#and this blog is my only source of income and the main use of my time

[azaleakoneko]

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Sanji x Fem|Reader

A/N: This is for @vodkeii Loverboy Sanji Event! My first of the three entries ahh I’m so nervous, but I hope you enjoy it! 🙈 Title is based on lyrics from the song It’s been a long, long time — (covered by Kitty Kalen), which is also the song featured in the edit above :3

Plot: Y/n is the daughter of a farmer/merchant that has a deal with the Baratie to provide fresh produce. Usually her father would do the deliveries but when he got sick he put y/n in charge of the deliveries in his stead. At first she was nervous to be going to a pirate restaurant, but everyone seemed friendly enough and eventually she met Sanji and was immediately charmed. She started making weekly deliveries to the restaurant and saving up her wages to eat there herself and see Sanji more often, leading to a sweet cooking date! 🥰

Warnings: None, Just fluff 💕. Use of terms of endearment (Sweetheart and My angel)

Word count: 5.6k

Network: @enchantedforest-network

Please note that just because this work is fluff and appropriate for consumption of any age, that cannot be said about the rest of my blog. This is primarily an 18+ Blog and will stay that way, so keep that in mind, thank you!

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Three months ago

“Father please, you can’t be serious…! You expect me to go there alone? But they’re pirates… What if I’m kidnapped or killed… or worse!” You protested with defiance in your voice after what he had just told you. “Are there really no other alternatives?”

He informed you that beginning that next morning, you were to take over in his place taking his deliveries to the Baratie, commandeering a small transport ship that had been your small family’s main source of income for as long as you could remember; selling produce to pirates and marines alike, but mostly to the Baratie restaurant since it offered the best compensation. At least that’s what your father always said when he’d set sail, reassuring you he would return home safely every time. He usually did, which never did manage to ease your distaste, not even when he’d come home with leftovers of the best things you had ever tasted in your life. It just unsettled you with all of the stories of the ruthless, pillaging, heartless pirates you had spent your whole life growing up hearing — you couldn’t understand how any amount of berries would be worth it, and now it was your turn.

“Oh calm down, y/n. You act like I’m sending you off to a slaughter house or something. It’s a restaurant for god's sake.” Your father said with an amused guffaw that sent him into a flurry of phlegmatic coughs, urging him to grab the handkerchief off of the side table so he could cover his mouth. After he regained his breath he looked up at you with an extremely worn and rugged expression that he tried his hardest to hide with the warmest smile he could manage given the pain. “Please don’t argue. I understand how you feel, but you’re the only one that can do it. When I’m gone you’ll have to handle all of the business, not just the Baratie deal. I just want to make sure you won’t struggle sweetheart.”

You were bubbling with frustration, especially when he told you to calm down, and more than ready to pop like an overheated kettle about to boil over but were immediately snapped out of your streak of rebellion at the sound of his health issues acting up again. It always sent a wave of worry through your heart whenever he got like this and your body propelled you to his side, helping him up from his padded rocking chair and towards his bedroom for the night. “Okay fine I won’t argue, just please take it easy father… I understand. I’ll do it alright, if that’s the price for your peace of mind. Now go lie down and I’ll fetch you some tea and your medication.”

The past few years had been a steady decline for him, but you grew up learning all of the basics to get by from how to farm and how to haggle with merchants, all the way to hosting your own little fresh produce stand planted right next to his when you were younger until you were old enough to handle the flood of clientele that visited his on your own and learning how to handle and save household and business funds. It was a lot to learn and came with many conflicts between you and your father when you brought to his attention that other young women were out searching for potential marriage candidates and having fun with their friends instead of having a business thrust upon them. Still, your love and respect for your father kept you close to home and working to take over since he didn’t have any sons to pass his business onto. Love and familial obligation were your ultimate burdens to carry just like raising and protecting you alone all of these years had been his to carry.

So with great reluctance, when it finally rolled over into the early hours of the next morning, there you were loading up the little transport ship and cross referencing the corresponding item checklist.

It somehow bothered you that it was playing out just like a usual run of the mill delivery. There were no stormy clouds or end of times type of catastrophes foreboding a dangerous trip or stopping you from setting off, instead you were faced with the usual misty early morning fog that hugged the water before dissipating when the sun made its arrival. However, you would already be well on your way to the Baratie before the sun peaked, needing to have the goods delivered so they could be received by the kitchen and prepped before the restaurant opened up for that evening's diners. You just hoped they didn’t decide to put you on the menu since this was your first time engaging with pirates. It was silly to think of sure and possibly a bit outlandish for cannibalism to be your first fear out of all of this, since even pirates were still just people, but surely some of the stories had to hold merit. Despite these lingering fears however, you had promised your father that you would handle it so he could rest and that was a promise you weren’t about to break.

The seas themselves were relatively calm too as if to add salt to the wound of your overactive imagination, and any other trade vessel would’ve been praising whatever gods there were for the easy travel, but you stood at the wheel of the ship with knots in your stomach. The waves lapped at the boat and urged you closer to the restaurant, the fish shape of the ship immediately catching your attention. If you hadn’t known any better you would have assumed it was a fisherman’s boat, but the closer you got the clearer the word ‘restaurant’ became and your nerves were now at an all time high. You navigated your vessel towards the floating docks attached to the larger ship, docked, and began to tie up the safety rope just like your father taught you. It was a pretty easy task but it was made longer due to your trembling fingers.

When you were finished you gave the rough rope a good tug to ensure it’s stability before making your way back onboard to grab a few of the crates to carry them towards what you assumed to be the back entrance. Part of you wondered how your father had even made the deliveries as long as he had all by himself as you carefully walked along the creaky wooden dock so you wouldn’t drop any of the produce. All was well with only a few close calls as you levied the weight of the boxes between the wall and your frame as you lifted your hand and timidly tapped your knuckles against the door. It only took a moment of waiting before it swung open, the lively sounds of an already busy kitchen falling upon your ears as a portly, normal enough looking man in a standard white chef's outfit came out to assess the disturbance with a raised brow until he saw the boxes.

“Oh that’s right, I forgot it would be a new person coming today. Thank you kindly. We were wondering if we’d be able to stay on schedule today or not, but you’re just on time.” The man said with apparent relief in his tone as he wasted no time in helping you, grabbing the boxes like nothing. “I’ll go ahead and take these in and send some men out to collect the rest. Just go ahead and go through the kitchen and wait inside at one of the tables, I’m sure Zeff will be right with you with your payment.”

There wasn’t really room to protest and you recognized that name at least from what your father told you so you nodded your head with a polite but somewhat stiff smile. “Of course! I’m glad I wasn’t late. Oh okay, sure, I’ll go in then…” You said as you steeled your nerves once again to enter the pirate restaurant. You expected to see chaotic disorder and a mess of drunken old men, but what you saw was instead a very clean and professional kitchen with everyone already attentively prepping meats and vegetables of all sorts and colors. Everything smelled so good, especially when she walked behind a man opening an oven containing a fresh beautiful fluffy cheesecake. It looked like a pretty cloud on its own and you could already imagine what it would taste like melting in your mouth with a sweet cream topping and strawberries, but this wasn’t the time to think about food. You had to get your fathers payment and go home, back to where you felt in your own element.

It was a little calmer when you pushed past the service doors into the main dining room of the Baratie. The main doors weren’t open yet so it was just you and the staff getting the room ready, which somehow made you feel both at ease and also on display as you ogled the decorative room around you. The outside had been impressive enough, but the inside was intricately designed with paintings of far away places and long gone people adorned with golden inlaid frames on beautiful crimson walls, tables topped with plates of the finest hand painted china, beautiful centerpieces to accompany the arrangements, and majestic pillars holding up a secondary dining area. It was a far cry from the uncultured barbarians you had heard of and left your head swimming as you made your way to a table out of the way of the hustle and bustle, shrinking down into the nearest chair as you tried to make yourself less of an eyesore and obstacle for the workers. If anything you felt underdressed now.

“…” A soft sigh left your lips as you kept your hands on your lap, fingers fiddling with the little charms on the bracelet clasped on your wrist to pass the time as you watched people walk in and out of the kitchen. You had begun to wonder if you had been forgotten about in the process after you had grown weary of gazing around the establishment, but just as you were about to get up from your seat and look for someone who looked to be in charge, someone approached your table and set down a steaming cup of what appeared to be a decorative coffee with adorable little whipped foam hearts. “Oh I’m sorry, I didn’t order this. I’m not here to eat, just to get paid—” Instead of another homely waitstaff, or perhaps even the elder peg legged whiskered chef Zeff you were told about, before you stood a gentleman who looked not much older than yourself who wore a dazzling smile that was only rivaled by the sparkling deep blue of his eyes as he looked down at you. Truthfully it made your heart skip to suddenly be under such an attentive gaze.

“I know madam, this is just because I saw you sitting here by yourself and couldn’t help but bring you a little something sweet since you’ve already sweetened my day.” The charming young blonde man said with a wink as he refused to pick up the pretty steaming cup of enticing coffee until you gave it a try. “Please go ahead and drink it, it’s on the house. And here to be paid, you say? Ahh I’ll be right back. Don’t you go anywhere now sweetheart.”

You watched him turn on his heel and leave toward the kitchen again with a bewildered but intrigued expression on your face as your hands finally left your lap and held the piping hot cup with a light grasp, humming with delight as it thawed out your chilly fingers. “Well that was nice…” It seemed that the small show of kindness was enough to dispel the silly fears you had previously harbored because the cup was quickly brought to your lips, gulping down some of the creamy liquid experimentally and sighing happily as the delicious caffeinated beverage laced with caramel warmed you to the core. The cute little hearts dispelled against your lips, but it was a small price to pay for the delicious taste. “Mm, I’ve never had anything this good.”

You finished the drink quicker than you realized—an adorable pout adorning your lips when there was no longer a drop of your beloved coffee lingering. There wasn’t much time to be disappointed though, the kind stranger that served you before was already heading back towards your table.

“Sorry about that my lady, please allow me to take care of that for you.” He began with another charming smile, taking the cup from your hands and setting it on the tray he held placed off to the side of the table. “Chef Zeff was regrettably a bit busy so he told me to go ahead and give you your payment this time, I hope that’s alright. I promise it’s all there.” He said as one of his hands sunk into his pants pocket to produce a sizable stack of berries. He placed it in your hands gingerly, and he seemed trustworthy enough that you just nodded and carefully tucked the money away in your bag.

“Thank you, Mister, um… Sorry, what was your name?” You asked with a sheepish smile in return, feeling bad for not having already asked the first time around when he had brought you the coffee, although you hadn’t really had the opportunity to to speak much to him before he had left to get the money from Zeff to give to you for the goods.

“My name is Sanji, and it has been my pleasure to help you out this lovely morning. What shall I call you, sweetheart? Unless you’re fine with being called that.” The cheeky blonde man you now knew as Sanji asked with a playful and flirtatious smirk pulling at the corners of his lips as he waited for your response without a shred of shame; going as far as taking your hand in his and pulling it up so he could press a chaste kiss to the back of your hand.

“T-Then thank you, Sanji. It’s nice to meet you,” You stammered in surprise, being reasonably caught off guard by the suddenness of the action and the continued casual flirtation. “-you can just call me y/n.”

“Y/n… Now that’s a perfect name for a stunning angel like yourself.” He tacked on with a seemingly ceaseless supply of butterfly inducing charm that you weren’t entirely sure what to do with. Your cheeks burned from the compliment yet you couldn’t seem to avert your gaze from the man. “So tell me y/n, will you be sticking around for breakfast? You just name it and I can head back to the kitchen and cook it up special for you. I promise it’ll be the best thing you’ve ever had.”

“Breakfast…? Oh I wish I could stay longer, but I’m afraid my father is waiting for me back at home. Perhaps next time I can stay and eat here.” You said, not even sure if a place like this would really fit into your expendable budget, but also not wanting to tell him no when he had been so kind to you. “I look forward to getting to try your cooking, Sanji. If it’s as good as the coffee you made for me I’m sure my savings will be in danger…” You added on with a warm laugh. “But I really must be going, I wouldn’t want to be in the way when customers start arriving. It really was nice to meet you Sanji.”

Sanji was going to protest that it wasn’t possible for you to be in the way, but you had already gotten up from your seat, smoothing your dress down before flashing him a smile that made him hope you really would come back; even if it was just so he could see you when you came to make a sale again. “My cooking is definitely better than the coffee, sweetheart. You’ll just have to find that out the next time you’re here then—which is soon I hope.” He said as he reached forward and gently untangled the charm on your necklace that had gotten wrapped around the chain when you stood up. “There you go, and I hope you don’t mind if I ask to walk you out? Couldn’t very well call myself a gentleman if I let a woman sail off unaided.”

Needless to say you couldn’t refuse and found yourself being escorted back to your ship, safe and sound just like your father had said you would be.

You shared a little bit more back and forth, telling him when the next shipment was to be expected and assuring him that it would be you delivering it again the next time, much to his evident delight. Eventually you realized he had managed to trick you into staying longer than you planned with innocent questions and with reluctance reminded him you had to leave before it got too late. He seemed disappointed but conceded knowing he had no real reason to keep you, even helping to untie the boat from the docks while you made your way to the wheel. You waved each other off, and that morning you took home with you more than just berries; a changed perspective and a desire to come back with enough cash to taste his cooking.

Present Day

Delivery days to the Baratie had become your favorite days of the month the past three months much to your fathers amusement, not that you’d told him the real reason you had warmed up to the job. It didn’t take much for an old man to figure out though when he saw his usually glum and disinterested daughter putting more effort into her appearance for a simple delivery looking to be in much higher spirits. His daughter being happy was nothing he would ever complain about, so he wasn’t too concerned. If anything it was nice to see you unwind and enjoy yourself more often.

“Y/n, why don’t you go ahead and take out what I owe you when you get paid today, huh? Stick around the Baratie for a bit. Treat yourself and eat there and tell your old man what you think of the food at the restaurant, eh? You’ve been working too hard lately. I appreciate it, but you need to take a break too.” Your father said as he walked you to the front door of your shared home to wave you off. “I insist; and y/n…? You look lovely today, honey.”

“Thank you, but what’s gotten into you today, dad?” You said with a laugh as you gave him a tight hug before boarding the little transport ship like usual. “If you’re sure you’ll be okay, I’ll stay for breakfast at least. I have been meaning to for some time now. Do you want me to bring you something back?”

“What, I can’t compliment my daughter?” Your father grumbled as he tossed the rope onboard before supporting his weight with his cane. “I’ll be fine! You worry about me too much, I have food here at home. Be young, go enjoy yourself.”

The boat trip was as usual pretty uneventful, but you were thrilled to finally be able to stay for once instead of leaving after being paid and stealing whatever few precious extra minutes with the handsome cook that had effortlessly gained your interest that you could. You didn’t even mind unloading the boxes today, but you took extra care regardless since you had worn a pretty white dress that shimmered like stardust when the light hit it and you didn’t want to get it dirty before he could see you all dressed up in it.

The delivery went off without issue, and now you sat at your usual seat in the dining room as you waited for Sanji—heart thudding nervously in your chest as butterflies danced in your stomach and throat. Despite the flirting over the past few months, you still never got used to seeing the way he smiled when he saw you, and you were certain that today’s smile would inflict critical damage to your heart, but it was only fair since you were sure to do the same. It felt a bit silly dressing up just for these moments, but every smile and compliment was well worth a few lingering moments of feeling a bit ridiculous.

The moment he appeared in your peripheral vision you straightened in your chair and subconsciously began to fix your hair, but stopped fussing when you could tell that he had seen you. Then there it was, a breathtaking, awestruck, toothy grin like a kid being allowed to open their gifts early on Christmas that sucked the air right out of your lungs.

“Y/n sweetheart, you look absolutely ethereal this morning!” Sanji gasped as he wasted no time in showering the back of your hand in soft kisses; something that had become a usual greeting between the two of you yet never failed to set your heart rate pounding sky high. “To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing an angel in my presence…?” He cooed softly, laying it on thick as per the usual, but today you wanted to see what would happen if you let the casual flirting teeter into new territory.

“Aw Sanji, you're too sweet to me, thank you...!” You smiled shyly as you let your hand stay captured in his gentle grasp, enjoying his warmth. In your desire to see what would happen though, you squeezed his hand and rubbed your thumb over his while looking him in the eyes to answer his question. “Well, I wanted to see you of course; and I just had to finally see what your cooking tastes like.” With the incoming payment today, and expressed permission from your father to use the funds, you were more than prepared to pay whatever price you had to for the ‘best meal you’d ever had’ as Sanji had promised you the first time you had met.

It was clear for a split second that you had completely flustered the poor man by reciprocating even a fraction of the attention he was giving you from the adorable shade of pink that dusted his cheeks, but his happiness at hearing you would finally be dining on the Baratie and eating his food helped his temporary brain override right itself, instantly widening his smile and seemingly just encouraging him to go further with his affections.

“Just for me? Well in that case I can’t refuse, can I?” Sanji said as he carefully pulled you up from your seated position and began to lead you into the kitchen where everyone was working away. It earned you a few curious gazes but they ultimately said nothing as they watched Sanji take you to one of the industrial stoves to show off. Being Zeff’s adopted son had its privileges every now and then. “So what are you in the mood for today, my angel?”

“Are you sure it’s okay that I’m back here? I could’ve just ordered at the table, Sanji…” You asked anxiously, but were taken off guard when he plopped a hand on your head and gently ruffled your hair in a show of affection to make you stop worrying, but still making sure not to mess it up.

“Don’t worry about it y/n, no one’s gonna say anything to you for being in here.” Sanji said with a laugh before smiling brightly down at you. “Could’ve ordered at the table? Nonsense, I won’t have it. Don’t worry about the details, love. I’m going to be cooking for you personally, so don’t worry about paying, okay? Just let me know what sounds good to you and I’ll see what I can do. It’s the least I can do to make your day a little better after you brightened my day so easily.”

You were a bit baffled when he told you that you didn’t need to pay but you weren’t about to question him, especially not when he continued to make your heart skip with those pretty smiles of his. So you nodded in agreement, but it didn’t completely sit right with you to just let him do it by himself when you had come here to spend time with him. “Okay fine, but can I at least help you cook…? I would feel a lot better about not paying if you let me help out. Also, I was thinking maybe some strawberry crêpes? I know it’s simple, but I’m craving sweets.”

Sanji had been looking forward to wowing you with his culinary prowess, but hearing how cute it was that you wanted to help make something to satisfy your sweet tooth had him wholeheartedly agreeing to let you without any hesitation. “Sure, of course you can help me sweetheart. Follow me to the fridge so you can help me grab some things we need? Then I’ll make sure my sweet gets her sweets.” He said as he held his hand out to you, which you then took without a second thought.

“Mhm!” You hummed happily as you kept closely behind him, taking the items he handed you without a fuss or a worry in your mind. It was nice not to have to stress about rushing right back home, especially when things seemed to be going so well between the two of you right now. You even wondered if you could get him to eat with you as you carried the necessary ingredients to the nearby countertop. It wasn't anything too crazy, but it made your day knowing you got to share this time with him, helping him doing what he loved to do. “What would you like me to do next, Chef Sanji?” Your tone was happy and playful with a hint of flirtation.

“Ideally I’d love for you to just sit here and look gorgeous while I serve you, but since you insist on helping you can go ahead and slice some strawberries and make the whipped filling for the crêpes if you don’t mind.” He said as he began making the batter, then fired up the stove with an audible click of gas before flame started to lick the bottom of the pan and warm it until it was hot enough to make the layers of batter he poured into it make beautifully browned thin crêpes ready for the filling—more than plenty enough for just you.

You had finished slicing the strawberries into a neat bowl and were in the process of whipping the heavy cream and cream cheese with the sugar and vanilla when Sanji came up behind you to check on your progress, placing a hand innocently on your hip and letting his chin rest on your shoulder. The close contact made you freeze for a moment before relaxing against him and enjoying it for as long as it would last instead. “I’m almost done too! But it would be a shame to have to eat all of this by myself... Won’t you share them with me, Sanji?” You asked while running your finger along the edge of the bowl to collect the excess fluffy cream on your index finger, bringing it to your mouth for a taste. “Mm… Please? You definitely have to taste this.”

Sanji found it too cute to resist your persistence on sharing your special meal together, so he didn’t say no. In fact, he was definitely tempted to have a taste for himself—just not entirely what you were thinking. “Don’t mind if I do, my angel.” He said with a smirk as he gently turned your chin to have you look at him, leaning in to steal a quick kiss to taste the sweet cream lingering there from your own stolen taste of it. “Just the right amount of sweetness.”

At that moment you were certain that if anyone looked up ‘flustered’ in a dictionary it would surely have a photograph of you as its subject. Your cheeks burned hot, lips parted in shock and you almost thought you imagined it when he let go of you and took the bowl of sweet cream to begin filling the crêpes like nothing had just happened. Given the setting you didn’t want to question it, figuring you’d get a chance to ask about it later.

After everything was dished up onto two plates he grabbed a fork and cut off a reasonably sized piece, lifting it to your lips with an expectant expression. “Now it’s time for the ‘look gorgeous while I serve you’ portion of our morning.” Sanji said quite cheekily and didn’t relent until you gave in and ate from the dainty metal fork obediently. “That’s a good girl. There’s no better compliment you could give me than just seeing you enjoy the food we’ve made together, sweetheart.”

It almost made you choke hearing him call you that, but you attributed it to his tendency to use terms of endearment with you and tried to focus on the taste of the food in your mouth instead. It was by all means perfect just like he said it would be. Sweet but not too sweet with the buttery crêpe and freshness from the strawberries, but you had to admit that it paled in comparison to the sweet kiss he had stolen from you just a few moments ago. In the cheesiest way possible, that had been enough to satisfy your craving; not that you would say that and ruin how happy he looked when you took another piece that was offered to you without fuss and then another until it was gone. You’d eat whatever he offered without question, especially if he kept smiling at you like that.

“So tell me, was it as good as you had hoped it would be?” Sanji asked as he gently dabbed a folded napkin against your lips like you would shatter if he wasn’t careful with you. It almost made him laugh though when you looked a little disappointed, which he deduced was from his use of the napkin instead of a suave smooch, but he rationalized that the morning wasn’t quite over yet until you’d stepped on the boat to leave; and he had his own clever little agenda at play. If another kiss was what you were after, you were sure to get it and more as long as you just said yes to a separate question he had for you.

You immediately nodded but cleared your throat so you could contribute more than that—he certainly deserved praise for even bringing you back and cooking for you in the first place. “It was amazing Sanji, I definitely wouldn’t mind coming back and paying for a meal next time, especially if you’ll be the one cooking it for me… How can I repay you?”

“There is really no need for you to repay me for any of this sweetheart. I only request that you’ll allow me to accompany you back to your boat again? I’ve really come to like our time together you know, so I hope you don’t mind.” He said with another jello leg inducing smile that only allowed you to profusely agree, suddenly regretting eating the crêpe so quickly upon realizing it meant it was getting around the time to head out so he could get back to work.

However, all good things eventually had to come to an end so you reluctantly nodded and allowed him to escort you back to your ship. Once you got there he handed you a container with the leftover crêpes under the promise that you’d give it to your father as a thanks for not minding you staying out a bit later.

“Are you sure I can take this…? Aren’t you hungry? You didn’t eat any of it at all, just fed me…” You said with a concerned pout that only made him smile at your sweet consideration of him. “I just feel bad—”

Sanji gently pressed a finger to your lips with an amused shake of his head. “If you’re so worried about me eating something, why don’t you come back later tonight and we can have dinner together when I get off, my angel? If your father doesn’t mind letting you run off again that is.” He said with a smirk as he removed his finger from your lips in favor of caressing your cheek. “We’ll have a proper date, if that’s something you would like y/n.”

You subconsciously leaned into his touch and nodded, knowing that if anything your father would be annoyingly supportive and take the chance to remind you that you had once been practically quaking in your boots about even going to the Baratie once upon a time and now you couldn’t get enough, wanting to go of your own free will to see one of those pirates you had been so afraid of.

“I would love that, Sanji. I’ll be here, I promise.”

After that Sanji didn’t hesitate to cup your face with both of his hands and lean in to press one more kiss to your lips and then another, letting his lips linger against yours instead of pulling away right away since there weren’t a bunch of eyes on the two of you out here. It only made you even more certain that you would face whatever teasing you had to so you could make it back here tonight for a chance at receiving more of his addictive affections.

He eventually pulled away from the kiss and rested his forehead against yours with a soft sigh, pulling you into a tight warm embrace before he had to send you away like he didn’t even want to let you go. “I’ll see you tonight then, my sweet angel.”

All content unless otherwise stated belongs to: ©HauntedHeartHowl, previously HowlTheSanjiSimp. Please do not: copy, modify, translate, feed my fan fictions to AI, repost or promote my writing or graphics on other platforms. Please DO feel free to comment, reblog or follow <3

#Loverboy Sanji Collab Event #hauntedhearthowl #sanji vinsmoke x reader #sanji vinsmoke x y/n #sanji one piece #sanji fluff #one piece fluff #one piece fanfiction #one piece x y/n #one piece x female reader #| #| 𝐊𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐤𝐨’𝐬 𝐅𝐥𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐲 𝐅𝐢𝐜𝐬

[skylarbee]

I just saw your recent post on AM stans hating on Milex stans… I need a catching up please. What about LV and Amanda (?) and Matt too? I rarely ever dive deep into bands and their members, I just like to appreciate their music.

Thank you ♡

! long post incoming and i want to point out that i don't plan on using this blog to discuss any of these people (only maybe very rarely) - i don't like them, i don't think they're good people, i don't want to argue with people who think otherwise, and i usually ignore whatever they're up to - my main focus will always be on milex/miles !

hi anon! <3 i have no idea how much you know already, or if you basically don't know anything related to these three, or any of them. i will say that i have no screenshots concerning the things that i mention, but searching their names up on tumblr and/or scrolling through blogs like @/shit-talk-turner and @/alexstorm will make things more clear.

this whole thing started when louise posted a screenshot yesterday of an am fan saying some dumb shit about her in the comments and bringing up alexa (i still can't believe she posted this). she posted this with some equally stupid words (i don't have the screenshot - you can find it on twitter/tumblr/ig/tiktok/wherever), and matt then reposted her story, jumping to protect her (maybe amanda did too, i don't know). then she managed to screenshot some nice comments and posted those too, saying that 'love always wins' or something similar, and that haters can kiss her ass (this definitely didn't come across as her craving and asking for some compliments; she definitely doesn't need people babying her in order for her to feel good about herself) - which reminded me of something similar that amanda said like a year ago, that they don't pay attention to the haters anyways, of course after posting a long paragraph paying attention to them (makes me laugh just to think about it).

there are so many other hysterical and foolish things she does, like posting pictures of a messy bed (look, i'm fucking alex turner!), selfies with suspicious rings, other pics hinting at alex's presence, calling paparazzis to take pictures of them on the beach, pretending to be jane birkin and alex to be serge gainsbourg, going off about how independent she is while living off of alex's money, somehow managing to make matt's and amanda's marriage about her (with amanda encouraging her), 'accidentally' always doing these when miles has important things going on, etc etc (the fact that her and miles never interacted in real life is also deeply concerning. alex, dear, you should always trust your best friend when they don't like your partner, they always end up being right - especially knowing that miles was always on really good terms with alex's exs). it's clear that she's deeply insecure and adores when the attention is on her and when people are talking about her, and if she goes for a long period without this, she just has to pull something that will get fans talking. she's trying so hard to fit in and be the sexy rockstar girlfriend that she just ends up looking stupid.

if you don't know the real reasons why some people don't like louise, i'm just gonna post some links about her that pretty much sum it all up:

https://www.tumblr.com/snarcticmonkeys/685972106927882240/can-you-recap-the-problematic-things-frencies?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/snarcticmonkeys/685366553489866753/everybodys-got-something-to-hide-except-me-and-my?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/snarcticmonkeys/685366736118235136/everybodys-got-something-to-hide-except-me-and-my?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/snarcticmonkeys/685155230049075200/louise-the-fangirl?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/snarcticmonkeys/685155226833059841/lyon-july-2018?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/snarcticmonkeys/685095240693170176/deleted-posts?source=share

about amanda... now, if i remember correctly, amanda had a blog dedicated to her music, and people dug up some screenshots in which she replies to someone and uses the n-word, and then another post where she's being racist. these screenshots are somewhere in the depths of my phone and it would be impossible to find them, and regardless, these screenshots are so old that she could've well changed for the better since then.

the problem with her is the fact that she's having arguments in the comments with young fans (asking stuff like did they have brain tumours for breakfast and other ridiculous things...or was that louise?) and posts even more ridiculous stories in response to people bullying louise, and protecting her like she's a toddler who can't take care of herself. the pure arrogance and self-importance with which she communicates her ideas is just mental, she thinks that she's on the top of the world, and encourages louise to act the same way. it's baffling that two 40-ish women think that bullying 14 year olds will achieve anything other than encouraging other 'fans' to act the same way.

the thing about matt is just basically the fact that ever since he's been with amanda, he acts the same way as her. now, i know there's been some issue about some idiots commenting about his daughter, which made him deactivate his ig account, and i have absolutely no words for the people who dared to say anything about that poor, innocent, completely blameless child. but even before this, he turned to the same kind of arrogance as amanda and reposted all her stories concering louise. the way that they need to say over and over again what a good person louise is, how much alex loves her, how great their relationship is, how beautiful and kind and caring she is... makes you really question if she really is indeed all those things (especially if you opened those links i posted). more importantly, what exactly do they plan to achieve arguing with teenage girls? it's so childish, my god, they are only adding fuel to the fire. god knows what they're telling alex and also god knows what he thinks about it all.

there's something that i'm not 100% sure about, but i'm gonna say it in the hopes that someone will see this and will tell me if this is wrong or not: matt cheated on breana when both her parents died (this one is definitely true), and left her with 1 year old amelia, and fucked off to live with another woman (amanda denies being the woman in question, i have no idea). she was solo parenting for a while (breana said all these in a podcast), then matt woke up and decided that he wants something to do with his daughter after all, and ever since then he takes care of her too - good job love, you're still horrible though.

in short, l&a's insanely childish antics dragged matt into the whole thing too. they're constantly throwing hissy fits, in hopes to achieve god knows what, and then they feel proud of themselves for telling teenage girls off. which makes you think, what would happen if am would be 10 times more popular than they are know, and louise would get 10 times the hate she gets now? or even better, what would happen if louise would get the same amount of hate miles gets on the daily? she said in her screenshot that she knows that it's only a minority of the fandom that leave such mean comments - then what's the point of paying attention to it? all this just shows another reason why these two definitely don't like each other - miles has brains, the other one... well, i'm sorry. i tried my best to like them and look past their mistakes,but i just can't do it.

#lord have mercy #alex turner #arctic monkeys #amanda blank #louise verneuil #matt helders #anon

[gb-patch]

Hi! I've been toying with the idea of making my own VN, and was wondering two things. One, what do you use to make the game? I don't know anything about coding or making games in general, so I'm not sure if there's just a website I can put my dialogues into. And Two, (you don't have to answer this if you don't want to) is creating VNs your main source of income, or do you have a separate job to keep you up while you create? Sorry if these questions make you uncomfortable. Take care!

It's cool you wanna make your own VN! All our projects are made in Ren'py. That does require fairly basic coding. There are other VN engines that are more UI based where you can just put in text/images without coding them. Those options are good for people making VNs purely for fun, but I personally wouldn't recommend them for commercial games. The final results are clunkier for the player and don't include all the quality of life features that Ren'Py comes with by default.

And I'm lucky enough to make these games full-time as my only source of income. I don't have another job. Thank you to everyone for all the support 💞

FAQ    

Ask Archive    

Update Only Side Blog

#all projects #ask #gb patch games #gb patch

[valiant-if]

Future Plans

I wanted to address some plans I have for the future of Valiant. Don't worry! It's nothing bad—in fact, I'd argue that the benefits of my plans far outweigh any potential drawbacks.

No beating around the bush here: I'm planning to start subscriber benefits through Ko-Fi for Valiant at the beginning of May. I wanted to address any potential questions and what the structure of that will look like ahead of time for transparency. So, to start off...

Why will this be happening? I'm not going to lie. The main reason I'm doing this is because I'm desperate for another source of income. I live below the poverty line in my country, and with inflation and corporate greed running rampant, I'm having a hard time just making it through.

As a consumer of interactive fiction myself, I understand it can be difficult to afford paying a sub for the early access models that are fairly typical for IF authors to use. I always wanted the Valiant demo to remain free as long as possible so that it would be accessible to more people, but the reality of a 100% free demo is that I can only devote so much time to working on it.

So, while my financial situation is part of the reason I am doing this, the other part is for the overall health of the game. With supplemental income from a subscriber-based early access structure, I will be able to devote more time to working on Valiant. This means that progress will be faster and the final product will be finished sooner. That leads me to my next point.

What will the pricing be? I want my Ko-Fi subscriptions to be affordable while still being fair to my workload. As such, my plan is to have a benefit tier at $5 (USD) per month in addition to a $1 (USD) tier that will be purely donation-based. I may add additional tiers in the future as benefit opportunities for the subscribers present themselves, but for now there will only be those two tiers.

What benefits will subscribers get?

Early access to updates. Updates will happen weekly with whatever work has been completed in the interim.

Weekly developer updates to keep readers informed on weekly progress.

A monthly "Questions" post. Subscribers will be able to ask questions regarding history, lore, background info, etc of the world and its characters, and I will answer them at my discretion, avoiding any that I feel are too spoilery or otherwise inappropriate.

One character-related short story per month. These may or may not be canon, and I may on occasion run a poll to determine the subject of the short story.

How will this affect non-subscribers? In the long run, this will benefit free readers too as work will be more frequent, meaning updates will be more frequent. The public demo will be updated monthly with whatever work has been completed. Short stories released for subscribers, however, will remain exclusive to them for quite some time. I will either do small batch releases publicly a few times a year or release them in a batch alongside Valiant upon full release.

How will this affect my other projects? One of my projects, titled Everlight, which I released some teasers for on my other blog quite a long time ago, is in indefinite hiatus due to some major rewrites I need to make to the story. But I suspect since this one has never been publicly released that this is no great loss.

Ninelives, on the other hand, is the project I imagine some people might be concerned about. Don't worry, that one isn't going anywhere. Ninelives is going to remain free to read, and the goal is for that one to also receive monthly updates with whatever work is completed in the interim. It's true that, with that one being completely free to read that it won't always take priority, but on a grand scale I think the supplemental income from Valiant will lift me up enough that I will be able to devote a lot more time to writing all around.

If you're wondering why Ninelives is remaining free while Valiant is getting the subscriber tier instead of the other way around—well, I did debate on this point myself for quite a while. The simplest answer is the age rating. Ninelives was always meant to be a bit more friendly to general audiences, so it follows that there may be younger readers who don't have their own solid means of income yet. This is also my way of meeting my own wants in the middle. I still want at least one of my projects to remain completely free to play, and Ninelives is the one I picked for that.

When will this start? The Ko-Fi tiers will be open to subscriptions starting May 1st and benefits will start on that date. I will still be updating the public demo at the end of April. Early access demo updates will commence after that.

Any other questions? This is admittedly my first time setting up a pay structure of this nature, so if there's anything I forgot to touch on or any lingering questions regarding what the Ko-Fi subscription will look like, feel free to send me an ask.

Thanks for reading. I hope everyone is doing well! 🧡

#valiant updates

[hoverdreamer]

Emergency Commissions!!!! (Final Update: January 1st, 2023; Closed!)

FINAL UPDATE:

Sorry for the long silence, it’s been hard to make this post with the state of my old laptop. It’s been a long road, but we’re finally doing alright! We recovered from covid, got jobs, and now everyone has moved out of the house we were in. I can’t thank those of you who helped out by commissioning, donating, and reblogging enough. While I am closing all commissions for now (I’m getting a desktop computer I can draw on in soon), my regular-priced commissions will make a return this year! I still have a few emergency commissions to post (including a big one for my bf that I’m still finishing, bless him for his patience) but otherwise am over this hurdle. The original details of the post will be under the cut. Wishing you all a wonderful new year! c:

I’ll keep this as short as possible: I just recovered from covid, but (although it doesn’t seem any of them caught it from me) the vast majority of my household now also tested positive. My mom has MS and couldn’t work even beforehand, and my brother is the only one with any sort of reliable income at the moment. I have a job interview in a few days, but our bills are past due and utilities could shut off at any time. A room in our basement flooded with sewage and contractors have been in and out of the house basically ripping up the whole basement... it’s just been a lot. 

My sibling and I are opening emergency commissions to see if we can help make ends meet this month (his post is here, check out his tiered commissions!). Any donations would also be appreciated, but I will draw something for anyone who gives $5 USD or more. If for whatever reason I don’t feel comfortable drawing what you’d like to request, let’s talk over what I can draw for you instead! Please DM me or email me at [email protected] for questions or to communicate what you’d like! I can also accept e-transfers, though I’ll need prior communication so I can give you the correct email! Thank you so much for reading! 

Paypal: [email protected] 

Some sample art (more available at my art blog, @potetheart​): 

UPDATE: My mom made a gofundme page, please consider reading more here! 

UPDATE 2: 

This morning our car got t-boned in an intersection and no longer goes. This also means that our secondary (read: should always have been primary) source of income is gone, as well as our main access to groceries. I am still unemployed and waiting to hear back from a couple of jobs, but am practically helpless from my end. I’m still working on a few commissions, but if you’re able to help in any way my family and I would greatly appreciate it. 

UPDATE 3: 

A lot has happened over the past month, including another covid case, but now a few of us are employed (though I won’t actually be working for another week or two). While I’m not convinced that we’re on solid ground yet, I am feeling more hopeful thanks to the generous donations and commissions we’ve received so far. Once my job starts up I won’t have quite as much time to dedicate to doing commissions (and if the demand gets too high I’ll shut them off and update this post) but for now it’s still about the only thing I can do, so if you can and are willing to commission me or my sibling (see the link to his post above in the main part of the post) we’d love to draw you something! If you’d just like to help, my paypal is above the pictures in this post and my mom’s gofundme is below them, but you can contact me to get a picture out of it too! 

#emergency commissions #emergency commission #commissions #my art #thank you in advance for any help! #huge thanks to everyone who helped; I really appreciate it and wouldn't have been able to get this far without you

[loreweaver-universe]

Well! That was a cute set of shorts. I liked that. Very little substances, but fun little peeks into the lives of Anne and the Plantars. My favorite was the video game one--I thought the spritework was very cute, the chiptune rendition of the main theme was great, and I'd definitely play a Scott Pilgrim-esque Amphibia beatemup. After that, my second-favorite was the off-roading short. It was a cool look at the environments of the island they're on, and in particular I'd like to see them do a more in-depth spelunking of that cave.

That's it for Amphibia for today. Next, we'll be starting episode 5 of Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts! I can't promise that will be today, but I'm going to try to get back in the daily-liveblog-at-noon habit. If it's not today, I will hopefully see you then tomorrow!

Before I go, I’d like to plug both my blog’s Patreon and my Twitch/Youtube Patreon. Patreon is my only source of income, and while I make enough to cover rent and bills (I make about $800 a month) I don’t make a ton of money from it and haven’t been able to save anything up for emergencies (medical or otherwise) in the last decade or so.  Every dollar helps, so if you’re willing, please consider pledging a dollar or two.

Thank you all for tuning in, and thank you to my 37 blog patrons, who make it so I can do this for a living!  I’ll see you next time!

IN OTHER NEWS:

I recently completed my first playthrough of Slay the Princess!  You can see the full playlist of those streams by clicking here!

I recently completed my first playthrough of The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky!  You can see the full playlist of those streams by clicking here!

I have an ongoing first playthrough of Final Fantasy XIV that I’ve been streaming on Twitch! If you’d like to tune in when I’m live, I stream it every Saturday at 1 PM EST, and I upload my stream VODs to my Youtube channel!  If you’d like to see that playlist, click here!

If you’d like to help me pay my rent, buy me some food, or help with my bills and medicine, please use my direct donation link!  If you’d like to support me per liveblog completed every month, please pledge to my Patreon!  If you’d like to support my streams or pick a game for me to stream, you can pledge to my stream Patreon too!

You should also go pledge to Gio’s Patreon, or his Sponsus–our Discord server maintenance tech and creator of Rubybot deserves far more than I can afford to pledge to him by myself.

If you’d like more of me and my content:

My Episode Lists master page, where you can find every show and liveblog I’ve done!

My Discord server, where you can come hang out with me and other fans, check out member liveblogs, and join community gaming guilds!

My Twitch channel, where I stream variety games almost every day!

My Youtube channel, where you can check out past streams!

My ask blog, where you can send me questions and comments!

My Twitter, where I make announcements about liveblogs and streams!

My merch store, where you can get shirts, mugs, stickers, and more!

It’s your kindness and support that lets me do this stuff, and I wouldn’t be where I am without all of you to do it for.  Thank you all so much for your support, and for tuning in every episode!

#amphibia #amphibloggin #bloggin #amphibia shorts #amphibia11 #episode wrap up

[neobora]

Hi Neo, I'm new to your blog so I hope I'm not annoying you with this and you're free to ignore my ask. I've come to terms with the fact that I'm not satisfied with my life...at all. Sure, it could be worse but I'm allowed to feel that way, aren't I? I've never had any interest in going to university because my desired reality is to be a successful dancer and have a business that's so successful that it becomes my main source of income. I also want to wake up in my desired city and just have fun however and whenever I want. And then when I've enjoyed everything I want to shift to my actual desired reality where I'm a successful and happy singer.

I know this is all confusing but I just wanted to first shift to a reality where I was successful without the fame and just living a simple but active lifestyle with great friends before I experienced a reality where I was famous. I've always dreamt of being a singer since I could remember anything, and I truly love music. It's a source of comfort for me...but I just want to experience a life before fame first because honestly, fame scares me a little but I don't 100% hate it.

Now that I got that out of the way, I can't help but compare myself to my high school classmates. I'm 21 now and all I'm doing is working part-time with a boss that couldn't care less about my existence with a body I don't like and talent that I'm not satisfied with. I worry everyday about my mom's health (and everyone in my family's health to be honest) and I spend 10 minutes contemplating on whether or not I can buy a tiny stick of lip balm. I was raised with a religion I don't believe in and that I feel forced to participate in and my rented house is consistently having problems. And then when I look at my former classmates, they're at university with friends, pursuing their aspirations, they have enough money to be traveling to Barcelona and Milan and Paris and here I am just feeling like I've been left behind. I still don't want to attend university...I don't even have the money to do so even if I wanted to. But I feel so unsuccessful and unsatisfied with everything. I've always felt like I was meant for more but clearly that's not the case. I just don't know what to do anymore, I feel like giving up but I can't bring myself to pull out of all of this.

Hi!! Don't worry, I'll gladly answer this. I really hope I don't come off as rude when I tell you guys it's only you making yourself suffer😭😭 But it's true and needs to be understood.

First off, it's great you know exactly what you desire. By deeply desiring your Inner Self is telling you what it is that makes you feel fulfilled. Even if you don't feel like it right now, everything will conspire to help you achieve that because while you may feel like you're not, at your core, you are always God, the inner self.

I used to feel like that too. What helped me was starting to see the outer world as a dream, or simply as an old thought that will come to pass. I started FEELING the wish fulfilled by imagining and feeling like it's actually happening right now (because it is). Start off by just doing that and being persistent. When the fear hits, make clear to yourself that imagination truly is the only reality and you are always the inner man, my power is always at max. you are free to always identify with the inner man, the choice whether you want to go back is yours and YOURS ONLY. understanding that no one is forcing you to feel (identify with) anything is so freeing. you are free to see something like an undesired appearance as simply not true, that is the past, that is not you. then persist and never go back, no matter what. when there's resistance, always go back to your core, the inner self. do you want to feel that? no? then don't.

It's simple, but to understand you have to actually allow yourself to. I really like how Edward Art explains this in his videos and series (100% worth reading frfr). maybe you want to check them out. it's so important to actually be open to feeling instead of worrying. i know you can do it, at our core we are all the same :)

#my asks #loablr #loa #loassumption #manifesting

[will-you-pick-me]

~ ♥ * ♥ * 𝓦𝓮𝓵𝓬𝓸𝓶𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓟𝓲𝓬𝓴 𝓜𝓮! * ♥ * ♥ ~

!!! THIS IS NOT A SPACE FOR MINORS !!!

!!!AGELESS AND BLANK BLOGS WILL BE BLOCKED!!!

Some ground rules:

I do not want minors involved in my work in any way, fictional or otherwise. There will be no minor characters, and no little!Y/N situations. Please do not request them.

I cannot and will not write anything relating to r*pe or p*dophilia at all, or homo/transphobia or any bigotry in a way that condones it.

Some heavier topics such as bigotry may be mentioned by way of character backstories, or by I the Mun addressing it if noticed in the community.

This is a gore- and horror-heavy space. You may at some point see decapitated bodies, dismembered limbs, and other disturbing content. If this is not for you, please do not follow.

I do not condone my work being used to harm yourself or others, and if seen doing so, you will be blocked.

All blocks will be without warning. Behave or goodbye.

Please don't be the reason a new rule has to be written.

Now for some more fun info!

Hi! I'm the Mun of PickMe! You can call me Mun, or Nil! I'm a 24 year old disabled, AutDHD, polyamorous pan demisexual with a relationship to gender that typically escapes labels, but I go by they/them generally speaking. I'm also a DID system! Our collective name is Scalemail.

PickMe!ARG started as just a silly little project between me and my close friends, something to goof off with and collectively brainrot over. The initial idea came in January of 2021, but started to be fleshed out more in '22 and has really started to kick off here on Tumblr during '23! I'm super happy to be sharing these characters, as well as getting to make friends and participate in the wider YanLovers community!

One of the main cornerstones of this ARG that I think sets it apart is that it was made for other polyamorous people like me. All of the LI's are canonically poly, and I really look forward to people being able to get the true end where everyone is a polycule together ^-^

Making this has been important to me, not only for the relationships I've built in the process, but because poly representation is something I hardly ever see. Plus, it's a hell of a challenge to make a yandere be ok with sharing their darling! Tackling that challenge, I think, has made me a better creator overall as I piece together the overarching dynamics of 9 different characters, some of whom hate each other on principle.

Some links you might find helpful!

InteractiveFics - a browser extension that changes "Y/N" to your preferred name, and can also be used to replace other information, such as eye color, hair color, etc.

PickMe! Orientation Quiz - Wanna know which LI would be the best fit for you? Find out here!

Y/N Character Sheet - Want to fill this out and tag us in your design? Go right ahead! We'd love to see your character!

The Official PickMe!ARG Discord Server! - That's right, I'm finally releasing it! We're still in development with finishing up ending CG's, custom emojis, and general planning, but the main non-game areas are finished and ready for all you lovely Y/N's to mingle and have fun together!

And if you'd like to support that development, here's my Kofi! This game, donos, and commissions are currently my only source of income, so every little bit is appreciated <3

#pick me! arg #mun talks #updates #pinned post

[thekunstwollen]

Announcement

Regarding EA's new policy on mods, you've probably seen more than one creator writing something similar to what I'm about to say.

I feel very frustrated, it is not fair that because of some bad apples EA has come to this, harming the rest of us.

There are many creators whose only or main source of income is early access on Patreon, and I am seeing many of them even considering leaving. By now, this is not my case, since my intention when I started creating CC was not to make money (although I am very grateful, Patreon has become a great financial help).

Luckily, a long time ago I created a blog where I publish my content, and yes, you can see that I use advertising (Google Ads) there to receive a little income. This advertising is not harmful, but I would like to try to make it less invasive and make the experience on my page better for you.

In short, this month I will publish the last CC that I had planned as early access, while we wait for EA to clarify if it will continue to be legal or not to use it. As of the 15th of this month, if EA finally says we can't use Early Access anymore,my idea is to publish my content on my blog publicly, and leave Patreon only for those who want to help me.

I am infinitely grateful for your support♥, I never thought that my work would bear fruit and that I could receive such good feedback from you. I hope that this new policy does not break what we have created as a community.

And that's all, thanks for reading and thanks for supporting me. I will work hard to make my blog beautiful and comfortable for you♥

#announcement

[rhythmic-idealist]

Hi all. Some of you know my partner @crimeronan - maybe for her original fiction, her fanfiction, or her assorted queer/polyamorous/chronically ill life blogging.

If you do know—or know of—Kitkat, you might know them as a resource, or as a writer, or as that person who has been known to sit down and write six paragraphs of advice to the scared young person in their inbox. Perusing their blog I see people trading autoimmune stories, younger queer and polyamorous people asking questions about what it's like to be in your mid twenties and settled into those things, and people who found stories who resonated in ways stories don't always succeed at.

Or maybe not! That’s my platonic partner of four years. Happy to introduce u.

If you ARE aware of Kitkat, you might know that she recently FINALLY got an initial appointment with a rheumatology clinic. This after a big medical mystery that’s spanned over two years and taken them to the ER more times than anyone can feel good about.

The good news is that things are FINALLY moving forward. Kitkat has posted a lot more about that entire saga, if anyone is interested, but the main thing right now is that there are test results that are usable in a diagnosis, there will be a diagnosis that is usable in treatment, there are follow-up appointments in the very immediate future that will do a lot of good. It's all kind of astounding after the amount of time it took to get here.

The bad news is that their car broke down.

To say the money situation is already tight would be, though I’m sorry to put it like this, understated. Kitkat makes most of her money from freelance writing, and, first of all, is a fucking wizard at it in ways I don’t understand. But she recently lost her biggest consistent clients when— and she was told this outright— those clients switched to ChatGPT.

Perhaps more to the point— they're often too sick to work. They've pivoted to gig economy delivery jobs, but that is an enormous physical demand on ANYONE’s body, let alone when you’re severely sick.

So that’s where the financial situation is at right now.

I do slot into this, so to give you the story on that: I’m moving to Oregon to live with my partners next month, and will be contributing to the household income then (which is why I'm moving so soon). But I was originally planning to finish trade school first and move in January 2024, so everything’s very last-minute, and a little haywire. I now have at least one job interview lined up in town, but I won’t even be in Beaverton until mid-August, and this auto repair bill is due now.

Basically: because of this auto repair bill, they’re not going to be able to make rent. I expect we as a group will probably be okay once I’m in Oregon and more established/able to help out with the household income, but things aren’t there yet, and this isn't money we're going to be able to make back later.

Kitkat's been too sick to work consistently for so much too long, and that's why they need to turn to community support right now.

(I know Tumblr is famously not a "meet every goalpost before deserving help" website, and I think a lot of fundraisers with less explanation than this deserve support. I'm just a very wordy person. Thanks for bearing with me.)

Kitkat has limited mobility and is going to need to get to upcoming appointments, and speaking honestly, also just really needs access to a car to make things like groceries feasible. She’s not the only one in the apartment with limited mobility or chronic pain. Add to that the gig delivery jobs as a main source of income right now, and this is a necessary bill, just one that is sky-high relative to the income trying to tackle it.

So, you know, hello. I've brought a couple of fundraisers onto Tumblr in the past on other people’s behalf. This time I’ve gotta ask on behalf of my own found family.

The bill has come out to $717.80.

As of now, rent money has been used to pay it—the car has been repaired now, but that money was for rent and daily expenses. There is already financial assistance in play, particularly Medicaid. As it stands, because of this bill, they're not going to make rent.

To account for GoFundMe's fees of 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction, the goal is set to $750.

If you’re in any way able to give, the link is here: https://gofund.me/c0f9d7fe

Otherwise, a share goes a really long way.

Thank you a ton for reading this far. Times are hard all around, so please know: this post is an appeal to those among us who have disposable income and are looking to donate some of it.

Thank you.

$1,323/750

Date posted: July 27th, 2023 Updated: July 28th, 2023

#mutual aid #kitkat car gfm #I WILL MAKE a short post at some point #God. wordy person ever (me)

[bluravenite]

i love tumblr as a platform except for two things.

RANT

there should just be an option to make your blog 18+/nsfw instead of getting every 3rd post flagged for being "mature" its barely suggestive demons girl please chill-

I FUCKING HATE using tumblr on my laptop, which sucks bc desktop version tumblr is so much easier to use for posting, editing, and checking notes... except for the fucking performance bar.

WHY IS IT THERE BY DEFAULT?? i don't doubt that its an important tool to have if you are relying on your tumblr blog to promote merch and income sources, sure.

but for random regular artists and content creators???

that bar was the main thing that discouraged me from posting on tumblr for a while, and why i still prefer posting on my phone, cuz ill never check the number of notes i actually have on a post

but that stupid fucking bar is always there whenever i check in on my laptop and it pisses me off!!!!!!!

most burnt out artists already feel bad if they're not accommodating to their audience and producing good content all the time, which simply should not happen, sorry for all the rants btw <3 I am very stressed and i got shit to complain about before i have time to make more art...

point being,, i feel bad if i am not posting art, and what hurts more is seeing bars like that, where sometimes the DUMBEST shitpost gets more notes and activity than the artwork i spent 14 hours on... that bar can be so fucking harmful to a person's self-perception and its the only thing I genuinely hate about tumblr.

if you are an artist, writer or content creator, just know you are not worth that bar. That bar means nothing compared to the effort and love you put into your craft. I love you and i am proud of you for doing what you love.

#raven rants

[etes-secrecy-post]

Hi, before I explain my post, I want to say something important.

• What you see my blog has become a major overhaul. And despite the changes, I decided that my 2nd account will be now my artwork blog with a secret twist.

⚠️NEW RULE! (W/ BIGGER TEXT!)⚠️

⚠️ SO PLEASE DO NOT SHARE MY 2nd ACCOUNT TO EVERYONE! THIS SECRECY BLOG OF MINE IS FOR CLOSES FRIENDS ONLY!⚠️

• AND FOR MY CLOSES FRIENDS, DON’T REBLOG IT. INSTEAD, JUST COPY MY LINK AND PASTE IT ON YOUR TUMBLR POST! JUST BE SURE THE IMAGE WILL BE REMOVED AND THE ONLY LEFT WAS THE TEXT.

⚠️ SHARING LINKS, LIKE POSTS, REBLOG POSTS, STEALING MY SNAPSHOT PHOTOS/RECORDED VIDEOS/ARTWORKS (a.k.a. ART THIEVES) OR PLAGIARIZING FROM UNKNOWN TUMBLR STRANGERS WILL IMMEDIATELY BE BLOCKED, RIGHT AWAY!⚠️

😡 WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT EVER LIKED & REBLOG MY SECRET POST! THIS IS FOR MY SECRET FRIENDS ONLY, NOT YOU! 😡

Okay? Capiche? Make sense? Good, now back to the post…↓

Titles: HBD Carmenramcat & Cuteness Member - Shadow Ramcat

• Not only I made a regular artwork, featuring his Shadow & his re-creating cartoon face, which I tried by the way, but also Shadow has finally joined the "Cuteness Defender" academy army! Something that I've never for him, decades ago! 😁 It's been a long time since his unofficially join as a rumor, but the rumor is now a REALITY! 😊

• Anyways, his first armor was a fitting one for his feline personality, the armored "Nyaia Leone" custom! A custom armor developed from the "ZGMF-X88S Gaia Gundam" (from Gundam SEED Destiny) & based on the "ZGMF-X1100L Nyaia Gundam Leone" (from Gundam Build Fighters Amazing). Let's bring down his armament(s) & special feature(s), and hope he'll be amazed! 😉↓

Nyaia Shadow Leone Based on the: ZGMF-X1100L Nyaia Gundam Leone

Armament(s):

• MMI-GAU25A 20mm CIWS Base on the real Gaia, a pair of MMI-GAU25A 20mm CIWS guns are mounted in the Nyaia Leone's head, and they are mainly used to shoot down incoming missiles or for suppressive fire. They are usable only in MS mode.

• MA-BAR71XE High-energy Beam Rifle Base on the real Gaia, a custom beam rifle used by the Nyaia Leone. In MS mode, the beam rifle is handheld when in use and stored on the side skirt armor when not needed. In MA mode, it is mounted on the right shoulder and can be fired in that manner.

• MMI-RS1 Mobile Shield The main defensive equipment of the suit, it is anti-beam coated to protect against beam attacks. It is handheld when used in MS mode, and when in MA mode, it is mounted onto the abdominal region and protects from the attacks below.

○ Feline Blades Three razor-sharp blades are already attached to the "Mobile Shield". It has built-in retractable wires per each blade to grab enemies in medium range combat, and it also has heat rod system to melt/electrify opponents in any situations. However, when the physical blades broke, it reveals an energy beam blades source from the Epyon Gundam's powerplant beam sword. The blades are used in MA mode.

Special Feature(s):

• Feline ear sensors In real-life, cats can hear sounds pulsating at 60,000 vibrations per second, it determine location and movement of prey, as well as to avoid being preyed upon. But now, it adapts to the mechanized feline ears, which can not only used as a radar sensor, but it can also detect any source of vibrations on either from opponents or environmental events. The ears are built-in dual cameras for heat signature, night vision, and extra wide vision effects (aside from the main centered/rear camera).

• Feline Dashers Exclusively to MA Mode, these four fins called "Feline Dashers" located at backpack when its MS Mode, which is not used. But when it transforms into MA Mode, it become useful. These fins can possess an invisible I-Field, it can deflect any energy-based firearms/cannons. Plus, it can also used as a block runner, meaning it can ram any opponents while the I-Field is still on. The Feline Dashers can also used as a solar panels, which can charge the beam rifle or act as a solar satellite cannon to create a medium energy shot.

• Deuterion Beam Energy Transfer System A new technology capable of recharging Nyaia Leone's armor battery through the use of a Deuterion Beam fired from a properly equipped battleship, much like Gaia.

• Variable Phase Shift armor Much like Gaia, the Nyaia Leone has VPS armor, which is more energy efficient and capable of altering its strength, as well as color in the field, although this must be programmed beforehand. The change in color when the suit is used by Shadow Ramcat is due to a change in VPS armor settings.

Well, I hope you liked it & Happy Birthday, Carmen! 😁🥳🎊🎂🎁

Shadow Ramcat - owned by @carmenramcat Armor (Gundam Build Fighters Amazing) - Gundam Series © SUNRISE, Sotsu

[wool-and-wanderlust]

Day 1:

If you were to close your eyes and imagine a visual representation of something that makes you feel the most “you,” what would it look like?

For me, it’s walking on a grassy path, squelching through several inches of mud, a little bit of drizzle making my hair a little curly (see also: frizzy), overlooking white puffs of sheep dotting deep green fields. While I’m inexplicably drawn to them, sheep have thus far been a distant visual — but they’re about to get a whole lot closer. For the next 8 weeks, I’ll be traveling through England visiting family and friends. Six of those weeks will be spent working on two sheep farms. I’ll be living near the farm with my godparents who helped set up this experience for me. (Big thank you to them!)

I haven’t had a blog in 25 years (RIP Xanga days), so I make no promises about quality or longevity.

While I’m excited and grateful for this adventure, I won’t pretend I’m not scared. I know next to nothing about sheep farming, and most of what I do know I learned from the PBS series All Creatures Great and Small. (Please don’t tell the farmers that.) I’m a petite, out of shape musician who will almost certainly get injured doing farm work, and I’ll be too proud to tell someone if/when I do. I’m an animal-loving vegetarian who is about to work on a farm where the main source of income is producing meat. I am temporarily saying goodbye to my cat, Sandy, who has become more than a pretty good pal to me. I have some A+ cat sitters lined up, but I can’t help but worry, and I already miss her. And what if it turns out I hate sheep up close??? 🙃 Ultimately, I’m feeling so grateful to be able to have this chance to deepen connections with family and friends, meet new people, have some adventures on my own, push myself, and learn some things along the way.

Xoxo 🇺🇸🐑🇬🇧

P.S. Yesterday, a friend suggested I use an AI bot to name this blog. I was moderately horrified at the suggestion, but it actually did a good job and it was kind of amazing. That’s my only experience with AI thus far, but today I met someone at the airport who had AI plan their entire weeklong itinerary to Iceland. 😱 He and his brother plan to follow the exact itinerary unless it tells them to drive off a cliff.

#sheep #sheep farming #across the pond #england #dual citizenship

[ihaveabsolutelynoideas]

I posted 358 times in 2022

That's 264 more posts than 2021!

18 posts created (5%)

340 posts reblogged (95%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@kyoupann

@soybean-official

@thelegendofwicked

@timeturner-jay

@sister-dear

I tagged 275 of my posts in 2022

Only 23% of my posts had no tags

#linked universe - 133 posts

#loz - 29 posts

#lu four - 28 posts

#tmnt - 12 posts

#rottmnt - 10 posts

#lu wolfie - 8 posts

#linkeduniverse - 7 posts

#lu twilight - 7 posts

#wolf link - 7 posts

#yes - 6 posts

Longest Tag: 128 characters

#give me one good reason why anyone who’s so offended would stick around in a fandom lead by someone they claim to be so horrible

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

Four and Twilights friendship is so underrated.

Look at this tiny guy just holding his friends shield because he can’t be with him right now. He’s not moving it or anything he’s just holding it as a way to feel closer to Twi and that just makes me so sad for these two. And he only puts it down when Wind and everyone else gets back. This is just like when he went out to hang out with Epona.

I know everyone is always focused on Time and Wild when it comes to Twilight but real talk I think Four is just as close to Twi. These two hang out often, they share secrets, and they have a very mutual respect for each other.

Four and Twilight are best friends and this is hill I’m going to die on

299 notes - Posted July 22, 2022

#4

Did someone say Minish Cap

Things about the Minish Cap that more people should talk about because it’s adorable and hilarious

The Power Braceletes. Makes Minish Four strong enough that he can move things regular sized Four can move. That means Four can canonically throw people around when he's two inches tall. Time's Golden Gauntlets can get dunked on (Only when Four is tiny tho. He doesn't have enhanced strength when he's big. The bracelets were made for Minish so I guess they don't work when he's big lol).

His Gust Jar sucked up a ghost. Just slurped it right up. And Four can see spirits too, apparently, because not everyone saw that ghost.

Kinstones are fucking weird - they make doorways open, repair fallen trees, create chests, summon ladders, AND OPEN PORTALS? They can also create Golden enemies.

Golden enemies are extra hard to kill like in BOTW and they also drop a lot of extra loot. I guess all those Golden enemies in BOTW were spawned from Kinstones too???

He has a Grip Ring which helps him climb and his cap can be used like a paraglider. Why does no one ever address this?

Four also has Remote Bombs - a Minish inventor living in a mushroom gave them to him.

Can use his ocarnia to summon a tiny bird named Zeffa to carry him around. Normal-Sized Four can be carried by a little bird.

Din, Nayru and Farore exist in his time. Din is from Holodrum and is a dancer while Nayru is an oracle who comes from Labryanna. Are these the same from Legend's time? Who knows - certainly not the timeline

Vaati was a minish. He was Ezlos apprentice.

Ezlo is a super talented Minish. He made a cap that grants the wishes of those who wear it. He literally made his own triforce.

Hilariously, Zelda is a shoe lover. She is the shoemakers main source of income. That's canon. This princess has a closet full of shoes.

Four has fused Kinstones with mysterious walls. Yes, I said walls. Don't ask me how that works.

He also fuses kinstones with clouds. Literal clouds. This kid is crazy.

Town Picori apparently live in town because they really, really like humans. They used to be Forest Minish but they moved to be closer to the humans 🥺

Mountain Minish are not native to the mountain. There are only eight Minish on Mt. Crenel and seven of them are students who chose to follow their master, Melari, when he moved.

Apparently Gorons are in short supply during Four's era. They used to live on Mt. Crenel but now they live in a cave because there are so few of them. What happened to them?

Clouds are solid? Four walks on them. They aren't floating platforms or anything - it's just straight cloud. Idk man.

All kids in Hyrule go to the school in Hyrule Town, including Zelda and Link. Yes, Zelda actually attended a public school. Elementary school fic anyone?

Acrobandits. There's not much to them I just like to mention them whenever I can. They're little bandit ducks who stack on top of eachother, what's not to love?

Grandpa Smith and King Daltus (Zeldas Father) have a history. Both of them were talented swordsmen back in the day. They were friends and rivals. They even faced each other in the Picori Festival Swordfighting Tournament me year and eventually fought to a draw.

Zelda and Four are confirmed to have met through their father and grandfather. They are second generation friends.

Zelda is kind of a badass. In the beginning of the game Vaati wins the swordfighting tournament and the thus the right to approach a magically sealed chest with all of Hyrule's evil trapped inside. When he announces his evil intentions to open it the guards try to stop him. He attacks, blowing back the King and all of the Guards. Then he tries to approach the chest. But Dot, instead of fleeing, summons her magic ability and actually squares up like she's going to fight him. In the cutscene she actually approaches him like she and Vaati are in that Jojo Walking Meme. It's great and I love her.

This game has a bad ending. In the leadup to the final battle against Vaati, Four has to fight his way up the castle before a bell chimes three times. There is no visible counter or timer but you can actually take too long. If you do, then the bell chimes a final time and you get a small cutscene of Vaati taking Dot's lightforce. So there is actually a way to lose this game without dying.

The Lightforce. There is no triforce in this game. The Lightforce is a magical energy that was gifted to the Royal Family by Minish. There is no real description of what it is other than pure magical energy.

Two out of the five dungeons Four goes through are Minish sized. The Temple of Droplets and the Forest Temple. The Bosses are a single octorok and one (1) Chu, respectively. Do what you will with that information.

For the first part of the game Four uses Smith's Sword, the sword made by his grandfather, until he exchanges it for the White Sword, which he eventually forges into the Four Sword.

The Four Sword can break curses. Everyone in the castle gets turned into stone and Four saves them all by charging up his sword and hitting them with a sword beam.

Anyone in Four's Era can just buy a pair of Pegasus boot. They aren't dungeon items. (Zelda definitely has a pair)

See the full post

324 notes - Posted February 22, 2022

#3

Alright let's just get one thing clear here-

Four is 100% right here. Wild absolutely needs to be stopped. By force, if necessary (and it looks like it will be necessary).

Twilight is hanging on by a thread. Last we saw him the guy was barely conscious, unable to even keep his eyes open. He's making death speeches that may or may not be because he's delirious. He's drifting in and out of consciousness. He has no strength to waste on anything but breathing.

He most certainly doesn't need Wild bursting in and stressing him out. Let's not forget; Twilight is Wild's emotional support wolf. He's there when the champion has nightmares and stays with him through his memories. He's been there for Wild all through Wild's known life. He feels responsible for Wild's emotional state, even stating that he wished he could do more.

You really think seeing Wild so distraught is going to be good for him? Because it won't. The only one who'll benefit is Wild, and even that is questionable at best.

Because Wild is living in denial. He's insisting that no one can die, refusing to even hear Four name it as a possibility. He's volatile to the point of manhandling Four out of the way and shouting at anyone who doesn't give him the answers he wants to hear. Can you imagine the damage he could do just by being in the room? Yelling at Twilight to get up, yelling at Hyrule to heal him, yelling at Time for getting in the way?

Any extra stress could tip the scales when Twilight's on the razor's edge.

Four sees the writing on the wall.

"I can't let you go through like this"

Wild is in no state to be around someone so weak. If he were calmer then there might be an argument here but as it is Wild is just too wound up.

And what Wild wants right now is, frankly, selfish. He isn't listening to Four and choosing the best course of action for Twilight; he's thinking about himself. He's worried for Twilight, sure, but it's a selfish worry. Instead of wondering "what can I do to maximize the chance Twilight survives" he's instead thinking "I need to see him no matter what". No matter who he has to abandon, walk away from or fight through. Even though he's told, in no uncertain terms, that it wouldn't be helpful unless he knew a way to help Twilight heal (and he's given no such indication).

He is straight up told that Twilight "doesn't need this right now" but still insists on seeing him anyway.

Because he wants what he always wants from Twilight: comfort. He wants to be told that it's all going to be fine and the longer he's denied the crutch he's been counting on the more hot headed he gets. Because he's freaking out, in a full blown PTSD meltdown and of course he's searching for support in the once person he’s always counted on.

Which is understandable, but not excusable. Trauma explains shitty behavior but it doesn't vindicate it; You can't endanger other people just because you're triggered - it doesn't work like that.

And let's not forget he's not the only one suffering right now. He might have the strongest bond with Twilight but he doesn't have the only one. Every Link is Twilight's friend. Each and everyone of them would miss him if he were gone. Wild does not hold the monopoly on grief and it's not fair to forgive Wild's actions while damning everyone else.

Four himself is pretty close to Twilight and he had enough sense to tell Twilight not to worry about them. If Four can look past his own wants for Twilight's sake then why is it too much to ask Wild to do it too?

So I'm not hoping Four kicks his ass because I want Wild to be hurt, okay? I want Four to kick his ass so that he's forced to confront his own selfishness. Because no matter how sad or distraught Wild is it does not matter more than Twilight's life. Even if seeing Twilight will help Wild a lot and only hurt Twi a little, that little is still much more important in this scenario.

Because feelings can be fixed later. Death is permanent.

(To be very clear I'm happy Wild is being selfish here from a narrative standpoint. I love my characters flawed and I think it's good for Wild in the long run. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a character making a bad choice in the heat of the moment. Even on my personal favorites I welcome character flaws because overcoming those flaws make for stronger characters. I just typed this up because I don't like that some people are acting like Wild is a victim here when he is very clearly the aggressor. Because that's not a bad thing to be! It just means there's character development in the works!)

354 notes - Posted February 16, 2022

#2

The Great Warriors Misconception

It’s been noted that there’s been a steady uptick in Warriors content in the fandom recently. Although not all of it has been flattering. Fanonization of a character is pretty normal; once a characteristic has been identified it tends to get thrown around the fandom echo chamber until it’s permeated through most of the fandom. So there’s nothing unusual there. It’s happened with Sky’s sleepiness, Time’s mystique, and Wild’s angst. But in the case of Warriors it gets a little strange. See, his canon character didn’t really translate over to fandom so cleanly.

In fact, I found that many of his supposedly “well-known” traits don’t actually have any canon basis. Even the ones you think are rooted in canon are actually fandom constructed on some small misconceptions.

First, let's get the basics out of the way: Warriors is not a flirty pretty boy. In fact, I’d go so far as to say he’s not flirty at all. I can see where this idea started but upon closer inspection it's actually way more complicated than you’d expect. In ‘Doodles 6’ on the archive we’re treated to this:

Where we see Wars hiding from a few women. Now, we’ve all been kinda taking this to mean that he was flirting with all the women in the tavern. But when you look at it objectively it actually appears to be the opposite; women are approaching him. And not only are they flirting with him but he doesn’t seem to be enjoying it. Jojo’s notes below actual lend this this idea too:

“Hero of warriors has so many ladies after him… you know, for his heart…and soul…and his head 💀”

There’s nothing there about Warriors being a flirt. The whole pretty boy thing is a reference to his game where the main conflict started when Cia fell in love with the hero's spirit, thus causing the whole war. So him being desirable has nothing to do with a playboy personality and everything to do with his appearance.

And speaking of his appearance, he’s not all that concerned about his. Again, another misconception. In ‘mirror shield’ he’s examining his black eye, yes, but it’s nothing egregious. It’s only natural to check on your injury. And in ‘Regroup’ he doesn’t seem to have a problem with a scratched up face; he’s smirking and joking as usual. So he’s clearly not that bothered.

Moving on, his core personality. I don’t know where anyone got the idea that he was a jokey/comical character but he’s not. When it comes down to it he’s right up there with Twilight in seriousness during battles. He’s usually the one helping Time to come up with plans (‘the shadow pt1’ & ‘new time new place’) and in situations where Time isn’t there Warriors steps up and takes charge (‘Divine Dark Reflections pt8’ and ‘Sunset pt4-5’). In Sunset in particular we see him displaying a huge range of his leadership abilities; he stays with Twilight when Time and Sky are speaking, convinces Twilight to leave the battlefield, fills in the group upon return and send Four and Hyrule ahead once he learns about Life, takes control of the battlefield and comes up with a plan. Even when Wild deviates from the plan, Warriors again demonstrates his leadership abilities by putting aside the lecture and focusing on solving the problem of the leftover monsters.

And even when he’s not in battle he’s able to take things seriously and read the room. In ‘Memories pt1’ Twilight and Time subtly try to move the group along to spare Wild when the champion gets stuck in his head. Warriors picks up on it immediately, even without knowing the specifics, and helps herd Wind away. And in ‘Heroes Legacy’ he notices Time being quieter than normal and asks about it. He’s so much more emotionally intelligent than he gets credit for.

There’s also this thing in the fandom about him thinking titles are important? Like, respecting someone more if they are a knight or something. And that’s baloney, actually, because Wars canonically does not give a shit. He doesn’t care about formalities (‘Doodles 6’) nor that Hyrule isn’t officially a knight (‘Divine Dark Reflection pt8’). He doesn’t seem to care about any titles, actually, based on his discussion with Legend in ‘The Bet’:

See the full post

536 notes - Posted April 1, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

I gotta say I love the dynamics here. Everyone is all “You got so much to live for!” and “You can fight this!”

Meanwhile Warriors is just

“What are you? A little bitch?”

These two really do just embody Older Sibling Energy and I’m here for it

594 notes - Posted October 2, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #wow I make long posts #but also lol my top two posts were about warriors? #not what I would have thought with my rabid obsession with Four but I'm not complaining #Wars is a good character

[loreweaver-universe]

And that's the episode.

Man, this show is good. I really do prefer shows with an ongoing storyline as opposed to episodic experiences, and this is a good one. The main cast is good, the side characters are neat, the way you get swept along with Kipo is great.

I'm wondering just how the cats are going to come to Kipo's aid. Is it a magical tuna can that summons them to her side? Do they just hear it and come running? It'll be interesting to see.

Also, I like how Dave, Benson, and Wolf get more and more invested in Kipo's adventure. It's been cool to watch it as a gradual process--we're four episodes in and only now are they really committed! Good writing all around.

That’s it for today’s liveblog, so tomorrow we’re going to be watching the second half of episode 12 of Kino's Journey! Tune in at noon EST for that. You can also tune in to my Twitch channel today at 1 PM EST where I'll be continuing Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma for a patron!

Before I go, I’d like to plug both my blog’s Patreon and my Twitch/Youtube Patreon. Patreon is my only source of income, and while I make enough to cover rent and bills (I make $800-1000 a month) I don’t make a ton of money from it and haven’t been able to save anything up for emergencies (medical or otherwise) in the last decade or so.  Every dollar helps, so if you’re willing, please consider pledging a dollar or two.

Thank you all for tuning in, and thank you to my 43 blog patrons, who make it so I can do this for a living!  I’ll see you next time!

IN OTHER NEWS:

I recently completed my first playthrough of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom!  You can see the full playlist of those streams by clicking here!

I recently completed my first playthrough of Finding Paradise!  You can see the full playlist of those streams by clicking here! You can also find the full playlist of the To the Moon series by clicking here!

I have an ongoing first playthrough of Final Fantasy XIV that I’ve been streaming on Twitch! If you’d like to tune in when I’m live, I stream it every Saturday at 1 PM EST, and I upload my stream VODs to my Youtube channel!  If you’d like to see that playlist, click here!

If you’d like to help me pay my rent, buy me some food, or help with my bills and medicine, please use my direct donation link!  If you’d like to support me per liveblog completed every month, please pledge to my Patreon!  If you’d like to support my streams or pick a game for me to stream, you can pledge to my stream Patreon too!

You should also go pledge to Gio’s Patreon, or his Sponsus–our Discord server maintenance tech and creator of Rubybot deserves far more than I can afford to pledge to him by myself.

If you’d like more of me and my content:

My Episode Lists master page, where you can find every show and liveblog I’ve done!

My Discord server, where you can come hang out with me and other fans, check out member liveblogs, and join community gaming guilds!

My Twitch channel, where I stream variety games every so often!

My Youtube channel, where you can check out past streams!

My ask blog, where you can send me questions and comments!

My Twitter, where I make announcements about liveblogs and streams!

My merch store, where you can get shirts, mugs, stickers, and more!

It’s your kindness and support that lets me do this stuff, and I wouldn’t be where I am without all of you to do it for.  Thank you all so much for your support, and for tuning in every episode!

#kipo #kipo and the age of wonderbeasts #kipobloggin #bloggin #kipo episode 4 #kipo08 #episode wrap up

[ariealblogs]

What Is Affiliate Marketing, and How Do I Use It?

What is affiliate marketing?

Of all performance-based marketing, affiliate marketing is one of the more affordable and complementary disciplines to influencer marketing. So how does it work? A brand pays someone a commission to promote their products through selected channels.

This person could be an individual consumer or an influencer (someone with significant followers). It’s important to note that while someone can be both an affiliate and an ambassador, these roles are not synonymous.

Affiliates operate on a digital-only level. They use specialized links shared on their platforms to earn a commission.

Ambassadors can operate either online or offline and usually have a deeper partnership with the brand in the form of a retainer. They don't always use specialized links, and their goal could be to build brand awareness or drive sales.

As a brand, there are multiple benefits to engaging in affiliate marketing. It's a great source of passive income and it mutually benefits both the brand and the affiliate.

Check out these Truelist stats from 2022:

More than 80% of brands have affiliate programs.

Almost 65% of affiliate marketers generate traffic by blogging.

Advertisers generate between 15% and 30% of all sales from affiliate programs.

Affiliate marketing makes up 16% of global eCommerce sales.

How affiliate and influencer marketing work together

Given that affiliate and influencer marketing both rely on individual partnerships and social media, they work best in conversation.

Affiliate marketing is undoubtedly a bottom-of-funnel discipline, as its main goal is to get folks to drive sales through their specialized links or codes. On the other hand, influencer marketing has been traditionally seen as a top-of-funnel discipline, or something that helps build brand awareness. Layering these two disciplines can give  marketers a full-funnel digital/social media strategy.

That being said, the role of influencer marketing is quickly changing. A 6,000-respondent study found that approximately one third of shoppers turn to social media influencers to learn about products. This shift in consumer behavior has moved influencer marketing from top-of-funnel, to full-funnel and brought about the advent of social commerce. In short, influencers now have the power to build awareness for your brand, impact consumers’ evaluation of your product, and drive actual sales.

What this means is that influencer and affiliate marketing are even more closely related than before. They are no longer just complimentary — they’re integrated.

In fact, a lot of small brands dip their toes into paid influencer marketing campaigns with affiliates. Since these brands often have smaller budgets, traditional sponsored content isn't affordable. Affiliates, on the other hand, can cost less because their fee is covered by true sales and they have more incentive/obligation to post than the average influencer who receives gifted products.

Getting started with affiliate marketing

Now that you know what affiliate marketing is and how it complements influencer marketing, here are some tips for getting started:

Pick the right partners. If you’re just getting started, it might be best to start by signing some of your existing influencers and customers as affiliates. If you don’t have solid leads there, you can use social listening or influencer marketing tools to search to find people who have organically mentioned your brand. Tip: You can use Traackr's discovery and vetting tool to discover influencers already working as affiliates for other brands! Search past content for affiliate keywords like "affiliate," "my code," "specialized link," and "link in bio." Then view influencer performance metrics to make sure they're effective partners.

Use a performance-based compensation strategy. Avoid centering compensation around things like audience size, and instead base it on results-oriented metrics like engagement or sales. You could also use a cost per action (CPA) model, where affiliates get a commission each time a customer completes an action. The action could be clicking on a custom link or it could be purchasing a specific product.

Choose an affiliate network or influencer marketing software. This will help you use your time efficiently by automating certain processes. For example, Traackr’s social commerce/affiliate feature, helps you find and vet new partners, define attribution models and commission structures, calculate and send payments, track performance, and more.

Define your key performance indicators (KPIs). If you are combining influencer and affiliate marketing, you need to approach KPIs with a full-funnel mindset. While sales are the ultimate goal, there is also a product discovery and consideration aspect. Set yourself up to measure your campaigns from awareness, to consideration, to sales.