#like even as a novel or something i need to polish off my writing skills and make some shit there’s so much here

[gallusrostromegalus]

I am constantly procrastinating working on my original fic by writing fanfic. Any advice for how to refocus and finish my novel?

Well. The novel probably needs a nap.

Procrastinating is a symptom that something is preventing you from doing the thing you "should" be doing. Most of the time it's an unrelated, but actually higher priority task like resting after an illness (society is fucking lying about anything else being more important) or filing your taxes (actually this one is pretty important).

...but if you're procrastinating on one creative project with another creative project, you're not procrastinating: something about the novel is off right now, the fanfic is more appealing to you.

Consider the following:

You may be writing fic because it brings you more joy than the novel. If you really want to get back to the novel, figure out what would make working on it more enjoyable. Engagement from a beta-editor? Skipping this really boring scene and coming back to it later? Adding more smut?

You may also be writing fic because it's got a lower spoon coat than the novel and you need to conserve your spoons right now. Any extra stress in your life? Moving? Toothache? Recovering from Covid? Annoying roommate? Sick family member? It's an election year? ANY of those could soak up extra spoons and make your novel too expensive for your spoons budget. Let it take a nap, and come back when you're feeling better.

You may be sharpening your artistic skills on a lower-stakes project before going back to the novel. This is pretty normal- even Michaelangelo took breaks to work on other pieces while sculpting The David, both for a change of pace and so he could try something out without fucking up the big block.

Fortunately, you're writing, so you can always try writing the challenging scene a dozen times in different docs or save the parts that were good but don't not in a spare parts bucket doc.

Or keep working on that fic, it's helping you learn on a subconscious level.

You don't love the novel right now. This is alright. This is usually temporary, and the solution is the same- put it aside and work on something else.

Maybe you are just bored of the novel. That's fine and normal, you just save all the documents to your hard drive and come back later. When the fic inevitably gets boring too, you'll come back to the novel and either go "oh hey this kicks ass!" And return to it with renewed enthusiasm.

...Or you'll come back to it and go "oh. This is actually a piece of shit" And that's okay too, because there's nothing more useless than polishing a turd, but that turd is still valuable as compost. You learned things writing it, and you can still rifle through the novel for good lines or scenes or turns of phrase and put those in your spare parts doc to ferment into The Good Shit in the back of your mind.

HOWEVER:

If you are experiencing a different phenomenon wherein you are actively distressed while writing the fic- either out of misplaced guilt, or the fic isn't actually fun you just feel compelled to do something, or absolutely every creative endeavor is stressing you out, you may be experiencing a serious mental or physical health issue and you should see your GP or a specialist ASAP. Pain is an indicator that something is wrong. Do not ignore your body's warning light.

That sounds really dramatic and hyperbolic but realizing I was not enjoying ANY creative work was the symptom that finally got me to sit down and go "huh. All these random pains, irregular sleep cycle, frequent migraines and weird bouts of vertigo aren't normal either, I should get this looked at." And it turned out I had dangerously low blood oxygen at night from undiagnosed sleep apnea. I have a CPAP machine now and it's AMAZING.

I really hope this is regular artistic shuffle and not a serious health concern, but if you're experiencing creative stress AND a bunch of other shit, it may be serious.

[shark-myths]

🍓 🥤 🌿 for the ask game!!!! <333

🍓 ⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction? 

one of my favorite k facts tbh. i invented fanfiction at jesus camp with my new friend eden. we clutched each other on a hillside while a god rock band performed below, puffy with mosquito bites and illicit ideas, and whispered to one another of the members of our mutual favorite band, what if they kissed each other? we were 13 years old. camp was so in-the-middle-of-nowhere you could see the whole milky way at night, the thickness of it. the grass got wetter and wetter the longer you sat in the dark, hiding from the flashlights of your counselors. every few breaths you'd see a shooting star, til you were numb to marvel, til that was just what the night sky looked like and you expected it everywhere. it was magic and no one had ever thought of it before, boys in bands kissing. when we went home to our separate cities, i started handwriting fic (decorated with gel pen! this was the year 2003) and mailing it to her in hot pink envelopes. imagine my surprise when i discovered the internet.

🥤 ⇢ recommend an author or fanfic you love

one of my favorite fics i ever read was a girl!one direction story about squirting. here it is: you change, water sea by got2ghost

🌿 ⇢ give some advice on writer's block and low creativity

love this question, as someone who has struggled in the workplace to maintain the same creative energy i had access to in school.

for creativity: read. read endlessly. try to understand on a granular, sentence-and-word-level, why you like the things you like; what makes a line funny, what makes a line scary, what draws you in to a writer's style vs pushes you out of it. what do the books you can't put down have in common? read things that challenge you--long-form novels, old novels, things way outside your preferred genres. and try to have lots of experiences in the time you aren't writing. try new things! paint something, walk down a block you've never been on, look in people's windows, cook a new meal, get coffee at a new place, go for a drive, listen to someone else's favorite record, listen to a record you hate actually, go to a new store and just look around, touch fabrics, dance, have conversations, travel for no reason, watch videos on youtube about new skills you don't intend to master. READ NONFICTION, especially essays. try to avoid doing the same things you're comfortable with or things that feel easy for a whole afternoon. bury yourself in sensation. chase pleasure. let yourself play.

for writer's block: write anyway--in a journal, in your fragmented notes file with ideas, edit or polish something that's already written, get one sentence out. i like to set a timer for 20 minutes and give it a proper try (this means staying off tumblr and my phone) and then, if it doesn't lead to anything, i'm off the hook guilt-free, because i made an effort. try writing in a different notebook, with a different pen, in a different place, even in a different font on your computer. set yourself challenges like, write a 100 word story. write a specific type of poem like a villanelle. respond to a prompt or create one for someone else. if there's a part of the story--or a different story--that feels more easeful to write and you're just trying to get there, skip to that part. to be quite honest, writing in a notebook away from technology is the #1 thing that helps me just keep moving. it breaks me out of distraction and perfectionism cycles. it feels good to fill pages, even if it's with words you don't even up using.

the other part is, accept that our brains won't do what they won't do. great writing is not created by use of force. the biggest thing i have learned about myself is that if i can't write, there's something wrong. maybe the characters in my story aren't making sense, maybe the plot is boring and readers will be just as bored as i am, maybe i need to go back and rewrite something to end up in a better place for the next scene, maybe i need a week off from a story because i'm burned out on it and i should write something else or nothing at all. but most often there's not something wrong with the story--there's something wrong with my life. i don't have the time or the energy; i'm giving too much of the best parts of myself to the wrong thing; i'm trying to write at the wrong time of day for my energy level; i checked my email first and now my concentration is entirely shot; i need to work fewer hours if i want to write more; i need more help around the house if i want to write more; i need to just let it be dirty for a while and skip my chores if i want to write more, etc. figuring out what you need to actually feel like writing--learn to feel that again!--and making it possible to set other things, even important things, aside in order to write when you feel it, is so huge for me. making a commitment to the practice of writing and not the product of it. if you're doing that, you can relax. take care of yourself and fix the imbalances in your life. the ideas will come. writing is organic and we are organisms. given space and time, things will always change from how they are right now. let yourself and your creative practice ebb and flow when it needs to instead of forcing it to be something it's not.

thank you for the ask darling sorry i ranted at you for twenty fucking minutes!!!

[liliths-missing-pen]

Idia With Yuu Who Wants To Learn How to Program Games

Not gonna lie this is a very self indulgent piece because my computer programming class is making me want to code but I also want to write 💀 This is my compromise here.

Notes/Warnings: Reader is Yuu, I am in the English server and wish to not know what happens in Book 6 till it comes out so artistic liberties will be taken. Also, Idia might seem a little ooc but when checking the wiki it says he gets excited and talkative when stuff he likes gets brought up so I took it and ran with it. Enjoy!

Masterlist

Before you came to Twisted Wonderland you already known how to code. Mostly just from camps that your family made you do or just out of general interest. Nonetheless you only knew the minimal to basic things, like HTML, CSS, a little bit of Javascript and Python as well C++. So to say the least there wasn’t that much you could do especially as a beginner. You’ve always seen video games or visual novels and wished you’d be able to do something like that one day but yet, you never got around to polishing skills or making yourself actually do anything to get yourself to that goal.

Jump skip to know that you are in Twisted Wonderland. You didn’t know much about this world at all, lots of things were different than your own world. The way things were done, school expectations, slang, magic. So to say, you just expected that anything you knew would be just thrown out the window one way or another. Once you met Idia though you felt more secure in your knowledge. Idia was someone who you can imagine to be the most normal in your world. He was one of those kids in your class at the back of the room, typically not speaking to anyone unless prompted. Now you may wonder, “How did the Ramshackle prefect become associated with the shut-in hermit?” Well like any other instance, Ortho.

Ortho was extremely persistent that once you expressed interest or made an off-handed comment that you knew some code and loved visual novel games, you should meet his brother. Honestly, the issue wasn’t to convince you, it was Idia that needed convincing.

Since it wasn't Idia who invited you to his dorm, he was flipping out when Ortho told him to expect you. He's heard about the notorious Ramshackle prefect who dealt with Overbolts even though they're magicless. He couldn't lie and say that he wasn't interested in you though. Not everyone was able to do that. He just wasn't sure if he could do this right now.

Once you did arrive, Ortho carried most of the conversation. Idia was trying his best to try to make conversation as well but he couldn't bring himself. It was hard to talk to a normie okay?!

Well, that's what he kept thinking after each of his failed attempts. Ortho knew what to do though, he knew his brother would have issues so he hacked into your Magicam account to learn more about you till he ran upon all the gaming and anime accounts you followed. He put to and to together and this was Ortho's plan to make you two talk normally. Once he mentioned a game he knew both you and Idia played it was the start of something great.

Idia's attitude towards you changed completely once you talked about video games and anything else he was into. Which dragged into how the game was coded and whatnot. Once you mentioned how you wanted to program your own game and your vision he was just like an over-excited child he ushered you over to his game, asking how much you knew about code and how fun it would be to create a game.

But basically, once he dragged you in it'll be very hard to leave. Your whole friendship with Idia from then on was built on the game y'all were creating together, anime and gaming. Not that you'd complain it was very to have Idia around. Just that you'd always have to start up the conversion since Idia will always second guess himself

Even once you two finish creating your game Idia would still keep you around. He'd even start being the one to invite you instead of just showing up! After helping you learn and sharpen your skills in programming by working on a game together, you'd start to help him out too! If you know anything about programming, especially C++ you know how picky it is with its writing. Whilst he's off typing quickly you start to point out to him certain things he's missing, like a semicolon on something that'll screw the whole code up.

Wholeheartedly once you make friends with Idiai from one of his special interests it's going to be hard to pull him away from you <3

[vegasgreys]

Mystic destinies serendipity of aeons tatsuya walkthrough

#MYSTIC DESTINIES SERENDIPITY OF AEONS TATSUYA WALKTHROUGH FULL#

#MYSTIC DESTINIES SERENDIPITY OF AEONS TATSUYA WALKTHROUGH CRACK#

Through some minor hijinks, the broody captain of the knights, Anton, decides to come along for the ride and keep the princess safe. She concocts a plan to leave the castle and hop onto the nearest ship to her shock, her personal knight and childhood friend actually agrees and insists on coming with her to keep her safe. Since he won’t listen to any reason, she decides she’s got to run away and go on a mini adventure. She wants to travel the world and see the sights but Pops won’t let her set foot outside the kingdom. Our protagonist is princess Ciel – somewhat, as her dad’s more like a governor – who’s suffering from good, old-fashioned Rebellious Princess Syndrome. It certainly delivers the funny but left me underwhelmed everywhere else. It promised to be a heartwarming, straightforward story, loaded with comedy and gratuitous puns.

#MYSTIC DESTINIES SERENDIPITY OF AEONS TATSUYA WALKTHROUGH CRACK#

It’s got the fingerprints of someone’s first crack at a visual novel, meaning the worst should hopefully be over. This is the approach I took with today’s game, Magical Otoge Ciel. In short, I don’t speak from a place of being better I speak from the experience of similar mistakes. So, I’ve always tried to approach every game I play with a critical eye, not for the sake of finding problems but for the sake of helping my fellow amateur content creators. No, the tricky part comes from something that’s about so-so, and it was clear the author was trying.īut, at the end of the day, I feel very strongly that the worst thing you can do to an artist is stay silent when they need to work on a skill. When that happens, it’s fun venting exorcise to rip in and tear it a new one. If you decide to donate any extra, it will go directly to making that dream a reality.Any reviewer will tell you that it isn’t hard to write a review of bad material. We're hoping to kick off a successful business in order to make visual novels of all genres and worked without pay the entire route to achieve that dream. Star Maiden Games is a small start-up indie visual novel team consisting of three women at it's creative core in 2015. So if you're ready to embark on a beautiful journey of self-acceptance, love and magic then press that purchase button and play until you cry." "Playing Mystic Destinies: Serendipity of Aeons will give you warm fuzzy feelings but it will also make you feel some angst as not everything is sunshine and roses. I recommend this game highly to all the otome lovers out there." I can't wait to read the other guys' routes. "All in all, it was a very great reading experience and I have to say that I have shed some tears towards the end. I think a lot of people will enjoy the characters, the art, and the music! I'm excitedly looking forward to the next route!" It's not without a few problems, but overall it's a well polished game and a great first release for Star Maiden Games.

Over six hours of content, with additional content on the way!.

Enjoy atmospheric high quality music, hand-picked for every scene.

Learn about a world with deep lore and it's own unique universe.

Read a completely different story with each route!.

Two "bad endings" mean your choices have more of an impact!.

#MYSTIC DESTINIES SERENDIPITY OF AEONS TATSUYA WALKTHROUGH FULL#

Three full length canon endings per character - depending on your choices.Experience a different kind of love story with a balance between dark and light themes, and a strong emphasis on fantasy and action.Forced to take sides even as she tries to control her unstable powers and emotions, Tsubasa is pulled into large scale business negotiations and the politics of the ancient Ryu clan.Ĭan you navigate a path wrought with mysteries and drama to find happiness? But she soon finds out that nothing is as it seems. That's Tsubasa's thinking when she chooses the ever-serious Tatsuya. ★ Tatsuya's Story ★ If you're in trouble, choosing a reliable partner is the most logical choice, right? Play as twenty year-old university student Tsubasa Fujimoto as she learns to balance her daily life with her new supernatural one - all while falling in love. This original English language visual novel tackles romance in an urban fantasy setting, with the aim of blending genres and deconstructing common tropes.Īfter a ritual forces immense magical powers onto you, you're thrown into a new world with new threats and challenges that you'd never dreamed of. This unlocks the second released main story route AND epilogue of Mystic Destinies: Serendipity of Aeons, focusing on the character Tatsuya Yukimura. Mystic Destinies: Serendipity of Aeons, the Kickstarter-funded original English language visual novel originally released on Steam comes to Itch.io!

[starcloaked]

literally nothing compares to the hallowed biome (terraria)... like really there is nothing better. the aesthetic. the parallels between extreme purity and general evil. the little details like the fact that it cannot spread to the jungle n the similar items between the biomes like pigrons and the enchanted weapons like wtf is going on!! compelling though... also there are murderous pixies and fae and unicorns as there should be :]

[moonsugar-and-spice]

Apologies for another ask-

Any advice on getting started on just.. writing? I'm only somewhat skilled in script writing and for the life of me just can't figure out how to do fic kind of writing or what you call it. Descriptions or anything like really are so hard for me, and when I've tried to write before it's come out way more plain than I'd like. I have so many ideas I wanna write but actually writing it? Yup nope

First off, no apologies needed! :) My inbox is always open.

As for advice on how to jumpstart the writing process. Honestly?

Just start. I know that might sound unhelpful, but really. Start out with the scene you’ve been most excited about, or wherever inspiration beckons loudest. It doesn’t have to be at the beginning. You can always go back and fill in the gaps later, but this is the best way I’ve found to get the words to start flowing. There is no rule that says you have to write linearly; in fact, I would encourage you to write out of order if it gets a scene onto the page. Several published authors I follow do this, actually. Of course, everyone’s process will vary, and you absolutely have to do whatever works best for you.

You may find it helpful to set a daily word count goal. Don't strive for anything crazy if it feels overwhelming. Setting smaller, achievable goals when starting any new habit will help you succeed. Aim even for just 100 words to start, and treat it like a game. Just show up. If you miss the mark one day, no sweat, try again the next. But having a goal in mind may help you get started.

Also, allow yourself to write badly. I am talking as much to myself here as anyone, as this is not always easy for me. I’ve always struggled with perfectionism (something I have been working hard lately to overcome). But the fact is, perfection is an illusion. It is unattainable, if for the sole fact that it is subjective and one person’s perfect is another’s so-so. We all have this glowing and beautiful vision of the story in our heads, but often the moment we sit down to render it into words it turns to dust or ends up this disappointing, gray caricature of our idea.  Even the best writers usually don’t crank out a perfectly polished chapter in one go. If you have a section you think is of particularly low quality, make a note of it in brackets, but keep writing. There will be time to edit later, but sometimes you just have to get the words down on the page, and that can be messy. I would also encourage you to let your draft sit for a few days once it’s done. You will come back to it with new eyes and a fresh perspective.

On the topic of that wonderful version of our story in our heads vs. the one that seems to fall short when we write it: The best advice I can give on how to improve descriptive writing is to read. A lot. If you want to be a good writer, you have to be a reader first. Read everything – novels, short stories, poetry, all kinds of genres – and study what makes each piece work. Take note of the author’s unique voice and what you do or don’t like about their style. Note down any descriptive phrases or prose that stand out to you, and how you might utilize that technique in your own writing. And then, practice. Practice is the best and only way to really improve, and you absolutely will! Just be patient with yourself along the way, try not to compare yourself to others, and remember that your favorite authors didn’t come out of the womb writing like that. We all start somewhere.

There are and will be times we hit a dry spell, and no matter how we strive, it seems the words simply refuse to come. It happens to everyone, writer and artists alike. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve hit a pothole and felt like I’ve forgotten how to write, or I re-read my own writing and think, “Man, I wish I could write like that.” But creativity ebbs and flows. It’s normal and part of the process. Rather than get discouraged, or try to force it and get frustrated, I use those times to refill my creative bucket with other things: read a new (or old favorite) book, play video games, do art, go out for a walk, listen to music, etc. Eventually, inspiration will find you again and the words will return.

I hope some of this advice was helpful. 🙂 Best of luck! Throwing some writing dust your way!

[btawizzle]

Guide to : Essentials Career Path in A nutshell

What makes the most sense to you right now for your career development? Since I’m taking a Journalism major in Uni, I really think that the most sense decision I’ve ever thought about ( right now) is being a journalist and a screenwriter. It may sound silly, “you’re a Journalism major, of course you’re going to be a journalist”, but I seriously have many other things in mind when it comes to my job ( I really wanna be in a rock band, you know. I can play the bass or be the front man, but yeah )

And the things I have to do to develop my career will be everything that is related to writing. I can write fiction, children's books, essays, travel and beauty blogs, or maybe write a news/article. Looking forward to it~

What will complement your interests, skill set and the lifestyle that you want to have?

P-r-a-c-t-i-c-e

Okay, since I really want to have an extra boujee-parisian-lifestyle, I really have to work my *ss off. I honestly have many interests in things that’ll make money such as building a business, baking, drawing and also writing, but sometimes I just have 0 interest in practicing them. ( I guess i really have to) but for the things that I’m excellent at and don't really need a polish, that’ll be public speaking and it applies for any speaking related matters, like storytelling, and also speech ( If I have the material, too lazy to do the research)

I really want to work in entertainment, being a screenwriter and producing some work there, being a news anchor or PD at a radio maybe? but then if I finally knocked some sense into me, I guess i want to be a lecturer in a university that writes cool scenarios for their drama club and bake when bored

What do you find to be the most compelling thing to explore at this moment in time?

Honestly, figuring out what I want to do with my life. Maybe practicing some of my hobbies that I wish has a relation with my future career,like how digital video and design are supposed to work (whole adobe thingy), how to write an article/novel/blog/essays, coding? The most complicated thing I know on earth, that I wish I could just understand in a blink and also think about what I am going to do if I want to move to france.

The path you choose to follow will help you develop your career and achieve your ideal job. Therefore, it’s important to explore the different approaches available before you begin. In the next step, you will start to look at some of these approaches.

Do you already have an idea of what your ideal job is?

I really think that the idea of an ideal job is something that gives you enough money to live but not really draining you out of energy. I mean, if you’re that busy you never get the fun anymore in those jobs, the money , it has to be worth the energy that you drained, you know.

People often talk about how your passion should be your source of money blah blah blah, but sometimes, we just don't get the fun anymore if everyone pushes us to make enough money for living everytime we do what is called our passion.

I’m thinking about being a teacher with ok money and then do my hobby/dreams as the side hustle ( you know, if i’m not pass out because m’too tired), that’s my ideal job

But if we’re talking about dream jobs? Oh how I just want to be in a rock band and do gigs until the day I die, or maybe marry Damiano David from Maneskin and become a housewife? Yeah, sounds good.

What do you think the path to it looks like?

Before we finally become a lecturer, we have to-at least- have a master degree. So, because it’s 21th century and the school tuition is not cheap, I plan to take a scholarship, and hopefully I can go to europe.

I plan to be the best at uni, not that ambitious, but just to make sure I graduate on time. Until then, I plan to do my best as a uni student, like joining some organisation , doing some internship, and obviously practicing my writing abilities. I plan to find a part time job that is related to journalism ( applying to a magazine/online zine/newspaper) or something like that really, anything ( photographer, make up artist for newbie models) and keep a little amount of money for future me.

After that, I’m going to take a B1 placement test on my german, and then maybe korean/french? And of course, IELTS so i can go to europeeee for my master studies

Ok then after uni, i want to work at a magazine while I’m applying to those scholarship studies. Ok then I got the scholarship, quit the job, went to Europe having my studies and living my best life. Hopefully I will be able to still work there and get my PR maybe? And then do literally what I want. Lecturing maybe, or get a job on some movie production ? become their screenwriter. yeah

Have you previously considered that there might be different approaches to your career path? Or is this a new concept for you?

Yes, and I am super open to it. I’m just going to try my best and the rest is not in my hands. Whatever happens later in the future, that’s what my work pays off, or that’s just what god wants me to have in my life. I’ll accept it with open heart ( hopefully)

#I really want to be rich and happy.

Before you explore these further, there are a few key areas you need to keep in mind:📷

Career goals

Knowledge

Skills

Personal characteristics

Experience

In order to start on the career path you want for yourself, you need to make a plan about what you’re missing in each of these areas and what you need to acquire. Identifying purpose or focus in this way is called ‘ikigai’ in Japanese. You can read more about ikigai by visiting the links in the See Also section.

Whichever approach you choose to develop your career, these are areas you will need to focus on to see what could be further developed as you build your career.

Now let’s explore five different approaches:

1. Matrix

The matrix approach is about having skill sets in different areas and bringing them together to create a profile that is distinct to you. You may have a variety of interests you want to pursue. With the matrix approach, you can explore how to combine these interests into a role which is unique to you.

For example, someone who would like to study web programming, as well as design, could look to combine these interests and become a web developer for any company or organisation with an online presence.

2. Ladder

The ladder approach is better suited for those who know exactly what career or job role they want. They have a dream job in mind or a dream company they wish to work for, so they’re willing to work their way up the ladder to get there.

For the person that aspires to work in television, that might mean starting out as a runner on set. They may then work their way up to get a role as a director or an executive producer, or whatever that ideal role might be.

3. Entrepreneurial

The entrepreneurial approach is about turning an idea into a business and learning along the way. You apply your current skill set whilst rapidly growing your capacity in all areas of business. It takes a lot of work, patience and courage, but can be deeply rewarding for anyone who finds this path to be of interest.

4. Network

The network approach is geared around building a network of contacts that will be mutually beneficial. For example, if you were at a tech networking event and you met a few founders, this would be a great opportunity for you.

What is key in the network approach is to ensure that you’ve thought through what you can offer someone, so that it’s a mutually beneficial and authentic relationship.

5. Portfolio

Creating a portfolio might be more commonly associated with jobs in photography or graphic design. However, it is both relevant and necessary across many disciplines. Many employers will want and need to have an idea of the type of work you can do, so the portfolio approach is a great way for you to demonstrate your skills.

If someone were looking to build a career in public relations, for example, they would be at an advantage if they had a portfolio of their previous coverage. This highlights not just their contacts but what type of work they are capable of doing.

A portfolio is just as valuable a commodity as your CV, so you should build one in line with the career you are interested in pursuing. It is also a great way to share your work and skills with people beyond a job application. For example, you could add it to your LinkedIn page, website or any other medium.

Summary

Choosing the best approach for your career is an essential component of your lifelong career development. There’s no guidebook or master plan for building your career. You can take a sabbatical, be a stay-at-home parent, or even move down a position.

The important thing to remember is that your approach is your own. If you find that multiple approaches like those mentioned above appeal to you, find a way to combine those to take the right approach for you.

Share your experience:

Have you already been using any of the approaches mentioned in this step?

Can you find any examples of other approaches for developing your career? Not for this moment, but I’ll definitely go with Matrix combined with a portfolio approach. I am building my portfolio in tumblr, wix and wordpress.

Why not have a go at exploring a few of these approaches further? I wish to explore more and I will do it thx.cash

[rwhague]

3 Things I Did Wrong To Publish

Hello There!

This is Part 1 of a series documenting my journey to publication (hopefully!).

I just completed my novel, Midas and the Golden child. It is a YA Thriller that follows the kidnapping of young and naive 15-year-old Katie Thompson, the daughter of an FBI agent. I have sent query letters out am now waiting for responses. In the meantime, I decided to start this blog following the process as well as discussing how this journey will effect my real life. I’m already quite the busy bee. I primarily stay home with my one-year-old, but work one day a week supervising nursing students in the hospital. Our home, however, is a mini-farm, so there is always work to be done between our ducks, chickens, and garden. 

This is not the first novel I have written, but I was young and naive like Katie when I wrote the first one. I did not know the difference between publishing and self-publishing, nor the first thing about marketing. This posting, I’m going to talk about what I learned from that experience, and all of the new information that I’ve managed to collect this time. I am sure that as time goes on, I will continue to learn more and more about the world of book publishing, and I hope to share that with you as well.

Wrong About Editing

I believed the publishing group I went with would help me edit the story once it was completed. All I needed to do was propose a good story. Wrong. Wrong! WRONG! That is not how that works. Before you find an agent or a publisher, you must have a polished story--or at least a story that is as polished as you can get it. Editing costs money to the publisher, and if your manuscript is going to cost them too much, they will not invest in you--especially if you are a first time author. The competition is thick, and if they can make more money off of someone else, they will. Even if your story might be better.  

If you spill your guts onto a page, it’s going to look exactly like that. Guts on a page. 1st drafts are messy, ragged, and often nonsensical. If you are not willing to go over and over your manuscript--your 600+ page manuscript, with a fine tooth comb writing is not for you. Also--if your manuscript is over 100k words (pages mean nothing), it is too long. WAY too long. Fantasy and Sci-Fi are exceptions, but most stories need to be around 70-90k words. Mine is 89k, and I worked my butt off getting it there. You must be willing to carve up your story and edit out as much as you can. If it does not contribute to the plot, it needs to go.

Editing is tedious. There was a grammar concept I was mistaken on. My critique partners showed it to me, but then I had to go back through my 89k words and correct every single time I did it wrong. It was not a mistake you could find through control+F either. I had to go line by line looking through every end quotation mark in my story to determine if I had formatted it correctly. Blah, that was a boring evening.

Wrong About Publishing/Marketing

I don’t know about you, but when I started out writing, I had in my mind that authors were these people gifted by God with a silver pen and words of angels. If you had the talent, you could put anything on paper and eventually, someone would notice your genius. What a bunch of bollocks. Like most anything, writing is a skill that takes years of practice to improve. A person might have a certain talent in one area or another, but if that talent is not watered and fertilized, it will choke out or remain stagnant. Most recommend writing at least once a day. I have not found this feasible with my current lifestyle, but I do try to write as much as possible. If I’m not putting pen to paper, then I’m at least thinking about my novel and the next thing that I want to write.

With this idea in mind, I picked a publisher that did not require an agent and sent them my manuscript. They accepted it. Easy-peasy, right?

Nothing in writing is easy. If it feels easy, you’ve probably done something wrong. I went with a group who, with my investment of $3,000 would publish me. They promised me they would help me with marketing and would share in the profits once we reached a certain sale total. Here’s the problem though--I already gave them money. If the book were successful, sure they would make more money, but I had decreased their incentive to help me out the gate. They set up an interview for me with a woman on an AM radio station who gave the wrong name on the interview. THE WRONG NAME. How can you sell books if the interviewer is putting the wrong name out? I complained, but it went nowhere. Their other ideas regarding marketing included setting up a Facebook page and Twitter account on my behalf--two things I could easily do myself (and that I had to pay extra for). There were no instructions or advice on how to use these accounts or how to market myself. Needless to say, the book did not have much success. Now it sits on my shelf reminding me of one of my worst financial decisions.

Wrong About Critiques

Critique groups and other readers are huge. Once you’ve stared at the same page for hours and hours, you will not be able to see the mistakes any longer. A fresh set of eyes is key--especially one that knows a bit about writing. I did not have anyone else read my story before attempting to have it published because I was embarrassed to tell people that I was a writer. Don’t be! Own it! It’s a cool world you live in and a neat skill. You’re going to have to sell your book, often that means selling yourself too.

I found a critique group that I like on Critique Circle. There are several other sites out there, but this is my home. You can sign up for a free account. The first two posts put you into the Newbie Queue which almost guarantees that you will receive a bunch of critiques. The benefits of critiques is not limited only to you receiving critiques, but as you critique others, you will begin to see the same mistakes in your own writing better and be able to fix them better. Being critiqued and critiquing has helped me become a stronger writer more than anything.

Another thing that Critique Circle offers in their forums is a critique of query letters. How helpful this section is will hopefully be determined soon!

I will keep you up to date as time goes on, and hopefully we shall see success right around the corner!

R. W. Hague

Writer of Midas and the Golden Child

[gargaj]

Getting stuff done - practical solutions for pulling off large projects

So this might be an unusual post for a site that I predominantly intended to be a collection of tech-articles, but over the recent years I've both been observing and noticing in conversations that while there's plenty of technical material online about how to learn to program, do graphics, engineer music, and so on, much of the writing about how to get projects done seem to veer over into either "life hacks" about how you should do stretches and open your window for fresh air, or escalate into the territory of motivational speeches and emotional, heart-to-heart peptalks; now, while I understand and appreciate their usefulness in certain scenarios, they seem to cultivate a misunderstanding that all you need to get a project done is a positive attitude and ab-crunches.

After having been in an industry for 10 years that has a relatively high throughput, and having had many relatively recent conversations with people who were in awe or disbelief about my ability to handle large projects, I was reinforced in my belief that most people are unaware how much of getting a large amount of work done is down to cold science, scheduling, professional planning, and the ability to retain control of a project even when unexpected events happen.

With that in mind I'd like to present a few random bits and bobs about what I learned about project management - not necessarily only in programming, but in any sort of creative activity - while hoping to keep the popular psychology element in them to the mininum.

A quick note before we dive right in: I'll be talking entirely about sparetime activity that you want to invest time in. While it can be useful to apply professional techniques to your sparetime activity, you should definitely not treat the two as they're one of the same. That's a good way to hate what you used to like. (Trust me.)

Who's producin'?

Before we start talking about actual work, it is important to introduce ourselves to an important term, namely production. Most people think "production" is the act of making something, and the "producer" is someone who makes things, while I would wager a large portion of the populace can't tell you what a "film producer" does aside from "making films"; on a day-to-day basis, that role seems to be an opaque cloud to most people, even if it's one of the most important.

The short version is that the producer's job is to make sure that the project is finished on time, and on budget. The slightly longer version is that the producer takes the amount of time available, the amount of resources available (budget, people, inventory, etc.), consults the respective heads of departments actually doing the work, and then comes up with the plan and schedule as to what happens when, when something finishes, who works on what, and what resources will it take; once production starts, they transition their role into making sure everything goes to plan and if something doesn't, what are the options to salvage things.

There is a reason why in most professional environments, there are entire departments for this: it is a tough job, often frustrating, sometimes disheartening, but at the same time a producer is always aware of the state of the project and can have a good idea of progress being done, and whether the whole thing will come together in the end. This will become extremely important later.

Weeks of coding can save you hours of thinking

Projects are usually broken up to three important segments: Pre-production, production, and post-production. These tend to vary from industry to industry as to what they mean, but pre-production generally consists of building a production plan out of the resources and time available. Pre-production is one of the most important parts of a project, because it will define how the rest of the project will be committed, and thus it's important that we first delve into the ins-and-outs of planning.

First thing first, decide if you have a deadline for your project. Deadlines are cruel, they're unforgiving, but that's why they work miracles on productivity; projects without deadlines don't put pressure on the authors and eventually they just get dropped down the chute of "maybe later". Pick a hard deadline, or pick a reason to have a hard deadline. (Sidenote: demoparties work wonders as deadlines.)

Secondly, once you picked a deadline, assess your project's needs: Assuming your project is in some way technically complex, what are the things that you don't have and need to create or acquire for this? If you're doing music, is there plugins or samples you need, or instruments to acquire, or musicians to talk to? If you're painting, do you have the paints and brushes, or is your tablet broken and need to get it fixed? If you're making a demo, do you have an engine, can it do what's needed? Think about every single thing you need.

Once that list is done, break down your project into elements, in detail - this is the most crucial part of production. If it's a song, roughly jot out the parts on paper and maybe the list of instruments you want in there. If it's a large 3D scene, write down the elements you want in it in detail. If it's a novel, jot out the chapter titles. If it's a demo, chart out the parts with rough ideas on how long each is and what's in it. If it's a game, map out all the mechanics, characters, levels, cutscenes, and so on. Break everything down to parts, and do it visibly so that if something is missing, you can spot it. Once that's done, take the parts and break them down further: What is needed for each part? Roughly how long is the duration of each part? What are the technical necessities of each part? What are the assets needed for each part? What is the process for creating each part?

There are many reasons why all of this is crucial. Firstly, this will serve as your gameplan for the rest of the production process. Secondly, and more importantly, the more you break a large project down to small parts, the less daunting it will seem: if you embark on a project that can take months to complete, you have to take it on one day at a time, and each day will need to end with some sort of progress. If you have a roadmap that tells you each day what that day needs to get ticked off at the end of it, you will no longer be fighting an endless battle; instead you'll focus on the task at hand, with a bigger roadmap to keep you in check.

This leads us into another important consideration, and one of the more murky ones: time estimates - for each of the broken down tasks, give a good guess as to how long it will take. Then multiply it by at least two, and that'll give you a good idea of the time you will need. See, the first thing you should learn about when producing is contingency: contingency is a multiplier for each task's estimate that adds extra headroom that accounts for anything the estimate doesn't account for. There are many things that can make a task take longer, and not all of them are relevant to the task: you might run into edge-cases that add extra complexity, but on a much more basic human level, you never know when you're going to break a leg, or your cat will get sick, or your apartment gets flooded - anything can happen, and it probably will, so make sure you account for that, and leave yourself plenty of headroom as contingency, and best case scenario you'll just have a more relaxed process.

Sometimes, however, even contingency isn't enough, and you'll find yourself running behind schedule. This is why this next step is important: Nail down your scope, and stick to it. There are many things you have listed in your above breakdown, but they all vary in importance, so make sure that next to the time needed, you also note down their importance. As the late great Randy Pausch said in his Time Management talk, it's important you distinguish between things that are important, and things that are urgent: there might be things that are urgent for a project, but ultimately not important, and it is up to your discretion to rank them upfront. [Update: I've recently found out that this is called the "Eisenhower Decision Matrix".] As for ranking, this is up to you; you can do it on a scale of 1 to 10, but I personally prefer what they call the MoSCoW method, where "MoSCoW" stands for "Must", "Should", "Could" and "Would"/"Won't", and they signify how important that specific thing is to the project: "Must"-s are the things that are the bare minimum to get a project off the ground, "Should"-s are important, but not necessary, "Could" are polish, and "Would" are just whatever there's time left for if you're ahead of schedule. Ranking by necessity is very important, because once you start running out of scheduled time, the only option you will have aside from having a project fail is to cut stuff. Ranking by importance also allows you to schedule accordingly, making sure that unimportant polish tasks are moved towards the end of the process instead of wasting time with them at the start.

One thing to note here is that it takes decades of experience to get all of this right, so much like your actual skills of making things, your production skills will get better with time - a good rule of thumb here is to just keep your eye on the ball: decide whether an item on the list fundamentally contributes to the production, or is it just something that you think it would be cool to do, or something you wanted to do anyway. It's tempting to get sidetracked by excessive detail like splurging on instrument recordings or adding engine features, but focus on the goal: If it doesn't contribute to your end goal, cut it.

I also want to remark that I actually did the same for this article: earlier I wrote down bullet points about what I want to mention and started arranging them into a flow.

Doin' the work

Once you've planned your stuff out, then it's just a matter of discipline of taking off the next item on your list, and working on it until it's done. This is of course both easier and harder than it sounds, but remember: you made this list with full knowledge and intention to follow through on it, so at this point this is your best bet to get to your goal. I usually reinforce my adherence to the plan by putting the physical (printed) schedule in a visible place in front of me somewhere in the room, to keep me focused on the goal; I also mark off items that I'm finished with, because I personally find the physical act of ticking off or crossing out an item very satisfying - it's the little things, really.

The production document for PILEDRIVER

There are a few things that can help with getting into a good workflow: One thing a lot of people underestimate are placeholders - when your final art isn't done, just stick something in there that only vaguely resembles what you want in there, and every day you work on it, not only will it remind you that it needs to be replaced, but on occasion it will reveal problems in the grand picture.

To bring a practical example, both with "Signal Lost" and especially with "PILEDRIVER" I went absolutely crazy with placeholders, essentially building both of those demos twice as what in the 3D industry they'd call "animatics": just rough boxy versions of the scenes with approximate camera/lighting, just to be able to get a feel for the pacing / length of the scenes, the camera speed, and so on. Making an animatic version of the scene and getting it in the engine usually took less than 15 minutes, but with the music done, I was able to immediately get a feel for whether I need to adjust my initial idea slightly, or perhaps I needed to find another camera angle, or break a section up to more parts.

The PILEDRIVER animatic

I actually went one step further earlier in the process; I knew I wanted the rap part in the middle, but the lyrics I wrote were fairly complex, and I knew Fantom would struggle with some of it (especially in pronounciation), I decided to take the lyrics and put them through my favourite speech synth, Daniel, and then chop it up so that it resembles the flow I thought sounded best for that particular part. This not only helped with the recording, but also reassured me that the idea would work.

Against all odds, I managed to coax Daniel out of retirement.

As you can see, my work methodology was often designed around one thing: quick feedback and iteration. I find myself having very clouded visions about art-related things most of the time, so for me it is very crucial to be able to try stuff as quick as I can and fail early, so especially with music, I do what the late Linds Redding coined as The Overnight Test: If something I make late at night doesn't sound great the next morning, I scrap it and start something new, maybe cannibalizing the good bits from the previous iteration. When on a timer, sometimes iteration means not getting stuck on something that would never work.

Note: I'm aware that Mr. Redding used his term in a more somber context later in his life, but I'm merely sticking to its original meaning here.

And speaking of overnight, let me stress one thing: always do nightly snapshots of what you're doing. If you're making a demo, build the whole demo every night and watch it, maybe run it on your work computer the next day during lunch. If you're making a song, render it out and put it on your portable player and listen to it on the bus the next day. Not only will you internalize the work and make a list of issues to fix over the course of the day, but it assures the integrity of the technical side of the project - I've watched way too many demogroups, as recent as last month, make an awesome prod that just doesn't compile or crashes before the deadline because they were too busy working on content and never tested the actual executable. If you do this every night, or maybe even every few nights (but always at least once a week), you're more likely to realize that your compile config hasn't been updated for a while and you really should do that before you're 5 hours before the deadline and you're drunk.

Sidenote: I'm aware that this is perhaps too specific of an advice to programmers, but probably worth mentioning, and I can imagine variations for other artforms as well, like importing/exporting problems with 3D.

Pushing on

So this is the bit in the text where we might be veering close to pretend version of popular psychology and talk about subjective things like motivation and dedication, so I'd like to make a disclaimer that I've never formally studied these things, and you should not take any of this as gospel or any level of scientific; these are just things I noticed about myself, and tried some simple methods to counter them, and they (mostly) worked fine.

One of the big things I've mentioned earlier is the daunting vision of the road ahead; with large projects, it's incredibly demoralizing to just sit at the start and be crushed by the amount of work that needs to be done, especially if you're doing something where it takes a large amount of work just to be able to have something basic; with music it perhaps only takes a ~10 second loop to feel like to be on the right track, with a full demo, the aforementioned placeholders do a great job, but with e.g. writing a larger engine, it can take weeks before you get to the point where you have anything on the screen simply because of all the modules you need to work on first. My mitigation for this was what I call the skeleton method: What's the least amount of work I need to do to get anything to get on screen? For that, what's the least amount of work I need to do to get something to just run? All of this ends up in the pre-production document as well, so when I start working, I can relatively quickly get to a stage where it's just a blank window, but it's built on an engine skeleton where replacing things is straightforward once I reach that point in the process. I myself noticed that my work morale improves once I'm able to send screenshots or chunks of the thing I'm working on to people, so I try to get there as fast as I can.

Another thing I noticed about my working style is that even with managable work chunks I have problems getting started simply because it takes a while to get into "the groove", so a little technique I've been using is that when I'm about to wrap up for the day, I make sure there's a glaring problem with what I just did, like an obvious bug or mix error that I could fix in a few minutes - and then I leave it like that until the next day. That way, the next day I'm able to jump in and start with something easy.

The final thing - which I kinda hesitate to mention because we're already way too deep into motivational speech territory to my taste - that I found extremely useful is regimen: making sure that there's a period of time either or daily or weekly that I get to work on the project. Perhaps the ultimate guru of regimen is the great Beeple, who has been releasing a piece of art every day for more than 10 years now, and has given expletive-laden talks on the subject of why regimen is important. Now, I think we can safely consider him an edge-case with 10 years of everydays, but at the same time, there's value in doing something in a regular manner, and there's also a consideration of the amount of work you need to do versus the amount of time you have.

One important aspect all of this is that while guilt can be a good force of motivation, you shouldn't beat yourself up if something doesn't work out. Failures are a part of life, and they're an even larger part of any artistic or techical process, and you should accept that sometimes best laid plans can go absolutely up in flames because of a variety of reasons - like, say, because there's a global pandemic going on, and that the existential pressure of it takes away your motivation to do things. All of that is okay. As Eisenhower once (supposedly) said, "Plans are worthless, but planning is invaluable."

In summary

I'm mentioning that failing is always part of the process, because I've been listing a lot of rules and constaints and limitations on what you should and shouldn't do, and I must again emphasize that all of this is meant as advice and observations with regards to spare-time activity, and that how much of this you use will depend on how bad do you want one thing over the other: Managing spare time can require a delicate balance especially if you have a healthy social life, and if you do, you have to decide how much to work on retaining that versus how much you work on your passion project, and in my eyes this ultimately all leads back to pre-production: if you know you can't spend time on something every day and the deadline is right around the corner, rein in your scope early so that you can deliver rather than giving up halfway, because no unfinished project is as impressive as a finished one.

[english-y]

Final Draft

Probably...

Sofhia J. Jaime

J. Doyle

ENGL 1302-70L

2020/09/27

Fan Fiction Writing

     ‘FanFiction’ is defined to be, “Fiction written by a fan of, and featuring characters from, particular TV series, movie, etc.” according to the Oxford languages website while true, fanfiction is much more than that. Fanfiction is the creation of alternate universes, plots, characters, characterizations, and many other aspects of popular books, shows, movies, etc.  these authors rewrite stories or continue them after their final conclusion. With that comes a lot of work, considering the high demand for this type of media. Websites such as AOS, Tumblr, WattPad, FanFiction.net, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and a plethora of other pages that thrive from this form of entertainment. Authors of these works often gain a massive following on their social media as the popularity for this medium grows. Sometimes the final writings are more complex than its original, currently the longest fanfiction in existence have 4,102,217 words and 220 chapter which are still being regularly updated. Yet, most often fan fiction is disregarded and frowned upon by the majority of readers(!). Fanfiction carries a prejudice that unfortunately discredits the author and the work as a whole. Commonly, it is believed to be the work of desperate teens from the ages 13+ who over romanticize book characters, movie characters or people in the public eye. Though this essay I want to explore the reality of this type of writing and how its misrepresentation causes it to be devalued at surface level even though this writing has shown bountiful benefits to aspiring authors.

     In Not All Those Who Wonder are Lost by Cecilia Aragon she found that most authors who write fanfiction felt similarly “Many of the authors we interviewed admitted they started off as poor writers but said they’d improved enough to consider writing professionally.” Three of the authors that I had interviewed planned on authoring their own novels and all three of them have their stories already in the making. In fact, Admin Kim of RightSockJin has her story already written but as a fanfiction she plans on editing it to form it into a cohesive novel of which she would like to publish. Also, Shannon of Kpopfanfictiontrash she is working on her young adult novel with hopes to publish soon.

     “The most recent report from the National Assessment of Educational Progress indicated that 73% of US students in grades 8 and 12 lack proficiency in writing.” Maybe instead of overlooking medium we could use it to help students work on their writing, show them how to develop plot by dissecting a prewritten story and writing it in their own likeness. We could even help students develop a writing style by having them mimic the style of an established author. There is so much we can do to help interest students and interest them in writing but the masses refuse to look passed the surface of fanfiction reading and writing.

      Recently, my friends and I have started a blog where we upload our personal writing. From what I have noticed, my writing has matured substantially. My characterization, vocabulary, problem solving skills, and many other aspects of this creative medium have grown to something I am prouder to show. Even though I do not plan to pursue a career in writing this has given me to confidence I need for general writing, for schoolwork and for jobs I hope to obtain in the future. Growing up I never enjoyed reading or writing, I was insecure about my abilities because I grew up bilingual, which caused some teachers to treat me unfairly  The friends who are writing alongside me do plan on publishing novels, and through this type of writing I have noticed that they were able to polish their skills and develop a writing style. Though, I have noticed that they have not been able to feely talk about their writing because people do not take their writing seriously because it is fanfiction.

     I was able to conduct a survey asking people about their opinions concerning fanfiction. From what I have gathered most people are turned off by what they perceive fanfiction to be.

      Out of all of the people who have taken the survey the majority did enjoy reading. Though I know reading does not necessarily mean reading books, there is a wide variety of writings that are accessible to consumers The most popular types of readings were Book and novels and comics. Which I found interesting considering the fact that those works are typically taken and used as inspiration of fanfiction. Still, most of the people who took the survey have not read and do not want to read fanfiction.

     Seventy percent of the group had not read any fanfiction and had given the media a negative connotation without actually having read though any of the works. When asked about what they had hears about the writings a lot of the times they expressed hearing “not a lot of appropriate things” someone even called it “cringe” and just decided they did not want to give fanfiction a chance.

     My goal is to show the reality of fanfiction to readers and authors who overlook these works of fiction because they bring more benefit to those who consume and create these. I was able to ask a few more established authors on Tumblr, for their background and their opinion of the stigma surrounding this media, their personal opinion, and a little information regarding their positionality. On my Tumblr I direct messages a few of my favorite writers out of the twenty I ask only five answered. Even though the turnout was not the best I was still able to get some really good insight from authors of different backgrounds. I was able to talk to was Shanna of Kpopfanfictiontrash, Sol of jamaisjoons, Traci of cupofteaguk, Admin Kim,  Admin Calico Admin AdMin from rightsockjin and lasty Athena from GoddessAthean on Wattpad.

      First I was able to talk to Shanna from Kpopfanfictiontrash (late 20’s) and comes a Caucasian background. She has been writing for around six years and at the moment she works as a businesswoman. Soon after I talked to Sol admin of the Tumblr jamaisjoons (22yrs) writer that comes from an Indian background, she has been writing for around seven years, but she is currently working as an accountant. I was also able to get in contact with Traci (23yrs) Asian-American fanfiction author with around ten years of experience who writes on the cupofteaguk tumblr blog, she is currently studying Communications in college. Lastly, I got to talk to all of the three writers in the Rightsockjin blog. Admin Kim who is a twenty-one and working as a teacher with a Hispanic/Mexican background, she has been writing for 12 years and lastly Admin Calico (19), who is a full time student working on an English Major who also is from a Hispanic/Mexican background who has had over ten years and Admin AdMin(19) who is a Computer Science major who had been writing for seven years. Lastly, I was able to talk to Athena (19) a Hispanic who writes under the AthenaGodess pseudonym who is also a Computer Science major and has been writing for around four years.

     I was able to have talk to all of the authors and get their individual opinions of their work, the writings they’ve read, and the perspective about this creative medium. I wanted to know that their work actually meant to them. Traci expressed that she “really [enjoys] writing fan fiction because it’s a form of expression...”. More than fifty percent of the authors mentioned self-expression, this medium is an easy to show the inner turmoil that in the mind of the author. Often, these writers show more vulnerable and intimate part of themselves. Personally, I love to write about my ideal relationship because I have had some really terrible experiences with relationships. Aside from using this as a way to vent her creativity it has helped her with her academic writing. “Allowing myself to write on a daily basis also helps hone in on my writing skills, which can be applied to professional situations or school assignments.”

     I also asked about their opinion on the stereotypes and stigma surrounding fanfiction and how it affects them. Shana gave me an interesting perspective, “I think most stereotypes are rooted in a general lack of understanding. I do write fanfiction based off a musical artist, so my male lead character may contain some of their features and personality traits. I don’t necessarily have to create these aspects myself. Everything else I do. The plot of the story. The side characters and romantic interests. The setting, the world-building. The dialogue and description and everything in between – that exists nowhere but in my own mind. I would also say there’s an equal, but different challenge to writing based off something which already exists. It requires greater research, perception and understanding than simply creating something out of thin air.” Which correlated from my previous research, most people who have not even read fanfiction just refuse to even look into the medium. When I asked specifically about the stigma Sol stated “There [is] an assumption that most fanfic writers are young 12-16-year-olds and while that’s true sometimes, there’s actually a higher percentage of authors who are 18+, especially ranging from 22-30.” Which while there may be young authors the majority according to my studies range higher than eighteen years of age.

     In my own experience and research, I found that authors find solace in their writing. Sometimes these writers come from some unfortunate situations which cause them to look for succor, so they write out their ideal life in these fictions. I went through a trauma with my first boyfriend which caused me to fall into a depression. I began to journal, which lead me to write out scenarios that made me feel better. Even though my writing was not explicitly fanfiction this bit of writing led me to create a fanfiction blog. This, in a way, allowed me to rehabilitate myself out of my slump and get myself to get back to a more positive form of thinking, my writing gave me hope where I before I saw none. Alongside me psyche my writing improved significantly. I started to get better grades in my AP English classes during high school, then my writing for my college classes became something I enjoyed. A subject that I once dreaded became something I looked forward to doing.

     This form of media seems to get less credit than it is worth but in reality, these works can be equally, and sometimes more intricate than their original works. Unfortunately, because it was not written by a credible source the writing is disregarded. Instead of sending negativity to these aspiring authors we should encourage their development with positive engagement and constructive criticism, so they feel encouraged to supplying their audience with their work and so they can continue to develop their skill and style.

Works Cited

Aragon, Cecilia. “Not All Those Who Wonder Are Lost.” MIT Technology Review, vol. 123, no. 1, Jan. 2020, pp. 44–47. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=a9h&AN=140364555&site=ehost-live.

 @rightsockjin​ @kpopfanfictrash​ @cupofteaguk​ @jamaisjoons​

[prettylittlelyres]

My Year in Writing (2020)

Hello and Happy New Year! I thought it might be nice to share with you all an overview of what I've written in 2020.

First of all, let me say that I haven't written nearly as much as I wanted to, but that's OK, and it's OK if the amount you've written feels or looks pretty similar. The point is, it looks some way (I daresay pretty) because you've taken up the pen and put some words on a page.

I don't want to gloss over how bad aspects of my 2020 Writing Year have disappointed me, because that would be as silly as casting a damper on the whole thing by focusing only on the trickier bits. What I'm aiming for here is a balanced review - even if it's a rather informal one - of my achievements, and my feelings about my writing this year. In the interest of balance, let's start with something GOOD!

Right at the beginning of the year - around January - I started redrafting a rather fabulously dark fantasy romance, of which you've probably seen a little bit on this blog: Songs from the Crypt Forest, which I dropped after 9,800 words, because I wanted - and needed to work on my first dedicated book, and on my Year Abroad Research Project.

I managed to write about 17,000 words of the dedicated book in its original form before I realised that it wasn't quite working, and that I ought to try a different tack. The story I was telling there is a story I still want to tell, but I just wasn't ready to write it at the time. I'm hoping to pick it up properly in 2021.

I realised I needed to try getting back into the world I wrote in 'Violins and Violets', by writing something set around the same time and involving some of the same characters. In March, I started writing 'Book J', for which I didn’t have a proper title until I was nearly done with its first draft! I gave it the working title 'Book J', because I was writing it for my friend Jenny. By the time summer came round I had 52,000 words, and a first draft that was as complete as I think it ever will be.

Lockdown hit my life quite hard in Spring 2020, and I lost my language assistant job in France when all schools closed, and I had to come back to the UK to live out the academic year with my parents. Nevertheless I had to carry on working with my Year Abroad Research Project, Which I was able to hand in by 18th May, having squeezed all my findings into a dissertation of 6,000 words.

Now that my YARP was out of my way, and I had no more work to do for university, I started redrafting Jenny's book, now called 'Vogeltje', and cut it down to 44,000 words, which I polished until August... when I had copies printed for Jenny, so that she could read a book written especially for her. I would have given it to her in person in France, but lockdown happened, and I ended up posting her copies from one part of South England to another. A rather typical outcome for a meetup planned in 2019 for 2020, I suspect!

During lockdown, I also trained as a proof-reader and copyeditor, and did some volunteer work for a company that needed translators. Online training courses have been a godsend, and I've particularly enjoyed a novel writing course and a travel writing course that I've been following. The novel writing course has pushed me to flesh out plans for a number of books, including more detailed and cohesive outlines for 'Songs from the Crypt Forest' and 'The Night Has Teeth' (two books I want to write in a similar universe), along with my on-again-off-again WIP 'The Manylove Quarter' - and the plans for these three alone come to 7,850+ words!

I moved back to Southampton in July, and took August to start drafting 'The Manylove Quarter ', but that ended up petering out with about 19,200 words of prose on the page. Still, I spent a lot of time querying, and got plenty of reading done, so - especially considering the heatwaves in my area and a pretty enormous academic crisis in my record (fixed in November, after writing a LOT of letters and reports!!! So, this is where I send a million hugs to my lecturers and tutors for all the help they've given me, thank you, thank you, thank you all SO MUCH!!!) - I still felt fairly well-accomplished at the end of the month. I also did quite a bit of painting.

In August and September, I started typing up the journal I've been keeping since the beginning of April, once I'd settled back into life in the UK, to keep track of my feelings about the pandemic and my reactions to what I've seen or heard in the news. I write an average of 6,000 words per month, so I'm coming up to 50,000 words on the whole thing (but have yet to type up November or December). One day, I'll use it to write some extremely illustrious memoirs about how much fun, I had stamping up and down the stairs in my parents' house in order to get my steps in! (I really did get quite fit, though, and I want to get back to it in the New Year!)

At the start of September, I published a 2,500-word travel log my university's "study abroad" blog, all about how much I came to love the French city of La Rochelle, where I spent my 3rd year working. I think I will polish it at least a little before I post it here, but I would love to post a redrafted version on this blog!

My final year of university (BA Modern Languages, French and German) started in October, so all my reading and writing that month - or so it felt - was linked to my course. However. I've lost count of how many pieces I've translated between English, French and German, just to prepare for each class. I love my course, but it doesn't leave much energy for anything else!

Welcome to November, when all my graded assignments were due at once, and the associated stress started taking its toll. Luckily, my tutors were there to help me get extensions for work I couldn't hand in on time because my brain had turned into mashed potato. By the middle of December, I ended up with a 300-word translation and 300-word scripted scene for French, a 1,000-word commentary on a translation into English, a 2,500-word essay for French History, and a 2,000-word short story for German, which I've translated into English, and will post here any day.

This has really been a big year for letter-writing, especially since I came back from France. My cousin and I love writing longhand letters to each other, as I love writing them to my grandmothers, and, as such, I've written about one hundred letters this year! My cousin and I have kept every letter we've ever sent each other, and these collections have approximately doubled in size since the start of 2020.

I keep trying to redraft the first chapters of 'The Manylove Quarter', but never seem to get very far. With about 3 redrafts started since Autumn, I'd say l have about 1,000 words typed up. I can probably say the same of the story I'm trying to write as a kind of Standalone, kind of Sequel to 'This Still Happens' and 'Curls of Smoke', except that I'd put those around the 2,000-word mark.

If my Mathematic capabilities still stand up, I estimate I've written about 210,000 words in total this year (not including text messages, letters, emails and entries in my regular diary (which I keep separately to my pandemic journal)), which. honestly, makes me feel a little like I've failed myself.

That's why l'm making this post, actually, to address that feeling - because | know it's not rational, so I'm not going to call it "that fact" - and to tot all my work up in one place, so that I can see my achievements as one big hulk. Looking at my 2020 in terms of projects l've actually finished, it's disappointing! But to look at 2020 as a final wordcount makes me feel an awful lot better. My sister just pointed out that "210,000 words" is "nearly a quarter of a million words", and, put in that way, it's much easier to feel like I've accomplished something of which I can - and Should - feel proud. I've written a lot this year!

Now l'm asking all of you who feel like you've "not done enough work in 2020" to reassess the way you're looking at it all, and to see that:

Productivity shouldn't define how much you feel you're worth, no matter how productive you've been. Please don't fall into the capitalist trap of thinking you're only "doing the right thing" if you're working! You're worth a huge amount and you deserve to be proud of yourself!

You've achieved a lot more than you first thought, whether in the projects you've finished, the number of words you're written, the ideas you've had, the research and planning you've done, the time you've put in, the skills you've honed... OR THE FUN YOU'VE HAD! It all counts, and it's all important, and you can be proud of all of it, just like you can be proud of yourself.

If you don't feel like you've done enough, find a new angle from which to look at what you have done. I'm willing to bet someone out there can see how brilliantly you're doing already. Try to see yourself through that someone's eyes!

[minaminokyoko]

The Old Guard: A (Disappointed) Spoilertastic Review

I hate 2020.

For many reasons, of course, but there is this particular nastiness it seems to have, like it’s getting revenge on us for our past and current sins.

And the Old Guard feels like part of that revenge.

I haven’t read the graphic novel, so please understand the following review is based on the film alone. I was on board with getting to see my queen and girl crush Charlize Theron kick some ass and rock that bangin’ brunette pageboy haircut that only she can and yet what this movie gave me is a raging case of 2020. This concept isn’t anything new or original, but it should have been a walk in the park. It has solid actors and a simple premise.

So why was it total bullshit?

I’m so angry. I’ve said before how certain movies feel like someone had all the ingredients to make a hot, delicious pizza and yet when they combined them, they came up with Brussel sprouts somehow. This movie is a lazy mess. It has about a handful of decent moments, but overall, it’s negligent. It doesn’t care. It doesn’t care to show you its potential. It’s just a tired, by the numbers, dull action movie that’s wasting the talent that it managed to gather together. Maybe that’s why I’m so mad. It’s clear that this could have been fantastic, but the apathy in the writing turned into a grey, flavorless bore.

Sigh. Let’s swing the ax already and get this over with.

Overall Grade: C-/D+

Spoilers ahead.

Pros:

·         I signed on for Charlize Theron and at least I got what I wanted, which was her kicking ass but still giving us a few soft moments of vulnerability. This is why I will follow this woman to the grave. Charlize Theron is one of my favorite actresses because she’s so good at showing what women are capable of as characters. She has such a wide range of acting skills, giving us a cold, bitter woman but at the same time showing hints of inner kindness and strength and love. This movie barely has many redeeming qualities, but she’s by far one of the best parts. The movie knows it, as she is the only one we really get to “know” over the course of the film.

·         Joe and Nicky are the only other characters providing any warmth or emotion in the film. It’s badly needed. I was so let down that they didn’t show Nile’s introduction to the team because, to me, I got the sense that Joe and Nicky are the heart. They seem in touch with their emotions and not as cynical and hardened by their “immortality” as Andy. They seem to still care about helping people, even at the cost of themselves, and they could have been such a strong anchor if the movie invested more time in them. Both actors are solid and believable in the roles and it’s a pity they weren’t given more to do than to be the victims who needed rescuing.

·         The action, for the most part, is solid. It’s pretty average, though. Nothing surprising. It’s the moves you’ve seen if you watched John Wick or Atomic Blonde, so keep that in mind.

·         The effects are solid, particularly for their healing factor. It’s smooth and polished looking.

·         What little bits and pieces we see between teammates is likable. They seem genuinely fond and protective of each other and it’s not in focus enough, but when it is, it’s nice.

·         The soundtrack is pretty good.

Cons:

·         Lack of explanation. Look, I get it. You don’t want to load your entire movie up with exposition, but it’s very simple and easy to pace it out. You don’t have to dump it all in one spot, or if you do, then you can simply be strategic about it. Most good movies also know how and where to integrate the exposition and story into sequences where the characters are performing an action so that you don’t notice the exposition as you have something visual to distract you and keep your attention while you’re watching the movie. The Old Guard doesn’t care about all your questions. It just thinks you should accept whatever it jams down your throat, no matter how goddamn unbelievable it is. They explain so little of what’s going on to Nile that after the halfway point, you might as well throw up your arms and forget everything you wanted to know about the group. They answer nothing at all, yet expect Nile to throw in her lot with them for however long she’ll be alive. What’s frustrating is that you have solid actors who could pull off the emotional angles of the hard decisions they chose to make as semi-immortal beings. It pisses me off that they don’t explain anything because the motivations are what make us all care about the characters. For instance, why become soldiers? No one said they had to fight for humanity, especially since they JUST heal wounds. They aren’t super fast or super strong. They could have very easily simply acquired wealth over the centuries and used that wealth to invest in things that help people. Why do they have to be fighters? Oh, right, because it’s cooler.

·         Lazy writing. The number of plotholes in this thing, due in part to lack of explanation, is stunning. I mean, it’s just so goddamn fucking lazy. It doesn’t care about its own material. It just needs to get from Point A to Point B by taking the most shortcuts possible. I can’t handle how little the movie cares about its own content. I can go point by point for laziness. We can start with how no one wanted to ask Nile ANYTHING after she came back from the dead. They just got mad and scared, but they didn’t say anything when she was still on the military base. What the actual fuck is that? And they just left her alone afterward, expecting her to follow orders? Uh, that’s not how that works. Her friends would be asking her a billion questions and the medics would have asked her even more questions than that. She wouldn’t just be walking around of her own free will, especially not in this day and age where science is obsessed with figuring out the why of humanity. They’d have kept her locked up and started examining her the second she healed the neck wound. And that’s just right off the cuff. Don’t get me started on her five second “I don’t want to march in your parade” bullshit that is just so clearly the second act breakdown moment to have the hero come back and save them in the third act schtick. How is Nile somehow calling out Andy for killing those men in the church when she was LITERALLY a Marine, who is TRAINED TO KILL BAD PEOPLE???? That made NO sense. But again, this movie doesn’t care. It doesn’t care about fucking anything. Booker’s betrayal was painfully telegraphed and it was also another plothole, as Andy has been alive for thousands of years and would have felt that the weight of her gun would be off without its ammo. She also would’ve checked her rounds before going in hot. Then there’s even smaller details, like it being broad daylight when they’re brought into that lab and then they have a shootout but there’s NO ONE on the streets when they leave, but then they leave and THEN all the people magically reappear. Go fuck yourself. This movie is an insult to average intelligence. It just expects you to open up and swallow every bit of its bullshit over and over again, squandering its own potential. It’s so infuriating.

·         Cliché placeholder dialogue. The dialogue is so unimaginative that I’m pretty sure a bot wrote it. You can tell beat for beat what’s going to happen fifteen minutes before it happens on-screen. The movie really does not think much of its audience. It doesn’t have a unique take on pretty much anything at all, which is a crying shame, really. There are plenty of juicy angles for character and action that they could have gone for and didn’t.

·         Not enough time is spent getting to know anyone except for Andy, and even she is given drive-by characterization. Nile is a huge loss. As a black woman, I am always dying to see black women in science fiction/fantasy stories because there is a severe lack of representation. I was hoping Nile would get a bigger stake in everything, but she’s just a chess piece. The movie doesn’t delve into her life, her wants, her needs, basically anything at all. They mention her family repeatedly, but they don’t go into detail to make you care and understand what a loss it is to leave them behind. It’s especially shitty when her bonding with Booker could have been a great emotional moment. Their origins line up well. She could have had conversations with him, arguing that she should be allowed to tell her family or at least say goodbye, and Booker could share his own tragic backstory with her to explain why it’s better for them to remain solitary. Then his betrayal would have hit even harder. Then Nile would have felt personally betrayed. It’s so ridiculous that there is all this set up of pain and interesting backstories that the movie just flatout ignores. Especially Quynh. Quynh ’s story will haunt me for the rest of my days, personally, but even that was left as an untied thread. It’s clear from that pompous ending that there’s either already a sequel planned or in progress, but personally, this movie let me down so hard I hope it doesn’t happen. Not unless a much better filmmaker and writing team comes along. Quynh’s untied thread is a blatant show of how they still think they deserve your time after showing you how little they care about their own material. They introduced the idea and then abandoned it without fully exploring what it meant. It’s clear that her horrible fate is painful to them all, so not giving it the adequate time to be explored is just even more insulting to the audience.

·         Lack of imagination. For instance, we have some Mark Zuckerberg-looking villain spouting the same tired dialogue from the idiot villain in the Venom movie. There also is no creativity in the action. We could have done some fun things utilizing their healing factors during fight sequences, but there’s not much to them. Just standard punches and kicks and headshots. Then there’s the boring dead wife betrayer guy who is inexplicably left alive after accusing said cartoony villain of murdering them. He has ALL the information to take to the CIA or FBI or just ANYONE IN GENERAL IN INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES and they just bop him on the head and leave him there??? This movie doesn’t have a single original thought. It’s just regurgitating other clichés from much better movies.

I wanted this to be good. I wanted a break from 2020, but it’s clear that this year is unprecedented in how terrible it can get and how it doesn’t want us to enjoy anything. I wish I didn’t have to say these things about this movie, but I do. I honestly don’t think it’s worth a watch and that people should avoid it. It’ll inevitably do well because people don’t have anything better to do, but that’s still a shame. I’m so disappointed in all its wasted potential and I always will be.

Kyo out.

[muffinlance]

Your recent ask about struggling with your serious writing projects really hit home, but was also super inspiring. And intimidating. I hope you know I think of you like a writing sensei now. Is sensei the right word? Writing big sibling? Anyway, how do you deal with the anxiety of all those projects? I want to be a Proper Writer too, and I have the ideas and the time, but I always get nerfed by anxiety whenever I try and write original fiction. Any tips on how to stop overthinking?

In light of our shared fandom, dear @captainkirkk, I will accept "Sifu".

Writing tips!

You are obviously solid on writing mechanics and short story arcs (maybe long form arcs too, but I've only had the pleasure of reading your short fics thus far.) So in your case, it is probably just a lack of experience causing most of this anxiety. 'Cause I have found that becoming comfortable with each new stage of writing is an exercise in exposure therapy.

If you're specifically worried about original characters/fics, consider working more OCs into your fanfics just to get more experience with/feedback on them. You'll know real fast if people are reacting well to your OCs, and can tweak things accordingly in the wonderfully low-stress world of fanfic.

As far as anxiety on writing in general, as far as I can tell it never goes away, but there are definitely strategies to lessen it. You'll have to experiment with what works for you. For me, going for long nighttime jogs and just turning ideas over in my head in a low-stress not-even-trying-to-write-right-now environment is super helpful. And if you haven't already, it's Real Big Important to learn to separate the "something is wrong with this story" anxiety from the "I am the worst writer ever and everything I touch becomes ash unto mine eyes" anxiety. I've gotten in the habit of literally trying to write out my anxiety causes. Mock example that's pretty much exactly like what I really do:

(I start with a clear statement of the problem:) Why do I hate this scene, it feels like the literal worst?

(Then I list potential causes:) are character interactions weak? Anything I can do to increase tension/character interplay? More background elements to add depth to scene? Is this supporting the plot enough? Do I even need this scene or can important elements be combined into future scenes? Etc.

Then I work my way through each question, allowing "no this is fine" to be an acceptable answer. And if everything is fine... I might just be in a grr mood where Everything Is Awful and I should take a break because I'm only going to do more harm than good here. Go for a jog, play with the cat, switch to another story for a bit if-I'm-not-grring-at-that-one-too. I actually ran into this with Little Zuko 31; I basically did exactly the above, and ended up scraping about 3k of perspectives-in-the-waiting-room because they were slowing the pacing and coming off as too Zuko-whumpy in a story that doesn't usually drag its heels in depressing bits. My solution was literally "this boy needs a goddamn coat earlier in the chapter so everyone can stop worrying about him and we can get back to the right tone", so I deleted a whole slew of scenes, inserted the early Yue POV, and had her bring him a goddamn coat. And suddenly the chapter was good, great, I-can-work-with-this. But it took a few hours to A) acknowledge that I was writing myself deeper into a pit of this-isn't-working, and B) put my finger on the cause enough to fix it. Sometimes it takes me days to figure that stuff out. Or months. Or years. I've got a novel I just took out of my Grrr Drawer that I hated hated hated, but now that I've got more experience with fixing things, I was able to spot what was wrong and figure out a roadmap for fixing it.

If you haven't already, make sure you've joined some sort of weekly-if-not-daily critique group where you can crit a metric ton of stories and read the crits others have written; it is notably easier to spot mistakes on someone else's work, and many times you'll walk to the fridge and go "...wait a sec, I'm doing that too". I have learned more about story structure from criting works that were almost-but-not-quite working than from reading all the perfectly edited novels in the world. (Critique Circle is an excellent site for this, best I've found, though as with all crit sites you need to know how to work the system so you're getting the most out of your time spent there. If anyone is interested in CC specific tips, shoot me an ask.)

Also, if you haven't already, figure out what stages of your projects you need what kind of feedback on. It took me a Real Long Time to figure out I worked best without input of any kind until I had a draft I personally couldn't improve upon further. When working on my original projects, I no longer show anyone anything until things are finished and polished. Then I invite the crit jackals in (I love my crit jackals, proper constructive criticism hurts so good). Fanfiction has been an interesting experience and a reminder of why I work that way: I am really easily influenced to change things based on reviews. I've now got enough experience writing full novels that I can (mostly) sort out "cool ideas" from "cool ideas that actually work in the broader context of this story", but I still find myself tweaking my outline after reviews. In ways that are hopefully good. But back when I was a less confident writer with terrible outlining skills, oh man I wrote myself down unworkable tangents just because "wouldn't it be cool if..."

So yep. In summary: experiment with anxiety relief strategies and self-care that work for you, acknowledge that the anxiety will always be there and that is normal there is nothing wrong with you, use the anxiety as a tool to address whatever your subconscious is trying to tell you about your story (stop and have a Real Talk with your anxieties--are they trying to tell you something, or do you just need to take a quick brain break?), and know that you're already an amazing writer you just need to practice more on original fics and get them out in the world. <3

Also: sometimes you will get to the end of a project and it... Just didn't work. It's unfixable, or would take more time to fix than just moving on to your next project with lessons learned. I see so many newer writers getting stuck on their "dream story". The one they've been editing and re-editing for years. And it's like, honey, you remember that first clay pot you made in kindergarten? That one that's lumpy and leaning to one side and objectively terrible and I'm pretty sure a mouse crawled inside, got lost, and died in it? Your novel is the equivalent of that. Don't try to fix this pot, go practice making more.

[kittenshift-17]

So you're saying they do this for a popularity boost???!!!Retarded fucktards that can't even string together a coherent sentence.One of the things that I like about your writing is that it makes sense, it flows, it looks like people actually having a conversation, and not "writer imagining themselves as the heroine and the hero just saying everything her issued self wants to hear+illogical plot".Kitten,you have no idea how much you and your smart writing mean to us.It'll show them who's the best

Now, now, we mustn’t use those insults - got to be a bit more politically correct, these days. I’ve personally managed to remove a wide number of insults that are derogatory to certain groups of people without intentionally attacking them and it’s made my swearing much more creative - I recommend it. 

Unfortunately for the actual topic at hand, however, it’s a sad fact of life that most people want to consider themselves popular, or the best at something. It’s human nature that we all want to shine - to stand out - to feel validated. We’re taught that behaviour from birth (most of us) - that we need to try to be the best at something. In this instance, and it seems within the Dramione fandom in particular, it just goes a bit too far and morphs from a healthy dose of competition based on skill and improvement of skills, into a negative “I can’t be bothered honing my craft to be better, I’ll just immediately go negative and paint the others as evil”. There are a number of writers with minimum to moderate skill - some with more than that, even - that want to “protect the fandom” from writers like me, not based on my skill as an author - though I imagine that if no one liked my fics, they wouldn’t bother me - but based on my attitude. And by that I mean that they don’t like that I will stand the hell up and tell a reader to fuck off if they’re being a jerk.

These Virtue Signallers want authors to sit the hell down, shut the fuck up, and take whatever bile is thrown their way like good little mindless cowards because “They didn’t have to read your fic at all” and “They’re allowed to express their reactions, it’s free speech,” and “They can enjoy a novel however they see fit”. 

These folks don’t like being scolded when they lash out or act like children, and they don’t like being made to feel guilty if they act like dicks when people like me stand up and go “Hey, don’t be a cunt!”. The corner of abuse coming from the popularity chasers springs from that. They’ll lick the boot of any reader who gives them a sniff, no matter how much abuse they might cop in turn, and they like to hold up examples of why myself or other talented writers who fight back “are too rude and badly behaved to deserve the attention of fans”. 

That’s literally it. When they attack me, most often they’re looking to get hold of some screenshots to wave about as “evidence” that Kitten’s not a nice person because she doesn’t beg for shreds of attention, no matter how negative.

I’ve spoken previously with fellow authors who’ve been driven away and/or have outshone these writers and been relentlessly attacked into leaving or quitting the pairing for good. It’s always the same thing. Some of the greats within the fandom - those recommended time and time again whose fics have been completed for years, whose authors might be long gone from fanfic altogether, and those who didn’t have access to social media like this when they were writing - are being needlessly “protected” by these bitches because if anyone risks outshining those greats without being a Virtue Signaller themselves, then it’s unacceptable. 

I’ve been warned that should ToMT climb beyond a certain number of reviews by some miracle before it’s complete, I should brace for impact on the abuse I’ll receive for “outshining” a very well known fic with my “boring, too many filler chapters” story. And not because it’s author is interested in tearing others down, but because fans can’t stand having their faves “replaced” by new blood. Kinda the same way fans of famous athletes will defend to the death their faves, even when new up-and-comers are rising in talent. We see it in animals too, we root for the established leaders and disdain the up-starts until they show us a better way or prove themselves worthy. 

*gives a “what can you do?” shrug*

But I do thank you for your faith in me and my skills. I’m hoping I can just keep polishing my craft and one day take the world by storm with it, both for fanfic and o-fic. 

xx-Kitten.

[vee-angel]

All for Nought (A Mass Effect Erotic Fan-fiction)

Happy Pi Day everyone! In honor of this nerdiest of all holidays, I thought it might be time to finally come clean about my geekdom and share the nerdiest of my writing. This story is by far my most developed work (the completed work will be the first of three novel-length stories). A few notes to anyone who may want to take the time to read it. First, I like fan-fiction to feel as authentic as possible; so I try to write the characters in a way that feels true to the source material. I also try to make the story feel genuine within the Mass Effect universe. As a result, this story is far more plot-heavy than my completely original works, but if you stick with it, there’s still a good amount of rough sex, weird sex, torture, humiliation, and bits of various other kinks. Second, the story so far is unfinished, and even when it is complete, it’ll essentially be a polished first-draft. As I’m learning more about writing, I’m seeing more things I want to add or change (having a main character that actually shows development through the story is something I definitely want to improve in the second draft.)

If you’re already familiar with the universe of Mass Effect, you can begin reading on Archive of Our Own here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16803949/chapters/39441787

If you need a refresher on the lore, or if you’re just such a fan of my writing that you’re willing to jump into a fan-fiction of a sci-fi franchise with which you’re unfamiliar, feel welcome to read the following Introduction/Cheat Sheet. 

All for Nought (Introduction and Cheat Sheet)

This story is the first in a trilogy of novel-length erotic fan-fictions set in the Mass Effect universe. A few things to keep in mind:

--The content of this story will end up being, at points, rather extreme. Since it would be tedious to identify and list every trigger-worthy scene, I ask that you simply assume that if there are acts of sexual violence or degradation that may trigger you, there’s a good chance you will find them in this story. (the second and third books will contain an even heavier emphasis on extreme kinks and fetishes, however) --I’ve attempted to make this story as close to canon-compliant as possible. For those not familiar with fan-fiction terminology, “canon-compliant” essentially means that the story is intended to hypothetically take place in that canonical universe. Essentially, that means that there should be nothing in the story that one could definitely use to say that this story didn’t happen in the universe. --I actually began writing this story with the third book (though I didn’t know it at the time). It came about at the request of an online rp partner. It slowly formed into a novel-length story, which in turn expanded into the final novel of a trilogy. This story is actually part of my first ever attempt at writing fiction, so keep in mind that I am very new to fiction-writing.

A brief primer on Mass Effect for those who may wish to enjoy the story without being hardcore fans (if you are a serious Mass Effect fan, the following will probably be unnecessary).

Story Background --The story takes place shortly after Mass Effect 2. During which the Alliance Marine Commander Shepard and the pirate/criminal Jack (aka Subject Zero) were recruited by the terrorist/human-supremacist organization called Cerberus (this organization also acquired Jack as a baby and, in order to maximize her biotic potential, forced her into cruel experiments through most of her youth) in order to defeat an enemy called the Collectors. There were many other members of the crew of the Normandy, but this story focuses primarily on those two. --The version of Commander Shepard in this story is female; she grew up on a human colony called Mindoir, where as a youth, she witnessed her colony being invaded by Batarian slavers (she managed to escape capture herself). She’s an expert in weapons and combat, but has no biotic aptitude and minimal engineering skill. --During the events of the second game, Commander Shepard (at least the version depicted in this story) recruited an asari Justicar (essentially an order of warrior nuns sworn to uphold justice) named Samara who asked for Shepard’s help in finding and executing her daughter. She explained that her daughter, Morinth, was an “Ardat-Yakshi,” meaning she had a genetic condition that only occurs in pureblood asari. An Ardat-Yakshi is essentially an alien succubus or vampire. While all asari have the ability to meld minds, for an Ardat-Yakshi, melding is always fatal. Furthermore, Ardat-Yakshi have the ability to strongly influence the minds of those around them, even at a distance (in fact, they sometimes induced entire communities to worship them as gods). When Shepard finally did help Justicar Samara track down her daughter (the Ardat-Yakshi Morinth), there was a stand-off where the two asari were evenly matched. Commander Shepard, believing that Morinth was more useful to her mission, chose to side with Morinth and kill Justicar Samara. Morinth then posed as her mother during the remainder of their mission against the Collectors

Universe background --Biotics- Essentially a form of technological telekinesis. Someone with biotic powers can move or damage objects with their mind. This normally takes the form of cascading waves of blue light. Biotic abilities are related to exposure to a substance called Element Zero (called Eezo, for short). Biotic abilities are rare among humans and other species, and usually result from exposure to Element Zero. The Asari, however are the one exception, being 100% biotic on account of the fact that the asari homeworld, Thessia, is rich in Element Zero;  --Asari melding- Similar to the Vulcan mind-meld of Star Trek fame, melding is an act wherein an asari telepathically joins their mind with that of another person. This can be merely to share information, or as an act of intimacy (especially as the asari reproduce by melding, though offspring are not always the result). Asari telepathy is generally represented visually by their entire eyes appearing to turn black. --The Terminus Systems- A section of the galaxy with no governing body and few laws. While most of the galaxy is governed by the Citadel, the Terminus Systems are essentially dominated by pirates, slavers, and criminals. Species Details --Asari- All female, skin tone normally ranges from pale blue to deep indigo, often (but not always) seen with facial markings. Their physical shape is nearly identical to that of human women, except that in place of hair, that have flat, backward facing plates that vaguely resemble rigid tentacles. Generally considered the most technologically and politically powerful race in the galaxy, the asari have a 1,000 year lifespan. Members of nearly every sapient species find them attractive. During reproduction, an asari offspring will receive both sets of genes from their mother, one set is an exact copy of their mother's genes, the other is randomized through melding with a partner. While the “father” can be a member of any species or any sex, the offspring are always asari. In fact, it’s something of a taboo for asari to mate with members of their own species, preferring instead to strengthen their species by adding diversity (also, because asari/asari pairings occasionally produce an Ardat-Yakshi) --Batarian- In their general proportions, they are similar to humans, though they have four eyes, sharp teeth, and generally very deep, gruff-sounding voices. Many species look down upon them due to their penchant for criminal activity and their cultural belief in the righteousness of slavery. --Salarian- A highly intellectual, amphibian-looking species; salarians generally have long, slender limbs and quick minds. While they only live for 60 years, their profoundly fast minds have made them one of the most prosperous species in the galaxy. They lack a sex drive, and generally mate after arranging a contract with another family. --Quarian- Proportioned like lithe, slender humans; quarians lost their homeworld centuries ago. They are most known for their weakened immune system, partially resulting from their entire species living aboard a migrant fleet of starships that they affectionately refer to as the flotilla. They are always seen enclosed in a form-fitting environmental suit. They generally have a kind disposition and extraordinary technological prowess, partially resulting from having to keep the starships on which they reside operational after hundreds of years. --Krogan- Reptilian warriors with thick bodies and a culture that emphasizes combat. Their biological durability is exceptional, being able to endure toxins, radiation, and a huge amount of physical harm. While not especially bright, they are formidable fighters, and exceptionally difficult to kill. They reproduce similarly to humans, and definitely seem to enjoy the act of mating. --Turian- Long, slender beings with a hard carapace and pointed spines in various places. The turians are most defined by a compulsion to serve their community. They’re generally seen as very disciplined and duty-oriented. Many have diverse skills and often serve in the Turian military, in fact, they make up the bulk of military personnel in the galaxy. They appear to have a sex drive, and it’s believed they mate similarly to humans. --Hanar- Large, jellyfish like organisms that are able to live outside of water and generally communicate through bioluminescence. They are generally polite, but seemingly capable of criminal and immoral acts. While genderless, there was at least one reference to “Asari-Hanar porn” in the game. So canonically… the universe of Mass Effect does contain tentacle porn. --Vorcha- Somewhat demonic-looking creatures with low intelligence and very short lifespans. The Vorcha process spoken language poorly and have a growling/hissing voice, they are defined by an exceptional ability to heal and their tendency to communicate through violence. They tend to be vicious and ruthless fighters and their contributions to galactic society are rarely beyond low-level crime and violence. Keep in mind that if you need any image or video reference to know what any of these species look or sound like, google is just a few clicks away.

I tried to keep this relatively brief and easy to reference, so feel welcome to look back on this if you need a quick and easy reminder of the details relevant to this particular story. There are, of course, volumes written about the universe of Mass Effect; I merely created this short document to be a quick cheat-sheet for my particular story.

[my-obsession-with-wayhaven]

So... The idea to do this has been kicking around my head for a while and I finally said why not? So! Here’s my Mood Board for one Detective Virgil Sanders!

Stats (Typically):

Charming 59% /// Intimidating 41%

Impulsive 53% /// Cautious 47%

Sarcastic 41% /// Genuine 59%

Friendly 75% /// Stoic 25%

Easygoing 58% /// Stubborn 42%

Heart 60% \\\ Mind 40%

Optimist 68% \\\ Pessimist 32%

Team Player 71% \\\ Independent 29%

Skills (Typically):

People - 36%

Combat - 43%

Science/Technology - 65%

Deduction/Knowledge - 32%

By The Book 64% /// Bend The Rules 36%

Constant canon for Virgil:

Cross-dressing gay man

Short, dark brown hair

Grey eyes

Lightly tan skin

5′ 5″

Has the middle Mood Board image (without the background moon) as a tattoo on his back along the length of his spine, starting at the base of the neck and ending at the bottom of his lower back

He and Bobby dated, and hasn’t been on a date since they broke up;

Coffee is his lifeblood

Mild insomnia

Always believed in the Supernatural before finding out

Doesn’t give two shits that Unit Bravo aren’t human, and loves them all anyway

Actually enjoys Mason’s company (both in and out of romance)

Criminal background

Didn’t want the promotion

Close friends with Tina and Verda

Has shot a gun before, but is hesitant to do it again

LOVES REBECCA TO DEATH AND WILL ALWAYS HUG HER WHEN HE CAN

Cozy style for apartment (though it does change to minimal in Adam Romance, and dark in Mason Romance)

RARELY drinks

Now, I use the same character for each playthrough, but I like to think of the different playthroughs as alternate universes, where he just ends up with a different member of Unit Bravo (or two during the Love Triangle route).

As for his outfit, it depends on the season: in winter, he wears a hoodie, t-shirt, and jeans; in spring, he wears a pencil skirt, shirt, and some jewelry (two rings, one on each hand, and a necklace); in summer, he wears just jeans and a t-shirt; and in fall/Autumn, he wears a leather jacket, t-shirt, and cargo pants/trousers. And yes, I did actually spend half an hour thinking about what he’d wear.

On the unpleasant topic of Bobby, Virgil’s thoughts on how it ended change depending on who he’s gonna be romancing:

Nate, and Love Triangle: No issue

Adam: Hard to be around

Felix: The grudge of grudges

Mason: BEGONE THOT

Virgil has always been a friendly, caring person since he was young, but after his father was no longer apart of his life, he quickly turned to a criminal life when he hit puberty at 12. He took the offer to join the force to not go to jail since he already knew a man like him won’t do too well in such a place and it ended up fitting him well. Tina and Verda, as well as Bobby--unfortunately--know that Virgil openly believes that the Supernatural exist, and that they’ve evolved with the human race to hide themselves better. When his very first case as a Detective began and he met Unit Bravo, he was very welcoming with them, happily greeting Nate, accepting Felix’s kiss on his hand, teasing Mason on his introduction, and noticed that Adam had been very tense when they shook hands after he mentioned that they might have met the night prior.

As they got deeper into the case (with Virgil spending as much time as he could with whoever he’s romancing, or splitting his time and attention between Adam and Nate in the Love Triangle), Virgil quickly picked up on the oddities with the blood and focused on that, much to the strange discomfort of Unit Bravo.

When the team found him in a bar with Tina after he returned from the hospital, he was calm when he was told the truth about Murphy, understanding from how close he was to his mother the reason somethings needed to stay secret, even if it annoys everyone by doing so. After he was knocked out and awoke in the medical bay of an Agency facility, and was told the truth about the case and about Supernaturals, a lot of the strange things he’s noticed and picked up on clicked into place, and was very accepting of the whole situation.

In the end, during the fight in the warehouse with Murphy, powered up on his freshly altered blood--having remained calm and tried to keep him talking to buy a little time--figured out what needed to be done to remove his blood from Murphy, and with Adam’s help, managed to succeed in doing so.

Virgil Sanders tends to be friendly and a little flirty when he talks to people he’s close with, and is very accepting of people for who they are. In every playthrough except Adam’s, he gets close enough with Mason for him to hold back the branch for him when they check on Murphy’s Thralls; I don’t know what it is about Adam’s romance, but he nearly smacks Virgil with that branch every time!

Sarcastic comments are reserved for high annoyance or stress, or if he’s trying to defuse a tense situation, otherwise, he’s upfront and honest in what he’s saying.

Due to the mild case of insomnia he devolved in his mid-teens, Virgil has trouble sleeping anytime before 1 or 2 in the morning, even though his job has him waking up around 6 or 7 am; it’s part of the reason he has such a heavy dependence on coffee. That, and he has a caffeine addiction that only coffee can sate.

Virgil, because of how friendly he is, as well as his criminal background, can pick up on social cues that people give off when they’re lying or trying to hide something, and he’s WAY too cunning for Adam’s sanity, so he knew right away after the first power struggle between Adam and Nate the day after he met the team that something else was going on, and no one was allowed to say.

Um... Let’s see...other facts about Virgil...

Knows how to pole dance, and does so for exercise

Loves to dance in any style for any reason

Fluent (speaking/reading/writing) in Spanish, French, Latin, and Greek

Can read and write in Russian, German, Korean, and Polish

Great cook, and can make foods for those with sensitive palates (looking at you, Mason)

Bakes like he’s a Goddamn grandmother

Can play the guitar, violin, piano, and drums

Loves to read; especially fantasy romance novels

Can fight and run in 5″ heels

Has a runner’s build in muscle tone

Is actually strong enough to lift Adam above his head with one hand

Knows how to hack computers

Knows how to pick any lock

Crafts jewelry and accessories from scratch

Can give deep-tissue, full body massages

Lots of casual touches

Is actually a little touch-starved

VERY physically affectionate; tons of hugs and cheek kisses

Loves running his fingers through people’s hair no matter the length

Cuddlebug

Street fighter/brawler fighting style, but with a dancer’s grace to the movements when he dodges out of the way

Has broken a solid steel pipe by kicking it

Will wear skimpy women’s lingerie in public and be unashamed

Sleeps easier and deeper when he smells sandalwood, so Mason usually has an excuse to crawl into Virgil’s bed after he tells him (both in and out of romance)

Will sit in one of Unit Bravo’s laps if he wants to be in contact with people; this normally ends up being Nate or Felix

Has a pair of Adam’s boots, Felix’s jeans, Nate’s shirts, and Mason’s leather jackets in his wardrobe after he snuck into their rooms and ‘borrowed’ them

Wants to bang all four of them at the same time, but know that will never happen

When he’s scared, he’ll seek out Adam, since he makes him feel safe

When he’s lonely, he’ll seek out Felix, since they can just talk and cuddle for hours

When he’s unsure of himself/things, he’ll seek out Nate, since he can relax the most around him and fully open up

When he’s extremely exhausted, he’ll seek out Mason, since his naturally occurring scent of sandalwood easily lulls Virgil to sleep; usually, they end up someplace that Virgil can easily rest again Mason without him really needing to hold Virgil against him

And...yeah. That’s everything I got for details about Virgil for now! Love you and your game so much @seraphinitegames and I can’t wait for Two Book to be finished when it lets you be done with it!