#i probably won’t write this just draw it so if this concept sounds appealing to anyone feel free to write it i’d love u

[kidhawks]

WAHHGUHFH.. FANTASY HAWKS.. I LOVE UR DESIGN FOR HIM AGHH!! and do u have stuff to say abt him bcos i would LOVE to hear it

YAY i’m glad u like him :’) fantasy au time hehe 😈 it’s still a work in progress but yes.. a few thoughts. i’m just spitballing here so if anyone has ideas of their own i’d love to hear them <3

hawks “”works”” for the commission (aka is owned by them) who still get to be a shady organisation whose goal is to maintain peace and order across kingdoms, which r probably ruled by important characters like endeavor, all might, all for one etc. no one likes the commission because they’re always sticking their nose in other people’s business lmao. they’ve controlled things from the shadows for a loooong time, assassinating leaders who get too power hungry, quashing rebellions before they can begin etc. they want things to stay exactly as they are, always, and so far they’ve mostly succeeded

quirks still exist but mutant discrimination is more pronounced—they only recently got equal rights in all kingdoms. it’s what allowed hawks to be basically enslaved the way he is. now the freedom laws are passed he could technically leave the commission but for a multitude of Reasons he stays. eg, his priority is also maintaining peace not because he thinks society is perfect how it is—far from it—but because upset peace means civilian death. he wants to see change but if innocents die for it then it’s not worth it. his goals align with the commission’s enough that he’ll continue to help them. however, other people, especially other mutants, can’t understand why he’d stay and he’s viewed with a mixture of “dirty commission dog too loyal for his own good” and “poor thing was raised to love the hand that hit it and can’t fathom the idea of freedom, so sad”

similarly to canon, hawks was sold to the commission when he was young and trained into a spy/assassin hehe (what’s the point of an au if it isn’t self indulgent?). the tattoos are added to with achievements. the diamond on his chest was immediately inked on him when he arrived, while the lines are added for things like significant kills, successful missions. i’m toying with the idea of them being a way of controlling him, like they cause pain if he disobeys, but i’m also fond of them just being a symbolic representation of ownership... hmm. oh!! maybe they give him power while also hurting him if he disobeys? i’ll have to think more abt how that works lol, i want him to be able to disobey at times, but knowing hawks he’ll find ways to sneakily work around orders while still technically obeying

his job consists of flying around the kingdoms and knowing everything that’s going on at any given time. there isn’t a rumour he hasn’t heard, whether from frequenting underground fighting rings or influential nobles’ bedrooms if he has to. for discretion’s purpose the tattoos can be made invisible for periods of time but never truly removed—everyone knows him now anyway, the commission’s pet with the bright red wings, so the tattoos are rarely concealed anymore. everyone thinks they can avoid letting slip any information to him but jokes on them because his wings don’t miss a whisper and he’s a charmer to the point that you don’t know what you’ve said until he’s saying “thanks, that was really helpful! great chat! bye!”

he’s also basically a messenger pigeon between kingdoms since he can travel so quickly. the commission “kindly” offered his services but everyone knows it’s a method of planting him in every castle to hear them juicy deets, and you don’t refuse the commission because you want to keep your head, thanks. so hawks is familiar with each ruler and their castle staff for good measure, and probably a fair few commoners too... he was one of them once after all. he’s originally from endeavor’s kingdom but the guy doesn’t need to know that

all might thinks he’s a charming young man but hawks is weirdly creeped out by the constant smile and actually prefers the grump endeavor who shoos him like a pigeon. all for one is terrifying and hawks knows he’s after war but he can’t prove it. if it comes down to it he might have to resort to assassination, but if done wrong that could cause more problems than it solves (plus, killing, bleaugh). he hates afo’s castle and leaves as soon as he’s delivered a message, though he enjoys bothering afo’s heir shigaraki first (hawks was eighteen when he first spotted shigaraki, fifteen, sulking around the castle like he didn’t have a friend in the world. well, maybe hawks could change that and get some info while he was at it... unfortunately shigs is surprisingly tight lipped but he’s good for board games)

i’m thinking of making other top-ten heroes into rulers of their own kingdoms? queen miruko would be awesome, imagine!! the first animal mutant queen who’s loved for not being a passive leader but a fighter with a passionate love for her people. hawks doesn’t like how unpredictable she is, it makes his job harder, while she thinks he lets himself be walked all over and it pisses her off, but i think they could be great pals if they got to know each other. edgeshot the ninja king. jeanist is a peaceful, pragmatic leader who hawks actually gets along with. sorry, pb, i have no idea how to fit wash in. washing machines don’t exist in my self indulgent fantasy AU.

if i wrote this i’d probably have afo wage war after all and hawks kicking himself for not doing better in preventing it. shigaraki is at the head of the war, but after afo is killed/arrested like in canon, shigaraki labels it as more of a rebellion with his new generals by his side, one of whom is a powerful man called dabi who hawks has never heard of, and he’s meant to hear everything. it’s not a good time for hawks knowing he wasn’t enough to stop this. if he had tried harder to sway shigaraki away from afo’s ideals... it hurts seeing the lonely kid he once knew declare his desire for complete destruction. hawks doesn’t have “friends” but he cares for people—the commission didn’t take his heart, just chained it

anyway it’s basically canon but fantasy because fantasy is sexy and cool (it would deviate a lot from canon though i don’t want it to be a carbon copy lmao)

[stylistiquements]

There was the silence and there were the stars | Corpse husband x reader -Among Us AU

Among us AU : There was something. Something in the silence and the harsh coldness -that only space was capable of- that turned your brain into a sarcastic and bored mess. Maybe that’s why you found yourself so interested by any sabotage pulled on the crewmates, maybe that’s what made him so interesting to witness. He was different from the rest of you. Different to an extend you were about to understand.

❚ Word count : 4.2k ❚ Warning : A bit angsty but you will get that fluffity fluff and touch starve feeling you require I promise ; swearing ❚ Note : there will be no mention of death or killing as it is basically a real life Among us, just some shenanigans. Y/C : your/color

A/N : This little thing was inspired by -⭐️ anon. It was a fun thing to write even though it took me way too long because I asked my brain “sir may I pls have the focus capacity I need” and brain said no (: so yeah, this is litteraly just me ranting n complaining about space. This is a bit angsty but as what if is way too happy for me that was a nice opportunity. I hope you won’t mind and appreciate it anyway. As always just let me know. As it’s my first time writing like a one shot thingy I’m really curious to know. Also it’s supposed to be proofread but if you find any mistake just take ur glasses off. Thanks. Enjoy the wild ride. 

You met him again. He was fixing wires while you were downloading some files on the computer. Difficulties happened regularly around here; various oddities that occurred from time to time, sometimes a few times a day. It would go from doors closing mysteriously to no electricity, you never knew which one it would be. Those inconveniences used to draw a smile on your lips, a grin you tried your best to hide from everyone else. The sound of the urging siren resounded in your head like a call, reviving the last spared spark left in your brain. At this point, you were pretty sure it was one of your crewmates’ doing, too many coincidences for any other options to be left. You didn’t mind though. The game started months ago but still amused you to this day. 

He never let a word escape his mouth. To your awareness, no one knew anything about him, no one had ever heard the sound of his voice which you could only dare to imagine since the two of you met. It felt silly, you fabricated this voice inside your head, a half-finished melody you played to keep your mind busy. It would have sounded just as an old piano would. So slightly out of tune that maybe, if you didn’t care enough or wished for it not to be true, you wouldn’t even notice. 

You called him black. It resonated with the color of his suit and the darkness that emanated from his soul. Not that he looked like a mischievous character, but rather like someone who would have been gnawed by life for years. A shade that reminded you of the bittersweet feeling 4 AM forced you to taste. Describing that presentiment was a challenge you couldn’t take. It was one of those things that had to be felt, not narrated. 

Shit.

He caught you staring again. How could you look any other way? There was something with him that appealed to you, that pulled your eyes toward his direction every time. Probably only a peak of unwarranted curiosity you couldn’t really be blamed for, probably the oh-so mysterious aura that floated so carelessly around him. He always had this way of sneaking in and out, just as if he was nothing but his own shadow. 

Yet, being near him was easy. Silence only felt comfortable when he was in your surroundings. The whole world stopped existing -and it had in fact since the first day you two met.

He had dark charcoal hair which fell so perfectly in curly strands around the two horns that crowned over his head. Paired with two ruby hued eyes, he truly was a sight for sore eyes. A wicked and breathtaking beauty, so unique it gave you the impression that he wasn’t even human. 

He used to hop in a vent after finishing his tasks. As if his true home was there; a secret hideout for him and him only. You didn’t even know it was a thing before you watched it with your own eyes. Who wouldn’t blame him. If you could have escaped that warmth deprived place too, even for 5 minutes, you would have. 

That’s why you never asked any question about it nor tried to investigate further. Being stuck in space was only a kid’s fantasy, nothing a fully conscious adult would inflict to themselves. Which, in itself, was pretty much self-explanatory about everyone’s mental condition in here.

It was also a pre-established rule, no questions. No one ever expressed it out loud, but you would have to be a fool not to guess it. Every crewmate grew accustomed to the deadly silence only space had to offer. A giant timeless hole where nothing really happened. With nothing but the smell of technology and the constant purr of engines as the only distractions left. See, living in a spaceship was no ordinary lifestyle : days and nights melted into each other until it became nothing but a groundless concept. The crewmates perceived it as comforting for some reason. You used to shrug it off, no questions. How unethical would you be to disturb their peace? 

If you had to be honest, you would probably say that you felt bad for Black. Nothing like pity, but being alone in this stark and brutal silence for this long must have been pretty life-consuming. That’s why, even though it made your cheeks and the tip of your ears flame up in a raw and unforgivable tint of pink, you always kept looking into his eyes for one more second after he noticed you. Just to be sure he knew that he wasn’t alone in this shit hole. You stared into the depth of those ruby eyes, hunting for silent answers to questions you weren’t even sure of in the first place. He never quivered, only stood motionless until his task was completed. Just locking the eye contact. After that, he always ran away as silently as he existed. Leaving your head disturbingly empty. 

Every single time. 

Something changed one day. You were about to prepare some test samples when it happened. He jumped off a vent and you followed his movements from the corner of your eyes, too distracted to remember about the task that was assigned to you. He ran to the door and proceeded to shut it. Within the last second, the one that always lasted hours, he put an index in front of his mouth. Silently asking for you not to say a word. And before the steel door could obstruct your vision completely, you noticed a smile on his lips. A smile that made the whole spaceship turn inside out, draining the blood out of your body in a painstaking, almost sore way. There you stood, intoxicated by stupefaction and trapped as a cat. 

Black mutated you into a self-depreciating joke : in here, you were only interestied in the impostor. The only one who made your day a little better was the one giving nightmares to the others. 

It was him, from the beginning. It was him and he smiled. A grin that twinkled maliciously from his lips to his eyes, wounding your heart in an insoluble way. It made every prejudice you had about him crumble : he was no longer that miserable existence you sensed he was but a quiescent sun that could radiate all around him once unleashed into the world. How did he do that? How could he be both the tunnel and the light at the end of it?

When red came to the rescue, she described you with a glare. She judged you in the not-so-pleasant way. You could always count on those glares to know their opinions about you. Because their judgment would have to be expressed one way or another. She thought you looked suspicious, with your half poured concoction into a hand and the rest of it in the other, just staring blankly into the void. You wouldn’t blame her for that. 

It stuck with you for days, filling your empty mind with the sight of a smile that could no longer be experienced. The scene shamelessly repeated itself in your mind until it became nothing but a progression of disassembled images, forcing you to taste the astonishment over and over again. The problem was, you hadn’t seen him for days. And, even though you wanted to know what happened, you couldn’t ask. That was the rule. 

What would you say anyway ? Black is the imposter and I watched him close medbay’s door ? Yeah, I don’t think so. You should have stopped him in the first place -and you would have if you weren’t just mesmerized.

So, you took each day -or night … or piece of time, whatever you wanted to call it since it was no longer existent- with composure. Forcing yourself to do any task with a meticulousness that didn’t look like you. Just to make sure your brain was busy enough not to think about it or him. Being trapped in a place and being trapped in your own mind are two different wrestles, yet in here those two intertwined perfectly. Just like the rest of it, it didn’t even make any sense : the guy smiled at you for ten seconds and here you were, an absolute clutter of questions and recollection. You were probably just too bored and he, as always, was the perfect distraction. That must have been it, right?

You walked in admin. Your heart skipped a beat before your eyes could process who stood in front of them. 

Look what the cat dragged in. 

His hair twirled flawlessly above his face, almost hiding a grimace that indicated so transparently his mind. You leaned against the door frame and crossed your arms, unabashedly watching him as he swiped his card frantically while sighting heavily every time that “bip” of failure rang. 

Eventually, he looked at you with an expression you couldn’t quite read. You tried anyway, staring at him as if he was some sort of work of art that needed to be decrypted. From the way his chest moved heavily under the pressure of the irritation to the way his glowing eyes witnessed you. This expression on his face gave him a funny look, a scowl which made the laugh that tickled your throat hard to hold back. 

“Y-you have to do it slower. Otherwise, it won’t work” you stuttered. “I guess it’s harder since …” 

You walked to him carefully, so carefully you forgot your words. Just as if he was a wild animal who could run away if scared. Making sure no step would fall out of line. He was so close, so close, maybe if you tried to catch him this time he would stop running away. 

“Since it’s not my job, right ? Is that what you were about to say ?” he asked with a low voice, a voice you would have never dared to picture for him. Not the broken tone you pictured but a melody so sweet and so unique it felt like it was made just for your ears to enjoy, taunting you to dive into his mind.

“Do you need help” ? 

“I- hum- You’re not supposed to help me, you know ?” he stuttered, visibly amused, judging by the way his eyes wrinkled under his smile. 

“Are you gonna lock me in the room once again ?” He shook his head as a chuckle escaped from his lips. “Then who cares” you finally breathed.  

Your fingers brushed against his warm skin as you grabbed the card. You tried to appear unbothered, hoping so intensely for the swipe to be a first try success. That way, maybe he wouldn’t notice the way you breathed heavily under the weight of your pounding heart. But those red eyes piercing through the depth of your soul were hardly bearable for those like you who suffered from unbeknownst afflictions. 

You grew aware of his every move, the way those eyes fell on you, the perfume that emanated from his skin, the sound of his slow yet noticeable respiration.

You gave him his card back and he captured your fingers in the palm of his hand, making it impossible for you to escape his grip. Hiding those blushing cheeks from a sight that seemed to see everything was a defiance only the proudest people would be capable of. It wasn’t your case, but you counted on preserving the last sane cells left in your body. 

“Your secret is safe with me.” You whispered, avoiding any eye contact.

“I know that.”

 A simple answer that would never be enough to satisfy you. Yet, before you could review the best option of an answer, he left. Just as he always did, he walked away silently -still this time it seemed to last an eternity- while you just stood there inertly as you watched his black silhouette disappear into the endless gray hallways. 

You finally caught the breath you had been holding this whole time. Leaning over, you observed your reflection into the screen of the digital tablet as you rubbed your hands together, hoping for that strange spike of electricity that ran through your fingers to fade away quickly. A mess.

“There you are, Corpse” green said as he sat cross-legged in black’s secret place “I’ve been looking for you.”

Corpse was the name green chose for Black, feeling like it would be the most suitable image for the one who always worked in the shadow. Not the most refined nickname, yet black ironically related to that. Silent as a Corpse, he thought. A level of sarcasm that amused him and which probably led to him immediately falling in love with it. 

Corpse observed the little sprout on the top of Green’s head. It floated lightly and followed his every move. What a little freak. Just a thing deprived of any sort of self consciousness, out of this world just like he felt he was. Corpse remained fixated on it, hoping he could get as self-aware as it was. The last impromptu reunion he had with you was nothing he had planned, nothing that should have happened. He wouldn’t exactly call it a mistake and still, he had no one else but him to blame.

“Did something happened with y/c ? You seem a little flustered.” Green asked, pulling Corpse out of his overflowed mind. 

“I don’t know, I think I kinda fucked up.” He replied with a shrug. “I’ve been spotted.”

“Was it really a mistake ?”

Green was the only one who was granted with the privilege of learning how to understand Corpse. Because, deep inside, they grew up to be the same kind : the kind that didn’t belong here. Two sides of the same coin. 

Green’s social intelligence, on the other hand, Black didn’t like it that much. Thanks to that guy, he would be able to work comfortably in the darkness, where no one could see him, but it also meant that he saw clearly what was going through Corpse’s mind. Actually, it didn’t take him too long. 

What was the surprise when he realized it was you who lived rent-free in his thoughts? See, in Corpse’s eyes you were different from the others : too conscious about the reality that happened before yours eyes. It made you interesting to observe. What a delightful sight it was to watch you rolling your eyes in your crewmates’ face, to notice the serious look you had when you were focused on a task, the way your eyes sparkled every time a new sabotage was made. He wouldn’t track you, yet he would never resist a peek once your paths crossed. It happened often, more than you actually realized.

Yet, Corpse was no fool. You and him never belonged together. You were destined to a bright destiny and he was the obscurity. That’s why he was more than careful not to get too close, not to see his bare mind get burnt under the exposition of those peculiar feelings in the pit of his stomach. 

That’s why his previous reaction made no sense to him. But what could he say? You took him aback when those words were directed at him. You made his short-circuited brain unable to be sensible anymore. He just wanted to know what your touch would feel like under his fingers. Why was his skin blazing with electricity now ?

Corpse swallowed it all. From the blossoming feeling inside his body and mind to the warmth and the softness of your skin. He couldn’t feel that way. “I’m not really sure.” he finally said, as honest as he could be with himself. 

He would spend his next few days planning with Green, cornering you to a small part of his brain. You couldn’t be there, you had no right to be. The game was progressing faster than they anticipated it. It made him thrilled, accepting the challenge no one but the two of them could bear. 

However, a new unwanted seed grew into his mind. The idea that, maybe, you were only by his side in this game. That, maybe he would never be able to witness your existence in the real world.

“Have you ever noticed how weird the stars look sometimes ?” Corpse asked as he joined navigation. You jumped and your mind turned into a scattered place stuck between a task you battled to achieve and the proximity left between the two of you. Your heart beat in rhythm with his echoing, never ending footsteps. Still you had, indeed, noticed. “It’s like they’re not even real” you answered with a smile that made your voice higher. A melodic lift that betrayed your intention of ever finishing your job. 

When you finally looked at him, his lips moved into a satisfied curve. Shivers tickled your arms and your neck. Maybe because he was just standing so perfectly still in front of the glass window. So perfectly still that, among all those celestial bodies, he appeared to be the most beautiful one.  “Mind keeping me company for a bit?” Your mouth betrayed you when the question escaped your grip. But Corpse snorted faintly and shook his head.

“From all the people in here you want to spend time with me ? That’s probably not your wisest decision.” He said as he tried to muffle a high pitch laugh with a hand that covered his mouth.

See, that’s the words he had been afraid of since the first time he saw you. The words he would have to turn into derision since he knew he would have no strength to refuse. Yet, you stood there with those glimmering eyes and those eyebrows that arched in a strange manner, cutting every single inch of air out of his lungs. Even if he wanted to say no -and he should- he wouldn’t have been able to.

It was never meant to happen, not judging by your two so hostily opposed nature. Fuck that shit. Who cared about that speech when you were here and you were so beautiful?

You moved closer to him, a strenuous and slow tense that shouldn’t be disregarded. You’ve had seen the same scenery for months yet never it made you feel the same way as you did at that very moment. Because those balls of lights floating into the void shimmered in his ruby hued iris just as a dozen of fireflies would. He made your world a little blurry, narrowed to his presence at your side.

“You forgave me really easily the last time we met.” He noticed. “That’s a little sus if you asked me.”

“Well, what can I say ? You’re the only distraction I have left, so I’m not really in the position to hold grudges.” You shrugged sarcastically. 

“You’re really funny, I have to concede that” he said as his smile made its way to his eyes. 

Your brutally honest words intertwined with his chuckles and crewmates never heard the spaceship as lively as that time. That time when you got to discover who Corpse really was. A man who hid his blooming existence behind a silence.

“Why did you stay silent this whole time ?” You dared to ask before the silence fell upon the two of you, a silence that maybe you wouldn’t be able to endure this time.

“Because I never wanted to lie”

“I- ...hum- there’s really nothing I could say against that, right ?”

With every grin, every chuckle, every abrupt eye contact, your proximity kept embedding his mind a little deeper until you stole the stars’ show completely. It’s no good, you held his breath hostage when he realized he could feel the warmth stemming out of your skin. So tempted to get closer and witness it with further clearness. 

Thus, he lifted a hand that starved connection. He tried to close the gap between your two touches so prudently, so discreetly that you didn’t even notice. A touch, that would go beyond his movement, more like a proof he needed to make sure someone like you really existed in a shithole like this.  

He was so close. 

Yet, the alarm rang before he could embrace the object of his desire. “Better check that out quickly” you said with a sigh. Somehow, it felt peculiar just knowing that, this time, you were the one running away. A sense of some sort of joke played by space. As if space hadn’t done enough. When Green cut the communication, he couldn’t realize -If only he knew the double meaning of that sabotage. Ah, the irony of it all. 

“I’ll see you soon” Corpse informed you, more of a promise than a farewell and he stayed there long enough, staring numbly at his hand.

You ran until the communication room, holding this bittersweet feeling on the tip of your tongue. You tried to swallow it and almost found yourself praying that no one would arrive before you could. This way, maybe your fugue would make more sense. 

Blue was already sitting on the floor, trying to find the good frequencies. “I’m already on it.” she said on a plain, monotone voice. Of course, she fucking would be. 

Now what was left to do ? Corpse was probably already gone and-and the silence … the silence had returned. A dead, cold, cruel silence. It tested out your nerves, built up some pressure down your throat that made keeping your composure barely possible. Corpse slipped between your fingers again. The game was no longer a funny and pleasant diversion from the plain, austere daily life you had. You grew tired of that cat and mouse game. You just wanted him.

After going back to the oh-so empty navigation room, you completed your tasks. And you were finally done. You wandered around for hours, days -who knows-, searching for a purpose. 

The game was coming to an end, you could feel it. Something in the air changed, it became dryer than ever. Unbearable on your skin that ached for something you couldn’t apprehend. The crewmates were agitated, everyone kept running around day and night just to make sure the last tasks would be completed as soon as possible. New difficulties were triggered almost as soon as the last ones ended. Chaos. 

Just as if he wasn’t ready to end the game so soon, as if he didn’t want to get the hell out of this place as much as you did. From time to time, you almost found yourself eager to ignore the alarm. Taunting him one last time by neglecting his call. 

Maybe that way he would show up, maybe that way he would stay with you. Yeah, maybe that way he would stop being nothing but an ephemeral being that almost made you wonder if you finally gave up on your mind to the silence. Because at that moment he only felt like a chimera your brain created to protect you. Because you were just so fucking bored.  

You gave up on that idea, turning on the CCTV as you sighed. Just to see more colorful suits running around, trying to hold their shit together for what appeared to be the ultimate hour. Despite all the sabotages, it seemed like your number made your strength. You imagined Corpse’s face, probably piqued. A dark frown covering his pretty eyes. It made your lips twitch for a second. Who knew it would end this way ? Definitely not you. 

Yet that amused smile faded away when you heard the familiar sound of the door closing, locking you in yet another time. You rolled your eyes and turned around, unprepared to witness who locked themselves with you. His body laid against the door, guarding it as his chest moved frenetically under the weight of his rushing breath. 

“This is the end” he whispered frantically under his breath. He doesn’t look as worried as you thought he would, but it didn’t matter. You moved impulsively toward him, never stopping until he snaked a hand around your waist and slipped the other one in your back. That way, this time, there were no escape. 

He let his head rest in the hollow of your neck, soaking the divine and comforting warmth you had to offer. His warm breath on your skin sent shivers through your body which responded by squeezing him a little tighter, holding him as close to your heart as humanly possible. You could feel his, beating so fast.

“This is the end.” His whisper grounded on your skin. 

He lifted his head to dive into your eyes with the same sweet smile you offered him. The one which expressed the happiness, the relievment it felt to embrace him. 

“If it were for you, I would do it all over again.” You said, pressing your forehead against his, sharing a breath as you closed your eyes. One last attempt to memorize everything about him. You sensed his smile, so wide you didn’t even have to look at it to see. He left a trail of kisses on your cheeks and your hand wandered in his hair as a faint gasp escaped your lips.

Corpse looked back at you. And then, as his thumb drew light circles on your cheek. With glowing eyes that translated all the adoration he felt for you, he whispered “Maybe it was just meant to be”. And then, he closed the distance between the two of you, brushing your lips softly at first before capturing them completely once he was sure you felt the same way as he did. A kiss that tasted like 4AM and home. 

“I’ll find my way back to you, my love. I’ll find you in the real world.” He promised.

[struggle-but-its-all-ocean-floor]

I will, again, do the unthinkable and say HYYH is my least favorite concept of theirs (or maybe their earlier albums were worse). 

I hate nostalgia. I don’t like the sentimentality of it. I don’t like how BH commercialized the loneliness/pain/hardship of youth and portrayed it as equal parts beautiful and sad. I don’t like Young Forever that much (regardless of the intent behind the song, we won’t be young forever, and I know people who were cruelly robbed of their youth), I don’t like (more like *love*) the lyricism of many HYYH songs. I just don’t like poetic lyrics, I can’t understand or relate to them. There’s no beauty in loneliness and pain, even if you grow stronger from it or discover things about yourself in the process. There’s only been one year of my life that came close to the idea behind HYYH, and the rest of my youth has been miserable. I see no beauty in wasting away my “golden years” as I have done, and I find that romanticizing youth is toxic, but BTS didn’t waste their youth away at all, which is why HYYH is a story of triumph. I would much rather talk about how overhyped being young is, or how any stage of life can and should be beautiful in its own way. And in saying this, I don’t mean to imply BTS themselves were romanticizing youth *in a bad way*, but aren’t the aesthetics of HYYH doing that? Like, for example, the pictures of Jikook sitting back to back wearing youthful clothing, gazing sadly and prettily at the sky?

I can’t relate to HYYH as a concept. I love a lot of the songs, mostly the fun ones (Dope, Fire, Silver Spoon, Ma City) and a few of the more emotional ones too (Run, Love is Not Over, House of Cards, etc.), so it’s not that I don’t love the music, I just can’t relate to it as a concept. I much prefer the pure, polished, pop sound of Love Yourself. It feels so much more genuine to me, even if it’s not really better. It’s commercial, but they’re not “lying” to you about it. HYYH just feels like one of the most commercial decisions they’ve done as a group -  appealing directly to younger fans by making the switch from bad boys to soft boys - and as much as I understand why people love it, I just can’t love it. To be clear, I’m not saying BTS sold out or anything like that - I understand why they would try something new if Dark&Wild didn’t get them the results they wanted - but HYYH is seen as the peak of BTS’s musical integrity and creativity, when, really, it wasn’t. The introduction of the BU meant that the lyrics to their title tracks, like all lyrics which are based on concepts rather than personal experiences, lack some of the sincerity of, say, Black Swan, which is also based on a concept but draws more directly from RM’s experiences without being about a “girl” (I Need U). RM probably wrote I Need U sincerely, using romantic love as a pretext for the deeper meaning he was trying to convey, but that’s exactly why I can’t connect to the lyrics. BTS’s albums are based on concepts, and on that note, I don’t fully get Wings either. I haven’t looked too much into it, but I take lyrics at face value, which often doesn’t work... I don’t mind the MOTS:7 concept, because it allowed them to express themselves fully, but I wonder if all of their songs do, when they’re “stuck” on concepts? Idk.

I believe BTS were genuine with their lyrics and that HYYH era means a lot to them. This is purely how I feel about it. I hate indie music for the same reasons I can’t connect with HYYH. It’s not the music or the era I don’t like - it’s what it represents. This isn’t a critique of the era as much as an explanation of why I don’t fully enjoy it. Of course they weren’t trying to romanticize loneliness in a bad way; people write beautiful poetry about their pain to make it better - I just don’t enjoy that kind of mental exercise. I feel somewhat *repulsed* (not grossed out, more like I don’t vibe with it) by nostalgia and sentimentality. BTS were writing about the hardships of youth, and were hoping to help and comfort us, but I don’t like the aesthetics of HYYH - you know, the boys in Run who rebel against the world by spray painting cars, and who always have each other’s backs. What does that mean? Nothing, probably, because it’s part of the BU, which is a fictional story, not actually representing BTS themselves. HYYH is inextricably tied to the BU, and I neither know nor care for it. 

I don’t know if this opinion is ignorant. I don’t know the lyrics to all their songs and I haven’t explored their symbolism. There are a lot of songs with nice lyrics that I don’t find meaning in, and RM can write lyrics in a way I don’t know how to properly digest. I also feel like a bad Army for not knowing all the theories about HYYH or the concept behind Wings. I don’t like concepts... I like lyrics that are literally about people’s personal experiences, like Agust D - lyrics that I can relate to and that help me understand the artist better. When there are concepts involved, the truth gets mixed up with the aesthetics of it and it takes too much effort for me to detangle it. 

[worldbuildguild]

I love the work you all are doing and have been following for years! How do you build your visual library in a deliberate way (rather than just "watching media" and hoping for it to grow)?

I am so glad someone asked this question! Cause it is a thing that i, personally - will refer to a lot in the posts on this site, and something i generally tell my students when teaching.  So let’s talk about Critical Media Consumption in regards to artistic development. 

Effectively expanding your visual library

https://www.orchidsinternationalschool.com/why-students-should-be-allowed-to-read-comics/

You’ve probably experienced it before, someone telling you to step out of your comfortzone, watch a series you don’t really have an interest in, read a book that sounds godawfuly boring to you, or play a game that doesn’t really appeal to your preferences.  You politely decline, or tell the person that “ yes! i’ll put it on my list “ ( Said list of course being the proverbial “ I hope you’ll take the bait, and won’t actually force me to sit down and watch/read/play this with me” list ) 

This is fine. Nothing wrong with not spending your precious spare-time on consuming media that you defenitely know you aren’t going to enjoy.  

But, if we take a step back: Exposing ourselves to these new kinds of experiences opens up our minds to new perspectives. Something that will be critical down the line - if you intent to expand your horizon as an artist and creative person ( and just in general round yourself and your preferences out ). 

Your consumption of media of any kind, adds to a collection of perspectives, emotional and physical experiences, methodology and history of the media which you are consuming. We’ll refer to this collection as: Your visual library.   It plays a vital part of any research phase, which will preceed many larger projects’ visual inception, and lay down the groundwork for their look and feel. 

This visual library  is the vault of input that your brain will draw from when you work on drawings, projects, etc. Taking inspiration and experience from the library as it goes and implementing it in your designs. You can learn to control which input in said vault that you get to use in your projects and which to leave out - through trying your hand in the respective genres, formats and methods that each of these inputs proposes. Say-  as in trying to write a comic set in the neo-noir setting, or drawing in a completely different style than your own. Eventually, with experience and knowledge enough of these seperate inputs, you can start combining the experiences in your visual library to concoct unique concepts and methods to bring your projects to life. 

But in order to use this vault effectively - we must of course, first, stock it ( Passive Consumption )  

Doing this is pretty simple at its core. Typically, a person will consume media and experiences pretty automatically as they engage in their daily life. Reading their favourite books, watching their favourite shows, playing their favourite games. This we’ll call Passive Consumption: Consumption of media and experiences that seeks to entertain us and fill up the gaps of boredom in our day. We do this without much need for motivation or provocation, and it provides a baseline of insight into the given experience.  This logs into your visual library as well, however - your engagement with the experience will be somewhat basic, and thusly give a pretty basic understanding of the medium. ( More on that later ).

Make it a study! ( Critical Consumption )

A disclaimer: I will be using the word “critical”, which in this context is not to be conflated with the word criticism, but rather as a term for thoughtful and reflective engagement with the given media. 

I am personally absolutely terrible at leaving my comfortzone of experiences if i rely on my Passive Consumption alone. There are many things that don’t interest me, and even things that interest me - can bore me to no end if i don’t engage with it in a certain way. 

Trying out new things can sometimes lead to disapointing or sub-par experiences, and that’s perfectly fine. But how do you take those demotivating experiences and turn them valueable despite their drag. 

For me, i found that it helps to treat the foraging into foreign experiences as an assignment of analytic study. When i watch movies, play games or read books, not out of leisure, but to expose myself to it to expand my visual library - i approach it through critical analysis, with a purpose and a research-question in mind. And then i’ll evaluate and preferably discuss my experience with others afterwards.  - How does the style of this particular animation impact the storytelling?

- How does the author handle dialogue in these action-frames of this comic?

- How does this musician reflect their indigenous culture through their music?

^Questions such as these can help alleviate the experience from simple passive watching, to something you engage with on a deeper level. Something you’ll gain knowledge and perspective on answering. You are now engaging in Critical Consumption - a highly effective way of acquiring reference for your visual library. 

If you’ve ever gone through media-studies, art-classes or similar creative classes, you may find that the teacher will expose you to a host of experiences before letting you run wild with your assignment. These experiences can showcase any number of things; the; at the time - groundbreaking CGI of the matrix, a specific animation style’s approach to backgrounds, or an author’s unorthodox way of writing characters.  They are likely doing this to make you aware of just how much material is out there, ripe for you to go explore and add to your visual library.  ( Personally, i can say that a lot of my classes prior to an assignment is basically just our teachers exposing us to any number of media so that we can get inspired to engage with the experiences critically, for later reference in our assignments ). 

Your way

We hardly all approach Critical Consumption the same way. Some might prefer to do it alone, from under a blanket and with a snack in their hand. While others prefer it in classrooms.  Personally, my favourite way about it is to grab a friend or classmate ( i have certain friends that help me in my creative endeavours ), pick a drink of choice, grab my notebook and sit down and go through the experience- and then discuss our analysis during and after the experience ends.  Lately, this has consisted of me and one designated friend drinking cocktails and watching old Samurai flicks from the 1960s and discussing their significance and meaning way into the early morning hours.

^Some small, extremely messy footnotes from my viewing of two Kurosawa movies - from a Critical ‘Cocktail’ Consumption session, as part of a narrative project. 

Can I cheat my way to a larger Visual library? 

If i watch a lot of video-essays on Youtube, am i then still building my visual library?

Yes. and No.  Mostly no.  When watching video-essays, or consuming any media that has gone through someone else’s venacular before yours, you are experiencing a moderated and appropriated version of the media itself. Essay’ists are telling you about the experience in ways that underline the point they are trying to argue, and will not be giving you the full picture no matter how hard they try.  That isn’t a problem in itself. Video-essays can be educational and broaden your horizon. People with academic approaches in particular can help expand your vocalbuary within the fields of which they cover - however, experiencing something secondhand is far from as valueable than experiencing it yourself.  Your immersion, your perception and analysis is wholly unique to you, and this uniqueness will come through when you implement the material from your visual library in your work.  No one can make the observations exactly like you do, and that is critical to building an extensive but personal library.  This is not me discouraging you from watching video-essays, i am personally a bit fan of them as well - but i would not regard them as Critical Consumption due to the minimal involvement you personally have in the analytical aspects. I’d file it somewhere between Passive and Critical Consumption. 

I hope this shed a bit of light on the matter, otherwise - feel free to poke in again, and i’ll try to elaborate further :)  - Mod wackart ( Ko-fi ) 

[millennial-star-gazer]

Tantric Flames: Chapter: 9

Tantric Flames

Nalu lovefest 2019 Prompts: Magic, Worship, Reckless , Forbidden and Cravings (All Implied)

Genres: Romance, Humor, New Adult Fanfiction

Pairing:Nalu (Natsu x Lucy)

Rating: M for language, steamy and mature adult sexual content (all consensual) in these and future chapters. Reader Direction is advised.(You've been warned!)

Summary: One look, one smouldering hooded gaze, one word, one fiery kiss, one magnetizing touch was all he needed for her to completely unravel at his mercy alone, succumbing to the sinful temptation of her inhibitions, his love, his feral passion, his raw, insatiable desires, his "Tantric Flames". Originally an Submission for Nalulovefest 2017 (on previous accounts) in which Natsu gives his mate a tantric massage-after much persuasion- she won't soon forget when it turns into so much more. Also previously featured in Nalu lovefest 2018 (on current accounts) , as well as Nalu Week 2017, Nalu Fluff Week and Nalu lovefest 2017 (as stated) with first three chapters on my previous celestialgeekmage accounts . Chapter 7 was also an entry for nalu week 2019 and Chapter 8 for Nalu Lovefest 2019. ( Nalu-centric) (Slight Au).

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Chapter 9: Tempted by A Tantric Touch

A/N: Hey guys, it's your girl Millennial StarGazer! This time I'm returning with another long-awaited installment of Tantric Flames. Once again, a major thanks to and koodos to @bmarvels, @mannyegb, @animezing-fandoms/princess-starry-night, and @allie-and-her-fandoms for helping me edit and further develop this chapter! Now without further ado, here's the story-enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Fairytail which belongs to the one and only Hiro-sensei instead!

(Note: Scroll down pas the keep reading button/ cut for the designated links, legend and actual chapter.  The tagging feature and keep reading button might not show up or fully work on the desktop site but should function just fine on the app and mobile version.

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Read More of Tantric Flames and the rest of my writing on here and other plaftorms.

)Note: You may need to Copy and paste designated links into a new browser tab or window if reading on the desktop site)

1. Tantric Flames

A. Tumblr Version

(Previous Chapter:) (Click Here:)   (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/188352271948/tantric-flames-chapter-8-tantric-art-of)

Chapter: 9          (Next Chapter ) (Coming Soon)

B. Fanfiction (Click Here:) ( or here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13114990/1/Tantric-Flames-reupload-from-cosmicdragonwizardaccounts)

C. A03 (Click Here:) ( or here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17063882/chapters/40123739)

2. Master  Post Of All My Writing (Click Here:)  ( or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179665258923/master-fic-rec-post)

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Legend:

Italic: Song Lyrics/Quotes (or flashback dialogue)

Bold: First Person Thoughts

Bolded Italics: Empathized Word(s)

Bolded Italics (Within and Outside Bracket) including for author's side notes also known as (A/N:) within brackets (though none for side-notes in this chapter ).

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"You run your fingers over every part of my body and tease me with your touch".

(Source Unknown)

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Oh God, those love bites. So many love bites that decorated the blonde's creamy skin like jewels; far too numerous to count that always sent a red-hot line fire rippling through her nerves with with every nip, every suck; each every and stroke of Natsu's velvet tongue. Plus, he's usually doing other things at the same time. Racy images of the couple's steamy moments together from the last soak flooded Lucy's mind.

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Flashback

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The celestial mage's back arching of its own accord into Natsu's touch from robust hands cupping her breast; Blazing digits kneading the twin peaks in time with lips sucking along Lucy's pulse with so much skill that she couldn't help the heady moan that escaped her throat.

"Ya feel that, Luce?" Nastu growled in his princess's ear, the dark undercurrent of his territorial voice pulling a tingly shiver from her. "My marks all over that perfect body of yours— and not just the permanent one when you swore your heart to me . All of those are symbols of my essence, my claim, my love. That you belong to me and me alone. My mate and queen, forever and always. And those sounds you're makin'? Hot as hell."

Pretty sure, dude leaves marks on me as his way of announcing to the world I'm off limits as his mate. Explains why he's always quick to leave a fresh one in its place even after I cover them— not that I'm complaining. Plus, it's not only for his benefit but mine. It's great that he knows how much I love receiving hickeys and gets off from it.

Seriously, what more could I ask for?

Not to mention how lovely it always was to unwind with Natsu after each bath. The wizard was often keen in his offer to dry the blonde's damp hair with a towel or fire-magic-powered steam; from her perch on his lap or between his legs. 

Much more relaxing than using a hair dryer if you ask me.

 The dragonslayer would sometimes even hum or sing a familiar tune from days past in that appealing, gravelly baritone of his; would usually lull the already-zen mage into the world of dreams when combined with the sooth dual sensation of fingers combing through her hair, .

"I tell you, I tell you, the dragonborn comes ..."

Anyother guild member who might be eavesdropping, however, would often be quick to lightheartedly goad the blonde mage ( much to her chargin). Natsu no doubt would find this hilarious of course; which would serve for Lucy's cheeks to flush an even deeper shade of crimson than she already was.

"Say Luce, is that a blush I see?" he once crooned, a teasing edge to his words; though the affectionate mirth sparkling in his eyes warmed her heart just a little. "Aw, is my girl a little embarrassed? That's okay though— makes ya all the more adorable and endearing than you already are. You want me to make it all better? Cuz I can! Got plenty of kisses! Come on, you know you want some which I'm more than happy to give. God I love ya' so much, you know that?"

It's amazing really... Lucy ruminated in fond awe. How Natsu can switch between the different roles and sides to him with relative ease. From Romantic and tender to dominant, playful and affectionate; then back again on top of everything else all seemingly at the drop of a hat. All an innate part of his overall nature I guess— essentially what makes up who he is. Some people may find this a bit confusing to keep up with— but I don't. Just makes him all the more complex.

Though those people would also be right when they say that the dude still has a devious streak, she couldn't help but add with wry smirk. Even with me, though never with malicious intent. German suplex, non-stop tickling, dumping me in a tub of freezing cold water during one of our baths— too many pranks to count really. At least he's always quick to follow up with plenty of affection ever since we became an item— can't complain about that."

"You ready to get started Lucy?" Natsu's keen voice broke through Lucy's reverie.

"You know it!" The celestial mage chirped, unable to mask the pure enthusiasm in her voice; earning an amused chuckle from the dragon wizard . "Can't wait. I take it you'll be hoarding me for the rest of the afternoon?"

"Mhmm" Came his content hum in response." That really a bad thing, though?"

"No, definitely not."

"I figured. Why don't we get you up on that massage bed?"

"Sure thing!"

A buzz of anticipation was practically thrumming in Lucy's blood from such tantalizing implications of his words; the stunt Natsu pulled next , though— that was what really shot a thrilling jolt up her spine.

"Let's finish what we started later, yeah?"

The dragonslayer's proposal was punctuated by a light tap on the summoner's ass for good measure,; which resulted in a delighted squeal.

"O-okay!" was said female's response in the form of a breathy giggle.

"Let me get you that towel while I'm at it."

"Sure— thanks."

"My pleasure."

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A Few Minutes Later

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"Ugh...do me a huge favor and burn this towel. Will ya?"

Lucy couldn't help but let out an audible groan along with the heat rising in her cheeks. Good god was the particularly moist spot on the white towel a truly mortifying sight to behold. Basically tell-tale remnants of liquid arousal that had been wiped clean from her legs just moments before.

Mavis only knows what would happen if Levy or Cana noticed during laundry duty.

" Okay... why though?" Natsu questioned, brows drawing together in mild confusion. "As in why do you want me to?"

"Guild Laundry day" came Lucy's automatic reply."That's why."

"Not following ya.' Natsu blinked owlishly in uncomprehension.

"Levy…..and Cana….." Lucy supplied, a finger twirling an errant strand of blonde hair in :a self-conscious display." "I... uh.."

"Still don't know what you mean here, Luce."

"It's their turn to do laundry duty." She attempted to break down what was apparently such an abstract concept into simpler terms; not able to help the aggravation rising in the back of her mind.

"Yeah? So?"

"They'll probably see the moist stain on the towel." Lucy clarified, forcing her voice to remain level.

"I see— don't see the problem though."

"Think about who'll most likely be with them ."

"Gajeel and Laxus but…...ahh—"

Realization dawned on Natsu's face. "I get it now. What you're saying is that they'll probably catch a whiff of your arousal? "

"Well, the lingering remnants of the scent anyway. Seriously though?" he tacked on, lifting a questioning brow."That's what you're worried about?"

"Yeah... I am," Lucy admitted, nerves leaking into her voice. "Aren't you?"

"Not really, no." Natsu gave a shrug of his shoulders—seemingly unfazed.

"Why's that?" Lucy couldn't help but shoot him a puzzled glance. 

"Cuz it'll show everyone how much I rocked your world." Natsu replied, flashing his mate a cheeky grin. " And what's not to love about that?"

"Pervert — of course you'd say that!" Lucy screeched, skin flushing a deep shade of crimson.

"That's me!"

"Ugh, still don't know what to do about the moist spot— those four are never gonna let me live it down."

"You know if you're that worried, I could always use my tongue to clean ya up instead." Natsu drawled with a lazy smirk that set her heart all pit-patter .

"And of course, you'd suggest that," Lucy quipped with a slight roll of her eyes. "Did I mention how much of a horn dragon you are? "

"Yeah, but only for a certain gorgeous blonde of mine and she loves it."

"Oh, she does, huh?" Lucy raised a challenging brow.

"Yep. Don't bother trying to deny it, Luce".

"Ugh fine... you're right. I do. Seriously, you and your colossal ego though."

"Why, thank you! If you're impressed by that, you'd really should see my co—"

The rest of Natsu's words were cut off by Lucy's hand swatting him with a pillow which was met with a snicker.

"Pervert" Lucy deadpanned with another eye roll. "By way, you would've found yourself in the proverbial dog house if you actually meant the other kind of 'fighting earlier."

Only for Natsu's face to instantly fall in response to her statement.

"What?" Natsu objected, gaping at her with wide eyes. " And deprive me of the chance to wake up to your beautiful face each morning for that long?!"

"Yep." Lucy gave a nod by way of reply.

"But why? You know that's not the type of fightin' I met!"

"Well yeah, I know that now. But not earlier when you originally brought up. Just be glad that you didn't bail on our date earlier."

"I didn't though! And never would— honest Luce!" Natsu's voice lifted into a petulant whine.

"Hmm.. Okay, good to know. " Lucy responded, raising her hands to placate him. "Though you'll have to be without me for a few days anyway.

"Wait, seriously?" Natsu faltered , bewildered panic flashing in his eyes. . "Come on! What is it this time?"

"Camping retreat in the woods next week that Cana, Mira, Lisanna, and Erza are organizing— ladies only."

"W-ha?" Natsu continued to sputter, his poor brain no doubt short circuiting by now." But Elfman said that it was open to anyone who's free to go!"

"Really? Lucy mused in thoughtful interest. "That's not what I heard... huh."

"What am I supposed to do without you?"

"How about something fun with the guys? Should be nice, right?"

"Yeah, but so is spending time with you Lucy! It's always more fun when we're together like you said."

"And I don't disagree. Doesn't change anything though. The trip's still happening."

"Didn't say it wasn't but it'd still suck here without you! Natsu moaned, that desperate sense of longing bleeding into his voice. " I'd miss ya' too much! So would our little buddy! Can't we tag along? Maybe Even share an air mattress in a decent-sized tent? I'd gladly help set up and keep you cozy in my arms at night."

"What about Happy?" Lucy questioned, intrigued by his suggestion. His offer does sound really tempting.

"Obviously he'd share the tent with us but would have his own sleeping bag and could hang with Wendy and Carla whenever we wanted alone time. Plus there are all these cool spots I could take you to on nature hikes!."

"Sounds great."

"Course it is! So whaddya say? You onboard?" Natsu wheedled, flashing her what could only be described as the most flawless puppy eyes she'd ever seen.

"Aw that's really tempting and" Lucy gushed, heart contracting at the adorable pout he was throwing in too. Normally I'd say yes"— but it'll have to wait. Thank you though! I'd love to take you up on that offer another day."

"Oh come on— please I wanna go!" Natsu huffed,stamping his foot as if he were a child pitching a fit over being denied a coveted toy- quite an amusing display to say the least.

"Not this time I'm afraid. Sorry, them's the brakes."

"Lucyyyyyyyyy!" Natsu whined again, dragging the syllables of her name with such melodrama that she finally decided to let him off the hook

" Jeez.. enough with the dramatics already. " Lucy yielded with an exasperated groan, You can still come— the trip is for everyone. I was only kidding after all."

Said confession was met with a noise of stunned dimsay from from the pyro.

"Wait... so ya' mean to tell me that this was a joke?! he muttered, voice coming out with a small pinch of disbelief. "You were pulling my leg the entire time?"

"Yep— consider it payback for me making think you were gonna ditch earlier."

"That's why? That's not nice, Luce— not very nice at all." Natsu grumbled, though not with any real heat.

"Oh yeah, what are you gonna do about it?" Lucy baited, a daring lilt to her words.

" Oh —- wouldn't you like to know?" Natsu rumbled, eyes sparking in a such a calculating way that it sent a electrifying chill down Lucy's spine.

"I would— ngh! Nastuuuu!"

The rest of what Lucy was attempting to say Lucy's words were cut off by the lighting- fast sweep of Natsu's velvet tongue up her thighs . Not to mention that electric high-voltage jolt of ecstasy flooding her veins.

"There! that should show ya!" Natsu let out a cackle of glee. " Not to ever play dirty tricks on a dragon I mean. Guess you're not gonna need that towel after all, huh Lucy?"

"My God..."

"Yeah, I know . Just that amazing with my tongue, I guess. Natsu purred, voice laced with am indecorous promise "Plus, hearing ya' scream my name like that just gave me another hard-on that I'd love for you to see .. "

"Jeez … of course it'd would . and no real shocker that you would say something like that."

"Yep- you know me so well, Luce. and it's not like you're complain' anyway. Want me to prove it?"

" Maybe.. But God- you're such a pompous ass, you know that?"

"Yeah but all part of my charm, sweetheart."

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A/N: And that's Chapter 9 folks! My apologies for the delay by the way! I originally wanted to post this much sooner but got hit with writer's block after getting a somewhat stumped on a particular segment of this chapter. I've also been with my other ongoing fanfics, WIPs and responsibilities among other things in my life . That all aside, at least this chapter was finally posted! Now please feel free to do me a solid and let me know what you think by leaving a comment/ review! Stay tuned for Chapter 10 too! Oh and please feel free to check out the rest of my writing which can be found above, on my profiles and in master post if reading this on tumblr. All right, that's pretty much all I have to say for now! Thanks to all my mutuals/friends, readers and followers for their continuous support over the years! (Corresponding links for the master of my writing and profiles can be found above, in the navigation bar of the desktop and bio if reading this on tumblr.) Until next time-take care!

[citrineghost]

A Letter to WordPress

Dear WordPress,

Tumblr has been around for a good while now and many of us have been here since the beginning (or close to it). It’s become something of a comfort and a home base for many. You can understand then why it’s so terrifying and tension-setting when a new owner comes around.

This website has been through a lot of changes, very few of them good in recent years. I want to open up a dialogue from the user base about our feelings and desires surrounding this site, because to so many of us, not only its design and function, but its success and future are a big deal.

Obviously not all of the things I list below will be universal opinions, but I’ll try to outline some of the things I’ve seen the majority of users want. I’ll also throw in some things that are more personal, because I can’t claim to know everything the rest of the users want, but I can tell you where I see obvious problems.

First and foremost, here’s an obvious one. You can’t really go anywhere on Tumblr without knowing: we want the bots and the nazis gone. We need some kind of captcha system for every time someone wants to include a hyperlink in a post or response. Until the staff count gets higher, I would honestly suggest closing down the report system for everything but bots, nazis, and death threats/suicide bait.

Make NSFW content welcome again. Outside of porn bots, the pervasiveness of NSFW content is slim to none. As long as minors and those with ‘NSFW’ blacklisted aren’t seeing the NSFW content, there’s nothing wrong with it being here. A large number of the people posting NSFW content on here are artists who use this content to make a living on commissions. The ban has done nothing but make valuable members of the Tumblr community leave and take their art elsewhere. The focus should be cracking down on anyone who isn’t properly tagging NSFW content with ‘NSFW’. If the focus is put on that, the problem with NSFW content will be null.

Please keep Tumblr unintegrated with other social media. Most users will agree, the anonymity is such a huge part of what draws us to Tumblr. Other people only know what we tell them and it’s very appealing for our real life accounts (e.g. Google, Facebook, etc.) to be completely separate. When users want to share links to other accounts, they can do so easily with links on their blogs.

Replace ads with either, better, more sensible ads or members content. A large part of the ads on Tumblr make absolutely zero sense just by looking at them. Not to mention, they’re all completely unfit for the user base. I’ve seen weight-loss ads (harmful to the many people on the site recovering from eating disorders) and ads for products most people wouldn’t need or want until their forties. Most of the user base is 13-35, if I had to guess. I can tell you right now, you would make more money and the user base would be much happier if ads were removed in favor of members content. Adding a paid membership that allows users to gain access to new features (rather than restricting what’s already here) would be a huge boost in morale and company income. Use that income to improve the site. Don’t get comfortable making more than the bare minimum in profit until the website is functioning reasonably well. Hint: it’s not right now.

Keep the base functions of Tumblr. Don’t try and get radical, hoping big changes will excite the community. They won’t. We’re creatures of habit and we just want memes, fandom, and relatable nonsense. Keep reblogging, replies, customizable blogs, tags, and likes functionally the same.

Be receptive to bug reports and post change logs so that the community knows that they’re being addressed and fixed.

These are the obvious pleas of the community. Please keep in mind that the heart of Tumblr is in its users and if you ostracize us, there will be nothing left. We love this website and we want to see it thrive as much as anyone. We just don’t want to sacrifice the spirit of the community in the process.

Read more under the cut if you want to see some more of my own personal suggestions. I’d love for other users to sound off in the replies with whether they agree with any of the pleas or suggestions and also give their own!

Okay, so, here are some personal opinions that are by no means the voice of the community. I think they’re pretty sensible, but what do I know?

Change back the color. I hate this saturated navy color and I’m pretty sure a lot of others do too. I’m part of the disabled community and I know and have seen people saying that these extremely contrasted colors that were added are making their Tumblr experience worse. It gives people headaches due to light sensitivity and, frankly, it’s ugly. If you’d like to cater to those who are visually impaired/colorblind, that’s fantastic! Do so with an account setting that turns on higher contrast mode or adds patterns to things to make them distinguishable.

Add an option to blog suggestions and posts that have shown up on your dash from followed tags that says “Stop Suggesting This.” I’ve been suggested a number of blogs that I’m not interested in following. I don’t want to block the user, but I do want some different suggestions and for those blogs to stop showing up in suggestions. I’m also tired of seeing the same post twenty times from a tag I follow. There is currently an option that says “This particular posts sucks.” While I think that was a great attempt at catering to the community, I don’t want to use it because my intuition says that there’s a negative connotation. Does me saying the post sucks make it show up less for other people? Does it lose popularity? I can’t tell. The only thing I know is that I don’t want to say that a good post sucks just to make it quit showing up on my dash.

Implement some of the features that XKit uses. I would bet at least a quarter, if not more, of Tumblr users use XKit to make using Tumblr less painful. That shouldn’t be the case. Tumblr should have these functionality options available in dashboard settings.

A very hot take here that many might disagree with: Make notes viewable more like mobile has them. As it is, it’s hard to tell which ones I’ve seen on desktop. It can be tricky on mobile too, honestly, but it’s easier than on desktop. I would also heavily suggest making the unseen notifications darker so that they stand out and making a button to indicate that you’ve seen them.

Keep the dash, messages, notes, and profile as separate processes similar to how mobile has it. The trek all the way down the damn dashboard is a long one. I want to be able to see notes and messages in full size without losing my dash progress. When I switch back I want to be right where I was. I understand if this one isn’t possible or practical. It was just something I like about mobile over desktop but I’m aware that they’re two different beasts with different capabilities.

As far as the aforementioned members features, I do have some ideas, but I can’t guarantee they’re the best the user base has to offer. I’m sure others could think of better. Anyway, some things I’ve thought of are groups/clubs, digital currency, and separate dashboards. So, as it stands, You can have multiple blogs on one account. People can follow them separately. That’s fantastic. What would also be nice though, is being allowed to make separate dashboards. This would probably take up another chunk of server space, so I understand if it isn’t feasible right now, but I would jot it down. The ability to separate shitposts, aesthetic imagery, fandom content, and NSFW would be amazing. If you follow a huge number of blogs, like me, you could even make a friends dash so that you don’t miss your friends’ posts. It would just be a matter of allowing people to add and name their new dashboards. Then, when they go to follow people, it prompts them to choose what dash their content goes to. You could even simplify it by making the follow button default to the main dash, but adding a little dropdown arrow beside it. You could then choose which dash to add them to from a list. Below are some bad paint-drawn concept drawings.

Anyway, I hope this has all been helpful in some way. I’m fairly certain that WordPress will never actually read this, but it was cathartic to write and I hope it will be cathartic for someone else to read.

Sincerely, birb-ghost

[eunahfmdarchive]

dancing cartoon - partial lyrics credit, partial composition credit, partial production credit.

date: january 2021. word count: 1,275, not including lyrics. 1. this is so bad, 2. my knowledge of music production terms is extremely rudimentary, but 3. i’m trying, ok this is 4am ramblings from a girl whose musical education is limited to singing lessons, i know my vocal ranges and that’s about it and uh 4. i am going to bed. edit: 5. will i ever not ramble holy shit calm down girlie (i’m girlie)

CW: mentions of alcohol.

the idea for dancing cartoon is planted during that damn cruise that the companies sent everyone on. truthfully, eunah had a rather decent time, holed up with her books for company either in her room or in the onboard library, but she’d still find a reason to complain about it -- like the fact that she’d had cameras thrust in her face at every opportunity, and to a lesser extent, being forced by social obligation and pressures to show her face at one too many parties. 

but, shockingly, she’d enjoyed herself, especially on new year’s eve. she relaxed for once. totally, fully relaxed. the idea of a party song wormed its way into her head the next morning, right next to the hangover induced headache. 

the idea wanders out of her mind again, until she’s sitting in a production studio with a producer she’s become particularly close with over the last year, fiddling around with different beats as they run after that spark that means they’ve got something special -- and then, over the uptempo, lighthearted beat they’d just loaded up, it hits her. it begs the question, how to make a party song, but keep it in line with the rather vague guidelines dimensions gave them of ‘light’, ‘thoughtful’, and ‘nostalgic’? on one hand, eunah’s glad they trust her with her solo music, but as they’re filling out the tracklist options, she’s anxious to submit as much good, actually listenable work as possible, just in case they take back their trust. she still hasn’t gotten a song on a 7rophy release since blow your mind, after all. 

with a starting point finally in hand, they turn to the melody. eunah goes back and forth for hours between the guitar she brought from home, and the keyboard provided with the room, singing nonsensically to pin down a tune, before she even thinks about the words. 

“i want it to be danceable, if you know what i mean?”

a nod.

“but, in, like, a,” as an example, rather than describing the vibe with words, eunah bops her head back and forth, accompanied by a weak raising of her arms, “like that. something ... oh, mellow. mellow. that’s the word.”

the vibe they ultimately settle on -- because vibes are an important component of any eunah song, probably too important -- is the feeling of standing at the edge of a party, catching someone’s eye, and the way it almost feels like the world closes in. the party becomes its own place, out of time, out of space. the track that they slowly build, one layer after another, aims to replicate that sensation. it has a retro feeling without feeling old fashioned. at least, eunah hopes it doesn’t.

“would it be cheesy if maybe, later on, we added in some party noises in the back of the track? like, voices and things -- or it could be at the start. at least. uh, maybe. or not.” she’s second guessing herself but they eventually come to the conclusion that, yeah, maybe it would be a little bit cheesy, but it would also contribute to the overall mood of the song.

dancing all the night i’m dancing like I’m crazy gonna forget about you today drink so much right? so sweet like soda pop, i can’t get drunk

lovesickness, the fleeting feelings for someone you see across a crowd that never looks back. eunah’s not usually one for one night stands or casual sex, but she’s felt this way before anyways, captivated by someone whose eyes look right through her. in eunah’s case, they usually can’t see her in the crowd. she’s too small, too unassumingly dressed. still, the party persists. drinks keep on flowing, and sometimes you don’t even feel them hit you, never realising just how drunk you are until later. but here, later doesn’t exist. the idea is to match the lyrics with the timelessness of the beat, and the placid multi generational appeal of the melodies starting to bounce off the walls around them. it’s somewhat twee, she thinks, and she almost feels like she’s writing down to herself, and underestimating the types of concepts she could potentially pull off. 

but, she’d argue, party girl is a lot different to artsy girl or emo girl, and it’s a concept she doesn’t feel confident enough to pull off without her members standing next to her. puzzle from mezzanine was very out of her comfort zone as a soloist, for example. and so, they stick to simple, formulaic sequences of notes, but eunah likes them nonetheless.

baby woo i’m so dizzy woo i’m leaning on you feel so high feel so good it’s like dancing cartoon tonight

dancing all the night drink so much right? it’s getting hotter i’m getting crazier tonight is perfect because there’s no tomorrow

the song starts to build up, becoming less of a sit and sway track, and more like a song eunah thinks she’d dance with her friends too if she was to get particularly drunk, clasping each others’ hands and spinning around. it fits the mood perfectly. it’s exactly what she was trying to convey with her original, embarrassing little chair dance. though, it sort of implies that the narrator managed to get with the guy, especially with the lyrics about kissing and falling in love that her partner amends into the final chorus, and that typical third act key change they implement. eunah doesn’t think she does get the guy though -- to her it feels more accurately that they’ve written a song about a girl at a party who dances the night away, getting absolutely sloshed, in an attempt to forget about the man that keeps showing up in her peripheral vision, but won’t spare her a second glance. it’s getting hotter and she’s getting crazier because her inhibitions are down thanks to all that too sweet alcohol she didn’t realise she was drinking. she’s dizzy, but she’s having fun, and the world around her has turned into a dancing cartoon. eunah draws a little squiggle under that line. a title like that might point to her real intentions behind the meaning of the song, even if it does admittedly just sound like a fairly tame crush ode. 

she repeats the line ‘tonight is perfect because there’s no tomorrow’ for the song’s final line, drawing a line under the enclosed singular world of the eternal party they’re throwing by way of the song. a lot of songs with this kind of sentiment, she thinks, have a lot more explicitly sexual connotations, and though there’s nothing wrong with that, eunah quite enjoys her personal, more dreamlike angle. 

they layer up her vocals during the choruses and pre-choruses, but allow the high note that beckons in the bridge to speak for itself, before the voices and party sounds from the fade in intro come back in, in an attempt to suck the listener into the cartoonish party world that the song exists in. the instrumental by itself has that nostalgic vibe that dimensions said they were looking for, for sure. it’s a good song for relaxing, eunah thinks, when she listens back to the finished project. a good song for dancing too, like she intended, but somehow it turned out as less of a song to play at a party, and more so a song to listen to while imagining you’re at a party.

oh well. introverted as she is, that works too. it’s probably more fitting for her. after all, most of the time she spends at parties is against the wall. save for new year’s eve, eunah really doesn’t have much experience with dancing and drinking all night. all that’s left to do is submit it, and hope that the company don’t call her out. even if the song is a finished project, with a start and end, even if she likes it, eunah knows that its instrumentals and lyrics are derivative of countless other pop songs -- brimming with potential to get lost in the crowd.

[theuniversitychallengereview]

UC 50.13 - Manchester vs Edinburgh

Generally speaking, there are two kinds of all-conquering sporting dynasties - those that seem fair, and those that don’t. In the second category we have the likes of Michael Schumacher at Ferrari in the early 2000s or Manchester City and Chelsea in modern football. 

While there is undoubtedly a massive amount of sporting talent on show in each of those cases, there is something about the inevitability of their successes that makes them feel a bit unearned, be that by virtue of the vastly superior car the German had in at least three of his five consecutive championships, or the stinking piles of dirty money that has allowed Pep Guardiola to squander more than £400m on defenders in his tenure as City boss. 

In the other category we have Michael Phelps, or Serena Williams and the Big Three in men’s tennis. They have exerted a vicious dominance over their sports, but without any seemingly unfair advantage over their peers, other than their sheer talent and determination (obviously they will have had various advantages that allowed them to reach the top in the first place, but I think professional sports is one of the few places where consistent greatness is truly reflective of who the greatest people are at a given thing).

This realisation, as to why I always resented Schumacher his relentless winning, while simultaneously being annoyed when someone other than Federer, Nadal or Djokovic (or Andy, of course, one of the only people to ever make me cry) won a Grand Slam (how dare they break the streak), only came to me today when thinking about the Manchester University Challenge team. 

There’s just something that feels more organic, and therefore more impressive, about Federer making 34 consecutive Grand Slam quarter-finals than there is about the Golden State Warriors winning back to back NBA titles having signed MVP-calibre Kevin Durant off the back of the best season in NBA history (not sure how niche that reference will be to the readership here, but I already deleted a bit about him earlier on, and I’ve put a link to the story in so you’ll have to deal with it).

The Manchester Uni Challenge team of 2005-2013 fall somewhere in the middle of the two categories (so I guess there is, as with all things, another category that encompasses everything between two extremes). Those of you who have been reading this for a while (and I have no idea how many people will have stuck around even since last year) will have heard this spiel about the semi-final streak before (because I relish talking about it every time Manchester are on), but I’m going to go through it again because its a great story.

So, first of all, Manchester do have some obvious advantages over other teams competing to win University Challenge. For one, its pretty massive, with more than 40,000 students. This means its more likely for them to be able to put together a team who will make it onto the live recordings - and indeed there are only two teams (Durham and tonight’s opponents Edinburgh) who have made more appearances on the show in the Paxman Era. 

However, between them Durham, Edinburgh, York and Warwick (the other two most appearing-est institutions) have fifteen semi-final appearances out of seventy five. Manchester alone have ten, with nine of them coming in a ten year period when they didn’t exit the tournament before that stage. This historic run saw them lift the trophy four times, tying with Magdalen College, Oxford for the all-time record.

The source of their sustained excellence can be attributed in part to the coaching of Stephen Pearson, a man known as the Sir Alex Ferguson of University Challenge (I really do recommend reading the linked article here). Under his tutelage, successive cohorts of students were able to create a dynasty this quiz had never seen before (and isn’t likely to see again). Thats one of the things which makes it seem fair, that the system he built allowed different sets of four students to repeat the same results.

Another is that it broke up the historic duopoly that University Challenge is famous for. Between 2008 and 2019, Manchester were the only non-Oxbridge side to win the competition, and it is the teams from Oxford and Cambridge who you can most easily level the ‘unfairness’ tag at, what with their combined ten entries a year (yes, yes, I know. If you combined the college teams you’d create a monster team and no one else would ever win (I think they would, but that’s beside the point) but that’s beside the point).

Manchester haven’t reached the semi-finals since the end of that run in 2013, but with back-to-back quarter-finals in the past two years they look to be on track for a return to the top (I’m going to look very silly after all this if they lose tonight, which you probably already know, reader). 

I’d like to talk about Edinburgh too, my beloved Alma Mater who finally upgraded my degree after two years of appealing recently, but I’m conscious I’ve already spewed out a full article on my Manchester intro. I will say, however, that if Edinburgh win, there will be four Scottish Unis in the second round for the first time since ever (there are already there guaranteed for the first time since 1995).

Anyway, you’ll all be exhasuted if you’ve made it through all that, so I won’t bother with the rules; here’s your first starter for ten.

Edinburgh are introduced first, with Jeffcoat, who’s actually wearing some kind of tweed blazer rather than a coat, but I’ll let him off. Their mascot is possibly the best I’ve ever seen on the show - a framed photo of the moment Robbie Campbell Hewson won Edinbugh the title in 2019 (bottom right of below picture). They have a scottie dog too, but its the picture thats the real star.

Manchester have a pig in a hat (or possibly a scarf, or possibly something else entirely), but the main interest on their table is Jones-O’Brien, who has perhaps the first name I’ve ever seen to contain both a hyphen and an apostophe. Good job all round, there. 

It is his captain, Spacey, who kicks things off in a luxuriant velvet jacket, with Jane Eyre. Manchester take a full set on the bonuses, and then another, racing off into a 50 point lead. Jones-O’Brien is whats known in the game as a leaner, and rotates his body 45 degrees towards Spacey each time Paxman reads out a question. It seems to be working though.

Jeffcoat, who has a pen stored in his blazer just incase he needs to do some working out, gets Edinburgh off the mark and shoots his teammates a wink for good measure. They zap a hat-trick out quickly too to halve the deficit. 

No one gets the first picture starter, which is an arrow on a map to ‘Worthing’, and I’m not surprised - who the heck has even heard of Worthing let alone knows where it is on a map (offence to Worthing), but Manchester pick up the bonuses, which are more towns that have won Pier of the Year, as according to the National Piers Society, something I am extremely happy to hear exists but never wish to be a part of (I’m sure they wouldn’t want to write University Challenge blogs either).

Paxman laughs as Edinburgh’s Clarke gives an answer which suggests that a puffin makes a noise that sounds like the word puffin, and to be fair thats a pretty funny mental image (mental sound image?). The perfect bonus streak is over, though Manchester will manage a fourth set before they miss any five pointers. The music starter goes to Edinburgh, but they remain ten points adrift despite having been better on the buzzer, thanks to Manchester’s bonus-work.

Now, I’d actually been taking notes for once this week, but around this stage I got so caught up in the action that I quite literally was unable to pick my pen back up, so I’ll just go from memory (I know I could just slide the timer back on iPlayer, but I’m on a bit of a roll here and I don’t want to slow myself down).

Manchester went on a bit of a run at this point, opening up a lead that would probably be unassailable. By the time of the second picture round the gap was in three figures, so Edinburgh would purely be fighting for one of the high-scoring loser spots (tough first round draw for both teams this). 

Jeffcoat jolted them out of their stupor with Degas (who I almost spelled as Degat. For some reason I can never spell painters names correctly. For years I though Titian was Tischen), but only a single bonus followed (though Clarke did pronounce Seurat impeccably, both as a wrong and right answer). Spacey hit back with O, but Manchester struggled for the second time tonight on science-y bonuses. They wouldn’t score another point, but they’d already won. 

The two captains then guess the 8th and 2nd of December as the date of Jesus’ conception - the heat of the competition was getting to everyone - but Clarke makes up for it with Oak next time around, and Fricker comes up clutch with Flag on the next starter as well. 

A full set of bonuses saw them reach 150, which would be enough to see them make the play-offs, but Winter negged on the next to drop them down to 145 (which would also have been enough, as it turned out, so I was getting too excited at the end). Clarke then got them another to put me at ease for the final few seconds.

Final Score: Edinburgh 155 - 200 Manchester

Another excellent, high-scoring game - probably the highlight of the series so far for me - and I’m very glad we’ll be seeing both sides again. 

Phew, that was a long one. If you’ve made it this far (first of all, congratulations) then you might like the retro reviews I’m doing of the 2015/16 series of The Challenge over on my Patreon. To sign up for exclusive content, for as little as £1/month, you can follow this link.

Thanks for reading, see you next time out.

[tmae3114]

Tell us about the AUs. all of them.

Friend, that is a lot of AUs.

But okay!!

I won’t go immensely in-depth because a) that’d take forever and b) I want to do separate posts and drawings and stuff for a bunch of these

Okay, so, going in the order that I mentioned them in the tags:

(whoops this is going under a cut because It Got Long)

The Pokemon AU

More of a fusion than strictly an AU, I guess, because it’s pretty much “canon, but there are pokemon”.

I’ve determined full teams for the whole ‘crew, along with the genders, levels, abilities, natures, and movesets of all of their pokemon. I got… really into it. I went way too detailed with their teams. I even know what kind of pokeball each of their pokemon are in. I’m in the process of nicknaming them. I’ve also got scatterings of backstory for how they came to have each of the pokemon in their teams!

For now, I’ll tell you what their teams are, along with the nicknames and such of their pokemon. More in-depth stuff (such as aforementioned abilities and movesets and also the backstories) should probably be saved for a different post.

Diath:

“Cath” - Klefki - ♂

Ninjask - ♀

Scyther - ♀

Liepard - ♂

“Dawnguide” - Absol - ♀ 

“Gutter” - Aegislash - ♂

The pattern I went with for nicknaming Diath’s pokemon is based off of the one thing we’ve seen him name in canon - Moonsplinter. So the nicknames for his pokemon, when I eventually come up with them, will be two nouns put together into a name that connects what was named to someone or something important to him. Cath and Gutter are exceptions to the pattern because they were gift pokemon and came with the names (…sort of, in Cath’s case).

Evelyn:

“Morning Glory” - Rapidash - ♀ 

“Periwinkle” - Lycanroc (Midnight Forme) - ♀ 

“Thistleberry” - Eevee - ♂ 

“Sunflower” - Larvesta - ♀ 

“Jonquil” - Solrock - N/A 

“Juniper” - Pichu - ♀

The pattern I went with for nicknaming Evelyn’s pokemon started with Morning Glory and Juniper - I figured that since Evelyn showed a predilection towards plant names in canon, it was as good a theme as any to run with. Thistleberry is the closest to breaking that pattern, since I’ve been unable to find out if that’s actually a real plant (I’ve found thimbleberries but not thistleberries, so I feel like they might be a fantasy thing) in which case you could argue that he was named for Evelyn’s favourite pie. The reasoning for Sunflower should be obvious, a jonquil is a kind of flower similar to a daffodil which sort of resembles a sun in shape, and periwinkles mean “early friendship” in flower language, and Evie sure does make friends fast.

Jonquil may or may not mean “I desire a return of affection” in flower language but sshhhh, that was unintentional

Strix:

“Fuzzywuzz” - Venomoth - ♂

“Waffles” - Ursaring - ♀ 

Mismagius - ♀ 

“Stinky Junior” - Garbodor - ♀ 

“Clothy McClothface” - Banette - ♀ 

“Stinky” - Alolan Rattata - ♂

I don’t think I really need to explain the pattern/theme for naming Strix’s pokemon because, well, *gestures at canon* I just tried to follow the existing naming patterns.

Paultin:

“Palpatine” - Malamar - ♂ 

Exploud- ♂ 

“Charlotte” - Chatot - ♀ 

Gengar - ♂ 

“Peter” - Baltoy  - ♂ 

Alolan Marowak- ♀

I don’t strictly have a naming pattern for Paultin, wildcard that he is. I’ve just been operating on a general rule of “regular real life name that sounds fitting” (a la him naming Simon) or “reference”.

The Superhero AU

You are getting far less information about this one because it’s going to be getting posts of its own when I finally get the drawings for it finished - I’m going to do character profiles and everything.

The basic premise is a vaguely-modern-era-ish Waterdeep (in a vaguely-modern-era-ish Faerun) has a lot of superheroes running around and the Wafflecrew happens to be one of the teams that call the city home. Diath, Strix, Evelyn and Paultin are all doing the secret identity thing and there will be shenanigans involving those because, well, here’s the thing:

The Wafflecrew is a superhero team who’s members keep their identities secret even from each other, mostly because they haven’t been together as a team for very long yet.

Diath, Strix, Evelyn, and Paultin, however, are a group of friends who happen to share a flat. Who are all trying very hard not to let on to their friends that they’re a superhero.

So. Shenanigans.

(Well, except for Diath and Strix. They know about each other’s secret identities)

I won’t tell you everyone’s codenames, though, because ~character profiles~ :3c

The Daemon AU

This one is more loosely defined than the others, to be honest. I will say, straight up, that I have never read His Dark Materials and don’t have any particular intent to, because I’ve read enough excerpts to know I could never get through it. But the concept of daemons is really cool and fun and I’ve read a ton of daemon aus and I feel no shame in yoinking the concept for an au despite never having read the source material.

Evelyn’s daemon is a Norwegian Forest Cat named Carwyn, Paultin’s is a lyrebird named Leto, Strix’s is a Barred Owl named Cináed, and Diath’s… well, if you were to ask him, he’d tell you that his daemon is a very shy house spider named Perdita. The thing is, nobody’s ever actually seen her…

Diath may or may not be in a Special Situation in this AU thanks to the whole ancient-soul-that-Shemeshka-has-part-of circumstance

The Class Swap AU

This one!! Is one that I love!! a lot!! And also one that I fully intend to give its own post with art.

It started with me realising that Mason Marthain existing presented the perfect Backstory Butterfly to play with things a little and justify Evelyn being a rogue in a class swap AU. From there, I just kept playing with their backstories to see what there was that could be tugged on to shift them to one of each other’s classes. Ultimately, my class swap AU stands as such:

Evelyn Marthain, a swashbuckler rogue. Inspired by a slightly different family member, in this universe, Evelyn decided at a young age that rather than follow in her father’s footsteps, she wanted to follow in her uncle’s. Thus, rather than training at the Spires and taking on the mantle of a paladin, she apprenticed on her Uncle’s ship throughout her childhood, and eventually became a rogue.

Diath Woodrow, an oath of devotion paladin. A childhood on the streets went just a little bit differently for Diath, this time around. After a paladin caught him preventing another street kid from pickpocketing, he got taken in by the Church of Selune and found a calling that appealed to his sense of duty and his desire for adventure at the same time. (How does the oath of devotion’s call to obey just authority mix with being chaotic good, you might ask? Well, how does one define “just” authority? In Class Swap!Diath’s case, as soon as someone abuses their power, their authority is no longer just)

Paultin Seppa, a wild magic sorceror. Paultin honestly doesn’t know where his powers came from. They’ve been at the tips of his fingers for as long as he can remember. It probably has something to do with the big swath of his childhood that he can’t remember but he’s not particularly bothered with trying to figure it out. (The thing is, a panicking, traumatised child, very much going into shock, tearing through the mists of Barovia and out of Ravenloft, all on his own and without parental supervision for the very first time, has so much potential to go wrong. He stumbled through a few less than hospitable places before he ended up on the Prime Material)

Strix, a college of glamour bard. Her years in the Feywild were harsh and this time it wasn’t Baba Yaga whose care she stumbled into. She learned a lot, living amongst the fey, and not least amongst that was how a silver tongue, with words carefully chosen and used, is a magic all of its own and also a very dangerous weapon.

I can’t say anything about the two AUs I’m currently writing fics for because spoilers~ so just know that They Exist

The Star Wars AU is extremely conceptual. It features aspiring Jedi Knight Evelyn Marthain, an Alderaanian human raised in the Coruscant Jedi Temple, travelling musician Paultin Seppa, a human of mysterious origin who has an even more mysterious knowledge of the Force, given that he seemingly has no connection to any known Force sects, galactic treasure hunter/archaeologist Diath Woodrow, a human from Coronet City on Corellia, whose heritage may-or-may-not have originated on a certain planet starting with ‘M’, and Strix, a force-sensitive woman of indeterminate species (at first glance, you might think zabrak, but zabraks don’t have tails. They also usually don’t have hair but it’s not like hybrids are completely an unknown possibility… the thing is, if she’s a hybrid, there’s no way she’s a hybrid of just two)

The RWBY AU is Exactly What It Says On The Tin. It’s just an AU where the Wafflecrew are in Remnant. They comprise Team DEPS (”Deeps”) and all I’ve really figured out is their weapons and semblances and tbh, as an AU, it’s probably not going much further than that.

I had a Lot of fun with their semblances, though.

[sarcastic-pasta-games]

Any motivation or advice for one man team developers? Sorry if this has been asked already

Hey! I’ve been working on a solo fangame project for too long almost 3 years, while working on The BOSS & Glitch In The System. I have no clue if this’ll help or if this is the type of advice you wanted, but here you go. The things written here can apply to non-fangame projects, too! 

(Warning: lots of text ahead - and take this with a grain of salt; I’m not an expert.)

General: 

You are going to have to plan in advance and organize absolutely every single thing about your project. Don’t just make an outline for your story. Create concept art for your characters, figure out what makes your game story unique, figure out the mapping and game mechanics early.

Make sure you know your options. If you’re really good at one thing (writing,art,music,code) and everything else is a bit new to you, there are free and paid resources out there. Don’t feel bad for using them. 

If you’re a perfectionist, make sure the tools you use are quick. Do not spend a week on one room design, or a month on one song. You will never finish your game, even if it’s super short. 

Kinda joykill advice, but I don’t recommend making your dream project first unless you fully KNOW how to start making your project on your own (which even then, you’ll need to organize everything for it to work). Make something silly, or try joining game jams. 

External feedback is even more important when working on your game. Get playtesters or people willing to help give feedback to you early on, or midway through development. 

Figure out how much energy you can devote to your project. If you want to be ambitious, that’s great! But overworking yourself is a horrible idea. 

If you want to change something fairly major about your game, you should probably only do it if you’re below the 30-40% mark. Otherwise you’ll forever drive yourself insane by changing anything when you’ve made that much progress on your project. You can always improve on certain aspects for future games. 

Especially for fangames: don’t take everything you make seriously. 

Games can still be considered solo projects, even if the developers got help for stuff like art, music, and code. You don’t have to do every single thing by yourself. But if you’re stubborn like me about this and still want to do everything, that’s cool too.

Back up your game or forever suffer in developer hell. Yes, I’m serious. I’ve seen projects get cancelled because they couldn’t afford to get a backup drive (or even a USB key) and it’s miserable.

Don’t act like you’re above other game developers. This applies for anyone, really. Support the other people around you, too! 

Visuals:

If you have absolutely no passion or desire to do your own art assets, premade resources are your friends. However, you need to really focus on your other game aspects in other for your games to stand out. To The Moon used a lot of pre-made RPG Maker XP resources but had a phenomenal soundtrack and used that + its visuals to make the game feel more cinematic than most RPG Maker games.

If you feel like you suck at art or don’t have money for expensive drawing tools, but want to make all of the game assets, then do it! Even with simple/free-to-use tools, your can make game art that’ll be unique and memorable. example / example / example 

Keep backups of every single one of your original art asset files.

If you want to do pixel art for your game, 1: Always avoid coloring with pure black. Your game will look disgusting. 2: Programs like Asesprite are useful for animations. 3: Make sure it’s proper pixel art. Using AA brushes, the blur tool (etc) will completely ruin that.

Video cutscenes aren’t 100% necessary. Certain game devs make it a goal to never include cutscenes to create a certain atmosphere, or for the game to feel more interactive for the player. (ex: Night In The Woods)

Pretend the player can’t listen to game audio while playing. Keep the visuals interesting and make your game feel alive! Whether it’s through tiny animations, window animations, etc. 

For 3D Games: motion blur =/= super cool polished game. >:(

It depends on your game’s style, of course, but usually it’s not a good sign if you can tell your project is made by someone with default assets and doesn’t try to work beyond that (for any engine, 2D or 3D). 

If you want to do regular art for your game: make sure you know what resolution your game is going to be at its absolute highest, and always work with bigger than that. 

Keep your visuals consistent! If an early area looks unpolished/different from the final maps, then fix it. 

I’m going to skip music advice because I 100% suck at composing and don’t know what I’m doing yet. Just make sure your audio files are lossless, even if it adds a bit to your game’s file size. 

Audio: 

Use the same logic like in one of the points for visuals: Pretend like the player can’t see any of your cool visuals or fancy animations, and is just left with blocks for character sprites and very shapes for maps. Make your game convey emotion through audio, even if it’s through tiny sounds, or really quiet environment sounds. 

Voice acting: Don’t even bother if you can’t find people who have good microphones or can’t afford/know how to properly remove background noise. You’ll just be left with really bad quality audio that won’t help immerse the player at all. 

There can be a theme to your audio, much like there can be a theme to your visuals. Whether or not you decide to contrast the visuals with your audio or pair them up is up to you. It can give the game a whole new tone, depending on how you approach sound design.

Audio cues are good for puzzles, but again, don’t just rely on that only to indicate to the player that an objective has been completed. If they have the game on mute, they’re just going to be left wandering around.

Binaural audio can be cool, if you want to try doing that. 

Writing: 

Don’t write game dialogue at 4 am. It never works. 

Game writing is VERY different from what you might be used to. Keep in mind that for the most part players want to interact with an environment, not just only hear what characters have to say about a certain event or area. Forcing them to go through giant dialogue cutscenes every time is not a smart move to make. (Obviously, visual novels and text adventure games are an exception to this)

Not that you only need to have 4 words in your entire game! But there is a chance someone will download your game and just not enjoy the writing. Think ahead of time if you really feel like every game puzzle, every important cutscene needs to happen after giant walls of text.

If you have the ability to make visuals that can be paired with writing, you don’t really have an excuse for avoiding that. Especially if the cutscene 

Proofread every single thing, or get someone else to do it. If you can export all your game dialogue into text files, that could be helpful. 

If you’re trying to write a serious game (with lighthearted moments or not), chances are that adding that one dumb inside joke with your friends in-game could ruin the immersion for the player.

Only time I think the developer should focus more on their own opinion than the players: create as much atmosphere as you can. Figure out the things YOU like about a game world, and focus on that as much as you can. Don’t worry about making it appeal to all/certain audiences. 

Don’t act like every single player in the world will like all of your characters. Even if they’re nice, someone could absolutely despise your main characters, or find themselves liking the antagonist more.

Dumb character ticks and speech mannerisms can still work.

Not everything about a Serious Game™ has to be gritty and all that. Me and Katie wouldn’t recommend making a completely serious fangame anyway, but that’s another topic. 

You’re probably not going to ever write a game that has absolutely no tropes in it whatsoever, so give up on that. 

You can make a character dislikeable but still charming. The other way around works too. Not everything has to be clear-cut right and wrong.

Game design / Programming: 

If you ever use shortened names for certain switches, variables, etc - or have a complex system for one game feature, write down what all of it does somewhere. You don’t want to screw yourself over months after you implemented something because you forgot what one button does, or what another variable is for. 

Bite the bullet. If there’s an area you restrict access to for the player purely for the sake of not having to deal with coding it, that’s no fun.

You can never make a game with endless options/possibilities.

If there’s something buggy in your absolute basic gameplay mechanics (movement, UI) just change it and don’t focus on anything else before it’s fixed. There’s no excuse not to.

Make sure your game UI is bearable to look at. Please.

You don’t have to add 50 game options or features for your game to stand out. Unless you know it’ll encourage the player to keep playing or will help the player enjoy the game, then there’s no real use for it.

If you can ever optimize your game (frame rate, controls, etc) do that too. Having a simple 2D game running at 15fps one second and 60 the other won’t make your players happy. 

Personally, I’d rather play a working puzzle even if it’s a bit boring, over something that’s super creative but buggy as hell. 

Color puzzles aren’t going to work for colorblind players, and if you have an aesthetic (super tiny) game font, people with bad eyesight won’t be able to play. Give people options! 

“Choices in this game matter” if you know they don’t matter whatsoever for the ending or for a majority of the game, then don’t say that. This also ties into the branding section.

Making band-aid fixes for every single one of your game bugs is a really bad idea. If you can take some time to fix one bug fully rather than relying on workarounds, do that. 

Back. Up. Your. Code. Files. Especially if you’re planning on making major changes to it. It can be very useful to have old pieces of code to fall back on if your changes don’t work as planned. 

Figure out what you can and can’t do with an engine. There’s a section in The Beginner’s Guide that talks about the limitations certain engines can pose to developers, and how certain engines are just better fit for certain tasks than others. You won’t be able to include or make everything for one project. (Chances are, that wouldn’t work well anyways). 

Don’t expect the player to only behave one way to your game’s design, puzzles, or mapping. Again, give people options. There can be some fun in giving the player different results for different puzzle solutions. 

Presentation: 

You don’t have to reveal every single thing about your project online-  but on the other hand, keeping everything to only vague/abstract teaser posts isn’t very helpful to people, either. 

Social media is your friend. Twitter, tumblr, youtube, etc- Find different audiences through your games there! 

Figure out what sites you want to put your game on. There are tons of options: Itch.io is my favorite. But sites like Gamejolt, indiedb, rmn.net, Steam (more for commercial games), etc can work for you. You can always just upload it for yourself online (mediafire, google drive, dropbox) too, if you dislike all of those sites or prefer doing it through direct download links. 

Don’t self promote your game on other people’s games or accounts…

Even if someone is hoping to see something really specific in your game, your project will get out of hand if you just add in what every single person wants. Convince people that your game will be worthwhile even if a feature or a character doesn’t appear in it. 

Remaining transparent with your audience will help you a lot.

Keep things easy to access and read/look at for potential players. Make sure people can find something about the game quick. Things like FAQs, “About this game”, external links, etc are very helpful. 

Apologies in advance for any embarrassing typos that I may have missed.  

One last thing: Focus on making something that you ultimately like. It’ll be much easier to handle any sort of obstacles during/after development that way.

There is so much more I want to cover on this, but this should give you some basic things to work with. Hope this helps!

[clarencenicholsonata]

4 Psychology-Driven Ways to Structure Your Landing Page

Do you know what’s most valuable on your website?

Your landing pages

It’s where you’ll convert passive visitors into active subscribers, buyers, or fans. It’s where your business grows.

A good landing page is the make-or-break moment for your site. Which is why to write a truly great landing page, you must understand the laws of persuasion.

The rules that determine how we think and act are valuable for every type of marketing, of course. But it’s especially critical when every click counts.

Research has shown that more landing pages lead to more conversions.

But it only counts if you’re doing it correctly. If you’re building a landing page that needs to appeal to the most people, you’ll want to include these ideas.

They’ll help you structure your page in a way that grabs attention and pushes people to act.

Let’s get started!

1. Organize Landing Page Elements Correctly

At its core, a landing page is a series of blocks. How you organize these blocks can make or break the success of what you’ve built.

Put the call to action too late? You won’t get the conversions you’re hoping for.

Include testimonials too early? People won’t understand the offer and will leave.

That's why ordering elements is the first psychology-driven way to structure your landing page.

Primacy Effect—We Remember What Comes First

Quick—name a woman who flew across the Atlantic Ocean.

Did Amelia Earheart come to mind?

She’s not the only woman to have performed the feat. But she sticks with us because she was the first to do it.

This is the Primacy Effect. It's the well-known psychological concept that we remember what comes first.

Bonjoro’s home page is a great example. They show their product’s personal touch with a video at the top.

When you’re setting up the pieces of your landing page, start with what’s most important:

A key headline.

An eye-catching graphic.

A powerful, engaging video.

Whatever it is, choose carefully. It’ll be one of the most memorable parts of your landing page.

Recency Effect—We Remember What Comes Last

It might sound like the opposite of the Primacy Effect. But in truth, it’s a concept that explains the shortcuts the human mind takes.

Maybe this has happened to you—a friend asks for a movie recommendation. But what comes to mind? The last movie you watched … not the best movie you’ve ever seen.

Why would we do that?

It’s the Recency Effect at work. Along with what comes first, what comes last takes special importance.

To use it on your landing page, make sure you end on a strong note.

(Pro tip: This is almost always a call to action.)

The Recency Effect doesn't just apply to the last part of the landing page, but to the last part your visitor reads.

If a lot of visitors leave a certain place, try to fix it. But if you can’t, at least make it worth remembering.

Von Restorff Effect—We Remember What Stands Out

Read this list:

Blue. Orange. Green. Red. Elephant. Yellow.

Now, name one word from that list.

Did "elephant" come to mind? Researchers have performed similar experiments again and again.

The findings are clear—most of us remember what stands out.

Just like those Sesame Street segments, the Von Restorff Effect says: “one of these things is not like the others.”

In the context of a landing page, there are thousands of ways to apply the Von Restorff Effect.

But one of the simplest is to add variety to long sections. So if you have a list of features, add a captivating image to draw attention to the most important.

(Research indicates this effect diminishes as we age, so this is less important on landing pages for older visitors.)

The Von Restorff Effect is all about breaking up the monotony.

Here’s another example of this concept in action—once you get to the conclusion of this article, you’ll probably remember this concept best.

It’s the only one on the list with a fun German name.

2. Limit Choices (But Not Too Much)

Humans are funny creatures.

We crave options. Yet at the same time, we’re startlingly bad at making good choices with the freedom we’ve been given.

The Internet has brought millennia of knowledge to our fingertips … yet there’s so much of it, we’d rather just watch Netflix.

Using landing pages, how can we leverage human tendencies with choices?

Freedom of Choice—We Prefer Multiple Options

The first concept is the one we all know: more options are better than fewer options.

Which bakery is better—one with two types of pastries or one with twenty?

Options give us a sense of comfort. When we choose, we're in control.

So when you’re designing your landing page, keep that comfort in mind.

We’ll get into more nuts-and-bolts depth about pricing strategies in just a minute. But for now, remember that providing some options is better than none at all.

For example, there are only two options to subscribe to The New Yorker: print and digital.

Yet The New Yorker subscription page expands this to include a three-month option.

Many times, we only have one offer. But don’t miss the chance for more choices.

Let the prospect use a payment plan, or pay all at once.

Offer a basic plan or an upgrade.

The choices are endless. Speaking of which, they shouldn’t be.

The Paradox of Choice—Too Many Options Paralyzes Us

Months ago, I started a simple search for a better charging cable for my phone. Amazon proudly informed me there were more than 40,000 items.

They all looked more or less the same, with almost indistinguishable differences.

It was confusing. I didn't know where to go, and the options froze my decision-making ability.

I still haven't bought a new charger. After all, my current cable connects to my phone ... most of the time.

What's going on?

You see, we love options, but too many choices are bad for us.

This is especially critical for e-commerce landing pages. Chewy does a great job of showing lots of categories without being overwhelming.

But be careful—it’s easy to fall into the trap of showing every option.

Instead, as you structure your landing page, stick with a smaller number. Research shows humans best remember seven things, give or take two.

To err on the side of caution, stick with five. Peloton does a great job simplifying its dozens of products into a short list of five.

But what if you must display more than seven? That’s the place Amazon finds itself in.

When you have 40,000 products, it’d be a disservice to only show five. So Amazon has taken advantage of the next concept.

Social Proof—Highlight Choices Based on Popularity

The classic example of social proof is something like, “9 out of 10 dentists recommend Sensodyne.”

But there are thousands of more subtle ways social proof surrounds us. As Amazon’s catalog has grown, they’ve added social proof to help sort through the noise.

For example, Amazon now flags best selling products.

Products with more (and more positive) customer reviews are likely to drive more click-throughs. Which of these two knives are you more likely to buy?

And Amazon even helps us choose with their “Amazon’s Choice” label.

They’ve also partnered with review sites for third-party recommendations.

(This is a variation of social proof known as Appeal to Authority. After all, a third party sounds more objective than Internet strangers.)

The most common usage of social proof like this is on pricing landing pages. You’ve seen it before—the website highlights one pricing plan as being more popular.

Use the same ideas on your own page.

And speaking of pricing, let’s look there next.

3. Structure Your Pricing Correctly

Pricing seems so simple.

Yet it’s one of the most complex areas of marketing.

You see, there isn’t an exact formula for pricing. Sure, there are all kinds of recommendations online.

Add a percentage to your cost.

Look at what your competitors are doing.

And so forth.

But the real secret to pricing—the gold your competitors are missing out on—lies in psychology.

Here are the three principles you need to know.

Anchoring Effect—State Higher Prices First

Have you noticed how we all spend more on cell phones now?

Before the Smartphone Age, most of us spent a few hundred dollars on a new cell phone.

But today, it’s common for us to spend $1,000 or more on a device.

Why?

Because of the Anchoring Effect. When we see $1,000 cell phones, we begin to think that’s the norm.

Even if we’re thrifty, spending $500 now seems like a deal—even if it’s double what we would have paid just a few years ago.

When you’re designing your landing page, you want to take anchoring into effect.

The simplest way is to show high prices first. So if you have more than one plan, list the most expensive first, then in descending order of price.

Casper does a great job of this by positioning their premium Wave mattress first.

(It’s also a beautiful example of providing choices, with guidance.)

Only have one plan?

Then use a technique copywriters have employed for decades—list comparisons.

You’ve seen it before:

“In-person training for this would cost $10,000. Hiring a coach would be $500 an hour. But with my course, you can get the same information for just $99 …”

They use it because it works.

And you can use it, too.

Loss Aversion Principle—Focus on What We’re Losing

It’s your birthday, and a friend gives you a $100 bill.

Later that day, you withdraw another $100 from an ATM. But when you get home, you realize you left the money in the machine.

Do those two events even each other out?

Research says no. The ATM loss will be more painful than the birthday gift was enjoyable. About twice as painful psychologically, in fact.

We all love to win.

But more than winning, we want to avoid losing. This is known as the Loss Aversion Principle.

As you create your landing page, keep this principle in mind.

We’re all tempted to list the great features and benefits we have to offer. But psychology shows that losing is more powerful.

To do this, start off by explaining what problems the prospect is facing right now.

Show that they’re already losing something, whether that’s money, time, status, or health.

Show that your offer can change that, and they can stop losing out.

Then—and only then—should you show the benefits.

Contrast Effect—Small Differences Can Stand Out

Remember the Von Restorff Effect?

It stated that in a list of similar items, we notice things that stand out.

(Like elephants among color samples.)

The Contrast Effect is its visual counterpart.

There’s a reason most call-to-action buttons aren’t the same color as the page background. There’s a reason “for sale” signs on car lots are bright pink and yellow.

Colors that stand apart catch our eye.

The Ahrefs home page is a great example of the Contrast Effect. The bright orange call to action is immediately obvious.

Every landing page needs to draw attention to one or more items.

The best way to do this? With contrast.

Give a section a brightly-colored background.

Add a border that pops.

And start grabbing attention.

4. Improve Actions with Cognitive Fluency

Humans are, in our hearts, very lazy creatures.

It’s not our fault!

Our bodies have been finely-tuned over millions of years to conserve energy.

We’re built to make split-second judgments to assess situations.

It’s great on the prehistoric prairie. But in the 21st century, it means we have a few biases.

And you need to take them into account when selling.

Cognitive Fluency—Easier Content is More Trustworthy

Imagine you’re studying for a test in college, and two friends offer to share their study notes.

One friend hands you a bulging pile of dog-eared scribbles.

The other friend gives you a typed report broken down by subject. Each section has summaries and bullet points with key facts to remember.

Which would you use to study?

The answer seems obvious, but the better-organized student might be flunking the class. We judge credibility based on what's easiest to read.

As you design your landing page, make the content seamless. One section leads to another, all the way to the call to action.

This is the idea of Cognitive Fluency. Essentially, we choose what’s easiest for the brain to process.

Take it to heart in your landing pages, and keep the structure simple and easy to follow.

Deictic Gaze—We Obey Indicators to Where to Look

This is one of the silliest shortcuts in the human brain, but it works.

Before I explain how, look at the following image:

Did you look to the right?

Congratulations, you’ve seen the Deictic Gaze in action. It’s one of the most obvious examples of Cognitive Fluency.

Our brain will follow arrows, other people’s line of sight, and other cues when deciding where to look.

The brain’s laziness is a great way to improve your landing page. You’ve seen it a thousand times, and it's worth adding yourself.

Place small arrows, pointers, and even photographs of people facing the right direction.

Halo Effect—We Assign Good Design with Positive Traits

Take a quick glance at the website below. Is this someone you’d want to do business with?

If you’re like most people, you’d think twice about this company. Its 1990s-era website doesn’t look like a credible business venture.

But you’d be mistaken. It's the home page of billionaire Warren Buffett's company Berkshire Hathaway.

You see, first impressions influence our perception. We assume a site with bad design is a bad site. Likewise, we assign positive traits to sites that appeal to us.

This “halo” of positive traits leads to the name of the concept, the Halo Effect.

Every landing page you create should look as great as possible.

Nothing sells like a halo.

Oh, and if you’re wondering how Warren Buffett still succeeds with a site like that?

Simple: When you’re a world-famous billionaire, your personal halo extends to your website, not the other way around.

Need help with your next contest ?

Book a free call to learn how our team of marketing experts can help you create a high converting landing page today.

Conclusion

What’s the difference between a good landing page and a great one? It often comes down to the level of persuasion you decide to use.

A serious landing page creator will consider every user’s action and build their page around it like Wishpond’s Canvas.

And the best way to do that? Psychological triggers. By using proven persuasion techniques, you can influence the viewer to act.

Oftentimes, the difference between a casual visitor and a ready buyer comes down to specific techniques that influence him or her to act.

You’ve learned four psychology-based ways to structure your landing page. Plus, you've seen twelve of the most common principles you can put in place.

Which will you use first?

About the Author Emil Kristensen is the CMO and co-founder of Sleeknote: a company that helps e-commerce brands turn their website browsers into buyers—without hurting the user experience.

from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230801 https://ift.tt/2VPs25k via IFTTT

[gunnerpalace]

Being a guy and all, wouldn't you much rather fuck Orihime rather than Rukia? The latter is a dead chick. Hence you should ship Ichihime. Be smart :)

Wow. Where to begin?

1. For most of the series, Orihime is between 15 and 17. In other words, that would be a felony. Personally, I like to try and adhere to the “not creepy” rule, which is to say, half your age plus seven, but at the very least I set the minimum at 18. Rukia, “young for Soul Society,” or not, is an adult by human standards, and shows the maturity you’d expect with someone of decades of subjective experience. So I really don’t appreciate you accusing me of being a pedophile. (”But, but, but, you guys write about and draw Ichigo having sex with Rukia!” What Ichigo perceives, and what I perceive, are different things: Ichigo clearly doesn’t see Rukia’s age difference whatsoever and treats her as a peer. You asked me.)

2. I’m going to assume you’re illiterate.

First, it’s pretty well established that Rukia’s gigai is basically a human body, with bones and the whole nine yards, and it sweats and does all the other things bodies do. So if I was in a hypothetical position of intimacy with her, she’d either be living and breathing, or I’d also be a spirit. In either event, not really a problem because we’d be equivalent.

Second, Ichigo has been “dead” ever since before he went to Soul Society, as Tessai cut his soul chain. That’s literally defined as the measure of whether one is alive or dead. Now y’all like to go on and on about “Orihime and Ichigo fucked!” but given that, she’s fucking a “dead” guy herself, so your insistence on Rukia being “dead” doesn’t really make any sense.

3. I’m going to assume you’re 14 years old or something, because you clearly don’t know any better.

See, sex isn’t just about the physical act. Yeah, friction and pressure are really important to the physical process, but the simple fact of the matter is, it’s mostly psychological. For a woman to really be turned on, she’s got to be into it psychologically. The same holds true of men, though perhaps not quite to the same extent. If you’re stressed, distracted, intoxicated, whatever, you’re not going to be able to get into it, let go, and enjoy yourself, or if you are, it won’t be all that fun or powerful.

The main way that you establish that psychological state is powerful attraction. Now, there’s lust, sure, but there’s also love. There’s a lot of ways to be attracted to somebody, and their physical appearance is only one of them. The more forms of attraction you have, the more intense your connection with that person will be, and the greater the sex will be. To see the converse, porn stars tend to describe what they do as being more akin to using another person to masturbate with, because there tends to be no connection at all.

So just pointing at their physical appearances is honestly the weakest possible way of framing the question.

Now allow me to speak frankly in my capacity as a man. Personally, I love both breasts and asses. I think asses are a little more versatile because you can touch them in intimate yet not explicitly sexual ways, whereas fondling a woman’s chest, while fun, is pretty overtly sexual. Also, unless the woman is particularly sensitive, it usually doesn’t do a lot unless you focus on her nipples. In other words, I think both are aesthetically appealing to look at, but if you made me pick, I’d pick asses. So you guys constantly throwing out how big Orihime’s chest is doesn’t really do it for me. Also, there’s such a thing as too big, in my opinion.

Anyway, moving on, I find facial and eye-contact to be really important as part of foreplay, and I like talking to partners. You’re interacting with another human being. Women aren’t objects. The point is to have fun together. So personality and so on is still important, even if you’re just doing it out of lust.

4. I don’t find Orihime’s personality terribly attractive. I do find Rukia’s to be. This is a big deal to me.

5. Let’s set aside the matter of whether Orihime and Rukia would even want to have sex with me to begin with for some reason (because I personally don’t have a problem with executing rapists) and assume for the sake of argument that they did (despite Ichigo really being the only man that either sees). Consider the way they would approach it.

Orihime would be a wreck. She’s established as both nervous, easily flustered, and a klutz. Also, virgins: not all that sexy honestly. Who wants somebody who doesn’t know what they’re doing and will probably get hurt in the process? Anybody who’s focused on female virginity is a fucking weirdo. Finally, she would be committing a felony, so multiply her anxiety times ten. Does that sound fun to you? Because it doesn’t to me. My interpretation would be “entrapment,” and my inclination is to get away from that situation as fast as possible.

Rukia isn’t really a very subtle person, but she is usually composed, sure, and confident in most of the things she does. I expect she’d conduct herself in much the same way.

Now you can try and weasel out of some of this by going “What if it was 27 year-old Orihime?” or whatever (isn’t it weird how you’re hypothesizing about her cheating on Ichigo with this question? that’s weird, isn’t it?) but the core points remain the same. You’re making so many assumptions about what is and isn’t sexually attractive and utilizing such an utterly infantile conception of the same that I find the entire thing insulting to my intelligence, my gender, and my sexuality.

Grow up.

[aurelliocheek]

A Year of Rain: Writing Strategies

How to build a new world for an RTS Game.

So, you wanna write this? A question I’ve been waiting for. When Nick, the captain of our daring endeavor, approached me, A Year Of Rain was supposed to become a Fantasy RTS based on a well-known IP; and to be honest, I was more than fine with that. See, I like that IP, I am very familiar with it and just from a cerebral logistics standpoint, I’ve always been comfortable settling in an established system and give it my own spin. All I’d have to do was looking for one of the more ­obscure places and events of that world, work with that foundation, and tell an interesting tale.

Which I did. Vigorously.

Then we had to discard that approach. The world for our game would not be an established one. We needed to build it from scratch, every nook and cranny. And here’s how we did that, or rather, my first-time experiences with RTS narrative design and maybe some survival tips on how to navigate that minefield.

Super rough worldbuilding draft.

A new IP. Well… We took that turn of events in stride. After all, even if existing worldbuilding provides you with nomenclature, systems, a fan base and many more convenient tools in your box, it’s all double-edged: you can’t slip on lore, the systems restrain you, while gameplay and game design boundaries are sneaking up from behind. You also owe the fans maximum accuracy anyway to avoid alienation. Put like this, building your own world from scratch sounds a lot more appealing, doesn’t it? It’s a gorgeous blooming field of nearly endless possibilities and free of any veto you wouldn’t give yourself.

Right…?

The whole world in your hands I’ve done this for plenty tabletops and homebrew Pen & Paper systems. It’s important to have an interesting world for an interesting tale you want to tell. Doing this for a very specifically tagged game is a different beast altogether. To keep the field analogy going, when first thinking about a world for a Fantasy RTS game, I felt like I arrived a week after the harvest.

Staring into the abyss of fantasy intertextuality made me uncomfortable right from the start, when I was asking myself: ‘What kind of world is this going to be?’

Creating a new, compelling world for an RTS game is a challenge.

Standard globe, massive Midlandia continent where all the people hang out and fight each other or whatever? It’s been done – ad nauseam and to death.

A shattered world, with drifting pieces and… Shit, this has been done. Pocket dimension? Done. Flat, you could say, a disc-like world? Yeah, good luck.

Okay, but what if it has layers like an onion… Septerra Core? Who even remembers that?! I do, it was a very charming game, actually. Anyway, a world needs people. People are easy! Species, races, cultures, there are so many cool fantasy folks… which… have all been utilized to exhaustion.

Even as I am writing this, a game cropped up that is so eerily similar to the core ideas I eventually developed for my world and story that it snaps the credibility of parallel evolution and makes me reconsider my general stance on psychic spies. I came to terms with the notion long before that announcement, but it confirmed my take on worldbuilding I had to adapt if I wanted to keep my sanity: There are many, many worlds out there and chances are high you won’t reinvent the wheel. Take solace in the fact that you can craft a very efficient, aesthetically pleasing wheel!

For here comes the twist: Intertextuality is a good thing. Since I’m throwing that word around like I think I know what it means, here’s what it is… “The relationship between texts, especially literary ones.”

It’s the reason why references work. For example, why Pride & Prejudice & Zombies exists, and you still get what that title implies. It’s why Banner Saga doesn’t need to explain the language, cultural setting, or apparel of the world they created because we have read about or seen media featuring Vikings. Darkest Dungeon draws a lot of its appeal from weird fiction, gothic and cosmic horror and you understand that connection. It’s why many people love it when fictional characters or worlds reference the real world, or pop culture or even quote from other ­movies and works of literature. ­Because we get what that means. Because it’s a nod to what we, and probably the creator of that fiction, love (the latter being strictly speaking an allusion, but it fits under the same umbrella, bear with me here). In broad strokes, it means that people understand connections and baselines without your explanation, because someone, at some point, did a very similar thing and established a widely known convention with it.

Yes, we’ve made a papercraft map.

It seems like the bane of innovation You may feel like everything has been done already, or even get conflicted because a line you wrote is similar or identical to something that already exists. However, just like tropes, archetypes, and cliché, it’s a boon for your world’s foundation if you swing it with precision. Best case, whatever you decide: On a very basic level, your audience will have a fond connotation to many of the things you do. There’s a catch, of course. You’ll need a lot of lipstick for your intertextual pig. The real work for me started after laying the foundation when I decided what type of world I wanted and who populated it. Both choices, at a glance, weren’t too special, admittedly.

What I hoped made them special was thoroughly fleshing out every race, species, and culture, applying some twists here and there… I tried generating credible systems and all the bones and beams that not only support the worldbuilding but also telegraph and highlight what made this world compelling, comfortably familiar, yet also refreshing.

You can do a lot if you stick to some fantasy guns and bolster them with nuances. In A Year Of Rain, for example, dwarves are the most competent spellcasters and considering how this world is designed, it even makes sense, though it’s not something you see very often. And it escalated pretty easily from there: What are the consequences for other species? What is their strategy? And how would that other adjacent fantasy race act or evolve and so on? I did that for, I think, 16 species concepts and there was a point when there were more connections and ideas than I actually wanted.

After fleshing out all the cultural dynamics, historical angles, rules of magic, justifying dwarven rune-powered railguns, establishing how many terabytes of memories a sentient fungus could store compared to divine lichen and what kind of weed lizardfolk prefer to smoke, I was finally ready to apply all this to the game itself.

Or not.

Strategic Writing Turns out, an RTS has comparatively limited narrative space. I would go as far as to call it claustrophobic. Design and format of an RTS tend to isolate the parts of the world you build. You have one single map at a time to establish whatever you want to transport narratively. And you only get one shot, because there usually is, by design, no backtracking.

It’s fair to assume that’s one reason why this genre often struggles with thorough worldbuilding and story in its campaign and multiplayer. Everything you can show, tell and narrate has to fit in roughly 15-30 minutes of tiny people murdering each other in real time. Then, you move on to the next area where, you guessed it, you train tiny people and have them murder each other for 15-30 minutes.

There is little room to breathe, or significantly manipulate the game flow, or show the inhabitants of your world doing anything other than fighting and killing to do more fighting and killing. That’s where the majority of anything you’ll write will be focused on. The units you command have no narrative agenda, almost no space to reflect on what they’re doing or want to do; they fight and die and obey the great cursor.

“But Blizzard!” you say?

Campaign is a different horse. It’s easier there. You can, to a certain degree, pace what happens, insert cutscenes and design a fantasy, a goal, and establish what drives this narrative… And at least your characters get to talk and express opinions, motivation, broader personality and all that, so: Yes, Blizzard cracked the code in most of their campaigns and will probably remain on that throne till the flippin’ sun burns out. But looking at virtually all other RTS games, there’s a trend to keep the world simple, the greater worldbuilding or story potential unexplored (Warlords RTS, Grey Goo) or exaggerate other aspects enough that they tilt from ludicrous to awesome and thus make for a satisfying campy story (looking at you, Command & Conquer). There’s a reason why even master craftsmen like the folks at Blizzard preach the mantra: Gameplay first in RTS.

All that doesn’t mean you can’t tell a compelling story, it doesn’t mean you can’t build a fantastic world, but it means that it may feel awkward at first. It’s a much greater challenge than in an RPG, an adventure or something similar where you can weave both things easier into a nice colorful ­tapestry. For our game, there is no after-mission hub to talk to characters, no codex to look up things like history and lore, no audio logs, books or scrolls, no close-up first- or third-person perspective to do advanced intrinsic storytelling. RTS has a fast, relentless pace. Your opponent, be it a human or AI, won’t wait for you to absorb subjects declared second priority like a narrative or worldbuilding details. So, whatever you tell is ideally right there when you play.

Some rules and tools you know still apply accordingly. For example, each of our units has 17 standard response lines. You better believe I tried to cram as much character as I could in there, tried my best to give them personality you can relate to in a few clicks and with allusions to the world around them.

Daedalic’s development team is building the A Year Of Rain world.

Then there are our phenomenal art, design, sound and SFX people Worldbuilding is, of course, not only writing. How characters look, what gear they carry, how their magic or tools of trade manifest and interact, their body language, animation, and voice work… all that blasts open a welcome breach into the walls you run into with an RTS, just like with any other game. Though the world is delivered in chunks in this genre, you can still do plenty of environmental storytelling, be it through biomes, architecture, weather, or ambient sounds and how the whole palette interconnects through the game. The tools are there; they just need lots of attention. The more you have prepared, the better. Whatever you came up with, whatever your vision is, don’t use a crowbar. Listen to the other departments and let them work their magic, even, or especially when that means letting go of your brainchild because they came up with a cooler solution. I’m a writer. What the hell do I know about shapes and the right visual impact, or the finer points of ability synergies and level design? Try to trust people as they trust you.

This is a good time to point out that 50% of all my conceptual resources won’t make it directly into the game. Some things are just too intricate/niche and have no business being there considering the very tight space that’s rightfully conceded to the gameplay. Adjust that percentage further north, actually, since some visual ideas don’t make good silhouettes for in-game models, because they’d be too small, too noisy or just a pain to animate you could never justify. It’s fine, though. Compare it to an actor who’s told to come up with a backstory for a bunch of tiny props on their costume. They’ll never get any big reference in the movie, but they help the actor getting into the role.

As I’ve mentioned, the characters’ role is basically to fight and die, above all else. It creates a dissonance, intuitively. Telling war stories is no hard sell, but it adds a new layer to the worldbuilding itself. Is this a new conflict? Where will you locate it? Is it a flashpoint or a global affair, and how much sense does that make? How do you plan for the future, i.e., at the end of your campaign, is your world fixed or broken, and where does it go from there? Or is it even beyond fixing and stays in a constant, vicious cycle of warfare?

The one luxury I had here was that I got to have my cake and eat it too: I made a world that’s broken, and I elected to focus on one conflict on a very specific piece of land. It leaves enough breathing room to tease a much bigger playground around the elaborate nice sandbox we’ll ship with this game.

Narrative Design for an RTS is a wild ride. And despite the pinch of salt in the lines above I definitely enjoy the chance I’ve been given with this. This article is honestly a slapdash work of professional opinion, advise, and direct dirty development experience. It’s a rough field guide for those treading these grounds for the first time, informative entertainment, or a good foundation for discussion.

See you in that world we’ve built, if you’re so inclined!

Ben Kuhn

Ben Kuhn is a writer and narrative designer at Daedalic Entertainment. Seven years sailing for Daedalic, mostly as a translator, dialogue writer, and voice director, packing a Master of Arts in English literature and creative writing acquired at the University of Bremen and Maynooth. Signed up due to his love of the medium and good stories and continues to be happy about that choice.

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[flauntpage]

The Sixers Are Bringing Back Their “Phila Unite” Playoff Campaign

Unite, or die, you shall. The Sixers are rolling back out their wildly popular “Philly Unite” campaign for the second year in a row this playoff season.

For those of you who don’t know, “Phila Unite” was a take on Ben Franklin’s 1754 political cartoon, “Join, or Die,” depicting a severed snake which represented the individual colonies. In the 18th century, the severed snake was thought to possess the ability to be resurrected if its separated pieces were put back together before sunset.

Today, it represents something much larger for the Sixers.

I spoke with team president and branding guru Chris Heck about resurrecting the snake and what it means to the team.

Planned from the beginning

While from the outside it may have seemed like the campaign and popular snake logo were a one-year effort that lasted not nearly long enough, Heck says it was always the plan to use it on a recurring basis as the Sixers are in the midst of what they feel is an impressive run of consecutive 50-win seasons.

It may seem obvious to incorporate historic elements of the city when your team name is literally derived from its most significant moment, but for the Sixers and Heck it goes deeper than that.

It may sound like marketing speak – and a good bit of it is – but Heck walks the talk– he is the sort of guy who will give you a tour of the Sixers’ practice facility in Camden and spend more time talking about the color palette and thought behind the retired-number banners hanging in the rafters than he will about the multiple NBA All-Stars who routinely walk those halls.

So, naturally, the snake logo has its own backstory.

Heck:

“We want to re-tell the story of the severed snake, the myth of the severed snake coming back together and stronger than ever. The story has started, of course, with Ben Franklin and the American colonies. We adapted it to being the Philadelphia neighborhoods last year. But we think it has another leg– just like the makeup of our team, there’s representation from different continents all over the world. As we become a global brand, it resonates throughout the world, this concept of bringing everyone together for a common cause.”

The international angle should not be overlooked. The NBA is China’s most popular sports league, according to a CNBC article from last year that cited the league’s massive social media following. Sixers (and Devils) CEO Scott O’Neil was quoted in the article as saying China literally changes the way the Sixers market themselves.

Heck, when he’s not talking up the piping on the banners at S. Front Street in Camden, is quick to point to the new Chinese characters (I had no idea what they said) on the baskets, which are part of a marketing partnership, obviously.

The Sixers say they are one of the top three most popular NBA teams in China, and this sort of storytelling branding, while it may get glossed over by local folks who are vaguely familiar with our uniquely rich tapestry of iconic American moments*, is important to growing a global brand.

*Save for the folks who were quick to point out last year that the snake wasn’t connected.

  Local angle

The Sixers take very seriously the “Brotherly Love” aspect of their marketing campaign. It’s no accident when Bryce Harper and Rhys Hoskins show up in a luxury box with Carson Wentz, or when the latter is spotted courtside with Nick Foles-favorite-target Alshon Jeffery.

“This city was the sports city 30 years ago… close to 40 years ago,” Heck said. “We’re knocking on the door right now again. This is an unusual time and we’re going to do anything we can to let the world know about it.”

Heck says local teams and players now reach out to the Sixers to inquire about tickets. In the case of Harper, who rang the bell emphatically and with great gusto before the Bucks game, the Sixers were all over that one, reaching out to the Phillies back when he signed in early March and offering up essentially any game should Harper have come to Philly for a press conference.

It took a month, but the Sixers wanted to get him in before the playoffs, as the Phillies’ schedule will put them on the road for Sixers’ early-round playoff games.

Wentz wanted to come to the Bucks game as well, so Heck and the Sixers considered it a no-brainer: “Let’s put these guys together.”

It’s not always that easy. Heck says some players prefer to maintain their privacy when they come to games, but the vast majority are eager for the cross-sport bro-joining camaraderie.

  Apparel, uniforms and courts

Of course, this isn’t just about appealing to a broad international audience. “Phila Unite” was insanely popular locally last year, partly because its symbolism… and partly because it produced some kickass merch, which you can soon find on Michael Rubin-owned Fanatics. Full disclosure: The Sixers sent me a Phila Unite hoodie last year, which I loved like one of my own. Also, they say they’re sending me another one this year, proving that I will write any 1,000+ word story for a well-fitting, seasonally-appropriate garment.

Cynically, one might wonder if the Sixers are bringing back the campaign because they have a lot of this stuff lying around, along with a custom center-court logo that was used for only a handful of games.

It doesn’t sound like that’s the case, as the plan was to make “Phila Unite” a bit of a tradition. In fact, there’s actually a slight modification to the center court logo which Heck says most won’t even notice– so there goes my theory on an underused court logo.

I can tell you that anecdotally we saw affiliate-related sales of “Phila Unite” apparel go through the roof at the start of the playoffs (yes, we get a kickback when you use our Fanatics link, and yes, this is taking content marketing to the next level). More concretely, Heck says the Sixers were the number one team in the NBA in apparel sales “by a country mile” during the early rounds of the playoffs last year.

What about the uniforms? Last year, the Sixers wore their parchment-colored City Edition uniforms for “Phila Unite”, which I loved, but they had to retire them this year as the league mandates the number of kits a team can have. They were replaced by the Rocky-themed jawns.

Heck says the Sixers will wear mostly their regular blue home uniforms during the playoffs, though it sounds like they are free to deviate from this plan as jersey-specific win-loss records dictate.

  A first of its kind

Heck says the Sixers are the first NBA team to do this on such a large scale, and that they are the only ones to ever have their playoff-themed logo on the court.

“[We] lobbied the league hard for this, which was more difficult than you would imagine to be the only team to actually have a playoff theme integrated into their court– no one else has ever done it,” he said. “We will do it again this year.”

“This playoff campaign enhances our brand so much and gets everyone to raise their eyebrows, and it is only for a limited time during the playoff season every year.”

Those are fluff quotes, I’ll concede, but there is no lack of thought and effort on the Sixers’ part, and it is a drastic departure from where they were a decade ago as a Comcast-backed afterthought.

More important, they believe they are the marquee team in the NBA, or at least the East.

And one of its top TV draws.

“With the Lakers not being in the playoff picture and us being in the East, in this city, in this time in sports, and with this team, we’re the number one draw,” Heck noted with more than a hint of pride.

“We expect to be the number one focus for the NBA during this playoffs and I think it’s probably parallel paths with the Golden State Warriors.”

Of course, locally the Sixers are pretty heavily scrutinized, and Heck lamented to me the treatment the team had gotten on local sports talk radio that day, after a loss to the Bucks.

“The reality is that we’re gonna be a 50-win team for the second year in a row, and you would think we’re a 5-win team sometimes,” he said. “[But] we’re pretty excited about going into the playoffs.”

In that way, the severed snake coming together is more immediately appropriate, and with a starting lineup that has only played 10 games together, necessary.

“I think the city will be completely behind us and we’ll be doing this together,” Heck said. “So this is a great time to be a Philly sports fan and certainly a Sixers fan.”

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[allthingstailoredlive-blog]

Top 35 Albums of 2016

I’ve heard several different people argue that 2016 was where the music matched the of our newly elected President: trash. While there were a fair share of tepid releases, there were even more gems and masterpieces released as well. It marked the comeback of some major industry icons, the big break from some under the radar talents, and the domination of a legend. Below you will find my ranking for the top thirty-five albums of 2016. Feel free to comment with your opinions and feedback.

35. Ariana Grande, “Dangerous Woman” — Not quite on level with her first two studio albums, D.W. takes some risks where Grande has yet to explore. While standouts “Sometimes”, “Touch It”, and “Leave Me Lonely (featuring Macy Gray) are true delights, her transition falls short on tracks such as the unconvincing “Bad Decisions”, the overdrawn”I Don’t Care”, and the overrated radio-tune gem that is “Side to Side”. The album is probably the most evident of all of her releases that she is still trying to find her own sound, though there are some delights along her journey.

34. Shy Glizzy, “Young Jefe 2” — One of the most anticipated projects in the urban market was “Young Jefe 2” from Shy Glizzy. While ultimately the work doesn’t offer many full length tunes that enable you to crave it, it does suffice as a guilty hip-hop pleasure for 2016. Gems such as “Waiting on My Time”, “Rounds”, and “How It Go” prove that the rhymer can spit real life lyrics aligned with versatile concepts — a rarity amongst his generation’s peers.

33. Meghan Trainor, “Thank You” — Trainor’s sophomore release continued her trend of radio friendly pop tunes (“No”, “Me Too”), with some lavish, soul ballads (“Champagne Problems, “I Won’t Let You Down”) proving she why she continues to evolve as an artist. The standout track of the album is the median between these two styles, “Hopeless Romantic”, which has single written all over it. While the album didn’t exceed expectations in terms of sounds, it provides curiosity to what may come of her work in the future.

32. Childish Gambino, “Awaken My Love” — Another highly anticipated album in the hip-hop community came from Mr. Gambino. Riding high off of the success of his television show, “Atlanta”, he couldn’t have released new music at a greater time. Rich in sounds for the eerie and dramatic, the album takes an alternative route than that of “Because The Internet” album, while still focusing on real life centered lyrical content.

31. Blake Shelton, “If I’m Honest” — Adding to controversy this past year was the ever-blossoming relationship between superstars Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton. Sparking his album was about the relationship, the ‘honest’ approach behind the album lived up to expectations in a raw, yet predictable approach to his usual content. While a pleasant listen for Shelton fans, doesn’t overly add to the drama or impact of his relationship with Stefani.

30. Fifth Harmony, “7/27″ — One of the greater surprises this year was the quality behind pop girl-group, Fifth Harmony”. Riding off of the success of their single, “Worth It”, the group quickly capitalized with a sophomore release, leading to their second top-ten single, “Work From Home”. The album dances with balladry with the reflective standout, “Write On Me”, and showcases superstar powers with tracks “Flex (All In My Head)” and “Not That Kinda Girl” featuring Fetty Wap and Missy Elliot respectively.

29. John Legend, “Darkness and Light” — 2014 was the biggest year of John Legend’s career. It took him to new heights after being in the music business for a decade. Taking his time to properly carve out his next release to the world, “Darkness and Light” shed ‘light’ on where he planned to go next. While the lead single, “Love Me Now”, is a slight departure from his adult-contemporary work that has followed his career, the majority of the album sticks to typical John Legend formula. The tracks “Overload” and “Penthouse Floor”, are singles waiting to dominate urban radio, with the assistance of Miguel and Chance The Rapper respectively.

28. Miranda Lambert, “The Weight of These Wings” — One of the most consistent workers in country music is without a doubt Miranda Lambert. It isn’t just because she releases new music, but she releases QUALITY good music. Need proof? Listen to these cuts from the album: “Vices”, “We Should Be Friends”, and “Smoking Jacket”.

27. Shawn Mendes, “Illuminate” — For his sophomore release, Mr. Mendes further embellished in the sound that made him a hit with young teens the year prior: heartwarming ballads and luscious tunes to churn. Lead by the single “Treat You Better”, you’ll learn early that no single on the record quite tops that one, or that of “Stitches” from yesteryear; but that doesn’t mean you won’t find pleasant listens such as “Patience” and album-opener, “Ruin.

26. Post Malone, “Stoney” — After creating quite the buzz with “White Iverson” earlier in the year, Malone’s first full length album proved that he could handle the pressures of a new release. The album luckily doesn’t focus so much on the mainstream style that it’s lead single invokes, but that doesn’t say that it lacks appeal either. The Justin Bieber assisted “Deja Vu” is one of the albums greatest gems, while listeners will surely find plenty more worth vibing to.

25. Kid Cudi, “Passion, Pain & Demon Slaying” — It has been an interestingly rocky past few years for Kid Cudi. His personal life has been not just bait for the tabloids, but also for fellow rappers (just ask Drake). Luckily, that hasn’t stopped his abilities to produce a consistent album worth waiting for. Lead by singles “Frequency” and “Surfin”, the album would return Cudi to the sound that made him one of the leaders of the alternative rap game. Drawing inspiration from his first album, the album is broken into chapters. Standouts include “Swim In The Light”, “Baptized In Fire”, and “Cosmic Warrior”.

24. Usher, “Hard II Love”–It had been an overwhelming four years since Usher last blessed our ears with his music. Moreover, for his traditional, old-school Usher fans, it had been well past that since they had received music that they were satisfied with. Despite your opinion on what his past had produced, his current was a steady body of work. The lead single, “No Limit”, showed fans the the veteran still could deliver an urban radio gem. As for his slow jams, “Missin U” and “Tell Me”, prove he can still sing effortlessly amongst the records in his prime. Welcome back, Usher!

23. Britney Spears, “Glory” — To this date, Britney hasn’t been able to find a sound or album that recreates the magic of ‘Oops…’ or ‘Britney’, and critics don’t let her forget it. For “Glory”, Britney let go of those antics and simply focusing on the music. From start to finish, this album easily produces Britney’s finest collection of songs in over a decade. The songs, with the exception of the lackluster “Private Show”, display an album that is a full body of work, starting with the standout “Invitation” and its effortless transition into the G-Easy featured single, “Make Me”. Britney also ventures into new sounds with the reggae-sexy “Love Me Down” and “Slumber Party”, and delivers sonic perfection on the edgy “Liar”. If there’s any doubt to whether or not teen-pop’s most prized possession still has it eighteen years later, listen to “Glory”.

22. Alicia Keys, “Here” — It’s hard to believe Alicia Keys has been around for sixteen years. Unfortunately, for her past few releases, it has been somewhat apparent. That changed with 2016’s defiant “Here”. The album follows no current trends whatsoever, not even that of her own past works. The album is complete with conversations and interludes to transition between the different songs. Keys confidently displays her message through rap-styled delivery, playing with the apparent change in her vocals in an array of different manners. The true gem of the entire album comes in the form of lyrically, musically, and delivery is an absolute masterpiece: “Illusion of Bliss”.

21. Fantasia, “The Definition of…” — In search of a new-retro style sound, Fantasia produced what was a complete sleeper of the year. With production that perfectly blends with her rasp and power, the entire album gradually progresses and telling a story: the definition of the woman who is Fantasia, and not just the artist. She experiments as well with more gospel-tingled tracks, with a surprising cameo from Tye Tribette, and country music with the daring “Ugly”. Standouts include “No Time For It”, “When I Met You”, and “Sleeping With the One I Love”.

20. Travis $cott, “Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight” — Alternative rap has become a popular sound and trend in current music. No one currently showcases this with such mastery the way that Travis $cott does. His second full-length album showcases his versatility as a producer, as an lyricist, and as a storyteller. Features aside, he holds his own on the same track as Kendrick Lamar in standout, “Goosebumps”. If this album is any indication, expect to see many more great moments from Mr. Scott.

19. Rihanna, “Anti” — The first major release of 2016 came from Rih-Rih herself. Lead by her historic number-one single, “Work”, the album shows why Rihanna continues to dominate the music scene. The album features some of her absolute finest ballads (“Love on the Brain”, “Same Ol’ Mistakes”), and her at her absolute finest (“Needed Me”, “Kiss it Better”). While in some tracks its evident she should not reach of showcasing vocality, such as “Higher”, the album is still a solid welcome. See the full review for this album available on a separate page.

18. A Tribe Called Quest, “We got it from Here…Thank You 4 Your service” — An as a formal goodbye from one of the most acclaimed hip-hop groups to ever grace a microphone, A Tribe Called Quest blessed listeners with this cry for nostalgia. While not their finest body of work, it easily outpaces many of the releases from today’s rappers with its underlying messages, intellect, and assertive abrasion. To name just a few standouts, would take away from the overall message of the album so I’ll suggest to start with “The Space Program” and end with “The Donald”.

17. Metallica, “Hardwire…To Self Destruct” — There is no discussion on the greatest in heavy metal, without the inclusion of Metallica. After an eight year gap between this and their most recent work, this album proves why they should still be included in the discussion. The title track, “Hardwired”, speaks volumes for itself and sets the pace for a hard hitting album that rocks on all the way through.

16. Maxwell, “BlackSUMMERS’night” — Seven years is too long of a gap for what we need and deserve from Maxwell. He is such a gift to music. Changing the presentation of the title from his last effort, Maxwell reminds audiences why we fell in love with his last collection of greatness. The lead single, “Lake by the Ocean”, was just a sampler of an infectious collision of gems. The opener, “All The Ways Love Can Feel”, I would argue as one of the greatest songs of the entire year. If you’re looking for Maxwell at his finest, listen to the track “Hostage”, which is the perfect median from his last two albums. In entirety, the album is genius and draws large anticipation for where he will take listeners in the final installment of this trilogy.

15. Common, “Black America Again” — In the midst of the drama that is the election, Common produced one of the greatest odes to Black America in recent memory. From the cover art, to his HBCU campaign via social media, Common’s message was clear. And his album did not fall short of displaying that genius in work. The album’s closing track, “Letter to the Free”, is a perfect depiction and ending message to advocate for the message presented in a defiant, bold album worthy of its acclaim.

14. Lady Gaga, “Joanne” — One of the most overlooked projects from 2016 is the newest release from Lady Gaga. Known for her bold, daring pop creations, Joanne is one of her most personal releases to date and matches up with some of her best work. The lead single, “Perfect Illusion”, builds off of the successes that her former lead singles have seen in style and structure, but the remainder of the album explores the core of the pop star, revealing a side that’s been masked over the years. “Million Reasons” is one of her best singles to dates because the lyrics and power of her singing speak alone free of overproduced synths. “Grigio Girls”, “Hey Girl”, and “Angel Down” prove why she’s one of the greatest songwriters of her generation.

13. Jeezy, “Trap or Die 3” — A veteran to the rap game, Jeezy has seen many commercial successes. After experimenting with different arenas of rap, he returns to his roots: trap music. On an album that is feature heavy, Jeezy pulls his own weight with some of the most well thought out bars of his entire career. The production is also amongst his finest on an album from start to finish. While every track stands out for its own reason, “Sexe (feat. Plies)”, “Ain’t Bout That”, and “Pretty Diamonds (feat. Chris Brown)” confirms he is back in his element of trapping behind the microphone.

12. J. Cole, “4 Your Eyes Only” — Similar to the release of his last effort, “4 Your Eyes Only” follows the low-promotion approach to music rollout in attempt to let the music speak for himself. While the effort doesn’t surpass that of either of his two more recent works, it does suffice as a diligent listen. “Deja Vu” and “Folding Clothes” are standouts on an album that presents Cole focusing more on consistency than progression.

11. “The Hamilton Mixtape” — Released in the last month of the year, “The Hamilton Mixtape” is the epitome of nostalgia. As a compilation set comprised for the Broadway spectacle of the same name, this album does something that is a rarity amongst even the greatest of soundtracks (Titanic, the Bodyguard), sound like one cohesive body of work. Every song speaks its own story and brings to life the drama behind the Broadway production. The soundtrack is truly a well-vested production worthy of listening.

10. Sia, “This is Acting” — Long before she was a pop star herself, she was a critically acclaimed songwriter. For her most recent release, Sia’s primary interest was to showcase her skills as a seasoned, talented songwriter. Though the album is deeply regarded as being “impersonal”, it is very much an album true to its concrete form: a concept album. “Cheap Thrills” was such a gem that half it made folks realize Sia actually had an album out. Her genius collaboration with Kendrick Lamar is another stand out from the album and the title speaks for the record itself: “The Greatest”.

9. Drake, “Views” — Even if you have lived under a rock for the last year, you can recite the melody to “Hotline Bling”. You can recall the splendor that was “One Dance”. And you most certainly can’t state that you haven’t heard the radio banger that was “Controlla”. But the greatest moments on Views are the album cuts. While the album is definitely not a step forward creatively from any of his previous works, it is a steady median for those looking to become in tact with the Drake that was present on “Take Care” and “Nothing Was The Same”. The best song of the entire album is without a doubt the collaboration with Rihanna, “Too Good”, which is the perfect combination of radio and depth. Other standouts include “Redemption”, “Faithful”, and “Fire & Desire”. This is definitely not Drake’s finest hour, but it is without a doubt a steady worthwhile listen that defined 2016.

8. The Weeknd, “Starboy” — “Starboy” was one of the most anticipated albums of the entire year. In a way that many folks I’m sure didn’t expect, it delivered. For those hoping for more of The Weeknd that was on his earlier works, you are going to be disappointed. As evident in the singles from “Beauty Behind The Madness”, The Weeknd wants to continue to evolve as a pop-artist, following his inspiration behind Michael Jackson. That is present the most in album closer and second single, “I Feel it Coming”. Not only is the style reminiscent of Michael’s “Off The Wall” era balladry, but the way that he coos confirms the influence Michael had on his career. That doesn’t say that the record doesn’t include the more edgier tracks, the uncredited feature of Future on “Six Feet Under”, “Party Monster”, “Reminder”, and “Sidewalks (feat. Kendrick Lamar)” provide satisfaction. The album’s finest moments come in the form of the mid-tempo ballads, “True Colors” and “Die For You”, both combining the elements of alternative pop and soulful hip-hop.

7. Solange, “A Seat at the Table” — The perfect title for the perfect arrival of a superstar. Solange has spent majority of her career living in the shadow of her sister’s successes, but not letting any of that define her. She has made music that she believes in and that is just as relatable; it just never quite came all the way together for the masses. And then, there was “A Seat at the Table”. Easily one of the year’s most compelling stories, Solange flawlessly crafts real emotion with theatric, yet understated melodies capped off with slick, seductive production. Every single song and the interludes that coincide tell an intimate story, one worth indeed having a seat at the table to listen to. The interludes don’t at all feel forced together, as they are very reminiscent of vintage Janet Jackson styled-albums. As if “Cranes in the Sky” itself isn’t the gem of gems for the year, also listen to “Borderline”, “Mad”, “Where Do We Go”, and “Don’t Touch My Hair”, and it is clear that we have clearly overlooked a genius, star. Lets hope 2017 more tables are provided for us to have seats at.

6. Kanye West, “The Life of Pablo” — Mental state aside, there’s no arguing when Kanye puts his mind to the studio, fire ensues. ‘Pablo’ is no different. From start to finish, it is obvious that Mr. West has a story to tell, as present in the album’s first song, “Ultralight Beam”. The Rihanna-assisted “Famous” is an ode to controversy in the months that have followed it’s initial release. “Waves” and “Wolves” are also standouts where the production does take control, but not in a way thats overbearing; its very welcoming. While many may argue that many of the songs seem unfinished and a work in progress, the progression is what makes the album that much more enticing and satisfying to the ears. It allows you as a listener to create assumptions and do your own storytelling, which is the goal of any true author and songwriter. For what it’s worth, ‘Pablo’ is an example of Classic Kanye doing Classic Kanye. If you still need proof, just listen to the interlude “Old Kanye”.

5. Frank Ocean, “Blonde/Endless” — The most anticipated record of 2014, 2015, and 2016 was “Boys Don’t Cry” by Frank Ocean. Instead we got “Blonde” and “Endless”, two separate cohesive bodies of work. So why are they ranked together? While “Endless” is one visual gem put together, a la Prince, it serves as a teaser for what could come on a grander stage. That grander stage belongs to “Blonde”. It is hard to even put Frank into a genre, as he just yearns to be someone who continues to excel to new heights with his lyrics, his ad-libs, his harmonizing, and his production. “Nikes” is the perfect opener to those experiencing curiosity to Ocean’s style and sound. “Pink + White”, “Solo”,  and “Self Control” present the vulnerable aspect of being alone, uncertain, and most of all of worth. “Blonde” not only serves as one of the greatest musical releases, it is one of the releases that absolutely defined 2016.

4. Kendrick Lamar, “untitled unmastered.” — Most albums that are put together of unreleased work feel uninspired. There’s not a universal element that brings them all together musically. It is a compilation of songs that were deemed unworthy for the album released at the time of the recording. There is something remotely different about Kendrick Lamar’s version. Weirdly enough, every “leftover” track is a complete gem in its own realm. And for the records to me unmastered, there’s a sense of nostalgia that binds them altogether to where they seem to be all influenced from the same creative vision. Or, perhaps that is why Lamar selected these records — because there was a commonality that he found when listening to them. Whatever the method in discovering the potential in each of the songs, the end product was one of genius. For a man who has been robbed of his full critical accolades, maybe this serves as a teaser for what is to become in 2017. All I know is if this is what leftover tracks from the past few years look like, I fear what the ones we have yet to see released behold.

3. Bruno Mars, “24K Magic” — One of the last releases of the year was Mar’s third studio album. While the title track/lead single follows the formula that took “Uptown Funk” to #1 in 2015, the remainder of the album ventures more into rap-sung gems that bring the soul of the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s all to 2016. And unlike his counterparts, Bruno is fully capable of belting out the finest vocals right along with his cliche songwriting and divine production. “That’s What I Like” is the ultimate not-so-subtle invitation to romance that radios will be eating up in 2017. Meanwhile, “Versace on the Floor” is an infectious ballad dedicated to that special person for an anniversary, birthday occasion. If you’re looking to dance, get lost in the new-jack styled “Finesse”, which could’ve easily fit in on your parent’s wedding reception playlist in the 1980s. With assistance from Halle Berry, “Calling All My Lovelies” steals the show with a melody that flirts with the assumption that “all men cheat”. However, Mars puts up quite the dissertation to defend his actions. And if you’re looking for the churning of classics like “Just The Way You Are” and “When I Was Your Man”, the album’s closer, “Too Good To Say Goodbye” is a complete tear-jerker. Written and produced with the legendary Babyface, the song sounds directly out of the soundtrack to all of your favorite 90’s love stories. For a man who had many doubts about releasing an album that met everyone’s expectations, I think its safe to say Mars has completely exceeded them with the strongest release from any male vocalist of the year.

2. Beyonce, “Lemonade” — ‘You can taste the dishonesty/its all over you breath/as you pass it off so cavalier” coos Mrs. Carter with destain and restrain on the album’s opener, “Pray You Catch Me”. Speculation aside from what influenced the album, Beyonce took us to a place creatively she probably didn’t even think existed. After the slay that was her self-titled fifth studio album and the records it broke, what more was there for her to do? “Lemonade” answers that question with a short film and album that tell the story of woman’s journey back to happiness after being scorn by a lover. It is not an easy journey, just see rock-infused “Don’t Hurt Yourself” or the piano-driven “Sandcastles”. But that doesn’t say the album doesn’t have some fun moments as well; the-IDGAF “Sorry” dominated radio, the reggae “Hold Up” is everyone woman scorn’s first thought, and “6 Inch” is the perfect half-time performance before going back to love and heartbreak. The absolute showstopper, however, is “Freedom”, the rebellious anthem that adds the expertise of Kendrick Lamar. For an artist who has already achieved so many things musically, Beyonce once again cemented her legacy as a legend in this business with arguably the strongest album of her career.

Chance The Rapper, “Coloring Book” — While technically speaking, this was a mixtape and not an album, Chance has officially marked his presence as the future of all music. For an artist who isn’t signed and in control of his own music, he very meticulously crafted the best project of 2016 hands down. From start to finish, the entire project manages to color in the lines and never blur outside of them. The 2 Chains/Lil’Wayne assisted “No Problem” was an absolute juggernaut and still remains a massive hit. But that’s not it, there are so many things to be gained from his record. What he’s able to do perhaps more than any other project released in 2016 is produce an album that feels real and relatable from start to finish. The standout, “Same Drugs”, holds a double meaning. It derives not only from the literal content of the lyrics, but also as a metaphor for reaching new heights professionally and personally from fame and how it causes you to adjust in your life. The sexy “Juke Jam” reminds you of the days of early, dangerous infatuation as you began to understand your hormones. “All Night” should’ve been the highlight of every radio station this fall, and even though it didn’t, it certainly was a playlist favorite for everyone’s functions. To continue on a tangent and attempt to identify just a few stand outs would’ve be a crime as this ENTIRE album from start to finish. And it is evident with his commercial, endorsements, and appearances everywhere the Chance isn’t going anywhere or going to sellout anytime soon. 2017 will be a big year for Chance, with the hope all the recognition he deserves takes him to new mainstream heights. Until then, we have “Coloring Book” and every color properly merged on every page to depict the future of music for years to come, as long as Chance the Rapper is our author.

Here’s to more gems in 2017. Feel free to drop your comments and feedback below.