#solicited advice

[andmaybegayer]

Realized I did not bring my trackball from home so I need a new one: I will abide the results of this poll

What these are:

Orbit Fusion

The same one I used to have, the conservative option. Occasional wireless issues and a kind of crunchy scroll ring, but otherwise few issues. Fun sculpted design, Most convoluted button layout. Shiny crimson orb.

M575

I have never used a thumb trackball for more than a few minutes before, I have opinions that welcome being tested. Arguably the weirdest one despite looking the most like a conventional mouse. Very modern, Logitech's general purpose wireless technology. Also comes in a very pretty white option, best price because Logitech made way too many so I can get a good deal. Stormy blue orb.

Wireless Optical

Kensington's original wireless offering, weird touch sensitive version of Kensington's scroll ring thing. Fewest buttons, most expensive. Most ordinary trackball design, side buttons are a classic design choice that resembles my first trackball. Dignified scarlet orb.

#solicited advice #trackballs #computer stuff #tumblr polls

[algorizmi]

Do any of you have recipes you like from Louisiana or the southern US more generally?

Honestly I'd love to hear about any regional or ethnic dish you are fond of.

#words in the words part #solicited advice #food

[emptycounsel]

Q: How do you fight writer’s block?

The advice I got from my most successful teacher was that Writer’s Block is a gift. Writer’s Block tells you that something is wrong. Unfortunately, you then have to figure out what’s wrong. So it’s taking off your writing hat and putting on your diagnostic hat.

Start with you. Do YOU have what you need to write? Food? Sleep? Energy? Emotional Engagement? Commitment to writing? Enough of a goal to be getting on with?

If you have everything you need, move on to the piece itself.

First check where you are.

Do you understand what is going on, or are you completely winging it and a bit lost yourself? If you’re lost, the audience will be lost. Pause and figure out what is going on before you resume writing.

Do you wholeheartedly believe the current events could happen or do you have reservations? If you don’t buy it, then it’s time to change it to something you will believe so you can convince everyone else. You have to believe it first.

Do you care about what is going on or do you just think it has to be gotten through? If you don’t care, why should anyone else? Change what’s going on so that you care or delete it.

If where you are pans out, are the same things all true for what lead up to this moment? Is there a scene that predates the one you’re blocked on, that it relies on, that isn’t working well enough. Go back and fix that scene before continuing on.

If everything is good enough, it’s at last time to look to the story’s future.

Do you actually have a good enough idea of what happens next to write it or do you need to do some more planning?

Do you know what should happen, more or less, but the events to come are unclear, unbelievable, or unmeaningful? Change the plan to fix those.

If it’s still an impenetrable problem. Start going through other basic elements of the story.

Are you happy with your MC, or are they not carrying the story well enough? It may be time to go back to the drawing board and change them.

Are you happy with the setting? Is it doing the best job that can be done or is it time to change it?

What’s your theme? What’s your “moral?” What’s your “what if?” Do you know them well enough to work with or is it time to take a deeper look? If you think you know them, are they actually still working? Is it what you’re actually saying? Are you wandering off topic?

Is the structure working? Are you writing a hero’s journey but finding that kind of structure isn’t leading where the story needs to go? Are you in the right Genre? Is the story being told in the best order?

Does your authorial voice and language choice fit? Are you being super serious with lots of big words when it’s just a fun romp? Vice versa? Is your voice so strong it’s getting in the way? So weak it can’t hold it up?

Finally, if you just can’t figure it out right now with any of these. Pull out another project and start working on it a while. Let this one sit and germinate in your subconscious for a while.

The problem and solution may just come to you while you’re looking somewhere else. Or you may just need some distance to see it, so after a month or two you can try again. Or you may have simply grown out of this story and need to be working on another instead and this one will slowly molder and become the fodder for other, future projects.

#writing #creative writing #writeblr #writing advice #solicited advice

[neotheater-kid]

Okay so help me, I wanna be a good partner, I have no idea what I’m doing.

#relationship advice #help #I need it #I need help #help me #solicited advice

[knottybliss]

I finished a shawl! Knitting! Aaaaand I am probably going to have to frog it.

For reasons I have not been able to puzzle out, the top edge (which is the end of the rows) has NO stretch.

Therefore, the whole thing sort of buckles/puckers around the top center, which is where I started. There has got to be some method to having a springier edge, I just don’t know what it is.

I do like how the patterning in the body came out, anyway, and it was good practice. I’m faster and smoother now with both knitting and purling than I was when I began. Since that was, ultimately, the goal? I’m feeling pretty good about it overall.

MISTAKES ARE FOR LEARNING! FUCKUPS ALLOW FOR GROWTH.

if anybody has thoughts about how I might have achieved a stretchier edge with my row ends, please advise.

The pattern is Lionberry by Narniel of Endor and is a free download on Ravelry.

#bliss makes things #knitting #perfect is the enemy of the good #soliciting advice #frogging time #Lionberry #handmade #shawl #thingmakery #fo #finished object

[fabrickind]

How do you become a professional cosplayer? Thnx :)

Hello there!

Short answer is: you don't lmao

Long answer is: it's complicated and incredibly difficult, and depends on what you mean by "professional."

If you mean "someone who judges contests and/or gets invited to cons," the VAST majority of those aren't professionals. They may or may not get an appearance fee, even, depending on the con. (Note to cosplayers: don't let cons take advantage of you by not paying you for your work for them! Always get per diem, travel, and hotel at BARE minimum, and preferably also an appearance fee.) This isn't that hard to do, but you need to have a portfolio that backs up why you would be a good guest, and a good reason why you'd be a good guest. It's just a matter of emailing and/or applying to cons. I've only guested once, but if you want tips, I can give them.

However, based on the phrasing, I'm assuming you are a newer cosplayer who isn't ready for that yet. I assume this because if you've been around a while, you know that this isn't a question. Not "this isn't a question you ask" (as in, we don't talk about it in polite society), but that this isn't really a *thing* in the way that people outside of the cosplay community seem to think it is.

(Side note: I remember this question being asked for at least 15, 20 years online lmao it's easier to make money cosplaying now than it was then, but it's still incredibly difficult to make a living wage and fully support yourself on cosplay.)

There are professional cosplayers out there, as in, people who make the majority or all of their income from cosplay. They tend to be few and far between, and one of the open secrets of the community is that some people who try to make a go at it are supported by a partner or family with money.

But! There are ways to make money as a cosplayer. It's difficult and unlikely, especially with how saturated the market is, but there are ways.

This is all from a USA perspective, which I assume you're from or at least a similar culture, since you're asking me and not, say, someone living in Japan.

Do commissions. This works once you have a high enough skill level to have a client base that wants to pay you for those skills. It's difficult to both get enough commissions and finish enough commissions to have a living wage, though, so it's really only recommended if you are fast at it and/or are okay with it being a side gig.

Start a business selling resources. Patterns, 3D models, resin kits, etc. You'll be operating on thin margins, there's competition out there, and you'll need to be good and fast at these things, but some business prowess, skill, and a bit of luck, and people have done it. Some people also sell tutorials and such, but I don't know how much they make.

Sell prints. This is going to be the hardest of these to make a living wage on. You can couple this with other things on this list to add supplemental income. Basically, sell pictures of yourself online and at cons, start a Patreon, become a booth babe (there isn't enough in the way of "official cosplayer" jobs to make a living on, and usually you aren't paid much and still have to make the costume), etc. This bullet point usually goes with the next two.

Become an influencer. Confession: I don't know quite how this works, but your money would be coming from sponsorships, paid posts, youtube ad revenue, etc. This is also a lot of work, and you would basically be hustling 24/7. Think of the direction you would want to take this and what specific thing you would offer that sets you apart, and.....figure out how to become an influencer lmao. idk if there are cosplay influencers that make a full living off of it since it's a somewhat newer field and far from what I do, but the margin of success is also pretty small, I'd imagine.

Sex work. This is even further from what I know about, so I have NO idea how much money you would make or how to get into it. I'm sure there are guides online. You can do anything from the extremely soft (think gravure modeling: sexy clothes, lingerie, sexy poses, light nudity) to harder stuff (depicting sex acts, whether solo or with toys or partners, catering to fetishes in addition to cosplay, camming, etc.). This is going to be difficult as well and while all of these are not for everyone, this one especially. (Honestly not my thing at all but so much respect for people who can handle it.) You'll want to keep yourself safe online for SURE if you go into this, and it will require stricter safety measures than the rest of these (which also require strict safety measures). Also think long and hard about whether you want the stigma following you: unfortunately, our society still stigmatizes sex work, and you can lose jobs, friends, etc. if people find out, and it'll be hard to physically get and keep your money because of banks and credit card processors not accepting sex work money. This isn't to say "don't do it" but it's something to really think about and look into. IDK where to get advice on the cosplay specific side of this, but Slate's How to Do It column has had a few letters about sex work generally over the years -- here's a few -- and usually Stoya points the letter writer to further resources. (Also tends to be only cosplay adjacent from what I've seen? You'll be dressing up but won't be wearing much in the way of costumes lmao)

There might be more ways that I can't think of, but these are the main ones you will encounter. Again, being a professional cosplayer isn't really like....a thing. Most people who have done it have had a long and difficult career of carving out space for themselves and finding income streams. There really isn't something, at least here, that is having someone pay you to exist in cosplay, unfortunately.

I'm also assuming you aren't talking about costuming generally as a career, which is a whole different ballpark. Actually, that might be something to look into as a career to fund your cosplay hobby (and possible cosplay side gig) if you are interested. Otherwise, enjoy it as a hobby, slowly build a business if you think you are up to it, and see where it takes you. :]

I hope that helps! Good luck

#professional cosplay #cosplay help #cosplay advice #cosplay tips #anon #fabrickind gives solicited advice #i don't meant to be discouraging! #but also like......it's not easy #and you aren't going to find openings for “cosplayer” on indeed #you need to create an income stream #and realistically? won't get anywhere #but you might and that's the fun of it!

[saulwexler]

love when my home-owning peers chastise me for being a renter because I have no shame n I will directly ask how they afforded a down payment. and 90% of the time they have to sheepishly explain that their parents loaned them tens of thousands of dollars. I am ms bootstraps bravely fighting against feudalists and their generational wealth.

#and 10% of the time it's because they are smart so I get free solicited advice 📝👀

[theminecraftbee]

hey, just a heads up, got a dm from someone called chichipooh who was trying to invite me to join what seems to be an app called “mascot” as a verified writer. i don’t know why they would ask me - mascot appears to be a roleplay platform and i pretty definitively Don’t RP these days - but given that it was an app and i’m unwilling to download things from the app store based on the word of random tumblr dms i couldn’t check more information about it than what was on the app store. they did seem to have done enough research to at least know i did writing about minecraft, and to come in starting by complimenting my characterization and asking if they could ask me a question about it, reads more like a real person targeting people than a bot targeting people, but still clearly targeted. blog when i then went to check was empty except for like, four likes of random anime art. soon as they lead into the pitch for joining some app i turned them down and blocked them, obviously, but this reads like... if not targeted phishing (which app SEEMS to be real so maybe not phishing), targeted some kind of marketing, so like... be on the lookout for that i guess??? i don’t trust this kind of thing.

and if you’re someone who for some reason thinks its a good idea to pitch me something in dms: don’t?????

#idk what to tag this just want to put this in the world so if you get a similar dm you know that's a marketing pitch #and not like. someone genuinely dming you to ask about writing #i was all ready to be like 'yeah let me give solicited writing advice' then it was a pitch for an app i had never head of #it doesn't SEEM to be a bot it SEEMS to be a real person but that doesn't mean it's GOOD #and even if they're a real person they aren't a real user if that makes sense #not when they follow like ten blogs and have like two posts on their blog #anyway cybersecurity person in me says 'lol yeah not downloading that app' #and the review saying something about the accounts requiring a phone number (?????) didn't help

[deermouth]

When does it like. Get better.

#soliciting advice from friends on if buying a SAD lamp when im already on vitD gels is worth it #i have been suicidal for like 3 weeks this cannot continue. its gotta be sunlight issues right. please. #txt

[yellowocaballero]

Character Work

Got an ask the other day that asked me how I developed a character, and there was no room to go into it on that ask at all, but I did want to note something. As a fic writer I feel pretty unqualified to write on how to create a character, but I do have something specific I want to say that I've been thinking for a while. I'll keep it just to that. I'll also say that I'm talking exclusively about writing, and not how you engage with fandom. It is, in fact, extremely fun to make an endless series of meaningless headcanons for random dudes. I'm just talking about in terms of how you approach the character from a writing perspective. Which is...

Your OC makes a bad character.

I mean your Dungeons and Dragons character. I mean the character you have a character sheet for, the character you've thought about for years, the one that you are extremely fond of and who feels like a real person to you. The character that is the character, and to change them would feel like changing a person.

Characters should feel like real people to the reader, but as the writer you cannot think of them as people. They are plot devices and a function of the story. They don't need to be fleshed out before you start writing. The actual creation of the character should take place in the outlining and drafting process.

I'm not saying you aren't allowed to stop and think about their favorite grilled cheeses or their sign. There's a few lists of good questions to ask yourself about your characters before you start writing them, such as their desires and their home lives, but the list of actual questions you need to answer are short. And you should try to stop there, because otherwise you're going to over-develop your character and it's going to get in the way of the story.

Assuming you're writing a character focused story, the character's journey is the plot's journey. But the character and the plot exist in relationship to each other. I think of them as two interlocking gears - some things in the plot just can't happen because Character A wouldn't do that, but some things need to happen for the plot to work, so Character A needs to be the kind of person who would do that. Both the character and the plot are in service of what the story is about (Theme, moral, message, etc). These three things have to line up, and they can't overpower each other. You shouldn't try and make round pegs fit in square holes. If a character doesn't fit in with what you want the story to be about (if the story's about vanity and your character doesn't care about vanity) then you need to change one of those things. You can bend the entire plot and meaning of the story around the character, but damn you better have a character who makes a really fantastic story.

You need a character that makes a good story. Some characters don't make good stories, and you need to work super hard to create a story that fits them. That's fine - that can create a unique and great story. Your character has to be consistent and work along their own internal logic. That is shit you absolutely have to stop and work out in the outlining process. Your character needs to make decisions that feel right to the reader - really good stories have the character making the worst possible decision, but in a way that makes the reader understand that they couldn't have done anything else and still been that character. And, like, obviously, give your characters faults and have them make mistakes. A character who does not do that cannot carry a plot.

Fic writers struggle with this. Of course you...shouldn't...be me and completely disregard every characterization, but I do think you can run into the same problem with your blorbo as your D&D character.

Your blorbos aren't actual guys.

This feels kind of obvious, but sometimes I think people don't feel that way. We write fanfic because we like the characters, and we'd rather use these characters and this setting than use our own. I see people projecting on these characters a lot. Like, a lot a lot. It gets to the point where an attack on the character feels like a personal attack - where people defend the character as if they're a real person because they ID so much w/the character. We all know this is dumb, but it also makes for some really shitty fic. The writer becomes completely unwilling to bend the character at all. And they don't try to make the character good for a story, because that kind of involves a lot of faults and mistakes that they don't like seeing their blorbos make. I sound dismissive but it's pervasive. The character becomes a character who makes them feel good instead of a well-written function of the story. The story suffers. Which is alright for some stories, but if you're writing a heavily character focused story like a lot of fic, then nothing is really propping up this story or making it engaging.

None of that is how I develop a character but that is what I wanted to say about characters lol (fwiw, how an OC is created for me is: "I need a character in this spot or representing this thing. Yoink!"). Of course I spoke hyperbolically and took a hard stance on all of that, haha, and of course all of this is rule of thumb. I'm sure your OC is wonderful. Just don't get caught up in them, okay? Go write. The best possible OC is an OC who is born from a good story. That's how you get rich and real characters.

#this is also true for worldbuilding. #my writing #my asks #writing #writing advice #kinda obvious if u follow me that I can go ON and ON and ON about what the fuck is up with some of my characters #and I can kinda promise that for every single one none of that was decided ahead of time #long time readers can see my understanding of the character grow and develop and change the more i write them #so you end up with someone super fleshed out and rich #and sometimes you keep on making so many swerves fifteen degrees to the left that you end up with f101 jon #that being said keep the silly HC coming i fucking love that shit #if no chip sw was an Actual Thing at this point i would go back and rewrite all of it #with what i now know of cody #and thats how the story would be decent lol #but I had to write ALLA THAT to actually get cody you know? #and I could NOT have figured that out just by thinking about him #i promise the advice was solicited this time jalksdf

[andmaybegayer]

If you're paying for an email provider, who do you use. Considered tutanota but because they do end to end encryption you can't use SMTP which fucks with like, git send-email and other automated email tools, as well as requiring you to use their client. I'd like to be able to attach it to a domain I have.

Migadu looks neat but I'm sure there's other options.

#email #solicited advice #computer stuff

[algorizmi]

Soliciting profane vocabulary with practical meaning in blue-collar contexts.

My collection so far:

tranny - transmission

dyke - diagonal cutter

horsecock - gas can spout

bastard - file with medium tooth pitch

#i have heard all of these in person while working #my tractor actually has 2 trannies #3 when I'm driving #words in the words part #solicited advice

[crystalbahl]

#can I solicit advice for getting big? #im 198lbs and feel like I look TINY #gpoy #my face #gay scruff #guys with beards

[3-aem]

K now that i have posted art i am allowed to say that my insurance denied my annual checkup bc my health care provider is refusing to actually code it as an annual checkup and is instead making it sound like i went in ready to get a surgery for all that was apparently wrong with me!!!!! And i have tried appealing and i was denied and time is running out for reappeal but everyone is taking their god damn time getting back to me with the necessary documents so now i just simply Do Not Know what to do!!!!!! And I'm tired and I'm stressed from work and art and I just wanna go play botw until i literally disintegrate from existence like the monks in the shrines.

#I MISS CANADA #I WANNA CRY #I KNOW I'M LIKE THIS BC I ONLY GOT 5 HRS OF SLEEP FOR 3 DAYS STRAIGHT SO MY BRAIN IS LIKE #WE'RE DONE WE'RE DONE YOU'RE ON YOUR OWN NOW!!!!!!! #SOBS INTO A PILLOW #this is also the one and only time i am actively soliciting comfort and advice from americans here #it's so much money I'm like #so pissed off

[pennielane]

in my brief absence from here i’ve managed to fall in love with a man 11 years older than me

#i think i'm in my dear john era so pray for me #no but actually i've mostly been gone because my best friend is going through some really really terrible personal stuff and i've just been #Supporting Her #and also work has been busy (but good! yay!) #and yes #this 11-years-older-than-me man #he is my coach for a sport i do and i am.....in love (she says while she actually barely knows him) #(and she says while he barely knows of her existence [he DOES know i exist but there are so many of us he coaches so i'm sure i'm just one #face to him dlsiahfih;vdd]) #anyway tell me this...i'm late 20s and he's late 30s so is it....REALLY that bad #......??? #(yeah it's probably not ideal) #(i've been soliciting advice from my friends and they say i have the soul of a 100 year old so 11 years my senior isn't that bad but i still #think it's not....the most ideal) #no but i actually never crush on people so this is a Big Deal for me which is why i'm spiralling about it even though it will never amount #to anything :) #(anyway sorry for trauma dumping but hi! happy to be back on here)

[fabrickind]

hello! if I don't have a serger or machine, is blanket/buttonhole stitch a good hand equivalent? thank you!

Hello there!

It depends on what your goal is with the stitch. If you are doing another stitch for the main construction seams and buttonhole stitch as a seam finish, then yes, it works well. It's mostly used for areas that need a very sturdy edge finish because that edge will see a lot of wear, and tends to be thread heavy and time intensive.

For general construction seams, I would recommend a backstitch, or choose a stitch from historical sewing: here's a list of several types. Many of these finish the seam as you sew, which makes them a great choice.

I recommend historical stitches and seam finishes for one simple reason: people perfected strong, fast, efficient stitching when that was the only option.

I hope that helps! Good luck :]

#fabrickind gives solicited advice #sewing #hand sewing #helpful things