#guess which sentence that is also a paragraph is my fave but would make anyone who appreciates grammar cry???

[aclosetfan]

"be more careful next time. i don't want to bandage you up again" buttercup taking care of bubbles (or blossom) after a monster fight? just butters showing her love for her sisters through acts of service. thanks ily ‹3

haha, hey anon, we both agree "time" is just a concept, right? sorry it took so long :(

If you forgot this prompt is for this ask game!

content warning: vague body horror/gore, major character death (sorta?)

a/n: experimenting with writing styles, the pacing isn’t my norm.

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

"You know, forget what that huffy college advisor said, I think you'd make a great nurse!" Bubbles chirped, trying to break the nearly suffocating silence. It hung so heavy around the two of them, it felt as if someone or something was sitting on her chest, force feeding guilt and anxiety straight down her throat.

Silence aside, Bubbles was only telling the truth. First-aid was something Buttercup was apt at doing, given all the fights she had been in, and really, honestly, she should have been doing it professionally, if she didn’t have such lousy bedside manners.

Buttercup's jaw clenched and her nostrils flared as she spat out through gritted teeth, "shut up."

"I'm serious!" Bubbles protested, "Really, honestly, Butters, you'd make a great nurse."

Buttercup slammed a roll of bandages down on the tray beside her and shoot up out of her seat. She walked a few feet away and kicked over another freestanding tray, spilling its contents onto the ground.

"You know damn well that isn't what I meant!" Buttercup seethed, turning around to point a shaky finger at her.

Bubbles didn't even flinch. She sat still, taking in the angry flush running across her sister's face and the fire in her eyes before deflating.

"I know," She whispered, "I know it isn't."

Bubbles let her gaze drop to her hands. They were wrapped up in gauze, just like most of the rest of her body, making her look like some modern day mummy. If she had been human, she would have been dead, but Chemical-X, that wonderful, mysterious chemical, was one heck of a life saver! Her skin was still healing, however, burnt, bubbling, and smelling of rot and decay.

It was so...strange, how bullets bounced off her, but still left bruises, and acid did nothing to her body, but still stung, and lava was like water, but still burnt, and the sun's rays only left cumbersome sunburns, but HIM's mist, at least, in that moment, when she had lunged towards Blossom before her sister had disappeared into that dark red haze, had felt like nothing, and yet, had left her body almost beyond repair.

Her bandages were neat and tidy, Buttercup made sure of that everyday when they needed changing. The Professor had offered to do it, but her sister had insisted, and Bubbles preferred it that way. She could deal with Buttercup's anger, but the distraught, broken look in the Professor's eyes was too much to bear. It only reminded her of the things she'd rather forget, of her failures, of Blossom. Not that she was having any trouble remembering on her own.

She felt a crying sensation behind her eyes start to swell, closing her throat and stuffing up her nose, but no tears came out. She had no more to spare. It was almost a miracle. Her, Bubbles Utonium, had no more tears to spare.

For what it was worth, she gave it her best try.

Dry, heaving sobs echoed throughout the lab-turned-med bay, and Bubbles wished she could stop. It hurt to cry, but everything hurt, so it didn't make much of a difference.

"I'm sorry," She choked, sounding almost as desperate, but more borderline hysterical, "I'm so, so sorry! She—she was right there! She was right there!"

"Bubbles, wait, don't," Buttercup pleaded desperately, "don't cry."

"She's gone!" She wailed over Buttercup’s protests, thrashing around and pulling on her IVs, "She's gone! And it's all my fault!"

Firm hands carefully clutched her own, keeping her still. "Stop," Buttercup ordered, "stop. You're going to hurt yourself."

"What's that matter!" She hissed, "What does any of it matter!"

“I’ll get her back!” Buttercup yelled, her voice cracking, “I promise! I’ll get her back, now, please! Stop!” 

“How!” Bubbles cried back, “How! She’s gone! I killed her!”

“I don’t know!” She shouted, her eyes shiny. Buttercup sunk down into a squat, and when she spoke again, her words came out around a half-formed sob, “I don’t know.” Buttercup cradled her head, “I almost lost both of you, please, just, please be more careful, okay? I can’t—I don’t want to bandage you up again.”

“Please,” Her sister begged, speaking into her hands.

They sat there in silence as Bubbles observed Buttercup, realizing for the first time, that the toughest out of all of them, the doer, was unable to do anything at all but fix her bandages. Her perfectly wrapped, clean bandages. It was only then that Bubbles felt her heart fill with something she had thought died along with Blossom. 

It felt like love. It felt like hope. Whatever it was, she clung to it.

“Okay,” Bubbles agreed after another long, painful silence, punctuated only by Buttercup’s quiet sobs. “I’ll be more careful.”

[johaerys-writes]

Writing Tag Game

I was tagged by @noire-pandora @midnightprelude @mogwaei @serial-chillr @faerieavalon @pinkfadespirit @inquisitoracorn and @in-arlathan thank you so much! :)

How many works do you have on Ao3?

On my main Ao3 blog: 23! I also have a second blog where I post works set in the Dragon Age-inspired Modern AU I've been writing with @oftachancer , featuring my OC Tristan Trevelyan and her OC Aran Trevelyan, as well as a few others of our OCs. There are 5 works there at the moment. You can check them out here: jo_writes

What's your total Ao3 wordcount?

On my main blog, 516,722 words. On my second blog, 193,953 words, but the majority of it is co-written with @oftachancer .

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

High-Flying Birds: 589 kudos (TSOA)

Where Blood Roses Bloom: 467 kudos (Castlevania)

Winter's Fruit: 424 kudos (TSOA)

Like Friends Do: 410 kudos (TSOA)

Memories and Echoes: 327 kudos (TSOA)

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Always!! I don't think there's a single comment I've ever received that I've left unanswered. I just love talking with my readers and screeching in my replies. I often wonder whether I come across as a tiny bit insane or overly enthusiastic, but you know what? I am both, so who cares 😂 I just appreciate every single person that has taken the time to read and comment on my works, and I want to make sure they know JUST HOW MUCH 

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

I honestly don't think that many of my stories have an angsty ending? Most of them end on a hopeful or at least bittersweet note, I think. I'm pretty sure the only ones I've written that have sad endings were those in my Hector/Carmilla series, You Always Hurt The Ones You Love (CV) which were kind of dark and depressing anyway. 

Playground Love, the fic I've written with @oftachancer featuring our OCs Tristan and Aran ends on an angsty note, but things do get better in the next installment, Never Let Me Go, so I suppose I am a little allergic to angsty endings XD

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

The Stars Will Guide Us Home (TSOA, Modern AU) has a super soft and fluffy ending, and Fall Into Your Tide (TSOA, Merman AU) will have a happy ending too.

Do you write crossovers? If so, what is the craziest one you've written? 

I've written a Witcher/Dragon Age crossover, Viper In Tall Grass, where Tristan is a witcher and Dorian a Nilfgardian mage which I thoroughly enjoyed! Also, one of the first long fics I ever finished was a Witcher/Wheel of Time crossover, which I think is genuinely the most... imaginative thing I've written 😂 I never posted it and don't think I will, but I still love it to bits and I'm super proud of myself for writing it. 

Have you ever received hate on a fic? 

Kind of? It wasn't directed at me personally (I don't think) but at one of the main characters of the fic. Perhaps it was referring to the way I'd written the particular character, I truly can't say, it was a little vague. It takes a lot to offend me, but this really rubbed me the wrong way. I honestly think I would have been less offended if the person had criticised my writing rather than the character lol. I just don't take any shit when it comes to the characters I love. They're PERFECT, okay? How dare you come into my house and badmouth them 😂 RUDE

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Hell YEAH! I love writing smut, it's great. As to what kind, I think that porn with feelings describes it really well. The smut I write tends to get emotional real quick, even when I intended for it to be straight up porn, so I guess there's no hope for me, hah. 

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of. 

Have you ever had a fic translated? 

Yes, High-Flying Birds has been translated into Vietnamese.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes!! With oftachancer, two novel-length fics (Playground Love and Never Let Me Go), as well as a few other WIPs that haven't been posted yet, and I'm currently working on a multi-chap fic with my friendo @in-arlathan , featuring Dorian/Tristan and Solas with her Elenara Lavellan, which I'm so excited about! I've also brainstormed and goblined-out over a couple projects with @mogwaei !!  I love co-writing, it's so fun :)

What's your all time favourite ship?

Oooh, that's a tough one. I'm super biased in that the ships I love are those I write (both canon and OC pairings) but if you held a gun to my head and asked me to choose I would probably have to say... Dorian/Tristan and Achilles/Patroclus? AAH this is too hard ;w;

What's a WIP you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

I do plan on finishing all of the WIPs I am currently working on. I have a lot of writing ideas that I don't think I'll ever get around to, but when I actually start writing something I tend to commit till the end.

What are your writing strengths?

Descriptions, introspection and angsty/emotional scenes I think are my favourite things to write. I also enjoy writing fight scenes a little too much (and judging by the feedback I receive on them people seem to enjoy them too, heh). Lastly, I've been told that the characters I write are complex and fleshed out and that my pacing is good, and that's honestly the best praise for me.

What are you writing weaknesses?

I struggle quite a lot with self doubt and perfectionism. I worry a lot about how my work will be perceived and whether it's good enough. I often agonise over small details or paragraphs/sentences, to the point where I sometimes post just so I stop myself from going back and editing indefinitely. I have thousands upon thousands of words in deleted scenes because "they weren't quite right" or I changed a tiny bit and the rest didn't fit. So. You get the idea 😅 (Now, how I manage to read through everything multiple times before posting yet still get typos... welp)

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

Hmm, I have to say that I do like it when there are foreign words interspersed through the narrative if the story isn't set in an English speaking world or if the characters speak a different language, but I'm not a huuuge fan of seeing a big chunk of dialogue in a foreign language without immediate translation or a hovering text. It kind of breaks the immersion for me and I tend to avoid it generally in my own writing.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

Dragon Age, and specifically DAI! That game never gets old for me.

What's your favourite fic you've written?

It's impossible for me to pick just one so I'm going to cheat and choose a few. I absolutely love my current WIPs: High-Flying Birds, Where Blood Roses Bloom and A World With You, and the freaking epic-length fics I've written with @oftachancer . They haven't always been easy to write (especially AWWY, which has the most intricate plot & character development) but I'm so proud of them and I've learned so much while writing them. Of my finished stories, The Stars Will Guide Us Home is hands down one of my all time faves. It had been on my mind for several months before I actually wrote it, and I poured so much of my heart into it. I still get emotional when I go back to reread it, not gonna lie! Lastly, At The Water's Edge (TSOA) is very dear to me and I often go back for rereads. 

I'm tagging forth to (no pressure!): @fancytrinkets @elveny @glimmerofgold @asiriushoe @juliafied @boshtet-juggler @schattengerissen @dafan7711 @tessa1972 @fandomn00blr @pikapeppa and anyone else who would like to join!

[myriadimagines]

End Of The Year Faves 2020!

Rules: it’s time to love yourselves! choose your 8 (ish) favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2020. tag as many writers/artists/etc. as you want (fan or original) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome work!

i was tagged by the lovely @lxncelot & @musicallisto !!!

i’ve only written 10 one shots this year since i stopped taking requests rip. i only ended up picking 5 of them bc i didnt like the rest. also i love talking about the behind the scenes of writing like its just so fun. i literally went through my revision history in my google docs to see how i wrote these akjsdhasjd so literally........... if anyone wants to talk to me about a piece........... just shoot me an ask bc i will gladly tell u all about it

1. Lifetimes (Sebastien le Livre) 

this might be my number one bc it’s the most recent and i havent decided i hate it yet but wrote this as an alternative to therapy lmfaooooooo and it’s been a month but um. it still hurts. but anyway, i started off with the below paragraph:

And Booker has centuries of pain under his belt. Endless years of trauma that he cannot even begin to unpack. But you don’t have centuries. You don’t have lifetimes to reconcile with all the cruelty in the world  —  you just have one, and Booker knows he of all people should know just how much hurt one lifetime can contain.

and just worked around it, bc i was just really obsessed with the concept of having multiple lifetimes and all that, and just the fact that life has so much pain and hurt and it just sucks. i edited the first sentence for the final but otherwise it’s the same. i think i came up with some pretty good lines in this if i do say so myself, and i mentioned it in the a/n, but i intended for it to be longer but didn’t want to push it after i feel like i had written all i wanted to. i just wanted someone to hold me and comfort me clearly. 

2. Cursed Blood (Renfri)

i am obsessed with renfri as a character and her whole story, and the whole concept of her being cursed just felt like something that i really wanted to explore and write about. these were the first lines i wrote for the piece:

But every time you kiss her, you swear that it’s impossible her lips could be poison. Or perhaps you grew so used it, that the poison tasted sweet. 

i ended up editing this a lot for the final version, but a trend in my writing seems to be i always come up with how to end a piece and just work around it. i really enjoyed going into depth into renfri’s character and it kinda felt more like a character study than a reader insert? but eventually i found a way to work the reader in there and i liked where the story went, bc renfri deserves happiness and someone to be there for her.

3. Roadside (Robin Buckley)

still in shock at how many notes this one got and i am forever grateful to everyone who reblogged/left comments!!! this was for lacey’s ( @moonlit-imagines ) writing challenge, and idk why when i saw the prompt i immediately decided to use robin. for this one, i actually started with the beginning, which was the prompt, “Let’s take a walk. Just you and me.”

i mentioned this in the a/n, but i planned it to be a lot more angsty and wasn’t even planning on ending it on a happy note askjdhaksd the original plot i had in mind was that robin and the reader were into each other but were dancing around each other’s feelings. so one night, the reader drunkenly kisses steve at a party to try and make robin jealous, but it ends up just causing a rift between robin and the reader even after they confess their feelings. here is a part i wrote for the original plot before i decided to scrap it and go with the final plot.

“Look, I don’t even care if you and Steve get together.” Robin waves her hand, and you’re not used to seeing such disappointment on your best friend’s face as she lets out a shaky breath. She looks as if she’s struggling to collect herself before she asks, “I just… why did you lie to me?”

“I didn’t.” you desperately blurt, and Robin’s eyebrows furrow. Shaking your head, you take a step towards her as you explain, “I didn’t lie, Robin, I swear. I don’t like Steve. What happened at the party meant nothing—”

Robin scoffs. “Then why—”

“—because I wanted you to see.” you finally confess, and Robin stares at you. You’re shaking, tears welling in your eyes as you continue, “Because I thought I could make you jealous, because I was just too afraid to make a move and wanted you too. And I know that’s silly of me, and I never meant to hurt your feelings—”

i changed the plot because i didn’t think i could pull it off, and i didn’t know how to fully end it. i liked where it ended up going anyway after the change of direction so all good!!

4. Games (Michael Gray)

so this was inspired by a gif imagine request that @fangirlsarah16 sent me, which you can find here!! you can literally see me already plotting for the piece in the tags aksjdha i just loved how angsty the situation was, and i love michael, so i decided to just run with it. i put what i had already written into a document and just pieced everything in around it. this is definitely one of my more dramatic pieces, but i just loved how the story came together and how all the other characters were included. 

i already planned to write a part 2 while i was still writing this piece, but obviously that hasnt happened yet. also i got discouraged bc i thought it would do better in terms of notes but oh well. i wrote around 300 words of where i wanted part 2 to go, and i still have it saved, but i dont want to share it in case i end up writing it. also, i have 2 plots in mind for where i want part 2 to go, and haven’t decided which one i want to go with. we’ll have to wait and see i guess >:)

5. Off Limits (Cassian Andor)

ah yes, the first in my rewrite project that is going along very slowly. basically, im planning on rewriting my super old one shots in hopes that i’ll like them. i swear i’ve got the next one shot in my drafts but i just havent had the time to finish it yet. anyway, the original piece, which i wrote 4 years ago (!!!!), was the piece that really got my blog started and helped me get activity/attention, and it has around 500 notes, which kinda makes the new version look depressing bc it only has 97 and it’s definitely a lot better in my opinion. 

i don’t really have a detailed process for this one, seeing as i was just improving upon an old piece, but one of the main things i did want to change was cassian’s characterisation. i felt like i just made him too mean in my old piece, and i wanted to loosen him up a bit. i managed to bang this one in one day and i just think it’s some cute content and i miss the rogue one squad!!

i’m tagging @moonlit-imagines @emcon-imagines @lotsoffandomimagines @dannyboy-writes @murswrites @randomfandomimagine @sonsofeorl @spxder-mxns & all other content creators that see this!! i’m definitely missing a lot but everyone should share their favorite pieces from this year :’)

[not-poignant]

Hope you’re having a great evening and so looking forward to reading the new chapter! I really liked your discussion about characters (and writing advice generally) so thought I’d ask one. I want to write. I keep notes of ideas and read writing advice, but every time I try, it never lasts because I convince myself my writing is bad or ideas are bad and I stop. I know I’m the problem! And I know the solution is to Just Do It! but I find it so hard, was wondering if you had any advice on this?

Hi anon!

Apologies for this being late, I wanted to really think about my response and say something decent. SO HERE’S MY ESSAY.

Sometimes knowing the thing and knowing the solution isn’t actually having any of the steps in between, which is what makes it seem impossible.

Firstly! And this one is the hardest one! And the one that’s probably going to make you groan. But if your thought patterns are harmful enough that they stop you trying new things (like writing) they’re probably serious enough to need some professional support or serious self-attention.

Obviously not everyone can afford therapy, but it might be worth looking at options out there to improve and strengthen your self-esteem. You can try free mindfulness meditation apps like Smiling Mind, or look up techniques for building self-esteem, or affirmations, or therapy (if possible), or whatever it is.

But that’s a foundational building block with a lot of this stuff, and skipping it often means getting stalled out when wanting to have the right headspace for trying new things.

It’s pretty standard to get stuck on your work or to not like it sometimes, just about every writer I’ve met (including myself) has hated their work and wanted to put it all in a fire at some point while downward spiralling / sobbing and/or comfort eating gelato at two in the morning wondering why they bothered to start writing at all. BUT if you’re not liking it every time that’s an issue that just can’t be fixed with a writing exercise or writing technique on its own. Because you both have to write badly to get good (or the ‘the garden needs shit/manure to grow well, and guess what, that’s some of your early writing’ metaphor which is genuinely one of my faves, because it means all your writing is helping no matter what it’s like), and you also need to be able to recognise what’s good about your writing in order to actually...become a writer.

If you hate everything you do, your eye isn’t trained to actually select out the skills that are good - and every writer has strengths, even in the beginning. So yeah, convincing yourself that your writing is bad and ideas are bad every time is sadly not something a writing technique can fix for you. That’s probably a bit deeper, and needs some compassion and patience. You can’t ‘just do’ something if you’re harming yourself with your own mind every time you start. And if that’s the default, that’s the part you need to understand and sort out before you can even access ‘just do it.’

Now, I’m not going to give writing exercises specifically on like say, characterisation or building plot etc., there’s a billion out there, and I’ve written a lot on my blog under the ‘pia on writing’ tag. So my secondly is just a suggestion for an exercise you can try in order to strengthen your self-esteem when it comes to your writing.

HOPEFULLY you haven’t deleted what you’ve written. If you haven’t, pull up some of the things you’ve started, and then get a piece of paper (or the notes section of your phone) and start actually looking at the writing like someone else has written it. Pretend a good friend has written it, or someone you care about, and they’re asking you for advice. You can’t just tell them that you hate it or that it’s terrible, you actually have to look at it and see the strengths and weaknesses in what’s there.

Start basic: Are there complete sentences and paragraphs? Then good, you know your ‘friend’ can structure a story! Is the punctuation and the spelling correct? FANTASTIC. If not, that’s actually easy to fix, and then FANTASTIC. If you’re writing fanfiction, look at how the characters are behaving. Do they feel like the characters to you? Then that’s great! If not, why don’t they? If you don’t know, try and look at the source material again. Keep progressing through different aspects of the writing all the while trying to keep in mind that you’re doing this on behalf of a friend, and they’re not the kind of person you’d blindly hate on for no reason. Sometimes this lateral step is all it takes to start looking at your work through a different lens, and honestly, I think it’s good for many writers to try, like folks that can complete a work but then hate it afterwards. Basically anyone who is like ‘my writing is always bad no matter what.’

After that you may have a longer list of weaknesses rather than strengths, that’s okay! But the fact is, there are strengths. And they can be built upon always. Sometimes that may inspire you to write more, or it may inspire you to write something else, or it may not inspire you at all. That’s all totally fine, the idea is to train your mind to look at your writing more complexly, not in a negative way, but in a balanced way. You’re already being negative towards it, so you’re basically training your brain to look for the strengths. Incidentally, this will make you a better reader and a better writer, because you’ll quickly realise the strengths of other writers, and realise what you want to be including in your own writing. As an editor and a beta, I always point out strengths alongside weaknesses, because you know, strengths are the things you want more of!

In the meantime, I would also suggest exploring poetry, drabble writing and super short-form writing (500 words or less) so you can practice completing things and then putting them away, even if it’s not the format that you ideally want to be writing. (Think of it as a stepping stone to where you want to get, if that’s not the goal). The idea is to just build up the sense that you can complete projects, so that when you’re like ‘I always stop and I never complete anything’ there is actually a folder or collection of short stories or poems and little scenes that exist to show you that you know, you do write. (I mean you do now, but having completed things does help a little).

And the fact is, that you’ve started at all is a big deal! A lot of people just think about writing and never put down a single word (and even that’s okay, that’s just earlier in the process of learning how to become a writer). It sounds like you do start, and even if you talk yourself out of it, imho, I still think it matters that you’ve started things and come up with ideas! Knowing you’re the problem means you can own that you’re also the solution as well. And I believe you can do it, maybe not right this instant, because it sounds like you’re dealing with a brain that doesn’t often want you to feel very good! But you have a good attitude, and it sounds like you still push yourself forwards anyway, so maybe it’s just time to take some of that energy and learn how to push forwards in areas of self-esteem, to support your writing and like...your brain and your self.

I wish you luck, anon. It’s really hard, writing and art and all the creative pursuits are really good at exposing our self-esteem and self-hatred issues. Like, too good. Like catch me a couple of weeks ago wondering if I should delete everything I’ve ever written while eating Choc Chip Cookie Dough gelato from Gelare while calling everything ‘OH GOD IT’S THE WORST’ etc. You’re not alone. And many of us have started where you are, and had to learn how to deal with our own brain weasels.

You’re in good company, I promise. Plus, there’s always enough gelato to share when it gets hard. <3

HAHA WOW THIS GOT LONG I AM SO SORRY

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

Was reading your response to the Okumura Ryuji/Morgana fight, and the way the person worded Ryuji's character made me wanna ask... Do you think a bad fanbase is a fair reason to dislike a character? I've heard people say things like "no look at the character too", but... For example, I'm very neutral on Ryuji. When he's good, hes SO GOOD, EXCELLENT BOY, but Ann is my favorite girl. Guess who he pervs on exclusively and is rude to all the time? I've never seen his fans talk about (1/2 sorry)

His rude behavior, or his pervy tendencies, or his more selfish desires regarding the PT. That's fine!! Not everyone wants to constantly talk about bad things their fave has done!!! But people referring to him as a "woman respecting king" so insistently rubs me the wrong way, since he treats Ann Like That. That, and (more personal) i remember making a post/ask thing once about my grievances with Ryuji, esp his perv stuff, and the fans that interacted very aggressively denied his behavior (2/3)

And it even turned into a big discourse on the blog I submitted it to (it was that one confession blog). All the people that responded and just tried moving the arguments to "well Yusuke did this-" or even tried to push blame on Ann "she was asking for it" just kinda cemented my already growing dislike for Ryuji. Super sorry this is so long!!! Final question: is a bad fanbase a fair reason for disliking a character? (3/3)

Don’t say sorry about multiple sent asks, I don’t mind kfdsjla;fja As for the answer, I want to say yes and no, but really it’s just “yes with a side note attached.” Yeah, it’s ok to not like a char because of their fans, but I think it’s as long as you know why you dislike the char beyond the fans (well tbh, imo it’s usually the crazy fans so I think stans is a better word, but even then there’s diff stans). And tbh, I....can’t....think of a character I don’t like that the fandom/fanbase does....but I know nothing about the char all the while (closest and most recent example this....is....I know people dislike that grey haired moe blob on twitter even tho I don’t think they watched the show, and while I’m not a fan of the moeblobness I don’t know anything about the char so I’m personally not upset). I can only name chars I don’t like because of what happens in the text, fandom be damned (but sometimes they don’t help). Which is why it’s a yes with a side note. If you don’t like the char despite not knowing them.....probably get to know the char first even if your impression is clouded by the fandom....at least you gave the char a chance. 

Under cut cause length (first few sentences in the first paragraph under the cut/tldr at the end gives you the answer a bit more in depth, the rest is rants related to that and why I get frustrated in a similar sense too, but yeah sorry if I repeat myself, I kinda jumped all over + my tendency to try to nail a point home I feel like might’ve had me repeat a bit more than usual akslfjdakfjaf):

I say this because.....it’s hard....it’s hard to keep them separated, unless you completely isolate yourself from the fandom (which is basically impossible if you wanna keep up with news, even the comment section is part of the fandom tbh...and you might be looking down their for diff reasons). And then.....well...the big reason....sometimes seeing the fans really highlights the reasons you dislike the char. That’s what happened to me and Makoto, specifically cause of....a certain fan (and buddy if you happen to see this, nothing against you, no bad blood, def won’t mention your name I respect you and the debates we had)....AND TO THE TUMBLR READERS WHO GET NERVOUS: It wasn’t on this website in case anyone is freaking out so if you’re thinking “Oh god it’s me” it is most likely not you (tho I think we do know each other on here cause of usernames/saw each other in passing but we def aren’t mutuals last time I checked), and while I do respect that person.......my god did they highlight the reasons I had issues with P5 and Makoto. Ironically in trying to defend her and show off her good sides, I realized the writing issues more and more and her bad sides became more glaring. It turned my frustrating dislike and attempt to try to work out my issues with her and P5 (ironically “working out” in hindsight would’ve been me....denying and refusing to look at P5′s flaws) into....well......the salt factory you know today. (same thing happens with like......Yukari and Junpei fans too tbh...that’s more recent tho, it feels like they are just downplaying their negatives constantly and I’m not about that). Basically, you probably have issues already, they are just more pronounced now. 

As for “look at the character”....you kinda already are doing that, and that’s probably where your existing issues originated from (tho if someone wants a more in depth reason as to why, while you DON’T OWE them an explanation, it is also hard for someone to understand your feelings and reasons if you don’t try to explain). 

As for Ryu, yea, I getcha, I like the guy, I’m neutral positive on him....was my best bro but he’s 2nd best thanks to post-Kamo writing. I like him because of his positives, but I always keep his negs in mind because. Cause like while I agree with the fans IT MAKES NO SENSE! P5′S WRITING IS BAD! it happened, same as I agree that Anne kicking Ryu’s ass, along with the other girls, is shitty. Hate the scene, and I accept that it happen (low key gonna start some kinda 2nd wave war with this bs cause the fandom be like that, but I’m really surprised no one took Anne smacking Ryu behind the neck cause he was being too loud as super offensive and abuse.......it’s def something a friend might do, not like belting him just a tap, and it’s framed as chill and also as warning him to reign in the volume control, but high key surprised no one has tried to cancel her cause of that). BUT that DOESN’T mean it erases all the creepy stuff he’s done. Is he the goodest boi when he’s being good? The best. Is he always a good boi? No, he def is not. And hearing that he is can be frustrating to people that do see his flaws (cause they are there). And like....you are 100% able to like a character despite and because of their flaws, while also accepting they have those flaws. I do it with Yosuke, Ryuji (for the most part), Teddie, Shinji, Ken, Kanji (when he’s not around Naoto, then he’s in a trash can for me), P1/2 casts, Aigis, Mitsuru, as long as the flaws are within reason and are treated pretty well....then I’m ok with it. (again, Kanji/Ryu have moments when I’m like....NOPE! but when they aren’t doing the bad thing I’m cool with them). As long as the flaws are withing reason (aka they aren’t making a jerk person out to be the person in the right, or the writing is trying to sweep what they did under the rug, or trying to force us into empathizing with them despite what they did while also trying ot sacrifice empathy towards another char.....*cough*Makoto/Yukari/Junpei*cough* if the writing isn’t doing that...... I’m probs neutral to pos on them). 

Like I’m fine if they are criticizing the writing and being like “Him doing this makes no sense cause it conflicts with the good boi we’ve already seen!” That’s a-ok! Not only do you recognize your char has flaws, you also are able to identify issues with the writing. But saying “so I’ll choose to ignore that scene” isn’t....ok. Because sadly it did happen, as contradictory it did happen. AU it all you want, but you have to accept it happened outside of that AU. Like, I don’t like the Mika conflict in Anne’s CoOp, by which I don’t like how it went down (100% fine with Mika, and there being conflict with her). How it the whole thing started doesn’t make sense if you put MainStory!Anne in her CoOp. MS!Anne can read the room and other people’s emotions (only other person capable of that is Haru, or at least with Mona), hell she was so good at it she noticed something was up with Shiho without Shiho telling her about it! The issue was the fact Anne’s not a mind reader and could only assume the issue Shiho was going through that Anne was aware of (and that was her spot on the team). Now MS!Anne is not like Yosuke, she doesn’t put her foot in her mouth. She’s not like Naoto who can’t read the room. She’s not super eloquent, but can empathize and when she can interact with people she can do it pretty well. So why the hell does she basically not think before talking and insult Mika? Sure Anne’s not GREAT at school, but she’s not a moron, she can talk to people. But her CoOp makes her a moron all around, 100% airhead, and that’s how her issues with Mika start, by not thinking before talking and accidentally insulting her via blatantly “not caring” about the job to a full time person......it’s stupid, it makes no sense, I hate it. But it’s there, the flaw might not be present in the main story, but for the all around character (cause CoOps are included) it is now and I just have to deal with it. We can bitch about it all day (and trust me I will) but it happened. Basically never frame it as “it didn’t happen,” but instead “It SHOULDN’T HAVE happened.” One is denial, the other is critiquing the text. 

Anyway my rant aside, yeah I hate it when...well Ren/Ryu/Yusuke (no one’s said Mona yet, cause....well yeah...which is good they haven’t labeled him as it yet tho), are labeled as “drinking respect women juice” and I’m like “I have one to a few women who would disagree.” I know some people will argue Goro is drinking it, and imo he’s not....he’s just eating the “I don’t discriminate sandwich” which is different. And yeah the “But Yusuke-” yeah yeah we’ll get to him, but right now we’re talking about RYUJI. I’m not a fan of derailing a topic *war flashbacks* *shivers* anyway. But yeah I remember that debate, I was probably one who was like “We’ll get to Yusuke but right now we’re talking about Ryuji” and pushing the blame onto Anne is disgusting and Kamo Arc!Ryuji would be very upset. >:( (btw high key I think I was the first one who started the first anti-makoto war wave with me saying “yeah Anne shouldn’t have apologized Makoto started it and blah blah she was an ass” not the exact words but basically just calling her out on her shitty behavior cause the game certainly didn’t......tho as Miley Cyrus would say.....”I didn’t mean to start a waaaaaar~!” I actually wrote my first Persona Problems on that topic.......but it got lost in the drafts....my photo examples kept getting messed up which is bad considering the whole post really relied on them....I should try to dig it up tbh....)

Tldr/short answer: Yeah, you probably already have issues with the char to begin with tbh, and the fanbase can highlight those issues more. It’s also hard to escape the fanbase (I see stuff I don’t wanna see despite trying my hardest to avoid certain circles, it just happens).

[keensers]

1, 4, 15, 18, 20! for the fic writing meme

you delight me, anon! (from here) this got... hmm, pretty long, so most of it’s going under a cut!

1. Tell us about your current project(s) – what’s it about, how’s progress, what do you love most about it?

back in december, after being wildly disappointed by tros, i thought to myself: none of this bullshit would have happened if they’d just let ahsoka and her irritating ghostly older brothers show up and train finn, who is in fact a [last name redacted] for reasons.

then i started actually plotting it out, realized my 50k concept (“Finn wakes up with a massive headache and, apparently, the ability to see dead people. Then the dead people in question start talking to him.”) needs approximately 300k of background to fully be what i want to be (an anthology love letter to the star wars universe, if it was nicer to my faves), opened a nice fresh word doc and started plotting the whole damn thing. it is called “ahsoka tano’s rules for rebels, rogues, and renegades.” in my head i call it atr4, and my tag for it is “death shall have no dominion” because, ghosts. it is very dear to me right now because i get to invent assorted relationships out of wholecloth between my favorite characters who never met in canon, which is my favorite thing to do.

so, i have two (2) actually in-progress WIPs in that universe:

the actual “Ahsoka trains Finn” headliner fic of this ‘verse, which is currently 6000 words of disconnected scenes i have typed in intermittent fugue states over the last six months

the “Obi-Wan is sad in the desert, but maybe not as sad as in canon, because, well, You Know” fic which is also the “wtf happened to Cody in this ‘verse” fic which is currently 1600 words of imperial!cody Suffering

and a list of ten (10) more that i swear are all connected. i swear it! (highlights from the list include “four almost-padawans of ahsoka tano + one who was” and “rex earns his jaig eyes at least twelve times over during the empire, and another five after.”)

the other (star wars) fic i have on my roster for codywan week (if i can swing it in time) is going to be shorter (why do i feel like i just cursed myself with that word) and the working summary (which has existed only in my head up until now) is: “fives, on the lam from the coruscant guard, the chancellor, and, worst of all, anakin skywalker, runs into cody and an unfamiliar trooper on his way to the meeting point. this has galactic consequences.” who is the unfamiliar trooper/Person In Clone Armor? 3 guesses and the first two don’t count. what are the consequences? well… we’ll see!

4. Share a sentence or paragraph from your writing that you’re really proud of (explain why, if you like)

i first wrote this as a jocasta nu line in her cameo in hear me through the hum, but i liked it so much that i’ve incorporated it into atr4: “And besides, the Jedi are not made up of lightsabers and holocrons, are we? We are made up of the strength in our hearts, the deeds of our hands, and the Light which we follow.”

i think this is maybe the best way i've found of phrasing my own personal view of the jedi (not my own view of the jedi order, but my view of the jedi), which is that they’ve got access to this immense power but what actually makes you a jedi is what you do with it. it’s not the trinkets or the ancient wisdom or the code or whatever, it’s taking the power that lives in you and using it to do good even when the world is dark and the work is thankless. you can be a jedi without the order, but you can’t be a jedi if you aren’t striving for the light.

on a lighter (?) note, i’m also quite proud of the whole “obi-wan keeps trying to talk about the mission report while he’s slowly bleeding out. cody is losing his fucking mind” scene in there, because ah… that’s love, babe!

15. Which is harder: titles or summaries (or tags)?

aw jeez. titles, since i'm usually picking from a list of 10 lines from songs or poems (or, veeery occasionally, making one up) and a lot of the time the line that is my working title isn’t the line that ends up being the final title!  

18. Do any of your stories have alternative versions? (plotlines that you abandoned, AUs of your own work, different characterisations?) Tell us about them.

to be completely and honestly tbh, not… really? especially with characterization, i tend to write about characters who i have Very Firm ideas about who they are and how they would act in whatever given situation. this is good for writing (because i usually know exactly what a character would do, facing a particular choice) but sometimes bad for reading (because sometimes i'll read something and think, “that character would never do that!” even though, of course, that’s just like, my opinion, man).

20. Tell us the meta about your writing that you really want to ramble to people about (symbolism you’ve included, character or relationship development that you love, hidden references, callbacks or clues for future scenes?)

a difficult question! because there’s so much. i include tons and tons of references in everything but for the sake of (relative) brevity i’ll say that especially in atr4 where i’ve got 2500 words JUST OF NOTES FOR THE ‘VERSE i am constantly thinking about the way everything is connected. for example, because of the comparisons i’m aiming to draw there, i currently have most of a duel between ahsoka, kylie renner, and finn written which is a close parallel of the qui-gon, maul, and obi-wan duel. (except, spoilers, ahsoka won’t get killed by a punk bitch like kyle, because reasons.)

part of this is that i love some aspects of the cyclical themes in star wars (“same eyes in different people,” legacy lightsabers, death-yet-the-force) and hate other aspects (i loathe that every sw movie is like “blood isn’t important, anyone can be a hero!” but then every freakin time it turns out that in fact, blood is important, and maybe the most important). so i tend to want to emphasize the ones i like and toss the ones i don’t.

plus, after years of writing, i have realized that there are a few well-worn themes i always circle back to, and one of those is the notion that family doesn’t define you, that it is more than blood, that you have agency over what you do and who you are and who you choose to surround yourself with. i believe in free will and have trouble with characters who think certain outcomes are Destined, but it’s a lot of fun to mess around with the concept of fate, especially in sw where it’s so ingrained in canon. screw destiny! write your own story! said every story i ever wrote.

[svccbus]

001 flash points.

( tuesday, 1st - wednesday, 9th )

what are some of your favorite tropes? 

i feel that this is a lot of people’s favorite, but enemies to lovers. i believe that we tend to hate people that are too similar to us so if there is a change in dynamics that also includes the characters accepting hard truths and learning to love themselves, all the better. i also adore mutual pining which can be inside the enemies to lovers trope. other than that, another favorite is the character who is seen as cold or mean that has a soft spot for a sweet character.

do you have a favorite character you’ve written, in or outside of shiver? if so, what makes them your fave?  

it’s hard for me to choose a favorite character, i always get too attached to each and every one of them. one of the first that came to mind was a character called aki ebisawa. she was an agent for a band, insecure but played tough, with anger issues but actually sweet. she was just easy and fun to write and i feel i was able to portray a truly multidimensional character with her. it was very interesting to write her development. she went from a completely closed off person who wouldn’t admit she needed help let alone accept help to someone who lets herself be vulnerable and works through her feelings. from a woman that wouldn’t take responsibility for her mistakes because they were “made with good intentions” to someone who can own up to (most) of them and genuinely apologize. she was such a joy to write and i miss her. 

another character that i really love is belle evergreen. she was inspired by - you guessed - belle from the beauty and the beast and writing her was all poetry. whenever i wrote her it felt like everything was being read in a soft voice, like a sweet whisper on the back of your mind. she was an optimistic but not a blind one and she was equally dreamy and witty. it was nice to explore how guarded from the real world she was though, seeing in this roleplay she was a princess of a kingdom in war. she gets to go to the warzone to see things with her own eyes and it was very fun and interesting to write this process for her. 

do you prefer writing with small casts of characters or large ones? what are some of the pros and cons?  

can i say i prefer a happy medium? but if i can’t, i’d say i prefer to writing with a smaller cast of characters. i have a serious case of fomo when i see all the wonderful characters that i don’t get to have meaningful plots in large casts and i think that overall, larger ones are harder to navigate. though one of the pros of it is activity. when it comes to smaller groups, everyone needs to be dedicated to keep the roleplay alive and active. 

what’s the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever done in the name of outlining/worldbuilding (timelines, research, maps, spreadsheets, etc.)? 

i think i have done a lot of ridiculous things when it comes to character and worldbuilding. i watched a lot of different documentaries these years that i roleplay exclusively for research. i have written a long family tree for one of my characters just to explain the existence of a family heirloom that was a magical item of my character’s. i started learning (basics) of another language just so i could incorporate it in the story. i have also created locations and institutions just for the bio of the character - in the end, it wouldn’t be relevant to the plot going forward, but it mattered for the building of the character so i did it!

share the last paragraph you wrote you’re most proud of. 

there’s nervousness pooling in her stomach like ice as she looks to the form in her hands. eyes are heavy with worry while insecurities make her uncomfortable on her seat. so she shifts for what is probably the tenth time, unable to help herself when she bites on her lower lip. joohyun wonders just where her confidence went now that she needs it so much. she used to have sharp eyes and ready answers, but now she finds herself with a bubble in her throat and a throbbing of her weak heart. a rational part of her brain argues that she’s been to a lot of auditions already and a company already let go of her once. doubt is starting to take the best of her, but joohyun shakes her head and focus herself to breathe and to believe. 

describe your current muse’s physical appearance using only one, over the top sentence.

words of honey drip from her lips & eyes of troubled sea lure you in, enticing you to come closer & closer until you’re drunk in her waves and all your lungs can breathe is salt water. 

if you had to write a novel about one of the characters in or outside of shiver, which character would you choose and why? 

i think i would love to write a novel about delilah. it seems interesting to me to explore the idea of being able to convince anyone of anything makes life tedious. i’d love to write a novel about her charmspeak being both her gift and her curse, because it doomed her to see no flavor in life and to have very shallow relationships with other people. besides that, i always imagined writing a fantasy / supernatural novel so this fits right in.

[jake-marshall]

Yo I saw that thing you reblogged gimme con affetto + 1 and 2

This ask meme for my Rune Factory 2 + 4 crossover fic, Con Affetto(Sydney has informed me she meant to also ask #s 3 and 4 so I’ll be answering those as well)

1: What inspired you to write the fic this way?That’s a loaded question.  Honestly, it was a mix of playing Rune Factory 2 when the prompt was introduced, with Max being one of my faves from that game, plus the itch to keep writing?  I’d recently completed my first fic in the Ace Attorney fandom, and had attempted to write for RF4 (which I’d been playing like a madman) but nothing was sticking so I wanted to try something new.  When I came across the now-infamous part with Max’s journal entry in RF4, I thought about HOW a visit to Selphia would have gone for him… and of course it turned completely angsty.  I chose to include Meg in it simply because she’s my fave bachelorette but also because it fit, with her connection to Porcoline and to music, as opposed to the fic being more about Max wandering around Selphia on his own and/or with only Porcoline and Barrett.The whole aspect of Julia and her alluded-to ED/death… I wanted to show more sides to Max, and not just make the fic completely silly.  It’s not a topic to take lightly so perhaps I was getting in over my head, but at the same time, I wanted to explore what it was like to use creative arts such as music (or writing or art) to cope with grief and/or other major emotions, especially when it was someone who might not have a total understanding (Max) about where the path might take them…. I guess there was an element of making Max go down a road I had to recently go down, myself, when neither of us were completely ready.Now that I’ve played Meg’s marriage route (with only having a rough idea of what it entailed), I’m happy I did this fic, because getting to incorporate her side of things and how it relates to what Max is going through… without even having realized it, I chose a topic that fits her as well and lets me develop her just as much even though Max was meant to be the “star” of the fic.2: What scene did you first put down?The first whole scene I put down… I actually started at the beginning and just kept going.  But there’s a scene in the upcoming chapter that was in my head early on when this fic created itself in my mind, and I put small pieces of it down so I wouldn’t forget it.  I know now that parts of it are going to change slightly, since I’ve changed so many small details of this fic along the way, but the general idea of it will still be there.3: What’s your favorite line of narration?So tbh I really like nearly all of the end of chapter 3 but if I had to narrow it down to a  particular passage, it’s the final paragraphs:Throughout his entire exposition, the main theme he circled back to was how he, as any Sainte-Coquille ought to be given their lavish, privileged lifestyle, was completely and utterly fine.Because Julia, until the end—she’d been fine, she promised him, no matter how many times he asked, up until that evening she’d gone over to the bathhouse to help Cammy close up. She’d been so frightfully pale and fragile, more than ever, and Max had asked her, was she sure she was… able to help Cammy?  And she’d assured him, one last time, that she was fine.  Thus it became an endless loop in his mind. He ceaselessly clung to that belief—that Julia wasn’t in the same emotional and mental pain she must have been in physically as the last threads of her life unraveled. He had to hold so desperately to that mindset or the grief would usurp it, drive him to sheer madness, because the words and hugs—they just weren’t enough, not when they were for the accident that wasn’t an accident at all.For himself.  For Leann.  He would be okay, be fine, even when he wasn’t.And what’s more, anyone who dared question him on his behavior tonight need simply look to these pages, where it was forever preserved how absolutely perfectly fine Max de Sainte-Coquille was. They could pick apart every last sentence of every last paragraph and come away none the wiser that throughout this night, while everyone else carried on dancing and laughing, Max de Sainte-Coquille was drowning under sorrow and heartbreak, not at all fine in the least.  Because I really liked connecting the canon line we’re given (Max’s diary/journal entry in the room that becomes Dylas’s) and making it something completely heart-breaking.  Maybe I was still coming from a place too where I was learning to deal with my own ugly feelings (this wasn’t too long after my own quasi-breakdown) so I feel it came out quite authentically.4: What’s your favorite line of dialogue?  I didn’t want to choose a Max and Barrett exchange, since this is primarily more about Max and Meg, and to a lesser extent, Max and Porco.But I chose a Max and Barrett exchange because they crack me up and I made myself laugh while writing/editing it, especially since I get to read it out loud in “their” voices and I can’t, I’m dying.“No.” Barrett made to back away, but Max rounded the table and grabbed his friend by the upper arm.“Yes! Come along, Barrett.  It’s been so long since we’ve done anything fun together.”Barrett shook off Max’s hold. “You and I have never done anything ‘fun’ together.”  “Yes, and whose fault is that? Come now, don’t you want to have something interesting to tell Leonel about when you get back to Alvarna?” Although I do have planned lots of pouring-out-of-the-heart between Max and Meg in the next chapter that I really am proud of, but that’s under wraps for now, so no spoilers. xD

[ceslatoil]

15, 16, and 20

15. Your guilty writing pleasure?

Probably writing OC’s in fanfic– like, obviously a good writer can and should be able to make a character they came up with themselves charming and interesting enough for a reader to enjoy, but in fic the deck is heavily stacked against OC’s (not always without reason). I guess it’s the thrill of the challenge? Also I’m a sucker for adding overly detailed descriptions of food. I want my faves to eat well!

16. Do you have structured ideas of how your story is supposed to go, or make it up as you write?

Typically I have a general idea of where I want to go with the fic, but will usually invent and discard tons of different ideas in between the beginning and end depending on what the story needs. For example, during Preposterous Proposals!, I had planned a subplot where McGucket’s Raccoon Wife reveals that she’s some kind of ancient, wise forest guardian, and she ends up saving McGucket and Ford from Pan and gives them her blessing to get engaged– oh yes, she could also talk. It was quite obviously scrapped.Another example would be this one part in Midsummer Nightmare: a good chunk of the plot originally was supposed to be about Mabel and co. trying to keep the Wild Hunt from interfering with the Fiddauthor date. One of these little slapstick scenes involved Gideon trying to appease the fairies by offering them a bowl of cream– he was just going to walk out the door with the bowl, there would be a beat where commotion could be heard outside, and then suddenly he’d return, all roughed up and doused in milk, and say something like “they didn’t like the milk” or something. A scene that would only take about a paragraph to get done at the most.But, this turned into a bigger scene where Gideon almost gets eaten by a monster and Ford and the Girls end up saving him; the essence of the idea is kept, but it was expanded into something bigger.

20. 4 sentences from your work that you’re proud of

“Once everyone in the building was staring in shock at Toby’s appearance, he began to dance an elaborate, jazzy tap dance number that would have resurrected Gene Kelly from the eternal twilight of death, just so he could punch Toby in the face for defecating all over the art of dance.”

This is from what was probably one of my favorite chapters to write in PrePos!, if only because it gave me a chance to really go wild with comedic narration, and I still consider this to be the best line in the fic.

“He crashed his lips against Fiddleford’s, the impact absolutely explosive.”

I’m fond of this line– it borders a little on the Gorgonzola, but I just like the imagery this description of a kiss conjures up– it’s a moment that the entire fic has built up to, and what a satisfying moment indeed.

“Soos stood on the stage, dressed in a suit made of stones, twigs, moss, and the petrified corpse of Bill Cipher.”

You know who I just don’t write enough of? Soos! He’s one of my faves and yet I’ve only ever written him as a supporting character. This was a moment I knew would be perfect for him; if anyone could pull off playing the Wall in Pyramus and Thisbe, it would be Soos.Additionally, this chapter was published about a couple of months before Cipher Hunt began, so it amused me greatly that there were people all over the world searching for his statue when in my fic it became part of a costume for an amateur play!

“The sun had finally risen when Fiddleford McGucket fell asleep to the steady sound of Ford’s heartbeat.”

I’m proud of this line– when I was starting to plot out the ending for Midsummer, I thought it would be important to have the last line of the fic Mirror the first (“The sun had not yet risen when Old Man McGucket had woken up to a mysterious, crashing noise.”)The fic both opens and closes on McGucket– the first line indicates danger and unease, darkness and the unknown, which of course is what pushes us into the adventure in the first place. The closing line reassures us that all is well, the characters we all love are safe again and perhaps happier than they were before.