#your next great read

[sergle]

yall are about to piss me off by not having any PASSING basic knowledge of the way the u.s. military manipulates its recruits into joining by typing up one of your uninformed, unresearched, unempathetic, individualistic, unbelievably annoying posts about how 100% of the people in the military ended up there because they just Love America So Damn Much! they're extremely mature and informed at time of recruitment, they can totally leave anytime they want, they totally had tons of other avenues in life they could've taken, there was no rush at all to get income as fast as possible, and everyone in the military also totally is part of the combat divisions and personally enjoys being IN the military very much, big believers of violence. everyone in the military is shooting guns all day, that's how that works. they LOVE BLOODSHED. also I love the "amewicans haha" twang to this type of shit because you're actually TOTALLY stealing our Thing, which is turning systemic issues into Individual Issues. Instead of talking about the powers that be, it's so Personal Choice up in here. It's, "well you shouldn't have done it then. I totally wouldn't because I know better." you don't wanna talk about the military industrial complex as a whole, and you don't want to talk about recruiters, you just want to pin the blame on Specific Individual People one-by-one, as if they're responsible for the system that they're being ground up in. someone was in the military? bad person, no matter what. it's easier to believe that, I guess, than to acknowledge that Normal People (with high school educations) are manipulated and incentivized into joining a system that is Bad. at like age 18. but yeah no that 18 year old should have just been smarter lol haha anyway here are some screenshots for no particular reason

side note this reply of someone going "umm just get loans and go into a high paying field it's easy XD" as a direct response to someone trying to explain how most americans joining the military are being funneled in that direction out of a need for money.

and another person who Decided that americans join the military just CLENCHING their teeth thinking of other people, and not thinking completely selfishly about their own selves and their own income/housing/healthcare.

[evercelle]

How do you do anatomy? And when you get artblock, what are you doing?

anatomy: make stuff up use references, observe bodies in art + media + ur everyday life, look at anatomy notes! i got taco1704's book (it's in KR and EN) but they also posted a lot of it online; simodasketch and kawaiisensei also have a lot of excellent diagrams. and sometimes i really do just make stuff up

artblock: that's harder to answer :') i got pretty burned out and couldn't draw anything good for what felt like months, even though i tried every day... if you get stuck, i think it's probably better to take a break and go consume instead of create for awhile. i played a bunch dawntrail/fields of mistria and started reading orv until the worms came back home haha. recharge ur battery and look for new inspiration...!

[t00thpasteface]

i'm so relieved that people like my retrobat stuff bc i can tell tumblr definitely prefers two very specific batmans: Tortured Diesel DILF and Edward Cullen But Cooler. meanwhile i'm out here like

[bakathief]

It’s been 209 days. Since the last time you updated Shadow Chase when are we getting a new update :(

Hi how are you I‘m good thanks :)

If you are worried that I‘m slacking off rest assured that I have been working on my art in my 2-3 hours of free time every day. If you don‘t believe me you can check out the +140 art pieces in my latest collab or the 22 pages comic I uploaded 2 weeks ago. Thank you for leaving words of motivations in my comments and inbox as noone loves more „when is the next update“ comments than me, especially after a 12 hour shift on the weekend. :)

That being said, there are new pages, when I have the capacity to upload is another question.

[a2zillustration]

hello just wanted to say I love all your BG3 comics! Croissant's romance with Gale is so cute aaaaa

Thank you so much!!

((I'm also a big fan of Aldiirn! @ anyone who hasn't seen their comics, you should definitely go check them out!))

[trans-stew]

a problem with by trans for trans fiction is that it's generally really good and I connect with the stories and characters but I can't really talk about or recommend them to cis people (aka everyone I know irl) because...... the books will talk about messy tranny stuff or be very blunt about common egg experiences that seem weird or suspicious to people who aren't trans and it's like..... the cis won't get it or just shouldn't know about some of this but it sucks because I want to talk about the stories but can't just drop "I'm reading a book about trans women who hunt and eat men's balls" or "so then the scene changes to the force fem basement" in the cishet group chat discord without getting very concerned looks

[creepyscritches]

Ouuugh fuck yes the opthalmologist said I appear to be a strong candidate for LASIK :3c gotta coordinate with my other doctors for their opinions, but just this year my eyes finally stabilized enough to even HAVE these conversations in the first place!!! It probably wouldn't be something I pull the trigger on for at least another year, but very exciting to not be eliminated as a candidate bc of my autoimmune stuff :') it was also super cool as always to learn how providers explain some of these conditions + procedures on a patient level then a clinical level. Eager to talk shop with the opthalmology SME on my team :3

[fuckmeyer]

Ok so I follow you because of your amazing analyzing and theories of twilight, but it's gotten to a point I have to consider reading your stories, and besides a Paul lahote story here or there over the years, I haven't really read twilight stories, especially ones that aren't about the Wolfpack.

I'm scared. So I wanted to ask about yours, what is it like?

Is it crazy like full of plot twists and insanity and madness covered into brilliance (the good kind) or crazy in a way that I start liking bella and edward (the terrifying part)?

(If you answer this, please consider the fact it might actually make me reread twilight (the original) and start ranting worse. For both our sanities, is it smart?)

Is it crazy like full of plot twists and insanity and madness covered into brilliance (the good kind) or crazy in a way that I start liking bella and edward (the terrifying part)?

both! liking Bella & Edward is THE biggest plot twist of this saga LOL. i'm not really one to hype my work so bear with me. here's the difference between Twilight & In The Afterlight:

the familiar:

setting. rainy rural PNW vibes

rough plot. girl meets vampire. vampire wants to kill her. love ensues. it starts you off in familiar territory, then slowly peels away as the story progresses. you'll find enough of the "iconic" scenes to keep you oriented in nostalgia, but not so much that you feel chained to the original book.

characters. no OCs. Bella & Edward are somewhat OOC, but their core traits are still intact.

the unfamiliar(ish):

Bella's personality. i think it was @blurry-walker who made this excellent point: we're supposed to like Bella because of how she's described, not by how she acts. Bella is not really selfless, mature, observant, compassionate, intellectual, or self-aware. which would be fine... if that were the author's intention. i've tried making Bella a mix between how she's described & how she acts: selfless, contemplative, & stubborn, with a sense of humor. & i threw in a backstory & hobbies - i.e, drawing, music, reading - so she has a life besides Edward. (she can still act like she's 18 tho. as a treat.)

Edward's personality. no stalking, no anger issues or mood swings, no misogyny, no invalidation of Bella's choices, no militant chastity. just a vampire who's lost his way & startled to discover he is every bit a part of this world as Bella. more humorous, more overwrought/ romantic, more contemplative.

the result is a relationship that's rooted in mutual respect, common interests & values, & genuine companionship. they talk about philosophy, they exchange mixtapes, they tease each other, & have slightly less self-control when it comes to sexual intimacy

James/Victoria plotline

twilight is less fairytale, more gothic horror

deeper thematic discussions (bc i think they're neat! :D). what does it mean to be you? how do you find yourself again when you're lost? what's the secret to keeping your humanity in death?

vampire/Cullen lore. what's the difference between a golden-eyed vampire and a red-eyed one? what are "la tua cantantes" and "mates"? why are the Cullens going to high school? what's the Cullen-Volturi relationship like? who are the Cullens, really? i'm trying to paint them as grayer characters & have their personalities/backstories make sense for who they are.

werewolf lore. i *hate* canon imprinting - how an imprinter loses him/herself to the imprint, how the imprintee can't say no, the fact that they imprint on CHILDREN when the theory behind imprinting is to "find the strongest genes"... NO. i hate it all. i hate that smeyer appropriates the legends of the Quileute tribe & how stereotypes/ tropes of Native people are perpetuated in this series. i especially hate the double-standards Bella puts on the pack vs the coven. justice for the wolfpack or bust

since you mentioned liking the wolfpack (same), the sequel, Come Nightfall (aka New Moon), has way more wolfpack content than the original, & we see a lot more interactions between Jake & Bella. (and Bella & Sam!)

i don't feel it's my place to tell you whether you should read this or even whether it's good. if it helps, this is what other people say:

"This… Was incredible. It was the kind of fanfiction that should be praised along the classics of the fandom, the kind you would want to print and put in the shelf in between Twilight and Life And Death."

"This is, to me, the epitome of great fanfiction--you took the story idea and characters and tweaked them to how you imagine it would be better as well as adding in your own flare, AND you have the story telling ability to back it up."

"You've managed to write something that not only surpasses the source material, but flies so far beyond it in nuance, craftsmanship, raw emotion and SMUT that it travelled through space and time continuum and shows no signs of stopping. Every time I think it can't get better, it does."

"I read both of your books in like 2 days; I couldn’t put them down. This is some of the best writing I’ve ever read on here."

"What a gem of a story. I read it in one sitting, the best canon rewrite I've ever read. Very very clever writing, engaging plot, and the most real Bella and Edward relationship I've ever seen. Everything about it, Bella and Jacob, Sam, Alice and Bella's dynamic, Billy and Bella, everything added so much colour to this story. I can't believe this came from Meyer's twilight and New Moon. Absolutely genius."

[araneitela]

WHICH SYMBOLIC FRUIT ARE YOU?

Cherry. (Man, this is going to need some tag rambling; because while it's what I suspected and it's very fitting in many ways, I need to address one element).

In popular culture, cherries have come to represent sensuality, sex, and seduction. In the cult classic, Twin Peaks, Audrey Horne expresses her sexual expertise by tying a cherry stem with her tongue. "Cherry" is also used to refer to the concept of virginity: why? I don't know to be honest, but here we are. Much like the cherry, you're a sensual person who enjoys all the creature comforts the world offers. You enjoy delicious food, dynamic relationships, passionate lovemaking and stimulating conversation; however, you may also come across a touch vapid or shallow, due to your quickly fading attention when something has served its usefulness to you. To quote some man on tinder: "you're here for a good time, not a long time". You can come across, at times, slightly tart, carrying a bit of a bite to you that not everyone can handle. That’s okay: you’re an acquired taste!

Tagged: @basbousah (Thank you 🩷) Tagging: I don't tend to tag for quizzes easily but this one was actually fun, so let's harass. @immobiliter (how about Furina?) @kushtibokt @genus83 @genius81 @spiderwarden @delusionaid (Wriothesley, or Zhongli— porque no los dos? 🤭) @apocryphis (Topaz) @aventvrina @resolutepath (Elio) @daybreakrising (Blade) @astrxlfinale @kahakera @cygnor @chasersglow @scrtilegii (Jing Yuan)... and anyone else who'd like to do it, say I tagged you because I'd love to see the results!

[franeridan]

luffy with a reindeer, a cyborg and a skeleton in his crew seeing bepo for the first time and going "why is there a bear here" and "is the bear a pirate too?" is still extremely iconic btw

[laora-ryn]

Good morning all I am Not Dead I am just Very Bad at doing literally anything including using Tumblr skvjsbfbbd

Life updates:

1. I got a new job in Minnesota and am moving there in November!! No more 100+ days of 100F+ heat for me!!!! Living in a blue state again will be so nice!!!!!!!!

2. It'll be the same work (rehab engineering/assistive technology) but a pay bump and a position in a much bigger dept that is actually well supported rather than the One Man Army I've been down here

3. I got back on the Magnus Archives train and just finished 170 and let me tell you. I was neutral on Martin before this season but he has grown on me rapidly. Several of the unreality/depersonalization eps have hit me pretty hard but 170 almost literally knocked me the FUCK out it was So Good I am DESPERATE to finish this show

4. (also I continue with my string of "Blorbo who has special powers that set them apart from other people, but they're just A Guy, a guy who is kind of an apathetic dick at the start of the thing but grows to learn and love and trust people. Also they are autistic and ace" with Mr Jon Sims who I love very much) (following behind minato arisato and neku sakuraba and setsuna f seiei, my beloved children)

5. I unfortunately still have the anxiety (tm) and am incapable of writing short posts

6. I maybe will write a short BDTS oneshot in the near future to try and get back into the swing of fic things? Equally likely that I will write some tma angst. bc I haven't gone deep into the ao3 tag yet, but I have not yet seen any of what I see as some low-hanging fruit, which means I Have To Make It Myself

So anyway hello everyone how've you been??

[ratatatastic]

beauty in the way which mikksy and his hulking shadow ways on insistingly following maffhew around the ice because he knows hes gonna need to get him out of trouble has translated off the ice

[altfire]

keep wanting to post shit like "not me reading a book 🤪📚🤓🧠" since i got my kindle but im sparing u all. ur welcome

[pythoria]

hello everyone! a quick break from your scheduled art posting to talk about this incredible fic i think ever bloodweave enjoyer should read.

i know it'a already very popular, but imo it's a must-read. i could not praise this fic enough for what it is, the amazing ideas it brings to the table, the incredible execution of the timeloop trope. it's by far the fic i look forward to seeing in my inbox the most (not that other fics aren't absolutely gorgeous), because every chapter is just. a delight to read. it's got angst, fluff, and an amazing romance, but the plot is what really makes it stand out. it's tight, packed with great characterisation and has perfect pacing. please give it a shot if that sounds at all interesting to you. oh yeah, and did i mention that it's got art for every single chapter? yeah, read it. bask in its genius.

[imblocking-you]

As a Kaleidoscope of Death enjoyer, I'm really having fun with the vibes the Dreadful Night world is offering

[steelycunt]

FINAL MIDBLOCK ESSAY DONE!! I AM FREE!!