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laurasauras · 8 months

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Careful on that last post there's tons of proshippers in the notes blindly praising him

oh hon, are you lost? i really don't hide what i write!

i'm going to take you in best faith and assume you meant this as a kind heads up. i also want to assure you that this very long post is not meant to make you feel bad and please don't take it as me starting an argument with you personally. it's just something that's been on my mind lately and you've given me an excuse to articulate it!

seriously. it's not you, it's me.

i think the labels of pro/anti-shipper are very stupid and they're a very fandom-centric thing. not because people don't get up in arms about what professional authors write, because of course they do, but because when they do, they don't identify themselves as doing so exclusively on the basis of the romantic pairings in the work.

you wouldn't get someone saying "jamie x cersei writer george r r martin is bad because he wrote incest", you'd get someone saying "game of thrones is bad because it contains incest, graphic sex, rape, gratuitous violence, fantasy themes" or whatever it is they have problems with. or they might say something along the lines of "game of thrones is immoral". and that judgement is based on the work, not on martin as a person.

pro/anti is not based on a person's creative work, because people identify with these labels when they've never created fanfic/fanart. it's a personal identity. "i believe it is bad for someone to create/consume works with romantic pairings based on x" or "i believe people should be allowed to create/consume whatever they like". the "x" in that is usually incest/age gap/power inbalance of some kind, but people can come up with all sorts of things to fill in the blank.

"antishipper" is a convenient label because it isn't defined. it's like saying "moralshipper", where you never say what the morals are. those on the outside of the label are automatically bad, and those on the inside get to be anxious about whether any of their actions or thoughts are going to be called out.

it's the equivalent (and there's a large overlap here) of having a pinned post saying "freaks dni" or "dni if you're a, b, c, or any of the other bad things". it's the safe thing to do, because you can't get called out for forgetting to publicly declare that you don't want racists to interact with you, but it's also an exercise in anxiety.

not for the people who label themselves as proshippers or gladly fly the freak flag! those people either block (sensible) or argue (pointless) or hatefollow (genuine self harm), but they don't panic about the fact that they're being excluded. they might feel sad and they might have anxiety over the potential of being included on a blocklist or callout post, but they know who they are. no, those posts--and to an extent the label of antishipper itself--create an "in" group. and wherever there's an "in" group and those inside hate the "out" group, those inside either Don't Think About It or they live in fear of being kicked out.

and the same is probably true of some proshipper circles. some people would view a member having a personal squick as a betrayal of the group.

by putting a label on it, you're making it into a club.

that's my criticism of the labels. there is some horrific bullying behaviour on both sides, so i won't bother to criticise that. if you think it's okay to tell someone they should hate themselves or they should be harmed due to their opinions, i don't want to be your friend. i don't think that is ever productive. the only thing it does is make the person saying that kind of thing feel that they have done their civic duty. it doesn't change minds, it doesn't soothe victims, it's just nasty.

in terms of what the labels represent, here are my main criticisms of antishipping (because proshipping is defined as "not antishipping" so is useless to talk about). and i'm focusing on incest here because it's easiest to choose one thing rather than go broad:

it implies that it's impossible for a work of fiction to be about a topic without also condoning it.

it states that liking or disliking a work of fiction is a moral action. by liking something, you are actively doing something bad. by disliking something, you are actively doing something good.

it specifically fixates on the ship--i already mentioned this, but it bears repeating. two siblings kissing is not allowed; explicit torture is, so long as it's not tied to a romantic relationship.

it talks about "normalising" concepts, and to normalise is apparently to make them acceptable in wider society. which is ridiculous:

because if incest didn't exist before supernatural shippers, we wouldn't have had a word for it;

because fanfiction is not something that the majority of wider society is aware of, let alone consuming;

because there are 33,509 fics in dean/sam (supernatural) as of the time of posting, and i promise you that none of those authors are kissing their siblings because they enjoyed writing about fictional brothers kissing. i promise you. because ...

because incest is a very real and very illegal and very fucking bad thing. the vast majority of incest is paedophillic and rape. the vast majority of the offenders are not reading fanfiction. they did not learn that incest existed because of fiction and decide that it was an okay thing to do to someone else. the argument that they would is fucking insane.

it can be comforting to say "people who consume this kind of media are bad, and i don't consume that media so i'm not bad."

it can be comforting to say "i don't associate with anyone who consumes this kind of media, so i am not in danger of being hurt."

it can be comforting to say "by saying that i'm an antishipper / proshipper / terf / terf hater / whatever in my bio, i am signalling to those on the outside of my group that they are unwelcome on my blog and unwelcome in society. i am cleansing my space and the world of those people."

and it's all bullshit.

it doesn't matter.

here's a list of things that you can do that do have a positive impact in the world:

plant a tree. call your mum. smile at the baby in the line in front of you. attend local council meetings and advocate for equality. start a book club. compliment someone's art and reblog it. learn how to say thank you in your country's sign language. buy your mate a coffee. assume people are trying their best. put your pronouns in your email signature. take your dog for a walk. write a story that will make someone feel something.

just be kind.

#fandom wank #long post #discourse #tagging those for people who block them not seeking to be found #i'm a small blog please be cool

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toa-ahkmou · 8 months

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OOC: I think we're actually done this time.

Hello, everyone. I am @toaarcan, the writer behind both this blog, and @ghost-of-destiny. If you were a reader of either of these blogs, then you've probably noticed that everything has been very quiet for a while now.

I know some people are still enjoying what we did, because every day I get likes on some of the threads we did. And, unfortunately, I doubt there will be any more.

There's been a general decline in interest from all parties, in fact, I was one of the last ones consistently posting, as most other people just weren't around anymore. For some, Life Stuff just became too much of an obstacle. For others, the overall story was shifting in a different direction to what they'd been interested in. For some, it was just the sheer difficulty of being caught up on a story spread across a dozen blogs on a website that's actively hostile to searches.

That last one's pretty ironic considering that we were writing fanfic for a series that died because its story got too convoluted and hard to follow.

There's also another thing.

There was a D&D game. It went badly.

Actually, that's an oversimplification, but what happened was that a bunch of the most active and plot-critical players in what we referred to as "Tumblrverse" banded together to play D&D. We mostly used D&D-ified versions of our Bionicle characters and played by post on Discord. I will not be naming any names here besides my own, because I don't want this to feel like I'm airing other people's dirty laundry... but given that I have to make this disclaimer, you can probably tell that things went sideways.

At first, it worked really well! But we made one mistake right from the off: The chat was always running. It was always online. 24/7 D&D. If the DM wasn't around to make the bad guys do things, we were still active in there, chatting, shooting the breeze, and arguing. And for most of us, it took pretty much all of our creative juices.

The game, Ruins and Rahi, ran for about two years, of constant play, and things fell apart majorly toward the end, and a lot of those cracks first formed early on.

Fitting for a D&D game played by Tumblr people, there was a very "Yes, and" approach to things, and that translated to "Any player can introduce lore and suggest plot twists for their character, and everyone else just has to roll with it." We also made the critical mistake of not having a Session 0, and not establishing safety tools, so if one of these elements was an issue for someone else in the group... well, I'm sure you can figure out the rest.

Very early on, I basically introduced voluntary PvP into the game, as one of my characters had a freak-out and turned into a villain. I wanted to redeem this character, and I wanted it to be a slow, painful thing where she had to come to turns with her own morality and maybe backslide a few times. This did not work out. It mainly didn't work out because... well, I did kill another player character.

Now, this death was something the player chose to do, and was approved by the DM, and only then was it actually pitched to me. In terms of the chain of responsibility for that one, I was a solid third place of three people. Buuuut that didn't mean that it didn't become basically My Fault for the rest of the game.

This resulted in a lot of arguments, that ran for hours on end, and that's a problem in D&D because of character bleed.

In any D&D game, the player's personality and morality will bleed into their character. You've got to be real damn good to avoid it. This is why almost none of my evil characters stay evil. I just can't do it for long periods of time. And this means that, if you start having arguments in-character about the actions those characters took, eventually... you're just yelling at your friends. Often for things that either weren't entirely their fault, or weren't their fault at all.

By the time the game staggered to a close, everyone was kinda mad at each other, and there was no way to save it. The bad choices we'd all made without really talking to each other about it in advance finally became too heavy to ignore. Three of us dipped in quick succession and it collapsed in on itself.

And when you've spent several months wallowing in bitterness and half-sniping at each other, another collaborative writing project is somewhat hard to jump back into. Especially when you then make the collective decision to partake in a dedicated Discord channel for... oversharing and it immediately devolves into more sniping, this time without any veneer of roleplaying as someone else.

This is, in part, an open apology for the things I said and did during those few months, because I don't like the version of myself I became during that time. We were having fun with it until suddenly we weren't and it went too far. And it's left a bunch of us with irreconcilable differences and a few scars that mean that some of us just can't or won't talk to each other anymore. Like there are those among our number that literally can't be in the same space as each other anymore, and I've had to talk about R&R with my therapist, because as much as I'm still attached to some of the characters and some of the narrative, the way things fell apart is something that I dread a repeat of, both on my end, and on others'.

We made a few more attempts to get things rolling again on here after that. In fact, the False Flag megathread was entirely post-R&R, if I'm remembering right. But the life had gone out of it. False Flag was basically the only thread happening, and it slowed and slowed and slowed until it wasn't updating anymore either. I suggested maybe retooling the ending to turn it into more of a conclusion, but nothing more was done.

The Discord channel we used to use to plan stuff has been dead since May. We weren't talking about new threads, but about why the whole thing fell apart and what we could do to replace it. No suggestions for the latter stuck.

I think we're done. Not just me, but everyone else too.

ToaArcan, player of Ahkmou and Matoro, signing off.

#Bionicle RP #Tumblrverse #Bionicle Tumblrverse #Bionicle #Bonkles

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loopy777 · 2 months

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So im guessing you've at some point heard about Tolkien's original draft for lord of the rings, pre his many rewrites, where frodo was names Bingo Bolger-Baggins(A name tolkien hated, so ita hilarious he used it all the way up until the group reached Rivendel), the fellowship was composed of 5 hobbits, Gandalf and boromir, and that Tolkien originally envisioned Aragorn as a hobbit with wooden feet named Trotter.

He was eventually reworked into the character of Aragorn, with the original name(originally there because he always made sound on his wooden feet) being changed to strider, but did you know that Trotter's role and actions through the story was not changed much at all? Tolkien had the fellowship reach all the way up until Balin's tomb, before he finally decided he needes to fix the issue that was trotter... But not because he had any problem with the Hobbit's role.

No, Tolkien had no issue with this inexplicably badass, protesis wearing hobbit from a secret society called wild hobbits, skilled enough with steel and flame to chase away the nazguls at weathertop, lead the fellowship through eriador, knew history and lore well enough to retell the stories of beren and luthien, and on and on it went. He for all intents and purposes WAS Aragorn... No what Tolkien had an issue with was his backstory.

Tolkien created an intriguing character, with lots of memorable moments and actions, but he could not figure out a way to make it all fit together.

He had been captured in mordor, tortured, and had his legs cut off. Why? How did he escape? Why did he know so much? How did he become such a good friend of gandalf? Why was he so dedicated to the cause? How was he so skilled?

Tolkien created what was a very intriguing character, but when he sat down to think about it, and hammer out the characters backstory, he could not think up a backstory or timeline of events that would make sense of trotters life.

So he reimagined him several times, eventually settling on him being the same race as elrond, and a descendant of Earendil.

The only reason we got aragorn instead was because tolkien's famous imagination failed him on one character backstory. Imagine if tolkien had decided to just do what many other writers do, and just keep the exact details of his backstory vague, and go with the character anyway XD

I kinda doubt he'd have gone with the making him king angle, but honestly that could have been hilarious. Probably would have required some sword in the stone kinda plotline to make it work though.

Wow! I'd heard of "Trotter," but not any of the details.

(Unfortunately, I never got all the 'The History of Middle-earth' books. It's one of those things that was always my next purchase but now I'd either need to get mismatched covers or rebuy the ones I have. Sigh. The pitfalls of book-collecting.)

I love everything about this history. When I was reading LotR for the first time, I actually thought Aragorn was a bit of a Gary Stu and crafted to be so cool because he was going to replace Gandalf. Then Gandalf came back to life and I had to reevaluate Tolkien's intentions. (It didn't help that I didn't know anything about Tolkien at the time.) It ended up working pretty well with Aragorn becoming king and the way it was done, but I find it hilarious that the character didn't start as thoughts on an ideal king, but just Tolkien wanting a Gary Stu. And that Gary Stu was a hobbit! XD I someday aspire to write with that level of self-indulgence.

(Oh, wait, I write fanfic. I already do.)

It's a shame Aragorn didn't keep the wooden feet, though. That would have been an interesting addition, although I guess it might be too darkly funny for a character named "Strider," and LotR wasn't going for that tone in its finished version.

Thank you for sharing this! It might be one of the best stories I've heard of accidental genius in story development.

#thekingofwinterblog

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twilightguardian · 1 year

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Well well. Looks like Lil is still up to her incoherent screaming. Let's take a look, shall we?

I gotta wonder what she means by 'absolutely nothing'. Like by definition 'absolutely nothing' would mean that there has been nothing going on. At all. The equivalent of sitting at a desk, not even twiddling your pencil between your fingers because twiddling would be something.

Episode 2 continues on from episode 1 with what Ruby bought at the festival, revealing them to be friendship bracelets for WBY, establishing how happy she is that not only her team, but her friends are back.

Qrow is still drunk, and unlike in the show, it's becoming actually debilitating for those around him, with Jaune and Ruby having to carry him to the station.

Blake says goodbye to her parents, Sun and Ilia just like in canon. (But I guess since Lilith thinks that's absolutely nothing, we can count that as nothing of worth to canon, either.)

There's also brief mention about the White Fang going to help Vale's recovery.

First episode we saw Roman and Neo pickpocketing people at the festival, and that got paid off when they got into first class on the train.

Mercury and Emerald have a discussion about Cinder and their differing views on her and parenthood.

Cardin and Russell replace Dee and Dudley both as characters we care about and filling in some exposition about the status in Vale.

Brief comedic scene where Yang tells Neptune the truth about 'Jane', because why keep friends in the dark about such things.

That's 8 'nothings' that have happened in the episode. So if you want to break it down into the most important things, we can say establishing RWBY as rekindling their bond, Cardin and Russel's cameo, Emercury's discussion and Qrow's drunkenness as being the core elements.

Ooof. You've never actually read fanfiction, have you, Lilith? You should join the Tundra discord server and join us for bad fanfiction night. Because all this tells me is that you don't know what incompetence is.

Actually, I have no idea if you even read. That's not an insult, that's just a general statement of fact. I've never seen any mention of books on your blogs, and I don't know you as a person.

Why would Cardin's return make you want to watch Fixing RWBY unless you had the expectation that Cardin, who you think only abuses women for some reason, would abuse a woman. Is abusing women something you like to see? People generally avoid things they don't like, you know. That's pretty dang weird.

Emphasizing again that Cardin isn't an abuser of women, specifically. He was a general bully in canon and a rather toothless one at that. He more went after Jaune in canon. Raymond gave him some teeth and his ass was still humbled for it. Now he knows better. When was the last time we've seen Cardin 'abuse' a woman?

Casually insulting all fanfic writers while trying to shit on one guy you have a hateboner for. Nice. You know there's not a single thing you said here that also can't also apply to your average fanfic author. Authors that may like a male character for whatever reason and may want to focus on that male character. Fanfic authors in general create derivative works that aren't 'their own' and many take from each other based on common fanfic tropes, themes and scenarios. The point of Fixing RWBY is to keep as close to the original as possible while also not being afraid to cut unnecessary fat and rearrange things. There isn't a single thing done to Fixing RWBY that one could say impacts the story in any substantially detrimental way. Oscar not being around doesn't matter because Ozpin still has a host. Expanding Menagerie's arc still resulted in Blake meeting up with everyone at the school.

lol

And she wonders why I have no faith in her ability to write when she doesn't seem to understand the concept of foreshadowing and Chekhov's Gun. No, he didn't do the Apathy Arc in V4. It was establishing when the backstory that Maria read in that book took place.

Also prove that the Apathy Arc is going to be 'all about Roman Torchwick' because you're just pulling that out of your ass with no basis other than you want it to be that way. You know, criticism comes after something you disagree with happens, not before.

I don't mind if you think that the first two episodes are slow. That's perfectly fine as valid criticism as not everyone is going to feel the same. Doesn't make it bad, it just means that's your preference. But that doesn't mean you get to pull shit out of your ass like you're fucking Jillian Epperly.

I don't understand this criticism. Are you saying that because Adam has a bike that Yang doesn't have her bike? Or that Yang owning a bike gets diminished because Adam has one because only one person is allowed to own a bike at a time?

Hey @iamafanofcartoons, hello, we haven't formally met yet. I've actually been very interested in talking to you at some point, and I'm sure this might wreck that a bit. But permit me to ask you what this even means lol

When has Raymond ever said that CardinxVelvet is going to for sure be canon in FRWBY? Because like... there's a difference between shipping a ship and then making that ship canon in the story you're working on. And really, obsession? How is Raymond obsessed with men who harass women? Because so far the one who talks the most about Shiloh is you.

And I wouldn't even say that either Shiloh or Shay D. 'harassed' Yang. The dude was drunk and tried to flirt. She wasn't interested and while touching her could have been assault, she was the one that touched him first to hit him instead of moving out of the way and verbally telling him off. Harassment actually deals with continued intimidation and threats. Yang was never threatened by Shay/Shiloh in either version. Yang was not a victim of harassment. So I would appreciate it if you would not infantilize Yang by saying such an innocuous altercation was harassment as it really makes out real harassment out to be not that bad if that's the comparison.

Yeah. I can't wait to see him prove you wrong because you're saying this with no proof.

#rwby #rwde #lilith fairen #frwby #fixing rwby #canonseeker #iamafanofcartoons

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lizzyk137 · 1 year

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I'm All Yours - A Chani Fanfic (Chani X Reader)

Description: You and Chani get paired for a school project. When the project material starts to ignite secret feelings between you two, what will happen when your project is finished? Warning: Absolutely none, just pure fluff and love :3 Materials mentioned: Jane Austen's Persuasion, Mamma Mia's 'Lay All Your Love on Me', Dirty Dancing's 'I've Had the Time of My Life' dance scene.

Want to read more, visit my Masterlist!

"Okay, drama nerds! Please welcome your new classmates for the rest of the semester!" Mrs. Elven announced as she made her way down the aisle to the stage area. "Classes have been meshed this semester with our writing friends so they can get an idea on how to write for those preforming on stage, tv or movies, along with getting better feelers out for how things get imagined in our minds when we read." She pointed to her head for affect.

"Along with the switch for this semester, we will be switching next semester also. You will all be writing together so you can get a feel for what a good script is and how the writer wants the characters to feel so when you act you can better understand what you're portraying." Mr. Alvis stepped in next.

"You'll be partnered up with one person from each class to help each other better understand the other's major. Now each class will still have one class each week away from each other to focus on our own curriculum. Mr. Alvis will call out partners, please stand up, find each other and introduce yourselves."

"Ally and Cole, Sam and David, Mark and John, Tyra and Annebelle." Mr. Alvis started calling off names, and you squirmed in your seat, nervous of who you would be paired up with. You took this class because you loved writing and a good challenge while writing, but acting was something new to you and something that you knew you weren't good at.

"Chani and Y/N." Mr. Alvis called, and you stood up and looked around to find a tall, attractive boy standing up in the front row looking around.

His brown eyes caught yours, and he gave you a small wave and made his way over to you. You sat down, smoothing your skirt, nervous about what you got yourself into. You took a deep breath in and turned to look at one of the most handsomest guys you've ever seen.

He was tall, with kind brown eyes, a bright smile that made you warm inside, and sturdy but thin build. His brown hair was short, but his bangs hung almost into his eyes. He smiled more, showing off a perfect row of teeth that made your stomach go a flutter.

"Hi, I'm Chani. It's nice to meet you!" His head tilted at the end so cutely, making the butterlfies in your stomach freak out even more.

You gave a small wave and a nervous smile. "Hi, I'm Y/N."

Chani dropped his bag and sat down next to you. "So, are you excited to be learning everything there is to know about theater?"

"Kind of," you said while nervously playing with your hands. "I'm a bit nervous. I've never done anything like this before. I'm not one to really put myself out there."

"Ah, well, I'll help you through it. If you have any questions, just ask! I'm more than happy to help, plus the theater teacher is great at helping you get over any nerves you have."

"That's good to know. How about you with the writing assignment next semester?"

He shrugged and gave a grimace. "I know it won't go too well for me. I'm not exactly great at creating words."

"Well, like you said, you can always ask if you have any questions."

You both smiled at each other, and then silence filled in the rest of the convo. It wasn't awkward but it wasn't comfortable either and you sat there clutching your skirt waiting for the end of class to draw near.

"I heard there are three different scenes that we need to preform. They're short, possibly five minutes for each scene which is good but they can range from different topics or different types of things a performer may do, like singing or dancing." Chani whispered, while you both took notes on the course direction and what was required for you to pass.

You looked at him scared. Dancing? Singing? You could barely tell a lie, how were you supposed to do all three things in the course of a few months?

Chani offered you smile as he watched your face turn to panic. "Don't worry, they'll prepare you for it all beforehand but i guess we get our scenes within a few weeks."

You nodded and went back to trying to pay attention to as much as you could from Mrs. Elven's lecture on theater. You needed to be prepared as much as you could for the amount of stress the next few weeks was going to bring.

"Alright, pair up and we'll be going around and handing out your scenes and explaining them."

"Now theater kids, you will be letting our new friends take the lead on the everything, while you are directing and helping." Mrs. Elven explained.

Mr. Alvis continued where Mrs. Elven left off. "Throughout the course of the next few weeks you will be practicing and perfecting your scenes under the guidance of myself and Mrs. Elven. Schedules will be posted to let you know when we will be reviewing your progress."

You spotted Chani on the steps of the stage talking to a few of the theater girls and your slowly made your way over there. Chani was nice but he didn't go out his way to get to know you the past few weeks of lectures. You noticed he was more interested in his friends or staying by himself than he was with you, and you were just too shy to go over and start up a conversation. You passed each test so far with flying colours and you were hoping you'd be able to do the same physically all while praying that Chani would help you out.

"Oh, hey, Y/N." Chani said as he spotted you lingering near the front row." He got up and leaped down the stairs with ease. "Are you excited to see what we got for our scenes?"

You nodded and gave a smile smile. Words didn't come easily to you when Chani was involved you've noticed and you could tell it was putting him off by the awkward silence that always followed.

"Chani, Y/N, good I found you. I gathered up some great scenes for you." Mrs. Elven said as she rustled through to find a greeen folder with both of your names written on the top. "Now, Chani, I know you're great at what you do when it comes to a happy or serious scene but I have yet to see you do romance."

"Wait, I can do romance." Chani spoke up defensively.

"Not that I've seen, nor have I seen it in person yet from you. And I hear that miss Y/N, enjoys a good romance story and that Jane Austen is a favourite of yours. So open up and see what you got." She gave you the green folder and you opened it up to find a piece of paper detailing your topics and scenes.

Topic One: Musical- Lay All Your Love On Me (Mamma Mia Musical)

Topic Two: Dance- I've Had The Time of My Life (Dirty Dancing Dance Scene)

Topic Three: Acting- Persuasion's Letter Confession Scene (Jane Austen)

"Wait these are all love scenes, Mrs. E." Chani exclaimed as he took the folder from you looking at the rest of the material in it.

"Why, yes it is. It's supposed to be challenging and a learning opportunity for my students. Have fun, my lovelies!"

You watched her walk away while Chani quietly complained to himself as he looked over the material.

"Great, class is basically over. Let me research these scenes and next class we'll start learning, okay?" Chani gathered up his bag and walked away before you couold say anything.

This is awesome, you thought, you're stuck doing love scenes with someone who clearly does not enjoy doing them all while you learn a new skill set so you can pass your class this semester. Welcome to hell.

The next two weeks where absolute shit, constant studying on your part to get the dance down while trying to protray a confession to someone who stares at you with annoyance as you fumble everything anf that's not even including the singing lessons that he quickly gives. You really needed this class to pass so you could keep your scholarship and with two weeks of barely getting nowhere, you were starting to get pissed off.

Setting your bag down on the dance studio's floor, you connected your phone to the stereo's bluetooth and put on your small heeled shoes. You didn't let it on but Dirty Dancing was one of your favourite movies and you wanted to do it justice. You had gathered from the costume department an outfit that was similar to Baby's and you were hoping it would channel your inner Patrick Swayze.

Turning on the song, you closed your eyes and started dancing by yourself as you remembered each move that was created during the movie all while remembering Chani's notes and tips.

The song slowly ended and your eyes flashed opened to the sound of clapping behind you. You quickly twirled around to find Chani leaning against the door frame smiling. "Chani! You scared me!"

"You did really good. I'm impressed to see you practicing on your own." He said as he walked over to you.

"Well, I need to pass this class in order to graduate and keep my scholarship." You said irriated that he didn't think you'd actually take this class seriosuly, unlike him who was clearly uninterested during class.

"Oh."

"I haven't gotten much help so far, so I've been learning on my own."

"I haven't been a great teacher the past couple of weeks have I?" He sat down next to you as you wiped off some sweat on a small towel.

"Not really."

He sighed and leaned back on his palms. "I just don't get romance. I've never really liked anyone so I don't know how to feel it in order to protray it correctly."

"Really?" He looked at your shock face with some annoyance. "Don't think of me as rude but you're constantly flirting with the girls in class, so I figured you've must have been ina relationship."

"Nope. I just flirt to work on my presentation for auditions or characters, that's all. I have no feelings for any of them. In fact, most of them annoy me."

"I must annoy you a lot then with not knowing what to do." You laughed.

Chani chuckled, "Actually you don't surprisngly. It's nice to have someone focused on their work like I am. I may not have shown it the past couple of weeks, but I've got the best grades in my department."

The next hour was spent talking as you both got to know each other, and you noticed Chani opening up to you as the next few classes went by as you practiced your dance sequence and song.

"I think it's good, but the characters are in love and I don't see it being shown." Mr. Alvis said after Chani and you showed your dance and music scene.

"I agree, the characters are in love and both sets of characters have a sort of sexual attraction during each number. For your song, I want your lips barely brushing while you sing back and forth with each other. PLay around with it. PLus I'd like to see you lay her down during the chorus as your hands play down her arms."

Chani looked at you, his eyes asking for permission to do what the teacher asked and you hesitated for a second before nodding your reply.

"Oh and Y/n, for your singing part can we get the crawl towards Chani then I'd like to see how it looks with your chest to chest before the chorus." Mrs. Elven said as she turned the music back on.

"I don't know what you've you done to me" you sang as your sank onto your knees the on all fours.

Chani fell to his knees a small smirking playing on his lips as he watched, a slight hunger burning in him as he saw you in a barely there swimsuit starting to crawl towards him.

"A grown-up women should never fall so easily."

You reached him and you let your hands slide up his torso to his neck where you looped them around your chest pressed against his as he wrapped one arm around your waist as the other tangled into your hair.

"I feel a kind of fear, when I don't have you near."

He pulled your closer as your hands slide down to his chest and hsi head moved in closer your lips barely brushing as you sand the rest of the bridge.

His head moved away as he looked at you longingly before slowly pushing you down till your back gently touched the floor and he crawled on top of you straddling your legs and he sang out the chorus. Your arms moved above your head as he pushed them up his lips close to yours before getting off of you as he completed the song.

You laid there stunned as the teachers clapped as you replayed what had just happened between you and Chani and the burning fire you had in your gut for him.

"That was perfect!" Mr. Avis said. "Please just repeat that for when you preform it."

Mr. Elven smirked as she watched Chani help you up off the floor. "Keep practicing the dance. Incorporate what you did just now into it."

A week blew by and you were back in the dance studio covered in sweat as you rewatched the final dance scene in Dirty Dancing on your phone while you had 'I've Had the Time of My Life' play on loop in the background. "Ugh!" You shouted and fell back onto the floor. You were never going to get this down, and without this being completed you weren't sure you both would even start the acting portion of Jane Austen's Persuasion.

"Taking a break?"

You opened your eyes and looked behind you as you laid on the ground to find Chani once again leaning against the doorframe. A playful smile on his lips as he gazed down at you. He gently licked his lips and you quickly turned away as you felt your face burn under his gaze but the mirror on the wall betrayed you showing your face flush a dark pink.

Smirking he walked over and stood over you looking down. "So, Baby," he said teasingly using the name from the main character of the film as he offered you a hand, "Shall we dance?"

You took his hand in yours and he pulled you up as your body slid up against his. Chani's other hand slid to your waist as you danced to the music. The music looped over again and you continued, forgetting the steps and what you were there to do as your gazes were locked onto each other. Each spin and and hip grind sent you over the edge, making you feel like you were floating on cloud nine.

Sweat poured off your bodies as your clothes clung to you as he twirled you into his body, his leg between yours as your body grinded in his, your thigh being lifted up by one of his hands as your skirt shifted down showing your bare thigh, your lips dangerously close. He opened his eyes and looked into yours, his eyes darkening at the sight of you. Drenched looking, your heaving chest, your lips slightly parted as you looked at him with innocence. He pulled you closer to him, your breath hitting his cheek and he dipped you slightly, pulling you up slowly before dipping you again, swinging your body to the other side of his before pulling you up sharply, noses touching.

He almost kissed you right there but the music stopped and the room fell silent besides the sound of your chests rising and falling as you tried to catch your breath.

"Um," his breath shaky, "I think we're good on the dance portion."

You took a deep breath in, "Yeah I think we definietly are."

It was the day of your performance. The auditorium was filled and your musical and dance number went by without a hitch.

You stood in the side wing as they announced the next group to go on. All that was left of your final assignment was to get over the monologue part, the ending letter in Jane Austen's Persuasion, and you were nervous about it. Spending so much time with Chani and getting to know him for the past months has been nerve-wracking. He was handsome for starters. He could make any girl blush under his gaze, and he certainly knew how to make you turn a dark shade of red.

Your relationship started off as one of annoyance then turned into something else once you got to know each other. Every time you saw Chani, it was like your body was on fire and only he could extinguish the flames he created.

Every time you met up with him to practice, the feelings you had kept growing, and now everything he does sends you over the edge. You didn't know how you got through the musical and dance number without being completely red. You weren't an actor, and the feelings that needed to be portrayed by the characters in those scenes you didn't have to act for - they were your own feelings. Every touch, every smile, every almost lip touch was all you. Even though you were friends, you knew more than likely nothing would grow past that, so if you had to be selfish and take those chances during practice and your performance, then so be it.

You weren't popular like Chani. He made friends wherever he went and had a line of girls to choose from when he wanted to. While you kept your nose in a book or writing one, blocking the world out besides the one that was in print. The only experience you had with relationships and love was just in books. Imagining how it felt to be kissed or your hand held. How it would feel to be kissed in the pouring rain as the main male lead said a love filled confession.

But Chani had been giving you that recently. The looks, the touches, the little flirts. You thought he felt the same as you, just too shy to admit it or ask you out. But every day, those small touches to your back, the slight hand holds, the hair tucking behind the ear made you feel his affection and possible love. But there was one thing you couldn't get your brain wrapped around. Heartbreak.

You could feel longing, happiness, love, a high that you didn't want to come down from when you were with him, but for the past couple of months, he didn't leave your side. You weren't alone. And to portray that emotion of loneliness and breaking apart was difficult.

Chani had given you every tip and trick to getting your body and acting skills to understand it. You couldn't cry on command, and you couldn't use fake tears. It's not like you couldn't cry at the scene. From reading to watching it in countless movies, every time the scene came up, you couldn't stop the overflow of tears, and when Chani performed the whole thing, you were left a crying mess.

The scene started off just reading the letter, and you were supposed to break down as you read it. But you just couldn't cry. You had been trying for weeks, but you were on cloud nine because of Chani. Nothing had brought you down. And now that the time had come, you were nervous to perform it.

You looked across the stage to find Chani standing in the other wing. He saw you and gave you an encouraging smile. You put down your script, which you had for a last-minute refresher, and straighten your dress out. It was a beautiful ocean blue historical dress with gold accents, and you had some white gloves on to match. In the pocket of the dress, you made sure you had the fake letter in which you were supposed to read from.

Looking back up, you saw Chani chatting with one of the other actresses, her back to you. One hand wrapped around her waist and the other on her back. At first, it looked like a hug, but looking closer, you could see it was a romantic touch.

Chani tucked a hair behind the girls ear, something he did so tenderly to you not so long ago, and the smile on his face was of pure affection and fascination as his eyes took in the girl's face.

Your breath caught in your throat as he dipped his head down towards her, his hands holding her face tenderly. Your eyes closed, and you turned away, not wanting to see more. It felt like you couldn't breathe.

You gripped your chest, your other hand finding its way to your mouth so a cry didn't escape from your lips. Over head, you could hear your names being called out and the roar of the crowd clapping, waiting for your entrance.

You quickly wiped your tears, taking a shaky breath in as you pulled out the letter from your pocket and walked on stage, not bothering to look in Chani's direction.

The lights had dimmed till there was just a mellow blue spot light on you. You looked at the envelope in your hands, your breath still shaky, which suddenly hitched in your throat when you saw your name printed on the front with Chani's handwriting. You had thought it was supposed to be the actual letter from the novel inside, but now you weren't so sure, and it scared you a little.

Your hands shook as you undid the envelope and opened up the letter. Your name was written neatly on the top and you tried to read it as the violin started to play, signaling the start of your speech, your eyes having a hard time focusing on the paper.

You looked out in the crowd, your voice somehow strong but quiet as you spoke a loud. "I can listen no longer in silence. I must speak to you by such means as are within my reach."

You paused for a second as a lump in your throat grew when your eyes caught the first sentence of the handwritten note in front of you. 'I'm surprisingly not good with words, but if there is one word I would use to describe you, it would be perfection.'

"You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope." Your voice started to shake, as you continued reading what was written to you.

'You have struck my every being. Every inch of you is perfection. Every touch. Every glance. Perfection.'

Your voice cracked, tears finally spilling down your cheeks. "Tell me not that I am too late, that such precious feelings are gone for ever. I offer myself to you again with a heart even more your own than when you almost broke it, eight years and a half ago."

'Oh, god, Y/N. I love you. I think I always have since our first encounter. How you looked so nervous and adorable. My thoughts had started to be consumed of you, ever growing the more I saw you. When you brought me down to earth that day in the dance studio, I knew. I knew it was you.'

Chani's footsteps echoing on the stage brought you back, your head turning to see Chani on the other side of the stage, waiting for you so you could speak the next passage together. "Dare not say that man forgets sooner than woman, that his love has an earlier death." He turned to face you, small tears forming in his eyes. "I have loved none but you. Unjust I may have been, weak and resentful I have been, but never inconstant. You alone have brought me to Bath. For you alone, I think and plan."

How could he love you and still kiss another girl? Was this a game to him? His sweet words filled you with hope, but you'd rather have none if the aching feeling in your chest was always constant with him. But how could he love you? True, he spent the past few months with you constantly, but how could one night, tonight of all nights, turn his love into nothing. If you consume his thoughts, then how could another women stray him so easily?

You looked out at the crowd before you, each person intently listening as Chani spoke the next part. "Have you not seen this? Can you fail to have understood my wishes?" He walked towards you, his hand motioning to the letter in your hands. You looked down again, a few tears falling onto the paper in front of you. "I had not waited even these ten days, could I have read your feelings, as I think you must have penetrated mine. I can hardly write. I am every instant hearing something which overpowers me."

'Y/N. My dear, sweet Y/N, I can't picture my life without you in it. It's only been a few months, but all I can think of is you. You're the sun, the sky, the darkest and most stormy of days, you're the ray of light breaking through the crowds. You're my dreams, my hopes, and my ambitions. You're my everything. I couldn't face tomorrow if you weren't in it.' You looked up to find him standing in front of you, a tearful smile on his face, his hands finding yours and cupping them in his as he raised the letter closer to you to finish reading. 'Every smile, every almost kiss, every touch. I can't imagine not being able to do all those to anyone else but you. Please, my darling Y/N, be mine and mine alone. I'll cherish and protect every minute we have together and shower you with love. Lovingly yours, Chani'

You looked up to find him finishing the monologue, his face dangerously close to yours, his eyes searching for an answer in your eyes. You stared back for a second before the thought of his letter being a lie struck you again, your heart cracking under his beautiful gaze.

Turning away and towards the wings of the stage, you saw the same girl from earlier dressed up in battle gear with a woman in a dress. Her arm around her waist, and then she carefully cupped her cheeks, giving the girl a passionate kiss.

"It was a fake kiss. Yours is the only lips I want to touch mine with." Chani whispered, his voice barely audible over the loud violin, his one hand which was still holding yours squeezed yours. You turned slowly towards him, the violin cut off, leaving the room in silence. Tears formed in your eyes as his whispered, "I love you, my dearest."

He pulled you close, one hand holding the small of your back and the other gently cupping your cheek. His lips touched yours, sending waves of pleasure and love through your body. You stood in shock for a second before your hands found their way to his chest, his heart beating hard beneath your hands.

The crowd around you exploded with applause, tearing you both away to look at the crowd, a laugh escaping from your lips as you looked back to Chani, who had the biggest smile on his face. He gently pulled you in again for a small kiss, his forehead resting on yours as he looked longingly into your eyes.

The curtain closed, and you stood still standing in each other's embrace, not wanting to let go of one another.

"Be mine?" Chani whispered, his lips brushing your cheek.

"I'm all yours."

I literally finished this on the train cause I couldn't get this story out of my head :3 Hope you enjoy! -Liz

#sf9 #chani #sf9 chani #chani fanfiction #sf9 chani fanfiction #sf9 fanfiction #sf9 imagines #jane austen #mamma mia #dirty dancing

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hide-in-imagination · 11 months

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Yall. I'm here again. I may or may not have finished all your fanfics in less than a week whilst my Six of Crows book is collecting dust... You cannot judge me for this. It's a damn good fanfic that I have not been able to stop thinking about. You're really doing gods work. I don't know what my life would be like if Roads that cross didn't exist. It is so cute and my everything. You're a great writer at everything. I usually struggle with fics that have smut in them. Not because I don't like reading about it (The very opposite 😏😏) but because I find it so hard to find something that speaks to me. When I do (like now) it is my everything. I think a big part of the problem is I feel a lot of authors just copy and paste the same smut scenes across however many chapters. Roads that cross, how do I say this kept everything delightfully fun, fresh and interesting 😌😌😌. Chefs kiss. Also I doubt I would ever get bored of these two.

I am so excited for the next chapter already. Keep doing what you're doing. This fic is so much more than just one thing, it has everything. Simon and Ambar are literally made for each other and you really have me believing in them, despite having still not seen the show yet.

Also I hope you're having a good day/night/evening/timezone appropriate period. If you ever need anything like prompt or romantic situation ideas, let me know because I have so so many. But respect if not because it's your fic after all!!

Lots of love, Jellie xx

Oh my Jellie Jellie bean, you are so sweet!! I wanna print this and hang it on my bedroom wall <3

(sorry for the nickname, I just think it's cute ksjdnf)

"I may or may not have finished all your fanfics in less than a week whilst my Six of Crows book is collecting dust... You cannot judge me for this." And I do not! I have all the Harry Potter books my parents gifted to me 3 years ago and the whole collection of Sherlock Holmes book that I bought myself because the box was pretty, and you think I've read any of that?? No 😂😂 I totally get you, don't worry.

"You're really doing gods work. I don't know what my life would be like if Roads that cross didn't exist." Oh my god, thank you!! kjsdnfls. That's is- wow. So heartwarming. So gratifying. It's the kind of words that keep me going. To be honest, I don't know what my life would be like without RTC either. It's been 5 years and it feels like a lifetime. I can't wait to finish the story so that I can focus on other wips, but I guess Roads will really be THE one even after I'm done with it. (I mean, with that word count? I might as well print it and bind it 😂)

"a lot of authors just copy and paste the same smut scenes across however many chapters." oh my god, who does that?? You've been reading the wrong fics, what is up with those people?? I always try to make each scene mean something different, explore something different, especially since in Roads they're just starting a relationship which means they're learning each other's bodies, what makes the other tick, they're trying different things just for the fun of it or because as their bond gets deeper they find new ways to express it. I'm so happy you think it's "delightfully fun, fresh and interesting"-- That's all I ever wanted.

(Btw, that sounds like a New York Times review on the backcover of a book and I love that 😂💕)

I gotta admit, I'm not very confident on the quality of this story since I started writing it many years ago and I feel like the first 15 chapters or so don't reflect everything that I've learned since then. I've been working on editing those past chapters when I have the time, but there's still a long way to go, so I'm relieved that you managed to consider it good and engaging even with the... sometimes deplorable narrative choices I made back then sdkjfsn. (I gotta learn to be kinder to myself, I know; tell my perfectionism that.)

"Simon and Ambar are literally made for each other and you really have me believing in them, despite having still not seen the show yet." Oh my god, they really sound made for each other?? That's so sweet. I don't know if I ever thought that about them while watching the show. I mean, of course I believe in their love and I think they could be great together, but made for each other? Wow. It's so interesting that my writing conveyed that, it's very flattering. I'm so happy you've fallen in love with them through my writing 💕 Now I'm scared you'll watch the show and go "Wait, this is how they act around each other?" 😂😂 Maybe it'll be very different or maybe they'll give you the same vibe, who knows, only time will tell 😂

I've read this in the morning but now it's afternoon! 😂 It's taken me a while to type this. Thank you for offering your help 💕 I think I have enough ideas for now (sometimes I fear I have too many as my wips folder gets longer and longer) but if the opportunity ever presents itself I'll let you know!

Eternally grateful, - C

#jellie06 #answered #fic related #appreciation #jellie jellie beaaannnnn<3 you made my day thank you

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vodid · 1 year

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MORE QUESTIONSSSS

Sooo, first one is, what advice do you have for aspiring writers and artists that follow you? Follow your passion, practice a lot, don’t get distracted, etc?

What’s the best part about being an author and a writer? The satisfaction when you finally finish a piece, or when a lot of people like and share your artwork and book?

Do you read any fanfictions? I’m wondering because I’ve almost ran out of good Prowl/Jazz fanfictions and I want more to cure my need for cuteness and angst with those two 🤲

Do you listen to music when you write/draw? If so, what kind of music, or does it depend on the scene when your writing/drawing. It definitely depends on what I’m writing at the moment to determine the music lmao

Will you ever make your Obsidian King fanfiction into a little series? Like after you’re done the first one with Prowl and Jazz whenever, will you plan on doing one with like Bluestreak and a love interest and how that would all play out? Or is the Obsidian King just a standalone?

Have you ever cried when you were writing your books? The Obsidian King, Vulnerability or otherwise? I cried during Vulnerability :( poor Bumblebee man and I relate to it so much too! Like, I absolutely love your writing in both because it feels as if I’m actually there, y’know?

Do you plan on continuing to learn German despite when you finish your Vulnerability fanfiction one day and only need a bit of German for it? I find it cool to learn German! I’m learning French at the moment, but I’m thinking about learning German after.

ANYWAYS, too many questions, I have more though. I was planning to send this before you woke up at some point, but then I had to go to a doctors appointment and I ran out of data unfortunately. Can’t wait to hear your answers if you respond to this!

hello anon <3

advice for aspiring artists/writers? you hit the nail on the head lol gonna preach the three P's i told myself and others years ago: practice, patience and passion. when you're a growing artist (which you always will be) you need to have patience with yourself as you navigate through the mistakes and learning curves as you practice. the passion keeps you motivated. if you don't have that passion and patience, you might have a hard time with the practice and growth

best part of being a writer? short answer: i love getting comments that analyze my work. long answer: i have been trying my best to focus less on the end product and its reception when it comes to writing, much like my art. this can even lead back to the first question: i personally believe you should not focus most on those things, but the process more. the things you learned, the steps you took, the parts that felt therapeutic for you. that's what should be the best part. (but ofc, i do love the comments i get on my writing and it certainly makes it feel even more worth it. analyses on my writing? THE best.)

j/p fanfic recs most of my favorites come from beloved rizobact. winner takes all and crystal ghosts are my favs from her. it's been a long time since i read this one, but domino milkshake was a fun one as far as i remember. if you've already exhausted those, the j/p zine just published some fics ',:)

do you listen to music when you draw/write? lot of times, i focus best with no music or a single song on repeat. tho i don't like the silence as much, it's quite boring. i like to have something so i'll either listen to music or put on a youtube video, usually mark or jack, sometimes reaction videos from other youtubers. i don't usually switch up what i'm listening to based on what i'm writing bc most times, it's the music that determines the art but it's not the biggest influence. i tend to listen to whatever my neurodivergent brain decided to attach to that week ...or month. rn, i'm still working through exhausting a german playlist and "rising kingdom" (yes, the minecraft song lol)

will obsidian king be a series? this is the plan as i realize i may not be able to juggle the various stories all in one fic (i'm sure i could but the way i had started the obsidian king wasn't the right setup for it) the next one i want to tackle after j/p is megoplita's story. from when they all first fell in love to the beginning of the autobot-decepticon war. bluestreak and the twins may not get their own story for a long while, if at all, since i do not have anything figured out post-war.

have you ever cried while writing a fic? not any of my current ones, no. but i have cried writing you are my flower iirc and infinity (i took prowl's death HARD, man.) vulnerability does hit home with me since it's just pure projection with bumblebee, a lot of it was actual sensations and thoughts i've experienced, but it was more therapeutic than upsetting for me. take care of urself anon <:)!

do you plan to continue learning german after you finish vulnerability? hell yeah, i hope to! i don't have a solid end goal going into this, because i highly doubt i will reach any sort of fluency, but it will always be a fun and interesting thing to learn. if i did have to give myself a goal, it would be to write a fic in german to test my knowledge! but for now, it's mostly just keeping my brain busy and engaged with something new

u can always drop more questions if u want <3

#vulnerability fic #obsidian king au

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not-poignant · 1 year

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random genuine question. how do you write a book? I've written multiple fanfics successfully and want to be a full time author nothing too crazy but just enough to make a good living. But I'm finding myself stuck when it comes to executing my original ideas. I plan them out well but when it comes to the acts/chapters and actually writing I can't seem to pull the trigger. I understand it takes time and I may just be overthinking but still I'm worried I won't be able to execute.

Hi anon,

You are probably better off asking someone who writes books for a living, because I definitely don't, and when I did publish two novels, they have never done as well as my serials (and writing a serial is very different - for me at least - to writing a book). Like, they did moderately well, but I consider myself a professional serial writer and not a novelist, and those two things are 100% not the same thing. (Which is also maybe where you're struggling.

Writing fanfics successfully can often have zero bearing on whether you can (or want to) write a novel. Writing one is not writing the other! The processes are totally different, unless you were just writing novels and splitting them up into serial chapters and then, well, you wouldn't be here asking this question sdalkfjad)

There are some great novel-writing books out there, and many can be requested through libraries, and many of their authors have blogs or similar where they teach many of their techniques online. There are so many different ways of structuring a novel (and it can change depending on your genre, and I don't know what your genre is either!) I can't recommend any personally, because I don't read them, because I don't really write novels.

When it comes to actually sitting down and actually writing anything of length though, it's sometimes down to asking yourself a few things:

What feelings are happening in you that hold you back? Are you afraid it won't be good? (In which case there's no way but through, anon, you have to write some bad writing in order to get to the good writing, it's a mandatory part of the practice - a garden needs shit/manure in order to grow, lol).

Are you bored because you planned it all out? (In which case you may need to look into writing novels without plotting them first).

Are you more excited for future chapters instead of present chapters? (Write out of order! And make the present chapters shorter).

Are you more interested in fanfiction's regular feedback from readers? (In which case consider creating a reader group for your original writing, or finding a really good beta who can give you that feedback). (I can't get dopamine from writing novels, so I don't write them, I just find the process boring in a way that's pretty intolerable to me).

Is the novel too huge of a road into meeting your characters and setting/s in prose? (Consider writing small oneshots for your characters and world first. Consider writing side characters in the world in a 2-3k fic. Treat it like responding to a fanfiction challenge. It can often make access to the world a little easier).

Is something about the story actually broken? Do you need to go back to the drawing board re: the strengths of the characters?

Learn how to fall in love with your characters the way you've fallen in love with fanfic characters. If they're not strong enough to earn that 'love'/'obsession' - make them stronger. (Although, frankly, sometimes you can only learn that love by writing them. Think of it this way: When you start writing fanfiction, you've already invested hours of time into learning the characters and their depth. You need to invest at least the same amount into your own characters and their stories before you might stumble across that same love).

Outside of that you can apply any number of techniques to novel writing, but ultimately, a lot of it is sitting down and just writing (sometimes pretty terribly) and learning how to overcome writer's block and understanding why it's happening for you.

For me, I learned that the cons of writing novels just didn't outweigh the pros. The lack of dopamine feedback re: readers doesn't play well with my unmedicated ADHD brain, which means writing to no feedback at all tends to leave me extremely unmotivated. And fitting the novel formula re: story lengths ultimately just didn't work with me either, most of my long stories naturally hit or exceed the 250k mark, which is fine for serials, but not fine for most novels outside of epic fantasy or hard science fiction.

So I would also recommend sitting down and asking yourself what did fanfiction give you that made you able to write it? And what do you need novel writing to give you, to make you able to write it? Likewise, ask yourself - do you want to write original novels? Or original serials? There's a good market for both now, and novels =/= serials. Like, they are naturally written in different ways!

Do you think you would struggle to write an original serial the same way that you're struggling with novels? All of these things are important to ask yourself.

But ultimately, just... I hate to say it, but sometimes you have to force yourself through the struggle, and write stuff while groaning because you know it's bad, to get to the other side. It's like learning any new skill - and fanfiction writing does not naturally lend itself to writing novels with everyone! You are learning a brand new skill!! Just because I know how to draw with pencils doesn't mean I know how to paint with watercolours, and I may be even more intimidated to learn watercolours because I know now how long it took to get the hang of fanfiction. Sometimes you just have to actually sit yourself down and be like 'okay I have to get real good at being real bad at something for a little while, even if I hate it.'

Chances are it won't be as bad as you think anyway, and then even if it is, well that's a normal part of writing a novel. That's why the first draft is the first draft, and not the final product. :)

#asks and answers #pia on writing #dodgy advice #how to write a novel #i will flat out say as well that novels are just *harder to write* than fanfiction #because you didn't have someone else doing the hard work for you #of establishing the characters and the world #you have to do that now #and it feels harder and more daunting because it IS HARDER and more daunting #like fanfic can be hard work #especially if you're writing AUs in original worlds #but for the most part #someone else did thousands of hours of labour #to give you a world as a sandbox to play in #now you have to do a version of that labour for yourself #and i'm gonna be honest anon #sometimes it is a lot less fun in the beginning #i found writing in a more 'fanfiction style' helped me #but ultimately i decided against being a full-time novelist #and chose to be a full-time serial author #so i'm probably not the person whose advice you need the most sdalfkjs

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justfor2am · 1 year

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hi my interview has been rescheduled once again because of course it is ^_^ nothing wants me to be interviewed ig ^_^ anyways 🥺😈🛒🎢✨💋🎶⛔🍦🌞💖💌❌🧐🦅👀🤗💞🧠🤩🤯💔🤭 for the fanfic writer asks or wtevr they're called??? didn't realize until just now u even rbed an ask game so apologies 🫡 side note the 💥 emoji is so fun . its just like 💥💥💥💥💥 yk??? also feel free to skip any of those i just threw down the ones i think would be most interesting but as usual there r many

i am manifesting an interview AND a job for u, get that bag king!!!

also waough ty for giving me an excuse to talk abt my blorbos 🥺🥺🥺

and ya 💥 feels like ur comboing someone really well in a fighting game, like 💥💥💥 K.O. yanno?

this is def gonna be a long one tho soooo the rest underneath the cut this goes lmao

🥺 Is there a certain type of moment or common interaction between your characters that never fails to put you in your feels?

Anything having to do with touch. I'm a sucker for physical gestures, so anything that involves details like brushing someone's hair out of their eyes, hooking a tentative pinky around someone else's hand, it doesn't need to be overt to get me in my feels every single time.

😈 Has there been a point in a story where you did something just to be playfully mean to your readers?

Yes! I threatened a major character death in [though I've closed my eyes, I know who you pretend I am] late in the final (12th) chapter lmao

I knew that being that late into the fic most people would've forgotten what the specific tags were and even less would be willing to scrolling all the way back up to check lol

🛒 What are some common things you incorporate in your fics? Themes, feels, scenes, imagery, etc.

Like I said in the first Q, touch is a big thing for me. Eyes and anything having to do with vision also tends to be a big one, if you read a fic with both of those elements there's a decent chance I wrote it.

As far as overarching things, I prefer to write scenery over dialogue, and put a heavy emphasis on describing what the characters are feeling/thinking over having them verbally express it.

🎢 Which of your fics would you call your wildest ride?

I wanna say my [detroit become human au] has shit hit the fan pretty quickly. The fic opens with the conflict and it takes a few chapters for the reader to get any context, but once you've got it, going back to the start just makes your heart break.

✨ Give you and your writing a compliment. Go on now. You know you deserve it. 😉

booo hiss grrr

no but actually uhhhhhh... I will say that when I've got a good idea rattling around in my head, I can churn out a fic for that premise very quickly. to the point that i accidentally wrote three chapters for one of my fics all within a day, because I'm unhinged like that

💋 First kiss fics. Love em or hate em?

LOVE but only if they're done right. I appreciate first kiss fics that aren't perfect or a little clumsy, but also i'm a sucker for those picture perfect moments too

🎶 Do you listen to music while you write? What song have you been playing on loop lately?

YA i do my best writing with some music on. I've been listening to a mix of things lately (Love from the Other Side by FOB, that new Shakira collab, and Flowers by Miley Cyrus) but i've also been looping my 14+ hour long exo playlist

⛔ Do you have a fic you started, but scrapped?

I had a sculk!Grian fic from like, I wanna say October last year that I was 1k words into that just. Disappeared. No clue where it went or how I lost but, but in hindsight, it wasn't my best work.

I'm still a bit sad to have lost it, but considerably more proud of the things I've written since.

🍦 What’s the sweetest fic you’ve created so far?

I have come to the realization that I am horrible at writing fluff without some level of conflict within the fic. Whoops! Closest I've got is a [scarian sick fic] that I wrote recently lmao

🌞 Do you have a preferred time of day to write?

Either while I'm at work when it's dead during the day time, or frantically at like, 11 o'clock p.m., there is no in between.

💖 What made you start writing?

Wayyyyy back when I was 12/13 I used to be big into rp, and I came into the realization that the rps I was doing could just as easily be formatting into fics.

None of those fics were ever published, but getting to learn how to edit and rewrite scenes that had been planned out with another person made me want to start creating stories of my own.

💌 How do you feel about comments and feedback?

Love love LOVE comments and feedback. Literally getting a comment is like a serotonin boost directly into my veins to write more, esp comments that'll point out specific scenes or moments/lines they liked.

someone pointed out that they liked the way I described fresh hickeys like blooming violets and I haven't been able to stop thinking about that comment ever since.

❌ What’s a trope you will never write?

That's a good question.... I'm trying to think of one that isn't like, a blatantly obvious icky trope.

I'm not sure if it counts as a trope, but Y/N fics. Not only are their primary function to act as fan service, they end up coming off very RPF to me which I'm not a fan of.

Oh, also RPF. Any fic i write has to do 100% with the characters those people portray, not the real person.

🧐 Do you spend much time researching for your stories?

Depends on the fic! For my [actor au] I've just been kinda flying by the seat of my pants, doing the occasional googling but not much. The opposite of this would be my [detroit become human au] where I literally rewatched jacksepticeye's d:bh playthrough and scoured wikis to make sure i'm describing androids correctly.

tl;dr: generally no, only as needed unless I get fixated on it.

🦅 Do you outline fics or fly by the seat of your pants?

Fly by the seat of my pants, but i'm trying to change this! For my multi-chaptered fics I've started actually planning out future events, and even for this one big one shot im working on, i've got an outline in the works.

...though generally, i don't plan. it's a bad habit.

👀 Tell me about an up and coming wip please!

GLADLY so speaking of that big one shot, it's going to be a boatem superhero au, i've started outlining it and getting my concepts together, i'm very excited for it!

here's a snippet:

It was fairly obvious that the Mayor had pulled some strings to get Scar to this stage; once a nobody vigilante who seemed more preoccupied with dazzling the camera over saving lives, Scar's public image had taken a hard left turn during the past few campaigning months.

The situation was more of an open secret— it was all too convenient for Scar, who practically lived in the Mayor's pocket, to be joining the city's most elite crime-fighting team.

it's VERY early in development so don't expect this one for a while tho

🤗 What advice would you give to new fanfic writers that are just getting started?

I'd say figure out your character's voice is a big one. It's easy to fall into fanon tropes and while they're fun, they can cause lots of warping in the way you write your own fics, which might make them sound off.

So look out for fanon tropes! Personally I've run into people who make Scar very sweet and innocent, to the point of dusting his hands clean of blame. It's an easy hole to fall into, and no one should fault a writer for falling into tropes.

There's a line to walk, and I find that watching content relating to that character really helps shaping that "inner voice".

Also, get someone to proof read your work who is willing to point out your mistakes. Editing/betaing is never meant to be a personal attack, but rather to make sure that the fic you present to the rest of the world is cohesive and clear.

💞 Who’s your comfort character?

Scar! He just gets me fr. He's one of my favorite guys to write because of how versatile and how much variety he has. He could be a silly salesman one minute, and a quietly scary assassin the next. Whatever the bit or joke is, he fully commits to it, often to the detriment of himself, but god does it make for good content.

Also he has a really good narration voice ok

🧠 Pick a character, and I’ll tell you my favorite headcanon for them.

(ty for the speedy discord reply lol)

Grian! my darling baby boy who has every mental illness ever

no but actually, i'd say my favorite grian head canon is anything having to do with him being an alchemist. i want that man brewing potions, getting blown up, and curing all his friends ailments with the most illegal looking brew you've ever seen in your life.

🤩 Who is your favorite character to write?

Grian, mostly because he comes easiest to me! There's such a sense of endless potential when I get ready to write him, and like, idk what it is, but longing too?

We've been getting it pretty heavy w/ his whole "I Miss Mumbo" campaign but like, grian to me feels like someone who's always thinking about reaching a hand out, and pulls it back at the last second. It's very relatable.

🤯 What’s a genre you struggle with as a writer (ex. romance, action, etc.)?

Weirdly enough, it's fluff. I always feel compelled to write stories with some level of conflict or it's not "satisfying" to me. I love reading the genre, but for whatever reason when I write it, I get in my head about if it's "good enough" or not without conflict. I'm working on that lol

💔 Is there a fic of yours that broke your heart?

EDIT: so i misread this, you get fic recs as a bonus. my proper answer is: [my bad ending fae two shot], it will shatter you as it did me </3

i'm going to give two because i do what i want. the first being [It's Only Logical by TSTrashCaptain] which is a sanders sides fic that to this day, i can only dream of writing something so good. tw for themes of abuse and nsfw at times, but god. just reading the title again puts a knot in my heart in the best way possible.

now, this fic. [your heart rots in my hands by thepigeoncat]. this fic slaughtered me the first time i read it. i left a long ass comment on it. tw for major character death, but this is the perfect last life scarian fic.

it's beautiful, and tragic, and it makes me feel as though the world has truly ended /pos. please go read it.

🤭 Do you have a favorite tag to use when posting your works?

my favorite tag for when i post unbetaed work is "no beta we die like scar to the boatem hole"

as far as a REAL tag, hurt/comfort >:))

and my favorite one off funny tag is "i cannot emphasis to you enough how much blood is in this fic"

[fanfic writer emoji asks!]

#justfor2am #justfor2talks #long post

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starchild--27 · 2 years

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Hello again! I can definitely understand being in the post military feels. I think I've gotten emotional over every departure and return so far. Like sometimes you don't even realize how much you missed them until they return. I have to say the way you describe Chanyeol was lovely.

In answer to some of your questions, I'll answer some but if I feel that it might reveal or at the least narrow down the possibilities, then I'll save those answers til the end if you're still interested in hearing them. There's not much I can think of to tell you about myself. Um I like to read, write and create edits and moodboards. I work probably more than I should so I don't have a ton of free time, but what time I do have is spent either online talking to friends and doing the above mentioned or in the kitchen. I like to cook and explore flavours and recipes. I'd love to travel the world and learn new techniques and dishes but sadly I'm stuck with YouTube.

You said you like to read and watch things are there any particular that stand out to you that you'd recommend? Don't feel limited to hard copy books it could be fic too if you'd like.

Speaking of fic....what sort of gift were you thinking of....I'm capable of, well, what I mentioned earlier lol, I'm not sure if I'll have time for fic writing, but if you'd care to share some ideas for your gift maybe a few wants in each category you're interested in?

(Ps. Ramble away and talk my ear off I do not mind at all. Make these as long or short as you want!)

Hey there, sorry for keeping you waiting with my response. 🙊 I hope you've been well.

And yes, with every enlistment i've been frequently hit with waves of missing each of them a lot. But I'm getting all excited thinking about how we are more than halfway through already - Baekhyun's coming back soon (gosh i miss him-) and then it's only Sehun and Jongin which will sting but after them they are all done. That's such a good thought ^-^

Hehe, I'll surely come back to those questions later, I enjoy reading other people's takes on their biases and all that a lot ^^

Ohh, cooking and traveling - how fun~ I love travelling a lot too! Are there any places/countries you want to visit especially? And for cooking, are there any dishes you enjoy making and/or eating most? And which would you love to try but didn't have the chance to yet? I'm not big on cooking because I'm too lazy and rarely take myself time for it ^^' but I am fond of baking every now and then, hehe, at least i watch baking asmr videos on youtube every now and then and try out some things I've seen every now and then xD

Man, I'm really bad at picking favourites because I really love so many books/movies/etc and each in a unique way, so it's hard to choose.

My favourite fanfic tho is probably On the Booze with Brahms (it's a chanbaek fic, in case you are not into ships) - it unites so many of my favourite tropes *^* But I also love the works of @marshmallow-phd and @guardians-of-exo on here - both are such talented writers and did fic series i enjoyed reading very much.

My recent favourites for books are The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon, This Is How You Lose The Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone & The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (which i both read last year but i am still so impacted by them), I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson (which i read two or three years ago but is one of the most heart-wrenching stories), all the Grishaverse books by Leigh Bardugo and the books from the Wayfarers series by Becky Chambers.

All time favourite (and recommended) movies are Le Fabuleux Destin D'Amelie Poulain (2001), Donnie Darko (2001) Everything, Everywhere, All At Once (2022) but I also love the usual fantasy/sci-fi stuff like The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Harry Potter (fuck JKR tho) and so on.

For series I love Gilmore Girls a lot, I loved The Queen's Gambit too and Anne with an E and recently also Stranger Things (jumped on the hype train after season 4 was out xD). I also sometimes watch K-Dramas, I haven't seen that many tho because they not always pique my interest but the last two I watched got me pretty invested, My Liberation Notes (2022) and Rain or Shine (2017) and I am also watching Bad Prosecutor now, which is the first of the dramas starring Kyungsoo for me and I am really enjoying it so far!!

Ok that was a lot ^^'

For my gift I really don't have a preference, I know that especially writing something demands time so please don't feel obligated at all to do that, if you don't get around to it. Ideas for stuff I'd enjoy would include basically anything with music xD I am a sucker for everything from making mixtapes/playlists for each other (with whatever sentiment btw it doesn't have to be romantic) to making music together, songwriting together, that kind of stuff. But I am also absolutely infatuated with Baby-Zzar (who isn't even a real baby anymore but she'll always be for me xD) and Toben the little rascal too, so any pet parent themed things would absolutely make me squeal as well. (I hope you can work with that answer a little, I tried not to be too "Idc I'll be happy with whatever ^^" which is totally true but probably wouldn't help you at all with coming up with a gift idea)

Anyway, that much from me, I already wrote so much again xD

Have a good time, dear secret santa ♡

#exol secret santa 2022 #secret santa

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miraculouscontent · 2 years

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I've been thinking about the peeps who wants to make an adri*nette spin on your Dread String of Fate au and... Adrien had shown time and time again that he doesn't act for other people's sake as long as it's not affecting him (effing high road my foot) or he benefits from it ("peace" in the class despite it not being fair to Marinette). To do an adri*nette spin to your au is to make him give up the cat miraculous as it is tangled with his ring finger and the ring. Which I can't imagine him doing considering his coddled actions. But a fanfic writer can make it believable, I think, if they would develop his character first, or make him a better version of himself in the get-go. But the thing is, Luka is already at the advantage of giving Marinette a chance to change her fate as he isn't too in deep in the thorns of the problem and has canonically shown more altruism for her. Feather stans can do what they wanna do. But I'm gonna say it: you've already done it better.

Thanks!

Adrien taking off the cat would only be the starting process. Honestly, whether or not he’s “concerned” about the whole red string, any strategy he’d employ would probably be more akin to the ‘Glaciator 2″ method (i.e: try to cater to Ladybug without actually addressing the issue at hand), so he’d be more likely to just see if the string can be moved rather than the bond outright being broken.

To make a version of my AU that’s love square (which is already scummy but I’ve explained that before; I just think it’s bordering on pathetic that the stans are so desperate/uncreative for a ship rife with content that they need to steal from other ships) would be defeating the point of the AU in the first place. The point is that even the foundation of the ship is flawed and Marinette has virtually no choice in any of it. They’d basically have to tear the entire love square down and then rebuild it from the ground up, and by then it’s either a different ship or not worth it.

And it’s not as though I think that the idea of breaking a soulmate bond just to fall in love “for real” afterwards is bad, but it doesn’t work with how the love square is set up, you feel me? Like--the ship would have to be set up for that sort of plot in advance and even then I think it’s a little cheap, like a, “hey, you know that thing that made the FL miserable? well, we fixed the agency issue but she’s still here, hopefully you’re just willing to move past all those bad memories.” I also feel like it’s a little ehhhhh psychologically because I wouldn’t be sure if Marinette would be there because she wanted to or because of the lingering feelings/memories of what the string forced upon her.

The other thing is that Luka is already a character who wants to go at Marinette’s pace and wants her to make her own choices. To make the AU Adrienette would basically be to turn Adrien into Luka which--congratulations, what a complete waste of time.

The character being attached to the other side of the string knowing is also another point against it because the idea is for someone from the outside to see it and get to learn about/react to it as if they were someone watching the show, and Luka having a dog in the race plays into things as well.

#category: salt #salt: fandom #other: ask and answer #((To make an Adrienette version of the Dread String of Fate is to disrespect what the AU points out.))#((I'd like to say ''that's why I don't do Lukanette love squares and do love infinities instead'' but let's face it--))#((we all know I don't avoid love squares out of ''respect'' for the love square's concept lol.))

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isthisselfcare · 2 years

Text

Answering a few of the quicker asks today -- I have others I want to write proper posts for at another time, so sorry for the delay!

Crowded Room by Selena Gomez reminds me of you story. Reading it really is better the second time round :) Thank you sm for your creativity, I believe you have created one of the best written novels (including the published ones) that I've read. Would you consider making a playlist for the story?

I thought Crowded Room was a book and I tried to look it up on my Kindle. Right. It’s a song! My brilliance astounds me. But what a beautiful song. The lines about dizziness and the whole room feeling slow-motion are lovely!

On the playlist, I have a collection of songs that vaguely have to do with the story, which I am going to make a separate post for. Thank you for your kind words!

Hi, LOVE your story! I read that you’re doing edits so I’m waiting for that to be done before I bind it (personal use). Any chance you will convert those “--” into actual M dashes during editing? Lol sorry for my picky question

You must send me photos of the bound copy if you take any, I love seeing them! And yes, I hope to finish the edits in the next week. So sorry about my lazy dashing (dashed lazy) habits. I’ll see if I find a spurt of motivation to fix those for you. I should note I prefer the spaced en dash over the closed-up em dash -- the former is more common in British publications (more information on the difference). There, a picky answer to your picky question xx 😂

I'd just like to ask what your irl job is? And! If you're planning to post other dhr fics after this?

I don’t talk much about IRL things under this pseud, so sorry. Things are too easy to triangulate and I am keeping isthisselfcare in a separate bubble for various reasons. On future Dramione, I have no plans at the moment (I am rather wrung out -- desiccated, really -- by the effort of the last year’s work) but never say never, etc.! Thank you very much for your interest!

Are you famous in real life? I feel like you should be if you aren't 😂

Haha, no -- I am the height of mediocrity in all things

Would you consider turning DMATMOOBIL into a Netflix show?

Whom would you choose as your cast for DMATMOOBIL?

YES, and I enjoy the implicit assumption that we could somehow sidestep the nightmarish legal kerfuffle surrounding fanfic and make this a reality

As for the cast, I have stared blankly at this question for five minutes. I haven’t really thought about it as I am awful with faces and have more vivid impressions of personalities than physical appearances! I am open to suggestions for my upcoming Netflix show

Hello you fanfic writer I would like to have a pint with, I have a lot of questions for you but the most pressing for me is: is the skull of Mary Magdalene inspired by Morte, the talking skull in the timeless classic RPG: Planescape Torment?

G&T for me, cheers! I have not heard of this game, but Googling it I found “His sole weapon seems to be his mouth, whether by taunting or biting” which sounds brilliant! Someone ought to write an obscure crossover fic. I ship it

Are u real?

…I am struck by sudden doubt

What's the most bizarre question you've received?

Under this nom de plume, perhaps the one above, haha

Hi! Excellent work, I enjoyed reading it so much! Thank you for sharing. My question is about the arithmancy scene - do you have a background in math at all? I quite enjoyed your explanations. Either way, how did you come up with your understanding of arithmancy?

I always thought arithmancy should be some kind of magical maths beyond divination and sort of… went with it (though Draco does use the predictive elements of the discipline in his explanation). I enjoy reading about pure mathematics & mathematical logic but it is not an area of specialisation. I am pleased you enjoyed it as that was a rather niche inclusion on my part!

What happened to fernsy and the trolls 😭

Why is this question so funny?! Fernsby caught the troll pornographer and did not develop a complex!!

And thank you to everyone who sent me kind words through the asks box, I blush to reblog those but am so touched and will keep them in the inbox to read on grey days

#asks

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greycappedjester · 2 years

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Hi, do you have any tips on writing?

I love reading and I do actually like writing but I can't make myself pick up a pen and write. And when I do write, I just can't write properly because I get stuck in random places, especially on intros or beginnings, even if I have an idea of what to write.

I think you're an awesome writer, in both writing and plot so I was just wondering if you have any suggestions or tips! :D

Thank you!

Hmmm, I guess I have a few pieces of advice for that. Full disclosure, I am in no way an expert or even trained in this kind of writing; but, this is what helps me!

So, first and foremost, I feel like the hardest thing to do is just that first part of actually starting to write. So, don't beat yourself up about it. I try reminding myself this:

1.) There's no perfect writing mode. If you're waiting for the stars to align and you to feel totally focused and ready to write that hard scene, it's not going to happen. You just gotta start writing anyway--maybe the mode will find you or maybe it will feel agonizingly slow the whole time you're trying. Either way, you have more on the page when you're done than when you started so it's a WIN!

2.) Legit just make yourself do it. I set a timer and tell myself in 10 minutes I'm going to start writing. That let's me start thinking about the scene I want to write and get through all the random stuff that'll get in my way (like "oh wait, I need to do laundry" or "crap, I should answer this email first"). It just makes it feel like less pressure for me since it's not starting immediately, but it's letting myself know I plan to start writing soon. Then, of course, actually making myself do that.

3.) With that, I also tell myself "okay, no matter how hard it feels, I'm going to write for at least 10 minutes before giving myself a break". Sometimes those 10 minutes go really, really slow and the words aren't coming. But, more often than not, I'll get started writing, get into the flow, and just keep going until an hour or so passes.

4.) All first drafts have to be are words on a page. Got a page with words on it? Success! Doesn't have to be good. You don't have to be totally happy with it or even just a little bit. Are the words there? Yep. Then, you've got more than you've started with. First draft success

5.) I love plans. For me, knowing what I want out of a scene and where that scene is going is most important for getting myself to move forward. I always start of with a scene by scene chapter plan; but, sometimes when I hit a mental writing block, I also just write out the scene in detail with what I want them to do/ say in a bullet point list (like go to the other room, talk about the plan, bring up said plot point, mention character, get food, etc.). That at least gives me an idea of where to go next if I'm feeling lost. Often, it's a fun way to think of dialogue, too.

6.) Try not to get too hung up on tough to write scenes. If it's bugging you too much and getting in the way of other writing just put what you want to happen in parenthesis and coming back to it later. Like: if you need your characters to talk, move to another place, and talk again but you're not sure how they're going to move to place A to B yet, it's totally okay to write the first conversation then (COME BACK TO LATER: They move to Point B) then the next conversation. Write in the order that's easiest for you.

7.) Don't stress too much on the parts that are hard. They're part of the story; but, they're not all. It's okay to like writing some parts more than others. For example, I hate writing beginnings of stories. I don't think I've ever started any of my fanfics and been totally happy with the beginnings of the story. They always feel awkward to me. But, I'm looking forward to writing what comes next so I tell myself I just gotta get through this part and then I can have more fun.

Good luck and hope this helps!

Happy New Year!

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katnissdoesnotfollowback · 2 years

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hi! 👋🏻 Ur a really awesome writer! i was just wondering if I could ask for some tips? maybe some advice or insight on how to deal with it when you’re not receiving the response you wish for?

Dear Anon,

I'm afraid I'll be making a few assumptions in order to answer this, so please forgive me if I'm way off. I'm guessing you're speaking about fanfiction writing specifically, and perhaps are fairly new-ish to posting your fanfic? Or maybe you've been posting for awhile and are getting discouraged from a lack of response.

Fair warning, pretty much none of this advice is easy to follow, and I still struggle with it sometimes too, but I do think it has helped me. It may not help you, as everyone is different and most of this is pulled from my own personal experiences. I truly hope it does help you though, because posting something you've worked so hard on and put so much love into, only to get little to no response, really sucks.

Something to remember before I dive in is that all of this advice is based on the idea that everyone fandoms in their own way and at their own pace. This includes you the writer -- we're always talking about don't pressure writers to update or make them feel bad if they can't produce because there's a person on the other side of the screen who isn't getting paid for this and is dealing with their own life... But Fandom is a community and a relationship. So you have to allow them the readers the same courtesy.

So here we go:

1) Timing can have a HUGE impact on the response you get. Sometimes you post right before or right after an established writer posts a long awaited update. Sometimes literally everyone in the fandom is posting on the same day. It can often feel like feast or famine around here when it comes to fan created works. There's no giant publishing companies staggering our releases so everyone's gets some kind of attention. Instead, we're a milieu of posting and yours just... might get shuffled to the bottom. How do you deal with this? Give yourself permission to reblog your own stuff at different times. It's okay to plug yourself a little. You worked hard on it and maybe somebody just missed it.

2) Kind of goes with the first... Exposure. AO3 has a great tagging system, but it also shows things in the order of posting, newest at the top. This means that if you post something to AO3 and it gets buried under things that post after yours, then it is less likely to be seen. Now, there are readers who will scour the tags and read literally everything in them and still be ravenous for more. Bless those sainted readers for their time and enthusiasm. BUT most readers aren't like that. This means that you can't always just put it up on AO3 and be done with it, and the readers will pour in!!!! Maybe... but probably not. This is one of the reasons why I still have a tumblr. It's another source of exposure and I have a little more access to more eyeballs/ears. Post here about your work. People get intrigued if you have inspiration pictures, songs, little snippets up on your blog. Part of the fandom experience is that ability to interact with the creators in a way that the vast majority of us simply cannot do with the creators of the source material.

Participate in challenges or group blogs, if there are any available and you have the time. In terms of the Everlark and THG fandom... it's an older fandom with very little to zero new source content. Which means the activity will be in constant ebb and flow. Famine or feast... and this is going to include reader response. If the rate of creation of fanworks fluctuates, then people will wander away and return. Don't even try to find consistency in the level of response you get because you won't get it. For example, there was a drabble I posted well over a year ago that barely got any notes. Well, someone reblogged it recently and it's suddenly gaining notes, and not just from people who are new to the fandom either. From people who simply missed it the first time around for one reason or another.

Understand that even if you do this, even if you directly ask people to read your stuff, they might not do it. They might read it and not like it. Just like you are under no obligation to produce fanfiction at the rate the fandom wants, they are under no obligation to read and like your stuff at the rate you want. :/ The fandom door swings both ways.

3) And this one's not easy.... accept that sometimes... it is not about you. Everyone fandoms in their own way and at their own pace. This means there will be readers who read everything they can get their hands on. They might miss your works anyways for one reason or another because they're still human too. There will be readers who will not like your writing, either because there is something in the style or the content that just isn't their thing. This is not an insult towards you or your writing style. It is merely a reflection of the widely varying tastes we as readers have. Examples!

Someone once told me that they liked my fanfiction so much because there is something about the way I use the English language that made it easier for them (a non-native English speaker) to understand the story. I can't even tell you what it is about my writing that apparently gives it this quality, only that it worked for someone. I say this only to point out that for the most part, you have ZERO control over how people react to your writing.

Preferences are a BIG THING to fandom readers. I am not a big fan of huge age gaps or huge power differences. Student/teacher? Nope. Not my bag. Really not a fan of dubious consent being treated as romantic. Now I've read some of those pieces, but very sparingly because it's not something I really enjoy so finding one I do like is difficult. There are writers who I've tried and I just can't... either because of the tropes they frequently use or the way they characterize the characters just doesn't jive with me, or because they (SERIOUS PERSONAL PREFERENCE HERE) heavy load the exposition up front in their stories which leads to them telling us what's going on or what the world is like rather than SHOWING us. But that's my preference. I don't read anything that's even close to something I'm writing myself because we're already all playing with the same source material. The last thing I want to do is inadvertently pull inspiration from another fan writer and make them feel like crap for it. So right now... I read zero Olympics, zero witchcraft fics, zero shapeshifters... I can't say other people do that but hey, maybe they do.

These are my personal preferences in what I read. Does that mean that if you write those things, I think you're not worthy of recognition or response? Hell no. Because there are readers out there who want those things. But I am, as a reader, very unlikely to even spend the time reading your work if it falls into those categories. As a writer... this means that when I write anything that I know people might be averse to, I CANNOT TAKE OFFENSE. I have to, as the writer, accept that it isn't necessarily about me, acknowledge that there are A MILLION REASONS why someone might not be reading my writing and accept it as being OKAY. Does this make sense?

My point in speaking about my own preferences is merely to highlight that all of us are different and fandom differently. So chances are pretty good that someone out there will like what you write but you will never ever EVER please everyone. Don't even try. You might only appeal to a few people, but I'm willing to bet if you're writing niche then those people are going to be OVER THE MOON for it. But again... If I am allowed to have preferences in what I read, then I have to allow everyone else in the fandom that same right. I have to allow and accept that there WILL be people who don't like my writing. Who think it's awful or overrated or awkward or incomprehensible. That is their opinion and they are allowed to have it. Now, of course, fandom etiquette says you shouldn't SAY that to someone but that's a whole different post. ;)

Also... there are readers who do not read fics unless they are complete. That's their preference and you have to allow for it. Now, it makes it discouraging for a newbie writer who doesn't have a fic under their belt so... either try to spit out some drabbles or oneshots to garner interest in your writing or.... have some patience.

4) So... write for you. Yes yes I hear everyone groaning and complaining, really kdnfb? That cliche???? Yes. Really. So here's the thing. Let's say you've got a birthday coming up. You're stoked for this birthday. It's going to be EPIC! You've asked for this way cool jacket you saw in a thrift store and tickets to see your favorite band in concert. Your birthday rolls around and... your Mom gives you cash to go buy the jacket, but not the tickets. Is your birthday ruined? Is it the worst birthday ever? Heck no! Look at your bad self in that awesome sauce jacket! You rock!

What I'm saying is, find something in your writing that YOU like. That YOU are proud of. "I really love my world building in this piece." "I wasn't sure I could pull off that character alteration but I really think i did." "I actually posted smut *GASP!*" Whatever it is, bask in it. But don't hinge your happiness on other people on this one. I'm trying to say, want more than one thing out of your writing. Wanting something for yourself makes it easier to handle when you don't get something from anyone else. Is this easy to do? Nope. It sure as shit is not. But this is why we writers are always freaking complaining about how hard writing is. Onward!

5) Respond. Fandom is an interactive community and people can be shy, nervous, feel awkward, a thousand things. This is again a personal preference of mine, but I try very hard to respond to every comment left to me on AO3 and every ask sent to my inbox. The exceptions are the blatant bullshit hate and someone who is clearly trying to start a fight. Hopefully you're not dealing with that and never do. ff.net is a hot mess and I haven't even logged on in years because they never make anything easy, so I haven't answered those reviews in ages. And I always get turned around responding to comments left on tumblr posts and in the tags so I'm bad about that... But I will eventually, religiously answer every comment in my AO3 inbox. Anyways. My point!

You've already bravely put yourself out there by posting your work? Bravo! Somebody takes the brave step to comment on it? THANK THEM FOR IT. No seriously. I'm convinced I've got at least half a dozen regular commenters who stuck around in part because I THANKED THEM FOR IT. Community. Two way street. Show love to the readers who worked up the courage to give you the love and it will multiply. Now, not everyone does this, I know. Some people will say that posting your writing is showing enough love to the fandom, you shouldn't have to do this extra step... and they're not WRONG, I'm simply offering this as a piece of advice that I think has helped me gain an amazing level of response.

6) Nobody likes to feel guilty or like they're being guilted into reading something/liking something. It's okay to say that you're not getting the kind of response you want, or that you feel like you put a lot of effort into this and got very little traffic on it. Because it's a valid feeling and it sucks to feel that way. BUT if you're constantly posting about it or complaining about it, then that is going to drive people away... it is. I'm sorry. So maybe temper how often you do this. It's a balance between expressing your frustration and alienating people, and it's not simple. I wish I could tell you it was.

6) Try not to be jealous of other writers. I'll admit this is one of the top two hardest bits of advice I'm going to put on this list. There is always a bigger name writer. There is always someone out there for whom a lot of people in the fandom will drop everything to go read their updates. And it's frustrating to witness that and not have that kind of attention yourself. It's especially difficult if you're a fandom reader and you don't see the great things in those uber popular writers what everyone else seems to see. But again... everyone fandoms at their own pace, in their own way. Readers have preferences and that's not necessarily a reflection on you. You cannot expect them all to respond the way you want them to. Easy to do? Nope nope noooooope.

7) Expect exactly zero people to read your material. That's right I said zero.

ZERO. NONE. NADA. ZILCH! THE BIG FAT GOOSE EGG!!!!

Is this easy? ahahahahahahahhahahahahaha. This is probably the hardest piece on the list, and I'm sure a lot of people are going to be infuriated by my even suggesting it. But you asked my advice and this is an attitude that I have worked very hard to cultivate in myself. I'm still not always successful, and I'm also aware that I'm saying this from a position of extreme comfort in terms of reader response. I've been in this fandom a long ass time, through A LOT of ebbs and flows, and I'll be the first one to admit that I likely gained a large portion of faithful readers because when the initial dip of creator activity happened after the movies were done being released, I was still writing... A LOT. That era was perhaps one of my most prolific and since a lot of creators lost interest and moved on, readers flocked to the few writers still producing. So yep. I gained readership by fandom attrition. It's okay, it happens. Can't tell you how I kept so many of them for as long as I have...

EDIT TO ADD: If you expect nobody to read it, imagine how ecstatic you'll be when somebody does. But the point is, since so much of this is out of your control, and because there are a thousand reasons why you might not be getting the response you want, this attitude happened to work for me. Maybe it'll work for you too, maybe not. Worth a shot, though.

8) Give it time. You cannot cannot CANNOT expect immediate attention. And if you've been here awhile and you're still not gaining the response you want? Well... hopefully some the advice here helps you deal with that. Try to shift your attitude and perspective, as difficult as that might be. Because you can't force people to read, to like, to respond. You can't. So again, if you tie your happiness in fandom writing to the level of response you get, it's only going to end badly.

I hope this helps, Anon. I know it's not easy. Trust me. I started writing for Everlark in 2013, the year Catching Fire the movie was released. My god that was a chaotic time of just furious production. And I was one of the little newbie fish in a huge pond of Big Name creators. Hang in there, love. Because if it's something you love to do, then you can weather some discouragement.

Happy Writing!

<3 kdnfb

#writing is hard #good lord this got long #that's what the read more is for!!!!

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ravenrune · 3 years

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Hiiiii. I was wondering if it was ok for me to ask what if Nikolai had an innocent S/O that was loyal to him by default, loving him to no end? But when they're life is in danger and Nikolai had to make a decision to either save his S/O or the sample to complete his mission that would be lost forever. Which would he choose? This will probably take long for you to get to and thats ok because at the end of the day you make the wait worth it. Love your headcanons💖😭.

I like the request a lot, thank you for this. I am sorry I'm slow with these, writer's block is getting in the way a bit. This one is a bit difficult and I really hope you'll like what I have to write here, as I will attempt to keep Nikolai in character as much as I can.

When Nikolai is forced to choose between completing his mission and saving his S/O (you).

First half are headcanons, second half is written as a fanfic! Warning; Tiny bit of violence. Around 900 - 1000 words.

♥ Ever since Nikolai had become your significant other, a large portion of his life had started to revolve around making sure nobody who knew about the bad things he'd ever done - and still did - would ever find out about you.

♥ He had always kept your safe from any sort of harm by keeping both your existence and your whereabouts a secret from those who were also in his line of work.

♥ Sadly, one day he dropped the ball. Out of all people, Hunk had found out about you, and as soon as Nikolai had left the house to go on yet another mission, Hunk had broken into your house, overpowered you, gagged you and dragged you with him. He'd driven you somewhere very far away, and dumped you inside of a cage. "It's for leverage, if I get what I want, you'll live," he'd said before walking away, leaving you behind in the dark.

♥ Nikolai had been making his way around the building, attempting to get his hands on a specific sample Wesker had demanded he'd retrieve. It hadn't taken him a lot of time to get his hands on it, but just to be safe, he'd decided to check the rest of the building to see if anyone else was out there looking for the same thing. If there were, his orders were to take them out.

♥ Instead of stumbling upon another intruder, he'd stumbled upon you. Not hesitating, he'd dropped his gun on the ground and knelt down in front of the cage you'd been spending the past several hours in. Attempting to comfort you in his own way, he'd been repeating the phrase "it'll be okay soon, dorogaya, I promise," all the while attempting to ignore your questions. He figured he'd give you some answers later.

♥ While Nikolai might've been a highly trained professional; his rival, Hunk, was just as good as he was, if not better. So when Hunk snuck into the dark room the two of you were still in, Nikolai hadn't even noticed him until he saw Hunk standing behind you, pressing the cold nuzzle of his pistol against the back of your neck.

... fanfiction time!

Nikolai was stunned to see his rival appear right behind his woman, and rage started build inside of him. He reached for his gun, but his attempt was interrupted by Hunk's voice.

"Don't even try, Zinoviev. One wrong move and this woman you've got right here? You're be planning her funeral."

"What?" Nikolai was seething. "It was you? You brought her here? That's pathetic, comrade, I know what you're after, but I didn't think you'd..." he spat on the ground, "I didn't think you'd have to stoop to this level. And here I thought pretty highly of you, what a fool I am!"

"You know as well as I do that the mission takes priority over everything else and that we'll both do whatever it takes to accomplish our missions." Hunk chuckled. "Oh, and I'm the pathetic one? You're the one that ended up falling in love. Weak. You've grown weak, Zinoviev. Now hand me the sample."

"No chance." Nikolai could feel the container burning in his pocket. Wesker always paid him well, he thought to himself. He never wanted for anything anymore. He could buy whatever he needed and buy you whatever you could possibly want. Handing over the sample would definitely mean he'd have a lot less spending money. On the other hand...

His train of thought was interrupted by the sound of your voice. "Nikolai?" You pleaded with a weak voice. "What is going on?"

He had no time to answer as Hunk did it for him. "Nikolai has to make a choice. Either he hands me that little container he has in his pocket, or I will snap your neck."

A tear rolled down your cheek. "Nik, what is going on? What is in that container? Are you really going to let him kill me? I don't..."

Your sentence was cut short as Hunk hit you in the back of your head with his pistol. "Shut up, we don't have time for your emotions here." He looked Nikolai straight in the eyes. "I'm giving you five seconds. If you give me the sample, I will give you your woman back. If you don't give me the sample, you won't have a woman anymore."

Slowly, Hunk started counting to five. Nikolai's heart was racing, his thoughts all over the place. What if he gave up the sample? Would Wesker come for the both of you? What if he didn't give up the sample? He could live without you, right? He'd lived by himself for so long, he'd get used to it again. He'd always thought he was better off alone, anyway. And there were plenty of women on this planet, so he could just get another one, perhaps one that didn't...

"Four." Hunk kept counting, his voice as calm and collected as it always was.

Without hesitating any longer, Nikolai grabbed a hold of the sample and threw it at his rival. For the first time in far over a decade, he found himself shaking, though he wasn't sure why he was. Was he angry? Was he sad? Was he, god forbid, actually afraid to lose you?

As soon as the sample hit the ground, Hunk pushed you towards Nikolai, who caught you right as you were about to trip over a wooden beam lying on the floor. Quickly, he positioned himself between you and Hunk, staring his rival dead in the eyes. "Happy, comrade?"

Hunk laughed, but it didn't sound sincere. "What has gotten into you?" He asked, slipping the sample container into one of his pockets.

"You know how it is, you can't put a price on life."

Briefly shaking his head, Hunk started to walk away. "You cannot put a price on life, Zinoviev, but I still can."

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

There you go, anon. I hope you enjoyed this, even though it wasn't entirely a headcanons post. I couldn't resist writing the last bit as more a fanfic, I was having a lot of fun. <3

#resident evil #nikolai zinoviev #hunk #nicholai ginovaef #headcanons #fanfiction #ravenrune writes #thank you for this wonderful request #nikolai zinoviev x reader #HUNK resident evil #Hunk is there too lmao

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