#the author honest talks

[northern-passage]

i understand being disappointed when things change, and i don’t hold any ill will towards people that aren’t interested in siren’s call anymore. but i’ve been pretty transparent about regretting sharing sc publicly before & the game has been removed for over a year now, so i am surprised at so many negative reactions.

i don’t expect everyone to always love everything that i write, and i am aware that the majority of my audience is here for my IF writing (specifically tnp) but the fact is that i like to write other things sometimes and i would like to be able to share them without immediately receiving negative comments & guilt trippy messages about it.

it’s been disappointing for me this past year the way my work has been received; i’ve published four other projects and have had this kind of reaction almost every single time. i’ve held my tongue about it except for mentioning it briefly on my other blog after i published blood choke & immediately received a slew of 1 star ratings (most of which are the same people that have been rating all of my work that is not tnp in the same way)

i removed faith because of this same thing happening and quietly republished it without sharing it here. i’ve been using the kithj blog more in an effort to keep things separate but obviously i still shared siren’s call here yesterday because i like sharing my work with people! i want to be able to do that! and i know there are people here that wanted to see more of that story and more of Rome so i wanted to share it. but it’s been so frustrating this past year having to deal with this.

i am always open to feedback or genuine criticism; i am always looking to improve my work. but any messages or comments like this about being disappointed i’m not writing more IF or complaining about f/f are being ignored & i will block you.

#im hardly the first author to make changes and have ppl react this way #and i think that says more abt the IF community than the authors if im being honest #not going to talk about this again i dont like talking about it publicly & im just going to delete/block any more comments #really frustrating to publish something and have people judging it for what they Want it to be rather than what it is #anyone that has sent me supportive messages abt any of these other projects i appreciate you very much #personal

[lightofjedi]

I wish people understood that a female character being written by a dude who objectify and sexualize her is not her fault but the writter's, and that going on about the importance of not sexualizing female characters while simultaneously using said sexualization as a reason to sprout misogynistic remarks about and dehumanising sexualized female characters just shows your hypocrisy and how little you actually care about women.

#just to be clear i'm not defending ''people's right to sexualize women'' #i'm complaining about people who are misogynistic towards female characters for being sexualized instead of criticizing the author #you can hate a female character all you want #but stop acting like you're defending feminism or some shit while calling sexualized female characters ''c-md-mpster'' and shit like that #or selectively distort canon to make said character seem like a villain or a monster #that's disgusting and even more disgusting when yall be talking about an honest to god teenage girl #just ranting #this is about inoue orihime btw #people need to stop being creeps about her fr #tbh this post goes to all shonen anime fandoms #the writers and yall be so fucking weird about girls #english not my native language so apologies if this makes no damn sense. i'm too moody right now

[timeskip]

Rough comic based on a WIP fic of mine where Gon gets hit by an ability that forces him to speak his thoughts ^-^ If I was to do this cleaner I'd probably make the start less cramped lol

Text version + a tiny bit of extra context:

#fic author timeskipped #a large part of the fic is about gon's distress about being forced to say his mind vs like #killua feeling like everything will be okay bc gon is honest :) but then he has to confront that gon isn't always honest #and that's okay. but also it's forcing them to communicate things that they Need To Talk About #it's VERY wip tho

[artschoolglasses]

I think it’s so interesting that learning to draw requires you to develop observational skills. And since AI “art” bros can’t be bothered to learn to draw, they never really learn that fundamental skill. A skill that happens to make it very easy to spot AI “art”.

An art teacher will make you draw from life time and time again to get you to really see what’s in front of you. To really look at what you’re seeing. Someone who doesn’t want to learn to draw but would rather steal the hard work of others, throw it into a machine, and have a machine vomit out a questionable image also miss out on developing those skills. And maybe that’s why they think people will buy their bullshit images when they try to pass them off as being real. Because they can’t see the flaws, the tells, the obvious red flags, so how could anyone else?

Unfortunately, in a way, they are right. Way too many people fall for it. Because they, too, don’t have the observational skills to know better. And some of you are going to have to learn to develop those skills fast before these AI images infest everything. I’ve already seen far too many fake history images for my liking... 

#ranting #brought to you by seeing a well-known sci-fi author retweeting ai images despite talking about not liking ai images in the past 🙃 #you'd actually think an author would know better #apparently not #kind of disappointed to be honest... #ai #ai images #rant #artschoolrambles

[strangeauthor]

all my serious posts get way more notes than my shitpost i guess im just not funny lol

#author makes a speech #like im happy you guys agree with my honest thoughts!!!! i am!!!! #i just think its kind of funny that i mostly brand myself for shitposting and talking about my story #but on the rare chance i get Serious THATS when i get like 100+ notes lol

[macroglossus]

"wowww this woman is so stupid all she talks about is frivolities" well maybe she just doesn't like you and doesn't want to engage you in a conversation with depth. because you're annoying. have you considered that

#sorry jesus christ just. reading classics and it's insane when the male author is like 'ohhhh this character is so silly just a silly girl' #and the girl is clearly like. not into the other character. like oh you've experienced that huh but never got the actual meaning? i see #sometimes it's sort of ironic and self aware but often it feels like the guy actually thinks that that's just How It Is With Women #to be honest i don't think it's a bad thing when a conversation is about 'frivolities' but when it's talked about in a condescending way li #e #idk. idk!!

[sludgeguzzler]

therapy is going to be a struggle bc i just know that as soon as i mention The Divorce the therapist will try to trace all my problems back to The Divorce and to be completely honest with you, i dont think ive ever had a specific problem with my parents not being together anymore (i kinda knew itd happen eventually) and i feel like my issues come more from the aftermath than from the event itself

#you could argue that this would mean it is actuallh a product of divorce but like. man. thats just not true if im completely honest #i wish i could be one of those fictional characters people write fics about where they overcome a decade of trauma in one conversation and #then get magically better and theres this line thats like ''its not always easy but theyre trying their best'' but the relationship the #author built is in fact perfext and flawless and the times where it isnt easy dont come from the characters unhealthy behaviour affecting #the relationship it actually comes from when the character js SAD #sigh idk. i need a therapist. ik its gonna be a struggle but its better than nothing. #ive been trying to get one since last year but the last lady bailed on me like twice and it killed a bit of my willingness to go to therapy #and now i keep asking my parents to help me out with getting a new one and they just arent (this is not somwthing i can do by myself) #anyways ^____^ life goes on #talk #oh also yes i feel like this about therapy specifically bc of this lady. so sorry to all therapists that i will talk to this is a thing now

[b4kuch1n]

good luck w the testing and a happy early new year!!

thank you it's already happened when this was sent but we all did get one free point for the listening section bc the audio fucked up and we didn't get to hear the part with the last question's answer. but I will now think this is luck borrowed from the future when this ask was sent

#bakuspeech #ask #I tweeted a storm inbetween the written competencies (morning) and the speaking test (afternoon) lmao #but its on my wretched personal acc so it's for me. it's just for me #I dressed. and this is not me being unkind to myself. like a mister bean character to that test. like I got a woolen suit jacket on #with the dress shoes of mismatched laces. AND Ive been bald recently #honest to gods can Not tell how well I did in the written tests. like I finished all of them with at least ten minutes to spare #but it's because they kept putting a giant timer on the projector screen and it scared me so bad. delf trauma #the content of the test itself I straight up. dont know if its any good #the thing with me. that u can probably tell by idk looking at me and hearing me talk and stuff. is that I speak english but I am #VERY bad at tests #which makes any formalized english testing for me extremely fucking funny #and like it's supposed to be in the same structure as an ielts set of questions and apparently that means #they kept asking me to confirm or deny that the author of the text agrees with the statements they got in the questions #and I was sitting there like okay you made me read about weird phrenology shit and then you ask me this?? like are we asking #textual or contextual or. how deep into the rhetorics are we talking here. cause two of these three authors are certified weirdos #(yes the reading segment had three texts. one was about physiognomy and how there was definitely a grain of truth in there #one was about tea - this is the inconspicuous one - and the last one was about the potentials of toxinology #with a general vibe of pseudomedicine zeal to its writing. it's probs from a family magazine or something) #so straight up yeah I can defend my quiz answers to a judge but that does Not mean it's gonna be the one on the answer sheet yknow #kinda the same with the writing segment. where like they gave me an extremely easy to expand on subject and then a piece of paper #the length of a receipt. and that just. I could NOT parse the expectation of that setup #like I saw that and was like. so do you want me to do it badly? or do it so excellently I deliver all I think in like 100 words or less? #cause I'm capable of one of those things and the distinction is important here #and like. yes I know it's a language aptitude test. they're looking to know if I speak english #and I Have done something like this before multiple times just with a different language. but that was. idk I have never had a ladder here #I know I speak the language. YOU can probably tell I speak the language. would this test's result reflect that? I don't know! #it's a baffling experience. I'm still thinking about it the day after. tldr it's really not about the english for me it's about the testing #it's so. it's reflected so clear in the listening test where I missed an entire question (other than the one they gave us for free) bc #my brain just noped out of my body for three seconds and when I yanked it back the tape's already moved on

[amarrymeinbostonwriter]

Rules: Tag 10 people you want to get to know better

Tagged by @burningvelvet. Thank you for inviting me to the tag game! :)

Relationship Status: Currently single and I'm working on trying to build up my life so I can date.

Favorite Color: To wear is red though I also really like purple. I have more purple accessories but I wear most colors. I have many colorful outfits.

Song Stuck In My Head: Love by Lana Del Rey but there are others that can play on command in my head if I hear the title/the band.

ABBA, Meg & Dia, Emilie Autumn, Flyleaf, Avril Lavigne and Skillet are some artists that I have looping in my head often.

Last Song I Listened To: Cheater, Cheater by Joey and Rory (my spotify was on shuffle)

I like country probably more than people would expect but I am more of a pop/dance queen though. I have made Eurovision playlists in the past.

Three Favorite Foods: Pears, Potatoes (in many forms), and Greek salads or wraps. But I love most food in general. I'm not a super picky eater. I like to cook and make baked goods. I spend a lot of time in the kitchen.

Last Thing(s) I Googled: Pharmacy hours because I had to pick up more medication.

I also looked up an actor's age because my sister and I were trying to figure out how old he was (she was right or close- I thought he was younger- he's on one of my mom's shows). I'm usually the go to googler for my family, especially when they ask about actors or actresses in movies and tv shows we watch.

Links to my college's website, goodreads, storygraph, youtube and list challenges. I'm making more reading lists on list challenges (again).

Sorry it's nothing too interesting lately. My YouTube searches are probably more interesting but only marginally so. I'm not at school or working on any research projects currently so my searches are very basic right now.

Dream Trip: Japan. I'd like to go with close friends and/or family members though since it would be a big deal to go that far. I've been following a japan travel vlog by a woman who lives there. She shows all kinds of cafes and other fun places to go. You can watch/follow her vlog here: https://www.youtube.com/@its_time_to_travel

I'd love to be able to go to some of the places she's featured on her blog. It would be the trip of a lifetime! I'd be sure to try to learn some Japanese first too since I'm visiting their country and that seems polite to do. I know a few random words but can't read or write anything or even hold a conversation.

If I can't go to Japan, I'd love to go back to either Germany or England, but to the parts I didn't visit since there are tons of places in both those countries I've never been too. I really want to go to Haworth (The Bronte Sister's hometown), since I'm a Bronte fan and I've focused some of my grad studies on their works.

This is a tag post so I'm tagging:

@paperbackpropensity, @thatwritererinoriordan, @oh2e, @yeahwellshithappens, @autumnbell32, @writingf3, @windermerepoets13, @melusinah, @girlonedge and whoever else wants to do this! :)

#there's a lot of people I wanted to talk to on here to see if we'd be better friends but I usually don't want to bother people #feel free to answer if we're mutuals too #tags #tag game #recently (within the last six months) realized I'm probably a lesbian not bi so that happened still single AF though #still want to extend support to any and all of my bisexual friends since I believe in solidarity #being brutally honest not sure if I'd make anyone a good girlfriend yet since I have some personal stuff to sort out #BUT I was hoping to start dating before the end of the year- maybe in the summer or fall depending on how much I can do before then #red and purple #music #my music taste may be a little unexpected #pears #potatoes #greek salad #I'm sorry my searches are so boring lately #they're usually more literary and probably more interesting #lots of fact checking of various author's biographies and such #I meant what I said about Japan #but I might not be allowed to go there if my medicine is illegal there #I can't go to some countries because my medications for bipolar are illegal in some countries (though I'm switching medications soon) #the flight to Japan is almost a day from where I live too which is a lot but it would be worth it #so many of her travel videos are cool- there are so many cute cafes and fun little places to go in Japan that I saw on her vlog #if they don't allow my medicine I can't go but I know I'm allowed to travel to England so I'll just go back instead when I have money #I have so much saving up to do fr #I could talk about dream travel destinations forever tbh

[northern-passage]

Genuine thought as a fellow trans dude, I’ve seen a lot of (obviously non-serious) questions on other blogs about characters’ genitals such as “how does it look like?” and similar, and I think we all know & understand that such questions are extremely inappropriate to ask and (I hope) no one would actually go around asking these questions irl. Idk, I think we should treat trans characters just like cis ones, without any special “precautions”, so to normalise them and not make cis people treat them like fragile boxes, a thing which happens to a lot of us irl. Hope this doesn’t come off as an attack or anything lol.

no worries, i didn't take this as an attack at all. i actually agree with you, that's why i mentioned feeling conflicted about it and also mentioned that i've changed my stance on how i felt about handling Noel and Clementine in game and in explicit intimate scenes.

however, for me the problem comes from the fact that people... don't ask these kinds of questions about cis characters? i suppose people do get cheeky "who is the biggest 🤪" asks but i would hardly compare the two. to be a bit crude, no one is going to be asking if a cis character has a dick or not, or "what does it look like". of course it's natural for people to be curious, and i honestly encourage the open discussion and am happy to see trans bodies being talked about more in a positive way, but not everyone is going to be comfortable with it due to the inescapable transphobia online and in the community. sending me that kind of ask is like sending out an invitation for a debate or a discussion that i don't necessarily want to have. i also just don't think people should default to asking a random IF author on tumblr dot com to describe what bottom growth looks like.

and with most of these asks typically coming from someone who is anonymous, i have no way of truly knowing what the tone is, what their intentions are or why this is being asked - is it another trans person? or maybe someone who is just genuinely curious? or, more likely in my experience, is it someone who is going to immediately follow up this message with something transphobic after i answer? do i want to roll the dice and find out?

so while i agree with what you're saying, it's important to consider the context and the reality we live in. the IF community is not kind to trans people or trans characters. and as a trans person, my first priority is protecting myself and my mental health. so what i mean when i say "precautions," is that those precautions are for me, because i've had to deal with transphobic harassment here for years now, and i try to mitigate it as much as i can. it's also for my personal comfort - again, to be blunt, i'm simply just not comfortable discussing a trans character's genitals with anonymous strangers on the internet. it makes me feel vulnerable.

also i do want to say i didn't mean for any of that to come across as a dig at other authors - if you're comfortable answering those kinds of questions, that's really only something you can decide for yourself. like i said, this is just coming from my own experiences in IF and for my own personal comfort - i have previously talked a lot about trans stuff and gender and sexuality here, when i'm feeling up to it, but it is something that is very draining for me and can also be very upsetting.

basically: i do agree that it's important not to other trans characters or treat them any differently than cis characters, but i also think there are ways to do it that don't require me answering invasive questions or questions that i don't feel comfortable with as a real life trans person, you know what i mean?

#hopefully this better explains what i was trying to say #again no worries anon i've had this exact conversation before with other trans people #and it's something that i don't think has a perfect solution esp with the current... climate #and especially online with the anonymity it makes these topics really touchy. you don't know who is reading this or who is interacting #if it's sincere or in bad faith #things have changed a lot in the IF community for the better but it's still not safe and i always advocate for an author to protect #themself first #back when i started tnp it was not at all common for ppl to list characters as cis #really it was only nb or trans characters that got listed in that way #and it's why i chose not to do that and why i wanted the player to find out lea and merry was trans at the same time as the hunter #same with noel and clem and their privacy #giving them that agency was important to me #and it's still important to me now #but i got a lot of harassment because of that. the lea reveal didnt even end up in game it was on the blog and it was weeks of harassment #afterwards that still makes me anxious to this day whenever i talk about lea's transness #so basically like. it comes down to what someone is comfortable with and what they're mentally able to handle #edit: thinkin abt it more &im going to be honest if someone sent me an ask that said ‘what does it look like’ i would be very Not Happy #like cis people & cis characters do Not get treated that way so why would i allow it for my trans characters #so i stand by saying that these asks are inappropriate like. i obviously dont know the context of what ur referencing #but that’s a hard no from me personally either way #to me as a trans person that question in itself is othering and objectifying #ask #anonymous

[bubblesandpages]

I think we’re getting an honest to God friendship squad 

#who're all approximately the same age #and are all a little weird #and we're scarcely a third in! (don't judge me this book is taking me a while) #Little Thieves #Fizzy talks #Margaret Owen #Emeric's the fave btw #love him to bits and not to say he's not like other boys but he's definitely not like other ya boys unless I missed something #(which let's be honest is entirely possible) #yes yeah he's got the dark hair and snarky attitude but he's also just very underwhelming to a lot of people #hasn't been described as attractive (explicitly) once #the mc doesn't even get that moment of starstruckness upon first meeting him #which can I say how much I am loving that trend as of late? like I'm pretty sure Leander from Vespertine is handled similarly #back to Emeric #yes he's very smart but it feels like an integrated part of his character and role rather than a character stat the author added on in #order to make him more attractive #which IS VERY ATTRACTIVE #he's meticulous and finicky both in his work and appearance #we have some great backstory going on and the 'act' he's been playing into #and I'm just having a very good time with him #Ragna is lovely too as is the little fire elf living in Vanja's room #Giselle has been set up to be compelling as well can't wait to see how her and Vanja's relationship progresses #also THE ART YOU GUYS #THE. ART.

[amugoffandoms]

I'm gonna be completely honest when I heard people saying short stories for English class, I did not expdct a meta-like story about the main character realizing they were in a story and the main character's dream turning into a nightmare (their best friend died while they were miles away from home) to be my favorite stories yet here we are.

#mug talks #it was fucking insane that dream to nightmare one #the person could be a real author #i was legitimately tearing up #so anyways now i know how ILOLL!cathy feels #and that meta-story? #the main character went through all the emotions and honest to god it was so amazing

[i-will-physically-fight-you]

2023 Writing goals

Finish Gibbous (Estimating it’ll take about 8 chapters, but we’ll see lmao)

Next part of Heard No More / By the Pricking of My Thumbs

Sci Fi One-shot (like 40% completed, I swear this one will see the light of day)

Along Comes a Spider (40% Completed overall)

Mea Culpa Part 2 (??)

#kat talks #I'm going to be honest after these fics I think I'm bowing out as a fic author for sasi #(which I've said in the past so I mean dont hold me to it lmao) #for sure the Werewolf AU / BtPoMT I definitely plan to continue playing in those sand boxes #but I haven't actively engaged in sanders sides in a LONG time #and I want to focus on my creative pursuits elsewhere #but I'll still be hanging around! #I might migrate to a different blog on tumblr idk still deciding :)

[izzy-b-hands]

Cancelled the in person interview for today after discussing phone interview with Mum and Housemate last night (and the numerous red flags and cost of the lyft there and back for a job that ultimately the place wouldn't be able to convince me to take if offered, bc the general consensus was 'this is literally likely to be as bad as the current job BUT with the added cost of lyfts back and forth that they wouldn't be paying enough to offset, why on earth would you (me) take this job lmaooooo')

Which works out good bc the ongoing Mum trauma stuff is hitting hard as soon as I've woken and maybe I can get the Big Cry out today. Or write down any of the memories that have been playing on repeat in my mind

(with all this said, yes, I still asked and do legitimately care abt my mum's opinion and experience with jobs despite this; yes it feels weird; no I don't know how healthy that is or not lmao but I'm gonna lean towards Not Healthy bc im discovering that the work my previous doc did certainly uncovered this codependency and trauma which absolutely was a great help but like...we didn't actually really untangle any of it so I could try and untangle myself from my mum, even from 1600+ miles from one another. So. probably not healthy.)

#text post #Housemate was the far more helpful one of ae and mum tho and im very grateful ae took the time to talk over the interview with me #to help me figure out if doing the in person was worth it #mum did kind of help in that she pointed out several dakota eye like red flags from the employer that in retrospect yeah #were flying right in front of my face but i just. want to find better work so it's hard to ignore the red flags sometimes #until someone else goes uhhhhh hey maybe not this job no matter how desperate you feel #which is what it boiled down to more or less in discussion with both of them last night #it's just a weird thing of mum was still helpful and im glad i had a call with her but also it was low key triggering #and part of me wants to call her back and ask if she knows that she's a major part of why i struggle to say no to anyone #who feels even vaguely an authority figure over me no matter what my feelings are or if im being hurt #because id rather be obedient and pleasing than independent and honest (& possibly disappoint ppl with the latter) #but let's be real she wouldn't have an answer. it's beyond her to even think of this stuff #she'd be upset and offended and I'd be groveling like usual to try and make up for daring to question any part of our relationship #the same groveling i do on autopilot for any potential offense because it doesn't matter even if i asked & was given permission #im still always finding there's something i need to ask her forgiveness for anyway #but i love her and am incredibly grateful for her and how much she's given of herself to me as a single mum #idk im gonna shut up abt emotions for now and figure out what on earth im doing with myself today

[gins-potter]

https://twitter.com/halleyupton/status/1535677678552076288?s=21&t=gPafVFGNfuEn-NH0n2d-hg

This…. Someone found Kara’s FB and there’s proof that can’t be doctored.

Ok, I want to start off by saying thank you for sharing the link, but also following that up by saying stuff like this can absolutely be doctored, and have been before in fandoms crazier than the One Chicago twitter fandom. Especially online you should always be thinking about what is being posted, who is posting it, and what they stand to gain by posting it - that doesn't mean you have free rein to ignore/not believe anything you see online when it's convenient, just that you should look at things with a critical eye.

All of that being said, I do not believe this has been doctored, faked, or misrepresented in any way shape or form, and that's really disappointing. One or two things I could see as being taken out of context or misrepresented because I don't believe her meaning was absolutely clear but otherwise the posts put together a pretty compelling image that Kara isn't who we thought she was. I've looked at the FB account myself and the posts go back to before Kara was ever even on CF and are so detailed that I don't believe they can be fake.

Obviously I do not agree with the viewpoints she's expressed on her facebook, in fact I find them abhorrent, and I will not try to defend her for supporting those views. I don't really post about the actors individually or even support them on an individual basis, I tend to support the cast of the shows as a whole, but to clarify going forward any mention of Sylvie refers to Sylvie only as a character, and any love I express for the cast as a whole no longer includes Kara.

To the rest of the fandom I urge you all to take some time to read through the thread, look at the facebook account yourself, allow yourself to come to a decision about how you want to engage with the show going forward. The idea of death of the author/seperating a creator from their content is a personal and difficult one and only you can decide what's best for you.

Maybe after knowing this you decide in good faith that you won't be able to interact with the show positively anymore and that's fine. Maybe you won't blog about Sylvie/Brettsey specifically anymore. Maybe you won't contribute monetarily to Sylvie/the show anymore (in whatever way that looks like for you). Or maybe you condemn Kara's actions and viewpoints but decide that otherwise you won't change how you engage with the show because it brings other positive things to your life.

Whatever you decide is best for you is fine, and no one else can tell you what the best thing is. As someone who has been through this, it's fucking hard to find out that a creator you admire isn't who you thought they were and it can put a strain on how you interact with their work. So it's okay to sit with this for a little bit, do your own reading and reflecting, and come to a decision about how you feel. The only thing not okay in this whole situation is the viewpoints Kara has publicly supported because they are awful.

Be kind to yourself and each other while we move through this, babes x

#not what i was expecting this monday morning if i'm gonna be honest #if anyone wants to talk it through my inbox is open #you can probably tell by my url that i've been through the 'so the content creator you admire is actually a piece of shit' thing before #i also studied death of the author at uni as part of my pop culture course so i've thought about this a lot #one chicago #chicago fire #anti kara killmer #kara killmer #oc cast #one chicago cast #chicago fire cast

[delku]

another very popular trope in fic that doesn't track basically at all is deku talking back to authority in this sort of pointed manner, particularly to defend himself or a moral point. if it's for someone else he'll do it at the drop of a hat (e.g. to endeavor, which was framed as an exceptionally brave action... because it was, lol. that man could snap him in half) but he's not gonna talk back to, like, the cops. or aizawa. if you want someone to do that maybe try todoroki

#dku the kinda guy to defer to authority bc he thinks they know better if im honest #and defending oneself does get interpreted as talking back by some forms of authority. pretty sure nighteye got at him for it once