#it's worth knowing that your needs are important. you're allowed to voice these things constructively to your friends

[tea-and-secrets]

İ dont know but i think i may have just come to the realization that i am a bad person.

İ talk to people, i get into relationships, i get i to friendships and end up talking to other people about the stuff they did that i dont appriciate

Could be lying, could be yelling, could be anything. Most of the time it is because the action feels unjust or hurts me. İts mostly personality traits but when a person bothers me i always end up talking to other people about them, kind of spewing out ny frustrations towards them just to act like nothing happened to their face, i always have extreme reactions when someone tells me that i am a flawed person/bad person because i have such an intense fear of it.

İ excuse the actions of people endlessly just to rant about it to other people. This is either my people pleasing coming back to bite me in the ass or i really am an awful person

İ dont know how i should react to this? Should i isolate myself from everyone i have talked behind the backs of? Should i continue to live in my possible delusion of the fact that all my actions are explainable?

.

[wyrmy-fics]

❃ Drawing Subject ❃

Kaeya X Albedo fic.

-

Hello again! Finally picking back up with writing after a well deserved hiatus. This was written over the course of a month or two so it’s not entirely consistent and doesn’t have a proper ending to it, but I just wanted to write about these two captains realizing how pretty they are…. 🤲 (will edit this over time probably)

Reblogs and requests are appreciated. :)

Includes: Kaeya, Albedo.

Warnings -> N/A

Type: Character ship fanfic.

Intro -

"What is this?" The tune of the calvary captains voice caught Albedo's attention, causing the latter to set down a pair of vials in response. A sheet of paper hung from between Kaeya's fingertips along with a playful grin stretched out.

"That's..." Albedo started, trying to find the proper explanation in this situation. The paper displayed a doodle with only three strokes etched in; a circle for a head, a long string across the circle... And an eyepatch attached. He cleared his throat before continuing, "Klee had requested it. I hadn't the time or proper reference to do much more."

A quiet hum filled the awkwardness in the room as Kaeya examined over the drawing once more. It left the alchemist wondering how it had come into their conversation, much less Kaeya's possession, but the train of thought was soon interrupted.

"You could have at least added the hair."

"That's your concern—?"

"It's an important detail."

"As I said, I didn't have a proper reference to grab such details. Usually I would work with my subject at hand, but—"

"Oh?" This new information peaked Kaeya's curiosity as if a lightbulb illuminated above his head. Setting the paper down to fold his arms across his chest, the captain strode closer. "Then, if you had your subject with you, would you try it again?"

The question had momentarily silenced Albedo while it processed in his mind. It was common to see such a reaction from the other over the simplest things, mostly resulting in some sort of teasing, but never for his drawings. He turned his body to mirror Kaeya's stance, "I suppose I would."

"Great. I'll be free in my office in the next hour or so. Don't keep me waiting too long, will you?"

.

.

.

"All I have to do is sit here, yes?"

"If you please."

The cavalry office wasn't the biggest room in the Favonius Headquarters, but without much of a cavalry to captain, the space was wide enough for one person to do as they please. Any company was welcome to fill in the empty spots and distract him from the agonizing hours of paperwork. Taking advantage of this, Albedo situated an area for him to work.

It was a sight to see; the couch was strategically positioned away from it's usual place against the wall and right in front stood a tall easle. Any type of work to such length should be handled with care, Albedo thought, much to the surprise of the other.

"I didn't know such a request would have struck something in you, Chief Alchemist. I can't say I'm complaining, though," Kaeya said, stepping in front of the couch into position.

The artist in question hadn't looked up from his preparations just yet. Setting the sketchbook in it's place along with the few charcoal pencils, he replied, "Correct me if I'm wrong, Captain, but there's no harm in taking such a thing seriously."

"Nothing to correct here," An amused huff followed his reply.

Everything was set and ready to begin - however, there was one last adjustment to be made first. Finally looking up from the easle with his chin pinched, Albedo spoke up, "If you don't mind, could you remove your boa?"

Kaeya raised an eyebrow, "You're asking me to undress now? If I had known it was that type of artwork, I would have prepared myself a little more." His teasing only resulted in a head shake of the other.

"No, that's not it... I'd like to remove any distractions from your face. But you're welcome to keep it on if you feel more comfortable that way."

That's what intrigued him the most about Albedo - no matter how much the captain tried, there was no way to completely throw the other off guard. It kept things interesting to find himself at a loss for how to gain back the upper hand. Silently accepting the favor, Kaeya reached up to unclip the feathery boa from his shoulder, bringing his cape along with it.

Without such an accessory shaping his face, it was clear to see there wasn't much else to his design. An approved nod from Albedo set them both back into their previous rhythm now that he could focus on each detail - at least in more than three strokes.

Kaeya sat himself down onto the couch and crossed his legs, draping an arm over the back of the frame to give himself a pose that could show as much as possible. "How is this?"

"That's fine," Albedo replied, turning his view back to the easle, "Make sure not to move too much."

The initial sketching process was the slowest part of this whole ordeal. Albedo's primary focus was placing in the guidelines and rough movements in order to capture the pose Kaeya was placed and work from there. Though the room fell completely quiet aside from the paper, it was comfortable between the two.

And then, it began. Detail by detail began to form over the sketch and the charcoal pencil would flip to the rubber end occasionally, letting Albedo render in what was needed. His eyes would dart back and forth from his subject and the piece so that nothing was left untouched; his gaze falling into a more serious and concentrated stare.

From Kaeya's point of view, it was a sight worth remembering. Not once had he seen the Chief Alchemist so willing, so vulnerable. Every little habit had made it's way to the surface as the captain watched with care. The way Albedo would tap the pencil on his chin while thinking of how to properly execute certain details, or the way he would hum to himself in approval after perfecting it. His mouth would twist and turn in different ways as he lost himself in the process, allowing Kaeya's own to turn upright into a small smile.

On the other hand, Albedo couldn't help but use this opportunity to completely take in the sight of the other. What fascinated him the most about the world was the fact he never properly fit in amongst other humans, since he himself was not one. The alchemists goal was to find answers and construct creations during his time in Mondstat, for the sole purpose of his master and to ease his own curiosity.

However, as anyone could have guessed, Kaeya also does not fit in with the other humans of Mond. He was human at the least, but far different than any of the other captains or civillians. What could possibly be under that eyepatch, Albedo wondered as he filled in the gold designs along the leather covering. What kind of secrets hide behind that smile, what creatures have those gloved hands fought?

And in sync, they both recognized each others beauty enveloped in vulnerability. It was the only time to notice the way their skin contrasted each others from pale to tan, forming over their bones and muscles perfectly. The braided hair that was meticulously cared for with utmost patience somehow matched the long and messy blue draped over the couch.

Was this really a request for an artist, or simply two curious individuals wanting a closer look?

The occasional small talk would happen during their session, but the majority of their time together remained in each others quiet company. As it slowly came to a close, the moments they shared were kept confidential between the two. They weren’t ashamed or forced to stay hushed about the events that took place, but there wasn’t a need to flaunt either.

Though Master Jean tends to ask where the framed drawing on Kaeya's desk came from, to which he simply responds, "It was a gift."

-

Thank you for reading! Not too happy with the ending and can make a part 2 if requested…? :) 💙

[fincalinde]

I'm now very curious about your thoughts on how to run a decent workshop 👀

I've had this draft sitting here for a while and at this point I know I won't find the time to brush it up, so let's just leave this here as some general guidelines and suggestions for effective workshopping of fiction. There's also a small section at the end with a few recommendations for workshopping fanfiction specifically.

Some general tips for running a decent writing workshop:

It should be a given that everyone should make a sincere effort to be their best selves during workshopping. Being workshopped can be sensitive for the vast majority of writers, and respect and empathy goes a long way.

Ideally there should be someone with experience guiding the discussion but it's not mandatory if everyone agrees upfront on goals and boundaries and feels confident and comfortable speaking up if things are going off topic or getting tense.

A good length for a workshop piece is 1-2k per person (extracts are fine!) with at least 15 minutes of discussion per piece.

The upper limit for a workshop group is 15 people assuming not everyone is workshopped every time, but I personally think 10 is a better upper limit and 5 a decent lower limit. Any fewer than that and you're getting into crit partner territory.

Always read the piece(s) in advance and have comments prepared. Your job when giving critique is to help the writer refine and execute their intentions, so it's important to resist the urge to start line editing or 'telling' them how to fix any issues. Suggestions are great and often helpful but should be framed as just that.

If there is someone guiding the discussion I recommend that everyone writes down their comments in advance and sends them to that person for them to vet and pass out during the workshop. If there is no guide or moderator I don't recommend sharing critique comments in advance unless you're the kind of rare stoic who doesn't immediately start itching to respond.

Some workshops don't allow the writer to speak at all while their work is being critiqued. I strongly believe this is unhelpful. If workshopping descends into defensiveness and back-and-forth that's something that needs to be addressed, but pre-emptively denying the writer a voice does more harm than good. While it's important to let people give their initial critique without interruption and if the writer is doing a lot of talking it's probably a sign something's gone a bit wrong, the writer should be able to speak up and clarify their intentions and have input during the discussion portion of the critique.

It's always best to start a critique with positive comments, and I also always save at least one extra positive thing to raise at the end of my comments to finish on a high note before the discussion begins.

Examples of positive critique (real, with details changed):

The way the image of the fallen tree is juxtaposed against the gardener's tomato plant is really clever and whimsical and a great example of the lighthearted tone you maintain throughout.

I had a clear sense of your main character and her drive to save her family from ruin, particularly in the scene where she sells her hair.

Examples of constructive critique (real, with details obscured):

You have a very literary style and at some points it's strayed into opaque. [quote] —I wasn't quite sure what you were trying to convey with that.

I liked the husband character but he doesn't seem to be driving the narrative forwards or giving us insight into the main character. Maybe he should be cut or merged with the best friend character?

Receiving critique:

When responding to critique take a deep breath and remember absolutely no one can make you do anything. People are just trying to help, and sometimes they are going to be wrong or just not 'get' you. Critiques are often going to contradict each other and you should also refer to your own judgement.

Generally though if most or all of the workshop are raising the same point it is worth some serious consideration. Sometimes a kneejerk negative response to constructive critique is because the proposed solutions aren't right for you or your piece, but if you take a step back you can recognise the issue the workshop is attempting to help you solve and come up with your own way of addressing it.

Fanfic-specific guidance:

If consistency with the source material is a concern (it's not a priority for all fanfic writers!) then set aside comments on inaccuracies for outside the workshop. Workshopping is about the writing itself rather than whether Blorbo A doesn't start wearing stripy trousers until after they finish their academy training. I personally would say that accuracy issues are only worth flagging during valuable workshop time if the inconsistency might break the fic. So 'hey you've written Blorbo A and Blorbo B as being teenagers together but Blorbo A is actually ten years older than Blorbo B' is something to flag upfront. And if someone says they don't care and are ignoring that aspect of canon, you should accept their preference and roll with it.

That said because fanfic is for the most part heavily character-based and characterisation is a technical skill, I do think it's important to dedicate a portion of the critique specifically to characterisation (unless the writer has confirmed they're not interested in receiving characterisation-based feedback). I would just personally try to make sure it doesn't take over the entire critique.

The requirements are overall very similar: what is the writer trying to achieve? Where do you think they are succeeding and why? Where do you think they are not succeeding and why? Do you have any helpful suggestions?