#shoutout to people who leaves comments and kudos and reblogs

[epickiya722]

There's always that one person that comments on every fic no matter what that fic is.

The dedication and I appreciate.

[zepskies]

What Does "Supporting Writers" Mean? ✍️

Apparently it's Fanfic Writer Appreciation Day! To all my fellow writers, I truly appreciate you for bringing me joy, making me smile on rough days, and giving me my weekly/daily dose of escapism and warm fuzzies. (Shoutouts to you personally below.) 💓💓

But what does it mean "practically" to appreciate your favorite writers, especially on Tumblr?

For example, I know some fanfic authors are starting to block "serial likers": people who'll go through someone's entire masterlist and hit the "like" button on 20-something stories without commenting or basic reblogging.

While I think blocking them is extreme, I understand the authors' frustrations. I've actually been asked if I'll ever leave Tumblr, since many of them have dropped off over the past few months, or even the past few years.

I'm still here for two very important reasons:

I love to write about my favorite characters. I write primarily because I love it, not just for the kudos.

I'm friggin' blessed to have a lot of friends and lovely readers on here and Ao3 who support me immensely on my writing and on this blog in general. I love and appreciate each and every one of you! Which is why I do my best to reply to your comments and reblogs. 💖💖

Of course, there are many reasons why a writer might take a break or stop writing entirely, but one of those reasons is also why the #supportwriters tag exists...

And why you'll see us include banners like this on our posts:

(Credits: cafekitsune, me, inklore)

That being said, here's my own rule of thumb on how I try to support my fellow writers when I read something I enjoy:

If I "liked" something, it means I had the time to read a story all the way through and I enjoyed it! (Or I'm bookmarking it for later in the day lol)

If I have the time to read it, I have the time to leave a comment on what I liked the most about it.

If I have the time to write out a comment (anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes), I typically put that comment in a reblog -- maybe even add a gif or two for ✨razzle dazzle.✨ That way I can share it with the rest of my followers, so they can see it and hopefully enjoy it too...

Why? Because Tumblr isn't TikTok or IG. Reblogging is the best way to help a post gain traction on Tumblr. The algorithm doesn't care much about likes.

But on a more human level, supporting writers is just the basic thing of -- if you enjoyed something you read (that a writer shared for free), just let them know what you liked about it.

Remember that there's a person behind the content you enjoy. They might have been working on that story for weeks or months, or even years before they got the courage to post it.

They might really be putting themselves out there, writing about a topic or subject matter that they're not sure people will even like or engage with.

Maybe they're exploring something new, like a character or trope they've never written before.

Maybe they're expressing part of themselves that they haven't even told another living soul.

Maybe they just wanted to write something fun and smutty or angsty or fluffy and want to share the escapism with you.

Whether they've been writing for years or are just starting out, any and all is valid.

For me, as a writer and a reader, supporting my fellow writers often means supporting my friends. And 9 times out of 10, the way we became friends was by leaving feedback on their work and asking them questions, or responding to their awesome feedback on mine.

If you want a little jumpstart on how to leave feedback, whether encouraging or constructive, here's an awesome post about it (not mine).

Shoutout to some of my favorite writers 💞:

(In no particular order)

@waynes-multiverse @luci-in-trenchcoats @dean-winchester-is-a-warrior @thatonewriter15 @rizlowwritessortof

@waywardxwords @tofics @kaleldobrev @deanbrainrotwritings @deanwritings

@jawritter @deanwinchesterswitch @justagirlinafandomworld @ravengirl94 @waywardxwords

@spnbabe67 @deanwanddamons @ejlovespie @kittenofdoomage @venus-haze

@talltalesandbedtimestories @sam-is-my-safe-word @jacklesbrainworms @artyandink @princessmisery666 (I just starting reading your stories, but I'm continuing with Samnesia soon!) -- and I'm sure many more! 💋

[cadinaweek]

CADINA WEEK 2024 WAS A MASSIVE SUCCESS!!!

Thank you so, so, so much to everyone who participated in any part of Cadina Week. Whether you wrote a fic, posted art, shared an edit or playlist, or even just interacted with content by liking, reblogging, leaving kudos, leaving comments, or just reading the work, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts for taking part in Cadina Week!!!

We've added (as of 3pm EST on July 1, 2024) at least 84 fics to the Cadina tag on AO3 and had so much fun art, edits, playlists, and other posts on Tumblr!

The Cadina Week 2024 collection will remain open for an extra month (closing on July 30, 2024) to allow for any extra submissions that didn't get finished in time to make it in!

There's so much content, we love how much we'll have to get through over the coming weeks! It's so exciting to see so much new content for the tag!

We wanted to take an extra moment to shoutout the six people that organized this week together - what started with a simple idea in a discord server exploded into such an incredible collection of new content. We're so happy this went even better than we could have hoped!

With love and looking to next year, your Cadina Week organizers:

ForeverWillLast (Tumblr/AO3)

16Sydd16 (Tumblr/AO3)

pinkkrypto (Tumblr/AO3)

Chisamaya (Tumblr/AO3)

girlkisser-wieners/ninesixtheenths (Tumblr/AO3)

GravityAlex (Tumblr/AO3)

[queen-scribbles]

2020 Writer Review

tagged by @actualanxiousswampwitch and @crqstalite

Words: 323, 910

That’s, like, two novels. (quietly but with great feeling:what the fuuuuuccckkkk)

Published: 311, 717

Not Published: 12,193 (my sister’s Christmas present. Which she did love, but threw something at me for the interrupted kiss at the end >:3)

The Breakdown:

I’m not doing all the math for specific fandom wordcounts bc there’s a lot of them, but I wrote for SWtOR, The Wayhaven Chronicles, Dragon Age(all three :D), Shepherds of Haven, Speaker, Mass Effect, and Pillars of Eternity(both of them :D)

New Things I Tried:

Tried to do shorter pieces every so often, rather than just full on oneshots, the whole mostly-flashback thing for MEBB was new, and I found a couple new fandoms this year, so that was new characters to write.

Favorite Thing I Wrote:

Oh. MAN. UM. I always have so much trouble with this question bc I genuinely love a LOT of what I write.oh god. There’s so many.... Have a top five, not in any particular order

Taking Initiative (SWtOR; Keme/Jorgan >:3 I am so damn proud of this one)

The Sloth boss fight/final conversation with Niall in Of Warden and Pariahs  (Dragon Age: Origins; combat is so frigging fun to write, guys)

A Good Idea (Pillars of Eternity; Tavi/Aloth, aka The Most In Character Thing one of my ships has ever done)

Plenty Special (The Wayhaven Chronicles; AJ/Nate and AJ&Felix)

Shatter fill from Wayhaven Week (The Wayhaven Chronicles; Kasey/Mason) (honorable mentions to the Nightmare and Tender fills)

Favorite Fic I Read:

God, I don’t remember what all I read last year. I know there was a lot, and it was all grand. UM. Shit. Here’s some. I’m sure there’s more, particularly on tumblr, where I don’t have any way to look back and go “Ah, yes, I read X this year and it was amazing”

Orbit by sunsolace both bc it’s really well written and bc I am always, ALWAYS a sucker for Revanasi. Just. KotOR was my gateway drug to RPGs, and Carth is my First BioWare Love, AND it’s well done on top of that. YES PLEASE SIGN ME UP

Wise Man’s Tree updated on Christmas so I can say that again :3 Critical Role, Perc’ahlia w/ a side of Vaxilmore (even if I sorta want to murder currie for Things rn)

On a Wing and a Prayer by lucyrne from the rarepair exchange, Dragon Age, Sebastian/Bethany semi-heist fic complete with first kiss, what’s not to love? :D

And, ofc, With Love by Tafka, also Dragon Age,  f!Adaar/Barris, written for me in the rarepair exchange

Writing Goals:

More consistent work on OWaP would be nice. Maybe get through at least fuckin’ Redcliffe?Hopefull more.  (look, once I can dangle reuniting with Jowan in front of Trinne like a carrot, I have a feeling she’ll pick up the pace xD)

I know I’ve said this like three years running, but I really do wanna work on the Brykar longfic. I do.

Work on the Inquisition Commander!Fenris AU more. It’s an intriguing idea and I wanna play.

Write enough things I love that that “Fave thing you wrote?” question remains horribly difficult to answer. xD

Words of Thanks:

Oh, man, I’m gonna forget people. That is a mark against my crap memory and not you <3 Anyone who reads/reblogs/comments on(include tag rants)/leaves kudos for ,my fic. ANYONE. Mutual, follower, random anonymous stranger on AO3, whoever. Thank you.  I was gonna do a few specific shoutouts, but tumblr isn’t letting me tag? thanks, tumblr. I’ll leave it at that, then, I guess.

I’m not gonna tag anyone specific, but feel free to say I did if you wanna do this. ;)

[927roses-and-stuff]

Miracles in Gotham: Chapter One: Strings of Fate

Hey, guys! This fic is inspired by @ozmav’s Maribat AU. Shoutout to @mystery-5-5 for brainstorming ideas with me for this fic. Hopefully, you guys enjoy it!

It’s only been a few hours since I posted the prologue, and I’ve already received such wonderful feedback! Thank you to anyone who took the time to read and/or like/reblog/comment/gave kudos to this! 

I know it seems very Mlbverse-centric right now, but I have to set up some of the conflicts somehow, amirite? Trust me, you’ll only have to deal with Paris for like one more chapter.

If you want to see more, follow: #miraclesingotham

P.S. I refuse to believe that the ladybug-themed egg is the actual form of the Miracle Box. Nope, no way. 

Tag list (if anyone wants that to be a thing):

@northernbluetongue

First Next Fanfic

Chapter One: Strings of Fate

Dear Diary,

Everything’s been so different without Master Fu. I’ve heard from Marianne that he’s healthy and doing well. I’m happy that he gets to be free from the Miraculous and living happily with the love of his life, but would it be selfish to wish that he were still around to guide me? It’s been a total disaster since I’ve become the new Guardian. Chloé’s anger at Ladybug makes it impossible to go a day without an akuma; much less since Lila Rossi decides to provoke her at every turn. 

Honestly, what is wrong with that girl? She’s even more irritating than Chloé, if you ever thought that was possible. 

But, diary, I’ve noticed that Hawkmoth’s become more strategic with his akumas. I think handing out the other Miraculous was a mistake. I’m sure it’s because Hawkmoth now knows the identity of the others that he’s been targeting our class almost exclusively. 

This is why I’ve always said that secret identities were important. Now that they’ve all been discovered, I doubt I can entrust them without harming them and their loved ones. 

I wish I could write more and reflect on my emotions like Master Fu told me to, but I hear an akuma calling my name. 

Bisoux, 

Marinette

________________________________________________________________

“So, chaton, who are we fighting this time?” Ladybug asked as she landed outside of the Louvre.

“So glad to be here in your presence. Ladybug, here comes the lovely Princess Fragrance!” He quipped as he dodged a zombified civilian rushing at him. 

“Rhyming, Chat Noir?” Ladybug laughed as she jumped up, making two of the zombies crash into one another. “Are you sure you haven’t been caught in Princess Fragrance’s traps?”

Chat laughed and leapt to her side, using his baton to bat away at the incoming civilians. “Maybe just a whiff.”

She scanned around quickly, looking for green skin, pink hair, or her gothic black dress. When she found nothing, she grabbed Chat Noir by the waist, and projected her yoyo on one of the Louvre’s chimneys. 

“Well, wake up and smell the roses, chaton. We better go find her Royal Highness!” Ladybug said as she grabbed onto Chat’s waist and swung away from the incoming hoard of civilians. She watched as they toppled over each other, desperately grabbing at the sky. 

Chat winced at the sight also. “Me-ouch! Seems like their loyalty’s deadly.”

They landed on the roof and Ladybug straightened, letting go of Chat. She sighed. 

“Let’s go before it turns into a bloodbath.” 

Chat nodded. “Princess Fragrance was headed to the Pont des Arts  last I saw her.”

“Do you know why she got akumatized this time?”

“Not really. Maybe it had something to do with the Prince again.”

Ladybug sighed. Poor Rose and her fragile heart. “I guess. Well, hopefully she doesn’t break anymore hearts.”

When they arrived, Princess Fragrance was seated upon the shoulders of Luka and Anarka Couffaine. Behind her was an army of their classmates, standing in silence and waiting for their orders. At her feet was Juleka, looking up at her and pleading. They managed to catch the end of Princess Fragrance’s declaration before Chat tackled Juleka and rolled away just as perfume was sprayed. 

Princess Fragrance screeched. “You will not get away from me, my Princess! Minions, after the mangy cat!” 

Ladybug’s eyes widened as she watched her classmates charge towards Chat and Juleka in unison. Jumping into the fray, Ladybug twirled her yoyo into a shield and yelled at Chat behind her. 

“Hurry up and get Juleka away from here, while I distract them!” 

“But, Ladybug-”

“Just go!”

Chat looked from Ladybug, who was slowly being overrun by Princess Fragrance’s minions, to Juleka in his arms. Making a decision, he carefully set her down and whispered at her to run when she was ready, before joining in the battlefield. He jumped in front of Ladybug and swung his baton, knocking out half of them. 

“Sorry, Ladybug. I’m not going to leave you alone.” 

Ladybug huffed, but didn’t have time to check on Juleka as the minions recovered and charged towards them even more aggressively. Ladybug swung her yoyo, making sure it wrapped around one of the farther lamp posts before swinging across the crowd, making sure to kick some of them down. When she landed, she searched for Princess Fragrance. 

Where could she have gone? She was here a second ago. 

She quickly scanned the area before she spotted her, racing down the bridge followed by Luka and Anarka. They were now behind the crowd that Chat Noir was still struggling against and Juleka was slowing down by the looks of it. If Ladybug didn’t hurry soon, she’d be captured next. 

Hurriedly, Ladybug swung over the crowd again, making sure to grab Chat Noir on the way. 

“Thank you, bugaboo. Now, I think it’s time to pull the ace up our sleeve, right?” 

Ladybug nodded. “Lucky Charm!”

A spool of red yarn dropped in her hands. 

“What the heck am I supposed to do with this?” Ladybug asked as she scrutinized the object. Sighing, she ran towards Juleka and Princess Fragrance, hoping to at least prevent further damage. She was hurrying so much, that she barely heard Chat shout something about fate and strings. 

With a thud, she managed to push Luka and Anarka away, before landing on her feet. Not even a second passed before Princess Fragrance kicked her in the chest and she rolled away. Luckily, Chat caught her before she fell headfirst, but she could already feel the bruises forming.

She could only watch as Princess Fragrance approached Juleka who shook in place. 

“Don’t worry, my love,” Rose said. “Nothing can tear us apart now. We will be together forever.”

Ladybug watched in horror as Princess Fragrance reached up to caress Juleka’s cheek. Her earring beeped. She had to hurry.

What was it that Chat had said? Strings and fate? 

She glanced down at the spool of yarn in her hand. 

Oh.

The red string of fate. 

Ladybug stood up and rushed in between the two girls, tying one end of the string on each of their fingers. Princess Fragrance and Juleka jerked back in surprise. 

“What is the meaning of this?”

Ladybug glanced to Juleka nervously and winked, hoping she would play along. “You’re right, Princess Fragrance! With this red string of fate, you and Juleka can now be together forever! It is said that the red string ties soulmates together in an unbreakable bond.”

Princess Fragrance squealed. “I knew it, I knew it!” 

Ladybug watched as Chat snuck behind Princess Fragrance and snatched at the perfume bottle in her belt. However, the bottle accidentally sprayed and Chat started to sing praises to Princess Fragrance.

Princess Fragrance turned around, then turned back to Ladybug scandalized. “Wait! This was a trick! You don’t think my princess and I are meant to be at all! You just wanted to take her away from me! You-!”

Before she said anything else, Ladybug had already untied Juleka from the other end and dragged Princess Fragrance closer to her. Before she could attempt anything, Ladybug spun her around and around until the yarn had effectively tied her up. 

Juleka rushed over to Princess Fragrance and grabbed the perfume bottle, giving it to Ladybug. She quickly purified it and untied Rose before enacting the Miraculous Cure. 

She knelt down beside Juleka, making sure that Rose wasn’t too disoriented from the attack. True to the Cure, everyone else was waking up from their slumber, and any of the injured were instantly healed.

However, Marinette knew that each one of them remembered; something even the Miraculous Cure couldn’t fully erase. All of them remembered; except for the victim. 

“Hey,” she said softly, brushing aside Rose’s bangs to reveal her teary eyes. “What happened? This was the third time this week.”

When Rose couldn’t do anything but sniffle and curl into Juleka’s embrace, Juleka replied, “It’s been a rough week for her. Chloe’s anger makes her more nervous than she lets on. We bumped into Lila who complimented us today and Chloe happened to be nearby and  told Rose that no one would really love her.”

Ladybug frowned. Already, she knew that no other result could’ve come from having Chloe and Lila in the same vicinity. 

She watched Juleka rub Rose’s back softly and murmur sweet words of comfort. Ladybug awkwardly patted Rose’s back twice before she stood up. Her earring beeped again, and she stood up. 

“Look, I’ve noticed that your classmates have been targeted more recently. I’ll try to see what’s going on, but my advice is to stick together. Even if people you don’t like taunt you, make sure you support each other.” 

Juleka nodded. “Thank you. We know you can help us.” 

Ladybug forced herself to smile. “Of course.”

With that, she swung away and hid in a random alley. Before she de-transformed, she sent Chat a quick message to meet up later at the Eiffel Tower. 

________________________________________________________________

When she finally returned to her room, she was greeted by a multitude of kwamis: Pollen. Trixx, Sass, Longg, and Wayzz. Each of the kwamis sat upon their customized jewelry boxes that doubled as a bed and a miraculous container. 

“Welcome home, Marinette!”

Marinette smile at them, setting down a bowl of food she had taken from the kitchen. “Hey guys. I bet you’re hungry, feel free to dig in!”

She watched as the kwamis fervently dived into the bowl, eating as much as their tiny stomachs could feel. Glancing to her closet, she could envision the other kwamis entrapped in the Miracle Box, isolated from their world. 

Marinette wasn’t too sure why, but when Master Fu gave up his guardianhip, the Miracle Box had transformed into a red and black polka-dotted egg. She hadn’t thought too much of it then, but she  later realized that the box was locked. As far as she or the kwamis knew, it was inaccessible. Marinette watched as the kwamis floated over their jewelry boxes. She sighed, feeling unprepared for the future of being a Guardian ahead of her; she still couldn’t believe that Master Fu was gone, but the future didn’t wait, and it would string her along whether she wanted it to or not.

“Are you okay, Marinette?” Tikki asked, floating closer to her owner’s face. 

She sighed again. “I’m just thinking about the Miracle Box again. I don’t know how else we can get it to open, and the only other person who would know, no longer remembers!” 

Wayzz floated next to her and gently patted her arm.  “It will all work out, Marinette. Have you tried looking through the Miracle Journal, yet?”

Marinette sighed and buried her head in her arms. “Even if I did, I don’t think I would understand a thing.”

“What do you mean?” Wayzz asked, floating to sit on Marinette’s head. “Master Fu left a translated copy for you on his tablet. He had it with him when he went to fight Hawkmoth.”

Marinette shot up and cupped Wayzz in her hands. “Wayzz, there was no tablet when we rescued Master Fu. There was no tablet in the locker either.”

The kwamis’ chatter stopped and their eyes widened.

 “Then, that means…,” Wayzz trailed off. 

Marinette heard herself whisper as the daunting thought loomed upon them:

“Hawkmoth has the tablet.”

[singofsolace]

MASTERLIST

Here is the Madam Spellman Fictober Challenge Masterlist! I decided to wait a couple of extra days to post it, in case any last-minute work got posted. Please feel free to post your work in the collection or on tumblr at any time, and I will amend this list accordingly! Also, please let me know if you participated but you don’t see your name/work on this list. It’s possible I could’ve missed some things over the month-long challenge!

WEEK ONE: First Date

This absolutely gorgeous “first date” art by @bainelland 

Fanart Description: Their first date wasn’t really a date. Or at least they didn’t plan it. One warm autumn afternoon Lilith was strolling through the streets of Greendale when she had spotted a familiar redhead, sitting alone at a table in a small cafe. Smirking to herself she made her way towards Zelda.

“You come here often?” Zelda heard a flirty voice and couldn’t help but smile. She looked up and her eyes met Lilith’s. “May I join you?”

The Fall by sweetdreamsaremadeoffish (@claire-de-macarune)

Summary: And a man looms over her. Knowing Zelda like she does, she reads the disgust and discomfort on her face, in those emerald pools. A rescue is in order.

Date with a Demoness by Saturn_Silk (@saturn-silk)

Summary: Set after part 2. Lilith takes Zelda out to dinner and a good time ensues.

just to sit outside your door by Singofsolace (@concreteangel1221)

Summary: Zelda Spellman and Mary Wardwell plan to go to dinner and a movie together, but will their nerves get the best of them? Can these two ladies put the pain and uncertainty of the past aside for long enough to enjoy their first date?

WEEK TWO: Sharing a Bed

A Little Fall of Rain by bainel ( @bainelland )

Summary: Zelda Spellman finds herself trapped in Mary Wardwell’s cottage during a storm. And she’s not afraid of storms, thank you very much.

A room for one by Saturn_Silk ( @saturn-silk )

Summary: After the Witch-History conference doesn’t go quite as planned Lilith and Zelda find themselves in an awfully small room with only one bed

in the bleak midwinter by Singofsolace ( @concreteangel1221 )

Summary: In which Mary Wardwell truly does need to make funeral arrangements, but the timing couldn’t be worse. A blizzard blows in, forcing her to take shelter in the Spellman Mortuary, with only Zelda Spellman to keep her company.

this lovely fanart by @asterleaf 

Fanart Description: Zelda gets stuck at Mary’s cottage for the night, and it turns out she’s good at reading Tarot. At least, better than Lilith was.

To Broken Women by marla_black ( @marla-black​ )

Set right after part 2, Lilith goes to the Spellmans to make some damage control. Zelda and Lilith want to discuss the future of the Church of Lilith over some scotch and the only room unoccupied is Zelda’s. They end up talking about more than just the future of their Church.

The Promise of Spring by Claraon 

They came here every year for the Spring equinox, since even before Zelda could remember, on the mountain sacred to the Coven. The earthy smell of the woods, the scratching of small animals between the leaves slowly waking up from hibernation. She had loved spotting each burgeon on the trees as a little girl, looking for the signs of life returned.

WEEK THREE: Fake Dating/Relationship

How Could I Have Known by bainel ( @bainelland​ )

Summary: Zelda Spellman, a tour guide at the Museum of Natural History in New York, finds her next-door neighbor, Mary Wardwell, absolutely irritating. However, Thanksgiving is coming, and somehow, Zelda found herself in this ridiculous situation. She needs Mary to pretend to be her girlfriend in front of her family. Will a week-long play-pretend turn into something real? Or will they return to their lives as if nothing had happened?

Samhain Kisses by Singofsolace ( @concreteangel1221​ )

Description: While celebrating Samhain with a group of covens that have declared loyalty to Lilith, Zelda is pursued doggedly by another High Priest. Lilith doesn’t take too kindly to seeing her High Priestess harassed by this man, and comes up with a lie to stop it from continuing. But will the lie turn into something more?

This lovely fanart by @asterleaf​ 

Fanart Description: Zelda and Mary get a cup of coffee at Dr. Cerberus’. When a group of parents from Baxter High wanders in, they decide to pretend to be on a date rather than engage in a conversation with them. 

WEEK FOUR: Hurt/Comfort

strange things did happen here by Singofsolace ( @concreteangel1221​ )

Summary: Late one afternoon, Mary Wardwell feels compelled to take a walk in the Greendale woods. Quite unexpectedly, she happens upon a woman who was attacked and left for dead at the foot of the Hanging Tree. But will the mysterious Zelda Spellman accept her help?

I should’ve worshipped her sooner by Saturn_Silk ( @saturn-silk​ )

Summary: The church of Lilith celebrates their 1st Samhain and Lilith feels unworthy of the coven's devotion to her. Will Zelda be able to convince her otherwise?

…………….

Many thanks to everyone who participated in this challenge! Altogether, the challenge inspired fifteen new fan-works: twelve fanfics, and three fan-arts. In total 30,105 words were written in response to these prompts. That’s pretty amazing. And a special shoutout to anyone who showed their support for this art by liking, reblogging, commenting, and leaving kudos! You were just as much a part of the challenge as the people who shared their work.

I might just have to keep making up excuses to hold other themed challenges. (Winter Holiday themed Madam Spellman Challenge, anyone...?). Cheers!

[scribir]

Self Care for NSFW Artists - A Letter to Myself

As the title suggests, I’m writing this mostly for myself hence the term nsfw, but anyone can use this I suppose. It’s just some real life tips that I’ve learned through experience and wanted to write down. Maybe it can help someone.

Let’s go...

1- Get up! It is important to not be by your desk hunched over writing or drawing for extended periods of time. Not only is it unhealthy to be sedentary for that long, it is important for the mind that you walk away from your work and maybe get a little exercise by taking a walk or going for something to eat or drink.

2- Feed and hydrate yo’ body! This point ties in with the first as artists (whether you write, craft or draw) tend to restrict themselves to their work for hours. Personally, I am very guilty of this as I can sit at my desk working for up to 18 (or more) hours, moving only when it’s absolutely necessary, only to return promptly to continue working. Food and water is forgotten and at times, many hours later, I’d realize that I didn’t even have breakfast only when a gnawing hunger threatens to kill me or my heart is racing because it was a hot day and I didn’t drink any water.

3- Eat a balanced diet! So I did say that you should feed and hydrate your body, but I know you *points dramatically* you’ll choose the fastest option which most likely would be fast food for quick calories. But remember!!! Man cannot live by fast food and NSFW Art alone! You need calories from a range of diverse foods, including meat / meat substitute protein, vegetables and some fat and fiber.

Take a multivitamin too if you’re into that. Drink clean fresh water. Eat an assortment of fruits and vegetables everyday (local so it would be cheaper). Prepare your own meals to save money and give yourself healthier options. And if you don’t have the time to prepare meals everyday, do the preparation in advance on a day when you can spare some extra time. What I do is buy sandwich bags and prepare my breakfast, depending on what it is, in advance for the entire week or month. Lunches too I make in advance.

When you make your own meals, you know exactly what’s going into your body and can avoid all the nasties (processed stuff and artificial flavorings) that can be hiding in bought meals. But if you know a local company that makes packaged foods that are healthy, then go right ahead!

Remember that eating a balanced diet that includes a sufficient amount of pesticide-free fruits and vegetables is important to keep your body strong and healthy enough so that you can keep making content.

4- Wear your damn eyeglasses (if you use those)! Personally I suck at this *puts on glasses quickly then continues to type* I would be at the computer writing / drawing for hours and remember only when my eyes start hurting :/ Don’t do that.

5- Clean your damn glasses!! Another thing I’m very guilty of. Eye glasses tend to pick up all sorts of bacteria / other microbes when you rest them down or even by simply touching them. Then you put them on your face. See what I’m talking about?? Acne party.

6- Practise Self care / Have a Self-care Ritual! Eh, so this is something I believe that a lot of people fail at. Move away from the computer / desk and go wash your face, brush + floss your teeth! Take a bath / shower daily. Try to also exfoliate your face and body routinely. Shave / trim too if you’re into that, wash your hair when it’s dirty, moisturize it and keep it up and away from your face while you’re working. This not only makes working on your projects easier but helps prevent acne from dirty hair and keeps your scalp healthy.

If you can, (these tips are for whatever your gender id is), don’t go to sleep without a night cream that’s suitable for your skin type. Wear sunscreen. Keep your hair wrapped with a silk / satin scarf whenever you lie down to avoid split ends, dryness and breakage, wash your pillowcases regularly and use a silk / satin tie when putting your hair up. Also, get a routine trim to manage split ends and hair length. Oh and most importantly, use moisturizers, shower products and treatments FOR YOUR SKIN TYPE. You won’t believe the difference that makes.

Self care also involves mental health and that’s very critical for artists and everyone tbh. Remember to follow any protocol given to you by your healthcare provider and not to neglect it because you were busy cREatiNG ConTEnt *I’m looking at you* Get enough sleep, eat healthy, rest whenever necessary and try to include some meditation and light exercise in the form of yoga / walking/ stretching / pilates. All this is good for the mind. I can go on and on about self care but let’s stop here please.

7- Clean Your Room! Meh. I hate this one the most because I hate folding laundry, especially when I want to do something creative, but sometimes you just need to stop working and do it. Get up and do your chores. Doing them regularly, means  that your general environment where you work will always be healthy for your mind, body and spirit and will be conducive to you formulating plots for your art and writing projects! Please leave the vision of the artist (this includes writers) in a dark, dusty room piled high with books, dirty + clean unsorted laundry behind T_T

8- Socialize! EHHHHH....NANI?! Ugh I hate this, but socializing is important for your physical and mental health. I’m an introvert by nature (shoutout to my fellow introverts) and sometimes go to extreme lengths to avoid people but socializing doesn’t mean that you have to go to a big party (an introvert’s nightmare) but simply remembering to respond to your social messages, calling a friend or even taking your mom and or dad out / going to visit them can work.

I hate to admit it but human connection is important (unless you’re a hermit on a mountain or a misanthrope). And look at it this way...interacting with real people is important for your craft! You can read books, look at videos / tutorials to learn about human interaction, but nothing replaces the story a friend would tell you about their day while drunk at 2am or the hot date they had last night, a genuine smile from a loved one, a quirky laugh or the natural movement of people who are unaware that they’re being observed - all things that can help to spark ideas that you can use for the characters in your writing and art. By hanging out with real people and seeing how they move and talk, you tend to create more genuine, believable characters that the people who use your content can identify with.

I should say too that you don’t have to interact with people directly all the time but you can just sit in a coffee shop, walk around the city, sit in the library or travel on the bus (or other public transportation). Just listen and watch and you will be privy to all sorts of gems from real people with real lives, victories and problems that can be used for character study.

9- DON’T Take Yourself Too Seriously! / Stop doubting your talent! Okay, so this one is a work in progress for a lot of people. Feelings of insecurity when it comes to your craft can attack at anytime. You’re steadily progressing but then you look at other people’s work and think that you’re absolute crap. You think their prose and exposition is great, that their art / writing style is awesome and that you’d never be as good as they are within your lifetime because you don’t have as many kudos, favorites, bookmarks or likes / reblogs as they do.

I have one piece of advice for this problem and that’s to MIND YO’ DAMN BUSINESS. This may sound harsh but it’s critical for survival in the creative world. When you’re busy feeling shitty and insecure about someone else’s work, they’re busy practising hard and getting better while you’re busy hampering your own progress. Look at their work, admire it, send that fellow artist a like / comment then give a reblog and let awesome work of art MOTIVATE you to keep working hard on your craft. You can only get better through practice and and you’re only wasting time by doubting yourself / feeling insecure / feeling jealous because of other’s progress.

I should also say that you may see someone’s wonderful writing or art but you don’t know how many hours and effort they may be putting into their craft. Talent is a wonderful thing to have, but it is a tool that needs to be sharpened every single day. A lot of people don’t like to admit it, but getting to expert level with anything takes an insane amount of practice. When you’re sleeping, you have no idea what those talented people are doing in order to get better. You don’t see the moments where they’re falling asleep on themselves while they’re writing / drawing, you don’t see the amount of horrible drafts they churned out before they got “good” and you have no idea that they too feel like they still need to improve as they continue to work hard.

So be grateful for all the kudos, likes, reblogs or favorites you get but don’t let that define you. Keep moving forward. Keep grinding. I believe in you.

10- Make time for Reflection! This may seem biased (because...introvert...), but time spent alone is important. Sure, you spend a lot of time alone writing, drawing, creating, but how much of that time is truly alone and without you doing work?? I personally believe that sometimes one needs to just go off to a quiet place to just think. Thinking about life, sorting the past, the present and the future helps to condition and exercise the mind. And a healthy mind makes for a good, capable artist that doesn’t become consumed and destroyed by their craft.

In this respect, I should also say that having Affirmations and doing Meditation is very important. Personally, I have a pinterest board that I use for that purpose and also a book with meditative quotes, passages etc that I try to read every morning.

11- Make time for Recreation: Whether it is watching your favorite movie, playing a game, watching anime, reading a book or  comic, playing a board game or hanging out with friends, make sure to schedule recreational activities that take you away from your desk and work these into your routine. This, like Reflection, will help to keep your mind conditioned and also get you out of artist’s block. It also helps to generate ideas since personally I find that a good movie, action scene or well-crafted plot sends my mind into overdrive and I end up going back to write lol.

12- Organization! Having things organized, whether irl or just your WIPs (through journaling, properly saving / titling files etc) will keep you sane and save time. Believe me!

13 - Support Network! This is self explanatory but having at least one person who is genuine about liking your work and who is like your personal cheerleader is critical. Also, being your own cheer team is important! Don’t depend too heavily on others; love yourself and your work!

14 - Negative Environments: I can go on an on about this as well, but yeah...being in a toxic situation whether it is at home, school, the workplace, a relationship or even one of your own creation is very very bad for your mental health and if it’s bad for your mental health it is bad for your art. Personally, negative situations help push me forward with my writing as I create a lot of vent stuff as a result but over time it is not healthy. It can mess with your head.

Do whatever you can to get out of your situation or if you can’t, then lay the foundations (saving money etc) to get out eventually. And while you’re unable to get out, remember to practise all the tips I mentioned before. Also, talk to a professional or even someone you can trust.

I think I’ll stop here as this post is getting quite long ^^; Anyways, I hope that my blabbering has managed to help someone as I was somehow unconsciously motivated to write and post this. If anyone wants to add anything, please do!

[imaginedmelody]

Fandom things that are making me happy tonight:

1) For some reason, one of my Foxhole Court Andreil fics, “A Little Unwell,” has been exponentially increasing in reader traffic since the beginning of this week (my daily kudos bulletin from AO3 said it got like 14 kudos since yesterday). It’s been up for 6 months now, so it’s not exactly the first thing that comes up in a search anymore; I’m wondering if maybe someone recced it or is passing it around to their friends or something?? Either way, it’s lovely to see it getting attention.

2) My readership for “From God Above, to the One I Love” is very small, but I have 2 or 3 people who always unfailingly leave nice comments on every chapter I post. It makes me want to update more, because getting those comments absolutely makes my day.

3) As you saw in my reblog yesterday, the lovely @slimwhistler gave a shoutout to some of us fic writers in the Black Sails fandom, which was lovely because my sole fic effort for that series (”The Unquiet Grave”) is a less-noticed chapter in my fic writing, but one that I really like. Guys, shouting out a fic writer’s less-recognized stories is such a compliment. Really.

So yeah. I’ve had a lot of really nice support from my fandoms recently. You all are great. Thank you. <3

[breeeliss]

Alrighty, so if you haven’t heard from July 2nd until July 15th, people from the fandom will be participating in Miraculous Content Creator Blackout ( @miraculousblackout ) in order to protest the rampant art theft that has been affecting many creators in the fandom. In essence, people are committing to pausing content creation, freezing any ML related blogging, and spreading information about art theft. 

Now, for the sake of transparency, I will say that I am personally choosing not to halt my blog and will continue to post my writing. This is a personal decision and is in no way meant to delegitimize the protest. Many of you follow me for my writing, and I do not wish to deprive you all of that. I also want to continue to support ML artists and writers by continuing to reblog their work.

However!! I do want to say something about content theft and what can be done to prevent it. 

Etiquette

There’s really murky legalities around fanart/derivative works and copyright claims over the owners of the characters depicted. To save the legal jargon, I feel like this boils down very easily to a certain standard of respect and etiquette for people who put labor into creating any form of content. 

You do not have any right to decide how art/writing is used if you do not own it/did not create it. Very simple. Not yours? You don’t have a right to decide how it’s used. That right belongs entirely to an artist. This means that an artist can decide how they wish for you to interact with their creations, and it is basic etiquette and decency to respect those wishes. 

Acceptable forms of interaction usually involve interacting with the original post. So liking/reblogging/retweeting/etc. the original post, leaving comments, sending the artist messages about the post, etc. are great ways of appreciating art. It gets the artists hits and notes and it’s a great way to ensure they’re getting credit for their work. 

Now if you want to post art somewhere else, put it in a video, translate a fic you found, etc., always ask the artist for permission first just to be safe. It’s best to ask and get permission rather than assume it’s okay and upset an artist. Now if an artist says no, your job is to respect that decision and interact with their art in the way they’re comfortable with. If you’re thinking of interacting with an artist’s work in a way that they have not explicitly approved of, always always always ask to be sure. 

This also goes for tracing, taking another person’s art and putting it into your own creation, slapping art on merchandise without the artist’s permission, etc. Don’t do it without express permission. 

If ever you find yourself asking, “but I said it’s not mine!,” “I’m giving publicity to the artist,” “it’s art on the Internet I can do what I want,” refer to the bolded text: you do not have any right to decide how art/writing is used if you do not own it/did not create it.

What do I do if I’ve found stolen/reposted art?

First, make sure that it is indeed stolen/reposted. Good way to tell is to check watermarks, check posts, and check tags. A very quick and easy way to make sure the poster of the art is actually the artist is to check the art for watermarks and see if it matches the username of the poster. Now this often isn’t ironclad, so another good way to check is to read the posts of the original work. If you see someone saying “credits to the artist,” “look at this pretty art I found,” etc. you can be sure it’s a reposting. Checking the tags is another good method that I’ve used. A lot of artists tend to tag their art with things like #mine, #myart, etc. and that’s a good way to tell if the post is original. 

Now, if you can’t figure out who the artist is or you’re not sure if this is stolen/reposted, another good method is doing a reverse image search on Google. Google allows you to search by image rather than keywords and will show you every website in which the image appears. This is usually a very good way to try and see not only where else this image appears, but where it originated from. This is also good for people who find art randomly on Google and want to find the original artist to ask them permission to use their art. 

If you think art you’ve seen is stolen/reposted, it’s best to notify the artist right away before taking any action on their behalf. Simply sending them a link to what you think may be reposted art is often the best thing to do so that they’re aware and they can proceed from there. Be very careful about sending reports on behalf of others until you’re positive that is the method they wish to proceed with. If you know for sure that the artist does not condone reposting, you could report art “on the behalf of the artist.” 

Now, not only is it very possible that a thief/reposter will refuse to take down the stolen art, but it also happens quite often if the constant art theft posts made by fandom artists wasn’t enough of a hint. If talking to the thief/reposter first doesn’t work, that’s where you report the post/user. 

So how do I report stolen/reposted art?

@wintermoth has this really amazing comprehensive guide for artists that want to report their stolen/reposted art that you can find right here. As mentioned before, if you are not the artist of the stolen art, it’s usually best to notify the artist first and make sure to submit reports “on the behalf of the artist” if you’re 100% sure they do not condone that method of theft/reposting and are fine with fans reporting on their behalf. 

What about fics?

Same policies apply. If you want to translate a fic or throw it up on another website (such as Wattpad) that is something you need to ask the writer first and give them the proper credits. When it comes to fanfiction, the best thing you can do for a writer is reblog, like, comment, bookmark, gives kudos, and circulate links to the original piece. Anything past that needs the express permission of the writer. I don’t think I need to say that outright plagiarism of fics is nothing short of theft. 

This also goes for fandubs, using fics in comics, etc. Ask the writer! Sometimes we’re happy to let you dub over our work, translate it, and put our fics in comics so long as you let us know, credit us, and link back to our original writing. If a writer happens to not be okay with that under any circumstances, that is something that you need to respect. Once more:  you do not have any right to decide how art/writing is used if you do not own it/did not create it.

When it comes to reporting fics, you’re likely going to be doing that either on AO3, Fanfiction.net, Tumblr, or Wattpad. 

AO3: you can use this Report Abuse Form to file a complaint if you think that your writing has been plagiarized. This usually works for unauthorized posting of your fics and outright stealing your fics. Have links available and be as specific as you can in explaining what sort of offense was committed. 

Fanfiction.net: you can visit their Support page and email their support team with a complaint about abuse by putting the word “abuse” somewhere in the subject of the email. Again, provide as many links as you can and be thorough in your explanation (typically it suffices to say that you believe your story has been plagiarized or resposted without your permission)

Wattpad: you can visit their page on How to Report a Story. Essentially what you’ll want to do is go to the description of the story that you’re reporting and find the “Report this Story” link on the sidebar on your right hand side. When you reach the portion where it asks you to choose the issue you’re having, you’ll select “I have a Copyright violation” and follow the instructions that follow.

Keep in mind that with Wattpad, you have to have an account to see the stories on Wattpad and only the original author can submit a report. So make sure that you notify the original author of the fic if you happen to see their stolen fics on Wattpad. 

Tumblr: similar to stolen/reposted art, you can file a Misattribution/Non-Attribution Abuse Report through Tumblr’s Abuse Page. They make it very easy and simply ask you to provide the link to the stolen fic and the original fic in order to submit the abuse report. 

Again, please visit @miraculousblackout for more information about the blackout. Click these links if you need more Info or want to make a post and need to use Graphics (shoutout to @squirrellygirlart for the one I used above). If you’re an Artist or a Writer and you want to get involved, also check out those links. 

[sugarplum-senpai]

Countdown (announcement)…

After working on it for months, Sparrow Revised finally goes online with its first chapter tomorrow. 

And honestly? I can’t wait to share it with you folks!

Once concluded, the fic will be about twice as long as its prior version, and I so much hope you will like it even more with all the additional scenes and new details I included. I plan on uploading one chapter per week, so it will be a long ride with its 29 parts. But I hope it will be an exciting one for you—just as much as writing has been for me. 

I’m still working on the second half, including a detail here, changing the wording there, and adding sensorial stuff and character depth, so it will be more enjoyable for you to read. Thank you, at this point, for each and every single one of you who shared your thoughts about the first edition with me, who asked me stuff, pointed things out, and told me in the comments what they enjoyed, why, and what you missed. It helped me immensely with adjustments in this revision, and hopefully will make the longer version even more enjoyable than its ‘draft’. So a shoutout to some absolutely wonderful people, who’ve been leaving thorough, insightful comments, partly even on every single chapter, or reached out to me in private to talk about my story: @raindrop-rouge, @appleapplepeach, @smexyjun, @chromehoplite​, @minervawhitewolf, @smol-bokuto​, @fourletterwordsstartingwithl​, @sirelo​, @monsoondownpour, @ittybittyteapot and so many more. You guys are brilliant! Thank you for making the Ereri corner such a wonderful place to write for!

Also, thanks so much to everyone who has been reaching out to me concerning Nuthatch. Its final chapter will go online tomorrow too to round things up for its sequel. I can’t tell you how happy I am for every bit of Kudos, comment, feedback, message, and reblog I received so far. They mean the world to me! 

Thank you so much for sharing my brainchild with the fandom, for spreading the word, and for telling me your thoughts. You are wonderful! 

Have a lovely Sunday and my hugs. <3 

One more day! Whohooo!

[sugarplum-senpai]

Thank you for reading

Guys… <3 I have to get this off my chest since I just can’t keep it in any longer. So please excuse this shoutout post to people who are being amazing. 

I know I’ve been a bit overly productive (yet again) with writing and uploading fics recently. It’s somehow how I always seem to end up writing: either all at once or nothing at all is coming out. Writing is a tide for me and yes, I know, lately it’s been a flood. I’ve been waiting for it for weeks—longer even, months—complaining crankily to lots of people about not knowing what words even are anymore. In between it truly felt like I couldn’t write anything anymore, but I kept on hoping the words would come back. They luckily did…as expected/hoped for.

What I did not expect though is your amazing feedback that has reached me in so various way. 

There are readers who reblog my stories on here, spreading the fandom love and this is such a wonderful and important thing. Thank you for recommending my fics by hitting that rebloob button! And I see your tags…they make me so happy! 

There are readers who leave bookmarks with lovely notes on AO3. Thank you, you wonderful people! I see your notes. I read them. I embrace them. I treasure them all! Every. Single. One!

There are some wonderful readers out there, who take their time to leave a comment. There are those that tell me what exactly it is they liked and assure me in what I intended worked, which I wouldn’t know otherwise. There are those who simply leave a heart or a simple “amazing” and thank you so much for doing so! I know commenting is so hard sometimes. There are readers who scream in the comment section, telling me they can’t comment any longer because they read through my collection and the fanfic daze has set in. You wonderful people. Thank you for reading my stuff (that I write in my free time with no clue if it will be any good) until it makes you dizzy. Please take good care of yourself and eat and drink in-between. Maybe something with sugar…I know that fangirl feeling that keeps you up way too long and gives you a nasty fanfic hangover on the next day. I’ve been there myself more often than it must be healthy. :P Thank you for telling me I could give you one myself, you’ve got no idea what a huge compliment this is to me!

Then there are those that not only comment, but even answer back to my replies and you…you are a blessing! THANK YOU! Thank you for whole conversations about Levi and Eren and writing and sensibly dissecting writing styles and talking about AU verses canonverse stories. 

There are those of you who don’t comment on AO3 but message me up here and thank you so much for this as well. Some of you told me what my writing does to you, what it makes you feel and some of you even told me some pretty personal stuff that made me cry and laugh and beam, because you told me you love my writing and what it caused inside of you. I still am trying to process everything I heard and the fact that my writing could touch you. 

There are those who end up talking with me about stories or books in general, who I have learnt so much from and who are simply amazing by sharing a passion, but who on top of that are also absolutely incredible people. 

There are my beta readers and friends and mutuals who listen to me complain and listen to my enthusiasm and somehow seem to love me for both? I don’t know how you guys do it, but thank you! My stories wouldn’t be the same without your incredible support and your wonderful beta sparkles. 

Writing fanfic is a hobby to me. It is something I do in my free time, to challenge myself with the English language (which is not my mother language) and to give the two characters I love a story that makes me happy. You readers do not have to leave a comment, to share my stuff, to like it, to leave kudos or hearts on here, to go further in your feedback than a quick “<3”, are not bound to do any of if. But thank you so much to those who do because it means a lot! You keep me motivated. You keep me going. You make me so incredibly freaking happy! To know/hear/read that my words can touch something inside of you, no matter how small or big or in how many words you do so, is such a wonderful thing. Such a huge compliment!

And I can’t thank any of you nearly enough. But I will try. And here it goes. THANK YOU!

@raindrop-rouge, @erenbaegerr, @chiruchill, @fourletterwordsstartingwithl, @perksofbeingawaifu, @appleapplepeach, @synstruck, @mongoose-bite, @monsoondownpour, @christmasrivers, @glassesgirl0401, @cloudflowerkami, @smol-bokuto, @milleandra-nebula, @nywata, @dreamxxdream, @sirelo, @bfketh, @lavenderhedgie, @strangie, @erwin-smith, @smexyjun, @airisu7425, @levi-snk, @anemone-blu, @ittybittyteapot, … and so many more I can’t find here. I hope none of you feels offended(/dragged into the light) by appearing on this list. It’s why I added the “read more cut”. Feel free to message me if your name on this list makes you feel uncomfortable, but I wanted to let you know how much your support means to me. <3

Thank you, you wonderful people! You are amazing!

I love you!