#and that’s okay!

[traumasurvivors]

A lot of people focus on saying how strong you are. And they mean well. And sometimes it’s the reminder we need.

But sometimes… it’s the exact opposite of what we need to hear.

So, here’s a reminder if you need it. It’s okay to be weak. It’s okay to need to take a break. It’s okay to be tired. It’s okay to crumble. Your worth does not change. It’s okay if you don’t want to be strong. You are worthy whether you’re weak or strong.

[aimseytv]

when it comes to gender stuff the best way to explain it for me is i wanna look as androgynous as if a man and a woman had a baby ❤️

[bbxspn]

i hope anyone who still thinks dean was straight knows that looking at your homie like this is in fact NOT a straight thing to do!! 😁😁👍

[possum-socks]

The fact that sasuke has no idea naruto kissing him was an accident will forever be hilarious to me and like it’s never properly addressed in the show (aside from naruto thinking about it and being reminded of it once a week) so sasuke just went his whole life thinking it was purposeful…no wonder he repeatedly asks naruto throughout the show “what exactly does friend mean to you?” poor guy was probably so confused

[searchingforbucky]

Writer: writes the most amazing, well thought out and executed, tragically beautiful fanfiction you’ll ever read

All of the comments: Part 2 with smut? 🥺

[fredersen]

reddit comment from 7 years ago that has a permanent place in my mind

[swiftietartt]

sorry, but to me and my delusions ‘poignant pic as it will be one of the last times we are all together’ is the same as ‘one small suggestion. i’d change the title. it’s not about me, it never was.’ like…sorry, but to me, they’re so back. like, jason is in that picture, not everyone is returning, it’s about ted moving forward…

[ghost-proofbaby]

my brain writing a new fic idea that only appeals to me and is to satiate my own need to see a hyper specific version of eddie in a hyper specific au

[suashii]

anyways, hi hello how are y’all :3

[60000beesinatrenchcoat]

There’s literally no ornate natural order, baby. The universe is only entropy. Love it then die <3

[seokjinsonlyone]

we know it’s an iphone

[anamatics]

Personally I prefer kudos to comments on my fics. I don’t really have the time or the mental energy to reply to every single comment, and if I don’t do that I feel guilty. When I read a fic I only really comment if I have something important to say, or something specific I liked abt the fic. When every single app, website, etc uses the ‘like’ over ‘comment’ algorithm, you can’t expect people to suddenly not do that just bc it wasn’t an original feature of ao3. Expecting people to leave a comment to stroke your ego bc you wrote something kinda ain’t it for me dude. Knowing people read it, and liked it, should be enough if you yourself are content with your work and its quality. Not everybody is a critic who wants to leave a paragraph review. Some people just want a silly story and to move on. I’d rather have 500 kudos than 500 comments, and I’d rather read a fic with 500 kudos over 500 comments.

It must be a pretty grim view you have of me if you think I need my ego stroked by fanfic, a thing I do in my extremely limited spare time as a social thing for friends. I’m sorry you feel this way about me. Please just unfollow if you’ve got this much of an issue with me.

I want to unpack this for a minute, though.

“Personally I prefer kudos to comments on my fics.”

I don’t. It’s okay to have different opinions on what we want in terms of engagement from our friends, peers, and random internet strangers over our work.

“When every single app, website, etc uses the ‘like’ over ‘comment’ algorithm, you can’t expect people to suddenly not do that just bc it wasn’t an original feature of ao3.”

1) archive of our own does not use a “comment” or “like” algorithm. There is no fanfic serving algorithm on archive of our own because it is an archive, not a social platform. Content recommendation algorithms like you see on TikTok or YouTube are designed to keep you engaged, watching ads, and generating ad revenue for the company, oftentimes while, again, using user generated content that was produced FOR FREE to drive eyeballs and engagement to these ads.

2) Like buttons were created for advertisers. Archive of our own is not for profit, which means it doesn’t have advertising on its website. Why have a like button if it is, essentially, meaningless to the platform. The feature doesn’t do anything for Ao3.

“Expecting people to leave a comment to stroke your ego bc you wrote something kinda ain’t it for me dude. Knowing people read it, and liked it, should be enough if you yourself are content with your work and its quality.”

Creative energy, thought, and process are labor. People who do free labor out of their want to share a story they wrote and are proud of are allowed to want and desire praise. Let’s put it another way: you’re working in a big project at your job, you do a great job, absolutely knock the project out of the park - do you want praise? Do you want to feel like your hard work will be acknowledged? I’m assuming yes.

Now imagine that your boss doesn’t say anything to you. Imagine that no one does. Imagine that there’s some sort of company newsletter that briefly mentions your project under a heading: “kudos” where you’re lumped in with 25 other people. Your hard work is cheapened because no one bothered to tell you they cared, no one bothered to speak to you directly and honor your hard work. Yes, you’re content with the work you did on the project, but when you do work and you’re proud of it, others around you should honor that work. Not cheapen it by sticking you in a group with 25 other people. It wouldn’t seem really fair, I’m assuming.

I dislike your framing that desiring engagement with the product of unpaired creative labor to produce a creative work that others are consuming for free as ego stroking. That is incredibly dismissive of how people who do creative work feel about their work, and absolutely neglects to consider people where they’re at. A comment can make someone’s entire day. A kudos email about 5 people hitting kudos? Yes, it’s nice, but it isn’t nice in the same way as a comment.

“Not everybody is a critic who wants to leave a paragraph review. Some people just want a silly story and to move on.”

Nowhere did I say a person had to write a paragraph review. I suggested if you’re rereading something to type “reread kudos” into the comment box.

But also: that silly story took the author how many hours to write? How many hours to edit? To plan? This says to me that fic is a commodity whose production costs (time and effort to produce, skill, expertise) you don’t value very much. I’m sorry this is the case. Some of us have been writing fic for a long time and this is a very discouraging attitude to encounter. Because what’s the point of writing then? This is why people stop writing, they feel their unpaid creative labor isn’t valued.

[bisexualbard-writes]

Recently discovered an author I enjoy on ao3 blocked me, and I respect the hell out of that decision (curate your own fandom experience!!) but I’m soooooo curious about what I did. We had a couple pleasant interactions when I commented on some of their fics ages ago? Otherwise we haven’t interacted 🤔

Ah well, I’ll assume my kimchay isn’t their cup of tea BUT if anyone thinks I did something terrible let me know so I can fix it?

Anyway, I unironically hope they’re having a great day 🤣

[shuniverse]

hey , another important announcement . please take this seriously , and please be mature . I don’t want drama , even if this is a very serious matter

I’d like to disclose that , regretfully , I haven’t been true about my age on this blog . after speaking to a moot and anon on my other acc , I’d like to finally inform you this going forward .

I know I have ruined most of your guy’s trust in me , but I’d like to tell the truth now .

to all my friends and mutuals who are not minors , I’d like to say I’m sorry . truly , I am . this was a selfish decision on my part , and I only did it to obtain certain content , and I’m truly sorry , it wasn’t right and I want to openly admit that .

all blogs who follow me that aren’t minors , I completely understand if you block and/or unfollow me , and I will also be in the process of deleting my smut works .

they’ve been a joy for me to write , and it’s been lovely getting all of your requests , but I’d like to do the mature and responsible thing of owning up to this mistake and betrayal of my friends trust , and ridding this blog of content that should not be here

thank you to all my friends who I’ve been able to meet through this blog , minors and non-minors alike . you’ve all been amazing , and I’ve adored your content .

thank you for being here , and once again , I genuinely apologize for this . truly

love you all , alice 🐼

[calamari-minecraft-corner]

I really got to make a two part piece for the Dnd con au with Cala and Sam

Since they’re both the opposite of each other

Redemption and Vengeance-

Seeking the good in people and seeking retribution

I’m… so fucking excited to write this story because their interactions are gonna be my favorite.

[puppys-teeth]

God I hope the people who read my fics have good reading comprehension and analysis skills because NO I will not always explain something. Think for yourself please, think of the character and what story telling I’ve given you and make your own conclusion, that’s what’s so fun about art