner who doesn’t entirely grasp English but loves to vibe with everyone regardless. LOVES Family Guy, thinks it’s the funniest thing ever. On multiple occasions she got faced on weed in the men’s bathroom with Stan, who I’m pretty sure still assumes she’s a trans guy because she didn’t seem to understand human gender symbols on doors. Has a pet black cat named Peanut who she took with her when she left.

Teri Grimm

A state of the art android who is so human-like you wouldn’t even know her body’s innards were synthetic unless you looked at them under a microscope. The commander’s first creation to gain sentience, and The Initiative’s token robot hacker waifu. Everybody loves Teri. She’s polite, incredibly intelligent, and has a face you just really want to protect, although she can hold her own in battles with superhuman strength. She’s rather unlucky though. Is girlfriends with Katie.

We’re actually currently playing a reboot of The Initiative. The first go around happened a few years ago, didn’t last as long, and featured the following five characters as our player characters. They did not function very well as main characters but work quite well this time around as quirky side characters.

Stan Ward

Ragu’s old OC. Stan is one of the most extra people to ever exist, roughly tied with only Bruce and Vulohon. A true American, he’s a mad bastard of a soldier who loves drugs and driving, often at the same time. Once, several members of The Initiative went out to town to relax and have fun, and he almost immediately got into trouble with the police, being chased off into the night. He came back later after swimming his way back to the base, crabs stuck to various parts of his soaking body with their pinched claws. Was somehow man enough to satisfy a 6 foot tall 400 pound 160+ year old android’s sexual desires to the point that he became her boyfriend.

Bruce Reistill

Kyle’s old OC. Bruce is an abrasive asshole who will never ever let a villain get more than 5 words into their monologue before interrupting them with something along the lines of “now y’see here I think the problem we’re having is that you keep on talking when you really shouldn’t be so I think it’d really be in all of our best interests if I were to just go ahead and...” before drawing his revolver that he nicknamed Banger.

Vulohon

The old OC of Roll, our long lost friend who just sorta disappeared to do his own thing in life. Vulohon is a fucking dumbass. He’s basically if Knuckles from Sonic Boom was an edgy anime himbo. The first time we saw him, he was doing the cool guy thing where you lean back in your chair and sharpen a blade. The second time we saw him, he was doing the same thing, but this time was sharpening a glock. The third time it was a trash can. He owns a legendary energy battle axe and can use psionic energy to generate explosions wherever he wants, but almost all of his fighting tactics involving picking up dudes and throwing them at other dudes. Either that or ripping off car doors and swinging them at people.

Stan, Bruce and Vulohon are all best bros. They moved their beds into the rec room and turned it into the Boys Room, where they sit in the hot tub together and behave heterosexually.

Thael

My old OC. Thael is a scientist who has no personality or emotions, but a really great ass. He’s a husk of a formerly optimistic young student who lost the ability to feel things after a shady government organization recruited him and forced him to conduct awful, sometimes murderous experiments on unwilling Scellor. Everyone is creeped out by him, but Minyaxl’s virgin horniness was enough to push past that as he felt love at first sight (with Thael’s back turned to him) and pursued relations with him. Thael opened up to him and Minyaxl decided to do his best to help him regain his former self. He’s getting there.

Pamiil

Selena’s old OC. Pamiil is an optimistic pacifist healer who never really got all that much screen time but she is cute and must be protected. She loves* Setel.

*by which i again mean the closest scellor equivalent to love which i guess is sorta just close friendship where you also fuck but they’re also capable of feeling proper love it’s just weird and can lead to psionic feedback loops if they’re not careful

(the following 5 pics were drawn by selena)

https://butamakingart.tumblr.com/

Orvon Valasma

The captain of the ship that a mysterious third party (referred to as the Scellor Freelancers, consisting of her, Adiira and Setel) arrived on. She’s 7 feet tall and has robotic legs that can extend to make herself even taller and run super fast. Somewhat stoic, and has gotten into fights with Adiira, but still cares deeply for her friends. The freelancers were originally at odds with The Initiative as they (somewhat rightfully) believed that we were doing a sloppy as hell job of things, but they eventually decided to join forces.

Adiira M’vora

A deadly assassin who, due to being born in the Ayaar caste, was forced to carry out political assassinations against people the Scellor government suspected of being potential state enemies. It got to her so she went rogue and is a bit of a wreck. She owns a legendary sword called Blue Midnight that can cut through the very fabric of space, and has various other psionic space manipulation abilities. She is human-gay for Valerie.

Setel Tunsai

An absolute chad of a man, standing at a towering 5′0″ (which is stupidly tall for his Orthan caste). Setel is a powerful psionic who excels at manipulating social outcomes, either through exceptional diplomacy or good old fashioned mind control. He has a talent for helping people with their emotional problems, and has acted as a therapist for people like Adiira and Thael. He is beloved by all. Is small lovefriend of Pamiil.

Korhan

Horrible. Piece of shit bitch bastard. Rightfully dead. Korhan used his position as an Ayaar operative as an excuse to live out all his sadistic fantasies. Worked in the evil-ass facility that used people like Thael to carry out their horrible experiments, and made implied rape threats to Thael if he thought about not doing his job. Responsible for everything that’s wrong with Djylana. Planted a tracking device on Minyaxl to find the location of The Initiative’s base, then came in and slaughtered innocent people for the fun of it before taking a bunch of hostages. He used them to try and make us hand over Adiira and Thael for betraying their government but we managed to clutch things out and put him in the dirt. Also he could stop time. Was basically Dio.

Djylana

Korhan’s partner in crime. A bloodthirsty animal he used to carry out much of his dirty work. After she was killed, while Korhan was lying on the ground just before Thael unloaded two magazines into him to finish him off, he said that she was his finest work, that we would never be able to truly stop her, that she would not rest until every single one of us was murdered. He had installed something called Echotech into her, allowing her soul to stay attached to her body after its death. She got up and started freaking out because her only “friend” had been killed, ready to kill us all, when MVP Fayaiy came in with the hug and helped us manage to convince her that Korhan was a piece of shit and we could be actual friends to her. She came around, like an abused guard dog finding a compassionate master, and now lives in the base as a decaying zombie. We convinced the commander to let her in despite her crimes and to also eventually make a robot body for her. She was unsure if she wanted to let us do that until someone brought up the fact that it would be the biggest middle finger we could possibly give to Korhan, at which point she vehemently agreed. I hope his piss stain of a soul somehow knows that his ace in the hole was defeated by the power of friendship.

IO

Satan.

There are other characters that I may or may not include in the future, but those are the most prominent ones.

[growingupautie]

Anti-NT or Misanthropy part 3.

Q: Dear Nathan. Your last response has given me a bit of perspective on my own personal story and made me realize the extent to which, particularly in the crucial years of High School, I have been extremely fortunate.

I moved to Italy from the US when I was 12. To say I stuck out like a sore thumb would be an understatement. I was one of the few foreigners living in the town, I was (whether or not everyone had heard of the diagnosis) evidently non-neurotypical and dressed in a way that was borderline acceptable in the US but totally out of place in fashion conscious Italy. Most of the younger population of the town knew who I was.

I was most definitely a minority of one.

Slowly but surely, throughout the course of seven years, I moved towards a deeper and deeper form of acceptance, until I finally felt free. I recognize that I had some pretty rare catalysts to help me achieve that.

My parents made sure to get to know teachers and make sure the ones they trusted knew of my diagnosis. I’m sure my parents played an eloquent case on my behalf. Teachers tend to prefer intellectually inclined, interested students who respond well to clearly structured activities and have no trouble with rote learning over unmotivated students. I was generally treated very well by the teaching body. Their support was important in keeping me with a sense of self-worth and acceptance. For a while, I wanted to be a teacher. I benefited from both my social class, domestic stability and academic ability. Though this shouldn’t negate the amount of work and energy I invested and how hard things often were for me, these are things I was born with.

Also, the way the Italian school system is structured is (unintentionally) very autism-friendly. In fact, it was one of the reasons we moved in the first place. The school system keeps classes together for many years so small groups of students (25 per class) get to know each other almost as a second family. You tend to stay in the same classroom all day and everyone takes the same classes, week in week out. In a way, I was treated as an awkward cousin from a distant part of the family. Also, the high school system is vocational, grouping people with similar interests and academic abilities into separate schools, reducing potential tensions between ‘geeks’ and ‘jocks’. By high school, I was in a class of very studious people, with little or no contact with the more violent students I had encountered in middle school.

Most importantly, without which all the above wouldn’t have been enough, I benefited from the moral integrity, empathy and strength of character of a few classmates that saw beyond my awkward behaviors to the human behind them. I owe much of my happiness to them.

I survived middle school thanks in part to a very popular and empathetic student who didn’t allow jokes on my behalf to get too far out of hand. I was rejected often (sometimes very painfully) but rarely deceived. Though there was widespread violence at the school, there wasn’t any concentrated effort on people’s part to violently suppress me. I was deeply unhappy. But I wasn’t scared.

In High School, one of the defining moments for me was joining a band. I had been playing the bass 2 weeks and decided I wanted to be part of a band. I went to one of the many political gatherings at my school, thinking it was probably the best place to find musicians, and walked up to some random guy and asked him if he would be in my band. He could have said no. He could have laughed in my face. He could have forgotten about it. He could have used my naivety for a prank. Not only did he say yes, he also matched me up with a drummer friend of his who was looking for a bassist at the time. Being part of a band made an enormous difference to my social life in High School. We didn’t last long, but we lasted enough. I picked up social skills and norms like a sponge. By the end of two years, I had kept some and dropped the rest. I like to think it was like learning a new instrument; I had started with scales and progressed to symphonies.

There were many moments in which things could have gone horrifically wrong. I could have been lured into an abusive situation instead of band practice. I could have been beaten to a pulp on the concrete outside the metro station for reasons I could never have understood. I could have been taken advantage of and blamed for a crime I never committed.

I had watchful angels.

Perhaps what the main obstacle for a lot of people trying to befriend someone on the spectrum is the fear that their boundaries won’t be respected if they do. That they’ll be followed around. That their friends will make fun of them.

My classmates, besides being wonderful people, knew that I was going to be part of the classroom family for five years, so we had time to bond in a way we wouldn’t have had I seen them for a class a week. The structures I was in favored long term investment in people over short term ‘make your friends laugh about the weird kid’ mentality.

A final word on the diagnosis question:

It didn’t take long for that doctor to diagnose me. I was a clear case of autism, exhibiting most of the typical behaviours of an Aspie. It probably took him about 30 seconds to get the gist of the case. I re-read the diagnosis which he emailed back to me when I got in touch with him last year. I was described as a clear-cut case of Asperger’s syndrome. In his office in Boston that morning 12 years later, the question lingering in the air was not whether the diagnosis was accurate. I’ve acquired significant social and coping skills, but my basic traits haven’t changed that far. The question was whether it was meaningful. At the end of our appointment, he told me that ours was more a conversation between old friends than between doctor and patient and didn’t charge me. I loved him for that.

What I was rejecting was not so much my identity – being a ‘self-hating’ autistic person as you say – as the clammy feeling of the hospital still lingering on my body. The demeaning ritual of special ed “speech and language therapy” classes, grouped with pupils with severe learning difficulties. Seeing myself as the observed in a science experiment. Perhaps I threw the baby out with the bath water. I think in hindsight I see the value of diagnosis.

The summer before going to University, I had opened up completely about my diagnosis and my history to the guys I keep closest to me. We spent the summer with a running joke. They would insult my special ed. Teacher in the US every time I made a clumsy move like missing a volleyball or spilling something, calling him a useless pile of junk and a failure as an educator. In my heart of hearts I whispered “I win.”

I guess I didn’t really reject autism. It’s just that in my high school years I never was forced to wear a neurotypical mask. I went from being begrudgingly tolerated but isolated at middle school to being so completely accepted by the last year of High School that the distinction between myself – because as far as autism is concerned, I had always conceived of myself as a minority of one – and the others, ceased to be meaningful. I knew them down to their most intimate frailties and up to their utmost strengths. I praised them and they praised me. We were free to be individuals. The label ceased to be meaningful because they saw leagues beyond it. The autism toolbox remained in the shed. I thought I didn’t need it anymore.

As I write to you, I am in my last year of University the week before spring term starts.

Moving to the UK for University, I came up head to head with problems that I hadn’t faced before. The rigid routine of Italian high school faded away and the support of family and friends became more distant as I moved away and my friends began University in Italy. I didn’t come face to face with abuse or misunderstanding or oppression. I came face to face with entropy. All at once, I had to build my own social circle from scratch, dictate my own times, do my own cooking. It was a kind of pain I had never encountered before.

It was the first time I really, really doubted my ability to cope and make good decisions for my own well-being. I was very offended when my mother suggested I request extra time on my University Exams for ‘my autism.’ In retrospect, some autism support, not so much on academics but on life skills would have been useful.

I suppose part of my reason I burnt those documents in my first year of University was that I was rejecting the idea that I needed extra support ‘for disabled students’.

As it stands, I’m much better off than I was then, but the doubts haven’t gone away and building up a stable social life in a universe of fleeting encounters and pleasant but sometimes distant acquaintances still isn’t easy. My cooking has improved vastly but is still a chore.

What I wrote to you at the beginning of ‘wanting to take myself off the centre of the Universe’ needs to be explained a bit better. What I really realized being in the UK was the importance of contributing to something much bigger than myself in order to find happiness and meaning.

I meant, in my engagement with this page, to deepen my understanding of how the autistic community perceives itself. The oppositional imagery NT/autistic was a surprise for me since, considering I am still am the only autistic person I know personally in Italy and I knew my class well, I never thought of myself as ‘neurodiverse’ in opposition to ‘NTs’. Also, I had never heard of or encountered Autism Speaks until last year and it had no impact whatsoever on my years in Italy. It seems to be one of the main factors creating the opposition in the first place.

At the moment of writing to you, I am preparing a speculative application to Specialisterne, an organization that specializes in helping people on the Spectrum into employment by offering training and a link to corporate partners. I’d like to write posts for them, since they do not have much of a media outlet, particularly on google and that would help their outreach. Perhaps ‘autism toolbox’ (great concept from one of the comments) would be a good place to start. Any other advice from you or others is much appreciated

Peace

A: Our lives mirror each other quite a bit minus the traveling. I've had some pretty bad culture shock at times when it came to switching schools. I originally went to a kindergarten close to my home where I was isolated from the rest of the kids. They felt like something was up with me from the getgo and made sure I never got too close. When I was ripped away from there to a new school, it was a small Christian school where I managed to befriend a few people, possibly through the prodding of teachers and the principal.

After a few years though, my friends left the school and I was left with people who didn't care for me, and people who bullied me.

After a few year at that school, I was taken out for a public school for financial reasons, and that barely lasted a week for two. I was bullied by almost every kid I met. One kid grabbed me by my backpack and pushed me in the circle of the hall and into my class because he was "helping me" understand the one direction only rule they had in the hallway. After a week or so of this, and me drawing on my notes in class, a teacher grabbed me by the shirt and drug me into another classroom where there were several other mocked me, and tore up my artwork, telling me it was a waste of time, and I would never amount to anything. I was back in my Christian school by the next week.

Back in the Christian school, I continue being bullied until I joined the basketball team, and through showing some skill and oddly enough becoming somewhat "volatile" (when needed) towards bullying I became more accepted. But as usual, once I found acceptance through hard work and perseverance I was taken from that comfort and put into a completely new place. Middle school at a "Magnet School" where you could specialize in Engineering, Arts, or the Performing Arts. I went into music as I have been a musician for years at that point.

The school was a hodgepodge of races and a "cliques" none of which I was welcomed into. I made myself known as the "goody-two-shoes" on day one and that really wasn't the best move in the world. Over time, I was bullied so mercilessly that the assistant principal gave me permission to stand up for myself and fight back. I learned martial arts and took up skateboarding. Started getting into shape, and literally became even more volatile (when needed) people started to leave me alone.

I switched to the arts program after a while and found some acceptance with the artist's kids who were musicians, and artists like myself. They started a band and added me because I was one of the only ones who could actually play, and I helped teach them some things as well. A few of them actually skateboarded, so we did that together. Though looking back there was so much micro-bullying and mockery I'm not sure how I can put too much of a positive spin on that. Honestly, I was never even invited to eat lunch with them so it was a little like I was just kept around for usefulness.

By high school, they had "disbanded" the band, and put a new band together without specifically me. I created a new group of friends which were basically other outcasts. Earned my respect in this new school with many of the groups and even managed to become king of prom by the end of it despite maintaining my outsider status. Like you though when I went to college (from home) the lack of structure was my Achilles heel. There were so many new rules, almost all of them were illogical. Very few students and teachers who wanted to help me.

I struggled to get anything done but managed to keep a passing grade the majority of the time. I managed to get my degree even after my life fell completely apart and my group of high school friends who had followed me to the same college had, for the most part, turned against me and (longer story there.) The point being, that diagnosed or undiagnosed, we Autistic people go through some very similar issues. A lot of times our parents struggle and often fail to recognize what it would really take for us to succeed and flourish.

You and I both were young Autistics at a time where it was not as understood as it is now. We are not out of the dark ages just yet, but we certainly know more than we did then about who and what we are, what we need, and what we should do about it. Parents are just starting to catch up to it as well hence the need to fight off groups like Autism Speaks, dangerous "cures," and ABA techniques which often involving torturous methods. Fighting against these people as hard as we often do can certainly make it seem like we are against the entire NT population which is why I try to show some positivity in my comics as well.

I certainly didn't mean to imply that you were a "self-hating" Autistic, but that there were many out there. I sensed your story was similar to the one you eventually gave me. We are all at a different place in understanding at any given point in time and that's alright. I would definitely be in support of an Autism Toolbox thought I myself don't have the time to create or maintain one. (At the moment.) You have probably noticed the Autism community as a whole is quite divided in several ways. The want for a "cure" vs fighting against one. The acceptance of ABA and Autism Speaks vs fighting against them. We all need to do a better job of getting to the truth through facts and coming together for the greater goal of acceptance.

If you are going to write on our behalf, I would focus on the positives and negative, and also on the explaining actions, and needs, all in a way Neurotypical people will understand. A good piece of advice I always give is to scroll the Autism Boards on Facebook and look for common issues with your own life to write about. That way it's relevant to everyone and personal at the same time. And treat everyone as if they are where they are in life understanding that they may not have come in contact with the same information you have, and may not have come to the same conclusions you have. I think you are inquisitive enough, and understanding enough to find common ground and write from a good perspective.

I hope that helps. Commentors, any advice?

-Nathan

[marshmallow-the-vampire-slayer]

MTVS Epic Rewatch #175

VM 3x10 Show Me the Monkey

Stray thoughts

1) A fact which I think is important to remember and that people watching the show years after it first aired might not be aware of: Show Me the Monkey aired almost two months after Spit and Eggs, and it seems that the same amount time went by in the narrative. That means it’s been two months since the dean died and Veronica and Logan broke up.

2) “ Who do you go to, to find a stolen monkey and twenty control-group rats?”

3) Veronica staring at Logan while “having” lunch is sort of a staple in the show, isn’t it?

4) And I love Veronica’s voiceover here:

VERONICA VOICEOVER: Logan Echolls, don't you get it? Ex-boyfriend. That's your new title. It comes with certain restrictions. This is my Food Court time. You're not a breakfast person. You're not even an early-lunch kind of guy. Can't we just agree this is Veronica time?

Veronica’s voiceovers always give us an insight into her mind and thought process. But she seems to go speechless whenever it comes to Logan Echolls (think of The Kiss or any of their breakups.) So it’s kind of refreshing to actually have her voicing how hard the breakup is for her. It’s been almost two months, and she still can’t look at him without feeling hurt. 

5) Big Lebowski reference!

PAULINE: It's not a pet. We don't name them or wrap squeaky toys up for Christmas. His research ID number is twenty-five. Yes, I know exactly who stole him. It was those damn Phat kids. VERONICA: Because, I take it, monkeys are delicious? And, dude, "girth-challenged" is the preferred nomenclature.

6) If anything, you should offer a discount for hilarity...

MAC: I just can't wait for that moment when you're in a tree, going, "here, monkey, monkey," and holding out a banana, and then the branch breaks and hilarity ensues. VERONICA: Ah, if there's hilarity, I charge extra. 

7) And this is why I love Parker…

PARKER: Just so you know, we're approaching critical, pathetic mass if the girl who most wants to host gentlemen callers is the most recent victim of a sexual assault. We should be out there! Or, at the very least, not barring them from coming to us.

I think it was very important for a show that dealt with sexual assault on a regular basis to acknowledge that there are different ways to deal with trauma, and Parker offered a striking contrast to Veronica in their way of dealing with trauma. While Veronica mostly kept it to herself and chose revenge instead of justice, Parker was outspoken about her trauma and didn’t shy away from talking and joking about it.

8) Oh, Dick… 

9) But I do love how he boils down the most complex human emotions to the most basic grossness.

DICK: But if this were a book, the theme of my essay would be the symbolism of how your character had his man parts ripped off by the Veronica Mars character. LOGAN:  My man parts are intact. DICK: Show me. LOGAN: Well, you'll have to take my word for it. DICK: I mean, symbolically. We're young, single men in our sexual prime, and the only reason why we're not out there going hog-wild is because of your feelings?

I do appreciate that he was trying to help out his best friend, in his own Dickish way.

10) 

VERONICA: You look sad. You and your friend Weevil have a fight or something? KEITH: Just thinking, if I was going to get drunk and shoot myself, I'd probably drink the good stuff first. VERONICA: Sheesh. Good thing we don't have any good stuff.

11) How didn’t this raise Veronica’s alarms?

VERONICA: What did the note say? KEITH: "Goodbye, cruel world," typed as a memo. VERONICA: Like on the computer screen? KEITH: Yeah, why? VERONICA: Just... we had to do these papers for Landry's class, like plan the perfect murder. I got an A, just in case you were wondering. KEITH: And what does this- VERONICA: Mine was a fake suicide, where you leave a note on the computer, so you can't check the handwriting, and write something clichéd so you don't study the message. My example was, "Goodbye, cruel world."

12) 

DARLA: We have a lot of work to do, so just go ahead and take 'em off. VERONICA: Uh, take what off? SAM: Your clothes...for the calendar. You are committed, right?

13) I’m Mac.

BRONSON: So, um...some of us are going to grab a bite, if you want to come along. MAC: I'm good. I had some mints.

14) And I love this… 

What about this is Canada?

Canadians, tell me, how accurate is this portrayal of Canada?

15) I dare you to tell me Parker sucks. I DOUBLE DARE YOU.

PARKER: It's a new day. No more games, no more waiting around. I'm ready to be wooed! VERONICA: Amen, sister! That was supporting, not joining. I do not want to be wooed. PARKER: Don't you want to hear all about how great you are? I mean, don't you want to see the look on some cute guy's face when he realizes that you're not only smokin'-hot but funny and smart? Why, you're the catch of the century, Veronica Mars...  And so are you.

16) 

BRONSON: You're pretty dressed up. Where you guys off to? MAC: Uh...Club...Club. It's new.

17) Girl, you should feel insulted, not flattered…

TAYLOR: Hmm. What have you got? LOGAN: Apparently, we're into the cheap stuff. TAYLOR: Hmm.

18) 

TAYLOR: Boy, oh, boy. You are bad.  Man, I can't believe I just did that with Aaron Echolls' son.

As if he needed any more reasons to feel disgusted about this, right? I get why he slept with this girl, in spite his every instinct probably telling him otherwise. On the one hand, he wanted to get over Veronica badly. I think that’s why he agreed to follow Dick’s lead. He was tired of moping around. On the other hand, this is the only way Logan has always felt validated: his sexual prowess. And I guess he was truly in need of some validation.

19) I love this conversation between Veronica and Piz because it clearly shows how two people can have completely opposite readings of the same moment… Piz thinks they’re flirting and talking about how they feel about each other, like they’re talking in metaphors, while Veronica is only thinking of Logan and how he makes her feel. It also proves how deluded Piz actually was. Veronica had given him zero hints that she was interested in him. And he had witnessed on more than one occasion how into each other Veronica and Logan were. Yet, he deluded himself into believing that Veronica was talking about him. 

PIZ: I figure, you know, I mean, I know what I like. Why waste my time? VERONICA: Like, why bother with something not good just because it's something? PIZ: Especially when you know the difference, which not many people do. I mean, do you? VERONICA: I...I think I do. PIZ: You see, I think that's like ninety percent of life, just knowing the difference.

Like, he actually believed he was the something good instead of the something not good when it was the other way around, which makes sense for Piz as a character. I mean, this sense of entitlement is probably one of his defining traits. From day one, he set his eyes on Veronica and truly believed she ought to be his. It was literally impossible for him to believe otherwise.

20) And of course, there’s the Something Good...

I think this is probably my second favorite LoVe kiss right after The Kiss. There’s just something about the way they stare at each other and seem to be communicating without actually uttering a single word, and then the sheer desperation and passion when they finally kiss. It’s just kind of breathtaking.

21) Look how content and pensive Veronica looks after a night of LoVemaking… 

22) And then, all the awkwardness just because white CIS guy deluded himself into believing a girl was his. He seems to be actually offended by Veronica being with whoever she wants to be, who was, by the way, the same guy she’d been with since the very first date Pi met her? How is this shocking? How is this brand new information for Piz?

It wouldn’t be a Rob Thomas show without a contrived and unnecessary love triangle, would it? Anywho, at least our kids are back together. For like two episodes. 

[markgottliebliteraryagent]

Eisner Award & YALSA-nominated Graphic Novelist Jason Walz

Jason Walz is an Eisner Award-nominated comic and graphic novel creator living in Minneapolis. He is the author of several comics and graphic novels, including the Last Pick trilogy and Homesick. Last Pick was a Kirkus Reviews Best YA Science Fiction of 2018 Selection and a YALSA 2019 Great Graphic Novels for Teens Nominee.

What initially drew you to comic book arts and what do you feel the graphic novel medium affords authors and illustrators?

I grew up in the middle of Kentucky fairly well isolated from a lot of exposure to things outside that farmland. The closest movie theater was just under and hour away, and there were no bookstores nearby. It didn't take long to discover and fall in love with the comic book spinner rack that eventually got setup near the register at our local grocery store. Waiting for me every week were stories full of fantastic myths and strange new worlds. There was no hope for me after this. I was all in.

I loved (and still love) science fiction and fantasy movies, and I always dreamed of being part of that creative process someday. Flash forward through the many years I spent painting and making movies on a cheap camera with my friends, and I finally realized that I wasn't having that much fun painting, and that my movies were pretty terrible. I wanted to tell the stories in my head, but they were too stagnant on a single canvas and basically unwatchable as movies. Once I began making my own comics, I felt an unbelievable freedom to tell visual stories without feeling constrained or compromised. My comic book storytelling style is as much influenced by Spielberg or Lucas as it is by Eisner or Kirby.

Before writing Last Pick, which features various characters with disabilities, your background was in special education. Do you think that working in that space has lent some authenticity to your characters and writing about the importance of not minimizing the worth of others?

I can say that because of my experience working with students with disabilities for so many years, I have certainly gone into these books with the best of intentions, and that I had two clear objectives in mind. First, I wanted to create a character on the autism spectrum that felt like a fully realized human being. Too often in fiction, those with autism are built out of tropes that in my opinion do more harm than good when showing other perspectives. How often have we seen someone with autism as having nearly superhuman intelligence, or a purity of heart that lets those around him/her to learn lessons about themselves? Many times those with autism are depicted as burdens on those around them, or unable to show emotion. I wanted to a character that certainly expressed traits of autism in his actions and thoughts, but more than anything, I wanted him to be fully human.

“...I hoped to get across in these books was the need for our society to do quite a bit more when it comes to truly making space in our world for those with disabilities.”

The second thing that I hoped to get across in these books was the need for our society to do quite a bit more when it comes to truly making space in our world for those with disabilities. Most of my teaching jobs have been in transitions programs where I focused on daily living skills, and job skills. I helped my students get volunteer work so that they could practice the routines of a work day while adjusting to the expectations that a boss places on an employee. They worked really hard and would have been fantastic employees at a variety of different jobs, but more often than not, it was extremely difficult to convince workplaces to hire those with autism. Everyone seems to have the best of intentions, but many are still unwilling or unable to make minor modifications to the workplace to help those with autism successfully compete in the workplace. These experiences were the early kernels of ideas that eventually defined the aliens in Last Pick. They are the clear analogy (taken to the extreme) for our society when we don't take the time to see the value within every human life.

The evil alien robots from your graphic novel Last Pick communicate primarily in emjois. How did you arrive at that idea and was that an artistic choice with a purpose behind it?

I always imagined that if aliens ever explored society on earth as it currently is, one of their first points of focus would be on how we now use emojis to communicate with one another. It would be a bit like how we pour over cave drawing and try to decipher how civilizations lived in the past when might understand so little regarding the rest of their lives at that time.

I also wondered if the aliens in Last Pick might use these emojis in a condescending way since they are truly despicable creatures. The idea that these massive robotic Scoopers show up on our planet to take humans away is terrifying enough, but the fact that each one has a unique and seemingly innocuous emoji staring down on you as they search the landscape seemed even more horrific to me.

How has the school and library market responded to your graphic novel?

Fantastic! Once your book is out into the world, it's often difficult to gauge how well it's selling, and it's often the school and library markets that are the first sign for a Young Adult novel regarding how well it is connecting with readers. It's here that the reviews and recommendations really count. So far I'm extremely happy with how well it has been received, and some of my favorite experiences have been stepping back into schools and talking to students about storytelling and comics in general. You'll know pretty quickly if your intended YA audience for a book isn't connecting. Kids and teens have little patience for media that doesn't connect with them. When it does connect, you really need to rely on the schools and libraries to help get your work in front of their eyes.

“...I've learned how much easier it is to have the support and guidance of a well oiled machine working with you.”

What have you learned from the experience of having your major debut graphic novel published at the level of a big five publishing house?

First and foremost, I've learned how much easier it is to have the support and guidance of a well oiled machine working with you. The team over at First Second Books has been fantastic. They know how to get a book out into the world the right way, and it's so nice for me to be able to put my trust in them and to just put in the hard work of creating the pages.

I've also learned a bit of humility. It's rare in life that an opportunity comes along that suddenly makes everything easier, and expecting that to happen is a surefire way to live your life constantly wanting more. Getting your book put out through a large publisher certainly does put a spotlight on you work like never before, but it has been important for me to also learn that there are thousands of spotlights beaming down on new books at any given time. Like most things in life, success is defined by each individual, and if you decide that success should be defined any other way you might be setting yourself up for disappointment and anxiety. A larger stage with a larger audience doesn't always mean you've got the next bestseller. Sometimes it's just another step toward building an audience.

“...the drawings help tell the story in ways that I wouldn't be able to do with just writing.”

Writing a book is hard enough. Does writing and illustrating a graphic novel up the ante? How much time and dedication does that take?

This is a question that I've gotten quite a bit recently. The writers out there that don't also illustrate believe that what I do must add an extra layer of difficulty, but I have to say that I don't believe that's true. For me, the drawings help tell the story in ways that I wouldn't be able to do with just writing. It's not easy for me to establish and flesh out an entire scene full of believable characters and environments through only words. Rather than taking a few paragraphs to create a sense of what is happening in the story, I can sometimes get that same information across within a single comic panel through only background images and body language.

For me to sit in front of a blank screen with a blinking cursor that's just waiting for me to create a world through only text would take so much more dedication from me than just sitting in front of a blank drawing page.

You’ve mentioned that Craig Thompson’s Space Dumplins was a big influence for you. Others have expressed that they see inklings of Judd Wick’s Hilo in Last Pick. Are there any other graphic novelists or comic books that have influenced you?

Craig Thompson is a big one. His graphic novel, Blankets, is a stunning work of art, and a beautiful and honest autobiography. Because it's so phenomenal, there's little that I would ever attempt to replicate from it, but it has informed my storytelling in the sense that the emotional journey for my characters is more important to me than the plot devices that move the story along. I try to shake off as much irony as possible and to let the heart of the characters show through. I'm attracted to writers that aren't afraid of exploring "love" and "being in love" in a positive way.

Terry Moore's Strangers in Paradise is another good example of this. If you've ever read it through, you might remember that it's full of fantastic action set pieces and international intrigue, but what resonates and stays with me always is the love story at the core of all the drama. It's honest and beautiful. If I can incorporate even a small portion of that into my own work, then I'm completely satisfied that I've created the type of comic that I'm drawn to (pun intended?).

How did you obtain your current literary representation and how did you go on to get published?

I had been a full-time teacher for the past fourteen years within special education. I really loved that job, but I also loved making comics. Splitting my energy and time between those two jobs while also focusing on my family began to take its toll on me. I needed to either just teach, or just make comics. With that in mind, I put together the early ideas for Last Pick as a final effort to reach out to the larger publishers. As luck would have it, you, Mark Gottlieb at the Trident Media Group literary agency contacted me out of the blue around that same time.

You were a fan of my first published graphic novel, Homesick, and offered me representation right away. I remember opening that email when I probably should have been paying attention during a staff meeting after the students had gone home. I couldn't believe what I was reading. The illusive agent representation was finally going to happen! I quickly researched the other authors that you represented and knew this was my best opportunity yet to focus on comics as my primary job.

“...things came together so quickly after fighting so hard to get my previous comics and graphic novels out into the world.”

Within weeks, we had the pitch for Last Pick put together and in the hands of some of my favorite publishers on the planet. Within months, I was working from home full-time and beginning to put the first graphic novel of a three book series together. There's no way for me to accurately explain how fortunate I felt and how shocked I was that things came together so quickly after fighting so hard to get my previous comics and graphic novels out into the world.

Do you have any advice for aspiring comic book creators or graphic novelists?

I do! It's the best advice that has ever been given to me. When I was working on my first graphic novel, I was feeling overwhelmed and full of self-doubt. An artist friend of mine told me to "just finish it". Simple right?

The thing is, there's a good chance that what you create will never be exactly as you hoped. It may never live up to the spectacular story that you envisioned in your mind before you ever began. You'll be tempted to just quit. Don't. Once you've completed a comic or graphic novel, you can now call yourself a cartoonist, or graphic novelist, or writer, or whatever other title you think is appropriate. You've done it! You've entered the clubhouse, and once there, you now have a bit of access to other creators out there that you can share your work with. It feels really good, and it makes sitting down to start the next one so much easier.

Can you give us a little preview or snippet of what you’re working on for your next graphic novel series or standalone title? Or can you tell us what’s to come next in Last Pick 2?

The second book comes out in October, 2019, and it's called Last Pick: Born to Run. What I can tell you is that the book switches between Wyatt and Sam's story as they both struggle for survival and try their best to escape their horrific situations. Even though they are a universe apart, their love for each other connects their two adventures together as they rise up against even more ruthless aliens and higher stakes then ever before. There's more action than ever, but I'm most excited about seeing these two characters come into their own now that they're separated and seeing how they build new relationships now that their previous ones have been stripped away.

#JasonWalz #FirstSecond #MacmillanChildrensPublishingGroup #MacKids #LastPick #BorntoRun #Graphicnovel #Comics #Comicbook #YA #YoungAdult #YALSA #EisnerAward #TridentMediaGroupLiteraryAgentMarkGottlieb

[heirstotheshadowsrp]

Welcome back, Sky! You have been accepted as Kade Goldnight. We have missed you so much and can’t wait to see you back on the dash! Please send in your account within the next 48 hours.

OOC INFORMATION

Name or Nickname:

 Sky.

Preferred Pronouns:

 She/her.

AGE:

Guess who’s 18 now?

TIMEZONE & ACTIVITY LEVEL:

 8.5/10 in the EST timezone.

IC INFORMATION

FULL NAME: Kade Lucas Goldnight.

FACE CLAIM: Connor Franta. YEAR/ TEACHING POSITION/ STAFF POSITION: Year Five Student.

SPECIES: Half Shadowhunter, half Faerie. Wanting to appear as normal as possible, Kade does what he can to downplay his Faerie heritage. Still, there's an everlasting wish that he could meet his father.

Shadowhunter: The Goldnight family insignia is two crescent moons with the tips touching and they are a relatively old Shadowhunter family.

DESCRIBE YOUR CHARACTER/BIO:

Kade Lucas Goldnight was born into a very loving Shadowhunter family, perhaps one of the most warmhearted to ever exist. His elder brother, Jayson Quincy, has been extremely protective over him since the day he was born even though the latter isn’t much older. Their mother, Cora Louise, has been described as an extremely caring woman who always does her best to split her time evenly between being an active Shadowhunter as well as supporting her loved ones. This family portrait would have been perfect to their fellow Shadowhunters…had it not been for the fact that Jayson and Kade’s father is a member of the Seelie Court. Truth be told though, the Clave should have seen it coming from a mile away and especially from the Goldnights. Kade’s family is prone to making exceptionally bold choices, one that range from challenging what they believe to be an incorrect Clave ruling to accepting the changes in the world around them or in his mother’s case, falling in love with a Seelie faerie.

As time went on throughout his life, Kade had no shortage of late nights where either sleep abandoned him completely or woke him up in the middle of the night as everyone else continued to rest. Often times, this could be traced back to the worries that danced around in his mind on a daily basis, an even mix of rational to ones that barely make sense in hindsight. There’s never been a moment where this Goldnight hasn’t felt tense or just generally concerned, wondering what could possibly go wrong in any situation. His mind, if given the chance, would always fly to worst case scenario first things first and left him constantly on edge, with the worry about could possibly be lurking around a nearby corner. Then, whenever all of these concerns peaked, Kade would suddenly be overcome with chills and shaking, feeling like he might pass out at any moment. The trouble he had breathing during these moments could quickly morph into hyperventilation until it suddenly ended or a loved one managed to calm him down.

It wasn’t much longer before a Silent Brother diagnosed him with anxiety, after one of these attacks took over the then 14 year old Kade upon saying goodbye to some of his older cousins as they left on a mission. He said that the youngest Goldnight would be just fine, however caution was of the utmost importance. He’d have to keep an eye out for potential triggers as well as the symptoms of an oncoming anxiety attack, but also have to be very selective with who he allowed to know this information. To put it lightly, this ended up assisting in the formation of Kade’s present reputation, but more on that later.

Around the same time, both Goldnight brothers publicly came out as bisexual. It wasn’t much longer before the younger one took notice of how more notoriously conservative Shadowhunters treated Jayson just based off that one fact. Then again, not all Shadowhunters were the Goldnights and their family friends, who had accepted both boys with open arms the previous year. Still, Kade could tell the ridicule hurt his brother much more than he cared to admit, so he took it upon himself to bring it to a screeching halt. He got into more fights than he usually did, but in his eyes, it was all for good reason. Nobody was going to treat Jayson or any other Shadowhunter with the courage to be open about their differences poorly while the youngest Goldnight was around. That coupled with his natural secretiveness which only increased thanks to the previously mentioned anxiety diagnosis built up a reputation for him, as a mysterious guardian angel of sorts. If somebody was in need of a defender, Kade could be there in one moment then have dashed off during the time it takes to blink once. After all, in his experience, it’s for the best to get back on the move the moment an opportunity to do so is presented to you. Because if you decided to stick around, make small talk with someone, then you’ll come to trust them and want to reveal all of your secrets. With each whispered confession, you only add on to the power they might already hold over you and Kade would be damned if he gave people the chance to hurt him like they did his brothers.

Nowadays, here at the Academy, Kade’s routine is simple. Eat at the designated times, go to class and give everything his best, squeeze in as much extra training as possible, and avoid people as often as he can. As much as he longs for a closely knit social circle, it doesn’t take long to remember all of the things he has to keep hidden which sets him to going back to his usual business. It’s probably nowhere near normal for a mundane who is the same age as him, 21 years old, but in the end, this is what’s for the best in Kade’s opinion. As much as he longs to go back to being a social butterfly like he once was in his younger days, the thought of people turning on him like they did with his brothers always manages to restore his mysterious behavior. Until the day he feels more comfortable to go back to his former behavior of constant friendliness, Kade will remain a workaholic, striving for perfection in every area. Perhaps in time, he’ll forge new bonds, platonic and perhaps romantic? In the end, it’s all up to fate, a concept this Goldnight has little to no faith in anymore.

TW FOR ANXIETY.

CHARACTER TRAITS:

+ Trustworthy.

+ Intelligent.

+ Protective.

+ Witty.

+ Amiable.

- Sardonic.

- Workaholic.

- Impulsive.

- Anxious.

- Untrusting.

QUOTE:

The sky’s gonna hurt when it falls, so you’d better start building some walls.

PARA SAMPLE:

NOT REQUIRED!

ANYTHING ELSE:

Just a small comment/question: I kinda had to play with Kade’s age this time around, so if it’s alright, could I say that he took a gap year in order to go on missions with his family? If not, I could change the appropriate parts to reflect him being a Graduate Mentor or something along the lines of that?

HOW DID YOU HEAR OF US?

I was a member awhile back and got a message that this rp was making a comeback. I’ve really missed this rp, so I’m really glad this is around again.

OTHER THINGS TO NOTE

What are things you are uncomfortable with? (Ex. Smutting, specific triggers, etc.) If it’s alright, I’d rather steer clear of writing smut, even though I’m 18 going on 19. Other than that, you can pretty much toss out anything on the dash and I’ll be chill.

[jadeeeeez]

'The Great Hatsby'

My Health and Wellbeing:

Short term goal - Ensure that I am eating a balanced diet. This would mean eating enough proteins, carbohydrates, minerals, fats and vitamins. I also need to get into the habit of not skipping meals as this causes my energy and blood sugar levels to relapse. A recommended fruit to eat was a banana as it "contains carbohydrates (starch and sugar) that give your body plenty of energy. Eating a banana a couple of hours before your training will help you keep up with a demanding dancing routine." (dancesportlife, 2018) I am to work hard at achieving this goal, due to the fact this piece is physically exhausting and high demanding throughout. (Begin immediately and keep up throughout the module)  https://dancesportlife.com/blog/dance-stamina-important-dancesport/

Mid-term goal - Ensure that I get lots of rest each night to avoid being shattered the next day. Getting enough sleep is crucial for this module due to it being physical theatre and body exhausting. I will need to come to lessons full of energy, ready to participate fully without feeling tired. (revisit at the end of the week and how I have been feeling so far during the module.)

Long term goal - Drink plenty of water each day to avoid becoming dehydrated or coming down with a bladder infection. This piece is physically and mentally exhausting which means that my body will most likely sweat, and that I will need to intake more water than my body would usually need. I can also look at bringing an energy drink to my lessons every other day as they replace minerals in your blood that you lose through sweat. (start now and continue to do so)

Personal Academic Development:

Short term goal - Watch lots of different physical theatre pieces of work by a variety of companies. This will enable me to take inspiration from certain works and put it into practice. By broadening my knowledge on physical theatre, it will encourage me to put ideas across to my group and help to collaborate thoroughly, as I will be able to portray my findings and enable other team members to watch clips that I thought were valuable. (start research now so I am able to use finding in lessons and extra rehearsals)

Mid-term goal - Research into 'The Great Gatsby' era (1920s) and what the women were perceived as (Flappers). In addition, watch the most recent 'Great Gatsby' film starring Leonardo DeCaprio which I could potentially take inspiration from, paying attention to costume, set, character's individual characteristics (gestures) etc..... (Complete by the end of the week)

Long term goal - Research into Charlie Chaplin that is my chosen practitioner for Jim's presentation and how his works/theories link or have similarities to our piece. (Complete by the end of the module)

My Personality Traits:

When I first arrived at university and took a personality quiz, I was equivalent to an 'obliger' which was someone who often lets themselves down due to putting other individuals at the top of their priorities rather than themselves. Although, at the beginning of the new module I re-took the quiz to see if I had a different personality trait. My result came back as an 'upholder' which is someone who is motivated by fulfilment and desires, the drive to get things done, hate letting people down and getting blamed for things and they like to know what the expectations are so they can aspire to meet them. I would agree with this to an extent, as I still have a bad habit of leaving things to the last minute. I do have the drive to get things done depending on what it is, if it is commitments to rehearsals then I will defiantly do that. However, if it is essay work I find that I lack motivation and tend to put things off until I have a few days before the deadline to hand it in. Other than that, I do think that I have changed as a person as I no longer put others first and that I have started putting myself first for a change, and I have seen my mentality improve due to ensuring I have a positive mindset rather than taking care of other people and not myself.

My Conflict Style:

At the beginning of year one at university, my common conflict trait was an 'accommodating teddy bear' which meant that I often put others first rather than myself. It was clear that I was taken advantage of especially by individuals who had the 'competing shark' conflict style.. I felt that at the beginning of the year I was intimidated by those with that specific conflict style. This was because they had a tendency to be "authoritative, uncooperative, threatening and intimidating" (Falikowski, 2002) Due to the way I am, I found that I would back down to those and keep my ideas to myself rather than express them to the group. However, going into the last module I took the conflict quiz again to see whether I had changed as a person and the way I interact with others. I took the quiz again and came out as a 'collaborating owl' which meant that I "use a collaborating or problem confronting conflict management style valuing their goals and relationships." I agree with this statement as I would like to think that I work in a collaborative way rather than continue to shy away from discussions. I most certainly do value my own goal and have now got the mentality that, I will not let others hold me back whether that impacts relationships that I value.

This specific module started with a group of five but ended up being a performance with only three. There was a lot of obstacles that as a group we has to tackle and yes unfortunately friendships were destructed. Certain individuals in our group were not motivated or goal orientated which meant a lack of commitment from them. Those individuals who were hard-working and passionate made the decision to split the group into a three and a two. This meant that as a group we were able to crack on with rehearsals and not have to rely on others not being in rehearsals. Although, the decision to split the group was a week from the actual performances, which made the whole process intense and at times very stressful. After breaking the initial news that we had made the decision to split the group to the others, we needed to allow time for friendships to be able to rekindle. I went and spoke to the other two members of the group to try make amends, as they were both my best friends at university and their friendships were tremendously valuable to me. Therefore, I would agree with my new improved conflict style as I am great at resolving conflict within a group and have now gained the confidence to speak up within a group and to not let others intimidate me.

My Thinking Style:

I think your style of thinking depends on the module itself and your overall mentality at the time. I have noticed that my thinking style has adapted each module and for 'The Great Hatsby' I mainly used green and yellow hat thinking. The green hat thinking meant that I was thinking creatively. To achieve this I was inspired by what our lecturer said and how it's about "body-storming rather than brainstorming." I was very inspired by this and it made me think about being creative with this piece rather than sitting down discussing and analysing an idea. I discovered that the best way to see whether an idea worked was to get onto our feet and try it our rather than shut down the idea before we had given it any potential, Yellow hat thinking is when you have a positive mentality and attitude. I would say especially for this module that I did use a lot of yellow hat thinking and this was because it was a way for me to keep optimistic and positive even when the group fell apart a week before our assessment.

Time Management:

My time management has fluctuated throughout the year depending on my mentality and wellbeing. For the last module of the year, I would say that my time management was the best it's been over the course of the year. This is because I was motivated to do well, as I was aware the academic side of the course was pulling my overall grade down, due to my hatred towards essays:) I did mange my time sufficiently and I achieved this by turning up to lesson apart from an exception when I was feeling unwell. I also ensured there was scheduled rehearsals outside of lessons due to the short time frame we was working against. In addition, I started the presentation research in advance so I had time to properly prepare for it and achieve the assignment brief.

Learning Styles:

My learning style is the only one that I would say hasn't changed. I have always worked effectively as an 'auditory' and a 'visual' learner. I work best with things been explained to me in person, as I find it easier to process information and understand what is being asked of me. Which is why over the modules I have found it useful to have my feedback as a voice note so I am able to listen to it as if i was being told in person and replay it if needs be. I also love to write information down and make it look pretty which different colour pens and highlighters. I process information better when I can visualise it on paper, especially when I have to do a presentation or viva. Being able to see the key words I have highlighted in my head but on paper, makes it easier for me to convey all my points and speak confidently.

My Commitments:

I have previously in the year had commitments to my family, which has meant that i have travelled home a lot throughout the year. More so at the beginning of university when I felt homesick and it wasn't helped by the fact I was in an unsociable flat where I felt lonely and isolated all the time. For this module, I put my family on hold and instead of going home every other weekend. I would face-time them instead, which meant that I was able to attend weekend rehearsals if needs be and socialise with all my friends before we all move back home for summer.

Health and Wellbeing:

Diet - Especially for this module, my diet has not be great! As it is count down till summer begins and everyone moves back home, I have found myself eating out lots with friends rather than staying in and cooking healthier foods. Although I intake a significant amount of water each day, my diet has taken a toll this module due to the amount of times of have eaten out.

Activity - I have stopped getting taxis everywhere and have begun to use what God gave me......LEGS!!!!!!! This means that although I am not intensely working out each day, I am still gaining exercise through walking.

Sleep Pattern - Due to it being the last module I have been having a lot of late nights. Not necessary going clubbing each week but going out with friends for casual drinks, cinema, meals out, movie nights in etc..... I do agree with the statement 'time flies when you are having fun' as I always intend on getting to bed a reasonable time but realistically its early hours the next morning.

Stress - With this module being physical, I have been able to de-stress as I have found this module to be fun and exciting. Although the process of my group only have a week to put a performance together, I think we did an exceptional job with the time span we had and the way we coped with stress. Stress did not get the better of us in this module and I would like to think that we succeeded in our end performance. You could see on all our faces how physically exhausting our piece was,as we were all sweating and panting at the end of it.

My Academic Development:

Towards the end of the module, I have learnt to use blackboard and access all the files that the lecturers have put on for us to read. I used to have a habit of not completing work set for the next lesson such as reading. However, I have now started to complete the reading and have found that I am much more productive in lessons due to me having an understanding and being able to collaborate with other people. I used to have a habit of letting other people do the work for me so I would sit quietly in class and just listen to what everyone else had to say, although I no longer do this and I feel much more confident going into lessons knowing I have completed the work set. For this module, I attended all lessons outside of class time and this was crucial for our piece due to us working against a short amount of time.

Creative Collaborations:

At the start of this module, we were a group of five but that quickly went to a group of three. it was difficult to work with individuals who were late to lessons continuingly or didn't bother showing up at all and didn't even put a message into the group chat to say that they were going to be absent that specific lesson. it was the unknown of whether we were going to have a full group each lesson that took a toll on our motivation. It was very frustrating having to waste valuable time catching up someone who had previously missed a lesson or an outside rehearsal and because it was physical theatre, we struggled as a group to create movement when there were less bodies to work with. I learnt this module that it isn't always great to work with friends, due to conflict and negative vibes causing friendships to become fragile. It is also difficult to resolve conflict when you are working with friends due to be afraid of causing negative feelings.

[theclassrp]

Thank you OSWIN for auditioning for our first alien OC EVIE SMITH, we love how in-depth and thorough you’ve made her and her daughter. We find the idea that she’s a Floraxian to be interesting and fun! We have decided to go with Elizabeth Henstridge and we are pleased to say that you have been accepted!

Please create and send in an account within 24 hours, thank you!

We will also have your character card updated shortly.

IN-CHARACTER INFORMATION

Character desired: Evie Smith, 32; daughter: Millie Smith, 11(i realise there are a lot of smiths, i just went generic because she’s an alien so it felt right, but i’m also cool with changing it!) Sexual and Romantic orientation: pansexual/romantic, but a bit too busy hiding/keeping her daughter safe for any of that sexual/romantic nonsense. Ships: evie/chemistry Anti-Ships: evie/forced, evie/no chem Character biography/history:

- though she tries very hard to keep under the radar and away from all things rift/alien related (she really just wants to give her daughter a chance at a life she can’t have), her daughter Millie actually just started this past september at coal hill academy – the home of the very rift the mother/daughter duo snuck through – thus putting her in a position where she (and her daughter) are forced to interact with people she thinks might be involved in all the alien business. she’d considered kicking up a fuss in order to get her daughter into another school district, but she didn’t want to draw any extra attention to them – rule # 1 of being an alien refugee? keep a low profile.

- picked her current alias by doing a quick google search and picking at random a first and last name from the list of top 100 most common names in the uk. the more generic the name the better, she figured. but she hadn’t exactly counted on being surrounded by quite so many smiths when she’d chosen it. better to be boring than tracked down by the blorgon mafia, yeah?

- she is of a humanoid alien race which has a mutation gene that allows them to take on the form of whatever sentient creature that makes contact with her bare skin. she can control this power, a little bit, by slowing down the process– but so long as there is contact she will take on the physical structure of the being (conversely once contact is broken she is able to return to her natural form), though she is able to hold this mutation as long as she likes it does come with a cost – she is able to see the future of whoever’s entity she wears, and that is very rarely a good thing.

Character traits: + caring, courageous, intelligent, enthusiastic. - cautious, guarded, know it all, perfectionist. Connections:

Rory Williams: Her favourite male nurse. Rory is kind, dedicated, brilliant with children, and doesn’t ask too many questions which are… actually exactly the traits Evie looks for in a friend these days. Someone, she can enjoy a laugh with, who has no interest in prying into her personal life. So they’ll sit together in the canteen if they happen to share a lunch break, or meet up for the occasional coffee – he’ll share stories about his very ginger wife, and she’ll share anecdotes about Millie and that’s good enough, isn’t it?

Martha Jones: Evie and Martha work together in the ER, and if she’s honest she sort of looks up to Martha… in a way. She thinks she’s a brilliant and capable physician, especially considering the obsolete tech the year 2016 provides. She thinks they could actually be pretty good friends – both kind, quietly, slightly nerdy individuals. It’s just… she gets the sense that Martha knows a bit more about the rift and the resulting alien activity than she lets on. And Evie can’t afford to risk being sent back through.

Ashildr/Me: Mayor Me. The first person who greeted her when she passed through the rift, and the one who helped her get acclimated to the area. When they first arrived, Mayor Me gave them shelter on Trap street. And when Evie insisted on building a life in London (being human passing, apart from the gloves they’re forced to wear has its perks!), Me helped her find a flat and set her up with a job. All she asks is that Evie be her eyes in the hospital, and report any new arrivals to her so that she can over them the same protection Evie was given.

ORIGINAL CHARACTER INFORMATION

Face claim: 1st choice Elizabeth Henstridge, 2nd choice Chloe Bennet maybe? Pronouns and Gender: female, she/her, mutant humanoid from the future. Additional biography: - she comes from a planet that is unpronounceable by most humans, in a future most of earth’s population hasn’t even considered. a planet with no sun (it’s basically always day and everything appears to be the colour blue, this tooks some getting used to when she was first on earth), that has the most beautiful mountain range in the galaxy, and one that has been in a civil war for as long as history has been recorded by the people who live on it. two races – one with all the power and one existing only to serve, and then her kind. the mutants. half breeds. the lowest class citizens. and so naturally the leads of the rebellion.

- evie was born into a family whose outward appearance was floraxian – and so long as they always wore a pair of gloves, they were able to fit in and and reap the benefits all floraxian’s were awarded simply for being born. which was great, in theory, apart from living in fear of being caught. living as a floraxian meant more opportunities, better food, access to a better education (which is how evie was able to be trained as a physician… she’d be thankful later for such thorough training when she found herself working in a primitive earth hospital in the 21st century.)

- however evie never quite felt… right. it seemed wrong, din’t it? that she reap the rewards of a society that runs on the oppression of her own people. so in her 20′s she joined the rebellion, using her status as doctor to help. but her idealism perhaps made her a bit naive. and so she got caught in over her head – pregnant and in way too deep in the blorgon mafia. a fact that became particularly evident when her then boyfriend (and father of her child), a fellow mutant higher up in the rebellion one night drunkenly admitted that perhaps the intention of the group was not as noble as she once believed.

- with no way out, and a young child to protect she did what she had to do, and found a way out after a chance encounter with a time rift. she had no clue what would be on the side, but it seemed a brighter possibility than what the mess the were up against.

- earth provided a lot of challenges and even more new opportunities. like the opportunity to start over fresh – new identities and all. and so long as she always kept on a pair of gloves, her cover wouldn’t be blown. which was nice, wasn’t? safety at last. she does miss her family, but she knows they are safer without her around. and anyway, she’s got millie and that’s all the family she needs.

- though there is a part of her that worries her ex will find a way through the rift and come to take them back, she can’t bear the thought of it being closed permanently (monitored, certainly, but kept open). she knows she not the only being in the galaxy that’s ever needed a fresh start. and with mayor me and the trap street there’s no reason refugees from across the galaxy shouldn’t be able to find the same safe haven in london as she has. within reason, of course.

- all of that being said she does know how to protect herself. she may look very sweet and innocent on the outside (and she is both of those things, for the most part), but since coming to earth and escaping the rebellion/her ex she’s decided she never wants to feel helpless again, and so has taken some self defense classes and even knows how to carry a gun. (she does keep one in the flat in a lock box just to be safe, but it’s not loaded.)

- in her spare time she works on creating a gene suppressant. mainly for millie’s sake, something she can take (like a vitamin or a shot) to keep her powers under control and maybe offer her a real chance at a normal life. but so far she’s come up completely empty.

PARAGRAPH SAMPLE

She had a system. Finely honed over years of overachieving. She lined her open books across the table – by subject and in order of importance – she’d study one subject until she either got bored or distracted at which point she’d move on to the next. The genius part, of course, being that it prevented her from wasting time closing her books and finding her place in the new one. Efficiency is the key to good grades. As proven by her many years of excellence. Who said you couldn’t be brilliant and a Hufflepuff?

That is to say, she generally had an effective system. But that day something seemed to be going awry…

She’d just moved from Defense Against the Dark Arts and onto Potions when she realised it. Her pages were askew. She’d been meant to read Chapters four and five, but she was on seven.

“No,” Jemma asserted to herself, flipping anxiously through her very detailed planner, “No, that can’t be right I checked.” Triple checked in fact and yet….

Her eyes glanced from her to the Potions book again, now midway through the second chapter.

“Oh!” Jemma gasped in surprise, leaning forward to inspect her books. “Now that’s new. How you doing that then?” She whispered into the pages of her book, eyeing them curiously.

IN-CHARACTER QUESTIONS

1. What are your character’s last three texts sent? And to whom?

[ SMS MILLIE ] Late shift at the hospital. Dinner’s in the freezer. No chocolate until after you’ve finished your homework. [ SMS Millie ] I mean it! [ SMS Me ] There’s a situation at the hospital, I think you’d better come check it out.

What would be your character’s last three social media posts?

1. an instagram shot of an exhausted looking millie wearing a smile and scrubs. captioned: ‘Need tea in an IV bag STAT! #knackered’ 2. a new pinterest board filled with perfectly organized wardrobes (by colour, clothing articles, length etc) entitled ‘organisation goals’ 3. joined the facebook group working mums of hackney area.

What are the very first three things your character does when they get up in the morning?

she’s a very early riser. first she’ll pop on the treadmill for an early morning jaunt to get that adrenaline pumping. she’ll then set the kettle hop into the shower. she lets her tea brew whilst she dresses and sets about getting breakfast ready before waking up millie.