#I'm tagging this one i want perspectives. i want responses. i need someone to talk abt oofuri w me rn or my brain is gonna ooze outta my ear

[oofuri2003]

Okay I'm curious. What is the funniest part/scene/bit in the oofuri manga to you. I'm torn btwn akimaru hitting abe in the back of the head w the ball and mizutani "so theres this girl. And shes a burglar."

[theodysseyofhomer]

this is not to single anyone out, but i have a lot of new followers, and i would just love for you all to know... the search function on my blog is operational. if you search for epic the musical, you will find that i have dabbled in it. it is slightly annoying to be asked over and over whether i've heard of it, even by lovely, enthusiastic, friendly people.

i have another reason for not answering those questions, which is that when someone is being enthusiastic and friendly to me, i don't want to be mean to them. but if i'm going to speak from my heart as an odyssey lover, i don't think epic the musical is that good. it doesn't especially interest me as a standalone piece, but i also don't find it provides much insight on, or compelling points of comparison with, homer's odyssey. i'm glad you're all having a good time! please stop asking me about it.

bullet point review below the cut, for those who are more curious about my opinions.

things i like about epic:

astyanax's murder doesn't get brought up a lot in stories that are sympathetic to odysseus. it's optional when adapting the odyssey or the iliad, but i am definitely of the opinion that odysseus did it, and even if he didn't, he convinced the other greek leaders that it needed to be done.

the athena/odysseus duets.

i found the reframing of polyphemus' blinding compelling, where he's doing the same thing he does in the odyssey for a different reason. i also liked that the audience doesn't learn his name until he reveals it to polyphemus. that's a neat touch.

earwormy as hell.

the fanart! i saw odysseus fanart maybe 3 times a year before the troy saga dropped. i'll take that trade (for my sanity when i try to navigate the tags).

jorge seems to be invested in odysseus/penelope, which is like the bare minimum to hold my attention, but still.

anyhow jorge seems charming; all his videos and interactions with fans seem nothing but excited about what everyone can contribute. commissioning wolfy to animate a trailer? widely regarded as a great move.

things i don't like about epic:

as gutsy as i think it is to start with astyanax's murder, the main thing to me is not whether his hands physically threw the baby, but whether he is in some way responsible for it. more than that, astyanax's death isn't divinely mandated: it's a ruthlessly pragmatic preemptive strike against vengeance that the greek leaders are afraid of. it's 100% human. so framing it around zeus, known troy stan, forcing odysseus to do it and he feels so so bad about it ????????

baffling to me to start with a moral conflict about infanticide, and after committing it, odysseus is still like... maybe kindness is brave? maybe i'm not a ruthless person? please be serious. you murdered that baby.

(been talking to @littlesparklight about this but you could have started out with some version of sophocles' ajax, a death caused by the gods that odysseus actually is complicit in when he didn't necessarily want it to happen. i digress.)

don't like the way the fandom talks about astyanax, specifically, as if odysseus raising a kidnapped trojan boy whose people were destroyed and whose mother was sold into slavery in another land is ever going to be a fluffy au and meanwhile odysseus did very much murder that baby, so!

the songs are not... good. like i said, they're earwormy, but that's also because they're repetitive and predictable. the lyrics are distractingly bad at times, not only from a character perspective, but in the sense of using words wrongly or awkwardly to try to fit them into a rhyme scheme.

i like the reframing of the polyphemus episode. not so much the aeolus one. at that point, you have odysseus doing the opposite of what he did in the odyssey for opposite reasons, which makes him a character bearing no resemblance to odysseus at all.

and this happens while other characters (mostly gods) try to drag him kicking and screaming into his actual homeric characterization.

like, odysseus is haunted by the war in the odyssey, but not because he regrets what he's done as a moral injury. he chose violence on purpose. the gods did not force him to be this person. it's a narrative throughline that serves only as a bid to make odysseus more sympathetic.

... and in doing so, strips away his agency — in sacking a city, in lying and obscuring the truth with his crew (his lies are more than a quirk that endears him to athena, they have consequences!) — some might say his personality. i do have sympathy for odysseus, even at his worst moments morally, because i find his character as a whole compelling. you don't need to try to absolve him of these things! they tell you about what kind of person he is! they are evocative (and provocative) already! take them away and he is boring, because he is not choosing to do anything.

the new wave of odysseus fans seem unable to handle homeric odysseus' complicated aspects and character traits, and to a degree i blame this on the musical characterization. it's allowed to be its own thing, certainly, but now i regularly get people arguing about whether he's a good person when all they know is something epic made up and that was never the fucking point, anyway.

are we really going to pretend he didn't have sex with circe and calypso at all

[misc-obeyme]

CC, I desperately need to know. When commenting on or reblogging your fics, are suoer simple feedback comments still really nice to get? Like "This was beautiful" or something?

I'm struggling with feeling guilty because I am having a hard time getting energy to give longer comments and stuff. I usually write a few things about the story or related to the story but right now even just writing "I really like this!" has been taking a lot of energy.

Also, do you have an Solomon🤍 anon? If not...

~ Solomon🤍

Hey there anon! I don't have a Solomon🤍 anon, so I will be sure to add that to the anon list!

Now, as it happens, I have thoughts about this specific thing. I can't speak for all writers/artists, but I think my sentiments are somewhat universal since we're all creating and sharing on the same platform. I've also been on Tumblr since the very beginning, so that might have an impact on my personal perspective.

To begin, let me give you the short and easy answer: It is always nice to get any kind of feedback, even short and sweet comments like the ones you've given as examples. Please don't feel guilty about not leaving massively long, in depth commentary on things. Most people understand that not everybody has the spoons for that kind of thing all the time. It's honestly just nice to know that someone liked it at all.

That being said, I feel the need to give you a little bit more nuance about this particular issue, as someone who gets a lot of notifs nowadays.

Quite honestly, the fact that you reblogged it at all is really nice, even if all you do is tag it as "obey me" or something along those lines.

I get hundreds of notifications every day. And most of those are likes. I would say perhaps like 90%? It's a lot. And when one post is getting a lot of attention, my notifs just group them together. So it'll be like "username, username, and 12 other people" and then it'll indicate the post and that it was liked by all those people.

That means that if you reblog it, even without tags, it pops up as a separate notification. And to me, that's always nice to see. I'm always like OH! That person liked it enough to reblog! Thank you, friend!

I'm not kidding, that's my internal monologue lol.

I know there's a lot of discourse about reblogging vs liking, but I'm not really talking about any of that (I'm willing to share my thoughts if people ask though). I'm just telling you what it's like from my perspective.

Things that always catch my attention are reblogs with or without tags, a direct comment on a post, and asks.

Specifically about reblogs, there are different things that are more noticeable.

Like, yes, I'm going to notice if someone leaves a lot of tags gushing about how much they liked the story. I have screenshotted tags and comments that have made me happy just so I can go back and read them.

I often reread the reblogged tags on posts. It's writer-fuel.

And when I'm looking at the reblogs of a post all at once, I'm scrolling through and seeing one that's really in depth and one that's just "AAAAHHH" and i love them both equally.

Is it always going to be more meaningful and impactful if someone reblogs with a dissertation in the tags or even a whole analysis added to the post? Of course. But that is a rare occurrence and not something I ever expect to see. Nor would I personally want someone to force themselves to give more feedback than they can manage.

I just like to know that reading it meant something to you. Likes tell me you liked it, tagless reblogs let me know that you liked it enough to share it, but they don't really tell me much beyond that. A reblog that says "I really loved this!" lets me know that this piece of writing touched you enough for you to actually write a little response to me. You might even say something like, "I love *character*" or perhaps "that last line oof" or even just "a;lksdfkljasdfklj" - all of that conveys so much more to me than a like or tagless reblog. It doesn't have to be a lot. And when like five people do this on one post, it really adds up, too, you know? So I'm like Oh, the people like this one!! LOL!

So I guess what I'm trying to say is, the more interaction you can give is always appreciated, but nobody wants you to force yourself to have elaborate comments. Just a reblog is also appreciated.

That being said, if you want to get elaborate in the tags PLEASE DO. You don't need to push yourself, but you don't need to hold back, either!

I appreciate every bit of interaction I receive, of course. And I'm thankful for everyone that has followed me and enjoyed my writing!

I hope that answered the question, I'm sorry for rambling a bit lol. I just figured I could take the opportunity to talk a little bit about what it's like from my side of things! Thank you for asking, honestly, I appreciate that you're worried about making fic writers feel the love on their works! But you don't need to feel guilty, you're already doing more than most by reblogging and leaving any tags at all. 💕💕

[bewitched-bullet]

You won't reply to me but I have to say something as well. They deleted their posts because followers (I'm one of them) explicitly asked them to delete them. You can check his blog to see.

I honestly feel you are creating so much hatred out of nothing. I am even afraid to show you my identity, knowing you will come after me if I do. Only because I have a different perspective on it all.

Didn't this whole discussion start with the supposed toxicity of the Sherlock mod? Who was trying to prevent an RPer from leaving? That's precisely what he did to John, according to John's posts on his blog (you have to read between the lines), perhaps to Mycroft even (dunno for sure). But who knows for sure they did? Isn't it logically that you beg someone not to leave because you want to continue what you're doing?

I saw the last post on the John blog and was quite moved. He always sounds like a very reasonable guy, unlike Sherlock, unlike you guys on here. Sorry.

So, we ask you to stop this crusade. I will also ask my friends to send you a message just in case. Stop it. You are hurting people who don't deserve it.

*le sigh*

I'm afraid you haven't been actually paying attention if you think I can see his blog. After our conversation in a comment section, the John mod blocked me. Which I posted about.

If you have read all my posts, etc you would see that I've answered every single ask except two. Even the spicy ones sent by Harriet mod as themselves and as anon and the 3 by the Mycroft/John mod as anonymous. Even, when John sent basically the same message 3 times (my inbox, ask, and tagging me (as John) ((which can be considered harassment)), I never "came after" them. Not like they have for most of the other mods, including ones OUTSIDE of their rp group.

Isn't. That. Interesting.

So, no, I'm not going to "come after" you for being polite and expressing yourself.

Now on to the good stuff.

So the John mod will flip-flop on what they strongly believe, on a whim, for a stranger.

Take note on that.

Looks like you are referencing the post Dump made? Allow me to remind you (which isn't my responsibility btw) what you are talking about if you are. Dump said that (paraphrasing):

"...consult-sherlock begged me to stay. They all contributed to my decision to block JOHN, SHERLOCK, AND MORIARTY."

If you want the exact verbiage, go look for it. It's in the tag "a scandal in tumblr".

We don't know the nature of the begging. And we can't ask the source because they specifically said to LEAVE THEM ALONE. Begging, is not inherently wrong? Not sure what you're insinuating here. Maybe you are assuming how they were begging was wrong? If you have any insider information on this I would very much be interested.

If you call avoidance, deflection, refusing to break character on a concerning issue (referring to when this was just about the fishy miscommunication) as "Reading between the lines", that's a personal problem for you. All that I mentioned in this paragraph are all red flags. Very red. On fire, red. And no one can help you see these till you're ready. That's why so many people stay with OBVIOUSLY (and sometimes not so publicly obvious) awful partners that mistreat them, why we excuse our (our as in as whole, not saying you and me specifically) abusive parents behavior, or side with an abusive government(s) that sanctions genocide.

As for being reasonable...I am reasonable. Till I'm not. I will never be reasonable to bullying/abuse. Especially when it involves little kids and old people. I will go fucking feral. And with this situation, after the pretzels John clearly twisted himself into, the PUBLIC harassment of Greg, yeah, for sure, I'm more in my feels in this. That being said, I haven't lost all rational thought. Cuz these are grown adults that are involved and feral me isn't needed.

I can easily adjust my stance on a situation don't have all information on. Because I'm intelligent like that.

Remember the Amber Heard case?

Thankfully, I could wait till a public court case to see all the evidence presented in an organized manner to make my judgements.

(cuz it's fucking hilarious)

However, so many people were upset at being "wrong". Ooooor they doubled down in their previous beliefs DESPITE the clear evidence. Its ok to change your views as new information and actual facts come out.

This is called critical thinking. (Side note: they were both abusive to each other but it's clear who "started" it. Reactive abuse it still abuse though, y'all. And if you see this in yourself, recognize it, get help, and you can improve. I believe that all people can become better versions of themselves...but that's because I can't squash the optimism that lives deep down inside me)

I'll keep this simple: there's no crusade. Just presentation of evidence, my knowledge, conclusions, and feels.

I'm rather allergic to holy wars that justify murder and genocide.

Oh? You're going to ask your friends to message me to stop? You mean you're gonna recruit people to try and bully me into submission? Gonna harass me if I don't do what you want? Gonna jumpstart your own foray into abuse?

Be careful, it's a slippery slope. And once you start sliding down it, it's incredibly hard to claw your way back up.

Side note: I'm not going to be anyone's brain, legs, fingers. All of you can think for yourselves, can find the info yourselves, and type things in yourselves. The information is there. Stop being lazy if you actually want to know

[utilitycaster]

“Chaotic” players anon here, thank you for your response I appreciate the agreement in theory and disagreement in practice! I’ve been chatting about it with friends and I hard agree that direct communication prevents many problems at tables, I suppose I was coming at the issue of refusal to engage with a GM with the lens of “if this player runs a short campaign, they may come to appreciate a GM’s role more than their current point of view does”. I think these types of players view their games in the same way as people view one-shots (shout-out to the WBN fireside discussion on connection to the world and one-shots) and that while shutting down their refusal at the table can also work, I wonder would trying to lift them out of that one-shot mindset by asking them to run a short game that doesn’t allow for a one-shot mindset would challenge that mindset.

Hey anon!

This is actually a really interesting question that has led me to try and break down that sort of situation. I think there's a lot of reasons why someone might play that "chaotic" type of character and I think the methods of dealing with them probably need to account for that. I will freely admit I lean heavily towards the cynical "this person is being an asshole" side, certainly more so than Brennan (who I think is rightfully influenced by the fact that a lot of his 'problem players' have also been like, twelve-year-old kids at summer camp and often it is the adult GM's responsibility to make them care more) but that's probably not always true.

If the issue is the player doesn't feel connected to the world, then that's a conversation, and it could end any number of ways - maybe they need to reassess their character and build one more connected to this world; maybe the GM does need to communicate the plot and tie it into this character's backstory more; but also, maybe this just isn't the campaign for what they are looking to do, and it's a bad fit, and that's okay. I don't think that them running a game will necessarily help unless they're not sure what motivates them, in which case figuring out what story they want to run might help them realize what story they want to play.

If the issue is the player fundamentally sees a GM/Player relationship as a combative one, that's much harder and I don't know how to fix it. It might be a conversation, and it might be them stepping into the GM's chair for a bit to understand the considerations one must have! But also...especially when I got more mechanics questions I'd sometimes get tags and replies that really heavily indicated someone had had one bad GM and instead of saying "wow, that person sucked" blamed either the game for not shielding them from it or the institution of GM-ing and assumed this was just the norm. If that's the case, a talk might help if they are willing to trust you, but they might just need to take a break or find GM-less games. Which as you may notice is a running theme here: sometimes I don't think this player and this GM will be happy at the same table, and that's okay, and the chaos is happening because this is just not working.

If the player is just dedicated to an identity of "I'm chaotic and wacky!" that is definitely a conversation similar to the first but slightly more stern, and I think if they're the kind of person who can be snapped out of it by taking a spin in the GM role then sure, let them be on the receiving side and come back with a new perspective. But again, some people genuinely want to just be wacky, plotless, and chaotic, and I don't care for it but in the end they need to find a table that does want this.

Just all-around: If it's an issue of the player not realizing the effect this has on the GM and other players, a conversation might fix it and sitting them in the GM's chair, if they're willing, might give them an appreciation for what it means to be a GM and how you as a GM want your players to engage rather than ignore. But I do think one needs to keep in mind that this also might be a person who is just incompatible with what you want to do, and they'd be just as chaotic and plotless as a GM and see no issue with it.

[miralines]

Before I say anything, I just want to inform you that I just randomly came across your post browsing the discourse tag for something else. I don't know who you are nor what's happening with ao3 users here. I don't know if you wanted a deep(ish)dive into someone's thoughts and reasons for choosing fics based on kudos and hits ratio, but 100% ignore if you didn't! Sorry if I am intruding by doing this!

I come from multiple giant fandoms and when there are multiple fic choices with tags and summaries that I like, I do choose to go by kudos and hits ratio. Just to pick which one to check out first. I did notice however, that in smaller fandoms or tags this couldn't be applied because there's not enough fics, so I just read what I'm interested in most.

Why? Kudos signify how enjoyed the fic is to me, because usually the more kudos it has the more talked about it is on other platforms. Why would that be important? It's just that I enjoy exploring content made by others after I'm up to date with a fic. It's really fun to see people talk, theorize, make art and speculate or scream over things that will or did happen. It's giving me an opportunity to find people with similar interests and see what they make overall!

Sometimes though, if fic in a fandom or a tag that's incredibly popular gets hundreds of hits and very few kudos, I choose not to read it. This is based on a few bad experiences I had giving those fics a chance, where something in them made me uncomfortable or hard to read. I don't have any very specific needs when I'm reading fics, I just enjoy reading as a part of enjoying the fandom, so when I see the general readers avoid giving kudos in fandoms where it's very usual to have a lot on fics, I don't want to read that fic for my enjoyment.

I really don't know much about this, I'm sorry! But yeah, I basically use kudos to hits ratio to oriantate myself and avoid something I wouldn't like based on previous correlations I made. I don't know if that's wrong or upsetting for others, but if you find it that way, I would like to know why too and improve! Sorry for any grammatical mistakes I made!

Oh hi anon! I wasn’t expecting anyone to reach out like this, but thank you for taking the time to write out your thoughts! (Also. Please do not feel the need to apologize for grammatical mistakes. I do not believe in ‘correct’ grammar; as long as I understood you, which I did, I think you’re absolutely fine and using language as it’s intended!) (I am. A particular kind of nerd and not policing grammar is something I have Opinions about hence this tangent lmao)

This got terribly long, so I’ve put a tldr above the cut and divided the rest under headers for ease of reading.

Tldr: I see your points with regard to differences between large and small fandoms, and with the specific goal of finding “sub-fandoms” for particular fics. I still disagree that kudos-to-hits ratio is the best way to decide what fics to read, both because it isn’t an accurate metric of engagement and because I dislike the idea of using engagement as the primary metric in the first place. When I use A03, I prefer to sort by what’s recent and use the tags and summary to decide what to read, or to use the (excellent) search function to find what I’m looking for specifically.

I’d also like to note to anyone else reading: I doubt this will be an issue, but if anyone is rude to anon I’m going to turn off reblogs on this post. I know this is something some people feel strongly about, and discussion is fine, but this is absolutely not worth being mean to another human about.

Size of fandom

To begin my more thorough response: This is an interesting perspective– not one I entirely agree with, but I can certainly see how in larger fandoms with a lot more content it would be valuable to be more selective. For context, my main fandom is an obscure storytelling band with under 3k total works on A03, and these days I mostly occupy a niche of that fandom (one specific album) with only 128 works. The largest fandom I’ve been active in currently has 37k works on A03.

I don’t know what your fandoms are, but as some examples of bigger fandoms, Star Trek currently has over 100k works, Supernatural has almost 300k, and Harry Potter has nearly 500k. That is a big difference! I’m currently working on a goal to read every fic in my 128-fic niche (with some exclusion criteria), but in larger fandoms it’s impossible not to be selective. This is all to say– I definitely agree with you that the size of a fandom impacts how a person can and does interact with it.

Fans of fics

Your point about wanting to interact with other fans of a particular fic also makes sense! There was a particular fic series in my largest fandom that had a pretty decent following, and I still have friends from that sub-fandom several years later. If this metric helps you find fics that match your goal of having that experience, I can see how the kudos-to-hits ratio could function as a potentially useful metric, though I still think its usefulness is a bit limited for reasons I’m about to go into.

Kudos-to-hits isn’t accurate

I have two reasons for thinking that kudos-to-hits ratio isn’t the best way to determine what to read. The first is purely numerical. If you’ve been watching this discourse, you’ve probably already seen people discussing how users can only leave a single kudos, but may be responsible for 20-plus hits on a work. This is especially applicable to multichapter works, which in my experience are the fics that are able to develop their own following. If you want to sort fics by engagement, it seems like at the very least, using comments for the ratio is a more accurate measurement.

Using engagement as a metric at all

Secondly, though, I (and I believe, a lot of people) dislike the notion of using engagement as a metric to measure fics in the first place. I think the current discourse is partially due to some regrettable phrasing on the part of the OP of the post I was vaguing– if I recall correctly, they said that they use this metric to determine if a fic is “worth reading”. I think this phrasing was hurtful to a lot of fic writers who may not have large followings or a lot of engagement, but who work very hard on their fics and feel frustrated that this person implied that they aren’t worth reading. I have fics that are personal favorites of mine, but that I haven’t gotten a lot of feedback on.

Of course, this is just part of writing, and it’s an important skill for any writer (of fic or anything else) to learn to handle rejection or just lack of feedback. But I also think that particular post was phrased in a thoughtless way that interacted poorly with pre-existing insecurities (this is part of why I suggested that post was bait– the phrasing seems to me like a perfect storm to make writers upset and defensive, but of course this could also be due to the OP just being a bit careless with their words, and not expecting to have hit quite nerve they did).

There’s an excellent post here on engagement on fics and what a realistic assessment of “successful” engagement metrics are based on professional standards (which includes a stat about how Harry Styles, one of the most popular and successful current celebrities, only gets a 1:30 ratio of likes to views on his social media. I don’t know what ratio you’re using, but iirc the post I was discussing suggested 1:10). Personally, though, I worry about both authors and readers depending too much on statistics, especially in a broader cultural context when it feels like everything is performed, measured, and monetized. Most social media platforms have gone from a place to share with friends to a place to compete for attention and make money and fame off it. There’s a lot of cultural anxiety around that at the moment, which is another reason I think this discussion has gotten so big.

Why I disagree with using engagement

I think this discussion, at its heart, is a debate about what fandom should be, and I feel focusing overmuch on engagement statistics contributes to a fandom culture uncomfortably close to the commercialization of everything else on the internet. I feel that fic should be enjoyed as art (whatever art means) and not as a product. I’m not saying you’re personally approaching fic that way, but unfortunately there does seem to be something of a broader trend towards that, which troubles me.

As a writer, I would hope that when people come across my fic, they give it a chance based on the metatext information I give them in the tags and summary, the quality of my writing, and whether my work matches what the reader is looking for. Judging it based on the numbers feels reductive to me, and makes me feel like nothing about the work or passion I put in matters; just the popularity. My fics aren’t going to be for everyone, and I understand that. If someone comes across my fic and decides they’re not interested, that’s their prerogative. But I hope that potential readers don’t discount my work just because it doesn’t meet a numerical standard that, in my opinion, is extremely arbitrary.

My suggestions for what to do instead

As a reader, I default to sorting by what’s been posted recently, and then using the tags and summary to decide what to read. That’s what those things are designed to be used for, and I think they’re much more informative than the stats. Worst-case scenario, I start reading and then go back to the search. All I’ve lost is a couple minutes.

In large fandoms, this might be an inefficient way to search for fic, and I recognize that. I’d encourage you to try using A03’s (fantastic) search function to find what you’re looking for– you can both include and exclude fandoms, characters, pairings, and tags. I have come across people who don’t realize that A03 has no algorithm, and haven’t realized they need to learn to use the search function. This is understandable, given the state of most of the internet and what these (often young) fans have learned to use before, but I think learning to search and filter is a vital skill to develop. I have no idea if you’re in this boat, anon, but if you are, please check out the search. It is, in my experience, the best way to find what you’re looking for on A03, and can at the very least supplement numbers-based selection.

Conclusion

I don’t think you have a moral responsibility to stop using engagement as a way to determine what you want to read. Frankly, this isn’t that important. I don’t think you even strictly need to stop using kudos as the measure instead of comments, though I think that would be more accurate if you do prefer to sort by engagement. But I do think you could be surprised at the hidden gems you could find if you didn’t limit yourself to only reading fics with high ratios. I don’t know the nature of your bad experiences in the past, and obviously how you use A03 is up to you. But I think there are better ways to decide what to read.

Thank you again for reaching out– you’ve helped me understand the other perspective as well! I really do appreciate your explanation. I hope I’ve been as respectful as you have, and that I’ve helped you understand where writers who share my opinion are coming from. If you’d like to continue talking about this or respond to any of my points, please feel free to shoot me another ask or a message. I hope you’re doing well and that you have a nice day!

[beloved-femboyish-girl]

i've started to go through Serial Experiments Lain. due to the type of show it is, i've decided to collect my thoughts on each episode here, tagged as #Serious Experience Lain; in these posts, you'll find part impression, part reflection, as well as review and speculation.

that said: Layer 01: Weird.

Serial Experiments Lain is utterly oppressive. did it even have music? mostly (60 Hz) mains hum; every scene and presentation is unapologetic and delirious. and, as such, i took it as a mood piece at first. the plot takes its time, so everything lingers, suffused with unreal imagery for Lain's severely dissociative world, and cast in harsh concrete scene when we step outside it.

in this, the show seems to bounce between cold passive observation (third person) and lain's perspective (first person?). they're different, certainly, but both present: the first train scene where Lain's cacophonous cabin gives way to silent, confused passengers when she speaks up shows this. in third person, the show is willing to let cruel reality stand, like when nobody responds at the dinner table, or her dad is too caught up with his computers to truly talk to her (more on that later). in lain's world, the vivid underbelly of the world bursts in bloody tragedy and uncertain miasma. this isn't to say there isn't interplay or ambiguity, of course, because we follow lain, both object and subject.

curiously, though, we don't really get a grasp on her. sure, we share her confusing world, but what the fuck is she thinking? is she even thinking? she glazes over and falters acting in the world, mostly. her emotions are not easily mapped to what she sees, either, unless those emotions are complete detachment from everything. the camera's almost antagonistic like this, taunting; look into her big, brown eyes. try to guess what's going on in there.

as such, with its impenetrability, i didn't even bother trying to analyze at first. truthfully it seems resistant to it even with dedicated effort. i don't think it's a mood piece, though; a few potent wells stick out for closer examination.

the first is, as covered earlier, gaze. i know something's gotta be here. why else include the train scene? but i need further data.

the second is the train crash scene. this is one of the purest views into lain's psyche we get. while it's unclear if the dripping blood was real, it's vital to contextualize post-crash as lain having suicide on the brain. it only happens after someone suggests the train might've hit someone, in fact. so the surreal, which first takes the form of detached jumps between scenes, becomes located and precipitates onto train tracks, lain observing someone (her classmate?) in mocking delight and terror and oblivion superimposed getting hit and killed by a rushing train as she cowers under the buffeting wind.

but it's not a call to oblivion. contextualize, too, with her question to the dead classmate email: why? why did you die?

the finale is in the conversations. while sluggishly responding to direct address or accosting by her classmates or teachers, her attempts at conversation are utterly discarded. first no response from her mother, then a conversation with a father who's too focused on his computer to treat lain seriously (the laugh! after lain says she wants a new PC to talk to a friend, her father laughs!! presumably at his fuckin computer, but the (un)intentional cruelty is let ring), and finally the email.

It's tempting to treat the email as a conversation, but it isn't. Lain wants it to be, treats it as one. But it doesn't actually respond. It wears the skin of a personal, intimate conversation with a friend or an acquaintance. Open with a direct address, follow with an anecdote of a time they shared, one which only requires an acknowledgement. Slip her name in. Here, here I am, I'm still alive in here! Trust me! But it can't answer why, why she died, and it doesn't care to. Lain takes the assertion that god is real as an answer to why she died, but this is no answer. It's dead, cold, prewritten. It talks past her, but Lain wants to grasp on... truly a tragic portent.

One small last detail, though. I think it's adorable and excellent framing to have Lain wait silent and still in her room propped up against the wall for her dad to get home. Just like her stuffed animals. Truly a great way to reflect the place she makes for herself.

[kimium]

Music Tag Game!

I was tagged by @m34gs (in this post). Also doing this in a new post because I don't like it when posts get cluttered. I love doing these, but bold to assume I have ten mutuals/followers to tag.

Also, time to out myself for majority of my songs are not mainstream music...

Rules: When you see this, post 5 songs you actually listen to and tag 10 of your followers/mutuals!

MWTWB by Amalee

The entire album by Amalee relates to her Vtuber character, The Monarch and the backstory to her. While I like all the songs on the album, MWTWB (Messing with the Wrong Bitch) is my favourite because it has strong Vil from Twisted Wonderland vibes. That's honestly a big reason why I love the song so much. However, besides that I love the entire theme of the song is "Fuck Around and Find Out". My favourite lyric to the song is, "Uh-oh! Keep making me mad and it will be off with your head." because I love a good Alice in Wonderland reference.

2. The Rumbling/Under the Tree by SiM

I know this is cheating, but I believe these two songs need to be listened in conjunction. These are the two openings to the final season of Attack on Titan. The Rumbling is written in Eren's perspective and Under the Tree is written in Mikasa's. What I love about these two songs is how they capture the essence of the two characters. Both have changed significantly since season one and this change has caused a lot of heart ache (and death).

Eren is focused on what he feels is his "duty" with lyrics such as, "If I lose it all, slip and fall, I will never look away." At this point in the series, Eren feels there is no other path he can take, no matter the cost.

Meanwhile, Mikasa's song has heartbreaking lyrics like "Where are you at? / Where have you been?" and "Why oh why, why oh why/Don't you want to stay with me?"

This truly feels like the two are in conversation with one another, with Under the Tree Mikasa's response to Eren's song. That kind of duality always gets to me in songs. I love when songs connect to one another and these two do it perfectly.

3. homura by LiSA

Oh look, another anime song. How predictable of me. Anyways, while most people cite Gurenge as their favourite Kimetsu no Yaiba song, I think homura is my favourite.

Even if this song wasn't from an anime, the lyrics to this farewell song are heartbreaking. Right at the beginning, the "Sayonara, arigatou koe no kagiri" ("Goodbye" and "thank you" at the top of my voice") pulls at my heartstrings. The next part, "Kanashimi yori motto daiji na koto" or, "What is more important than grief?" really hits me hard.

Also, my link is to LiSA's performance on The First Take and her voice is breathtaking. Absolutely stunning.

4. Avid by Hiroyuki Sawano

From the anime Eighty-Six, this soft, but powerful song always makes me want to cry. The repetition of "Don't you get there?/ It calls, it calls" makes this song feel haunting, like someone long gone talking to you. Which, given Eighty-Six's plot, makes sense.

5. Love From The Other Side by Fall Out Boy

Oh, look, a mainstream song that I could play at work and not be accused of only listening to anime songs. Finally, right? (Not that anyone accuses me of that, but they definitely could and get away with it.)

Uh, I know I've talked about this song in a prior ask somewhere on my blog, but to repeat myself: I like Fall Out Boy. I'm not a huge fan, but I have a smattering of songs from them that I really like. This is one of their newest songs and I was immediately hooked as soon as I heard the lyric, "What would you trade the pain for? Not sure". I'm just always here for songs that have questions to the listener that make you pause and think for a second. I also love the reference in, "We were a hammer to the Statue of David". My minimal two years of art history jumped in glee.

Time to tag. If this isn't your cup of tea, no pressure! Also if you dislike being tagged in things like this, let me know!

Tagging: @someobscurereference @a-little-harmed-shinra @shreedle @serenescribe @zeldabard and @lonery-w

[hologramcowboy]

Debunking Lies

Since recently an extremely abusive anon who sent hate crime messages in my inbox went to other blogs to triangulate and lie about my blog over the Premiere Anon that said they would be going to the premiere, I feel there's a need to clarify: All that Premiere Anon did was kindly let us know they would be attending the premiere, they have a right and a freedom to enjoy whatever premiere they want. Not only that, they kindly offered to send us updates which they weren't obliged to in any Universe. Somehow, this post was twisted by the hateful anon who sent hate mail to my inbox who went around other blogs spreading hate which were immediately posted by some bloggers I won't mention. because unlike them I have class. without fact checking and without even taking the time to read the Premiere Anon post. In one post, the hateful Anon that took issue with the Premiere Anon attending the premiere even went as far as to call me crazy, the blogger who received the triangulating ask posted it immediately as if posting hate was normal. Just to clarify:

Attending premieres Posting about likes or dislikes Commenting on style Critiquing Performances Critiquing actors or pop culture moments Sending reviews of events, shows, stars, etc All of these in no way qualify as hate, never have and never will. People are free to dislike anything and express that but how you do it is everything. I love my anons, they are not only educated, refined, empathic and fun, they are respectful, even when they talk about someone they dislike and I often wonder why these coward anons going around triangulating can't do the same. What does qualify as hate, are the hate crime messages I receive from the same Jenneel anons who go around triangulating while the other blogs facilitate their lies and abuse. Death Threats and Harassment are hate crimes, not even going to go into the legal implications of slander which appears to be Jenneel's stans only M.O. and make no mistake, hate crimes do lead to consequences, there's a reason every site does content moderation, precisely because of unhinged people like the anon who went off to write lies about the premiere post after sending hate in my inbox. Finally, remember that while you can easily lie, people do know how to read and reason on their own and they can see right through the bullshit you try to spill to other blogs who don't have the care, empathy or integrity to research something before posting about it. People can say whatever about me, my blog is not for everyone. I am grateful for the Anons that do interact respectfully and I am here for them, to learn about their perspectives, exchange views, enjoy the experience. I carefully tag my content so anyone coming on here complaining about my posts is fully responsible for having exposed themselves to my blog when they clearly dislike it. There's a huge disclaimer posted on my blog and it says everything, if people won't read but do have time to send me hate messages then that's on them. I could have included screenshots of what said blogs posted, how they so easily allowed hate and perpetuated it but I'm going to be the bigger person. I'm sure they don't even realize what type of people they are enabling when posting such things. Finally, huge thank you to the people who sent me supportive comments and who took the time to clear my name and say the truth. You are the reason why I keep thing blog going and I am deeply grateful for you.

[randomfoggytiger]

I think your interpretation of that scene is skewed and contributed to what happened. Whether or not the specific term “man crush” had been invented by the time of that scene, what David and Gary are discussing is bisexuality. Bisexuality has been around longer than we’ve had the words to talk about it and certainly much before either Gary or David’s times. My understanding of “the humor” in that scene is that David is describing the feelings of being attracted to a woman and comparing them to the same feelings he has towards Gary, thus verbally contradicting himself. It’s funny because while David is saying he’s NOT gay, he is describing himself BEING gay. (Re bisexual due to his history and admittance to wanting/liking/desiring women as well).

No matter the intent of the skit, the impact is a discussion of bisexuality.

Your response to the other person denies and rejects the duality of intent and impact and leans heavily on the insistence that only the intent is valid. Which is where I see the disconnect. (And how the hell do you know David and Gary’s initial intent with this scene?). If you speak with such authority, you need to give that same authority back to those in the same position as you. Neither of you were there in the making of that skit and both of your responses lay on the same level of assumption.

As someone who has faced continuous denial and rejection of my existence and identities, being cast away with words of “it’s just funny to me” is not funny to me and does more harm than good. It’s especially difficult to have discussions and back and forths online because you lose a lot of nuance and tone indicators when reading in your own voice and from your own perspective. I’m sure your impact of this anon will differ from my intent in sending it.

I’m interjecting my voice and my opinion on the matter because your “call-out” post made this all public and indicated that some sort of external input was needed or desired. You seem to be trying to understand what’s happening and without personally speaking to either of you or having any additional context out of seeing your post on my dash and clicking the links (seeing those posts for the very first time too) i understand how much it sucks to feel misinterpreted and wish you peace in whatever level of understanding you are left with.

Tagging this as "drama" (shorter than misconceptions) for anyone that wants to avoid.

Referring to this post.

Well, I only "know" because David has repeatedly said in all his interviews about the topic that the skit was about a "man crush" before the term existed, not about gay or bisexuality. I'm just repeating what he's said--reference (2:37 onward is the specific backstory.) It's funny either way; the original intent just tickled my funny bone more.

I'm fine that anyone can interpret it differently-- that's comedy-- but that doesn't give someone the right to paint me as a bigot for not agreeing with one interpretation, just as it wouldn't give me the right to lambast jewish-mulder for her own take on that skit.

And let's say you're 100% correct and I'm 100% wrong... am I a bigot because I accidentally hurt or minimized your or Anna's personal experiences? The intent is important: why was I brushed with the same brush as an actual bigot and dismissed so quickly without being given the chance to correct if I'd offended?

Thank you for taking the time to drop in with your thoughts. I appreciate it; and hope you have a lovely day.

[bookwyrminspiration]

I was reading the tags on your last post and I was curious what you thought about the cache scene? I love seeing others perspectives about different parts of books and stuff like that if you want to share!!!!

I'd love to share! This is more what my immediate thoughts were upon reading it, but I wasn't the hugest fan. As I was going through I couldn't help thinking: are we seriously still going?

That one scene where Oralie, Dex, and Sophie go through the seven secrets takes 73 pages, which may not seem like a lot, but Stellarlune's 728 pages. That's 10 percent of the entire book. That, to me at least, is a lot of time to dedicate to one unbroken scene. I also wondered what Shannon was doing from a writer's perspective, because I understand she created a corner and backed herself into it, but I don't understand her response to that.

There are seven secrets, obviously they don't know which little gem is the one they need, but did she have all the memories planned from the beginning? Or, as I assumed, did she have seven slots to fill, use one or two for the important things, and then fill the others with things she came up with on the spot--for example, the one with Bronte or the matchmaker one. Those just reference past things, but I don't think they're really important now, they're just filling space.

But she also has the benefit of just being able to show us what's important. She could've skipped through a few secrets without fully showing us by just saying like "the next two weren't any more helpful, talking about something to do with ancient dwarf politics and some mountain range" and then getting to the important one or something. We didn't need to see all of them--and I don't see a huge benefit in suspense, which of these seven secrets is relevant, because we immediate start to implement them into the story and solve them. It would've saved time that could've been dedicated to what was actually relevant.

I don't know, that's just not a writing choice I would've made, dedicating so much time and coming up with what feels like a lot of filler. Especially so late in the series.

Oh and another thing that I'm wondering about: why make Oralie the one who can open it when it was specifically given to Sophie? I mean, I suppose there's nothing wrong with her being it's keeper temporarily, and it makes sense for things to be tailored to Oralie, but the way it was set up prior made it feel like it would have more to do with Sophie herself. If Oralie was the one to open it, why not just leave it with her? For the story and suspense we've been carrying for five books, i know, but that's just another choice I wouldn't have made.

All that is more focused on the writing style than the content itself, but that's also a whole other thing! And I've talked about some of my Stellarlune thoughts before, so I figured I wouldn't get into it here. But those were my thoughts when reading the cache scene, there were just a few things that made it...strange? to read through

Of course if you liked it, that's totally fine! Everyone's got different preferences, and I'm glad that something I didn't quite like was able to bring someone else joy :)

[leam1983]

The Whale - Thoughts

This is a long one, and it touches on topics some might find sensitive. See the appended tags for content warnings.

One of the leading lines of thoughts on here is that Charlie's character has tinges of fatphobia. As someone whose boyfriend is a self-admitted chonker, I'm used to hearing derogatory comments aimed at him, and I know how - in-context - it can feel demeaning or crippling.

That said, this is a movie. It's a movie, yes, but also a movie rooted in a play, which itself has some lived experience scaffolding its structure. It might be uncomfortable to see a big guy wracked with guilt as he caves in and snarfs a bucket of KFC on his own, but it doesn't mean that morbidly obese people can't be subject to bulemia or to other eating disorders. Fat acceptance goes a long way, sure, but the human body is like any assembly of struts bolted to a foundation: it has a certain stress tolerance that varies from person to person, and some of us shouldn't allow themselves to gather too much body habitus.

Let's dial things back down, for perspective. My BF is verging on three hundred pounds. He's five feet six, so he feels quite obviously rotund, at that weight. He dresses it well, having a yen for Business Casual that doesn't drop, ever - not after hours and not on weekends. Walter feels naked without a vest and necktie, he loves flashing his fob watch, and honestly asks me which cufflinks he should wear for this or that meeting at the office. He doesn't have an ounce of shame in regards to his weight, and even has surprising levels of cardio, being known for short straight-backed sprints down his floor's main hallway whenever he forgets to bring a document or two over to the meeting room. He, in his own words, knows he's obese, and he's never let that slow him down.

The main issue is that since we've officially started living together, his increased happiness more or less translated into an increase in appetite. He was about 260 when we first took drinks together and redid his entire wardrobe last year. That's a little over five years since, with three of them marking a notable slackening of his dietary habits.

He still doesn't mind it, or so he tells me. He's still the same cheerful and chipper guy I fell for, the same faux snob who's actually really glad to speak of his more highbrow interests to whoever'll care to listen, from high-end audio to unique pieces painted by local artists that he wants to acquire.

The problem is that he gets drowsy at an increasingly rapid pace. He keeps himself alert at work with a little radio piping Big Band standards practically every day, but the occasional serious traffic jam can sometimes result in my needing to nudge him awake once the coast clears. He also hasn't managed to be active during evenings in about a year, now. We settle in for some after-hours TV or rounds of light discussion, and there's always a point where Walt's chin dips, his breath deepens and then transitions to soft snores. If I let it go, he'll eventually rip-roar himself half-awake with a bonafide Cartoon Snore. He's been given the CPAP talk by his GP, but refuses to consider it. I've always known he had a bit of a napping fetish, but what involved charming little kips before meal prep now sees him sink quite deeply.

I've made it clear on multiple occasions that while I wanted to respect his choices, I didn't feel like losing a loved one on the cusp of their sixties. I'm lucky, in that he understands I'm not interested in Walter George the Suited Six-Pack-Packer; I just want the same old warm, kind and decent man I've fallen for to last for at least a decade or two.

His response is almost always the same. He smiles, pulls me in closer, and kisses me; pulling at my lips a few times.

"It'll be okay," he then tells me. "The moment I feel like I'm losing control, I'll take the necessary steps."

He tells me that, and falls asleep mid-sentence a few hours later, at barely a few minutes past 7 PM.

I'm not blind, I know what Sleep Apnea is. Dad has it, and he, at least, sticks to his CPAP regimen. He's also cut back on salt, reduced his red meat intake, and used the dog as a handy excuse to get out more.

Walter just sits there and pulls the William Taft card. "It's just how I am," he says, his smile radiating warmth and love even while I can recognize the telltale signs of sleep pulling at his mind: the slow eye-squints, the malapropisms, the occasional sentence that goes nowhere, the marred recipes with one or two ingredients missing when a foodie like him would not have allowed himself to omit details; the now-frequent nights where I feel like I'm lying next to a beached whale gasping for air even while he swears that he's really, seriously, super comfortable...

That, in essence, is what The Whale is referring to. Fatphobia would involve heckling someone who, despite their weight, has a clean bill of health or easily manageable quirks. Telling your morbidly obese boyfriend to be a bit more careful is not fatphobic. Brendan Fraser's character has it even worse: he's bulemic! Food is his single coping mechanism for a gaggle of real and imaginary personal flaws, and he's entirely aware that he's digging his own grave! How can it be fatphobic to have such a character realize that he needs to move forward and make amends in order to find enough courage to save himself?

If anything, Charlie's progress is slow, hard - and indubitably noble. His own white whale is a return to the life he destroyed in shutting everyone out and finding solace in food, in his working past his own self-loathing. It's not my place to keep badgering Walter on his own flaws, but there's a point where you have to admit that in the absence of a divulged weight gain fetish and in his added weight being a constant product of dietary negligence - as opposed to concerted efforts to gain weight - "how he is" is a really pithy excuse for something else. Depression, avoidant behavior or some weird form of call for help - whatever it is, something's clearly at play.

The problem is I'm not Walter. Because I love him, I can't force him to act. I can try to get him to open up, sure, but I haven't made much progress in that regard. Because I love him, I owe him to at least make it clear that I'm trying. If he wants to go down in a stroke after gaining so much weight his suits become impossible to afford, I'll be right there alongside him.

[4ragon]

Vacation All I Ever Wanted is honestly one of my favorite fics ever and I've been Thinking about it again so I thought I'd drop some love in your inbox. I wanted to say the Chapter 12 scenes with Klavier and Phoenix looking for the ring on the beach are my favorite, I feel like most fic authors when they tackle the relationship between those two in the aftermath of the events of aa4 it's usually from Klavier's perspective and Phoenix is usually put together and knew all along and knows what to say, ya know? But I think your version from Phoenix's perspective is so much more interesting. he's awkward and he didn't know Klavier wasn't responsible at first and Klavier isn't willing to just talk about it! You just wrote all the characters so well in Vacation. ( also the way it just cuts from them casually being on the beach to '...Klavier was supposed to go down when Kristoph had.' was so good.) I love the whole fic but I wanted to give some love to that particular chapter

Ahhhhhh oh my gosh thank you very much. I'm always so happy when I hear people are still enjoying fics that I've finished, you know? Like, the idea that they have any sort of longevity is baffling to me.

I think I could write so many fics just about that weird strain between Klavier and Phoenix, it's so interesting to me. Like, having to work through his issues with Klavier and Kristoph, having to separate the two in his mind, knowing logically that a literal child listening to his big brother could not and should not be culpable in what happened to him versus having to internalize that idea emotionally. Like. I don't think it'd be so easy to get to a place of forgiveness, even if you logically understand someone else isn't at fault, you know? And I think it would also take him a bit to realize how much he was subconsciously comparing the two, and how unfair that was.

Actually, I had this original idea that didn't quite make it into the fic to change people's names in the narration depending on who's POV we were in. I think I wrote the first couple of chapters (before I posted any) with that in mind, but I realized that was going to get confusing, so I just kept that exclusively in dialogue. But I wanted to at least use different character's names in dialogue to help illustrate how they felt about each other.

I.E. before chapter 12, I think Phoenix only ever called Klavier either Gavin or Prosecutor Gavin, but he started making a concerted effort to call him Klavier by the end of that chapter. And that was his way of learning to think of Klavier as his own person, and not just in relation to Kristoph.

Anyway, uh, not sure anyone ever noticed that, but w/e. I do try to pay a lot of attention to the different names and nicknames of the characters, and what they mean for various moments. (Though hey, sometimes I just use it to make it clear who's talking without using dialogue tags.)

Anyway, uh, sorry, that was deeply off topic, but I do just love these two, and think that exploring them working through their differences is really interesting. They both were deeply hurt by everything, but they really need time to work through that together and come to an understanding.

Anyway, thank you so much for the ask!!!!!

[anythingforourmoonysstuff]

Mayaneeeee! Hi, hello, hi, how are you?

So long since the last time I screamed around here. If I remember correctly you asked about my tag (hey, a tag ❤️!.. I'm still worthy of a tag 🤔?)?.. I call myself Luna so any version of that (Lu, Luna... someone used to use Lupina hahaha) is fine by me.

So, last time I was screaming about your participation in Into the fic of it... it took me so long to hear it, I'm sorry. I was attacked by work and the preparations of an international trip. I heard it little by little I pieces but hey, I TOOK NOTES 😂😂, so here are my notes (a summary actually hahaha).

1. Don't know exactly why but I wrote to recommend you my favorite teenage book but hey, past-me probably had a good idea but I don't remember anymore. It's called Ilse Janda, 14 oder Die Ilse ist weg (in Spanish is Por favor vuelve a casa -Please come back home-, don't know how it is in English). Perhaps I had this thought when you were talking about kids books... because this is a beautiful book for a teenager, written for teenagers (and from their perspective, which is not easy), with complex and painful topics but treated having said kids in mind. I love it so much, even now.

2. I think that JK wrote 3 books for children (first 3) and then she just wrote what she wanted, period. My mom has a fun theory: She read somewhere that JK wrote HP for his son and then she develops this theory in which JK started writing with love for his young child and then he grew and then she wrote the rest of the series in revenge lmao. According to her, JK's son was probably a teenage nightmare and that's why she started killing beloved characters 😂

3. That brings me to: YES YES I GET SO MAD EVERY TIME I THINK ABOUT THE UNNECESSARY DEATHS. Why kill Colin?! And why Hedwing (I actually stoped reading the book there and only took it again months later)?!

4. Talking about JK wonderful (/derogatory) writing: To this day I don't understand how she totally took all the responsibility from the adult characters. I mean, Dumbledore formed not one...BUT TWO armies with child soldiers. And don't let me start talking about Snape and Dumbledore behavior with Draco in yea (he was sixteeeeeen). That's something I really like about fanfics: how they somehow questioned how those characters behave.

Aaaaaaand I'm going to leave it here for now because it's getting toooooo long (we're half way in my notes and in the podcast you haven't started talking about the main topic, oh god 😂).

Have a nice day! Sorry this took me so long! I really enjoyed hearing you lot 🤗

Hey, hi, hello!!!!! I have no idea why I’m just seeing this but anyway, here we are.

I’m doing ok uni is a bit of a struggle but I’m enjoying the modules so far :) how have you been??? And are you kidding me?? Of course you still get a tag <3

Ahhh I’m so glad you enjoyed the episode! I had so much fun taking part and met some incredible people thanks to it so it makes me so happy that it inspired some thoughts.

1. That book sounds so good I will definitely be checking it out! Thanks for the recommendation

2. Bahahahah your moms theory had me laughing so loud my friend came in from the other room to ask what was going on. But yeah, I think she definitely did not put any thought into the fact that not only the original kids who were reading it would read it. Like, I think her idea was that the characters and themes would grow up with the kids reading it which is a lovely idea in theory but that’s just not how it works. As soon as media is out there, it’s there for anyone to read and with it being a children’s book these themes needed to be handled with so much more care. I mean, this also applies to adult content but especially with kids who are extremely impressionable .

3. Yeah there were so many unnecessary deaths and I will also stand by the fact that having Sirius stay alive (and Remus for that matter) would have made for a much better and more in depth story. And I don’t just say that because I love them. There was just so much potential for growth that was thrown away

4. Oh completely she wrote obviously morally gray characters as good which is so problematic

Ahhh this was so fun! If you want I’d love to see more of your thoughts on it (you mentioned there were more notes) and once again I’m sorry I only now saw this . Have a great day!

[rahleeyah]

thank you for sharing this last insight into writing fanfiction. it's my biggest worry whenever I sit down to write anything and it's the thing that makes me scared every time I attempt writing for a new fandom. I fear it paralyzes me a little. It's even made me more critical of other people's work, you know? but I try to enjoy each fic for what they are, even if it's amazing when you find a writer that really gets it like you do.

i'm sorry that this brought up negative thoughts for you, and i wanna encourage you to maybe try to reframe your perspective on that post, and what it's saying about finding character voice and what that even means, bc i don't want anyone to walk out of here feeling down about anything.

That post was in no way a criticism; that post was a celebration of something that makes fic both unique and its own art form. Fic is often disparaged bc a fic writer isn't inventing their own world and is working with other people's characters, and so some folks like to say it's not real writing. The post is about how that kind of work is a skill. It's about how fic is a skill, and how that's a good thing. That post wasn't saying "ugh don't you hate it when the character voice isn't right" it was saying "getting character voices right is a skill and it's awesome."

I have been asked, more than once, for my favorite posts or resources on writing, and so have begun to collect them in a tag so that those folks who are interested in my perspective on my process can read them. me reblogging posts like that isn't me telling people how i think they should do anything, it's me saying "for those of y'all who asked, this is how I do what I do."

None of it is gospel, or intended to be a strict "this is the only way to do things"; every author can, should, must develop their own approach. Disagreement is both welcome, and necessary. We need a variety of perspectives to speak to a variety of people.

I'm certain people have found my stuff ooc, and stopped reading bc of that. I'm positive there's lots of people who aren't reading hof bc they don't like domestic stuff (I typically don't), and I know there's lots and lots of people who aren't reading instinct bc they don't like abo.

That's ok. That's kind of the point.

If I read a fic and I don't like a choice the author has made i close it and go on my way. The author has no responsibility to cater to me; their only job is to write what they want to write. It didn't appeal to me, it will appeal to someone else, c'est la vie. We're allowed to disagree on what "character voice" means; it is, by definition, open to interpretation, and this isn't a death match to determine who is Most Right. There isn't One True Way to write.

I might think something doesn't fit the characters, but that's based on my perspective. It doesn't mean I'm right.

Nothing can appeal to everyone, nothing can be subjectively good in everyone's eyes because that good is subjective, and opinions vary. So we come to the fic buffet and we pick up what we like and we leave what we don't and everyone is satisfied. That's the point. That whatever you are after, you will find it.

You don't have to enjoy every story, especially when there are a lot of stories. It's ok to have preferences. It's ok to know what you like and go in search of that. It's ok to be surprised and find you like something you thought you weren't gonna, or vice versa.

so, when I reblog a post that talks about how developing character voice is a skill, I agree with that! I agree that it's something I spend a lot of time thinking about! But I am aspiring to have the characters in my story reflect the best version of my interpretation of what their voice is. My perspective is the only measuring stick I can use. Someone else will have a different interpretation, and there is no need for them to try to match mine; all they have to do is what they want to do.

[onewomancitadel]

Earlier this year, I think, I went down memory lane and was going through profiles and bookmarks of Spirk fic on AO3, and I found this fic I had to read because it seemed like something that would be controversial/interesting. It was a fic where Spock and Kirk have a kind of ambiguous relationship whilst Spock is still with Uhura.

The point of the story was to establish whether this counted as an affair. I thought it was very interesting. I'll keep my personal opinion out of it (I don't really like Spirk fic anymore, so it's not appealing to me, and there's a bit too much Uhura bashing for my liking - in addition to that, AOS is just kind of bad in general).

But what was even more interesting was that there was a commenter requesting that the story be tagged Emotional Affair/Infidelity because it was deeply upsetting for them to read a story investigating this idea. I'm not talking about whether tagging for triggers is necessary (it's up to the author, imo), but rather that the point of the story was to establish whether the affair was taking place as Uhura saw it or not, and whether that affair constituted something morally bad.

It's not a 'spoiler' as much as it is actually sort of defining the concept? Then again, I think emotional affairs/infidelity are such a grey zone to begin with, that by nature it's a complicated issue.

I thought it was a fascinating example of the issue at hand with tags, the responsibility of tagging, and the purpose of tagging. That author chose to tag it.

Speaking personally, I would not choose to tag it, because now I've made a definite observation about what is going on in the story. To begin with, I think there's a lot more wrong with the story than infidelity which I do find a bit ironic.

For me, as someone who has dealt with triggers, I don't think people should unwittingly force themselves into exposure therapy - that's not helpful. But I also think that if you're in a position where reading something can seriously hurt you, you need to just avoid fics altogether which even imply the topic, or potentially take a break from reading altogether and get a handle on how to control your triggers. If you're in a mental space of anticipating reading something that may potentially hurt you, you're not in a good space (this is not a normal space and normalising it is harmful imo).

I used to deal with extreme eating disorder triggers that rarely disturb me as much as they used to (from age twelve until a couple of years ago to put it into perspective). No one tags for that kind of thing, and I'm glad they don't - because I can feel normal again (the goal) and also feel comfortable, say, asserting my actual opinion about being in a state of scrutinising your body and weight.

That's really accessory to the point. The point is that I'm not even sure if the tag were appropriate, and if capitulating to people telling you what your story IS is, er, necessary. Of course, no one wants to cause harm and we want to help people, and seeing someone in distress because of your story is - distressing! It's a complicated issue.