#problem with weed is that i tend to give up on writing and just go lie in bed and. well yknow.

[muffinrag]

too embarrassed to write smut alone in my room

[howtofightwrite]

How can I write a fight scene with opponents who are not just extremely capable fighters but extremely cunning and resourceful. Who adapt and the fight is never just about physical skill.

There isn't a single correct answer to this question. One common, and effective, solution is by breaking or countering a fighter's tricks.

One way to establish a character's skill in combat is to give them some specific tricks that they'll employ in a fight. Of course, having typed that, now the only specific example that comes to mind is The Operative's nerve strike from Serenity (which is, unfortunately, a terrible example for this conversation.)This is usually something like a character having a hidden weapon, or a specific method of disarming their foe. When you're using this method, letting another character hard counter their trick can instantly inform the audience that this character is far more dangerous than they initially appear.

In a very abstract sense, you can think of combat as characters having an array of actions available to them. Skilled combatants are likely to have a much wider range of options, options that are better tailored to the situation they're in, and in some cases, options that are specifically designed to counter things an opponent would attempt to use on them. Unskilled characters are likely to have a bunch of options mixed in that are either completely useless, actively detrimental, or both, with no idea which ones those are. For example: Every backyard wrestling video ever.

When you're looking at inexperienced characters, in that context, they'll attack their opponent, and then either act again if their opponent is unable to retaliate, or their foe will act against them. I will criticize writing combat as turn based, but with characters like this, it can be helpful to understand how they're operating. When you have experienced fighters, they have the ability to immediately respond to what their foe is doing. This doesn't always mean, directly countering their opponent's attack, sometimes it can mean they'll use their foe's action as an opportunity to get in.

Now, that's the abstraction, a lot of this does have some relation to the real world. Experienced fighters will have trained, and honed their responses into their muscle memory. They won't need to think about what they're going to do, they'll simply, “go.” Inexperienced, and untrained fighters will have their minds cluttered up with things they've seen in action movies, and they'll need a moment to filter through what's on their mind, and they won't have the background of knowing (either through instruction or experience) what will or won't work. So they need a moment, and then they'll try to do something.

This leads into the biggest problem for you, which is, combat between experienced fighters is fast; but, if you're writing prose, your ability to control the speed of a scene is limited. You can speed the reader up by keeping the text as spartan as possible, but it can also result in a very perfunctory, and unsatisfying, fight scene. This is part of why there's an appeal to the simplistic, “character has some combat tricks, antagonist can counter them,” structure. It can quickly convey that idea without getting too far into the weeds.

Now, one piece of bad news is the bit about how inexperienced and untrained fighters will have a lot of, “junk,” options floating around. This is also a problem for writers staging fight scenes. If you have absolutely no experience with combat, it can be pretty difficult to realize when some of those options that seem viable to you, simply wouldn't work. There is some range of forgiveness, after all if you think it should work, and can stage it out, maybe you can convince your readers that it would work, but it is something to be cautious of. A lot of the simpler, “can you do X?” questions we field tend to be cases where either that is something that works, it's similar to something that works, or it really doesn't work. Knife throwing comes to mind as one we've discussed repeatedly over the years. (It's a cool party trick, but not a great idea in a fight.) But, if you can write a scene where stabbing someone through the eye with an arrow is believable, it doesn't really matter that doing so is nearly impossible. So, even if you do run with some options that wouldn't really work, it doesn't mean that your fight scene won't.

One other piece of advice, that might first sound like a non-sequitur, it's okay for you to take breaks. Yes, your characters are fighting each other, and they're a fraction of a second away from being murdered in the most horrific ways possible, but you have the luxury of sitting back and really thinking about what their options are. Just because they could make those choices in the moment doesn't mean that you need to be just as fast.

-Starke

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[mochminnie]

Lovin U Right

Based off Jungkook’s Single ‘Seven’. BTS and many more Kpop idols will appear in this series. This will have no usage of your name or (y/n). The Main Character/Reader will be Plus Sized and her name is Elizabeth ‘Lizzie’. Jungkook who is life of a party, a total himbo that tries for 7 days to show you how much he loves you. Who doesn’t just want to get in your pants, wanting more than that. Himbo clingy JK wants to be loved, who wants your attention. 

Setting: College Au

Tropes: Polar Opposites

Warning: Sexual Themes, Fat shaming, College Partying, This isn’t going to be based off of Korean College more like Americanize based through Pop Culture references, Himbo like behavior of BTS.

Check out the mood board https://www.tumblr.com/mochminnie/723830921903620096/what-if-jeon-jungkook-fall-in-love-with-a-plus?source=share&ref=mochminnie

Author’s Note: This is a fictional portrayal of Jungkook and other idols. I tend to see comments about Kai and Jennie when I wrote my Rose x reader story on wattpad. I know I am writing about celebrities and this is all honesty for fun. I will be writing about Taehyung and Jennie. This book don’t match the idol’s personality. I face claimed casted these people to create a story for fun and possibly for people to enjoy. Please check out my other JK Series ‘The Warlock and The Witch.

Playlist

'Seven' - Jungkook

‘I Got It’ - Thuy

'Supershy' - New Jeans

'Baby One More Time' - Britney Spears

'Fantasize' - Ariana Grande

'Euphoria' Jungkook

'Something New' - Zendaya and Chris Brown

'Left Right' - XG

'Wild Side' - Normani ft Cardi B

'34+35' - Ariana Grande

'Me & U' - Cassie

'Like Crazy' - Jimin

'New Dance' - XG

'Dance The Night Away' - Dua Lipa

'Cuff It Wetter remix' - Beyoncé

'No Problem' - Nayeon ft. Felix

‘Girls Like Me Don’t Cry’ - Thuy ft. Min

'Cool for the Summer' - Demi Lovato

'Something Real' - Summer Walker, Chris Brown, London On a Track

'Take You Down' - Chris Brown

'Hype boy' - New Jeans

'Wet The Bed' - Chris Brown

'Snooze' - SZA

'3D' - Jungkook ft. Jack Harlow

'Heart Attack' - Demi Lovato

'Check' - Girls Generation

'It's You' - MAX ft. Keshi

'Cherry' - Rina Sawayama

'You & I' - JRE

'If you Stay ' Joseph Vincent

'Somebody' - Kyungsoo (D.O.)

"Dear No One" - Tori Kelly

‘I Don’t Care’ - Jeremy Passion

‘Agora Hills’ - Doja Cat

‘Sweetest Pie’ - Dua Lipa

‘Kiss Me More’ - Doja Cat ft. SZA

‘I Know’ - RM & JK

‘Ditto’ - NEWJEANS

‘Partition’ - Beyoncé

‘Too Much’ - JK, the kid laroi, central fee

‘Perfect Night’ - Le Sserafim

‘Somebody’ - Jungkook

‘Yes Or No’ - Jungkook

'The Party & After Party' - The Weeknd

Chapter 1 

Maru lit up her cigarette up the balcony. The rest of the girls drinking soju and ordered take out tteokbokki, Korean hot dogs, and fried chicken, corn cheese. To celebrate, Their one year anniversary living together. Maru encourages Lizzie to go to the hottest parties and clubs in town. Not only that, their other roommates Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa, and Rose. Will try their best to get her out of the house. 

“Lizzie put down your iPad and stop reading WEBTOON.” Maru grabbed the iPad from her with one hand and the other with her cigarette smoking. 

Lizzie scoffed and yelled at Maru. “Hey, I was just starting a new story!” 

Lisa, “Maru just give her ipad back. Don’t get close to her because she has asthma.” 

Maru scoffs, “Please, It’s not like she hasn't smoked weed before.” 

Jennie, “That’s much better than cigarettes.” 

Jisoo heard the doorbell ring. “The food here!” Jisoo smiled and yelled out. Rose immediately got up with Jisoo to get the food. They prepare the food on the balcony. While the rest of the girls grabbed the plates, utensils, napkins and beverages. Maru Hiding the Ipad from Lizzie. Lizzie just gives up; she's now helping with the food. When it’s finally prepared. 

Jennie was the first to dig in. “You Know Maru can give your Ipad back if you go to the party with us.” 

Liz, “I’ll live in a moment! Maybe I’ll go. But can you give it back?” Maru gives it back then Lizzie puts it away in her room. So her and the girls play a game.  

Rosie wants to play the clueless party game then everyone else gets excited. Except Lisa doesn’t want to play. When Lisa thought that Rosie didn’t see her face scrunched up and mouthed no to the rest of the girls. “Think that I didn’t see you? I'll kill you.” Lisa got scared. Jisoo and Jennie laugh. 

Lizzie, “We will all play the clueless party game even if Lisa doesn’t want to join.” Rosie was excited again. Lisa rolls her eyes then Rosie pinches Lisa’s ears. Jennie and Jiso are trying to break them up. Lisa starts screaming. “Ow, that you bitch!” Lisa slaps Rosie. 

Rosie, “Ugh you slut!” Pushes her. 

Jennie stopped breaking the girls up and got the notification text on her phone from Taehyung. “We have all been invited to a party tonight!!! Oh would you look at that, You’re going Liz.” Jennie yelled.

Lizzie shakes her head no. “No, Just no. You girls know I don’t want to party.” All of the girls give her a look. “I mean I do party in small groups. My cousins, and family.”

Rosie, “Well this is different we’re all in our 20’s we should all go out, make out, sleep with anyone we want, we're all hot.” 

Jisoo then dances to, Girls Generation Party. “P-A-R-T-Y!!! Party time. It’s Party time!!!” 

“Come on Liz You gotta come!” Rosie

Lisa got excited. “You’re going to look hot tomorrow night! I don’t have to play the game!” Rosie glares at her. Lisa got scared a bit. 

“Let’s pick an outfit for her. She’s going to look hot hot” jisoo

Maru, blowing the cigarette in her direction.“She needs to get laid tomorrow night.” Saying calmly with a straight face.

Lizzie gives her a look. “How many gummies did you take again?” 

Maru, “2, 5. I don’t know.” Still smoking her cigarette. ‘How is this girl still going?’ Lizzie thought. After all the drinks, smoking and gummies???

“Come on Tae’s party can’t be that bad! Think about it, come on Liz. Tae is a nice guy. He’s making sure you will go.” Jennie says. 

Liz, “It’s not Tae and his friends I’m worried about.”

The girls wait for her answer. Jisoo asks, “Well? What do you say Lizzie?” But then Jisoo see the look in her eyes that somethings the matter. She didn’t ask her friend what was the matter. It seems she wasn’t too comfortable to share with the girls yet. 

Liz it’s not she’s feeling pressured. She was just worried about one of the boys that broke her heart. The worst way possible will be there… 

Cha Eun-woo.

Not only that Minnie might be there and her friends… Lizzie knows her friends will be there for her. 

Lizzie, “Okay I’ll go tonight and I have to go to this party. To face my fears. To live. You know YOLO!!!” She says the last sentence much awkwardly. 

Lisa raised her brow. “Liz Yolo?” Cringes. 

Jisoo, “YOLO!!!” She started dancing to Party again. Lizzie joins her then all of the girls join except for Maru because she was so high off of the gummies. “We can’t stop stop! It’s a party time!”  Jisoo sings. 

Rosie, “P-A-R-T-Y!!!” 

Liz, “It’s a party, We go rock rock! P-A-R-T-Y”

Jennie and Lisa joins. “Lemon soju, tequila for me, mojito for you

Let's go to Jeju, California!”

Rosie, “We got a party to head too! Come on, let's go get ready!” 

~ ~ ~

Jisoo Suggests a makeover! 

Lisa, “Lizzie already has a great sense of style and knows how to apply makeup. Don’t you think it’s problematic? She’s already gorgeous, young, and a hot mama.” 

Jennie, “It can be but it’s fun!!!” Jumping up and down and she grabs Lizzie’s to the bathroom first.

Lizzie, “Makeovers can be fun.” agreeing and smiling. 

Boy she didn’t know that the five girls are going to bathe her. Lizzie insists. “No, I got this, I can bathe myself. NO! MARU! JENNIE! LISA HELP!!!!” Calling out all of the girls names she got this. 

Lisa yelling at the girls, “SHE DOESN’T HELP WITH THE BATHING WHAT KIND OF MAKEOVER IS THIS???” She pushes the four girls away. 

 The girls make sure she gets her cooter cat, bussy clean and every nook and cranny is clean and that everything is moisturized. 

Lizzie wears contacts tonight. And prep her face before Maru works on her makeup. 

Rosie and Jennie going through her closet. Breaking down which outfit she is going to wear. 

Jisoo, “You should go for the siren seductive look!” Maru does her makeup. And Jisoo does her hair she decided to do voluminous curls. 

Lisa sprayed on some lux honey vanilla perfume. And the rest of the girls made sure one last time that everything was moisturized. 

Then Jennie presents Lizzie a black Prada bag. “Me and the girls got you a bag!” Jennie smiling showing off her gummy smile.

She puts Lizzie's phone and glasses and travel sized stuff for her contacts like case and solution and Maru puts condoms inside. Lizzie, "Jennie!" Groans, Giving her a really look. Looking at the couple of condoms that were given in her bag. "Thanks Jennie I'll be using all of these gladly." Sarcastically scoffs. “URGGGHH.” Rolling her eyes.

The final looks that Lizzie got a brown smokey eye with a cat eye liner and a burgundy lip. Her hair is down with curls. For her outfit. A black lace v neck with cutouts cami, black mini skirt with a slit, and black knee high boots. It’s not that she wasn’t comfortable wearing this, she usually wears these clothes. It’s just that she felt off if Eunwoo and Minnie and their friends saw her. Lizzie loves what the girls have done for her. Since she takes forever to get ready she takes about 2 hours and with the girls help it took about 45 mins to an hour. 

The rest of the girls also decided to wear black tonight for the party. That each of them go with their styles and personalities. The girls take selfies. 

~ ~ ~

Jungkook is getting ready with Jimin for Tae’s party. 

Jungkook sighs. Jimin asks him what’s the matter. Jungkook finishes off with his leather jacket while looking at the mirror. Wearing all black. “I’m just hoping that one girl will stay the next morning. Who just doesn’t leave me”  Then, applying some cologne. 

Jimin questions, “If she stays the next morning you’d think she’ll be the one you’re looking for.” 

Jungkook is still a little sad.  “I’m not sure, all I want is to find a girl that I can continue to date. Someone I can get to know. Who just doesn’t see me as a pretty face, more than my talents and more than a one night stand.” 

Tae then walks in the room. “Hey buddy, why so glump.” Giving Jungkook a side hug. Still being happy go lucky. 

Jimin says, “He wants to find a girl in a committed relationship.” 

Tae then messes up his hair. “You’ll find a lucky girl tonight I just know it.” Gets a notification from Jennie. 

Tae smiles from Jennie’s Text.

Me and all of the girls are going to the party tonight! Including Lizzie!

Taglist:

@mred435 @yourchubbychocogirl27

[drdemonprince]

your most recent article on asexuality& fetish touched upon some stuff i'd been thinking about for a long time now. (getting some more... hands on experience would help a lot, but queer(adjacent) avenues are... not kind to trans women doing that, but that's a story for another time.) especially the distinction between kink and fetish was one i'd not seen people make before which made me realize some of my stuff is definitely much more in the latter category.

poppers for one. i have an inexplicable liking for them (and much more that isn't pertinent here). which in itself is not an issue, but i'm not sure i'm liking that i like them. sometimes i feel they're a bit too... idk, it's not addiction, but more my relationship with them is kinda problematic, even though i'm very moderate in my partaking :/

Thanks for your message, anon. And I'm sorry that you haven't found avenues for exploring your fetishes more. It's true that a lot of queer spaces are really hostile to trans women. But please do not give up hope. Steer clear of the theyfabby wlw spaces, but if you are into women, keep you eye out for the ones that are more self-consciously transfemme organized and inclusive. Here in Chicago there's Strapped, for instance, a lesbian night run by lesbian trans women of color. Lots of furry and pup spaces tend to be less trans exclusionary and more gender diverse in general. There's lots of kinky trans women on Grindr specifically to find other trans women. I don't want to be pollyannaish or downplay how hard these things genuinely are, but I don't want you to give up hope either. There are people out there like you and increasingly more spaces to choose from. I hope you can find something near you that is worth giving a try.

Now onto the poppers question. If you're moderate in your usage, why do you dislike that you like them? Does it impede your life in any way? Is the primary problem (if I'm picking up on it correctly) that you kind of fear how much you like them, and that you worry that it could become addictive one day? Or that you feel you're using them in too escapist of a way? Or is shame about what turns you on?

Poppers are just about the mildest mind-altering substance imaginable; it's been used to treat period cramps and other similar health issues for decades and used to be available over the counter without much of an issue. (Leo Herrera's writing about the history of poppers is really good). And as highs go, it's over in an instant with almost no lingering negative effects. There are some conditions it doesn't mix well with, and there are some shitty brands out there that cause headaches, but I imagine that if using it was damaging your health in any way you would have mentioned it. So why is being turned on by them an issue for you?

If you want a cleaner headrush, there is always weed or hypnosis. But for a quick burst of euphoria and muscle relaxation without any hangover, poppers kinda can't be beat. Perhaps the best question is what has made you not like that you like them?

[sparkagrace]

Hii!!! First, I just wanted to say that you are one of my favorite steve/bucky fic authors, like, I've read religiously each one of your fics since lane lines was a wip🥹💕.

Please don't feel pressured at all to answer if you don't have time, but I was wondering if you could give some tips on how to outline a story for a fic, especially long ones, and how to easily remember facts/things that already happened/don't mix information... about characters throughout long fics.

I've never posted any fic but I've been writing drafts here and there and I have a few ideas for longer fics. And lately I've been feeling hopeful about putting in the work and maybe write something decent out of those ideas? But honestly writing a long fic intimidates me a lot. Sometimes when I try to outline some small plotline, my mind just diverges in so many different scenes that I either end up avoiding the main plot, or just turn a short one shot into something longer that I feel has a lot of unnecessary or irrelevant information in it (I also blame this on wanting to know and imagining every single thing about the lives of the steve and bucky of each story)😭

I don't know if I explained myself at all or not 🫠

So, (and again, only answer if you have time for this and want to) if you have any helpful advice or tips for this problem, I'd be really really thankful for them🥹

Hiiiiii! Thanks so much for the kind words. I'm so glad to hear you're looking into writing your own fics! That's super exciting 🥰

Long fics are definitely a big undertaking and can feel daunting; I absolutely understand how it feels. Writing any type of fic is such a process and there will be times (no matter the length) where you might feel like it's too hard to go on, but keep going.

I can't speak for everyone but I know for me, personally, I'm hardly ever going to write a fic I'm ready to post within a few hours. I tend to be someone who needs to sit with the idea and then chip away at it, with occasional larger bursts of creativity, and then an editing process.

That said, here are my tips for outlining long fics in particular and keeping all of the information together:

Every single one of my fics has an outline mostly so I can write down the major story beats that I want it to have. Sometimes I won't have every single part of the fic figured out yet, but usually it's a scene or general concept that I'm brewing (e.g. the 2IM final is what I came up with first for lane lines).

Write down ALL your ideas for the fic in bullet form, including headcanons and histories in the verse. You'll learn how to weed out the parts that don't fit. Sometimes it happens right away, other times you're scrapping half the scene. It's better to have it down than to try and remember it later down the line. Just remember that unless it's going to be a long epic, you'll probably cut most of it out. It's really just throwing ideas at a wall and seeing what sticks and what feels useful and important to the story.

For me, personally, I tend to write the story as if it'll be a long one-shot first. This helps me not get stuck on what should be in each chapter (if it's in a single pov). Once I have the outline fully written out, I'll start seeing where I want chapters to form and then start splitting it up.

With many of my long fics, I have a document I keep that is just the basic outline and all the information I want about the characters (i.e. ages, jobs, background info) that I can refer to. For example, lane lines had a lot of technical stuff I needed to remember so I had a document that was just the results of each race, the schedule for each day of the Olympics and what each character swam (see example below).

I'm not sure how you write, but I am a non-linear writer, which means that I write scenes in any order and then fill out the rest. This might not work for everyone! I still have struggles, but I can't work linearly. I find that doing it this way helps me find which parts of the outline work for me/the story I want to tell.

In all, I tend to have about 2-3 docs that I use to help me as I write: a basic outline, a fully fleshed outline/chapter breakdown, and a working document of the fic.

Writing is a process and you'll find what works for you! I'm definitely someone who writes out in depth outlines and yet a lot of the story develops as I write. Don't be afraid to divert from the outline if you feel the story naturally bends; it's a constantly changing idea that is yours, and you're the only one to tell it!

I hope that this was somewhat helpful! I hope that you have a great time writing and please let me know how you get on! If you have any more questions, don't be afraid to ask 💖

[mostlymaudlin]

Top 5 vs Personal 5

List your top 5 fics ranked by kudos on AO3. are you surprised by what's most popular to your readers? then provide your ranking of your personal top 5 fics, and tag a few fellow writers!

ty for the tag @sillyunicorn :D this is cute and also interesting. i tag @starwarned @urban-sith @tea-brigade @fortheloveofexy @nanatsuyu @justadreamfox @jaydreams @halfpintpeach

im actually going to do my Personal 5 first because that's what i want above the read more cut 😂 no one is escaping looking at my babies.

Thorns (E), 18k, andreil // a post-canon fic where andrew and neil cope with doing a long distance relationship when u both have fatal levels of attachment issues lol. i spent a stupid long time on this fic for the word count, but there is love in every single word. i like this universe bc it's what i want for post-canon andreil. no one gave them the tools for this shit, but i love the idea that they will always figure out how to be together, even if its messy.

No Turning Back (E), 31k, andreil // this is perhaps recency bias, but i think this is the best thing ive ever written. i have a hard time summarizing it.. but it's an au where the conflict is almost entirely in andrew's head, which of course means he Causes Many Problems. i actually built this fic out from Andrew's fucked up internal journey, which was cool for me -- like, the main plot was developed to fit his character arc. i think that's probably not rocket science or unique but it was my first time doing it that way!

We Can Live Forever (T), 46k, andreil // i used to not like hs aus and then i wrote a huge one lol. its childhood best friends-lovers, and centered on this ridiculous lip sync serenade fundraiser ?? i made them all dance. a lot. sometimes its serious, but its mostly very silly. i wrote it w the intention of giving people that "read until 4am screaming into ur pillow bc cute aggression" feeling that so many fics have given me, and the feedback ive gotten implies ive succeeded, so im rly proud of that!!

Stoner AU (E), 21k, snowbaz // i'm cheating a bit because this is a series, but i almost consider this thing to be like a collection of sitcom episodes lol. it's a normal au, simon is a weed guy and baz buys from him and also falls in love w him. theres a lot of penny and shep and its all just very FUNNY imo. and they are all so fucking devoted to each other in kind of unhinged ways. i love rereading these fics.

I'll Come Back To You (T), 6.9k, andreil // ok, for 1: that's the exact word count. every time i fix typos on rereads i have to edit it to preserve the wc. but 2: this fic is Not Silly or Smutty LOL. it's probably my plottiest/most serious fic in some ways -- it deals w, like, multiple dimensions ?? and amnesia. and loneliness. i'm proud of the ambiguity, because i tend to be a writer that punches you in the face with The Theme. this one leaves a lot for the reader to figure out (to the dissatisfaction of some commenters lol), but i like that you have to think about it a bit.

ok, AO3 Top 5 under the cut!

all of these are andreil, because aftg fandom is a lot bigger than carry on </3.

boyfriend privileges (T), 4k // i should not have been surprised that this did the numbers, but i was kind of shook when my ao3 inbox blew up like never before. it's fanfic catnip -- a 5+1 post-canon with resolvable angst interspersed with soft moments. i wrote it in like 2 days and didn't edit, and aint that just the way of ao3 lol.

flashes of intimacy (T), 7k // this is a series of fifteen <500 word fics that i add to pretty often, so it also makes sense that it's got a lot of readers! ive always been proud of my ability to write short, so it makes me happy that it's up here. it wld probs be #6 on my personal rating.

Inside Thoughts (T), 1.5k // andrew gets his wisdom teeth out and is a goober about it. one of my first aftg fics -- i think it's up here bc it's almost a year old. i am not passionate abt it tbh, i wrote it kind of as a joke one night while i was high lmfao

Do Not Disturb (T), 2k // another of my first aftg fics that i kind of dont care much about hahaha. it's another catnip situation, a post-canon moment where neil panics & unconsciously calls andrew, similarly to how he does in canon. and then they r soft <3

Tequila Sunrise (M), 4k // i know people love this one -- it's also my most bookmarked. it's fun!! drunk neil!! but i almost can't read it anymore lol. there's some prose im proud of in there, but there's also some lazy characterization choices i made bc i had no idea it would get so many hits. its hard for me as the Characterization Guy to reconcile that hahaha.

ok as usual that was long-winded as hell. i love 2 talk abt writing :) also i feel bad 4 the lack of snowbaz representation here lol, but i think that i'm 1. better at writing andreil and 2. have gotten a lot better at writing while i was unemployed the last few months. i think a lot abt taking snowbaz for another whirl now, but consider: then i wouldn't get to write abt Andrew Minyard :(

[inari-zaheer]

HELLO!! I wanna thank you for doing my requests, im also gonna write more to but I’m just lazy rn, so I’m just gonna request so here I go!! And you can do them Separately or All Together if you’d like it’s up to you but here i go and you might need to do some research on him but here i go

Can you do Eddie Munson & Chrissy Cunningham with a S/O who has a Vampire Cookie Personality??

Thanks a ton!!

I should be the one thanking for your requests friend♥️

Poly!Eddssy With Vampire Cookie!Reader

Pairing:Eddie Munson x Reader x Chrissy Cunningham

A/N:This is not that good cause the character don’t have much information online but I tried lol

—————————————

Your relantionship with them is the most random I swear lol

But at she same time you're practically the balance in it, as Eddie is always stressed because of the bullies and Chrissy is always stressed because of the cheerleading but you tended to always convince them to forget their problems and relax

You always planned dates where you could just enjoy your day in peace

Your dates would often consist in picnics at lovers lake, with wine cheese and cookies

If you did weed with them Eddie would always make sure to not give you the strong stuff, as you went into some deep pondering sometimes

Eddie would always get you clothes that would complement your vampire style, he thought it was metal as fuck

Chrissy would always help you dye your hair the vibrant red color you wore

The bullies never did anything to you as they discovered that it was useless since you did not care at all, so you and Chrissy would always help Eddie when he needed

You’d be the one helping to dress Chrissy up when you went to see Eddie at any gig, she wanted a metal but still classy look and you were perfect to help her

The three of you had random trips almost every weekend, to the beach, to a music festival, to a hotel in other state just to enjoy different airs together

[devmimi]

Hello! Only if you could, can i request some headcanons of the hashiras (if it's possible all of them, if not, you can choose whoever you want!) seeing reader (who's also a hashira) as an older sibling figure?? Please and thank you ♡

- ☾

ofc ofc omg i luv writing familial stuff !!! these hcs might b a bit short jus cuz everyone ^^" reader is gn !!

— RENGOKU KYOJURO

rengoku and you have always been close, you two were the life of the party and always checked up regularly. with him becoming a hashira, like you, it felt like fate you two would be the sibling duo to call on when stuff got tough.

like rengoku you are usually a big smiler, hugging people and spinning them around. problem comes when rengoku is the one getting hugged! whoever can spin the other first wins.

rengoku usually entrusts you with his problems, asking you to please care for sengoku when he is gone. you both know the realities of your job.

rengoku knows how capable you are— with you two training together and all, and is constantly asking to test his skills against his big sibling.

— SANEMI SHINAZUGAWA

sanemi isn't as loud with his admirations, just copying you when he sees you and in his mind using your power as another level up.

when sanemi does talk to you he's kinder than the others, quieter to take all your words into account. after you're done he'll scoff and walk off again. but at least he listens.

when sanemi isn't feeling like the typical hardass he invites you out to dinner to show his gratitude.

— IGURO OBANAI

iguro is also quiet but at least he doesn't make a hissy fit about it.

you know he looks up to you by the way he asks you about how to interact with others.

he'll also ask frequently about mitsuri. how to give gifts to her, how to bring up topics, and even how to be sure to show he listens to her.

he's not vocal about calling you his sibling but you know if asked he'd say wasn't it mutual and of course it is.

— GYOMEI HIMEJIMA

gyomei still tries to protect you, even though he's the one that wants guidance.

he enjoys how quiet he can be around you. comfortable and peaceful.

he doesn't talk much to you, but when he does need something you are the first to know.

— GIYUU TOMIOKA

giyuu is constantly complaining with you.

you know why he keeps a physical distance, but as you two grew closer so did the distance.

you two usually have dinner parties together. either to catch up after missions, or just to shit talk about other people.

giyuu steers far away from the past but besides that you can tell he trusts you completely.

— SHINOBU KOCHO

she treats you like her other siblings, caring for you and furrowing her brows when you insist you can tend to yourself.

when you are hurt she's the first to be there. on sight medical assistance before anyone even noticed.

she's very on top of your health, muttering how she hates to see you reckless.

when she's tired, though, she's the one on your shoulder sound asleep.

— UZUI TENGEN

uzui carries you around on his shoulder, the two of you having the best time.

with the fun party sibling duo you two light up rooms and leave in style.

he is gifting you clothing often, and jewelry.

'no family of mine is going to look like rags' he says often to you.

— MITSURI KANROJI

she is always over your house.

you two go out to eat a lot, you helped her get over her fear of eating too much.

she's often over with shinobu and you guys talk about crushes, life, and what missions are next.

you two are as close as can be and it shows!

when you come back from missions she's the first to run over and tackle-hug you.

— MUICHIRO TOKITO

muichiro sees a lot of the hashira as just. there. but you help him feel not so alone.

muichiro saves weeds and such to show you, asking what they are.

you feel bad for how young he is in this, but when he sees that worried look he insists he's fine.

muichiro opens up a lot with you. at random times he'll remember something and mutter about it. then go back to cloud watching.

[riainceol]

Kemrit - Track by Track

Deeply concerned that the amount my Id runs my music is going to be unavoidable if i write in depth about it but let’s talk about my debut EP.

First off we’re gonna define an EP, what makes an EP different to an album? For me there’s generally two things. Length and cohesion. Kemrit is not a cohesive record, so it’s not really a representative of what I’m writing. It’s a collection of moods and vibes, basically. It’s also less than 7 tracks. 7 tracks is iffy but if it’s 8 or more, by my standards we’re veering into album territory. I know that traditionally an EP was made for a 6” or somewhere between rather than a 12” but honestly… it’s 2022.

The artwork is a photo of the inside of my jeans pocket that my phone took by accident, but I thought it would be funny to use it as artwork, I also thought it would be funny to name it Kemrit. “Hello, Kemrit thee forg here!”.

I’m giving away all my secrets.

The idea was basically, I’ve written this stuff and I need to get it out. So it was a very soft release. But I’m still happy with it.

In the Bleak Midwinter.

I wanted to write a song that was about the White Wall of Whale. I love Moby Dick, the idea that Melville tries to push in the book, that not only is Ahab’s revenge ultimately destructive, of himself and his crew, but is also pointless, as all creatures are equal and nature doesn’t care one way or the other because we’re part of it, had a big impact on me. The motive behind this track was, let’s write a song about dying in the snow. It interpolates Carol of The Bells and it’s just good riffage, but very simple.

I tend to want to do more. You don’t have to, it’s kinda better to be more quick, centred and simple with music but I have these stupid fucking standards for my own stuff. This song kills live though so my standards are clearly wrong.

Uisce (Water)

A lot of my inspiration is from nature. I don’t know if you’ve noticed but Ireland is a fucking beautiful place. I’ve grown up not far from the coast, and have always loved the sea. Uisce was inspired by the push and pull of the waves on the shore. I deliberately kept this simple, along with the other more atmospheric track on this EP. I was having an issue about trying to force it, lyrically. Thankfully that’s not as much of a problem, especially when I write heavier stuff. But I wanted to make a mood more than write songs.

The Hound

This is the weakest song on the record, I’ll hold my hands up and admit it. I got too in the weeds, I didn’t do a good enough job with the vocals and the production and I got too enamoured with the lead lines but this is a LEARNING exercise. We’re gonna fuck it, it’s okay to fuck it.

I wanted to write a one note riff like Lamb of God and ended up writing a fucking weird abnormal time sig Tool style riff instead. That should have been my first clue. I like wolves, I like the idea of wolves as both an animal and as a metaphor for dissidence. We used to have wolves in Ireland, we kept them as pets the same as dogs. In part of Cromwell’s efforts to “tame” Ireland he killed them all.

I don’t think I would play this one without some major rewriting.

Oíche Maith (Good Night)

This was the first full piece of original music I’d written in 8 years. I wrote this piece of music looking out the window at nature and the sunset, and decided I was going to just do my own music again.

So here’s the thing, I WAS recording covers. Here’s one of them.

https://on.soundcloud.com/LVLA6S9rZ9cgawsD7

I had been playing covers in 2019 acoustically and I wanted to have some recordings I could point to and say “hey this is how I am, these are the kinds of versions I do” but then the pandemic happened. And it was like, “you can make music, it doesn’t have to be songs, it could be a mood, something as simple as this.”

And so I did.

I’ve never played this out but it’s only because I haven’t got the right setup for it. I love this piece.

Ashes.

I never got to learn Irish in school. Due to circumstance and stuff like that. I grew up in the north, then the nature of my schooling kept me from having lessons (there are plenty of people in the North who learned Irish in school). I have always been bitter about that. You might have noticed that I’ve been working on that somewhat. But this song is about my anger and my impotence about my native language.

My native language is an unfamiliar tongue. As it is for anyone who doesn’t come from a native family or was raised and schooled in Irish. That shit fucks you up so bad.

I could never write verses so I ended up butchering the Our Father as Gailege, and drowning it in effects to represent the distance to the language I felt. That might change in the future, both the way the song is written and my relationship to my language. But this was a big cathartic song for me and it’s the one I’m most proud of on the EP. Even if it’s not where I’d want it to be now.

That’s a track by track on my first EP. It’s been fun looking back at these with a bit of distance, thanks for coming along with me for the ride.

[nonnata]

anybody else think mental health nurses tend to be really cruel?

I started my mh nurse training in 2020 because I wanted to help people. [...] The nursing role itself has become more of an administrative position than a caring one, nurses across the board spend far more time writing notes and doing paperwork than actually with patients. If you were doing a 9 hour shift on the cmht, you'd spend max. about 2 hours of that day actually with a patient. If you were the duty nurse for that day dealing with emergency referrals/assessments that would go up to about 3 hours. The rest of that day is filling in forms, writing case notes, and honestly, waiting around to go home. I met patients who'd been on a ward for 10+ weeks who had no idea who their primary nurse even was, they'd gone 10 weeks having zero therapeutic interactions with their nurse. The nurses do meds rounds, obs, room checks, arrange appointments, admit/discharge patients, write notes (that they usually have to get the students/hca's to give them info for because they've barely even seen the patients let alone been able to accurately assess their mental states) and any actual nursing of the patient gets pushed to the bottom of the pile every single time, it is invariably the lowest priority. [...]

Yes, the system is underfunded/understaffed but I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that more funding will not fix it because the truth is, the people who work in it are a huge part of the problem. They can hire more nurses but by the time they've qualified, they'll be just as callous and devoid of empathy as the rest of them because you have to become that or you get weeded out during training. It's impossible to see the system you're contributing to failing and sometimes even actively harming people who are hurting day in and day out without leaving your empathy at the door, and if you can't or wont do that, you don't make it to qualifying.

[1nfine77]

hhahahaha i disappeared again. woops.

scripting/worldbuilding wrt dr ramble under cut. no promises for this making any sense.

anyway - i've sat down and properly started getting to grips with my script, now that i'm done with exams, and the sheer amount of worldbuilding i want to do first is... oh boy.

shifting to a modded version of a video game universe, particularly mc in this case, is an... experience in trust when you leave it all alone, i want to say, because of how many mods do not integrate with one another. you'll get add-on mods and you'll get mods that acknowledge one another or will use one another's components, but in terms of the story or base mechanics of each mod, you tend to end up with a lot of disparate parts with their own separate and unrelated progressions and ways of dealing with base game things. in order to progress through two progression-based mods, you need to do them at the same time or else you'll be at end-game with one and then returning to square-zero in order to do anything with the other.

(better yet, you'll get mods with conflicting storylines or progressions, where trying to build a world where you focus on one will, on an in-game story level, lock you out of another, or where doing two mods at once will essentially mean you're tokyo drifting across what are essentially two very different belief systems without ever really trying to cohere them. which is whatever, but it does me in.)

or you'll get one mod completely overpowering another in terms of what it can achieve, and i want to level the playing field a bit and make some things more powerful and others less in order to counterbalance this a little. or at least have one be a natural progression of another, or have this one thing be useful in this case but in the general case, this other thing is preferred, etc etc.

and since i'm here with notion in front of me, i may as well grapple with the problem i have just noticed and shape a solution for it myself rather than leaving it up to chance.

(i also have like... ten separate 'magic systems'* i want to try to develop as different explanations for and beliefs surrounding the same or similar sets of phenomena**, each with their own key figures in their development, but... fuck, that's a task, i've realised lmao, especially because i am dealing, in the dr, with a truckload of forgotten and lost history due to the nature of the dr.)

i essentially need to deconstruct every single component of what makes up my dr and decide, on a case-by-case basis, whether to synthesise it with a previously unrelated part of a different component, dismiss it entirely (either because i don't like it or because it doesn't fit), treat it as its own phenomenon or adjust it so that it no longer leans on cr-related, and therefore dr-foreign, concepts.

and again - there is technically no need for me to fight with this. but i'm here and i may as well, and having the extra bit of knowledge of where i'm headed is likely going to help.

honestly my entire script sucks because of these... major oversights. sure, i have changed major mechanics on the way, which doesn't help, but then there's things like this that are genuine sandpaper to my brain. i visualise myself doing a specific thing in my dr and get taken completely out of it by the hard-clash of that thing and some other fucking thing from another fucking mod, both of which apparently sit comfortably in the same universe from which they both originated (anything that can be explained from 'idk it came from outer space/another dimension/etc.' is being left that way thanks).

this is a long-winded way to say that i may as well write a book at this point if i am going to be this fucking bent on logical consistency in a god damn fantasy setting. if i get too in the weeds with this and start going down the rabbit hole of conlangs, and then trying to make creole languages out of those conlangs, then i guess i better give up and admit i'm subconsciously trying to be tolkien.

*oh - and i finally realised, after four fucking years of being bent on the same exact dr, that no, the laws of physics and reality will be different there than they are here, and so what i am seeing as a magic system may well be equivalent in sense and rationality (with regards to explaining external phenomena) to. idk. physics. wards - as in, physical unopenable doors and literal invisible barriers - may well be as common and usual as fucking gravity, and it's my cr headspace - and the way these things are treated in the mod, honestly - that's making that complicated for me.

**i do have some 'magic systems' that touch on, like, specifically plants, or specifically astrology, that i can pretty much leave alone because they have their own... spheres of influence that other systems don't really interact with, but even with these i want some mutual acknowledgement.

[steveskafte]

THE BRUISING HOUR People tend to think of old buildings in terms of history, but I prefer a kind of blank slate perspective. I've never actually been inside this structure, haven't visited for a service or any other event – but it's been familiar to me for as long as I can remember. I've driven by on thousands of occasions, and watched the trees slowly rising to silhouette the sky. It's such a cool beauty in the bruising hour, black and blue with night coming on. You could write the whole past out, starting with how the Baptists built it two centuries back, but I've been remembering a time I walked by about twenty-five years ago. It was the late 90s when my siblings and some others were all up at a bonfire by the Hampton wharf. I wanted to leave as soon as we arrived, shy kid dreading the anxiety of human contact. I told my oldest brother James that I’d walk myself home, back over the mountain alone – quite a hike for a nervous ten-year-old. He said “No” in no uncertain terms, and tried his best to hold me back. I swung for the sky with a wild right hook, punching off his glasses and running in the opposite direction. As I rounded the lighthouse hill, my cousin Jordan shouted that I’d only make it halfway home before giving up and turning back. His doubt was all the encouragement I needed. It was already teasing sunset when I passed this church and reached Hampton Mountain Road, drifting from a thin red glow down to a dimming blue light. I made my way in the growing gloaming, uncertain if I was even headed in the right direction. It was all uphill, shuffling on the weedy shoulder. I made it halfway, no problem, proud of my progress past the Arlington intersection, and on to the steepest bits. I would have been complaining if there was anyone to listen, whining about sore feet and tired legs. But I just kept going, up the cracked-open asphalt to the North Mountain summit – like an angry weed in one of those fault lines, stubborn frustration proving independence. I felt that fear of the dark rising, walking in reach of the night forest waking, the sound of twigs snapping and owls hooting. I saw pairs of eyes in glowing ambling, rising and falling in spooky sync. They passed through the trees like fireflies in love, a flight in perfect concert. A driver who’d passed before pulled up again and asked if I wanted a ride. I agreed, and climbed in the backseat of a grungy Ford on its last legs, ignoring everything I'd been told about talking to strangers. He took me the rest of the way to the valley, and I had him drop me one corner west from Beaconsfield, at the cross of Clarence and Church Street. There’d be hell to pay if I came home as a hitchhiker. After walking the last half-kilometer, I came through the door only minutes before everyone else, kicked back like I’d been waiting for hours. No one was impressed, but I was proud of the effort expended, proof that I’d made it against all doubts. This was my tiny rebellion for no greater good, a too-accurate autobiographical sketch. February 10, 2024 Hampton, Nova Scotia Year 17, Day 5935 of my daily journal.

[slasherhaven]

Hi there!! I love your blog, it’s able to give me good slasher content all year long :) !! Could you please do a fic or some headcanons with Bo Sinclair with an s/o that likes to garden? You could write for any of the slashers honestly, I just think it would be so cute having Bo and whoever he’s with keep Ambrose up. Thank you!!

This became more about the Sinclair Brothers and Ambrose in general 😂

Bo Sinclair with a S/O who likes to Garden:

When it comes to gardening, Ambrose is...a mess.

None of the brothers really look after Ambrose's flora. They'll trim anything that gets too overgrown and out of control, but that's the most they do.

But there are weeds everywhere and they take no real care of the flora.

Any flowers that had been planted outside of homes in the past had likely been replaced with fake flowers and plants to keep the illusion of life without the maintenance.

But when you come along, all of that changes. You can't stand seeing the town like this, happy to take on the task of bringing the town back to life.

You started with taking care of the weeds in problem areas, cleaning up the places that had become over grown.

And then you moved on to replacing those fake flowers and plants with new real ones.

Bo doesn't understand why you care so much nor what difference it makes, but you insist that it makes a huge difference.

Even if he doesn't understand your passion of gardening, he does actually like how much you come to care about taking care of the town. He would insist that it was a sappy thought but it was like you were accepting Ambrose, wanting to see it thrive, and that pleases Bo.

If you're going to be a Sinclair, you have to be a citizen of Ambrose too.

You become the person responsible for the upkeep of Ambrose when it comes to gardening.

You made sure the flowerbeds are taken care off, the hanging baskets on the fronts of houses, making sure everything stays bright and healthy.

Bo might not be as understanding of your insistence for real plants but Vincent and Lester actually appreciate it.

Lester actually helps you out quite a lot, not afraid of getting his hands dirty. You need to teach him a few things and teach him to be a little more gentle handed, but he becomes a good assistant.

But the thing the brothers appreciate the most? The home garden you had started.

After some convincing (and begging) Bo, he agreed to let you start a little vegetable garden near the house.

He thought it was a waste of time at first, until it started providing the household with fresh, and free, vegetables.

Now, Bo is starting to understand your passion for gardening.

It's convenient and practical, you've finally won Bo over. It's a bonus that he doesn't have to get involved but it's better that way, he'd just get in the way.

You've definitely become a productive resident of Ambrose.

Bo actually kinda likes seeing you tending to the garden in the morning. It doesn't take up as much time as he thought it would, and you just look so happy out there at work.

One day Lester was busy, and you had asked Bo to give you a hand.

He was reluctant but you convinced him, and he came out to help in the garden.

You were much more knowledgeable on the topic than he was, so you would bat his hands away from time to time, telling him what to do. He didn't like that at all but even he had to just accept that this was your territory.

You had been right, he just got in the way more than anything but you still kind of enjoyed spending time tending the garden with him. Who knows, maybe he even learnt some things?

[taystarotoverload]

PAC what my cat picked for you to hear LOL

pick one of my cats to see your message !!

Group one - Odin

Gift Revealed

fairies love good surprises. however, when they’re are faced with a surprise that isn’t quite what they asked for, they pout. pouting soon turns to a smile and laughter as they realize that everything comes with it’s own gift. they always look until they find the gift. if life gives you something that you aren’t completely thrilled with, keep an open mind. often the best things come disguised. look below the surface and see what a person or situation holds for you. do big be quick to judge new people. not everything is revealed on the spot. connect with the person and work to understand where they are coming from. their experience is different from yours. so take the times to see what makes them tick and what they have to offer. they are just as important as you are. do the same with situations… understand that what appears to be the case may not be the truth at all. remember that solutions can come in the strangest of ways when you allow them to do so. always ask that spirit create the perfect situation for you. find the gift in all things.

Group two - Timber

Autumn

In the autumn the fairies dash about checking to make sure that all leaves are falling. sometimes a lead needs a little nudge and the fairies are happy to oblige! the fairies have a lot to do before they can rest in winter. for us humans, autumn is about letting go. just like the trees retract their sap in winter, we retract our energy. the autumn cards tell you to store your energy up for yourself right now! feel your energies beginning to collect around you and pull them inward close to your body. conserve energy! if you have drawn this card you are being told to let go of the old habits and ideas that tend to take up energy that can be better used elsewhere. it is a time of sorting. a time to release old ‘stuff’ and to see what is truly precious to you, and what you really want to keep in your life. this may be a time of weeding out, so that you can do the prep work for a new project in your life. if your energy feels lower, don’t panic. flow with natures cycles and rest and relax. autumn offers us magical qualities that inspire reflection and thinking. go deeper down into your roots to reflect on where your life is going and where you want it to go. it is also a good time to do some writing or journaling. this may be a day for you to just curl up under a quilt with a good movie and a hot cup of tea.

Group three - Loki

Blue Fairy

Here is the blue fairy who offers to the message of love and peace. she demonstrates the need for quiet within our daily lives. she shows us that through calmness we realize our connection to spirit. this connection is always with us. concentrate on this cobalt blue and feel what it does to your inner body. imagine a blue crystal deep within your heart that resonates to all that is, through the vibration to love. you are connected to all creation snd to the hearts of all beings, through a beautiful crystal blue grid work of light. feel the oneness of all that is. sense the infinite being in your soul. can you feel your problems shrinking in size? feel your own divinity! allow your creativity to flow! with the oneness comes true understating if the greater mysteries of life. they all come down to one thing, infinite love.

—-

ty for reading :)

now enjoy pictures of my cats

odin and loki being besties

loki being cute 😩😩 (his birthday is May 4 btw)

this is Maeve (nickname is gravy cause she’s looks like gravy) comfy on a stool and my lap. (she’s only a few months old)

this is odin being cuddly with my friend (cut out part of her face for privacy reasons 😳) (this guy is only one or two)

these two photos are my oldest cat timber (hes 8 i think 😳) he is loud and annoying and loves attention. don’t give him too much attention or he won’t leave you alone.

ty for reading abt my cats - they love the attention :) feel free to reblog !!

[theoriginalcarnivorousmuffin]

After reading your opinion on Molly Weasley, i want to know: What are you're opinions on the Weasley family? Besides Ron & Molly that is.

Five characters? In one post? Well, alright, here we go.

The Weasleys as a Whole

I’ve mentioned this before but JKR writes the Weasleys to clearly be a believable but ideal family. They’re all fiercely loyal, progressive per wizarding world standards, love each other and Harry deeply, and have this wonderful off-kilter joyous house where there’s always some rambunctious thing going on. 

Harry comes to associate the Weasleys with family and, personally, I believe a large part of him marrying Ginny boils down to it will make him a Weasley for real. 

That said, they’ve got some major issues. They’re very righteous people who, as a whole, will ice you out the moment they even suspect you do something that disagrees with them. You don’t even have to do it, what you did or didn’t do doesn’t even have to be something terrible or something bad, but god help you if the family decides they’re done with you. 

They’re very resentful of people like the Malfoys. This isn’t just because Lucius is a smarmy, pompous, ass (he is) or that he indirectly almost murdered Ginny but seems to mostly be because Lucius has so much money. All of their interactions seem to boil down to the money. More than this though, the Weasleys seem fully supportive of laws that... well, used against themselves would be a travesty but used against the likes of the Malfoys it’s about damn time.

They’re unquestioningly loyal to Dumbledore. Granted, most people we see in canon are, Dumbledore’s very very very good at convincing people he’s a saint. However, these guys are practically his cult member to the point where they do things like refuse to have Harry over the summer, even before Voldemort returned, because Dumbledore told them not to. 

They also never really adopt Harry into the family. Oh they give him a nice sweater, he comes over every once in a while to the house, he’s very good friends with Ron but he’s mostly treated just like that, a good friend. Now, there’s nothing wrong with this, except the way JKR sets it up we’re supposed to believe this is the family Harry found. It’s just that the family Harry’s found let’s him stay in a house with bars on his window where twelve-year-old Ron tells them, “Harry’s muggle family is really really awful” in a way that should have been raising red flags. Hermione practically lives at the Weasleys, Harry never does.

Now, are the Weasleys evil? No, far from it, they’re ordinary people who act in ways I’d expect ordinary people too. Technically they didn’t have to do anything more for Harry than they did, they didn’t have to hate Lucius Malfoy for better reasons, and they don’t have to be even slightly less worshipful of Dumbledore. They’re people, and they’re fine characters, but the overwhelming worship and love of the Weasleys we see across fandom does get on my nerves.

But you asked for individuals, so here we go.

 Arthur Weasley

Arthur is the epitome of “Pretty Fly for a White Guy” in the worst of ways and is, frankly, a giant awful joke to me. He’s the white kid you see going around with dread locks, a beanie the color of the Jamaican flag, smoking weed, and attempting to speak like Bob Marley 

Only, because he does it with muggle things, we’re supposed to find him funny and progressive.

Arthur is absolutely, albeit unwittingly, condescending in his love of muggle knickknacks. He has no idea how any of it actually works, not limited to how muggles could possible survive without the gold standard, but ardently believes he does because he can enchant the car to fly. Seriously, that he believes he’s an expert on muggle culture, as a pureblood wizard who heads an office in the ministry on it, is the worst part. His love of toasters comes across as, “Wow, look how cool it is that these poor little muggles made all this neat stuff. We should absolutely love the muggles because of it!” And that he heads an office in the ministry called “The Misuse of Muggle Artifacts” which is all about catching down Jackass style pranksters who think it would be hilarious of they enchanted toasters to bludgeon muggles to death...

Goddammit Arthur, why do you exist?

Right, otherwise, he’s got some pride issues going on. Part of the reason Percy is excommunicated is not so much that Percy doesn’t believe Harry, but because Percy dared to do better than Arthur in his own career. Arthur is stuck in his position as head of a joke of a department, he is an underling at its finest, and frankly likely only has that position because he’s a pureblood and the idea of putting a halfblood or even muggleborn at the head of a department dealing with muggles just made the higher ups shudder. (Don’t tell Arthur that though, he likes to think he’s not benefitting from nepotism). 

Arthur goes so far to accuse Percy as Fudge’s secretary as spying on him. Arthur, the guy who heads “Misuse of Muggle Artifacts”. Yeah, Arthur, I’m sure Fudge is really wasting his time using his straight laced secretary to find out all your dirty secrets. 

He also tends to see the world as very black and white. When Skeeter in book 4 writes an article after the Quidditch World Cup disaster complaining about the ministry’s lax security in enabling domestic terrorists to enter (something completely valid and true by the way) Arthur is so personally offended that both he and Percy go straight to the ministry to complain about Rita Skeeter and her daring to assume freedom of speech! HOW DARE SHE CALL THE MINISTRY’S NON-EXISTENT SECURITY AT THE WORLD CUP LAX! (To be fair, she also cited Arthur as having been in attendance at the event, a ministry employee, and having done nothing but, well, this is also true Arthur. You’re in a guerilla, underground, resistance movement. If I didn’t already think the Order was a joke this would kind of highlight it for me).

He’s also very resentful of Lucius Malfoy, and it seems to mostly be about the money. Arthur and Molly have a severe spending problem and actively resent that Lucius is swimming in money. That Arthur is ardently pleased about a law being passed in which the ministry without warrant can ransack Lucius Malfoy’s home... 

Well, Arthur, imagine the slippery slope if the government decides that it would like to search the Weasley home without warrant? In fact, he doesn’t even have to imagine it, as the beloved government in a few short years turns against him and then it’s all about how corrupt the ministry is. 

Arthur’s delightfully narrowminded, basically, and reminds us at nearly every opportunity.

Percy Weasley

Mostly, I just feel bad for Percy. Percy’s the son/brother that nobody likes and he’s painfully aware of that fact. He doesn’t fit in with the others, he has far too much ambition for the Gryffindor family and they resent him for it, and then he dares to say things like “I don’t know guys, Voldemort resurrecting from the dead after decades doesn’t sound plausible, we know Harry’s a little off kilter, and Dumbledore’s one shady dude”. Percy happens to be wrong about Voldemort resurrecting (and admits as much when the evidence is plainly visible), but he’s pretty on the money with the rest of it.

Regardless, growing up we see Ron constantly hating on Percy along with the rest of the siblings. I’m sure Percy is obnoxious, and certainly full of himself after making prefect and head boy, but he’s very clearly even before Order of the Phoenix the Least Favorite Brother (TM).

Then the Weasley family completely ices him out for a) getting a very high ranking position very quickly as Fudge’s secretary and b) not being gung ho about Dumbledore saying crazy things in the paper. Remember that to Percy Harry is Ron’s weird friend who seems to get into highly illegal activities every other week. From Percy’s point of view, it’s probably a matter of time before Harry becomes a crack head in Knockturn Alley (or given how behind the times wizards tend to be, an opium den). 

He’s constantly getting Ron into not only trouble but life threatening situations, is erratic and apparently a parseltongue of all things, and now Harry’s flipped his lid and saying that Voldemort has been resurrected after having gone through a very traumatic experience of watching a classmate somehow die. 

While we see Percy kind of (sort of)  make up with the family it’s clear that for Percy to have any relation with these people he’s the one who will always, ALWAYS, have to come crawling back on his knees and begging for forgiveness. It’s the Weasley way or the highway and I imagine, at some point probably a little after/during that epilogue, Percy will just slowly drift away because it’s just not worth it anymore.

Percy’s very much the black sheep of the family.

Fred and George Weasley

You all are going to kill me, but I actually don’t care in the slightest about Fred and George Weasley. This is because they basically have no personality aside from “funny”. 

They just have their weird, tandem, twin act and are either playing jokes on the school or else serving as Deus ex Machina in giving Harry magical items such as the Marauder’s Map for no apparent reason. The plot told them it was time, I guess. 

Their jokes, while not as bad as Sirius and James’ “Let’s sexually harrass Severus Snape by pantsing and beating him at the edge of Hogwarts lake” or Sirius’ “Let’s get Snape eaten by a werewolf!” are still often needlessly cruel and... kind of pointless. They harass Slytherin house constantly just because they happen to be Slytherins, they’re acceptable victims (which of course makes house tension that much worse). Harry gets sent a toilet seat in the hospital because... that’s funny? Har de har? 

They’re so indistinguishable from one another I routinely see people mistake which one got his ear chopped off and which one died. Because the point is, that we can’t tell the difference! It doesn’t matter who lived and who died because all we know is that Freorge is dead! 

Similarly, you see tons of fics around where character of the day ends up in this weird twincestuous relationship with Fred and George and it’s not only for a) that delightful twincest but b) because they’re such a singular unit that any attempt to pair one with somebody else feels weird. So you just get these porn fics about Fred and George being weird rapey teenagers who seem like they’d be more interested dating each other. 

Charlie Weasley

I really have no thoughts on Charlie. He raises dragons in Romania, the family loves him. Now, dragon raising feels like one of the most dangerous jobs in the Harry Potter universe, like Charlie had just gone and signed up to be a lumberjack but he seems to like it?

We really don’t see much of Charlie, he’s just the obligatory older Weasley son so that the Weasleys can be this ridiculously large family.

Bill Weasley

We see slightly more of Bill, but again, not enough to really leave an impression. We know that his marrying Fleur sent Molly into a complete state, and that they’re going to have awkward Christmas dinners forever because of it where Fleur just sits there and pretends not to loathe every second of Molly’s presence while Molly notes how bad it is that Victoire got stuck with that ugly pink hair instead of the Weasley red. 

Bill doesn’t seem to really do anything about this. He still marries Fleur, but we don’t really see a major confrontation where he tells the family “Look, I’m marrying her, so grow up.” So, I imagine he just tries to smile pleasantly and tells Fleur to just endure it for another few hours. He loves his family, his family’s great, but they only have to see Fleur once a year at Christmas.

Ginny Weasley

Ginny is weird. She’s this weird, frankly, almost personality-less void whose sole obsession in life seems to be marrying Harry. She and Harry end up in the world’s weirdest relationship and I honestly have no idea how people ship it other than canon told them to.

Ginny’s... well, first off, she’s very much in love with an idea. She had always worshipped Harry Potter but then he personally saves her life in what was a horrifically traumatic year and so that feeling just grows even more. Despite being Ron’s sister, she barely seems to know Harry, and everything she seems to like about it are just things she made up.

I imagine her and Harry’s marriage will be littered with affairs on her end. Not divorce though, because Harry would never admit his wife is having affairs on him all the time even if someone directly confronted him. Harry also won’t admit he’s gay. 

More than though we get hints of a personality. Ginny’s a fiery red-head tomboy with a temper. But... Well, it’s only ever hints. She never felt like a real person to me. She has I think one throwaway line about the Chamber of Secrets incident and how it personally affected her. We’re told she’s great at the bat boogey hex so we know she’s a fiery independent woman.

She feels more like a character sheet than an actual person. 

Whenever she’s around I always had this nagging question in my head where I ask why Ginny’s here. She has a lot of potential but nothing’s ever done with her. And when something is, it’s to get her into this bizarre relationship with Harry where he imagines there’s a green rage monster in his chest that loves her skin.

Okay Harry, if you say so. 

TL;DR: The Weasleys aren’t evil or anything, I’m not on Team Bash Them All, but they are shortsighted, ordinary, people who don’t deserve to be worshipped as all that is good in this world.

[nowplayingblog]

Why the charictarization of Remus Lupin matter so much to me?

A character study of Remus Lupin

Disclaimer: I think every interpretation of every character is valid and should not be torn down (further discussed in this post). The following is a discussion of how I interpret a character, and things that I (me, specifically) don't like to see when I read fic, or even in fanart in many cases, and why.

(Just a friendly reminder that if you don't like someone's interpretation of a character, you can click off the fic, or block their account. It's OK to create a happy space for yourself.)

I'll begin with the reason I decided to make this post.

I've noticed a lot in my many years of being a marauders fan that there is a generally accepted interpretation of Remus, and the way certain people in the Fandom feel about it is that this is the only acceptable interpretation.

Based on my own observations, "Fanon Remus" is:

Negative/pessimistic.

Rough around the edges.

More confident in himself.

Borderline mean to anyone who he isn't friends with.

Usually smokes (cigarettes, weed, or both) and drinks.

Perpetually sad and tragic.

Tends to come off as disinterested in everything.

Fully accepting of being a werewolf and feels there is no separation between himself and his werewolf form.

(To be fair, this list is based on how I view this interpretation of Remus so it's likely bias.)

This interpretation of Remus has seen an increase in popularity with the re-emergence of the popular fanfic All the Young Dudes by MsKingBean89.

Here's the thing - I don't take issue with this version of Remus existing, it's definitely not to my taste (and we'll get into that more later) but it's a valid interpretation of his character.

Where I take issue with this is attitudes surrounding it, and people in the Fandom trying to make me feels as though this is the canon/only interpretation of Remus there can be.

I've been on multiple platforms where fellow Wolfstar/Marauders fans have stated that they hate seeing Remus depicted as:

Shy/timid.

Not as confident in himself and his abilities.

Thankful for his friends for the simple act of being his friends.

Overall softer (both in appearance and personality).

Being kind to most people he meets.

Being physically smaller than the other boys.

Referring to his werewolf state as something that is separate from him.

These people have argued that their interpretation is back by Canon, and writing Remus any other way is out of character - but the truth is that we know very little about Canon Remus (or any of the other Marauders or characters from that era.)

However both interpretations (or rather these two generalized interpretations, as I believe everyone sees every character a little differently) address aspects of what we know about him:

He's a werewolf and he has a complicated relationship with that aspect of himself. You can either interpret it as an internal conflict where he doesn't want people to be hurt by the part of himself that he can't control, or as an external conflict where he sees himself as a threat all the time, because there isn't a definitive line where "Remus" ends and "The Wolf" starts.

When we meet him in Prisoner of Azkaban, he is a warm and inviting, if a bit unorthodox, teacher. We also later learn he was a part of a group of friends who were notorious for playing pranks. Some interpret his unorthodox teaching style and his occasional sassy-ness (seen in flashbacks and in the present plot of the books) as an indication that he was always on board with the pranks - sometimes the mastermind behind some of them - and also that he was a bit rude or mean to anyone who he wasn't friends with. Others interpret his warm and caring personality to be at the core of who he is, and that his friends taught him to be a little mischievous, sarcastic and sassy.

As I've stated several times now, both are valid interpretations. One is no more rooted in Canon than the other. (I tend not to rely on Canon too much regardless, but that another topic for another post.)

But I think the real core of my problem with "Fanon Remus" comes back to a topic that I spend a LOT of time thinking about. So much time, in fact, that I have original stories and fanworks in the works that address this very issue:

The importance placed on the "dominant" or Type A personality.

(For clarity - Type A personality means someone who is achiement-oriented, ambitious, constantly working towards success, while the Type B personality is the more passive, flexible, easy going personality. )

We tend to see dominant, Type A personalities glorified in our society. We like go-getters, leaders. We glorify CEOs, activists, people who lead change.

We see the more submissive, Type B personalities as weak, passive, lacking the strength needed to succeed in this world.

But being passive, submissive, Type B, doesn't make someone weak. You can passively support causes you believe in. All leaders need followers.

I am more of that Type B, submissive, follower personality, and I identify and look up to characters and people who are like me, and are still strong.

I like to see - and want to see - characters who are more passive, less sure of themselves, but they are still strong and do what's right.

Which is why, while valid, I just can't interpret "Fanon Remus" as MY Remus. I can't relate to "Fanon Remus" and that interpretation of him doesn't serve the purpose I need in the kinds of stories I like to write.

And I'm sure a lot of people feel the same way, about a lot of characters.

They way I see Remus, is like this:

He is shy, he's one of those introverts that gets found by his extrovert friends and has no idea how to make friends outside of that.

He is focused on academics - in the Hogwarts world I see this as a way to prove to himself that he deserves to be here. To James and Sirius, their studies (magic or otherwise, depending on the AU) come naturally to them, but Remus works hard for his grades. (In this way he is a Type A personality, but he's not that dominant personality type.)

He loves his friends and unknowingly starts to mimic and adopt some of their traits the longer they are friends, which is how he becomes more sarcastic and mischievous.

He is kind, to the point of being overly apologetic.

He's one of those students that during parent-teacher conferences the teachers say he's "so quiet" and "a joy to have in class".

He's pessimistic in a "if I don't get my hopes up I won't be disappointed" kind of way. He wants to be optimistic but can't really visualize the things he wants as something that could be true. He feels like his wants are silly wishes. However, he's not pessimistic in the way that "nothing good will ever happen to me."

He's open to things turning out a little differently than he had planned.

He's supportive and wise. He gives good advice to his friends.

He has bad self-esteem issues, often falling into negative thoughts along the lines of "nobody actually likes me" "nobody can stand to be around me" "everyone wishes I wasn't here"

Loves doing big, thrilling activities, but needs his time to have quiet, introspective, and calming activities.

A true introvert, while he loves spending time with people, his social energy drains when he's around others, and recharges when he is alone.

So the moral of this post is meant to be - every character in every fandom is going to have lots of different interpretations, and is going to be even more different from person to person. We all see things differently. They may look wildly different from your interpretation, or even from Canon, but that doesn't make them less valid, and they don't deserve to be told that they're wrong.

There is now correct way to see a character - there are only ways that you disagree with.

Expect to see more character studies and interpretations in the future