#I’d just like to be able to preorder it

[sky-walkerem]

number one thing i’m hoping for in 2024 is a release date for Alecto the ninth

[victory-cookies]

god I’m so torn. I have a few things I really buy rn but realistically I don’t think I can afford all of them. So I’m trying to weigh what I should let myself but bc I haven’t bought myself anything nice in a while

[thebibliosphere]

I saw your post about ingram, and out of curiosity, is there some advantage to going through the whole self-publishing thing with retailers when you're just starting out? like I mean the way that fandom zines work is that they don't even bother going through ingram or amazon or whatever. they just set up a social media site (usually twitter) to gain followers, open preorders (usually 1-2 months in length) to generate the costs of printing upfront, and then sell anywhere from a few dozen to several hundred copies of their books (usually artbooks, but anthologies exist too). I've seen some zines generate over a thousand orders. they're kind of like pop-up shops, except for books. maybe the sales numbers aren't so impressive to a real author, but the profit generated is typically waaaay more than the $75+ apparently needed for Ingram Spark, so I still feel like new authors could benefit from this method too, especially if they just need some start-up cash to eventually move to ingram if they want to for subsequent runs of their book. I think authors would also have to set aside some of the pre-order money to buy an ISBN number to have printed on their book, and I'm not really sure what other differences there are, but I just wanted to ask about it in case there's some huge disadvantage I'm missing!

So, popup zines work well for some people, and I know some authors who kickstart their work successfully. But for a lot, it's just not feasible as a long-term stratedy. Or even as a means to get off the ground.

Fanzines succeed primarily because an existing fanbase is willing and ready to throw money at something they love. They’ve got a favorite writer or artist they want to support. Supporting all the others is just a happy by-product. They also take a HUGE amount of short-term but intense planning that just doesn’t always jive with how some of us work.

I, for one, would never offer to organize a fanzine. I’ll take part in them as a creator, but I’d rather throw myself off a cliff than subject myself to wrangling that many people and dealing with the legal logistics.

When it comes to authors doing anthologies, it'svery much the same. The success of the funding often hinges on having other big-name authors involved whose existing fans will prop up the project. Or having a huge marketing budget.

Most self-pub authors have zero marketing budget. I’m one of them, and I’m under no illusions that my work would not be as popular and self-sustaining as it is if I didn’t have a large Tumblr blog.

When I thank Tumblr in my forewards, I am utterly sincere. Tumblr brought fandom levels of enthusiasm to an unknown work and broke the Amazon algorithm so hard, that Amazon thought I was bot sniping my way to multiple #1 spots and froze my sales rankings.

That’s not the norm. And while I could probably kickstart my own work as an indie creator, that’s because I’ve put literal decades into building up a readership. I’ve been doing this since I was 16 and realized people thought I was funny. I didn’t know what to do with it or if I’d ever actually write anything, but it meant the groundwork was already there (thank you, past-me). I basically fell upward into my success by virtue of never being able to shut the fuck up and wanting to make people laugh. Clown instincts too strong.

New or first-time authors trying to sell their work without that will find it infinitely harder.

All of that aside, even if an unknown author somehow gets lucky and manages to fund their work, there’s still the question of shipping and distribution logistics. Are you shipping everything yourself? Better hope you’re able-bodied and have the time for it. (for reference, it took me months to ship out 300 patreon hardbacks because of my disabilites. It damaged my back and hands. I couldn’t type for several weeks after I was done.)

Are you going to sell primarily at conventions? Better hope you’re able-bodied, have the time and don’t have cripling anxiety about being in large groups...

Also, will selling a dozen to a few thousand copies in one burst be sustainable in the long run as a career? Not for me. Doing things via Ingram and Amazon means I earn a steady trickle of sales for the rest of my life provided the platforms remain and so long as I keep working and can generate interest in the series, not just when I have funds to pay for physical copies to sell. The one-time (in theory) cost of $75 to distribute through Ingram gets paid off pretty quick that way. And it doesn't require the same logistics as doing the popup/crowdfund.

Ultimately, it comes down to what you are capable of but also the type of work you’re doing. If you’ve got an extended network of fellow creatives who will back you or you’ve got a large following elsewhere, doing it like a popup might work for you.

If you’re an exhausted burnout who can’t fathom the short but intense amount of organization that sort of thing requires, not to mention doing it over and over and over... Ehhhhh. No thank you.

[physalian]

First Time Author Mistakes You Don’t Have To Make

This is for self-published authors, somewhat, I didn’t go through the agent/publishing house process, but I did give it a try.

1. Thinking everyone you work with will like your book

I wasn’t under this illusion, but I did assume that every beta I worked with would be able to stay objective, i.e. saying while they don’t like an element they think it still works instead of “I don’t like this” with no explanation. Which was not the case. If this happens, best thing to do is to cut your losses. They’re not your target audience.

2. Underestimating how long it takes

Your book baby is your top priority and yours alone. Everyone else that you could work with does so at their pace on their schedules. I wrote ENNS in one month. It took almost six months of beta readers and a professional edit for a lot of reasons, but largely in part due to betas just not being very speedy. In other areas, too. I didn’t query ENNS because my first experience trying to work with publishing houses was a lot of “hurry up and wait” and I did not have time to wait 6+ months, with exclusive submissions, just to be told no.

3. Underestimating how much it costs

I had funds prepared and set aside in a savings account to pay the editor that I knew would be the steepest cost of the whole writing process. I’d saved up over a couple months and was virtually unaffected by the exorbitant fee when the bill came due because I had prepared. Betas and editors cost money, and you can’t skimp on those otherwise you’re just burning money. If you hire illustrators or promoters, they eat up cash. Formatting, too, costs money. If I wanted to break even with ENNS, I would have to sell over a thousand copies. Just to break even. Even if you do it all yourself, of which I did my own illustrations and formatting, the programs I used cost money, and time.

4. Vetting book promoters

Anyone following this blog might know of my recent escapades in dealing with scammers. It’s my personal opinion that anyone who will promote any book for money does not have an opinion worth trusting. Do I think my book is good? Absolutely. Do I think every book they promote is good? No. Nor do these people seem to care about anything more than profit. I wouldn’t buy a product based on a review without integrity, and have learned a hard lesson in trying to undo that mistake. If you just want word out, then you can act without discretion and just pick the cheapest influencers. But their word means nothing if they’ll sell it to the lowest bidder.

—

These are just four things I didn’t quite think about going in. I’ve been a writer for almost 10 years now but this is my first time all the way through the publication process and it was a wake up call in many areas, especially with the bad actors on social media.

But the bottom line is this: Don’t underestimate the cost of the process, whether that cost be money or time or simply stress. Writing is easy. Publishing is work.

—

My LGBTQ+ vampire fantasy novel Eternal Night of the Northern Sky is out for preorder now! Paperback debut on 8/25/24.

[thecomfywriter]

What's the wackiest worldbuilding rule you included in any of your high fantasy stories? Have you seen other authors do the same or something similar in their works? Would you want to see your writer friends and acquaintances do their own spin on your idea?

🎇 Wackiest Worldbuilding of TNV 🎇

navigation post preorder my book! buy me a ko-fi? discord! ToV community!

Oooo another fun ask from Satoh. Sorry this took so long. Work, womp womp. I'll have i queued to release soon though so it's not TOO postponed.

It’s not wacky per se… but i like to create mythologies, maps, geographical contexts/weather patterns, and history for everything that happened before the book started.

is it a bit intense? maybe. but it’s so fun.

i know a lot of authors like to do this, so it’s nothing really unique. so i guess I'll actually choose something a bit more specific to each book down below 👇

｡ ₊°༺❤︎༻°₊ ｡

ToV:

People own “domains” within the Dream World, each of which is unique to the other. And if they are an Arcanic, they can learn to “build”/“seize” a domain within the Arcane World.

The entire domain lore is genuinely some of the fun parts of the ToV lore. The idea that dragons try to replicate their domains in the tangible world of Elayza, which is why they build their dens the way that they do. Or that if you die within the Arcane World, your mind becomes tethered to that domain while your body calcifies, keeping you just alive enough to be a vegetable in real life, which living a groundhog day of suffering in the Arcane World.

And, of course—can’t talk about domains without talking about mental domains. The parts of a person’s mind that can shrink into and exist in without leaving, or invite others into as a telepathic connection or mind link.

I haven’t seen many authors do the entire domain thing, to be honest. But maybe I’m just not looking close enough.

LotF:

The idea that all magic sings and exudes a certain colour of fog invisible to the naked eye.

It’s tied to one of Evan’s unique ability of being a Singer with Artist Eyes. He is able to hear the songs of magic and see the colours of the specific spell before the effects of the incantation are fully formed. That includes with telepathic and telekinetic magic as well.

OH also! The ability to condense one's genetic code into a single string of Aura, or the magical specialty of trapping people in the labyrinths of their own mind.

It’s not the wackiest, if I’m being honest. But it is one of the less spoiler ones.

the mind labyrinth one might be common. i know i’ve seen some form of it in books featuring telepathy, like kotlc for example (my middle school self’s JAM). but i feel like the execution is different idk.

TIS:

The souls of the dead pass away into a river; and whatever the river feeds becomes the host of the dead.

The sun and the moon stones of the earth/soil you were born on determining the supernatural you are.

The "time-stealing" forcefields around the colonies that alter trespassers' ages.

THE SENTIENT HOUSE OF KEYS.

The lore behind the Cult of Hedon and their origins...

Bro, I could go on, but I’m not explaining ANY those ones in any more detail than that. Too many spoilers. But I definitely haven’t seen anyone else do these ones before.

I would be curious to see how other’s execute these tropes, but a part of me is also excited by the idea of having it unique to my stories. Nevertheless, if they already exist, I’d love to see how our execution differs.

｡ ₊°༺❤︎༻°₊ ｡

Thanks for the ask, Satoh!!! :)

Happy Writing!

(tagging the TCW crew for the lore drops. interact with the post linked or dm to be added)

TCW Crew!

*interact with this post here to be added to the list :)

@lunaeuphternal @the-golden-comet @renasdoodles

@drchenquill @zackprincebooks @wyked-ao3

@toragay-writing @the-letterbox-archives @paeliae-occasionally

@kind-lion @mysticstarlightduck @agirlandherquill

@theink-stainedfolk @storyteller-kara @dahliaontherun

@writingismydrugs @authorcoledipalo @sm-writes-chaos

@illarian-rambling @pexchys @an-indecisive-nerd

@thelovelymachinery @kaeru483 @leahnardo-da-veggie

[disasterarea-podcast]

Okay, I know I probably don’t need to explain this to all of you, but also I want to talk to *somebody* about how I wish I had the sort of pull that would let me see “Society of the Snow” before it ends up on @netflix on January 4th.

“Alive” came out when I was in high school. I was a sophomore, I think? I just know I watched it a bunch for historical reasons (disaster! Survival! Struggle!) and superficial reasons (I was sixteen and Ethan Hawke was in danger!). It was on HBO a lot back then. Or it felt that way, because I watched it every time it came on.

As per usual, I watched the movie, so I went and got the book. (I have an Audible credit, so I’m preordering the audiobook of “Society of the Snow” for work. It comes out in a couple of days, FYI.) The movie is … sanitized, to say the least. They can’t avoid the eating of the dead, or showing it on occasion. But in real life, the situation was more blatant, because … well, who are you going to hide it from? They ate everything else, or at least tried to, before resorting to the dead. And then when they did resort to the dead, they ate it ALL.

The thing is, Uruguayan culture was heavy on beef. “Alive” (the book) describes it the way the Irish depended on potatoes. Eating the dead was difficult, but as Catholics they were able to talk it out and tie it into the rosary and taking the body and blood of Christ into their own. I’m not even a Catholic anymore, but I think even my latent Catholic training might kick in just a tad to help reassure me in a situation like that if I had doubts. (Note: I have been doing this podcast for WAY too long. Survival cannibalism wouldn’t even make me bat an eye at this point.)

My point is that in the real situation, the survivors used everything. And I mean everything. There were only three or four parts of the body they couldn’t eat - I think the genitals were on that list, but don’t quote me on it - but the rest? They picked the bodies clean. They needed to. There’s a photo of the survivors sitting outside the plane, hanging out, smiling for the camera. It’s usually edited. Everything else is kept, but what is usually clipped or blurred is a very clear shot of a human spine, not a spot of meat left on it, just … lying there. It might as well be an airplane seat, or a discarded jacket, or any of the other items scattered about.

I have a tremendous amount of respect for every single one of the people who went through that ordeal. The details are traumatizing enough without having lived through it. Every time somebody makes a “rugby players eat their dead” joke, I cringe.

So here I am sitting watching “Alive” again, because fuck it. The thing is, I have a fondness for this movie based a lot on high school and watching it lots and it introducing me to a survival story I’d never heard of. But I would always be the first to point out I’d love a redo. It’s not as accurate as it could be, it’s in English, it misses out on things like Carlitos Paez’s father searching for him and the others the whole damn time and the reception after they came back.

I’m hoping “Society of the Snow” has all of the things the first movie lacked. I want to see the reception when they came back. I can’t wait to see Carlitos playing his dad, and I hope we get that moment where he reads the list of survivors over the radio and his voice breaks when he gets to his son’s name. I hope we get the reality of survival cannibalism — that it’s not murder, that it’s not pretty, that you might get a little blinded to the horror of the reality.

The trailers for “Society of the Snow” gives me hope it does the story the justice it deserves. There are so many disaster stories that, while they may have gotten TV movies, I would love to see done for the big screen. Hillsborough. The Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire. The Galveston Hurricane. The Johnstown flood. But honestly, the trailers for “Society of the Snow” look gorgeous and respectful. Let’s do more movies like this for more disasters.

[inkdemonapologist]

are you excited for the big role sammy's going to play in Cage?? im apprehensive... i love him a feral amount and i was real disappointed with his 2 seconds of screentime in BatDR

also just saying ur sammy drawings give me life he looks wonderful in hats

brought to u by ⭐️ anon

Hehehe aw thank you!! :D

There’s a lot of things in Dark Revival I ended up disappointed about, but despite my love of Sammy Lawrence, Sammy barely appearing was not really one of them. At the time, I’d commented to friends that the complete lack of Sammy mentions in the hype leading up to BatDR meant he was either very important or had only a cameo appearance, and I was actually pretty delighted about the Cyclebreaker cameo – it’s a moment that takes him startlingly seriously, that wasn’t just him quoting one of his four catch phrases; it’s... a kind of moment we haven’t seen from Sammy before. The part where he gets shot was like, where my expectations were, so the cyclebreaker thing was a pleasant surprise.

But like, ever since The Cage was announced… we knew Sammy kind of had to be in it. Like, Henry says “how did WE escape” and it’s set in the SPECIFIC place and time that Sammy also is; literally the only reason for Sammy to not be a significant character is if the creators actually didn’t want anything to do with him. So I have to admit the announcement that WE CAN CONFIRM that SAMMY WILL PLAY A MAJOR ROLE IN THE CAGE!!!!!!! RESTORED TO HIS CHAPTER 2 CREEPY GLORY! is just…… ugh, it’s hard to articulate why this tweet frustrates me so much.

Like………………….. "he's in it more" is not the only thing people care about, surely! What is he doing? What is his role in all this? What does he even WANT? In a review, "he's back to his chapter 2 creepy glory" would be a powerful recommendation; in a tweet from the creator right after preorders go up, it feels more like, "Hey, remember the thing you wanted? we DEFINITELY did that thing you wanted and we did it SUPER WELL so preorder our game please!!" Give us an intriguing line of dialogue or a hint about what he's doing (opposing you? helping you? uneasy truce? trying to find bendy?) and you wouldn't even need to promise us that he plays a major role; we'd be curious to learn more.

So this reassurance ends up doing the opposite, for me, because I still don't know if the creators even understand what I like about Sammy. The thing is that the circumstances of BatDR (there's a little Bendy running around, the Ink Demon is claimed dead but actually it's not, Wilson is trying to become the Lost Ones' new Big Brother) could've been INCREDIBLY relevant to Sammy -- that's why people wanted him to show up in BatDR, to see what he thinks of these developments and how he would react to them!! So if you're interested in Sammy, the character, then it would not be hard to hint at like, what his deal is – "Sammy knows the Ink Demon is out there somewhere and Henry is the key to finding him" or "after the disappearance of his Lord he's become a desperate man who's as much an obstacle as an ally" or even "Sammy was defiant when he went into the Pit -- what will Henry find when he encounters him now?" or w/e -- simply insisting HES LIKE HE WAS IN CHAPTER TWO, THE ONE YOU GUYS LIKE instead of being able to think of a single character-based hint that we might find compelling is, tbh, rather un-reassuring!!!

My complaint about Twisted Alice’s role in BatDR was that ultimately, it felt like they were just trying to capture the vibes that Twisted Alice had in BatIM instead of really exploring what that character would be doing HERE, in THIS situation. Nothing she’s doing really makes sense, and what IS there seems to have forgotten what her actual deal is, but she’s doing it with the right flair, so it feels like she’s in-character enough for the scene to be fun. Like an episodic cartoon that just forgets what happened in previous episodes depending on who’s writing this one. So… I think that’s a real risk for Sammy. For the people who just want him to show up and whisper cult-ish things so we can hear his voice more and go HEHEHE ITS HIM, this isn’t really a concern lmao, that will probably happen. I don’t have high hopes that he’ll make sense as a character, but tbf I don’t know that he ever has.

And IDK, its still early, its possible the cage will come out and I'll look up spoilers and be like OMG NM I LOVE WHAT THEY DID WITH HIM. A game that's supposed to be psychological horror could, in theory, be a really fun place for Sammy!! Maybe the people actually writing him will give him more care, haha. It's a little silly for me to be so worked up about the marketing for a game that I am not going to buy b/c I’m still not interested in giving JDS, Inc. my money. AND YET DESPITE IT ALL I STILL… CARE ABOUT SAMMY LAWRENCE LMAO….. I think my main emotion about The Cage is just curiosity, though. I do want to know what they do with him. I’m curious if he’ll play a major part in the story, or if he’s like Henry or Porter in BatDR, with one big scene where he gets a bunch of lines and then runs off. A lot of people really want to see Henry and Sammy team up in this, but I’m not writing off the possibility he’s an antagonist of some kind, so I’m curious which way that’ll go. But I don’t feel like I have any strong expectations, so I guess we’ll see!

[ceilingcow]

Howdy, folks! I’m Hoff or Wes, and you might know me as the mod for @yeehawgust, as the merch mod for @falloutghoulzine or from around the Fallout fandom here on Tumblr.

I have a top surgery date set for early December, and though I was able to pay for the surgery itself, it was more expensive than I’d anticipated so I’m going to struggle paying for the day-of hospital fees, travel and food. I’m super excited about finally being able to get this surgery, but I could really use some help! I’ll try to keep things brief, but here’s how you can help, aside from just donating to my Ko-Fi. I won’t stretch this post with a ton of merch examples, you can check them out at the links below.

I’m doing a pre-order for Benny Gecko stickers over at my Ko-Fi shop. Stickers will be 4″ tall and professionally printed on clear, waterproof vinyl. Preorders will be open until noon CST on November 25th. See the full art and details at the link above.

My Ko-Fi Shop has buttons, stickers, and PWYW Mystery Packs if you want to donate more than the cost of the pack.

Check out my main Etsy shop, Tigers Eye Adventure Co, where I have tons of LGBTQIA+ buttons, including custom name and pronoun buttons, plus artisanal glitter options. I’ve got gift packs that make great presents!

Check out my new Etsy shop, Stranger Pastures, where I have Fallout and other video game buttons and stickers.

Reblogs and support are greatly appreciated! I hate to be asking for help like this, but I’m coming up short on the final stretch on my journey. Thank you! <3

[woolblossom]

Would you ever make plushies of your original character designs? Like you have some cute puppies as stickers and stuff, I’d love to have a plush of the same character!

Yeah!! I made a PBJ Dino plush back in 2021 that I’d like to remake sometime!

And I currently have a lovester plush in the works!! :3 preorders will open I think mid Feb or sometime before mid March

But I have a ton of diff ideas for plushies! It’s just a matter of being able to afford to make them LOL :3

[taavisplushies]

zayn and kato! my prime shiba plushies :3

zayn is a piebald husky (white) and kato is an agouti husky (black)!

more about prime shiba below!

prime shiba is a small business focusing on dogs/wolves! they have plushies, stickers, keychains and more.

of course, the plushies are my favorite product! the 2 i have are very soft and well made! they’re both 15in, so they’re perfect for hugs!

what i love about prime shiba is that the plushies are unique! for instance, they have plushies of unique breeds i’ve never heard of (kai ken, thai bangkaew, etc), and also plushies of common breeds that have unique fur patterns, like the 2 huskies i have.

since the business is small, prices are expensive… but they’re not super high! $45 for a 15in high quality plush! i think that’s a good price, because i’ve seen smaller plushies go for more!

ALSO there are sales sometimes! AND if you live in the US, free shipping for plushies!!! anyway, there’s a sale rn! the older plushies have higher discounts than the newer plushies and preorders.

prime shiba makes plushies ranging from 15in to 30in! good sizes for cuddling!

unfortunately prime shiba does not have a lot of followers. on instagram, they have less than 2k :( i hope one day they can become big and famous!

these plushies below are my favorites…

quil my beloved… there has been multiple versions of them! blue eyes, brown eyes, and then this one which is i think bigger than the previous ones.

i love the design!! unfortunately i just don’t have room for such a big plush (or the money lol). i’m hoping one day a smaller version of quil is made… i would buy that so quick!!!

shikoku ken plushie!!! i think their name is haku, but im not 100% sure. sometimes the owner doesn’t put the names on the listing and idk why….

anyway i think this fella is so cute!!! maybe one day i’ll get them if they are on a big sale! i like them but i don’t like them enough to spend a lot on them yknow? like it’s a want, not a need lol

okay this fella has a simple design but the color is so pretty!!! love you nike… but again, i don’t like em enough to spend a lot on them!

falcon!!! love this design, and idk if you can see but there’s little freckles on their muzzle!!!

if i had the money, i definitely would snatch this fella up, even without a big sale!

okay last 2!

embry looks so sweet!! she’s a need tbh. i hope i’ll be able to get her someday.

quest my beloved…! this photo doesn’t do him justice. he’s so cute! i think i preordered him a few months ago when he was on sale for $30 but i can’t remember for sure. i’ll just have to wait for december and see if he shows up lol

OH I FORGOT ATLAS!!!

i can’t add any more photos but he’s a bluish grey and white border collie and super cute :3 another one i’d like to get someday… even if it means spending a lot lol

[empathum]

Hi! I missed the chance of being able to get the if you could see the sun preorder bonus so, if you’re able to, would there be any way you could be able to summarise it?? The book was so good and I literally can’t stop thinking about it!!

Hi! Sure! It’s no problem, I’d be happy to :)

FIRST PART

‘BEFORE’

It’s in Henry’s pov of one of him and Alice’s classes, they have this history quiz for extra credit and they have to choose teams and people are like fighting over who gets Henry and Alice, they end up in separate teams and the extra credit quiz becomes just them trying to beat each other (bc obviously) but the thing is, the whole time Henry’s thinking about how he loves this, the way Alice glares at him gives him butterflies and if winning against her was the only way she would focus on him and only him then so be it. Their competitions, no matter how little or big it is, means a lot to him. This part also shows how much respect he has for Alice, and also let me show this part “She strides over to him first, her shoulders thrown back, determined not to bend beneath the weight of her defeat. He does not think anything in the world will ever be powerful enough to knock her down.” MY HEART

SECOND PART

DURING

This mentions how Henry has a photographic memory, and that he uses his brain like he does any computer, filtering and filing away the ones that dont matter to him and saving the ones that do, and he mentions that its mostly of alice. like her simple gestures, her scowl, her laughter. it also mentions like the first part of the book where invisible alice visits him in his dorm for the first time, he thought he was hallucinating because he was thinking of her too much! whsbwbseib then skips to that making of the app, how he spent countless sleepless nights perfecting it bc it would make them business partners, therefore getting close to her. he imagines her secret smiles, that she might compliment him and tell him he did a good job, and that is more than enough motivation for him.

then time-skip to another part of the book, the part where Alice is so stressed bc of the countless requests on beijing ghost and her academic responsibilities that when she was about to present something for english she excuses herself to calm down first, henry follows her shortly after and sees her panicking. henry obvi wanted to comfort her but resorted to looking like he was teasing her, which did kind of work bc she ended up angry rather than anxious. here henry admits that theres a part of him that just wants to hold her close and comfort her. then henry tells alice when she’s presenting she should look at him. then she’s like “why would i do that?” and he’s like “because for one my face is nice to look at” then she’s like sarcastic “sure” and he steps forward and is like “are you saying it isnt?” he says like he’s not the one who’s heart is beating rlly fast then like some more teasing then like they agree to it and she delivers the presentation looking at him and he thinks that she’s perfect. (im telling u all henry is the biggest simp)

LAST PART

AFTER (after the events of the book! yay!)

Henry has a nightmare. That last part of the book but instead it was Alice trying to be taken away and like he’s panicking and trying to save her then like they have this exchange of words and you can just feel how panicky he is. then dream alice says nobody can see her and henry says its not true because he sees her then dream alice starts to disappear and he starts calling out to her, shouting her name over and over then he wakes up. He was in his private library, before falling asleep he was there with alice and they were just reading with alice threading her fingers through his hair and him pretending to read and he got sleepy bc of it. which is odd for him because he never takes naps, especially if its accidental, but alice makes him feel relaxed 🥹❤️. so yeah he searches for alice and finds her just beside him she asks if he’s okay bc she heard that he was saying her name in his sleep, his response was to hug her and ask her to not disappear again. and then alice makes a confession about how she too gets nightmares about that night, then she says when she wakes up she’s okay because she knows he’s there, so everythings going to be okay <3

This is the part where it switches to alice’s pov again and like theyre on a study date, well alice assumed it was a study date, henry wanted a date date lmao, alice tries to make it up to him and says they should do some romantic stuff and like this funny part where she points out a store with a bunch of hearts and she says that that place looks romantic and henry says that its a lingerie shop, he of course laughs at her (tho he tries to hide it) henry then suggests they should just have dinner. then like on the way to the restaurant, theyre already abt to go in when they bump into alice’s aunt and her friends and like one of her aunt’s friends saw henry, confirmed he was rich, and tried to set him up with her daughter, which he henry thought was funny (this is in alice’s pov but like she just knows) alice speaks up and says henry is her boyfriend, lin ayi (aunt’s friend) said like an offensive ‘you?’ then henry says that he fell for alice first slightly colder than before (henry mad but calm) then they were abt to go in when lin ayi heard they were going to eat in the vip section and subtly suggests (if you could even call it subtle) if they (the 3 aunties) could join, henry gives the choice to alice and alice agrees. henry and alice walk in holding hands and henry starts pulling a chair for alice to sit down on, and henry whispers “how have i been?” like how has his ‘performance’ been because he knows alice wants to show him off, like a subtle counterattack to that lin ayi, he says he’s happy to oblige and wants to know if he’s performing up to standard (his words not mine), alice says (a lil annoyed but not tone) “you’ve been very good. happy?”

this is his legit response i had to share the whole paragraph.

henry confirmed golden retriever type in private black cat in public.

and because he’s happy alice praised him he even says he’ll treat the aunties. lin ayi pretends to be ashamed (is still the first one to order very plenty and expensive food) (god, lin ayi annoyed me sm) okay and theres the dinner and stuff then she asks if henry can drink, he’s legal so yeah he can, she even tries to pressure alice into drinking, henry says he’ll drink for her. then theres this drinking competition of henry and the aunties. of course henry would not back out. so yeah this happens and lin ayi (now obviously drunk) brings up her daughter again (she just never gives up) and asks if he’s sure he’s in a committed relationship and that theyre still young and they (alice & henry) can break up, when that happens and stuff her daughter is available (like alice isnt sitting right there). then henry completely shuts her down by saying he’s certain that she’s in a committed relationship, he’s never been certain of anything more in his life, and that if they were to ever be separated he would not be of sound heart or mind to even look at anybody else. then someone calls on lin ayi’s phone and she leaves and theyre finally alone (2 aunties r elsewhere a while ago). so yeah henry wins the drinking game, once all aunties were gone he finally lets go of his act and slumps and YES DRUNK HENRY

He says like “I won” with a smile. shes like “uh sorry what r u trying to achieve here?” and hes like “you havent told me yet” shes like “told you what” and alice is like confused lmao, and henry pouts POUTS then like more cute stuff im sorry im not going into too much detail im missing a bunch of stuff out then like henry begins to say his recent achievements to her like how he’s one of the reasons his dads company like rising revenue, how he was one of the ppl invited to talk at this big event and he’s the youngest one there, and he says “you’re not impressed?” and alice finally realizes what he wants to hear her say, then alice like chuckles and says “henry, come on. i’m always impressed by you.”

then she takes him to the car and helps him in he asks, looking more sleepy than drunk, “you’re coming, aren’t you? you won’t leave?” (he’s so cute ejdjen) then some exchanging of words then he starts getting a little clingy and says “alice i miss you, i miss you now.” “but i’m here.” “i know. that’s when it’s worse, almost. your presence… it’s overwhelming. i cannot imagine the absence of it. i don’t want to. does that make sense?” then alice strokes his hair and says “it does. but i won’t give you the chance to miss me that much. i’ll always be with you. you know that, don’t you?” then henry says with a small soft smile “i know everything.”

AND THATS A WRAP PEOPLE i obviously didnt include absolutely everything since this is already too long but like i didnt include some cute parts so i am sorry auwbswbsb like the mention of henry’s 18th bday (like literal mentioned in the after part in the drinking scene) like how alice made henry’s bday memorable. MY HEART. okay yeah thats it i hope this is okay hehe

[defectivenancydrew]

Shop Update and Survey 👀

First up, magnets are now available!

Show your school spirit in style with the Waverly Academy Crest.

Next up, lanyards!! Here’s the deal: I’ve made a product mock-up and I want to know if this is something we’re interested in. Because of minimum order quantities (sadly I lack the ability and resources to make these myself in the studio), I’d need to sell about 30 of them during the preorder period to bring these to life. They’d be $10 (+shipping) during preorders and if there’s enough interest, you could have them in your hands as early as the first week of January, factoring in production time and shipping delays. Drop a comment in the replies/reblogs if you’d purchase during preorders and be sure to reblog to help me reach as many interested parties as possible! I can’t bring these lanyards to life without your support 🖤

Remember, this is just a mock-up, but it should look pretty much exactly like this! After preorders, a very limited amount would remain available to purchase normally in the shop, but it’s doubtful I would be able to restock these regularly (again because of the minimum order quantities).

As always—THANK YOU! 🖤

[thisbelongsto-nohbodys]

Well, now Marcy's Journal has revealed what Sasha and Marcy's parents look like in one of Anne's entries, so now you got inspiration on fan comics showing them.

I haven’t seen them which is surprising cause I heard there’s been leaks but haven’t seen any. I didn’t preorder the book (no money) and idk if I’ll b able to get it when it does come out but once it does and I see what they look like and then figure out what they’d look like in 10+ years, I’d def b down to do some comics with them

(Once again, no spoilers. I will auto delete any asks with images attached just in case until the book releases)

[jennamoreci]

Two bestseller lists already?!?! 😳 You probably already know I’ve had a rough few months. Cliff was hospitalized with a serious injury that required surgery, and the pain that followed was intense. I was juggling hospital stays, doctor visits, pharmacy hiccups, being Cliff’s nurse and advocate, AND prepping the preorder of my debut writing craft book - which I had to delay by a month. Once Cliff was finally stable, I was relieved but wiped out. After all that chaos, working on the preorder felt like running a marathon. When I finally was able to plop SHUT UP AND WRITE THE BOOK on Amazon, I immediately went to bed. I didn’t make a formal announcement - just a brief newsletter shout out & one IG post. I figured I’d make the big announcement later because your girl was TIRED. Imagine my surprise when, only 24 hours later, SUAWTB hits the number 1 spot on not one, but TWO Amazon bestseller lists 😭 This just goes to show the power and kindness of my readers. I haven’t even made the formal announcement or revealed the presale incentive, but you still had my back. And I can’t even begin to express the depth of my gratitude. From the bottom of my cold, black heart, thank you 🖤 I haven’t felt this good in months, and it’s all thanks to your love and support. We’re gonna be celebrating this big achievement at today’s livestream, so please stop by to celebrate with me and a few friends! And if you haven’t preordered yet, you know what to do 😙 https://amzn.to/3W2sz13 (Don’t worry, the book is coming to more platforms and in more formats very soon!) (at Bay Area, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CkK2YoLOdDX/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[gasha40k]

Not much has happened since the last post, both regarding building and painting, but I’ve done a little bit of painting in my free time. Alas, I am the most indecisive man yet born, and as such, I haven’t made any significant progress on any one single army as much as I’ve just… painted shit that I want to paint in the moment.

Here’s my first little group of red boys. Bloodletters are super fun to paint, consisting of maybe four or five paints, and being able to do a couple coats of base paint then slap Carroburg Crimson on the model and call it a day has been a great break from the relatively more complex painting projects that Astartes are.

I’m also particularly proud of the bases I made for them. Astrogranite Technical, an industrial amount of Blood for the Blood God, and a bit of drybrushing makes for cool little Khorne-realm adjacent environments for these dudes. It’s also a relatively easily replicable process, so it’s good for a horde army.

The one thing I’m not a huge fan of is their blades. I’d love to have bright, glowing, fiery Hellblades like in Total War: Warhammer 3, but the standard steel looks grimy enough that it works, and it was done using paints I had already on hand. I’ll probably experiment a bit with various fire effects in the future, likely giving fancy Hellblades to HQs and more expensive models like Bloodcrushers while keeping stock Bloodletters basic like this.

Moving on, marines! I’ve decided on a different color palette and heraldry, although these are such minor differences that they don’t matter a whole lot in the long run. I’ve swapped from Mechanicus Standard Gray to Skavenblight Dinge, and the gold kneepads now go on the left. I gotta figure out how to get my models less shiny, dude.

Here’s a closeup of a little auspex-esque doodad that I thought I did a good job on. Tiny little details, but they add a lot of character to the model. The base is also particularly high effort, especially in comparison to the flat brownish orange planes that my Astartes stood on prior. I’m excited to see my dudes all painted up, but that won’t be for a long while.

Especially not if I keep buying new shit. Welcome the first Thunderbearers Aggressors, Squad Terastrael. Aggressors are a fun unit and the kit is awesome, not to mention how grotesquely meta they are now (which definitely didn’t encourage this purchase, trust me).

Sergeant Terastrael comes with a trusty censer and a personal servoskull for better murder capabilities. His model is simple but distinct, especially in comparison to the other two.

The brother on the left is pretty standard save for his massive aquila icon and some excessive purity seals, which has come to be a common practice in my Chapter. The brother on the right differentiates himself with a sort of ceremonial or official side cape, which is a visual motif that I plan on standardizing in my army, since side and shoulder capes are raw as fuck. Similarly to Eradicator Squad Kellam, the army’s only other Gravis unit, they all come equipped with MKIII helmets for that proper Centurion adjacent look.

And last but not least, I finished painting a Shadowkeeper. Finalizing the color scheme was pretty fun, and the light highlights on this model were also quite fun. I still haven’t decided on bases for these dudes so I’m yet to really dig into finishing the models, but besides the fucking trim, they’re nice to paint.

The World Eaters are going on preorder, so I’m sure I’ll have some more Khornate shit to talk about before long. I will be buying that Angron model, so that’ll be a fun experience.