#or i just don't get modern fandom 'etiquette'

[lordelmelloi2]

a lot of work that was done for feminist media analysis in the 90s-2010s was thrown out the window thanks to modern "fandom" etiquette and stuff that just boiled down to "muh ships" and a lot of the mindset that resulted in this shift is outright rooted in racism per the "fiction has no bearing on reality/you should know the difference". I really think honestly its a very privileged & white mindset to have to believe "it's fictional/pretend/private so I don't have to think about if it affects anyone". if you are against racism you should know the impact of media on reality, black feminists and civil rights activists have been pointing out the effects of propaganda and also representation of groups on the social consciousness forever; And I think quite honestly for the whole "well it's common sense to not treat someone a certain way just because you enjoy media that depicts it being shown!" argument, the minute you learn about the history of Minstrels and the Mammy stereotype or the Sapphire stereotype or etc. It should become blatantly clear to you how depictions of anything affect how people act in real life. This in turn also relates to media showing children as sexual objects, incestuous relationships as being funny/desirable/normal, rape as being "tough love", all of these are things that feminists have been doing work to try to combat for YEARS, and right now because of the whole ""pro ship"" BS it's kind of going out the window because people value their own personal comfort over making any meaningful changes. It's not like you get a manual stating when you turn 18 "here's all the crazy stuff you should unlearn so you can help break cycles of abuse and normalization of abuse", but people seem to have given up on trying to understand anymore. Nothing is exempt from criticism, we don't live in a vacuum, media has and historically has impact on reality, social attitudes, normalizing abuse. It's... obvious. Like its blatantly obvious. If you've cared about anything, ever, if you've ever been like "ugh. I hate how (animal movie) made people go out and buy (animal) as pets even though they're not meant for domestication!" you understand already how media impacts reality and people's behaviors, you're just choosing to pick and choose which ones you personally feel are valid.

And I think that when there's epidemics of children being groomed and an abuse and mental health epidemic that's because of rampant pedophilia, incest and rape we need to be more aware of the ways that media feeds these messages to you about what is and what isn't acceptable to do to another person. I don't believe in Neutering media to Never Show it, but I do think people are very stupid and despite saying they don't believe in condoning stuff "in real life" I think there's a wild amount of people who truthfully have no idea what boundaries are acceptable anymore and will gratefully allow the messages to permeate their brain without stopping to think like what the director or author is trying to say or what overall message they're trying to convey. I don't enjoy the discussions being held about "media literacy" in fan communities anymore but there is kind of a shocking lack of discussion about trying to understand the overall point of a story. The big picture. Overarching narrative meanings. Messages communicated. Themes and what they mean and how they tie into the narrative. Idk. There's better ways of writing all this up and I have to get ready for work

[natjennie]

i dont want to make a bad faith interpretation, but it seems like people in the ofmd fandom who are maybe used to putting their writing somewhere else or maybe haven't posted writing before are misunderstanding some of ao3's features. which is totally understandable it's an overwhelming website. now I'm not an expert, I dont have like. a degree in database management or library sciences or something, but, as someone who is very particular about the fics I read, I thought I'd say some things.

mainly, tags on ao3 work directly for both what you want to include and what you want to exclude. so, for instance, when I'm searching for an ofmd fic, I can specify ed/stede included, and izzy/ed excluded, so nothing that has been tagged as izzy/ed will populate on the list. but I think writer's don't usually think about tagging their fics with the "negatives" as in, you're usually advertising the selling points rather than potential downsides, right?

and you're looking at your fic from the point of view of the person that wrote it. you know how it ends you know the specifics, you have a biased opinion about the degree to which those things feature in your fic. for example, if you write a line about someone getting stabbed and bleeding, but it's very very minor and vague, you might not think to tag it. but if someone specifically searches excluding blood as a tag, it means they really don't want to see that. so you not tagging it means they might see your fic, read and love it, then get triggered by the inclusion of injuries and blood. even though you knew it was no big deal, the character was fine, there was barely a description. but that's just your perspective.

same with the idea of character death. if they get revived or if they come back as a ghost or something, you might not think to tag it because it's not the main point of the fic, it's not a big deal, it gets resolved. but someone who specifically excludes character death doesn't want to read a character dying. no matter the end result.

do you know what I mean? and I think this gets really prevalent specifically for alternate universes, and the specific tagging etiquette for them.

because, from the writer's point of view, it's a fic about them being doctors. or something. and you've written all these thousands of words about hospitals and medicine and stuff, so you tag it alternate universe - doctors. because that's what the fic is about. but you're forgetting that, by virtue of them being doctors in hospitals and texting and answering calls, they're in a modern au. you didn't think that was the main part of the fic, but someone specifically avoiding- or specifically looking for modern au's is shortchanged by your use of only the tag au - doctors. rather than covering the broad genre first.

and I know you're putting your writing out there for free and you don't owe anyone anything, but ao3 is an archive. it's a database. it's free access to information, and being inaccurate in your labeling is an injustice to you, not getting the credit or audience you deserve, and potential readers, reading something they didn't sign up for, or not being able to find something they want.

think of it like a literal library. when you go to the young adult section, you want young adult novels. if a children's book ended up there because the author neglected to market it as a children's book, you'd be pretty annoyed at the organization of the library. because that's not what you were looking for.

so I guess I mean, for all the memes about those giant blocks of text as tags for crossover fics or w/e, please be generous in your tags. there is no algorithm to ao3, there is no word association by the search engine. when I search, or exclude, cats it is only going to comb through and provide, or remove, fics with the tag cats. nothing else. it works like putting things in quotes in google. please tag your fics as literally as possible.

that's it. rant over. thank you :)

#anyway i mean to say that the tags on ao3 arent like little messages that help you figure out whats going on #thats what the description is for #the tags are literal sorting mechanisms that refine genres #when i exclude alternate universe - modern era. it should exclude all au's set in modern time #i shouldnt have to exclude fucking. chefs and doctors and librarians separately #please tag your fucking modern aus #ofmd

[pmwritesandpoems]

A Timeless Hogwarts Legacy: Enchanted to Meet You (1/16)

Fandom: Hogwarts Legacy Main Title: A Timeless Hogwarts Legacy Pairing: Ominis Gaunt/Original Female Character Tags: Romance; Hurt/Comfort; Angst; Fluff; Friendship; Mutual Pining Chapters: 16

Summary: Long graduated and in the cusp of young adulthood, Evelyn Rose, the "Hero of Hogwarts" finds an even harder trial to conquer than defeating evil goblin and protecting unknown dangerous ancient magic, when she sees certain Salazar Slytherin's descendant who she fallen for standing at the altar with someone else. Little did she know, a legacy she gained from Hogwarts will manifest itself even in conditions that make it nearly impossible to exist, and help her.

Notes: I posted this on my AO3. But decided to post this here as well.

This work is fully inspired by Taylor Swift’s new album, Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) AND is my first fanfic for...ever?

Chapter: 1/16 Title: Enchanted to Meet You Word Count: 5,952

Reminder:

I won't mention the main character house, you could choose her house yourself

You could change my original character name with yours, I’ll try my best to not mention her skin, hair, and eye colour so you could match it with your own. 

I  am no expert of the Victorian era, the use of the calendar system, etiquette, and many other things from the said era are changed as I see fit to support the story. Several insertions of modern era culture will be present as well to support the story.

You could also read this on AO3.

I tried my best to write this despite the fact that English is not my first language. I hope you’ll still understand and even have fun reading this!

p.s. please don't hesitate to comment if you'd like!

1. Enchanted to Meet You

Present Time, Spring 1895

Evelyn Rose had no intention of coming in the first place. She dreads the day she received the letter and even tried to burn it as soon as she saw his handwriting on the envelope. But alas, here she is. The cold white marble and green carpet greet her footsteps as she enters the foyer of the grand mansion with her head down. 

“You could at least elevate your chin so that everyone may admire your beauty.” 

Evelyn startles as she hears someone talking beside her all of a sudden. She turns and sees a brown-haired gentleman to her left, who is smiling warmly with the same freckles and bright brown eyes she has known for more than four years. Her shock quickly turns into happiness.

“Sebastian!” She exclaims and smiles at the brunette. “Long time no see, old friend.” 

Oh, how she misses him. It has been a long time since they met in person, with all her duties as the liaison officer for the goblin office in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and his duties as the matron apprentice at St. Mungo’s, they find it hard to even just send owls to each other. Several letters that they had exchanged in the past three years since their graduation are not enough to compensate for her longing for her brother through friendship. It’s also been years since she visited Feldcroft. So, Evelyn follows her whim and hugs him tight, not minding the social etiquette.

“Oof,” Sebastian huffs as he feels Evelyn’s sudden hug, to which he replies happily. With his arm wrapping her like a cocoon, Sebastian says to her hair, “I miss you too, Eve.” Evelyn felt how much he misses him too through their hug. 

After a while, Sebastian begins to move his arms away. “I should let you go now, since people are staring,” he explains.

“They’re probably searching for the rings on our hands with that spectacle.” Evelyn chuckles and reluctantly lets Sebastian go. “Sorry for that,” She says sheepishly, tucking a rogue strand of her hair in.

“No need to be sorry. And they won’t find it since it’s not us who are getting married today.” Sebastian chuckles and teases, “And also, if I my memory doesn't fail me, I have not and have no plans to bind myself to someone till the last of my breath in the near future.”

Evelyn’s heart stops for a second after she hears Sebastian. To be reminded again of where and for what she came here today is rather painful. She takes a deep breath and answers sadly, “Yes, it’s not us.”

“Hey, don’t be so glum.” She feels Sebastian’s hand on her shoulder. He tries to cheer her up. “At least it’s not a bad venue, huh?”

Evelyn sighs and tries to smile as brightly as she can. She looks up and finally appreciates the foyer in its full glory. In awe, she asks, “I thought... Didn’t Ominis say that his family fortune was depleted rather quickly?”

Sebastian shrugs. “Maybe his engagement brings new fortunes to the empty treasury?”

“Well, it’s certainly beautiful.” Evelyn’s eyes scan the foyer with astonishment. It is grand, very grand that Evelyn feels she has been transported to royalty’s castle. The rich sure live in a very different way. The enormous sparkling chandelier above nearly makes her forget the pain. But it all comes back as her gaze moves down and lands on an enormous door. It is made from wood and carved with beautiful snakes and ivy patterns with a familiar family crest in its center.

Evelyn and Ominis were standing on the shore of the black lake. They stood in silence, the gentle ripples of water brushing over their shoes. 

With his delicate skin caressed by the warm sun, Ominis appeared ethereal. She could practically see how beautiful the constellations of beauty marks on his left cheek were, connected by his faintly visible veins, as she stood to his left.  He was both beautiful and terrifying at the same time. The classic traits of Gaunts, enchanting yet dangerous, as Sebastian had said. 

Evelyn broke the silence after she saw Ominis holding something between his right thumb and forefinger. “Such a shiny ring you got there, Ominis.” She said softly.

Ominis’s lips curled in disdain. “More like a bloody ring.”

Evelyn didn’t miss the resentment in Ominis’s voice, but she decided to continue, “Is that yours?”

Ominis sighed, his voice becoming strained in sorrow. “It’s my late aunt’s.”

“Oh…”

Silence came between them once again. Evelyn should have guessed it when she saw the size of the ring. It was too small, even for Ominis’s slender fingers. It could probably only fit on his little finger. 

Ominis probably felt how intense her gaze was since he gave her a clearer view of the ring by moving it to his open left hand. Evelyn smiled and began to try to note all the details of the ring. Silently thanking Ominis’s sensitivity. It was clearly made of gold and had no jewel stones. But it could still be considered a beautiful ring, even in its simplicity. It has an engraving of a crest, which is a shield of scales with two snakes facing each other in its center and what Evelyn assumed to be thorny ivy tendrils on both its sides.

With her curiosity overcoming her guilt, Evelyn finally asked, “Is that your family crest?”

Ominis’s thumb touched the snakes on the ring. “Yes, it is.”

“Does every wizarding family have a family crest?” Evelyn asked in astonishment. In the muggle world, only noble houses wear crests. Perhaps the wizarding one was different? Perhaps everyone could have a crest.

“Most likely just the old ones.” Ominis shrugged. “Old rich ones.”

“Oh…” 

Ominis chuckled at Evelyn’s disappointment. To lighten up the mood, he then jokingly said, “Archaic, pretentious, racist, stick-in-the-mud ones.”

Evelyn giggled. “And your family is one of them?”

“Unfortunately, yes. Mine is one of the oldest ones.”

Evelyn turned herself completely towards the boy. She traced the engraving of the ring on his left open palm between them. “If you don’t mind me asking, what does it mean?”

“It represents everything I despise in myself.” Ominis said bitterly. He closed his palm, blocking Evelyn’s view of the ring. “Unquenched thirst for power and blood purity maniac.”

“Ominis, I—”

“No, I’m glad that you asked.” He cut Evelyn, opened his palm again, and continued sarcastically, “You see, we Gaunts believe that power is everything. Which of course, is perfectly consistent with the concept of blood purity. We believe that being a pureblood means one has a higher position in life than others and wields more power over them. Not to forget, there’s also a special ability that only we have, courtesy of our cunning ancestor, Salazar Slytherin. The ability to speak parseltongue, which you already know, I unfortunately inherited, is like the oil for our already scorching ego.” 

Using his left thumb, he pointed to the snakes in the centre of the ring. "The snakes and scales on the shield signify it. Our noble way of life and the reminder of our great founding father,” He in disgust.

“With our vital role in wizarding society as the direct descendent of one of the most powerful wizards in the world, we have to keep the belief alive and our blood lineage clean," Ominis added. “We must preserve our ancestors' legacies while maintaining our authority over society.

“Like any other old barbaric family in the world, we do it by indoctrinating our children and practising inbreeding. We pride ourselves on how we teach our younglings about blood purity and the dark arts. We did it as soon as they got a wand from Ollivander to ensure that the propaganda was well embedded in their minds. Our method is unique, and no one else with a conscience probably agrees to it. But, it was extremely effective. We force our children to cast the curse they’ve learned on muggles. Killing two birds with one stone, I suppose. Teaching them about our rank in society and the power that comes with it.” He shrugged nonchalantly before he continued.

“The finest aspect is, the younglings didn’t have any choice in the matter. Since we also teach obedience and suppress their free will by making their own father curse them if they don't do as told. Their fathers also cursed them for showing weakness, like crying because they couldn’t bear to hear the screams of tortured souls for example. Screams that could be heard nearly every day in the Gaunt mansion. Especially from the dungeons. It made us Gaunts especially effective in producing a new batch of dark wizards in every generation—an accomplishment we Gaunts are immensely proud of.” Ominis ended with a sarcastic smile that sent shudders through Evelyn’s body. 

“I would be one of them if Aunt Noctua didn’t come to visit every summer.” He spoke again, his voice heavy with loss and despair.

Evelyn was too stunned to speak. Because of what Sebastian had told her, she already understood how horrible the Gaunt were. But listening to Ominis, the one who got through it himself? A hundred times more heartbreaking than it was before. She couldn’t stop herself from imagining how hard it could be for a child to go through what he did. A child was not supposed to get through that in the first place. She would’ve died if she had been in his place.

“Well, that's what the shield and ivy indicated,” Ominis added nonchalantly, perhaps feeling uncomfortable with the silence that had crept in. “It signifies our obligation to safeguard Slytherin's lineage and legacy.”

“I'm sorry,” Evelyn said, trying to keep the tears from welling up in her eyes.

Ominis sighed. “Don't be,” He said softly. “You’ve done nothing wrong.”

"I made you recall something bad about her," Evelyn sniffed. "When today is meant to be the day you honour her memory," her voice cracked as the tears began to pour.

“Hey,” Ominis said, hastily putting the ring in his pocket as he heard Evely’s sob. He then frantically traced his way to Evelyn’s hands and held them tight. “It’s all right,” He said. With a soothing motion, his thumb began to massage her hand. “I was able to appreciate the good memories because of the terrible ones. You reminded me that she was the good in the midst of all the awful things that happened to me as a result of my family. You actually helped me honour her more.”

Evelyn couldn’t help herself. She hugged the boy with all her heart, wishing that her sympathy and condolences were conveyed through the physical touch. She buried her face in his chest, and cried.

Frozen in surprise, it took a while for Ominis to finally begin to hug her back. And when he did, waves of emotions came out of nowhere and flooded his heart. A tear fell, indicating how exhausted he felt from holding it all back. Letting himself finally feel his pain and grief, he hugged Evelyn tighter and cried as well.

“It is stunning. But not my style." Sebastian’s remark about the grandiose room pulls Evelyn back to the present.

She blinks to make the tears in her eyes dissipate. With a tight throat, she smiles at the brunette beside her and responds, “I see.”

“And I see that you’ve found the entrance to the greenhouse,” he continues, giving a knowing look to the glistening tears in her eyes. With an understanding smile, he gives his elbow to her, “May I have the honour to escort the most beautiful lady on this occasion?”

Evelyn begins to smile in earnest and links her hand through his elbow, “You may. But don’t let the bride hear what you just said.” 

With hushed giggles and laughs, she and Sebastian walk hand in hand to the massive door. Evelyn looks in awe as she sees it open on its own with no more than a low creak. It’s been almost five years since she first learned about magic, but it still amazes her every time.

“Was afraid I’d have to open that all on my own. Can’t embarrass myself in front of the lady now, can I?” Sebastian makes a playful remark, brightening up the atmosphere.

Evelyn responds with another joke as they walk through the door frame, “What? You don’t have the strength?” 

The sudden sweet smell of flowers and the warmth of the sun that she feels make her pause, bringing her and Sebastian to a stop. The plants surrounding her and the clear sky that is visible through the glass walls and roof make it feel more like she’s outside and less stuffy than before. She immediately relaxes. With her voice lighter, she continues with a smirk, “I could do that on my own.”

“Oh, I believe that.” Sebastian says. “You did stop the goblin rebellion all by yourself. O'great ancient magic wielder, I never question thy might.” He continues with an exaggerated tone. 

Sebastian’s response brings laughter to Evelyn. “Good. You should.”

Still hand in hand, they continue to walk down the aisle. Anyone who sees them probably believes they are the ones who are going to marry. Sebastian, as the jester he is, realises that and decides to crack another joke at it, which successfully makes Evelyn laugh once more. They step halts when they’re on the third row from the front. 

“Well, this is your seat, O'great ancient magic wielder.” Sebastian exaggerates his tone playfully, unlinks his elbow from Evelyn’s, and bows low.

Evelyn smiles at her friend's antics. “Couldn’t we sit together?”

“I am sorry firecracker, the groom told me in advance that his family had arranged the seat. I got the second row on the left,” Sebastian says, pointing to another bench that is very far away from where they are now.

Disappointment, followed by despair, immediately fills Evelyn’s chest. She will be alone, with Merlin-knows-who beside her, without any support, while watching the love of her life bind himself for eternity with someone else. 

The forlorn she feels can probably be seen clearly on her face, since Sebastian quickly touches her shoulder and says in a soft tone, “Hey, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Don’t be so glum.”  He rubs her shoulder, “We could waste ourselves away in sadness later at night, while also depleting the Gaunt’s liquor stash. I bet they have the best firewhiskey with their newly acquired fortune.” With his eyes looking straight into Evelyn's, he smiles, “Let's just try to be happy for him this afternoon.”

Evelyn shakes her head. “Yes, yes. You’re right.” She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. As she opens her eyes again, she notices that the greenhouse is still practically empty. An idea comes to her mind. “There’s almost no one here but us and the house elves. Maybe you could just sit beside me. We might just say that this is the arranged seat.”

“Eve…” Sebastian chastises her.

Evelyn grabs Sebastian's right hand and holds it tight with both of her own. Desperately, she begs, “Please, I don’t know if I could make it through alone.”

"Fine," Sebastian says, seeing Evelyn's begging gaze. “I am already knee-deep in trouble, might as well dive in.” He then takes a seat on the bench, leaving a spot at the end for Evelyn.

She smiles gratefully at the brunette and takes the empty seat beside him. They are currently seated on the third-row bench on the right side, with Evelyn seated right next to the aisle. 

After feeling comfortable enough, Evelyn shifts her sight to the front. Her view of the arch is as clear as crystal. She notices how beautiful the arch of white flowers is, especially with the decorations beside and behind it, which make it appear like something out of a fairytale. It’s so beautiful that it becomes nauseating when she remembers that it will be the place, where the love of her life makes a lifetime vow with someone else, in a few minutes from now. And she will be watching it.

“I’m about to throw up.”

“Please don’t,” Sebastian rolls his eyes. “I didn’t bring any bags with me.”

“I could just puke at you.” 

“And ruin this crisp suit I ironed for three hours?” Sebastian says in offence.

In disbelief, Evelyn says, “You ironed your suit for three hours?”

“It’s a meticulous process,” Sebastian huffs, justifying his collar and blowing off imaginary dust on his shoulder. “And the result did not disappoint. You can be honest. I look handsome.” He boasts.

Now it’s Evelyn’s turn to roll her eyes. Ignoring the flaunting brunette beside her, Evelyn focuses on trying to contain her nausea. She closes her eyes and counts to eighteen.

One…

“I used to count to eighteen,” Evelyn said to the boy who was sitting on her right. They were both sitting on the edge of the upper astronomy tower, just behind the railing with their feet dangling.

“Why?”

Still closing her eyes, she answered the boy, “Well, my birthday is on the eighteenth of November, my house number is eighteen, and the legal age is eighteen. I guess I just like eighteen.”

Silence came until the boy spoke timidly, “My birthday is on the eighteenth too. The eighteenth of January.”

Opening her eyes in shock, Evelyn turned her head to the right all of a sudden, accidentally whipping the poor boy’s face with her hair, “Hey, it is today!” 

She then grimaced when she saw the boy rubbing his cheeks, “Oh Merlin, I’m so sorry!” Her right hand cupped his left cheek, trying to soothe the pain she caused. With her focus only on the handsome face in front of her, Evelyn didn’t even realise she kept her hands on his cheek longer than she should. A soft smile bloomed in her face as she gazed at his face—a smile that, sadly, he would never see. 

“Happy birthday, Ominis.” She continued to rub his left cheek. “I’m sorry I didn’t congratulate you sooner.” 

She felt him smile and heard his shy voice in response, “Thank you. And It’s okay. There aren’t many who know anyway.”

Then, realisation came to Evelyn like a graphorn. She quickly dropped her hand from his cheek and put it above her lap, her head down with shame at her own behaviour—which she actually didn’t regret a bit. “I really am sorry.” She apologised again for being late to congratulate him and also, for her last behaviour. Thank Merlin he couldn’t see her right now. Her cheek was probably as red as a tomato. “You’ve been my friend for more than half a year, and I never asked. Sebastian has most likely prepared your present from a month ago and ready to hand it to you at breakfast later.” 

“Well, I wouldn’t have known, since I am currently distancing myself from him right now. As you know, I’m still trying to process all the feelings from…”

Evelyn could feel the sadness herself and didn’t need any more explanation. “Yeah, me too.” She sighed and took a deep breath. “From now on, I will be the first person who congratulates you every year.” She promised. 

“I would like that. If it doesn’t bother you.” Ominis answered timidly. Evelyn couldn’t help but smile as she saw his hopeful face.

“It doesn’t. I’d be happy too,” She said. Silence came again between them until Evelyn groaned, “Ugh, but I still don’t have any presents for you right now!”

“It really is okay, Eve,” Ominis said gently without any hint of disappointment.

“But I wanted to give you one!” She protested. Frustration could be heard as she continued, “And just my luck, I already promised Poppy I would help her after class this afternoon! I can’t go to Hogsmeade without breaking the curfew.” She sighed and began to sway her dangling feet back and forth, thinking hard, until suddenly... she jumped! 

Her mind lit up, she stood straight from her previous place at the edge of the astronomy observation deck. “But I still can go and come back in time if I use the floo powder and run as fast as I can after it!” She exclaimed and then started to rapidly question the startled boy beside her, “Ominis, what do you want? A cake? A book? THE new book of the Nightingale collection? Oh! You probably want something sweet. How about your favourite Honeydukes fudge? I could go to the—”

Evelyn stopped as she felt a hand holding her right arm. The hand then moved down carefully as if trying to find something. It stopped when it found Evelyn’s right hand and clasped it tenderly.  Evelyn was dazed, her mind still comprehending what had just happened. THAT was out of the blue. She had reason to cup his cheek and quickly withdrew her hand. But THIS? 

She heard Ominis chuckle and say, “I am grateful that you’re willing to break the curfew for me. But…” He trailed off as he pulled her back down. She followed the tug, her gaze focused only on their intertwined hands, and sat in her previous place beside him. “I have a better idea,” he continued.

“Wh-what?” Evelyn stuttered as she still felt his hand holding hers even after she sat. His rather rough but warm hands enveloped hers. Her face couldn’t be more red.

“Let me use your technique to calm down.”

After hearing his request, Evelyn's gaze moved to his face, just to see a bright smile adorn it. That caused her mind to become blank. “Huh?” 

Ominis chuckled. “Would you mind if I used your count to eighteen technique whenever I needed to calm myself down? As my birthday gift?”

“W-Why?” Evelyn asked in confusion. She really didn’t have a single idea why he preferred such a gift.

“I just like eighteen.” He shrugged and then rubbed his thumb on her hand, “Like you.”

Evelyn's brain refused to work as she felt his soothing touch, “Uh...huh?” 

“O…kay?” 

Seeing Ominis’s eyebrow raised with concern after he heard her dumb response woke her dead brain. Clearing her throat, and trying as best as she could to not think about their still entwined hands, Evelyn answered with more certainty, “Okay. I wouldn’t mind.”

“Good.” He smiled. “If I may suggest, you probably should start to count now. I could feel and hear your heartbeat accelerating at an alarming pace.” He chuckled. “I can’t have you become brain-dead every time I do this.” Ominis raised their clasped hands.

Evelyn laughed out loud, and he quickly joined. Swaying her dangling feet back and forth, she felt her heart full as the wind breezed through her hair softly, her hand still holding his.

Seventeen…

Eighteen.

A pretty annoying complaint from her left side makes Evelyn open her eyes. It turns out the source is an old lady, whose seat—from what Evelyn can gather from her seemingly never-ending complaints—should have been the one Sebastian is currently occupying. The old lady continues to show frustration as Sebastian tries to explain how he got the different instructions when he entered the greenhouse—which obviously is a lie—and insists on sitting beside Evelyn. 

“I am sorry madam, but I just got the instruction to sit here. I can’t move freely since I’m afraid it would insult the host.” Sebastian says politely.

Out of the blue, the old lady opens her folding fan with such force. Evelyn’s eyes widen in surprise. She never thought a fan could be so threatening. The old lady can probably cut through anything by doing that. Shuddering, Evelyn tries as best as she can to avoid the fan and tries to protect herself with her purse.

 “Well, I was instructed to sit here as well!” The old lady says, fanning herself in annoyance. “Who are you, young man? And who told you to sit here?!” 

Still in a polite tone, Sebastian answers, “I was supposed to sit beside Phineas Nigellus Black.” He then pulls a long face, “But the butler suddenly told me that my seat had been moved here.”

“Phineas?”

He nods, “Yes, madam. The butler said he’s sorry for the inconvenience and asked me to relay that the reason for the absurd last-minute change is because Profes-uh, I mean, Mr. Black himself, asked to sit beside you.”

Smooth Sebastian, smooth.

“Phineas Nigellus Black asked to be seated beside me?” The old lady responds in a surprised tone.

“Yes, madam.”

“Hmph. Finally. He should have done this since the beginning.” The old lady then huffs and closes her fan. “Well, then. Farewell, young man.”

If Evelyn could, she would applaud Sebastian’s successful trick as hard as she could. She puts her purse back on her lap as the old lady begins to walk away. She then sees the old lady take her ‘designated’ place and open her fan with such force once again. Evelyn flinches at the sound. 

Shaking her head in disbelief, Evelyn turns and asks the scoundrel beside her, “Seriously, Professor Black? Our Headmaster Black?”

“Yes, I noticed the Black family crest brooch on her sash.” Sebastian points to the old woman again. “It is pure luck that I was supposed to sit beside Professor Black in the first place and she wanted to sit beside him.”

Evelyn smirks, “Pure luck indeed.”

In offence, Sebastian exclaims, “Hey! My quick thinking saved you from hearing her complaints and nonsense for the whole event.” He narrows his eyes at Evelyn, “You should be grateful.”

Evelyn decides to tease him more, “Yeah, and I saved you from sitting awkwardly beside our beloved headmaster for at least one hour.”

“I guess we’re even then.” Sebastian shrugs and smiles.

The steps and murmurs of people who start to come into the greenhouse and sit in their own places distract Evelyn from continuing her teasing. She realises that the Gaunt really invites many ‘important’ families, as she sees the ladies and gentlemen wearing sashes and their house crest pins proudly with their bejewelled gowns and suits that are probably worth more than what Evelyn makes for a year. She then sees her simple dark gown.

Refusing to feel the creeping insecurity, Evelyn decides not to think about it and continues to tease Sebastian. She whispers as everyone begins to quiet down, “You should research how you can have so much luck in your life. With everything that’s already happened, you could be the embodiment of liquid luck.” She gasps exaggeratingly, “Or... Did you have an endless stash of it?” And continues, “Well, well, well, Mr. Sallow. Why didn’t you tell—”

She stops all of sudden when she hears the soft clinks of the piano. She turns her head to the enormous door behind her, which opens slowly.

Sebastian also turns and then comments proudly, “Here comes the groom.” 

Evelyn’s mind goes blank as she sees him standing under the door frame. He seems ethereal, standing alone with the lights surrounding him like a halo. No words could fathom how stunning he is. His black suit frames his tall, lean body, and accentuates his broad shoulders perfectly. His neatly styled blond hair draws attention to his cheekbones, allowing his constellation of beauty marks to show through. Making him even more beautiful than before. 

And his eyes—those pale blue eyes that Evelyn desperately wants to forget—still make her feel butterflies when she sees them. It is definitely safe to say that Ominis is still as attractive as he was when they first interacted. Or even more.

She gulps and whispers, “Here he comes…”

Autumn 1890

Evelyn gulped and whispered, “Here he comes…” This was certainly not how she imagined her first conversation with the Slytherin boy to be.

“You’re the new fifth year. Did you just come from the Undercroft?! How did you get in there?!”

Evelyn flinched at his high tone. It took a while before Evelyn could answer him. “That…room’s called, ‘the Undercroft?’ Ah…Well…I was exploring and suddenly found myself in a strange passageway—”

“Don’t lie to me. No one ‘stumbles’ upon that room. Sebastian told you, didn’t he?”

Evelyn sighed. So much for lying. 

Ominis’s voice got sharper than it was before, “You breathe a word about this place to anyone, and not even your precious Professor Fig will be able to help you.” 

Evelyn’s eyebrow shot up when she heard the threat. Is the room that secret?

“My father is friends with the Headmaster.” He boasted. “I’m not afraid to exploit that connection if, I, need to.”

Evelyn took a deep breath and answered honestly, with the hope that she didn’t break his and Sebastian’s friendship or her own chance to be his friend over this incident. “Trust me, Ominis. I won’t say a word. And Sebastian is a good friend. You shouldn’t immediately assume the worst of him.”

High in offence, Ominis responded, “I don’t need you to tell me about my oldest friend! Thank you very much.”

Evelyn panicked, “Ominis, I just meant—”

“I know what you meant.” Ominis cut her off with a sharp tone. “Sebastian gets himself in enough trouble. He doesn’t need your help.” With that, Ominis walked away to the Undercroft entrance and murmured, “Sebastian is going to get an earful about this.”

Evelyn snorted all of sudden, hearing his plan to scold the brunette Slytherin was too much.

Ominis steps halted and turned his body towards her again, “Excuse me?!”

Hearing his insulted tone stopped Evelyn’s giggle for a moment. “It’s just—it’s funny.” She giggled a bit again. “I imagined how you would scold him, probably all afternoon, like a doting mother to her son.” 

Ominis looked dumbstruck at the giggling girl before him.

Evelyn then took a deep breath to calm herself, “I’m sorry, it’s just too funny.”

“Well, I am not amused,” Ominis said while crossing his hands in front of him.

“I never thought you were the doting mother of the relationship. It is funny,” Evelyn smiled softly. Even in anger, Evelyn still found the boy fascinating. “But also endearing.” 

The silence from flabbergasted Slytherin made her continue, “Which is another reason as to why I wanted to introduce myself to you since I first saw you at Charms.”

“You—“

“Yeah, but I never got to since Professor Ronen called me out of the blue when I tried to join your conversation with Sebastian about using accio on human beings.” Evelyn shrugged, “He gave me a lecture about how I am a special case as I started at Hogwarts as a fifth-year student and even promised to help me catch up with the rest of the class by giving me a ton of assignments! Can you believe that?” She ended with disbelief.

Evelyn didn’t give Ominis the opportunity to respond and continued to rant, “I am already having a hard time processing the ‘magic exists and you just don't know it cause you’re apparently a muggle’ shocking revelation! And don’t forget about the an—” Evelyn stopped herself as she realised she was beginning to spill all her secrets to him. To the boy who was threatening her just a minute ago.

“About the what?”

“Uh…I said too much.” Trying to move the conversation to another topic, she continued, “Anyway, I think you are right. We couldn’t use the summoning charm on human beings and since we would be doing it to their clothes instead.”

Ominis lifted his chin up, “Hmph. Of course I’m right.”

“And I also tried to introduce myself to you at the Defence Against the Dark Arts class. But, Professor Hecat also called me before I could catch up with you. You were gone when I finished talking with her. And don’t get me started on Herbology. Professor Garlick talked about how I should enjoy herbology as much as she did since I have a plant name as my last name, just like her.” Evelyn shuddered before continuing.

“Well, it is a fun class, but I am a bit bothered by the carnivorous plants such as the chomping cabbage. I prefer my vegetables to be as still and normal as possible. Well, normal in a muggle way.” She chuckled. “Professor Garlick talked and talked and talked and by the time she finished, I was the only one in class, besides her of course. And…the plants.

At potions, you looked so disappointed with your wiggenweld potion that I tried to cheer you up. But, again, someone beat me. Sebastian started to pull you out before I finally had the courage to do it. And I didn’t see you at flying class. Well, it was disappointing, but I guess that cannot be helped because of your…” Evelyn trailed off as her gaze moved to Omini’s eyes.

“Of my…what?”

She cleared her throat and said, “Your lifetime challenge.”

One of Ominis’s eyebrow perked up. “Well, that's a new perspective on my blindness.” 

Evelyn felt panic creep up. She was afraid that she had insulted him again. Her fear proved to be false when Ominis continued, “Although, I tried flying once. Since it was a mandatory class for first years.” He shrugged. “It was not too hard, I managed to lift off and land successfully on my first try.”

Astonished, Evelyn could only say, “Wow...”

Ominis chuckled and sarcastically said, “Yeah, ‘wow’ indeed.” He continued, “But I found that it was not my what I want to pursue. So, I didn’t attend the class anymore in my second year and beyond.”

Evelyn's brows furrowed, “I didn’t mean that I don’t believe you. It’s just…It’s a shame I couldn’t see you show off your skill on a broom.”

“Maybe you could,” Ominis shrugged. “If we do, become acquaintances. As I see that you desperately wanted us to become one, even though I cannot fathom a single reason why.”

Evelyn felt her blood creeping up to her cheek, “Y-yeah, it would be nice. To be acquainted with you.”

Ominis just smiled at her in response. And by merlin’s sake she felt her stomach flip all the sudden. She was only curious about his wand in the first place. There’s no indication that her relationship with him would be a stomach flipping and heart fluttering event! No, this is probably just a fluke.

But Evelyn’s eyes couldn’t go away from his smiling face. She couldn’t help admiring how his hair was so neat that it made him look like royalty. How she realised that he has a lot of beauty marks, especially on his left cheek. And how his eyes…his pale blue eyes that was like the misty morning on the beach.

“Let's start over,” Ominis said, waking Evelyn from her reverie. He then straightened his posture and formally asked, “Ms. Evelyn Rose, is it?”

Evelyn smiled and in a rush of courage, decided to tease him for his formality. With a pompous tone, she answered, “Yes. I am Evelyn Rose, the new fifth year student who made quite an entrance and became the talk of the school ever since.”

“Tone down your inflated ego a bit, Ms. Rose,” Ominis said with a chuckle. He then bowed his head a little, “Ominis Gaunt.”

“Enchanted to finally meet you, Mr. Gaunt.” Evelyn said with a smile.

“Enchanted to meet you too as well, Ms. Rose.” Ominis responded. Comforting silence accompanied them as they smiled at each other. Until Ominis cheekily continued, “Although, I must remind you again to not. Tell. Anyone. About the secret place you so stumble upon yourself.” 

Evelyn laughed. She hoped that this interaction was the very first page, not where her story with him line ends.

#hogwarts legacy #ominis gaunt #ominis x you #hogwarts legacy ominis #sebastian sallow #ominis x y/n #ominis x reader #ominis x oc #wizarding world #hogwarts legacy mc #hogwarts legacy fanfiction #hogwarts legacy fanfic #hogwarts legacy fic #fanfic #fanfiction #ao3 #archive of our own #ominis x mc #ominis imagine #ominis fic #ominis gaunt x mc #ominis gaunt x reader #ominis gaunt x you #ominis gaunt x f!reader #ominis gaunt x f!mc #ominis gaunt x oc #a timeless hogwarts legacy

[frumfrumfroo]

(Sorry if I am belabouring the point, so feel free to ignore this ask) no yeah I'm definitely the same way and you're never wrong for having personal reasons not getting into something immediately - I think some of the fandom anxiety comes from the fact that things get cancelled so quickly without sufficient viewership (or even with sufficient viewership, which is a whole other nut). It puts a weird amount of onus of a show's success on the fandom, which is even stranger in the time of broken trust and active resentment of audiences/audience engagement with a text/trying to 'outsmart' us. But ultimately there is something severely rotting at the root that I don't think we have any control over.

And yeah the popular perception of TD season 1 is that it's grimdark because its protagonist is deeply wounded and many a fanboy is butthurt about its celebration of redemption. It's an incredibly, incredibly dark show, and so that tragic beginning is hard for a lot of people to get past, I think, when it's not the final conclusive thematic remark*. I would say that Dark is similar to this if you want an idea of the tone. Somehow we have ended up where the children's modern day fairytale is grimdark and nihilistic and shows inured in tragedy are idealistic and redemptive.

Anyway, very thankful for your blog in keeping me sane in the time of psychedelic narrative rules, and being Principled, because sometimes I feel like a stick in the mud lol.

And the asterisk is there up above because I have heard this exact description of a popular book series (A Song of Ice and Fire) and I disagree with this conclusion, partly because the series is unfinished, partly because I think the fanbase on Tumblr is overly optimistic, and also because TD has an absolute conclusion which is idealistic. So I just want to note this so it doesn't seem like I'm misrepresenting or overstating the show lololol.

It's also extremely unsavoury the way big name fans and the former twitter cabal, wherever that hangs out now, will take advantage of this anxiety and use it as a bludgeon to make a captive audience feel like they have some 'duty' to support the financial success of giant evil corporations. Giving Disney more money and bullying people for not giving Disney more money is not a moral victory, I think we should all be able to agree. Abusing calls to support artists by co-opting them into the service of mindless consumption of branded refuse is fairly repugnant. Saying 'vote with your dollars' between a choice of Disney Extruded Movie Product A, B, or C is both hilarious and sad.

eg: that tie-in comic, I think it was the TLJ one? The one with the terrible art. It's a commissioned product, the artist was paid once and as little as possible to create it for solely marketing purposes. Applying fandom etiquette to it or saying it should not be criticised because of high turnover times is frankly fucking ridiculous. It's a professional commissioned product they were selling for profit. They had all the time and all the money in the world, there's no excuse for it to be awful and absolutely no one should have felt obligated to buy it or keep quiet about how bad it was. Maybe the artist could have done better under better working conditions, but that doesn't make the actual product we're being asked to purchase acceptable. Giving Disney your money is not going to improve those conditions and it's not going to help that artist.

The same with the tros defenders saying they tried therefore you can't criticise them. A) they did not try B) this was not a sincere piece of art and pretending otherwise is just insulting and C) it's a corporate product made by a near-monopoly who employed alleged professionals. Nothing could possibly be more fair game for harsh criticism.

Ultimately putting this onus on fandom of you must throw your money away on this thing or be a free shill for this brand or maybe they'll stop throwing us any crumbs... like it's debasement. Given all the many recent examples of how public support doesn't matter unless it's that first weekend a show drops on a streaming platform or the opening box office, how being the 'wrong' audience makes you irrelevant no matter how many of you there are, how even very successful shows are dropped after two seasons because producers don't want to pay actors, etc. etc. it's even more silly. We should be demanding better, not propping up this nonsense. Creative people are being profoundly fucked over by this system and are often still fucked even if they make something successful.

If people want to support artists, buy independent and small label media. Go see original, mid-budget movies at the cinema (if you live in a city where you have any chance of one playing, that is).

And see, I have no problem with darkness, angst, and tragedy if I know it's going somewhere positive. Having to really go through it can make the journey and the ultimate conclusion feel even more rewarding. As long as it's not angst for angst's sake, but is doing something meaningful and necessary, it only enriches the hope at the foundation of redemption or recovery stories.

Idealism is brave, challenging, and requires sincerity. When the modern fairy tales are being produced in cynicism and by committee to meet a quota for the shareholders...

Thank-you ❤️

[fkevin073]

HIIIII

So if u ever decide to write anything hotd in the future, I request that it be a rhaenicent fic lol. You're such an amazing writer and I think you would do a phenomenal job but this is just a request and I totally get if ur hesitant to write any hotd fics in the future because of the comments :(. Im just mad and sad that a bunch of rude, entitled ppl ruined ur day and derived the rest of us of any future hotd fanfictions from u.

ahh this is really kind! it really sucks that this seems to be happening to so many people. obviously I can't speak for other people's experiences, but the fact it's happening on such a wide range scale shows that hotd is a super toxic fandom or that there's an increasing amount of users on ao3 that don't know ao3 etiquette. I'm thinking both is very likely.

but funnily enough, I am planning on writing some rhaenicent fics if I can! I love them so much. I have a modern au one shot that's pretty early in the works, and there's another idea I have where rhaenyra hears about Harwin's death before she leaves for dragon stone and her and alicent reconcile then.

thanks so much for reading! ♥️

[ao3feedzukka-blog]

Pleasant company

https://archiveofourown.org/works/43314870 by Anonymous Zuko and Sokka meet up for a hook up. That's legit it people that's the whole fic. Don't ask me what this is, I just had a urge and I needed to get it out of my system Words: 7871, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: Avatar: The Last Airbender Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Categories: M/M Characters: Zuko (Avatar), Sokka (Avatar) Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar) Additional Tags: Hook-Up, Rimming, Blow Jobs, Service Top Sokka (Avatar), Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, College, Enthusiastic Consent, good hoop-up etiquette, how is that not a tag yet, Dirty Talk, Sokka has a filthy mouth, Fluff and Smut, seriously this is extremely soft and slutty, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot November 28, 2022 at 03:38PM

#IFTTT #Zukka #AO3Feed Zukka #Sokka/Zuko

[therinde-dreams]

Hi ! I have a question about Chinese name re:your last post - I don't understand Tumblr etiquette, so feel free to ignore this, but this way felt less demanding that replying to your post directly (somehow...?) ...

I was just wandering how Lan Wangji's and Jin Zixuan's mothers fit into this ? They either had the same name before marriage or changed... I think I saw somewhere that a spouse can (/has to ?) change their name if the other family is a lot more powerful - which could explain Madam Jin, but leave the question for Madam Lan ; if Wei Wuxian get to keep his name, why not her? Maybe Madam Jin and Madam Lan are only named thus in the fandom though...

Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask, this has been bothering me for a while... If you have an answer or any directions to a more appropriate place to ask, I would be thankful !

So I've never encountered that claim about changing names if the other spouse is very powerful, but also, I am not well-versed on the surname customs of the historical nobility, but imo it doesn't seem that likely.

Madam Jin and Madam Lan being called Madam Jin and Madam Lan - yeah, that's correct, but also the translation of 夫人 furen is a little wonky so I see the confusion.

夫人furen/Madam can also be translated as Mrs or (specifically married) Lady. It is essentially a fancy, archaic version of Mrs with the prestige of a noble title, and their actual/birth names are never given. If it helps, switch Madam to Lady and it makes more sense.

I'm really not 100% on board with "Madam" as a translation because of exactly how it implies that the surname is the woman's maiden name, but I'm also not 100% on board with several other translation choices. 😅 imo 夫人 furen should be translated as Lady, 姑娘 guniang as Maiden, and just ignore the slight English weirdness. Maid Marian is a thing, why not Maiden Jiang and Maiden Wen?

Anyway, in a modern setting Madam Jin and Madam Lan would be called Mrs Jin or Mrs Lan, but again, it's not technically their official names. Like how we might refer to Jiang Yanli as "Zixuan's wife" or "Rulan's mum", but obviously that's not actually her name.

It's Yu Ziyuan, or Madam Yu, who's fucking weird - and probably deliberately, because god damn, that is a miserable-ass marriage.

(On a side note, I'm genuinely surprised that Jiang Fengmian didn't divorce her and/or take a bunch of concubines, hang out with and conceive his heirs with them, and call it a day. If she expressed jealousy - well, she just gave him virtually indisputable grounds to divorce her anyway, and he'd keep any kids they have, so 🤷🏻‍♀️)

#mdzs #cql #mo dao zu shi #madam jin #madam lan #madam yu #yu ziyuan #grandmaster of demonic cultivation #grandmaster of demonic arts

[andreyahalms]

Wanted to make another post for FF Writer Appreciation Day, but rl got in the way. So here it is, finally.

Last year, I'd written a Hashimada time-travel fix-it (sort of) called Chameleon White. This post is about the fic which was so beautiful that it made me go, "Fuck canon, Madara deserved a better peace, and I must write it for him."

The story is called A FOREST ON FIRE - How The Relationship Between Senju Hashirama And Uchiha Madara Shaped The Modern World by @awfulloneliness (i hope i tagged the right blog)

Gushing under the cut.

God, where do I even begin with this. It's a canon-compliant fic written in the form of a historical biography and executed so, so well. Not only is it canon-compliant, it manages to balance the realistic and the dramatic beautifully. I remember finishing this for the first time, and I was like holy shit. What the fuck did I just read. I felt everything and nothing. Deeply depressed and extremely fulfilled all at once. It was wonderful. It was horrible. It hurt me, and I genuinely haven't read too many canon-compliant fics ever since because whenever I do, I remember this fic and I get sad again.

Because wow. Hashirama and Madara’s relationship, their individual voices, their relationships with other people in their time, how it shapes modern history -- is discussed so well. It's packed with information and the most deliciously dramatic headcanons, and every word of every sentence has purpose. Just like a scholarly piece of writing, but way more immersive. And this line in particular?

Uchiha Madara left Konoha because, even though Senju Hashirama loved him, Hashirama loved Konoha more.

*chef's kiss*

I've been reading fanfiction across multiple fandoms for nearly a decade now, and obviously, most of the pieces I've read have been dulled by memory. But I don't think this story will be one of those. Maybe I'll forget the actual plot points, yeah, but the way it made me feel is something that will remain.

Also, @awfulloneliness - if you're reading this, I wanted to put AFOF in that field on AO3 where you can indicate fics that've inspired you, but I wasn't sure what the etiquette was and just thinking about it gave me anxiety. Months later, I was finally gathered courage, and I was wondering if I could do it now?

#hashimada #fic rec

[qqueenofhades]

Hi! I need fic etiquette advice. I've written fic for a long time but only recently started putting it on AO3. I am a scholar, and I write fic to relax, and I often write for corny fandoms, so I don't do research because it's supposed to be fun, and I don't need more stress in my sad life. But is it bad to not research? I love the research that is visible in your fics, but I think I would stop writing if I had to look up, for example, UK dialects for all my fics set in the UK, and it triggers my intense anxiety about fucking it up. I just don't want to be rude, so I put a disclaimer at the beginning about how I'm American. Is that good enough? This is very clearly an anxiety ask lol help

Aha, high five for "scholar/academic who writes fic to relax," since I'm also in that camp. Likewise (sad) high five for "intense anxiety about fucking up by somehow not researching enough," because that's basically our whole life, isn't it? So yes. I feel you. I feel you hard.

As for fic research: I sometimes get lovely comments on my fics about how I must have researched for hours or even weeks/months, and I always feel somewhat bad about being like "well, lol, yes, I did Wikipedia and Google a few things, but it's probably not as nearly much as you think." There are cases where I did do a shit-ton of specific and extensive research, such as my Swan and Crossbones series, which is an OUAT/Black Sails duology set in the historical 18th century/Golden Age of Piracy/Age of Sail. Then I really did spend hours on extremely obscure websites/online historical archives, and likewise for my Timeless All Souls AU trilogy, I did some extra reading on the Elizabethan period. But that's just because I am the kind of person who desperately needs authentic trivia and for my facts/scene-setting/world-building details to be correct (see: intense anxiety about fucking up). And when I am interested enough to write a fic using a particular place/time/scenario as a setting, I usually already know enough about it that it doesn't take long to plug in said details.

Once again, however, I stress that this is just how my personal writing process/brain works, and if it would ruin your enjoyment and escapism to stop for long periods to look these things up, and/or break your writing flow: you're still not obliged to do that. Fanfic is written by amateurs working for free -- and not "amateur" in the disparaging connotation of being "bad," since a lot of fanfic writers blow professional TV writers out of the water, but meaning someone who does it simply for passion, rather than for pay. The modern English word "amateur" comes pretty directly from the Latin "amator," or "lover." When you're an amateur, you're doing something because you love it and not because you expect to get any kind of money or compensation out of it. You are voluntarily spending your own free time to write stories and post them, and you honestly do not owe your readers anything, aside from what you choose to give them. If you're putting a disclaimer at the start of your fics that you're American, and then making at least a decent effort, that's perfectly fine.

Obviously, if you're writing about certain characters or storylines, you have a basic duty to be respectful and produce the kind of fan content you want to see in the world, but -- although it may not feel like it in this hypercritical online environment -- it's better to make a genuine effort, even if you get some minor things wrong, than to be so obsessed with every tiny little detail that you never post at all for fear of being dogpiled by the purity police. Those people do exist, they will target you from time to time, and it absolutely sucks. But as I have said before in answers to other asks, most fanfic writers/readers know that they shouldn't leave the kind of comment they wouldn't want to get themselves, and that unless the author has explicitly asked for constructive criticism, it's a dick move to offer it under the guise of being "helpful." This isn't an MFA writing seminar or other place where you expect to receive technical feedback by the dictates of the structure. We're just writing self-indulgent stories about wanting some fictional idiots to kiss (or whatever we want to do to them, lmao). This is not the forum where you should roll up with your red pen and lists of nitpicks. If you don't like a fic, the back button exists. Use it.

To summarise, since this is getting long: you are under absolutely no obligation to put any more effort into your own fics than you want to, and if you want to write them as escapism from your stressful real life and without having to get bogged down in minutiae: valid! Really valid! Entirely valid! If you won't like your own work without doing at least some research, then do as much as you would like so that you can feel unambiguously proud of the result. (That is, as much as any of us feel proud of our own work, lol.) If you know that you should probably at least skim Wikipedia on a particular topic, that's pretty easy to do, and it can be enjoyable to go down a rabbit hole that is purely from fun and not for academic work. That's easy to do without breaking your flow, and you can pick up new details that can influence your plot or characters in both fun and realistic ways, so hey, bonus!

Anyway. Writing is hard. Real life sucks. Just have fun and do your best. Find the balance that works for you, which absolutely does not have to be like mine or anyone else's, and see how it goes. <3

#anonymous #ask #writing advice

[concubuck]

// Opinion time! What sorts of RP trends do you wish there was more of? Vague question, open to interpretation. (e.x. this could be anything from really enjoying 'group' interactions like mass dash commentary, to wishing a specific etiquette would become popular, to liking designated 'days' like Sinday, etc.) (xoxo alexamun)

*rubs hands together*

- I think @ing who you're talking about with dash commentary should be mandatory. (Or saying in the tags, or linking the post, etc.) Sometimes dash commentary will be like "she quietly listens to the conversation with great interest..." and it's like, which? Which conversation? There's five.

Since I mentioned this a few weeks ago, a lot of folks in my immediate RP circle started doing this; I think the practice deserves to be continued and expanded.

- If anons make a comment or ask a question, and the blog asks them a follow-up question in their response (especially if it's a question for clarity), the anon should be legally required to come back and answer it. Listen this is just. This is just a personal pet peeve. If I ask an anon a question and they don't reply I'm spending the next two days watching my inbox hopefully.

- I'm not gonna let go of my campaign to dedicate each day of the week to a different sin.

I'm gonna mention a couple things I saw happen in old fandoms that don't seem to happen here but that I think would be neat:

- Mass AU magic!anons: dozens of blogs would get an ask a few weeks early like "Magic anon: from July 1-7 (or whatever) your muse is a dragon (or a god, or a kindergartener, etc)! Forward this to whoever you want, or send it as an ask to yourself if you see and want to participate, and tag your posts #BigFriggenDragonAU2022 so everyone can see who's participating!" Everyone would come up with their headcanons, then do that for a week.

Sometimes I see folks go "I'd love an AU where..." and they come up with a side verse, but it gets very little interaction because they're the only one playing in that verse. Mass AU m!as are fun ways to get a bunch of people briefly involved in an AU they wouldn't otherwise do.

- Transformers RP had "Shatterdays" (named for a TF comic called "Shattered Glass": an AU where the heroes are evil, the villains are good, and everyone's personality is reversed): we made Shattered Glass AU versions of our muses, and used them (irregularly lol) on Saturdays. A similar once-a-week AU would be fun. The 2P concept is widespread enough in fandom that you could easily go "make a 2P version of your muse to play on 2P Tuesdays" or we could do "once a week we imagine our characters are alive in the modern world," etc. Any flexible AU with broad mass appeal would work.

- Greeter posts: making a post @ing a new follower just to go "hello!" in character. I think some folks still do them but it's less frequent than it used to be, to such an extent that I'd feel nervous about starting up the practice out of fear that it'd scare anxious muns that weren't expecting to get "you just followed this blog!!" broadcasted to the whole dash. But they're very helpful ice breakers.

#furbyorganist #ask #meme #ooc

[pembroke]

Hi! I'm new to the HBO war fandom and I'm trying to figure out how to read Tired and Wired-if it's still posted anywhere or if there's anywhere I can ask the author about getting a copy :) I know it's probably weird to ask you but it seems like you might know her? And normally I'm not this creepy and obsessive BUT I JUST REALLY WANT TO READ THIS FIC OMG. And I don't know what the etiquette is for asking/communicating about this but my email is maddreamgurl @ verizon. net (1)

(2) AND I JUST REALLY WANNA KNOW. Like I uncharacteristically spent two whole days combing the internet for it level of desperate. I know this is probably weird, sorry!

ahh hello anon! i’m glad you’re getting into the hbo war trilogy, those shows are really unlike anything else!!

i do in fact know the author of TaW pretty well and have for years, but i’m afraid that fic was taken offline by her a long time ago and seems unlikely that she’d ever make it available again. i’m really sorry, anon, but now i think it only exists in the hardcopies a handful of us ordered way back in its heyday

instead, might i suggest the hbo war panfandom modern au? both the TaW author and i adore this series so hopefully it can tide you over in the meantime!

#Anonymous

[ao3feed-throbb]

don't you want a life like we saw on the picture show?

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2DrE65S

by janie_tangerine

“Does it console you if I tell you that my first gig was me playing the son of some crook because someone in production looked me up and figured that if my father was locked up for not having paid taxes on his business for about twenty years and a few other not so menial things, then I was the perfect choice?”

“… Not really because it just confirms that this industry is shitty and we’re two masochists for even wanting to work in it.”

“You won’t find me disagreeing,” Theon says, “but hey, could’ve been worse. Imagine if they cast in our place anyone from the prissy kind of acting school who doesn’t get the point of scrubbing come off cinema chairs for the love of the craft.”

“Shit,” Robb grins, “right, you’ve got a point. Well, to surviving the next month.”

“Hell, we’re going to need it,” Theon says, clinking his glass against Robb’s again.

Yeah, Robb thinks, we’re going to need a lot of alcohol to get through it.

A lot of it.

Words: 20262, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English

Fandoms: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: M/M

Characters: Robb Stark, Theon Greyjoy, Taena Merryweather, Jorah Mormont, Bronn (ASoIaF), Margaery Tyrell, Mace Tyrell, Barbrey Dustin, Jon Snow

Relationships: Theon Greyjoy/Robb Stark

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Actors, Actors, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, On Set, Worst Work Environment Ever Tbh, Robb Stark is a Gift, mild xenofobia Because The Work Environment Sucks, Explicit Sexual Content, porn with barely there plot tbh, Top Robb Stark, Bottom Theon Greyjoy, Light Dom/sub, Language Kink, Oral Sex, Quickies, Fingerfucking, Bad Work Etiquette, not that the employers deserve it, guys if you're a margaery fan PLEASE SKIP THIS, irish starks, Alternate Universe - 1980s

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/2DrE65S

#throbb #throbb fic #robb x theon #theon greyjoy #robb stark #ao3feed