#like you either have different ethnicities or different sexualities and genders or disabilities or mental disorders

[claratwelve]

doctor who is so special to me not just because of the concept and stories and amazing life lessons and everything but also because of the representation.

it is still very, very flawed, but the show is clearly making an effort to be inclusive and reflect real society. do i need to explain as a disabled sapphic girl with adhd why i feel seen by this show lol

#and seeing myself represented just fills me with happiness even if it is less than perfectly executed #as long as i can see that the intentions were good and they were trying #and they ARE getting better at it #and dw has FAR more representation than the average show #like you either have different ethnicities or different sexualities and genders or disabilities or mental disorders #but you rarely have everything in one show like in doctor who

[bunnybluebells]

･ ˖ ₊ ˚ 。 . ⋆ what is age regression and the common misconceptions ･ ˖ ₊ ˚ 。 . ⋆

° 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 ₒ 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 ° 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 ₒ 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 °

age regression is when a person reverts to a younger state of mind, either child-like or baby-like, resulting in watching cartoons and doing other child-like activities, eating baby food or food and snacks considered to be for toddlers, and usually (not always) needing help to do things like tying shoe laces, getting dressed, bathe, etc. in the means of coping with trauma, anxiety, other mental issues or stress, and they can regress with or without a caregiver.

a caregiver is somebody who helps and cares for a person who regresses. the relationship between them and the regressor/s can be either platonic or romantic, but anything sexual stays outside of regression.

age dreaming is similar to regression but the difference is you do not revert to a different state or 'regress'. you act as a baby, toddler or kid (again, with or without a caregiver) and do baby and/or child-like things as a way to cope for the same reasons.

° 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 ₒ 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 ° 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 ₒ 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 °

common misconceptions:

- agere is sexual

agere is not sexual at all. it is a healthy coping mechanism and is not the same to age play, ddlg, abdl or any other kinks. if in a relationship where sexual activities occur, those should always stay out of regression.

- agere is only for girls

you can regress or age dream whatever age, gender, race, ethnicity or whatever your sexuality is. it is a way to cope and anybody can feel free to use this mechanism.

- age regression is an aesthetic

while most pictures and videos you see may look cute, pastel, soft, age regression itself isn't just that. you do not have to fit the typical aesthetic nor is agere always pretty, it very much is not sometimes and that is okay.

↳ other things to add:

you are a valid regressor if

- you are a boy or identify as non-binary

- you don't fit the typical aesthetic or don't have one

- you don't like things most other regressors do

- you don't have items like pacifers, sippy cups, etc.

- you are a secret regressor

- you are lgbtq+ or disabled

- you don't feel as if you need a caregiver

and you are also valid if you are the opposite;

if you age regress or age dream, you are valid.

° 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 ₒ 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 ° 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 ₒ 𐐪𐑂 ♡ 𐐪𐑂 °

thank you for taking your time to read,

have a great day <3

#sfw #sfw agere #sfw regression #sfw interaction only #sfw littlespace #sfw age dreamer

[davekat-sucks]

Seems homestuck artists now are obliged to squeeze every ethnicity, sexuality and gender identity into the roster of characters and project their own mental illnesses and disabilities onto them all. In fact, it feels like homestuck characters are now everyone's collective OCs. Just vessels for people to interpret so wildly differently that you can't tell who the drawing is meant to be most of the time without fashion identifiers. And God help you if you say this publicly. You're now every kind of bigot for criticising the practice of putting every character through a randomiser to ensure maximum diversity and oppression instead of drawing what feels natural.

The only thing to able identify Homestuck characters now are color schemes. To be honest too from what I've seen, all fictional characters in this modern day fandom are only vessels for interpretations. Even if some have a certain ethnicity they are born with from things stated in canon (whether location is based on real world or not), they are still subjected to go through altering the appearance to please the supposed minority groups. Like even if the gang from Eddsworld are all white British folks(Norwegian European for Tord's case), it doesn't stop someone from making Tomska/Thomas Ridgewell black. The same applies even if they have said minority in group, but push them aside for the more popular character. Like Avdol exists with the Stardust Crusaders, but it doesn't stop people from making either Jotaro or Kakyoin having darker skin beside him.

#Homestuck #Homestuck fandom #fandom #fandoms

[alsjeblieft-zeg]

277 of 2022

“All About Me” Survey

Name: Joeri. Age: 32. Hair Color: something like dark brown, now dyed purple-ish. Eye Color: Grey. Height: 180 cm aka 5′11, I guess. Weight: Too much for me. Race/Ethnicity: I was born and raised in Belgium, therefore I’m Belgian. My mum is half-German and my dad is half-Dutch (both born in Belgium, though), so I have a typically Dutch last name. Native Language: Dutch. Religion: Most likely agnostic. I was raised Catholic, but I don’t identify this way. Gender: Male. Sexual Orientation: Gay, but asexual. I’m very much into guys, but not at all into sex. Birthday: Every year. :P I was born in 1990. Where You Live: Bruges, Belgium. I’m not native to Bruges, though. Family Members: Parents who live far from me and a younger sister who lives even further. Pets: Two cats. Piercings: Five in my ears, two in my lower lip and one in my eyebrow. Tattoos: One on my right forearm, but I’ve booked an appointment for another one, on my left forearm. Do you shave?: Yeah, my face. Do you wear makeup?: No, I don’t. Highest Level of Schooling: BAS in electrical engineering, I was continuing to study while having a job at the same time, but then, things happened. What do you want to be when you “grow up”?: I am already, an electrician in the train factory. But I wanted to be a soldier or neurologist, too. Do you have any defining characteristics?: Glasses, freckles and my general facial features. Do you have a strong sense of self esteem and confidence?: I may look like I do, but in fact, I don’t. Do you have any allergies?: Yeah, mostly seasonal ones, and I’m allergic to nuts. What are your favorite things to wear?: Hoodies and wide leg trousers, and either Converse-like shoes or combat boots. Do you have any disabilities, diseases, or disorders?: Yeah, quite so. I was born with that connective tissue disorder called Marfan syndrome and I have epilepsy, which in my case is easily reduced with medication. For mental things, I have OCD and generalised anxiety disorder, also an eating disorder previously known as EDNOS (not wise with my brain problems). I’m physically disabled as well, due to an accident my left hand has damaged nerves. All of this has been diagnosed and I’m under the care of several doctors. What are some of your biggest fears?: Failure, losing and making mistakes. Also, disappointing those I love. What is your temperament like?: Given that scientific theory of four temperaments, I’m all four, really. Each of them gets prominent at different times, typically in response to life events. What is your personality like?: A little bit sad, a little bit cheerful, a little bit angry, somewhat sarcastic, somewhat playful, and on top of that, very rebellious. People say I’m one of the nicest and most caring people they know, but I can be an asshole, too. It all depends on many things, you either love or hate me, it seems. I also have a stupid sense of humour, I’m really like a teenager sometimes. I still laugh at fart jokes. What are some of your hobbies/interests?: Music, photography, travelling, pulling pranks on people, hanging out with my friends, guys with pretty eyes, shortwave radio, looking for weird radio signals, physics, chemistry, biology. Are you a virgin?: No. I’ve been late to the party anyway since it happened in my 20s, but I’ve never cared either way. I’m not very tactile and having sex has only convinced me of how boring it is and even falling in love didn’t change that. What’s your bra size?: I don’t even wear bras. And finally, list some of your favorites: Cats, djent metal, Dutch hip hop, thunderstorms, strawberries, all my friends, three other guys, someone’s eyes (omg *o*), hoodies, Samsung brand (sorry, Philips XD), Christmas, travels, the Netherlands (tall guys and weed omg), Dutch language (seriously, I personally think I speak one of the coolest languages out there), cinnamon, vanilla, photography, going out, and my hospital.

[a-zebra-is-a-striped-horse]

#survey #about me survey #q&a survey

[askaceattorney]

The Other Mod’s Defense

I’m the other mod Mod Vera and Mod Maya went to and asked about Co-Mod being a Trump supporter and were astonished to find out I was one too. I will state my defense as well, so warning that this will go into some politics. Continue on, if you are fine with this.

When Mod Vera and Mod Maya messaged me, I told them that I did not care for politics or wish to share any politics of mine, since I prefer them to be at home. I also said that Co-Mod has the right to freely express his politics online, if he wants. Afterwards, I stated that the only politics I’m willing to admit to them was that I was a Trump supporter and am Independent Conservative. If they were astonished, I was not aware. 

Just to be clear, this does not mean I don’t support LGBT or ethnic minority groups. The same with Co-Mod. To be honest, I didn’t think that’d be an issue or I would have expressed my support in those areas. Believe it or not, my mom and family part of an ethnic minority group (they’re part of the Cherokee Nation and two are mixed black) and I have friends and family that are LGBT. I also support women and the Disabled/Mentally Ill Community. Co-Mod has also says his family falls under this as well. Since I do not wish to speak for him, I will let his words do the talking. This is what he said when I asked if he had any family that fell under LGBT or Ethnic Minority Groups.

With all of that said, this doesn’t mean I agree with everything Donald Trump did in office or any of Co-Mod’s posts. I never once stated that I didn’t support LGBT and ethnic minority groups. Believe it or not, I myself have received discrimination for being Autistic, a sister who was discriminated for marrying a black man and having mixed kids and have a mother who was abused and treated poorly by a very sexist ex husband. Also, my mom was discriminated for her race of being Cherokee and Native. Admittedly, I’ve never experienced or have had friends that were discriminated based on their sexual orientation, but considering the discrimination I have experienced in other areas, I am against discrimination of any kind, no matter of whatever differences they have. Because of what my family and myself went through, I became hesitant of admitting my own race. I want to be treated as a person and not be defined by my gender, race or sexual orientation. As such, I refuse to mention either of those things as a mod and only have revealed my gender in my original account. 

I am sorry that Mod Vera and Mod Maya have to leave. Personally, I wish they could’ve talked to Co-Mod or myself about their grievances before leaving, but that is their call. I respect their decision. If they don’t feel comfortable in working with us, then they are allowed to leave.

That being said, I will ask the rest of you to not judge Co-Mod, myself or anyone else based on their politics. This includes Mod Maya and Mod Vera. Anyone expressing their support for a former president or having controversial opinions does not make someone racist, sexist, against LGBT or any of that. Personally, I wish politics never got involved in this blog, but as the saying goes, “it can’t be helped.” 

I noticed there were people in the comment section claiming that their letters weren’t answered because of this. No, non of our political leanings effect how we answer our letters. I do understand your frustration. I sent a letter teasing Edgeworth on being in love with Phoenix before becoming a mod and that was deleted. I realize now that it wasn’t because I didn’t follow the rules so much as the mods didn’t know how to answer the letter. Shipping letters are especially awkward to answer, if they’re not canon, but Co-Mod isn’t that kind of person. I will promise to answer any yaoi/yuri letter that comes. Also, we are just now starting to answer letters from February, so if you sent any letters in February and on, then it will get answered soon. Otherwise, take any letters deleted with a grain of salt. Let our actions to answering letters, creating posts or making Character Essays be the one to define our character.

Lastly, because we had so many following and talking in this blog, please don’t harass anyone mentioned in this blog. I will also ask any of the people that were trying to defend this blog in the comment section to not do so. People are allowed to express their grievances. It’s just an unfortunate event of two mods leaving. That is all.

- Mod Edgeworth

P.S. I think President Biden is not as crooked as the Republicans like to claim he is. Have a nice day :)

#Mod Post #Mod Edgeworth

[notbellabutcassandra]

If you want to talk about it, let’s talk about it. This is supporting the idea of more realism in the game, if that’s your goal as a player. If it’s not your goal and you’re trying to escape from reality, which is valid, then this post isn’t really for you. I don’t mean this as a way to shift blame and say we’re all wrong, but we do all have room for growth. Since we’re on the topic of diversity let’s consider some aspects that we can all stand to be more diverse in:

skintone  (This is the one we always talk about when it’s not even the tip of the iceberg. Like even if you include a minority, some of us don’t even offer the different shades within that minority. It’s a wider range than we convey. Not all asians have that creamy, pale, skintone we see.) 

race, ethnicity and nationality (we don’t play with these enough. a black american can be different from a black african or a black brit. Or how life is different when you’re a child of immigrants.)

attractiveness (Everyone makes such conventionally attractive sims, let’s make some average or even unconventional looking sims for once.)

body type (lol most of us make skinny sims, muscular sims, or safe thicc sims lol There just isn’t enough variation by a long shot. I do realize that part of it is the limitation of the game and morphs for clothing and accessories.)

gender (other than adding in trans sims, nonbinary sims, and intersex sims, most of us just make female presenting sims. Our male presenting sims all look the same, especially if the simmer identifies as fem. 

sexuality (most of our sims are either straight, gay, or bi, but they have mostly been straight.)

hair (I hope that whoever is reading this realizes that these categories of diversity don’t exist separately per se. Even black ppl have a variation in hair. Not all of our hair looks the same. Not every European’s hair looks the same either.)

age (Most of us make young adult sims exclusively. For this, I can see why this one is more difficult because TS4 doesn’t really give the other ages 1) any real distinction and 2) because of that it feels like the other ages have nothing to do. But, in reality, it’s limited by our own imagination...and values.)

disabilities (Again, part of this is the limits of the game, but we make stuff in our builds and stuff that we thought of with our understanding of reality and our imagination and used the limited resources of the game to make a reality. We can do the same for disabilities. This includes mental disabilities like dyslexia, autism, and whatnot)

mental illness (most of our sims seem neurotypical, there just aren’t enough sims that are bipolar, have anxiety, or are even depressed. Not to mention the other, lesser seen mental illnesses.)

religion (most of us avoid religion all together, which I understand. But, we live in a society where some of the top religions are christianity, islam, judaism, buddhism and hinduism. Not to mention atheists and agnostics.)

careers/jobs and socioeconomic status (This is partially the limitation of the game again, but a lot of people on this planet live below the poverty line--and stay under it.)

blemishes and imperfections (Not enough sims with ‘bad’ skin, burned skin, [vitiligo, freckles and moles seem easy for you guys], acne prone skin, scarred skin, uneven skin, missing or uneven teeth, asymmetrical faces and features and whatnot.)

So with this logic, we can ALL stand to be more diverse. Including and especially myself. Taking these things into account will also make it so that we have more complex characters and interesting stories--if we’re storytellers. Also, I think exploring how these aspects intersect makes for better storytelling and a better understanding of our reality. I’m sure there are other aspects that I missed since I’m only one person.

#my posts #resources #honestly just posting this for me #do what you will #but i won't be arguing with anyone about it #just some things to consider

[selestrophilx]

!! RULES & NOTES !!

no nsfw

i will only do a maximum of 4 characters per request

if you're an adult, please do not request characters who are minors!! you've been warned!

no pedophilia, incest, glorification of abusive relationships, fetish stuff, etc

i will not take requests that deal with the act or glorification of heavy topics such as child abuse/domestic abuse, self-harm, suicide, rape, or mental illness/disabilities. however, if the request is asking for comfort in relation to one or more of these topics (and it does not include the act of it happening), that is okay :] (please note that this isn't me trying to be ignorant or insensitive, i just don't want to wrongly portray a serious thing)

i will only write x readers, no x OCs or x characters

all characters i write for who are canonically (or appearance-wise to play it safe) children (as in younger than 14-15) will ONLY be written with a platonic or familial relationship w/ the reader in mind. in no way will they be taken as romantic nor will i take requests that are romantic no matter the age of the requester.

when sending an ask that includes different characters from different things, please send them separately!! it is easier to organize!! it'd be nice if you also let me know that you're sending separate asks by either identifying yourself with a symbol/emoji or clarifying what you've already sent.

i will write for mainly GENDER NEUTRAL READER/reader with unspecified gender identity. i can also take requests for a reader who uses neopronouns and even male readers, but not fem readers. fem readers have PLENTY of content out there and i want my fics to be enjoyable for everyone!! that said, you're still allowed to read and request if you'd like. just won't write it if you request specifically fem :)

i want to create a safe place for anyone of any appearance, identity, race, ethnicity, culture, sexuality, etc to enjoy so, unless a specific feature plays a part in a request, the reader's appearance & characteristics are entirely up to you!

[ncvcmbcrflush]

《  luke newberry. genderfluid, he/they, epilogue by keaton henson  》 oh my, there goes BRENNAN SWANN. the 20/28 year old WENDIGO is currently working at HUBBARD APOTHOCARY. they’ve been in salem, ma for 28 YEARS. they are known around town as THE FORLORN. i have a feeling they ARE aware of what’s going on in town, and they are NEUTRAL. hopefully, because they are known to be GENTLE and ENCOURAGING while also being REBELLIOUS and DEFENSIVE, they will survive. i guess only time will tell.

ORIGINS & FAMILY:

Full Name: Brennan Samuel Swann

Nickname(s): Bren, but honestly you could call them anything and as long as you clarified that you were actually talking to them they’d be happy.

Date of Birth: July 4th, 1993

Age: 20/28

Gender + Pronouns: Genderfluid, he/they 

Place of birth: Salem, MA

Parents: Carl and Janice Swann

Siblings: None

Relationship with family (close? estranged?): None to speak of, they’re an only child of divorced parents who were more focused on their new relationships then their current child. Both moved away to different parts of the country after Brennan’s missing persons case went cold. They haven’t bothered to reach out the either of them since returning.

Pets: none, but adopts any sad looking stray or forest dweller out of a sense of kindred spirits.

PHYSICAL:

Height: 6′

Build: Slender and willowy

Nationality: American

Ethnicity: Caucasian

Distinguishing Facial Features: Big doe eyes, dimples on the rare occasion they smile wide enough to appear, stupid long eyelashes

Hair Color: strawberry blonde

Usual Hair Style: shorter on the sides then at the top, long enough to see it’s wild and curly nature

Eye Color: Dark brown, very nearly black

Complexion (freckles, acne, skin tone, birth marks, scars): Pale skin, freckles like whoa, anytime the sun touches their skin more crop up

Disabilities (physical or mental, including mental illnesses): Depression

What do they consider their best feature?: There is not a single thing they like about themselves, but gun to head, probably their eyes, just because that’s the default answer everyone gives.

Worst they’ve ever been injured (what, how did it happen)?: Getting chewed on by a forest monster man thing didn’t feel great.

APPEARANCE:

Favorite outfit: Style is constantly changing but they gravitate towards like, a pastel punk sort of aesthetic? Like a nice tye dye sweater, lightwash skinny jeans, and some ridiculous sort of combat boot. Has been known to rock a flowercrown unironically. Everything 2014 tumblr wanted, fashion wise.

Glasses? Contacts?: neither.

Personal Hygiene: average- showers regularly and does not use three in one body wash, but rewears clothes religiously because fuck laundry, and there’s always some sort of paint, or ink, or some other kind of Art Dirt on them.

Jewelry? Tattoos? Piercings?: loves a good choker, and has several piercings. Had plans for tattoos but isn’t sure now.

What does their voice sound like?: Very quiet, slow speech with lots of pausing and restarting.

Accent?: none, just AMERICA

Unique mannerisms/physical habits: tugs at their hair when nervous or stressed.

Left handed or right?: left handed

Do they work out/exercise?: entirely too gangly and awkward for that.

BELIEFS & INTELLECT:

Known Languages: English, some ASL leftover from speech therapy as a kid

Zodiac: Cancer

Gifts/talents: Very artistically inclined- painting, sketching, sculpture, they’ve tried and loved it all. They’re not confident about much, but their art skills is a big source of pride.

Religious stance: Raised very religious and considers himself Christian, but has trouble reconciling their religion with now not only their sexual and gender identity, but their existence as a Wendigo.

Pet peeves: Nothing really gets to them, but the people who click their pens are on thin fucking ice.

Optimist or pessimist: optimist with depressive tendencies

Extrovert or introvert: introvert

INTIMACY & RELATIONSHPS:

Relationship status: single as a pringle

Sexual orientation: pansexual

Ideal mate/qualities they look for in mate: someone who will see them and not be left wanting.

Ever been in love?: no.

What’s their love language?: quality time, physical touch

Most important person in their life?: Bren doesn’t really have anyone besides himself

VOCATION:

Level of education: High school graduate, has a couple semesters of an art history degree under their belt.

Profession: cashier at Hubbard Apothecary

Past occupations: Elf at Santa’s Village at the mall

Passions: art

Which is more important – money or doing something they love?:  doing something they love.

SECRETS:

Phobias: public speaking, eye contact

Life goals: don’t hurt people and maybe make a friend or two.

Greatest fears: being alone

Most embarrassing thing ever to happen to him/her: every single social interaction they have ever had haunts them in their sleep.

Something they’ve never told anyone: tbd.

PREFERENCES:

Hobbies: nature walks, really into flowers as well

Favorite color: lavender

Favorite smell: Wet dirt

Favorite food: french toast

Favorite book: They Both Die At The End

Favorite movie: Dead Poet’s Society

Favorite song: Somebody To Love- Queen

Coffee or tea?: Tea

Favorite type of weather: cloudy but dry

Most used word or phrase?: "Excuse me”

#each night i pray to you;brennan #salem.intro

[ettawritesnstudies]

How I develop characters!

Requested by popular demand after I posted about how I outline - this is a process that goes hand in hand with the brain dumping/mapping part of the outlining because what’s a story without its characters? DISCLAIMER: This is just my process, I’m not claiming it’s the best or that everyone should do this or that it works for every project. So yeah! Without further ado.. How to Develop Characters:

Step 1: Brain Dumping

I call this guide “developing” characters as opposed to “creating” characters because I assume you’re starting with *some* idea of who these people are and what role they play in the story. Maybe you don’t, that’s ok too, but I’d suggest going back to the outline and figuring out how the story is going to work if the characters aren’t the ones driving it. During this stage, you’re going to be brainstorming and collecting your ideas into a word document, phone notes, voice memos, or back-of-hand-scribbles. At this point, daydreaming/making playlists/moodboards is all part of the development process. you get a pass

Step 2: Listing!

I’m a fan of outlines if you haven’t noticed, so I start filling out character questionnaires. But I found that a lot of ones online either go into *way too much extraneous detail* for what you need right now. You can figure out what their favorite color and flower are later on when you’re making up answers on the spot for STS, but for now, you need the important stuff. So I made my own list. and ironically enough, I’m putting it online: This is my breakdown. Then repeat this for every main character and an abridged version for any important side characters. I’ve got 7. This INCLUDES villains - they’re important too.

Character Name: (nicknames/epithets, if any, and how they got said nickname/epithet)

Category #1: Basics

Age:

Sex/Gender:

Race/Ethnicity/culture: if you’ve got fantasy races, go over to your worldbuilding document and figure that out first, if you’re writing something set irl, you’re going to want to do some research. Here you’re figuring out HOW this affects your character's mindset, not just filling in a label.

Appearance/physical details

Height

hair/eye color, general details

other important details like scars, birthmarks, disabilities, ect.

Clothing - this says a lot about the character, and doing some research/worldbuilding on fashion can help round out the realism of the story

Voice and mannerisms:

favorite sayings/catchphrases

slang?

Other general stuff can go here: a FANTASTIC character study for voice is the Prydain Chronicles. Eilonwy uses a ton of similies, Gurgi speaks exclusively in couplet rhymes, Fflewder is optimistic and Doli is pessimistic and they both have hilarious catchphrases. 10/10 recommend checking it out.

 Backstory (go wild, just ask yourself “does it make sense with the plot and worldbuilding?”) If the characters are siblings or close friends they might have similar backstories, but make notes of how the characters still differ in how they view what went down.

 Category #2: Relationships

Family: Discuss their personality (if they don’t have their own outline) and relationship to the MC. I know orphan/loner characters are popular and I love them as much as the next person but also please reconsider if it’s actually plot-relevant and sensible or if you’re being lazy because you don’t want to develop this section.

Dad

Mum

Siblings

extended family members if applicable

Friends:

Friend Name

Personality if they don’t have their own outline

How their friendship developed

Significance and relationship with MC

Repeat as needed

How the MC is generally perceived by his/her acquaintances

How the MC is generally perceived by strangers

Category #3: Romance

IF RELEVANT: Any past experience? Sexual Orientation? Do they want a relationship? Do they flirt? full disclaimer here, I’ve never actually done this so I’m probably not the best person to ask about this, but I’ve heard it’s imporant?? idk. you do you.

Category #4: Skills

General Skills: if they know art, fighting, other languages, ect, anything goes here. explain WHY they know that.

Smarts: either street smarts or capability to learn

Schooling: how much formal education have they actually had. Smart characters can flunk out of school and not stereotypically “smart” characters can do very well in school by pure stubbornness alone.

Occupation

Hobbies

Category #5: Personality - the fun stuff, this is where you start drawing connections to the plot. At each major decision, come back to this section and ask yourself “what would they decide based on the following? Why?”

Introvert or Extravert:

MBTI type

Hogwarts House:

Alignment like in DnD: (these first 4 things help me get a better idea of how they act on a day to day basis)

Strengths: there should be 3 of these at least. Here’s an excellent blog article on types of strengths. Your villains should have these too

Weaknesses: 3 here too. A combination of strengths and weaknesses helps make characters well rounded.

Goals/Dreams/Aspirations:

Beliefs/Affiliations:

Fears:

Insecurities:

Mental illness:

After the Story:

Role in the Story:

Motivation:

Memories:

What they would die for:

Song/Quote you associate with them

Step 3: Repeat for each character and Connect the Dots

At this point, your characters might have changed a lot (or a little) from your original concept. Now you’ve got to figure out how they change in the story. Where do they have room to grow? What lesson do they need to learn? What lie do they currently believe? The Overall Arc Goes Here, and you need to tie the main turning points in the plot to the main turning points in the character. Go back to the whiteboard and start connecting stuff. Connect stuff within the list. Their backstory should inform their personality. Their personality should inform their friendships and romantic lives. People are complicated and messy. The more red lines you can draw, the better.

Now go forth! Create! have fun! Thank you for reading :)

#writing advice #writing reference #writing ref #my process #character development #character creation #long post

[chiserendipity]

Why 2020 has Changed Me Forever - and Why I'm Grateful for That

*Warning, this deals with emotional and physical abuse, trauma and just is really long. Please do not reblog or repost this post.*

I'm just gonna say it. 2020 as a year has been terrible on a global scale with the pandemic, and the oppression of many people across the world. However, 2020 has allowed us to both reflect personally and on the world around us and demand change. I think that makes 2020 a great year for growth and shouldn't be merely dismissed because we couldn't go to concerts, have large parties, or the hot girl summer we hoped for. Real change is happening before our eyes, a movement for equal rights and to end the the endless cycle of oppression and suffering for not only the black community, but minority groups whether that be race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender, religion, those with mental or physical disability, the poor, and so many more. Yes the world is seemingly in shambles. But guess what? We have nothing but time to try and fix it now. To demand better. Both for our communities and ourselves.

Personally, I feel 2020 really pushed pause on my life and asked me "what are doing?" "why are you doing this to yourself?" and "what do you want from life?" I began looking at what I had become and I was disgusted with myself and how I decided to try and cope with past trauma. Before corona, I found myself in a very dark place mentally with seemingly no way out. I would have panic attacks repeatedly and just cry myself to sleep many nights (despite not getting very much). My endometriosis was continually getting worse with every flare up (probably from all my stress). I had no direction and very little motivation to continue.

Then, the virus hit. Once I was sent home and online classes began, I had time to stop and catch my breath. To look around at my life and really ask what I was doing wrong. As young people we tend to give ourselves a pass for poor behavior and bad decisions, or even encourage it. I realized I was falling victim to my own anger, bitterness, anxiety, and depression that had haunted me for years and it was finally rearing its ugly head. I had been suffering from depression and anxiety for years but that spring semester while still on campus was different. My moods began to swing from a hyperactive anxious state to a haunting and chilling depression that made me want to stay in my room and hide. I didn't really get much sleep in either state. But, now back home all alone and with nowhere to go. No class to dive head first into. No parties to dance the night away. No kickbacks to chill at. Just me and my monstrous thoughts. At first my overwhelming thoughts were suffocating. I would question "what is wrong with me? Why can't I get my moods under control? Why must every facet of my being so overwhelmingly broken?" Then as classes began to finish, and with the help of antidepressants, I finally started to feel a shift. I started unpacking my compartmentalized trauma I had shoved away for years in a desperate attempt to leave it the past. People always say the past is the past, but the past will never not be apart of your journey. Without properly dealing with the past, it'll always show up again in your present reeking havoc in your day to day life.

With meditation, therapy, medication, and a lot of self reflection through videos about helping your inner child, I realized I didn't know me. My life had always in some way shape or form been controlled by others. I was assigned the role "golden child" by a narcissistic father who demanded I perform that role perfectly. Even as a child, I was taught to ignore my pain and sadness and push through, because my feelings didn't matter. I was fed, lived in a nice house and had nice clothes and whatever I asked for. That was enough to prove my father’s love for me; in his eyes. I lived merely to please. As I aged this mentality seeped into my romantic life as well. My feelings always came last so I began to simply just turn them off until I became an emotionless shell. Acting as a robot, I went to school and grinded myself to the bone in all my AP and IB classes. Joined all the community based clubs and took leadership roles. At 16 I even got started working 20+ hour weeks. Meanwhile, I had to surgeries courtesy of endometriosis. The first was a emergency surgery due to a ruptured ovarian cyst and the second to dislodge my right ovary from my abdominal wall since the endometrial lining cemented the two together. 

I remember complaining about cramps and my father punched me saying, "Toughen up”. My father said things like that all the time and didn't want to discuss my chronic illness or mental health. When I was 16 I admitted to having suicidal thoughts and a previous attempt a few years back and he responded that was "white girl bullshit". Another time,my father cussed me out in a pizza shop for wanting a margarita pizza calling me a stupid bitch in front of everyone in the restaurant. He constantly mocked my choice for my major and university, saying that majoring in marine science was idiotic and I'd do better in political science and studying at Vanderbilt. Pain wasn't allowed. Feelings wasn't allowed. Choice wasn't allowed. Only thing that was allowed was to do the work expected. To be "perfect".

Finally I was beginning to understand that after being told my entire life that I was nothing more than robot with marching orders, the lack of orders now that I had cut my father out of my life was causing me to feel that I had no purpose at all. I had never known freedom, and it was was now suffocating me. Now knowing this, I was able to start retraining by brain and discover who I wanted to be. My feelings were valid. I wasn't just my report card or my ACT score or my medals and academic awards. My body while it doesn't function like it should, it is still worthy of love and respect. I wasn't insane for my moods fluctuating and I just needed help to get where I needed mentally to function. And that's okay. I had to start being me and living for me, not for the approval of others. Savannah the person, not the robot, matters. I matter.

This was when I had a spiritual awakening of my soul and ego, truly deep diving on how to heal from my past. I spent hours watching videos and discovering how to dismantle the false self I had created to appease those around me and stop acting as a emotional crutch for others whilst ignoring my own emotions. I began to recognize the trauma bonds I formed with exes and current friends. I choose to associate with those who encouraged these negative social responses and bad coping mechanisms. I was merely re-entering patterns that begun in my childhood.

From our earliest years, the ego is formed. Our deepest need is to gain love + approval from our parents + caregivers. The ego, in an attempt to protect creates a concept of self identity in alignment with what we believe will give us this love.We begin to say "I am smart" or "I am strong" or "I am bad at x." We internalize the beliefs of our parents about who we are + who other people are + how the world is. All of this ego identity unconscious. Because we are not taught about our egos, we are unaware they exist. So we operate as if we ARE the ego. This brings us a ton of our own suffering + shame. It makes us feel "stuck" + unable to escape our learned patterns. That's what ego does: keeps us repeating the past. Ego work is the process of questioning the ego stories that are just thoughts + not "reality." Becoming conscious to this allows us to access CHOICE in how we respond.

- @the.holistic.psychologist

Now aware of my ego and really getting to the heart of why I'm bad at sharing my feelings and why in past relationships I was described as "distant" and "inattentive" but also “good listener but won’t open up”.  Today, I can honestly say I'm no longer in that dark place I was before. I'm beginning to relearn the things I loved and truly appreciate them. I'm being the true goofy, silly, marine scientist I always wanted to be. I have friends who do care about me and I've tried to open up more emotionally. Of course I have a long way to go and constant improvement is necessary. 2020 allowed me to return to myself, not the burnt out, bitter and depressed woman I had become. I'm happy 2020 happened and for the first time in years, I'm excited for what the future brings.

#self reflection #2020 #my 2020 #short narrative #black writer #female writer #writeblr #black writers #black female writers #new writer #new writing #tw suicide #tw abuse #tw depression

[elodie-adams]

Full Name: Elodie Meredith Adams

Reason for name: Her mother wanted something that sounded sophisticated and her father wanted to name her Melody. Her middle name is after her grandmother. Nickname(s): El, Ellie, Sunflower Date of Birth: 17 February 1995 Age: 25 Gender + Pronouns: female | She/her Place of birth: Roswell, New Mexico Parents: Trisha and Troy Adams. High school sweethearts who had Elodie when they were in high school. Siblings: None Relationship with family (close? estranged?): Fairly close, she lived with them until a few years ago. Pets: None, yet.

PHYSICAL:

Height: 5′8 Build: very thin but with a more hourglass waistline.

Nationality: American Ethnicity: Swedish and German, but knows very little about it. Distinguishing Facial Features: Bright blue eyes. Hair Color: blonde Usual Hair Style: long and messy, sometimes in a messy bun. Eye Color: blue   Complexion (freckles, acne, skin tone, birth marks, scars): clear skin, pale Disabilities (physical or mental, including mental illnesses): None that she has been diagnosed with, though she does have bouts of depression and tries very hard to hide it. What do they consider their best feature?: Her eyes or her smile.   Worst they’ve ever been injured (what, how did it happen)?:Tons of minor injuries like sprained joints and scrapes growing up. Once fell off the roof of her trailer and broke her arm.

APPEARANCE:

Favorite outfit: She loves fashion so there are a number of different outfits she loves but she’s usually in ripped black skinny jeans, a cut up band t-shirt and either her leather jacket or a flannel shirt that is too big for her. She can also be found in anything too short, too ripped, and too black to be considered acceptable. Glasses? Contacts?: Occasionally wears reading glasses but not often. Personal Hygiene: Showers enough not to smell and is known to take some plants in the shower with her for the humidity.   Jewelry? Tattoos? Piercings?: Has a necklace from her grandmother she wears, a few tattoos but wants more, ear piercings and nipples. What does their voice sound like?:  On the higher pitched side while being slightly raspy from smoking. Style of speech (loud, mumbler, articulate, etc.): Louder than most, speaks quite quickly. Accent?: Not really, fairly standard American accent. Unique mannerisms/physical habits: Plays with the ends of her hair, bites at the skin around her nails. Left handed or right?: right handed. Do they work out/exercise?:  Not really. She likes to walk but has been blessed with a high metabolism.

BELIEFS & INTELLECT:

Known Languages: English and a small amount of French. Zodiac: Aquarius Gifts/talents: Great eye for detail and design, green thumb, has very good rhythm and pitch. Political stance: liberal leaning but sometimes unsure. Pet peeves: People who are unreasonably rude, when people don’t take care of their plants/flowers, mansplaining Optimist or pessimist: generally an optimist. Extrovert or introvert: Bit of both. She has extroverted tendencies, but likes her alone time.

INTIMACY & RELATIONSHPS:

Relationship status: Single technically. Sexual orientation: bisexual   Ideal mate/qualities they look for in mate: Someone who can make her laugh, someone open and loving, great in bed.   Ever been in love?: When she was younger What’s their love language?: Physical touch and words of affirmation Most important person in their life?: It was her grandmother but now is probably her parents or Ryan.

VOCATION:

Level of education: Certificate in floral design Profession: Business owner and florist Past occupations: Worked at the bowling alley Dream occupation: She’s doing it! Passions: Flowers and plants, design, music. Attitude towards current job: Absolutely loves her job. Spender or Saver? Why?: Good balance, she likes to spend when she can but knows better than to blow her money because she grew up with very little. Which is more important – money or doing something they love?: Doing something she loves.

SECRETS:

Phobias:  Atychiphobia- fear of failure, Escalaphobia- fear of escalators Life goals: See her business grow, have a family of her own, own her own home. Greatest fears: Being alone forever, her business failing. Most embarrassing thing ever to happen to him/her: Got a wicked nose bleed while giving her first blowjob as a teenager, didn’t realize what was happening until her at the time boyfriend looked down and started screaming. Other than that she’s pretty hard to embarrass. Something they’ve never told anyone:  Despite her appearance, she regularly listens to pop music. Oh and she might be a little bit in love with Ryan Biggest regret: Not spending more time with her grandmother. Compulsions: Reorganizing her flower fridge. Compulsively checks the water levels on flowers and plants. Police/Criminal/Legal record: The occasional run in for underaged drinking and partying. Has shoplifted but has no criminal record.

PREFERENCES:

Hobbies: playing guitar, singing, reading, propagating plants, floral arrangement. Favorite color: black Favorite smell: Vanilla, or fresh flowers, bleach. Favorite food: Hot dogs from over a camp fire. Favorite book: Dear Mr. You by Mary-Louise Parker Favorite movie: Matilda, Silence of the Lambs Favorite song: I Bet That You Look Good On The Dance Floor- Arctic Monkeys or R U Mine- Arctic Monkeys Coffee or tea?: Usually tea but she’ll drink coffee black sometimes. Favorite type of weather: Spring, when new things start to bloom. Most prized possession: Her shop or her antique music box given to her by her grandmother when she was little. Most used word or phrase?: “Don’t forget to trim off about an inch from the stem and put it in a solution of water with about 1/4 teaspoon of bleach, maybe a little less depending on your vase.” or “Right then.”

#About #muse #roswelltask

[welcome-to-the-petting-zoo]

(this is directed to anyone who feels up to answering) how do you feel about authors writing characters with DID (provided they do sufficient research)? i do understand that it's harmful to write a plot centered around a disorder you don't have, but is representation through minor characters acceptable? (this question is specifically about DID but you can answer it more generally if you want) 💛

Hi there yellow! Cat here. I’m gonna answer this slightly more generally, since I don’t have DID.

Please keep in mind that this is just the opinion of one person, and in the end you will have to make up your own mind and stand by it.

But I honestly don’t see a problem with writing characters who have experiences we don’t share. I feel like there’s a problem in wanting both representation, and for everyone to stick to their own “lane”. That would mean I could only ever write white, able-bodied people, and if they are ND, they could only either have schizophrenia or ADHD or both, and god forbid I write about anyone afab etc etc... and then 1) my stories would lack diversity and 2) it would be pretty boring an unrealistic.

I mean, from that standpoint, I wouldn’t even be able to write a neurotypical cis character.. 

And in my book decent representation always trumps no representation. That said, I put emphasis on decent, because I do think creators need to do their research. In the case of a mental disorder, it’s important to not just read the diagnostic manual and slap every trait on the person: Seek out communities surrounding the thing, read their experiences, ask them informed questions about specific experiences. Remember you don’t need every symptom for every disorder, and remember the disorder is not the personality; you need to still build a character.

I will defend my right to write characters of different disabilities, ethnicity, gender and sexuality, any day. Because writing is the act of creating a world and a set of characters out of nothing, and I believe that if you’re being respectful, and doing your research, then your representation matters and people will be able to see themselves reflected in media, and most people will love it.

I mean... The representation of psychotic characters and specifically schizophrenic characters is so sparse and so shitty, that I find myself insta-attracted to anyone who even remotely exhibits the traits, no matter how problematic or downright bad the representation is. 

And I feel like people in my or similar situations deserve to start seeing ourselves in media, and since we’re talking disorders with a prevalence of a few percent of the population, it would be unrealistic to expect that all representation is made only by the people in question.

Sure, writing about experiences you don’t know is hard, and if you’re not prepared to do your research (especially for a major character) then maybe don’t. But decent representation is a necessity, and while own-experiences-representation is too, one doesn’t exclude the other.

Cat

#representation #own experiences #writing advice #DID #schizophrenia #cat talks #Anonymous

[thevividgreenmoss]

Men, compounded by straightness and whiteness as applicable, are the worst theorists of loneliness. They operate from the mind-boggling assumption that there must be something structurally wrong with the world if they are faced with any indication that it does not wish to keep company with them. They can fathom no structural reasons as to why they might be deemed unwanted. Even the U.K.-based Campaign to End Loneliness (which does useful work focused on the demographic of aged people of all genders) claims that “nobody who wants company should be without it.” If you try, however, to apply this logic to childcare, health care, a minimum wage, or housing, you’ll be told that there are structural reasons why your needs are impractical. And pointing out that sex workers, like massage- and psychotherapists, are also in the business of treating loneliness and should therefore be able to negotiate for ethical recompense just leads to morality lectures. Companionship for men, as patriarchy tells us, is the natural order of things, and there must be something terribly wrong if a Regular Nice Guy has to pay for it.

Because straight white men refuse to recognize their own unpalatability, they come up with solutions to loneliness that appropriate the rhetoric of justice- and freedom-based ideologies without actually engaging in any rigorous structural analyses of their culpability in oppression. They don’t want revolutionary change but merely a polite tolerance that would make them more bearable. And this selfishness renders them incompetent to address the structures of loneliness as a social ill.

There are, broadly, two kinds of structural lonelinesses. One is the benign loneliness of the socially alienated, the other the malignant melancholy of the erstwhile master.

The loneliness of the oppressed is the condition of being exiled, being shunned, or having to flee relationship and community structures that have become abusive. All support structures can warp under toxicity, and family and community are especially vulnerable to the impositions of structural oppressions because of the unrelenting intimacy they demand from their constituents. The violence that patriarchy, casteism, racism, capitalism, and cisheterocentrism enact is multifaceted, but all of these structural oppressions remove the nourishment of companionship from the spaces they operate in. To be oppressed by any of these is to encounter loneliness.

Domestic-abuse survivors, migrant laborers, queer young people, religious minorities, ethnic transplants, non-men in organized workforces, people living with disabilities either physical or mental: These are some of the people who have loneliness thrust upon them. They are punished, as an identity, for existing, because prejudiced people with structural power around them reject them. That they face multiple kinds of bigotries, violences, and dehumanizations does not detract from the severity of the loneliness imposed on them, and to not notice that amidst all their other problems and griefs that they are also lonely, as soul-churningly lonely as any sad white boy with an MFA, is part of the crime humanity commits against itself.

Another social pattern of loneliness is particularly wretched because it is deemed a self-imposed choice by an indifferent observer. This is the loneliness we have to choose in order to protect our bodily needs: sexual safety, privacy, self-identity, self-worth, freedom, integrity. An epidemic that no surgeon general seems to have thought to talk about is that of domestic violence and partner rape. Men are often in the habit of asking why women choose to stay in abusive relationships. It does not occur to them that the oft cited “prolonged loneliness being equivalent to 15 cigarettes a day” might be a factor, in addition to every other indirect isolating consequence like financial vulnerability and societal disapproval. There is some—albeit scarce—visibility given to the loneliness of women surrounded by men—outliers in white-collar jobs, visitors to segregated spaces, travelers on the street, migrants in phallic territory. But there is almost no structural cognizance taken of the loneliness of women trapped inside family spaces. Public policy takes note of the elderly who live on their own and who are lonely because they have no caregivers. But what about the loneliness of those deemed caretakers? What structural analysis of loneliness accounts for mothers trapped in a space where their predominant relationship is with an immature individual who provides no reciprocal caretaking? What public cost calculation is made regarding the loneliness of children across the world whose biological families have to leave them without adequate care in pursuit of subsistence-level employment? What health care is being provided to treat the loneliness on both sides of international remittance economies across the globe?

The other kind of structural loneliness—that of the erstwhile master—is a side effect of resistance and victory. Which is not to say that MRAs are justified in blaming their loneliness on feminists but rather that their alienation is a symptom of the malignant misogyny that feminism has finally been able to diagnose and quarantine for. The modern male urgency to calculate the economic burden of their loneliness is appropriated from the struggle to ensure men pay a fair price for the care work they need to alleviate it.

...It is imperative to resist the disproportionate foregrounding of cishet male loneliness because the structurally oppressed manifest their benign loneliness symptoms differently from those who suffer from the malignant disease of thwarted entitlement. Buried inside the lonely-men essays is the threat disguised as suggestion that we feel concern for Lonely Men because Lonely Men can turn violent. This is a red herring in much the same way that alcoholism is used as an excuse for male violence; the problem isn’t alcohol or loneliness but patriarchal masculinity. Meanwhile no surgeon general is declaring racism or misogyny to be an epidemic despite the increasing number of people literally being killed by men “suffering” from these states of mind. It takes a special kind of self-centeredness to be able to cite stats that show that marriage hurts women’s life expectancy and continue to advocate it as a solution to save lonely men instead of trying to fix the toxic husband syndrome that is killing women. Men who demand that women concern themselves with the problem of lonely men in order to ensure their own safety are issuing the same hackneyed threats that patriarchy entrenches—a disguised demand that women invest their energy in socializing boys, in dating men, in doing even more care work than we already do.

Looking at some of the funded programs tackling the “epidemic” it becomes clear that creating spaces where men can feel free to be misogynists is one of the effects of how men warp community responses to loneliness. The first Men’s Shed—a community space where mostly older men could get together to work with their hands and socialize—was set up in Australia in 1998 and by 2010 was receiving funding from the Australian government under its National Male Health Policy. (There are no Men’s Sheds for any of the men trapped in Australia’s detention centers for the crime of being refugees on a boat.) According to the U.K. Men’s Shed Association the rate of growth of Men’s Sheds is between six and nine new sheds a month. (The U.K. government is planning to remove domestic-abuse shelters from housing benefits. On average in England men kill two women a week.) Public policy approves of self-segregating spaces with “old-fashioned mateship and . . . no pressure” (a liability-free way to say “No Homo No Feminist Cooties”) where men can be cajoled and lured into being cared for. Meanwhile sex workers, drug users, and transgender people are more likely to be harassed and jailed by police than be provided with spaces where they can be gently encouraged to talk about their loneliness.

The Malignant Melancholy

#* #essays

[what-even-is-thiss]

Hey you have ADHD right? I want to write a story with a character that has ADHD and I kinda want to make sure I don't mess it up. What are some things in fiction about ADHD people you wish would change or stop, and what things should we see more. Is there any organizations that represent you (like how ASAN is for autistic people)?

There aren’t a lot of well known organizations for people with ADHD. I’m not aware of any. I’ll list some things here that I personally want addressed I guess.

Not all people with ADHD are hyperactive. Those of us with inattentive type are rarely portrayed correctly.

We stim! A lot of the ways that we stim are similar to autistic people too. We rock back and forth, pace, fidget with things, chew on things, flap our hands, etc. We’re not being restless or impatient when we fidget. It just helps us think!

We need to keep a small part of our mind occupied by an extra thing when we’re doing something that’s hard to concentrate on. So we might pace or work on a craft or doodle while people are talking to us, play music while we’re studying, or fidget and hum while listening to a lecture. We’re not ignoring people while we’re doing things like that and I don’t like it when that kind of behavior is seen that way.

Schools actually have services to help people with ADHD in their disabilities departments. Most people don’t know this. Help for people with ADHD might include specially trained tutors, classes on how to take notes and study, and policies that let students with ADHD take important tests in a room free of distractions with less of a time limit that lets them choose when they take breaks.

Medication doesn’t cure ADHD and every medication does something different. People that take meds still have ADHD and they still show symptoms of it. The medication just makes it more manageable.

ADHD affects emotions a lot. People with ADHD often have very strong emotions and a small thing can sometimes feel like a big emergency. This isn’t the case with everyone though.

Along with the last point people that have ADHD are often terrified of rejection or even the thought that we might be rejected. This is a well documented phenomenon and even a little bit of criticism can completely shut us down sometimes. It can be very painful. Sometimes even physically.

People with ADHD often have another mental disorder as well.

We are all very different people of every age, gender, ethnicity, IQ level, and sexuality. Not all people with ADHD are young straight cis white boys with a slightly below average IQ. We can look like anybody.

People with ADHD often have a hard time keeping eye contact because it’s hard to just look at the same thing for a long time. And because ADHD and autism have a lot of overlap a lot of us feel physically uncomfortable when we do it too. Most of the time though it’s because there’s a lot to look at and it’s difficult to focus when we can’‘t keep our eyes moving. Not everyeone is like this though.

Daydreaming is a really really big thing that isn’t often addressed.

Social stuff can be weird especially when the person with ADHD has impulse control issues. Our brains often jump from one thing to the next very quickly and it’s hard to not talk about it.

Almost no person with ADHD in fiction seems to have hyperfixations. A hyperfixation is something a person with ADHD gets super into for a period of time. It’s different from an autistic person’s special interest, which seems to be more long term. A hyperfixation is incredibly intense and lasts for a short period of time. The longest I’ve had one last is two years and the shortest for a couple of days. When one has a hyperfixation it’s something their mind goes to all of the time and the need to do more with it is really intense. It’s not really voluntary either. You can’t control what you become attached to and when and you can’t really stop yourself from no longer being interested in it either.

[ontheoddoccasioniwritestuff]

Everyone seems to have different boundaries on this hellsite. Some refuse to speculate about Jack’s love life or sexuality but feel ok publishing smutty fiction about him which others see as objectifying him and his body. He might not be ok with that either. What’s the difference? Im not saying either is worse but just a gentle reminder that your own personal boundaries don’t make you elite.

PLEASE DON’T REBLOG THIS

This is long but I’m just breaking down my thoughts and this ask to get them across as clearly as possible.

After acknowledging and moving past that you seem to be referencing me as the “some” who write smut but don’t assume Jack’s sexuality, I decided to answer this because it’s an important discussion point about respecting public figures and I want to defend myself.

Firstly, I never said that I was elite or above anyone. I don’t mean any harm with my writing or with my opinions. 

“Fandom”, in my opinion, emphasises mob mentality when we should be acknowledged as individuals in the collective, not just a group. This means accepting our mistakes, not blame it on others. Therefore I take responsibilty for my own content, including what goes from my inbox to my blog.

My last post was not meant to order people about with my boundaries or say that they are better. The point was that simply we shouldn’t assume we know something about a public figure based on a few facts that we’ve been given - in that case, assuming Jack’s sexuality on the foundation that he has had a girlfriend at some point. 

Secondly, the question: can I write smut whilst still saying I respect Jack as well as others I write about? What is the difference?

I’ve been thinking about smut writing for ages, not accepting any smut requests for ages. Honestly, I still don’t know where I land on it. But onto my answer for the question:

I know the difference between fanfiction and real life, between smut and real sex. I write different genders because I want to be inclusive, the same way I write OCs/readers with different ethnicities and sexualities and disabilities. It has no bearing on what Jack’s sexuality is in real life because I’m writing for diversity, not to put a sexuality on him. 

Forcing sexuality on someone is different to fiction.

As I stated before, “Jack” in my writing is just a muse. A faceclaim if you will for me to write characters because it motivates and inspires me to write. I’ve felt that the people who read my work are mature enough to understand that.  And again, I will never show Jack the writing or tell him. I respect him as a real person who deserves privacy.

Furthermore, my intention is not to sexualise him, not to make him (anyone I write about for that matter) sexually appealing. It is to explore writing I haven’t done before, expand onto different genres hence why I write way more for other genres (like fluff and AUs) over smut. 

The difference between what you have asked is that one is fiction that I’m comfortable with what I’m putting on my private blog (that you are under no obligation to read) and the other is an actual invasion of privacy. So yes, I say that I can respect Jack and still write smut.

This leads me onto my third and final point, about what others might think of my work despite best intentions.

The deal is I can’t control those who read my content and how they respond it. All I can do is include a trigger warning where applicable and including the “read more” option. I’m doing the same from now on with my blurbs. Anyone who reads my work is actively making the decision to read it. Thus it is their responsibility, not mine.

How someone will respond to smut is unpredictable; they might enjoy it, they may think I’m sexualising a person/character. My writing will never cater to everyone. But it is the reader’s choice to read the smut I have written which is clearly labelled as NSFW. If they don’t like smut, they can just scroll past. No one is making them read it. Just as no one is making you stay on this “hellsite”.

tl;dr: I do not consider myself elite for respecting someone’s privacy. Writing about healthy sex with readers of different genders is an attempt to create more diversity on this platform, not an enforcement of a sexuality on a person. I can accept responsibility for my work but not those who choose to read it and how they judge it. 

If anyone else wants to talk about this with me, please private message me. Don’t use anon; I don’t want to post anymore of this on my blog. 

EDIT: Looking back on this, in terms of taking responsibility of what readers might do in response to my work, there is still little I can do for responsibility. However, if I were to be part of the source of an issue or an act, I would respond and likely change how I was acting. I do not mean to perpetuate any negative behaviour. But again, people are responsible for their own actions. They need to take responsibility too. This is not in response to anything, I’m simply adding this now because that is how I feel on the subject.

#if i sound fed up it's because i am #i'm trying to be civil because i want to defend my choices #but over here's a Wee Bit Shit #still #i hope I made myself clear on this #yeah this website isn't perfect #but no one is making you read my blog out of the literal millions on here #asks #coming for me in a passive aggressive manner on anon isn't gonna solve anything

[voidfishersong]

Fallane and Eliza Fate, please

Alright, these two are from different ‘verses just fyi. so any supernatural elements are very, very different, as well as social situations.

WARNING: Fallane’s contains reference to some things that might be triggering. nothing in-detail, but please be advised.

Full Name: Fallane

Gender and Sexuality:

 male-ish but with a rising intonation and a hand-wiggly gesture. sexuality is definitely just a hand-wiggly gesture, we think he has a slight preference for men but tbh no one cares

Pronouns:

 he/him. if you used other ones he probably wouldn’t object but if you asked he’d say ‘he/him’

Ethnicity/Species:

 Egyptian. and he’s like,,, vaguely a demon but not actually. he’s

supposed

 to be one of the generals/servants/sextoys/whatever of AN ASSHOLE who reincarnates every 30 years or so, possesses a young girl, and makes everyone’s life hell but he said ‘nope that’ and (mostly) left. so he’s not actually a demon but that’s what his kind got characterized as by various mortals and usually he doesn’t correct people

Birthplace and Birthdate:

 like literal ancient egypt in like 2,700 bc or smth

Guilty Pleasures:

 I don’t think he’s guilty about any of his pleasures.

that came out way more sexual than I intended

I just meant that he likes things and he’s not ashamed of it

Phobias:

 ahhhh this ‘verse is so dark help. I’d say sexual assault is pretty high on the list. I think he’s also a bit claustrophobic. more than a bit. he’s very claustrophobic he just doesn’t get into many situations like that

What They Would Be Famous For:

 he could be a model? like actually. he wouldn’t but he

could

. he’s got a wicked fashion sense and is really good at makeup. ooh he could model makeup too

What They Would Get Arrested For:

 can u get arrested for smoking indoors? he would. or shoplifting. he likes petty crime because either a) ‘this shouldn’t be privately owned and private ownership is just a social construct’ or b) ‘haha what are u gonna do, catch me?’

OC You Ship Them With:

 Sam!! Sam Reeve x Fallane is best ship. you could also ship him with Kai but Sam is most perfectest. I made a ship name for them but it’s lame and I’m not sharing unless u dm me. I also ship Fallane with a healthy lifestyle but that’s never gonna be canon so

OC Most Likely To Murder Them:

 does Nara canonically murdering him count? there r a lot of ppl who want to murder Fallane so I feel like this is an unfair question. Kai genuinely hates him for a large part of the story. ahaha Kai canonically kills him too jesus christ Fallane you’ve been killed three times you gotta chill. but I think Nara would be more likely to succeed than Kai so. the answer I pick is Nara. in a sarcastic way tho it’d be Mista, who is so done with his shit and she’s the type to say ‘im going to murder you’ when he like, puts his feet on the table or something

Favorite Movie/Book Genre:

 mystery? anything he can sarcastically criticize the plot of, tbh. maybe horror

Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche:

 if he’s a horror fan, then it’d be where any time someone says ‘dont do this’ the person does it and dies. I think he definitely dislikes the ‘aliens are always technological experts’ cliche like what if the explorers are anthropologists with no clue how their ship works?? did you ever think of that?? no you didn’t

Talents and/or Powers:

 his main talent is sarcasm. he’s very gifted with picking up languages and accents, and he has a high appreciation for all forms of art. in the supernatural realm, he’s got a lot. he’s a natural low-level empath, and then he got powers on top of that, which made him nigh immortal, gave him rly cool wings, and magical charisma (which is like subconscious suggestion, except,, magic) which he mostly uses to convince people he’s paid for shit he

hasn’t

 paid for. in the name of disabling capitalism, of course, and not because he just wants the pillow. then he’s also got some extradimensional abilities which are often interpreted as a kind of telekinesis but isn’t technically. and his empathic abilities get turned up to eleven until he can project so hard he can accidentally (or purposefully) kill someone

Why Someone Might Love Them:

 if you’re about grey moralities, ambiguity, and anti-heroes, you’ll probably love Fallane. he’s also very protective, and a single dad of energetic twins so there’s no shortage of relatability, either. but I think a lot of his charm comes from his interactions with other characters, because he feels very strongly and brings many things other characters are afraid to say. there’s a weighty sense of honesty with him, and a real desire to do right by the world and help the downtrodden. he also struggles with trauma and mental illness and he’s really, really messed up but he

tries

 and sometimes he fails and I think people will find a surprising amount to identify with. Fallane is my ultimate walking contradiction, but I think it works.

Why Someone Might Hate Them:

 I feel like he’s a character people would be just indifferent toward UNTIL people started being apologists and saying he does nothing wrong and then he’d be one of those characters that the fandom just splits on, as polarizing ends get increasingly more argumentative. he can be manipulative too and I think people might take issue with things like that, but I feel like most people who would actively hate him would be misinterpreting him. he’s not supposed to be a paragon of good morality

How They Change:

 in the first few waves of this ‘verse Fallane was a definite villain, if a hero-aiding anti-villain. then I decided villains were overrated and now there’s no villains, just a complicated mess of varying degrees of grey morality. in canon, this is reflected. he goes from a certain ‘I can’t do anything substantial about it so I just won’t bother’ to someone who

acts

 on his desire to combat discrimination and abuse. he also gets his family back, and gains a little sister, and he’s constantly learning how to love (in every way) and how to

live

.

Why You Love Them:

honestly?

because

 he’s learning how to live. much of Fallane’s backstory (and his role-switch from anti-villain to anti-hero) came from when I got over being suicidal, so he’s sometimes a comfort character. ngl, I also love his aesthetic. I’m also a bit biased because he has ocd and I have ocd and that’s relatable too and it makes his aesthetic

extra

 relatable. he’s also incredibly emotional and that’s always an adventure to write. I really love Fallane guys.

also this ao3 tag is like the greatest descriptor of him:

Full Name: Eliza Fate

Gender and Sexuality:

female, bisexual

Pronouns

: She/Her

Ethnicity/Species:

English. and she’s a vampire so uh yea

Birthplace and Birthdate:

England and uh….. like…. idk….. a long time ago

Guilty Pleasures:

both slow and fast jazz music. also she’s surprisingly good with children - I like to think that sometimes, she volunteers at daycare-like-places in the shadier parts of town where there’s too many kids and not enough workers and she just helps out these toddlers and teaches them to jazz dance, the way you teach little kids anything, which is hold them and pretend they’re following anything you’re saying

Phobias:

I don’t think she’s phobic of anything, but she’s afraid of losing her family. they’re very important to her and I think her deepest fear is that someday she’s going to wake up completely alone. she’s not afraid of any one person leaving (obviously she’d be upset), it’s just the idea that

everyone

 could disappear

What They Would Be Famous For:

she’s kind of famous within the criminal underworld because she’s like a mob boss, and she’s mostly famous for having a very large family, and for being independent. she went almost two centuries without a right-hand man/woman/etc which, especially as a woman, was quite unique

What They Would Get Arrested For:

I mean she already murders ppl and runs a mafia so that

could

 get her arrested, but if she ever got caught it’d probably be something like she murdered a child abuser or something really,

really

 violently and not well-planned

OC You Ship Them With:

 Itsuki, who’s her canon boyfriend, and Andrea, who’s her canon girlfriend. she’s poly and her relationships are usually open relationships, including with those two. I also ship her hardcore with Katsumi, although that’s a very different dynamic (1960s lots of drugs and alcohol and free sex and it’s about pushing each other further and further and not always healthy but they know that and it’s okay). I feel like Eliza would be really great for romance fanfic because you can go with many time periods!

OC Most Likely To Murder Them:

 Rin. boi Rin has wanted to murder her since he met her probably, he just hated her on principle and then Eliza went and decided she liked Itsuki so Rin hated that and

then

 she started dating Katsumi too and so she’s in love with both his roommates and that pisses Rin off. it’s funny.

actually it’s often really depressing because they end up blaming each other for Katsumi’s death and just about everything else and I think Rin might actually wish she had never existed but

usually it’s a sarcastic ‘I would murder you right now Eliza I swear’

Favorite Movie/Book Genre:

 slice of life. I think she likes the variety and the normalcy of it all, and she usually thinks the couples are cute. her least favorite genre is probably mystery

Least Favorite Movie/Book Cliche:

 love triangles. they’re way, way overdone. also they invalidate the possibility of poly or open relationships. on a less serious note, she hates any mystery story that ends with like ‘the detective was the culprit all along!’ there’s not really a reason why she hates that but. she does. I made her I make the rules

Talents and/or Powers:

 powers: well, she’s a vampire. talents: charisma. she is very good at getting people to understand her viewpoint, when she puts her foot down on something, which is rare. she’s also good at dancing. and very good at sex too apparently. she’s good with children too! but only really smol ones, once they get above like 5 they’re usually assholes

Why Someone Might Love Them:

 she’s strong, and independent, and I think she’s over all a good person. she doesn’t take shit from people, but she doesn’t assume that people

are

 giving her shit. she’s quite easy-going, all-in-all. she’s also really loving to her family, and in many ways she fulfills feminine roles, but the way she does them and the way she thinks about them are empowering, I think

Why Someone Might Hate Them:

 when Eliza was first conceptualized in mid high school, I was terrified that people would see her as bad representation because she’s not morally straight

and

 I worried that making her bi and poly would make people angry. but I think I’ve mostly gotten past that? idk. but I definitely think people might dislike her for her constant relationships - she doesn’t do well if she doesn’t have at least one datemate, and people might see that as too dependent or needy. she sometimes comes across as needy, so there’s that. I think there’d definitely be Eliza Fate stans and Eliza Fate haters

How They Change:

 you get to see her progression from the civil rights era to present day, and she does change a bit, but overall she’s one of the most stable characters in this ‘verse. she really learns to accept rejection, and since she adopts a literal child (Nayeli) into her family and doesn’t raise Nayeli with any expectations of her joining the Family, I think she learns to work with people during their formative adolescent years, too

Why You Love Them:

Eliza is a character from the second wave of this ‘verse, so she’s quite old to have changed so little. I also love how she can differ depending on the time, so her roles change depending on the context. her personality doesn’t really change between any of them, but she’s a very complex character (a side effect of having been in my head for at least 5 years) and you can actually

see

 all her facets. also she’s a mob boss mom??? like that’s cool idk she’s super suave and i’m gay

#ocs #eliza fate #fallane