#then I usually do a digital color draft and sometimes a traditional one as well before coloring the actual piece. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

facets-and-rainbows · 4 years

Text

Blue Exorcist 10th anniversary book Q&A session

The 10th anniversary book has a section where Katoh answers 100 questions submitted by fans on Twitter, so here they are translated/paraphrased! May contain manga spoilers up to the recent flashback arc, so be warned.

(Note that I’m playing it very fast and loose here because there are A HUNDRED OF THEM, so not exact wordings, but it should capture the gist. Lemme know if there are any you want elaborated on)

1. Katoh likes the feel of traditional drawing more than digital but is impressed with how far digital has come

2. Meph THOROUGHLY ABUSES spacetime to watch all his shows and ensure that he gets all the merch he wants

3. Did the girls take all of Yukio’s school uniform buttons in middle school? Yes, they did (apparently it’s like A Thing for girls to ask for a button from their crush at middle school graduation, based on some sad movie from the 60s where a guy who got drafted as a kamikaze pilot gave a girl one of his uniform buttons to remember him by)

4. Rin's tail is about a meter long

5. There are tons of servants working at Mephisto's mansion. Belial is in charge of them

6. Katoh borrows from all sorts of neat real locations when making settings

7. Katoh identifies with pretty much all the characters the most! Except Lucifer.

8. Demon designs she's proud of include the impure king and hachirou, pretty much anything that was the main one in an arc

9. Katoh lists a bunch of her favorite musical artists/music she’s listening to recently: King Gnu, Official Hige Dandism, Kenshi Yonezu, BAD HOP, Sakanaction, Keyakizaka 46, Hypnosis Mic, Aimer, B’Z, Queen Bee.

10. Awww the rabbit manga that characters are often reading isn't just Robo to Usakichi, it's an even older one that she drew as a little kid

11. She likes industrial style interior designs

12. Rin and Yukio alternated who got the top bunk growing up, because they couldn't agree on it lol

13. Katoh cares a whole lot about panel layouts and speech bubble positions, might even be her favorite part of the process (it shows!)

4. Katoh does NOT have a mashou, lol

15. Rin has probably been practicing in secret so he can learn to carry stuff with his tail

16. Izumo probably got into shojo manga around 1st grade, her mom had some around the house

17. Specialty dishes: Rin - lots of stuff but especially nabe Yuri - stuff you can throw together quickly Shiro - stuff he learned from Yuri and/or cookbooks, alongside teaching Rin Yukio - Does. Not. Cook.

18. Can't pick a favorite place she's been on research, but there's no place like Japan

19. Kinzou's band isn't currently meeting because demons, but he's probably still thinking of new songs

20. Hardest characters to draw: anyone with detailed flowing hair. Hardest to write for: Lightning and Gedouin. She had to go read books about serial killers specifically for material for Gedouin, lol

21. Suguro actually gets a dorm room to himself, though allegedly Yukio is technically assigned as his roommate, lol. Didn't end up that way what with Yukio being a teacher and also Rin’s whole...situation

22. Shiemi makes some of her own hair accessories! Cute

23. Katoh doesn't mind if you include stuff with fan letters but check with the editor first

24. Time for making each chapter: Planning/storyboarding: 1-5 days. Sketching: 3-5 days. Drawing/inking: the rest. Just...the rest of the time

25. Neither Suguro nor Izumo have dated before and neither is currently dating. But that's probably just because things were hectic for them! It could happen

26. Yukio breaks 5 or 6 pairs of glasses a year, someone get this kid a strap or something

27. How many spare glasses does Yukio have? Check the fanbook lol it's in there (dang it Katoh)

28. The demon she wants us to pay the most attention to is Lucifer. Because plot.

29. What's under the Order's big meeting table? It's a BOTTOMLESS PIT and if you fall in it you DIE that's what makes it COOL (laughs)

30. What are the job requirements for the angelic legion? Literally just Arthur liking you and inviting you to join

31. She WANTS to do more character profiles but just hasn't gotten to it

32. Rin's tail feels like a cat tail, texture wise

33. The "red Assiah fire" is literally just actual fire nothing special

34. Rin's current hair color is light blue fading to white at the ends

35. Thoughts on Rin's growth: she likes that he stays positive in awful situations and she also thinks it's very main character of him to face the past instead of avoiding it

36. Mephisto didn't purposely surround Rin with stuffed animals when he woke up after going crispy. Mephisto's bed is just Like That

37. Kurikara was based on a cool sword she found in a sword book, but that one was technically just a ceremonial sword. The symbol on it us a Sanskrit letter kaan (sp?) associated with Fudou Myouou

38. Kuro can communicate with normal cats and hangs out with them often

39. Sometimes Shiemi's skirt is extra fancy around the hem what's up with that? Apparently it's an optional accessory that comes with the skirts help I haven't noticed this and don't know any fashion terms in any language

40. When coloring, Katoh always tries to have an overall theme in mind ("emphasis on blue" etc) so it comes together in the end

41. Yes the twins are genetically related to Shiro because of Goro (she says they're like his nephews but I say GENETICALLY at least they'd be indistinguishable from his children)

42. Strongest mom of all the strong moms around here? Yuri! Did you SEE her give birth??

43. Are you careful about your own health Katoh-sensei? Not particularly! Her mom has had to bring her food at work sometimes! Don't do this at home kids

44. At the dating events Shura goes to, does she drink cocktails in moderation? Yeah, she probably downplays her normal drinking habits at these things. But normally she's down for just about any kind of drink

45. Lucifer just really likes oysters okay

46. How many pages of manga does Katoh draw in a day? If she's being good about self-care: three. Maximum number ever: TEN

47. Mephisto is one of those folks who can eat like a garbage compactor and never gain weight. Possibly because his body resists that sort of change the same way it resists aging etc

48. First food Rin cooked: fish burger type patty. Yukio's favorite things Rin cooks: fish simmered in soy sauce, yellowtail with daikon radish. It's fish all the way down

49: Did Rin ever get more monthly allowance from Mephisto? It doubled! He gets TWO 2000 yen bills now (rip) [T/N: That's uh, that's USD $37.26 a month or 33.10 euro]

50. Why isn't Rin more popular with the girls? He gets nervous talking to them, plus he's too oblivious to notice even if he DID have some fans

51. Why change Suguro's hair? She gets bored with keeping everything the same, and she wanted a visual representation that he was getting serious and going into kind of a training arc

52. Things Katoh pays extra attention to when drawing: trying to capture the feel of whatever she's drawing (like "that looks warm and soft" or "I bet that guy stinks" cough Lightning cough)

53: Does Rin take after Yuri more? (He's got her eyes!) Katoh tried to draw Yuri so she looks like both twins. Personality, too - Yukio has her smarts and Rin has her optimism

54: Do you ever wanna be like Mephisto? Well she'd like to be able to get away with just ANYTHING EVER, but no, let's not be like Mephisto

55. Konekomaru not only carries around a cat toy in case he meets any cats, he MAKES cat toys to carry around based on what he thinks the cats would like

56. How'd you come up with Shima? Go read the fan book!

57. Do the kids have Twitter/Instagram accounts? Rin - probably not. Konekomaru might be on some social media. Paku and Izumo are totally on instagram

58. Is there something Rin makes that you wish you could try? All of it! That's the whole idea! He's good at cooking!

59. Will we ever have a (G-rated) reveal of what ALL of Mamushi and her family's tattoos look like? Maybe! She'll think about it

60. Does Arthur have a repertoire of different hairstyles? Not really, he just puts some of it up on the top. Heck he might even have people to do that for him

61. If you wrote a shojo manga what would it be about? She'd have to do a lot of research before even coming up with a story, since there are so many style differences between the genres aside from just the subject

62. The other two of Mephisto's top 3 favorite foods: Cup ramen and....f-fried bubblegum?? Is that a THING???

63. Where do you start when drawing a character? Usually the outline of their face but if it's a complex pose/composition she'll start with whatever's in the foreground (like hands)

64. If Katoh could have a familiar, what demon would she choose? Mephisto. As the all-powerful author, she might actually be able to command him as a familiar!

66. If you swapped Yukio and Rin's relationship around what would change? not much, you'd pretty much have Rin going to the Illuminati and Yukio going to the past

67. Top 3 foods/souvenirs to try in Kyushu? Well she doesn't know what’s good CURRENTLY but when she was there she always used to like burdock tempura udon, hakata torimon (a kind of manju with white bean paste inside), and Chikae style cod roe. today I learned Katoh went to high school in Kyushu

68. Katoh listens to music a lot while she's storyboarding, then when she and the assistants are all drawing and inking they put various videos/movies and stuff on in the background

69. For all his hitting on girls, is Shima actually popular with the ladies at all? He's got enough girls in his life that he probably COULD find a girlfriend if he really wanted, but the double agent thing tends to get in the way. He still wouldn't be as popular as Yukio though (side thought/translator’s note: Shima would be proud of being number 69.)

70. Katoh has the ending planned out in a big-picture way, but there are still a few details here and there that she's fretting over

71. It's cute when the boys put their ties over their shoulders when they're working on something! Where'd that come from? She just figured a tie might get in the way and that seemed like a realistic way to get it out of the way

72. Looks like Yukio is getting some facial hair! What about Rin? They're both about the age for it, but maybe Rin can't grow a beard yet. Maybe a little peach fuzz here and there

73. Katoh's favorite blue exorcist merch? There were some exorcist licenses a while back, and the exorcist pins. Basically it's really cool that these little accessories she drew ACTUALLY EXIST NOW, LIKE YOU CAN HOLD THEM IN YOUR HANDS

74. Okay realtalk how long do we have left, I don't want the series to end yet? We're solidly in the second half by now but it's not, like, ABOUT to end yet

75. Katoh would be a Knight meister, based on what characters she likes to play in games and such

76. How many people in the whole exorcism cram school? More than you think! She doesn't give a number but apparently licensed exorcists also attend classes for new meisters, etc, so there's a wide age range attending

77. How's Arthur feel about, like, studying Taming on the way to becoming Paladin? He's at least mostly accepted that you have to use demons to fight demons effectively

78. Konekomaru started wearing glasses in his first year of middle school, so like 7th grade (more recent than I thought!) He has one spare pair, in contrast to Yukio lol

79. Katoh's current obsessions? Ghost/scary stories! She's even been going to live readings of them recently

80. Media Katoh consumes for inspiration? A wide range of foreign teen drama, horror/suspense, shojo manga, light novels, anime, etc. Special focus on things where two boys are in conflict or there are brothers involved

81. If they weren't exorcists what jobs would they have? Rin - chef. Yukio - doctor. Shiemi - uh, florist?

82. Inspiration for the design of True Cross Town? Katoh and her assistants gathered up a bunch of references, picked out stuff they felt matched the tone, and mashed them all up together

83. Did you use any references etc for the school/exorcist uniforms? She says she probably should have but she just kind of made them up before publication

84. Favorite part of drawing? For color pages, picking out a color scheme. For black and white, drawing in all the little details (though she doesn't always get time to lately)

85. Once again confirms the demon kings' weird hair is a representation of their horns. ADDS THAT PEOPLE WHO CAN'T SEE DEMONS CAN'T SEE THE WEIRD HAIR

86. Now that Yukio's at the Illuminati, where's he gonna get his Jump SQ and spare glasses? Well he probably never planned to stay for long, but hey it's a big ship and they might have an optometrist and/or newsstand there

87. Do you base the demon characters on any references etc? Not really, she just gets a general idea of popular demon designs and then makes up her own in her own style

88. Merchandise Katoh personally wants to have made: stuff that an adult could just use in their day to day life. Also, it's not gonna happen, but if her favorite figure brand made AoEx figures she could die happy

89. If Beelzebub's host body was a beautiful woman, how would Shima react? Would the womanizing win out over the bug phobia? Katoh replies that Shima would probably just faint from being near a girl that pretty, before the bugs even got involved

90. Will the twins ever get to smile and eat dinner together again?? We'll just have to wait and see!

91. What do you check at a "scenario check"? what's a scenario check man I dunno They check for people being out of character or the setting feeling off. They had a lot of these checks for the anime, but they also do them for the drama CD, games, and all that other stuff where multiple authors are involved

92. Why does Shura use baldy as an insult for people who are clearly not bald? She feels like they have some kind of metaphorical, mental kind of "baldness" and she's calling them out on it. Whatever that means

93. After Blue Exorcist ends, what do you want to draw next? She has SO MANY IDEAS, SO MANY

94. Did Katoh make up the Shinto chants that, for example, Izumo used against Gedouin? They're assembled from bits of actual Shinto prayers according to what feels right in the scene

95. Yukio reads the Jump SQ, right, and, just hear me out here, he likes gag manga, right? Does this mean he reads Salaryman Yukio? It's something he would read, but let's say that in the AoEx universe there's just a very similar manga that he finds oddly relatable

96. What do Yukio and Shima do in their free time on the Dominus Liminus? oh my god you guys this ship has so many amenities. Yukio probably spends time reading in the library, which they totally have. There's also, like, a gym, and a movie theater, and a THEATER theater, all of which are free. Shima probably hangs out at the pool (!) and goes to the movies, and hits on illuminati girls, lol

97. Easiest character to draw? The ones with boring simple hair, lol. Lightning gets an honorable mention for ALSO not having eyes in most shots, but Rin wins--he was specifically designed to be easy for Katoh to draw because that's what you want in your main character

98. How do demons understand gender? They just possess whatever feels like the best match to how they feel in Gehenna, whether that's a man, or a woman, or a rat, or whatever

99. Where do you start when you're coming up with a story? She starts with character design and how the characters relate to each other. Currently she's just continuing an existing story, so she works on splitting up the overall plot into episodes and fleshing it out with scenes and information about characters

100. When do you feel most happy? She honestly feels like she lives a very happy life overall. Mentions noticing a lot of little things, like how nice her cats' heads smell when she cuddles them or taking a nice cold refreshing drink of water. There's happiness in everything. aww.

#blue exorcist #interview #Ao no Exorcist #translation

451 notes · View notes

swordarkeereon · 3 years

Text

Tech Review for Writers: reMarkable2

I got myself a piece of interesting tech this year in hopes it would get me from out in front of a computer screen more often. Meet the reMarkable2, a distraction free (i.e. it’s not connected to the entirety of the internet) e-ink tablet workhorse that’s easy on the eyes.

The reMarkable2 Tablet

First things first. The reMarkable2 tablet is not for everyone and your average person probably won’t find it the least bit useful. So let’s talk about why you don’t want this tablet first.

reMarkable 2 is not for you if:

– You want an eReader. eReaders have a VERY DIFFERENT function than the reMarkable2. Yes, you can read PDFs on a reMarkable, but it’s more for *marking up* a PDF and commenting in the margins of a PDF. Not just reading. eReaders like Kindles and Nooks often have built in dictionaries, ways to bookmark pages or passages of text, etc… that the reMarkable2 doesn’t have. You can search your documents for specific phrases and words and also highlight things in a light gray, but if you’re just looking for an eReader, I suggest a Kindle.

– You want a full functioning tablet that you can put apps on and surf the web with- If you’re looking for a full functioning tablet, you’ve missed the whole point of the reMarkable2. The main point behind reMarkable2 is so you can go to your creative place (wherever that may be) and brainstorm, free from ALL distractions. You can’t stop to surf FB or your Twitter feed on a reMarkable2, thus making it more likely you’ll stay on task and get more done.

– You want something with color so you can highlight because what you really want is a fully functioning ebook reader or tablet. This tablet is really more of a no frills brainstorming and note-taking tool for entrepreneurs, professionals, academics, and creatives (including engineers, writers, musicians, possibly artists if they like to sketch in black and white) who use a lot of black pens and plain paper.

I bought the tablet for the following reasons (which I wrote down BEFORE I received the device):

– I wanted an electronic notebook (not a tablet). I’m one of those people who goes through 3 packs of sticky notes every month, and countless notebooks every year. I am constantly jotting stuff down to keep myself focused and on track while running my own business and helping out at the family business. My notes can be anything from putting together presentations, classes, and meetings, to extensive to-do lists for the day. Sometimes it’s just me keeping track of sales figures. As a result, my desk is always filled with papers and notebooks and I’m constantly searching for shit. The electronic notebook cleans up all this clutter and helps me organize my brain. (Have you seen my brain!? It’s a mess in there.)

– I like to write freehand, especially when I’m plotting the next book or writing a blurb, or even writing a chapter – and it must be distraction free. This is something only fellow authors will understand. The fact that the reMarkable2 can convert handwritten notes to text sent via email has me excited because, if I’m lucky and it works, I won’t have to go through and transcribe all my handwritten notes. It basically saves me time by eliminating a step. I can copy/paste the note from my email into the appropriate file on my laptop. This will also save me the clutter and weight of carrying countless notebooks.

– I am involved with projects that require me to sketch out ideas for marketing and/or artwork. I do have tablets that can do this, but nothing that does it *well*. The closest is my Surface tablet, which can do a lot of things, but it still doesn’t feel like paper or allow me the fine detail paper allows. I’m hoping this tablet is a bit more responsive in this area. – I am forever printing out rough drafts of manuscripts for markup – wasting a ton of paper and toner in the process. All because I can’t edit on a backlit screen. My eyes get tired and I miss too many errors. If I can transfer my PDF drafts to the reMarkable and mark them up there with minimal errors left over, I could save some $$. I am actually estimating that I could easily save the cost of the reMarkable2 in 6 months to 1 year’s time by not having to purchase the paper, pens, and toner I usually go through in that time frame. Plus, these marked up manuscripts often end up in a stack on my office floor for 6 months to a year after publication.

– I am forever having to read PDFs of laws and regulations for the family business, and while I usually use them on the computer, I sit in front of a computer 8-13 hours a day. I need a non-backlit screen for reading in the evenings just to give my eyes a break. Yes, I imagine I could do the same with a Kindle paperwhite, but I may just want to jot some notes in the same way I’d mark up a paper copy. I’m still a pen and paper girl. I’m really hoping the reMarkable is my replacement for that (most of the time anyway).

reMarkable2 test to sample the pen styles.

Some considerations I took into account before purchasing:

A lot of customers complained that it took too long to receive the reMarkable or to get support. From all of the research I did, and in reading their website, it’s clear to me that this company caters to academia and businesses. I ordered my reMarkable2 on January 16, 2021, and had it in my hands by January 25, 2021. 9 days. I also ordered it and paid for it through my business. I don’t know if that’s actually why I got mine so fast, but I wouldn’t be surprised. That said, I do think the company should work a little harder to increase their customer service efficiency.

With regard to customer support – the website clearly states it can take up to 10 business days for support to get back to you. And a lot of the things people seem to be complaining about have troubleshooting instructions on the website. Clearly people weren’t going to the website to try to look up their issue through the support FAQs, which likely would have helped them out sooner. They were just contacting support immediately, and angry when they weren’t getting a response after 3 days, when it’s clearly stated on the website that it can take up to 10 days due to the fact that reMarkable is a small company. But like I said earlier – they would be smart to increase their customer service team.

reMarkable’s folios are a custom fit and really pretty, but a bit pricey. I made the tablet more affordable by skipping the upgrade on the pen, because a friend of mine got the eraser feature and she wasn’t digging it initially (she loves it now), and I purchased a relatively nice folio from Amazon for under $30 (with no magnets – research told me magnets can cause dead spots in the screen of the reMarkable2). You can also just buy a 10″-11″ tablet sleeve and it would work much the same. There are also universal tablet folios that will fit 10″-11″ tablets that are free of magnets and will likely work just fine. All for under $20 bucks — even a few in faux leather. Remember that a case should protect your investment, not just make it *look* sharp.

Right out of the Box.

Right out of the box I set the reMarkable up and started using it for brainstorming. Here were my first impressions:

1. It really is pretty damn close to writing on paper.

2. You can rest your damn hand on the screen and it won’t fuck things up or make it wobble as with traditional tablets.

3. My handwriting actually looks like my handwriting and you have almost the same control with this as you would with real pen and paper.

4. The interface is simple and intuitive and anyone who uses computers and tablets day and in day out will have no issues figuring this out.

Now some thoughts on the features:

Handwriting to Text: As an author who likes to occasionally spend time writing the old fashioned way, one of the things that attracted me to this tablet was its ability to translate handwriting to text. No writer wants to have to transcribe their written notes and waste all of that time. So of course I tested it with my horrific handwriting, vs purposefully trying to be neat, and the reMarkable2 was able to convert my chicken scratch into actual text that I could read. I was able to turn the handwritten notes into a PDF, but I was also able to send the handwriting converted to typed text as the body of an email, where I was able to cut and paste it into any program I wanted. I took it further and wrote 1000 words (about 8.2 pages) longhand. It converted all the pages to text in one swoop and I was able to copy/paste it into my manuscript. While there was a little formatting and editing involved — it was a lot faster than retyping handwritten notes. WIN!

Handwriting for conversion test.

Conversion successful

PDF Transfer, Markup, and Signature: Transferring PDFs to the reMarkable is easy. You simply download the app on your phone and your desktop, and you can take any pdf from either device and import it onto your reMarkable, which you can then markup. I sent myself a slew of PDFs that I had to read and markup. It’s amazing how much more focused I am on a screen like this. I really got the same experience with editing on a digital PDF as I did with editing on a paper copy. My only caveat is that I don’t have more space to make notes since the margins are a bit small on the screen and there’s no “back of the page” to carry notes over to. I can likely manage. Despite that – what a great experience. Goodbye manuscripts all over my office floor! Hello being able to drag editing work with me wherever I go!

You can also transfer your PDFs that don’t have an electronic signature option to the device, sign them, and send them back. Talk about HANDY since I do that a few times a month by default. This just eliminates the print/sign/scan. Now I just have to transfer it to the device, sign the document, and email it straight back to whoever sent it.

Digital Planners may be something I look into for 2022 because reMarkable actually makes them feasible. I tried a tester digital planner, courtesy a friend, on my reMarkable and I have to say – it offers just as much satisfaction as a paper planner. Plus, you can SEARCH large pdfs. It won’t find search terms in your handwriting, but it will find it in your PDF. That’s definitely a handy feature when you’re working with 500 page PDFs. That said, the tablet saves your place (last page you visited) as you’re navigating a PDF, so no need to search for the place you left off. However, there is no way to bookmark multiple pages.

ePub Reading: suppose I could sideload books as ePubs, but I really have no use for this feature. If I want to read ebooks, I use my kindle or the Kindle App on my tablet or phone. Unless I start doing editing of ePubs or want to check out an ePub format for something? I didn’t buy this as an eReader, and it is terribly lacking as an eReader. Where the reMarkable excels is as a tool for marking up documents. So my guess is it would be great for that if you have a lot of files in ePub format that you have to go over. You also can’t change font sizes for easier reading. You can zoom in and zoom back out to regular size. That’s it. (And this is another reason this is not an eReader.)

Storage: Storage is a little over 6GB (you do not pay for the reMarkable website cloud-sync). But even with about 15 PDFs (some of them really long) on my reMarkable at any given time, I was only at .38 GB.

reMarkable2 Storage

File System: Like I said earlier – the system is highly intuitive and easy to use. I made folders for my most common notebook uses, then I moved the appropriate PDFs to those folders, and created any notebooks I needed for those folders.

Exporting: You can export as .PNG, .SVG, and PDF. Handwriting to text can only be sent as text via the body of an email. This is actually great for writing because then you just have to copy/paste from your email into your Word Doc, Google Doc, or Scrivener.

Importing: Imports PDFs and ePubs.

Templates: The templates are great. I generally only use graph paper, plain, and lined paper myself. But I could see how a lot of these would be useful to people. The to-do list is a crappy template just because it requires you to hide your menu to use it (you can’t tick the the checkboxes until you do this). To hide the menu tap the circle in the upper left top of the menu bar. So if you want a partial page to-do list, you can easily make your own checkbox lists using the graph paper option. There are also dot pages for the folks into bullet journaling.

A small sampling of reMarkable2 Templates

Search Feature: You can search within a PDF, but not through your own handwritten text. You must be in the PDF to search it, otherwise you can only search for file names. You can not search across documents for a phrase or word. So if you’re looking for something with the same search capabilities as a laptop or possibly a tablet, you won’t find it here.

Zooming: You can zoom in on PDF documents and write on them while zoomed. However, you cannot change font sizes to make reading easier.

Battery Life: On days where I used it heavily (about 4-5 hours), I was using around 15% power in a day because I didn’t put it in airplane mode. Three days of 4-5 hours a day use drained my battery to 50%. So me, as a heavy user, not in airplane mode, will likely get 6-7 days out of a single charge. Possibly more since clearly not every day will be a heavy use day. The device does go to sleep after 10 minutes of inactivity.

Pen:The pens are a bit pricey. I did not buy the expensive pen with the eraser and I’m okay with that. But $60 for a pen is still a bit — ouch.

Pen Nib: I am expecting I will be one of those poor unfortunate souls who will be replacing pen tips every 3-4 weeks during heavy use. Luckily the pen itself doesn’t use batteries. The pen nibs seem reasonable in price, just be sure to order a new pack with your device and when you start that pack, order another as shipping times on those can take a week or two depending where you are and how efficient your mail service is. You don’t want to accidently run out and find yourself without a pen. Yikes.

Security: You can add a password to your reMarkable to keep prying eyes out. But if you’re like me and self-employed, that’s not really an issue. Your remarkable has Wi-Fi, yes, but you can put it in airplane mode to cut the connection. Plus, it only syncs to your cloud storage. There really aren’t any entry points for viruses or people hacking into your device. But then I’m also not a tech person. Let’s just say I highly doubt security will be a huge issue on this thing. Besides, anyone who wants to take a peek at my tablet would likely find themselves bored stiff, unless they like reading really rough first drafts of speculative fiction. LOL

Backup/Download: You can easily transfer your files back to your computer by opening the app and simply exporting your finished documents, etc… to your computer, backup drive or cloud drive. You can also just email yourself a copy to make it super easy.

My Wishlist:

1. I wish I could add or append new, handwritten pages to an existing PDF. That would definitely solve the space issue. Now, I just make notes in a different file and jog back and forth between the PDF and the notes, which is a little annoying, but doable. One way to solve this issue would be to save all your PDFs to double spaced. It might make markup a little easier. I’ll try that with the next books to go under the editorial knife.

2. I wish there were cheaper alternative covers. My $17 cover looks great and protects my tablet. reMarkable could easily come up with a few additional low-cost choices here. The ultra professionals are still going to buy nice leather folios.

(I may add to this list in the coming weeks, but right now these are the two main things jumping out at me.)

Overall Review Summary

For writers, reMarkable2 truly is a remarkable distraction free device that can help improve your concentration and organization, give you the freedom to write out longhand and convert it to text without the tedious re-typing, and help you mark up drafts with ease. This would probably serve prolific and professional writers more liberally than the writer who takes a few years to pen a book. Plus, it will probably save you a lot of printer paper, toner, pens and notebooks. For business owners/users – reMarkable will likely save you pounds of sticky notes and legal pads, and hours of time transcribing your notes. Plus, it’s a great on-the-go working tool for content creators and people who review a lot of PDFs.

Have some thoughts on the reMarkable2? Feel free to leave a comment below!

#distraction-free #not sponsored content #reMarkable2 #tablets #technology reviews

4 notes · View notes

iacon-city · 5 years

Text

roses on fire

✷ driftrod; tw for suicidal thoughts, depression, dark feelings, slightly ooc characters.

Summary: “The matrix. Oh primus, it hurts so damn bad.”

There were nights where Drift just couldn't force himself into recharge.

There were cycles when his memories, Deadlock's memories, came to life inside his chamber and blocked out whatever slim shimmer of light made its way into his quarters, when the only solutions that remained were knocking down cube after cube of alcohol or simply wandering the halls into morning 'light'; clearly, he reasoned, the latter was far more healthy.

Yet never before had he experienced this.

The warrior was making his rounds along the outskirts of the ship, footsteps tracing patterns on the floors of the more neglected areas of the Lost Light when his optics caught sight of a form hidden away in the shadows that were cast along the cold metal walls. "Hello?" Drift's voice echoed as he slipped further down the hallway, and there wasn't a response as the figure shifted slightly. Now, Drift did not come to this area of the ship very often- no one did, in fact. This specific wing had been out of use for months, and the warrior couldn't fathom why anyone would be in this corridor at the present late time, let alone who. He narrowed his optics as his servos subconsciously settled on the hilts of his swords; "I-" he froze as he came to a halt in front of the mech, digits falling to his sides as he stared, surprised.

It was Rodimus.

"Rodimus? What the primus are you doing out here?" Drift shifted on his pedes as his captain merely dragged an arm across his face, a shaky vent escaping the prime that was pressed along the wall in solitary motion. "Roddy?" Drift's confusion quickly morphed into concern as he dropped to his knees beside the leader, a silver hand reaching towards orange.

The prime's face plate was stained with tear tracks.

"Drift," Rodimus' voice was surprisingly even, "what the hell are you doing up so late?" The swordsman faltered at the sudden question but responded nontheless. "I was just clearing my processor-" he hummed, spark hammering in dull panic, "but I think I'll stay for a bit, with you." The prime cracked a smile that didn't quite reach his optics, turning his gaze away from his crewmember; "Nah, there's no need. It's late, and you should get some recharge- it's gonna be a hectic day tomorrow." Drift grimaced at his captain's words, not moving from his kneeled position. "Rodimus." The warrior's voice was soft, "Are you-" he was interrupted with an abrupt "I'm fine." Spouting from Rodimus, and Drift scoffed in mock disbelief.

"Like primus you are."

There was a pause as silence filled the gap between communication; "I can't do this right now, Drift." Rodimus finally spoke with tired words, "Go back to sleep. We'll deal with this tomorrow, or, I dunno, never." The swordsman shifted to sit closer to his prime, his captain, his leader; he had never seen Rodimus like this, before, and the fact was scaring him. "I don't particularly find those odds comforting," he mused, "so I think it would be best to get it out of the way, now, when it's just the two of us and the cold air draft from down the hall." A small smile slipped across Rodimus' face at his friend's words, and he took a shuddering breath at the thought of maybe, perhaps, letting someone know, letting someone in.

"Just hurts, is all."

The captain gave Drift a weak laugh, "'M getting real tired of it." Drift tensed at his words, offering a gentle push to keep him talking. "What does, Rodimus?" The warmly colored mech beside him pressed a palm to his chassis, optics flickering closed as the prime's voice descended into a hoarse whisper.

"The matrix."

He dug his digits into the metal encasing his spark, "Oh primus, it hurts so damn bad." Rodimus' optics rose open, "It burns, all the time. It's growing and transferring and molding, molding me into the perfect little leader everyone needs me to be." Drift's optics were wild at the amount of pure pain that intertwined itself through Rodimus' words.

"Optimus talked about it once, y'know."

Drift's gaze was locked onto Rodimus as his grip tightened on the handles of his swords. "He told me, way back, that a prime wasn't allowed the luxury of having anything for himself; I didn't understand him, then, but it all makes sense now." The captain looked down at servos, optics staring at his hands as if they were foreign to his body; "A prime exists soley for the people, nothing more than a puppet controlled by the masses- everything he did, everything I do, is for the benefit of someone else. The greater good." Drift broke into Rodimus' train of conversation. "That doesn't mean that you have to throw away your personal ideas, Roddy. You can still have dreams, you can still-"

"No, no I can't."

Rodimus laughed, "I can't have a normal life, can't have friends, can't have lovers- in the end, the matrix won't even let me have myself." The prime's vents stuttered as his emotions overwhelmed him, "I don't know who I am, anymore. Hot Rod died the day the matrix touched my spark; when I am no longer prime, who will I be? What will be left besides a primus-saked husk and a disappointment?" There was a tinge of desperate panic in the underlying question, and Drift's own vents clicked on softly as he inhaled sharply; this version- no, this side of Rodimus was not one he ever foresaw existing.

It hurt him, seeing his close friend in such misunderstood agony.

"The matrix is a curse, a damn prop to support the ideals and tradition of a long dead society- all it does, in reality, is destroy to rewrite something 'better'. Make me into something- make me into something I never wanted to be." Rodimus' voice wavered,

"Sometimes I'd do anything to make it stop, even if it meant shooting out my own spark to make the burning cease."

His words made Drift's energon run cold, "I wouldn't wish the burden of being prime upon even the worst of my enemies." The warrior raising a servo cover his intake as a wave of pure panic washed over him. The prime noticed his action and let out a loose laugh accompanied by a tired grin. "Oh, come on, Drift; it wouldn't matter anyway, if I were dead. I'm already a ticking time bomb, so what would be the harm in offing myself sooner than later?" Drift recoiled at the utter nonchalance Rodimus spoke with. "You-" the swordsman's voice box gave out, "you want to kill yourself?" His captain waved a servo flippantly through the air as lubricant welled in the usually cocky mech's optics-

"It's not my first choice, but yeah. Yeah, it's on the playing field."

Rodimus' shoulders began to shake as the tears fell from his eyes, his little smile of melancholy dissolving into a quiet sob as he buried his helm in his knees, arms wrapping around his body as if he could just pull into himself and disappear.

"I just want it to stop, Drift. I just want peace and quiet, for once, instead of this static inside my helm."

Drift didn't hesitate to pull his friend into a close hug, burying his chin in the crook of Rodimus' neck as he held him close with shaking hands; "Don't ever take your own life, Rodimus." The warrior's voice wavered dangerously, "We need you. I need you." Drift held Rodimus tighter when he didn't respond, afraid that he'd disappear if he were to let go. "You should- you should talk to Ratchet tomorrow about the matrix and see if there's anything he can do for you. I'll even go with you, if you want. Just don't-" his optics fluttered closed as his vents clicked into high-gear,

"Just don't give up on me, okay?"

Rodimus let out a soft laugh as he once more dragged an arm across his face plate, erasing the tears that still danced down his cheeks. "Okay." He responded with a small smile, "Okay, I'll try." He leaned into Drift's frame as they stared into the dark, bodies held close as they kept each other from falling apart;

They stayed there until first morning light, a shimmer of silver and red.

38 notes · View notes

comicteaparty · 4 years

Text

June 13th-June 19th, 2020 Creator Babble Archive

The archive for the Creator Babble chat that occurred from June 13th, 2020 to June 19th, 2020. The chat focused on the following question:

What is your physical and digital workspace like when you’re working on your story?

🌈ERROR404 🌈

LOL it really depends on what stage I'm in of the process - My storyboarding space is at home, as comfortable as I can be, a beer and some food at the ready and pure silence. The cats have to be freshly fed, otherwise I'll be harassed and lose my headspace entirely LOL. I usually work on my story boards digitally, just at a very small scale, with my script/outline on my computer and working on my ipad! The double screen helps a LOT, although i would just print out the script if I had access to a printer, haha. When I'm working on the actual page itself, it's a very different story. I usually just try and work on it in tiny little batches during the day when I'm stuck at home, and usually work around the animals as best i can, lmao. Truthfully, I really prefer to be in a coffee shop when I'm working on finishing pages, it makes me so much more productive than i am in this house with so many things to take care of right in front of me, but, obviously, that's a bit difficult to do these days. ;; I usually reserve food and drink until after I pass a milestone in inking/sketching to help motivate me to keep going for as much as I can before taking a break, and I need some kind of music or video playing in the background to keep myself from being absolutely bored out of my mind. My shading process, since it's in black and white, is very easy and i can finish it in one setting, easy, no matter what I'm working with. I also work digitally for my pages, of course, although I don't need more than my ipad and clip studio for it!

DaeofthePast

freshly fed cats

🌈ERROR404 🌈

They are BEASTS when hungry, the little bastards (love them)

I may only work in peace when they're post-food napping lmao

DaeofthePast

we only have one, but same

LadyLazuli (Phantomarine)

I work almost entirely in the corner of my IKEA couch at home I used to work at a proper desk with a Cintiq, but when I switched to Procreate on an iPad, I migrated to the couch and surrounded myself with a nest of clothes and blankets and books and... here I am, bein' cozy. With terrible posture But when I was between jobs last year, I did rent a little coworking space down the street so I could get out of my pajamas and go get comic stuff done there. It was a godsend. I like drawing at my favorite coffee shop every so often too, but I tend to hide my work while I draw, and there, everyone can look over my shoulder The coworking space had a tall artist desk that was rarely used, so I often grabbed that one. Not cheap, but to stave off cabin fever, heck yes, worth it.

🌈ERROR404 🌈

Ahhh I've been really thinking about getting a studio space one of these days I really shouldn't rn, with my finances as they are, but I could REALLY make use of one recently

LadyLazuli (Phantomarine)

I loved the space I used last year. They recently had to close for... current-event reasons... and are going to reopen with all sorts of plexiglass barriers between the desks I feel so bad for them. Good studio spaces are wonderful, I would support them again if I ever was out of a job!

🌈ERROR404 🌈

it's good they've found ways to make it safer, though!

carcarchu

My old workspace was in the basement of my home in canada and it was always perpetually freezing even in the summer and i was frequently visited by spiders so my current workspace is a huge improvement in that regard. I do miss my old ergonomic desk chair though. I'm definitely not the kind of person who can draw in bed or on the couch. I need to be in workmode and having a designated space just for that is necessary for me to get in the right headspace for that.

DaeofthePast

my workspace rn is just my desk with my laptop and my drawing tablet. my laptop is stacked on top of a pile of books so i can see the screen (otherwise my tablet blocks my line of sight). it's kinda simple

chalcara [Nyx+Nyssa]

Depends. I have a Cintiq Mobile Studio, so I can draw pretty much every where and sometimes in the oddest position, but most of the time I am on my desk with the cintiq hooked up to a second monitor so I don't have to look down so much.(edited)

Holmeaa - working on WAYFINDERS

For Wayfinders: Thumbnails are somewhere cozy and the only physical work. Me and Q sit and plan them out together. The rest of wayfinders are made on Photoshop, and flat colors in clip paint studio. In the world I would love a nice studio place in an office with others. During corentine I have been working from home, and I am not that good at it, being quite the extrovert. Before corentine I was in a artist residency where I worked on Wayfinders which had a workstation and all the programs we could need. It is so nice and me and Q are going to return there when it opens up again!

Miranda

I have an iPad so usually on the couch, cozied up with coffee and pillows and blankets. But sometimes at the table. But usually on the couch like the gremlin I am

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I have a large drafting table, a mini drafting table, and a lapdesk in my papasan when we ink/draw! Toning and letters are all done on the desktop in its own space

Miranda

I need to get a good lap desk. But that sounds like a grand setup!

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

My first time hearing about a lapdesk

Omg I need one

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

They are the best things ever Mine has just the pencil holder !(some come with cup holders and its a waste of space imo)

Joichi [Hybrid Dolls]

Wow I like your setup of the drafting tables

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

I wanna show pics of them....if im allowed in this chat?

Joichi [Hybrid Dolls]

I hope so, I'm not sure which channel we can post studio photos at? I did see some did before?

FeatherNotes(Krispy)

Ill post in shop talk since creator babble gets archived

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

my current space is uh.... a bit better than my last one. I used to work on an old writers desk for a decade and I did most of my comic work sitting there cramped up with my desktop taking most of the space. Now I have an L shaped desk where I have my desktop on the shorter end. The longer end it's my pen, pencils, and watercolor stuff. my display tablet occupy the space at times so switching from digital and traditional without worrying about setup hassle is a lot better than what I dealt with before lol.

I'm glad the days I had to curl up and draw with no privacy are long gone now

kayotics

I’ve got a little drafting table where I draw all my comic pages. I’m messy with my pens so they’re kind of strewn about until I start to lose them. Then I put them back. I’m not particularly neat. I spend most of the comic process off the computer, so most of my digital work is just on an iPad where I can sit anywhere. I try to keep good lighting around my drafting table and there’s always loose eraser shavings all over.

Natasha Berlin (Pot of Gold)

I got myself a lil corner desk by the dining table. Not as well-lit as I'd like, but it's decently ergonomic and I started putting posters on my wall Plus I can leave work mindset easily by turning off my computer and forgetting about the dark corner in the dining room XD(edited)

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

My desk is really sloppy and covered in all kinds of junk. I have a harmonica, a ball of yarn, a bunch of ink bottles, etc on my desk. I have my sketchbook under my tablet and usually a notebook somewhere for writing. My tablet sits to the right of my laptop (on top of sketchbook) while I'm not using it and when I'm using it it goes over my computer keyboard. I sometimes have a glass of water or some food sitting to the lefthand side

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

The only thing I wanna share about my workspace is this

once i spent over three hours looking for that damned pen

never again

🌈ERROR404 🌈

Ajkdhfkjs the models for hte magazine im crying

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

Oh my God

shadowhood (SunnyxRain)

mad giggling

Deo101 [Millennium]

youre gonna manage to lose the string

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

omg

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

i know in my heart deo is right but still i hope

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

You should weld a metal chain to it

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

Watch me lose the whole tablet

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

Oh nooo

I believe in you!

TaliePlume

My workspace is a black table with a white, yellow, blue and green tablecloth with 3 black chairs. It's next to the kitchen. On it, is my laptop and the left side is my clipboard, 3 blue folders full of writing. Then above it, is 3 sketchbooks and another blue folder from a class that I took in community college.

June 16, 2020

sagaholmgaard

I have one long desk at almost three meters. On the left side is all my coffee and tea supplies, in the middle is my work space and on the right is my dining table xD I get everything done from there, despite having a mobilestudio so I COULD sit anywhere and work, lol. It's a blessing during holiday seasons to be able to bring it everywhere, but at some I like my designated working space. Although I am moving in a few weeks, so who knows what my new workspace will be

Moral_Gutpunch

My workspace is anywhere I can draw or write. It's more of a "Will I be interrupted over something petty or stupid" issue than space. Not that I don't want more space.

Mitzi (Trophallaxis)

My workspace is a big, broken corner desk I managed to lug out of an old apartment when it was gonna be trashed. Before then, I'd just draw in bed. I don't remember, but I'm pretty sure the folding chair I sit at is a similar affair. It's got a Dollar General throw pillow on it so I can at least say I'm trying to save my back. The top of the desk is a mess of mostly old bottles and cans, pencils, incense ash, and my old tarot deck. I love this setup dearly. This is the first time I've ever had my own desk space, much less a space I can decorate or leave as messy as I want. Got my own art up on the walls with sticky tack and all! Also the cat's scratching post is directly behind me, because we've learned the cat won't use it unless it's as in the way as possible. What can ya do, lol.

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

Oh cats...

Desnik

I got spoiled with an adjustable desk. It is six feet long, and has a whiteboard top for noodling with dry erase markers

my main computer is set up on an adjustable stand so it floats over the desk, and then I have my cintiq, which we tried to mount on a similar stand but then it was just too heavy

I keep my dice collection nearby because fidgeting helps think things through sometimes

and rolling to make odd decisions never hurts

lately during the quarantine I've been sharing the office with my spouse so we've had to establish rules over when it's okay to bug each other(edited)

oh yeah and we also have a whiteboard installed in the office, and it rules!(edited)

Shizamura 🌟 O Sarilho

Mine is pretty simple: I have a laptop that's long stopped being portable and is now mostly just sitting at my desk at all times and a 19 inch Ugee as my display. I usually keep a lot of stuff on top of my desk, but it's mostly just a mess because I have been using it for work too for a while now

Cronaj (Whispers of the Past)

I suppose I'll talk about my setup too :) My main setup is where I do digital art. I share an office with my SO, so we both have workspaces on opposite walls from each other. I work on a corner desk that holds my beefy computer, two monitors, and a Huion Kamvas GT-191. That's where I draw my comic and pretty much everything else done digitally. Ngl, it's a mess right now. I have comic notes and location floor plans in sketchbooks and DnD character sheets spread out all over the surface, and random pens and sticky notes. In the corner of the room, we have a nice large-format printer where I produce prints for conventions. I actually sketch my pages on an iPad pro in Procreate, so during the sketch phase, sometimes I'll just bundle up on my couch and do it, or before quarantine, sometimes I'd sketch on the go. My other workspace (which hasn't gotten much love as of late tbh) is a drafting table in the corner of our living room. I keep a tabletop easel on it and my Copic markers, as well as whatever I'm working on at the moment. (RN it's some ink washes.) The drawers hold all my ink, pencils, erasers, etc. Next to the drafting table is where I keep all my large charcoal, graphite, and oil pastel drawings (mostly school projects), and my large paintings. Other than that, I have a nifty little cart where I keep painting supplies :) I will say, this setup is by far an enormous improvement from my previous setups.

#ctparchive #comics #webcomics #indie comics #comic chat #comic discussion #comic tea party #ctp #creator interview #comic creator interview #creator babble

1 note · View note

girls-love-girls1200 · 5 years

Text

51. Hani x Reader •Boss•

If there was one word to describe your relationship with alarm clocks, your mother would probably say pure hatred, after all during the ever so dark days that formed your high school career she had had to reel you out of bed and frantically drive you to school while screaming about all the different ways you had disappointed her as a daughter on many, many occasions.

University had felt like a breath of fresh air, out of all the classes you were taking only one of them was an early morning, 8 am sharp the professor had advised on the first day of classes, and yet you still managed to show up almost every week at least ten minutes late with a notebook in one hand and and a random fruit in the other, cheeks heating up under the teacher’s discouraged gaze, the disappointment in eyes as clear as day.

One would think that as young adult entering the first stages of your career of choice you would have wised up, your job was a real responsibility to be honest, you absolutely loved it, there was no doubt about that, but somehow, you had to be late at least once a week and after working at the architectural firm that was Ahn Corporate for three years your coworkers had started a tradition of betting at the beginning of every week on the day you would arrive late, whoever won had to buy coffee for the whole office.

Sometimes you wondered how you still managed to keep your dream job and why nobody had scolded you for your everlasting tardiness, and as you voiced your doubts to one of your colleagues the answer was one you had decided to ignore ever since and act like you had never heard anything, except for when you found yourself working on designs at two in the morning, only then those words would come back to you,

“You’re one of the top drafting and design technicians out there at the moment, Miss Ahn is convinced you’re a diamond, she has one hell of a soft spot for you Y/N.”

Unsurprisingly, on a freezing December morning you found yourself bursting through the company doors your briefcase tight in your arms as it held one of your more treasured projects yet, only after jumping in the elevator you gave yourself a second to calm your breathing, and as you caught your reflection in the mirrored door you almost shrieked, running a hand through your hair in order to make it slightly presentable, fastening the last button of your shirt just as the elevator dinged. You didn’t even have time to put on your lenses as you sped walked towards the conference room, checking the time on the wall above the entrance you sighed at the fact you had managed to arrive fifteen minutes late.

The serious atmosphere that embraced you as soon as you set foot in the room felt extremely suffocating, you spotted the familiar faces of a few of your colleagues around the long table, they were kind enough to send a few reassuring glances your way.

Most of the faces at the table you didn’t recognize though, they were probably some higher ups or representatives of the company you had been doing the project for, but one thing was for sure, they didn’t seem happy to have been held up for fifteen minutes waiting for your arrival.

At the head of the table sat the woman you had only seen on rare occasions and spoke to once, when she had welcomed you on your first day at work but it was safe to say that she had been on your mind a lot ever since.

Ahn Heeyeon was in your eyes an incredible woman, her and her older brother had inherited Ahn Corporate from their late father at a very young age and they somehow managed to elevate the architectural firm to an even higher level, it was known as one of the most prestigious firms internationally and it attracted extremely wealthy clients from all over the world, ranging from celebrities to politicians to bankers and other huge corporations.

The woman was highly recognized for her intelligence and hard work but little to nothing was known about her personal life, the tabloids liked to make up crazy rumors about how she had never dated in her entire life because of how work focused she was.

But as you looked in her eyes while walking towards your designated seat you could see a kindness and fondness that was so very rare.

“Good morning everyone, I’m terribly sorry for my tardiness but I can assure you all you won’t be as disappointed in my work as you are in my behavior.”

You dared to peek at your boss, sighing in relief as the beautiful woman showed signs of a small smile on her face.

Opening your briefcase you fished out your glasses among the infinite amount of papers you carried for some reason, even when clients mostly requested digital blueprints and projects, you could never come up with an idea if you didn’t have a sharp pencil and a white sheet of paper in front of you. Grabbing the transparent folder you had forgot to label, you passed it on to Miss Ahn, who always preferred to present every important project herself.

As your eyes met she sent you a sweet smile and mouthed a thank you, making you break out in an unflattering blush as you lightly bowed your head towards her.

You anxiously awaited her reaction to the project you had spent all night perfecting, a space for an open air art installation on the coast of Naples, you had somehow managed to come with an idea that was extremely peculiar, but that is what your work was known for and what clients always expected from you.

The woman’s eyebrows raised ever so slightly as she looked at the intricate lines and curves drawn out on the paper in front of her, to be honest she got goosebumps every time she saw one of Y/N’s projects for the first time, the girl that had been recommended to her by a friend who taught at one of the most prestigious universities in Korea had caught her attention from the very first design she had presented at her interview, and now, as she tried to piece together her latest work she couldn’t help but smile lightly, even knowing the full attention of everyone in the room was on her.

“Miss Ahn if I may, I’ve also sent the digital blueprints to your email, they might be easier for our clients to get a grip of how I envisioned the space.”

The way you stumbled through the sentence made her heart flutter lightly inside her chest, and as she turned on the monitor behind her your ideas appeared, making you blush once again as you realized that she was one step ahead of you.

The rest of the meeting went by smoothly and you somehow managed to answer every question you were asked, throwing yourself into the chair at your usual work desk you couldn’t help but release a huge sigh of relief, a small giggle coming from Chaeyoung while she rolled her chair over to you, handing you a cup of coffee, “How you managed to pull that off I have no idea Y/N, but that piece was pretty impressive.”

Her mischievous eyes stared straight at you as you thanked her while kicking her chair back, making her roll to desk.

“Shut up and keep working Chaeyoung then maybe one day you’ll get paid as much as I do loser.”

Her laugh echoed through the office as she threw a pencil at you, missing by an inch as it hit Heechul on the arm, earning a colorful string of curse words on his behalf.

Suddenly the sound of footsteps approaching interrupted your fun, all three of you scrambled to your work stations, trying your best to look as if you were actually working.

“Y/N, Miss Ahn would like to see you.”

You turned around startled, only to be met by your boss’s assistant, a cold gaze in her eyes that automatically made you panic, you felt your colleagues gazes on your back as you followed the tall woman, your eyes fixated on her tight ponytail that swung with every step she took.

The journey to the top floor seemed to last an eternity before you finally arrived to the huge glass office that belonged to Ahn Heeyeon, as indicated by the gold plaque hanging above the entrance.

Your heart leaped in you chest and for a second you worried if it were actually possible that it might jump up your throat, shaking the dumb thought out of your head you followed the secretary inside.

To be honest, you couldn’t believe your eyes as you stepped inside the large office, one of the youngest and most famous entrepreneurs in South Korea was sitting crossed leg on the floor, an array of takeway food spread out before her, by the smell you assumed Chinese, a smartphone was ringing on her huge glass desk while another was on the floor next to her,

“Jeonghwa please make that devil sound stop please, I’m having my lunch!”

The tall assistant let out a small giggle as she shook her head, “You’re getting lazier every day that passes boss.”

The older woman’s gaze finally caught you standing in the corner mouth agape like a fish out of water,

“Oh, Y/N I’m so happy you accepted my lunch invitation, come, come sit!”

She looked straight at you and invited you over with overzealous hand gestures, chopsticks flying in the air and a bit of sauce dripping down her chin, and all you could do was move forward and sit directly in front of her without saying a word.

“You know how you got your job here right?”

You shook you head as she passed you some clean chopsticks, the room now enveloped in silence,

“Well, professor Kim is a very good friend of mine and he talked very fondly of you, I needed and a new design technician with fresh ideas so I decided to give you a chance...”

After careful consideration you decided to go for a Potsticker, still having no idea as to what you were doing there precisely you munched down, paying careful attention to her words,

“And to be honest, it was a risky move, but now I realize it was one of the best decisions I have taken for this company.”

You felt your cheeks heat up as you stammered out a couple of thankyous, her eyes never leaving you, as a strand of snowy hair fell down her face,

“Now this might sound completely unprofessional but I get this feeling that you are very special, so I was hoping we could get to know eachother over lunch.”

A shy smile graced her features and you could’ve dropped dead in that second if it weren’t for the fact that you didn’t want to waste the opportunity to get to know the beautiful woman in front of you better.

“Lucky for you Miss Ahn, Chinese is my favorite.”

Her eyes sparkled at your words, your fingers went to the paper napkin poking out of one of the plastic bags the food had come in and you gracefully passed it to her,

“By the way you have sauce on your chin.”

Her cheeks turned a bright shade of pink as her eyes widened before the both of you fell into a ruckus of laughter.

As weeks passed rapidly, lunches in her office had become a habit, fortunately all your colleagues seemed to actually ship the two of you and made fun of your ,very obvious in their opinion, crush on Miss Ahn, just Heeyeon behind closed doors.

And I mean how could you not fall for such an endearing woman, she treated you with the softest manners, her eyes sparkled ever so much and there were times she made your belly ache from laughing so hard.

You couldn’t believe she had let you see a side of her that rarely ever was in the public eye, there were days you could almost see the pressure of all her responsibilities crushing her and so you tried your best to lift her spirits, even if just for a minute.

So you found yourself worrying about her ever so often, especially in these days before the annual company gala that marked the begging of the Christmas holidays, you hadn’t been able to see her in days and apparently she had been a no show in the office too.

“So are you gonna go in a suit or a dress?”

Chaeyoung stared at you from her desk chewing on a piece of gum as she waited on the phone after having been put on hold by a client,

“To be honest yesterday I got my paycheck and I think I might treat myself for once.”

Her eyes sparkled at your words, she wasn’t known as the queen of shopping for no reason, you didn’t even answer her question as the little clock on your desktop struck twelve thirty, hurrying towards the elevator you hoped she would be in today and as the familiar doors to her office finally came into view a light excitement bubbled in your chest,

but as soon as it had arrived it left when you saw Jeonghwa with a stressed out expression, disheveled hair, speaking on two phones at the same time, her face falling as she met your eyes, shaking her head was all she needed to do and you turned on your heels, anger rising in your chest.

You considered Heeyeon a friend now and the fact that you hadn’t heard anything from her in a while bothered you immensely, mostly because you knew you had absolutely no right to feel that way, she owed you nothing an saw you most probably as a friendly colleague whom made for a bit of fun at work, she didn’t have to explain anything to you and somehow that made your ribcage tighten in your chest, painfully suffocating your heart.

On the night of the gala you would have gladly stayed at home in your pijama with some takeaway and Netflix, but the expensive jumpsuit sitting in your closet since the day before was enough to motivate you, plus the fact that ever since last year this event had been decreted mandatory for all Ahn Corporate employees.

So you suited up, the black one piece fitting you in all the right places, intricate lace designs played a big part, a large slit in the back dipping low had convinced you it was absolutely worth the money, knowing you would definitely be getting some attention you grabbed your red bottom stilettos, a clutch and shouted a quick goodbye to your cat before leaving.

“Is there anything better than free food?”

Chaeyoung was barely visible behind the mountain of mashed potatoes, but the excitement in her voice was evident, Heechul sat down next you and plopped two large bottles of champagne on the round table you and another three colleagues had been designated for the night,

“Yes, free alcohol.”

You ignored his stink eye as you downed your glass, nerves settling in your belly as the moment for the annual big speech approached, in which Heeyeon and her brother would as per usual announce some big plans for the future ahead, and as the lights in the large hall dimmed and the loud chatter from the hundreds of people present turned to light whispers you knew it was time, and you found yourself quite pathetic for being so damn excited to see her.

Loud cheers and applause were heard as the siblings made their entrance on the small stage on which the band had just been playing, your heart stopped.

Her hair was no longer white as snow but it gradually turned to pink and purple hues that cascaded down her back, the white suite she was was wearing complemented the new hairstyle perfectly, she exuded confidence and sophistication as she caught everybody’s attention, a black lace bralette could be seen peeking out from under the white blazer.

In that moment you felt as if someone had just made you swallow three liters of pure emotions and you couldn’t breathe, what you felt for her was something completely new to you and incredibly scary, so before you made a fool of yourself by throwing up in front of everybody you grabbed your clutch and made and escape towards a terrace you had spotted a couple of smokers at earlier, unknowingly catching the attention of a few people, Ahn Heeyeon included.

Walking on a terrace in the middle of the night with nothing but a jumpsuit probably wasn’t the best idea, but you braved through the cold and rested your arms against the railings, relishing in the fresh air that let you breathe peacefully and allowed you to collect your thoughts.

It wasn’t long before your little moment of peace was interrupted by the clicking of heels on the tiled floor and a feminine presence settling next to you as you felt a soft blazer being rested on your shoulders, the pleasant heat enveloping you in a second, her light perfume ever so present.

“You look beautiful tonight.”

As hard as you tried you couldn’t avoid the blush that crept onto your face when she said that, her shoulder touching your own as you both faced the garden underneath,

“You’ve been busy.”

A long sigh followed your statement and then more silence,

“I‘ve had a lot to do and to think about Y/N, but let me tell you I missed our lunches more than anything ever.”

You let a small laugh escape you, it was useless to even try and stay angry at her for literally no reason whatsoever,

“I like your new hair.”

“I like you Y/N.”

Her heavy words hung in the silence, the chatter from inside muted by your heart beating loudly in your ears, debating whether or not to pinch yourself you turned towards her, mouth agape she stared directly at you,

“I have for a while now, and I know for a fact that I need you in my life to remind me how happy I can really be, and I know you like to take your time with things but for this once I need your answer immediately Y/N.”

For once in your life you didn’t hesitate as you delicately grabbed her chin and pulled her face against yours, lips crashing together you cherished her taste as your other hand moved to the soft baby hairs at the back of her neck, while hers held your body tight against hers.

You broke the kiss and stared in her dark eyes, being able to recognize the fondness she felt for you, something ever so strong pulled the two of you back together, her lips moving passionately against yours as she trapped you against the railing, her cold fingers against your back, you poked your tongue through and she did the same, something deep in your stomach took over as your teeth clashed and both your breaths became heavier, but something seemed to click in Heeyeon’s brain as she pulled away, resting her forehead against your own,

“How about we take this some other place a bit warmer, like my apartment.”

You couldn’t help the toothy smile that graced your features as your fingers played with the hoops on her trouser,

“Can you even ditch your own gala?”

her breath hit your lips as she giggled lightly, placing a chaste kiss on your lips she grabbed your wrist and pulled you away, you followed like a puppy,

“I’m the boss jagi, I can do whatever I want.”

#kpop scenarios #wlw #gxg imagine #gxg scenarios #wlw positivity #lesbian imagines #gxg #exid scenarios #exid hani #exid jeonghwa #twice #chaeyoung twice #chaeyoung #heechul #kpop trash #kpop girl groups scenarios

159 notes · View notes

22drunkb · 5 years

Note

Please could you talk about the weird and specific visual language of person of interest? I haven't noticed it before but now I'm intrigued

Hi, Anon. You sent this ask 8 months ago. I took this long to answer because I wanted to really lay it all out for you, with the right screencaps and reference images and a whole theory of why the show looks the precise way it does. But the fact is, that’s not going to happen. I don’t have the time or mental energy to do it properly, and I have finally accepted that because the almost completely written long-ass answer to a different question about a different show that’s been sitting in my drafts for about as long is still languishing! and it’s almost done! wild what grad school can do to a person.

So since I have accepted that I can’t do the Full Treatment I wanted to, I’ll just do the quick explanatory version.

POI has 5 main visual ideas it returns to over and over. These are:

1. Surveillance footage. This is notable because it tends to look, by normal framing and cinematography standards, bad; they are very deliberately putting out “bad” images to tell the story, which after all is in large part about surveillance and privacy. I can’t remember now where I read/heard this, but the EPs definitely talked about the struggle to get cameras into these really inconvenient spots to get the properly terrible angles that would play as plausible CCTV-type footage.

2a. Edward Hopper’s style. By this I mean less his use of color than his tendency to show one or a few static figures, small in relation to their (usually urban) surroundings, often locked off by a frame-within-the-frame (someone framed in a window within the larger setting, for example); and significant contrast in lighting. The emblematic example for me is the wide shot of John cradling Carter’s body next to the phone booth, right after the moment of her death. But a lot of the comedic exterior shots of a bar or other establishment inside of which John is wreaking havoc actually fit as well.

2b. Noir, which was probably influenced by Hopper in the first place (or at least was responding to similar aspects of the zeitgeist). “POI noir” is a very popular thing in the fandom, and I assume you don’t need me to explain it. I will say, though, that as a film genre noir is about the failure of institutions, loneliness, isolation, and doom, so the choice is both telling and appropriate. (The same applies to the Hopper point.)

3. This is related to 2 and 3, but there is a broader theme of small isolated figures against a big, empty (or sometimes empty by virtue of being anonymously crowded) urban backdrop. (This is something noir does a lot also.) The reason I’m separating it here is that POI does this a lot of the time without making it noir; it creates something lighter-colored, lower-contrast, and more contemporary-looking, but maintins a similar effect. Takeshi Miyasaka’s work evokes it very directly for me. What’s interesting about his paintings as well as these compositions in POI is that they often come off as unstudied, not overthought or excrutiatingly composed. This is not the case; they are very carefully thought out (in both cases). But they convey a sense of naturalism you don’t get from a traditional noir composition (or most of Hopper’s noirish work--some of his other stuff is different, but not relevant here), while maintaining that feeling of a small subject in a big, uncaring, not particularly beautiful world.

4. Comics. POI is often compared to Batman; in some ways it more closely resembles Batman’s even noir-ier antecedent, The Shadow. It obviously leans into this in 4x06, “Pretenders,” but it’s there in a lot of the action sequences. I’d cite the one where John goes after Quinn in “The Devil’s Share,” a lot of “Relevance,” or this as examples.

5. The “interior,” thinking/processing shots of the Machine and Samaritan. For these they obviously invented a lot. They definitely drew on what was at the time cutting-edge data visualization as well as the marketing materials of some leading tech and security companies to create them, but I think it’s one of the ways in which the show was most original. (Interestingly, you can see some of this idea being worked out before the show even began in the movie Eagle Eye, which had the same producers. It’s not a good movie, mind you, and its notion of AI is super simplistic, but some of the visualization in this area is clearly prototypical of what would play out on POI.)

A lot of these visual choices don’t stand out as noticeable (aside from the AI visualizations, which of course are unmissable). There are two main reasons for this. One is that none of them are constant. POI never set out to make every shot a stylistic masterpiece, the way a show like Hannibal more or less did. I assume this was partly because of the logistical realities of a 22-episode season, but it also works with the show’s storytelling. The idea they want you to get, that they reiterate over and over, is that the world looks normal but isn’t underneath. So the 5 stylistic ideas I mentioned above tend to appear in short spurts--an action sequence, a shot framing Harold against a New York skyline or the whole team by a bridge, etc--stitched together by pretty standard TV framing (shot/reverse shot, close-up, medium). This allows them to kind of ramp up and ramp down the level of visual intensity, using noirish or comicky compositions, or particularly intense AI visualizations, in line with the storytelling. It is also a kind of metaphor for the entire premise: things look regular most of the time, but they aren’t if you pay attention.

The second reason is that we are so incredibly used to surveillance footage! It doesn’t stick out to us anymore! This is actually very significant because, as I noted above, surveillance cameras are not positioned for aesthetic value. The point is coverage, not composition or image quality. So this is a cinematic product (a television show) that is working overtime to give you technically “bad” images. But those images don’t really stand out as ugly, per se; instead they denote truthfulness. So for example, the Machine’s POV (as opposed to its thought process, which is digitally animated) is almost always in this surveillance style. This reminds us of what the Machine is and how it works, and it also tells us that what we’re seeing isn’t subjective. It is not someone’s memory or their perception. It is a literal recording. This allows the Machine to act as our guide through the whole timeline, moving us back and forth through that horizontal scroll, zooming in on a moment or incident for replay. We never have to question if the Machine is lying to us or mistaken (aside from 5x02), because its memory is a video archive presented to us with all the hallmarks of video that means “proof,” not video that means “feelings” or “perceptions.” Once we’ve been transitioned into a flashback scene, that style can go away so that we can abandon the distance that surveillance introduces to engage with the emotion of the flashback scene, but they use that device to move us around because it automatically tells us “this is true.” Simultaneously, the ubiquity of surveillance-style shots reinforces that same message I talked about above: that we are being watched (because the world has gone sideways).

(Perhaps I should mention that Nolan and Plageman said a big goal of theirs with the show was to make people more aware of how profoundly the technological and therefore social world around them was changing with little notice or fanfare. One of the obvious ways they were trying to direct our attention on this point was to issues of privacy. Finch helping John out of a sticky situation by exploiting a homeowner’s smart TV isn’t just a matter of making Finch look clever. They wanted to let us know that if your smart TV has a camera, someone can remotely turn it on. [I know this is common knowledge now, but that episode was like 2012. I found out what Palantir was because of POI!] Just to contextualize why to me, “you are being watched” and “the world has gotten very weird” are basically the same message in the context of POI.)

One of the show’s key influences is The Naked City (the show and the film). The film version of The Naked City is notable because it was one of the first post-WWII movies to shoot on location instead of on a film set, and it was shot in NYC. It’s also one of the earliest police procedurals, in the form we know the genre today. It’s not exactly noir, but it’s not exactly not noir. It’s based on the photography of the famous ambulance-chasing, poverty-documenting photographer Weegee; you could say it’s an early example of a “gritty” film. It doesn’t have the elegant devastation of The Third Man or the deep shadows of Double Indemnity. It was all about bringing audiences the amazing spectacle of a real place; the paradoxical insistence on authenticity in cinema goes way back. The Naked City to me is somehwere between noir and cinema verité, and in that sense, POI is true to it as an influence.

#person of interest #anonymous

26 notes · View notes

dotzines · 5 years

Photo

Artist spotlight: Elleth!

✿ Ko-fi ✿ Twitter

Header source: [X]

Introduce yourself Hi! I'm Elleth, I'm a 21 year old a self taught artist just about to graduate as a Psychologist. I currently live between Argentina and Spain but I've been moving between countries and continents my whole life, so I can't really say with confidence that I'm from anywhere.I love most fantasy themes and I'm a BIG LoTR and Anime nerd! I'm a sucker for story-centered games, some of my favorites are Shadow of The Colossus, The Last Guardian, Witcher III, TES, RDR2 and Soma. I'm currently into BNHA and She Ra cuz I love me some heroes! When did you start drawing? Are you a digital or traditional artist? I've been drawing since I could hold a crayon (yes, crayons y'all) but I only started taking it seriously and actually puttinf effort into it some months ago or so. I'm a mainly digital artist, tho I still start all my sketches traditionally. Do you use any traditional mediums? If so, which are your favorites? Yeah, I mostly use pencils and watercolors. Watercolors are my absolute favorites, I love how dynamic and calming they are ^^

image source: [X] Why do you prefer traditional over digital? (or viceversa) Well, actually I dont have a strong preference, I want to improve my digital art and it's easier for me to keep a consistent production of art that way (art supplies are kinda expensive where I live so drawing digitally is way cheaper once you do the tablet investment) Also I love how clean my pieces can be when I do them digitally. I mostly do traditional as a way of self care now, it calms me What do you think is the most challenging part about being a traditional/digital artist? Practicing and actually spending the time to learn how the software works and it's functions What inspires your pieces? Anything, from shows or games I like to nature or just things I find funny

image source: [X] Explain your "everyday" drawing process I mostly have an idea in the middle of psychology class (cuz I'm a responsible student) I do a draft of it in my sketchbook and play with different ways of bringing that idea to life. When I end up with something I actually life I take a photo of the sketch and then, when I get home, I start tracing the sketch in my drawing tablet. There I tweak the design and any anatomy mistakes (which are a LOT cuz I don't know anatomy to save my life), from ther it's just the stardart: I do the lineart, base colors, do the background, then add light and shadows to the whole piece, add details and check for mistakes and voila! Art. Then I post it on Twitter and look at it only to notice a mistake, I take it down, correct the mistake and post it again only to notice ANOTHER mistake, and so the cycle goes on and on. Do you have an artist you admire (or more than one)?

I'm literally inspired by almost every artist I see! I try to learn from every art style and artist I see, I try to see where I can improve from seeing their work. I also tend to like artists from their personality more than their work, I love to see supporting and kind artists more than crazy good artists that treat others as their inferiors. Some artists that really inspire me are: @Kf1n3 @souratgar @Velinxi @kroovv @SHelmigh @Amaretta_ @cherriielle Is there an artwork you are most proud of? Why? I'm really proud of this WIP I'm currently working on: https://twitter.com/EllethsArt/status/1124055356445986818 But an actual finished artwork I'm insanely proud of is this one: https://twitter.com/EllethsArt/status/1119694506662797312

Do you listen to music (or tv shows/films/anything else) when drawing? Yeah! I watch BNHA or just Jacksepticeye or other gameplay vids (I told ya I'm a nerd), sometimes I put on a speedpaint or a stream of someone I like hearing, for music I mostly put on lofi or something that goes with the mood of the piece (I need that sweet inspiration!)

image source: [X] What makes art interesting for you? All that it represents, art can be healing, it can be a way to deal with stuff we can't even speak about, it's in our very essence. You can see at someone's work and see their personality, what they like, their fears, it's like looking at someone's eyes. Ahhh I'm sounding really corny but I really think art is the window to the soul. What do you do when art block strikes? I just try to relax and doodle something I like or just stupid things (like trying to make cats out of splooshes of black ink or my OC's doing stupid things) If that doesn't work I just leave it be and do something I enjoy, watch a show that inspires me, go for a walk, writing things for future comics, etc. Usually fanart of things that currently inspire me gets me out of the artblock. If not I'll just stop and try and do something the next day, it usually gets a lil better each day, so it's just a baby steps situation. What’s the most valuable art advice you’ve ever received?

PRACTICE! And don't compare yourself to others, you're your own person and your art is as unique as you. It doesn't have to be perfect, it just needs to be yours.

#Elleth #artist spotlight #red zone artists #red zone

3 notes · View notes

kazeharuhime · 7 years

Photo

Mermay #14 - Blue Ribbon Eel Mer Sooo I really went all out with this one. I think I shopped it too much even... XD But uh. Yeah. And I decided too to upload a bunch of other junk with it. Like a process gif (seen those here on tumblr and thought it was a great idea XD), a line, color and final version of it kinda show the progression better. Was thinking about how portfolio people like to see your process and I thought maybe tumblr people might like to see my process too so... why not? XD So yeah I usually don’t edit this much in Photoshop when I’m working traditional but I got carried away and really rendered this one out XD; It’s still got heavy traces of the traditional like that tail bit I forgot to fill in... looked nice on paper but horrible in digital. XD But what was I going to say... Right blue ribbon eels are fun. Did the generator again and after a couple dozen tries it gave me ribbon eel and though I’d sworn off eels after it gave me three in a row, the blue ribbon eel mer was way too cool to pass up. I had to change up the tail from the very early WIP (yeah, the blurry photo that’ll take you almost a minute to see for 5 seconds in the process gif if you missed it) because the way it was configured had it backwards, but I managed to get it so I could keep the pose and not have the tail be as weird... Frankly it still looks kinda wonky if I compare it to the first WIP picture and I do like the silhouette just a little bit better from that one. Was clearer and more fluid and a little less squashed-looking at the bottom. But what was I gonna say... Oh yeah and I apologize if some of the process shots in the gif are kinda blinding... I really pumped up the colors way too much at first and kept trying to downplay it. Even now it looks tolerable but before yeah it was kinda blinding XD; Anyways uh yeah. Sooo that’s the deal. I think I was going to say something else but I don’t remember and it’s late. I think I’m just gonna submit this and call it good... I think I was going to try to explain my process more instead of just babbling on... Don’t know if I accomplished that, but I guess it’s pretty straightforward. Sketch, line with pencil, sometimes I render it a bit with pencil too, then I color it which can be more finished and polished from traditional or less so like in this one where it’s nearly a flat color. Then I use photoshop to adjust colors, fix mistakes, erase smudges or color bleeds from previous pages, maybe fix spacing issues with the eyes, etc etc and to heighten the contrast between my light and shadow areas. Usually it’s minor if I’ve already rendered it out well traditionally, but this time I was pretty heavy-handed with PS because I don’t trust my blue markers that much to give me the right color... My baby blue copic is sometimes the only one that works reliably, so I worked exclusively with my baby blue copic and a cheap crayola yellow marker to produce the traditional color draft. I started out small working in photoshop, just darkening my shadows and lightening my highlights, but then I got carried away because it didn’t look like the proper shade of blue... And that’s when chaos ensued. XD It took me practically the whole day to do this pic and hours in photoshop to get the final product. I would have worked longer on it probably too if it wasn’t super late. But anyways. Sooo that’s the deal. I could probably go into more detail about the use of color balance, adjustments, brush settings and yada yada yada but it’s really late and I keep rambling. So before I type anything else that probably won’t even be read by the casual tumblr scroller I’m just gonna submit this already, put in my tags and get it over with. Or well tags first, then the submitting... You get the point. XP

13 notes · View notes

raganandhersurveys · 5 years

Text

7/23/19~LXXXII

Do you ever eat when you aren’t particularly hungary?

•yeah sometimes i eat when i’m bored which is habit i should probably break

Have you ever gone up a mountain on a train?

•can’t say i have

What is your favorite hot beverage?

•cappuccino

Do you have an alter ego? Describe them:

•yeah buttttt let’s not talk about it ;)

What was your imaginary friend called when you were a child?

•i don’t remember if i had one or not

Can you see the stars at night where you live?

•yeah for the most part

Where do you live?

•nc

Is there anyone you just can’t get out of your head?

•my bf :)

Do you prefer cats or dogs? Why?

•i hate this question because i’ve had both and loved them equally. all of my pets have been very affectionate and sweet

One thing you’d like to achieve this year?

•good grades all year

Food: Are you more adventurous or do you stick to what you know?

•depends on my mood honestly. sometimes i’ll try new stuff and sometimes i won’t

Are you a hoarder of useless items?

•not really

What color do you think suites you best? Is this your favorite color?

•yellow,olive green, and some shades of purple. my favorite color is tiffany blue so no

Is there anything(out of the obvious) that makes you feel really ill?

•certain foods like meatloaf

Do you know both of your biological parents?

Which one do you prefer?

•yes and i love them equally

If you could intern anywhere, where would you choose?

•either the life of an actress because that’s my ultimate dream or a family therapist which is what job i’d like if the acting doesn’t work out lol

When was the last time you wrote so much your finger ached?

•writing the rough draft of an english paper like 3 months ago

Do you store a lot of pictures you’ve taken that no one else has seen?

•yeah cause i usually don’t show people my camera roll lol

Do you prefer film or digital pictures?

•i love both honestly. like film pictures will last as long as you have them and are more sentimental but digital ones are easier

When was the last time you felt inferior?

•when i went with my bf to the gym lmaoooo. he goes every day and i only go like twice a week

Do you bump into things often?

•yeah i’m pretty clumsy

When did you first start using the internet?

•like 4 maybe

Were you ever a member of the Scouts/Girl Guides/Something similar?

•nope

Do you prefer camping or staying in hotels?

•definitely hotels

Do you have any family traditions for certain holidays? Which?

•we always see christmas lights at christmas. and we usually put up our christmas tree the first weekend in november. other than that everything else’s is probably pretty normal

Do you prefer lip balm that tastes or smells of something? Or maybe neither?

•it really doesn’t matter to me

What is something you think about yourself that nobody agrees with?

•i think i’m pretty funny bahaha but ya know ig not really :))

What about something people think of you that you don’t agree with?

•if anyone ever says i’m really pretty i’m like ‘uhhh you lookin at the right person?’

Do you enjoy flying? What’s your (least) favorite part?

•i really do! i don’t like the cramped space tho

What colour are your eyes? Do you like them?

•hazel and yeah i do

Have you ever had braces?

•nope

Name one of your hobbies:

•acting

How minty is your toothpaste?

•not super minty

What design is on your calender this year?

•i don’t have one

Do you collect anything? What?

•i have a lot of jewelry but i don’t really collect it

Do you keep a diary? What sort of things do you write in it?

•this kinda is my diary lol

Are you prone to headaches?

•omlllll yesssss. it seems like i get one every other day

Do you enjoy clowns/street performers or are they creepy to you?

•they’re super creepy to me

What is your favorite type video game?

•mario kart lmao

Do you believe everything you hear or do you take it with a pinch of salt?

•honestly it depends on who says it and how crazy it sounds

What’s the weather like where you live?(All year round, not today)

•so.fuckin.humid

Have you ever had a teacher who would just babble about nothing?

•bahaha yes. my fave teacher tended to do that but it was more like small debates about topics so it was very interesting

Do you ever look at a word and think that it looks odd?

•yup

Do you prefer getting news online, from a paper, or from the TV?

•the couple of times that i actually look at the news it’s online

The shoes you wear the most often: What do they look like?

•my birkenstocks are tanish green color

When was the last time you climbed a tree?

•i honestly don’t think i ever have

Did you enjoy playing HopScotch when you were younger?

•yes

Are you good at keeping your house clean?

•well i don’t own a house since i’m 16 but i do keep my room clean

Can you play any instruments?

•unfortunately not

Do you prefer chocolate or fruity flavored candy?

•i guess chocolate

#survey #82

0 notes

douglasconstruction · 7 years

Text

8 Legitimately Good Thanksgiving Movies to Watch While You Digest

Halloween has its horror and December its infinite loop of sparkle-strung classics. Good or bad, they're the established traditions of their seasons.

But, if you will, allow me to make the case as November as perhaps the prime month for festive film watching. We can't all relate to being chased by ax murderers nor having the carolers sing as we find our soulmate under the mistletoe just as the snow starts to fall outside. But everyone knows the experience of returning home to break bread and spill gravy with family, or, perhaps, what it's like to strike out on your own for the first holiday not spent at your grandparents. The Thanksgiving table (and four days of being stuck in the same place) is the perfect setting for drama, comedy, and everything in between. Plus, all those sweaters. Here are our faves that get it right.

1. Scent of a Woman (1992)

Unable to return home for the holiday, a prep school student stays behind in New England to take a job to care for a retired Army officer. The elder man, of course, has other plans, and the two spend the long weekend in a series of perfectly executed, fall leaf colored set pieces. If you think they end up learning something from each other, you've seen movies before, but don't assume it trite. It truly is a hell of film, and gets bonus points for an early, star-making performance from a shaggy-haired Phillips Seymour Hoffman. RIP, buddy.

2. Pieces of April (2003)

Released in that early millenial time between Dogme 95 and Mumblecore when every filmmaker was trying their hand at a naturalistic, grainy digital video feature lit by available light, Pieces of April tells the tale of a struggling young adult who invites her family to her tiny New York apartment for what they all expect might be their last holiday together. The film gets props for featuring the food in basically every scene, and for a spot-on soundtrack from The Magnetic Fields' Stephen Merritt. As usual, Patricia Clarkson steals the show, and Oliver Platt gets out of the way so she can shine.

3. The House of Yes (1997)

Based on the play by Wendy McLeod, Parker Posey and Josh Hamilton are a pair of twins with an (um...) interesting past and a passion for the Kennedys. The film maintains the small-cast-on-a-stage vibe, making its mansion setting as as claustrophobic and inescapable as it feels to be stuck in a house with family on Thanksgiving. It's not perfect. Tori Spelling, no doubt the "star" that got the film financed, is completely out of place, and the end apparently varies away from this play's script when it shouldn't have. But, it's all kinds of fun, and might make you grateful for the relatively relatable drama of your own kin.

4. The Ice Storm (1994)

Set over Thanksgiving weekend of 1973, the film, and the novel its based on, perfectly capture the confusing haze of the cultural shifts of the last days of the Vietnam war. It's acerbically funny, offering both a loving portrayal of well-meaning East Coast WASPs while not letting them off the hook for their shortcomings. Nothing goes better with eating a plate of leftovers on the couch at 3:00pm while the rest of the country is off fighting for parking spaces.

5. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (1987)

Besides the Peanuts classic and their meal of toast and popcorn, this is the Thanksgiving movie most people think of. While none of it actually involves the meal itself, it captures the tension of trying to return home during the craziest travel season of the year. It's funny, and while a few key jokes have definitely not aged well, it works as the thing to put on while you do your meal prep on Wednesday night.

6. Alice's Restaurant (1963)

A cinematic adaption of Arlo Guthrie's classic story-song, Alice's Restaurant serves as the perfect Thanksgiving-themed companion to The Ice Storm. Here, we see the actual counterculture the former was reacting to, and the hippies receive their own dose of satire and homage. Draft dodgers gather for their own bohemian Thanksgiving, and their everything-is-cool-man attitude gets tested by real world consequences. It's a bit long, but it highlights the benefits and drawbacks of hippy living as well as anything in the Easy Rider era. Consider it a sociological study for anyone born after 1980.

7. The Vicious Kind (2009)

This is the least pleasant of the films on this list, and you certainly wouldn't want to watch it with kids in the room. (That goes for others here too, so use your judgment.) It's a tale of self-loathing, and explores how reuniting with our families for the holidays can sometimes lead to unforgivable choices. Adam Scott, usually cast for his likeability, is everything but, and his cruelty goes unresolved, though perhaps not unpunished. Experiencing hurt at the hands the people we love is part of the holiday experience, and this is a story of what it's like to sit at the table with someone who simply can't like themselves enough to behave like family.

8. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)

I don't know how to feel about recommending Woody Allen films anymore, but I think this piece by Chuck Klosterman sums up the issues quite well, so I'm using that as my guidebook.

It belongs on this list because it, as well as any film, uses the holiday as bookends. More than exploring the experience of the meal and the four-day weekend and the chaos it can brings, the film details how we use these yearly events as a way to mark time and self reflect. Set over a twenty-four month period that begins and ends on Thanksgiving (and encompasses one in the middle), the film is a morality tale (maybe?) that explores the self-justifications and consequences of actions by adults who still trying to grow up.

Tagged:

Good Read by Source

0 notes