dancerwrites

[dancerwrites]

🦀 Kudos Crab 🦀

If you are scrolling and see Kudos Crab, your fics will be blessed!

You will get good comments and kudos!

You will beat your writers block!

GO AND WRITE!

[dancerwrites]

also hey! new critters and old alike. be aware of the critical role transcript search

remember a certain line but not the episode it’s from? plug it in here. remember a word a player said but not the context? plug it in here. want a specific timestamp for a line? plug it in here. 

it’s an absolute goldmine in terms of rewatch value and it seems like not many folks actually know about it so! PSA

[dancerwrites]

“The prince just fell in love with Cinderella because of her looks!”

Wrong. Okay, picture this–

So there’s the prince, okay? He’s like, smack dab in the center of the ballroom, and he is like, horrifically aware that this whole ball thing is a result of his dad falling into a panic about the royal lineage or whatever and he’s stuck listening to highborn girl after highborn girl, all lined up, introducing themselves like, “Oh yeah my family’s been a longtime supporter of the crown, and I think you’re cute, *cough* I’ve been told I have child-bearing hips *cough* Who said that? Anyway–” and Princey boy is just smiling through it, he has been the center of attention for entirely too long, he misses his emotional support horse, and is just internally like “Someone please kill me now.” And then… he sees her–This isn’t a love at first sight thing, this is a ‘what the hell is going on over there’ thing, because this girl has not gotten into the Debutante line for a solid 45 minutes. 

She’s just at the hors d’oeuvres table going HAM on the prosciutto-wrapped asparagus, and like, she’s polite about it, she’s happy to move aside for other people grabbing punch and canapes (and she’s really so sweet with the wait staff, it’s kind of cute because they’re like… definitely not used to being acknowledged) but it’s like, “Damn girl, did you not eat today?” and then the prince is kind of stuck with the uncomfortable thought of ‘how many girls starved themselves to fit into a corset for this.’ And then the Prince realizes he’s missed the past 4 Debutante introductions because he’s watching Mystery girl hork down crab rangoons. So he’s like, “Excuse me” and manages to break free from the never-ending parade of girls who will hop on his dick for status.

 And as he’s approaching Mystery Girl, it’s kind of hitting him that something’s not quite natural about her. Not fake, but not quite real. But at the same time this whole evening’s been just a whole circus of people acting fake as hell, so like, someone seeming a little off doesn’t seem bad, necessarily. And he sidles up to her like, “Hi,” and she’s like, “Oh–hey, have you tried the tapenade?” and she points to one of the plates, and at this point, he could hit her with the “You don’t know who I am, do you?” deal or the “Very funny, I see your play” deal, but at this point it occurs to him that, no, he hasn’t had anything to eat throughout this whole damn ball, partially because of being stuck in the debutante parade, partially because of nerves, and there’s something so disarming about the question that he grabs a crostini and she still seems so food-focused that it doesn’t seem possible that this is a play. So they both grab little plates and ditch the party.

She pretty much clears her plate in under two minutes and then has half of his plate, he’s cool with it, mostly he’s just absolutely fascinated listening to her.

See here’s the thing about Cinderella:

1. She doesn’t know he’s the prince. Like yeah, he’s been at the center of the room, but she’s kind of spent half the party eagerly looking around everywhere she’s allowed to go (”Have you seen rose garden? Have you seen the solarium??” further confirmation that she doesn’t know who she’s talking to) and the other half stuffing her face with food. 

2. She assumes she’s never going to see anyone here tonight again, and no one recognizes her, so she has no filter.

So she’s just talking about whatever with this guy. He seems cool. She talks about her friends, who are rats. She makes little outfits for them. Sometimes they bring her little gifts. She is already the coolest person the prince has ever met because of this. She pretty much offhandedly talks about whatever is fucked up about the kingdom that would take his advisors two hours of hemming and hawing and watering down to address. She just says it like it’s nothing, just funky little things she’s observed, and again, she’s not aware that he’s the prince, but it’s still pretty damn bold to bring up at a literal royal ball.

She… seems to have the majority of graces that lots of girls from Respectable Families™ have, but there’s something strange about it, something simultaneously broken and hardened, like the way you can see where ice has thawed and re-frozen. Also the way she talks about her family, and the way she avoids talking about her family– is raising several red flags, not in the “Oh this is another person trying to take advantage of me” sense, but in the “Oh fuck, something’s gone really wrong and you need help” sense and also lowkey a ‘damn is she even getting fed?’ sense. But he can’t say, ‘Hey, that’s not fucking normal for people to say that to you or treat you that way. We need to get you out of there,’ without sounding crazy himself, so for now, he’s just going to chill, make sure she’s comfortable, and keep enjoying the evening. She’s somehow befriended like 4 of the waitstaff so they’re willing to cover for them while they disappear for a little bit, and they get plenty of time to talk, but eventually it hits her that she hasn’t danced yet and she’s like “Come on! I bet we can make the prince jealous!” and he just bursts out laughing at that like “hell yeah, let’s make the prince jealous. He’s a real asshole.” Like clearly she’s having a good time, so who is he to make it weird? So they head back to the ballroom and they dance. And our girl, Mystery Girl, Cinderella, while they’re dancing, becomes acutely aware that everyone is staring. That doesn’t seem quite right. Like, yeah she’s hot, she knows she’s hot, but at least a good third of the party should still be focused on the prince, right? Where is that guy, anyway?

Oh.

Oh wait.

Oh shit.

And Princey Boy actually picks up on her realization and they whisper argue for like 3 minutes. “Why didn’t you tell me?! Now I feel like a goddamn idiot!�� “I dunno it was nice being treated like a normal person” “Well me treating you like a normal person makes me a goddamn felon or something did you consider that?!” “Hey–Hey–it’s cool–you’re cool–I think you’re amazing, and if anyone says shit about you, I can shut it down.” “Well I don’t like that! That’s fucked up!” “I agree. It is fucked up, but I believe in you, and I think you should have a chance, and I’m here to back you up. I know power is fucked up right now. I know. But are you cool with working with me to change that?” And our girl Cindy pauses on that for a couple seconds, because.. she’s just spent hours with this guy and like.. she knows he’s a good guy, she knows he means well, so she’s like, “I don’t know how long I can actually work with you.” and the prince is like “Look, I know your home situation is complicated right now, but I really think we can–”

And then the bell starts ringing.

It’s midnight.

And then she takes off in a panic, and our prince just met the coolest person ever, and like, he’s pretty sure whatever situation they’re headed back to is fucked up, and all he’s got going to find her is a shoe. A shoe. 

[dancerwrites]

Anybody else got that Evergiven sized writers block

[dancerwrites]

show concept: a professional cook who can talk to ghost, they talk with the ghosts, learn they’re favorite recipies while they were alive and try them 

OMG the name could be Medi-yum

[dancerwrites]

It’s been over an hour since you were bit, and you still haven’t turned into a zombie. You’ve also been oddly nonchalant about the whole thing. Your group is starting to suspect you werent human to begin with.

[dancerwrites]

“The Opposites Game,” Brendan Constantine

[dancerwrites]

Can white people write POC as main characters?

@horse-faced-activist-gay said:

Recently a writing group I “audit” had a discussion about white authors writing poc, and the unanimous takeaway was “of course do it, just never as the pov/main character(s).” The argument was that no matter how careful or well researched, the pov will always come off like a white character in “digital blackface.” That there needed to be a good reason to write from that perspective, ie if the character’s race changed it should change the story? My pov character is Black; I’m white. I’ve been following this blog a long time and implementing the advice, but is the essence of me trying to write from her perspective misguided? I’ve now seen more than one author echo these sentiments. Is this just an excuse for white authors to avoid writing poc in lead roles, or an attempt not to overstep readers/authors of color? I’m very confused; any help would be greatly appreciated.

YES. 

White people absolutely can write PoC as main characters if not the protagonists of their stories! 

I didn’t create this blog for people to make PoC side characters 24/7! Not at all. Please write People of Color as main characters, no matter who you are.

- Colette

More reading: WWC General Topics Compilation

W a o.

Such toxic virtue signaling! If I’m being charitable, at best this is cowardice. At worst, this is the kind of BS discourse that is used to attack writers of color when they attempt anything besides personal memoirs. I recommend finding a new writing group. 

- Marika

Very concerned about the state of this writing group. 

~ Mod Rina

P.S. You’re right, OP, it is definitely an excuse.

[dancerwrites]

[ID: a background of wildflowers with a coral-colored block in the upper third and at the footer. White text reads “Haven invites you to The Critical Role Summer Wildflower Exchange for fandom biodiversity. Submissions open June 10th-26th. Sineups open June 27th-July 11th.”]

[ID 2: white text above a brown outline of a poppy on a coral background reading “No: BeauYasha, WidoMauk, Perc’ahlia, ShadowGast, Platonic WidoBrave, WidoFjord, Fjorester, or vax’leth]

The Critical Role Summer Wildflower Exchange

A not-quite-rarepair exchange. 

Dreamwidth. Haven Discord Community. Ao3. 

The rules are pretty simple: any pairings are allowed except the top ten relationships on ao3 under Critical Role - the ones that currently have the most works. These are, in order, Beau/Yasha, Caleb/Molly, Percy/Vex, Caleb/Essek, Caleb/Jester, Beau/Jester, Caleb & Nott | Veth, Caleb/Fjord, Fjord/Jester, and Vax/Keyleth.

Please see the ao3 link for more information,

[dancerwrites]

So I've caught up on Starship Iris finally and, having finished GtN and HtN last month I am kind of dying for an Iris AU where Cavalier!Arkady is a defector from the 4th house and Necromancer!Violet exists and is maybe 3rd house, with bureaucratic reason she gets drafted to go to Canaan House instead of someone more important... (who the important person is doesn't really matter because we care more about Violet that w/e Princess at this point) And Cavalier!Krejjh and Necromancer!Brian are 5th house in love or 6th house research and Sana and Campbell are 2nd, or maybe 4th fealty... I just have my brain going SO MANY DIRECTIONS HERE please tell me someone else has listened to/read these because I have THOUGHTS 👀

[dancerwrites]

It’s only a murmur at first. One more of the Mighty Nein has married, with a small but beautiful wedding in the Menagerie Coast. The Bright Queen is mildly offended to have been both uninformed and uninvited - particularly after the same offense had been given by both the Lavorres and the Nydoorins - but sends her regards, nevertheless. Then the curious part makes its way through the grapevine into Xhorhas. For Caleb Widogast had always been almost overly friendly with the late Shadowhand, and all the whispers name his new husband Essek.

It’s absurd, of course - Shadowhand Essek perished in the Astral Sea years ago. The Mighty Nein had given the tearful report themselves, and what reason had they to lie? His replacement had made sure, regardless; scrying had turned up no trace. But the Dynasty is nothing if not thorough, and so the first Taskhand to volunteer finds himself far away from home with a mystery to solve.

Keep reading

[dancerwrites]

Some of the best writing advice I ever got was if you’re stuck on a scene or a line, the problem is actually about 10 lines back and that’s saved me from writer’s block so many times.

[dancerwrites]

🎤

🎤 Favorite line from a fic:

This is a whole little passage from a Kimallura fic I wrote way back in 2017, but it makes me chuckle every time I look back at it 😄

cw for implied sexual activity (nothing graphic)

"It’s just that- the last time I pleaded for Bahamut’s strength was, oh I can’t even remember-“

“That was hardly a week ago,” Allura cut in, still smiling, as she came back with two cups, one full of Kima’s coffee, black, and the other with the strong tea she preferred in the morning.

Kima finally caught her breath, sighing, but confusion filled her as she realized she wasn’t entirely sure what Allura was referencing.

Allura’s smile narrowed to a smirk. “Do you really need a refresher? If I recall, we were up in our bedroom, taking an early consummation of our vows and you were spread out across the bed, oh so sweetly while I-“

“Oh, that!” Kima cut her off as a warm rush ran through her whole body and her chest tightened at the memory. Now that had been one hell of a night.

Thank you! ���

[dancerwrites]

🏆🌍 !!!

Ooo some good ones:

🏆 Fic I'm the most proud of

I'm proud of a few different fics, but I'm particularly fond of "until the weight falls from your back (I’ll keep you in my arms tonight)". A Perc'ahlia fic that takes place after episode 82 of Critical Role campaign 1, it explores some of the tenderness they have in their relationship, and is really just a feel-good bath fic, with intimacy and fluff, but no sexual content. It was and still is pretty different from everything I've written, and I'm still proud looking back on it 😊

🌍 favorite type of AU to write?

Probably some variation on a modern AU? It's so interesting to explore how characters' motivations and histories and actions can translate into various settings, and there are So Many options to explore! It's hard to narrow things down within there, and role-swap AUs are Also delightful 👀 especially, if I'm just trying to maximize angst potential 😄

Thank you! 💞💞

[dancerwrites]

fanfic writer ask game that’s definitely not an excuse for shameless self promo

rb if you want to play!

🌗 fluff or angst?

🧑 favorite character to write?

💕 favorite ship to write?

📚 favorite fandom for write for?

🍑 do you/would you write smut?

🥰 fave fic you’ve written?

🏆fic youre most proud of?

💎 fave trope to write?

🌍fave type of au to write?

🍄how do you get yourself in the mood to write?

💡what inspires your fic ideas?

🕶canonverse or au?

📒any fics planned?

🎤fave line in a fic you wrote?

🎁 have a quote from a WIP?

[dancerwrites]

Haven is a discord server for writers, artists, and creatives of all kinds. 

No salt, a sprint bot, dedicated fandom and original content channels, and a bunch of really sweet people. Friendly to all genres of content. 

[dancerwrites]

Vex and Vax have a secret, and it is this: they don’t know whose dæmon is whose.

They think, perhaps, that Kari is Vex’s – given that Vex has wanted to fly practically since she could talk. The raven looks at home on Vex’s shoulder, after all, flaring his wings and nipping at her earrings, toying with her hair. He looks as though he belongs there. As though he is part of her. As though he could never possibly leave her.

That leaves Kira as Vax’s, a cat as black as the shadows he walks in so often. They’re not sure what breed she is – probably a moggy, Vax had said once, affectionately, and gotten bitten for his troubles. She is a sleek thing, as light and soundless on her feet as Vax is, and equally good at getting into places she really shouldn’t. She follows him across rooftops and through open windows without a care in the world, a ghost in a rogue’s footsteps.

The dæmons know whose is whose, probably – or maybe they once did, but they too have forgotten. Either way, neither of them are telling.

Then Vex gets a broom, and Kira takes to sitting on the back of it when she flies, all neat and elegant like a real witch’s cat. Then Vax gets wings, and a pact with the Raven Queen, and Kari takes to calling death is coming, death is coming from his place on one pauldron of his ancient leather armour. The twins begin to think that, perhaps, they had guessed wrong.

When the Raven Queen comes to claim her Champion, though, it is Kira who runs after Vax into the eternal dark – just a cat, in the end, chasing after the bird that she never quite managed to catch.

And it is Kari who stays behind, perched upon Vex’s shoulder as though he is a part of her, and crying out softly for his flock-mate: come home, come home.