#writing concept

[say-hi-intrepid-heroes]

i want a God of Dying. Not death, not the moment in which the soul passes from one realm to the next, but the process of dying. The deity who grants quick, painless deaths or inflicts long, excruciating deaths. This is the god who cradles a creature in its arms as a dream dies, or provides comfort while a friendship dies. This is the god who laughs when those who have been cruel would have cruel deaths bestowed upon them tenfold, and who ensures that a dying tyrant extend his dying long enough to watch his empire birthed from blood fall before his decaying eyes.

[bonebrokebuddy]

If you’ve stuck around dc x dp content for longer than three seconds, you’ve probably also seen the concept that Lazarus Pits are pits of contaminated ectoplasm.

The main explanation I’ve seen for this is that the Lazarus Pits were cut off from the ghost zone and it stagnates without a link to fresh ectoplasm.

But consider, ectoplasm is an inherently perfect sterile environment. There are no germs or bacteria as it’s an naturally dead substance.

The issue comes in when living beings absolutely covered in germs, sweat, and blood keep jumping in. In a lab setting if you want to not mess up samples that are highly sensitive to contamination, you can’t even move your bare arm over an open sample once or the few dead skin cells that fell off your arm in that instant will contaminate the whole thing and you have to restart.

Well, for the Lazarus Pits, it’s being actively further contaminated every time someone even leans over the Pits! It’s been septic ever since Ra’s al Ghul took his first bath and with each use it gets more and more contaminated to the point where it’s actively a septic environment.

No shit it makes people go mad when they take a dip, the ectoplasm is actively trying to fight back and decontaminate itself from living material but there’s too many living cells in the way to do so so they get fucked over in the process. Might be a fun explanation for ecto-acne! The ectoplasm is violently trying to expel itself from the cells by forcing it towards the surface of the skin!

The Lazarus Pits are the ecto-equivalent of a septic tank. An inherently sterile substance constantly having to come into contact with living cells. No shit the results of being dunked into it doesn’t go well for living beings. And the best part, every the Lazarus Pits gets used, the contamination gets worse.

[a-crumb-of-whump]

You know what I love? Characters with an inhuman amount of strength holding fat characters in their arms. The way that character becomes their main source of physical comfort very quickly, being the only one who doesn’t make sly remarks about how heavy they are and visibly struggle to hold them 💕 Bonus points if the character with inhuman strength picks them up whenever they start to criticise themself.

[pendarling]

Elevator

Hero scooted over to the furthest side of the room, still shooting a wavering glance to Villain's hunched over body as they tampered around at the wires.

The room was beginning to feel hotter the longer they stayed. If only they'd taken the stairs, Hero didn't ask to team up with Villain, if they could make the decision on their own they would’ve preferred to fight the greater evil alone. However, one thing lead to another and they were forced to.

Hero leaned back against the cold steel wall and wrapped their arms around their torso. The emergency button still flashed a dim red, a pathetic attempt at alerting emergency services of their urgent need. It went unanswered for about an hour before Villain decided they’d rather figure it out themselves.

"Forget it, you know that won't work." They looked at the elevator lights. It flickered a few times which didn't ease their worry. They wondered if they would ever get out.

Villain shrugged, “It’s still worth a shot.”

“We could still wait it out.” The last part of their sentence sounded more like a question. Villain huffed out a laugh. Their dismissive response made Hero re-evaluate their suggestion.

The stupid henchmen working under Supervillain must’ve done this. It was the only answer. Hero didn’t expect the base of operations to exist in such a large corporate building. They had taken the elevator hoping to reach the top level quicker, it was their only chance at finding Supervillain at all. Now, they were left stranded.

Villain eventually stood up and stretched out their back. A low groan escaping their mouth. “I don’t know I might have to resort to violence.” They pulled up their sleeve and revealed a small sleek black stick.

That piqued their interest, “What the hell is that?” They hesitantly watched Villain tap onto its side as they tried to figure out what their plan was.

“It’s like a bomb.”

“Excuse me?!”

“Calm down, I’m only going to use it to blow a hole—”

“And kill us?” Hero stood astonished and contemplated snatching away the device. They were right not to trust Villain.

The criminal sighed and continued their sentence. “If I can blow a hole through that wall,” they directed a finger at the empty space behind them. “We can probably just jump out and get to the next floor.”

Hero ran a hand through their hair, were they seriously going to follow through? It’s not like they had anything better. “That’s going to get us hurt.”

They backed away from the wall as Villain tagged the device firmly onto it. It stuck in place as a humming noise played out. Hero felt a wave of sweat hounding onto them as they stepped away further, still unable to register their next moves. Were they expected to casually hop out and not get hit by any debris?

“Don’t worry, it’ll be about three minutes until it actually explodes.”

Beep!

Beep!

Beep!

The device had started making different noises which didn’t sit right with Hero. They looked at the emergency button. Partly wishing there was still a chance to wait out.

Villain didn’t seem affected at all, they looked around at the ceiling; their hands to their hips. “No cameras, huh. You’d think such a place like this would be littered with security.”

“Villain! De-activate it!” Hero palmed their attire for anything to protect themselves from the bomb. They considered if hiding behind Villain could be an option, but found it too cowardly.

Almost as if reading their mind, Villain shuffled over to their side and smiled knowingly. “Aww… is Hero scared?” They nudged their shoulder with their own lightly, and Hero shoved them back.

“Shut up, if I die, it’s on you!”

“Pfft!” Villain smirked, “We have like two more minutes, why don’t we… kill some time?” They chuckled and moved closer again. Their eyes told them something suggestive.

They frowned. “Quit messing around, Villain! This is serious!”

Finally, sensing Hero’s frustration, Villain gave in. “Okay, fine.” They unveiled another tool and activated a large hologram shield, its edges shimmering a blue colour. “I’m already ten steps ahead of you.” They pulled Hero in closer and the city's protector wondered if they had judged Villain too quickly. They were at the very edge; furthest away from the device. They felt crowded being held so close by their one true enemy, yet, comfortable.

They always did something out of their control, but Villain was quick to find a solution for the two of them. Hero felt Villain’s arm wrap around them, a thumb aimlessly soothing their anxiety. Maybe Villain was doing this to show off or to make themselves look reasonable.

“I’m not scared…” They mumbled into their chest. Hero had to look away and focus on the number of beeps to keep their heart from beating any faster.

Their nemesis kept their eyes on the bomb. “You might want to cover your ears, love.”

Just as their palms lifted up to their ears, the device exploded. A heavy gust of wind pressed them tightly against the wall; Hero felt themselves slipping away from Villain’s grasped as they used both hands to firmly keep the shield up.

The elevator leaned to one side; a loud creaking sound of wire snapping and unknown gears shifting around them echoed. Hero’s shoes slid away from the comfort of protection.

Hero watched as the clouds of dust revealed a gaping hole on the other side. Their instincts quickly turned to find anything to hold onto, but nothing came about.

The other side was a dark intimidating void. They shouted for help; frantic attempts were unsuccessful.

Villain turned around and raced to find a way to save Hero. Their eyes landed on an abnormal price of metal pole that dug into the elevators side.

“Wait, Hero I’m coming!”

Hero gripped onto a wire as the floor finally gave out beneath them, and turned to face the inside of the elevator. They tried to keep themselves from moving too much, but their curiosity to look down gave them a fear they hadn’t experienced since childhood. They hated the extent of their height; far away from the ground. The emptiness under them.

Panic set in and overwhelmed their mind. The lights inside the elevator shut down. Villain climbed atop of it and examined their position. A chord snapped and a sharp electric sound buzzed past them.

“Hero! Are you okay?” They looked around for their rival, until they spotted them through the dark; stranded. “Grab my hand!”

They reached down; Hero returned their brave face and took a peek.

“C’mon, Hero!”

Hesitantly, Hero tried to make another attempt to save themselves. After taking a few deep breaths their fingers unwrapped from the wire and searched in the empty space above them for Villain’s hand.

Their hands laced together. Relief ran through their body, they were safe. Only a few more minutes of this, and this would be in the past.

With some effort, Hero pulled themselves out and on top of the elevator. Their breathing unusually faster than expected.

“Thank you.” They panted, their arms set desperately curled around Villain’s.

They took a break for a moment. Absorbing their new situation. Villain looked around at the tall ceiling and then back down at the hellish pit. Hero still refused to let them go, their face still nuzzled in between their neck and shoulder.

"Are you okay?" Their voice echoed, Hero nodded, but Villain wasn't completely convinced. They'd never seen Hero so fearful of anything, the public made them look so valiant and glorious in all their might. It had them convinced for so long that Hero truly lived up to their name.

Although they wanted to laugh and tease Hero for their childish reaction toward heights they couldn't bring themselves to do it. Instead, Villain caught a moment of vulnerability when they instead wanted to console Hero.

They seemed a lot smaller now with their head tucked in and a quieter demeanour. Their hand tapped on their shoulder. “Hero, I was… are you scared of heights?” It dawned on them in that last minute that this cherished figure of the city could be so… so human with all the qualities that weren’t super.

“A little.” They whispered in response. They hadn’t expected such an honest response from them already, but in that case, it must’ve been bad. Their hand patted down at their suit in a sincere gesture; trying to keep Hero relaxed.

Villain couldn’t bring themselves to laugh, not yet. “Alright, well, whenever you’re ready then” They could wait a little longer until Hero was fine enough to continue their mission. Besides, it wasn’t as though they were in trouble yet.

~~~

MASTERLIST

[auideas]

Ermmm sorry if this is weird but do u maybe have any like, ““original”” cyberpunk prompts? I want to write something cyberpunk for an au but I just don’t have any ideas right now no matter how long I brainstorm

Exploring Cyberpunk

Cyberpunk is a very unique genre, which is why so many people are both attracted to it and stumped when attempting to develop plots within an unknown world. Think of Black Mirror created by Charlie Brooker (TV show), Blade Runner written by Philip K. Dick (a movie based on the novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, a classic Cyberpunk novel), Altered Carbon by Richard K. Morgan (modern Cyberpunk novel), etc. -- each of these were incredibly influential in their own right, but they all also build their worlds gradually while having a single easy-to-explain concept that can spawn an entire universe. To be more specific, each story establishes an issue created by an advanced society ignorantly abusing technology, then allow their characters to explore that problem and try to find a solution in a manner that isn't explicitly black or white for society as a whole, but every shade of grey.

For Black Mirror, each episode anthologically builds upon a high-tech future within the same universe and explores how its characters interact with problems created by new pieces of said technology, both good and bad.

For Blade Runner, the story establishes that androids seem to be malfunctioning, but the bounty hunter charged with hunting them down discovers that the true issue lies in society's understanding of what it means to be human.

For Altered Carbon, the novel explores the issue derived from the obscene length of time it would take for humans to travel between planets stretched across the universe, then dives into more detail regarding how a solution has been abused.

How to Construct a Cyberpunk Concept

What we'd recommend is to start by asking the right questions and looking in the right places. Black Mirror takes its inspiration from a variety of technology, both new and old; Blade Runner explores the idea of AI and androids during the 80's when robotics was on the forefront of innovation; Altered Carbon took note of our increasing ability to travel in an interstellar fashion, then posed a simple question regarding the limits of humanity (specifically, time).

This may sound strange, but the best thing you can do is seek out trends online and scientific journals about new breakthroughs, then ask questions about what may go wrong. For example, an old post we featured here on AUideas that has since been removed from ~2017 because it's in the process of being developed into a script (sorry guys, our bad!) called Dreamscape Co. uses this exact method. When the prompt was made, Admin M was in the process of reading a scientific journal about how neurologists had been able to project a person's thoughts into an image. Although the technology was rudimentary at the time, Admin M posed the question "if dreams can be viewed, what if dreams can be watched in real time with a high quality image? What if they could be immersive? What would that industry look like? Who would pay how much to see a certain person's dreams?" This spun out into a sweeping cyberpunk mini-series, yet came from a simple news article.

Some Cyberpunk Inspiration

When performing a quick search, some amazing ideas seemed to jump out from technology news headlines these past couple weeks alone:

Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal (FLC) Technology Being Used in 3D Displays

Unlike holograms, this technology uses liquid crystals that exhibit spontaneous polarization, meaning their orientation can be influenced by an electric field. They're high-speed, low-power, and have innumerable applications in the future. So, what could go wrong?

How could this technology impact the medical field? Although this may not be possible, consider what could occur if FLCs were injected into human bodies and influenced by electric fields to perform different tasks and functions, such as replacing an organ, attacking cancer cells, etc. How could such a technology be abused or go wrong? How many could die with a simple pulse, like an EMP?

Real-Life Freeze Ray Technology Created for the US Airforce

This technology hasn't been developed to be used as weaponry, but instead to replace large amounts of coolant that must be used on space and air crafts to prevent the machinery from overheating (coolant is heavy and can reduce efficiency yet is absolutely necessary due to the fact that space is a vacuum and therefore does not cool heat like air would on Earth). This "freeze ray" technology utilizes plasma's strange property that seems to break the second law of thermodynamics: it chills down when touching another object before heating up, which experts have proposed is because it vaporizes the ultra-thin layer of carbon and water on an object upon contact, similar to how water evaporates off your skin when stepping out of a pool. The question must be asked: how could such technology be used for not just utilitarian means, but outside of the Airforce's intentions?

Perhaps the technology could be manipulated and over-chill an aircraft, or otherwise damage internal engineering.

Consider its potential applications here on Earth: what could benefit from being chilled with something light-weight and low-power? How could it be integrated into homes? What could be disastrously destroyed with such technology?

Breakthrough in Enhanced Geothermal Systems Technology May Completely Replace Carbon Energy Sources

Google and Fervo have successfully developed geothermal technology that has increased its efficiency and broke records by changing existing rock formations in the Earth's crust. For a natural geothermal energy system to produce electricity, it has to have the right amount of heat, fluid, and rock permeability -- these Goldilocks conditions can be difficult to find 'in the wild'. However, this new Enhanced Geothermal System (EGS) targets the most-easily found aspect (rocks with high heat) then creates the necessary permeability artificially by drilling to the intended rock formation and injecting fluid to create fractures in the rock, achieving the necessary Goldilocks conditions. Sure, this may be carbon-free energy, but what would happen if this were employed on a mass scale?

When energy is prioritized by a high-tech society over food and water, how could citizens gain access to those resources?

What long-term effects could such a system have on the Earth as a whole? Could the ground become unstable? Maybe earthquakes crumble city after city? Maybe the entire Earth's crust loses its integrity and disintegrates, pulling only a lucky few deep underground and forcing them to survive off the left over fluid injected into the Earth's crust and whatever they can find.

Closing Thoughts

As you can see from above, there's a crazy amount of inspiration that can be drawn from current technology events. What's important to remember is that yes, we've been talking about complicated technology, but only you have to understand how it functions in your universe down to the molecule, not your audience. Deep technology topics can be dry to a certain extent, and over-explaining your world can be damaging to your story. Explanations regarding how technology works in each of the stories we discussed is limited for that same reason (Black Mirror's overarching concepts, specifics about how Blade Runner's Replicant technology are rarely discussed, etc.). Leave some mystery surrounding how your cyberpunk world functions and allow how your characters room to breathe and interact with that world -- it can speak for itself. Your audience may first love the idea behind your story, but what they'll remember and relate to is how your protagonists and antagonists suffer and prevail within your universe.

We hope this answered your question, and feel free to follow up if you'd like some more guidance and advice on how to construct your Cyberpunk story! In addition, feel free to check out our other post which outlines more information on how to build a Cyberpunk world.

Now get to writing, and have an awesome week!

-- Admin M x

[whimsyqueen]

Alternative Story Structures/Patterns (a.k.a how to avoid that damn triangle) 

Disclaimer: these are all taken from Jane Alison's Meander, Spiral, Explode under the idea that we should draw more from patterns in nature when structuring works of fiction. Alison is a white woman, and a lot of non-western storytelling (especially utilizing different structures other than the triangle/wave) was pioneered by Authors of Color. I highly recommend you also research types of non-western nonlinear storytelling that Authors of Color have been utilizing and pioneering way before western storytellers even began to think about them. Here's a great article, and here's another one to begin your research there!

I'm gonna start each section with a quote from Meander, Spiral, Explode that I think explains them best, and then extrapolate where I can from there!

Waves

I've already discussed this one! If you wanna know my thoughts and feelings about the wave (a.k.a Evil Triangle That Might Have Some Uses, Maybe) you can check out this post here!

Wavelets

"Once I translated the dramatic arc to a wave, I began to think that energy in narrative might also flow in smaller waves, wavelets. Dispersed patterning, a sense of ripple or oscillation, little ups and downs, might be more true to human experience than a single crashing wave: I'm more likely to feel some tension, a small discovery, a tiny change, a relapse. The same epiphanies every week..."

I love the idea of this, and her comparison to the human experience. I feel like we sort of tried to accomplish this by adding various peaks to the original triangle, but sometimes a narrative can have multiple waves. She talks a lot about how this can show up as patterning in stories as well, moving back and forth between two different energies that could be important to a character, back and forth between motivations. I don't know if that makes any sense, wavelets aren't really my style, but I know they'll resonate with someone, because what are we doing if not trying to connect to the human experience?

Meanders

"A meander begins at one point and moves towards a final one, but with digressive loops. Italo Calvino says that "digression is a strategy for putting off the ending, a multiplying of time within the work, a perpetual evasion or flight. Flight from what? From death of course!" The Meander river in Turkey gave us the word, and speaking of how an actual river flows, Peter Stevens (in Patterns in Nature) says it "winds and turns in a quiet but seemingly desperate manner to avoid the straight schuss to the bottom"... In either case, there's deliberate slowness, a delight in curving this way or that, luxuriating in diversions, carving slow labyrinths of time."

OHHHHH THE MEANDERING NARRATIVE. I do enjoy this one, it isn't my favorite, but it is very very good. I specifically love the part she mentions about the narrative being afraid to reach its end. Sometimes characters meander, they want to experience the slowness, to stop and enjoy the things that are going on around them before moving forward with the plot. If you learn how to use the meander to your advantage, people who have a tendency to under-write could seriously be helped out by trying to do this. Also, sometimes people's minds just wander. Why should a narrative not wander too? A river will always end up spilling out somewhere, after all.

Spirals

"A spiraling narrative could be a helix winding downward– into a character's soul, or deep into the past– or it might wind upward, around and around to a future. Near repetitions, but moving onward. What gives a spiraling narrative a good sense of ending? Good question, for spirals could go on forever."

and also

"I wonder if first-person retrospective narratives– especially obsessive ones– might naturally follow a vortex."

Can you tell which quote gave me my epiphany about Verity and To Make a Fool of Death? Maybe it's mixed in with the radial narrative (right below this!!) but a spiraling narrative is truly a beautiful thing. This one and the radial one are both truly very deeply character focused, which makes me happy. The idea of telling a story based around a character, or just always coming back to the central of the character, is deeply fascinating. At another point in this chapter, she compares the spiral narrative to like the spiraling of a panic attack: you start thinking, and then you think more, and the problem becomes bigger, and you just keep going and then you cannot stop. Whether your spiraling narrative is fast, slow, or somewhere in between (not even gonna go off on a tangent about combining some of the patterns like a meandering spiral), it wanders around but remains true to the central core of what STARTED the panic attack, and will always have come from that true center.

Radials or Explosions

"Unlike in a spiral, the story itself– the incidents we see dramatized– barely moves forward in time. Instead, a reader might have a sense of being drawn again and again to a hot core– or, conversely, of trying to get away from that core. You might already know the end at the start and get many fractured views of things avoiding that moment. You might feel a sense of violent scatteration from a central point. Radials can be centrifugal or centripetal, but linear they are not."

This one might just be my favorite. Her example for it is truly perfect, too. She uses Gabriel García Márquez's Chronicle of a Death Foretold to talk about the point of this one. The entire story revolves around the death of this one man, we know he's going to die from the beginning of the story, and everyone else knows it too. We get the reactions of people to the idea of his death, the effect his death has on others, the WHY of his murder, and so on and so forth. The entire story centers around the hot core of the death of the main character, and that is BEAUTIFUL. I don't know what else to say about this kind of narrative outside of that example, because it does exactly what the radial/explosive narrative requires of it. Vignettes that all center around a big, dramatic point. That kind of thing. I love it, I can't get enough.

Networks or Cells

"So, again, any complex narrative will be a little spatial: certainly the spiraling or radial ones we looked at are. I think the idea of spatiality becomes most clear in cellular texts made discrete parts that gain power through patterns of images or ideas rather than sequential incidents." [section removed where she's talking about three examples provided to prove her point] "In all three, no linear chronology makes the parts cohere; instead, you draw the lines."

and also

"Translating to natural patters, I think of Peter Stevens's words about honeycombs or foam: 'chunks of space, miniature rooms, each one different from its neighbors and yet perfectly interlocked with those neighbors'."

I feel like these really speak for themselves. Think like... a short story collection, right, where all of the stories are seemingly unrelated, but you're able to connect the dots in your own mind and realize how these narratives are actually entwined in some truly beautiful ways? This method places a lot of trust on the reader, and I think that's important. As long as you have readers who have an ounce of critical thinking skills, of course. Stories like this are particularly interesting, especially when you as a writer have to decide how to subtly connect them all, or how MUCH you even want them to be connected.

Fractals

"The most fractal works– meaning fractals of fractals– were stream-of-consciousness narratives, although it's not clear whether that style reveals depths of consciousness or the writer's imagination. But fractals forming the shape of a whole narrative are what interest me: Texts that start with a "seed" or blueprint that spawns several more."

and also, in reference to Caryl Phillips' Crossing the River, an example of a Fractal Narrative:

"Instead the book is polyphonic, taking the points of view of four characters and delivering them in different styles: letters, diary entries, mixtures of third person and first. Yet the stories all grow from a single seed..."

I cut off the last one, but to give some context: Phillips' Crossing the River is the point of view of four characters across time periods that are stories that are inherently related to each other, in that they all stem from the same fractured point, but the linear plot lines do not connect. That's why it's so interesting. It kind of reminds me of the butterfly effect, right, but in a narrative sense. One action that someone takes will fracture, splitting across the story and creating so many smaller, new stories that are just as integral and wouldn't have happened without that first fracture. Will it all come together and will the fracture heal and reconnect at the end? Idk, maybe, it can. It's more of an exercise in seeing what happens based off of one simple event.

Additionally...

She has an entire chapter at the end called "Tsunami?" where she talks about David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas, which is like... a wave, right, a symmetrical wave, but SO MUCH MORE THAN THAT. Remember in "networks or cells" where I was talking about stories that don't seem to be connected but then there's a beautiful through line that somehow magically connects them all? And then in the wave post, when I talk about symmetry and traveling up the wave and down the wave so that the end reflects the beginning again? Cloud Atlas does all of that and more. I couldn't recommend this book enough. It's impossible to explain. It's perfectly written. I honestly don't even really consider it one of my favorite books, but I know that it has FEW rivals for how actually good it is. And, again, PLEASE DO NOT WATCH THE MOVIE.

If anyone wants extrapolation on any of these specifically, I'd be happy to talk about them in their own individual posts, if you've got something specific you want to know more about!! I mean fuck, I might write more about them later on just because I want to and I have feelings. All I really did here was just kinda explain them. And, once again, I encourage you to seek the perspectives of Authors of Color for this one as well. Countries that aren't North American/European have been doing this way longer than us, and those formats deserve some fucking respect.

I also of course have a few people that have asked to be tagged in my posts like this, and if you'd like to add yourself to this list, please let me know! I'll be posting a bunch of these as I go through grad school, so there's a lot to learn! @approximately20eggs @faeriegutz @moonscribbler @marigoldispeculiar

[queerasaurus-rexx]

are space lighthouses a thing?

like in sci-fi/fantasy, has anyone ever done space lighthouses?

like imagine in you're in the dark recesses of space sailing to a distant star and suddenly a light casts through the darkness.

your destination is in sight, and space doesn't feel so dark and cold anymore.

[i-do-not-write]

romance prompt starters pt. 2

“you want books? how many? screw it, i’ll buy you the whole damn store.”

“come over. clothing is optional.”

“you have so many non-sexual turn ons.”

“lemme take you out.”

“did you splash me?! oh, you’re in for it.”

“how many of my sweatshirts do you want?”

“can you just hold me for a second?”

“you give me so many butterflies just looking at you.”

“you’re the only girl/boy/person in my world.”

“when can we leave? i need you.”

“i want to dance with you.”

“you’re so pretty.”

“you look hot playing video games.”

“what do you know about loving someone.”

“i found you first and now you’re mine.”

“my heart races when i see you.”

“i’m so crazy in love with you.”

“you look so fucking perfect.”

“i know you want me.”

“i’m tired of waiting for you. i want you now.”

“you’re my only friend.”

“you have me.”

“oh you’re such a little tease.”

“i want to stay up and face time you.”

“my body craves you so much baby.”

“i’m going to kill that motherfucker.”

“you want my hand to be your new necklace?”

“can i trace your body?”

“fucking marry me.”

“i’m better than him/her/them.”

[error-404-code9]

Something about Character A, who’s had a hard life, learned to trust no one except for themselves and overall just doesn’t feel worthy of love, meeting Character B, who has no sense of personal space.

B, who hits people when they laugh, cackling and tapping A says “oh sorry” and A goes, “no, you’re fine.”

B, who slams a high-five into A’s hand and shouts, “That was awesome! You were so good! I can’t believe you did that” And A just looks down and smiles, “thank you, thank you.”

A, who sees B just laughing and talking with the bad guy,unknowingly, and has to slowly drag B away from them

When B’s friends tell them that their being obnoxious and making people uncomfortable, B stops being so loud and affectionate. But A has none of it. B walks past A and they’re like “Ayo what the fuck? Where’s my hug?” Like genuinely offended.

B tells A what they were told and A is like “oh okay so they have a death wish. Well let’s go have a chat with your ‘friends’”

It’s pretty common AND YET I EAT IT UP EVERYTIME.

[keiriiz]

Pretty much finished my romantic headcanons of Chrollo so that post will be out soon but I got something else to say. With some of the perspective I’ve received on my post about disliking Yandere!Chrollo I’ve really been thinking about something (and no, I’m not backtracking). But what if I put Chrollo in the receiving end of all that? Having a Yandere obsess over HIM. Have him being the one kidnapped, dotted on in the most toxic way possible, facing the possible consequences of not returning their love.

Imagine him being put in the position so many creators on here put the reader or their oc. Now THAT would be an interesting take in my opinion.

Truth be told I actually have a pretty solid idea for a oneshot of this concept but I’m not sure I’m actually going to write it because I still have my main fic to focus on.

It’s still very likely I’ll just do it though for my own personal benefit.

[bonebrokebuddy]

You know how kids will just walk up to you then say random shit or observations about you that they’ve made and walk away?

Captain Marvel does that to JL members.

But it’s laced with the wisdom of Solomon so while sometimes it’s normal, childlike observations or facts. Other times it’s shit no living human should or could ever know & before Billy reveals his identity, it actually works in his favor as JL members just chalk it up to the fact that the champion of magic is thought to be thousands of years old and not, like, 8.

But it’s stuff that ranges from childlike (these are real quotes from kids I babysat):

- “Oh, I never noticed the color of your eyes, they’re pretty.” (Fairly normal)

- “You have weird bones, have you thought about getting them fixed?” (Slightly more worrying. cracked my back and the kid was very concerned.)

- “Don’t shoot the messenger tomorrow, it’ll shoot you back” (much more alarming. this was said to me with no context at all & the kid just walked away to go back and play with her friends. I don’t know if it’s a quote from a show or smth but that was the entire interaction she wanted to have)

Then there’s the random comments out loud laced with the wisdom of Solomon:

- “I miss the call of the Corythosaurus. It echoed through the mountains beautifully and will never be heard again” “Corythosaurus. Captain, isn’t that a dinosaur? Wait a moment how fucking old are you???”

- “Watch out for the earth trying to swallow you whole. make sure to tread lightly” (there’s gopher holes everywhere outside the zeta tube entrance but wisdom of Solomon won’t let Billy word it out as anything but as unhelpful as it can)

[mitchell-nihil]

just had a neat little idea for a one-shot comic thingy in a fantasy setting. a teenage boy who is the next reincarnation of the spring spirit, born to a normal family who lives deep in the woods. by the time his appearance and powers have fully developed, a group of knights and a leader of a nearby monarchy arrive to take him and integrate him into his role in the world. and he'd really rather not, preferring to stay home with his mother and younger siblings and help take care of the gardens and their animals.

the chapter would probably just be the day they arrive, probably his 18th birthday or something. i have no idea what would happen to justify it even being a story but it seems like a cute little concept

i just imagine this teenage guy, on the scrawny side and dressed in very modest clothing, with bright white braids and white freckles, pitch black eyes and bright green markings on his face, and these long, elegant and drooping elf-like ears and massive caribou antlers. he's the most obvious, most beautiful spirit you've ever seen dressed in a raged gray t-shirt and plain brown pants. totally prepared to spend his thousand year life cycle taking care of his family for generations, and has no interest in taking up godhood

[auideas]

Can I use your hanahaki AU???? I promise I'll give you proper credits. I would be grateful if you'll agree.

Of course! Any and all prompts here on AUideas are fair game -- we've posted them with the intent to share and spark new ideas, so asking for permission is unnecessary. What we do ask, though, is that you make sure to credit us with the original concept so others can find us and be equally-excited about starting their own writing.

As a thank you, here's a list of some new and interesting Hanahaki Disease AUs!

Confused about what Hanahaki's is? Here's a link from Fanlore that explains it in more detail, but the TL;DR is that if Character A has an unrequited love / crush on Character B but Character B doesn't feel the same way, Character A's lungs will slowly fill with flowers until the petals expel from their mouth. Needless to say, this is usually deadly...

In a world where Hanahaki's Disease was spreading like wildfire, Character A watched the news as the CDC decreed a ban on social media for the safety of the public -- fans had been developing fatal cases of Hanahaki's Disease for celebrities and influencers who could never possibly love them back.

Character A has been inflicted with Hanahaki's Disease; they just couldn't control themselves, and when they see their crush (Character B) in public, Character A has an attack. When the petals are finally cleared away by passersby and they can draw in a strained breath, they look up from where they'd fallen and see that they're in the arms of Character B who stares down at them with conflicted eyes. Character B can't help but be concerned for Character A's safety, but the type of flower petal Character A is producing has their favorite scent, and it's taking everything they have to not see if Character A's mouth tastes as good as it smells.

As a divergence of the classic Hanahaki's Disease concept, this universe manifests certain flower types based on the quality of the crushee's heart; the worse a person they are, the more pain and torment the afflicted will experience (thorns, thick roots, putrid smells, etc.). This developed as a safety mechanism to help Hanahaki sufferers break off their obsession quickly, but some infatuations are hard to escape.

Characters A and B had been in a long, loving relationship with one another for years at this point, and they never thought they could be happier...that is, until Character B has a coughing attack in their bed. Character A rushes to their side and their eyes go wide when they see a single rose petal fall from their best friend's lips and into their palm. The room tenses.

As a last resort, some Hanahaki's Disease sufferers choose to sign up for a dating service that aims to specifically pair up Hanahaki's sufferers in the hopes they'll fall in love and be cured. Easier said than done, of course...

"Listen, officers, I know it's a CDC emergency, but whenever I fake a Hanahaki's attack in public, I just get so much sympathy from everyone around me. It's like...it's the only time I really feel loved, you know? I was about to fake another attack here on the street when I found them. I don't know if they're still breathing, but I tried to pull out as many petals as I could-- NO, I don't know their name, but LOOK! Their lips are even more blue than the stupid f*ckin' petals on the ground, so HELP THEM!!" AU

It was thought that when someone died with Hanahaki's Disease, they were all but cured since their love died with them. After the first few bodies were buried, though, flowers matching the ones that killed them always sprouted from their graves. Character A's job isn't to clean the stones or stop grave robbers -- their job is to monitor the Hanahaki remnants' growth, make observations, and categorize new flora.

Obsessed botanist and activist Character A purposefully infected themselves with Hanahaki's Disease, but not for sympathy. They sought out the off-chance that their blood, their body, and their very bones were special enough to warrant the growth of a rare, extinct plant that could save the world. And if they couldn't do it, well, then they'd just have to get creative.

Overseas factories were known for their poor conditions, but a whole new meaning was brought to the word when Hanahaki's Disease began spreading like wildfire. For a small paycheck, these factories would house Hanahaki's sufferers and collect their petals to use in perfumes, ceremonies, etc. With the fatality rate of the disease being so high, they have a hard time keeping their stock consistent (without some foul play, that is).

Looking for some more Hanahaki's Disease ideas? We've got you covered! Here, you'll find all our Hanahaki's Disease ideas; if you'd like even more, shoot us an ask.

Hope this helps out, and happy writing!

-- Admin M xx

[cephalopod-truther]

Currently obsessed with the idea of being doomed by the setting, rather than the narrative. That you are living in a world already dead or dying or changing such in a way that it cannot be sustained. That you might get a happy ending but there's nothing you can do to save the world around you. Maybe you're the last of your kind or your life's work is in a crumbling industry. Just the idea of fighting a battle against time, knowing that every win is just a postponement of the inevitable. Even a happy ending carries the promise of tragedy, eventually

[risingwinter]

But wait--what if Beldre was the Citizen?

Not to revisit old fandoms on main, but hear me out--it helps the gender ratio, it gives Beldre complexity and depth, and it gives evil sexual tension. It fixes the creepy stalker thing Spook got going. Suddenly they’re both being creepy villains together that foil each other and redeem each other and why didn’t Sanderson think of that? (pretty sure I know why but I’m still gonna be upset about it)

[i-do-not-write]

romance prompt starters

“you make me want to fall in love with you over and over again.”

“i can’t have you, but i will anyways.”

“what’s your favorite ice cream flavor?”

“can i kiss you?”

“you’re so fucking kissable right now.”

“hey can we take a nap together?”

“i don’t like you. i’m in fucking love with you.”

“do you need a hand with that?”

“you’re too fucking adorable.”

“did you want to stay?”

“could someone help me?”

“did you just post that?!”

“can you cuddle with me. i need you.”

“can we be friends.”

“when are you going to stop looking at me like that?”

“what are you doing tomorrow night?”

“if they want a show, then let’s give them a show baby.”

“can you come sit on my lap? i want to kiss you.”

“are you really playing video games with my online friends?”

“damn you look hot in a sweatshirt and sweatpants.”

“i’ll treat you like a princess/prince, baby.”

“come over to my house. i got something to show you.”

“i’m as dumb as a rock. can you tutor me?”

“oh please, it’s not like you’re hot or anything.”

“you are a total douche bag and you’re annoying.”

“i totally walked into the boys/girls locker room on purpose.”

“why do you have to act so gay.”

“seriously dude. your fit is amazing.”

“you want me to buy you a stuffed bear?”

“common it’ll be fun with you there.”