#I saved it in my drafts during idk august?

[saphyrenights]

August 2022 marks the 30th anniversary of Hurricane Andrew making it's historic impact on the Bahamas, southern Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and other parts of the south and east in 1992. It was the first category 5 hurricane to make landfall in the United States since Hurricane Camille in 1969. Since Andrew, only one other category five hurricane has made a US landfall: Hurricane Michael in 2018.

Adjusted for inflation, Hurricane Andrew caused almost $50 billion in damage, leading to the collapse of Florida's homeowner insurance system. In the years since, building codes were vastly improved in south Florida to withstand powerful hurricanes.

65 people died as a result of the storm, with most fatalities occurring during the recovery phase due to accidents and medical emergencies. Given the enormous amount of damage Hurricane Andrew caused, the shockingly low death toll (especially in Florida) has sometimes been partially credited to meteorologist Bryan Norcross and his 23-hour-long broadcast before, during, and after Andrew made its first US landfall. As the hurricane battered the television studio in downtown Miami, Norcross kept up a calm, steady flow of information and encouragement to everyone listening/watching, even as the storm forced him and his fellow anchors into a small concrete "bunker" for safety.

A humanitarian crisis grew in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew. Neither President George H. W. Bush nor Florida Governor Lawton Chiles wanted to take responsibility for the government's delayed response to Kate Hale (Miami's deputy emergency management coordinator) and her requests for help in south Florida. With few structures remaining operable, people were becoming dehydrated from lack of water, starving from a lack of food, and desperation grew more prevalent among the survivors. Even with private citizens from all over the country attempting to help the people in south Florida, it wasn't enough. Society broke down into lawlessness and fear. Government reinforcements finally arrived almost a week after Andrew ravaged southern Florida and the northern Gulf coast. 1992 was an election year, and many people cited Bush's delayed disaster response as the reason they voted for his rival, Bill Clinton.

Hurricane Andrew had lasting ripple effects on everything from the insurance industry, to the local ecology (displaced pet pythons formed a breeding population in the Everglades, for example), to national politics. Though its legacy has been eclipsed by arguably more catastrophic hurricanes like Katrina, Maria, and Michael, Andrew marked the beginning of a new era of devastating hurricanes to ravage a more connected United States. In 1992, cell phones, live satellite feeds, cable TV, rudimentary internet, and improved computer modeling kept Americans all over the country informed about Hurricane Andrew in a way that didn't happen just a few years earlier with Hurricane Hugo. Hurricane Andrew marks a milestone in modern disaster messaging and communications.

As we progress through yet another hurricane season, let's not forget the lessons that Hurricane Andrew taught us 30 years ago. 1) Be prepared BEFORE disaster strikes. 2) Working together for the greater good can literally save lives. 3) If authorities tell you to evacuate, LEAVE. 4) A battery powered radio is a lifeline when the electricity goes out. 5) Studying history can prepare us for the future.

Thanks for reading, and stay safe.

***

edit: This was in my drafts. I forgot to post it back in August. I didn't want to delete it, so I'll just post it now, a day late and a dollar short. IDK if anyone following me will get anything out of it, but I like writing essays, so...here ya go.

#hurricane andrew #hurricane season #hurricane #i wrote this essay for fun #i hope y'all enjoy it #i can talk about this particular hurricane forever #and ngl i mostly wrote this #so i could have an excuse #to post that news anchor's outfit #that contrast stitching is putting in some WORK y'all

[nightmarenova-writer]

~Story Drabble Time!! Ft. My Chaotic Thought Process~ #3?

(P.S. this is just a messy asf timeline of how my thought process happened to rapidly grow what was a small comment in my mind into what it is now Lmao. This is gonna be a wild ride so buckle up!)

The first thought: I could do this better what the hell, the story is getting to confusing with all the things there adding to it that I can’t even follow it anymore! I can’t even read this anymore, I’m dropping it.

- this came from a fanfic I was reading that involved multiple fandoms, with many being added in some of the most sloppiest transitions I’ve ever seen, to just straight up giving, ‘this is now a thing, deal with it.’ vibes. It physically hurt me and my inner writer to read what once was a beautifully story turn into a hot mess no one could save. And with this single thought my brain went into hyper drive of what I could do with the bare bones of inspiration I was given by that one fic. Which would lead to now, 2 years of planning and outlining in the works lmao.

The first few months (March - May 2021): During the first few months it was definitely the turning point for me. At first I wasn’t even planning on doing anything with it, cause in the past whenever I tried to write stories I would write a few pages but then that was it. I couldn’t really go far with it since a majority of those times it was impulsive writing and school assignments. So imagine my shock when my brain was giving me the epiphany of a whole ass story line. Main character, back story and all just weaving into a symphony that just clicked. It literally was a ‘Oh yeah, its all coming together’ moment.

The six month mark ( August 2021): By this time I had playlists of songs I could include inside my story (it’s a fic but idk why I’m calling it this). But I was still unorganized when it came to some things, for example the playlists. I had too many but I didn’t want to fix them (until I ended up doing this by July of 2022) so it caused some confusion and set backs when I needed a certain track to get in the mood for a scene, arc, or etc. All of this along with needing to gather materials and references for my story came into play too. In the form of Pinterest, my savior and holy ground for resources and everything I needed in order to saved said stuff.

End of year (December 2021 - January 2022): Oh god, at this time frame I wasn’t really doing much for my story due to the stress of work and the holiday season coming to a close. But that didn’t mean I dropped it entirely, I just worked on things that where also stress relievers for me. So it was mainly music related alongside some written drafts when I had some extra time. (When it comes down to it I’m a write first, type later type of girl)

I also didn’t work on the scenes I wanted to because I didn’t want the stress and negativity from work to seep into or infect them. Especially the scenes that where more or less emotional. Cause I’d be damned if I let my stress screw up a fluff scene I wanted to write down but held off cause I knew my brain would.

One year mark and then some (March - May 2022): This time was the one year mark of planning and outlining my story. And when I tell you I was excited but freaked out I mean it. Like this was the first time I ever really put some much effort into anything??? And I didn’t even lose interest in it!? This was a big thing for me since in the past I was a impulsive writer and would drop stories like hot cakes, so the fact I was till going at this strong made me so proud and happy!!

But this was also a time where I went through a lot of revision with what I had planned out as for the installments. So a lot of taking stuff out and placing stuff in type of thing.

Year and a half mark (July - August 2022):

This is where I went on a organize everything tangent. Like I MEAN EVERYTHING! From the music playlists to the boards I had on Pinterest including the material I have in my room nothing was spared. But I’m glad I did, after all it made things so much easier to sort stuff into and find things related to a specific segment or installment.

Although there where something’s I needed to sort through it was fine if I did it little by little since this was only for the music playlists. This time frame was just a lot of cleaning up and proper organizing lol

End of the Year (December 2022 - January 2023):

This is where I finally began to work on some stuff, like sitting down typing away with my materials spread out on my desk surrounded by cups filled with either coffee, monster, or as of recently hot chocolate. Of course as of right now I’m taking a much needed break as my work place has been having a little trouble with the payroll (or the hours they can give us to work) so I’ve been working only one day a week for three weeks now(?? Or two idk the days have been squished together for me) so I’ve definitely been taking advantage of this.

But this has been the short and undoubtedly chaotic time frame of my thought process and the things I’ve been doing. While this wasn’t a story or what you where probably expecting, I just wanted to share my progress and dedication towards my project. Like cause dam man, two years??? That’s some determination right there man, and I’m know to not really show that towards anything really so this is a huge thing for me. But yeah, hoped you liked reading my rough around the edges time line of events!

#thought process time line ft. me #journey to make my project #2 years of planning like holy shit #2 year mark #this was chaotic for me to write ngl #had to use my brain to remember all this and now it hurts’ #headache gang time #this made me want to cry tears of joy #cause I’m just so proud of myself like ONG

[simoneleona]

Gwen: What are you guys doing for thanksgiving?

Merlin: Having a nice family dinner with my mother.

Gwaine: Just hanging out with a couple of friends.

Morgana: Guess I'm the only one doing this holliday right. Hitting the open road with my bike. No family, no friends, no dinner.

Leon: That sounds really dark.

Morgana: Thank you.

#I've been waiting a long time to post this #I saved it in my drafts during idk august? #so I need people to like this #bbc merlin #incorrect quotes #incorrect merlin quotes #merlin #gwaine #morgana pendragon #leon #gwen #source: b99 #thanksgiving

[k1ng0fn0b0dy]

aaaaaa so I read one of your prince!eret posts and I had an idea! (I would've wrote it myself but I wouldn't have done it any justice)

but what if Prince!Eret had a little brother? and that was reader?? maybe reader is a little rebellious and sneaks out into the villiage or smth and meets the bench trio who don't know reader is the youngest prince? so they just kinda of spent the whole day together doing stuff until Prince Eret and maybe some of the Knights find them?

idk have a wonderful day/night :)

This came out a lot angstier than the first draft had been ahskfj

Little Rebel Prince 💛

[He/him pronouns]

[3000+ words]

Description: After an argument with your brother, King Eret, you sneak out of the castle. During your adventure you meet three odd, wonderful boys. (Platonic Eret + Benchtrio x M!Reader)

[Read the rest under the cut]

{《☆》}

Eret sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers. His quill (how old school) is dropped to the side, staining a random piece of parchment and the edges of his sleeves. "For the last time, Y/N, you cannot attend dinner with King August."

"Why not?" You asked, not for the first time.

"Because you're too young. We're trying to discuss a peace treaty and I can't trust you not to ruin it." Eret is blunt, finally pulling his sleeve out of the wet ink splotch and grimacing. They look into your eyes, an uncomfortable feeling really, and their expression softens. "I really wish you could be there but this dinner is not a thing we can risk. Our borders are being contested so if we want this to end peacefully-"

"I can't be around to mess it up," You cut in blithely, managing to keep a smile on your face even as your brother's fell. "Got it. Well then, I'll be in my room, making no noise and pretending I don't exist."

Eret looks older suddenly, more exhausted as they lose their words before they can even grasp them. It leaks out of every pore, staining his stare blank and deepening the bags beneath his eyes. You've never seen a person lose so much life so quickly, nonetheless he doesn't say anything as you turn. Even as you linger in the hallway, the door stays shut and so you don't let the stares of Raven and Katrina weigh you down even as every step feels like a mile.

{《☆》}

You want some sweets. Not the ones in the castle, salted more than sweetened since that's what Eret likes, but the ones from the outskirts of the kingdom where the best sweets are smuggled from "L'Manchildburg". Normally, you'd just ask Eret to send you off with Sara or Kori but for obvious reasons you refused to do so.

In vindictive anger, you stepped out of your room despite whatever wordless promise you had made. There were no guards, an oversight really but it was an oversight that would be saving you some trouble. With quick hands, you push the large painting on the wall to the side and pressed your thumb to the sharp pointed thimble.

Blood dripped onto the metal and soaked into it, glowing a faint gold glow. The walls shifted, opening to long, large corridors of stone carved to perfection. Simple cracks layered the sides and you traced where Eret had carved both of your initials as a marker, running through the halls with you, getting lost and trying not to cry. You pulled away, something bitter lodged in your throat.

The labyrinth was made by your father as a gift for Eret's obtained kingship. Herobrine was not an amazing father but no one can say he does not try.

Quick steps forward, ignoring the way the walls shift in place as they read your intentions, making way to the capital. More specifically it seemed, a dimly lit alleyway with a knocked over trash can resting at you feet. The wall clicked shut behind you, lines smoothing away and melting back into brick walls.

The road was slanted, an odd sort of tension to going down and a struggle to walk up but you've walked it so many times that getting the perfect footing was practically automatic. The restaurants littering the sides were fairly loud for the daytime, doors caught wide open for any customer to step into. You distract yourself with catching the new prices for entering, a few dollars up for the steak-house but three dollars down for the pub. Easily enough, you're standing at the top.

This area is flatter, easier to walk, but it goes down long enough that you'd end up going in circles for hours and still not seeing everything it had to offer. A passing street musician plays a bit louder for you but you step past quicker, they'd never stop bothering you if you showed any interest, though you admit that they had an excellent voice.

Turning a corner, you stepped into a familiar café. A red-tie* owned sweets shop ran by Niki, a nice lady who had dual citizenship somehow. It had a nice atmosphere despite that, soft lighting handing from the ceiling with vines tangled with the cord. High top tables pushed against the wall, beanbags pushed into a corner near some plants, a front counter wide enough to sit and eat at.

It's nice, not overly colourful but with enough plants and throw pillows to break up the monotony. You took a seat at the counter, brushing off a few crumbs leftover by a past customer. "Niki! You here?"

A soft laugh from behind you, "It's my café of course I am."

You spin the chair, leaning back against the counter. "Just thought I'd ask," You spin again as she steps behind the counter. "Are you still serving (f/s)?"

"Of course," Niki laughs again, a teasing little smile on her face. "I wouldn't be your favorite cafe if I didn't."

"Mighty confident there, Niki," You press your lips together but it can't stop your smile from growing. "What if I liked that one café on Oreli street better?"

Niki gasp, exaggerated and scandalized. "You wouldn't dare."

"Oh but I would," You are openly smiling now, a bit of an ache in your cheek that's not really helping. "Maybe I should go there now—"

"Enough teasing," Niki rest her hands on her hips, still smiling. "Do you want your (f/s) or not?"

"I do, thanks Niki," You shamelessly laugh. "As many a you've got, actually."

"You're going to dry out your pockets before the festival even starts!" The reminder makes you brighten up, even as Niki shakes her head fondly. Racking her knuckles across the kitchens shared wall, she calls out. "Ranboo, we need (f/s) please."

A small crash sounded from the kitchen, followed by skidding as the door was cracked open the barest amount, a half-white half-black enderman staring blearily at the ground. With a lighter colour face, they blurted out an vague noise of agreement and ducked back through the door.

Niki looked over at you and you looked at her. After a comically long time, she sighed and wiped her hands on a towel. "I have to go check on him don't I."

"It is your café," You nodded along, tipping your chair back a bit. "I will just wait here and—!"

Niki reached over and strong-armed you over the counter. "Nope, if I have to deal with it, so do you,"

You grumble as she let's you walk around the counter. Glancing at each other, you take the first step in.

The organized neatness of the café is ruined by the disaster that was the kitchen. The counters were cluttered with messy pots and pans, cartons of milk tilted and spilling onto the floor with egg shells broken into hundreds of tiny pieces beneath your feet. Dishes were pilled high in the large sinks, including some extras sat in relatively neat stacks by the spilled milk. A pile of mud sits on a plate, smudge marks that were probably made by someone liking it. You really don't wanna know.

"Niki, I know what it looks like," The ram-boy says slowly, backing into a taller but more scrawny avian-boy. "But I have a good reason for what happened."

"Oh yeah," With her hands on her hips and raised brows, Niki briefly entertained the ram-boy. Mistake number one. "Okay, what happened?"

"Uhm, DISTRACTION!" They screamed, immediately sprinting for the back door. At the same time the avian boy screeched incomprehensible noises with garbled curses and uselessly flapped their wings to the door. With a startled gasp, Niki accidentally pushed you towards the half-white half-back enderman hybrid who startles a yelp and everything twists.

You fall to the floor, head fuzzy with black dots like flickering lights. Someone cursed above you, reaching down to pull you to a stand. "Look what you did, Ran—bow."

"It's Ran-boo," Another voice, deeper and squeakier than the other voice at the same time. "But they fell onto me!"

"No one's allowed to fall for you except me!" A third voice said indignantly with a small air of humour, a large stomp like a tantrum knocking you more on whoever picked you up. "We should just leave them here before Niki finds us."

"She'd be even angrier if we left her friend here alone like this," The deep voice said, attempting to reason with the angry voice. The person holding you tightens their grip at the thought, holding you up a bit more. "So please, can we not."

"Fine, for Niki," The angry voice pouts, loudly dropping to the floor. "Can I draw on their face while they're asleep?"

"No, Tubbo, you can't draw a penis on their face." Deep voice guy sighed, sounding like your brother whenever you prank Lord Dream (as if you don't do it everytime he visits).

"Aww man."

You blink, murky colours still flooding your visions but focusing more with every blink. You're leaning against a tall blond in a red and white shirt, his bony shoulder digging into your cheek as you lean against him. "What's going on?"

Your attempt at comprehensible words was mediocre at best, but you'll suppose it's good enough. Looking at the hybrid who teleported you there, a second wave of nausea comes tumbling out of your mouth.

As everyone scurries back, your yanked by the avian hybrid who had yet to let you go. Bringing your hand upon to wipe at spit and your half-digested lunch, you finally feel normal again. Pulling away from the avian, who happily let's you with a grumbled "Ew," at your throw up trail, you stand up tall and try to regain any respect your sickness had thrown away. "Well that was kind of rude."

You cringe, the voice of your brother reprimanding you in spirit. But the avian and ram start giggling to each other, making deep mocking voices of your words at the enderman hybrid. "C'mon guys, I already said it wasn't my fault!"

When he turns to you, he bows his head low, "I'm so sorry for teleporting you. Tubbo's told me it really sucks when you're not an enderman. I'm really sorry!"

"It's... fine," You shrug, grimacing at the taste of your own stomach fluids coating your teeth. "I mean, it wasn't intentional so no harm, no foul."

"See, Boo, you're fine!" The ram pats their shoulder with a bit of difficulty—you think their name is Tubbo so the other would be Ranboo— and dusting off their pants as they stand up. "I'm Tubbo!"

"I'm Y/N," You take the offered hand, trying to replicate your brother's strong handshake. Tubbo giggles despite the effort, his grip turning into Iron as well. It's almost a contest between you two. Who has the stronger hand grip?

Sadly, you've come to a loss and Tubbo whoops with victory. Turning to the avian, you stick your hand out. "Nice to meet you, chicken boy. I'm Y/N."

"I am not a fucking chicken! I don't even look like a chicken!" If he was an actual animal, you'd imagine it'd look like he had rabies. Foaming at the mouth with anger, chittering aggressively and non-stop. "Fuck you man! I'm not a chicken."

"Alright, alright, my bad." You backtrack quickly, hands raised in a placating motion. "I would like to know your name though chi–regular boy."

The avian gave you the stink eye, "The name's Tommy Innes! And don't call me that either." They set their hands on their hips in a close imitation of Niki. "You're a right prick."

"I prefer the words 'difficult to handle', it's a lot easier to read on your report card, ya know?" Suddenly you cringe again, the reminder of your brother's face when you did read it to him coming back to haunt you. Fixing your posture, you stick your hand out again after putting it down. "Nice to meet you."

Tommy takes your hand, his hands surprisingly calloused. "Your introduction was shit."

{《☆》}

You don't exactly remember why you followed them or why they let you follow them, all you remember is the exciting feeling of truly enjoying yourself, feeling light with every step, your face aching from smiling so hard and your stomach twisted with laughter. It was nice, so incredibly nice.

All good things must come to an end eventually though and the sound of trumpets sounding in the streets scare the shit out of you.

"Fuck," You curse through a handful of marshmallow Tommy had given you. "Fuck, shit, fuck, fuck, fuuuuuck."

"What's wrong?" Tubbo asks, strangely concerned. "Are you okay?"

"The King is on his way," You say as you try chewing quicker. The taste of too many marshmallows stick to your tongue, the taste stuck between your teeth and caught in your throat. It tastes like air now. "He's probably already here."

"What's wrong with that?" Tommy asks, face serious and lips drawn to an aggressive sneer. "Is he bothering you? I swear if he's messing with you—"

"No, Prime no," You say, louder than planned. "He's not, it's just, I can't be found by him."

"Are you sure—?" Ranboo starts, cut off by the noise of clattering metal and horse steps. Whirling around quickly, you're already done for. Too many soldiers to evade surround you, practically boxing you into the bench you're sitting at.

"Your majesty, we've found him," A soldier calls out, one hand resting on their holster as they watch you all. "Three unidentified subjects around him, all equipped."

You whirl back to look at them and wow is it a sight. Your new buddies, the practically harmless friends you've made—Tubbo cried when he killed a bee— are all wearing full netherite armour, sharp blades than you've ever wielded in their hands. "Guys...?"

"Y/N, get behind us," Tubbo says, eyes hidden by the helmets shadow. Something about his voice frightens you, but yet still being near him isn't scary. You aren't scared of him hurting you. For some reason you trust them all not to. But still...

Your brother steps up and you sink a bit, following Tubbos directions and hiding in hopes he somehow magically forgets about you in the next three seconds.

"Y/N, you said you'd be in your room." Eret says with an infuriatingly level voice. It is like the moon is dipping the sunset, cusping their back just enough for the light to shine down and flare around your brother, truly a king fit to rule the world. "Honestly I don't know what I expected from you."

You feel embarrassment claw at your throat, fighting with the rage in your stomach and suddenly you feel the urge to hurl. Tommy is at your side, one hand holding their sword up and the other offering a sort of protection for you. The consequence though, that is what paralyzes you.

"Your royal highness, please end this foolishness. We do not wish to harm your friends." A soldier calls, a beckoning hand outstretched as if you're a frightened animal awaiting rescuing.

Another wave of anger bubbles over you, pushing your embarrassment to your heels to be dragged with. "You dare threaten my friends. They have done anything you didn't force them to."

"Those are Mud Trackers**," Eret spits out, though the words don't surprise you. "Tommy Innit, Tubbo Underscore, Ranboo Beloved, all of them fought against us."

"You were one of them once too," You yell back but still there is a disconnect when Tommy flinches next to you. The truth is out. You are royalty and they are the tentatively neutral country, enemies forged through blood. They could have killed your brother and your brother could have killed them. You don't know whatever history that is hiding in Eret's anger but neither side are taking it well. "Stop taking your anger at me on them! If you're gonna fight anyone, fight me!"

The thought makes your brother step back, face falling into the first emotion you've seen on his face. Guilt. "I'm not going to fight you, and if you return I'm not going to fight them either."

"What if I dont," You say and there is a clenched hurt that comes with those words. "Will you kill them?"

"No, you know I wouldn't Y/N," Your brother says and it is softer, quieter. Eret sighs, crown tipped and without the sunlight he is just as inhuman as you, pain written into the curve of his frown.  "Please just come home."

Tommy looks over at you and they are still angry even as they put their sword away. "Go fix this. If you need us, you know how to find us."

Not-quite-relief washes down your throat at Tommy's words. Ranboo and Tubbo keep their weapons but they too step back. Looking over at your brother, you walk with all the grace embued in your lineage, chin held high. As you greet Eret, he pulls you into a hug.

"I was so worried, Y/N," he mutters, arms wrapped around your shoulders as you burrow into his chest. "I'm sorry for being a dick. Please never do that again,"

"Okay," You manage to say, muffled in your brother's shirt. "But you are still kinda being a dick."

"Okay, I'll do better," He says, quiet and true. "Let's go home."

Before he can stop you, you pull away. Turning back to your friends, you wave, "I'll see you again soon, bye."

Ranboo waves back but Tommy and Tubbo look at each other and just nod. "Bye."

Eret doesn't say anything to your friends but there is something horribly sad in their smile. Maybe they had more history than just fighting, who knows. He turns to you, outstretched hand waiting for you. You take it easier than before. It isn't great, but it's something.

{《☆》}

*red-tie is a neutral term referring to L'Manburg citizens

**mud trackers is an insult to L'Manburg citizens based on their usually dirty appearances and lack of advanced equipment early in the war.

[YOOOOOOO I FINALLY FINISHED THIS HOLY COW! This took way longer to do my horrible procrastination finally stopped today (ngl I wrote like 1k words in a panic today) I'm so sorry this took forever but in my defence... yup]

[ANYWAY TO CELEBRATE HALLOWEEN IM GONNA DO A BIT OF A MONSTERDATERS EVENT WHERE ITS ONLY EVER MONSTER AND DEMONS AND SHIT NO KISS KISS FOR HUMANS]

[I do have a date for Distance btw, Nov 13 is when the first chapter shall come out. Go self-care drink water eat food and sleep if it's later than 11pm byeee]

[L0v3, k1ng]

Masterlist

#x reader #x male reader #mcyt x reader #dsmp x reader #x nonbinary reader #mcyt x y/n #mcyt x you #mcyt x male reader #dsmp x male reader #platonic tommyinnit x reader #platonic mcyt x reader #platonic x reader #platonic tubbo x reader #platonic ranboo x reader #platonic eret x reader #bench trio #platonic bench trio x reader #platonic x male reader #angst #platonic tommyinnit x male reader #platonic tubbo x male reader #platonic ranboo x male reader #platonic eret x male reader #platonic mcyt x male reader #platonic dsmp x reader #platonic dsmp x male reader #tommyinnit #tubbo #ranboo #eret

[stranger-who-writes-fiction]

I had a whole list of stuff I liked about Supergirl Ep. 6x07 “Fear Knot” typed out and then accidentally hit the keyboard command for ‘select all’ and THEN accidentally hit ‘b’ so.

A list! That will...be much shorter than the original! Because I’m very tired and don’t wanna type it up all over again! XD

Spoilers!

Okay, rapid fire highlights, HERE WE GO!

Space Dad was the true MVP here! Just wonderful J’onn content throughout.

The Danvers Sisters hug! I wanted exactly one thing from this episode and that was it. 

Interesting BTS info revealed about the hug: Originally, it was supposed to be the main trio (Kara, J’onn, Alex) but they trimmed it down for time so it ended up being just a Danvers Sisters moment AND, AND! Chyler’s ‘I got you,’ such a LOVELY callback to the Pilot, was ad-libbed!

Fine. Just. Make me feel feelings, show. Geez.

The Tower is a MARTIAN SPACESHIP!

Alex, re: the Tower reveal - “I love Martian technology.”

Same, Alex. Same.

 The ENTIRE* GANG OF SUPERFRIENDS got meaty character bits that build on all of the stuff introduced in earlier episodes! 

*Save for M’gann, but I appreciated they at least had a line about how she was staying behind to hold down the fort. 

Anyways, back to character stuff, in particular! We see Kelly grapple with feeling out of her depth as the lone ‘normal’ one in a group of heroes/vigilantes, introduced in...was it 6x03? AND we see the set-up for GUARDIAN, WOO!

The thing I love about the Guardian mantle, for James and as we’ll no doubt see for Kelly, is that it’s about protecting people; their weapon of choice isn’t really a weapon at all, but a shield.

:D

J’onn and Alex’s stuff more directly ties into how they’ve been handling the ‘save Kara’ mission

Obviously Alex’s fears in particular speak to the larger, ongoing stuff about how so much of Alex’s identity is wrapped up in protecting Kara, but this mini-arc of seven episodes has sort of...laser focused that? A little?

This made a lot more sense in the first draft I swear. XD

And J’onn gets to come full circle with successfully completing the mission by being both a dad AND a strategic leader.

And then poor Nia is still struggling with insecurities regarding her dreaming powers, a thread that looks like it’ll carry over into the next set of episodes.

BRAINY AND THE BALLOONS????

J’onn:

The Lena portion...occurred!

Not really gonna comment on it beyond the very good sci-fi references they packed in there. Of course, we have the Alien 3 reference (which I've opted not to include b/c it’s a pretty gross image that could be upsetting if you’re not expecting it? Also I’m sure it’s all over twitter.)

But the Kelpie also had an Abyss vibe, IMO:

J’onn’s Space Dad montage was EXCELLENT.

J’onn: “NOT TODAY SATAN”

Oh, also, the red Phantom eyes and in-synch talking in Kelly’s fear vision was very creepy.

The different pairings of various characters was cool! I really liked Brainy and Kelly chatting.

And then poor Kara! 

AT HER LOWEST!

WITHOUT HOPE!

FEELING LIKE A DANGER AND A BURDEN TO HER LOVED ONES!

Oh, that meaty character work, we LOVE. TO. SEE. IT.

And shock of all shocks, it is PAPA ZOR?!?!?! WHO SNAPS HER OUT OF IT!??!?!?!

BUT! Papa Zor-El is only able to snap Kara out of it because HE HIMSELF was snapped out of his funk by Kara!

And like. I’ve seen the complaint that this relationship has not been built up enough for us to really care but...IDK. I’m a sucker for the moment where he like, gently touches her face and delivers that hope speech and

GUH! FEEEEEELINGS!!!!

And you know what? I’m glad. That Kara’s dad is not The Worst in this particular adaptation.

I mean. He’s done some incredibly sketchy things still, but. Not quite ‘experimenting on your own child, sending her to a foreign planet WITHOUT ANY CLOTHES and brainwashing her into murdering her cousin’ levels, you know?

“That’s my family. They’re really here.”

AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!

And then the hug! THE HUG! It’s so quick but it’s so good and I can’t WAIT. UNTIL AUGUST 24th! 

I also love that we got a teaser of the next episode?! That was awesome and wholly unexpected.

(OFFICE SHENANIGANS! AAHHHH LOOKS SO GOOD!)

Oh, also, Nyxly (Nixly??) lives! And catches a ride to Earth Prime, which I’m sure will go over well. XD

As always, some OVERALL THOUGHTS!

ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR DAVID! An interesting but no doubt tricky episode to direct! It came together so nicely, though, and had some genuinely neat set-ups in terms of how they used the cast and set.

(Also round of applause for Chyler’s episode last week, totally forgot to give her props in my list. FOR SHAME. For shame.)

In terms of season 6 thus far as a whole...I’ve just really liked this front half, here.

The Supergirl folks have had to work around some incredibly challenging extenuating circumstances during the final season of their show--I mean. They didn’t have their LEAD ACTRESS until several months into filming! DURING A PANDEMIC!

And while...yeah, I’ll admit I found some of the exposition in various episodes to be. Trying? And still pretty packed because they’re juggling so many characters...that they’ve managed to have such nice character bits throughout is just. GOOD. IT’S VERY GOOD. I LIKE IT A LOT.

As I mentioned above, this mini-arc of seven episodes has done such a solid job of setting up and developing internal conflicts for the characters that are exacerbated by the external conflict that is Kara’s absence. Like, everything is pretty tight! And connected! There’s such a good through-line EVEN WITH the two time travel episodes!

(And, okay, I’ll indulge in one targeted bit of ‘c’mon fandom, really?’ - I’ve already seen complaints of, ‘I thought this show was about SUPERGIRL’ re: this particular episode and like...did you miss? The whole previous episode? That was such a nice Kara showcase? And I say again: LEAD ACTRESS. WAS UNAVAILABLE. AND HAD TO PLAY CATCH-UP. ALSO, PANDEMIC.)  

(And in fact, the whole Phantom Zone plot has been a BRILLIANT bit of efficient storytelling--you not only have an in-universe reason for your lack of a lead, but also, it creates this space for the other characters to really miss Kara.

I guess the way I would describe it is like...going back to Kara’s original death in Crisis--yeah, it sucked that she died, but the entire DC Universe came together to talk about how heroic and great she was. And in a final season? Of a show called Supergirl? If you can’t have your lead on screen, the NEXT BEST THING is to have the character’s presence really felt via the OTHER characters.

With stuff like, having her inspire them! And reflecting on what she means to them, as a friend and family member!

...Again, this made more sense in the original draft? XD)

...Anyways.

My only nitpicks: I miss Will! But understand why he hasn’t been around, from a story standpoint. Also, the dialogue in some of the earliest episodes didn’t always...gel? But these last three in particular have been much improved in that regard.

IDK if I’ll keep these li’l positivity lists going throughout the remainder of the last batch of episodes--the move to Tuesday night has been tough. XD But either way, SUPER (ha, ha) excited for the back half!

#SG post #long post #supergirl spoilers #supergirl season 6 spoilers #gif #gifs

[bettsfic]

tying up loose ends/wip update

i have a little over a month until i start my phd, and i realize, sadly, something’s gotta give, and that’s probably going to be my fandom interaction/social media time. so i’m trying to finish/tie a few things up before my schedule explodes.

renovations

chapter 10 is complete, and i only need to revise 2 scenes of chapter 9. i’ll post them both at once since they ended up being a little shorter than the other chapters. hopefully they’ll be up in the next few days.

ace of spades

per @fraxinus and a few other anons maybe? i’ll be rereading ace of spades in the next week or so, parsing through my notes, and writing a detailed summary of how it would have ended. it’s been four years, so i have a vague memory of what i’d intended for it, and can only hope i made a diligent outline. i’m sincerely sorry i didn’t end up finishing this fic. i still love it, and it framed so much of what became my MFA thesis. i made the mistake of believing i could get it done in tandem with grad school, and i was wrong about that. by the time i graduated and had time to write fic again, my writing style and interests changed so drastically i couldn’t go back to it. 

fake-dating your step brother (and other terrible ideas)

i’ve gotten a lot of asks about this over the past year, and for the most part i don’t answer them because i don’t want to inadvertently launch a shit storm. the good news is, ao3 is adding a feature to turn off comments completely, so what happened with fdysb won’t happen again. 

i will not be completing this story or re-posting it to ao3. however, you can find the pdf of the existing chapters here, and read how it would have ended here. more info can be found in my fys tag.

other bellarke fics

i know i had a few unfinished km fills, but i don’t plan to go back to those, not because i’m not into bellarke (i am, but am just disgusted by the show rn) but because it’s gotten really difficult for me to write smut. i have no idea why. 

untitled coriojanus fic

i’ve begun fiddling with a bosas fixit (just a one-shot) that idk if i’ll manage to finish. i’m not in a huge hurry because bosas isn’t even a wrangled fandom tag yet on ao3, and the book publicity fell totally flat. i don’t think most people even know it’s out. at least, i didn’t.

untitled stucky fic for fth

hopefully i’ll be able to work on this in july. i’ll be writing a 10k stucky werewolf fairy tale fic for fandom trumps hate! i’d love to post it before i start school, but i may have to save it for winter break. either way, it’ll be up sometime in 2020. it may be the last fic i write for a long time :(

baby/patreon

baby will finish up in august, although i’m considering posting the last couple chapters at once in july so that no one gets charged an additional month, since i don’t have any other posts scheduled in august. if i come up with some posts, i’ll stay up an extra month. after that, i’ll probably be deactivating patreon until i have a new novel, or can commit to posting consistently. 

this means that if you were waiting until the end to become a patron so you could read baby all at once, you’ll want to do that in july, because by august it will be unavailable to read. i don’t have tiers, so you could read all of baby for $1. 

original projects

2019 and now 2020 are turning out to be shitty years for me in terms of publishing, as well as just being shitty in general. i’m getting really exhausted by rejection and disheartened. i don’t have a lot of hope for my short story collection, which didn’t even get a partial request from the agents i sent it to, and i’m afraid it doesn’t stand much of a chance in the contests and small presses i submitted to, either. i think it’s a good book, but it requires a certain kind of editor/contest judge to champion it, and i think it will be hard to place.

i have two literary novels i’m working on, one i feel pretty good about and another that needs a major structural overhaul. i’ve also finished the first (bare bones, extremely shitty) draft of a YA SFF novel set in a simulated reality, kind of the matrix meets breaking bad, but written like a douglas adams/terry pratchett book. 

all i can do is focus on the work -- writing, reading, teaching -- and have faith everything else will fall into place eventually.

as always, i’m extremely grateful for all the positivity and support i’ve received, and which motivates me to continue writing during the times i begin to lose hope. 

#writing update #ace of spades #renovations #fys #patreon baby #vandal #cherry pop #eden #my fic #bosas #bomb time

[tavarillasgalen]

2020

This year, oof.

My mental health was the worst it's been since 2016 for a lot of it. I was unemployed for 3 months, desperately trying to find a job but couldn't, ended up using up my savings and having to start over when I got a new job. I cut off a bad family member which led to me not really being able to participate in family things because they were always there. It was not an easy year, not at all, and I know that has been the case for pretty much everyone.

Um. Idk. What good things happened?

Pre-pandemic, I was in a quasi-leadership position at my job! My family and I moved. Spinning Out came out, and I think I binged the entire thing on New Year's. I rewatched it multiple times throughout the year. I was able to visit my s/o in Boston for our 4 year anniversary. We went to some hot springs the week before lockdown. Crescent City came out! I commissioned a custom funko of the MC of the project I started working on.

Then the pandemic, and getting hazard pay. Motherland: Fort Salem was airing, and I looked forward to new episodes every week. I was sort of part of writing twitter, and had started working on a new wip while still sending out queries for my first ms. I did Camp Nano in April and ended up finishing the first draft of artist wip that month. I clocked some of the biggest wordcount days I ever had; 7000 for some of them! I started beta reading for an indie author (The Cute Mutants books, if you want to look them up!) and would continue to do that throughout the year as they churned out more drafts.

I got sick, lost my job. Was entirely too optimistic about how easy it would be to find something else. I ended up regressing back into my eating disorder and was extremely suicidal as days turned into weeks turned into months and I... Was unemployed. My s/o and I went 5 months without seeing each other due to distance.

I turned 24. Went to a national park w my dad. I started revising artist wip and somewhere along the way, started drafting my current wip which I am still plucking away at. I want to finish it this year. I also wrote a bit for my first ms's world for fun. I read a lot.

Idk. Most of this year is a haze from just how brutally depressed I was. I'm kind of unsure of timelines for things and everything, lol.

But I worked out, on and off. Visited my horse during the early hours of morning or late at night when I could avoid the anti-maskers. Went on a lot of canyon drives.

My car ended up having engine problems, and since it was 10 years old and with over 250k miles, my dad replaced it. That was quite something.

I got a job at Wal-Mart - the worst i've ever had, lol. I wanted to cry within the first 2 hours of my first shift and wished I could quit by the 4th hour, lol. People treat workers there so terribly, and the workers take their frustrations out on each other. I wish people would just be decent to each other.

My s/o and I deliberated over if me going to visit him would even be a safe thing or not; we ended up going with yes. He paid for the whole thing since I had hardly any money at the time. Again, I am very lucky.

I ended up quitting Wal-Mart after literally everyone in my life was telling me to, lol, and got another job in... August? September? That I have had since and is my current job. I hope this year I can find something that pays better and that I enjoy but for now... I have a job.

I ended up trying out meds for my bipolar. I couldn't tell if they were working or not, but my s/o says he noticed a difference. I fell off them a couple months ago after trying and failing for weeks to get ahold of my doctor about the side-effects I was experiencing. I would like to try meds again, though.

My s/o came back! No more long distance after 2 years! Having him here has been so nice. I can't wait to move in together. We've done little roadtrips to scenic places and a national park, and it has been so nice.

I found Sense8 on Netflix, and binged that. I tried new things, like authentic ramen. I have a savings again. I read, a lot, lol.

Biden won! God, the relief. I ended up buying pretty masks instead of just the disposable ones, bc who knows how long this will go on, you know?

And... Yeah. I've basically just been working, reading, spending time with my s/o, visiting my horse when I can. I haven't written much the past few months, but i've been thinking/brainstorming for them a lot.

I'm sure I'm forgetting a lot but... There we are. 2020.

#personal