#HOW IS IT FORCED IF THEY'RE FICTIONAL CHARACTERS?!

[epickiya722]

"Where did Gege say that these characters are gay! They're not gay! I want proof!"

Several things! Show proof where Gege said these characters are straight. If people have to show where Gege said these characters are gay, then show where Gege said the characters are straight.

Why are you so adamant about telling people that these characters aren't gay when all you're really doing is making yourself miserable doing it?

People are still going to ship these characters with whoever they want to.

If you don't see these characters as gay, then don't. No one is forcing you. You're only acting like you're oppressed about it. Not everyone in the fandom sees these characters as gay so find the people don't and have fun with them there instead of making others miserable.

People want to bring up how "Yuji has a poster of a woman and likes tall women with big asses" and "Gojo had a wallpaper of Inoue Waka".

Okay? Goodie for them, I guess?

Doesn't prove those characters are straight. Just implies that the characters have an attraction to women.

Or just fans. Fun fact, you don't have to be a straight man to have a poster of a hot woman.

There's women loving women. Queer men who have an attraction to women or just happen to not have one but is a fan of a woman.

Stop... oh my gosh... people like this be acting as if they're stepping on Legos shipping a man with a man and woman with a woman.

People do still ship a man with woman, hello? Be over there?

"Every character is straight!"

Mai literally has a character page that says that whenever she's around a girl it's seems like they're dating.

One of the main villains have been in both men and women bodies and even gave birth to the MC.

Megumi himself was asked his type of woman and gave an answer that gave an anonymous gender and Geto didn't even give answer at all.

This manga was just not something solely made for straight people.

[fromtheseventhhell]

They're so twins-coded

[sibillascribbles08]

"This narrative upset me and therefore the writing is bad--" Wrong. Shut the hell up. Try again.

[jacksintention]

I say I ship Jack and Lacie, but tbh I don't think I do in the sense fandom understands it. For me it's kind of like saying I ship Heathc.liff and Cathy or Fe.rmín and Ana. Do I ship them? Yes? No? The answer is closer to "I like W.uthering Heigh.ts and La R.egenta"

[pyrrhiccomedy]

I feel like we need a refresher on Watsonian vs Doylist perspectives in media analysis. When you have a question about a piece of media - about a potential plot hole or error, about a dubious costuming decision, about a character suddenly acting out of character -

A Watsonian answer is one that positions itself within the fictional world.

A Doylist answer is one that positions itself within the real world.

Meaning: if Watson says something that isn't true, one explanation is that Watson made a mistake. Another explanation is that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle made a mistake.

Watsonian explanations are implicitly charitable. You are implicitly buying into the notion that there is a good in-world reason for what you're seeing on screen or on the page. ("The bunny girls in Final Fantasy wear lingerie all the time because they're from a desert culture!")

Doylist explanations are pragmatic. You are acknowledging that the fiction is shaped by real-world forces, like the creators' personal taste, their biases, the pressures they might be under from managers or editors, or the limits of their expertise. ("The bunny girls in Final Fantasy wear lingerie because somebody thought they'd sell more units that way.")

Watsonian explanations tend to be imaginative but naive. Seeking a Watsonian explanation for a problem within a narrative is inherently pleasure-seeking: you don't want your suspension of disbelief to be broken, and you're willing to put in the leg work to prevent it. Looking for a Watsonian answer can make for a fun game! But it can quickly stray into making excuses for lazy or biased storytelling, or cynical and greedy executives.

Doylist explanations are very often accurate, but they're not much fun. They should supersede efforts to provide a Watsonian explanation where actual harm is being done: "This character is being depicted in a racist way because the creators have a racist bias.'" Or: "The lore changed because management fired all of the writers from last season because they didn't want to pay then residuals."

Doylism also runs the risk of becoming trite, when applied to lower stakes discrepancies. Yes, it's possible that this character acted strangely in this episode because this episode had a different writer, but that isn't interesting, and it terminates conversation.

I think a lot of conversations about media would go a lot more smoothly, and everyone would have a lot more fun, if people were just clearer about whether they are looking to engage in Watsonian or Doylist analysis. How many arguments could be prevented by just saying, "No, Doylist you're probably right, but it's more fun to imagine there's a Watsonian reason for this, so that's what I'm doing." Or, "From a Watsonian POV that explanation makes sense, but I'm going with the Doylist view here because the creator's intentions leave a bad taste in my mouth that I can't ignore."

Idk, just keep those terms in your pocket? And if you start to get mad at somebody for their analysis, take a second to see if what they're saying makes more sense from the other side of the Watsonian/Doylist divide.

[zombolouge]

The thing is, it's not about the Therapy Speak. It's not that everyone who disliked DAV hates healthy communication as a dynamic in fiction. It's not even about only being allowed to be a good guy, really, because most of us did do that anyways (though the option not being there is a loss I grieve even if I never chose it myself, but that's another rant for another day).

It's that DAV does all that stuff at the expense of being believable. At the expense of characters being permitted to have personalities. At the expense of emotions behaving the way emotions actually work for people. At the expense of letting the plot build tension through the stakes we're forced to grapple with.

Half the fics out there take the conflicts between the characters in the previous games and resolve them. I do it myself ALL THE TIME because I like to find a path to resolution through just about any conflict, that's what fascinates me about telling these stories. But the higher the stakes, the harder a conflict is to resolve. You CAN resolve any conflict, you CAN communicate healthily through any emotion, but you can't skip the time it takes to process it all to even be able to communicate it. As someone whose got CPTSD and recovered from many Traumas, I can tell you that the TIME it takes to work through it is not something you can fast track, and the ups and downs of your emotions on that journey can't be skipped. It doesn't matter if you know exactly how to do it, exactly how it's going to feel, or exactly what the end state will be, you CAN'T speedrun it.

DAV has stakes that are astronomical, but nobody treats them that way. Nobody experiences denial - a common psychological reaction to being presented with information that shatters your worldview. Nobody expresses any distrust in the establishments handing out this information - something common among cultures that have at times been at war, even if those wars are "resolved" in the present. Nobody really ever breaks down - something that any person is capable of under extreme circumstances, especially when facing multiple crises of faith that challenge everything they thought they knew about themselves. Nobody blows their lid because they've been repressing the hell out of everything. Nobody grieves for southern Thedas, the entire thing dying off screen and giving you, the player, NO way to engage with it in any way.

Not to mention there are barely any inter-party conflicts, when there should be a lot more. Why is everyone (except Spite) fine with it if Emmrich sacrifices Manfred to become a lich? Why is everyone fine with Illario potentially being set free if he was working with the venatori and Elgar'nan, two sources that have actively attacked everyone in the party? Why doesn't Neve resent Lucanis if Treviso is picked? Why doesn't Harding get pissed off at Nevarra for having a secret society of liches that never helped during the Inquisition's war against the breach and corypheus? Why doesn't Harding feel ANYTHING about Ferelden and the rest of the south? Shouldn't Harding resent the fact that she's stuck in the north while her home dies?

All of these conflicts ARE resolvable, but not easily. And it's not believable that they're never brought up. It's not believable that these characters skip through everything that happens with like, barely a frowny face most of the time. In DAO, Alistair leaves if you don't treat his conflicts with respect. In DA2, your party members try to kill each other if you don't pay attention to their conflicts/emotional needs. In DAI, people can leave or betray you, Cassandra throws a chair at Varric and tries to body him out a window. ALL of these can be resolved but it takes effort, and the characters get to SHOW that they're bothered by them and struggling the way a person would when faced with those emotions.

The problem isn't the therapy speak, or that everyone is loyal and won't leave, or that they aren't mean to each other enough. It's that it's toxic positivity. It's toxic as fuck to imply that anger or grief should be smiled over or else you're giving up, and it's damaging to people to avoid engaging with their own negative emotional responses to extremely negative stimuli. It's pasting optimism over very real, very weighty issues, sweeping it all under the rug, and you keep waiting for the lid to blow off the pressure cooker that creates, but it never does. It never becomes anything that emulates real emotions, which is why the whole damn thing feels hollow. Everything's dying and nobody cares, not even about themselves, and that's NOT healthy communication.

It's bullshit, half-assed storytelling that didn't tell us the actual story, just the vague idea of what it could have been.

[theeroins]

If I say that I'm not used to people misinterpreting my favorite characters, I'd be lying. But the way they get so many things wrong about Inho's character is kinda pissing me off because you KNOW that most of them do it to cancel out the possibility of InHun being *something* more than what's shown so far. You don't ship them, that's fair, frankly I don't care. Everyone's entitled to their own opinion UNTIL your opinion is wrong.

Let's talk about a couple of things I've seen being talked about on tiktok (🙄)

“Inho joined the games because ilnam said that it'd basically be more fun to play than to watch so he followed his example." loud incorrect buzzer ! Inho has joined the games before, and not only that, he's also a previous winner, so therefore he's very much aware of what it's like to be a part of it, he's experienced them first hand, just like he's experienced the atrocities of it. they've changed him for the worst and possibly caused him a huge trauma —they're the reason he's lost faith in humanity after all— so, why would he crave to relive it just for the thrill of it? i, personally doubt he even enjoys watching the game.

“Inho didn't look at Gihun with love, he likes to watch him suffer” Short answer is no. He doesn't like to watch him suffer, neither he looked at him with love, not the pure kind of love at least. Two things can be true at once. Inho spent half the season staring at Gihun because everything about the man intrigued him; His determination, his stubbornness, his kindness, his hope, his heart that's full of love despite the pain he suffered, even the pain in his eyes every time someone got eliminated in front of him as if it was the first time it had happened, as if the cruelty of it all surprised him every damn time. How can someone, who's been through the same things Inho has been through, be the polar opposite of him?

now, the reason(s) that I think Inho actually joined the games for..

(yes I am an Inhun shipper, does that make my opinion a little biased? maybe. do i still believe I'm right? absofuckinglutely.)

Let me clarify this: Inho is NOT a good man, no matter the redemption arc he might get in s3, he'll continue to be a terrible person because nothing will ever erase the blood he's spilled and the evil men he's worked for. BUT at the same time, he's not ALL bad, not like the VIPS and ilnam. See, Inhun are the average "yin-yang" trope in fictional romance, (which I eat up every time and I find it very interesting when it's done the right way, don't get me wrong) Inho is bad but there's some goodness somewhere deep inside him. And the only person who's brought it to the surface is Gihun. Sure, he does think Gihun is naive, but he's also the only person who's actually challenged him, who's "forced" him to get his stupid head out of the dirt and look around him, even for a short while and Inho definitely liked what he saw. Honestly, it wasn't even that hard for Gihun to do so because the goodness in Inho wanted and waited for someone to pull him out of the dirt, he wished for someone, something to give him hope for humanity or.. anything. Anything that'll help him escape from his misery.

You can definitely argue that he joined the games to befriend Gihun, to gain his trust and stop his plans when the time comes, which is half true. But keep in mind that he needed to justify his choice to join the games. He's not a VIP nor the mastermind to simply get to do that without consequences. He's the frontman, the one who controls and manages everything. He's needed for the games to work and go by smoothly and successfully without unnecessary losses and problems. Gihun would only cause problems, Inho knew that very well and yet he chose to put him in it once again. He recklessly made that choice, risking pretty much everything because of his inner conflict. A part of him wanted Gihun to prove himself to him, that there's indeed good that'll save the world and the rest of him wanted to prove to Gihun that everything he so strongly believes in is merely a fantasy.

Joining the games and befriending Gihun was the only way for Inho to see the real him, without the heroic mask he puts on every time he faces the frontman. I think he believed that someone as extraordinary as Gihun will either break in front of him and he will end up disappointed by the human kind once again, or Gihun will change everything about the way he thinks for the better. But the problem is that Inho hopes for both of those things at the same time.

And that was Inho's arc in season 2. His inner conflict and how it will affect him, the game and Gihun later on.

[elumish]

One way to build your writing skills--a way that I would argue is necessary if you ever want to write original fiction for publication--is to write from the point of view of, and with the focus on, a wide range of different characters.

it's really easy to fall into a rut when writing the same character or characters all the time, or even the same type of character all the time, where characterization tends to become muscle memory as much as anything else. You know what that character will do, so you know what characters of that type will do, so you know what characters will do, so that's what your characters do.

And when you don't have to think about it, you don't build--and can start to atrophy--those muscles required to do detailed, specific, engaging character building. What does it mean for this character, in this time, to do or experience this thing. What are the myriad of things that have built your character up to being who they are, and how do those things (individually and in aggregate) impact the choices that they make, the actions that they take, the reactions that they have, and the people that they engage with.

What can end up happening--and I see this all the time in published fiction--is that authors end up only being able to write 2-3 character types of each gender, and it all feels a bit samey.

Without opening a book by so many authors I have read, I can predict with a fair amount of accuracy what most of their characters will act like, because it's kind of the same across the board. Even when they start distinct, they end up drifting towards the same personality/character types like carcinization.

Writing from the point of view of/focusing on a range of characters (especially if they are different genders, of different backgrounds, with different wants and fears and habits and interests and personalities) forces you to actually be specific in your writing, if you want it to be any good.

Your 15-year-old B-student who really wants to spend their time playing rugby shouldn't sound like your 45-year-old businessman with a penchant for collecting Star Trek action figures who is trying to plan the perfect anniversary for his wife and neither of them should sound like the 23-year-old who spends their time going out at nightclubs and showing up a little bit hungover at work and worrying about finding a job that will let them move out of the apartment they're sharing with three other people.

Practice, and then practice some part, and then keep practicing. Write different characters, ask yourself if you're writing a character a certain way because you think they would be that way or because it's just habit, and be specific.

[venussaidso]

Controversial: “Rahu is bad”.

Blackhole = Capitalism.

I notice how majority of people associate negativity with Rahu when it's actually Ketu that is behind reductions, as I recently touched on but through fictional characters. Yes, both can be bad, when they're not balanced, as they are very difficult planets to deal with (being shadowy & illusory).

For example, regarding Ketu's reducing nature in real life, the guy who created CHATGPT has their Sun & ASC in Ashwini. And Oppenheimer had his Sun in Ashwini, too. And Donald Trump, who is leading to the chaos and perhaps destructive shift of the USA, has his Ascendant in Magha. Ketu is the force which initiates the destruction of old paradigms, destruction of societies, of people etc. Ketu is the planet of destruction, and it has no sense. It is of ignorance and darkness, and unfortunately, its power can be used for bad (not always, it's not always negative, I know).

Oppenheimer's and Sam Altman's creations lead to reduction. Also Mula apparently has associations with mass suicide/genocide.

Ketu = destruction, entropy, till nothingness.

Rahu = creation, order, philanthropy, often long-term goals on Maya.

This is why Rahu is so important, it builds on top of the void after Ketu's destruction. The art, the paradigms and laws of societies, the long-term biotechnologies that we enjoy and are privileged to even enjoy, are all thanks to Rahu. They balance each other for a reason.

Possible Swati Moon natives, Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman, won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2023 for the development of effective mRNA vaccines against COVID-19.

Rahu is not negativity. In reality, Rahuvians are your rebellious dreamers who want to restructure society fit for everyone. Always based on advocating for better societies. But for that to happen, Ketu must destroy what is present. Can't have renewal without destruction.

Hobie Brown is voiced by Shatabhisha Sun native Daniel Kaluuya. He is the embodiment of Aquarius and Rahu combined.

There's a reason why Aquarius, which is said to be co-ruled by Rahu as well, is the zodiac of humanitarianism and forward-thinking ideas to push boundaries. Ketuvians often feel the same way as Rahuvians do but instead of being as constructive in matters of Maya, they are usually detached and apathetic — that's why they'd rather get lost into 12th house activities. While Rahuvians are actively more in touch with matters of Maya. They understand the need for change, but Rahu needs Ketu to build the new.

Rahuvians are the actual builders whose creations will remain long-term, benefitting society and its people. This is why Shatabhisha is the manifestation of Rahu at its highest octave — and this nakshatra, which is associated with prolonged healing and medicine, having its rashi ruled by Saturn, signifies long-term goals for a better, new world. But it is often that Rahuvians are dissatisfied with the current one, exactly why they'd also be attracted to the idea of Ketu's necessary destruction... (this may explain why rahuvians are attracted to ketu-related activities and ketu individuals in general).

[unknown-cold]

I want to talk about the people who are overlook Caitlyn's trauma and the suffering she went through in two seasons, to the point where it's really annoying and suspicious, honestly.

There are people who unironically believe she deserved the worst in season 1 alone. S1 when she did nothing wrong at all. On the contrary - she's trying to do a lot of good, she's being selfless and compassionate. On the other hand, characters who did commit crimes are being excused.

The artist is: @roosdrawsthings on Instagram and @RoosDrawsThings on Twitter/X

Like some people see her as privileged and as someone who suffered enough not like Vi and Jinx (she only lost her mom, she had a funeral when Zaunites don't) so she can't be a victim and feel pain and lost. This is so fucking stupid!

rich people can also be in grief and a target for manipulation. They are human beings too, a shock that has nothing to do with social status or job. And here are the reasons I think people so easily villainize Caitlyn:

Before that there is something important I have to talk about there’s also such a problem with people viewing things as either completely right/good or completely wrong/terrible and with people not able/willing to admit when they’re wrong or when someone has changed their mind.

Opinions are mistaken for facts. Differing viewpoints are attacked with ferocity. Hateful things are said about fictional characters who are supposed to bring us joy/comfort. It’s freaking ridiculous and has become such a massive problem in several of my top fandoms and I’m exhausted.

So back again to Caitlyn their reasoning is she comes from a privileged upbringing, is part of the oppressive higher social order and is a member of the police force that frequently harasses the citizens of Zaun. All of these come together to make her appear as someone that we as a progressive and morally just society are meant to frown upon and judge, cause those types of people are often to blame for many of the issues in our society.

With those pieces in place they see her as this inherently morally wrong person who needs to be dragged through the fire in order to redeem herself. They hold her to an almost impossibly high standard and will tear her apart if she even slightly steps over the lines they have laid out for her. That's why they like to paint her as genocidal war criminal for releasing The Grey and choose to ignore the obvious that she used it strategically rather than flood the whole city like Jinx did(who btw will get endless passes and excuses for her actions cause she is the "true victim" of the story). Jinx is not the only victim on the show.

And there is something else I want to talk about it, and it's modern liberal spaces, especially among young people. Most people have become obsessed with putting people in little boxes and making assumptions based on that alone. They are unwilling or incapable of seeing people as PEOPLE instead of just labels. It's like re-inventing the racism wheel all over again. We put labels on people and decide if they're good or bad, we don't look at what they do or listen to what they say because that's harder. It's easier to just discriminate against someone based on how they were born. And then the irony is people will accuse Caitlyn of discriminating against others when actually they're the ones discriminating against her, based on her background. It's just a maddening endless cycle of hate.

They also don't quite realize that not everything in the show is meant to be an allegory for real life political turmoil. The concept of a privileged society oppressing another through force has been done in many stories and while they may have been inspired by real events that doesn't mean they were intentionally sending a politically driven message to the masses.

Caitlyn's haters also brush over her trauma a lot too, not only of her mother's death and wanting to avenge it. But to also wanting to kill the person who kidnapped her and almost killed her twice. She hasn't had the time to really process it all and all those wounds are fresh in early season 2 so of course she ends up going dark for a time.

Caitlyn went through grieving, angered, depressed, vulnerable, and... alone. Not a single voice of reason or support around

• Father? Also grieving and distant.

• Childhood friend? Disappeared.

• Vi? Pushed away.

And that’s the vacuum Ambessa mentioned when talking to Vi. People still didn’t understand that? Wow, I guess not everyone throughly watches the plot of series, I suppose.

So in the end Caitlyn for me has one of the best arcs, if not the best, while not being a clown, like Jinx (I like Jinx tbh, but least be real guys). Some people just hate it. Some envy it. Bc much of Cait's hate is simply irrational. Just ugly whining babys out there.

They are literally make Caitlyn the only villain in Arcane. There's Jinx who committed acts of terrorism and murderer. There's Silco's right hand ( I mean Sevika) happily enforcing his rule through violence. There's Silco himself, who tried to kill an entire family and forced the children to work in the Shimmer factories and he suppressed his people himself so that they would obey him, and there is Ambessa the character who committed the most evil acts in the show. And Viktor, who wanted to kill and control all the people of the two cities of Piltover and Zaun. But no, it's Cait that is the worst 🤡

Make it make sense.

[thewriteadviceforwriters]

Creating Compelling Character Arcs: A Guide for Fiction Writers

As writers, one of our most important jobs is to craft characters that feel fully realized and three-dimensional. Great characters aren't just names on a page — they're complex beings with arcs that take them on profound journeys of change and growth. A compelling character arc can make the difference between a forgettable story and one that sticks with readers long after they've turned the final page.

Today, I'm going to walk you through the art of crafting character arcs that are as rich and multi-layered as the people you encounter in real life. Whether you're a first-time novelist or a seasoned storyteller, this guide will give you the tools to create character journeys that are equal parts meaningful and unforgettable.

What Is a Character Arc?

Before we go any further, let's make sure we're all on the same page about what a character arc actually is. In the most basic sense, a character arc refers to the internal journey a character undergoes over the course of a story. It's the path they travel, the obstacles they face, and the ways in which their beliefs, mindsets, and core selves evolve through the events of the narrative.

A character arc isn't just about what happens to a character on the outside. Sure, external conflict and plot developments play a major role — but the real meat of a character arc lies in how those external forces shape the character's internal landscape. Do their ideals get shattered? Is their worldview permanently altered? Do they have to confront harsh truths about themselves in order to grow?

The most resonant character arcs dig deep into these universal human experiences of struggle, self-discovery, and change. They mirror the journeys we all go through in our own lives, making characters feel powerfully relatable even in the most imaginative settings.

The Anatomy of an Effective Character Arc

Now that we understand what character arcs are, how do we actually construct one that feels authentic and impactful? Let's break down the key components:

The Inciting Incident

Every great character arc begins with a spark — something that disrupts the status quo of the character's life and sets them on an unexpected path. This inciting incident can take countless forms, be it the death of a loved one, a sudden loss of power or status, an epic betrayal, or a long-held dream finally becoming attainable.

Whatever shape it takes, the inciting incident needs to really shake the character's foundations and push them in a direction they wouldn't have gone otherwise. It opens up new struggles, questions, and internal conflicts that they'll have to grapple with over the course of the story.

Lies They Believe

Tied closely to the inciting incident are the core lies or limiting beliefs that have been holding your character back. Perhaps they've internalized society's body image expectations and believe they're unlovable. Maybe they grew up in poverty and are convinced that they'll never be able to escape that cyclical struggle.

Whatever these lies are, they'll inform how your character reacts and responds to the inciting incident. Their ingrained perceptions about themselves and the world will directly color their choices and emotional journeys — and the more visceral and specific these lies feel, the more compelling opportunities for growth your character will have.

The Struggle

With the stage set by the inciting incident and their deeply-held lies exposed, your character will then have to navigate a profound inner struggle that stems from this setup. This is where the real meat of the character arc takes place as they encounter obstacles, crises of faith, moral dilemmas, and other pivotal moments that start to reshape their core sense of self.

Importantly, this struggle shouldn't be a straight line from Point A to Point B. Just like in real life, people tend to take a messy, non-linear path when it comes to overcoming their limiting mindsets. They'll make progress, backslide into old habits, gain new awareness, then repeat the cycle. Mirroring this meandering but ever-deepening evolution is what makes a character arc feel authentic and relatable.

Moments of Truth

As your character wrestles with their internal demons and existential questions, you'll want to include potent Moments of Truth that shake them to their core. These are the climactic instances where they're forced to finally confront the lies they believe head-on. It could be a painful conversation that shatters their perception of someone they trusted. Or perhaps they realize the fatal flaw in their own logic after hitting a point of no return.

These Moments of Truth pack a visceral punch that catalyzes profound realizations within your character. They're the litmus tests where your protagonist either rises to the occasion and starts radically changing their mindset — or they fail, downing further into delusion or avoiding the insights they need to undergo a full transformation.

The Resolution

After enduring the long, tangled journey of their character arc, your protagonist will ideally arrive at a resolution that feels deeply cathartic and well-earned. This is where all of their struggle pays off and we see them evolve into a fundamentally different version of themselves, leaving their old limiting beliefs behind.

A successfully crafted resolution in a character arc shouldn't just arrive out of nowhere — it should feel completely organic based on everything they've experienced over the course of their thematic journey. We should be able to look back and see how all of the challenges they surmounted ultimately reshaped their perspective and led them to this new awakening. And while not every character needs to find total fulfillment, for an arc to feel truly complete, there needs to be a definitive sense that their internal struggle has reached a meaningful culmination.

Tips for Crafting Resonant Character Arcs

I know that was a lot of ground to cover, so let's recap a few key pointers to keep in mind as you start mapping out your own character's trajectories:

Get Specific With Backstory

To build a robust character arc, a deep understanding of your protagonist's backstory and psychology is indispensable. What childhood wounds do they carry? What belief systems were instilled in them from a young age? The more thoroughly you flesh out their history and inner workings, the more natural their arc will feel.

Strive For Nuance

One of the biggest pitfalls to avoid with character arcs is resorting to oversimplified clichés or unrealistic "redemption" stories. People are endlessly complex — your character's evolution should reflect that intricate messiness and nuance to feel grounded. Embrace moral grays, contradictions, and partial awakenings that upend expectations.

Make the External Match the Internal

While a character arc hinges on interior experiences, it's also crucial that the external plot events actively play a role in driving this inner journey. The inciting incident, the obstacles they face, the climactic Moments of Truth — all of these exterior occurrences should serve as narrative engines that force your character to continually reckon with themselves.

Dig Into Your Own Experiences

Finally, the best way to instill true authenticity into your character arcs is to draw deeply from the personal transformations you've gone through yourself. We all carry with us the scars, growth, and shattered illusions of our real-life arcs — use that raw honesty as fertile soil to birth characters whose journeys will resonate on a soulful level.

Happy Writing!

[lucabyte]

Hmmm just gonna spit this headcanon out in text post form since A. I don't think I could exposit it well enough in image form and B. It's not actually textually/thematically substantiated and I don't like actually staking my stuff on just vibes alone*

But anyway. I'd say it's pretty evident that all the islanders forgot their names, right? King obviously. Because why the hell else would he do that, but also Siffrin No Middle Names No Last Name.

They're 'pretty sure' they've 'always' been 'Just Siffrin' 'as long as they can remember'. It's a pretty cruel twist of the knife to say that they don't even get to keep their birth name as a memento, which is why I'm saying as such.

My utterly unsubstantiated claim is I think it'd be cute to say that Sisyphus *is* the name Siffrin initially picked, assuming the myth of King Sisyphus is recontextualised as idk, just a play or something in the setting. But I like the idea of Siffrin going 'oh shit 🫵 he's just like me fr' at a tortured fictional character long before the irony kicks in.

As for how Sisyphus -> Siffrin. I think that chronic mumbler and emotional doormat Sif just did not correct people who misheard the name during their time travelling, and went through enough places with incompatible phonologies (pronounceable sounds in the language) without ever really writing it down that it just got kinda. Changed until it was unrecognisable, and Siffrin just went with it until the earlier pronunciations slipped out of their swiss-cheese brain. And they just kinda don't remember any of that.

Also, something something the horrid realisation that Siffrin also named themselves after a King. Just not as blatantly.

*(though I think there's something here about Siffrin, a guy from a belief system that seems to thoroughly disincentivise autonomy and self-motivated choice continuously having their hand forced to make changes/choices they don't want but have no choice but to... It's not solid enough to really back this up tbh, but it informs it.)

Anyway.

[makeitmingi]

When Flowers Bloom In The Dark [Chapter 15]

Genre: Romance, Mafia!AU, Violence, Angst, Slow burn

Pairing: Hongjoong x Reader (y/n)

Characters: Florist!Reader, Mafioso!Hongjoong, Mafioso!Seonghwa, Mafioso!Yunho, Mafioso!Yeosang, Mafioso!San, Mafioso!Mingi, Mafioso!Wooyoung, Mafioso!Jongho

Summary: When you appeared and wept at his mother's funeral, Hongjoong found himself wanting to find out more about you. A regular girl, who owns a flower shop in his territory and has a relationship with the mother that he hasn't spoken to in years, why hasn't he ever noticed you before?

[Warning(s): 18+ for violence, use of weapons, smoking, alcohol consumption, slight gore, gang affiliation, tattoos and character deaths. Minors DNI. This is a work of fiction and does not represent the Ateez members in real life.]

Word count: 3.2K

Chapter warning(s): Alcohol consumption, violence.

"(y/n)! There you are! Are you okay? Where were you?" Nana came to you with a worried Eve behind her.

"H-Huh? Oh yeah. Was just wandering around. Sorry, I didn't realise I was gone for so long." You forced a smile. There was a foreign feeling in your chest at how Hongjoong looked at you and spoke to you but you pushed it down.

"The big event of tonight is going on. The drivers look cute." Eve giggled as you all moved to a different spot to watch. Wooyoung was one of the drivers.

"That driver in the black car always wins. Him and his team." Nana leaned over to tell the two of you.

"They're all so good looking." Eve squealed, catching a glimpse of Hongjoong and the others who were seated together.

"Winner! Team Ateez!" The announcer yelled as Wooyoung's car passed the finishing line. Everyone cheered for him as Wooyoung stepped out with a confident smirk.

"It's getting a little stuffy. Can we go?" You asked your friends.

"Sure. The major events are over already anyway. And we can always come back." Nana chuckled as the 3 of you headed for the exit.

"(y/n)? Is that you?" You didn't expect Wooyoung to cross paths with you since the exit was near the finishing line. You could feel the prying stares of your friends on you.

"Hey..." You awkwardly waved. Wooyoung sent you a friendly smile and a wink before slinging his arm around San, who jogged over to congratulate his best friend. Before Wooyoung could tell San about you being here, San led him away. At the same time, you ushered your friends through the exit.

"YOU KNOW HIM?!" Eve and Nana shouted at you once you were outside, making you wince.

"Kind of...?" You rubbed the back of your neck.

"Ah, guys. It's complicated, I don't really want to talk about it." You sighed as your two friends threw all sorts of questions at you. But at your words, their eyes widened.

"No! It's nothing like that!" You knew what they were thinking and immediately shot it down.

"San, quit pushing me. I was gonna tell you that (y/n) was there." Wooyoung slapped his best friend on the arm.

"We know... We're not supposed to draw attention to ourselves remember? The whole secret... We cannot be seen with her when we don't know who is here." San reminded.

"You all saw her already?" Wooyoung raised an eyebrow as he lit a fresh cigarette. San nodded his head.

"Damn... She must be shocked. WAIT! Did she seem Hongjoong hyung?" His eyes widened. San nodded glumly but judging by his reaction, it wasn't good. Wooyoung let out a curse and clicked his tongue as they walked to where the others were.

"But she looked hot. I barely recognised her, could have mistaken her for someone else." Wooyoung said and Mingi nodded in agreement, having almost flirted with you.

"Tell me about it. I was gonna ask her to come to the afterparty." Mingi mumbled.

"Shut up, you two." Seonghwa hissed, watching Hongjoong's stoic expression as the two talked behind him.

"Here." The organiser came over with their cut of the money. Seonghwa, Wooyoung and Yeosang took their stacks, flipping through to money to count.

"It's all here. Thanks." Seonghwa nodded to the guy, keeping his money in his jacket pocket.

"Let's go." Hongjoong rounded everyone up.

"Yes, captain." The 7 got up and they all walked together, keeping at Hongjoong's pace since he had the cane. Everyone looked on in awe and slight fear of them, no one dared to approach or even make eye contact with any of them. Jongho opened the door to the passenger seat of Mingi's car for the captain.

"Thanks, Jong." Hongjoong sighed, annoyed that he couldn't even drive his own car with how busted his knee was. With that, the sports cars all peeled out of the parking area.

"How's the cane, hyung?" Mingi asked.

"The raven skull top is easier to hold than the human skull one." Hongjoong held up the cane.

"Also because Wooyoung and Seonghwa hyung bedazzled the human skull so it hurt to hold the top, right?" Jongho pointed out from the backseat.

"Exactly." Hongjoong rolled his eyes.

"They need better arts and crafts projects." Mingi laughed. And soon, the car pulled up to the back of Wooyoung's club, the VIP entrance.

"Boss, the VIP room is ready for you." The manager was out to greet them as they stepped out of their cars. Mingi handed his keys to the valet and ran to his place by Hongjoong's side.

"Slow pokes!" San stuck his tongue out as Mingi, Jongho and Hongjoong walked in.

"Not our fault grandpa takes so long to go up the stairs." Jongho snicked and Hongjoong jabbed him with his cane. Once they all sat down, in a private room, with a two way mirror to watch the rest of the club, they gave their orders to the manager.

"What's with you?" Yeosang asked Wooyoung, who was bouncing his leg as he spread his arms across the back of the couches, looking out into the club.

"Race adrenaline taking a while to wear off. I'm going for another smoke." Wooyoung stood up and went out.

"He's gonna beat someone up." Yunho chuckled.

"It's his place, he can do whatever he wants." Seonghwa shrugged. The manager brought the tray of drinks and some snacks, giving out the drinks to the respective members.

"I still can't believe we ran into (y/n) there." Yeosang shook his head as he took a sip.

"She was with friends, she said that they were the ones that brought her there. It's her first time at the races." San said.

"She shouldn't be there, it's too dangerous. It's even more dangerous that she recongised us and tried to talk to us." Hongjoong sighed with a click of his tongue.

"But hyung, she doesn't know that... We haven't told her anything so we can't blame her for not knowing. It's only natural that she says hi or talks to us when she sees us." Yunho spoke. Hongjoong shot Yunho a confused look while Seonghwa sighed, not liking where this was going.

"I never said I blamed her." Hongjoong frowned.

"I know but she just looked so hurt when you gave her the cold shoulder." Yunho shrugged and drank his drink.

"Why do you suddenly care so much about her?" Hongjoong stood up. Yes, Hongjoong got to know you first but for some reason, it irked him to see how easily friendly Yunho was with you.

"It's not that I suddenly care or anything. She's a friend, hyung. That's all." Yunho said, keeping completely calm.

"Okay, you two, stop it. Enough about (y/n). We're here to celebrate wins and relax." Seonghwa stood up between the two.

"Sorry, hyung." Yunho apologised to Seonghwa. Hongjoong clicked his tongue and grabbed his cane, leaving the room. He limped to the bar to get a refill.

"I need a stronger drink." Seonghwa mumbled, rubbing his temples.

"Woo." Hongjoong stepped out into the back alley, a filled glass of whiskey in his free hand.

"Oh, captain. What are you doing out here?" Wooyoung turned to see the leader and stood up from his crouched position over the body that was on the ground. Wooyoung shook his hands to relieve the slight ache that settled in his joints.

"Feel better?" Hongjoong raised an eyebrow, holding out his glass to Wooyoung to let him drink. The younger grinned and took it, taking a sip of the golden liquor.

"Yeah, the winning adrenaline wore off. Luckily we had this guy come here and stir trouble." Wooyoung nodded over to the body.

"What did he do?" Hongjoong scoffed.

"Does it matter?" Wooyoung raised an eyebrow. Hongjoong conceeded and didn't ask further. Like he said earlier, this was Wooyoung's place, he could do whatever he wanted.

"Is he dead?" Hongjoong asked.

"Nah, I punched his face in but not hard enough to kill him. I'll get my boys to move him somewhere." He took his phone out.

"Wooyoung sshi." A meek voice interruted them. Hongjoong didn't know the guy but Wooyoung seemed to. He gave the man a nod before he was handed something.

"Thanks." Wooyoung said and the man bowed before walking away. Wooyoung tucked the small item into his pocket.

"Looks like I got my next invite." He smirked to the captain. Finally, something that made Hongjoong smile that night. Wooyoung was doing well at the poker games, and with their reputation, he was constantly getting invited for the following games. This was good, it meant he could get information.

"I'll take San with me as my plus 1 for the next game. Take the chance to promote the casino too." Wooyoung informed, to which Hongjoong nodded.

"That's a good idea, it provides an opportunity for one of the next private games to be held there." Hongjoong said.

"Are you ready to head in? Or are you still angry at whoever fought with you?" Wooyoung chuckled.

"I didn't fight with anyone." Hongjoong rolled his eyes.

"Sure~" Wooyoung teased and held the door open for Hongjoong to walk in. The two headed back to the VIP area, where the others were. San was passed out in Yunho's lap and Seonghwa was half asleep.

"Hwa? Did you drink too much too fast again?" Hongjoong asked his best friend, who was swaying back and forth.

"You're an idiot..." Seonghwa punched Hongjoong's arm lightly before leaning his head on his shoulder.

"I know, I'm always causing you trouble." Hongjoong chuckled, patting Seonghwa's thigh as he drank his drink. Seonghwa hummed, snuggling against Hongjoong's shoulder.

"Yes! You are... You are... the worst... out of all the kids..." Seonghwa said amidst a tired yawn. Seonghwa and Hongjoong have always been there for each other, they are complete opposites but that's why they work so well together.

"Mingi, help Hwa. Let's go home before more of you pass out here." Hongjoong said.

"Yes, captain." Everyone who was awake/ sober replied. Hongjoong stayed in his spot, waiting for Mingi to come over and help Seonghwa up first.

"Careful, hyung." Yeosang helped Hongjoong stand.

"I'll call our drivers..." Jongho stumbled a little as he took his phone out. None of them were in the condition to drive.

"Alright, we should go. Make sure we have people come pick up the cars tomorrow." Hongjoong put a stack of money down on the table and they all left the VIP area to wait for the cars out back.

Once all the boys were loaded into the vans, the drivers drove them back home.

"I'm fine, help the others." Hongjoong stopped the butler from going to help him. The butler bowed and went to help the others instead.

"Ah, hyung. You should really move to one of the downstairs rooms. It'll be much easier on your knee." Yeosang said as he and Wooyoung supported each other up the stairs.

"There's no point since my office is upstairs anyway. It's easier to move between my room and office if I remain upstairs, I'm in there most of the time." Hongjoong reasoned as he went into his room, closing the door behind him. He tossed the cane aside, frankly annoyed by it already.

"Yun, I know you’re awake and sober." Mingi came crept into his best friend’s room. As if on cue, Yunho walked out of his bathroom, wiping his face with a towel.

"Mmm?" Yunho hummed and headed to his dresser to grabbed a t shirt, pulling it over his head.

"What did you need?" Yunho yawned, watching as Mingi climbed into his bed. It was such a common occurrence, they always slept in each other’s beds.

"Dude, why were you starting shit with Hongjoong hyung earlier? And don't blame the alcohol." Mingi raised an eyebrow.

"Geez, I wasn't trying to start anything. And no, I don't have a crush on (y/n)." Yunho said when he saw Mingi open his mouth, who closed it.

"(y/n)'s a nice girl and she's navigating grief just like Hongjoong hyung is..." Yunho started.

"Wait, hold on. Stop right there. Are you trying to set them up?!" Mingi let out a gasp of realisation. Yunho couldn't help the mischievous smirk that crept onto his face as Mingi gave a wary look.

"I'm not trying to set them up... actively trying, at least. I'm just trying to create opportunities for them to get to know each other better. But that aside, (y/n) is still human, Hongjoong hyung should be treating her nicer instead of treating her like us." Yunho shrugged.

"Look man, as your best friend, I just hope you know what you're doing." Mingi said, laying down on the pillow and pulling the blanket over him.

"And I'm not saying that for Hongjoong hyung. But I'd hate to see (y/n) be the one to come out of this hurt." He added.

-

"Ohhh..." Nana and Eve said in unison as you told them the gist of how you knew Hongjoong and the others. You nodded, nursing the hot cup of tea in your hands before you.

"So he's Mrs Kim's son?" Eve asked. You nodded in confirmation.

Instead of heading home after leaving the race, the 3 of you settled in a quiet 24 hour cafe to relax.

"Met him at the funeral and we've been acquainted ever since? I do gardening work at their house, that's it." You said, purposely leaving out that you and Hongjoong were 'friends'. Because after tonight, you were doubting this whole friends thing. Maybe it was all in your head and you weren't friends at all.

"But they're like... big, you know? I mean, I've seen them at the races, even thought I've only just started going. But they win, all the time." Nana said, sipping her coffee.

"Just be careful, alright (y/n)? They seem a little dangerous." Eve sent you a worried smile.

"I will, Eve. Don't worry." You smiled and finished your tea.

"And Mrs Kim was so nice! But we know she was very close with you, (y/n). It must not be easy." Nana sent you a sad smile. You let out a soft sigh at that.

Since it was a nice night out, you decided to split ways with your friends and walk home. It wasn't a far walk and you wanted some fresh air to breathe a little.

"What were you thinking, pabo?" You hit your temples with your fists as you walked home, thinking about what you did.

Maybe you shouldn't have approached Hongjoong. Who were you, compared to someone of his status?

"Ah, whatever." You let out a sigh of defeat as you entered your house. After taking a shower and changing into more comfortable clothes, you sat down and did some work. With a really big event coming up, you wanted to plan the floral designs.

You assumed that the event must be big or important because you were only given brief details about it like the time, date and location. And since you were on your own, your friends volunteered to help.

"Silver and black, huh?" You did a rough sketch of the table arrangements and floral pillars that would go by the doors.

*1 attachment sent to (y/n)'s Flower Fairies*

'I still question the name of this group chat... Why can't we have a normal name. - Jihoon'

'Shut up. It's cute! And the designs are cute, (y/n)! Also, why are you still working at this hour? Go to sleep and design stuff tomorrow! It's time to bed. - Nana'

'Yeah, sleep is important to stay healthy! - Hyunwoo'

'I will soon! I couldn't sleep so I thought I would tire myself out by doing some design work... - (y/n)'

'The designs are so prettyyyy but yes, go to bed (y/n)! And everyone else too - Eve'

You were grateful for your friends. It was a small group but you would always be ready to help each other if needed. They, along with Mrs Kim, made your world feel a lot less lonely.

With that, you put your iPad aside and tried to sleep since you knew you had to work tomorrow. You let out a sigh of relief when you realised that you were not working at Hongjoong's house tomorrow but just your own store. That would give you a few days to get over the odd ache in your chest that you felt.

Luckily work the next day was busy. On top of orders, you had to make some draft designs for the big event and send them over to the organiser for approval.

"(y/n)? Are you here?"

"Yeah, I'm at my work desk Hyunwoo!" You replied. Hyunwoo appeared from the hallway leading to the back door.

"Hey~ Is that the design for the event? It's pretty." He complimented as he took a seat across your work table. You hummed in confirmation and continued working.

"I hope you don't mind, I'm here to escape from stuffy clients and have my lunch in peace." He grinned.

"Of course I don't. Go ahead. You own the place and yet, you're running away." You giggled.

"The reality of business." He sighed exasperatedly and took his lunch box out. Since you were working during your lunch, you had packed a sandwich from home to make it easier to eat and work.

"That's not enough, (y/n)." Hyunwoo said, noticing your small sandwich compared to his huge lunch box with many layers.

"I'm not bulking like you so it's more than enough for me. You know I don't really eat much for lunch when I am distracted. Plus, I have a box of fruit in the fridge that I'll eat later." You said, nodding over to the fridge. Hyunwoo sent you a suspicious look.

"You shouldn't even be working during your lunch in the first place." Hyunwoo whined.

"I know but I'm excited to get this done. I haven't really done such a big event like this on my own before. Usually, I'm asked to be a part of an event team, never lead it." You chuckled.

"It's a great opportunity. I'm glad someone recognises your talent." Hyunwoo smiled as he ate his food.

"Thank you, Hyunwoo. I just hope I don't mess it up." You smiled.

"You won't. Have more faith in yourself. And maybe this will be the chance to get your shop's name out there. Get bigger and grow the business." He laughed.

"That's a very far dream. But I am happy where I am now too. Gives me time to work on my botany and practice it." You giggled.

"Which by the way, the recovery elixir I've added to my bone broth is super good. I feel amazing and have lesser muscle cramps, definitely quicker recovery after my work outs." He complimented.

"That's a relief. I'm glad it worked." You said, taking your journel down from the shelf and flipping to the page with the elixir recipe. You jotted down the notes and good review from Hyunwoo with a satisfied smile on your face. Then you went back to your previous task, which was photo taking.

"There, sent to the organiser. Hopefully they like it." You crossed your fingers and typed out the email with the photos attached to send to the organiser.

~

Series masterlist

[barrenclan]

i feel a bit bad for cormorant :( im sure this isnt your intent but it almost feels as though hes settled for a life he didnt want

I'm curious what this is in response to - there's two major things I can think of, so let me explore them for a second!

So, if this is in response to the idea that Cormorantleaf wants kittens and Pinewing doesn't; lemme talk about that for a second. I tried to go into it in the last epilogue, but with their late-stage relationship I wanted to address a trope in fiction that really bothers me, especially as someone who doesn't want to have children. Stop me if you've heard it before:

Characters A and B are in a romantic relationship. Character A wants to have kids, but B doesn't, for whatever reason. They struggle, and talk about it, and eventually A says "it's okay, even if we don't have kids, I'll still love you!" It's really nice, and confirms that they love each other even if they don't want. Except, then, B turns around and says "it's so good to know that! It made me change my mind; I got over my 'fears', and now I do want kids!"

That bugs me. It's always the assumption, even if it's established that a relationship would be okay without kids, it's always on the onus of the person who doesn't want children to change their mind. It's never enough to stop at "it's okay if we don't have kids together" - and then they don't. So that's what I wanted to do with Cormorantleaf and Pinewing's relationship, and it's why I had Pinewing talk about his discomfort surrounding children so often and Cormorantleaf's potential to be a father. If Corm wanted kids more than he wanted to be with Pine - he could leave! No stopping him. But Pinewing matters more to him than having kids does. I find it more distasteful that someone would force themselves to raise children if they didn't want to (it's almost like that's a theme of the story... and kind of exactly what happened with Nightberry). Admittedly, I would've liked to rather do that idea with Daffodilcloud and Duncan instead of the main gay couple, but eh, I already had an end-of-arc theme with Daff to wrap up that would've clashed. These are the decisions you make when writing a story.

On the other hand, if this is in response to the idea that they're traveling around instead of settling down in one place, or that Pinewing is forcing him into the relationship; maybe I was a bit too subtle with what I was trying to get across. Cormorantleaf was actually the first one to suggest that they travel around together, way back in Issue 26:

Corm needs an emotional anchor more than a physical anchor. And this was especially clear in his early development, and how his relationship to Pinepaw was a bit unhealthy (and vice versa, too); he had such intense abandonment issues that he was holding Pinepaw up as a total pillar of support, and believed he wouldn't be able to survive without him.

That's why I wanted Cormorantleaf to have a chance to be on his own during the breakup, and solidfy that he could exist without a relationship, that he didn't need another person to survive. But instead that he could willingly choose a relationship with Pinewing, because it was something he wanted and something he thought would enrich his life rather than an obligation.

All that to say that Comorantleaf's hesitation in the last epilogue is not meant to be presented as "he's being forced into something he doesn't want by Pinewing", but rather "he's scared that them traveling around will cause Pinewing to abandon him, and that makes him panic and lash out".

And Pinewing would have absolutely stayed with him even after Cormorantleaf yelled at him, except that Corm happened to hit on Pinewing's own insecurities that come from his childhood of neglect and feelings that nobody actually wants him around:

You don't have to be un-anonymous to respond to this, and anyways if it's just personal feelings that's perfectly valid and not something I want to try and change. But I never meant to make it seem like Cormorantleaf wasn't happy with where he ended up, or that he 'settled' for something he didn't want.

[scribefindegil]

Lorraine Baines McFly and Female Autonomy

Hello. I have spent the past month slowly losing my mind about Lorraine Baines McFly, Marty's mom in Back to the Future, so I am finally trying to articulate some of the reasons I'm so feral about her.

There's a quote from Lea Thompson, the actress who played Lorraine, that goes, "The three parts that women usually get to play are virgins, whores, and mothers, and in Back to the Future Part II, I got to play all three." While this is commentary on Hollywood and the limited roles that fictional women get forced into, I think it's also interesting to think about it in terms of how these roles are reflected onto actual women and used to limit their personhood and confine them to a very narrow range of acceptable behaviors . . . and then in turn to think about how the character interacts with these roles on a Watsonian level. They're affecting not just Lorraine the character as she was written, but Lorraine from an in-universe perspective trying to navigate life as a woman in a patriarchal world. Some of the sexism she faces is a deliberate narrative choice and some of it is a result of the writers' blind spots, but for the purpose of this essay I'm less interested in teasing out which threads are which and more in looking at it holistically.

Because the thing about Lorraine is that she's aware of what the acceptable roles and behaviors for women are, and the versions that we see of her across the various timelines alternately fight against and capitulate to these constraints. What is a woman allowed to be? How much is Lorraine willing to break from those restrictions? How much does she allow other women to break from them? Does she resent her role or embrace it? I have a lot of thoughts specifically about how the different iterations of her interact with concepts of female agency and autonomy.

(Putting this under a cut because it is. Long.)

I started thinking about this when I was talking with my partner about 50's Lorraine. She's extremely active and driven and planning to Get What She Wants (in a way that is very scary, if you are Marty) . . . but at the same time she's clearly aware that she isn't supposed to be. A Good Fifties Girl is demure and passive. Lorraine isn't--but she's still trying to toe the line. I think constantly about the scene where she shows up at Doc's garage to be like "I followed you home . . . so that I can ask you to ask me to the dance." The girl can embrace borderline stalking but she draws the line at directly asking a boy out! She's exercising a lot of agency but views doing so as rebellious and subversive--and risky.

And I also want to talk about the whole "boy crazy" thing because like . . . society (especially in the fifties) tells women that the most important thing they can possibly do is find a good man and become wives and mothers, that this will define the success or failure of their entire lives (and given how many things were unavailable to single women at the time this is in many ways true) . . . and then relentlessly mocks and punishes anyone who actually takes an interest in pursuing this instead of just sitting back passively and waiting. She is trying to do what society says will make her happy! And even her desire for a white knight is very much based in the reality of her situation! She's getting sexually harassed at school and around town and she's doing exactly what she's supposed to and standing up for herself and saying no and fighting back--and this is not enough. She does need backup! Biff harasses her in the middle of a crowded cafeteria and Marty is the ONLY person who does anything! No fucking wonder she latches onto him as hard as she does! (There's. I promise this is related but there's a BttF parody musical on YouTube where when Strickland comes to break up the lunchroom fight he says, "Now, I can excuse sexual harassment, but LIGHT SHOVING?" and like it's a haha funny joke but also?? Yeah?? That IS how it works. The way Lorraine's being treated is so overlooked and normalized that the authority figure isn't going to step up the way he will when it's a physical altercation between two guys. Screams.) I wonder if part of the reason she stuck with George in the original timeline even though they didn't have a lot in common is that "I have a boyfriend" is a boundary that some people might actually take seriously whereas "I'm not interested" is not.

But. In general 50's Lorraine is very much about grabbing as much agency as she feels she's allowed to . . . and then Twin Pines Lorraine is what happens when she regrets the result of those choices (because while we don't see it, it's pretty obvious that in the original timeline she pursued George as aggressively as she pursues Marty in the new one), and so she decides to deny, not just her own agency, but female agency as a general concept. She leans so heavily on the idea that her relationship was "meant to be" because it absolves her of any culpability in creating a life she's unhappy with. She's rewritten her own past to view herself as a passive participant in something inevitable. (Exactly the view of womanhood that she was fighting so hard against in the 50's!) And she extends this idea of female passivity to the women around her: telling Linda that she should sit back and wait and a relationship will "just happen," actively resenting Jennifer for doing something as simple as calling Marty on the phone. It's a really interesting form of internalized misogyny, perpetuating these sexist ideas as almost a misguided form of self-defense.

And then for Lone Pine Lorraine this is completely flipped! She loves Jennifer for the same reason she disliked her in Twin Pines: because she reminds Lorraine of her younger self. And like . . . this is something of an extrapolation, but while obviously her husband and kids are still very important to her, it also feels like she has interests and friends and other things going on in her life, whereas part of the isolation of Twin Pines is that her life has shrunk down to the point where she's ONLY a wife and mother with nothing else to define herself by. And it also matters that in this timeline she has a partner that supports her, not just in the big dramatic moments (although also that), but you can easily see the dance as a catalyst for George actually learning to listen to her and stand up for her about smaller things as well. George McFly feminism arc. (I'm being slightly facetious but like. George starts off kind of shitty. The spying is actively Bad and I hope Marty chewed him out for it offscreen, but also his reaction to the harassment scene being "I think there's someone else she'd rather go with," implying that he sees what Biff is doing as like. Normal flirting that he expects to work. He doesn't GET it. Unsurprising because he is. A teenage boy in the fifties. But I do believe that saving Lorraine was something of a wakeup call and after that he listened to her about things that make her uncomfortable and gave her the support that she needed. Which would also give her a lot more freedom in this timeline because she has someone with more societal power who has her back!)

And then. Hell Valley.

If Lone Pine is the version of Lorraine who has the most freedom, the most opportunities to make decisions based on what she wants instead of What Is Expected Of A Woman, Hell Valley is the opposite. The things denying her agency in Twin Pines is largely societal forces (and herself); in Hell Valley she is actively being denied autonomy by her evil husband who functions as the personification of a bunch of sexist ideas.

She's been objectified to the point that she doesn't maintain control over her own body; Biff pressures her to get cosmetic surgeries so she can continue to look attractive to him because that's the only value he sees in her. Her physical appearance is entirely tailored to his preferences.

Biff's view of Lorraine is wife-as-possession. He treats her like a prize he's won and her kids like parasites. And he is NOT subtle about this. But Lorraine is still desperately clinging to the idea that she's wife-as-family. She calls Biff "your father" to Marty when he arrives, and talks about "our children" because she wants so so badly for this to be something different than what it is. It's especially terrible because this is a timeline where she got seventeen years of being happy with George, she knows what she's missing, and she keeps trying to force this new relationship into a similar mold even though Biff is openly contemptuous of her and especially her kids. It's been twelve years and she's still trying to pretend. To call back to that Lea Thompson quote: it's obvious where Biff thinks Lorraine fits on the virgin-mother-whore axis, while Lorraine is actively trying to centralize her motherhood partially because the kids really are that important to her and partially as a defense mechanism.

(And it's also such a bleak cautionary tale about how fragile women's stability can be when they're dependent on their husbands; Lorraine was happy with George and had a fair amount of freedom, but he was the only one with an income so when he died she was suddenly forced into a truly horrific situation because she had no other means to support herself and her three young children. Especially given that the Hell Valley universe is also worse in some broader political ways that mean there were probably even fewer social supports available than in real life 1973)

And god. It kills me the way that we see her lash out, the way she's clawing for autonomy when she threatens to leave . . . and then exactly how Biff levels all his axes of control against her. It's very interesting that his first tactic is consumerist (Who will pay for all your things? Who will take care of you?) and that doesn't work even though not being able to support herself is a very real concern. It's only when he threatens her kids that she folds. And then she immediately crumples and pivots to rationalizing Biff's behavior and blaming herself for her own abuse (in a way that is both HEARTBREAKING and also? surprisingly sympathetic and realistic for an 80's movie?). It's similar to the passivity we see in Twin Pines, but here we see exactly where it comes from. She doesn't have any way out so she has to pretend. It's the only way she can keep going. She has these flashes of rage but they're immediately snuffed out by despair and denial.

There's not a lot of talk about Lorraine and what there is tends to reduce her to "well she's Marty's mom" as if she's a boring character who doesn't have a lot going on. But even though most of her role in the movies has to do with her relationships with the various men in her life, those relationships are really interesting if you actually pay attention to them! She's not just (in the 80's) a wife and mother--she's someone who has a complex relationship with marriage and motherhood and the societal expectations surrounding them. She's not just (in the 50's) a vapid boy-crazy girl--she's doing her best to go after what she wants in a world that doesn't want her to (the fact that one of the things she wants turns out to be her time-traveling son from the future is unfortunate but not something she has any way of knowing!). She's stuck in a society that doesn't want women to be people, and she knows this, and because we see her across two different time periods and three different timelines you can watch how sometimes society grinds her down until she gives in and tries not to be a person. And also how, sometimes, she fights back.

[identitty-dickruption]

Is there anything that you see when someone writes addiction/alcohol addiction specifically that really annoys you? As someone trying to write something related rn, having someone who actually knows about it's perspective is really useful :]. Obviously no pressure to answer! Have a nice day <3

oh absolutely yes. I've seen some truly shocking things of late. and also in general very happy to bitch about it for a bit

it may sound obvious but don't. like. blame the entirety of a person's addiction on a single factor or act like "if only they had access to x piece of information, they wouldn't be an addict!". in candy house by Jennifer Egan, one of the characters became an addict because of her dyslexia and her inability to find fictional characters who Truly Understood Her. don't do that.

try not to smooth them out into a singular dimensional person. or even a two dimensional person (where the two dimensions are addiction and trauma or whatever). an addict is a human being. weirdly difficult for people to conceptualise this

NOBODY gets withdrawal right. withdrawal is Not a couple shakes and then you're good. withdrawal can last weeks, if not months, depending on how dependent the person was on the substance and depending on what the substance is

similar to the above, if someone relapses while they're experiencing withdrawal, the withdrawal symptoms do not immediately disappear. if you're throwing your guts up you won't be magically fine the moment you get your substance in you. you will still feel incredibly shit for a good couple hours Minimum

implying that addiction is inherently irrational, or selfish, or stupid. addiction is a response to a set of circumstances that make sense to a person at the time. nobody becomes an addict for shits and giggles. there is always something else going on

likewise, the "high functioning alcoholic" trope has. problems. like I spent an entire year being tipsy non-stop while I was also doing alright in university and whatever. very definition of high-functioning alcoholism I guess. but I think those characters are done Poorly a lot of the time in that the nature of the interpersonal issues they have never feels Quite Right

"I got sober for love" shut the fuck up. "you saved me from myself" go away. "one real human relationship fixed my dependency on substances" no it did not. if love cured all ills, I would be the healthiest guy on the planet. it simply does not work that way <- falling in love makes it easier to love myself and have hope for the future but at the end of the day I'm still a traumatised bitch who struggles with shit

the entire concept of an intervention. addiction does not end with One Grand Event that will make everything better. forcing someone to go to rehab barely ever works. interventions are not one-off events, they are a series of kind and compassionate conversations that occur over a long period of time

sorry this ended up being a lot more than I thought it would. I think if you asked me again tomorrow I would have five to ten more things to bitch about. idk. people get the complexities of addiction wrong A Lot and I've read/seen more bad rep than good rep. but oh well. it's important to me that people are out there trying their best to do better! so thanks for asking