#i think i fully wrote that chapter from three perspectives

[ghostlynimbus]

I think im going to hold off on posting Cinnamon Spice stuff until I get a chapter finished, because there's such a history of me completely rewriting the chapters a few times to try out different POV's and stuff

I dont want to end up posting a snippet of a ch from one POV and then realize after that that the POV spoils something i dont want to reveal yet.

[vivalas-vega]

new perspectives // part eleven // jake 'hangman seresin x reader

boy oh boy -- I've been working on this part since I posted the last one (and mind you... this version of it I wrote and completed within the last three hours - there's about 10,000 additional words with different versions of this) - I just could not figure out how to continue it and I don't know if I'm happy with it fully but here it is !! this one is more focused on Rooster and Jupiter and their friendship because I haven't gone as in depth with it as I would have liked in past chapters. as always - please let me know what you think !!

new perspectives // part eleven // jake 'hangman' seresin x reader

prologue - one - two - three - four - five - six - seven - eight - nine - ten

add yourself to my taglist

word count: 4.1k

warnings: mentions of war (but nothing too detailed), mentions of gunshot wounds (again, nothing too detailed), slight suggestiveness at the end

The stars above Rooster, twinkling and shining, served as some kind of mockery as he sat on the beach and looked for constellations, though he wasn’t finding any because he wasn’t trying very hard. He wished he could be in his jet right now, wished he could feel the controls in his hands and see the earth below him because maybe then this wouldn’t be so scary, maybe he wouldn’t feel so helpless. 

There was just enough alcohol coursing through his veins for the weight of his emotions to get on top of him, but not enough to forget what he’d heard entirely. He knew what his job was right now. Your last request of him, bestowed not too far from where he was sitting with that sweet smile of yours and eyes full of stars, had been replaying on a loop for the past few hours. Take care of them for me, take care of him. You knew they were equipped to handle this, their lives weren’t all that different from the one you were currently living but there was one key difference that was not lost on anybody… while they were too high above the chaos to truly see, you were down in the middle of it all. While they may have been equipped to handle a friend's deployment, they weren’t all that prepared to think of you as the boots on the ground.

Take care of them for me, take care of him. You knew eventually things would catch up, that the reality of your absence would set in and that when it did they’d need you… and the next best thing was Rooster. You were always thinking eight steps ahead, it’s what made you a good friend and a good doctor, but right about now Rooster found it infuriating. You saw those eight steps ahead, you saw this getting on top of everyone at one point or another, and you made it Rooster’s problem. You knew Jake wouldn’t be able to offer much through his own worry and you wouldn’t have expected him to, but you expected it of Rooster.  

He found himself wishing you’d never connected, never bonded. He wished he hadn’t played Drops of Jupiter that very first night, hadn’t harmonized with you and pulled you out of your shell simply because he couldn’t help himself. He wished he hadn’t offered to tour houses on your behalf, hadn’t spent countless hours working alongside you to bring your vision to life. He wished you’d never looked his way because you saw him in a way that was terrifying, you understood him and you pushed him. You pushed him further in his rekindling with Maverick, and you pushed him right into Eliza’s arms because you knew what he needed and what he wanted.

He wished he’d never realized his infatuation with you wasn’t romantic, because maybe if he’d chalked it up to being an asshole with secret feelings for someone who belonged to the man who saved his life he wouldn’t be sitting here right now with worry eating a hole through his stomach. Maybe he would have distanced himself from you, kept things cordial and casual to protect his own heart, but he did realize. He did see that it wasn’t romantic and it never was, he was simply misreading his own emotions because he’d never had a friend like you before. He’d never admit it in the light of day because he found such terms ridiculous but you were his platonic soulmate, through and through. And right about now he wished he’d never figured that out.

He wished none of it had ever happened, because here he was sitting on the beach feeling so utterly helpless because you’d bestowed an impossible task on him and he couldn’t even be mad at you because he’d heard it. One minute he was telling you he loved you, on his way back into the bar to give you space with the man you really needed, the next you were under fire… and you seemed calm. In the face of it all, your tone hadn’t changed, your disposition hadn’t changed. You’d told Jake you loved him without an ounce of fear or apprehension in your tone and hung up, because this was a common occurrence for you now. In the face of it all, you were fine, and here he was sitting on the beach struggling to keep it together.

Except, he didn't wish any of those things at all because you were you, and he couldn't imagine not having you in his life. And so he was trying, because that’s what you’d asked of him. If you could do the impossible, if you could save lives with those two little hands of yours under gunfire or worse, he  could keep it together. He could do what you asked of him. He’d remain calm and collected, his usual goofy self to keep the anxiety at bay the best he could, because that’s what you needed. You’d asked for them, but really you’d asked for yourself. You needed to know Rooster was looking out for them so you didn’t have to worry, because you had enough to worry about. 

And that’s exactly what he did… he went back into the bar and got Jake a fresh drink, set him up in front of the dartboard with Coyote. He’d filled everyone in on what happened. She’ll be fine, this is her life now and she’s Jupiter. She’ll be fine and so will we because she doesn’t want us spinning out, she wants us here having fun with each other so that’s what we’re going to do.

And then he’d lingered, made sure everyone made it home safely and wandered out onto the beach to look at the stars and feel everything he knew you didn’t want him to. “There’s only so much you can ask of me, JJ,” he whispered to himself as he took in the mass of twinkling lights above him because he was choosing to believe you were under this sky too, and though you couldn’t hear him, maybe you could feel it. You could feel that he was keeping up his end of the promise, and that you needed to keep up yours. 

“I know I haven’t talked to you in a while dad, but… well, if you’ve been paying attention I don’t need to fill you in,” he started, openly talking into the night air because this was what he did. When it all got to be too much, when things started to get on top of him he looked to the sky and talked to Goose. “I don’t know if you’ve got any connections up there, I hope you didn’t use them all up sending Hangman after me and Mav but… she needs to come home. Please don’t let what happened to mom happen to Jake,” he said, choking on his words before clearing his throat. “Please don’t let what happened to Maverick happen to me. She’s my best friend, and I… I can’t lose her. Jake can’t lose her. None of us can.”

He was pleading because he knew he was right, and he knew he wouldn’t be able to uphold his promise to you if you didn’t come home. He wouldn’t be able to take care of Jake, or Coyote, or Phoenix… he wouldn’t be able to take care of himself. You swooped in as this mysterious old friend of Hangman’s and won everyone over in the course of an evening, and you only grew more important with each passing day. They’d all been friends before you, but in the wake of you they became a family. You were the glue, you were the last to join the group but you became the nexus, and if they lost you he didn’t know what would happen. He didn’t want to find out.

So he let himself cry, let a few tears slip before saying goodbye to his old man and packing it down. He couldn’t let himself spiral any more than he already had, and he couldn’t have you coming home to realize he hadn’t kept his promise when you’d kept yours. He spent the next day and a half being Rooster, he was goofy and borderline annoying but he kept everyone together, he made sure everyone kept their spirits high and their worry to a minimum, and he made sure Jake got out of bed. He did what he could, and in the end it was everything because there the squad was with beers in their hands and smiles on their faces as they watched Jake kick Coyote’s ass, because even though he was falling apart and he didn’t know if you were even alive, he’d never give anyone the satisfaction of ousting him at his own pool table.

“Any word?” Bob asked quietly to Phoenix who shook her head and when he let out a relieved sigh the few people in hearing distance snapped their attention to him, varying degrees of disbelief and disgust on their faces. “If she were dead we’d know by now.” he supplied, and while his lack of tact was surprising, Bob was always mindful of what he said and how he said it, this served to ease people’s nerves. He was right. If you were dead, Jake would have been notified by now and none of them would be standing around the bar.

“We’ll know when we know,” Rooster said before walking down to the bar to get a fresh drink but something stopped him in his tracks, a brief flash in the distance beyond the windows that had him questioning his grip on reality because it was gone just as quick as he’d seen it… but he could have sworn he saw you. He tried to push past it, blame it on fried nerves and too much on his plate but he couldn’t. He had to be certain so he pushed past those doors and tentatively stepped out onto the beach, “way to go, Rooster. You’ve officially lost it,” he muttered to himself as he peeked around the side of the building but he hadn’t lost it. He saw what he saw, and he stood there gobsmacked as he got full sight of you, your body facing outwards towards the ocean with your hair messily strewn across your shoulders and donning a standard issue uniform… minus the top which left you in a tight tank with a concerning amount of gauze wrapped around your arm.

“JJ?” he asked, approaching slowly and you startled, jumping as you turned to face him and he could see it clear as day. You were scared, and while the appropriate assumption would have been everything you’d gone through, maybe the story linked to those bandages, he knew you well enough to know that wasn’t it. There was something else keeping you outside the bar instead of reuniting with your family.

“Roo,” you started, but you didn’t have anything else to say so it fell flat. There were tears in your eyes and you looked relieved but that fear was just under the surface and his steps were fast to close the distance, wrapping you up in his arms as carefully as he could and he was almost taken aback by the way you gripped onto him, latching on with seemingly no intention of letting go.

“How long have you been out here?” he whispered into your hair and he felt you shudder beneath him.

“A while,” you answered, and he realized that shudder was a humorless laugh. “I didn’t… I don’t know why, I just couldn’t-” you tried but your voice was thick and you didn’t need to say anything more. He understood. He knew coming home would be difficult for you, especially under these circumstances, and he didn’t need you to explain that you weren’t out here because you wanted to be, but because you felt like you couldn’t go inside.

“I know. You’re home and that’s what matters,” he pulled back to look at you but he didn’t go far, keeping his grip firm on you because he had a feeling it was what you needed. Much like the way you’d loop your hand through his when you were telling a story, so animated and excited you could barely get the words out fast enough, because you needed the physical tether. You needed to feel grounded so you didn’t get swept away by whatever it was you were saying or thinking. 

“I uh…” you shook your head and cleared your throat. “I got evacuated, by the time this healed and I was cleared I’d be going home anyways,” you said, nodding to your shoulder. “I didn’t call and I-”

“Stop, you had bigger things going on,” Rooster said, cutting you off entirely. He had tears in his eyes looking down at you, your hands gripping his arms so tightly and your features so soft and vulnerable in stark contradiction to the khaki pants and clunky boots and suddenly he felt selfish. “Let me go get Jake,” he started, beginning to pull away from you but he stopped when your brows furrowed. “You don’t want me to?”

You shook your head, “no… no I do, I just… god, I keep doing everything wrong,” you sighed. “I signed up to go to war without so much as a heads up, I told you first, I… I couldn’t even call to tell him I was okay before just showing up and standing out here lost in my own thoughts for half an hour,” you let out another humorless chuckle. “I keep doing this wrong.”

“You’re doing the best you can. You know he doesn’t expect anything from you, right? He doesn’t have some grand idea about how this would go, he knows this isn’t going to be like your reunion at his tap out or at your match day,” he said and you smiled sadly.

“I forgot I told you those stories,” you said. 

“That’s not what he’s expecting, he’s… you know, he handled it better than I thought he would but he hasn’t been okay and that’s just because all he wants to know is that you are. He wants to know that you’re mostly in one piece, and he wants to hug you the way I am right now- well, okay… maybe not the way I am because it has been several months since you left and I would imagine-” he started to joke and you let out a laugh… a real one, and you went to push his shoulder, disentangling yourself from him but it only served to make you wince.

You shook your head when his eyes widened, “it’s okay, just sore. You’re right… will you- will you go get him? And be cryptic,” you said, referencing the way Jake had called Rooster out minutes before your call disconnected. “I don’t know if I’m ready for everyone yet.”

“On it,” he replied, already moving to head inside.

“Wait, Rooster?” you called and he stopped, turning to face you. You gave him one of those blinding smiles, one that felt like a glimpse of the you before you left, the one that didn’t wear standard issue khakis and clunky boots, the one that wasn’t harder and shaper, and the one that hadn’t confessed to him you didn’t know if you were okay. You gave him that smile that was so you as you ran and jumped into him, squeezing him so tightly it sucked all the air from his lungs and he laughed as he caught you, twirling you around. “Thank you.” 

“What for, JJ?” 

“For being my person.” 

“Thanks for coming home,” he replied and you gave him one more squeeze before dropping down to the ground and he gave you a nod before disappearing inside. You resumed your earlier pacing, already feeling lighter after seeing Rooster and for as selfish and awful as you felt for always getting this wrong with Jake, it took the edge off. It made seeing him feel less daunting, and while you’d spent the previous half hour working yourself into a tizzy about how he would react or what he would say you now felt silly. Rooster was right, all he wanted right now was you, just like you wanted him. He wouldn’t be mad at you for not calling, he wouldn’t be mad at you for having a reunion with Rooster first, he would simply be your Jake. 

“What the hell is so urgent with your precious truck? I don’t even want to be here but you made me and now you’re ruining my streak,” you heard Jake complaining as the door to the bar opened and you couldn’t help but chuckle as you waited for them to round the corner.

“Okay, first of all, it’s not a truck, it’s a Bronco,” Rooster corrected, “and once again you might not want to be so hard on me when you see what it is,” he added and you couldn’t fight the smile on your face. You weren’t okay and you knew that, but you would be because you had them. You had your people and you were home, and that’s all that mattered.

“What does that- what the fuck?” You’d walked closer, not wanting the distance to be any further than it already was when he rounded the corner and he nearly walked right into you. “Jupiter?” he asked, blinking in surprise and simply staring at you because he couldn’t be certain what he was seeing was real. 

“Hey you,” you replied, ignoring the single tear that streamed down your cheek and you let out a laugh as he crushed you in a hug, lifting you off the ground and forcing your legs around him to keep your balance. 

Rooster stood and watched for a moment, soaking in this moment of unbridled joy between his two best friends before taking his leave. “So much for it not being like the tap out,” he said and you mouthed thank you to him over Jake’s shoulder as he went back inside. 

“What the hell are you doing here?” he asked, one hand firm on your waist and the other cupping your thigh as you pulled back slightly to look down at him, to commit that beautiful face of his gazing up at you with pure adoration to memory.

“It’s a long story and I… I’m not ready to talk about it yet,” you answered and he nodded, slowly lowering you to the ground to cup your face and press a kiss to your forehead.

“You don’t have to, not until you’re ready, I just…” he pulled back to look at you again and the emotion in his eyes cracked your heart wide open, and with it the flood of anxiety and uncertainty you’d pushed aside. “I was so worried something had happened.”

“I’m so sorry, Jake,” you started, that single tear giving way to an onslaught and his face crumpled at the sight. “I should have called, I should have-”

“Hey, no no no… that’s not what I meant,” he said, trying to reassure you as he smoothed his hands along your back. “I’m just so happy you’re home,” he said, trying to quell your tears but it was no use. He finally got a chance to really look at you, to soak you in and his heart broke when he noticed the bandages around your arm and you started to shake your head.

“Come on, come sit with me?” you asked and he nodded, catching one of your hands as you walked further out onto the beach and sank into the sand and he looked at you expectantly, waiting for you to find the words. You didn’t know if you were ready to talk about it yet but you needed to, and you knew he wouldn’t be able to let it go no matter how hard he tried to be supportive. “What you heard… we got ambushed, I’m still not entirely sure what happened but uh… it wiped most of the camp out,” you said, voice shaking and Jake tried to keep his feelings off his face as you spoke. “My call to Rooster saved my life, anyone that was near the command center-” you cut yourself off with a shake of your head and he squeezed your hand in reassurance. “I did what I could, I tried to get to as many people as I could but there wasn’t enough time, or enough hands and I got caught in the crossfire,” you said, gesturing to your arm. “It was a lucky shot, if you could even call it that. I’ll be okay, just not cleared to work yet which is why I’m home. It’ll be another few weeks before I am and at that point my deployment would have been over.”

“J, I’m so sorry…” he started, his hand gently cupping your arm just beneath the bandages. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that,” he said, pulling you into him and you moved into his lap to wrap your arms around him more easily, not paying any mind to the way you felt your stitches tugging.

“I’ll be okay. I can’t… I don’t think I can tell you any more, not right now.” You pulled away to look at him seriously, “it’s not that I don’t want to, it’s just… things are different over there, I was different over there. I did things and I saw things I can’t begin to unpack right now but I want you to know that I plan to set something up at the hospital, a specialist to talk to so I can sort it out. I just… right now I really need everything to just go back to normal.”

“There’s no rush, sweetheart. You’ll tell me when you’re ready and if you never do, well… that’s alright too, as long as you talk to someone. All I cared about was you getting back home to me, even if Rooster had to get the first look at you,” he teased and you pouted.

“In my defense he wandered out and found me, that wasn’t intentional,” you protested.

“Yeah sure, whatever… the pornstache is your person and I just have to deal with that.”

“He might be my person but you’re the love of my life, you know that right? You are who got me through everything over there, and you are who I thought about day in and day out.”

“Oh yeah? And what exactly is it you thought about?” he asked, that famous smirk of his playing on his lips and you rolled your eyes.

“The audacity to call Rooster pornstache when you are trying to put the moves on your wife who just got back from war!” you laughed and he shifted you in his lap, pulling your leg to the side so you were straddling him and the contact on your core elicited a reaction that completely undercut the way you were trying to tease him.

“You did say you wanted everything to go back to normal,” he muttered, letting his lips trail along the column of your neck and he was right… you did want everything to go back to normal and this was something you’d thought about every moment you could while you were gone. 

“This is utterly indecent,” you sighed, feeling him growing hard beneath you and you pushed him back because if he kept going you’d scandalize the beach. “And mind you we are both in our uniforms right now,” you added.

“Yeah, by the way? This is super hot,” he said, letting his eyes trail over you appreciatively. “You’ve got a real Lara Croft thing going on right now and I’m into it.”

“Lara Croft!” you laughed, “she never even wore pants.”

“Please let me objectify my super hot, super tough wife in peace, thank you,” he said, and as you stared down at him you realized you hadn’t kissed him yet and you couldn’t believe you’d overlooked it. You pressed your lips to his softly, all pent up love and emotion but quickly it turned hungry… all tongues and biting lips as you gripped his biceps. 

“Take me home then, objectify me all you want, Lieutenant,” you said, pulling away to catch your breath and his eyes darkened as he was quick to stand pulling you up with him and you couldn’t help the squeals and laughter falling from your lips as he hurled you over his shoulder. You felt everything in your life right now was unsteady, you had no idea to come back to civility after what you’d been through but you had the tools to do it the best you could, and more importantly you had Jake who was everything you needed him to be and more. 

There wasn’t any sort of guidebook you could follow, and you didn’t know if this was how your return should have gone. You thought maybe you should be more damaged, you shouldn’t be laughing as your husband ran across the beach with you in tow, or maybe that’s exactly what you should have been doing. You didn’t really know, and you didn’t really care because you were home, and whatever came next you’d handle as it came with Jake by your side.

taglist: @mamaskillerqueen @clancycucumber230 @the-romanian-is-bae @alldaysdreamers @zzsloth @emma8895eb @novagreen04 @classyunknownlover @purplevortexx @mamachasesmayhem @ohgodnotagainn @smoothdogsgirl @swiftsgirlfriend @memoriesat30 @the-fandom-ness @midnightmagpiemama @charles11700 @angelbabyange @wildxwidow @sp1rit-realm @alluringshawn @taytaylala12 @starcatcher48 @buck-nasty @misshoneypaper @4evinlovewithfictionalmen @devil-angel-winchester @mamamaystbr @callsignspirit @thegodessc @failuretothrivestuff @olliepig @cruelmissdior @underaveragefangirl @grxcieluvr @amatswimming @camilaricci @nolita-fairytale @dempy @pinkpantheris @aviatorobsessed @tiredqueen73 @pona-pura-vida @binnieslove @nik2blog @waklman @abaker74 @halstead-severide-fan @percysaidnever @memeorydotcom @eli2447 @dumb-fawkin-bitch @toobouquet @a-v-a123 @rae-you-gotta-be-kidding-me @86laura11 @justenoughmadnesss @yoonbutterfly @mariaenchanted @boisewaffles @shanimallina87 @djs8891 @Genius2050 @stargazer-88 @chloeforde @kmc1989 @casa-boiardi @lostinwonderland314 @elenavampire21 (if your name is struck through, it means I couldn't tag you - so sorry!)

[whatlovelybones-if]

Hi I loved your demo for lovely bones, went to your blog and saw you have multiple WIP's planned. This is fully from a state of concern and of course you are allowed to do as you please, but I would be cautious with starting too many projects at once. I've seen too many authors get overwhelmed and burned out because of it. Even one IF-project is a major undertaking which takes a lot of time, planning and energy. I assume you also have a daily routine and other things occupying your time and these are hobby-projects, which should remain fun and not a source of stress. As a reader I've been burnt too many times by becoming invested in a wip and then seeing them be abandoned, and I'd hate to see that happen with this one. In any case I wish you the best of luck!

i completely understand your perspective. there are many cases of authors getting super burnt out while juggling too many projects and it's a genuine issue. however, i also believe that not everyone feels like that. i, for example, get burnt out when i work on one project constantly with no other stories to refresh my mind with. that was what happened with WLB, and it's what happened with TCS too as i focused on one sole project and didn't have any other project i could use as a backup to unleash some creativity on.

i do think this is the maximum amount of project i'll be working on for now because i don't want to bite off more than i can chew. three is the max i'm willing to work with rn, and since i'm using a priority system to write, i'm on top of my writing schedule with all the other stuff going on in my life.

right now, my priority system is:

these crimson strings {chapter one (rewriting for all four branches)}

the lightning thief {chapter one (finished & soon TBR) & chapter two (writing in-between TCS rewrite)}

what lovely bones {chapter one (finished outlining the major points; already wrote sebas’s entry scene)}

[officialinuyasha]

Yashahime - Takashi Shiina Blog Translation - Sunday S February 2022 [Part 2]

12/27/2021

The first step in the princesses' journey is the village of the exterminators. The spotlight is on the grown up Kohaku-kun, and we look back at the story of “Inuyasha” from his point of view.

This comicalization starts with an entrance like "me and the reader visit the world of 'Inuyasha' with Towa-chan", and reconstructs the anime as "a story that explains the character of Sesshomaru from the perspective of a new set of characters". Therefore, “the testimonies from different perspectives of those who were there in ‘Inuyasha’” are an explanation that serves as a prequel and, at the same time, a guidepost. The past that boss Kohaku has been burdened with is also fully disclosed in the manga, deepening the interest in the complex shades of the father Lord Sesshomaru.

I interpreted Kohaku-kun as “another Sota-kun who lives in a harsh world”, so in the comic version Sota papa is an over-fond father and boss Kohaku also pampers the three princesses (laugh). I wanted to depict him as a grown up praying in front of the graves of his father and companions, whom he killed while he was manipulated by Naraku, and the fact that he hasn’t completely escaped from his past, but that would make the story darker so I modified it.

In the original Inuyasha version, Kirara-chan is a child who doesn't have speech balloons or anything like that, but in the anime version she is quite vocal, and it feels like she talks a lot when she is imported back into the manga. After wondering what to do (about this) in the comicalization, I interpreted it as “from the human Kagome’s point of view, she’s silent, but from the perspective of the princesses Kirara is relatively talkative”. While I was at it, I tried to make her more cat-like, but it turned out that if I made her too much like a cat, she would become a different person (or beast?), like "she's long when you pick her up" or “she presses your face with her paw pads and sticks to you if you are too sticky". For the time being, I drew it like this (laugh). 

I couldn't have a very large group of people riding on Kirara-chan, so a horse was provided for the boss (1) for the later development. When I drew it, I was able to capture the dignity and authority of him as an adult, so I think it was the right choice. By the way, this is just my personal, unofficial backstory, but I think the name of his beloved horse might have been “Kagura”. 

Kagura’s final scene is one of the most outstanding, famous scenes of the series, so I really wanted to pick it up, but the dilemma was that if I went too far into it, the balance of the story would swing too much in that direction because it is so impressive. Therefore, after consulting with Takahashi sensei, I decided to limit it to a small cut from the perspective of Kohaku-kun, who had rushed (to her side) and was watching her. In other words, I really wanted to show how she lived her short life to the fullest, even if it was just a glimpse. Her way of life overlaps with characters who appear later.

The centerpiece of the new chapter is the participation of older brother Kouga, who only appears in the anime original work (2). If the anime word line is extended, Ayame-chan should also be there, but due to page reasons she couldn’t appear. It may be that she is in charge of protecting the pack and house-sitting. 

As I wrote before, Master Yawaragi has been rejuvenated while slightly changing her standing position. This time she has no (spoken) lines, but in the next chapter she will be speaking in the Kansai dialect, so please look forward to it (laugh).

The first volume of the manga, which contains chapters up to last month, will be released around the 18th of January (3). The first print run has been reduced to a small number, so it will probably run out of stock… That’s what I hope… No, running out of stock means that there will be people who want it but can't get it so it’s not something good. It would be nice to say to Shogakukan “Hey!! You should have printed some more!! Hurry up with the second edition!!” with a smug look on my face. Well, there is also a digital edition, so in case you can’t buy in a shop please consider that option in addition to pre ordering and ordering it. Buy it.

Source: https://cnanews.asablo.jp/blog/2021/12/27/9451212

Notes

1- Kohaku. 

2- He refers to the original anime and The Final Act.

3- January 2022.

[elwenyere]

Fic Writer 20 Questions

I was tagged by my beloved @frostbitebakery: thank you so much, my friend!!!

1.) How many works do you have on ao3

56

2.) What's your ao3 word count?

301,664 words

3.) What fandoms do you write for?

So far, the MCU, Star Wars, and Top Gun.

4.) What are your top five fics by kudos?

Call Me By Your (Pet) Name (MCU, Sambucky)

Tactical Engagements (Star Wars, Codywan)

Citation Needed (MCU, Stony)

Helps to Relieve My Mind (MCU, Sambucky)

Good Soldiers (Star Wars, Codywan)

5.) Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I do, yes! Sometimes it takes me a little while to write back if things in real life are hectic, but eventually I do, because I love chatting with readers about what they noticed in a story and what I was thinking about/working on while writing.

6.) What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I have never written what I would call an unhappy ending. But sometimes what we know about the canon ending can still make the ending of a fic bittersweet, and that's true of a fair number of fics I've written. I think the two fics that leave canon angst most fully on the table are my MCU ficlet A Stitch in Time, which is about what else Steve might have done while returning those stones, and my wee Star Wars piece Yes, It Feels Like That, which is a moment with Leia's grief during ANH.

7.) What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I swear: I used to write plenty of fics that were happy all the way through! That happens a lot less frequently now. But Right on Time is just about the happiest ending I could give to a post-war Codywan, and my Sambucky fic Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice is (to me) maybe the funniest fic I've written.

8.) Do you get hate on fics?

I've been very lucky with readers who are largely very generous.

9.) Do you write smut? If so what kind?

I am a relative newcomer to writing smut, but I have dabbled, yes. I'm not sure what kind of smut it is. Feelings-forward, I guess?

10.) Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

I think the only thing I've written that could come close to being classified as a crossover was my very first multi-chapter fic, Should You Choose to Accept It, which included characters from both the mainstream Avengers and Agents of SHIELD and mashed up the plots of Iron Man 3, CA: TWS, AOS Season One, and Mission Impossible 3.

11.) Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I'm aware of.

12.) Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not yet!

13.) Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

Yes! The Stony identity porn/professor AU fic Citation Needed was a collaboration with the incredible @festiveferret, and it is the most fun I've had writing fic.

14.) What's your all time favorite ship?

Cannot pick a favorite, but my first OTP was Mulder/Scully, and they will always have a special place in my heart.

15.) What's a WIP you'd like to finish, but doubt you ever will?

God what a painful question. 😅 I am a stubborn bastard, and I don't know if I've fully admitted defeat on any of my WIPs, even the ones I've neglected the most. But the WIP that's probably been waiting for my attention the longest is the sequel to my Stony fic Three Little Words; or, Five Times Steve and Tony Didn’t Actually Apologize + One Time They Did, which I cannot abandon or scrap for parts because I'm really attached to the bits that I have written, but which I haven't been able to make progress on for a long time. Bug me for snips about it if you like: I would love to be able to share what I have so far.

16.) What are your writing strengths?

A borderline aggressive amount of figurative language, narrative beats that feel layered, and I think I have a decent ear for dialogue.

17.) What are your writing weaknesses?

I'm so, so, so inexpressibly slow, and I also build up increasing levels of anxiety about WIPs when I'm not getting outside perspectives about them, so I find it nearly impossible to write anything longer than 20k.

18.) Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I have experimented with this a little bit in the past, and I'm currently trying it again in a WIP in a language I'm not deeply familiar with, which is nerve-wracking. But I think it can be so effective when done well, and I'm excited to keep growing in that area.

19.) First fandom you wrote for?

Stony in the MCU: a missing-scene fic from Endgame

20.) Favorite fic you've ever written?

I love all my children equally, but my Codywan fic Recollection is probably the fic that felt most ambitious to me at the time that I wrote it: memory-related temporal shenanigans, surreal scene changes, some heavy psychic territory, and my very first smut scenes. I'm proud of how many new things I tried.

----

Open tags for anyone who would like to play!!! This was very fun: @ me with your answers if you'd like to join. <3<3<3

[oswaldthatendswald]

For the fanfic writer emoji ask! (I'm sorry, I've been annoying the heck outta you 😭)

🥺

😈

⛔

💌

🦅

👀

🤩

💔

🥰

Never apologize!!!! I love answering asks! It's so fun. I will skip the first question, because somebody else asked it too and I answered it on that post.

😈 Has there been a point in a story where you did something just to be playfully mean to your readers?

Instead of answering, allow me to present a text I sent to my partner about a bit in chapter 2 of Cry Havoc:

(It's not gonna be in six chapters. I've reworked my outline since then and it'll probably be further). I do this a lot, actually. Add in little tiny details that are meant to be really mean but probably only on reread. Also I do love ending things on cliffhangers. I just love people's reactions.

I'll put the rest of the answers under the cut!

⛔ Do you have a fic you started, but scrapped?

Yes. Many. I start things all the time and then decide not to finish them, for whatever reason. Sometimes I lose interest, sometimes it's too personal, sometimes I get overwhelmed by the scope of a project. I had plans for a reincarnation AU with a younger, deaf Cora and I read about three separate books on deafness to research. Then I got so anxious about writing it well that I had to set it aside. I also plotted out a time travel Doflamingo fic that I just lost interest in (although I've actually used a lot of elements from that one. Maybe someday I'll post the first chapter of it that I wrote).

To clarify, I don't actually feel bad about this. All practice is good, and sometimes a story just isn't meant to be. Forcing myself to work on projects I'm just not feeling is the swiftest path to burnout.

💌 How do you feel about comments and feedback?

I love them <3 I keep screenshots of some of my favourites. I'm not particularly interested in criticism, even the constructive sort, but I've received virtually none of that on my fics.

🦅 Do you outline fics or fly by the seat of your pants?

I definitely outline, but I'm not married to the outline. The broad strokes of a story are pretty much settled by the time I start writing, but the details are in flux almost until a chapter is posted. I start with a very general overview of the story, and then I usually narrow down the details as I go. By the time I'm writing a chapter, I usually have the scenes for the next two or three planned out so that I can make sure the flow will work. It's a system that works pretty well with the serial nature of fanfic writing.

👀 Tell me about an up and coming wip please!

Hmmmm.... It often takes months for me to write a oneshot, so don't expect this any time soon, but I am working on a short fic about Dragon and Rocinante's past together (and how that influences Dragon's relationship with Sabo in the present).

I also have a short fic about Sanji, Zoro, and arachnophobia that is actually fully finished and edited, but I'm not sure if I want to post it yet. It's pretty personal, but also a little bit silly.

🤩 Who is your favorite character to write?

You'd think it would be Cora, because he is my favourite and I love him, but actually it's Doflamingo! I love writing from his POV. His view of the world is just unbelievably fun to explore. He's so remarkably off-kilter that there's a lot I can do with his perspective.

💔 Is there a fic of yours that broke your heart?

Not sure if it counts, but while I was writing the bit about the first times Cora and Law saw someone die (from chapter 5 of No Other Life), I got so emotional I fully started crying. This was, crucially, half an hour before guests were going to start arriving for a family party.

🥰 How do you feel about reader interaction? Are you open to receiving questions about your fics?

I love talking about my fics so much!!! I love questions and I love hearing from readers.

Thank you for the questions!!!

[twosides--samecoin]

"Even his simplest works make people feel ant-small compared to the arresting grandness of the American landscape's most boring viscera."

deacon voice 'Damn, those are some big words in your vocabulary, Cave Boy! Did the new issue of Grognak take place in a mountain valley?'

jokes aside I LOVE the way you wrote codsworth last chapter. in a lot of fic people describe him as just floating around and having a british accent but you described his robot movements in a way that made him real. aperture eyes opening and closing and articulating arms and using all three arms to do stuff. he felt alive in the same way your human characters do

also your RJ. I love how he's an intelligent and observant guy but when it comes to olivia he's like. 1 brain cell walking around his room wondering where his phone is when he's literally holding it in his hands

anyway sorry I don't have an ao3 but I wanted to chime in. you're a really talented writer <3

Me when my own characters' quotes are used against me ^

Hey gamer, thanks for the ask :D

I really appreciate knowing my portrayal of Codsworth works well. I think of writing scenes like directing a film; actors should have some movement throughout the set. It is very rare that dialogue is just back and forth talking with no contextual imagery (and it can be quite repetitive/way too simple when writers rely on, "he nodded, she sighed, they shook their head," etc). Weaving action in-between dialogue is a way of showing us who the character is and what they feel.

People, be they robo-butler or human, tend to do stuff when they talk. Codsworth isn't just a metal ball that speaks with a Bri'ish accent and floats around. He's a fully fledged individual who, aside from the surface-level differences, uses his arms and eyes the same ways we do.

Yeah, about my mans, my sweet cheese, my good-time boy RJ.. We're back in mostly RJ POV next chapter. In many ways, he's been on a roller coaster that only seems to climb up and make horrifying drops from the stratosphere. He's the same guy Jack pushed onto the vertibird in Chapter 1; he still feels the aftershock of his regrets, debts and guilt. But his perspectives are evolving. He's internalized Hancock's advice and is accepting that he can't dismount; that he needs to grow the fuck up and take responsibility - after all, it's not just him on the roller coaster anymore, is it?

Maybe, like his time in Banff, even though oncoming plummets have him terrified - he's beginning to enjoy the hike to the summit.

Unsure what this is all about? Read the fic here -> Long Time Running

[lottiepumpkinofficial]

day 3

chap’s 6,7,8

are we ready?

i’m sat drinking literally the best hot chocolate i’ve ever had while reading today so i’ll probably be in a particularly good mood

i need someone who will hug me as enthusiastically as lola

i love lola, she’s so underrated

i kinda want a version of up from anis perspective like that new twilight book. i feel like it would be so interesting to dig into her psyche and what’s going on in her brain, bc we can assume some things once we find out about saskia, but there’s so many little details and things we never fully get to see

this is so random and i’m probably the only person who’d think of this but micky offers lottie a lollipop- presumably a stripy one- and lottie takes it. often lollipop colouring has carmine (bugs) in it, but lottie doesn’t seem fussed so do you think tompkins is entirely vegetarian?

“childhood friends” mmm sure

okay i know lottie not knowing what partizans are is meant to show how out of place she feels, but it kinda also shows that these kids are a little bit out of touch for assuming everyone knows what they are- i mean they’re specifically relevant to rich and important people, and i know at this point they’re all kids but dude it’s lottie’s first day and they’re assuming either everyone knows what they do or that lottie is also rich. maybe im overthinking this

if i could draw i would draw the three house mothers looking like goddesses (like the princesses in she ra style) next to professor croak as a baked bean

also i regularly forget his name because in my head he is straight up just called baked bean man

honestly baked bean man is such a vibe- stands there letting incredible women be incredible and then just smiles and leaves

once again binah is making sure lottie is up to date with info and doesn’t make her feel bad about it. i love all the binahs in the world

“i wonder if i’ll ever meet one” you already have dear lottie

“i know your secret” and boom, we have stepped fully into our story. i love that this comes right at the end of a chapter, particularly a chapter with a lot of just talking and descriptions because it’s like a mini slap in the face to remind you this is not just a story of a girl at a prestigious school

also once again, we have foreshadowing of lottie’s heritage- this time without even the person who wrote it truly knowing. also “the company of wolves” - lottie is in the company of ‘wolves’ without even knowing it at this point ahhh it’s just so clever when you look really deeply

of all the things to choose from the breakfast she grabs a piece of toast? not even a croissant or something that you can still eat on the go??

okay as much as i’m lottie, im also very ms kuma. actually i think connie must have secretly stalked me while writing the books /j

“‘Holy chocolate biscuit!’” best line

ugh maths class flashbacks i’m so glad i never have to do maths classes again

i wanna hear people’s theories about the red dragonfly and the frog. since red is conch- resolute-brave, maybe it’s suggesting lottie’s struggling to be brave

or maybe ani is the “delicate red dragonfly”, and this whole princess business is hurting her

also the dragonfly is on a lily pad, which we now know to be symbolic of lottie and her heritage

“the dragonfly is generally associated with the symbolic meaning of transformation” - googled

so change has come to lottie and it’s been eaten. i suppose on a simpler level it mostly symbolises her struggles with moving to rosewood

anyway, we’ve now got tension on a few levels and it’s starting to amp up a little- ellie has a surprise, there’s the “present”, lottie feels out of place and now people think she’s a princess. once you get to this point in the book you’re not putting it down, from here on out there’s a question for every answer and new threads to follow. we are the dragonfly, and connie glynn is the frog

[vonlipwig]

tagged by my dear friend @appleteeth <3

Rules: Go to your published works on AO3 and list the first fic you ever published there, the last fic you published, any fic that you wrote for a fandom/ship only once, your favourite fic you wrote in the fandom/ship that has the most works, the fic you wish more people read, the fic you agonized over the most, the fic that sprang fully formed from your mind without any effort, and a work you are proud of—for whatever reason. <3

First fic: A Little Dramatic - a Hot Fuzz fic which I stopped writing after one chapter. Accidentally abandoning WIPs is a running theme for me.

Last fic: Are You There, God? It's Me, Aziraphale - my Good Omens Season 2 Fix-It fic. I have a part-written companion fic from Crowley's perspective languishing in my google docs. Will I finish it? Who knows (probably not).

Only once: Honestly, most of them. I only have 11 fics published on AO3 and 6 of them are a one-time-only fandom post. It's not that I go through hyperfixations/fandoms quickly; it's more that I can seeminly only write if I'm properly ~inspired~. If I can't write the thing in one or two sittings, it's not getting finished. Don't blame it on the good times, blame it on the boogie ADHD.

Favorite fic from the fandom I've written in most: Urgh. OK. So, I have 3 Stardew Valley fics and, I'm not going to lie to you all, they fucking suck. That's not even me being performatively humble - they are Not Good. So, I'm not really proud of any of them. I'm keeping them up because I don't really like deleting things, and I haven't orphaned them because I believe in standing by my mistakes. But yahh boo we hate you.

Fic I wish more people read: check my spelling, wring my neck - my Alone Rangers fic. The potential readerbase for this is incredibly niche to the point that I am genuinely surprised it has just over 100 hits - I honestly believed it was going to tap out at 20. I mainly wrote it for my friends on discord but I think it's quite good and I'm rather proud of a couple of the jokes in it.

Fic I agonized over: you pulled me into focus - as yet unfinished but NOT ABANDONED Ghosts Patcap AU WIP. I continue to agonise over it because it is unfinished and I want it to be finished. I have the final three (ish?) chapters planned out and part-written. The engine is revving but the handbrake is on. Someone please help me.

Fic that sprang fully formed: 'cause you're in my brain, taking up space - Viago/Anton WWDITS fic. The only not-one-shot that I've ever finished. Sure, it's only 2 chapters but that's not the point. The point is that it whizzed out of my brain over 4 days with very little straining involved.

Work(s) I'm proud of: Are You There, God? It's Me, Aziraphale - I'm more proud of this than anything else. I'm not sure why. I just think it reads well. I think I did an alright job in trying to emulate the narrative style of Good Omens.

I'm going to tag @ghosts-of-love @oatmilktruther @bucketsofodo13 and @edandstede <3

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

For the WIP Q&A!

Ramble about your favorite characters you have created for this story and explain how the world they lived in shaped their personalities into who they are in the main plot! <3

Heya, thanks for stopping by! (From my TSP Q&A tag game!)

Ooh this is fun. It's hard to pick a favorite, but here's a few:

Lexi is one of the easiest characters for me to write. This makes sense, she was the one I created first. She used to be more of a self-insert, and while I liked her, it wasn't like I do now. I LOVE writing her plotlines and her scenes for later in the series. Despite not being much like me now, I still find myself relating to her in more meaningful ways. Burn out, and need for friends being the main ones. I like writing how much she cares about the people around her and how much weight is put on her shoulders. I like getting her to moments where she finally just snaps. She's just developed really well.

Gwen was a character I didn't think much of in Draft Four. I liked her, sure, but I didn't really fully Get Her until I reached Part Three of that draft. While it's weak, I got a strong sense of purpose and the core of her character. I ended up loving writing her chapters and having her develop was just so fun. I love planning for things for her to do - so so much. Now she's one of my favorites, so I'm glad that messy ass draft exists.

I can't separate Robbie and Akash if I want to talk about both, but I do love both individually. It's just that they're so close. I love them so much. They make me laugh but their tender moments can make my heart warm or break during drama beats. They're everything I want in a relationship. Akash was originally going to just be a love interest for Gwen because I thought I should have more male characters, but then I gave him a strong charismatic personality and insecurities to match, and I just immediately loved him. Robbie was going to be a side character, Akash's friend, but I wrote two scenes with him and I knew he had to be main cast. These are the two whose chapters I enjoy writing the most, whose dialogue I enjoy writing the most. Both voices are so easy to slip into, and I don't realize how much I miss it until I write in their voice again. Akash has become much more simultaneously level-headed with a brain cell and also more awkward and A Mess. Robbie has become so much more empathetic and more chaotic. They both developed into the best versions of themselves.

Jedi and Carmen are also good to talk about in tandem. Out of the two, Jedi is easier to write dialogue and narration for, but Carmen is more fun and interesting to me. Jedi originally was going to be more villainous before I decided to make his methods more gray and questionable, and I gave him a softer, more formal personality fairly early. I love writing his chapters despite how hard the prep work usually is. They always turn out super good. I have a couple Carmen backstory chapters in Part Two, and they're so hard oh my God. Her perspective is super difficult. But Carmen is one of those characters I find fascinating. Out of everyone, she's the most interesting. I love planning her backstory and writing her dialogue. She's so fun yet so tragic. She originally was a side character but overtook Jedi into a more present, leadership role due to personality alone.

Hope this is good enough! I'm willing to answer more questions about any of them!

TSP intro

TSP tag list (ask to be +/-): @thepeculiarbird @illarian-rambling @televisionjester @finchwrites

@nebula--nix @literarynecromancy @honeybewrites @the-golden-comet

[chocolatepot]

Tagged by @wistfulcynic!

Rules: Go to your published works on AO3 and list the first fic you ever published there, the last fic you published, any fic that you wrote for a fandom/ship only once, your favorite fic you wrote in the fandom/ship that has the most works, the fic you wish more people read, the fic you agonized over the most, the fic that sprang fully formed from your mind without any effort, and a work you are proud of—for whatever reason. <3

First fic: Our Little Gathering, for Chocolate Box in 2016 - Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, specifically the book version. 2016 feels WAY too late because I had an AO3 account long before that, but I guess I was only reading?? The fic is about Arabella's abduction to Lost Hope and her friendship with Emma Pole.

(Not on AO3, but my first fic EVER is Some things never change..., a three chapter continuation of the Enchanted Forest Chronicles from 2000. Oh lord.)

Last fic: It Never Was Anywhere You, the first chapter! Do you like unhinged? Do you like genderbends? Do you like Stizzy? Do you like unhinged genderbent Stizzy??? It's entirely written and will all be posted before Oct. 5.

Only once: I actually have a lot of these from doing multifandom/small-fandom fests. The one I will highlight is A Sensible Couple, the only Sanditon fic I will ever write. It's a Stringer/Charlotte marriage of convenience fic, kind of a fix-it from my perspective.

Favorite fic from the fandom I've written in most: In OFMD, of course. I think it's A Perfect Pair - not my first genderbend but the one where I just let loose. Buckets of angst for both Ed and Stede, an unplanned sex scene that basically wrote itself, and I had to work at the writing in a really satisfying way (to keep them from reconciling too quickly, lol).

Fic I wish more people read: I have an ego and I wish more people read all my works, lmao, but the reception for Fiercely, my brief Marial/Catherine fic (The Great), got me all grouchy. I have every intention of writing more of this ship despite the fact that the fandom isn't into it.

Fic I agonized over: Torn between Powerless and Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, because I agonized over both of these. BTDATDBS was emotionally wrenching to write, as I put Stede through the absolute wringer in it with no reprieve until the end, and I also just couldn't figure out how to accomplish the final chapter, so it put me through the wringer as well. Powerless was ... actually not that hard to write, but BOY did I work myself up over the idea that I was going to be crucified for posting it.

Fic that sprang fully formed: there'll be peace of mind, a hurt/comfort fic where the reunion occurs between a slightly injured Ed and both physically and psychologically injured Stede. It was really magical because @appleteeth's prompts lined up exactly with what I'd been hoping to write.

Work(s) I'm proud of: I was tempted to say Prisons, but I think it's gotta be He That Plays the King, my novella from 2022's Hurt/Comfort Exchange. I'm still slightly amazed that I wrote it, tbh! It's "original slash", very iddy, 30k, about kingship and masculinity and Anglo-Saxon England.

A tag to summon: @ghostalservice, @nicnacsnonsense, @adickaboutspoons, @thetardigrape, @oatmilktruther

[slutsofren]

i want to ask for a directors cut on what happened to the feyre that was supposed to be there but i feel like that may be too spoilery. is that something that will be explained later on? :D

oooh!!! yknow, i was going to touch on it a bit in the fic but definitely not to the fully developed scenario that i created in my mind. but considering me, the author, knows/wrote (lol) what happens to the real feyre i can and will definitely explain!!

reader!feyre will likely never know the exact extent of what happens, especially considering that the way i wrote the surial, a walking-talking magic 8 ball, doesn't know about the details either. and no matter what happens, in the high lady universe the mother and the cauldron will never speak straightforwardly, only in circles and riddles. how fun!! 🤪 i love being silly, goofy, and annoying!!

considering reader (being in their mid-late 20s as a human being thrusted into the body of a literal 10 year old feyre), has their wits more about them than the actual child whose body they're inhabiting, i like to think that it all came down to choice. feyre being the youngest child coming of age in a world that certainly does not give a shit if she lives or dies and with a family (from a book perspective) that is so self-centered they cant look past their own narcissistic bubble, she just opted out of life so to speak.

when reader and feyre briefly shared a mind at the moment of convergence, i think that the cauldron/mother gave them both the choice to look to their future and reader said yes, feyre said no. so they swapped bodies. for a 10 year old to witness war with hybern and (the delicious pain im going to commit) scared the shit out of her and she said nope, nope, that's all you! and jumped ship.

reader on the other hand agreed to stay.

once they fully swapped, the cauldron/mother removed their memories of the future so every single choice that is being made is not being done under the influence of a "right timeline" hence why somethings are similar and somethings are WIDELY different.

ive never been particularly silent that reader!feyre is 100% indulgent and is like a self insert of MYSELF if i was feyre which is why she only makes choices i would make if i was in her shoes. i am a sick romantic at heart with a lot of love to give and very little confidence to show it thus, why i have reader being loved by all three illyrian dickheads lol

and that's why reader was like THREE?? sign me up, im volunteering!! and feyre was like NOPE. nu-uh. then later in their swapped lives when feyre's "spirit" gave reader permission to stay and keep that life, it was a final seal of that metaphorical coffin. this was it, there was no going back. for either of them.

im skimming out over finer details but that's kind of the gist of it? again, these kinds of things won't be explained in the fic simply because a) the suriel doesnt know themselves, b) the cauldron/mother are mischievous as fuck, and c) i have a chapter where the entire truth is laid out and i cant possibly imagine the tension to be any more delectable than reader screaming that she doesnt have all the answers. it kinda fucks hard yknow!

thank you sO SO SO SOOOO much for this question, i fucking love that yall are letting me deep dive. im sending you so much love anon oh my gOD 🌹🤍

[yuniemaki]

A peek into my workflow for canon fics!

Got quite a few questions lately about how I plot longer fanfics, so here's a proper writeup on my current workflow.

One thing to note is that canon is always easier to work with because the worldbuilding has been done for you, and you really only need to focus on setup and payoff as well as the narrative themes. With an AU, you need to build the world and supporting characters as well in order to deliver a similar impact. An AU is closer to plotting an original story, except you don't need to work so hard on the character dynamics.

As such, my plotting differs slightly from canon to AU fics. Since I haven't finished an AU fic yet I'll share my process for canon fics for now (using Trust in the stars - mind the spoilers!).

Hope this helps other fanfic writers out there :) And remember, all these "rules" exist to be broken, as long as you find a way that works for you.

Fics based in the canon universe have no need for worldbuilding aside from your own headcanons, so I typically focus on driving impact through the narrative itself.

First off, I note down the characters that will show up in this fic and try to summarise the main theme in a one-liner (the one liner can be done after you finish everything, that's why I highlighted it in yellow - I only wrote this after I finished a first plot. This one-sentence summary will guide your main theme and ensure your story ends on the right note).

This is how Trust in the stars began:

No details at all at this stage. After this, I used the three act structure to nail down the key moments of the fic. These are usually scenes I've been brainrotting on in full detail; they are usually drabbles or rambles for epic/emotional scenes I envision.

Using the structure, I slot them into the right places and then figure out how to build up to it. Because, as we all know, there is no impact without setup and payoff. And for setup and payoff to work, we need to step back and see the entire story from an organised perspective.

I'm not a fan of breaking down stories into percentages - I prefer to just look at all the acts and its key points, and see if they make sense and build up to each other. Act 2 can be the shortest act for all I care as long as it successfully sets up for the "crisis" that leads into the climax.

(If you have other key scenes that you were brainrotting on, write them down on a separate doc first or at the bottom of the plot doc, but keep the plot by itself for now.)

You'll notice that there are quite a few differences in the final fanfic from this plot, and that's normal. This simple structure just helps you to see the main climatic moments in each act and how it builds up to the final climax.

Again, no details - don't know what kind of poison, don't know what kind of sus activity, no idea what trap Ningguang sends Beidou to.

This is basically my "first draft".

From this draft, I can already tell that there may be issues with "prototype modified ruin guards" in act 2 because:

The climax, where Liyue is defended from a ruin guard army, doesn't seem linked to Ning & Pantalone negotiating

It also doesn't satisfy the aftermath of Ning & Pantalone accepting each other as equals,

Nor does it fully tie back to the one-sentence summary ("rekindles passions for Beidou").

That means I'm missing the central theme I want the story to have - ultimately Trust in the stars is a story of Ningguang and Beidou daring to trust each other, to fall in love.

So just looking at this, I know I need to:

a) rework the climax and potentially make it less epic (so that it becomes personal)

b) after reworking the climax, adjust act 2 to build up to it

After I'm happy with the key moments, I stay on this doc and start fleshing out main story beats for each section of the act. This is an example of how the beats for Act 1 go for the first 2-3 chapters:

These beats help to iron out the smaller questions - for example, what are the characters doing and thinking? What's their motives for each arc of the story?

I never believed in "giving" your characters obstacles to overcome; they will meet and become obstacles simply because of their motivations and beliefs, that are shaped by the circumstances they experience, just as we are shaped by our experiences in life.

That's how they will drive your story towards its ending. Things happen, but all things happen because someone willed it to happen.

Ruin guard army? Dottore was building it because he loves his little experiments. The law is his obstacle; he's doing it in secret. To build experiments, he needs funding, too, and that's why he has an interest in working with Pantalone.

Pantalone beefing with Ningguang? He must want something that she has. Wealth, power - whatever floats your boat. Ningguang is his obstacle because she's gonna say no.

Beidou running errands for Ningguang? It's part of their contract that's been ongoing for years, never mind her interest in Ningguang. The contract itself is an obstacle to the story's goal: falling in love. Business partners to... lovers?

Ningguang ordering Beidou to collect intel? It's part of her vested interest in knowing what's going on in other nations, because she needs to protect Liyue from political threats. The potential danger Beidou faces becomes an obstacle for Ningguang, as she struggles between needing to send Beidou out and fearing she doesn't return.

Ningguang baiting the Fatui? The intel her network delivers has alerted her to suspicious ongoings and she wants to remove this obstacle asap.

Yelan investigating the Fatui? Ningguang ordered it, and Yelan is working for her (plus she likes her job and danger). What Yelan finds also becomes an obstacle for Ningguang as they try to figure out what's going on.

Ningguang ordering Yelan to do that? She must suspect the Fatui are making moves. And she's trying to clear the obstacle of "lack of knowledge" so that she can make her move.

Why does Ningguang suspect the Fatui is making their move? Because Pantalone wants something from Ningguang and has made it clear through sending Dottore to take the bait. Obviously she won't want to give him anything. She becomes his obstacle.

Dottore getting involved? Pantalone got Dottore to work with him with the promise of gaining knowledge or making experiments, which is Dottore's passion anyway.

Not the most flawless example, but see how each character's motivations is based off what they know from another character's goal, and how their reactions drive the plot forward?

I digressed. Anyway...

After I've finished the beats for the whole fic, I build out the points into actual chapters. Having the beats fleshed out for the full story helps immensely with weaving forewarning into early chapters, because I already know what's going to happen in xx chapter and I have all the turning points in mind.

I find that if I start writing without finishing the plot, I find it hard to continue because I simply don't know what the ending is going to be. It's like driving a car on a road without a destination.

I made this mistake once, and that fic is gonna stay at 1/? for a very long time, I assure you...

Anyway, thanks for coming to my ted talk. Let me know if this was useful ily 😭

[questinwitchface]

Apology Post

I posted the first chapter of my fic, “You Probably Think This Poem Is About You (And That’s Because It Is)” and created a Tumblr post to promote it on November 2. This post was shared by @logicheartsoul (A-chan) on Tumblr with tags asking if I’d been inspired by her post. I couldn’t remember what had originally sparked my idea for the fic, only that I’d had the idea months ago, and I told her so in the replies. She came back and said I’d reblogged her post in August. Again, I couldn’t remember what inspired me to write my fic, so I agreed that the inspiration probably came from that post, and I went ahead and added credit to her for the inspiration at the beginning of my first chapter author’s note, adding links to the post as well as her Tumblr and AO3 accounts.

From the interaction we had, I thought A-chan seemed satisfied with that outcome—at the very least, she did not say she was unsatisfied—so I assumed we were good and moved on. I completed the fic and finished posting it on November 14, and I created a companion piece (called “Bucky Barnes’s Poetry Project”) where you can read just the poems, since people liked the poems specifically so much.

On November 16, two weeks after I’d had the initial interaction with A-chan and two days after my fic had already been completed, I received a reply to my Tumblr post telling me that I should also credit A-chan in the promotional post, and within minutes of receiving said message, I edited my post to add that credit. There was no reply after that, so I again assumed we were good.

I was apparently incorrect. I later received a private message (I won’t say from whom since they were kind enough to try to discuss the matter with me privately, but I will say that it was not A-chan). In this private message, the person informed me that I’ve “breached fandom etiquette” by “taking a fully fleshed-out idea for a fic in a post and making it into my own post without asking permission.” The main problem with this, according to the person who sent me the message, is that now if A-chan writes a fic, people will think she is taking from me instead of the other way around. I’ve been informed that my actions would have “gotten me a callout post in the not so distant past.”

For the record, it has taken me three days to respond because I had a funeral to go to shortly after receiving that message (I made the person aware of that as well as my intent to apologize in a private message of my own, which they responded to very kindly) and since then, grief has been eating my brain and I simply have not had the energy or mental clarity to respond to this situation. I’m not sure that I really do now, but I feel bad letting things go much further without some kind of response, so here we are, and I apologize if any of the brain fog is apparent in this post.

As I’ve already said in replies on my original post, I am sorry to A-chan for taking inspiration from her post without crediting her. It was an honest mistake; I did not remember where the inspiration for the fic had come from when I began writing it. Though I had worked on the poems for it for months, the fic itself was all written in the span of about two weeks at the end of October/beginning of November, so it had been months since I’d seen the post. I genuinely forgot about her post until she brought it up to me, and I am sorry for that.

Further, I’m sorry for taking the inspiration in the first place. I feel that the fic I wrote, including the fifteen poems it features, is significantly distinct from the post A-chan made. From what I remember of it, A-chan’s post is about Bucky going to a poetry reading and discovering the magic of poetry and a desire to write it himself; the focus was on Bucky’s feelings and the conversation he had with the poet at the reading. In my fic, Bucky is mostly-retired and enrolled in online college courses; the story is from Sam’s perspective, and it focuses on the relationship between Sam and Bucky as Sam discovers Bucky’s writing about him. The people I’ve spoken to who have read both A-chan’s post and my fic have told me that the differences are obvious and substantial. The main inspiration that I took was that Bucky writes poetry to get out the feelings he struggles to articulate verbally.

I saw A-chan’s post and assumed she was using a Poet!Bucky trope. Since people don’t typically credit tropes (even smaller ones like Florist!Bucky or MobBoss!Sam), I didn’t realize I was doing anything wrong taking the trope and using it without permission. I’m aware that Poet!Bucky isn’t a common thing, but then, I’d seen Writer!Bucky a few times before, so I figured Poet!Bucky was just a very rare trope, since not a lot of people write/post poetry in this fandom. Aside from that, I’ve seen multiple people write for the same trope without mentioning each other, so I didn’t realize it was something that was needed/that I was supposed to do. I apologize for not asking A-chan’s permission to write my fic. I didn’t realize I was doing anything wrong.

I received word that A-chan’s feelings had been hurt via her friend’s private message instead of from her. I haven’t spoken to A-chan personally since that initial discussion when I promoted the first chapter of my fic because, again, I thought after that interaction, we were fine. I wish A-chan had reached out to me more directly about her feelings. I would’ve stopped writing the fic before it had been fully-posted, before so much damage had been done. Unfortunately, I’m hearing all of this from someone else after the fic is complete, and there isn’t much I can do about it now that it’s already done and out in the world, as the person who messaged me pointed out.

Regardless, A-chan, if you’re seeing this, please know I’m sorry to have stepped on your toes and caused hurt feelings. I’m sorry I made the mistake in the first place, and that my attempts to correct it were not enough.

If you are reading this and you are not A-chan, please go check out her post because it’s a really sweet work with a lot of heart, and the love for poetry really comes through in it. Please send her love, share her work, boost the hell out of it, because it’s really lovely.

[from-the-clouds]

You are so brilliant that it makes my head spin. (And of course, as always, I went back and read the series description. And that set off another set of tears.) The past few chapters were such a smart built up with you hinting at little things outbreak related and I kept asking myself how is she going to get them two of them separated… the answer was right there. Of course it’s going to be her dad. The one that hurt her the most, kind of keeps hurting her even after he’s gone and keeps her away from the ones that really showed her what true love is. I might vomit. Seriously, you’re so talented and I truly think, that in all of my years reading fanfic, this is THE one. Even if I wasn’t so attached to the last of us, I would still care about your characters, about their story CAUSE of the way you wrote and crafted it out. Amazing, absolutely amazing and I can’t wait to see what else you’ll have up your sleeve with this incredible story!

wow, okay first of all i've had this ask sitting in my inbox for three days because i just keep rereading it and rereading it over and over again! thank you so so much for the kind words. it's so nice reading comments like this because i feel like it makes me notice things in my writing that even i didn't fully understand before? so i just wanted to thank you for your insights because i think i understand this story so well as the writer but then i get comments like this and i'm like damn, you just made me see a whole new perspective. (hope this isn't all gibberish to you, just finding it hard to find the right words right now).

i'm so glad you like and enjoy these characters! I definitely always hesitate adding backstory and OCs to an x reader fic because some people like their readers to be more one-dimensional, but i feel like in a fic that is this long, you sort of have to, because otherwise things can just start to feel very flat. not to mention, i am definitely setting her up for her own arc to sort of parallel joel's in the future.

thanks again so much for your thoughts and insights. truly, this was so sweet!

[yuyuntianyu]

[2HA analysis blog] To love you is torment but leave you I cannot

I wanted to write this (hopefully not-too-long) blog to give 2HA fandom a different perspective of the events in the past timeline. I noticed that there are many little things that could not be carried over to the English language. These little things can give more explanations to our characters’ actions so I hope sharing this would help the novel make more sense. This blog focuses on Taxian-jun and Chu Fei.

Warning: Spoilers ! ! ! Taxian-jun and Chu Fei are their own trigger warnings ! ! !

Despite the novel having 350 chapters, we really know little about what happened between Taxian-jun and Chu Fei besides the abuse and mistreatment and that little is relayed to us by the Most Unreliable Narrator of the Cultivation World - Mo Ran Mo Weiyu. If we only take Mo Ran for his words then a lot of his and Chu Wanning’s decisions told later on would seem irrational and almost silly. So let’s dive deep in the past so we can understand how the great cultivator Beidou Xian-zun could raise such a dumb husky since the events in the past would explain the more irrational decisions made by both main characters.

Given Mo Ran’s narrator is about as reliable as his character in the first 120 chapters, we have to look at other more subtle clues and some of them are due to cultural and linguistic differences.

1. I used to like you a lot

At his coronation day, Taxian-jun stated that he once greatly looked up to Chu Wanning and that he used to love and respect him dearly. Maybe I am reading into this too much but this is my theory: The flower could erase the memory itself but cannot erase the feelings associated with the memory. He had his memories of the good deeds Chu Wanning did for him erased but still remembered that he used to love and respect him. It doesn’t make sense unless it is indeed that the flower could not erase its host’s feelings. So throughout the novel, Mo Ran’s complicated emotions are complicated possibly because he could not remember how he came to have these feelings. Similarly, Hua Binan could mess with the undead Taxian-jun’s memory to a great extent but could not erase his obsession with Chu Wanning.

2. I gave you a new title

Chu Fei. 楚妃. In the Imperial Chinese harem hierarchy, “Fei” means consort and not concubine (嬪 “Pín"). Consorts were highly respected positions in the palace weidling much political power and were only seconds to the Empress Consort. Another major difference is a consort would be married to the emperor while a concubine would not. So if Taxian-jun had truly wanted to only humiliate Chu Wanning and keep him for the carnal pleasures (I am intentionally ignoring his breeding kink completely), he would keep him as a concubine but he gave Chu Wanning the Consort title and hid him from the world. At this point, Taxian-jun had almost lost Chu Wanning once and had spent a lot of effort to bring him back from the verge of death after hearing Chu Wanning’s apology so his anger might have softened a bit. Also, given that Chu Wanning is a man, having a legitimate offspring ( (I am still intentionally ignoring Mo Ran's breeding kink completely) is not an issue so although this is not clearly stated, I believe Taxian-jun wanted to force a relationship and somewhat proper marriage on Chu Wanning. Another hint of this is in an Extra chapter where Taxian-jun tried to get Chu Wanning a birthday gift. He recalled that in his past timeline, he had wanted Chu Wanning to give him something on his birthday as well and that he had wanted Chu Wanning’s heart.

3. Shizun likes to write letters and poems

On Book 3 Chapter 247, Chu Wanning sat down and wrote a few unsent letters to the people he used to know. He also wrote a few lines of poetry. In the first few lines taken from different literature works, he expressed his sense of helplessness and his wish to remain untainted despite the circumstances. The more important two lines are from a poem written by a real poet named Fàn Chéngdà ( 范成大) who lived in the 12th century Southern-Song dynasty. The two lines read:

“May I be like the stars, may you* be as the moon. Night after night, may we shine together side by side.” **

*In the original work, the character used instead of you is “jun” 君 (as in 踏仙君 Taxian-jun). 君 could mean king, emperor, lord, or gentleman ** This is my rough translation - I haven’t found an English version of this poem

These two lines are commonly used in romantic novels as a way to express one’s unchanging love and loyalty to another person despite the circumstances. He compared himself as the stars and wanted to remain by Taxian-jun whom he viewed as the moon. Chu Wanning wrote this to express his willingness to stay but he would never voice this out loud. In the next timeline, he did the same thing by quietly loving and caring for Mo Ran 1.0 despite the mistreatment and was content with never expressing his feelings vocally. Mo Ran was rather uneducated and thus could not fully comprehend these two lines and misunderstood that Chu Wanning was missing Xue Meng.

4. You are all I have left

In chapter 252, after Chu Wanning returned to The Red Lotus Pavilion, he found Taxian-jun already waiting for him. Taxian-jun told Chu Wanning about a dream he had and said:

“I am afraid I don’t resent you… I want to resent you… Otherwise, I…” “In the end, it’s just you and I”.

This is not the first time he expressed that Chu Wanning was all he had left or they only had each other. I believe that at this point, Taxian-jun might have somewhat believed Chu Wanning and recognized that his memories were missing. His words and behaviors seemed a lot more gentle and he mentioned they did have periods of time where their marriage was easier. I believe it was after this point. He told us about the numerous times he attempted to spoil his consort or expressed his affection through gifts, a trip outside the palace, goods, jewels, and even teaching Chu Wanning how to cook or personally taking care of Chu Wanning when he was sick. At one point, Taxian-jun expressed his wish for a more peaceful marriage with Chu Wanning through his breeding kink by saying that if they had children, perhaps they would be more civil towards each other.

Edit: I really wanted to go about this blog without having to refer to their particular taste in bed

5. Are you still mad?

This is a smaller detail but in the original text and the Vietnamese official translation, the way they talked to each other had a bit more of the “husband-wife” dynamic. Especially Chu Wanning ( l┐(︶▽︶)┌ ), the comment section said he sounded like when your wife is mad that you didn’t take out the trash but still says: “I’m not mad” and Taxian-jun, the husband, would come around and ask “Are you still mad at me?” after every fight.

6. I did not think you would really leave me.

On Chapter 99, Mo Ran recalled the fight between him and Chu Wanning after an assassination attempt. In order to convince Mo Ran to not go to Taxue Palace, Chu Wanning said:

“If you destroy Taxue palace, if you kill Xue Meng, I will die before you”.

Now the line “I will die before you” in my language is less of a suicidal ideation but more of a threat. It's used when a person already knows that they are important to the other person and is using their own death as a threat to make the other person do something. This line is thrown around a lot during heated arguments between people close to each other but they almost never mean it. (Even my mom said it numerous times before T_T . I personally think it’s manipulative). Therefore, it is understandable Taxian-jun did not take this line seriously and replied almost mockingly. After all, they had been married for almost a decade at that point, Taxian-jun probably felt somewhat comfortable that Chu Wanning would not do anything reckless. He could not foresee that Chu Wanning meant what he said and actually followed through with his words. I believe that if Taxian-jun had known that Chu Wanning was serious, Taxian-jun would not have gone to Taxue Palace. 7. Don't leave me, ok?

Then Chu Wanning died and Mo Ran spent two years alone. In those two years, we know he basically went insane because of grief, talked to a corpse everyday, and deep fried his Empress Consort. But strangely enough, Mo Ran 1.0 did not immediately mention this after being reborn although it was the main reason he committed suicide. And at that point, it had been well over a decade since Shi Mei faked his death in the past timeline, yet Mo Ran 1.0 seemed to still hold a lot of resentment towards Chu Wanning. Also, he said he could accept Shi Mei’s death but would never accept Chu Wanning’s. So honestly, it did not make sense to me the first time I read the novel and I believed Mo Ran resented Chu Wanning for a different reason.

The answer was first hinted at in chapter 9 when Mo Ran scolded the sleeping Chu Wanning. He called Chu Wanning a donkey hoof (lol) and this is actually an idiom to scold someone who is disloyal and unfaithful in love. The puzzles came together when the undead Taxian-jun showed up and immediately went after Chu Wanning (and not Shi Mei). He believed Chu Wanning used his death to hurt him and was angry at Chu Wanning for leaving him. This is the resentment Mo Ran 1.0 carried over to the next timeline. He hated Chu Wanning for abandoning him. This is solidified in chapter 262 by the undead Taxian-jun pleading to Chu Wanning:

“Don’t betray me” “Don’t leave me the second time. The first time you left, I could choose death as a relief. This time, even death is not an option any more… I won’t be able to bear it…”

So there it is! I hope this blog brings some new information and feel free to discuss! Let me know if you have any questions for me ＼(￣▽￣)／

Disclaimer: Plenty of this is my conclusion drawn from the already ambiguous original text and various translations. Unless Meatbun says it, it’s not canon. I am looking at the novel in three different languages so I might have made some mistakes. Pls forgive. Also, I am not making excuses for Mo Ran 0.5’s actions nor am I justifying the abuse in any way. Chu Wanning never said Mo Ran 0.5 was innocent of these crimes nor will I.