#but Gil goes online every once in a while

[softquietsteadylove]

Helloooo! For the bodyguard AU because it’s a very interesting AU!

A few minutes before the show ends Gil goes away to get the car ready. In the meantime the show ends and Thena slips down the last 4 steps from the stairs because it’s gotten wet and nobody noticed it. But she absolutely refuses to get carried from anyone but Gil. And when he comes back and sees the situation he worriedly hurries to her.

It had been raining all day.

Thena always felt bad when the weather for a concert was terrible. She couldn't just cancel a show because of a little drizzle, but she hated imagining people standing around in the cold and the rain to see her, either. She rarely did shows outside for this very reason.

But today was just a few songs, slotted among plenty of other artists. And the rain did shift a few times, sometimes increasing to torrential levels and sometimes dying down to a fine mist in the air.

Either way it was miserable, and Gil couldn't wait to get somewhere warm and dry--get Thena somewhere warm and dry. He nodded to the driver to wait for them as he headed back into the stage structure built for the venue.

"Athena, please, just let us help!"

Gil rushed over, already prepared for the worst. He shoved a few people out of the way, finding Thena seated on the steps off the stage stubbornly, crossing her arms and turning her nose up at those around her. "Thena?"

"Oh thank goodness," a production assistant sighed as Gil pushed his way to the front of the little crowd. "She refuses to let anyone come near her."

"Is that a problem?!" Thena snarled at them. "He's my personal security!"

Gil sighed, kneeling down in front of her. If she was being this cranky and snappy with people, something really did happen. He looked at her and her outstretched leg. He ran a finger over her shin, "you fall?"

Thena's leg flinched as he reached her swollen ankle. "The steps were wet, but I couldn't see it on the black."

Gil nodded, unstrapping her heel and slipping it off as delicately as he would try to unfurl a rose. He held her eyes, "does it hurt?"

"A little," she answered him honestly--more honestly than she had been with anyone else present. She whimpered as he tested her knee.

"Okay," Gil frowned, laying her leg down again. "Might be a sprain."

A stage security guard hovered around them, "I offered to get her to the first aid tent, but-"

"It's okay," Gil offered casually, knowing that Thena had probably hissed and scratched at him like a feral cat at any attempts to come near her. "I've got her."

For all the screaming and acid and vitriol she'd had with the stage hands after her fall, she was calm and almost eager when Gil moved closer. She reached out her arms, looping them around his neck in a very familiar move as he scooped her up into his embrace.

"Y'okay?" he whispered to her as he adjusted his hold.

Thena nodded, burying her face in his neck as he made his way to their ride. She was tired, she was rained-on, she was cranky (embarrassed), and in no mood to be around anyone anymore. "Can we just go home?"

"Fine, but I'm calling Kingo," Gil chuckled as she groaned into the collar of his shirt. "You're getting that leg looked at, Thena."

"It's fine," she whined, only loud enough for him to hear.

"Oh, so I don't need to carry you, then?" he asked with a grin. She kept quiet, tightening her arms around his neck. He tightened his hold on her, assuring her he wasn't about to make her walk any time soon. "That's what I thought."

"It's not my ankle, it's my knee," she finally admitted.

"Smashed it right off the step?" Gil guessed, and received a deep sigh in response.

Thena let him set her in the vehicle, waiting for him to come around and sit beside her as he usually did. It took a him a few minutes, but when he did return, it was with towels.

"Poor thing," he grinned at her as their ride finally started making its way back to her end of town. He scooched over on the leather seats to her, throwing a towel first around her shoulders and then over her hair.

"Thanks," Thena mumbled as he moved the towel around, drying her hair for her both gently and clumsily. "You have to carry me around a lot, don't you..."

"Hm?" Gil tilted his head, peeking at her under the fluffy white hood the towel created for her.

Thena looked down at her hands supporting her on the seat, her thumbs twiddling together anxiously. "It's not exactly in your job description."

Well, no, it wasn't. In fact, his job was to protect her and her space--maintain it, even. It was not actually typical for a bodyguard to have to be so physical with their client, even with the amendments to his new contract about what constituted 'protecting' the client.

Thena pulled the towel back, visibly blushing against the grey backdrop out the windows. "I'm sorry you've gotten so used to it."

Gil blinked. He hadn't expected that. Not that it was out of character for Thena to be worrying about things, but he hadn't thought anything of it. Yes, he had started forgoing the trouble of trying to manoeuvre her at times. And yes, maybe they were both a little too used to - a little too comfortable with - him carrying her bridal style. And yes, maybe it could be considered wildly unprofessional in more than a few ways. And yes, maybe since the whole Eros lawsuit they'd gotten even more comfortable with each other (somehow).

"I don't mind."

Thena looked at up him with a miserable purse to her lips. "You shouldn't have to, though."

Gil shrugged, moving to start braiding her hair over her shoulder. Since they were going to give up on being professional with each other, why not?--at least just in this moment. "Makes my life easier."

"Gil, I'm serious."

"So am I," he smiled, laughing faintly as he said it. She still didn't look convinced. "Look, I've never found myself carrying around my other clients like princesses, I admit it."

Thena stayed quiet, although he couldn't help but think that she looked a little pleased to hear that.

"But my job is to keep you safe, and keeping you close makes it easier to keep you safe," he continued gently, twisting her hair off at the end. "I like it--I like that you've come to trust me so much, Thena."

She tilted her head, admiring the braiding he'd done. "I suppose I hadn't thought of it like that."

"And even if I weren't used to carrying you, you're not going anywhere on that knee anyway."

"Gil!"

[panthera-tigris-venenata]

💡- What’s a idea you’ve enjoyed but never/couldn’t write?

🍤 - Who do you mostly write for (going “[someone] would enjoy this!” when writing)

💿 - Which character is most likely to have a terrible sleep schedule?

🔔 - What compliment meant the most to you regarding your writing? (offline or online)

🏳️ - Favorite way you have described something in your works

🔗 - What has been your favorite dynamic to write for? (romantic or platonic)

🥫 - What’s a scene you’ve really enjoyed working on?

💡 What's an idea you've enjoyed but never wrote//couldn't write?

Sea Three going on the Isle of the Doomed!

I mean. I did write it. Kinda. But there were more people and AU background and I'd like to write it again, thank you.

They'd go looking for CJ when she vanished, still, because it's a good motivation. However, I can't figure out a good trap for Gil, so I'm stuck.

Also Anthony doing Harriet's hair. I think it'd be neat.

💿 - Which character is most likely to have a terrible sleep schedule?

All three Hooks, Uma, probably Mal.

There is a bet going on about whether the Facilier sisters are sleeping at all.

Carlos while living in Hell Hall for reasons called "Cruella is crazy and time is fake."

Ben if someone didn't force him to stop working and/or studying at eleven in the evening at most.

Audrey sticks to her sleep schedule religiously to pretend she has everything under control and Fairy Godmother gives Jane lights out at ten o'clock sharp.

🔔 - What compliment meant the most to you regarding your writing? (offline or online)

Let me just:

And about every single comment @dragoneyes618 ever wrote me ✨

Unrelated to Descendants, someone once told me „I wouldn't be afraid to offer this to a publishing house.“ (We then met once and they said they loved my stories and it was the sweetest thing ever) (it was an original story, just to be clear.)

🏳️ - Favorite way you have described something in your works

...I don't think I'm describing stuff all that much?

I think this scene is neat, though, and I apologize for the length:

It only takes one visit to her room for her to get all she needs, her hands doing their tasks completely on autopilot. Unsteered.

Take the dagger, CJ, tuck it to your belt. Then the other one. And another. Don’t forget your sabres. The boxers, for when you feel like you want to punch something – you do want punch something, don’t you? Someone? Their bones cracking under your knuckles, their hot blood splattering all over you?

You do know that a few cracked faces won’t miraculously heal broken reality, don‘t you?

…Yes, that goes for skulls and spines too.

CJ’s own skull throbs violently, she wants to go to Harriet and make her tell her that everything will be okay, even if it’s a lie.

Somehow, explosives find a way to her bag.

Oh, who is she kidding? She knows full well how they got there, and she knows how she wants to use them, too. Her fingers just itch to zap the lighter and throw the gotten-on-black grenades with all her might.

Watch the world burn.

But not yet.

She knows who has to pay first. Who else should it be than the king that condemned her siblings to death for the mere crime of being born?

The atrocities afterwards do not count.

Old king or new king, CJ doesn‘t care anyway.

The old king and his family, the woman who set up the shimmering Barrier of CJ’s childhood prison and her siblings’s mausoleum, all the people who turned a blind eye to the Isle for the last two decades.

The entire royal council, yeah, sure, why not.

Go big or go home.

CJ laughs hysterically as she walks through the front gate of Auradon Prep, straight to the Castle Beast.

I'm also obsessed with this fic (claudine/huma) a normal amount.

Plus, for some reason, the mental image from this fic brings me so much joy: Ginny and Maddy sitting together on the floor, Ginny playing with her own hair while Maddy plays with her doll, raking her nails through its hair. They're so cute, your honour.

🔗 - What has been your favorite dynamic to write for? (romantic or platonic)

Harry Hook/Uma

Harriet & Harry & CJ

Harriet Hook/Anthony Tremaine/Ginny Gothel

Claudine Frollo & the pirate crews. Particularly Harry and Uma. No I will not shut up about them. It can be your problem.

✨ What's a scene you've really enjoyed working on?

Probably every single Hook siblings reunion scene. Which I wrote a normal amount of.

[changebydjo]

IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ

 so i’ve put off writing this for a long, long time, and it’ll be painful for me to make this post but at this point i feel like it needs to be done. someone within the liz fandom has been lying, gaslighting and manipulating me as well as many others, both online and offline, and after getting proof on everything (plus their lack of remorse) has prompted me to write this.

this is about gil perez, aka @unrated-g, and one of his irl friends, kim @kimbus-the-whimbus, to a lesser extent, but mostly gil. since 2016 - nearly 5 years now - he’s been lying that he’s best friends with liz gillies. i’m gonna put a read more because it’s a long, insane, and ridiculous thing that happened, but please read all of it and know how serious this is, as well as all the damage this man has done.

​

i met gil through tumblr in 2018 - he had been replying my posts since before that, but early 2018 is when i followed him and started chatting with him casually. over time, i noticed that he would reblog posts about liz and in the tags he would seem to be talking to her or referencing her, but not by her name - instead he would call her “goblin”. he would mention things that “goblin” liked or behind the scenes on dynasty stuff, and after a few weeks of noticing this and chatting with him about dynasty/liz, i ended up asking him if he was friends with liz/knew her personally because of the way he spoke about her. he confirmed to me that he knew her, she was one of his best friends, and he “didn’t expect” anyone to pick up on it. he told me to keep it private and i agreed, obviously, because i had no reason to not trust him, and i know that liz values her privacy.

it’s important to note that liz does NOT follow him or any of his accounts from her verified twitter or instagram accounts - instead, he said she had an “extremely private” encrypted tumblr account that could only be seen by people she follows/white listed. he was one of them. her blog would not show up for anyone else, and they met through tumblr in 2016 (even though he said she followed him back in 2010 and he didn’t realize until 6 years later) through their mutual love for uncharted, and bonded over playing uncharted 4 multiplayer together. it’s also important to note that liz has had 2 tumblr accounts since 2010, both of which she has abandoned, and he said that her private tumblr is separate from those two. she also was friends with him (according to him) through PSN, where they would play ps4 games together, and all of his text convos with her are from that app:

(^ “liz’s” PSN account)

throughout all of 2018, we would text on a regular basis and started becoming good friends. he was extremely kind, always willing to be there for me, and listened to me about not only fandom stuff but also my irl problems. he also became friends with my friend group, who were also in the liz fandom, and it was really nice for a while. in october of 2018, gil said he went to HHN with liz and matt in LA, and for xmas of 2018, he said he spent it with liz - both in LA and in NJ, which is what she typically does to spend her holidays with her family and friends. her pale blue eyes cover was also for him, according to gil, because he asked for her to cover it specifically and she did just for him.

gil would also occasionally stream for friends, and sometimes liz would show up:

beginning of 2019 is when gil and i started getting much closer - we started playing games together (mostly mario kart, at the beginning) and talking through voice chat. he would talk about liz and personal things about her/her life or dynasty, and he always willingly supplied that information himself - i never asked for it, i wasn’t friends with him to get information on liz or have an “in” with her. chatting with him made me feel good and happy and important to him, and i realized i started having feelings for him - which i told him about in april 2019. he said he wasn’t sure exactly how he felt but he thought he might feel the same, the only really complicated part (besides the fact that this was long distance/not irl) was that he also had a really deep crush on liz, someone who was his best friend/ultimate celeb crush. he was really like in love with her, even though he said he tried to suppress it. anyways, after me admitting that to him, our friendship started to develop into something more. we weren’t ever in an official relationship, but things were definitely not strictly platonic with us. we went from chatting once every week or two to almost every single night for 3-6 hours per night for MONTHS. throughout that time, our relationship became sexual, too, and my feelings for him just continued to get deeper and deeper.

this continues throughout the rest of 2019, and then new years 2020, everything just...goes to shit asap. gil got really distant with me with no explanation, i felt like all the affection he was showing me and the kind things he would say to me, as well as our bonding time when we would chat together, was just ripped away unexpectedly. i constantly asked what was wrong and what was happening, and told him how i feel, and i got no real response besides just being tired/non-sociable, etc. (which, for the record, is completely understandable, but it was such a huge 180 in behavior that it worried me and things never went back to normal after that). in addition to that, kim (who was mentioned at the beginning of this post) is one of his best friends irl, as well as his on again/off again ex (according to him). anyways, there were posts that she had made that indicated to them not being exes and instead still together - or at the very least not platonic - which crushed me when i found out, because until that point i had no reason not to trust him. i told him about it though, and how it hurt me because my feelings were so deep for him at that point i felt that i loved him, and he told me they weren’t together. this isn’t really necessary for the liz stuff of this post, but it’s important for context for how hurt and on edge i was already feeling before things got worse.

we would still chat maybe a few times a week, but nothing like it used to be, and i was happy we would even chat at all, even though things felt so weird and different and off, and no matter what i did, i couldn’t fix it. as 2020 started going on, and this continued, his friendship with liz started making me feel extremely uncomfortable. knowing that he had the weird boundaries with his ex, plus whatever was going on with me and him, AND that he was in love with liz?? it was unsettling. i felt like i couldn’t compare, because it’s *liz gillies*, someone i obviously love and idolize and look up to. and she was up on a pedestal for him, even though he said that he never tried to treat liz differently than his other close friends just bc of who she was, but that wasn’t true. anything that she said or did, he agreed with 100%, and would defend it. when he and i would chat, and i would mention something about dynasty that bothered me, he would talk about what liz’s thoughts were on it and how she felt and that she was right to feel that way and it made me feel awful. this happened on multiple occasions throughout various topics, from dynasty to fandom stuff to liz’s friendships/relationships, etc. no matter what, to gil, liz was always right and he always had an explanation for anything that happened. the way he would describe liz and the thing he said about her made me see her in a completely different light - she was not the same liz that she presented herself as, at least in gil’s eyes. 

he would always talk about how amazing liz was to him and how she did so much for him, such as buying him gifts, supporting his art, etc. this was hurtful to hear because i was doing the exact same things for him, as well as our group of friends: we had been buying his art (not only the art prints but the ACTUAL original copies), sending him gifts or money for gifts, supporting him and his art on social media, as well as just being a genuine friend to him. he never appreciated or thanked us the way that he thanked liz; none of us ever compared to her, even though we were doing the exact same thing for him that he said liz was doing, as well. it made me feel like no matter what i did, or how supportive i was, i was never enough.

we also had a discord with gil, that involved him, me, and my friends sarah, hope, amanda, and dom. within this discord, it’s worth noting that gil was the only man there, and would talk about liz and his friendship with her there, unprompted. we never asked for info, he volunteered everything willingly, and we all kind of glossed over it at the time because we weren’t friends with him for liz or any of that.

(the screenshot gil linked in the gc is what “liz’s” private encrypted blog looks like on his dash. please note the edit post button in the bottom right of the screenshot.)

another important thing about his friendship with liz/being in love with her: he has this specific kink (which i don’t want to say what it is for privacy reasons) and he said that liz was engaging in this kink herself, and that he was jealous of liz’s bf/wishes he could engage in it with liz, etc. i wasn’t into this kink before talking to him but because i had liked him so much at the time, and i was slightly jealous that he wanted it with liz, i thought that i could indulge in it for him. it was something that i was not physically or mentally prepared for/able to make happen, and it really caused an impact on me, and he just...didn’t care. at all.

anyways: this stuff continues, then around summer 2020, my friend sarah reached out to him. she (and my friends, along with me) were starting to distrust the things gil was saying about liz, since it went completely against what liz would say herself. she would say she only plays the sims 3 on her computer - he would say she was a huge gamer and played the sims 4 on ps4, along with minecraft, uncharted, the last of us, horizon zero dawn, etc. he would say that liz and maddison brown (her dynasty co-star) played ACNH with him and quickly got to 5 stars - liz said in a zach sang interview that she didn’t play animal crossing. every time something didn’t add up, his excuse was that liz was lying for her privacy. she didn’t follow gil on any verified social media accounts in case “people harassed him” over being friends with her. so sarah texted him that she needed to talk to him about the liz stuff, because there was evidence it wasn’t true, and he denied all of it. he firmly stuck to his story, and sarah gave him multiple chances over several days to come clean and he wouldn’t. she asked for simple pieces of proof that he could give her, and he wouldn’t besides fake screenshots of her “private blog”:

 he told me afterwards that if it comes between his friendship with liz or sarah’s, he’s picking liz - end of story. his and sarah’s friendship was done after that because of his decision. he blamed sarah for “ruining” liz and maddison’s friendship because of her asking for proof, and made her out to be the bad one in that situation. he ended up deleting the discord gc after this happened, with all of his screenshots/”info” as liz as well (we got screenshots of things before he deleted it though, much more that’s shown in this post).

about a month later, my friend léa also confronted him about it. gil had told her some things about liz’s “reaction” to meeting léa in paris, and at the time, it had made the experience more special for her. once she realized it was all lies, though, it really hurt her - he altered that special experience for her and twisted it into something that wasn’t real. he had the same reaction to léa’s conversation as he did to sarah’s, and he refused to tell the truth. their friendship was done with after, as well, along with a few other people from the liz fandom. i was the only one who stayed friends with him after that, and that was because i was closest with him and still trying to see if i could fix things with him. i was still naively believing that he would treat me okay again, he would make me feel important instead of always a backup option, that he wanted me again. 

but of course that never happened. he continued to ignore me, talk to me less and less, and would subtweet me on his private account. after he stopped being friends with sarah and léa and everyone blocked him except for me, i was the only follower on his private account, as well as being the only person he followed there. gil, though, kept saying that liz had a “private twitter” where she would talk to him on his private account. he also said that he had “merged twitter accounts” into one, which was his private, which messed up his account and wouldn’t show who he was replying to, quote rts, or that he was following them, which - if you have a twitter, you KNOW none of that can actually happen. but it was his excuse to constantly subtweet me and my friends for not believing him, to maintain his story, AND to have convos with “liz” on there that only i could see, where he made it sound like he was talking shit about me to her. it was extremely manipulative and served no purpose except to fuck with me, because he knew that i was the only one seeing those tweets and knew i was already struggling with not knowing what to believe. here’s some of them:

(you can very clearly see that i’m the only follower/following on that account, the number is at literally 1, and he STILL was acting like he was talking to someone else and that other people were following him.)

now comes jan. 2021!! WE GOT DEFINITE PROOF THAT IT WAS ALL LIES. from multiple people. one of liz’s close best friends (that gil included in his stories about her, saying that he met them) said that they don’t know who gil is, have never met him, and it’s best for us all to block him for our own safety. a co-worker of liz’s (who was, again, included in gil’s lies, that he hung out with them multiple times, played games with them online, and bought him gifts) said that not only had they never met gil, but EVERYTHING he said about them was untrue. they even listed the inaccuracies he would say about them, such as gil taking photos of them at things like the SWT, and they confirmed who actually took the photo. they said that “none of it is fucking true” and that gil is a narcissistic liar, and also encouraged us to block him for our own safety. 

i confronted gil myself about this a few weeks ago, and he continued to maintain his story that everyone’s lying to protect his privacy - even though we know for sure that wasn’t the case. he FINALLY owned up to it to me only once he saw i had proof and he was caught, and his reason for doing it was “he was bored”. he said he was sorry but he wasn’t truly apologetic - he either didn’t fully realize the scope of how hurtful his lies and manipulations were, or he just didn’t care, but the bottom line is that he always chose his fantasy of liz over his actual friends. around this time, once he knew he was caught, he also deactivated his private account, but brought it back a week or so later, with all of the subtweets and tweets about liz being deleted. all of the unverified accounts that were supposed to be liz - the tumblr account, psn, twitch, etc. - were all fake and made by him, so he could make it seem more real.

even if he WAS telling the truth about being friends with liz, he still would have completely violated her privacy by the amount of “secret” things he told all of us - from her kinks/sex life, to work life, to very personal things that he claims happened to her. knowing it’s all fake though, and he made up an entire personality and life for liz that doesn’t exist??? it’s insane.

now the part with kim - she’s known gil irl for over 10 years, and has tweeted about liz all the time, about how “good” liz is to her because of gil, and that she’s the one who encouraged him to talk to her. she brags about it constantly, even though none of it is real. she also tweeted multiple times throughout 2018-2019 about how gil “finally deserves to meet liz in person”, even though gil said he met liz irl back in 2017 or so - AND that she came to texas, where he lives, to meet him and his friends. when asked about her tweets, he said that kim’s account was “messed up” and her tweets weren’t “tweeted at the right time”. one of my friends reached out to tell her and show her the proof of gil lying, because gil has been lying to her and other people irl too, and instead she mocked us, belittled us, and chose not to believe a group of women coming to her about a 30 year old (!!) man manipulating us. gil said that kim was “aware of it all being a lie for years now” to me, but i think that was another lie, that he’s STILL lying to her about it. if not, then that means that kim was also lying for many years about knowing liz too, and used it to make us all the butt of her joke, so. so much for her being an “empath” and wanting to help people but anyways!!

the last screenshot is of her subtweeting us and implying that everyone involved with liz is lying for her and gil’s privacy, even though we have proof that that simply isn’t true.

i’m sorry for how long this is, but i need people to understand how serious this is. he’s been lying for 5 YEARS now about knowing liz - about her “accidentally sending nudes” to him, that gil is one of her best friends and he would’ve been at her wedding, that she’s a huge gamer who plays with him - all of it. it’s all lies. he created a fantasy version of liz that doesn’t exist, and incorporated into his real life, his friendships both online and off, and made it his entire personality. he’s not sorry about what he’s done - as i’m writing this, he’s still on tumblr, talking in the tags to “liz” again, because he’d rather uphold his fantasy life where he’s best friends with liz when in reality, she has no idea he even exists. and if she did, i’m certain that she would be disgusted with what he’s done. he lied about her, oversexualized her, used his kinks on her which was brought onto me - someone he knew that was vulnerable and had feelings for him, manipulated people into trying to believe his lies, gaslit people to make them unable to tell what was true and what was fake, and had absolutely zero respect for any of us. he even listened to me cry to him on the phone MULTIPLE times about how insecure and worthless i felt to him compared to liz, and he didn’t do ANYTHING about it. he sat there and listened to me cry, knowing he could own up to his lie, and he chose not to. he’s not sorry about what he’s done, and he’s going to continue to spread his lies. please block him. i can’t express how much he’s hurt me, the therapy that i need to have because of him, how much he’s hurt my friends and how little he respects women in general tbh. he always tried to come off as “one of the good guys” but now i know he’s harmful and not to be trusted. he even tried to separate me from my friends, and make it seem like they’re the ones making this situation even harder for him. i’ve tried so, so many times to get through to him, waiting to see if he’d change or show some remorse or anything, but after over a year of this i don’t think he will, and it genuinely hurts me to know that. BLOCK HIM.

[trashytummiez]

King Shark doing a coke and mentos bloat and getting burpy and full? 0///0

“Does anyone actually not know what this stuff does when combined yet?”  King Shark asked skeptically.  He didn’t want to get his hoodie all sticky so he was only wearing a pair of dorky shark patterned swim trunks that left his beefy but chubby upper body wholly exposed.

“Yeah but we dunno what this stuff does t’sharks yet!” Harley exclaimed excited when she gave King Shark a few big bottles of cola and several packs of mentos.  

“I have a feeling it’s not gonna be much different.  And I don’t like throwing up thank you very much,” King Shark said nervously.

“You’ll be fine, King!  Ya got a tummy of iron and marshmallows!”  Harley confidently declared and patted King Shark’s chubby tummy.  It jiggled from the pat and made him blush.

“If you say so Harley.”

He was about to start but Harley stopped him.  “OOH!  OOH!  Lemme film this first!  We’re gonna make history here with the first shark t’ever do the coke’n mentos challenge!”  She fumbled in her tight pocket but managed to yank out her cellphone so she could start filming.

King Shark rubbed his thick neck uncertainly.

“O-Okay...here goes...”

Usually someone would crack open a bottle and start chugging but that’s not what King shark did.  Instead he grabbed every single packet of mentos and just dropped them all in his giant jaws not even having to take the wrapper off or chew.  He just dumped them all into his mouth and let them spill down his throat.  Then he grabbed one of the bottles and bit the top off so he could guzzle the full contents of the cola unabated by the narrow bottle top.  

King Shark squeezed the bottle so every last drop rushed down his gullet and made his stomach churn and bubble noisily.  He tossed the empty bottle aside and groaned massaging his tummy.  Then he grabbed another bottle and did the same by biting the top and pouring all of its fizzy contents down his throat all at once.  The bubbling and gurgling that churned out of King Shark’s stomach only got louder after that.  He was already pretty fat but now his belly was beginning to look a little rounder when all that soda began to react to the mentos.

Setting the empty crinkled bottle down King Shark released a huge burp then covered his mouth and blushed.

Harley giggled.  “Good one, King!  I could definitely beat that if I wanted to though but nah this is yer day!  And we wanna get all the sodas in you this time!"

King Shark groaned a little and rubbed his aching tummy while it noisily gurgled a storm of gassy bubbles.

“Ungh, these experiments don’t feel like they do much besides abuse the body for clicks...” King Shark complained while rubbing his belly.

“That’s half’uh youtube right there, King!” Harley chimed.

King shark shrugged despite his grumbling tummy.  “You got me there.”

He nervously grabbed another bottle and unscrewed the top to drain its fizzy contents.  The shark was gulping so rapidly that the inside of his throat could be heard wetly squelching with every pass of soda that flowed down his gullet.  After it was empty King Shark crushed the bottle and groaned while his larger tummy groaned even louder.

King shark took a moment to rub his belly hoping to settle it before he took in any more soda.  He slowly breathed out while he rubbed with his webbed hand. Then King Shark released another giant burp.

BAAAAAAAAUUUUUURRRRRROOOOOOOHP!!!!

Harley giggled hysterically.  

King shark covered his mouth and blushed excusing himself.

When he reached down to grab another bottle all the soda in his stomach audibly sloshed and made his belly jiggle a little.  That sloshy movement in his tummy made the sharks stomach release another gas bubble.  King Shark brought a fist to his mouth and muffled a long burp in his cheeks.  He blushed and groaned after, then patted his fatter tummy which jiggled under his hand and made him burp again.

He unscrewed the next bottle at Harley’s insistence and got to work chugging it down.  His stomach filled up with more soda and carbonation.  It was a really uncomfortable feeling the way it made his stomach sag and all bubbly.  King Shark wasn’t used to that feeling.  He played video games online all the time and even then he didn’t have nearly this much soda in his tummy.  It was enough to make him feel green in his literal gils.

And he eats people!

After downing the bottle King Shark burped enormously but he was too miserable to even excuse himself anymore.

Then he grabbed more mentos and downed them like he did the last ones by just dumping them down his jaws all at once.

Harley eagerly rushed up to King shark and rested her camera right against his very bloated belly.  The mentos were reacting in such a way that the inside of King Shark’s round stomach was fizzing crazily.  It was like the mentos were being dissolved in rapid time which only made the sharks stomach itself even noisier than it already was.

“Wow listen to that, internet!” Harley marveled.

Another deep burp rolled out of King shark from all the bubbling in his tummy.

“Listen t’that too!” Harley insisted with amusement.  “That’s noisier than I’ve ever heard a tummy get before!  And Ivy turned into a giant that one time’n ate some dudes!”

King shark whined and massaged his noisy tummy uncomfortably.  “Harley can I stop now?  I don’t feel so good...”

“Aww poor sharky.”  Harley took her camera off of King Shark’s stomach and she could still pick up all the gassy sounds it was making.  “Got any closin’ remarks ya wanna say to the internet?”

Poor King Shark’s belly gurgled so heavily that it almost sounded angry.  And before he could say anything King shark involuntarily released yet another massive burp in Harley’s direction.  It was so strong that it blew the camera right out of her hands.

“Could I get that in writing?”  Harley asked while she simultaneously rang out her ear and fanned the air around her to smell less like soda and the inside of King Shark’s stomach with a hint of minty freshness.

She walked over to grab and turn off her camera.  

King Shark just sat down on the couch and rubbed his aching bloated belly.  He huffed exhaustedly to himself and whimpered.  “Unnnngh, Harley a shark is never supposed to feel this bubbly...”

“On the bright side ya did great!” Harley chirruped.  She sat down on the couch next to King shark then as thanks she started rubbing his belly.  It was really round after so much soda.  But because it was all liquids not only was it really jiggly but it sagged more than usual.  She gently ran her hands up the bloated slick curve of King shark’s almost silk-feeling flesh.  It actually felt very oddly satisfying in her hands.  Almost like those rubbery slimes kids got from quarter machines but way more of it in her hands.  

Harley continued to gently massage his bubbling tummy all over as best she could.  Her hands rubbed little circles into the side of his tummy facing her direction.  One hand drifted down to his underbelly and caressed it.  that part of King shark’s tummy was even softer and more delicate feeling than the rest of his bulging stomach.  

King Shark groaned.  He was still feeling miserable from all that soda but it felt good having his belly tended to by Harley.

Of course it was still incredibly noisy.  So much that Harley couldn’t help rest her ear against King Shark’s belly and listen to it gurgling.  King Shark blushed.

“Seriously dude that is the noisiest tummy I’ve ever heard.”

She started leaning a little against King Shark’s stomach due to how much larger he was than her.  But the added pressure was still enough to make a large burp erupt from King shark’s mouth.

BRRRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHP!!!!

Harley giggled because that burp actually made King Shark’s belly jiggle around under Harley herself.

“Wow ya really are burpy!”

King Shark thumped his chest and burped again.  “HOOOUUURRP!!!  Ohhh.  Too much soda does that, Harley.”

“Well maybe gettin’ all the bubbles out’ll make yer tummy less rumbly bumbly!” And she demonstrated her point by pressing down on King Shark’s belly which resulted in another loud, lengthy burp rolling out of the blushing and bloated shark.  “C’mon, get it outta there!”

King Shark was embarrassed.  He wasn’t shy about burping but he usually only did that when no one was around.  Or it was just him and his clanmates online.  But then again Harley burped all the time and Ivy was no slouch either.

So despite his embarrassment King Shark brushed Harley’s hands aside and brought his meaty hands down onto his round tummy.  He kneaded into it and sloshed it around mildly.  Once he’d stirred enough gas around King Shark slapped his belly hard and released a burp that actually made the ground itself shake.

BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRAAAAAAAAAHHUUUUUUURRRRROOOOOOOOOORRRRHP!!!!!!!!

The whole room reeked of soda after that burp ended ten seconds later.

King Shark sighed heavily with relief and patted his belly.

“Ohhhhhhh that felt good...”

Harley giggled and nudged King Shark’s jostling tummy.  “Ya see?  Toldja!”

BRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAUUUHP!!!!  King shark burped hard from the sudden push to his turbulent tummy.  He covered his mouth but couldn’t help from giggling himself.  “Well, when you’re right you’re right.  Guess that’s why you’re the boss.”

Harley beamed proudly at that.  “Damn tootin’!  And don’tchu ever forget it!  And as the boss...”

Harley rushed to the kitchen which confused King Shark.

Until she returned with two more sodas.

“...I say we bring the roof down with a good ol’ fashioned burpin’ contest!”

“Harley if I drink any more soda I’m definitely gonna throw up.  And I hate throwing up more than I hate the level 10 dungeon boss in World of Warland!”

“Good thing these’re both fer me then!” Harley piped.  She set those bottles down and playfully slapped the side of King Shark’s belly which made him hiccup loudly.  “With all that soda already in yer tummy I gotta make us even somehow, right?”

King Shark’s nervous frown left him when he heard that.  He wrapped his hands around his round tummy protectively and drummed his clawed fingers atop it in thought.  But then he eventually grinned back at Harley despite his initial embarrassment.  “Well in that case, bring it on, boss!”

[lettersnorth]

It'd be nice to catch the breeze! It'd be fun! That's what Cravendy had thought on a whim. But now that she was up here, after crawling through several spaces far too cramped for any normal-sized person to fit through, she determined the effort to get here far outweighed any benefit. And eventually, she'd have to find a way down. Cravs puts that off for later and looks over the Lilly Hills.

After the meeting with Momori, Aislinn comes across a note left on the desk of her study. A request from Cravendy for Aislinn to engineer an undetectable tracking device. Questionable at best, downright shady at worst but also surprising, coming from Cravendy. She knows the clock is ticking on her own issues but before returning to her business in Ishgard, she goes in search of the oddly absent Seawolf to find out exactly why she would need such a device.

With a bit of searching Aislinn finally finds the woman out on the widow's walk on the very top of the Company House. What was it with the people in her life and high altitudes? She clambers out onto the high walk, with a puff of exertion after squeezing herself through the small attic crawlspace. "Nymeia's breath." she mutters under her breath as she appears and then, "Here you are." louder now, for the Seawolf to hear as she dusts herself off.

Cravendy waits in fearful anticipation as something is shoving its way through the crawlspace. When Lin finally emerges, Cravs doesn't know whether to laugh or cry from surprise. "What the 'ell?! Lin? What brings ye up 'ere?" "Ye look like yer 'alf dust bunny." Cravs, having been 'trapped' out here for quite some time, has had ample time to brush herself off.

Aislinn takes a moment to peer over the edge. The view up here was rather nice. She might even make use of this walk herself sometime when she needed some quiet. She made a mental note of it as she stepped back. "You." she replies, her voice as matter-of-fact as ever. "I came across the note you left on my --" she pauses, noting a bit of dusty cobweb still clinging to the edge of her spectacle frame. She sputters and swiftly brushes at it with a wave of her hand. Clearing her throat, she continues, "..my desk. What's this business about an 'undetectable tracking device'?"

Cravendy stifles a giggle as Lin struggles with the spiderwebs caught in her hair. "If ye've got 'alf a mind to come up 'ere again, we should bring in a team of professional cleaners. It was 'ard for me too, and 'arder still with bugs and splinters every ilm."

"But, ah. Mm." Cravs scratches the back of her head and turns away. This was something she had shared with Riylli and Rising - would Lin respond in the same way? Normally, Cravs would brush off the request, switch the topic. But with two out of two on her side, maybe...just maybe Lin would be receptive as well.

"To put it shortly, I need it to incriminate someone of bein' an arse."

"We should." Aislinn agrees, momentarily pulling the glasses from her face and inspecting them with a frown to be sure they were clean. "I'd wager no one's set foot in the attic in an age." Fitting the frames brusquely back on her face, she passes Cravendy a skeptical look. "Not saying there's not a time or place for that but that might be putting it a little too short for me. Is there a longer version?"

Cravendy grimaces, reacting as if Lin is suggesting she needs a tooth pulled. "Shit...the longer version? Uh, the full version? Ye really got time for that? Not that it's anythin' big." She wheezes. "I mean, relatively, it's small, in the grand scheme of Eorzea burnin'."

The more Cravendy hems and haws, the more Aislinn's concern grows. "I'm not asking for the -full- story if you've not the inclination. But you've got to admit that if you're asking me to hand you a device like that, I need to know at least a little bit as to why. Not only for the obvious reasons as to whether we're wandering into a gray area with a -tracker- but to inform the parameters of this project. What sort of range, for how long, and so on."  she explains.

"There's a loanshark that's botherin' someone I want to 'elp. I figure if I can bring 'em down, they won't be able to pester 'im anymore," Cravs eventually admits, arms crossed. "But on the surface, their record is clean. So I...I may 'ave broken a law or two in order to find some dirt."

"I need the tracker to prove the loanshark's up to no good. Evidence that'll be 'arder to trace back to my own lawbreakin'."

Aislinn expels a troubled breath. It wasn't the lawbreaking that bothered her. Far be it from her to lecture anyone about something like that. She stares out at the vista over Cravendy's shoulder with a considering tilt of her head. In the end, she couldn't hold it against Cravendy if she decided to hold information back. It wasn't like Aislinn herself was as forthright as she could be with her either. "A normal tracker would just tell you where a person's been. A trail on a map. Is that going to be enough?"

"As long as this tracker can't be sensed by Limsa's best, can lead me to wherever she's storin' 'er illegal goods, then it'll be more than enough." Cravs puts a finger over her lips. "....Oh. And if it can somehow be 'idden in a vat of toad ooze."

"I'm 'opin' to bait 'er with it, ask a favor from Dirtpatch, 'ave everythin' legally look....bad, tear down 'er reputation. Maybe even toss her into gaol." Cravs nods, satisfied. "A sound plan, eh?"

Aislinn shoots a glance over to Cravendy, a small measure of amusement sparking there despite her misgivings. "A vat of toad ooze." she echoes. She inhales and tries to think it through like it was a reasonable problem set and not at all the odd request it was. "Acidic? That depends. Corrosion could be a problem if you needed it to last longer than a few bells. And what makes you think she'd drag toad ooze to wherever you're hoping she goes?"

Cravendy frets by tugging on her braid. She didn't think about that, and after harvesting all that ooze, her hands did feel a bit itchy. "Uh, maybe? Is this somethin' ye can test? It's safe for me to dunk my 'and in for a while. It's sittin' in a barrel in my room if ye want to look at it."

"She's a spice trader, both the dust ye put on food and the, er, 'strong' stuff. I 'eard toad ooze is used by pixies for psychedelic effects, and it sure as 'ell ain't easy to come by. She won't resist tradin' for a vat for it, I think."

"Not just a loanshark, then." Aislinn notes. A bit of fire flickers through her eyes. The drug trading detail seems to have drawn the woman's ire. "I can test it." she affirms. "Once I know what I'm dealing with I can decide on a case of some sort. A shell that would protect the device. But that might limit my options, if it still needs to let an encrypted signal through. Maybe something with a delayed activation? She wouldn't detect it at first if she were looking. But then it'd wake itself up somewhere down the line not too long after she took the bait." Aislinn is clearly thinking out loud now, hooked by the challenge set before her.

"Then it'd be a matter of knowin' when to activate it. It could take a couple of suns for it to make it to 'er," Cravs ponders. "So when it activates, ye think she could sense it then? If that's the case, the moment it goes off, I better be ready to jump into action."

"'ow are ye gonna make a delayed shell like that? I've 'eard of slow actin' medicine, but a slow actin' tracker....and an undetectable one at that. Think that's in the realm of possibility?"

The planning and sketching going on in Aislinn's mind is halted by Cravendy's question like a pen scratching wildly off the boundaries of a page. "What do you mean, could she sense it? I thought she might, at best, scan the vat of toad ooze with her own equipment. How would anyone sense a ping of a device going online? Does she have something I don't know about?"

"That's the thing." Cravs snaps her fingers. "I 'ave no clue. If someone was storin' illegal goods, what sort of security measures would they take? I'm imaginin' an empty barn, maybe 'idden by some trees, but...eh. I dunno. What do ye reckown?"

"Depends on how sophisticated an operation you're dealing with." Aislinn answers with a half shrug. "Is this just a side job for her, something to make a little extra gil or is this her livelihood she has to protect? Is she an arrogant person who thinks she'll never get caught or is she paranoid? How long has she been at this?" Aislinn waves a hand through the air as if to say 'and so on and so forth'. "Let's plan as though it's the worst case scenario. She's wily, she's paranoid and she's been at this for years. If so, hiding something in the product might not be the best way to outsmart her." Lin drummed her fingers against her arm in thought. "Who's meeting her to make the trade?"

Cravendy considers this, is relieved to have asked Lin about such matters. "'ow do I put this...what I'm 'opin' to incriminate 'er of wasn't illegal until the Admiral got in charge of Limsa. So at the least, she's been hidin' her stuff for five years. But I would lean on longer, since hidin' from the law is one thing, hidin' from a rats nest of pirates is another."

"As for who's makin' the trade...a couple of old friends of mine. Nostalgically inclined friends."

"You're trying to catch a pirate." Aislinn said with a dawning realization. A conflicted look flitted across Aislinn's face for the briefest of moments. She had recently found reason to feel differently about certain pirates than most. But Cravendy was speaking of a drug trading, loanshark pirate, she reminds herself and stays the course. In every business there was the good, the bad and the downright ugly. "Do you think money will change hands? Or a drink of some sort. I could work with something like that." she shakes her head. "Either way just give me some time to think and I'm sure I can come up with something. When are your friends meeting her?"

"I wouldn't call 'er a pirate. Too old...or...." Cravs looks into the distance. Mindred might have been a pirate in her heyday, and that explained a lot. She blinks. "Ahem, anyway, when everythin' 'appens is up to me. When everythin's ready I can tell my friends what they need to know."

"Back when I 'ung out with 'em,  exchanges were drink free, actually. Everyone 'ad appearances to keep up, and no one wanted a deal to go sour cause Bob can't keep their 'ands off the bottle. But money, aye. Money was exchanged."

Aislinn nods. "Alright, then. As I said, give me some time. I'll come up with something." she hesitates, knowing time wasn't exactly something she had in spades at the moment. "Sooner rather than later, you can be sure."

"No rush. I expect we'll 'ave our 'ands busy with Momori's bullshite anyway. Cheeky lil' red eyed bugger." Cravs shrugs. "It ain't as pressin', is what I'm sayin'."

Relief seems to relax her upon hearing that Cravendy didn't need this device right away. "She says this is all about saving the star. But I still don't trust her an ilm. She isn’t the altruistic sort." Lin turns for the door, preparing to scoot herself back through. "Just...be careful with this drug deal business, alright? Generally, they aren't the best people to be messing around with, you know?"

"There's some other angle she's playin' at, I'm sure of it. Either that, or she's just plain bad at actin' normal." Cravs laughs - she's heard stories about Momori's attempts to smile. "Aye, don't worry. I've dealt with 'er kind afore. Not against 'em, but eh. Same difference."

With the details ironed out, the only thing left now was to figure out how to get down. The passageway through the attic beckoned to the two, promising hair full of webs and dust up the nose. Cravs groans.

[luthienebonyx]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Friday's Child - Georgette Heyer, HEYER Georgette - Works Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Gil Ringwood/Ferdy Fakenham, Anthony "Sherry" Sheringham/Hero Wantage, Isabella Milborne/George Wrotham Characters: Gilbert Ringwood, Ferdinand Fakenham, Anthony "Sherry" Sheringham, Hero Wantage, George Wrotham, Isabella Milborne, Chilham (Friday's Child) Additional Tags: Friends to Lovers, Past unrequited love, Eventual Requited Love, Pining, Idiots in Love, just generally idiots, Friendship, Romance, Marriage, Pregnancy, Comedy, Romantic Comedy, a teensy bit of angst, The Season, Christmas, Road Trips, THERE WAS ONLY ONE BED, On Purpose, hedgerows, Jealousy, Hurt/Comfort, Regency, obviously, elaborate descriptions of clothing, Minor Original Character(s), Across a crowded (ball)room, What Happened After, Post-Canon Summary:

The tale of a memorable and eventful six months in the life of Mr Gilbert Ringwood, Esq., following the marriage of his friend, Lord Wrotham, to Miss Isabella Milborne in June, 1817.

~

Okay, so this is my YULETIDE AUTHOR REVEAL, and there is quite a story to this one. Fair warning, this is an EXTREMELY self-indulgent post.

Every single story I've written for Yuletide over the years is one that I probably wouldn't have otherwise written, and every single one of them has also wound up being amongst my personal favourites of my own work. I've loved writing all of them. However, the story I wrote this year is one I've been talking about writing for quite literally twenty years, but the history of it goes back even further. So, sit back, and I'll tell you the tale of the long path that eventually led me to writing  That Greek Thing.

~

Some years ago (Shall we specify that it was the ninth decade of the Twentieth Century? Yes, I think we shall!) there lived a girl who was at that rather difficult age when she was no longer a child nor yet a young lady. This girl, whom we shall, for the sake of convenience, call Miss L, lived in a village by the sea in a far distant, Antipodean land. She was a quiet, bookish beanpole of a girl, almost a bluestocking - the sort of individual who lived rather too much in her own head, in fact. One day, as Miss L browsed the offerings on the secondhand book table at the annual fete of the local church, she chanced upon a volume, sadly dog-eared and with a long crease right through the front cover, titled ‘A Civil Contract’ by Georgette Heyer, which had clearly become surplus to its previous owner's requirements. Miss L had recently read and loved Miss Austen's ‘Pride and Prejudice’ for the first time, and it was immediately obvious to her that Miss Heyer's work was set in a similar time period.

So Miss L bought A Civil Contract, and read it, and laughed heartily at the various supporting characters such as Mr Chawleigh, but her youthful heart found the arranged marriage central to the story rather more serious and subdued than she had been expecting. It was not really the book she had expected it to be, but it tugged at her memory, so when she was next perusing the titles at her local library and she chanced upon another title by Miss Heyer, she resolved that she should give it a chance.

She loved this book - though which one it was, exactly, of Miss Heyer's many works is lost to the mists of time - and thus was born a great and enduring literary love.

Miss L noted the very long list entitled "By the same author" at the front of ‘A Civil Contract’ and embarked upon a most determined pursuit, proceeding to haunt fetes, book exchanges and other such faintly disreputable premises in which secondhand books were to be found, in search of Heyers she had yet to read. Dear reader, you must remember that this was long ago, and if it was not quite before the Internet itself, it was certainly well before the advent of the world wide web. One could not simply conduct a quick search and download a book into one's own hands in the space of a few minutes. One could not even easily order books, except through the auspices of an official bookseller - and Miss L was young, and sadly short of funds.

So Miss L hunted most carefully, and over the next several years amassed a collection of all of Miss Heyer's novels set in England during that period between 1811 and 1820 known as the Regency. However, Miss L never met another soul who would admit to having even once read any of Miss Heyer's works, though clearly such persons must be out there somewhere - for otherwise, where would all the books in Miss L's collection have come from? So Miss L continued, hugging Miss Heyer's works to her as her special secret. She read other works set in what was then becoming known as the Regency romance genre, but they were as pale copies of Miss Heyer's sparkling and beautifully researched originals, and she soon lost interest.

Miss L grew older, and assumed the life of a young lady, and other considerations took up much of her time and attention. However, she always returned to Miss Heyer's novels eventually, greeting them like old friends who would never fail to make her smile in the midst of troubled times.

Things continued thus until the closing years of the century - and, indeed, the millennium - when Miss L one day stumbled upon that wondrous community known as online fandom. The fannish life soon consumed much of her time, and she read a great deal of "fanfiction" while also, hesitantly, trying her own hand at writing and sharing offerings of her own.

And then came a most unexpected occurrence. Miss L was reading through the daily bulletin from her favoured Xena: Warrior Princess/Hercules: the Legendary Journeys slash Mailing List, when lo, she espied a most intriguing subject line. It proclaimed, very simply: "FIC: Regency Fuck (1/?)".

Here we shall pause a moment to explain that while, in these modern times, the genre known as the Regency AU is quite well-known in fandom, at that time, more than twenty years ago, this was not at all the case. AUs themselves were not near as wide-spread a phenomenon as they are today, and Miss L had never in her life even considered the possibility of the existence of such a thing as a Regency AU - and yet there it was, before her.

She read the first chapter of Regency Fuck most quickly, and then went to see what other members of the Mailing List might have made of it. The chapter had been received in a most positive light, but everyone else searched and failed to find exactly the right description to do it justice. Most compared it to Miss Austen's work. However, Miss L knew something that all the other members of the Mailing List (except ONE other, clearly) did not: Miss Heyer's very first novel set during the Regency period had been entitled Regency Buck. Miss L had squealed with joy upon reading the first chapter of Regency Fuck, for it was not merely a story set during the Regency but rather, and most clearly, one set in Miss Heyer's very particular version of that period.

So at last Miss L gathered her courage and sent an email to the author. Its exact contents are also lost in the mists of time, however the general gist was: SLASHY GEORGETTE HEYER?! - to which the author of Regency Fuck replied, just as ecstatically: YES!

Thus began a correspondence about gentlemen in tight breeches that continues to this very day. The author of Regency Fuck, whom we shall call Miss Damerel - actually, no we shall not, for as everyone with any proper understanding would know, Damerel is a title NOT merely a surname. Therefore, we shall refer to her henceforward as Lady Damerel. (In any event, Lady Damerel was not then yet going by the pen name Damerel, for in that case Miss L should have been left in no doubt whatsoever about which of Miss Heyer's heroes Lady Damerel numbered amongst her veriest favourites.)

So Miss L and Lady Damerel continued their correspondence as Regency Fuck grew longer and longer, and it was no doubt at about this time that first mention was made of Miss Heyer's 1944 novel Friday's Child, and in particular two of the primary supporting characters, Mr Gilbert Ringwood and the Honourable Ferdinand Fakenham, and how very easy it would be to slash them.

"Someone should write it," Miss L opined.

"Yes, someone should," Lady Damerel agreed.

"I should probably write it," Miss L continued.

"Yes, you should," Lady Damerel said, with great eagerness.

However, Miss L did not write it, though she continued to mention the idea of it every now and then in the years that followed. And a great many years did follow. Miss L and Lady Damerel drifted in different fannish directions, but their friendship remained true - for who else in the world could quite understand their twin mutual and abiding loves for Miss Heyer's works and gentlemen getting each other out of their tight breeches?

Some eight years after their first acquaintance, Miss L journeyed to Great Britain, where she met Lady Damerel in the flesh at last. They travelled together to Bath, and spent a most diverting time there, imagining this or that of Miss Heyer's characters walking the streets, taking Georgian elevenses at the Pump Room, and drinking rather too much of a mysterious white liqueur (which they had discovered in a local tavern) in the evenings at their hotel.

At the end of their time in Bath, they parted sorrowfully, knowing that it would be long before they set eyes on each other again, and went back to their lives. Of course, the correspondence continued, just as before.

At around this time, Miss L first took part in the great fannish holiday time tradition of Yuletide. She was quite overwhelmed to discover that asking for a Heyer story was an option open to her, but she gathered her courage and did ask for such a thing, and received a most delightful story based on The Foundling as her gift. In later years, she received other beautiful little Heyer stories at Yuletide, but she could not quite find in herself the mettle, or perhaps the presumption, required to offer to write Heyer fic herself - for what if she could not do it justice?

Miss L did write Regency AUs in a number of fandoms in the years that followed, however, and she enjoyed the experience very much. She then fell away from writing anything at all for a number of years, and began to wonder if she would ever write fanfiction again.

She was, naturally, quite in the wrong in making this assumption, and in mid-2019 a new fandom set her to writing great screeds again. However, the very first thing she had written that year was actually a drabble - a story of exactly 100 words - using characters from Miss Heyer's Frederica in filling a request for Miss @thisbluespirit​, in a small fandom challenge in which they were both taking part. It was a small step, but a very important one. 

That year, Miss L took part in Yuletide again for the first time in some five years. However, it was not until the end of the following year - that damnable year, 2020, of which we will not speak further - that Miss L finally decided that THIS would be the year that she would finally write a full-blown Heyer fic. She signed up for Yuletide, offering nine fandoms in all, but rather stacking the odds by ensuring that seven of those fandoms were Heyer novels. It seemed as if Fate must have taken a hand when she received her assignment and discovered that she had been matched with her recipient, Miss @afterism​, for none other than Miss Heyer's Friday's Child. Upon investigating further, she discovered that Miss Afterism was particularly fond of Gil/Ferdy - and so, at last, Miss L embarked on writing the story that she had been considering for so long, some 35 (or perhaps even more) years after first reading Friday's Child.

Dear Reader, she ADORED writing this story. She did, of course, e-mail Lady Damerel posthaste to let her know that she was at last writing Gil and Ferdy's story.  She was also anxious to share with Lady Damerel - because she knew that no other of her acquaintance would quite understand - how she had quite burst out laughing when, while walking her dog - who is, of course, named Lufra after the family dog in Frederica - one day she had realised that this story could only be titled That Greek Thing.

And so at last That Greek Thing was completed and posted and, on Christmas Day, the Yuletide collection was revealed. Very fortunately, Miss Afterism was very happy with That Greek Thing. Lady Damerel also squeed in a most unladylike way about it, and others also commented with words of approval.

Miss L ventures to believe that this story is actually the story that she wanted it to be, and hoped so very hard that it would be, and she still cannot quite believe that she has written it at last. Of everything she has ever written for Yuletide, it is the most special to her.

She thanks you very much for reading both the story - if you have done so - and this most self-indulgent narrative.

[studious-cat-ffxiv]

Dhaza’tan Anbohl LFRP

Home Server - Balmung

Full Name: Dhaza’tan Anbohl Pronunciation: Dah-zah-tan Ann-Bowl Nicknames: Outside of his family, Dhaza. Inside his family, Zatan Height: 5′10″ Age: 28 Languages: Eorzean

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS.

Hair Colour: Yellow Eye Colour: Blue Skin Tone: Warm tone dark Body Type: Slim, but his arms are toned from practice with a rapier recently. He’s definitely not out of shape, but he’s not built for battle.  Accent: Limsan, sometimes. Dominant Hand: Right Posture: Very proper Scars: One one his left jawline, it goes up toward his cheek for an inch. He has a few on the inside of his left elbow.  Tattoos: None

CHILDHOOD.

Place of Birth: La Noscea Hometown: Limsa Lominsa First Words: Boat Siblings: Nine older brothers and two younger twin sisters. You didn’t misread that. He’s the tenth son. (his sisters are his only full blooded siblings, the rest have different fathers) Parents:  Dhaza Anbohl and Zara’a Anbohl (he father took on his mother’s last name) Parental Involvement: Dhaza doted on her son as he grew, due to his bad health. He was with her almost constantly until the age of 8 when he was finally well enough to stay at home and she was content he wouldn’t die if she left him be. Zara’a, his father, has always been a wonderful father and role model.

ADULT LIFE

Occupation: Bookshop owner, Malestrom Researcher, Book Restorer, Rare book trader Current Residence: He has a room in his mother’s house, but more often than not falls asleep in his office of the bookshop. Close Friends: Several Relationship Status: It’s complicated Financial Status:  Not poor, but not rich. He has enough to live comfortably.

Sexual Orientation: Bisexual Romantic Orientation: Biromantic. Preferred Emotional Role:  submissive  |  dominant  |  switch |  unsure Preferred Sexual Role:  submissive |  dominant  |  switch  |  sex repulsed Libido: Average. It has been lessened by recent life events, but he’s healthy enough.

MISCELLANEOUS.

Hobbies to Pass the Time: Reading, knitting, napping Mental Disorders: Anxiety and depression, PTSD from Cartenau and recent events Physical Illnesses/Disabilities: PTSD - his carbuncle helps him by alert him to triggers and distracting him, taking him away from situations that might harm. Fears: Blades, to the point that he will go weeks without shaving until he can’t stand it. Garleans. Tempering. Self Confidence Level: Despite everything, high enough. He’s a confident fellow.

RP HOOKS

I’m Looking for Something Special - Dhaza’tan deals in books both mundane and rare. He has a personal collection that’s highly valuable. Scholars from as far as Sharlyan have come to him to copy from them. Need something special? Need something specific? If he doesn’t have it, chances are he can find it. Just give him a month.

Salute the Maelstrom! - He used to be a Maelstrom soldier, rising to a modest rank, enough that he had a squadron. Though he no longer works for them, he’d be a familliar face to anyone who’s been in the ranks since Cartenau and before. And if not him, his brothers - since two of them are still enlisted.

Hey, haven’t I see you before? - His brothers and him all look very similar. It’s very easy to mistake them for each other. Sailors, pirates, yellowjackets, maelstrom... They’ve been all around La Noscea.

Dhaza’s boy - Dhaza’tan’s mother is a well off merchant with a talent for turning one gil into one hundred. She’s hands on. If you’ve done business in Limsa for more than a few months, chances are you’ve touched goods that she helped with in some way at least once. She’s a staple of the merchantile community, and while her daughters are set to inherit the business, he’s been known to help out.

——-

OOC - I RP in game and over discord!

I’m 29 years old, live in Alaska, and work 1 full time job and 1 part time job, so i’m p busy, but I try to be online every few days! Discord sometimes works better, and my discord is available upon request.

My partner is disabled, and i have an autoimmune thing going on, so i may have to cancel rp plans or go afk at times if something comes up, so please take that into consideration!

Also I’m not interested in debate over how impossible it would be for a miqo’te to have ten sons! Thank you!

[unlimitedskyeproductions]

100 Random Things About Miriam Gurin

1: full name is Miriam Gurin - she never really brings up her middle name often so nobody's really sure what it is 2: she also responds to Miri, Her Royal Highness, and Potato 3: nobody knows why she respnds to being called Potato 4: sometimes she specifically asks to be called Potato 5: there are times when she won't respond to anything BUT Potato 6: it only gets weirder from here so if you're not prepared then stop reading this list cuz I ain't sayin it again 7: born on a Saturday at 4:00 AM on May 18th 8: 19 years old but she'll occasionally act like she's 7 for who the fuck knows why 9:  really sarcastic and funny and generally super laid-back 10: doesn't really get angry about anything ever unless someone is really really annoying or rude to her on purpose 11: solid G-cup 12: do not force her to run or she will die because her boobs are very very heavy 13: often makes jokes about how large her chest is 14: has stated on several occasions that she doesn't even HAVE boobs at this point - she has natural flotation devices 15: spends about 15 hours a day eating and snacking but never gains any weight (except she does actually - it literally just goes straight to her breasts and makes them even bigger) 16: not thicc but not skinny either 17: always experimenting with crazy hairstyles 18: almost always has her hair up in uniquely designed ponytails 19: when her hair is down it literally almost touches the floor 20: her vision is 100% perfect without her glasses until you make her try to read something, and then she just instantly becomes illiterate 21: fully Japanese but perfectly fluent in English and often speaks in it around her Japanese friends just to fuck with them and make them wonder what the hell she's even saying 22: potentially self aware and knows that she doesn't even exist and is fictional 23: heterosexual bitch 24: watches a lot of  american police and car-chase shows 25: can hold her breath underwater for SEVEN FUCKING MINUTES 26: possibly a marine animal 27: she'll eat any damn thing you put in front of her as long as it isn't rotten 28: she ate cow liver on a dare once and just... started buying it constantly after that because apparently it tasted fantastic? ??? 29: did this for over six months 30: A MASTER AT MARIO KART AND ONLY RIVALED IN SKILL BY BLAKE 31: literally cannot go two seconds without saying something random and completely off-topic 32: she made an online dating profile once just for shits and giggles and the information she provided was ridiculous 33: she stated that her sexuality was "maple syrup" and for her hobbies all she put was "WEEEEEEEEEEEEEED" despite the fact that she's not even a stoner 34: SHE'S A TOTAL SLUT FOR DORITOS and if you ever give her any at any point she will automatically be your best friend 35: she has an entire sub-reddit called "caterpillars in hats" and it's literally just pictures she took of caterpillars she found outside either wearing tiny hats she got from doll clothes or just photoshopped to be wearing one 36: it has over 700 subscribers and she's very proud of her masterpieces 37: super flirtatious all the damn time 38: the oldest of eight sisters 39: has a thing for sexy cops 40: she knows a an actual sexy cop for reals 41: she wants a piece of dat sexy cop 42: 100% does not care about sex in any way at all 43: not apathetic, just thinks that there's way more important stuff than sex 44: like caterpillars in hats 45: perfect candidate for motorboating and she'll probably let you do that to her because she thinks it's funny 46: spends several nights a week  reading creepypastas and then bingewatching stupid shit like cat memes just to cleanse her soul because it stresses her out 47: despite this she does it eVERY FUCKING NIGHT 48: she knows it's bad for her but she just keeps reading 49: firmly believes the Rake lives in her bedroom closet 50: if someone says or does something she doesn't like she respnds with a very loud "FUCK OFF, GIL" 51: she doesn't get scared easily despite all the creepypastas she reads, if anything just a bit paranoid 52: if you poke her while she's reading them she'll probably hit you with her keyboard so if you see her at the computer at 2 am make sure you clearly and audibly declare your presence before approaching 53: favorite movies are Scary Movie 1 through 5 54: personally I had no idea there was a 5th Scary Movie 55: IT CAME OUT IN 2013 FOR FUCKS SAKE 56: I got a bit sidetracked here and honestly Miriam does that a lot too 57: she has a pet tarantula that's literally the size of her fucking hand 58: she named it Fuzzy and she plays with it as if it's a fucking dog 59: all other spiders are gross to her but apparently Fuzzy is fine 60: Fuzzy isn't poisonous or anything so she'll let it just 61: sit 62: on her head 63: on any given occasion 64: because she's insane 65: she can say over 75 different swear words and insults in Latin 66: nobody knows why 67: she has double-jointed wrists and she does all kinds of weird hand tricks to freak people out 68: one of her pinkies is significantly shorter than the other and she likes to believe she's the first in a line of natural born humans who will slowly evolve to not have pinkies 69: she owns 97 bras 70: it's super hard to find ones that support her chest size so she just improvises 71: the password to her home wifi is supercalafragioulisticexpialadoscious 72: she loves seeing people's reactions when they realize she's not fucking with them and that's literally the fucking password 73: HATES PEANUT BUTTER 74: not because of the taste but because of the texture 75: she fucking loves the taste of peanut butter but can't bring herself to eat something like a peanut butter sandwich because the texture is gross to her 76: she can mimic a dog barking perfectly and it's scarily accurate 77: likes to come up behind people and just bark at them to scare them 78: once disguised herself as a potted bush in a public area and scared people for fun 79: needs to make a youtube channel for pranks but she's too lazy 80: NEVER MISSES AN EPISODE OF JERRY SPRINGER 81: suffers from frequent back pain becsuse her chest is so fucking huge 82: she weighed just her breasts on a scale once - both combined were 48 pounds 83: wants to get them reduced to a nice, classy, tolerable B-cup 84: but again she's lazy and also she doesn't really wanna deal with a surgery 85: almost always wearing eitber pants or shorts 86: she literally only owns one dress and it's black 87: the dress is perfect and both casual and classy events, and she wears it for weddings, funerals, and other random social events where it would be inappropriate to show up in jeans and a t-shirt (her preferred outfit combo) 88: likes to put song lyrics in one language into Google translate, then translate them back and then sing the fucked up wrong lyrics 89: investing money into building a blinding laser weapon 90: her motto is "Life will go on like your bra strap goes on your chest" 91: when people mention that one's bra strap doesn't actually go on one's chest she just grins and... says nothing until someone awkwardly changes the subject 92: likes saying weird random things in conversation just to mess everyone up 93: has an unnecessary fear of moths for some reason 94:  HAS NO FUCKING IDEA HOW TO JUMP ROPE AT ALL 95: also can't use a treadmill 96: she can run for about three seconds before she just falls on her face 97: calls everyone Joe 98: both friends and strangers 99: she doesn't care who you are - if you're in your life, your name is Joe 100: all in all she's a very good potato

[randydrawsgood]

Story Beats and Treatment

1) Story Beats: In bullet-points or outline format, list a progression of story beats that describe your character leading up to a conflict, how they resolve it, and what the consequences are.

 Opening Image: A gas station in the middle of the new mexico desert. It is s grime place flooded with fluorescent lighting, sugary snacks and cheap cases of beer.  The place is occupied by two teenager working the counter, their manager and the a rambling customer that just wants some cigarettes.  

Set up: the two teenagers, Maggie and Gil, have clashing personality types. While Maggie does everything with a no fun attitude and  beyond serious nature, Gil devil may care attitude and ability to slack off on even the most simplest activities make them butt heads at every opportunity. Their Manager, Doug,  has taken notice with their behavior and is frankly on his last nerve with them.

Theme stated: Doug the Manger telling Maggie and Gil that they need to work together is when the theme is stated. It introduces and states  the idea that the theme of friendship and two different people coming together.

Catalyst: Gill encounters an alien in the freezer and his world is changed.

Debate: Gill runs to Maggie, she doesn’t believe him.

B plot: Gill and Maggie’s friendship. Two completely different people seeing past their differences to form a friendship.

Break into Two: Maggie choices to come with Gill, they encounter the Alien and  then Maggie decided to take action and tries to attack the alien. The Alien takes charge and starts his assault on the two.

The promise of the premise: Alien attacks and Maggie and Gill must protect themselves.

Midpoint: alien pulls out his gun and starts shooting

Bad guys close in: Aliens constant shooting has put Gil and Maggie in a place where they must  grab the gun behind the register and start shooting as a last resort.

All is lost: Gun runs out of bullets and Gill and Maggie are left at the mercy of the Alien.

Dark night of the soul: The Aliens gun is charging and Gill and Maggie embrace and tell each other that they aren’t that bad and it’s been a good run. It feels like the end of the line.

Break into three: a bell for the door rings and there is Doug the manager. Doug screams bloody murder and takes everyones guns from them, telling them that they need to clean up or they're all gonna be dead

Finale: Maggie and Gil Hand the alien the discarded mop and tell him to get to cleaning; as they go searching for other cleaning supplies Maggie and Gil talk about their shared interests and learn that you actually have a lot in common.

Final Image: final image is off a wrecked gas station with an alien with a mop that looks extremely out of place and uncomfortable.

     2) Treatment: Compose at least one paragraph telling your story in prose (plain language.) Focus on attitude, mood and tone. Make your reader feel what your character is feeling. Do not be concerned with camera direction or script format at this stage.

 A isolated gas station stands online in the New Mexico desert at night. A customer comes up to the front counter,  asking for cigarettes from Maggie, one of the two workers at the store. Maggie asks Gil, another employee and the taller of the two, to help her out and grab them for her. Gill calls Maggie lazy and fighting ensues between the two. Their manager, Doug, hears the commotion and interrupts their fighting to happily help the customer. Once the customer is satisfied and has left the store Doug releases his fury.  Doug tells Maggie and Gill that their behavior toward each other is affecting his business. He assigns them to learn a little cooperation through cleaning the whole store. Doug threatens them with being fired and, if worse, being shot with the gun that hangs above the registers if they do not learn how to get along. Saying something along the lines of, ‘two shots, one for you and one for you’ Doug leaves the store in a huff and leave Maggie and Gill alone.

Maggie, wanting to get the whole thing done and over with, tells Gill to retrieve the mop from the last place it was used; the beer freezer. Gill does so only to prove that he is not as lazy to Maggie. Gill leaves Maggie in a huff.  Gill enters the beer freezer and grabs the mop. Gill hears something coming from the far corner of the beer closet and goes to investigate. In the corner there is an alien ravenously  chugging beer and eating the remnants of  cans.  Gill is shell shocked, he runs out with the mop toward Maggie. Gill frantically tells Maggie what he saw and she mocks Gill for it . Maggie decided to humor Gill and go in and look with him in the beer freezer. Maggie and Gill spy the alien, who has consumed more beer in the meantime. Maggie is shocked yet not deterred .  Maggie wants to prove a point and grabs the mop from Gil. Maggie then swings at the unsuspecting alien but the mop is caught mid swing by the alien.

 The alien catches the mop and swings Maggie around like a rag doll and knocks her into a pile of beer. The Alien then turns his attention to Gill panics and runs out the beer freezer into the ordinary frozen food section, the alien follow suits. The Alien launches  towards him. Gill uses a freezer door to block the aliens attack and retroactively captures him in the drink freezer Gill blocks every door of the drink freezer so the alien has no means of escape. Gill thinks that he has won The alien surprise Gill by licking the freezer door, dissolving the glass with his acidic spit Gill backs off, not wanting get burned. The alien then starts plumbing him with drinks and Gill backs up too much and knocks over the aisles in the store. The alien escapes the freezer threatening comes over to lick and dissolve Gil’s face. Right in the nick of time Maggie comes in swinging her mop at the alien and flying him into the checkout counter. Gill thanks Maggie for saving him. Gill and Maggie assume the Alien is dead until he emerges from the rubble sporting a ray gun and starts firing at will. Gill and Maggie panic and run around the store. Doing laps around the store trying to figure out what to do.

The Alien starts to follow them around, leaving the counter and the gun behind the register unprotected. Maggie suggests that they go for the gun above the the register, she's too short for and tells Gill to reach up for it. Gill grabs the gun and gives it to the Maggie. Maggie starts to shoot at the alien, seeking cover behind the register, while the alien simultaneous seeks cover in fallen shelfs snacks. Maggie hits the alien point blank but it does nothing to him. Maggie and Gill have run out of shells and are about to face the music. Maggie and Gill have a moment hug dramatically and apologize to each other; expecting death at any moment.

The Alien approaches them, gun drawn and loading up a charge; however his interrupted. The bell for the door rings and all 3 of them look to see Doug the Manger. Doug is angry, he screams for death of them. The Alien is scared. Doug is very intimidating to the little alien.  Doug takes both guns from the three of them like a parent taking away their child's toy. Doug tells them to clean up the mess or their dead. Maggie and Gill seem content with this situation and hand the mop to the alien to have him help. Maggie and Gill go out to get more cleaning supplies from the back, meanwhile talking about their shared interests. The alien is left alone in the ruined store. The alien sighs and decides to start cleaning. The end.

[murkymuse]

Title: Having The Faith To Soar

Fandom: Yuri On Ice

Ships: Gen

AO3, Previous

Chapter Two - Practice, Practice, Practice

Hello! I’m Vera Kotova, a self-taught amateur skater. Through an unlikely twist of chance, THE Yuri Plisetsky saw me skating and was impressed enough to call his coach! Now I’ve been whisked away to St. Petersburg so I can train under one of Coach Feltsman’s associates. Meanwhile, the Grand Prix Series continues with the Cup of China! I can’t wait to see Yuri skate again! 

Beep. Beep. Beep.

Vera groaned and rolled over to reach for her noisy phone on the nightstand. The screen glared with a notification: Ballet Practice. Vera practically rolled out of bed and turned the alarm off.

Ever since moving to St. Petersburg, she had a very strict schedule to keep. Six mornings a week she had alternating physical training and ballet practice. Of course, she had school after morning practice five days a week. Her favorite time of day was the afternoon when she was able to practice ice skating.

“You might have some potential but you currently lack a solid foundation to build on,” Coach Feltsman had told her, “If you want to seriously compete, training needs to become your life.”

What else did she have in life anyway? A dead father and a mother that barely paid attention to her. Vera would gladly throw her body and soul into the only thing she did have: ice skating.  

So, while her sore body longed to sleep another hour or two, Vera quickly got ready and left for the ballet studio. As she exited the apartment building, the sounds of the city – cars, people, seagulls – invaded her ears. The tall buildings and crowded streets were vastly different from the sparse town she’d lived in up until now. It was still a little overwhelming; she hadn’t yet felt comfortable wandering outside her bubble of apartment-gym-ballet studio-school-ice rink.

Maybe if she asked nicely when the season was over Yuri would go with her to explore the city? He did say he’d check in on her progress, even if he hadn’t been specific on when. But with the Cup of China quickly approaching and then the Grand Prix Finals after that… Then Nationals and then World’s… Vera wasn’t expecting to see Yuri Plisetsky again any time soon.

That was okay. She’d work really hard so that next time saw him, he wouldn’t regret giving her this chance.

Vera’s drifting thoughts cut off as she pushed the door open and entered the ballet studio.

The rink was strangely empty and quiet when Vera got there. She checked her phone and realized that she’d somehow managed to arrive a good fifteen minutes early. It was still unusual because this rink was typically open to the public right before the skating class. Maybe someone had booked it earlier?

Vera shrugged, not caring about the specifics, and went to put on her skates (that they were truly hers and not rentals still made her grin). She hadn’t gotten a chance to skate alone in weeks. There was no way she wasn’t going to take advantage of the empty rink.

As she skated out onto the ice, she put her earbuds in and stuffed her phone in her pocket.

Sic mea vita est temporaria, cupit ardenter caritatem aeternam

Vera hadn’t attempted skating Agape since moving to the city. Now she felt a difference in her skating. Her balance was even more stable; her motions were both more fluid and precise. She smiled softly before going into her first jump.

The sound and feel of blades against the ice as she made a perfect landing was beautiful and thrilling. Feeling even more confident, she continued to flow with the music.

Once she and the music came to a still, Vera blinked and realized that she’d gathered a small audience. Coach Lebedeva was standing rinkside with a bemused expression. A few of Vera’s rinkmates were there as well; their faces filled with a mixture of excitement and disbelief. One girl, who had her hair in a high ponytail, had her phone held up to take a video.

“Um…”

Vera’s cheeks felt a little warm; and, she wasn’t sure what to say. However, her rinkmates broke the silence for her.

“That was so cool!”

“I didn’t know you could land an axel!”

“How long did it take you to learn that?”

“Thanks. I first managed it about six months ago. And a few years,” she managed to answer.  

Before anyone could say more, Coach Lebedeva clapped her hands to get their attention. “Alright everyone, stretch and get your stakes on. And, Anya, don’t post that video online without Vera’s permission.”

Anya guiltily put her phone down, shooting an apologetic smile, and then went to get her skates on.

Once the rest of her rinkmates joined Vera on the ice, Anya skated up to her, “Some of us are watching the Cup of China at my house later. Do you want to come?”

Vera wanted to say that she’d go but the words got stuck in her throat.

“…I can’t. I have to finish a project for school,” she lied.

“Oh, maybe next time.”

“Yeah.”

The awkward pause was broken as Coach Lebedeva instructed them into edge drills. As it could be expected from a group of pre-teens, the class was an organized chaos. Students laughed and joked while skating in every direction; and, the coach would call out corrections or glide over to help when someone was struggling. Despite all that, practice always seemed to go by quickly to Vera. Soon enough her rinkmates were heading off the ice. When Vera didn’t follow them, the coach gave her a look but said nothing. Vera took that as permission to continue and stretched into the Biellmann position again.

As parents arrived to pick up her rinkmates, she tried not to pay them any attention. However, it was impossible to completely block out the drifting chatter.  

“Anya,” the voice was soft and sweet, “How many of your friends are coming?”

Anya listed off half the class. Excited giggles echoed across the room as Anya’s mother began ushering the group toward the door. Vera frowned as she switched the positions of her legs and went into a spin.

It was only after all her rinkmates had left that Coach Lebedeva’s called out, “That’s enough for today. If you practice much longer, you’ll miss the men’s short programs.”

Since the Cup of China didn’t start for another hour, Vera figured the coach was just saying that because she wanted to leave but couldn’t with a student still on the ice.

“I’m coming,” she replied as she skated off the rink.

That Seung-gil guy was about finished with his short program; the crowd cheering as the commentators exclaimed in excitement over the flawless combination he just landed. It was at that exact moment reality suddenly hit Yuri like a freight train.

“Yuri,” Yakov’s voice was distant, “Come on. You’re up next.”

He felt rooted to the spot, unable to move. The ground seemed oddly distant and blurred as well.

“Yuri?” A hand lightly placed on his shoulder. Lilia. “What’s wrong?”

Wrong?

Grandpa had rarely been able to come to his competitions but he always watched them on tv. Now, for the first time since Yuri moved up to the Senior division, Grandpa wasn’t sitting at home with the tv on to watch him skate.

A sob was building in the back of his throat. Yuri bit it back as a kernel of molten anger settled in the pit of his stomach. He absolutely refused to breakdown here and now! He could get through this! He could get out there and give one hell of a performance!

He just needed to move.

“Yura.”

He glanced around until his eyes found Otabek. His friend’s expression was as stoic as ever but Yuri knew him well enough read between the lines. There was no pity found in Otabek’s gaze, just the certainty that no matter what Yuri would give it his all. That he would soldier through.

“Davai.”

Yuri took a deep breath and then gave Otabek a thumbs up.

“It’s time,” Yakov said.

Yuri nodded and began walking toward the rink. He had a medal to win.  

The next night found Yuri kicking the locker room wall and muttering insults under his breath. He honestly didn’t mind losing gold to Otabek but he lost silver to Seung-gil?! What the hell?!

“Between the gold from France and this bronze, your spot at the finals is secure,” Yakov stated from behind him, “You’ll do better there.”

Yuri glared at an invisible point. “I will.”

Hours later Yuri knocked on a hotel door. It took a minute for it to open and reveal Otabek. Seeing Yuri, he opened the door wider and shifted aside. Yuri walked right in and immediately sprawled on the couch.

“I’ve sat on more comfortable benches.”

Otabek simply nodded before nudging Yuri so that he’d make room. Yuri grumbled but complied. Then Otabek just waited for the rant he knew was coming.

“Yakov didn’t even lecture me! He always lectures me after I skate!”

“He’s trying to be sensitive.”

“Well, it’s weird! I don’t want him tip-toeing around me!”

Otabek hummed in response.

“It’s bad enough that Katsudon and Viktor keep calling to check on me,” he continued with a grimace, “Bleh! I swear if Lilia goes easy on me when we get back to St. Petersburg I’ll kick someone.”

Otabek’s mouth tugged up ever so slightly, unnoticeable to everyone but those that knew him best.

“Not Lilia,” he said.

Yuri gave him an incredulous look. “Hell no! I don’t have a death wish!”

There was a beat of quiet as his word choice sank in. Then Yuri rolled off the couch and ended up face down on the floor.

“The carpet is more comfortable than that stupid couch. Someone should complain to the hotel.”

“I’ll be sure to mention it,” Otabek replied, his voice so flat that it was impossible to tell if he were joking or not.

“Good.” Yuri pushed himself back up and leaned against the couch. “We’re still going to Beijing Zoo before the exhibition show tomorrow, right.”

Otabek nodded. “You’d disown me if I tried to back out.”

“Damn right I would.” His eyes suddenly went wide like he remembered something important. “Oh! Watch this.”    

Yuri then pulled out his phone and swiped until he found the video he wanted. Otabek leaned over Yuri’s shoulder as he started the video. It was of a young girl skating with familiar movements.

“The kid you mentioned?”

“Yeah. Yakov’s friend sent the video yesterday,” Yuri answered, “Would you believe she’s only been formally training for less than two months?”

Otabek watched to the end before replying, “Then she has overwhelming natural talent.”

“Right!”

The students were gathering their things and trailing out the door when Vera’s phone started playing Allegro Appassionato in B minor. The teacher gave her a disapproving look but couldn’t say anything since it was time to leave. Vera stuck her tongue out once the teacher glanced away. She then unlocked her phone to see a text:

Vera let out an excited noise that earned her a few odd looks from her classmates. She didn’t notice though as she quickly gathered her stuff and zipped up her coat. Then she was out the door.

The air outside was chill; and, the ground was damp from it drizzling earlier in the day. Vera’s breath turned to mist as she glanced around. It didn’t take long to spot Yuri. He was leaning against the fence with his hoodie pulled over his head and scrolling through his phone.

“Yuri!”

He looked up as she sprinted over to him.

“Didn’t you just get back from China? I watched your programs!”

“We got back a few days ago,” he replied, “Come on. Yakov will yell if we’re late.”

Yuri began walking down the sidewalk; and, Vera had to practically jog to keep up with his long strides. She filled the walk with questions about his trip. While Yuri was happy to answer general questions about China, his replies about the competition itself were short and sharp. Vera fell silent after a few minutes.

It didn’t take much longer for the building to come into sight; its sign had ‘Sports Champions Club’ spelled out around the flag. There were a few people milling outside the entrance but they weren’t dressed to skate or workout. Yuri suddenly stopped in his tracks. Vera stopped a step later and looked back at him questioningly.

“Da-” He glanced at Vera and made an annoyed sound. “Tch. Can’t the reporters let me train in peace.”

Since they had yet to notice him, Yuri grabbed Vera’s hand and started walking.

“We’ll sneak past them and go through the back.”

He led her around the side of the building to an ‘employees only’ door. Either someone had left it unlocked or it’d been purposely left that way for this situation. Whichever reason, they were able to get inside without any issues.

Once they’d passed through a storage area, they entered the main lobby. Vera blinked as she took everything in. It was large but not overly crowded; just a few employees going about their work and a group of men with hockey shirts talking to each other. An employee greeted Yuri and gave Vera a curious look but everyone else ignored them.

They entered the rink then. Only Mila (THE Mila Babicheva!) was on the ice, spinning and jumping as she practiced what Vera recognized as her short program for the season.

“Woah.”

“There you are!” Coach Feltsman shouted.

Yuri joined his coach by the ice, while Vera trailed behind him. He began stretching as he replied, “There are reporters out front again.”

“It’s because you refused interviews after the Cup of China.”

“They can stay out of it,” he replied darkly.

“You won’t be able to dodge them forever.”

Vera, feeling a little lost by their argument, went back to watching Mila skate. How cool was it that she would be sharing a rink with both Yuri Plisetsky AND Mila Babicheva, if only for a day?

Mila’s short program practice run soon ended. She glided over and grabbed a water bottle, listening while Coach Feltsman critiqued. However, she soon spotted Vera and leaned over the rink wall.

“So this is the little kitten you’ve adopted, Yuri,” she said with a wide grin.

Vera blinked. “Kitten?”

“Shut up, hag!”

“I can still lift you.”

Yuri groaned in annoyance. Mila turned back to Vera.

“What’s your name?”

“Vera Kotova.”

“Kotova, huh?” She laughed. “See, she is a kitten.”

Yuri rolled his eyes and went to put on his skates, grumbling all the while. Mila continued smiling after him.

“…Um,” Vera said as she tapped Mila’s arm to get her attention, “You’re my favorite female skater.”

Mila stared at her a moment before shouting, “Yuri! Yakov! We’re keeping her!”  

Yakov just shook his head at his students’ antics. “Mila, work on that step sequence again. Yuri, warm up.”

Mila returned to skating, while Yuri finished lacing his skates and went to the opposite side of the rink. Vera stood there not sure what she should do until Coach Feltsman snapped at her.

“What are you waiting for? Stretch and then get your skates on.”

“Y-yes, sir!”

It wasn’t long before she too was on the ice, working on basic drills before she moved on to practicing her jumps. Maybe it was because she had been watching Yuri and Mila practice out of the corner of her eye but a thought suddenly popped into her mind: What if she tried a double?

With that idea urging her on, Vera jumped higher and spun faster. A full rotation… 540 degrees… a full 720 degrees! Vera’s heart leapt in excitement for a split second. Then her blade landed wrong. She tried to counter-balance but it was too late. She hit the ice with a solid thump.

“Ow.”

The sound of blades gliding to a stop echoed in her ear. When Vera looked up, both Yuri and Mila were staring down at her in mild concern.

“I’m okay,” she said as she scrambled up.

“Vera!” Coach Feltsmen yelled from the side of the rink, “Have you been given permission to start practicing doubles yet?”

Vera glanced down guilty. “…No.”

The coach’s frown deepened, while Mila snickered.

“You fit right in.”

Vera blushed at the compliment.

“You botched the landing because your foot was angled sloppily,” Yuri commented.

She nodded and then glanced back over at Coach Feltsman with pleading eyes. “Can I try again?”

He stared at her a moment before answering, “We might as well see if you can manage a half decent double salchow before practice is over.”  

[magzoso-tech]

The Org nabs $8.5M led by Founders Fund to build a global database of company org charts

New Post has been published on http://rebrand.ly/utxnd7v

The Org nabs $8.5M led by Founders Fund to build a global database of company org charts

LinkedIn has cornered the market when it comes to putting your own professional profile online and using it to network for jobs, industry connections and professional development. But when it comes to looking at a chart of the people, and specifically the leadership teams, who make up organizations more holistically, the Microsoft-owned network comes up a little short: you can search by company names, but chances are that you get a list of people based on their connectivity to you, and otherwise in no particular order (including people who may no longer even be at the company). And pointedly, there is little in the way of verification to prove that someone who claims to be working for a company really is.

Now, a startup called The Org is hoping to take on LinkedIn and address that gap with an ambitious idea: to build a database (currently free to use) of organizational charts for every leading company, and potentially any company in the world, and then add on features after that, such as job advertising, for example organizations looking to hire people where there are obvious gaps in their org charts.

With 16,000 companies profiled so far on its platform, a total of 50,000 companies in its database and around 100,000 visitors per month, The Org is announcing $11 million in funding: a Series A of $8.5 million, and a previously unannounced seed round of $2.5 million.

Led by Founders Fund, the Series A also includes participation from Sequoia and Balderton, along with a number of angels. Sequoia is actually a repeat investor: it also led The Org’s $2.5 million seed round, which also had Founders Fund, Kevin Hartz, Elad Gil, Ryan Petersen, and SV Angel in it. Keith Rabois, who is now a partner at Founders Fund but once held the role of VP of business and corporate development at LinkedIn, is also joining the startup’s board of directors.

Co-headquartered in New York and Copenhagen, Denmark, The Org was co-founded by Christian Wylonis (CEO) and Andreas Jarbøl, partly inspired by a piece in online tech publication The Information, which provided an org chart for the top people at Airbnb (currently numbering 90 entries).

“This article went crazy viral,” Wylonis said in an interview. “I would understand why someone would be interested in this outside of Airbnb, but it turned out that people inside the company were fascinated by it, too. I started to think, when you take something like an org chart and made it publicly facing, I think it just becomes interesting.”

So The Org set out to build a bigger business based on the concept.

For now, The Org is aimed at two distinct markets: those outside the company who might most typically be interested in who is working where and doing what — for example, recruiters, those in human resources departments who are using the data to model their own organizational charts, or salespeople; and those inside the company (or again, outside) who are simply interested in seeing who does what.

The Org is aiming to have 100,000 org charts on its platform by the end of the year, with the longer-term goal being to cover 1 million. For now, the focus is on adding companies in the US before expanding to other markets.

But while the idea of building org charts for many companies sounds easy enough, there is also a reason why it hasn’t been done yet: it’s not nearly as simple as it looks. That is one reason why even trying to surmount this issue is of interest to top VCs — particularly those who have worked in startups and fast-growing tech companies themselves.

“Today, information about teams is unstructured, scattered, and unverified, making it hard for employees and recruiters to understand organizational structures,” said Roelof Botha, partner at Sequoia Capital, in a statement.

“Organizational charts were the secret weapon to forging partnerships during my 20 years as an entrepreneur in Silicon Valley and Europe. Yet, they are a carefully guarded secret, which have to be painstakingly put together by hand,” said Lars Fjeldsoe-Nielsen, general partner at Balderton Capital, in a statement. “The Org is surfacing this critical information, improving efficiency from the sales floor to the boardroom.”

“Up-to-date org charts can be useful for everything from recruiting to sales, but they are difficult and time consuming to piece together,” added Rabois in a statement. “The Org is making this valuable information easily accessible in a way we were never able to do at LinkedIn.”

The approach that The Org is taking to building these profiles so far has been a collaborative one. While The Org itself might establish some company names and seed and update them with information from publicly available sources, that approach leaves a lot of gaps.

This is where a crowdsourced, wiki-style approach comes in. As with other company-based networking services such as Slack, users from a particular company can use their work email addresses to sign into that organization’s profile, and from there they can add or modify entries as you might enter data in a wiki — the idea being that multiple people getting involved in the edits helps keep the company’s org chart more accurate.

While The Org’s idea holds a lot of promise and seems to fill a hole that other companies like LinkedIn — or, from another direction, Glassdoor — do not address in their own profiling of companies, I can see some challenges, too, that it might encounter as it grows.

Platforms that provide insights into a company landscape, such as LinkedIn or Glassdoor, are ultimately banked more around individuals and their own representations. That means that by their nature these platforms may not ever provide complete pictures of businesses themselves, just slices of it. The Org, on the other hand, starts from the point of view of presenting the company itself, which means that the resulting gaps that arise might be more apparent if they never get filled in, making The Org potentially less useful as a tool.

Similarly, if these charts are truly often closely guarded by companies (something I don’t doubt is true, since they could pose poaching risks, or copycats in the form of companies attempting to build org structures based on what their more successful competitors are doing), I could see how some companies might start to approach The Org with requests to remove their profiles and corresponding charts.

Wylonis said that “99%” of companies so far have been okay with what The Org is building. “The way that we see it is that transparency is of interest to the people who work there,” he said. “I think that everyone should strive for that. Why block it? The world is changing and if the only way to keep your talent is by hiding your org chart you have other problems at your company.”

He added that so far The Org has not had any official requests, “but we have had informal enquiries about how we get our information. And some companies email us about changes. And when an individual person gets in touch and says, ‘I don’t want to be here,’ we delete that. But it’s only happened a handful of times.” It’s not clear whether that proportion stays the same, or goes up or down, as The Org grows.

In the meantime, the other big question that The Org will grapple with is just how granular should it go?

“I hope that one day we can have an updated and complete org chart for every business, but that might prove difficult,” Wylonis said. Indeed, that could mean mapping out 1 million people at Walmart, for example. “For the biggest companies, it may be that it works to map out the top 500, with the top 30-40 for smaller companies. And people can always go in and make corrections to expand those if they want.”

[molloy64newman-blog]

Steve Jobs On The Macintosh's 20th Wedding anniversary

Recently, have a peek at this web-site was actually abuzz along with talk about a singular tweet which resulted in rather a stir. I had actually been trying to think of exactly how areas may establish power self-sufficiency as the national network facilities began to fall apart and stop working, since that is the road our team gone on. Without concerning half a trillion bucks in upgrades between now and also 2030, our existing network is destined for decrepitude. In electricity - as in so many other things - we have the best government funds can easily acquire. Once more, Hill was actually telling crowds that Gandhi was actually certainly not just a fan of Hill's get-rich-quick works but that the famous man had hired an investigator company to observe if Hill was actually legit. For all the macintosh fans available, you can obtain a copy from the mac computer version here on heavy steam, our experts also believe pleasant at this moment to declare as well that the IOS model should be actually available in Q1 2016. Electric battery life off the 6-cell conventional battery isn't terrific, however this is actually a laptop that's most likely to invest even more of its own time on the workdesk compared to on the road. Even though you assume they're off, TVs, computer and also virtually any kind of device along with a microchip require some juice to maintain their internal time clocks ticking, sustain settings and help them electrical power up rapidly. Anybody that is actually ever possessed an exercise partner or private instructor recognizes that entailing an additional individual in your trip to physical conditioning could drastically boost your inspiration. Jewels are actually made when you completely clear all the stages in a region for the first time and also as a Sector incentive. I actually delighted in Time Stalkers a bit more than Evolution, mainly as a result of the title's authentic ideas.

No complaint however can really interfere with exactly what a definitely advanced game this is. My companions as well as I obtained the concept to generate skateboards to utilize in class study opportunity when I was actually approximately 16 and burnt out in course. Givit is actually an Online service that lets you share online videos with pick people as opposed to having to adjust personal privacy setups. I do not believe therefore. Each one of these trends have actually been actually building for years, as well as brand-new records surfacing daily only enhances them. Compete against player's from all around the planet through Wi-Fi or even cellular networks and also find your label and credit ratings in lightings on real-time, everyday, every week and also champions hi-score tables that are actually automatically synchronized with a central hosting server. Monday/Thursday Challanges for singular players, the activity will certainly notify you in the food selections if there are actually brand new charts to play because the final opportunity you filled the activity. If you possess the button 'OFF' the 3G apple ipad will definitely time float just like the Wi-Fi design. Also the entry-level $200 Time combines some steel into its appeal, having said that - that frame encompassing the display is a stainless-steel accent handled along with a PVD finishing for scrape resistance and also hue. Our experts have actually gotten to the crucial tipping factor where the renewable resource alternative not merely makes sense eco-friendly and socially, however additionally economically. And also, when you remove your iphone gadget, the moment and also date environments remain on the dock. Not just will there be actually a 3rd party license process as Gartner proposes, however I presume there will definitely be actually a solid association to overshadow processing insurance policy, as well. According to Opportunity Warner Cord, online video computer programming costs developed 4.1 percent in the second quarter, to $1.1 billion, as a result of cost boosts and greater retransmission expenses. The slow fatality of American coal possesses little to carry out with Obama-era temperature plans, as well as every thing to do with fracking, which offers a economical and bountiful power choice through natural gas. In a hunt for the best Alarm Clock app around I presume Best Alarm clock is actually a much better app! You find, Jobs had only been actually named acting CEO in September 1997 after efficiently driving out the male that delivered him (back) in, Gil Amelio. This estimation is actually not all that precise, which is actually why Apple is eliminating it. The adjustment feels like the sort of factor that's merely meant to muteness the pesky problems, however essentially, that's reasonable to point out that there are disparities between the evaluations and also real battery life. Long account small, these are my favorite monitors, better also in comparison to the TF10, thus your dismissal of them as phase monitors makes me presume you should devote a lot less opportunity checking out the box. Harvesting more renewable resource, store it as well as use it for designing more power storing. You accept the conditions, the phrases modification and also you aren't sure if you disagree or concede, so like Facebook everyone is actually overturned with Apple as well as certainly not also certain just what to be spilled approximately. Energy Impact - The Electricity Effect segment shown at the bottom of Task Display's home window stands for the total volume of power made use of by all applications and other processes over a period of time. However as I stated above I simply think this customer review overlooked some essential durabilities as well as focused generally on a handful of downsides, skewing the score. And while audio top quality is treble-heavy and also somewhat tinny, this goes audible to become distinct in a moderate-sized conference room. Even with operating the same model from Android (KitKat 4.4.2), the Workshop Electricity the good news is isn't really imprecated along with the exact same horrendous skin layer as the Vivo Sky. Likewise, when your condition federal government elevates the purchases tax, this is actually much easier to transform a solitary steady named than to ferret out the previous rate throughout your workbook. However, I assume our experts each just liked that dumb ass, movie making competition at first also. http://divategeszseg-blog.info , Wednesday: Peak from electricity-- handle one of the most difficult concerns, compose, brainstorm, schedule your Make Opportunity This is actually the application that is going to in fact spare you effort and time when keeping up with your supplies.

[williamgreen533]

We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing

Like brushing our teeth or brewing a morning cup of coffee, checking in on what’s happening within our social networks has become part of the daily routine for most of us. In fact, 30% of all time spent online is on social networks, according to GlobalWebIndex (GWI).

As a result, social media has also become a routine marketing tactic for nearly every business, helping brands build awareness, share and interact with customers and prospects, and create another vital touch point in the changing customer journey.

But as the social media landscape continues to evolve, both green and seasoned marketing professionals are constantly searching for answers on how they can best leverage social media within their organizations’ marketing strategies.

To lend a helping hand, TopRank Marketing’s SEO team took a peek at social media marketing related keywords and keyword groups, as well as related SERPs and our own data, to identify some of the top questions people are asking around social media marketing. And today, we answer those questions.

Let’s get started.

#1 – What is the impact of social media marketing on business?

Like any marketing tactic, brands and marketers want to understand the business case and benefits of social media marketing. After all, social media marketing takes time, resources and strategy to be successful—so you want to make sure you’re aligning your efforts with your business needs and goals.

Generally speaking, social media marketing offers five core benefits:

Increases exposure and brand awareness. Social media platforms provide your business with another online space to share and engage with your audience—outside your website or brick and mortar store, and in a place customers and prospects feel comfortable. Through both organic and paid social activities, the content you share and the discussions you host can help keep your brand top of mind or get it on new customers’ radar.

Boosts website traffic. With the right mix of engaging content, social media can encourage your audience to click and visit your website or blog.

Builds brand loyalty. The content, discussion and service you’re providing on your social media platforms can help build an engaged band of loyal followers.

Provides useful audience and market insights. Social media allows you to see your customers—and competitors—in their true habitat. With just a few clicks you can learn more about the people they interact with, the types of content they share and engage with most, their favorite TV shows, and the list goes on.

Generates leads and sales. While social media is not traditionally viewed as a conversion platform, those that build awareness, trust, loyalty, and engagement with their audiences can absolutely drive leads and sales. Furthermore, marketers can go beyond social media marketing to social media prospecting.

#SocialMedia allows you to see your customers—and competitors—in their true habitat. Click To Tweet

Read: Report: Social Media Examiner 2016 State of Social Media Marketing

#2 – What is a social media marketing strategy? (And why do I need one?)

Simply put, your social media marketing strategy is your roadmap for why, who and how your social media efforts will help you achieve your business objectives.

Without a strategy in place, you’re just posting and hoping something sticks. With a strategy in place, you’re able to plan, execute and measure the effectiveness of your tactics, and use that information to refine and drive your efforts forward.

Read: A Fresh Start: Learn How to Put Your Social Media Strategy on A Paleo Diet

#3 – How do I create a social media marketing strategy?

The key to crafting a social media marketing strategy is striking a balance between the needs of your audience and the goals of the business.

TopRank Marketing believes an integrated approach to digital marketing is key for success, so begin by asking yourself: How will my social media strategy fit within my overall digital marketing strategy?

Once you determine how social media can be used to enhance your other marketing efforts and drive business goals, consider the following steps while crafting your social strategy:

Identify who your audience is and what they’re pain points are.

Define your objective. (i.e., brand awareness, engagement, more website traffic, etc.)

Choose your content mix based on the types of content your audience likes to consume on social.

Define what you want your followers to know about your brand.

Outline how often you’ll engage on each channel.

Determine how you’ll measure effectiveness or results.

Craft a #socialmedia strategy that balances the needs of the audience with the goals of the biz. Click To Tweet

Read: 8 Important Questions Your Social Media Marketing Strategy Must Answer

#4 – What are some of the top social media management tools?

Tools make reaching social media marketing goals possible. Whether you’re a one-person startup or a multinational enterprise, it’s nearly impossible to manage your social media marketing program without using third-party tools.

Depending on your industry, audience, social networks and budget, there are dozens of free and paid tools out there. Some of my favorites include:

Hootsuite

Buffer

Sprinklr

Spredfast

SocialFlow

Read: A Master List of Social Media Marketing Management Tools

If you’re looking for a few more tools to up your social media marketing, here are a couple other resources:

Social Media Cheat Sheet: Tools & Tips for Perfectly Sized Social Media Images

100+ Digital Marketing Tools to Help You Become A More Effective Marketer

#5 – What future social media marketing trends are on the horizon?

As the social media landscape continues to evolve, competition for audience attention is stiff. In fact, 40% of marketers say social media marketing has become more difficult for them in the last year, according to Social Media Examiner’s 2016 Industry Report. So, it’s certainly no surprise that one of the top social media marketing questions out there is “What’s next?”

While I’m no clairvoyant, based on conversations with other marketers, and keeping up on the latest news items, two key items we’re seeing are:

1. The continuous climb of video.

Humans are visual creatures by nature, and video has taken over social media news feeds. When executed well, video is a powerful marketing tool that can help brands capture audience attention, show value and encourage engagement.

In particular, live video may hold the biggest opportunity. As Carlos Gil told us a couple months ago: “Undoubtedly, live video content will continue to take over newsfeeds.”

Undoubtedly, live #videocontent will continue to take over newsfeeds. @carlosgil83 Click To Tweet

2. The “pay to play” requirement.

With nearly every brand using social—as well as frequent tweaks to platform algorithms—the competition to stand out in news feeds has never been more fierce, with brands fighting for visibility and engagement. As a result, more are paying to play these days by investing in social advertising to drive awareness and engagement, as well as sales and other conversions—and this trend will definitely continue.

As TopRank Marketing CEO Lee Odden recently said: “There’s no getting around the requirement for paid amplification with content on social networks.”

There’s no getting around the requirement for paid amplification on #social networks. @leeodden Click To Tweet

 Read: The Future of Social Media Marketing: Experts Share Social Media Predictions for 2017

What questions do you have about social media marketing? Ask them in the comments section below.

Gain a competitive advantage by subscribing to the TopRank® Online Marketing Newsletter.

© Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®, 2017. | We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing | http://www.toprankblog.com

The post We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing appeared first on Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®.

Caitlin Burgess http://www.toprankblog.com/wp-content/uploads/common-social-media-marketing-questions.jpg

[groovyturtlepeach]

We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing

Like brushing our teeth or brewing a morning cup of coffee, checking in on what’s happening within our social networks has become part of the daily routine for most of us. In fact, 30% of all time spent online is on social networks, according to GlobalWebIndex (GWI).

As a result, social media has also become a routine marketing tactic for nearly every business, helping brands build awareness, share and interact with customers and prospects, and create another vital touch point in the changing customer journey.

But as the social media landscape continues to evolve, both green and seasoned marketing professionals are constantly searching for answers on how they can best leverage social media within their organizations’ marketing strategies.

To lend a helping hand, TopRank Marketing’s SEO team took a peek at social media marketing related keywords and keyword groups, as well as related SERPs and our own data, to identify some of the top questions people are asking around social media marketing. And today, we answer those questions.

Let’s get started.

#1 – What is the impact of social media marketing on business?

Like any marketing tactic, brands and marketers want to understand the business case and benefits of social media marketing. After all, social media marketing takes time, resources and strategy to be successful—so you want to make sure you’re aligning your efforts with your business needs and goals.

Generally speaking, social media marketing offers five core benefits:

Increases exposure and brand awareness. Social media platforms provide your business with another online space to share and engage with your audience—outside your website or brick and mortar store, and in a place customers and prospects feel comfortable. Through both organic and paid social activities, the content you share and the discussions you host can help keep your brand top of mind or get it on new customers’ radar.

Boosts website traffic. With the right mix of engaging content, social media can encourage your audience to click and visit your website or blog.

Builds brand loyalty. The content, discussion and service you’re providing on your social media platforms can help build an engaged band of loyal followers.

Provides useful audience and market insights. Social media allows you to see your customers—and competitors—in their true habitat. With just a few clicks you can learn more about the people they interact with, the types of content they share and engage with most, their favorite TV shows, and the list goes on.

Generates leads and sales. While social media is not traditionally viewed as a conversion platform, those that build awareness, trust, loyalty, and engagement with their audiences can absolutely drive leads and sales. Furthermore, marketers can go beyond social media marketing to social media prospecting.

#SocialMedia allows you to see your customers—and competitors—in their true habitat. Click To Tweet

Read: Report: Social Media Examiner 2016 State of Social Media Marketing

#2 – What is a social media marketing strategy? (And why do I need one?)

Simply put, your social media marketing strategy is your roadmap for why, who and how your social media efforts will help you achieve your business objectives.

Without a strategy in place, you’re just posting and hoping something sticks. With a strategy in place, you’re able to plan, execute and measure the effectiveness of your tactics, and use that information to refine and drive your efforts forward.

Read: A Fresh Start: Learn How to Put Your Social Media Strategy on A Paleo Diet

#3 – How do I create a social media marketing strategy?

The key to crafting a social media marketing strategy is striking a balance between the needs of your audience and the goals of the business.

TopRank Marketing believes an integrated approach to digital marketing is key for success, so begin by asking yourself: How will my social media strategy fit within my overall digital marketing strategy?

Once you determine how social media can be used to enhance your other marketing efforts and drive business goals, consider the following steps while crafting your social strategy:

Identify who your audience is and what they’re pain points are.

Define your objective. (i.e., brand awareness, engagement, more website traffic, etc.)

Choose your content mix based on the types of content your audience likes to consume on social.

Define what you want your followers to know about your brand.

Outline how often you’ll engage on each channel.

Determine how you’ll measure effectiveness or results.

Craft a #socialmedia strategy that balances the needs of the audience with the goals of the biz. Click To Tweet

Read: 8 Important Questions Your Social Media Marketing Strategy Must Answer

#4 – What are some of the top social media management tools?

Tools make reaching social media marketing goals possible. Whether you’re a one-person startup or a multinational enterprise, it’s nearly impossible to manage your social media marketing program without using third-party tools.

Depending on your industry, audience, social networks and budget, there are dozens of free and paid tools out there. Some of my favorites include:

Hootsuite

Buffer

Sprinklr

Spredfast

SocialFlow

Read: A Master List of Social Media Marketing Management Tools

If you’re looking for a few more tools to up your social media marketing, here are a couple other resources:

Social Media Cheat Sheet: Tools & Tips for Perfectly Sized Social Media Images

100+ Digital Marketing Tools to Help You Become A More Effective Marketer

#5 – What future social media marketing trends are on the horizon?

As the social media landscape continues to evolve, competition for audience attention is stiff. In fact, 40% of marketers say social media marketing has become more difficult for them in the last year, according to Social Media Examiner’s 2016 Industry Report. So, it’s certainly no surprise that one of the top social media marketing questions out there is “What’s next?”

While I’m no clairvoyant, based on conversations with other marketers, and keeping up on the latest news items, two key items we’re seeing are:

1. The continuous climb of video.

Humans are visual creatures by nature, and video has taken over social media news feeds. When executed well, video is a powerful marketing tool that can help brands capture audience attention, show value and encourage engagement.

In particular, live video may hold the biggest opportunity. As Carlos Gil told us a couple months ago: “Undoubtedly, live video content will continue to take over newsfeeds.”

Undoubtedly, live #videocontent will continue to take over newsfeeds. @carlosgil83 Click To Tweet

2. The “pay to play” requirement.

With nearly every brand using social—as well as frequent tweaks to platform algorithms—the competition to stand out in news feeds has never been more fierce, with brands fighting for visibility and engagement. As a result, more are paying to play these days by investing in social advertising to drive awareness and engagement, as well as sales and other conversions—and this trend will definitely continue.

As TopRank Marketing CEO Lee Odden recently said: “There’s no getting around the requirement for paid amplification with content on social networks.”

There’s no getting around the requirement for paid amplification on #social networks. @leeodden Click To Tweet

 Read: The Future of Social Media Marketing: Experts Share Social Media Predictions for 2017

What questions do you have about social media marketing? Ask them in the comments section below.

Gain a competitive advantage by subscribing to the TopRank® Online Marketing Newsletter.

© Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®, 2017. | We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing | http://www.toprankblog.com

The post We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing appeared first on Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®.

Caitlin Burgess http://www.toprankblog.com/wp-content/uploads/common-social-media-marketing-questions.jpg

[christopheruearle]

We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing

Like brushing our teeth or brewing a morning cup of coffee, checking in on what’s happening within our social networks has become part of the daily routine for most of us. In fact, 30% of all time spent online is on social networks, according to GlobalWebIndex (GWI).

As a result, social media has also become a routine marketing tactic for nearly every business, helping brands build awareness, share and interact with customers and prospects, and create another vital touch point in the changing customer journey.

But as the social media landscape continues to evolve, both green and seasoned marketing professionals are constantly searching for answers on how they can best leverage social media within their organizations’ marketing strategies.

To lend a helping hand, TopRank Marketing’s SEO team took a peek at social media marketing related keywords and keyword groups, as well as related SERPs and our own data, to identify some of the top questions people are asking around social media marketing. And today, we answer those questions.

Let’s get started.

#1 – What is the impact of social media marketing on business?

Like any marketing tactic, brands and marketers want to understand the business case and benefits of social media marketing. After all, social media marketing takes time, resources and strategy to be successful—so you want to make sure you’re aligning your efforts with your business needs and goals.

Generally speaking, social media marketing offers five core benefits:

Increases exposure and brand awareness. Social media platforms provide your business with another online space to share and engage with your audience—outside your website or brick and mortar store, and in a place customers and prospects feel comfortable. Through both organic and paid social activities, the content you share and the discussions you host can help keep your brand top of mind or get it on new customers’ radar.

Boosts website traffic. With the right mix of engaging content, social media can encourage your audience to click and visit your website or blog.

Builds brand loyalty. The content, discussion and service you’re providing on your social media platforms can help build an engaged band of loyal followers.

Provides useful audience and market insights. Social media allows you to see your customers—and competitors—in their true habitat. With just a few clicks you can learn more about the people they interact with, the types of content they share and engage with most, their favorite TV shows, and the list goes on.

Generates leads and sales. While social media is not traditionally viewed as a conversion platform, those that build awareness, trust, loyalty, and engagement with their audiences can absolutely drive leads and sales. Furthermore, marketers can go beyond social media marketing to social media prospecting.

#SocialMedia allows you to see your customers—and competitors—in their true habitat. Click To Tweet

Read: Report: Social Media Examiner 2016 State of Social Media Marketing

#2 – What is a social media marketing strategy? (And why do I need one?)

Simply put, your social media marketing strategy is your roadmap for why, who and how your social media efforts will help you achieve your business objectives.

Without a strategy in place, you’re just posting and hoping something sticks. With a strategy in place, you’re able to plan, execute and measure the effectiveness of your tactics, and use that information to refine and drive your efforts forward.

Read: A Fresh Start: Learn How to Put Your Social Media Strategy on A Paleo Diet

#3 – How do I create a social media marketing strategy?

The key to crafting a social media marketing strategy is striking a balance between the needs of your audience and the goals of the business.

TopRank Marketing believes an integrated approach to digital marketing is key for success, so begin by asking yourself: How will my social media strategy fit within my overall digital marketing strategy?

Once you determine how social media can be used to enhance your other marketing efforts and drive business goals, consider the following steps while crafting your social strategy:

Identify who your audience is and what they’re pain points are.

Define your objective. (i.e., brand awareness, engagement, more website traffic, etc.)

Choose your content mix based on the types of content your audience likes to consume on social.

Define what you want your followers to know about your brand.

Outline how often you’ll engage on each channel.

Determine how you’ll measure effectiveness or results.

Craft a #socialmedia strategy that balances the needs of the audience with the goals of the biz. Click To Tweet

Read: 8 Important Questions Your Social Media Marketing Strategy Must Answer

#4 – What are some of the top social media management tools?

Tools make reaching social media marketing goals possible. Whether you’re a one-person startup or a multinational enterprise, it’s nearly impossible to manage your social media marketing program without using third-party tools.

Depending on your industry, audience, social networks and budget, there are dozens of free and paid tools out there. Some of my favorites include:

Hootsuite

Buffer

Sprinklr

Spredfast

SocialFlow

Read: A Master List of Social Media Marketing Management Tools

If you’re looking for a few more tools to up your social media marketing, here are a couple other resources:

Social Media Cheat Sheet: Tools & Tips for Perfectly Sized Social Media Images

100+ Digital Marketing Tools to Help You Become A More Effective Marketer

#5 – What future social media marketing trends are on the horizon?

As the social media landscape continues to evolve, competition for audience attention is stiff. In fact, 40% of marketers say social media marketing has become more difficult for them in the last year, according to Social Media Examiner’s 2016 Industry Report. So, it’s certainly no surprise that one of the top social media marketing questions out there is “What’s next?”

While I’m no clairvoyant, based on conversations with other marketers, and keeping up on the latest news items, two key items we’re seeing are:

1. The continuous climb of video.

Humans are visual creatures by nature, and video has taken over social media news feeds. When executed well, video is a powerful marketing tool that can help brands capture audience attention, show value and encourage engagement.

In particular, live video may hold the biggest opportunity. As Carlos Gil told us a couple months ago: “Undoubtedly, live video content will continue to take over newsfeeds.”

Undoubtedly, live #videocontent will continue to take over newsfeeds. @carlosgil83 Click To Tweet

2. The “pay to play” requirement.

With nearly every brand using social—as well as frequent tweaks to platform algorithms—the competition to stand out in news feeds has never been more fierce, with brands fighting for visibility and engagement. As a result, more are paying to play these days by investing in social advertising to drive awareness and engagement, as well as sales and other conversions—and this trend will definitely continue.

As TopRank Marketing CEO Lee Odden recently said: “There’s no getting around the requirement for paid amplification with content on social networks.”

There’s no getting around the requirement for paid amplification on #social networks. @leeodden Click To Tweet

  Read: The Future of Social Media Marketing: Experts Share Social Media Predictions for 2017

What questions do you have about social media marketing? Ask them in the comments section below.

Gain a competitive advantage by subscribing to the TopRank® Online Marketing Newsletter.

© Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®, 2017. | We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing | http://www.toprankblog.com

The post We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing appeared first on Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®.

[williamgreen533]

We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing

Like brushing our teeth or brewing a morning cup of coffee, checking in on what’s happening within our social networks has become part of the daily routine for most of us. In fact, 30% of all time spent online is on social networks, according to GlobalWebIndex (GWI).

As a result, social media has also become a routine marketing tactic for nearly every business, helping brands build awareness, share and interact with customers and prospects, and create another vital touch point in the changing customer journey.

But as the social media landscape continues to evolve, both green and seasoned marketing professionals are constantly searching for answers on how they can best leverage social media within their organizations’ marketing strategies.

To lend a helping hand, TopRank Marketing’s SEO team took a peek at social media marketing related keywords and keyword groups, as well as related SERPs and our own data, to identify some of the top questions people are asking around social media marketing. And today, we answer those questions.

Let’s get started.

#1 – What is the impact of social media marketing on business?

Like any marketing tactic, brands and marketers want to understand the business case and benefits of social media marketing. After all, social media marketing takes time, resources and strategy to be successful—so you want to make sure you’re aligning your efforts with your business needs and goals.

Generally speaking, social media marketing offers five core benefits:

Increases exposure and brand awareness. Social media platforms provide your business with another online space to share and engage with your audience—outside your website or brick and mortar store, and in a place customers and prospects feel comfortable. Through both organic and paid social activities, the content you share and the discussions you host can help keep your brand top of mind or get it on new customers’ radar.

Boosts website traffic. With the right mix of engaging content, social media can encourage your audience to click and visit your website or blog.

Builds brand loyalty. The content, discussion and service you’re providing on your social media platforms can help build an engaged band of loyal followers.

Provides useful audience and market insights. Social media allows you to see your customers—and competitors—in their true habitat. With just a few clicks you can learn more about the people they interact with, the types of content they share and engage with most, their favorite TV shows, and the list goes on.

Generates leads and sales. While social media is not traditionally viewed as a conversion platform, those that build awareness, trust, loyalty, and engagement with their audiences can absolutely drive leads and sales. Furthermore, marketers can go beyond social media marketing to social media prospecting.

#SocialMedia allows you to see your customers—and competitors—in their true habitat. Click To Tweet

Read: Report: Social Media Examiner 2016 State of Social Media Marketing

#2 – What is a social media marketing strategy? (And why do I need one?)

Simply put, your social media marketing strategy is your roadmap for why, who and how your social media efforts will help you achieve your business objectives.

Without a strategy in place, you’re just posting and hoping something sticks. With a strategy in place, you’re able to plan, execute and measure the effectiveness of your tactics, and use that information to refine and drive your efforts forward.

Read: A Fresh Start: Learn How to Put Your Social Media Strategy on A Paleo Diet

#3 – How do I create a social media marketing strategy?

The key to crafting a social media marketing strategy is striking a balance between the needs of your audience and the goals of the business.

TopRank Marketing believes an integrated approach to digital marketing is key for success, so begin by asking yourself: How will my social media strategy fit within my overall digital marketing strategy?

Once you determine how social media can be used to enhance your other marketing efforts and drive business goals, consider the following steps while crafting your social strategy:

Identify who your audience is and what they’re pain points are.

Define your objective. (i.e., brand awareness, engagement, more website traffic, etc.)

Choose your content mix based on the types of content your audience likes to consume on social.

Define what you want your followers to know about your brand.

Outline how often you’ll engage on each channel.

Determine how you’ll measure effectiveness or results.

Craft a #socialmedia strategy that balances the needs of the audience with the goals of the biz. Click To Tweet

Read: 8 Important Questions Your Social Media Marketing Strategy Must Answer

#4 – What are some of the top social media management tools?

Tools make reaching social media marketing goals possible. Whether you’re a one-person startup or a multinational enterprise, it’s nearly impossible to manage your social media marketing program without using third-party tools.

Depending on your industry, audience, social networks and budget, there are dozens of free and paid tools out there. Some of my favorites include:

Hootsuite

Buffer

Sprinklr

Spredfast

SocialFlow

Read: A Master List of Social Media Marketing Management Tools

If you’re looking for a few more tools to up your social media marketing, here are a couple other resources:

Social Media Cheat Sheet: Tools & Tips for Perfectly Sized Social Media Images

100+ Digital Marketing Tools to Help You Become A More Effective Marketer

#5 – What future social media marketing trends are on the horizon?

As the social media landscape continues to evolve, competition for audience attention is stiff. In fact, 40% of marketers say social media marketing has become more difficult for them in the last year, according to Social Media Examiner’s 2016 Industry Report. So, it’s certainly no surprise that one of the top social media marketing questions out there is “What’s next?”

While I’m no clairvoyant, based on conversations with other marketers, and keeping up on the latest news items, two key items we’re seeing are:

1. The continuous climb of video.

Humans are visual creatures by nature, and video has taken over social media news feeds. When executed well, video is a powerful marketing tool that can help brands capture audience attention, show value and encourage engagement.

In particular, live video may hold the biggest opportunity. As Carlos Gil told us a couple months ago: “Undoubtedly, live video content will continue to take over newsfeeds.”

Undoubtedly, live #videocontent will continue to take over newsfeeds. @carlosgil83 Click To Tweet

2. The “pay to play” requirement.

With nearly every brand using social—as well as frequent tweaks to platform algorithms—the competition to stand out in news feeds has never been more fierce, with brands fighting for visibility and engagement. As a result, more are paying to play these days by investing in social advertising to drive awareness and engagement, as well as sales and other conversions—and this trend will definitely continue.

As TopRank Marketing CEO Lee Odden recently said: “There’s no getting around the requirement for paid amplification with content on social networks.”

There’s no getting around the requirement for paid amplification on #social networks. @leeodden Click To Tweet

 Read: The Future of Social Media Marketing: Experts Share Social Media Predictions for 2017

What questions do you have about social media marketing? Ask them in the comments section below.

Gain a competitive advantage by subscribing to the TopRank® Online Marketing Newsletter.

© Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®, 2017. | We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing | http://www.toprankblog.com

The post We Answer 5 Common Questions People Have About Social Media Marketing appeared first on Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®.

Caitlin Burgess http://www.toprankblog.com/wp-content/uploads/common-social-media-marketing-questions.jpg