#you’ve hit my niche interest anon

[andromeddog]

the way your draw uniforms tickly my brain very nicely, they always look amazing! do you have a specific source for reference pictures or have you drawn them so often now you don't need them that much anymore? xoxox- struggling artist who can't find good refs

hehehehe anon i love talking about uniforms so this ask is a real treat… this may get long so it’s going under a cut

first of all thank u for noticing i do really try to make the uniforms as accurate as possible. i spend a long time trying to figure out what specific coat/gun/boot/helmet/whatever people are wearing and what its purpose is…. thats really just googling around and clicking on links until i find something. luckily for band of brothers/ww2 related stuff theres a lot of interest and you can often find ppl on forums from like 2003 discussing the minutiae of gear that will point you in the right direction. ww1 related stuff is a bit harder to come by but i bought a full illustrated book to help with that lol

as for straight up references- pinterest is one of my main resources!! there are lots of pics of the boys from bob if that’s what you are specifically looking for (some boards i like are here and here.) these can be hit or miss sometimes if you’re looking for ref of a very specific thing, because they don’t always capture the angle of that bag or clear shot of a belt that you need.

if that’s the case then i just… rewatch the show lol. i have it downloaded on my phone through the amazon prime app so if im drawing a scene or looking for very specific reference i will literally go frame by frame to get what i need. i cannot tell you how many times ive watched this series just looking for reference. so many. too many??? for this secret santa piece im doing i have watched the same 10 second scene so many times that i can see it when i close my eyes. the bad thing about that is you cannot take screenshots (fuck you amazon prime) and also, it’s rly easy to get sucked into the show and spend an hour just watching it bc it’s a damn good show. i think ive watched the breaking point like 20 times by now bc of this. this is insane idk if you want to do this but if you are looking for straight up accuracy then it’s not a bad option

also, and this is not specific to uniforms, if you draw something enough the pieces will start to stick in your head… this happened to me with 1917 and ww1 british kits lol. i drew them so much they just stuck. knowing what layers are under a jacket, where a belt sits and what’s attached to it, the specific shape of a helmet (fuck you stahlhelms fuck you m1s AND FUCK YOU BRODIE HELMETS) and shit like that just comes with drawing them a lot. and also watching how they fit and move on an actual person is why rewatching the show is good. researching stuff also helps but i know ppl don’t always want to spend hours doing that shit if you’re just looking for a basic reference. but i’m rly into uniforms so that is fun for me!!

i’m realizing this is a lot but…… i like uniforms! thats part of why i like military history shit. its fun to think about how all the gear interacts and moves with a person! how different each country’s uniforms are and how they carry everything they need on their backs and how they change over the years! i just think its neat!

#asks #anon #reference #this is insane. i’m insane. i love uniforms. #you’ve hit my niche interest anon #i’ve made ocs simply bc i like the uniforms and wanted an excuse to draw the uniform slot #*a lot #like my highlander ocs

[icyday]

6: any liar game fic 8 23 28 30

Hi anon! Thanks for asking!

Referring to this post:

6. What’s one fact about the universe of any liar game fic that you didn’t get a chance to mention in the fic itself?

Since most of my Liar Game fics are one-shots, I might just share some head-canons about Nao's father that sort of inform my characterization of him through my fics (where he shows up).

First, that his full name is Kanzaki Tadashi, for the reason that the kanji for his name would match up with the kanji for Nao's name to make the word 'Honesty'. Second, he's more aware of what's going on with Nao and the Liar Game than anyone might guess. Third, that he was a participant in the previous version of Liar Game. I think this could work even with the end of series reveal about the dealers identities for the simple fact that his health wouldn't allow him to participate. This would make a very interesting parallel between Nao and her father and Yokoya and his father, where both of them were brought up with the principles that their respective parent took from their previous expriences.

8. What song would make a great fic (to either write or read)?

"Velodrome" by Dessa would make a great IN fic. In fact, I've been tempted to use it as a basis for a fic for my wife's OC. But I'd love to see anyone's take on it.

23. What’s a trope, AU, or concept you’ve never written, but would like to?

There's a Liar Game/In Nomine fusion idea that idly pops up every now and again, where the Liar Game is basically an ideological battle between Novalis, the Archangel of Flowers and Malphas, the Demon Prince of Factions. Nao is a human (potential Soldier of Flowers) who Novalis is taking particular interest in, Akiyama is a very discordant Elohite of Destiny who was bound into his Vessel and the accompanying Role he ruined, Fukunaga is a Free Lilim who originally entered the game as an opportunity to get hooks on various players (or at least grab some cash), and Yokoya is a Soldier of the Game trying to gum up the works and ruin shit for everyone while skirting the agreed upon rule that most players have to be human.

The main things stopping me from writing it: 1) This is an incredibly niche concept, and I can't imagine that anyone from either fandom would show up for it. 2) I'm not sure what plot it would have that wouldn't be a 90% rehash of the original story with a few IN specific interludes.

28. Does anyone read your fics before you post them? If so, who?

My wife @muusudgoi reads a lot of my fic before I post. She serves as my beta reader for exchange fic, and she's read the first two drafts of Butterfly Jar, though I've kept the final draft to myself so there's still a chance for her to be surprised when I post.

30. Have you ever written something that was out of your comfort zone? If so, what was it, and how did it affect your approach to writing fic thereafter?

A lot of the stories I wrote for kink_bingo in 2011 definitely fell outside of my comfort zone, including a couple of kinks that I actually wasn't into on a personal level, but wanted to write just so I could complete my card. I think going through that exercise changed how I approached fic, in the sense of trying to explore concepts or angles that I find intellectually interesting rather than focusing in on what hits at a more iddy level.

#asks #fanfiction

[quidfree]

Out of all your AO3 works, which one do you like the best?

Is there any fic that you wish got more traction (considering you’ve written for a few niche fandoms)?

How are you so good at writing in English when it isn’t even your native language??????? Unbelievable. Pls leave some talent for the rest of us, it’s rude to hog it all

anon this is such a nice message thanks for giving me an opportunity to be incredibly self-indulgent in looking back at my own catalogue of works. also re: english im flattered & if it makes you feel any better english is probably my strongest writing language because ive spent all of university only working in english so it’s not that i’m actually even better in my first 2 lges yk

regarding which of my works i like best: that’s a really tough question!!! there’s quite some variety in the fics i write so it kind of depends on the day. currently my tsh one is probably somewhere up there, but otherwise without overthinking it i do have a massive soft spot for my rinharu piece because it’s been sitting in the back of my mind since i was like 14 and i’m glad i wrote it once my writing ability was not that of my 14 year old self, and i like a lot of its quirks- the outsider pov, my soulmate manifesto, the really heavy water symbolism throughout, etc. i also do love LMV because i love the characters and their interactions very much. and my two multi-chapter todobakus are always fun to read because they have actual long plots and also are so long that i always forget details until i reread them, plus i do love todobaku themselves. and then all my nicher stuff with like 5 hits for various dead or non-existent fandoms was obviously written purely for my own sake so of course i like them a fair deal. so i don’t know that i have any singular favorites, honestly!

i guess this does kind of overlap with your second question as to traction, because i do think some of my better works also happen to be works that have a very minor audience. the obvious recent example is my tsh fic, because it’s i think probably the best thing i’ve ever written, and that’s not necessarily because of some insane jump in quality or because my other writing is bad, but because it has a much more literary tone/feel & i think succeeds decently in imitating the tartt voice, both of which are things i enjoy reading. separately i do very much love the atmosphere and development of the story as well. beyond that, i think a lot of my nicher works are really good standalone vignettes of a certain vibe i wanted to capture- eg my the society fic is kind of meandering and very high school, and then obviously my faux monnayeurs fic is supremely obscure but also i think does a decent job with the themes of the novel while purposefully overturning its status quo wrt the characters since i’m explicitly rescuing them from the narrative they’re from. anyways i don’t want to harp on about my own writing unprompted but to answer your original question: yes, of course, but the engagement i do get on those pieces is especially appreciated and tends to be really in-depth and interesting feedback so i can’t complain at all.

is it gauche of me to ask you what your thoughts are on the same matters, since you thought to ask? like- do you have any favorites amongst the shakespeares lore? have you dipped your toes into my lesser known works? any obscure fandoms you’re in that you secretly hope i write a 30k oneshot for one day unprompted? feel free to answer or not- i’m chronically curious.

#qui parle #qui repond #anon #qui ecrit #pers #? #also i forgot to mention the AWAE fic that one also hit me in the feelings bc of nostalgia and my polyamory agenda

[captainkippen]

Hi Aaron, I read your writing tips tag & found it really helpful, but I was wondering if you had any other advice for me. I used to write original works years ago but I lost a lot of motivation & stopped. Recently I've thought about getting back into it, but this time trying to write fanfiction as well. I've never written fanfic before. How do you come up with ideas and, more importantly, share your writing & open yourself to critique from others (i've never shared my writing publicly before)?

Hi, Anon! First of all, thank you! I'd forgotten all about that tag. I'm glad it's been useful for you!

Loss of motivation is tough, and getting back into the swing of things can be difficult, but it's never impossible as long as the desire to write is there. Good on you for wanting to get back to it and I'm excited for you to delve into the world of fic writing!

Brainstorming ideas

Music

To answer your first question, there are a lot of ways I personally come up with ideas. First and foremost for me is music, I like to sit down with my headphones in and let my thoughts wander while I'm listening. A lot of inspiration can come from lyrics, or from the tones of songs, and sometimes even just letting yourself drift results in ideas popping into being. That's not for everybody, but it definitely works for me.

Imagery

Another is imagery. Try looking at Pinterest or on other social media for pictures that might give you a spark. I like looking at specific aesthetics I enjoy and building scenes in my head from there.

Prompts

On Tumblr, or even just googling, you can find a lot of writing prompts which might give you a start for ideas. Try looking at those, or even asking people you talk to for prompts, and use it as an exercise to see where you end up.

AUs & Borrowing Storylines

That might be a misleading subheading — I'd like to clarify I do not think you should commit plagiarism. What I do mean is, when it comes to fanfiction at least, a lot of stories are borrowed from books and films. Sometimes it's fun to write an AU based on a romcom or a fairytale, in a lot of fandoms you can find a 10 Things I Hate About You AU, and as long as you're using your imagination (not copying the OG source word for word) and clarifying that your story is loosely based on something else that's fine!

Many fics are set in AUs (alternate universes). You could try looking at types of AUs and seeing if any of them spark an idea for you. AUs are the best thing about fanfiction in my opinion. Ranging from Canon Divergence - set in the canon universe but taking a different course of events according to the writer - to Coffee Shop AUs, they give you a lot of scope and room to breathe. You can have fun with AUs, and the best part is that, even if someone else has already written a particular AU, fanfic readers are always hungry for more. I'd once again like to underline the importance of not plagiarising — stealing other's work is not cool. There's a line between taking inspiration and straight up copying.

Looking For What's Missing

I would have a think about the kind of fics you love to read, and ones that you haven't yet seen in the fandoms you want to write in. If there's a hole you think needs filling, especially if it's very niche and just for you, then go for it. Be the one to bring that story into being. It's a great feeling.

Research & Artefacts

I've found in the past that looking at specific objects or events can often inspire ideas. Say I had a tin of tea, or saw an old sign on the road pointing to Polperro, I might decide to look into the history of those objects and find myself several hours later up to my ears in research on the tea trade of the 1800s or Cornish smugglers. Researching things that catch your interest is a great way to develop new arenas, characters and narratives in which you want to tell your stories.

Have a look for news articles or interesting nonfiction books you have lying around and flick through them, they might contain that first spark of an idea and lead you down that research path for yourself.

Writer's Notebooks

Leading on from that, the next thing I would recommend for generating ideas is writing things down. Ideas will pop into your head more than you think and it's important to get them on paper (or in the notes app on your phone - mine is an absolute mess) because you never know when two ideas might link and turn into a full story.

Another way to use a writer's notebook is through observation. Go out and pay attention to your surroundings. Make notes on any people, places or events you come across which catch your interest. This way, if you're ever stuck, you have a bank of inspiration ready and waiting.

Sharing Your Writing

Offering up your work for others to read can be really nerve wracking. I'm doing my MA in Creative Writing and I still find it downright terrifying to share my work with my classmates, however critique and feedback are really useful tools for developing your writing skills.

I like to think of my fics as writing practice. When I publish them, the feedback I get is helpful in figuring out any chances I need to make to the story or to my style. The best thing about fic readers is they're generally very friendly and understanding. I find that focusing on that fact makes me feel a little more confident in posting. This confidence will help you develop your original works too, you'll be more open to sharing with others and getting feedback. It's especially interesting to share with other writers when developing ideas because sometimes you just need a different perspective to bounce your thoughts off.

Taking that first step and hitting publish is the most difficult part, but once you've done it once it gets less scary. My advice to you is just to write something that makes you happy, make sure it's edited to a readable standard (I am often guilty of giving up and pressing publish without giving it a second glance, sorry guys, you don't want to be me with this), and it's something you want to share. Having other people read your work and talk to you about it can be really fun, you've just got to dive in headfirst.

This answer for away from me a little. Anyway, thank you again for your kind words and I hope my advice is helpful! Enjoy your fic writing endeavours, wishing you the best.

#writing tips

[angrylizardjacket]

what is and isn’t allowed {Roger Taylor}

Anon asked: So a fic where the reader is the bartender in that one pub/whatever it was the band first sang together in. Reader has been enjoying Smile’s performances for a while now, mostly because of the handsome drummer. Reader thinks they’ve gone unnoticed but one night, Roger shows up at the bar with his band mates. Drinks are served and Reader doesn’t notice Rogers roaming eyes. He’s actually been eyeing her for a few weeks now. Go crazy!

A/N: 2253 words. I hope this fills the prompt nicely!!

This job, like every job, came with it’s own set of perks and detractors. Perks included; being paid to hear live music, you and your coworkers got along, and once your shift ended, the boss let you have a few drinks on the house. Detractors? Well not a night went by when you weren’t hit on in the hopes of free drinks, sometimes you had to call the cops because of a fight or a shady customer, and you never seemed to have weekends off. Even after you left work on Saturday you probably couldn’t get on the piss since it was frowned upon to turn up the next day to serve the barflies hungover.

But you knew what you were getting into, and the perks far out weighed the detractors.

“Who’ve we got playing tonight?” You asked, bag slung over your shoulder as you walked into the bar on a Friday afternoon.

“Couldn’t you have read the sign on the way in?” Cameron, your favourite person to be rostered on with for a uni-bar night, sighed deeply. Giving him a sharp smile, you make your way behind the bar and drop your bag in the back room.

“Yeah, but I’m inside now and that feels like an effort,” you tell him, taking the tea towel he offers you.

“Smile.” He informs you, and your whole face lights up reflectively.

“Oh, awesome!” You enthuse, and quickly start drying glasses with him. Cameron’s smile is slight, but your enthusiasm melts through his annoyed front. 

Of all the university-based bands to come through your little establishment, Don’t Forget To Smile was probably the least mediocre, and definitely your favourite. When they were first starting out they were a little shaky, of course, every band has to start somewhere, but over the months that followed, Brian, Roger, and Tim had found their musical footing, and were churning out some pretty solid songs. You always looked forward to hearing them play, wondering if they’d increased their repertoire, and of course you also looked forward to seeing the men themselves.

“Evening Rog,” you smiled fondly at the blonde drummer as he leaned against the bar as Brian and a couple of new members you don’t recognise are doing sound checks, “this isn’t your usual lineup.” You commented, already collecting glasses to pour drinks for the band.

“Tim’s up and buggered off to join Humpy Bong.” Roger sighed, watching the rest of his band with mild interest.

“Humpy Bong? What kind of name is that?” You can’t help but snort, and that’s enough to draw his attention to you where you’re pulling pints with efficiency.

“I know, right? And he says we’re not going anywhere? Yeah, alright, good luck with that, mate,” he rolled his eyes, sarcasm thick in his voice. He’s pretty when he’s irritated, slumped against the bartop, chin perched on his hand while the other taps a steady rhythm against the counter. 

His eyes follow the movements of your hands as you pour the band’s drinks, but it doesn’t seem like he’s really looking at you. It’s not an uncommon occurrence, he never seemed to really pay too much attention to you for all that the two of you got along; you poured drinks, and listened to his gripes, and watched him pick up girls, and that was essentially the extent of your interactions. It didn’t bother you, you only saw him once a month, maybe twice, and it seemed absolutely nonsensical to be put out by it.

The point is, you tried really hard not to dwell on it. Just keep your head down and do your job, don’t make it weird for the band. They brought in a good crowd and you were not going to be the reason they didn’t come back.

The new singer, Freddie, was a little choppy to begin with, but he had an unrivalled stage presence; he was too charismatic to let the band fester in obscurity like they had been. And the new bassist? John? He was nothing if not good at his job; more subdued than the rest, he still found his niche bopping away by his amp. Brian was always stellar, always radiating a sophisticated confidence whenever he played, always smiled brightly when he wasn’t focused and intense on his playing; Brian was consistent, and you appreciated that about him. 

You would probably appreciate Roger more if he was less consistent. Not to say that was a reflection on his playing, he’s a fantastic drummer, but he also was well aware of it, and was able to pick up like a pro. So yeah, you tried hard not to dwell on it, but it was difficult when it seemed like you were getting him ‘a pint and whatever the lady wants’ every time he played here, always with a different girl. But you just smiled, agreed, and tried not to let your little crush show.

You’re the bartender. A means to an end, to help him get laid. Sometimes that’s just the way the world works.

“How’s your night?” It comes as a surprise to see him at the bar when another band is playing. Freddie, Brian, and John are all milling about, you can see them at a table by the wall, but Roger’s giving you a smile that’s all teeth in the face of your shocked response.

“You know you’ll need to pay for your own drinks,” is the first thing that comes out of your mouth. Roger holds a hand to his chest, but his smile is still so warm.

“Is that how you greet all your customers?” He asks, but pulls a few notes from his back pocket and orders a round of drinks.

“Sorry, I just- I wasn’t expecting to see you- you guys,” you laughed a little, unthawing and getting their drinks, “guess I forget you exist even when you’re not performing.” That’s enough to get him to laugh, and you feel the tension in your shoulders ease.

“I didn’t realise you worked so often; do you you exist outside of this bar?”

“Not on weekends,” you counter with a smirk. You pause before handing him his drinks, glancing at the money he’d laid out of the counter, and you push it back towards him, “first one’s on me,” you tell him, “sorry for being a dick.”

He’s politely surprised, wearing a genuine smile as you hand over the drinks, and he thanks you kindly after stuffing the money back in his pocket. 

“Okay, new rule,” Cameron tells you the moment Roger’s out of earshot, “actually, two rules: Smile doesn’t get free drinks unless they’re playing, and you’re not allowed to serve Roger until you stop looking at him like a lovesick puppy.” He flicks you with his tea towel, and you flick him back, calling him an impolite term that earns you a startled look from the patron you’ve moved to serve, but you also don’t disagree. 

“I should tell him,” you sigh as you shake the woman’s margarita, pouting a little at the thought as you did so.

“You should tell him. You get all twitchy whenever he’s trying to pick up at your end; at least if he knows he might do it down my end instead.” Cameron’s mostly focused on making a gin and tonic, but he grins at your groan of despair. “Your crush is bad for business,” he continues, “no-one wants a twitchy bartender.”

“You’re heartless, you know that?” You inform Cameron, who just turns to you after his customer has paid, and blows a kiss.

Roger comes up a few more times for drinks, sometimes with one or all of the others, sometimes just by himself, but Cameron sticks to his rules and is always the one to serve him. To your surprise, Roger is there the longest, and remains solitary for most of the night. Sure, he talks to girls, but he seems to brush them off, and every so often you catch him watching you.

“Hey, is everything alright? Are you avoiding me?” He manages to catch you when you’re clearing away glasses and stop by his table. The band is packing up, the crowd is slowly dispersing; Cameron’s got a handle on the few patrons still at the bar.

“What?” You laugh a little nervously, he smiles but seems unconvinced.

“It’s just every time I come to the bar, even if you’re the only one free, you some are magically replaced by,” he hesitates for a moment, “the other one.”

“Cameron,” you supply easily, and Roger nods. “Oh, well he saw me give you free drinks earlier and, uh, didn’t want it happening again.” You shrugged, and it’s not a lie, persay, it’s just not the whole truth.

“Sorry, I mean I can-” and he’s fishing around in his pockets for his wallet but you waved him off. After a moment of silence, Roger swirls the last of his beer around in his glass and downs it in a single gulp, placing the cup into your waiting hand.

“You never did tell me how your night was,” he sits at the bar as you wash up the glasses. Cameron gives you a sharp look, but Roger catches it and says he’s not ordering anything, to placate the other bartender. It works enough that Cameron doesn’t come over immediately.

“My night’s good; always love a good bit of live music, you know?” You smile over your shoulder at him and Roger laughs.

“Yeah, when we can, me and the boys like to check out the competition.”

“I’m not sure you guys could consider tonight’s lot competition.”

“Is that a compliment?” He asks, tipping his head to the side and fixing you with an amused smile.

“Of course,” you respond without hesitation, “it’s always a treat to have Smile play.” You tell him earnestly, and again there’s that genuine smile of his. It caught you off guard, and you couldn’t help but return a fond smile of your own. You hear someone clearing their throat a few feet away, and when you turn, Cameron’s giving you a very pointed look. “Oh shove off,” you rolls your eyes, mood souring.

“Well we like playing here,” Roger’s words cut through the awkward moment like a hot knife through butter, and you’re so grateful, “good little pub, good staff, what’s not to like?” He sounds sincere when he says it, and your heart grows warm, proud of your establishment, “and actually, I never really noticed it before, but I like your uniforms, you both look very slick.” Roger adds, and Cameron gives you a look like his soul has left his body out of frustration.

“Y/N, go take a break, go outside, I’m begging you.” Cameron told you, and you pressed your lips together in a thin line, frowning.

“Dude, I’m washing up-”

“Now now, I don’t want you to get overworked and twitchy.” He hissed at you, and your whole expression wrinkled reflexively. Roger just looked on in confusion. You leave anyways, and surprisingly, Roger follows you.

Outside is warm, it’s Summer and the sky is clear; stars twinkle overhead as you sit in the carpark outside on a stool by the back of the bar.

“Everything alright?” He asks, kicking at the gravel idly.

“Cameron’s under the impression that-” but you cut yourself off, sighing deeply. Roger pulled a packet of cigarettes from his back pocket, lighting one up.

“Can I ask you something?” He looked a little contemplative, and walked to join you, offering his cigarette, though you declined; he leaned against the wall where you were standing, looking up at the sky, “you can tell me to fuck off at any time, believe me, many people do, but Brian told me it’s a bit of a shit thing to hit on a bartender while she’s working.” He mused, and your heart was suddenly thundering in your chest. “And I mean, when we’re both working? It does feel weird, I’m not gonna lie, so I don’t, you know, do it.”

“Well I’m not working now, I’m on my break,” you smiled a little, and he turns to look at you, eyebrows raised, “what did you wanna ask me?”

“I wanted to ask you to come home with me.”

A pause follows in which you can’t help but beam, though you still have one more thought plaguing your mind.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Seems hypocritical to say no,” he chuckled, and you couldn’t help but laugh at that, before it died down.

“Why tonight?”

“Finally had a night off, wanted to see if you were just as nice when you weren’t paying us.” Roger grinned, and you rolled your eyes, turning to look at him. “And you look really good tonight.” He admitted.

After a moment, he meets your gaze; you’re basically shoulder to shoulder and he’s so damn close. It doesn’t come as a surprise when he reaches over to take your face in his hands, kissing you gently. Without hesitation you kiss him back, leaning into it, deepening the kiss quickly, taking what you’ve been craving for so long. 

And maybe he just wants a one night stand, maybe it’s more than that, but you’d be remiss to not take this chance. He’s already got a hand moving down to your thigh, and you break away, a little breathless.

“I finish at one; do you wanna ask me that question?”

“Would you like to come home with me tonight?”

“Absolutely.”

#roger taylor #roger taylor imagine #roger taylor x reader #queen #borhap #bohemian rhapsody #bohemian rhapsody imagine #borhap imagine #don't forget to smile #the angry lizard writes

[not-poignant]

Hi Pia! I sometimes notice you reflecting on how well-received (or not) a new chapter of yours was and, as a fellow writer, I was wondering - How do you determine the success of a new chapter? Since Ao3 doesn't let you see how many people have viewed a new chapter, but only how many views your story has gotten as a whole, how do you usually gauge that? Keep up the amazing work, by the way!!

Hi anon!

Actually I don’t pay attention to hits at all, ever. That’s the least important metric to me, and I couldn’t tell you how many hits any of my fics have at any time, even as an average. It’s the easiest to falsely inflate, and it includes everyone who has ever hated or been bored by the fic, as well as bots, so it’s like...meaningless to me I guess.

As always, engagement is always subjective and personally negotiated when it comes to this stuff. I have a ‘general average of comments per chapter’ that changes on whether it’s fanfiction, the Fae Tales main story, and like, small oneshots and side things and AUs. Generally in terms of popularity:

1. Fanfiction - nearly always. Unless it’s for a niche fandom 2. Fae Tales main story3. side things and AUs (these are always the least popular)

For each, I sort of have my own internal metric of engagement that seems like ‘okay this is doing well’ or ‘shit this is doing poorly’ (which could be because of external factors - holidays, exams, etc. or story factors - the story is boring as shit or...it’s a sex scene).

And then on top of that, for me, I gauge it almost always on the number of comments received within the first 12 chapters. That’s the reason why you’ll almost always see me comment on whether a chapter was well-received when I do my reblog of the chapter announcement post on Tumblr (it’s pretty much only ever there, and only in the tags). Because that’s the 12 hour mark. If a side story gets 6 comments in 12 hours, I think of it as successful, and I’m really happy. If The Ice Plague gets 6 comments in 12 hours, and it’s not an explicit sex scene, I generally think I’ve done something wrong (or the US is having exams and I didn’t realise). On top of that, the tone of the comments can be really influential, but frankly, most people who take the time to comment on my stuff are amazing people.

There’s also another general rule where certain chapters I expect to get more comments (cliffhangers) and certain chapters I expect to get less (sex scenes, the last 3-5 chapters before the end of a serial, which is always saddening, but fairly normal and not something to generally be worried about even though I still worry about it).

I will also gauge interest/engagement on other factors: did the chapter inspire any Tumblr engagement? (This one has sadly dropped off a bit since the Tumblr Purge). And kudos I don’t often pay a huge amount of attention to after the first two chapters. I mean I always like notice it when I get the AO3 kudos digest, and I really like kudos, but tbh in a serial, most of the people who are enjoying it the most kudos’ed it during the first two-three chapters, and nothing will change much after that (unless it gets recced somewhere later, and that usually happens once it’s finished). 

I also really pay attention to my bookmarks-to-kudos ratio? Like, Stuck on the Puzzle is one of the most bookmarked things I’ve ever written in proportion to kudos, it’s incredible. On the other hand, The Ice Plague is one of the least bookmarked, this is partly because it’s a series, and people have probably bookmarked earlier stories, but...it’s just also really low on that metric.

Anyway! It’s like, a personal thing. Every AO3 author judges engagement differently. Some people actually do pay attention to hits (which is wild to me), some don’t give a shit about bookmarks, some care most about kudos, for me it’s comments. I suppose I care most about those because I enjoy those the most, and getting comments and responding to them is really motivational and inspiring to me as an author. 

And when you’ve been posting chapters almost every week for the past six years, you start to get a sense when something landed well, and when something didn’t?

In retrospect, I don’t even think some of those chapters are bad per se, they’re just sometimes not as interesting as other chapters, or they’re transitional etc. Or they’re a side story lmao.

#asks and answers #personal #pia on fanfiction #it is *very* personal #and like #even if a chapter lands badly and i'm a bit sad #i still cherish the comments i get #even if there's less of them #it's hard to explain #TIP suffered from like 7 chapters in a row #earlier this year #that just ALL performed badly #along with everything else #but things seem to have stabilised a bit? #i've met authors who like #write down the number of hits before they post a chapter #and then the number of hits after #but god no i couldn't do that #Anonymous

[thepoisonroom]

hey im thinkin about getting into standup, but im overwhelmed thinking about where to start, do you have any tips?

oh my god i do!!!! i wrote this whole thing and i'm coming back to this intro to say that it turns out i had a LOT to say so apologies for the length! and take this all with a HUGE grain of salt! i'm one person working in a very specific niche (LGBT comedy) in a weird granola-y city so my experiences are not universal. anyway:

i started as a complete beginner to like writing my own material and doing spoken performance (i was a band kid which is SO different) so if you have any experience in those areas you've already got a huge leg up anyway:

first and most obvious is take notes! i have a tiny joke notebook that i take everywhere and before that i kept notes on my phone. write down ideas you have during your day or before you fall asleep. it's an easy and organic way to acquire material without the pressure of sitting down and Being Funny On Command. having that repository of ideas in your back pocket will make it easier to sit down and prepare your set, and i find it always gives me inspiration for more material.

if you're really nervous, i'd recommend going to the open mic that you're looking at ahead of time so you can get a sense of what the crowd and vibe are like there. i do a really small lgbt open mic which is a really friendly low-pressure audience. if your town has something like that, or an open mic that advertises itself as a place for first timers, i'd recommend that. the crowd makes a HUGE difference and if you don't jive with the culture of the mic it's worth it to be picky! i really don't want you to go to some gross bro-fest and have a bad experience getting heckled by drunk randos. you deserve an audience that'll help you relax and enjoy your time onstage.

find out the standards and practices for your mic! mics have very different systems for deciding who gets to perform, but most of them involve arriving ahead of time to put your name on a list. find out when the list goes up and how it works. small mics will usually let everyone who signs up perform. big mics will sometimes choose people randomly. sometimes they'll give priority to first timers or out of towners or people the host knows. it's important to know this so you have some idea of how to get onstage, and how likely it is that you'll get a spot.

at most mics the organizer will have some way to let you know how much time you have. try to find out how they do this and how much time you'll have. all the ones i've done will show you a light when you have one minute left and then another when your time is up. try not to stress about this too much. it's usually no big deal if you're just trying out a little bit of material and wrap up early. it's also not a big deal if you're in the middle of something when you get the first light. just expect it and give yourself that remaining minute to wrap things up; you don't have to panic and cut yourself off.

it's very common for newbies to deliver their material too fast! you're nervous! we get it! but you can take pauses to think, or to let the crowd finish laughing, and that's totally great and fine! don't pressure yourself to get in every single joke you wrote down! if you pace yourself everything will land more cleanly and it'll help the audience follow your line of thought. pauses feel so scary and long when you're starting out, but i promise they're not bad and seem much shorter to the people watching than they do to you.

it's very normal to bring your joke notes onstage during an open mic, so don't sweat about memorizing all of your material. it's a place where people go to practice! on a similar note, don't worry if you forget things completely or skip something and have to add it in out of order. this is when those pauses come in handy! you can absolutely give yourself a second and then transition into a new topic. no one will mind (or notice tbh) if it's a little disjointed. again, you're practicing!

everyone has different systems for how they like to prepare and get feedback. one of my friends rehearses her sets in front of two different audiences and gets their feedback. i used to rehearse my sets in front of my ex for feedback but now i usually just make a voice recording of myself practicing that i can listen to or watch beforehand. if you can find an audience and feel comfortable letting them see a work in progress, practicing in front of someone you trust is a great way to workshop your material and get used to having an audience. even if you're practicing with a live audience, it can also be really helpful to record the whole thing so you can watch it back and have a clearer record of which parts landed and which ones need work. it can be hard to remember what you said and did, especially if you're nervous, so having that record of how it went is super helpful when you're making edits.

also this might be something that everyone in the world knows except for me a year ago, but it's very normal to try the same material repeatedly, even at the same mic. i didn't realize this and used to write an original 5-8 minutes every week but no one expects you to do that. you're there to practice and perfect material, not impress everyone with the volume of writing you do.

oh i also didn't know this but it's very acceptable to riff off of jokes that the host or comics who went before you have done in the mic. if you're into improvising this is a really easy way to cash in on the audience goodwill other people have generated. but if you're someone who prefers to memorize that's very cool too. it's not required, it's just a cheat i lean on if i'm not sure how i want to start.

this has been implicit in other stuff i've said but it's worth it to say it directly: do NOT worry if what comes out onstage is different from what you planned. it's hard to predict how you'll react to having an audience, and it's also super normal to cut or add in material depending on the vibe you're getting from the crowd.

don't worry about structuring your jokes or physical/verbal performance a certain way just because other people do it. lean into whatever makes you feel funniest and most confident! our idiosyncrasies are what make us funny! i make a lot of dumb hand gestures onstage and i laugh at my own jokes and do the same stupid voice whenever i'm speaking as someone else within a joke. that's my approach and it works for me! it's not how, like, john mulaney does it, but it's not my job to be john mulaney, it's my job to relax and express myself.

oh also like this should be obvious but remember that you're also there to be an audience member and learn from watching other people! try to be courteous and listen to everyone else! if you like people's performances and feel comfortable doing so it's nice to tell them that afterwards! standup is a solo performance but you can learn a lot from other people, and those relationships can be super helpful if you want advice or want to eventually get booked to perform for money.

sorry, i see now that some of these are really concrete and some are really esoteric. the practical tips are good as is, but i think what i'm mostly trying to say with the more esoteric stuff is this: the reason i love doing comedy with other women and LGBT people is that i think we all have such different and interesting senses of what it could look like to be funny. some people love puns and some people love impressions or storytelling or absurdism or whatever. pop culture can give us such a monolithic idea of what funny looks like but in reality it's a huge creative challenge to find new ways to be funny! try to focus on what inspires you and gives you ideas! it's about expressing yourself, so you are the ultimate arbiter of what that expression can look like.

oh also a disclaimer: especially for marginalized people, there can be a ton of pressure to use your personal experiences as joke fodder. if you're in an audience that doesn't share those identities, it can be really tempting to work overtime to make them comfortable with your perceived difference. be really mindful of your own boundaries so you don't end up feeling bled dry by something that's supposed to be fun and affirming! i do a lot of jokes about being a lesbian and being biracial, but for me it's important not to rely on homophobic or racist stereotypes to get laughs, because that's something that personally makes me uncomfortable. i talk about my mental illness a lot in standup, but there are parts i keep private even though they're funny, because they'd feel too vulnerable to share. make sure to ask yourself how you'll feel sharing your experiences with an audience.

also, a quick note for you or anyone else who's interested in standup even a little bit. PLEASE do not hesitate to hit me up, whether on anon or off anon or in the DMs, if you ever want advice or want to workshop joke ideas or need a test audience or ANYTHING. i've been unusually lucky in my experiences, and even i've been put off by other comedians' material and behavior, and the culture of the standup scene in my city. i've been really lucky that i met other LGBT comedians early on who wanted to support and mentor me, and it's really important to me to pay that forward to anyone who wants to try it out.

i'm really sorry that that was so long-winded, but i hope some of it helps! if you do end up trying standup, please message me and let me know how it goes! i'm rooting for you!!

#anonymous #ask and receive #charlotte isn't funny #long post

[spacemancharisma]

Ok so thank you so much for replying! I definitely don’t like being male, it feels sooo wrong. I definitely feel like I should have breasts or whatever but idk about anything else. Like I know that there’s a lot of identities out there. I don’t really know where I’d fit in. -R (1/?)

I feel like I should probably mention that I’m plural as well (at least I think so) and I just kinda stick out in my system, or whatever it’s called. I’m a tad afraid of judgment due to that, Bc while our body has already begun transitioning to female and stuff and while I enjoy some of that stuff I don’t know if I fully identify with that. It’s so frustrating Bc I feel like if I ever asked without anonymity I’d get made fun of or something. -R (2/3)

Sorry for flooding the asks but I’m gonna finish off with this: my gender identity is a fucking disaster and I really need help Bc idk wtf I’m doing but I’m scared to show my face so yeah. Uh I hope this makes sense and you don’t get mad or anything. Hope you have a goodnight and all. -R (3/3)

it’s alright friend! as I said before, I’m very glad you felt comfortable reaching out, anonymously or not. I’m afraid that, as someone with no personal experience with DID, I don’t really have any advice for managing that aspect of your experience and identity. however, I would say that as far as identifying labels are concerned, there’s definitely freedom in the broader terms, like “nonbinary” or “genderqueer”, because they don’t require you to be specific about your gender experience beyond saying “I don’t identify completely as a man or woman.” if not being able to put a word to your experiences is distressing for you, i’d say that would be a good place to start, and if you want to see if there are any more specific or niche labels that feel more like you, you’d have the space to explore that while already having a nonbinary identity to feel safe in. again, the words are really just a way to put a name to the way you’re feeling, so whatever feels best to you is what matters. similarly, there are no right or wrong sets of pronouns for any particular gender identity. if you’re more comfortable using the pronouns you’ve been using the longest, that’s perfectly fine. if you’d rather switch to a different set of gendered pronouns, that’s also fine. gender-neutral pronouns are great too. it’s all just about what feels best when you hear them applied to you, what feels the most like yourself. if you’d like some help just gaining exposure to some of the identities that are out there, I can definitely give you a little list or something like that, to get you started on thinking about that sort of thing. my best advice would be to go with your gut when you’re researching various gender identities, and whatever just feels right to you, trust that feeling.

if you’d like me to give my ideas of identities you might be interested in, drop me another anon, and i’ll hit you up 💜

#ask #anon #r #long post

[relenafanel]

Reading your fic about Bucky writing Steve fanfics makes me wanna start writing my own and actually posting them. I’m pretty nervous do you have any advice?

Just do it.

I know it doesn’t seem like great advice, the same as ‘just rip the bandaid off’ doesn’t always seem like great advice, because it ignores all the nervousness, the hard work, the actual writing and then the posting, but if you don’t just do it, then you’ll get up in your own head and never go through with it.

And that would be a shame.

RelenaFanel’s 101 on Fanfic Writing: ADVICE, not RULES

(keep in mind that my very first fic was posted in 2001 that’s how long it’s been since I started, so I’m going to base this on what I’ve learned in my advanced age. there’s also a tiny bit of these feelings when you start a new fandom)

1. Think of something to write. I love writing AUs, but usually the fandoms I end up writing AUs for are ones that need them. So, you can look at fandom and see what it is that you want to put into it, OR you can acknowledge the many-cake theory and just write what you WANT and love. So Bucky in the Steve Rogers Problem tended to scope out fandom for gaps, and I do that too, but it’s not the only way.

2. Sit down and write it. Maybe scrap it and start something new, maybe not. This step is extremely personal to what will turn out to be your writing habits, so I’m not touching it. It turns out individuals treat an activity like writing as personal, so if you want tips, there are a ton of writing guidelines out there, but don’t take any of them as YOU MUST do this.

3. Get someone to read it over for you to check for plot inconsistencies, typos, etc. I advocating getting a beta reader, but I know a lot of people have trouble with this step and I’m 0% help. So, if not, get someone you know irl to do it. I started with my BFF.

Also: remember that you’re the author and so you have final say over what your beta suggests. This isn’t me telling you to ignore all their help, this is me telling you that you know what your intention was. So if they say ‘no this doesn’t work’ but you think it’s important, consider that maybe they picked out clunky phrasing or something else that would hinder the reader. 

4. NOW YOU’RE READY TO POST YAY. (this is all assuming Ao3, and honestly gets a little tl;dr)

Pick a title. Look, picking a title sucks a lot. If you’ve noticed mine have started looking like clickbait articles, and I’m ok with that. A funny title fits my writing. Honestly, go ahead and use song lyrics or poetry lines, or maybe a reference to the fic. Life is short and you could spend half of it thinking up titles - JUST, don’t use something common. Like, if *I* can recognize it as a line from Hamilton or Mumford and Sons, maybe don’t use that one.  Ppl don’t pay that much attention to the title unless there’s no title there to pay attention to or if they’ve seen 8 fics in the last week with the same title. 

Your life will be happier when you don’t really give a shit WHAT the title is. It took me until like 2015 to reach that point, so... *shrug* Just make sure to call it something.

Write a summary. This also sucks a lot and I haven’t entirely mastered it, but DO NOT admit to anyone that your summary sucks. “summary sucks, just read”? dooonnnn’tttt. If I see that line I’m going to assume the writing in the fic also sucks. Most of the time the summaries aren’t that bad until you get to that line, so just own your summary, no matter how awful you feel it is.

Sometimes you can get away with a line / para from the fic. I try to reserve that for shorter fics that don’t need a lot in terms of summary.

You’re trying to convey what the story is about and make it interesting.  So, go look at some summaries for similar tropes and see what people are doing. Just read the summary, this isn’t the point you’re looking at reading the fics.  If there’s something you like, copy the style of it (but not word for word).

Also PROOFREAD. Summaries with typos are also something that tends to repel discerning readers.

Make the tags. So for tags you want to remember a few things. Only tag the main relationship in the fic as a courtesy. Then start broad and then narrow in on more specific. So start with whether it’s au or canon. Then the tropes in the main theme. Then some of the tropes that aren’t as important but are present. If you mention something once and it has no bearing on the fic as a whole, there’s no need to tag it. Also be aware of what possible triggers are involved, and conversely what things you might tag so people can find it. An example of this is with sex scenes and whether one of them bottoms. I want the people who love that to be able to find it. I am, as a person, a lot less concerned with people who might find that specific example triggering, but they do, so also be aware of that.

also, be aware of your tags as a whole message. If you write a 5k adorable coffeeshop au that has one line where someone inappropriately comes on to a character, don’t dedicate 5 tags to that line because it’s disproportionate to the contents of the fic. This, ofc, depends on the gravity of the thing, but you could honestly just explain the contents in an author’s note instead of using the tags to explain. If it’s a fluff fic, most of your tags should reflect that.

And honestly if you have a fluffy fic with some major grim or dark themes, then maybe it’s not a fluffy fic?

Also, once I’m done with that I sometimes add some funny or clever tags, but if you’re into the funny and clever tags, remember to make sure the important ones are included so Ao3′s tagging system can work to your advantage. 

FINALLY as a specific nitpick of mine that I think is also good advice, don’t admit it’s your first fic or your first fic in a while. It feels like you’re lessening your own culpability, like saying “this is my first fic be gentle” means you’re admitting it might suck so you hope people will be gracious, but in my experience what you’re doing is telling people “be slightly harsher judging this because it might suck” - whether they do it on purpose trying to be helpful or whether it’s subconsciously.  It does the opposite of what you mean for it to do.

So, in general, don’t show weakness. Fake it til you make it. The whole process is scary and sometimes it makes us feel better to say something like “oh god this sucks idek” (yes, including me) but it’s just a knee-jerk reaction to your own anxiety. Feel it in your brain, but resist the urge to put it in the post, because what readers see isn’t your ball of anxiety or ‘what if ppl don’t like this?’ panic, they see an author who doesn’t like their own work, and so why should they?  They see an author who says ‘this sucks’ and since they’re the authority of their own work, they believe it.

So don’t sabotage yourselves my dears.

5. Authors notes and Posting. You can put any details you don’t tag in the authors note. Usually, I also include a link to my tumblr in the end note because I want people to find me. Learn the html here.

Then, hit that post button.

6. Advertise yourself. You’re your biggest advocate. So make a tumblr post (if you have one and didn’t anon me because you don’t) and tag it with the common tumblr tags within the first 5 tags.  This isn’t as important, but it helps. If you do this, make sure to include the link to the tumblr post in your Ao3 notes. You want people who like it to pass it on.

7. Be kind to yourself. As a final point, I don’t know how to approach this without sounding like an egotistical dick, but don’t ever compare your fic to mine and allow my kudos/comments to make you feel bad. As I’ve mentioned, I’ve been writing fanfic since 2001, I adapted early on Ao3 and have had a ton of time to build up subscribers. I’ve been around for a long time, ok, and so you can absolutely strive for the popularity and put the work in for it, but don’t torture yourself over comparing your work to mine.

It’s not a fair comparison.

You know what is a fair comparison? Compare your second fic to your first. Did it do better with kudos/comments? Worse? What’s different between them? Maybe it’s a less popular trope, which you can’t control (unless you write for popularity, in which case make note of it). How can you improve? What do you want to try next?

Play the game against yourself. I promise you, the results are better and you feel a lot less bitter and downtrodden.  It’s ok to emulate other authors you admire as a way to work on your writing and find your niche. Don’t outright steal, but work on copying tone as a writing exercise. Keep in mind the fics that you love and ask yourself what you love about them. Tone? Characters? Dialogue? Description?

Hold the nice comments you get close to your heart. Did someone love your description of a certain scene? Love that you’re good at description and keep writing descriptions until you’re better at them. Until you’re the description master. 

Did someone leave you a not-so-nice comment about your characterization? Ok, first of all, it’s ok if your first thought is ‘screw you’ because yeah! you stand behind your fic! (maybe don’t answer back ‘screw you’ and if you have the ability to stomach it, instead ask if they mind being more specific in order to help you improve - I have never had that skill, I’m a sulker under negative feedback). But also, if you’re going to internalize their criticism anyway, then use it to your advantage and start paying a little more attention to that part when writing.

A lot of this stuff gets so intuitive that you probably won’t be consciously thinking about it.

Most importantly of all: have fun. 

#writing #writing 101 #fanfiction #sorry this is so long #Anonymous

[aroworlds]

Aro-Spec Artist Profile: Shell

Our next aro-spec creator is Shell, already known to the aro-spec community as @arosnowflake and the author of the awesome short story Seducing Trouble!

Shell is an autistic, ADHD, non-binary aro-ace person who writes short stories, original fiction, fanfiction and essays. You can find eir fanworks on AO3 under the username spitecentral, writing for the Voltron: Legendary Defender, Fullmetal Alchemist, DC Universe, Batman and Batgirl fandoms, and we’ll hope ey posts more pieces from eir original Coffeeshop Project!

With us Shell talks about how ey writes romance as an aro-ace, depicting relationships in fiction, the impact of amatonormativity on creativity and eir alienation from current aro-spec community conversations. Eir words bound with enthusiasm on authentic creativity and the growth of the aro-spec community, so please let’s give em all our love, encouragement, gratitude, kudos and follows for taking the time to explore what it is to be aromantic and creative.

Can you share with us your story in being aro-spec?

I never thought I was anything other than straight, although I did start noticing that I was different from other people when I was as young as twelve (for example, I remember being asked to pick the handsomest guy in a boy band, but to me, they all looked the same). However, I simply put this down to my autism, and since I was already desensitized to differences with peers, I pretty much ignored it. That is, until I repeatedly saw the word ‘asexual’ used online, and I began to wonder what it was, so I googled it. After reading the first paragraph on the Wikipedia page, I basically slammed my computer shut and did my very best to convince myself that no, I was overreacting, and also straight; after all, I was already autistic and ADHD, so any more diversity would be implausible.

Past me was so naive.

Anyway, I came to terms with being asexual at sixteen, and openly started identifying with it without adding ‘I think’ when I was seventeen. When I learned about the SAM, I initially dismissed the idea of being aro because I had a couple of crushes when I was a kid. However, after learning more about aromanticism and after some conversations with aromantic people, I decided to adopt the label since it really fit me. I mean, I was like nine when I had those crushes, and I don’t feel like they counted. I’m fairly sure now that I was just having them because it seemed like the Thing To Do, and, even then, all of my fantasies involved a more platonic ‘best friends forever but with shared pets’ lifestyle than a romantic thing. So while I may or may not have had crushes before, I don’t think I ever will again, and I don’t want to either, so I’ve adopted the aromantic label. I know it sounds weird, but oh well!

Can you share with us the story behind your creativity?

I don’t remember exactly why or when I began to write. I know it happened when I was around twelve, but that’s kind of it? It’s not really a spectacular story. As for how I began to create the things I do now, that’s slightly more interesting. Really, everything centers around one thing: spite. No one writes autistic characters, and no one writes stories with no romantic plotlines, so I guess I’ll have to do it myself! That’s my literal thought process behind my writing at any given moment, honestly. Even when I’m not writing about autism or other marginalized identities, I write obscure and sometimes absurdist fantasy with magic types or settings that I haven’t seen used before, because I find writing that fascinating, or because I’m annoyed that no one else has used that particular idea. I’m fairly sure that was the reason I began writing originally, too: I had stories I wanted to read, and no one was writing them, so I guess I’ll have to do it.

Are there any particular ways your aro-spec experience is expressed in your art?

Well, first and foremost, I never focus on romantic relationships. Even when they appear in the story, they are not the focus. I’m so sick and tired of reading romantic plotlines, and I am not planning on ever contributing to that trend, thank you very much. So platonic relationships, worldbuilding or character development are often central to the story, instead of romance.

Second, I have this habit of interpreting tropes differently than allos because of my aromanticism. Name soulmates, for example. I know they aren’t a very popular trope in the aro community, but I love them. However, I have a different definition of them than most: I’ve always interpreted a ‘soulmate’ as someone who changes your life (for better or for worse), not your ‘other half’ or whatever nonsense we’re on today. I didn’t even realize that wasn’t a widespread thing until I heard aros complain about soulmate tropes! Stuff like that happens on a fairly regular basis, so I think my aromanticism definitely affects how I write certain settings/tropes, too.

Third, if I do write romance, I feel like I do it in a different way than allo creators. First, I suck at it. Badly. I used to try and write it in the same way that I always heard about it, bold and dramatic and mushy, and my mom (my loyal proofreader when I was a kid), always looked at me awkwardly and was like, ‘No, that’s not how it’s done.’ Since I don’t experience it, I honest to god don’t get why people insist that it’s the best or most important feeling in the world. The way characters in fiction always put their friendships or anything else on hold when that person walks by just … baffles me. I can’t write romance that way. I just can’t.

Instead, I tend to write romance in a much quieter way. If two of my characters are in an established relationship (and it’s always established because I still can’t write ‘coming together’ stories for the life of me), they are casual and comfortable with each other. In any relationship I write, platonic or romantic, I find open communication and trust to be very important. I kind of give all my relationships that same base, and then I add little flavours that I think are unique to that type of relationship. For romance, this is soft love and PDA. PDA is usually quick kisses on the cheek, holding hands, etc. The love is the type of thing where they fondly smile whenever the other does anything, really. I think that more subtle way of writing romance works decently, although I have gotten a lot of people telling me that I often also write friendships as romance, which is weird because I don’t think I do? I add a louder sort of love to friends, generally, and when they do have a quiet moment, it’s usually more serious rather than fond, and I think that’s different. But maybe I do write friendships as romance but I haven’t noticed it? Or maybe it’s amatonormativity making people read it like that?

I don’t know. I have no clue what I’m doing. Save me.

What challenges do you face as an aro-spec artist?

I can only talk about what I face as a fanfic writer, as I don’t really post my original works because I lack the platform for them. (I sometimes post stuff when there are events going on over on larger blogs than lil’ old me, but that doesn’t happen consistently enough to really be talked about.)

As a fanfic writer, well. I’m sure you’ve all heard it before: no one reads gen fic. Although I tend to have a pretty high kudos-to-hits ratio, that means nothing if you get less than 100 hits. In my case especially, as I tend to write for niche audiences, usually picking unpopular characters or friendships to write for, or writing specifically about autistic experiences. Not having the added hook of romance really hurts me in my exposure. Almost always when a story becomes kind of popular (as in it has 40+ kudos), it’s because it’s been recommended by someone with a bigger platform than me, or when I write about popular characters.

(There’s other reasons my stories don’t get popular, of course, like not knowing how to self-advertise and the fact that I have the charisma of a rock, but that’s not what this section is about.)

How do you connect to the aro-spec and a-spec communities as an aro-spec person?

Not at all, honestly? I said before I talked to some aromantic people, but that was mostly by anon asks, and the few I did actually message, well, I remade my blog so now I don’t have any contact. On top of that, the aro community (to my knowledge) doesn’t really have a central tag? Like, the autistic community has the #actuallyautistic tag, but I think the closest we have is #safeforaro, which (to my understanding) is more a reaction to discourse than anything else.

Aside from that, the aro community is really small, and mostly focused on making younger aros accept their identity. While that’s great, as someone who already has accepted their identity, it distances me a bit. And the few blogs that don’t focus on this, while absolutely lovely, are always so … sad? A large part of the aro community is depressed and bitter, worrying about losing their friends, worrying about their future. While that’s absolutely valid, I’d already moved on from that when I was younger, when I accepted the fact that because I was autistic, I would have trouble connecting and staying connected to people. It’s disheartening, sure, but I’ve accepted it and moved past it, so seeing the aro community still hung up on it saddens me. I can’t really give advice because, well, their worries are legit and they just need to come to terms with it at their own pace, and I’m bad at comforting without advice, so I’m just kind of stuck listening to it. It drains me a lot, so I distance myself.

I feel like we, as a community, can do a lot to dismantle amatonormativity, but since we still haven’t figured out what it is exactly, and we’re still grieving over the way we’re impacted by it, we’re not getting anything done. I’m bad at connecting with communities when I don’t know how to contribute to them, so I don’t really interact with it. And outside of the internet, there seems to be no aro community at all (or at least I haven’t found it), so I feel very isolated.

Wow that got real dark real fast. Sorry for being such a downer, but I did feel like it needed to be said.

How do you connect to your creative community as an aro-spec person?

…speaking of being a downer.

It’s well known that fandom isn’t a safe space for aro/ace people. It’s a very ship-centric place, to the point where it’s almost impossible to escape romance, and I hate it. I’m here because I like expanding on stories and characters and playing with established narratives, not because I want to see two people kiss. Because my wants and needs are different from most of the fandom, I tend to be isolated and unpopular, and while that’s mostly fine with me (it creates less drama), I really wish I had people to talk to.

As for being an original writer, I’ve already mentioned that I don’t post my work because I don’t have a platform. Now, granted, it’s rather difficult to create a platform as a writer, especially if you’re not that social and don’t know how to market yourself (hi), but I feel like being aro also helps to distance me. Romance is a rather large hook to any work of fiction in the publishing industry, to the point where some publishers will demand a romance subplot in your book. I write obscure things that I myself enjoy, and as a result, my stories aren’t very marketable. I doubt that I’ll ever get published, simply because I’m, well, weird.

I totally understand the publisher’s perspective of not wanting to pick up books or stories that simply won’t sell (and experience has told me that my stories will indeed never be popular), but it still saddens me. I could probably learn to write more popular stories, but I don’t want to do that, since writing for me really is about expressing myself (though I’m not judging anyone who writes popular stuff for money; we all need to eat).

So, to summarize, I’m not marketable or interesting either as a writer or as a fandom member to either communities, which isolates me, which sucks, but it also enables me to really stop giving a shit. Sounds weird, but once I figured out that I’m not gonna get published or be popular, I really felt free to do whatever I want. Because ultimately the only person that really likes my writing is me, I’ll make myself happy first and foremost. While this sounds kind of depressing, it’s actually motivated me to keep writing, and it stops me from getting too depressed or anxious when a story I post only gets a dozen or so kudos/notes, so I think that’s a positive thing. Because ultimately, to me, the most important thing about writing isn’t the community, it’s having fun and creating something new, and as long as I can do that, I’ll be happy.

How can the aro-spec community best help you as a creative?

The obvious answer is read my stories and reblog/leave kudos/comment, which is also true for every other writer, but I feel like that’s ignoring the underlying reason romance-free stuff just doesn’t get popular. The reason my stuff is unpopular isn’t because of the aro community, but because of the alloro people being more numerous and not caring.

Instead, I’m going to say that I would be helped if the aro community started focusing more on what it means to be aro, expanding on the meaning of amatonormativity, and spreading the word to allo communities. Amatonormativity is something that hurts all of us, especially fellow LGBT+ members, and I think that once more people start to realize what it is and how it’s harmful, they would try to examine their own biases and help us dismantle it. That way, gen stories will get more popular in fandom spaces, and stories without a focus on romance will have more chance of thriving in the publishing industry. It’s not a foolproof plan, and maybe I’m just too optimistic about my fellow humans, but it’s worth a shot and better than doing nothing.

Can you share with us something about your current project?

I have several current projects! My ADHD always makes me bounce dozens of ideas around in my head and start even more works, but very few of them ever get finished. However! One story I’m fairly sure I’m getting finished is an original piece about a universe in which everyone needs to buy a heart on a necklace in order to feel love. It’s an old story that I’m reworking to contain less aromisia, since I was still rather ignorant when I wrote the first draft, but I think it has a lot of potential to examine love in its entirety, and I’m super excited about it!

The only thing I don’t like about it is the incredibly melodramatic writing style I’m using; unfortunately, my writing always seems to be needlessly dramatic and I cry every time I read it because I just hate it so much. Since this is a fairly serious piece, it’s even worse than usual. I’m toying with the idea of starting a humorous and light piece to offset it, probably about an aromantic witch and her familiar who con people into buying fake love potions.

And of course, my Coffeeshop Project is always ongoing!

The Coffeeshop Project is a project I started when I badly needed to de-stress. It’s been my go-to comfort project ever since, meaning that I try not to put pressure on myself over the quality of it, and that I don’t do any research specifically for the project (although I often incorporate research that I did for other things).

The Coffeeshop Project is a series of stand-alone short stories in the same universe centred around the shenanigans of the crew of Café Nowhere, a café with a supernatural clientele. (I’m afraid I have a soft spot for supernatural shops.)

The story I wrote for the aro prompt on this blog was actually part of it! It was set a couple of years prior to the current ‘canon’, and introduces Ethan, who is now 22 and is infamous for taking down an intergalactic smuggling ring. There are more crew members, but listing them would take forever, so if anyone is interested, feel free to just ask!

Have you any forthcoming works we should look forward to? 

I have several ideas about forthcoming works that may or may not get written, including the above, a role reversal AU for Fullmetal Alchemist (for which I have to research a lot about blindness, and since I hate research but don’t want to compromise on an accurate betrayal of disability, that might never get finished – I’m sorry y’all, but I’m doing this for free and only have so many spoons), an in-progress work for Batman about magic that I just cannot seem to pace correctly, a fic with a respectful portrayal of an autistic Black Manta as a passive-aggressive middle finger to DC comics, an analysis of FMA and/or Harry Potter from an aromantic perspective, etc. But with my ADHD and my gazillion ideas it’s always a 50/50 chance that something actually gets finished, so I don’t like to promise anything.

#aro spec artist profiles #shell #arodumbass #text #ao3 #link #fiction #original fiction #short fiction #original fiction and prose #fanfiction #fanwork prose and poetry #original poetry and prose #long post #very long post #aroace #aromantic #support our aro spec creatives if you can #the arospec writers discussing their creativity tag #creativity discussion posts #creativity sharing posts #amatonormativity #amatonormativity in creativity #extremely long post

[foliealou]

hey rachel! was just wondering what you thought were the best lirry fics to come out this year

ooh anon thank u so much for asking, under the cut are

rachel’s top 20 lirry fics of 2017 (in no particular order) (w/ my commentary)

two years by angularnotions

heed the warnings on this pls! it deals w/ heavy stuff but it’s also so good and me and @lirryonce​ stayed up until 2am for like 3 weeks straight waiting for chapters to be posted lmao. love it

future starts slow by abovetheserpentine

sooo good, and consider this a blanket recommendation for this entire series of fics. in 2018 i want more drummer!liam please and thank you

running on nothing but hope by onewasturning

the first of probably several werewolf aus to show up on this list, but i love the world-building in this one and the idea of a commune of werewolves living in the woods and loving each other. amazing

fishing in the dark by countthestars

mermaid fic! liam’s a janitor! harry’s obsessed with him! it’s so good!!! everything i want!

wild card (nobody, nobody) by dramaturgicallycorrect

omg. i reread this maybe a week ago and loved it just as much as i did the first time. their dynamic is sooo good in this and bonus points for the fact that wimbledon the movie is one of my fave rom-coms. 

fool’s gold by anonymous

fake dating au! my fave!! also american college au but harry is still british, which is lovely, and their whole relationship/dynamic is so cute. 

all i wanted was you by justyrae

written by my love justine and is so amazing. girl!liam and boy!harry in a begin again au, like what more could u want?? they’re cute together but tbh liam’s path to self-discovery is probs my fave part of this fic

see my shapes (shift them) by abovetheserpentine

wow, wowww if u haven’t read this fic what are u doing. beautiful beautiful backpacking in south america au, p much what should have happened during wwa tour lmao. also reread this a couple weeks ago and loved it again

when the wolves come out by countthestars

currently rereading this, still love it. hits all my niche interests by being a friday night lights au and a werewolf au, truly beautiful :’)

you make loving fun by softlylirry

by the lovely isbah! and like the sweetest fluffiest kidfic you’ll ever read, i love it so very much

the stars look very different today by colourexplosion

locked unless u have an ao3 account, but i love this fic, it’s like the perfect little world and also probably telling the truth abt harry being an alien lol

wait for me, i’m ready now by dramaturgicallycorrect

i love kidfic soooo much and this one is so good! tbh i want like a 50k fic with harry and liam and jules but this little snippet is enough to hold me over since i reread it all the time lol

it hurts my hands to hold the rope by salem (guccisuit)

oh angst angst angst, but still so good. the flashbacks are amazing and tbh i go back and reread the end of this fic like over and over i love it so much

there is nowhere for you to hide, the hunter’s moon is shining by justyrae

justine rly delivered for me on the lirry fic this year ngl. this is (another) werewolf au but it’s also a harry potter au so i’m doubly weak. so so good

(i want us to gerund, essentially) by softly (alexenglish)

this is the most recently published fic on this list but i love it so much, the amount of worldbuilding done in such a short wordcount is honestly amazing and i want approximately 100000 words more of it

obedience training by coffinofachimera

listen this is basically pwp so don’t read if you don’t want to read sex but like, the characterizations of liam and harry in this are so on point it’s amazing. it’s like delightful married bickering and then rly hot sex so everything u could want from a lirry fic

closer than you’ve been by harryismymuse

harry is a siren!!! the mythology is rly good in this and their relationship is so sweet, loves it

don’t have to wait for a miracle by anonymous

ok more than any other trope i love amnesia fic, so this is amazing with the added benefit of having established relationship lirry before liam loses his memory. i love it!

us while they stare upon by kingdra (aroceu)

an 80k fake dating famous/nonfamous au, legit when this was posted i was so hype and it’s so good. i just love all the tropes involved in fake dating aus, and this fic hits all the right spots

and you linger like a haunting refrain by onewasturning

another fic i would love to just live inside the worldbuilding is so good. has such a sweet yet melancholic tone to it and such a hopeful ending, it’s amazing

and those are my fave fics from 2017!! here’s to more lirry fic in 2018 :)

#pls @god more lirry fic in 2018 lmao #rachel speaks #fic rec #Anonymous

[officialmaleclibrary]

This month we’re showcasing an author in the fandom who has written popular works such as Fall Without Wings and Celebrity!Magnus AU. Lu is on ao3 as vulturemonem and on tumblr as @notcrypticbutcoy, and we’d like to thank her once again for taking part in the OML author showcase! 

1) When did you start writing fics? Tell us a little of your journey as a fic writer.

WELL. The first fandom I was ever a part of was the HP fandom, a solid 7+ years ago now, and I found my feet in this tiny little niche part of it in the most obscure place. That was where I began, where I learnt about what fanfiction was, and it was honestly a journey from there. I’ve been part of some very questionable fandoms and writing communities (if you want the details you’ll have to hit me up lol). I found the TMI fandom in maybe 2012? It was right before the CoB film came out, and I’d been totally obsessed with the books, because there were actual LGBT+ characters??? Like what?? (Alec and Magnus were the first gay/bi characters I’d ever seen in a YA book. I was enamoured immediately. Forgive me.) And then the show came out, and was everything I’d hoped for and so much more, and the rest is history, as they say! 

2) What fic of yours are you most proud of and why?

The obvious answer here is to say Fall Without Wings, which has been more successful than I could ever have hoped for. I’ve put my heart and soul into that fic, and seeing other people loving it honestly means the world to me. The other fic I’d say I’m really proud of is the fic I wrote for Malec Week 2016, Day 3: AU Settings Day. You know when you sit down and write, and everything just spurts out and you read over it and you’re like, damn, did I actually write this?  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ That fic in a nutshell. I don’t know where it came from.

3) Who is your favorite character to write and why? Which character do you find the most challenging to write? 

Magnus and Alec are definitely my favourite characters to write, but for entirely conflicting reasons. Alec, because I relate to Alec on pretty much every level, and so I find him very easy to write, and it comes naturally, most of the time. And Magnus because he’s also, to answer the second part of the question, such a challenging character to get right. He’s centuries old, there are a million facets to his character, and there are so many things to consider when writing him. He’s experienced more than I could possibly imagine. He’s also in my top 5 favourite characters in anything, ever, so I’m especially driven to do him justice! 

Having said that, though, I think the hardest characters to write are those we’ve got less source material for, because I’m never totally sure whether I’ve got their characterisation right. Also, Clary, because she frequently frustrates me in canon, so I often find myself writing her a little differently in my fics. (Admittedly, she’s annoyed me less as the show has gone on. I have high hopes for season 3!)

4) What is the hardest part about being a fic author? The easiest?

Honestly, I think there are lots of hard things about being a fic author. One of the hardest things imo isn’t unique to fic writing, but is probably true of writing in general. When you put everything into writing something that you care about, it can be really hard to see it get torn down by hate comments - even just a couple. Consciously, you know that people who come into your inbox on anon spouting bullshit are just cowards, and that you shouldn’t take their words to heart, but sometimes people manage to hit you where it hurts. Some hate comments are just plain hilarious, but some of them can run around in your mind for a while.

The other hard thing is staring at your WIP wondering why the hell you can’t just write this damn thing already.

The easiest thing is definitely generating ideas! I get far too many to ever write! It’s hard to finish a fic, and it’s hard to stick to an update schedule, but it’s much too easy to come up with the ideas! 

5) What inspires you? Where do you find your muse?

Literally everything and anything. Songs are often a big inspiration to me, or random little things I see on TV, or chatting to other people in fandoms about headcanons or such. And even just life anecdotes. 

I’m a bit of a biology nerd, so I always think it’s really interesting to read about where creativity actually comes from. There’s science behind why I always get my best ideas in the shower or walking to the tube station on my morning commute – Google “brain idling” and have a read, if you’re interested! 

6) Do you write original content as well as fic? 

Absolutely! I haven’t shared any of it online, but I do, yes. Recently, I’ve had my free time slashed in half, so I’ve had to prioritise a little, but I do still write original things when I get the opportunity. At some point, when the time feels right and I’m satisfied with what I’ve written, I’d love to get something published, but I’m not in a hurry at the moment. My life needs to settle down a little bit first, but watch this space ;)

7) Do you have a favorite fic from another author?

Several!

- and my heart is set on you by ohprongs is definitely a tick-all-the-boxes fic for me, and is impossibly sweet with just the right amount of light angst dotted in - Traveler by bumblebeeskness is absolutely heartbreaking and hilarious in places and overall so beautiful it’ll make you cry - Set Me In Motion by lemonoclefox is another great one, with a perfect mix of angst and fluff, as well as some great tension, pining, and some brilliant cooking anecdotes - Also anything by Lecrit – yes please!!

8) What’s something you’re looking forward to in the upcoming season of Shadowhunters?

We’ve had hints that we might get to see some domestic malec, so that, of course! I’m also totally here for the Garrobane development we got last season, so more of that would be wonderful. And Sizzy?? If this Simon/Izzy slow burn is going to continue, sign me up. I think Em and Alberto are doing a great job with their relationship! (Although I am surprisingly conflicted, because I’ve enjoyed Simon/Maia more than I expected to, considering I was fairly apathetic to their relationship pre-show…)

9) Can you give us a sneak peek to what you’re writing next? Or at least any hints to what’s to come?

I’m currently continuing Fall Without Wings as my main project, and I go back to dabble in my celeb!Magnus&cop!Alec AU now and then. Once I’ve finished FWW, I’ve got a super-secret (I’m kidding) multi-chap WIP that I started and have abandoned, so I’m hoping to finish that. I’ve also got two multi-chap AUs planned as full-time projects to start after FWW is done. (See, ideas?? Too many!!)

10) Do you have advice for anyone who might be interested in writing fan fiction?

Honestly, just go for it. If you want to start writing in the hope of someday getting published, fanfic is a great place to start. If you want to write fanfic just because, then there’s nothing stopping you! There are two things I always recommend to people who want to write, in any way, and that’s 1) read as much and as widely as you possibly can, and 2) practise until your fingers fall off! (Not literally, but you know what I mean!)

11) Do you prefer to write in AU verse or canon verse? Why?

I’ve got to be honest, I prefer AU verses, both writing and reading. There’s much more freedom in an AU. You don’t get people in the comments picking apart little details you’ve changed, and you don’t have stupid plot lines/silly world rules you didn’t like in canon that you’re supposed to take note of. I find there’s more fun to be had in a good AU. Even if you’re just tweaking things a little bit here and there to change the backstory, I prefer it to writing in strict canon.

#author showcase #notcrypticbutcoy #malec #shadowhunters

[idiopathicsmile]

How do you get people to read your fabrics? I've written a few and I get no response. I would assume it's just that my writing sucks, but the stats show I've gotten almost no hits. Any advice?

man, this is a hard question for me to answer, anon, and i’m gonna open by apologizing because i don’t totally know how helpful any of this is gonna be to you.

first, the honest truth is that i don’t entirely know why people read my fics (i assume you meant “fics” and not “fabrics” bc this feels like a classic autocorrect situation and we’ve all been there)

second, i don’t think it’s helpful to automatically equate little response with low quality. i think it’s more helpful to conceptualize hits/likes/kudos as the equivalent of, say, box office earnings for movies. there are some brilliant indie films out there that will never get the same numbers as, like, bee movie 2, because they operate in some very specific niche that the average movie-goer might not be looking for. rarepair fics are a good example of this, i think. there are probably some incredible rarepair fics i will never get around to reading because i’m too busy shipping the super popular thing.

(i do think that part of the reason why my stuff gets read is because i tend to have common tastes. i don’t mean this as an insult to people who like my writing, and i don’t do this in a calculating way; i like what i like. but the stuff that interests me--happy endings, friends who give each other shit but clearly would die for each other, really ridiculous amounts of oblivious mutual pining--tend to be things that interest most people in a fandom.)

third, when we talk about the size of a response to a fic, i think there’s an element of chance, re: which fandoms you’re in and when you’re writing. this is another part of why i don’t really think that kudos/hits are a good measure of success. pretty sure the most-read thing i’ve ever written was a tiny, fluffy captain america: winter soldier fic i wrote in an afternoon but happened to post only a week or two after the movie came out. at the time, there wasn’t that much ca:ws out there, so it was probably easier to get noticed. 

that said, i strenuously don’t recommend reworking your fic to be more “box office friendly” or trying to play the stock market game of searching out hot new fandoms to get in on the ground floor. at the end of the day, we’re all doing this for free, and so you’ve got to write whatever brings you joy to write. 

it is super frustrating to write in a vacuum, though.

i will say this, in terms of actual, potentially useful advice:

1. do you have a beta? find someone who likes the same characters and the same dynamics, and listen to their feedback. this will make the writing process less lonely, which might let you take some of the pressure off yourself when it comes to your fic’s wider reception. (the added bonus is that this will also make your writing better. it certainly helps me.)

2. writing for holiday exchanges, etc, can also be helpful, because then you know you’ve got a highly invested audience of at least one. i think people are also more generally willing to read someone they’ve never read before if it’s from someone participating in the same exchange. (the first fic i ever published was for a holiday exchange, although this wasn’t any conscious strategy on my part, just complete lack of impulse control.)

3. i would say one thing that can be useful is to pay attention to your titles and your summaries. sometimes i come across a fic summary that ends with like “man idk this might kinda suck but whatever lol” and it always bums me out. you gotta own what you write. you’ve spent time on it, you love the characters or you wouldn’t have written it, so give it the care to come up with a nice title and a good description. 

we all doubt our stuff sometimes (god knows i do), but i’d say it’s better to save any self-deprecation for the afterword, once people have already read the whole thing and formed their opinions.

still, like an adult counseling a shy teenager to “just be yourself”, i feel the need to circle back once more to the least-helpful but honestly most important advice i’ve got, which is: you’ve got to write for yourself. write the characters you like, write the tropes you like, polish your style, and keep working it at until you can create something you enjoy. then even if nobody else looks at it, at least you’ve got a fic that you personally can be proud of. (insufferable to hear, i know.) 

hope some part of that helps!

#i really am not qualified to advise anyone on this though #i wrote the first like half of world ain't ready convinced the fandom would HATE it #'a HIGH SCHOOL FAKE DATING AU??? HAVE SOME RESPECT' was how i pictured the response #so please understand that i don't actually know what i'm doing #i just woke up one day and decided to make my writing AS SELF-INDULGENT AS POSSIBLE #Anonymous

[lickoutyourbrains]

idk how to describe your "art trademark" well, but I feel like your art is very... sharp, if that makes any sense? obv. not in a bad way, of course. it's also cartoony, but in a unique kind of way; it's not like a lot of the other cartoon styles ive seen, which makes it interesting.

Oh my gosh that is AMAZING!!

Anon you’ve hit it on the head. I said in the tags the last time I reblogged that post I had two different people tell me the same thing? THAT WAS THE THING!

Both people said everything was very sharp or angular, even with a range of different body types. This is fantastic, aaah

The unique cartoony-ness hasn’t been brought up before though. I’m really glad to hear it’s not like other things you’ve seen, it means I’ve found my niche and it’s a good place to be in!

Thank you, anon!

#brains answers asks #Anonymous

[rafas-left-eyebrow]

What would be your top 5/10 tips for someone that’s moving from a Florida like area to NYC? I’m scared but also so excited!!!!

Oooh hey anon, thanks for asking! Don’t worry, scared and excited is normal - it’s a big change!

It was actually quite fun to write these out, but there’s a bunch and it was getting too long so putting everything under a read more. 😊

1. It’s expensive here!

But you probably already knew that. So my advice is to have a plan. Don’t move to NYC unless you have two of these three things: a) a steady job or a sure job lined up, b) a bunch of money saved or c) good friends/family to crash with for a while.

Think about things like, if you come to NYC looking for a job, can you live off of your savings for a month? What about two or three months? Having a little nest egg set aside is so important, so if you’re moving to NYC in the future start saving now!

2. Apartment hunting is a nightmare.

Everything you’ve heard about NYC apartment hunting is true - and worse! Be honest about your budget and make peace with the fact that you’re going to be paying out the ass for a small space. Forget about living in a cute studio in Manhattan (those start at like $1700+ a month) - you’ll probably be in Brooklyn with roommates (much more affordable!).

Some places to look for apartments: Streeteasy (pretty much the No.1 apartment site for NYC - but you won’t find rooms on here), Craigslist (sounds shady but it’s how I found my current apartment! You just have to be very diligent about reading through listings to make sure it’s not a scam) - for apartments, and for rooms. Closed Facebook groups are also great for finding a place, especially in Manhattan and Brooklyn: Gypsy Housing, Gypsy Housing (Brooklyn), New York City Housing, and Not Gypsy are some of the biggest ones - just request to join to view the listings.

Also, this page has invaluable info on how to get started renting in NYC, what “no-fee” apartments are, whether or not the room you’re looking at is legally even a bedroom, etc. Tbh I wish I had known about this when I was doing my own apartment hunt.

3. Meet people!!

The city can get very big and lonely, especially if you’ve just moved here. I don’t know your situation - if you’re moving here for college then you won’t have a problem meeting people, but as an adult it can be tough to do so.

One thing I did that I recommend was join Meetup. Since there’s like 9 million people living here, you’ll definitely find people who share your hobbies or niche interests, and there’s probably a meetup for you. Want to join a feminist book club? It’s there. Want people to do yoga with at the park on weekday afternoons? It’s there. Want to cheer for the greatest soccer team in the world at a pub cramped with a hundred other Real Madrid fans? It’s there. In fact, I’ve met some of my dearest NYC friends on Meetup. Also, joining professional groups for your profession and going to those mixers/networking events can’t hurt.

If you have roommates, you can also “use” them to build your network too! Because that’s already two more people you know in the city - now you have people you can go party with, people who can go with you to pick up a thing you bought on Craigslist, people to try new restaurants with, etc. And they can introduce you to more people. (I’ve quite enjoyed having roommates so far for this very reason!)

Also, reconnect with some old acquaintances - you’ll be surprised how many people have ended up in NYC. Make a Facebook post about it and you’ll have at least like 5 brunches lined up when you move here.

4. Learn to do things alone.

While you’re working hard meeting people, you’ll often find yourself on your own anyways, especially when you’re new to the city. And of course, it’s when you’re new that you’ll want to do sightseeing, or visit museums, or go to concerts or whatever - and then you’ll get bummed out thinking “man, I wish I had someone to do this stuff with”.

You can think that, but don’t let that stop you from going and doing it anyway! There’s so much going on in the city, if you wait for people to do it with it’s all going to pass you by. Buy a selfie stick and go check out that Instagram popup. Go to that concert, visit that museum. You’ll be glad you didn’t miss out on the experience, and you’ll learn about yourself and become a stronger person too.

5. Ditch the car.

Coming from Florida/a Florida like area you probably have a car and you’re used to driving yourself around in it. Depending on where you’re going to live, I would recommend selling it before you move up here (that’s what I did, personally). It’s just too expensive to be worth having one here between fees, maintenance, gas, and parking (“affordable” parking STARTS at like $300 a month and goes up, and street parking is an impossible struggle.) Most people that I know who have cars here don’t even use them regularly within the city, only for once-in-a-blue-moon trips outside of the city or to the airport. It’s more economical to take the subway (it’s $2.75 a ride, $121 a month for unlimited rides) and use Uber/Lyft in a pinch.

6. Weather is real.

Coming from a Florida like place like me, you probably don’t really experience the changing of the seasons - I mean, palm trees are evergreen. But in NYC, the weather is actually tougher because here not only do they have actual seasons, but you’ll be spending your days outdoors - walking to or from work or the subway, running errands on foot, walking through parks etc. So you actually experience the brutal summer heat (instead of going from your air conditioned car to your air conditioned office) and will FULLY experience the brutal winter cold and snow (it’s one thing to visit a place with snow on vacation, and another to actually live your life in it). So just be ready for that!

There’s lots of articles about how to dress for cold (and I’m sure you don’t need advice on what to wear for summer!) so here’s just what I do. My go-to cold weather outfit lately goes like this: a tank top tucked into skinny jeans as a base layer, then a cozy sweater over that and an oversized denim jacket over everything, sneakers with long warm socks (that hit like mid calf) under the jeans - the key is to make like an uninterrupted warm seal around your body that leaves nothing exposed. And then I have in my purse a pair of gloves and a scarf - because if you start to get cold, that’s where you’ll feel it first, in your chest/neck and exposed hands. When it gets colder the denim jacket will be swapped for a puffy down jacket (make sure it covers your thighs!), and the sneakers for lined snow boots.

Also - you WILL be walking a lot more than you’re used to, especially at first when you’re seeing all the sites, exploring new neighborhoods. Comfy sneakers are key, but if you have to dress up in heels (assuming you do that) always have a spare pair of comfy flats to switch into.

7. Don’t romanticize the city or the struggle.

This is honestly my biggest piece of advice. From movies and TV shows there’s this image of NYC that gets cultivated in people’s mind and sometimes people come here with the mindset that they have to live like that to “make it” here.

I think the reason I’ve been able to transition well to NYC is because I’ve never been in love with the city - I came here once with my family when I was a teenager, and I hated it because it was so dirty and crowded and everyone kept pushing me around on the sidewalk. Seven years later, that’s still how NYC is, but now I live here and I can look at the city with a critical eye while still enjoying the things it has to offer and appreciating what makes it unique.

A lot of people do dumb shit or put up with less than they deserve because they think this is what it takes to “make it” here. “Making it” here doesn’t mean shit - if you live here, work here and have a life here then you already made it. So don’t pay $$$ for that tiny room in Bushwick with the shitty roommates because “That’s NYC living!” - look for something better. Don’t feel like you have to be going out every night and living it up because “I’m in NYC baby!” - take a night off once in a while, save your money. Don’t be rude for no reason just because “that’s how New Yorkers are!” (hint: they’re really not, New Yorkers are awesome).

Anway that’s all I got - hope that helps anon!! If you want more tips or have questions feel free to ask some more, or come off anon and message me if you want. 😊

#Anonymous #My Answers #new york city #fucking florida #ngl this was very soothing to write #idk if i explained the last piece of advice very well but i hope that makes sense