#that and I don't think it'd work well as a piece of written media

[powerbrokerreadalong]

Tumblr Should Read the Power Broker

So 99 Percent Invisible is a podcast by Roman Mars.  It talks about the design of everyday things, like postage stamps and walking trails and gas ranges. It's the sort of stories that tumblr likes. You can check out the podcast here. Roman Mars also has a thing about flags, as you can see here:

But I'm not really here to talk about why you should listen to 99 Percent Invisible in general (though hey, I like it).  I'm here because I've failed after a decade to leave this website. Also, 99 Percent Invisible is reading The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York and you, tumblr, should join the readalong.

Okay. What is The Power Broker? It's a 1,336 page biography of Robert Moses by Robert A. Caro.

Why am I suggesting that Tumblr read The Power Broker?

You all would love to hate the subject.

I'm sure some of you already do! Robert Moses stands for bureaucratic power and the midcentury city planning that prioritized cars over people. He was never elected to any office but was able to shape one of the largest cities in the world. And Robert Caro, the author, carefully notes how he was able to amass power. Also, he hated Robert Moses. You can think of it as an extremely long and detailed call out post. On that note.

It's extremely well researched.

Look. I think, after James Somerton and the scourge of AI printed materials, there's a lot of people that are feeling lied to. We want to see people do the work.The research.The footnotes. We want someone to be willing to turn over every rock, and spend years on a single project. Robert Caro is the author we need right now. He is thorough. He is willing to work diligently, reading every memo, talking to everyone involved who would talk to him. And by God, there will be footnotes.

Tumblr is the land of hyperfixation

The main stopping point for The Power Broker is that it's long. So? That's like 705,000 words. I know at least some of you monsterfuckers have written that many words in a year and read them in a weekend. And you'd be reading it along with other people, so there'd be some sort of accountability. If there was ever a social media website where I think people would be willing to go down a very deep and detailed rabbit hole on civil engineering, it would be Tumblr. Also maybe Metafilter. They've probably already read The Power Broker, though. 

It'd be funny

Being really into The Power Broker is a very dad thing to do. Getting all of the (gender neutral) Tumblr girlies into The Power Broker and giving it a very Tumblr treatment would be very entertaining. Transmascs, you can think of being into the Power Broker as a non-toxic way to affirm your masculinity. Haven't you ever wanted to commit to the bit so hard that you end up reading a seminal piece of midcentury American nonfiction? Now's your chance.

Okay, you've convinced me.  What do I do?

Acquire the Power Broker. Honestly, I'd probably just check your local used book store. I don't think it ever came out in ebook.

Read the Power Broker at your own pace. I'm not your real dad.

Listen along to whatever 99 Percent Invisible has cooked up.  I have no idea what they're planning. I'm not affiliated with them in any way. But they do have an episode up already.

Profit?  IDK.  If you feel like posting, tag it correctly and I might reblog.

[sightofsea]

20 questions for fic writers

I got tagged by @leonardcohenofficial!!

I'm gonna tag @fieryphrazes / @moonyinpisces / @hyruling / anyone else who wants to do this!

1.How many works do you have on Ao3? I have fifteen!!!

2. What's your total Ao3 word count? 377,875 words which is. A lot! Wow!

3. What fandoms do you write for? across ao3 and ffnet I've written for doctor who, good omens, mash, it's always sunny, pacific rim, our flag means death, supernatural, the big bang theory, phantom, and atla.

4. What are your top five fics by kudos? take the bones, begin anew / small infinities and all that / each flower has wept and bowed towards the east / affection and other cravings / all you left me was a pearl

5. Do you respond to comments? at the beginning of a fic/if there aren't too many comments, then yes! and if someone has something particularly insightful say or they have a question. after that it sort of feels equivalent to writing thank you cards, and I feel like responding with small platitudes is sort of an empty gesture.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? that depends! a lot of people consider the end of small infinities angsty, but I see it more as bittersweet. out of my complete works, I think "a sadness runs through him" is just a complete angst fest. my old doctor who oc fic that will sadly never be complete also had kind of an angsty ending which can be delved further into here.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? most of my fics end with two people living happily near some water but I think "stories for other people" thematically has the happiest ending

8. Do you get hate on fics? not really! maybe one or two weird comments on "all you left me was a pearl" for stede's wooing technique, and then I know a lot of people don't like the whole turned human thing for small infinities, but I feel like that's more preference than hate

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? yeah! not pwp but I love a good sex scene and exploring the inner workings of desire

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? very long ago on a different platform I wrote a danny phantom and atla crossover that was never completed, and also in said doctor who oc fanfiction there was a Sherlock crossover. I don't think I'd write any crossover fic in the future unless it was a universe merger or perhaps a multiple versions of canon meshing sort of thing.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen? not that I know of!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? I think?? small infinities got translated?? maybe???

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? nope! it'd be Shrimpteresting to try it out, with someone I respected and knew to be consistent.

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? hard to say!!! I think anything I've written for is an all-time favorite. maybe johnlock??? since it re-wrote my brain a bit at the tender age of 14?

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? my johnlock magnum opus is always rotating in my mind but the way it's unraveling I doubt I'll be able to put it to paper successfully; I really really wanna finish my it's always sunny fic also bc I have all the plot points mapped out, but I sort of wrote myself into a corner on accident. both of these could be solved if I just sat down and watched enough of either show to pickle my brain in them again, but the mood hasn't come to me yet.

16. What are your writing strengths? i think said brain-pickling is one: I think I try my best to replicate the tone of whatever media I'm writing for and character voice. I feel like I do pretty well with dialogue. I think I have a good sense of humor and teasing out themes to work with. I tend to write a bunch of unconnected scenes until a common thread emerges, and I think I'm good at piecing them together in a way that makes sense.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? like maddie said before me, I also don't write linearly, and so half the struggle with my writing is figuring out how to create actual plot out of a bunch of vibes-based scenes. i'm also not consistent; I have to be in a certain mood to write. i'm extremely fickle. I tend to stick to certain formulas/themes and should try to branch out more. I'm horrible at describing action, and so sex scenes of mine can be a real slog, I think. i use the em dash far too much.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I think it can be done well, but can sometimes hinder the reader and often can be mistranslated. If I'm writing in another language it has to be phrases I'm familiar with enough to have a go on my own. I usually end up doing a lot of research.

(Side note, just while we're on the topic: I think when people write for sign language they don't include any of the physicality of it, which is a detriment to core of the language, and also ignore how blunt it is, which tends to annoy me. People tend to treat it as English+ instead of a whole other language that differs greatly even between English speaking countries and don't put the research in that they would for other languages. I'm definitely not an expert--I'm not deaf/hoh, I only use a little bit when my jaw acts up, but it really pisses me off lol.)

19. First fandom you wrote for? I wrote a big bang theory fanfiction when I was 14 and none of you will ever find it and I stand by my actions

20. Favorite fic you’ve written? all you left me was a pearl, only because it's the most fun I've ever had writing something and also the horniest thing I've written. which isn't saying much, but I take pride in it.

[genshinconfessions]

"Actually, Nahida only takes a smaller form because she's the youngest archon--"

So you're telling me she identifies most with a child body.

"Well, no, see she's just short-"

But you just related her form to her age and how she percieves her age

"Yeah, but she's so mature-"

Because of the trauma. Literally as a result of her trauma. Maybe she could've aged differently and chosen her form as such should she have been given a proper upbringing, but that doesn't change the fact that as of now she Views herself as a Child and Projects The Body Of One.

---- I'm sorry, I can't - with Sigewinne being revealed, I've been seeing more shit sexualizing children and I'm Tired. Lets just put it to rest, okay? Tall body models? Typically adults, no exceptions come to mind. Medium body models? Some young adults and some teenagers.

But characters with the Smallest Model? It's not just short. Look at their proportions. If they were just short, they'd still have similar proportions to the previous models, but they don't. Their heads are largened with softened features and their body shape matches other child models in the game. An argument for body type also doesn't work given Genshin isn't exactly inclusive and such logic would only apply to one of the three model categories. They are children. Stop fucking around with your "AcTUaLly" - It doesn't matter. You are attracted to CHILDREN and need HELP. If not help, then to be on a list. Either check yourself and improve, or at least quit making excuses so the rest of us can ignore you as we so please whilst also redirecting younger members of the community.

Not to mention, those that plea and cry that their "waifus" aren't actually children and are just short adults, typically don't have that reflect in their content created and consumed. Maybe I'd take y'all a little more at face value if y'all actually y'know, drew and wrote what you supposedly believe. Hell, it'd still be a problem if it were Jean or Lisa being sexualized, but drawn and written blatantly as children.

Also, anyone that may want to say "oh, you don't believe in short people" - I DO. I AM a short person. A short asian person who has been infantalized and not treated as an adult. But I have also been a child who was sexualized. And now both intermingle in my life. I am sick and tired of it all. It's all just shitty excuses. Thirst after literally anything else. Work out whatever you have going on with consenting adults instead of projecting it onto public media that has an audience of varying ages Including Minors. Additionally; Venting, coping, and exploring darker topics via fiction is NOT the same as GLORIFYING and INDULGING. That line should be Very Distinct.

(one last point: some people say characters like Dori and Sigewinne are a salesperson and nurse respectively, adult professions, yeah? Well friendly reminder, Barbara is ALSO a nurse. Fischl is an adventurer, and she's no older than 16. We are going by FANTASY LOGIC in which children can wield weapons and explore nations with little to no supervision! The given profession of any character as well as their attire means nothing in that kind of world.)

i'm sorry you've had to go through such things, anon :///

but i agree with you; it's a problem that definitely extends outside of genshin but for some reason, ppl seem so desensitized to it and shrug it off as 'oh waifu go brrrr' which is quite irresponsible imo

i'm a big proponent of 'fiction is fiction and you can think whatever you want as long as it doesn't harm anyone', but in this case, these things DO harm ppl; they harm all the very young children who play genshin and partake in fandom discussions

it's very important for everyone to realize that even if a piece of media is fictional and thinking/saying/doing certain things won't hurt the characters, your actions will absolutely set an example in real life, very possibly harming the younger members of the fandom

the line is quite gray sometimes, in fandom circles, and it might be hard to tell what's 'okay' and what's 'not okay', but i think most ppl have a good sense of what's simply enjoying a character vs sexualizing them

and hence, it becomes our responsibility to call out the things that are disturbing and potentially harmful. even if the original person who did those things won't change, you've at least spread awareness to others and let them know that [whatever the thing was] is unacceptable

katheryne from liyue

[americanphysco]

I'm sure you've said something about it already when the news first dropped but now that an episode is out I just HAVE to know what ur take on the interview w a vampire show is. do I need to hate it like the movie because I trust ur opinion or are u like. neutral. do u think you'll watch it? you're the leading authority on this To Me

okay first off hii tee I'm sorry I've been such an offline blogger recently I've just been working sooooo much 😔. how're you!! how've you been!

but as for the iwtv show. it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. honestly, as somebody who desperately wants more queer vampire media, it pisses me off that they've decided to make a show based off a violently racist (and poorly written) film rather than create a new and interesting story about complex queer characters of color. it feels like they're trying to sweep all the "questionable/problematic" elements of the original under the rug, and I know that this show will only further cement iwtv's role as """""iconic queer cinema"""""", which is extremely upsetting to me. the film's managed to remain a cultural juggernaut for so long with little to no criticism despite being drenched in a predatory portrayal of queerness, anti-blackness, and pedophilia, and I know that the show having interracial mlm main characters will only help white queer fans of the film to defend it and the harm its done. and, while I'm not sure who is apart of the writing team, it doesn't sit right with me that the showrunner is not a person of color. like. it'd be one thing if a queer person of color wanted to reclaim iwtv and reinvent it as a piece of media they could see themselves in, but that's clearly not the case seeing as the showrunner is a white man. so it makes things even worse for me. idk. I have no doubt that the show is well done, but I just can't see myself watching it because I'd be unable to distance it from the abhorrent movie its connected to. I have some more thoughts on the differences between what I know about the show and the movie, but I'll spare you from those because they're less serious than things like the inherent racism of the source material. I will say though I'm nervous for how claudia is going to be portrayed, seeing as she appears to be older than she is in the film (and god knows that the movie had an awful time depicting her character and her relationship w louie) :/ if you watch it pls lmk your thoughts on it. but I don't think I'll ever bring myself to sit through it.

[scribblewriting65]

I posted 322 times in 2022

6 posts created (2%)

316 posts reblogged (98%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@smallpwbbles

@moringmark

@thefloatingstone

@xxtc-96xx

I tagged 72 of my posts in 2022

#the owl house - 38 posts

#the owl house spoilers - 21 posts

#toh spoilers - 11 posts

#sonic the hedgehog - 8 posts

#scribblewriting65 - 7 posts

#sonic movie - 7 posts

#rwby - 5 posts

#archive of our own - 4 posts

#the collector - 2 posts

#rise of the tmnt - 2 posts

Longest Tag: 23 characters

#hunter the golden guard

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Hey guys, here's my next work: An original story called Overqualified! Sorry I haven't posted in so long, I'm going through burnout right now (it's not fun). Still, I hope that at least this piece's length can make up for my absence, and I hope to be consistently writing again soon. Thanks for sticking around, and I hope you enjoy!

0 notes - Posted April 10, 2022

#4

Hey guys! Here's a sequel to Leaving the Den! I thought it'd be interesting to see what Luz's crew could get into before Season 3. Sorry for having this one be a little late, this piece took a while and I'm likely still working through some burnout (especially with things like a soon approaching new job and moving).

Chapter 4 was inspired by @moringmark and their great work with Owl House on here. It’s inspired by their idea that post Season 2, the Boiling Isles essentially become a Mad Max-style wasteland, with survivors driving around in big rigs to find other people and avoid the Collector. Thank you Mark for the inspiration if you ever see this!

Lastly, I just wanted to say that burnout/motivation to actually START writing is still a struggle, but hopefully, I'll get past it eventually. With that in mind, I don't want to give a SPECIFIC date for my next story, but rest assured that I'm not leaving writing anytime soon. It may just be a while before I post another story, with the next one likely being for a fandom I've never written for before. I hope you look forward to that. Tell me what you thought of this story in the comments, and have a good day!

1 note - Posted September 19, 2022

#3

2 Scribble story posts at once???

In all seriousness, Here's another piece to my Owl House/Shadows collection! I wrote this in about a day after being super inspired by King's Tide and just had to get it out. Tell me what you think, and I hope you enjoy the angst!

One last thing: Since I’m posting these two stories so close together, I’m rewarding myself with an additional month to my self-imposed deadline. So instead of 2 months and a week bringing the next story to August 13th, the next one will be out before September 13th. Hope you look forward to what’s next!

3 notes - Posted June 6, 2022

#2

Hey guys! Here's my latest work: A continuation of my Owls and Wolves Owl House/Shadows crossover named Friends and Heroes! There'll be more canon divergence in this fic than usual because I've had this story cooking for months; before we even heard anything about Season 2B. Burnout isn't fun.

Nevertheless, please leave a comment on what you think, and I hope you enjoy!

3 notes - Posted June 6, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

Owl Gushing

Can I just say? I love the Owl House with all my heart.

“And the sky is blue, Scribble, so what?”

So that means I get to gush about a natural beauty as much as I damn well please, and I’m gonna do so now.

When I first picked up the show, I didn’t expect too much from it. Having never been truly attached to Disney properties before then. Yeah, I liked shows like Phineas and Ferb, and Gravity Falls or the movies were always around in my media feed, but I never paid much hardcore attention to them, so I thought Owl House would just be a nice time killer while I was living with my sister during the worst of Covid. “Oh look, another story of a normal person being brought to a supernatural world. I’m gonna remember and love this beyond the next hour.”

Um, yeah, I will. Forever.

The Owl House, in my eyes, is not only the best thing on Disney’s library (more on that later), but it’s one of the best stories EVER. Even freaking Avatar: The Last Airbender, one of my first true cartoon loves, sweats when I mention Owl House. Avatar is certainly great, but I always willingly skip the Ember Island Players episode because it’s just embarrassing/cringy, and it hardly contributes to the show at large. None of Owl House’s episodes have done that, and I strongly doubt they will.

And just what makes this story so different from the others?

See the full post

8 notes - Posted May 22, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

[localrobosexual]

🌻

OOF HEY I GOTTA SPILL THIS TO SOMEONE SOMEHOW SOMEWAY BC IF I DON’T I FEEL LIKE IM GONNA GO NUTS AAAAA

I’m like,, , , lowkey considering shipping Soundwave and Shockwave. And like. Making that A Thing. But I’m not sure about it yet. I know wavewave is a pretty popular ship as far as TFs is concerned, and while I admit it’s pretty cute (esp within G1 omg), do I wanna bring that over to my ocs?? I’m really unsure, and very torn about it. I’ve never done this before, I’ve never paired any of my ocs together in the past, and I don’t know how I feel just yet about suddenly realizing I have this kind of power omg omg omg

The main driving force for this idea came from an amv I wanna make to this one part in Aishite Aishite Aishite (That Part y’know the one everyone uses for amvs like that gshgdndns). It’d be about an experimental AU in their shared story where at one point Shockwave would develop feelings for Soundwave, but they’d be unrequited, and the amv would kinda play that whole thing out. But the more I thought about the whole concept, the more ideas I’d get. I have another REALLY GOOD amv I wanna make to Aurora Borealis, another to Decoy World, and another to Hours, and yet another map-inspired one to this one part in Attention, a couple animation memes, and I even have a really nice anGSTY SAD AU I made up with a pal on discord at one in the morning (we call it the Crystal Death AU and it has to do with disquette-prone diseases, and it was all inspired by crystal gore artwork we were sharing at the time. If u wanna hear about that lemme know I’d be more than happy to explain bc I’m super into the idea?? I still haven’t drawn anything for it yet but I very much want to sometime HA)

like on one hand I keep finding myself coming up with all these cool amvs and story ideas centered around them being together, or having more significance because of that, but at the same time I’m hesitant about really pursuing it. So I’m not sure. Maybe once I make that Aishite amv and get some more feedback on the concept I’ll be able to make a decision, but for now, it’s not canon.

There’s a lot of concepts and ideas I have and are currently developing that have to do with their lore that I haven’t really talked about anywhere actually?? Mostly because 1.) there’s three more characters that are in it that I don’t have yet bc they’re all a part of closed species so like. I’m technically Not Allowed to have them but I still have whole developed ideas for how I wanna use them for when I do eventually get them, and 2.) I’m still working on fleshing it all out! Like I said I have some concepts I’m putting together and like bits and pieces of polished stuff but nothing really solid or definite. Not yet. I may eventually try to draw some of them out just to get them out there, because I really do like it a lot, I love these ocs a lot, and I’m loving getting to develop this little story for them?? I’ve never really done this before but it’s so fun?? but for now it’s all just in my head.

so yeah. Idk my dudes, but I’m very, very tempted.

[thedeadflag]

so this is something I've been mulling over for a while now - do you reckon it'd be possible to make a version of a/b/o that isn't fundamentally transphobic, or would it reach the point of "this is so different that you might as well not call it a/b/o" before that? off the top of my head you'd have to take out all elements of g!p, mpreg, and biological essentialism, and it'd probably be possible to write a version of a/b/o with that framework, but I don't know if I'm missing anything.

a/b/o is a reactionary trope that relies on cissexism-derived biological essentialism to function. Like, that’s the engine that powers the bdsm/power dynamics, cisheteronormative breeding/family building, “dub/non-con”, etc. elements that draw people to it, and led people to create it in the first place. 

Like, my best attempt at describing a non-transphobic, non-shitty typical a/b/o adjacent fic would include:

Werewolves (let’s face it, werewolves can be really cool if written well, and there’s a lot of really good ways to write them, a lot of ways to subvert tired subtropes within the trope)

Found Family-focused family/pack building (because wolves often adopt wolves from other packs into their own, blood lineage isn’t really a thing; much like vampires being created, newly turned werewolves of any age can be considered their sire’s child; if it needs to have a pregnancy arc between two men or two women, there’s IVF/IUI, or magically/spiritually-induced pregnancies, and of course writing a fully fledged complex trans character with their own non-pregnancy arc and virtues/flaws/goals/etc. and getting relevant trans beta writers who aren't your friends to keep it on track if you’re a cis writer)

A flexible, non-binary gendered society (rather than the rigidly structured biology-is-destiny a/b/o society) that’s trans inclusive either explicitly, or implicitly if it’s a new social universe with different rules. 

If mating seasons have to exist, they’re cultural more than biological, and no biological processes that could impede or trouble a person’s ability to properly consent. 

No inherent, glorified or reified power dynamics, certainly none rooted in or fostered through biology. 

That doesn’t seem very much at all like a/b/o to me. It’s a werewolf AU, which is the reason why a/b/o was created in the first place. It wasn’t enough. It needed something more than just a supernatural bent

I’ll continue on below for a bit on some simplified functions of a/b/o, but it’s mostly just some ramblings.

-

Like, to quote the originators of the genre/trope:

I'd like to see Alpha male Jared, and Bitch male Jensen. Jensen is a snotty prude (think Lady from lady and the tramp) he may be a bitch male but he's not just going to let anybody take a go at his sweet little ass...until he meets Jared...then prudey little Jensen turns cock slut for Jared. Bonus points for J2 being OTP, Jensen was a virgin before Jared, and now that they met each other, it's for life.

...

There are three types of men, alpha males, beta males, and omega males. Alpha males are like any ordinary guy with the exception of their cocks, they work just like canines (the knot, tons of cum, strong breeders, etc) The beta male, is an ordinary guy without the special cock. Omega males are capable of child bearing and often called bitch males.

Like, I want you to look at that real close and see what’s going on in there.

This was created to be a trope where there’s a world where women, as we explicitly know them, don’t exist, but where a subgroup of men take up the functional role of the woman in the heteronormative social structure of the world. It’s also not surprising that (assumedly cis) women created and initiated the spread of this trope.

Look at the language used. This is heavily, explicitly gendered for a reason. If you’ve read much of anything about how the male gaze impacts female sexuality, you’ll know a common response is for women to position themselves out of the proverbial frame entirely, so that no part of them can explicitly exist as an object, where they can take on the role of a subject. There’s no women whose experiences will directly link to her own and her own perceptions, comfort/discomfort/etc.

However, many of these women also have been heavily affected by the male gaze and heteronormativity, and that combined with not knowing what a real gay male relationship is like, what it looks like, what experiences might be unique to it...they fill in the blanks with their own conditioning. 

And maybe seeing a lot of that toxic masculinity in media content was unsettling because of how women get treated in that content, and how they in turn might feel in those shoes. But if a MAN, even if it’s a heavily female-coded man, were to undergo that...well, it’d be easier to appreciate those tropes and dynamics they’ve been force-fed to believe were arousing, hot, desirable. Especially if they can have two hot men in it. They can enjoy that self-created taboo, bypass their own discomfort and insecurity, and project it onto a type of person different enough to suspend their disbelief and maintain that difference, even if they’re pumping that guy full of all the typical misogynistic tropes and experiences they’re not comfortable having directed towards them and other women.

In short, it’s a way to get off on heteronormative norms/tropes, using another as a vehicle in order to keep up their cognitive dissonance.

Of course, this eventually spilled out into the Het fandom (makes perfect sense, since many of the a/b/o originators and proponents were het women), and then worked its way into Femslash fandom by piggybacking on g!p in order to meet the necessary criteria for PiV sex. 

Just, in this case, you necessarily shift some of the puzzle pieces around. Trans women take the place of the “alpha”, acting as an acceptable vehicle for a toxic masculine cis man, since lesbians aren’t into men. Even if the trans woman is generally written, in nearly every way aside from part of her body, as a toxic cis man. The original a/b/o’s “Bitch Male”/Omega Male is swapped out for the  Omega Female, usually a spunkier, more in your face version outside of romantic/sexual contexts in the media content, but let’s be real here, she’s still by and large submissive when it comes down to it. 

In a world where more wlw grew up feeling predatory for their attraction to other women, for feeling sinful, for being rejected from female intimacy het women enjoyed with each other after coming out, etc., it’s pretty common for a lot of lesbians to lack initiative, not be able to read or communicate romantic/sexual cues between each other...to essentially be “useless lesbians’ as the joke goes,and to feel isolated and undesirable. 

So writing a F/F fic where some hot woman modeled in the image of some hot cis woman pursues you? Takes the initiative sexually/romantically? Doesn’t beat around the bush, but is blatant? Who can’t control her lust around you? Who can give you the perfect nuclear family you’ve been conditioned to want in order to feel value in our heteronormative world, but were told you weren’t worthy of or could never feasibly attain? Who gives you a sexual encounter you have some education in and some emotional stake in due to common conditioning of PiV sex > all else? Who can give you plausible deniability for a number of contexts due to a lack of ability to explicitly consent? etc. etc.

Like, yeah, that’s going to feel comfortable for a lot out there. That’s going to seem pretty hot/arousing. It’s a way to get off on the norms and expectations thrown on women in society, but in a way that lets them distance themselves ever so slightly from men by shifting it from text to subtext, explicit to implicit.

Don’t just take my word for it, though. Here’s a few snippets from one of the most popular g!p/omegaverse femslash writers (if not the most popular) that help illustrate how/why this trope has found an audience

Why Do I Write G!P?The elephant in the room. It arouses me, but it’s also a form of self-comfort. I grew up in a very fundamentalist home. Women being with women was at first unspoken, and then derided, both by my church and at home. I felt insanely guilty for my attractions, so I developed ‘cheat codes’ to deal with it.

It was okay if the woman I had sex with in my dreams had a penis, for example. It was okay if she forced me to have sex with her. It was okay if we basically simulated heterosexual sex.

Because of my childhood (which included conversion therapy), I found myself falling into heterosexual roleplay patterns, at least sexually. It was a lingering thing from my childhood.

It’s still there, and I know I’ll never be rid of it.

...

I associate penetration with power. You know, being steeped in sexism from an early age turned some problematic thoughts into kinky lemonade. And since I’m a femme sub, taking power away from the top by ‘penetrating’ them can ruin the mood for me. I mean, I can write power bottom scenes with the best of them, and I enjoy them, but… *shrug* if I’m going to write omegaverse or g!p, someone’s getting fucked, and it’s not the top.

There are rules to a/b/o. There are specific reasons it’s sought out, read, and created, and that’s why it’s hard to imagine a version of it without those harmful elements, because the trope requires them for the audience to be satisfied.

It’s why all gay male a/b/o fits a pretty specific pattern. it’s why femslash a/b/o fits a very specific pattern. There’s nearly no deviation as a rule, because there are so many parts that have to be in play and functioning in a specific way in order to get the desired result. 

I could go on for hours about this, and the above is all a pretty damn simplified take of what’s going on in a/b/o for it to exist in the way it does and meet the needs of the audience, and I’ve already written a lot about this in the past, so I’ll try to cut it short here.