#Does Social Profit App Really Works

[wildrangers]

Book Lovers // Quinn Hughes

Word Count: 5K

Summary: Quinn x fem OC author

Content: prolonged meet cute, flirty banter, fluff. Truly, I saw the clip of Quinn sharing he's a reader and knew I had to write something based on that.

Quinn took a deep, contented breath as he perused the shelves before him. He had a rare day off and was doing one of his favorite fall activities: book shopping.

Normally, he just went to Chapters or Barnes, depending on what country he was in, but he’d decided to explore a new place. He’d been discussing books with Lauren, the new social media manager, and she’d ranted about how they and Amazon were “destroying local markets and harming author profits.” Most of her argument had gone over his head but he took away enough, so here he was at Thomas’ Tomes–the closest locally-owned book shop to his apartment. He figured that was as good a place to start as any and it certainly didn’t hurt that it was a block from his favorite coffee place. 

Which is how he found himself, pumpkin spiced latte in hand, soaking in the relaxing energy of the cozy shop. He’d already selected a few historical fiction novels and was scanning the mystery section he’d just entered. He pulled his phone out, scanning his notes app for the title Lauren had recommended. She’d said it was pretty gruesome but he figured he could handle it…probably.

“Can I help you?” a voice nearby asked, startling him. “I’m sorry, didn’t mean to scare you. Are you sure a mystery book is a good idea?” 

His gaze rose to meet warm, golden brown eyes filled with amusement. “What do you mean?”

“It’s broad daylight in a public setting and you almost dropped your PSL because I greeted you.”

“You didn’t scare me, I was just in my own world” he argued, but felt his cheeks pinkening. She really had set off a fight or flight response just by doing her job.

“Of course” she replied and he couldn’t tell if he was being sensitive or if there was a teasing glint in her eyes. “My offer still stands.” 

“I’m sorry what?” he asked, confused and scrambling to keep up. 

“To help you find something…preferably a book. I don’t know how much help I’d be beyond that.” 

“Oh sure, yeah, thanks” he mumbled, setting his stack of books down on the table next to him so he could more easily show her his phone screen. “Someone recommended this book to me, do you have it in stock?”

He caught a whiff of something earthy and relaxing as she leaned closer, her eyes scanning the note. “Ah, yes we actually have a display over this way. Theo’s a local author.”

He picked up his items and followed her, moving much quicker than he anticipated having to to keep up as she weaved through the store. “Have you worked here a long time?” 

“My whole life essentially” she chuckled, throwing a grin over her shoulder. Just as she turned back, they passed a window that set her red hair aflame in the midday sun. 

“Oh, yeah? No labor laws then?” he teased, he hoped, successfully.

“I mean, I basically harassed my parents to let me stock shelves or talk to customers. Now I’m slightly less enthusiastic about inventory.” 

He laughed at her light tone, drawing to a stop as she did. “Wow, is this a series or something?” he asked, taking in the full display. 

“Well, the one your girlfriend recommended is the first in a new series” she answered, pointing it out. He was about to correct her but she continued quickly, “And the sequel isn’t out until early next year, so you’ll be waiting a bit for answers. Maybe start with this one?” she suggested, pointing out a title with the fewest books available. 

“Only a couple copies left, it must be popular. Have you read it?” 

“More times than I can count” she huffed.

“You’d think if you kept rereading it’s because you enjoyed it, no?” he chuckled. 

She simply shrugged, turning fully to meet his gaze, “Well, what’s the verdict? I do feel the need to warn you, these books are much closer to horror than just a normal mystery or thriller.” 

“Why does no one think I can handle these books?” he sighed in mild annoyance, grabbing the one she’d recommended off the shelf. 

“You just don’t seem like a horror enthusiast, that’s all.” 

“How could you possibly know that?”

“Do you want me to answer genuinely?” she responded, eyebrow quirked in a challenge he couldn’t help but rise to.

“Sure but if you hurt my feelings, can you at least give me a discount?” he joked and she snorted out a laugh.

“You’ve got yourself a deal” she smirked, offering her hand to shake on it, which he did. He wasn’t at all surprised when her handshake was firm and she maintained eye contact the entire time. “Well, you have two historical fiction books with you and that was the first section you went to when you walked in.”

“You were watching me?” he laughed, earning him an eye roll.

“It’s 11AM on a Tuesday, there’s not much else to do,” she replied, gesturing to the otherwise empty store. “Plus, it’s a fun game to play when I procrastinate on doing actual work. Anyway,” she emphasized, closing her eyes briefly to seemingly get herself back on track. “Once you found those, both of which are part of long, ongoing series, you debated going left to nonfiction or right to mystery. My guess is, you normally would go pick out some biographies, maybe some historical nonfiction or even, oh, maybe some kind of ‘how to maximize yourself’ guide. How close am I?”

He felt his cheeks warm from pink to scarlet, “I mean, close but that doesn’t mean I can’t also like mysteries…” he argued weakly. 

“True enough, who’s your favorite thriller writer?” The long silence was answer enough so she continued, “If you want, you can go pick out a nonfiction book and I’ll throw the thriller in for free.”

“You don’t have to do that, my feelings weren’t that hurt.”

She shrugged, “I can’t in good conscience let you pay for that book, you must have done something to piss off your girlfriend.”

“My coworker, actually” he corrected and her eyebrows rose. “What?”

“What did you do to the poor girl?” 

“Nothing! I even took her suggestion to shop locally.” 

“Our hero” she fake swooned and he rolled his eyes, making her laugh. “Fine, how about when you’re done you bring up your haul and I’ll throw in a surprise? I feel like you’re making it a pride thing to buy the book now.”

“Color me intrigued, we have another deal” he replied. “My name’s Quinn, by the way.” 

“Dora” she replied but a loud snort erupted from near the registers. “Fuck off, Richie” she snapped, turning away from him to seemingly go yell at whoever laughed at her.

Quinn tried to relax back into the calming routine of ambling through a bookstore but he kept hearing her voice and couldn’t focus on much else. He grabbed a biography Jack had recommended, both dreading and eager to be teased by the redhead.

“Don’t let her manipulate you into buying that garbage” the guy, presumably Richie, called as soon as Quinn was in his line of sight. 

“I’m doing no such thing! Tell him, Quinn” she replied, cheeks flaming red in annoyance, her golden eyes fierce with indignation. 

“My coworker actually recommended this author. A different book but still…” he shrugged, placing his other selections on the counter. He noticed her eyes appraising his selections and the quick, amused quirk of her mouth before she whirled to focus on Richie. 

“See I told you!”

“I’m sorry for not believing you” Richie said, seeming sincere to Quinn’s ears but Dora’s eyes narrowed. “It’s just that Theodora here often tries to swindle impressionable young men to improve her book sales.” The heavy emphasis on the girl’s full name made Quinn pause. 

“Wait a minute…” he blinked rapidly, processing this new information. “Your family owns this shop, right? Thomas’ Tomes?” 

“...yeah” she grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest and glaring daggers at the giggling Richie. 

“And when you gave your name as Dora, he laughed. And this book, it’s written by Theo Thomas. And he just called you Theodora, which I think means you wrote this?” he questioned, feeling proud of himself for putting the pieces together and a little embarrassed it took him so long.

“He’s solved the mystery! Maybe he can handle your book after all, dear sister” Richie teased. 

“I was going to tell him!” Theo argued, grabbing a pen and opening the book. “That was the surprise, Quinn, now you have a signed copy of the book. You’re welcome, you can thank my asshole brother for ruining the reveal. I also signed a copy of the one your coworker recommended, can you pass it along to her? On the house.” 

“Are you sure?” Quinn questioned and she nodded, shifting to ring up the rest of his purchase. 

“Theo, stop” Richie huffed, shifting her away from the till. “You need to stop procrastinating and finish that last round of edits, they’re due within the week.”

“It’s just garbage anyway, you said so yourself” Theo replied mopily, sitting down on the stool next to the register.

“Oh come on…” Richie sighed, pausing his scanning to give his sister his full attention. “I was just messing with you. I know the sequel’s giving you a hard time but you’re at the finish line now, just a few more days of work then it’s out of your hands. And you’re an incredible, if worryingly grotesque, writer so I have every faith it’ll be amazing.”

“Did you hear that, Quinn?” Theo asked, grinning widely. “He finally admitted I’m a good writer.” 

“Oh fuck off, you guilted me into it!” Richie replied, grabbing the debit card from his outstretched hand. “Quinn, right?” 

“...yeah?”

“Quinn, can you please take my sister anywhere other than this shop? The cafe, the movies, a strip club? I literally don’t care, she’s driving me nuts.” 

“Richie! I’m sorry, he’s kidding, he knows that would be a weird, rude thing to request of a total stranger.” 

“A total stranger you’ve been flirting with…” he mumbled and Theo jammed her elbow into his side.

“Here, let me walk you out…” Theo said, grabbing his bag of books and rapidly leading him away from her brother. Once the cool fresh air surrounded them, she turned quickly towards him. “I am so sorry, Richie thinks he’s funny when he’s really just weird.”

“I have two brothers, I get it” Quinn assured her, reaching to grab the bag from her hands. “It was nice to have someone sign something for me for once.” 

“Do you sign things for people often?” she questioned, confusion evident in her eyes as she scanned him, trying to place who he may be. 

“Most nights yeah” he chuckled shyly, embarrassed by his comment. “Forget about it though…”

“No, no, I’m curious now” she smiled, head tilted in appraisal. “Not an author, I’d know you already. You definitely don’t give off musician vibes…but I don’t think I’ve seen you in anything either so not an actor. Who are you really Quinn? Here I was feeling bad for putting you through the ringer for my own amusement back there and you were a celebrity the whole time.”

“I wouldn’t go that far” he laughed anxiously, running his hands through his hair. 

“Well you’re either someone of import or completely delusional and just handing out signatures to people on the streets, so which is it?”

“I’m a hockey player.”

“...okay, and?”

“We’re in Vancouver.” 

“Yes, I’m aware.” 

“This is a huge hockey city! You don’t know the Canucks?”

“I don’t live under a rock, of course I do” she scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest. “I was raised in a bookstore though so sports aren’t high on my list of interests.” 

“Are they on your list at all?” 

“Take a wild guess, Quinn” she replied sarcastically. “I guess you’re a big deal then?”

“I mean, I am the captain…”

“Is that normally what gets girls interested in you?” 

“Damn, tell me how you really feel” he answered, averting his eyes and trying to play off how the quip hurt him. 

“Hey, I’m sorry” she replied, her voice gentle as she tugged softly on his coat sleeve “That’s not how I meant it. I guess I’m just surprised you felt the need to try to impress me when I’ve been waiting for you to ask me out since I walked over to you in the shop.” 

He was briefly stunned into silence, causing her to rapidly continue, “Oh god, I’m leaving. I hope my book doesn’t traumatize you and I’m sorry for assuming you were trying to impress me, that was weird and presumptuous of me.”

It was his turn to grab her sweater sleeve lightly, “Can I have your number?” 

“Are you sure you want it? I’m clearly an expert at putting my foot into my mouth…” 

“I’m 100% sure but only if you’re interested. There's no pressure.” 

Theo reached into the shopping bag, adding her number to her signature before returning it. “Text me when you finish chapter eight, not a minute before okay? You need to know what you’re getting into here.”

***

Theo sighed, finally closing her laptop for the night but not before catching the time: 1AM. She’d procrastinated most of the day before forcing herself to do the one chapter she’d promised herself she’d get done. She was confident in the overall story but she felt like a single thread was missing that would lead to the next book’s central plot. Should the apparent villain be more gray and get a redemption arc? Or should she double down? Or maybe…her phone vibrating across the desk stopped her obsessing.

Respectfully, your mind must be a truly terrifying place. What the FUCK was that twist?

She smirked, butterflies tentatively taking flight in her stomach at the unknown number’s text.

I’m sorry, who is this?

How many men do you secretly sell your book to, sign said book with your number, and give detailed instructions on when they can use that number?

At least three today that I can think of, so any additional information would really help.

It’s Quinn.   

Ah yes, the biography and historical fiction lover! What twist are you referring to? 

I think if I typed it out I’d get flagged by an FBI agent or something…that was gruesome

I tried to warn you…

Take my advice, try harder with your next group of guys

I’ll do my best. I suspect the more I’d try to warn you off the more you would have dug your heels in though

Nah, I don’t have a competitive bone in my body 

Of course, my bad. Will you finish the book or is it too much? You can always give it to your girlfriend

*Coworker. I wouldn’t be texting a beautiful girl I just met if I was in a relationship

How charming and reassuring of you!

Are you always like this?

Like what?

Chirping

…I’m sorry what?

You don’t know what chirping means? That’s disappointing given you're a writer, Theo… 

Please, enlighten me

Chirping is a hockey term for when you’re ribbing someone. During a game, guys will chirp or make fun of each other to get under their skin. 

Are you saying I’m getting under your skin?

I’m saying I feel like my brain has to work overtime to keep up with you

That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me

That can’t possibly be true

As she mulled over what to say next, the three blue dots popped up so she paused until his response appeareed

Can I ask you a forward question? 

Shoot 

Are you free tonight? 

Are you asking me on a date?

Not quite, I’m asking you to come to my hockey game 

And why’s that?

Because you’re clearly smart and cute and have a twisted mind that I’m curious to learn more about. But you gave me a warning, so asking you to go to my game is mine

Ah, so since you passed my test you want to see if I can pass yours?

If you want it to be a challenge, sure. I just think it’s fair for you to get a glimpse of my weird life before I actually ask you out. Just like how you showed me a glimpse of your weird brain. 

Challenge and pre-date screening accepted. Where do I go and when? 

Which is how Theo found herself weaving through the crowds at Rogers Arena. Quinn had offered to get her a second ticket so she’d have company but she figured it was fair she went it alone since he was game to read her book. How terrifying could a hockey game be in comparison to a brutal serial killer story?

Quite scary, it turned out. The crowd was electric, the arena was sold out, and the noise was deafening. She’d never admit it to Quinn but she did watch some basic hockey rule videos on YouTube so she wouldn’t be totally oblivious. By the third period, she felt settled into the rhythm of the game and was actually enjoying it a bit. Especially when a fight broke out and she could cheer for violence against a random man she didn’t know alongside thousands of people. There was something very cathartic about the experience. 

It also turned out that Quinn, in this world, is a big deal. She’d immediately noticed that a huge percentage of fans were wearing his jersey. And as the team warmed up, Quinn had traded a puck for a piece of candy causing the teenage girl to scream in hysterics afterwards. It was both bizarre and fascinating to watch given she’d met this random man the day before at her family’s store. Maybe she should have asked for a signature, it probably would sell for a pretty penny…

A roar from the crowd pulled her attention back to the ice and her heart dropped to her stomach. Fights were a lot less fun when you knew and had budding feelings for one of the guys involved, especially when who he was squared off against had almost half a foot on him. To her surprise and relief, Quinn could hold his own, using speed to his advantage. When they both fell to the ice before finally being separated, she took it to mean it was a draw but the crowd screamed like he’d single handedly won the championship game, even as he was guided off the ice by the officials. There was less than three minutes left in the game so she hoped that was why rather than that he was hurt. She worried her lip between her teeth as she pulled out her phone.

Idk if you’ll see this before the end of the game but are you okay?????

She sighed as the minutes passed, the final buzzer sounding without a reply, so she stood to leave with the tide of people. Just as she tucked her phone in her pocket, she felt it buzzing insistently with a phone call. 

“Quinn, are you okay?” she asked without greeting him. She was focused on his answer but noticed a few fans within hearing distance whip their heads towards her at his name.

“Yeah, sorry I jumped right in the shower after the major.”

“I don’t totally know what that whole sentence means but I’m relieved you’re alright.”

His warm chuckle through the phone made her toes curl. “Did I scare you off?”

“I’m offended you’d think so” she replied but if he’d been with her, he’d easily tell she was a little shaken by the experience. 

“If you say so, Dora…” he teased and she laughed loudly, accidentally drawing more attention her way. “Can I take you out for a drink then?”

“Yeah, I’d like that. I’m currently in a sea of your most devoted followers though so I’ll need some help finding you.” 

He stayed on the phone as he guided her through the arena to the parking deck where he’d meet her shortly, only hanging up once she confirmed she was at the right car by reading his license plate number back to him. She scrolled through her phone while waiting but she felt eyes on her. She couldn’t help but be a little uncomfortable at the thought that these strangers knew Quinn’s car or at very least understood players would be emerging into this section of the parking garage. As a lifelong Vancouver resident, she obviously knew how hockey-obsessed her city was but she never thought much about these details.

She heard male voices approaching from the opposite direction of where she’d come so she tucked her phone in her purse. Quinn emerged with a tall blonde, their two heads bent together in serious conversation. When a young boy approached, they both paused, kneeling down to greet him and sign his jersey. They repeated the motion a few times before excusing themselves from the small crowd that had formed. 

“Hey! How’d you like the game?” Quinn asked, briefly pulling her in for a hug.

“I really liked the fighting until you were involved, then it was less fun” she admitted, smiling to greet Quinn’s companion. “I’m Theo.”

“Elias, good to meet you. Enjoy the rest of your night and maybe help Theo into your car before loading up, yeah?” Elias suggested and she felt her brows furrow. Quinn quickly glanced back towards the small group of people and her eyes followed his, noting that several phones were out and seemingly recording everything.

“Thanks man, drive safe” Quinn replied, placing his hand on the small of her back to guide her to the passenger side “Sorry about that.”

“It’s fine” she replied despite her confusion and frazzledness. He must have seen it on her face though because he quickly unlocked the door and helped her in. A moment later he was in the driver’s seat, backing up and speeding through the parking deck. 

“I think this is the longest silence I’ve experienced in your presence” Quinn mused at the long, but not uncomfortable, quiet that had settled.

“I’m sorry that was just…”

“A lot? Too much? I can drop you off if you’ve changed your mind, I get it” he nervously filled in.

“Quinn, stop,” she laughed. “That’s not what I was going to say, it’s just a lot to process. I really thought you were trying to, like, gas yourself up when you said people wanted your signature daily but the girl you gave a puck to almost burst into tears afterwards” 

His cheeks flamed a deep crimson which she found wildly endearing, “Yeah, it’s a lot to process for me and it’s my life.” She took in his tired eyes and the dark circles beneath them. 

“Why don’t we go back to my place? I have a full bar cart and you seem like you could use some quiet” she offered. 

“Are you sure? I wouldn’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“Quinn, I extended the invitation, of course I’m sure. Just take the left at the next light.” 

She guided him through the city to her apartment, allowing silences to stretch while he seemingly decompressed from the game and its aftermath. Contrary to his initial impression, she was comfortable with quiet and enjoyed when someone’s company didn’t require constant banter and attention.

“Here, park in this spot, my neighbor’s away this week so no one will care if you're there.” 

He did as instructed and she went to open the car door, nearly knocking him with it, “Jesus, Quinn! Did you sprint over here? I can open the door myself, you know…”

“I didn’t sprint, I just moved quickly. And I know you can open the door, I just wanted to do it for you” he mumbled and she smiled at his nervousness. 

“Well, thanks and I'm sorry for almost injuring you. It seems like something that could really fuck with your job.” 

“Just a little” he chuckled, offering his hand to help her out of his truck. She took it, enjoying how warm and calloused his fingers felt against her own. He went to remove his grip but she squeezed his fingers in a silent request to keep holding on, which he did. 

“This is a great spot” he complimented as they rode the elevator up to her floor. “I guess the writing’s really working out?”

“I moved in about a year ago. I’d been doing pretty good but then my most recent book, the one your coworker recommended, kind of blew up. Which is great but also has made getting the sequel done a bit stressful” she admitted, reluctantly releasing his hand to unlock her door. 

“Why’s that? Wouldn’t the success kind of add to your confidence?”

“It did, for a little, but if this next one tanks then it just proves it was a fluke and then what?” she questioned, flicking on the lights. “Penny!” she called, squatting down to pet her beloved dog. 

Penny wiggled into her body, pushing her over and onto the floor making Theo chuckle. “Settle down, it’s only been a few hours.” 

“She’s beautiful” Quinn complimented from behind her, closing the door as he stepped inside. Penny was immediately investigating him, sniffing his hands as her tail wagged excitedly. “What a sweetie. You said her name’s Penny, right?”

“Yeah, short for Pennywise” Theo elaborated as she stood back up to slip her shoes off. 

“Of course, how silly of me to not make the connection” he chuckled. 

“I mean, I’m named after a horror novel character so I had to continue the family tradition with my own child” she explained, making her way towards the kitchen. 

“Are you really?” 

“Yeah, Theodora from Haunting of Hill House. Richie was named after Tozier in Stephen King’s It.” 

“That makes your choice of genre less surprising.” 

She laughed and shrugged, “What can I get you to drink?”

“Honestly? I don’t really drink, I just wanted to see you tonight since the game didn’t scare you off.” 

“I tried to tell you, I don’t scare easily,” she teased. “I don’t really drink either. Hot cocoa?” 

“Sounds great, thanks” he replied and she busied herself getting the ingredients together. “Seriously though, what did you think of the game?” 

“Like I said, it was fun until I worried you were hurt, then it was significantly less enjoyable” she answered, handing him a warm mug. “Want to hang in my library? Your book taste is questionable but I still think you’ll enjoy my collection.” 

“Why is my taste questionable?” he scoffed but followed her down the hall. 

“It’s just very…dude bro-y.” 

“How elegant” he teased and she rolled her eyes. 

“Maybe not elegant, but accurate, no?” 

“Whatever, Dora” he grumbled and she laughed.

“Is that going to be a thing? You call me by my least favorite nickname when I annoy you?”

“To be fair, it was you who offered that name up.” 

She sighed, sipping her drink and settling into the couch in her study. She watched as he slowly made his way around the room, every wall lined with books from floor to ceiling. “This room is incredible.” 

“Thanks” she beamed, genuinely thrilled at the compliment. “It’s kind of my pride and joy, aside from Penny, of course.” 

“I can tell,” he replied earnestly, settling beside her. “There has to be some nonfiction in here, right?” 

“Sure, if you’re into true crime, psychology, forensics, and/or mental health memoirs.” 

“I actually really enjoy psychology, it’s helped my game a lot.” 

“Really?” she asked and couldn’t hide the surprise from her tone which earned her a light glare. “I just meant that hockey seems much more physical than cerebral.”

“Oh it’s super mental actually” he argued and she nodded her encouragement for him to continue. “Okay so tonight for example. I didn’t have to drop my gloves and fight but doing so showed my team that I have their back and the other team that even though I’m smaller, they can’t push me around. Since I’m a quieter guy, I choose my actions carefully to kind of speak without speaking if that makes sense.”

“It does but you’re not small, silly. Not that it would matter even if you were but you’re not.” 

“I’m hockey small” he corrected and she didn’t know enough to argue. “Oh, another example. When a player is approaching the goal, they have to strategize what they can physically do while also anticipating the goalies expectations. Which is hard because the goalie is doing the same thing. So, it becomes really strategic in addition to the skill you need to play at this level.”

She nodded, genuinely intrigued by this new element of the game she watched tonight. He must have taken her silence for boredom because he quickly continued, “I’m sorry, I can be a bit of a hockey nerd.”

“Don’t be sorry, it honestly makes the game more interesting to me to think of it that way. Plus, I already knew you were a book nerd, what’s one more level of nerdiness?” 

He rolled his eyes and she laughed, lost in their deep blue. The air shifted between them, tension developing where there had been none. She set her mug down, eyes dipping to his lips and back up. She really wanted to know what his mouth would feel like against hers. 

“I come with a lot of baggage” he admitted quietly and she shrugged. 

“Don’t we all?” she asked, matching his quiet tone. She couldn’t help herself from raising a hand to gently trace the curve of his cheekbones. “I really like looking at you” she mumbled before she could think the comment through. 

He chuckled softly, covering her hand with his own, “I really like looking at you too, weirdo.” 

She grinned at his response, closing her eyes as his mouth finally met her own. 

A/N: Sorry for the cut to black, I'm debating if I want to continue with this OC so let me know what you think! It's my first OC in a very, very long time so sorry if the grammar is wonky in spots.

[readwebcomicsgdi]

You keep saying "Build a website" but doesn't that cost money?

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If you give it a shot and find you DON'T really care to dump resources into it, if it isn't that big of a deal to you if it goes down with a company's ship one day, then it's probably not worth the trouble or the money! Websites are a lot of work and resources, and while in my opinion it's a good trade not everyone would agree. Maybe you have other places you need to put your money or your time, you have other things that take priority that means you don't elect to drop money on something that's more like a hobby, that's fine. This isn't like, backhanded either; not everyone DOES want to fool with all this, and even if you're into making comics that doesn't mean you also have strong enough feelings about longevity or ownership to want to put in the effort to own your own space.

Whether it's something you want to carve out for yourself is up to you, I can't help y'all with that. A lot of my aim when I bring up hosting is to remind people about the inherent risk they're taking by relying entirely on corporations to house these passion projects that are long term and, frequently, unattractive to the shareholders who will probably gain influence over the corporation during the course of the work. The internet is aggressively centralized, to the point a lot of people have gotten so comfortable with apps and for-profit social media that they trust them with a lot more than they should and aren't even aware there are other options. If it's free, you're the product, and as soon as you stop being profitable they will sweep up everything you've built and send you out empty handed. If that's not alarming to you, by all means set up shop somewhere like Webtoon. Really! But if it is, figure out what your goals are and get to work.

[everythingbap]

🎤 Koreaboo: K-Pop Idol Goes Viral For Using The Fan Messaging App In The Most Unexpected Way

They are receiving a positive response from netizens too!

While many exciting and unique idols were mentioned, one idol garnered much attention online.

A fan recommended B.A.P’s Bang Yongguk as he summarized the daily news to fans through the fan community app.

I recommend B.A.P’s Bang Yongguk, an idol who summarizes the daily social news to fans…it feels like I paid 5,000 KRW to a newspaper subscription.

Bang Yongguk is known to leave long messages regarding news to fans. However, he was caught in a dilemma because he wasn’t sure if it was considered unauthorized sharing.

“I’m bringing things I want to share over here while reading the news, but is it okay for me to share it, or is it considered unauthorized sharing because it’s a media news article? Ah, so then, should I leave the source of the news company and the name of the reporter? But because this fromm app is a profitable platform, maybe I can’t? Ah but it’s not a problem if I share the news link? Oh no, then that means you guys have to read the whole article.”

“I wanted to summarize the news in a short story format…ah this is hard. I guess because you guys pay for this app, sharing the news link can be seen as commercial use. Ah, so you’re saying it’s ok if I write a whole new summary of the news I read and leave the source, then it’s okay.”

Below are some examples of his news summaries that he sent to fans.

Seeing how long these messages were, netizens could understand why fans felt like they were subscribed to a newspaper.

In some of his news summaries, he would leave a bit of his own commentary at the end.

Korean netizens were intrigued at his unique way of using the app with many wanting to subscribe to his messages!

“He’s a smart guy, so cool.”

“He came on the app ten times in August, and three of those times were these types of newsletters. He also sent selfies too. He does what he needs to do while sending the news.”

“Wow, I want to subscribe to him. His summaries are written so it’s easy to read.”

“He’s good! I want to subscribe to him too.”

“It’s actually informative. Newsletter subscription lol.”

“It’s informative!”

“Wow. Never seen someone use the fan community app like this before. It looks like the group chat of my work field sharing the news.”

“So freaking funny.”

“Wow I actually want to subscribe to this?”

“It’s so cute how he adds a bit of his own commentary at the end.”

“lololololol. Ah this is so nice?”

“It’s really nice? It makes me want to subscribe to him.”

“lolololol it’s informative.”

“Wow I want to subscribe.”

“Wow so informative. It’s easy to read because he summarized it well.”

“Wow it’s like a real newsletter.”

“His commentary at the end is so cute.”

What are your thoughts about an idol using the app to share daily news? Would you subscribe to him?

[beyondthisdarkhouse]

What is the Tumblr kokobot mental health thing and why does it keep messaging me when I go into various mental health/neurodivergent tags? I'm generally looking for community and I don't appreciate this site deciding I am In Danger. You're a therapist and I feel like you've probably talked about mental health apps before so thought I'd ask

Uuuugh, that thing. I think I blocked it a couple months back. BUT, I'm going to be as fair to it as I can.

The part you and I bumped into is their automated chatbot, which monitors traffic on social media sites to detect people having mental health crises and try to convince them to access mental health support. Apparently their bot got good enough at detecting human behaviour patterns online that they actually spun it off into a separate company for a while and then sold their tech to a corporation, before returning to the mental health idea. They returned to it, critically, as a non-profit, which is why I'm willing to give it a second look at all.

tl;dr: I would not immediately warn everyone away from using it! Which is more than I could say for a lot of Silicon Valley mental health startups. I don't love the current implementation, but I think they might have the makings of a decent mutual aid platform for temporary moments of stress.

Long version below

Like, I was not a fan at all of Trill when Tumblr partnered with it, because I felt that they were using well-intentioned volunteers to do potentially harrowing and dangerous work without adequate training or support. (Or not-so-great volunteers, since I was dubious about their vetting process) And a lot of Kokobot's origin story is in some ways really similar to Trill.

Most of these startups and initiatives mean well. They want to make the world better and help provide comfort and support to people who need that. I admire them for their dedication to a good cause. However, I believe that when you are devoting significant resources to building a system where you ask people to choose you for support in their moments of vulnerability, you cannot put your intentions ahead of their needs.

Like: It is really great that people want to help the less-fortunate. I think it shows warmth of heart to want to go somewhere and build homes for the homeless. But if you've never built a house before, and the houses you build are so poorly constructed that they fall down or catch fire or whatever, and they wouldn't have if you'd put the equivalent amount of money into hiring local out-of-work carpenters to do the work properly, I don't think you should keep operating like that as a charity.

I'm also judging Koko a bit as the former teenager who wanted to help people, in terms of how much they provide guidance and support to the helpers they've recruited.

Finally, I feel the need to remind all of us, as useless as such reminders feel, that if you are not paying for a social media platform, you aren't a customer; you are the product. "Kokobot", the organization, the platform, the AI, are not the core producers of its value. Its users are. Without people in distress to whom to provide support, and without supportive people there in times of distress, it would not exist.

Maybe this will never be an issue. Maybe this conflict will never arise. Maybe the nonprofit organization will be devoted enough to the needs of its userbase that they will serve them faithfully and well. I hope so.

I'm just... jaded, by things I've seen before.

What I don't like at all:

It took me a lot of work to go from looking up Kokobot on Tumblr to understanding how the company worked, what using the app was like, and whether their work was being informed by anyone with a lick of knowledge about mental health care. I still don't know a lot of stuff about how they handle anonymity in situations like imminent suicide or homicide, or abuses of the platform.

Kokobot messaging people out of the blue is creepy as hell. My first response was, "Fuck off, I can TELL you're not ethical." Most ethical guidelines I know of for mental health therapists explicitly forbid directly soliciting clients ("Hey there, I can tell you've got a few issues. Here's my card"), especially when people appear psychologically vulnerable or in distress. The only wiggle room there is when you're working in disaster relief and crisis intervention, but that does not make it an "anything goes" situation.

@kokobot posting lots of testimonials from users about how great their service is. Again, something usually strictly forbidden by ethical standards! When someone has just come to you in distress and you've provided them help, and then ask them to give you a Yelp review, you're not usually going to get thoughtful, measured, and informed feedback. It's a weird power dynamic that might be great advertising, but not great informed consent.

While Koko might be a legit company that does its job well, its presence and behaviour opens up the field of what is acceptable behaviour on social media. If one app can track mental health tags and solicit vulnerable people into joining their group, why not another? What will stop Scientology (which has done this in person for decades) from creating a similar app, pitching it to people in need, and coaching its users to go off all their psychiatric medications and use pseudoscience instead? Where are the safeguards?

What's Not Terrible

Kokobot is clunky and weird, but like I said on my post on Trill, the hardest part of moderation on social media is the amount of labour it takes, and the human cost of that labour. It seems to me that by using AI, Koko might have found an efficient way to automate much of that labour.

I tried out the actual app itself, messaging on Telegram; for my "problem", I just said I was concerned that a friend was messaging Koko a lot and I wanted to make sure it was legit. Sending it out required answers to some pretty vital questions—did I feel hopeful or hopeless about the world? What kinds of best- or worst-case scenarios was I imagining? They were worded in a way that felt human and genuine, and the chatbot was responsive and encouraging before my problem ever got human eyes on it.

(For the record: These are questions that can very quickly give information on whether someone is likely to be a danger to themselves or anyone else, which are really important.)

Then, at the bot's suggestion, I also helped a couple other people, where I was given very rough and ready training on active listening, then coached into writing a response. It avoided a lot of on-ramps to community toxicity, inasmuch as the problems and replies were private and anonymous, and there were instant feedback options if anything was worrying or upsetting.

This process showed what I think was a more sophisticated and useful implementation of AI than, uh....... like 99% of the AI I've seen. This is mostly a statement on the state of AI, but still. Koko seems like the bot's responses were really carefully workshopped and designed by actual humans who knew about crisis intervention and risk assessment.

The replies I got to my "problem" were fairly good, empathetic and genuine. (The bot encourages people to be a little dorky, and seeing an auto-generated response I myself was suggested made me roll my eyes; this could reduce the value for some people.)

I can definitely see the benefit of encouraging people who are feeling distressed to help others. Engaging in peer support encourages empathy, and helps people feel like they've got something to offer, and that problems might be solvable.

In the end, Kokobot is an expansion of the kind of work volunteer-run distress and crisis hotlines do. It has the potential to do a lot of good, but the organization itself has to consider so many other factors and processes than its users do. I sincerely hope it and Tumblr are being extremely thoughtful and careful in how they handle this work.

I would be delighted to be proven wrong, and have them turn out to be totally amazing. I really hope they do.

[anamatics]

Personally I prefer kudos to comments on my fics. I don’t really have the time or the mental energy to reply to every single comment, and if I don’t do that I feel guilty. When I read a fic I only really comment if I have something important to say, or something specific I liked abt the fic. When every single app, website, etc uses the ‘like’ over ‘comment’ algorithm, you can’t expect people to suddenly not do that just bc it wasn’t an original feature of ao3. Expecting people to leave a comment to stroke your ego bc you wrote something kinda ain’t it for me dude. Knowing people read it, and liked it, should be enough if you yourself are content with your work and its quality. Not everybody is a critic who wants to leave a paragraph review. Some people just want a silly story and to move on. I’d rather have 500 kudos than 500 comments, and I’d rather read a fic with 500 kudos over 500 comments.

It must be a pretty grim view you have of me if you think I need my ego stroked by fanfic, a thing I do in my extremely limited spare time as a social thing for friends. I’m sorry you feel this way about me. Please just unfollow if you’ve got this much of an issue with me.

I want to unpack this for a minute, though.

“Personally I prefer kudos to comments on my fics.”

I don’t. It’s okay to have different opinions on what we want in terms of engagement from our friends, peers, and random internet strangers over our work.

“When every single app, website, etc uses the ‘like’ over ‘comment’ algorithm, you can’t expect people to suddenly not do that just bc it wasn’t an original feature of ao3.”

1) archive of our own does not use a “comment” or “like” algorithm. There is no fanfic serving algorithm on archive of our own because it is an archive, not a social platform. Content recommendation algorithms like you see on TikTok or YouTube are designed to keep you engaged, watching ads, and generating ad revenue for the company, oftentimes while, again, using user generated content that was produced FOR FREE to drive eyeballs and engagement to these ads.

2) Like buttons were created for advertisers. Archive of our own is not for profit, which means it doesn’t have advertising on its website. Why have a like button if it is, essentially, meaningless to the platform. The feature doesn’t do anything for Ao3.

“Expecting people to leave a comment to stroke your ego bc you wrote something kinda ain’t it for me dude. Knowing people read it, and liked it, should be enough if you yourself are content with your work and its quality.”

Creative energy, thought, and process are labor. People who do free labor out of their want to share a story they wrote and are proud of are allowed to want and desire praise. Let’s put it another way: you’re working in a big project at your job, you do a great job, absolutely knock the project out of the park - do you want praise? Do you want to feel like your hard work will be acknowledged? I’m assuming yes.

Now imagine that your boss doesn’t say anything to you. Imagine that no one does. Imagine that there’s some sort of company newsletter that briefly mentions your project under a heading: “kudos” where you’re lumped in with 25 other people. Your hard work is cheapened because no one bothered to tell you they cared, no one bothered to speak to you directly and honor your hard work. Yes, you’re content with the work you did on the project, but when you do work and you’re proud of it, others around you should honor that work. Not cheapen it by sticking you in a group with 25 other people. It wouldn’t seem really fair, I’m assuming.

I dislike your framing that desiring engagement with the product of unpaired creative labor to produce a creative work that others are consuming for free as ego stroking. That is incredibly dismissive of how people who do creative work feel about their work, and absolutely neglects to consider people where they’re at. A comment can make someone’s entire day. A kudos email about 5 people hitting kudos? Yes, it’s nice, but it isn’t nice in the same way as a comment.

“Not everybody is a critic who wants to leave a paragraph review. Some people just want a silly story and to move on.”

Nowhere did I say a person had to write a paragraph review. I suggested if you’re rereading something to type “reread kudos” into the comment box.

But also: that silly story took the author how many hours to write? How many hours to edit? To plan? This says to me that fic is a commodity whose production costs (time and effort to produce, skill, expertise) you don’t value very much. I’m sorry this is the case. Some of us have been writing fic for a long time and this is a very discouraging attitude to encounter. Because what’s the point of writing then? This is why people stop writing, they feel their unpaid creative labor isn’t valued.

[n2qfd]

TikTok?

I was thinking about the strange focus on this app and I really do think it's an issue worth looking at, but what about the other things that are owned by non US interests?

I work as a contractor in an energy firm in New York State.

Said energy firm is an IOU (Investor Owned Utility) which is a way of saying for-profit legal monopoly. I get that utilities are different than other companies. Said energy firm is a major one, with only one or two regional competitors. Said energy company is owned along with a swath of energy companies across New England by a Spanish firm. Next largest "competition" is owned by a British firm.

There are other electric and gas utilities in New York State that are in state owned or US owned but these two multinational companies control a lot of power distrabution in the region.

Focusing on the Spanish one, sure Spain is a pal and they're in NATO but the majority investor in this Spanish firm is Qatar.

When I worked more on the extraction end of this business mining the Marcellus Shale formation for methane the investor areas were geographic portions of the deposits and again multinational. Big holdings were Chinese, Norwegian, British it was mostly external investors putting up the capital to develop the gas field.

TikTok can mobilize legions of well meaning but wildly gullible people. This is the demonstrable nature and awful reality of social media. They aren't alone in this, Facebook and Twitter have been used to stir the masses into action for better and for worse too. These tools have a way of being used to shape public opinion.

What about our power grid? I mean we're all here making it work and keeping it running. As far as I know it's not like there's a big key or a switch in Spain or England that will shut off things. It's all here, but does it make sense? We are installing "smart meters" so by next year most of New Yorks meters will be part of the internet of things. They will be able to do direct reads and will monitor your usage 24/7. You can also have your power remotely shut down ...

If the idea is that prosecuting for misdeeds by Facebook would be easier than TikTok which would be impossible who do we sue if/when there are power problems?

[mariacallous]

Days after Meta launched its new app, Threads, this month, a software engineer at the company named Ben Savage introduced himself to a developer group at the World Wide Web Consortium, a web standards body. The group, which maintains a protocol for connecting social networks called ActivityPub, had been preparing for this moment for months, ever since rumors first emerged that Meta planned to join the standard. Now, that moment had arrived. “I'm really interested to see how this interoperable future plays out!” he wrote.

Warm replies to Savage’s email filtered in. And then came another response:

“The company you work for does disgusting things among others. It harms relationships and isolates people. It builds walls and lures people into them. When that doesn't suffice, brutal peer pressure does … That said, welcome to the list, Ben.”

Meta’s embrace of ActivityPub, used by apps including the Twitter-like Mastodon, was bound to be a little awkward. The constellation of small apps and personal servers that currently use the protocol, known as the Fediverse, is marked by an ethos of sharing and openness, not profit-seeking or user bases denominated in the billions. ActivityPub is designed to allow users of different apps to not only interact and view each others’ content, but also move their digital identity from one service to another. Mastodon, the largest app in the Fediverse, is open source and run by a nonprofit, and smaller Fediverse apps like PeerTube and Lemmy are often held up as a repudiation of the closed nature of services such as YouTube or Reddit. Corporations like Meta are typically held up as the enemy. No surprise that, despite appeals from ActivityPub leaders for civility when Meta arrived on the listserv, some couldn’t hold their tongue.

Weeks-old Threads already dwarfs the Fediverse, which has been around for more than a decade and recently peaked at about 4 million active monthly users. Some Fediverse fans see that imbalance as a win: Suddenly, the network could become many times more relevant. Others consider that view naive and expect Meta’s size to push the small world of apps built on ActivityPub in undesirable directions. Some have circulated a pact to preemptively block content from Threads’ servers from appearing on their own.

“The Fediverse community has been jolted into motion—due to fear and loathing of Meta, and also excitement,” says Dmitri Zagidulin, a developer who leads the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) group responsible for discussing the future of ActivityPub. The prospect of Meta joining the decentralized movement has people trying to spiff up their projects and prepare for the spotlight. “There are furious meetings. Grants being applied for. Pull requests. Pushes for better security, better user experience. Better everything,” he says.

Zagidulin is himself a member of a Mastodon server that operates as a social cooperative, where users collectively decide major decisions. They recently held a vote on whether to preemptively block Threads, a process known as defederation. The result: 51 percent in favor, 49 percent against.

That divide reflects different visions for the Fediverse’s future. One involves embracing Threads to bootstrap the network’s stagnant growth. The ideals of openness and giving users more control didn’t tempt many people to join platforms like Mastodon until Elon Musk’s chaotic takeover of Twitter sent many longtime users looking for new digital homes. Even then, the bump quickly went bust. Some users gave up after finding federation tools confusing compared to Twitter. Then came Bluesky, a competitor supported by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey that reflects many of the same principles but is developing a rival decentralized protocol to ActivityPub.

Amidst those challenges, Meta’s interest dangles the potential of the company’s vast resources and reach to inject new life into the Fediverse movement. “This is a clear victory for our cause,” wrote Eugen Rochko, CEO of Mastodon, in a blog post on the day Threads launched.

Others simply want Meta out. To Fediverse users like Vanta Black, the warm response from community leaders to Meta’s interest felt like betrayal. In 2017, as she navigated her gender identity, she found a home in small Mastodon communities where moderators and users intermingled and held shared values for how to filter out hateful posts. She fears the arrival of millions of Threads users will unleash volumes of content into the Fediverse that are impossible to manage.

This spring, after rumors that Meta was planning a project that would integrate with ActivityPub, Black launched the “Anti-Meta FediPact,” a pledge for Fediverse communities to defederate from the company’s future offering. So far, the pact has been signed by a few hundred admins, most representing smaller Fediverse groups. Others are having similar debates to Zagidulin’s group, part of a lively discussion about whether members of an “open” ecosystem should preemptively block new participants.

Black points out that there’s precedent: a collective effort in 2019 to block the far-right social network Gab after it began using Mastodon’s software. The effort was considered broadly successful at blocking Gab content from filtering into the Fediverse. Meta’s content moderation policies, as well as its role in human rights abuses and global conflicts, Black argues, put it in the same must-block bucket. She sees the hunger for growth expressed by some Fediverse leaders conflicting with what’s best for the community. “Success for the Fediverse to me is retaining what makes it the Fediverse now,” she says.

Johannes Ernst, a member of the W3C’s ActivityPub group, says he can sympathize with those who wish to defederate for reasons of personal safety. But at the same time, he can’t help but feel that attracting Meta realizes an elusive dream for the open protocol.

The Fediverse’s small size can feel intimate—but also isolating for people who want to connect with family and friends not interested in the arcana of distributed online services, or who want to build new Fediverse services to serve large user bases. Suddenly, rather than trying to build a network from scratch, they will potentially have access to more than a hundred million users. “It’s an entirely different conversation,” he says.

How Meta decides to implement ActivityPub in Threads will help determine the outcome of what could be the Fediverse’s big bang. “It’s not plug-and-play,” says Ernst. The company will have to choose how closely to allow Threads users to integrate with other Fediverse servers. That includes deciding how easily users can migrate their accounts and networks to other services, and whether to provide support such as tools that redirect followers to a user’s new home. Meta’s leaders will also have to decide what kinds of Threads content will be broadcast out into the Fediverse—including, potentially, the role of ads—and how users outside of Threads will be able to see or interact with it on their own platforms. Meta did not respond to a request for comment.

Given that Threads could at a stroke represent the majority of Fediverse users and content, those choices will be deeply felt by existing users of decentralized apps. And anyone building a Fediverse app could find themselves essentially forced to optimize sharing content with Threads users. Mastodon plays a similar role on the network right now because of its large relative size, Ernst says, but so far it has a good relationship and open dialog with other Fediverse developers. A giant for-profit corporation might not manage to do the same.

Meta executives told staffers last week that ActivityPub integration “is a long way off,” according to The Verge. There’s a history of large platforms being quick to announce their interest in the protocol but slower to implement any integration, Zagidulin says, pointing to Tumblr’s as-yet-unrealized announcement last year of ActivityPub integration. Meta itself has a fickle history with open protocols. A decade ago, the company briefly embraced XMPP, an interoperable messaging protocol, along with competitors like Microsoft. But the effort was quickly abandoned.

But conditions are different now. Government officials mulling how to regulate large tech platforms today often turn to the idea of requiring interoperability, says Georgios Petropoulos, a researcher at the MIT Initiative on the Digital Economy. Threads is not currently available in Europe, due at least in part to uncertainties related to the EU’s new Digital Markets Act and other regulations—especially rules related to how Threads user data will interact with data on other platforms, Petropoulos believes. The new EU rules also contain provisions on interoperability that are still being hashed out. It’s logical, Petropoulos says, for Meta to work with a protocol that’s partly managed by W3C, a respectable global standards organization, and that has already attracted other mainstream platforms like Tumblr. But it’s too soon to know how seriously the Facebook parent will take interoperability.

In the meantime, users like Zagidulin and Black are already taking action in response to just the specter of Meta’s integration into—or engulfment of—the Fediverse.

Zagidulin’s co-op server is planning more votes to determine how exactly to proceed. With the community evenly split, he says, one scenario would be to split the community across two servers—one that communicates with Meta’s empire and one that doesn’t. Black isn’t so optimistic about managing the divide. “I’d prefer the status quo, rather than two castles where one is sunny and one is dark,” she says.

[docbe]

So the university I work at came out recently with a ban on Tiktok on all uni-related devices and the data team had an amused little conversation because like. There’s no way that decision was made by data/security people

Does tiktok mine your data? Absolutely. Is it worse than any other social media and/or part of a giant Chinese spy plot to get dirt on other countries? Mmmmmprobably not haha

Like the thing is, social media giants are hugely profitable, but almost nobody actually pays them anything—they’re free services. And they’re free because they can make an assload of money selling your data. China doesn’t really need to secretly mine data because, frankly, any data they might want is already likely available through existing social media. And yeah, they could use video content for things like facial recognition…but you could do that through Instagram or YouTube or Facebook or literally any other major platform. It’s a Hugely profitable enterprise—if tiktok is some sort of secret intel gathering effort, it would probably only make sense they just didn’t want to buy the data already available from major US social media corporations

If you don’t use tiktok for privacy reasons, that’s perfectly reasonable. Protect your data! But if tiktok is the only thing on your radar, well…probably not doing all that much. If you’re not paying for a service, or if there isn’t transparent funding or policy (eg fundraisers like wikipedia or AO3, Mozilla’s open source emphasis, etc), they’re making money on your data. Things that are cheaper but cagey about data policy and come pre-loaded with apps like Facebook or chrome, they’re making money on your data. And there’s really not a whole lot stopping almost anyone from buying that data, whether it’s harmless company figuring out demographics or whether it’s a full blown foreign propaganda campaign

There’s a lot of reasons not to want to get involved with tiktok—it’s weird brand of censorship, avoiding distractions, whatever. But the data mining scare is mostly politically motivated, and honestly I think there’s a stronger case for politicians getting uncomfy with the younger generations congregating on a platform that they find difficult to control. Either way, just be mindful about the industry that is your digital footprint and all that

[icelogged]

soooooooooo right abt coquette being used for regressive femininity im not even familiar w it but it's just kinda really frustrating to see something u found yourself in being used for something almost diametrically opposite to it

EMMM one of my favourite gay people on my phone or however it goes

“—used for something almost diametrically opposite to it”.

that’s what gets me the most. the reclamation of girlhood lost to trauma repackaged into patriarchal bigoted dogma but written in a glitter pen.

i went off longer than i expected, so i went full throttle— oleta’s soapbox moment. tysm for this gift cliff 🫀💞 I will try to use it well :3 @ everyone else if you are not acquainted with nuance or im generalizing (not all xyz) don’t interact with post maybe sit outside without your for 15 minutes. i’m in flare today and can’t deal with people thinking i am attacking a specific group, im targeting them specifically when we’re literally strangers etc etc

just because you put a racially “diverse” [one girl of colour] group of VS models as your header, reblogged *“poc coquettes” are valid and think women are inherently “divine” doesn’t mean your opinion on body hair [a true neutral; as it doesn’t care what you identify as, it just grows (and yes there are exceptions)] and femininity, want for your boyfriend to think for you, holding his finger instead of his hand to make you feel small and demure, constructing every facet of your being down to smell whatever corporations say “is” coquette—doesn’t mean your idea of femininity is extremely regressive, Mary. and it literally does not serve you.

when people speak out about this the response is so sinister and calculated; suddenly these concerned persons are anti-feminist. “let women have fun and feel good”. uhm hey did you know that your pleasure shouldn’t the only indicator in deciding what is “good” or not.

how are you going to tell me that saying **woke trad wife aestheticisms and waiting to see what the influencer it girl of week is wearing before shopping is anti-feminist. it’s like the definition of feminism has become freedom for women to do whatever they want [instead fighting for worldwide liberation and then equity]. feminism is anti-feminist because you told a woman no… smells western selfishness to me. “if it feels good then it can’t be bad”. so it’s feminist to agree with the man who ended eating women he said this to [fictional, chose this example because i think Hayden is a kinda genius and i so thankful work for so many reasons but the discussions and awareness her “silly little story” has shifted the trajectory of many]

this all very by design and social media amplifies it. [I know i draw tiktok through the mud every chance i get but] eras don’t even last 5 years now and that shift can be marked through tiktok’s journey from being musical.ly to what it is now.

musical.ly [branded as fun social media for youth including underage persons] -> oops we had such a bad pedophile problem we gotta overhaul everything -> tiktok [cringe, because it was just musical.ly but called something different and people think people especially kids minding their own business and having fun lipsyncing is cringe, 2018?2019?] -> summer 2019; guys it’s just like vine, are feeling that nostalgia son?(it was not like vine) -> im locked in my house wah wah (people are dying steven) i am so bored and addicted to technology that when i refresh my feeds and there’s no new content i don’t know what to do with myself time to try this new app. did i mention im horny and my porn addiction got worse <3 -> tiktok having to scramble again because of all the new adult content. thus the tiktok is now an app for everyone rebrand -> disguised ads as unsponsored content -> becomes a profitable app -> you can’t say lesbian but you can sure romanticize the nuclear family -> (we are here. i’ll be talking more specifically about regressive femininity especially the kind found in the “coquette”community) femininity is womanhood, it is a specific checklist and if you don’t follow it you’ll never be a lizzy grant waif key west kitten soft girl old money female manipulator (i’ll never get that one, Jesus). shaping your body and presentation to what is deemed desirable and feminine is self care and self care costs money thus hating your natural self is actually bettering it. let the original self die and be just like her [can be anyone, tuned to their likes and opinion on beauty] and don’t forget to preserve your youth [as if aging wasn’t a natural process and something you could stop if you have the money]. older male validation should be your lifeblood, they aren’t like the silly boys at your school, don’t you want fall in love and have a big strong man to protect you that takes advantage of your naïveté to control you but that’s okay because you’re an angel starlet and he has money because he’s older (no he doesn’t he’s in debt Julia like everyone else) <3 but when you hit 26 you might as well be ***milf. be warned hubby gets bored of “milfs” because they’re too harden by the world by then, seen too much, too hard to shape into the little maid sex doll of his dreams so he trolls for ****eighteen years olds again. “if it’s legal :purple_devilface:” etc etc etc ! #coquette

*i’m going to be real with y’all… the use of “poc” [people of colour, person of colour] as a word, not as it’s true form as an acronym has taken years off my life. ‘person/people of colour coquette’ doesn’t make sense. while we’re at it… nblm/w also ruined my life specifically /hyperbolic. e.g nblm reads; ‘non-binary loving male’ when you mean ‘male loving non-binary’. as wlw reads; ‘woman loving women’ also interpreted as women loving women, though such wouldn’t work as smoothly for nblw etc

** i miss when woke actually meant something, aave and ball terminology becoming universal means nothing is sacred

*** the way men in their 60s are dilfs sometimes dilfs all the way to the grave— women who are 27 are milfs… but only three years later they’re hags! oh and men apparently somehow when you reach 30 you’re a certified daddy, unaffected by ageism and your desirability to people who’ve only been adults for less than five years is bass boosted supported by the patriarchy… that sounds familiar doesn’t it? desirability sure has a short shelf life for women and they have to care about it, agonize over it, spend all their money over it but that should be a post in itself *adds to my drafts <3* honestly i do write all the things i said i would i just have ocd and im waiting for a made up arbitrary time to post that is 100% determined by mental illness, perfectionism and subconscious self hate because i totally don’t consciously hate myself anymore because im the sweetest girl in town (haha get it?) and think im martyr gifted from god but i am really into self harming and sabotaging <3 thanks trauma you’ve made my life so interesting ! my brain gets more wrinkly everyday trying to navigate it <33333

****IN MY OPINION people shouldn’t be identified as adults when they are eighteen and nineteen but somebody really wanted to fuck someone’s daughter :/ making me think of another one my ****’s theses; all evil in the world stems from greed. now if society was founded in science not feelings adults would be 25 and older as the frontal cortex develops by then but i can see how that would be an eugenics nightmare as neurodivergent people etc can develop it later though i can’t see this hypothetical society checking everyone’s brain before deeming them an adult because a). you have to wait even longer to legally sexualize them b). it would give everyone a free mandatory health check up but that is also another conversation

[nickgerlich]

When Life Hands You Lemons

The semester is starting to wind down these days, especially for my grad students, whose term lasts only 13 weeks. It may seem like it is long at times, but it really is fast. And like many other semesters before, we have been treated to some very newsworthy, sometimes amusing, other times anger-inspiring, events that cause us to stand up and pay attention.



Like the ongoing worries over TikTok and whether it should be banished not just in individual states and on their government-owned devices, but nationwide. Australia just announced its complete ban on government-owned devices. In the US, in a rather odd come-together moment for the Right and Left, there is momentum to ban it here as well.



It’s just that TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, has more ammo in its case. The top apps right now for lifestyle and video editing are owned by them: Lemon8 and CapCut. Take that, you pompous lawmakers. We’re not just going to roll over and die.



CapCut is a handy tool for creating the reels that users post to TikTok or elsewhere. I only learned about it this last weekend from my oldest daughter, who said that “everyone’s using it” at the digital marketing agency she calls her professional home. Me, I use Mojo, which, for all I know, could be owned by ByteDance as well. She says it is much better than Mojo. I messaged Oldest Daughter yesterday about CapCut’s owner, and I could almost hear her gulp all the way from Dallas.



And then there’s Lemon8, the new social media app that is designed to take on both Instagram and Pinterest. But in the case of Lemon8, it’s only new to the US. Launched in 2020 to little fanfare, ByteDance kept it in limited circulation until now.

And now we know why.

Lemon8 is not an exact Instagram clone, however, focusing—at least for now—on fashion, food, wellness, and travel, among other general interest topics. Like BeReal, it shuns pretense, and urges users not to stage photos like many we see on Insta. The site also encourages users to include direct links to where viewers can buy featured products.

My question now is whether a ban on TikTok would also include a ban on Lemon8 and CapCut. And even if it does, what’s to stop ByteDance from continuing to roll out new apps to dodge federal bullets? Will it boil down to banishing all Chinese-owned apps, like Pinduoduo and Shein? This could lead to war, you know.

Which makes me begin to wonder if all this pomp and circumstance, this drum-beating, is an exercise in futility. Short of erecting a massive firewall around us, like the Chinese do to keep out western media, there’s little that can be done. Worse yet, it leads to frustrations among the people, especially when we live in a place that espouses First Amendment rights and freedoms. Fire up the VPN, as I have said before, and hope you don’t get caught. I hear that Chinese citizens can be in serious trouble if they do so. The last thing we need is a similar clamp down.

The other part of me wonders how people can continue to absorb so many social media sites. I am not opposed to the development of new ones at all. It’s just that there are still only 24 hours in the day, and I have a hard enough time just attending to Meta’s Facebook and Instagram. I have work to do, you know. Heck, my LinkedIn looks like a ghost page. I guess if I were looking for a job, I’d hop on it.

All of which means we are continuing to slice the market into ever smaller pieces, and as long as it can be done profitably, new sites will continue to roll out. Stir on the controversy of Chinese ownership, and Ima gonna have things to write about for a long, long time.

Let the user beware. There may be someone in Beijing looking over your shoulder.

Dr “But Still I Must Check It Out“ Gerlich

Audio Blog

[structuralengineering]

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[yazemark]

Does Anyone Really Make Money with Dropshipping on Shopify?

Yes, people can and do make money through dropshipping on Shopify. Success depends on factors like choosing the right products, effective marketing strategies, and commitment to growing and managing your online store.

About Shopify: Shopify is an e-commerce platform that allows individuals to create online stores without the need for physical inventory. Users can import products from various suppliers and sell them online through the dropshipping model. Suppliers ship products directly to customers, allowing sellers to focus on marketing and customer service.

Success Story: Alyssa Reb's Success Story - Alyssa started her dropshipping journey on Shopify after searching for ways to make money online. She began with a small budget, focusing on selling organic skincare products. After a few months of hard work optimizing her store and marketing her products on social media, she saw a noticeable increase in sales. In her first year, she made over $100,000 in profits. Today, Alyssa runs multiple successful stores and shares her experiences with others who want to start in dropshipping.

Shopify’s Features and Benefits for Dropshipping:

Ease of Use: The platform is designed for beginners and doesn’t require advanced technical knowledge.

Integration with Dropshipping Apps: Such as Oberlo and DSers, making it easy to find and import products to your store.

Customer Support: 24/7 support to help you with any questions or issues you might encounter.

Payment Options: Integration with multiple payment gateways to allow customers to pay in various ways.

Analytics and Marketing Tools: Provides advanced analytics and marketing campaigns to help you attract customers and boost sales.

If you're interested in starting dropshipping and making money, you can begin with Shopify by taking advantage of their special $1 first-month offer here.

Start now and benefit from Shopify’s numerous features to build your own store and achieve success.

[marketingprofitmedia]

VisualHub AI Review – Biggest Stock Image & Video Platform With Zero Monthly Fees!

Welcome to my VisualHub AI Review, This is a genuine user-based VisualHub AI review, in which I will discuss the features, upgrades, price, demo, and bonuses, how VisualHub AI can benefit you, and my own personal opinion. Get Instant Access To The World’s First Biggest Collection of Stock Images, Videos, Vectors, GIFS, and Audios Inbuilt Image/Video Editor on a Complete Searchable Platform.

Do you know that Shutterstock, istock pond5 are charging between $15 to $200 for a single image or video? This is the world’s first lead and traffic stock Media with ZERO monthly fees! And even their discounted offer costs you $5 to $50 for a single asset. They are really overcharging for this. With VisualHub AI, you replace all of the memberships and it doesn’t charge you a hefty recurring amount. No need to mess up with limited credits. With this, all you just need is to simply plug and play a 5-figure online business & take all the profit! I will be really quick here. The Lifetime Access + Special “Unlimited Commercial License” on VisualHub AI is going down in few hours (Trust me you’ll never get this deal again anywhere). Make sure you don’t miss it when you still have a chance to get it at a huge discount price.

What Is VisualHub AI?

VisualHub AI is an all-in-one cloud-based platform designed to streamline the visual content creation process. It boasts a massive library of high-quality stock images, videos, vectors, and audio tracks, coupled with advanced AI-powered editing capabilities. With VisualHub AI, users can search, edit, and download unlimited assets without any restrictions.

VisualHub AI Review: Overview

Product Creator: Ganesh Saha

Product Name: VisualHub AI

Launch Date: 2024-Jun-21

Launch Time: 11:00 EDT

Front-End Price: $17 (One-time payment)

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VisualHub AI Review: About Authors

Ganesh Saha is the brains behind this invention. With his know-how in technology and starting businesses, Ganesh gathered a team of experts to make VisualHub AI, the top AI app for making great VisualHub AI and sketch characters. With Ganesh leading the way, VisualHub AI Ai lets anyone create their own stuff in no time.

Also, you can see some of his other creations like GraphicX Ai, OverLap AI, AI Doodles, AI CartoonBook, CookMate AI, Mailmaxpro, Plexity Ai, WebinarStudio, Ai Force, MailBard Al, Ai Designs, AISites, PrimeAi, VRStudio 2.0, Text Ai, OnyxMail, PrimeBook, PrimeMovie, SiteDetective, and many others.

VisualHub AI Review: Key Features

Fully Cloud-Based Searchable Platform

Use Unlimited Images, Vector, Videos, Music tracks Etc.

Sell unlimited Assets To Clients & Earn Like Big Boys

Complete Designing Suite

2M+ HD Stock Images With Fully Searchable Feature

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20K+ Vectors

8000+ HQ Royalty Free Audios

Preview Feature With Multiple Formats

Unlimited Downloads With NO FEE

Social Sharing Feature

Inbuilt Image & Video Editor

Commercial License

$200 Refund If It Doesn’t Work For You

30 Days Money Back Guarantee

VisualHub AI Review: How Does It Work?

You are 3-Simple steps away to start your own Stock Provider & Designing Agency

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VisualHub AI Review: Can Do For You

Google Loves Imagery

Social Media Loves Images

People Love to buy after looking at a picture

Subscribers get attracted to Visuals

1000’s Of Inbuilt Ultra HD Templates

Upload Your Creativity To Earn Top Dollars

No Special Skills or Experience Required

Thumbnails with attractive images and catchy text is the way to high CTA and to make every effort in the video content count.

No Need To Write a Single Line of Code

Get Monthly Stock Media Updates

Never Seen Before Unique Image & Video Editor With Inbuilt Templates

Step By Step Training Included

Get24x7 High Priority Support

Users Say About VisualHub AI

VisualHub AI Review: Who Should Use It?

Business Coaches

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VisualHub AI Review: OTO’s And Pricing

Add My Bundle Coupon Code “VISUALADMIN30″ — For 30% Off Any Funnel OTO below

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VisualHub AI Review: Money Back Guarantee

You are Covered with 30 Days Money back Guarantee! Totally Risk-Free!

If you are unable to access the software and we fail to help you resolve the issue when you contact us about it using our support desk/ticket system, we’ll give 100% of your money back if you ask within 30 days of your purchase. We don’t offer a no-questions-asked refund, so please provide a genuine reason and show us proof that you did everything we told you to do before asking for a refund. Refunds are for technical issues only and are only given if we are unable to solve the problem that you reported. Other than that, all sales are considered final.

>>> Click Here to Visit VisualHub AI and Get Access Now <<<

VisualHub AI Review: Pros and Cons

Pros:

Massive stock media library

AI-powered editing tools

Unlimited downloads

Commercial license

User-friendly interface

Competitive pricing

Cons:

You need internet for using this product.

No issues reported, it works perfectly!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s)

Q. Is VisualHub AI is a Cloud-Based Business Suite?

Yes, VisualHub AI is a cloud-based app easy to access from anywhere. Works with Mac, PC and mobile.

Q. Is it Beginner friendly?

Yes, it is completely beginner-friendly and we did all the hard work for you. SO, there is not much manual work for you. And also, we added a Free tutorial to get started.

Q. Do I Need Any Tech Skills or Experience For using this tool?

No!! We have step by step tutorials for this so you don’t need to do anything else

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VisualHub AI Review: My Recommendation

VisualHub AI is a valuable tool for anyone seeking high-quality stock media and basic editing capabilities. Its extensive library, AI-powered search, and commercial license make it a compelling option. However, users with advanced editing needs might require additional software. Ultimately, the decision to use VisualHub AI depends on individual requirements and budget. If you’re looking for a cost-effective solution with a decent selection of stock media, VisualHub AI is worth considering.

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Check Out My Previous Reviews: Muviz Review, MagicStory Books Review, OneAI Review, CreateBank Review, VideoCourseAI Review, AutoNichePro Review, MindBuddy AI Review, & RapidStoreZ Review.

Thank for reading my VisualHub AI Review till the end. Hope it will help you to make purchase decision perfectly.

Disclaimer: Please Note This VisualHub AI review strives to provide objective information and analysis. While we aim for accuracy, pricing structures and features can change. It’s recommended to visit the VisualHub AI website for the latest information before making a purchase decision.

Note: This is a paid software, and the one-time price is $17 for lifetime.

[mirrorofthesky]

It's 7/07, 707 day and Teo's birthday, it's time to vent and say this...

I used to love Cheritz but their use of AI was definitely the last straw on top of their horrendous writing that's a far cry from anything they created before 2017. So many developers are struggling, with less resources than Cheritz, to make visual novels completely free of genAI, paying their artists fairly... And here is Cheritz, adamantly refusing to stop using AI amidst past backlash yet still enjoying so much money and success. Whenever things go south they also post a ton of new fanservice MM cgs so everyone can forget how low they have sunk and keep being promoted as a "good" company who loves their players cuz look how much they love MM's MC~ (who doesn't even have eyes in her design, she's drawn exactly like the female version of a 2000s Japanese porn game protagonist... Like cmon, if you're going to explore this avenue at least give her a proper face like every other otome game does to their MCs).

The MM fans who revel in the ssum having less social media engagement than MM are definitely not helpful. They are actively enabling Cheritz to get even worse. They do not care about MM's writing quality nor how absolute trash the last dlc were, they just want more shipping fodder from well known characters for their sns accounts. MM still gets attention as a darling f2p otome hit from the past (horrible writing aside), however, the ssum having caused a terrible first impression with its extremely hostile game design and no nostalgia factor to blind the fans is not given the same grace.

Cheritz solution to this is obviously to pump The Ssum's routes with MM cameos and references no matter how nonsensical they are and post MM cgs and chibis monthly on their socials to stay relevant (I almost forget which game they are actively working on, do note MM app hasn't been given any substantial update or dlc in almost 4 years). Their new goal is definitely to turn The Ssum into another MM app as a desperate attempt to squeeze every penny from their MM fans. The reason is simple; the ssum is designed to be significantly more profitable with its predatory paywalled lines, paywalled time gating, paywalled cgs and expensive subscription system while MM's app generous f2p design is seen as a real handicap. Last year, they have patched MM to give away less premium currency (hourglasses) but it's not enough to make it more predatory. They want a steady influx of subscription money like all rotten tech company out there, and to add insult to the injury they want all of this while using unethically generated AI art.

Yet, they're taking so long to update the ssum despite their widespread use of gen AI. They still can't meet their initial deadlines (more days of June route were supposed to come out in june according to fans, Teo's route remains unfinished for over a year) so what is the purpose of the Gen AI really? I'm not buying the "we can't find bg artists" because that's a blatant lie. Is it to avoid paying living wages? To scam artists into being given less money than they deserve because their job is to "edit" not draw from scratch (nevermind how much work and know-how it takes to "fix" something)?

Anyway, until they work on cleaning up their act they do not deserve coddling, they do not deserve white knighting, they do not deserve neither love nor admiration... I cling to hope like a bitter ex but I have given up on expecting anything at all. Time is running out for me to desire anything else but for them to quietly shut down in the future.

[The Ssum] July 7th, 2024, Dear my honey.

Congratulations! I love that I can spend my birthday with you honey!

Your very existence is always a gift to me. Is there a greater gift than this?

But... I’m making my honey wait longer than I thought I wasn’t going to be like this. But things kept popping up

These days, I even wonder if the world is mad at me for something But I can’t go astray too… It’s really hard...

I need to be nicer in the future... I got a gift like my honey, I really can’t be like this

The distance between us will get closer So, don’t forget about me It’s okay if you hat…

Haa… Just thinking about it is making my heart break

Honey I'm usually happy almost all the time, but today I'm a little happier than that You are the one who made this day for me.

Give me some time to finish everything! I love you today too!

+ 💜Don’t forget💜 🐶Birthday Celebratory Call and Photo Memento available on July 7th only 🐶Celebratory Lab and Bonus Event open until 9 AM(KST) on July 25th

[jahidur369]

WeChat change withdrawals were free

As a platform, the short drama He Tuber publishing platform is naturally responsible for supervising whether the content direction of micro short dramas violates regulations. From this point of view, WeChat’s collection of deposits from short drama mini-programs is also a powerful means to supervise them~

With the deposit and the restriction on the identity of the registrant, short drama practitioners will not dare to cross the line and violate the rules at will!

Seeing this, friends can let go of their worries. This time WeChat charges have nothing to do with us ordinary users.

Having said that, WeChat actually had a lot of "chargeable" operations in those years, which is nothing new.

For example, WeChat change withdrawals were free at first, but later changed to a lifetime withdrawal limit of only 1,000 yuan for a single ID card.

Once the limit is exceeded, you will be charged a service fee of 0.1% of the cash withdrawal amount, with a minimum of 0.1 yuan per transaction.

Although WeChat later launched a "payment discount", you can save gold coins and redeem free withdrawal coupons through WeChat payment. But for people who often make large amounts of money, they still hope to have larger free withdrawal coupons.

To put it more recently, in June this year, many universities such as Northwest University and Nanjing University of Science and Technology announced that they would suspend the use of WeChat payment.

Well, WeChat plans to carry out refined management of campus scene users starting from July 1st. In addition to tuition fees, charges for other items will be restricted, and a 0.6% handling fee will also be charged.

WeChat said that since 2015, it has provided a long-term zero-rate preferential policy for campus non-profit payment scenarios, and it has continued to invest a lot of costs.

At the end of the incident, the WeChat Pay team issued an apology statement and provided follow-up solutions.

Only for a small number of profitable scenarios such as e-commerce and wine and tourism, preferential rate policies lower than the market average will be implemented, while campus non-profit scenarios will continue to maintain zero rates.

Judging from Xiaolei’s many years of experience on the Internet, WeChat still has a long way to go if it really wants to charge fees.

First of all, WeChat is a social chat APP. In order to distinguish it from QQ, it takes the simplest route possible. If you want to add paid items to decorations other than chatting, that would still deviate from the original intention of WeChat.

And users who really like personalized decoration can choose to use QQ. Of course, WeChat does not aim at this.

Secondly, if WeChat charges for some office functions, it will be inconsistent with the office APP and its own social attributes.

For example, if you already have an enterprise WeChat, if WeChat is used in the office field, it will be repetitive.

So, personalization is not necessary if you don’t want to do office work. If WeChat wants to find charging items in the daily use of ordinary users, it will take more effort.

However, Xiaolei has a clever trick. It might work from the cloud backup of chat records, which is highly requested by the majority of users.

For example, create a backup cloud space and set corresponding packages with different prices based on capacity and time limits.

In this way, users who need it can choose to buy it themselves, and those who don't need it can choose local backup such as a computer.

Finally, Xiao lei leaves me with a little homework. What aspects of WeChat’s fees are acceptable to friends? Let’s chat in the comment area.

[uncleasriel]

THANK YOU @fandomsandfeminism . I am left thinking that Mamoru Hasoda does not understand how the internet, social media or civil society really works.

It's such a frustrating film to watch. I was on-board for Suzu/Belle's initial arc - a mouring teen girl reinventing herself online, backed up by her gremlin BFF who runs a manager/PR woman role. Yet I was surprised that she didn't take ANY of the money, or that she wasn't contacted by some megacorp or PR firm who'd hype her up, leverage her for branding, etc? THe Social Media of "U" seems to be run by the benign but absentee "Voices", who have no moderating presence, no marketing influence, no control over what's said or done on the platform. U seems to be an amaible anarchy - a city peopled by colorful avatars, each based off of use biomedical data (a chilling thought, social media with access to medical records) and left to flit about gaily in a cartoony world of bright colors and far social reach. I see no way this could possibly go wrong! </sarcasm>

It's like Manomur Hasoda wants to believe in the internet as this tool to help connect people socially, as has been the case since Digimon: Our War Game, but he's not followed how people use social media, how social media governs itself, or how it relates to sociological forces that produce the conditions that people experience. The creators of large platofrms are just....benign, absentee architects, who never step in and let people govern themselves. They have no profit motive, not personal or political stakes - they're an absence which create these beautiful backdrops where these dramas play out.

The interfaces are especially cnfusing. Are people just piloting avatars via phones and using their ear-buds as a way to connect? Is it closer to Sword Art Online style headsets that jack people into cyberspace? When Belle got ambushed by the Vigilante Heroes who function as a vigilante moderator force (another horrifying idea), I literally screamed at the tv "LOG OUT ALREADY!" - how and why could she be captured, when interfacting with U seems as easy as putting on earbuds an activating an app? Hasoda seems to think the digital world is this sort of dreamscape, whose rules work only as much as they allow the Beauty-and-the-Beast fairytale to unfold.

Even more infuriating was the revelation as to the Beast/Dragon's true identity. It was a horrifying revelation, that made so much sense but left the back-end side of U stand out in sharp focus. THis technology registers a user's avatar based on their biomedical data, and updates it to reflect the technology in real time. You're telling me a social media platform like this can update an avatar's color palette to show real-world bruising that happens in real time, and they're NOT having llarm bells start sounding off - ESPECIALLY when that user is a minor in a preciarious situation? Equally bafflingwas the child protections services phone call - was that some biting commentary on Japanese politicing and social services? A cynical part of me thought it *could* be reflecting a reality, which made The Beast's anger all the more harrowing. What's worse, the nice older ladies from the music group decided to let SUzu go off on her own "because she made up her mind"? We literally saw a man grown man start pounding his own children on camera - do you think a Very Brave teenaged girl should be able to handle that on her own because she's so very, very brave and self-actualized after being chill over being doxxed? Fuck you, you're the adults in this situation: get the police to intervene, pull some strings like the grandma in SUmmer Wars did, ANYTHING. Suzu did more than her fair share by willingly outing herself to 5 Billion people to show how much she could be trusted by Kei - let her take the win and let some of the other people take action

This movie infuriated me from its naivete about how internet platforms and society worked. While its emotional climaxes were beautiful - Suzu now understands why her mother did to save a stranger, and she is happy in herself she doesn't need the Belle avatar to be her most genuine and empowered self, damaged people can find connection through vritual places in ways that make their real lives worth living - the plot was riddled with inconsitencies about how the technology worked, and the expectations placed on someone who tries to intervene in abusive situations. I want to love this - I'm a sucker for Beauty & the Beast stories, teens growing into themselves, and for people using the internet to foster stronger connections - but Mamoru Hasoda just doesn't understand enough about any of these things to really deliver a polished end product.

Ok.

So.

I know this movie was very pretty. Very pretty. Super nice to look at.

But.

God so much of the plot felt very underdeveloped and confusing. It felt like it was missing 80% of the story from inside the U. She only has like 2 conversations with Beast? How does anything in the virtual world....work? Why does not-Gaston have a dox-ray? What exactly did Beast do that would make the not-internet-cops hunt him? Why is there no moderation happening? Do they...feel pain in U? Why? (It feels like Digimon rules. Is this Digimon rules?)

Honestly, the moment the movie really lost me was when an adult finally calls the cops for a wellness check and is told "they need to wait 48 hours" for....for what? To report an active assault? I...

But at least it was pretty?

This movie has 95% on rotten tomatoes.