#extremely long text dump upcoming? most likely

[sealticge]

oct2path ships (so far)

We're about 1/2way through Oct2path... ships so far...

temenos/crick - fantastic. snappy dialogue. great chemistry. love that they are from the same storyline explicitly so they share a ton of story beats and are very engaged in the overarching What Is Happening With Temenos Right Now at all times (the biggest weakness of octopath shipping is that you usually don't get much of that!) Absolutely LOVE that the game provided a system for using the NPC chars a lot more and actually in-party... really huge brained of them

hikari/agnea - I liked alfyn/ophelia in the original for the same general reasons, hikari feels very bisexual to me (much like alfyn did) and sweet mostly uncomplicated good feelings het is an underappreciated flavor in my circles these days. lost my shit at their banter where hikari is like "dang u hot" without realizing he is being lewdish. also that one official art with hikari fan dancing with her makes me insane it's too cute. I feel like the text pushes this one similar to how it did prim & olberic but this time I agree that hikari is bi whereas olberic felt so gay to me it was impossible to suspend my disbelief.

partitio/hikari/agnea - need to see more partitio & hikari interactions to be sure but I like to ship people in piles now I guess. this is my ship least supported by the text so far but again only halfway through so hoping for more content in the 2nd half as the chapters get meatier.

throne/castti - hurt/comfort f/f all day long as far as the eye can see. I liked ophelia/prim for a lot of the same reasons, but this one has a distinctly different flavor, more tannins I think, delicious. both of these women have absolutely bonkers storylines (just finished both their ch3s) and they're the only 2 matching each other's extremely dire energy atm

I want to see more interactions with hikari and his npcs, hopeful that the upcoming chapter(s) will have that.

I think dolcinea & agnea also have chemistry and potential, let's see how that goes from here. love to ship protagonists with their villains.

also ship castti and melaya hugely... really good protag + NPCs relationships in this once again

I somehow forgot how hard octopath goes, these cute sprites + beautiful pixel environs sure do impart some jaw dropping events and dialogues at times. I appreciate it.

totk is out tomorrow so I wanted to word dump this all out before we start that... 2nd half of oct2path is gonna have to be interspersed with playing that, so it is gonna be slow going. but I'm looking forward to all the conclusions and also I hope there are multiple superbosses this time, the game is so fun but we do the chapters in order and are always completely overleveled at this point. very few of the bosses are even remotely challenging and it sucks because they clearly are well designed encounters, we are just outleveling them obnoxiously lol

I suspect this is gonna shake out a lot like the first game where I had preferences like the above but also happily shipped most everyone with most everyone else. I like octopath for that, it feels very freeing. just slamming a bunch of tropes together for a good time. nice.

#text #octopath 2 thoughts

[noona-clock]

I’ll Be Fine

Genre: College!AU/Fluff

Pairing: Jae x You

By Admin B

Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, The Great Cookie Bake-Off

The first thing you did after swinging open the door to your dorm room was let out a long, very frustrated sigh. And then you flung yourself onto your bed, burying your face in your pillows and whining desperately.

“So,” your roommate chirped. “I’m assuming you had a good Thanksgiving.”

You rolled over onto your back, groaning as you did because you were simply exhausted. Drained of all energy. “Oh, yeah,” you replied sarcastically with a deeply furrowed brow. “Very good. I spent the entire time dodging questions about my boyfriend.”

“...You don’t have a boyfriend.”

“Exactly!”

Your roommate sighed softly, turning around in her desk chair to face you. “Well, I spent the entire week doing homework, so I guess we’re both outta gas, huh?”

“Holidays are supposed to be relaxing! You’re supposed to come back refreshed and eager and ready to get back to the grind! So why do I just want to go to sleep for the next ten hours?”

“Go eat something,” she suggested as she turned back around and began typing. “You’re like the embodiment of those Snickers commercials. You’re not you when you’re hungry.”

You let out a breathy chuckle, managing to sit up even though you truly could’ve laid on your bed for the rest of the week. “Come with me?”

“I can’t. I’ve got this paper to finish up.”

“I’m sorry, but being a Pre-Law major sucks. I don’t know what you got yourself into, but I’m glad I did not,” you said with a grimace. She was constantly writing papers and doing homework, and you were just too lazy for that life.

Your roommate shot you a somewhat sassy look, quirking her brow and pursing her lips. “Speak to me again when I’m making double -- triple -- the amount of money you are, Miss Education Major.”

You were about to snap back with ‘Well, I’ll be teaching our future and making a difference!’ But... she would also be making a difference as a lawyer, so... There went that argument.

“Whatever,” you sighed. “I’ll just marry rich.”

“You have to find a boyfriend first,” she reminded you cheekily.

“Okay, I’m leaving.”

“Wait! I think Jae is back already. You should ask him to go with you. I don’t think he’s ever said ‘no’ to a meal before.”

“This is true,” you murmured as you slid your phone out of your back pocket. You brought up your message conversation with Jae, typing out your question as quickly as you could. You’d just realized how hungry you actually were, and you weren’t sure how much longer you could wait to head off to the dining hall.

Jae must have been just as hungry as you because he replied back almost immediately.

“All right, see you later,” you sighed as you rolled off your bed and lifted an arm to wave goodbye to your roommate.

“Can you bring me back a slice of pizza?” your roommate asked quickly as you opened the door.

“Ya snooze, ya lose.”

“I’m not snoozing, I’m working!”

You cackled as you closed the door behind you, though both of you knew you would definitely bring her back a slice of pizza. You had a habit of pretending to be mean and uncaring when, really, you had one of the softest hearts. You would do anything for your friends.

Since Jae lived in the dorm next door, you figured he would meet you at the dining hall just across the street. It was the closest one, so why would you go anywhere else?

Lo and behold, when you walked into the spacious room filled with tables, you saw Jae already waiting at one of them.

“Well, well, well,” you announced as you approached him. “Pink hair. This is new.”

Jae was actually one of your roommate’s friends from high school; a tight-knit group of them had enrolled here together, so when you’d been randomly picked to be the roommate of one of them, you’d initially felt totally lost and left out.

But both your roommate and Jae had taken you in almost immediately. You got along extremely well with the both of them, and they’d actually become two of your closest friends over the past year and a half.

Jae quickly looked up at you, a somewhat embarrassed smile tugging at the corners of his lips. 

“Yeah... just needed a change.”

“I like it,” you grinned as he stood from his seat.

He murmured his thanks as the two of you headed over to the sushi station, collecting your trays and placing your orders.

“So, how was your Thanksgiving?” Jae asked, apparently deciding to get most of your talking done now as you were waiting for the chef to make your California rolls. I mean, honestly, once you both got started eating, your mouths would be too full to say anything, so it was just as well.

“It was awful,” you replied with an angelic smile. “My family wouldn’t get off my case about the boyfriend I don’t have.”

“Ouch,” he hissed with a shake of his head.

“Same. I mean, I don’t understand why they’re so concerned with the fact that I’m single. I’m only in my second year of college! I’m still very young! Wouldn’t they rather I focus on school right now?” You simply rolled your eyes before asking Jae in return, “What about yours?”

“Well, about the same. Found out Jamie was cheating on me, so I broke up with her.”

“Oh, my god!” you gasped. “Seriously?!”

Jae nodded, his lips pressed together in a thin line. “She’s been hounding me ever since, trying to apologize and get back together.”

“But you’re not having it?” you asked, clasping your empty tray to your chest.

“Nope. I mean, she did it once. If we got back together, there’s every chance she would do it again. I’m not gonna put myself through that.”

“...Are you gonna be okay?” you asked softly. After all, they’d been together since high school. It had to be rough.

“Yeah,” Jae replied with a nod. “I’ll be fine. Live and learn.”

You frowned, reaching out with one hand and putting it on his fluffy, pink head. You stroked his hair gently as you let out a soft sigh. Jae was one of the nicest, coolest people you knew. He didn’t deserve to be treated like that!

Just then, Jamie herself walked through the dining hall doors. She spotted you petting Jae’s head, obviously, because her eyes narrowed.

“Oops,” you murmured, quickly pulling your hand away.

“No, no,” Jae whispered. “Do that again.”

“Do what again?”

“Pet my head!”

“Why --”

“Just do it!”

You reached out yet again, smoothing your palm over his hair and trying to look as sorry as you just had.

Jae’s eyes flitted over toward Jamie, and you saw she’d now pursed her lips and stomped off to another part of the dining hall.

“Oh, my god, I have an idea,” Jae said in a tone of slight awe.

“...What?” 

The sushi chef handed over your orders then, and you thanked him before heading off back to the table Jae had occupied just a few minutes ago.

“Okay, this might sound crazy,” Jae began, sliding into the seat next to you. He leaned in, lowering his voice so only you could hear. (There was literally no one around you so it didn’t matter how low his voice was, but whatever.) “But I think it could work.”

“What could work?”

“Your family is going to hound you again when you go home for Christmas, right?”

You simply rolled your eyes in response.

“And did you see Jamie’s reaction when you were petting my hair?”

“Yeah...” Okay, where was he going with this?

“What if we pretend to be dating?”

“What?!” you cried. You immediately clapped your hand over your mouth because your voice had been a lot louder than you’d intended.

“What?!” you repeated in a whisper. “That doesn’t just sound crazy. That is crazy!”

“But think about it! I can visit you at home so your family will get off your case about being single. You can act like my girlfriend around campus where Jamie can see. Your family will shut up, and Jamie will realize we’re not getting back together and stop stalking me. We both win!”

The expression on Jae’s face made it clear he thought he’d come up with the most genius, fool-proof plan ever, and it was actually pretty difficult to say no to that face...

But you were going to, anyway.

“No way.”

“Are you sure?” Jae asked, looking awfully skeptical.

“Yes, I am sure! That would never work!”

He simply let out a sigh before grabbing his chopsticks and picking up a roll of sushi from his plate. “All right. But if you change your mind...”

“I’ll let you know,” you told him with a disbelieving chuckle. Because you were quite sure you weren’t going to change your mind.

The rest of your meal panned out in a very average way: you talked about your upcoming finals, what you wanted for Christmas, the latest Memes... y’know. Normal college stuff.

Thankfully, Jae didn’t bring up his crazy fake dating scheme again, though he did say, “And remember. If you change your mind...” when you parted ways at your dorm building.

You were still chuckling softly to yourself and shaking your head when you arrived back in your dorm room, prompting your roommate to swivel around and eye you curiously.

“What’s so funny?”

“Oh, man,” you groaned as you plopped onto your bed. You held out the to-go box with the pizza you’d grabbed for her on your way out, your smile growing when you heard her joyful squeal. “Jae -- well, first of all, if you didn’t know: Jamie cheated on him, so he dumped her.”

“I knew it! I never trusted her. Didn’t I say --”

“And he came up with this ridiculous idea,” you interrupted. (Your roommate had a penchant for going on preachy rants, and you’d learned to just stop her before she got started.) “I told him about my family, right? And he said we should pretend to be in a relationship to get my family to stop bothering me and to get Jamie to stop bothering him. Apparently, she keeps texting him wanting to get back together, but I immediately --”

“That’s actually not a bad idea,” she mumbled, her mouth half-full of pepperoni, hot cheese, and freshly-baked dough.

You stopped talking mid-sentence, your mouth hanging open with your unspoken words.

“...I’m sorry, what?” you asked after a few awkwardly silent moments.

“It’s not! I mean, you two are friends, right?”

“Yeah.”

“You know each other, so it’s not like people wouldn’t believe it. And if it gets you guys both free from your demons... what’s the harm?”

“Uh... the harm is it’s weird?”

“It’s not that weird! You’re helping each other out! You like helping friends. You got me this pizza, didn’t you?” She held the box up with a very angelic look on her face.

“That is not even remotely the same. Getting Jae pizza and pretending to be his girlfriend are two -- I mean, you can’t even compare them. Apples to oranges.”

“Well, all I’m saying is, I don’t think it’s as crazy as you do. I think he’s right. It could totally work. But, hey, it’s not me who would be in the fake relationship, so...” She shrugged before shoving more of the pizza into her mouth and swiveling back around to face her laptop.

You were about to continue on with your argument, bringing up the fact you weren’t living in a Netflix movie or something. Pretending to be Jae’s girlfriend would only make it awkward between you two once you “broke up,” and you didn’t want to ruin your friendship with him!

But what was the point, really? Your roommate was going to be a lawyer. Whatever argument you made, she would be able to refute it and top it.

So you simply got out your phone and pulled up YouTube, preparing to watch a Vine compilation or five. Classes didn’t start until tomorrow, and you would start studying for finals then. Today, you would relax and de-stress from your Hell week at home.

Truthfully, you almost cried when your alarm went off the next morning.

You weren’t ready to get out from under your warm, cozy blankets. You weren’t ready to get dressed or brush your teeth. You weren’t ready to gather your books and put on your backpack and trek to class in the cold. You weren’t ready to sit in your seat for an hour and attempt to pay attention.

As much as you’d suffered over the Thanksgiving holidays, you were not that much happier being back at school - actually going to class.

You flung your arm out, grasping for your phone and pressing the ‘Snooze’ button on the screen. But rather than going back to sleep, you slid your phone off your side table and brought it up to your face to check your notifications.

Email, email, Instagram, Twitter, email, text from your mom, text from your aunt -- wait, holy crap.

The two messages from your mom and aunt were part of a group chat, one you had no idea you’d been added to, and as you scrolled down... you saw at least two dozen more messages.

You slid the notification over, opening the chat and navigating up to the very beginning.

The very first message was one from your cousin. She’d sent it last night after you’d fallen asleep, and the rest of your family had been responding since then, including this morning.

The message?

It was a picture of her left hand. With a ring on it.

A diamond ring.

Oh, fuck.

You thought it had been bad over Thanksgiving, but now that your cousin was engaged?! The questions and quips and remarks about your own love life would get even worse.

And you really didn’t think you could handle that.

You shouldn’t have to! Not over Christmas!

You slammed your phone back down on your side table before lugging yourself out of bed, sluggishly starting to get ready for class.

Unsurprisingly, you started off your day in a pretty foul mood. You trudged over to the English building for your first class of the day. You scowled as your professor lectured about archetypes and symbolism. You picked at your breakfast, barely touching it even though you were one to rarely ever skip a meal.

And then, as you were pushing your scrambled eggs around on your plate with your fork. you had an idea.

Well, not really an idea.

The more accurate term would be ‘you changed your mind.’

You stood immediately, picking up your tray and hurrying over to the kitchen window to deposit it. And then you weaved your way through the tables of chattering students, your heart racing and your mind whirling.

Within three minutes, you were standing in front of the door to Jae’s dorm, out of breath and knocking as gently as you could manage. You were kind of shaking, so you were finding it just a tad difficult to control your body right now.

As soon as the door opened, you made sure it was Jae answering - not his roommate, Wonpil - before blurting out, “Let’s do it.”

“...Let’s do what?” he asked groggily, his pink hair adorably mussed up. Lucky him with no morning classes.

“Let’s date -- fake date. I changed my mind. Let’s do it.”

Part 2

#day6 #day6 scenarios #day6 imagines #day6 au #day6 fluff #jae #jaehyung #park jaehyung #jae scenarios #jae imagines #jae au #jae fluff #day6 fanfic #jae fanfic #kpop #kpop scenarios #kpop imagines #kpop au #kpop fluff #kpop fanfic

[gloamingdawn]

I don’t normally do big posts like this because I’m definitely the kind of person that would rather just reach out privately than dump an entire text post on a website but seeing as today is “World Kindness Day” in honor of Mr. Fred Rogers I’ve decided to deviate a little. As we slip into the Holiday Creep our online communities can start to feel a little more distant as important RL things are happening for folks and now seemed as good a time as any to give some public kudos. 

The bulk of this post is going to be me gushing over people I haven’t spent enough time gushing over lately, and it’s not meant as a personal slight if you read this and aren’t included -- my thoughts are really hole-y after a long couple of weeks at work and there’s a good chance I’ll do a couple more of these as we drift into the New Decade. 

@kharrisdawndancer​ You & I have been online (and RL) friends for a very long time now. One of my favorite memories from when I lived near enough to you to visit easily was sitting at your kitchen table, eating tiramisu that your husband put way too much booze in. I moved over to WrA with you, we’ve raided together, you were one of the first people I called after Rory had to be emergency admitted to the vet for his troubles, and you’re one of my constant pillars of support when I’m struggling with my place in the community. 

You do so much by hosting Cakes in game nearly weekly & trying your hardest to make it out to all the social events you can to support the other players and guilds who give their time to make sure other RPers have a space to hang out. You, your characters, writing & art are very special and I hope you keep creating in this space for a while to come. 

@turning-through-the-never​ What a year, huh? I can narrow that down even further to “What a month, huh?” as you, with Kharris, were driving forces in bringing people together for the October Writing Challenge. You’ve doubled down on this and started the Weekly Writing Challenge over at @weekly-writing-challenge​, adding to all the stuff you do to make the WoW RP & WoW Tumblr community a more creative and constant space to play in.

You do so much in game to not only make good events with the Tarts but you constantly advertise, attend, and sometimes perform at events for other guilds within WrA and MG and I know how time consuming that is -- especially with how incredibly busy you are in your personal life. You’ve done a very good job of keeping up with your stable of characters through all of this, something that never fails to impress me. I’m very happy I ran into you nearly five years ago when you were barking for a Tarts event -- my time on this server has been so much better for it. 

@darbiebot​ Your D&D game has made me lifelong friends and brought me closer with people who I was never able to find the time to hang out with even though we only lived 20 minutes from each other. It’s a major factor of joy in my life and I really do get a little sad when we can’t play as much as we want. I’ve been telling my own group that the next couple of months will be rocky -- that’s just how it is as adults with families around the holidays, but I’m looking forward to diving in feet first when we’re able to get back to playing again in the HOMEBREW STORY you made. It’s in all caps because I’m so proud that you’ve done this and I am extremely excited to do my best to ruin as many encounters as you’re willing to put in front of me (& maybe also thunderwave the rest of my party to death). 

@andijelly​ You’re at the helm of a huge, icon of a guild and I know how spooky that can be. You’ve had to navigate losing officers, gaining officers, dealing with the insanity that trying to plan and execute a good event can bring. You’ve got an amazing support net behind you, & the fact that they’re always so willing to help you out speaks volumes to your character and theirs. 

Thank you for putting up with me pestering you about things with grace. As a former major officer for a big, military style RP guild and an event planner in real life I often have Suggestions or Observations and you kindly listen to me every time I dump them in your lap. You’re going to rock that hat you’re making, just take it one stitch at a time and remember -- you can always rip back and fix your mistakes! Yarn is the most forgiving material.

@lylianwyatte​ We’ve not known each other very long but your excitement around RP and your willingness to reach out to literally anyone to start a thread or get them involved at whatever event is going on is refreshing. You’re such a bright and light personality that you’re a boon to any community space whether that’s a guild or in a discord. I’m happy the Owl found you, and that you engaged with me & some of my other spaces through them. 

@belillinafireseeker​ You are SO NICE. All the time. It might be the curse of being close enough to Canada that it’s just seeped into you from across the border, but it’s the trait of yours I immediately mention when new folks are asking about the who’s-who around the server. You’re another one of the major drivers of events on the server, and you’ve somehow managed to bridge yourself across two high-performance, high-event guilds and I am constantly impressed that you’re able to keep that up. 

@theconstructsworld​ You didn’t think you’d be able to write as much for the October Writing Challenge, but you really stuck to it and made sure to get something out on a daily basis. Life’s kept you away from the game for a while, but your posts really do pick up my day sometimes. I hope you’re able to come back soon, but in the meantime there’s always this terrible website & discord. Please keep writing as much as you’re able! 

@seraphai​ My crafty buddy <3. Your quilting is so impressive to me, it’s one of the fabric witchery crafts that I’ve yet to dive into and it makes my history loving heart so happy to see the blocks you’ve put together. It’s one of the handmade disciplines I really worry will die out over the next decade (maybe that’s a good resolution for me, huh? Just start). On the in-game, in-RP side of things our characters just sort of clicked and then we just sort of clicked. Chatting with you about our stories or what’s going on is a highlight of my day whenever we manage to find the time. I hope you’re able to get some good R&R over your upcoming holiday break, you’ve earned it in spades!

Alright, my brain is mush. I’m going to sign this off here and come up with more gratitude over the next few weeks so I can be mushy about more folks in my sphere in another (probably way too long) post. 

#<3 #other people are the reason I still play this game #or any games #I wouldn't be doing this without y'all

[ettadunham]

A Buffy rewatch 6x12 Doublemeat Palace

aka (too) real life horror (comedy)

Welcome to this dailyish (weekly? bi-weekly?) text post series where I will rewatch an episode of Buffy and go on an impromptu rant about it for an hour. Is it about one hyperspecific thing or twenty observations? 10 or 3k words? You don’t know! I don’t know!!! In this house we don’t know things.

And today’s hot take is that Doublemeat Palace is actually fun? Let’s talk about it.

One of the many things that I love about Buffy, is that when you ask people to pick a favorite or least favorite of the show, whether it’s an episode, season or character, the answers you’ll get will vary a lot. Well, alright, there’s usually a general consensus, and yes, Once More, With Feeling is most people’s favorite episode; but ask someone to pick their favorite season, and their answer may surprise you.

This variety is probably most apparent when it comes to generally disliked Buffy episodes. No matter how hated it may seem, how its rating is by any metrics, there is no Buffy episode without its fans. And those can come with or without the guilty pleasure label.

I’ve already planted my flag by episodes like I Robot, You Jane and Beer Bad. I especially got a lot out of the latter, not even gonna lie. Meanwhile I was genuinely surprised to find that some people really like Go Fish, an episode that’s about at the bottom of the barrel on my own list. But isn’t that kind of fascinating? Someone looked at the same episode I did, and got something completely different out of it. And we could probably see and understand each other’s points of view on it as well if we got right down to it. What a concept.

I know, I know, art is up for interpretation, shocking revelation made by Tumblr user ettadunham, and I am so not here to get into a rant about that right now. We’ll have plenty of opportunities to fire up that discussion later on, especially as my original intention here was just to lay back and appreciate the delicious weirdness of Doublemeat Palace.

Rolling back to that earlier point, this is for a lot of people is exactly that type of bottom of the barrel episode we mentioned before. Which means that it’s already had that underdog status going for it, as I sat down for my rewatch.

Well, actually, when I sat down I didn’t really remember that I was about to watch Doublemeat Palace, because somehow I’ve yet to memorize the complete Buffy episode list. Not gonna lie, I was mostly just expecting a general downer. Something focusing on Buffy and Willow’s misery with minimal Scoobies interactions, and so I was already thinking of how to compare that with season 5… But then the episode started with a scene between Xander, Anya and Willow discussing the Trio and the capitalist values of demons vs. supervillains, and I was already delighted.

And it only gets weirder from there. Buffy’s new job at the local fast food restaurant is presented as a horror story, and sure, there is eventually murder and monsters involved, but my favorite thing about that is that most of the horror comes from the actual life scenario itself. I’ve never worked at a fast food place, but the high turnover rate, the menial job, the manager who is trying to sell you on the company lines and brainwash you to believe that you actually want to work there 5 years from now… That stuff should be familiar for anyone ever working at a low-end corporate job.

I just love how the directing heightens that effect, as the camera tilts and focuses on the machines and the repetition, and the people spacing out. It’s a bit of quasi-horror comedy that also comes from the absurdity of life itself.

Buffy’s weird co-workers for instance? They all have their own distinct characters and I actually find them completely believable. If I was the guy who worked by that grill machine, and at some point had to go to the doctor to remove the grease from my ears, I’d probably think that that was a fun work story to tell too.

Buffy having at least five theories about what’s the “secret ingredient” in the burger - one of them being cats I guess – is also just the kind of morbid humor I’d expect in a place like that.

I guess if you go into this episode for the first time, you could get lost in the red herring of it all, or just wait for the demon reveal to explain the extremely high turnover. But for me, I found that the most enjoyable experience was to focus less on the literal meaning of Spike’s “this place will kill you”, and more on just how depressing the meat grind of corporate culture can be, especially for those at the bottom of its food chain.

Haha, see what I did there. Although as we learn from the plot twist, Doublemeat Palace was actually selling Impossible Whoppers before it was cool rather than an actual meat product. The real hipster of fast food chains.

I also just want to appreciate Buffy’s Captain America-like shirt (but with a heart!!) after she’s fired, and is about to start a corporate revolt. Bless her heart.

By the end of the episode of course, Buffy gets her job back and decides to stay on. Because money. Now there’s some real horror for you.

In other news, Amy has truly established herself as Willow’s Ethan-like foil for the series. She has all the angst, the grudge and chaotic energy for it for sure. It’s honestly a bit of a bummer that she didn’t get a lot more to do on the show from this point on. (I think she’s in the comics though? Again, it’s been a long time…)

Willow’s last words to her though. “If you’re really my friend, you better stay away from me. And if you really aren’t… you better stay away from me.” The change in her tone of voice by that last part! I’m scared and this isn’t even Murder Willow. Yet.

I also feel like pointing out that the whole eyes going dark phenomenon came up before in season 5 when she went after Glory and the whole magic trip she went on in Wrecked… But also in 6x04, when she and Tara were doing a spell to help Buffy fight some interdimensional ghost demon. At some point, Willow let go of Tara’s hand, her eyes went black, and she just said “solid”.

And the spell suddenly worked.

Based on that, and also some season 7 context, the whole black eyes thing seems to indicate whenever Willow is tapping into some greater, more volatile power. Or – especially in this case, where magic was clearly transferred to her – something that is outside of herself. More on that in season 7 probably.

Meanwhile Halfrek responded to Anya’s wedding invite in an insanely memorable scene of the show, and is now that friend who’s only relationship advice is “dump him”. Not that I can blame her per se...

Xander is clearly not over his own fears, and visibly reacts when Willow makes a comment about his impending happily ever after with Anya. Halfrek passive aggressively pointing out to Anya Xander’s attitude towards her feels a bit petty, but there’s truth to that as well. Anya may be weird, but some of Xander’s comments actually question whether or not he even likes her as a person.

That being said, that isn’t always the case. Xander is extremely sweet with Anya, including all her quirks throughout most of their relationship in season 5, I think. I would need to go back to those episodes to confirm this, but my running theory is that Xander’s fears regarding their upcoming wedding might have caused him to regress a bit in that regard. And as we know, Xander being the emotional one of their group tends to fail at introspection when it comes to his feelings.

Again, I’m not quite confident in that assessment of regression, so take that with a grain of salt. I would really need to rewatch season 5 again and keep more of an eye on their relationship, so this is mostly just a hunch for now.

Somehow, in the midst of all this, Dawn ends up being my lowkey MVP for the episode. She shows a lot of understanding towards her sister, as she laments that Buffy will probably be stuck in minimal-wage jobs for most of her life, because of her Slayer and other responsibilities. Meanwhile Dawn has much more freedom to choose – and that’s largely due to Buffy’s own personal sacrifices.

I feel like this is probably also the first instance we see Dawn truly interacting with Willow post-Wrecked, and it’s her walking up to Willow, asking her if she’s okay. Dawn Summers is precious, and good, and you can’t change my mind.

Now, who’s ready to get really fucking genuinely disturbed with our next episode?

#buffy rewatch 2k19 #btvs talk #btvs

[truthbeetoldmedia]

Shameless 9x13 “Lost” Review

Next week, the ninth season of Shameless will come to a close, and Emmy Rossum who plays Fiona will make her final exit (as far as we know). The seasons to come must be carried on the backs of the remaining Gallaghers we’ve come to know and love. But what does the future look like for those whose lives will continue to play out offscreen?

In the second to last episode of the season and Fiona’s onscreen story, we begin to get a glimpse at what her life may become, and how she might get out of the Southside in a more positive way than her brother Ian, who may show up again next season as teased by Cameron Monaghan, who plays him.

After being given an ultimatum by Lip, Fiona seems to wake up having done a complete 180. After helping an injured Frank get to the hospital, she meets with a public defender who tells her if she gets a job and attends AA, a jury may believe she’s contributing to society and overlook her previous felony when deciding how to rule. This is, of course, in relation to her punching a woman while drunk a few episodes back. Fiona follows the woman’s instructions, attending a meeting and getting a job at a gas station doing the overnight shift.

Kevin and Veronica get into their own legal trouble when the daycare they’ve sent twin daughters Gemma and Amy to discovers that they aren’t the same person. The nuns give them two options: Either they can pay a hefty fee, or Kevin can play Jesus in an upcoming pageant. He’ll need to drag an extremely heavy cross the 150 feet from the school to the church, but Kev agrees, thinly avoiding being charged with fraud.

Meanwhile, Lip chases a closed-off Tammi around town after discovering she’s going to see a doctor without him. Lip wants to support her and his unborn child, especially after her father showed up at his house questioning his motives, but Tammi doesn’t want any help making decisions regarding her and the baby. Eventually, she confides in Lip that she got tested for the BRCA gene, which will determine if she’s at high risk for developing breast cancer and if so, whether or not having children will decrease her risk. This is essentially where the conversation ends, as Lip can’t get much more out of Tammi.

Across town, Frank undergoes surgery after stumbling out of Fiona’s old building just as demolition starts. The hospital staff attempts to figure out how they can get him out as quickly as possible, as Frank has a reputation for stealing pills and not paying any of his bills.

At work, Carl faces an armed robber and wins by using his pent up anger from Kelly dumping him and beating him with various objects on the counter. When he gets back to the house, the bad blood between him and Debbie continues as she hangs out with Kelly. The two girls bond while shopping for military gear, as Kelly is about to head back to school. Feeling closer than ever to her, Debbie attempts to kiss Kelly as they’re cuddling on the couch. Unfortunately, her feelings are not reciprocated and she’s left feeling sad and a bit naive when Kelly decides to leave.

Though Debbie is heartbroken, Carl manages to cheer her up, and the two bond over their hatred for the girl who hurt both of them. It’s a nice moment between siblings especially after the strain that’s been on their relationship lately. Carl also tells his sister that he didn’t get into Westpoint, to which she offers a simple but sincere “Sorry.”

And all the while, Liam is at his friend’s house playing video games, watching movies, and eating homemade biscuits. Though his siblings have been texting and calling him all day, Liam is bitter that it’s taken them two days to notice he’s gone (I don’t blame you, Liam). So, he doesn’t answer any of them and continues to live lavishly with his buddy — which definitely beats staying in the Gallagher house.

While Fiona is working her first shift, Max comes into the store. He tells Fiona that the building she invested $100,000 in actually is going to be turned into a nursing home at some point in the next year, and that he wants to buy out her share. Stunned, Fiona can’t do much except agree to figure out logistics in the morning. It looks like this might be her first and last shift at the gas station.

So, it looks like Fiona isn’t going to leave Shameless in a cop car or a body bag after all. Throughout her emotional decline, it’s seemed like the eldest Gallagher sibling might not be able to pull herself together. Her siblings weren’t helping her, her friends weren’t helping her, and she certainly wasn’t helping herself. Now, though, Fiona has a chance that the audience thought would be handed to Frank through the Hobo Loco games — a surplus of money. And with the family just not the same as it once was, I won’t be surprised if Fiona decides to abandon the home she’s spent most of her life building.

In this episode, Fiona and Lip did finally have a conversation about getting back up and trying again. This particular conversation is extremely satisfying, but again, seems long overdue. Having been through an alcohol addiction and the recovery process from that addiction, there’s no reason Lip couldn’t have encouraged his sister to get up and try again when she got fired from her job for being drunk all the time on the clock.

And, sidenote, how is it that Fiona was spending her entire last paycheck on alcohol just last episode, but now seems to be having no trouble refraining from drinking? Even just one shot of Fiona looking at a bottle longingly for a few seconds could’ve made her crawl out of alcohol dependency more believable. Even if she isn’t actually an alcoholic, it’s hard for me to follow that she’s suddenly fine, going to an AA meeting and getting a job all within one episode.

This brings me back to my issue with the show’s pacing this season. There were so many episodes of Fiona walking around town drunk, interacting with a few people, going home and going to bed. All of this filler could’ve been replaced with actual plot points, like Fiona getting arrested and fired, a lot earlier. Then, she would’ve had this motivation to get better and we would’ve watched her struggle to do so. Unfortunately, we now have one more episode for a grand total of two in which Fiona is attempting to recover and get her life back together, and it’s being fast-tracked by a large sum of money. Can somebody say “rushed”?

Ignoring the pacing, this season has all around been fairly uneventful, sans Fiona and Lip’s storylines. Lip says he might get to see Xan in a few days, and Tammi might be keeping the baby. There’s a lot of what ifs right now, and a lot that I’m hoping the finale will resolve or at least raise the stakes of. I’m having trouble caring about Xan when there’s also the pregnant Tammi storyline, though even that is hard to care about when she’s so standoffish and argumentative. I feel like she and Lip are just going in circles about what’s going on with the baby, and I for one don’t know how much longer I can stay on this ride — I’m getting dizzy.

This episode felt like a lot more filler, Frank being given a completely new storyline that can’t go much of anywhere with just one episode left in the season, and Debbie and Carl resolving a petty fight over a girl. And then there’s Kev and V, picking up a long-abandoned storyline after Kev’s vasectomy provided a couple episodes of laughs and not much else. Even Liam, who’s been absent for a while now, spent the episode playing video games with his friend.

The highlight of 9x13 was Fiona being offered her $100,000 back. Though it’s out of nowhere, I guess we just have to accept that this is how Fiona is going to better her life — unless of course she gives it to Frank to help pay off his medical bills, but I somehow doubt that’ll happen.

In the preview for the finale, we see Fiona visiting Ian in prison and also sitting down with Lip, asking him to take care of Liam, presumably, for her. I’m glad that we’ll finally get some loose ends tied up and even see a familiar face before the season ends. I’m just having trouble figuring out what questions we’re going to be left with going into Season 10, besides maybe Tammi’s decision regarding her pregnancy.

Going into the season finale, I’m hoping and praying for a huge plot twist. With the relatively slow and uneventful nature of this season, it only makes sense that the finale would be totally unexpected and jaw-dropping. As a lot of people probably are, I’m hoping deep down that Jimmy/Steve will make his return to whisk Fiona away and start a new life with her. I’ve always been on the fence about them as a couple, but I think Fiona has shown us that she needs her life to be exciting. I’d love to see Jimmy/Steve come back as a better person, but still with that dash of recklessness that Fiona needs. Regardless of if this happens or not, I just hope Fiona finds adventure somewhere. All will be revealed next week, I suppose.

Shameless airs Sundays on Showtime at 9/8c.

Jessica’s episode rating: 🐝🐝.5

#Shameless #Lost

[yukipri]

Hi guys! I’ve started Patreon!

After years of stalling, I’m finally at the point where I think I’m ready to try this. I love creating and posting free content for you guys, but some of you have expressed interest in supporting me in the past, for which I am infinitely grateful.

I’ve been drawing pretty much full time for over a year now, often spending 10+ hours a day working on art content with rarely a single day of no drawing. I’ve been free loading at home and living off my savings from my previous job, and those savings have about run out. I wish I could just keep drawing and improving my content, but I’m at the point now where I either cut down on drawing time to make money, or find a way to at least partially support myself on art.

I want to keep the majority of my art public and continue posting as I have, and this is by no means an obligation. If viewing, sharing, commenting and supporting me is all you can do right now, I am more than immensely grateful to you. At the same time, if even less than 1% of my followers pledged $1 a month, I’d be able to continue drawing without worrying about money. While again, most of my art will be public, I’ve added additional perks as thank yous to those of you who do decide to support me.

FIRST OFF: What is Patreon? - Patreon is a platform where creators of all sorts can get support from their fans to help continue creating their content. It’s a means of turning art into livable income. The supporters, called patrons, pledge to pay a certain amount every month, and the amount you pledge can vary.

For me, you can pledge as little as $1 a month, and it will help so much because it can really add up! Each “Tier” of pledges, which are determined by the amount of support you give me, come with different perks (they all build up, so you get all lower tier perks too!), my way of saying thank you for supporting me. Think of these less as you’re buying this content, and more as you like my art and want to support me, and these are bonuses. You may of course upgrade, downgrade, or stop pledging the next month.

I’m new to this platform and am still learning how to use it, and for now I’ve put some sample content on there. I have a ton queued and it’ll be updating faster than any of my other social media because I have a lot of content queued up. I have a surprising amount of content that I haven’t shared and never planned on posting publicly, and this is definitely a place to dump all of that (including nsfw LOL).

I don’t want to be a financial burden on anyone, but if anyone would be interested in supporting my work and seeing me continue to produce art, I would appreciate your support so much. Please check it out! ^ ^

MY PATREON HERE.

A more detailed description of all of my Tiers and their perks listed below the cut, but also viewable on my Patreon itself.

More detailed descriptions of tier rewards

Thanks so much for considering becoming my patron! I tried to be as descriptive as possible while remaining concise in describing the rewards for the tiers, but here's a more detailed rundown.

I'm still learning how to use Patreon myself, so apologies for any mistakes I may make! I'll do my best to make sure any changes to rewards will be clearly communicated in advance.

$1 - Bronze medal Tier

Thank you so much for supporting my work! You have my sincerest gratitude.

View WIPs, abandoned work, sketches, and unposted content not currently publicly available but may be at a later date.

View higher resolution less watermarked versions of some content, including Patron requests.

There will be 2-3 posts of the above types of content weekly.

NSFW illustrations, at least once every other week on Friday. These will be explicit NSFW and will never be available to the public.

Have access to my private patreon community.

Be able to view some of my publicly available art on a better platform. Because let's admit it, Tumblr is oftentimes NOT the best image viewing platform...

All art will be low-resolution + with my url.

$5 - Silver medal Tier

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS PLUS

NSFW Comics - Some explicit NSFW, but with some short story for context! Almost all of these will be set in my Future!Verse ABO AU, though many will be vague enough to imagine out of context. Will be posted at least once every other week on Friday.

Be able to vote on polls, limited only to patrons this tier and above. Types of polls may include choosing what I draw, or general opinion polls that will influence upcoming content!

Be able to submit one request per month. I will choose one of the submitted requests from the pool to draw!

Art process/tutorials! This includes being able to see my sketches, lineart, and flats prior to their completed versions, and possible step by steps and explanations of specific techniques I use. I'll explain my art process to you in depth! ^ ^

$20 - Gold medal Tier

SERIOUSLY? THANK YOU!

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS PLUS

Advance pages of my Inferno Yuri No Ice AU comic. I will be posting these to this Tier as I finish drawing them. While they'll be low resolution and watermarked, these pages will not be available to the public until I'm done with the entire chapter. The goal is at least one page per week!

Story spoilers! Length text headcanons of untold story for my AUs which will only be available to the public and lower tiers when I make them into comics, which may not be for a very long time!

Access to my much higher resolution, less watermarked versions of my comics.They will still have my url on the side, but it will no longer obscure the images. As you may or may not know, I've had a LOT of problems with art theft and am especially protective of my comics I hope to one day sell hard copies of. I trust you to protect my work, and grant you advance access to these HQ images. They'll be sent to you in a link at the beginning of the following month.

Early access to unreleased concept art of my AUs such as costume designs and world building for the Inferno AU and Future!Verse ABO AU. These may or may not ever be available to the public, but either way you'll be able to view them way in advance!

Submit as many requests as you want to the monthly request pool to up your chances of yours being chosen!

Get first notification when new merchandise is available in my store. Many of these items will be available in EXTREMELY limited quantities (single digits) and will likely take a long time to restock if they ever do at all. Get your hands on them before they're available to the public! They'll be available to lower Tiers in order after this Tier.

$50 - Legend Tier

...Seriously????? ;A; I, I just...thank you.

This tier is primarily just for people with excess $$ who want to support me and my art, and I can't think of much else to offer but my sincerest thanks ;A;

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS PLUS

A monthly physical postcard of my art sent to your address with a personal hand written thank you note from me....

May include some surprise freebies! ;D

$100 - What is wrong with you Tier

I highly doubt anyone will choose this, but just so the option's there...but seriously, while I can't express how grateful I am that you're helping me live through just my art, I genuinely don't think I'm worth it. >.<; Thank you so much for your support, and I'll do my best not to let you down.

This tier is primarily just for people with excess $$ who want to support me and my art, and I can't think of much else to offer but my sincerest thanks ;A;

ALL PREVIOUS AWARDS

The monthly postcard will be sent in an envelope!

I will also send a hand-drawn sketch of a character of your choice!

May include some surprise freebies! ;D

Thank you again for supporting me, and please let me know if you have any questions!

#YukiPri rambles #Patreon #YOI #Inferno:YuriNoIce #Future!Verse ABO AU #not bothering to tag much since the external link will hide it in tags anyway ^ ^; #guys I'm SO NERVOUS #people have been asking me about patreon for as early as three years ago #Finally doing it #*prays but has low expectations*

[saeranoppa]

hiraeth pt.1

Warning: Spoilers

Jumin/MC (you)

pt. 2 | pt. 3

genre: angst + other stuff lol

Also, thank you @sinfulinsecret for helping me sort out my thoughts and shaping this fic (otherwise it would’ve been a bigger mess than it already is).

A/N: This work is set in a world in which everything at Mint Eye actually happened (V’s dead, Saeran’s back, Saeyoung quit the agency, Rika’s in Alaska). But Seven and MC (reader insert) stayed best friends, they were always friends. This happens a year and a half after the main story.

          Saeran was lying down on the couch, eyes glued to the screen of his Nimtendo DS. Deft fingers moved from one button to another, the sounds from the device being the only ones filling the room. You were sitting on the opposite couch to his, just watching the other twin play, waiting for Saeyoung to come with a bowl of Honey Buddha Chips.           You were currently at Saeyoung’s place to plan some stuff out for the upcoming RFA party.

           “What are you thinking? You lost or something?” you were indeed lost in though until the redhead’s voice snapped you out of your reverie.

           “Took you long enough,” you teased.

          Seven simply scoffed and dumped the bowl between your crossed legs before letting himself fall on the couch right next to you. 

          “You should feel honored by my fabulous presce- OUCH!” he exclaimed in an indignant tone of voice when you pinched his cheek.

          “You’re really really smart but like… you can be so dumb sometimes,” you wiggled your eyebrows at him and stuck your tongue out. 

          He let out a soft chuckle and threw some chips at you, making you gasp loudly. You eyed him, then Saeran with a happy gleam in your eyes and suddenly you were reminded of the events that happened a year and a half ago, your throat suddenly feeling tight.

          As if on cue the man next to you poked your cheek gently as a concerned frown adorned his face. He was such a great friend.

          “What’s wrong, (y/n)?” he said. 

          You bit your bottom lip, unable to lie to his face, “I just thought of what happened back then… I just… I’m happy that you were reunited with your brother but even though I didn’t know him as long as you did… V just deserved so much better.”

          Your voice was quiet enough for Saeran not overhear your conversation. Seven’s eyes immediately found your own and you could feel the guilt overflowing his body. 

          “But, it wasn’t anyone else’s fault but Rika’s,” you added, “She refused help, she abused V, she corrupted Saeran. It’s just… It sucks I guess.”

          You grabbed Seven’s hand and gave it a comforting squeeze before looking over at Saeran who still had his eyes glued to his game. You were truly glad that the twins were able to reunite. They both deserved it.

          Seven nodded once before sighing and standing up, beckoning you to follow him. You brushed the crumbs from the chips off your lap and followed your friend into his room. You noticed that there was his car-shaped bed, a couple of bookshelves, a nightstand, a TV, and some stars glued to the ceiling. His room was simple and quite messy.                     ‘He truly is like a child,’ you thought.

          Saeyoung grabbed something that looked like a photo album from his bookshelf. It was weird. You never took him as the person to have photo albums.           He walked towards his bed and sat down, placing the album on his lap.

          “Well? Come in,” he dusted off the album then proceeded to open it.  

          You closed the door behind you as you made your way into his room and towards his bed, “So, what’s that?”

          You let yourself fall next to him, just like he did a few minutes ago on the couch. Your eyes slowly moved towards the item on his lap, a picture of the original RFA adorning the first page. There was Yoosung with his brown, short hair; then Jumin, his expression as stoic as ever, your eyes lingered on his face for a bit longer. Zen was right next to him, a sweet smile adorning his undeniably gorgeous face and Saeyoung was standing next to Yoosung with an uncharacteristic serious expression, and right in the middle were… V and Rika, smiling right at the camera.

          “Why are you showing me this?” you said in a small voice.

          “I wanted to show you what the RFA was like, what V was like. You guys are truly special for me and I needed something to prove that this all wasn’t a dream; therefore I made this photo album. Now, I know you profusely dislike Rika but I think it’s a good idea to talk about this. For me, for you, and eventually for everyone in the RFA,” he mumbled the last part.

          Jumin and Seven didn’t want the others to know about the things that went down at Mint Eye and you disagreed instantly but promised to keep it a secret for the time being. 

           You two then started talking about the past parties and some the funny things that happened in the messenger. It wasn’t as lively as it was now but it didn’t mean they weren’t funny.

           Then Seven turned the page, revealing a picture of V, Rika, and Jumin sitting on a couch with Elizabeth the 3rd resting on your fiancé’s lap. You smiled as you saw Jumin in casual clothing, his hair slightly messy, a small smile adorning his face while his hand idly rested on Elizabeth’s back. All in all, he looked adorable. 

           “Oh! I remember that day!” Saeyoung pointed at Jumin’s face, grinning slightly.

          “What happened that day?” you tilted your head slightly in curiosity as you noticed Saeyoung’s eyes started shining.

          “That’s the day Jumin got Elly!” he grinned widely and looked over at you.

          “Oh, my! Really!? He looks really happy…” you trailed off, your mind suddenly filled with thoughts of the man you loved with your entire being.  

          ‘He must be at work right now,’ you thought.

          “So what exactly happened!? How did he react!? Please tell me everything, Saeyoung!” you were so eager to hear about his adorable reaction.

          “Well, I wasn’t there there but they sent this photo to the messenger. But I know what happened. It was Rika who gave her to him. They were at V’s apartment and he was really happy, even though he kept saying it wasn’t a big deal,” he rolled his eyes.

          “Wait. So, Rika gave Elizabeth the 3rd to him?” you weren’t exactly jealous but it made you feel uneasy. Still you were glad that Elizabeth was there to keep company to Jumin before you did.

5 p.m., Outside of Zen’s apartment

           You waited for your friend to come out eagerly. He’d promised that he would take you for a ride on his motorcycle, despite Jumin’s constant reprimanding whenever you brought the subject up. Afterwards you two would just hang out at a bar and talk. And you did exactly that. 

           Time flew by as fast as it did with Seven. You had a great time riding your friend’s motorcycle. It was one of the biggest rushes you’ve ever felt in your life, besides those experienced behind closed doors at your lover’s apartment.

           You lost track of time completely when you were drinking and chatting. Zen always had been a great person to talk to. He was the one person you could always go to for advice and, to be honest, he was pretty fun.

11 p.m., Jumin’s penthouse

           Saying that today had been a stressful day would be an understatement. One of the big deals he was working on had been dropped without previous notice, causing chaos to erupt in the office. That specific deal would’ve been of great use for the company.

           He stepped into your shared apartment and was immediately greeted by Elizabeth the 3rd’s meowing followed by an affectionate rub against his ankles. The man felt suffocated and fatigued, he had a headache and wanted nothing more than to come home to you and unwind.

           That’s when he noticed you weren’t home.

           ‘That’s strange,’ he thought, checking his phone to see if he had any missed calls or messages from you after he noticed you only left a note that spelled “It’s my day off so I’ll be back later! Love you!”

           Just when he thought his day couldn’t get any worse.

1 a.m., Jumin’s apartment

           Crap. It was really late and you just realized you had over 5 missed calls from Jumin.

           As quietly as you possibly could you unlocked this apartment door and stepped inside. You closed the door and placed the keys in your coat’s right pocket.  

           The moment you stepped into the living room he was there. Arms crossed with posture that screamed rage. His face was the most emotionless he’s ever directed at you in a while.  

           ‘Crap,’ was the only thing you could think.

           You only stood there, like a deer caught in the headlights, staring at him. You felt awful. It was late; you totally forgot to call him or text him because you had such a great time. That was no excuse, though. You took a deep breath; ready to wholeheartedly apologize when he held a hand up.

           “Don’t even bother. Where were you?” his voice was like ice and it struck at your heart. He never spoke this way to you.

           But you still couldn’t even bring yourself to argue, not when you had some fault here, “I was with Seven organizing something for the party and then I hung out with Zen.”

           Anger mixed with annoyance flashed across his face, but just as soon as it appeared, it was gone. You sighed and started walking up to your fiancé only for him to turn around and walk away, heading into his study.

           “I have some work to do, go to bed,” those were the last words he said before he shut the door behind him.

Three days later, Jumin’s apartment

           No “good mornings” or  “goodnights” had been exchanged, no kisses or embraces, no loving words had left his lips ever since he shut the door of his study that night. Whatever attempt at a conversation you had was only filled by his ice-cold tone of voice accompanied by his stoic face and your hesitant voice. Every time you tried to touch him he successfully managed to evade you. 

           You’d heard from Jaehee what had happened with the other company and the deal that was dropped. You were sure that work would be extremely heavy for the next week at the very least and that you being home so late that night only made added up to his frustrations.  But still, you had apologized for not texting him about your whereabouts that day. He’d dismissed you.

           He had just gotten home and you were set on fixing things. You were standing in the hallway that connected the entrance with the living room, a shy smile adorning your face. You tried your best to hide your anxieties but it was proving more difficult when his cold gaze met your own.

           “Hello, love!” you walked over to him and tried to help him with his coat only to have him step back and do it himself.

           “Hello,” he said nonchalantly before walking past you and towards the living room, immediately picking Elizabeth he 3rd who had been resting on the couch. His eyes softened as he stroked her soft fur and you only felt your hurt growing.

           You shook your head in an attempt to clear your thoughts and made your way towards the couch, letting yourself fall right next to him, startling Elizabeth in the process, which made you feel a pang of guilt.

           “I made dinner tonight! I thought you would be hungry and I wanted to have some quality time with my soon-to-be husband!” you said in the brightest tone you could physically muster but the only thing you received was an angry scowl from him.

           “Can’t you be more careful? You scared Elizabeth the 3rd,” he looked back down at the feline, “Plus, I already ate at the office.” 

           That. Was. It.

           You were tired of this attitude of his. It was too painful. You missed a man that was right in front of you. You knew how difficult he could be at times but this was just ridiculous. What you had done was wrong but you apologized and he still acted this way? No. You wouldn’t have it anymore. You would never apologize for actually being with your friends and having fun.

You stood from your spot on the couch, crossed your arms, and your “happy girlfriend” façade broke, only revealing raw hurt. 

           “Okay, what is your problem? I’ve been trying my best here, Jumin. I know you’re trying to push me away. But guess what? It’s not happening. I want to make this right and you don’t seem to give a shit. I went out with my friends. So what!? I already said I was sorry! I already apologized for not texting you because unlike you I can see past other people’s mistakes and forgive.”

           His hair covered those dark eyes of his and you could see his entire body tensing, “Stop being ridiculous, (y/n).”

           At that he stood up and tried to walk past you but you grabbed his suit’s sleeve and he stopped in his tracks. 

           Slowly, he turned to face you and you were met with a look that screamed annoyance. You felt a knot in your throat as you fought hard to hold back a sob that was so desperately fighting to slip out.

           “What?” he raised an eyebrow and you just couldn’t take it anymore. 

           “Stop that! Stop this! It’s not my fault that you’re frustrated about work! Because instead of actually talking about it to me you decide to use a petty excuse to let out your frustrations on me. I know what happened! A deal was dropped and it screwed everything up! How is that my fault, Jumin? I just want to hear you out and support you and love you and you’re making it impossible!” those words jabbed at his heart and his pride.

           “Stop trying to act like you know me. You’ve only been here for a year and a half. Elizabeth has been here longer. What makes you believe you’re entitled to decide what I’m feeling?” he snatched his sleeve back and his right hand absentmindedly fiddled with it, “While you were out and about messing around with Zen I was trying hard to provide for you. And guess who was here for me? Elizabeth the 3rd. You are…” he trailed off when he noticed that hot tears started falling down your cheeks. You were biting your lip hard, blood starting to trickle down.

          He was still fuming, his feelings were a mess at the moment and the only thing he could fully register was your back slowly heading into the spare bedroom, shutting the door close behind you along with your emotions.

#mystic messenger #mysme #mystic messenger fic #mysme fic #mysme angst #rfa #cfic #hiraeth #jumin han #jumin #idk #lolol

[i-just-like-books-and-stuff]

Brain dump, sorry

I'm new to tumblr, so I'm not sure what blogging is or how to do it right, but nobody I know is aware of my blog so I'm just gonna word-vomit.

I'm turning 21 in 2 days and its stressing me out. I'm depressed because I have an upcoming birthday and I don't like that, but can't control it? I moved to North Dakota from Mississippi with my spouse and we're just now starting to get settled in to our house, both of our cats are comfortable, and we have just enough money for our food and bills, so I know I should be content. We have everything we need and live in a community that's super friendly. But I'm depressed because I don't really have any friends here, all of the people I went to high school with had big celebrations for their birthdays with lots of friends, and then small ones with their families. I grew up having birthday parties, and I am extremely grateful for that, because my parents tried really hard to make sure I was happy, that I got the presents I asked for, and that I could spend time with my friends for my birthday. Because they raised me like that, I obviously got accustomed to it. They would tell me my birthdays would get smaller as I got older but I was fine with that because I understood why. I have lots of siblings and I know money grows tighter when you become a teenager because the things you need and want are generally more expensive. I was happy with a little walmart cake and maybe flowers from my dad if that's all I got, you know? I didnt need a big party.

But when I turned 17, it's like a switch flipped in my parents. They let me have a party, it was a small bonfire in my backyard with a handful of friends at my new school, but the entire day my mom was drinking (like, wine at 8 in the morning, it was out of character even for her, and she has a pretty intense alcohol dependency) and making comments about how inconvenient my party was, that I asked for too much, that I was acting spoiled for wanting a party when I was too old for one, and a lot of other things. It was really painful because she had never acted like that before, especially not on my birthday. My dad was pretty vacant too. He spent most of his time running errands or staying inside. It was like neither of them wanted me there, let alone a party. Every year after that, they haven't done a single thing for my birthday. If it hadn't been for my little brother telling me happy birthday in front of them, they probably never would have even acknowledged it. Since I'm now married and moved out, they've suddenly started becoming more affectionate which is super confusing for me, because the last 4 years of my life they treated me like an inconvenience or a chore. All emotional support, parental guidance, and love was just gone. They both drink a lot but my mother is a high functioning alcoholic at this point. They keep saying they're excited for my birthday this year but I dont understand why. They told me they couldn't afford to get me anything, not even a card. Disappointing but not surprising. Then my little brother texted me one day saying he was annoyed because my dad impulse bought a hot tub (??) and he was making him help move it. That hurt a lot because they said they couldn't afford a card for me but they can afford a hot tub. I don't know. I dont want to sound ungrateful or spoiled or materialistic, because I did grow up in a better situation than a lot of people, but the past 4 years have been emotional whiplash for me, and I'm a lot more insecure and damaged for it.

Long story short, I'm dreading my birthday. Several people have been trying to hype me up for it, a couple even offering to take me to my first bar, but I'm scared they're all going to back out last minute. I'm scared my family will ignore my birthday since I dont live them now. Birthdays are important, and I was raised that a person's birthday is really special. So why do my parents not care anymore? What did I do wrong?

Any advice or even nice words are welcome. I don't want anybody to think poorly of me because of miscommunication so if something I said upset you, dm me and I can try to explain it better. Thanks for reading if you did. I just needed to vent.

#rant #long reads #birthday blues

[mbaljeetsingh]

So, You Wanna Submit a Proposal to Speak at an Event

You’ve been scouring the web for upcoming events. You’ve subscribed to Developer Avocados and you’ve bookmarked conferences.css-tricks.com. And now you’ve found a call for proposals (CFP) that you can’t wait to enter. You quickly fill out the online form and your pinky races towards the Enter button...

Stop. Take a deep breath. And move slowly away from the keyboard.

As a conference organizer, I’ve gone through hundreds — if not thousands — of speaking proposals. While many are excellent, there are always a bunch that show a profound misunderstanding of the event, audience, and duties of a speaker. These are the ones that immediately get dumped onto the "No Thanks" list on my Trello board. And, as a regular speaker, I’ve learned more than a few things about getting proposals accepted.

While there’s no magic bullet for fast tracking your talk, there are a number of habits you can develop and questions you can ask yourself before hitting "submit" to improve your chances of getting invited to events. If you’re a fan of checklists, I’ve put one together to guide you through the process of submitting a proposal.

It’s even available on CodePen. 😉

See the Pen The CFP Checklist by Jason Rodriguez (@rodriguezcommaj) on CodePen.

Start with some research

The first thing before submitting a proposal is to research the heck out of the event.

There are a ton of events out there, each with its own unique audience and vibe. Some are big, some are small; some have huge budgets and some are bootstrapped and brand new. Your first task as a potential speaker is to learn as much as you can about the event to make sure that you’re a good fit for it and the audience. There are a few ways to do this.

First, check out the website to get a feel for the event. See when and where it is, check out past years (if there are any), and read every last bit of copy on the site. A few things to keep an eye out for: an FAQ page, a CFP page, info about sponsorships or speaking opportunities, lists of past speakers, and a hashtag. The event hashtag is important, as that will allow you to check out hype and past attendee experiences on Twitter, as well to as get a sense of excitement about the upcoming event. If there isn’t a hashtag, or all of the comments about the event are terrible, then perhaps it’s time to move on to the next CFP.

Next, do a search on YouTube, Speaker Deck, SlideShare, and Notist for past talks and slide decks. These will give you a great idea of what to expect at the event and what kinds of talks go over well with the audience.

After you’ve completed a first pass of research, it’s time to answer some key questions:

When and where is the event?

Who’s organizing it?

Do they have a code of conduct?

Do they value diversity and inclusion?

Are they looking for specific topics or proposals?

Do they cover travel/hotel?

Do they pay speakers?

Most importantly: who is their audience?

You may not be able to find an answer to all of these, but try your hardest. Feel free to reach out to organizers — most are happy to answer questions for potential speakers, and the more you know, the better you’ll be able to determine whether or not you’re a good fit for their event.

Add focus your idea

After you’ve done your research, it’s time to focus in on your proposal idea. Chances are good that you’re hunting around for events with a talk idea already in mind, but even so, you should take a few steps to make it’s as compelling for organizers as possible.

The main question you want to answer when developing a talk idea is, "What will attendees get out of my session?" This is where knowing about the audience and event — all of that research — pays off.

Far too many would-be speakers submit proposals for the wrong reasons. Many think of events as marketing and sales opportunities for their business. Others are looking to make a name for themselves so they can start charging on the speakers circuit. But the best talks come from sharing personal experiences, challenges, and solutions to problems you’ve experienced in your own work.

By researching the audience, you can determine what’s likely to be important to them. You get a feel for their challenges and interests, and you can think more deeply about how your experiences and skills can best serve them. Try to forget about the actual organizers and making a pitch to them, and instead focus all of your energy on clearly communicating how attendees’ lives and work will be improved after they sit in on your session.

A great exercise is to list out the key things attendees would take away from your talk. Try to focus on 3-5 things that people can put to work when they get back home. Making them as actionable as possible is a fantastic idea. While some proposals are all about inspiration, wrapping practical advice into inspirational examples is an excellent way to make that inspiration stick in people’s minds.

Another suggestion is to run your idea by colleagues, friends, or your partner. Put together a two-minute summary, stand up in front of them, and give them the ol’ elevator pitch. Not only will this force you to add a clear focus to your idea, but it’ll let you know if you’re ready to get up on stage in front of strangers. If you can’t give a short talk in a few minutes now, then you should probably sit back down and prepare some more before answering that call for proposals.

Craft your proposal into something worth reading

Finally, it’s time to craft your proposal and get it ready to submit.

Most CFPs consist of an online form. They can range from a few questions to multiple pages of inputs, but you’ll be filling something out for organizers to review. Although some speakers are able to fly through the forms and quickly hit "Submit," I’d recommend prepping your CFPs outside of the form first.

Open up a text file or make a note in your app of choice on one side of your screen and the CFP form on the other. Go through each field in the form and write down your response in your notes. Putting together a rough draft outside of the form gives you the opportunity to think through your answers and edit them until they clearly reflect your focused idea and the value for attendees. What’s better is that you can take that note and share it with someone you trust and respect. Gather feedback from them and use it to further refine your proposal.

A lot of CFP ask for supporting materials. These can be videos showing that you are a clear communicator, links to your website or social media accounts showing your personal interests, or even slides from previous talks. Instead of fumbling around and potentially timing out the CFPs form (and having to start all over), collect all of those materials in your note or a folder on your computer. If you’re a seasoned speaker, make sure you curate your materials to show your best and most recent talks.

Submit and wait

OK. You’ve done the research. You’ve focused your idea. You’ve even drafted the answers to the CFP, pitched the idea to your partner in the kitchen, and collected feedback from a co-worker or two. It’s time to scratch that itch and submit your proposal.

Go back to the CFP form, open up your notes and resources, and start copying and pasting. Take your time to work through the form and triple-check that you’ve filled everything out. Attach any supporting materials (seriously, how many times have we all sent an email that says "See attached file" without actually attaching anything?) and take a deep breath. Scroll to the top and read through every response as many times as you need to before you feel comfortable submitting.

Now, press "Submit." Do a little celebration, take another deep breath, and move on with your life.

It can take a long time for organizers to process submissions and figure out an agenda. Try to be patient. It’s tempting to email organizers and ask about the status of your proposal, but resist the urge. Organizers are extraordinarily busy — with the conference and their full-time jobs — and should be left to review proposals instead of fielding emails from impatient potential speakers.

A good organizer will get back to you when they’re ready and let you know the status of your submission — good or bad. If they don’t, chances are the event wasn’t that great to begin with. The key thing is to try to forget about your submission as much as possible (while still keeping the event on your calendar, just in case) and focus on more important things. Not only will this ease your anxiety but you’ll be in for a wonderful surprise when your proposal is accepted.

Speaking at events can be incredibly rewarding. Sure, it’s massively time-consuming and, depending on your disposition, extremely stressful, but it’s an excellent way to build connections and help others in the industry. While you could start spamming every event with proposals, your chances of being invited to speak all hinge on the amount of preparation you put into your submission. Taking the time to make sure you’re a good fit for an event, that you understand the audience, and that you have a focus and are able to clearly communicate your idea will up the odds of you standing onstage, clicking through slides, and (hopefully) solving some problems for the folks that paid to be there.

I’m definitely not the first person to write about answering CFPs. There are a ton of good tips out there for crafting the perfect proposal. Here are a few of my favorites:

Write a Good Abstract, from Notist

How to Find Ideas for Your Talk, from Notist

What Your Conference Proposal is Missing, from Sarah Mei

How to Rock the Call for Papers and Get Your Talk Picked, from Jono Bacon

My Presentation Workflow and Challenges, from Lara Hogan

Demystifying Public Speaking, from Lara Hogan

Conference Speaking Like a Boss, from Jennifer Wadella

Finally, if you have any hesitation about not being "good enough" to speak at conferences, read this excellent post from Sara Wachter-Boettcher. Then start crafting that perfect proposal.

The post So, You Wanna Submit a Proposal to Speak at an Event appeared first on CSS-Tricks.

via CSS-Tricks http://bit.ly/2VZde1T

#IFTTT #Feedly

[suzanneshannon]

So, You Wanna Submit a Proposal to Speak at an Event

You’ve been scouring the web for upcoming events. You’ve subscribed to Developer Avocados and you’ve bookmarked conferences.css-tricks.com. And now you’ve found a call for proposals (CFP) that you can’t wait to enter. You quickly fill out the online form and your pinky races towards the Enter button...

Stop. Take a deep breath. And move slowly away from the keyboard.

As a conference organizer, I’ve gone through hundreds — if not thousands — of speaking proposals. While many are excellent, there are always a bunch that show a profound misunderstanding of the event, audience, and duties of a speaker. These are the ones that immediately get dumped onto the "No Thanks" list on my Trello board. And, as a regular speaker, I’ve learned more than a few things about getting proposals accepted.

While there’s no magic bullet for fast tracking your talk, there are a number of habits you can develop and questions you can ask yourself before hitting "submit" to improve your chances of getting invited to events. If you’re a fan of checklists, I’ve put one together to guide you through the process of submitting a proposal.

It’s even available on CodePen. 😉

See the Pen The CFP Checklist by Jason Rodriguez (@rodriguezcommaj) on CodePen.

Start with some research

The first thing before submitting a proposal is to research the heck out of the event.

There are a ton of events out there, each with its own unique audience and vibe. Some are big, some are small; some have huge budgets and some are bootstrapped and brand new. Your first task as a potential speaker is to learn as much as you can about the event to make sure that you’re a good fit for it and the audience. There are a few ways to do this.

First, check out the website to get a feel for the event. See when and where it is, check out past years (if there are any), and read every last bit of copy on the site. A few things to keep an eye out for: an FAQ page, a CFP page, info about sponsorships or speaking opportunities, lists of past speakers, and a hashtag. The event hashtag is important, as that will allow you to check out hype and past attendee experiences on Twitter, as well to as get a sense of excitement about the upcoming event. If there isn’t a hashtag, or all of the comments about the event are terrible, then perhaps it’s time to move on to the next CFP.

Next, do a search on YouTube, Speaker Deck, SlideShare, and Notist for past talks and slide decks. These will give you a great idea of what to expect at the event and what kinds of talks go over well with the audience.

After you’ve completed a first pass of research, it’s time to answer some key questions:

When and where is the event?

Who’s organizing it?

Do they have a code of conduct?

Do they value diversity and inclusion?

Are they looking for specific topics or proposals?

Do they cover travel/hotel?

Do they pay speakers?

Most importantly: who is their audience?

You may not be able to find an answer to all of these, but try your hardest. Feel free to reach out to organizers — most are happy to answer questions for potential speakers, and the more you know, the better you’ll be able to determine whether or not you’re a good fit for their event.

Add focus your idea

After you’ve done your research, it’s time to focus in on your proposal idea. Chances are good that you’re hunting around for events with a talk idea already in mind, but even so, you should take a few steps to make it’s as compelling for organizers as possible.

The main question you want to answer when developing a talk idea is, "What will attendees get out of my session?" This is where knowing about the audience and event — all of that research — pays off.

Far too many would-be speakers submit proposals for the wrong reasons. Many think of events as marketing and sales opportunities for their business. Others are looking to make a name for themselves so they can start charging on the speakers circuit. But the best talks come from sharing personal experiences, challenges, and solutions to problems you’ve experienced in your own work.

By researching the audience, you can determine what’s likely to be important to them. You get a feel for their challenges and interests, and you can think more deeply about how your experiences and skills can best serve them. Try to forget about the actual organizers and making a pitch to them, and instead focus all of your energy on clearly communicating how attendees’ lives and work will be improved after they sit in on your session.

A great exercise is to list out the key things attendees would take away from your talk. Try to focus on 3-5 things that people can put to work when they get back home. Making them as actionable as possible is a fantastic idea. While some proposals are all about inspiration, wrapping practical advice into inspirational examples is an excellent way to make that inspiration stick in people’s minds.

Another suggestion is to run your idea by colleagues, friends, or your partner. Put together a two-minute summary, stand up in front of them, and give them the ol’ elevator pitch. Not only will this force you to add a clear focus to your idea, but it’ll let you know if you’re ready to get up on stage in front of strangers. If you can’t give a short talk in a few minutes now, then you should probably sit back down and prepare some more before answering that call for proposals.

Craft your proposal into something worth reading

Finally, it’s time to craft your proposal and get it ready to submit.

Most CFPs consist of an online form. They can range from a few questions to multiple pages of inputs, but you’ll be filling something out for organizers to review. Although some speakers are able to fly through the forms and quickly hit "Submit," I’d recommend prepping your CFPs outside of the form first.

Open up a text file or make a note in your app of choice on one side of your screen and the CFP form on the other. Go through each field in the form and write down your response in your notes. Putting together a rough draft outside of the form gives you the opportunity to think through your answers and edit them until they clearly reflect your focused idea and the value for attendees. What’s better is that you can take that note and share it with someone you trust and respect. Gather feedback from them and use it to further refine your proposal.

A lot of CFP ask for supporting materials. These can be videos showing that you are a clear communicator, links to your website or social media accounts showing your personal interests, or even slides from previous talks. Instead of fumbling around and potentially timing out the CFPs form (and having to start all over), collect all of those materials in your note or a folder on your computer. If you’re a seasoned speaker, make sure you curate your materials to show your best and most recent talks.

Submit and wait

OK. You’ve done the research. You’ve focused your idea. You’ve even drafted the answers to the CFP, pitched the idea to your partner in the kitchen, and collected feedback from a co-worker or two. It’s time to scratch that itch and submit your proposal.

Go back to the CFP form, open up your notes and resources, and start copying and pasting. Take your time to work through the form and triple-check that you’ve filled everything out. Attach any supporting materials (seriously, how many times have we all sent an email that says "See attached file" without actually attaching anything?) and take a deep breath. Scroll to the top and read through every response as many times as you need to before you feel comfortable submitting.

Now, press "Submit." Do a little celebration, take another deep breath, and move on with your life.

It can take a long time for organizers to process submissions and figure out an agenda. Try to be patient. It’s tempting to email organizers and ask about the status of your proposal, but resist the urge. Organizers are extraordinarily busy — with the conference and their full-time jobs — and should be left to review proposals instead of fielding emails from impatient potential speakers.

A good organizer will get back to you when they’re ready and let you know the status of your submission — good or bad. If they don’t, chances are the event wasn’t that great to begin with. The key thing is to try to forget about your submission as much as possible (while still keeping the event on your calendar, just in case) and focus on more important things. Not only will this ease your anxiety but you’ll be in for a wonderful surprise when your proposal is accepted.

Speaking at events can be incredibly rewarding. Sure, it’s massively time-consuming and, depending on your disposition, extremely stressful, but it’s an excellent way to build connections and help others in the industry. While you could start spamming every event with proposals, your chances of being invited to speak all hinge on the amount of preparation you put into your submission. Taking the time to make sure you’re a good fit for an event, that you understand the audience, and that you have a focus and are able to clearly communicate your idea will up the odds of you standing onstage, clicking through slides, and (hopefully) solving some problems for the folks that paid to be there.

I’m definitely not the first person to write about answering CFPs. There are a ton of good tips out there for crafting the perfect proposal. Here are a few of my favorites:

Write a Good Abstract, from Notist

How to Find Ideas for Your Talk, from Notist

What Your Conference Proposal is Missing, from Sarah Mei

How to Rock the Call for Papers and Get Your Talk Picked, from Jono Bacon

My Presentation Workflow and Challenges, from Lara Hogan

Demystifying Public Speaking, from Lara Hogan

Conference Speaking Like a Boss, from Jennifer Wadella

Finally, if you have any hesitation about not being "good enough" to speak at conferences, read this excellent post from Sara Wachter-Boettcher. Then start crafting that perfect proposal.

The post So, You Wanna Submit a Proposal to Speak at an Event appeared first on CSS-Tricks.

So, You Wanna Submit a Proposal to Speak at an Event published first on https://deskbysnafu.tumblr.com/

[siliconwebx]

So, You Wanna Submit a Proposal to Speak at an Event

You’ve been scouring the web for upcoming events. You’ve subscribed to Developer Avocados and you’ve bookmarked conferences.css-tricks.com. And now you’ve found a call for proposals (CFP) that you can’t wait to enter. You quickly fill out the online form and your pinky races towards the Enter button...

Stop. Take a deep breath. And move slowly away from the keyboard.

As a conference organizer, I’ve gone through hundreds — if not thousands — of speaking proposals. While many are excellent, there are always a bunch that show a profound misunderstanding of the event, audience, and duties of a speaker. These are the ones that immediately get dumped onto the "No Thanks" list on my Trello board. And, as a regular speaker, I’ve learned more than a few things about getting proposals accepted.

While there’s no magic bullet for fast tracking your talk, there are a number of habits you can develop and questions you can ask yourself before hitting "submit" to improve your chances of getting invited to events. If you’re a fan of checklists, I’ve put one together to guide you through the process of submitting a proposal.

It’s even available on CodePen. 😉

See the Pen The CFP Checklist by Jason Rodriguez (@rodriguezcommaj) on CodePen.

Start with some research

The first thing before submitting a proposal is to research the heck out of the event.

There are a ton of events out there, each with its own unique audience and vibe. Some are big, some are small; some have huge budgets and some are bootstrapped and brand new. Your first task as a potential speaker is to learn as much as you can about the event to make sure that you’re a good fit for it and the audience. There are a few ways to do this.

First, check out the website to get a feel for the event. See when and where it is, check out past years (if there are any), and read every last bit of copy on the site. A few things to keep an eye out for: an FAQ page, a CFP page, info about sponsorships or speaking opportunities, lists of past speakers, and a hashtag. The event hashtag is important, as that will allow you to check out hype and past attendee experiences on Twitter, as well to as get a sense of excitement about the upcoming event. If there isn’t a hashtag, or all of the comments about the event are terrible, then perhaps it’s time to move on to the next CFP.

Next, do a search on YouTube, Speaker Deck, SlideShare, and Notist for past talks and slide decks. These will give you a great idea of what to expect at the event and what kinds of talks go over well with the audience.

After you’ve completed a first pass of research, it’s time to answer some key questions:

When and where is the event?

Who’s organizing it?

Do they have a code of conduct?

Do they value diversity and inclusion?

Are they looking for specific topics or proposals?

Do they cover travel/hotel?

Do they pay speakers?

Most importantly: who is their audience?

You may not be able to find an answer to all of these, but try your hardest. Feel free to reach out to organizers — most are happy to answer questions for potential speakers, and the more you know, the better you’ll be able to determine whether or not you’re a good fit for their event.

Add focus your idea

After you’ve done your research, it’s time to focus in on your proposal idea. Chances are good that you’re hunting around for events with a talk idea already in mind, but even so, you should take a few steps to make it’s as compelling for organizers as possible.

The main question you want to answer when developing a talk idea is, "What will attendees get out of my session?" This is where knowing about the audience and event — all of that research — pays off.

Far too many would-be speakers submit proposals for the wrong reasons. Many think of events as marketing and sales opportunities for their business. Others are looking to make a name for themselves so they can start charging on the speakers circuit. But the best talks come from sharing personal experiences, challenges, and solutions to problems you’ve experienced in your own work.

By researching the audience, you can determine what’s likely to be important to them. You get a feel for their challenges and interests, and you can think more deeply about how your experiences and skills can best serve them. Try to forget about the actual organizers and making a pitch to them, and instead focus all of your energy on clearly communicating how attendees’ lives and work will be improved after they sit in on your session.

A great exercise is to list out the key things attendees would take away from your talk. Try to focus on 3-5 things that people can put to work when they get back home. Making them as actionable as possible is a fantastic idea. While some proposals are all about inspiration, wrapping practical advice into inspirational examples is an excellent way to make that inspiration stick in people’s minds.

Another suggestion is to run your idea by colleagues, friends, or your partner. Put together a two-minute summary, stand up in front of them, and give them the ol’ elevator pitch. Not only will this force you to add a clear focus to your idea, but it’ll let you know if you’re ready to get up on stage in front of strangers. If you can’t give a short talk in a few minutes now, then you should probably sit back down and prepare some more before answering that call for proposals.

Craft your proposal into something worth reading

Finally, it’s time to craft your proposal and get it ready to submit.

Most CFPs consist of an online form. They can range from a few questions to multiple pages of inputs, but you’ll be filling something out for organizers to review. Although some speakers are able to fly through the forms and quickly hit "Submit," I’d recommend prepping your CFPs outside of the form first.

Open up a text file or make a note in your app of choice on one side of your screen and the CFP form on the other. Go through each field in the form and write down your response in your notes. Putting together a rough draft outside of the form gives you the opportunity to think through your answers and edit them until they clearly reflect your focused idea and the value for attendees. What’s better is that you can take that note and share it with someone you trust and respect. Gather feedback from them and use it to further refine your proposal.

A lot of CFP ask for supporting materials. These can be videos showing that you are a clear communicator, links to your website or social media accounts showing your personal interests, or even slides from previous talks. Instead of fumbling around and potentially timing out the CFPs form (and having to start all over), collect all of those materials in your note or a folder on your computer. If you’re a seasoned speaker, make sure you curate your materials to show your best and most recent talks.

Submit and wait

OK. You’ve done the research. You’ve focused your idea. You’ve even drafted the answers to the CFP, pitched the idea to your partner in the kitchen, and collected feedback from a co-worker or two. It’s time to scratch that itch and submit your proposal.

Go back to the CFP form, open up your notes and resources, and start copying and pasting. Take your time to work through the form and triple-check that you’ve filled everything out. Attach any supporting materials (seriously, how many times have we all sent an email that says "See attached file" without actually attaching anything?) and take a deep breath. Scroll to the top and read through every response as many times as you need to before you feel comfortable submitting.

Now, press "Submit." Do a little celebration, take another deep breath, and move on with your life.

It can take a long time for organizers to process submissions and figure out an agenda. Try to be patient. It’s tempting to email organizers and ask about the status of your proposal, but resist the urge. Organizers are extraordinarily busy — with the conference and their full-time jobs — and should be left to review proposals instead of fielding emails from impatient potential speakers.

A good organizer will get back to you when they’re ready and let you know the status of your submission — good or bad. If they don’t, chances are the event wasn’t that great to begin with. The key thing is to try to forget about your submission as much as possible (while still keeping the event on your calendar, just in case) and focus on more important things. Not only will this ease your anxiety but you’ll be in for a wonderful surprise when your proposal is accepted.

Speaking at events can be incredibly rewarding. Sure, it’s massively time-consuming and, depending on your disposition, extremely stressful, but it’s an excellent way to build connections and help others in the industry. While you could start spamming every event with proposals, your chances of being invited to speak all hinge on the amount of preparation you put into your submission. Taking the time to make sure you’re a good fit for an event, that you understand the audience, and that you have a focus and are able to clearly communicate your idea will up the odds of you standing onstage, clicking through slides, and (hopefully) solving some problems for the folks that paid to be there.

I’m definitely not the first person to write about answering CFPs. There are a ton of good tips out there for crafting the perfect proposal. Here are a few of my favorites:

Write a Good Abstract, from Notist

How to Find Ideas for Your Talk, from Notist

What Your Conference Proposal is Missing, from Sarah Mei

How to Rock the Call for Papers and Get Your Talk Picked, from Jono Bacon

My Presentation Workflow and Challenges, from Lara Hogan

Demystifying Public Speaking, from Lara Hogan

Conference Speaking Like a Boss, from Jennifer Wadella

Finally, if you have any hesitation about not being "good enough" to speak at conferences, read this excellent post from Sara Wachter-Boettcher. Then start crafting that perfect proposal.

The post So, You Wanna Submit a Proposal to Speak at an Event appeared first on CSS-Tricks.

😉SiliconWebX | 🌐CSS-Tricks

#Silicon Web Design #Ahmedabad #India #Web Development #WPBeginner #Silicon URL #Web Site #Cloud Host

[cryptswahili]

Ethereum is about to get a big upgrade. Here’s what you need to know.

Ethereum, the third-largest cryptocurrency by market cap and the most popular platform for decentralized applications (dApps), is getting an upgrade on (roughly) Jan. 16. 

The upgrade is called Constantinople and it makes the Ethereum network a bit more efficient, paving the way for bigger changes further ahead. It also brings some important changes for miners on the network. 

Here’s an overview of what, exactly, is happening, and the steps owners of ether should undertake ahead of the fork. 

SEE ALSO: 2018 was crypto’s year of reckoning, but there’s hope ahead

The answer to the second question is really easy: There’s no need to do anything. The upcoming upgrade, while technically a fork, will very likely be non-contentious, meaning there’s no disagreement on whether it should happen. This means Ethereum won’t split into two separate coins next Wednesday. If everything goes well — and chances are good that it will — your ether holdings will be exactly the same before and after the fork, regardless of whether your ether is located on a private wallet or an exchange. 

And no, ether holders will not be getting a new coin; if you see info about it anywhere, it’s either a scam or a mostly-irrelevant project that’s just trying to get some attention out of the confusion that surrounds every cryptocurrency fork (which is why I’m primarily calling Constantinople an upgrade and not a fork). 

IMO the Ethereum community should consider adopting @zcashco’s terminology of calling things like Constantinople “network upgrades” and reserve “fork” for splits that leave 2+ viable chains. Too many people asking me lately where they can dump their non-Constantinople coins…

— Vitalik Non-giver of Ether (@VitalikButerin) January 10, 2019

Ethereum node operators and miners will have to update their software ahead of the upgrade; the links can be found here. 

Note that the January 16th date for the upgrade is approximate. The upgrade should happen when block 7,080,000 on the Ethereum blockchain is mined, which is currently approximately Wednesday, Jan, 16, 8pm UTC, but the exact time will shift a little as new blocks aren’t always found in the same amount of time. 

Paving the way for a faster future

With that out of the way, there are still a few things you should know about this upgrade. 

Constantinople consists of five Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs), which are documents explaining a new feature or change in Ethereum’s code. Explaining them in detail might be a bit too technical for most users, but here’s an overview of the most important changes they bring.

Four of the EIPs — EIP 145, 1014, 1052 and 1283 — describe various technical improvements, which make Ethereum a bit more efficient, cheaper to use and pave the way for future upgrades. In short, they’re nice, they’re needed, but they’re not something the vast majority of users will notice in day-to-day usage. 

EIP 1014 is worth singling out as it makes it possible to interact with Ethereum addresses that haven’t yet been created. This is important as it will be used for so-called state channels, which will (hopefully) be an important scaling solution for Ethereum, allowing certain transactions to happen on a separate blockchain. Remember how Cryptokittes ground down Ethereum to a halt? Well, thanks to state channels, games like Cryptokitties will be able to live on Ethereum without slowing it down. 

From PoW to PoS

The fifth EIP, 1234, brings two major (but closely related) changes. One reduces the reward for mining Ethereum, and the other delays the so-called “difficulty bomb,” a mechanism that forces Ethereum to upgrade to a completely different mode of operation called proof-of-stake (PoS). 

Ethereum, like Bitcoin, is a blockchain-based platform with a proof-of-work consensus mechanism. That means that blocks with all the transactions on the networks are confirmed by miners, which employ computing power to solve a math puzzle with ever-increasing complexity. This makes it quite hard (though not impossible, as seen from the recent attack on Ethereum Classic) to alter Ethereum’s blockchain, but it’s also wasting a tremendous amount of energy. 

Right now, Ethereum mining is being done with machines similar to this one, which are pretty big energy wasters. New tech called proof-of-stake will remove mining machines from the equation.

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Story continues

Image: Flickr/Cryptocurrency360.com

Unlike Bitcoin, Ethereum’s plan from the get go was to transition to a different consensus mechanism called proof-of-stake. With PoS, there’s not mining in the traditional sense; instead, owners of ether coins can “stake” them in order to participate in a sort of a lottery, in which winners “create” the next block. And this switch isn’t just some future fable; it will happen in an upgrade called Casper that’s actively being worked on and is slated to kick in sometime in 2019 (Casper, you guessed it, will be a much more significant upgrade than Constantinople). 

Switching from PoW to PoS isn’t simple. This is partly due to the big mining ecosystem that has grown around popular cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum, and partly because all the kinks of how PoS should work haven’t exactly been ironed yet. 

But there’s an additional problem. Ethereum has something called “difficulty bomb” built into its ruleset. It’s a timer that progressively makes miners’ work harder. This reduces the influx of new ether, and also makes mining ETH less lucrative. It’s a bit of a stick that chases away the “old” miners and ushers in the new mentality of staking coins to “mine” new blocks. 

This is where EIP 1234 comes into play. Since Casper isn’t ready yet, this change will delay the difficulty bomb by approximately 12 months. But, since everyone knew about the difficulty bomb timer for a while, its effects have been calculated into miner profits. So EIP 1234 makes another change: It reduces the block mining rewards from 3 ETH per block to 2 ETH per block. 

So, after Jan 16, it will take roughly the same time for an Ethereum miner to mine a block, but their reward for doing so will be reduced from 3 ETH to 2 ETH. It’s not very complicated, but it will have long-lasting consequences on Ethereum. 

What about the price?

The price of ether has been extremely volatile lately.

More

Image: coinmarketcap.com

Again, EIP 1234 does not change much for most Ethereum users, but it is quite a big change for people who mine ether. Some may switch to mining other cryptocurrencies, but because of the way Ethereum was designed, mining will still stay profitable for most. 

Of course, one question that many ether owners will be asking themselves is: What happens to the price of ether after this change? 

This is hard to answer. Ethereum has been extremely volatile in the past two years, with the price dropping from a high of nearly $1,400 in January 2018 to a low of $85 in December — and all that happened without a significant network upgrade. In other words, if price is jumping up and down like crazy (the price went down more than 20% in the last couple of days, for example) for little or no reason, trying to price in the effects of Constantinople is folly. 

Still, there are reasons for cautious optimism. Reducing the influx of ether should, theoretically, drive the prices up, though the effect will likely be mild. Furthermore, if the upgrade goes as planned, it reduces uncertainty, which is typically good for the price. 

Again, the TLDR on this one is simple: If you own ETH, there’s no need to do anything ahead, during or after the Constantinople upgrade. Hopefully, the upgrade will go as planned and pave the way for Casper later this year. 

Disclosure: The author of this text owns, or has recently owned, a number of cryptocurrencies, including BTC and ETH. 

Https%3a%2f%2fblueprint api production.s3.amazonaws.com%2fuploads%2fvideo uploaders%2fdistribution thumb%2fimage%2f85075%2fabccb23e dace 4f3b a350 3066c988a87a

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[Telegram Channel | Original Article ]

#cryptocurrency

[paintingtheuniversebetter]

Detailed Statistical Tracking At Its Finest

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When you run a contest or have some sort of poll, there’s no better way to get people involved than by making it something fun to do. These templates will help bring your fans in droves while creating a friendly little competition in the process.

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By having a lot of activity going on with your videos, not only do your fans start to share and like your videos, but then it starts to increase your reach in the Facebook realm.

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Along with all of the incredible features of Live Engager, we want to let you have the option to see how your videos are working for you. With the Live Engager platform, you can see a birds eye view of every video you publish with Live Engager and how well each one performs.

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[ber39james]

5 Helpful Tips on How to Write Emails from Your Phone

Today, 80 percent of Internet users own a smartphone. It’s been predicted that, by this year, eight in ten email users will access their email accounts exclusively from their mobile devices. We’re reading and writing more emails on mobile than ever, so getting it right has never been more important. Getting communication right (in email or otherwise) is the driving force behind Grammarly’s recent launch of a mobile keyboard for iOS and Android. But, although Grammarly will help you write mistake-free messages, it’s combining that polish with style and substance that will inevitably make your written communication effective.

Five Tips for Writing Emails From Your Phone

We’ve all seen the ubiquitous “Sent from my iPhone” email signatures, or sigs along the lines of, “Please excuse the brevity. This was sent from my phone.” These signatures, in part, are meant to excuse the sender from typos, autocorrect slips, and all those other times our thumbs betray us when we communicate via mobile devices.

But just because you wield your thumbs instead of ten phalanges carefully placed on the home row doesn’t mean everything you send from your phone has to look as though it was transcribed by a typing chimpanzee. There’s hope! This article will guide you towards writing clear, concise emails from your mobile device with panache.

1 Put important information first.

Nearly half of mobile readers spend three seconds or less reading an individual email. That is, of course, if you can get them to open your email at all. But let’s assume you send emails that people want to read. Your challenge is to keep those emails brief or risk losing your reader to a very short digital attention span.

That means it’s essential to optimize. Before you put your thumbs to work tapping out your email opus, take a few minutes to figure out the key point you want to get across in your message. Ask yourself If I could have my recipient take just one thing away from this email, what would it be? Use the answer to that question to front-load your email so that the most critical information comes first. If you don’t, your recipient might miss the point of your email entirely, or breeze past it in her haste to move on to her next email to-do.

Hi Jane,

Yesterday, I was talking to Jim and he suggested you would have some good ideas about the upcoming Windy City Widgets marketing campaign. As you know, Windy City is an important client and this marketing campaign is pivotal to our success here at XYZ Advertising Associates. I’m going to be downtown tomorrow afternoon, so I thought we might have lunch at JB’s Sammiches to unpack what the client has told us about their ad needs and deadlines. JB’s is close to your office, so I thought it would be convenient. Does 12:30 p.m. work for you? All the best, Richard

Oy! That email comes in at around a hundred words, and most of them aren’t necessary. Let’s consider all the things this message conveys that it doesn’t have to.

For starters, it’s not necessary to state that Jim suggested talking to Jane. Especially not up front. If Jim’s referral would be helpful in sealing the lunch appointment, go ahead and use it, but consider saving it for later in the email.

It’s also not necessary to reiterate that a client is important. Any time you start a sentence with As you know, you’re probably telling the reader something they actually do already know. Driving home the point with an as you know statement can translate as passive-aggressive. It’s as if you’re saying, “You should know this, but I’ll reiterate just in case you’re not good at your job.” Make sure you don’t come across as talking down to your colleagues.

While it’s nice to consider a lunch location that’s convenient for your colleague, it’s not necessary to point out how nice you’re being. That extraneous information adds words, not impact.

Let’s front-load this email with important information and leave out any unnecessary details.

Hi Jane,

Are you available to meet me for lunch tomorrow at JB’s Sammiches at 12:30 p.m.? I’d like to unpack some of the info Windy City Widgets gave us about their needs and deadlines for the upcoming campaign. Let me know if that would be convenient for you. All the best, Richard

Much better! The message body comes in at a sleek forty-nine words and the all-important ask is straight up front rather than buried in a bunch of unimportant details. We can almost taste those sammiches now!

2 Clean up your wordy writing.

Can you imagine how long it would’ve taken Tolstoy to compose War and Peace on a smartphone? If you want to really feel like a slacker, consider that one novelist wrote a significant portion of his novel on his smartphone while commuting on the subway. (And he did it nearly a decade ago.) When you’re using two thumbs and staring at a small screen to craft your messages (let alone a novel), it pays to know how to keep your writing lean and mean.

First, avoid common filler words and phrases. We already talked about As you know. Now, strike useless phrases like As a matter of fact, For the most part, each and every, and at this point in time from your lexicon. Your readers will appreciate your clear, concise language and you’ll convey your points much better without all the clutter.

While you’re at it, dump most adverbs. These words, which often end in -ly, are unnecessary unless removing them drastically changes the meaning of your sentence. So, don’t bother thumb-typing words like basically, very, usually, extremely, probably, and absolutely.

3 Practice perfect email etiquette.

Your signature may say that your email was sent from your phone, but that doesn’t mean you should bypass the rules of polite email discourse.

When you send email to multiple recipients at the same time, respect everyone’s privacy by masking their email addresses with BCC. Similarly, don’t use Reply All and accidentally share an email with all members of an email chain when your reply was meant only to go to one person. And don’t automatically assume that email is private and confidential. Avoid saying things in an email that you wouldn’t say publicly. Otherwise, that email could come back to haunt you.

Here’s a tip: Don’t email when you’re angry. If you must tap out a strongly worded letter, hold off on hitting the Send button until you’ve had a chance to let it simmer. If you can wait, leave that letter on the back burner and come back to it twenty-four hours later. Were you more hostile than you meant to be in the heat of the moment? Could you have been more diplomatic and gotten your point across just as well? Edit!

4 Dictate it.

Some years back, my friend and I tried having a Messenger conversation by using our phones’ voice-to-text feature, and then sending whatever our smartphone interpreted. The result was hilariously bad. But voice-to-text has come a long way since then.

Most mobile keyboards have voice-to-text functionality. On the Grammarly keyboard, simply long-press the comma key to activate your phone’s voice capabilities and dictate your message. Once dictated, you can quickly edit or correct any misheard words.

Here’s a tip: Speak your punctuation so you don’t have to add it after the fact. Dave, did you remember to file your report? would be spoken as, “Dave comma did you remember to file your report question mark.”

5 Proofread.

You want to make a good impression. Proofreading is one way to ensure you will. We often write hasty notes when we use mobile technology, figuring that others will forgive us because, well, writing on a mobile device has its challenges. But proofreading before you hit send isn’t that complicated. And, if you’re using the Grammarly mobile keyboard, you can simply press the Grammarly button once you’ve finished writing to check your text and make sure your grammar, spelling, and punctuation is pristine. No more excuses just because you sent it from your iPhone!

The post 5 Helpful Tips on How to Write Emails from Your Phone appeared first on Grammarly Blog.

from Grammarly Blog https://www.grammarly.com/blog/how-to-write-emails-from-mobile/