#my problem is actually that enemies to lovers is a romance trope | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

thelastofhyde · 5 months

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i. sea-day 1.

pairing. tourguide!joel miller x fem!reader. series synopsis. on the brink of undergoing a life-altering change, you runaway from your problems in the only way any sane person can: embarking on a mediterranean cruise. there you meet joel miller, a grumpy, private tour-guide, who just so happens to be tasked with touring you through each stop on your cruise. from greek goddesses to roman ruins, you have ten days to avoid your fate. maybe a frowning, southern, sex-on-legs of a man is just what the doctor ordered. chapter summary. as the ship sets sail, you search for help. at the bar, you encounter a familiar stranger. series warnings. no use of y/n, set in 2015, no apocalypse au, cruise!au, rom-com, enemies-ish to lovers, sunshine!reader, tour-guide!joel, unspecified age gap, depictions/discussions of grief, angst, fluff, a whole load of smut, a lot of cheesy stereotypical romance tropes bc i just wanna see joel not suffer ( too much )<3 chapter warnings. alcohol, mentions of class/wealth themes, implications that the reader has underlining mental health issues, convenient plot-devices that would only ever happen in a rom-com bc this is fun silly fiction baby!, joel suffers from acute insuferable-bastarditis :( word count. 3.7k hyde’s input. let's all hold hands and agree to ignore the fact both parts so far have opened on the reader panicking in a bathroom, okay? maybe she's a stressed girlie with a flare of ibs, you don't know her life. feeling a little insecure abt this chapter and lowkey don't wanna post it, but i promise the actual fun begins in chapter two, where we finally get to see tourguide!joel in action. previous chapter - next chapter - series masterlist

“What time did you say you boarded?”

Your mother’s voice travels from where your phone lays, abandoned upon the bed, all the way into the decadent bathroom.

Eyes moving a mile-a-minute, as if you're rushing to take in every jaw-dropping detail.

There’s the sink area, a double-vanity that’s centred with an array of lotions and soaps, and overlooked by an overwhelmingly large mirror that makes up half the wall, lined with a golden hue of light. A shower, with glass curtains and enough room to fit your whole wardrobe in it. Then, there’s the bathtub you’re already envisioning yourself sinking into. Marble lines the floor, and the outer wall is made up of three window panes, gifting you a view of pure blue, the sea and the sky melting into one another across the horizon. It’s making you nauseous, this looming feeling of imposter syndrome the interior brings you.

You don’t belong in this, a fancy room designed for fancy people.

An iteration of your name, back on the bed, drags you away from your own troubled reflection.

“Seven,” you call out, inching your way back into the main area of the suite.

“In the morning?!” She’s just as shocked as the first time you answered her question, fifteen minutes ago, and the second time, seven minutes ago.

Humming in approval, you give a sweeping gaze over the plush carpeted floor, the wall-mounted television displaying the cruiseship’s logo, the king sized bed that’s calling out for you, seducing you with the promise of a mattress that won’t be stabbing at your back the whole night. As if on queue, there’s a sharp pain in your lower back, a lasting reminder of the hostel you’d found little rest in last night.

“Well, there goes my jealousy!” Lacklustre replies aside, your mother continues her ramblings, used to filling the void of conversation with the sound of her own voice. “Can you imagine? Me, awake at that time? You’ll be glad you’re travelling on your own, honey.” Usually, you admire the positive spin your mother tries to bring to life. Your being alone upon this trip, however, is not a topic you want her to address, much less find the good in. “I mean, I don’t think even your sister-”

“I think they’ve made a mistake,” you cut her off, eyes zeroing in on a pair of glass doors. Snatching the phone off the bed, you turn off the speaker and press it to your ear just in time to hear your mother’s confusion, questioning what you mean. Focus on those doors, you slowly make your way over to them. “The room,” you clarify, fingers curling around a handle to unlock it, prying the doors apart. A wave of salty fresh air, hits your face as you step out onto wooden decking. You find yourself upon a balcony, facing off into the deep blue distance. To your left, there’s two sun loungers and a glass coffee table, mounted by two champagne flutes and a simple welcome note sprawled out in black ink. “I think they’ve given me the wrong room.”

It’s the next best thing to a reasonable explanation you can find, no chance on earth you were ever listed to stay in such a suite. No, a room like this is meant for a wealthy businessman and his uptight wife to overindulge themselves on gold-trimmed furniture and a fur-lined bed for a week, in which they do everything but address the lipstick stains that keep lining his collars or the chauffeur who keeps himself parked between her legs.

You can already picture such a pair now, storming over to some poor, unsuspecting deckhand, red on both their faces as they begin to berate him over the fact they're in a cabin the size of a cupboard, with a communal restroom and a bunk barely fit for one person.

“Why? Is something wrong with it?”

“No,” it’s an answer you reluctantly give, more than aware of how ridiculous it sounds. “It’s… nice. Perfect. Too perfect, like I should feel lucky to stand in it, nevermind live in it for the next few days.”

It’s with caution that you glance over each shoulder, taking note of the seemingly never ending row of balconies that line the ship, a sizable gap between each one. Guts twisting a little at the thought, you peer ever so slightly over the right edge and are greeted with views of more balconies. Beyond that, there’s only blue. Waves crash into the ship’s side and bounce off in white foam. You renew the distance between you and the ledge, unable to stop yourself from glancing both ways, confirming there’s no neighbouring balcony that finds itself occupied.

Then bend down, clasping a hold of one of the champagne flutes.

You take your first sip like it’s a crime, wearily, eyes darting back and forth, waiting to be caught in the act and dragged out of this room, down to whatever poverty loft you really belonged in.

Or, maybe they’d just toss you overboard, rid themselves of any possible hassle. People go missing all the time at sea, right? People go missing all the time on cruises. You’d just be another blip in the system, an error that can be overwritten with a simple-

“I can hear you thinking through the phone, sweetie.”

You take another sip, and let a weight fall off your chest, dragging in a breath large enough to make up for the moment or two you’d stopped breathing. “I’m just… tired. Don’t worry, I’m perfectly fine. No big freak out on it’s way, again.”

“Honey, you know how me and your father feel about you calling it a freak-” she must be able to hear your eye roll through the phone, cutting herself off before she can keep going. “Just, try and enjoy this trip, okay? Maybe you’re in that room because where you’re supposed to be. Maybe you’ve been awarded some free upgrade, like that time your dad got bumped up to business class!”

Bless her for trying, though she may fail. It’s enough to bring a smile to your face.

You swallow back what remains of the bubbled liquid.

Through the phone, you hear a door burst open and the entrance of a loud, excited little voice. Something akin to granny rings down the line, and it’s enough to have you frozen where you stand, bones rigid and unable to move. Something seems to smack into the microphone, a rustling of fabric as you envision your mother making room for little limbs on her lap.

“Hey, my little munchkin! How was soccer?” You can’t make out what the voice tells your mother, heart too busy beating louder than any drum, inching its way further up your wind pipe and threatening to choke you on it. “Guess who I’ve got on the phone?” The tiny voice squeals out your name, bile joins your heart inside your throat. Maybe this is how you find out you get seasick. “Do you wanna say hi-”

“Mum, I, uh… I’ve gotta go,” you’re eyeing the remaining glass on the table, the rising bubbles enticing you to hurry up, drink it before it goes flat. “I should go find the help desk, get this room thing sorted out.”

“Just a second, let E-”

“I’ll call you later,” you hang up.

You’re left with just the raging waters below, a caw from seagulls up above. Eyes slipping shut, you pull in a deep breath and push out a silent plea for that sting in your eyes to be from the salt in the air, not a set of unfallen tears. A few more breaths and it feels safe enough to open your eyes again, glancing down as your phone vibrates in your hand.

Two texts, each from your mother.

09:38 - She says hi, and that you better bring her back a cool souvenir. 09:39 - Doctor Anderson says she’s showing improvement and they’re finally starting to get somewhere. Just thought you’d want to know x

Giving in to temptation, you snatch up the champagne glass, bring it up to your lips and- pause, interrupted as you make eye contact with a man one balcony over. He’s older, a well-rounded gut fit into a light blue shirt and tailored trousers. With a rolex on one wrist and set of bright white teeth smiling right at you, there’s no mistaking he belongs in one of these suites.

You wonder what he thinks of you and your frayed sweater, no jewellery on your wrists.

He nods, politely, and raises his own glass towards you. A silent cheer, a recognition that you’re both here, living life in luxury. You meet it, raise your own glass, and try to smile as brightly as him.

Then knock back your second drink and saunter back inside.

“Miss, there’s been no mistake.”

In spite of it being an excuse to hang up, you stay true to your word.

Come early noon, you’re standing within the help centre. Against all odds, accidental nap and wild goose chase upon the ship deck be damned, you’ve found what you were looking for.

Or, well, an older woman with sweet smile on her face and a squinted nametag pinned to her chest found it, pointed you in the direction of the ship’s atrium. What you’re looking for is the Purser’s Office, dear.

“See? The booking under your name lists you as part of our excelsior guests.” The desk clerk turns her screen towards you, acrylic nail pointing at your booking information. Sure enough, in bold letters, your full name accompanied by a golden badge at the end. Excelsior Status, checkmarked and approved by the cruise. “This grants you access to one of our excelsior suites and all private excelsior lounges.”

In all honesty, you’re tuning her out a little.

You don’t mean to, sincerely, but you’re just so caught up in reading both your name and excelsior suite, over and over and over again, that you forget to really listen, mind running just a few seconds behind the speed of her mouth.

When you finally process what she’s saying, all you can manage is dumbstruck look on your face and a muttered, “oh.”

Paper rustles as your hands wring, the pristine pamphlet you’d been flicking through to fill the time as she’d searched up your details now rumpled, thin white cracks of paper peaking out beneath printed ink.

“I also see that you’ve added the excelsior tour package onto your booking, though I’m willing to change that for you, if you’d prefer signing onto one of our team tours instead.” Confused by her offer, you glance down and read over the pamphlet’s title- All-Aboard Tour Trips, Fun for all the Family! “Would you like to hear what your current tour package grants you?”

“If,” as if you’ve not embarrassed yourself enough with your cluelessness towards your own booking, your voice cracks under the pressure of being used, more squeak than actual intelligible words. You swallow back the lump of shame in your throat and push through. “If you don’t mind, please. This, uh- The ticket, it was a gift, so I’m just a little out of the loop of what’s been booked for me.”

“Not at all! So, the excelsior tour package gives you access to your own private tour-guide, for all seven stops we’ll be making on this cruise!” Already, you feel a little queasy at the thought. A private tour, no one but you and some stranger. It’s not exactly your dream scenario. “Your guide’s purpose won’t just be to walk you through all the memorable sites, but to curate your visits to your liking, helping you explore foreign land with a familiar taste. Where the tours in team are restricted to allocated timeslots and a set route of sites to visit, having a private tour-guide grants you the privilege of exploring where you want, for however long you want. The private tour also provides more time for you at each stop, as your timeslot to board will be the latest available, making your whole trip less of rush and more of a thrill.”

The clerk, without a doubt in your mind, is quoting a script she’s already said hundreds of time- word for word, beat for beat. Yet her voice is animated, her smile is kind, and you admire her a little for getting through it without a single laugh at the corniness of it all.

You, however, fail the challenge, glancing off to your side and biting back a giggle that you hope she takes no note of. The last thing you want is for her to mistake the laughter as directed towards her.

Weighing your options, you nervously ask, “but, you could change me over to a team tour?”

She says of course, with a smile that doesn’t waver, and the tension in your shoulders lessens, the ice cold feeling of inconveniencing her melting away at her warmth.

Her nails clack as she types away on her keyboard. A double click and then, a hiss. She’s no longer smiling, a grimace taking it place. “I’m sorry, but all of our tours are fully booked.”

“Oh. That’s- It’s okay.”

“But, I could add you to the waiting list! If there’s any cancelations for any of the stops, you’ll be the first to know. This won’t affect your excelsior tour package, so either way you’ll have some kind of guide.”

With nothing to lose, you figure why not and let her throw your name in the metaphorical hat.

Mid-typing away, eyes glued to her screen, you watch as her brows shoot up. “Oh, while I’ve got you here, there’s one more thing. With our excelsior guides, it’s customary that they meet with you on the first night, to touch base on simple things, like your interests or any goals for this trip, and to plan out tomorrow’s official first stop, which is in Santorini. Your guide has left you this, detailing where you’ve to meet him.”

With renewed hesitation, you grab at the folded note she slips over the desk. It’s small, with half an inked fingerprint burnt into the top left corner.

As you thank her for her help and bid her goodbye, she interrupts you before you can turn to leave.

“I know private tours can seem daunting but, you’re in good hands. Joel will take care of you, he’s our top-rated guide.”

The note remains folded as long as you can control your curiosity, which appears to be only until you’re back on the deck, sun shinning directly in your eyes and forcing you to squint as you read over faded blank ink.

10 pm, the Tipsy Byson bar.

Below that, in a bolder blue ink, wear something green for me to find you, JM.

You’re awfully overdressed, and painfully aware of it.

The Tipsy Byson is nestled between the arcade and the casino, a balance of childlike shrieks harmonizing over outraged yelling of men cheated out of their hands. Brown wood lines just about every inch of the place, from the walls, to the tables, to the bar. There’s an outrageously large Stars and Stripes flag hanging on the wall, and memorabilia of all things Texas Roadhouse. The place is themed, down to the cowboy hat that sits atop the bartender’s head, and clearly everyone is aware of this, decked out in scruffed up boots and worn out denim vests.

Everyone but you, dark green silk clinging to you in the shape of a laced-back midi dress, dainty black heels tucked into the footrest of the barstool you occupy.

It’s the only green thing you brought and- wear something green for me to find you- you’d had no choice.

It was a quarter to ten when you got there, earlier than you were requested, but a gentle buzz of something shooting through your nervous system left you impatient, unable to wander the ship’s halls any longer.

It was fine, you figured, gave you a chance to get a drink, cool your nerves a little. Sticking with the theme of green, you’d yelled over the line music for a midori sour, please, and even cracked a little smile at the cute bartender.

By twenty past ten, you’re still alone, no tour-guide in sight, and your glass is empty, a sole ice-cube all that remains. You order another glass, given him another smile, and return your eyes to the entryway as you sip back the taste of the dewy melon goodness.

The doors opened, your hopes rise and- a couple walks through the door, adorably dressed in matching jackets.

Another sip.

The doors open again, this time you watch as a few women walk in, party hats and bachelorette signs dripping off them.

Half your drink, gone again.

Two, three, four more times the door opens and you watch as strangers filter in and out, pretending you don’t notice the way some of their eyes linger on you, sticking out like a sore thumb.

It’s as you throw back the last sip of your cocktail, eyes catching the time- 22:36-, that you watch a grin overtake the bartender’s face.

The door shuts with a slam, buried beneath the layers of stomping feet across the dance floor and the twang of a country song, yet you hear it all the same, twisting in the stool.

A man stands by the entry, salt-and-peppered hair a little tousled and a scowl etched into his forehead. He moves like water, slipping through the cracks in the crowded bar with minimal effort. All the while, eyes seem to follow him, the occasional head turning in his direction. He spares no glances, to anyone.

Instead, he’s staring right at you.

And heading your way, frown and all.

There’s something in his face that feels familiar, and you swear that this is not the first time you’d stared into those eyes. Broad, scruffy facial hair, his irritation as some drunk girl slams into him so palpable, you almost taste it on your tongue.

You mumble something to the bartender, a request for another drink, a parched feeling stirring in your loins.

He’s inching closer, and closer, and closer- and, only as he’s a mere three bar stools away from you, do you realise who he is.

You’re in the way.

Signore Miller.

The rude man from the airport!

God, you can’t wait to see what this is about. He must recognise you, must feel the shame licking at his wounded ego, driving him to come over, apologise, beg for forgiveness to a stranger he unnecessarily berated.

“Look what the cat dragged in!” It’s not Signore Miller that speaks, nor is it you. It’s the bartender, arms crossing over his chest, smirk widening on his face. “Thought you said last season was your last!”

“You know me,” his eyes are still glued to you, an intense stare, even as he replies. There’s so little space between you now, you manage to notice the wrinkles in his flannel shirt. You choose to ignore the fact it’s green. “Ain’t no good at stayin’ away from the things I hate.”

“Wasn’t what you were saying at the staff party last year, Mr. Blubber-face. Took two whiskeys to get you crying ‘bout how you were gonna miss the cruising life.”

Another midori sour lands your way, yet you don’t even manage a single sip of it before he’s opening his mouth.

“Well look at you, all dressed up with nowhere to go,” his eyes still pierce into your own and, this time, it is you he’s talking to.

You’d have half the mind to throw your drink on him, if it weren’t for the fact you’re too busy taking a stabilizing gulp out of it, a sweetness to counter-attack his sour persona.

“Excuse me?!” You final sputter out, face burning too hot and pride too scorned to begin to feel even more out of place.

He seems unfazed by your outrage, turning away from you to acknowledge his friend behind the bar at last. “Do me a favour, Luke, don’t give her too much to drink.” Condescending tone perfectly intact, Signore Miller doubles down on your initial impression of him: an absolute asshole. “Last thing I need is to spend all day draggin’ around some prissy hungover diva.”

The man- Luke- scoffs back a laugh, shaking his head in bewilderment. “Quit teasin’ the poor girl, ‘fore she runs for the hills and ruins your five-star rating.”

An uncomfortable feeling creeps down your spine. It’s cold and alarming, and has your straightening your back, sitting a little tenser in your seat, realization rising in you like the dawn.

It can’t be.

He can’t be-

He’s stepping all in your space, face leaning down till his mouth is at the level of your ear. He doesn’t touch you, doesn’t even come close to it, yet there’s goosebumps littering your arms and hairs standing at the back of your neck.

Like touching a live wire, his proximity feels electric.

“Best be on that deck by 7 am, darlin’, or I’ll be dockin’ without ya.”

“Wait, you’re-”

“Joel, tourguide. At your service.” He’s pulled back, just to thrust his hand in your face. By the time you reach to shake it, he’s retracting it, that grating quirk in his lips moving higher up his cheek. “Oh, and do yourself a favour. Wear somethin’ a little more… practical. Santorini ain’t the place for dainty heels like those.”

You knock back the rest of your drink moments after he leaves, only to find Luke’s already placed a fourth glass at your side.

“Our little secret,” he faux-whispers, pressing a finger to his pursed lips. “Besides, you look like you could use it.”

Signore Miller.

Joel, tourguide.

Joel Miller.

He’s already making your trip unbearable, and it’s hardly begun.

+ extra hyde. sorry if that was a little boring it was a necessary part to get the ball moving, i promise chapter two gets right into it. again, updates to this fic happen every other friday! i'm bad at describing spaces, so if anyone is curious to know what reader's suite looks like, here are some reference pics:

taglist. @auteurdelabre

#joel miller series #joel miller smut #joel miller x reader #joel miller fic #pedro pascal smut #joel miller fanfic

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the-badger-mole · 10 months

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But FWIENDSHIP!!!! 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

Okay, so you all know how I get when something gets stuck in my head, but yesterday I saw a post talking about how Katara and Zuko's potential romance messes with their friendship, and I don't understand how, but that's beside the point. This is an anti-Kataang post.

I will once again admit that I don't spend a ton of time in Kataang/anti-Zutara spaces (cause I'm respectful like that), but every so often, I see one of those takes pop up in my safe area (because respect isn't always a two way street, unfortunately). It's interesting to see how many times this take seems to crop up. Katara and Zuko falling in love would ruin their friendship, yet those same people fail to acknowledge that Bryke went ahead and ruined their friendship anyway out of jealousy. These same people also tend to hold Kataang as a prime example of Friends to Lovers, the only problem is, Aang isn't Katara's friend at any point.

Throughout the series, it's made very clear that Aang likes Katara, but for most of the series (until literally the last few seconds, in fact) it's also clear that Katara only sees him as a friend. This should have been an object lesson that sometimes crushes don't work out, but friendship can be stronger than temporarily disappointed feelings. However, that's not what we get. Aang doesn't care about Katara's friendship. He doesn't want Katara in his life unless it's in a romantic capacity. We see it in how he reacts when he feels romantically rejected (lava fissure, EIP). The narrative doesn't give Katara any space to say no to Aang without it permanently damaging their relationship, because they never had the relationship Katara thought they did. Katara thought she was Aang's friend, but for Aang, their 'friendship' was just a precursor to romance. In this, the year 2023, I know we all understand why this is a problem.

Aang can't even conceive of a world where Katara does turn him down. He dreams about her enthusiastic response to his declaration of love; he assumes that since they kissed he kissed her and staked his claim, they should be together, despite there never being any sort of conversation, and the fact that the one time he did try to talk about it, she changed the subject very quickly. Katara's feelings are an afterthought for Aang, which is terrible for any relationship, but particularly in a romantic one. There is never a moment where Aang puts Katara's emotional needs ahead of his own. He never puts a value on her platonic friendship. There's never a moment where he decides that despite his feelings for her, having Katara in his life as a friend is better than not having her at all. That moment should have happened regardless of whether they ended up together or not, because friendship is the most important component of the Friends to Lovers trope.

By comparison, the friendship Katara eventually forms with Zuko is much deeper, and based on a mutual respect, understanding and emotional support for each other. This is a fantastic foundation for a romance, although bafflingly, people who laud Katara and Zuko's deep friendship don't seem to agree. Them potentially falling in love doesn't cheapen their friendship because they actually were friends first. On top of that, their Enemies to Friends journey ending romantically would not only not cheapen their friendship, it would tie into the themes of the show beautifully (the illusion of separation; love being stronger than hate; learning to respect other people's differences etc).

Let's be real, what Kataang actually represents is The Hero Gets the Girl, and I think deep down we all know that, even the ones calling it Friends to Lovers. In the Hero Gets the Girl trope, the Girl in question doesn't really matter. She's less of a romantic partner and more a prize for the Hero saving the day. Her emotional journey to falling for the Hero mostly plays out off screen, even though she may not have even liked the Hero like that initially, and the hero doesn't ever show that he respects her as a person. For the most part it works (arguably) because the Girl isn't a character in her own right, she's just part of the Hero's story. The reason it doesn't work with Kataang is that Katara is a character. She does have her own journey, and as passionate and outspoken as she is in pretty much every other aspect of her life, it doesn't make sense for her journey to falling for Aang takes place largely off screen. Not unless you understand how little Katara's feelings matter to their relationship. Had Katara actually rejected Aang, their friendship would have ended because Aang was never interested in her friendship.

It's interesting to me to see people who claim to value friendship over romance spend more time complaining about a romance that isn't canon over the actual canon ship that really does cheapen the friendship. But then again, I guess that was never the problem in the first place.

#atla #anti aang #anti kataang #zutara #enemies-FRIENDS-lovers #that would have been worlds better than the Hero Gets the Girl ship masquerading as a friends-lovers romance #if you prefer platonic zutara that's fine #but let's not pretend that the problem is that their potential romance would spoil their friendship #not when you don't speak about how the actual canon ship completely devalued katara's friendship towards aang #be so for real #just say you don't like zutara and keep it pushing #because now the argument just looks hypocritical when you have nothing to say about kataang #the actual canon ship devaluing both friendship and consent #THE YEAR OF CONTENT!!!!

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msviolacea · 3 months

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Okay, I've been sitting on these thoughts for a couple of weeks, and I've been reading one of my favorite genre writing books today in preparation for a potential project, and they flashed to the surface again. And I just can't resist anymore, sorry.

I saw a post a bit ago that seemed to angrily indicate that telling writers that they need a plot summary/logline/advertising text that goes beyond a list of tropes was somehow ... ableist? discriminatory against marginalized writers? some kind of elitist bullshit? I don't know, but I could hear the whizzing air of a point sailing over someone's head as I read it and it irritated me.

So, okay, let's go over why I think that's a load of crap.

You have a book or a fic or a story of some sort. When I ask you what it's about, you tell me "bisexuals in space, enemies to lovers!" If we're talking about a fanfic, okay, that's probably enough information to tell me if I want to read it - because I know the fandom, and therefore I have a pretty good idea of what else the story is going to entail. But if you're trying to sell me on your original story? I'm sure there are some people who would still jump on it, but I am really not one of them, and I venture to guess many, many other people are the same way.

Why? Here's a sampling of what your trope phrases do and do not tell me.

Okay, there are bisexual characters. And the fact that you reference enemies to lovers makes me think that we're talking about a romance. But that's not guaranteed! Is the story about the bisexuals falling in love? Is it a space adventure in which people incidentally fall in love? Does it not involve love or sex at all, just a bisexual character in a totally different story who happens to have sex with an enemy in a side plot?

Seriously, how does bisexuality or enemies or lovers factor into your plot?

If you're basing your advertising of your story on sexuality, what kind of society are you writing about? Is this a fun fantasy space setting where there's no discrimination based on who you want (or don't want) to have sex with? Or is this story going to include discrimination that parallels real-world problems? Those are two vastly different moods I have to be in to read a thing.

Overall, even if this is a romance, what's the sub-genre you're going with? Space opera? If it is, is it a ridiculous Jupiter Ascending world or a more gritty Expanse-style world? Is it hard sci-fi leaning? Is it actually a murder mystery set on a space station? Is it an action thriller set on a giant starship? Is it a cozy character study? Something totally different?

What do your characters want? A story in which your MC wants to become monarch of their homeworld is very different than one in which your MC is a smuggler trying to get out of legal trouble, and both are very different from an MC who is devoted to revenge against the person who killed their family.

What tone is your story? Again, if you're using tropes to advertise, my guess is it's somewhat lighthearted. But that's not guaranteed at all.

These are just the things I could think of in like 5 minutes. And maybe you don't care about any of these things, and you're happy to have an audience just of people who can read any kind of story any time as long as there are bisexuals in space. That's great! You found your audience! Have fun!

... but I'm betting that audience is very small, relatively speaking. And that you wouldn't be complaining about it if you didn't want a wider audience.

And implying that a reader or readers asking for something more than a list of tropes is somehow discriminatory against you, whatever marginalization you happen to have? That's insulting nonsense. Writing a story summary - be it for an Amazon page, the back of a book, the summary box on AO3, your website, whatever - is a skill that can be learned by anyone who can write a story long enough to require one. It's a different skill than writing the story, don't get me wrong, but it's a skill you can learn regardless.

By all means, put the tropes there too! Have them at the top or bottom of your summary! Put them on your website! I know romance authors who have search functions on their websites where you can filter by tropes! Those are great, but those authors also know that an individual story summary is also necessary! I can filter and say "I want to read hurt/comfort" but then I need to know what the fuck the story is about. Fanfic can be just about hurt/comfort and get its audience - BECAUSE people know the base fandom. Original fiction, not so much.

Anyway. That stuck under my skin, and now it's out. Hooray.

#jaime rambles

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accio-victuuri · 8 months

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MY RECENT READS ( April - August 2023 ) 📚

a mix of manhua/manhwa/danmei novels. i’ve also been on an omegaverse binge so you’ll see a couple of those on here. this is my way of documenting what i’ve read and sharing it to anyone who is probably looking for their next read.

I have linked the actual source of where i read them so you can look up the summary & reviews and see if it’s something you like. Please mind the tags and warnings too. ^^

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MANHWA/MANHUA

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Limited Run ( Seasons 1 & 2 ) - sometimes i’m just in the mood for some toxic relationship with good smut and this hits the spot. tho the MC (Yeon-Oh) is really put in an ugly situation, and really just wants to have a better life and escape. It’s not his fault. The power imbalance is definitely there and like 99.9% of people reading it is there for the smut.

Love Shuttle ( Seasons 1-3 ) - I am very late to this story cause when I started reading this was always at the top of people’s rec lists — especially for omegaverse and now i know why. I love a younger alpha x older omega dynamic so I’m happy with that then add in the enemies to lovers trope. The characters are likable and the story progresses well. Usually for omegaverse, there’s always some angst going on but this felt enjoyable to me. Totally a good read.

Omega Complex ( Completed ) - I AM ABSOLUTELY OBSESSED WITH THIS STORY. I have read it multiple times and it’s marked as completed, but the extras are not. If I were to pick my ideal omegaverse story and art it would be this. Again. Older Omega x Younger Alpha. This one is they started as childhood friends who became estranged because of “circumstances” and met up again in college. The school setting itself and supporting characters are well done too. Most stories have fleshed out supporting characters only if they will be a second couple or something, but this does not use that ploy.

There are misunderstandings but i’m okay with that. I know people are stupid and bad at communication in real life so i don’t really get readers who complain about it. Maybe if it’s too much or doesn’t serve a purpose. It’s necessary in this one tho.

THE SMUT IS GORGEOUS. No. Really. How can you describe smut as gorgeous? Well. Read it and you will find out. 👀

BUT THE BEST THING IS I AM INVESTED WITH THE PAIRING. I love them so much. 😭😭😭 from childhood friends to going to school together and all + grown ups.

Their aesthetic also kinda reminds me of the GG & WYB. so yeah.

Cheeky Habits of my Rabbits - what happens when you combine absolute cuteness and smut? This. I love it. It shouldn’t work, the premise is weird, but it’s a great read! hilarious too. Neungso is the most precious bunny!!!!

The Pizza Delivery Man & the Golden Palace ( on Hiatus ) - How do I even begin to describe this without foaming in the mouth. I wish the hiatus will be over and we will know more and see how the story progresses. It looks like a simple premise, MC is a pizza delivery guy who is struggling and he forms a relationship with a rich regular from the “golden palace”. BUT NOOOO. The writing is special. The way the ML’s struggle with his anxiety/trauma and how MC’s simple kindness helped him is so romantic.

Especially the scene when they first met in the rain and the MC offered his umbrella. You never know what people are going through, so it’s best to be kind. It was such a small gesture but it changed both of their lives.

It’s a story of how love can heal. 😌

Plus the MC — Woo Won is one of my favorite leads ever. He is so gentle and kind even if the world is treating him badly, he still makes a conscious decision to be good. He deserves all the love and success! ML ( Seo-An) better spoil him well! 😤

Their problems don’t magically disappear, it’s just easier to exist because you have someone standing beside you. 🤍🤍🤍

The New Recruit ( completed ) - a solid office romance. if you’re into that then pick this up! there’s no toxic power imbalance going on or abuse. I like how MC is someone who started his career a bit late, so he is older than his peers and still a newbie. A perfect read over the weekend.

Mr. Y & Mr. J - I can’t find the link to the completed version I read so sorry for that. Anyway, this one is with theme of “regression” is I think the right time. Where the MC dies and lives again years prior. So they get a second chance at life. The setting is also entertainment industry which i personally enjoy so there was no way i won’t like it.

Salad Days ( Season 1 ) - Something I AM VERY LATE to. I think everyone and their mom have read this so I won’t go into details. I loved the first season and will definitely go back to finish the rest. The pairing is so OTP material 💟

The side characters in the MC’s life, his friends, are so precious too!

Dawn of the Dragon ( Season 1 ) - Fantasy / Smut. That’s all I can remember. What I really wanna know tho is the backstory of the Dragon and who was his mate from the past. I have a feeling the MC is some sort of reincarnation of that person.

Raising Beta (completed) - A very short read. It’s fucked up. LOL. Basically the MC is a beta and the ML who is obsessed with him turns him into an Omega. not only that, he did a lot of other things all in the name of “love” and as a reader you are there to watch it and you can’t do anything to help the MC. It’s definitely an experience to read this. It reminds me of something Kai Bi Qiu might write so maybe that’s why I enjoyed it more than i should. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️

Hyacinth (completed) - Awwww this one is sweet and makes me all somft. I have re-read this too cause it’s pretty short and the art is beautiful. The MC’s focus on how many meals he has shared with ML was a nice addition and added to the romance.

Plus their little family of three is so cute! XIAO YI IS THE BEST KID. 🥹🥹🥹

How to snag an Alpha ( Completed ) - All I can say is that it’s super funny and the MC is definitely a character. I got so much secondhand embarrassment from the shit he pulls but he ended up getting the Alpha so i think it’s worth it! 😂

Sweet not Sugar ( Season 1 ) - I found this when searching for “green flag” alphas and well this satisfied that. I love the MC here so i’m happy that he gets to be with someone who doesn’t treat him like trash. The MC is at a point in his life where he thinks everyone is out to abuse him in some way so meeting ML unsettles him.

LEE DAN! You deserve to be loved! No matter what happened to you in the past 🥹🥹🥹

December ( Season 1 ) - This is one that I actively check to see if it’s updated cause I’m so invested with the pairing. It should be the usual omegaverse trope but add in the backstory, somehow makes it special. They both meet years ago and MC who is an omega “awakened” the ML into being an Alpha. ML then looks for this mystery person and when he finds him, he will do everything to keep him.

I’m doing a very bad summary i know, i promise it’s not boring. There are other issues discussed in the story, like how horrible omegas are treated. I looooove it when the Alpha goes feral and violent in certain moments too but when it comes to his Omega he is somft.

Their library dates too!!!! 😍😍😍😍

Who’s baby is it? ( Ongoing 200 + chapters ) - My comfort read! I swear. The plot was initially straightforward then it went in a bizarre direction but i still like it. It’s still not finished even with all the chapters and I imagine they can still stretch it to last forever 😂😂😂

My fave would definitely be the children! Rourou!!!! I initially picked this up cause I wanted a story with a cute kid. and i got what i wanted.

+ Entertainment industry setting <3

My Delicious Dream Boy ( Completed ) - The kind of supernatural read that still manages to be fun and light. The MC here is funny without even trying. He only wants to have friends and experience “college life” after years of having to stay at home because of his sickness. The plot could have easily gone dark but it focused more on relationships and the pairing’s growth as individuals — which was so much better for me. Definitely a favorite and reread material.

Affectionately ( Completed ) - This could have been more fleshed out cause there is more story to tell but what can i do.. It is what it is…

It features cute animals cause the MC is supposedly gifted in interacting with them and the ML is the complete opposite. They also work at a cafe together. I chose to read this cause I wanted fluff and it did not disappoint.

My favorite glasses holder ( Completed ) - the MC and his love for men with glasses 😂😂😂 ML is a grumpy kitty and works so well with MC’s bright personality. I didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as i do. After this, I have craved for more modern setting stories.

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DANMEI NOVELS

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Deer Fei Fei - an adorable story of the MC who is in the entertainment industry and his “senior” who he idolizes. if you are into a fanboy getting his idol trope they give it a try. It’s also really short with 32 chapters only 💕

Transmigrated and forced to do Business - my guilty pleasure is when the MC transmigrates in the book where they are supposed to be the villain but they don’t want that. So they do everything the can to be on the good side of the book’s protagonist and well… we all know what happens after.

Have you ever met such a cold author? - Fanboy reader who writes fanfics meets his favorite author. That’s it. I was sold with the premise and it did deliver. ☺️

Bu Wang - I started the Manhua and wanted more so I MTL-d it over at gonzicp so I don’t have the proper english translation. I was just craving for a merman type of story and this popped up. It was nice! How the ML became so devoted to him and chased MC when he left AAAAHHHHHHH!!!!

Stars run to him - I have to take Knoxt ( website ) for this cause i swear i was only browsing completed novels and I randomly clicked on this. It’s what i love about Knoxt, there are translated works there that are not as popular. Absolute gems that deserve more audience.

This is a perfect example. 💕

DON’T LET THE SUMMARY FOOL YOU. I enjoy myself some fake dating for sure, but this is so much more than that. Especially that clue in there : “Gu Zhongyi has loved him for many years…” I don’t think I’ve ever read something like this and that’s why it stuck with me. It would have been so confusing but it was written very well and seeing it all unfold is a treat. Definitely a classic.

It seems there is light - Such a pure story. I swear. A great story about first love and two people who care for each other. It may be boring to some, depending on the headspace you’re in, but please give it a try.

-END.

#if im not working or doing chores or in yizhan mode — i am reading.#personal #book rec #book recs #mlm book recs #danmei recs #manhua #manhwa #manhua rec #manhwa rec

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nobibiname · 1 month

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Ever wondered why the Elucien arguments pulling out Sarah’s 2016 interview and Facebook comment (yeah that one after ACOMAF came out) are SO annoying? 🙄

Ok so I ended up in a TikTok comment section today (yes I know that was my first mistake) and it occurred to me, we are once again not on the same page about some fundamental ideas on writing. The OP argued Sarah hasn’t changed her mind on the next books &elucien and that she said so in an interview after ACOSF.

Ok, but there’s a huge GLARING problem with that.

Basically, a writer makes promises in the text. I’m paraphrasing Sanderson here (I watch his lectures for fun, even tho I don’t write cuz I’m a dork) so he was talking about the first chapter and prologue of a book, or movie… but if you’re writing a multi-book epic, then you’re probably going to make promises about plots and characters of your future books, right?

So what are these promises? Basically what kind of book it is, plot&trope hints, the tone, goals, journeys and obstacles.

Ok back to SJM: why is the argument that “she said Elucien and hasn’t changed her mind infuriating? Because she made different promises in the books. And that is what Elriels mean when we say “set up”.

I mean just from the amount of interactions, Elriel have more than Elucien.. not to mention the warmth, positivity and thoughtfulness she put into their interactions over seriously 4 books. The promises are crystal clear: there is a romance that started as friendship==plot, but she has a bond w/someone else==obstacle, and Rhys forbade it in a moment resulting in her thinking he rejected her, but he didn’t == twist.

These promises need to be addressed, resolved, fulfilled. Is there something even CLOSE to this kind of story promise existing for Elucien?

I have seriously seen people claim that Elucien are both “friends to lovers” AND “enemies to lovers”…. These cannot both be true, like come on… you’re not even sure what kind of story they promise to be? You’re not sure what kinds of promises Sarah made about Elucien?

Why are you not sure? Because it’s not in the text. My personal view is that Elucien is neither… if they happen it’s kind of worse than either trope, they’re certainly not friends, they are at best indifferent to each other and at worst resentful. Mmmm … delicious “indifferent to lovers” 🫠

On a serious note, I don’t “hate” Elucien, but SJM hasn’t made a single promise in the text that I can quote in here that would make me excited about them. He gave her gifts that she didn’t throw away…. ?? Really?… she made a half step toward him… once… no, just no! And that’s how I feel, regardless if “Lulu deserves love”… sure he does, then write a love interest that brings out flirty firey fox boy from book1 and I’m on board 🫡 ….and don’t try to convince me after 4 books of a tepid nothing that all along it was Elain. Because. I. Don’t. Buy. It.

And my last point (I swear!) why did I get my panties all up in a twist… basically this: a writer makes promises IN THE TEXT, and if what you are saying in interviews directly CONTRADICTS your actual text, then you kinda have a problem. … at that point either you’re a bad writer, or you can’t blindly trust an interview from 7 years ago, it’s outdated!

The great GRRM himself said how often his “gardening style” of writing led to character arcs and romantic pairings changing… so why don’t we start treating Sarah as an adult author, and trust the text, and not an old interview?

It also comes down to trust. You don’t wanna be left feeling like “hmmm this doesn’t feel real, I don’t buy it” it takes you out of the text, and it happens when an author messes up promise-delivery . When an author foreshadows well, and sets up the story with their promises, still manages to surprise us while keeping the promises… well I trust THAT PERSON to tell me the most satisfying story.

#rant post #elriel #bad arguments that make me mad #why I can’t love Elucien even if it isn’t horrible

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mdhwrites · 10 months

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Why Does The Owl House Feel Like Fanfiction?

So there’s a lot that could be used for this but a lot of it can also go back and forth on simply being bad writing. To genuinely feel like fanfiction, you have to make it clear that as an original writer, you’re still leaning on the biggest joy and sin of fanfiction.

You need to show that you still don’t want to do the setup work for your story. You just want the payoffs.

That is the big strength of fanfiction after all. You don’t need to make the characters, introduce the world, etc. like that. You can just get to the juicy stuff without bogging yourself down. Even AUs often don’t have to actually make new designs or establish what a character’s personality is unless it’s directly opposing the source material because the audience will assume they’re the same otherwise. If you doubt me on that, I will start linking you all the comments I’ve gotten of people having to remind themselves that Odalia isn’t pure evil in my own fanfics.

But that also presents a danger when going to original fiction. After all, if you don’t setup the world, characters, etc. like that and just do big payoffs, they’re going to feel increasingly more shallow as they make less and less sense or don’t feel like they’re happening when they should. The seams of your writing will show if you don’t put that effort in.

A perfect example of this is one of the most celebrated things in the show: The Enemies to Lovers arc. To really highlight this, let’s break it down to what it would look like in fanfiction, what it would look like commonly in original fiction and then how TOH did it.

Fanfiction: The enemy relationship is already made. You don’t have to do that unless you’re changing a LOT. So all you need to do is the inciting incident that makes the two see each other in a new light and the romance can spark from there, possibly without even becoming friends because the writer just wants to see the two kiss and that’s fine. I’ve done plenty of Luscha stuff like this.

Original Fiction: HAHAHAHA! Oh god, fuck this trope in original fiction. It takes SO. FUCKING. LONG. I’m not even just talking about my own stuff. Catradora took THREE SEASONS for a reason. My own works took literally dozens of chapters to even get the characters on SPEAKING terms, let alone as friends and even then, needing to figure out what just friendship looked like to them.

This is because Enemies to Lovers DEMANDS a character arc on multiple sides. It’s a very big change from the introductory dynamic... But you also have to explore that first dynamic. You need to set up that they’re genuine enemies, explore it and sell it to the audience. Then you need to start whittling away at the base of the problem between the two, start showing their other sides like you would a villain redemption arc, and THEN you can start moving towards romance after they’ve stopped trying to fight each other or oppose each other, etc. like that. It cannot be understated that this trope is so powerful because it requires just a fuck ton of effort and patience on the writer’s part and while you can make cheats for it, like I did in Eyes Beneath the Water by making two people ex-friends but neither wanted the friendship to end, you cannot half ass it.

The Owl House: Amity is, at best, an enemy of Luz’s for three episodes. Teenage Abomination, Covention and TECHNICALLY Hooty’s Moving Hassle, even if her social media post feels awkward post Covention because... Why she is still antagonizing Luz? It makes Lost in Language somewhat confusing because she sounds like she was just trying to dismiss Luz. Like, she couldn’t get her quite out of her head but she was ready to leave her alone.

But also... Lost in Language is Amity’s next episode. By the end of it, they’re friends. By the end of Adventure in the Elements, they’re DEFINITELY friends. Period. And by the sixth episode Amity has a major role, fifth if you don’t include Hooty’s Moving Hassle, she’s blushing at holding Luz’s hand because that’s Understanding Willow which leads directly into Grom where she wants to ask Luz out.

That is no time, especially since Adventure in the Elements has Luz and Amity in it but it’s not really about the two of them. It’s kind of an all over the place episode frankly where Amity is in it but could have been swapped with anyone else. In fact, it would have made Luz look less awful for stealing from a friend. But they are enemies, strictly enemies, for three episodes at most. They are friends for three episodes at most and for most those, they aren’t exploring their friendship or their relationship in general. The only time Amity’s enemy phase will be referenced will be once by King and Amity doesn’t even react to it. It’s literally everyone else except Luz and Amity who are talking about as a joke.

It’s them lampshading the fact that they, you know... Didn’t actually do the trope. That they speedran Lumity because they like the Enemies to Lovers trope, wanted the payoffs of smiling, blushing Amity and the two getting together like you get with that trope but didn’t put in the work. They minimally setup up Amity before ripping her character apart so as to do what they wanted. They never explored the different phases of the two together, barely really made any sort of real dynamic between them at any point before they’re just the love interest and hero because... That’s what they were actually interested in.

And this is isn’t just with Amity. The Boiling Isles has all of its world building repeatedly kicked in the dick for the sake of whatever the writers want to do. The magic is abused and contradicted all the time because actually working with it would get in the way of what the writer wanted to do. Eda’s criminal background and Hooty’s strength would have made them not able to send King and Luz off to show a big payoff to Momma Eda. Actually having to show the Owl Family get close to each other would have taken too much effort so immediately after the body swap episode, the first time they ever even try to understand each other, they’re already now best friends and King is acting like he already views Luz as his big sister come Really Small Problems, their second major episode together.

And that is fanficky. It setup such a bare bones world and the like just so it could do what it wanted. It tore apart characters and rushed arcs even back in S1 because those elements would have gotten in the way of actually doing the tropes they wanted. They wanted to just get to the good stuff which is probably why most characters, after their trope hits their highlight, become really boring and one note. The writers don’t care anymore because they no longer have a big moment to work towards.

Why do you think so many fanfics are so short? And... That is the really painful part for someone like me. TOH truly was blessed by the shortening because while this whole blog is about how TOH fucked up in its FIRST season as far as Lumity’s base trope goes, they will still tell me to just blame the shortening. To blame Disney meddling with the show. It’s not fanficky because writers are bad or the writing is bad, it’s fanficky because of things that let you just ignore the rest.

And that makes my stomach churn and my eyes water, both as an analyst, and as a writer who keeps getting scared about new ideas because to do them right, means doing them long and I don’t know if my brain will manage to see it to the end so I can get that payoff.

But I’m not willing to just cheat like TOH did, not with my original stuff, even though TOH’s cheats also made it the most popular of Disney’s recent animated shows. Maybe that just makes me a fucking idiot then.

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I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead, If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

And finally a Twitter you can follow too!

#TOH Critical #the owl house criticism #amity blight #lumity

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suzannahnatters · 10 months

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Trope Talk: Friends to Lovers

I almost never talk (or even think) about the friends-to-lovers trope; it's never really been on my radar as a Thing I Love. There are two main reasons for this. First, in romance, I tend to adore a good, spiky enemies-to-lovers situation. Second, when it comes to friends, I actually go feral for platonic friendships, particularly m/f friendships, that STAY friendships. I want to talk about those too, but over the past week I had the absolute pleasure of watching the kdrama HAPPINESS, which features an absolutely marvellous friends-to-lovers situation (with added slowburn marriage of convenience). That reminded me that there are a few friends-to-lovers stories that I absolutely adore - Jane Austen's EMMA, for instance (particularly in the Johnny Lee Miller / Romola Garai miniseries adaptation), or the ambiguously romantic friendship FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST: BROTHERHOOD. So, let's talk about one thing that makes this trope difficult to pull off, plus some things that make a friends-to-lovers work for me.

DIFFICULTY: Romance Where Most of the Work Is Done The problem with friends-to-lovers, and the thing that makes it offputting for me, is that you're coming into the story with a couple who have already done most of their work. They already know each other, often quite intimately. They already respect each other, they already like each other…where do you take things from here? How do you make this interesting when the two people are already on the same page and fanatically devoted to one another?

For me, the most important thing when constructing a romance is to create a push-pull between the characters. They need a compelling reason to be together, and a compelling reason to be apart. In an enemies-to-lovers story, the reason to be apart is far stronger than the reason to be together, but because the trajectory is towards togetherness, I can see far more scope for creativity in ETL than I do in FTL, where the reason to be together is usually far stronger than the reason to be apart. The journey is far shorter in FTL than it is in ETL.

But, I think the solution is to be smart about what kind of conflict works best for the story and the characters you have in mind. Let's talk about conflict for a moment. Conflict can be of two sorts: internal, inside the character, and external, between the character and others. In romance, there is a third layer of conflict, which sits between internal and external. Let's call it intimate conflict: it's the reason the characters should be apart.

In an ETL story, the intimate conflict is often the same as the external conflict: the reason for the characters to be apart is because they are on opposing sides of a war. They are each other's antagonists. In a FTL story, the characters are usually allies or colleagues, fighting together on the same side. As a result, the situation with the conflict isn't so simple. The intimate conflict is going to be different to the external conflict.

In EMMA, the reason the characters are apart has a lot to do with Emma's age. Since she's significantly younger than Mr Knightley, she's never really seen him as a romantic prospect at all. She also intends never to marry, and focuses on other people's romances rather than her own. Similarly, Mr Knightley has always seen Emma as a younger sister, and he hasn't come to see her as a romantic prospect either. There's very little external conflict in EMMA, which I think is unusual for a friends-to-lovers story, but what there is focuses on Emma's efforts to find a good match for her protege Harriet. Mr Knightley isn't exactly her ally in this, but as Emma falls into one social snarl after another Mr Knightley is usually the one who helps her out of them. Austen makes it work, but the point is that the story is a VERY slow burn in which the romance only develops very late in the piece. In this, it's a typical friends-to-lovers story.

By and large, I think friends-to-lovers works best when the romantic realisation hits late. Friends-to-lovers IS a shortcut. All the work of slowly building trust, respect, and liking for one another has already been done when the story opens, so it's a great choice for either a) supporting characters who don't have as much screentime or b) situations where there's a strong external conflict to provide a sense of threat to the story. In FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, the romance that sent me feral is one glimpsed in the margins of the story between two supporting characters, Roy Mustang and Riza Hawkeye. The intimate conflict between them - the Reason To Be Apart - is, according to the author, that as military officers the two of them aren't supposed to start a relationship. The external conflict on top of this is that the two of them are conspiring to overthrow their nation's dictator and they can't afford to be made each other's weakness. In HAPPINESS, meanwhile, the relationship got off to a rocky start when Yi Hyun asked Sae Bom out within seconds of meeting her (and being pushed off a roof by her). Sae Bom turned him down right away and like Emma, still hasn't figured out that she might be falling for him by the time she decides that she might as well get fake-married to him for the nice apartment she's always wanted. The intimate conflict is thus simply that Sae Bom hasn't got around to returning Yi Hyun's feelings yet. The external conflict is very strong to compensate for this, however: the two of them are fighting zombies together, and that's not even mentioning the HOA.

An enemies-to-lovers story doesn't work for HAPPINESS, even though there would be enough screentime for it, because the themes and the antagonists don't allow for it. The antagonists are both literal monsters (the mindless zombies) and figurative monsters (the scummy rich). One of our beloveds does eventually become a literal monster, but this doesn't create an ETL situation because it's a morally neutral state and their innate goodness prevails even when having episodes. As for the figurative monsters, their whole deal is that that is NOT a morally neutral state and they got to where they are by being genuinely irredeemable people. This means that none of them can genuinely fall in love. So, ETL would be impossible in this situation. The third option would be a meet-cute with zombies, but this would also detract from the themes of cosiness, happiness, safety and domesticity which the show pits against the evil rich. Friends to lovers, in this setting, is the only choice.

So now that we've talked about some of the thematic and structural situations that might lend themselves to writing a friends-to-lovers story, let's talk about the things that can make this trope TRULY delicious.

CHEMISTRY: Of A Friendship Kind A lot of romance is, let's face it, very badly written. It's as though most writers think that two pretty faces + some light banter = believable romance. It can be very difficult to believe that two people who just met each other five minutes ago would be dying for each other now. Friends-to-lovers solves this problem by starting with two people who already know, like, and respect each other, and the only hard part is to sell the audience on why these two obviously appreciative people HAVEN'T yet sealed the deal. Further: sometimes for whatever reason the characters don't see each other in a romantic light, or better yet they DO but for Reasons have decided to deny those romantic feelings and simply enjoy the philos love which they CAN have without insisting upon the eros they CAN'T have. Either way, the friendship chemistry between them is likely to feel real, mature, and grounded. You really believe that these people care for each other in a uniquely unselfish way - which makes their eventual romance epiphany all the more powerful.

Emma and Mr Knightley are a great example of this. The Romola Garai miniseries turns this up to 11 by giving the two of them amazing chemistry. Their faces light up when they see each other, sometimes from far away. They're drawn together in every space they mutually inhabit. From the very first episode they're revolving around each other and although neither of them have realised it's love, their attraction is palpable. There's an age gap in EMMA which some modern viewers may find slightly problematic, and Austen (and the show's director) do a fantastic job of selling this relationship through the chemistry and framing of the relationship as a genuine friendship on both sides long before it becomes explicitly romantic.

EQUALITY: The Couple That Battles Together Stays Together Romance can come with a lot of baggage around inequality. A lot of people even today still view power and maturity imbalance as being definitionally romantic. A lot of men still want to feel stronger, smarter, richer, and more intelligent than their female partners. In a world where the sexes have often been unequal, a male/female friendship can be radically levelling. This has been acknowledged by scholars studying friendships across history. When a man befriends a woman, it's a signal that he appreciates her as she is, that he recognises her as a kindred spirit and an equal in ways that aren't always indicated by romantic interest. He knows that a sexual relationship with her is off the table, but he wants to spend time with her anyway. Their relationship is often founded on mutual interests and occupations, as well as on simple respect and enjoyment of each other's company.

This means that a romance which starts out as a friendship often achieves a sense of unique equality between the two partners, because we've already seen the two of them working together. It also leads to a strong partnership between them as they tackle all their problems together. (ETL also achieves a sense of equality, of course, but this comes about as the two characters battle and outwit each other). HAPPINESS is a great example of this: Yi Hyun becomes a detective partly because Sae Bom has become a special forces officer, and together the two of them keep the peace and battle zombies in a locked-down apartment building. Roy and Riza are also an iconic battle couple in FMAB, and even though Riza is Mustang's military subordinate their relationship is clearly one of such mutual dependence and respect that it doesn't come across as unequal.

BICKERING: When Acting Like an Old Married Couple Isn't Just for Lovers Just because a couple are longtime friends doesn't mean they can never disagree, which is why the greatest one-sentence friends-to-lovers romance in history comes at the end of CS Lewis' THE HORSE AND HIS BOY: “Aravis also had many quarrels (and, I'm afraid even fights) with Cor, but they always made it up again: so that years later, when they were grown up they were so used to quarreling and making it up again that they got married so as to go on doing it more conveniently.”

Most friends-to-lovers stories I love don't have all that much intimate conflict between the characters: the focus is squarely on the two of them fighting the world together. They may bicker and banter, but they always have each others' back. The notable exception happens in EMMA, especially the Romola Garai miniseries, where once or twice Mr Knightley gets quite exercised as he rebukes Emma. I think the thing to notice is that while in an ETL story the conflict between the characters normally involves a genuine attempt to destroy or frustrate the other character in some way, and in a meet-cute story the characters come into conflict out of a misunderstanding of each other, in a FTL story the conflict arises out of the characters' intimacy: that is, they are so comfortable in each other's company that they find it safe to disagree with or insult each other.

DEVOTION: I Would Die For You Let's face it: some of the most scream-inducing stuff in a romance are the moments when the two leads start putting unreserved trust in each other. They start throwing themselves in front of bullets for the other person. They start being utterly and totally vulnerable with each other. Sometimes this is delicious because it conflicts with who they ought to be: perhaps they have all sorts of reasons to distrust each other, perhaps they should be trying to kill each other and they know it. But friends-to-lovers skips right past all that. This is just who these two are, you know? They're utterly devoted to each other. They will take bullets for each other without even thinking. In their case, it doesn't contrast with their better judgement: it contrasts with the way they interact with everyone else around them.

Again, this is why I think FTL works best when the couple are up against strong forces of external antagonism - monsters, zombies, or just some really despicable blighters. When you can't trust ANYONE but This One Person? When the whole world is dangerous, except for the absolute safety of YOUR person? That's when FTL ascends and becomes truly superior. That's why nothing hits as hard as the moment in FMAB when Mustang muses over a chessboard about all he has lost - his pawn, his knight, his rook, and his bishop. "And worst of all…they've even taken my queen." unhinged screaming

VULNERABILITY: If You Dare Hurt Them Much of the fun of ETL is seeing the characters go a little unhinged, as a treat. Well, if you've been building your FTL pair right, you get to see them go unhinged in stereo! You've given them a sense of utter devotion to each other, and you've put them in incredible danger. Now it's time to split them up and put each of them in danger separately…just so the other one can go beast mode getting them out. They are each other's ultimate safety, and God help the fool who puts either of them at risk. As exhibit A, I call the HAPPINESS car chase to the stand. Yeah? YEAH.

EPIPHANY: The Love of Their Life Was There All Along At some stage, if this is going to be a FTL story, there needs to be the romantic epiphany when the pair realises that their friendship has turned into romance and that they want to be more than friends. There are a few ways to play this. Sometimes, both of the couple realises during the course of the story, as in EMMA. Sometimes, one of the couple has been romantically interested in the other for years, as in HAPPINESS, but the other one hasn't come around yet. And of course, in FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST the romantic interest remains undeclared, but the scene where Roy compares Riza to his queen has the same emotional wallop because it's the moment at which the audience realises that he views her differently to the rest of his friends - he sees her both as his most powerful ally, and as his wife.

The unique FMAB example aside, however - much of the power packed by this moment of the story has to do with the protagonist realising that the love of their life was there all along, and perhaps they nearly missed them. In EMMA, Emma only figures it out in a fit of jealousy when Harriet claims to be in love with Mr Knightley (it's hilarious that throughout the entire book she never tries to set anyone up with her village's most eligible bachelor). In HAPPINESS, Sae Bom figures it out after Yi Hyun makes a farewell video confessing that the reason he agreed to their marriage of convenience was because he is genuinely in love with her; the marriage which was fake to her was real to him all along. Combined with the knowledge that she might be about to lose him forever, this is enough to make her acknowledge her own feelings.

MORAL COMPASS: I Know You're In There, Fight But here's what I think is my absolute favourite thing about friends to lovers. It's something that happens in all three of the FTL examples I've been analysing here, and it's also something that has deep roots in the way friendship has been viewed throughout history. In Edmund Spenser's FAERIE QUEENE, each Book focuses on a specific virtue - holiness, temperance, and chastity, for instance. Book IV deals with Friendship, and in this book Spenser defines friendship as being built on a foundation of other virtues. That is, evil people literally are incapable of true friendship because they do not have what it takes to treat another human being with genuine kindness and selflessness. All three of my favourite FTL stories follow Spenser in pitching the friendship as a moral compass for one of them.

In EMMA, Mr Knightley regularly rebukes Emma for her social failings. When he points out her rudeness to Miss Bates, it's a huge turning-point in their romance. Emma's response, which is to acknowledge her faults and try to put things right with Miss Bates, is what awakens Mr Knightley to his love for Emma. On the other hand, Emma realises that Mr Knightley is a big part of her moral compass and superior to the other men she knows, and it's this that makes her realise how necessary he is to her.

EMMA is a lowkey example, but FMAB and HAPPINESS come out swinging when it comes to the moral compass, and it's absolutely spectacular on both occasions. One of the reasons Mustang depends so deeply on Riza is that she is his protector, not just in a physical but a moral sense. She is the one who has promised to put him down if he ever loses his way. Naturally, this moment comes for them, and the two of them survive it, but only barely. And it's GLORIOUS. HAPPINESS plays things a little differently: there's no long-standing promise between them, but the whole show, the characters are told that those infected who really wish to resist the thirst can do it. When Sae Bom comes charging in to get her husband at the end, he's about to lose his battle, but she manages to pull him out of his episode. Again, it's glorious.

CONCLUSIONS I love ETL stories for their intensity, their moral complexity and the delicious emotional contrasts at play between loving a person and wanting to defeat them. But…as hard as it can be to find really good ones, a great friends to lovers story comes with all those things and can be just as satisfying.

#trope talk #writing advice #writing #romance tropes #friends to lovers #ftl #fmab #fullmetal alchemist: brotherhood #fma:b #fullmetal alchemist brotherhood #fullmetal alchemist #emma #jane austen #happiness kdrama #happiness tvn #happiness #tvn happiness

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sailforvalinor · 1 year

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You know, I’ve said for a really long time that I dislike enemies-to-lovers, but I’ve realized this isn’t actually the case—I just dislike badly executed enemies-to-lovers. And, because this is possibly the most popular romance trope in YA (and most other literature, if we’re being honest), we’re seeing a lot of bad enemies-to-lovers right now.

I think what really irritates me about it most of the time is that authors want the "enemies-to-lovers" dynamic but don't really want to put in the work involved to make it convincing. Characters have to have some reason to hate each other to this degree, have to have some foundation for their relationship to stand on, but sometimes authors just want to skip to the witty banter in the ballroom or the intense rapier duel on the roof with underlying romantic tension without justifying to me why all this drama is happening in the first place.

Also, a lot of authors, especially in the YA fantasy genre, seem to default to "we are on opposite sides of a political conflict" or "you said something rude to me the first day we met" as a format to copy-and-paste their protagonists into and then leave it at that. And to be clear, there isn't anything wrong with these formats--plenty of good stories exist with these used as their basic structure! But it becomes a problem when you plug in a trope like this and assume it will do all the heavy lifting for you. It can easily come across as boring or lazy writing, just like with any poorly-employed cliche or trope.

However, cliches and tropes are not bad! The reason that an idea becomes a cliche or a trope is because it is so generally well-liked that authors are motivated to use it over and over again. These ideas naturally become cliches when they are used so much that the audience gets worn out on them, or it is used as a shortcut by less experienced authors to hide poor writing. But this does not mean you have to avoid any and all cliches at all times. One of the best skills to build as a writer is recognizing when you are using a cliche, and how you can best work that cliche to your advantage—giving the cliche a fun twist, adding layers and details (and-then-isms), subverting the cliche entirely, or just committing to the bit and writing the cliche straight as best as you possibly can.

All of this to say, here are a few variants, subversions, and fun employments of the enemies-to-lovers trope that I just personally think work really well:

Both people strongly and vocally dislike each other, but there deliberately doesn’t seem to be any logical reason as to why, at least to the audience—and it doesn’t really matter (Benedick and Beatrice from Much Ado About Nothing. Also I realize that there is a line that suggests that they may have possibly been engaged at some point before the play, but I would argue that since we never find out why they fell out, and this is never brought up as a major plot point, it doesn’t really matter.)

Person A is a part of a group or regime that actively harmed Person B or someone close to them, but Person A was not actually directly involved—however, Person B still holds Person A responsible (Zutara, I still think Kataang is superior, but I won’t deny that this ship works. This one can be a bit cringy if played up too much or if it goes on for too long, but it works as a short-term stint)

Both people make snap judgements on the other’s character upon their first meeting—judgements that are incorrect—and go on to wrongly villainize each other’s character (Lizzie and Darcy from Pride and Prejudice, of course)

Person A did some grievous wrong to Person B in a past life, but one or neither of them remembers until they’re already in love (Reaper and Sunny from Goblin, I realize this is a little specific but my gosh does it slap and people should do it more often)

Similarly, Person A and Person B communicate via indirect means under aliases (i.e. letters, emails, chat rooms) and are falling in love, but hate each other in real life (You’ve Got Mail/She Loves Me)

Person A is sent to assassinate or otherwise harm Person B by the organization that they work for, but when Person B kills them with kindness it makes them spiral into a huge identity crisis (Luke Skywalker and Mara Jade from Star Wars Legends. I really need to do a complete breakdown of this ship sometime because it goes so much deeper than this, but there is way too much to talk about with them on this post—suffice it to say that they are very underrated and absolutely fantastic)

Classic enemies-to-lovers except it’s only one-sided—Person A hates Person B but Person B is absolutely clueless. I can’t think of a good example of this right now but I know I love it when I see it

Neither of them really actively dislikes each other, but they’ve gained such a reputation for their bickering that to admit that they might like each other would be too embarrassing and a blow to their public image (again, can’t think of an example but I know I’ve seen it done...I guess the latter half of Much Ado counts)

Classic enemies-to-lovers but instead of transitioning directly to lovers they become friends, leading into a enemies-to-friends-to-lovers pipeline—the best of both worlds! (Again, Luke and Mara. Also dare I say Raven and Beast Boy in Teen Titans kinda-sorta?)

#please add more if you have any other suggestions #I’ve always had problems with this trope #I’ve come to terms with it now but friends-to-lovers is still superior I’m sorry #I enjoy subtlety you know #writing #tropes #writing tropes #enemies to lovers #writing advice #ships #ship dynamics

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pieandshootingstars · 2 months

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Hi y‘all!

I have a problem.

I have always loved writing and reading and ever since I was a child, I have been coming up with stories and written them down; being creative never seemed like a problem to me.

Up until 2 years ago: My two final years of school started and I was really stressed and burned out during those two years... I‘m not sure if that‘s why, but even now, half a year after my graduation, I still can‘t come up with any new ideas :((

I missed writing so much since I didn‘t really do that during those two years, but all I can think of are rough ideas for characters, what kind of tropes and vibes I would like to have, and so on - which is, of course, not a lot, since the actual plot idea stays missing.

I would love to write again; it doesn’t have to become a bestseller one day… but I‘d love to create my own world and characters yk? Even if it‘s just for myself.

So I was thinking:

Maybe I could roughly write down the tropes/vibes I‘d like to have in my story (it might be very vague, sorry in advance😅) AND some fandoms I like so that maybe their vibes can be included a little, or they could be mixed/used as inspiration or something, and maybe you guys can help me come up with something? 😅

Maybe I can beat my writersblock that way.

Thank you all in advance 🫶🏻

⬇️

📺 • Fandoms I like:

• Pirates of the Caribbean!

• The dark Crystal - Age of Resistance

• The Hobbit & Lord of the Rings

• Six of Crows

• Hazbin Hotel & Helluva Boss

• Gravity Falls

• Tomorrow (Kdrama)

• Arcane

📝 • Tropes, Genres etc. that I like:

- found 👏🏻 family 👏🏻 trope 👏🏻 !!

* Grumpy x Sunshine (both platonic and romantic is cool)

• No enemies to lovers 🥲😅

• NO love triangles

• Forbidden Love is nice, however I don‘t necessarily need romance at all in the book, or would rather have it be a sub-plot tbh

• Rich vs poor

• Lost Memories

• Redemption Arc/Morally Grey villains

• Fantasy genre!

Edit: morally grey/villain female mc could be cool, or one that turns/starts evil but then redeems herself or something

- cool and unique magical powers for the mc and maybe her friends if they will have any; no mary sue mc

Ik this ended up being very vague, I’m so sorry, but the writersblock really be blocking y’all 🥲 idk what’s up with that lately but I hope this isn‘t completely hopeless; maybe at least the fandoms will help to come up with an idea or a prompt or something.

Thank you guys in advance again !

#my writing #romance #writinghelp #fantasy #oc #writersstruggle #arcane #writing #writersblock #writing inspiration #writing prompt #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writerscommunity #writer things #female writers #help #fanfiction

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let-me-be-or-perish · 5 months

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there is no denial in the fact that reading is a frorm of excapism, but till what point of escapism it can reach?

many would say that we should separate the art from the artist but it actually possibe?

i personally think not, if an author is alive this separation cannot be done. authorts, no matter how high the fantasy is, still put a lot of their ideologies and moralities in their works, that can be seen both as a good but as a bad thing too. and this is a fact that cannot be changed.

in my previous post i talked about sjm, that i do actually do not support, (i borrowed her books, out of curiosity, it should have remained that, a curiosity) but i wanted to put out what i thought, becuse there are things that need to be said.

no author is untouchable.

and well, if you felt offended by that, then i guess this is more of a you problem, i truly do not care. (so i will erase your comment. this is my space, i write what i want)

not only for her writing, but for her ideologies, that are so datated and wrong, and a more recent thing (not so recent, but for recent events, is better to put it out again) she's a z*ionist so if there is not a major reason for you to stop supporting her i guess you should think more about yourself. (if you wnat to know more about other authors to not support becuse of this belief of them, this creator as a whole thread)

not caring who the author is, where they come from and their ideology is wrong, people say that they read for escapism, and is it really then if for this escapism others get harmed from it?

those authorts, who are alive, breath and live like us, use the money of those who support them to contribute in the perpetuation in harming those, who differently from us, a lot of times do not even posses a way of escapism.

and in their writing there could be the continue use of harmful sterotypes and ideologies, that are actually really easy to fix, but again it falls in the question: do they really want to improve of they add diversity not becuse they mean it, and because well, those are fantasy book, so there the diversity should be the fondation, but only to chek them out and say that they did; nor becuase they mean it and it's needed but only to make count.

i am so tired of those authors who does the bare minimun and get so much praises; beause then, they are those who create standards, and becuse their works are mediocre, the works that are not, are not understood, dimmed down and ignored.

beacuse now, everyone only care about smut, tropes, finding the next "book boyfriend"

making every fmc bland and "not like other girls", with no goals, no depth, no reasoning whatoever, only becuase she need to be a lent used to make the readers fall for the mmc, or so called "book boyfriends"

and those book boyriends, are really something. every single one of them is the same, whether is it for appearance or perosnality, becuse they do not actually posses any, so there is not raelly much to work with

tropes do not make books, they are only part of them, you cannot bulid a book around them, coming naturally as you write.

we lost the charcaters a, the plot and the world (in case of it being a fantasy) beacuse of this.

an easy exemple coud be that now the enemies to lovers are no more enemies to lovers, becuse not possessing personalities the whole enemy part is not a thing, but so is the romance; and there is no natual mutation from enemies to lovers.

beacuse they are solely sexually attracted to one another, they do not exchange any dialogue that would make the other try to understand the others point of view. this is again because not possessing a personality is impossible to archive.

because talking, require a personality, likes, dislkes, flaws , goals and interests.

smut, is not essential to validate a relationship, and if you think so, then read erotica, this genera exist for this purpose.

so asking under every single post, of every single book if there is smut in it, it's out of place; especially if those books are YA.

romance and smut should not be required to make a book worth reading; they should not be seen as the standard to pick up a book.

because of it i feel that many people lost the chance to find books that they woud absolutely love.

and this whole obession with smut, as made many women miserable, how can you as a grown adult thirst like that? they're fictional yes, but going under post of men, at times minors too, and acting like horny teenagers, is really disgusting.

many women hate how man thirst over them and are extremly persistant in sexualluy assulting them, but this thing they do is not much different from what those men do to them.

so how can you hate on soemone and than turn around and do the exact same thing?

this not only for that, even in books, men are extreamly sexualised to the point of being revolting. if it was a female charater described like that by a guy everyone would lose it, but since it's not, well i guess it's fine, isn't it?

then, the rapresentation of this relationships, borderline abusive. this is not soemething to aim for, not something to want and wish to have.

and using the excuse of it being a dark romance is ridiculous, they are dark romances for the themes not becuse the fmc is constantly in the hand of abuse and abusers. the mmc shouldn't be the one to casue those harms, he should be the one to help them go through those things, the one they relay on.

i wish writers would actually love the work they do, putting actual effort in it, and not only doing it for the money; of course, money are part of it, but not all.

writing is an art, and as one it requires time and passion.

and i wish readers could do better, becuse those are not only books.

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omegaverserping · 5 months

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hope it’s already to resubmit! it’s been a few months and i’m still looking for partners ❤️

preferred way of rp’ing: i use discord exclusively. just shoot me a dm and i’ll give you my tag.

timezone: central. however, i work weird hours, so differing timezones aren’t a huge problem for me!

pov?: third person, present or past tense.

preferred role: any. i’m comfortable writing alphas, betas and “unconventional” omegas.

preferred pairing: m/m, f/f, nb/any. i’m also interested in m!omega x f!alpha and poly ships.

ocs, fandom or both?: ocs, mostly. ask about fandoms if you’re interested.

favorite aus: arranged marriage, royalty, soulmates, enemies to lovers (or any variation of this), “forbidden” romance, role reversals

triggers: graphic childe abuse, self-harm, suicide

preferred reply length: a few chunky paragraphs at least. most of my replies fall between 150-500 words, sometimes wayyy more if i have the muse/time.

how long are you looking to rp for?: definitely hoping to land some long-term partners and stories.

would you be willing to brainstorm a prompt?: yes! immediate yes. this is actually a must for me. if you’re not willing to collaborate and brainstorm, i’m not the partner for you. i need lots of back and forth.

omegaverse tropes that you DO NOT like to use: not big on “traditional” dynamics. overtly submissive omegas against aggro alphas doesn’t really do it for me.

omegaverse tropes that you DO enjoy using often and would like to use: animalistic behaviors (primal instincts, scenting, growling/purring, nesting, etc.), courting, bonding, “true” mates, scent descriptors, heat/rut, pregnancy, pack-building, inherent power dynamics, social hierarchies - nearly everything! i’m always down to discuss headcanons and worldbuild.

anything else that you would like to mention or say?: i’m really looking for some good, well-developed omegaverse plots -- something that isn’t solely focused on the nsfw aspect of the trope, but the deep bond between mates and a bit of worldbuilding on how society is with secondary genders.

if you’re interested in this, something with plenty of plot and character development as well as nsfw bits, feel free to shoot me a dm or like this ad! 20+ only writers, please.

#pairing rper: f/f #dynamic rper: beta #alpha/beta/omega rp #a/b/o rp #a/b/o verse rp #dynamic rper: omega #pairing rper: f/m #omegaverse rp #a/b/o #alpha/beta/omega verse #alpha/beta/omega verse rp #dynamic rper: alpha #pairing rper: m/m #a/b/o verse #alpha/beta/omega #omegaverse

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ae-neon · 1 year

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Cassian barely seemed like he loved Nesta in Acosf 😒 you could tell he held Feyre in higher regard and Mor.

Hello anon

My lukewarm because it's actually canon take as the self proclaimed number 1 Nessian anti is that this was all true pre ACOSF too.

I've already made a post on pre ACOSF Nessian being bad (check pinned)

I'm a big fan of the Jujutsu Kaisen manga but after about a month on fandom twitter I left because it became apparent to me that people take fanon and act like it's canon.

Fanon is fine. Fanon is great. I am a big supporter of and participant in Delusion™ But not when the fans blur that line then expect everyone, including the canon narrative, to be held to that.

Cassian, as I've said before, could have been one of the best representations of positive masculinity not only sjm, but YA as whole, had ever produced. He is a great guy and an even better friend.

It's not bad that he's so good to Feyre and Mor, it's actually really great (especially between Mor and Cas, they literally fucked, he wanted her, she used him, it's complicated, but they're still best friends drop the sibling bs SJM)

Pre ACOSF:

Nessian plays on some pretty standard tropes, not my fave but tried and tested none the less. It's the sitcom special about the tiny mean wife and the big nice husband, the cocky flirty guy and the proud prudish woman, the 10 Thing I Hate About You regular meal.

Personally this dynamic gives me Taming of The Shrew PTSD and as a RBF girlie I've had too many guys think they were gonna "melt the ice" by constantly challenging my personal space and brushing off my obvious dislike. But that's just me.

The main problems with canon Nessian is it's timing and, like every other ship, the power imbalance that turns it from "Enemies to Lovers" to "Victim to Lover".

As always THE LATTER SHOULD NOT AND CANNOT EXIST IN YA AS IT IS A DARK ROMANCE TROPE AND DARK ROMANCES CANNOT BE YA.

ACOSF (from what I know)

The problem is being nice to everyone else then not so nice to your target is a classic abuse tactic. It's scary.

Especially because the abuser still does nice things and wants the abused so the abused gaslights themselves into thinking certain behaviour is what causes their abuse.

The abused is manipulated into thinking it's their fault. Because they are the only close/good person who experiences those bad reactions. And everyone else thinks the abuser is so great so it must be true.

This is why the Tamlin character switch up didn't work on a lot of people. Irl a lot of abusers aren't the obvious, easy to spot, bad guys and most abuse doesn't start out as directly physical.

Anyways this is way too long of an answer sorry 😅🙏

#anon asks #acotar #anti nessian #nesta deserves better #pro nesta #anti sjm #sjm critical

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lazarish · 7 months

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It's a tradition at this point. Useless ramblings:

I owe everything I am to my beloved Maurice LeBlanc, thanks for having all your stuff in the public domain now so I can steal it <3

I'm also shamelessly plagiarizing myself, we love repurposing abandoned work

I never, at any point, expected the "Summer is the thief" reveal to be a surprise but I had fun pretending!

I promised every gen would be happier and no one even died this time!!

I think this is the gen that changed the most since my original gen 1 plans- although "fake dating enemies to lovers" was always the brief. I think we got there? The enemies was like. Three posts but oh well

Summer's plan, in brief: she knew about the mirror (the only remnant of Nadir's power in the world at this point) and decided that was going to be a her problem. The original plan was to spend the month making Dune so paranoid he'd accept the help of the ""corrupt"" Inspector Hiemal, thereby getting her inside his house

Which is, of course, just straight-up one my my favourite phantom thief tropes: rich recluse asks for help from the thief's famous detective rival, only to find out that the person they asked help from is actually the thief and/or working for them.

Is it a trope? Both Lupin and The Fiend with Twenty Faces did it so I'm assuming it is

Her accomplice Tyrian was there for most of the story in the background.

She for sure doesn't return most of what she stole. Cinder sees her wearing a necklace like 8 years later and goes "wait a fucking minute"

There was supposed to be a Cinder/Clarion romance subplot but it didn't make it in

Cinder gets Summer back to the desert one (1) time and it's for their wedding

ONE MORE GEN LEFT!!! Are you ready? I'm not, dear god. Except....... god I'm so excited for the nonsense that's coming. It is my final form. It's everything my entire blog has been building to for like 5 years. It starts with the final Labyrinth heir transferring to a new school...

#pm #laby extra #Was the ending comprehensible? 0 idea #as always please feel free to ask me questions goodness knows i love hearing myself talk lmao

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zvtara-was-never-canon · 1 year

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Zutara shippers are constantly like, “Kataang being canon is typical and expected. Them remaining as friends would be much more powerful.” Which, no? It wouldn’t? I could name you 500 ships like Zutara (in looks and personality wise). I can’t name you a single ship that’s like Kataang. When Zutara shippers reduce Kataang to main girl x main boy, or “hero gets the girl,” it does so much injustice to both characters because Katara and Aang are both heroes, and their relationship is so much more than main boy x main girl. Katara and Aang remaining as friends is the norm, it’s what society would expect from relationships like theirs because they’re not used to couples that define western ideals. The fact that the writers went one step forward and stuck to their original plan and introduced romance is so much better. I want to see more couples like Aang and Katara on my screen - couples that look like them and treat each other with so much respect.

I'm gonna have to disagree with you here. Two heroes falling in love + best friends falling in love IS common in western media. That is not a problem in anyway, just like it wouldn't be a problem if Avatar had an enemies to lovers romance.

The problem is:

1 - Zutarians complaining that Kataang is cliche while swearing that enemies to lovers isn't exactly the same (even though it IS, and in fandoms in particular that is often THE cliche of all cliches).

2 - Zutarians pretending Kataang came out of nowhere and was a last minute twist to force the show to conform to a popular trope, while their precious ship was totally a main aspect of the story from the start, when it was actually the other way around - hence Kataang being endgame despite it not "subverting the audience's expectation" (can people stop obsessing with that shit and go back to just writting stories that make sense? Please?)

They just love pretending they're the underdog, so they'll use any excuse to pretend that they were "robbed." Pretending that enemies to lovers is actually super rare it's just another lie they tell themselves to make their ship seem more special than it really is, and that the writers somehow failed the story and it's themes by not making it canon at the last second just to make a bunch of spoiled children happy.

#anti zutara

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three--rings · 7 months

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Ask game tagged by @gnomeicecream

rules: How much do these tropes affect your decision to click on a fic? -10 -> very dissuaded 0 - don’t care either way +10 -> very enticed nope -> if it’s a hard no and you’d never click on a fic with that tag or or you even have the tag blocked or you’d insta click out of the fic if it wasn’t tagged. Bonus points for explaining the rating and whether it’s conditional.

Age gap: 0

Yeah honestly this doesn't really mean much to me. I'm more likely to judge by the other tags, etc.

Codependency: +4

I don't dislike codependent relationships at all, though I might be a little leary of the fic if it seems like this tag isn't earned, because it can be a sign of Therapy Speak Ahead.

Obsession/Possessiveness, jealousy: +4

Depends on the ship, depends on my mood, but it's not a turn off unless done poorly.

Opposites (grumpy/sunshine etc): +5

I tend to like my contrasting pairs a lot, but I feel like I usually know that about a ship going in and it's less about author intent. More relevant with orig fic. There is a slight danger of someone substituting a nuanced understanding of characters for extreme versions.

Enemies to lovers, Enemies with benefits: +10

Top tier tbh. I adore rival romance and antagonistic relationships because of how much more room there is to explore and so much more territory to cover. And actual barriers to being happy together than your typical friends to lovers or coffeeshop or whatever.

Friends with benefits: +6

I really love the next trope, which tends to come together with this one. I love a sex first, feelings later ship anyway I can get it. So yeah I eat this up.

Sex to feelings: +10

Like I said, this is catnip to me. I don't know exactly why, except that I really enjoy sex scenes that progress relationships and that's everywhere in this trope. Also personally I tend to be a sex to feelings person myself.

Fake dating/relationship: +3

This can be done well or badly. I have enjoyed it a lot.

Friends to lovers: 0

Yeah this is pretty bog standard to me and doesn't do anything particular either way.

Found Family: 0

I tend to really be romance focused. I enjoy a good Found Family but only when it's background to other things I'm into.

Hurt/Comfort: +3

I feel like people's idea of what hurt/comfort is varies WIDELY. From like "I had a slightly rough day" to "extreme torture." So I feel like this tells me very little about what I'm about to experience. Also it's just sorta basic: bad things happen, good things happen, which is just...like how plots work.

Love Triangle: -2

If it's put like that, slightly negative. Cause I have no patience for "who should I pick" stories. Threesomes, triads, and poly shit on the other hand...

Poly, open relationships: +7

I enjoy polyamory a lot more in fiction than real life. I mean, I have lots of poly friends and I've tried it but also the drama omg. Seen so many relationships torn apart by it. But in fic? Yeah yeah absolutely I'm there.

Mistaken/hidden identity: +3

Mmm, it depends on everything else about the fic and whether the premise appeals to me.

Monsterfucking: +8

Like, there are limits okay, but have I read some shit out of my comfort zone out of perverse curiosity? Yup. Yup. But also your standard monster shit? I'm about it. Tentacles are sexy. I've been a vampire girl since age 12. I wrote that Beauty and the Beast au where WWX is a ghoul-type thing.

Pregnancy: -10

And here we have the thing I won't read, no matter what. Pregnancy is body horror to me both in real life and fiction.

Second Chance: +5

Very much like this when it's fixing or redoing canon. Little less when it's "I took this couple and broke them up so I can get them back together again" because I don't like invented barriers to romance.

Slowburn: +4

I have not great patience, and as mentioned, I have a problem with artificially thrust in barriers to two characters being together. Some fics I really enjoy have nearly gone sour on me when I just want to scream from like WHY WHY can't you be together already. Why are you just inventing new reasons not to be happy! So it's good in small doses, and as with most things when done well.

Soulmates: +7

I like a good soulmate fic. I don't have the problem with them that many people do. Because IDK I just don't take it that seriously I guess. Like, people have soulmates in this world, okay. That doesn't mean they only have one or lose all agency or whatever. And I don't need the fic to go to great lengths to prove their soulmate AU is Different Actually. I will just suspend my disbelief for a while it's cool I have rope.

Because I enjoy being tagged for things like this, I will tag some folks, but whatever. And if you want to do this please do. @waterhobbit, @sunshine304, @amuseoffyre, @chubsthehamster

#memes #fanfiction

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