#how many times have i tagged that and my tumblr still does recognise it

[charmac]

i am in your askbox holding you at gunpoint (lovingly) forcing you to update sugar we're going down swinging

Damn I kinda thought that series had fallen off., no one seems to want an update lowkey.,. 😞

[timetravellingkitty]

hi!! I just found out about tumblr having an anti-hindutva tag and I shall be making myself comfortable here! just found your account like a few mins ago and if it’s ok, i wanted to ask some questions (you absolutely don't have to answer if you don't like any of them or even if you don't feel like answering :) ) (edit added, this ask got way too long lol. feel free to skip it! also, you're kinda super cool lol)

I'm Indian, currently outside India, and I've only started learning about the shitshow going on in my 'mahaan bharat' since November (specifically since finding out that we are Irahell's biggest weapons buyer). and the more I find out the more shocked and heartbroken I feel...

like this week i learnt about the immigration ban in US against Chinese women that existed a few decades ago, and the ongoing discrimination against Palestinians in Canadian immigration services... and both the times I was so disgusted and there was this subconscious feeling that India should never be like that. but then an hour ago I learnt about the 2019 CAA and wtf!?

another example being that currently we're seeing israhell's continuous bombing of heritage sites of great cultural and religious significance, that also held so many centuries old records and histories... and learning about how they are bulldozing over graveyards and exhuming them...

and then today I learnt about Akhonji Masjid and Gyanvapi Masjid and of course have known about Babri Masjid for a few weeks now...

and only learnt about Kashmir in november...

and I feel like my whole worldview has shifted from a previous foundation, except it's so drastic and I still don't have a new foundation...

I try to talk to members of my family about this but they're the Indian equivalent of the U.S. liberals, and every single time they'll tell me "whatever news you're hearing is propaganda written by Pakistan/China/U.S./Russia. trust me I have Muslim friends and they're very happy. you just don't know the situation cause you're not in India" and like it sometimes make me think maybe I'm the one losing my mind...

I even read some places about free Punjab and that confused the fuck out of me cause I'm Punjabi (who does not live in Punjab) and I don't have any clue what it's about... I asked my fam, but they just gave me a weird look and told me to stay away from anyone that mentions Khalistan😭💀

(this got way longer than I expected, so sorry) but would you have any recommendations for any blogs/articles/books/podcast resources or any personal recommendations for news publications that are reliable (finding God would probably be easier than finding such publications lmao) like I thought Al-Jazeera is super credible, but then read that they're super credible when it comes to Palestine, not when it's global...

like where tf do I go from here lol

hello nonnie! some news sites I'd recommend are newslaundry (they have a youtube channel too), the wire, scroll.in and newsclick. maktoob media is mostly focused on minority rights in india. hindutvawatch.org is about hindu fascist violence committed against minorities. I still think you should stick to al-jazeera at least when it comes to palestine (they have journalists on the ground there, shireen abu akleh was one of them)

this is a good introduction to anyone wanting to learn about hindutva, this and this are about how india is becoming increasingly unsafe for minorites and is undergoing a democratic backsliding. this and this are about the rss link to nazism

hostile homelands by azad essa is about india's historical relationship with israel and the parallels between hindutva and zionism. the brown history podcast has an episode about how india went from the first non-arab state to recognise palestine to its largest buyer of weapons, featuring azad essa (x). you can also read colonising kashmir by hafsa kanjwal about how india came to militarily occupy kashmir. if you want to learn more about kashmir there are the blogs kashmiraction.org and standwithkashmir (which is um. blocked in india. i wonder why)

i have not read khaki shorts and saffron flags yet but this one is about the history of the rss. i also suggest watching the documentaries ram ke naam and jai bhim, comrade which are about the hindutva mobilisation in the 1980s

for me free punjab is very ?? the indian government is beyond evil as they continue to spy on sikhs abroad (and ofc, how can we forget the 1984 sikh genocide) but i don't think liberation will be achieved through a religious ethnostate. any state formed on the basis of a religion will inevitably turn out to be a disaster. i do encourage you to read lost in history: 1984 reconstructed by gunisha kaur, which is about the human rights violations committed against sikhs during this time and why operation bluestar was in fact not about freeing sri harmandir sahib from "terrorists." all i can say is to stand with sikhs unapologetically as our shitass government continues to commit more and more human rights violations against them

in general, i'd tell you to observe the language used by different news outlets and question it (eg. american news referring to israelis below the age of 18 as children but the same courtesy is not extended to palestinians) and check their sources. if it's from whatsapp university don't even bother

[danikatze]

How about B, I, K, M, N, O, U for the alphabet ask thing?

Alphabet Asks

B - A pairing–platonic, romantic or sexual–that you initially didn’t consider, but someone changed your mind.

hahah well TJ.. as you know you've been very influential when it comes to ships - especially for Naruto. First one that comes to mind is KakaGai, but there's also YamaSai and KankuSai and ShikaCho. All of them I still love <3 Also, thanks to you I shipped GaraShir before I even watched the show. And there are just countless ships from other fandoms that I'm not (really) a part of that I have a soft spot for, because you sell them so well :))

I - Has Tumblr caused you to stop liking any fandoms, if so, which and why?

Errr I guess you could say HP? But that's not Tumblr's fault - all it did was share the messed up things Rowling said and did and gradully all of the moments HP got tiny kid me through rough and lonely times started feeling like a very big lie and I can't even think of it fondly anymore.

K - What character has your favorite development arc/the best development arc?

Oh gosh, so many, but let's go for Fjord from Critical Role. All the little and big steps he takes towards learning to accept himself throughout the campaign and the way they don't come all at once but are spread out over like a hundred plus episodes, including inevitable steps backward. The strength it took for him to walk away from the one who gave him conditional power and to accept unconditional love that is extended by his friends and the Wildmother. His arc just makes me so emotional and happy every time I think about it. I love him and I love his journey and I cannot wait to see it animated.

M - Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.

Yamato from Naruto seems like a perfect friend. He's kind and loyal and usually a reasonable, level headed person who can calm you down in stressed situations. But he's also someone you can have fun with!

N - Name three things you wish you saw more or in your main fandom (or a fandom of choice).

For Saraiya Goyou: 1) anyone other than me making stuff for it lol. Usually I don't mind it so much, but sometimes I almost desperately wish I would see the tag update and it's not something I made. 2) drawings and fics from the past are mostly for Yaichi and Masa. I'd love more art and writing for other characters and pairings (romantic or otherwise) 3) sneakily shared fan translations of the prequels and spin-offs would be great lol. They're never going to be translated officially, but scans are taken down immediately as well. I bought Futagashira but I have no way of reading it unless I learn to read Japanese myself ^^;

O - Choose a song at random. Which ship or character does it remind you of?

Shuffle produced Pulling Teeth by Green Day. "I'm all busted up, broken bones and nasty cuts, accidents will happen, but this time I can't get up." That's definitely Meg and Zagreus from Hades. They beat each other up on a regular basis lol and I was so bad at this game in the beginning I got Zag killed by her a lot (sorry Zag..) Not top 10 ship for me, but I like them well enough!

U - Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.

1) Matsu from Saraiya Goyou: during my first reread the manga, after I learned that he loved Yaichi, I fell in love with him through his subtle and heartbreaking expressions. That's when I really got to know and understand him more. I love that he's charming as can be for his job, but doesn't know how to behave around his friends. He's so skilled and he knows it, yet has such a low self esteem. He's just a highly skilled, very pathetic little grumpy guy that deserves all the love in the world. And I give him as much as I can. 2) Caduceus from Critical Role: perfect, big, chill cow man who has the best advice and calming words for others, but can't recognise his own problems, let alone how to deal with them. He's so dumb and wise and I love him. 3) Gerry from the Magnus Archives: he's one of those people that seems to be full of contradictions. He's so bitter and stubborn and impatient and crude, but in a way that feels friendly? His life was so full of grief and horror from the moment he was born and he just wants a break from it all, but at the same time he can't stop himself from helping people who are about to fall - or have already fallen - victim to the horrors. The fear and defiance he lived (and died) with is heartbreaking and admirable.

[hoarding-niffler]

I'm a new follower and wanted to ask/ discuss hogwarts legacy with you, because I love the way you've been addressing the accusations of transphobia etc towards yourself and others who play the game. Is that okay? It's kind of long-winded. Frankly I haven't been on tumblr for a few years because of the toxic behavior from others I've experienced, and also was encouraged to express (bandwagoning etc.), I've have lost friends over this site who would probably judge me for playing the game if we were still connected, and I have no one to talk about this with.

First off, welcome new Nonny! Happy to have you!

And yeah, of course. Feel free to send anon asks if you prefer to stay, well, anonymous, whatever you're comfortable with!

I do have to warn you, I do not make any promises on how detailed my responses will be because let's be real, I'm here to enjoy the game, not talk politics, but I absolutely understand the need to connect and also figure out which people share your views and which should rather be avoided.

We've all been there when we were younger where we did or said stuff we're not proud of; the critical part is that we recognise that and realise that we've grown and become better since then.

I've seen posts of people losing friends over playing Hogwarts Legacy and honestly, they must've been acquaintances at best. Friends don't leave over such minor shit, at least in my opinion. I do have friends who celebrate that I play the game, others who are neutral about it and simply don't care, and those that do not approve but still understand that my playing this game does not change my stance on equality. We're all mature enough to talk openly about it, a feat many people screaming and shouting in the tags lack.

So, yeah, I hope your fandom experience will be a better one this time and remember to curate your own dashboard! This should be a place to indulge in and find enjoyment, not stress and worry.

[whumptober]

Whumptober 2020 - Updated

Welcome to Whumptober 2020! We’re doing things a little differently this year so please make sure to read the Event Info carefully. We are also excited to announce the addition of an AO3 Collection, which can be found here.

We hope you’re as excited as us to watch the Whump Community come together once again for a month of bone-crunching creativity and collaboration!

(All 31 Themes + Prompts, Event Information, and FAQs are posted below the cut!)

No 1. LET'S HANG OUT SOMETIME Waking Up Restrained | Shackled | Hanging

No 2. IN THE HANDS OF THE ENEMY  "Pick Who Dies" | Collars | Kidnapped

No 3. MY WAY OR THE HIGHWAY Manhandled | Forced to their Knees | Held at Gunpoint

No 4. RUNNING OUT OF TIME Caged | Buried Alive | Collapsed Building

No 5. WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING? On the Run | Failed Escape | Rescue

No 6. PLEASE.... "Get it Out" | No More | "Stop, please"

No 7. I'VE GOT YOU Support | Carrying | Enemy to Caretaker

No 8. WHERE DID EVERYBODY GO? "Don't Say Goodbye" | Abandoned | Isolation

No 9. FOR THE GREATER GOOD "Take Me Instead" | "Run!” | Ritual Sacrifice

No 10. THEY LOOK SO PRETTY WHEN THEY BLEED Blood Loss | Internal Bleeding | Trail of Blood

No 11. PSYCH 101 Defiance | Struggling | Crying

No 12. I THINK I'VE BROKEN SOMETHING Broken Down | Broken Bones | Broken Trust

No 13. BREATHE IN BREATHE OUT Delayed Drowning | Chemical Pneumonia | Oxygen Mask

No 14. IS SOMETHING BURNING? Branding | Heat Exhaustion | Fire

No 15. INTO THE UNKNOWN Possession | Magical Healing | Science Gone Wrong

No 16. A TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY Forced to Beg | Hallucinations | Shoot the Hostage

No 17. I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING Blackmail | Dirty Secret | Wrongfully Accused

No 18. PANIC! AT THE DISCO Panic Attacks | Phobias | Paranoia

No 19. BROKEN HEARTS Grief | Mourning Loved One | Survivor's Guilt

No 20. TOTO, I HAVE A FEELING WE'RE NOT IN KANSAS ANYMORE Lost | Field Medicine | Medieval

No 21. I DON'T FEEL SO WELL Chronic Pain | Hypothermia | Infection

No 22. DO THESE TACOS TASTE FUNNY TO YOU? Poisoned | Drugged | Withdrawal

No 23. WHAT’S A WHUMPEE GOTTA DO TO GET SOME SLEEP AROUND HERE? Exhaustion | Narcolepsy | Sleep Deprivation

No 24. YOU’RE NOT MAKING ANY SENSE Forced Mutism | Blindfolded | Sensory Deprivation

No 25. I THINK I’LL JUST COLLAPSE RIGHT HERE, THANKS Disorientation | Blurred Vision | Ringing Ears

No 26. IF YOU THOUGHT THE HEAD TRAUMA WAS BAD... Migraine | Concussion | Blindness

No 27. OK, WHO HAD NATURAL DISASTERS ON THEIR 2020 BINGO CARD? Earthquake | Extreme Weather | Power Outage

No 28. SUCH WOW. MANY NORMAL. VERY OOPS. Accidents | Hunting Season | Mugged

No 29. I THINK I NEED A DOCTOR Intubation | Emergency Room | Reluctant Bedrest

No 30. NOW WHERE DID THAT COME FROM? Wound Reveal | Ignoring an Injury | Internal Organ Injury

No 31. TODAY’S SPECIAL: TORTURE Experiment | Whipped | Left for Dead

Alternate Prompt List

Alt 1. Punctured

Alt 2. Falling

Alt 3. Comfort

Alt 4. Stitches

Alt 5. Stoic Whumpees

Alt 6. Altered States

Alt 7. Found Family

Alt 8. Adverse Reactions

Alt 9. Memory Loss

Alt 10. Nightmares

Alt 11. Presumed Dead

Alt. 12. Water

Alt. 13 Accidents

Alt. 14 Shot

Alt. 15 Carry/Support

Event Info

WHUMPTOBER is a month-long, prompt-based creation challenge (think: Inktober, but whumpier). There are 31 Official themes this year - one for each day of the month - which can be used, skipped, or combined in any way you’d like. They are meant to serve as inspiration without being taken literally (e.g. you don't have to include the exact wording into your work). Additionally, there are 3 prompts for each theme.  These are optional suggestions and can be used in conjunction with the theme, or as options/alternatives.  We want to give everyone as much creative freedom as possible, as well as increase event accessibility for folks with triggers and squicks.

Creators can PRODUCE work in any media they choose, including but not limited to: writing, visual artwork, and photo/video/audio edits. Creators can PARTICIPATE as much or as little as they want (i.e. you don’t have to do ALL the prompts if you don’t want to) and prompts can be used in any order. They are also free to use even after the event ends.

When uploading Whumptober content to your blog, be sure to tag the with:

#whumptober2020 …..(the event tag)

#no.1, #no.2, #no.3, …..(theme number)

#bruised, #stabbed,  …..(the theme or specific prompt you chose)

#fandom or #OC

#medium …..(gifs, fic, podcast, art, etc.)

#teeth, #etc …..(trigger warnings & any additional tags. Keep in mind not to add “tw” in front but only use the word/trigger itself, because tumblr sucks)

#nsfw, #nsfwhump …..(only for nsfw content)

PLEASE BE DILIGENT WITH YOUR TAGGING. Only properly tagged posts are considered for archiving on the official @whumptober2020​ blog. They must be tagged in the order above.

Unfortunately, due to the sheer number of participants in recent years, we cannot guarantee your work will be archived. A random selection of properly tagged posts from all genres will be reblogged each day.

Whumpers who produce content for 31 total theme days are considered event completionists and will be tagged in a masterpost at the end of the month.

Questions not addressed below can be directed to this blog as well.

Thanks for reading, and happy whumping!

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What kind of content can I make? Can it be NSFW?

This is a MIXED MEDIA event! You can write fic, post meta, doodle or paint, create a gif set or photo edit, link a song, or get crafty with video - anything goes. As for NSFW, make what you like, we just hope that you’ll tag your work accordingly so that others participating in the event can stay safe :)

Q. Do I have to do all 31 Days? Can I post early/late?

Participate as much or little as you like, and post whenever! Just be sure to tag your posts properly (ex. #no.11, #psych101). Combining prompts into one piece of work is okay, and posting late is as well so as long as it’s in October.

Q. What if I don’t understand a theme?

Send us an ask! We’re happy to help clarify. That said, the themes are entirely up for interpretation :)

Q. Can I combine Whumptober with other creation challenges?

Absolutely! That’s like shooting two whumpees with one bullet :)

Q. Can I upload/repost my whumptober content to other social media platforms?

Of course! We’ve created an AO3 Collection to archive any fics posted there. The archive can be accessed here. The blog is the official archive, so please respect the boundaries of any closeted whumpers in your social circle :)

Q. Can I use prompts to write a new chapter for an existing fic?

Yes

Q. An existing fic I am currently writing contains many of the Whumptober prompts, can I use it?

If you are actively writing this fic at the moment with the whumptober prompts in mind, yes. If it just conveniently checks the boxes, then please don’t. You can, however, add new chapters answering one or more of the prompts.

Q. What kind of characters can I write for?

Fandom characters, OC characters, human, furry, alien, cyborg, whoever you like.

Q. Can I use a prompt multiple times?

Yes,  but it only counts once

Q. If I’m not comfortable with one day's prompts can I use a prompt of a different day as a substitute and still be a completionist?

Yes, but please do not use a specific prompt twice. We have also created an alternate prompts list that you can draw from [here].

Q. Where can I post my work?

Post where and how you want. You don’t even have to (cross)post it to Tumblr. Just keep in mind if it’s not on Tumblr we will not be able to add it to the blog archive.

Q. Can I start posting early?

You can, but this is an October event and wouldn’t it be more fun with everyone doing it at the same time? That being said, you can post early, but we won’t be reblogging any work predating October 1st.

Q. Do I have to finish a fic I started/can I post WIP’s.?

Yes you can post WIPs. And you’re not obligated to finish it in October for it to count towards being a completionist.  

Q. Is co-writing allowed?

Yes, absolutely, and it would count towards being a completionist for both/all of you :)

Q. Do I have to create 31 standalone pieces to be considered a completionist or can I write one continuous story?

One continuous story is fine.  The challenge is to write something for 31 prompts. If that’s spread over 31 fics or just one, you are still considered a completionist. (The same goes for every other media you choose.)

Q. Is there a min/max limit on word count?

There is no limit

Q. Can I combine prompts? Is there a limit on how many?

No limit and combine as many as you’d like.

Q. Is a hc/angst focus ok?

Of course!

Q. What’s considered nsfw?

See this post

Q. What's whump?

See this post

Q. My interpretation of the prompt isn't whumpy at all, does that count?

No, sorry, but keep in mind that whump [see definition] is something very nuanced and different for everyone and emotional whump/angst is just as much part of it, as is physical whump and torture. So before you dismiss your idea, think about this.

Q. Can I start working on the prompts before October?

Absolutely! That’s why we posted the prompts a month in advance. We recognise how difficult it can be creating for 31 days in “real time”.

Q. How do I tag triggers?

tw at the end of the word, ex. emeto tw

Q. Do I have to use your tags?

Yes, if you want your work archived on the blog. If not, feel free to use whatever tags you want.  

Q. Does combining prompts count towards completion?

Yes

Q. Can we @ you?

Yes but we mostly rely on the whumptober2020 tag

Q. Is there anything we are absolutely not allowed to write?

There are no rules, just be sure to properly tag your trigger warnings. And keep in mind Tumblr’s policies if you are posting it here (or the policies of whatever site you use).

Q. Where can I go for brainstorming help?

Here on Discord

Q. My characters are minors, is that ok?

Yes, but as with everything else, tags are your best friend.

Q. Can I cross post on other blogs?

Yes, multiple platforms and blogs are perfectly acceptable. You can also post different works to different accounts under different names, without posting them everywhere at once.

Note: This is a creation challenge, please don’t repost your old work under our tags (unless it’s been changed or edited for the event).

[peppermoons]

Okay, so I’ve been seeing a lot of reposted art lately and I’m sure some you are actually not aware you’re doing anything wrong by posting them (because you’re new to tumblr? you’re still not sure how this site works?), so I just wanted to give you a few tips (though this is also useful to people who reblog reposted art not realising it’s reposted):

Pinterest is not a good source for...anything really because it's full of uncredited/stolen art and edits, so just don't search for any art there.

If you find a cute art that you want to share with other fans, always look for watermarks or signatures or anything that can help you find the artist.

Posting someone's art here with: "Credits to the artist" , "Found on Pinterest" or "Not my art" is not helping anyone and counts as reposting because you're not actually giving credit to the artist since you didn't link to their blog.

Check if they have a blog here already and if they do, reblog directly from them.

If they don't, then you can probably find them on twitter/pixiv/instagram. Ask for their permission to post their art here WITH CREDITS. They usually don't mind people posting their art on other platforms, as long as there's a link to the source. Some artists won’t give you permission because they don’t want you to post their art anywhere and you should respect that.

If you see some art here in the tags and you don't recognise the artist's url, check OP's tags (and blog). Artists usually tag their art as: "my art", "___ does art", "___ sketches" etc. They also have links in their bios to other places they post their work.

Every artist has their own unique style, so it's easy to figure out if it's their art or a repost. If you see a bunch of art with different art styles the chances are it's a reposter.

Also, because some people are still confused about this: Reblogging and reposting ARE NOT THE SAME THINGS. Reblogging art is okay. You should do it, that way you’re helping the artists because more people will see their stuff. Saving their art in your phone/computer and then posting it somewhere else WITHOUT CREDITS is NOT OKAY and THAT’S reposting, that's not the same as reblogging.

I'm not going to @ anyone or make call out posts, this is just like a helpful guide how to support artists and not (unintentionally) participate in the repost cycle. It just makes me sad to see so many artists put so much of their time and energy into making art only to be discouraged by people stealing their works and then end up deleting their art or blogs because of reposters.

Don't do that, we're all here to enjoy our ships, and creators are important part of that. They make our fandom experience so much better by sharing their work with us. Don't disrespect them like this. Don’t be an asshole. 

[becca-e-barnes]

The "minors DNI" posts that I've been seeing crop up everywhere by fic writers are always so interesting to me.

First and foremost, I 100% support your decision to post a "minors DNI" for your safety and their safety. You're being responsible, doing your due diligence as a responsible adult, and trying to ensure that everyone enjoys what you put out there in a safe way.

And I know you specifically have not said this so this is not a slight on you by any means, but I think you'd be more open to the discourse of such an interesting topic like this—the problem I have with some fic writers is that is them saying they will block anyone who does not have their age posted in their blog.

This, I believe, is an incredibly dangerous precedent to set. On the one hand displaying your age if you are over 18 seems like a non-issue, right? Sure. But setting the precedent that people should display their age in their blog encourages minors to share their age on the internet which in turn can make them an easier target.

Personal preference for me—I'm a thirty-two year old lady (plz sing this appropriately) and do not share my age in my tumblr because, well I don't want to.

We're all technically violating TOS anyway, so it doesn't really matter if a minor interacts with your fic or not at this point—by interact I mean like/reblog/comment, not DMing you to talk about sexual stuff. That stuff you should absolutely block/delete for obvious legal and safety reasons.

And while I understand the legality thing, if you are not explicitly engaging with said minor, there's not a whole bunch that could hold up in court. How many lawsuits do you think E.L. James gets for 13 year olds waltzing into a bookstore or buying 50 shades of grey off amazon and reading it? There was actually an interesting article written about the "common sense" engagement with this book back in 2012.

Anywho, you are right to ask and set a boundary, and do what you feel is right to protect yourself and using the DNI minor blanket statement is ultimately a good thing, especially if it's a personal uncomfortableness with minors reading your work. However, even if a minor just decided to lie and say they were 21 and read your stuff anyway, unknowingly interacting with a minor is just as bad legally as knowingly doing so so at the end of the day, we're still just taking risks. The safest thing for all of us would probably be to not interact with anyone or ask everyone to use anon, but there's not fun or friendship in that. Your mutual who has stated they're 25 could still be 16 and you wouldn't know it.

My perspective may also just be entirely outdated as well because I grew up in the internet age of it being a lawless wasteland and everyone lied about everything, so I don't see the value in trying to police my work when people will just read it anyway and I don't have any control over that at the end of the day other than to tag appropriately and/or not post anything at all ever.

This was long and not necessary to answer, I'm just always fascinated by the rigor at which fanfic writers are so quick to banish people for not putting their age in their bios when I think it is inherently more dangerous for minors to do so because it puts a target on their back.

Before I start, I recognise that we’re of the same line of thought! I saw this long message and panicked thinking that someone had taken an issue with my stance on it and I’m glad that’s not the case 🙈 Anything I raise here is in the interest of discussion and I completely respect your point of view. 💗

This is really interesting actually and truth be told, I’ve avoided any discussion on this topic for a very long time for fear that I won’t adequately explain my stance on it. I feel like I’ve had a chance to do that and I hope it’s been taken up by everyone as I intended.

I will admit; as a minor, I read smut. Without going into detail, it entirely warped my perspective on how relationships should look. To provide a little context on my stance, at 14/15 (and younger), I had no business reading the things I was reading. Unfortunately, I was in a “relationship” at the time and I fully believed that I had to engage with my boyfriend in ways that mirrored what I was reading. I ended up in situations I didn’t want to be in. To me, it’s my responsibility as a writer and as someone who learned the hard way, to ensure that younger people don’t make the same mistakes I did.

I do fully agree, minors stating their real age on their blog raises all sorts of different issues, as you rightly said. You’re absolutely right, to a minor there are no advantages to displaying your real age on here. Fic writers will block you, creeps will be more likely to engage with you. So I fully understand that this might seem like a reason to lie or provide no age at all.

Leading on from that though, if a minor lies on their profile and claims to be over 18 and they interact with my smut, from a legal perspective, that is not going to have any repercussion on me. I have put my disclaimers up, I vet as many profiles as I can and I do everything I would be reasonably expected to do in the eyes of the law. (This isn’t an area of law I studied in significant depth but that standard of reasonable expectation would still apply). I do as much as I can to protect myself and them.

You brought up 50 Shades and I understand your point but the issue here is not just the fic itself. If anyone comments/ reblogs my fic, I like to send a little reply back! I love when people take the time to give me feedback and I want to thank them for it, as a lot of other writers do! The issue here being that if the blog commenting is a minor, the writer would be engaging in a conversation about sexual material with a minor. And that’s fucking messy. This is mainly where fics differ from a teenager buying a copy of 50 shades. In that situation, there’s no interaction there between the author and the underage fan so it loses that personal element.

On the issue of blogs with no age, I see where you’re coming from and I see that you both read and write fanfiction. But I also see it from the other perspective given that a lot of writers like to do as much as possible to protect themselves and potential minors.

I totally support that’s a boundary that you set and it’s your choice. In the same sense that it’s a fic writer’s choice to protect themselves by blocking you. It’s a matter of boundaries clashing at the end of the day. I really do see both sides here. I’m a really organised person so honestly, if anyone wanted to send me a private message just confirming they’re over 18, I’d put them all into a list to make sure I don’t accidentally block them for interacting. But of course, not every writer would be able to do that and I’m sure many readers would want to do that either! I just see it as the only way to compromise on that issue and keep everyone happy.

Thank you for sending me this! I hope I covered everything and if I haven’t been clear enough in some areas, feel free to come back to me! 🙈 And I really appreciate actually having a discussion on here! It’s so great to hear others’ points of view in a nice, respectful way. Tumblr loses that sometimes! Have a lovely evening 💗

[lifeofroos]

Part 48. I like Ariadne. 

In short: Nico gets therapy from Dionysus. In this chapter, Nico takes a minute to talk to Dionysus’ wife, Ariadne. The rest of the story can be found on AO3, FanFiction.net and in Tumblr tags like Dionysus, Nico di Angelo, Fanfic etc. 

This Might Be Crazy: Chapter 48: Rosemary Tea

I lit a small incense stick. The smell of pinewood filled my cabin. Just when I wanted to begin praying to get Ariadne’s attention, I already got it. One moment, I was in my cabin, the next I was on Olympus, looking out over a massive vineyard. 

‘Nico di Angelo.’

I turned around. ‘The lady of the house, I assume.’ 

‘Yes. You called on me?’

Barely. ‘Yes. I, well…’ I shrugged. I wasn’t entirely sure. I didn’t think I’d get this far. 

Ariadne put her chin up. ‘I can’t say I wasn’t expecting you one of these days. Why don’t we talk?’

I mean, that is what I had in mind. I nodded and she gestured that I could come into the palace. 

Dionysus’ palace was big. It took a good twenty minutes to walk to a sitting room on the other side. In the meantime, Ariadne chatted about the decor for a bit. It was clear she had been responsible for most of it (it was way too stylish to be done by Dionysus). 

We sat down in two comfy chairs, with a coffee table in between. Ariadne snapped her fingers. A pot of tea appeared. ‘Sorry for the long walk. The west flank of the palace is not under control by the headmaster, so I had to bring you there.’ 

Zeus. ‘Eh, I get it.’ So. Now that we sit and we’ve got tea, I was kind of curious about how you managed to live with Dionysus for thousands of years.

‘Lets get the obvious question of your mind: You are wondering how I managed to live with Dionysus for thousands of years.’ 

I nodded, a little perplexed, but mostly glad I did not have to open the conversation. 

She poured out two cups of tea and picked up her own. ‘I don’t read minds or anything, it’s just what they always ask. The short version is that he helped me when I was going through a hard time, the same way he is helping you now. The difference is that he somehow fell in love with me.’ She took a sip of her tea. ‘And, after some more time, which he gave me, I felt the same way. Got married, stayed together, end of story.’ She picked up her cup. ‘Yet, you probably already guessed that there was more.’ 

‘Well, Yes. I would say that the support he gives you goes further than with me. He once, kind of accidently, told me about the bond.’

She nodded. ‘Accidently? Oh well. Yet, yes, we have a bond. I’d say it connects us quite well.’

‘Quite, quite well, I’d say. For thousands of years.’ I picked up my own cup. ‘Hephaestus told me Dionysus treated him like a regular human… or god, whatever. Like he was more than a tool or a piece of garbage. That is basically how my therapy works. ’

Ariadne nodded. ‘We share that sentiment, you, me and Hephaestus, among others. We feel like we are worth something. Like someone does care about us. That is how it made me feel.’ She looked at the ceiling for a second. ‘Cared for, and like I was finally free to do and go where I wanted, gods! That means something after constantly being bound to something, either my chambers in the palace, or the island, or the men I was with. I still don’t know how I did confinment for twenty years.’ Her expression soured. ‘I do know why I went with Theseus. It meant... a change of scenary, at least.’ 

I sighed and slouched in the chair a little. ‘Ah, yes, sons of Poseidon.’ 

She raised an eyebrow. ‘Sons?’

I looked up. She didn’t know? ‘I thought Dionysus would have told you. Anyway, I was in love with one of those too, once. He just wasn’t a piece of garbage about it. Did not abandon me somewhere, at least, or bully me for it. He might have been a little confused, but, you know. I get that. He seems confused about most things, actually.’

She shifted. ‘It must have been Percy Jackson.’

I took a sip. ‘Yes. And, eh, sorry.’ Didn’t want to rub it in your face. I wanted to ask what she thought of Percy, but maybe that wasn’t…

‘I do not have anything against Perseus Jackson, if you were wondering about that.’ She raised her eyebrows. ‘I think Dio has more problems with that than I do.’

‘I think you might just be right.’

She sighed. ‘Oh well. Yet, I did hear you were accepted like you are in camp, son of Poseidon as your first crush or not.’

‘I was! Camp overall is pretty accepting, actually, that is nice. They even learned to trust Hades kids. And idiots who fall in love with sons of Poseidon. It took a while, but they accept Annabeth now.’

She chuckled and pushed her hair out of the way. ‘So many more things are getting accepted these days, even amongst the gods. There is a shift in their behaviour. I don’t know what the trigger was, after thousands of years, but I am glad it is this way.’ She twisted a curl around a finger. ‘Sorry, entirely different subject, but how did your talk with the elder gods go?’

‘It was weird, but it went good enough. Over the last few days, I have heard less and less of the voices from Tartarus, and more and more from the voices of where the Elder Gods are.’

She smiled and nodded. ‘Luckily. You know, admitting the elder gods is a central part of becoming immortal. Because of previous lives, something, something, even the lord of the heavens is not really sure, I had to talk to them.’ She sighed. ‘Basically, part of me is also an older god, which meant that I was supposed to fill this role as a goddess right now.’ She rolled her eyes. I snickered. ‘I hardly understand what it means.’

I adjusted my jacket. ‘Still, that must be strange, though, to know that part of you is just…’ I waved my hands around. ‘Somewhere in superheaven.’

‘You get used to it.’

‘Still, it seems weird.’ 

‘To me, it seems weird that you visit the Underworld so often.’ She shuddered. ‘For me, it wasn’t a very good place. After I was killed, I was sent to Elysium. My father, king Minos, kept trying to control me and I missed Dio terribly. I would have chosen rebirth if Dionysus hadn’t taken me out of there.’ 

‘Oh yes, bringing people back to live, the thing he tells me is unhealthy to do.’

She gave me a mellow smile. ‘The difference is that he is immortal and you are not.’ 

Maybe. ‘Not yet. And I met king Minos, too. He was a nasty piece of work, sorry not sorry to say it. He tried to control me into his evil villian plans.’

‘I am not offended. He was a bad king, a bad husband to my mother and a bad father to his children.’

‘And a bad partner to raise the dead with.’

‘I am going to pretend I did not hear that.’

‘Thanks. Although my therapist is already aware of it.’ I took a sip. ‘Then we can both agree that he was a huge dirtwad.’

‘We quite certainly can. I still do not forgive him for marrying off my youngest sister to some old king who died not even a year later. She was then forced out of the palace to make room for the new king and queen, just so Minos could get the bridewealth payments.’

‘Oh yes, that is a very dirtwad thing to do.’ We both sighed.

Her expression grew dark. ‘I used to think my mother was better. She tried to protect her children, even Asterion. Yet, that was before she tried to take my labyrinth and use it against who I am. What she did a few years ago, raising it without my permission…’ she clutched her fist. ‘She had no business doing that and getting me wound up in it again. Before that, the labyrinth was a memory, safely far away from the human world. Now...’ She looked at her teacup. 

I nodded. ‘Eh… my sister was the one who handled Pasiphae in that encounter. I think she is gone, now…’

‘She isn’t, Nico, and she never will. She harnesses too much power to just be gone.’ 

I fell silent for a second. ‘I think I believe that,’ I whispered. 

‘I hope you do, but I also hope you don’t have to deal with her in your lifetime anymore.’

I was fifteen. On average, there was a lot of lifetime left to meet Pasiphae a second time. But I did not want to think of that right now.

‘If there is anything you take away from this, let it be that women in mythology, and not uncommonly men too, often fled, because the situation at home was chocking them.’ She had a flicker in her eyes, which suddenly left. She shook her head. ‘You probably don’t want to think of that right now. Say, have you ever tried this tea before?’

Now she was just trying to change the subject. I played along. ‘I recognise it. Rosemary?’

‘Yes! We grow it in the garden, actually, or better said, my garden. His garden is more or less... taken.’ She smiled again and looked out the window, at the vineyard that spread all around the castle. 

‘Guess that makes sense.’

‘I wouldn’t mind more flowers. But hey, I knew what I was getting myslef in to, back when I moved here.’ We kept looking out the window. I noticed a few panthers lazily roaming about. Ariadne didn’t even blink at seeing them. Just a regular day in Dionysus’ palace, apparently. 

‘I don’t know if I will tell Dionysus about this encounter.’

‘I think he already had a hunch it was going to happen, because I did. Bond and stuff.’ I nodded. ‘If you already told him you were in love with Percy… well, that is an easy link to me, I’d say.’

Maybe. Ariadne studied me, before she stood up. ‘If your finished, maybe you should get back. They might begin to miss you. 

I looked up at the clock and jumped up when I saw it was already past eight. Ariadne telling me the clocks were mad and did what they wanted did not calm me down. 

While we walked back to the mystic Zeus-free west flank, she said: ‘I am glad I could finally meet you. You seem like a nice, smart young man.’

‘Thanks. Eh, also, thanks for the talk and thanks for the tea. It was good tea.’

‘I’ll give you some. I am kind of proud of it, actually. It is one of the only teas that isn’t brewed by Demeter.’ 

A/N: My first draft of this felt clunky, it is better now. Still, I find it strange that it turned out the way it did. That Ariadne of all people is the goddess who keeps her distance for a bit, aside from the things she has in common with Nico.

As I said before: I need more Ariadne fanfiction I am being denied my RIGHTS the first hit when I google it is my own fanfic of two years ago and one chapter in Weezl’s drabble doc. 

Legit, Ariadne is the ‘mistress of the labyrinth.’ Don’t know how RR missed that. Be prepared because this fact WILL come back in a later chapter. 

[gatherthesuspectspod]

A hundred ways to die in Wales

Hello Tumblr!

My first post ever here! I’m still learning the ropes, so please be kind!

This might be awfully presumptuous of me, but you may recognise the name from a few years back. Before all of this happened, I worked for BBC Radio 4 as their Welsh correspondent - a bit niche, I grant you, but I did alright on social media. I even had a blue tick on Twitter before it went down for good. 

At its peak, whatever media you worked in, scoops were delivered on social media. No one went to the radio or the newspapers for breaking news. Hell, even the TV news was struggling.  So, even radio journalists like me had to be twitter savvy, you know? 

It does make me wonder how Tumblr survived. As a journalist (well, former journalist) I should probably have done some research and found out…  

 My housemate, Jack, suggested I start to keep this blog so that he, in his exact words, ‘wouldn’t have to listen to me moan about not being a journalist anymore.’ So, here I am, coming to scream into the void that is the last social media platform standing (apart from LinkedIn… Shoulda known that even during the apocalypse, start-up CEO Chad Moneybags would still need to post motivational bullshit about 5 am starts and tagging every post with ‘#crushingit’)

Anyway, I’ve strayed slightly from the point… So, this blog isn't going to be full of hard-hitting investigative journalism or even those colourful local news stories you used to see about water skiing hamsters. It’s just going to be me, posting my thoughts about how much more screwed the world is than the previous week. 

Cheerful stuff, right? Well, as REM sang, ‘it’s the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine’. And you know what, while fine might be stretching a bit, it could be worse...

Before it happened, when people thought about the end of the world, we always pictured some huge catastrophe. ‘The Hollywood Apocalypse,’ Jack calls it. You know the kind - people screaming in the streets as some unspeakable horror unfolds about them. 

In movies, the end of the world was always sudden, over in a flash,  with pockets of humanity left to pick up the pieces of a shattered world. Except, that’s not how it happened, not that we should be surprised, life rarely imitates the movies. 

In fact, it happened so slowly and contained so many individual strands that by the time it arrived, it took us even more by surprise - even the right-wing newspapers didn’t have time to come up with some ‘pithy’ name for it. I’ve always liked the term ‘tipping point,’ The point at which every one of those strands, however linked or disparate, tipped the scales so far against humanity, there was no turning back. 

I mean, we shouldn’t have been surprised. We had been warned, after all. For years (no, decades, even) scientists talked about how we were destroying the earth. From the changing climate to the destruction of entire ecosystems, all in the name of capitalism. 

People warned us it would lead to societal collapse. It wasn’t hard to see it coming, if you were paying attention. But, even if you were paying attention, the sheer magnitude of it was enough to cause even the strongest advocates some blind spots caused by existential terror. Like a Lovecraftian monster rising from the depths of the ocean, who could wrap their head around the true horror.  

Instead, we played out our little culture wars as the planet died… we elected people to distract and not solve… we lied and allowed ourselves to be lied to. Until, in the end, there were so many that no longer cared about the truth that finding a solution was never a possibility.   

The rise of ignorance led to the rise of populism, which led to the rise of fascism, and eventually isolationism. Each country, widowed and trapped in its own poky bachelor apartment of despair. With nothing but memories of past glories to keep it going while the world around slowly burns.

The thing about this kind of creeping apocalypse, this tipping point, is that there is a certain mundanity in it all. There are millions dead, but there was no Hollywood pre-credit sequence of terrified crowds running through Manhattan. 

This apocalypse had an absence of symbols - actually, no. That’s not quite right. I mean, we don’t have the statue of liberty drowning in sand while hyper-intelligent apes roam the planet, sure. But last week, the sea caught on fire… the fucking sea! You’d think after completely decimating the planet for a hundred years, some companies may have learned a lesson or two - like not setting dire to the fucking sea again!

And just today, the newspapers are full of pictures of yet another ghost town in West Wales slowly sinking into the sea. We have our symbols, alright. They are just smaller, more mundane than the Hollywood apocalypse we always felt we deserved - as a species, we are so arrogant that we feel even our extinction deserves something special, something showy. But, like I said, if you are paying attention, there are symbols to be found everywhere. 

Is our slow, boring apocalypse better than the ostentatious apocalypses of Tinseltown, complete with their big budget explosions and alien invasions? I’m honestly not sure. 

One part of me used to think that at least then it would be over quickly. This was a particularly comforting thought during the war, as English shells rained down on Cardiff. But, even the war fizzled slowly, bubbling away around the fringes, with neither country having the resources, will or money to mount any serious threat to the other. It turned out that not even the newly installed Albion dictatorship in England could get away with a costly hot war, while millions of its citizens starved to death. 

It sounds weird to say, but slowly you adjust to it. You know? Slowly, bit-by-bit, the fucking sea being on fire doesn’t seem such a big deal as it did a year ago. Slowly, bit-by-bit, you stop watching the news. You realise the images of starving children 50 miles away over the border have become the norm. 

You become desensitised to the food queues, the extreme swings in weather, the rapidly shrinking coastline. When was the last time you even saw a bee? It’s all just normal. But in spite of all of that, we still sit here, night after night, staring at our tiny plastic phones, reading the latest #crushingit update from that douchebag Chad, half hoping that there is still time for the aliens to show up and finish the job…

I realise that was quite a long run-on sentence, but it’s been a while. I’m out of practice. Like I said, it’s been three years since I last wrote, well, anything! I don’t know if anyone will even read this… I mean how many people can even access Tumblr anymore? But, Jack was right, it did help to get some stuff out.

Until next time (possibly), stay bored out there!

Kara

[whumptober]

FAQ Update

Hello again everyone!  Here is a list of some of the common questions we keep getting about the event.  These are from both the blog and the discord.  Please read through this and the Event Info post before submitting your question to make sure it hasn’t already been answered!

Thank you! And Happy Whumping!

(FAQ’s Under the Cut)

Q. How does this year’s prompt list work? What do I have to choose?

You can write a story based on:

The overall theme of the day

Prompt 1, 2 or 3

One or several of the alternative prompts

A combination of the above

Q. Can I use prompts to write a new chapter for an existing fic?

Yes

Q. An existing fic I am currently writing contains many of the Whumptober prompts, can I use it?

If you are actively writing this fic at the moment with the whumptober prompts in mind, yes. If it just conveniently checks the boxes, then please don’t. You can, however, add new chapters answering one or more of the prompts.

Q. What kind of characters can I write for? 

Fandom characters, OC characters, human, furry, alien, cyborg, whoever you like.

Q. Does it have to take place in a specific fandom?

No, you can create works for your own worlds or for fandoms, fandom AUs, or for all of the above.

Q. Can I use a prompt multiple times?

 Yes,  but it only counts once

Q. If I’m not comfortable with one day's prompts can I use a prompt of a different day as a substitute and still be a completionist? 

Yes, but please do not use a specific prompt twice. We have also created an alternate prompts list that you can draw from [here].

Q. Where can I post my work? 

Post where and how you want. You don’t even have to (cross)post it to Tumblr. Just keep in mind if it’s not on Tumblr we will not be able to add it to the blog archive.

Q. Can I start posting early?

You can, but this is an October event and wouldn’t it be more fun with everyone doing it at the same time? That being said, you can post early, but we won’t be reblogging any work predating October 1st. 

Q. Do I have to finish a fic I started/can I post WIP’s.?

Yes you can post WIPs. And you’re not obligated to finish it in October but if you want for it to count towards being a completionist, you must have completed 31 prompts by the end of the month.  

Q. Is co-writing allowed?

Yes, absolutely, and it would count towards being a completionist for both/all of you :)

Q. Do I have to create 31 standalone pieces to be considered a completionist or can I write one continuous story?

One continuous story is fine.  The challenge is to write something for 31 prompts. If that’s spread over 31 fics or just one, you are still considered a completionist. (The same goes for every other media you choose.)

Q. Is there a min/max limit on word count?

There is no limit

Q. Can I combine prompts? Is there a limit on how many? 

No limit and combine as many as you’d like.

Q. Is a hc/angst focus ok?

Of course!

Q. What’s considered nsfw?

See this post

Q. What's whump?

See this post

Q. My interpretation of the prompt isn't whumpy at all, does that count?

No, sorry, but keep in mind that whump [see definition] is something very nuanced and different for everyone and emotional whump/angst is just as much part of it, as is physical whump and torture. So before you dismiss your idea, please consider this.

Q. Can I start working on the prompts before October?

Absolutely! That’s why we posted the prompts a month in advance. We recognise how difficult it can be creating for 31 days in “real time”.

Q. How do I tag triggers?

tw at the end of the word, ex. #emeto tw

Q. Do I have to use your tags?

Yes, if you want your work archived on the blog. If not, feel free to use whatever tags you want.  

Q. Does combining prompts count towards completion?

Yes

Q. Can we @ you?

Yes but we mostly rely on the whumptober2020 tag

Q. Is there anything we are absolutely not allowed to write?

There are no rules, just be sure to properly tag your trigger warnings. And keep in mind Tumblr’s policies if you are posting it here (or the policies of whatever site you use). 

Q. Where can I go for brainstorming help?

Here on Discord

Q. My characters are minors, is that ok? 

Yes, but as with everything else, tags are your best friend. 

Q. Can I cross post on other blogs?

Yes, multiple platforms and blogs are perfectly acceptable. You can also post different works to different accounts under different names, without posting them everywhere at once.

Q. What kind of content can I make? Can it be NSFW?

This is a MIXED MEDIA event! You can write fic, post meta, doodle or paint, create a gif set or photo edit, link a song, or get crafty with video - anything goes. As for NSFW, make what you like, we just hope that you’ll tag your work accordingly so that others participating in the event can stay safe :)

Q. Do I have to do all 31 Days? Can I post early/late?

Participate as much or little as you like, and post whenever! Just be sure to tag your posts properly (ex. #no.11, #psych101). Combining prompts into one piece of work is okay, and posting late is as well so as long as it’s in October.

Q. What if I don’t understand a theme?

Send us an ask! We’re happy to help clarify. That said, the themes are entirely up for interpretation :)

Q. Can I combine Whumptober with other creation challenges?

Absolutely! That’s like shooting two whumpees with one bullet :)

Q. Can I upload/repost my whumptober content to other social media platforms?

Of course! We’ve created an AO3 Collection to archive any fics posted there. The archive can be accessed here. The blog is the official archive, so please respect the boundaries of any closeted whumpers in your social circle :)

Note: This is a creation challenge, please don’t repost your old work under our tags (unless it’s been changed or edited for the event).

[the-darklings]

—𝗖𝗢𝗔 𝗙𝗔𝗤;

Hello, everyone! So with COA being such a long-running series and new readers finding it constantly, I have come to realise that a lot of questions I get often repeat. So to keep everything easy and clear and friendly for everyone regardless of whether you started COA at the very beginning of the story or just recently found it, I have spent the day relaxing, eating junk food, and compiling this FAQ. Please read through it because chances are the answers are here somewhere. I have sectioned the guide into following: general, story, ships, original squad (OCs), AUS, OC!V and tips/advice. If the answer to your question is not here, please feel free to send me a message and have a wonderful day! <33 - kat.

GENERAL:

when does this story update?

I try to keep a bi-weekly schedule (now usually Sunday updates). But I always let you know when the chapter is done by making a final word count post (pre edits). 

do you have a masterlist?

yes, you can find it here.

do you have a tag list?

not for COA. they’re very time consuming and I’m already really busy sorry :(

are your requests open?

I rarely open my inbox for requests. the only exception being the monthly blurb nights. then I reblog a prompt list and let people send some requests in for any fandom/ship. however, usually due to how many I get, it only happens every few months. that being said, you can still send me ideas/suggestions and if it inspires me, I will write it. that’s how the majority of the AUs have come about. but i’m also a very busy person so sorry if I can’t. 

can I make X or Y for COA and tag you?

yes. yes. yes. please, please, feel free to create whatever for COA (no matter how small or silly) because I consider it a great honour that I’ve been able to inspire someone else. whatever it is, please tag me. I wanna see.

okay, I made a thing and tagged you but you didn’t respond :(

Tumblr is notorious for eating my notifs. whatever it is (art/post/etc) if I don’t respond to it in a day or two, please give me a nudge. you’re not being annoying, I promise. chances are I missed it/tumblr ate it. 

I wanna scream/discuss/theorise about COA with others, is there any way for me to do that?

my amazing readers have set up this reddit page that is full of lovely people, theories, and memes etc. I check it often and interact on there, too, so feel free to drop by.

STORY:

how many chapters will COA be?

25. the last one being a very long epilogue.

have you decided on the ending yet?

yes. from as early as part 2. it's barely changed since. 

will we ever see more of Prague/Naples? hoe, please say yes.

yes. I plan to write both as COA bonus stories after the main story-line concludes.

will there be a sequel? 

depends. on two things: 1) if anyone will even care by that point 2) time. this story has consumed 5 months of my life entirely. i’ve been incredibly strict with myself when it comes to writing it (in a good way) but at best it won’t be finished till the end of august/beginning of september. so likely even if I do, there will be a break for a few months at least. I do have ideas though.

you promised us smut. where is it?

patience is a virtue. ;)

happy ending or tragedy? (please don’t say tragedy, you monster)

I would describe it more as “bittersweet” but whether it leans more towards bitter or sweet you’ll have to see.   

SHIPS:

any endgame hints?

you know more about the ending than you probably realise

can v/s finally go to Paris? for the love of GOD? pLEASE?

no

hector + v? powerful. will there be more of them in the future? 

agreed & yes. hector and v have their own arc to go on. it’s actually one of my favourites in this story. I don’t want to say more than that right now because I have plans for their dynamic so no spoilers. :)

please stop bullying john. give us some j/v content please? 

i, for one, adore john. it’s team S that’s bullying him lol. but wait till parabellum. i’ve always referred to that portion of the story as the second coming of j/v.

does lucien actually have a thing for v or is it a creepy obsession? 

it’s both.

I ship v with everyone :/ is that bad?

the sky is the limit. ship all the things proudly (but seriously, no, it isn’t. I ship all the ships, too, and that’s the fun of it) 

v/elder tho? 👀

🔫🤡

j/v or s/v? be honest.

you fool,,,, you buffoon. ot3 j/v/s is where it’s really at. imagine their POWER.   

ORIGINAL SQUAD:

what do the Elites/Lovers look like/how old are they?

please refer to this

will there be more step??

of course. he’s my baby. :)

will we see more of camorra/learn more about the elite’s and their backstories?

while I would love to take the time and flesh them all out with full backstories, only hector will be getting his backstory explored in the main canon because plot.

does lucien care for mika anymore or has he replaced her with v?

lucien is a messy hoe. mika is his subject of “affection” but v is his foil and equal. he recognises the same hurt in her that he has gone through himself so it’s more of a fixation. with time, lucien would likely destroy v so no bueno. 

I ship our OCs.

I do, too.

can we write about your OCs/V?

so you would have to come to me and discuss this more in private but I’m fine with this sort of thing usually. in fact, a prequel hector story already exists so you’re likely good but please contact me first. 

AUs:

when/how often do you update the vampire!au?

whenever I have time/inspo. mainly time. so this means you can get it daily or not get it for several weeks because COA is priority. I keep you all updated on when I have something cooking tho.

what is the actual pairing for vamp!au?

undecided as of yet. i’m leaning more towards ot3 right now but we shall see.

how often do you update flowing in me?

same as the above. whenever I have the time but I will keep you updated.

how many parts will flowing in me be?

I have 5 parts(ish) planned.

do you have a tag list for flowing in me?

I will. please leave a comment on the story if you want to be tagged in future parts!

will flowing in me feature other characters (john, winston etc.)?

this story is mainly camorra-centric but I do plan for John to appear at some point.

how did you come up with your lore in vamp!au?

to be completely honest....I just wrote a bunch of stuff down and used what stuck. mostly the ideas were pulled out of thin air while still trying to keep within the spirit of the canon material (the high priest, the holy church, the twelve priests, john being the boogeyman etc). camorra as the natural enemy seemed fitting and santino as a vampire prince even more so.

can we send you new au ideas/expand on old ones (manager!V etc)?

yes, always. I always try my hardest to reply but ofc I can’t promise I’ll be able to use them all but thank you in advance.

OC!V:

who is the face claim for OC!V?

weronika spyrka

what is her real name?

clara

how old is she at the beginning of the story and now?

23 beginning of chapter 1, 30 beginning of chapter 4 (current timeline)

will/would you ever write an original story about her?

I have considered creating something original out of COA itself or one of its sister series/concepts (like FIM). since I really started working on COA during last year’s NaNo, that might be the time I create something original this year. 

TIPS & ADVICE:

how do you write so much, so quickly?

I don’t think that word count is really reflective of the quality work itself. I don’t think you should worry how much you write, either. 100 words can be just as valuable as 1k. most of them time I have a deadline breathing down my neck and I do work well under pressure so that inspires me to force the chapters out. I also do very long days because despite what it might look like I’m not a fast writer.

how can I improve my writing?

read and practice. I know it’s dumb and overused advice but it’s how I learned english and found my style (still a mess and WIP) but still this advice does help. 

how do you keep motivated?

spite, your support, genuine adoration for these characters/word, a lot of spite. 

do you plan? outline?

I have a vague story outline with specific scenes in mind as I go along (helps to set up foreshadowing, twists, and those ‘full circle’ moments). I also plan each chapter scene by scene and know what each chapter is meant to accomplish. So yeah in a sense. 

[toastedbuckwheat]

Hello! I got Tumblr at the beginning of quarantine, so I'm a little new to this and I have a question based on your post about reposted art. I originally got Tumblr to lurk in the shadows, but started re-blogging stuff when I noticed posts about how creators want re-blogs instead of kudos. Is re-blogging the same as re-posting or are the two different?! Also, if I re-blog someone who re-blogged is that bad, or should I reblog the original post?

Hi anon! Welcome to the Hellsite of Tumblr hehehe and thank you for reaching out to me! I know this is confusing at first (I was super confused when I first joined Tumblr and also needed someone to explain things to me fjghfchg)

Reblogging is not the same as reposting. Reblogging is great! it’s in fact the greatest thing you can do here to support a creator - this way you expose their post to a wider audience (because it ends up on your blog = your followers get to see it, and may pass it on further)! 

Okay this might be difficult to describe... Basically, when you hit reblog, no matter how many times it gets reblogged, the post can still be tied to its source (the ‘OP’ - original poster). I might get 10 or a 1000 reblogs and everyone will still see that it was originally posted by me. This way the notion of authorship of the post is preserved! And reblogging from someone who reblogged from me (or anyone else) does the same thing. In fact, i can still see it in my notifications that my post got reblogged, no matter if someone reblogged it directly from my blog, or from some other account (because the post is still tied to me - i’m the OP)

Reblogging works like a chain. you reblog something from me, someone reblogs from you, and everything is nice and trackable to the source. when you click on the notes you can see everything people said when they reblogged the post, even all the tags they used (those are often really funny)! When it comes to art posts, it’s great because I can scroll through all of this and see what ppl think about my work. it’s really satisfying!

Please reblog!! :D

Now, reposting. Reposting is when you, let’s say, see a drawing on tumblr. You decide it’s nice, you download it.... and then you RE-UPLOAD it to tumblr (make your own, separate post) or WORSE, you put it on another platform (Instagram, vk.com, whatever) without asking the artist (the original poster). This is Bad. Because it’s not like the reblog chain! if you re-POST someone’s work, it is no longer tied to the artist! So above i said that no matter how many times/from whom ppl reblog, the OP still gets notifications and feedback. If you repost, they obviously don’t! like, unless you ask them, they will never know where the hell their art is. and when something gets reposts once, even with credits, it’s likely to be reposted again and well, the authorship becomes obsolete. It becomes just another image on the internet while someone spent hours working on it. It becomes some sort of a common good (which it’s not - it’s got an author!) and might even end up getting reused/sold on products, and ppl will think it’s right because ‘oh i found it on the Internet, i don’t know who the artist is’.

Imagine you worked on a piece for 3 days, put it on tumblr, and then some time later it got reposted multiple times, got popular, people use it as their icons on instagram or something, and you get absolutely zero credit, feedback, or material income (in case you make profit off your art). Everyone recognises your drawing but nobody ties it to your name! :(

Obviously another thing is deliberate art theft, which would be someone downloading art and reuploading it while claiming it’s their own.

If some very popular account re-POSTS a piece and it gets a thousand likes and a dozen comments, the artist usually gets fuck-all from it. 

On the contrary, if a post on tumblr happens to get re-BLOGGED by a popular tumblr account (with a large follow base), it is likely to get a lot of likes and reblogs, and the original poster gets notified about all of these, and they might benefit from it! :D 

If you ever wish to share someone’s art to a platform you assume they’re not on, make sure you ask them for permission, that’s all. 

Lol this got long, i hope it answers all your questions. feel free to send me a message if anything is unclear!

[severetimetravelnerd]

Change(ft. G Dragon and Yoo Yeon-Seok)

Part 20

Although it hurts, Jiyong does something that he knows you need.

(I don’t own any of the images used. All credit goes to the original owners.)

Taglist:

@unabashedturkeytreeslime​

@starlighttaek8​

@happiestgirlontheeastcoast​

If there is anyone else who would like to be tagged, you can comment or leave me a message :))

I only write on this blog on tumblr, so if you see my work on any other platform, please let me know immediately.

Also, this is the second last chapter. There will only be one more part, with a Yeon-Seok version and a Jiyong version. It might take me a little time, so I’m sorry, but I will try and upload it in two day as usual :))) 

———————————————————————————

Jiyong came back after getting groceries, hands full, about to shout out your name to tell you he got you your favourite ice cream, when he kicked open the door, and found you fast asleep on the couch, the tv blaring in the background. Softly smiling to himself over how adorable you looked, with your cheeks all squished and your hair framing your face. He slowly put away the groceries, trying to make as little noise as possible, but he ended up waking you up by accident with the crinkle of all the paper. He could hear your sleepy mumbling from the couch.

 “Ji… hey. You’re back.” 

He smiled and put away the last of the groceries and said, 

“Yes, yes I am and I come bearing gifts.”

 You sat up and tried to figure out what he was holding in his hands. He flopped down on the couch next to you and handed you your favourite ice cream. Your eyes narrowed as you turned to him, beaming, and you opened it up and started to eat. Although you were busy eating, you still had time to complain to Jiyong about some people you met that day. Rolling your eyes, you started off on your rant. 

“Oh my god Ji, I would not believe how bloody entitled people are! Yes, I am pregnant, but that doesn’t mean you can touch and feel up my belly!”

 Your voice was a little muffled as you were speaking with your mouth full of ice cream.

 “No, I do not want your advice on how to take care of my baby. No, I don’t want you suggesting a name. I haven’t even gotten around to that! No, I don’t want you guessing whether my baby is a boy or a girl depending on whether I’m “carrying in my hips”. What does that even mean?! No, I don’t want you holding a coin above my belly.” 

You turned to smile at him, expecting him to laugh at these antics, but you found him slowly moving away and looking like he did something wrong. Brows furrowed, you asked,

 “What’s wrong Ji? Why’re you moving away?”

 He looked rather nervous.

 “No, you said that people touching your belly and getting too close to you made you uncomfortable. I didn’t want to make you feel that way.” 

You felt your heart melt a little. Moving a little closer, you gently took his hand, and put it on your baby bump.

 “Jiyong, you aren’t one of those people. Besides, I’m sure baby likes you.” 

You looked up to smile at him gently, only to see him gently wiping away tears and sniffing. He looked at you like he had just seen something magical. 

“Y/N, … that’s a miracle. That’s a tiny human inside you.”

 Smiling at him, you just nodded. Suddenly, he looked a little sad. Hesitating just a little bit, he looked at you and said, 

“Y/N, when you get back together with Yeon-Seok, I still get to be a part of baby’s life, right? Please? Although I understand if you don’t want me to be a part of your child’s life.” 

Your heart broke seeing him so sad. 

“Ji, listen to me. Of course you’ll still be a part of baby’s life. You’ve been with us right from the start.” 

You paused to cup his cheek.

 “Ji, I know Yeon-Seok isn’t your biggest fan, but he’ll have to get used to it, especially since you’re going to be baby’s favourite uncle.” 

His eyes lit up. 

“Y/N, can I be the godfather?”

 You tilted your head, laughing. 

“Ji, you know I’m not religious, but sure, you can be the non-existent godfather.”

 He jumped up, overjoyed. He turned to you with a look in his eyes that you recognised. 

“Y/N, can I set up a room for baby then? Please? Baby and I can have sleepovers and pizza parties!”

 Seeing how excited he was, and you already knew how much he longed for a child of his own, you just ruffled his head, and said 

“Go ahead.” 

You wanted to add that he was practically a father to baby, but you couldn’t. Some part of you felt like you would be betraying Yeon-Seok if you crossed that line. Later that night, as you fell asleep on the couch again, Jiyong smiled at your peaceful expression before covering you up with a blanket. He sat down next to you, deep in thought. After your last conversation with him, you agreed to quit your job after a while, and take some help from him for the time being while you looked for a good position as a journalist, but you refused his offer to come back to YG. You looked him dead in the eye, and said, 

“No way. It brings back way too many bad memories. Never again.” 

And he could not help wincing when all those memories came rushing back. He looked at you, smiling at the way you curled up. He had another worry he hadn’t mentioned to you. He knew you blamed yourself for Yeon-Seok leaving. He was terrified you’d fall into post-partum depression after giving birth. And he was terrified of seeing you that way, going through so much pain that he could to nothing about. He looked down at his phone, sighing before picking it up to text some people he had a feeling might know where Yeon-Seok was. Jiyong had heard some rumours. For your sake, no matter how much he blamed Yeon-Seok for leaving you without hearing you out, he would find him and bring him to you. Anything to keep you happy.

You woke up the next morning, peaceful and content after curling up on the couch. Lazily, you made your way to the kitchen to try and get some breakfast, all the while trying to smooth down your terrifying bedhead. 

“Jiyong?”

 you called out, wanting to know what he wanted for breakfast. 

“Ji?”.

 There was no response. You could hear this weird, unfamiliar noise in the background. You followed it, feeling vaguely wary, and you found yourself in front of one of his guestrooms. You opened the door, and you were hit with the overwhelming smell of paint. You blinked a couple of times, getting used to it, and you slowly looked around. Jiyong was in the middle of painting the room and you were in love. It was a beautiful mix of pale yellow and grey, with splashes of white and teal from place to place. It wasn’t complete, but you already knew how it would look once done. You were just looking around in awe, when Jiyong turned around to wipe some paint off his face, only serving to get more on his face in the process. His eyes widened and he pouted slightly. 

“Y/N, it was supposed to be a surprise!”

 You started tearing up from the emotions running through you. You were so happy. Jiyong got everything about the room just right. You turned around and, in a corner, you caught sight of a box full of soft cushions and plushies, with things to hang up all around the room. You started crying, feeling emotional from seeing them. You were going to be a mother. This was all for your child. This was real. This was happening. Jiyong immediately put down the paint roller, and peeled off his gloves, worried. He came up to you and asked, 

“Y/N, what’s wrong? Did I get the colours wrong? Is this all a bit much?” 

You shook your head, smiling through the tears.

 “No, Jiyong, it’s perfect. And I love it.” 

Still a little worried, he continued searching your face to make sure you were okay. 

“Okay, Y/N, but why are you crying?” 

You looked up at him, beaming through the tears. 

“Jiyong, I’m going to be a mother. I’m having a baby.” 

Jiyong smiled, grateful that they were happy tears. You looked around again, trying to take in everything. Jiyong had finished up quite a bit of work. Furrowing your eyebrows, you asked,

 “Ji, when did you start working on this? It’s almost done.”

 He grinned sheepishly, trying not to meet your eyes. 

“I was so excited, I had to start as soon as you gave me permission to.” 

Suddenly feeling a surge of emotion towards the shy man standing in front of you, you hugged him, nuzzling your head into his neck because you didn’t want him to see your face.

 “Ji, thank you. Thank you for all the help. Thank you for the room. I don’t know how you figured out I wanted a gender neutral set up, but it’s perfect.” 

Your voice got a little softer.

 “Ji, I know you’re scared baby won’t be a part of your life, and I know you’re trying to hide it for my sake, but believe me, I will make sure that you will always be a part of baby’s life.” 

You wrapped your arms around him a little tighter before saying, 

“Thank you.”

 Jiyong was a little taken aback by your hug and your little speech, and although he was sure you could hear his heart pounding out of his chest, he just wrapped his arms around you and pulled you closer, enjoying the intimacy of the moment. His joy was laced with some sadness, because he knew you were in love with Yeon-Seok, but then, he just decided to enjoy the moment.

 That night, Jiyong sighed when he heard you shift around the furniture to pull out that box again. You thought he didn’t know about it, but how could he not know about it when you let out such gut-wrenching cries every time you pulled it out? It was a box you kept, full of the little things you wanted to give Yeon-Seok. You knew he’d regret not being there for the pregnancy, so you kept the little things aside for him. Every single doctor’s note was in there. Every single ultrasound scan. All your diet plans. All your measurements. All your pictures. All your baby names. Everything. Jiyong knew why you took it out this time. You had another appointment with Wooshik the next day. It was the day you had the option of finding out the sex of your child. He thought you were going to put in a picture of the room, but he could hear you hiccuping on your sobs, repeating the same sentence over and over again. 

“Yeon-Seok, why aren’t you here?”

You stared down at the box, rocking yourself back and forth as you sobbed. You didn’t know whether you wanted to find out the sex of your child. That wasn’t a decision to take alone. It was supposed to be you and Yeon-Seok deciding. Why wasn’t he there, by your side? Where was he? After Jiyong heard you scream out Yeon-Seok’s name in a particularly gut-wrenching cry, he gripped the piece of paper in his hand a little tighter, crumpling it a bit, and got up to walk to your room. He opened your door, and walked over to where you were, picking you up from the floor and putting you down on the bed. You gripped his shirt, whimpering his name. 

“Jiyong… I don’t know what to do. Where is he?”

 and you buried your face in his shoulder. Jiyong took your hand, and put the piece of paper into your hand. You looked up at him, through all the tears, and asked, 

“What is this?” 

Jiyong put his hand on your head, and tried to calm you down by running his fingers through your hair. He gently tilted your face up towards his, and with a pained smile, said, 

“Y/N, if you don’t know what to do, go find him. This is his address.” 

Time stopped for you when you heard those words. He continued.

 “Yeon-Seok is back in Korea now, but he’s living as a recluse. He doesn’t have a phone or a laptop. He lives here and going there is the only way to contact him.” 

Although it killed Jiyong, Jiyong was glad he was putting himself through such pain because he just wanted to see you happy again. Smiling through the pain, Jiyong asked, 

“Do you want me to take you there?”

[drsilverfish]

Nine Minutes to Midnight

5x21 Two Minutes to Midnight

Nine episodes to beat God, and fifteen years since Kripke pitched his original On The Road fan-fiction meets folk horror. 

I’ve had a lot of fun in this little corner of Tumblr SPN fandom, over the eight years I’ve been here. I arrived as a newbie in 2012, and people already here were kind to me. I’ve seen people come and go, get disillusioned with SPN and move onto new fandoms, or arrive latterly into this one, brimming with excitement. 

This is a weird social media platform, and I doubt it will be around forever, as one of its joys is how singularly bad it has been at integrating advertising.   

Some of my favourite things here have been;

Comments in the tags, often funny, thinky, joyful - love this element of Tumblr.

Coda fic - this short-form story-style, which leaps into the fan-fiction gaps, loud silences and lacunae of the text - what a joy.

All the different roles people take on in fandom, as labours of love - gif makers, fic and meta writers, artists, vidders, archivists, signal-boosters, enthusiastic readers and beta-readers, art-lovers, networkers, collaborators, question-askers and answerers, and participants of all kinds (introvert and extrovert).

Completely unrelated to SPN, posts which are full of puns and hilarity, from “lik the bred” to Brits vs Americans on the subject of drinking tea. I still love Tumblr’s collective sense of humour; it’s witty and charming. 

The language of gifs; those delightful comtemporary hieroglyphics of emotive expression.

The diversity - English is the shared language, but gradually it’s apparent that despite US dominance of the site, there are people from all over the world here, whose native tongues range from Russian to Italian to Brazilian Portuguese.

The collective meta experience - sharing “live” textual analysis has been huge fun. Viewing a text in a hive mind this way always shows you something you’d have missed on your own. It’s like holding up a crystal to a thousand lights and watching all the different refractions happening at once.

Again, not SPN specific, but experts in various subjects, from Egyptology to Medieval History suddenly emerging from the depths to provide a passionate and erudite exposition on their topic. Often prefaced with, “My time has come...”   

Fandom has a dark side. It can be a coping mechansim, for many, in a healthy or less healthy way. There are unfortunately, always the formation of various “in-groups” and “out-groups”, ship wars, harrassment (of other fans, cast and crew), entitlement, and wild unpleasantness. And, that scourge of the internet in general; performative outrage (otherwise known as the outrage economy) which turns up the dial on provocative statements and negative emotion because that acts as catnip for engagement. A lot of people act out their shadow-selves online, projecting their own internal stuff onto others, from behind the screen.    

Almost no media texts get to run as long as SPN (fifteen years) but my first fandom was (and is) Doctor Who and that has been going for over 50. It has some absolutely horrendously toxic spaces and places online, and many of pure joy. My advice is - find the joy.  

Stories, by inviting us into the shoes of others, teach us at their (and our) best, the invaluable gift of empathy.

Take care of yourselves. Endings are hard, no doubt.

Special shout-out to fellow LGBTQ+ fans - hold onto your hearts. 

It can be complicated loving a story telling its queer (romantic/ erotic) love story implicitly (i.e. in subtext). 

Don’t forget (as I always say in my tags) subtext is part of narrative - meaning, the totality of a text contains its explicit and implicit elements; its text and its subtext, just like Metatron (aka Robbie T) told us in 9x18 Metafiction. 

I wasn’t in the fandom myself, here on Tumblr, but I saw some of the fall-out from BBC Sherlock S4, and it was particularly distressing to see so many young LGBTQ+ fans feeling deeply hurt and even suicidal, because they’d read all the (extensively crafted) queer subtext in that show as a promise which would, inevitably, lead to an unequivocal queer “coming out” for John and Sherlock.

Those queer fans weren’t “self-queerbaiting” - they were just reading the totality of the text. And after all, why not read the subtext that way, as a promise? Being of a generation who’d already gotten to see many explicitly out queer characters on-screen; why not dare to imagine the subtext was a slow-burn romance with an inevitable “out” climax? Especially because Mark Gatiss (one of the writers) is out and queer himself, young queer fans were even more certain that his Sherlock would be the first “out” queer Sherlock on-screen (The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, 1970, which Gatiss is on record as being a fan of, had previously queer-coded Holmes, as indeed does Downey’s version, in Sherlock, 2009, and Sherlock 2: A Game of Shadows, 2011.)

Of course, the corporate and production politics were no doubt complex behind the scenes at the BBC, and Gatiss himself (apparently) saw things differently saying (in an interview in Oct 2010):

“No, I don’t think I’d make a kind of gay programme. It’s much more interesting when it’s not about a single issue. And equally, I find flirting with the homoeroticism in Sherlock much more interesting.” (Buzz Magazine Oct 2010: p10).

All of which, is why I’ve been adding a disclaimer to my readings of SPN’s queer subtext for a while now - namely, that reading the subtext doesn’t promise a rainbow of obviousness at the end. 

As I said, take care of your hearts, lovelies.   

Perhaps we shouldn’t need the narrative closet any longer. 

But, we are walking between worlds, an old one and a new, both of them currently existing simultaneously, especially in a globalised world. 

Queer audience fractions are, generally, more attuned to queer subtext, because it often uses codes derived from queer culture (although reading cinematic/ television subtext of all kinds is a learned skill, and no one is born with text-reading gaydar). So, whilst queer subtext may appear “loud” to some audience fractions, it remains invisible to others. That is, historically, by design, because, whilst “out” queer characters have gradually emerged on-screen since the 1950s [and the end of the Hays Code in Hollywood] queerness was, and still is (depending on where one is in the world) subject to legal penalty, state censorship or corporate production censorship.

A contemporary kind of state censorship is e.g. in China, where overt LGBTQ+ themes and characters cannot be depicted on-screen (hence, the queer subtext in The Untamed). A contemporary commodity kind of censorship might be e.g. notes from the Network, or TPTB at Marvel Studios with an eye on box-office. Queer subtext has the ability to slip past the censors, or be tolerated by them; because, now you see it/ now you don’t. A character with a straight “surface” reading and a queer subtextual one may (depending on the film/ TV product and its market etc,) be seen to pose less risk as a commercial product, whilst being able to appeal to different audience fractions simultaneously. For example, Captain Marvel  (2019) and, as above, BBC Sherlock (2010-2017).

And yes, it’s complicated, because in the midst of that still extant censorship, which queer writers and other creatives on set may indeed be trying to work around by using queer subtext, we can see another world is possible. More out queer stories are being told. And, although we may love to see implicit queerness rather than no queerness at all, and indeed although implicit queerness may (arguably) have the freedom (still) to tell less boundaried or stereotyped stories than explicit queerness (with powerful effects on the audience fractions, both queer and straight, who do “see” it) we can’t deny that it does suit corporate entities, in some cases, to be able to appeal to a dual audience without the perceived “risk” of “outness”.  A form of “queer-sploitation” which leads to the charge of “queer-baiting”.

The issue is, perhaps, particularly one surrounding male hero characters in Hollywood (and here in the UK) a) because “queer stories” are (still) often, not seen as likely to have universal appeal for broader audiences, whereas “straight stories” are not framed as “straight stories” but as universal ones, and b) because of the persistence of the prejudiced belief in particular that “queerness” undermines masculinity, especially “heroic” masculinity (here we have diverged markedly from the ancient Greeks). It’s somewhat different for female characters, but that’s another post. Fantasy, in the on-screen medium (if less so in fiction or comics) appears to be a more regressive genre than, say, comedy, in terms of the depiction of “out” queer central (rather than side) characters, with the exception of the Wachowskis’ Sense8 (2015-18) in which pretty much everyone is queer. I know there’s Ruby’ Rose’s Batwoman (2019- ) which I haven’t had a chance to check out yet, and we’ve got some queer Marvel (side) heroes upcoming, apparently; Valkyrie in Thor: Love and Thunder and Phastos in The Eternals - let’s see how that goes.

Moreover, queer subtext doesn’t have an exact analogy i.e. a “straight subtext” equivalent. Yes, many films and TV shows imply romantic/ sexual tension and interest between M/ F (pre)couples before it is “confirmed” they’re into each other in the text. However, because straight is the default assumption, audiences may muse and disagree about the potential for a M/ F romance at the implicit stage (as they have done in SPN fandom re Sam/ Rowena) but they don’t ask - “Does this mean they might be straight ????” It is assumed. Queerness, on the other hand, in order to be widely recognised (rather than solely by the subtext-reading audience fraction) must “come out” in some manner, explicitly, in the text (I don’t mean graphically, but “beyond reasonable doubt”).  In other words, as painful as it is, we are not starting on a level playing field. It’s not fair, but it is the deal. 

That doesn’t mean we can’t love contemporary queer subtextual stories, just that it’s important to acknowledge it can be painful, for some, to do so, and just as it’s important to acknowlege it’s OK to find them too painful to love, also (historical texts obviously operated under different circumstances). 

Queer audiences are not homogenous. We can, and do, see things differently from one another, perhaps particularly across generations. 

It is the case however, I think, that the structuring of a story by the narrative closet, as SPN has been structured by the narrative closet (up to this point, mid S15) (by which I mean its queerness is transparent to some, invisible to others, by design) cannot help but remind many queer audience members of our own struggles with the real world closet. Indeed that may make the story attractive, or unattractive, to different folk. 

Incidentally, which is why I avoid it, I think the “it’s canon”/ “it’s subtext” debate is a false dichotomy and a bit confusing, as there are two, perfectly legitimate (within their own terms) definitions of “canon”. In the fandom sense, where “canon” means a romantic/ erotic pairing explicitly confirmed in the text, Destiel (meaning romantic/ erotic orientation between Dean and Cas) is not “canon” (as at 15x11). It is implied. Of course, it is explicit text that they care deeply for one another - “You’re my family. I love you, I love all of you” (12x12 Stuck in the Middle with You), “You’re my best friend” (15x09 The Trap). The exact nature of that relationship remains, however, deliberately, ambiguous. 

In the literary sense, in which “canon” means “the official body of work”, SPN’s official body of work contains a metric tonne of implicit romantic/ erotic Dean/ Cas, so, it is part of the SPN “canon” in that sense - “subtextual canon” if you like. Although, of course, because implied, therefore open to interpretation.... deliberately transparent to some and invisible to others.

Despite all this complexity, and, indeed despite other elements of the SPN narrative which I have struggled with personally (the early seasons’ misogyny is off the charts sometimes, the brutally insensitive manner of Charlie’s death) I have loved this story, Supernatural, truly, madly, deeply, in large part because of its (implicit) queerness. And for may other reasons additionally, from its folkloric beginnings and dark initial cinematographic palette, to its melodrama, to its, eventual, Ourboros structure, and its Jungian alchemical journey marrying the cosmic to the earthly. 

Reading the show without the queer subtext remains possible, but oh boy is that analogous to only considering the above sea-level portion of an iceberg.  

I would prefer a rainbow of obviousness at The EndTM, but I don’t expect one. What I expect is continued, deliberate, ambiguity. Something I am sure we will be debating the ethics of, long after. 

I could be wrong :-). But I am taking my own advice, and taking care of my heart.      

For now, it’s nine minutes to midnight; let’s see how the story ends.

And afterwards, however the chips may fall, the characters will (as this most meta-narrative of seasons has been busy telling us) be set free of “Chuck’s” control. They will belong to us, in a thousand thousand fan-works, for as long as we care to keep on loving them.             

[lightwoodsmagic]

I’m worried about Liam and his album and I didn’t know where to go but you always seem rational. I feel awful because there’s only a few songs I like and the album isn’t getting good reviews but Liam DESERVES good things, and then everything with ‘both ways’ happened. I’m so sad for him, but do you think he’ll be okay? I don’t want him to be cancelled, but the song was such a bad choice? His image in the eyes of the public seems ruined. Please tell me what you think :(

Hi anon, 

Thank you for thinking of me, and for thinking that I’m rational. I know this has been sitting in my inbox for the better part of a day, but in order to be rational and approach this properly, I had to take some time to let myself play out all of my emotions. 

I’m here now! And I think I’m ready. This post is long though, so I’ve popped it under the cut. 

Before I start properly, there’s a few things I want to say first. 

- I love Liam, an absolutely ridiculous amount. Liam’s music isn’t the usual genre I would listen to, but I will always support him and his music, and his fashion, and everything else he does. 

- I am incredibly proud of him for finally being able to release his album.

- As anyone who follows me knows, I strongly believe Liam is queer, and closeted, and in a relationship with Zayn. Here’s a masterpost I made about it earlier this year.

- I’m realistic. Some things below may not be what people agree with, or wanna hear, but you asked for my opinion.

Okay. Here we go. I’ve divided it into sections to address your ask properly. I’m also aware that this is pretty late in terms of fandom, and I haven’t been on Tumblr, so people have no doubt said many of the things I’m about to say. 

LP1

First thing: don’t feel bad for only liking a couple of songs on Liam’s new album. Everyone’s music taste is different and it is completely possible to love and support someone even if you don’t absolutely love their music. It does not make you a fake fan, or mean that you love Liam less, or anything like that. Please don’t worry about that. It’s okay not to love the album. Completely okay. 

Also, YES. Liam does deserve good things, always.

You’re right; it hasn’t been getting great reviews, but even though I really enjoyed the album despite my musical preferences, some people are frustrated, and not just reviewers. People are frustrated that a third of it is collabs, that half of it is songs we’ve heard before (that weren’t just released as a lead up to the album), and that Liam seemed to hardly write on it. We’ve known for a while that something’s been up with Liam’s album, especially when last year he said he had a full album ready to go, and then suddenly it was like it was scrapped, and he had to start again. 

We also know that Liam is a brilliant writer; he wrote so much for One Direction. So many people completely disregard this because Liam once said that he was more about the melodies, and Louis more the lyrics. Under no circumstances does that mean he does not, and did not, write great lyrics, or just good songs in general. That kind of thinking is also what leads to a lot of Liam’s erasure from Home, which is something I also touched on in the masterpost I linked above. It’s something that frustrates me a lot, when people forget about his writing ability. It doesn’t help though when he didn’t, or maybe wasn’t allowed to, write more on his own debut album. 

Overall, in terms of his album in general, I’m exceptionally proud that it’s been released, and sad for him that it’s not getting great reviews. Reviews don’t always matter, though! The support for the album from other sources has been really brilliant, and I’m sure he was feeling the love (and still is, despite recent stuff that I’ll touch on now).

Both Ways

No matter how you look at the situation, no matter who you are or what you think of Liam, it is baffling to me that this song went through numerous people to be released, especially knowing that a large part of Liam’s fan base consists of young, queer women from his days in the band. 

It should never have been a surprise that the reception was bad; the people who are upset about it are allowed to be upset, and their feelings are valid. In a world where bisexual and pansexual people are constantly fetishised, it’s a kick in the face for some people. I’m pan, and while personally I wasn’t overly offended by the song, I did cringe at a couple of bits, and I have no right to tell other people how they should or shouldn’t feel. 

To me, there’s a couple of options as to what happened here:

- It was genuinely just a gross misjudgement on everyone’s behalf. People make mistakes. I hate cancel culture. At the moment, if this is the case and they all genuinely didn’t think it would be this bad, I’m not sure if Liam addressing it would be a good thing, or if it’d just make things worse. If he apologises, it’s going to seem disingenuous to a large number of people, but if he doesn’t, it’s like he doesn’t care at all about the people that’ve been hurt. It’s not a good place to be in. 

- It was a purposeful song put into his album by his team to push his narrative. Liam’s in a shit spot at the moment. A very large majority of the media attention leading up to his album used negative promo, like his ‘relationship’ with M*ya and the fight at the bar during Thanksgiving. Aside from very recently, Liam’s team have been a nightmare, and it’s frustrating when people can’t see that he’s in a situation just as bad as some of the other men. Would I be surprised if this explanation is the correct one? Abso-fucking-lutely not. I’ll touch on it a bit more in the next bit though. 

No matter what, the song was not a good decision, and was not going to go down well. Alllll of this leads onto…

How it affects Liam’s image

I’m separating this into three parts to explain it the way I think I need to; the part of the fandom who believes he’s queer and closeted, the part of the fandom who don’t, and the general public.

The part of the fandom that believe Liam is queer and closeted

Liam’s image hasn’t changed here. This whole thing has made this section of the fandom angry, frustrated, and sad. At a time when everyone should be able to just relax and enjoy Liam’s new album, we’re bombarded from all over the internet with people trying to cancel him. Angry because Liam is being absolutely attacked, especially at a time when he’s just spoken about how fragile his mental health is, and because there’s quite a few hypocrites around at the moment. Frustrated because there’s nothing that can really be done at this point, and when it comes to Liam, people never seem to care as much as they should. Sad because we love him so much and he deserves such good things, and people never seem to care enough to recognise that.

It’s also frustrating that people can’t, or refuse to, realise that Liam is just as closeted, has had just as much PR bullshit including at the moment, and suffered through forced interview after forced interview, and been made to say a million things. It’s also important to note that if Harry can have a stunt song, and Louis can have a stunt song, Liam can also have a song (even if not directly stunt related) added to his album to push through his current narrative. They’re different situations, different songs, and different explanations, but they all have the same running cause. Just something to think about. 

The part of the fandom that don’t think that

Fuck me, I never realised how massive a chunk of this fandom there is that does not give a shit about Liam James Payne. Can’t relate, but okay. In terms of his image here, it kinda depends; for some people, they’re not fussed enough to pay attention, but that can mean that they’ll just believe he’s an arsehole here because they can’t be fucked to look into it. People don’t have to be invested in all five of them, of course they don’t, but it might be a big negative here. 

For other people, the ones that seem to hate him for some reason, this adds so much more fuel to the fire. There’s a lot of people currently calling him out for homophobic things he said about Harry, which I’ve spoken about before but can’t find my own damn post but the masterpost I tagged at the start of this mentions it a tiny bit. When this swirled up again recently in the last month or so, which interesting timing, the media ran a TONNE of articles about how Liam had been talking shit about Harry. Harry liked the very next tweet Liam posted, even though it had nothing to do with him or the situation, and Harry wasn’t just on a liking spree. It seemed very much like a ‘hey, don’t worry, we’re all okay, don’t believe this shit’. This section of the fandom is exceptionally unlikely to change their mind about him unfortunately. 

I spoke about this very recently, but the fact that people can’t see Liam’s situation for what it is, and can see the others, is beyond frustrating because the patterns are INCREDIBLY similar, and there’s very similar situations. 

Also, Liam and Louis’ friendship is 100% legit. They’re very close. If there’s anyone out there who loves Louis and thinks he’s closeted, but hates Liam, do you really think Louis would love Liam so much if this was really who he was? Someone who doesn’t care about the community that Louis is obviously so fiercely proud of, and someone who talks legitimate shit about Louis’ partner? Of course he wouldn’t, because Liam is also closeted and stuck in a shit situation and made to say things in interviews to stir up One Direction drama for the media. Speaking of the media though…

The general public

When I woke up this morning and Mar told me about the hashtag that was trending on Twitter, I was instantly so emotional, for a lot of reasons. As I said before, I hate cancel culture in the easy way it exists. People are allowed to make a mistake, or slip up, or make a wrong move; everyone is human. It’s how they respond to it that should change things. 

There’s a couple of problems here, though.

- Liam can’t really respond to it in the way he needs to. Like I said before, I don’t know whether it’d be better or worse for him to talk about it. The only genuine way he could is to come clean about everything, and he can’t fucking very well do that, can he? So the apology will just be a lie, and people probably won’t believe it anyway. 

- People are more willing to forgive someone if it’s one mistake, but Liam’s team have fucked with his image so much that to the general public, it’s not one mistake. We know they’re not real, but if we step back from the fandom and try to look at it through the eyes of someone who knows not very much about him and only knows what the media pushes, it’s a slightly horrifying image. 

When I speak to my friends about Liam, people often think he’s arrogant, conceited, and your standard ‘gym bro’. The GP may remember the times he was made to say homophobic things, and if they don’t remember, they’re reminded in every new article. They see him as the young guy who dated a woman in her mid 30’s and got her pregnant, and who hardly sees his ‘son’ and therefore is a deadbeat ‘dad’. They see him now as the man in his mid 20’s who’s ‘dating’ a teenager, and the articles I’ve seen today all mention her, some mentioning the debate about her age and others trying to say the song is about her even though it was being written about three years ago. They see him as a man who has fights outside bars, and are told it was because of his underage ‘girlfriend’. They see him as an artist who sings about getting wasted, sex, and being rich. 

I know I’m setting a bleak image, anon, and I’m sorry, I am. I don’t believe a single word of the above obviously, and NO ONE should, but it’s the reality of the situation for the GP, and it shouldn’t be pushed to the back as if we should only blame other sections of the fandom for his image, or that this isn’t, realistically, how it looks for Liam right now. 

We know Liam as the kind, sweet, caring, protective, talented, queer man that’s been there for us through his music and his words, who’s been there for the boys the entire time since the band started, who’s suffered through addiction and mental health problems to come out the other side stronger than ever. 

They don’t know that, anon, and I don’t know what Liam will do to come back from this massive of a social media hit. There’s numerous articles slamming him, the hashtag trended for almost a whole day in Australia at least, and for some of the GP, it’s the final thing in a long list of bullshit that Liam’s supposedly done. Each article mentions all of the above things again too, and Apple Music even mentions Ch*yl and B*ar directly by name. 

I’m hoping for his sake that in a few days, this will all blow over, and it’ll be handled the way it needs to be handled. The problem is that I don’t know what the right way to handle it is. 

I think he’ll be okay. I believe he’ll be okay, I do, but I think in terms of the GP, he has a way to go. I want the very best for Liam, always, and I will always continue to love and support him. Everyone else should too, because right now, he needs it from us more than ever.

[wistfulcynic]

On What They Fall: Epilogue

Lovely, lovely members of the CS fandom: To say that the response to this fic has been overwhelming is an understatement. Your reblog notes and AO3 comments and messages have actually brought tears to my eyes. Thank you all, so much. Somehow the little three-sentence note I wrote on my phone late one night has grown into the angsty, secret-love story I’ve been trying to write for some time and never quite managed until now. A HUGE PORTION of the credit for that must go to @thisonesatellite who pushes me and encourages me and sometimes drags me kicking and screaming in the direction she thinks things should go, and she is NEVER WRONG which is so annoying but also immensely valuable. She remains the VERY BEST. 

In this chapter we have the happy ending. That is all. 

SUMMARY: Killian Jones is an angry young man. He has no family and few friends, and he’s stuck in a small town where everyone views him with fear and suspicion.

Everyone but Emma Swan.

She’s everything he wants in life and everything he can’t have. What he doesn’t know is that she wants him too.

Part 9 of Secret Things.

Rated: T

On AO3 and chapters 1, 2, and 3 on Tumblr  

Tagging some folks who might enjoy it: @kmomof4, @stahlop, @mariakov81, @teamhook, @resident-of-storybrooke, @darkcolinodonorgasm, @shireness-says, @thejollyroger-writer, @ohmightydevviepuu @jennjenn615 @superchocovian

Epilogue: 

He’s dreaming of Emma again. She’s on his boat this time, standing at the railing gazing out at the stormy sea as wind whips her hair around her. She wears nothing but a shirt he recognises as his, her long legs bare and pale in the moonlight. He approaches slowly, knowing that this won’t last. His dreams of her never do. The moment he reaches out to touch her she’ll be gone. 

He moves towards her anyway, he can’t help it, he’s always been drawn to her. Awake or asleep makes no difference. He holds his breath as he reaches out, dreading the moment she dissolves into mist, leaving him empty and alone as ever. 

But she doesn’t. His hands glide over warm skin and she turns to smile at him as the wind blows her hair across his face. It tickles his nose. 

He rubs the tickle away, groaning a protest as he feels consciousness encroach. He’s not ready to leave this dream, not yet. Not ready to let Emma go. 

Emma. His nose is tickled again and he rubs it harder. He can smell honeysuckle and cinnamon and sex and his arms are full of something so, so soft. 

He opens his eyes and blinks them rapidly, for a moment wondering if he’s still in his dream. But no, the blonde hair tickling his nose is real and the woman in his arms is Emma, sound asleep and snoring softly, her back nestled against his front and completely naked. 

So is he. Killian nuzzles his nose in the crook of Emma’s neck and breathes deeply as memories of the previous night come flooding back. A night like none other he’s ever experienced. He’s had a lot of sex but never before made love, and while he feels a bit silly making that distinction he can’t deny the truth of it, or that it was a far different act last night with Emma than with any of the other women he’s known. And he has always, always woken up alone. 

He strokes his hand over Emma’s hip and down her thigh but she doesn’t stir. She’s a deep sleeper, he thinks, and feels a thrill at the knowledge. There is so much he’s looking forward to discovering about her. 

He presses a kiss just below her ear and eases out of the bed, careful not to jostle her. She mumbles something that sounds like too damn early and rolls onto her stomach, throwing her arm over the pillow and burying her face in it. He grins as he pulls on his jeans and grabs his phone, and heads into the kitchen to make some coffee.  

As it brews he calls Belle. She answers on the first ring and his grin widens. She was expecting him to call yesterday. 

“Killian,” she says eagerly. “What news?”

“I talked to Emma.” 

“And? What did she say?” 

“Many things that were hard for me to hear. But I needed to hear them. And—”

“And?” 

“She said she loves me.” Just speaking those words aloud sends joy surging through him. He still can’t quite believe all this is real, though he is beginning to, and his joy is chased by a flutter of fear. This level of happiness is going to take some getting used to, he suspects. He imagines it will be some time before he stops waiting for it to be snatched away from him. 

“And??” encourages Belle. “What did you say?” 

“Eh, I told her thanks but she’s not really my type.”

“Killian!” 

“I told her I love her too, of course,” he laughs. “I told her everything.” 

“Everything everything?” 

“All of it.” He doesn’t elaborate but he knows Belle understands. “That was yesterday afternoon and she’s, ah, still here.” He rubs at that spot on his neck, the one just behind his ear that always tingles when he’s embarrassed. Odd, he thinks, he’s never been bashful about Belle knowing who he slept with before. 

“Good.” There’s a hint of tears in Belle’s voice. “I’m so proud of you, Killian. Don’t let her go again.”

“I won’t,” he says, and it’s a vow. 

He hears a faint footfall behind him and seconds later slender arms wind around his waist and a soft body presses against his back. Lips brush light kisses across his shoulder blades and he sighs. “Belle, I have to go,” he says. 

“Of course,” she replies. “Tell Emma I said hi.” 

“I will.” He hangs up the phone and turns around, cups Emma’s face in his hands and kisses her. “Good morning,” he says. 

“Morning.” Her hair is mussed and her eyes still hazy with sleep. She’s so beautiful she steals his breath, and he kisses her again. He’d happily spend the rest of his life kissing her. 

“Mmm,” she says as her arms twine around his neck. “Do I smell coffee?” 

“You do. Would you like some?” 

“I definitely would,” she murmurs, but makes no move to release him. Her lips find his again, open and inviting. He pulls her closer, his hand sneaking under the hem of her shirt —his shirt, just like in his dream— to find her bare beneath it. He groans and backs her up against the kitchen island, plundering her mouth as his hand slides higher. When it encounters metal, warmed by her skin, it stops. 

He pulls back and so does she, looking up at him with wary, hopeful eyes. He brushes aside the placket of the shirt to reveal a pendant on a long chain, nestled between her breasts. A very familiar pendant. 

“I didn’t see this last night,” he says, in a voice rough with emotion.

“I wasn’t wearing it then. I had it in my pocket. Yesterday was the first time I haven’t worn it around my neck in—” 

“Five years?” he finishes for her. 

“Yeah.” Her smile is faintly embarrassed. 

He kisses her softly, rests his forehead against hers and runs his fingers through her hair. “How would you like to go sailing later?” he asks. 

She looks surprised at the non sequitur. “Really?”

“Aye. It’s supposed to be calm seas today.” 

“And you still have your boat? Even though you— well, live on land now?” 

“Of course I still have my boat. I couldn’t get rid of her, she’s the love of my life.”

Emma’s eyebrows rise. “Is she?” 

“Aye.” He grins. “Along with you, obviously.” 

“Oh, obviously.” 

He pulls her back into his embrace and she snuggles against him with a happy sigh that makes his heart soar. “So what do you say, Swan?” he says, low in her ear. “A picnic on the boat for lunch?”

“Sounds wonderful.” 

—

When they arrive at his mooring Killian takes her hand and guides her around to the front of the boat, positions her at the end of the jetty and stands there, grinning, his eyebrows dancing a jig on his forehead. 

“What?” she asks. 

“Exercise your powers of observation, Swan,” he says, with extra emphasis on her name. 

“What am I missing?” She looks around then back at Killian standing in front of his boat, right next to where the name is painted in large bold lettering and— oh. Emma’s mouth drops open and she feels tears begin to gather in her eyes. 

“You named your boat for me?” she whispers. 

“Aye,” he says gently. “You’re not the only one who’s clung to mementos these five years.” 

“Oh, Killian.” She launches herself into his arms, buries her face in his neck. “I love you.” 

“I love you,” he replies, cradling her close. It’s a long time before they pull apart. 

—

They sail out towards the Atlantic until the land is just a slim sliver on the horizon, a faint line of grey between the blues of sea and sky. Killian adjusts the sails to let the boat drift while Emma spreads a blanket on the deck and lays their picnic on it.

It’s not much as picnics go, just peanut butter sandwiches and apple slices and a thermos of hot chocolate, but they devour it hungrily.

“Why does this taste so good?” Emma asks around a mouthful of apple. 

“There’s something about the sea that sharpens the appetite,” Killian replies. “Which is handy when all you’ve got to eat is fish.” 

“I bet.” She gives him a sympathetic smile as she grabs another sandwich. Someday, he thinks, he’ll tell her about the difficult times he experienced in his years of travelling. But not today. 

“So you never told me how long you’re staying,” he says, as casually as he can manage. 

“I have two weeks off work,” she replies, licking peanut butter off her thumb. “But…” She glances at him, looking hesitant. 

“But what?” he encourages. 

“But I was thinking. About what you said yesterday.” 

“I said quite a few things yesterday.” 

“What you said about my job. And how I used to want to be a social worker.”

“Ah.” 

“Yeah. And you were right, I did want that. I’d forgotten how passionate I used to be about women’s advocacy, and my job— I like it well enough but it’s never been what I really wanted to do with my life. So I was thinking.” She pauses again as she sips some chocolate, her fingers toying nervously with the cup of the thermos. 

“What were you thinking, love?” 

She takes a deep breath.“I was thinking I might apply to grad school,” she says, all in a rush. “Here. In New York.” 

Killian’s heart lodges in his throat. “Do you mean that?” 

“Yeah.”

“What about your family? Storybrooke?” 

“I’m twenty-six, I can’t live at home forever. My parents will survive. As for Storybrooke—” She shrugs. “It’s not your place. And I want to be with you.” 

His love for her engulfs him like a storm surge, nearly overwhelms him with its force. He leans across the picnic blanket and kisses her, harder than he intended but she doesn’t seem to mind, kissing him back with a fervour equal to his own. She tastes of peanut butter and chocolate and home. 

 She grabs the collar of his jacket to pull him closer and they overbalance, tumbling onto the deck in a tangle of limbs and laughter. Killian rolls onto his back and Emma sprawls across his chest, still laughing as she cups his face in her hand, tracing the thin scar on his cheek with her thumb. “You know,” she says, “If I do go to school here I’ll need a place to stay.” 

“My love,” he breathes. “You can stay with me as long as you need. Stay forever.” 

“Forever.” Emma smiles. “That might be nearly long enough.”