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genericpuff · 3 hours

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Tbh at this point you should just make your own webcomic app/website because it would probably be 100 times better than whatever going on with webtoon right now.

hahaha it wouldn't tho, sorry 💀

Here's the fundamental issue with webcomic platforms that a lot of people just don't realize (and why they're so difficult to run successfully):

Storage costs are incredibly expensive, it's why so many sites have limitations on file sizes / page sizes / etc. because all of those images and site info have to be stored somewhere, which costs $$$.

Maintenance costs are expensive and get more so as you grow, you need people who are capable of fixing bugs ASAP and managing the servers and site itself

Financially speaking, webcomics are in a state of high supply, low demand. Loads of artists are willing to create their passion projects, but getting people to read them and pay for them is a whole other issue. Demand is high in the general sense that once people get attached to a webtoon they'll demand more, but many people aren't actually willing to go looking for new stuff to read and depend more on what sites feed them (and what they already like). There are a lot of comics to go around and thus a lot of competition with a limited audience of people willing to actually pay for them.

Trying to build a new platform from the ground up is incredibly difficult and a majority of sites fail within their first year. Not only do you have to convince artists to take a chance on your platform, you have to convince readers to come. Readers won't come if there isn't work on the platform to read, but artists won't come if they don't think the site will be worth it due to low traffic numbers. This is why the artists with large followings who are willing to take chances on the smaller sites are crucial, but that's only if you can convince them to use the site in favor of (or alongside) whatever platform they're using already where the majority of their audience lies. For many creators it's just not worth the time, energy, or risk.

Even if you find short-term success, in the long-term there are always going to be profit margins to maintain. The more users you pull in, the more storage is used by incoming artists, the more you have to spend on storage and server maintenance costs, and that means either taking the risk at crowdfunding (ex. ComicFury) or having to resort to outsider investments (ex. Tapas). Look at SmackJeeves, it used to be a titan in the independent webcomic hosting community, until it folded over to a buyout by NHN and then was pretty much immediately shuttered due to NHN basically turning it into a manwha scanlation site and driving away its entire userbase. And if you don't get bought out and try your hand at crowdfunding, you may just wind up living on a lifeline that could cut out at any moment, like what happened to Inkblazers (fun fact, the death of Inkblazers was what kicked off the cultural shift in Tapas around 2015-16 when all of IB's users migrated over and brought their work with them which was more aimed towards the BL and romancee drama community, rather than the comedy / gag-a-day culture that Tapas had made itself known for... now you deadass can't tell Tapas apart from a lot of scanlation sites because it got bought out by Kakao and kept putting all of its eggs into the isekai/romance drama basket.)

Right now the mindset in which artists and readers are operating is that they're trying way, way too hard to find a "one size fits all" site. Readers want a place where they can find all their favorite webtoons without much effort, artists wants a place where they can post to an audience of thousands, and both sides want a community that will feel tight-knit. But the reality is that you can't really have all three of those things, not on one site. Something always winds up having to be sacrificed - if a site grows big enough, it'll have to start seeking more funding while also cutting costs which will result in features becoming paywall'd, intrusive ads, creators losing their freedom, and/or outsider support which often results in the platform losing its core identity and alienating its tight-knit community.

If I had to describe what I'm talking about in a "pick one" graphic, it would look something like this:

(*note: this is mostly based on my own observations from using all of these sites at some point or another, they're not necessarily entirely accurate to the statistical performance of each site, I can only glean so much from experience and traffic trackers LMAO that said I did ask some comic pals for input and they were very helpful in helping me adjust it with their own takes <3).

The homogenization of the Internet has really whipped people into submission for the "big sites" that offer "everything", but that's never been the Internet, it relies on being multi-faceted and offering different spaces for different purposes. And we're seeing that ideology falter through the enshittification of sites like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc. where users are at odds with the platforms because the platforms are gutting features in an attempt to satisfy shareholders whom without the platforms would not exist. Like, most of us aren't paying money to use social media sites / comic platform sites, so where else are they gonna make the necessary funds to keep these sites running? Selling ad space and locking features behind paywalls.

And this is especially true for a lot of budding sites that don't have the audience to support them via crowdfunding but also don't have the leverage to ask for investments - so unless they get really REALLY lucky in EITHER of those departments, they're gonna be operating at a loss, and even once they do achieve either of those things there are gonna be issues in the site's longevity, whether it be dying from lack of growing crowdfunding support or dying from shareholder meddling.

So what can we do?

We can learn how to take our independence back. We don't have to stop using these big platforms altogether as they do have things to offer in their own way, particularly their large audience sizes and dipping into other demographics that might not be reachable from certain sites - but we gotta learn that no single site is going to satisfy every wish we have and we have to be willing to learn the skills necessary to running our own spaces again. Pick up HTML/CSS, get to know other people who know HTML/CSS if you can't grasp it (it's me, I can't grasp it LOL), be willing to take a chance on those "smaller sites" and don't write them off entirely as spaces that can be beneficial to you just because they don't have large numbers or because they don't offer rewards programs. And if you have a really polished piece of work in your hands, look into agencies and publishing houses that specialize in indie comics / graphic novels, don't settle for the first Originals contract that gets sent your way.

For the last decade corporations have been convincing us that our worth is tied to the eyes we can bring to them. Instead of serving ourselves, we've begun serving the big guys, insisting that it has to be worth something eventually and that it'll "payoff" simply by the virtue of gambler's fallacy. Ask yourself what site is right for you and your work rather than asking yourself if your work is good enough for them. Most of us are broke trying to make it work on these sites anyways, may as well be broke and fulfilled by posting in places that actually suit us and our work if we can. Don't define your success by what sites like Webtoons are enforcing - that definition only benefits them, not you.

#my favorite out of these is comicfury because it gives you the most control out of all of them #and you can offer monetization tools like ads and patreon links #it also offers super easy tools to help build your own site if you're new to that #it's as close to “running your own site” as comic hosting can get #but you can also learn how to run your own site if you want undeniably full control without fear of the platform host shuttering #also look into collectives like SpiderForest!#they basically operate as a co-op where people host their work with them and get ad opportunities #but you have to apply to get in #ama #ask me anything #anon ama #anon ask me anything #webcomic tips

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teambyler · 1 day

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Mike's hidden arc that he doesn't need to put away "childish things": D&D, games, and his relationship with Will

During the promo build-up for s4, Finn Wolfhard said that Mike was struggling to be "as normal as possible and keep on a normal path" during this season. Which can only really be read as his relationship with El: the other thing he pursues in s4, D&D with the Hellfire Club, is NOT something that makes him fit in with the crowd.

Throughout the series, we see a tension between Mike and his conservative, emotionally-distant parents who do not understand him and insist he "grow up." They scold him for getting into trouble, they take away his Atari, and make him get rid of his children's toys. Mike doesn't want to let go, however:

And in s3, who represents holding on to "childish things"? His best friend, Will.

Mike gets wrapped up in his relationship with El and ignores D&D. And Mike tells Will, "We're not kids anymore. I mean what did you think, really? That we we're never gonna get girlfriends? That we're gonna sit in my basement all day and play games for the rest of our lives?"

And Will says, "Yeah, I guess I did."

To which Mike has instant regret. And we find out by the end of s3 that he still wants to play D&D after all - Mike did NOT fully believe what he was saying. It reflected his parents' pressure on him to "grow up."

And of course, in s4, he's in the Hellfire Club and he's all about D&D again.

What changed? El, who Mike got preoccupied with in s3, is far away in California. He was with El for only a year, and much of that time was apart. For the rest of his 15 years, he was a Mega Nerd, and he ends up with "the freaks" in Hawkins High. This arguably is the "true Mike Wheeler."

And we see Mike's struggle to be "normal" in s4 is. He wears a garish outfit he normally would never wear, that Argyle calls "a knockoff." He's awkward with every idea El proposes: burritos in the morning, and of course, roller skating!

Many viewers in the General Audience have complained that Mike's character takes a nosedive starting in s3. This is when he enters the relationship with El, which is also when we see less of who he is - "the heart" of the Party who kept the Party together. What makes him a "hero" is something that society might look down upon in a young man: his AFFECTION for his friends. That side of him recedes into the background.

But by the end of s4, it is Will who reminds him of who he is. He tells Mike that he's "the heart." And pointedly, he says HIS dream, illuminated by the sun, and it's something that Mike deep down wants, too:

By the last episode Mike is showing his determination again, helping El while piggybacking, and grabbing Will's shoulder and making clear they'll kill Vecna together.

There's a very famous quote from the Bible "when I became a man, I put away childish things." To which there is an even more famous response by C.S. Lewis:

Will's painting is the final clue as to where Mike will end up by the end of the series: being the "heart" of the party again, playing D&D, and being with the person who loves playing games with him and loves him for these things, which is Will.

This is a show that says to hell with society's expectations. From the beginning, it has stood up against bullies and abusive dads and sided with the nerds, the "freaks," and the outcasts. Lucas' whole arc in s4 was going back on his decision to try to fit in with the popular crowd.

Mike's arc is to embrace the fact that he doesn't have to abandon who he is to "grow up." He can be a hero who dares to love of all things the boy (a BOY!) who he, many years ago, with the clarity of child, proposed to in kindergarten.

-teambyler

#byler #mike's hidden arc #byler theory #growing up #childish things

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naanima · 2 days

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What I love about JoL, amongst a million things, is how they take all the guzhuang drama tropes about the royal family, tropes that are so FAMILIAR to the Chinese audience, and somehow still manage to stun the audience with how ruthless & terrifying they are. I think it is because they present the royal family as distinctive individuals with their quirks, make you laugh & love them bcos they can act foolish & have moments of humour. But then turn around & casually order the death of a loyal subject or a whole village.

One of the tropes about the Emperor - that JoL's emperor does so well, is to show the audience over and over again that his love, his sentiment, is a commodity that he can revoke at any second. His love is conditional, it is dependent on your love & belief in his status as the descendent of the divine. He is the supreme power. Question his position, his power, and he will revoke the gifts, the favours and love he gave you.

When he looks upon his children, it isn't just parental love alone, he is looking upon them as potential future heirs for his throne. He needs a candidate that can take over his throne, but who CANNOT be a true competition against him while he is still the Emperor. So he sets up his children against each other, to see who is the smartest, the most ruthless, and the one that can hide just enough so he isn't a threat against the emperor yet. And to that he needs to set his brightest children against one another, to find the best one suited to being the next emperor.

The Second Prince is the whetstone chosen by the emperor to sharpen the blade that's the Crown Prince. He cannot leave the Capital, he cannot be the son that doesn't want power. Bcos the emperor put him in a situation where he is perceived as a threat to the Crown Prince, his manor and base of power was dropped into his laps at a young age, no one, certainly not the crown prince would believe he didn't want to be the future emperor. In order to survive he has to deceive & plan, and try to remove the Crown Prince, to gain the iota chance of taking his spot.

It is cruel, but there is no sentiment in the Imperial Royal Family.

#joy of life 2 #joy of life s2 #spoilers

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magnificentstrawberryomen · 2 days

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Indisposed (Noah Sebastian fanfic) chapter three

18+

Autors note: hii, have yall seen bad omens story on insta/their post on twitter?? i feel so bad for noah :( though i do agree that he made the right desicion. i hope he takes all the time he needs, and i know that the fandom will embrace him with open arms again when he is ready to come back :') <3. i am so proud of him for doing what's right for him tho and i hope he will be okay again soon ...

here is chapter 3 for yall, again thank u sm for all the feedback through the likes and follows !! x

chapter three

His smirk just returns on his face, and he just looks at my naked body, his eyes lingering over every inch while still not saying a word. Somehow to me, that’s the hottest response he chose to do.

So that's why I bend over, trying to find some panties and a bra in my travel suitcase I take with me while being on the road. I casually hum while doing so, and I fear that at this point I am so desperate for him and his touch that I don’t care that this is the oldest trick out of the book. I look pleased at myself in the mirror once I have put my black matching lace set on, secretly glad that I brought it with me because it looks perfectly on my body shape.

Noah’s jaw looks like it finally becomes more lose as he watches me the whole time-I know that me making these moves and putting my set on is definitely fucking with his mind, but I can’t help but feel a little insecure about his silence still.

`Something’s wrong?´ I still manage to innocently ask him while tilting my head, being turned around towards Noah again.

He quickly regains his composure, and when he starts speaking up again he has a slightly flirtatious tone in his voice again, a smile in his eyes. `No, I was just checking you out, making sure that you’re fine.´

`Don’t worry,´ I say, walking towards him and patting his cheek with my hand, a confident expression returning on my face and the feeling also inside me. `I’m doing fine.´ I walk out of the bathroom after, running one of my hands through my still damp hair and letting it fall over my shoulders.

`Oh yeah, no doubt about that,´ I can hear him say behind me, `but you did get my hopes up just now, telling me how ‘professional’ we need to be with each other and then seeing you in the bathroom like that the next moment.´

I look at him with a tilted head again, my hands behind my back while leaning against one of the windowsills. The moonlight falls over me through the window, my eyes twinkling with amusement. `I kinda wanna keep my job, you understand that right?´

Truth is, I just keep saying that to annoy him, I know that we wouldn’t be in much trouble if we… well, screwed around or something. Or, something more than that… if that would ever happen eventually. Or at least, that’s what I really hope. Right now, it seems to be the last worry on my mind-there’s not only alcohol in my veins, but also a desire so strong for him that my mind is not only slightly dizzy from the alcohol still.

He looks at me with admiration, as if he is taking in the moment of me standing here in the soulful light. `Yeah, I know, I know. I also wanna keep the money rolling here… I mean, you’re one of our band’s biggest incomes so…´ The way he said the last few words made him come off more flirty again, as if he was hinting at something else.

But still, my eyebrows raise. `Am I really?´

Noah nods and chuckles slightly. My brows furry-I mean, I do interact a lot with the bands fans and post a lot of content videos, pictures of me doing the bands make up and dressing them up and all, and also the backstage jokes we make together. The fans always seem to love it, and show me a lot of love and appreciation through likes, comments and interactions. I slightly smile, just now actually really realizing how loved I am not only by the band, but also their audience. It gets me kinda flustered, somehow.

`Oh, that’s… that’s really sweet actually,´ I stutter. `I never quite realized how much of a part I became of your band's brand until now that you point it out, I guess.´

He chuckles and smirks, nodding once again. `You should hear what fans say to me when I talk about you… they always talk about how beautiful, talented, lovely and kind you are. You’re a real gem, you know?´

`Really?´ I say, my smile getting bigger, feeling kinda honored, and flattered.

`Yes, really,´ Noah says with the same smile as he walks towards me to the same windowsill, also leaning against it now, his body close to mine. `I even had a few female fans telling me how jealous they are of you, because they wish they could be with me instead,´ he teased me as he looks at me with a wink.

I try not to let his wink get a reaction to my already overheated body. `What? Why would they say that… I mean. We aren’t even together…´

He smirks, just simply saying: `Well, maybe we are on the same page about the fact we’re not together… but, as example, as soon as they see you on stage that one time-remember, on your birthday?-and hear you sing with that lovely voice and see that breathtaking body of yours…´ He winks once goddamnit again, giving me that heart melting flirtatious look again. `...They just can’t hold themselves back, I guess.´

`That was only once, indeed to join you guys for a little song because it was my birthday,´ I huff a little while rolling my eyes, shrugging the compliment off because I can find it very hard to deal with them sometimes, but it’s very sweet to hear. I just don’t always really know how to respond to compliments, I guess. `I must say though that since that moment, fans have requested to put out something of my own, whether it’s a joke or not,´ I add with a laugh.

Noah raises his eyebrows slightly while he chuckles at the same time, his flirtatious look now turning into a teasing one again. `Oh yeah? Is that so?´ He moves a bit closer to me as he continues, making the knot of desire and butterflies only bigger: `Then you should really release one yourself indeed, you really have the voice for it.´

I blush because of the compliment-him, the artist, telling me I have a good voice? `That way the fans can have their own music to listen to from you when they’re sick of listening to our songs.´

`How could they,´ I say with a grin while slightly hitting his chest with my fist, making him laugh a bit.

`They still would have some other songs to listen to when they’re feeling bored of our music, right?´

`Oh please, your fans adore you and your band. Don’t you realize how heavenly your voice is?´ I say, only to turn a little more red after… I was a little too honest, I fear.

It takes him a second to respond, a bit surprised by my comment it seems. `You think so?´ he asks teasingly.

`Well, yeah,´ I stumble, playing with the ends of my hair out of nervousness. `I didn’t only apply for this job half a year ago because it pays well, Noah. I loved you and your band for quite a while before I joined you all and your team.´

`Seriously?...´ Noah says, his flirty tone turning more serious now, again surprised by how honest my answer is.

`Yes, really.´ It’s kinda adorable to me to see Noah all flustered like this because of the compliments I’m giving him-and well, the truth-because he usually acts like this broad, confident teasing guy to me most of the time. I actually kinda waited for the moment I would see more of this side of him.

His face is telling me that he is deep in thought and he wants to ask me something, so I tilt my head. `What’s up?´ I want to know.

He stays quiet for a few more seconds, looking away before he finally dares to say what is on his mind at the moment. `You did apply just for this job because you loved the band right? But… What if the band wasn’t famous with a bunch of fans at all yet? Would you still be here next to me?´

`Of course. The music, creative and beautifully written lyrics and meaning, the enjoyment and passion you guys show your whole adventure long and at every show, the love you guys share for music, each other and performing is all what made me so attracted to all of you. The messages you want to give, the songs you help so many people with… how could I not?´

Noah looks back at me after I said that, with pure amazement, appreciation… and some other feeling I can’t quite put my finger on. `Wow…´ he says, seeming a bit speechless. I smile sweetly at him.

Then, he takes another step closer to me, leaning his body a whole lot more into me now, not even letting enough space for my breath between us. And Lord, at this moment I don’t even know where my breath is right now-somewhere stuck between my lungs, suffocating in the need I have for him again. The wind through the window moves gently through my long hair, it also makes the short dark-purple curtains stroke a bit against my arm. I can only swallow when he moves so much more closer to me, my body kinda reacting in a freeze because of it.

I must admit-I’ve always found Noah a very handsome man, ever since I started following them and then getting added to their team. But, I am afraid that I have to keep things professional between us, nothing more than friendly friends maybe, so that’s why I also just tried to brush the attraction towards him off. Throughout the half year that I’ve been working for the band, and Noah and I have been kinda flirtatious, teasing and messing around, I have always tried to not make a big deal out of it.

I see that Noah is trying to hold himself back from smiling too much when he notices the kind of reactions I already have from him moving closer to me. He is towering over me now, standing dangerously close to my lips, and the knot full of feelings I already had gets bigger in my stomach now. It almost feels like I can feel his breath on my face, and I look at him through my eyelashes. By the way we are moving right now, I can tell that it’s more serious than our casual joking and teasing moments. And I’m not gonna lie, I have been dreaming about moments with him like this. I always had to shake them off when I woke up, pretending that I had not just dreamed so heavenly about us two, all heated and sometimes even sexually frustrated while being around him the whole day long. I always decided that being simply friends and nothing more would be easier and less risky. Or painful… If the feeling wouldn’t be mutual. But the truth is, sometimes it could be even harder somehow.

I’ve seen the hints of Noah throughout my career of working for him, that he feels some kind of attraction to me too. We just never really had the chance to act into it… until this very moment. I can notice that his breath now also becomes a lot heavier as we stare at each other.

`Noah…´ I whisper when our mouths are just inches apart. `Are you sure?´ I look from his lips, back into his eyes.

He lets out a slight chuckle. `You think I’m not sure about this?´ he says in a more confident tone as he moves even closer yet again, our breaths colliding at this point.

`You know damn well what I mean,´ I mumble, now looking at his lips again, that I badly want to kiss right now.

`Well if I were you, I know that I would definitely go for it right now,´ he whispers back, as the smirk on his face grows and grows on his face, his flirtatious and arrogant side-yet in an attractive way-becoming stronger by the minute. He is very cocky and sure of himself, which in this situation is just extremely hot to me for some reason, and I’m so ready to get loose with him… while a voice does keep screaming in the corner of my head that we should be careful and reconsider this, but my desire pushes it away.

Because it, along with my nerves mixed with butterflies created by craving and lust, only grows bigger and bigger in me by the minute. The terrible thing is that I’m secretly praying that he doesn’t give a shit about our jobs and all right now-that he wants me, right here and right now, as badly as I want him. It’s selfish and stupid, but it just slips in my mind just like that, praying all unholy things to God Himself.

His cocky grin just grows, and there is almost no distance between us anymore. Our breaths intermingle with each other just as well as our heat, and he speaks up again: `Don’t worry too much Hailey… I want you, I want this.´

His words give me chills all over my body, as his minty breath hits my neck. `Well, if you say so…´ I say with a sly smile, leaning closer and closer, my heartbeat being the music of the room around us, our noses brushing against each other. I slowly and carefully let my lips brush against his, feeling how soft and full they feel, just to tease him a little. But it makes me want him even more, so I make the final move, and press my lips against his in a lustful movement.

It’s a sensation that feels so great from the moment our lips are finally connected, as I let go of everything around us. My heartbeat begins to rise even more and more, and the heat between us is rising even higher, not even caring about the outside temperature anymore or the chilly wind from the window brushing against our backs now and then. Noah gently grabs me with my arm around my waist, pulling me even closer-we can’t even get much closer than we already were, but I totally feel the same as him-it’s not even enough, I want to merge into him as badly as he wants into me. I want to feel all of him.

The heat of our bodies becomes even more and more intense, and I grab his hair with my hands, slightly tugging at it when our make out session begins to get even more rough. His hips press against mine, and it makes me smirk through our kiss. `Getting a little excited now, do ya?´ I tease with a giggle when I let his lips go to catch my breath, clearly feeling that our make out session does something to his body.

He smirks back at me, nodding, his breath a lot more heavy than before. `Oh definitely,´ he says with a cheeky smile, making me blush a little. He pulls me back into him, his hand around my waist becoming tighter as he locks his lips with mine again, the heat between us rising higher once again.

`Good thing you’re not the only one,´ I breathe between kisses again, letting one of his hands slide to the front of my panties. Yeah, it’s kinda a thing that when I get intimate with someone, I can really let myself go at one point and am not that able to hold myself back anymore. I guess now is the moment to see if he is at the same level as me with that. But when his breath becomes quicker when I make the movement, I can notice that he is too. I can hardly contain myself anymore, I have waited and desired this moment for way too long. His fingers curl around the elastic from my panties, and I smirk through our kiss, giving him permission that way. When he slowly gets them off, I kinda shiver, being exposed to him and the chill air. But he makes sure to quickly heat my body up again by moving his hands over most of my body, his eyes on my now exposed era, filled with lust and admiration.

I sigh out of pleasure when his hands move to my hips, to my breasts, my behind-and I’m loving every single touch he makes. His big, firm hands make their way to my front again, and I slightly blush for a few seconds because I know he can most definitely feel there that I am enjoying the things we are doing right now. In a quick movement, I take my bra off as well, wanting him to see all of me now. I chuckle a bit when his mouth slightly parts when he eyes my breasts, gaining a bit of confidence because of it. His hand slowly moves towards my breast, looking into my eyes once again.

And holy shit-the way he looks at me while grabbing my breasts almost sends me over the edge alone. I begin tugging on his own tshirt, cocking a brow. `Can’t be the only one naked here, right?´ I tease, and he looks me right in the eyes with a smirk when I speak these words, without letting go of my breasts. For fuck’s sake.

With a quick movement he lets go of my chest and takes his tee off, his own chest now exposed to me. I slowly run my fingers over his chest covered with tattoos in admiration. I have seen them sticking out a little when he wears tops, or sometimes in a quick moment of him changing when I help him getting dressed, knowing he has always been kinda shy in keeping his shirt on. He has nothing to be insecure about though. In my eyes he is beautiful and handsome, along with the tattoos on his body telling his own personal stories and character. So I give him a kiss on his chest, letting him know that. And when I do so, I suddenly hear the noises escaping from him by my touch alone, and I can notice the way he bites his lips while doing so. My body turns even more hot when I hear it, making me want him and touch him even more. I grab his face again and kiss him deeply, while pushing his body closer to mine again. His hands slide towards my behind again, slightly squeezing, making a noise escape from my own mouth as well. I can tell that we get more and more heated through every little touch we do.

God, everything about this moment is so hot, that I can’t contain my unholy thoughts and needs anymore. `Noah,´ I mumble against his lips. `I want you in me. Now.´

He smiles at me again through our kiss when we finally get a breath. `Then don’t you think it’s about time I’ll help you in getting that little wish of yours fulfilled?´ he says with such a cheeky smug face while looking me straight into my eyes, moving both of our bodies close again.

For fucks sake, he knows exactly what he is doing-the words he is saying to me right now… I love it when someone talks to me like that. I groan while nodding, and the moment Noah has unbelt his pants and his underwear drops, he lifts me so my legs wrap around him. He grins and carries us to my hotelbed, placing me down onto it, my body aching for the next thing that is coming. I bite my lip when his head hangs over mine, his necklace hanging towards my chest, so I take advantage of that and grab it so I can pull his face towards mine again and kiss him deeply. He starts teasing me with his hands and fingers between my hips, making me slightly moan, but also gets me rolling my eyes.

`Noah,´ I mumble, and Noah laughs because of my visible irritation. He takes a moment to tease me even more with his hands, before slowly moving them up and making them caress my chest again too. Though I’m irritated and want him inside me, one of his hands slides towards my damp era again while the other is on my chest again, moving both up and down, and it feels too good to not enjoy. It makes my back slightly arched, and when he notices it he chuckles a bit, the movements of his hands on my body becoming even smoother and soft. I become a panting mess, and when Noah starts kissing my hips and thighs, his head slowly moving more and more towards my leaking era while looking at me with a devilish grin, I grab his head and push him lower myself.

Noah chuckles once again, sending a deep vibration through me. The moment I feel his tongue down there, my mouth falls right open and I have to grab the sheets. Dear Lord, he’s good. Too good. I can’t contain the sounds coming from my mouth anymore, his touch feels too heavenly. I can feel him smile, and his moves get even more intense and better.

`Fuck,´ I hiss, my hands grabbing the sheets even tighter. His touch with his mouth feels so hot, so perfect, that I’m almost on the edge already. He chuckles once again-that motherfucker-and it sends vibrations once again, almost knocking me out with pleasure.

`Patience, sweetheart,´ I hear Noah mumble at me and I almost roll my eyes out of frustration again by hearing those words.

`Noah… I-I just-´ I struggle with getting the words out of my mouth, because I am way too overwhelmed with all that I’m feeling and experiencing. `Please. Please let me cum,´ I almost cry out with a hoarse voice.

He stops with my mouth being on me, and he moves up me again in a slow movement, leaving me in the most arousing and hottest state possible now that he suddenly makes my pleasure put on hold. Fuck. Fucking fucker.

`Fine,´ I huff. With one of my hands, I grab his length, an evil smirk spreading on my face. `But two can play that game,´ I say, slowly moving up and down with my hand.

His smirk immediately fades when he feels my hand around him like that, and I can tell he wasn’t expecting me to do that, at all. The sensation of my hand already makes him moan from the unexpected action, so I enjoy the feeling of dominance and confidence I gain from it. `You like that, don’t you?´ I smirk once again.

`You’re… so going to pay for this,´ he groans out, trying to keep his eyes open. It’s a very hot sight, and I bite my lip to hold back a little giggle of enjoyment and power.

`Oh really? How so, hm?´ I dare him, and his face immediately gets close to mine again, with a cocky and mischievous smile.

`Oh, you’ll find out soon enough…´

`Hurry up then, darling,´ I say, gaining more and more confidence by the minute. `Cause…´ I look at this length in my hand, that is still moving up and down but then stop, doing the exact same thing he did as he did to me, ´I can see that you can’t hold it in any longer. Sucks, doesn’t it?´ I narrow my eyes, grinning.

It makes him bite his lip in both pleasure and frustration from teasing him like this. `Brat…´ he groans with a frustrated smile, ´I will totally get you for this…!´

My eyebrows slightly raise when I hear him calling me that, making me lay still. `What did you call me?´ I ask him with my eyebrows now furrowed while sitting up a little. I have trouble understanding why he called me that or in which way, so I look at him with a bit of confusion. Also because… the only thing I did, was just repeating the exact same thing he did to me. How is that fair?

`Uh oh,´ he says with a nervous voice, leaning back, to face me now fully.

`Yeah… so… I’m a little lost here,´ I say to him with a small laugh out of confusion. `It’s okay for you to tease me, but not the other way around? That’s why you call me a brat?´ I now tilt my head a little, narrowing my eyes while doing so. `That’s not really how it works, does it now Sebastian?´

His eyes widen a bit in worry when he hears me speak. `Ah, I’m sorry, Hailey. Please don’t get angry. Just… I just called you that because you’re cute when you’re a little bit bratty. Especially when you want to get what you want.´

Lucky for him, my grin slowly appears again because of the explanation he tells me. `You think I’m cute?´

`You’re not just cute, doll,´ he continues, my heart skipping a beat when I hear him call me a new nickname. `You’re adorable and a lot of things a man would love and adore.´

`Hmm… Go on,´ I tease, now sitting up fully again, in a position that makes my curves look full and smooth. On purpose? Maybe.

Noah’s eyes widen once again when he looks at every inch of my curves and body, they have a type of twinkling in them that I have not yet seen before, so I don’t really know how to describe it myself. Admiration again I guess? Awe? In some kinda way that he somehow looks lost and hypnotized by what he is seeing?

`Well,´ he gulps, `You’re not just beautiful, you’re a kind hearted and caring person. You’re fun but also very responsible and mature. You’re hard… but yet so… soft as well…´

I chuckle while shaking my head, while being kinda touched by his words as well. `You sweet, sweet boy. I was just teasing you.´ I boop his nose though, smiling-he is just being too cute right now, and he softly smiles back. `But that’s very sweet though… Thank you,´ I say and bend towards him, to kiss his cheek.

He looks in my eyes now with the biggest amount of warm adoration, something I have not seen in them before, and he reached out for my jaw to kiss my cheek as well. I have to admit… somehow, because of this moment, it feels like the sex became more than just lust at this moment. As if more than that got involved-such as adoration, tenderness, and warmth. It is as if he realizes the same, making his eyes have another level of affection and adoration from his eyes again, and he leans forward again to kiss my lips so passionately that it takes me out for a second. But I already quickly melt into it and I hold his face when I kiss him deeply back.

Thing is, in the half year I’ve been working for him and the band, it’s not like I’ve only felt physical attraction to Noah. He truly is a fun guy to be around with, also caring and compassionate about the things and people he loves. He is cheeky, funny, and kind. I always love to be around him, a day never gets boring.

In this moment, it feels like a whole world full of possibilities has opened between us. He pulls away from my lips just enough to let his forehead rest on mine, looking into my eyes with this warm, yet very tender and emotional look. Seeing him looking at me like that, makes me melt inside, my throat almost closing up with emotions and my stomach making a thousand flips because of the overwhelming feelings I get from his beautiful eyes looking into mine alone.

And we both know we should stop this moment right now, the second we let those feelings free from a cage that should stay closed and locked.

#18+ only #18+ story #bad omens cult #bad omens fanfiction #fanfiction #noah sebastian #noah sebastian bad omens #noah sebastian smut #noahsebastian #smut #romantic #romance #romantic story #romantic fanfic #noah sebastian fan fiction #noahsebastian fan fic

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quitealotofsodapop · 2 days

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Wouldn't it be cool if he had a follow-up performance in the City of Lanterns? Maybe they did go through with the talent show and, just to increase the chances of winning, they split into two different teams. The monkey family do theatre and Noodle Gang do the concert. It's after the fact that they realize it's a fake Ring!

I imagine that Wukong's stage fright is still a huge factor, but with Macaque there, he can manage it better. It's easy for Wukong to forget he's being watched by thousands of people when he has his mate and cubs there and it actually helps the two reaffirm their love

prev.

Oh thats so tasty!!

The gang agrees that submitting as two separate acts gives them a better chance of winning. Pigsy and the rest of the Noodle Gang will do a musical performance, while the monkeys perform "The Hero and the Warrior".

Wukong tries his best to calm down, only to peek around the curtains and sees the sheer crowd.

This Monkey King's stage fright is activated hard.

Macaque takes Wukong's hand into his and suggests;

Macaque: "Look, Me and MK can tell this story with our eyes closed. The twins (ours and Vixen's) are helping with the props. All we need to do is be the silent actors." Wukong: "You know I can't be infront of an auidence like that!" Macaque: "Then don't look at the audience. You just need to look at me." Wukong: (*unconvinced nervous grumble*) Macaque, thinking: "Remember the first night we danced together during the Journey?" Wukong: "You mean when we met Tieshan and Bull at the Flaming Mountains? Of course I do... I was still mad at you for leaving me." Macaque, reminiscing: "The music playing. The campfire roaring. And you looked so beautiful, I just had to ask you; Can I please have this dance?" (*does the bowing motion*) Wukong, blushing lightly: "I said yes mostly because Bajie was teasing me about "attracting bad boys"... it was the first time I had danced in a long time." Macaque: "I know. You stood on my foot so hard it broke a few toes." Wukong, chuckling: "Where are you going with all this?" Macaque, presses forehead to Wukong's: "When MK is up there telling our story - I want you and I to dance. Think of that night on the Flaming Mountains and keep your eyes on only us. When the Little Heaven appears, Yuebei will be in our arms and we'll act a little clumsy at first." Wukong, realising: "Xiaotian's naming ceremony! We tried dancing the same way, but he was clinging so tight we had to find a way to include him!" Macaque: "Yup." Wukong: "You remember so much of it all..." Macaque: "How couldn't I? It's our story. I could tell it a million times and never be bored." Wukong & Macaque: (*sappy married couple kissing noises*) MK: "Mom? Dad? We actually need to go on, remember? Annnd they aren't listening to me. I'll just send the others on first then." Rumble & Savage: (*covering each others eyes and giggling*)

When the actual "The Hero & the Warrior" begins, MK is taking centre stage as the narrator. Rumble, Savage, Luzhen, and Jin and Yin (+Bo the accountant) are in charge of changing the props and moving the shadows around. Wukong and Macaque are dancing as almost pure-dark silhouettes of one another - the King successfully distracted from his stage fright. Yuebei appears in an unexpected beam of jewel-like light (lazer eyes help) as The Little Piece of Heaven that rocks the Hero and Warrior's world. The final line ends with the lights turning on (something accidental via Jin & Yin) revealing the two monkeys cuddling/smooching each other with their baby girl between them.

The play receives raucous applause.

It gets second place to Pigsy's singing still. Macaque and Wukong aint even mad. The cubs were a little mad tho since they put so much effort into it.

Then it turns out that the grand prize of "the Ring of Light" meant... a trophy shaped-like the Ring. Not the actual ring.

Like a certain earlier misleading grand prize...

MK's fangs are still chipped from that incident. MK also bites the fake Ring just to be sure.

Luckily, a certain lotus demon refused to participate in the talent show (claiming he was feeling ill from the cold weather), and found the actual Ring of Samadhi above the hotel they were staying in.

Nezha, holding the Ring: "Lotus. Lanterns. Light. Lotus Lantern equals Ring of Light." The gang: "Ohhh..." Nezha: "Did you guys honestly think the city would just give away a major artifact and source of energy to some talent show winners?" The Gang: (*all looking very sheepish*)

Bonus: I imagine that the revised play has some musical elements to it. For some reason I can't get "When the Sun Loves the Moon" out of my head as the music inspo.

Ty so much such good ideas!

#post jttw stone egged au #jttw stone egged au #sun wukong #six eared macaque #liu er mihou #shadowpeach #lmk mk #qi xiaotian #lmk eclipse twins #lmk rumble & savage #lmk gold and silver demons #lmk jin and yin #lmk nezha #lmk aus #lmk #lego monkie kid

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flamemittens · 2 days

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maybe for morgayne and gortash?

Flower Language prompts from here!

Gortash x F!Durge. 1.3k words. *Act 3 spoilers*.

Black-eyed Susan - "Revenge tastes sweet, and so are you."

The first time she meets with him is shortly after the coronation ceremony.

Her companions do not want her to go alone, but Morgayne insists. It is better this way. There is an inexorable pull towards the man that she finds she cannot ignore, and he seems to have at least some of the answers she seeks—if he is telling the truth. They have heard the rumours—from whispers that coil in dark corners, to braver shouts that ring off the buildings and cobblestoned streets—all over parts of the city and its outskirts; in his rise from upstart lordling to city ruler and protector, he has used everything and everyone—whether at his disposal or not—to ascend.

She finds him upstairs in his office, as promised.

He assures her that their plans can still be brought to fruition. He confidently directs, explains to her what they should do, and Gods, that evasive something in her wants to listen. It is all so frustratingly, distantly recognizable. Hypnotic, in a way.

There must be more to it, she thinks. To them. She recalls the torn page she found in the Moonrise mindflayer colony, and its frenetic, tormented penmanship.

“Lord Gortash. Who were we to each other? Really?”

He seems to wince, for some reason, at her use of his title. After a brief silence, he finally offers his answer.

“I meant what I said in the audience hall. You can use that as a reference if you wish.”

Morgayne frowns. “As strange as it may seem, that does not make things much clearer. I only have more questions.”

“Well then. Allow me to fill in some more of the specifics for you, in a way that leaves no room for interpretation.”

“Please do.”

“Have a seat, then.” He sees her hesitate, and adds, in a strangely gentler tone, “I insist.”

They talk for an hour before she takes her leave.

She returns to him again a day or two later. She doesn’t really know what draws her there; perhaps it is this nostalgic, tenuous thread of intimacy and trust that she cannot yet determine the root of.

They talk further.

“How are your memories?” he asks, after a while.

Morgayne sighs. “It’s like trying to complete a puzzle but all the pieces are broken, scattered, and some will forever be missing. However, some things are coming back to me, I think. Slowly.”

Something like delight flares in his dark eyes. Something like hope.

She stays for longer this time.

“How was your Archduke, darling?” Astarion asks later as he sidles up to her on her return to the Elfsong, amusement plain on his beautiful features.

“He is not my Archduke” she counters flatly, feeling none of the conviction she tries so hard to imbue the words with.

“I heard you went to the Hells today” Gortash begins the next time she visits him. “You’ve been busy, my dear.”

“Yes” she confirms.

She tells him about it all, of Helsik, of Hope, of Nubaldin. Of what the self-important rock gnome revealed before she was compelled to sear the flesh from his bones, to burn away his smug grin—but not how she later felt she had been told part of the story before. That she keeps to herself for now. She speaks of the Master of the House, and how she robbed him blind.

Any other eyes on the scene would think he is not reacting, but she sees something subtle in the set of his jaw, the rise of his shoulders, the pitch of his eyes. How one clawed gauntlet grips the edge of the table, pressing marks into the oak, how the knuckles on his other tightly fisted hand are turning white. How he won’t even look at her, his gaze fixed on the floor as she talks.

“Raphael is dead” she finishes.

His eyes flick to hers eventually, the tension bleeding out of him faster than it bloomed.

“It’s…curious, isn’t it” he muses.

She doesn’t need to ask what he means.

As per their agreement, she goes to him after her duel with Orin.

She tells him what happened, down there in the dark. How she defied her father. How she lay there, drained and dead on the cold, bloodstained stone. How she came to be here now, telling him about it all.

“You have our—your revenge, then. And your freedom.”

She takes a mouthful of the Marsember Blush, lets it linger on her tongue before swallowing. It’s a balmy evening, and the wine is as refreshing as it is spicy.

“Yes. It would seem I do.”

He studies her with an almost unnerving intensity over the rim of his glass.

“I always knew, Mori.” is all he says.

That’s the name engraved on the inside of the ring she wears on her right hand, she thinks.

Her Archduke looks tired tonight.

The letter arrives the next afternoon, precisely crafted if a little concise, and mildly fragranced like his coronation invitation. She takes it to a quiet corner to read, drinking in its scent. His scent. It is one line, with an Upper City address at the bottom.

M Come to this address tonight. I can promise you it will be worth your while.” E

Later, she slips away from the others, but is intercepted by Jaheira on the landing outside their rooms. The older half-elf appears concerned. She can’t say it isn’t justified.

“I feel we are losing you.”

“Interesting that you should say that. I feel I am finding myself.” She packs as much of an apology as she can into her smile.

Jaheira looks as if she understands somehow. “Be careful, cub” she says, after a beat.

A short time later, Morgayne reaches the building in question. It’s a sprawling, well-appointed manor like many of those in the Upper City. She glances down one side of the building, spotting a tall trellis thick with ivy that scales up to a balcony. A fragment comes back to her then—heavy rain, gloved fingers slipping on the wood before finally reaching stone.

On entering, she is welcomed and led upstairs; she notices the guards, yes, but also the minimal staff, the thin coat of dust over almost everything—he does not come here much anymore, she recognises.

She is ushered into what she is informed are his personal chambers.

Gortash—Enver—sits at a desk, nearby a large chaise that faces an unlit fireplace. Multiple pages of what looks to be Steel Watcher schematics are spread over its surface. A decanter and tumbler, both half-filled with amber liquid, sit at his elbow. He is casually dressed, save for his golden gauntlets.

“Ah, there you are. You found your way here, at last.”

He rises as she approaches, walking around to stand in front of her.

She sees it all then, plain on his face. Relief. Pride. Desire.

He leans in with a confidence, a lover’s closeness that she supposes he has already earned, long ago. Something clicks into place as she smells the whisky on him—it’s less a moment of realization and more of a punch to the chest that steals her breath away—it speaks of the past, of hushed conversations and affection and trust.

The air seems to become warmer, thicker with every passing moment. He’s orchestrated all of this, she knows now. A tableau of echoes just for her.

She believes it all, feels the truth in it.

He kisses her then, and she kisses him back. It’s clumsy at first, like a musician trying to recall a once beloved tune, but she falls into the familiar rhythm soon enough. He trails his mouth along her jawline and pulls her flush against him, as one hand slides round the back of her neck and up into the base of her braid—the cool metal against her warm skin is…grounding.

“Stay here” he murmurs into her ear. “Where you belong. Don’t go back to them.”

And Gods help her, she stays.

#thank you poppy <3 #sorry this got longer than i intended lol #asks #flower language prompts #bg3 #baldur’s gate 3 #enver gortash #the dark urge #durgetash #oc: morgayne #flamemittens writes

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epickiya722 · 9 hours

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Hello, I'm new here, I would really like you to answer my question, I really like your thoughts. What bothered me most about this chapter 261 of jujutsu is that it doesn't make sense that Yuta came back in Gojo's body, this took away the weight of Itadori again in the story, it seems like a fanfic written by a fan. 2. this chapter took away all the weight of gojo's death.

Hi, right back at you, Anon!

I could see how this chapter bothered you. I seen some people even mentioned how "Yuji is going to be sidelined again".

I already written a post about 261 here, and I'm going to mention a few things I already said in that post.

Now, this may seem to be shocking to some people when I say this because y'all know Yuji is my favorite. But... I can see Yuta on the frontlines but just for this moment. I also have a second outlookto this. I don't think this is going to be a Sukuna VS. Yuta battle.

It feels, just a little at least, like a tag team of Yuji and Yuta VS. Sukuna part 2. It's just that this time, Todo is here in the place of Rika.

In my post, I mention how it feels like Yuta may be showing up at this particular time to save Yuji from losing that bit of humanity he has left. In a way, he is taking the weight off of Yuji. That burden of turning yourself into a curse to kill a curse.

Also, I just thought of this. The audience knows Yuji has awakened. We seen him hitting Sukuna with those back-to-back Black Flashes, whooping Sukuna's ass. Yuta hasn't.In a more realistic sense, with Yuta being out the fight for some time, during that time I can imagine he also worried about Yuji and the others like "I gotta get back in the fight, I gotta help". So pack that panic onto possessing your teacher's body.

I know to some, this indeed feels like a "Yuta is here to take Yuji's shine" moment, but again to me it's just feels like someone coming to help after taking an inhumane risk.

Gojo told Yuta to take care of Yuji and the others if something ever happened to him. And yeah, this is him doing that.

There's also the fact that neither Yuji or Yuta actually care to show out against Sukuna, they just want to kill this guy. There's not even a sense of rivalry between them.

And even if Yuji is out of the fight for a while, this is a rhetorical question for other Yuji fans, would that make you see him any less of a great character he is?

Because even during the Culling Games, he wasn't in that arc much but it didn't make me think of less of him because before, during and after he has moments that I still find great and honestly when he's not onscreen, just makes appreciate him more as a character.

I don't think screentime should determine how great a character is. Just the time they have shown should count for something. That during that time onscreen, they showcase what makes the viewer favor them.

Whatever happens next, isn't going to make me think of Yuji any less.

But enough of that!

Okay, for Gojo's death... okay, I can see why people would feel upset about Gojo's body being used like that after dying.

But I think that's the point. It should make the audience sick to their stomach because none of the characters are happy about it either. Except maybe Sukuna, he seems thrilled.

People are currently slandering Shoko for not trying to convince him against it, but uh... in the same breath Gojo expresses indifference about it even though it is his body. "Who cares what happens to one's corpse?" He takes no regard about what if he does lose and says "well, I'll admit I don't like my body being used like that".

Didn't do that.

To me, Gojo... I'm not going to say "okay"... was nonchalant about it being he states "he won't lose, he won't die" verbally to hide that even if he does he's accepting to it. He accepts he dies this time around. He finally is no longer tied down to that life of being a weapon. And maybe... this is also him kind of... punishing himself for what happened to Geto's body.

Geto died and Gojo didn't properly dispose of the body because he probably couldn't make himself do it. That lead to Kenjaku getting his body and using it as a weapon.

So, how does Gojo make up for it. Well, Yuta is the one to end Kenjaku so Gojo, still probably feeling not feeling satisfied and guilty, decides "well, if I do lose, they can use my body as a weapon".

Gojo's life is a tragedy, but his afterlife, being there with Geto and the others he lost, just may have been his mercy. He's finally in a paradise where he can feel happy, truly happy and whatever goes on in the real world, he can let go, including his body.

But that's just me.

#kiya answers #jjk #jujutsu kaisen #jjk spoilers #jjk manga spoilers #jjk 261 #okkotsu yuta #yuta okkotsu #yuuta okkotsu #okkotsu yuuta #gojo satoru #satoru gojo

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sometiktoksarevalid · 2 months

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#cc #art #marketability #art advice #i feel like this can relate to writers too #there are niche markets for both writing and visual art #and “write/draw for yourself and you'll eventually find your audience” can be good advice #but that audience can take a while to find you #and if you don't have financial support (spouse or other family who can handle bills while you write/draw/paint)#you don't always have that time needed to find the audience for your passion projects #and even if you do find them it doesn't mean that audience will be big enough to support you enough to pay your bills #“we need more weird art!” artists need to be able to pay their bills first bcoz weird art doesn't always pay

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sailorfailures · 2 years

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One eerie frame for every classic Sailor Moon episode, OP, & ED

🌙🖤 Happy Halloween!

#Sailor Moon #descriptions in alt text #the visual design of the first season really was something #in my heart I feel like it's not Sailor Moon yet bc it was still finding its feet but that also allowed it to be more experimental #I don't think it's better or worse because while I do enjoy the novelty of earlier episodes #they also don't feel like Sailor Moon episodes. A lot of them feel like another show with SM characters randomly in them #which is not a good thing necessarily but they're so interesting it's also not a bad thing. It's just a thing #which you don't really see as often with current anime #you can just really see how they were kind of taking a gamble with Sailor Moon and testing the waters to see what angles would do well #I think it started to understand its actual target audience at around the Rainbow Crystals arc and shifted focus there #which is also when Jupes arrived so the team dynamic really started to take hold & the true appeal of it as a Magical Girl codifier emerged #ANYWAY it was just interesting to note that while Sailor Moon could consistently achieve moodiness and tension visually #the WAYS they achieved that were pretty different in the first half of classic compared to any other season #HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! BLEEHHH!!!

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gibbearish · 5 months

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btw its interesting the way james tries to imply that like. well the videos that have plagiarism are the ones our dumb stupid annoying patrons requested about bad topics that didnt deserve to have the effort put in to covering them well so basically its fine. like obv thats interesting on its own but moreso the fact that he doesnt actually /say/ it, or like. give a list of the videos hes referring to, just says "those videos are very clear on which ones they were" i think as a nod meaning like "yknow the ones everyones talking about". unless what hes meaning is that like they put a note in certain videos saying "this video was requested by a patron, we here at james somertom incorporated do not espouse these views" which seems unlikely to me. idk methinks maybe it's because there is indeed a lot more than people think and with all the buzz he's not sure which ones have been discovered yet or not, so putting down a solid list that missed some would look like he was still hiding things whereas putting down a fully sourced list would be admitting to wayyyy more than anyone's found yet

#which is ironic too bc if he genuinely did want to prove he understood what he did wrong and that hed changed thatd be the way to do it #yknow like a full list of every single source including ones no one has found on their own or /can/ find anymore would a) be taking full #responsibility and b) make people less likely to always be like 'youre still hiding something'#which in turn makes me super think hes still hiding a lot of somethings #also cant go without stating that the 'request a video topic' thing was only for $100/month patrons after 3 months on that tier #like fucker these people gave you THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS AT LEAST and youre trying to blame it on them??????#no one forced you to make 'let patrons pick video topics' a reward dude like. hello????????#shit dude even hbombs highest tier ($10 for anyone wondering bc he doesnt see his audience as a money machine lmao)#just says you can vote in polls about future topics #like that makes complete sense to me as a version of this‚ the most dedicated audience members get a say in the future of the #channel while the creator still gets overall control of the direction #also 'patrons who gave me fuckloads of money asked me to make videos on topics i didnt like so i plagiarized those' is i think uhhh #worse than just 'i plagiarize everything without remorse' frankly?#like at least with the second youre just a general shitbag but the first where youre a shitbag specifically to the people #majorly financially supporting you rather than just like. be an adult and say 'hm i dont feel like that topic really works for the channel‚#do you have any other ideas?'#or dare i say even perhaps yknow. doing what other youtubers do in similar situations and find ways to tie that subject #to what they usually talk about is just. wild #course that last one would take actual creativity and aint that just the crux of the issue #james somerton #or i say cannot go without stating i should say cannot go without restating kwnrkabdkwbrn

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rosedosed · 2 years

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∞

Musician - Porter Robinson

But sincerely Can't you feel what I'm feeling? I can see my life so clear— I burn up, burn out I shouldn't do this to myself

Put a “∞” in my ask box for a song lyric!

#*pictured me and liv crying our eyes out at the concert*#answers #paladin-official #IF YOULL ALLOW ME TO WAX POETICS;#i LOOOVE porter robinsons reflections on his own creative process in his lyrics #Nurture is a very poignant reflection on his previous albums and work-process.#how he loved making music & was burning himself out BECAUSE of that love #many creatives are really heavily tuned into their emotions because art is often an inherently emotional medium.#art's purpose is to make its audience feel something. In order to make art you gotta understand Feeling very deeply #that's why becoming An Artist (job-wise) is so scary. your JOB is to FEEL SO MUCH ALL THE TIME #you LOVE creating SO MUCH and you cant fucking stop doing it cause you ADORE IT. Extremely Left-Brained Process #I know I've gambled with Mental Health and impending Carpal Tunnel JUST because i loved creating so much #and its fucked up but thats normal. or at least normalized (Starving Artist stereotype etcetc)#NURTURE captures that feverish passion & the lows it brings very well. it puts the Fuckedup Leftbrain thought process into words #'Cant you feel what Im feeling? Im burning up. I can hear it calling. Im burning out. Cant you see what I see? Why do I do this to myself?#Nurture is a really solid reflection on an art career because it tells you (from experience) that you MUST find a balance #you MUST find a healthy workflow or you WILL burn up. 'Isn't it time that you grow up?'#but it tells you SO lovingly while SHOWING you the highs and the good that art can do. Take Care Of Yourself the album #Create From Love For Yourself And From Those Around You The Album #Rent Is A Stupid Musical The Album

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foone · 3 months

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Your posts are in an AI model

and then Tumblr decided to sell them to AI models.

Now, don't get me wrong, tumblr selling out the users to AI companies is bad, yes, they shouldn't do that. It sucks.

but don't lets get this confused: your posts were already in there. Tumblr selling them is about tumblr making some money and about the AI models having more exhaustive post collections. It's not about your posts being in an AI model, vs not being in one. That battle has already been lost.

Can you find your post on google? Then it's almost certainly in an AI model already. Think about it: These AI sites showed up before all the sites were making deals to sell their users' content, right? How do you think they built them in the first place?

They scraped the posts. Just like google and bing and such do when they build their search indexes.

It's a fundamental part of how the open web works: you want your posts on tumblr to be visible to users, right? You want them to be readable?* Like, look how much stuff broke when twitter changed their whole read-while-not-logged-in policy, ruining a bunch of thread links/NSFW links. And if it's visible, it's scrapable. That's what the AI models were built on.

I've done website scraping before (not for AI models, of course. I was doing search engines and website archival), this is just how it works. You hire a few relatively smart CS graduates and tell them "build me a scraper that'll give us a bunch of tumblr posts" and they go off for a month or two and come back with a database of a few billion posts, and you stuff that into your AI model. That's how they got all the deviantart and flickr and twitter and pinterest and so on posts. They didn't pay for them: they just took them.

They only ever pay for this shit because either:

they fucked up in such a way that the site might be able to sue them for taking rather than paying

They can buy them cheaper than they can finish taking them. Maybe they'd need to pay the CS grads for an extra month? well, that might be more expensive than just throwing the site a couple hundred thousand bucks.

ANYWAY: my point is, don't treat this "oh no tumblr is selling our posts to AI" like it's a big thing that might happen and it would be bad to happen. Yes, it's bad, tumblr shouldn't do this, this'll let AI models get continual updates of content for far easier than just scraping them would be, tumblr betrayed user trust, and so on...

but realistically, this is not a black and white matter of "if only tumblr didn't do this, then we'd be safe from AI models!"

Nope. We already lost that battle. I'm sorry, and it does suck, but that's just how it is. The avalanche has already started, it's too late for the pebbles to vote. * I'm assuming here that you don't run a private blog that's set to only followers or something. You'd be safer then, of course, but you're not really my target audience for this rant

#this is not in any way pro-ai #but I don't know how to tag this

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thatdogmagic · 1 year

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...that your audience won't hate.

This is a method I started using when NFTs were on the rise - thieves would have to put actual work into getting rid of the mark - and one that I am now grateful for with the arrival of AI. Why? Because anyone who tries to train an AI on my work will end up with random, disruptive color blobs.

I can't say for sure it'll stop theft entirely, but it WILL make your images annoying for databases to incorporate, and add an extra layer of inconvenience for thieves. So as far as I'm concerned, that's a win/win.

I'll be showing the steps in CSP, but it should all be pretty easy to replicate in Photoshop.

Now: let's use the above image as our new signature file. I set mine to be 2500 x 1000 pixels when I'm just starting out.

Note that your text should not have a lot of anti-aliasing, so using a paint brush to start isn't going to work well with this method. Just use the standard G-Pen if you're doing this by hand, or, just use the text tool and whichever font you prefer.

Once that's done, take your magic wand tool, and select all the black. Here are the magic wand settings I'm using to make the selections:

All selected?

Good.

Now, find a brush with a scattering/tone scraping effect. I use one like this.

You can theoretically use any colors you want for this next part, but I'd recommend pastels as they tend to blend better.

Either way, let's add some color to the text.

Once that's finished,

You're going to want to go to Layer Property, and Border Effect

You'll be given an option of choosing color and thickness. Choose black, and go for at least a 5 in thickness. Adjust per your own preferences.

Now create a layer beneath your sig layer, and merge the sig down onto the blank layer.

This effectively 'locks in' the border effect, which is exactly what we want.

Hooray, you've finished your watermark!

Now let's place that bad boy into your finished piece.

You'll get the best mileage out of a mark if you can place it over a spot that isn't black of white, since you'll get better blending options that way. My preference is for Overlay.

From here, I'll adjust the opacity to around 20-25, depending on the image.

If you don't have a spot to use overlay, however, there's a couple other options. For white, there's Linear Burn, which imho doesn't look as good, but it still works in a pinch.

And for lots of black, you have Linear Light

Either way, you're in business!

EDIT since this has escaped my usual circles, and folks aren't as familiar with my personal usage:

An example of one of my own finished pieces, with watermark, so you can see what I mean about 'relatively unobtrusive'-- I try to at least use them as framing devices, or let them work with the image somehow (or, at the very least, not actively against it).

I know it's a bummer for some people to "ruin" their work with watermarks, which is part of the reason I developed this mark in particular. Its disruption is about as minimal as I can make it while still letting it serve its intended purpose.

There's other methods, too, of course! But this is the one I use, and the one I can speak on. Hope it helps some of you!

#watermarks #artist tutorial #watermark #AI #art theft

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inkskinned · 11 months

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at some point it's just like. do they even fucking like the thing they're asking AI to make? "oh we'll just use AI for all the scripts" "we'll just use AI for art" "no worries AI can write this book" "oh, AI could easily design this"

like... it's so clear they've never stood in the middle of an art museum and felt like crying, looking at a piece that somehow cuts into your marrow even though the artist and you are separated by space and time. they've never looked at a poem - once, twice, three times - just because the words feel like a fired gun, something too-close, clanging behind your eyes. they've never gotten to the end of the movie and had to arrive, blinking, back into their body, laughing a little because they were holding their breath without realizing.

"oh AI can mimic style" "AI can mimic emotion" "AI can mimic you and your job is almost gone, kid."

... how do i explain to you - you can make AI that does a perfect job of imitating me. you could disseminate it through the entire world and make so much money, using my works and my ideas and my everything.

and i'd still keep writing.

i don't know there's a word for it. in high school, we become aware that the way we feel about our artform is a cliche - it's like breathing. over and over, artists all feel the same thing. "i write because i need to" and "my music is how i speak" and "i make art because it's either that or i stop existing." it is such a common experience, the violence and immediacy we mean behind it is like breathing to me - comes out like a useless understatement. it's a cliche because we all feel it, not because the experience isn't actually persistent. so many of us have this ... fluttering urgency behind our ribs.

i'm not doing it for the money. for a star on the ground in some city i've never visited. i am doing it because when i was seven i started taking notebooks with me on walks. i am doing it because in second grade i wrote a poem and stood up in front of my whole class to read it out while i shook with nerves. i am doing it because i spent high school scribbling all my feelings down. i am doing it for the 16 year old me and the 18 year old me and the today-me, how we can never put the pen down. you can take me down to a subatomic layer, eviscerate me - and never find the source of it; it is of me. when i was 19 i named this blog inkskinned because i was dramatic and lonely and it felt like the only thing that was actually permanently-true about me was that this is what is inside of me, that the words come up over everything, coat everything, bloom their little twilight arias into every nook and corner and alley

"we're gonna replace you". that is okay. you think that i am writing to fill a space. that someone said JOB OPENING: Writer Needed, and i wrote to answer. you think one raindrop replaces another, and i think they're both just falling. you think art has a place, that is simply arrives on walls when it is needed, that is only ever on demand, perfect, easily requested. you see "audience spending" and "marketability" and "multi-line merch opportunity"

and i see a kid drowning. i am writing to make her a boat. i am writing because what used to be a river raft has long become a fully-rigged ship. i am writing because you can fucking rip this out of my cold dead clammy hands and i will still come back as a ghost and i will still be penning poems about it.

it isn't even love. the word we use the most i think is "passion". devotion, obsession, necessity. my favorite little fact about the magic of artists - "abracadabra" means i create as i speak. we make because it sluices out of us. because we look down and our hands are somehow already busy. because it was the first thing we knew and it is our backbone and heartbreak and everything. because we have given up well-paying jobs and a "real life" and the approval of our parents. we create because - the cliche again. it's like breathing. we create because we must.

you create because you're greedy.

#every time someones like ''AI will replace u" im like. u will have to fucking KILL ME #there is no replacement here bc i am not filling a position. i am just writing #and the writing is what i need to be doing #writeblr #this probably doesn't make sense bc its sooo frustrating i rarely speak it the way i want to #edited for the typo wrote it and then was late to a meeting lol #i love u people who mention my typos genuinely bc i don't always catch them!!!! :) it is doing me a genuine favor!!!#my friend says i should tell you ''thank you beta editors'' but i don't know what that means #i made her promise it isn't a wolf fanfiction thing. so if it IS a wolf thing she is DEAD to me (just kidding i love her)#hey PS PS PS ??? if ur reading this thinking what it's saying is ''i am financially capable of losing this'' ur reading it wrong #i write for free. i always have. i have worked 5-7 jobs at once to make ends meet.#i did not grow up with access or money. i did not grow up with connections or like some kind of excuse #i grew up and worked my fucking ASS OFF. and i STILL!!! wrote!!! on the side!!! because i didn't know how not to!!!#i do not write for money!!!! i write because i fuckken NEED TO #i could be in the fucking desert i could be in the fuckken tundra i could be in total darkness #and i would still be writing pretentious angsty poetry about it #im not in any way saying it's a good thing. i'm not in any way implying that they're NOT tryna kill us #i'm saying. you could take away our jobs and we could go hungry and we could suffer #and from that suffering (if i know us) we'd still fuckin make art.#i would LOVE to be able to make money doing this! i never have been able to. but i don't NEED to. i will find a way to make my life work #even if it means being miserable #but i will not give up this thing. for the whole world.

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