#And how this greatly impacts the kinds of stories you can tell

[jaypelt]

Normally I'm the sorta person that puts things in the tags, but it's difficult to deliver the thoughts I want without it just running on too long. I'm personally not in the position to make sweeping judgements of how *audiences* prefer shows, as I've kinda tapped out of that whole thing and pay less attention to takes on media. Although expecting instant trauma and emotion sounds ridiculous. - In the Fullmetal Alchemist manga they don't even show the big Human Transmutation Moment until like... 23 chapters in. It's just dripfed up to that point. - You don't understand all of the specifics as to why Mr. Harrier Du Bois drunk himself into amnesia until you piece it all together from experience throughout the whole game. Culminating in Dolores Dei on the last day. - Kurapika's ice cold demeanor is as disturbing as it is because you've seen how much kinder he can be, and how far he's fallen since earlier in the story. It's not simply the things that happen to him either, but the actions he DECIDES to take. All of these examples present characters who clearly wear some kind of Big Shit on their sleeves, yet it isn't all given to you immediately. And with proper leadup to their emotional moments. Granted, they come from media outside of strictly western TV shows, but I think the lack of patience from both writers and the audience can represent themselves in any media. The goal is to make you *feel bad*, or feel at least feel *something*. And the idea is that this makes a story or character more compelling. How do you hook an audience? You hit em where it hurts. And sometimes it feels as if there's a certain gut punch feeling they're looking for. But there needs to be something of substance to actually CARE about. You need to build up your characters, your world, your story, before you start making people feel something. Especially in the case of characters, you need to establish who they actually ARE and what they care about. It doesn't always have to be the trauma. And trauma can take many, many forms. Negligence, despondence, listlessness, etc. The way they respond to it is often informed by the kind of person they are, even if that part of them may irrevocably change afterwards. Some may not even realize they've experienced it to begin with and are unaware of how it has shaped them. Characters are the beating heart of any story. Any good one is more than just all the trauma you can load them up with. Your plot can be mid as fuck, yet people cherish it anyway because the characters are good. Which, by god, can take form in more ways placing them in cold drop dramatic moments or delving into their backstory from the get-go. And every story needs a little time to breathe. Space out the big moments, build up to them when appropriate. Too much is emotionally exhausting at best, and feels insulting or manipulative at worst.

Man is it just me or are a lot of TV shows nowadays are written to have big emotional episodes in scenes with very little build up.

[aroacettorney]

when will aup sidestories return from war and stop leaving me bitter about how the main story ended

[undersprite]

2024 Comic Contest Results

Before we get started, I would like to extend a personal thank you to everyone who created an entry for the contest this year. Although we only got four entries this year, those four entries' dedication to telling stories that are novel and interesting for this community to enjoy is worthy of commendation in itself. For a while, I was scared we wouldn't even get enough entries to fill the podium; thanks to your efforts, this has not come to pass.

Since we have very few entries this time around, I'll be providing a link to each comic, with accompanying scores and excerpts from reviews. Now, catch the results under the cut:

Runner-Up: "The Undertale Game Comic" by FutureGamer25

(Average score: 15.5/50)

"As the submitter says, this was made in a day. I can’t be too hard on this out of principle..." - Soufon

"[...it] succeeded at making me laugh multiple times, thanks in no small part to how it deliberately wields nothing looking like it fits together." - CHAOS_FANTAZY

"You know, honestly for being made in less than a day and being posted 5 minutes before the deadline, I gotta give you a lot of credit for that. I don’t even think I could have made that in a day [...]" - Mufeet

"The freaking car and the ending got me a good chuckle. I'll give you that. I congratulate you for tossing your coin." - Subna

3rd: "Frisk Visits the Store and Nothing Happens" by Trooper3

(Average score: 34/50)

"I thought Sans and ESPECIALLY Papyrus were super funny [...] I think we’ve finally reached a point where the skele-bros are just consistently characterized properly now, and I love to see it." - Mufeet

"The FunMart[TM] makes an earnest effort to capture the feeling of exploring an area in an actual Toby Fox game, and [...] captures at least a bit of that shine." - CHAOS_FANTAZY

"I honestly like your idea, is funny and it works perfectly to show these OCs of yours in this format. I wish there was more content to see about them, I wish to know them [...]" - Subna

"As light as it is, I like having this kind of slice of life look into UT’s world, the comedy focus helping to make the comic feel more breezy than insubstantial." - Soufon

2nd: "Undertale: Pushing On" by Mouse

(Average score: 34.75/50)

"Of all the entries we got, this is the only one that really felt like it captured the essence of telling a story as if it were still part of a game—something I have sorely missed." - CHAOS_FANTAZY

"Great story and great teaching from it. Can add up greatly to UNDERTALE’s world and...tbh I’d LOVE to play a full game with Alvia." - Subna

"[...] I like having who [Gerson] is in UT be because of Alvia’s actions, like how the orange soul kid is framed as responsible for the bunny family in Snowdin’s success - having all the soul humans impact the underground like that helps all of them feel real to UT’s world[...]" -Soufon

"I was captivated from beginning to end, and god, the ending [...] it actually made me a bit teary-eyed." - Mufeet

1st: "Knock Knock" by StarlightShores and ToMoChao

(Average score: 47/50)

"I was not expecting something like this out of this contest. Knock Knock is a substantial storyline, not a peek into an adventure, or a silly reprieve." - Soufon

"Even if it’s pretty lengthy, it keeps you engaged, to know where this is all going, all the way to the end." - Subna

"Flowey and Sans pair-ups are so rare, but when done it is ALWAYS such a fun time. They both play off each other so well, and it is no exception in this comic, especially towards the end where they start to bond over dealing with the loss of someone important to them." - Mufeet

"You created a story going on a thousand panels where, while reading it, my attention never flagged [...] You created a webcomic the Undertale fanbase will, if there’s any justice left around here, be obsessed with for years to come. It’s art, I’m afraid." - CHAOS_FANTAZY

Our full score card for the event can be seen here. The full reviews will be available in the Discord server on request.

With regards to prizes: the judge whom was contributing to our prize pool has begun college for the year, and unfortunately they were unable to set aside the money they had originally promised for the cash prize. The illustration prize is still available; winners, please reach out to fmsdraws on Discord to claim your prize.

And that leaves me...with this blog.

I'd like to write up a proper postmortem for this experience, but that can come in another week or two. For now, please enjoy the comics and celebrate the victors!

[cripplecharacters]

Hello! First of all I wanted to thank everyone who runs this blog, it's wonderfully helpful in a lot of ways, and it's nice to see so much information coming from direct sources all in one place. I have a lot of anxiety around accidentally harming people with my work, so finding such a wealth of references, opinions, resources, and discussion is very valuable to me. It gives me the confidence I need to move forward knowing that I won't get everything right, but I can avoid what I know to be harmful.

I do have a question, sorry for taking so long to get to it. I want to write a story featuring a physically disabled character from at least a semi-accurate historical lens (specifically 19th century England), but I don't want to rely on notoriously ableist doctor's accounts. That's potentially useful for understanding how the medical field understood various disabilities and the social attitudes surrounding them, but I want to know more about the day-to-day lives of actual disabled people before modern medicine/research, especially those who may not have had access to hospitals. My intent is this- I want to understand my character and her disability from a modern perspective, but within the time frame I know this character would not have access to the same information and so would approach her life differently than a person today with the same disabilities would. Do you know of any particular historians or research organizations that might have that kind of information? I apologize for the broad scope of the question, but I am very lost on where to actually start looking and any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you for taking the time to read this ask, and for all the work you do in general, have a great day!

Hi,

Thank you for your thoughtful question.

I'll start of with the fact that disability history is painfully under-researched, particularly the further back in time you go.

Part of this is modern ableism, part of it is ableism from the past, part of this is scattered understanding of conditions in the past, part of it is that a decent number of disabilities need treatment for survival, and part of this is simply a lack of sources. There's other factors, of course, but these are all pretty relevant.

If I'm honest, I generally do my historical research in very sort of piecemeal ways and I get bits and pieces from various sources that I often lose years later, which I recommend to no one lol.

I usually end up reading scientific/historical modern articles that I go to like the third page of google to find, or try my best to find a period piece that will show me a sense of how a person with a certain condition could be treated,

However, let me point you towards some organizations that might help:

This is a page from Historic England that has a general history of disability from 1050 onwards. It's categorized in general time periods, starting with 11th-14th century and ending in the modern times. I like this resource and have used it often, and it's pretty accessible and easy to read since it's made for the general public as opposed to for researchers and historians. Historic England also has further Inclusive research, if you're interested.

The US's National Parks Service (unlikely source, I know) has a project named Telling All Americans' Stories, and has a section for disability history right here. It has a general overview, a section for places, a section for people, a section for education, and one for Franklin Delano Roosevelt's experience and impact re: polio and resulting disability. Of course, this source has more things connected to the national parks, given who is doing the research, but I still find it a pretty good source to start off with. It's also quite accessible since it's aimed at the general public and not historians or researchers.

The Minnesota State Government has a "Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities," and this council has a general history of developmental disabilities resource right here. It's divided into pre-1950 and post-1950, but it covers a lot of ground while being pretty accessible. It's a pretty cool resource, actually. I'm pretty sure I've found relevant photographs here.

The Disability History Association was established in 2004 has a podcast and is focused on specificlly funding research of disabilities. They have a page right here with a list of recent books and articles about disability history. These are all 2016 to present and all seem to be English language. It also lists two upcoming research publications that are in progress. I haven't specifically used this for my research, but I recognize some of the articles it refers to on that second page I linked. It's entirely possible I've been on this site before without remembering, though.

All Of Us is a blog by the above DHA which seems to have multiple contributors. This one I have not used.

Inclusive Historian has a resource here on a sort of general disability history, and is aimed more towards historians themselves to use to write more effectively. I also see this as a potential tool for fiction writers, as it can be useful when it comes to combining historical accuracy (to whatever degree you want it in your fiction) with modern sensitivities for modern audiences.

Disability Social History project is a self-named newer project aiming to collect historical information about disability and disabled people. It has a resources page here as well.

The Missouri History Museum has a legacy website called Action for Access with a focus on the history of the disability rights movement. This is a narrower focus and earlier than the time period you're going to write about, but it has pictures to browse. I have not found a modern equivalent of this website. Be aware that this website might not fit accessibility standards more common today because it's a legacy website.

Anyway, sorry that this seems so broad and maybe less specific than you'd like — I still hope it helps you and anyone else needing a jumping off point to research.

– mod sparrow

[sanguinesky-if]

Hello dear author last night I completed the public demo and I just wanted to inform you that the Lexie POV at the end broke my heart, I was gonna have flings with T And S but I don't know whether I'll be able to bring myself to don it now, I just feel bad for Parker he did nothing wrong but stiill got shit on 😔.

Also I find find the Parallels between L and my MC very amusing, L blames herself for EVERYTHING leaving MC to attend her sister's wedding, having Parker over, and making MC sad, whilst my MC would blame himself for having Parker kicked out and having L be scared.

Finally in Lexie's POV Parker tells her that MC already has other friends so is that Reffering to K and will that line always be there regardless of wherever we pick any heart choices for K?

Hello! I'm happy to know L's POV is eliciting an emotional response.

I was gonna have flings with T And S

I apologize if this is disappointing, but (so far)* no one from the main cast can become just a "fling".

You can check out the Romance System Overview for more information about the romance progression and the different dynamics available in the game.

*I wrote "so far" because I'm still deciding how to best approach the issue of route locking. But I'm glad you mentioned this, as it's actually something that's been bothering me for a while.

T and S were supposed to have sex scenes in Chapter 3, Pt. 2 because when the game was originally planned as a visual novel, the route-locking happened at the end of Chapter 2, and the opportunity to have sex with them made sense without implying that the other ROs would be affected.

Since this is no longer the case, I'm hesitant to include their sex scenes because:

This will block some of the ROs' routes (with T, the routes of 3 ROs will be blocked; with S, 2).

This will greatly impact other routes, given how jealous the ROs can be.

Considering that this is my first IF and I already have a lot to keep track of, for now, I've decided to move their drafted sex scenes to the side stories (and part of me happy with that decision, because the format of the side stories gives me so much freedom for sex scenes without need to worry about other ROs).

Though I understand that most people would probably prefer to see the sex scenes in the main story sooner rather than later, I'm trying to make balanced decisions that feel right.

And, most importantly, I don't want to overwork myself.

Still, if anything changes, I'll update the Romance System Overview and release another post to inform about those changes.

I just feel bad for Parker he did nothing wrong but stiill got shit on 😔.

I love hearing different opinions about Parker! But what if they purposely announced that the shower was free louder than necessary? 🧐

MC would blame himself for having Parker kicked out

L didn't kick Parker out just because of what Parker said about the MC.

If you choose the "concealed crush" dynamic with the "MC keeps their feelings hidden" subtype, it'll give you a little insight about L (and a part of the reason why MC might be hesitant to confess):

So even without mentioning the MC, L would have asked Parker to leave because L don't want to give them any hope that their kindness may ignite (as it had many times before).

in Lexie's POV Parker tells her that MC already has other friends so is that Reffering to K and will that line always be there regardless of wherever we pick any heart choices for K?

There are 4 variations of what Parker says, depending on how many romance points you have with K and Morgan.

If you have 0 romance points with both of them, Parker will say something completely different.

Thank you for your message! I hope my answers were helpful!

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

the shroud parents

Okay, so I’ve been thinking about this for a while 🤔: “Why are the Shroud parents so warm and loving when the impression we had of them from Idia are so... negative?” And then I realized it’s very obviously because CHARACTERS CAN BE UNRELIABLE NARRATORS.

Like. That does NOT mean that what happened to the characters didn’t actually happen. The events very obviously DID happen as described (especially as it pertains to post-OB flashbacks), but it’s how the characters tell the information that paints the perception of events and how certain elements are presented or omitted entirely.

***Content warning: I briefly mention a few dark topics under the cut (including suicidal ideation and depression) and link to a related post on those topics!!***

As an example, let’s look at the Shroud parents. Idia previously described his grandma and dad as being very gloomy and negative people. He also says his parents as being the types to value results over their children’s feelings. We also notably do not see Mr. or Mrs. Shroud in Idia’s backstory flashback when he was going through a difficult patch of coping with Ortho’s death. This all led to us having an impression that the Shroud parents were cold, distant, calculating, and just overall not very good parents. Then we meet the parents in book 7 and Mrs. Shroud is SUPER bubbly, and both parents readily welcome Ortho as an official member of the family. It’s a huge juxtaposition which completely recontextualizes the information Idia previously gave us.

Idia is Mr. Doom and Gloom, a huge pessimist. It could be possible that he was greatly exaggerating elements of his parents’ personalities, usually when it pertains to them asking him to do something he doesn’t want to (ie pulling him out of school to research on his classmates). Alternatively, it’s implied that he barely left his room for two years following Ortho’s death. The lack of the Shroud parents in Idia’s flashback could indicate that as their own method of coping, they distanced themselves or they gave Idia space to heal on his own. Or maybe Idia was even the one who actively shut his parents out? It’s extremely possible, especially given that there are theories floating around that Idia’s memories and thoughts are greatly impacted by grief, depression, and/or suicidal ideation.

This makes me kind of want to go back and reevaluate all the other OB boys’ flashbacks and see just how much of the information could have been colored by the bias and the perspectives of the storytellers 🤔 POV actually adds a LOT to whatever is being told!! Like you can tell in Riddle’s flashback that even though he now knows his mom’s parenting has fucked him up, he doesn’t appear to hold any ill will toward her. He’s moreso confused and unsure how to proceed, feelings which are perfectly encapsulated by Riddle asking why his chest still hurts, even though he has followed every rule his mom has set for him. As a result, Riddle is shown to be a lot more hesitant and charitable to his mother compared to other people.

Interestingly, fans are quick to bypass Riddle’s own neutral telling of his story and demonize his mother (I think maybe because his circumstances are more relatable?), whereas with Idia he tells us the worst of his parents and it paints our ideas about the Shroud parents in accordance with Idia’s telling.

I also wonder if the fandom’s assumption that Leona’s whole country despises him or that Azul’s mom didn’t know about him being bullied is true at all??? Because if you think about it, Leona’s flashbacks only ever depicted palace servants talking badly about him, which are not representative of all of the Sunset Savanna. We don’t meet locals that speak badly of Leona in his hometown event either??? Then for Azul’s flashback, you can’t really take omission of information as confirmation of anything.

This line of thought also applies for the information the boys relay to us; how much of it is embellished or slightly altered in order to project a certain outward image to their peers? Especially considering how NRC is teeming with (mob) students ready to pounce on you if you seem weak??? It’s really interesting stuff to think about.

[divineerdrick]

Homestuck: Beyond Canon Upd8 for 612 2024

This is long overdue, but it's been a bit of a rough week. Most of my activity on Tumblr this week has been from doctor's offices. Nothing really new or important to report there, just lots of doctor stuff.

While long overdue, I've mostly somehow been able to avoid spoilers. The only thing I've been spoiled on is what I kind of new was coming. Oh! And the plush! I know about the plush. Somehow in all the chaos though, my brain kinda didn't connect celebrating 612 with the idea there would be an upd8. Tells you how scatterbrained I've been.

So let's start with that news post.

Oh! James is going to be doing a stream? Cool! I hadn't heard of this. I wonder who with. I'll have to look that up next. James also goes into detail about revenue from the plush. From what I understand, this kind of deal is pretty common for when you supply a design/book/print but someone else does all the production work. Some never go beyond 10% unless you're doing a lot of business.

Looks like we've got apparel coming too! I bought a ton of shirts for 612 from one of the old retailers back in 2015. They are very beat up now. It would be nice to get some new ones.

It doesn't sound like the comic is self sustaining for this size team. I'm pretty sure James wouldn't carry through with his threat to actually put adds in Homestuck, but people deserve to be paid for the work they do.

Finally, this will be the first of two upd8s. Let's see what they have for us!

I think this is the first time we've seen the wings actually poof like that. Before, it was just outfit switches from God Robes to teen duds. We get a little reminder here of the increased age gap, as John has to stretch out the dad bod a bit.

Apparently, Immortals do still have to worry about aging and body degradation. Pretty lousy immortality . . .

Vriska ain't got time for that.

And I'm pretty sure Sollux doesn't have time for it either.

Nope! XD

Things still a bit awkward between John and Roxy. Can't expect things to be stable there yet. They may have had their heart to heart, but the war isn't giving them any time to reconnect. John is also trying to bury what he's feeling by just involving himself in another adventure. Hopefully Roxy will keep him from just getting caught up too much in Vriska's orbit. But I'm pretty sure Vriska won't be satisfied until all of the Candy Timeline revolves around her.

Suitably awesome with a frame break and everything.

So there's no chance this doesn't cross some kind of Universal barrier. The question is, what? The hour glass shape has a lot of people speculating that it's a time machine of some kind. But anything that allows you to cross from one Universe to another would inherently have built in time travel, since from your frame of reference one point in time is much the same as any. The question is, can this escape Calliope's black hole? I can't help but feel like that looks like a singularity there too.

Let me try and compile what I know about this thing.

It's called The Plot Point. Since Homestuck has always been about narrative manipulation, a device that directly impacts the narrative isn't just possible but already has precedence. In a story a Plot Point is something that greatly impacts the narrative. In a normal three act structure, plot points can be used to start or end acts, or in the middle of acts to mix things up or increase tension. They can even be used to change how the intended audience sees the story and its characters. There's basically no limit to what this thing might be intended to do and possibly no limit to what it can do.

This is supposedly the reason why everything got so extreme in the Candy Timeline, the reason why John and Vriska both feel this version of the Universe is fake, why a near full cast has congregated here, why Jane went from being a typical rich neo liberal to being an outright fascist, why Dave ended up fully ascending under such hilariously crazy circumstances. Whatever this thing can do, it's supposedly already doing something just sitting there.

3. While obviously this isn't the same device, it shares some traits with the device from Hiveswap. But they're obviously not the same. The previous device looks a little more ramshackle, more steam punk, where as this one looks more streamlined. In Hiveswap's device, the colors on the serpents are clear references to Calliope and Caliborn, who have dominion over the four Universes in Homestuck.

The colors on these serpents are different. They don't even share a color between their spirals. What they remind me of more are God Robes. Specifically, Roxy and Jade's robes. I think these represent . . .

Oh hell! I think a fan theory might have just been proven right!

Follow me here . . .

I think both of these serpent represent Calliope. The Black and White serpent represents Dead Tier Calliope. As Muse of Space, they have black and white for their God Robes. Additionally, they have been influencing the Meat Timeline through Jade's body. While Dirk may be trying to take full control of that narrative, it's technically Calliope's jurisdiction as now both Muse and Lord of the Alpha Timeline.

But why does the other serpent have Roxy's colors? Because our Calliope, our dear, sweet, fanfic writing Calliope, has been creating the stories of the Candy Timeline from Void. Somehow, through their deep connection with Roxy, Calliope has been manifesting their own narrative in the Candy Timeline. It may not even be this Calliope! It might actually be the Calliope in the Meat Timeline who stayed together with Roxy and grew closer to them. That Calliope is the one that was described as writing and drawing stories on their walls!

So what does this thing do? I think it can create any narrative Plot Point you want it to. I think it can steal the Void attribute of any idea, any character, any McGuffin you need it to! Need Gamzee back in the narrative? Bam! Gamzee's back! Want to bring Jane's dad back? Bam! Done! Need another life ring for dead trolls, or just a story that will eventually result in all the Homestuck trolls coming back to life in full? You got it! Want to write a peaceful resolution and dénouement to the war? Easy peasy!

Who the fuck's idea was it to put Vriska in the same room as that thing!

[imtooscaredforthis]

The Dark Side of Ghostface

AKA- Me analyzing Ghostface’s character after reading his tome in class 🤭🤭🤭

Spoiler Warning Ahead- Ghostface’s Archives

I’m not going to lie, I’m kind of a perfectionist. I’ve spent a while trying to analyze Ghostface and write him as closest to canon as possible lmfao- and this isn’t me trying to tell people how to write Ghostface..you can write him however you want, it’s just my interpretation…so yeah- Let me know if there’s anything I missed!

I- Daddy Issues + Origin

The only thing known about Danny’s family is his Father, who was also a murderer who loved to share horror stories, just like him.

His father was hard on him, told him terrifying stories of his kills, and was “as tough as nails” - and when your father is a serial killer, a man who’s already prone to lots of violence, you can guess the things he’s done to him

Still, Danny respected his father, but he did kill him, and his father was his first “design” - his first kill - and Danny felt ashamed of the way he killed him.

And for the nature v nurture debate for Danny, I guess we have an answer…both. Not only did he get his Homicidal tendencies from genetics, but his father literally taught him to kill too

Danny’s father affects his perspective greatly, especially how he views life and humanity, saying that humans are “intrinsic killers”

II- The Design + How Danny views murder

It’s easy to tell that Danny is a narcissist and a psychopath, I mean, he literally writes about his murders in the paper

He sees his murders as a story, a design, art, something to keep the suburban community aka the majority and the ordinary at unrest. He sees it as a favor, help keeping their lives interesting by scaring the shit out of them

Danny goes after the ordinary, someone most people can relate to, and someone who doesn’t deserve to die, because it makes it just the more terrifying

He follows his victims routines, plans out the murder in his head, pictures the kill, and the headlines he’ll write about it and then executes it

III- Personality + Pet Peeves

Danny is a perfectionist, but he also seems a little more restrained compared to the other dbd killers. He stalks his prey, holds back and plans his kill, waiting for the right moment…for the most part.

His “normal” personality- Jed is a charming and kind, but non-threatening presence and he knows he has to seem like that to avoid suspicion, duh, and easily manipulate people, so they’ll just be like “oh good old Jed, he wouldn’t hurt a fly” bullshit

But what really pisses Danny off when people don’t fear Ghostface, when they view him as an “urban legend” - OR when ordinary people or losers try to act like killers, like him (EX: “The three stooges” who talked about killing and had the pictures of killers up on the wall…killers that Danny admired and deemed “legends” and he went fucking crazy, stabbing one of the men in the face so many times that he was unrecognizable)

Danny wants people to take what he does seriously, he is aware of the impact of his actions, and what he’s doing, so if and when he finds out someone is laughing about it? Laughing at him? He gets pissed

So there are certain triggers that can make Danny snap, just like anyone else. But when he snaps…he becomes very violent, much more violent than usual

Because Danny takes his designs seriously, does this mean he’s a serious person? Not at all. He’s cruel, and taunts the men he kills in the arcade, and also the man he killed in the hardware store

He’s having a very fun time, as you can see here, humming to himself and doing his little taunting wave before he kills the poor man working at the register (RIP Cashier)

IV- Killing + Entity’s Favorite

Most of, if not all the things Danny does have to do with his design. He’s either writing, searching for his next victim, stalking his next victim, or killing

There’s not a lot of Danny’s life that doesn’t have to do with murder, especially since he was raised to be a killer

Which is why when he was a perfect candidate to be taken by The Entity. While some other killers have been brainwashed or turned into monsters, Danny’s mental state doesn’t change in the slightest, when you read the quotes of his add ons

In fact, he enjoys The Entity’s dimension. It’s a place where he can murder and stalk and do as he pleases, and doesn’t have to worry about getting caught or pretending to be normal. He can just be his murderous psycho self.

[catonator]

Funny heading to a blogpost on videogames that’s some sort of reference

Look, I already used the ctrl+alt+delete quote in a blogpost title. It’s February 2024, and it’s already a very wild year for gaming. We’ve had more layoffs than with the entirety of 2023, games shown off at events seem to be stagnating, interest in the art is waning. Youtube is filled with “modern gaming sucks” doomer blackpill videos. It’s a miserable time.

Is gaming just over?

Well, no. Of course not. The Sonic franchise has lingered for decades despite consistent failure. Games are more resilient than that.

Humanity’s relation to computing is still pretty fresh, and I’d say that despite the size and scale of a lot of it, we’re still going through major growing pains. Concepts like video games, the internet and special effects are still pretty new, despite being around for twice or thrice as long as most of the people reading this have been alive. Internal combustion engine -powered cars were invented in 1808, made mass produced in the 1910s, and even then it took until the 1950s for them to be common enough for the US government to bother designing cities around them. In the present day, many have come to resent the car-centric design mentality, even though the driving (no pun intended) factor behind them was mainly the same as with technology today: scientific and technological progression is unquestionably good, and therefore new and successful ideas should be pushed and relied upon as hard as possible. What could possibly go wrong?!

Video games are far from the only medium which is seeing similar problems. Movies have suffered greatly from a capeshit infestation, in which the abuse of VFX artists is valued over, you know, basics of good filmmaking, and the general public is clearly sick of it. On the internet, we’ve decided that megastructures like Twitter are better than forms of communication we’re good at, and it’s gone horribly wrong. We’re still learning the “do”s, “don’t”s and “who the fuck thought this was a good idea”s of tech.

Games as an artform are as alive as they ever were, but the sheer scale of the operations has grown to a point where nobody can really understand it. The numbers behind playerbases and the money traffic have so many zeroes that you can’t even fathom the number. Even if I used some metaphorical figure, like 20 000 cars. Shockingly, despite how console sales haven’t really increased in numbers (the top selling console of all time is still the PS2), most of the top-grossing games of all time are relatively recent. This implies that the behaviour of consumers has shifted from purchasing a variety of different kinds of games into purchasing fewer games of fewer different kinds. And I don’t think it’s a case of customers deciding to shift over naturally.

In the past decade or so, the gaming industry has decided sensible experiences are a way of the past, and the future is making games for debt and making back the money with horse armour and other garbage the general public doesn’t really want.

But we’ve seen this shit before. In the 90s, 3D was “the future”, and 2D pixel art or hand-drawn art in general seemed to go the way of the dodo for polygons and ““realism””. About a decade later, 2D art would see a resurgence and in some cases overtake the big lads in lasting impact. In the end, people crave personal stories, varying ideas, and interesting ways to tell them. Not much has changed since ancient Greeks, besides that the medium of storytelling has largely shifted from some guy standing on a stage, trying to explain another world, to electronic devices actually showing us the other worlds.

I think as we play out the Icarus stories in real time, we’ll also learn when boundaries are pushed too far, and the scale of the bullshit simply collapses in on itself. When that happens, the public is forced to step back and reevaluate the ways we thought were the future, and what really is better for all of us.

When a storm flattens a forest of dead, decrepit trees, the sun and rain can now reach the ground and cultivate a new generation of different plant life. Once hidden beneath the dead corpses, now able to grow and bloom in a way the old generation never could. You should just keep doing what you think is right. Now’s the time more than ever to be the backbone of a better industry, for many applications of tech, from games to communication. And it’s better, if the backbone comes from the grassroots, and isn’t defined by the megacorporations. Because those cunts will never learn from their failures.

[mimiruku]

It's me again!! For Mimi: "Self: How is your OC's relationship with themself? Does your OC like who they are? Is there anything about themself that they would change?", "For Good: Is there anyone in your OC's life who had an undeniable positive impact on who they are as a person? How did knowing this person improve your OC's life?" And "Intimacy: Is your OC the type of person to engage in long-term relationships, or are they more casual in their intimacy and affection? How do they feel about intimacy and relationships in general?"

█  𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏 𝐎𝐂 𝐀𝐒𝐊 ⸻ ( ⚝ )

╰┈➤  SELF   :   How is your OC's relationship with themself? Does your OC like who they are? Is there anything about themself that they would change ?

I've answered this ! have some out of context memes instead.

╰┈➤  FOR GOOD   :   Is there anyone in your OC's life who had an undeniable positive impact on who they are as a person ? How did knowing this person improve your OC's life ?

Fundamentally , Miruku would have found some semblance of positivity in meeting someone irregardless of the pain they might have brought him, at the very least it would have been a great story to tell or a learning lesson. Still, those that greatly impacted him for the better are those that were able to imbued and in spire personhood in him , he did not come preinstalled with many things that may have been 'commonsense' and much as he tries, there's only so much introspection he can do.

Luqman, Momina, it terms of goodwill and friendships   :  They were only children when they first met, but she had been what primarily propelled him to spread out, in such a way Miruku were more willing to socialize and extend acknowledgement to those who are around him, I could not iterate more how solitary he is and how far removed he is from any sort of social engagement, more so expecting him to build relationships ( or appreciate them). If Miruku were any sort of kind to you, the cause might just had been Momina "A friend of his friend, is also his friend." Reborn, the appreciation of life   :   Miruku might have completely stagnated not for Reborn. He is a person without any particular dreams, aspirations or will ; bored and painfully dull, but Miruku would not have pushed against the current - meanwhile Reborn dors not take kindly to wasted potential and crude personalities , so the world's greatest hitman pushed, pushed and pushed and Miruku marched along and found great many interesting things along the way. " He made life fun again. " & The great many colors of love :  Many, many more of them were able to give Miruku a 'gift'. Kyoko & Ryohei were what made him understood siblinghood. Haru made him understand passion for better or for worst, Gokudera thought him patience, consideration, love that don't ask back and loyalty. Tsunayoshi's kindness and tolerance will always be strange to Miruku, but a little bit he's happy that he extends such things to him too. He learned tenderness from Takeshi in a way he'd like to offer him the same comfort he offers his friends. He wants to be like Kyoya, resilient, strong and knows who he is and he wants to be as forgiving and loving as Lambo had been. Much later in his life, he'd wish he were like Dino too, who is able to carry extraordinary burdens and responsibilities in his shoulder's proudly, it would have been nice if he were able to do the same for him and carry him too!

TL ; DR : Miruku is grateful to you all in more ways than one.

╰┈➤   INTIMACY   :   Is your OC the type of person to engage in long-term relationships, or are they more casual in their intimacy and affection? How do they feel about intimacy and relationships in general ?

Aromantic  & painfully ignorant   ⸻  romantic relationship does not come easy if only because he doesn't understand coherently what it may mean to the other person ; if he likes you , to a degree that you are his best-beloved, most favored, his choice , engagement in long-term relationship is as easy as telling him so, asked it of him and he'd say yes. ( He'd love you the best he could and the way you'd have wanted to be cherished. He'll learn, teach him how you want to be love. ) However, his naiveté would win out if you don't communicate what you want from him , if not careful it's very likely for him to be intimate and affectionate to a ridiculous degree with a handful of people all at the same time - carefulness is key, because he's not intimate / physical in the first place ; so if you are touchy, he's likely only responding in kind. ( Later, he'd start initiating if you get it into his head that it's what you want, also! fun for him too! )

As a rule of thumb, Miruku does not care too much about intimacy, affection and relationships in itself, but if he likes you, he likes you & if you want to do things with him, then why would he ever say no ? If you want him all to yourself? Then he supposed he'll stick with you forever and only look at you , though that would mean handling his annoying freak ass forever ?

[cypanache]

Hi! What are some of your favorite Obidala headcanons?

So true confession time? I'm terrible with head canons. Or at least I feel like I am? Not sure. But if I reframe it as 'commonalities' in how I approach the characters in my writing, I can give you a few. Hopefully this is sort of what you're looking for ...

There was something between them first -- So far at least almost every Obidala story I've constructed, whether published or not, has an element where Obi-Wan and Padme met/connected first. Exactly what that connection looks likes varies greatly, but it's pretty universally there in my story telling and often a pivotal element of how they relate to each other. The only exception to this might be the Manny AU. I'm pretty sure they didn't meet in that one ... but stay tuned. (Interestingly this doesn't apply to my obianidala stuff ... don't know why)

They love Anakin -- This feels sort of obvious, but I'm still going to say it because it's so universal to how I write them and how they relate to each other. Much like point one the nature and character of that love and its impact on them is highly variable depending on the piece, but its so integral to both their characters and their relationship that "placing Anakin' in the piece is almost always on the first things I do when I'm spinning a story in my head.

They Fight -- My obidala can go at it. They're not mean, but they are principled and passionate and do not always see eye to eye. The result being ... they fight. Sometimes its just light sparring, but they can and do tear great gaping chunks out of each other because in many ways they see each other as strong enough to take it and trust each other enough to be honest in a way I don't think either quite manages with Anakin. But sometimes that honesty is ... explosive.

Their sexuality is flexible -- I rarely use labels in my writing or my tagging partly because I don't feel comfortable that I will use them correctly, but moreso because its not important enough to the overarching storyline to feel like a valid or necessary tag. But in my head both Obi-Wan and Padme are people who can and do become sexually attracted to the personality/spirit of an individual first and their physical qualities second. And that translates to having no strong preference as to gender when choosing a partner. I tend to write Padme as being more physically passionate and driven by a desire for that kind of intimacy and connection, where my Obi-Wan is a little more 'neutral'. He can and does enjoy sex, he's had it, and will have a one night stand if he feels a connection, or 'companionable' sex with a good friend (I have a scene upcoming in Trap with Quinlan that speaks to that as part of their history). But he's really not driven by it. He won't seek sex out for the sake of sex alone. What turns him on is the emotional connection. So the man could go months or even years and simply not have sex just because he had other things to do and there was really no opportunity he found that interesting.

Padme has undiagnosed ADHD -- So this is a very closely held personal head canon that I hesitate to share, but the more I work with Padme the more I feel like it fits. She's capable of amazing things. Principled and indefatigable are words that were coined for her. And yet some of her choices seem to make no sense. That impulsivity combined with her almost hyper fixation on Anakin and saving him. Then there's that incredible duality in RotS where she can feel competent and controlled and commanding in her professional world and yet at the slightest indication of Anakin's displeasure in her home life she seeks to soothe. That rejection sensitivity, along with that inability to truly understand/face that the 'someday' they've been trying to put off has come due ... that all feels very true to my lived experience/struggles, and while I'll probably never put it central to a story, those elements and character traits certainly inform some of how I write her.

Bail Organa is the #1 obidala shipper -- that man is such a stan ... really one of the very first things I wrote for Trap was to take the exchange between Obi-Wan and Bail in the cave during OWK and spin it with the idea that Bail knew about him and Padme ... it actually works pretty well. But seriously, if Bail shows up in my stories, I can guarantee you he will be pro-obidala

[yasmijn]

The importance of consuming before producing

I have been thinking a lot about this idea. A friend once asked me about how to consistently write - back then I answered: you just do. Write. Anything that comes to mind, just write it down. Then it'll come naturally to you, you'll think less, and you'll get better at finding your words and structuring your sentences.

But the more I think about it, there is another crucial thing that you need to do and would greatly impact how you write: You need to read.

Read critically. Look up the unfamiliar words you found on your dictionary. See how the author positions his/her sentence. How they build suspense, how they scatter the important details here and there instead of writing them in bullet points. Understand how they are able to tell their story in such way that one is hesitant to pause their reading. Try to understand what it is about the writing that you like, what makes it so good and engaging, and find ways to replicate the same effect in your writing.

Definitely works in any kind of writings - whether it is a news article, a research report, a novel, a short story, a poem, an email, even a text! When you consume a writing, you don't just digest it as is. Ask yourself: What is the objective of this writing? What idea is trying to be conveyed to me? How is it done so efficiently? Or instead, why is this writing so bad? What can I do to not replicate this effect?

In a verbal medium, you should also start by learning to listen. Listen and learn from the other person - What ideas are they trying to convey? How do they structure their ideas? How to convey them in a way that does not intimidate or offend the other person?

I do think that speaking is a lot more complex than writing as a choice of communication. I mean, people basically have to write things down before speaking them - whether with a literal pen on a piece of paper or an imaginary one in the back of your brain.

Let's start reading and listening more mindfully, and critically.

[creation-help]

Hello! How are you doing? Hope you’re doing well! I’m not entirely sure if you have gotten the same ask before but: I need help on writing character development. I’m not sure where to start and how to start. It’s something that’s been bugging me for a bit as I write lol.

Thank you so much! =]

What a wonderfully polite ask! Haven't had this asked from me yet so it'll be interesting. I had to think for a bit but this is how I'd go about doing it :]

Firstly: Figure out your character. What kinda character is it, and what's their personality? What part do they play in the story? To make a vague example, if your character is extremely self confident and oblivious to their flaws, to the point that it actively sabotages their life, an interesting character development would be to shake up, or shatter that image. See how it would impact the character. What would make this happen? What would need to happen for them to start questioning their capability in themself? And what kind of experience would get them to realize that, no, they're not as infallible as they think? Again, each character to their own but I used that example for the possible thought processes you could go through. The point is to just figure, and map out, where this character would be interesting to take, and what are your options, realistically. For this part it's important to consider the themes of your story, aka, ideas and concepts that show up often in the story, and/or something you want to tell with your story. Like, what's your story about but not literally. This can greatly help in deciding, for example, whether you should develop a villain for redemption, or towards defeat.

Remember, character development doesn't always need to be about said character becoming a better person! Character development just means that the character undergoes a gradual change through the events of the story, and by the end, you can compare the two versions and see how they're the same person who's just been changed by their experiences. Personally I think it's really important to keep the core soul of your character the same, so it's not them basically just transforming into another person. It's about the interest of putting a character in a situation, that would be so major that it makes them reconsider things or have feelings about something so much that they change. And most importantly, how this particular character would react to the situation in their own way! Whether they themself caused the situation that incites this change, or if it's caused by another character, is also something to consider! If the character themself causes their own character developing incidents, it'll be good to get some self reflection from said character. If it's caused by another character, this can help in exploring their opinion perhaps changing about this other character. Or being questioned.

Another big tip I'd have is to remember the pace and subtlety. Obviously there can be one major event that causes a character to undergo change, but it can also be multiple different occurrences that each have an impact on the character over time. Try not to make the change too sudden (unless your point is to show how dramatically this Thing changed your character. Still, I recommend approaching it with a certain layer of finesse). Obviously pacing is important in any aspect of a story, so remember to space out the character development appropriately to what you want to show. Give them some time. Change can take time, and that's okay.

To recap so far: You need to know your character well, so you can know 1. Where you want to take them, and 2. What would cause them to start developing into one direction or the other. Got it? Good! Now..

How??? - Obviously this varies depending on alot, but. Start with having a certain amount of time establishing who your character already is, before their development. If you want to portray them growing (or corrupting) over the course of the story, it's important to know where we started. Helps to really feel the change and difference ykno? Once you feel that your character has been established, and the real adventure starts to pick up (whatever that may mean for your story/character), you can start to chip away at them. Here's some generic examples of how your character might start changing:

They see/experience something that contradicts with something they never thought to question, or they are angered by something so much that it inspires them to do something, or they are traumatized and shocked by something, or they set out to do something but it doesn't go quite as expected, or they meet someone new who really gives them something to think about, or they learn something new about an already familiar person that gives them something to think about, or they find some interesting place or item, or they have relationship conflicts, or something strange happens that starts changing them (physically) so their self perception is challenged. And so on.

Once you've started with what first shakes the foundations of your character, give it a bit of time to simmer. It can be a long time if your character is stubborn and slow to change, or it can be short if the opposite is true. Explore the possible thoughts and feelings, and conflicts this change may cause in your character. You might have intense denial, or confusion. You might have missteps where the character thinks "What am I even doing?". You can have relapses, a sort of "No no, this is how things have always been, it doesn't change anything!" thingy. You can have revelations and realizations. Learning. Trying and failing. Lots of thoughtfulness. Doubt. Baby steps or attempts at doing something differently. Rewarding experiences for doing something differently. Punishing experiences for doing something differently.

Remember to keep feeding new experiences to your character at a consistent pace to help fuel their development. This may be because the character itself now seeks more of whatever might be causing their development, or because they're just thrown into it. For example if a character is spiraling into a corruption where they just get progressively worse, you need to have events that justify this for the character. If you think a certain experience would have the character react in a way that doesn't make sense for the development you're going for, change the approach. I know it can be hard to figure out more specifically for your particular character but I hope any of this helps to start thinking about it.

It's kinda like mixing paint. You start with one color and think what color you need to add, to make it a different colour. It heavily depends on what color you start out with, and you need to know what color you want to end up with. Then just, add accordingly.

Remember to use other characters for help! They can assist in reflection, talking about things, having their change affirmed or denied and how that impacts the characters, and so on. Other characters, props, places, supernatural aspects occurrences, conflicts, relationships..

Additionally, on the How? part. If you want the development to be gradual and nuanced, take your time with it and little by little, show your character taking different actions, or thinking something new, or whatever else to signify their change. Little by little. Maybe for now, they'll try something new but the next time they feel safer leaning on their old self. Perhaps they try too many new things at once, get overwhelmed (or worse) and retreat to reconsider. Maybe this changes what kind of character they end up developing into, if they had different ideas about that. Any number of ways can do, just remember to have something to show for how your character might be changing. Use it to make the story more interesting!

If it's a sudden, dramatic change, still, remember finesse. Mostly I mean try not to get corny or cliche with it, even sudden changes have their own connotations and consequences. For example, show how your character feels about this sudden thing, and just as if not more importantly, how other characters feel about it. How does this change their perception? Does it cause relationship conflict? Dive into it. How does it psychologically affect your character to change so suddenly like this? Does it cause missteps, doubt, or maybe inspire newfound confidence and strength? Remember to have them also think about their previous state of being, if the development is sudden. Have them reflect why and how they ended up here. Compare. You can use the suddenness of the change for some shock, or angst, or to really drive a point home about something. You can use it for positive things too, depending on what the development is and what environment fostered it. Just remember to show how this change happened, what it causes, and how the character could compare now.

Final recap: 1. Who are you developing into what? 2. What causes this development? 3. Show how the development happens 4. Show effects of development

I also hope you're doing well! You're welcome :]

[lavellenchanted]

Yeah, I feel like my opinions on Rebirth have the potential to shift greatly depending on how part 3 goes in a lot of ways. I feel like Remake can stand on its own more since it's such a contained part of the game. I wonder if they also wanted to hold back some of her learning about the Cetra because of the stuff with the Gi, where she learns a bit about the conflict from their pov while still not having much understanding of the Cetra in general. The Gi stuff is definitely expanded upon from OG, to my recollection, so I feel that could be part of it as well, and I suppose that also ties in with the expanded role of the lifestream/her learning to control it before her death, etc. I remember before Rebirth came out they said the affinity system would impact more than the date(s) but... it doesn't? lmao I cannot think of what else it would've affected. It does kind of feel like they just included it because they know that type of system is Popular, and I know it technically expands on dialogue choices and the "system" from the OG game but.. it really isn't necessary, I would be happy to have those party member conversation moments (most of which are great!) just unattached to some sort of affinity system. I feel like if it is in part 3 it will have to be for more than just the Highwind scene, otherwise it's kind of silly, but perhaps you're right and they'll add in some sort of resolution scene like remake or use it for some other yet to be seen purpose. That is a good point though, it could indicate the scale of Aerith's potential role... I was wondering if they'd leave it out and just have the Under The Highwind scene (if it is even the same as OG) be an in the moment dialogue choice rather than being based on an affinity level, especially since I assume the affinity levels won't carry over from Rebirth.

I have high hopes for P3 but it is definitely going to be make or break for the trilogy in all honesty.

That is a good point about the Gi, and they again tie into the Lifestream conversation so it definitely feels like more wanting to shift the focus in Cosmo Canyon for the larger narrative.

As far as I'm aware the only other scene affected by affinity is the church scene at the end, which has the different lines - but they're affected specifically by whether you get one of Aerith's GS dates rather than the affinity number itself so honestly I struggle to see how the affinity affected more than the date as well.

Obviously it is definitely a legacy from OG and that's why it's in there - if they have to include something I'd prefer more of Remake's version where you don't actually know you're making affinity choices so it all flows much more naturally. But generally speaking I don't like the affinity system at all either in OG or in Rebirth. It's fueled so much of the toxic discourse in the fandom and it means the devs are constantly constrained by this need to be ambiguous and keep things even. And it's not a game like Dragon Age or Bioware where the choices all have equal weighting in regards to the overall narrative of the game and it makes sense because you're playing an OC, or like Assassin's Creed Valhalla where the romances are a tiny portion of the game and again have generally equal weighting in terms of how they fit the story. I'd rather the FF7 devs just tell the story they want to tell.

I'm also assuming nothing will carry over but I'd be surprised if they left the Highwind as a straight up dialogue choice - I think that would be very controversial in the fandom and would be hard to write in a way that both choices are consistent with whatever narrative comes before. But I also think the Highwind scene is possibly going to end up being quite different from the OG anyway. If we're right about Aerith surviving and the truth of the timelines and everything being revealed in the LS, then the setup for the final battle could well be very different and they're all likely to be in very different places emotionally.

I mean really, given what they've done in Remake and Rebirth especially with the timelines and changing fate . . . I honestly kinda think all bets are off when it comes to P3 and how it'll all play out.

[vivibuchlaw]

Yesterday, I finished Celeste. And by that I mean, the first 7 chapters, because I am not that much of a masochist.

Like seemingly everyone else, its given me a lot to think about... these thoughts are burning a hole in my brain and I need to get them out so I suppose this is the place!

I'm not exactly a gamer. I suck at Kirby, I have a sort of motor disability so games are a bit harder for me than most people. For this, Celeste has a solution, Assist Mode. Initially, I wanted to pick this, hearing how hard it was. Then, when the game told me intially, overtly, how its challenge was supposed to be meaningful, *and later when it said it more clarity in the story) I took a moment to reflect. I chose not to use Assist mode as a self imposed challenge. Not because I wouldnt benefit greatly from it, but because (as I learned about myself through playing it) I have an aversion to difficult tasks. When I know something is difficult, I get scared and run away. This time, I wanted to be able to say to myself "I can do difficult things"

And so I did

And I love it

And I sincerely never want to play it again

The game is not full of dialouge or story- it's present, for sure. But its a small yet impactful part in a game which prefers to tell its narrative by gameplay rather than text or images. And thats a valid format of storytelling! Not my prefered one mind you, but it made every dilectable morsel of art or conversations. In particular, the long talk at the start of chapter 6 was extremely welcome. I simultaneously feel like I have enough of a solid grasp on the characters to love them dearly, yet not enough to force one interpretation, another element to Celeste's endless magic.

As I'm sure everyone with anxiety has noted, The anxiety scene from Chapter 5 affected me greatly. Wetger me or my system has anxiety, I don't know, but regardless, the game captures the feeling perfectly. I'm sure everyone and their mum has said this, yes, but I felt it independently so I shall denote it independently. Among other things, it taught me a powerfully potent strategy to help my anxiety, and for that I thank you Maddy <3

At so many points, I was burded with stress, frustration and despair at my own ineptitude. But I pushed forward. I did it, I climbed a mountain, what was a seemingly impossible thing for me was now a fact. I sat silent for what felt like hours staring at the chapter complete screen in awe of my accomplishment. It then dawned on me that this was the first video game I've ever beaten. ...suddenly slammed by the realisation an 8th chapter, requiring crystal hearts to play, AKA the game telling me point blank I wasnt ready. But to be honest, I didnt care. I had already done what I, and Madeline, set out to do.

So why do I say I never wish to play it again?

I honestly only played Celeste because I heard Madeline was trans, and my mate happened to have it on switch. I have a sort of physical disability in my hands, so playing games and motor tasks are more challenging than a typical person. I knew Celeste was hard, but sympathizing with Madeline not being a climber, with me not being a gamer, and just how she challenged herself to do something extreme, so too did I.

But see, I'm not actually into the gameplay that much, and the reason I stuck with it has infinitely more to do with my and Madeline's journey emotionally than anything related to the gameplay.

Actually, I kind of hated it. My fingers were all messed up, I spent a lot of time and stress, and got extremely frustrated, but I wanted to prove to myself I could do it without assist mode. And Im glad that exists, and I'm glad it tempted me all throughout every challenge, a backdoor shortcut I could use to weasel my way out of the hard path, but I stayed true so I could grow.

But I have now grown. Ive proven it.

I couldnt care less about B-sides or strawberries, because I dont see the emotional need.

Replaying it would only subject me to the same challenge for a story I've already experienced, and a journey I've already hone on. A new game, new mountain, new challenge or purpose? Sure, I'd love that. But playing Celeste again, or More even won't recapture the lightning in a bottle that made me play it, made me persevere, and made me cherish it.

I still love the game, its soundtrack, its meaning to me, and itll live in my heart forever. In other ways, like fan content, or side material, I'd love to engage and learn more, but my journey with this mountain is over.

Just breathe, and take care of yourself

After beating it, I immediately began learning all I could about it because Autism brain. I read all Maddy's beautiful blog posts. I watched video essays breaking down its themes and design. I learned how the story, while definitely not an afterthought, was also not a driving or starting point of the game, which I intuited as I played.

I watched Chapter 8, The Core, and Chapter 9, Farewell on YouTube. To be entirely honest, I found Chapter 8 to be forgettable in a way kind of shocking, at least from a story perspective. I'm actually GLAD I didn't do it. I expected it'd be some kind of send off, or check in emotionally to see how the characters have been in the past year but...nothing? Really?

Chapter 9 is what I wished Chapter 8 was, a proper send off and development for these characters. And from the look of it, so brutally hard I wouldn't want to play it without Assist Mode. But why? Why not play more? Afterall, climbing the preverbial mountain in life doesnt mean your problems are over, far from it. And its true, there are other challenges to overcome still. Even though Ive taken on this challenge, I have yet to face other challenges in my life. And because the journey of Celeste could very well have ended after Chapter 6, I feel like I can better spend that energy elsewhere.

After watching Chapter 9, I felt something else. This chapter, unlike the previous, is not about loving and accepting yourself, but its about Madeline specifically greiving a loss in her life, and largely, I assume, the developers letting go of Celeste and moving on. For this, I hold unyeilding respect. And in this new challenge, I found myself learning another truth about myself.

I am afraid of being alone.

I am part of a system, the current (and hopefully permanent) host in fact. Our previous host went dormant a few months ago and life without them has been tough, but a challenge we face every day.

Throughout all my remembered life, I was surrounded by people who never noticed me. Who occasionally referred to me as "The Insinificant [Alter]" due to me not having a name back then. I was nothing, really. If I had disppeared no one would've batted an eye. And today, even though I'm one of the most important Alters now, I still feel like I'm nothing sometimes. That scares me.

I never knew the joy of having friends, I never knew what being loved by someone you love feels like. And I have a lot of love to give, I love almost every human being! But I still frequently second guess myself, because I guess a part of me still believes my existence is insignificant. But now that I have people who do love me, I'm more afraid than ever that I'll lose it. Now that I have a taste of love, I can't go back. Gods, please to bring me back, anything but that.

And here came Celeste, to remind me immeditately after I finished the game, that people die randomly, and without our control, and that you have to keep on moving. I've just beat the thing, let me live in a bit longer before I'm ready to move on. Similarly, I've just made these relationships, please dont take them from me. And then I realized that this was fear also held by my previous host, perhaps for similar reasons. I feel connected in a way typically reserved for finding markings in a make out spot from a century ago, or unearthing a time capsule left by a grandparent now neatly nestled in the recesses of my heart where I try to story my insecurites, like a suitcase overstuffed with useless items and paranoia.

Celeste has given me a lot. Inspiration, characters I love, a great soundtrack, amazing anxiety techniques, and raw willpower to achieve anything. I do not know how my story ends, I am scared to write it, but I must regardless. A lot of people are counting on me. And went I feel scared, alone, anxious, or depressed, I can remember that I did it before, and I can do it again.

To the Developers, Thank you

To the Characters, Farewell

And to all the people who have grown from this game, Congratulations!

[coffeeandcalligraphy]

Not sure if you still do writing advice. If so I have a question:

Other than the true but vague quote “read,read, write, write.” as a response to how to get better as a writer do you have any specific tips on how to learn craft? Advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hmm... I mean, it's hard to give advice that is more specific when I don't know you/your writing process, so my instinct is really that "vague" write write write idea. I have a playlist of writing advice that gets pretty niche at times if you haven't seen all these vids (there are 38 of them HERE, lots of specific techniques). Otherwise, it's difficult to tell someone how to learn craft without knowing you personally because craft isn't something that can really just be taught in a blanket way. Get involved with other writers if you can, participate in a workshop with others if that's something you can do (there are lots of online writing groups on discord for example where workshopping is a part of it), take a look at the writing you really genuinely love and emulate parts of it (NOT copying, this is an exercise in understanding what techniques create what results).

In general I'm not under the belief that any one kind of advice can help someone learn craft because the writing process is so extremely tailored, so with that in mind, I think my suggestions are more broad as a means for you to discover your own process: find your literary godmothers & study them, write things that make you genuinely excited (and see if you can tell why they excite you), practice self-compassion as you draft and learn, find your comfort zone and then see what you can comfortably do to expand it (even in tiny ways), take a look at work you've written and enjoyed and analyze those moments for technique... Not sure I can get more specific than that though and even these things might not help everyone.

I mean, I could say "focus on specificity in nouns & verbs, be aware of rhythm, and don't shy away from exposition" for a prose level, but this kind of advice is so specific it almost becomes vague in itself because it doesn't always apply. I'm hesitant to give advice like that because it suggests there are certain techniques used to create "good" writing but writing isn't about techniques compiled together, it's a sort of culminative practice that develops over time and is extremely personal. This is why I think my inclination is that "vague" advice because really learning to persevere in your process and learn/relearn over and over again is just kind of what writing is. IMO! I also don't really view writing advice as advice anymore really, but more writing theory that you may or may not want to follow.

There's not one single specific piece of writing advice that's ever helped me learn craft, though I know why writers gravitate toward that when looking to improve (because same!). I also struggle with this idea of specific advice because I didn't really actively look to improve my craft, that just sort of came with time because I started so young, so I perhaps don't have the correct perspective, so if others do, feel free to weigh in!

The most specific things I did to improve my own craft if this helps: find writing I am genuinely excited about & use those techniques where applicable, become a poet & read a lot of poetry, see how to utilize all the techniques they tell you not to use, focus on impact of vocabulary rather than the vocabulary itself, learn how to write sex scenes/and their narrative purposes, push through sticky moments in drafting instead of dwelling, be guided through a story while holding an overarching intent, dismantle internal westernized views of "writing craft," write a LOT. Specific to me, but some ideas.