#I'm tagging this for my own tagging system rather than wanting other people to see it. so.

[namisweatheria]

I didn't realize this wasn't consensus, but as far as I'm concerned Roger abandoned Ace and Rouge, and leaving them to Garp was not remotely enough. He had a year. He could have protected her, found a safe place for her, and been there when Ace was born. She wouldn't have killed herself holding him in.

It's entirely his fault that Ace grows up hating him. If he had protected him and Rouge before he died, Ace would have grown up with a mother who could have told him better stories about his father. He could have grown up proud of him, if Roger was a responsible father with his last year of life.

Roger clearly did whatever he wanted, and that's why he was so connected to Garp, who is basically an older, black mirror government officer version of Luffy. There's a core personality trait that runs between the three of them. It's that utter selfishness, carefree attitude, taken to an insane degree.

Garp didn't parent Ace well either! Neglected him, told him he had to create his worth, instead of seeing a deeply hurt child and saying something comforting or helpful for once in his fucking life. He let Ace be killed, knowing he was a kind gentle person, instead of letting go of his place in an institution of injustice.

(After watching them target Ace, personally I didn't think you could make any argument that Garp doesn't know The World Government is an unjust institution. But now that we've seen him casually watch them commit a genocide and do nothing to stop it, I suspect I'm not gonna have to suffer this rose-tinted view of Garp as much.)

There's a clear message here. Earlier I stated that it's because Garp works for the government that he's callous to the suffering of others, and I still think that's definitely true in part, but Roger shows that just being on the outside of that institution doesn't turn a selfish, carefree person, kind. I mean, he also showed up to that genocide, but we only see him fight for something valuable rather than save anyone.

Ace and Sabo both represent those left behind in both ways of life. Ace of course is a victim of Roger's prioritization of his own desires over people. Sabo is a victim of the government's prioritization of the desires of a select few over all other people.

("All other people", of course includes the children of nobles, who, like all children in societies that give their guardian's complete legal dominion over them, are an incredibly vulnerable population at highest risk of all kinds of abuse from inside their family.)

The difference between Roger & Garp, and Luffy, is that Luffy grew up with Ace and Sabo. He grew up loving them and caring about the ways that they were hurt.

You can't imagine Luffy abandoning anyone, or sacrificing other's freedom.

Also, fuck Roger and Garp. They're enjoyable characters and the way things happened obviously makes the younger characters who they are and makes for a great story, but ohhh my god. Fuck those guys!!!!! It's their own damn fault!!!!

#i hate them soooo much. you simply cannot wrong ace without being hated by me for eternity #I'm tagging this for my own tagging system rather than wanting other people to see it. so. #does make me a little nervous but i do love the crowd on here overall #one piece chapter 1096 spoilers #i mean only SLIGHTLY. but yeah. #op manga spoilers #egghead arc #egghead arc spoilers #op chapter 1096 spoilers #asl brothers #garp #roger #garp & roger #stupid evil gay old men. why.

[seventh-district]

wow!!! nothing better than watching your AO3 subscribers stat go down every time you post a new chapter of your current fic!!!

#/sarcastic btw. i am. Not happy about this recent development #Seven.txt #writing stuff #ao3 #like. don't get me wrong i do understand why and i can't fault anyone and i'm not like.. Mad. but it does hurt a lil #but alas. tis the nature of creating and posting things. not everything's gonna be received well and that's fine #it does suck to see a fic i put so much time and effort and love and part of myself into flopping so hard #not because i wrote it for anyone's sake other than my own #but i'd be lying if i said i didn't want people to enjoy the things i create. that's like. a normal and common desire #and i think i maybe killed it before it could get going with how i tagged it and the bigass disclaimer at the beginning #i think those turn a lot of ppl off that might otherwise read and maybe even find that they enjoy it?? #but i would rather over-warn ppl for the triggering and non-canon aspects than under-warn them and potentially trigger or upset someone #and i can't blame ppl that subscribed for some Other thing when they open their email and see a notif that i posted smthn #and it's a mile of upsetting/negative sounding tags for a fic abt a guy they either don't know or don't wanna see mischaracterized #and so of course they unsub and that's okay. it's okay. #anyways. enough bitching abt my fic not doing well. i don't have much room to complain! #most of my stuff is fairly well received imo. so i can stand to have a flop fic every once in a while. gotta balance things out lmao #the good thing is it's already fully written so the lack of engagement can't stop me!! there's no motivation to kill! it's done already! #anyways. i'll post a chapter a day as planned and then it'll be out of my system in a week and i can post other stuff again finally #next up will be an [N]MbD oneshot. then i'll finally post the Dew Ghost Band OCD fic. then another [N]MbD oneshot ehehe #and thennn ES Ch.5! fucking finally. i can't wait to continue that story #the Dew fic is a oneshot too btw. once AEIWNF is fully posted then the only multi-chapter project i'll have is ES. and that's Enough

[caffichai]

Food Bank Fundraiser

Hi everyone!

First of all, I want to say thanks to everyone who's been leaving such nice tags/comments on stuff I've posted! It's been really encouraging (o^▽^o)

Anyway, I think we all know it's very dark days on the economic front for many of us. So as such, I'd like to help raise some funds for Food Banks Canada! In exchange for you making a donation to the food bank, I will draw a character suggestion!

I know this is not really the sort of thing I normally do or post here but... many folks are struggling to put food on the table right now, and the food bank is a source of support for many and provides an absolute necessity. I've seen many people struggling in my own city, and food security has become an even bigger issue than it already was in the last couple of years with the food bank struggling to keep up with demand. Of course, food security is an issue across the whole country that's putting a huge strain on food banks, with nearly 5% of the entire population making use of food banks monthly, and 23% of the population reporting food insecurity (CBC, 2024; Global News, 2024). Unsurprisingly, those who are already most disadvantaged suffer the effects of food scarcity even more (Statistics Canada, 2023). To make matters more desperate, Canada's food bank system is on the brink of collapse (CTV News, 2024).

I know this isn't going to something big enough to change the world or anything, but being able to make even a small impact for individual people is important too!

✨Incentives✨

Of course, I'm sure people aren't just in it for a reward, but rewards make things all the sweeter, right?

For those who want to contribute, I'll take a character suggestion and add it to a poll (depending on the number of contributors, it may be split up into multiple polls), and then I'll draw as many as I can from top to bottom ranking! If you contribute, please send me a DM with your donation receipt and your character idea! They won't necessarily all be drawn in the same style, and they'll be done according to how much time I've got. (I know that commissions are probably the biggest incentive, but realistically, I struggle to get them done quickly and they're probably not that affordable to everyone)

If you prefer SFW or NSFW, you can let me know (But NSFW will be posted to Cohost). If you make a bigger contribution, I'll reach out to you and ask if you wanna see more specifics/details in your piece. How's that for sweetening the pie? :3

For those who can't make a donation (which is completely understandable), simply spreading the post is also helpful, and I appreciate that greatly as well!

Don't forget that giving a donation allows you to get a tax break based on the amount donated as well!

Alternatives?

If you'd rather donate to your own local food bank, that's great too! You can DM me and send me a pic of your receipt and I'll still add your suggestion to the poll.

If you REALLY want a commission, you can also DM me and I'll do my best to fulfil it! I won't be taking commissions for this till/if there's at least a couple of items on the poll though. The proceeds will go to my own local food bank. The commission will be done later though, and may take some time to fulfil. I take payment only after starting.

When do we start??

I guess once there's a good number of poll options? I have no idea how long that will be, but rest assured I'll keep you updated!

Where do we contribute?

You can make your donation to Food Banks Canada! They really need it!

Alternatively, you can make a donation to your local food bank or equivalent charity.

Other Questions?

Feel free to send me a message or an ask! I'll get back to you ASAP. If I need to include more details or clarify something, let me know! It's my first time doing this!

TL;DR

I want to help raise money for food banks! Anyone who contributes to Food Banks Canada (or donates to their own local food bank or equivalent charity) can DM me with their receipt and give a character to add to the poll. Poll characters will be drawn in order of their ranking, as many as I can manage, over as long a period of time as I can manage!

No pressure to donate of course, I just figured this would be a fun way of raising a bit of money to help out, and allow us to donate more than what I personally can

Current Contributor Count: 13

Suggested Characters:

Imagine your beloved, obscure or popular character here on this poll list! Oooooooh, how lucrative :3

Total funds raised:

780.36$!!!

#I bet Amiya would encourage donations to the food bank too right?? #I know it's unorthodox to run it like this! #But boy is it dire days #food bank #donation #Art #fundraising #Arknights #Amiya #pixel art #pixel #art #poll #digital art #artists on tumblr

[thetravelingmaster]

Reasons Why you Should Check Out ROM

(readonlymind.com)

I've done a similar posts before for this site when I first joined up ROM as an author, but I feel like it deserves a little boost and some visibility out here as one of the many sites where one can enjoy erotic mind control literature. And also, because I'm a little selfish! I figure that if more people know about it, there's going to be more erotic stories to read.

Back when I joined, thanks to @arihi 's post on the matter during the 2018 tumblrapocalypse, I believe that there were barely 150 authors that published on the site, but as of today, that number has risen to 446. The list keeps growing and so does the variety of stories available.

Much like mcstories.com, the site is very easy to navigate and search through, even if you aren't 'logged in' as an author or reader. It offers us simple ways to search out and find the stories or authors we most want to read about. They've done an awesome job with the tag system so that regardless of which story you are reading, you can click on a tag to see what other stories that have the same theme.

It's a lot like a porn site actually, but for mind control themes.

And speaking of the tags...

The search function is rather advanced. Not only can you click a specific tag to see which stories have them, but you can also use the 'advanced search' to combine them and refine your search. You can add as many as you want to really find out if a specific theme is available. In fact you can also exclude tags to make sure you only get the stories you truly want.

Of course, when you do find a story you like, the author name will be a link to their page, which will list their stories as well as an introduction about themselves if they chose to add one. Since the site is all about open discussion, they accept self promotion so you can expect to find contact information on authors you like or even a link to other sites they post on.

Another very useful thing you'll find on their page, which I haven't seen on any other MC site before, is the 'story suggestion' link. There, you'll find all the stories the author recommends.

I've found that it's a great way to discover other authors because if you enjoy someone's writing, there's also a good chance you'll enjoy reading the stories they've enjoyed and recommended. Plus, if the author is so inclined, they can do more than just list off a bunch of stories, but also add a comment as to why they enjoyed it. I personally try to always add a little something to entice those that end up on my list.

Another feature I truly enjoy as an author is the fact that you can always go back an edit your stories because you always have full control of what is posted. Honestly, if I had discovered this before I opened up my own website, there would have been no need for me to do it. Although, I might have been a little disappointed about the fact I couldn't add the lovely images that inspire me so much... hehehe

But regardless, as an author that has many stories with many chapters, I've quickly discovered how easy it is to organize my stories because I can add a new chapter to an existing story, which is great because the reader doesn't have to look for previous chapters. Plus, you can add titles and even small descriptions to each, which will show up in the story index. In addition, you always get a word count for each chapter (or full story in the story list) so you know how long it should take you to get through it.

Speaking of readers, the site offers a little more than just a well organized and searchable site.

Well... If you register that is!

You don't have to post anything though, so registering is simply like creating an account. What you get for registering are a few fun bonuses like the ability to 'snap' a story you liked. Which is basically the equivalent of a 'like' here on tumblr. As an author, it's always a great inspiration to add chapters when I notice that one of my stories becomes popular and I know readers want more. It's also a great indicator for readers, as you well know!

Another bonus you get by registering is being able to comment on each chapter. I love the comments section because it not only gives me the ability to get feedback, but it also allows registered people to tag each other and reply to comments. As an added bonus, once you register, you get access to a notification page and if someone's replied or tagged you, you'll be notified there.

Speaking of notifications...

As an author, I get a bunch of notifications every time a user 'snaps' one of my stories, leaves a comment or recommends it to others. But as a reader, I can also 'follow' specific authors and be notified when ever they publish a new story or add a chapter to an existing one. But hey, that could be bothersome too so you ALSO have the option of just following ONE specific story so you are sure to know when the latest chapter drops. I'll admit, I use this option a lot!

Another option you may notice in the above image is the 'Read Later' option. I've used that as both a place to list off stories I like to read multiple times, as well as the obvious happenstance where I find a good one I want to read, but don't have the time.

As you ALSO may have notice, there are well known authors publishing their stories there too. @scifiscribbler, @jukeboxemcsa, @darthkyra, @ellaenchanting, @hypnoticharlequin and @skaetlett, to name a few you might know from tumblr.

If you can't get enough of reading MC stories, then this site will definitely help to feed your cravings. It's still relatively new and small when compared to others, but so far, it's proven its potential for growth.

The more the merrier

TM

#news #ROM

[tossawary]

Metatags and Subtags on AO3

If you're an experienced Archive Of Our Own user, you probably know how these work. They are both super useful and intuitive. Years ago, even after using the site for a while, I still found a clear and direct explanation of parent tags, synonym tags, child tags, metatags, and subtags super helpful for improving the way that I tag my fics and the way that I search for fics (both including and excluding tags).

This is a little long, but I wanted to be thorough laying things out point by point, and include lots of images for visualization purposes. (I have included image descriptions in alt text, but have limited them to the relevant text of the screenshots rather than everything.)

Disclaimer: I am not a tag wrangler and have never been one. If you want the official introduction to tagging by the people who know what they're talking about, then you should visit the Archive's Frequently Asked Questions pages under the "About" menu.

There is an entire section on tags and how to use them. I didn't even screenshot all of it because I'm trying to save space.

Also under the "About" menu are the Wrangling Guidelines. These are written by tag wranglers for tag wranglers, available for anyone to read. The text can appear dense and full of jargon at first glance, but it's thorough, well-written, and very helpful to read through if you want to understand how the Archive volunteers sort tags.

The Wrangling Guidelines contain the official definitions of parent tags, child tags, synonym tags, metatags, child tags, and more. If you are interested in becoming a tag wrangler, the guidelines best explain the kind of work that the Archive's volunteers do.

What I am writing here is a more casual, amateur introduction from one user to another. This is an explanation with visuals included of what metatags and subtags are, how to find the metatags and subtags being used by other users, and how to use metatags and subtags to improve your own tagging and your searches.

You can't use or avoid tags that you don't know about, right? So, how are tags linked together? What is "tag nesting"?

I'm going to assume that you know what a tag is, how to tag a work, and how to search for works using a tag. And that you know about and that there's a difference between Media tags, Fandom tags, Relationship tags, Character tags, and Additional tags.

What are Parent Tags and Child Tags?

(Skip this section if you're only interested in metatags and subtags.)

There are two different "parent-child" systems within the Archive. The ones called "parent tags" and "child tags" are used to sort Fandom tags underneath Media tags, as well as Character, Relationship, and Additional tags underneath Fandom tags. The Archive FAQ page shows this nesting structure.

If you visit the tag page for the "The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System" Fandom tag, you will see that its parent tag is the "Books & Literature" Media tag.

This means that the "Scum Villain" fandom (child) shows up under the list of "Books & Literature" fandoms (parent).

It also means that when creating works or bookmarks, when typing tags into the search bar, canonical child tags (Characters, Relationships, Additional tags) of a parent tag (Fandom tag) appear first in the auto-complete options.

Browsing the child tags of the "Scum Villain" Fandom tag (or any Fandom tag) is actually really funny, honestly, because you get to see all the wild and sometimes kind of random things that people tag in their works specific to your fandom.

Synonym Tags (Tags with the same meaning)

On the tag page, you can also see all of the "synonym tags", listed under "tags with the same meaning". If anyone tags their works with these alternate ways of saying "The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System", then those works will still be sorted into the "Scum Villain" Fandom tag, because the tag wranglers have made these different tags synonyms to each other.

Synonym tags will also show up under searches using the canonical tag. Works tagged "Alt Verse" and works tagged "A bit AU" both show up when searching by the "Alternate Universe" tag.

Synonym tags mean that you don't have to know the precise canonical tag for every fandom or trope or alternate universe, because the tag wranglers are there to give you a little boost and add your tag to the right canonical tag if you didn't get it perfectly. I mean, I still think it's important to learn the basics of tagging and try your best not to make their lives harder, but you really, really don't have to stress about things being Perfect.

What are Metatags and Subtags?

The second "parent-child" system within the Archive are "metatags" and "subtags", which do not have to belong to a specific fandom. If you go to the "Alternate Universe" Additional tag page, then you will see that it is parented to "No Fandom".

These are the tag types that we're interested in right now!

Let's say that there are the Additional Tags of "Cookies" and "Baked Goods".

Tag wranglers will make "Cookies" a subtag of "Baked Goods" because cookies are a type of baked good.

"Baked Goods" is therefore now the metatag of "Cookies".

When you search for works using the "Baked Goods" Additional tag, all works tagged with "Cookies" will show up even if they aren't also tagged with "Baked Goods". Searching a tag will show you everything tagged with a subtag of that tag.

They aren't synonyms of each other, but they're related.

If you want to search the "Baked Goods" Additional tag because you want to read works tagged "Cakes" or "Pies" or other baked goods, but you don't want works tagged "Cookies" because you hate cookies, you will have to explicitly exclude that subtag using the search filters.

Here are the metatags and subtags of the "Cookies" Additional tag:

It's like "Food" is the parent, "Dessert & Sweets" is the child, "Baked Goods" is the grandchild, "Cookies" is the great-grandchild, and "Oreos" is the great-great-grandchild. They're all nested under each other.

Searching the "Food" Additional tag gives you the whole family nested here. Plus a whole bunch of other food-related subtags like "Cheeseburgers" and "Ice Cream".

Searching the "Cookies" Additional tag gives you just different types of cookies and no other types of food.

How can I use Metatags and Subtags?

Let's go to the tag cloud under the "Browse" menu. Go to the "Browse" menu and click on "Tags".

This will show you some of the most popular tags used on the Archive. I like to look at the tag cloud sometimes to help myself figure out what tags I should use on a work.

Let's say that I'm writing fanfiction that involves an intimate scene of two characters bathing together. (I was originally going to use a more serious tag as an example like "Abuse" but the screenshots of all the involved tags made me grimace, so let's go with "Bathing/Washing".) I'm going to click on the "Bathing/Washing" Additional tag. It's one of the tiny ones in the tag cloud above.

Click!

I am now being shown every work that has been tagged with "Bathing/Washing" or one of its subtags. I don't care about this right now. I want to see the metatags and subtags. I'm going to click on the underlined tag again at the top of this page, where it says "70,063 Works in Bathing/Washing".

Click!

Yes! Now I'm seeing parent tags (No Fandom) and tags with the same meaning. I'm going to scroll down to subtags.

Wow, there are a lot of sex tags in here, like "Hot Tub Sex" and "Shower Sex"! Unsurprising! But now I know that I can use both the "Bathing/Washing" metatag for what's generally happening and the "Bubble Bath" subtag if that's what specifically happening.

For a more serious tag like "Abuse", the tag page will show me subtags for all the different specific types of abuse that people regularly tag in their works. If I was writing fanfiction for some "Cinderella" fandom, then I might explore the "Abuse" metatag and decide to use the specific subtags "Verbal Abuse" and "Familial Abuse" to warn potential readers.

Maybe someone is able to read about physical abuse, but depictions of verbal abuse trigger them, so they might try to filter out "Verbal Abuse" specifically. And if someone is having a hard day and doesn't want to read about any kind of abuse, then filtering out the big "Abuse" metatag will remove all its subtags from search results including the specific tag of "Verbal Abuse".

You don't have to individually type out "Gaslighting" and "Domestic Violence" and "Dogfighting" one by one into the exclusion filters. They're all subtags of the "Abuse" metatag. Filtering out just one big tag gets rid of all of them.

If you figure out the big "boss" tags (the metatags), then you can make exclusion of tags more efficient. Or you can search across large groupings of loosely related tags more efficiently.

More examples of Metatags and Subtags

Filtering out the "Mental Health Issues" metatag will get rid of any work tagged with its subtags. This includes: "Depression" or "Mental Breakdown" or "Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder".

Or searching by the "Mental Health Issues" metatag will show you every work tagged with its subtags, if that's what you want to read about. Further examples of these subtags are "Bipolar Disorder" or "Schizophrenia".

Using the metatag "Alternate Universe - Science Fiction" will return works tagged with "Alternate Universe - Space" alongside works tagged with "Alternate Universe - Steampunk". Here are all the subtags of "Alternate Universe - Science Fiction":

I have used both "Alternate Universe - Science Fiction" and "Alternate Universe - Space Opera" on one work before, even though space opera is a subtag of sci-fi. I wanted to be specific about what kind of sci-fi it was, but I didn't think that everyone would know what a space opera was. I wanted to catch people who were looking specifically for Space Opera AUs as well as those generally browsing the metatag for all sorts of Science Fiction AUs.

A work tagged with "Alternate Universe - Flower Shop" will show up under "Alternate Universe - Retail". Retail AUs are subtags of the "Alternate Universe - Career" metatag. If you want to see your favorite characters working a (probably shitty modern) job, then searching by the metatag of "Alternate Universe - Career" will return to you Coffee Shop AUs, Teaching AUs, Nanny AUs, Journalism AUs, Hospital AUs, and anything else subtagged to that metatag.

The "Alternate Universe - Historical" tag has both "Alternate Universe - Ancient Greece" and "Alternate Universe - Regency" as subtags. Along with many, many more!

Using the metatag "Sexual Content" will bring me all the fics tagged specifically for any kind of sexual content. Excluding the metatag "Sexual Content" will banish every fic tagged with things like "Masturbation", "Blow Jobs", or even "Dirty Talk".

I find it useful to visit the tag cloud for ideas when I feel like there's a tag that my work needs that I'm forgetting. Like, oh, yes! There's "Substance Abuse" in my fic, so I will click on that for ideas on how to be more specific. There's a subtag called "Alcohol Abuse/Alcholism" and a subtag of that subtag called "Excessive Drinking". Perfect! There is excessive drinking in my story. Because I'm trying to use a limited number of tags for this particular fic and the story itself doesn't focus on the substance abuse being depicted, I will choose to only use the tag "Excessive Drinking" knowing that it will still show up under or be filtered out by its two metatags.

If I was writing a story that not only depicted excessive drinking but was specifically about substance abuse and alcoholism as the main subject matter, I might choose to use all three of those tags to underline the fact that this is a key, major element of my story.

Conclusion

Subtags and metatags can be great for conserving tag space. It can be like using five or more tags in just one tag! Your works have hidden tags that you may not have known about!

Using the tag cloud to search for interesting subtags can also be a cool way to find new and really specific works. Clicking on the "Alternate Universe" has taught me about cool AUs that I didn't know other people were writing in other fandoms! (It has also taught me about AUs that kind of weird me out. But that's life! Your kink is not my kink and that's okay.)

Yes, this all depends on whether or not people tag properly.

Yes, this depends on how the tag wranglers have organized things and it's an imperfect system led by its users. Sometimes tags are accidentally organized into the wrong metatag.

But it's pretty incredible that it works as well as it does. A big thank you to all of the Archive volunteers who make it work!

Seriously, go browse the "Alternate Universe" Additional tag page and look at all the subtags. Some of them are really funny. Did you know that there's a "Transmigration into Minecraft" Additional tag subtagged under "Alternate Universe"? I didn't. If I'd thought about it for long enough, based on what I know about the current popularity of Minecraft and Transmigration stories, I probably could have guessed that eventually. But I didn't! So I learned something today about what "the kids" are up to! I hope they're having fun.

#tossawary ao3

[5ummit]

Permanent Blacklists for AO3

Would you like to permanently remove fics with your squicks, triggers, and dislikes from all AO3 searches by default so that you never have to think about or encounter them again? Well now you can!

The ability to do this has actually been around for a little while but it relies on some new CSS functionality that wasn't supported on all major browsers until fairly recently (though you may still have to enable it manually on some). I'm not going to explain how this method works or how to code AO3 skins in general, as I've only dabbled in it a little and there are already some very good tutorials out there. If you want all of the details, check out these guides:

Skins and Archive Interface FAQ – The official skins guide created by AO3. Lots of good information but might be overwhelming and confusing for a beginner.

A Non-Extensive Guide on How to Start Creating a Skin for AO3 by ao3skin – Some good, fairly easy to understand, beginner info on CSS and specifically how it applies to AO3 skins.

Permablocking Specific Tags - Site Skin by Eli0t – Everything you need to know to create permablock lists. If your blacklist doesn't seem to be working as expected, check this for troubleshooting tips.

What I can offer though are some handy pre-made blacklists that you can use as-is or as a starting point to create your own so that you don't have to go to the trouble of figuring out how any of this works or hunting down relevant tags. Just copy the code, open AO3, go to My Preferences > Skins > Create Site Skin, paste it in the box, title it, and click Submit!

Note: The following lists are very specific to me and my own personal tastes. Absolutely no judgement if you love any of the things that I choose to blacklist. You do you. I just happen to like my fics fucked up and relatively canonical.

★ No Reader Fic – Hides all self-insert and reader fic.

★ No Alternate Universes – Hides anything tagged with the most common AU tags. There are so many incredibly specific AUs there's no way to list all of them and AU tagging is also extremely inconsistent from fic to fic so this blacklist may only catch 80% of AUs, but that's better than nothing. You could always exclude the entire alternate universe tag, rather than trying to list specific ones, but unfortunately canon divergence and other less extreme AUs would get caught in the crossfire, which is not worth it for me.

★ No Fluff – Hides anything tagged with the most common fluff and romance tags. I specifically left out "fluff and angst" though because sometimes that's used for things that are mostly angst with only a bit of fluff and I do love angst.

★ Bonus: No Dead Dove – This list is not mine (for obvious reasons) but I know some people may find it useful. Hides anything with the main archive warnings and many common problematic, taboo, or controversial tags. Some of these I wouldn't even classify as dead dove, they're literally just kinks, so I'd suggest reviewing the list carefully and removing any that don't apply to you.

Additional Notes:

This system doesn't work exactly the same as AO3's exclusion filters because you can't use top-level wrangled tags to block all subtags. It only blocks exact matches.

Once the blacklist is implemented you'll see no indication that anything was blocked (except for fewer fics listed on each search page); the entire blurb will be hidden. The tags and fic counts listed in the filter bar will remain unchanged. If you want more advanced features like whitelisting or adding something to indicate when a fic was removed, check out the permablocking guide by Eli0t.

Here's a link with info on which browsers currently support the new "has()" element, which this blacklist system relies on. As of right now Firefox for desktop still has to be manually enabled (for instructions see the section on flag enabling in the permablocking guide). Firefox for iOS isn't listed on this website but it seems to work fine for me.

There are other browser-specific extensions that let you permablock tags, such as this one and this one, that may be more a little more user friendly, but I've never tried them so I can't vouch for them and they may not work consistently between different devices. The good thing about doing blacklists via skins is that, after setting it up once, it should work automatically on pretty much any device (as long as you're logged in to your AO3 account).

#I'm so stoked about this feature #it's a GAME CHANGER #I put a lot of effort into creating my blacklists #I couldn't not share them and hopefully make someone's life easier now that I've already done all the work #assuming anyone shares my preferences #ao3 #ao3 skins #ao3 help #tutorial #wendy's help desk

[dingodad]

I know your tags said that the lil cal & Gamzee stuff isn’t worth discussing, but I think a lot of people could actually use someone articulating the problem with assuming that the puppet is what triggered the breakdown/“mind controlled” gamzee. If you’re really to speak on it, I’d love to hear it 

to preface: i'm not unsympathetic to the desire to see a more sympathetic interpretation of Gamzee given how his arc speaks to certain racialised themes within the comic. but this is what's in the text as i see it.

ultimately it comes down to the exact same arguments that apply to Dave's bro. Gamzee is part of Lil Cal, so if Lil Cal were whispering in Gamzee's ear the whole time he was also undergoing all these stresses related to faith and substance, those whispers are Gamzee's own thoughts being reflected back at him. if puppet-Gamzee suggests to man-Gamzee that he kill people and man-Gamzee concedes, all that's really happened is that Gamzee has given in to his own desire to do that. this is what Homestuck does when it pits alternate timeline versions of characters against each other; it simply manifests interactions going on within that character's own self.

more specifically to Gamzee, this is a character who manifests Homestuck's feminist themes very explicitly, especially in regards to how they are portrayed via Alternia's caste system as a member of the patriarchal purple class. it is true and worth mentioning of course that Lil Cal is not just Gamzee, but is also Caliborn, Gamzee's patriarchal god! but then it was Gamzee who raised Caliborn to have those patriarchal principles; because in Homestuck the patriarchy isn't something you're somehow influenced or tricked into participating in, it's something you choose to perpetuate, just as Caliborn chose to perpetuate it in becoming Alternia's patriarch... and so on ad infinitum.

the "tragedy" of a time loop isn't that fate is somehow forcing you to adhere to a course of events that you don't want to adhere to; tragedy is when the person that you are makes it inevitable that you will walk down that same violent path every time. and Homestuck is all about that person that you are; it's a story by and large disinterested with any scenario where a character's actions do not offer insight into their personalities. a Homestuck character has a certain nature, and while on occasion they are offered psychic stimuli, how they react to that psychic stimulus is according to their nature.

there is of course a physical rather-than-metaphysical approach to Gamzee's backstory, which I'm sure is more along the lines of what you were looking for lol, and while analysis of that is not so much my area I feel that the physical approach basically points toward the same kind of conclusions as the metaphysical one. Gamzee is a character of tragedy, who has been shaped by physical stimuli like religious abuse (from all manner of directions!), parental neglect and substance addiction. and my assessment of that is primarily that... this should be enough? like is that not enough to create a compelling character. even if it were not antithesis to Homestuck's themes I guess it just seems to me like it goes without saying that "this character's actions were the result of someone else's will and not of their own unique circumstances" reduces the character. most certainly yes, there are manipulative forces at work in Homestuck, and their name is Lord English, and yes, Lil Cal is Lord English, but Lord English's power lies in the telling of the narrative; and the narrative that turns Gamzee into a villain is already there! English doesn't need to tell Gamzee to make those malevolent choices, because English already established the circumstances that made those choices inevitable. to make Lil Cal into some literal cursed amulet is to make Lord English into Vriska, and that reduces him, because that's not what he is! he's the god of inevitability!

#homestuck #wrote a lot more here than i was expecting. story of my life. #but i guess it goes without saying basically all of this applies just as equally to dirk just in his own ways

[olderthannetfic]

Hi OTNF!! Sometimes I like to read this fandom problem blog that receives submissions from people all over Tumblr, recently this was posted and I wanted to know what you thought of it: The tag types of "Tags update as story is written" or "additional tags to be added" or "Rating may change." Fuck those. I don't care if you add some extra benign tags as the story goes along, and you realise you wanna add more content that's just there, or you realise your fic maybe went a bit harder than you expected. Some stories get their own life. But at the same time, if you knew you'd want to add certain content, or that the rating was gonna go way up from what you tagged in the beginning, why did you not tag it from the start? Especially when the tagged content becomes a big part of the story, or influences the story strongly. And then you find out that the Author already had been planning adding this type of content for a long time, they just FOR SOME STUPID-ASS REASON didn't wanna add the tag until it actually happens. You're supposed to tag so the people can make an informed decision if they wanna commit to your fic, so for the love of the tagging-system, actually TAG ALL YOUR SHIT FROM THE START. Same shit for changing ratings. I hate it when someone plans from the start to make the story explicit, but doesn't change the rating until they've reached the NSFW sections. There's a reason there's a tagging system. So do you just not understand how that works? Or are you just being kind of as ass on purpose? This does not help when avoiding stories with specific content you try to exclude from your results. It's even dumber if the reason is to "avoid spoiling the fic readers", because anyone coming later to the fic is going to be "spoiled" by the tags regardless. And if you know you wanna add porn, or gore, then rate the story appropriately. Rather categorise it too high, than fuck around with people who don't wanna read explicit content. As a writer who uses the Archive, I want to put my 2 cents in. When I'm writing a fic, a long fic for example, I want to tag the stuff that actually DOES appear at that time so that I'm not clogging other tags/people don't think I'm spamming to inflate my readership (And I DEFINITELY do not want something I worked hard on to get reported for spam). I do get the frustration at reading a fic and then something changes like the rating, but as a writer, sometimes things go off script and one thing that's rated T or M might eventually become E just based off the writing juices doing it's thing(tm). To me, the "Additional tags to be added" is kind of like CNTW, it's something the reader has to make a decision if they want to risk getting invested/read that particular fic. It feels very much like a "damned if you do/damned if you don't" situation. What are some of your thoughts on something like this?

--

Writers are always going to vary in their favorite approach, and readers who act like there's one right answer are idiots.

For me personally, even if I'm posting as I write, I do have a solid idea of where the fic is going, and I strongly prefer—both as a reader and writer—to have all of the tags in place at the beginning.

I also don't like over-tagging for warnings and only want to see/use tags for the basic main content of the fic, which does make it easier to know ahead of time than if I tagged every tiny thing.

I think spoilers are a dumb reason not to tag things.

So I agree with the complainer's tastes...

...but at the same time, they're acting like these ought to be rules, and AO3 is designed to accommodate a lot of different people with different styles, so I think their attitude leaves something to be desired.

[xxsycamore]

'𝐂𝐀𝐔𝐒𝐄 𝐈𝐌 𝐎𝐍 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐄

↬ ❤  You make Roy's number one dirty fantasy come true.

Roy Mustang x f!Reader • rating: E (MDNI) • tags: Fetish; Fetish Clothing; Skirts; Secret Relationship; Sex in a Car; Semi-Public Sex; Teasing; Fondling; Hand & Finger Kink; Vaginal Sex; Creampie; Dom/sub Undertones • wordcount: 2,183 • masterlist

And the rest of the world could disappear and I wouldn't care

'Cause I'm on fire.

(namesake song by Stateless)

a/n: Don't rewatch fma years later if you've become a writer somewhere along the way. You'd have something you want to get out of your system and it will be embarrassing.

"Are you cold, Lieutenant?"

Like a switch that's been flipped, Roy's tone changes once he finds himself alone with you. It was just a second ago when he gave the chauffeur an order, quick and straightforward, putting a start to the two-hour-long ride and shutting the metal cover of the partition that provides privacy to the backseat. Of course, you're accompanying Roy today - it's just you - and having known that in advance, while your Colonel's brilliant mind was at work crafting military plans, yours was coming up with plans of its own. Ones that are quite different in nature.

Your heart rate had quickened the moment you found yourself in the vehicle with Roy. No, even earlier than that. With hot blood pumping through your veins, there's no way you could be cold as per his question. But Roy is oh so perceptive when it comes to you; caring in the way the question rolled off his tongue, colored by his noticeably softer tone.

He's asking you because you're still wearing that long black coat over your uniform today, neatly buttoned all the way up, even if the sun did its best to warm up the earth so that the hours around noon offer weather that is rather pleasant.

And if you said you are cold? What would he do then?

With a well-measured chuckle, you slip into your more casual persona, remembering that you're now behind closed doors, so to say.

"Quite the contrary, I was thinking of taking this off now."

Over the rustling of clothes, your ears pick up on the small humming of part-curiosity part-confusion leaving Roy's mouth. The shared seat is rather cramped in the most perfect way, making your efforts at brushing past Roy's form inconspicuous as you strip off the overcoat. You need his eyes on you for what is about to follow.

You make sure you're half turned to the Colonel as you rise yourself off the seat so you can not only shrug it off your shoulders but also discard it completely to be half-decently folded and soon-to-be-forgotten, at your other side.

"Ah, that's much better—" The words are not yet fully out past your lips before Roy reacts. Your smile widens with mischief as you're granted a few silent seconds which stretch out to a blissful eternity, full of staring freely at Roy's expression. That's the face of a man getting a hard-on, if you know one.

Roy's deep dark eyes are wide with surprise, glued at your lower half, mouth slightly ajar. You're waiting for him to return the gaze. When he finally does, you're witnessing a new shift in his mood.

"What are you wearing, Lieutenant?"

Playing coy, you run a hand across your hip, from knee to the hem of that piece of clothing that seems to have captured Roy's attention so immensely. You swear you can hear the hitching of his breath as you graze the material with the tips of your fingers, barely dragging it higher up your hip than it already is, revealing more of your bare skin underneath.

"Oh, this? I found my old uniform at the bottom of my closet the other day, and… I made some adjustments."

The cheap lie of your casualness is see-through, when Roy can tell the effort behind those modest adjustments. What once was an ordinary part of your blue Amestrian state military uniform has been diligently reshaped into something so wicked and out of place with the attributes it once bore.

At least, that's how most people would see it.

You know that it's clear as day to Roy that you've actually taken care of everything to the tiniest detail; the thin silvery edges along the front pleads and the slit on the left side.

"A miniskirt?" Roy's chuckle is him regaining his composure, and his glove-clad hand palming the ball of your knee is his barely contained interest. It's hard not to part your legs right there and then, almost as if this is the signal you've been waiting for.

"A tiny miniskirt! C'mon Colonel, where is your enthusiasm? This is me showing commitment and loyalty to your high ideals…!"

Playing with fire, you take Roy's hand and guide it upwards to the subject of the conversation. The warmth of your skin is still penetrable as you can feel Roy's burning touch where it comes in contact with it. You egg him on, despite the time and the place, or maybe exactly because of the risk they carry.

"You can treat this as a preview, for the day you finally reach your goal…" You reach out a hand to caress his face, but Roy is quicker, catching it in his grasp.

"Here's my enthusiasm."

With a swift manner, you find yourself manhandled into the position Roy desires, seated on his lap - with your back to him.

Relentlessly, Roy's large palm is laid on the place between your shoulder blades as he pushes, making you bend forward.

You grunt, less out of discomfort than of surprise weaving along with pure desire pooling in your abdomen.

"It's quite short, isn't it? Are you even aware that you're giving me a flash of your underwear right now?"

It's firm and matter-of-factly, Roy's tone, as he sends shivers down your spine, forced to realize you're no longer in control of the speed of events. He could pull out his cock right now and you'd obediently sit back without protest, only able to lament the loss of the rest of the teasing you never got to inflict on your Colonel.

You all but feel his gaze on your ass, the lack of contact killing you as you feel your legs begin to slightly cramp from holding the position. Perhaps your hyper-concentration is what lets you know he is taking off his gloves right now, the faint, familiar sliding sound of the thin material indicating things you can't even wrap your mind around despite being all the same ready for. Luckily Roy doesn't leave you hanging for much longer, even if his next action rips out an embarrassing gasp out of you.

"Ah—"

Sensing his big, strong hands suddenly coming to grasp and grope the globes of your ass through the material of your skirt, or at least the part it does cover a part of, you shamelessly feel desire seeping wetly inside your panties, staining them right where Roy's gaze is bored into. You're all on display for him, and you like it, in combination with the way he squeezes and pulls your asscheeks apart, that's your confirmation. That's exactly what Roy's dirty fantasies were made of, and you're making them all come true right now.

At this point, you should've expected the small slap he gives your ass, but nonetheless you still flinch when Roy leaves a faint imprint of his palm on your cheek.

"Turn around for me."

Without skipping a beat, you shift your position between his long legs, eager to be welcomed in his embrace. Roy lets you straddle him, your legs coming to rest on either side of his, and inevitably your tiny miniskirt rides up even more.

Roy lets out a low humming noise, palming your newly exposed heat through the underwear, and you can tell he felt the wet patch stained with your arousal. He guides you to sit down on him comfortably, but instead of relaxing, you tense up as soon as you feel his raging hard-on tenting his trousers.

You really made him diamonds, a smirk playing on your face with the thought, despite how progressively lightheaded you get. Perhaps there's still room for a witty remark or two before he steals your ability to form coherent words.

"On a second thought… I think I might be rather cold in this skimpy thing…"

You reach out to find his hands, wanting to guide them on your body again, but Roy barely needs the encouragement. With your hands on top of his, he traces the skin of your thighs, exposing you in a lie as he feels how hot your flesh is the more he nears the apex of your thighs.

"Caress me, Roy… set me on fire with your touch…"

The call of his name does things to him you can only vaguely imagine by the way his lower lip slightly twitches. You can tell he's been craving for you to call him by his name in the sea of formality surrounding your daily lives. Right here and right now, he's your Roy; he wants to hear it again and again, and you make use of knowing it well.

"I'll take good care of you, then."

Unzipping his trousers, Roy distracts you with a long-awaited kiss as he makes quick work of his garments, freeing his aching cock. True to his word, his hands continue to roam on you, under the short coat of your uniform, then under your skirt; fingers sticking in the hem of it, toying with it but never taking it off. That's good, that's what you made it for, he needs to enjoy seeing it on you to his fullest.

In contrast to how much he takes his time caressing you, the way he puts your panties to the side is all but cruel and rushed, as if the barrier separating you offends him.

You expect him to shove his cock in you in a heartbeat, but he has other plans. Wrapping an arm around your waist, he maneuvers you up again so your glistening lower lips are only slightly grazing the tip of his cock. So close, yet so far from becoming one with him.

"You're going to pay for doing this when I can't get my fill of you."

Hearing those words, you suck on a breath, eager to know what he means. He gives you the answer without having to ask.

"Nothing to bend you over on. Not enough room to fuck your beautiful thighs."

You mewl as you finally feel his warm hand on your bare heat, wetness pooling on his palm as he rubs your folds in a way that isn't even remotely enough to spark satisfaction.

Maybe he's right, this is cruel of you; the images he paints in your imagination are all too vivid and dreamy when the only thing you can think of is presenting himself to him, enticing him to finally, finally-

Before a loud moan can escape your throat, Roy's hand clasps around your mouth, sealing it shut so no sound can leave. The other he uses to push you down on his cock, piercing you with it on one swift, long thrust.

You pulsate around him, walls tightening and refusing to relax as if afraid he'll deprive you of this pleasure as quickly as he gifted it to you.

Roy doesn't take his hand off just yet, knowing all too well that you have a lot more of those sweet sounds in you that are not suitable for the risky situation you're currently in. Paying attention to the volume of his own voice, he whispers more filth against your nape, bringing forth goosebumps.

"Relax so I can finally fuck you like you wanted to. That's what all of this was for, right? You wanted to be pounded good?"

Feeling Roy beginning to move you up and down on his cock, you can barely think of giving him an answer, but maybe your body does the speaking for you anyway.

"One day I'll seriously have you wear these things around me all the time. Would you mind then, I wonder? Or would you be getting off on the thought of how much you rile me up everytime I catch a glimpse of what's under your skirt?"

Tears pricking at the corners of your eyes with how good it all feels, his dirty promise, or this little taste you're given of how such a scenario would play out, you do your best to follow Roy's movements as you fuck yourself on his cock harder than how he tries to make you.

The fierce look he gives you with those dark, lust-clouded eyes, is already driving you closer and closer to the edge, and you want to drag Roy together with you. In an attempt to seal his lips with yours, Roy shows mercy and removes his hand from your mouth, changing it for his own mouth.

His low grunts are something you'll hear in your head for days, as he erupts in you right as you fall in the abyss of pleasure, meeting him halfway. His scorching hot semen shoots in you in several pumps as you helplessly tremble in Roy's arms, trusting him to catch you when your body goes limp with pleasure.

He calms down from his high gradually, petting your back as you continue to cum around him.

Not pulling out just yet, Roy kisses the last sparks of afterglow from your lips, making sure you both enjoy this moment to the fullest.

At least until the next time you both can indulge in those perverse fantasies again.

Taglist: @arsnovacadenza @ale-teodora @kimi00twin @otomelady @privilegedpancake @g-kleran    @pumpumnnnp @thesirenwashere @ravenarld @kimmy-banana @devonares @galaxyprison @sadshaxk @starshards26 @thewitchofbooks @acethephoenix256 @ikevamp-shrine-2 @nad-zeta @crystal13unny @keen19thcenturygoatsstudent @lordsister @ikemen-banshou   @themysticalbeing @otome-scribbles @rhodolitesrose @coornn @kpop-and-otome @queen-dahlia @kisara-16 @chaosangel767 @ikemenlibrary @queengiuliettafirstlady @aurora-morning @aquagirl1978 ​ @ikemenlover24 @mcofthemansion @joy-the-reader @katriniac @ikemen-writer @tele86 @lovely-bubb1es @aria-chikage @babyblue0t7 @rhodoliteschaos @shrimpy-kitsune @nightghoul381 @xbalayage @lucyw260 Let me know if you want to be tagged/untagged!

#fullmetal alchemist #fma #fmab #fullmetal alchemist brotherhood #roy mustang #fma roy #fmab roy #fullmetal alchemist roy #fullmetal alchemist brotherhood roy #fullmetal alchemist fanfic #fma fanfic #fma smut #fullmetal alchemist smut

[ukulelegodparent]

hey i just wanted to send an ask as someone who has been like really struggling with this for a while. it was your tag on post about white south africans that went something like people acting like having ancestors in europe gives them some magical tie to that place. i see a lot of posts telling people like me to reclaim their european roots rather than appropriate stuff that doesn't belong to me. is that really the answer? i just feel like i don't l have another option. seeing people with cultural ties that they can draw pride, inspiration, wisdom from and then looking at my own lack of any of that just kind of opened like a deep pit of dread in me as i thought about it more and more. idk even know if you have the answers necessarily its just been eating away at me and that tag kinda just kinda made me really wanna ask on the off chance you had any sort of answer.

Hey, I mean I'm no expert on the topic and can only really speak from my own experience which is mostly as a European interacting with Americans. This won't necessarily match your situation, but I just know more about the situation in the US bc of well. The everything of it.

I mean embrace your roots all you want and look at the culture of your ancestors and keep what you want and leave the rest. It's yours. But let's take someone who is German-American. Their ancestors came there in the mid 19th century and that is their latest direct cultural tie to Germany. Or German lands or whatever. It's the middle of the 19th century. It's complicated. Point is those ancestors left a society where their specific culture (whatever region they were living in) was the majority and went into a culture where it was the minority. So either they assimilate or they form a smaller community with other Germans. Either way at that point they are cut off from the main bulk of what they consider their culture. They themselves will have strong cultural influences from the culture that surrounds them and even without that the culture on it's own will slowly warp and change. So too will their language. Maybe they stop speaking German in the first generation, maybe during one of the world wars, maybe there are still parts of the adult population of that community that speak a form of German. What that German-American person would consider the traditions and culture that were passed down to them from the German side of the family might have very little to do with anything that was part of the culture of those initial immigrants to the US. Now while all that was happening German culture in Germany also changed a lot. Between Unification, a world war, the establishment of a democratic system, the absolute turmoil of the 20s, female emancipation, fascism, another world war, a refugee crisis, another dictatorship, a lot of immigration from Turkey and Italy, the establishment of the EU, reunification etc etc. German culture in Germany is also drastically different from what it was in the mid 19th century when those ancestors left.

So that is the one slightly odd thing that like. People talk about their what they consider their own culture and they call it eg "German" or "Polish" or whatever, but the culture they have has just been through a lot of washes. Which is fine, but it is a bit silly when people post pictures of two old women on a cemetery and they want to call them 'sweet ladies' but end up calling them 'old hags'. But also by calling it like a culture that has a whole country attached to it it's a bit like they're declaring themselves experts which. I mean it leads to miscommunication is all I'm saying. And also there's the point that ethnicity just doesn't work like that in Europe. It's just not carried down that far through the family. I might have had Polish or Dutch or Danish ancestors in the early 19th century but I literally would never know. So it's odd to us here for people to build their identity around something that lies so far in their past. Again. This is the part that is just a little odd, will get people made fun of etc. Maybe a little annoying at times but whatever. 'you have yours over there and we have ours over here' is the name of the game.

The frustrating thing is when people with this history act like they have any sort authority on these things. And especially the frequent (Especially American) 'Bull in a China shop' moments you get where people then base their entire personality around stereotypes and come here and act like they belong. And just. There is sometimes this deep unawareness with especially Americans that they are foreigners here. Of course with Americans the cultural imperialism plays into the frustration here but I see it even with my cousin who grew up in Aotearoa and who also just. I mean both of her parents are German, a lot of their friends are and they've visited almost every year she's been alive and yet, when she says she wants to study here all I can think is 'Girl you will have the biggest culture shock of your life' and her parents literally barely have Kiwi citizenship.

And it might also be from the European side an attempt to remove oneself from colonialism, though I don't think that's the case. There is a huge cultural divide, especially between continental Europe and the Anglosphere. But mostly I mean culture is a living breathing thing that people have to actively participate in to be a part of it. And wherever in Europe your roots may lie, by nature of living on the other side of the world you cannot participate in those traditions and you will be part of a different culture. Like my culture to me is Easter Fires just as much as getting a Döner after a long night out and getting fresh bread rolls from a bakery on a Sunday morning and not being able to go shopping on a Sunday and terrible terrible Apres-Ski music (that I must admit I indulge in sometimes) and the stellar parody dubs of 2010 German Youtube and hearing church bells, and the architecture and the language omg the language, the beautiful poems, having to suffer through Faust in school, the supermarkets, the way towns work here, the way winter smells, the way my grandfather talks and the way my great-grand aunt talks, the forests, the mountains, the fields, not going to the Oktoberfest, not because I don't have the means to but because growing up I was taught to despise it and all things Munich with it, good Brezen, amazing lentil stew (from the can of course), the list goes on and on and on. And some of these are really specific to me and some are more general. And like if you want to connect with your roots, I'm genuinely happy for you, have fun! But for our hypothetical German American, whatever sits at the heart of German and European culture (bread and a certain grumpiness seem to be a big component of both) it will probably never be truly hers. Even if she were to move here. And that's fine. I mean. Idk which post you saw bc there actually were two where I left comments like that in the tags, but one of them listed a lot of examples of what culture can be and of why the 'haha white people have no culture' thing is inaccurate. Maybe it's just that it's hard to see sometimes when your culture is so squarely the majority you never ever have to think about it. Idk. I look around me and even between the regions I've lived in there are such stark cultural differences. Culture can be the songs you sing for children to fall asleep, what the most prominent mode of transport is, where you go to eat, what you eat, what you cook, whether you cook at all, whether you go to church, whether there are crosses hanging everywhere despite rarely anyone ever going to church, what you wear, especially outside of traditional clothing. Maybe at the core of this discomfort I expressed in those tags is also the big question of 'why are you looking here for guidance? You are so different.'

#this is chaotic but I hope it was at least a little helpful? #it's also very long #feel free to add to it or whatever #I will go get groceries now #ask #anon

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

OC interview

Thanks @pluppsauthor here, @mk-writes-stuff here, and @illarian-rambling here!

Rules: answer these questions for one of your OCs

Idk I'm leaning toward Carmen for some reason

Are you named after anyone?

“This is a rather personal question. If you must know, my mother's sister."

When was the last time you cried?

“Pfft. I don't cry. Don't be ridiculous.” [last night; her own demons]

Do you have kids?

“... No, and I never want any.”

Do you use sarcasm a lot?

“As if you need an answer.”

What’s the first thing you notice about people?

“Nothing. I don't care.”

What’s your eye colour?

“Amber. You should be able to see that.”

Scary movies or happy endings?

“I prefer not to watch any TV.” [happy endings]

Any special talents?

“No. [Awkward silence] I suppose I am good at my job and I like organizing.”

Where were you born?

“Another personal question?? What is this, an interrogation?? I am not giving up where I live or where I was born.”

Do you have any pets?

“No. Stop asking me stuff like this!”

What sort of sports do you play?

“I have a degree in theoretical powers. You think that I play sports.”

How tall are you?

“Your ridiculous measurements are the most idiotic choices a people could make. 165 centimeters or 65 inches. Why do you have two different systems? This is terrible. Outrageous. It is way too confusing.”

What was your favourite subject in school?

“Enough of the personal questions! I already have given away a lot more of myself than I wish to on a daily basis. I refuse to answer the question.” [it's science, then math]

What is your dream job?

[She isn't gonna answer this. She's just going to pound on the table and leave.]

Other interviews: Wade, Jazlyn, Gwen, Lexi, Carla

Other Carmen: OC questionnaire, two truths and a lie, Picrew, smash or pass, , OC in fifteen, art

Tagging @mjjune @theeccentricraven @melpomene-grey @i-can-even-burn-salad @elsie-writes

@little-peril-stories @loopyhoopywrites @she-who-fights-and-writes @aalinaaaaaa @rickie-the-storyteller

+ anyone else who wants to do this!

TSP intro

TSP tag list (ask to be +/-): @thepeculiarbird @illarian-rambling @televisionjester @finchwrites

@nebula--nix @literarynecromancy

Questions below the cut!

Are you named after anyone? When was the last time you cried? Do you have kids? Do you use sarcasm a lot? What’s the first thing you notice about people? What’s your eye colour? Scary movies or happy endings? Any special talents? Where were you born? Do you have any pets? What sort of sports do you play? How tall are you? What was your favourite subject in school? What is your dream job?

#the secret portal #teaspoon #tsp #oc tag game #my oc #writing tag game #oc interview #carmen asghar #open tag #writers of tumblr #writers on tumblr #writing community #writing on tumblr #writeblr #writeblr community

[bookishfeylin]

Hello! I'm curious about your opinion when it comes to Feyre's personality when being human vs. High Fae. I feel that when she was a human she was more genuine and down to earth, but when she became High Fae she became more pretentious and put herself on a pedestal? Idk if it's because due to Rhysand's manipulation because she once said that she still remained human by heart but I don't really see it anymore.

Hi anon! Welcome!

I LOVE book 1 Feyre, but then this happens subsequently, and... this happens to be one of my biggest issues with Feyre post-ACOTAR. In my tags and posts about her personality shift, I've referred to it as "white woman syndrome," in that Feyre's behavior truly exemplifies how white women act with regards to oppression obviously not all white women but enough of them and the mindset of white feminists in particular. In short, Feyre feels, as do white women, that only her oppression and struggle in the matter, and only the people who are currently thwarting her are bad, and nobody else's problems or oppression are worth addressing or correcting. Feyre doesn't want real systemic change for a better world where humans and lesser fae and female High fae are truly treated as equals, she just wants better treatment for herself. Mrs. Feyre Archeron doesn't fight for a redistribution of power so that Lesser fae aren't, uh, lesser, or change in the magic system so that females can be chosen as High Lady. The different types of oppression in fae society are never challenged. Feyre is just given the authority fae males have (not really OBVIOUSLY as Rhysand still makes all the ultimate decisions in the Night Court even about Feyre's own body but this is what Sarah tried to write so we'll go along with this understanding for a minute).

That's it. Like you said, Feyre put herself on a pedestal, believing she deserves the authority the High Lords have rather than attempting to change society as a whole. It's because Sarah is a white feminist and cannot help writing Feyre through that lens, that oppression is bad only in that it hinders the white protagonist from being all powerful. The oppression in Prythian sucks not because oppression is BAD but because Feyre thinks that she, and she alone, deserves authority and power and her oppression stops her from getting it. Oppression is not bad because it's oppression, it's bad because it keeps Feyre from being High Lady. It's white feminism 101--only the oppression that affects white women (misogyny) is bad, because it keeps them from having the power white men have, therefore no other issues like racism or homophobia are worth fixing. In the eyes of white feminists, misogyny is bad because it keeps white women from being in the position of white men--the top oppressor. And just like white women irl, Feyre wants to move into the position of oppressor, not truly correct the issues with society as a whole.

And this explains her change in behavior in the books. Feyre gradually grows more selfish as the books go on, because Feyre is the embodiment of white feminism and ultimately wants to move into the role of oppressor, not truly correct systemic oppression. So we're told Feyre is kind, and she really is in book 1 and in the beginning of book 2, but after gaining power she relishes being cruel, enjoys using and abusing her power. She goes to brutalize people in the Court of Nightmares alongside Rhysand, mindrapes Tamin's innocent sentries, uses her daemati abilities to make Ianthe bash her hand, tricks people into worshipping her all while patting herself on the back for how amazing she is at doing so.

Again, this shift happens because Feyre, over the course of ACOMAF, gradually decides that oppression is not bad in and of itself, but that its bad because oppression keeps HER from having power. So why the shift? She didn't change immediately when she was changed into a High Fae, so that's not it. She develops white woman syndrome because of Rhysand. Because he grooms her to be like that, grooms her into desiring the role of oppressor instead of wanting to get rid of oppressive constructs in the first place. Feyre admits as much throughout ACOMAF--over and over again we hear how her "perfect mate" helped "put her back together" and "healed her" and "saved her from the darkness." So yes, it's because of Rhysand's manipulation that Feyre becomes very self-centered towards the end of this series. He grooms her into becoming this way, and while we can discuss the racism and white feminism all day (and we SHOULD) it's also so, so, painfully TRAGIC that he succeeded in grooming her so well.

#feyre and acomaf's white feminism #i accidentally deleted the original post #i guess #so i'm reposting it now #feyre critical #feyre critical sadly #anti acomaf #acotar analysis #anti sjm #ask #anon

[snakewrites-and-ink]

About this blog

This is a sideblog of @snakebites-and-ink!

I made this blog as a way of being organized and having all my writing in one place. Unlike my main blog, where I post and reblog an assortment of things, this one will be focused on my own whump content and fiction; it will contain my writing, prompts, concept posts, and other similar things.

These will be originally posted on my main blog, then reblogged here; pretty much the only things originally posted on this blog will be posts that pertain specifically to this blog. The current plan is that I will generally reblog things here right after I post them on my main. The exceptions are when I have something queued/scheduled on my main while I'm away of course, in which case I will reblog them here once I come back to tumblr, and when I want to come back to something later with fresh eyes to see if I want to edit it, in which case I'll reblog it here once I've done that.

The theory behind this blog is to allow people to follow for my content without running into the various other things I reblog. As such, there won't be much else here, and it won't really be affected by my other unrelated interests. The tagging system is also a bit neater, since nearly everything is reblogged rather than originally posted here, so I don't need to worry about what tags the posts should and should not show up in outside of this blog.

Likes and follows will of course come from my main, as will many other interactions such as games or addition onto reblog chains, so that I can keep this blog clean and focused.

#I may edit this post for a bit more information/clarity in a little while #housekeeping & info #Oh the overall cws for this blog are also a little tamer because it's just my own creations; none of other people's mature content

[anghraine]

Hey, if you follow for fic and also use or are thinking about using Dreamwidth—

I'm gradually backing up my fic and fixing typos on a Dreamwidth community (moirharad.dreamwidth.org—you can subscribe but not join, and in any case, there's only one fic up currently, but it's where you'll be able to find them). I made it to function entirely as a fic archive. I've meant to back up my fic for awhile, but it seemed a good time to have it posted somewhere other than AO3, and specifically more reliable/less corporate than Tumblr. I also wanted to be able to f-lock specific fics should I so desire, which DW can do.

Also, it's nice to have some pre-established structure, but with the freedom to choose my own format and tagging system, with the bonus that they won't go into some common site tag. And communities allow for multiple people to post fic to it, should I ever want to do that. And I can use all the icons and perks of my personal account. So if you use/at least know Dreamwidth, I'd recommend doing something similar unless you'd rather build your own site or something like that.

Creating a community is very simple, btw; go to the main dreamwidth.org page and drag your mouse over "Create." The last option is "Create Community."

Some more details:

Once you have a community, you can run your mouse over "Organize" and select "Settings" under your community. Click on the "Privacy" tab. This lets you choose things like if you want to enable comments, only logged-in comments, if you want them to go into a moderation queue, log the IP address, ban specific users from commenting, be indexed by search engines, etc. I chose to put anonymous comments into a queue while allowing all logged-in Dreamwidth accounts to comment should they wish, and to not log IP addresses.

When it comes to choosing the aesthetic of the archive, some styles are pretty dire, but here are some that I like:

Dark Blue by ninetydegrees—the one on my personal blog and the fic community; I've used it forever and find it very soothing.

Simplicity by timeismymeasure—nice and clean.

Too Much Wine by ninetydegrees—mostly for the convenient sidebar.

Atlantic by ninetydegrees—similar design, but more "writerly" in some ways, if you want that vibe.

Prose by timeismymeasure for Five AM—pleasant and elegant. I almost used it, but wanted more contrast.

Právda by rising for Five AM—similar design IIRC, but more vivid. I considered it for Pride month (the coloring looks kind of rainbow-y), but the orange was just a bit much. Fun if you go for that, though.

Pigeon Blue by dancing_serpent for Blanket—I prefer dark text on a light background, but I liked the look of this for the reverse.

Marble IV by dancing_serpent—same issue with the light text/dark background, but I like the design.

Neutral Good by timeasmymeasure for Practicality—another no-frills but pleasant one.

If you have an account and want to post to a community you've made, it's also pretty straightforward. Just go to "Post" from either the Dreamwidth main page or your logged-in header from most anywhere on Dreamwidth. It's the second link under your username.

From the "Post" page, you should see a drop-down list that contains your main blog and all communities you're a member of. You just click on the fic archive community you made and that means your post will go to the community instead of your main blog.

My standard format for fic posts, incidentally, lists the title, the verse (if it's in a series or shared continuity), the story's length, major warnings, the characters, the relationships, a chapter or fic summary, links to previous chapters/sections if any, and a link to any podfic. e.g.:

This is overly detailed for some, and that's fine! But I like to be upfront.

Anyway, if you're thinking of using Dreamwidth to back up fic, I hope that helps!

#anghraine babbles #dreamwidth #fandom #fanfiction #fic archiving #long post #anghraine's pics

[cinnamonsly]

Hi! It's the anon who asked about your DNI and I would like to ask some questions just so I'm clear on what's okay and what isn't. I'm part of a system and we have introjects of the jashlings who are dating each other, would it be alright to use your art as profile pictures for them or would you rather we didn't? We will avoid using your art in a romantic context, but I think it's better to double check what you're okay with instead of accidentally breaking a boundary and finding out later. Also, we're artists as well, so we wanted to ask if it would be alright to make our own designs for the AU we're working on that are inspired by elements of your designs? We would try our best not to directly copy anything but again, we want to check first.

Lastly, I think we would technically be considered pro-fiction? In the sense of "I personally find this content gross but censorship would just make the state of the internet even worse so I'll just block tags I don't want to see." We don't engage with content we don't like but a lot of shipcourse arguments devolve really quickly, so we tend to stay out of it unless someone is being harassed or threatened. If us being pro-fiction makes you uncomfortable, we won't interact any further.

oh yeah ofc!!!! here we go:

1. that is fine!! i’m personally not against system members/introjects of the jashlings dating one another as i feel like that’s a completely separate thing from shipping the canon characters (which is rly the only thing i don’t like). you’re definitely more than welcome to use my art as pfps, i don’t mind at all!!

2. yes, that’s completely fine!! i definitely don’t mind people taking inspo from my designs of the characters (especially since my designs are semi-canon) so go for it!!!

3. i don’t find any issue with that!! the only people i have issues with are the ones that actually ship pedophilia/incest/etc etc, so as long as you’re not one of those people you’re all good🫡 i definitely get not wanting to interact in discourse, im usually the type of person to just block and move on as well haha

hopefully those all made sense!!! feel free to reach out if you have other questions in the future :3

[olderthannetfic]

Goyim goysplaining shit to me is why I don't write Jewish characters anymore. "Well actually that name is this AGAB so the character isn't NB they're *insert AGAB here*" "well actually according to Google you shouldn't have used the word candle you should have said this" "well actually goy is a slur and it's not bad of commenters to use 'Hebrews' to refer to all Jewish people even though I *will* get mad if you call Catholics 'Latins' in response" "well actually it's a kippah not a yarmulke you can't use the word yarmulke it's a kippah" "well actually Jewish people are white so why is this Beta Israeli character not white Jewish = white" "uh excuse me but your Jewish characters didn't exchange Hebrew names that's really unrealistic" "uh excuse me why is your character breaking kosher to stay alive? everything I see on TV says Jews would rather die than break kosher and live - no I don't know or care that pikuach nefesh is a thing I just wanted to correct you on the proper way to write a Jewish character" etc. Whether it's goyim commenting on Undertale fanfics to say all Jewish people would be Red souls (because we don't have individual souls, personalities and colors like the non-Jewish characters, that'd be silly) because we survived the Holocaust or goyim saying Jewish Bruce Wayne makes sense because Jews have all the money, or being confused on how you can headcanon anyone as Jewish who isn't white because Jewish people are white (which is a surprise to my Iranian Jewish self but go off I guess) there is always someone there to tell you that you're not human like other people. These people would never go "oh Latinos all have Red souls and the same personality, definitely" or "Muslim Bruce Wayne makes sense, those people all have oil money" but they'll say antisemitic shit right to your face and then have the gall to be annoyed when you don't like it.

This is why I pulled all my fic without leaving copies up for archives. "B-but I love your fic it's the only multichaptered one for this rarepair!" Well you didn't respect me enough not to say Jews have all the money, so fuck you. "Nooo I loved that fic it had such a good magic system!" Yeah well I didn't love being told my "race" shares a single personality type/soul color so tough shit.

And then afterwards of course they write "Jewish Batfam" fic where there's 1 line in the entire thing where one character mentions Hanukkah once and they pat themselves on the back for being such good, diverse, inclusive writers. They're so woke and accepting and galaxy brained, devoid of prejudice, aren't you going to pat them on the back for clogging up Jewish related tags with fic where skipping one line could erase all presence of Judaism from it? No? Well then why don't you go write your own fic then?!

It's a rhetorical question, but here's the non-rhetorical answer: I don't go write my own fic because I'm tired of having to hear Jewish people talked about the way y'all talk about Tolkien's elves or Undertale's monsters and having to advocate for the idea of treating Jewish people like people is exhausting work.

Literally the only fandom I've ever been in that didn't go "oh well that's just fandom! if you don't like it don't write fics lol" was Star Trek. And even then, you venture outside of AO3 at your own risk.

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