Does your MC / OC have a guilty pleasure? If so what it is?
Hi there! First, thank you for the question; second, I'm so sorry for the delay in answering it! Let's go...
Casey:
Chef-Boy-R-Dee Ravioli and Kraft Mac & Cheese (and Tobias judges the FUCK out of her for this.)
Grey's Anatomy (She knows it sucks, she knows it's not realistic, she doesn't care - and she doesn't think Jackson looks like Tobias.)
She sleeps with a stuffed animal. (Until she has Tobias lol)
Kaycee:
The Backstreet Boys (Ethan leaves the room if she's playing)
Sugary kids cereals (especially Fruity Pebbles)
Desert for dinner (she hides this one very well! lol)
Carolina:
The Hello Kitty decorations & comforter in her bedroom. (Fortunately, Trystan thinks this is the coolest thing in the history of time.)
Telenovelas. (Again, Trystan loves them, so does Luke.)
Diet Coke. It's a borderline addiction, but she has no desire to give it up.
Zoe: (This is harder in a post-apocalyptic world lol)
Sleeping in (It's not like she gets to do this often, but when she has the opportunity to, she feels like she should be doing something more productive - but she loves it too much to give it up.
Skinny dipping (It gets hot in the summer, man, and swimsuits aren't exactly in plentiful supply. Yeah - Eli and Troy have no problem with this, lol)
Books. It's not really guilty, but she's obsessed, she will read anything she can get her hands on and if she could, she'd spend all day doing it.
Hi! 🤗 As the new year countdown approaches, who are your top 10 MCs or OCs in the Choices fandom. Of course you can include your own as well. Celebrate yourself!
I love this! I know there are many amazing MCs and OCs in the Choices fandom, but I mainly follow Open Heart.
So, I'm sharing the top 10 OH MCs (not in order) whose content in MC Monday made me smile or go "huh..." every single time in 2022.
Lilac Allende - @jamespotterthefirst (The OG MC as far as I'm concerned since Lilac was my intro to the Tumblr fandom)
Victoria Clarke - @potionsprefect
Kaycee MacClennan - @jerzwriter (Don't worry, I like Casey too, but there's something about Kaycee)
Celia Moore - @trappedinfanfiction
Olivia Hadley - @storyofmychoices
Geneviève McClure - @genevievemd
Marissa Sanders - @mysticalgalaxysstuff
Jane Fletcher - @inlocusmads
Meera Bose - @headoverheelsforramsey
Marchia Bisognin - @a-crepusculo
Honorable mentions (I know, I know. It's more than 10).
Emma Pearson - @doriopenheart (I'm just starting to get to know Emma, but I love her already)
My version of Sienna Trinh - giving her an epic love story was my greatest pleasure and fanfic accomplishment 😎
Hola Chica! Sorry for the delay on this - here are some of her photos waiting to be used someday lol (PS... remember that dumbass anon that said I "gave Ethan an ugly wife." Vision care must not be available to them. lol)
Which of your MCs is most like you? Which is most ulinke you?
Hey Nonny,
And sorry for letting this sit literally months; I'm trying to catch up on asks :)
I think each of them has a little bit of me in them, but none are self-inserts by any means.
I think Casey (Tobias x Casey, Open Heart) is the one who is most like me personality-wise. We're both responsible and grown-ups, but we don't allow that shit to be a full-time arrangement. lol You have to be lighthearted and laugh at life a little. Both of us are fiercely loyal to the people we love. We cannot stand injustice and find it pretty hard to keep our mouths shut when we see people doing fucked up things. I also gave her my musical taste (ofc lol). We both love theater. And we both adore witty banter and having fun - it could be born of dealing with anxiety and depression in our pasts; we have both learned you have to enjoy all the good life has to offer, or you'll go crazy. We're both bi, we've both been activists, she fights for healthcare reform, and so do I!
Of course, Casey is stunning (I'm just ok, lol). My career isn't bad, but hers is stellar. She followed her career dreams, and I gave up on mine. While we have similar parenting styles and LOVE being girl moms, I do NOT have her hot/perfect husband lol (FICTIONAL MEN!!!)
Since Kaycee is kind of like a version of Casey, we have some things in common, too, but she's more sedate than me (or Casey!)
When it comes to Carolina, we're both city chicks. We love NYC and are dedicated to the NY Yankees (I'm watching right now!). I'm part Latina; she's 100% Latina. We both love Latin food and music. Carolina is demiromantic. Looking back at my life, it probably would have been better for me if I were (I'm not, lol). She is definitely tougher and more badass than me. But we've both suffered a lot of trauma in our past - I think we've just processed differently.
Now Zoe. Initially, I was like, I have nothing in common with a strong, badass, fearless leader willing to take on Zombies. But I kind of do. I won't get into it here, but I've taken on a LOT of bad shit in my life - and won. I try to look at the bright side even in tough times, but it's taken a toll on me, as it has on Zoe as well. There is also sarcasm and wit - which are my second and third languages, so there is that! lol
Thank you for the ask, Nonny! And again, sorry for sitting on it for so long!
Casey and Kaycee, betrayal and break. I'm wondering how different they are!
Hey there! Thanks so much for the asks! From this list.
Oooh - this is challenging for me! Let's see...
betrayal: Has your OC ever been betrayed by someone they thought they could trust? Has your OC ever betrayed someone who trusted them?
Both have experienced several, but since their stories are tweaked, here is where they are the same and different.
Casey and Kaycee: They both had family members who didn't want anything to do with them when they learned they were bisexual. As time went on, both women were fine with this (they were not people they wanted in their lives anyway), but initially, it still hurt like hell and was hard to cope with.
They were both betrayed by Landry to an extent. Why do I say to an extent? While I think Landry was a snake—because, in my mind, his intentions were not noble but self-serving—but let's be honest here - what MC did was crazy, and if Landry had acted with noble intentions, I'd think of him differently. But no, the self-important little white man did not act nobly. lol But neither of them really gives Landry much thought after he leaves Edenbrook - but since it's canon - I mention it :)
Casey: Casey felt terribly betrayed by Ethan's idiotic behavior when he left for the Amazon. In my T/C world, Casey had a brief affair with Ethan, and when he left for the Amazon without telling her, letting her learn he had left along with the other residents, she was devastated (and vowed that they were never ever, ever getting back together... sorry. lol) While she kept thing professional with him upon his return, it took a while to forgive him and build a friendship. In time, she understood his reasons but not his bonehead execution.
She was also betrayed by Tobias when he stole Stephanie from Edenbrook. This was the beginning of the end of their relationship 1.0. She confided in him about her "miracle" patient and that she was applying for a research grant; when Tobias poached her, Casey was hurt professionally, but knowing the man she was falling for would do this to her was a severe blow. If not for the chemical attack, I don't think he would have ever gotten a second chance with her.
Kaycee: Kaycee did not have the same level of betrayal with either man. In my E/K HC, he tells her that he was going to the Amazon - and he tells her why. One, he really wants to do the work, and two, he feels they need distance. She's not happy about his choice (at least as far as the second reason goes), but she's not blindsided. She knows the reason why he's leaving and is glad he confided in her. She's not as happy about him ignoring her the entire time he is gone, but that's more bonehead material - not betrayal lol
While Kaycee was pissed off at Tobias for stealing Stephanie, Kaycee didn't have a relationship with Tobias. So she thought he was an ass, but there was no betrayal involved.
break: What would cause your OC to break down completely? What do they look like when that happens? Has anyone ever seen them at their lowest?
Casey: She pretty much broke down after the chemical attack. It was a combination of coming so close to death, survivor's guilt, and a lot of past issues she had not dealt with coming to the surface in its wake. She was out of work for about four and a half months dealing with PTSD, and at first, it was quite scary. After coming through that, Casey was determined to do all she could to avoid that happening to her again, but she is aware it could happen and would get the help she needed right away if she did.
The only thing that would break her in the future would be something horrible happening to her daughters. She'd be devastated if something happened to Tobias or her other loved ones, too, but her daughters are a whole different level.
Kaycee: Kaycee also suffered after the attack, but not to the same level that Casey did. She was out of work for about one month until she physically recovered, and then she threw herself back into work. She still had nightmares and had to deal with ongoing anxiety, but it was more controlled.
However, I HC that Kaycee had an extremely difficult time after her mother, Rose, passed away. She's an only child and was very close to both of her parents. When her father died, Rose moved closer to her daughter. When she died suddenly, Kaycee was not prepared, what's worse, she felt guilty for not spotting the health issue that took her life (even though there would have been nothing she could do.)
In both HCs, Rose was very ill from the time Casey/Kaycee was about 4 years old. She nearly lost her life, and this had a big impact on both women - it was the start of their anxiety disorder. When Rose died, it woke up a lot of that childhood trauma in Kaycee, and she fell into a deep depression for some time.
Casey also took her mother's death hard, but I feel like Casey did some of the work she needed to after the chemical attack, whereas Kaycee sidestepped it. Also, Casey had another near-death experience after the birth of her third daughter, and that gave her a very different perspective. She was very sad after her mom's death, which is normal, but it did not descend into the deep depression that Kaycee did.
How different and how alike is your FC from the sprite you picked?
Hey Nonny, I guess it depends on the MC. Let's look!
Casey MacTavish-Carrick | Open Heart
FC: Katrina Bowden. I think they look very similar. This was the very photo of Katrina that made me select her as Casey's FC.
Kaycee McClennan-Ramsey | Open Heart
FC: Elyse Taylor. I think there are strong similarities here, too.
Carolina Rose | Crimes of Passion
FC: Eiza Gonzalez. I think they're similar. I honestly didn't love the hair choices in CoP, so I prefer Eiza's hair for my MC.
Zoe Rivera | Wake the Dead
FC: Adria Arjona - Zoe was a hard one to match, and I thought Adria was a good choice. I don't use an FC often in this world, but it's good to have her there.
What are your thoughts, Nonny?
I am also doing an OH re-read with a new MC, Julia Rodriguez. No FC yet, not sure I'll need one. But, here she is!
Hey, Ren! Thanks so much for the ask! Let's see what we get! (Oh, it's fun! I'm doing this for all of them! This was literally the best question ever!)
Tobias: Carnations. His mother's grandfather was a prominent pastor/civil rights activist in their Washington, DC, church. Tobias spent a lot of time at that church during his early years; he was even in the children's choir. Holidays, weddings, and funerals always had carnations in abundance, and it was something he wasn't around often after that, so they always take him back.
Casey: Crayons. Casey's family didn't have a lot of money, and after her mother's illness, they had even less. Her childhood was not easy, but she found ways to find joy within the struggles. She didn't have a lot of expensive toys, but she always had crayons and paper, and she loved to draw. The smell of crayons brings back poignant but sweet memories.
Jessica: Snickerdoodle cookies. Jessica's grandmother baked them for her often as a child. When Casey and Jessica dated in med school, they were a favorite of Casey's as well, and Jess baked them for her often. To Jess, baking is equated with love - giving and receiving - and these cookies are her favorite of all.
Ethan: "Salty" air and sunscreen (Copportone, in particular). Ethan's childhood was not always bright, but before his mother left, the family would go to the beach once a year, and those memories were among the best in his life, so these scents always take him back to a more peaceful, innocent place.
Kaycee: The city after it rains. Philadelphia-raised, Kaycee was a city kid, and playing outside with her friends was her favorite thing to do. On rainy summer days, the kids would all be inside, but their parents would let them out the moment the rain ended, and that smell always took her back.
Trystan: Insence. As the future heir, Trystan was expected to be king and head of the Drakovian Orthodox Church. So, in his youth, he spent plenty of time in musty old cathedrals. After Juliana's death, Trystan almost never stepped into a church again (he considers himself agnostic). So, this smell is limited to a very defined portion of his life.
Carolina: Arroz con pollo. This was a staple food in her home growing up in her home. She smelled it cooking when she was playing with her toys, doing her homework, and even helping her uncle with the bar as a teen. It's comforting and she will often make it herself if she needs a little extra self-care.
Eli: A fire pit. After the outbreak, life changed drastically, and very few pleasures of the old world were left behind. This is one exception. It always brings back warm (no pun intended) memories, and it's a tradition he carries on with Zoe, friends, and any future children(?).
Zoe: Cleaning fluids. Sad, but true. The Tower was a very sterile, clinical environment, and that punctuated her environment. She remembers very little about life before then, but, every so often she'll smell something that brings back a memory, and she wonders if it was something from her life before the outbreak.
Troy: Maamoul. In canon, Troy mentions his mother baking these cookies, and I imagine this is his strongest connection to her. He learned how to make them and cooked them often for the residents of Olympus, especially during the holidays. I imagine he makes them for Zoe whenever she desires, and it's a love language that connects the past and present.
R9: Tell me about a character who doesn't like your character. Why don't they like them?
For as many of them as you want to do 😀
OMFG Ren! I'm looking through asks, and how did I miss this one! This is so entirely fun! (And I may share with some others... )
OK...I think I'll stick with both pairings from Open Heart 🤭 (Apologize in advance; this got long... thanks to the 1 person who may read this! lol)
Tobias / Casey-land
Casey: In general, she tries to be friendly, and she has the ability to tell someone to fuck off and make them walk away smiling after she has, so most people tend to like her. But everyone has their enemies out there don't we know that shit here on Tumblr... 🍵 and Casey's no exception.
The first one that comes to mind is Landry - he detests that she went on to be so successful and that she is held in such high esteem by his idol, Ethan. Then, he goes to Kenmore and tries sucking up to Tobias, and ho and behold, Casey ends up being the love of his life. While I don't HC the same level of bitterness between Landry/MC that others do, and I imagine that if he sees her, he tries to be polite and professional (and she does the same). But deep down, he loathes her. His entitlement can't let him past the fact that he feels she is where he deserves to be.
For a brief period of time, Tobias's brother Jordan (M!OC) doesn't like her. He was a little concerned that Casey was a gold digger, but that was just some projection on his part, and they did makeup pretty quickly when he realized he was being a putz.
Her ex-girlfriend Jess's wife (still working on her name!) wasn't very fond of her initially. It was based on envy and differing personalities. Casey & Jess's split was situational, not necessarily anything either woman wanted, and they remained good friends for life. So initially, she felt a bit threatened by her. After realizing that wasn't anything to worry about, she warmed to Casey a little. But where Casey tends to be light-hearted and fun, Jess's Mrs. is a bit more professional and off-standish. She tolerates Casey but often has an "I don't see what you ever saw in her" attitude. Fortunately, they don't see each other much lol .
Lastly... a whole lot of Tobias's former conquests dislike her... it's the "What does she have that I didn't have" attitude (babes, the list is long lol). But these people are inconsequential in their lives.
Tobias: Well, when he came into Casey's life, Ethan would be the top contender. The two of them had their shared history/rivalry, and after their falling out, Ethan was decidedly not a fan. When Tobias started dating Casey after Casey broke up with Ethan yeah, Dr. Ramsey was not pleased. But after the chemical attack, they were able to bridge their differences and end up becoming good friends again.
Several of his relatives on his late father's side of the family. Tobias's Dad died when he was in Med School, and while not fully estranged, they were not on the best of terms when he died (something Tobias struggles with for the rest of his life.) To hear this group of relatives talk, that is the reason, but that's bullshit. For what it's worth, these are the family members his father didn't get on well with either. Truth is, they tend to be racist and always looked at Tobias and his brother as lesser than them (one of the reasons his father disliked them). They're not too fond of Casey, who has put them in their place on more than one occasion (so they don't like her either lol).
Several of his exes... but... only one (maybe two?) that he was remotely serious with. He was really a dick to his college girlfriend, Kara, who went on to be a prominent lawyer in DC, and while she doesn't think of him often, she never looks at him favorably. After the Hopkin's mess, his ex (and Ethan's ex) Vincenza really didn't think highly of either of them, but in time she forgave them both in time. His ex-long-term-situationship Audrey really disliked him for a while after he began dating Casey... as did a bevy of others who had hoped for more, but he swore that was never going to be his life... and now there he was. So there was some bitterness and a lot of talking shit, but they weren't much of an issue. (And Audrey eventually came around. lol)
Ethan / Kaycee land:
Kaycee: Her situation with Landry is pretty much the same as Casey's above, though I feel like there is a little less detesting on Landry's part. Why? Because he still idolized Ethan, and in some way, I think he figured if she was with Ethan, she couldn't have been that bad. Of course, Ethan thought he was a dick, but that didn't matter lol
I'm sure there are some staff at Edenbrook who dislike her because they are envious of her position and/or relationship with Ethan, but they tend to keep that to themselves because they don't want to deal with Ethan's ire.
I don't think many dislike Kaycee, but I think she is more low-key (compared to Casey) and flies below a lot of people's radar. Her circle is smaller, so there may not be as many who are crazy about her, but the opposite is also true. There are fewer who actively dislike her.
Ethan: While I do HC that Ethan softens a bit because, let's face it, he was an asshole when we met him, he is still a bit short and acerbic, and that really rubs some people the wrong way. Again, when it comes to work, many may not let that be known.
I HC him to have at least one very "Seinfeld/Newman-like" relationship with a patron at Donahue's and at least one neighbor. They've rubbed each other the wrong way for over a decade, and their very existence irritates the other, but they're not close so that limits the damage here. (PS, I HC that the neighbor adores Kaycee, which just makes the "thing" between them and Ethan worse, lol.)
Declan. Declan will forever hate Ethan, and Ethan will forever hate Declan. That will never, ever change.
Several Board Members. They respect him and look at him as a necessary burden because of his skill and what he brings to the hospital, but they're not at all fond of him as a person, and the feeling is very, very mutual.
I think I've blabbed enough, but this was seriously fun! Thanks, Ren, and sorry for the seriously long delay in answering.
Hmmm... We'd believe so, but I have not decided on what kind of wedding I'm having for Ethan and Kaycee yet... I'm leaning toward something a little bit untraditional - but it's yet to be determined lol
So... let's say this is Kaycee out with her Mom, Sienna, Jackie, and Aurora, shopping for wedding dresses. She sure does look happy and beautiful in this one, so maid of honor Sienna pulled out her phone to capture the moment.
After MC helped Ethan make a PG account and added him as a friend, WE KNOW he checked her profile right? What's the photo that caught his attention? 😏👇🏻
Hey Nonny, thanks for the ask.
I imagine that Kaycee keeps her PG/IG pretty PG-13, because she is aware it could impact her career. So she doesn't have anything too racy, still these two photos caught his attention, and you know where his mind was going, now, don't you... 😏😏😏