#do you all even want stories now?? or do you just want instant gratification without any character buildup whatsoever?

[wondrousmay]

People are now saying Frieren’s current Mage Exam arc is “a filler arc”?! 😭 What are y’all’s obsession with calling everything “filler” nowadays??? We literally got a scene of Himmel saying that enjoying trivial adventures is a part of being an adventurer.

Because before you know it, the adventure will end and you won’t get the chance to enjoy things with your friends anymore. Frieren’s journey is about learning to enjoy the present and not to be too focused on the end goal.

[slow-writer]

TMAGP (and TMA, indirectly) Spoilers and Thoughts...

You have been warned...

I wasn't part of the original TMA crowd back when it was first airing. I'd heard mutterings of it, but never really thought much about it. To be honest, I probably wasn't mentally ready for it back then. Instead, my younger sister started listening to it last year and then kept talking about it until something she said made me go, "Y'know what? Okay. I'm in."

I ended up bingeing through it during work this past October, and holy sh*t. I fell down the rabbit hole hard. (Maybe, in this case, it would be more akin to running face first down those coffin stairs? I digress.) Being so new to it when everyone else had already been swallowed up by the sky, it was cool to dig into the Wikis that had already been made, to see the links and foreshadowing.

But now, it's the beginning of TMAGP, and I actually get to listen the day they release, to jump on here, or reddit, or tiktok, or wherever to be a part of the theorizing AS IT HAPPENS. And boy oh boy, I'm happier than Simon Fairchild in the stratosphere.

Do I have a notebook to jot down my thoughts as I listen? Of course, I do. Do I have multiple tabs open, some with ARG info, some with TMA info, and yet more with references to alchemical symbols and practices? Duh. Have I started my own spreadsheet for it all? Well, if you knew about my Lego Dimensions spreadsheet.... nevermind. Yes, I have.

But nothing beats being able to talk (or type) about it with other fans, like my sister, or those faceless avatars (lol) of the interwebs. And man, has my brain been CHURNING.

First, let me get out of the way that I wasn't able to take part in the ARG as it was happening, and my goodness! I'm so happy there are other people out there like me who were able to sum up and load it up for the rest of us to learn about. No idea how much of it will be *necessary* to unlock all the secrets, but I'm the kind who loves to know trivia just cos. And the details I am learning definitely pull me deeper.

Second, I feel like in the beginning of TMA, there was barely anything for the listeners to dig through. One guy working on behalf of an organization, trying to dig through seemingly implausible and overly spooktastic first-hand statements dating back centuries that are in crazy disarray from the previous archivist, and he's laying on a hefty helping of "this is utter balderdash, complete poppycock, and absolute piffle" opinion. It was a slow burn, something that (as an American, and being exposed to so much more instant gratification in storytelling than necessary) UK storytellers seem to be experts in, and was even more expertly done in this case, since so many little things had to eventually build up without listeners automatically assuming what would happen next, without them getting bored.

But TMAGP is already so full of so much extra stuff, so many little things (even before it was released) that we may all get BURIED in the sheer amount of data we think is vital. We're not listening to tapes this time, we're definitely listening via internet-connected devices, like computers, mobile phones, and security cameras. So, while TMA had old tape recorders magically appearing (or were they being dragged by hordes of spiders?) and switching themselves on so they could hear all the random happenings within the archive, TMAGP is no longer reliant on such hand-wavery. Whatever/whoever is listening can do so from anywhere to anyone they want. That makes the world of TMAGP

SO MUCH BIGGER.

Third, I know not everyone who listens to these things is like me (or, let's face it: us--there are so many fans doing regular deep dives on here, we should have our own categorization on the wiki). There are bound to be listeners who just leave everything at face value and wait for the story to unfold itself organically, and when it's done, it's done. But even as an adolescent, when I got into something, I did my best to listen to, watch, or read everything I could find on that very niche thing. At least for a while. (Hello, undiagnosed ADHD!)

So, I watched/listened to a couple interviews and Q&As regarding the new show prior to release. And while both Alex and Jonny have been clear saying you don't have to have listened to TMA to enjoy TMAGP, I kind of think just saying that is leading us TMA fans in a very specific direction. And I think it's very intentional, and that a lot of fans either haven't heard about it yet, or are choosing to ignore it.

They say that TMAGP is tangentially related to TMA in that there will be familiar themes, but

it's taking place in a completely different universe from TMA;

time in TMA worked differently (especially during the Entity Torturepalooza in S5) towards the end, so dates of events there may not line up with dates or events in this universe; and

the main or overarching theme is different.

In TMA, the story was "what makes a monster a monster?" As in, is there a line one crosses that they can't return from? Is it a physical manifestation, like it alters their appearance? Is it an action they have to take? And does that action have to be done willingly, or can it be coerced? Does becoming the monster to protect someone else, or to achieve a greater good... does any of that matter?

In TMAGP, they've already said that the story will be "what makes a person a person?"

The implications of that sentence are many and mind-boggling.

I first thought it had something to do with the idea of the humane (not human): kindness, empathy, compassion. The ties that bind us together as people (like being fans of a little horror podcast from across the pond) could be part of this.

But, now that we have 5 episodes out, and a metaphorical army of lore-deep-divers digging through every word and sound effect and episode title, I think we can truly start to figure out where we're heading.

Artificial Intelligence.

It struck me as I was re-listening to the first episode this morning. (I really am trying to fill out my spreadsheet in a semi-logical manner and with as many pertinent details as possible, really. That's the main reason I was doing that this morning. At least, that's what I tell myself.) We are hearing all these happenings over web-connected devices (don't think I don't see you, Alex and Jonny, and your oh-so-hilarious punning!), the OIAR employees are working on a modified business-forward version of Windows NT 4.0 that precedes Windows 95 that has a name that we interpret as 'Freddy' (or Freddie, depending on where you are in the transcripts), one of the documents from the ARG was a spreadsheet called 'Klaus' (which IS the name of the former IT guy Gwen's asking about because she heard/saw young Lena arguing with him), and we have at least 3 text-to-speech "voices" that Alice has given names (Chester, Norris, and Augustus).

All of that was running through my brain, and then I heard this passage within the first few minutes of the episode:

LENA - Nonsense. Sam is the only one who has had any cake so far. GWEN - And that was only because you practically forced it down his throat. SAM - No, no, it was… nice. LENA - People like chocolate cake.

People like chocolate cake? She didn't even ask her employees (all 5 of them at that time) what flavor they'd prefer, or if they'd want something else? No. She just knows a fact that "people" like chocolate cake, so of course, her employees--who are people--would like chocolate cake.

Almost like a computer following a logic-based workflow, perhaps?

Lots of people have been trying to figure out who in the office is the Big Bad, and many are saying Gwen just because of her ambition and her last name (Bouchard), but I think her name is a red herring. Others are saying Alice knows more than she lets on (and so many are hating on her, and I will NOT ABIDE THE ALICE DYER SHADE because I love her and I would very probably hide bodies for her) but I agree that certain things she's said are a little sus, though they really could just be her personality. I really have known some women like her, and they are some of my favorite people. (Plus, the fact that we now know that she's the most tenured employee at the OIAR--save possibly Lena--does make the brain churn some more.)

But with this line about chocolate cake, and how she was unable to join them at the pub, and how we haven't had a scene with her outside of the OIAR office, it makes me think that Lena might just be part code.

[Let me also add this really quick: I've seen A LOT of people trying to make the current episodes fit into Smirke's 14 +Dekker's 1, but I don't think the Entities as we codified them are what we're dealing with in this universe. I think trying to link everything back to that show will be a lot of wasted thought, because as they said, this isn't a direct sequel. (Do I think it's actually Jon, Martin, and Jonah--yes, Jonah, not Jurgen--trapped in the computer system? A bit, but it won't shatter my appreciation if the voices are something else entirely.)

Plus, I've seen others saying that the statements we've heard, while creepy, aren't all necessarily to do with fear. Most of them are about desires and obsessions.

The woman who wanted so desperately to see her dead husband again that she'd get scammed over and over to possibly resurrect him;

the person who wanted to spelunk an 'unsolved' site to the point of crime;

the woman who wanted to finally feel comfortable in her skin to the point of disfiguring herself;

the man who wanted so badly to climb out of his assigned station and achieve fame that he'd regularly 'feed' his violin blood from other people;

and the man who wanted to feel the same terror he felt when watching scary movies with his dad when he was a kid to the point of chasing down 'borderline illegal films' and ignoring LITERALLY ALL the red flags to the end.

I think that theory is the closest to what we may actually encounter.]

I've seen others on reddit saying they think that this series will be about the race to create the philosopher's stone--the stone that creates the elixir of life and, essentially, immortality. I think it's a valid idea. But, what if it went further than that?

Because with all the alchemical hints dropping in the show's logo, the ARG, and the 3-category system to the statements (yes, I'm keeping track) that could make one think of the spirit, the mind, and the body in alchemy....

What if they're trying to create life from software?

What if these entities or desires or whatevers have been working through some ancient busted code, feeding off statements from "real" humans experiencing strong emotions, watching the employees that work with it every single night, so they can create something as close to a human as possible from just wires and 3 decades of unreadable code?

Oh lord... it just occurred to me that--due to this being a HORROR podcast--they might need to collect a skin suit for the Not Quite Human. Is that what happened to Klaus? Ick. And now I'm hoping I'm wrong.

[pepperwebsblog]

Some reflections of mine.....

Why write the entire fic and wait to post, rather than posting chapter by Chapter?

It’s  a very good question and until Love Letters, the way I worked was to post chapter by chapter as I wrote fics. Sometimes I wrote with one chapter in hand. But I always did a serial format.

I did always plan my entire fics out chapter by chapter so I knew what I was covering and where I wanted the fic to end, so I was following a loose structure. But yeah I would write a chapter and pretty immediately post it.

I did like this way of doing things, it allows for that instant gratification which is great cos you get that instant feedback on your work.

But for Love Letters, it was a complex narrative with actual letters appearing not in chronological order. So whilst I always plan out my fics, this one needed to hang together beginning to end so I was not confident posting chapter by chapter in case I missed some detail I needed to go back and fix in chapter 1.

This meant it was about 10 weeks of work with very little feedback. And I will say having @xuxudio on hand as a brilliant friend to cheer me on was invaluable here, it was a hard slog to complete the fic with only myself having read the whole thing in entirety. But it made for a much higher quality fic in my opinion, I think the story hangs together better. This fic has had WAY more edit read-throughs than my others and so grammatically and spelling-wise it is better at the very least.

Also reflecting on things, it just works so much better for me in my stage of life now. I have reached a stage in my career where I am a senior manager and work demands a lot from me which is tiring but because I really enjoy my job it's very fulfilling.  Also balancing work with the rest of life's demands, seeing family and friends, volunteer work, exercise, and all the general adult stuff as well. I only get free time to write at the weekends and a few evenings in the week and not too late as I need to be well rested for work. So having something that I can pick up and put back down without any worries of sticking to an upload schedule or of letting readers down is helpful for me. I can work on the fic until it's done and then post regularly at a time that suits me because I have the fic written and ready to go.

And yeah, I think ultimately I prefer this way of writing now. And hopefully the audience appreciate it too as they know it's a complete fic and they're going to get something they know is finished which I think is very satisfying.

So yeah, that's why I have shifted this year to writing fics in this way. It might change again in the future but for now it's the right thing for me.

And why post chapter by chapter if the whole fic is written?

Because this gives me breathing space to write the next fic!

And it allows for the story to build, hopefully it's fun for the readers too, to keep coming back each week for the next chapter. It gives the story momentum and allows for more interaction between me and the readers.

And, being completely honest really honest, posting chapter by chapter keeps my fic at the top of the various tag lists on Ao3, as it's default ordering is by most recent. This means more people see my work and have the opportunity to read it. I'm not solely about hits and kudos but those are nice recognitions of my work.

I dont owe anyone an explanation but felt like providing one, thanks for reading!

[songbird-is-crying]

Good Omens 2 may have wrecked my heart and soul and I may not recover until season 3 is released but believe me when I tell you it DELIVERED. I am a sucker for a good confrontation in a love story, and but I (personally) so rarely find them. It is a miscommunication trope, but it’s just a lack of understanding and innate differences in character that are keeping them apart!! rather than someone overhearing something and getting the wrong idea (looking at you, Shrek and the Fiona Sunflower scene). But when it is derived from programmed ideals and nurtured habits and beliefs it is so interesting when they conflict, i mean…

Do y’all understand how narratively SATISFYING it will be when aziraphale and crowley come together in the end and learn how to be with each other?? Just be?? The catharsis we will all experience because these two motherfuckers will have gone through the abyss or the bottomless pit or whatever the rock bottom stage is called in the hero’s journey only to come out of it?? And still choose to love each other?? Do you know how strong their love has got to be to pull that off??

Because this show is all about how love wins. LOVE WINS!! Not in some low effort, poor design quality slogan to grab your attention as well as your wallet in a target pride merch section, but in a real sense that love conquers all. Ok, that is still cheesy, but it really does!! The lengths that people go for each other because they love, it can’t be beat!! Like, the fact that Crowley’s and Aziraphale’s Miracle Magic Time is strongest when they work together because they are in LOOVVEEE. Good Omens is not about choosing a side and fighting to the death for loyalty’s sake, it’s about loving someone to the extreme that you will go to any lengths for them, fight to protect them, care for them, want to make the world better for them!! That is a force that cannot be beaten because love refuses to bow to anything!!Because love is bloodthirsty and raw and domestic and charming, and the breakup basically guarantees that we WILL see this force in action because we already KNOW their love is strong and deep enough to withstand this…

GIRL…

When these two come together in the end, I will fall to my knees in worship and make a god out of Neil Gaiman Himself because they will have earned it, because they will have come to a better understanding of themselves and be prepared to love without hesitation and without barriers. And it will be so beautiful.

Can you honestly sacrifice this future just for the instant gratification of them getting together at the end of season 2?? Can you look me in the eye and tell me that you prefer them living in unresolved, nonverbal ignorance because you’re too afraid of making them face their fears of being alone and being without purpose first??

Season 1 made me realize my personal philosophy on the nature of humanity and choice and sides, but now I really see that it’s about choosing to be on the side of what you love, and how that loyalty is the only true thing and the universe.

(But before you think “well, Crowley was ready to give up everything and love Aziraphale, but Aziraphale chose not to be on his side and love him” you forget that Aziraphale wants to fix the system to be fair to people like Crowley because he loves him and believes him to be the most “good” out of anyone he’s met, even himself! He loves him so much he wants to fix the world for him, and he did what he thought was right by not wavering and committing to his mission, even if that meant losing him!!)

God, I love this show so much. The book, the radio, my precious vinyl records of the soundtrack (love you David Arnold, muah), and even the graphic novel I will never see for at least a year, it’s just all so incredibly important to me. Good Omens has helped me realize what I truly believe in and has really influenced my outlook on life. And wow that is cheesy, but it’s ok that this show makes me insane, how it makes me ramble on tumblr at midnight because of the appreciation it has given me for the world around me, because I feel so much love doing so.

I wish I could express everything this show has made me feel. But my feelings are simply ineffable.

I LOVE LOVE!! I LOVE LIFE!! I LOVE EVERYTHING!! THE WORLD IS GOOD AND KIND BECAUSE WE HAVE PEOPLE AND THINGS AND PASSIONS TO CARE ABOUT!!!

[lowlights]

Dieter Bravo Thots

Warnings: VERY explicit. Established relationship. PinV sex, lots of talk of toys, plugs, Dieter being a bi king, cumplay I guess, just....so much filth, ok? Don't look at me. Talk of praise and aftercare.

Apologies for attacking @flora-screeches, @tuskens-mando, and @ezrasbirdie (who helped me add to the story) with this.

--

I think being in a relationship with Dieter would be super fun. And by fun, I mean hot AF. 

-I think Dieter would love toys. Toys for you, toys for him- definitely toys to use together. He likes when you surprise him by bringing home something new. He strikes me as the kind of guy who would look at you with hearts in his eyes and suggest that you both wear your plugs today. Your plugs match; it’s very cute. 

-For someone that lives for instant gratification, Dieter sure does like edging an awful lot. That’s why he likes wearing the plug during the day- he likes to feel full and see how close he can get to the precipice without actually tumbling over. A few years ago, he had a series of private lessons with a tantric sex coach where he was a quick and eager student. They definitely fucked at the end of the week. It lasted hours. 

-Dieter loved finding out what toys you used before him. He still likes to use one of your dildos on you, the glass one with the ridges that make you feel fantastic. He likes to get up close and watch the dildo move in and out of you. He likes watching you stretch to accommodate it, and especially likes the little sounds you make while he does it. It’s a lot to take with your plug in, so he goes nice and slow. 

-Before he lets you come, he removes the dildo and finally gives you his cock. You babble about how good it is and about how you want more. Dieter likes to feel full, but Dieter LOVES to make you feel full. So he lets you suck on the dildo while he fucks you, a slow in and out with the occasional snap of his hips. He likes to thrust unhurriedly because it makes his own plug feel amazing. The sounds he makes are absolutely obscene as he comes apart piece by piece. 

-He likes to see how you take the dildo in your mouth. You were a little ashamed about the noise you made the first time you sucked on something covered in your own juices, worried it was too depraved. “If you like it, why feel bad about it?” he asked you one day. You never felt ashamed again. So sometimes you feel like sucking on just the tip of it, and other times, like now, you like to suck on it almost to the point of activating your gag reflex. Arousal and your own saliva drip down your chin. “I know you love coming with a mouth full of cock. So do I, babygirl,” he murmurs to you. 

-Dieter is a very attentive lover- you are coming before he does if that’s what you want. Tonight, you do, crying out around the dildo. But you really want him to come, and he wants to fill you up even more. He fucks into you as he comes, pulling out before he fully softens inside of you and immediately plugging you up with his fingers. You’re on birth control, there will be no baby. But he just wants to know that you are absolutely filled to the brim with him. 

-After, Dieter is king of aftercare. He likes to live luxuriously (even if he doesn’t always look it) and he’s removing all the toys, cleaning you, and wrapping you up with him in the softest blanket. He’s going to praise you and tell you how good you did taking all of him. You’re doing to ask if next time he wants the strap or the double-ended dildo. He says both, of course. 

[shadowmaat]

Don't

My two bits on the whole "feeding fics to the Algorithm to get the ending/play with AUs/have it go the way I want:"

As far as I'm concerned it's a massive insult to the author. Like, offensive levels of insult. I don't care if you don't post it, it's still rude as hell. You want to play with the ideas on your own in the privacy of your own headspace? Fine. But you can't even be assed to do that and just want an algorithm to regurgitate garbage for you so you can read it without putting in any thought or effort? Fuck you.

That level of laziness, that overwhelming sense of entitlement and sheer arrogance is so utterly repulsive I don't even want to put it into words. The whole "instant gratification" trend in society has already reached toxic levels where people have shifted from "I want this now" to "I deserve this now and will let nothing get in my way" and it's so sad and awful to see it playing out. The toxicity has reached new lows when even fic writers aren't safe from this kind of rancid behavior.

There have been plenty of posts already about how stories and pics and other creative efforts shouldn't be called "content," it should be called what it is: art. This trend toward algorithmically generated words and images strips all artistry away and reduces it to mere content. Bland. Generic. And yeah, based off stolen content. All those authors for all these years asserting that they aren't vending machines, and now there's a damn app for that.

There is no good excuse for stealing someone else's art and feeding it into a program to get the result YOU want. Use your own goddamn imagination, you apathetic slugs. Even if you don't think you have one, just fucking TRY. It'll still be better than using a damn algorithm.

[lazypanartist]

Happy Yule from me, here is a Christmas present to you, my friend! I hope the holidays are wonderful for you and you get plenty of time to rest and have fun this season. Normally I bake things for people during the season, but since I obvs cant for you, I've included a recipe I use when I'm low energy but want something nice.

(Note: I use a holiday in this called Candle Nights. Candle Nights is a winter celebratory holiday meant for everyone of all denominations.)

Enjoy the story, it's called "Make The Yuletide Gay".

- 📝 Nonnie

---

"-and normally I would totally bring just like, some chips or order us all pizzas, but this year Mikey wants to do something different, and like, wants us all to make something. Like, MAKE make it. Which I guess works for everyone else but like…"

"You hate cooking." You stated bluntly. "Probably because you hate how tedious it is sometimes and lack patience because you prefer instant gratification. Which is utterly fair, it takes a lot of effort and time to cook sometimes." 

You stirred your peppermint mocha with a homemade vanilla biscotti while Leonardo pointedly sipped his sugar cookie latte, not looking at you. The two of you sat in your small dining room, the coffees picked by you when he claimed to be having an emergency and needed your help.

You think he would make up every excuse in the world to come visit you, honestly, but you didn't need them. He was welcome any time. Even though he could just portal chop his way in, you always left the window unlocked for him.

"Okay, so, maybe. Yeah. Anyways, I was like, sure, y'know? But then Mikey I guess remembered that I have a shakey history with cooking and he was like 'Oh uh you're fine to just help clean or something.'," Leo crossed his arms while ranting. 

"-...Which like Ow but fair but then Fivehead had to go and say he didn't want food poisoning like when we held Candle Nights like 3 years ago from my cooking, which like??? It's been three years, get over it?" He rolled his eyes, fiddling with and idly braiding his mask tails like hair. "Still, I was like 'what no I am SO gonna make something shut up' and Don said it would be inedible and all this is to say please please PLEASE help me make something for the dinner I want to prove I can cook."

He was actively now on his knees begging you, hands grabbing your pant leg as he gave the biggest puppy dog eyes he could.

"But you objectively hate it." You pointed out calmly. "Come on, don't dirty your knees like that, get up.

Leonardo whined and stuffed a biscotti in his mouth, flopping backwards against your armchair while throwing his hands in the air. "I KNOW!! I mean, I'm getting better, but fruit salad and scrambled eggs on toast won't cut it."

"I like your scrambled eggs. Especially now that you learned how seasoning works. You make them spicy without just drowning them in Louisiana hot sauce." You took a long sip of your coffee.

"I just..! I dunno. I gotta show them I can do this!! Besides, I kinda…really want to make something, y'know? Not just to make Dee 'Eateth Thy Words' but…I don't know…"

"It would be nice to have them appreciate something you made for them to enjoy?" Plucking up a cookie, you snacked while listening. 

"Yes!!" the terrapin snapped his fingers and pointed at you. "Nailed it!! Jupiter Jim's got nothing on your brains, babycakes!!"

That made you roll your eyes before you nibbled on the pastry in hand. "So, why come to me?"

The slider sat up more, giving you a look before motioning to your cookies that you had laid out for the talk. Thumbprint with homemade orange marmalade.

"I don't just call you babycakes because you have some nice buns."

"Fair, fair," you shrugged, "I suppose I could teach you, but…"

"But..?"

Your eyes trailed over to your kitchen, pondering. "What course are you doing?" You hope it wasn't the main dish. You don't have any whole chickens or, like, a pot roast. Or the time to get it, prepare and cook one.

"Wellll…Mikey wanted appetizers, Donatello is working on greens, Raph has sides, Pops has the main course, and April demanded to do her pumpkin carrot ginger soup. So I got left with dessert. Mikey was gonna do it too but I sorta…strong armed him to at least get that."

You thought quietly for a moment before getting up. "You listen to my instructions, and follow them well, okay? When are you holding it?"

"...in like three hours…"

You turned and narrowed your eyes. "Grab an apron and wash your hands with hot water up to your elbows. We're making a Cheater Cherry Chocolate Cake."

Your boyfriend saluted you before scurrying to do just that.

–

"Okay, so, what all do we need? Flour, cocoa…sugar…ugh, it's gonna suck measuring all this…"

You huffed and scooted the red eared slider out of your way and closed the cabinet he was staring into with disdain. "Yeah. Which is why we won't."

The terrapin watched you walk over to the pantry and open it, rooting in the storage before a few things were tossed his way, making him juggle the objects and set them on the counter before looking at what he caught.

"Wait…Box mix? No, Angelo will taste it-"

"Oh, no he won't," you grumbled, "no one ever really does, and they tend to prefer it, taste wise. Besides, that is the exact base used in the nicest bakeries of New York. They all do it, it's dumb to think it's inferior. It's a nice three dollar box mix compared to the 20-ish dollars worth of groceries you won't use regularly. And anyways," you shrugged, "this takes the tedium out of it all. I'm gonna teach you how to make a cake you won't feel is a hassle, then you can make it whenever."

The ninja's eyes widened a bit, staring at you full of wonder and warmth. "I love you."

"You don't get one back until you have this cake in the oven." You snapped your fingers twice and pointed to the box. "Go on, get the mix and pour it in the bowl. I'll grab what we need from the fridge. I'll instruct and get stuff but I'm not touching the cake so you can make it all by yourself for bragging rights."

Quickly he did as asked before looking at the back. "Follow along with the box, right? I need oil, water-"

"Mh? Oh no. Fuck that." You walked over with milk, butter and eggs. "Equal amounts of melted butter to oil. The sticks are pre-marked, so since that says a third cup of oil, do butter and pop it in the microwave for like, 10 second intervals until it's liquid gold."

Leo snorted and did as you said, pulling out the melted butter not long after and setting it aside, waiting for your instructions.

"Nice. Don't pour it in yet, it has to be done a certain way. Now, instead of a cup of water we use milk, and then whatever number of eggs are said on the box, we add one more. Set 'em aside and put the cold stuffs back. I'll grab our secret ingredient."

You meandered over to a cupboard over your coffee maker and began to rifle through.

"What is it? Tomato soup or something?"

"Eh, no. Not for this. You can, but sometimes the soups are seasoned so you gotta watch out for it and it's easier to use pureed tomatoes or just straight up juice. In any matter, no. It'll add more steps and then it's something you might not have anyway. Besides, there's a whole curdling issue and we don't want to mess with it and it's barely a secret if it's everywhere on TikTok. But!-" you leaned back, "I have an easier one for you."

The turtle watched as you grabbed two containers and walked over, setting one in front of him. "...Espresso powder?"

"Yup. One tablespoon and it kicks up the chocolate flavor like nuts. But, y'know, it's hella expensive and hard to get sometimes."

Your boyfriend winced and nodded.

"Wanna know what's infinitely cheaper, easier to get, and you have at the lair?"

"What?"

You set a small jar of instant coffee powder on top of the espresso. "It works just the same. One tablespoon, and it's basically just as good. Go ahead and toss that into the drys and mix."

After that, you greased the pan and checked to make sure the oven was preheated, "to whatever temp the box says," you instructed. Then you put the bowl in your stand mixer, watching as Leonardo first added the butter, waited a moment, then slowly poured the milk in thirds. Finally, he added each egg one at a time and let it run for twenty seconds before stopping.

"That's kinda…soupy."

"Yeah, you gotta trust the process. Mixing it more makes it more dense. Activates the glutens." You set two cans of cherry pie mix on the counter. "Now, dump those right in the pan. Mine is bigger, but it basically is just however much will cover the bottom of your baking pan. I just know that mine takes two."

After the filling coated the bottom and the cans scraped for excess goo, Leo poured in the mix and then threw it in the oven, setting the timer and looking to you for more instructions.

You shrugged. "Yeah that's it. If it were a tomato cake I'd start us on a frosting, but we don't need it with that because of the cherries. If you wanna make it pretty though, we can use powdered sugar on top once it's cooled. You can even make shapes with paper and make designs or patterns, but it's not necessary. Just let it bake until you can put a toothpick in and no batter sticks."

The ninja nodded and studied the oven for a moment, before his eyes widened.

"Holy shit. I just made a cake."

You snorted. "Yeah. Easy, right?"

"I. Geez. I don't feel annoyed or like my brain is melting."

"Good. That tells me it's not got so many steps that it drives you up a wall."

 

The mutant slowly smiled and cupped your cheeks, nuzzling your nose a bit in a cute way. "YOU… are the best date mate ever. Have I told you that?"

"No, but you can continue to do so while we dance to whatever that song is you've been looping this week and wait on this cake."

Your nose scrunched as he tugged you down into a quick kiss, muttering "It's Yellow Hearts by Ant Sanders" against your lips before pressing play on his phone and pulling you into a breezy, swirling dance.

–

"Thanks again baby."

You leaned against the counter, drying the mixing bowl and putting it up and away.

"Honestly it's no problem. I'll teach you how to make marmalade next time." You gave a small smile as Leo pecked you on the cheek goodbye, katanas already making a portal back to the lair. "Remember not to mess with it too much 'til dessert time. It should be cooled by then."

"Gotcha. You sure you…don't wanna come? I know April would be happy to see another human and Raph probably would like to talk to you about your little kaiju plushies."

You shook your head. "My grans are supposed to be back soon from their visit with my cousins soon. Should be like, in another hour. We'll probably get pasta somewhere knowing them. Now, go on, you still have to get all dressed up nice."

"Can I borrow one of your cool fancy looking shirts?"

"No. The last time you borrowed a shirt I got it back with a big rip down the side."

"Please? Pretty pretty please from the most incredible datemate ever??"

"...fine."

Leon fistpumped. "Awesome, I already stole one while you were doing the dishes. Alright, well, you're welcome whenever. Just say the word and your brave hero will come to your rescue~" 

You hummed at his preening. "Oh, thank you. My brave champion."

Your pet name made the terrapin flush and fiddle with his fingers a bit before giving a final, shy peck goodbye and leaving through the mystic gateway. You waved him off the whole time, and when he was gone, you sighed, a soft smile tugging at your lips. You began removing your apron, hanging it up before adjusting your poet blouse and heading to the living room to wait.

Your grandparents had gone on a vacation to visit your aunt and cousins in another country, and had been gone now for two weeks. You hadn't heard from them today, but, they were bad with tech and it wasn't surprising. Idly you yawned and turned on youtube, putting some toy refurbishment video on as background noise for the very quiet apartment.

One video became two, which became three, and then five. It was now very dark out, and you were still alone. Though, you WERE still texting Leon.

<Champ: Still nothing? Really?>

<Cutie Pie: Nothing. Dead quiet. Kinda freaking me out.>

<Cutie Pie: Candle Nights dinner going good?>

<Champ: NO. We're about to start. The dishes never got done because it basically got forgotten so it's been delayed and we're all getting a bit hangry.>

<Cutie Pie: Damn im sorry babes.>

Your phone began buzzing and you jolted, answering quickly. You were greeted by the voice of your grandfather, and after exhanging pleasantries, he got down to brass tacks.

"A…blizzard?"

Yes, apparently there were poor weather adviseries all over the place, and your grandma and grandpa were stuck for the next few days. Thankfully, they hadn't flown out yet so they could stay with your aunt, but…

"Yeah. No, I understand. I love you too, be safe."

You hung up with a sigh. Your phone buzzed and you glanced to see Leo had sent you a picture of the whole family. You smiled.

<Champ: Any news? You went silent for a while.>

You quietly began mulling over options before deciding to be honest and telling the mutant what happened.

<Champ: Oh shell.>

<Champ: Do you want me to come get you? Pops says you're always welcome and it's a lot of food. Raph made roasted garlic potatoes!>

<Champ: You shouldn't be alone on Candle Nights and I'd love to have you over.>

You smiled slightly.

<Cutie Pie: I'd like to, but I don't want to trouble you.>

<Champ: Oh please>

You heard the telltale Vworp of a portal opening nearby and looked up, shocked to see Leo leaning through it and waving you over. 

"It's no trouble, not when it's you. Now, come on. Don doesn't believe you didn't even touch the batter of the cake, Raph's getting you a drink and Mikey is putting together a plate for you. You GOTTA try the soup, I think this is April's best work yet."

Godd, I LOVE this! Domestic fluff always has me giggling, lmao. The recipe is great! And so is the tomato soup warning, lol.

Happy holidays to you as well, Nonnie! And to everyone else who reads this ^-^

[soldierpaladin]

I don't think people consider that the rise of streaming services not only creates subpar entertainment due to having to purchases subscriptions to a bunch of different services just to watch one or two shows; but that it also has created a heavy sense of isolation.

At its root, entertainment is meant to bring people together. Theatre has its root in satire, taking potshots at the powers that be in a way that makes them laugh without them realizing they're laughing at themselves. Movies began as experiments to see if it could be done, and then roadside novelties. Then movie theaters became a premiere place for cheap entertainment, news and cartoons during the Depression. At its root, movies and TV shows are meant to be enjoyed with other people.

More than that however, one of the unique aspects of television is the function of channels. Flipping through channels can be a very simple pleasure, seeing what other people are watching by virtue of having the same channels as you. Even if there is nothing on, there is still entertainment in looking to see. Streaming services break that and also have creating a binging culture that strips community away from people.

Compare the early 2000s, and even the early-mid 2010s. Consumers would rally around each other on online forums, at work, at home, with friends, etc to discuss the latest episode of their favorite shows. Now, of course, it could be said that people still do that but it's in a much more hostile format. Fandom lives and dies quicker now, only re-emerging when a new season comes out. Fans flock to each other like wreckage in a storm, whereas before consumers were allowed to enjoy the show over a set period of time. Shows would have season breaks, and would last 25-30 episodes. Now shows last for 8-13 episodes and everything has to be wrapped up by season's end.

Now, when I write this, I realize that individuals over 21 seem to remember this time but consider the young generations. This is the consumer culture they are being immersed in. This idea of needing to have plot threads completely wrapped up by season's end, shorter amount of episodes designed to isolate the individual in their room as they binge the entire season in one day. This is where more hostile fanbases find their root. Watching an episode a week allows fans to digest the media and come to their own conclusions. Consuming 9-10 hours of media in one setting creates this false sense of expertise, making fans of the show convinced they know better than each other.

All this to say, streaming services have drastically altered how we consume media and not in a good way. They have created a binge culture, as well as getting rid of channel based consumption of media, and gotten rid of video stores and a sense of community. Media consumption without community creates an undeserved sense of arrogance, ignorance and a longing for connection. People long for community, and the current corporate stranglehold on media as a whole have severed fans sense of connection with one another. This isn't even touching on the instant gratification culture that corporate heads push on the consumer, or the bleeding of creativity and culture vastly interconnected megastories such as the MCU suffer from, or the stress and rush that vfx artists, writers, and directors face due to the aforementioned instant gratification that is consistently pushed by the corporate CEOs that run the media in this country. Demand more from the media you consume, demand change from the norm and cry out for real creativity and real heart in stories again. Do not let the powers that be tell you what you should like, make sure they know what you want and what you need and don't stop until they are forced to change.

[gleefullypolin]

Same, same. Preparedness lets me relax into the story further than I would be able to otherwise. Our poor husbands, trying their best. I do remember he saw a spoiler of something he knew would bother me (character death) in a show we were both invested in and he came to find me immediately to try and gently let me know even though I had already seen it. He knows me so well by now. 😄

The marketing part of my brain I use for work gets and respects the month long break. It's smarter than dumping it all at once but we're used to instant gratification with a lot of streaming shows now. Bad business model in a lot of ways and weekly is probably best for long term engagement but I suppose we'll have to grin and bear the month long break while internally acting like feral gremlins to maintain some sort of sanity.

I have a hard time trusting show writers as well. The last handful of years has been a test in terrible writing far more than good writing. Writing fic though, yes. I do love a good cliffhanger and making everyone go through it because I know I will solve it all and make everyone happy in the end (or most people happy, the oddest comments I've always managed to get are from the people who decided how my fic should go before I'm done with it and get mad when my version doesn't match their vision). Conflict avoidance and storytelling do not go well hand in hand, that's for sure.

I about died trying to explain a pager. Felt my bones age and my life slipping away, ha.

Yeah, I think 2-4 is going to be a ton of growth for him but also watching Penelope with another man is going to throw him for a loop. It's probably going to eat him up tbh. I would imagine it happens before the biggest turns of ep 4 so by then he'd have to know just how deep he's gotten himself. If he's realized this and, this is pure speculation since we know so little about this ep as a whole, sees her upset with Obi Wan and she runs off at any time, there's no doubt in my mind he'd give chase immediately.

And he's not dumb, I don't know if he's going to put the LW thing together but if he does or he finds out by any other means, I think him being that deep in his feelings is probably very important, the way he was so so so angry in the books but also so worried about her. If the Queen is trying to go for her head, the man is not going to handle it well I'd assume. He didn't let up on the Jack stuff when it came to her as just friends so I think this would be much, much higher stakes.

My poor attention span. It's going to be burnt out after this I can tell. I don't dislike Benedict so I'll watch that one. Or if it's Fran and I get invested into her story, I'll happily watch that one. Eloise is going to have do a bit of work to get me there for hers I admit but if they pull it off, I'm more than happy to give them my view. But this level of investment? No. There's no way.

I say take what you can get where you can get it! All positive mental health effects are good ones no matter where they take place, ha.

100% agree! You and I are on the same page! I’m always saying to him “I saw something, but I don’t want to tell you, unless you want to know, ok I know you don’t want to know, I won’t tell you, should I tell you, Ok I won’t” and then he’s like OMG just tell me. I did manage to keep the entire plot of Blacklist from him for 4 years until we stopped watching it and I finally just told him how it ended after reading the whole plot of the final 2 seasons LMAO! He wouldn’t know what to do without me.

Yeah, streaming has ruined us. Everything is at our fingertips that we have forgotten what it was like to wait until 7pm on Thursday to see what happened after Ross kissed Rachel. No one has to tune in anymore. We just sit down and get fed the whole thing. I will both hate and love that month of build up between the 2 parts. I have OCD so I keep a spreadsheet of all the shows I watch and how many episodes I have seen, how many are left to air and what day they will next air on. It helps me not to lose track of what all I’m waiting to come back. I will be counting down the days the moment I have to put June 13th on that line.

I must agree we do not always get good writing. And even then, you never know when a show is just going to go off the air in the middle of a storyline. So even good writing can simply just cease to exist. Cliffhangers can be a deadly thing in television these days. I fell in love with Scorpion and then they ended on a cliffhanger where they all hated each other at episodes end and then it got cancelled and now they will forever hate each other and I’m like….well that’s trash. At least with this show it will end the storyline where I need it to for this couple so that’s why I like this format.

I feel like he has to figure out the LW piece. But if she’s just running from the ball and he follows her, I can’t see how he figures it out. I need to be smarter to figure this out! But something has to tip him off besides her running off. We know he will follow her because girl, he doesn’t let her out of his sight before he’s 2 steps behind her and hallway up her skirt. The boy has concern down to a science for that girl. But if he thinks that Lord Kenobi did anything to her, I can imagine him finding her quickly. Though if it's the Queen’s bounty and he catches a look on her face, perhaps he puts two and two together and figures it out. I always thought at some point he would catch on to her words. He is the only one that pays attention to everything she says.

I am curious how this B storyline about needing an heir for the Featherington family is going to play out also. I saw that mama Portia is once again in trouble with paperwork and needing a male heir and with Jack gone now and Colin having played a hand in all of that if that comes into play in part 2. That will be a hole for me to dive into after Part 1 plays out. I am curious if after the carriage scene happens if we get the proposal and if she tells him NO! Because I know that they have both said that they do not get together easily, and it is a roller coaster of a ride to their romance, so I feel like episode 4 is too quickly for them to say Yes and then wed. So, I feel like this may take us up and down a few hills after this damn carriage ride. Oh, my word I’m going down that rabbit hole of my guessing games again! Mental Health be damned.

[826aliensapocalypseactivism]

The Reason Why

Japiah H. 

12/28/2035

3 days after Christmas, when the drive-through is filled with snow, a cold breeze goes through Whitefish, Montana, a town where everybody knows everybody, and everybody knows everybody’s drama and business. Kids are inside with their families drinking hot chocolate,enjoying their presents, and enjoying their FAMILY ____Christmas is always hard for Hannah. Hannah believes Christmas is a holiday for a family, but she doesn’t have a family so she feels lonely. 

In addition to Hannah getting left, she also gets bullied by this boy named Brad, your average jock… tall, handsome, and rich. Obviously he is an asshole and doesn’t care about anybody’s feelings but his own. Meanwhile, Hannah is an overweight, pansexual, Muslim girl. Brad has been bullying Hannah since she came out as pansexual. Brad thought it was weird that she was pansexual–in his words, “she should’ve just said she was bi”. Ever since then, Brad made it his life mission to make sure Hannah loathes herself. He told her all kinds of insults such as; “you should kill yourself ”, “ who wanna date fattie pattie?” and the one that hurt  Hannah the most is,, “Now I see why your mom left a fat kid, that is not even smart and your bisexual – who would ever want you?”

Hannah thought she would always be lonely because of Brad. Without Stella, Hannah wouldn’t know what to do. Stella has been there for Hannah since they were kids. Stella always stood up for Hannah even if Hannah wasn't brave enough to stand up for herself. Stella adores Hannah. She always thought she had the potential to do great things even if Hannah didn’t feel the best about herself. Stella was her hype man no matter what or who was in the way. Hannah felt like she was beginning to bring Stella down because Stella had an IQ of 146 meanwhile Hannah had an IQ of 79.

Anyways back to the story, Hannah has always spent Christmas with Stella and her family. She always felt like they were the family she ever had, but Hannah still wanted her own family to always have just for her and put her first. Hannah was unstable. She was placed in a psych ward for trying to kill herself… Multiple times, Hannah was determined to find happiness within somebody even if it had to be herself, but that never happened. Hannah felt like she had to be in danger or be picked on to get somebody’s attention. She was always quiet and in her own world. This  made her wonder what did she do to Brad Forster to make him hate her.

1/7/35

Hannah pov 

Another year, another freaking year that I don’t get to see her, another year left wondering what went wrong. If there was something wrong with me, maybe it was because my life was like the weather. It could be sunny then it could be cloudy. Life can be up then down or down then up but my life seems to always be down and for whatever reason, I caused this. I tried to find happiness but happiness wasn’t trying to find me. I read this quote and it was like “Be patient. Good things take time. If you ask me, where humans go wrong is with their lack of patience. That, and their recently acquired taste for instant gratification.” When is it too long? How patient do I have to be? Every upside has a downside but  there isn’t an upside. I mean I have Stella until she decides to leave me, which I don’t blame her for. I'm a negative nancy is the only word my foster parents can say about me. I think they were right.

Home. Some people describe home as their safe haven and peace. Home for me is nothing, a void with nothing to fill it with. A dark deep hole, you are in where there is no way to get out. Where you can't feel safe. You are alone in the darkness where your only friend is the one in your head.

1/10/35

 Third period, my first period with Brad. . .hen the torment begins I sit in the back of the class with my notebook and pencil. Brad walks in class and we make eye context, but today he doesn’t say anything. Weird, why didn’t he say anything? I'm not going to say anything. An hour later third period ends. Brad still hasn’t said anything. Oh well, maybe today I won’t get my feelings hurt.

It’s the end of the day. I had 4 classes with Brad today and not one peep out of him. Either he finally realized what he was doing or today just isn’t his day and thank you god for me. Stella usually goes to eat after school but I haven’t talked to her lately. Maybe it’s for the best.

Later on that day 

While I was scrolling on Instagram I saw the comments on a post I made and the comments made me cry. 

OMG WTH is this 😭~ Oliva08

Why are you so lonely? ~ Ahh_jason

Fattie pattie come on now what is this please delete and kill yourself this made my day thanks I owe you a burger. ~Brad_Better

This is sad ~pretty_betty

Died~  Monica_00

Do I deserve to die? Why me? But if everybody says it, doesn’t make it true that I should die, what is there to live for? NO sibling, no mom, no dad, nobody, Stella will be fine. Have you ever been so lonely that you feel invisible maybe it’s best that I kill myself.here is no reason to live, so why am I living?

As of January 10, Hannah Scott is no longer officially with us. As of 12:30 Hannah took her life.

The next day at school, at Hannah’s locker there were pictures, teddy bears, candles, flowers, etc. Stella had put it all together, Stella knew that she would never see Hannah again and Stella would never find her replacement. 

Brad pov 

Hannah died… She was gone, I mean I know I told her to kill herself but I was playing? I didn’t want Hannah to kill herself. Honestly. I was jealous of Hannah becasue she was brave enough to come out and I’m not. I have a baseball scholarship with UCLA and I can’t afford to lose that. I bullied Hannah cause I didn’t want people to know, especially UCLA but it doesn’t matter now none of it does. 

5 years later….

Some way in hell HANNAH arises from the DEAD and brings HELL with her. It’s been two days since Hannah has been back. Let me explain and please keep up. Okay so, There was this earthquake last week and 3 days later people were saying that they were seeing Hannah but her skin was unusual and looked like it she had been dead. I mean technically she is, I don’t know anything anymore, the whole city went crazy when they saw Hannah. When anybody tried to approach her she ate them…. At least that is what people are saying. The city has gone crazy. What the hell are we supposed to do?

[currydomi]

Page 80 is almost there (some storyteller’s notes)

I was close to pulling the trigger on releasing the next page, but I am battling daily anxiety and depression demons (nothing new, nothing different) and actively working on my mental, emotional, and physical health; and personal schedule.

Although a small sketch of a small piece, it is part of a whole. Pieces become pages that hopefully become a full story, then a full trilogy; and then, even more fantastically, other stories I’ve had swimming in my head for years now.

I used to fear aging and dying before creating a trilogy, a full coherent story in three long parts; but if doing my best means putting these concepts out there, I no longer fear dying without having expressed myself and leaving some art behind, finished or not.

I’m not engaging in risky behavior (just in case that needed to be clarified). I live in an instant gratification prison. I want all of my stories done and done right now, but in due time. At least I’ve made progress.

You’re never too old to work on your dreams. I’m not THAT old. My quarter-life crisis did NOT kill me. And my feeling of mediocrity stems from me and me alone.

Thank you, everyone. Supporters, readers, passersby. Keep doing what you’re doing. I’ll keep the same.

[weirdmageddon]

another rant about fanfic/fancontent and characterization

ive been on FIRE with hot takes the past week it just all started bubbling to the surface i guess. people are gonna hate me for this one but i have to address the elephant in the room

i think a lot of ppl need to read this quote. this is….exactly fucking it. what ive been trying to articulate this whole time. this is why so much fanfic pisses me off and drives me away. they explained the phenomenon PERFECTLY

Decades ago, Devra Langsam (coeditor and publisher of SPOCKANALIA, the first Star Trek fanzine, beginning in 1967) codified this in what came to be known as "Langsam's Law." In an essay published in WARPED SPACE 50 (1984, T'Kuhtian Press), Paula Smith described it thusly: “In writing media-based fiction there is a special caveat: Langsam's Law, or, ‘Don't Make Him Say That.’ Don't make an established character do or say something out of line with his established character, or if you must, give good, solid reasons why. If you must write a Darth-Vader-is-really-a-pussycat story, explain in the story why he also strangles crewmen when irked.” And the debate has raged ever since. For my own part, I initially was somewhat startled to realize, upon reading my first fanzine those many decades ago, that other people could and did interpret these characters somewhat differently than I did. After a while I concluded that there was a continuum of logical characterization—always demonstrably rooted in canon—along with the who-the-fuck-are-these-people "interpretations." As far as I can tell, these are based on projection, wish fulfillment, and/or what I call "spackletext" (as opposed to genuine subtext) from writers (well, story posters, at least) who want the characters to meet their specific desires in emotional/physical/therapeutic gratification and are completely oblivious or simply uncaring as to how that is achieved.”

seriously. the way so many people treat characters as like empty-calorie junk food instead of getting genuine gratification from properly understanding them in canon, without selfishly appropriating them, as if they were real people with depth makes me sick. how do you consume content in that way?? and moreover, why do so many other people enjoy it????

this is what i've been thinking for years but i didnt know how to say it without people flipping out on me. like it's ALWAYS empty wish fulfillment it makes me wanna EXPLODE. that's why those boring nonsensical ships always exist in every fandom: it's for projection. so they’re as easily gratifying to their desires as possible. it sucks so much because like. i can't imagine what kind of catharsis they expect to achieve from something like this????? it's not even using these characters therapeutically as much as it is just using them as comfort junk food

i made a domino’s vs new york slice analogy to a friend the other day: “it’s enlightening to me that people don’t think about him this way. like what do you mean “wow”. you have all been fed garbage characterization. that’s like people who all they know is domino’s and think they know what real pizza is and have never had a new york slice”. so imagine if new york pizza wasnt bound to the new york area and you could get new york style pizza anywhere in the world, it just takes longer to prepare. it’s like these people are consistently choosing domino’s because they want it now and fast without regard for method or depth of care put into the art of pizzamaking itself because their bar for quality food is at the ocean floor. its like fast food to them they just want instant self gratification no matter how shitty the texture and taste are

why you people enjoy consuming empty fucking calories i will never understand to save my life. i WANT to understand but nobody, NOBODY can give me a well-reasoned answer. the only one that answers this is the one in the above quote, that that too many people are afraid to admit: “it’s based on projection, wish fulfillment, and/or what I call "spackletext" (as opposed to genuine subtext) from writers who want the characters to meet their specific desires in emotional/physical/therapeutic gratification and are completely oblivious or simply uncaring as to how that is achieved.”

see that’s like fucking sacrilege to the character, original work, AND audience to me. how would the canon character feel about this. if you hate the original canon so much that you turn it in its head why are you writing about it in the first place??? what the hell is even redeeming about the media in general to you?? if you do that, i’m not emotionally attached to anything in the story anymore, you have to resell it to me. but even then i’m not here for whatever weird ungrounded from canon au youre trying to write i’m here to see a deeper exploration of the same ideas presented in a given piece of media. that’s why i’m reading. fanfic. and not. an original story

i just think that not only is proper characterization an artful discipline that shows you can step out of your own impulsive wants, but proper characterization also displays an author’s genuine love and devotion for a series or a character. it shows you how much someone cares about this thing, you know they put their heart and soul into caring to get it right. it’s made with real love, time, devotion, like a samurai mastering his blade. going into understanding their inner workings and spending so much time to properly understand it because they care about it so much. and it’s very obvious when you see it. accordingly, the opposite is true—sloppy characterizations made out of wishful thinking and self-gratification without bothering to understand the character, feels… well, rather cheap. like fast food. you don’t get the same strong sense of devotion to deeply understanding that thing. so the question bears repeating: why do people want this empty-calorie fast food? in fics with proper characterizations, the people in the comments act as if they saw heaven and praise the author. they way they comment suggests it’s such a rare occurence. but why. why is it a fucking rare occurrence. shouldn’t this be the norm? is it really that rare for people to be devoted to properly understanding the depths of a media and its characters? am i the fucking weird one here for having this kind of discipline and getting deep satisfaction from the art of understanding characters????? do other people find it too hard and i’m confused because i expect it to be as easy to see as i do? or do they just simply not give a shit about the principle?

when people turn canon on its head, it makes me wonder: how much do people actually like the media they consume? do they like the actual characters themselves? or do they merely like the idea of these characters and ignore what is manifest about them for their own ideal interpretations that serve their own desires?

on one hand i'm like “it's not hurting anyone, the world already has enough pain in it, you can't judge people for wanting to escape it for a bit”. cause like, if it makes them happy then i shouldn't be upset about that. i'm glad people are able to find joy in these things that i can't, and i don't want to spoil something that causes genuine happiness for these people. then on the other hand i'm like “okay but all those empty calories can't possibly be good for you. you can consume media in much richer and satisfying ways”

[lindalofbroome]

06 - Layered

Lief went on. 'Raising hatred of my heir is the perfect way to make me fear risking my life by attacking the Sister of the South.The guardian is a dangerous enemy—subtle, quick-thinking, and very clever.’

‘It is someone we all know and trust,’ Barda muttered.

The Sister of the South // Ch 9 The Yellow Notice

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh boy

paff ;-;

i think she’s such an interesting character with a complex story and i wish we got to have more of her

first off, sister of the south has the highest stakes out of all the books. it’s so tense and you can feel the weight on lief’s shoulders. and part of that is that we don’t know who the guardian is until the sister is destroyed. the distrust,,, the looking behind your shoulder wondering who will stab you in the back,,, would it be your friend who you’ve known for a long time?

and then we find out that it was paff. the little young girl who worked in the library. the girl who lost everything during the shadow occupation and was just gathering the pieces of her life and trying to build it back up again. little did anyone know that she had shook on a deal to betray her country, for she played her part well. 

the black beast wasn’t the only one who was two-faced.

it literally did not occur to me until i was sketching this piece that paff summoned the two-faced beast, but as an enemy disguised as friend,, she was also quite literally the two-faced one. it is easy to picture her going from a dull, nervous, clumsy youth in front of doom and josef and lief to a haunted, cold, brilliant schemer sitting in her room, thinking of new ways to outwit them. her act was like a fog of protection that even doom could not pierce, even doom did not suspect until it was too late.

but i don’t think she was evil. not specifically. she did evil things, yes, but she wasn’t evil in the way laughing jack was for example. he is unforgivable. but paff was like many others enlisted under the shadow lord. it came in when they were vulnerable, whispered in their ears, offered them power and offered them hope. 

paff had lost everything. she would’ve been numb from the pain of loss and filled with a helpless apathy to the world. she wouldn’t have cared what happened to her and she wouldn’t have cared what happened to anyone else. maybe she sat in the presence of the sister and felt what lief felt, that promise of freedom from the pain of loss. so when the shadow lord found her and offered her a purpose, it is little wonder that she accepted it. what did she have left to lose?

‘I wanted to spare her the horror of awakening,’ Doom said. ‘She had become a monster of wickedness, yet still I—I felt I understood how she had come to take the wrong path. She had lost everything. She was loved by no-one. Her misery had made her easy prey for the Shadow Lord.

The Sister of the South // Ch 16 Shocks

but like i said, she was a brilliant person. she was incredibly intelligent. she could adapt quickly and could plan very far ahead. and upon a reread i did a month or two ago, i started to wonder if she was self-aware of her situation. whether it be too her brilliance or simply that she was so detached from the world in a personal sense that she gained a clarity on her situation. i wonder that after the pain, and after the instant gratification of signing herself over to the enemy had faded,,, did she see how she was exploited? did she see that the enemy had taken advantage of her when she was vulnerable, and now she was too deep in to escape?

it makes the scene where doom confronts josef during lief’s dream feel different.

‘Josef is the one who should be ashamed!’ barked Doom. ‘Let him do his own dirty work in future!’

Paff looked up. Suddenly her tear-filled eyes were angry.

‘Josef can hardly walk!’ she cried. ‘He cannot go up to Sharn’s bed chamber without guards to carry him, you know that! How can you taunt him with his weakness!’

‘I did not mean—’ Doom began impatiently. But now that Paff had begun speaking, it seemed she could not stop.

The Sister of the South // Ch 2 The Dream

i wonder if this was a rare moment where paff let her mask drop. she shed the air of the ditsy girl who constantly made mistakes into a force of passionate rage. i wonder if she knew that the enemy whispered and comforted and taunted her in order to exploit her services to its greedy plans. i wonder if she knew that when she was fighting for josef, she was also fighting for herself.

[elf-trash]

A case for fan fiction

I'm a writer working on an original novel that I intend to try to get published. Here's why I think writing fan fiction is an excellent exercise for writers at any stage of their career.

It's GREAT practice. If you do more of something, you get better at it. And if you have an idea for a fic that you keep thinking about, why would you actively stop yourself from writing something you actually WANT to write? They say to write what's at the front of your brain, and if that's a fic idea, just write it! Visual artists sketch existing characters all the time for inspiration or for practice, and one could argue that writing fanfiction is essentially the same thing but in literary form.

Specifically, it's great practice at writing character voice. Trying to match the speaking style, mannerisms, and personality of an existing character is a unique challenge, and it forces you as a writer to become more aware of and intentional about these things! It's definitely strengthened the way I think about and characterize my original characters, and helped me make them each unique and consistent.

It's like decorating a house versus building it from the ground up. Since the characters, scenarios, and world-building are often provided to you ready-made, it's an opportunity to practice simple things like prose, dialogue, and characterization without having to worry as much about creating the entire scaffolding to support it.

It's an opportunity to try things you may not put in a piece of writing you intend to publish. Smut scenes are the obvious funny answer here, but another example I can think of that I've encountered in writing my own fic is that it's made me much better at writing and describing action scenes! And just generally, because I know from the get-go that I'm not writing my fic to publish, I allow myself to try things and experiment in ways that I wouldn't necessarily do in my original work.

It can help you reconnect with your love for writing. There's something liberating about writing something purely for its own sake. Knowing going in that there's zero or limited potential to publish, the only remaining reason for you to be writing fanfic is because you just genuinely enjoy the act of writing, creating, and sharing it. Speaking personally, it's made me get back into the mindset of thinking of writing as something I do for fun, which means that I've now created the habit of defaulting to writing as my go-to activity during my pockets of free time throughout the day.

The feedback you get from sharing it is great motivation to keep writing. The instant gratification of comments and readers' excitement for the next chapter are an excellent way to keep the momentum going! And the community I've discovered with other fic writers has become almost like a writers' workshop group of sorts. A lot of talented writers write fic, and it's an amazing community of people who write for fun that can help you grow and improve and challenge yourself as a writer.

Sometimes you CAN publish it! We all know about 50 Shades of Grey, but that aside, often times elements or ideas or even the entire premise of a fanfic story can be adapted fairly easily into original content, especially if you're writing an AU or something more distantly removed from the canon. Of course, this isn't always possible, but that still doesn't mean its wasted effort - the things you learn from writing fic or writing tricks and tools you develop will almost inevitably be carried over into your original writing as well.

Basically, if you have aspirations to publish and are hesitant about writing fic for any reason, my advice is to stop overthinking it and just hecking do it! Writing is writing, and creating art from existing stories is something as old as art itself. There's zero shame in it, and the experience you'll get is well worth it.

Legit some of the most beautiful writing I've ever read has been in fanfic, and I've encountered some staggeringly talented writers in so many fandoms. I'm hopeful that the stigma surrounding it is lessening slowly but surely, because it really is as valid a form of creating as anything else is.

[dennydraws]

Hello, hi, long time no see!

It's been a while, huh? :D Behold me ramblings return, about Tumblr, about Twitter, about art and life!

I like many others poked my head over at Twitter during the grand exodus but tried to maintain my Tumblr account too. But I soon realized my energy struggles juggling 2 social media places so I stayed primary on Twitter. It did seem more lively but also more...noisy.

The rapid stream of content on the dash would provoke you to post and go - limited interactions but plentiful. It felt like quantity vs quality. Tumblr was way more quiet and whenever I thought to post I felt like i had to be more thoughtful, more precise with my posts while with Twitter I could take a pic of random scribble on my journal and post it with a silly caption. That made Twitter easier to engage. But on the long run I started to notice I'm writing and drawing less, after all what's the point when your writing is so limited or the pic you post will stay for about 5 seconds on the dash then vanish into the void? It was not about likes and retweets it was more about - I felt more rewarded for placing less effort and that started to damage me on the long run.

I didn't want to turn into an artist who just shoots doodles or funny memes at rapid speed. My inspiration began to slowly go, between all that's going on in the world over the last two years and now, and honestly... I kind of feel lost.

I started to lose motivation about a comic project I started when the pandemic hit, it's like I lost faith in my own story. My friends have been so motivating and supportive but my brain keeps going back thinking - but is it worth it? There is no instant gratification like the rapid stream of social media have taught you therefore there is no worth to it. And I hate that idea. Though I do have to admit, our time and energy is really limited, our time especially. There is so much we can do before our own time comes and that thought is a little frightening. But doing nothing and being petrified by the indecision sounds worse.

So I don't know what to do, what will spark me. Do I use this blog to ramble about art materials? Post little art things I do? Do I pour my thoughts like I just did? Maybe all of the above?

I miss how cozy Tumblr felt to me. I remember I would drink my coffee in the morning at work before starting my tasks and just jolt down a good morning post with little random thoughts and ideas for the day. But I also remember feeling a little guilty when I really had nothing to show or say. :D;; but something is better than nothing, right? I don't want to just silently post arts without a word or anything, like a silent content provider, I don't get joy in that. That doesn't make me feel part of a community and that was what made Tumblr cozy and even Twitter.

It's just that to me twitter is like a busy street - easy to slip into the hustle but you can't really filter it. As much as you try, you will hear things that make you angry or want to just slam the door and stay home forever. Tumblr is more like the quiet pretty neighbourhood. Sometimes you go on a stroll to watch pretty houses and trees, you get greeted by a neighbour or two and occasionally there is the neighbour you want to punch in the face cause they sprayed your fence with vulgar words and you have no idea why, but you can block and carry on.

And so I ramble and think over things, but this is what blogs and journals are for and maybe when I finally hit post, some of my unease about returning to Tumblr will go away. It's been a while... is it as cozy as I remember it?

Thank you for stopping by, dear reader! I'm happy to see you and I hope you are happy to see me too ^o^/

[biaswreckingfics]

Demon! Jung Subin

Summary: Summoning a demon for revenge was clearly not the best idea.

Word Count: 1.3k

Warnings: language, implied death

This fic is part of my October event Thrills and Chills.

Stepping back to admire your handiwork, you study the pentagram you’ve hand-painted on the floor and wonder if you’re really about to go through with this. If what you’re doing is an entirely stupid idea, and if you should back out now while you still have the chance.

You’ve heard of people summoning demons before, of them getting everything they’ve desired. You’ve also heard about the stories where it blows up in their face, and the demon kills them. Were you willing to gamble your life to get revenge?

Your mind flashes back to the moment you walked into your boyfriend’s apartment and found him fucking your best friend. Your boyfriend of five years and your best friend since childhood committing one of the ultimate acts of betrayal. The blood had boiled in your veins, and you had wanted to kill them both on the spot.

Fuck yeah, you’re doing this. You have too much pride to let the two of them get away with hurting you like that, and if it costs you your life, then so be it. You’d rather be dead than have to come across either of those two ever again.

Crouching down to light the candles at each point of the pentagram, you grab the piece of paper you had printed out from some shady website and look down at the chant. The odds of this working were small, but you don’t care. You want revenge, and this is the only way you know how to get it without being thrown in prison.

Clearing your throat, you begin saying the chant. You follow the words and directions closely, repeating and doing what needs to be done. After nearly five minutes, you stop. How long are you supposed to do this for? How’re you supposed to know if anything even happens? A demon is just going to be standing in the pentagram like a movie?

Sighing, you let the directions fall to the floor. This is stupid. You’re stupid. You kneel on the floor and lean close to one of the candles to blow it out, but a rumble has you freezing. An earthquake? You didn’t get earthquakes in your area, but with the way the floor is rumbling… What else could it be?

You stand up to go look out the window and come face to face with a dark shape forming in the pentagram. Your eyes double in size, and a spike of fear zips through your heart. Holy. Shit. It’s working.

Slowly backing away from the symbol, you keep your eyes trained on the dark figure that is almost in a completely solid-state. You watch in awed horror as the black shadow forms into a dark, scaly creature. Its shape is humanoid. Its eyes are an intense obsidian that appear to be staring deep into your soul as it cocks its head to the side.

A growl so deep that it feels like it’s rumbling in your chest surrounds you. Then, suddenly, a multilayered voice that you’ve heard in nearly every paranormal movie or show you’ve ever seen reaches your ears.

“Did you summon me, human?”

Your eyes trail down its body, starting at its horned head, noticing its clawed hands, and then stopping at its matching feet. You gulp as a nervous fear sets in and steals any voice you have. The demon growls at your lack of answer before sniffing the air. A smile, if you can even call it that, grows on its face.

“Your fear is delicious.”

Taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm yourself, you say, “Yes, I summoned you.”

“And what would a stupid human like you want from a demon like me?” It taunts you.

“Revenge. I want revenge on two people,” you cautiously answer as your eyes rake its body.

The demon cocks its head with interest. After a moment, a shadow begins to ooze from its pores, shrouding it from your eyes. You wonder if the demon is leaving until the shadow retracts and in front of you now stands a young man.

You take in the new figure in surprise and hate yourself when you find him attractive. He’s a demon for Christ’s sake. Nothing about him is attractive. Not his narrowed eyes. Not his soft-looking lips. Nothing, you remind yourself.

A cocky smile grows on his face like he can hear everything you’re thinking, and your heart drops into your stomach. Can he?

“Who would you like revenge on?” His honey voice reaches your ears. “Lover? Family? Foe?”

Blinking a couple times, you look away from his somewhat accurate guesses. Curiously, you ask, “I’m guessing I’m not the only one?”

A musical laugh falls from the figure. “Humans are such fickle creatures. The need for instant gratification always weighs out intelligence. You all want things you can’t have, and the desperate ones are always idiotic enough to summon my kind to get it.”

You look at the ground in shame for a moment. You’re quite clearly in the last category, and the fact that the demon is the one pointing out you’re an idiot is a special kind of irony.

“My boyfriend and best friend.”

The demon’s eyebrows raise in interest. “Cheated, did they?”

Your eyes trail up to his as you confirm, and he shrugs his shoulders. “You’re not the first, and you won’t be the last.”

Letting out a shaky breath, you ask, “So, what will you do?”

“That depends on you. Are you willing to pay the price to get revenge?”

For some reason, it never dawned on you that you’d get this far. You never even considered what the demon would want in return.

“What’s the price, and what will you do?”

“I’ll make their lives a living hell. Make them think they’ve gone crazy and that someone is after them until they descend into absolute madness and lose their faculties.”

You consider if that’s what you want for them. You want them to pay for what they did – to suffer – but you stupidly never truly considered what you wanted to happen. You went into this entire thing half-cocked like an idiot. Just as the demon said.

“For your soul,” the demon finishes.

It feels like the breath is stolen from your lungs as your eyes wildly meet the demons. The price is your soul? To get revenge? No. No way. You’ll drag their names through social media before you sell your damn soul to a demon.

“No.”

He cocks a brow at you. “No?”

“The price is too high. I’m not selling you my soul.”

The demon’s eyes grow hard as he stares at you. It’s like you can almost see the fire burning behind the blackness.

“Are you telling me you’ve summoned me here only to refuse me?” He growls at you, causing fear to spike in your heart.

“I guess so.”

The demon lets out a small laugh before it turns into a louder one.

“You think you can deny me?” He demands as he steps out of the pentagram, completely walking over the protection circle you made. You gasp and quickly back away from him. “You think your stupid little protection stones are going to stop me? Child, you do not know who I am or what I can do, but tonight, you’ll experience it firsthand.”

It shifts back into its original, demonic form, and you back away as it advances on you, tripping over any and everything. Tears stream down your face as it nears, and you realize the horrible mistake you’ve made. Any attempts to scream are dashed because fear has paralyzed your vocal cords, and once you hit the wall behind you and are trapped between a counter and a chair, you know this is the end.

Its clawed hand grips your throat, cutting off your air supply as it leans in close to your face. “The price of summoning me is a soul, so you were never walking away from this. Only now, I won’t do a single thing to your boyfriend and friend. The only one here who will be punished is you.”