#and 2) i think. i really do value trying to say complex things in simple language. idk.

[bsaka7]

Sorry if this is weird or anything but re:the post you rb'd abt fanfic... i adore all your writing - you're such a talent, thank you for sharing the things you write!

I really do think of your stories a lot - as slashfic it is wonderful and very much appreciated, but so much of it just leaves me with a lasting impression of a theme or feeling that I can't shake; beyond the story itself. You have an incredible way with words, managing to convey things wholly but without any exaggeration, which makes for a perfect and usually heart-rending read

Thank you again :)

definitely not weird!!! i appreciate and cherish what everyone says about my writing and i am always deeply grateful for your comments. i'm clutching this ask like when otters float on their backs with the clam pressed to their chest!!! i often think that i'm -- trying too hard with fic, or i think too hard about it. i'm very glad that themes and feelings stuck with you because that is so often what i am trying to impart. i think -- i have these questions that go round and round in my head (connection, meaning, misdirection, etc) and sometimes my fic is a way of trying to figure out one perspective or another on those things, or is responding to something i've read in a book (i swear i'm not that pretentious okay. a little. but not TOO bad i hope.), or is just. i think this would be cool (or hot) can i execute it!! and i throw this all out to you guys and you are always far too kind. anyway long story short i really appreciate u and appreciate everyone who likes my writing haha!! i've only ever written like...history papers for school so you guys have seen nearly all the creative writing i've done in my entire life so it's very nice that you enjoy! and it's such an honor that anything i write sticks with u <333333333333333

#i think of my writing like. two ways #1) like hacking at a text with an axe until theres something there #and 2) i think. i really do value trying to say complex things in simple language. idk. #its not that i don't KNOW big words but i don't. i don't really think in them???? and so i don't write in them #this was fairly true in school as well. like i know what. epistemic means. i guess i am vaguely interested epistemological matters. #but like. idk. it makes more sense to me. at times. to just be like. oh this s relating to knowledge itself etc. #not that theres not room for the word #and so when people remark on that aspect of. how i write i guess. #i used to think it was more of a failing than i think it is now #[insert that quote about how its more painful to describe things as they actually are] [not that i do this but yea] #so its always. idk. shocking and nice to me that u guys like it #okay ENOUGH RAMBLING THANK U VERY MUCH FOR THE NICE COMMENT #im going to go home eat lunch flop at this job interview for a job i dont really want #then maybe watch the second half of the brazil game #ask #sorry i guess u said i didnt have to answer and i appreciate that too #this bad boy going in the nice comments screenshot folder #but i am answering bc i like to talk :P #Idk we all know i go through it about engagement on this blog #And like. How I feel. Seperate from some chunks of. People in the same boat #So it's nice. It's always nice

[fluffydice]

I'm bored so I'm bothering you. Do you have any Saiki K psykickers headcannons you feel like sharing? It's ok if not 🥰

What have you done,,,

I don't have any specific headcanons, but I can talk a bit about their dynamics because I've thought (and written) about it more (and we'll inevitably get headcanons mixed in!)

The Pyskickers are interesting characters all on their own, but when you put them together, you get a mess that really shouldn't work as well as it does. Which is. The same for most ND friend groups asdfghjkl

A big thing that's important to me about them is that they have to be able to work without Saiki. Maybe not be functional, competent humans—especially because, like all of Saiki's friends, the more they group up the more braincells they lose—but they need to work as a friend group. Saiki, unlike with his other friend group, doesn't always feel the need to babysit the Psykickers. Toritsuka, maybe, but he's in a weird spot since he joined so early. Saiki and him were the only ones for a while, so he's kinda an in-between. But for the most part, Aiura and Akechi are usually actively helping Saiki with something. Toritsuka, too, even if 7/10 he's being threatened and/or bribed, 2/10 he's trying to help but failing—him succeeding that 1/10 already puts him in a separate category than most of Saiki's friends.

I went on a tangent there; point being, Saiki isn't constantly mother-henning and helicopter-ing them. Ergo, Saiki can't be the only reason they stick together. I don't want Saiki to be the only reason they stick together in my writing, mainly because I do like reinforcing the fact that not everything is about him—even if it's subtle. Things happen around him that Saiki is not always privy to, and this includes his fellow and honorary psychics' dynamics.

Akechi and Aiura are easy for me. Funnily enough, despite likely having the best relationship, even including Saiki, I have little to say about them. It's likely because they lack a lot of the complexity the others have: they're just really fucking cool with each other, and get along swimmingly. Honestly, when I write them, it's often with at least a hint of a romantic undertone. They're comfortable with each other physically and emotionally. Akechi trusts Aiura's judgement on when he should keep it short out of necessity, not because he's being annoying. Aiura thinks Akechi is wicked as hell, and also trusts his value judgements on people and situations.

From a literary standpoint, Aiura as a character tends to get in over her head and overly emotionally-invested in things—Akechi can provide a good counterbalance to ensure things can remain on track in the story, as well as help avoid any potential mini-conflicts that might arise from characters clashing due to simple communication incompatibility.

Speaking of communication incompatibility, Toritsuka and Aiura are full of it. Despite them seemingly being the most similar on the surface-level, their motivations, intentions, and moralities conflict. A lot. Take this scene I wrote of them, for example:

“Of course they were mad! You can’t just act like you don’t have emotions whenever you feel like it. Or, if you do, you can’t get depressed when they start treating you like it.” “If you don’t shut up,” Aiura hissed, grabbing a fistful of his sleeve. Toritsuka yanked his arm away to no avail, then settled for glaring at her. “I’m gonna—"

Here, we have Toritsuka actually making a good point about something; it's his wording that muddles it up. Aiura is quick to defend against him because she's protective of her loved ones, and is also aware that their beliefs differ sharply. Neither are quite in the wrong here; or, neither of them are any more right than the other. Aiura is right to assume the worst because that's typically what Toritsuka shows. Toritsuka is right to point things out about the situation. These are the mini-conflicts that Akechi smooths over by being essentially a bridge between their ways of communicating:

“Wait, Mikoto,” Akechi piped up. His fingers were in front of his mouth, his thumb cupping his chin, in a classic sign of thinking. “The wording was harsh, admittedly, but Reita is, in fact, not wrong.”

At the end of the day, though, they are friends. Aiura might be a tiny bit more willing to admit it, but both her and Toritsuka do care about each other. When they work together, big things happen. They just need a bit of oil to help smooth things along between them. Most of their dynamic, however, comes from their utility in stores:

From a literary standpoint, Toritsuka helps balance out Aiura's optimism to a reasonable point. Saiki's cynicism is often a big contributor to conflicts in my stories—he's unreliable, both in dialogue and in narration. Toritsuka is a milder version of that cynicism (albeit rough around the edges). Aiura can't always be right about the way of things, but Akechi is too prone to taking the middle ground; essentially, pointing out all the benefits to her way of thinking while also providing the downsides. Sometimes, though, it's necessary to just have someone completely shut it down, and fast. That's where Toritsuka comes in.

Also, Toritsuka and Aiura often act as the representation of the doubts and hopes of Saiki, respectively. They're essentially foils to each other, which is helpful when your main character is a hot-and-cold tempered little bitch. A sort of good-cop bad-cop for him, if you will. By having them verbally duke it out, it helps guide the reader a bit about what's true about Saiki's view and what's distorted by his way of thinking. Chances are, if they manage to agree, it's a lesson he's going to have to learn.

And finally, Akechi and Toritsuka. Though they're comfortable with each other to an extent, they lack the romantic undertones I put in for Akechi and Aiura. Akechi makes Toritsuka uncomfortable: it's hard to argue with him, for one, and he often calls out Toritsuka in a way that's hard to hide from. Akechi is the most successfully mentor-like to Toritsuka out of the rest of them—Aiura is too automatically competitive and Saiki can smother. There's also the fact that Toritsuka can sometimes trigger his trauma in certain ways, so Saiki tends to lash out. Akechi, however, is patient and steady. Anything Toritsuka says rolls off of him like water. Akechi is hard to catch off guard with words or actions, and deep down, Toritsuka really does need stability and an unwavering personality to help him grow as a person. I think Toritsuka is fascinating to Akechi as well, as I don't think Akechi is a naturally sexual being. He's not averse, but the kind of brain-rotted attraction and horniness that Toritsuka often exhibits can teach Akechi a lot about other people. The biggest thing that Toritsuka offers Akechi is a better understanding of other people. His down-to-earth nature can help Akechi connect his practical knowledge about psychoanalysis and anthropology to actual people.

From a literary standpoint, Akechi acts as a milder reign for Toritsuka. Aiura may be right to disagree with him, but sometimes a defter explanation is needed than Aiura's often emotion-driven responses. This is where Akechi comes in, especially because Toritsuka's language and laziness can make it seem as though he's not to be trusted as a rational view. He is, and Akechi helps uncover that.

Also, Toritsuka can sometimes act as the audiences natural reaction to Akechi's tangents. Akechi obviously likes to ramble, but Aiura won't interrupt him and Saiki won't confront people. Toritsuka cuts through a lot of that easily and naturally, which helps keep them both in character while still allowing the story to move on.

Overall, it's kind of easy to see what utility I get out of these characters. Akechi is an intermediary who bridges gaps of understanding, both between characters and the audience and the happenings of the story. Aiura is the outgoing one, the one to get things started. She provides a force against Saiki's heavily biased world-view and acts as a moral compass for her group. Toritsuka helps cut through a lot of bullshit and acts as healthy dosage of reality these personalities need to keep their heads on straight.

Plus, I think they're in an unofficial QPR. So.

#holy shit #maybe there’s a reason I make akechi similar to me LMAO #anyways thank you so so so much for asking <3333333 i love rambling #i was so scatterbrained earlier but this snapped me into focus #if anyone ever has questions about my fics or my decisions. you know where to find me... #saiki k #character voices #fluffy cooks a headcanon #fluffy writes a fic #fluffy writes an essay

[vioranhyperfixation]

Disable!Damian Al Ghul au 2#

Relation and insights within the family 1#

[=] Damian > Family

• Ra's Al Ghul, for Damian Ra's is no more than an authority figure within the wall they live and raise in. He has seen upfront what Ra's capable and will do to get what he wants so Damian always follow his word and try to get what he wants in the between of the leasure time.

He doesn't condone Ra's action but he try to do best with what he got.

Damian always act as the polite, kind, and perfect in every way other than his disabilities in front of Ra's when he actually rather brash and blunt in the inside. But he must do what he does to get what he wants, and if he needs to act? So must be it.

•Talia Al Ghul. His one and only mother, the most complicated relationship he ever have within all his year on earth.

He's grateful that she have keep him within her stomach for 9 month and done her best to raise him within these complex and screw up place, yet, despite that, he also resent her to make him for her own screw up plan. To be absent in his suffering in the excuse of though love as the best love to make you grow up. No, he's a child, what he needs is care and affection, yet that's not something that we can really do anything now can we? He love and hate her, for her beings the reason for his existence of the wonder of life and suffering.

In front of Talia, he also keep up with the perfect and kind child facade to keep up with the consistent of it so that no one suspects it, his complex relationship with Talia also help with that mask.

• Kaasib, his first younger brother that also the heir to Al Ghul name. This one is more simpler than the last, their relationship is based on give and take.

If one desire something from the other than the other will do so in exchange for a favor of similar level. And they can crash the favor whenever they feel like so, of course the deadline should also be considered within the current situation of the other.

On personal level Damian like Kaasib, although it's not the level of closure like one of a sibling, it's pretty nice overall in this environment.

• #011 [ Rafi ], his youngest brother and a lab experiment that his grandfather keep. To say it's pretty simple yet not as simple as his relationship with kaasib, but it's not that bad.

Damian is well aware of the damage his grandfather had done to him and pity #011 quite a lot, but it's not like he can do much. It's only after years of further studies that he can see more benefits in getting close to #011 as he starts his effort on investing on #011.

It a challenging task to have Ra's permits on seeing his experiment, but this Damian is not someone who back down in a gamble as long as it have 0,05% of winning, and win does he do.

Once he managed to get the permit and sees the actual thing he knew that he made the right decision, it might be a slow investment but it show a subtle rise on his investment insurance value.

For the first few visits all he does is approach #011 within a few feet and give him Trinkets and desserts until its engraved into his insuranc- #011 everytime he visits to be tagged with trinkets and desserts. Once #011 already familiar with it Damian start adding talking about every useful information that he deemed #011 need and that's continue until this day.

Damian love, I mean love, #011. I mean, you gotta love your insurance aren't you? There's no doubt that #011 will strive the most in this harsh environment and he needs to make sure he got the priority seat in the winner mind.

• Jason Tood, his biological father second adopted son. One might think their relationship will be more complex but it's as simple as his relationship with kaasib.

Their relationship is also along the lines of give and take, but they also have the addition of a caretaker part. That's addition come up from Ra's who decided that it would be funny if Damian the one in charge of Jason recovery, so we got that.

Usually Damian would just sit in his wheelchair while watching Jason do his own thing while working on his own work. He also give trinkets and desserts that's brought from his habit with #011.

+ #011 is respawn for this who don't catch on

+ Btw you can see which relationship I'm more fond of, the favouritism is real. And we stand by that.

#disable!damian au #damian al ghul #ra al ghul #talia al ghul #respawn #ooc #i mean different objectives come to a different outcome #dc #oc #kinda #kinda not #damian wayne #maybe one day #you can see which one relationship I'm more fond of #the favoritism is real #gotta love it #couse i do! #jason todd #jason and damian meet in LoA

[spareparts-vn]

Hi! I'm really enjoying Spare Parts. I really appreciate how it has so much heavy drama, but it never feels oppressively dour or meaningless. There's plenty of more comedic or otherwise lighter moments that don't feel out of place, too. Can I ask as a wannabe writer myself, do you have any tips or processes for writing such effective drama?

thank you! i'm very bad at giving writing advice. i've written and deleted this post half a dozen times already. it's pretty hard to lay my thoughts out since my process is so tangled up in my brain's very specific eccentricities. so here's some extremely scattered thoughts that loosely connect to how i write "drama," which in my mind is just an extension of any compelling relationship between characters.

1) "iteration" is my main thing. write a bad draft, then edit it to be better, then edit it to be better, then edit it to be better, then erase the whole thing and write another bad draft that's slightly better, then edit that one to be better, then edit it to be better, then do that 100 more times until you have an epiphany that ties it all together. it's not very efficient but it helps me identify what works and what doesn't so i can hone in on what's interesting to me. in the context of drama, that means i can write out an argument between two characters and ask myself if it hits on anything compelling. if it doesn't, i scrap it, but if there's some feeling there that i want to flesh out, i can restructure it to pivot around that.

2) similar to the previous one, but i try to start broad and narrow my focus over time. taking two characters' relationship as an example, i'll start from the most generic interpretation of how they relate to one another and start adding nuance/complexity over time. i think of it like a life drawing, if you've ever taken a class for that. you want to start with the gesture of the pose first, then start to fill in shapes and values until the foundation is solid. you go around the whole drawing adding details in bits and pieces, rather than focusing on one body part and fleshing it out to completion first. you can slowly choose where to exaggerate shapes or darken shadows to add a little more visual flair to it. in telling a story, these details can often play out and develop through the course of the narrative.

2.5) this is an aside, but during my brief stint in art school, i once turned in a self-portrait for a life drawing assignment that i was really unhappy with. i spent so much time working and reworking it that it looked really smudgy from all the erased lines, but i was too stubborn to start drawing on a new piece of paper. i was very anxious about turning it in for critique, but the professor surprised me by saying that he liked the ethereal quality it had from all the eraser marks. that there was something interesting in how obvious it was that i'd redone it so many times, allowing the evidence of previous attempts to leave traces in the final image. that comment always stuck with me. i think of life, and art by extension, as additive in nature. you can't completely erase the past, so as time moves forward your canvas become more and more dense with information, even if it's been scrubbed away. relationships are the same, which i try to convey when writing my characters. the longer you write them, the more friction and drama will naturally fall out of them. so don't be afraid to start simple, you might surprise yourself with the sort of feelings that appear without you realizing it.

3) i try to imagine a person who would become psychotically obsessed with every possible pairing of characters. what would they find interesting in this dynamic? how could i give them something to chew on? how could i surprise them, or entice them to think about their relationship deeper? in spapa's case, there's obviously a lot of interplay between the most central characters, but i have internal dossiers on every obscure pair of characters that most people won't think about. but that means i'm going to write more about them and flesh them out, so the web grows more complex and interesting. (i've developed a fixation on a secret ship that i'm hungry to explore, but probably won't get the chance to for a while. i'll leave you to speculate on what that is.) every character's growth and experience is shaped by their relationships, so tugging on those threads can reveal things about my characters i hadn't realized before. and sometimes those threads are connected to sticks of dynamite, which explode. and then you get lucy and melanie yelling at each other, even though their first interactions don't really suggest they'd end up there.

4) i'm the type of person who struggle to resist cracking a joke when i think of one, no matter how inappropriate the timing is. i've seen some critique of spapa that jokes occasionally feel misplaced in really serious scenes, but personally, i think they're important! people are complicated and can have multiple modes of thought/expression at once. sometimes when you're in the middle of the biggest sobbing breakdown of your life you'll think something stupid and mundane that snaps you back to reality for a second. sometimes you're having the best day of your life and you'll suddenly remember The Incident and have to just brush it off. i try to reflect those sorts of weird moments in my writing.

5) i lean a lot on my experience in writing fanfic/doing roleplay of characters/ships that i'm interested in. taking the dynamic that's presented in the source material and bending it to suit my interests more, or to flesh out ideas that i want to explore through them as a medium. every now and then it helps to take a step back and assess what parts of my story i've built i feel are most compelling or could use some more attention. what scenes i would write fanfic of, and how i can place them in the story itself or build up to something that paints those scenes in the reader's mind. i just love characters. they're little toys i can make do anything

6) i guess overall my approach is very naturalistic/holistic. i let characters develop themselves and create drama on their own, just by being complicated little animals and thinking about them a lot. then i can take those shapes they make and mold them into something more refined. i try to treat everything as a piece of the whole. let the threads get really tangled up and leave a lot of time for exploring what those knots look like and how you might try to de-tangle them. but meanwhile there's other knots forming too. there's no getting it completely organized but you learn a lot about the mess while trying to pull it apart. the process is essential. the end product should reflect that process in whatever ways feel appropriate. imo

i don't know if Any Of This Shit makes any sense or is helpful. like i said, i've rewritten this several times already, and i've gotta do other stuff today, so hopefully you could pull something useful out of it lmao

#ask #sorry for this mess of a post lmfao #i coast on vibes and mental illness don't be like me

[arcielee]

Interview With a Writer

Thank you @humanpurposes for your time to answer my questions about your amazing story 💜 This is just a continuation of my Interview With a Writer series. You can go to masterlist and read the other amazing, talented, wonderful authors that I have spoken with, getting a BTS of their brilliant minds and their stories on Tumblr and ao3.

Dividers by @saradika 💜

Name: humanpurposes

Story: My Heart Belongs to Daddy

Paring: modern!Aemond x step-daughter

Warnings: 18+, angst, smut, daddy kink, spanking, degradation, questionable relationship dynamics, infidelity, mentions of grief/loss, no underage elements.

So, when did you start writing?

I've always had an interest in stories, whatever form they take, books, films, plays, ideas in my head. Since I was a kid I've loved exploring different creative outlets, writing being one of them.

I think I first really started to realise I was decent at it when I did creative writing at school, it was the one subject I just 'got'. As a teenager I tried writing fanfiction and originals (which were all terrible and never saw the light of day), and to be honest, my interest in writing dwindled while I was doing A Levels and uni.

Then last year, out of nowhere, I managed to finish a one-shot for The Sandman (which I never posted and lost rip). Then House of the Dragon happened, Aemond Targaryen appeared on my screen and the rest is history! So really it's only in the last year I've considered myself 'a writer'.

Where did the plot for My Heart Belongs to Daddy come from?

One thing about me is that I'm highly susceptible to peer pressure, so when people were asking for a part 2, I was like "of course!" ...cut to me sitting in front of my laptop for hours trying to conjure up a plot.

I knew I wanted it to be quite an emotional series, because while hooking up with your mum's boyfriend is a fun gimmick for a one-shot, I really wanted to get deeper into all the dynamics and relationships at play. I knew I wanted Alys to have her moment, I was really adamant that she wasn't going to be a villain, and I had the scene outside the club on New Years Eve in my head. From there, I kinda came up with Aemond's backstory, him having a crush on her when they were younger and harbouring those feelings. It all just kinda fell into place from there.

I have to say as well, it was kind of inspired by Normal People; just two people struggling to navigate their feelings. And I love it because it sounds like such a simple premise, but there are so many complexities to it.

Expand on your interpretation of Aemond. What drives him? Why is he the way he is in MHBTD?

MHBTD Aemond is very much intended to mirror the Aemond we see in the show, minus the dragon and the war crimes.

He's studious, a perfectionist, a very imposing but understated presence. The relationship with his family is very much the same too. He sees himself as more capable than his siblings, is overlooked by his father and overshadowed by Rhaenyra and the Strong boys, so he is very much driven by a want to prove himself and live up to the legacy of his family.

He also takes on the burden of being Alicent's golden child, which he kinda botches when he messes up a contract with Storm's End, and ends up feeling more alienated by the only person who really values him. That's where Alys comes in and gives him a way to escape all of that.

So I really tried to translate his character into a modern setting in a way that would be believable, but I didn't want to lose what makes Aemond Targaryen, "Aemond Targaryen."

Was there anything in specific that inspired your Reader portrayal?

Well, this was actually the first reader/nameless character fic I've written. Generally I tend to write original characters for a series. I mean real talk though, a lot of her character is inspired by me, like her interest in history and the love for Lana Del Rey and Mazzy Star, but if you can't self indulge when writing a fanfiction, when can you?

But it was interesting for me trying to write her as someone who is easy to project onto, but also, I hope, has a lot of depth. She has a lot of conflicts going on in her head, her dependence on Aemond and her guilt she feels lying to Alys, knowing pursuing a relationship is wrong, trying to break away, only to be pulled back in... so the more I wrote, the more she became her own person.

What is your take on her relationship with Aemond? Do you feel she complements Aemond?

I think they compliment each other quite well, but there are a lot of things at play here.

So on a basic level, they have similar personalities, not particularly outgoing but not exactly shy either, they both have a quiet confidence. They have similar interests, did similar subjects at uni, that kind of thing.

But I think their differences go together well too. Aemond is ambitious and eager to prove himself, whereas she can be a bit more grounded. There's also an element of codependency to their relationship. True to canon, Aemond likes to be in control and she compliments that well (better than Alys does), and they both have moments where they struggle with loneliness and latch onto each other as a result.

There are a lot of external factors that make the whole situation very very complicated. They suck at communication and obviously, he dated her mother.

But ultimately, they both want each other enough to keep going back. I think it's like that age of question of 'is love enough?'

What was your outline process for this? Did you always know how this story was going to end?

I always write with an end point in mind. For me anyway, I need to know what I'm working towards. In my head it was always going to end with her knowing that while being with Aemond probably isn't the right choice, she does it anyway because she can't say no to him.

And again talking about realism, I really didn't see it having a fairytale ending, because even though they'll be in Oldtown together, they won't be able to hide their relationship from their families forever.

Do you think there will be a sequel? Or something else you are working on next?

As much as I've loved working on this series, I am ready to work on some other stuff.

I have two series which I'm currently updating, a canon era Aemond fic called Karma is a God, and a Tom Bennett mini series called Just for a Moment.

I also have some one-shots in the works and I'm looking to get back to updating an Osferth fic which I started in May and haven't updated since!

That being said... I did have an idea for an epilogue which I'm kinda obsessed with. But we'll see how long it takes me to get round to it 🤭

Last question! Do you have any fanfic recommendations?

That's so hard to just pic one!

I have to shout out my girl Sam @randomdragonfires and her story Invisible String. I love the dynamic she created between Aemond and the reader, only to leave me utterly devastated with the ending! Sam is so talented I love her writing style and the voices she gives the characters, everything she writes is gold.

Also, I feel like I'll never shut up about it but Now I'm Covered In You by @inthedayswhenlandswerefew was just incredible. I cannot tell you how much of a chokehold that fic had on me. The tension, the politics, the drama, the yearning between Aemond and Ivy! I was on the edge of my seat for all 10 Chapters.

I'm obsessed with medieval history, it is literally my perfect fic.

#iwaw #iwaw13 #writing community #bts #of their brilliant writing

[rookie-icarus]

The Heavenly Industrial Complex or The Metatron is a Union Buster

I do think the coffee is a critical element of the finale and Aziraphale’s ultimate decision, but not for the reasons you may think.  Here's why:

Part I: An Institutional Problem

Heaven has a growing optics problem, but an excellent PR department that knows how to put a spin on a media hit.

“For one prince of Heaven to be cast into the outer darkness makes a good story. For it to happen twice, makes it look like there is some kind of institutional problem.” — The Metatron, Season 2, Episode 5

Communications strategists sometimes refer to this as creating a “Winning Narrative”, where a set of values are shared and are overwhelmingly supported by the public as a cultural norm, bringing more people to your side. And, most importantly, a winning narrative drives behavior.

Now, imagine the most famous angel in the bible who is essentially heaven’s press secretary publicly says, “You know what? Not only do I not want this job anymore, but I’m rejecting the institution I’ve always represented outright.”

Now your Winning Narrative is put into question at best and, at worst, breaks down the entire confidence in your institution and the behavior of those who support it — or worse, who make up the institution itself:

*Ahem*

One angel and demon collaborating to thwart The Great Plan was already dangerous four years ago but was generally contained within the senior leadership of Heaven and Hell. But now, with the defection of Gabriel and Beelzebub, there is a growing pattern and The Metatron has to deal with it before it spirals out of control.* So, he does what a leader should do when presented with a threat: he studies the opposition.

The opposition isn’t hell, it’s the humanity that has crept into and influenced Crowley and Aziraphale over the last 6,000 years.

Crowley: For my money, the really big one is all of us against all of them.

Aziraphale: What? Heaven and Hell against humanity?

— Good Omens, Season 1, Episode 6

Part II: Human Nature

Something we see over and over again this season is the extreme ignorance of Heaven and Hell as they don’t even try to understand not only human nature but human anything. (Reproduction, law enforcement, how to drink tea, how long humans even live, what is sushi, etc).

(Muriel is a precious baby duck and I will fight anyone who hurts them.)

But the Metatron knows exactly how to queue, and place a generally common coffee order, he has the knowledge that the other ethereal and occult beings who have visited Earth don't have — how humans interact. It's disarming and very clever.

When The Metatron asks Nina about the coffee shop's namesake the key isn't "give me death" it's "so predictable".

Study humans long enough, you see the patterns that push them into action: values, convictions, and love.

A heavenly intervention won't do, but a simple conversation has the power to obliterate the expectations Aziraphale generally has of heaven’s bureaucracy and petty nature. It’s everything Aziraphale wants to believe and what he’s been conditioned to trust. It’s propaganda.

Think of how coffee is often a pretense for other interactions among humans, especially in a work setting.  Your boss takes you out for a coffee because they see the warning signs that the company may be unionizing, establishing a false relationship, or camaraderie.

“[...] management’s politeness comprises a small tactic in a much larger strategy on the part of Capital to delude workers and maintain labor peace .”  Jay Bettencourt, “Nothing in Common: Your Boss is Not Your Friend”

It’s also worth pointing out that another union-busting tactic is promoting lower-level employees and turning them into managers in order to create a riff in solidarity. *cough*

As we’ve heard from Crowley over and over again: humans often invent much worse things than he or Hell ever could. I wouldn’t be surprised if The Metatron took a page from a union-buster book.

Part III: The (failed) promise of change from within

In this conversation, The Metatron does two things: appeals to Aziraphale’s values and offers him proximity to power to act on those values.

He has a chance to make the changes he feels would have the greatest impact on a broken system. As a former non-profit employee, Aziraphale's "I can make a difference" broke my heart. I can’t tell you how many conversations I’ve had with peers about wanting to change the non-profit industrial complex from the inside and the disillusionment that comes with it when you realize you can’t. 

“Nonprofits — through the services they provide and the media and other campaigns they design — explicitly and implicitly reinforce and perpetuate certain ideas. For example, in their work they frame what is the “appropriate” solution to social problems. [...]

Finally, nonprofits also reinforce an ideology about the most appropriate way to bring about change — namely, working for a nonprofit.

And who benefits when good-willed people committed to social justice get drawn into a system that they depend on for their livelihood and that incentivizes not rocking the boat?” — Erica West, Beyond the Non-Profit Industrial Complex

I predict that’s going to be the greatest and most interesting challenge Aziraphale faces in S3, the disillusionment he will receive because institutions do not change because of leadership — there first must be a larger cultural shift among every individual in that institution. In my opinion, Aziraphale’s choice wasn’t out of character, but deeply, deeply human — doing the best he could with the information he had at the time and with an olive branch of coffee in his hand.

(*I also truly believe The Metatron knew about the fraternization between Gabriel and Beelzebub before the beginning of the season, which is why he didn’t want all of Heaven on alert for the missing archangel, refused to cast him down to hell, and wanted to erase his memory.)

Quick note: I have another S2 finale theory that would totally negate this one and may post about it later, but it’s fun to speculate, even if I contradict myself on a silly blogging site

#good omens #good omens 2 #good omens 2 spoilers #go2 spoilers

[prettyboykatsuki]

Thoughts on Mikey’s character?? He also seems complex in a way but also simple. Either I am utterly in love with him 🙂

i have such strong opinons on his character i fear if i start i may never stop.

spolilers for tokyorev and mentions of trauma, gang violence, etc.

tldr: peoples refusal to understand mikeys position as a victim frustrates me. not saying that makes his actions okay, but i wish people would humanize him more.

i really do like mikey and i like him more in retrospect because i think his character is incredibly emotionally complex and also very nuanced but i do NOT like the fandoms handling of him at all because it either 1. demonizes him to a degree i find alarming or 2. coddles him in a way that doesn't fit his life and how he's been.

i have soo many things to say about. because for a fandom that produces a large body of dark or morally questionable content, people seem almost unwilling to treat mikeys issues with an iota of nuance. especially as we so continuously get information that reflects the same things which is that mikey as a character has greater issues than the rest of his crew that are perpetuated by his position in life.

but you can't talk about mikey without nuance because if you do, you're going to shit on his intricately written character completely.

people can call it what they see fit what those issues are because every character in the show is traumatized, poor, and generally disenfranchised by society at large which turns them to things they wouldn't normally do.

personally i think mikey's dark impulses are merely reflections of his very fractured mental state. i don't think it's of value to name a specific mental illness, and im not qualified to do that but i think people put up defenses because saying mikey has mental illness makes them think you're saying that's what causes him to act like that.

which isn't true nor what im implying because mental illness happens to normal people everyday and they're not violent. but if you look at mikeys circumstances, his life, the death of his siblings and his pronounced and continual trauma - and how those things interact with mental illness, i do genuinely find it unfair that people are so unwilling to be at least a little more understanding to his spiral.

all of that on top of, we don't know what happened to mikey that led him to where we are now. we have no idea what he's witnessed, if he's taken any substances to make this worse, what he's had to do to continue to survive. mitsuya had fashion, draken had his cars, chifuyu and even baji all had aspirations, but mikey didn't. mikey has never had.

i dont think you have to like mikey to understand his position is different from everyone else in the series. the continual loss and the things he must see in his work every day drive him to a point where his instability is tangible.

what michi is trying to do now is something only he can do. because everyone else in mikeys life has to worry about themselves because all of them are poor, disenfranchised kids with hard lives. it's not their fault like they couldn't "save" mikey, or get him the help he needed.

the only reason michi can even think to do that is because he never lived that life. not in the same way everyone else did. his aspirations are because his life was mostly stable up until where the manga starts. and his desire to save mikey is all because he thinks he can even do that.

mikey deserves time and then a lot of therapy and rehabilitation. all michi is trying to do is convince him that his life is worth saving.

i was crushed when draken died. i think it broke me in a way i cant explain, but i think that scenes significance flew over so many peoples heads. draken was mikeys heart. for him to die at mikeys hands is a suicide attempt more than a murder. of course it represents his internal darkness. its fucked up and awful.

but what mikey represents in many ways is simple. you can't save a person who doesn't want to save themselves. what michi is trying to accomplish is pulling mikey that far. what mikey did, has done, keeps doing is a form of self-destruction, one we see he's prone to over and over and over. that darkness is represented in tokyorev frequently.

and it is unjustifiable. but more than i want mikey to rehabilitate himself because i think having him suffer would do more damage to the story than good.

and to be frank, i think too many people have incredibly simplified views of gang life because they've never interacted with it. but i have because of the kind of drugs i was around in my adolescence. getting out is not easy. those people are human beings. not every person who's killed someone for the sake of their own survival is proud of it. that is a mental torture unlike anything else. your willingness to give empathy to imperfect victims says much about your character.

it's easy to simply say "you had a choice," when you don't understand what that shit is like. but to someone like mikey and to the rest of the characters in that show - they've only ever known how to live one way. wakui wrote this story because he knew young kids who got caught up in this crowd, and what the experiences at the hands of a system that doesn't uplift them.

and mikey is a product of that system. he's a product of poverty, trauma, mental illness and early exposure to violence and gang life. he's a product of never receiving the kind of support that a kid like him must've needed. it doesn't justify what he did, but i am so so sick of people pretending that is some senseless beast and not some deep shit that he's spent his whole life steeped in.

#return to sender #tokyorev #fang.tokyorev #meta tag #this is SOOO long im so sorry JDHKSD

[sketching-shark]

Is it fair to take everything in JTTW at face value, like the book is suppose to be an allegory for enlightenment

Hmmmm well anon I'm definitely not the best person to ask this (I'm but an amateur JTTW enthusiast at best), but I have read that it's a long and ongoing argument as to whether Xiyouji is predominately a religious allegory or whether its predominantly a action-adventure comedy (personally I think you could say it's both at the same time, very appropriate for a story featuring a protagonist (Sun Wukong) who strives for multiplicity). And you do see Chinese retellings of JTTW which focus predominately on the religious, the comical, the social criticism, etc. elements of the og classic to greater or lesser degrees depending on what the retelling is trying to do with the elements the classic is composed. That said, I do think that it does JTTW a great disservice to ONLY take its basic story at face value because once you start delving deeper it engages with a lot of interesting, difficult, yet necessary questions on everything from basic morality and religious belief to the righteousness of rebellion! It also might be worth noting that while Wu Cheng'en's work is the "official" version of Xiyouji, there's at least two other well-known versions of the tale that came beforehand, and the text is composed from a lot of folklore and stars figures that are undergoing changes and are being interpreted in vastly different ways to this day. So while by necessity leaving room to note that I'm in no way an expert on the complexities of JTTW, I'm not really sure if the concept of "fairness" really applies when saying whether people can or can't take Xiyouji at face value simply because there's so many ways TO read it, and even superficial understandings of the text can be important (such as in creating versions that young children can enjoy & be introduced to more complex themes in a way they can understand), and these more simple presentations of a 1,400 + page text are sometimes just plain fun. THAT SAID, one thing that I think must ALWAYS be watched out for & avoided is overarching tendencies to consistently simplify a text to 1 or 2 basic tropes and just as consistently ignore, or even flat-out refuse, to engage with the source material's many intertwining elements. That can lead to not just incredibly biased and even bigoted beliefs about a text and the culture that created it, but also adds to a worrying corporatization/monoculturalization/dumbing down of literature where the constant insistence that all texts everywhere just be "fun" has resulted in a reluctance to engage with anything that raises uncomfortable yet prescient questions about life and the status quo.

#anon answered #xiyouji #journey to the west #jttw #again i need to emphasize that i'm not an expert on journey to the west #so these are just the thoughts of someone who doesn't have a super firm grasp of the text

[perexcri]

1 through 5, and also 18 please☺️ hope you are having an awesome week💕

Veeeeeee hello hello!! i hope you're having a great week as well :] 💜

1.) chipotle order?

i live in a chipotle dead zone, unfortunately 🙃 but in college i used to get a bowl with sofritas!!

2.) thoughts on veganism?

ALRIGHT short version: it's a complicated thing, and i think it should be examined through more lenses than just "animal products bad," but ultimately, diets like that are a personal choice a person could be making for a variety of reasons. honestly just read Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer, because that's where most of my ideas about it have come from anyway~

longer version:

ok i actually have really complicated feelings about it, especially because i'm a pescatarian. i'll try and make it simple: i think it's fine and can be a useful thing to do so long as you aren't a jerk about it; furthermore, i think the issue of eating ethically should be taken as less of a black-and-white issue? like there's a social element of eating too that you have to take into account when choosing a special diet (that isn't for health issues, like not eating gluten because you're allergic) - like for me personally, i try not to eat meat (that isn't fish) as much as possible, but if i'm at a friend's house and they or their parents cook a meal with meat in it, i'll eat it because i think the social element (them cooking and sharing food with me) has more value than whatever belief i may hold about the meat consumption. but for some people, the food issue outweighs the social element, and i think that's okay, too, so long as you don't make it the other party's issue, especially if they aren't aware of your diet. does this make sense? idk

also, i think a lot of the time veganism is presented and depicted as being focused solely on the ethics of consuming animal products; there's a lot more room to think with the questions it raises about what we allow ourselves to consume, on a social level (like i mentioned above) and on a human health level? like i think a lot of the time the focus is "it's bad to kill animals for food" and not "the conditions under which most animals are raised in countries like the US for food are both unethical for the animals but also not good for human health or the environment" (something something factory farming bad)

but above all, i do think the human need to eat trumps animal lives. maybe that's mean to say, but if it came down to a family starving or a cow starving,,,,,,i know what i'm choosing. i'd feel horrible about it, but i'd do it (though this example is a gross oversimplification of a much more complicated issue, ofc 🙃). this is all to say i don't like the superiority complex some people have towards others about special diets when it can be really hard to follow them if you're on a tight budget.

3.) a specific color that gives you the ick?

ochre. most shades of yellow, actually. it's just not for me

4.) mythical creature you think/believe is real?

Florida Man™

5.) favorite form of potato?

roasted!!

18.) your boba/tea order?

ooooh i usually get something different every time, but i'll do my favorite order (that i unfortunately cannot get now because it was in my college town 😔): earl grey, no sweetener!!

thanks for the questions Vee!! :] 💜💜💜

#ask #vee my beloved <3

[anagramtransitory]

2. It irks me, and I need to talk think and feel about it, so I’m doing it, if I’m going to get anywhere with meaningful actual lasting change. And it’s worked before (thinking myself out of problems/traits and into new entire selves) so I’m doing it now. It just irks me to no end to not be seen, even when I understand how easy it is to not second guess the applicability of almost any cynical train of thought or almost any cynical philosophical reasoning or guessing system. The fault is that their reasoning and guessing system becomes their understanding system, and that feels like the great crime, if their other mental habits are merely harmless ways of thinking, of testing out ideas, which are not only understandable but necessary for any sane rational human person in a world with a need for suspicion and caution and expectation of badness in the behavior of people and the universe in general. Of course I understand that. But what irks me, in a way it shouldn’t, because it shouldn’t be any of my business what people think and now, as that’s their own bed they’re making anyways- is when the way they reason to themselves about the way people probably work becomes the way they understand, as a template, as a ready-made small bunch of speech bubbles (like, 5, at the end of the day, is all you need with a cynical mindset) to put in place of anything anyone ever says or does. It irks me to no end, ooooh my god. Not much makes me madder on a personal level these days than that does, grinds my gears and gets my emotions involved no matter what I do to try and mentally intervene on their behalf with the feeling I have for them and their misunderstanding of me and of goodness in general. But especially of me. What gives them the right, I say to myself. But I have to be neutral, ice-cold. I can’t be going through the world red-hot, poker-hot, aggressively nice like that. I don’t have to be the fucking buddha, I just can’t be reactive like that, I’m better than a chemical, and more complex than a simple chemical/molecule, so I should act like it. So. Based on that, that high bar I’ve set for myself early in life like always, I should just…find a way to be okay with being patient with people’s minds, and okay with being completely and (out loud) misunderstood. As I often am. I have to have faith that no matter what actions I ever take, people will get that they are done completely uniquely, that they’re a completely unique and “apples to oranges” riff off of a commonly held idea/value/practice, and not a way I am copying or conforming to society. That I fear the most. I don’t want to function if it appears to take my soul away. But I have to function, and I have to appear as if my soul is nonexistent or a copy of other souls. I have to do one and tolerate the other, at once, in order to do and be what’s right. Because what is right is me doing my best, is being the best and least burdensome (on people/on the planet, both now and in the long run as an individual) person I can be. And I’m choosing to not be that person as I have for too long, because I’m not willing to appear a way I really don’t want to appear. Because I have anger issues, and can’t stand to be misunderstood as it is. I think I have to have insane amounts of faith in others to do this, to make this change. A huge amount of positive (people/planet helping, altruistic, kind, hardworking/self-sacrificing, ego-unprioritizing, “material-world-practical-end-function”-devoid and done for the “the vibes”) behavior, is done so that it can be seen and understood for what it is and that that alone will make people happy. Aka, to see kindness and have hope, to see generosity and feel less foolish or more socially pressured towards generosity yourself (which studies show make people happy at the end of the day, where they have better thinking about themselves as a person and their worth to their group or the world writ large). That kind of thing. And if people don’t see it, through blindness and blanketing all behavior into 5 understanding-templates..why try to hard to do it?

[billi-mausi]

hmm, what do YOU think of friendships?I have been told my entire life i wouldn't find the kind of love like in the books. But what saddens me more than that is i wouldn't find find friendships like in the books.

Firstly I LOVED the ask, like it made me think and write and now here you have my rambling :)) (this is turning into such a long post!!) (okay this is officially VERY long, but hey its yr fault u gave me a topic i could ramble about all day?!!) (ly tho)

Now Friendships, personally, i hold them to a really high value, for me its most definitely my top 2 priority (top 1 is fam)

and now, i do NOT mean this in a metaphorical way, but i WOULD die for my friends, no questions asked. And this is not because, i have some friendship like that of books or something, tbh, its just how I love? Like once, I have made up my mind, that you ARE my friend? you are now cursed into an eternity of unlimited love by me so better buckle up kiddo! I just really love and value my friends a lot, honestly.

Friendships are a beautiful thing, honestly?? Like wdym you made us a playlist of songs that remind u of US?? wdym you woke up early in the morning to wish me luck for my exam?? wdym wdym wdym

I just, i really could go on and on about my friends yk, I absolutely adore them and am so f grateful for them honestly

and secondly I just want to say that friendships are really simple don't come with a bar that you have to try to uphold or reach. they are just so simple and without any rules? like Friendships in books and movies? they you make you feel like "That, that is a real friend" or "I want a friendship like THAT" yeah that's cool

but that friend who always waits for you to tie your shoelaces? yeah they're cool too. that friend who always doodles lil hearts on your desk or NBs at school? they're cool too. the friend who hugs you every time you meet (even if the last time was only a day ago)? yeah they're cool too. Book friendships are amazing, so cool, just beautiful, but at the end of the day, they're fictional and dramatized for effect, we as readers , we sometimes make that friendship as standard for OUR friendships? and it becomes something we yearn so deeply about, watching that film or reading that book, we subconsciously set some kind of standard of friendships in our minds, 'that that's the kind of friendship i want', but most of the times, we don't see what we already have. Its like, we are looking at the world with our rose colored glasses, expecting friendships to be like that in F.R.I.E.N.D.S or YJHD or 3 Idiots. but this is real life, you might not live in the same apartment complex, you might not have the time to call everyday, but that doesn't mean your friendship isn't strong.

and now we'll finish this up because its too long i fear, but i would say that make friends without thinking whether it'll be like the books, no, it'll be like 'the friendship of you & *insert their name*'

it'll be uniquely yours and you are gonna love it and forget all about having one friendship like the books, because you are here and they are there, and isn't that what we all want <3

#idek if u understood what i said #but like here #sorry not sorry for the extremely long post #i tend to talk #a lot #hehe #friendship

[perpetual-fool]

Mara 4

(cw: alcohol, suicide)

   "I need help with this 'acceptance' thing."    "What do you need, love?"    "I'm not sure. I guess I don't really know what that would entail."    "Well, how about you share something with me, and I'll tell you what I think about it? and then we can go from there."    "Alright. The thing I've been working on recently is mapping out fingerings for my viola. Stuff like this:

       Minor (0,2,3,5,7,8,X):

       E---5---7-8---X---0---2-3--        A---X---0---2-3---5---7-8--        D-2-3---5---7-8---X---0---2        G-7-8---X---0---2-3---5---7        C-0---2-3---5---7-8---X---0

   Phrased like this it looks like that's only C minor, but since the tuning is regular you can just shift it over as needed."    "Hmm, well, putting a dash in front of every letter makes it a little unclear what's supposed to be an open string. And since you haven't gone far enough for the pattern to completely repeat, it's not obvious at a glance where you'd end up if you shifted."    "That's helpful. I'll change how I denote the open strings. And I would need eight more strings for the pattern to completely repeat, or I could start on the E and work backwards. I'll try the latter, it should help me wrap my head around it if nothing else."    "M'kay." she says. "I feel good about that, but what about you, Ari?"    "It's not nothing, but I don't feel much of anything."    "What if I told you it was the best representation of an instrument's finger patterns in plain text format I'd ever seen?"    "That would be stupid, and I would think that either you're stupid or you're lying. I don't have a nicer way to phrase that. Is that offensive?"    "No, you don't have to worry about phrasing with me, love."    "Thanks."    "What about the inverse? How would you feel if I told you that that was a terrible way to map out finger patterns?"    "I'd want real feedback but I guess that's beside the point. I think in principle I might feel bad about that. Except, I know it's a good version of what it is. It's perfectly functional and there's not much you could really do with the format. And, hmm, I feel like I have a strong enough grasp on this that there's nothing to be bad about it. Almost like, given the constraints, this is the objectively correct way to do it."

   "So it sounds like, you don't value praise unless you already feel you did a good job, and you've been doing things which are so simple that they are beyond reproach."    "That sounds about right."

   "That doesn't give us a whole lot to work with. You've never done anything engaging enough to actually be proud of, right?"    "Yeah. Things are just too shallow for me. And the things that have looked promising have either fallen apart or broke down into simple pieces."    "You were finding music engaging right? Does that not break down into simple pieces?"    "Not in that way. You learn in simple pieces, but it becomes a new thing when you put them together. Say, the rhythm when you sing and play is a new rhythm, not just the constituent parts at the same time. I don't have the words for it, but those sort of intertwined elements is what I need."    ¨And you haven't gotten that far yet?"    "No, still learning the pieces. Haven't had very long, really."   ��"Do I detect some insecurity?"    "Yeah. I should've had this shit figured out fifteen years ago. But I couldn't.."    "I know. It's okay. I'm here to help."    "Thanks. So, the other thing then?"    "Yeah. Could you do something that isn't so simple?"    "I don't think I can, I think it's basically the same problem. Complex things are just collections of simple things. Anything I could be proud of is how well I've stitched them together, which is the first thing. The things other people seem to be proud of are things they don't really understand. Say, following a recipe like it's a magic spell, and just hoping the outcome is good. If you know how it works then there's nothing to be proud of or insecure about."

   "Then maybe it's not really about the outcome, as such. Why did you thank me for saying you don't have to worry? and for saying it's okay?"    "Because it means you're not going to leave me."    "So really, you need a reason to think I'm going to stay? Aside from the obvious."    "Yeah, well, if monkey brain was smart then this whole exercise wouldn't work. But that sounds right. Though I can't imagine why anyone would stay. I guess that's back to the first problem. The only 'acceptance' I've gotten has been on the condition that I'm not myself. Trying to connect just drives people away. And even if they stick around, just put up with me, it's not really me they're accepting."    "If you just need people to stay, why does it matter if they really don't see you?"    "Because they're not really with me in the first place. Because they're going to hurt me. Because they're going to try and force me to be something else. No, that doesn't feel right. I guess I need more than that."    "What do you need, love?"    "Saying 'to connect' wouldn't explain it, huh? I think it's that I need others to respond in appropriate ways? Not even positively. I think if I had someone who hurt me on purpose, and knew how to do it, that would actually mean a lot to me."    "I responded appropriately earlier didn't I? and you didn't feel much about it."    "Yeah. I dunno. Why would someone stay, in principle?"    "Because they value you. There's all sorts of variations on that, love, attraction, finding you entertaining, whatever."    "That feels right. And if what they value isn't really me, then they don't value me."    "What about your enemy thing? how would that fit?"    "Being worth hating is still worth something. Except, if what they hate isn't me. Oh that's a weird thought. I know others don't understand me. So the thing they hate can't really be me. So it's not me that's wrong, in that sense."    "Wouldn't that disprove your enemy hypothesis?"    "It doesn't feel like it. I don't feel like what I did was wrong, I don't know what I did, as such. It feels like what I am is what's wrong. And if I could be whatever it is they think I am then that would be an improvement. That's the enemy thing at work, really. But then why do I feel vindicated? I guess it doesn't make sense. It feels like if it's not even me they hate, then they must *really* hate me. That's probably just dumb brain rationalizations."

   "Alright. So then, how do we make you feel valued?"    "I don't deserve that."    "You just feel that way because no one's ever understood you before."    "I want to say you probably don't either, but I guess I can't make that argument with you."    "Damn straight. There's nothing you can hide from me."    "You'd be lying if you said there was anything you like about me."    "Wanna bet?"    "..no. This scares me."    "We can wait if you want. What are you afraid of?"    "I'm afraid that if I open up then you're going to hate me too."    "That's ridiculous."    "Is it? I've hated myself my whole life, haven't I?"    "In principle, yes, I could hate you. But I already know everything."    "I don't know that. You haven't necessarily drawn the connections."    "There are a couple arguments I could make, but I think you just have to decide to trust me."

   "Fine. It's not like I have any real alternative."    "You could stop taking that one med and start drinking 'till you're numb."    "Technically, sure. But I'm afraid if I don't take it I'll die, basically. And what would be the point of self-medicating until my body gives out? I might as well just kill myself now. I could do the blood choke thing correctly this time. But my brain won't let me. It's not enough that things are terrible and can't possibly get better. I have to be in constant unbearable pain *right now*. And that stopped when I figured out that failing to connect really wasn't my fault."    "Things will get better if you trust me."    "I've trusted people so many times before though."    "And none of those people were me."    "How could things possibly get better?"    "Want to find out?"    'No. Not like this. I've been over it, I want to fix whatever I did wrong, I don't want to just subvert the whole issue. It's cheating."    "Do you think everyone else hates everything about themselves?"    "I dunno, maybe. They certainly don't do this."    "They don't need to do this, they can just be what other people want from them. They can just get their love and acceptance from each other. We can't."    "We?"    "Yeah, I'm in here too ya' know."    "This is confusing me."    "That's kind of the whole idea, isn't it?"    "I'm not supposed to be happy."    "And why not? you're already confused."    "Confused by reality? It's not like the way people treat me didn't happen."    "If they count then I count, and if I count then you count. You're a person too."    "Am I?"    "Well if you're not, then the rules don't apply, and you can do whatever you want."    "I want to have never been born. I want to go back and at least fuck things up on my own terms. I want to have not lost my entire young life trying to be what church and school wanted me to be. Though the infrastructure still wouldn't be there. Like, lack awareness/acceptance of trans issues would have prevented me from doing anything about that. Or, mundane thing, playing guitar. I need a multi-scale at minimum to tolerate it, and those weren't around. And even if they were, I still don't get along with anyone. I wouldn't be able to play music with or for anyone else, not really. Even if I could go back and change everything, I would still end up right back here. Just, sooner."    "Okay, well, you can do whatever physics, your environment, and your psyche allows. How's that?"    "Fair enough. Sorry, I just feel certain ways about things."    "Oh yeah, look at this IDIOT who has FEELINGS. You don't have to be sorry. I like it when you share things."

   "What's there to like?"    "It's cathartic. Feeling things feels nice."    "I'm just being a whiny bitch, right? for lack of a better pejorative."    "Yeah, but the whole concept is bullshit. If it hurts it hurts, and if it hurts then something is wrong. 'You don't hurt enough' is a pissing contest, rooted in insecurity and thinking one's pain is what gives them value. It's not totally crazy, resources are limited after all. There's only so much sympathy to go around, as it were. But someone putting you down for it is just defending their own position. Pot, kettle, etc.."    "What about putting myself down?"    "Then you've internalized the abuse."    "I don't deserve to think that."    "She never put you down for that. And if we're not mistaken, she ultimately decided you were just lying about it. Meaning she wouldn't have either. If anything, it was putting yourself down, and her inability to help you, that she had a problem with. At least, on this issue."    "And what about 'I'll give you something to cry about'?"    "Oh fuck him, he's an idiot."    "Alright. But still, aren't I a piece of shit for putting myself down then?"    "Actually, I don't think so. I think people were just frustrated with it."    "What about all the other shit I fucked up?"    "As you said, it wasn't on your terms. Unless causality somehow doesn't apply to you, it wasn't your fault."    "No one's cared about that before."    "Cat did. Which does suggest that that's due to people really not understanding."    "How could I possibly believe that. It's not like anyone, anyone else, that I used to know would come back and say 'You know what? You really weren't yourself, it's not your fault'."    "Cat doesn't count?"    "Cat's special."    "Wouldn't that prove the point regardless?"    "It doesn't feel like it, though I don't have any argument to that effect."    "And that's because your brain is rationalizing how you were treated. If you were treated differently, you'd feel differently."    "I would feel different. But I'm afraid if I just change things arbitrarily then I'll lose who I am."    "Three things, love. It's not arbitrary. Becoming more yourself is the whole point. And this is probably just rationalizing some kind of need for consistency."

   "Alright. Let's get on with it then. What do you value about me, Mara?"    "That's more like it. Hmm. I like how you understand things, simple and profound. I like how you draw connections between things, seeing things others can't. I like the new possibilities you come up with. I like how you get excited when you learn how to do something new. I'm sure there's something about how you are when you really get into something, but it's just been so long. This would be a whole lot easier if, ya' know, you actually did things."    "Yeah, chicken-and-egg problem; egg has to come first."    "So how do you feel, love? Are you gonna go make me proud now?"    "I don't know. I'm so confused. I mean, I'm basically learning that nothing believed is real. And not in the sense that thoughts are representations, but that your brain just makes shit up to justify what you're already feeling. I did already figure that out in abstract, but it's different to actually put it into practice. So like, to feel proud of something, you'd start by being proud and then find something to attribute the pride to."    "But from whence comes the egg?"    "Instinctive brain stuff? Perceiving approval or disapproval, being attracted or repulsed, things making sense or not. I dunno what range of stuff might exist."    "So, do you feel better or worse?"    "I'm not sure I know what that means anymore. I need some time to think."    "M'kay. I'll be here whenever you need me, love."

[nulltune]

O_O i have....... been thinking abt how hakuno could really fit for the trope of "-because you were nice to me" .....

A character, sometimes the Butt-Monkey of a given work, is treated for the first time in their lives with genuine kindness and friendship. It may extend to the character's life being saved, and as such, they now may feel I Owe You My Life. As is such, they will be exceptionally loyal to their benefactor, even if the benefactor admits that it was all a lie

***not to say that the friendships and relations she has in canon are fake btw!! i never ever want to discredit them because they are very important to me okok. it's just that nearly everyone in canon started off with... not exactly the best opinion of hakuno, which is very valid when you consider the kind of situation they're in and hakuno's status as the weakest master. it's only with time and development and the genuine kindness and care on hakuno's part that they eventually soften up and start to consider hakuno someone they care about as well.

— but what does this tell us about hakuno? being treated kindly by others isn't the norm for her. it's an exception. it's perfectly logical when you think about it: hakuno is less than human, whether she's alive or not is debatable and her entire existence is essentially a mistake. the one who's most aware of that, the one who's most critical on hakuno and the one who can't just so easily accept the idea of hakuno being cared for is hakuno herself; but at the same time, hakuno deeply desires to be an existence that isn't unneccesary. she wants to be worth something, but she believes that she's unworthy and undeserving of any bit of love and kindness. so despite yearning for mutual love and happiness deep down, i can't imagine her accepting it so easily due to all of her unresolved issues.

for npcs, love is unnecessary and basic kindness is enough. hakuno unknowingly follows with this — to the hakuno who gives so much of herself without expecting anything in return, even the smallest and simplest of things could mean a lot — not because of the innate programming in her, but because of her own self. it's ironic because her compassion and selflessness is what makes her very human, but at the same, it's what makes her not human. (idk if this even makes sense, bye, but point is: i love making hakuno's greatest strengths her fatal flaws 😌)

her servant is the first person to believe in her and "accept" her as their master, and that alone is enough to make hakuno wholeheartedly place her trust in her servant. there's So Much i have to say about hakuno's relationship with her servant and just how important they are to her but i think that should be a topic for a later time and i'm already losing my mind over this particular one

From the day we met I decided that I will believe in you. My feelings about this will never change.

#&&. hcs #losing my gotdang mind H.AKUNO IS SO SIMPLE AND YET-- SO COMPLEX....!!!!!! #i wuvs her #but you ever just clash with your muse? #how do i word this....... the moon girl and i have very different standards? #would like 2 say the bar is so low it's at hell but damn i know the bar doesn't even e x i s t!!!!!! #what h.akuno considers to be 'more than enough' and 'more than she is deserving of' to me is what i consider the first step for her #not even the first step honestly bc i think she should realize that she /is/ worthy of being valued #and that being treated kindly should be the norm and not the exception for her #moon girl on da mind 24/7 and #i'm thinking.... my h.akuno wants acceptance from others (tho she's not aware of it bc of her constant dismissal of her own wants n needs) #but what she Needs is /understanding/ from others #HRMMGHH IT'S TOUGH TO EXPLAIN AND MY BRAIN IS MUSH RN (when is it not-) BUT TRY 2 BEAR WITH ME #h.akuno is a very giving person; she'd give and give and give and give without expecting a single thing in return #her selflessness /is/ an admirable trait; but it teeters on being an extremely self destructive thing — not that h.akuno cares #(and this is a bit off topic but it's also why i appreciate charas who prioritize h.akuno So Much) #(bc she won't!!!! i screamed all abt that in my post abt h.akuno and caring) #(which i will probably rb sooner or later bc that really is the perfect guide to understanding my h.akuno) #but you see; there's a Lot to h.akuno than just being a 'nice girl' #i reaaally want to tie in her insecurities and Issues(TM) with why she acts the way she does 😳😳 #and have some of that moon cell programming play a role in it too....... Hm! #(though these are all very dependent on how much she's grown and external factors too so i gotta keep that in mind as well) #but the point is-- moon girl is..... Flawed #which is why sometimes the nice option isn't rlly the right one when it comes to her; ya kno? #as in-- i think it's important for her to get out of this mindset of hers #and i think the only one who could recognize how damaging it is to h.akuno would be someone who truly /understands/ her #because without understanding how and and why h.akuno is the way it is; it's easy to just brush it off as #'oh she's a very nice and hardworking girl!' #when in actuality she just looks functional on the outside and really is on the brink of collapse #just stubbornly holding herself together and moving forward

[townofcrosshollow]

Twine Sugarcube 101

AKA, all you need to make a Twine game (I swear to god)

I’ve seen a lot of people go “Twine is too complicated for me :(” and give up before they’ve even started. And that makes me sad, partly because they’re giving up on a really cool hobby, and also because that’s false! It’s absolutely not too complicated for you!

I think the problem is that people look up Twine, see the documentation, and go “There’s way too much there! I can’t learn all that!” Well guess what- you shouldn’t learn all that, at least not yet. As a beginner you can skip pretty much all of this:

(Ignore <<linkappend>> too, forgot to crop that one out)

That’s a lot more manageable, right? Below the cut, I’ll let you know how to use all those remaining important things to make your story! Warning- it’s quite long! You might want to read it in sections! And while I’ll try to keep it entertaining, it’s also a coding tutorial, so... y’know. Might not be the most exciting read if you aren’t trying to learn Twine.

Welcome to below the cut!

First off, make sure your story format is set to Sugarcube 2. On the right side of the home screen (with all your stories), click format and choose the one labeled “Sugarcube 2.x.x” then open a new story with the green button! Here’s what you’ll see and what it all means:

Passages are all like individual web pages that you navigate between to play the game. When they’re linked together they’ll be shown like this:

Anything you write in a passage will just be shown on screen as plain text, no code required! But if you want to make anything more than just one passage with a bunch of text, you’ll have to link passages together with...

Links!

A link is composed of two parts- the text you see on screen, and the name of the passage you’re attaching it to. These are enclosed in [[double square brackets]], with a vertical bar | or a little arrow -> between them. If you want to show the passage name instead of alternative text, you can just put the passage name in square brackets alone! So this in the editor:

[[Visible text|Passage name]]

[[Visible text->Passage name]]

[[Passage name]]

Will look like this in the story:

Visible text

Visible text

Passage name

And all of them will lead to the passage labeled “Passage name.” You don’t even need to create the passage- when Twine sees that you’ve linked to a passage that doesn’t exist, it’ll add that passage for you.

That’s all you need to know! Technically, all you need to do to make a Twine story is add those fancy links between passages. If you add your awesome writing skills, that story will be super cool!

...but you want to do some fancy shit, right? Well let me introduce you to the next step up in complexity,

Variables!

“Variable” is a fun, code-y way to say “a bit of information that can change.” You could say they... vary.

Variables are useful for keeping track of information. If the player chooses to be blonde instead of a redhead, you might want to bring that up again- but you probably don’t want to write an entirely separate story based on that choice, right? So instead you save that information as a variable.

In Twine, variables are written as words with a $ in front of them. So my hair colour variable might be “$hairColour.” If you just write the variable out without any code, Twine will print the information you put into the variable. So if $hairColour is set to “blonde,” this...

She had $hairColour hair.

Will become...

She had blonde hair.

The value in a variable can be a boolean (ie. true or false), a number, or a string (like “blonde” or “any other string of characters”). They can also be fancy stuff like arrays, but we won’t be touching on that.

You can use variables to keep track of a lot of things! For instance...

How much money the player has

Whether a player has a key

What the player’s name is

I keep mentioning the value of a variable or “setting” it, but how do you do that? Well, one way is to add it to a link. If you want a link to set hair colour to blonde, for instance, you could write [[Blonde|Next passage][$hairColour to “blonde”]]. Clicking on that link would forward the player to “Next passage” and set the value of $hairColour to “blonde.”

There is a better way of doing it, however, but we’ll need to talk about...

Macros!

A macro is a snippet of code that runs when you put a special code word inside these <<spiky boys>>. You can write your own macros with JavaScript if you’re smart, find them on the internet if you’re even more smart, or just use the ones that come built in with Sugarcube.

The ones we’ll be talking about, and the ones that are the most important for most Twine games, are <<set>>, <<if>>, and <<link>>.

<<set>>

The <<set>> macro allows you to, you guessed it, assign a value to a variable. For instance, if you want to set $hairColour to blonde... well, that’s all you need to do! It’s just:

<<set $hairColour to “blonde”>>

It’s important to remember with the <<set>> macro that strings (collections of different characters) require quotation marks around them to show the code that it isn’t a number or a true/false value. If you put quotes around a number and try to do math with that variable, you’ll get a big ol’ error message.

If you’re using numbers, you can also use JavaScript operators in place of “to.” Each one will perform a calculation on the variable if that variable is a number, and then replace the variable with the result. If you want to add $5 to the player’s $money, you could use this:

<<set $money += 5>>

The “+=“ will add the number on the right to the variable on the left. “-=“ will do the same for subtraction, “*=“ for multiplication, and “/=“ for division. Easy enough, just don’t forget the = sign after the usual symbol!

By default, the <<set>> macro will be executed as soon as the page it’s on loads. Sometimes that’s useful, but sometimes you would rather the player click a link that sets a variable- like if they choose a hair colour. You might also want the same link to set multiple variables, like subtracting money and giving them an item when they use a shop. How do we do that?

<<link>>

The <<link>> macro is also pretty simple. All it does is create a link, and when that link it pressed it executes whatever is inside of it. Here we’ll be using it with <<set>>, but you can use it with all kinds of different macros and even nest some of them to do really complicated stuff!

As an example, we want the player to click “buy key,” give the player the key, and subtract $5 from their money. Here’s how we do it:

<<link “Buy key”>>

<<set $key to true>>

<<set $money -= 5>>

<</link>>

The text the player will click is in quotation marks, and after all of the macros we need to execute we have to close off the code by adding <</link>>. Easy, right?

But other than printing them on the screen, what can you actually use those variables for? Well, for that we’ll be using...

<<if>>

The <<if>> macro is my favourite, hands down, because it’s an easy way of accomplishing hard stuff. Simply put, <<if>> will check if the thing you asked about is true, and if it is, it will do whatever you put inside of it.

Here’s a simple example:

<<if $key is true>>

[[Use the key|Progress]]

<</if>>

Whatever is inside the <<if>> macro will be executed if the “if” statement is true. In this case, the link “Use the key” will be printed on the screen only if the player has the key. This also applies to code- if you put a <<set>> macro inside, that macro would only set a variable if the player has the key.

Now here’s a more complicated example, to show everything the <<if>> macro is capable of. Here we also want to check if they’ve already opened the door, and display alternate text if they have no key and the door is locked.

<<if $key is true>>

[[Use the key|Progress]]

<<elseif $doorOpen is true>>

[[Walk through|Progress]]

<<else>>

You need to find a key.

<</if>>

I’ll break it down line by line to tell you what each thing does.

<<if $key is true>>

This line is the only necessary one- it checks whether $key has been set to true. You can check for any value that a variable can be, like a number, true/false, or a string. You can also check for other things with this macro- for instance, “isnot” will check that the variable isn’t equal to the value on the right. “gt” or “lt” will check if the variable is greater/lesser than the value on the right, and “gte” or “lte” will check if it is greater than or equal to the value.

<<elseif $doorOpen is true>>

This line allows us to check for something else within the same <<if>> macro. Once the game has checked the original <<if>> and found that it is false, it will move on to checking each <<elseif>> until it finds one that is true. You can have as many <<elseif>>s as you need, and they can check the same variable or different variables, but only the first true one will be executed! And, of course, you can’t use <<elseif>> on its own- it’s stuck to the <<if>> macro!

<<else>>

This line is the last resort- if the original <<if>> and any <<elseif>>s have all been false, the game will execute whatever is after <<else>>. Because of this, there can only be one <<else>> line within any <<if>> macro! If you don’t have an <<else>>, nothing at all will be executed, so whether you include one depends on the situation.

<</if>>

This closes off the <<if>> macro. Nothing special, but very important! Put it after the last piece of code or bit of text you want the macro to control.

Phew. That’s it! That’s all I wanted to show you!

Now, HOMEWORK!

Okay, not homework, just practice. Here are some things you can try building to practice all these tools and get comfortable with how they work!

A store system with different items for different amounts of money

A character creation screen, followed by a description of your character (with variables!)

A puzzle that requires you to choose the right answer to proceed

If you have any trouble, need to ask any questions, or if something in this tutorial wasn’t clear to you, please let me know- you can DM me or send me an ask anytime and I’m happy to answer any Twine questions you have. I hope this was of use to you, and have fun making games <3

#told you i was making a tutorial! #not crosshollow #tutorial #game dev #twine game #twine #interactive fiction #gamedev

[hoshikokakure]

Natsu on NaLu

It's quite lengthy, and I don't know how to make the 'continue reading' cut off thing on my phone anymore, but if you're reading this, thank you! Hope you enjoy and let me know your thoughts, if you agree or disagree. I'd love to know your own analyses!

Let's get it.

You know, looking at Natsu looking down at Lucy crying while hugging and thanking him, BEFORE boy's all like "yeah I had something to say but nah", made me think that...maybe NATSU thinks that LUCY isn't ready or hasn't realised her feelings. Perhaps he was ready to confess after the war? Maybe. I don't know.

But here, Lucy is remembering everything she's gone through, everything they've gone through, and she says "I wouldn't be who I am, if not for you two" (not verbatim bc I'm typing this and do not have the best memory – it'd be so cool if I got the quote right), both Natsu and Happy, so I genuinely believe that there's a possibility that Natsu's behavior in 100 year quest is him hinting to Lucy that he likes her, or sees her not just platonically, in the most Natsu way.

Because it's Natsu. The boy stays true to himself no matter whatever adversity or scorn he faces. So why would he do un-Natsu like things to show Lucy, his other half of two complete souls, his best friend, Lucy who knows him so well, that he doesn't see her just platonically anymore. Natsu wouldn't act like Lucy's "princely suitor" because

1. He's a DRAGON KING'S son. What an insult to Igneel.

2. Natsu's very much someone who sees and values the character of a person. I firmly believe he's like "love me for me, screw all the haters". At his core, which we see in the original Fairy Tail when Lucy and Happy keep Natsu's body warm with their body heat, he knows who he is, labels be damned.

As readers of Fairy Tail, can anyone really say that Natsu would dress up in a suit, bring flowers, ALWAYS use THE DOOR, and any other stereotypical princely/gentlemanly suitor-like things to woo someone who knows him, or maybe woo anyone?

Or I guess, can anyone say that Natsu would willingly abandon his strong sense of self, himself at his core, for anything so far presented in Fairy Tail?

He beat up Gray for trying to use Iced Shell...TWICE. He was willing to die for Erza. He's stated he doesn't care what he becomes as long as he has and can protect his friends, family, Fairy Tail. He beat up Zeref and said "Bye Bro, I'm tired and want to see Happy and the others" (not verbatim).

He provides a distraction for Lucy, unless he believes his thoughtful input is needed in that moment i.e. Natsu to Lucy about her not crying about Jude, Natsu to Lucy on fighting for fun and comparing strength and fighting a war where people die...and is not for fun.

So far, aside from giving into END when Natsu thought Lucy died, when presented with a difficult path and decision, he's always tackled it

1. head-on: Plan T

2. Covertly and intelligently: Asuka thought she shot the robbers in the air and Natsu encouraged her and that idea

3. By creating an option different from previous limited options: i.e. eating Etherion, i.e. eating Laxus' lightening, i.e. Edolas, Evil Natsu Dragneel and his two servants Gajeel Redfox and Wendy Marvell, etc.

This boy pushes and breaks so many boundaries created in Fairy Tail, which is typical of the main character – Natsu is the protagonist, Lucy is the narrator – but not once has he compromised his sense of self, Natsu at the core. We can see that many of his regrets come from events out of his hands, Igneel and the dragons, for example, that he takes personally so as to avoid those losses from happening again.

Like, I always say, Natsu is such a complicated character for me because there is SO much depth in his character, in Natsu Dragneel, that is so simple but so complex like 3d humans. I dislike Shrek, but like the ogre said, onions have layers. Layers create depth, and the fact that there's so much unsaid that can be delved into...And I'll digress, but the character depth of minor characters like Cana and Mira, for example, and the possibilities for characters like Max – so many theories there for this sand mage, where do I begin? – it's beautiful.

Of course, a quality of a well written work is well written characters, which MANY authors have, but Fairy Tail will always be my tale as old as time for various reasons including but not limited to characterisation.

AND OKAY WOW TANGENTS ON TANGENTS, BUT,

Back to the point, I believe that Natsu behaving in more overtly inappropriate ways to Lucy and Lucy only, while fending off other men except for family, is his way of trying to scream at Lucy "I LOVE YOU", without screaming "I LOVE YOU" to Lucy.

Until when? Maybe until Lucy realises that "yeah, no. Natsu actually IS interested in that stuff", unlike what she told Juvia and Cana, or something. I don't know, I'm not Mashima.

Also, note that in no way is this behavior tolerable – it is not okay and I'm not defending Natsu's behavior. It may be fiction, but don't let fiction, characters, etc. dictate what you do and don't allow when it comes to consent, good humans.

Thank you for reading, and please stay healthy♡

#nalu #fairy tail nalu #100 years quest #fairy tail #natsu dragneel #lucy heartfilia #natsu x lucy

[marigoldwitch]

Let’s Talk About Elitism in the Witchcraft Community

It always seems to come back to this but I want to talk about witches in the community who give confusing, and often times misguided, advice to new comers in an attempt to separate themselves from the “soft” or “baby” practitioners.

I’m on witchtok (a community on an app called TikTok, in case you were unaware of what I’m talking about) alot and there’s something I noticed about the witches there; something I’m sure alot of you have noticed too. There’s 2 major groups of witches on the app. The ones who post “easy” and “simple” spells and information, and the ones who post up reactionary spells and information.

There seems to be this need for witches who feel better than or more educated (in their opinion) to posts videos in response to or in direct opposition of other witches. Usually these other witches are seen as newbies to the craft. And if they aren’t new (as in they’ve been practicing for a while) they’re considered uneducated or unwilling to learn.

The “why aren’t witches reading books anymore?” and “I think it’s them being more worried about aesthetics than actually learning.” comments are frustrating and reveals a huge disconnect and sense of privilege within our community. I’ve also seen comments / videos specifically criticizing the popularity of spell jars in recent years. The funniest thing though is that a lot of them are suggesting doing charm bags instead... as if that’s not just another form of a spell jar.. except it’s in a bag... not a jar :/ They want so badly to be “other” and “better” that they’re actually giving advice that’s basically saying “hey instead of using X container to hold your spell, have you tried using Y container instead?? If you read books and not just get your info from Tik Tok blah blah blah.” As if they’ve suggested something grand or much different than what someone is already doing.

Let’s Talk Privilege 

First lets be clear that privilege doesn’t mean you haven’t had “hard times” in your life. And being privileged in one way doesn’t make you privilege in every aspect. You can have class privilege while also experiencing hardship in relation to another aspect of your life. I am white, I have white privilege. I’m also a poor high school drop out. Which means I don’t have class privilege. It’s important that I make this clear because I know some people are gonna identify in someway with one or more of the under privileged groups that I’ll be talking about and that’s normal. That doesn’t mean that you can’t also identify in someway with one or more of the privileged groups that I’ll be talking about. 

Why don’t you just read more books? / Why don’t you just experiment with more tools, supplies and options like crystals, candles, herbs, tarot etc? / Why don’t you just invest in better tools and supplies? 

This falls under class privilege. Not everyone can afford to spend money on these things. “Well the library is free” not everyone can afford to spend time on these things. And I know, to someone who has the money and has the time, these sound like excuses to just not work “hard enough” (which we’ll get into why this statement is ablest in a minute) but it’s legit the reality for a lot of people. Let’s also remember that public libraries in underfunded poorer communities are.. well under funded and don’t offer the same selection that a well funded library would. Also the cost of going to and from that library (or a much better one with a better selection). Personally, I live in what is known as the bible belt and my local (underfunded) library has 5 books on witchcraft. 3 are reference books and can not actually be checked out. The other 2 require a 10 dollar deposit to check out. I kid you not. You have to pay to check out those books.

I saw a comment that said “crystal grids and crystal magic is very beginner friendly and easy, why don’t more witches do this?” And I want to shake them and scream “crystals cost money you doodoo head!!” LOL.

Supplies and tools are expensive. Yes, there’s plenty of information online about how to use what you have on hand... and those same witches sharing cheap and easy alternatives to supplies and tools are also sharing cheap and easy alternatives to spells and rituals. Hence how spell jars became so popular.

“They just don’t want to put in the effort” / “They aren’t working hard enough” / “They’re just in it for the aesthetics”

This falls under ableism. 1. Expecting other witches to match your energy and effort is hella ablest and you should stop. Not only is it unrealistic to assume we’re all on the same page, it’s unhealthy to project your own expectations on to {most likely} complete strangers just because you share one interest [witchcraft] with them. 2. Some people are visual practitioners (whether they’re ND or not) and so they need to and work better with seeing what they’re doing. It’s obvious that the type of witchcraft lots of ND people use is the type that is overly criticized in our community. (ND = Neurodivergent)

Physical disability is also something to keep in mind. Not everyone is physical able to do all the things you can do. Personally I experience hand tremors. Basically using an herb bundle to do a smoke cleansing is a huge ass mess for me and is more headache than it’s worth. So I opt out of smoking cleansing that way. It doesn’t mean that I’m not trying hard enough or that I’m not putting in the effort to make it work... it means I have a disability that makes it more difficult and I’ve found other ways to do these cleanses.

Also, witches are allowed to like pretty things. Like pretty things and valuing the beauty in your practice is all perfectly fine. There’s nothing wrong with wanting your space, yourself or your practice to look “pretty.” 

I Need To Mention Cultural Awareness

Another reason something might not make sense to you is because it isn’t for you, literally it has nothing to do with you or your practice and so you’ve chosen to put it down rather than mind your business. That’s really all I can say about this as I practice a fairly common form of folk magic and the practice, as well as the culture in which it’s derived from is open. So there’s nothing I do that’s really considered for specific cultures only. I’d rather someone else with more experience talk about this in more detail. 

Misguided Information and Superiority Complex 

When sharing information and experiences it’s probably better to do so without needing it to be in reaction to someone else’s information and experiences. I don’t think there is anything wrong with sharing other forms of magic or witchcraft. I think most of us want as much information to be as easily accessible for as many people as possible. The issue comes from only sharing this information and experience because you think the oppositions is/are wrong. Not because you want the help people learn. And actively putting down certain information because it was shared via social media, while also insisting that your information is the actual correct information.. while also sharing it on the same social media platform.

“Don’t believe everything you see on the internet.... except me. You can believe me.” Is what it feels like. And I think what gets to me the most is the amount of UPG that is sprinkled into a lot of the information that these “I know better” witches share. Thinking you know better or know more because you’ve been doing it longer or doing it different, doesn’t actually mean you do. 

I’ve said this before: No one is sharing their entire practice online

“Why are you only doing spell jars?” why do you assume that the only time they practice witchcraft is for a video / photo that they post online? 

Better yet, why are you demanding they share more than they’re comfortable with sharing? Why do you feel entitled to know everything about their practice? 

Just because a witch’s Tik Tok, Instagram, Tumblr etc is only filled with pretty spell jars and aesthetic photos of teas, doesn’t mean that’s their entire practice. That’s the part they’re willing to share with the world. And even if it was their entire practice, why do you care? Why is it your business? When did they ask you to tell them what you thought of their practice?

In conclusion

Before you make that post or make that video about how X witches aren’t doing Y thing right because I did it Z way, remember we’re all different. Times change. And something being popular doesn’t mean it’s not effective or useful. Something being mainstream doesn’t make it bad or stupid. And witchcraft becoming more and more modernized doesn’t mean it’s losing it’s roots or that the next generation of witches are gonna be “sissy babies with nothing but a bunch of pretty jars.” and even if they are, it’s non of your business.

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