#I've always wanted to create my own visual novel

[millocutfish]

This strange creature is called Loreenzo🐌

He is a slug man, who is neither a man nor a slug, not being something in between despite appearing to be a mixture of both. So... Let's say he is he(?)

These are kind of old drawings of him, but I hope to draw him again in the future, I confess that initially I created him to be a character in a Visual Novel, but I'm not sure if I will. Tell me, would you play a Visual Novel with him being a yandere? Don't be afraid to be honest

[archaeren]

How I learned to write smarter, not harder

(aka, how to write when you're hella ADHD lol)

A reader commented on my current long fic asking how I write so well. I replied with an essay of my honestly pretty non-standard writing advice (that they probably didn't actually want lol) Now I'm gonna share it with you guys and hopefully there's a few of you out there who will benefit from my past mistakes and find some useful advice in here. XD Since I started doing this stuff, which are all pretty easy changes to absorb into your process if you want to try them, I now almost never get writer's block.

The text of the original reply is indented, and I've added some additional commentary to expand upon and clarify some of the concepts.

As for writing well, I usually attribute it to the fact that I spent roughly four years in my late teens/early 20s writing text roleplay with a friend for hours every single day. Aside from the constant practice that provided, having a live audience immediately reacting to everything I wrote made me think a lot about how to make as many sentences as possible have maximum impact so that I could get that kind of fun reaction. (Which is another reason why comments like yours are so valuable to fanfic writers! <3) The other factors that have improved my writing are thus: 1. Writing nonlinearly. I used to write a whole story in order, from the first sentence onward. If there was a part I was excited to write, I slogged through everything to get there, thinking that it would be my reward once I finished everything that led up to that. It never worked. XD It was miserable. By the time I got to the part I wanted to write, I had beaten the scene to death in my head imagining all the ways I could write it, and it a) no longer interested me and b) could not live up to my expectations because I couldn't remember all my ideas I'd had for writing it. The scene came out mediocre and so did everything leading up to it. Since then, I learned through working on VN writing (I co-own a game studio and we have some visual novels that I write for) that I don't have to write linearly. If I'm inspired to write a scene, I just write it immediately. It usually comes out pretty good even in a first draft! But then I also have it for if I get more ideas for that scene later, and I can just edit them in. The scenes come out MUCH stronger because of this. And you know what else I discovered? Those scenes I slogged through before weren't scenes I had no inspiration for, I just didn't have any inspiration for them in that moment! I can't tell you how many times there was a scene I had no interest in writing, and then a week later I'd get struck by the perfect inspiration for it! Those are scenes I would have done a very mediocre job on, and now they can be some of the most powerful scenes because I gave them time to marinate. Inspiration isn't always linear, so writing doesn't have to be either!

Some people are the type that joyfully write linearly. I have a friend like this--she picks up the characters and just continues playing out the next scene. Her story progresses through the entire day-by-day lives of the characters; it never timeskips more than a few hours. She started writing and posting just eight months ago, she's about an eighth of the way through her planned fic timeline, and the content she has so far posted to AO3 for it is already 450,000 words long. But most of us are normal humans. We're not, for the most part, wired to create linearly. We consume linearly, we experience linearly, so we assume we must also create linearly. But actually, a lot of us really suffer from trying to force ourselves to create this way, and we might not even realize it. If you're the kind of person who thinks you need to carrot-on-a-stick yourself into writing by saving the fun part for when you finally write everything that happens before it: Stop. You're probably not a linear writer. You're making yourself suffer for no reason and your writing is probably suffering for it. At least give nonlinear writing a try before you assume you can't write if you're not baiting or forcing yourself into it!! Remember: Writing is fun. You do this because it's fun, because it's your hobby. If you're miserable 80% of the time you're doing it, you're probably doing it wrong!

2. Rereading my own work. I used to hate reading my own work. I wouldn't even edit it usually. I would write it and slap it online and try not to look at it again. XD Writing nonlinearly forced me to start rereading because I needed to make sure scenes connected together naturally and it also made it easier to get into the headspace of the story to keep writing and fill in the blanks and get new inspiration. Doing this built the editing process into my writing process--I would read a scene to get back in the headspace, dislike what I had written, and just clean it up on the fly. I still never ever sit down to 'edit' my work. I just reread it to prep for writing and it ends up editing itself. Many many scenes in this fic I have read probably a dozen times or more! (And now, I can actually reread my own work for enjoyment!) Another thing I found from doing this that it became easy to see patterns and themes in my work and strengthen them. Foreshadowing became easy. Setting up for jokes or plot points became easy. I didn't have to plan out my story in advance or write an outline, because the scenes themselves because a sort of living outline on their own. (Yes, despite all the foreshadowing and recurring thematic elements and secret hidden meanings sprinkled throughout this story, it actually never had an outline or a plan for any of that. It's all a natural byproduct of writing nonlinearly and rereading.)

Unpopular writing opinion time: You don't need to make a detailed outline.

Some people thrive on having an outline and planning out every detail before they sit down to write. But I know for a lot of us, we don't know how to write an outline or how to use it once we've written it. The idea of making one is daunting, and the advice that it's the only way to write or beat writer's block is demoralizing. So let me explain how I approach "outlining" which isn't really outlining at all.

I write in a Notion table, where every scene is a separate table entry and the scene is written in the page inside that entry. I do this because it makes writing nonlinearly VASTLY more intuitive and straightforward than writing in a single document. (If you're familiar with Notion, this probably makes perfect sense to you. If you're not, imagine something a little like a more contained Google Sheets, but every row has a title cell that opens into a unique Google Doc when you click on it. And it's not as slow and clunky as the Google suite lol) (Edit from the future: I answered an ask with more explanation on how I use Notion for non-linear writing here.) When I sit down to begin a new fic idea, I make a quick entry in the table for every scene I already know I'll want or need, with the entries titled with a couple words or a sentence that describes what will be in that scene so I'll remember it later. Basically, it's the most absolute bare-bones skeleton of what I vaguely know will probably happen in the story.

Then I start writing, wherever I want in the list. As I write, ideas for new scenes and new connections and themes will emerge over time, and I'll just slot them in between the original entries wherever they naturally fit, rearranging as necessary, so that I won't forget about them later when I'm ready to write them. As an example, my current long fic started with a list of roughly 35 scenes that I knew I wanted or needed, for a fic that will probably be around 100k words (which I didn't know at the time haha). As of this writing, it has expanded to 129 scenes. And since I write them directly in the page entries for the table, the fic is actually its own outline, without any additional effort on my part. As I said in the comment reply--a living outline!

This also made it easier to let go of the notion that I had to write something exactly right the first time. (People always say you should do this, but how many of us do? It's harder than it sounds! I didn't want to commit to editing later! I didn't want to reread my work! XD) I know I'm going to edit it naturally anyway, so I can feel okay giving myself permission to just write it approximately right and I can fix it later. And what I found from that was that sometimes what I believed was kind of meh when I wrote it was actually totally fine when I read it later! Sometimes the internal critic is actually wrong. 3. Marinating in the headspace of the story. For the first two months I worked on [fic], I did not consume any media other than [fandom the fic is in]. I didn't watch, read, or play anything else. Not even mobile games. (And there wasn't really much fan content for [fandom] to consume either. Still isn't, really. XD) This basically forced me to treat writing my story as my only source of entertainment, and kept me from getting distracted or inspired to write other ideas and abandon this one.

As an aside, I don't think this is a necessary step for writing, but if you really want to be productive in a short burst, I do highly recommend going on a media consumption hiatus. Not forever, obviously! Consuming media is a valuable tool for new inspiration, and reading other's work (both good and bad, as long as you think critically to identify the differences!) is an invaluable resource for improving your writing.

When I write, I usually lay down, close my eyes, and play the scene I'm interested in writing in my head. I even take a ten-minute nap now and then during this process. (I find being in a state of partial drowsiness, but not outright sleepiness, makes writing easier and better. Sleep helps the brain process and make connections!) Then I roll over to the laptop next to me and type up whatever I felt like worked for the scene. This may mean I write half a sentence at a time between intervals of closed-eye-time XD

People always say if you're stuck, you need to outline.

What they actually mean by that (whether they realize it or not) is that if you're stuck, you need to brainstorm. You need to marinate. You don't need to plan what you're doing, you just need to give yourself time to think about it!

What's another framing for brainstorming for your fic? Fantasizing about it! Planning is work, but fantasizing isn't.

You're already fantasizing about it, right? That's why you're writing it. Just direct that effort toward the scenes you're trying to write next! Close your eyes, lay back, and fantasize what the characters do and how they react.

And then quickly note down your inspirations so you don't forget, haha.

And if a scene is so boring to you that even fantasizing about it sucks--it's probably a bad scene.

If it's boring to write, it's going to be boring to read. Ask yourself why you wanted that scene. Is it even necessary? Can you cut it? Can you replace it with a different scene that serves the same purpose but approaches the problem from a different angle? If you can't remove the troublesome scene, what can you change about it that would make it interesting or exciting for you to write?

And I can't write sitting up to save my damn life. It's like my brain just stops working if I have to sit in a chair and stare at a computer screen. I need to be able to lie down, even if I don't use it! Talking walks and swinging in a hammock are also fantastic places to get scene ideas worked out, because the rhythmic motion also helps our brain process. It's just a little harder to work on a laptop in those scenarios. XD

In conclusion: Writing nonlinearly is an amazing tool for kicking writer's block to the curb. There's almost always some scene you'll want to write. If there isn't, you need to re-read or marinate.

Or you need to use the bathroom, eat something, or sleep. XD Seriously, if you're that stuck, assess your current physical condition. You might just be unable to focus because you're uncomfortable and you haven't realized it yet.

Anyway! I hope that was helpful, or at least interesting! XD Sorry again for the text wall. (I think this is the longest comment reply I've ever written!)

And same to you guys on tumblr--I hope this was helpful or at least interesting. XD Reblogs appreciated if so! (Maybe it'll help someone else!)

[breathlesswinds]

(Devlog) What We Learned Making A Trans Dating Game

Hello, Amelia here, the writer for Breathless Winds. It's been 250,000+ words, countless revisions, and three years since this game entered development, and I wanted to talk about what I've learned leading up to release.

The concept for Breathless Winds was actually sort of a joke between friends. I was talking with Doris about how there should be a dating game where you play as a trans woman and your dating options revolve around certain ‘tropes’ we’d both seen in trans fiction-- the totally accepting cishet guy who falls in love with the trans heroine before she even knows she’s a woman, the cool trans woman who the heroine doesn’t know if she wants to date or wants to be, and so on.

Doris wound up suggesting we make this game ourselves. We both like visual novels and want to tell LGBT stories. Still half-jokingly and half-seriously, we started fleshing out what the romance options would be and coming up with a setting-- and soon, we were fully committed to making this game real.

I was a fan of visual novels but had only ever written prose. I knew which visual novels I liked and which scenes stood out, but I didn’t know why they did or how to make my own. 

I read some great advice from visual novel developers, but a good amount of my knowledge came from just working on Breathless Winds. As our first project, this game has grown a lot with us and we’ve learned a lot while making it.

Learning How to Write Visual Novels

A bad habit I had to break out of was only using the ‘novel’ part of the game and not the ‘visual’ part. I would sometimes write “He smiled” or lines like that, and Doris informed me that we can convey this much more simply with a sprite change.

It sounds obvious in retrospect, but lines like that are often pretty invisible when you’re reading a non-visual novel. These lines change the sprite of the character inside your head (if that makes sense, haha). I realized that I’m so used to them being ‘invisible’ that I didn’t notice their absence in visual novels I liked, so I would accidentally include them while writing. 

I was also writing these routes in a word processor, so I didn’t have the visual portion to reference, myself. I wound up making a lot of ‘tone’ notes like, “Lantana should be smug here” so that the meaning would carry when revising and implementing these into Ren’py. 

So, while visual novels share a lot with prose, they’re an entirely different medium. On the subject of representing things visually, I’ve struggled trying to figure out how much can be visually represented and how much should be written. 

Every asset in the game has to be drawn by Doris, so if I want the characters to go to a new location for a scene, I have to keep in mind that’s another background that Doris has to draw. If I want a new character to show up, that’s another sprite she has to draw. I don’t want to overload her, but if I’m trying to avoid this entirely, characters sometimes wind up standing in one room talking for ages without anything significant changing on-screen.

I’ve learned that it’s recommended for something to almost always be changing on-screen, though, so sometimes I just have to ask Doris to make a new asset for a certain scene. I still try to stick to locations/characters that already exist more often than not.

Every single thing in a visual novel is deliberate. Another thing I’ve had to learn that I never even considered before is how to write each line so it fits in the text box. It sounds obvious, but when I’m playing a visual novel, I don’t usually think about how each line has to be carefully constructed so it doesn’t need to be split up into two or more text boxes. In my mind, if a visual novel is well-created, there’s not much that breaks a reader’s immersion.

Planning & Outlining

The previous section might sound really weird to some people, so let me elaborate.  I’m a lifelong ‘write by the seat of your pants’-er, so the biggest trial-and-error of creating Breathless Winds for me was planning out the game.

Initially, I created outlines for each of the four routes, and we agreed ahead of time on which CGs each route would have. That way, Doris could draw the necessary backgrounds and CGs while I was in the long process of drafting this game.  My original outlines weren’t great. I know a lot of people have different experiences with writing, but for me personally, a story is always shaping itself in my mind. When I started making the outlines for Breathless Winds, I knew the concepts we wanted to convey, but I didn’t know what each route (and the game as a whole) was really about yet. This might sound weird and unprofessional, but sometimes, I don’t know what a story is about until I finish the first draft.

So while I was writing, I would look at my outlines and I would think, “this doesn’t actually make sense, he wouldn’t say that” or “this plot point would work better if moved to this other section” or “there’s a plot hole here I didn’t notice”. The story wound up changing a lot in this way as I learned what it’s really ‘about’. 

And even after I finished the first draft, I’d get feedback from Doris and/or my editor and they would suggest fixes to problems that even I hadn’t noticed, and then I would revise the route some more, and later on I’d come back and need to redo part of the route to comply with something I wrote in a later route-- I haven’t really felt ‘finished’ with Breathless Winds at any point, and I think I’ll still feel this way after the game is released.

This means that sometimes, a background was created but would go unused because there was no space for the scene that would use it, or we’d need a new CG last-minute, or so on. 

When I’m figuring things out as I go while writing a non-VN, the only person that I can adversely affect is my own self… so I’m eternally grateful for all of Doris’s patience with me on this matter. I think Breathless Winds has come out a much better game for all the re-plotting and revision. 

I redid the outlines several times as I went. I think I’ve understood how to create outlines that personally work for me-- ‘living’ outlines that hit all the main points, but leave wiggle room for moments when a character does something unexpected, work the best for me.

Scope Creep

So, originally, each route was meant to be 40,000 words. “With four routes, that’s only 160,000 words!” I thought. “And some of my favorite visual novels are about that long, so I can write that much, too!” ← clueless

This is the most infamous mistake that new creators make, and I walked right into it. I should have known better since I’ve bitten off more than I can chew with past non-VN writing projects before, but I was starry-eyed and didn’t realize how much work it is to make a VN. Some of those favorite visual novels I referenced were made by much larger teams, writers whose full-time job was writing (I wrote all of these routes on the side while working at a day job). 

If I could have done it again, I would have asked Doris to start out with a really short VN. But, I don’t regret making Breathless Winds at all. It’s brought Doris and I a lot closer, for one. Every time I thought I wanted to give up on this, Doris would motivate me to continue. Without the two of us both and our strong friendship, Breathless Winds wouldn’t exist, and I think that’s beautiful. 

No matter what, we’re going to see it through to the end. (I hope people like it, though…)

Anyway, here I am talking about how much 40,000 words is. Each route now is about 60k to 70k words. The problem with having evolving outlines is that they can often evolve into double their original size.

We came up with the idea of the poachers really early in development, and then not addressing the poachers felt like a failing, but by that point it was too late to remove the poachers entirely… and so the game wound up a lot longer dealing with the poachers. 

I think that if we had an editor sooner on in the game’s development, then we might have had someone to tell us, “do you really need all of this in the game? Does this plot point really need to be there? Will you be able to write all of this in a reasonable amount of time?”, haha. But Doris and I were really excited about the possibilities of this game when we started creating it, and without anyone to reel us back in, we wound up coming up with more and more things we wanted to put in the game.

Did you know there was going to be an island full of talking rats who say things like “the big cheese” and stuff all the time in Breathless Winds? Yeah. 

The Core Design Philosophy of Breathless Winds

So, for anyone who’s read this far but doesn’t know yet-- the premise of Breathless Winds is that you play as a trans woman who doesn’t know she’s trans yet, and she finds love with one of four love interests as she discovers her gender identity. 

In real life, it can be a lot messier for a person to date when discovering their gender identity. To put it briefly and mildly, a trans person’s life and sense of personal identity can rapidly change during a gender crisis and the early stages of transition. 

However, we wanted to make this game a ‘wish-fulfillment’ type story-- a trans fantasy about acceptance, community, and love. During a gender crisis, it can be easy to feel as if one has lost touch with themselves and become isolated from others. A sincere wish shared by many trans people is to be accepted, loved, and even celebrated as their true gender, not just tolerated. 

Since many trans people don’t get love and acceptance in real life, especially with the ongoing transphobic moral panic, we wanted to create a game that would bring this feeling of trans joy and celebration to trans audiences. 

We also hope that cis players will still enjoy the story and characters, and maybe come away from the game with a new understanding about being transgender and other aspects of LGBT identity (although we never intended this game to be ‘educational’).

Making Characters that Celebrate Trans Identity

Although we went through several revisions, the core identities of each character stayed the same since the game was first ‘jokingly’ pitched. In another post, I discussed how each character is themed around a change in seasons. (I also wound up theming them around the four humors when I was initially concepting them-- I really wanted to avoid too much ‘overlap’ in the LI’s personalities, haha). 

Ultimately, characters are created to serve a role. The LIs in Breathless Winds were designed to be love interests, of course-- characters who would appeal to the hypothetical trans femme audience. As mentioned earlier, we modeled them after other trans fiction tropes because these types of characters have a certain tried-and-true appeal, but this left plenty of flexibility to put our own spin on it. 

A trans woman being loved as a woman by a cishet guy can feel like a high form of ‘passing’, ‘fitting in’ to the female gender role, and being validated by his orientation. He only likes women, and he likes you, so you’re undoubtedly a woman. As a cishet guy, he represents a sort of acceptance into a societal norm that trans women can desire to live to. (Lantana, as a cis lesbian, represents the sapphic counterpoint to this-- although there is of course a big gap between the ‘normalcy’ of a cishet man and a cis lesbian woman, and I don’t mean to say those two are equivalent.) 

But not all trans women want to live to that (cis) societal norm. Rue and Valerian, as a trans woman and a trans man respectively, are the t4t options. 

Rue’s route represents that trans/sapphic ‘envy’ (“do I want her or do I want to be her?”) as well as finding power in community aside from what society considers ‘normal’. We’ve always been pretty clear about what we wanted to do with Rue’s route.

We went back and forth a lot more on Valerian’s route. Initially, we were unsure if he should be trans. He and Rue are the two less-friendly love interests (at least initially), so I was afraid it would come across that t4t is a more hostile option, which is not true at all. But it also felt like a mistake to not have a trans man in the game-- but making Gallardia trans would have required a big overhaul of what we had in mind for him and his route. (Although, childhood friends t4t is a really good idea...)

Beyond that, Valerian takes a villainous role in any route that isn't his own. We were worried that it would be wrong to have a trans antagonist who represents unjust power. However, Breathless Winds is a queer game with other positive trans characters, and we've always approached Valerian as a hot anti-villain man that you can't help but like.

In the end, Valerian’s route is about breaking generational cycles and what it is that makes you a man, and I also managed to sneak in a scene where they dance at a ball in the royal palace, so in the end I think it all worked out great.

Wish Fulfillment and Catharsis

Doris and I both agreed that we wouldn’t depict on-screen transphobia in Breathless Winds. Poppy worries about not being accepted, but fear of acceptance can come with any change in identity. Rue was rejected by her family for being trans, but this doesn’t take place ‘on screen’ in the game. There exist certain metaphorical parallels for transness and transphobia, but every route has a happy ending. 

Following up on this-- it can be difficult to write about discovery of gender identity without writing about transphobia, considering how many trans people suffer from internalized transphobia during their period of repression.

Sometimes, repressed/closeted transgender people ‘hyper-perform’ their assigned gender as a form of denial. A trans woman might grow out a beard and join a gym, while a trans man might become very interested in makeup and feminine clothing. 

In Breathless Winds, Poppy often struggles with ‘strength’ and what it means to be a man. In several routes, she tries to prove her strength under the assumption that being stronger would make her happy. Afraid the world would reject her if she became who she really is, she preemptively rejects herself.

Not every trans person suffers from prolonged denial, internalized transphobia, or even gender dysphoria. I don’t think it’s impossible to tell a purely-positive story about trans joy. 

While Poppy never gets rejected for being trans, faces transphobia, gets called a slur, etc, she faces both internal and external (metaphorical) obstacles to realizing and accepting her identity. 

Gallardia represents a societal norm that Poppy can’t live up to herself as a man.

Lantana suffers from certain aspects of her identity as a woman, which makes Poppy feel guilt for wanting to be a girl.

Rue is isolated from town at the start of her route, a ‘punishment’ for breaking this societal norm.

Valerian has to hyper-conform to his masculine gender role at first in toxic ways before finding acceptance from within and from his loved ones.

These struggles are real to a lot of people, but instead of pretending they don’t exist, I hoped to tell a story about catharsis. Poppy is able to live up to her truth as a woman and finds love with Gallardia, Poppy and Lantana redefine what being a woman should and does mean to them, Rue and Poppy find community in others who don’t fit the norm, Poppy and Valerian stop seeking gender validation from a society that was never made to serve them. 

Although these powerful forces of oppression exist, loving yourself as a trans person- and loving those around you, protecting the natural world, and standing up for what you believe in- can save the day. That’s the kind of story we wanted to tell.

Wrap-up

There’s a lot more I could write, but this has already gotten really long (sorry!) so I’ll wrap it up here. 

Learning how to write a visual novel in terms of technical skill (how to depict events on-screen, how long each line should be) as well as in terms of writing skill (how to outline the game, how to plan visual assets) has been a massive undertaking for me. 

Writing Breathless Winds has been a big challenge but also deeply rewarding, and all of your support has made the experience even more wonderful. Thank you for reading and thank you for supporting the game!

[portsandstars]

Revisiting Red Spring Studio's Interview with Blerdy Otome - Select Quotes

It's been almost a year since RSS had this interview, but I think that many people have not listened to it, or recently revisited it. I thought I'd highlight some quotes from it, though the entire interview is worth watching! Some of these quotes I have lightly modified for clarity or succinctness but the majority are direct transcripts.

23:30: "Touchstarved is a horror romance visual novel where the entire cast is made up of characters where you're like, "I can fix them!" but you actually can't. I think that Touchstarved is a very complex and mature story with really really complex themes and interwoven routes and obviously it's very sexy at the same it's a romance - and I think it's one of those games that I've always wanted to see exist and I think that a lot of the team has always wanted to see this game exist as far as being this kind of like dark, broody, moody, but also very deep, right, and authentic and honest exploration - Monsters, and the feeling of being a monster - feeling of being an "other", right, whether you're queer or POC or anything like that… we've created a game that's not only really fun and action-packed and bloody and all that kind of stuff… but very heartfelt in a way that I hope readers can pick up on.

Imo, this line of reasoning ("you can't fix them", and the cast's monstrous nature and how it intrinsically ties to/is an analogy for being queer, or POC) - makes me think that even in the good endings for the game, your character won't be minimizing the character's monstrousness. For example, even if your character has the Power of True Love, it's not going to make Vere nonviolent or absolve Kuras's guilt.

25:35: "These themes are pretty complicated in a way that's messy and honestly bloody and I think for that reason is why we're looking at a mature rating - that said, when we set out to make the game our goal wasn't really to be explicit, it was much more to focus on sexiness . . ."

Just clarifying that there won't be explicit sex scenes in the game.

28:55: "What are some aspects of the story that you are most excited to showcase?" "I'm so excited that people get to die terribly, that just gets me so pumped up. Like in previous jobs I have not been allowed to brutally murder . . . main characters permanently and it's very important to me that I now have the power to write really just messed up awful endings…Don't worry, there's also good endings there too, they just get as much passion and all that stuff as the bad endings… but the bad endings, oh my gosh, those are some of my favorites."

This line makes me curious about whether the main characters are just MC, or if the other characters will brutally die as well!

30:50 "A little while ago we posted Kuras's character reveal and people really like the fact that he can't cook so for me it's really cute and innocent seeing people obsess over that fact and I really just want them to see the contrast between that version of Kuras in their head and what he's actually like in his route. Like I just really want to see them react to like the terrible things he's going to do. . . They're all awful in different ways that I'm really excited for people to see it - it's very funny to see everyone be like _Literally name any of the characters of the cast and be like "they're my little meow meow" and it's like, oh. good. I hope this continues once they learn more about the characters. Obviously they're all wonderful - right, the characters are all awful but they're also all wonderful".

32:26 : "the theme of monstrousness and how each character kind of approaches it differently . . . because they're all monsters, even if they're not literally monsters . . .it also plays into each character's brand of horror in their own way as well that ties into their monstrous nature."

This line especially (to me) hints at how Leander is likely not SPECIFICALLY a monster, but a human with a monstrous nature.

34:30: - Ais was the first character they made and each of the other characters build upon him, so they spent a lot of time getting him right. Vere was the easiest to create and they made him in a weekend. Kuras was the hardest to create (especially visually).

38:00 "This is a romance game and a big draw of the game is making a love connection with these characters - do you all plan on including platonic friendship routes in addition to romance routes, or is it strictly romance?" The way that we planned out this game is that we wanted to focus on the intimacy of these individual relationships between the main character and the love interest and the route that they're on, right, so this is the way we had planned the game from the beginning. We really like poly romances, for example, and friendships, but we think that it wouldn't have made much sense for the characters in the story that we had written for them because this entire story - with who the main character is and why they're having to turn to these mysterious monstrous strangers - there's a level of intimacy involved in the themes and stories that we really focused on for how we're writing…

It's almost like a narrative design intentionality we did early on because each route that you'll be able to play from the main five cast is very driven and each character is like a ticking time bomb in their own way. So if you choose to romance Vere, Kuras's route still continues and you can see the effects of what not choosing Kuras is in Vere's route when you're playing Vere's route. So the world is meant to be very interwoven and interconnected where you can see the ripples of everyone's choices even when you're not romancing them and in that way we've designed this cast that's woven together. So if we did want to do a poly route, we would probably have to do entirely new characters . ."

43:30: "One of the fundamental goals of this game was to have, as you've been saying, a living world - a world that's evolving, and one of the ways that we wanted to communicate that was with the idea that these characters are not doing great… um, they're all in very very bad situations, uh, they're all essentially doomed if you do not go with them and it's seeing that carried out in each route that I hope will be really interesting for people.. it will be very sad, in a good way".

ARGHHH this is the WORST. This means that if you choose a character, you're essentially dooming the others. Though this will undoubtedly manufacture delicious angst, I'm soooo sad at imagining each of the other characters faltering and ultimately failing on their paths because you didn't chose them. Though, I wonder if there are some routes where multiple characters turn out ok, or if the entire cast is doomed as soon as you don't select them (in different ways depending on the route)?

54:30: "I also want to clarify too that even though we've been talking about blood a lot and all that kind of stuff and death and we love those parts of the story, um, if you get those endings there's a reason why, you know what I'm saying - you have to actively try to get those endings - poke the bear with a stick."

Definitely referencing Vere's bad ending in the demo. Personally I am too curious to avoid them, but it's encouraging that some of the MC deaths appear to be because you deliberately make dangerous choices, rather than simply "tricking" the player and surprising them.

Let me know what you think of these quotes, and the whole interview is definitely worth a watch if you haven't seen it!

[crimsonhydrangeavn]

Hey there! I'm here to simp for Garret, as usual, but I have another reason to gush today—I absolutely adore your drawing style! Whether it's the colors, the character designs, or the scenes, I just love it all. One of my favorite things, though, has to be the characters' facial expressions—they are all just beautiful!

Marcelo's surprised face? Perfect. Rita's blushing cheeks? Adorable. Camilla's entire design? Has a special place in my heart. And don't even get me started on Teagan's smile—it's so cute, it's almost unfair. But, of course, my ultimate favorite is Garret. I can't handle it when he furrows his eyebrows, whether he's pissed off or has that smug look like he's just hit the jackpot. It's all just so perfect!

Anyway, I do have a question for you—do you have any tips for creating character designs? I feel like the way your characters look perfectly matches the vibe they give off, and I'm starting to work on my own visual novel, but I'm having a hard time nailing down the character designs and I felt I could find good advice from you.

Additionally, I apologize in advance for all the fangirling and for my poor English. I hope nothing I said came across as rude or inconvenient, truly 🙏.

Thanks so much, and I hope you have a fantastic day! ❤🌻

Thank you so much for your incredibly sweet ask! Please, please, please NEVER apologize for gushing about characters for fangirling over them! It always brings a massive smile to my face and I really appreciate hearing how much you enjoy them! <3 I'm incredibly flattered that you reached out to me for advice on character creation and I'll do my best to share my process with you! Granted there are a million different ways to do things so these are just a few things that I've found that helps me in the creation process.

I'll give you a little background about me and my character/story creation journey so you can get a better understanding of my background in writing/character development.

You see I've been a huge fan of text roleplay for the majority of my life. I actually started roleplaying on gaiaonline when I was 12 and I've been doing it ever since. ( Almost 20 years at this point! damn am I old lol) As a result I've had a lot of practice creating and interacting with different kinds of characters in different settings. I've also been playing DnD on and off since high school. That being said, I've had time to refine my craft and create characters that I personally really enjoy and align with to some degree. ( And hopefully you do too!)

That being said, I'll list a few tips and tricks I've picked up over the years below!

Anatomy is key! Yes, my characters are stylized, however I spent a long time studying anatomy and getting a solid sense of proportions, ratios, and musculature. Am I perfect? Absolutely not, but I'm at the point that I can usually notice if there's a glaring error/ something looks really off.

Make sure to put all of the characters in a line up once they're designed! Are their heads the same size? What about their hands and feet? Some slight variations are natural, but if one character's head is noticeably larger than the others, then I'd take the time to adjust. The same could be said for colors. Is one character SUPER saturated while the others are more muted? Unless they're supposed to stand out, consider reworking the colors to make them feel a bit more cohesive.

A basic understanding of color theory is always a bonus in my book! I'd also consider making a general color palette for your game. That way it'll help you make sure everything looks and feels as though it's in the same world.

When I first create a character, I try to think of a general concept of what I want them to be. What's their general vibe? What do they look like? What's their personality like? Ect. Once I have a general vibe down, I try and do a bit of visual research on tiktok, pinterest, tumblr, google, ect. For example, I might have a general idea of what a typical frat bro or sorority girl looks like, but until I actually do the research and look into the kinds of things they wear, how they speak, and their general lifestyle, and real life examples of these kinds of people they'll feel like a flat caricatures of what they actually are.

Then, once I have the general vibe nailed down I start doodling them and playing around with different hairstyles, outfits, body types, ect. I actually have a few different different versions of all of the characters for Crimson Hydrangea! I rarely end up going with my first sketch/ concept when it comes to most of my characters. I also like exploring with different skin tones, colors, and textures/designs.

It takes a lot of thought and trail and error, but once I finally create a character that I'm visually happy with, I really start delving into their personality, backstories, and general psyche. What are their likes, dislikes, positive traits, and flaws? What are their motivations, fears, and traumas? How self aware are they? Then I start asking myself slightly more introspective questions to help me relate to the characters a bit more. What about this character resonates with me? How can I make this character feel more real? What are some traits that we share? For example, Garret inherited my unhealthy perfectionism, Marcelo inherited my love of food and desire to make sure those around me are happy and comfortable, Camilla inherited my sarcastic sense of humor, Rita inherited my unyielding sense of responsibility and unhealthy work-a-holic tendencies, and Teagan inherited my deep rooted insecurities. Granted most of these characters take it to a completely new level than I do in my real life, but at least on a basic level I can relate to them and understand their motivations. That being said, I don't think all of your characters need to inherit a specific trait of yours, it's just something I recently realized I tend to do on a subconscious level to help me write them with a bit more depth.

Let your characters develop a life of their own within your story. It's okay if they end up changing from your initial concept. People in real life are complex and don't always fit into a specific mold no matter how hard they try. They grow and change over time, sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worst. Do what feels right for the story you're trying to tell. For example, Garret was originally supposed to be more calculated and methodical. Marcelo was originally supposed to be a lot more laid back and go with the flow. However when I actually started writing them in specific scenarios I realized that they're far more complex than a simplified list of traits. Flaws and weaknesses make them feel so much more real than a "perfect" gary/mary stu.

When it comes to facial expressions, I usually have a small mirror on my desk to observe and reference specific expressions I'm trying to convey. In addition to using the mirror as a reference point, I also tend to make whatever face I'm drawing as I'm drawing it. It's a little silly, but I find it really helpful feeling my facial muscles recreate the same expression. It helps me figure out what the brows, eyes, and mouth are doing at the same time. It's gotten to the point of doing it subconsciously whenever I work/animate/draw. (Fortunately I usually work from home so no one has to see my weird expressions lol)

I think the final and most important tip you should take to heart is to create characters you genuinely enjoy. It'll also help you stay motivated to keep writing them and developing the story, especially early on in the creation process.

Hopefully you found my rambling helpful! It ended up being a bit more of a brain dump than I originally intended haha. That being said, I'd love to see what kind of characters and game you end up creating in the future! <3

[maleyanderecafe]

Past Hope(Visual Novel)

Created by: Frozen iris

Genre: Horror/Romance

I actually was in the middle of translating this game but then someone beat me to it, so my work here is done lol. All jokes aside, this game is pretty neat because the yandere involved and the relationship with the MC is pretty twisted, at least compared to other yandere VNs that I've played, especially since the MC is not a good person at all, which means they match pretty well with Hoshino.

The story starts with the MC confessing their love to Hoshino at the rooftop. Initially, it seems like a romantic scene, but the MC denies it as such, as they have been bullying Hoshino every day and has been doing this as a dare. The MC expects Hoshino to reject their confession, but he accepts it instead asking when their next date is. We learn that Hoshino hardly went to school anymore, and that the MC started bullying him, leading to the other students in the school to do the same. After telling the others the result of the confession (whether lying, changing the subject or telling the truth) the MC can then either go to the date location or ignore it and go home.

If they ignore it and go home, the MC will instead get a phone call from their mother. Answering it reveals that the MC's mother seems very controlling and angry about the fact that they ran away and that they aren't taking their medicine. In the end, the MC believes that they will always end up like their mother as they are of blood, and can either tell her off or hang up. Hoshino also calls around the same time, and when we read his text, we find out he is waiting for them at their date location. Upon going home, the MC ends up fainting due to the fact they hadn't been taking their medicine but ends up lying on their bed instead when they wake up. Upon checking their phone, they find pictures of them in their daily life, with different captions- walking home from school, not sleeping well, and the last picture is of them laying on the bed. The MC finds a knife in their hands covered with blood and follows the blood trail. Slowly, the MC looks under the bed to find Hoshino laying there covered in his own blood, dying. Hoshino had apparently followed the MC home and was going to kill them after they watched them pass out, as a way of revenge or to put the MC out of their misery. Hoshino hesitates and instead makes the MC stab him with the knife. Happy that the MC will never be able to get the image of his dying body out of their head, Hoshino crawls under the bed to die.

If the MC does decide to go to the date spot, he sees Hoshino writing something at the library. They can either decide to interrupt him or to wait for him to finish reading.

Interrupting Hoshino will cause him to nearly attack the MC reflexively. Due to the ruckus, Hoshino and the MC have to apologize to the librarian and decides to walk together. Hoshino and the MC talk about how the two met, when the MC ran out during the rain and was saved by Hoshino. While walking back to Hoshino's place, the MC recalls Hoshino's history. While Hoshino's parents died when he was younger, he was taken in by his uncle and aunt, and had a fairly happy life. However, due to hardships, the uncle and aunt got sucked into a cult and ended up divorcing. While with his aunt, Hoshino's uncle ended up getting sucked back into the cult and coming over to kill the aunt, leading to the MC rescuing Hoshino. With his aunt dead and his uncle in jail, Hoshino now lives by himself. While hanging out in Hoshino's place, the MC is knocked out by Hoshino and brought to the attic (at least, it looks like an attic). Regardless of reaction, Hoshino will get angry that the MC hasn't been taking their medication and wants to die. Hoshino is angry because he though the personality change was due to the medication, and instead starts to slice at Hoshino with a knife as revenge for their bullying. Hoshino ends up killing the MC and afterwards starts crying, and it's implied that he ends his life as well.

If the MC decides to wait for Hoshino to finish writing, they'll will start reading the little match girl. Upon finishing, Hoshino asks if they think the little match girl's ending was happy or not. Hoshino will be happy if they respond that the little match girl's ending is happy and be a bit disappointed if they say it's sad. The above happens, but instead of being brought to the attic, Hoshino will make the MC a drink where they can respond to how the taste is like. If the MC chooses Sweet or Strong, it will lead to Hoshino asking the MC if they want to go star watching, something that they used to do when they were small. When going up to the attic, the MC gets attacked by someone who was stuffed in the closet, the uncle. Hoshino starts to beat up the uncle, killing him, while the MC watches. The MC can either feel excited or nothing, leading to the option of asking why he killed the uncle or simply punching him.

If the MC decides to punch Hoshino, he starts to whimper, begging the MC, telling them that they are their only reason for living. The MC continues to punch Hoshino. Hoshino seems to have been jealous of the MC, but lives for them as well, stating that he only has them left. As the MC continues to punch him, Hoshino rationalizes the reason that they abuse him is because we love him so so much. The MC accepts this stating that the two will be together forever, so as long as he only looks at them. Hoshino seems to be mindbroken. Despite how much he's been abused, Hoshino continues to cling onto the MC, growing masochistic tendencies as he believes that the MC's abuse is a sign of their love for him.

If the MC decides to ask Hoshino, he will ask him what they should do with the body, whether they should hide the body or not. Hoshino will also beg for the MC, stating that their only reason for living is them. The MC seems to accept this, stating that they were the one who caused him to be like this, that they had finally created a monster that could only rely on them. Amongst all of this, the MC ends up accidentally confessing to Hoshino. Flustered by this, they run away back under the bridge where they first met. There is a flashback to how Hoshino saved them when they ran away from home.

In the true ending, the MC and Hoshino seemingly go back to school, having all worked out. The two seem happy together, but it all turns out it's a fruitless dream the MC wants. In reality, the two are intertwined, seemingly losing themselves and Hoshino, forcibly two horrible people who deserve each other.

I gotta say, despite knowing that the MC was kind of a horrible person, I didn't realize to the extent of how far they went to hurt Hoshino and it's pretty great. I very rarely see MCs that are just mean towards their yandere counterpart, or are just bad people (unless it's a BL-for some reason), so it's actually really nice to see an MC that basically turned Hoshino into what he is now, which is something I always would like to see more. We see that it's something that they gain from their mom, who seemed to love their dad more than they love their own child- extremely depressing. Hurting Hoshino was a way to keep control over him and to push over any stress they have, despite the two being childhood friends. It would have been really easy for Hoshino to snap so easily, but his infatuation with the MC was what kept them alive. The MC themselves also realize that they are a horrible person-refusing to take their medication because of their crippling self hatred for themselves. It is a bit sad that it ended up like this since the two of them seemed really close when they were younger, but alas, you can't have a yandere sometimes without breaking a few eggs. Plus, I liked the ending where the MC just beats Hoshino up and turns him into a masochist. It's such a broken ending with a broken yandere and boy is that fun to see. Sometimes you just have two broken people who are meant for each other.

Hoshino as a yandere is interesting. He had a turbulent childhood (though I'll be honest, I thought he was just simply abused, not that his uncle and aunt were indoctrinated into a CULT of all things) with the MC as his only safe rock. It must have been a real shock when he realized that the MC started to bully him. I am surprised that Hoshino kind of just took the brunt of it- the reasons he gets mad seemed to be that it was either A. the only way for him to get any attention from the MC B. This is how he recognized the MC's love this manner or C. That the medication is what caused the MC to change their personality. He does seem to be angry and vengeful at some points, don't get me wrong, since he does actually try to or successfully does kill the MC in two of the endings, but both times he's very reluctant about it and dies afterwards by his own hand- a sign of regret perhaps or the idea that he can't live without them anyways. Similarly to the MC, he seems to have suicidal tendencies as well, as he calls the ending of the Little Match Girl happy since she can finally be free of the burdens of this world- pretty morbid. Depending on the ending, Hoshino could also become a more masochistic, accepting his fate of being hurt by the MC as how they gain attention from them. It is kind of a weird thing to have a yandere do, since most of the time they tend to retaliate if their darling gets violent or struggles against them, but Hoshino... doesn't. He kind of just... accepts his fate. He's not even particularly happy or necessarily helpless in the situation since it is obvious that he could kill the MC at any time given the various ways that he stalks them. It's probably because Hoshino is trying to rationalize why the MC might be doing this, since it seemed that at least until the point where he was bullied by them, the MC had saved Hoshino a couple of times before- most notably when he was almost killed with his aunt. I guess the best explanation is simply that he could not live without the MC at that point, so he could only take whatever the MC gave him- even if it hurt.

I will say that it's nice that the two characters don't have a nice ending. Neither of them are good people and it would be very difficult to suddenly have this redemption arc in the middle of it all or it wouldn't make any sense. Plus the entire thing seems pretty pessimistic from the start- there's simply no way for these two to make each other better because of what they've gone through.

Overall, Past Hope is good game. It's pretty different from a lot of other yandere visual novels I've played with a different point of view. I think that some of the endings seem a bit strange or fast, but overall, it was a fun play. If you are interested please check it out. Maybe one day someone (or I) will translate the other game that they have about a weirdly cannibalistic pink haired rabbit boy.

[who-do-i-know-this-man]

PURRGATORY Pt 1/3:

Just today, my submittion, elijah from purrgatory, was eliminated. Beaten by just 1% from 3.5k votes, Elh will be moving on. I shouldn't be terribly upset, as that means people have played purrgatory before and remembered it. What I hate is that nobody has ever talked about it. This was a life-changing game to me, 2nd favorite, and to see nobody singing its praises is disheartening. This post is in remembrance of purrgatory, elijah, and how it effected me.

PART ONE: purrgatory, A GAME BY NIV

music to set the mood

purrgatory is a free-to-play point & click visual novel, created by Niv. Following your death, you're sent to purrgatory, a place between Heaven and Hell, and you're able to pass time in an afterlife where nothing really matters. You can meet and talk to its seven inhabitants, kyungsoon, oliver, numa, sean, elijah, natalie & tori, listen to their stories and try to remember your own. Fur-ever's not so bad, right?

The game was originally created during the "I Can't Draw" game jam, by solo developer Niv. Niv has a tumblr, though is largely inactive. From Niv answering a question about inspiration, "The point-and-click style was definitely inspired by early Flash point-and-click games -- I have to point out Daymare Town in particular just because of how similar the art style is. The story and characters come from my love of slice-of-life character-based narratives like Night in the Woods and Undertale. I've also always had a fascination with mazes and wanted to make a game where people just sort of live and hang out in a maze." I'll be talking about the general story, characters, art, and music, while avoiding major spoilers as much as possible. Go ahead and play purrgatory before or after I'm done with this thing, all that matters is you played it. I played through both major endings while inspecting everything, and beat it after 6 hours.

from left to right- natalie, kyungsoon, elijah, charon, sean, oliver, tori, numa

The gameplay of purrgatory revolves around exploring the labyrinth of purrgatory, talking to its inhabitants, and uncovering what led both them and you here. Nearly everything is inspectable, so click everything you see, and you'll most likely be treated to something humorous. This game loves puns, as the title suggests, and you'll be the one making them whether you like it or not. Every character drawing is traced multiple times over, to create a nice wiggling effect. purrgatory is devoid of color, the residents colors the only ones you'll see.

purrgatory is giant, boasting 80 different screens, and you will have to go through each one at some point. It's easy to get lost here, but muscle memory will guide you. You will first meet charon, the River Styx receptionist. Your interaction is brief, but she'll hand you your form to fill, a one-way trip to purrgatory. After you enter your name and select custom pronouns, she'll mention you're the eighth, "over capacity." You'll be directed to enter the portal and have a chance to ask a question, from, "who am i?", "where am i?" and "who are you?" After this, your only choice is to enter the portal to purrgatory.

From here, you'll meet kyungsoon the hyena, a cat, and oliver the mouse in the library. As you explore past the starting area, you'll find numa the snail in the flower garden, sean the snake and elijah the pangolin in the writing corner, natalie the moth in the apartment, and tori the owl in the station. Each has their reason for being here, and it's up to you to help them. The personalities of these people are what make this game, as each is written realistically and sympathetically. numa is meek and has trouble controlling her emotions, sean died during his happiest days and considers most of his life wasted, and kyungsoon was slothful during her life and never exerted her efforts anywhere. These are all things they tell you as you help them with what little goals they create for themselves in purrgatory.

Despite the heavy subject matter, purrgatory is inserted with lots of funny scenes and dialogue from every character. kyungsoon will make sarcastic remarks at your expense while not showing any strong emotion, sean has a sense of humor entwined with lots of internet and ruanch, and numa has many intense scenes of frustration that got me many times. Speaking of the characters, purrgatory consists of a largely LGBT+ cast! From Niv, "Don’t worry about misinterpreting! Every story is a collaboration between creator and reader, after all, so I expect nothing less than people creating their own headcanons. That being said, in MY head, numa and kyungsoon are lesbians, sean is gay, oliver and tori are bi, natalie is aroace, and kyungsoon is of course trans..."

On music and art: purrgatory has a wonderful soundtrack and sound design! With the low-effort look of the world, the music pairs excellently to the areas and scenes, my favorites being "the warehouse" and "lights out." There are special tracks in there as well, like a rendition of "Fly Me to the Moon" done with meows and a song composed by sean (do not look this up, will spoil). Exploring purrgatory, you'll find the various characters in many activities, such as standing around, sleeping, and laying on the floor. Every character not-still conveys so much emotion, despite looking like this:

There are a few endings, but only two major ones, which I will call "ghost end" and "feline fine." ghost end is the worst ending. While you were in purrgatory, you did not get to know anyone there, and yet for some reason, you're spared. This is the first ending I got. feline fine is the good ending. You remembered your past and helped everyone, and through comradery, found color.

"purrgatory" is an amazing game, which I wholeheartedly recommend. It's free on Steam right now. Please play it. My favorite character was elijah :3

I applaud the dedication, and I very much hope that people are convinced to check the game out. I know I'm definitely going to read through this more thoroughly later and maybe check out the game.

[antagames]

Dear Anta, I hope today is your happy day. This is the first time I write something like this for my favorite artist, I was quite shy and it took me a few days before decided to send this but I know I want to. ( Also, I'm not really good at English so I hope you don't mind :( )

The first thing I want to say is that I really love your art work and games. In my opinion, I find your games are really good, with both interface and story. I also like how you create a charater, each char have their own story and a special personality, which gives them an attraction to me.

The second it's about one of your games: 'Trapped with Jester'. I'm a big fan of visual novel games and when I first saw this on itch io I was very curious. After experiencing the game, I felt extremely curious about the story after that and also wanted to know more about the Jester. Since I start playing visual novel games, I realize Jester is always my number one yandere bias. I love him so so much <3.

And in that case, I want to ask you about Jester backstory, his favorite things, favorite food and everything about him. I was really curious about the story behind that smile.

And that is all I want to say, I'm waiting everyday to see more of your games, especially the games that have Jester in it ;), I will always support you with your product.

Aww thanks! Don't worry about your English, I really appreciate it when you all try to communicate with me despite the language barrier. As for Jester's backstory... unfortunately, I can't talk about that. The day I just drop his whole lore in text without any accompanying media (be it game, comic, MV, etc.) is the day that I've completely given up on making any other content about him, if you get what I mean? If I just drop his entire lore, then there'd be little to no more future content. I can answer more trivial questions though! For his favorite things... I think I've posted about it on my Twitter account before (but it's really hard to dig up-), it is hinted in the game itself as well, and outright mentioned in the Art+Lore Book, including his 'favorite food' (mentioned as food he's fond of). If you want to know more about him, I've posted some lore on my devlog if you haven't seen that yet. I've also made a few lore drops on my Twitter, but again, you'll have to dig it up... and I'm not sure if I've properly tagged them all.

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

Brainrot Housekeeping: A little note about Dorian

This is my heads-up that I've decided to try messing around on their platform and translating some of my headcanons into the Arcana's visual novel format.

This is not a promotional post. (hence why you won't be seeing any links, story titles, or profile handles)

It's mostly so that if anybody sees something posted by an author over there using my ideas/moniker, it's probably me and not a thief. Also, this blog is far and away my priority over that - if I start to feel overwhelmed or burnt out, that's going to be the first thing I stop doing. Not this :)

I'm putting more thoughts below the cut since the main point of this post is to be transparent about my activity to avoid misunderstandings:

I've been in conversation with plenty of people about Dorian. I've heard from people whose lives were transformed for the better because of it, I've heard from people with mixed feelings, I've heard from people whose lives were wrecked by it. It shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who's been on my page for a while that I'm fairly skeptical of them myself and don't always see eye-to-eye with them on how things seem to be run.

Anybody who's talked to me personally about it knows that I have boatloads more opinions, but I realized that those are based off of what I've heard much more than off of what I've experienced. So for transparency's sake, here are my reasons for trying this out:

First, the most important thing I've learned to do is to try encountering something for myself when I keep hearing and developing strong opinions about it. Sticking to this personal value is what got me out of Rai's server and influence (if you don't know and you want to know, read my pinned "to the arcana fandom" post) and ultimately what helped me get the resources I needed to help my friends get out of serious danger too. If I want to join the conversation about the clear divide between Dorian's vision for the Arcana and the fandom built around the original game, I have to try both sides out for myself.

Second, I'm a curious person and it seems like a new way to fuck around and find out (something I do constantly, though I rarely show it on here :P). I'm a creative, I love these characters, and the chance to see my own words in the original format sounds like fun.

To finish off, these are the goals and parameters I'm setting myself when it comes to however active I end up being over there. I'm putting them here again for transparency, but mainly to help me keep myself accountable:

My main goal is to try a new experience and have fun in the process. To do that, I'm going to keep my mind open without losing critical thinking and only make what I feel like making and when I feel like making it

Nothing I create is going to be motivated by a desire to be "successful". I'm already successful - I have a steady job IRL, a group of amazing friends, and this gift of a page that lets me be creative and find joy with other people around one of my many interests

Being active over there is going to be a bottom priority. If my tasks are getting to be too much, that will be the first to go because the only value I place in it at this time is experiental

If I find I can't stick to these goals, whether it be motivation, mentality, or just a loss of interest, I'll stop my activity over there and re-evaluate what I'm doing vs what I want to be doing and why

If I encounter something that's deeply concerning to me, I'll attempt to address it proactively through the proper channels available to me. If those concerns remain unaddressed and I think people need to know about it, I'll talk about it openly and honestly

I won't use my blog or server to promote any work I publish over there. Concurrently, I'll do my best to avoid any promotion off of the Dorian app

That's all from me for now about this! I'll be linking it in my pinned post so people who want to know more about me can look at it, but I won't be putting it on the arcana tag because I don't think it's relevant at this time.

Cheers!

brainrot

[allistaar]

Creating an IF: Agency

Welcome to the first entry in my blog series about my journey as a novice Interactive Fiction (IF) writer. With a background in game design and experience as a tabletop RPG Dungeon Master, I've always been intrigued by the unique storytelling potential of IF, particularly the concept of agency.

The Novel vs. The Game vs. The IF

In traditional novels, a significant amount of time is devoted to fleshing out the protagonist's motivations, backstory, and personality. This groundwork is essential for readers to understand and empathize with the characters' actions. In contrast, video games focus extensively on creating immersive scenes, allowing players to visualize and interact with the story's setting and characters without relying on the player's imagination.

Interactive Fiction, however, operates on a different level. The medium doesn't necessarily require extensive character backstories or immersive graphical environments. Instead, IF thrives on the absence of these elements, offering unique storytelling opportunities through what is arguably the most powerful tool in gaming: Agency.

Using Agency as a Storytelling Tool

Interestingly, restricting agency can be an effective narrative technique. This approach works best when a certain level of agency has already been established. By gradually limiting choices or disabling options, you can effectively convey feelings of powerlessness or helplessness. This method creates tension and elicits emotional responses from the player.

For example, imagine wanting to portray a character grappling with depression or a lack of motivation. Present the player with multiple positive actions that the character knows they should undertake, but can't bring themselves to do. You might present options like:

Do the dishes

Go for a walk

Take a shower

Go back to bed

Except, some of these options are grayed out, unavailable. This subtle storytelling device powerfully conveys the character's emotional state without explicitly stating it. It allows players to project their own experiences and interpretations onto the character, creating a more personalized and immersive narrative.

Agency: Not Just a Novel with Choices

It's crucial to remember that IF is not simply a novel with added choices. Approaching it as such can lead to a narrative that feels like herding cats, trying to manage unwieldy choice permutations, or, worse, neglecting the essence of player agency. IF requires a unique balance, a careful orchestration of choices that both guide the narrative and allow for meaningful player interaction.

In summary, understanding and effectively utilizing agency can transform your IF into an engaging, emotionally resonant experience. It's about offering choices that matter, that shape the narrative and reflect the player's influence on the story world. So, embrace the power of agency and see where it can take your storytelling in the realm of Interactive Fiction.

[rudnitskaia]

Hi, my name is Viktoriia, but you can call me Heldig. :3 I’m 29, she/her. I’m a translator (RUS/ENG), a writer and a bit of an artist.

✨ My main job is creating a proper visualization for different piles of data on dashboards and in various reports.

✨ I adore animation, indie-comics and games, especially old point-and-click adventure games. In general I'm a lazy weirdly joking workaholic & coffeemaniac. Versatile underdeveloped person, to sum it up. :D

✨ Fandoms I’m mostly tracking: Slayers (anime & novels), Lackadaisy, Undertale/Deltarune, Elfquest, LoL/Arcane & ATLA/LOK, but almost any animated/comic/game universe is acceptable and can suddenly grab my attention. I'm familiar with a lot of things, and the fact that I don't track what's going on in a particular fandom doesn't mean I don't like the thing itself, so, if you want to discuss something with me, you can simply ask if I've seen it. :3

✨ My blog contains my arts/writings/translations, life stories about me, my husband Andrew and my friends, and reblogs of the things I truly enjoy, including various fandom things and silly memes. Also since 2016 I mostly have been working on my own novel “Сказка Хрустальных гор” (A Tale of the Crystal Mountains) that I plan to finish and, hopefully, publish in 2024, so rarely I'll also post some stuff about the work process.

✨ My pseuds in creative communities are: LetiOwl (previously), Heldig (Хельдиг/Хельди) and Opossumherd.

✨ Links to my profiles in other social media: AO3, FicBook.Net, Twitter, Youtube, VK Blog, Personal VK page.

✨ All RoMaunce fics can be found here in English and here in Russian. The series aren't finished and are constantly updated.

I LOVE when people chat with me, especially about my and their OCs. Please do more and never hesitate, my asks' inbox and DMs are always opened. 💖

✨ Tags for better navigation in my blog are under the cut (in alphabetical order):

#about myself – random facts and stories about myself #atotcm – various content about my own future novel “Сказка Хрустальных гор” (A Tale of the Crystal Mountains) #augusto venza oc – posts about my Lackadaisy fan-character, Augusto Venza #jokes and memes - various funny things #heldig arts – my arts #heldig life stories – various stories from my life #heldig thoughts – just my random ramblings & opinions on the videogames/movies/books etc. #heldig translations – my ramblings on the translating topic #heldig writings – my writings #maura venza oc – posts about my Lackadaisy fan-character, Maura Venza #me and my husband – funny stories about two loveable dorks on their 9th year of happy marriage :D #romaunce – posts about the ship of the canonical Lackadaisy character, Rocky Rickaby, with my Lackadaisy fan-character, Maura Venza #wonderful animation – other people’s amazing animations and animatics #wonderful art – other people’s amazing art #wonderful story – other people’s amazing fanfics, analytical articles and so on #wonderful things – other amazing things that people share, but that fall out of other categories

[caxycreations]

🍓 Author Ask tag 🍓

Thank you for the tag! @phynewrites <3

Some fantastic questions ^-^

I tag @that-one-enby-onyx @verba-writing @mikathewriter @akiwitch and @dreaminggoblin

Your questions are:

Which OC has the Jester's Privilege (google it if you aren't sure <3)

How long have you been writing your most recent WIP?

Other than your WIPs, what creative hobbies do you have?

Which character do you like the least from all your works?

If your WIP were to be considered the "inventor" of a new trope, which trope do you think that would be?

When the Writer's Block Fairy hits, do you hit back or do you let it run it's course?

If you could give any advice to your past self, right before starting your WIP, what would it be?

My questions, from phynewrites:

Which OC are you most fond of, and why?

David. I draw Davina more than David, by a lot, but David is my special little boy. He's the very first fursona I ever had, and he's still very near and dear to my heart.

Is there any form of media (other movies, books, theater, news, etc.) that inspired your wip/s? How so?

Visual Novels (which I'm working on one myself now!) and RPGs like Fable 2 and 3. Games where choices matter. I wanted to make a story that takes causality into account directly. Instead of writing back-to-front, where I have a pre-set conclusion, I write linearly. I've...essentially BECOME Malor, the God of Fate and Chance, from Relan.

I set very specific events that NEED to happen (David's incident with Trace, Ryder's employment with Kaleb, that sort of thing) and then allow the story to create itself in the in-betweens. What happens happens, and the choices matter: I let the characters breathe, live, do their own thing. I step into the shoes of an observer.

If I hadn't been so heavily inspired by games where the events are determined by free will and choice, I wouldn't write the way I do, and the story would be drastically different.

What wip-related activities do you do aside from writing your wip? (making moodboards or playlists, etc.)

Visual Novel XD I'm making a visual novel, and I draw now and then as well!

What are you most proud of in your wip/s and why?

The worldbuilding lore that most of the readers will never see XD

I put a LOT of work into building the world, before I ever wrote a single letter of the story, and most of it will never see the light of day unless I actually manage to finish the Relanian Lore Compendium

What tropes are common among your wip/s? Why do you enjoy incorporating these tropes?

Found Family, friends-to-lovers, affably evil, and irredeemably evil are my favorite tropes to use and pop up in almost everything I do XD

Which part of your wip are you most struggling and how do you plan to overcome it?

THE DOWNHILL CALM AFTER THE CLIMAX OF THE STORY. I've been struggling to write it for ages now. I finally hit the climax of the story and have been trying to write the final 2 chapters, and it's hard.

Supernatural said it best.

"Endings are hard. Any chapped-ass monkey with a keyboard can poop out a beginning, but endings are impossible. You try to tie up every loose end, but you never can. The fans are always gonna bitch. There's always gonna be holes. And since it's the ending, it's all supposed to add up to something. I'm telling you, they're a raging pain in the ass" - Chuck Shurley, Supernatural

Any advice/ words of encouragement or just really a greeting to any writeblr who would have read this far?

When you see those posts telling you how to be a good writer, giving all sorts of advice on the concepts of "show, don't tell", "don't over-worldbuild, don't under-worldbuild", "write this way, write that way"...

Fuck'em. If you're new enough to need advice, I promise, any advice like that is harmful. Start off just developing your style, your way. Learn how YOU write, what feels good to YOU. When you know your style, and you know what feels good to you, THEN learn the "rules".

Read like hell, both before, during, and after developing your style. When you have your style, learn the rules from an academic standpoint, learn the "correct" way to write.

And then adapt it. Bend the rules that suit you, break the rules that hurt your efforts, follow the rules that improve your work. Create your own set of rules and follow those instead of any standardized "This Is The Right Way" rules set by others.

That's my advice. Nobody can tell your story the way you can, so why should you follow anybody else's rules for writing?

[virusinfected-memes]

COFFEE TALK SENTENCE STARTERS, PT. 2 OF ? ;

75 starters. CW: cussing, sexual themes. Coffee Talk is a visual novel game developed by Toge Productions. Feel free to change words and pronouns as needed!  [PART 1]

"Different isn't always good."

"It's a neat concept, but you need to handle it carefully and gracefully."

"He needs to learn how to communicate his thoughts nicely though."

"Let's not make the mountain even higher."

"What we have here now is more than enough for me."

"I'm taking a break from work. I need to work on a few personal matters."

"I'm curious... How did you guys meet? If you don't mind me asking..."

"Now, will you let me continue without interruptions?"

"And without even thinking about it, I punched _____ in the face."

"Yeah, I landed that one punch... And he beat me to a pulp. Easily."

"How was she doing? She hasn't returned any of my calls or texts..."

"I'm sick and tired of my family."

"Why would you say that?"

"Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to be an artist. I love drawing and creating art."

"_____ is the only person that can make me feel alive."

"I have no problem leaving my family, you know. I would happily leave them for the both of us."

"I never thought of it that way before."

"There's nothing to feel bad about!"

"It's easy for you to say that now, but you don't know what the future holds."

"You know... Love is like a flame. It might burn fiercely at first, but over time it will die down, if you don't maintain it."

"Life is full of storms."

"Marriage, it will not survive on love alone."

"There are consequences... It shouldn't be taken lightly."

"Perhaps a hot drink will give you some inspiration."

"Aren't vampires supposed to be... you know... tough?"

"Just because I'm a vampire, it doesn't mean I know kung-fu."

"Thanks for not leaving me on the street, _____."

"He might be an annoying asshole, but he's not a thief."

"What a stroke of luck, the universe sending me a guardian angel in my time of need."

"Hey, I took you to breakfast! Don't tell me that counted for nothing."

"I have to say, it wasn't my proudest moment."

"_____... I'd prefer if we skipped that part. I'm sorry, but I don't want to go into any details about it."

"Thank you for sharing your story with me. I didn't expect such a tale from you."

"I've no interest in flirting with you. I've got high standards, you know."

"Please don't forget to take a break. It's easy to get carried away by work when you're on a roll."

"That's not even a word, _____."

"Are you trying to squeeze the story from me?"

"I saw you from afar when you left the coffee shop a few days ago. So, hello! My name is _____. You could say I'm a regular here."

"Wow... It turns out pervs exist everywhere in the universe."

"You're quite dense, aren't you?"

"People often mistake me for someone who gets around a lot."

"All this information is too much to process in one evening..."

"Oh, showing some concern now, are you?"

"My, my... You really have a knack for starting trouble..."

"That sounds dangerous, liking someone without knowing the reason..."

"You really need to be more careful, _____..."

"So... Umm... How are things going in the office?"

"I want to say please don't forget to rest, but I'm sure it won't be easy for you and the team."

"I wish I could help you. Or at least say something to boost your morale. Sadly, I'm not the right person to give you advice about that."

"Getting used to unhealthy working conditions shouldn't be a norm."

"Every game has its own market, you know."

"You shouldn't waste your time on me! Relax, or something!"

"I'm coming with you! Whether you like it or not!"

"I think I should celebrate with a special drink. Something sweet."

"You are sorry... I don't have anything to be sorry for."

"Please just go home after you finish your drink."

"I know _____! He's not a good person!"

"He hasn't changed much... And even if he has, it wasn't for the better."

"You're just being paranoid!"

"What's next?! You'll lock me in the house because you're afraid of the air I'm breathing?!"

"You're just too young to understand!"

"Then make me understand! Because this is definitely not helping. There are better ways."

"TRY HARDER! Because right now, you're not helping anyone! Not me, not you, no one!"

"It will take time for me to learn. But I am learning."

"_____, are you out of your mind? You've been out of touch for so long."

"If I take things slow, I'll lose all my momentum."

"Of course I heard them. I just chose to ignore most of it. It's none of my business, is it?"

"Sometimes we don't even realize what we're capable of doing."

"And I thought I was the only one who brought bad news..."

"You've never looked like someone who needs help."

"I'm sorry, _____. I'm not really in the mood for this sort of conversation."

"You're still trying to get laid?"

"That sounds like the best plan you've had since you got here."

"It's nothing. We're just friends, you know?"

"It was a slip of the tongue, okay! I'm sorry!"

[evertidings]

Not an ask! Just wanted to send my appreciation and love for you work!! I've always loved interactive fiction so much, to the point where I'm actually making my own visual novel currently! I stumbled upon your game not too long ago and I was instantly captured by the story you've created, not to mention the characters that you've weaved that have become some what of a comfort to me. The amount of times I've come back and replayed your game to reread scenes that made me laugh, smile, blush and just explore what I hadn't before and become so excited- and even if it's not anything new, I still feel so immersed as if I was reading it for the first time again. Thank you for this wonderful story you've created! I hope the rest of your days creating are filled with passion and happiness!!

mwah. thank you, thank you. i wish you all the best in working on your visual novel, i admire anyone who dedicates time to a large project like that. cannot wait to see the result <3

[crimsonhydrangeavn]

GENUINE QUESTION, this is going to sound so silly, oh God........but was making Teagan a redhead on purpose (actually, I just thought of the possibility of them dyeing their...)? I mean, don't get me wrong, I like the color red but “full of red flags + DANGEROUS + IS a readhead = Teagan”. Their whole self and background is so interesting to me, it makes me wonder what inspired you to create them (apologies if something similar was asked and answered). There isn't much but man, I can't wait for the next updates! Thank you for your hard work <3

Please don't feel silly or apologize for asking your question! I really am so honored to hear that you're so invested in learning more about Teagan and have thought so deeply about them!

To get the easy part of your question out of your way, no Teagan isn't a natural redhead. They actually dye their hair all the time (Their hair was actually bright blue before they dying it red.)

As for the redhead = red flags + danger equation, I honestly can't deny that didn't cross my mind when I was creating them. Though you know what else is red? Herrings. ;)

As for the second part of your question, Teagan was honestly inspired by a lot of different sources.

One of the main sources of inspiration from Teagan are from a few toxic/manipulative friendships I had growing up. You see, I was a huge people pleaser/ pushover as a child and I would always give people the benefit of the doubt even when they didn't always deserve it.

Now that I'm older, I can look back on those toxic friendships and immediately spot those bright red flags that I missed as a kid. Of course, after seeing and learning of the home life that they had, I can understand why they developed those toxic traits in the first place.

Of course that doesn't excuse it, but it explains their actions and helped me realize that I wasn't the only reason why they acted the way that they did. It was their own slew of internal, and sometimes external, issues that caused them to act out.

Teagan also embodies the abandonment issues I developed after those toxic friendships inevitably failed. ( Not always by my own choice, even though in retrospect it was a net positive for me.) Granted, Teagan's issues dwarf my own, but they're rooted in the same fears and insecurities that I am still working on to this day. ( Unlike Teagan, I actively work on my issues and try my best NOT to project them onto others)

Of course, they were also loosely inspired by a lot of other yandere visual novels I've played. If you look at fanart I've made on my main accounts you'll probably get a hint of which specific games I drew some inspiration from haha.

I will say that even though Teagan is a manifestation of a variety of issues I've dealt with over the years, they are obviously 100x more toxic than anything I've experienced in IRL.

I've also found some sick enjoyment in coming up with creative and increasingly more messed up scenarios on how to make Teagan as toxic as humanly possible.

It's almost cathartic in a way, being able to control these fictional scenarios instead of being forced into them by outside sources.

That being said, I also believe in everyone's innate ability to heal, change for the better, and grow as a person. Of course I don't want to give too much away, but just know that my belief extends to Crimson Hydrangea as well. <3

[loopy777]

So there's going to be a live-action Zelda movie.

(Let's leave aside that no one from the creative team inspires any confidence.)

In celebration (?), I'm going to dig out my old idea for the only way a LoZ movie can be anything other than a cheap rip of Peter Jackson's LotR movies. See, I don't think LoZ has much to recommend it as fantasy itself. It doesn't have very many characters, and most of them don't have any personality beyond the most generic archetypes. There's no story that isn't just about collecting some plot coupons and fighting the big bad. Visually, there are few unique recurring memorable icons, just the Gorons and Zora, and Link in the green clothes; the triforce is just a triangle and the master sword fits in a little too well with all those cheap unofficial sword props they sell at conventions. Everything else varies too much to be iconic.

They could play it safe and adapt one of the more memorable games. But there's a reason why fanfic novelizations of those very rarely get very far, and why the manga adaptations usually last one or two volumes and spend most of their pages covering the initial premise and interactions with the quirkiest side-characters. Sure, it's possible to put together a good movie out of such a thing, but in that case, would the final product be all that much different than the recent D&D movie that underperformed despite being nicely entertaining?

I've long said that the one thing the Zelda franchise really has going for it (outside of being fun video games, which is actually the most important part but of no use in this conversation) is the way it uses repetition of its own iconography. It often retells the same stories, even when the stories are sequels to each other, and there's always a Link and always a Zelda and always a bow'n'arrow and always a moblin and water dungeon and a flute, etc. When a game does something unique, that stands out even more because of the context of the formula.

I also want to combine that with a fun mechanic in some of the games where Link solves puzzles by flipping between worlds/times. In 'Link to the Past,' he can go back and forth between the Light and Dark Worlds to make progress. In OoT, he can set things up in the past to solve problems in the future. In the Oracle GBA games, the dungeons themselves have puzzles which require taking actions in certain seasons and time periods in order to solve them.

So my ideal Zelda movie has multiple simultaneous stories going. One based on OoT, one based on Twilight Princess, one based on Breath of the WIld, and a mix of the NES games. They would each have a completely different acting cast, including the Links played by different actors. Scenes from each one would have different directors, ideally, but that may be unnecessary if the art teams can really do a good job differentiating them. The storylines would intercut to show their similarities and differences, and would sometimes even replace parts of each other's stories so that the lines between them blurs. At least one fight scene should be so intercut that literally every cut changes which storyline we're in, but it combines to create a single continuous and discernible fight scene.

As I've thought about this idea over the years, I've decided the storylines should swap characters as they go. The actors should stay the same- TP!Zelda should always be played by the same actress, for example, even when she's in the OoT storyline. Otherwise it would just get too confusing.

The theme we're going here is the nature and purpose of legends. We want to show how this one basic story reflects the societies that tell it, so we want the various storylines to make a big show of the setting of Hyrule in each era. We want to hint that the various elements in the story, including the characters, say something about the people who tell and value the legends. And we want to highlight how this changes as Hyrule changes.

It all culminates in all the storylines converging in the final battle against Ganon(dorf), with all the Links and Zeldas and sidekicks teaming up for a massive fight against evil. But the critical part is that all the populations of Hyrule are observing this fight, and the soundtrack is their shared million-person chorus recounting The Legend of Zelda, an epic poem chanted in a manner that puts Duel of the Fates to shame. I'm torn on whether the poem should be in English, or some made-up language that has to be translated via subtitles, complete with translator notes about untranslatable stuff and words where we're not sure of the exact meaning.

I admit it's possible I'm missing the entire point of a Zelda movie.