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missameliep · 1 year

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Incorrect Quotes

Thank you so much for the tag @aallotarenunelmaenunelma and @jerzwriter ☺️

I'm just having a blast with this generator and I can't stop laughing!

Here is the generator where the following quotes come from. Special OTP edition!

Rules: Use this (https://perchance.org/incorrect-quote-generator) generator to generate a quote for your characters and share as many as you like!

Tagging: @princess-geek @lorirwritesfanfic @noesapphic @storyofmychoices and whoever feels like doing this

Incorrect quotes for Elizabeth x Hamid; Arwen x Tyril; Malia x Troy and Zoe x Colt under the cut (beware, there are a lot of them! I couldn't stop! this is simply too fun!):

Elizabeth x Hamid

Hamid: I’ve been dropping them the most insanely obvious hints for like a year now. No response.

Elizabeth: Wow. They sound stupid.

Hamid: But they’re not. They’re really smart actually. Just dense.

Elizabeth: Maybe you need to be more obvious? Like, I don’t know… “Hey! I love you!”

Hamid: I guess you’re right. Hey Elizabeth, I love you.

Elizabeth: See! Just say that!

Hamid: Holy fucking shit.

Elizabeth: If that flies over their head then, sorry Hamid, but they're too dumb for you.

Hamid: Elizabeth.

Hamid : Fruits that do not live up to their names; passionfruit, grapefruit, honeydew and dragonfruit.

Hamid : Fruits that do live up to their names?

Hamid : Orange.

Elizabeth : The next time I open up to someone, it'll be my autopsy.

Hamid: I warned you.

Hamid: I'm perfect.

Elizabeth: Of course I have a lot of pent-up rage, you fool! I've been the same height since I was twelve!

Hamid: I don't need to go to bed. I'm not tired, I'll be fine.

Elizabeth: But, darling, I'll be so lonely without you. Come curl up in my arms so I can feel whole again.

Hamid: O-oh. Well. Are you trying to seduce me into healthy sleeping patterns??

Elizabeth: Is it working?

Hamid: What are you in the mood for?

Elizabeth: World domination.

Hamid: That's a bit ambitious.

Elizabeth: You are my world.

Hamid: Aww...

Elizabeth:

Hamid:

Elizabeth:

Hamid: OH.

Elizabeth: Is something burning?

Hamid, leaning seductively on the counter: Just my desire for you.

Elizabeth: Hamid, the toaster is literally on fire.

Hamid: So... what would you do if you were in bed with me?

Elizabeth: Depends. Is your bed comfortable?

Hamid: Yes.

Elizabeth: I'd sleep.

2. Arwen x Tyril

Arwen: Assert your dominance over your friends by kicking them in the face, and then giving them a little smooch on the forehead!

Tyril: Hey, quick question. How petty am I allowed to be?

Arwen: I was put on this earth to do one thing.

Arwen: Luckily I forgot what it was so I can do whatever I want.

Tyril: Dracula had it right, sleep all day, live alone in a castle, and explode into bats to get out of all social situations.

Arwen: *coughs blood*

Tyril: Don't die, Arwen!

Arwen: Don't tell me what to do!

Tyril: Caffeine no longer keeps me awake while I work, so instead I have Arwen periodically send me texts saying ‘we need to talk.’

Tyril: It gives me the right amount of adrenaline and fear I need to keep going.

Tyril: Where are your parents?

Arwen: What are parents?

Tyril: That’s just about the saddest thing I've ever heard.

Tyril: This is a very powerful artifact. You’d be messing with some forces we don’t fully understand.

Arwen: That sounds like a dare to me.

Tyril: Oh my god.

Arwen: Can you cut me some slack, Tyril? I’m sort of in love.

Tyril: I’m sorry, but that’s really not my problem.

Arwen: I’m in love with you.

Tyril: *blushes* Oh. That brings me in the loop a little.

Tyril: Valentine’s day is just a consumerist holiday that holds no real value other than drive people insane buying heart shaped chocolates for their significant others and pos-

Arwen: I wrote you a poem.

Tyril, already crying: You did?

Arwen: Tyril, you love me, right?

Tyril: Normally I’d say yes without hesitation, but I feel like this is going somewhere I won’t like.

3. Malia x Troy Hassan

Troy: I’m in love with you.

Malia: We called off the prank war last night at midnight, dork.

Troy: I know.

Malia: Ah. Okay. Um. Cool. Neat. Very cool. Cool. Cool. Coolcoolcool-

Troy : And I’d love to be sorry for that, but we all know I’ve done much, much worse.

Malia: *angrily presses Troy against a wall* WHERE'S THE MONEY?!

Troy: ...

Troy: Are we about to kiss-

Troy : We got a free day now. What do you wanna do? Eat? Sleep? Nap? Snack?

Malia: When life gives you lemons, don't make lemonade. Make life take the lemons back! Get mad! I don't want your damn lemons, what the hell am I supposed to do with these? Demand to see life's manager! Make life rue the day it thought it could give Malia lemons! Do you know who I am? I'm the person who's gonna burn your house down! With the lemons! I'm gonna get my engineers to invent a combustible lemon that burns your house down!

Troy : Malia, remember when you said you weren’t going to interfere with my love life?

Malia: No, that doesn’t sound like me at all.

Malia: You’re an idiot.

Troy : That’s the charm.

Troy : Truth or dare?

Malia: Truth.

Troy : How many hours have you slept this week?

Malia:

Malia: Dare.

Troy : Go to sleep.

Malia: I don't like this game.

Troy: I like your new pants!

Malia: Thanks, they were 50Troy off!

Troy: I’d like them better if they were 100Troy off. *winks*

Malia: The store can’t just give away clothes for free.

Troy: Thats’s… not what I meant.

Malia: That’s a terrible way to run a business, Troy.

Malia: I WOULD DESTROY THE WORLD FOR YOU!

Troy : Okay, can you do the dishes?

Malia: No!

Troy : Are you an F5 key? Because that ass is refreashing.

Malia: Are you a software update? because not right now.

Troy : *raises eyebrows*

Malia: Put those back down!

Malia: You call yourself my soulmate, but where were you when my meme only had four likes?

Troy : Making four accounts.

Malia, tearing up: Really...?

4. Zoe x Colt Kaneko

Zoe: Did you buy eggs like I asked?

Colt: Even better!

Zoe: What the fuck did you-

Colt: *holding up a chicken* Her name is Fluffy.

Zoe: Hey Colt, do you have any hobbies?

Colt: Swimming...

Zoe: Really? That’s cool. I never expected you to-

Colt: In a pool of self hatred and regret.

Zoe: Isn’t a bit dangerous?

Colt: Zoe, please. We’ve in a lot of unexpected predicaments before and we always escape unhurt.

Zoe: ...

Colt: Okay, we sometimes escape unhurt.

Zoe: ...

Colt: Alright, we escaped unhurt once... Then we hurt ourselves in the way home.

Zoe: Think you can answer some questions without the usual level of sarcasm?

Colt: If you can ask the questions without the usual level of stupid.

Zoe: I still have no idea how I’m attracted to you...

Colt: Yeah, well, you’re stuck with me, and no take backs, honey.

Zoe: You can’t have a gun on stage!

Colt: WRONG AGAIN! I can have a gun, and I must have a gun, that’s the rule of Chekhov’s Gun: have a gun. And now that it’s been seen, I will have to shoot someone before the end of the play.

Zoe: I'm trying to juggle family life and work life but I can't seem to find a balance. What do you suggest I do to keep everyone happy?

Colt, deadpan: Quit your job, kill your family.

Zoe: You have to apologize to them Colt.

Colt: Fine! But I must warn you that this might make me a better, nicer person and that is NOT the person you fell in love with!

Zoe: When you said 'Magic in Bed', I wasn't expecting this...

Colt: *pulls out card from deck* Now, was this your card?

Zoe: Holy moly-

Colt: Talk dirty to me~

Zoe: Inflation is a serious problem and lumber prices are at a high.

Colt: Wha-

Zoe: The economy is in shambles.

Colt: Go fuck yourself.

Zoe, smugly: Sure, but only if you watch

#incorrect quotes tag #so funny #tw swearing #nsf*ish

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clairefraiseauthor · 3 years

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How to show, not tell in your writing

Probably the most common piece of writing advice you hear in creative writing classes at any level is show, don’t tell. But what does that mean, and how do you do it?

When writing teachers say show instead of tell, what they’re saying is show the readers what you’re writing about, don’t tell it to them.

Check out the difference between these two sentences:

Henry was happy.

A grin spread across Henry’s face.

In the first sentence, the author tells you what Henry is feeling. But in the second sentence, the author shows you what Henry looks like and allows you to visualize Henry. Everyone knows to generally associate smiles with happiness. Depending on the context of the scene, your readers will be able to ascertain that Henry is happy from that image.

You can also see this in paragraph form. I found a great example from Jericho Writers, where the author compared a passage from The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald to what the passage would be like if told:

Telling: The parties were dazzling and opulent. They spilled out of the house, into the garden, and even the beach.

Showing: In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars. … The last swimmers have come in from the beach now and are dressing up-stairs; the cars from New York are parked five deep in the drive floating rounds of cocktails permeate the garden outside … the lights grow brighter as the earth lurches away from the sun, and now the orchestra is playing yellow cocktail music, and the opera of voices pitches a key higher.

Passages that are shown rely on specific and sensory language. Instead of saying “the parties were dazzling,” Fitzgerald gives you specific images of the swimmers, the cars, the cocktails, and the orchestra. He breaks down this larger category of party into more specific things that allow you to visualize what the party is like instead of just hearing the word “party.” Notice how he doesn’t use the word party at all. He allows the reader to ascertain that it is a party from the specific images he uses.

Show don’t tell is typically coined the golden rule of fiction writing. But it’s one thing to understand the concept, and another to incorporate it into your work.

(1) The first thing to understand about show don’t tell is that it doesn’t apply to every situation. Not everything that happens in your story needs to be shown. There is just some information in stories that isn’t that important. If your character was going home from work, it would be boring to have a section where instead of “Becky gets on the bus,” you show Becky waiting for the bus, checking her phone, the bus screeching to a halt, the doors opening with a hiss, a stranger knocking into Becky to climb the steps first, etc. If there is a jump in time between important moments in your story, it’s way better to tell your readers about the time skip than it is for the readers to get bored by pages of unnecessary detail. You want to show moments that propel your story forward. You want to tell moments that bridge those moments together so that your reader can get to the next important moment as fast as possible.

(2) The second thing to understand about show don’t tell is that it also applies to narrative structure. For the past few years, I have been working on a book that tells the story of a 16-year-old girl who, after a tragic accident, has to put her family back together over the course of a summer. I started writing this story with a first-person, past narrative structure where the present-day action moved on from the tragic event, and I included flashbacks interspaced with the present-day scenes to help readers piece together what happened on the night of the tragic event. This didn’t work because the first-person past-tense narrator knew more than the reader did. She told the story like she was recounting it to another person, which led to a lot of telling as she “remembered” these events. This didn’t allow the reader to experience the story alongside the narrator, so it wasn’t as interesting to read. When I changed the tense to be present-tense and made the story chronological, it revamped the tension and got rid of the telling that the narrator kept doing because the readers got to see everything in real-time with her. Beware of narratives that rely on telling. If you are doing first-person past, make sure that you stay with your characters in the moment to bring the story to life.

(3) You need to internalize the markers for when you’re telling. In scenes, common words that indicate you are telling include:

- Felt/feel

- To (he picked up the baseball bat to…). Instead of writing this, show what he’s going to do with the bat.

- When (When ____, then _____. Break it up into sentences.)

- As (see above)

- In [emotion]

- Any emotion words

- Heard/hear

- Saw/see

- Realized/Realize

- Noticed/Notice

- Knew/Know

- Decided/Decide

I struggled a lot with show, don’t tell when I was a young writer. What helped me was creating a database of physical traits corresponding to each emotion. AKA, Different ways we physically express fear, happiness, anger, hurt, desire, etc. Then, when I wanted to say, “She was terrified,” I could say, “Her stomach dropped.” Book recommendation: The Emotion Thesaurus.

(4) Focus on the specific imagery. You want your reader to experience the story. Your characters experience the story with their senses. Our world is specific. When you’re getting ready for bed, you are using a mirror with a specific shape, that might be smudged or dusty, and using a specific toothbrush, maybe an electric one, that may or may not make your teeth vibrate and make foam drip out of the corner of your mouth if you’re not careful. Your toothpaste tastes like something. Nothing is ever experienced in summary. If the moment of brushing your teeth is important in your story, you want your reader to experience it as the character did, and you want to describe it as specifically as possible using as many of the five senses as you can.

Essentially, your job as a writer is to grab hold of your reader’s hand and pull them through your story. You want them to have an experience reading it, not just hear the facts, and the way that you do that is by showing them crucial moments that advance your story, not just ones that fluff it up. And a crucial moment in your story is one where your characters change in some way or learn something new that leads them to the next part of your plot. Show those moments. If a scene is not doing that, cut it.

#writing #writers of tumblr #writing tips #writing advice #show don't tell #show not tell #authors #young adult author #creative writing #how to write a book #how to write a book for beginners

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cursedbcrn · 2 years

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Doing my weekend rewatch of the most recent episode ( so beware of 4x06 spoilers ), and after I had my usual brief breakdown over how fucking brutal and hot no humanity Hope is, I started thinking about a few things specifically regarding the therapy box simulations.

The basic premise of the chambre de chasse is that it’s linked to the subconsciousness of the people inside it, and they can’t get out until they say the trigger word or they are expelled from the narrative. We know according to the noir episode (2x14) that multiple consciousnesses can “play the game” simultaneously within the box.

So with this newest simulation where they’re confronting Hope, I think each character’s subconscious is projecting how they beileve Hope might kill them. This is played off for laughs for characters like Ethan and Wade, who don’t have as strong of a connection with Hope, but is kind of meaningful for character like Josie and Kaleb and Cleo.

Now, before we proceed, please keep in mind that this is a clown blog and we have our clown shoes ready at a moment’s notice.

So Hope hits the group with that spell and then Kaleb’s the first to die. During the scene before, Hope makes literal reference to him being a traitor. That’s Kaleb’s guilt manifesting over handing Hope’s vulnerable body over to Malivore, something we’ve already seen him struggling with in the past few episodes. When the fighting first starts, Hope goes for Kaleb first, and she doesn’t hesitate at all, just kills him dead right off the bat.

Then you have MG, who feels slow to join the fight ( at least in the version we saw ). Maybe he was getting ready to say something because MG’s strength has always been in being inspirational and a leader but Hope hurls that stake into his chest before he has a chance to even get close.

Hope’s next move is to freeze Cleo, which is important because Cleo is the last to die. She gets a front row seat to watching the rest of the Squad get brutally murdered and knowing that she can’t do a thing about it. It’s sort of like her existence in Malivore / the Monkey’s Paw. She watches history and life and time move on but she can’t do a thing to contribute or be present in that world. It’s a lonely way to live, and one that we’ve see Cleo struggle with as well.

Jed’s up next, and he gets the classic heart ripping, which honestly, just fits Jed to be dramatic and badass, and he likes to pretend he sort of got a hit in on Hope.

Then there’s Ethan, who just..... ouch. It felt very comic book-y though, which I thought was fitting for him, with the going invisible, and reappearing just to get his head lopped off.

And then Josie ( remember: 🤡🤡🤡 ), JOSIE LITERALLY DOES THE WALTZ WITH HOPE before getting her neck snapped, and she’s gently dipped and dropped to the ground because idk why, Josie, why don’t you explain to the audience why your subconsciousness imagines that’s the way Hope is gonna kill you.

Anyways idk if this is even meta by now, but my point is that the whole Squad has envisioned at least 17 different ways no humanity Hope would kill them and that can’t be good for their mental health.

#[ nh!hope. ]#legacies spoilers //#[ lore. ]#[ meta. ]#meta? headcanon?#idk it's one of those things

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cherrybombusa · 3 years

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GROUP ONE - CCU THEATER. SUCCESS.

PLAYERS:

THE GOLDEN BOY - Harvey Hargrove. THE HEARTBREAK KID - Casey Russell. THE BABY - Casey Russell. THE FALLEN ANGEL - Alice Alder. THE WANNABE - Virginia Ann Virginia.. THE CLASSIC - Libby Logan.

PERKS EARNED:

SELFLESS BITCH: A drunken Virginia Virginia sacrificed herself for her friends! Aw. Maybe she does have a heart underneath all those boobs. Due to her efforts, Virginia has earned the right to remove herself! If the gang ever gets caught in a sticky situation, any lasting effects will not apply to Virginia. This can save her from broken bones, getting in trouble, or even death - but beware! This perk can only be used once.

MEMORABLE MOMENTS:

-LIBBY WAS TAKEN BY THE KILLERS. -VIRGINIA SACRIFICED HERSELF TO THE KILLERS. -CASEY INJURED A KILLER. -RORY WAS HIT OVER THE HEAD.

THE NARRATOR: It might not have been a quiet night, maybe not even uneventful, but the Gang found themselves grateful, at least, that the Candy Girl hadn’t shown her face. It was nearing midnight now, and with only Paulie Virginia checking on the kids before they fell asleep on the sand, and Lucas Bright left straggling on the beach with the Gang, they were sure to turn-in soon.

They were gathered around the bonfire, talking and laughing - almost even letting their guards down - but the screech of three white vans pulling up to the shore interrupted every little conversation taking place around the bonfire. They didn’t want to think anything of it at first… College kids in this town were wild, and they were all piling back into town this week, after all. But when a group of masked, hooded figures with baseball bats, and kitchen knives galore began making their way out of the vehicles, and onto the beach - what were they supposed to do but worry?

OFFICER PAULIE VIRGINIA: “Hey! Stop right there!”

THE NARRATOR: It was almost instinctual for the rookie to go right into barking cop voice, even with no back up - stupid, of course - but another ‘Candy Girl’ stunt was the last thing he was going to let happen on his watch. The man reaches for the taser in his belt, just like he was trained to do, but just as he gets it free, the blur of a body rushing forward - Lucas Bright - distracts him for a split enough second to fumble.

Paulie almost yells for Lucas to stop, but before he can get the words off of his tongue, the Bright kid nearly runs headfirst into one of the masked figures' fists. It’s shocking how hard he falls - makes Paulie wonder if he’s okay - but before he can wonder too much, he realizes too late that one of the hooded figures has gotten the jump on him. He’s half expecting the figure to reach for his taser - the oh shit moment of the century - but when Paulie feels a baseball bat connect with his ribcage… He almost wishes he had been tased. Might have hurt less.

CANDY GIRL: “Hello, my little freaks and geeks! Did you miss me and my little friends? Because I think tonight is about to get a little more fun.”

THE NARRATOR: ...Uh oh. Maybe I spoke too soon about the Candy Girl not showing her face.

It doesn’t take long to get the gang tied up - not with the threat of knives, and Paulie’s discarded taser at the hooded groups disposal - and the ringleader of this little group, the one bouncing around telling everyone what to do, seems absolutely giddy with her capture. What else are you supposed to expect from faceless psychos, though, right?

CANDY GIRL: ““Here’s the game tonight, losers! We’re gonna split you up and see if you can pass our little trials. Those who do? They get to go home tonight! Those who don’t…. Well, you might end up closer to Lux than you thought you were before.”

THE NARRATOR: Candy turns toward one of the other masked figures - one that seems like her Helper - flicking her chin toward the Gang. It’s a cue, and that much becomes clear when one-by-one, each of them has a hood slipped over their face, obstructing their view nearly completely.

CANDY GIRL: “But first, we’re going on a little trip!”

THE NARRATOR: It’s hard for the Gang to know just how they’ve been split up, but as they’re pushed forward toward the parking lot - the sound of Paulie’s and Lucas’s far-off groaning in their ears - they know one thing. They’re completely fucked, and there’s nothing they can do about it with their hands tied behind their backs… Especially not when they’re about to be shoved into the back of those fucking vans.

Nobody’s really sure how long they’ve been driving - they’re all too terrified to try and keep count - but by the time the van finally slows to a stop, they’re all dragged right back out onto solid ground, and into… some old building. Just where, is the question.

MAKE A CHOICE: YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS HAVE BEEN TAKEN BY THE CANDY GIRL TO CCU FOR A NIGHT OF FUN. DON’T DIE!

THE NARRATOR: Maybe it’s the way they had to file between cramped rows, bumping into seats that left bruises blooming over their thighs; maybe it’s the echo of their footsteps, bouncing off of the walls like music. Either way, those who had ever stepped foot into the CCU theater - nearly all of them, considering every field trip they had been to to watch some semi-professional production of Bye Bye Birdie - know right where they are at that moment.

It’s a comforting place for some - one that induces only stress, or indifference to others - but it’s hard to imagine that it won’t be a place that brings anxiety after tonight; just as tainted as the boardwalk, or even walking along Lux’s and Harvey’s block might be. Now is no time to think about how they might feel in the future, though -- if they even make it that far. No, they’re going to have to make it through tonight first.

They’re led onto the stage like prized pigs, ready to be blue-ribboned - but once they’re situated, the hoods that cover the gang’s faces come off; they even cut the ropes off from around their wrists. It might be stupid, but the knives, and baseball bats manage to keep everyone in their place; hearts racing in anticipation of what might come next.

The theater is mostly dark, save for a couple of spotlights that shine down onto the stage, highlighting the Gang like the stars of Candy’s show. There are props scattered about - sets, hanging sheets, costumes! It almost looks more like a storage closet than the grandiose CCU theater, but as they try to get their bearings, the two figures heading the circle - Candy and her supposed assistant - jolt them back into reality with a clap of their hands.

CANDY GIRL: “Like I said, we’re gonna play a little game tonight, boys and girls! But, you’re all oh-so-familiar with games, aren’t you? Especially after our special little stunt at the boardwalk.”

THE NARRATOR: Her voice could almost be considered familiar, but nobody in the room really knows where to place the memory of it. Did she actually sound like that recording on the beach? Was she someone they knew? The gang just looks at each other from any angle that they can; making eye contact at whatever cost, as if it might help them all jog their memory to know they’re on the same page. They don’t get another chance to listen, though, as the other figure - leader two - begins speaking.

CANDY'S LITTLE HELPER: “She’s written some riddles!”

THE NARRATOR: They pull a sheet of paper from their pocket.

CANDY GIRL: “And you’re going to solve them! Don’t worry about the doors -”

THE NARRATOR: The movement is clearly rehearsed as a number of their captors - five, if you’re counting - head toward the row of carved, flourishing doors at the back of the theater. Three of them leave, but the other two begin looping chains through the antique handles, locking them into the auditorium with absolutely no escape.

VIRGINIA ANN: The last however many minutes Virginia had been captured were maybe the worst moments of her life. They were just supposed to have a fun bonfire but of course a fun bonfire turned into watching her brother get hit with a baseball bat, be captured by a bunch of weirdos, and end up at the theatre as another "fun" game. She wanted to get up and leave, but someone would stop her, wouldn't they? "Why the hell are you doing this?" Was what Virginia first asked. She doubt she'd get any sort of answer and hey, maybe they'd sew her mouth shut for even speaking. "We didn't do anything."

ALICE ALDER: On any other given day, if she were to be having a conversation — or even just be stuck in the same room with Virginia! — hilarity would be bound to ensue (in one of the worst ways, but nonetheless…). But this? What was this? Her almost bestie… betraying her again! “Dude, what the fuck?” A futile question that would get no answer — but asked on instinct! “The 'beach bash' wasn’t enough?”

RORY COLLINS: It was happening again. She had gone white as a sheet when she saw the masked figures on the beach, and hadn't managed to regain any color yet. "Guys, I really don't think they're going to answer," she swallowed hard and tracked the psychos' every movement. Rory hesitated. "They didn't last time."

CANDY'S LITTLE HELPER: “--God, can you people shut up for two minutes? We’re kind of, like - in the middle of something!”

THE NARRATOR: Candy’s little Helper interrupts the conversations with an annoyed tone, as if they’re the ones inconveniencing her night. It’s strange, how nonchalant it is, but Candy just huffs in annoyance as she looks at her ‘assistant.’ Shoulders dropping a little as she breaks character to reprimand her.

CANDY GIRL: “Jesus christ, can you just say your fucking lines? It’s not that hard,”

CANDY'S LITTLE HELPER: “They’re -”

CANDY GIRL: “Seriously?”

THE NARRATOR: The masked figure hesitates.

CANDY'S LITTLE HELPER: “Fine! You need three keys, and three, exactly!

CANDY GIRL: “Or you’ll spend the night -”

THE NARRATOR: Maybe it’s the fear of the moment that kept all of their eyes focused on the two masked figures interacting with them - tunnel vision, of sorts - but it only makes the loud squish of blade entering flesh even louder than it should have been. The group of them flinching before Candy even has a chance to start shrieking through the pain of the knife in her side.

It was almost unbelievable that it had happened at first - did it even make sense that the Candy Girl’s henchmen were turning on her? - but the blood splashing against the stage floor had to have been proof enough that it wasn’t just some fucked up group hallucination. This was an attack - one that hadn’t seemed expected by either the Candy Girl or her little helper.

CANDY'S LITTLE HELPER: “What the fuck is wrong with you!”

THE NARRATOR: Fair question. And the attacker should have heard it, as loud as the second-not-so-in-charge-figure shrieked - but the knife-wielder didn’t even flinch as he dragged Candy toward back off of the stage and toward one of the many staircases that led to the balconies; blood pouring from the wound in her side all the while.

The other mask - Candy’s little helper - almost considers running for it, throws the note from her hands in anticipation of getting the fuck out of there… but she hardly gets a chance when her own attacker - the other one of the maniacs who had chained the door - comes from behind her and squeezes their hulking arms around her fame. They have their own knife; one that plunges directly into her chest, but the Gang doesn’t have much time to watch as they drag her off in the same direction.

What.

The.

Fuck.

There’s only a moment of hesitation - it had all happened so quickly - but the gang wastes no more time before fleeing to opposite sides of the theater. The sound of both of the women’s dying screams echo across through the space, shaking all of them to their core… but they all know one thing: they need to get their hands on that riddle.

If they’re locked in, then it might be their only way of getting out.

MAKE A CHOICE: ALICE, VIRGINIA, AND LIBBY ARE HIDDEN IN THE WINGS OF THE THEATER. HARVEY, RORY, AND CASEY ARE DUCKING BEHIND A ROW OF SEATS.

CASEY RUSSELL: All bad things seem to come in threes. And if it wasn't solely going to be a black eye that would be the highlight of his evening, it was going to be this. He calls it survivor's instinct in the scramble when he ambles over behind the seats, even though he's pretty sure he can hear his heartbeat in his ears. For a moment his gaze lands solely on Harvey. It's been ages since they've played on the same team. But... somewhere between life and death, they surely had to put some degree of their differences aside right? "Do we have any ideas?" He whispers, "I don't really fancy ending up being like whoever the fuck that was."

HARVEY HARGROVE: Once upon a time, in the distant remains of the far-off evening that had been only a few hours before, Harvey had assumed this wasn't going to happen. But here they were and here was... Whatever the hell this is. Joy of joys. It wasn't easy pulling his focus from Libby and Rory, where his eyes seemed to stray automatically in an attempt to find reassurance that wasn't coming. He did though, and turned to Casey. "We can't go at once. There's too many of us, we'd be noticed far too quickly."

MAKE A CHOICE: HARVEY IS RIGHT. SOMEBODY IN THE WINGS MUST RETRIEVE THE RIDDLE. IT IS THEIR ONLY HOPE OF GETTING OUT: WHO WILL IT BE?

LIBBY LOGAN: Libby can't hear either of her friends cramped into the rows of theater seats, but as her heart races in her chest - as the alcohol pulses through her veins - somehow, she knows it's up to her to retrieve the riddle on center stage. That had been the way out of the whole Carousel Cove situation, right? She doesn't even say anything to Virginia or Alice as she darts forwards, fingertips outstretched. Libby just hopes she can get back without alerting the killers upstairs.

MAKE A CHOICE: SUCCESS!

THE NARRATOR: Every step sounds too-loud, even masked by the sound of screams, but somehow they manage to make their way back onto the stage where the riddle was thrown by Candy’s little Helper. They get their hands on the blood soaked paper; the breath leaves their lungs as the sound of screaming begins to die - no pun intended - out. It’s not completely obvious what they should do next, but they make eye contact with their friends hidden in the wings; those hidden in the seats.

They’re never going to make it out of this without each other, so they better think fast.

They hear the sound of the killers beginning to stir from the steps near the balconies, and just like that a plan forms in their freaky little hive mind. Someone needs to distract the killers while everyone else gets upstairs. But who will it be?

MAKE A CHOICE: SOMEBODY MUST DISTRACT THE KILLERS WHILE THEIR FRIENDS GET UPSTAIRS. SHOULD THEY THROW SOMETHING ACROSS THE ROOM [PROBLEM SOLVING], SNEAK ACROSS THE ROOM AND KNOCK SOMETHING OVER, [BRAVERY] OR SHOULD SOMEONE TRY MESSING WITH THE LIGHTBOARD? [PERCEPTION]

HARVEY HARGROVE: He turned his head, locking eyes with Libby at center stage. A slow nod of the head was the only sign he gave before he stood up and began to move as quietly as he could towards the other side of the theatre. There was always shit offstage in these places, right? Surely there would be something over there that could get the focus off of Libby (if it didn't, he'd rain hellfire down, that he promised himself). Each step brought him closer and closer to the vague shape of a light and when he was beside it, he turned back, grinned at his friends as best he could, picked up the light, and threw it.

MAKE A CHOICE: FAILURE!

THE NARRATOR: It was a long shot, but as soon as the stage light crashes against the floor, only one of the killers turns their head to investigate. The other? Well, their gaze lands directly on little Libby Lou.

It’s hardly a split second before they cross the theater toward her, and as hard as Libby tries to fight, it’s no use - the threat of the knife, and the feeling of it’s handle knocking against the side of their face is enough to give the killer the upper hand… At least they have time to throw the riddle in the general direction of their friends before they’re dragged away toward the balconies staircase.

It’s enough of a distraction to get everyone else safe, if even for a moment. They have to get the hell out of there, and save Libby... if there’s even time. They all book it as fast as they can, and somehow they manage to make it into the dressing rooms beneath the stage - one of them even manages to grab the riddle, silently hoping it wasn’t Libby's last gift to them all.

At least it might actually save them.

Their hearts are pounding loud enough in their chests that they might swear they could all count each other’s heartbeats. Now is no time to check up on each other, though - not as they lay the first riddle out in front of them.

If you want the key, you’ll have to find Me,

I’m a keeper of the law, you see.

I might be a pawn - I saw Pepper get diced,

Are you feeling naughty? Then here’s some advice:

I’ll name a story, no I’ll name three -

All from the Bard,

So be careful with thee.

A tragedy I’m not,

In love? I could be.

Pick only one…

Pray it’s the right movie.

MAKE A CHOICE: ALICE HAS BEEN GRABBED. DO YOU TRY TO SAVE THEM?

CASEY WAS SUCCESSFUL IN SAVING ALICE. HE INJURES THE KILLER, AND THE GANG RUNS TO HIDE IN THE AISLES.

MAKE A CHOICE: RORY IS RETRIEVING THE FIRST KEY.

RORY COLLINS: "I'll go," Rory balls her trembling hands into fists at her side. They have to save Libby, so she's going to do whatever it takes. She creeps towards the band pit as quietly as she can, and lowers herself in to look for the key.

THE NARRATOR: Rory runs with all of her might, the gang all sneaking close behind to watch her back, but with the correct location, it’s not hard to find the key taped against the wall of the orchestra pit, along with the next part of the riddle. With the sheet of paper, they make it back to their friends, and lay out the clue to get to the next key.

If you want to get out, don’t Twist and Shout,

It’s not the Candy Man locking you out.

If you feel Clueless, then here’s your clue -

You can find Me behind door number two.

How to know you’re close? Just think of the times,

The 90’s are ending, but oh, how it thrives!

Once you’re through, don’t look any further -

Your key can be found in the one with no murder.

CASEY RUSSELL: "Okay... I think I've got this." Was that more for the group's sake or his own? It's with a deep breath after they work it out that he readies himself for the run to the prop closet before taking off. He may be drunk beyond belief, but he's determined to reach their key as he runs.

THE NARRATOR: Casey and the gang sprint hard toward the prop closet, somehow managing to duck past the killers to get a good look in the massive room. It takes a minute or two, but soon Casey has the key and another little sheet of paper.

It should be easy to get back to his friends now that are waiting in the wings, but before he can even turn around, he feels hands grasping around his limbs and yanking him back toward the staircase. He has to fight, but he can't do it alone.

MAKE A CHOICE: DOES SOMEBODY WANT TO SAVE THEIR FRIEND, OR LET THEM DROP THE KEY?

RORY COLLINS: She doesn't even think when she sees the masked figure grabbing Casey. She just moves. Rory sprints forwards and hits the attacker as hard as she can.

MAKE A CHOICE: SUCCESS!

THE NARRATOR: It’s a great effort, and though Rory doesn't manage to do much real damage - and gets hit over the head hard enough to draw blood - she's still successful in getting her friend the hell away from that monster. The whole group is terrified, but they’re quick on their feet as they move somewhere else that could be deemed even semi safe within the madness to solve the next riddle.

Here’s your third key - you’re almost there!

Unless you can’t take a bit of a scare.

Your key can be found with the killers that hunt you

Hand someone over, and we’ll hand over ours too.

There’s no getting out of it, there’s no bargaining here,

You must sacrifice someone, someone so dear.

Will they die, will they live? Only we know.

But if you don’t choose, then all of you go.

MAKE A CHOICE: SOMEONE MUST SACRIFICE THEMSELVES AND ALERT THE KILLERS TO GET THEM TO DROP THE THIRD KEY. CHOOSE WHO.

VIRGINIA ANN: If you had told that Virginia that five hours ago she'd be running onto the stage to present herself to a bunch of murderous assholes, she'd probably laugh in your face. Maybe if she lived this would be a funny story to tell her kids one day. Not even bothering to deal with telling the group of her decision due to the five vodka mixed drinks in her body, she ran up the stage and yelled, "Hey bitches, I'm here!"

THE NARRATOR: It’s hard not to feel the weight of the gang’s fear like a punch in the gut, radiating through the room. They can hear Virginia's drunken voice call out - the sound of her scream, and her struggle as they’re dragged her up the stairs, just like the others had been.

When the sound of chains dropping from the door handles echoes through the room, though - followed by the scurry of sprinting out of the theater - they almost think to breathe a sigh of relief. Could that really be it? Could it be over?

They don’t move for nearly an hour - or maybe it just feels like an hour - but when they finally decide the coast is clear, the group of them - or what’s left of them - sprint out of the theater, and the hell out of CCU as quickly as they can. Maybe it’s a betrayal to not even look for their friends… or maybe their bodies. But how are they supposed to stomach the thought of it? How are they expected to stick around with those… killers still on the loose?

Are their friends still alive? Who knows. They just know they need to get the police down here to help their friends as soon as they can, even if it means getting the hell out of there.

MAKE A CHOICE: YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED YOUR PLOT EVENT.

#bio rp #town rp #oc rp #skeleton rp #small town rp #secrets rp #gossip rp #gossip girl rp #90s rp #classic rp #college rp #secret rp #lsrp #small rp #small group rp #event 002 - ccu theater.#plot event 002 - the bonfire.

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innenofutari · 5 years

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Dimitri is one of the best lords of the entire franchise (Character Analysis)

[HUGE SPOILERS FOR MANY PARTS OF BLUE LIONS ROUTE]

Beware of spoilers! This is my messy attempt at conveying all my love for this route and lord, since he really touched my heart as no other Fire Emblem character previously did. And I posted this on Reddit as well, but figured I’d post here too because why the fuck not.

I just very recently finished the Blue Lions, and while I loved many parts of this route, what caught my attention the most was Dimitri. There is absolutely no way he isn't my favorite Fire Emblem character of all time now, and I would like to try and explain why, so here we go.

Right off the bat what made Dimitri painfully interesting to me was how similar his personality was to the common "kind, idealistic and naive" lord archetype we have in many games, but not quite.

In his nature, he is indeed kind and soft hearted, but his very own life goal goes against every single one of those principles, being something as ruthless and even bloodthirsty as revenge. For someone who feels like a monster for every life he takes, that's awfully contradictory if you ask me. And that's the key to Dimitri's conflicts, "contradiction".

Dimitri is a walking contradiction, he hates taking lives, and yet he obligates himself to do so, resulting in crippling self hatred. This forms an inescapable circle where, if he takes lives, he'll end up hating himself, but if he doesn't, he'll still hate himself for being incapable of avenging the dead and fulfilling the duty he established for himself. It's a maze with no exit that his trauma forced him in, creating two very opposing sides to his personality and actions.

Another thing that really pleased me with his writing, is that Dimitri's soft heartedness, kindness and naivety is never played as a quality, but as a flaw. Dimitri possesses an incredibly black/white, good/evil way to see the world, never realizing what's in between (which is very ironic, as he himself is a pretty morally grey character). This kind of thinking is one that clouds his judgement and makes it impossible for him to see the world as it is as well as impossible to truly forgive himself. Mercedes A support and Gilbert's entire support chain illustrate this perfectly.

Now, we get to the timeskip, where his mind and actions seemingly look like a totally insane person's who has broken down completely and just doesn't care about what he's doing. That seems like the first thing you'd assume, but I personally have a different way of interpreting timeskip Dimitri. For me, Dimitri is not insane nor crazy, he is totally aware of his own actions and in fact, willingly chose to act like the way he does until chapter 17. But rather the only way he saw of coping with the crushing self loathing he felt was by becoming the monster he thought he himself was. Dimitri thought that by completely forsaking his humanity and turning a blind eye to his own emotions, he could serve as the perfect vassal for the dead, with no will of his own.

One of my biggest gripes with Dimitri's character arc was that his change in chapter 17 felt way too abrupt for me especially since the writing until that point was so consistent and solid, but following this line of thought, it makes perfect sense for him to change so abruptly, since his timeskip change wasn't something that happened because he lost his mind, but a choice he willingly made and just a part of him that was always there resurfacing and taking control. Dimitri "turned into his old self" once again not because of the power of anime tropes, but because he dropped the whole "I'm a vassal for the dead with no identity nor humanity" thing the moment he saw a person he cared for dying in front of him, and he finally realized how selfish he was being, even if only for some minutes. Dimitri was sure that forsaking his humanity was the only way to stop his own suffering while simultaneously punishing himself (another one of this boy's contradictions), but he ultimately couldn't fully repress his "former self".

Rodrigue's death was the push Dimitri needed to finally realize that the dead didn't expect anything from Dimitri, and that he was his own person. Byleth later reaffirms Dimitri that he is his own person, and the dead shouldn't hold any power against him, to which he finally accepts and agrees to let go of hatred. Dedue mentions in chapter 18 if I remember correctly, that saying that Dimitri returned to his old self was an incorrect statement, since Dimitri had always been struggling with his two contradictory facets inside himself ever since the tragedy, and as he says in his Felix A support, they are both a part of him. This boy has been in constant emotional turmoil since the very first day we see him at the Monastery, living with those two conflicting parts inside of himself.

That's why Dimitri's development feels so satisfying, he's not only able to stop hating himself to such a crippling extent, but he also comes to understand that he is his own person. In his S support with Byleth he says that the voices of his dead loved ones will probably accompany him until his deathbed, but that this is a thing he now knows he's strong enough to fight against, successfully burying all the hatred his trauma has caused. His scene in Fhirdiad of him finally reclaiming the throne, and realizing that he is actually very beloved by his people, that they don't hold any kind of hatred or grudges towards him, will always do things to my heart. His whole life he just wanted to be forgiven, a thing he never allowed himself to do.

Thank you warriors who read up until this point, I'm well aware this is a massive wall of text but hey it was just made in good fun and love for Dimitri. Also, a last heads up but this is merely my own interpretation of Dimitri and by no means the absolute truth. Well written characters such as Dimitri can warrant a myriad of different interpretations, and this was just an attempt to share mine. (Would love to debate, too! Feel free to call me out since I have a tendency to overanalyze.)

#fire emblem #fire emblem three houses #dimitri alexandre blaiddyd #dimitri fire emblem #his name is dimitri fire emblem this game will not fool me with fancy surnames #character analysis #meta #fe3h

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cesup · 3 years

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Thanks for tagging @walking-meme , I'll tag anyone who wants to do this and @lawiika + @weronikaisback if they feel like doing it

What do you prefer to be called name-wise?

Viola, Violet, tbh no one really calls me that irl it's kinda sad to me

When is your birthday?

June 17 (to astrology nerds; beware!)

Where do you live?

Germany why do I feel threatened

Three things you’re doing right now:

I'm eating klopsy

Four fandoms that piqued your interest?

I'm amazed that people join more than one fandom at a time. I joined bungou stray dogs fandom in 2017 and am here ever since, I didn't expect this show to get that popular. Alternatively jojo fandom and tbh that's about it. Everything else was just a hyped phase

How has the pandemic been treating you?

I disinfect my hands at work so much that I might as well scrub my entire skin off, today it looked like crusty snow. Though my lifestyle didn't change much I handle it surprisingly awfully. My grades are dropping because I can't focus at home and my mental health suffers too

A song you can’t stop listening to right now:

Patricia in Pain by Paralyzed Age

How old are you?

20, and I'm surprised to see young gen z here I thought nobody joins this website anymore

Do you prefer hot or cold?

def cold

Name one fact others may not know about you.

I broke my father's nose once as a toddler screaming "boxi, boxi" because my grandfather watched box with me

Are you shy?

Not anymore but people think I am, I just don't want to talk to them tbh also I have crippling social skills

Pronouns?

She/her, you can also call me they if you can't tell/don't know my gender

Biggest pet peeves?

Loud breathing, slow walkers

What is your favourite “dere” type?

I used to love yandere's in school but now I find that you can't find a "dere" type for a well written character

Rate your life from 1-10, 1 being crappy and 10 being the best it could be.

4? 4.5? No definitely 4. I have a boring life but also a lot if issues an average person wouldn't have to struggle with

What’s your main blog?

That's my main

List your side blogs and what they’re used for.

@pusec for aesthetic and quotes, @rat-bat for my baby bat experience and @ohtolive [tw?: suicide implication] to write down reasons I'm glad I didn't off myself

Is there something people need to know about you before becoming friends?

I'm veery clingy and annoying, and just because I'm calm on first meeting doesn't mean I'm not going to be weird in public. I'm a weeb and a lewd one at that.

#stop being young you make me feel old

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mischievousmouse · 5 years

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Hassling The Neighbors

Malachai x male reader

Some Ghoulies got caught up with some much bigger fish in the next town over.

Does not follow even a smidge of any plot at all.

Word count: 443

Warnings: Blood, Character Death, Threat of Sexual Assault, Knife Wielding?, Description of brutalization but not alot? I’m not sure just beware.

Malachai doesn't stutter. He doesn’t hesitate, or waver in his convictions. Especially in front of anyone who stands against the Ghoulies. That’s why it hurts so much when he does.

You were tossed to the ground from the length of a man’s shoulder. Tied up and gagged, you shouted when you hit the ground, the air vacating your lungs in a choked grunt. Your wheezes filled up the empty, abandoned factory.

“I’m sure this changes things for you Ghoulies. Why don’t we just start this off with a little more civility,” A big man in a suit grunted out, sending you forward with a kick to the stomach.

Malachai looked you over. From the cut on your head leaking blood down your face, to the cuts in your jeans showing off freshly bruised skin. He caught your eye for only a brief moment, and could feel just how utterly out of his control this situation really was.

“Listen, Luis. We meant no harm, I’m sure my boys didn’t know who the cars belonged to. Just some innocent hassling from the neighbors. That’s all, I mean this isn’t necessary,” Malachai tried to chuckle,gesturing to you with shaking hands.

They had taken your jacket and boots at some point, leaving you exposed to the freezing winter air. You’d grown used to the icy numbness of your hands and feet hours ago.

“Oh, just some hassling? Okay, no big deal then. How do you expect to bail out your ‘boys’ then? They’ve cost us thousands of dollars now,” Luis mocked.

“How about we take this little chew toy for a few spins. See how much he can rack up for us,” The man that dropped you snickered, stooping low. He yanked your hair back, running a blade over your face. “I’m sure some of our big dealers can use some candy. Right, boss?”

“What do you say, Your Highness? Let us take the little tyke. Make up all your debt in two rounds, I’d imagine,” Luis laughed loudly. The sound echoed around the building and into Malachai ears, taunting him.

In a split second the Ghoulies were on Luis and his men. Malachai bringing his bat down onto Luis repeatedly, too enraged to care for the blood splattering onto him.

When he crumpled to the ground Malachai ran for you. Still curled up on the floor abandon in the fray. He ripped the ties from your hands, and tried to sit you up but you were limp. He called your name repeatedly, shaking and begging through tears.

He didn’t notice the blood seeping through your clothes forming a puddle, or the knife stuck into your abdomen.

Please tell me if I should add anything to the warnings. If you have advice about the mess of warnings, feel free to let me know.

First attempt at something that isn’t soft or playful. Let me know what you think!

#malachai x reader #malachai x male reader #malachai imagine #malachai riverdale #riverdale imagine #riverdale x male reader #riverdale x male reader imagine #riverdale x reader #x reader imagine #x male reader imagine #x male reader #x reader

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pajama-nerd · 4 years

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Reading my way through Fazbears Frights, thinking about how none of these protagonists have ever interacted with any kind of horror media.

Reader Beware: Spoilers Ahead

Into the Pit didn’t read like time travel to me. It read more like a particular kind of haunting where the negative energy of all of the bad shit that happened at that location was locked into the one remaining 'feature' of the location: the ball pit. And Pit-Bonnie isn't the ghost of Afton, but rather the entity that was created from the memories of all that bad energy.

And the interesting thing to me about Pit-Bonnie is that - aside from the inherent creepiness of the situation and the fact that he had literally one facial expression (he can’t even blink for cryin’ out loud) - he didn't attempt to harm Oswald until Oswald went back to rescue his dad. Once Pit-Bonnie was away from the negative energy that had spawned him, he did Dad Things™. He did them in the creepiest way possible, granted, but we don't actually know how he feels because of his inability to express.

Maybe he wanted to stay. Maybe he just wanted a break from that place. Maybe that place has a hold on him, and being away from it allowed him a measure of free will.

And the fandom that I’ve seen about the Dashboard has locked onto Pit-Dad-Bonnie because the general attitude of the fandom - as far as I've witnessed - has been 'Oh. A scary thing! Well, now it's friend-shaped.' (or, in this case, Dad shaped) so of course my immediate question is, 'how would the story have changed if Oswald had made a more serious attempt to communicate with Pit-Bonnie?'

The immediate, cynical response is 'well it would have slaughtered him' but that's infinitely less interesting than the possible alternatives.

Perhaps he takes in the fact that Pit-Bonnie can't talk, and proposes an alternate method of communication. I'm talkin construction paper and crayons. And he gets Pit-Bonnie to tell his story a la Nephrite from Steven Universe. About how one day he just was. And how sometime after that, that version of Fazbear's formed around him. And how there were happy, smiling kids laughing in the pizzeria and he was happy, but how every time he tried to be friends with the kids something would happen.

The world would flicker and they would just be in that back room, like that. How he was desperate for some kind of a connection and could never have one because those kids – those memories – were doomed to die by the memory of his hands. How he noticed Oswald because Oswald didn’t fit – he was real – and how he’d wanted Oswald to help him figure out how to change what had happened (or to make it stop), but Oswald had run away. About how he’d tried to fish Oswald out of the ballpit and gotten his dad instead. About deciding to take his dad’s place so that he could get away from that place and how being here with Oswald was nice. Driving him to school was nice. Making him dinner was nice. Cleaning the house with him was nice.

(Imagine Oswald getting less and less afraid as he interprets the story, checking in with PB occasionally to make sure he's getting it right. Getting slightly annoyed tho, because he's not getting rid of this rabbit, is he? But he still needs to rescue his dad, so now what?)

Oswald eventually tells PB that he can stay, which surprises but elates the rabbit. Then Oswald tells him they have to get his dad back.

There's a negotiation. Obviously, they have to get his dad back. Has Pit-Bonnie been going to his dad's job? What about taxes? Things his dad knows how to do? What about Oswald's mom? Is Pit-Bonnie just going to pretend to be his dad around her forever? What if she wants to do...like...parent stuff? With her husband? If you catch my drift (PB does not, in fact).

Eventually PB agrees, and even drives Oswald back to the same block as the pizza place. He doesn't get close to it - definitely doesn't park in the lot - but Oswald just tells him to wait in the car and goes and wakes his dad up from the ball pit. His dad is confused. Disoriented. Way out of it. Let's Oswald lead him back to the car and sits in the back, too out of it to comment on the yellow bunny mascot in the front seat. They return to the house without incident, and his dad passes out on the couch.

Oswald eventually figures out that PB is the one making his dad so loopy - that the connection PB formed so that he could know how to drive the car, how to work the vacuum cleaner, how to make Oswald's meals, is also keeping Oswald's dad borderline comatose. It takes some convincing to get PB to give that up. PB is afraid to give that up - afraid that if he doesn't have an anchor, he'll go back to being an aimless product of rage and murder.

Oswald's solution is to spread the bond out. He'll take part of it. If PB splits his focus, it'll be less of a strain on his dad, and PB will have more than one anchor. This has the added property of giving his dad the ability to see the seven-foot-tall grinning plush rabbit (he doesn't react well. Neither does mom. Oswald has never had to talk so much in his life)

So now Pit-Bonnie is a part of Oswald’s life, and it’s hella weird at first, but everyone gets over it, because eventually you just get numb to weirdness. Except Oswald becomes obsessed with Freddy Fazbears, in an Unsolved Mysteries kind of way. Starts researching the place wherever and however he can.

Pit-Bonnie helps, in his way, after they figure out a way to communicate efficiently (modified Sign Language, because being bonded to Oswald means that Pit-Bonnie knows how to do all the things that Oswald knows how to do. So Oswald learns sign language. Which means that Pit-Bonnie knows how to sign now. He still only has the one facial expression, which makes asking questions a little complicated, but they work it out).

I imagine that Pit-Bonnie is very tuned in to the weirdness/darkness vibe that Freddy’s and its remnants (ha) give off. He starts reading local and then state, and then national newspapers, and whenever he gets the Fazbear vibe, he sets the article aside for Oswald to look at. Also he doesn’t sleep, so in the first week of Oswald’s obsession, he generates a lot of leads for Oswald by going through back issues of...everything.

This is a rambly thing, but my point is that most horror has a solution and most of the time this solution is subverted by having it happen to people who have no experience with horror movies, books, comics, or other mediums, which is…I dunno. Kinda cheap.

‘What if they ever saw Frankenstein and sympathized with the monster enough to have empathy for this thing?’

‘They’re not horror fans. And the ones that are have never seen or read the stories where empathy solves the problem.’

To Be Beautiful (a terrible, one dimensional story with a terrible message about self-image told the way that high school stories in the 80's-90's were told, which wasn't even accurate to how highs schools were in the 80's-90's) could have been solved by literally anyone being more than passively curious about the drastic changes that Sarah was undergoing. (Puberty doesn't work that fast. Her whole freaking face changed). Or by her mom going into her room at some point and asking about the 5 foot robot doll.

Count the Ways has many solutions, although, really? She shoulda chosen starvation. More time to escape or be rescued is always, always, always going to be better than a 'maybe I won't be bifurcated’ any way you slice it (I’m not sorry), but I'm fond of the idea of Oswald coming across an article about ‘theft of proprietary animatronics from a Fazbear Entertainment property’ and it leading him to Milly’s grandfather’s house in time to save her. Along with his seven-foot-tall grinning plush friend who can alter people's perception.

Fetch could have been solved by treating Fetch like a dog. Seriously. He is dog shaped. He is therefore a dog, first and foremost. Dog first, killer animatronic second. Which Greg didn't fundamentally understand (he strikes me as a cat person anyway). But Fetch spent that entire story trying to do what he thought his master wanted, and never got so much as a 'good boy' out of it. He didn't even try to defend himself when Greg went to town on him with a baseball bat because he just wanted to be a good dog for his boy. And even after that, when Greg expressed a desire to see Kimberly, Fetch still wanted to do something to get his master to call him a good boy. Honestly, if - after being warned about Fetch - Kimberly had planted her feet and said 'Sit!' I would bet actual Faz-dollars that Fetch's haunches would have dropped to the pavement out of surprise alone, because it would have been the first time in the story someone treated him like a dog.

Alec was doomed to be a teddy-bear from the moment his parents picked up a ‘how to raise my kids’ book, but he’s still alive. There’s no reason he couldn’t be rescued (by Oswald, who’s on the trail of all the weirdness related to Freddy Fazbear. I’d read that story. I’d write that story. I will probably write that story)

The Plushtrap story...had no flaws. That was the only solution, and good on those boys for making all the right choices except for the initial choices that put them in that situation to begin with. A+. Those teeth, Jesus.

1:35 am could have been solved with an apology. Come on. For a character that was supposedly in the Foster Care system being bounced from home to home, you’d think she could empathize with an entity that didn’t appreciate being thrown away. A sincere apology, a promise to never do it again, and Ella would probably have forgiven her.

I don’t remember where I was going with this. I started writing it before I clocked on for work, but that was eleven hours ago. Who can remember where a train of thought that far back?

#fnaf #fazbear frights #ramble #headcanons #how to change the outcome of a horror story

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the-metropolis-marvel · 2 months

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BEWARE THE BAT CHARACTER DROP: BILL THE HENCHMEN

am I adding thepandaredd's OC into Beware the Bat? yes

But I also got permission from the man himself(go follow him he's amazing and one of the best comictokers out there)

(art by thepandaredd)

Voiceclaim: thepandaredd

Bill is the caffeine addicted,done with everything, only in it for the money henchmen that has worked for every single rogue you can think of.

The more of a gimmick a rogue has, the more bill is gonna wish he didn't wake up that morning.

(most tame being someone like cobblepot, the more flamboyant being someone like Jervis tech).

He completely refuses to work for silver age villains, since they tend to be completely gimmick oriented and he considers it a waste of time. The jobs that bill gets sent on vary in importance. Some being where he actually has to be hired hand and some where he's just there to be someone who gets equipment.

He's almost identical to how he is in the skits from pandaredd, except now he has more employers.

He's got a very sibling type friendship with (legally distinct) Sal, they argue like cats and dogs but are both united under the common fact that they both cater to Gotham's rogues

#beware the bat #batman #beware the bat au #beware the bat character drop #titanoverse character drop #pandaredd #bill the henchmen #titanoverse

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onepunchmiss · 4 years

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Ok ok ok ramble time lets go- manga spoilers ahead if you don't read the web comic, beware!

So theres several things that I've been thinking about regarding how the manga is diverging from the webcomic right now- how are the other heroes rejoining the battle going to affect the outcome of the Monster association arc climax? Or I guess rather, how will they themselves be affected by participating in the battle?

Its really interesting and exciting to see that Orochi wasn't just hyped up for completely nothing! Now I'm assuming that part of the reason for Orochi at all was for the Orochi/Psykos power up- specifically because the other heroes will be joining the frey, and I wouldn't think that the over all resolution of the arc will be much different. At the same time, if you're going to amp up the final boss just to be able to defeat the extra hero power that was originally non-existent, why bother with the changes at all? Just to give the other heroes a bit more screen time and please fans? Maybe, in the same vein, just to give webcomic fans new material rather than go panel-for-panel?

What I'm really hoping and honestly feel is probably the case, is that it will serve to get some more character development in there for the heroes and flesh them out even further?? We've been seeing it a lot in the manga as it is, with the introductions of many unique lower ranking heroes, the whole dynamic of the HA, Zombieman and Child Emperor's (blessed) dynamic, even getting some much needed Drive Knight exposition. So I'm thrilled at the prospect of seeing how these heroes are going to handle the situation they're running straight into.

I HONESTLY CAN'T WAIT TO SEE LIGHNING MAX AND SNEK DOING??? ANYTHING?? I'm gonna be honest I have no idea how they're going to reasonably fit in the fight, though I feel like it would be silly and a tad pointless to have them run off from the hospital for no reason?? And correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think we have seen them in the web comic at all following the Monster association, so I'm absolutely thrilled that they're staying relevant for now. (Edit: I was wrong and stand corrected, Snek did show up briefly with Child Emperor at one point) But yeah I'm SO CURIOUS

Side note, it was awesome seeing theveryone from the martial arts tournament! Since the tournament was the whole Focus of the second season of the anime, I forgot how long it had actually been since we had seen them in the manga. Not too much longer, but still. Lin Lin is adorable and I still stan.

I'm REALLY loving this Tanktop Master&Mumen Rider friendship we've been getting, so I'm fully expecting to see more of that now. Also, after the Monster Association arc, we found out TTM started feeling uncertain of himself as a member of the S Class anf leader of the TT army from his defeat at the hands of Garou much earlier on. I'm incredibly curious to see how his involvement in the fight will impact that sentiment, if at all, following the arcs conclusion?? I also just love TTM so much y'all don't appreciate him enough I swear,,,

Then, honestly the main reason this has been on my mind, theres Metal Bat. I mean, between his fight with Garou and appearance with the Neo-heroes, we don't see Metal Bat at all. Having him back in the battle will be a great way to flesh out his decision to leave the HA for the Neo Heroes. It's understandable enough that he would ditch the HA considering last we saw, he had to drop his personal life just to babysit an obnoxiously snobby kid and his equally as obnoxious father. Justifiable enough certainly, but I can't wait to see if anything new might also co tribute to that decision moving forward!

THEN, AND THIS IS CONSUMING MOST OF MY THOUGHTS YOU SEE, THERE IS JUST THE FACT THAT BADD IS SIMPLY TOO BAD ASS. ONE himself has said before regarding the webcomic that things would have turned out differently had Metal Bat been there. Well sir, the boy is en route, so what's gonna happen?? I must know???? Was the massive Psykos power-up largely to help the cadres stand a chance against his added help??? Which brings me back to the point of why bring him to the fight just to have the monsters buffed to defeat him?? Was tHiS whOle pLOT DivErGenCE JusT an ExCusE fOr MoRE METAL BAT??? Kidding, but still, Murata didn't lie when he said Orochi would just get one-punched by Saitama despite how it seemed, so like I can't help but think ONE wasn't just talking shit? I feel like Metal Bat alone coming in is really going to fuck shit up, never mind the others?? How is this all gonna go down?????

Ugh y'all I'm LOSIN IT it is LATE and I am TIRED but I need answers NOW

#just one of the many thoughts im having right now #like i really was out here thinking my biggest concern was gonna be naked Zombieman during this whole ordeal #LITTLE DID I KNOW HUH #one punch man #opm #manga spoilers #opmissmumbling #metal bat #tanktop master #tank top master #lightning max #snek #love how i just divolved into a yelling rambly mess through that #metal bat will do that to me i guess

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geekundercover · 4 years

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Okay, just gimme a minute to screech about The Mandalorian

Just watched the season 1 finale today and I’d like to vomit my disorganized thoughts before I begin the long wait for season two (or at least the inevitable rewatch) because I’m just so delighted with this series. If anyone is planning to watch but hasn’t yet, beware of The Spoilers below the cut. Also, it’s really long under there.

First of all, can I just say how refreshing the format was for a Star Wars property? I know some people didn’t like that a number of the episodes were “filler,” but god I LOVE monster of the week style shows! It just allows you to... abide in a fictional universe that doesn’t feel as up-close if you’re constantly zipping along the path of a plot (not that plot is bad, of course). It really captured the feeling of old serialized storytelling, or genre shows like Supernatural, Merlin, or Grimm, while also nailing that space gunslinger atmosphere in a setting I already love.

And speaking of space gunslinger, I was so ready to be indifferent to this focus character when my dad persuaded me to start watching. I was just off the bat convinced we were going to get a stock, grim badass trying to capture the spirit of the Boba Fett craze with a different coat of paint. But no, I can genuinely say I really love Mando as a character in his own right. He can be blunt at points and can certainly open up a can of whoopass when he needs to, but most of the time he’s just.... nice! He’s respectful and pretty polite, while having his points of frustration and annoyance. He doesn’t jump immediately to violence when there are alternatives, like being respectful of the Tuskan Raiders’ lands and addressing them in their language. He’s got damage, but he doesn’t wallow in it, but rather turns it into empathy for other people that are suffering and doing what he can to help them. His devotion to his creed and the people that took him in give him a depth I wasn’t expecting. And when he finds people to care about, you can tell he REALLY cares.

Related to above but deserving its own separate bullet point, Mando and Baby Yoda. Like... bounty hunter adopts small child and has adventures with it was not a plot I was expecting but I’m so happy that it was what we got. Found family is my THING, and this show came through on that relationship. And it really was a relationship, even if the other half is just a baby. You get Mando going from feeling honor-bound to help the kid and finding somewhere safe to drop him to genuinely caring about this little bugger. Baby Yoda himself also has a slow progression of becoming more aware of the situation around him, getting smarter about staying alive in all these dangerous situations, and growing more protective of his guardian at the same time. So in the finale, when they’re officially declared adopted dad and adopted kid by Mandalorian custom until further notice, it feels legit and earned, not just a fandom joke.

And Baby Yoda himself is something they did well. It’s not just a cute puppet meant to be hauled around and to sell toys, that kid has a personality, and that personality is Little Shit. He’s constantly fucking around with things, cackling in dangerous situations. I think they struck a good balance of having him be vital to the plot without overusing him or the cute factor.

I’ve been ranting about this since episode 4, but what this show does with the scale of the conflict just drives me bananas. Absolutely batshit with joy. When TROS is summoning ten thousand star destroyers from literal nowhere, ALL of which are mounted with Death Star cannons, I can only facepalm at how far the power creep has run away from the creators. In Mandalorian though? They take things that have previously been jokes in Star Wars and make them into real threats. When the only force sensitive person in the show is a literal infant and everyone else is running around on the ground with blasters, it almost becomes a completely different universe. A single AT-ST in episode 4 becomes a massive and genuinely intimidating threat for a bunch of foot soldiers, most of whom are untrained and under-equipped. I out-loud exclaimed “Oh shit, they’re screwed” when a single TIE fighter entered the battlefield in episode 7. Even stormtroopers, outside of targeted gags, are something to be taken seriously when they’re in numbers.

In relation, this is another thing I really like about Mando as a character. People in-universe regularly comment that Mandalorians, both this one specifically and the people as a whole, are kickass, and they are. But that doesn’t mean they’re invulnerable or supernatural in their abilities. They’re just really tough people with some cool gadgets. Mando isn’t cutting through swathes of enemies with ease; he gets knocked down, injured, and his life is in danger constantly, especially when he’s alone against a threat. It doesn’t make him less of a talented warrior; it just makes him more human, and as equally reliant on his smarts and non-martial skills to keep himself alive.

Side characters! I loved them (most of them). By the end of the series I was bummed as hell that we weren’t going to get a DnD style party of them joining up with Mando and Son as their crew. It felt a lot like Rogue One: fairly simple characters with a few core traits, but they were such likable traits and their motivations made perfect sense, so even with the short amount of time they got, they still resonated. Cara especially I loved for multiple reasons. I really appreciate that they made this big, brash, kickass woman character and nothing felt tropey about her; she felt genuine. I love the battle bros relationship she grew with Mando, and how sincere it felt without even a suggestion of some romantic subtext between them. They appreciated each other’s skills at first, but you can see it grow into genuine respect and care for one another. They got the time to hang out together during those weeks on Sorgan, chat about their lives, arm wrestle together, make jokes. It was that kind of relationship building, even just a little bit of it, that I was missing in the sequel trilogy and that made the Rey/Finn/Poe triad feel so hollow despite how much I wanted to care for them.

I love how (and I say this with true sincerity and appreciation) how bloody inconsequential and small these characters and this story feel in the grand universe of Star Wars. Really! None of these characters have any relevance to the greater SW narrative they live in the middle of. Mando’s got a reputation, but only in certain circles. Cara was a rebel, but she deserted years ago after all the important shit was over with. Even Baby Yoda and the former Imperial force after him feels so small scale in comparison to everything that came before and will come after. The fate of the galaxy isn’t in their hands, what they’re doing doesn’t really matter on a grand scale. Even so, it matters to these characters. When Kuiil chose to leave the peaceful retirement he’d won after so long, when he chose to go back into danger because he didn’t want to see someone else be harmed by the lingering influence of the old evil regime, it really struck a chord with me. What they do in the finale, and the good deeds Mando does throughout the series, might not shake the foundations of the galaxy, but it is fighting back against the darkness that’s hung over it for so long in their own way. Changing the world a little bit at a time.

I admit, as much as I love the Jedi, it’s really nice to see the SW universe from a perspective other than theirs. I’ve never been all that interested in getting into content outside of the movies before, but this might be enough to push me toward stuff like the Clone Wars just for more of that. Definitely makes the universe feel richer.

The galaxy! Actually feels! Like a galaxy! Take notes! New Trilogy writers! The episodic format actually lets the locations breathe a little while still getting enough mileage to make things feel broad at the same time, rather than jumping around so quickly that planets feel confined to a single location and have no depth to them at all. The Mandalorian felt like flying around in Mass Effect: there isn’t actually a whole lot to explore, but there’s just enough lore there and enough of a story can unfold in the different locations to give them meaning. If there was one thing I’d want to change or add, I’d love to see an episode take place in a less backwater setting, like a big city or busy space port. I understand the budget concerns, as well as maintaining the Western/lone ranger genre and tone, but it would definitely add in some life and have plenty of adventure opportunities.

Allow me one more detour back to Mando, and specifically the helmet removal scene. I just love how they did it. Could have made him stoic and cool, but they didn’t. He ain’t some young, handsome rogue under there (although I certainly wouldn’t say Pedro Pascal doesn’t have looks). He’s got some years under his belt, he’s dinged up and bloody and sweaty, his hair’s a mess, and he looks like a rabbit in headlights. Once again, standing O for making a badass action hero that’s still allowed to be vulnerable, human, and a bit of a mess sometimes.

Like... all of IG-11, both his first appearance and in the finale. Other people have already gone into detail about that, so I’ll just say ditto, I love him.

The freaking Scout Trooper scene, man. That shit had me howling. You don’t really think about troopers much, they’re just cannon fodder shouting stock lines a lot of the time, but there are still people under there. Finn kinda helped me wake up to that, but these guys were a hilarious flipside to that. Just two dumb fuckin’ idiots making idiot talk at work.

Mando earning his sigil and jetpack, and then his first flight.... *chef’s kiss*. I am such a SUCKER for first flight scenes, and this one was awesome. If Disney wasn’t such a copyright Nazi, I would have already made a short crack vid of that scene with Defying Gravity over it.

That’s a lot of thoughts up there, but I’ll conclude with this one. I just had... fun. The Mandalorian was fun! Not in a guilty pleasure way, but it didn’t need to be in an Oscar-worthy way either. It was just a series of adventures I was delighted to tag along on, with characters I truly came to care about. And at the end of the day, it ended on a triumphant and patently Star Wars hopeful note that delighted me and filled me with anticipation for future adventures to come.

#the mandalorian #the mandalorian spoilers #star wars

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badbookreviewclub · 4 years

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Complete Review: Insanity: Jeff the Killer by Neesha Nickleson

DISCLAIMER: There are spoilers in this review. I highly doubt you will have any plans to read this book, but if you don’t want it to be spoiled, just don’t read the review until after you’ve read the book. To take a break from Empress Theresa and the pain that it has been causing me, I decided to read a fanfiction that Neesha Nickleson, self-published and sold via Amazon. Insanity: Jeff the Killer is significantly shorter than Empress Theresa, at a grand total of 76 pages. On the Amazon listing, Nickleson admits in ‘Videos for this product’ section that she wrote the book when she was fifteen, which in itself is almost endearing to me. Apparently, she wrote it for a contest that Nickleson claims to have won. I’m not entirely sure what the contest was for, but kudos to her. Nickleson also comments that there’s a sequel to this book, however, I haven’t been able to find it. Neesha if somehow by the will of the fates if you find this review; Please, I just want book two. When will you release book two for purchase? I need it in my life. The Summary: “Bullies and liars beware: A new threat is arising. Naomi Jansen just wanted to have a normal carefree life until she met Jeff at summer camp. Jeff is a laid back teenage boy with a dark secret. Then one morning at camp, Naomi hears that one of her long time bullies, Mallory, was found dead in her cabin. Naomi suspects Jeff at first but then decides that he’s too sweet do something like that, until a series of events changes her mind and her outlook on sanity.” This summary isn’t terrible, to be honest. I’ve read far worse, though personally there are a few things I don’t like about it. First of all, revealing that Naomi’s bully was killed. I know this isn’t much of a plot twist because it happens within the first couple of pages in the book, but it gets rid of a sense of mystery. Second, we don’t really know anything about the characters right off of the bat besides general characteristics. I would have preferred if Jeff’s characteristics were written from Naomi’s first impression, for example: “Jeff seemed like a laid back teenager, though when Naomi hangs out around him, the air feels off.” Not the best that could be done considering I literally just threw that out there, but there are small revisions that could be done to give more of a sense of mystery to the book and the characters without pulling from the content of the summary itself. I do know that this book is quite literally about the Creepypasta, Jeff the Killer, so it isn’t as if anyone reading it has no idea who Jeff the Killer is, but I do feel like the point still stands. Just because a reader has an idea about the content of the book doesn’t give an author the excuse of revealing plot points in the summary. I do also understand that it was written when Nickleson was a fifteen-year-old, so I don’t hold much against her in that regard. Hell, I wrote shitty fanfiction when I was fifteen. However, if you are willing to publish your work online and even sell it, you are going to have to expect criticisms and reviews. The Characters: Naomi Jansen - The main female lead, Neesha Nickleson’s original character. Jeff Woods - The main male lead, based heavily on if not is completely a mirror of the Creepypasta, Jeff the Killer. Liu Woods- Jeff’s brother, both in the story and in the world of Creepypasta. Based off of or mirrors the character of Liu Woods. Mallory - Naomi’s bully. Randy - As per Nickleson’s descriptions, the “average-sized” skater boy. He’s the boss of Troy and Keith. Troy - the “fat” skater boy and can apparently run very fast. Keith - the “skinny” skater boy Plot Summary and Breakdown: Considering that the book is only 76 pages, there’s not much plot to it, but there is a plot. The entire book follows Jeff and Naomi around, from their first encounter at a summer camp to the ‘first day of school’ and finally to the moment when both of them snap and kill their families. It’s a fairly simple and straightforward plotline, which works to the advantage of the story at some points. At other points, however, the rapid pacing of the book can be incredibly confusing and makes little to no sense. There are a lot of logical gaps throughout the story that can leave a reader confused or holding their head in their hands, which I will go into as we delve into the storyline itself. Nickleson also has a tendency to flip between Jeff and Naomi’s perspective throughout the chapters, which is a problem within itself. Thankfully she does label in big and completely capitalized letters when she is switching perspectives, which makes it easier to follow along. There can be a few problems with jumping perspectives in the middle of chapters because we lose connection with the character who was just narrating at times, though it can certainly help the book from becoming repetitive when you want to repeat a scene from a different perspective. In this case, however, it would have been best to completely write the book from third-person rather than jumping between first-person perspectives. First-person can work incredibly well for emotional impact and drawing the reader in, however, in my opinion, it is still possible to do that in a third-person perspective. Perhaps an author wouldn’t be able to do it as well, but in the case of Insanity: Jeff the Killer It would have worked just fine. We start off the book from Naomi’s perspective as her mom is dropping her off at Summer Camp. She is dropped off at a Summer Camp every single year, though this is the first year that she’s seen Jeff, so we could make the fairly logical guess that Jeff is new in town. Namoi’s first opinion of Jeff is that he’s a ‘weirdo’ for wearing a hoodie in the middle of summer. I honestly can’t blame Jeff for wearing a hoodie in the middle of summer because I do the exact same thing. Admittedly, the hoodie I wear in the middle of summer is a lightweight one, but I do. If I could go all year without ever having to stop wearing my jackets I would be so content (So, let’s stop global warming pls. It’s getting harder to wear jackets in the middle of summer. This is a terrible reason for wanting to stop global warming, but any reason to stop it is decent enough in my opinion). We don’t really get Jeff’s first impression of Naomi, but he does follow her and sit next to her to introduce himself because I guess she gave him a weird look. This is when we meet Mallory, who somehow already knows Jeff despite the fact that I thought he was new in town. Mallory is a little asshole, ‘nuff said. Just kidding, I have more to say. Mallory calls Jeff her “future husband Jeffy”. She also absolutely adores the color pink which we find out because she’s covered head-to-toe in pink. We also know that Mallory is Naomi’s longterm bully from the back summary, yet, she already knows who Jeff is despite the fact that I’m fairly certain that Jeff moved in. This was a little confusing for me, but I decided to just take it as a sign that Mallory had met Jeff when he arrived at camp and she decided right then and there that he would be her husband. It’s not entirely unreasonable for a teenage girl to say that about a boy that she finds attractive, right? I mean none of my friends ever said that about anyone that they found attractive, but it’s something that I’ve heard about happening. Mostly in movies, but I’m sure it happens elsewhere. I think. Maybe. Anyways, Mallory basically attacks Naomi with a fucking pink and sparkly knife that her mom gave her. She cuts up Naomi’s arms, legs, back, and waist to prove that she’s better than her. This is where we learn that Mallory is a psychotic fucking bitch, and this is where Mallory kisses her life away. Naomi doesn’t tell anyone who could do something about it that Mallory did this to her and instead just fixes herself up. She does meet up with Jeff a little bit later and shows him what Mallory did, he feels bad about it because he just watched before passing out (I think). A little later on Naomi goes to bed and has a dream about Jeff killing Mallory, we move on to the next chapter and SURPRISE Jeff killed Mallory and her entire cabin. Here’s where the first logical fail comes in; Rather than keeping everyone in the camp to be interviewed by the police or to keep the potential killer from running away, as soon as it is found out that Mallory and her entire cabin were brutally murdered, the camp decides to send them home early. From what I can gather, there’s a little voice in Jeff’s head that tells him to commit these violent acts, though it really only crops up when someone has hurt Naomi. This seems a little ridiculous to me considering that he literally just met her and as far as the book goes, it doesn’t seem like he had these violent tendencies before he knew her. However, Jeff doesn’t want her to find out that he was the murderer so when Naomi’s mom is giving them a ride home, he tries to hide the fact that there’s very clearly a bloodstain on the pocket of his white hoodie by saying that it’s spilled kool-aid. The bloodstain came from the knife he used to kill Mallory, which as far as I could figure out, isn’t a small knife. How Jeff got away with this, I will never ever know, nor do I think I could ever hope to know. Naomi excuses this and accepts it without question because she believes that Jeff is too sweet to have committed a brutal mass murder. I don’t know if this is naive or endearing that Naomi already seems to be falling for Jeff, though this is mostly from my own inference rather than any emotion that has been implied. Emotion tends to be another problem throughout the book. There’s no emotion in it. The characters seem to be cold and blank slates, even when facing some pretty anxiety and adrenaline-inducing situations. Even when they’re potentially facing death, we don’t get much emotion out of it, and in this regard, the book tends to be pretty disappointing. The way that the plot is laid out, emotion is incredibly important to the story and so are their thoughts and opinions because it is supposed to be a total spiral into madness. When Jeff and Naomi both snap and lose their sanity, we don’t see that spiral, it’s sudden and jarring. There was no slow spiral or thoughts that circled down the drain faster and faster until both of them gave in. A little bit of that is implied with Jeff, which I’ll talk about later on, but the reader doesn’t get any of that from Naomi, making her sudden transition to insanity abrupt and with no foreshadowing other than it being blatantly stated on the back of the book. However, I digress. Moving back onto the plot, we meet Liu when Jeff is dropped off at his own house. I assume Liu is around the same age as Jeff, though I’m not entirely sure on that point. This is were another logical fail comes in; Despite having been told only pages before that they were being sent home early from camp, apparently, the first day of school is tomorrow. The rapid pacing of the book created this failure of logic and made me pause for a second to question just what I was reading. It only took a few seconds to remind myself that this was a book written by a fifteen-year-old and originally was posted as a fanfiction. Of course, that’s not to say that all fanfictions are bad, there are some absolutely amazing ones out there, but I do have yet to find one written by a fifteen-year-old that doesn’t have some error in logic. Nickleson just so happens to have more than a few errors, especially towards the end of the book. Before the first day of school however, Jeff texts Naomi and tells her to go watch the news. So, she heads downstairs and turns it on. It’s a live report of Mallory’s mother accusing Naomi of killing Mallory. And, as it would turn out, they’re right out front of Naomi’s house as well which is rather convenient because they want to interrogate her on live TV and ask if she killed Mallory and why. Because, you know, having someone interrogated by the news rather than having the police interrogate them always goes well. Naomi exposes the cuts that Mallory gave her and essentially just calls Mallory a horrible person. There was no questioning here, the news reporter just accepting it without a single word and declaring Mallory a horrible person. Ultimately this whole episode and everything that Mallory has done is inconsequential to the rest of the book and everything is pointless. I’m dragging on the longer side here, so I’ll try to speed things up so my review doesn’t end up as long as the actual book is. The first day of school comes and Jeff and Liu are waiting at the bus stop with Naomi. We meet the three skater boys here, Randy, Tony, and Keith. We realize that Jeff and Liu really are new to town because Randy tells them that the new kids have to pay a bus fee because they’re new. Rather than paying it though, they decide to fight. Jeff stabs Keith in the legs and the arms though this never really matters because Keith is fine. Jeff and Liu run to their house and Naomi runs to hers. A short while later Naomi shows up at Jeff’s house and claims to have knocked out the three boys with a metal baseball bat, though right after she did Randy somehow cut open her arm. Blah, blah, blah, they watch a movie, eat some pizza, and then Jeff makes his love confession to her by kissing her. Naomi reciprocates the love and BOOM I guess they’re dating now, how lovely. Despite the fact that this is supposedly the first day of school nobody is questioning just why they’re playing hooky from school and just accept the fact that they’re not at school. A little while later they go back to Naomi’s house and we learn that Naomi’s mom was home the entire time. So why she didn’t go to her mom for help is beyond me. Naomi shoots at Randy with a bb gun and they all run off after coming after her and Jeff again. She then goes back to Jeff’s house with him for reasons even I don’t get because it seems like they’re just jumping between houses at this point. Liu gets arrested here after saying that he was the one who beat up the three boys, covering for Jeff. Jeff is upset about it and for some reason, Naomi is as well because she thinks that she could have had proof to stop them from arresting Liu despite the fact that she said only moments before that he’ll spend two days in jail at most. Liu doesn’t get a trial for this whole thing, which only makes it more confusing why he’s spending a few days at a Juvenal Detention Facility. Related story time: When I was 12 I got into a big fight with some of the kids, enough so that the cops were involved. It was mostly just some throwing of hands and the boys shouting “punch her in the boob.” It happened because one of them, threatened to grope my 8-year-old sister, and as the big sister of the family, I couldn’t let that happen. I called him an idiot and we got into a fight. Nobody was arrested, nobody got into trouble with the police, just with their parents. There were a few bruises and a couple days later at school, the boy came up and apologized to me. Look, I know Keith got stabbed in Jeff’s fight, but honestly, it’s never mentioned again and Keith runs like he didn’t get stabbed at all and acts like he didn’t ever get stabbed so I honestly don’t know if Nickleson remembers that Jeff stabbed Keith. As such, I think it’s a little ridiculous that Liu, a child, was arrested, and sent to Juvie without trial, for a fight when the three skater boys weren’t arrested either. Moving along from that whole mess, Jeff and Naomi go to an 8-year-old’s birthday party because Jeff was invited by the kid’s mother after Jeff and his family moved into the neighborhood, and Naomi babysat the kid. Randy and Co. show up to the party and Naomi send all the children inside. The Co. have guns and are aiming them at the adults so they don’t try to interfere. Randy lunges at Jeff and Jeff fucking murders him. Keith obviously is upset by this and breaks a bottle of vodka over Jeff’s head after dropping his gun. I don’t know why he had a bottle of vodka or where he got it, but he has one. He then chases Jeff upstairs and to the bathroom and another fight breaks out. A bottle of bleach from a bathroom shelf falls onto Jeff and douses him in bleach. Keith points out that Jeff is now covered in bleach and vodka and proceeds to light him on fire. Bitch what the f u c k. I will admit, I do think that this is a creative solution as to why Jeff has bleached skin and does follow along well enough with the actual story of Jeff the Killer, so I am inclined to believe that Nickleson either did a bit of light research into his story or had some prior knowledge about it. This is one thing that I will give the book kudos on. Jeff wakes up at the hospital, after the bandages are removed he finds out that his skin is bleached and he says that he loves it. Naomi apparently loves it as well and nobody in his family concerned in the slightest that Jeff loves it. We find out that Keith was caught though Tony managed to evade the police because as the reader learns earlier in the book, despite being larger in size, Tony can run like the fucking wind. This becomes a problem later on in the book because Tony comes back and shoots Naomi. Yes, Tony shoots Naomi despite insisting much earlier on that she wasn’t part of the dispute, only Jeff was. Jeff hears the gunshot and grabs the biggest knife he can find and from what I can tell, he murders Tony as well. There’s a little bit of a typo in this section, as instead of saying that Jeff murdered Tony, Nickleson says that Jeff murdered Keith. This threw me off a little bit before I realized that it was a typo. Jeff goes to the hospital though in the ambulance that Naomi’s mother called when she heard the gunshot. Because when you hear a gunshot, your first instinct is to call an ambulance and not go see what happened to see if everyone is fine first. This is really the first bit of emotion we see in the book because Jeff is pacing back and forth so much that Liu, who is out of juvie at this point, points out that Jeff is going to wear a hole into the floor. Turns out, Naomi is fine because the bullets missed her brain and her heart by a millimeter. Now I’m not a doctor, but I’m at least 80% sure that could still kill you. Not only would a bullet near the brain shatter the skull and cause hemorrhaging from the distance it was, but it would screw a lot up. The impact of a bullet that close to your heart would probably still do a lot of damage as well, and yet, Naomi is released from the hospital that night. I’m more than certain that the doctors would have kept her for observation, but I suppose not. Before Naomi gets shot, we do get a decently sweet scene of Jeff dancing with Naomi, fulfilling a daydream she had of herself and Jeff dancing to a song called Fallen Angel. The artist of the song is never stated but apparently, it’s really good music for dancing and is appropriate enough for Naomi to daydream of herself and Jeff dancing to it in a ballroom. If anyone would care to fill me in on what song it could be, it would be much appreciated. The scene is short-lived though and doesn’t have as much emotion put into it as I would have liked. I think that it could be a beautifully sweet scene, though it isn’t. It isn’t a beautifully sweet scene simply because Nickleson doesn’t write descriptively enough to fill us in on what the characters are feeling. She tells us what they are feeling occasionally, but even then, it’s only on occasion and a story like this could greatly benefit from having emotions tied into it. After Naomi gets shot and released from the hospital Jeff snaps. He can’t see how beautiful he is when his eyes are closed and when he’s sleeping, so he goes and burns off his eyelids and cuts his cheeks so he’s always smiling (as per the actual story of Jeff the Killer). He then murders his parents and stabs Liu. I’m not sure if Liu actually dies or not as in his story, he survives though Jeff cuts a smile into his face rather than just stabbing him. Jeff then goes over to Naomi’s house, potentially to kill her and her parents, I’m not sure. He finds Naomi playing the piano and when she turns to him, she has “a cut along both of her eyes and a heart carved into her cheek.” I assume that she has a line cut over the top and bottom of her eye, rather than on her eyes because holy fuck that would be intense. But she reassures Jeff that she finds him beautiful still and shows him that she murdered her parents too. Jeff and Naomi go missing after this and are only seen again when they show up at an interview with a ten-year-old boy whose parents they murdered. They had nearly killed him though they didn’t get the chance, so they decide to take action and killed him and the interviewer in the middle of the interview. Jeff and Naomi then make a promise to come and kill everyone else. In the epilogue of the book, they show up to Slender Mansion, where they are warmly greeted by our friend, Slenderman whose movie in 2019 holds many nostalgic feelings for me but also sucked ass. If you don’t know what the Slender Mansion is, you can read about it here. It introduces you to what it is and is essentially just a giant rant about why it shouldn’t exist because it basically tells the canon of the creepypasta universe to fuck off as it does what it wants. It’s rather amusing, actually. Rating: 4/10 Ending Thoughts: Overall, it was an enjoyable read when you didn’t think about it too much. It brought me back to my days of loving Creepypasta and everything to do with it. It was an endearing fanfiction to read, even if not written amazingly well. It was still better than Empress Theresa and was a much-needed break from that shit show of a book. I also want book two Neesha. You said you had book two and it was better than this one. Where is book two, Neesha? I don’t know what I’m going to post next because I am genuinely dreading reading the next portion of Empress Theresa. It will probably take me longer to get through it as I want to do a couple of chapters in one go. Up next I’ll probably ready a book called The Rose Council, written by a man I absolutely despise. I’ll explain more in that post when I get around to doing it. Or perhaps, I’ll write a review on an actually good book for once.

#review #insanity: jeff the killer #neesha nickleson #book review #bad book #okay book?#entire book #creepypasta

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krumbine · 4 years

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The Insufferable Silence in Apartment 616

There's something terrifying about being alone with your thoughts.

For Lizzie Stevenson, even five minutes is too long––that’s why she’s always chasing that next distraction.

But when a home invader ties her to a chair, Lizzie finds herself stuck between a rock and a crazy space, forced to confront a surprising darkness lurking in her past.

***The following story contains adult themes. Virgin eyes, beware! (I’m looking at you, mom.)***

###

The darkness wasn’t so bad. It was a black void, absent any light, a dizzying plunge into terrifying, absolute nothingness.

But even that paled in comparison to the silence.

It enveloped Lizzie, wrapping around her head like a winter blanket soaked in water. The weight was crushing.

Then came the thoughts, banging against her skull as if they were baseball bats wielded by some doped-up player in the middle of a roid rage.

You’re a failure.

He left because you’re broken.

No one loves you. No one likes you.

You’ll never finish that degree.

You’re fat.

He left because you’re fat.

That bitch. That fucking slut.

You’re not even out of your twenties and you’ve already peaked.

Why do you drink so much? Because you’re a fucking alcoholic, that’s why, and honestly you’re okay with that, nevermind the consequences.

You’re a fucking coward.

Why did you let him leave you?

Can your parents possibly think less of you? Yes, definitely. They only ever liked you because he was with you.

The darkness wasn’t so bad but the silence was a fucking cunt.

Lizzie Stevenson jolted violently as she awoke. Her head jerked forward and her feathery cinnamon hair splayed across her face in a mess. She drew sharp breaths in through her nose, attempting to pull her breath back from the panic attack that clawed at her tightened chest.

The first thing Lizzie noticed was the ticking of a vintage Mickey Mouse clock hanging on the wall of her apartment a few feet away.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

The second thing Lizzie noticed was that her arms and legs were securely tied to the chair she was sitting on. A few extra lengths of rope crossed her chest, tying her to the back of the chair.

Lizzie’s cry was muffled by the gag in her mouth.

A muted exclamation came from the kitchen.

Lizzie craned her neck and saw someone pulling a can of soda from the fridge. It was a man. Maybe a little younger than her––no, maybe older? His dark eyes were wide with excitement, a smooth face split in what looked almost to be a manic grin. He wore a dark green hooded blazer––

––seaweed green, Lizzie thought randomly––

––a black t-shirt and dark jeans. And black leather boots with heavy soles. Doc Martens?

The ropes bit at her wrists. Lizzie twisted her legs, pulling at the bindings on her ankles, unconsciously pulling her knees together. The tightness in her chest grew warm.

Lizzie’s focus was pulled back to the intruder’s face as he approached her––

––Tick. Tick. Tick––

Pale. Narrow. Black hair swept effortlessly back. And those dark eyes. As he got closer, she could tell that they were brown, but they were the darkest shade of brown she had ever seen.

As the intruder sat down in front of her, crossing his legs and popping the top of the soda, Lizzie became acutely aware of the gag that he had no doubt shoved into her mouth. A feeling a helplessness gripped her.

And then there was that particularly not unpleasant tingle.

Fuck you, Lizzie.

The intruder’s eyes sparkled and the manic grin expanded as if he could hear her thoughts.

Lizzie gulped, attempting to stamp down the tingle. She tried to speak but was again muffled by the gag.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

The intruder was unfazed.

“Hello, Lizzie,” he said.

The tingle swam back, a spreading warmth accompanied by a twitch.

Goddammit, you fucking cunt.

His voice was warm and welcoming and infinitely nourishing, as if it was the only voice she would ever need to hear for the rest of her life. At the same time, he spoke with exacting precision, his words carrying an edge that threatened to cut as efficiently as they could comfort.

Two words and you’re already wet. You’re a worthless bag of shit.

Lizzie tried to speak again, but her mouth was otherwise occupied.

The intruder sipped his soda.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

“Let’s make a deal, Lizzie,” he said. “Gag comes off, you answer a question, and we both go on with our lives.”

He uncrossed his legs and leaned forward, inches from Lizzie’s face. She could smell him and that only served to set the tingle on fire. Her eyes watered and she realized it must look like she was silently begging him to take the gag out.

Take it out. And shove something else in.

“How does that sound?”

Lizzie swallowed hard and her head jerked in an abrupt nod. The intruder leaned back in his chair and considered Lizzie with a pensive––

––fucking hard throbbing––

––stare.

Electricity pricked its way across Lizzie’s skin, starting from her wetness and traveling across her bound extremities until a chill crept up her spine, causing an involuntary twitch to seize her body.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

The intruder reached around Lizzie’s head and untied the gag. As he pulled it away, his fingers brushed her cheek.

Lizzie gasped as the gag fell from her mouth.

He sat back down, crossing his legs again. “What are you so afraid of, Lizzie?”

Lizzie’s insides were twisting. She could talk, although her body was demanding the other thing. She closed her eyes and worked her jaw, sore from the gag. Finally: “Who are you and what the fuck are you doing in my apartment?”

No reaction, no missed beat: “My name is Peter and I’m here asking you what you’re so afraid of, Lizzie.”

Never getting fucked again? Never feeling like you’re being split in two––

“Your boyfriend dumped you. It didn’t go well. Not that those things ever do. But you check his Instagram every day. Not to mention the new girl’s Instagram—” he leaned forward conspiratorially —“the fucking tits on that one! Honestly, he should enjoy it while it lasts because she’s grade-A fuckmeat that’s just gonna move onto the next thick dick that crosses her path, am I right?”

Lizzie blinked. His words were a cold shower to her repressed libido. Who the fuck was this guy and how did he know?

As if he could read her mind: “Again, my name is Peter,” he repeated, leaning back and dropping the melodrama, “and I’m here asking you what you’re so afraid of, Lizzie.”

Tick. Tick. Tick.

“How about this? Fun World. You have an annual pass and go there once or twice after work every week. That’s on top of weekend visits,” Peter said. “Your patronage of this park is like clockwork.”

Lizzie didn’t understand why she had to defend her recreational activities to a home invader. “I have an annual pass. It’s a great value. A good way to kill a few hours.”

Peter leaned in, eyes sparkling. “Reading a book is a good way to kill a few hours and infinitely more affordable, not to mention a great way to expand those mental horizons. Spending more time at a theme park than one of its minimum wage hot dog slingers is a tacit––albeit desperate––exercise in avoiding something else altogether.”

Peter’s impossibly dark eyes penetrated Lizzie.

“Something that terrifies you,” he said quietly. “So again: what are you afraid of?”

“I’m not afraid of anything!” Lizzie snapped.

“Ha!” Peter bounced to his feet so quickly his chair clattered to the floor behind him. “Everyone’s afraid of something. Everyone has that little voice inside their head pointing out all their failures. Maybe you’re afraid you were never good enough for your boyfriend, or anyone else for that matter. Maybe you’re afraid you won’t lose those few extra pounds. Or maybe you’re just afraid of the Big One.”

Peter grabbed Lizzie’s wrists and leaned in close, uncomfortable nose-to-nose. “The inevitable. The endless sleep. The darkness that comes for all of us. Tell me, Lizzie, are you so insufferably boring that you’re just afraid of death?”

Lizzie had no idea what was happening, but it was safe to say that all the sexual energy had evaporated. That tends to happen when someone calls you insufferably boring.

“Fuck you.”

Peter clicked his teeth and pulled away. “No … not death.”

He turned to the table and picked up a smartphone. Lizzie recognized her case. Peter tapped in a sequence of numbers and unlocked the device.

“Hey––!”

“Last I counted,” Peter said as he scrolled the device, “you were able to keep upwards of thirteen utterly random conversations going on social media. Concurrently. With complete strangers.”

Peter selected a thread and held the phone in front of Lizzie’s face. She couldn’t get her eyes to focus on the blue text bubbles.

“Why?” he asked with a half-shrug. “There’s absolutely nothing of importance in any of this—” he scrolled the thread of messages across the screen, “––no value, no purpose other than to keep your fingers busy––”

Peter paused and looked up, dark eyes glazed. The corner of his mouth quirked up.

“Oh. That’s it, isn’t it?”

Peter put the phone back on the table, picked up the fallen chair and placed it back in front of Lizzie. He sat down.

“You’re afraid of the quiet, aren’t you, Lizzie Stevenson?”

Tick. Tick. Tick.

“Fun Wold. Creeping on the boyfriend and his new fuck buddy. The endless scroll of social media.” Peter casually tossed a thumb over his shoulder at a day planner sitting on the kitchen counter. “A calendar so full it’s a wonder how you don’t have an assistant managing it all for you.”

Lizzie searched his eyes for some kind of plausible explanation for the home and psychological invasion, but there was nothing there. It was like the man was playing a role and he was wearing this ‘Peter’ character as a mask.

“You’re afraid that if you slow down, it might get a little too quiet,” Peter continued. “And if it gets too quiet, then maybe you’ll have to actually deal with that thing inside you. That emptiness. That blackness. Is that what you’re afraid of, Lizzie Stevenson?”

Fuck this shit.

“You’re a fucking lunatic.”

Peter shrugged dismissively. “There are worse things.”

“What the actual hell do you want from me?”

“I want you tell me what you’re afraid of, Lizzie,” Peter said again, as calm and patient as the first time he asked.

“And then what?”

“And then you let it go.”

“Fuck you.”

It was as if Peter had heard it a million times and was immune. Or maybe it was just because Lizzie was tied up and he wasn’t.

“I’m offering you freedom, Lizzie,” he said, that warm voice welcoming her into some unseen abyss, nourishing her and filling her with–– “I chose you, Lizzie. I chose you––of all the insipid, brainless shitbags in this city, you were the only one who mattered.”

Peter smiled. “I chose you, Lizzie Stevenson, to show the door to. You still have to choose to walk through it. Now tell me––”

Tick. Tick. Tick.

“—what are you afraid of?”

Lizzie glanced at the shitty Mickey Mouse clock. This had been fun, at least for a little bit, but the time was up. Her shoulder’s slumped in defeat.

“… you’re not wrong.”

If Peter was surprised or satisfied or horny, he didn’t show it.

“… I’m afraid of sitting still,” Lizzie said softly. “I’m afraid of the quiet.”

She looked up and met Peter’s eyes.

“I am afraid of the darkness inside me.”

Peter shook his head compassionately. “There’s nothing to be afraid of, Lizzie.”

“No, no,” she said, head rolling back and forth before slumping forward. “No—no. No.”

Peter’s hand rested on her thigh but she couldn’t feel it. He whispered: “You have to let it go. The fear. The anger. The loneliness. None of it matters. And once you let it go––”

“You don’t understand,” Lizzie said, keeping her head down to avoid Peter’s gaze.

A chuckle. “You cannot possibly comprehend the depths of my understanding,” Peter said softly.

Tick. Tick. Tick.

“… it started a little over a year ago,” Lizzie finally said without looking up. Her shoulders quivered. “I was interning at Kelltech Labs. Doctor Jason Kell was an alum at my school––”

The first indication of genuine annoyance from Peter. “I’ve been over all of this already. Jason Edward Kell. Renowned Alzheimer’s researcher. And you, the bright young intern––”

Lizzie sobbed.

Fuck.

She couldn’t avoid it any longer. This mysterious home invader in the Doc Martens who had clearly done his homework––this asshole somehow knew the exact right buttons to mash.

How could he have been so right and yet so completely wrong?

Tick. Tic––

It’s time to end this.

“Stop crying,” Peter was saying in his bullshit hypnotic tone. “You need to accept the darkness and embrace the meaningless of it all––”

Snap!

The ropes binding Lizzie’s left hand fell to the floor and Peter scooted back in his chair in surprise.

“Whoa.”

Lizzie wasn’t sobbing. Her body was convulsing, muscles rippling and contorting under her flesh. Her right wrist bulged and strained at the rope, threads snapping and unraveling from pressure.

Finger bones cracked and twisted, lengthening as her nails darkened, hardened, and curved to a point.

When her right wrist broke free of the final strands, Peter shot to his feet and backed up. His eyes were wide but not with fear.

Peter was excited.

Lizzie Stevenson was far from insufferably boring.

Bones kept cracking and shifting as the violent transformation continued. Lizzie tore at the ropes straining across her chest and as the bindings on her ankles snapped. She rose up from the buckling chair. Her shoulders rippled as they gained an unseemly mass. They rolled backwards as she slowly straightened to her full height, head canted to avoid the apartment ceiling.

Peter looked up at Lizzie’s face. It was broader, flatter, but he could still see her features. That cinnamon hair cascaded all the way down her body, underneath her stretched and tearing clothes.

“… motherfucker.”

Peter’s mind raced, piecing together the missing bits of information that led to an abrupt end to Lizzie’s promising internship at the biotech company.

Something had gone terribly wrong.

Or at least, that was one way to look at it.

“You … are …” Peter searched for the right word. “… fascinating.”

Lizzie’s chest heaved as the convulsions of the transformation subsided. Peter cautiously approached her, raising a hand up to her head.

“… I knew there was darkness in you, but this … my dear, Lizzie, the things we’re going to do together—”

Lizzie bared fangs and growled a violent warning. When she spoke, it came out low and raspy, but without hesitation.

“How’s this for letting go?”

Lizzie smashed a bowling-ball sized fist into Peter’s face.

###

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jordan Krumbine is a professional video editor, digital artist, and creative wizard currently quarantined in Kissimmee, Florida. When not producing content for the likes of Visit Orlando, Orlando Sentinel, or AAA National, Jordan is probably yelling at a stubbornly defective Macbook keyboard, tracking creative projects in Trello, and animating quirky videos with LEGO and other various toys.

Leave a dollar in the Tip Jar: https://ko-fi.com/krumbine

Short stories: https://bit.ly/2XY5D7I Books on Amazon Kindle: https://amzn.to/3bsqK5Y YouTube: https://bit.ly/2W41nSG Twitter: https://bit.ly/2VH0Vbu Facebook: https://bit.ly/2VpnylZ LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/2xnmk1e

http://www.krumbco.com

#writer #writeblr #short story #home invasion #fiction #alone with my thoughts #monster #horror #scary #uncomfortable #sasquatch #bigfoot #werewolves #krumbine #jordan krumbine

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carriagelamp · 4 years

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October Book Review pt1: Spooky Month

I made the conscious choice this month to try to read some “spooky” books, and honestly it’s been a really fun way to get into the Halloween spirit in a way I haven’t in years. So pt1 of my October posts will go up on Halloween, and pt2 will come after with the non-spooky books.

Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark

A classic from my childhood that I obviously had to reread the second I decide to do this. Thanks to the movie (which I also watched last August) there’s copies of these books everywhere again and I was able to pick one up cheap. Nothing “scary” for an adult reader, but some of them still gave me delightful little chills when I was reading them every night before bed! Also they’re tons of fun to read out loud -- getting to scream ME TIE DOUGH TY WALKER at my cousins was a goddamn delight.

Goosebumps: Escape From Bat Wing Hall

Readers beware. You choose the scare.

My friends and I played with this book tons as kids, and was another delightful one to reread. I read it out loud for my girlfriend (who had never read it before) and I got to watch her die miserably multiple times in her attempt to win. OBVIOUSLY you don’t lean INTO THE MUMMY SARCOPHAGUS, fool.

Goosebumps: Wolf Skin

Last Goosebumps book I’ll mention, promise. But I was actually surprised by what a well put together story this was. The characters were nothing to write home about, but it built tension really well, and the plot twist at the end delighted me. The story starts when Alex, aspiring photographer, goes to stay with his aunt and uncle in the small community of Wolf Creek. Except he runs into something truly terrifying when he’s in the woods trying to get a good picture to submit for the Halloween Photo Contest, and strange sounds and sights seem to come from the reclusive neighbours’ house...

Honestly, if you want to revisit you childhood Goosebumps phase (or just want something chill and “spoopy” to read that won’t take you long, since that was what I needed) I would totally recommend going with this one.

Hilda and the Mountain King

I am eagerly awaiting the second season of the show, so obviously I had to get into the comics. After the cliffhanger that Hilda and the Stone Forest left us with, I was dying to get my hands on this one. The sudden shift the story seems to take from misadventures to a greater plot was fascinating, and as always the art was gorgeous and the world so enticing I never want to leave it. After a fight with her mom, Hilda finds herself stuck in the troll mountains with no way to escape as she is right now. While Hilda learns more about troll society and her own predicament, her mom is frantically trying to find Hilda and get her home. Stunning, but don’t read without reading Hilda and the Stone Forest first.

ParaNorman

The novelization of the Laika film, and about what you would expect. If you liked ParaNorman, this is a fun, quick novel that does the movie justice, though without delivering any other real surprises and bonuses. It tells the story of Norman, a normal boy with the unusual gift to be able to speak with ghosts that no one else in town sees or believes in. Life is tricky enough, but then on the eve of the great Witch Trial that the town is famous for an ancient curse is reawakened and Norman finds himself wrapped up in the middle of it all.

I Spy: Spooky Night

Falling into my Read For Joy category of books. I loved I Spy books as a kid but was never allowed to buy them. Well, I’m an adult now who is fully capable of buying I Spy books! I spend about a week gradually solving all the riddles and it was such a wholesome joy I can’t recommend it enough. I just love looking at how the pictures are put together!

Alice Isn’t Dead

The story is about a woman who suffers from anxiety, and who recently experienced the loss of her wife, Alice. Except Alice has started appearing all over the place, in news casts, at the edge of the screen, and Keisha is compelled to follow her missing wife’s trail, taking the job as a cross-country trucker and finding herself thrust in the midst of horrors she could never have imagined. I’m not finished this one, but so far it is unfortunately disappointing. I really enjoy the podcast, but the novelization leaves something to be desired. Switching from the original spoken person framing device to plain prose means a lot of the chilling, unsettling, and beautifully poetic descriptions have been dropped, and the the writing feels a lot flatter and less compelling to me. I wish they’d done what they did with the Welcome To Night Vale adaptation and just kept it in it’s original script format. Still, it’s intriguing story, and I always enjoy some queer lit.

Warren the 13th and the Whispering Woods

It has a similar heart to The Series of Unfortunate Events, though a little less melancholy and a bit more fantastical. This is the second book of the series that follows a young boy, Warren, the 13th in a line of Warrens who have always run the hotel. Once the hotel fell into his uncle’s care though, after his father’s death, it became increasingly run down and dilapitated, though Warren worked the hardest he could to keep it running. Filled with secrets, riddles, witches, monster, and off-the-wall adventure, it’s a engaging, easy read. The biggest highlight though? The pages are all SO MUCH FUN TO LOOK AT

xxxHolic

One of my old manga that I reread this month. Not true “horror” by any means, but I’ve always loved stories that play with a just-beyond-your-vision, cosmic sort of spookiness. Filled with lots of ghosts, a spirits, and forces working against Watanuki, you get a story of a high schooler trying to deal with mundane problems like friendship, a difficult boss, as well as his place in the universe and exactly how dangerous that place might be. One of my favourite manga, tbh, and there are definitely better descriptions out there. Story, art, the way stories seem to start as very benign until all of a sudden the stakes shoot up? Excellent shit.

The Witch Boy

A comic series about a family in which the boys become shapeshifters and the girls become witches. Everyone knows how dangerous it is for a boy to learn witchcraft or a girl to learn shapeshifting -- that sort of hubris can have fatal consequences. And yet Aster wants nothing to do with shifting, and does everything he can to sneak around his family and learn the witchcraft secrets the rest of his family is learning, he knows that this is his calling. Beautiful art and a great exploration of gender norms through the lens of fantasy; I can’t wait for the next book in the series.

The Okay Witch

Another cute graphic novel about witches. This one about a girl who is shocked to discover that not only does she have magical powers... but so does her mom! Something that’s been kept a secret from her for her entire life. This one also has lovely art, though the story is nothing particularly new. It’s worth the read, but between the two Witch Boy delivers the stronger adventure in my opinion.

Deltora Quest

Another one that isn’t necessarily “Halloween-y” but the covers of these books always scared my brother too much to read, so I figure I can include it. This was my favourite children’s series growing up and to this day I still genuinely love the story. It’s the epitome of an adventure quest, and Emily Rodda went hard when it came to the monsters and horrors she populated her books with. One of the best series out there for grade two or three readers in my opinion, as it really introduces the idea of a continuing narrative that builds from book to book and can have plot twists not just within a single book but within an over arching series.

Liō

A cutely dark comic strip series about Liō, a Weird Kid, and occasional mad scientist, necromancer, world destroyer, and prankster. Almost entirely visual, with minimal text, it’s such a charming comic there’s no excuse for not reading it. Go find some of the strips online, they’re a delight.

#chatter #book reviews #halloween #halloween books #lio #warren the 13th #alice isn't dead #the witch boy #the okay witch #paranorman #hilda and the mountain king #hilda #i spy #scary stories to tell in the dark #goosebumps #werewolf skin #escape from bat wing hall #book review

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