Publishing has always been a fucking nightmare, but now it’s a layer of hell. It’s not enough that writers be good at what they do. Writers have to maintain an active social media presence and cultivate a following. Be available.
They have to be conventionally attractive enough to look good enough to see on a screen, aesthetically pleasing, kind, funny, up-to-date on trends, socially aware but not so controversial that they turn off a brand from California from slapping their discount code on a video promoting a book.
They have to do all of this with no media training, with little help from the companies that are supposed to be doing this for them.
Of course, a lot of this isn't possible for say, the 40-something mother of two who teaches English at a school and writes on the side. She’s boxed out of an already complex industry that already has enough walls.
On some level, I think authors have always marketed themselves a little, but we’ve reached such a crazy point where we’re demanding the author become the influencer. Accessibility in publishing has narrowed from an inch to a sliver. And that inch was hard enough to get in as is.
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There’s some people on Twitter saying that if Eddie were to have a queer storyline he’d necessarily have to come out as bisexual because otherwise it would be like – and I quote – shitting on Shannon and Chris, and I just wanted to come in here to say that that makes absolutely no fucking sense. I don’t think anyone here has ever doubted the love Eddie has for Shannon, even after her passing. Particularly after 7x05, with the context of the now canon catholic guilt, Eddie being gay (not that I think he’d label himself anyway) would complete a puzzle for him. This man was brought up in a catholic home, with catholic teachings, and I can tell you from experience that most of those schools intervene in every aspect of your life and not just your studies. He has said it himself that the reason he married her was because she was pregnant, which again, is a very common catholic view of life – and I’m not speaking deprecatingly – but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t love her, or his son. Eddie loved Shannon, he would’ve given her life for her, and I also know he never used her as a beard, nor has he done that with Ana or Marisol. He’s never used any of the women in his life, and in fact, he actually broke up with Ana the second he realized his heart wasn’t in it. Eddie Diaz is a good man who’s had to unconsciously and subconsciously hide parts of himself, and even though all we can do is speculate about his sexuality, his coming out as gay would not destroy his family, it would actually only strengthen it, considering he’d be more comfortable being who he is, regardless of who he’s with.
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🌊 wavecrest-confessions Follow
whenever I see someone making fun of the tidelords disappearance I get SO angry. Its just so insensitive to water dragons, and it ALWAYS comes from a wind, earth, or ice dragon. Like I don’t think you have any ground to stand on guys, your deities are still more neglectful than the tidelord and he’s not even here
❄️ ice-ice-baby Follow
Dude your god has been gone for so long his long lost children came back before him
🪨 freshpebble-deactivated
Aren’t you the one who carved your fanart of femboy Icewarden into the side of the pillar.
❄️ ice-ice-baby Follow
???? You’re literally a shade apologist
💫 see-the-stars Follow
HOW ARE THERE SHADE APOLOGISTS ON DRUMBLR IN THIS DAY AND AGE I THOUGHT THEY WERE ONLY ON DRITTER
🍃 riding-high Follow
are we gonna just brush over the femboy icewarden thing
🦅 talonafan2477 Follow
@ see-the-stars the Arcanist is the ORIGINAL shade apologist what are you talking about
🦅 talonafan2477 Follow
btw “ice ice baby” is apart of from clan froststep that has a history of supporting the gaolers during the freezeflash war and thus the destruction of the banescales
🌑 walkingshadows Follow
Yeah but what about the femboy icewarden thing
🔥 its-gettin-hot Follow
you can excuse genocide but draw the line at femboy icewarden?
🌑 walkingshadows Follow
im not drawing the line i just wanna see it myself
🌺 bug-claws Follow
thats fair
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“katara is uptight and gets offended when anyone swears in her vicinity” has gotta be one of the lamest fandom jokes. for what it’s worth, i don’t think any of the atla kids wouldn’t swear out of some naive sense of propriety (with perhaps the exception of azula, because she’s an obedient goody two shoes who thinks coarse speech is for the lower classes), but katara would be one to swear a lot. she definitely swears more than sokka, although she’d also regulate her speech better so as not to offend those around her (especially if she is in the process of sucking up to an adult). sokka would swear just because he’s a grumpy, easily frustrated person whose choice of words reflects his frustration, but katara would swear out of her fundamental sense of rebellion. a deep thrill runs through her every time she says fuck or shit, because she is fourteen and away from the admonishing tongue of gran gran for the first time in her life. katara, toph, and aang are still young enough that saying “bad words” fills them with a sense of excitement over “breaking the rules,” whereas for sokka, zuko, and suki, that novelty wore off a while ago and it’s simply a part of their everyday speech. but while sokka is a teacher’s pet at heart who presents as a misanthropic asshole, katara is a mischievous ne’er-do-well at heart who presents as a beacon of polite decorum whenever she wants to get her way (typical elder vs younger sibling distinction). but you know that when katara is yelling at sokka, pakku, toph, zuko, and every other unfortunate soul who may find themselves on the receiving end of her wrath, she’s cramming in as many “what the fuck is your problem?!”s and “get your shit together!!”s as she possibly can. then again, katara would definitely respond with righteous indignation if toph cursed in front of her, but that’s hardly because katara is offended at toph for saying bad words. rather, it’s simply because she also happens to be. a massive hypocrite.
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Promises
He should know better.
Wolfwood has seen Vash make promises, or hear about the ones he has made in the past. He has also seen the end of each one and how every single time the outcome is less than what was promised.
Vash likes to say embellished words, with a soft and determined voice that lures you into his hopes and dreams, it almost feels like a spell, as if he was calling for you to come closer and believe him. But Wolfwood knows better.
He believes in him, but Vash is much closer to being an idealistic dreamer than a realistic person like he is. He might not be aware of it, but his beautiful promises of a better future give people hope, a hope that is usually embraced with things like disappointment and abandonment.
He doesn’t think that Vash does it with the intent of looking for any of those things. Far from it, he might even do the impossible in order to accomplish said promises, but life is too short and humans are too mortal for his wishes, so in the end, most of Vash’s promises end up being empty or they come to haunt him as a reminder of his failed vows. He admires the man, for his perseverance and idealism, but he also hates the man, for his stubbornness and lies.
Wolfwood knows all of this perfectly to a tee. And yet, he has also found himself being drawn to his world. Because he also dreams of it.
A world in where his always present calls for love and peace exist, a world that is far more kind than what he might deserve, a world in where the kids can be happy and roam around without any worry in their heads, a world in where he can peacefully turn grey with age and his hands can shed the harsh callouses of his life. Who knows, maybe a world in where he and Vash can finally know the peace that was taken away from them, in where they can share the calmness that comes with the passage of time, indulging in every tick of the clock welcoming with open arms whatever comes their way without any fear.
It is a beautiful promise. But Wolfwood is a person that has to keep his feet on the ground, indulging in “what ifs” would only make things harder than what they had to be. He can’t have any ifs if he can’t make it through the now. And by the way he is carrying his present, he is doubtful he will even get to see a shed of that promised world that Vash tries to drag him into. So why mourn something he doesn’t even have, or will ever have for that matter.
He hates the way Vash seems to promise things so easily. His tongue silky and pliant, slipping divine words one after the other, promises way too big for what that barren world can actually fit.
But when Vash talks to him in that holy voice of his, when he hears him say “It’s okay, everything will be alright, I promise” so gently right on his ear, while he holds his face so tenderly making him focus on him and nothing else, he wants to believe him.
He has seen the end of his promises. He knows how impossible they are. But for once, he wants to believe it too. Believe in that loving world that will cradle them both until they fall asleep, listening to the soft sound of the wind laughing while the moons smile upon them.
So he allows himself to indulge in the warmth of his palms, leaning into the comfort of his existence, feeling the soft air of Vash’s breaths against his skin while their foreheads meet in a touch that feels like a hot brand that will melt him.
For an instant, he allows himself to be selfish and believe that maybe, that is how living in that world Vash so desperately fights for would be. Soft and warm, making him feel safe in the hollow of Vash’s hands where the world seems to fit so well. A world where the blue sky is a blanket that covers the love and care that is nestled in it like the one in Vash’s eyes. He wants to see that world.
For now, he will selfishly think that the world that fits in Vash’s hands is right there in where he is holding him, where his blue eyes are drowning in the light of the sunset dripping with love and care while looking at him, that the gentle touch of Vash’s thumb wiping his tears is the same as the kiss of that laughing wind in that distant future, where the smile of his eyes overcomes the smile of the moons.
He should know better. But he loves the thought of that world. And he hopes that Vash will get to see that world, because that gentle sight is more fitting for someone like him than the one of his violent world.
He promises to himself that he will do what it takes for that day to be possible. Even if the end of that promise will be empty for Nicholas, he knows it will be a full one for Vash. So it really isn’t that empty for him after all.
He hates his lies, and he hates how true they sound, but Vash’s embellished words are far sweeter than his bitter thoughts so they feel better on his insides, almost like a balm that cares for the wounds of his throbbing, painful reality.
He should know better.
But aren’t humans weak at the promise of love?
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