#I don't always reblog art but when I do it's still my art. Haha.

[jinnie-ret]

Heyyyyy could you do a hyunjin x twin sister reader where hyunjin plans a suprise for her (which is introducing her the members cause why not and he thought that she doesn't really listen to kpop much because he knew she would focus more on studies then that) but he finds out by seeing you try to sing one of there songs. Sorry if this is too long lol and if it makes zero sense

2hwang

stray kids x reader (platonic)

genre: fluff

content warnings: none

word count: 1k

summary: hyunjin's twin sister finally meets skz, and much to his surprise, she's a big fan.

I hope you enjoy! I might have gone a little off topic from what you requested but it still has all those ideas! :)

If enjoyed please like, reblog or comment! And if you want to be added to the taglist then let me know!

MAIN MASTERLIST

"Keep up!" Hyunjin teased his twin sister Y/N as they raced up the stairs in the apartment block.

"What, is, wrong, with, you?" Y/N huffed as she trailed behind, only a few steps of course but that didn't mean she'd give up.

"There is nothing wrong with wanting my sister to see where I live!" Hyunjin raises a brow whilst stood hunched over, catching his breath as the palms of his hands rested on his knees.

"Not with that, you idiot! I swear there wasn't a sign saying the lift was broken..." Y/N trailed off.

"Oh that's because there wasn't," Hyunjin shrugged like it was nothing.

"Today will be the day you die, Hwang Hyunjin," Y/N dramatically stormed up to him, yet all possible intimidation was lost when she tripped over the last step.

"Woah! Hahaha," Hyunjin helped her balance herself as he caught her by the arms, and then immediately recoiled. "Ew you're so sweaty. And plus you can't kill me before I see your reaction, Hwang Y/N," he smirked, unlocking the door and opening it.

"See my reaction to what? Your art? I already know you're a hopeless romantic, what else could there be to- oh..." Y/N rambled back before standing still in her tracks at the sight of all the members of Stray Kids sat around on the sofas.

"Surprise!" Hyunjin imitated Lee Know's iconic moment, just without the party blower this time.

"H-hi..." Y/N quietly said, and automatically it was assumed by her twin brother that it was because she didn't know who they were.

In fact, it was the complete opposite.

The boys greeted Y/N with polite bows and greetings, before they all sat down and got comfortable.

"You remind me of someone..." Changbin thought, stroking his chin as if he had the wise beard of a wizard.

"It's probably Hyunjin," Seungmin rolled his eyes, jokingly crying out in pain when Changbin shoved him away.

"Yah you pabo! Of course he doesn't mean that!" Han exclaims.

"Seungmin is just teasing, Hannie," Chan facepalmed, whilst Lee Know, Felix, Jeongin and the twins merely observed from the other sofa.

"Are they always like this?" Y/N whispered to herself, yet Jeongin heard.

"Yes they are, noona... can I call you that?" Jeongin shyly asked.

Y/N's eyes widened.

"What's the matter?" Felix asked curiously.

"Oh nothing haha... but um, yes," she awkwardly answered.

"Hmm you two are very similar," Lee Know observed keenly.

"Ew don't compare me to her!" Hyunjin scrunched his nose and side eyed Y/N.

"There it is haha, the same flustered antics," Lee Know clapped his hands.

"Oh I totally see it," Felix nodded along.

"I don't get flustered!" Hyunjin folded his arms and huffed.

"You just did," Y/N shoved Hyunjin, smirking much like he did to her earlier.

"Yah!" Hyunjin pounced.

"Children! Don't fight!" Chan shouted above all the ruckus that had unfolded in simply ten minutes since the Hwang twins entered the apartment.

"Yes dad," they both rolled their eyes in sync and folded their arms.

"Woah, creepy," Jeongin shuddered, causing Y/N to fondly smile.

"Ah! I got it!" Changbin suddenly clapped his hands.

"Indulge me," Y/N smiled lightly as she sat back down.

"You look like Yeji!" Changbin smirked proudly.

"Oh from ITZY?!" Y/N beamed, excited at the comparison.

"How do you know ITZY?" Hyunjin gasped, shocked at his sister's sudden knowledge, assuming that she swerved away from KPOP all because of one time she stated she wasn't really listening to it anymore.

Which by the way lasted for like 2 hours, Y/N just couldn't find a song she wanted to listen to in that moment and ever since, Hyunjin thought that still applied to this day.

There's a reason he's in Paboracha.

"I love KPOP! Duh!" Y/N facepalmed, looking at Hyunjin with an incredulous look after.

"Hyunjinnie, did you lie to us?" Lee Know also turned to the younger twin, a glare taking over his features. Of course, he didn't really mean it.

"You said you didn't listen to it anymore!" Hyunjin defended himself, holding his hands up.

"Why else do you think that I was so awkward when I came here, Jinnie?" Y/N shyly admitted.

"Oh... Oh!!!" Hyunjin suddenly got excited.

"Oh no..." Y/N sighed.

"Why oh no?" Han laughed at the expression on Y/N's face, one he had often seen painted on Hyunjin's too but because of something he did.

"He's up to something," Seungmin chuckled lightly at Hyunjin's excited expression.

"Y/Nnieeeee, sing our song!" Hyunjin proposed the idea that had gotten him so excited.

"No way! That's so embarassing," Y/N turned away from her brother and hid her face.

"We won't judge you noona," Jeongin tried to reassure her, making her heart burst.

"Ah Jeongin you're too cute!" she let her inner fangirl out and squealed.

"Oh no, she really is like hyung," Jeongin's eyes comically widened as he referred to Hyunjin's obsession with him.

"Come on, Y/N, Hyunjin has told us you like writing, the talent must run in your family, just a little bit of singing?" Chan did his best to convince her and it worked.

"Ok, fine, fine," Y/N scratched the back of her neck wondering what.to sing before she couldn't help but fall into a fit of giggles.

"Come on, don't leave us in suspense!" Felix exclaimed, unable to hide his growing smile from her infectious giggles, ones that mirrored Hyunjin's but more high pitched and slightly quieter.

"Hoodie hoodie negan shim toga ji boogie boogie iepon kogo dance groovy groovy," Y/N perfectly imitated Hyunjin's viral part that had made it into many memes. This of course caused everyone to burst out into laughter.

"Wow she really is a true fan!" Lee Know applauded her approvingly.

"She's better than Jinnie," Changbin smirked.

"It's true," Y/N nodded, ignoring Hyunjin's shrieks in protest.

"Remember who was here first!" Hyunjin shouted emotionally, like he was part of some sort of kdrama. And ever since then, with Y/N being able to join in on their teasing, it was like she knew them from the start.

taglist: @skz-streamer @kiraisastay @hannahhbahng @backintomykpopphaseagain @sakufilms @hanjiquokkaaa @arloo00 @dunno-wut-to-do @splat00z

[hisui-dreamer]

Pssst. Rook putting on lipstick and kissing is s/o hcs please?

a hunter's work of art

Pairing: Rook Hunt x gn!reader

Synopsis: it's a competition to see who leaves the most lipstick marks, and he's not going to lose

Tags: established relationship, kissing, lipstick marks, crack, rook speaks french, bot proofread

Word count: 445

Notes: i took this request as an opportunity to do @ashipiko's lipstick challenge! i hope you don't mind haha

vil's part here!✧Masterlist

The rules are simple: you would take turns with a one-minute timeframe to shower the other with kisses and leave lipstick marks behind. The one who leaves the most marks by the end of the game would win.

when it’s your turn, Rook’s eyes are fixed on you, observing your every move, expression, and gesture

once the timer starts, he eagerly awaits your first kiss, his heart pounding with anticipation

this man savours every ounce of affection you show him and keeps little moments of your love tucked away at the back of his mind

just him, eyes blissfully closed, relishing the sensation of your lips pecking all over

though he enjoys being the hunter and the observer, he finds himself revelling in being the object of your attention and affection.

when it’s his turn, there’s a mischievous smile adorned his face

he would just stand still for a second, staring at you as you wait for his affection

when you're confused and realise he’s not moving, then he kisses you on the lips and he smiles into it

he kisses you with a grace that seems almost supernatural, planting kisses on your cheeks, forehead, and neck, using enough pressure so that each one leaves behind a trace of his vibrant lipstick

Rook's kisses bear an intensity similar to a hunter marking their prey, his passion manifesting in each touch.

he kisses your face with an artist's precision, treating it as a blank canvas ready to be adorned with his affectionate brushstrokes

in the end it’s just the two of you, breathless and flushed with excitement as you stare at each other’s handiwork in the mirror

without a doubt he wins, he’s always ready to shower you in affection, and leaving a trace of his loving acts is only more appealing

but really, his true victory was capturing the beauty of the moment, as you eagerly kissed every inch of his face, and him leaving dozens of kisses on you

oh and also he would definitely wear your lipstick marks as badges of honour, running around and showing everyone your work of art

vil definitely yells at the two of you and throws makeup remover at him

Rook’s eyes are alit with anticipation. "Trickster, allow me to shower you with kisses, each one a declaration of my adoration!" he exclaims.

He takes a step back, a mischievous yet affectionate smile playing on his lips. "Mon chou," he says, his voice filled with a touch of playfulness and admiration. "My dear Trickster, I have marked you with my love, and now your face is a living work of art."

He gently tilts your chin upwards, careful not to disturb the delicate artwork that adorned your face. "These lipstick marks, they are not mere smudges to be wiped away, they are an artistry born from our playful game," he smiles fondly. "I must show everyone this exquisite beauty!"

if you liked this post, don't forget to reblog!

vil's part here!✧Masterlist

[mazeinthemiroh]

i’m deep in my feels rn haha could i request a soft little skz reaction where their s/o puts a lot of thought into learning about their interests and stuff? i want the skzers to feel special and appreciated cos they are :(

stray kids reactions to their s/o putting effort into their interests

genre: general

word count: 0.7k

warnings: none

pls like and reblog if you enjoy! feel free to request anything <3

bangchan

channie is a workaholic and so his interests lie with what he is working on at the moment. he would absolutely love it if you took an interest in his work, and will even run you through how to compose a song, write lyrics, produce, etc... he might even let you make a song with him on the side for fun! i mean, it's not impossible. he's made a whole song on one of his lives! so doing it with you should be easy, and really makes him happy.

lee know

minho has quite a few interests but the one that dominates his heart the most is, obviously, his cats. he can't help but speculate on different toys he should buy them and whether they need any supplements or different meals. he loves taking care of his babies ;-; so when you take an interest in his fluffy children, his heart simply melts. it's definitely important to him to that you get on well with his cats because he loves them so much <///3

changbin

binnie's main interest is working out. which, of course, is not for everyone. if you are the type of person who likes the gym just as much as he does, he would love to share his time at the gym with you! if you are not the type to usually go to the gym or don't regularly work out, but still try your hardest to get involved with that interest of his, changbin will be really flattered and make sure he will help you and make your gym experience worthwhile, since you're doing such a nice thing for him.

hyunjin

hyunjin would probably appreciate his s/o doing this the most. he likes feeling understood. but also, he spends a lot of time on his passions and interests, in particular, his art so they have become really important to him. they are a part of him. so the fact you want to get involved in what he loves? he's over the moon. he would love to teach you how to do certain techniques and even share his hobby with him.

han

han loves getting into new things to watch, especially anime! forget sleeping, he's bingeing the new episodes of what he's currently watching atm. he loves it when you get involved with the shows he's watching because it means he has someone to completely rant about the plotline or openly simp over a character with someone who knows what he's on about. it makes him feel like he has a voice and he can express how passionate he feels about a character being killed off in the third episode because wtf?? he needs someone to talk about this with!!!

felix

this gamer boy would LOVE it if you joined him playing video games. he's so invested in the storylines of certain video games and will get so excited when you ask him about it and genuinely take an interest. and he will happily tell you all the things he knows. he gives you advice on what each of the characters does and which is the best character in his correct humble opinion. will be super excited to play these video games with you and will really appreciate you being interested in what he loves.

seungmin

seungmin has been getting into more artsy stuff lately. he likes photography, for instance, and likes to get outside and look at the world through a different lens other than his own eyes. he would love it if you were to join him on a little photography date uwu. ALSOOOO reading dates are totally his thing. he loves burying his head in a good book, and having you taking an interest in his hobbies means that he can share these peaceful moments with you.

jeongin

jeongin is a fashion lover. we know how well he dresses and how his style is always on point. even if you are not so keen on passion but find ways to make his interest feel understood, he will love you even more. like sometimes you will get him an expensive item of clothing or maybe even suggest going clothes shopping with him. he likes it when you ask for advice too, so he can put his fashion knowledge and expertise to good use!

[linkedspirit-fanartfunart]

Ah the Link's got Tumblr again, smh can't have anything nice

2 notes

⚒️ smol-smithy Follow

NO WHY IS THE POLL A TIE. Why must I be doomed to share with these fools. This is nonsense.

⚒️ smol-smithy

Vi... Were you going to post behind our backs despite touting how "innane" it was and how it was "a waste of time"???

⚒️ smol-smithy

Hey why wasn't I included in the poll?

- Hero of Darkness

⚒️ smol-smithy

Shadow gtfo

⚒️ smol-smithy

how does Shadow know our password we changed it??

-Green

⚒️ smol-smithy

Passwords suck and so does Viofhhfksllkkkkkkkkkmmmnnnnnnfhkahf

🌟 excuuuse-me

Vio did you legit strangle your Shadow and hit send on his joke anyway? Because that's beautiful.

#this whole situatuon #art really #can I have a turn with your magic sword when you're done I think it'd be funny #everyone deserves More of Me

50 notes

🌸 dont-look-at-me Follow

How do I get a real life girl to kiss me pls

🌟 excuuuse-me

Please please please please please please please please please please please please plea-

🪶 redwingskies Follow

Apparently you just have to visit her shop like 3 times idk I still don't understand it

🌊 kingoftheseagull Follow

Give her some of your food, works every time.

🐴 goatman4life Follow

You sir are thinking about seagulls again, not women.

🌸 dont-look-at-me

You dont know me. What if I want seagull advice too?

94 notes

🐀 mouseman Follow

Best companion for adventures go!

⏳️ forestchild Follow

Fairy

🎶 ocarina-macarina Follow

Fairy!!

🌟 excuuuse-me

I legally can not say which is higher on the list because i will be strangled in my sleep but fairy & princess

🌸 dont-look-at-me Follow

Idk I keep accidentally having first dates via adventure so ig Girlfriend???

🪶 redwingskies Follow

Sword & Bird

🐴 goatman4life Follow

... Fairy

⚒️ smol-smithy Follow

I'd say myself but I found out that it sucks.

🌊 kingoftheseagull Follow

The silly old man who slowly realizes he wants to adopt me over the course of the journey. Fairy is Very close second. Then seagulls.

⚒️ smol-smithy

Oh hey actually ^ same.

🚋 train-life Follow

Ghost bestie

🌳 wildflowerwastaken Follow

#wait same??? #ghost friends for life #or. Uh. Postlife? #sorry. Idk. #also how are all of you posting in the reblogs like... #id die #....I can make that joke I already died once so it's funny now #anyways the rest of you are so biased #the answer is always Ghost Bestie #not like they can die again! Haha #ha.

746 notes

🌊 kingoftheseagull Follow

...omg what if the Hero of Time was turned into stone. I've seen it happen like twice and in totally different contexts so who knows. I mean can't come back to save the world if you're stone.

🎶 ocarina-macarina Follow

O-O

🐴 goatman4life Follow

He did not Hope this helps

⏳️ forestchild Follow

I did! Hope this helps

57 notes

🐴 goatman4life Follow

My son just bit me and after crying about how he didn't mean to actually break skin and calming down enough to like, talk, he said "Why do you taste like dark fog and goat?"

And while I have an answer for the goat thing I'm ??? Concerned

⏳️ forestchild Follow

I think you'd taste a lot like Black Boes, based on how you smell

🐴 goatman4life Follow

Why are children assigning me Flavors? Why do you know what black boes taste like??? I'm the guy who bites things not you

138 notes

🪶 redwingskies Follow

Why can't I pet anything on the surface. There's so many tiny cute creatures and they all either run away or want to kill me.

⚒️ smol-smithy Follow

When you're tiny and some giant comes at you with grabby hands what other options do you have?

🐴 goatman4life Follow

OP go find a cucco, they'll love you

🌸 dont-look-at-me Follow

Dont do it they both want to run away from you and also want to kill you at the same time

🪶 redwingskies Follow

They will love me like he promised I'm sure of it.

[erabu-san]

Hi, I'm sorry you're having a hard time with people tagging your posts when you don't want them tagged with ship, I know most people will not look at the original tags if something is reblogged to their dashboard and just reblog and tag as they usually do, and people when they ship something will tag any interaction between the characters as ship. So like you said, probably a better idea to put in your original post. I think just adding "please don't tag as ship !" or "this art has platonic intention, so please don't tag as ship !" would actually be perfectly fine, maybe a smiley but i don't think it comes across as rude or mean either way, it's completely reasonable.

Personally I don't think lots of people would mind that sort of boundary, and the people doing it now most likely have no idea you have it. Anyone who does mind such an easy boundary (you aren't even saying shippers cannot reblog! just to not tag!) and gets mad that you put it in the post then is not worth your time.

Hope you have a lovely day and people are more respectful <3

🥹🥹 thank you so much anon !!

There is a lot of you who send me support, I read them all. And I am clearly lucky to be understood ! Thank you

I believe I became more sensitive because of lack of sleep, I usually just block and ignore haha

But yeah it became way too much recently ! I find reconfort by sharing thing I like, and I know there is a public who will find it at their taste(if there is no public, i know there is my friends 🫵💕), and.. true, I always expect there is people who doesn't read original tag. Internet is large, and it is sure there is thing out of my control. Even by rationalize facts, and organised my thought, it is hard to supress my feeling. This my problem, I have to deal with it I guess. But why feeling, as a human, is a problem ? Why do I constantly invalidate my feeling because "I have to expect this" ? And why do I have to constantly justify my feeling and behaviour while I am in my right ? On MY art ?

So that's why I started to put boundaries

And it is not only abt tumblr, but also twitter (twitter is the worst for me haha). I still didn't post my art on instagram because I don't want to feel this much again 😭 irony because instagram is my safest place between all my social media ! And yes !! I know there is plenty of my followers who ship them, and we still interact because shipping is not the problem ? They know my art and post abt them are not abt romance and I do not wish it becomes romance and they respect that !

Ah, I started to rant again, I hope you don't mind 🥹 it is week end, maybe a good sleep will help me to deal everything better !

My day became more lovely thanks to you all support, and I am sincerely grateful again for you taking your time to write me a kind message. Anon, I wish you also have a lovely day, and everything will be good for you, right now in present but also for your future 🫶

[masivechaos]

YOU'RE BLUSHING LOVE

sirius black x  fem! reader

Request: yes / no

Synopsis: Y/n is a little shy and it’s hard when her crush is the most confident person ever. i’m so bad at summarising my story, the synopsis is crap.

Warning/content:  swearing, a little suggestive at this end maybe? i don’t even know, mention of sex, just pure fluff, my English

a.n.: 2.2k words- ready for the post to flop since one post on two flops haha. but fr reblogs really help me so don't hesitate. also thank you for the 100 followers!! a celebration will come soon <3

masterlist/ marauders masterlist / navigation

── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.───･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ.──

Y/n had always observed Sirius from afar since their first year, watching as he slowly made friends and started to pull out pranks with the Marauders. She loved those pranks so much, she liked how they were having fun without hurting anyone- or didn’t mean to.

But Y/n was far too scared to talk to him, he was so loud and extroverted whereas she was quiet and for some people, she was barely existing. She was shy and it was even worse when it came to him, she only talked to him once- well he was in front of her and she just stood there, blushing.

She still remembered that day. She was in her own world, pacing in the library as she walked into someone and fell to the ground “Fuck” someone swore as their held out their hand for her to take. The girl didn’t look up before getting up. Her eyes finally landed on the boy in front of her, it was Sirius Black. She couldn’t stop the butterflies in her stomach from flying and her cheeks heating up. He chuckled watching at her flushed state before leaving.

She had to stand against the bookshelves for a few minutes before finding her normal condition again and being able to go back to study her potion work. Since then Sirius was always in her mind, she had the biggest crush ever on him. Maybe because he was the complete opposite of her?

But today, Sirius was arguing with McGonagall because of a story of paper chewed by a dog. The boy scoffed “Minnie! Why don’t you believe me!” the professor rolled her eyes, trying to stay serious in front of him.

“Maybe because of that thing you did earlier, it starts to be a lot, Black,” she said referencing the prank they set this morning in the Gryffindor common room, all the students staying locked in the room with a putrid smell for forty minutes.

Y/n laughed as Sirius continued to defend himself. But unfortunately, her soft laughter caught the boy’s attention, he turned his head and smiled when his eyes landed on her. It was not the first time he saw her but he never remarked how pretty she was.

“Mr Black!” McGonagall scolded and he snapped back after sending the shy girl a wink, her cheeks were redder than ever. She stared down at her paper, twirling her quill between her fingers. 

When the class finally came to its end and she packed her things, she turned around only to find Sirius standing in front of her. Her face immediately heated up, the boy chuckled “You’re blushing love” he smirked.

She became even redder, all her blood rushing to her head. He let out a laugh “You liked the prank this morning, Y/n?” her eyes widened, she didn’t think he knew her name since she was so discrete.

“Um… yeah” she said quietly, stuttering. Sirius leaned a little, his nose brushing with hers, she was so cute “You’re pretty when you blush, darling” he teased and Y/n’s heart missed a beat. The boy left, this damn smirk still on his lips.

Y/n was the last one to leave the classroom, McGonagall watching her walking away with a knowing smile on her face.

:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

Two days after, Sirius saw Y/n as she was studying in the Gryffindor common room, head down, biting her quill and frowning as she didn’t understand whatever she was reading. He made his way to her silently “Watcha doing?”

Y/n jumped, surprised by the sudden presence. Sirius chuckled when she brought her hand to her heart “Defense Against Dark Arts” she whispered, flustered by the way the boy was close to her, she could feel his breath against her hair.

He pulled out the chair next to her, sat on it and read the open pages of the book. He looked up at her, slumped against the table as she was sitting straight up, tense “Can you help me? I didn’t get the subject” he did get the subject he just wanted to spend time with her, but true there were some things he didn’t completely understand.

She stared at him, eyes widened, she hated to talk one-to-one. But she wouldn’t have to talk about personal stuff and it was her crush, Sirius Black. She was not the one who will start a conversation so she had to take the chance. “O-ok” she responded even more quietly than the sentence before.

Sirius listened as she explain to him how to beat the creature the lesson was about, focusing more on the way she was annotating the book with colourful tabs and little notes and biting her quill. She finished by forgetting he was there, staring at her and started to talk a little louder.

“Thank you, love” he got up when the little session was over. He started to leave before turning back on his tracks, he leaned forward, his lips against her cheekbone “We’ll do this again whenever you want” he then finally get out of the room, letting alone an all shock and blush Y/n.

:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

Two weeks after the common room study session they had the test about this subject “Everything went well?” she said quietly behind Sirius to catch his attention. He turned and was so happily surprised to find her making the first move for the first time.

He smiled “Yeah. And you?” she nodded with a little smile and started blushing when James and Remus were grinning behind Sirius. “So you’re friends?” Remus asked with a teasing smirk. 

Y/n was fleeing everybody’s stare as she stuttered “Y- yeah” Sirius’ furrowed his eyebrows and hit the other boy on the shoulder “Shut up mate” he took Y/n’s arm to drag her somewhere they could be alone.

“Sorry about them” he chuckled, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. She rubbed his shoulder gently “It’s okay” she reassured him, his heart was melting at the way she was looking softly at him. He shook his head, it was the first time he surprised himself thinking something like this, whether it is about her or anybody else.

During the last few days, he spent more time with her and discovered she was passing her feelings with a touch more than words.

For the following weeks, Sirius came to talk to her more and more often and she became more and more comfortable. Most of the time she would listen to him rambling about his day, only humming to let him know she was paying attention.

But one day, as she was reading, he sat next to her in silence. “What are you reading?” he asked after a few minutes, waiting for her to finish her chapter. Her eyes instantly lit up “Oh well, it’s my favourite book. It’s not the first time I read it actually” he could tell with the number of sticky notes and drawings and annotations on the paper.

“What is it about?” she let her head fall on Sirius’ shoulder, making him stop moving, too scared she will take off her head from his shoulder if he did. “Oh well, it talks about…” and she didn’t stop talking for long minutes, it was so easy to speak when it was Sirius who was listening “Oh sorry, I talk too much” she said quietly, apologetic.

“No! Continue. You have such a pretty voice.” and there she forgot how to talk, her voice dying in her throat. He didn’t insist that she spoke since she was at least staying by his side when she could just get up and leave.

:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

Today they had their grade for the test, Y/n was waiting for Sirius to come out of the classroom. She sat on the cold floor before seeing him darting through the door. 

She immediately smiled as she got closer to him “Thank you for helping me, darling. Got a good grade” he slid his arm around her shoulders. During the last month, Sirius learned which physical touches she was comfortable with.

“I didn’t do anything” she blushed a bright red when he ducked his head, the two of them becoming dangerously close and Sirius had to fight the urge to kiss the pink on her skin. It was now usual for him to have this sort of thought. Thoughts he never had with anyone but her.

He wished he could hold her hand as they were walking in the gardens, he wished he could kiss her for hours until he couldn’t breathe anymore, he wished he could be hers.

And these thoughts quickly became words since he once caught himself saying that he wanted her to braid his hair before a quidditch game out loud. And Godric, Remus looooved to tease him with that forever.

“My little Sirius is in love” Remus sang as he took a bite of his chocolate. Sirius didn’t even try to defend himself but buried his face in his pillow “Why is it so hard to love someone?” he said, the sound of his voice muffled by the fabric of the pillowcase.

James chuckled, finding more than relatable what his friend just said “Why don’t you just tell her?” Sirius grunted as he rolled on his bed to stare at the ceiling “I can’t! Look at her! I’m going to scare her! She’s so sweet and delicate and I’m so not!” his voice became softer and softer and his eyes in heart shape. 

“And look at her! She’s so pretty! Her hair!! Did you see her eyes? I could drown in them” and he went on and on, James laughing, happy that Sirius had found someone, for him love was maybe the best thing that could happen to his best friend. Remus rolled his eyes but nevertheless listened and Peter was just reading quidditch magazines and only humming sometimes.

And after hours of consideration, he decided to ask her out, fuck it. He searched for her and found her under a weeping willow, he noticed it was her favourite place ever. He approached her and she turned her head, happy to find him. Maybe the feelings were reciprocal.

“Do you want to go on a date with me? At Hogsmeade?” he asked straightforward, she was cut off guard by his question “Oh- Um- I- I don’t know” she apologized, Hogsmeade was one of the places she avoided.

And she was also scared he didn’t have the same feelings as her and just wanted to ‘have fun’ with her. “O-oh” he was a little disappointed, was he wrong the entire time?

She rested her hand on his shoulder “Hey… It’s not you the problem. I just don’t like noisy places” she reassured him, he smiled softly “Will my dorm be okay?” Y/n’s face crumbled, it was all to drag her into his bed?

He saw the weird expression she had and his eyes widened “N-not for that!! It’s just- the boys will let us alone so we’ll just be the two of us and it’ll be calm” she grinned “Perfect!” she didn’t think before wrapping her arms around his shoulders. Sirius chuckled and let his hands against the small of her back.

:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ

Two days later, Sirius knocked at the door of her dorm “Hey, love” she joined him, even prettier than usual. They walked to his dorm, arms linked, not talking but grinning like fools.

“Ladies first,” he said as he opened the door, when she entered the room she saw everything she ever talked about. A book she said she’d love to read a week ago, her favourite muggle vinyl and her favourite candies from Honeydukes.

She looked at him in awe “How can you remember that?” she asked impressed “I don’t know” he smirked before guiding her to sit on his bed “You actually listen when I talk?” he smiled, laying down next to her to face her “Of course I do”

Y/n always found herself rambling when she felt comfortable enough to talk about something she loved and was always so scared to be annoying.

They sat on the ground, eating some chocolate chip cookies “You have some-” Sirius said and Y/n gave him a confused look “Some chocolate” he got closer and wiped the corner of her mouth with his thumb.

He let his hand on her cheek, they both stared into each other’s eyes “Is it okay if I kiss you darling?” he whispered as he take a look at every single feature of her loving face. Y/n pulled him by the collar of his shirt and closed the gap between their mouths and his eyes widened, shocked that she made the final move.

He kissed her back, pushing her to the ground, laying on top of her “You’re blushing love” he said, referencing the first sentence he ever told her. “Only you make me blush” Sirius’ smile grew bigger, surprised about how bold she could be.

“Who are you? Where’s Y/n?” he teased. The girl smiled and smacked his shoulder before pulling him in another kiss. Yeah, she’d blush during the rest of the night.

[skzoologist]

My mooties

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⤐ @dmnksrt - One of my irl best friends, you guys can thank her for so much, because she is my number 1 fan and keeps cheering me on. Without her, I wouldn't have written this much. She's a victim of accidentally being converted into a kpop fan, purely because I was also dragged into the fandom. Even though she stans another group and man (Suga), we still ramble to each other for hours easily. Once she gathers the courage to post her own fanfics, you can be sure I'll be there to support her immediately. Her brain is wonderful, just like her, I wouldn't hesitate to commit arson for her sake. Her tag is 'my Darling', no, we aren't dating, in case any of Nat's anons come here asking that.

⤐ @nerenbe - Well well well, if it isn't my menace herself. This lil gremlin is the sole reason I am in this fandom altogether, since she just kept singing 'Star lost' while we were in the Christmas market in the year 2023. I guess this is what I get for dragging her into so many animes and manhwas, haha. She isn't really active here, but know that she loves to murder me with pics and memes of my bias and wrecker. Truly, she lives up to her nickname.

⤐ @shetherocket - The last of my irl best friends, the poor one who isn't in the kpop fandom and has no idea wtf I am saying to her, ever. It's really funny actually, as she just nods as I speak, no clue about anything. But she likes Felix! Loves his softness and sunshine self, so I sometimes spam her with him lmao. I am never going to be sorry for that :D

⤐ @thightswideforhanin - First ever person to loudly admit Bae wrecked her, and hard. I always enjoy her reblogs, she was one of the first ever active members of my blog.

⤐ @michelle4eve - A shy follower of mine who gathered enough courage to speak to me, and would you look at that, we speak more regularly now :) She's very sweet, which is why I just call her my Sunshine.

⤐ @jinnie-ret - Jinnie-ret, Jinnie-ret, the person who started it all. She was the first skz writer who noticed me and decided to raid my blog, quite literally. She recommended my work on her blog and I got a big influx of people, making me breach the 100 followers threshold. I still can't believe she'd followed me back, when I've been her silent follower for months by that point. While we don't speak a lot, as she is busy, I know she's very welcoming and kind (also my brit mum, because she decided to adopt me lmao).

⤐ @atinyniki - Niki, my precious little pocket pookie who just loves to pester me and absolutely shower me in love, no matter how hard I keep pushing it away (this is the norm for me and my friends). She's absolutely sweet and so strong, I look up to her in that sense to this very day. We easily start gushing about ATEEZ or my husky puppies for a good while, or even start planning some gut-wrenching fics together xD I am so happy she wrote to me, even if she keeps insisting I am cute, falsely.

⤐ @writingforstraykids - Nat, my talented menace! I love her art, oh my god, I cannot wait for her to draw more, even if that is a year later or more. And her soft thoughts? Hell yes! She's the one who usually gets to see my own random thoughts about the boys (hence our collab), because she's my mootie and they get VIP services :) I am forever afraid she's gonna do what my menace does and send me pics of the boys... I would straight up die on the spot.

⤐ @cheesemonky - Leisel! While we don't talk a lot (timezone differences and my depressed, anxious self), she's cute and so supportive. I just know if we would talk more, our chat would be filled with rambles and thoughts about TXT, haha.

⤐ @yangbbokari - Mumu, the chaos child. We didn't get to know each other well yet, but she loves to say random shit and cause mayham xD Very maknae line coded.

⤐ @lilmisssona - Sona, my sweet sonata, who is so sweet and supportive of me despite barely knowing me, it gives me diabetes. I already love her works, her AUs are very interesting. She also loves my two puppies, and I am only glad to provide her with photos and videos of them.

⤐ @minholing - Jenny, my lil biologist sprout. While she left, I will await her return here. Who knows, maybe by then I'll be able to accept her hugs more easily.

⤐ @kimistorm - We don't really talk, but we occasionally tag each other in some games. Her works are really nice and sweet, I wouldn't be surprised if she is like that too.

⤐ @miuracha - Miu, the legend amongst us. I haven't really gathered the courage to talk to her yet, but I do know she is an absolute sweetheart who only deserves the best. I hope life finally gives her a break, and very soon.

⤐ @silverstarburst - Silver, my star and guardian wolf, thanks to her protective nature over her friends. Our friendship started with her tagging me in a Jisung photoset, completely unprompted. That was a sign, so true that we now regularly talk here or on discord. Bless her and her gif/photo sets.

⤐ @galaxycatdrawz - A very active moot of Nat, someone who gave me even more meme ideas when I started memeing Nat, being the menace he is. Thus, he shall be named my official meme partner. While we don't talk regularly, that doesn't mean he isn't fun to be around.

⤐ @thatonedemigodfromseoul We haven't really talked a lot so far, but that is how it is when you just meet someone.

If I didn't tag you here, that either means I am way too nervous to do so (you're probably a big writer blog), or I just straight up forgot with my smooth, pea-sized brain. Please do reach out to me, I assure you I didn't mean to somehow offend you.

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[idyllic-affections]

a letter from aphelion. ♡

a letter to all the people who have made my year in one way or another. there is no particular order to this post, and some of you may find that i don't have much to say, but all of you who are on this post are here because i can recall times i've enjoyed speaking to you or seeing you in my notifs or just existing within the same space as you. i hope you all have only the best year possible next year—it seems like most of us need and deserve a good year, hm? though i regard myself as quite a gentle and sentimental soul, i struggle with putting it into words. it's ironic, considering i am a writer. i mention this because even if the things i say in this post are quite silly and lighthearted, just know that i earnestly mean what i say and each and every one of you has contributed to my year in a memorable way <3 may we all have a good 2024.

       dear @lillonvia,

YOU!!!! YOU!!!!! HELLO. HI. MEETING YOU HAS BEEN SUCH AN HONOR AND SUCH A DELIGHTFUL PART OF MY YEAR!!! i love the little silly conversations we often have—i think it's probably a good thing that we share so many random fandoms. it's as if we lived somewhat similar lives growing up despite growing up in such vastly different environments <3 but anyway, i think the fandoms we share are really helpful in being able to have such fun conversations!! we have many things to talk about!!! despite the vast difference in timezones!!!! please go to sleep at normal hours!!!!!!! /lh

       dear @starryshinyskies,

HI AVERY <3 i was literally always so delighted to see you in my inbox back when you were still ⭐️ anon, and i still feel that kind of joy now! you have so many good and fun thoughts to share with me about things i've written and i love that... i hope moral injury ch. 2 will give you that same kind of brainrot again when it does finally come out!!!! if it doesn't that's okay too HAHA but i always love hearing your thoughts on... literally anything ever!! i have some fics of yours that i've been meaning to reblog btw, so maybe watch out for multiple essays in your notifications in the coming weeks LMAO

       dear @aroacenezha,

MAJI I AM SQUISHING YOU LOVINGLY IN MY HANDS or i can just look at you fondly if you don't want to be squished. i am okay with that too <3 i often think about how we met and i think it's both kind of funny and kind of nice. "baizhu would hate dottore" agreed so real so true that post was so correct in so many ways RAAHHH 🤝 the nice part of the way we met being my baizhu series. despite me having NOT updated it any time recently, has brought a lot of people into my inbox and sometimes into my life and i think it's very cool. i love when people feel seen. and furthermore please always send me your oc thoughts and your blorbo thoughts i love them so much 🙏🙏🙏

       dear @soleillunne,

ALYYY MY LOVE MY BELOVED you are so precious and treasured.... i love what you do, i think your writing is beautiful and has such a poetic quality to it. and i love when you appear in my inbox and notifs!!!! though tumblr is very mean to you and always eats your asks.... you are important to me and so many other people and i hope you always know that. genuinely. you are such a kind and wonderful person and you are always loved.

       dear @heiayen,

YOU. *GRABS YOU* *EVILLY* you. you are so. idk but YOU ARE. can't think of a good word. no words, only vibes. you are vibe-y. /lh you're another moot that has the most top tier responses to things, even non-fanfic posts. you just have Things To Say, and in the best way possible. your thoughts are so fun..... i interact with you rather often—more than some people realize, perhaps—and you are a dearly beloved presence in my life 🫶🫶

       dear @zeldadou,

though we haven't talked too much recently, i still think of you often! i love seeing your art and the way it changes and develops... and i love hearimg your thoughts about things or when you send me fun things you think i would like <33 you are a very kind person in my eyes, whether you realize it or not.

       dear @june-again,

i hope life treats you well, always. you don't deserve anything less. i think of you fondly! your kindness is and was very remarkable and treasured especially when i was first adjusting to tumblr and posting my fics and whatnot..... by the time we met, i was still very new, so i appreciated any kind interactions (i still do of course! it's just a bit different when you're new to a website like this haha)!!

       dear @kaixserzz,

I FUCK WITH YOUR THOUGHTS DUDE YOU SEEM TO COME INTO MY INBOX AT THE MOST RANDOM AND UNEXPECTED OF TIMES AND DROP THE MOST HEARTBREAKING ANGST POSSIBLE??????? HELLO?????????? ARE YOU. DOING OKAY??!???!!!! YOU WAKE UP AND CHOOSE VIOLENCE. ESPECIALLY WITH KAVEH. WTF (me too tbh 😇) /lh please always send me any platonic thoughts you have i will entertain all of them fr 💥💥💥 you have such good thoughts in that brain of yours 💥💥💥💥💥💥💥

       dear @archonsbane,

i haven't spoken to you much, so forgive me if this seems or comes off as a sudden or jarring tag, but i do enjoy talking to you. fatui moot <3 you GET IT get it about the harbingers' dynamics. i hope we have more opportunities to speak sometime! (and if that sentiment isn't shared, that is totally fine. i would respect it either way 🫶)

       dear @lesanyanyas,

we only became mutuals recently, but i hope you know that i always thought of you as one of the "blorbo from my notes" kinds of people haha!!! i always saw and recognized you whenever you were in my notifications or my inbox and you always have such delightful and fun things to say <33

       dear @umgatochamadopercyval,

CLARA HIII you are such a remarkable person, you know? you've been nothing but kind and understanding, and you have such fun thoughts and ideas!! i love hearing about them sm. even if my responses are delayed, just know that you are always welcome to ramble in my dms about your ocs or your fic ideas and i will never find it to be annoying or anything. it isn't annoying. it never is.

                                                 sincerely,                                                                           aphelion.

there are people who did not make this list, and to those people, i hope we can become closer in 2024! if you aren't on here, it's truly only because i've hardly spoken to you. so... perhaps that is something we can do next year! i think of all my mutuals very fondly. i don't think of any of you as "less than" just because we haven't spoken mwah mwah <3

[fandomfluffandfuck]

hi S ok you definitely dont have to answer this bc its basically just me venting and its pretty lame haha but im curious if its something you've ever dealt with or if u have advice... basically i have diagnosed ASD and marvel is my special interest and has been since i was a kid and im pretty positive its going to stay my favorite thing for the rest of my life lol. and sometimes i get so sooo sad and kinda lonely thinking about the fact that like .. i know its basically still one of the biggest fandoms out there but like all my favorite fics were posted like 5-10 years ago mostly from authors that arent even in the fandom anymore and theres never gonna be another movie with steve and bucky together that everyone gets excited about and wants to talk about and theres also just so much less of a fun goofy little tight knit community for stucky on tumblr and online like ... idk i just miss so bad when the mcu was at its peak and there was so much content to consume and so many people passionate about it... and i know theres definitely still a huge presence and like im so thankful that youre an author that i love thats still super active and im always glad to visit your page and to see that theres still so many fans out there that care and wanna interact yknow. but tumblrs different now and its been like ten years since peak stucky content and the actors are all doing their own thing now idk it just makes me sad 😩😩 i feel like such a loser saying it i swear i have other interests and an irl life that is very fruitful and lovely hahaha its just makes me a bit frustrated at my autism because i know i wont be able to ever really stop loving these characters even as others move on

Hey, sweets!

I understand what you mean and you're not a loser, not at all. It's fucking great to have an interest in something, anything--what else is life for? You gotta have something to be focused on and interested in that gives you joy, otherwise, what is there? Just blandness. And, yeah, Marvel fandom is still very much active and that's wonderful and great! But, it's also true that it will never be the same as it was in its heyday. Personally, I wasn't around when the stucky fandom was exploding along the release of CA:TWS/the general MCU height, but I certainly see all the old art, edits, cosplay, etc. that's still reblogged and I've read so many of the fics from years prior, so I have a grasp of what was happening. And I can totally see how you'd miss generally, but especially if your fixation has attached deeply to these characters.

I have a sibling on the autism spectrum (who's old enough to have been diagnosed with Aspergers's syndrome before that was phased out but they are, of course, on the spectrum regardless of arbitrary hierarchical labels that I will restrain from ranting about because I fucking hate that shit, don't talk to me about "high functioning" ugh) and they have a few different life-long hyperfixations as well. So, you're not alone, but, it is hard to think of any actual advice per se. I think you're already doing what you need to be doing, y'know? You're here and enjoying what is going on now, connecting to blogs that are active, finding space where you can talk about these characters, you've got other things to do that also capture your attention, and, of course, you know you're sad about what isn't going on anymore. It's okay to be sad. You can't control what you're passionate about in the same way you can't control who you fall in love with. Are these silly little fictional characters not just people we've fallen in love with a little or a lot, no matter if they don't "exist"? I love that for us. Humans are so cute and full of love.

Fandoms and people change and sometimes it fucking sucks when it happens, sometimes it's great. Either way, it's part of the ecosystem of life. Water and nutrients and air and sun--it makes people change, it makes them grow, and you're allowed to be sad about what they used to be, you just have to keep growing, too. Remember what they were and know who they are now.

Hopefully, something in there helped you feel better, even if it was just from telling someone how you feel.

[robo-dino-puppy]

I hit a sort of follower milestone recently (and I'm reasonably sure most of you aren't bots) so... new pinned post time!

(to all the followers and moots I see in my notifs all the time - I love you all so much ♡)

▷ First of all:

I made horizon-armor and you should check it out if you've ever wanted a gallery of all Aloy's armor and dye options from HFW :D Here's a previous pinned post about it. This ↑ is the card I made for it in the Horizon Database, which is not mine but you should also check out if you're interested in gameplay mechanics/tips/tricks/practically any info you ever wanted to know about HFW. (the database was put together by twingeofregret on Arktix's discord, and many of the items there were put together by other server members)

▷ Second, I don't think it needs saying? But DON'T REPOST - meaning, don't reupload in your own post - any of my work and don't upload it to any other sites. Yeah this is "only" virtual photography but I still spend time on it and it's mine. Please don't, for anyone's creations. Reblog or share links!

▷ Thirdly, absolutely feel free to use my pics as drawing/art references or personal phone backgrounds! (But please don't edit my shots and repost them.) If you use things as references I'd love to be tagged so I can see what you drew/painted/whatevered <3

...the rest below a cut because I don't know how to be brief...

▷ Fourth: I would very much appreciate anyone who wants to add image descriptions to my posts - I know it's a sucky excuse but when I've tried doing it I just end up exhausted and feel like it's either too longwinded or not a good description at all. So if anyone who is good with words would like to help me out I'd be super grateful! I'll reblog your addition and (if you're cool with it) I can add it to the alt text of the image.

▷ Fifth: With the more-real-than-ever possibility of Tumblr imploding, I thought I'd also include where else you might find me! I'm not going anywhere until this place melts down because Tumblr is the only place I've ever felt comfortable, but I also have an account on Reddit (ew) that I use occasionally: I'm robo_dino_puppy there. I put Horizon videos on YouTube sometimes: I'm robo-dino-puppy over there too. I exist on Discord although it's rather... social for me and honestly I'm still not sure if I'm doing it right haha. I guess I should make an effort to join more servers to keep track of people just in case, but I've always felt like I'd be a fraud or an invader with the ship servers because I don't actually ship Aloy with anyone...

As a backup for the armor gallery I've snagged horizon-armor (and robo-dino-puppy, for that matter) on Neocities, but there's nothing there at the moment because I'm currently waaaaay too braindead to create a site from scratch. Also empty right now, but in case of future need I'm squatting on robo-dino-puppy on Dreamwidth and Pillowfort.

And now thanks to a kindly-provided invite, robo-dino-puppy on Bluesky!

aaaaand finally I'm also @robo-dino-puppies if you're interested in my non-Horizon stuff/reblogs/my sideblog 👀

[iraprince]

Heyo! Any advice on struggling to get your art seen in the world? I feel like no matter how much I post, or what I post, people never see it or seem to like it. I love art and am pursuing it as a career (hence why Im getting a degree in it currently lmao) but its kind of disheartening to work really hard on something, post it, and no one sees it.

oh, man. i'm afraid for this one i don't feel like i have a lot of solid advice. having a large-ish following online feels like something that kind of just, like, Happened to me, mostly on accident/in ways outside of my control, and even if i had some ideas on how to potentially replicate those gains i don't think they'd work consistently. (also, a lot of my large jumps in follower count came from mental health related work going viral bc it's #relatable; this is something i have complicated feelings about and it's absolutely not a viable, like, "strategy" or something that i would recommend, in the way that ppl can say like, "fanart gets attention!" or stuff like that.)

so, i don't have advice for how to actually GET those eyes on your art; i can maybe help with making ppl more likely to STAY once they do find you, and how to build a following that will actually help you maintain a living from your work -- bc i have TONS of peers w a following a fraction of the size of mine who get more jobs than me, are doing cooler/more "professional" stuff than me, etc! (heads up that most of my experience is on twitter; i know less than nothing about places like instagram + tiktok, and while tumblr functions very differently from twitter i feel like i handle things mostly the same here, aside from doing less personal posting/being less talkative and not 'networking' or following many people).

SCROLLING BACK UP TO ADD A SPOILER ALERT: AS ALWAYS I HAVE SAID "HAHA IDK I DON'T REALLY HAVE ANY ADVICE" AND THEN PROCEEDED TO TYPE A FULL ESSAY. IF YOU ARE ON DESKTOP YOU CAN HIT THE 'J' KEY TO SKIP THIS POST. IF YOU'RE ON MOBILE, I'M SORRY

a very important thing, especially professionally: it HAS to be easy to see what you do. (this is easier here on tumblr, where u can have a designated art tag etc, than on twitter, which is an awful website that sucks. <- guy who makes all his money on twitter) this means, like -- if i see something from you and get curious and click your profile, it should only take one more click to quickly see at least SOME of your art. on a professional account, it's probably best for your icon to be your own work, something snappy and memorable and eye-catching that reads well at a small size; people shouldn't have to dig for 20 minutes before they can start browsing your art. on twitter, this means TRY not to gunk up your media tab with a ton of reaction images/screencaps of your gacha pulls/etc; on here, it means make your art tag easy to find; on any website, a portfolio link, prominently displayed, is the best bet. (i am still working on that one myself lmao and i've been working professionally full time for a few years now so like, there are outliers and wiggle room on all of this).

next! it's great when your audience finds you, but you have to find them, too. find artists who do similar stuff to you and get into their stuff -- sincerely, not just as "networking." (like only do this with ppl whose stuff you actually think is cool, not just trying to get in mutuals with everyone you see in hopes of a bump, obviously.) get interested in other indie artists, find the people who are working/publishing in the spaces that are exciting and aspirational for you, and support them! i don't want it to sound cynical when i say there's a kind of give-and-take built into this; the point is not "well, if i reblog/retweet a bunch of YOUR stuff, maybe you'll feel obligated to boost mine in return," but that when you find other artists/creatives who are on the same wavelength as you, you will naturally stumble into pools of people who want to support art like yours, and you and your newfound peers will help each other when you hype each other's stuff up and direct followers to each other! (again re: things going differently on dif websites: this is twitter-specific for me, bc i use my tumblr as a gallery/portfolio. that doesn't mean it doesn't happen here tho! it can and does happen everywhere!)

it is really not a competition. i know that SOMETIMES it is in like, a really nitty-gritty numbers sense; people only have so much money to spare, they will make choices about whose patreon they can afford/what comic to buy/etc, that's true. but to me that's not competition. people who are sincerely into your stuff will hang on until they can afford it; maybe that means someone follows you for two whole years before the planets align and they have the budget/opportunity to commission you. by hanging out in similar circles you are not taking potential business or opportunities away from anyone else, nor are you risking leading your own audience to Someone They'll Like Better; you're just offering more options, and the internet is VAST and endless, and EVENTUALLY people will show up who are into YOUR STUFF, SPECIFICALLY. helping each other is never going to stifle or delay that!!

and my final chunk of advice is the one i give constantly that everyone is probably super sick of hearing but i just seriously seriously believe in it, even tho i know it's slow to pay off and hard to follow: keep doing exactly what you want to. keep doing it!!! you have to!!! yes, i mean the stuff that's getting like, 2 likes and 0 reblogs! the stuff that 'nobody likes!'

earlier i mentioned i have gotten big follower bumps from like adhd comics and stuff like that going viral. the thing is that, from a professional standpoint: my follower count has like, more than quintupled from where it was at a few years ago; my patreon income has absolutely NOT quintupled lmfao. it has less than doubled, over that same period of like... i wanna say over 4 years. that's still good, i'm grateful for it, and i owe a lot of it to the sheer numbers game (the more ppl see ur work, the more likely it is you'll reach someone who decides to support you), but there is absolutely not an actual direct correlation between numbers and career success/stability.

where there IS a direct correlation is between "people who give a shit about the art i really truly love making" and "people who like my art enough to support me professionally." HUGE chunks of the followers i get any time something goes viral slough off over time; there's nothing wrong with that, they just follow me bc something was funny/interesting and end up realizing my work's not actually their thing. but the ppl who follow me bc they're into all the stuff i post most consistently, the stuff i care about and am passionate about, stick around. and i would not have found them if i wasn't posting the shit i care about!

out there there are people who will be 100% crazy about the stuff that is 100% what you want to make. it's like actually statistically impossible for there not to be. the more niche your thing is, the longer it will take to find them, but they absolutely exist. but if you give up before you find them -- if you start saying, "well, i'll put in 50% of this idea that i love, but the other 50% is too weird and nobody's gonna like it and it'll flop" -- well, in that case, you can only ever find the ppl who are 50% into what you do. don't fuck yourself like that!! you cannot deny yourself the possibility (the INEVITABILITY!!! IMO!!!!!) of finding the people who will 100% get what you're doing.

so: on a pragmatic level, i'm sure there will be ppl who disagree with me on this, and who think it's absolutely mandatory to do fanart as a crowd draw or learn about algorithms and posting times and get on tiktok and do the visibility grind and everything and that it's stupid and irresponsible to tell people not to. i'm sure it's also easy to point out that i'm speaking from a place where i now have more eyes on my stuff than i know what to fucking do with so maybe i'm just totally out of touch and being naive or something. but for me the most important part of doing art now, ESPECIALLY as a career, is to keep loving it and to believe in what i'm doing and to build an audience that cares about the same things i do. and i think it is really really vital to make that your top priority. bc if you don't, then even if you DO crack the code to suddenly getting tons of notes on everything etc -- will you even keep wanting to do it?

this job is hard. it's lonely, in my experience; i spend so much time sitting in front of my computer alone. it's unstable, which is stressful and can be frightening. it's emotionally taxing, for me, because art is so important to me that it's hard to set boundaries and separate my identity from it and actually treat it like a job. it has taken me a long time to find success doing this; maybe i could have gotten there faster if i had tried to find ways to draw an audience specifically, but i think if i had somehow managed to get a big patreon following/tons of commissioners/etc by doing something formulaic or doing stuff that specifically gets tons of attention, but isn't what's natural for me -- i don't think i would have lasted very long that way. this is already hard and complicated enough; i don't think it's sustainable to give up any unnecessary ground on doing exactly what you're passionate about, bc at least in my case, that's mandatory for this even being a livable career for me. i would burn out and decide to do something else very quickly if the only way to succeed was to chase numbers/engagement.

doing it this way is very slow. if i hadn't been able to lean on family/my wife while starting up, i would have had to have a day job for much longer (like, years, probably) while saving up and preparing to go full time; for as long as you struggle to get traction, it may mean going full time has to be on the backburner. but the thing is that there's nothing wrong with that, it's the reality for the vast majority of us (from what i've seen) -- and you'll eventually build a career that can last way longer, i think.

okay oh my god i'm done. sorry about that. like i said this job is pretty lonely and i sit here all day and think about this stuff and then generally do not talk about it with anyone until somebody asks me about it and then i repeat myself at length again. like i did here. anyway have a good night sincerely and i hope some part of this was helpful!!!

[tired-reader-writer]

Somehow my thoughts drifted back to a former friend I blocked some while back.

The buildup that led to me ultimately blocking her was... frustrating, to say the least. It's still frustrating even now. Honestly, I don't know how or why my brain decided to remember her in this moment. Maybe the exam season stress is getting to me.

This girl, this person, hah, always loudly proclaimed to detest AI art and AI fanfic/writings, and yet still happily posted a lot about extensively using character AI.

Like, if she recognized the problems w AI art and voiceover and fic, why did it take so long for her to realize chat AI is bad too? I couldn't fathom the dissonance. I tried to break the news to her. Y'know, AI art scrapes from art, AI writing scrapes from real people's writing, and these generated responses that the character AI spits out... it's in written form, right? AI can't create from thin air like us creatives do. It's gotta be scraping from somewhere, it's theft too. It's no different from AI fanfics.

She acted like... It's hard to describe, her responses to my messages were... It's like she didn't want to stop using character AI so she padded out her replies with stuff about AI art and AI fic. Y'know, the things we both agreed were theft. The things that were not what I was trying to talk to her about.

She said she was scared that AI was running rampant now, that she was “on the fence” about character AI. Despite me having already laid out my reasoning it's no different from the other types of AI she claimed to hate.

She was not on the fence.

She kept using character AI after our conversation, she just refrained from bringing it up in our DMs.

I kept reblogging anti-AI posts hoping she would see and come to her senses (after all, talking directly did not fucking work) and she ignored my very unsubtle anti-AI reblogs on both my main and side blog, both of which she followed. She reblogged the stuff about AI art fic and voiceovers and completely and purposefully skipped over stuff about anti character AI.

I snapped.

I made a public rant about the scenario, grossly summarized and without naming names of course, because I was so fucking frustrated at this girl.

And then after that, after all that, she gets upset that I'm frustrated and ranted out loud (never revealed who I was frustrated at, I intentionally worded it so that it comes across as me being mad at a widespread phenomenon, which it also was, I was deeply frustrated with not only her but the rest of the AI apologists in the world).

Make it make sense, girl.

She said she was “trying to quit” character AI, she sounded really upset, and I thought, well I clearly snapped and crossed a line. She said she's trying to quit and she's my friend, she couldn't possibly lie to me, right?

Right?

Haha, WRONG.

I don't exactly remember the sequence of events after that. She kept using character AI, for sure, kept posting about it too (and that's the kicker isn't it, she could've kept using it in secret and not post it in public, then I would've blissfully assumed she had quit earnestly, but no, she couldn't help herself from posting and gushing about the generated responses the AI bot spat out for her). In the end I ended up blocking her. Probably because of that.

And then when she found out I blocked her she made a Sad™ post lamenting how sad it was when one is blocked by a mutual. And had the gall to say she “used to use character AI” and “used to be on the fence” when that... just wasn't the case, was it? I didn't block her because she used to use AI, it was because she kept persistently and stubbornly using it even after all my repeated warnings. It wasn't that she used to be on the fence about character AI, it's that she routinely refused to heed my very unsubtle (both direct and indirect) warnings over and over that made me fucking snap.

Like, don't make it sound like I blocked you for unreasonable reasons 😭 What else was I supposed to do? I certainly didn't want to keep interacting with someone who betrayed my beliefs.

And then? And then she figured since I wasn't watching her anymore she can do whatever she wants and then went all in on the whole character AI thing. Back to horny-posting about the generic thirst trap daddy archetype responses the blorbo character AI's were generating.

It's my fault, really, for going back to check on her again after a couple days, I should've stuck by my decision to block her forever but nooooo I got soft and wanted to see if I should unblock her after all, if I was too harsh on somebody who was trying but... Welp.

So, yeah. Dunno what brought on this trip down the (horrible) memory lane.

Anyways, if you are an AI apologist or leave your AI apologist friends to keep doing what they do with zero attempts to stop them you may feel free to block me forever and never interact with me or my posts again ✌️

[xerith-42]

There is no normal to return to.

I'm going to return to normal, or as normal as I usually am on this blog. But that won't stop me from talking about this. I have quite a few reblogs and posts queued up to give some important thoughts I had while I was away in regards to... my usual content. But I also still have plenty of posts about Palestine and the ongoing situation, and I'll be doing everything I can to stagger updates on the funny haha block man stuff, and the actually serious stuff.

If there's another strike called for, I will likely participate in it. Maybe this means my content will be inconsistent and kinda... bursty I guess? But I'll take the hit to my usual stuff and just spend more time on it if I have to. I had fun over the winter break, but life is picking back up anyways. I'm not really returning to normal, I'm shifting to a new normal. And talking about this conflict and the ongoing situation will become part of this new normal for as long as it has to.

I was honored to see the kind of reach my words could have, and I appreciated the amount of people who engaged with my content for possibly the first and last time. Depends on if I have more wildly intense thesis' about the situation to share (I probably will). There's always a part of me that wants to resist "getting too political" but then I remember I'm a dyed hair multi pronouned genderfuck with revolutionary ideas like "people should just get to live their lives however they want without the threat of violence, oppression, or actual genocide." Just some crazy wokeist ideology that totally doesn't bleed out from my creative works at all.

Because my experiences with fiction and the real world don't influence each other at all. Not even a little.

I've had quite a few social media accounts become pretty politicized or even start that way unintentionally, mostly because I started social media accounts centered around art. And all art is political. All art is personal. All art is influenced by politics and by people. That's how art always has and always will exist. So I really shouldn't be surprised this would happen when I got onto Tumblr.

I don't mean to suddenly bear my soul and go on some vague esoteric rant about my state of existence in a system of systems designed to harm me placed onto one of many infinite planets capable of creating life in our ever expansive universe, but that's just how I am. That's just how humans are. My spaces are always going to become political because I as a person am politicized. Our world is politicized. We are politicized from the moment of our inception. From the moment that someone becomes aware of our life the decisions made about it are endlessly wrapped up in the collective of politics even if we are but one measly part of that greater or worse collective.

Even something as seemingly unimportant as Minecraft Roleplays are deeply personal and political pieces of art and unique life shaping experiences. Never let someone tell you that you're being "too political" because in our endlessly politicized world, that's like telling someone that they're being "too human". It's not annoying to care. It's not too political to care.

TLDR: Art is political, everything is political, and even if you plan on "returning to normal", know that you should instead adjust what you define as "normal" to include pertinent issues and be ready to adapt to it. People want you to believe that disruptions won't work, but money and numbers talk. Disruptions to core systems of the western society work. Never underestimate that. Maybe you couldn't do a lot for this one, but keep your eyes out for the next one. Set aside a few bucks to donate. Read some of the reports about the ongoing conflict from ethical sources unafraid to speak to the real atrocities. Even little things can add up.

[deedala]

🌿w e e k l y 🍄 t a g 🕯️ w e d n e s d a y🌙

thanks @darlingian for writing this week!! and thanks for tagging me @creepkinginc @energievie @metalheadmickey 💖💖💖

which character from any media would you like to have as a father?: oh hey yeah i am going to have to also say Bob Belcher. He is dad goals.

if money, laws, time, and effort were no object, what animal would you want to have?: im sorry i have a whole entire me and 2 kids to take care of i dont want anything else lmao

what is your Chinese takeout order?: veggie fried rice and veggie egg rolls!

what's your favourite emoji?: omg i dunno uhmmmm 💖 is probably up there!!

would you rather have a library, greenhouse, or home theater in your house?: okay i am a legendary plant killer but i would LOVE to be able to just hang in a greenhouse. thats my vibe. i just cannot be responsible for those plants ok

what childhood tv show do you think of the most fondly?: david the gnome!

what was your tumblr like when you first joined?: for a really long time my tumblr was just my silly little artworks, from like 2011 to late 2014. in 2015 it became more of my dragon age artwork and fandom blog. and then a few years ago i just started reblogging whatever the fuck i wanted. and well now its a whole mess huh. my beloved trash pile.

what clothing style do you love but don't feel compelled to replicate yourself?: cottage core and dark academia

if you were plopped into a fictional world, which one would you know the layout of the best?: Thedas hoo boy

what is your favourite piece of art?: hmmm birth of venus by william-adolphe bouguereau

do you have a water bottle? what does it look like?: aluminum cup with a straw style, its blue and green and has a leaves design on it

what fanfic trope is a quiet fave? uuhhh...i dont know if i have a quiet fav?

do you carry a daily bag? what does it look like? what's the weirdest thing in it?: lately its been an addidas black drawstring bag. i just dug through it and found absolutely nothing un-normal haha?? i guess the most uncommon thing in there might be the epi-pens??

If you had to ship Mickey with another Gallagher, who would it be?: what kind of choice is this?? im going to go ahead and be a cheater and say i BFF ship mickey with debbie

what is a fanfic trope you didn't expect to like and then very much did?: ack...again i dunno?? i just like all the basic things and i dont know enough about the other stuff? maybe i need to try more things that i think sound unfun lol

Do you think s11 Mickey can still carry s11 Ian?: lmao hes so inexplicably swole, yes absolutely

who got custody of the killing bat when they sold the house?: i want debbie to have that, she deserves it.

Okay here's some nuggets who i think might want to play!! @michellemisfit @too-schoolforcool @mickeysgaymom @heymrspatel @gallawitchxx @gardenerian @callivich @juliakayyy @mmmichyyy @jrooc @sam-loves-seb @crossmydna @suzy-queued @tanktopgallavich @lingy910y @transmickey @rereadanon @palepinkgoat @sickness-health-all-that-shit @suchagallabitch @thepupperino @sleepyfacetoughguy @tsuga-of-mars and also you person not tagged you can lie and say i tagged you as always i will corroborate~

[katyspersonal]

How to identify that someone's account is shadowbanned

Okay so, basically? Tumblr is being a real mess with this, but you can help the artists that got nightmare'd like that! Shadowbanning on Tumblr is a very annoying thing that makes your posts not appear in search and recommendations, makes you unable to use DMs (and people can't send you asks the last time I checked, either?), doesn't show your notes to other people etc.

The easiest giveaway is if the person does not have you blocked, but when you hover over their icon, the blog doesn't display any posts:

(Using a person that got shadowbanned as a volunteer because Tumblr hates good art lmao)

Usually when you check their blog, you can see there is no ask or DMs option available, and for further evidence you could check the posts that you know they liked/reblogged. If it doesn't show their notification, it usually further proves they've been shadowbanned (rarer it means they were blocked by OP since they liked/reblogged this post, so this is a bit more vague). Another good evidence is if their post is not showing in Tumblr's search tags - especially if you clearly remember you did see it in the tags previously!

If you reblog the post from a person that got shadowbanned - it will still show up on the dashboard and in blogs, but shadowbanning still seriously robs artists from exposure (and from potential new customers if they sell stuff). My incentive to check whether artist got shadowbanned is usually when there are too little notes considering the quality.. Works almost always + proves my point.

How to help?

If they have left other means to contact them (email, patreon/boosty, twitter, insta, etc) - message them there, explaining the issue! I usually link a good post about Shadowbanning from @that-damn-girl that explains in details what it does and what to do ( x ), TLDR; they need to message Tumblr staff about the issue via in-site function. Explain that their posts do not show up anywhere, they can't use asks and DMs have disappeared, all that. Usually within one week staff explains it was a glitch and apologise, and they can see the difference when DMs are back, posts show up in tags, their notes are visible etc. Sometimes staff might forget to get back upon too many requests, so sending other ticket is also an option.

Some blogs won't have any means to contact them available, so in these cases I have to "get creative" usually. For example, explain them that Tumblr fucked them up in the comments under some post (track this post regularly because, again, their response will not show up in your notes). Or maybe bother their mutual that I have a reason to think has their Discord or other contacts and could pass the message to them. Usually there are SOME ways to inform the person!

Basically - train to identify and undo this shit! It is somewhat easy to spot when you know what signs you're looking for. I have seen SO many artists, especially ones not speaking English native or who migrated from Twitter to have no idea what is going on, and their followers don't know what shadowbanning is either!

___________________

P.S. There is also a rare possible issue (that I have had a misfortune to encounter when I was trying to unban my blog) where they consistently ignore messages from affiliated email. If you feel like that's the case and you have been banned for too long, despite repeatedly sending tickets, try to use another email and explain why you did so. The possibility is very unlikely but as someone who had to deal with this, I just thought it is worth mentioning. Hopefully I was the only "lucky" one like that haha.

[liz-allyn]

how can I get my fics to get attention like yours do? working your ass off and then getting 20 notes sucks. and I’m trying to become a better writer and honestly crave the validation like you get from your followers. hopefully you’ll see this! Obsessed with S&V

Hi my fellow 🖋️!

Thank you so much for your comment, and thank you for thinking so highly of me!

answers for fic writers after the cut

So honestly? I don't know how to get followers. This blog has been running since 2021, and I only started writing fic < 1 year ago. I've become so much more well known (ha) in the TASM fandom because I've hung out here a long time. I don't have a secret to engagement or understand how tumblr 'works' that well (ie the algorithm that social media sites use to decide what to put in front of you). There are still people I freakin' worship on this site who don't interact with my fics at all, haha. AND flip side, some of the best writers I've ever seen are on here and their fics have less than 100 notes. I have learned that persistently I'll look over into other peoples' yards and be like "fuck. how did they get 4K followers?" or like "wow, she just posted this yesterday and it has over 1k notes."

as for working your ass off and getting 20 notes—CAN CONFIRM: that sucks. some fics I wrote for fun. some fics I wrote for the creative challenge. but pretty much on all of them I've left a little piece of me, of my soul and the lessons i've learned in my meandering partial journey. blood on the keyboard. and those fics? the really great ones (or ones just as good as sugar and vice)? they still don't have many notes.

But I will acknowledge that my following dramatically increased when I started posting S&V. I think I had ~900 and that blew up to 1.5k. There are a few factors in this:

Always post fics with fic art (with gifs! if possible) - This is the number one thing that draws me to read fic. I like art that looks cool. I also have been playing around with Canva Pro for 3-4 years (it's my fav) and I'm animation-adjacent as a day job, so pushing myself to think about graphic design has been really good for me. I find it fun to come up with a whole aesthetic for your story, whether it's a mood board or a color scheme (I usually have 'branding' on the brain). If you don't want to play with fic art, at least find an appropriate gif. Use the actor's face. I also think the gif search on Tumblr sucks balls but it's really worth it to have the right gif.

Pay attention to the hashtags of other popular fics in your fandom - when I started paying attention to notes, this was the best advice. I was using all kinds of tags that made sense to me, but weren't effective. In the web version of Tumblr, I can search for a tag and see how many followers it has. It's significant if #peter parker x reader has way more followers than #tasm!peter x reader. Also trends come and go, tumblr has their hotboy of the month and it rotates. there have been months were TASM Peter was non-existent in the last year, and months where we're getting *fed*. Pro tip with tags: I have a separate Google Doc with a list of hashtags that I copy and paste to save time. After a while, you should try reblogging with different hashtags

Use a spelling or grammar checker - I'm not a grammar fac*st but if I open a fic and everything is misspelled, almost no punctuation is used, and I have to work really hard to understand your story, then it's not going to go far. (With respect to writers who post work in English, and it's their second language). I never pay much attention to the occasional misspelling or grammar mistake, but when it looks like you sent your fic via text message or tinder chat, I just can't. I personally use Grammarly, but I also hate it and think it's buggy and overpriced. If anyone else has a better option that works with Google Docs, let me know!

Never write your fics in Tumblr's post editor. That has nothing to do with engagement but that shit is buggy as hell.

Avoid putting too much text up front before the fic. I put author's notes at the end. I try to keep summaries short. I try to focus on what someone absolutely needs to know to understand this fic, and I *mostly* try to avoid apologizing to the reader ahead of time for what they're about to read, for it being too long, for it being weird, bleh bleh bleh

If you're writing a series, make people reblog to be tagged. I've seen lots of people do taglists and then they give up because it's a pain to manage (and it is), plus you have a bunch of people that go "add me to the taglist!" or "next part, when?" and they didn't even reblog what you've already written. I think that's been one of the really big factors behind S&V's success

Make navigation as easy as possible - this is web design 101 (which I flunked repeatedly), but a masterlist is good to have. If you're in a series, a link back to the previous chapter + next chapter is good to have, I've also recently started putting a link back to the masterlist. people that know more things about stuff than me told me that you want to make things as simple as possible for viewers to get from one page to another. (that's why youtube links are shit on tumblr, even videos are meh, but GIFs work so well and attract so much attention). this is a visual site, so big images or headings or links with color help to draw the eye's attention.

Write what you want to write. Because you really need to gain enjoyment from writing, and it should never feel like you're a content factory. Do this 9 out of 10 times. The 10th time, write what people want to read. My first mob fic was These Violet Delights which I thought was so smart, and I was so proud of, and I planned this whole series out for. But also I tag things accurately, and some people (even my moots) are uncomfortable reading about those topics. Then when I started S&V I was extremely self-critical because I didn't want to write something filled with tropes and cliches. And then I sort of got off my soapbox and let S&V be its own thing, full of tropes and cliches, because they're popular for a reason, and they're fun to read, and it's okay to have candy for dinner every once in a while. And I've been able to pivot my plans and create something I'm pretty proud of.

It does help to stay consistent in the fandom you're writing for. Either by writing or reblogging other writers. Just don't make yourself feel like you're a slave to Tumblr and you must stay active at all times f o r e n g a g e m e n t. Everyone should take breaks when they need to.

Don't listen to my advice because no one knows how to hack tumblr. There are some posts that have sooooo many notes and I'm like 'why?' Meanwhile, my heart's been ripped open in LED pixels on screen and sometimes it passes by.

I hope that this was useful! And if not, I'm sorry for the long post. I look forward to reading your fic (whoever you are), and feel free to tag me when you write your next thing!

💜