sometimes-love-is-enough

[sometimes-love-is-enough]

happy syzygy completion!!!! i've been out of the fandom for about a year and a half, but your fics still have a very special place in my heart. your application of philosophy, metaphysics, and humor in your works are so fucking good. chessboxing remains one of my favs as an exploration of absurdity in nihilism. i've only listened to like 30 episodes of tma but i ADORED your xover fic and the like fucked-up side amalgamation in thomas' mind. also your fae fic oouuuuuuu the eldritch horror and the importance of stories as something everlasting,,,, that's so cool ❤️ literally all of your fics like ooughhhh the bootstrap paradox car racing one and the clark's third law reality-resetting fic and all the pick a side's literally unparalleled. there's a specific time loop fic in my current fandom that has a lot of theatre-esque cutaways and just the entire time i was reading it i was like "omg,,,this is just like syzygy" you are by far one of the best authors i've ever read, and what you give to the world is both enlightening and so so so so fun. hope life treats you well wherever you go next, thank you for all the memories 💕

IT'S OVER IT'S OVER IT'S OVER

i'm, like, absolutely reeling, and have been for the last few hours, i don't know what to do with myself. i've been plugging away at this last chapter for the last week or so and now i just... don't have that. aughhh. it feels so weird but so good. and i'm so glad you find so much joy in all of my fics. it means so so sosososo much.

where i'm going next is bed. it's very windy, rainy, and chilly out, and my bed is nice and warm, and i'm going to read everyone's comments before i go to sleep because you're all so nice. afterwards, i have a few original projects to fix up, and in-between those and afterwards... who knows? I tend to write my best fic while procrastinating real-life responsibilities, and I sure do have a fuckton of those right now.

#syzygy #asks

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for the completion of syzygy i present,,,,,

a meme art

youre welcome

love ya min <3333 @sometimes-love-is-enough

@syzygy-podfic-project

#syzygy #I LAUGHED SO HARD THANK YOU I LOVE YOU #obsessed with janus's face in the sidebar

[sometimes-love-is-enough]

Syzygy: Some Closing Thoughts

I'm writing this at 8pm on my backyard porch, under the wavering light of a distant full moon.  Hello, moon! Please don't kidnap me. I just wanted to hang out with you for a while as I collect my final thoughts. It's a pretty cloudy night tonight, so it's not properly visible, which I suppose is the cloud cover shielding me from a terrible lunar fate. It gives a deliciously hazy atmosphere for the absolute essay I'm about to write.

Apparently, the Farmer's Almanac says that tonight's full moon is a 'Pink Moon', which sounds like it'd be a very pleasant viewing experience. I imagine pastel frangipanis spontaneously sprouting all over the moon's surface, covering every inch of its rocks and crags until the soft pink glow is visible from all the way down here on Earth. Unfortunately it's not named 'Pink Moon' because of that; there's some American environmental factors, etc.

I think it's kind of charming that there's a list of names for every possible full moon, as if the moon's putting on different masks or incarnations every time it tilts just enough that we can see its full face. I'm looking at a list of them now instead of writing these final notes like I probably should. The names are so delightful. Strawberry Moon. Sturgeon Moon. Apparently last month's full moon was Worm Moon. WORM MOON. I could go on. I won't. Let's talk about Syzygy instead.

Syzygy is... Man, where do I even start with this? Let's try the beginning. I started writing Syzygy in February of 2021, after ruminating on it for probably a few months before that, as I often do. That's three years ago, so my memories of the reasons why are a bit fuzzy, but I think I did it for two reasons: one, a desire to have a long-form meaty slowburn fic for a beloved rarepair in the tag so other people could enjoy it, and two, a fascination with the idea of fractured identity, what it means to be a Side without a Centre. The whole thing with the alternate-history steampunk swapped-around Earth came about naturally from that.

Except that's actually kind of a lie, because that's not the beginning, this began in 2020, when I wrote a pitch for a local station that was accepting radio play submissions (rejected, of course) featuring a hardboiled noir detective in a starlit city whose latest client was a tiny shiny girl asking him to solve her father's murder. And that's also a lie, because I think it really began when I tried to write an original novel in high school where the protagonist's name was Avery Allen, because I liked the way the name tripped off my lips.

My stories are always built on each other, especially stories I never get to write. They all recycle into each other in a weird blend of concepts and characters. 2021 was when I sat down and told myself I was going to write the Thomceit time loop fic, and I dove into it with aplomb. I can't recall the exact timeline of events, but at some point I underwent some truly gnarly health problems that left me unable to use my hands for extended periods of time, and so the fic that was meant to be for a Big Bang ended up... Just sitting in a folder for a while. But me and my beta managed to pull it the fuck together, and after adding some extra bits and pieces (the cutaways were a LAST MINUTE ADDITION even though I think they're some of my favorite bits in the whole thing) I started putting it all up.

Okay, there we go, that's enough of an abridged history of this thing. Let's just say: I never expected as many people to like it as it turned out, I thought that it would be a niche little fic for a rarepair, and I was honestly pretty content with that. So it was delightful to see so many people getting so into it, I have enjoyed the FUCK out of all of your comments and theories and predictions. It's been delightful when people predicted a plot point correctly, and honestly even more delightful when they predicted incorrectly. I've had such a blast.

As for the writing... Suffice to say I have many notebooks full of notes and thoughts, more than one spreadsheet to keep track of time loops and lore, and a semi-complete list of all of Virgil's tarot cards, which one day I'll probably polish and share properly, because I think the concept is neat. But that's kind of how it always goes with my writing.

Naming every inspiration for this would take forever and I'd still miss a few, but I'll just throw out a key few ones, because I gotta:

17776: What Will Football Look Like In The Future, because when I first read it I got the wrong idea and thought that Juice (Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer) was short for Betelgeuse (the star), and that sparked a whole thing about living stars in my brain. Also, just the general way that the worldbuilding and absurdity is handled in that world, it scratches my brain just right.

Welcome To Night Vale. I don't think I need to explain this one.

Madeleine L'Engle's writing, particularly A Wind In The Door, particularly-particularly the bit of it where Proginoskes explains why, precisely, he has to remember and Name every star in the universe. Fucking beautiful book.

A particular Untamed/Mo Dao Zu Shi fic I read years ago and haven't been able to track down again, which also features two people stuck in a time loop who are initially unaware that they're in it together AND dying at the same time. I believe they also meet on a bus? The details are fuzzy. The worldbuilding and descriptions of that fic were so stunning to me, it had me unable to read anything for a solid few weeks, it is definitely a superior work to mine in every respect. If anyone finds it, let me know, I don't think I finished reading it and want to know how it ends.

An unpublished fic that I had the privilege to read while it was being written, that changed my brain chemistry re: the Sides unknowingly existing without Thomas. The Flowerwall Cafe originally hails from this one, too, graciously borrowed and greatly beloved.

Both Ghibli films in general AND Dianna Wynne Jones books in general, and obviously the intersection between the two, Howl's Moving Castle, which is fascinating in how both mediums handle the setting.

The Doctor Who audio drama Scherzo, which is a wild ride, and there's a major plot point revolving around the two main characters holding hands and fusing gruesomely into each other - and another involving an in-story fairy tale.

There was no huge inspiration for the clockwork city and weird steampunk carriages, apart from (perhaps) Fallen London. Certainly, the idea of a background organization that wants to kill the sun, who also happens to be a sentient being, is cribbed from the Liberation of Night.

Syzygy also happens to be packed full of many obscure references to... like... personal projects of mine, some published and some unpublished, as well as a lot of my friends and co-writers, and some really REALLY niche stuff that only I will ever properly understand. I buried a lot of myself into this story, is what I'm saying. Juice hails from a completely different project (a TTRPG with my friends, of which she is a beloved and cherished NPC), the in-universe author for Avery Allen (and Mallory Wynn too) are named for a fictional TV author I created when the writing discord was making a nonexistent fandom, Logan's dumpling recipe is my favorite recipe of all time.

I have an apartment ghost, too. I talk to it regularly.

Final thank-yous, because I want to post this very very soon, I've been typing for too long and the mosquitoes are starting to get to me. Thank you to:

Everyone on the TSS writing server who listened to me complain while I was writing it the first time round, and has subsequently listened to me complain while editing it these past two years. So many people in there are responsible for little bits and pieces - phrasings, words, nicknames, jokes - and I couldn't begin to name everyone who helped.

Saphira and the rest of the people who are currently working on making a full-cast audio drama out of this fic (???) (???!!!!??) (!!!!). It is SO baffling to me that it's happening, I'm in complete disbelief whenever we talk about it or I see the script or I get asked logistics questions, I'm terrified and thrilled to see how it turns out, what the fuck! The very existence of that project has ended up influencing a few things about this fic's endgame, too.

Everyone who's commented extensively, commented entire academic analyses, commented numbered lists, commented laconically, left a single emoji in the comments, left kudos, bookmarked it, sent me asks on Tumblr, given me thumbs-ups on Discord, or even just silently read the fic without interacting at all. Your witness brings my words to existence. Love you love you love you.

And Len, who lives in my brain and my body and my heart and my throat, and who is honestly singlehandedly responsible for dragging this fic out of the depths of Google Docs and into the arms of AO3. They've already said I don't need to thank them, but come on, I totally do. Len is the best beta, and puts up with all sorts of deranged nonsense from me, because I have an unhinged writing process where I don't think about anything before I put it down on the page, and I use way too many connecting-dashes and not enough semicolons. Kisses kisses kisses. Thanks for doing this with me, and I can't wait to do it again.

Myself. I managed to write this and I managed to finish it. That makes me a pretty cool person, all things considered. I'm glad I did this.

What next? I've got to rest. Well, I need to get some things done... and then rest. I've been juggling a hellish amount of projects for a while now, and now Syzygy's finally cleared from my plate, I'm going to try to let the others get cleared too so I can take some time and be less stressed. The Locked Tomb AU will be ongoing, as I get through final edits of chapters, so keep an eye out for that - if you're interested in a fic that's rather less starry and shiny, but very much Thomceit and death themes, check it out  - and then....... Well, whatever comes next, whenever I have the energy to do it. I adore writing in this fandom. I'll be back with something weird soon enough.

Ad astra, baby! It's been a blast.

- Min (2024)

#Syzygy #author's note

[sometimes-love-is-enough]

EPILOGUE: REST

Thomas - The food in the cupboard will keep. The food in the fridge will not.

No warnings, just fluff, resolution, and the final act of a long-running play. It's been a long journey, guys - thanks for coming on it with me.

Overtly sentimental and rambling post to follow soon-ish.

#syzygy #my art #sanders sides fanfiction #thomceit #character thomas #janus sanders #and everyone else. everyone's here :) #honestly the thing i'm most relieved about is getting this fic done before the inevitable orange reveal #at least now if/when orange saunters in i'll have plausible deniability on my side for syzygy's universe

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new au

#shovelling this into my mouth at rapid speeds #the colors and the designs are beautiful #not be 'guy who has only looked at disco elysium portraits' but #it's giving me disco vibes

[sometimes-love-is-enough]

to be around you

#parallel play.......

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Remember these? They are now available as stuff!

#COLORS :)

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ooh aces, thank you so much! i want to make a coded journal and this is absolutely perfect. that catharsis is very sweet, too :)

oodgay ucklay

#asks #not tss

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hey i have a questionn, and u seem the most likely person to know this. whats the name of this here code:

link in bio -> ink-lay in io-bay

this has tormented me for a while now and i cant describe it properly enough for any search engine, so. thank you in advance

it's Pig Latin! I'm baffled that you came to me with complete certainty that I'd know it, and even more baffled that you were right. Enjoy the knowledge catharsis, anon.

#asks #not tss

[sometimes-love-is-enough]

dumb

[sometimes-love-is-enough]

Round 1 Side A

32. Space and Everything In It - @/Greenninjagal (ao3) vs. 3. Syzygy - @/arealsword (ao3)

Propaganda:

Space and Everything In It:

Image ID: A screenshot that reads: Aliens/humans are space orcs au. Very soft anxceit.

End Image ID

Syzygy:

Image ID: A screenshot that reads: Urban fantasy c!Thomas-centric fic where Thomas gets trapped in a time loop. Amazing worldbuilding. Slowburn thomceit. Lots of temporary character death.

End Image ID

#this is painful because i love space and everything in it #but syzygy IS my baby #syzygy

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hewwo i am alive :3 anyway have plushies based off of this post

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🍊

#ahhh limited color palette my BELOVED

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maya angelou saying the funniest thing anyone has ever said about editing, which i can never let myself forget EVER AGAIN [x]

#i've probably said this before but. len and me

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AUs in the Main Competition!

These are the list of AUs that either automatically qualified for the main competition, or won their preliminary match!

Deja Vu/Hero Worship - @/Greenninjagal (ao3)

Plea for my New Self -@/VoidDragons (ao3)

Syzygy - @/arealsword (ao3)

Ghost AU - @/tsghostau (tumblr)

A Series of Silly Questions - @/SoDoRoses (ao3)

Monsterous Roomates - @/Willowanderer (ao3)

Eucatastrophe - @/arealsword (ao3)

Crown Princes And Butterfly Wings - @/Ended_Flames (ao3)

murder mystery - @/thecrowslullaby (tumblr)

You Can't Go Back - @/delimeful (ao3)

Janus Sanders and the Cassandra Fallacy - @/arealsword (ao3)

Where the Lovestruck Bleeds - @/Fangirltothefullest (ao3)

Labeled - @/AdrianaintheSnow (ao3)

100 Seconds to Midnight - @/never_the_rose (ao3)

The Stowaway's Heart - @/thesympatheticvillain (ao3)

Is there anything left of Patton - @/AdrianaintheSnow (ao3)

Pieces Verse - @/SoDoRoses (FairyChess) (ao3)

Beside Me - Dee - Thrall - @/edupunkn00b (ao3)

Logan Accidentally Steals Two (2) Children - @/the-panmixxia (ao3)

Endless Sides (Sandman AU) - @/sometimes-love-is-enough (tumblr)

lavender for luck - @/lovelylogans (ao3)

guilty tears - @/not-exactly-laborious (tumblr)

One Coffee, Morally Gray - @/Duckduck_Scribblerswan (Caellie_E_and_Vaye_R) (ao3)

KNEE DEEP - @/plumcat (ao3)

A Moment with Potential - @/Midniteblue (ao3)

Archduke of Demonic Cultivation - @/ThreeCrowsInATrenchcoat

Side by Side in the Mindscape - @/edupunkn00b (ao3)

Flores Facets - @/Whiskey_With_Patron (ao3)

Happily Ever After Universe - @/edupunkn00b (ao3)

A Dragon's Treasure - @/TypicallyUntipical (ao3)

Punks, Poets, Parents - @/edupunkn00b (ao3)

Space and Everything In It - @/Greenninjagal (ao3)

For the Record/The Sanders Archive - @/VillainVogue (ao3)

Ghost Janus AU - @/SoDoRoses (FairyChess) (ao3)

Pick A Side (i love you and everything is beautiful) - @/arealsword (ao3)

Pingverse - @/SoDoRoses (ao3)

A lesson in practicality - @/ResidentAnchor (ao3)

if you're going my way, i'll go with you - @/iclaimedtobethebetterbard (ao3)

(Un)Wanted - @/TheAsexualofSpades (ao3)

House of Tarot Cards - @/FlowerMeat (ao3)

Life's A Drag - @/infawrit10 (ao3)

Black Hole Sun - @/coconutcluster (ao3)

#let's go BABYYYY #i'm sticking to the syzygy avery allen thing even though i might live to regret it

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In which Duke Remus Tetradrachmus is left to his own devices, and he's about to make that everyone's problem - especially Janus the Ninth's.

#os rosa #tlt au #my fic #sanders sides fanfiction #thank you to: rose (for helping me pull this together and making phantom of the snopera jokes in the comments) #and len (who is the only person keeping me sane and letting me talk about disco elysium when i get discouraged in life) #no thanks at all to remus or janus who are both menaces in my brain

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Sorry for being such a slow writer, it's because I [remembers that self-deprecating jokes are harmful to my mental health and make everyone else uncomfortable] was attacked by dark spirits and washed up on the shore of a mysterious island with no recollection of who I was

#the syzygy epilogue is taking so long because i was sent to the harmony dimension by an angry violinist #i have been tasked with realigning all the worldstrings of equal temperament. it's a tough job but someone's got to do it. #one day the towers will sing with the melody of a million everfree souls and i will return to this world #and then i will crack open the google doc and finish writing it.