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technicallydangerousphantom · 10 months

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HI I SAW YOU MENTION IN A POST YOU HAVE IDEAS ABOUT A CLOCKERS FAMILY MAFI AU IM ACTUALLY CURRENTLY WORKING ON A FANFIC OF THAT IDEA BECAUSE ITS BEEN IN MY HEAD FOR MONTHS I HAVE THE FIRST TWO CHAPTERS ROUGH OUTLINE ALREADY

WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR CLOCKERS MAFIA IDEAS?

Oh my god, I'm so glad somebody asked, I've been wanting to talk about this for a while now.

I've got a bit of a story outline that I'm thinking about, but it's a little bit more desert duo focused so I'm gonna leave that until later I think.

SO the whole thing about clockers for me is that in universe they already feel like a mob family. They keep inviting people to randomly join 'the family' but no one really seems to ever get to the inner circle. And they just in general cause a lot of chaos for anyone who causes them harm.

Their characters are so easy to put into this type of scenario.

my thoughts are Cleo as the mafia boss, since she's the mom, but she's also got really high charisma, kind of like Scar, but I feel like she's way more intimidating.

Scar and Bdubs are kind of like her seconds in command almost? Like Scar is right there beside her planning mischief and Bdubs is kind of also there. I feel like he doesn't contribute quite as much with the schemes.

My main Bdubs idea is that he'd be kind of the transportation guy, since he's such a fan of really high quality horses and he just kind of jacks really fast cars to run drugs and really high quality ones to resell on some sort of black market (except for a handful of them that he keeps for himself, one of which Scar has definitely totaled)

Scar mainly works in 'relations' which just means he's in the business of threatening and lying, as well as following through with threats, because he deserves to blow up the competition sometimes as a treat. He also just kind of steals for fun and is very involved in forgery.

Cleo, as the boss doesn't do a lot of field work anymore, but she does help Scar with recruiting from time to time and she's big into the illegal potions part of their business. She can be really brutal but she's not unfair and most of the guys that work for her do get vacation/sick days. She's not quite as into the hands on stuff, or at least not the regular stuff and she likes to plan for large scale stuff and then be a part of that.

Other interesting details,

They use contracts so often. No they are not technically legal, this doesn't seem to matter.

Scar has faked his death before. It was stupidly dangerous and its where his explosion scars came from

Bdubs is missing teeth, but not because of violence stuff, he just fell down the stairs one time and that was that.

Cleo has some issues with low collagen levels and blood flow that causes her injuries to take a long time to heal, so while she doesn't tend to get too many, the few scars that she has are still sewn shut.

Bdubs is the only one to never have been brought into custody by the police.

Scars fingerprints were burnt off when he 'died'

And I feel like this post is getting really long, so I'm gonna cut myself off here, but if anyone wants any more details about this au, feel free to ask, I would love to answer (especially about the desert duo plot that I mentioned at the beginning, I'd love an excuse to talk about that)

#clockers family #Gtws #trafficblr #zombiecleo #bdoubleo100 #limited life #goodtimeswithscar

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krushkreates · 1 year

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soldier, poet, king

chapter v: coille

me? focusing on another setting than the tavern?? and other characters than the wolves and sam?? no way

two updates in two days too?? holy shit it's a miracle. chapter four was the reason i took so long to update bc honestly i hate writing song fics but the dancing and singing was how the boys were gonna meet their mates. had to make sure it wasn't cringy lol but now im finally on a roll. that time also gave me time to figure out how i wanted the main plot to go and what i wanted to change, universe-wise.

when i tell you this is an alternate universe, i mean it

enjoy lovelies <3

you can read this here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/41903367/chapters/109104064

The chill air of the autumn night seeped into their bones and the fading light of their lantern should’ve made them stop.

The woods were dense, the canopy a thick, inky blanket that made the hooded figure nervous. The wind sang through the branches, making them click and clack against each other. They heard nocturnal animals call to each other and swore they saw eyes that didn’t belong to man or beast. Leaves crunched under their boots and they couldn’t shake the vague feeling that someone or something was watching them.

They clutched the small brown pack closer to their chest and attempted to close their cloak. To no avail, the breeze picked up, and blew the dark fabric open again. Their teeth chattered and the traveler realized their clothing was too thin for tonight. The map definitely didn’t mention how creepy the woods would be at night.

Wonder Woods my ass. The bitterness of that thought stained their mood. They could hear their former master’s hearty laugh and knew how much shit the woman would’ve given them if she ever found out how hopelessly lost they had gotten themselves. The mud squelched under their worn boots as they stopped to look at the map.

Ink smudged under their fingertips as frozen fingertips attempted to smooth out the wrinkles from being mushed against their hip in their waist bag. The map was a crude, hastily sketched outline of the three day journey they had embarked on. Though the traveler would argue it barely constituted little more than a poorly drawn treasure/scavenger hunt paper scrap. It would’ve made the shop hand’s daughter’s drawing look like a royal painter’s. Their gaze traveled along the path they believed they were currently on, but memory seemed to fail when the fork on the map was smudged. They quickly realized they couldn’t remember if they had taken a right or left-

A small curse fell from their lips as a stick snapped behind them, causing them to jump.

They whirled around, their heart thundered in their ears and fear shook their hands as they fumbled for the knife in the leather garter on their thigh. Squinting their eyes, they faintly made out a shadowy silhouette. The figure seemed solid but their borders were hazy, as if the darkness around them melted in the environment: like a candle made of shadows. The traveler could faintly see their long, gnarled hands, accentuated with long yellow fingernails, marred with a harsh line of black under the nail bed.

They couldn’t make out a face, much less any mildly distinctive facial features. The thing’s face was covered by what looked like a hood. Or maybe it was that weird darkness that made them almost shimmer.

The figure hadn’t moved since the traveler had gripped their knife. They felt their knuckles pale from the death grip on the ruby encrusted handle. Standing extremely still, the figure seemed to be unable to see them. They willed their breaths to slow down and hold them for a few seconds.

A gust of wind blew through and in the blink of an eye, the figure was gone as fast as it had arrived.

They released a breath that came out more of a gasp and felt their knees wobble. The dump of adrenaline, combined with a restless and long journey released exhaustion in their bones, and they felt themselves collapse.

“He couldn’t have assigned me patrol any other night! Any other time, but nooo, it’s Mabon and I’m stuck out here while everyone gets to have fun at the tavern.” Vincent grumbled to himself as he kicked a rock along the trail. He recalled the irritating conversation William had pulled him into after the last clan meeting.

”You wanted to talk?” He asked, his eyes watching the rest of the clan mingle and talk after the hour-long meeting.

William flashed him a warm smile. “Yes, I did. I am afraid that Alexis will not be able to patrol on the 21st. She is wrapped up in some, <b>business</b>, that day. I need you to take over her shift after you’ve helped set up the tavern.” He met his progeny’s gaze with an apologetic look, though the two of them knew that Alexis was just going to be sulking the whole eight day celebration.

Vincent sighed, trying to find a way out, but something told him William didn’t want to deal with any of her tantrums if he tried to refuse. He looked at the ceiling and closed his eyes. After a moment, he turned to his maker.

“I’ll take over, but it’s going to be a half-shift. I think Canon is going to join in Angel’s performances and I want to be there to see it.”

William nodded, a fond smile washing over him. “Of course. I would like to see it, but unfortunately, I must head to the Meridian.”

Confusion spread across his brows. “The Meridian? Is everything okay with it?”

His maker paused before trying to reply and being interrupted by Sam.

William hadn’t answered his question or sought him out after that meeting. When Vincent thought back on it, he seemed reluctant to even mention the trip to the Meridian at all. Running a hand through his hair, he shook away his curiosity. No use in ruminating over answers he wasn’t going to get.

The woods were oddly quiet tonight and the vampire wondered if any more sightings would occur. The reports on his desk were piling higher everyday, and the sandpaper behind his eyes was conducive to it. Vincent dreaded tonight’s report and based on the last few patrols, it would be empty, save for the occasional drunk from the tavern that got lost in the thicket of brambles and bushes.

His ears picked up on the sound of boots crunching roughly a couple hundred feet ahead, flanked by a seemingly hooded figure. Picking up the pace, he kept his own steps silent. A terrible feeling crept over him, the alarm bells screaming as he observed the two. The cloaked figure didn’t seem to know that the hooded figure was there. Vincent’s eyes swept downwards and if he had any blood left, it would’ve run cold when he saw the lack of feet from the tall second figure.

What in Meridian’s name?

The cloaked figure suddenly stopped and whirled around. Quickly, he hid behind a thick bush, the thorns pressed into his fingertips as he moved the branches to get as clear a view of the potential stand-off as possible.

Despite his status as an immortal, time didn’t feel any different to the vampire. Days passed the same as they did 20 years ago, and yet, in that single moment, time had slowed to an agonizing crawl as he realized who, or rather <i>what</i> had been following the first figure. Each muscle in his body tensed for that long, horrid minute and soon found himself peering over the collapsed body on the ground when the dark shadow had vanished instantly.

The hood on their cloak had fallen off, and Vincent found himself entranced by their beautiful features. His fingers itched to touch their nose and feel their cheeks rest in the palm of his hands. He shook his head, and turned his eyes down to their chest. They were still breathing, and their pulse was strong. They were so warm despite the frigid air, and a sheen of sweat coated their forehead. Puffs of air were visible as they exhaled through slightly parted lips. Their eyes flung open and heaved a gasp as they shot up and cradled their pounding head in their hands.

“Welcome to the world again sleeping beauty.” He greeted them with a playful tone. They looked up at him and scooted back with a start. A hearty laugh fell from the vamp’s lips. “Relax. It’s gone, and I promise I haven’t done anything.”

Eyes squinted in distrust. “How do I know you aren’t lying?”

He feigned a hurt look and clutched a hand to his chest. Holding up his middle and index finger, he said, “Scout’s honor. Besides, you’d know if I touched you.”

The traveler rolled their eyes and went to get up, but found themselves woozy. He rushed over and steadied them.

“Easy, Lovely. I’m not an expert on human health, but you look like you’ve got some sort of fever.”

They looked at him strangely before wiping their forehead. “I’m fine, but thank you for helping. What are you doing out here anyways? Do you always find random strangers collapsed on the woods’ floor?” The words were sharp, but the mischievous light that danced in their light told Vincent they trusted him- for now.

“Actually, yeah. I do. More frequently than I’d like to admit.” He laughed at the bewildered expression on Lovely’s face. Now that they could stand without falling, they rubbed their temples in an attempt to quell the throbbing and million questions running through their brain. They settled on asking the handsome stranger about their location.

“Where exactly am I that makes you find so many strangers?’ I know this is the Wonder Woods, but I can’t be too far from something. A town? Or-”

“Couple miles from the tavern. It’s on an apple orchard and I happen to know the owner. I’d say let’s get you to a healer, but that same healer is also there. You look like you need a drink, a bath and someone to listen to you.” He flashed them a dazzling smile, and the traveler found themselves unable to say no.

They sighed and adjusted their cloak. Sensing they couldn’t say no, they met his gaze after putting the ‘map’ away. “Fine, but this tavern better be worth your insistence on.”

His smile widened further. “I’m glad you said that.”

#redacted asmr #redacted audio #redacted vincent #redacted lovely #krush fics #soldier poet king

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raksh-writes · 2 years

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where do you get your inspiration from for writing? are there any activities you do that helps your creativity flow? i ADORE your work and really love the passion you put into your fics! i’m excited to see what you come up with next whenever you’re ready!💗

Hello! 😊

Firstly, thank youuu 💗💗🥰 it means a lot to read that people see how much passion I have for my writing and enjoying my stories, so really, thank you for such a sweet ask 💗🥰

Where do I get my inspiration?

Hmm, that's a quite hard question actually, feels very much like pretty much anything and everything could be inspiring for me 😄 Definitely other fics I happen to read, whether it'd bcs of the specific AU that gives me an idea or that I liked the writer's style. Music can be super inspiring for me too, tho more in the sense that whenever I just let myself listen and daydream that's when lots of scenes and ideas come to me ^^ Some prompts lists can be inspiring too (most of my smutty one-shots are from those!) and sometimes just some talks with my friends or some of their posts can give me ideas also (A simple gesture of affection or How to give a fox a forehead kiss came about this way 😄). And these days, as Im knee deep in my BatB AU, talking with my lovely beta and bestest of friends @flowers-for-stiles really helps me a lot with keeping my inspiration and motivation going + lots of ideas come out whenever we chat about the AU ^^

And as for activities that help my creativity flow, aside from mentioned above talking with my hun @flowers-for-stiles 💗🥰, which is one of the main things for Sure, then I guess it'd be mostly working around the story. For example, I like imagining some scenes from a different pov than usual, which gives me a better feel for the character or offers me just more insight into the scene/story. I outline my ideas too, writing down key points, which I sometimes use my whiteboard for to give myself a different way of looking at it too. Then, with my BatB AU now, I need to do A Lot of worldbuilding, so for example I'd make lists of what character would be which on the a/b/o scale or in the last few days I sketched down the rough ideas of how Stiles' and Void's rooms would look like so I had an easier time describing everything - which I might post here on tumblr and link to over on ao3 so y'all can have a general idea of where everything in the rooms is situated 😄 In general I like giving my brain lots of different ideas and things to munch on, bcs I always need something fresh to keep my creativity going otherwise I get bored 🙈😂

And this BatB AU I've been writing so much in this reply is probably what will come next 😄 Not anytime soon, unfortunately, but it is the WIP I'm focusing the most on rn and it has A Lot of worldbuilding and plotting to do (just on a single chapters level too, it’s actually not that easy to finds conflicts and things to do for characters that are interesting to read while I need to introduce everything important to the story and the world it happens in 😂), so often times I'm writing down notes about that instead of writing actual chapters and it makes the whole process waaaay longer. I've also divided it into three parts and will prob only start posting when I have the whole first one, or most of it, written because that's just what feels right for it, y'know? And I'm still pretty raw emotionaly after finishing up LitA -- nothing besides this AU actually speaks to me enough to write it -- so rn I'm just trying to slowly ease myself back into writing overall and this AU feels good for that ^^ I might try reblogging prompt lists and ask to send me some, because I've been thinking of trying that to see if it gets my creative juices flowing and allows me to write some short, fun things, but we'll see! For now my hopes are that you, lovely nonnie, or any of my readers won't be too disappointed that I'm not posting much these days and that when it comes it might be in a few months not anytime soon, but also that y'all will enjoy it too 💗

Oof, and I rambled quite a bit, didn't I? 🙈😂 Anyway, gotta rest my wrists now, and hopefully, I can maybe write smth in the evening ^^ Thank you for the lovely ask, nonnie, and I hope your week is gonna be wonderful, best vibes and big hugs to you 💗💗💗🥰

#ask #anon #Raksh answers #Raksh's writing ramblings #a bit late and super rambly but hope its okay nonnie 💗💗😂

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slightlyrebelliouswriter23 · 3 years

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Hi, I'm currently working on a novel for school, and im having a little trouble writing fluff chapters (though those are usually my favourite to read in books 🤷‍♀️) do you have any advice?

Plot 101: Writing the Emotional Undercurrent

Hi there!

First, I think it’s important to clarify that the “fluff” chapters @hugeolnerd is referring to are not the fanfiction category of “Fluff” (I checked with her just to be sure).

In novel writing, fluff chapters are the chapters which fall between major plot points. These are typically the scenes that have lower stakes and less action—but this doesn’t make them any less important to the plot.

I. Two Stories In One

There are many ways to outline a story, but I think where a lot of people go wrong when they think about plot is thinking of it as one continuous line with one peak. Like this:

While this is a bog standard plot outline, and one you can certainly use if it works for you, it doesn’t quite cover the nuances of story writing. And if you’re struggling getting from Plot Point A to Plot Point B, this outline doesn’t really tell you much about how to get there.

If you’re facing difficulties writing these in-between scenes, it probably means you’re more focused on the surface level of the story, rather than what’s going on underneath.

I like to think of a plot as being two stories in one. The first being the Action Story (i.e. everything that’s happening on the outside) and the Emotion Story (i.e. what is happening with your main character(s) internally).

So when I’m drawing a plot outline, it looks something like this:

As you can see, there are two plots happening alongside each other. The green line represents the action plot while the blue line represents the character’s emotional journey.

If you’re looking for a more organised plot outline, you can use one with one line but different coloured dots sitting above and below the line, like this:

In this one, the action plot points are green and sit above the line (or surface of the story). The emotional plot points are blue and sit below the line (or surface of the story).

Now, not every plot outline will look the same in terms of shape, so the ones I drew above don’t have to be the stencil you use for your plot. But when you’re talking about fluff chapters, you’re most certainly going to be focused on that blue line or those blue dots.

II. It’s All About Character

I’d argue all plot is about character, but especially your blue plot line.

The emotional plot is all about your main character. So make sure you have a really good sense of who your character is and what drives them.

This doesn’t mean knowing the minute details like what their favorite foods are, what their star sign is, or what they eat for breakfast every morning. This means answering three important questions:

What lie do they believe?

What do they want most in this world and what can I do as the writer to keep them from getting this thing?

What lesson do they have to learn in order to achieve that thing?

Often times, the “lesson” they’re going to have to learn is that the lie they’ve been told isn’t true. Your character won’t learn this lesson all at once. It’ll take a combination of emotional and physical plot to get them there. But learning this lesson is what I would consider the “Emotional Climax” of your plot.

The questions above are what you’re going to focus on during these “fluff”/emotional chapters. Once you’ve answered these questions for your character, you can get down to the specifics of the fluff scene.

III. The Purpose of Fluff Scenes

When you’re trying to come up with ideas for fluff scenes, one of the main questions you should ask yourself is: What purpose would a fluff scene serve at this point in my plot?

There are more than a couple answers to this:

Emotional scenes help your character figure out what they need to figure out to get them to the next action-based plot point.

They can work to build the world you’ve created, showing small but important details about the character’s lives.

They help the character/readers untangle what just happened in the previous action-heavy scene.

They can also help the readers understand more fully the established relationships between your MC and other characters in the story.

They can help build new relationships between two characters.

Fluff chapters also give the reader a break from action-heavy scenes with high stakes. Think of the emotional scenes as a chance for the reader (and character) to breathe. I would advise having at least one emotional or “fluff” chapter for every one or two action-heavy scenes to keep the balance.

Maybe your MC strengthens their bond with another character. Maybe another character says something to them that sticks and drives them to their next move. Maybe they realise something about themselves that changes the way they conduct themselves in action-heavy scenes.

At the end of the day, no matter if it’s an action-heavy scene or a fluff scene, it should show something about/to the character. It should serve a purpose. Arguably, no scene is “just fluff”. If you’re doing your job right as an author, every scene should be working towards furthering either a physical or emotional journey for your MC.

Hope this helped! Happy writing.

-Em 🖤🗡

Writing Tip Masterlist

Fic Masterlist

Celebrate 2K with me!

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personalmythologies · 3 years

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1, 10, 19!

thanks laura! ily!

1. Tell us about your current project(s) – what’s it about, how’s progress, what do you love most about it?

well i’m always writing different poems and songs, but right now i’m also writing a longer story! it’s about a music teacher who lives in a house in a forest and has prophetic visions, and every time he practices or plays a song a magical forest creature leaves a gift by his door to thank him. he eventually loses his ability to play instruments to a degenerative disorder, and becomes too upset to even sing. the forest creature confronts him one night to ask why he doesn’t play anymore, and tries to help him cope with what he’s lost. i started writing it to vent about my own disability, and i don’t plan on ending it with the main character being “cured” or anything, but it’s also not supposed to be sad. i like it because it lets me explore my own feelings about grief and disability, and also i like stories about friendships between magical and nonmagical entities that are also kind of ambiguously romantic. and my progress is... slow. as always

10. How would you describe your writing process?

i usually start off with little bits and pieces that i jot down in the notes app, or say into my voice recorder if it’s a song or i’m driving. my process usually goes like “think of pieces of a story —> come up with a plot outline —> figure out who the characters are.” a lot of the time, the stuff i write down doesn’t turn into anything, though. i have like hundreds of notes in my phone that are just a couple sentences of vague nonsense that i thought of at 3 AM and just HAD to write down so i could finally go to sleep and stop thinking of poem ideas.

19. Is there something you always find yourself repeating in your writing? (favourite verb, something you describe ‘too often’, trope you can’t get enough of?)

god i write so many incomplete sentences... and i use semicolons and m-dashes too often. here’s an example of a sentence where i do both these things (it doesn’t make sense out of context but im focusing on the grammar): “he can’t imagine where else these visions could be coming from — he isn’t particularly in tune with the world around him, doesn’t feel very spiritual or unique in any way.” i learned awhile ago that you shouldn’t make your writing TOO descriptive or detailed because your audience will get bored, and i really took that to heart and became wildly vague. i’m trying to get better at this, but it’s been awhile since i took a writing class so im mostly reteaching myself how to write better by reading authors i like.

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mitsybubbles · 4 years

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We've been seeing a lot of your art- what about your writing? Are you working on anything right now? :D

I’m working on three separate fics/universes!

First one being Miranda’s story in NV. The way I’m focusing on it is by writing the stuff that is different from canon rather than going by it as a step by step following of the plot. As of right now I’m focusing on writing DLCs, esp Dead Money and Lonesome Road. The nice things about this story is how it lets me take the plot a little more slower since the main focus of it is on the main three characters: Miranda, Arcade and Sylvia. It also is very focused on their dynamic as a family and also their dynamics with the other characters in their close circle. Right now I’m working on a 2 page comic about the aftermath of Dead Money. It hopefully should be done soon, which will be a huuuggee relief cause I’ve been working on it for erm....almost a month I think? ^^’ I was thinking about posting a small snippet of it as a wip if anyone’s interested in that!

Secondly I’m working on Fantasy AU, which I already have posted an one shot on! Most of my stuff that I’m planning on posting rn is related to world and char catering building, esp with Arcade since his situation is so unique. The way I’m going to go about this one is mostly write oneshots detailing small adventures Miranda Arcade, and their friends have, since the tone of this au is more akin to Ghibli or Fairytales. Both Miranda and Arcade don’t really know exactly what they want so they spend a lot of time exploring and figuring themselves out instead of going on a Quest. Right now I’m working on a multi chapter fic about the beginning of this au. Im almost done with chapter one, which was a lot of fun to do because it was my first time writing from Veronica’s POV. After I’m done with that I was thinking about writing another one shot like Reflecting In Life. Maybe smth more Miranda-centric like Miranda meeting Trudy or Vulpes. I’d be glad to hear if y’all have any thoughts on a concept y’all wanna hear.

The Third universe is my aftermore mentioned crossover loll. It’s mostly for my self indulgence since I adore the Professor Layton series and it really influenced a lot about my art and writing. The story itself doesn’t have any of the main characters from either series meet in any major way but it’s nice to explore fallout charcaters in a vastly diffrent universe. It’s also a chance for me to write a more companion centric fic (it stars Arcade and Cass), and Noir/Spy Mysteries are loads of fun to write. This one’s probably my most developed story of the three but it’s also the only one I haven’t had officially written down other than a small outline and some concept art.

#thank you SO MUCH for asking #<3 #fallout new vegas #an ask!#fantasy au #miranda #pl crossover

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shidiand · 5 years

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How do you imagine Tenco's Story ending in your head?

that is a GREAT but UNEXPECTED QUESTION freshlybaked "spider" bread and i'm really happy to have the opportunity to try and answer this ageless question that has burned within all of us in the tenco's story iv waiting room community since 2013. it is an incredible coincidence (or is it? 👀) that i was just talking to Risa about tenco's this (edit: yesterday) morning so i am extra double super in the mood to talk about Tenco's Story today. so excellent of a coincidence is this that i am tempted to refer you to them in case you wanted to hear their thoughts on the matter that would probably turn out super cool, but that is neither here nor there; let us talk Tenco's Story.

i of course must mention my unadvertised and modestly detailed commentary on tenco's i-iii at https://shidiand.tumblr.com/tencos, presenting slightly interesting facts in an unwieldy and difficult-to-use format, but as it dates back to june 2017, i want to take some time to understand my feelings about the series once more.

tenco's story is a series that has a lot of meaning to me.

i took on my current name of shidiand in november of 2013. i was still in 11th grade at the time, 4th year of high school, and a very socially isolated person. i should say i was introduced to touhou in 7th grade, 2010, so i was still working through a 3 years-strong phase of trying to simultaneously both find an outlet for and bottle up an endless wellspring of awkward weeaboo-gamer nerd energy at the time.

i had my first real foray onto the internet in 2010, tried out twitter, followed some RPers and other people who had Cool Touhou Usernames. didn't really go anywhere. i had maybe 50 followers, i dont really know the count but it was definitely a) double digits and b) pretty low. didn't know what to tweet about. didn't know how to hit it off with others. i think there was basically maybe only 3 other people i ever properly interacted with. oh shit i was playing league of legends at the time. oh my god. i really did play league of .. oh my god. let's move on.

aw shit im super digressing amn't i. well.

this is just how it goes when i write essays on tumblr.com.

i'm afraid you're just along for the ride at this point so please do your best to enjoy it.

i got kind of tired of twitter at the time because i didnt know what to do with it. didnt know how to interact with people and didnt find the people i was following interesting, so i ghosted on out of there by the end of 2012. didnt deactivate it until like 2015 but at that point that was just burning away my dark history. anyways. november 2013.

--im taking a lot of time here trawling through old files on my computer, my tumblr blog, notification emails still lying around in my gmail inbox from twitter, the dropbox i didn't actually use but it had several tenco's story pictures on it but i deleted them so this was useless, ... to trace the timeline of this story and im really seeing a lot of remnants of dark history here you know? did you know i wrote a letter to a girl i had a crush on valentine's day 2014, slipped it into her locker, and anxiously hung around nearby at lunchtime to see how she reacted at lunchtime? i certainly didn't, or at least i made darn ass sure to forget about this incredible virgin incident and not remember it, ever, until i came across the records of it that i thoughtfully preserved for the me of 5 years later today. ok well now i have to read the letter to see if it was as bad as it just sounded there brb

ok so the good news is that it was actually very focused on being positive and full of admiration for the cool things she did instead of being a confession letter so i am very glad i was able to be a respectful chad 5 years ago, but the bad news is that the jokes, the actual sentences i put together. oh my god. but i mean. well. at least i got the spirit. its certainly a step up from this other person in my grade, WEEABOO ANDREW, YOU MAY RECALL THIS STORY AND HIS NAME FROM PREVIOUS STORYTIMES, THE MAN THE MYTH THE LEGEND who came to school on halloween once cosplaying kirito from sword art online and got very possessive about people asking if they could hold his black replica plastic sword, and probably worse, dropped a "will you be my girlfriend" letter into the locker of my homie and fellow trombonist samantha, who was a little bit nerdy, hung out with the anime-likers who were actually sociable and fun to be around so you can imagine why weeaboo andrew was into her, which had i) a direct quotation from SAO chapter 16.5 (origin of the famous "glopping noise" line), and ii) a condom. jesus christ. i dont want to talk about this any more. next topic.

i also put this drawing of iku nagae and her skarmory (actually an albinoss from 18 DRAGONS) on the other side of the letter because it was the coolest thing i could think of drawing at the time. and i completely agree with 2014 me because it IS super fucking cool. hell fuckin yeah

https://shidiand.tumblr.com/post/76301993387/iku-nagae-ft-that-thing-that-supposedly-is-a

alright that was a fun little trip down memory lane but lets get back on track. november 2013. i started anew as shidiand. still awkward, still learning how to express myself and looking for my place among others. i followed some touhou bloggers, hung around r/touhou a lot as well. in december i got my first tablet for christmas, a wacom bamboo splash. i still use this thing! the usb cable disconnects if you bump it so i have to find just the perfect position to sit in whenever i want to draw, but its served me well. anyways. i was just starting to play around with digital art but i remember, probably just before new years, for some reason i wanted to find out more about tenshi hinanawi (i don't remember why. tenshi wasn't even one of my favourite characters at the time) so i went googling and right there on zerochan i found this:

https://www.pixiv.net/member_illust.php?mode=medium&illust_id=23525572

this was during my dark souls phase so i just went BANANAS at the sight of this. this was literally the coolest image i had ever seen in my internet life. That image alone made me want to draw in hopes that I could make something as cool as that someday.

it wasn't immediately after but i soon discovered tenco's story, and it was love. kannnu was my very first artistic inspiration, and for a long time, my only one. i absolutely idolized them at the time. since then, ive found other artists to look up to, in a more healthy manner, but to this day i still look up to kannnu, still admire their work a lot.

i played around with drawing, followed the lives of people on tumblr, started reading touhou fanfiction, made a new twitter. i met a lot of new people along the way. some people i havent stuck with, some i cut ties with, and some people i still keep in contact with today. over those long 5 years of being shidiand, i found a name (i used to use shidian and then shid, but someone called me shidi once and i realized that was a lot better), how to reach out to others, how to express myself, places that i could feel included in. this is why i owe a blood debt to evelyn, who permitted me to kneel at her throne and was like "yea ok you can join my discord server u seem cool". evelyn, if you were confused by me ominously mentioning this blood debt/blood oath in a tumblr reply 1-2 years ago, this is the context. those 5 years were like a coming of age of sorts, that i never had when i was in high school.

and my love for tenco's story, that inspired me to draw that day, has been with me since almost the very beginning of my time as shidiand. from the beginning, i have always encouraged people to READ TENCO'S STORY, like the kin of those who cry PLAY MELTY or WATCH SYMPHOGEAR. i think my very first sidebar description was something akin to a prayer, written in very choral language, hoping for the day tenco's story iv was completed, ..., "meanwhile, furious shitposting". kannnu's work, finding delight in whatever they chose to draw, has been at my side, all along. my true mentor, my guiding moonlight...

so that's why i still to this day love tenco's story so much.

let's talk about tenco's story.

tenco's story is a story told through single pictures. the plot is vague, and details are sparse. dialogue is rare. we only know what has happened; we seldom know why. furthermore, there are many gaps between scenes that the reader is left to fill in for themselves; we see only snapshots that form an hazy outline of the events that occurred, and must imagine the rest. motivations and explanations fail me. but even with a barebones plot, tenco's story has themes, and if nothing else, those have to be carried through.

the main theme, of course, is journey and travel, but there are also other ideas, too. i actually think they start to change as the series goes on:

book i, where tenshi runs away from home, is about striking out on your own. it's a very fun and unpredictable journey, together with a friend.

book ii, where tenshi and iku are separated, forces tenshi to find and rely on companions of her own even more. but they do so, and they are able overcome hardships, and there is food and festival.

book iii marks a climax, reasserting tenshi's goal of finding the sword of hisou. i feel like the journey shifts from a travel (visiting) to a path forwards (making your way through). perhaps this is just something i get from knowing the locations from dark souls (Anor Londo, New Londo Ruins, the Great Hollow), but the locations start to give more of a sense of verticality, like they're emphasizing tenshi's climb to the summit. the hardships and enemies are the greatest they've been yet, and right when they near the top, tenshi and iku start to bleed. the book ends on an uncertain note.

if i had to describe the type of journey and travel that tenshi and iku undertake, there's this sense of wonder at discovering new places, wandering from vista to vista in delight, but also a sense of conquering, making it through a difficult patch. the sequence from pages 2-44 to 2-51, taken together, convey this sense of overcoming the best. it's one of my favourite parts. again, although the tone definitely starts to lean towards struggle in book iii, i think tenco's sense of wonder really is the heart of the series. there's no map of the world, no predicting where tenshi and iku will end up next. and through their travels, though they come across many enemies, they also find friends -- places of refuge, places full of life, people who will look after them for a few days, companions who will stay with them for the rest of the journey. at the end of book iii, we see a long haired tenshi with purple hair being impaled by the sword of hisou (3-33, see also this extra illustration that risa pointed out to me http://sinnnkai.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-195.html), and regular short haired tenshi continuing on her journey (3-42). if we ignore the out-of-story images where tenshi has the sword of hisou, tenshi has actually only ever used her sunlight blade (2-24, 3-26, etc), so i think that the long haired tenshi on 3-33 is a different person altogether. (if i had to guess, she might be the purple haired woman in the top left of https://www.pixiv.net/member_illust.php?mode=medium&illust_id=35443328 as we have never seen that woman appear anywhere.) she probably has something to do with the flashbacks at the end of book ii and she might somehow be short-haired tenshi at the same time, but this is just speculation.

however, in 3-43, tenshi's hair is rather blue, so i don't know if this is the purple haired woman or not. if it is, tenshi is probably still fine and closing in on the summit, but if it isn't, then it's very worrying to see a picture of tenshi without any of her companions. it's very ominous.

meanwhile, iku, while climbing the red carpeted corridor, is stabbed, and disappears for a few pages. there's a black page, a shot of a shrine that strongly resembles the hakurei shrine, and a picture of iku standing behind someone in a tux, with the line "In the past, I was saved by the lady I was serving, you see?". and then iku wakes up in a field of flowers.

i think what this scene makes clear is a theme that has continued to appear and reappear throughout every book of "being saved, being aided by someone's kindness".

i think another theme that is implied and has to be addressed by this story of running away from home is "return". something im imagining is that the reason tenshi makes finding the sword of hisou her goal is because she wants to have something to prove herself with, to vindicate her when she comes home. but i don't think she needs to prove anything, and i ultimately think that she would be happier spending the rest of her life exploring.

so i think this should be what happens in the ending.

open on iku's journey, and give her a long sequence of travel without seeing tenshi. underline her newfound resolve. she climbs to the summit with albinoss, and finds the rest of tenshi's companions fallen. and in the last room is sword of hisou tenshi, who has lost herself, and it comes down to iku to bring her back. after a difficult battle, when both of them are on their last legs, iku is unable to stand any longer. but at this moment tenshi sees her companions struggling to get back up and reach her, and that's what brings her to her senses. and iku gets to see how many friends tenshi's been able to make on her own, and they finally and properly reunite. together, tenshi and iku carry each other out of the last room.

i don't think it's necessary to return to heaven. as a conclusion, dedicate some time to tenshi and iku travelling together. they're on their way back, revisiting old friends who helped them along the way, enjoying the journey. their last stop is the house of the elderly nawis (1-42). tenshi shows off the sword of hisou; she decided to keep it not as a trophy to show her family but as proof of the bonds of her companions. surrounded by friends, tenshi and iku decide to part ways with each other, knowing that the other will be alright. iku drifts among the clouds once more, and tenshi sets off for the horizon.

that's the plot that i'd write/just wrote. i don't really expect tenco's story iv to ever come out, though. i mentioned my first sidebar description earlier in this essay, but of course, you can see that it's been changed. 2 years ago, i read my hopeful prayer once more and was struck with a terrible melancholy, so now it reads this: "having come to terms with the fact that tenco's story iv will never be released, i can still live, knowing that the spirit of the journey will live on through kannnu's original works [...] meanwhile, furious shitposting".

on one level, tenco's story is a story, but in the process of following it, i came to think of the work itself as a journey too. you can constantly see kannnu's improvement between and even within each book. they have always drawn whatever they liked; what plot matters in the face of "I wanted to draw a beautiful sky." "I wanted to draw a fantastic battle." "I wanted to draw Dark Souls and Monster Hunter and Pokemon and Brave Fencer Musashi and Bokura no Taiyou and Touhou."

its not really kannnu's style to go back and tie up old ends. they just draw whatever makes them happy. so as i watch them continue to draw beautiful places and fantastic creatures, new characters heading out on journeys of their own or just enjoying their everyday lives, it's as if tenco's story never ended. the limits and consistency of that world ignored, and a new one springs up; in a way, the world of tenco's, which had such thin boundaries, just gets bigger.

but even so, having said all that, i still see them draw that short-haired tenshi from time to time. it makes me happy to see them remember tenco's story with such fondness. often crossing over with orion or roar or elweiss, you can see tenshi on another journey.

#tenco's story #freshlybakedspiderbread

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odrseasonone · 5 years

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Pilot Outline??

So imma do it - I’m gonna try something I rarely do...a story outline!! Something I hate doing!! That’s how PUMPED I am aklsdjflkdjsf ;DDD Also, I feel like I need it to get my thoughts in order bc basically the inside of my skull is just incoherent screaming on a constant loop ;DDDD WARNING: this is gonna be a long post!!! ;D

main purpose of pilot: to introduce main characters (main protagonist: roran; main antagonist(s): cassius, rowena, dmitrei, dezód), world, & general plot

must establish what is normal vs what therefore is not

also the foundational relationships, which are roran & arya (at end), roran & charles, roran & cassius, charles & cassius, cassius & rowena, the resistance

things to consider: the 5 w’s

who

what

where

when

why

main action of the pilot episode (which must, itself, act as the inciting incident for the action of the entire series):

additionally each primary character, as well as the episode plot, should have some sort arc a la:

beginning/inciting incident/set-up:

start:

inciting incident:

middle/rising action/confrontation:

obstacle to overcome:

midpoint:

tension rises:

end/climax, resolution/resolution:

climax:

dénoument:

so roran is our main character, but since his story doesn’t really start until the end of this episode (finding the egg), he is not the protagonist of this particular episode. in fact, as i’m thinking about it, he might not even be fully introduced until a later episode - finding the egg could essentially serve as his introduction?????? bc im finding it a bit jarring to try and introduce both his thread and the ~political thread at the same time in terms of keeping things happening and not just focusing on exposition??????

i’m struggling to narrow down what to focus on in the pilot and what i’m starting to wrestle out of all of this is that...maybe alexandir or alaric or even cassius or rowena is the protagonist of the pilot episode??????

So here are some potential outlines as a result of this line of thought!! I also 100% feel we could overlap all of these and, if we go that route, that should make a nicely full episode!! I’ve isolated 6 (w a possible 7th in Roran??) potential focal characters for the pilot that I think, woven together, could form a pr coherent story for the pilot. Whatcha think?

focal character: ALEXANDIR GODIVA

INCITING INCIDENT: The war is won

start: establish alex’s experience in the war!! show the flow of his life and how he feels to see it come to an end

inciting incident: alex’s fifteen years of life must now change as he leaves behind combat and returns home

to a family who wants him dead - a fact of which he is utterly aware and doesn’t particularly expect to survive

RISING ACTION: alex returns to the imperial city

obstacle to overcome (that is, particular incident w/ which the episode will deal): ???????????? maybe he helps GUIN????

establish character arc obstacle: his family wants him dead!!! he wants to change aragoth for the better...and survive it

also wants to find and help the rebels!! and throne HELENA

his bio states that he would’ve returned earlier, but he spent time looking for aalis - i’d forgotten!

no one at home is particularly happy to see him besides some kids who he doesn’t really know!! #goodtimes

midpoint: alex tells CASSIUS just what he thinks and that sort of clears the air even tho alex is probs like ‘yup im 100% dead now’

tension rises: the possible helping of GUIN????????? something else????????

END: ????????????????

climax: more to do w the possible helping of GUIN???????

dénoument: he may or may not suspect guin’s involvement w the resistance but he at least knows there are other good ppl at court

resolution: alex decides he’s gonna do everything he can do to help aragoth here at court && even goes to coucil meeting

focal character: ALARIC DE MONTFORT

START: we spot alaric helping out some beggars, giving them bread and coin tho we see he doesn’t have much, himself, see his forest home, etc.

we don’t know anything about his background tho we only know what we see today

except for a loose sprinkling of little clues

we also see his relationships w the various members of the resistance tho probs focus most on GUIN for this ep

and also CEDRIC just bc they’re so tight but GUIN’s def the bigger character here to focus on!!

INCITING INCIDENT: tax collectors come to town to further clamp down on the ppl!! no thanks!! #getoutofmycounty

alaric quickly sees that he can turn this to their advantage, however, as all the gold that’s been collected has to be transported

and they can 100% make that work for them

we also see through this, not only that he’s done this before, but also that he has a history w the roads, the county, the laws...

OBSTACLE TO OVERCOME: ppl!!! starving!!!!!

ok he doesn’t have any permanent fix but he’s got some impermanent ideas to help things along!

and he’s working towards a better future so there’s that!!

MIDPOINT: setting the plan in motion i guess???????

TENSION RISES: receives info from CASSIUS via GUIN!!!!

CLIMAX: the whole burning village scenario

DENOUMENT: handing out all the $$$$$$$ to the ppl successfully but knowing that ppl have been hurt and killed

and things could easily have gone ever WORSE

‘if only we had a dragonrider on our side too hmmm’ ~alaric, probs ;D

RESOLUTION: resolution is a really strong word for the end of a pilot ep ;D but i guess he knows better what the stakes are

and can plan accordingly

focal character: CASSIUS MONTAGU

start: cassius is tasked w the v happy task of getting to tell ROWENA her uncle is coming back!! yay!! not a dreaded thing at aLL!!!

inciting incident: returns the imperial city to find that the privy council is meeting w/o him rudE!!!! 100% convinced they’re plotting

(lbr he’s probs right)

acts! like! an! ass!

++ a fun meeting w ROWENA #notweird

obstacle to overcome: aLEX is baCK!!!!! & this is weird bc cassius likes him which is worSE then when he doesn’t like ppl!!!!

also keeping the status quo, in general, on an even keel despite the resistance

esp bc 50/50 chance he’ll have to kill alex asp too

also fun bc asp they’ll be the two (2) suspects for JON’s murder and cassius be like [ x ]

midpoint: he and alex reach a weird understanding in that alex tells him exactly what he thinks and cassius is like ‘...yeaH’

and weirdly pleased to learn that at least one (1) person is still honest

even tho it sucks bc alex is like ‘yo i know what you did and whY’

also use this confrontation to build up cassius’ bad rep ;D

tension rises: something w the resistance and getting the queen’s tax???????????? and alex??????????????

climax: an adventure scene!! someone/something 100% gets set on fire and cassius walks through it like the bad, bad badass he is

dénoument: the resistance still gets the $$$$$$$ tho even tho like a town or something has been burned to the ground

and obv the privy council spins this to their benefit likE ‘those evil rebels burned ur village!! by summoning the fury of cassius!’

resolution: mah boy knows he needs to stay on his toes

but honestly pr much things’re the same for him as they ever were

so i guess this is basically a ‘the hero’s journey’™ ep for him that way ;DDD jk jk

focal character: GUINEVERE FONTAINE

start: we start out w her at the resistance camp as someone fighting to make a better world!!

not ready to show too much of her life, that’ll come later, she’s mostly a bridge between plots here

we can probs infer tho from her dress and ofc her court connections that she’s of rank

also the fact that at court she’s ‘lady fontaine’ might give some of that away aldjfklsdjfkljdsf

inciting incident: the meeting w ALARIC at camp where they hatch their possible redistribution of wealth scheme ;D

obstacle to overcome: she’s a spy!! her whole situation is just terrible!!

mostly tho trying to get info to the resistance from court w/o getting caught herself

esp bc she’s exploiting CASSIUS and that’s just...noT the position you wanna be in

esp when you watch him walk out of a fire unhurt and ur like ‘im gonna piss off THAT guy’ isabella does NOT approve

midpoint: guin uses a moment of CASSIUS’ tenderness to get some precious info...

tension rises: that she then has to get to the resistance w/o being caught!!

cue a whole sneaking around scene(s) && ahhhhh suspense stuff probs

what is this precious info you may ask???? NO! CLUE!

climax: deF a scene where she almost gets caught and maybe even thinks she’s been recognized for a moment

dénoument: it turns out she’s scott free buT she now knows she needs to be v, v careful

resolution: she’s still alive AND still in danger but she decides to continue anyway bc she’s a brave babe and believes in good <3

focal character: ROWENA GODIVA

start: the mysterious gracious queen enjoying her regal splendour!! its good to be queen!!

esp a dark queen

beautiful, and terrible as the dawn, treacherous as the sea, stronger than the foundations of the earth! all shall love her and despair!

inciting incident: CASSIUS brings her some bad news that not only is her uncle NOT dead, he’s also coming back home a hero

making the political situation untenable for offing him quickly

instead she has to reward him!!! gross!!!!

ofc she decides to use this v reward to kill him AND warn AVELINA but we don’t know that yet

or really anything she’s thinking!!

obstacle to overcome: rowena’s got a few! but she thinks atm that she’s stopped the prophecy (which she believes was about her not dezod)

her main thing now is mostly maintaining her own power: a goal troubled by alex’s reappearance esp w/ ROMAYNE

++ the pesky resistance situation but mostly she just sicks CASSIUS on them

and (eventually) she turns both political situations to her own favor...as always

AND punishes CASSIUS for letting things get out of hand by arranging her wedding to someone else!!

midpoint: announces her intention to wed ROMAYNE, thus helping to neutralize him as a political opponent, etc.

and essentially making him a glorified hostage yay!

tension rises: ?????????????????

climax: ?????????????????

dénoument: good help is really hard to find, these days, but at least CASSIUS isn’t 100% useless ;D

he’s still just as good at burning down villages and instilling the fear of GODS in the populace as ever so that’s something ;D

resolution: everyone’s in line atm...but rowena knows well and good that won’t last and she has to remain vigilant as ever...

focal character: ROMAYNE ‘i was a male war bride’ VITALIS

start: romayne decides to change EVERYTHING by helping aragoth overcome his bro and subjugate the southern isles

inciting incident: this plan quickly backfires

not only is he ~not king, or even governor, but he’s now a pawn in an entirely foreign game of chess on someone else’s board...again

but romayne’s nothing if not resilient and he determines to find a way to adapt to this, too

obstacle to overcome: basically everything in his life tbqh ;D

jk mostly surviving the imperial court and esp his bride-to-be who he’s 50/50 sure means to do away w him soon after marriage

also arriving at court and learning he’s def noT gonna be the governor of the southern isles like he’d imagined

also, like, trying to understand them and their customs etc - makes him a good exposition tool too ;D

midpoint: ?????????????????

tension rises: ?????????????????

climax: is informed, w the rest of court, the queen’s intention to wed him, 100% considers this to be a death sentence

dénoument: realizes that, tho virtually a prisoner here, he does still have some power

his situation now isn’t so v different from how things were under his bro so he knows he can live w this

resolution: invited to join the privy council as ROWENA’s future consort && begins feeling out fellow players in this game...

focal character: RORAN DEGREY

start: has a pr nice life w his surly uncle at his boring farm, being a town menace tbh

inciting incident: ?????????????????

obstacle to overcome: ?????????????????

midpoint: ?????????????????

tension rises: ?????????????????

climax: ?????????????????

dénoument: ?????????????????

resolution: that awkward moment when you stumble upon ur uncle’s hidden dragon eggs (but don’t know their his) and one hatches...

possibly the v end shot of a boy finding dragon eggs and one hatching is the v first we see of roran?????

and delve into him in the next ep???????

OVERALL (if we throw this all in together...)

start: things suck in aragoth

inciting incident: things still suck in aragoth but now they suck a lil less bc there’s no more war and alex is coming home

the resistance develops a plan to steal back $$$$$$$$

obstacle to overcome: the starvation of the populace!!

midpoint: guin pries info out of cassius

tension rises: alex helps guin somehow??????????

climax: getting the info to the resistance just in the nick of time (and thereby saving their lives?????) but failing to save a village

cassius burns down a village in a face off w the resistance (idk how this works exactly tho????????)

dénoument: somewhat pyrrhic victories on both sides

the money’s gone to the ppl but a village has been burned and the area’s scared shitless of the gov again

resolution: things still suck in aragoth but at least we know what aragoth is ;D no, but actually, there’s a new dragon rider on the rise...

So what do you think?????? also,~ if we do like this format for an ep, is it a better ep2 than pilot or is it good pilot fodder??????

#kate #1x01 #s1 #alexandir #alaric #rowena #romayne #roran

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