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Flaws and Quirks in Male Characters That I’m BEGGING Writers to Explore

✧ Dudes who are bad at sports. Yes, Chad, not every male character needs to throw a perfect spiral in high school. Let him get hit in the face with a dodgeball. Let him (please) suck.

✧ The “pretty boy” who's not vain, just vibing. Like he knows he looks like he walked out of a Renaissance painting but has the self-esteem of a lost ferret.

✧ Shy, awkward boys who don’t magically become suave by Chapter 6. No, he’s still weird at parties and says “you too” when the waiter says “enjoy your meal.”

✧ Flirtatious guys who are actually super respectful. He's flirty but not a walking lawsuit. Shocker. He’s playful, not predatory.

✧ Male friendships that aren't emotionally constipated. Yes, two guys can say “I love you, bro” and not immediately punch each other to cancel it out.

✧ The soft-spoken leader. He doesn’t need to scream orders or have a “gruff, commanding voice.” He just talks, and people shut up and listen because he’s competent.

✧ Dudes with weird hobbies. like, your guy MC collect antique spoons or have a YouTube channel rating old vacuums. Why not. It’s his passion.

✧ Guys who are clingy and insecure in relationships. Not abusive, just genuinely terrified of being left on read for too long. He's trying his best, ok?

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I really need you to say 'dolphin fin" and think about how silly it sounds.

In theory, it's a combination of words that would logically be said together, but why does it also make you feel a little like an idiot to say it?

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Questions I think to myself a lot when confronted with certain kinds of Online Posting:

Do you want a better world, or do you want revenge on those you think aren’t doing enough to improve it?

Do you want a more just world, or do you want to see bad people suffer merciless punishment?

Do you want a less oppressive world, or do you want the reins of power for yourself?

Do you want to do the right thing, or do you want to feel righteous?

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Ok, but do you ever ask the question, Who was Beorn's wife anyway? We know he must've had one because he had descendants. And yet the way they were called "Beornings" seems to indicate he was the original one, like he was the reason the term was coined. But who was his wife? Was she, like, a normal sized person, or....??

Give me your opinion.

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If you like strong, sexy Elves with high heritage and trauma in their past, who are committed to pursuing their enemies with relentless vengeance but you don't want to get tangled up with the curse hanging over the sons of Fëanor, look no further than the sons of Elrond!

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Listen folks, when I tell you I have weird dreams, I mean it in all seriousness, and I am not exaggerating anything when I share those weird dreams.

And when I have a hyperfixation or beloved obsession, well, elements of it tend to show up in my dreams.

So that's why last night my unhinged dream featured lore in which Thranduil had proposed to Arwen way back before Aragorn. 😂

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What if……？

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Ok, so apparently Lúthien's song is "imperishable, sung still in Valinor", but how would it get there in the first place? Lúthien never went to Valinor, and I can't imagine Námo being responsible for that. The song was leaked by somebody. Somebody who:

- was in the Halls at the time of Lúthien singing

- was released before the in-world writing of that part

- had an incentive to do so

...

It was Felagund, wasn't it

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Frodo's biggest downfall was actually on the table at the Prancing Pony.

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I can enjoy a variety of fanart styles, but I also have a kind of niche sweet spot for ideal Tolkien fanart.

Now, everybody's art style is valid, and they all have more talent than I do in that skill! So this post isn't to shame anyone's artistic style or talent. But for myself personally, well, again, there's a particular little sweet spot for what I consider ideal, and that's what I want to talk about for a minute.

For example, I don't prefer anime-ish styled characters. I like my Elves beautiful and ethereal, but I also like the males to look masculine and decently muscular, not "twinkified." Some art does well portraying them as beautiful, but the male Elves' faces still end up looking like girl/woman faces. Also, obviously Elves are supposed to be ageless, so I don't prefer to see them looking too aged - but I feel like in trying to show them as "young," some artists end up making them look like teenagers.

I can appreciate the choice to show racial representation by showing some of Tolkien's characters as people of color. And yet, sometimes certain choices of racial depiction deviate from how I initially pictured the character(s), so it can throw me off if it differs from my mental image. (Please hear me when I say this does not mean I have a problem with any race or color!) It just turns out like: I'm scrolling through fanart, I see character xyz, I go, "Oh, huh, nice, but not how I pictured them." This also applies to other features as well (for example, I see a lot of Celebrian fanart showing her with freckles, but while I think that's a cute choice, it's just not how I envision her).

All this is to say, I guess I can be kind of picky. 😂 Don't get me wrong - I love a variety of styles. And again, all these artists are way better than me! But having identified that I have kind of a specific sweet spot for my favorite art styles, I have to recognize with greater appreciation whenever someone's art really hits that spot!

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After reading Sunrise on the Reaping, I will never be able to invest in the Haymitch/Effie ship. Like, it's just a fan ship, nothing in the books to support it, but okay, it was kind of an interesting thing to speculate about.

But now, knowing Haymitch has had one true love whom he still holds on to . . . I just can't ship him and Effie anymore (even tho I personally never really did). Also, considering Lenore Dove, I really don't think Effie would be Haymitch's type at all lol

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Boromir Week, Day 6: Change of Fate

The note from Boromir's horn bounded high and clear, ricocheting off broken, soot-stained stone. A swell of voices rose into the air, cheering and shouting.

“The King of Gondor has returned!” he bellowed, sweeping his arm to Aragorn over his shoulder. “Long live King Elessar Telcontar, heir of Isildur!”

Aragorn was sitting straight and tall on his horse, his mouth set, but his eyes betrayed the barest spark of shell-shock. Boromir wasn’t going to let him think about it. He squeezed his horse’s flanks and started forward. Aragorn’s horse instinctively followed, and behind them the cumbersome train of their friends, comrades, and vanguard fell into step.

They passed through the first gate, which was no more than the stubs of towers, rimed with ash and gouged by ballistae. Still, gate wardens stood on top of the rubble, and the heralds released a peal from their trumpets. First, the two rising notes that signaled peaceful news to the city, and then the short burst that had been preceding Boromir his whole life. The Captain was entering the city. Growing up, Faramir would buzz it through pursed lips whenever Boromir stumbled out of bed or emerged from the jakes. But following after was a ring that hadn’t been heard from the ramparts of Minas Tirith since the second age. A clear swirl of notes, rising into the morning air.

The King was entering the city.

A snippet from a fic I wrote a few years ago. We all know Boromir Lives is my lifeblood, and one of my favorite concepts is Boromir reinventing himself as the pillar that holds up and legitimizes Aragorn as king.

@boromir-week

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Be a teachable individual YOU DO NOT know everything

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There may or may not be much of anything to prove it, but I personally hold the idea that Fingolfin had some significant character development between the time of Fëanor's death and his own. Yeah, he became proud and jealous of his half brother, but then again, a lot of that discord was sown by Melkor. Once everyone gets to Middle Earth, though, I feel like they must have started realizing a whole new level and depth to Melkor's evil and diabolical schemes. They began to recognize his corruptive touch in so many of his tactics. And then in addition to that, there were a gazillion years for the Elves who came from Valinor to experience character growth (although some had villain arcs).

Idk, maybe I just like heroes to be very clear-cut, or maybe I just have some partiality towards Fingolfin. Tolkien definitely wasn't afraid of writing people who were morally gray or divided, and some of the ones who accomplished the most were actually pretty yucky people. But anyway, I'm keeping the Fingolfin character development headcanon. 😄 I like to think that the years mellowed him out, that time brought some perspective to help him see how petty his pride and jealousy were, and how being high king of the Noldor maybe wasn't really worth All That.

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Shout-out to all the stories that didn't make it out of the shower with us in time to be actually written down.

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"Legolas only ever says one line to Frodo," blah blah blah . . . . For one thing, that's only in the films. And even if there's not more actual *dialogue* between them in the books, that doesn't mean they never talked.

Whether in the films or in the books, we have to take for granted that a lot happened *off screen.* I'm sure all the members of the Fellowship conversed plenty off screen. There's just no need to show the dialogue of every little mundane conversation. So while the whole thing about Legolas only ever saying one line to Frodo and Frodo not remembering Legolas' name is all just a silly meme to have fun with, I think they did talk more than we actually see. I think everyone did.

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Unhinged concept: Finwë and sons, but they're a barbershop quartet