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ukulelekatie · 5 years

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The Sappy CarmillaCon Appreciation Post You’ve All Been Waiting For

It’s been a week since CarmillaCon, so now that I’ve had some time to relfect, it’s time to share my recap of the convention. Buckle up, creampuffs—this is gonna get long and emotional.

Wow, where do I even begin with this? Perhaps at the beginning would be ideal. I remember, over a year ago, when CarmillaCon was just a hypothetical. A simple “We need a Carmilla con.” Watching it unfold over time was such a journey, and it’s incredible to look back on that moment and know how things turned out.

Last weekend was a weekend of firsts for me. As a convention newbie, all my previous knowledge of how conventions worked was all learned through secondhand accounts of other cons. It was also my first time planning an entire trip and traveling by myself. And let me tell you, I was nervous. But my trip to Toronto, especially CarmillaCon, turned out to be such an overwhelmingly positive experience. And from the people I’ve spoken to, that sounds like a common theme. Everyone involved in the planning process should be very proud of their achievements.

And now is the part where I give some shoutouts to the people who made CarmillaCon the spectacular time it was.

Natasha Negovanlis. I don’t know anyone who puts as much love and care into getting to know their fans as much as Natasha does. And she remembers so many details about each of us! I’m always impressed by that. She truly makes everyone feel special and loved, whether she’s meeting you for the millionth time or the first.

Elise Bauman. I’ve heard dozens of people talk about how easy it is to interact with Elise, but getting to experience it for myself was an entirely different level. Her meet & greet felt like chatting with a long-time friend. She’s so genuine, quirky, and downright hilarious.

Kaitlyn Alexander was just as excited to meet their fans as we were to meet them, and that is so beautiful. I also really admire them for working through social anxiety and talking openly about it, because it was nice to know that I wasn’t alone in feeling anxious. They deserve all the good things.

Annie Briggs is absolutely SAVAGE. She goes from talking profoundly and professionally to dropping the most absurd and crass quips. Quite literally the embodiment of the “hi sir nice to meet you”/“your daughter calls me daddy too” meme.

Nicole Stamp is an incredibly sweet person, and I admire her so much for her friendliness and ability to make everyone around her feel appreciated. We ran into her in passing a few times, and even when she was in a hurry to get somewhere, she still stopped and said hi.

Matt O’Connor is a real sweetheart, and during my autograph we talked about his trip to Boston last year. I love being able to connect with the actors over personal details like that! Also, his Carmilla impression in the cast panel was hysterical!

Sharon Belle’s ability to just be goofy is so precious! I would totally watch a spin-off of Danny solving petty crimes and returning lost library books.

Aaron Chartrand seems so nice and thoughtful, and an all around cool guy. I wish I had interacted with him more during the con!

The Carmilla Creators. Jordan, Ellen, Steph, and Melanie (and Spencer, in spirit) are legends, y’all. Everything they said in the Creators Panel was super empowering, and I left feeling inspired to create and tell my original stories to the world. And of course, getting to chat about fandom and fanfiction with Steph and Ellen at the Fanfic Meetup was wonderful! The thing that makes Carmilla so unique is that its creators are privy to the world of fandom, having participated in it themselves, which allows them to really know their audience and tell us the stories we want and need.

The Moderators: Dana, Belinda, and Angie made the panels so entertaining and so unique! They are an integral part of this fandom, and I loved getting to witness their shenanigans in person.

The CarmillaCon Staff and Volunteers were just lovely! I applaud them for how smoothly everything ran, and for how much thought the organizers put into the logistics. I swear they thought of everything! Writing down your names on sticky notes before autographs so the guests can spell your name correctly. Ensuring that the convention was accessible. Making sure none of the panels coflicted with autos, photos, and meet & greets. Placing the vendor tables right outside the panel room to get us as much exposure as possible. It’s one thing to listen to feedback from your own convention’s attendees after the matter, but it’s another to listen to the greater fandom community’s experiences with other cons and be proactive. Any time I had a question or issue leading up to and during the con, I was assisted quickly and compassionately. Everyone was also extremely generous! Several staff members gave out extra autographs and photos to attendees throughout the event, which I loved.

The Vendors—I greatly enjoyed spending time with them! This was my first ever convention both as a fan AND as an artist, so I really appreciated learning from them and being able to support each other. I’d also like to give a shoutout to @learntodefygravity for becoming my assistant and running my table when I was participating in other parts of the con.

Everyone who stopped by my table! Whether you were there to get something or just to chat, you really made my weekend. I’m still so full of feels from all the sweet things everyone said about me and my art last week. Sometimes it’s difficult to take myself seriously—I often feel like I’m not a “real” artist because I draw primarily fanart, and for such a tiny community of people at that. But my CarmillaCon experience proved to me that there is an audience for my art, and I want to thank each and every one of you for supporting me over the past 4+ years. And yes, there will be more art in the future! I’m working on setting up an Etsy store as well as researching how to print my own lenticular bookmarks since the ones I brought were so popular! I’ll keep you all updated.

All the friends I spent time with. Some of you I’ve spoken to online every day for the past year. Others, I’ve interacted with occasionally on twitter or discord. A few of you I had never spoken to directly until the con. No matter what category you fell under, it was a pleasure to get to spend time with you, and I miss you all so much. Why do you have to live so far away from me? Why isn’t teleporting a thing yet?! (What I wouldn’t give for another minty group hug right about now.)

And lastly, thank you to everyone. Despite how much I fangirl about it online, I’m not one to talk openly about Carmilla and how much it means to me outside of the internet. I’m afraid of being judged for loving it too much. But this past weekend I got to meet several hundred people who are just as passionate as I am about the little webseries that could, and I’m so grateful for that opportunity. I’m not alone, and I never was. This fandom has helped me step out of my comfort zone in so many ways. I may be outgoing and outspoken online, but take me our from behind a screen and I’m very shy and self conscious. Just two years ago, taking public transportation alone in my own city seemed scary to me, but last week I had the courage to travel on my own and experience new things. I thought I would be overwhelmed and anxious all through CarmillaCon, but the second I found my people, I felt comforted and energized. I’ve grown so much over the years, and I owe a lot of that progress to the fandom and the encouragement I’ve received. You’ve all been by my side and helped me grow up and grow into myself. Here’s to Carmilla, and here’s to the creampuffs!

#carmilla #carmillacon #katie goes to carmillacon #don’t look at me #i’ll post photos later

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mybodyfails · 5 years

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hi hi hiii. finally back home from berlin, caught a few zzz’s, still sleep deprived, but i’d do it again in a heartbeat!

i‘m gonna ~try to do bullet points here, but you know me... probably not gonna happen. sorry, you have to deal with my longwinded ramblings now, i‘m posting this mostly to remember it all for myself.

let me preface this with a quick disclaimer, these kind of events are usually not really for me, too awkward, too cringy, i’m shy as fuck and socially incompetent in general... but druck has had such an impact on my life, it was a no-brainer for me to go.

biggest shoutout to @lapalooz (with no access to her real tumblr, get on that!) for making the waiting time not only bearable but enjoyable with her engaging presence! aaand i’m pretty sure i wouldn‘t have made it to the meet&greet (aka hi&cry) if i didn‘t have the amazing @matteounterdruck by my side. thank you tina, so much!!! you really kept my spirits high and taught me how to release nervous energy through dancing! lmao ❤️❤️❤️

okay. let’s start at the beginning. the exhibition of and appreciation for all the fanart was one of my favourite things when we walked into that location. druck really said this show is as much about YOU as it is about US and just how lovely is that???

the q&a wasn‘t as bad as it could‘ve been... i just wish it would have been a bit longer though! they seemingly were prepared for the ‚why did amira‘s season end after 7 eps‘ question, but tua being honest and saying fuck yes, i wanted 10 eps for her too... iconic.

surprise surprise, the two people i truly didn‘t expect to be there were milena and michi. and then they were! and they were whispering to each other a lot <3 and michi was the most adorable awkward person to ever exist. you can tell he really is such a shy and private person, and i think seeing that spelled out right in front of us like this made it all the more special that he showed up at all! the things he ~did say were really witty and charming though, so there‘s that. 💕

the bloopers were so good, it was moving to see how much fun they had on set and that their friendships aren’t contrived in the slightest! all i kept thinking was “i can‘t wait to reblog the gifs of that to my tumblr“ haha. SO WHERE‘S THE VIDEO @DRUCK?!

for someone who went in there expecting to have a complete breakdown i was actually okay...ish when we watched the ep (i was so relieved to finally see amira again!) and david‘s film... until the cast went up on stage during anselm‘s second song and mile was stood there, tears streaming down her face, leaning on lukas for comfort. oi, that broke me. :(

quick shoutout to the person behind me who was crying in the club as they say, no, actually it was full on SOBBING. in my mind i just kept going ~SAME~. and, you know, anselm‘s songs didn‘t help the cause either... what a mess.

now on to the meet&greet. if you’re not interested in the people behind druck, or you think meeting them in person is weird or whatever - then this part is not for you and you’ll want to x out of here right now, please spare me the comments, i‘ve already had enough negativity in this fandom for years to come, whew.

i‘ll put this under a cut, just to be extra sure.

you know, i‘ve grown so attached to these characters over the last 1.5 years and it was a once in a lifetime opportunity to say thanks to the actresses/actors who made them come to life. for real though, i think really looking them in the eyes and saying THANK YOU was the best thing about the whole experience for me.

this‘ll be chaotic, i’m just gonna list everything i remember off the top of my head, please bear with me.

first of all: best. cast. ever! every single one of them was lovely in their own way... some of them are really high energy people (keep in mind we went in reallllly late, they had been doing this for hours at that point!)... think anselm, tua and mile. they just carried everyone else with their energy!

anselm was as warm and welcoming as i expected, yet it still surprised me how confidently he handled the whole situation (unlike me rip)... i literally blurted out “you‘re such a good host!“ to him and he sounded really flattered when thanking me. he just has the best vibes <3

naomi... oh my god. i was really shocked to even see her at all which was only right before it was our turn with her group. she made a little sarcastic remark about how she “can‘t wait to be tagged in alllll the pictures“ lmao. just leave it up to her to make me fall in love in real life too. :(

i don‘t know if they did it in all of their pictures, but her and hassan were hugging it out in the background of ours like the laura/mohammed crackship that they are. loved that! lmao

speaking of hassan though, i only had the BRIEFEST interaction with him bc how does one cope with all that beauty up close?! one doesn‘t, that‘s how. damn.

i lovelovelove that they kept the five girls together for the photo op, now the pictures ended up looking like we‘re part of their squad!

tua was the life of the party, she made the whole room dance and sing along when ‘geiles leben’ came on (that was when most people had left already bc we went in so late)... it was such a special moment!!! she was also really confused whether to speak german or english to us, bilingual queen!

lea gives the BEST hugs that was so unexpected for such a tiny person, she REALLY goes in wow.

jobel... all i remember is that my face was literally buried in her hair while we were hugging and she smelled amazing!

and lilly omg... lilly! my favourite bean, so easy to talk to, the best aura! she was kinda stretching her legs out when we got to her (l m a o) and kept thanking us for waiting so long (which... a few of them said that... and i always replied with a hä?! thank YOU for doing this for so long!) and rolled her eyes just at the thought of the aftershow party they had planned and told us she‘ll only drink water though! lmao

mile as i mentioned earlier was being so motivational, yelling “we‘re gonna do it! we‘re gonna get through all of you!“ in between again and again, probably more for herself than any of us haha. we did end up talking about food with her, which... you know. foodies amongst each other. ;)

found a whole new appreciation for louis... who poured so much of himself into carlos oh my god. chill. quick witted. hilarious!

so now i left lukas for last. as i briefly mentioned before, i didn’t go up to him after romeo&juliet, but this time i did (there really was no other option when you were there, that would‘ve been rude lol) and i wasn’t let down. at all. he was one of the few people who actually properly introduced himself and that is SO nice, one of the things i’ve always loved about people who are in that kinda position, you know? he is just the sweetest sweetheart, we all know it, he’s proven it over and over. he ran across the room bc some fans forgot their photos at their table, that’s how considerate he is. while we were waiting for our pics to be printed, he came over and hugged us AGAIN and made it a point to say goodbye. MY HEART. 💕

oh, also... we noticed that the mile/flo/louis/lukas group was the most organised with the whole picture situation... they had a ~system going y‘all. lmao

okay. i think this might be it for now. OOF. if anyone actually read all that... you deserve a cookie. i know i promised coherent thoughts, but this is. what you’re gonna get. oops?

if i remember other bits and pieces i‘ll put them in my tags or whatever.

i‘m gonna see myself out now.

#druck #druck event #mine

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yukinamika · 6 years

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SNB 20 questions

(A very important notice: SNB = Sengoku Night Blood)

I was bored and was waiting for my BP to regenerate. This is just my personal thoughts and so I hope I won’t offend someone. Anyway, enjoy!

1. What are your username and your MC name at the moment?

My username is YukinaMika and the MC is みか

2. Which clan did you start with? Have you finished the main story of that clan?

I started with Uesugi and have already finished chapter 10 so unless they release more chapters, I have nothing left to read.

3. Which card did you get on your first roll? Your thoughts?

Kakizaki Kageie, SR (4*), Red. I think the name is ‘A lucky break?’.

4. Which of your cards reached maximum level first?

None have. I don’t do much grinding.

5. Which event was your first? How did it go?

The Toyotomi and Mouri event in early June 2018 and it actually went well and I ranked 13k or something. My first was the collab SNB x Code: Realize but I read the 1st chapter and then forgot about it so...

6. How many cards have you awakened? Which is your favorite? Please tell us about your first time.

35 in total. My favorite awakening would be Masanobu’s. His design - whether pre-awakening or post-awakening - is good. The visor hat in his pre-awakening is weird but I’m used to it. And the story is just... >//<

About my first time dealing with awakening, I think it was Kagekatsu’s. It was pretty cute with the head-pat and all... >//<

7. Aside from the main story of the clan you started with, how many have you finished?

I finished chapter 10 of Date and Takeda. Currently on chapter 7 of Sanada. So far, the werewolves armies are pretty great.

9. How many card stories have you read? Which one is your favorite?

87 in total. My favorite is Sanada Yukimura S (2*), Red, ‘Born to be loved’. Why? Because it has a kitten. A very cute and precious story.

9. Which army is your favorite? Why?

Not Oda or Toyotomi. They put me on the edge just by reading the translation of their routes. It’s like being in the middle of a chess game and instead of small statues, the chess pieces are living, breathing people.

Can’t pick a favorite but I would prefer Date. Like, don’t get me wrong, Takeda and Sanada are great and warm and Uesugi has their own kind of charm but I don’t know? And yes, I still remember the dungeon thingy at the beginning but let’s be real here, Kagemochi tried to kill MC in the first part of chapter 1. I have nothing against Takeda or Sanada but I’m an introvert and I prefer a more calming environment.

Date isn’t exactly calming with Masamune’s unpredictableness and Shigezane’s energy but they have like 3 people and I have trouble interacting with a large group so that’s kind of okay in my book... Maybe it’s the floppy ears too?:3

So Date > Uesugi = Takeda >Sanada > Oda = Toyotomi

10. Who is/are your favorite character/s? Why? What do you think of them?

Kagekatsu. He’s cute and I can somewhat relate to his lack of confidence. He’s actually quite straightforward and honest.

Masanobu. HIs consideration and his ‘People are somewhat always alone, etc...’! I could have cried during that if I hadn’t been so tired from studying.

11. How many login letters have you gotten? From whom?

2, from Hideyoshi and Kamanosuke.

12. What are your thoughts about the armies?

Oda - They makes me edgy even though I know they aren’t villains, per se. Their designs are great though!

Toyotomi - Again, they make me edgy, especially Hideyoshi. But again, their designs are just so good!

I don’t know why but the vampires makes me uncomfortable.

Uesugi - I started with them so I feel a somewhat loyalty to them but I don’t know? Kenshin’s ideal is great and all but somehow, I feel it’s naive? But I’m pretty naive too since Kenshin’s ideal is actually the reason why I chose to start with them.

Takeda - In general, they are so warm and welcoming but I can just feel tragedy looming in the distance. I never thought I would actually like them. I mean, Shingen’s color actually hurts my eyes with how bright it is but now, I’m used to it. It’s not as obvious as Sanada or Date but I think ‘family’ and ‘friends’ are the words I heard most often in this route. And ‘herbs’ and ‘Shingen-sama’ and ‘Uesugi’, etc...

Sanada - The family theme is strong and they are just so precious. Like puppies! With their tails and energy! I’m worried about them. They are small, not as small as Date but still small and they are just so kind?

Date - They are like the definition of ‘family’! The beginning is a bit rocky with the dungeon and Masamune’s mood-swings but it gets better in the later chapters. They are so small and so ambitious. Masamune’s plans are crazy but they work and I really have to admire Shigezane and Kojuurou for sticking around after so many crazy plans like that.

Looks like I prefer werewolves. Even though I don’t like canines in general.

Mouri - I don’t actually feel much about them but Terumoto is cute and from what I’ve heard, Takakage is like Kanetsugu but worst.

13. What are your thoughts about the MC/Yuzuki?

I like her. In every route, she has a different role. A retainer in Oda. A supposed fiancee in Toyotomi. An assistant in Uesugi. A herbalist in Takeda. I’m not exactly sure what is her official role in Sanada and Date but she goes on trips with the boys to find the sacred treasure. And Mouri, well, is a mystery. They have only 5 chapters at the moment so maybe in the future?

Back to the main topic, the anime version of the MC could be worst so I don’t think much about it.

And she’s cute too!

14. If you were the MC, which army would you ally yourself with to ensure your survival? Why?

I would ally with Oda. The way they spend their money in Toyotomi makes me nervous. Kenshin’s ideal is too naive and the roller-coaster of emotions in the later chapters reinforces that impression. Shingen isn’t at his best with his health and all so... Sanada is too inexperienced and naive... Date is okay but they are small. So Oda is probably the best bet.

The advantage is that you get free education. In other routes, you can too but I feel like in Oda’s, it is more in depth? Like Nobunaga wants the best and the MC is his retainer.

In Uesugi, Kagemochi does teach Shinga letters but it’s just that! No physical training and given how often the MC is kidnapped in Uesugi, I thought they would have put more attention on her physical training? Like I know she can’t fight like a professional but if she could outrun her attackers... But then no one thinks Shingen would actually ride a horse into a castle or Date with their double kidnapping attempts like that. I wonder if Uesugi’s security is too lax or something. I mean, except Uesugi’s route, the MC has never been kidnapped twice in a route.

In Takeda, I don’t know if the MC can actually read Shinga letters but she knows about herbs and all but if I remember correctly, Mitsuhide also teaches her about the herbs in Shinga by bringing her a picture book?

Anyway, my grandfather said the goal of education is to educate the mind, the heart and the body. Like you have knowledge but your health is bad or your morale is corrupted, you aren’t a good person. Or when you have strength but lacks knowledge or kindness, you’re just a bad bully. Same when you are a kind person but you are ignorant or suffering from illness, you can’t do good things.

Back to the topic, I feel like Oda is the best bet since well, Oda is a force to reckon with, as the MC, you get free education which could boost your surviving chance. The drawback is that Oda has some kind of possessive undertone that I don’t like and the MC is just a chess piece there. There’s just no warmness that I can feel.

15. What made you join the fandom?

Aramaki Yoshihiko and Maeno Tomoaki. And Kagekatsu’s design.

Actually, the most of the Uesugi commanders share the same voice actors as some of the Touken Danshi.

Kanetsugu’s VA voices Uguisumaru and I was so shocked to find out about that.

Kagemochi’s VA voices Juzumaru, who I am still looking for but I don’t mind if he takes longer to come home.

Kageie’s VA voices Hachisuka and it was quite a shocking discovery.

Kenshin’s VA voices Mikazuki, the face of Touken Ranbu.

Kagekatsu’s VA plays the role of Yamanbagiri Kunihiro in Touken Ranbu Stageplay.

So apparently, I joined SNB because of Touken Ranbu.

16. Is there any improvement you hoped to be included in the future?

Maybe some other ways to find battle carved stones in-game?

17. Have you done any fanwork (fanfiction, fanart, cosplay, etc.) or translation? If you don't mind, please share some details with us.

Yes. I wrote fanfiction. Only 1 so far. And I’m currently translating a card story to improve my Japanese. It has a cat so I have more than enough motivation to finish it.

As for fanfiction, I posted it on AO3. It’s a Touken Ranbu crossover. Click me!

18. If there is a collab event with another game/anime/etc, what would you like to see?

Touken Ranbu though I know I would be screwed if that happened. Gacha never likes me and I don’t do well in ranking so...

19. Have you spent money on SNB? If not, do you plan to?

No but maybe, in the future if I have enough.

20. Lastly, please say something about SNB from the bottom of your heart!

I would like to say thank you to the staffs for their hard work. And I would like to wish the stageplay in August 2018 to be well-received by the fans and non-fans alike.

#senbura #sengoku night blood #I was bored #SNB20questions #snb

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