#then again i suppose at this point you're only going to encounter discourse if you're very involved in the fandom

[saviourkingslut]

i went to pick up engage the other day and was talking about it with the employee behind the counter and he said hed been enjoying it so far because it feels more like the older fire emblem games to him (world map over calendar system like 3h was a big point for him) and i off handedly mentioned that i heard the story was simpler than 3h and i was thankful for that because i cant go through more discourse and he went "yeah me either that edelgard discourse was fucking awful" and it was so funny to me that i had to share djslfkjdlajdfn

while i completely understand the sentiment (by god) i do think that there's this... misconception, concerning the relationship between 3h discourse and engage coming out. im fairly sure that engage isn't gonna generate much discourse bc it's campy and not very serious and the characters and the story don't really go anywhere deep and complex. that sure is a breath of air for many people, as you say! however, and i guess this is the negative flipside, that also means there might just not be much for people to talk about when the game's been out for a month or two. by which i mean to say, the existence of a new fe game, especially one written as this one, does not mean that 3h discourse is going to suddenly disappear. it's been going strong for a solid three years, and if there's no serious bones to pick about the new installment... (or perhaps i should say no edelgard equivalent to form a cult around)

it's hard to say rn bc engage is very new, but it might not hold people's attention for a very long time, is what im saying, and so the decline of 3h discourse might not be as sudden or as substantial as many people seem to hope/expect. on the other hand, there is new content to talk about for those who want to, so that can be an escape for people who are just 100% done with fódlan and everything linked to it, which can be a breath of fresh and free air in and of itself. and obviously maybe im wrong and 3h discourse does die a quiet death soon lmao but i am personally not expecting it to

[askyourwritergrandma]

Hello grandma

I hope you're doing alright.

I have started to write a fanfiction for the first time. I always wanted to write a story since I was 8 and now at the age of 22 I have decided to write. I thought I should start with a fanfiction because it's easier since I don't have to write characters from scratch.

Now I'm done with the first part out of five parts of story and I'm happy with it, everything is exactly as what I had planned and I'm putting a lot of effort on it. My problem is that I'm scared to post it when it's done. I keep thinking that what if my idea was stupid, maybe I should write it for myself and never share it with anyone.

I'm sorry my ask is more like a rant. I haven't told anyone that I'm writing.

I keep saying to myself that I've got nothing to lose, nobody is going to know that I wrote a fanfiction and posted, but deep down I'm thinking if I can't get a fanfiction right, how I'm supposed to write my original story that I've been thinking and writing notes about it for almost 3 years.

Sorry again that was long.

Take care grandma especially in these dangerous times ❤

Hi anon!

I'm doing just about as well as I can be (and resisting the urge to put a gif of that sloth from Zootopia here). I hope you're doing well too.

Welcome to writing! Before we get into anything else, I just want to say regardless of wherever your writing journey takes you and whatever you see out there in the greater internet regarding writing, if you have taken the time and energy to put words to a story, you are a Certified Story Teller. You are a writer and you should absolutely be proud of it and your story.

I don't know if you've run across it already or that unfortunate encounter lays in front of you still, but you will 100% definitely find yourself, at some point, reading some nonsense gatekeeping discourse about who is and who is not allowed to call themselves a writer. You might find a cutting bit of well-thought-out vitriol about the worth of fanfiction vs. original You will wade through some manner of self-published vs. traditionally published. I want you to remember as you go, take only what you need from these things. A bit of how-to, a sampling of advice that you like, encouragement when you find it and leave all the hateful, limiting nonsense behind.

That feeling that you're describing in your post, that awful doubt that your story (and by extension yourself) aren't good enough is something that all writers (all creative types, really) feel. They might be honest about it like you are, they might play it for laughs, they might slather it in arrogance or they might weaponize against others to make themselves feel more adequate. Strip away all that, the fact remains that you have put your time, energy, emotion and heart into creating something. Its an act of vulnerability whether it's a novel, a one-shot, a pwp or a headcanon and its perfectly, 100% completely normal to have anxiety about sharing it.

But some advice about how to cope with that, and maybe a few things to ease you into sharing your work!

A few frank things that we need to be completely honest about regarding your first story:

Much like a baby learning to walk, when you start writing, you will wobble and hang on things to keep yourself upright and fall over. This is completely normal. In fact, there is absolutely nothing you can do to prevent it. No amount of advice or plotting or intense study will change the fact that your first story is the starting point.

Try not to compare your writing or your ideas to other writing/ideas that you see. Its natural and everyone does it and it has it's own function in your growth as a writer, but don't base your success/failure on it. Instead of that, look at what you've written and compare it to your own idea of what you wanted to write.

Some people will not like your writing and you don't need them to. Someone passing on your story isn't an insult, it's just not the right audience for your work.

Sometimes it takes a while to get people to notice you and that time can feel a lot like defeat. Its easy to get disheartened if your goal is to be seen. As a young (as in new to writing) writer you should try to focus your sense of accomplishment/success/failure on something that is entirely in your control. You cannot control if someone will click on your story, but you can control challenging yourself to write prompts. Write different characters? Write different scenes? There are a lot of writing prompts/writing exercises on the internet that you can use to practice some of the less exciting things about writing.

In fact, that's what young writers need more than they need anything. They need practice. So much practice. Not because your stories are bad, but because just like walking, its a challenge to start with but the more you do it, the more you understand the mechanics and basics the easier it gets to manage the exciting things.

TL:DR, nobody shows up with an award winning first story and anyone who says this is the first time they sat down at a keyboard and wrote anything is probably not being entirely truthful. Writing is a talent and a skill and you have to work at it to develop both.

NOW, the harder stuff, how do you get the confidence to share after I've just spent all this time telling you that first stories are starting points and people might ignore you? Try this:

If the story you are currently working on is your first born and it is sacred and special to you, do not start by posting it. The first thing you write that you put your heart into is like falling in love for the first time. You aren't likely to forget it. (As evidence, the first story I ever wrote and loved is a story that I am still writing version 209490834903 of atm. It's also a story I share the least with anyone because I am violently protective of it.)

Start by writing random prompts you see floating around on tumblr. These are blurb stories that you don't need to spend longer than maybe 10 to 20 minutes on. They will never develop full plots because they are usually just a scene or some dialogue. If you follow a prompt blog like this there's a good chance that the other people who follow it will respond to you once in a while with comments. Its a good place to start because you aren't emotionally invested in it but it gives your writing muscles a work out.

Fight back against the anxiety that's telling you that your story is silly, that it won't be read, that it's not worth it with positive affirmations. My story is good. I'm doing my best work. It is worth sharing. I know there's a whole writing culture that likes to erase their previous fics or never talk about their old writing because they think they're embarrassing or bad. Maybe they are in comparison to where that writer is now, but at the time it was written, that was the best work they had ever done. Celebrate that rather than let it haunt you like a shame blanket.

To put my money where my mouth is, here's a sample of my oldest fanfic I still have access to:

"Something wrong, 'Geta?" "No." Vegeta snapped. "You never answered my question." "Oh," Goku said. He reached behind him to pick at his butt. "I was just," then he scratched the back of his neck. Behind him his tail was swishing merrily. "Sort of, I... Kind of. Well, you see, I might have... That is to say." "SPIT IT OUT ALREADY!" Vegeta screamed. "I wished that there could be more Saiyans."

(why yes, that is from a DBZ Vegeta/Goku Mpreg NC-17 fic)

I know this was long and I'm not sure you made it to the end. I want to encourage you to take the chance and put your work out there because it won't find an audience if you don't. But I also want you to know that if its not something you're comfortable with, and you do write it for yourself, and you keep it just for you that doesn't make you any less of a writer. Move at your own pace, do what you're comfortable with, and keep challenging yourself.

Thanks!