#compared to yours so you have to decide what kind of details to add and what kind of details to get rid of and AAAAGHHGHHH

[riiviir]

fanart is so hard to draw. stupid characters having stupid details that are out of my stupid comfort zone AAAAAGH

[sabertoothwalrus]

your character designs are incredible! do you keep anything/any thought processes in mind as you draw fanart vs how you draw ocs?

OOOOOO what a fun question...

I'd say my general thought process about how to build a new character-- figuring out who they are and what they do and what they're like-- is all pretty much the same across the board. The main difference between designing fan characters vs original characters is how I answer those sorts of questions.

For original characters, it can be almost overwhelming because I get to choose everything. I can make everything perfectly suited to my own tastes, except I have a broad range of things I like, and my tastes change constantly FJHFHD so depending on the project, choosing a more specific direction helps narrow things down.

Here's some old ocs I redrew recently. They're from an old story I'm not planning on revisiting, but it was about an art student, her little brother, and some grim reapers. Can you tell who is who?

I wanted the alive characters to have a lot of Opposites from the reapers. Warm vs Cool colors. Round vs Angular shapes. I wanted the reapers to look skeletal and sickly looking, and it was important that they all had some kind of hood. They needed to wear black & grey, but their colors still needed to be interesting, so they're all tinted with a color (one is sort-of blue, one is sort-of red, one is sort-of purple).

The story is more serious, so it felt appropriate that the characters were more realistically proportioned compared to some of the cartoonier designs I tend to do. They're still heavily stylized, and I tried to push myself to go harder on the shape language and Appeal™.

For fan characters, it's actually a lot of fun because so much of the work has been done for you. The more source material you have to work with, the less you have to come up with.

So, an example I'm going to use is Hugh Dini, a character I came up with as part of a fan concept for a new entry in the Ace Attorney series.

Phoenix Wright's daughter, Trucy, is a magician. She was 17 in her last appearance, and my fan concept takes place 7 years later, so she'd be 24. I decided she'd have a boyfriend who is also her assistant, and went from there.

I knew Hugh was going to be a defendant, which according to Ace Attorney rules means that he'd be falsely accused of murder. I needed to create a guy who was sympathetic, someone that you'd WANT to help prove his innocence.

What I did was reference existing characters from the games who fit similar archetypes and took a lot of design cues from them. I also referenced characters like Fukuo from Kiki's Delivery Service, who is a delightful himbo wifeguy that looks a little intimidating but is actually just kinda shy. And then I looked at actual photos of stage magician costumes for additional inspiration. THEN I go back to the source material to compare design details I want to add (ex, Hugh's high collar, his cuffs, the collar, the cape being turned into fringe on his jacket) and see if it already exists somewhere. No point in reinventing the wheel if I don't need to!

I wanted him to be like a "sexy magician's assistant", which I thought was a funny contrast to his restrained demeanor. He needed to be flashy, but not TOO flashy that he'd upstage Trucy. And additionally, since this is a game series where the characters are mostly seen from the waist up, I tried to keep his most interesting details in the top half of his design (but honestly in hindsight, I could have given him more. like Zak Gramarye's thigh-strap belt bag, perhaps).

Some other things I like to do when creating fan designs is to "roleplay" being the designers of the source material. If concept art is available, I reference that. I like to find the design quirks the character designers favor, and use them to make my own designs more convincing. If I'm designing something for, say, a european tv show that came out in 2005, I'd refer to the fashion and design tendencies that were most prevalent in the culture then, because that's what the actual character designers would have been most inspired by. But I'm not perfect, I'm gonna have the biases of an american lesbian living in 2025 no matter how hard I try LMAO

Hopefully I was able to answer your question!

[isshonihongo]

Furigana & Okurigana

As you progress with your Japanese studies, you will see two very important kinds of Hiragana. They are called furigana and okurigana. In this post let’s take a look at each of them and how they both help Japanese learners and natives read Kanji!

But first, let me introduce a chart for the vocabulary that you’ll see in this post. Each word is written in Kanji and then in Hiragana, with its part of speech and meaning.

1) Furigana

Furigana, also known as よみがな or ruby, are the Hiragana characters either on top or to the side of Kanji characters.

As you can see, if the writing is horizontal, the furigana will be on top and if the writing is vertical, it will be on the right side. Either way, furigana tell you how to pronounce the Kanji characters.

There may be anywhere from 1 to 5 Hiragana characters represented by a single Kanji character!

We Japanese learners need furigana when we start studying Kanji and reading Japanese text. But Japanese children also need furigana when they are learning Kanji and even Katakana. Here you can see furigana used to learn Katakana characters.

Whether or not you see furigana depends on a few different factors:

the intended readers

the rarity of the Kanji

Generally, you won’t see many examples of furigana. However, if you pick up a book/novel intended for elementary-aged children, you might see lots of furigana. This is because (like us!) they either haven’t learned the Kanji’s readings or the writer intended the Kanji to be read in a certain way.

Some websites, books, IG posts, Youtube videos, etc that are intended for non-Japanese readers will also have a fair amount of furigana. Granted, it is helpful at first, but it’s a good idea to wane yourself off of furigana as you get better (or if you WANT to get better). The more you see a Kanji character, the more likely you are to remember its reading.

Gikun

Sometimes furigana doesn’t actually tell you the reading of the Kanji. Instead it’s used to add details or add shades of nuance, as in the examples below:

In these cases we call the furigana gikun, which loosely translates to “a false reading”.

On the left, the Kanji reads きぼう, which means “desire or wish” but the furigana reads ひかり, which means “light”. This conveys to the reader that light is a metaphor for hope in whatever setting you are seeing that Kanji. 

On the right, the Kanji reads ちきゅう, which means “Earth” but the furigana reads ふるさと which means “home town” or “where someone is from”. This tells the reader that someone is an Earthling – as compared to a Martian or an alien from another planet.

This is a more-advanced way that furigana is used, so you won’t see it unless you are reading manga or novels aimed for native speakers.

First the Word, Then the Kanji (Ateji & Jukujikun)

On the day that I arrived in Japan, they asked me for my name in Katakana at the airport. I hadn’t really thought about it so they wrote my name how it sounds to the Japanese ear.

A few days later, I was thinking about this, and it occurred to me that in the same way that they just “assigned me” katakana, I could also give myself Kanji for my name! My name is Albert but I took my nickname Al and “Hiraganized” it, getting ある. At this point I needed 1 or 2 Kanji that sounded out ある. I eventually decided on 亜琉. I’ll come back to this a bit later.

亜琉 is what is called ateji. I started with a word and “worked backwards” to end up with Kanji, based on their readings. Another example of ateji is the Japanese word for The United States. Written with Hiragana it’s あめりか, but written with Kanji it becomes:

亜 read as あ 米 read as め 利 read as り 加 read as か

Keep in mind that these Kanji have nothing to do with the meaning of “America” or “The U.S.” (whatever that is lol). They were only chosen based on the way you read each Kanji. This is the idea of ateji.

A similar concept is Jukujikun. The word あさって means “the day after tomorrow”. When it came time to assign Kanji to this word, the following 3 were chosen:

明 meaning “tomorrow” 後 meaning “after” 日 meaning “day”

You can reasonably see how this combination of Kanji can come to mean “the day after tomorrow”. The thing is, the actual way you read those Kanji are nowhere close to あさって！They were chosen because of their meanings and not their readings. It’s almost the reverse of ateji. 2 more examples are:

今日 is read as きょう but 今 is not きょ and 日 is not う

下手 is read as へた but 下 is not へ and 手 is not た

When it comes to jukujikun, because the furigana can’t be separated between the characters, it will appear either in the middle of the characters or stretched across them.

As for my Kanji, because the characters sound out ある, 亜琉 is ateji. However, I also chose 2 Kanji with meanings that I liked. 亜 means “Asia” and 琉 means “gem” so I chose my name to mean “gem of Asia”.

2) Okurigana

Now, let’s talk about okurigana. It is similar to furigana, except that it only appears next to Kanji. Okurigana is thought of as “hanging off of” Kanji characters.

The okurigana tells you how you should read the 食 Kanji. In this particular example, both words mean “to eat” so mixing them up is not the end of the world (depending on who you are talking with!). Other times, however, the meanings will be drastically different so okurigana is a vital part of Japanese.

Adjectives and Verbs

Most of the time, you’ll find okurigana with adjective and verb forms. This is because they have a core part (called the stem) that will not change, and an ending that changes to add different shades of nuance to the core meaning. Think of the difference between “kick”, “kicks”, and “kicked” in English.

Notice that sometimes the adjective or verb stem doesn’t overlap with the okurigana (Type 1). Other times, part of the stem is included in the okurigana (Type 2). The main thing to remember is, the okurigana is the Hiragana after the Kanji.

Another time you will see okurigana is with compound verbs. This is where two verbs are combined into one. In these cases, there will be okurigana both between and after Kanji characters. Examples are:

思い出す, which means “to remember” 食べ残す, which means “to leave food half-eaten”

Nouns

Most of the time, nouns are made up of only Kanji. However, there are some occasions where they will have okurigana. Most times, they will end in a character from the い VSG.

This is because they actually come from verbs! Here are some examples:

匂い (from 匂う) 好き (from 好く) ーーーーーーーーーー 乗り場 (from 乗る) 立ち飲み (from both 立つ and 飲む)

Other times, they aren’t derived from verbs, they are just simply nouns:

勢い, which means “force, power” 後ろ, which means “behind, rear” 全て, which means “all, everything” 情け, which means “pity, sympathy” 斜め, which means “diagonal, slanted”

Same Kanji, Different Okurigana

The function of okurigana is to point you in the right direction of how to pronounce a given Kanji. There would be no reason for this if each Kanji had only 1 possible reading. As it turns out, a single Kanji can have many different ways to say it. Here are some examples:

As you can see, depending on the okurigana, 汚 can be read as きたな or as よご. On the other hand, the Kanji 広 is read as ひろ in all 5 of those words! For this reason, I would recommend learning Kanji like 広 early in your studies.  It will be much easier for you to remember a Kanji with only 1 or 2 readings than a Kanji with many different readings.

Same Kanji, Same Okurigana

It’s rare, but there are times when the okurigana unfortunately won’t tell you decisively how to pronounce the Kanji. Here is an example:

As you can see (with the help of the furigana!) BOTH the Kanji and the okurigana are the same, making them different words but homographs. If it weren’t for the furigana, you might not know which reading of the kanji to use. In this situation, they both mean “to open” but the way and the kind of opening is different. Japanese often separates very similar meanings by using different Kanji. In English, we just take it for granted that you can open your eyes and you can also open a door. In Japanese, they are two different kinds of actions, and so different Kanji are used. (It won’t matter when you speak, but when you write or type, it would be good to be aware of the difference.) In these kinds of cases, you will have to rely on either context or on furigana to know which reading is correct.

Conclusion

As you can see, both furigana and okurigana will help you when it comes to reading Kanji. Sometimes you will have both, other times there will only be okurigana. Later on in the Kanji section, we will take a look at other ways to help you guess a Kanji’s reading. Until then, good luck with your Japanese journey!

And with that, you are finished with the Hiragana section. Congrats!

Rice & Peace,

– 亜琉 (アル)

👋🏾

[just-writing-a-bit]

Build-A-Bear

Wanda Maximoff x female reader

Summary: AU, in which Y/n is in the army and only has a few hours left with Wanda, before she has to leave again. So, she takes Wanda to Build-A-Bear and they make Wanda a bear that will remind her of her girlfriend.

Warnings: None, this is pure fluff

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Pov Y/n

Wanda refuses to let go of my hand, clinging to it as if I would disappear if she didn't. I wouldn't. Not today anyway.

We got two more days together before I return to my work and am send on a mission. The exact details are still confidential, all we know is that it'll be at least six months. Six months isn't long, if you compare it to other durations. A pregnancy is nine months, a year is twelve months, even a school year is longer than six months.

If you are in a relationship and separated from your girlfriend, six months is a lot though. We've been through this before and it's never easy. Missing Wanda for so long sometimes feels like heartbreak. I love her like crazy and wish, we could see each other in between. All we can do, if we're lucky, is a phone call, or I can send her letters. It's not great, but it's something.

Somehow, we have to make it through these times of separation. And Wanda is supportive of it too. She always tells me it's okay and waits patiently for me to return. Whenever I come home, she has a little surprise for me. Sometimes a cake, sometimes a dinner, other times a date, a bouquet of flowers, lingerie, a spa giftcard and so on. I wouldn't need all of that though, I just need her when I come back.

While I'm away, I think about holding her almost every night. I imagine cradling her head into my neck, wrapping my arms securely around her and feeling her breathe against my skin. I think about kissing her goodnight and falling asleep with her curled up into me.

Just thinking about going away again makes me want to pull her in and never let go.

"Oh," Wanda makes, eyes growing big as we step into the Build-A-Bear store.

I've never been to one, but know she loves these stores and while she never got anything, she likes looking at the different options, says it reminds her of the awe she felt as a child.

Everything is colorful and looks soft to touch. There are a few kids running around, carrying stuffed animals or clothing for said stuffies.

I lead Wanda to where she can pick out what kind of stuffed animal she wants. This was her idea and I think it's super cute and wish, I was able to take one on my mission myself. I can't, so it will only be one today.

"I like this one," she decides and picks out a bear with dark brown fur. I run my hand over it, it's super soft.

"It's perfect," I agree and she nods happily. Her hand is still in mine, so I have no other choice but to follow her around the store as she follows the instruction arrows on the floor. We reach the stuffing machine where a woman smiles kindly at us.

"Are you ready to fill your new buddy?" She asks, nodding at the empty bear Wanda is holding.

"Yess," she says, sounding excited like a child. I love seeing her this way. Excited and happy, not caring what anyone else might think about it.

From my side, she will never have to fear judgement over being excited about anything. I adore her way too much and love the way her nose scrunches up when she gets excited or how she jumps and dances around when she can't contain her own emotions. It's one of the reasons I love her so much.

"You can add in hearts." The woman points to a box of soft hearts and one that are thicker and according to the label can contain a message. I don't even need to look at Wanda to know which one is the right pick. The one with a voice note.

I let go of her hand, or try to, as she continues to hold on. I shake my hand lightly, but she refuses to let go.

"I need both hands to record a message, sweetheart," I remind her softly, at which she pouts.

"You don't." I peck her lips.

"Okay, maybe not, but I want the message to be a surprise for you, okay? For that, you will have to let me take a few steps away."

She grumbles but lets go of my hand. I send her a smile before stepping away, a heart in my hand. Hopefully, this will help her get through the lonely nights.

As soon as I am next to her, she grabs hold of my arm again, leaning into my side. I kiss her cheek and hand the woman the heart. She fills the teddy up, checking in with Wanda about how much filling she wants, before adding the heart and sewing the teddy shut.

"All it takes for the message to be played is a good squeeze," she explains and hands the teddy to Wanda, whose eyes are bright with joy.

"Not until I'm gone though," I whisper into her ear. She looks at me, scanning my face.

"Why not? Did you say something inappropriate? If you did and make me believe now that it's something sweet... I swear to the gods, y/n, I will find you and kill you." Her rage is cute and not at all frightening.

That is, because I know she will love the message I put in there. If I would have been dumb enough to say something naughty, I would now genuinely fear for my life.

I love my girlfriend, I truly do, but she can be scary as shit when she wants to be. The few times I witnessed it, I wasn't her object of attention and still, I felt a shiver run down my spine. She has the deadliest glare I have ever seen and when she tilts her head... you better run because you will not survive otherwise.

When we fight, which is rare, she doesn't get as scary, which makes me believe, I haven't fucked up too much yet and don't plan to.

"I didn't, I just want it to be a surprise. Please?" I meet her green eyes, almost being able to watch as they soften and she relents, nodding.

"I will still hunt you down, if you're lying," she mutters and I chuckle, wrapping my arm around her shoulders. "You'd have every right to."

We move on to the clothes section and for this, she lets go of my hand. I fulfil my duty as girlfriend and hold the teddy securely in my arm while she roams through the different options, searching for one very specific piece of clothing. When she finds it, she spins back around to me, holding it up with a proud smile. A little army jacket for the teddy.

"It needs a hat and boots," she decides and takes off again. I chuckle to myself as I carefully pull the teddy's arms though the sleeves and button up his jacket.

Wanda returns with a hat, still searching for boots. I let her do her thing, happily watching and dressing up the teddy with everything she brings me.

"You look like you could come with me," I tell it, gently padding its hat. I truly wish, I had something to take with me to hold at night.

A teddy is too big to bring with me, so the necklace Wanda gifted me on our first anniversary will have to do. It's a simple silver chain, in the front held together by the first letters of our names, entangled. It's almost kitschy and absolutely perfect. If I ever miss her, no, if I ever not miss her, I will have my hands at my sides and not play with it. The shape and feeling of it is so familiar by now, I feel like I could trace it, even if it wasn't there.

"They have no boots," Wanda pouts, hands on her hips. I have to contain a smile and tug a red strand out of her face.

"That's okay, the teddy won't have to walk all that much." She produces a tiny smile and takes the teddy into her arms, squeezing it carefully to not set off the message. We step up to the register and the man behind it smiles.

"We are selling a lot of those army bears lately," he comments, scanning the price tags.

I glance over at Wanda. She isn't the only one who goes through months without speaking to her partner. One day, I hope we won't have to adjust to this separation anymore. Eventually, I want a job that allows me to settle down and return home at the end of the day and not return to a military base in the middle of nowhere.

"If you want, you can customize the tag on the jacket," the man offers, tapping on it. Wanda's eyes light up.

"Can we put a name on there?" The man nods. Without hesitation, Wanda nods. "Y/l/n."

The man nods again and types it into his computer. Somewhere behind him something starts humming and a minute later, he turns around and retrieves a batch with my last name on it. He switches it with the plain one and shows the bear to Wanda.

I don't think I've ever seen my girlfriend happier about something so small and she already appreciates the little things. I pay for the bear and take Wanda's hand, leading her out of the store and pressing a kiss to her temple.

"Happy?" She nods. "Perfect."

Pov Wanda

I swallow hard, trying not to break out into tears again as I enter the bedroom to change into comfortable clothes. Seeing y/n off is always so damn hard. I never want her to leave and at the same time, I know she has to.

It's not even the worry about her not coming back to me, I managed to get past that and hold on to the naïve thought that she is invincible. No, it's that she will be gone for six months and I have to miss her for so long. The periods she is home are way too short compared to the ones she is gone. Each time she leaves, it feels like a part of my heart is ripping off and going with her.

I try to be strong for her, knowing it's not easier for her either, but I always end up crying. If not from the beginning, but when she whispers all sorts of promises into my hair and kisses me for the last time before stepping away.

When she returns, I can appreciate her uniform and the way she looks in it, but when she leaves, I just want to rip it off her, as if it would prevent her from leaving.

I slip into comfortable clothes and swallow down my tears. Everything inside here still smells of her and I never want the smell to falter. It will in a couple of days, I know that, but I can hold on to some silly hope for at least the rest of the day.

My eyes fall on the teddy in between our pillows. My little y/n bear. She has been in our bed throughout the whole day after we got her, only having to make room at night so we could cuddle.

Y/n was very careful and made sure not to squeeze her too hard. I am curious about her message and now that she is gone, I am finally allowed to listen to it. A small glimpse of hope.

I sit cross-legged on the bed and pull the teddy to me, pressing my face into its belly. It smells of her and it almost feels as if she was right next to me. She isn't, it's just her perfume and still, sometimes I allow myself to be delusional.

My heart beats faster as I squeeze the teddy tightly, waiting for the message. "Hey, Wanda sweetheart. I'll be home before you know it and I love you so, so, so, so, so much."

My tears fill with eyes again at the sound of her voice, even if it's a little tinny through the small speaker. That's my girl.

[I noticed the mistake while editing but it's too funny to correct it. XD It happens more often than you think.]

I squeeze the teddy again, listening to her voice over and over again until my heart aches a little less. Distance sucks and I hate it with all I am, but this might help me to get through the next six months. This and the many notes she has left me around the apartment. At least, I believe she has left notes. She did the last time. They were cute and almost made me cry each time.

With the teddy in my arm, there's no way I'm putting her down today, I walk over to our dresser, curious about the notes. When I open it, there is no note in there though. Just a tiny yellow duck on the top of her remaining t-shirts.

I stare at it in confusion before picking it up. There's a tiny number written at the bottom: 17. My eyes wander around the rest of the bedroom. Did she hide 16 more of these little ducks around our home?

I close the dresser and set the duck down, not able to keep from smiling. It reminds me of one of our first dates where she took me to a pop-up museum for rubber ducks. She was a little embarrassed about it, said she thought it would be cooler as it was greatly advertised on their website.

It was a little shrill and very yellow and very dorky, which made me fall in love with her for some reason. I doubt many people can say, they were at a rubber duck pop-up museum as a date.

Part of me wants to go around the apartment and search for the rest of the ducks and another part of me wants to wait until I find them during my daily life. They'll be little reminder of the goofball that is my girlfriend. Only she would think about buying a ton of tiny ducks and hide them all around our apartment for me to find while she is away.

Well, at least I have something to do while she is gone though and with her voice and smell inside the teddy, I think, I might be able to get through these next six months, even if they will be hard.

[ntls-24722]

👏🏼 here's birdguy's fucked up evil skeleton

this is NOT me trying to specbio birdguy into a reasonable organism. NONE of this is reasonable. I don't even want to think about the consequences of having a body that includes any of this - this is me catalouging birdguy's anatomical oddities.

so going into detail, from top to the bottom:

what the fuck are those teeth?

lol. lmao.

so to explain it better than what might be visible, he has a horse mouth, his molars and incisors are seperated by a giant gap, like this.

but there's no good reason for him to have it. he has it because I just really like this, for some reason. for some reason this is just the ideal posturing, positioning for teeth, to me. I guess it could help so that when he smiles, he'll have spaces at the sides of his teeth like DJMM does? But i did it because i like how it looks

say, what's that awful DCA neck?

I like long necks. what can i say

I also thought it'd be fun in the fucked up way for his neck to be deceptively long. that his long voluptuous hair really IS hiding secrets in there, because mine sure could before i cut it (i could hide my big fat over-ear phones in there, very helpful for when my school banned headphones LOL). from a side view his head is probably pushed out more to the front, so he would probably get comments on his posture, but then he would just extend that awful neck out.

Keel....

birdguy is capable of flight. "but where is his wings?" in his heart. in his soul.

He has "phantom wings" out from his arms. He can turn his arms into wings, but he likes being "wingless" just because it's easier, both for flight and for just general dexterity. But, he still has to, yknow, flap his arms to fly, like this,

and that's actually probably why he still has so many bird adaptations, because he that's his whole point, that he is... secretly a bird. Like, the bird feet and the bird tail, the feathers, yknow, those are fun bird features, but they all come together with the things you can't see to make this birdlike primate a straight up bird.

Also, um, I'm kind of stupid? Because the whole reason why Birdguy is super buff is to facilitate flight, but it's JUST the pectorals that are super blown out in birds. Everything else is comparatively shrimpy on the arm. But yknow, i fixed that, though Birdguy can stay swole, as a treat to DJMM.

awful wrists

So, he can fold his hands the same way you can fold a wing! You can kind of make the motion for how it works, but it takes really seeing it to realize how tightly folded that shit is up in there.

LOOK AT THAT. THE FUCK??? BIRD WRISTS ARE LITERALLY KISSING THE FOREARM. You'd only be able to do this if you completely broke your wrist!

Or if your wrist was weirdly long.

So Birdguy's wrist is weirdly long! and what's funny is that the way I did this, his hand bones kind of look a lot like the endoskeleton for music man's arms? so fun fact, DJMM's wrist joint is at the very END of his glove cuffs, which is weird, glove cuffs are supposed to sit on the wrist.

So it kind of concludes that his wrist is super long for the joint to begin where his cuff ends, and the same goes for the windup music men who have the exact same joint quirk, and the long wrist theory is proved by their endoskeleton:

Superduper long wrist! Birdguy is unintentionally more DJMMlike in the wrist.

THE FEET??? THE FUCKING FEET ARMS????

LOL. LMAO.

so, the legs look weird. Listing the bones down, you have his femur, you have his fused tibia-fibula, you have that little cluster of tarsal bones... and then you get to the metatarsals that are, satanically, twisting over eachother like an ulna and radius. this is for no good reason other than to make it so that birdguy can be disgustingly dextrous with his feet

also, i CAVED. i DID add a little spec evo into this because I've decided that if birdguy DID have ancestors, they were 5-fingered/5-toed, but one finger/metacarpal got sacrificed and became part of his freaky long carpal, and one of his toes/metatarsals sacrificed itself to become a secondary "tarsal" for his disgusting, revolting little bird toe phalanges to sit on, on top of the metatarsal ulna-radius BULLSHIT he has going on. HEINOUS hypothetical evolutionary behavior.

[rainbowsky]

In reference to this post I was tagged in by @jadedbirch, regarding political discussions about War of Faith.

This is ground I've already covered years ago, so I'll link to those posts. Ultimately everyone gets to decide to what degree they want to confront the politics of a situation, but they definitely don't get to dictate how others approach such things, or to shame them or make it seem disloyal, culturally inappropriate or wrong to critique the politics inherent in what is an intentionally propagandistic drama.

A fairly comprehensive post about politics in fandom where I break down all the ways in which trying to shut down political discussions in fandom is not OK.

A fairly comprehensive discussion about false equivalence when comparing the political climate of China vs the West.

I have a lot of other posts about these topics, many of which can be found under my sociopolitical analysis tag. If anyone has specific questions about these topics feel free to add them in the notes, or message me or send in an ask and I'll address them when I get a chance.

A post about how I reconcile myself politically as a fan of GGDD.

I also recommend reading Pie's post about these types of issues because it is incredibly detailed and gives a very clear picture of the stakes of propaganda in China.

No one has any rationale for bitching about my coverage of these kinds of topics, since I tag everything. People who want to avoid these topics can simply filter, "your poltical disengagement is a weapon against you."

[sometipsygnostalgic]

Video game console and case design

Today's hyperfixation is on the PLAYSTATION 5. Because I want one, but I really shouldn't buy one, so I am just looking up everything to do with games consoles and burning my brain out.

I used to be a proper xbox player, until I got my PC, then I never really touched by xbox again. I got a PS4 to play Persona 5 and since then it's been a blu ray player for my Adventure Time boxset, not much else. But the current gen - PS5, Series X - is arguably more powerful than my gaming PC, and I still have a lot of friends stuck on PS5, so I am considering investing in a unit.

Anyway is it me or did they really shit the bed with design in this generation?

Look at these chunky fuckers! They do not fit smoothly under your television at all. There is no detail or decoration breaking up their unnecessarily large faces, which makes them look bland and ugly. They look like they're made of cheap plastic, with the two controllers being the highest quality thing about them. I can attest the xbox controller is unbeatable, but playstation really made their shot this generation. A shame I can never get used to the dualshock joystick positioning.

The Series S and the PS5 Slim are almost NO improvement on the base designs.

For some reason they made the Series S look like a speaker???

The new PS5 slim FINALLY has a line across that massive faceplate, but the half matte half glossed finish is not doing it any favours. I think it would've looked much better if, for example, the matte and gloss plates were different colours. Like black and white! It also has an even MORE out of place disc drive, which I think is part of Sony's agenda to go digital only, and the two tiny "feet" for its horizontal positioning are pathetic! Personally I like this more than the original but not significantly, disappointing since I was really looking forward to it.

I want you to compare these nasties to the previous generation - the PS4 and the XBOX One.

....Now, what's hilarious about this image is the consoles look ALMOST IDENTICAL from this angle. And, I guess, that would be why Sony and Microsoft decided to make such a departure with the space heater PS5 and the fridge Series X.

But they both look very premium and advanced, and they fit very nicely in your living room.

The companies tried to look a bit more distinguished in their followup versions in the previous gen too. The white PS4 Pro looks a lot closer to PS5 with its quirkiness, but without the atrocious shiny plastic. Sony tended to add or remove a layer whenever they altered the PS4, I wonder what they would look like all stacked on top of each other.

It's not just the games console designs that suffer - Look at the game cases! I know that the companies want to incentivise you to go digital, but Xbox Series X cases are just awful.

So if you're confused - You should be!!! Microsoft have two kinds of case for the Series X. One of them is the EXACT SAME CASE as Xbox One, but with Series X printed on the front. The second newer version foregoes the sexy Xbox logo entirely and just has Xbox Series X printed in some default font. Awful awful awful.

Playstation is doing better, but barely.

They are reusing PS4 cases with a different print on them. It doesn't look as horrible as Xbox's, and it at least has a different colour on the logo, but damn, the jump between PS3/360 and PS4/One was really impressive, and now they've stopped bothering because they want everyone to go digital. If your game cases look like shit, why bother with physical?

I want to contrast with physical media kings Nintendo, who did an outstanding job in 2017 with designing the case for the Nintendo Switch.

These bad boys are mine. They're super thin, easy to stack, decent quality, and F U N. The red colour pallette makes them pop out. You can see one from across the store and go, "damn, that's a Nintendo Switch game".

I just want a thousand of them.

I would say a disadvantage, especially compared to the Gamecube games next to them, and even compared to 3ds, is that you can't tell what game you're looking at without going right up to them. These cases are TOO uniform, and really tiny, so i have to triple check I am picking up Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and not Tony Hawk Pro Skater. Meanwhile you can tell exactly what Gamecube games I have by colour pallette alone. Like, you can instantly tell that's Windwaker.

The switch in general is a very fun looking games console, much nicer looking than its predecessor the Wii U, though I'm not sure how I feel about the white of the OLED. But every time I see a Switch Lite in stores, even though I know it's worse than my Switch, I want to buy one. It just looks so FUUUUUN.

And finally a special mention to the 3DS and its games case. The console itself was pretty stylish, if... rudimentary for its release period, but the games cases are high quality and almost make me want to have 3ds games just so I can have the cases.

[dimalink]

Free Bee – summer little days and dreams of a little bee!

Funny little bee is doing her things. And, all around – it is so good little day. So good day is today. And, little sun is shining. And, little bee is smiling. And, sky is so blue. And, so, fruits are, even, in the air. Why not to eat them! Or to take them with yourself.

Decide for yourself – eat or take. Sound in game makes a reference, that, anyway, to eat! Delicious fruit, Something like apple, or tangerine. And, so, you are flying and collecting fruits. Game is such a good and kind game about a little bee. And at your side – bugs are flying. They are flying about their own things to do. And, they do not touch you. But, you do not need to crust at them! So, this is a little game about summer and good and kind!

And, here, before you - it is a series of drawing. About a release of this game. In terms of series Basic Pascal version 1.17 “Block”. So, they are, like show game better. These pictures, introduce game. Show game. To show game with interesting side. In a base, All of these places at the pictures - a game screen from the game. And, someway, they are modified. Something about details are added. To add some objects. With compare with game screen themselves. Somewhere scale is bigger. But, in main, game is, looks like, you see it at the pictures! So, some art - it is, almost, a game screen.

Little bee and tangerine. Or orange! Main theme, for a game. Of course. Light sky. And, little bee. And, orange! Looks, how sweet and delicious it is, delicious orange! And, what a funny, joyful, good and kind little bee it is! It sets a mood! Something positive! Summer!

And, pay attention – bug is flying at your direction. He is not dangerous. But, no need to crash into him! It is a computer game, anyway! So, here everything is good and kind. But, no need to run at the bugs. It will be a straight crash. And, you lost a life! Fly next about your things, fly around! And eat delicious orange!

So, it is, so good for a little bee. To fly this way all day long. And, to watch at the blue sky. Everything is so bright. And, beautiful! As, a summer day! It is, by its idea endless! And, evening – what a beautiful evening can be! It is, simply, excellent place to be there for everyday! By, the way, it is summer countryside season. And, so, little bee is flying and look at everything around. And, eats tangerine. Bugs, sometimes, appear to flash near you. They are not evil. So, they are not eat! So, here, can, lots of someone to fly! In game - only one type of bugs.

And, lets, look close view. Bug is flying. Two tangerines. And, little bee. Summer ideal vision. Such a picture. Little bee, maybe, such picture can to point in frame and put it on the wall in her bee little house. And, to watch it in the evening. When she drinks a tea. It is a game in series of good and kind animals.  Here it is, a little bee. And, bug too. But, you play as little bee. Good and kind animals. They speaks - bzzzzz! Today, - it is little bee! Such an orange color flying big fly. Which makes - bzzz! Bee - it is not a fly! Bzzz! Joke! For a mood!

And, look, in a dream, bee has a dream, while she sleeps. Around her, lots of tangerines. All around -there are tangerines. What a dream! And, there are, so, lots of little bees. Or, is it a spell like from Baldur`s Gate, when visual copies of yourself. And, you are alone, actually. And, around you – lots of your copies. They copy your moves with some distance from you. Or, lots of little bees. Friends! Friends – it is so funny and good! It is so good, when you have lots of friends! And, little bees, there are lots of them! And, lots of tangerines! There will be, enough, for everyone! So, these are summer things, that little bee is doing!

Basic Pascal version 1.17 "BLOCK" – most newest version. In this version there are 4 new games! Platform Ball, Cabin Pilot, Free Blocker, Free Bee. And even more retro games! It is a pack of retro games with modern versions of Basic and Pascal.

It is now in development new version Basic Pascal pack games. This game will be included in a new version.

Basic Pascal: http://www.dimalink.tv-games.ru/packs/basicpascal/index_eng.html Website: http://www.dimalink.tv-games.ru/home_eng.html Itchio: https://dimalink.itch.io/basic-pascal

[shirohige-pirates]

Hey Doll

CisFem Reader x Thatch

CW: toxic parents, manipulation, The Plan™, smut, mdni, I'll add as we go I'm kind of fly by the seat of my pants on this one.

tag list: @mfreedomstuff

Chapter 2: Match Book

“It seems you did a very good job, Doll.” Ralf says, flipping through the Matchbook with Mellanny while you sat across from them quietly. “He owns his own business, and even more than that, it seems it is tied in closely with other businesses owned by other members of his family.”

“Quite the network.” Mellanny hums, a satisfied smile on her lips. “We’ll be able to proceed with everything just as we planned.”

You don’t flinch at the word, but there’s a knot in your stomach you hadn’t expected. You hadn’t even seen any part of the Matchbook yet, knowing better than to even ask until someone decided to hand it over. You had no idea what your partner looked like, or even his name at this point.

Such details that were irrelevant to The Plan after all, so it wasn’t surprising that either one of your parents had made mention of either detail. As curious as you were, you managed to set it aside completely. If it wasn’t important enough for them to share it, it wasn’t important enough for you to worry about.

Besides, they didn’t control their expressions at all compared to you, so they were actually both easy to read. Neither had even flinched in disgust, so at the very least you knew that your match was conventionally attractive. Not that it truly mattered, all you really hoped for in this was someone who wouldn’t beat you, or discard you, if The Plan went awry.

If everything worked as expected, you would get to live your life quietly with someone who could recover from what would happen to them, and you’d be able to raise children just as the government wanted you to. Never to see either of your parents ever again.

Ralf finally hands over a single photo.

The man in the photo had apparently noticed his picture was being taken and had posed a little. The big toothy smile was warm, and his eyes were bright and clear. He was wearing a uniform, a crisp white uniform with a bright yellow scarf tied loosely around his neck. The impressive pompadour was a little jarring, as you’d only seen that hair style in magazines and TV shows. His goatee was neat and the crescent shaped scar around his eye was one of the last things you noticed.

He looked kind in the photo.

You wondered what you looked like in the pictures he’d receive of you. Would he see all the things your parents wanted you to show to people? Would the camera have caught a moment of some other emotion on your face? Would he consider your features pleasant, or would he resign himself to having to accept them?

He was as wealthy as your parents wanted for you, maybe he would force you to undergo surgery and change to suit his desires.

The thought didn’t bother you, and you smile warmly as you hand the picture back. It didn’t matter, you were just a doll, as long as he didn’t discard you, you wouldn’t complain.

“His name is Edward Thatch,” Mellanny explains. “His father Edward Newgate is the CEO of the shipping conglomerate. Thatch, Marco, or Izou are expected to take over the company, and all three are currently running their own businesses.”

“There’s a lot in here about being patient with the hours he keeps,” Ralf continues, as he and your mother trade and review the information in the packet. “It looks like most of the men in that family get their own place once they come of age, so you’ll be moving into his apartment during the grace period.”

“Apartment?” Mellanny bites the word off in disdain.

“Just temporary,” Ralf assures her. “With this kind of money I’m sure they’ll have a house built as part of the wedding process.”

“That will give us more opportunities, won’t it? If we incorporate the house into The Plan?”

He shakes his head. “Too risky at this stage, we could compromise everything else.”

“Eh, you’re right. The return might be too small anyway.” She mutters dismissively, shuffling another paper away. “We need to call them in the next hour.”

“Mm, we’ll give it another twenty minutes, it won’t do to seem desperate. They could call us first, and that would work out well.”

Everything always had to be just so. Considered from all angles, and all outcomes. You and your family weren’t particularly wealthy. Enough that they could dress you as they wanted, and provide the education they felt would be best, but they always wanted more. Always wanted you and The Plan to provide more.

The “more” they felt entitled to.

The “more” you deprived them of.

The “more” that would set you free of any further obligation to them. Once The Plan was done you would be clear of any debt, left to live whatever life you could make from whatever they left you with.

Which would be more than they had now, so you should be grateful. Would be grateful.

Your phone rang, and your parents’ faces lit up. Your mother let it ring a couple times, motioning you closer to it before putting it on speaker.

“H-hello?” You say, letting nervousness into your voice as was expected.

There’s a short pause on the other end. “Yes, this is Edward Thatch, is this…?” His voice is pleasant, and you can hear a shift of papers before he says your name, mispronouncing it slightly. He might be truly nervous, or simply busy and unconcerned.

“It is,” you answer, keeping your voice steady. Your mother would chide you if you were truly nervous. “I received your book earlier, I was… a little nervous about calling first.”

“Ah, haha, yeah, me too.” There’s mirth in his voice that sounds genuine, and you feel something brush against your chest, but it’s fleeting and you pay it no mind. “A proper gentleman wouldn’t keep a lovely lady waiting, so I’m glad I was able to call you, ahem, first.”

“Me too, thank you Mr. Edward.” You smile, knowing the action will change the tone of your voice and carry it through the phone for him. “I believe we need to set up our first meeting, right?”

“Yes, within forty-eight hours, I believe, and please, call me Thatch.” He agrees, and you can hear more shuffling. “I shouldn’t be at work too late tonight, is seven this evening too soon?”

You look up at your parents and they’re both giving you thumbs up.

“Not at all, it’s perfect.”

“Good, good,” you can hear the relief in his voice. He’s either very practiced at coming across exactly how he wants, or he simply isn’t hiding anything. You won’t know until you’re in the same room with him. “I can coordinate with my father and come to your house if you’re more comfortable with that, or we’re welcome to meet at my father’s house if you prefer.”

Both of your parents are pointing to the phone, and you know what they’re implying. You also didn’t need their response, there’s no way they would miss a chance to see Edward Newgate’s home in person.

“If you can provide the address, it would be easier for my parents and I to come to you and your father.” The practiced answer falls easily from your lips.

The conversation moves into something a little more logistical after that. You get the address from Thatch, and he apologizes for needing to cut the conversation short, things are busy and he wants to be sure he won’t leave you and your folks waiting for him. When you hang up the phone your parents hug one another, cheering at the success of things so far before turning to you.

“There’s plenty of time before we need to leave, get cleaned up and change into what we picked out before.” Mellanny instructs. “I’ll take care of your hair once you get dressed and we’ll go light on the makeup, just something to soften the edges. We’ll hold off on a proper seduction until we have more concrete information.”

“Yes mother.”

“It’s not wrong to wait until your wedding night,” Ralf asserts. “Don’t let him pressure you. That night will likely be our best chance, it would be preferable that he is completely distracted.”

“Yes father,” you answer, getting up and going to get ready as instructed.

You follow the steps you’ve always followed, hardly even thinking about the process consciously at this point. There were special soaps for different parts of your body. Scents here, gentle cleansing there, no risk of a blemish, no wrinkles, rashes or irritations. It was nice to at least be using the same things at this point. For a few years your mother had you switching soaps, brands, frequencies, and everything else until she was satisfied that what you were using would leave your face as flawless as possible.

Puberty had been a nightmare, and it was also when you’d really started to fall into your doll-like behavior. It had taken almost a dozen trips to the doctor’s before she was convinced there was little more to do but wait out the acne. You’d had a few prescription creams, and she consulted with the doctor over nearly three dozen over the counter options. She wanted it gone, but she was just controlled enough to not risk chemically burning your skin in the process.

You were grateful for that much, but if she had done so you wouldn’t have been part of a plan at all, never mind The Plan.

You didn’t rush, but you didn’t dawdle. If you were too fast you’d be chastised for not getting ready properly, being too slow would be much the same. Though, so close to your first meeting your parents would probably avoid risking things that could upset you.

Dressed how you were instructed, your father dried your hair carefully while your mother applied some make up. You sat still, eyes closed until instructed differently, and let them do as they pleased.

Once they were both satisfied with your appearance, it was time to go over how you were supposed to act. Your parents would do most of the talking for you, which wasn’t unheard of. First meetings were supposed to include supportive family, who were there to ease the awkwardness and tension of meeting someone for the first time.

The preference was that the Matchs’ parents would be a part of it, but sometimes a person’s family situation could create a different scenario. The only thing the law was clear about was that matches had to have their first physical meeting within 48 hours of receiving their book. Just like with you, most people did see to it within the same day.

Guided into the backseat of the car, when it was time to leave, you did little more than replay the conversation with your parents over in your head. Not so that you wouldn’t forget it, but so that any actions you took would be smooth and natural. So that anything you had to do to adjust to some unforeseeable change in The Plan would still pull back to what was required.

It was going to be a bit of a drive, but time didn’t matter to you. The clock wouldn’t begin until tonight, when The Plan would finally move from it’s preparations stage, to something more active.

After six months, or even sooner if things went well, you and your match would be married. The details didn’t matter to you, what did matter was that divorce was so rare that it was one of the most repeated statistics regarding the program. It wasn’t just a rare occurrence, but it was also very difficult to even initiate it.

So, even if The Plan happened without a hitch, the likelihood that you would be discarded afterward was low. That was your only concern, or more correctly maybe your only goal.

You didn’t want to end up back with your parents, no matter what.

[arcadekitten]

Hello Arcadekitten!!! I read the Stellamb wedding post(s) and it got me wondering about how Stella’s wedding dress would look like… I absolutely love Sweet No Death, so I knew I had to make some artwork of it!! And, because I absolutely suck at explaining things through text, here is my interpretation of Stella’s wedding outfit in traditional art! ✨💫🌟

Materials Used: Mixed Media Paper, Ink Fineliner Pens, Alcohol Markers Gel Pens, Paint Pens, Highlighter and Mechanical Pencil

Time Took: 1 week

I don’t know if you’re okay with people sending fanarts and stuff to you, but I absolutely love your work and well, I’m quite proud of this piece (even if I probably shouldn’t be lol) as I worked extremely hard on this and wanted to share it with you! I hope that’s okay ❤️

A little artist “#Deep Dive tm” because I put WAY too much effort into the tiniest details and I am NOT gonna let them get overlooked 😤 /jk

-Stella’s dress is made with her signature colors rather than white, because I felt that with her being a Star Witch and all, a species that mostly has extravagantly colorful clothes (in my humble opinion) she felt that just going with plain white on what is possibly the most important day of her life would feel… well, a bit redundant, so she opted for a more ‘colored’ ballgown, with lacy gloves and a pearled veil and all. The local tailor and dressmaker is a bit confused, but Lambchop is definitely not complaining! ;) 💕💓

-(Well, that, and I also felt that the color blended WAY too much with her skin tone and changed it, but that’s my little secret hehe 👀😉)

-In my mind, Stella can make her hair look like it has a small galaxy within it! With actual moving stars and little twinkling lights. ✨💫✨⭐️🌟I think that she usually saves it for special, grandiose occasions, buuut since she’s not the kind of person who would THROW a grand, special occasion, she never unveiled it before her wedding day! (Poor Lambchop’s heart nearly gave out on the spot right then and there! 😭❤️)

-I didn’t add her usual Star hair clip because she already has like… 10 stars in her design already lmao /lh ⭐️

-As you can see, her bouquet’s… cloth? Fabric? I’m not sure what to call it… thing? The stuff that her flowers are wrapped in are Lambchop’s colors! Thought that it would be a neat visual detail… also, I can totally imagine Stella requesting that specific color scheme from the local florist! 💐🌷🌸

-Speaking of flowers… I decided to color in one of the moon daisies a little bit… differently hehe ;) It’s a small reference to the beginning of the game, where we see Stella change the color of the one rebellious moon daisy, from orange to lavender, except this time… she keeps it and uses it in her bouquet! 💖💗

-I like to think that it symbolizes Lambchop versus the rest of the townspeople… and Stella’s way of acknowledging him as a “real person”, at least compared to the others… one who is different, one who is unique… the one that she’s going to marry 💍🩷

-(it’s so absolutely sappy when she tells him so that he just couldn’t resist kissing her right then and there)

-And finally… (this is the last one I promise) I cut out the entire drawing to make it look like a potion bottle, partially because Stella is a witch, and partially because I had this cute lil idea that she stores all of her happiest memories into a magical bottle and takes it out whenever she feels sad, so that she can ‘experience’ it again and feel happier. Of course, with Lambchop by her side, she never really has to use it!💞🩷💗

-And yes, I also made the bottle have Lambchop colors as well 🐏 Just a nice little thing tying em together more visually… ❤️

…And I am SO SORRY for ranting!!! I worked incredibly hard on this piece (traditional art is NOT my strong suit, lol) but I wanted to make something special for one of my favorite games and one of my favorite game devs! So here it is, and I hope that you like it! 🤞❤️😁

(P.S: Any ideas for Lambchop’s wedding design?)

Oh my goodness this is BEAUTIFUL!! The artwork itself is just stunning!! You took so much time on it and it really shows, especially with all your attention to detail in it(and I LOVE hearing your explanations for some of the choices you made!! They're just so darling!) Everything about this is stellar and I'm in love with it, thank you so much!! ♡ ♡ ♡

Also I TOTALLY AGREE Stella would not wear white for her wedding!! Color all the way!! ♡

As for Lambchop's outfit...I think I've got it envisioned in my head but I haven't quite drawn anything for it yet! Top hat, definitely. I think his suit isn't black. Probably brown! Bowtie on the neck. His pants are more like shorts and are cut juuuuust above the knee! Still wearing long socks with garters. He looks incredibly dapper--as he should!! It's his wedding!

Hopefully he at least looks good for the photos before he decides to get any mysterious red stains on his outfit. (It's fine. Stella could clean them with the snap of her fingers, but still!)

[ya-killin-me-smalls]

i could ALSO talk abou tthis shit endlessly LOL. i really like hank being kept a mystery, im going on SUCH a tangent here LMAO but i feel like that kind of plays into their queer/nonbinary kinda thing LET ME EXPLAIN OKAY so with hank like being absolutely fucking terrifying and demonized (for the average grunt) and everything it kinda makes them more like a concept than an actual. thing. and obviously thats gonna impact hanks sense of identity and they'd probably want to embody that becauses, uh, hello, thats sick as fuck. kinda like with rabies pride thing, ''Rabies Pride is a movement/term for neurodivergent (mostly autistic) transgender individuals who are usually treated as if they are an animal, as if they have a contagious disease for being "too loud", "too hyper", "too much", etc.''. YOU GET WHAT IM GESTURING ABOUT HERE RIGHT. im so bad at expplaining shit . anyway. er er

you get it you get it. Hank is a really hard person to define and better left up to interpretation imo

okay so anyway I think the AAHW has a lot of its cloning facilities IN the other place, and this is because time works different there and helps speed up the cloning process. don't have math figured out for it yet but time passes faster in the other place than in Nevada so they're able to produce fully formed clones in a fraction of the time. this also means those facilities are staffed almost entirely by clones since they're expendable, albeit the weaker ones that didn't make the cut to actually fight. and I thought of this while watching dedmos adventure because that mini series is actually long as fuck compared to what was happening surface-level during the time that Deimos was dead, and of course Sanford's trip through the other place was also considerably long before Deimos pulled him out of there. I don't think this idea is canon in the slightest but it's cool and if krinkels ain't gonna give us all the details on how cloning works then imma make stuff up and have fun with it

so fun fact it was inspired by a freehoun fic that was basically "shaving a guy's face as a form of foreplay" but like. sadder and more sentimental. good fucking fic I can try to find it if anyone wants it. and then I got impatient with writing it so I decided to split it into two parts and swapped the pov (kind of a mistake but we ball). it wasn't ever supposed to take an angsty turn at the end of chapter 2 but it did. I'm not 100% in charge of the characters and I let stories do their own thing when that happens because it usually comes out better

Hank is very private about their personal life and Sanford tries to respect that, but Hank is also very protective and fully blames Doc/Deimos for the Havoc incident. them n Doc are lowkey besties and worsties at the same time and talk about boys together (usually arguing and judging but). I actually didn't decide to add hankford to it until I was halfway through so that made keeping it subtle really easy

hey no pressure at all on writing anything, if you just wanna yap about ideas for stuff in here feel free

I actually used to not like the ship at all but unironically there's a Tom Cardy song that changed my mind on it so n I started shipping it as a joke and then it spiralled from there. Flirt (with Your Dad) if anyone's curious but I was like "man what if Deimos flirted with their boss on purpose for funnies and everyone else thought it was annoying" and somehow I ended up in this fucking pit. wild stuff. I've kinda set out with the main idea behind them being "they're inherently bad for each other and trying their hardest to be good"

[exandrothinadresseveryday]

um um um I'm back and I decided to analyze your art cause I really admire it :')

Honestly, I've noticed you use the same line width, if not similar line widths throughout the entire piece, which makes the dresses easier to swallow compared to how some artists draw, and I also think it goes perfectly with the overall simplicity of your art! While it is rather simple, it is also rather easy to add details into it to make it much more fun to do and gorgeous to look at.

I also love how you color things, as it is also pretty simple and goes with the line art, but it's also really easy to add details that you can overlook but still add to the drawing! Not even to mention how well the background goes with the outfits, especially in cases like the black hole dress or the white and blue angel dress (which both look amazing and are easily some of my favorite pieces ever)

Anyways once more, your art looks gorgeous and has given me so much inspiration and insight into my own art and how I can better it, as well that keeping things simple can totally help my art a ton!!!

um anyways sorry for the paragraphs but tysm for making the blog, it has cheered me up multiple times before and it probably will do it again countless times <33

This is so freaking cool to read, you absolutely hit the nail on the head with some of these comments :D Hope you don't mind if I add some insight on my part since it's so lovely idk if I could post it without anything to say.

But yeah, my usual choice in brush is literally a default CSP brush with the pen pressure turned off, and it tends to be 6-12px wide? There's nothing particularly special about it other than drawing with a smaller brush size helps me keep my canvas roughly the size I like (since I alter it each drawing), and I'm not a big fan of line weight in general lol. I'm definitely not the kind of person who will swear by a special custom brush or specific settings, I've always been the kind of person who will just make art with whatever the fuck I'm given.

If I can be honest, a lot of the time I just wing it with colours and the background- so you don't see it but there's a lot of me trying to slap a bandaid on a leak I created by not planning ahead. Sometimes things go smoothly, other times it doesn't.. For the record, an artwork will turn out wayyy nicer when you have a complete idea of what it's meant to look like. Do not aim to emulate me 100% I am but a fool in the grand scheme of things.

ANYWAYS, you wanna know something fucked up that might make ppl look at my art differently? This is my process for the latest drawing I did. I took my sketch, I drew it over it digitally and inked it, THEN I overlayed the sketch because I liked how it messed with my colours-

I paint OVER the artwork, realised my sloppy colouring makes the bottom part stand out so I add a shadow trying to adjust for this, decided I needed the artwork to be 100x more vibrant so I upped the contrast a bajillion times..

Then the rest was just shit i painted over:

I didn't even have lineart for the angel dress.. Check out this freak shit:

Have fun guessing what part of my artwork is what now,,,

[the-moonjay-forest-system]

Rating plushie dreadfuls plushies

Part one: The ones we have:

Dissociative identity disorder

Our rating: 8/10

•The first member of our collection, a Christmas gift from my qpp. It being a gift from somebody to show support of our system definitely adds even more value to it for me.

•their name is Astaroth btw

• so soft!!!

•I like how their colour pallete is likely inspired from the DID flag (the white, orange and black one)

•the bunnies in the ear is, in my opinion, a great way to portray alters in the design! While being seperate in a way they all belong to the same vessel. I personally prefer this over to it like having two heads or a half and half kind of thing (like having two seperate expressions on it's face or being split with two colours)

•the face is perfect, I think it displays dissociation beautifully.

•I don't know exactly what the rabbit shape on the forehead represents but it looks nice. I'm also not overly familiar with the symbols on the belly.

•it is a bit on the plainer side compared to some of the other plushies, it doesn't bother me too much though. But perhaps it could be made better with some more details.

Maladaptive daydreaming

Our rating: 10/10

•one of (if not) our favourite buns from plushy dreadfuls. Bought it for ourselves when it was on sale I think? We still haven't settled on a name for them so if you have any suggestions please share!

•The colours!!! Omg they are the epitome of daydreaming and I love how (at least I think) each maladaptive daydreaming bunny will look slightly different, ours has a mostly blue and green belly compared to the yellow shown above.

•the stars in the ears are also such a lovely touch and gives the bunny "space cadet" vibes. I also like the sleep mask and how it looks literally sewn onto the face which portrays how hard it is to get out of or stop a daydream when you struggle with maladaptive daydreaming.

•I don't know what the symbols on the feet and belly mean, I'm sure I can find them somewhere maybe even the official site but I am indeed lazy. Same with the purple bands on the hands and feet..maybe they're supposed to be like restraints trapping us in our daydreams??

•on several reviews I've seen people mention not partocularly liking the texture of the bunny, it does have a rougher, less soft slightly scratchy texture so I thought I'd mention it here. Personally I don't find it too bothering but I get why others might. The feet and tail are soft though.

Cancer ♋ (zodiac sign)

Our rating: 9/10

•this is actually a birthday present for our younger brother who loved the two Buns we have so we decided to get him his own. It arrived a few days ago and we've only briefly looked at it to check it was in good condition but omg it's so cute and so soft!!

•while not being my favourite colours I can't freaking resist a pink and blue colour combo they just belong together.

•just look at the crab, need I say more? I love when the plushies come with other plushies.

•I might have to steal it from him after his birthday/j

•you can't see them but on the back of the ears there are crescent moons

•it's the softets thing ever!!!! Like heavenly soft!

Part two will be the ones we want/apply to us which will be much longer since there's a lot. Feel free to use this idea and rate your own if you'd like

[wangxianficfinder]

suppose i were to make a rec account (not tryna steal ur job u guys r awesome, i just read a lot of fics, and its fun) what are the things i should be prepared for

Hm, let's say you want to make just a "simple" one where you rec by sharing links from ao3. An example of how that would look would be like those ao3-feed blogs or @tgcf-fic, no graphics added in them.

I think it's very important to decide your tagging system. Do you want to keep it simple or do you want your tags to be more detailed? The amount of tags will be how much work you'll do.

If you wish to be a similar rec blog as this one you'll need to be prepared that it might start slow. This one had a head start from the parent blog @wangxianficrecs where all this began so it became active very fast so it isn't very comparable on that point if you start from the very beginning.

Also if you set up a queue be prepared it might run out at some point xD

~Mod L

---

I think you should also decide if you are only going to rec for a single ship or multi ships? Only G-T rated fics or Mature and Explicit too? Will it be self-recs or follower recs?

Also you should decide what kind of fics you won't rec, for instance, let's say someone rec'd a ship/kink you don't read or a fic with certain themes you dislike, will you still rec it?

Setting a limit/line that you won't cross will be very helpful for followers to know what kind of fics to expect from you.

Personally, I find giving summaries, warnings and mentioning things that can be considered triggering but aren't tagged, is very helpful. People are more likely to read a fic if they know what to expect from it.

Lastly, listen to your followers, if they mention multiple times that something isn't working or make a suggestion, take it into consideration and see if you can change/add it. If it doesn't work, then change it back. Sometimes followers are able to see things we can't or have an idea we wouldn't have normally thought about.

Good luck with your blog! 🧡

- Mod C

[everybuddiewantssome]

Writer Interview!

Tagged by @aintgonnatakethis 💙💙💙

About me

When did you start writing?

I mean. Of course I did writing projects in high school but as far as personal stuff (aka my fics) I was 20

Are there different genres or themes you enjoy reading other than the ones you write?

I mean, sure! I got nothing specific off the top of my head but considering my writing spectrum isn't spectacularly broad, I've been sure to have read something outside of my writing topics

Is there an author you want to emulate or are compared to often?

I've never been one to try to copy others. I admire a ton of y'all and wish I could do better at that in some aspects, but I'm not about to take the words off anyone else's paper so to speak

Can you tell me a little about your writing space?

Generally me, my laptop, on my bed. Some kind of music playing. Generally one of my fandom playlists and most commonly on the weekends

What's your most effective way to muster up a muse?

I honestly... do not have an answer for that. It's a delicate daydream most of the time I guess. My delicate I mean fleeting. I can lose the plot

Did the place(s) you grew up in influence the people and/or places you write

Well I mean technically my mother did get me into the show I wrote my first fic for but as far as where I've taken some of those? Gotta say no

Are there any reoccurring themes in your writing? If so, do they surprise you?

I am a sucker for h/c in any form (emotional, sickfic, injury, etc). Which I mean. Isn't an entire shocker, considering what I've been interested in television and story wise. It's not all my fics but it's around.

About My Characters

Would you please tell me about your current favourite character?

I don't know much about the characters that are consuming much of my brain right now so we won't get into that. So let's talk about Sara Sidle (and Nick Stokes). They have such a beautiful sibling dynamic (and there's a ton of shippers out there who are totally valid I see you). Anyway I've talked about Nick in detail (here). But Sara. She's far from my favourite character on the show but she is a character I've particularly enjoyed writing (especially with him). I have the same vibe with Chloe from Smallville. Very fun to write, not my fave to watch in the first half (and this rewatch I'm currently on hasn't helped)

Which of your characters would you be friends with in real life?

Welp I don't have ocs really so I'm gonna say Sam Carter. I'll join the shopping trips with her and Vala. (I got stuck on this one ok. But she is very sweet I love her we could be friends)

Which of your characters would you dislike the most if you met them?

Rodney McKay. More than likely.

Tell me about the process of coming up with characters.

Again, not an oc girly. But if I do add a side character to a story, it's always one that's connected to a canon character in some way (child, long lost friend, kid they mentored)

Do you notice any recurring traits/themes in your characters?

Nothing specific, no. I don't think so

How do you picture your characters?

My loves, my babies, my besties, my friends. I love these silly guys

About My Writing

What's your reason for writing?

It's a hobby, something I enjoy. I decided to start writing the random daydream csi fic one day and haven't turned back

Is there any specific comment or type of comment from readers that you find particularly motivating?

Honestly? Anything positive. Any joy y'all have in reading is joy I take into writing more. Especially with this long sga project I took on. Some days I'm like this is a massive hole I dug and then there's even a "great update" and I'm like thank you thank you thank you

How do want to be thought about by your readers?

I'm just trying my best out there, I hope people enjoy what I write. And I'm open to chatting do come by we can talk we can be friends!

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

I think I never lose the essence of the character. I'll always take pride in my characterization skills

Have you been told your greatest strength as a writer by others?

I do remember a couple comments about good poignancy in particularly emotional moments. Which I will definitely take. I do love those scenes and the one in particular is one of my proudest

How do you feel about your own writing?

I love it. Some of it's bad, cringey even. But I am not immune to rereading and thoroughly enjoying my own work

If you were the last person on earth, would you still write?

It's a strong possibility. It'd be a way to keep entertained. And as I said. Will reread.

When you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, do you write purely for yourself, or is it a mix of both?

I mean it's mostly me, I can't lie. But I have done a couple requests. I'm not actively seeking them but it's been fun when I have. But not to sound like a broken record, rereads! I stick to where I'm comfortable and what I'm comfortable putting out there from me for people to see

Tagging @sga-owns-my-soul @hearteyesmcgarrett @ilkkawhat @jencsi @malcolm-reeds-pineapple and any other writers! Do tell if you wish! Consider me your interviewer!

(PS sorry to snag this but there's a handy template for either mobile or desktop here at the end)

[deadgirlwalking91]

Tehe…TOTALLY not kicking my feet at your response to my ask! 🤭 By all means, please divulge the part two! It’s great hearing about your experience writing tyftv, and I love your thought process behind everything! I do want to say that I definitely agree with the avenue you took on Adam and his mask. While Viv showing his face during his death scene makes sense (it would feel kind of weird if he died in his mask), the emotional shift in the scene is potent. The smile IS subtle, but it adds a new degree of contextualization to his relationship with Lute…which, I would say, changes HIS character the most in the season. I hope that such an emotionally charged detail isn’t just part of a vehicle for a future Lute plot alone, but that’s going into S2 theory territory and is something we could talk about over DMs if you’re interested. I love to speculate on what the intentions were in the portrayal of Adam’s death. I have a whole list of ideas/details pointing towards sinner Adam, too…😉

ANYWAY, I would love to hear more about your writing/thought process with Adam’s unmasking. Actually, I already have a question about that: how did you decide when to do the reveal? I thought the pacing with that was perfect, but how’d you settle on it exactly? Slow burns are tricky! ❤️

Ahhhh no stop I'm seriously kicking my feet over this ask! 🥹 I freaking love questions like this, probably because they're a bit rarer compared some of the other questions I get asked (which I also really love!)

You're right; having Adam die in the mask would have just been underwhelming. Revealing his actual face meant he died with a little humility. I think I can speak on behalf of a lot of the other Guitarspear shippers that I have chatted with when I say that the smile made us stop and go, "whoa, hang on. There's something there between Adam and Lute."

I would love to chat to you over dm's! Either tumblr or, if you have it, Discord as I keep tabs on that more (plus tumblr messaging sucks lol). If you wanna hit me up on Discord, user name is same as on here 😊 God, I love a good Sinner Adam theory, too.

So, as for the unmasking: I wrote a very rough first draft of it months ago, like I'm talking back in...May, maybe? And it was wildly different in the sense that there wasn't this emotionally charged conversation that happened right before it; nor did Lute have this moment of clarity that sparked that whole exchange. It was really just Lute taking the mask off Adam and falling in love with what she saw underneath.

I think what I really loved about how it ended up turning out was that while it was driven by Lute deciding she'd had enough of their back-and-forth, it was Adam who initiated taking off the mask. It was a massive moment of growth for him, even though there was every possibility Lute could have rejected him (which of course she wouldn't have, because she was already deep in her feelings by this point. She fell for him despite the mask). So, a huge thing for a dude who had grown bored and complacent with everything in his life up until that point.

In terms of the timeline for the reveal, I actually was initially going to have it happen on the very last night. But, that to me seemed kind of unrealistic, especially because this incredibly charged encounter had just happened in the bathroom that pushed them both to that point of no return. So, I moved it up to the second last night, which then meant they had one night to spend together with Adam totally unmasked.

(Speaking of that bathroom scene, I had that planned for months, too. I always wanted Lute to have her moment, especially when Adam had been leading a lot of the more intimate/sexually charged interactions between them. Our girl ain't no wallflower; she knows what she wants)

It was kind of the same with the sex that followed, too. I wanted to write the most feral, frenzied, 'can't keep my hands off you' smut that my mind could conjure up, but again, I didn't want to cheapen this emotional exchange that happened moment before, and I think heading in that direction wouldn't have had the same impact as where I ended up taking it. So, I went down (well, what I hope translated as, anyway) the more emotional but still passionate route.

I am so sorry for the essay again 😂 but genuinely, please feel free to DM me, I would love to chat.

Oh! And speaking of the unmasking scene, there is no way I could possibly talk about it without dropping this incredible fanart that @a-spacecat made of it! I find myself going back and staring at it sometimes when I need a little writing motivation/pick me up 😊