#i would love to learn how to care for shrimp tbh

[jakowskis]

Day 23 - Discuss Tosh. Opinions? Favorite moment? Least favorite moment? Any unpopular opinions? Any fun headcanons?

tosh my babygirl my princess light of my life angel darling… shes so good. shes so good 🥺 i love her dearly. she’s so damn underutilized i hate how the show regulates her to a supporting role + only uses her for romantic plots. WACK shes so much more than that. i want a plotline about her cyberterrorism like hello??? i want a plotline about her warped little mind.. i want a plotline about her finally learning spanish ;-; that show did not do her justice and it did not deserve her. i often say torchwood’s characters are too good for the show; tosh is probs the best example of that. no other character gets screwed over as badly as she does by the narrative (not even ianto!) she’s so tragic and lonely i just wanna give her the biggest hug ever. 

fav moment… every time she smiles. (or smirks. hrgh. tosh call me.) also every time she geeks out about smth. im tryna think of a specific moment but idk if i have one?? i just love her overall i smile every time she’s on screen she’s my girlie. when i rewatch i might rmr one though

least favorite moment, the absolute only thing i can think of (hell, my only complaint with her as a character other than i wish she’d get over owen cuz bad taste queen pls u deserve sm better) - it’s always bothered me how she goes over to owen’s flat in aditd and just starts babbling about her own problems. she even says something like “you think everything’s about you”, and in that ep it’s like ??? why are they all acting like he’s unjustified being miserable and angry when he's fucking dead?? like they're all so unsympathetic and mean, even tosh, and out of her it's especially weird?? tbh it just strikes me as ooc (+ kind of misogynistic highkey) writing. i mean, by all means, let tosh bitch, she deserves to blow off some steam + esp deserves to be rude to owen tbh fhsdkjfsd, but the way it’s done in that particular moment feels ooc and, like, how men write women as talking too much and never listening lmao u kno what i mean (owen’s tuned out in the actual episode but you can see her full ramble in the original script, on page 23). tosh has never troubled anyone with her issues before, why would she choose now to, and when she knows owen’s struggling? yeah, on second thought, i don’t hold that against her actually, that’s ooc to me fhdkf. thts just the writer being a wiener.

my only unpopular opinions (slash hot takes) are that 1) towen fucking SUCKS get her away from him, and 2) most people like tosh but she’s highkey underappreciated, esp in fanfic, because of fandom racism + misogyny. she’s not bashed like gwen is but she’s ignored completely which is nearly as bad, and a lot of it’s cuz she happens to be in a show with two white men in a gay relationship who are overwhelmingly prioritized 💀 i will never not be petty about the way that ship dwarfs everything else in comparison. also throwing towen into the background of janto is so gross n cheap. if ppl cared abt her they'd do smth more interesting. and it's never well-done either. ugh.

i have a few hcs that are gonna end up in my owento verse (gwen and tosh are prominent characters in it bc i love them, and their relationships w owen and ianto and each other also have value lawl). tbh a lot of em are just things i think they should introduce into their lives to be happier. i want them happy ;-;

she starts coding video games recreationally!! nothing fancy but she rlly enjoys it + also gets into the swing of making little storylines n getting to express herself that way which is good for her. owen playtests shit for her

her and gwen go on spa dates sometimes. they put it on the torchwood credit card

she gets into fish tanks and fish tank care!!! esp like aquarium plants. shrimp and moss balls, that sort of thing. maybe plecos or loaches. she loves it + it’s grounding, which is good for her bc shes otherwise always got her head in her computers yanno. she’ll sit by her tank while she codes her games and the water sounds are calming. 

she also sits by it while she studies her spanish books which she does finally do. she doesn’t get around to the piano, though; doesn’t prioritize buying a keyboard. maybe one day (this is a nobody dies au btw so she will in fact eventually get around to it ;-;)

oh she’s autistic have i said that. the fish tanks absolutely become a spin. she has a few we know of from canon - math and computers, obviously, but also history (gbg) and the uk’s rivers (from gooseberry; i think it was just the uk maybe it was europe’s rivers. or the world’s! i don’t remember). she also loves trivia like she knows a fair amount about quite a lot of things + loves accumulating random info

lowkey also. giving her a kitty. i think tosh should have a lil fuzzy kitty to keep her company 

well this is smth from my owandy verse but i think it should happen anyway. so it kind of kicks off bc gwen mixes up a blind date (it was gonna be tosh & andy and then owen & a friend of hers, but shes an adhd icon n bungles the invites <3)... tosh ends up with gwen’s friend, who’s straight, but they hit it off and she invites tosh to have drinks or maybe come to a bookclub meet or something with some friends of hers?? point is, tosh makes some casual friends. maybe meets a pretty girl there or smth 👁️ but mainly i want tosh to have girl friends like i think she grew up very lonely i want her to have some normalcy

also sometimes i like tosh x andy maybe they have a little meet cute at a torchwood crime scene or smth fshdkfd. i think they’d be cute and he’d treat her well. she'd babble abt tech stuff and he wouldnt understand a damn word but he'd listen very intently

i also like tosh x ianto for similar reasons. i think it’d be a kind of friends to lovers sitch... they should just be close in general tbh, platonically or not yanno, and in my owandy verse i like the idea of smth kicking off between them i just think theyd be so sweet

she’s a very sleepy drunk and also a lightweight. if the team goes out to drink she’ll get two glasses of smth moderately fruity and then fall asleep against someone’s shoulder it’s very cute (this is just cuz i like the idea of a sleepy tosh 🥺 my baby my baby shes so precious to meee)

[rosieartsie]

Superlatives OC tag

I wasn't tagged by anybody I'm doin this because I FEEL LIKE IT lmao. But I tag @magefaery @theskeletonprior @muddshadow and @peresephones

most arrogant :: Oh boy, Dreigas and Iphigenia for sure. Funnily enough for similar reasons! Lmao these characters are actually a lot alike- they'd fuckin' hate each other

most humble :: Hmmm... Leopold? He's pretty humble tbh, he kicks so much ass but treats it like it's just his regular tuesday. A lot of the time it is his regular tuesday lol

most charming :: Femi for sure is very, very charming. Kalmin is a total charmer as well, even though he talks very loud lol.

most talkative :: Jane will talk you up a wall if you let her lmao

least talkative :: Dreigas, for sure. He would probably not talk to anyone at all if it wasn't considered totally rude, and he only cares about not being rude for the sake of his reputation.

most relatable :: To me? Jane. Love her, wanna be her when I grow up.

least relatable :: Hmmm... That's hard, I find most of my characters relatable in some way... I think Dreigas takes this one again lol, he's such an asshole.

most ambitious :: Kalmin and Jane are tied for this one lol- both of them HATE to lose, and are very determined to be the best. It's a good thing they don't exist in the same universe because they'd either be the very best of friends or the most bitter rivals.

most easy-going :: Aquestros is very easy going tbh lol- they're a weirdo and they hold grudges a lot? But situationally they're really mutable. Mercutio is also pretty chill and go with the flow, even when it comes to dealing with demons.

most high-strung :: Iphigenia and Setsulin are both very high strung lol. Iphigenia thinks they're god's gift (in a way they are, at least half lmao) and Setsulin has a very, very, almost nonexistent tolerance for bullshit. 

most pretentious :: Iphigenia again lol. Fuckin' neeeerrrdddddddd Beaux can be pretty pretentious too, but he really doesn't mean to be.

most cheerful :: Argos tries their damnedest to be happy-go-lucky, they take after their dad in that way, even though shit gets pretty hard for them. If left alone, they're a very joyful person.

most patient :: I haven't introduced y'all to this guy, but @magefaery will know lmao. Charlemagne is incredibly patient- he's learned to be, he used to be a real short fuse, but a lot of his best qualities are learned rather than inherent to his nature and patience rates high among those developed skills.

most diligent :: Femi and Jane are extremely diligent lol- they're protags and they don't let their stories drag them around. These ladies get shit done, yes they do.

now adding a few extras just for funsies~  those i tagged don't have to do these if they don't wanna :P

most bullied :: Huh... I dunno actually-- Iphigenia was bullied as a kid, which resulted in some pretty gnarly stuff for them... Yeah, I'd say Iphigenia is the most bullied of my characters, not that they allow anyone to see how it gets to them.

most loved :: Femi. For sure Femi. *points to her spiderweb 80 person polycule*

most terrifying :: Another guy you guys haven't met lmao, but Fortissimo lol. Fortissimo is from a DnD game, he's an NPC who is a triton and he's basically a Mantis Shrimp anthro. In game he punched the sea and made a real tsunami, and under the right circumstances can pink mist someone with his fist. He's a jolly guy, and a pirate that kicks the crap out of bad guys, but the fact that he can do that is utterly horrifying lmao

most hated :: Dreigas lmao- I cannot emphasize how much of a dick this dude is he is so fucking unhinged lmao. He has reasons, I don't think anyone gets to be such an asshole for no reason but it's an explanation, not an excuse. What a garbage man lmao

[threefeline]

Why don’t you look at shrimplife.net and maybe you’ll calm down

[sips-tea-cutely]

hello ! I saw that ur looking for food wars request, so can i ask for erina, soma, megumi, alice and ibusaki with an s/o who cannot cook at all. like. They were asked to wash rice but they left it for too long and it became rice wine 💀💀

u dont have to do it of course lamaisjjshsj

Erina, Soma, Megumi, Alice & Ibusaki’s s/o who can’t cook

a/n: I LOVE FOOD WARS YEYSYSSYEYEYD

#Erina Nakiri

…shes not mad, just… disappointed ٩(๑`^´๑)۶

she loves you to death but, you need to learn how to cook at least instant ramen, she won’t always be there to be your personal chef (free too! ugh/lh)

would do a much more lenient version of her lectures from the central arc. of course, doesn’t expect you to be as good as the polar star (& friends) so she’d make simple recipes

would eventually begin to go from being in a classroom to actually being in the kitchen and would guide your hands so expect lots of cute handholding (⌒▽⌒)

ultimately, hooray you can cook now!! erina would make sure her s/o can cook if it’s the last thing she’ll do >:)

#Soma Yukihira

honestly wouldn’t be against it (^｡^)

it’d give him more opportunities to cook for you! you’re his personal taste tester!!

he would use you as a muse for his horrible taste combos to use against megumi & erina ehehe…~

maybe, if you give him a combo like, for example, sugar and rice, he’d see some potential in it and use it during a food war :00

if you ever wanted to challenge him in a food war, he wouldn’t go easy on you~! even if you lose, he won’t gloat, he’d taste your dish and give you some constructed criticism, such a good bf!! (*^◯^*)

#Megumi Tadokoro

she loves you so much but she has a panic attack every time you go into the kitchen,,,

she loves you still so she cooks for you ᕦ(ò_óˇ)ᕤ!! soup, salad, whatever you want!!

assures you that it’s okay that you can’t cook, she loves taking care of you!!!

would be genuinely scared of you tho… if you accidentally made rice wine in only a few minutes or so Σ੧(❛□❛✿)?!?

she’d let you stay over at polar star, she thinks you and ryoko would get along! :00

#Alice Nakiri

Σ('◉⌓◉’)… even as a genius molecular gastronomer, she still cant figure out how you made rice wine in the 30 minutes she was gone,,,

she’d boss you around the kitchen, giving instructions but in a light-hearted way, yknow? she only wants you to at least be able to cook a steak!

if that doesn’t work, she’ll try visual learning. she’d show you step-by-step. would be a little annoyed if you asked her to repeat something but, you’re her darling, so it’s ok!

if THAT doesn’t work, she’d try explaining it as a lecture. explaining the proteins & carbohydrates and why different foods taste great together

would def tho let you have experiment in the kitchen and force ryo to clean it. or if ryo’s busy, she’d leave it for erina to discover on her own,,, no matter what kind of yelling erina gives her, she’d be happy that she got to spend time with you (๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵)

#Shun Ibusaki

congratulations on doing the impossible!! you made shun ibusaki shocked :00!! he just needed you to cook some rice for the shrimp he was going to prepare for dinner but… how come this rice tastes alcoholic..? did sasaki do something?!?

he wouldn’t care though tbh~

he would teach you basic things if you’d like but doesn’t expect you to learn how to cook! (wouldn’t be disappointed if you learned tho!!)

would be super happy to cook for you, wouldn’t show it though :;(∩´﹏`∩);: if you have great eye sight, you might see him with a tiny grin :000

if you’re willing to, he’d be delighted teach you some knick knacks about smoke cooking. practicing his skills AND spending time with his dear? it’s a 2 in 1 deal!!! ♪( ´θ｀)ノ

[elfyourmother]

okay i guess we’re grief processing on tumblr. i’d appreciate it if you don’t reblog this because i legitimately don’t have the spoons rn to deal with anyone acting up on it

my aunt was so wonderfully weird. and ftr I do mean weird, not eccentric. “Eccentric” would imply money we absolutely do not have lmao

Imagine Ouiser from the original Steel Magnolias as a broke ass Black woman and that was my aunt. (But she used to hate when we would call her Ouiser fjdfs) She even had the big gigantic dog with anxiety. (RIP Fats, your mom’s finally home with you again.)

Like the rest of my mom’s siblings she was creative and artsy. she drew like the rest of them, and adored classical music and opera, but she also studied ballet at the Joffrey Ballet and desperately wanted to be a dancer. They found cysts on her spine though, so that took care of that. She didn’t let it stop her from loving the arts though, even though she what my mom did and gave it up for a more “practical” career.

Shrimp Fried Rice was her favorite thing in the world to eat. She’d eat the cold leftovers for breakfast while we watched the Twilight Zone. Mind you everything I learned about cooking I learned from her, including how to make that marinara sauce I just posted. She was Iron Chef Italian. Learned at the feet of an old nona in her building growing up, even. (Brooklyn was a lot less segregated back then, funny enough.) But that shitty shrimp fried rice was like the gods’ own ambrosia to her.

She loved loved loved sci-fi and fantasy and horror. We bonded over Lord of the Rings, when I showed her the extended versions (she rarely if ever went to theaters tbh). We would marathon them every Xmas and drive my mom insane. And she really did go to the very first Trek con ever held, the one at the Hilton in Manhattan in the 70s. Still had her ticket and everything. It’s probably worth a small fortune tbh. (I told y’all this shit was genetic) She was TOS only though, as she would holler to anyone who would listen, including me. Picard was “pointy bald headed motherfucker” according to her. Somewhere she still has TOS zines and like, Spock was her Blorbo, if ever there was one. Years ago when I was living out west, she even called me in the middle of my work day solely to brag about how she met Shatner and Nimoy at one of the casinos because they were making an appearance at a fan event together, something they very rarely did in later years. “Hey Aurora I just met Nimoy again. Have fun at that shitty ass job today.” was the entire voicemail she left me fsdjkfsdfs

That’s just how she was though. Extra at all times, snarky, witty, phasers set to roasting (affectionate) at all times. The quintessential Gemini if ever there was one (her birthday is 2 days after mine, even). I still laugh about the look of absolute murder she gave my sister’s stereotypically, painfully Midwestern friend when she suggested we eat at McDs while we were on a post-cruise vacation in Rome.

She did slip into Archie Bunkerism in her later years and eventually I sorta had to take her in small doses, if I’m honest. She was very set in her ways in a lot of respects. But she was still wickedly, wickedly funny, even when the dementia started getting bad. In hindsight there’s a lot of her in me, the best parts I think. Well, and the depression. (The queer part I got from my uncle, who was equally weird and artsy.)

I mean she was 86 and had been sick for a long time but I’m honestly still in shock. I found out on Friday night and I still can’t really believe it. She was such a larger than life character, the sort you just kind of assume will be around as long as Keith Richards. Never, ever boring and never, ever apologetic. The world is a little more boring without her in it hollering about Patrick Stewart’s pointy bald head.

[coffeeandcalligraphy]

A chatty writing update | novels, short fiction, etc!

Hi folks!

It’s been a while since I last wrote an update on this blog! I thought it’d be fun to go back to basics, and just talk about writing. This post chats about: new plans for Feeding Habits, my newest novel, my short story goals & growing collection, along with process reflections.

(image description: a photo of green leaves with the text “writing update” in a white font written on top. /end image description)

Post starts under the cut!

General taglist (please ask to be added or removed)

@if-one-of-us-falls, @qatarcookie, @chloeswords, @alicewestwater, @laughtracksonata, @shylawrites, @ev–writes, @jaydewritesfiction, @jennawritesstories @eowynandfaramir, @august-iswriting, @aetherwrites, @avakrahn, @maisulli

What have I been up to?

For starters, I finished my second year of my Writing undergrad last week and got two of my final grades back today (A+ baby)! For anyone who has taken online university, y’all already KNOW, but this year was so difficult. Would not recommend! Really proud of myself to have gotten through this absolute rollercoaster of a school term and am excited to get into some writing. That leads us to:

What have I been up to (writing edition)?

2021 started off so fast. By the time January hit, I was so consumed in my new semester that I did not have time to write Feeding Habits (my novel). In the first few days of the term, I managed to write between class, until I could no longer keep up! Essentially, I did not write any of that novel until exam season (last week), where I did manage to get in about 3k words in ~4 days.

Feeding Habits

I’m currently drafting what I believe will be the last chapter of this book (chapter 10: Swan Song). This chapter is so bizarre for a few reasons. It begins the book’s third part and also marks the shift back into Lonan’s head from Harrison’s. I originally thought this part would be much, much longer, with at least another five chapters to go, but quickly realized the book’s content was nearly completed. In my 4 day 3k palooza, I hit 50k in the book (the word count goal), and couldn’t see myself extending past 60k. Since then, I’ve made the loose decision to write this final chapter as a ~novella. Here are a few reasons why:

1. This chapter is structurally very strange.

I unashamedly shift from present to past to present to past past, and so much more every 12 words. I mapped out the timeline on a sheet of paper, and there were over 20 shifts in scenes (the chapter is only about 4400 words at the moment). The fictive past is incredibly important to this chapter, more important than the present, and I thought it would make more sense to not break randomly for a chapter so I could upkeep the consistent inconsistency of the chapter.

2. The chapter is very abstract

This stems from the structural changes, but there are paragraphs in this chapter of the fictive present that are loosely based in reality. They’re more poems than they are factual paragraphs, and keeping them all contained in one place (so a mega chapter/ novella) would reduce the most confusion!

3. There’s not much left to cover

Like I said above, Feeding Habits is on its last leg, lol! I know exactly where the book needs to end up, which is very, very soon from where I’m currently at on the timeline. Swan Song should cover what 2-4 chapters would cover in terms of arcs.

Feeding Habits and I have a really weird relationship, tbh! When I realized a few weeks ago that it’d been over a year since I started the book, I realized I just needed to finish it. Not that I want to rush (because I’ve taken longer than a year to write a book in the past), but that in order to move onto another project, I’d like to put this one behind first. This book has been the hardest thing I’ve ever written, and has reminded me there’s always a time to let go. This sort of scrounges up a conversation about letting this entire series go, which is certainly something I’ve been contemplating doing soon(ish). If this spinoff series gets a third book, that may or may not be the last Fostered book for a very long time (or ever)! There are many complex reasons to move on, but the main one is that I have other projects I’d like to focus on. This is not a definitive decision, but something I’ve certainly been thinking about!

Here are a few excerpts I wrote recently:

(TW: death, gore)

Dying feels like being a trout dangled out of water. Clinging to a hook. Mouth open. Scales iridescent in a final death cry. It’s like blood spurting up the knuckles, drowning out the flesh. It’s that moment on the long fall down when the clouds cup the body. Easy drifting. The sound a skull makes when it cracks is really just the afterthought.

(TW: death, gore)

Kill shot. Death blow. Coup de grace. Right in the heart. He feels it. The blood swelling, slicking his palms. He can do it. Reach into the cavity. Feel for the ribs. Part each bone. Then cup the humming heart. Stay there. Right. It’s never been easier.

Look at this PURE moment of Lonan holding a baby I CANNOT:

The grocery store was a fifteen-minute walk away. With Olivia clinging to his shoulder, Lonan was acutely aware that she could feel his heartbeat. Open valve. Close. Repeat. Hers pulsed right above his, a miniature drumming. The sky had bruised purple, misted with clouds. The evening air nipped his cheeks, so he made sure Olivia was securely fastened between him and his jacket. With wide eyes, she absorbed the drowsy suburbia, all its family cars pulling into driveways, all its couples heading back home after a sunset walk. When Lonan passed a young boy walking two golden retrievers, Olivia giggled, and didn’t stop, even after he’d spent fifty dollars on groceries and nearly the rest on a red Corolla marked with a MUST GO NOW sign outside a convenience store.

Let’s move on!

Mandy and Cora

I said I wouldn’t talk too much about this project, but I just love it so much?? I wanted to share my SUPER early thoughts on drafting a novel, especially one that is SO different from what I’ve been writing recently. I talked about this before in THIS post, but the summary about this project is that it’s a YA contemporary novel! Can’t believe I’m writing YA again, it’s been so long, but I also think it’s going so well. Everything I’ve learned as a literary fiction writer has been a fantastic primer for transferring back to the genre. Admittedly, I have not written much, but I’m having a lot of fun diving back into a lighter project. This is the summary:

Cora and Mandy are identical twins who’ve always done everything together. But when Mandy decides to go to university out of province after graduation and Cora doesn’t, Cora takes this as an opportunity to “test run” life apart from her sister for the first time by spending the summer at her aunt’s house across the country.

I have come up with a few ~things since I last talked about this project, mostly how I’d like to structure it. As of now, I’d like the book to be structured super loosely. I’m really pulling on a lot of inspo from “We Are Okay” by Nina LaCour (which is SO good), particularly how “nothing happens-y” that book is. This project (which I still need a title for!!) will be structured in short chapters that cover something Cora does on her own for the first time (without Mandy). For example, a few ideas are “Flight”, “Lunch”, and “Groceries”. “Flight” is the first “chapter” (they’re really kind of vignettes) where Cora flies to her aunt’s house. I still can’t determine if this book will take place in Canada. On one hand, I feel like there will be a wider audience if it takes place in the US (is that just an assumption??? maybe?? someone let me know!), but also: don’t really care too much about an audience at the moment! It could also take place in Canada (So Ontario and British Columbia). But if it does take place in the US, I think it may take place in NYC and San Francisco. The problem is: I really don’t like researching lol, and while I’ve been to NYC many times, I will definitely write it wrong! Does this really matter on a first draft?? absolutely not lol, but of course I am already overthinking!

But back to structure: I am looking forward to seeing what this looser structure will do. This is a story that is solely around one half of a set of twins learning to be her own person (and ultimately that she doesn’t have to completely forget her sister in order to do that), and as a twin who KNOWS this feeling, I think this structure of her doing things for the first time is SUPER relatable.

I was worried it might sound silly/worrying to others who are not twins that Cora hadn’t done things like “lunch” or “groceries” on her own, but I feel this so much as an identical twin myself! Not that she hasn’t done anything at all by herself, but as a twin, when you do something without your twin for the first few times, at least in my experience, you notice. If any twins are reading this--weigh in!

This story is the most personal thing I’ve ever written. It definitely is an OwnVoices book! Usually, I avoid details that are remotely similar to me because they make me uncomfortable haha, but with this book, it’s all me, lol! The characters are all Guyanese, which is SO fun because I’ve been planning what they eat (my fellow Caribbean peeps know: the FOOD!), which is so fun (yes they have pumpkin and shrimp, yes they have roti, yes they have pera, yes they have mithai). Every time I’ve gone to dabble at this book, or even think about it, I get incredibly emotional for this reason? I don’t exactly know why. I think this is a story I just so want to tell, with the culture I love SO much that I definitely struggled to love as a child. This is reclamation bitchessss!

Not going to lie tho: the prospect of writing ~a book~ is kind of freaky! I’m going to make the minimum word count for this book pretty short (50k) and see where it goes from there. I think I will focus on this project this summer! Originally I was going to write a literary novel this summer, but I think this one’s calling my name!

Here’s a pretty rough excerpt:

Try. I remind myself that’s what I’m doing after the flight attendant fills me a disposable cup of Coca Cola and all I can think of is Mandy and I shoving Mentos into a bottle of the stuff when we were twelve. Just me, wedged in the middle seat between an exchange student heading out for summer break and a middle-aged woman sipping a cocktail, thinking of Mandy and I bursting whole oranges in a blender when we were bored one Winter break as the plane dips through a wave of turbulence. Mandy and I dying our hair neon green with highlighters (didn’t work—our hair is too dark) as the plane lands on the tarmac. Mandy and I arguing so loud last month, we both lost our voices as I lug my carry-on out of the overhead compartment and shuffle off the plane and through the airport, searching for Aunt Vel.

Short Fiction

I’ve written so much short fiction this year! I have a goal to write a short story a month (they can range in length, as long as 1 is “complete”), so my short story brain has seriously been soaking it all up lately. Let’s chat my month to month breakdown so far:

January:

I wrote four stories in January! The first is a flash fiction piece called “Shark Swimming” that follows a young woman who attends a shark swimming class after breaking up with her girlfriend. I wrote this story for a “test” workshop for my fiction class, and it was based off the prompt “think about something you’re afraid to do and make the character do that thing”. I’m not particularly afraid of sharks, but had been wanting to use the title “Shark Swimming” for AGES (literally since 2018).

This story is one of my favourites. It’s only about 900 words, but I think there’s something profound in how mundanely specific it is. The entire story doesn’t even see the narrator swim with sharks once; it actually takes place fully in the sanctuary’s lobby. But I really love this narrator. This is the first story I’ve written in second person in a while, though I felt really connected to the unnamed narrator. She struggles with accepting that she truly is a “boring” person, and there’s something about the final image that really gets me!

I’ve been submitting this around, though it’s been rejected a handful of times. Hoping I can secure it at a magazine one day because I really love it!

The second story is “Joanne, I’ll Pray for You” which is actually a rewrite of one of my very first short stories (the first story I did not write for a class haha), “NYC in Your Apartment”. I LOVE this rewrite a lot, and also learned the original is not a very good short story! Revising this story taught me just how much I’ve learned in the 2 years I’ve been writing short fiction. Seeing the 2019 version versus the 2021 version side by side is fascinating because I essentially “gutted’ the 2019 version of its beginning and end until all that was left was the middle of the story (aka the actual story). AKA: this is the only story I’ve ever written with a hopeful ending and I cut out all the happy bits lol I am SO sorry (that arc is more for a novel or novella). That’s how this went from a 5k word story to an 1800 word story (my Submittable thanks me for this lol). A lot of details and scenes I included were more pertinent to a 3 act structure/novel, which of course short stories don’t often have because of their brevity. I love rambling about writing theory, and seeing that actually pay off is so fascinating!

(TW: trauma)

Like the original, this story follows Joanne, a woman in her early twenties, who spontaneously breaks up with her boyfriend. She claims the poltergeist haunting her drove her to this decision. The original draft focused a lot more on the traumatic events Joanne survives, but this draft really loosens them up. It focuses less so on the events themselves, and more on how Joanne’s life is affected. I found the details of these events were less important, and even sort of contradicted Joanne’s insistence she is being haunted. Instead, the poltergeist really takes more precedence in the new draft as a force Joanne doesn’t understand. That ambiguity, I think, is what the story truly needed.

I also centralized Joanne’s relationship with her boyfriend, Julian, here. Now don’t get me wrong, I really didn’t add anything to this draft. It was a matter of trimming the fat around it to leave the lean “meat” in the centre. But by removing that fat, I was able to emphasize what was most important here, and that was her relationship. Julian always played a really big role in the original draft, but I feel like his role as both a friend and partner to Joanne is much more emphasized since this draft literally is only two scenes now. Because there is less, there is more room for Joanne to reflect, which I’m happy about!

A final change I made was the setting and therefore the title. The original, which was “NYC in Your Apartment,” I couldn’t keep because I shifted the setting to Toronto (this is how I originally saw it, but in 2019 I just?? couldn’t?? write?? canlit??), and “Toronto in Your Apartment” sounded sort of gross LOL. The new title comes from a line in the story which I think is more relevant to the themes!

The next short story I wrote in January was “How to Spell Alpaca.” This one is super fun because I wrote it SO fast (in about 15 minutes or so). THIS is the writing update if you’re interested in learning more. I talked extensively about this one in that update, but some developments are that I dove into an edit a few weeks ago to really understand the core of the story. I’m still not quite there (this is just an intuitive feeling; I know not everything has “clicked), but I am really intrigued by the two mothers in the story, the narrator, and her newfound acquaintance, Violet. Both really struggle to understand their place as mothers (the narrator even declares she isn’t a mother anymore). The narrator, who is in her 50s, sees herself in Violet, who is much younger (~20s), and so she views Violet’s relationship with her daughter in a cautionary, yet mournful way, like she can see it will end up like her own relationship with her daughter, despite wanting the opposite. This is a really subtle story. I feel like if you blink, you’ll miss the message. But I think it’s compelling for that reason. It’s really a portrait of parenting and how to grapple with mistakes you may make that inevitably affect your children. Wow just unlocked the theme writing this lol.

The final story I wrote in January is “The Party,” which may be in my top 3 faves I’ve ever written. This story follows Aida, a recent divorcee in her ~40s. The day her divorce turns official, she moves into a new house and receives a party invitation addressed to the previous homeowner, yet RSVP’s anyway. At this party, she’s hoping to find some sense of noticeability, having struggled with being nondescript her whole life. Things seem quite normal at the party, until it gets bizarre.

I LOVE this story, y’all. Like “How to Spell Alpaca” it really delves into motherhood. Aida, our narrator, is incredibly hurt after her divorce. She now lives farther from her children she struggled to feel connected to in the first place, and doesn’t really know how to reignite her life. This party is a means to do that. This is the first story I’ve written that contains a “twist” which is strange because I really prefer stories that give us as much info as possible upfront, but yes, this one sort of twists.

February

I wrote one story in February, and that was “Protect the Young.” This title is SO changing when I think of a new one because it’s thematically incorrect, haha, but this story follows a woman in her late 40s whose daughter, Lindy, announces she is married the same day all their backyard chickens turn up dead. The discovery of dead chickens prompts our narrator to recall her ex-husband’s murder and the role her daughter may have played in his death.

I love this story so much! I think this would make a great closing for my short story collection. It just has that vibe! I wrote this for my second fiction workshop. I thought I had to hand in the story a week earlier than I had to, so I panicked and wrote this in one sitting! Little did I know, I did not need to do that lol but I’m very happy because this story is so fun. We get to learn more about Arnold (her ex), his relationship with Lindy, and how that translates to Lindy’s relationship with her new husband, Malcolm. I LOVE true crime (I listen to about 3-4 hours of case coverage daily), and this is my first “true crime” story. Because of that, I’m very sus of a few details that probably wouldn’t slide in actual investigatory work, so I’ll also be working on that in a revision. My professor also gave me a great suggestion that may alter the story’s structure a bit, though I look forward to toggling with it in the future.

March

In March, I was really on a Criminal Minds kick lol. I’ve been watching this show since I was seven (oops), and dove into a rewatch since it hit Disney+! This story, “Where to Run When the Lamb Roars,” is very clearly Rachel watching 5 episodes of CM a day. Oops! We follow 14-year-old Astrid as she and her older half brother kidnap a young girl to sacrifice for their yearly ritual.

I knew a few things going into this story, but the main thing was that I did NOT want to show any details of a potential murder (if one even occurs). I really wanted to keep all of those elements off the page because this story is not about those events, but about Astrid’s relationship with her brother. They are a murderous duo, with Astrid actually being the dominant partner. I wanted to explore that. I knew her brother, Fox, was more of a submissive partner in their team, even when he used to do this same thing with his father when he was much younger (chilling!), and so it was a task to explore how this young girl’s desire for violence works. The end actually comes right before the story starts, one could say, but I like it for this reason. It really made me contemplate the story by the time I finished it, and helped me examine what it really was about versus what it appeared to be about.

April

(TW: sexual content, non explicit)

I was so busy this month! Who knows if I’ll write a story last minute, but I did write one story this month called “Five Times Fast.” I wrote this during a “writing sprint” that was being hosted at a flash fiction workshop I recently took with one of my favourite writers ever, K-Ming Chang. I learned so much from this class, and am so happy I came out of it with a draft! This story is just over 300 words, so the shortest flash I’ve ever written, but I’m really happy with it. It was based off the prompt “describe the last time you or your character was naked.” In this case, the narrator has a “friends with benefits” relationship with Ricky who works at a laundromat. This story highlights a moment in this relationship (and also Ricky’s goofy personality lol). I really like it! Hopefully I’ll submit it to some magazines soon.

My short story collection

Very briefly I wanted to touch on my short story collection which I’ve titled “She is Also Dead.” I’ve been meaning to make a blog post on this, so look out for that in the coming months, but this collection is already at around 35k words (about 14 stories so far). The collection also surprisingly has a solid amount of flash fiction which is kind of fun! There’s definitely a range here, which is what I personally love in short story collections.

I feel very professional now that I have a ~collection chart. This is her:

(image description: A chart with the title “She is Also Dead.” It is broken into four columns: Story, Status, Word Count, and Published. Entry 1 - Story: Slaughter the Animal. Status: Revisions, Word Count, 3982, Published: N/A. Entry 2 - Story: Joanne, I’ll Pray for You, Status: Polished, Word Count: 1809, Published: N/A. Entry 3 - Story: Primary Organs, Status: Published, Word Count: 2342, Published: The Malahat Review. Entry 4 - Story: Faberge, Status, Polished, Word Count: 619, Published: N/A. Entry 5 - Story: The Wolf-Antelope Will Not Come for Us, Status, Polished, Word Count: 1556, Published: filling Station (forthcoming). Entry 6 - Story: How to Spell Alpaca, Status: revisions, Word Count: 1327, Published: N/A. Entry 7 - Story: Blink Twice for Final Judgement, Status: Polished, Word Count: 6572, Published: N/A. Entry 8 - Story: The Species is Dead, Status: Published, Word Count: 1208, Published: Minola Review. Entry 9 - Story: Shark Swimming, Status: Polished, Word Count: 907, Published: N/A. Entry 10 - Story: The Party, Status, Polished, Word Count 2339, Published: N/A. Entry 11 - Story: Fig, Status: Polished, Word Counter: 947, Published: N/A. Entry 12 - Story: Protect the Young, Status: Revisions, Word Count: 4128, Published: N/A. Entry 13 - Story: Where to Run When the Lamb Roars, Status: Revisions, Word Count: 2174, Published: N/A. Entry 14 - Story: Phantom Limbs, Status: Revisions, Word Count: 4844, Published: N/A.) /end image description.

This order is DEFINITELY not permanent (at this point whenever I write a story, I just fit it randomly into this chart lol), and some of the info is outdated (for example, Slaughter the Animal is now polished!!! thank god!!!). But just an idea of what I’m thinking of including.

This is the summary so far:

In SHE IS ALSO DEAD, characters are pushed to act on their gravest impulses. A small town turns murderous when their local invasive species, the Janices, begin dying. A child struggles to understand her mother’s suicide. A college dropout who insists she’s being haunted by a poltergeist unexpectedly breaks up with her boyfriend. A mother acknowledges her daughter’s murderous tendencies after her backyard chickens mysteriously die. A young girl caters the funeral of a girl rumored to be killed by a wolf-antelope. A newly-divorced mother RSVP’s to a bizarre party she was not invited to, and a murderous brother and sister upkeep their yearly tradition of abducting a young girl. These stories follow characters who navigate death, violent desires, womanhood, and loss, both self-imposed and otherwise.

This is also so subject to change as I may pull and add stories to the collection!

I think I’m going to leave this update here for now! I’ve written TONS of poetry too, but I honestly ~hate my poetry right now lol, so! Hope you enjoyed this chill rambly update. Hope writing has going well for you all! All the best!

--Rachel

[twst-roses]

Surfer: Leona, Ruggie, Rook (& Bonus Octatrio)

Hi! It's my first time requesting a hc about twst wonderland and i'm kinda nervous🥺👉👈 Can i ask for a fem!MC who is the daughter of Maui from Moana and resembles(idk if it's well spelled, eng is not my first language😅) him a lot and has a passion for surfing? I request for Leona, Ruggie, Rook and if it isn't too much maybe Jamil. Love you and your blog💕💞❤️💖💓❤️💖. Keep writing and take care, xoxo💗🥰 

I really like the idea! Have fun in the fandom, rosebud. Creators wouldn’t do half as much as they do without amazing prompts likes this! By the way, most of knowledge of Moana is what I picked up from my sister, so if anything is incorrect that would be why.

I’m going to say that you have shapeshifting powers as your unique magic and can control them as long as you wear your special necklace (It’s in the shape of his hook).

Leona

When you invite Leona to spend a day with you at the beach, he gladly accepts. There are no beaches in the Afterglow Savannah, so this is an experience that he doesn’t get to have very often.

He was a little more unsure of your idea of fun at the beach. Shallow water, sand, and sun were all things he could deal with pretty well, but the idea of going out into the ocean supported only on a board and willingly tangling with the power of the ocean is not something that relaxes him.

After some reassurance, he agrees to watch you and maybe try it.

When you get out into the water and catch a wave, he can do nothing by stand there with his mouth hanging open. He’s very glad you are too far away to see him, because he would be in for a session of merciless teasing.

You come back to him and are met with plenty of expressions of admiration. He declines to try it himself, however.

You merely laugh and head back out. It was a fun day.

Ruggie

Like Leona, Ruggie is not used to large bodies of water of any kind, but he is overjoyed at the prospect of going to a beach with you. He’s rather glad that you grew up near beaches, not that he’d admit it that he’s scared or anything.

When you tell him about your passion, he’s supportive and a little unclear on what it is. You just say he’ll see when you get there.

At the beach, you have a wonderful time in the shallows and on the sand before you take your surfboard out to catch some waves.

You get some really impressive runs in so when you come back to Ruggie, he practically jumps on you to tell you how cool it was. This was the first time he’s seen this, and he loves watching you.

He would love to come back to the beach and watch you and hang out again.

Rook

He had quietly asked you to come to the beach with him on one of your evening walks and was more than a little surprised at the loud, excited response you gave.

When the appointed day came, Rook couldn’t deny that he was filled with excitement and anticipation. He was going to learn something new about you and his gut said it was going to be utterly fascinating.

You headed out into the water as soon as you got there, and Rook could only watch with admiration from afar as you pulled off stunningly graceful victories over the water time and time again.

When you reached the shore again he spent a good five minutes singing your praises and showing you some of the pictures he took. After he had finished gushing, he asked you to teach him.

So you took him out behind you the next run. Everything was going splendidly until you were hit by a cross wave and the board was flipped and swept away before you could grab it.

Rapidly you noticed that you two were caught in a current heading out to sea, so you changed yourself into an enormous manta ray and swept Rook up on your back.

Soon you were out of the current and heading back to shore, your manta ray body just under the surface and Rook sitting on your back yelling praise in French over the sound of the waves.

Aside from the scare, you and Rook had an amazing day. Your surfboard even washed up.

Bonus wordvomit! (cool ideas, bad writing)

my brain wouldn’t let me continue until I wrote this.

Azul, Jade, and Floyd

Jade and Floyd are in love with the idea of going to the beach with you. Azul not so much, as he doesn’t want to be asked about his mer form. When you get there, jade and floyd change into their mer forms and go shooting off into the water to race, play, and playfight. Azul mostly stays in the shallows in his human form but encourages you to have fun.

You go surfing happily until floyd flips the thing. youre inthe water now in the deeper parts, so you change into a large manta ray. the twins are impressed and want you to change into other things.

you mess around with various sea creatures (including a giant shrimp to please floyd) while yall are moving back towards azul. azul is impressed (and kinda wants your power, tbh).

someone asks if you can do half human creatures. you can, and they ask (read the twins ask) if you can copy their forms. YOu do! eels are fast. you squeeze floyd (until he gets out three seconds after you start and starts squeezing you but thats a different matter).

After a while you change yourself into a octomer!! Azul  is surprised and a little.... (Whats the word like concerned and awkard and likes it a little all at the same time? Insert that here). eventually hes encouraged by your form and gets his own form on.

in summary its fun and you can be an octomer yay

[theyneedtobangstahp]

Stray kids reaction to their Girlfriend being a youtuber

Genre:Fluff

For Chan, I kinda incorporated my country’s dish because thats one of the things I can cook Hehe. Shout out to my Filipino peeps and my sinigang peeps! I kinda went over board and made them do a video together hehe sorry but I hope you enjoy!

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

` C H A N ▪

~W E L C O M E TO Y / N ’ S K I T C H E N~

Would sometimes be too busy to join you in some videos tbh. But when he does have some free time, he will join you. He actually enjoys doing youtube videos with you.

You lay out all the ingredients on the table and turn on the camera. “Hello Everyone! I am y/n back at it again in making my house burn! But, today there is a special guest that will help me not burn my house down. After many days of asking, no scratch that, begging him to join, he finally said yes! So here he is my boyfriend, Chan!” You clap as he comes into the frame with you. “Hi, hello.” He says while waving shyly to the camera.

“I can’t believe it. Bang Chan, being shy all because of a camera? You’re acting like this is your first time being recorded.” You say to him. “That’s different! This is your personal channel. I have to be on my best behavior.” He says while standing up straight looking like a good boy. You chuckle at him and pass him an apron. “What are we cooking today Chan?”  

“Well, since my very beautiful girlfriend cooked this for me last week and I liked it very much, she will teach me how to cook sinigang! Did I say it right babe?” He whispers to you. “Hmm, much better than last time. You still have to work on your ng though but it’s fine.” You reassure him. “We will specifically cook shrimp sinigang! Because it is way easier. Now chan what do you think is the first step?” He looks at the recipe and reads it. “Well it says here to boil water.” 

“Yes, I will do that and you can chop the tomato and onions please.” 20 minutes later of teaching him how to cook sinigang, it was time to taste it! 

“Okay first taste of Chan cooking Sinigang!” You say as you pass him a spoon. You both take a sip of the soup and your face clearly showing that you enjoy it, but Chan wrinkles his face. “It’s way too sour!” He says while looking at the camera. “It’s just right!” You argue back. “Did you add extra tamarind powder while I wasn’t looking?” He asks you. “No..”

You do your outro then start editing, you add the part where you did add extra tamarind powder into the soup when you were editing. You upload it and Chan watches it just as it gets posted on youtube. “You did add extra powder!” You hear Chan scream from the living room. 

` M I N H O ▪

~C H A P S T I C K C H A L L E N G E~

"Minho! I’m home!” You shout as you enter your shared apartment, holding this small bag filled with chapstick. You see Minho on the couch watching television, you sit next to him and hold his hand. “Hey my baby, my very handsome, cool, talented, sexy, gentleman of a boyfriend.” He looks at you weirdly. “What do you want y/n?” You scoff at him.

“Can’t I just compliment my handsome boyfriend?” You say while snuggling closer into him. “You can, but whats the catch?” He caught you. “Can you be in my video? Well you can’t really say no-” He cuts you off “No.”

“Come on! You’re the only one I can do this with! I can’t exactly ask other people for this. It’ll be really awkward if I ask other people to do this with me.” 

“What video are you shooting?” 

“Chapstick challenge.” You say while smirking at him. His eyes get wider when you said that. “You should’ve said that first! I’m always down for kissing you.” He says while grabbing your hand and also the bag, rushing to go into your studio. (your shared room) 

“You are purposely getting the flavors wrong Minho! You can’t do that!” You say while trying to stop him pulling your face to kiss you again. “Just one more kiss y/n. I really don’t know.” He says while cheekily smiling at you. “How can you not know, you literally also use this kind.” 

“I don’t remember it. Now please kiss me again.” He says while stealing a kiss from your lips.

“Minho!”

` C H A N G B I N ▪

~Q A N D A W I T H M Y B O Y F R I E N D~

Changbin would be down to be in a video with you! Most especially a q and a. He really wants to win this one so he can show how he remembers every single thing about you both. 

“Okay first question, where was our first date?” You put your phone down and write your answer. Changbin looks at the ceiling, recalling all the dates you guys have been to. He scribbles something down and looks at the camera. “Done!” He screams. “Okay show it on the count of three. one, two, three!” You both show the whiteboard to the camera and you look at him confused. “We didn’t have our first date at your house? We had it at the movie theatre down the street.” You say as you show your answer to the camera. “No, we had it at my house. We were having our weekly movie nights as friends then I confessed to you when the character was also confessing!” He says. “But it wasn’t a date!” You argue back. “I legit asked you after you said you liked me back if it was a date and you said yes.”

“Oh yeah, I remember now.” You say while recalling the memory. “You see this guys? She doesn’t even know the answer to the first question. I’m basically the winner now.” He says while smiling proudly at the camera. 

“There are 19 more questions! I can catch up easily.” 

“Sure y/n, sure.” 

` H Y U N J I N ▪

~T U R N I N G M Y B O Y F R I E N D I N T O A N E B O Y~

“Hyunjin!” You shout from your room. “Yes?” He shouts from the living room. He hears your feet padding down the stairs and you peek your head in the living room. “Do you mind joining me for my new video?” You ask him. “What do I need to do?” 

“You just need to sit and look pretty for me, and also model and outfit for me.” You say while smiling at him.”Sure, when do we start?” “Now.” 

You sit him down on the stool and he looks at you confusedly. “Whats with all the make up?” You ignore him and open your camera. You do your intro and he is shocked by what you said. “Hey guys y/n is back at it again with her shenanigans and today I’m going to turn my boyfriend-” You point at him “Into an e-boy.” 

“I was not informed. I thought you said I was just going to sit still and look pretty?” 

“You are-” You grab your make up kit from the table “trust me, this will be great!” You put his eye make up and kinda ruffle his hair but styling it in a way that looks good. “What are you doing now?” He asks because you didn’t give him a mirror. You wanted him to also be surprised by the outcome. “I’m going to put a fake lip piercing on you, stay still.” You put earrings on him and give him his clothes. “Okay guys this is the finale. The moment we all have been waiting for. Hyunjin come out from the bathroom!” You point your camera at the door and he walks out. Your mouth drops open and he poses for the camera. 

“Damn. I don’t think the world is ready for e-boy Hyunjin. Am I even going to upload this?” You say mostly to yourself but Hyunjin laughs at you. “Of course you should babe! I look good. Now come on I need to model too right?” He was enjoying this too much. You guys take pictures and he is so into it. You do your outro and turn off your camera. You look at him and still can’t believe it. 

“Damn, just, damn.” Hyunjin just smiles at you and kisses your cheek. “This is all you baby.”

“I should’ve done this a long time ago.” 

` J I S U N G ▪

~M Y B O Y F R I E N D D O E S M Y M A K E U P~  

Jisung will most definitely want to join you. He just wants to help you all the time with your youtube channel. When you asked him if he could do a video with you and he gets to put make up on your face, he is so down for it.

“Please don’t put too much foundation on my face.” You say as you see him pick up the foundation from your make up kit. You really don’t use it that much, it’s kinda just there. He squeezes the tube and a lot of foundation goes out. His eyes go wide and he looks at you. “Oh, this is too much.” He says not really knowing what to do with the extra foundation. He pats it on your face and gets eyeshadow. “You’re not going to put concealer on me?” 

“What do I need to conceal? Your beauty? Oh no thanks I won’t be using that.” He says trying to be romantic. “I legit have acne and acne marks Ji.” 

“Well I don’t care. I won’t use that on your face.” He says. “If you already think I’m very beautiful, why do we even need to do this video?” You ask him. He stops putting eyeshadow on you for a second. “You’re right. We need to scrap this video idea of yours!” You laugh at him. “I’m just kidding Ji, continue what you were doing.” A few minutes of him trying to put eyeliner on you, he says this. 

“You know that you don’t need to put make up on right? You’re already beautiful in my eyes.” 

“I know Ji, and I’m really thankful for that, but you need to finish doing my make up. I need to see how you did.” a few minutes later he was done and he didn’t do that bad. It was good for a beginner. You upload it and instantly get comments of how much Jisung shows his love for you in the video. Especially the part where he told you that you were very beautiful. Your subscribers also fell for him when he said that to you, but you were the lucky girl that he was head over heels with already.

` F E L I X ▪

~D O I N G T I K T O K D A N C E S W I T H M Y B O Y F R I E N D~ 

Let’s be real. If Felix wasn’t in stray kids, he would definitely have a youtube channel. So when he found out you had one, it was basically also his channel. He also uploaded some stuff on there so when he came up with a video idea, you were down for it. 

“Hey guys! It’s Felix here and welcome to my youtube channel!” He says to the camera. You just smile at him and introduce your self next. “And I’m y/n! The previous owner of this youtube channel, and today we are doing something different, Lix can you explain?” You gesture for him and he instantly starts explaining. “So guys, as you know stray kids have tiktok, and one night I kinda went into a hole and learned almost all of the trending dances on there, and guess who doesn’t have a tiktok?” He says while looking at you. “Look, before I get any hate, I watch tiktok videos on youtube okay? So I know some dances on there!” You defend yourself. “Okay boomer. Now I’m going to teach my boomer of a girlfriend some tiktok dances that she doesn’t know. Are you ready baby?” He asks while looking at you.

“I can’t believe my boyfriend just called me a boomer just because I don’t have tiktok.” You say while looking at him in disbelief. “I’ll take that as a yes. Let’s start!” 

The video was full of laughter as Felix was teaching you the dances, also him being amazed by you learning most of them just by watching it only once. “Close your moth Lix, you’ll catch flies.” You say while smirking at him. He looks at the camera and points at you. “I retract my earlier statement, my girlfriend is not a boomer.” 

` S E U N G M I N ▪

~I N T R O D U C I N G M Y B O Y F R I E N D~ 

Your relationship was finally public and this gained attention on your youtube channel. Mostly comments on having him on some of your videos and some hate comments but this ain’t about them. They wanted to get to know Seungmin more as your boyfriend, not as idol Seungmin. He was kind of against it at first but seeing you interacting with your fans, he kinda had a change of heart.

“I’ll do it.” He suddenly says in the middle of a movie. “Do what?” You ask not knowing the context of what he was saying. “The video. It’s been a while so I think we’re in the clear. Also, I want to know your fans.” He says. “You don’t need to do it if you feel pressured Seung. I completely understand that it may not be the wisest decision while in the middle of your career. You don’t need to feel pressured to do the video, okay?” 

“I know, but I’m tired of always thinking about what other people have to say about our relationship. It’s our relationship, not theirs. I shouldn’t have to care about what they think, and I know that now. So just tell me whenever you want to do the video, okay?” He reassures you and days later you guys are recording it. 

“Hello everyone y/n here! This video is kind of different from the past ones because I have a special guest today. Please welcome my boyfriend, Seungmin!” He comes into frame and sits beside you, holding your hands out of habit and just because it gives him comfort.”So I know all, if not almost all of you know him. He is from Stray kids, they just had a comeback so you guys should definitely stream and buy the album okay! Give my boys some love!” You turn to him and gesture for him to talk. “Oh, uhm, hi I’m Seungmin. Uhm, what else do I say?” He asks while looking at you. You pinch his cheeks because he just looked so cute and looked at the camera. 

“As you can see by the title of the video we will basically be asking him some questions so you guys get to know him more. Maybe some other stuff aside from what we already know?” You ask for his permission and he nods. 

“Okay, now that we got the go signal, let’s start!” 

` J E O N G I N ▪

~W H I S P E R C H A L L E N G E~

He would be really shy when you first asked him to be in one of your videos. He was scared that your fans would not like him. You assured him that was not going to happen because he was a very lovable human being and he deserves all the love in the world :< After many attempts he finally said yes and to make his very first youtube video with you fun and memorable, you decided to do a challenge with him. 

“Hi guys this is the first time my boyfriend will be joining me in one of my videos, so what better way to welcome him than to do a challenge? More specifically, the whisper challenge!” You look at him and he continues what you were saying. “So uhm, we both wrote down random things we like on a piece of paper. The other one doesn’t know what it says, obviously, and they have to guess while having music on full volume.” He says while smiling cutely at the camera. “Okay! Let’s begin. Put on your headphones Innie.” He puts them on and you both start.

“Penguin.” You say to him calmly. “Ben ten?” 

“Peng-” “Ben” You shake your head at him “P-Peng” “PENG?” You nod and continue. “Uin.” “What? Win? Oh! PENGUIN!” He screams at you. You guys switch and it’s his turn. 

“y/n” He says while blushing. 

“Did you just say my name?” You asked confusion all over your face. “ Why would you write that?” 

“You told me to write stuff we like, I like you. Well, I love you, but you get the point.” He scratches his neck and accidentally shows the camera how red his ears are. “I am definitely not going to edit this out.” You say while chuckling at how cute your boyfriend is. 

[springday-aus]

Dog Walker!AU with Rocky [Minhyuk]

moodboard link

Group: ASTRO

Member: Rocky / Park Minhyuk

Genre: fluff, romance

part of the Odd Summer Jobs!AU ⤗ introduction to the Summer Boys

Type: Bulletpoint AU 

Word Count: 2k

first up, we got Rocky!

who’s the neighborhood dog walker

(and sitter)

but he’s only available during the summer now

hence the reason why he joined the Summer Boys

he needed to make some extra money over the summer when he comes home from college

during the school year, he teaches dance lessons

but it’s only during the school year

so every summer when he comes home

he cares for the neighborhood dogs

he used to do it during high school too

so he knows what the job is like and whose dogs he can walk

when he was first doing it, he thought it was fairly easy

and it kind of was

he would just take the dogs on a neighborhood stroll

or they would go to a park

yeah, he has to pick up poop, but like

he’s with a bunch of dogs and has little contact with working with people

so who is he to complain

but it did get a bit harder...

more people were calling for him and he would end up with a large group of dogs

the max he takes a time is like… ten?

so it depends if they’re all small dogs, big dogs, etc.

the big dogs are harder to maintain

thank god for those dancer muscles tho

the big dogs literally drag him

when he first started dog walking…

he had like three big dogs to start with

that was A Disaster

(Sanha and Chani have video AND photo evidence)

sometimes they come with him just to get some more disastrous blackmail

I mean photos for the Summer Boys website :)

anyways

the dog owners love him

he’s super responsible

(he answers his phone quickly)

and he’s reliable

and the dogs love him

then again, who wouldn’t like Rocky?

anyways

he also does dog sitting

he kind of likes it but he does prefer the dog walking

anyways

if it’s a dog sitting job, he needs like a 24 hour notice thing

but it all depends on how long the sitting job is

(one time this woman asked him to dog sit for an hour while she went to her doctor’s appointment, he literally just chilled in this lady’s house for an hour because the dog took a nap)

overall it’s a fun job and it’s pretty chill

he doesn’t charge much either

unless he has to buy supplies for the dog

but he doesn’t mind

and most of the time, he’s reimbursed through tips

so he mainly communicates through phone

those who call him are people he’s known for a while

or they’re people who know about him from other people

once the flyers came out tho

he’s been easier to contact

with the website up too, the photos are… very….. convincing

he’s been getting more business after officially joining the Summer Boys

and that means… more dogs!

how does this involve you?

this involves you when you crash land into a pillow of approx. 15 dogs

Rocky was taking the dogs out for their daily walk

he had about fifteen, maybe even sixteen dogs

the problem was

there were… at least eight big dogs…..

I’m talking like

Bernese mountain dog

a Black Russian Terrier

St. Bernard

shepherd dog

it’s…. Chaotic

he’s got a good hold on them.. at least he thinks so

anyways

on the other side of the park

you and your friends were there

the park is huge

like there’s a lake where people can paddle boat huge

so there’s a lot of space

there’s a playground for toddlers

and another for the elementary schoolers

picnic areas

barbeque areas

there’s tracks for walking

tracks for runners

and tracks for bike riders

which is why you and you were friends were there

so, despite being an adult

you don’t know how to ride a bike

so your friends dragged you here for you to learn

“it’ll be fun!!!! and it’s never too late to learn!!”

it has been kind of fun

(other than the fear of falling off the said bike)

and just when you thought you had a good grip on this whole riding a bike thing

an incident occurs

you know that thing parents do?

the whole “don’t let go” “I’m not gonna let you go”

this was all because of that “I’m not letting you go” shit

so you were riding on your bike

(with a helmet ofc)

your friends were pushing you

and you were going a good distance

but then they let go…. as you were going downhill…

you haven’t mastered the brakes or whatever they’re called on a bike

and just as you maintained the speed and stabilized yourself

you looked up and next thing you know, you saw a bunch of fluff

i.e. Rocky

you were screaming

he was screaming

all the dogs were coming all at once

so you tried to stop it because you didn’t wanna run into the dogs

and you ended swerving on the side

and Rocky panicked and tried to catch you

but then….

he… kind of sort of let go? of the leash……….

that was holding all of the dogs…..

so, you landed on the grass in Rocky’s arms

surrounded by a lot of fluffy dogs

Rocky: “are you okay?”

You: “tbh, this is kind of how I imagined my death”

Rocky: “falling off a bike?”

You: “no, surrounded by dogs”

Rocky: “I guess that’s one way of going”

Rocky: “are you okay now?”

You: “yeah, I think so now”

you both sat up and, luckily, the dogs all stayed near you two

primarily because they were all stuck with the same leash

You: “thank you for trying to catch me”

Rocky: “no problem, I hope your bike isn’t scratched”

You: “oh, it’s not my bike—my friends were trying to teach me how to ride it”

Rocky: “oh, did you not have like knee or elbow pads? I got a friend who has some that you could borrow”

You: “yeah, that would have been smart”

before you two could say anything else

your friends are running over

“sorry!! sorry!! we would have been here sooner but we didn’t realize how far you were”

“yeah and combine that with the fact that we realized that we should have been running”

they help you up and that’s when they spot Rocky

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

“(Y/N), who is this???”

You: “I actually don’t know”

Rocky: “my name’s Minhyuk, but my friends call me Rocky”

You: interesting

You: “thanks again for the help, uh, Minhyuk”

Rocky: “oh, are you sure you don’t want the pads?”

You: “actually, yeah, you know that’s probably smart”

so you trade numbers

and you part ways

you forget about him for a bit

but then you and your friends are about to head to the park for another bike lesson

“we need to be consistent for you to learn”

“also you can finally text the cute boy with the dogs”

“but mainly for you to learn how to ride a bike”

You: ……. sure it is

so, you do text him….

and you two arrange to meet at the park first

you decided to wait at a nearby bench and about a couple of minutes

he comes

with another pack of dogs

this time there’s a little less of the big dogs and more of the fluffy baby ones

but they’re all cute nevertheless

he gives you the knee pads amidst the chaos the dogs are causing

you’ve never wished for more hands in your life

anyways

he spends a bit of time with you, while you’re waiting for your friends

and you spend a bit of time talking, getting to know each other

You: “I would love to walk these cuties all day”

Rocky: “well, you could always just come along with me next time”

You: “can I really”

your friends eventually come and he greets them, but eventually leaves to actually walk the dogs

your friends did not let that go the whole day

“oooooo cute boy came~”

“shuT iT fuckin—”

anyways

you two arrange a time for you to walk the dogs with him

it was super fun

like a bunch of dogs?? AND a cute boy???

who wouldn’t have fun

you wanted to try to walk the big dogs and he just…. let you

Sanha was right: this is super funny to watch

don’t worry, he gets you ice cream as an apology

and then it becomes a weekly thing

you come along when you have time

(and it IS summer come on lbr here)

now you’re just two friends

walking some dogs together

and then you have to return the dogs... 

naturally, you go with him 

bc he has like 10+ dogs and you weren’t about to make him go alone

you’re both kind of chill and still talking and getting to know one another 

it’s chill 

but then, something that happened 

you and Rocky had about five dogs with you 

and you were returning a lil pomeranian to this old couple 

the grandma who answers the door, she gets her dog and then... 

“so, you and Minhyuk are dating?”

You and Rocky: uhhhh

the grandpa (you assume her husband) comes out, poking is head through the door...

“this might just be a development in process, honey—don’t push them”

You: oh my god 

they thank you both and you both move on to the next house... rather slowly

Rocky: “I’m so sorry”

You: “I’ve dealt with weirder situations”

You: “besides it’s not like I would have minded” 

Rocky: “I wouldn’t have minded either.....” 

so you both finish returning the dogs

overall, it was fun 

anyways... 

you and Rocky may or not have figured things out by the time you were done 

and may have made some plans for dinner..... 

congrats for upgrading from dog walks

you get more dates!!!

anyways

you still go on the walks with him in the park

whether it’s with or without the dogs

(the owners started being more familiar with you too)

(at this point you should be getting paid)

it’s fine tho bc you get to spend some time with your cutie

and like 20 other lil cuties

it’s not just the dog walking thing

he’s even joined your friends to help you learn to ride a bike

Rocky: “bike date!!!”

y’all even have picnics 

it’s cute 

like he’ll make it and pack it in these fancy ass containers 

you try to make sure you aren’t in an are with seagulls tho 

one time he had those shrimp chips out 

..... yeah it was not a fun time 

but you learned 

anyways

some dates are in a studio where he dances

he still practices over the summer and you just watch from the side, cheering for him

it’s super cute

everyone at the dance studio knows you now too

sometimes when it’s just you two, he gives you a dance lesson

most times he would just put on music and you two would dance

even if you were bad at it

you two have named them as Summer Night Dance Parties

but there are some nights when he would just hold you into his arms and you two would sway to some relaxing music

sure, some of your dates might not be super romantic but he’s trying

oh, speaking of which

karaoke dates are def a thing

he may not be a singer

but it doesn’t mean he’s bad

(he’s def better than you)

sometimes you go with the other Summer Boys

who you met on many different occasions

the first official time tho………..

they did a whole dinner thing

(to celebrate???)

the energy…. it was chaotic

there was so much happening all at once

you were surprised they didn’t get kicked out

especially with the Chenle and Jisung duo

it was fun tho, especially conversing with Sanha and Chani

you have so much of their blackmail content on Rocky

and you haven’t seen him as talkative that night more than ever

he was so much louder too

again, the energy……… was chaotic

(sometimes they come to those picnics and it somehow manages to be even more chaotic than usual) 

you’ve grown close with them

it’s cute

you even help manage their instagram page

(which is just you taking 10000x photos of Rocky)

You: “Min, it’s for the instagram page”

You: “loooook at meeeeee”

You: “smile pretty pretty for the camera”

Rocky: “how many are you using”

You: “all of them”

it’s not like he minds you having your attention tbh

he likes taking photos of you with the other dogs too

honestly they’re more candid, but they’re still cute

you didn’t even know until you saw his phone wallpaper

You: “whEN dID yOU tAKe THAT”

Rocky: “you looked cute playing with the puppies in the grass, so I just to—dON’T DELETE IT”

it’s super cute

this is a cute relationship

[theshinsun]

4, 5, 7, 10, 13, 15, 16, 17, 23, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33, 36, 39, 40, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 59, 60 [Which do you prefer between Knb and Haikyuu?] for the ask you recently reblogged please?

4. what are you looking forward to?

I'm looking forward to school starting again, even if it's just a weird hybrid of online/flipped classes, I miss my teachers and like, being productive. also if I'm in class I can't be worked borderline inhumane hours right…. right??

5. is there anyone who can always make you smile?

yeah, my roommate. she always either knows how to cheer me up, or blunders around trying to find the right method to the point that it's funny and I end up smiling anyway. she's really awesome like that.

7. what was your life like last year?

it had a lot of ups and downs. I had a great job, but the people I worked with eventually made it toxic and awful. I was doing really well in school, but stressed all the time, had an awesome relationship but kind of ruined it w my anxiety, and had serious roommate issues that made me afraid to leave my bedroom or even come home, sometimes. I remember a lot of very high highs and very low lows especially in the fall/winter of that year.

10. are you good at hiding your feelings?

well, yes and no… I don't tend to show a lot of emotion to begin with, but what I do show, I'm basically incapable of hiding, and apparently I'm a terrible liar bc my face gives me away.

13. how do you feel right now?

I'm pretty alright… kind of anxious, kind of tired, but that's just been the status quo lately tbh. 

15. personality description

already answered, so I suppose I'll elaborate. I'm simultaneously like, the most confident and the most self-doubting person I know... like there are certain things I'm super certain of and times when I feel no shame, and there are others where I'll just shrivel into a ball of anxiety and mortification and never come out. in the same vein, I'm simultaneously very trusting and open and very wary and cautious with people… it really depends on the situation and the person I think, I'm a very "you get out what you put in" person.

16. have you ever wanted to tell someone something but you didn't?

yeah, I’m still holding onto things I’ve wanted to tell certain people tbh… I used to be a lot more forthcoming and not worry about the consequences of what I had to say, but now that I’ve seen what power words have to ruin relationships and impact people I tend to hold back quite a bit. 

17. opinion on insecurities

I have… many, but I understand that I shouldn't and am working on the ones I do have. I think feeling insecure can lead to some of the most ugly, toxic emotions and responses in certain people, so I'm trying to be conscientious of that.

23. fear(s)

um let’s see… jump scares, the dark (sometimes), corners I can’t see around, drowning/suffocating, pain, failure, losing control...

27. things I hate

wet socks, sunburn, acne, willful ignorance, bigotry, excessively negative people… uh… idk hate's a strong word that's all I've got

28. I'll love you if…

if you are genuinely, authentically yourself. if you’re the kind of person I can feel comfortable and at ease with. if you show me patience and compassion and make an effort to know me and let me know you… then yeah you’re never getting rid of me. 

29. favorite film(s)

The Road to El Dorado, Into the Spider-verse, Howl’s Moving Castle, Spirit, Life of Pi, The Truman Show, The Perks of Being a Wallflower

30. favorite tv show(s)

Haikyuu!!, Kuroko no Basuke, Avatar, Bojack Horseman, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Beastars, Dragonball Z

31. 3 random facts

already answered so here's three more

1. lately I've been carrying a fanny pack with the trans flag (there's an unfortunate but very tempting pun in there) and it's still got the security tag bc they forgot to take it off in the store so now every time I walk through the doorway to like, a drug store, I set off the alarm. I would get it taken off but it was sent to me from Chicago lol.

2. I've got a lot of outdoorsy skills bc of my gym class in high school, like rock climbing, kayaking, building fire, etc. I'm not super adventurous in my daily life but while I was in that class, I did all kinds of things.

3. for awhile I worked at a cat cafe, and helped take care of the 12-15 rescue cats we'd have there at any given time. I stand by that it was the best job I've ever had, but the people I worked with, not so much. 

33. something you want to learn

I really want to learn to skateboard or surf. it's been a dream for a long time and I have (suspiciously acquired) both, but my balance is shit and I have no patience for new skills lately, so...

36. 3 dreams you want to fulfill?

already answered so here's three more

1. someday I want to have a pickup truck, I've been looking at, like, bright orange Tacomas and stuff, but of course I'd need a license to be able to drive one

2. I'd like to have a garden again, or maybe have a plot in a community garden. I've been growing nasturtiums and things on my balcony while in school but it's not quite the same

3. still waiting on the day I can get top surgery tbh. I just… want to be able to be shirtless at the beach and wear tank tops with nothing underneath, okay?

39. favorite sport(s)

ahahahaha… favorite sport you say. to play or to watch? 'cause I generally don't like to do either, tho I do like watching the folks who play volleyball on the beach. and considering one of my favorite shows is about volleyball and it was the sport I sucked at the least in school, maybe we’ll go with volleyball? but in general I’m not a sports person. 

40. favorite memory

I have a vague memory… of helping my mom in the garden of my old house when I was a little kid, mostly just digging in the dirt in the spring and being outside with my family… it's not very clear or specific but I think those days were some of the happiest of my life.

52. something I'm talented at

I'm good at learning the lyrics to songs, I've got over 1000 downloaded in my spotify library and I'm pretty sure I know the words to at least most of them. in a similar vein I'm good at learning the scripts to movies, and just… memorizing things in general especially audio.

53. 5 things that make me happy

already answered so here's some more!

1. songs with a light, strummy acoustic feel and creative lyrics… I've got a whole playlist for that vibe there's just something about songs like that that make me really calm

2. I really like being hugged or cuddled by my friends, just being in close proximity and hanging all over each other, makes me all warm and fuzzy inside tbh

3. I love driving with the windows down (I can't drive so I mean riding passenger lol), especially in the canyon by my house, through the forest and by the beach.

54. something that's worrying me at the moment

I’m so afraid things won’t go back to the way they were. ...that applies to multiple aspects of my life, not just with this pandemic but school, work, friends, relationships… it seems like I’m always chasing the past and dreading the future, so much that I can’t ever be satisfied in the present moment, and that’s something that’s been on my mind a lot. 

55. tumblr friends

@hadenxcharm, @spaztictwitch, @kurokonobaka, @taigainside, @hybristophilica and you could be too! all you gotta do is message me tbh I'm easy

56. favorite food(s)

strawberry cheesecake, fried shrimp, key lime pie, tuna steak

59. why I joined tumblr

I joined in 2012 bc my friends told me to, had a brief recession where I didn't use it at all, and a pretty lengthy sidetrack through the RP community, and then I came back bc of the friends I'd made here, and the unique-ness of the platform that I kinda can't find anywhere else. I'm stuck here just like the rest of y'all. 

60. ask me anything you want (which do you prefer between KNB and Haikyuu?)

now this is a tough one… bc I really love them both a lot, and tbh in terms of quality of writing, art/animation, thematic music, character development and general story, I think Haikyuu!! has KNB beat, buuuuuut…. in spite of its flaws, I have such a soft spot for KNB and I keep coming back to it over and over again even as it falls into relative obscurity. It's the only thing I write for anymore and I'm still, somehow, utterly obsessed with the characters I first fell in love with over five years ago. KNB has problems, for sure, but the things it gets right (like setting a mood, strong emotional beats and character relationships) it knocks out of the park. I don't know if I could ever choose one over the other in terms of like, "you can only read/watch one of these and have to give up the other forever", but in terms of which has had the biggest impact, and still hits me the hardest, I'd probably have to go with KNB… but it's not by any means an easy choice.     

[escarras]

⌠ ALEXA DEMIE, TWENTY THREE, CISFEMALE, SHE/HER ⌡ welcome back to gallagher academy, BRIAR ESCARRÀ! according to their records, they’re a THIRD year, specializing in MEDICAL TRAINING + SEDUCTION AND FLIRTATION; and they DID go to a spy prep high school. when i see them walking around in the halls, i usually see a flash of ( music through broken speakers,  highlighted passages in a book, doing things after being told she couldn’t ). when it’s the (GEMINI)’s birthday on 06/13/1996, they always request their SHRIMP SCAMPI from the school’s chefs. looks like they’re well on their way to graduation. ⌿ mack, 20, she/her, est ⍀     suzume best friend wc.

briar was born to two actual loving parents - ik, crazy for a character of mine! jk. sike!

her mom, chantel was a gallagher girl herself. she has high expectations for her only child. 

her father, martin, was an agent for a different agency.

the two met during a collaboration between the two agencies on a big take down of a common enemy ; eventually, they got married and had briar.

chantel became a housewife — she came from money, so there was no issue of them working anyways. she still did spy stuff on the side and martin was off all around the world for weeks at a time doing spy tings.

chantel cared more about reputation than actually caring for her daughter — they lived lavishly, but her mother resented her child from a young age. she set standards that were quite high.

and much to her surprise, briar met quite a few of them.

briar could tell her mother, frankly, wanted to ride around in lambos than take care of her daughter. and that was fine with briar. instead, she spent her time learning.books became her best friend ; it would remain that way for quite a long while, and anyways, it would help her in the long run. 

much  of  her  life  became  cynical  and  cold.  mechanical  and  stiff.  essentially,  for  her  childhood,  it  was  briar,  her  books  and  the  world.  (  thankfully,  the  internet  was  starting  up  around  this  time  –  chantel  would  die  if  they  didn’t  have  the  latest  machines  for  that  www  ).  this  lead  to  a  world  of  knowledge  and  learning.

she’s  read  all  of  the  ‘classics’  (  her  favorite  is  a  tie  between  lord  of  the  flies  &  1984  ).

by the time she was fifteen, she could speak three languages ( asl, french & spanish ).

she’s also quite the fashionista - though you wouldn’t know it, because she wears the same thing in rotation like a damn cartoon character.

eventually, by the time briar became a teenager her mother found no more enjoyment in cars and money — instead she chose to lead her daughter into the lifestyle of spies. and briar was ecstatic, to be quite honest. 

high school was kind of hard, for briar. she was homeschooled by tutors before being thrown to the wolves of her spy high school, and she didn’t excel in making friends department. 

people didn’t like how cold and closed off she could be - it’s not exactly intentional, but her social skills do need work, even to this day.

she’s attending gallagher to kind of .. stick it to her mom? her mom boasts all the time about how she ( chantel ) did so well at gallagher, how briar has a legacy to uphold … and yeah, she kind of does. but this gives briar the drive to try and be better than her mother ( not that it’d take much personality wise, BUT ). 

more !!

she’s in medical training bc she finds human anatomy so .. fascinating. like we get it u watch greys anatomy — and seduction bc she knows she’s a cute girl so why not use that to an advantage out in the field?

she kind of has a big ego. LMAO

she’s broody and just kind of has RBF? all the time. it’s not intentional – it’s just briar.

definitely always listening to rock bands or pop - no in between, tbh. 

has an iguana named perseus. he’s cool

definitely has baby doll tendencies? once u get passed the whole .. brood.

yes she WILL buy ur love! cash, food, clothes! pls love her.

she’s literally that tiktok of post malone handing out stacks of money.

as ‘hard’ as she comes across, she a big baby. esp while drunk LMAO 

if u call her anything other than briar she’ll gut u like a fish. ty.

[steve0discusses]

Yugioh S3 Ep 46-47: We Have an Extra Episode, Just Blow Up the Island, I Dunno

Yo can you even believe this season is over?

It was honestly a two-season season, when you think about it. This tournament that was only like a week in showtime but two years in watch time if it was 2001 and I was tuning in every week. Kinda nuts when you think about it.

Anyways, it’s over, and not even the Kaibas are willing to really let it end. They’re camping out in their bunker they just set to explode, just watching everyone run around like ants while the sirens wail across the island (do you NEED emergency sirens if no one else lives on this island?)

And we get one more time for the writers of this show to flip over the Kaiba timeline like pancakes and I just...

I can’t believe they did this to me, but at the same time I can totally see how they just let this one fly under the radar, just wait for it, it’s coming.

(read more under the cut)

So this sort of explains a little bit more of why Kaiba insists on building Kaibaland when it already exists, as apparently the Japanese Kaibaland was just the first of a franchise. Like seriously what child dreams of Franchising? He has Kaibaland but is like “I won’t be truly happy at all and I will try to cut people up with card games until there are more Kaibalands. That will surely make me happy. More Kaibalands.”

But then, sitting in the middle of the orphanage, he stands up in his 70′s ass sweatervest and proudly proclaims:

This borked timeline.

Back in the present Joey is feeling stressed out so he’s turned to his only coping mechanism, that’s right, he’s hassling people.

Duke, who has a million motivations to want to kill Kaiba, since he works for Pegasus, brings up the bright idea of “or I dunno, we could leave them? Like they very much caused every event of the last week to happen outside of the random ass cultists.”

And so, now that Joey has exhausted things to hassle, let them be Roland or the massive engines on the blimp-plane, he decides to board the helicopter. I kid you not, Tea turns to Joey as they’re boarding the copter and says basically along the lines of this:

WTF, show. Like what? Like whaaaat? Anyway, don’t think about how big a helicopter is on the inside, because we’re just gonna shove everyone in here like it’s a mosh pit. Good thing that no one actually packed any luggage or pajamas, so at least that will keep the weight down.

Please admire the height of Yugi compared to Roland.

What followed was an explosion that the show did for...some reason. This didn’t need to happen. This was needless anxiety and it’s like..the season’s over why are we doing this???

So this is just a very Yugioh moment where...they didn’t really HAVE to blow up the island at the last minute. They didn’t HAVE to break the engines on the blimp-plane and they absolutely didn’t HAVE to put Seto Kaiba in a jet in the same very un-aerodynamic shape of a blue eyes white wife.

But they did.

If I’ve learned anything from watching Yugioh is that you must always, at every moment, be going 400%.

Seto just wanted to make a simple visual statement of “I want to move on from the past” so he decided to uh...do a very theatrical statement that was so theatrical that everyone thought that not only he and Mokuba had died, but that they, themselves, were about to die (and they were, they absolutely were)

Please admire the way they drew Seto from the side in this scene.

Anyway, now that the completely unnecessary “lets blow up the island and destroy the ecosystem” drama is over, and Kaiba’s off to encourage Global Warming in some other part of the globe, it’s time to send Marik off on his boat. It’s time for him to go have Marik Boat Time and never ever become a spinoff series although you know I would absolutely watch the hell out of that.

So, they choose the most idyllic landscape to do it, here in the abandoned warehouse district, surrounded by shipping cranes and strangely empty cruise liners. Ah, that twilight hour sunset. The way the sunlight kisses the corners of the abandoned warehouse’s windows.

I am absolutely shocked our background artist didn't use the chance to paint it neon orange. They love neon orange so much but I guess they save the neon for dramatic scenes. This one they left a more natural Instagram creamy color palate.

(PS at this point I guess Bakura decided to go home or go to the hospital. Whichever reason he decided to bounce, he bounced without saying goodbye to anyone apparently. That or the show just decided that no one cares about Bakura so he was the only one we didn’t say a farewell too, which is hilarious since he’s one of the most popular characters on this show.

Bro broke it to me, this whole story line of the puzzle and the tablet and all that--nah. By the time we get to it I’ll have forgotten all of the lore, pretty sure. Bro did ask me if we could skip S4 and I said no we are here for the worst parts first, Bro. When it gets horrible is when we’re finally getting to the good stuff.

Then, Duke suddenly remembered that before this tournament, he was only going on a walk between laundry loads but ended up abducted twice over, stranded on a submarine, an island, and nearly exploded. That and he had to sleep on one of Kaiba’s weird cube couches and that probably sucked. But it’s time for him to pull out his colors and add some bounce sheets to his whites for the dryer.

Can you believe they had Duke Devlin for two seasons but he only dueled once? Lol.

I can’t believe there was never a purpose for Duke Devlin other than to be eye-candy. I’ve only ever really seen this trope done to girls.

Mai also suddenly remembers that she doesn’t live here.

TBH, if Mai wasn’t put in a coma, I think she would have just left the tournament after she lost. She’d have pulled out a hang-glider from her pack and just sailed away rather than spend another minute with people she isn’t absolutely required to hang out with. That seems more her jam.

And then they had to frame up this Joey/Mai ship and...it’s just so funny when you remember that Mai is like waaay to old for Joey. She’s like 24 and he’s a baby but he’s pretty sure that he’s disappointing her so much by not telling her all about how he’s crushing. He’s pretty sure she just has no idea when it’s like, no, she does, and she does not want you to acknowledge it.

As she goes off, Tea for some reason decides to make it her responsibility for Joey to go out there and I guess...mortally embarrass himself in front of his much older crush? I mean you don’t really have to admit to your teachercrush that...you like her? Like, Mai is just a teachercrush right? Like he respects and admires her, she’s pretty, and there’s no other girls but Tea and Miho? Like that’s it?

This weird ass couple. And I mean it’s a weird pairing just because it can never happen on screen, but as some of you have pointed out--it is probably the healthiest couple in Yugioh. Mostly because we know that it will never happen. Unlike everyone else where it’s like, Joey better go eat both those pieces of paper with those phone numbers on it because holy hell a 16 yo dating a 12 yo is pretty freakin wild. What are those boys even going to talk about with Serenity? How wild fractions are? How to make a replica of a cell out of Jello for the science fair? Because that’s the level she’s at.

I was an architecture student once (I know. Ya’ll who’ve read many of these have probably noticed I attempted to major in nearly every art alignment so it’s probably very confusing to figure out wtf I actually ended up finishing in school (it was Illustration) ) so I just can’t with Yugi’s house. We have seen several rooms inside this house and none of them, absolutely none, line up with the outside of Yugi’s house (which is smack dab in the middle of the inner city for some reason??? Like does Yugi have PARKING? This is the most expensive two story house in Japan, it comes with free parking.

And like...I have tried to lay it out but it doesn’t make sense. The stairs of the shop go directly into the front door. The second floor would be half a staircase, so where is this living room? And assuming that Yugi is on the top floor with the slanted roof window...how? Is it the entire floor? what is going on here?

It’s a cartoon, I shouldn’t think about it, but this house is a Dr. Who police box. Anyways, Yugi decides to sneak out of the house by going down the stairs that are again, right in front of the front door. You cannot go through the front door of this house because these damn stairs are directly in the way.

Hey check out who’s alive, it’s Grandpa. I guess he’s...fine? I guess he just woke up on the floor of Bakura’s hospital room and was like “Screw that, I’m going home.” and then just peaced out here until Yugi came back.

I respect his moon pj’s to go with Yugi’s star pj’s.

I can’t imagine being in Grandpa’s position and seeing your boy go out there and get nearly killed by crazy ass cultists again and Seto Kaiba (who put him in a coma), and then catching him Sneaking Out. Like if I were Grandpa I’d just set up camp right outside of the front door because holy hell Yugi is so attracted to danger he’s just gonna waltz around the city in the middle of the night to play cards.

++++++++++RANT ABOUT TACO BELL, FEEL FREE TO SKIP THIS IS JUST ME TALKING ABOUT THE TACO BELL MENU+++++++++++++++++++++++++

Also I looked up Taco Bell in Japan thinking that this wouldn’t be a thing (from what I’ve heard, the only food Japan cannot do is Mexican) but not only does Taco Bell in Japan completely exist, guess what the menu is like? Just go ahead and guess in your head, I’m gonna go over the menu right now because this is very important.

I was expecting it to be pretty wild with a black taco shell made out of squid ink or something but surprisingly, it’s mostly the freakin same but different meats. Like they have a few more pork options (I guess instead of chicken?) and they have a shrimp taco--which I feel like we’ve done in the States before but everyone didn’t like that. Also, you can apparently get a crunchwrap, but it’s in a triangle shape instead of an octagon. They just changed the shape and called it a “stuffed grilled giant nacho”.

Obviously, they do not have a Ranch Doritos taco since America is the only place that is fully obsessed with Ranch. I have heard from so many people from Asia that “can we just not have Ranch today? Can we have a single spread without this weird garlic sauce? And...are you dipping your pizza with it? Is there one thing you haven’t coated with Ranch Dressing?” and it’s like no. There isn’t. Would you like to try our taco bell taco that is frosted in messy Ranch dust?

Like it really feels like this is the one fast food joint where everyone else has the normal Taco bell, and weirdly WE are are the people with the weird ass version of Taco Bell. Even Japan was like “you guys do you over there with your pink Starburst flavored frozen icee and your Quesarito...we’re just gonna put some extra cheese on a taco and call it ‘double cheese.’”

But here’s the craziest thing on the menu--the Taco Bell in Japan has FRIES.

I KNOW.

WHAT????

What would Taco Bell fries even taste like? Would they taste...tacoey? I mean I know that nacho fries are a thing that kinda comes and goes but I’ve never had them actually. Its never the right moment for nacho fries when Nacho fries are still on the menu.

but, I will say they do have one kind of weird thing on the menu I see online. I say “kind of” because it’s...just weird, it’s not actually all that out there as compared to our weird things in Taco bell. They got something called the “honey cheese pocket” which was a small plain flour tortilla filled with melted Monterey Jack cheese rolled into a cigar that you dip into honey.

...I mean...it probably tastes good, but if you released a honey cheese pocket in the States and pretended that’s Mexican food, I’m pretty sure every state touching the south border would cry a single Zesty-ranch-doritos-taco-shaped-tear. I know I would, at the same rate I’m stuffing honey cheese pockets directly into my mouth.

AND...apparently you can just serve alcohol in a Japanese Taco Bell. Which is interesting, because we had that episode of Season Zero where Yugi had to find alcohol in a burger joint, which seemed really odd to me at the time, but I guess you can just serve alcohol in whatever restaurant? Anyways, Taco bell has alcohol so now Yugi can light people on fire in a Taco Bell, if he really felt like it. Go ahead and append your fanfictions accordingly.

+++++++++END OF TACO BELL RANT, BACK TO CARDS ++++++++++++

So, can you imagine having a friend who forces you to wake up at o-dark hundred in order to play cards when you already attend all of the same classes and see eachother every minute of the day otherwise? Can you imagine having a friend like this?

Then again I’m not 100% on whether Pharaoh needs to sleep. It’s pretty clear that Bakura’s ghost doesn’t sleep much (or apparently eat much) so maybe it goes the same for Pharaoh as well that he needs Yugi to remind him how to be human.

Then there was this weird review episode they slapped on at the end. I...don’t know why they put it there, it was really more of an afterthought since nothing really got added or taken away from the finale. It was just a review episode of “in case you didn’t watch this season, here’s what happened this season” But the episode wasn’t over before Tea angsted the hell out about this kid that I guess she’s...

Tea thinks in her head about Yugi more than she talks directly to Yugi. That’s really my biggest issue with this couple. Tea can be so lukewarm towards Yugi and visa versa and then occasionally Tea will just snap and obsesses over this boy, but never tells him about it directly. Except for that one time in the blimp, which was more about “please don’t die”. But have they talked about how freakin anxious she is about how he’ll die? Nah.

It just feels like the writing team had one person who really liked Tea/Yugi, and then the rest who were like “fine, wtv” and so we get a real inconsistent narrative of this pair, that only seems to come up for drama, but then goes right back to being invisible moments later. Like sightings of a giant squid.

Ah, back where they started, on a date with a ghost. I think. This might be a date? It started at 2 PM so I don’t know that counts as a date yet.

These two are a lot.

And honestly...If it was going to happen it should have happened at some point in the end of this arc. She made such a big deal about him going off to card war, and now he’s back and she’s like...ok, cool.

They’re not gonna even talk about it? Or like...maybe high five it out? High five out those feelings? Man I feel so bad for anyone that shipped these two.

But anyway,

I’d add it to the Yugioh Death Count but that’s assuming that I don’t find an excuse to use this font again.

So yeah, that’s it for Season 3 (I wrote in Season 4 just now and had to really think about it because like...it really does feel like I went through 4 seasons, at least, of this show since every season is like 50 episodes)

Originally, when I started this, I thought there were only 3 seasons of Yugioh total. This was the end goal.

But I guess I’m committed now, so we’ll start up Season 4, which bro tells me is “completely different and not what you expected” but I probably won’t post until 2 weeks from now because this is a side hobby and I don’t need to wax long about my main-life stress, but youknow how it is: the more stuff I add the more stuff adds up. However, I do cope with stress by typing, so maybe I’ll just make sooo many updates to combat it? I dunno. But the blog will be back for S4. Eventually. When I get to it.

Many thanks to all y’all who’ve left many kind comments, I’ve been kind of tasked for time lately, so I haven’t really responded to many, but know that I see them and I’m thankful for them and I tell bro about them and he finds many of them amusing and y’all are just very, very nice. Wish Tumblr had an actual comments system since the only way to reply is like...it’s weird. If I reblog my own post I run the risk of it then being out of chronological order for people wanting to read that link I put at the base of each post so...I have to either make a new post to reply or reply within the post and I dunno if y’all can even see that type of reply...it’s tumblr problems.

Anyway, I’ll have a Graveyard for next weekend, maybe an art post, I dunno. But, I’m not dead, just watching how weird the next season is and making a buffer.

And here’s that link to read all these recaps in chrono order from the beginning

[tiptoptab]

1-134 😏

Okay well if anyone else wanted to participate it’s too damn late 😂thanks bats ❤️Name: nataschaAge: 193 fears: myself, myself, my thoughts3 things I love: movies, thunder, concerts 4 turn one: uhm lol idk, okay: goofiness, tall guys? And nice laughs4 turn offs: ignorance, arrogance, impatience My best friend: my roommate and best friend for over ten years is named MariaSexual orientation: as if I knew, somewhere in the middleBest date: anything with the right personHeight: 1.68 cmWhat do I miss: not paying bills What time was I born: 5amFav color: changes all the timeCrush?: mmmh Favorite quote: also changes all the timeFavorite place: anywhere with the right peopleFavorite food: cocktail shrimp and I’ll fight ya on thatDo I use sarcasm: you’d sure like to know, would ya?What am I listening to rn: ready to die - SAVEUSFirst thing I notice in a person: confidence Shoe size: 39Eye color: grey-ish blue more like a dark blue?? With a yellow circleHair color: changes faster than my will to live, but currently platinum blondeFavorite style of clothing: I call it ready for business.. but also ready to get down any second, does anyone wanna take a shot with me?Ever done a prank call: yes YesMeaning behind url: I used to shitpost memes and I had nothing better to come up withFavorite movie: brother bearFavorite song: changes constantly Favorite band: ^^How I feel rn: tired and my teeth hurts A+Someone I love: @isabeeelsimsCurrent relationship status: single afRelationship with my parents: I don’t have time or the will to even begin on thatFavorite Holliday: fastalavn (Danish Halloween, kinda)Tattoos and piercings: I have a nose piercing Tattoos and piercings I want: matching bear tatto with my best friend anytime soonThe reason I joined tumblr: @cowplant-pizza inspired me to give it a tryDo I and my last ex hate each other: he’s a rapist so there’s your answer right thereDo I ever get goodmorning or goodnight texts: everyday thanks to my amazing friendsHave I kissed the last person I texted: yes if you haven’t kissed your best friend you haven’t been drunk enough When did I last hold hands: a week ago I think? Platonic thoHow long does it take me to get ready: like 20min but i have a huge fear of getting late so I wake up atleast 2-3 hours before I get out the doorHave you shaved your legs in the past 3 days: yupWhere am I rn: Cph, Denmark. In my apartment If I were drunk and couldn’t stand who’s taking care of me: maria is my designated mom, and she owes me cus she broke me teeth while she were drunk and I were taking care of herDo I like my music loud: it can’t get loud enoughDo I live with my mom and dad: no I moved out at 16Am I excited for anything: yuppDo I have someone of the opposite sex I can tell anything to: yea i have three guy friends who is cross the earth forHow often do I wear a fake smile: woo a little too real for meWhen was the last time I hugged someone: earlier todayWhat if the last person I kissed was kissing someone else in front of me: I’d be fineIs there anyone I trust even tho I shouldn’t: hopefully notWhat is something I dislike about today: well I ate a sandwich and my plastic teeth fell off so yeaIf I could meet anyone on earth who would it be: idk tbhWhat do I think about the most: quitting my jobStrangest talent: idk I can ride a unicycleDo I have any strange phobias: people who make skkr noise with their fork on the plate has a special place in hellSo I prefer to be behind or inform it a camera: behind What was the last lie I told: no Maria I don’t know any illegal websites to watch movies other than x and x (I was too lazy to go find the links)Do I prefer talking on the phone or video chatting: can we just text or discord call?Do I believe in ghosts or aliens: ghosts nah, aliens sure why notDo I believe in magic: nopeDo I believe in luck: nopeWhats the weather rn: it’s late so just cold and windy What was the last book I ready: all the bright placesDo I like the smell of gasoline: nah but like hand sanitizer A+Do I have any nicknames: my mom used to say that loved children have lots of nicknames, I certainly think I have too manyWorst injury I ever had: is anyone not bored by the f teeth talk yet? Do I spend money or save it: spend, whopsCan I touch my nose with my tongue: nopeIs there anything pink in 10 feet from me: yes sirFavorite animal: otters duhWhat was I doing last night at 12 am: watching that 70’s show and I’m not ashamedWhat do I think Satan’s last name is: well my mom told me not to share my personal info to strangers onlineHow can you win my heart: laugh at my shitty jokes and understand my references you uncultured swineWhat would I want written on my tombstone: where did you come from? Where did you go? Where did you come from cotton eye joeWhat’s my favorite word: idk sryTop 5 tumblrs: I cant pick between my family Do I have any relatives in jail: nopeWhat is my current desktop screen: a black screen that says “windows not genuine” cus I’m too lazy to fix itHad sex: yesBought condons: yesGotten pregnant: no thank god Failed a class: noKissed a boy: yesKissed a girl: yesHave I ever kissed someone in the rain: yes and it less romantic than you’d thinkHad a job: yupLeft the house without my wallet: yea?Bullied someone on the internet: no not to my knowledge and if you ever think I did, then I apologize sincerely Had sex in public: yes lol Played on a sports team: hell yeaSmoked weed: nopeDrugs: noCigarettes: yes but I’m not a smokerDrank alcohol: yuppAm I veggie/vegan: no but I was for four yearsBeen overweight: yesUnderweight: yesBeen to a wedding: yesBeen on the pc for more than five hours: HAHAHAHAHAWatched tv for five hours: HAHAHAHAHAbeen outside my country: yesGotten my heart broken: yes..Been to a professional sports game: yesBroken a bone: noCut myself: noBeen to prom: we don’t have those in my country, we have galla but not at my schoolBeen in an airplane: yesHelicopter: nopeWhat concerts have I been to: too many to list hereHad a crush on someone if the same sex: yea Learned another language: jaja selvfølgelig (roughly 4 languages)Wore makeup: something’s gotta hide my gremlin faceLost my virginity before I was 18: yup I was 15Had oral sex: yupDyed my hair: my poor hair has seen a lot through the yearsVoted in a presidential election: we don’t have a president here but I have voted for other thingsRode in an ambulance: nopeHad surgery: nopeMet someone famous: yeaStalked someone on a social network: nah not my stylePeed outside: sht yes sometimes you just gotta go okay. Line up girls we’ll do this as a teamBeen fishing: yupHelped with charity: yupBeen rejected by a crush: yup and thanked god cus he turned out to be a dick face Broken a mirror: yep bad luck for me I guessWhat do I want for my birthday: it’s in April so I haven’t thought about it yet

[katzirrart]

Art Growth Compilation

I really enjoy doing posts about improvement in art.

It makes me feel better about my work, especially with how busy I am these days.

I wanted to compile all the comparisons I’ve made over the years and kinda discuss the posts, for myself or others.

I thought it’d be funny to start with comparing how I first drew on a tablet, using dodge and burn tools, to how I do now which is using layers and actually painting. It’s funny to look back on that, you know?

I linked the post I made, compiling all the month to month memes from 2003-2017 that I try and do yearly. And everything else is under a cut ;w;’‘/

Most artists have done a drawing of themselves and a few Pokemon, or their team. I did that in 2010, and was dissatisfied with my work...

I took a crack again in 2013 after I’d learned to draw more animals and not be so Edgy(tm) I really liked the results. I still didn’t use references though, because I was lazy. I just didn’t want to. I still was on that boat feeling like I was CHEATING. I wasn’t being CREATIVE if I looked at references.

Artists get stuck on using reference and it’s AWFUL. USE THEM. USE TWENTY. LEARN!! It’s so HELPFUL, I wish I had started sooner.

In 2014 though -

I tried again.

I had gotten better at anatomy, but most of all, I started to work off references more. I started to really focus on not stylizing so much, but to work on actually making things look like things. I started to work on caring about COMPARISON sizes. Composition!!

While Pokemon reference sizes are -wiggle hands- and while my team changed up, I was satisfied that I could draw Arbok ACTUALLY like a cobra now, Meowth is easy given it’s just a noseless cat so to speak, Haunter is literally a triangle cloud - I was satisfied having drawn that team.

My secondary team in the new games? I was excited to draw them. It was fresh and new and FUN and it turned out PRECIOUS.

I learned better how to proportion things in an image for layout, and just... making characters feel COHESIVE in the same space.

It was a nice thing to keep visiting. I have a sketch in the works for an update even hopefully.

These pieces are kind of interesting to me too, because they’re towards the end of my era of THIN lineart?

My lineart has gone from this, and THIS,  to this.

Literally I use to not believe in line weight, I can still do thin work of course, but I’m not a fan of trying to FORCE it like I use to? Even the second link, I went from the SMALLEST brush in Sai, to using a marker brush that had barely ANY give, to a custom brush on Sai that acts like a Paint Chat brush I use to use with friends online!

That’s what I mean about style too, like you may reserve yourself about things - like not coloring black in and outlining with white, or certain ways you do things. But the growth and changing and figuring FUN ways to color that black etc is where the fun of art comes in, to me??

Learn. EXPERIMENT. PUSH!

A few months ago, I did my first redraw. Of this piece from 2012.

Six years difference.

This was interesting for a number of reasons. There’s aspects I like more in the old one, but not many. I really like the pose a bit better, but I like the casual closeness that I did in the new one because that’s more my Shepard.

But technically speaking, it’s worlds better because I took time. I paid attention to details. I did fun things instead of rushing. I took time with my coloring and didn’t SMEAR it around. I had a friend who use to complain I drew so fast and they felt so SLOW, but I love what that taught me. I started taking more time on my art, and enjoying it more since I caught more mistakes and vastly improved. By leaps and bounds.

It’s amazing what a difference six years makes in not only style, which is often a FOCUS of these things? My style has come awkwardly and naturally to me over the years of critically picking certain things apart? but I really love where it’s gotten.

I have things I want to get back to, but I love... where it is, and CAN be?

But it’s wild to me how much change happens in technical handling? It’s a hand in hand thing, you can’t focus on one or the other only, or the other suffers.

Honestly this has been my favorite improvement to notice though?

Kisame was a character I felt I should be able to draw EASILY? Not so much. Itachi? ALSO EASY. Not so much??

Kisame has weird eyes to grasp how to draw? Thus focusing on them kept making them wonky to me!! On top of that, he’s everything I’ve been use to drawing for AGES because he has a muscular body, with a smaller waist? ... that was something I was use to drawing? I still was awkward getting back into the swing of that... Drawing HIS HAIR though? NOT SO EASY....

But like, Itachi should have been easy, but I have a thing about him appearing too feminine as he gets drawn because his eyelashes, and I’ve really found a nice... medium at this point?

But even still like my face styles and eye styles are finally to a comfortable point for me? I have stopped focusing on some weird things with Itachi’s hair and just... DO IT? But even still like...

The improvement here is literally just if I don’t know how to do something, or I’m not satisfied with how I do it? I just keep at it.

It’s a theme of this post honestly... repetition, persistence.

Keep drawing it. Keep trying to figure out what it is that’s catching you off about how you do it. Don’t like how you do eyes or how they fit on the face? Look at facial structures and references and figure it out. Draw them separate and figure out how to apply them to what you are.

Remember there’s a skull in there. I draw the holes in the skull like the eye sockets, and the nose area to help my proportions for SURE.

I’ve also gotten to a nice marriage in my lineart? The piece before the recent one, those lines feel HARDER or HEAVIER? The newest piece seems...softer? Like I’m lighter handed again?

I really like critiquing my own growth on what is good or working better for me? Older pieces it looks like I’m putting lineweight for SAKE of it versus where it goes now?

INTERESTING.

Like this lineup -

My style shifts so RAPIDLY, it still is noticeably MY style to people, but parts shift so VIOLENTLY because I’m constantly picking at what I don’t LIKE.

It’s funny too in the case of Kisame and Itachi because consistently I’m drawing the SAME character over and over - can make you REALIZE how you’re doing something wrong?

Like, here’s a difference of eight years, and it’s all the brush I use now, and it REALLY shows how my style has changed - in the aspect of one point of reference?

I have a childhood favorite character too, of Daisuke, and I use to be bad at drawing boys, and I use to be SUPER bad at drawing fluffy hair?

It was something I specifically started to learn to do? And I started to draw Daisuke every few months or years for a while. Especially when I started to first REALIZE I didn’t like my style that much?

But the middle one was July 2009, top left is less than 6 months later, and the last one is about a year later. DRASTIC DIFFERENCE. But next -

This one was in 2012, when I started to do more with teeth, or first dipping my toes into anatomy. I started to focus more on HANDS too, I was super bad at them. Overall I started to focus more on making my art have...ages? Like a boy versus a man. Facial features being DIFFERENT.

I can look at this boring little bust and see that he comes off more of a teenage boy to me now. I need to work more on figuring how to draw asian features especially the eyes. Sometimes I hit the mark, other times I don’t.

but between this and 2012? Not too much has changed. I do hair fluffier now, and I angle the eyes better. The teeth not being outlined doesn’t give that weird effect where I might give him TOO MANY TEETH....

People do that and it’s easy but whoof.

So there’s still learning and adapting to do in QUICK drawings, you know? but I can still see there’s good things. That took me like 5 minutes to draw? Not bad honestly.

In it’s own bracket is original characters though too?? But also divergent of STYLE shifts because like...

OKAY. Nightmare Syndicate’s story.. started for me in 7th or 8th grade, that was when I was...14? 15? I’ve been fleshing it out for like 13 years, that’s wild haha!! I love my kids and all.

But okay so SIALI. She’s still fairly similar but I restructured her face for SURE. She’s gotten less edgy, she’s.... a teenage girl.

FELIX?? CHRIST. He’s been such a long journey!! More on that later?

Rot and even Cor?? Rot and Cor are a shorter span of development, but Rot started in Highschool so almost 10 years ago, and Cor has been fairly solid - but even just DRAWING him over three years? Go look at how much he changes.. I’m not married to concepts easily. haha!

People act like making a character you’re STUCK with it. Like Oh boy, I better make this character good, from the get go!!

I only worry about that with small potatoes like my Pillar(Gods) designs I just made for the comic?? Even still, small things will change with them I’m sure.

But not only has Felix and Siali changed, but they’ve GROWN with my style and DEFINED it even. I’ve had to adjust my style to support Felix’s look honestly a LOT. Bend my rules. Break my anatomy stickler attitude - and honestly, that’s the thing.

You have to learn the rules and anatomy BEFORE you can break them. A style built upon broken anatomy will fail you down the road if you just excuse everything with style.

Learn to draw the hands. Learn to draw the feet. Figure out the face. Bones exist. You can break the FUCK out of it once you learn how to do it, you know? Like I’ve seen so many styles I LOVE who are cartoony and BROKEN AS FUCK, but there’s still some STRUCTURE to it. Most of those people can still structure a face just fine, and the reason exaggeration works so well is because there’s like unwritten rules for what works and doesn’t based on that?

Idk.

Felix has a very elongated torso, he’s like 7′ or 8′ tall so I mean?? He’s... broken anatomy, but he’s... lanky - but his muscle is LITHE and stretched. It makes contextual sense. That’s the important part.

But even designs, it’s important to understand designs YOU make, or like... to understand they’ll CHANGE and that’s growth within your art too?

Like okay, example. Felix has a millipede inspired monster form. But with designing that? I still have to know how millipedes and SNAKES work because there's bones and vertebrae in there??

But there’s also the difference of like... CONCEPT, versus execution. You can design a fucking badass character, but understanding your own concept is SOMETHING.

I had no idea how this would play out, until I was mapping out his ‘midsection’ spikes? and man. MY STYLE WAS MADE FOR THIS CHALLENGE NOW. Which is so interesting how smooth my style has always been? Felix has defined ANGLES in it, and it’s hilarious tbh?

But even too, I’ve had to work with Felix’s monster form FACE, to break the rules to make it WORK the way I need it too?

On the anatomy subject too, like when I first got into Marvel comics 6 years ago or so? I had no idea how to do muscle structures?? I was so BAD at it.

I can look at this left image and CRINGE so badly at how NONE of those are muscles?? THOSE ARE THINGS I PERCEIVE AS MUSCLES. Like...

A course I took taught me to draw what I see, not what I know. That’s the whole point of that post that goes around about drawing a shrimp. Look it up. It’s hilarious and cute.

But it’s like, asking an artist to draw a bike, you can tell who uses reference and who WINGS it. It’s funny, but like it’s what you know versus what you see.

I started to study anatomy like crazy and was seeing improvements days at a time. The right image was done like... a month later? already I can see the muscles under the pectorals? those look normal now. the abs aren’t dough lumps under the skin in a perfect 6 pack, they’re the actual plane shapes.

I was trying to find a good reference for myself of learning to make men ‘thicker’ too in terms of the waist etc since the left is really...thin.... but...

A bit better, but even still, comparing these two - they’re 2 months apart? and I can see understanding more about arms and how they connect to the body, where the planes ACTUALLY lay for the chest and obliques and such?

I can see improvements from July 2012 up there, to - WHOOPS. I FORGOT TO CHANGE THE YEAR LMAO... TO FEBRUARY 2013...omg

I mean, I could go on and on about improvements I see, when I go through my art though? Gosh.

Like I’m seeing so SO many bad hands and feet in my old stuff, and just CRINGING because tricks I learned for myself by now?

I give so many pointers and streams and screenshares on discord still to help people with art and it cracks me up?? Like...

I dunno. I’m pretty mediocre tbh, but god damn.

[buruuhan]

3. 11. 14. 23. 24. 28.29. 30. 33. 37. 38. 39. 44. 46. 47. 48. 53. 54. just choose your favs:D, i know that’s a lot of asks!😂💛

No, no! I don’t mind these questions, don’t worry. Thank you for waiting patiently!

(Cracks fingers) Alright, let’s do this!

3 -- Do you drink the milk out of the bowl after the cereal is gone?

Yes, I always do. Why would I waste the milk? It’s not good, man.

11 -- Ever broken a bone?

Fortunately I haven’t; I always try to be careful and restrain myself from moving around recklessly.

14 -- Do you send 1 long text or separate your thoughts into single texts?

I find writing a whole long text in a message tiring and kind of troublesome so I prefer separating my thoughts into single texts.

23 -- Are you on other Social Media? If yes, which is your favorite?

Yes, I am. I frequently use this (for international interaction) and Facebook (for local interaction and memes)

24 -- Do you have any allergies?

I recall that I had allergy to shrimps during my childhood, but no longer today.

28 -- What was the last thing you Googled?

“Serai kesehatan pdf” aka “lemongrass health pdf”; I’m looking for references to include in my future final paper.

29 -- Are you a vegetarian or vegan?

I’m not although I have plant-based dish much more frequently due to my place’s economy state.

30 -- Last song you listened to?

Taka Radjiman’s cover of Kouzen no Himitsu.

33 -- Favorite fast food place?

I only order fast food once in a while so it’s a bit hard to choose, but so far my favorite is McDonald’s. Their fried chicken and chicken burger are great. I also love how they set up seasonal menus.

37 -- How would you describe your sense of humor?

I would say it’s shitty; I laugh easily at puns (any type) and dad jokes.

38 -- Do you collect anything?

Not really, maybe unless it’s something I would use frequently such as clothes and utensils?

39 -- Do you wear glasses? if yes, how old were you when you got your 1st pair?

It’s antiradiation glasses rather than regular glasses, but sometimes I do. I got the first (and only so far) pair around last year.

44 -- What are the top 5 tags in your Blog?

Wait, we can see them in our blog preview right? If so, here are my top 5 tags:

reblog

fanmade

Ninjago

Kamen Rider

Super Sentai

46 -- Coffee or tea?

Depends to my mood, but I think i lean more to coffee (though I can’t drink one without any condiment; milk and some sugar are enough).

47 -- Do you like Amusement Park rides?

Uhh, I don’t think I do well in those “extreme” rides such as roller coaster. I prefer something calmer. I even barely go to amusement parks so idk how to explain this properly lol.

48 -- What is your used most emoji?

....I feel like I use 🥺 or 😂 more frequently these days. I love pien face lol.

53 -- How many languages do you speak?

Okay, let me see. I speak regularly in Indonesian as native language irl, but when I write in social media, I also use English and sometimes Japanese. Recently I’m also trying to learn Javanese slowly; I understand the language decently but I can’t speak well.

54 -- Where would you teleport to this very second?

Tbh it's either a local mall or coffee shop. I'm getting tired being only at home or campus for laboratory work. I'm getting sick of the scent of microbe-infected agar plates ffs.

[ohmahree-blog]

99 IMPORTANT CHARACTER QUESTIONS

PART 1: THE BASICS

What is your full name? Omari Rashad Beckham

Where and when were you born? 3/18/1993

Who are your parents? Rodney Beckham; Rodney is an established real estate agent. He’s a firm believer in discipline and earning everything w/ no handouts. Though he’s stern on me, he’s a gentle giant to my mama. Giselle Beckham; She’s an elementary school teacher with tons of patience. She's very vocal and has an answer to everything. Though she’s molded me to be her very own mama’s boy, she still allowed my dad to make me into a man.

Do you have any siblings? What are/were they like? My brother, Demetrius, passed when I was 14 and he was 15 from drowning. He was my best friend, my partner in crime and even my role model despite the closeness in our age. Our dad taught us to always have each other’s back and we never strayed from that lesson. Demetrius was more rebellious but I was never one to say no to the adventures, including our last mischievous episode where we snuck out to hang with friends at the lake.

Where do you live now, and with whom? Describe the place and the person/people. I currently live in a 3-bedroom 2-story home in Los Angeles that was sold to me by my dad with a small ass discount. It’s not a massive house but it’s my own sanctuary for myself, my shoes and my Frenchy.

What is your occupation? I am a retired drug dealer shoe store owner.

Write a full physical description of yourself.  A meal. Too many tattoos to count. Several marks from a curious childhood.

To which social class do you belong? Lower middle class.

Do you have any allergies, diseases, or other physical weaknesses? I’m allergic to kiwi and I’m honestly lactose intolerant but I often ignore it.

Are you right- or left-handed? Right-handed

What does your voice sound like? I wouldn’t know how to describe it tbh.

What words and/or phrases do you use very frequently? “Honestly” & “and shit”

What do you have in your pockets? Nothing.

Do you have any quirks, strange mannerisms, annoying habits, or other defining characteristics? I have to count steps on when taking stairs. I laugh alot, no matter the emotion I’m feeling, I laugh. I stare people in the eyes when they talk to me, I don’t like not seeing a person’s face when they’re physically in my presence talking to me.

PART 2: GROWING UP

How would you describe your childhood in general? It was a typically decent childhood. I had a strict ass father, but that didn’t stop me and my brother from rebelling and doing our own thing.

What is your earliest memory? Being dropped off at a daycare and crying like a lil’ bitch until my mama sat down on the carpet with me. I think she snuck out on me at one point though.

How much schooling have you had? Despite all my setbacks, I graduated college with my bachelor’s degree.

Did you enjoy school? Yeah, bitches, sports and I was the plug on campus. Even though all of that got me in trouble with the laws a few times.

Where did you learn most of your skills and other abilities? My dad, my brother, the streets.

While growing up, did you have any role models? If so, describe them. My brother, he was fearless and he was wise beyond his time. He put me onto hella game. My father as well. Even though we bumped heads alot, he taught me valuable lessons and also left me to learn a few lessons on my own.

While growing up, how did you get along with the other members of your family? No chaos here, typical teenage angst at times but it was fine once the dust settled.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? A professional football player.

As a child, what were your favorite activities? Playing sports, real life and on game consoles.

As a child, what kinds of personality traits did you display? I was a curious child. I also liked to test my limits and boundaries, what’s the word for that? I was a follower, but only to my brother.

As a child, were you popular? Who were your friends, and what were they like? Of course I was. Isaiah was one of my first best friends after we beat each other the fuck up. He was territorial and a smart ass. Still is. But he was loyal and a host of other things. My brother was another one. The rest were just friends in passing. People knowing me but me not knowing them was common.

When and with whom was your first kiss? This big booty bitch named Stacy in 5th grade. She was in 7th. I counted her as my first kiss because them other lil kisses was nothing compared to that.

Are you a virgin? If not, when and with whom did you lose your virginity? Absolutely not. I lost it in 8th grade to my homeboy’s big sister.

Describe any influences in your past that led you to do the things you do today. After my brother died, I shut down. Nothing was worth experiencing without my him with me. I briefly dropped out of school unbeknownst to my parents and that’s when I got introduced to the trap. I started doing runs for the big guy and the money was good. That lasted for almost 8 years until the last time my parents had to bail me out of jail and gave me an ultimatum that was far worse than the one from the judge.

PART 3: PAST INFLUENCES

What do you consider the most important event of your life so far? The grand opening of my shoe store.

Who has had the most influence on you? My family

What do you consider your greatest achievement? Graduating from college

What is your greatest regret? Letting my dad down and making my mama cry.

What is the most evil thing you have ever done? I can’t say.

Do you have a criminal record of any kind? Absolutely.

When was the time you were the most frightened? When I thought I would get 10 years in the feds.

What is the most embarrassing thing ever to happen to you? I had a wet dream while taking a nap at school and messed up my pants.

If you could change one thing from your past, what would it be, and why? I’d have my brother here with me to make life worth living.

What is your best memory? Going to Disneyland when I was like 10 with my family.

What is your worst memory? I have too many.

PART 4: BELIEFS & OPINIONS

Are you basically optimistic or pessimistic? Optimistic

What is your greatest fear? My parents dying, because then I’d really be alone.

What are your religious views? Organized religion isn’t for me, but I believe in the higher power.

What are your political views? I’m for what’s right.

What are your views on sex? Sex is a choice and should never be anything otherwise.

Are you able to kill? Under what circumstances do you find killing to be acceptable or unacceptable? Yes. Various reasons but most importantly to protect.

In your opinion, what is the most evil thing any human being could do? Hurt a child.

Do you believe in the existence of soul mates and/or true love? Yeah eventually

What do you believe makes a successful life? Being able to change another person’s life.

How honest are you about your thoughts and feelings (i.e. do you hide your true self from others, and in what way)? Depends on the recipient and the circumstance

Do you have any biases or prejudices? Of course.

Is there anything you absolutely refuse to do under any circumstances? Why do you refuse to do it? Yeah, I still have a conscience and I believe in karma.

Who or what, if anything, would you die for (or otherwise go to extremes for)? My family.

PART 5: RELATIONSHIPS W/OTHERS

In general, how do you treat others (politely, rudely, by keeping them at a distance, etc.)? Does your treatment of them change depending on how well you know them, and if so, how? I’m good to people as long as they’re good to me. My vibe depends on yours.

Who is the most important person in your life, and why? My mom, she’s a gem.

Who is the person you respect the most, and why? My father, he deserves it.

Who are your friends? Do you have a best friend? Describe these people. Isaiah & Hendrix. They’re my greater thirds. They get me.

Do you have a spouse or significant other? If so, describe this person. My wife’s name is Krystal. She’s amazing and beautiful and patient and I don’t deserve her.

Have you ever been in love? If so, describe what happened. Yeah, but then the government told us to cut that shit short.

What do you look for in a potential lover? Everything I see between my parents. Patience, love, sacrifice, honesty, shit like that.

How close are you to your family? Very, they’re all I have.

Have you started your own family? If so, describe them. If not, do you want to? Why or why not? No, not yet and I just haven’t found the right person or it just wasn’t the right time. But soon.

Who would you turn to if you were in desperate need of help? Hendrix

Do you trust anyone to protect you? Who, and why? Not really. I would say my parents but I feel like they’ve done all the protecting they could.

If you died or went missing, who would miss you? I wish I knew.

Who is the person you despise the most, and why? Nobody that I can think of.

Do you tend to argue with people, or avoid conflict? I avoid conflict. I know what I’m capable of when upset, so it’s always best for me to avoid.

Do you tend to take on leadership roles in social situations? Somewhat. Just depends if I become too uncomfortable I have to do something to fix it then.

Do you like interacting with large groups of people? Why or why not? No, I have to people watch in order to become comfortable in social settings. I can’t watch too many people.

Do you care what others think of you? Only those that I love.

PART 6: LIKES & DISLIKES

What is/are your favorite hobbies and pastimes? I like to draw now, spend time with my peeps, try different strains of weed, nap.

What is your most treasured possession? My store, Urban Soles

What is your favorite color? Black

What is your favorite food? Anything with shrimp. or wings.

What, if anything, do you like to read? The 48 Laws of Power

What is your idea of good entertainment (consider music, movies, art, etc.)? Music of course, I love watching movies. If I watch a series it has to have completed seasons, if I can’t binge I dont want it.

Do you smoke, drink, or use drugs? If so, why? Do you want to quit? I smoke weed and drink when I’m out. It’s not out of control but I don’t plan on stopping.

How do you spend a typical Saturday night? If I’m not with my wife now, I’m out with the boys, probably at Zay’s club.

What makes you laugh? Any and everything to be honest.

What, if anything, shocks or offends you? Rude mfs, bullies, people that are just unnecessarily disrespectful.

What would you do if you had insomnia and had to find something to do to amuse yourself? Wake up my wife. Watch Netflix. Eat. Scroll social media.

How do you deal with stress? Smoke, drink, sleep.

Are you spontaneous, or do you always need to have a plan? Spontaneous.

What are your pet peeves? People eating crunchy things, metal scraping metal, crowded spaces, poorly laced shoes, my time being wasted, people that are late on my time.

PART 7: SELF IMAGES & OTHER

Describe the routine of a normal day for you. How do you feel when this routine is disrupted? I wake up bout 8 or 9. Check emails for the most part. Stuff my face. Go to the store and handle bidness. Make time for food a few times throughout the day and then come back home.

What is your greatest strength as a person? I’m reliable and always come through.

What is your greatest weakness? I don’t always know how to say no.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? My temper.

Are you generally introverted or extroverted? I’m in between.

Are you generally organized or messy? Organized for the most part.

Name three things you consider yourself to be very good at, and three things you consider yourself to be very bad at. I’m good at getting my way, making others happy annnnd drawing. I’m terrible at lying, singing and admitting when I’m wrong.

Do you like yourself? Yeah, I’m cool.

What goal do you most want to accomplish in your lifetime? Franchising my business.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years? I see myself being a father, happily married. Having a second store, maybe 3rd. Happy, healthy.

If you could choose, how would you want to die? Peacefully in my sleep.

If you knew you were going to die in 24 hours, name three things you would do in the time you had left. Update my will, write letters to everyone I love, sleep.

What is the one thing for which you would most like to be remembered after your death? My big heart.

What three words best describe your personality? Random, Spontaneous, Protective

What three words would others probably use to describe you? Annoying, Funny, Mannish

If you could, what advice would you, the player, give to your character? Don’t be scared to be who you supposed to be. If they don’t fuck with it, fuck em.