#Something book length

[tesnuzzik]

Hellow! I subscribed to you a long time ago. Back in the days when you published the Dragomatsu comic. I still adore this AU of yours. As far as I understand, you are no longer planning to work on this project. Could you briefly tell us what events were going to happen next in this comic?

Hi! Thank you for still following me even though I didn't update anymore <3 It's true, I'm not going to continue working on the comic. I'm currently working on an original comic (close to finishing the first page), doing two at the same time would be impossible;; (and the Dragonmatsu comic would have been much to big to ever finish anyway). I don't mind telling what I was planning with it though! (It's been a while and I didn't write everything down, but I'll do my best to try and remember). I'll try to keep it as short as possible;; xD --- From the final page I posted: Jyushimatsu would get taken away by the knights at the announcement, and Osomatsu rushes to try and bail him out (this is when he'd meet (the old version of) my oc Fenric for the first time). Jyushimatsu ends up getting away with a warning, mostly because the king wants to keep peace with the dragons. After this chapter, I had a whole story planned out where Jyushimatsu would get very ill, but no doctor would be willing to help except Dekapan (who's not fully recognized as a doctor with his weird magic potions). It turns out Jyushimatsu was poisoned by an angry villager, making the Matsus more aware that some humans *really* don't want them there (Oso starts turning really protective because of this as well). At some point, the king gets sick and passes away, and the prince takes over. He hates dragons due to trauma (if you look at the panel where he's upset in chapter 3, you can see that he misses a finger). Vitharr (the big red haired oc dude) decides to use that to his advantage and makes a plan where he will frame the Matsus for setting off a fire during the coronation festivities, turning most of the village against them and having the new king abolish the laws protecting (half)dragons. Vitharr ends up getting a position among the knights (And general Muno leaves, as she doesn't agree with what is happening), but he leaves his old crew behind who decide to try and capture the Matsus before he could (and get the reward). They end up causing the Matsu's house to burn down, but the Matsus escape and decide to flee the village.

This would be the end of the "first part" of the story, after this the Matsus would wander a dangerous forest while being hunted down by Vitharr (who was forced to team up with Fenric, a mage with an obsession with dragon magic). They would discover much more about their powers, where they came from, etc. Osomatsu grew to distrust humans, Karamatsu would have a bunch of old trauma to work through, Choromatsu and Todomatsu would have a lot of issues adjusting to the new situation (in their own ways), and Ichimatsu and Jyushimatsu's powers would end up clashing and causing issues in their relationship. I didn't write most of the latter stuff down so I don't remember all of it ;w; I think I had plans for the Matsus to all meet a full dragon of their own element at some point? Like the test comic I made with Karamatsu and the dragon in the big whirlpool... If you want to know about more specific stuff, just let me know! It's fun to go back to an old project like that sometimes, haha!

(edit!) Here are two unfinished pages for chapter 3

[identityquest]

some rapo girlies 💖

[denkies]

I remember being so distraught when we thought Hirotsu and Gin died, and then when it's revealed that Tachihara was the perpetrator, i was literally like "nvm theyre fine. That's his family, he wouldn't kill them no matter what" and i was right.

[bogkeep]

if i had a nickel for every heavyweight, sturdy and embroidered No Expenses Spared fancy totebag that's been gifted to me by a watch-related company visiting our school and handing out goodie bags, i would have two nickels. i don't have any nickels though. only totebags

[hanzajesthanza]

trying to come up with a plausible backstory for why regis would have short hair in the present era of the saga

he's fine now

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

Phullo there, I’d like to ask you a question! I hope I won’t be such a bothersome.

So, I’m planning to write a story about Laughingstock and since I find your storytelling very pleasing I figured it’d be a great idea to ask for your advice about the writing!

My Idea in general for this story is just Howdy taking a day off from working in his bodega. And basically, he’ll be just wearing normal clothes.. shocking truly.

And thennn, Barnaby and Howdy accidentally stumbled into each other’s path. They later then of course had a very long conversation that lasted until evening maybe.

Of course there’ll be some fishy moments like them looking at each other with goggly eyes and other cheesy romantic nonsense- but it’s just mainly them having their usual conversation with a ‘couple’ of jokes here and there. It’s supposed to be a sweet memory for them to remember basically.

So, what I’m really trying to ask you for is- how the heck do you start a story exactly and not make it into just the dialogues? Like, I want my story to be kind of long but I’m afraid it’ll be just them, y’know, talking and I really don’t want it to be boring.. therefore, I really need your help.

I am so sorry if it’s such a bad timing considering the fact that you just had an interview which I am very proud for you for that! Even if it didn’t go as expected at least you did good half of it.

Soo, yeah! I’d very much appreciate your advice and I am sooo sorry that this was soo long!!! And again, a bad timing too.. but hey if you got any time, please consider answering. Thank you..

Also any response yet? On the interview of course.

hmmm... in my experience and Knowledge Accumulated Over The Years via reading And writing... the best place to start is to just drop in. no story introduction, no "it was a dark and stormy night", just Start. it sounds like your story begins with Howdy taking the day off, so maybe kick off with him getting ready / choosing an outfit, or w/ him reflexively almost opening the store before he stops and chides himself for almost forgetting that he's taking the day off

to combat the dialogue, maybe detail him leaving the bodega to go into the neighborhood. what does he see? hear? feel both physically and mentally? is there anyone else out and about? set the scene! ive been struggling with this too lately since i haven't seriously written in a while and i haven't been reading actual books

WHICH! IMPORTANT TANGENTS!! read well-written books, Not fanfic! im not saying dont read fanfic ever or i'd be the world's biggest hypocrite, but also read actual books. it's important to study how published authors write, how stories are structured, dialogue and action. because these books have more often then not gone through a Rigorous screening process. multiple drafts, beta readers, publishers reading it with great scrutiny before agreeing to publish - of course there are exceptions, but a lot of books are the highest quality they can be, and will outshine most fics. because, and i say all of this as good things, fics are unregulated. most dont have beta readers. a lot are from amateur authors new to the scene. there will be spelling mistakes, weird grammar & sentence structure, etc - most fics have Entirely different writing styles from each other. so if you only read fanfic, That is what your brain will learn, and it's gonna be harder for you to write. published books have less variation in styles, and the styles are subtler. there's less spelling mistakes if any, so your spelling will improve. your internal vocabulary will expand. even if you don't consciously study what you read, your brain will pick up on & internalize patterns, how action works, how dialogue works, how to structure a story, all that good stuff. if you want, i can recommend well-written books! i've been an avid reader since... like, ever. i've got recs galore! you can tell me your preferred genre & literary interest and i'll probably have something for you! and if you're not big on books, well... get out of your comfort zone lmao, books are fucking awesome and i guarantee there are plenty out there that you would love.

and when you're writing dialogue, intersperse it with little actions or the main povs' internal dialogue. if there's a natural lull in the conversation, explore that lull! what do the characters do in this moment? what's going on around them? sprinkle bits of setting in so that your reader knows where they are and what's going on.

plus, exploring the non-dialogue sections of your story can, and often will, spark inspiration in your brain for scenes and actions to fill out the story if you want it to be long (but also! if you just want to write the scene of their conversation, that's the beauty of fanfic - there's no requirements. do whatever you want lmao). when Howdy is going into town, maybe Wally calls him over for a quick pose - does Howdy say yes or no, and how does that decision change the story? maybe Julie invites him to join her in a game, or Eddie stops to talk to Howdy about him being out and about. maybe there are some complaints over the bodega not being open. what's the lead-up to Howdy and Barnaby running into each other? do they literally run into each other? what happens when they do? those are just a few possibilities of many!

remember, when you're writing, you're that story's god. you can do literally fucking anything. you decide what the characters do, where they go, what happens in their world. that mindset should help you bolster the plot instead of just "these two characters have a conversation", yk?

i hope this helps!

[end-area]

Andreas: There are sound theological reasons to preserve this book.

Sister Illuminata: More sound than the condemnation from three bishops of Paris?

[pangur-and-grim]

45k 😳 I am over the halfway mark

[bonesaremoney]

So I’m reading the Exorcist and book version Damien has a chokehold on my heart and soul

And I’m too brain blocked to write fanfiction even though I’d love to read this or write it lmao BUT

I’m just losing it over the idea that Damien is a little vain, keeping his hair longer than the other priests because deep down he’s always thought it was pretty, got complimented on it, etc, but at the same time he feels immensely guilty for wanting to look pretty because he’s a *priest* and also deeply deeply in the closet about being queer, and of course isn’t vanity supposed to be a sin? And on top of the Catholic guilt, he feels ashamed of even being a priest anymore when he feels like his faith is gone.

Anyway, his hair isn’t *long-long,* but it’s longer than any of the other priests’, and it makes him stand out, adds to his intensity. Still he keeps it. He doesn’t dress flashily, we know that- only his vestments, workout clothes or pajamas. He doesn’t live extravagantly or want to. But he has his pretty, flippy 1970s mop top.

It gets him noticed, gets a few comments here and there. He’s not really sure why he ignores all the subtle suggestions from the bishop that he should get a haircut, and he’s even less sure why he’s so heartbroken over it when he finally caves and has it done. He feels like he’s lost something significant, like nothing is tying him to the man he was when he was a boxer and his mom was alive and he had plans for the future.

He just feels completely empty and even when friends try to tease him gently and get him out of his room he just kind of lays there curled in on himself and won’t talk to the person, but it’s clear he doesn’t want to be alone either. He just can’t explain the waves of conflicting emotions, so he doesn’t. He cries but it doesn’t help, it isn’t cathartic. There’s just no comforting him, but even so, no one is willing to try very hard lest people get *ideas* (like the priest who mentioned wanting to put his arm around someone but was afraid the other priest would think he was gay).

Anyway TLDR someone needs to just let Damien lay his head in their lap and pet him and tell him he’s beautiful and that it’s okay

Edit- and then just him slowly opening up to that person, like maybe a layperson professor who eases him out of his shell and back into the world and slowly they start having feelings for each other 😭 god this man is touch starved and barely smiles and THEN.

I wish I was writing bc I have to read this

[alwritey-aphrodite]

Reading YA/TikTok books makes me realize maybe my writing isn’t all that bad if this is getting published…

[keepthemacramesecret]

getting into historical costume is really fun because youll be looking at something like this (1888)

and ur first thought will be 'wow thats so masc' bc ur thinking of the 16th c. menswear that has become part of ur regular wardrobe somehow

[solradguy]

Ok, about 230 words of LtA translated tonight. There was a paragraph with a giant complicated sentence that slowed me down a bit. Better than no progress at all though!

Bernard was introduced in what I translated tonight. I saw on the wiki that it seems he's generally referred to as Ky's butler, but I decided to render the word 「執事」 as "steward" instead because he does more than just cleans Ky's house and bring him tea biscuits lol

Bernard manages crime syndicate reports, compiles summaries of them, and works as an analyst for Ky at the former Holy Order HQ in Paris, too. That's way above a standard "butler," imo. It seems like the word 「家令」 more generally means what we think of a butler as in English anyway.

LtA hasn't referred to Bernard with「家令」 at all, but if Norimitsu uses that or「バトラー」to refer to his job later I'll change it.

[xamaxenta]

Ace would be a very thoughtful gift giver

[verylostpenguin]

Could start getting through my enormous stack of unread books BUT why would I do that when I have just realised I can literally look up the financial statements of the university I was at 3 years ago and read the 120 page report on their accounting policies instead????????

[onaperduamedee]

Hello! I watched the wot show and liked it but I’ve been really curious about all the complaints that people made about how the plots don’t fit with what happens later on in the books. My assumption is that it’s not that major a thing but is just the critique people latched onto and repeat. But as you’re now a way through the series and I appreciate the thought you put in, would you say this might be a problem or is it overblown that some later plots can’t be salvaged already? Is part of it true

Hello, that's a really interesting question!

I’m trying to keep this vaguely spoiler-free with the exception of elements from The Eye of the World and The Great Hunt covered on the show, but this still got long.

I do think it is overblown, but I also liked the changes made, so I might not be the best judge here. I'm trying to approach your question from the angle of what is there and how it affects the story.

From where I stand in my reading, the majority of the changes in the show can be categorized in:

moving forward some arcs (dagger theft, visit to Tar Valon),

new material introducing important groups and dynamics early (Aes Sedai, warders),

plainly streamlining those THICK books (cutting the 14578 villages Mat and Rand visit, merging certain elements)

To me, those changes will serve the story going forward, both in terms of pacing and clarity, and do not affect the core of later arcs. The plot points still happen, just differently or later. The complaints about some changes are honestly hair-splitting, like making the girls ta'veren or Lan not being stony enough: it’s POV adjustment, not plot-damaging.

Some important discarded encounters will obviously come up later when there is more time. I get the frustration of fans who wanted to see those relationships play out now instead of new material (Nynaeve/Moiraine dance battle, how I mourn you), but I disagree shifting them around altered the story. The Eye of The World consists of A Lot of traveling and encounters, with a clear focus on Rand, despite the established five main characters. I think these changes allowed the show to lay the groundwork more evenly, particularly for the girls. 

Now, the biggest change that could affect storylines soon is Moiraine being cut from the source. It could change her arc significantly, short and long-term, but I don't see it as a major hurdle since Moiraine gets a meatier arc that is thematically relevant to book 2. I have qualms about how it could make later arcs redundant, but the execution will do a lot of work here. Mirroring is good in a narrative. 

Another aspect is Siuan/Moiraine potentially affecting their respective story. It may require some reshuffling/cutting characters, which will happen anyway with so many side characters gallivanting. But I'd absolutely argue their love life is not the most important element on their gripping journey in the books. Also, although I loathe admitting it, being together now does not necessarily entail being together always: there's wiggle room here, even if I don't want it.

Giving Perrin a wife only to kill her is dumb, but does not really change his later arc, come on. It will certainly add a certain weight to the story, like with Siuan and Moiraine.

Overall, I find the criticism all the more unfair that fans admit the first book is not representative of the rest of the series (it’s mainly Lord of the Rings references with more innkeepers and jugglers). To me, there's a fair margin of improvement in the books, pace-wise and story-wise. If fans come from the books thinking not one line should be rewritten, of course they're not going to enjoy the show doing away with dated or slower elements. I do. Ultimately, we don’t know how the story will be told: even if certain plots seem barred to them now, it may not be always so.

I hope I answered your question and I profoundly thank you for asking it because I could talk about these books/this show for hours.

[obnoxiousarcade]

you see the problem with .me reading is that.meataphors