#here’s one more tag for the algorithm lol

[afk-brain]

A little tag review cuz why not:

oh dear

i think the tumblr algorithm is trolling me cuz of this meme. I keep getting reccomended stuff about carp.

No, tumblr, I am not hyperfixated on carp, it's arguably one of my least favorite fish cuz it's invasive here. Please give me stuff about sharks and coelacanths more cuz I like those fish much better than carp

...actually I should just follow the #coelacanth tag...

A catfish vs carp mishap can be forgiven, because both of those fish do look somewhat similar at first glance:

But crayfish (which have many other names, notably "crawdad" in most of the States), like many things called "fish" in the oceans (such as starfish and jellyfish), are not, in fact, remotely close to fish.

They're freshwater lobsters.

They look like this:

Hilarious rant thank you for adding it lol

[veenomorph]

Snail mail 🐌✉️

[zepskies]

What Does "Supporting Writers" Mean? ✍️

Apparently it's Fanfic Writer Appreciation Day! To all my fellow writers, I truly appreciate you for bringing me joy, making me smile on rough days, and giving me my weekly/daily dose of escapism and warm fuzzies. (Shoutouts to you personally below.) 💓💓

But what does it mean "practically" to appreciate your favorite writers, especially on Tumblr?

For example, I know some fanfic authors are starting to block "serial likers": people who'll go through someone's entire masterlist and hit the "like" button on 20-something stories without commenting or basic reblogging.

While I think blocking them is extreme, I understand the authors' frustrations. I've actually been asked if I'll ever leave Tumblr, since many of them have dropped off over the past few months, or even the past few years.

I'm still here for two very important reasons:

I love to write about my favorite characters. I write primarily because I love it, not just for the kudos.

I'm friggin' blessed to have a lot of friends and lovely readers on here and Ao3 who support me immensely on my writing and on this blog in general. I love and appreciate each and every one of you! Which is why I do my best to reply to your comments and reblogs. 💖💖

Of course, there are many reasons why a writer might take a break or stop writing entirely, but one of those reasons is also why the #supportwriters tag exists...

And why you'll see us include banners like this on our posts:

(Credits: cafekitsune, me, inklore)

That being said, here's my own rule of thumb on how I try to support my fellow writers when I read something I enjoy:

If I "liked" something, it means I had the time to read a story all the way through and I enjoyed it! (Or I'm bookmarking it for later in the day lol)

If I have the time to read it, I have the time to leave a comment on what I liked the most about it.

If I have the time to write out a comment (anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes), I typically put that comment in a reblog -- maybe even add a gif or two for ✨razzle dazzle.✨ That way I can share it with the rest of my followers, so they can see it and hopefully enjoy it too...

Why? Because Tumblr isn't TikTok or IG. Reblogging is the best way to help a post gain traction on Tumblr. The algorithm doesn't care much about likes.

But on a more human level, supporting writers is just the basic thing of -- if you enjoyed something you read (that a writer shared for free), just let them know what you liked about it.

Remember that there's a person behind the content you enjoy. They might have been working on that story for weeks or months, or even years before they got the courage to post it.

They might really be putting themselves out there, writing about a topic or subject matter that they're not sure people will even like or engage with.

Maybe they're exploring something new, like a character or trope they've never written before.

Maybe they're expressing part of themselves that they haven't even told another living soul.

Maybe they just wanted to write something fun and smutty or angsty or fluffy and want to share the escapism with you.

Whether they've been writing for years or are just starting out, any and all is valid.

For me, as a writer and a reader, supporting my fellow writers often means supporting my friends. And 9 times out of 10, the way we became friends was by leaving feedback on their work and asking them questions, or responding to their awesome feedback on mine.

If you want a little jumpstart on how to leave feedback, whether encouraging or constructive, here's an awesome post about it (not mine).

Shoutout to some of my favorite writers 💞:

(In no particular order)

@waynes-multiverse @luci-in-trenchcoats @dean-winchester-is-a-warrior @thatonewriter15 @rizlowwritessortof

@waywardxwords @tofics @kaleldobrev @deanbrainrotwritings @deanwritings

@jawritter @deanwinchesterswitch @justagirlinafandomworld @ravengirl94 @waywardxwords

@spnbabe67 @deanwanddamons @ejlovespie @kittenofdoomage @venus-haze

@talltalesandbedtimestories @sam-is-my-safe-word @jacklesbrainworms @artyandink @princessmisery666 (I just starting reading your stories, but I'm continuing with Samnesia soon!) -- and I'm sure many more! 💋

[mellowquint]

Fanbinding Masters of Mayhem - a Ninjago and Lego Monkie kid crossover!!!

FINALLY after weeks of putting the project on the shelf i finally have the (motivation) free time to complete this amazing bookbind!!! Shoutout to my best friend who came to me and ask if i could bind it. So what better birthday gift than to bind her current favourite crossover story? At the time of this post i have not given the gift to her yet so fingers crossed that she likes this 🤞😖

Thank you FictionForLife_NZ for creating this absolute hilarious masterpiece!! I have been wanting to read an LMK crossover fic for the longest time and low and behold, the ao3 algorithm has answered my prayers lol. Me and best friend really love the character interaction that the Ninja’s have with the LMK crew 😂. Also the shipping!! Best friend absolutely LOVES dragonfruit but was sad that they didn’t have as much of a fandom dedication as opposed to spicynoodles. So imagine her suprised (and scream) that dragonfruit is the main pairing in the story and their many iconic moments together!! Also the climax truly had me at the edge of my seat!! And that ending?? Gosh couldn’t have asked it better myself Ninjago writers really should take notes ✍️!!! Anyways enough rambling here’s the fic if you would like to give a read, absolute 10/10

Flip through

Some close ups

also yes excuse me and my terrible phone and room lighting it did not do this book justice.

Unfortunately I couldn’t find any fanart that was related/tagged so there was no illustrations for the book. However thats when i had the idea of making the chapter title in the same font as the Ninjago font! To make it seem like every new chapter is an episode!

Also unfortunately couldn’t tag the author since i can’t find their tumblr. If any of you know if said author does have tumblr please let me know!

If you’re all curious on how i make this, i recommend going to the first bookbinding project that i did, its all the same process except with some new improvements that im gonna talk about under the cut

I definitely learned a lot from my mistakes from the last time that i did this, and of course gain new mistakes as well 🥲.

The edges aren’t trimmed

The cover isn’t aligned

The printing for the covers are garbage

Book would not lay flat, instead forever stuck at a weird 120 degree angle

Overall a lot of stuff

This was a given by the fact that i have no experience and was impatient. But since this is a gift for Best Friend ofc this has to actually look good, so here are the improvements that i made

Signature printing— i will admit it took some time and effort but after the old cannon printer finally died permanently jammed, managed to convince parents to buy a more advanced and better printer that can now do double sided printing!! No more wasted signatures from here on out 😮‍💨

Cover printing — not wanting a repeat of the last time that i did it i went to my local Officeworks to get it printed by them. Here i discovered the beauty that is known as ✨Poster Prints✨. Now all of my yellow lines and elements actually do show an pop against the darker background!! Unfortunately this does have a drawback because the prints are sensitive to any type of scratching. Not the scratch and all the colors come off way, more like the scratch it and lines will show up kind of way as you can really see in the front cover :') . Will work on improving this is future projects.

Trimming the edges — originally in book one i trimmed the edges using your typical box cutter and cut it myself. Bad BAD idea i was doomed at that moment. So imagine my surprise the Officeworks ALSO do CUTTING service!!! My jaw dropped and i immediately went back the next day with my text block and asked them if they could trim all edges. After some inspection they put it through the guillotine and all of my edges are perfectly trimmed. Saved me all the time, money, and storage.

Laying book flat — this was definitely the biggest pet peeve that I have with my first book. The way i do it now is i now put a one cm gap between the front cover, side cover and back cover. And also using the right paper (cardstock) to connect the text block with the covers. Now the book can actually fully open!!!

Cover alignment — I printed out the front and back in regular paper and use that as a template on where i wanna fold the prints to find the cover. Worked like a charm

once again shoutout to best friend for giving me the brilliant idea when making the covers!! had it not been for her to point out about clause's book of spells i would have never made the coolest cover page that I've made in my entire binding experience!! all in all im pretty dang proud of myself for being able to improve on my bookbinding skill.

[milevenstancyendgame]

i NEED to hear your thoughts on this:

Yeah, it seems like sending links isn't allowed in asks, which sucks.:/

I'm flattered you're asking for my opinion.🙃 I chose not to check out the post you described (turns out I already have that blog blocked, for good reasons I think.😂), because I really don't want to waste my energy on B/ler bs. I see red every now and then, but it's best for my mental health to ignore them as much as possible. Thankfully blocking tags/content/blogs works quite well here (though sadly there are loop holes of course). Not allowing anonymous questions helps too.

BUT I can offer a *little psychological analysis of the dominant B/ler culture on here. *Sits down by the fire place and plucks lyre*

*This got waaaay longer than planned, so get comfy, lol.😆 Turned into my manifesto or something. So might as well give it a fancy title.✨

B/ler Shippers And Narcissism

As we know, every Tumblr fandom has its fanon ships, and sometimes those ships become a mass phenomenon (usually it's m/m ships, though sometimes it's also other ships that become huge, like Zutara from ATLA for example). Sociologists, where are you? It's such an interesting phenomenon, especially the demographics of it.

ANY way, I never was as directly involved in and impacted by a ship war as much as in the ST fandom, so I can't compare. But one very disturbing thing I noticed within the B/ler fandom, is the amount of narcissism I see.

Now this is the moment for my disclaimer, because I don't want to generalise. I'm sure there are normal, nice B/ler shippers, but those stay out of the Mileven tag. I don't know how the algorithm of the "For you" suggestions works, but in my experience (and from what I heard also of others), engaging with ANY ST-content will fill it with B/ler posts. Which is why I stay out of there, and the same counts for any ST tag, tbh. And the vast majority of all those B/ler posts were full of Mileven hate, Mike hate, and even Eleven hate.

That's why I want to be clear that I'm talking about the B/ler fandom as I've experienced it. Take that with a grain of salt and don't come "Not ALL B/lers!"-ing at me.😂

Okay, with that out of the way, let's start. The way I see it, there are two ways of shipping B/ler:

1) You start watching the show. You like Will and Mike. You see that they are close friends. You romanticise their relationship (encouraged by Will's hinted at homosexuality in early seasons, or not). You create your fanon version of Mike, who loves Will back. You enjoy your fanon and prefer it over canon. The end.

There's obviously nothing wrong with that and that's the blueprint for most of fanon. I have my fanon ships too, or characters that I like, while I dislike canon or the whole franchise. But the thing with B/ler is that the majority of fans seem to have caught rabies. For them, it's more like this:

2) You start watching the show. You like Will. You see that Will is close friends with Mike. You romanticise their relationship (encouraged by Will's hinted at homosexuality in early seasons, or not). You create your fanon version of Mike, who loves Will back. You think your fanon is canon. You preach it and call yourself a "truther". You try to convert other people. You bully Mileven shippers. You hate Mike, but want him to be together with Will. You drag the actors into your fanon.

This type of B/ler shipper is remarkably like a narcissist (in an abusive relationship, or a cult leader, or megalomaniac politician. The world is full of them.)

We got:

Delusion

"Mike is gay and in love with Will 100%." Fact remains that there is not even a hint for this in the show, nor writer/actor/director hints. To claim that the exact opposite is true, is a complete rejection of canon and replacing it with fanon.

Inability to doubt and self-reflect

When someone refuses to admit an external reality, it's because they can't deal with their internal reality. Like for many of us, their ship has a deep personal meaning to them and they are attached to it. But they are incapable of even entertaining the thought that Will and Mike might not end up together in s5. Let alone that Mike is actually not in love with Will, nor ever was. Letting in that doubt would be too painful. It would mean that they were wrong. They would feel ashamed. They would feel betrayed.

Now I would say that I'm 99% sure that Mileven will be endgame, but I leave room for that 1% of doubt, because I simply don't know. I haven't read the script of s5. I haven't written it. I don't control the writers and runners of the show. I am human and I can err in my expectations and assumptions about others and their actions. We all do, but some people just can't deal with this truth, so they completely disconnect from it, and just act like they can't be wrong.

Hostility/Polarisation

Since upholding the delusion of a B/ler reality is EVERYTHING, people who doubt or negate it, are a menace. They need to be controlled. How do we do this? By shaming them, of course. B/lers mostly draw from the scapegoating palette of the universal abuser's tool box:

-Name calling (M/lkvan, and I've seen others) -Accusations/Gaslighting -Provocation -Criticism -Slander/gossip -Mockery/humiliation -Personal attacks -Invasion/hijacking of personal space (coughthemileventagcough)

By doing that, they have achieved to drive a great amount of Mileven shippers from Tumblr (I don't blame those who left at all). That way, the voices who are opposing their delusion become less and less, which is how they think things should be.

Contradictions/Making No Sense

Another thing that is true for all narcissists, is that they create an Upside Down version of reality (pun not intended, but it's fitting).

Since they believe in a delusion, they obviously don't have logic on their side. They have to change the goal posts all the time (classic narcissist behaviour) and will argue that blue is red. We got a ton of examples for this:

-Some say they love Eleven. They say they are feminist. Contradiction: They use Eleven to "prove" their point. They say she's ugly and looks like a boy. They say she needs to be independent, which means to break up with Mike (???). They say she's stupid/other ableist insults. They patronise/infantilise her.

-The above-mentioned user said Mileven shippers don't appreciate Mike. Contradiction: B/lers make up the vast majority of Mike haters. They say he abuses Eleven. They say he abuses Will. They say he abuses Lucas and Dustin. They say he abuses Max. They make everything he ever said and did about how he secretly loves Will or how he secretly doesn't love Eleven. They aren't even able to see the character Mike as he exists in the show.

-Some say Mike babies Eleven. Contradiction: They also say Mike puts her on a pedestal.

-Some say to ship Mileven is homophobic. Contradiction: They fetishise Will and Mike. They objectify Mike and turn him into a trophy for Will.

-And of course: They say Mike loves Will. Contradiction: There's no evidence for this.

And then there is just plain insanity, like:

-The "When blue and yellow meet in the west"-part of the Russian code is actually about B/ler

-The colours of Mike's s5 sweater represent the bisexuality flag

-The light!!!!

-Once I saw a B/ler claim that a riddle from ST promo contained a hint about B/ler. I asked them for more info and checked it out. But when I told them that I thought there were other possible solutions to that riddle, they shut down and simply insisted that their interpretation was the only truth and they were being queerbaited.🫡

💩

What I also find noteworthy is how above-mentioned user said that it's not just Mileven shippers who don't appreciate Mike, but also the GA - which I think stands for general audience? Because that's another classic narcissistic move to puff up their ego - claiming that they are the only one who has some sort of deeper insight into something or someone. It's not just arrogant, it's another wonderful upside down example, because the truth is that they don't even have a basic, superficial understanding of reality (like I said, that can't see Mike).

Projection/Gaslighting

Everyone does a bit of this, especially insecure people. But since this type of B/ler shipper we're talking about, is extremely insecure AND isn't capable of self-awareness, it runs rampant.

To project onto someone means to place feelings, behaviours, or attitudes onto them which you hold yourself (good, bad, neutral). Gaslighting is a form of projecting, which means to accuse someone of your own flaws and wrongdoings, in order to undermine their status/credibility and make them question their own perception/reality.

I already listed this among the shaming tactics, but wanted to point it out in particular, because it's so fitting to what you described. Saying that Mileven shippers and the GA don't appreciate Mike (probably because they don't understand him?) is such a perfect example of projecting AND gaslighting. Because, like I said, no one hates Mike Wheeler like the majority of B/ler shippers, lol.

So saying this serves so many purposes:

-Distracting from B/ler hate of Mike -Discrediting Mileven shippers to other B/ler shippers and possibly non-shippers -Shaming Mileven shippers who read the post -Possibly converting non-shippers and Mileven shippers (haven't read the post, but this definitely happens too) -Setting up B/ler shippers as some sort of "chosen group" that has exclusive insight into Mike's character (the irony!).🤣😂🤣

I mean, again, I didn't read the post, but to me it sounds quite like a little dictator right there.😆 Yes, it's "only" shipping, but it's definitely toxic and purposefully hateful as hell. And after all a fandom is like a mini-society. A group of people who inhabit the same social space.

So, in conclusion - the more I see and hear of B/ler shippers, the more I become convinced that this ship attracts mainly narcissistic and otherwise toxic people, who need a delusion to cling to and an excuse to abuse others. I didn't want to say it before, because it seems incredible for something as harmless as a fictional ship, and like I said, I don't want to generalise or demonise people. But the glass is full and this was the last drop.😬 My experience of 95% of B/ler shippers is as described above, and it is what it is. Someone needed to say it.

[javis-burner-phone]

To Writers in the Pedro Pascal Fandom:

This fandom went full Chernobyl this summer. I need a hazmat suit to get through these tags. I recently saw an anon reach out to a fic writer here.

The anon is right that there's a problem in the fandom space, but they're misplacing blame. I'm writing this post for the non-hateful writers that have tried to feel a part of the community, but ended up feeling left out. I'm posting this on a burner account for obvious reasons that you'll see below:

The hateful posts about "big writers" have absolutely disgusted me, but I can relate to the frustration that many fic writers are expressing. We see very fun and active areas of the fandom where writers are communal, hyping each other up, reblogging fics, but only within certain friend groups. Most of us writers don't have that. Instead this fandom sometimes feels like a desolate wasteland for many of us.

Here's where us writers need to place the blame:

Since the introduction of algorithms, there has been a cyclical effect: popular Tumblr posts are boosted due to everyone's default feed settings and posts from new, lesser known blogs are pushed down.

Over years, this has impacted fandom spaces in a sort of feedback loop. We're currently seeing the late stages of this. This effect pushes most fandom activity towards the already popular blogs by default. (Yes, Tumblr has always shown popular posts first, but algorithms, and the feedback loops they create, have made the effect stronger over the years.)

Is that the "big writers" faults? No. Are friend groups to blame? No. In fact, we should have more friend groups in this fandom. That's how fandoms used to be. There were dozens of overlapping friend groups that would have long reblog chains and mainly interact with each other. New people could find other new people pretty easily and make their own groups.

Now new people/smaller blogs are far less exposed to other new people/smaller blogs by default. *That* is the problem.

Eventually, I found my people. I feel a part of the community and you can too.

You just need to make 3 virgin sacrifices and find the lochness monster in order to do so. What I mean is, it takes a lot more effort than it used to. Be ready for that:

1. Sort by "Latest posts" when searching fandom hashtags. Imagine if Ao3 used an algorithm to show popular fics first instead of sorting by most recent fics. New writers would be screwed, right? That's what Tumblr does. Support posts that resonate with you, but have low engagement. Leave likes, comments, reblogs! Guess what happens when someone that feels isolated in this fandom gets a bunch of notes from you? They're gonna check out your blog. They may want to connect!

2. DM people. Is there a lesser known blogger whose posts you like? Ask to be mutuals! Start a conversation! If you can't be social it's gonna be near impossible to build community. Sorry if you have anxiety, but that's the truth. Warning: half the convos will fizzle out. Move on to the next person as soon as you sense this.

3. Don't try to connect with bigger blogs for friendship. I've tried and as long as you gush over them, they respond, but the interaction ends there. DMing them works, but the convos almost always feel one sided and fizzle out. I'm mutuals with some bigger bloggers, but I had to add their usernames to my filtered content list in account settings. This means they can see my stuff, but I can't see theirs. Seeing them have fun in their friend group just reminds me of my failed attempts to connect. Maybe filtering them isn't fair, but that's how I deal with my negative emotions. No, they are not rude for not befriending me. I don't feel entitled to friendship.

(edit: I got a weird anon about this part. It's more difficult to befriend people who already have close-knit connections here. It's not impossible, but I've had much better luck with fellow isolated fandom members. The secret ingredient is our shared desperation lol. Befriend whoever you want ❤️)

4. Join/start a small PPCU discord server. The big servers will just make you feel more isolated, but the intimate ones are way more communal and it's easier to make stronger connections there than on Tumblr. 

These tips are for people that actually want to find solutions instead of spreading hate and complaining.

I'm saying this as someone that averages 50 notes on most of my fics after a year in this fandom(edit: saw this poll and thought I'd clarify. I get 50 notes now, but for 8ish months I got 5 on a lucky day. This post is for people who still feel isolated because I know how it feels.) It takes way more effort than in the early 2010s to feel a part of a fandom, not because of cliques, but because of the feedback loops the algorithm creates. 

I understand the frustration, but I'm not going to spread vitriol just because the fandom ecosystem went to shit. 

[gomzdrawfr]

want to join the fandom cause it seems fun seeing fanarts and you and others interacting but I don't know how...and with the whole ai thing im scared...

my advice: just do it

really! sometimes all you really need is a leap of faith, and that was exactly how I dropped into the cod fandom. When I joined the ghoap discord server I talked to one of the artist I really like and respected from my lurking time (hi @bressynonym) aaaand the rest is history

I didnt know how to draw properly, nor digitally, all I did was scribbling on OneNote (yeah!) and rambled about cod characters, it is daunting and it is scary to interact but after a while? you may just be able to find someone to brainrot together with

start small, like commenting, reblogging, talking, chatting- doesn't have to be towards artist/writers, it could be the art/fic enjoyers!

you need to put yourself out there if you want something

as to if you want to start in the fandom as a creator, here's some more tips (which are all based on my experience, I am no pro at doing this, hell Im still learning myself, and I am by no means speaking these on behalf on others!)

establish a goal: what are you making? fandom based? original creations?

as with starting new, everything may take a while for stuff to happen, you'll feel like you're speaking to the void at times (esp with original arts, but do know that your stuff do get perceive by others as time goes, I would advise to draw fandom stuff as a beginning to get that boost going if you want! or else it's going to be quite hard to get things rolling)

imo this is hardest part of any new creator, you'll have to bear with it and try not to give up (but I understand how incredibly demotivating it could get, there were times when I stopped posting about Raven entirely, but eventually I post it anyway cuz surely someone out there will like them, it just takes a lot of patiences and perseverance)

btw, engagement can also vary from time to time, you may be booming for a bit, then suddenly you dont, it is a cycle that will bound to happen

take rest regularly, and I mean a break from social media because numbers, discourse and everything can get to you, very quickly (I cannot emphasise this enough)

the numbers are not worth it over your mental health (comes with practice to really solidify this thought)

study the algorithm (pain): see what other creators are doing to get where they are, what tags are they using in their post? what features/niche do people like?(this is, if you really want to grab some form of engagement, bcuz reminder in the end you are creating art for yourself first!)

example: I think posts would get more reach if you tag it with the ship name first, followed by the characters' name (doesn't work all the time tho)

that's the thing about algorithm, it is ever-changing, and you'll have to learn to adapt with it when it does!

expanding on that, studying algorithm could be about ships (for example, ghostsoap is most popular in the fandom), or really good rendered art/flashed out fic that leaves your jaw on the floor, or ships that gets lesser attention in general which puts you, who make content about them, easier to be brought into the light (like Faralex)

bUT, it can also be personality!

(again, not saying this is meant for everyone and strictly from my own experience + what I observe) for me, I made up the lack of my art by establishing a personality: a wild panda who yaps about price and their oc and also kinda everywhere in the place (just like this post LOL), OR you're the person who named themselves after Soap's ash particle number OR you're the one who likes bottom Ghost- literally anything goes, you want to make an impression in different ways, some more funny/goofier than others but it works (be mindful and stay respectful tho, dont wanna be the asshole in the fandom now do ya?)

efforts ≠ engagement (not all the time, but most time) and this is a fact. Sometimes, you can't expect a piece you did for 10+ hours to get thousands views and likes, especially in a fandom space. You need to understand algorithm is that wonky. (very disheartening, but again, you make the art for you and the few others who genuinely likes them, and those people can go a long way) be mentally prepared for such events, and try not to beat yourself up too much for it

ultimately tho, do it, do it scared but do it anyways and again, draw the things that bring you joy, I hope these could be helpful in some ways!

[queermania]

I’m new here and was tired of being confused by the #dbag posts so I went through the tag on your blog to learn the lore. Which means I also watched that YouTube video you made. And wow??? People are really saying anything to you, huh? I think the asks made me feel worse than the fic. Weirdly the fic combined with your reading of it might have freed me from my writer’s block. So thank you? Might go write some (non-RPF) fic after this lol. Also weirdly, this video made me realize that for the 2 weeks I’ve been following you/aware of your existence I’ve also been assuming you were British. No idea why, but it’s the kind of thing I’d want to know so I’m telling you.

At the end of this whole saga I have 2 questions:

What are those thoughts on Sound of Metal? I watched it a few years ago but I was with other people and distracted, plus I don’t have much knowledge of either of the cultures on display in the movie so my take away was mostly just that Ahmed’s performance was excellent. It’s on my list for a rewatch but would love to hear your thoughts first!

Any tips on purging and/or fine-tuning one’s YouTube algorithm? I hate how recommended videos have worked for the past few years. I go down random rabbit holes all the time and am just haunted by those videos forevermore. Can’t a girl have a highly specific special interest for 2 days and then never want to see another video about it again? Damn.

In closing, thank you for your comprehensive tagging. Much appreciated (pretend the salute emoji is here. I refuse to give up more desktop storage space to yet another system update so I don’t have it 😔)

hello. welcome to my blog where people just say things to me. i've decided to just embrace dylan youtube as my baby daddy who owes me a bunch of backpay in child support and who is moderately good at what he does. it's much easier than being uncomfortable about it.

i'm very excited about your freedom from the writer's block shackles. what are you going to write?

i absolutely want to know when people think i'm british. do i have britishisms?

i have two answers for you:

1. i think you already found my thoughts on sound of metal but incase i'm mistaken this is them. riz ahmed was amazing though, like the best/most natural signing i've seen from an actor who learned for a role. 2. i have zero tips. my search and watch history are both turned off and i'm not really a youtube girlie anyway (probably why i had no idea who dylan youtube was). but honestly i'm not sure there is anything you can do to fine tune an algorithm anymore unfortunately :/

in closing, thank you for making use of all my tagging. it's been an honor to be not-actually-british with you.

[femboymilkovich]

weekly tag wednesday thursday lol

tagged by the lovely @mybrainismelted @deedala and @vintagelacerosette

How did you get into the fandom? 

funnily enough technically because of my previous hyperfixation with the One Chicago tv series, specifically Chicago Fire actor Taylor Kinney lol. The show was going on a mid season break and I was like well I dont want to blow through what I need to catch up on but I want to wach said actor and I saw he was in 2 eps of s2 of shameless so I watched, laughed my ass off and decided to start it from the beginning immediately. Then became infatuated with gallavich surprise surprise.

How long have you been here?

on this blog, only a couple months, i had a lot of time off of tumblr but originally I joined around 2011 ish i think

What’s the first fandom channel you found? (Youtube, Reddit, Tumblr, Insta, Twitter, FB, other?)

I mean i had been seeing shit pop up in the algorithm on tiktok long before I got hooked, but like probably gallavich scenes on YT

what’s your favourite now? 

tumblr and discord for sure

Which mutual have you known the longest in the fandom?

oooh thats a tie actually! I started interacting with both of them at the same time lol @iansw0rld and @mickittotheman

Which tumblerino’s did you have your first fandom crush(es) on and want to get to know?

@mickittotheman again lmfao theyre such a cutie little bean i love them so much bitesyoubitesyoubitesyou

First Gallavich fan fic you read (or that blew you away that you remember)

screaming at the top of my lungs The Menagerie by @crossmydna

it wasnt the first story i read, but it was the first one that sank its teeth into me and made me absolutely insane. It made me love slow burn, so beautifully balanced, perfectly detailed. Amazing read I can NOT recommend it enough.

First Fan art that blew your mind? 

all fanart blows me away yall are so tallented its fucking insane. but the one that made my brain go brrrrrrrrrrrr was THIS one by Mechy aka @mickittotheman. but also I love @steorie, @doshiart @heymrspatel and @deedala your art always makes me go insane i love you all thank you for blessing my eyeballs

Fanfic trope that you were sure wasn’t for you but now you low key (or high key) love?

slow burn and college/sports AU's also sex worker of varying degree but specifically Headphones Encouraged by @whatthebodygraspsnot

What surprised you most about this fandom?

how fucking nice, and accepting everyone is! entering into a fandom, especially when there is no new canon content was scary but every single person i have come across has been incredibly lovely, and a few of them hold a very dear place in my heart for helping me through my self journey (@transsexual-dandelions looking at you i love you forever)

Moment in the show (or YT vids if you’re one of those) that you fell in hyperfixation with Gallavich?

oh literally instantly mickeys intro and interactions hooked me into their world immediately

Ian or Mickey?

okay first of all how dare you. this is impossible. i refuse

Which Gallagher or Milkovich are you? 

im mickey 100% lmfao love that for me

not tagging more people as im late to this anyway but if you see this and want to then i tagged you okay love you all byeeeeeeeeee

[lloke]

I was tagged by @nohoperadio for this meme about 10 books or categories-of-books you're planning to read this year... their list is full of Actual Literature and mine isn't going to be nearly as impressive, but here it is anyway...

So I use Goodreads (link - feel free to friend me) and have a gigantic to-read list, which I've tried to manage by breaking it up into various categories/genres, ordering each list according to an obscure algorithm and then rotating through the categories in an overly complicated system that changes every few months... but without some kind of system to tell me what to read next I think I would just be paralyzed by indecision because there are too many books that I want to read Right Now. But anyway that means my reading is pretty planned out and I do have a pretty good idea of what I'm going to be reading this year.

I read mostly SFF and one subgenre I've been very into lately is "stuff with interesting aliens" and one book that's currently near the top of that list is The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell, which as I understand it is a book about aliens and religion, both topics that I'm interested in. So I'm looking forward to that one.

Another category which is sometimes a subgenre of the above is books (usually SF but occasionally fantasy) which depict a society that Does Gender Differently, especially in the sense of having some kind of non-binary gender system. Sometimes I become an insane completionist about things, and this is one of those things.... it's just fun seeing how many different tri-gender (or whatever) systems writers can come up with, even when the books themselves are otherwise terrible. I've now read most of the well-known stuff in this subgenre and have been venturing into the increasingly obscure... one that I'll probably get to this year is called Eifelheim by Michael Flynn, which apparently also involves both religious themes and aliens with three sexes? Hey, sign me up.

In the general category of "stuff by authors I like and want to read more of" some I've got coming up are Babel-17 by Samuel R. Delany, The Transmigration of Timothy Archer by Philip K. Dick, The Truth and Other Stories by Stanisław Lem, Rocannon's World by Ursula K. Le Guin.... also some more Asimov and Heinlein, which I'm a little embarrassed about as I have been given to understand that all Real SF Fans already read all that "golden age" stuff when they were 12 and haven't glanced at it since.

Also: more silly Sherlock Holmes fanfics pastiches, of which I've already read way too many. I usually go for the ones that bring in SFF elements (the crackier the better) or that sound like they might have h/c in them lol. Coming up in the near future is Lindsay Faye's Observations by Gaslight.

In the nonfiction category, the next on the list is Buddhisms: An Introduction by John S. Strong, which I picked out just by searching around for a good introductory book on the topic. That's how I tend to approach nonfiction reading, by starting with a general overview of whatever topic I'm interested in to get some background on the "scholarly consensus" before delving into books on more specific subtopics or scholars presenting their own idiosyncratic view or "bold new theory" or whatever. Mostly I've been reading about religion lately; I kind of want to get back into math and science stuff which I liked as a kid and did well at in school, but everything I learned is so rusty now... and I dunno, I like the idea of being the sort of person who actually understands relativity theory or whatever but realistically I'm probably not actually smart enough for it lol.

I guess that's roughly ten things. Tagging (only if they want to obviously) @ipsomaniac @paradigm-adrift and/or anyone else who feels like doing it.

[jambuonthemoon]

introduction 🤍

hihi! my name is salem 🌙 (jambuonthemoon) and welcome to my blog! sorry if this intro is a yapfest i over-explain a lot 🥲

i had an old account called “pinklofthousecookie” (south park fandom, you might remember) but i decided to start fresh and create a new account. i felt like i wanted to show more about things i’ve made (art, sketches) or places i’ve traveled. i absolutely love traveling and exploring 🫶✨ however, I will like and comment on fandom stuff (top 3 rn is south park, stardew valley, and atla) created by many talented artists on here from time to time so maybe you’ll find me! :)

what i’ll be posting: art and sketches i’ve made, south park stuff (i love south park, it’s my comfort show 🥰) and pictures from places i’ve traveled!

dni if you’re gonna be rude or creepy in any sort of way. i’m a minor and this is an account i wanted to make for fun and if you decide to pull anything you will be blocked! especially if you are a proshipper/subcategory of one or if you are in the TCC community.

more about me: i am basically a fine arts final boss lol. i love drawing (im not the greatest artist but ive been drawing for fun ever since i was little!) im also a dancer and i play clarinet and sax.

sometimes i feel like ive been living a double life because tumblr is honestly the only place i can truly be myself and show people my favorite things and join these kind and supportive fandoms, so thank you everyone for helping me grow and be myself 💗

this account is gonna be on a long journey, so bare with me here, i’m kinda shyyy 🙈🫶

(btw im gonna be tagging all sorts of stuff for the algorithm to find me 😛)

[lurkiestvoid]

Hey TT refugees:

I've been dabbling in various socmed for almost thirty years, starting in the Before Times even before MySpace. Now, usually I come back to Tumblr eventually, I've been back this time for I think a little over a year.

long tumblrites are mostly gonna tell you "Tumblr has no algorithm" and "your FYP is worthless, no one uses it," blahdiblah. The rest of their advice is perfectly fine! but that first is outright false and second is ... Nuanced.

Just like on TT, you have your "Following"/dashboard, then your "For You Page," then any other tags/tabs settings you have like Trending etc. And just like on TT, you mostly wanna spend time engaging your dashboard and following/followers, BUT despite what some Tumblrs might say, yeah some new/'micro' blogs absolutely do still use the FYP because we're not already following more content than we could possibly consume, as is common after several years here. lol

Anyways Tumblr's algorithm is not nearly as beefy, but it DOES exist. You'll see it suggesting posts/content you may like on your regular dash in between posts you follow; please do not freak out if it's... not at all related to your interests, it's just stupid. It's the Bing of algos. You can freely ignore Suggested posts. and lol feel free to ignore "Tumblr tv" it's not TT quality you're not missing anything, they're just trying too hard to be TT, y'know how it goes. If Tumblr tries to "we'll think you'll like" and starts just showing you hardcore porn ads, as has been known to happen (personal note: yes even with mature filters on. Yes even with every tag I can think of blacklisted. Yes even when I'm personally somewhere around asexual and so very much do NOT have similar content in my browser history. Yeah no I tried everything) just report and move on.

Where the algorithm works best is, indeed, your FYP. Aside from just looking through tags/fandoms/etc you're interested in to find people to follow, this is more often where you'll find More Stuff To Follow, since it's not really chronological. When you're first starting on Tumblr even if you follow like 200 blogs right off the bat, your dashboard isn't going to be very busy. If you find yourself refreshing it frequently, slide over to the FYP. This feels MUCH more like the algo you're used to, and is a great way to find new people and content to follow! Just like on TT tho remember to slide back over to your Following dash and engage with each other on those posts, too!

Once your dash is busy enough, you really don't Need the FYP anymore, but as always do what ye want and have fun! 💜 Welcome!

[wifegideonnav]

I'm new to Tumblr. How do Tumblr users usually engage with each other?

well first of all welcome haha. the main ways to engage with people are:

liking and reblogging. platforms like instagram and tiktok run on likes and an algorithm, but on tumblr, people almost exclusively use their dashboard and turn off suggested content, so they’re only seeing what people actually reblog onto their dash. that’s why people on this site are so adamant about reblogs, because likes basically do nothing. i saw someone say once that anything you would like on a different social media, you should reblog on here, and i totally agree. and don’t worry about how old a post is, or about reblogging something you’ve previously reblogged. there are posts from 2014 that i regularly see on my dash a decade later, so literally don’t feel awkward, it’s 100% normal to engage with old posts.

tags. there are three main ways tags are used: labeling original content so people find it in searches, internal organization systems when reblogging or posting (for instance, many people have a tag for their original posts, and will tag reblogs by fandom or character or whatever - important note that reblogs do not show up in search results), and to make sotto voce comments on a post. it’s normal for people to make jokes, add their own commentary, ramble about something semi relevant, or say something to op in the tags on posts they reblog.

reblog additions. every time you reblog, you have the chance to add something to the post, which unlike tags will be retained when someone reblogs from you. a good rule of thumb is to comment instead of tagging when it’s something you actually want other people to engage with, as opposed to tags where you’re just kind of expressing yourself lol. don’t be surprised however if you see people’s tags getting screenshotted and added to a reblog. if this happens because the screenshotter likes what the tag writer said, it’s jokingly referred to as “passing peer review.” (and of course people screenshot tags to criticize or mock them as well.) essentially, tags are like being at a big group dinner and saying something to the person next to you as an aside, and then sometimes that person goes “hey everyone listen to this”

post comments. there’s also an option on every post (unless op has turned it off) for people to comment on the post itself, not on a specific reblog. mostly this is useful for talking to people on personal posts or posts with reblogs turned off. on a bigger post, just reblog it and put your thoughts in an addition or tag.

asks. seems like you figured this one out! lmao. asks are used for a wide variety of things, but essentially it can either be a prompt for someone to make a post or a way of having an interaction/conversation with someone without dming them.

dms. these work like dms everywhere else, except the functionality is limited and it kinda sucks.

games. there are also many varieties of games that people play with each other, ranging from ask games (things like “rec me some music” or a post with prompts and people send you some from that list), tag games (typically there are questions you answer then you tag other people to fill them out for themselves) handwriting tags, follow chains, giveaways, name/url playlists, and more. with the addition of polls, brackets have gotten popular too (eg the tumblr sexyman bracket). there also used to be a lot of in-character ask blogs, where a user would set up a blog and roleplay as a specific character that people could send questions to (there still are some but way fewer and way less popular than there used to be)

to be honest i feel like i have to put “discourse” and “drama” on this list too. people on this site loveeee having the most insane arguments of all time and then everyone else memes the hell out of it. google “sonic for real justice” for an example lmao. (of course there’s also very unfunny political and fandom discourse that goes on as well. i would advise you to avoid discourse blogs as a general rule regardless of whether you agree with their position or not)

tagging people. you can also @ people in posts you think they’d like or if you feel like they have relevant input. typically this is something you would do either to people you’ve spoken to before, or a big blog with an established persona and rapport with their followers (eg if you follow a blog about snakes and you see a random post with snake info that seems wrong but you’re not sure, so you tag them to ask for their expertise).

and this isn’t a specific “mode” of communication but it’s also a thing to “interpret” (for lack of a better word) other people’s posts. for instance, people drawing a photo from the original post (i cant find it but there was a post going around recently where op posted an aesthetic photo of an egg cooking and then several people painted it), or people trying/recreating something a post was about (example). it was also a thing for a minute there where people would rewrite funny exchanges as shakespearean dialogue

those are all the ways i can think of, although im sure i’ve missed some (if other people think of any pls add on!). good luck, and i hope you’re able to meet some cool people!

[umber-cinders]

Hey fic writers, can I just-

This is my blog so Imma get on my soap box for one more thing about the whole "spam likers should be blocked" rhetoric.

People seem to have taken the idea from places like Instagram that spam liking gets you shadow banned because the algorithm thinks they're bots and—let me be clear when I say this:

THAT IS NOT HOW IT WORKS ON TUMBLR

Bots do not like your fanfic and fanart posts and tumblr does not ban you for getting multiple likes in a row!!!

Likes are literally part of the algorithm because tumblr has changed from the way it was back in the 2010s. Reblogs are absolutely one of the most helpful and valid ways to see posts on here—and people should definitely be encouraged to reblog and share with others, but reblogs are not the end-all-be-all of pushing content on here anymore.

The posts that the algorithm shows you takes into account the posts you yourself have liked and what those you follow/interact with have liked. You know these little feature here in preferences?

THEY ARE ALL BASED ON LIKES AND FAVORITE TAGS

Its why you see posts like this if you turn on the option.

Likes have become almost as equal in the algorithm as reblogs. Nowadays, a lot of people on tumblr's userbase only views the site via the mobile app instead of a laptop/desktop. It means that they're more likely to hit the like button on a post and scroll on so they can go back and find it later than they are likely to stopping every second to reblog each post.

That's just how things are now 🤷🏾‍♀️(and yeah that sucks lol)

If you don't believe me, the next time you see a post that has a lot of notes suggested to you in a search, tag or on the For You page—or anywhere on here, check the reblogs vs likes. Sometimes they're relatively equal

But I have noticed that a lot of the posts suggested to me also have way more likes than reblogs.

Again, I am NOT dissing people asking for reblogs because people really should be trying to reblog things from your favorite artists/writers/fandoms, but sometimes people will look at a post with a lot of notes and are more likely to reblog it. If you're looking for engagement then likes count towards that.

Social media has trained us to look at posts with a lot of traction (notes in this case), and make us more likely to share it. When you discourage and block people engaging with your posts via likes, you're just making the algorithm less likely to push your posts in the first place unless someone reblogs it.

And hey, if that's your jam, go on ahead, but even posts with ZERO notes that haven't been liked by people I follow get pushed to me if the algorithm thinks I'm going to enjoy it based on what I post and have liked before.

I could also get into the fact that with the way tumblr is set up, you could be blocking people that have to like posts and follow you from their main blog and reblog via a different side blog.

You could be blocking people that are too shy to openly engage with certain content right off the bat.

You could be blocking newcomers into your fandom.

You could be blocking people that see your content promoted to them in passing and might decide to come back and follow you later.

If you don't care about likes and only care about exposure via reblogs, then uh...ok. But my point is: please stop spreading the idea that likes mean nothing on tumblr 🙃

With all that being said:

PLEASE LIKE AND REBLOG YOUR FAVORITE ARTISTS, WRITERS AND FANDOM CREATORS✨

[maplebean2003]

I'm like fresh in the marble hornets fandom so maybe I'm missing context but I've seen so many conversations bringing up tim in the last few days that I've even stepped foot here and just wow ...this isn't what I expected from this fandom at all wtf.

Tim from marble hornets is literally not fat in the slightest he's got a average body type wtf is wrong with y'all being so fatphobic and weird in general when someone isn't even in the slightest bit chunky also literally why does it matter anyway plot wise :/ mind ya business,like...he's a real dude playing that character not some anime kawaii man

He probably doesn't need people even having 'discourse' over it when he's literally uncomfortable in general due to y'all sexualizing him as is why do y'all care so much about a person's body it's fucking weird

I don't understand why its bein mentioned in the first place - just leave people alone and be happy they even made something you enjoy/enjoyed,respect people and move on without making it weird dude it's not that fucking hard

And again maybe I'm missing context of some sort and assuming the worst but this has baffled me significantly where I'm genuinely concerned about it cause it's really not cool to be bitching about something that doesn't matter or effect anything or anyone

I've seen the conversations a lot on Twitter as well as here on Tumblr for context so I hope I don't just sound like I'm unhinged lol but I scroll passed anyway cause I don't wanna see it but then more appear and it's like ....okay clearly this is something being talked about currently

Idk maybe I'm butting in and shoving my nose where it doesn't belong as I don't think people are intending to be malicious or at least I hope not but it's...very odd to me to suddenly see especially RIGHT as I enter the door to the fandom ^^" I'm not trying to be a dick or anything it's just kinda appalling is all

I don't mind if people draw him fat to clarify or like skinny ECT I do not give a shit about that lmao do whatever you want its fictional art I just mean when people are specifically targeting Tim's irl actor in the conversation that it's really not cool

Sorry for the rant btw I just kinda wonder if I'm the only one raising an eyebrow at these conversations or if maybe I'm over reacting when it's not that deep or if maybe I have the right to be icked by it and am not alone

I don't have any @'s to tag to show the posts I've been seeing as again I typically scroll passed them as to avoid the algorithm from thinking I want to see more of that conversation

Now I'll probably be stuck seeing it by even posting this lol but meh I just wanna know if I'm tweekin about nothing or if this is weird genuinely

Or if maybe I'm misunderstanding possibly even! Please do be gentle with me in the comments I'm a wuss lmao I don't want to fight I just want to understand wtf is going on and why it's being talked about

Why do I care? Personally it just weirds me out in general to be so focused on someone's body like that is all so of course I am a bit concerned and curious if the fandom is always like this or what

[narcissisticpdcultureis]

(Apparently I am crashing; this ask becomes very ranty/venty)

NPD culture is thinking a post you made is amazing and super cool and that it’ll blow up and get so much interaction— only for it to get like, next to no interaction. And you fucking crash because WTF I put so much effort into that?!? And the posts that do get more attention are ones you put less effort into and/or assumed wouldn’t be as popular. Like wtf!!! This is a personal insult!! I put in effort, no one likes it. I put in no effort, no one likes it either! What is the magical fucking recipe for people to interact with me?! I use the tags, I interact with other creators— yet NOTHING!!! I put ten times as much effort in as those other creators do, and yet they get so much more interaction than I do!!! Is the algorithm rigged? Is it because they have more followers and I’m getting overshadowed? Am I not using the right tags? Is it because they’re popular for the wrong reasons but I’m too good to stoop to their level and should obviously be the more popular one? I swear it happens every single fucking time, and it’s starting to really piss me off! I want to go rabid and maul those people I swear.

And while I’m still here— what’s with my followers never interacting?!?!?! The people who follow me NEVER like my posts. And that’s not an exaggeration! It’s been MONTHS people!!! You’re following me for a reason, right???! And then the people who DON’T follow me are consistently liking my posts a lot more. Like if you like what I make so much why not follow me?!?! Why are you stalking my blog (I’m flattered though). Just follow me and like all of my posts if I’m that interesting lol! Like it’s to the point where one of them liked a post that only has personal/organization tags on it. The chance of them naturally finding that post is RARE. I mean it could’ve just magically appeared on their For You Page— ORRRR they’re stalking my blog and/or follow my personal tags. Cute, but why not follow me!! I put so much effort into my work only for it to go unnoticed. People should admire what I make, yet they don’t!! I don’t feel like fetishing the gay ship I make art of just to be popular like the rest of them :)))) because I’m better than them!! I’m not here for your fucking pleasure nor something for you to get off to. I am above that and make authentic content, and they can’t seem to appreciate that. I keep telling myself the people who like my content will interact someday but it’s been MONTHSSSSS :)))))). Where are these people atttttttt huh? If they can’t appreciate my work, then they don’t deserve to interact with me ^^! I should’ve been popular-ish by now! No one else makes nearly as much content about the ship as I do— so where are these fans at?? I feel like I’m going feral at this point. I know they see my posts, yet they refuse to like them. Ungrateful fucking bastards. Look at all that I do for you, and yet you are ungrateful!! Why do I even bother to give you things? Worthless pieces of shit. They should like me, ME, not those other people! Quit interacting with those asshats! They’re nowhere near as good as I am. Why do you like them so much?? What do they have that I don’t?! Is it because you can relate to being a stupid fuckup like them? Is that it? Because I don’t see why else you’d like them so much. I have everything you could ever want, and yet you ignore my very existence. You will regret overlooking me.

-🐍👑

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