#I usually write more freeform than this

[waitineedaname]

i was thinking my little thoughts while falling asleep last night, and a concept occurred to me: what if binghe learned about the system not from shen qingqiu, but from shang qinghua

look, he likes shang qinghua alright. he's pretty disinterested in p much anyone who isn't shen qingqiu, but on the list of People Luo Binghe Tolerates, shang qinghua is relatively high. he gave him advice on wooing sqq, after all, and sqq likes his company, so binghe tolerates his shang-shishu

but the thing is, shang qinghua is a spy. has been for decades. binghe knows this. really, everyone knows this at this point, which isn't a great look for a spy, but still. and since shang qinghua is a spy for mobei-jun, who is a subordinate for luo binghe, then technically shang qinghua is also working for him, but you don't get to the position of demon emperor without a healthy amount of suspicion for everyone in your court

so he decides to test shang qinghua a little bit. nothing major, just a little poking around in his dreams. he starts out with a subtle touch, just sifting through his memories. most of it is what he expected. he sees his time on an ding as a disciple and then later as peak lord, he sees him working for mobei-jun. he sees mobei-jun in some compromising situations, which he files away for later, and then sees him in an entirely different flavor of compromising situations, and binghe immediately decides to act like he never saw that

then he decides to take a more direct approach and starts nudging the dreams in other directions, to see how he might react to certain scenarios, test his loyalty. he expects shang qinghua to act cowardly, or bluff his way through a situaton, maybe even draw his sword if pushed far enough

what he doesn't expect is for shang qinghua to frown at the changes luo binghe made and go "I didn't write it like this"

what

binghe is so bewildered by that response that he loses his grip on the dream for a second, and before he knows it, shang qinghua has spun the dream scenario back into the way the scene originally played out. he steps back and looks satisfied. "there we go," he says. "that's how it went. you know, if I'd known I'd be dealing with this scene myself, I would've written it differently"

what the hell does that mean?

fascinated, luo binghe continues to test him. most of the time, when he toys with someone's dream, they're completely unaware of the changes. shang qinghua, despite not seeming aware that he's lucid dreaming, seems very aware of how each scene should go. except for, strangely, many of the scenes that binghe himself was in. binghe pulls up one from his disciple days, one of the times he remembered shang qinghua coming to qing jing on some errand. he hadn't even changed anything yet, had just let the dream version of his younger self launch himself at shizun in a tacklehug, but shang qinghua tsks and takes the reins from him before he can make any edits. "sorry bing-ge, but that was just way too out of character," shang qinghua says. the dream copy of luo binghe's younger self is sent further away, watching the peak lords with a sullen gaze. he's skinnier than binghe remembers being at this age, and one of his eyes is swollen with a purple bruise. that doesn't make any sense, luo binghe thinks. he hadn't been beaten on qing jing peak for years at this point.

the shen qingqiu beside shang qinghua in the dream stands with his back straight as a ruler, and when his gaze lands on luo binghe, he sneers behind his fan. shang qinghua sighs. "cucumber-bro really wasn't as good of an actor as he thought he was. he's way too soft to ever seem like the original goods."

alarmed, luo binghe dispels the dream and steps out of it entirely. sure, he knows shen qingqiu's personality changed almost overnight when he had that qi deviation. everyone knew that. he avoided questioning it much, unwilling to look a gift horse in the mouth when it meant having a shizun that cared for him

but shang qinghua. shang qinghua seems to know something more about shen qingqiu's personality change. something he's not sharing. luo binghe didn't like the idea that one of his subordinates could be hiding something as vital as this from him

well, this had been a test of his spy's loyalties, hadn't it? perhaps he should make a visit to an ding. he had some questions.

[haevnlii]

how i make aesthetic scripts on (web/pc) google docs.

part 2 <33

~ darlinqsdomain

ignore typos i give up.

Last time, i did a lil tut on bundling/mixing images for an aesthetic doc — this post, i wanted to do tables (as i promised) but i'm also going to try fit in a second part to mixing images.

tables are super easy to deal with, on pc at least - but again mobile gd doesn't allow you to organise tables like web version does.

O1 / hiding one coloumn or row of a table / invisible tables.

this is super simple to do. just start with adding your table, obviously.

if you don't know how to do it, go to insert > table > select desired amount of rows/coloumns:

tables, when you add them, don't allow you to write in an empty space beside the table — you'd have to add another coloum to the side of the table you're writing on, and for the sake of the aesthetic ;; you'd probably want it to look invisible.

to do this, just select the line/border of the table you'd like invisible, then go to border width > 0px. (this is better than changing the colour to match the background, personally)

if you have for whatever reason have a lot to make invisible (or only want one border visible), you can just right click the table/table border > table properties > colour > change the px to 0. then from there, just changethe borders you want to your ideal size/colour. :)

and this can work however you like:

notes

Layering images on tables is super tricky. Sometimes using "in front of" or "behind text" options in a way "glues" them to the table ;; it's super hard to remove. It's easier to do on top corners. Bottom corners just extend the table's length unnecessarily depending on the case — but if your text fills in the extra space, you can still try. That said, it cannot go on the exact corners, GD fixes it to be inside the table.

You can have different sizes and shapes for each border. I like doing this for a paper/receipt type aesthetic sometimes 😭✨ The setting is beside the border size option (border dash)

You can change the background of the table by going to the table properties > colour. It changes the colour for one cell at a time so, if you have multiple cells (sections of the border) ... uh, have fun with that..?

You can now (carefully) decorate your tables however you want. You can add images beside them but be careful to not have GD fucking CLIP THEM TO THE TABLE MY FUCKING GOD-

but yea there's not much to say on it? it's a simple process ...

example from my hr script <3

O2 / bundling images 2.0

OKOKOKOK so now that that's out of the way, i want to do a continuation on the bundling images. you can do this to make any aesthetic you want. personally, i like to make gifs, personal "cutout" png images, etc. and layer them to have that collage bullet journal type aesthetic? 😭✨ it's time consuming to make it super pretty in the end, so if you like putting unnecessary effort into your scripts like i do, go all out.

examples ///

all of these are completely separate pngs and backgrounds bundled and layered with other pictures. you have to be careful with which setting (behind text/front of text/wrap text/break text) you use as putting "behind text" makes the image harder to select. i suggest putting "in front of text" for pictures you'd likely move more / pictures that should be on top of all the other ones.

if you're on windows... i use snip & sketch. i find the picture i want, then change the setting to "freeform snip" - this allows you to have the kind of cut-out paper look? as seen in the corners of my pictures above.

just zoom in (for better quality) on the pic then snip it to your desired shape.

and when you do, it'll come out as that - if you want, you can crop out the unnecessary bits if you accidentally got some in the snip. then you can add them to google docs as desired.

personally, these pictures go on the bottom of all the others as backgrounds / addons. so i usually use "wrap text" or "behind text". that said, i also advise you crop it (on google docs) to that there's space to select and move it, if you have too many images overlapping it. this makes it easier than moving every single image out of place to get to it.

to do this - again - just double click the image then crop it way out of its actual size until there's a piece outside all the other images you can just click to move it. not advised for the images using "wrap text" setting unless you intend to have it affect the text. 😭✨

help for this is in my last post (link is in the top of the post) but you can just go crazy with it now. 😭✨

notes

i use background removers (remove.bg especially)

pinterest is your best friend for these - keywords are tricky to use. personally, i use "minimalist tattoos", "chinese post bullet journal stickers", and just keep clikcing on images and going to similar ones until i get to the ones i want. why chinese? idk either but it just gets me where i want 😭😭

if you want to use circular, square, etc. - wrapped text (like this:)

i use mockofun !

for like- some of the text, though, i just make a random page in the doc, write it how i want, ss it then go the my bg remover - and then go back to my doc with it. yea...

and uh yea. im bad at explaining // 😭 please ask for clarification if you need it because i feel like i wasn't being very clear here.

to finish off-

additional keywords i use:

mail bullet journal stickers

(insert bug/thing you want) aesthetic

[optional description] washi tape [bullet journal/aesthetic]

[optional description] border [aesthetic]

[autumnslance]

Hi! I’ve been trying to make an introductory post for my WoL, but when I tried doing so freeform it ended up overly long and full of rambling. I’ve searched for templates all over the internet, but the only ones I can find are in the general style of D&D character sheets that include irrelevant information about stats while not properly dedicating space to the actual character traits. I saw the format you used for your OCs, and it seems to be about what I’m looking for. Is there any chance you could provide a blank template along those lines for me and others who might have the same problem?

Funnily, while I keep them all similar, I didn't have a template before now. Also reminds me I need to do some updating and revision on my own OCs, it's been awhile and they can use a refresh for character and plot updates.

I recommend making static pages over posts; easier to track and edit. I am a stickler for organization, so keep my pinned post to the bare basics with links to the profiles and other pages, to keep from stretching the post to a mile long, in part, and to keep the info where it's easily read and relevant. Also because mobile app view won't show one's theme and links, and the pinned post is more likely to be seen and accessible than a sidebar or menu.

I have tutorials on how to set a custom theme (and access full blog features) as well as how to create those static blog pages. Tumblr may have made some updates since, but the gist is the same, and the Help pages have newer details if necessary.

I do urge keeping colors and format simple, accessible, and reader friendly, including screen reader friendly. A row of asterisks or tildes as a separator line are usually individually read out by screen readers, as is the code used to make those fancy hard-to-read gothic letters folks use for "aesthetics." In a lot of my profiles, I split sections with images of the character (which should also use alt text if we're trying to be kind and inclusive, and it's to the point of a profile page anyway).

I think I will put the intro and template here in the post under a cut, and then in a Reply Comment add a link to the Google Doc version, cuz of how Tumblr is about external links. An actual blank copy-pasta is on the GDoc, what's below has some thought processes for each section for guidance.

This a pretty modular template, that can be added to or subtracted from as needed. Move descriptive blocks around as they seem more or less relevant for your OC, substitute things that make sense over things that don’t; this is just a starting point!

I see these as broad strokes; a quick introduction and general overview of your character, meant to give an at-a-glance idea of who they are. It’s handy for other writers and artists, and even oneself for keeping track of some details. I recommend practicing succinct writing here; these blocks should each stay between 100-300 words or thereabouts. Use links to other pages and tags to point toward longer details and stories (and keep them handy for yourself!). It also makes it much easier when you want to revise things when characterization marches forward, or if you want to retcon something entirely.

But these are all just my opinions and ideas on how I approach OC profiles after making them in some form or another for about a quarter century. Make it as long or short as it needs to be, change it up, go nuts, I ain’t your mom, and so on 😉

-

Statistics: The basics; barebones, at-a-glance stat blocks, handy for quick reference. Can be added to or shortened as needed. If a stat starts to word wrap on a standard screen, trim it and move that extra detail to the “Description” paragraph below the list.

Race: (for FF14 fantasy possibilities) Nationality: (or Ethnicity, whatever works. Where are they from, as that helps shape them?) Height: (both feet/inches and centimeters are handy here) Eyes: Build: (I prefer this to weight, as that’s ridiculously variable depending on one’s build, which is more important visually anyway; are they broad, stocky, skinny, muscular, stringy, etc) Hair: (color, type, texture, preferred lengths and styling) Skin: (sometimes I fold scars into here, if there’s nothing too outstanding) Scars: Voice: (how do they sound?) Nameday: Age: (depends on your personal timeline for your OCs, but I recommend an age range over specifics; mid-20s, 25-35, late teens, a little over a century, etc. Less updating and fits with the handwaved time bubble anyway) Disciplines: (what are their main job[s]? The adventuring or professional skills they’ve learned?) Hobbies: Birthplace: Current Home: Occupation: (Their actual day job, different from or part of their disciplines?) Signature Items: (A particular weapon? A piece of jewelry? Always wear a specific coat?)

Description: A very short "immediate impressions" type description; what would someone "on the street" see when meeting/looking at your character on a typical day? Taking some of the info from the stats but then how you want those barebone facts to be seen; is the OC elegant, or rough? Expensive clothes or simple attire? Any particular smells, or sounds? I recommend around 100 words.

Biography: Very brief, general overview of the backstory that led them to the point where they become a story protagonist (adventurer, the WoL, or other roleplay archetype). Don't have to go into great detail, keep it short and simple; it's a blurb that sets up how they got here in broad strokes. I think my longest bio is around 300 words, and it probably shouldn’t go over that here.

To get more details, one can always link to specific stories, or to a tag. I have multiple OCs, so I might make my tags something like "Aeryn Backstory" or "Iyna Lore" or "Punchy History" or some combo thereof (I usually try to keep them consistent though for ease).

Persona: What face do they present to the world? How are they perceived by the public, acquaintances, coworkers, family, actual friends? Some of these answers will be the same, some may change depending on if and how they code switch in various social situations.

From there, what lies underneath the surface? What are some general internal attitudes, traits, feelings?

A hundred words for outward demeanor and another one hundred for innermost self ought to cover the general broad strokes.

Romance: If so inclined, details about the OC's relationship details; sexual and romantic orientations, relationship history, current situations, how they view and approach intimacy (or not!).

Links to relationship tags or stories or art can work well here, too.

Echo: Does the OC have an Echo at all? Is it a "typical" Echo, or do they have some special abilities, some things they're better at than others? How does it affect them, how do they feel about it?

This is another section that may be a free space section to remove or swap to something else relevant to the character.

Hobbies: The stuff outside of work and heroics. Ways they relax, special interests, side jobs, things they enjoy, and so on. This can be an expansion of the listing in the stat block, or you can cut out one or the other to avoid redundancy.

Companions: What’s their chocobo like, or do they have another favored mount? What pet(s) do they have? Are they practically a Disney Princess? Have a familiar? Do they prefer arcane entities? Technological constructs? Or do they eschew companions entirely?

How to find the OC in game: This is where I list things like realm and data center, and addresses for the FC house and personal house or apartment. Not necessary if you don't want folks to go looking.

Links: The links can be scattered through the post in relevant sections, or gathered together here. I tend to put my basic tag for the character, if I have an aesthetic tag for them, their story tags, any links to art references or other miscellaneous items I want easily found for myself and others. I often put this close to the top if a profile is longer and I want those links to be quick referenced.

OOC: Any particular notes one wants to make about the character from a meta perspective. Can also be combined with the Links.

[ithaquasbbg]

Just thought I’d dump this to give people a better understanding of my writing! This was really inspired by @/turbulentscrawl (I don’t know if tagging is fine with them, but I’ll link the original work below!!) after this I’ll get back to requests!

Original work linked here

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Oletus manor - General Headcanons

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Tw : none

Extra : I’ve been doing a lot of fun writing on Freeform topics recently, and have gotten some fics to 3,000 words. Perhaps I’ll share them here someday.

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|🩷| The size of the manor can be quite shocking to people. It appears large on the outside, yes, but not large enough to house over 40 residents. (I think the total is currently 43 at the time I’m writing this?). Inside, there’s some sort of reality warping magic going on (for lack of a better word) that allows the manor to extend as much as it may need to inside without it expanding on the outside.

|🩷| Hunters and survivors do reside in the same manor, but are divided into two separate wings.

|🩷| The east side houses the Survivors rooms, a gathering area, kitchen and dining area among other necessities. This side of the manor is significantly larger and more tedious to get around due to the amount of residents.

|🩷| The hunters side of the manor has all the same basic elements with a smaller size. Though they may have slightly larger rooms.

|🩷| Dual faction residents can choose between which side of the manor they would prefer their room to be in.

|🩷| In the center of the manor is a large shared space, including yet another kitchen and dining area, a ballroom, the garden and a large gathering area among others.

|🩷| Outside of matches, the survivors do not have their doll like appearances. The reason they look like dolls in matches is simply because it’s easier to repair a doll than to heal serious injuries on a person.

|🩷| I’d like to say that the hunters appear more human outside of matches. There’s no real reason for this, other than the fact that I doubt anybody is going to date a giant talking lizard (.. if you are I’m a little afraid /j)

|🩷| There are long periods of time without matches, sometimes there’s matches daily, while other times the residents can go weeks or even months without matches. They’re randomly selected as well.

|🩷| The manor has people from varying times in history, and each residents room reflects the time they were alive. Say there was a modern era resident, they may have electronics in their room! The rest of the manor could theoretically be updated with more modern items as well, but any updates are usually kept to the kitchens and bathrooms. (Televisions may scare the older era residents too much.. Ithaqua)

|🩷| The showers are heated by several water heaters but are unfortunately not unlimited. Because of this, there are instances where the hot water will run out, and arguments ensue.

|🩷| The weather is typically predictable and can provide the residents a sense of time they may otherwise lose track of. There is no threat of serious weather like tornadoes, but the storms can still get quite violent and unnerving for some of the residents.

|🩷| Injuries sustained during matches do not carry over to the survivors or hunters real bodies (hence the dolls!!) but all the pain that they feel during the matches is very much real.

|🩷| Unfortunately, the manor residents do get sick from time to time. This mostly occurs when a new resident joins the manor, as most peoples immunity cannot protect them from the diseases. But they are unable to die from them.

|🩷| Survivors and hunters can access the match locations when matches are not taking place (for example they can play at moonlight river park)

|🩷| Since everyone is going to stuck together for an indefinite amount of time, relationships do form.

|🩷| Survivors who had health conditions or disabilities before coming to the manor do still suffer from them in the manor (but in cases like Joseph’s, the mental effects of mercury poisoning are not as prominent, and they are left with the physical effects like tremors, weakness, ect.)

|🩷| Some npcs are also in the manor (the ones that lore has confirmed, like miles, or the ones that have been dragged in through costumes like Nathaniel. Im really desperate)

|🩷| Food items and other necessities such as hygiene products are refilled or restocked whenever needed.

|🩷| Each room comes with decorations of the residents preference, and also has a small bathroom with a shower or bath inside. This way, people don’t have to share showers.

|🩷| Wardrobes are not limited to just in game skins, but they are included in them. Casual and sleepwear is also included!

|🩷| Skins from other franchises are debatable. If the skin is still the original character (like Joseph and Emma’s hello Kitty crossover skins), then they are part of the residents wardrobe. But if they’re another character outside of the manor residents, it is only cosmetic (same goes with truth and inference)

|🩷| Same goes for skins from other universes, like Coa or Morningstar essences, for example. Once costumes where a character is reverted back to childhood don’t translate either, like blind spot. But if they’re adults in their once skins, they can translate and have effects on the mental status of the wearer, such as Joseph’s hangover skin

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….THIS WAS SO LONG- but I do enjoy dumping Headcanons down, and maybe you all will enjoy them as well.

[this-is-krikkit]

Hey Sunshine 💕

You can't imagine how sorry I am that you lost all these gems you wrote 😭 Fate as deprived us of so many amazing Levihan fics & kisses 🥺 I really hope there's a way to get them back 🤞🍀

Seeing the last prompt list you reblogged (soft fic) I couldn't resist requesting 26 Pyjamas for Levihan or Erurihan because of the headcanons we talked about the other day based on this beautiful fanart 😉

I hope writing something new will cheer you up a bit!

Sending love & hugs 💕🫂

hey Val ♥️ as you know, i did get my wips back!! your good luck wishes seem to have worked haha

thank you for sending me one of these soft prompts. inspiration took a while to come for this one, but then i stumbled upon this post:

and i knew i had your fic. hope you enjoy! ♥️

The Momentum Principle (read on ao3)

Words: 2566 Fandom: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Levi Ackerman & Hange Zoë, Levi Ackerman/Hange Zoë, Levi Ackerman & Nanaba & Erwin Smith & Mike Zacharias & Hange Zoë Characters: Hange Zoë, Levi Ackerman, Erwin Smith, Mike Zacharias, Nanaba (Shingeki no Kyojin) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - College/University, Best Friends, Unrequited Crush, Canon Non-Binary Character, They/Them Pronouns for Hange Zoë, SNK Veterans - Freeform, and they were ROOMMATES, (oh my god they were roommates), no beta we die like that vine ref SIKE IT'LL NEVER DIE, pretentious titling because that's how i roll

Summary: Studies show that staying awake for over twenty-four hours has similar effects on the human brain as having a bloodstream concentration of alcohol way over legal limits. Biology major Hange Zoë is aware of that fact. Sadly, they’re also aware that there are finals to pass, and not enough hours in a day to study for them.

Hange frowned at the page before their eyes and clicked the table lamp off and back on, ignoring the annoyed stares the repeated and ineffective gesture got them from the students around –served them all right anyway, they mused, when they’d all been regularly stealing Hange glances they didn’t even bother to try and make discreet all morning. But something other than being ogled at like a circus freak was making it hard to decipher the words in front of them, though they couldn’t put their finger on what exactly. The world around them had been seeming especially bleak lately and even more so today, which wasn’t unusual during the intense studying marathons they famously put themself through with finals drawing near, but they couldn’t recall a time where it had actually impacted their already damaged eyesight; and the persistent, pulsing ache tracing along their temples sure wasn’t helping.

The most rational part of their brain offered stress and weariness as culprits, and Hange had to admit they couldn’t easily dismiss either of those. The cramming schedule they’d been imposing on themself may have gotten a little out of hand in the last couple of weeks, so much so Hange couldn’t even remember the last time they’d set foot in the living room to share homemade dinners or play board games with their four roommates like they usually would during cold winter evenings. They hadn’t even partook in early morning idle chitchat or occasional evening drinks on their way home from the campus library, not when they’d been consistently arriving right on opening time –they’d been pulling all nighters more often than not, anyway, and felt too restless to stay home and wait for the others to get ready– and had become the last student to leave it at night.

Hange closed their eyes for a minute as they let their head fall forward, rolling their neck and shoulders and relishing in the satisfying crack their muscles and tendons sighed out at the stretch. If only their brain could gain knowledge through osmosis via that simple contact between their forehead and over-highlighted textbook; if information were to be solutes, then, considering how little they’d efficiently memorized lately, it would flow right inside their lowly concentrated head without a doubt. They smiled at that absurd reflection, giddy with the realization that hey, they’d apparently managed to remember some things from those hellish Introduction to Fluid Mechanics lectures.

That unexpected sense of comfort was short lived, however, when they were hit with a wave of the increasingly familiar nausea their self inflicted sleep deprivation never failed to bring. Hange opened their eyes to fight the dizziness and took deep breathes in and out, silently counting up the right inhale to exhale ratio –simultaneously urging their body to hold up for a little while longer.

Two weeks, they pleaded. Just two more weeks and I can take a break.

Seven long sleepless days and nights of tensed cramming, followed by a week of nerve-wracking and hopefully mostly accurate square ticking in reply to more often than not purposefully confusingly phrased questions, and then they’d be free to hang out with their friends and be a, well, not exactly normal, but close to normal young adult again.

But the thought saddened more than it motivated them, and they had to consciously stop themself from looking around to see if they could spot any of the three blondes they’d come to think of as family. Erwin, Nanaba and Mike all had similar exams to take soon and the spacious library had filled in by whatever time it was now, so they would no doubt be within these four walls. Sundays usually involved morning revising, followed by strictlynon-academic plans everyone would have previously agreed onfor their common weekly afternoon off.

Hange winced at the pang of loneliness they felt when they realized they actually had no idea what their closest friends would be up to later. It only got worse when they remembered that Levi, who they’d been trying not to focus any thoughts on as those were proving more and more distracting these past few months, hadn’t tried to coax them into coming along this weekend like he’d done since they’d started studying more intensely. Hange had noticed Erwin’s surprised glances and Mike and Nanaba’s barely disguised teasing laughs when he’d started doing it, and they couldn’t really blame any of them –after all, that initiative from Levi had been a drastic switch from their previously established social roles.

Lost in memories of Levi’s techniques to get them to go out, which had mostly consisted of an association of almost threats and intense glaring until they would caved –which they hadn’t, amazingly– it took them a minute to notice the hand upon their right shoulder.

“Get up,” a familiar voice whispered up close, startling them.

Shit. Think of the devil.

Levi had also been pestering them about taking an actual break, on top of the Sunday festivities they’d been avoiding, but up until now their shared roommates had acted as enough of a buffer that Hange had been able to pretend they hadn’t noticed his nagging messages in the groupchat or pointed stares near the laundry machine.

“I’m fine right here,” they said cheerfully, pretending to focus on their textbook again and turning the page they’d been staring for a while without managing to actually read a word of it.

They weren’t sure they could get up, really, not without betraying their exhausted state to their closest friend and having to admit just how shitty they’d been at taking care of themself lately.

They swallowed back a shocked yelp as hands seized them up and pulled them to their feet anyway, and they caught themself on the table at the last moment to prevent the inevitable fall that would await them if they really were to put all their weight on their knees right now.

“What are you doing?” they asked through gritted teeth, unable to glare back at him as the head rush made dark spots dance in front of their eyes. “Let me go, I need to study.”

Levi wordlessly –and annoyingly easily– tore them away from their spot, half carrying them until they were both standing in front of one of the nearby arch windows. Hange muffled their protesting squeals out of some remnant of respect for the nosy judgmental students around, even though they knew Levi’s powerful glaring would probably prevent any of them from protesting at the noise of their struggling in the otherwise religiously quiet space.

And then they looked up and caught sight of their reflection.

And shamefully realized they could have given their curious peers the benefit of the doubt and hypothesized there might have been a valid reason behind all the curious looks they’d been getting all morning.

Hange was wearing their long sleeved purple octopus pajama top, the buttons ridiculously mismatched, with unmatched green cat-patterned pajamas bottoms –that they realized with a quiet gasp were probably Levi’s and not theirs, now that they were noticing the pants ended well above their ankles. There wasn’t one but two hair ties failing to hold their greasy matted hair up and away from their face, and their goggle-shaped sunglasses were hanging crooked on their nose with the rubber band twisted on both their temples –which finally explained part of their lingering headache, and why it was so challenging to read.

“What you need is to go home, Four Eyes.”

Tears sprung to their eyes before they could stop them, and for a minute they only stared at their shiny mirror image in quiet puzzlement. These weren’t tears of shame even if, as used as they were to being unconventional and to other people’s reaction to their self expression, this accidental pajama-in-public incident was definitely an all time new low for them. Exhaustion could have played a role, and the dark circles under their eyes as well as their paler than ever complexion easily spelled it out for them.

But mostly, Hange felt guilty. Levi had tried to mask it, but his voice had wavered over his own nickname for them, like he felt pained at seeing them in this state, and he couldn’t quite meet their eyes when that was his main tool to get anyone to comply to his requests.

“I don’t think I can,” they replied honestly.

His now openly worried gaze finally met theirs in the glass in front of them and he frowned, opening his mouth to object.

But Hange shook their head slowly in defeat.

They weren’t arguing with him, they were simply stating a truth.

They knew they must have taken the bus to get here, but they honestly couldn’t remember any part of the journey –hell, they couldn’t even remember putting shoes on, although they were glad they’d thought of that at least. They didn’t think they had a key to the apartment on them, as they usually resided in the deep pocket of the wool coat they’d forgotten to put on even before going out in this freezing winter weather. And practical issues asides, they didn’t actually trust themself to actually make it home in one piece right now, not even in the middle of a bright busy morning in the city and to their place that really wasn’t that far off campus.

Levi narrowed his eyes at them before nodding once, sharp.

“Wait outside. I’ll meet you in five.”

But Hange stood there, equally confused and chagrined at his statement. Was he going to go home with them? No, that wouldn’t do.

Levi had his own finals to study for, Hange couldn’t impose on him like that because they’d been stupid enough to push themself past their limit. They would simply have to endure a couple more hours of trying not to pass out at their seat until noon came around and all of their roommates went home anyway, to tag along without disrupting anyone’s schedule in the process.

Levi’s hands squeezed at their shoulders firmly, and his stare hardened in the window as if he could hear them reaching that conclusion.

Then he let go but didn’t move too far, seemingly unsure if Hange could actually stand by themself.

They rolled their eyes fondly, and –precociously– turned around, sporting what they hoped looked like a gentle smile and not a maniac grin –Levi’s expression remained stubbornly set, so they couldn’t tell either way– before moving carefully towards the door. They tried their hardest not to stumble on the way, and coughed to mask their giggling when they failed and almost tripped on their own feet.

Levi met them at the back exit of the building with their backpack and his own stuff shortly, and Hange didn’t bother trying to hide that they’d nearly fallen asleep on the stairs in the few minutes they’d been apart.

He frowned as they yawned without putting their hands to their mouth, but uncharacteristically didn’t comment on it as he grabbed their elbow to direct them towards an unknown car a few feet away.

They dug their heels in the sidewalk when they realized he’d ordered a paying ride for them.

“Wait, Levi, there’s no need for that. The bus–

“Won’t be here for another twenty minutes,” he interrupted. “You’re not passing out in the streets again, not under my watch.”

They recognized his clipped tone as the one that didn’t suffer any kind of discussion, even as he mentioned that party a month ago. Hange sighed inwardly, but followed his steps –they were way too tired to fight him anymore.

“What, like you’d get worried?” they still teased –they were exhausted, not dead. No way in hell would they miss an occasion to needle their favorite neat freak.

Levi snorted, and had Hange been less asleep on their feet, they’d have felt proud that they’d managed to get that sound out of him.

“I’d worry about my back, for one. I don’t want to know what carrying your unconscious ass home twice would do to it.”

“Hey, not fair!” They whined in protest, missing their target completely when they tried to playfully slap his arm. “I was at least ten pounds heavier then! And besides, Mike did most of the carrying, didn’t he?”

Hange couldn’t remember much from that night, but the rumor –in the form of Erwin and Nanaba’s recollection of the evening as they’d told it to them the following day, anyway– had Levi so worried about them passing out drunk he’d been too restlessly anxious to carry them himself, and had instead covered them in all of their friends’ coats, shoving their unconscious body in Mike’s strong arms, and then proceeding to walk beside him to closely monitor their breathing and that they wouldn’t choke on their own tongue or surprise vomit.

Hange only recalled waking up propped against multiple pillows with a pounding head and a grumpy –well, grumpier than usual– and sleep-deprived Levi who had shoved a glass of water in their shaky hand and scolded them about their alcohol consumption for the next half hour or so. It had then taken them drinking and keeping down a whole liter of diverse hydrating fluids before he’d finally left them alone to go and nurse his own hangover, and it was only after he’d left that Hange had noticed the newfound tidiness of their room and how the purple fatboy that would normally lay forgotten in a corner of the room –and under a pile of questioningly clean clothes and textbooks– had been pushed right next to their bed with a possibly Levi-shaped indentation in it.

Levi didn’t answer their rhetorical question, instead stopping in his tracks and giving them a clinical once over.

“What?” they prompted, barely resisting the urge to cross their arms to hide themself from his examination.

“Nothing,” he replied quickly, averting his eyes and opening the car door for them.

He muttered something under his breath still, and Hange’s ears caught a few words that sounded suspiciously like end up disappearing if you keep this up.

He greeted the driver and confirmed his identity as Hange plopped down with a relieved groan, and didn’t miss the concerned look Levi shot them as he sat next to them. His hand slid down from where it was still gripping their elbow to rest gently on their forearm as the car started, and they could swear he gave it a small, awkward but infinitely soft couple of comforting pats.

Hange boldly took advantage of this atypically lengthy physical contact, and moved so they could slide their hands together almost nonchalantly –almost, because they nearly faltered when Levi’s neck snapped to stare at their fingers in awe.

Hange smiled as naturally as they could to try and ease the shock from his features.

“I’ll pay you back for the ride,” they promised, squeezing his hand once.

They let him go after that. It wouldn’t do for their most introverted friend who was making sure they were getting safely home to get a brain aneurysm from their unexpected and possibly unwanted touches, after all.

“Tch. You better,” he grunted, moving his hand back to his lap immediately.

They couldn’t help but smile again when they took note that his tone wasn’t nearly as biting as they knew it could be.

[asterkiss]

Random MaBill set in Reverse Falls - a freeform drabble with a twist on reverse!Bill. I really wanna write something substantial for this AU verrsion:-

-SUPERNOVA

Mabel Gleeful was a Supernova. A beautiful star exploding with a brightness a billion times stronger than the sun, and with enough energy to outlast the entire galaxy. One couldn't help but be captivated by the beauty even as the force of the explosion caused only burning pain and destruction.

Bill had been unable to look away from the moment they first met.

"I'm Mabel, but you can just call me the girl of your dreams~ Everyone else does."

He was utterly enraptured. The demon would do anything for her.

And he did. No matter how cruel or vindictive. No matter how many people were caught and hurt in the tide of his supernova.

It was all for the beautiful awaited end.

>

'Hey, is there anything you would say "no" to, if I asked?'

Bill glanced down at the girl sat before him. They were in her dressing room prepping for a show, the brunette seated at a dresser as he ran a brush through long locks of hair.

He met the reflection of her gaze in the mirror, her piercing blue eyes drilling through him, face impassive. She often said things out of the blue with the intention of catching others off guard.

His grip on the hairbrush tightened as he pressed his lips tightly together.

'There is.'

She tilted her head, gaze burning with the intensity of an exploding star. His skin prickled beneath the crushing weight of it.

'Oooh?' she asked, lips twitching into a wry grin. Tell me.

'I won't leave you,' he said, expression stone-faced. 'If you ask me to, I'll refuse.'

She giggled, amusement dancing in her eyes. 'That's it? You'd do anything else, though? What if I asked you to, I dunno, kill yourself?'

'If it was your wish, then gladly.'

Her smile wilted slightly. She didn't look amused anymore. After a moment the teenager abruptly stood upright, turning on high heels to peer down at him. Ice-like eyes scrutnised his face.

'And what if I asked you to kill me? Would you do it?'

Bill regarded her with a neutral face for several tense seconds before something shifted in his gaze, and his lips twitched slightly. 'Do you know what supernovas are?'

Mabel frowned, sensing the change in atmosphere as a wariness entered her vision. 'Yeah, of course I do,' she replied curtly. 'They're stars.'

'Dying stars,' Bill corrected, twirling the hairbrush in his hands. 'They happen when a star reaches its last stages of life, whose dramatic and catastrophic destruction is marked by one final explosion as it collapses in on itself.'

Her gaze hardened, the temperature in the room dropping several degrees as the gem in her hair piece began to glow.

'What are you trying to say, Bill?' she asked, voice laced with a dangerous warning tone.

He smiled brightly, amber eyes burning to combat her frigid gaze. 'I've been around a long time, and have seen the collapse of millions of stars in my time. But I think you will be the greatest and most beautiful of all, and I fully intend on keeping a front row seat until that time.'

Mabel's face twisted into one of disgust and shock. That made sense, he usually acted much more docile.

The demon narrowly avoided a knife embedding itself in his skull as it flew across the room with impressive speed. He chuckled when she grabbed him, fist twisting in the material of his shirt as she swung at at him in aggravation. Then she began to yell. 'Dipper! Come here-!'

Ah, ah, that wouldn't do.

He snapped his fingers, sighing as he regarded the frozen form of Mabel Gleeful glowering down at him. Oops. He'd gotten a bit too chatty, hadn't he? How was this going to work out if he laid all his cards on the table so early?

'Welp, time to rewind a bit.'

Then:

'Hey, is there anything you would say "no" to, if I asked?' Mabel regarded him through the mirror reflection, seated at the dresser once again.

Bill returned her gaze with a smile. 'If you were to ask if I thought of you as anything other than drop-dead gorgeous, I would have to say absolutely not.'

Her face split into a coy smile. 'Well, duh. I'm the most beautiful girl in town.'

'I would argue the world.'

'Flattery won't get you out of chores.'

[captain-mj]

Hello :]]

I was wondering if you do have any basic tips for ao3 use? :o

I saw ur other post and thought I’d ask, I’m pretty new to using for posting fics so if you have any advice it be very appreciated!! :DD

Remembered this ask and rushed to finally answer it!

For Posting

There is no algorithm. I see people talk about an algorithm occasionally, there is none! If you post at certain times, you may possibly get more attention because more people are on at that time, but there is no pushing. Just tag everything appropriately and you'll find your audience.

Do not advertise things on there. I don't mean you can't mention your socials on the author's notes, I'm saying you can't do paid advertisements, talking about your patreon, gofundme, etc. If it mentions money, don't. There are legal reasons for this, it's to protect the archive.

Placeholders are not useful!! You're more likely to get banned or reported than anything else!

For the descriptions, if you figure it out please tell me ;-:

It's better to over tag than under tag, also I'd try to use the premade tags first! freeform (usually lowercase and it doesn't autofill) are harder to search by.

This is my wife's suggestion. If you want to build an audience of people who recognize you over different fics, really recommend having a consistent style. Not posting schedule, though that can certainly be helpful, but style. Something about what you do is consistent enough people recognize you.

You love someone's work?? You write something based on something they wrote (with permission), write something for a friend or even just write something with someone in mind? You can gift them the work! It's still yours of course, but their name is attached and they'll see on their profile.

I don't know if this is still the case, but there used to be a problem where fics that were in collections could be made private by the collector. I'd be very wary of collection requests.

For Reading

Ao3 is an archive, not a social media. The reason I’m saying this is because you’ll find material that might make you go “That should be illegal to write about it”. You may think to yourself “I should report that! It’s awful!” And while sometimes it is deplorable! , it is rarely going to get taken down. The reason I put so much emphasis on this is people try to treat it like wattpad or tumblr. You can’t. It is not a social media.

Just like you can exclude tags, you can include them! Really recommend adding them to get what you’re looking for :)

Dead Dove Do Not Eat is not always a bad thing. Most of the time, it’s a tag intensifier. My recommendation is to look through the tags a second time, ask yourself if you really think it’ll be something you’re interested in, then continue if you want.

I always sort by most recently posted but there are other options! I think the default is most notes

Check out an author if you really like their stuff! I've found some really great fics this way.

[guppygiggles]

⚠️ MINORS and no-age blogs DNI ⚠️

I make intimate and romantic content that is not intended for children. If you don't have your age in your bio or pinned, I will block you. Just because I don't make sexual/graphic/explicit content does not mean my content is child-friendly.

Also -- and I can't even believe I have to say this -- do not reblog my art with any language that promotes incest or ships involving minors.

Hello! I'm Casper. I make tickling art and fics featuring my OCs and my friends' OCs.

My three main OCs are Avery Nimbus, Casper Reid, and Finnegan Reed. Here's an art piece featuring the three of them together!

I also have a sideblog for sneezing, which is here. Please be aware that my snz blog contains suggestive and NSFW content that is not tagged consistently.

Tag Directory

#fluffyart - my art

#fluffychatter - my text posts

#notfluffytickles - block this tag if you don't want to see my vent art. Even when I use this tag, I always put art that is scary, sad, or strange under a cut, just in case.

#fluffyspice - sometimes, the art I make between Casper and Avery is more on the suggestive side. This might involve one or both of them being shirtless, kisses on tickle spots, expressions of pleasure from being tickled, hypnosis, or suggestive language. When I use this tag, I will also state in the tags why I have used it. I will not use this tag for art that involves bondage without any other suggestive elements.

Fic Directory

My main fic is called "Like Real People Do." It is a love story between my sona, Casper, and the sweet cloud-man named Avery Nimbus.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9

I also have an AU called "Sea and Sky" which is meant to be more freeform and episodic, and as such, can be read in any order. It takes place in a fantasy world where more races than just cloudfolk and humans exist. In this world, Finnegan, Avery, and Casper live in Avery's lighthouse together and get up to all kinds of fluffy and tickly shenanigans.

Summer Fluff (Lee!Finnegan, upperbody)

Nightmares (No tickling, hurt + comfort)

What's in a Name? (Lee!Finnegan, upperbody)

Let's get physical! (Fluff, tickling for all three!)

Here are some brainrot-fueled oneshots between Casper and Avery that don't really take place in either universe. I usually write these for comfort.

Tickle Ramble (Lee!Avery, foot-focused)

Say it! (Lee!Casper, upperbody, heavy hurt + comfort)

Test Subject (Lee!Casper, upperbody)

Right Here~? (Lee!Casper, upperbody, heavy underarm focus)

Fluffy Panic (Lee!Reader, Ler!Avery)

Sometimes, I like to write teases directed at nobody in particular. Here's a directory of those!

The way I wanna get you~

You're so cute!

Morning tickles

Morning tickles (for early risers)

A love letter to shy lees

Ler brainrot

A love letter to lees in general!

Favorite spots

Under the chin~?

Ask me again...

Love letter to tickling

Comic Directory

Where it all started. I made my first comic in January of 2024, a few weeks after I started drawing. My art style was very inconsistent (and clearly still is), but I will include these here as I think they are important to the history of this blog.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

FAQ

Generally, I like getting asks! I do try to answer most of them, but I have also provided some answers to frequent questions under the cut.

Who can interact:

Adults! SFW and NSFW blogs can interact.

Who cannot interact:

Minors! I make content that is romantic, intimate, and sometimes suggestive. I am not comfortable with minors interacting with me. Please respect this.

Spam likes:

I actually don't mind this, provided you are an adult and your bio/pinned says so. Just be aware that I am definitely going to notice if you do this, and I am going to block you ASAP if you're a minor or I don't see an age.

Requests:

As much as I would love to take requests, unfortunately, I do not have time right now.

DMs:

If you're an adult, yes! I love making friends! I am happily married though, so please don't come at me with that kind of intent, haha. I am also really bad at remembering to respond... I have a full-time job and social life. Please don't take it personally.

Art Trades:

If you are interested in an art trade, feel free to DM me! I am generally open to trades and will usually try to work something out with you, provided I am not in a busy season at my job.

Commissions:

I do not take commissions and I have no plans to, I'm sorry.

Drawing/Writing my characters:

I love when people draw or write my characters! Here are my boundary sheets for Avery and Casper. If something is not covered here that you'd like to clarify, feel free to ask!

What I will post/reblog:

Art and fics featuring romantic tickles, platonic/friendly tickles, kissing, cuddling, fluff. There will be light bondage/restraints, like hands being pinned down, and sometimes intimate/suggestive/adult themes. Heavily suggestive posts will be tagged #fluffyspice.

What I will not post/reblog:

Genital nudity, real-life tickling gifs/photos, and any kind of content involving these things: sex acts, minors, and/or familial tickling. I also do not make fanart unless it is of someone's OC (I will reblog it, though, whether I'm familiar with the fanbase or not... haha).

The only exception to this is if I draw my own characters as kids. If I do, it will be for lore purposes only and will never include tickling.

Blogs I like to follow:

Other tickling art/fic blogs run by adults. If your blog is mostly IRL gifs/photos of tickling, especially if it's NSFW, I probably won't follow you back, as I prefer art and fics to real-life content. No offense intended, it just isn't for me.

My personal etiquette:

I read and abide by the DNI of every blog I interact with. I expect my boundaries to be respected, too. If I interacted with you in a way you didn't like, please message me and I will apologize and fix it. Or, if you're more comfortable, just block me -- no hard feelings.

Other places I can be found:

Twitter and Tiktok!

Final thoughts:

Reminder, this is a sideblog, so if I follow you it will be from my main. I'm not going to say what it is here, but my icon has a picture of Avery!

If you read all this, well you're just a peach aren't you? 💙 Thanks!

[brightoakgame]

Irregular Monday Update, Edition 13

Woo, it has been an August, hasn't it??

This update is going to be a bit more freeform than usual, since quite frankly, progress has been a little arrested this last month: what was meant to be a week's break to spend time on real life commitments spiraled, thanks in no small part to the fact that after avoiding it for years, covid finally caught up to my family and boy, is it hot garbage.

That said, I do have three major updates to share:

Steam and I have worked out our differences, and the demo will be posting there soon! I will let you all know as soon as it is up and can be wishlisted; the plan is to swap in some of the new assets so it is a little more polished than the 1.0 version, too. ✨

After serious consideration, I have decided to push back my projected window for full release a little bit, and now anticipate Bright Oak will be out in its entirety at the beginning of next year (2024). It's not a big move back, but I do want to apologize for any disappointment this causes! 💕 I made this decision in large part because I was feeling a little burned out by the breakneck pace I'd set myself, and I don't want to feel I have to rush through any part of the upcoming sections-- but also because...

I've decided to participate in the 2023 Spooktober Game Jam! This will be my first game jam experience, so I wanted to be sure to have a clear slate for September in preparation. 🎃 I've missed writing ever since finishing the script for Bright Oak, and this gives me a very, very different sandbox to play in for a little bit before recommitting to my main squeeze. I'll post more about that (shorter, spookier, dark fairytale) project as things progress, but for now will only add that I am extremely excited to be working with the group I am - my true-blue and talented art partner and friend, @remnantation, included among them!

I think that's about it for now-- backgrounds, coding, and cgs are all still in process, just moving a little more slowly than they had been. Lastly, if you're looking for a new game, may I recommend both the newly-released first chapter of The Summit Library by @qkayoostudio, as well as Crushed by @hummingbird-games? That's how I plan to spend the next few days! ❤️

Stay safe and well,

B.

[insecateur]

"Search Tags" on AO3

I've noticed that a lot of people don't seem to be aware that this is an option, so I thought I'd write an informative post about the AO3 feature that allows you to look up tags!

What is this and where can I find it?

It's a page on Archive of our Own that can be accessed by selecting "Search" in the upper bar and then clicking on "Tags." Or by clicking this link, if you'd just like to go there right away!

As the name indicates, it's a form you can use to look up a list of AO3 tags corresponding to a keyword (or multiple.)

How can it be useful to me?

I think it can be useful in a number of ways! I'll try to cover most of the ones that come to my mind in this post, but there might be more I haven't thought of.

As a writer

For me, the Search Tags page is most useful as a fic writer (or general creator on AO3, for those of us who also post non-fic works!) I use it mostly to look up freeform tags and check pre-existing tags and canonicals. Technically, you can check canonicals by making a new work and entering a keyword in one of the sections, but for me, this is less of a hassle. Not to mention, this way, you can even see non-canonical tags that people have already used, some of which might be very popular despite not being canonicals!

(Why would a very popular tag not be a canonical, you ask? Well, I'm not an AO3 volunteer, so I can't speak on their behalf. But as someone who writes kinky porn, there are a couple of sex-related tags that lack canonicals but still span a large number of works. The most obvious example, to me, is "Free Use", which is used by over 1200 works, and is not a canonical tag. For those unaware, the difference between a canonical and non-canonical tag is that it cannot be filtered; as such, it does not have a separate Works/Bookmarks page.)

If you're part of a challenge, exchange, or fest that only accepts ships with a certain number of works (i.e. rarepairs) it can also be used to check whether a specific shiptag even exists in the first place or to easily find the Works page of a specific shiptag so you can double-check the number of works there. I will discuss this more in the next section.

As a reader

What inspired me to make this post was actually seeing someone asking on Twitter if it was possible to filter every ship involving one specific character. As far as I'm aware, this is not possible; however, you can use the Search Tags form to find all the existing shiptags (canonical or not) featuring said character, and then check every Works page individually. Not super convenient, but still better than trying to wrestle with the filters, I think!

Okay, this is all very interesting, but how does it work?

Using the Search Tags form

When you access the Search Tags page, you will be greeted by this form:

If you click on the little ? bubble next to "Tag name," it will show you the usual list of common modifiers you can use to look up keywords, just like in the "Search within results" option from AO3 filters:

Here, what you can do depends on what your goal is. I'll cover in the order of the suggestions I gave in the previous section of this post.

Looking up freeforms

So, let's say you're in the process of, or just got done, writing your newest fic. You want to tag it properly, but there's some stuff you're not sure can be covered with the canonical tags AO3 suggests to you when posting a New Work, and when you try searching keywords in the regular search, you get mixed results. This is where the Search Tags form can be very, very useful!

I'll use an example I've used in the past. You want to use a tag that gives your reader an idea of how the fic ends. To do that, you can type up "Ending" in the "Tag name" box. For this example, we'll decide we want only canonical tags, so we'll check "Freeform" and then "Canonical."

This gives use nine whole pages of canonical tags. Canonical tags are shown in bold to separate them from non-canonical tags, but as we're doing a Canonical search right now, you won't be able to tell the difference. Here's what (the top of) page one looks like:

Immediately, you might have noticed something is amiss. Because we haven't specified a fandom, the search is giving us tags that are fandom-specific, like "Abandon Ending (OMORI)," on top of giving us tags that are non-specific, like "Abrupt Ending." This can be a good thing or it can be a bad thing, like in this case where we just want a generic ending tag. Thankfully, there is an easy solution!

Indeed, tags on AO3 are sorted by fandoms... including non-fandom tags! So all we have to do is enter the Fandom as "No Fandom," and then...

Ta-dah!

Note that there are still fandom-specific tags that might fall through the cracks, as tag wranglers are obviously not infallible, being human beings doing volunteer work. For example, although I cut the screenshot short, the next tag on the list is "Memory's Crannies Ending (Ib)" which seems to have the "No Fandom" category incorrectly applied to it alongside its actual fandom, "Ib (Video Game)." There'll also be non-fandom results that are actually pointing toward specific fests, bangs, or similar events, like "No Happy Ending Fest."

However, as I've mentioned earlier in the post, you can technically achieve the same result by typing a word in the Freeform box when posting a new work and seeing what AO3 suggests. So let's talk about what this is most useful for, in my opinion: finding established non-canonical tags.

This time, let's say you're writing something spicy involving a trans male character being the Dominant partner in a D/s relationship. There is a "Trans Male Character" canonical freeform, but if you look up "trans male character" in the tag search, you may also find:

You might be wondering, what's the point of doing this? Well, in some cases, some freeform tags have a lot of uses despite not being canonicals. Even without getting into the extreme I've already cited, for example, the tag "Honor Bondage" has over 100 fics to its name. Since it's not canonical, and as such can't be filtered, it also can't be synned to, which means that the best way for people interested in honor bondage to find works easily is to have as many people using the most commonly used tag as possible. By guaranteeing that you're using a pre-existing tag, even if it's non-canonical, you're helping more people find your work.

(For those unaware of the term, "synning" refers to a non-canonical tag being made synonymous to a canonical tag. When looking at a Tag page (not its Works or Bookmarks page) you can see a list of all the non-canonical tags synned to it, like this:

I'll cover this again a little later.)

Generally, I also think it can be useful when you're not sure how to tag something and are looking for inspiration. Also, getting to see all the silly tags people have used is pretty funny.

Looking up ships

In this section, I'll cover both the "writer" and "reader" situations.

Let's say you're participating in an event that's all about rarepairs. The requirements are that your chosen ships can't have more than, say, 100 works. You've decided you want to write a ship involving your favorite blorbo, but you don't know if the ship you have in mind even exists on AO3.

For the sake of this example, we'll say your blorbo is Cloud Strife, and you want to write... (throws dice) Cloud/Reeve. Let's go back to the Tag Search, and this time we'll use the "Relationship" box.

We're going to look up canonicals first (for reasons I'll explain later) so for this step, you have to make sure you have the right phrasing to look up your character. In the example I'm using, I don't think it'll matter much (it's not like there are that many characters named "Cloud") but if you were looking for, say, Peter Parker rarepairs, you'll have to make sure to use "Peter Parker" and not just "Peter."

This is what our search looks like for now.

I have to go through a few pages, but on page 3, I find the Cloud Strife/Reeve Tuesti tag. It says it has four fics, but in my experience, the count can be a little messy, so we'll double check on the Works page just in case.

There we go! A tried and true rarepair. 🫡

If you can't find the ship anywhere in the list (even when double-checking by entering more keywords) it's probably because it doesn't exist at all. I'll use a less popular character as an example, Professor Birch from Pokémon:

Because there are so few results, you can tell right away that Professor Birch/Professor Sycamore doesn't exist. 😔 (Actually, when looking up "Any status," it does exist as a non-canonical that doesn't have any fic tied to it. BECAUSE OF ME. But I'll talk about this at the end of this section.)

Now, let's say you're a reader and what you're interested in is finding out how many ships Cloud Strife is involved in on AO3. You just want to read about your blorbo getting into all kinds of relationships. Good for you.

You like to live dangerously, so you're going to go as far as looking up "Any status." I'll explain what this implies in a bit.

I also want to make a note of something. I was previously under the mistaken impression that specifying a fandom for your Relationship searches would affect whether or not crossover ships show up. Unfortunately, this doesn't seem to be the case, as a Relationship tag seems to always have every fandom each character is involved in as a parent tag. (So, for example, Ardyn Izunia/Cloud Strife has all of these as parent tags: Ardyn Izunia, Cloud Strife, Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, and Final Fantasy XV.) I don't know if there's a solution to this. If you know of it, I'd appreciate you letting me know!

Immediately, the ~400 results for Cloud Strife Relationship tags jump up to over 1500. Amazing.

Now, the issue (imo) when looking up Relationship tags using "Any status" is that it'll also give you non-canonical tags that are synned to canonical tags, which means you'll just end up with a bunch of repeats. It'll be a lot of things like, One-Sided Zack Fair/Cloud Strife, or Past Aerith Gainsborough/Cloud Strife, or tags written in the wrong order like Cloud Strife/Zack Fair, or tags formatted wrong like Zack Fair x Cloud Strife.

Therefore, especially when looking up very popular character, I wouldn't suggest looking up non-canonical Relationship tags. For unpopular characters, though, the list should be short enough to be combed through without too much of a hassle. Unfortunately, this means you might miss newly created Relationship tags that haven't been made canonical yet.

I'd suggest trying more keywords in this case. For example, in the Cloud Strife/Reeve Tuesti example, I could have just looked up the full tag straight away:

Additional Information about Tags

To conclude this post, I'll talk about something some people might not know regarding AO3 tags.

Tags are actually added to the database as soon as they're either added to a drafted work, added to a bookmark, or approved for an exchange. So, for example, if you created a work, tagged it Peter Parker/Cloud Strife, saved it as a draft, and never ended up actually posting the fic, the tag will still have been created.

Similarly, in the Cloud/Reeve screenshot above, I would wager that the shiptags with "(CoFF7)" and "(FF7 Remake)" at the end were actually created for exchange purposes, so people could ask for specific versions of the ship.

This is also what happened with the Odamaki-hakase | Professor Birch/Platane-hakase | Professor Augustine Sycamore shiptag, which was created when I submitted the ship for an exchange a few months ago. As a result, it's empty because no work was posted for it (YET.)

This applies to all tags, including freeforms. This is why, when looking up tags using this method, you'll sometimes run into tags that have no work tied to them.

...Okay, I think I've covered all that I wanted to cover! If you have questions, please feel free to ask them in the comments of this post. I hope this can be of help to anyone. When I discovered this option a few years back, I was floored. I genuinely think it's really useful, as someone who has a hard time with the regular AO3 search.

If you got to the end of this (very long) post, thank you for reading!

[pynkhues]

Hi Sophie, so sorry if this is a double ask but I can’t tell if tumblr ate my first one…I was wondering if you would be comfortable sharing anything about your writing process (for both original projects and fics). Do you outline? Or is it more freeform with a general idea of where you’re going?

Hi! I'm so glad that you re-sent it, because it's not a double in my inbox. I'm more than happy to share about my writing process! I've been writing for a long time, and I think I might like talking about actually writing things more than I like actually talking about the finished story, haha.

My process is pretty much the same for both fic and for original works, and in that, I do a lot of wriitng in my head before I start actually even 'officially' writing it. To the point where I'll usually have a pretty strong sense of what the underlying idea of the story is, where I want the emotional anchor of the story to be, and often have roughly choreographed a few climactic sequences in my head in a way that gives it not necessarily structure or an outline, but a general shape.

So in writing Ungodly Hour for instance, I knew that I was interested in this sense of perception as the underlying idea of the story - Lestat's perception of himself and what happened to him, Louis' perception of what happened to Lestat, Daniel's potential perception of Lestat through the interview.

Then I knew I wanted the emotional anchor to be in Lestat telling Louis what happened with Magnus, and this collision of those perceptions, because I just found that like - - exciting creatively, and I had these scenes in my head - weirdly, the gallery one was quite formded for me, then the dressing room blowjob, then the fight (although I re-wrote the fight quite a few times).

So I had all that in my head when I actually started to write it, and at that point, my process really becomes a matter of asking 'Why?' I ask that constantly when I'm writing, because at the end of the day, writing is just cause and effect. One of the best bits of writing advice I ever got was that your story is always 'And so this happens' or 'But this happens', never, ever 'And then this happens'. Good scenes are built on the backs of the ones that came before them, so they need to have purpose for there to be any payoff.

As a result, anything that feels either instinctual or appealing to me, I end up asking it well, why, or how, or what needs to happen to make this feel right? I find that usually steers me in the best direction, and it helps me to especially get into a character's head, or even sometimes the context of the story overall.

In terms of the actual writing though, - this sounds so wanky, haha - but I generally say I'm a bit of a painter when it comes to writing. I like to lay a base coat and then build from there. I'll usually start with scenes that are fairly skeletal with what's effectively placeholder dialogue that evokes the vibe of the final dialogue that I'd like, just so I know what emotional beats I'm wanting (and these can and do change), and so that I have a full story on the page, and then I go back over and over again and build it up and up and up.

I'm kind of at that base coat skeleton stage with the reunion fic now, so to give you a sense (and please don't judge, like I said, this is basically a skeleton of a scene with some placeholder dialogue!) it'll usually look a bit like this:

So yeah, it'll start pretty thin, but it'll be what I know I want it to be, and sometimes I'll keep parts of it, but usually it's entirely re-written by the time I post or it gets published.

Things often fall into place late too. As I've gotten more experienced as a writer, I think I'm better at trusting my instincts? Like in Ungodly Hour, the gallery scene was the first thing I wrote in full, and I think I even posted here that I almost cut it several times. It was so fully formed for me, and I knew on a gut level that it belonged in the story, and more than that, needed to be the opening scene, but I didn't really get how it folded in until later in the writing process when it just clicked that it not just established the themes of the story, but placed Louis in a rawer emotional state to be entering this particular night with Lestat.

So yeah, I build up ideas basically, haha.

[ahiddenpath]

For the fanfiction ask game: 17, 18, 25, 49, 51!

Citrus! Thank you so much for the asks! If anyone is looking for Digimon Adventure and 02 fanfics, you can read mine on FFN or on AO3 if you are logged in <3

17.) Do you have a writing routine?

A few years ago, I was big on finding a place with a closed door and lighting a candle (partly for vibes, partly to discourage wandering off). But these days, I try to be as informal as possible, so that it's easy to write anytime, anywhere. Sometimes, all you can do is get 15 minutes of copying edits into your draft or jotting down ideas, and those 15 minutes are way better than nothing.

18.) Do you enjoy research? Which fic of yours required the most research?

I enjoyed research a lot more about 10 years ago. Search engines are a nightmare these days! I tried to research courtship in Japan and France in the 1930s for Puits d'Amour, and there is. Nothing. Searchable on Google in English for anywhere except the states and the UK. I ended up purchasing some books on the history of courtship that are, sadly, still very US and UK oriented, and just. Making it clear in my fic that the countries portrayed are fictional, largely in part bc I just could not get my hands on the info I needed.

I did some medical research for Seeking Resonance that was really interesting for me at the time, and oddly, came up in my career just last week! I was floored lol!

25.) What’s your favorite part of the writing process (worldbuilding, brainstorming/outlining, writing, editing, etc)?

I seem to be comparatively light on the worldbuilding and outlining. I love writing because flow state feels amazing and I love editing because it's challenging play. Often, I find that what I want to say evolves from the moods and ideas that occur during flow state. It's been interesting, because over the 12 years of publishing as ahiddenpath, I can see reflections of what I was dealing with personally at the time, and how I resolved that strain with the story. Of course, this kind of writing demands more editing later, as it's so freeform. But I enjoy editing, and I believe my love of writing and need to write are strongly connected to the fact that I use writing to deal with things, to understand myself, to challenge myself, and to grow.

49.) What fic of yours would you say is the best introduction to you as a writer?

How I write and how I think about writing is always changing and evolving, so I suppose my more recent fics? But for the digimon fandom specifically, I usually say After August. Like most of my stories, it's a character-based drama. Specifically, it's about the Adventure Chosen dealing with the loss of their partners and the difficulty of shifting from life as a Chosen in the Digital World to life as kids on earth. Each of them copes in a resoundingly individual way, and they reach out to one another to offer what comfort and support they can.

My works tend to be about people grasping for self-growth and dealing with their demons. They usually aren't plot heavy, although I've been pushing myself to explore plot-based stories recently.

51.) Does what you like to write differ from what you like to read?

One of my closest friends has a master's in literature, and she obligingly wrote me a list of what is... How do you say this? Expertly??? Considered the best literature available in the English language. I've spent the last several years feasting on that, hoping to learn and grow. So, um. My writing can't compete, lol!!!!!

But lately, I've gotten back into reading purely for fun, rather than growth/challenge/experience. I devoured three modern Greek myth retellings in like a three week span, and I have another waiting at the library for me to pick up! Typical, lmao!

The sudden contrast made me notice that, at the risk of sounding snobbish, books written because the narrative is fun, imaginative, and joyful to behold are a different experience than books that encapsulate some aspect of humanity with painful, exquisite, brutal clarity. It's like, hello reader, would you like enjoyment or an existential crisis???? It's been a privilege and a joy to grow from these uh... Literature degree required reading list books. But man it's fun to eat a novel like it's cake!!! OM NOM NOM MORE PLEASE!

I'm not sure if that answered the question at all, but I guess recently I am trying to explore books that I find delightful rather than personally challenging.

Thanks for the asks friend, they were a great distraction from some difficult stuff <3 I really appreciate it! I'm happy to take more if anyone is interested.

[citrus-cactus]

fanfic ask game! 1, 3, 22, 55, 77!

Ask game is here!

1). Do you daydream a lot before you write, or go for it as soon as the ideas strike?

I tend to daydream a lot! I think that's a large part of my "outline" process these days: sooooo much thinking before committing anything to paper (which is not the best process, I'll admit! Because sometimes I end up forgetting things ;_;)

It used to be that a lot of my fanfic ideas were born out of pencil and paper sketches while letting my mind wander, which feels similar to the "daydream" process (and then I would brainstorm while drawing!)... but these days I don't do a lot of freeform drawing (;_;) and the brainstorming takes place almost exclusively in my head. Sometimes I'll have snippets and dialogue occur to me that need documentation NOW, so that feels more like a "when the idea strikes" sort of thing... and then when I've collected enough snippets/dialogue and have enough of a general idea where the fic is going to go, that's when I start writing in earnest!

3). Do you share your fic ideas, or do you keep them to yourself?

I tend to keep them to myself. I've been... trying to get better about this... maybe?? That was what last year's fic/WIP summary and the creative check-ins and some of my random, sporadic posts over the past few months have (partially) been about. But now that I look at them... I'm not sure it's clear to anyone but myself what the heck I'm working on?? I would like to get better at this, perhaps?? Summaries are good (lol), but I usually save those for last!

I think, because I publish fics so infrequently (and have WAY more abandoned ideas and WIPs than actual published works!), I default to being pretty secretive about my ideas. Mostly because I don't want to jinx myself with the inability to finish something; if no one knows about it but me, no one can be disappointed!! But also, since I almost exclusively write short one-shots, the element of surprise feels, somehow, important to preserve up until the moment of publishing. I'm not sure how to balance the two wolves inside me ("excited to share" and "SECRETS!!")

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

Usually during. A lot of my titles seem to crystalize during the daydream/brainstorming process... though again, sometimes I don't want to reveal the title until the fic is further along, in case I end up changing my mind! Sometimes it does take me a little longer to figure it out, but not often. I guess how I come up with them is... I figure out the theme of the story, and think of a way to make it work as a title? ("Rose-Tinted" is my favorite recent example. Because yes, it's about a pair of pink-colored sunglasses, but ultimately it's about looking at a situation through a more optimistic lens!)

Sometimes I'll try to be clever and make the title a literary reference. I've repurposed lines from Sherlock Holmes, Brigadoon (the musical), and, most recently, Sophocles' Antigone. Because whoa boy, do I love themes. And allusions!!!! And parallels!!!!!!

55). Have you noticed any patterns in your fics?  Words/expressions that appear a lot, themes, common settings, etc?

What an interesting question! I think, as generic of an answer as this is, my stories all end up being about love. This takes many forms: romantic (this used to be a huge theme, at least earlier on in my fanfic career!), but also platonic, the "soulmate" bond between human and digimon partners, and also (sometimes) unhealthy expressions of love. Also they can be born from things I personally love, like hats and in-jokes for very small audiences :3

My published fics tend to be either fairly fluffy(/goofy/jokey), or a bit dark. There's very little "neutral" up in here, though I do enjoy writing Emotions(tm).

I do enjoy ending a fic on a good stinger. I love me a juicy... just a teeny-tiny surprise, subversion, twist, or echo, wrapping it all up with an impactful little... pop. Absolutely delightful when it feels like I can pull that off. I live for that.

77). Why do you enjoy writing fanfiction?

I enjoy writing fiction because sometimes I have ideas that feel too large or complex to convey in a single illustration or a short comic. I enjoy writing fanfiction because other people's characters, stories, and ideas have become lodged in my brain and I am (occasionally) compelled to work through my feelings about them in prose XD I love writing (and reading!) things that are having a dialogue with canon, filling in nebulous details, expanding on characterization, having a fun day out with my faves, or otherwise taking some dumb/brilliant/random idea (either mine or someone else's) and running with it to a logical conclusion (by some definition of the word "logical"). My favorite thing to do as both a creator and a fan, whether in art or writing, has always been to tell stories… and I genuinely don't know where I’d be if I wasn't able to do that!

These were fun to think about, thanks for the asks!!!

[writtengalaxies]

Hello! I have returned to ask for more Poly crew leads + Captain

How does each of them react to getting flirted with?

Or maybe how they flirt with each other

Oh boy! A big one! :D This took me a solid like...3 days to work on. It's behind a read more simply because this got LONG. dfghjk

Engi!

A lot of our dear engineer is about swapping his ways of showing his affection depending on the person he's with.

Him and Celci play fight that sometimes boils over into actual fighting. When she's being sincere and soft, or lets herself be vulnerable around him? He gets flustered as fuck.

With Gunther, it's a lot more physical flirting. Yes, the infamous ass-smack, but also playful shoving. It's always flustering. Always. Man's a tomato.

When it comes to Burt, he flounders a little. But one of them brings the other a schematic, or a problem to solve? They're inseparable for hours. Burt just might also recite some of that poetry, and our Engi is broke.

Gunther!

Like I said before, he's handsy. And he's full of absolutely awful pick-up lines (/aff)

He's holding Celci's hand or wrapping an arm around her waist. He likes playing up the loud, protective boyfriend. Maybe she's never had someone to do that before, for her. She's confident and many people call her cold. He knows better. If she leans in to kiss his cheek, or she rests her head on his shoulder? Gone.

He'll lean against Burt. Maybe Gunther's fallen asleep that way before, and woken up being gently carried to bed, so he can get a good rest. He's too used to being the protector, so when someone is a caretaker for him? Yeah.

As mentioned before with Engi, the ass-smack. He knows he can be more physical than with the others, so it ends up being a lot of rough-housing. That gets a little more...you know. >.> But if Engi hands Gunther a schematic for a new ADS droid, or a weapon? It's a little more tender of a look.

Burt

Of them all, Burt is a romantic. He's soft man, with a sharp mind and usually very little words...unless he's being poetic.

Regardless of partner, he writes them poetry. Gunther loves limericks, he thinks they're fun. Celci often gets sonnets: the measured beats feel right for her. Engi gets freeform poetry, and if asked, Burt will say that it just makes sense for him. It's hard to disagree.

He's also a pinnacle of quiet, measured support. Sometimes you just need someone to listen to you, or to sit in silence with, and everyone knows Burt happily does that.

So when others do the same for him, be his support, or write him poetry (at a far less skilled level than his) or recite it for him? He'll deny wiping a tear or two away, but his smile is impossible to ignore.

Celci

It's easy to mistake Celci as cold and efficient. She is, but she has a deeper part to her that she hides. She let's it out among you all.

Sometimes the playfighting with Engi gets too much. They go too far. But there are other moments where she just sits with him, running her fingers through his hair. Celci doesn't like removing her gloves, but she will for him. And he's the one that absolutely peppers her with nicknames and pet names: Cels, C.C., Snowflake...and maybe the ice queen of cryo melts a little at that.

She's opened up to Gunther about a lot of specific insecurities: of you all, these two have been together the longest. You wouldn't think they'd get along, but he knows how to bring himself down to a quieter level, and she lets her walls down. The soft moments between them are constant. Their flirting is impossible to figure out, but it happens.

Burt and Celci can often be found just existing in silence together. He'll offer to work loose the spot in her shoulder that constantly gives her trouble (she holds herself so tense and tight), something she always tries to deny but ultimately gives in. She sings for Burt, in return, something she doesn't let even Gunther hear. It's more special that way.

The Captain

The Captain is the pinnacle of Acts of Service. If anyone wants help from them, what-so-ever, they're there.

So when it comes to flirting...they flounder in how to make it feel romantic and not like what they do for everyone else. So they lean more into the needs that others aren't aware of.

It's bringing Celci a hot cup of tea fixed just the way she likes it, an iced tea for Burt to cool down. They'll bring Gunther a hot cocoa, full of marshmallows, because they know he likes them. It's bringing the person they never gave up on a fresh cup of coffee when it's late at night and their memories of what happened haunt them both.

It's finishing paperwork before the others can get to it, so they have less to worry about. Making sure they're going to bed, eating enough, almost fussing, but never crossing the line over into "too much".

They don't know how to handle being flirted with.

Celci will set up picnics in front of the window on the Bridge, begrudgingly admitting that the view of your new home is gorgeous, and maybe the windows aren't a bad idea after all. When she holds their hand, words fail them, even more so than when she gently kisses their cheek.

Burt will give them silent, long hugs, letting the world's noise fade away. He holds their hands, not needing to say a single thing, letting it all be a comfortable quiet. With how busy even the calmest days aboard the Invincible are, it's a welcome respite. They don't know how to thank him for that.

Gunther pulls them out of their shell, encouraging them to break the rules a little harder, to stop worrying about propriety and being the perfect leader. He makes them laugh, cause problems that don't hurt anyone in the long run. He gets them to have fun again. It makes their heart race in thrilling ways.

And Engi...our engineer, the only one who really truly knows everything that the two of them went through, the weight of all those realities on their shoulders...At times it's letting them sob against his shoulder. Others it's a quiet reminiscing of the funny things that happened, comparing notes of realities. The first time he sees their bare hand after it all, he lifts their palm to his lips, gently kissing the center of it. An apology and a declaration of love all at once, and it makes their face burn with the intimacy of it all.

Our dear Captain is learning to let others love them, and the simple actions of being loved are the most flustering parts of being flirted with.

[chocochipbiscuit]

7, 9, freeform: your favorite thing about writing supermutants.

7) How do you feel after finishing a fic?

Exhausted! Good-exhausted, but tired. Proud. A little like the aftermath of labor, delivering a fic-baby into the world. :P

I'm usually feeling good-tired but creatively exhausted and like to shut myself off from the Internet so I'm not anxiously poring for likes or comments.

9) Most challenging thing to write?

Answered here (and it's dialogue!) but besides dialogue...

I've been writing more original work and it's very different from fandom. Not that fandom is only good as 'practice' for 'real fic,' but it's different. There are certain genre conventions I'm used to relying on in fandom (not just having fandom characters and setting to work with, but also things like recognizing that third person limited POV is often the default, that there is a built-in audience for certain structures like "5 times fics" or "5 + 1 fics") and being willing to break away from those automatically makes the fic much more niche. Whereas original work gives a dizzying array of options.

...this got away from me, so I'm going to just simplify and say that nonlinear narratives are challenging for me, but interesting because of that challenge. I like playing with time travelers and narrative structures, but it's currently more as concepts rather than anything I feel comfortable sharing yet!

freeform: your favorite thing about writing supermutants?

THEM BIG!!!!

Seriously, they're automatically great for size kink and size difference, both of which I love! (And maybe add some decreased refractory period and copious amounts of fluids and *coughcough* I mean yes)

Also: they're like walking caricatures of masculinity, hairless and muscled Tom of Finland pin-ups, often wearing leather straps, loincloths, or other tatters. They edge up on so much of what I love about monster romance (size difference, decidedly nonhuman in specific ways, the elements of fear/terror before finding common ground) while also having their unique background in Fallout, which is actually quite sad!

Like. Even before going into all of their unique backstories, all super mutants were human once. Not all of them retain their memories. Some of them might have chosen to undergo the FEV effects (voluntarily? former military members who thought they were doing clinical trials to become the next super-soldiers?) and some of them (many of them) were forced into it, robbed of agency and memory of their past selves. They were intended as soldiers, to be controlled by others, and even when the FEV prevents physical deterioration (look at how long many of them live!) it seems to enhance mental deterioration (look at the second gen mutants or nightkin). In fact, I would suspect that many of the later-gen mutants were intentionally made less intelligent in an effort to make them easier to control.

....I just think they're great and deserve hugs!

(Also smut. Lots of smut fic. Definitely my favorite thing about writing them.)

Thank you, this was fun to answer! :D

(Self-indulgent asks from this ask game!)

[s-che]

for the tarot rpg ask game! The Fool, The Empress, The Hierophant, The Chariot, The Hanged Man, The Devil, The Tower, The Star, The Sun

This is so many questions!! I am gonna have to go a little shorter for each of them, but thank you for your interests lmao.

from the RPG Designer tarot ask game

The Fool – What do the earliest stages of work on a game look like for you? OR How did you get into game design?

Games start one of two ways for me: either I think "there should be a game that feels like X" or I think "I want to write about Y and I think for one reason or another a game is a place to do it." That second option is usually just the first option wearing sunglasses, anyway — since the main reason I might write something as a game (rather than a poem, short story, etc) is to try and get that experiential edge, where I'm not just conveying what I'm thinking to you but you the reader/player can dig around in it (and see why I feel a way about something). Then I start writing. Usually pretty freeform. Lots of lists of things. Lots of stream of consciousness "I want it to do this so therefore it must include that" until I start to get a better picture of what the game is going to be.

The Empress — Where do your ideas come from? OR Do you seek out or avoid inspiration while working on an idea?

I love nothing more than to dig into an inspiration while I'm working on a project. I like to surround myself with as much aligned stimuli as I can — recently I've been reading Piranesi and Doug Cowan's Cyberhenge and Drawing Down the Moon and listening to a lot of wizard themed hyperpop, for example. You can guess where I might be going with that. Let me drown in the thing I am thinking about, please.

And then credit my inspirations, of course.

The Hierophant — Who is a fellow game designer you’ve learned a lot from? OR What is a piece of popular wisdom about games you think is nonsense?

This is straying a little bit from the prompt, but: I fucking hate it when people try to frame the TTRPG design world as a family / community / whatever. Shut the fuck up. At TTRPGs best they're a scene and at the worst they're an (unregulated and monopolized) industry. I have communities and families within that, but they're not people I'm going to reach with a tag.

The Chariot — What is the next project you’re planning to start OR What is the next project you’re excited to finish?

I mentioned this in another response, but. I've been thinking a lot about wizards lately. Alchemists. Notetaking. Esoterica. A lot of this is: it's summer and I'm not getting my grad school itch scratched, but I've got something new that I just need to polish up a bit... A game I think y'all sickos would enjoy.

Also a Lemony Snicket thing, but that's another story.

The Hanged Man — What other creative pursuits do you have? OR What current trends in game design are you most interested in?

I think we're due for another hackable and misunderstandable system pretty soon, a la PBTA or BITD or NDNM or whatever. Feels like the cutting edge of design has moved on from those things — while still keeping their lessons in mind — and we just need something to blow up in the right way that we end up coining a new term for it. I can feel it coming, I'm just not sure where.

Oh, and One D&D launch is gonna be a mess. The post-CR D&D boom hasn't had to live through an edition change yet. No idea what that's gonna look like, but I can't wait.

The Devil — What motifs or mechanics do you just keep coming back to? OR What is a game you’ve enjoyed playing in the last year?

I played some Wizard's Grimoire (issue 1, but all of them look cool as shit) with a friend recently. Good game for laying on a couch and daydreaming magic boys.

The Tower — Talk about about a game you tried to make that crashed and burned.

When I was maybe a freshman in college — in fact I can remember working on it in 2017 — I wanted to write a PBTA game about paladins of different creeds slamming into each other. It sucked. I didn't know how to write games yet and it came out looking like worse Dungeon World. I'm glad it doesn't exist anywhere.

Don't write worse Dungeon World, folks.

The Star — Talk about a game you’re working on and what excites you about it.

I've been tinkering with some ideas for a multiple-player one-character Disco Elysium-ish game about plurality and inner dialogues. It's fun to roll around in my head! Not sure if I'll ever end up making it, but thinking about ways to mechanize squabbling for authorial control — i.e. to let you play as several people fighting to front — has been a lot of fun.

The Sun — Talk about a game you’ve made that you’re proud of.

Book of 13 Hours. I did some spells with a friend recently and love them. And I talked to the lake I've been stay next to for the last week or so. Good game. Good magic.