#that he doesn’t realise others (esp simon)

[evie-doesnt-write]

“Wille has gone through so fucking much from his shitty, neglectful, psychologically abusive parents, the death of Erik, the betrayal of August, his and Simon’s relationship issues, his mother becoming sick, finding out Erik was a homophobe, and so fucking much more, and he’s just a kid whose only support are his one friend and his boyfriend who are facing their own problems and nobody can blame him for not knowing how to deal with his emotions and having breakdowns” and “Wille is extremely flawed (as are everyone in this show) and never having been taught how how to deal with his emotions and problems in a healthy way and having little to no support system doesn’t change or excuse the fact that he constantly projects onto Simon, has internalised the mindset that Simon’s problems are far lesser than him, often behaves inconsiderate towards him and doesn’t listen or listen to Simon when he tries to talk to him and these are things he will need to work on, especially if he wants to keep a relationship with Simon” are not mutually exclusive statements

[lesceriises]

[ 🍒 ]  — gracing the tags with my presence before i go work on replies. hi. i’m elle. i’m mostly here for mxf shipping tbh, but i love platonic/family plots too. i have adhd which means i like jumping into things and figuring out what works and doesn’t without beating around the bush. send me memes!! send me ideas!! i love brainstorming. i have a bunch of muses right here & you can check out my open starters here. 

if you’re curious about what fcs i like + what types of plots i’m interested in, click the read more.

come write with me!!!

🍒  FCS I WANT TO WRITE AGAINST 🍒 

alfonso herrera, alvaro rico, chris pine, dacre montgomery, david giuntoli, edgar ramírez, jake gyllenhaal, kit harington, luke pasqualino, michiel huisman, oliver jackson-cohen, oscar isaac, ryan guzman, santiago cabrera, sean tealea, simon baker, tom ellis, tommy martinez, tyler hoechlin, zane holt, alicia vikander, alycia debnam carey, eleanor tomlinson, gugu mbatha-raw, imogen poots, johanna braddy, lupita nyong'o, margot robbie, oona chaplin, poppy drayton, ruth negga, saoirse ronan, shelley hennig, shannon purser, zendaya, zoey deutch.

🍒 PLOTS I’M INTERESTED IN: GENERAL VIEW 🍒

drama, over-the-top drama, cheesy drama, angst, romance, manipulation, lying, cheating, pregnancies, horror, supernatural, ghosts, historical, crime, royals, modern royals, fake relationships, unrequited feelings, bad timing. you can check a few plots i’d like to do here.

🍒 PLOTS I’M INTERESTED IN: SPECIFIC 🍒

if fandom isn’t your thing, i’m also v interested in rl / historical plots. you can find a list of those here.

CHOICES GAME APP & STORYSCAPE: plots based on: titanic, the perfect match, rules of engagement, desire & decorum, the royal romance, and the elementalists. we don’t have to play the “main” characters or follow the original storylines tho.

TITANIC/1900s: legit just... any and all dynamics lmao the list is infinite there’s so much potential. if you’re familiar with the game i’m looking for something taken from storyscape like matteo x adele dynamic (long-story short, matteo is a valet for a wealthy man and adele is someone who is being blackmailed by said wealthy man) or charlie x adele (charlie is a steward who befriends adele, helps her navigate her situation, and the two become very close - esp interested in a dynamic post-titanic too where he's trying very hard not to hold things against her but is struggling tremendously with guilt, ptsd, and his idealism) or a dynamic based on zetta x adele (zetta is famous and adele's employer, and adele is being blackmailed into ruining her engagement - but it'd have to be an mxf one because that's the only kind of romantic pairings i write).

THE HUNGER GAMES: capitol citizen x capitol citizen, mentor x mentor, victor x dead tribute’s sibling/dead tribute’s best friend, literally any other combO!! smth with spies would be great too like spy rebel working a the capitol x capitol staff.

VIDEO GAMES: plots based on until dawn!!!!!!!!! which is one of my favs tbh (there’s SO MUCH POTENTIAl but i’m particularly weak for “we had a ‘opposites attract, will they don’t they’ thing going on and smth was about to happen between us at the cabin but then my sibling/best friend vanished and everything went to shit and we haven’t spoken in a year even though we miss each other dearly”.

HARRY POTTER:  

workaholic diplomats with a fuckton of baggage and personal struggles who are really good at their jobs and always butting heads… falling in love (bonus: maybe one of them is a squib)

pureblood order member is essentially kidnapped by their own elitist family and has their memory tampered with, meaning they now believe they’ve always just been a spy for the death eaters. they’re engaged and their significant other starts to notice little things that feel odd and unusual. 

i muggleborn who started lying about her blood status and is passing as elitist pureblood who ends up getting engaged to a pureblood.  

before the first wizarding war, two purebloods get married. it wasn’t an arranged marriage and for all their differences they brought out the best in each other. their families were iffy about each other but they made it work. she remained mostly a housewife, enjoying the work and taking care of the children. things were good until the war rolled around and slowly, gradually. it became clear that his family (and he himself) were prejudiced against muggles and muggleborn. in the end they end up on opposite sides of the war, and it gets ugly.

arranged marriage between two people. he’s a widower and a grump, no one really finds him good company and on top of that his wife died in questionable circumstances (everyone thinks he did it, but it was actually his parents). his parents picked her because she seems easy to manipulate and air-headed. they never thought they would end up gradually growing very fond of each other to the point of love - they have the same humor, he helps her try not to please everyone and she helps him allowing himself to be himself - and that he’d start standing up to his family.

ANGELS / DEMONS / NOT FANDOM SPECIFIC: angel x fallen angel (please. think of all the pain and angst) or demon x redeemed demon or smth of the sort (the betrayal!!!)

X-MEN: literally too many possible combos to list and i want them all!!! the angstier/messier the better.

THE MUMMY: doesn’t have to be based on the movie, i’m going for the ~vibes~ here. we can do: explorer/archaeologist x non-explorer, explorer/archaeologist x journalist, explorer/archaeologist x doctor, explorer/archaeologist x explorer/archaeologist…. they can be any age too! even exs with children, the options are endless.

PACIFIC RIM: trainee x trainee, pilot x scientist, pilot x pilot, doctor x pilot

OUTLANDER/TIME-TRAVELLING IN GENERAL: could be intentional, accidental, to the future or the past, etc so many options!! we can mix time-travelling with other fandoms too!!

TOMB RAIDER: feel free to make suggestions but here are some ideas: (a) and (b) have a long history (platonic, romantic, siblings, idc). they’re both explorers who for the most part have been on the same side. two peas in a pod. two sides of the same coin. etc etc. while trying to put together a mystery, and trying to beat the “bad guys” to it, they realise the object they are looking for can change the past or bring the dead back to life…. this is where (b) turns against (a), who, unlike them, wants to take the object and keep it safe inside a vault.

STAR WARS: literally too many options to list but i’ll try: “jyn” x “cassian”, spy x traitor, pilot x spy doctor, former stormtrooper x spy, former stormtrooper x regular person, spy x regular person, diplomat x pilot, diplomat x former stormtrooper, idk there’s so many possible dynamics i couldn’t list them all legit anything in this universe im begging lmao!

STRANGER THINGS: so many possibilities?? could be set at any point in time too… and/or make our characters older and have them revisit things that happened to them in the past.

MARVEL/MCU: superhero x human , superhero x superhero, hero x law enforcement, a verse where heroes are “banned” (think incredibles 2)… all of these could go in so many ways?? the sky’s the limit. reminder that i don’t write canons but i don’t mind writing against them!! 

ANASTASIA: lost princess/prince x kitchen boy/girl turned con-person who is at first using them for money but ends up falling in love with them and oops turns out they are the real deal.

THE LITTLE MERMAID: mermaid x prince, mermaid x human, mermaid x pirate, “ursula” x “eric”

ALADDIN: “i pretended to be a rich prince/princess to impress the their/heiress to the throne bc i’m poor as hell and i just want to stop being poor lmao … but oh boy i’ve fallen in love…….”

FROZEN:   “hans” x “anna” or “hans” x “elsa” (i just think “hans” is a great character and there’s a lot we could do with him tbh) oc guard or commoner x “elsa” “anna” and “kristoff” but their relationship isn’t working out the dynamic between “anna” and “elsa” bc i’m a sucker for sibling dynamics we could also explore the relationship of anna and elsa’s parents!!!  

[firebirdsdaughter]

When you wish you were asleep…

… Watch raws! XD

Actually, I still kind of wish I was asleep. Maybe I’ll grab a nap after this. (-_-)

But on to my children!

In no order and w/ many typos:

Okay, look. Wyzul’s not ‘weak,’ he’s just meant to have essentially the opposite style of Tankjoh. He’s a ‘planner.’ The manipulative, cunning ‘evil genius type.’ Doesn’t mean anyone has to like him, or think he’s a good villain—hell, I promise you I already miss Tankjoh, too—but he’s not ‘weak.’ He just has a different style. His plan this week was actually rather clever.

Sorry. Wanted to get that off my chest. I miss Tankjoh, too, but I actually like that they followed him w/ a general w/ an opposite style, that the one time Tankjoh kind of tried it, it got him killed (the plan w/ the Cerberus Minusaur).

XD TOUWA. Oh, honey. Who put you in the back? ^^

Knowing the twist makes this whole thing all the more hilarious, somehow.

Though this plan was actually rather clever! If Cardena hadn’t had a few slips in her words… Though admittedly, she was so clearly anxious about it that Banba and/or Melto might have caught onto something anyway, but… It was close.

Banba’s become naturally suspicious, so he may have doubted them anyway, but… It could’ve worked.

Poor Touwa’s so short. And even Banba is kinda hiding in the back there! XD

Other facts about Banba: Google Earth, always taking pics.

Ah, yes, we’re sneaking in. Let us yell, loudly! XD Ah, Toku…

Odd place to keep things, honestly…

There’s something incredibly goofy about the fact that this confrontation is taking place in a cramped stairwell…

They forgot the little men for Banba and Touwa’s transformations. XD

Everyone else is in the middle of fighting a Drunn. Banba has alreday freaking killed his. ><

I think Touwa just asked Wyzul to repeat himself bc they didn’t catch it the first time. And Asuna just figured it out? Uncertain.

Wait. Waitwaitwaitwaitwait. I guess it’s Pink??? But she looks purple???

Curse my inability to put an image in the middle of a bulleted list! Curse my attachment to bullet points! DX

I’ll put it at the bottom?

Touwa here, stealing the monster’s lines. XD

Rip unnamed Drunn.

I’m confused as to whether Cardena was trying to tip them off, or just conflicted and getting anxious. Most likely the latter, as she didn’t seem to understand they’d figured it out later.

My watching experience is foiled once more by how INCURABLY BEAUTIFUL TATSUYA IS! DX

Now she’s getting the hairy eyeball from both big brother/dad and mom. XD Deception check failed.

Is that a thing?

They are dunking on this man so hard. I mean, he doesn’t seem to mind, but…

I really hope that smirk really was just Tatsuya and wasn’t planned. I like how they had trouble getting the ‘towel scene’ (a line ad libbed by Simon Pegg) bc Zachary Quinto kept laughing, so they just went w/ a scene where he jus barely smirks and they cut away real fast. This is smaller, scale, of course, it’s very low key and I only noticed it bc I am almost always watching Banba in any given scene, but it’s funny to think it was unscripted.

Aw, I thought Dad was an alright singer. Also, love Ui’s face here. ^^ And she tries to comfort him, such a sweetheart.

Aw, Touwa also looks like he’s finding it cute, too. ^^ I’m still thinking of Touwa and Ui as the ‘babies’ of the fam. Resident youngest sibs. :)

Nah, Banba doesn’t trust this situation enough to start stabbing people, don’t worry, Kou.

Pretty sure he’s just looking for an excuse to leave, actually.

Melto takes the opportunity to go full mom friend.

Banba’s like ‘so one of you was paying attention.’

There’s never any indication here if Touwa figured it out, too. I’m inclined to think he didn’t? But I don’t know.

Why must Tatsuya persist in being so attractive??? DX

Okay, guess it’s confirmed they can call Ui from the braces. … How. Did they program her number into them? Is there some frequency that they tapped her phone into?

Also, largely unrelated, but Ui is really pretty. She really is. She makes goofy faces sometimes, but this actress is really beautiful. I’m love her. ^^

She’s jack awful at lying, though.

Though it is justified that no one caught on, here. How would Wyzul know how modern human technology works? And Cardena’s an alien. And neither of them know Ui very well. She could be like this all the time for all they know.

But also… Did Melto text her? How did she know to leave her phone?

I say Cardena didn’t catch on bc she doesn’t seem to have realised that they knew later.

Tall Cheese seems to be having a good time hamming it up, and that is valid of her.

Really, though. There’s no way they would have actually released Tall Cheese, if this had worked. That’s not Short Cheese’s fault, she didn’t have many options, but I highly doubt Wyzul intended to honour any sort of deal.

I realise I shamefully remembered Short Cheese’s name in the rest of this post. Whoops. I’d go back and fix it, but now it’s funny… ^^;

Oh, yeah. And this explains why Tall Cheese was looking so evil in those photos.

So… Was Wyzul actually just sitting chained up in the park the whole time?

But also… Wyzul is a shapeshifter. Toei, would you mind…? >:)

Synchronised staring at Kou. XD

Oh, yeah. Moment of appreciation for Tatsuya sitting on the bloody playground equipment like a freaking model.

Banba going for a low blow, there. But he has a point.

And… Kou hits a button. We’ve only really seen Banba be this angry when yelling at Crayon the Mushroom Man about curing Touwa, I think… Makes me wonder if the betrayal he suffered happened in a situation like this? He took a risk for someone in a similar fashion, but it turned out they were lying and stabbed him in the back? Like, loosely similar, maybe. Like… Kou’s reaction clearly hits a nerve.

GAH! Toei, give me more to go on! DX

He backs down, though. Either bc he’s still soft for sibling relationships and can’t help it, or he’s getting soft about Kou—or both. This makes me think even more that he’s never killed anyone before. For all his apparent willingness to do so, in the end he can’t got through w/ sacrificing someone like that.

Esp not when considering it while staring into Kou’s sad puppy eyes.

As Touwa mysteriously vanishes from the shot, despite being exceedingly close by a moment ago.

Though… Banba seeing the fact that Kou et al. being willing to sacrifice what’s important to them for what’s important to others… And seeming kinda effected by that… Is kinda fuel for my ‘he ends up trying to protect their innocence/kindness’ idea? In, like… A ‘I’m the expendable one’ kinda way? Not exactly, but… Augh, explaining is hard. I’m sure I’ll think of one later. DX

Like… Could lead to a moment later where he tries to sacrifice himself/something so that they don’t have to? Or forcibly decides to be the sacrifice for something.

Oh, boy, that sounded weird.

Tyramigo is adorable, and will be the death of me.

Tyramigo be like ‘Is this the bomb I’m meant to eat?’ Then checks w/ Kou just to be sure. ‘Eat the bomb? Okay, eat the bomb!’

Him going ‘aaaaaaaah’ like a little baby, he’s so cute. DX

And how it awkwardly cuts out when she says ‘don’t.’ XD

HOW DID SHE NOT CATCH ON? Either her lysing skill improved significantly, or she completely misunderstood Kou’s nod here.

HOW DID HE SWALLOW HE HAS NO THROAT. O_o

They are dunking this poor man so hard… But, like, he’s listed as a special guest star, so I guess he doesn’t mind, and he seems happy, but… XD

Banba in the back: Google Earth, always taking pics.

Actually, that’s him at any given moment, really.

So… Were those copies of them, too?

Kou, you do not get to call people ‘baka.’ You are the baka!

I don’t actually know what he said. Could have been a different word.

Where were they hiding? Did they hang off the edge of the roof? Stairwell?

Banba not only refuses to smile, he sighs like he’s only there under duress.

He maintains his carefully practiced grumpy face for the whole scene, too. XD

Aw, I think Touwa just said ‘we barely did anything.’ Honey, I watched the flashback, you were the other person making copies.

Synchronised brother head tilt. Seriously, they’re at exactly the same angle. Ah, family. XD

Touwa loves it, Banba is required by contract to keep glaring.

His little awkward looking at the ground after, like ‘shit they’re cute’ what do I do??’… ^^ XD <3

They did do great, though. Plus he knew they’d never leave him alone if he didn’t do something there. XD But he is getting fond of them. Will probably be in denial until something happens and then have a freak out. Maybe it won’t even be that big, maybe it will just be Gold shows up and he finds himself getting protective. But I like big. ^^

Oh, please let Gaisoulg be who I hope it it… >.<

Aaaah! They’re so pretty! DX

So… Is it still a Minusaur if it didn’t come from a human?

What’s this? Minusaur is evolving!

Wait… So so they all turn into dragons when they complete????

I guess they didn’t tell her how Minusaurs actually work.

MAH BABIES!

How did we get down on the ground? Who knows. Toku.

The others go w/ proper combat Souls. Touwa and Kou use the balloon Soul and the shiny Soul. At least one of those kinda makes sense.

Aw, she’s self conscious. ^^

What I think I love most is that she’s clearly putting conscious effort into being out of tune. Which she can do bc the actress actually knows how to sing. XD

Asuna playing the drums is SO CUTE. I’M GONNA DIE.

I love how Melto explaining implied the brothers asked.

And the fact that you can just hear her in the background through the whole scene.

I realise it was Wyzul impersonating her, but it seems like something he might pick up from the real her to make it more believable. Plus Short Cheese had a a name for it, making it more likely.

Gods love her, she’s putting so much effort into it.

Banba briefly checking on Touwa when he rejoins them. ^^ I love this family.

Short Cheese thanks everyone, and the kids smile, but Banba gets embarrassed. XD

Oh dear. Wyzul knows we’re in a TV show…

Ui playing the demanding voice instructor is ADORABLE. XD

Kou and Melto in the corner imitating Banba. XD

Next week, looks like Melto is piloting Kishiryu Oh alone, Biker Dad returns (as an illusion), and the kids get stuck in Wonderland when Banba turns his back on them for five minutes.

I’m kidding, I don’t actually know if his subplot is at all related to Wonderland. All it says is that he’s dealing w/ an ‘antiques dealer.’ I have this wild theory that what the summary means is that ‘Wonderland’ is inside a box (the chest that’s referenced in the title and is the goal of the ‘attraction’), and then Banba also ends up chasing it around. Alternatively, he could just end up in a situation where he’s wandering around like ‘have you seen five brightly dressed dork children? I left them right here, but I looked away for one minute and they all disappeared.’ Or he doesn’t know at all. The magazine did say something about him doing things alone… Maybe he’ll get himself into trouble and they’ll have to come save him in episode 10. I mean, we know he’s gonna get a plot about not doing everything himself eventually.

I’ll leave everyone w/ this thought: the shapeshifting Druidon general now knows where the Tatsuis live.

That’s all, folks! Virtual rock candy for anyone who read all that. Excited for next week. I hope we get episode summaries for the next few eps, soon, as that might give me more of an idea as to whether I was actually right. I like the idea of Banba chasing a box that may or may not have his younger siblings in it around the city and drama that could ensue. But they could go other ways w/ this subplot. Like… Maybe the antiques dealer is the hooded person? Or Banba is trying to investigate the hooded person? Or it’s Gaisoulg (please be who I want you to be, Gaisoulg!)? Or an early cameo of Gold? Or a Druidon? Or a completely inconsequential side character. Who knows.

Oh, yeah! Purple chibi!

Though… I guess it’s Pink? It… It looks purple, though… Wait. Could it be… Magenta?

[andrewsneil]

Simon/Shepard

??? — shepard love/simon snow

vomit / don’t ship / ok / cute / adorable / sexy / perfect / beyond flawless / hot damn / screaming and crying / i will ship them in hell

i will not lie it’s 6:50am and i’ve just woken up and i’ve JUST seen this and i had no idea that these two were even shipped before and i’m kind of fucking obsessed. maybe i just fucking adore ships between arguable the most idiotic characters in book series, bc smth abt this screams the “idiot x idiot who don’t even realise they’re dating until someone points it out for them.” like. hear me out. simon loses his magic, just like in canon, except he handles it… a little differently? hates the idea of being around magic at all, so he leaves england, leaves baz and penny behind, very very fucking angsty, and then winds up in america… maybe he flew don’t @ me bc i don’t fucking know. ANYWAY eventually. he meets this guy called shepard. very fucking weird, maybe shepard got into trouble w a magical creature and simon intervened, did a funny lil intimidation tactic and threatened to summon his sword, which he doesn’t have anymore, and the creature fucked off. so now shepard’s left w simon, a magical creature who lost his magicalness, and just SAVED HIM from becoming creature food. maybe i have a hero complex but also the contradicting and desperate need to actually be “saved” but i can imagine shepard getting a little fixated on simon. fixated on the idea of how he lost his magic. at this point, simons like “fuck it,” and will tell shep ANYTHING about the world of mages bc he truly doesn’t care anymore. the mage is dead, he has no magic, and him and baz ended things on bad terms, so what does he have to lose? plus, i think they’d definitely bond over being “normal people” in a world of magic. simon came from the human world, he never really felt like he belonged in the world of mages but he got wrapped up in it anyway, shepard has always been in the human world but he’s desperately clawing his way into the world of mages. they can emphasise w/ each other.

there’s also room for angst because there’d definitely be a scenario where shepard says he wants to investigate just how simon lost his magic, maybe figure out a way he can fix him, and simon, simon who already struggles so much w/ the feeling of not being enough, the idea that he’s Broken and needs someone to fix him, obviously lashes out. but shepard seems very fucking good at fixing conflict, esp in a way that simon’s not used to. so i think shepard would be able to clarify what he meant, clarify that he’s just interested in how he lost his powers and the ability to use magic, and that if simon wants, they can try and get it back. if simon wants to. he gives him a choice, which is a lot for a guy that was groomed by a father figure —who turned out to be his actual father— to save a world he didn’t even really know that well from the age of like, eleven. he was forced into the life of the chosen one, he never got a choice, but here’s shepard, handing him one like it’s nothing. so he takes it.

him and shepard travel together, shepard continues being dumb as shit and meeting lots of magical creatures that could kill him and wouldn’t think twice about it, and simon probably gets a new sword and helps shepard out by acting as his weird, winged magic but not magical bodyguard. and then the intimacy would seep it’s way into their lives. simon laying on top of shep with his wings cocooning him, because it’s fucking freezing and simon’s always freakishly warm. shepard cooking for them, because simon’s hopeless with cooking, he’s always just burnt everything. they’d slowly start acting like an actual couple, always standing close to each other, speaking in hushed whispers. simon would have this way of looking at shepard— like he’s his home, and he is.

guarantee you they’d only realise they act this way because certain little shits that they meet during their travels, the cheekier of the magical creatures that shepard knows, think it’d be funny to tease shepard about finally settling down, and that they’d never have guessed it’d be with a dragon. it definitely takes at least a week for a comment like that to actually resonate in shepard’s head, and simon doesn’t even pay attention to it in the first place. so shep starts contemplating what to do. he could kiss simon, sure. but he doesn’t even know if simon likes guys. (he definitely left out anything concerning him and baz being mildly romantic in his recounts of his days at watford) and even if he did like guys, would he like him?? so shepard gets a little worked up over it, to the point where he’s nervous around simon, and simon picks up on it. he might be a little unobservant but he had enough practice rooming with baz to know when someone doesn’t want to be around him. so, he confronts him, sword no where near because he trusts shepard, and when he does notice shepard glancing at his lips one too many times, he kisses him. doesn’t think twice about whether shepard was looking at his lips because he was TALKING or anything, there’s not a single rational thought floating through simon’s head. and that’s that. that’s their life, filled w domestic bliss and simon occasionally stepping in and decapitating anything getting a bit too friendly his shepard !!

ok i will apologise for the bullshit i’ve just spewed, very rambly and very incoherent, i’ve just woken up! thank u for the ask tho i appreciate it a Lot

send me a ship and i’ll rate it !! <3

[tyrannuspitch]

something else to think about... baz says they'll meet the vampires "once they're done hunting", and simon says in his internal monologue that he's freaked out thinking about murder.

but baz... hmm. i find it extremely hard to imagine him being okay with that idea either.

so. it's possible that he.. doesn't actually think that all vampires murder someone every night? (maybe he's done the maths.) this would be an interesting option bc... i think he does demonise vampires a lot in his mind. but he also understands the logistical difficulties, and he said earlier to fiona that he doesn't see much difference between himself and other vampires, even though he's never bitten anyone... i don't think he *needs* to think of them as daily murderers to demonise them.

or, if he hasn't got that far / suspects but isn't entirely convinced of it... he's like, closed off his morals for loyalty.

natasha has asked him to find her murderer. he's committed to avenging her death. going in peacefully to the vampires is necessary to get that information. after he has it... who knows.

i think i like this theory better tbh. it agrees with his later random murderous thoughts - maybe i can make up for this treachery, it was for the right reasons - and it would mean he was like. setting aside some self-hatred to come back to later. which would help explain why he breaks down so completely afterwards.

and also it's just... interesting. i love moral turmoil. esp over things other characters might not even think about. it's so *specific*.

like the hierarchy here. he doesn't want to kill anyone but he *has* to avenge his mother. he doesn't want to turn a blind eye to the murders he thinks are happening, murders *just like the death of his mother*... but if it means he can find out how to avenge his mother it might be worth it. hmm

the self-sacrificial element of his suicide ideation makes a lot more sense when you realise his murderous intent is *also* a form of self-sacrifice

[rowingchat]

Magic secrets of top rowing coaches

We all want to know the deep secrets of top rowing coaches.  Surely they must do things that “normal” coaches don’t do? Charles Simpson is the co-author of Advanced Rowing and shares his deeper thoughts about rowing, life and how to become a better rower and coach.

Advanced Rowing book

Why did I choose to write this book?

It was clear that many of the world’s best rowing coaches are very happy to share their ideas publically at conferences (e.g. World Rowing Conferences) but:

The presentation details and content were often quite variable

It is hard for many rowers and coaches around the world to access the information, so lots of useful knowledge and experience of top coaches doesn’t reach a wider audience

So Advanced Rowing was a way to systematically capture the ideas of top coaches from around the world in a way that allowed space to give a good level of detail and to do so around key topics:

Training environment

Training and conditioning (including samples of weekly training)

Athlete selection and talent development

Coach and athlete relationship

Technical approach

Support services and technology

Fine tuning for racing

Blue sky thinking

Magic secrets of top rowing coaches

It’s human nature to try and make the complex seem understandable by focusing on the one thing that might explain why one crew is better than another.

It’s understandable why outsiders might think there are secrets, but if you ask top coaches if there are any secrets in what they do – the vast majority will say there isn’t. In truth, top coaches do lots of things very, very well.

Also, top coaches move around from program to program – if there were secrets in their approaches, then these secrets get passed around a lot….

So if there aren’t any magic secrets – why are some coaches so secretive???

Possibly, some coaches lack confidence in their methods – maybe they just are fortunate with recruiting good athletes…..

More likely, there can be a sense of power in creating the impression to outsiders that this team has a something special. We all like a bit of mystery and I think by trying to protect training strategies and athletes erg scores from the outside world it’s possible that athletes within a very closed team start to believe that their coach/system has something magical….So when it comes to race day, those athletes have a feeling that they have something extra in their back pocket…..something more and better than everyone else….it doesn’t matter if it’s make believe….what matters is that the athletes believe it SO then they have an extra layer of confidence……SO some coaches are probably playing on the theme of secrecy to help improve the confidence of their athletes through training and racing….

Once people realise there is far more to know about high level rowing than can ever be hidden, then people can stop chasing shadows and just get on with developing stable training approaches that are effective and time efficient.

Learning rowing coaching from books:

Lots of rowers don’t read rowing books……especially if you remove the biography-type books which are not designed to improve performance

What can readers take away from Advanced Rowing:

It’s possible to reach world class standard even if:

You don’t have great facilities (Denmark Lake Bagsvaard and 2000-m TURNING a coxless four in 16 to 18 secs!)

Sharing a lake and boathouse with lots of other users (Norway, Denmark)

You are NOT a full time athlete…….lots of the top rowers are part time students (esp. using online learning)

Coaches should be clear about their expectations of athletes (e.g. Tom Poulsen’s charter)

Range of cross training (e.g. Dave O’Neill’s running at the start of practice each day; NZ and the use of cycling)

ESPECIALLY finding ways to make the best of the environment and athletes that you have in front of you….

A tangible sense of the quality and quantity of training performed by top rowers.

Comparing national team to club rowers….in many cases the volume of actual rowing is similar…..150 km per week for men’s teams…..(10 to 15 hours)….what may differ is the additional training that full-time athletes especially can do….extra cross training in particular……

Noel Donaldson and building flexibility into the training program

At the heart of the NZ program has been a lot of effort placed on using technology and spreadsheets to log the training of every athlete. The athletes are provided with a Garmin watch to log heart rate, GPS, sleep etc….and this all feeds into software that helps monitor individual athlete training load. 

Once you have a way to track what athletes are doing and to capture their training load, it becomes possible to allow athletes more flexibility in choosing other ways to achieve the training load (e.g. more cycling, running, skiing)

So in Noel’s case….a lot of the flexibility he wants is to avoid boredom and give a sense of ownership

How do we get better at asking questions to develop understanding ???

It’s quite possible that rowers do not actually want to ask questions, at least not those in a team with a coach…….

The power dynamic in teams is such that many coaches want athletes to do as they are told….not to openly question……

So if a rower was to read a book, find some good solid information that could help the team, it may be risky to suggest to the coach that they could be doing something better……It can create tension and a perception of threat to the coach……Some coaches think “ROWERS SHOULD BE SEEN BUT NOT HEARD”…….

In some teams, the US especially, there are team captains to help raise issues and discussions from the team to the coach – this helps

It would be better though if coaches had  more secure evidence-base and answers for their practices…..so I think Advanced Rowing does present a way for rowers and coaches to have a conversation about things that might be worth exploring together….

Art versus Science

The entire season is just one big experiment…..keeping written logs and notes of how a session went is probably a good way to find the balance………

Tom Poulsen says you can use more scientific type approaches such as seat racing BUT he then says one of the lightweights who won gold in 2012 in the 2X came 10th in the seat race rank order…..SO sometimes, he says, the coach must trust their intuition

Don’t get too wrapped up in the science……lactate monitors are helpful BUT it can take a lot of time to get the value out of the information………BIOMECHANICS……..Dave O’Neill says  his mantra every day is “The main thing is to keep the main thing as the main thing” – for Dave, the main thing is the NCAA regatta in May

What would a club coach take from the book?

Avoid the tendency to race too much in training….spend more time building weekly volumes at low intensity (4 of 5 sessions below lactate threshold; so 65 to 80% HRmax.

Seek ways to make the most of your existing opportunities….

Avoid the tendency to think that everyone else has better athletes, better facilities, more money, secrets etc… Advanced Rowing shows that what is common between clubs and national teams is a lot of sustained and sensible training –

STAY CURIOUS AND INTERESTED even as you become an elite coach……

Find stability in what you do…….

ALSO…….ideally ALL coaches would go and spend time with master coaches and this would help them learn their trade…..BUT……in practice…..this is not always easy to do…….especially if you live in a fairly remote rowing community (this was easy in Sydney and South of England) BUT it was hard in the North East of Scotland and Texas……SO…..books written by coaches may well be the best thing to being to sitting alongside a master coach for a season……

Summary of the Chapter themes:

Noel Donaldson – Very organised and disciplined training approaches…..lots of support staff, other coaches and athletes feeding in to the system….Geographical isolation is a challenge b/c it limits their access to top competition……..use of dynamic and static ergs to add variety to training (including Rowperfect).

Johan Flodin – one of two full time national team coaches in Norway BUT they make good use of Olympiatoppen staff and especially cross country ski experts. Take many training camps…..  treat technique on the erg as an important issues (while Noel says he sees the erg largely as a conditioning tool)…1000 hours per year of training and 125 km of rowing average week.

Simon Cox – Swiss (now Czech republic)………..setting up a national team system which clubs buy into……….a centralised system……………working with club coaches/meeting with them………Lots of variety in training location and CC ski camps as well as swimming camps, cycling camps, erg camps (which was partly used to bring on new talent into the national team system)…… Building athleticism into the training of the wider body of rowers in Switzerland (e.g. adding weight training).

Tom Poulsen – View that using weights could have helped him set an even faster world record but only by 1 second perhaps…..Use of weights…………Small centralised system……..willingness to work with local universities to make projects…..limited training facilities……camps……taking boats to Copenhagen harbour…use of both C2 and Rowperfect ergs…..very democratic,…..the lightweights were really left to figure out how to make weight and athletes could be 3.5 kg over the male limit 24 hours pre-race….

Ben Lewis – Talks a lot about what he learned as a rower at Oxford Brookes from Richard Spratley…..developing an ethos of hard work….Helping guys who have full time London jobs to find time for rowing = efficiency in time use…..”row as much distance as possible within the time” – keeping intensity down to hit the weekly volumes……

Dave O’Neill – The coach as an educator – holistic – developing mindset, culture, tradition, being part of a BIGGER Texas project (athletic department) – INCREDIBLE financial resource  – selection is something that is happening every day and he works hard to be transparent to athletes – writing up the results….…..

Mark Fangen-Hall – Fair but not necessarily equal – best boats go the best athletes….elite culture….REWARD EFFORT NOT RESULTS…..weight adjusting erg scores….lots of levels of rowing in the club…..Not seeking to be the athlete’s friend…

The post Magic secrets of top rowing coaches appeared first on Rowperfect UK.

Related posts:

4 ways to use video with your rowing crews – Part 1

How to use video with your rowing crews – Part 3

     from Rowperfect (On-Demand) http://ift.tt/2oIlNC9