#I had to bake some for us in order to write the correct bake time for them on the bag 😈

[artificial-condition]

Another batch of cookies, this time mini coffee chocolate chip ones, that I made for my brother and his girlfriend :)

[kernun]

Rainy Day with JJK Men

ft. satoru, suguru, sukuna, toji, nanami cw. suggestive, mentions of sex, mentions of drugs and alcohol note. this is my first time ever writing headcanons or anything in general so, I hope you like it and I would really appreciate the feedback If you have any. It's an AU cause dead daddies can't enjoy rain, thanks Gege. I may update this with some corrections. Also, English in not my first language.

SATORU. Hates rainy days. He's more of a sunflower. Won't stop complaining about being stuck because of the rain and how bored he is. He would be such a baby about it, all whinny and annoying.

Binge watches TV. But like, a whole series or a full fucking trilogy. Eventually loses interest and the TV becames some background noise as he scrolls through his phone.

Eats sweets cause he's bored. He would finish with all the snacks in the house and won't have a proper meal for the whole day.

Sex. He would chase you around the house, flirting and throwing shitty pick up lines until you give in.

SUGURU. Trying so hard to just chill. Since he's an overthinker, he enjoys rainy days when he has company and can keep his mind busy. Hates them when he's alone.

Windows open. He loves the sound and the smell of rain. Specially when it rains at night.

Bokworm. If you're into books, he would enjoy a long reading session as you both listen to the rain in the background. If you're not, he would still want to be in the same room as you, following you around with his book.

Plays some music, but something soft so he can still hear the rain ouside. Probably some Lo-fi.

SUKUNA. Nothing stops this man, he's a menace. Rain fears him. If he had to go somewhere, he just would.

Bike/Car dude. Spends some time in the garage cleaning or fixing his baby. Beer and hard rock playing on the background.

Casually joins you as you watch some episodes of some series but gets bored easily. He has the amazing skill to turn every situation into sex so...couch sex as Netflix plays in the background.

Orders food without thinking on the poor delivery guys getting soaked outside. He just doesn't give a fuck.

Smokes weed as he does any of the above.

TOJI. Watches some kind of sports stuff on TV. Whatever he can find. Or even shows like "Storage Wars" or "Forged in Fire". Probably with a beer. Or two...

He would have to run to the nearest store to buy frozen pizza for dinner and beer because he doesn't want to pay the delivery fees. He doesn't use an umbrella.

Takes some time to make tasks he's been delaying. You would have to chase him about it and tell him to move his ass but he'd eventually and reluctantly do it.

He would enjoy napping on the couch. ALL DAY.

Sex for sure. As many rounds as you're willing to go.

NANAMI. Restless daddy. He doesn't know how to chill. He needs to keep himself busy.

Fixes small stuff around the house he couln't take care of before because he's always working.

Cooks a nice recipe or bakes something. Definetly would ask you first if you crave something specific.

Cleans and do chores. If you're doing chores, he would take over cause he wants you to relax.

After a while of you complaining about how much load he takes, he finally listens to you and relax, spending the rest of the day with you, watching a movie or whatever you want to do riding him. He would struggle internally but he lets you take care of him for the day.

[sunnywalnut]

I miss when autistic rep was on accident. I feel like every time a neurotypical/allistic person tries to write somebody with autism on purpose, it just comes off as "he's a total jerk, but he's REALLY GOOD at what he does" instead of "this guy's facial expression doesn't change very much, but I promise you he's absolutely happy to help. Also talk to him about birds. He fucking loves birds."

And I don't mean "he loves birds" as in "this guy wears bird shirts 24/7 and corrects you if you accidentally call a pigeon a dove." No. I mean "he loves birds" as in "he's able to name the sound of the bird just by it's song and point to it and it's just sitting on the rooftop next to you" and if you ask questions he gets this little smile to his face and answers them all and even tells you about some drama about two researchers who were unsure of they could call two birds different species since they were so similar and then gives you the answer of they can, because their beaks are different and that means their diet is different or whatever.

Not every autistic dude in media has to be "UwU save me from the world and take care of me bc I'm just a smol beannn✨"

Sometimes they're just Chad from maintenance who seems to love his job a bit more than he should, but it's all good bc everything that's fixed works even better than it was before it was broken. He's not creepy or anything. But he WILL call you over if he sees you walk past in order to show off his latest repair and talk to you about what he did. Everyone loves Chad. They're happy that he's as dedicated to his job as he is. Plus it makes the office a lot more bearable to have him around because he always seems to wear this gigantic grin and talk with his hands.

You're absolutely able to have "cute" autistic characters. I have cute autistic characters.

I have a little elf girl that counts each individual strand of her hair when she's nervous and climbs trees. She loves baking, so much so that she will make everything gluten free, kosher, dairy free, vegan, whatever you need in order to make sure you're included. As soon as she steps into a garden, she's completely covered in dirt. And yes, she's extremely friendly and doesn't understand social cues. And sure. She has her boyfriend take care of things for her, like keeping her safe from creeps when she's in public, and shutting down scammers before she can pay them, but it's not because she's dumb. It's because he elected himself into that space. And he knows full well that if she decides to scurry off to whatever wonderful thing that has caught her eye, that she'll wander back to him when she's ready. She knows how to defend herself. And he trusts her. And she does things for him as well. Which is something I don't see in autistic/allistic relationships in media at all.

Like do y'all really think our partners are just our glorified babysitters???

We're not just there to sit still and look pretty.

We're there to be your emotional rock. We tend to have high empathy. We can listen to your problems and validate your emotions. And sure, we might give you some advice that seems a bit wonky at best, but anyone can do that. Not just autistic people.

Sometimes we take over financial decisions, for one reason or another. I had a partner that would always come to me for financial advice despite living on their own and having more than enough money to do what they wanted with, but they knew that I could budget better. I'm good at math. And no, not a "math wiz" all A's kind of good. But a "I can do big number addition/subtraction and sometimes multiplication within seconds in my head" which was also really helpful in my culinary class when my teacher would put me in charge of making sure we were on target with how many servings of food we had. Not every autistic person has to be leagues above the rest academic to be autistic. My allistic brother had straight A's for YEARS. Much longer than I did. I had A's and B's.

You can come to us if you need a hug. Or to cuddle. Or to body double. Or just to hang out. Some autistic people like touch. We crave it. I can guarantee you that if we were friends and you climbed up on the couch next to me and laid your head in my lap, I would let you. No questions asked. I'd even pet your hair. And I'd ask you about your day. I can't count how many times high fives have turned to hand holding with my friends because they needed a loving talking to about how great they are. Or a back rub when they're crying. Not all of us are going to stand there, staring down at you while you're curled up on the floor and be like "STATISTICALLY SPEAKING-" yeah no. And the people who DO that likely are trying to relay information that they know that they think will help you feel better. We're odd, but we're not heartless. Let me get down on your level. Sit with you. And then I'll talk to you about how tears are actually really healthy and it's good that you're able to cry. And also I'm proud of you and let's get you some water, okay?

We can take care of you too!!

I give all my friends hair care advice bc I've spent too much time watching hair stylist videos. I tell them to make sure they lotion after every shower when they complain about dry skin or body acne. I tell them to drink water after they cry. Or wash their face. Or alternate ways they can get around invisible barriers and still get what they need done. You know how many times I've had to sit down problem solve with my loved ones for over an HOUR bc their ADHD decided not to let them brush their teeth or take a shower? I have a whole ARSENAL of advice to give you. And yeah. If you're close enough where I can head over to your place, I WILL do your dishes(bc somehow they're less gross than mine). I WILL wash your hair for you, or fold your clothes or clear the counters of trash. Not because I think you're lazy or nothing. But because I see something that needs to be done, and I do it. Because I love you, it's simple, and hey, I'm here anyways, right?

Like shit. Every night I have a sleepover with my best friend, I do the dishes that were in her sink before I even came over while she starts on dinner. Because I love her. And that's my way of paying her back for picking me up. I clear all our trash, and the scraps of tea bags that she missed in the mornings. Because I love her. And it's simple enough I can do it myself. I chop the garlic as we cook together because we're working as a team. And yeah. After it's all over. We sit on the couch like a bunch of lazy dogs and watch TV and chat and do whatever. And sometimes. We don't do anything but just enjoy each other's company. Because as adults, we don't get a lot of time to just relax.

We all have our own strengths and weaknesses. And sure. Being friends with an autistic person isn't always sunshine and rainbows. Sometimes our behaviors or our tenancies can be stressful. Like sensory meltdowns, or our bluntness(which is honestly usually just us saying exactly what is true without sugar coating it. Like if you said the sky was purple I'd be like "nah it's blue rn" and people find that blunt and rude. But to me, that's just a fact. I'm not saying you're dumb. I'm just saying it's blue right now.) or sometimes, even when we get super hyper about our interests. I would know. I'm autistic myself. And I irritate myself.

But it seems like in media, the irritation is all people can see. Even in "supportive" families that I see in shows and such, everyone's always stressed all the time.

You're telling me ONE LITTLE CHILD is tearing this entire family apart? (*COUGH COUGH Young Sheldon COUGH*) Not only is that stupid, that's just inaccurate.

If you wanna be accurate, maybe don't have every autistic person you write be a "high functioning" male in a doctor's coat who's transphobic as fuck and his excuse being he's autistic.

If you know the bitch is outwardly transphobic, don't fucking put him in the room with trans people.

And also?

Autistic people are allowed to learn the difference between sex and gender. We're ALLOWED to learn about queer identities. And we're ALLOWED to be queer ourselves without being labeled as idiots who don't know any better.

I've YET to see a show about an outwardly queer autistic girl who is able to make awesome friends and overcome her challenges WITHOUT succumbing to being an asshole on purpose.

Except for The Owl House. And Luz isn't even canonically autistic. It's just speculated.

THAT is good autistic representation.

Not whatever the fuck "The Good Doctor" is supposed to be.

My Personal List Of Good Autism Rep Recs(non canon, sadly):

-Good Omens(not explicitly canon, but multiple characters behave in a way that could be labeled as autistic. Plus Neil Geiman, the writer himself is autistic)

-The Owl House(again. Not explicitly canon. But great. The whole show is about accepting yourself as you are and is kinda along the lines of Gravity Falls. In fact, she was in a relationship with Alex Hirsh, creator of Gravity Falls. And also she's bisexual with a CANONICALLY BISEXUAL LEAD!! Also is lovely for mental health allegories too)

-Gravity Falls (the whole Pines family just REEKS autism to me. Noncannon.)

-How To Train Your Dragon(Hiccup is autistic as hell and you can't convince me otherwise. Non canon)

-Adventure Time (some of the humor is dated, but enjoyable. Also Princess Bubblegum. Need I say more?)

-We Bare Bears (slice of lifey. Sometimes childish. Sweet as hell though. Grizz feels very autistic to me, but that could also be because I enjoy how huggable and easily excitable he is. Everyone loves him. He's loud, he can absolutely be obnoxious, but he loves his bros and tries his best to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. He also does his best to fix any problems he makes. Which in my book, makes him a good guy. Some people also claim Ice Bear is autistic. But personally, I feel like he just doesn't talk much. What do you guys think?)

[mydahliarose]

Happy birthday my angel ✨

First fic i ever write for them enjoy!

Pairing: Niiri x Michael 🎪✨

Trope: forbidden lovers angel x demon. 🩷

Fandom: what in hell is bad

Tag: fluff, comfort, tenderness, very slight nsfw 🤍

Synopsis: Niiri learned of Michael's birthday so she decided to show her his appreciation that involves some emotional intimacy as his gift. 💒

Information of Niiri here 🌁

It was recently that Michael would move to earth in order to be close with his assigned exorcists colleagues Merewyn and Thiago. However what he did not sign up for was that a demon would be a part of there group suddenly. He would have ended her right then and there during the circus operation if it wasn't for what she said.

" i wish to be an angel more than anything! Please i beg of you! Take me with you i hate it down there! My master's is to corrupted by his majesty leviathans charm to give a damn for me! I feel lonely and scared down there! My path is with you Michael! Let me proove myself to you and your exorcists that im on your side! Please let me join you!"

Michael could still hear her crys even to this day. Thiago was the first to emphasize with her. actually really thanks to the maestro himself, he talked him to letting her join. Michael really should have popped his head right then and there, then call it a day with a new team but...

When he looked at niiri once more. It was like he couldn't take his eyes off her.

Was it because of her speech? Is it that he could not believe that a demon would actually want to change to his side? He pondered....

" Tck! Shes a sin!. She goes everything againts god and his beliefs!. I shall take matters into my own hands, once that Brianless macho man is knowhere near her!" *CRACK!* his mirror now in imperfection just as his inner self.

That's what he thought and that was it just a thought. because he would never act anything, infact his feelings for the entertainment demon only grew more as time went by that he grew more agitated at himself, and the fear this truly was if the angels knew of this.

So what will he do?. Bottle it up as much as he can until those filthy feelings went away and feel a sense of relief again.

But sadly for the seraphim himself this wouldn't happen.

August

It was his birthday. now Michael dosent usually celebrate it, infact hed just go to work with the other seraphim's to exterminate demons as he orgasms in the thought of smashing them againts a wall or decapitate them a perfect birthday celebration for him.

Niiri was with the exorcists. as usual exercising demons to purify of this earth. However, on this day they where all done for today, until merewyn mentioned of Michaels lack of celebration. once thiago mentioned his birth. Niiri tilted her head in Curiosity.

"its the beautiful bastards birthday?"

Of course thiago nodded in correct of her statement. and so niiri with no hesitation went straight home to make a cake made with the finest buttercream frosting and french vanilla mix, since hes so boujee it had to be perfect no mistakes can be made!.

Of course she wasnt used to baking at all, thankfully thiago helped before she became messy.

Michaels penthouse

Michael had returned from his successful mission. he was putting on his robe, after a long warm bath of washing away blood and emotional anguish. The room was overtaken by the sound of a blow-dryer swaying his hair around to get every strand dried.

That all stops, when a nock on his door ceases all what hes doing and cocks an eyebrow. Who on earth dares to interrupt his beauty routine?!, Wether its the exorcists, or Gabriel they where about to feel the wrath of his all mighty hands!

But when he aggressively opend the door, the sudden familiar waves of infatuation hit him like a boulder. It was Niiri, carrying a beautiful white cake with gold accents. she was awfully messy to, she was covered in frosting and flour, that every time she coughed the product transferred onto michaels face, and he to was met with a non stop wheeze.

" are you out of your mind?!. I spend hour's upon hours washing my face to perfection and you ruin it!. I outta-, his eyes then trialed down to see an unexpected surprise something that hed never recieve from a demon ever.

"niiri?.... what's this?"

She looked down shyly, as he takes notice of the gesture.

"i-i wanted to come and tell you happy birthday!. I heard from thiago and merewyn it was today, plus now that im on your team i wanted to gift you something meaningful because....well..."

"your an amazing angel, and your authority is something to admire!"

Niiri hands him the cake In his hands, holding them in the process.

"i mean it....i look up to you ever since you gave me a chance to see how much im dedicated to this..."

Michael only stared for a bit until niiri brought her hand up to his face.

"are you feeling ok?"

He snapped out of it.

"hm? O-oh no im fine, its just i wasnt expecting such thoughtfulness coming from you...."

Niiri understands his wordings carefully. "because no demon would do this,...if another had nocked theyd attempt to kill you instead. Oh Michael..."

She looked at him with softness.

"niiri?-" her face had no malicious intention at all. this was something Michael wasnt very much used to, hes admired sure but with humans who pray to him and the church along with the angels. but a demon is Surreal, it almost felt wrong yet it felt good...

His chest grew louder. and as it did paranoia rised that he looked to his left and right, making sure no angel or demon where around the perimeter. there wasnt but the immediate sound of footsteps coming made him react quickly into dragging her inside his penthouse.

"woah! Careful there casanova. i nearly tripped! I could have fallen in your arms~"

She teased as Michael nearly blushed infront of her, fighting his sin felt like a war zone. Instead he scoffed as he flipped his hair like a model turning away to place his birthday cake by the kitchen counter.

Niiri had always found him beautiful. Infact out of all the angels shes met Michael stood out.

Everytime she was infront of him, an ethereal of ambience suddenly commences in his presence. When this happens niiri almost forgets to blink, almost like if she where in a trance not bieng able to look away from him....

"your gorgeous..." She whispers.

"hm?" You say something?" He turns to her.

Niiri returns to her senses and immediately shakes her head.

"no no all is fine!." Michaels gaze focused upon her seemingly dozed off demeanor. the more he examined the more he realized slowly could she to have feelings for him?. His heart ached more, while his eye twitches in annoyance that Niiri was making him loose control of himself emotionally almost.

" well dont just stand there like the literal porcelain doll that you are come." He grabbed his cake, and sat near his couch tapping to his side signiling her to sit with him. "Sit here"

Wow he really began to trust her?,To think a couple months ago he would try to be around her less. but now it seemed that was all beginning to change. "Aww such a gentleman~." He rolled his eyes. " Please don't make me change my mind and have you walk out the door.."

She plopped on the couch before Patting him on his head. " So moody today, what's bothering ya? You've been annoyed since the moment you let me in." When she said this Michael grew a bit tense. Should he tell her? No what is he thinking?! For all he knew she could accidently slip up and have him ripped of his wings, sending him straight to hell for betraying god and his army. The thought of feeling his bones of his feathers be torn in torture nauseated him. Dont tell her Michael! Keep it to yourself it's form the better!.

" umm...its just that angel dutys can be exhausting is all." He places his finger onto his temple rubbing it as he speaks his distraction away from his true feelings.

" seriously niiri, you have no idea what its like to be a part of gods seraphims. Its paradise sure but it is far more strict and prestige, no mistakes cant be made especially if you commit a sin..." He looks at her seriously.

"if you do become an angel..."

"would you be able to handle such trials?"

Niiri pondered upon this question. Its true angels are ruthless, but so are demons but bieng down there's for most of her time shes realized one crucial difference. There was freedom in hell compared, to heaven and yet despite this truth, Niiri was still positive that up into the sky was surley her destiny.

" oh michael, You forget I'm a bit ditzy in the head!, Even though its tough up there, ive delt with bullshit all my life in hell i can handle it. And besides..." Niiri scoots closer to him. placing her hand over his fingers that where applying preassure to his stress." With you helping me around the ropes i think i can manage when the time comes to earn my halo." She winks, and immediately Michaels chest skips a beat,only this time she noticed. especially how much his eyes widen with a tiny flustered face on his cheeks.

" lay down Michael. Its your birthday after all lets not think of this, for now instead lets focus on you...." Pats her lap for him to lay upon.

He was hesitant. This did not feel right for a demon such as herself, to help comfort an angel in his most vulnerable moment, but alas. broken ego succumbed him and gave into her charm. He crawled then, very gently placed his head upon her lap. Niiri caressed his soft delicate features with the tip of her fingers that michael nearly sighed of relief, his tension slowly untying as her trails mark around every throbbing veins around his forehead.

As Niiri begins to massage him carefully, Michael released a very small gasp. eyes where closed, thou his face spoke as if he was beginning to feel a sort of sexual gratification from it. There was no lust, however more so it just felt so good the way Niiri kept rubbing his temples, that he couldnt help himself, especially when she combed through his scalp with her long sharp nails that send shivers down his spine.

"n-niiri~..." Michael said in a drowsy like state of bliss, you could even hear a slight pur coming from his sentence. Poor guy never catches a break, it was almost eandering to see him like this. His cheeks warmed up even redder, having no control of his feelings now. Poor Michael never catching a break, he carries the title of dust decapitation while holding an image he cannot break. He must be so exhausted from it all.

At times Niiri felt bad for him, despite his overdramatic tantics. She knew he felt something for her since this past week, but what Michael didnt know, was that past her flirtatious demeanor his intuition was correct. Niiri had indeed been harboring a secret infatuation for Michael himself.

Oh how tragic...

A demon and an angel, having to keep there feelings a secret from one another is truly a tragedy yet a beautiful love story. For Michael it is shame, but for Niiri? Fear for Michael rather than herself. The mortifying thought of Michael suffering the consequences because of his love for her makes her feel nothing more than guilt.

She shrugged those thoughts off, continuing to therapeuticly de stress Michael with her bisque like porcelain hands, traveling all through his tension brushing of strands of his hair aside as to not disrupt his dull eyelids awake. Soon enough, she makes way to his side of his ear where his wing was. Niiri stopped to think is he sensitive from there?. From the state he was in, she dared not make him move a flinch but it was best to ask before proceeding.

"Michael?"

"....mm?"

"is it alright if i-"

Michael stops her from finishing her sentence. " Go ahead...." A high ranking seraphim letting a demon touch his wing? This had to be a dream!.

"alright..." Her heart races. This piece of his body was what she admired of him, and now she has the privilege to show some affection towards it. Niiri slowly returned her hand to touch his side, tracing her way behind his ear,to his feathery extension. One touch was all it took to send Michael in a shiver. She continued her adventure by expanding her hands to stroke them, side way to side way fingers like a pendalum.

Michael squirmed a little, while letting out moan so comforting that it was music to niiri's ears. She felt pride in herself that she did the impossible, she made Michael feel safe and welcomed around her.

With one finger, she circled around where his soft spot was. Michael made a lustrous noise like the last except this time, his expression returned to that loosend up lewdness bieng relieved from a thousand year of bottled up anger.

"t-this feels good...~" he whispered shakingly, bieng on edge thanks to Niiri's affection.

"only for you dear...." Niiri in the heat of the moment kneeled down to leave a kiss onto his temple. Michael was left breathless from this, but he dared not shove her away.

"n-niiri..., your lucky its just us." He was totally slipping away to dream land now.

"shhh, now let me spoil you before you leave me alone while you wonder of to dream land and make me cry because your gone~" she fake sniffles,bieng dramatic like a showbiz.

Michael chuckles " who said anything about you bieng alone?, Why not rest with me once ive drifted away~" he yawns.

Niiri then smears a finger on the cake frosting, putting it onto Michaels lips.

"i said shhh! Dont speak, i want you to relax in silence it's what you deserve. Consider it your birthday gift~."

Michael was left drowsingly speechless of her sudden action. He obeyed and did not say a word, except for his tongue that licked every single frosting from top to bottom, blushing at his own needy action all while echo moans overtake him.

Even niiri became so red that once Michael let go off her seductively she had no words left to say, instead contenued to give touches to his wings.

"that's what you get for silencing me goodnight~" he smirked to himself.

" i guess that wasnt so bad~" niiri teased.

With her other hand, she covered his eyes althou closed since forever ago it was so his eyes wouldn't strain from the lights.

" your right,....it wasnt...." And then silence.

Michael would mumble a few times then whimper from his sensitive wings, until Niiri stopped once for sure he was a goner.

" happy birthday my angel..."

"know that your "sin" is nothing to be ashamed of..."

" once you realize that you will feel so relieved..."

End

Angel dividers by @/chocoperrito

Star dividers @/ Anitalenia

Bottom star dividers @/dwaintydoll

[triggerhappyhavac-academy]

To: Kiyotaka Ishimaru, the Ultimate Moral Compass

From: Shinju Chigira, the Ultimate Socialite

Dearest Taka,

Reading your response to my suggestions made me smile. I appreciate you taking the time to engage so thoughtfully with everything I sent and keeping me informed. Especially when I know how much you must already have on your plate. Thank you for your honesty and precision. Truly.

It’s rare to find someone who commits to responsibility the way you do. Not for status or recognition, but out of principle. I admire that deeply. People like you make this feel worth it. Writing all of this, watching closely, trying to keep hope stitched together by a thread...

I hope it's right if I speak a little more informally this time. You've permitted me to call you by your nickname, after all, and that already feels… a little closer. I don’t intend to overstep, so if you’d prefer we keep things strictly professional, I will. But I’d like to write to you again, if that’s alright. Perhaps not just about rules and systems, but about... well, anything, really. You seem like someone worth getting to know.

For instance: What’s your favorite type of tea? Or do you drink coffee? Something else, perhaps? I’m partial to rose milk tea with a touch of honey- no sugar cubes, please! I used to make it every morning, even when I didn’t have time. It’s silly, but it made me feel like I had control over the day. It was like a little ritual.

Or maybe you'd prefer something a little less flowery. I could send you some of my favorite recipes instead! Do you enjoy cooking? I always try to expand my palette. Though I usually prefer baking. Pastries, bread, pies... You name it! Mill my own flour for it, too! I'm quite proud of that hobby of mine.

...I won’t pretend this is normal. None of it is. But if we’re to get through it - and I do believe we can - it’ll take more than structure. It’ll take moments like these. Quiet ones. Kind ones. So if you ever want to share something with me in return, I’m here. Whether as an advisor… or something else.

Ever yours,

Shinju

Ahaha! I am very glad to hear how you appreciate my efforts! In return, I should let you know I also appreciate yours!

You are doing everything you can to assist me in guiding the others, and you're trying your hardest to make sure we all survive. For that, you are truly honorable.

You are free to speak with me informally, I believe you to be, and I hope I am not overstepping with this title, a good friend of my mine at this point! I admire your strengths greatly, and your determination to ensure everything runs smoothly.

There have not been many times in the past where I have been permitted to speak so casually with others, and about myself no less. My role has often been in the past only to encourage good behavior and morals, I've never been regarded in a way that others felt the need to speak to me outside of a professional setting, so I do apologize if I'm lacking in experience, however I would very much like to engage with you regardless.

I do understand the feeling of control through your morning tea. For me it is similar, I truly feel as though I am seizing the day and starting it off right with my choices in morning drink and meal!

After all, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. In order to ensure you're prepared for the day ahead of you, you must make sure your morning starts off right! To ensure a hearty breakfast is to ensure a productive day!

I am also a fan of tea. I believe it too helps start a morning off right, the correct kind of tea can really affect your state of mind and even body, you know. Personally, I've been drinking green tea when I feel the desire for a hot drink and it has most certainly helped me when I feel less energetic than usual!

However, rose milk tea does not sound entirely bad! Is there a certain bonus it provides from drinking it? In what way does it help in your daily life?

Or do you simply drink it for the taste? Or perhaps routine, as specified before. Now I am curious.

You ask if I enjoy cooking to which I am inclined to say yes! Cooking is an important skill I believe everyone should learn.

I enjoy cooking rice balls especially and learning to shape them into unique shapes! Have you ever tried to make star-shaped rice balls? It is quite the challenge!

You mention you enjoy baking! Baking is an exception skill, far more complicated than typical cooking and I admire you for your abilities!

When it comes to cooking, mistakes in measuring don't make a difference. You can alter the recipe as much as you want and change ingredients without difficulty at all.

However baking is different. Even the slightest amount more of an ingredient can totally ruin the result entirely! That is why baking is so much more impressive than simply cooking! It requires much more effort, but the result is often much more delicious, do you agree!?

And now that I have answered your questions thoroughly, I must say something. I am not ready for the conversation to end here as I quite enjoy sharing with you.

So if you don't mind... I am going to share something very personal with you. I entrust this will stay between us. I would prefer you did not bring this up to the other students.

Throughout my life I have never had someone to confide in like this, it is very... Unexpected. I figure I seemed intimidating to the others at my age, in fact more than that I believe they disliked me and found my attitude off-putting.

Perhaps that is what led me to feel the way that I do now, because if I may be honest, at times I am not fond of myself either.

You seem to like me however, not just in spite of my principles but also directly because of them. In a way, that makes me feel better about myself, and reminds me that I am making the right decisions in what I am choosing to do with my life.

Thank you, Shinju. I enjoyed our conversation. I would not mind doing this again sometime. Perhaps this time I could ask you a few questions about yourself?

Immediately I think to ask you about the important things, such as matters relating to politics and economics.

However... You have started with simple questions about myself and I suppose.. I should find something similar to ask in response.

Are you a fan of throwing darts? While I admit there are more productive things to do with one's time, darts is actually a very intellectual game. You must really consider your strategy and be careful with your decisions. I find it to be enjoyable at times and very intellectually stimulating, don't you agree?

I am also a fan of Othello! It too can challenge your brain, and I am fairly skilled in it myself.

Perhaps you aren't a fan of either of those games, in which case why don't you tell me what games you are interested in?

I did my best to come with a question that regards both of our interests and is not too heavy for our first informal conversation, can you not tell?

I hope to hear from you again soon! This conversation was a very enjoyable use of my time and I wish to engage like this again very soon!

[baileys-3]

NEW CHAPTER NOW ONLINE on AO3

I hope you all had a nice Christmas.

We've actually arrived at episode 5x11. And we will stay there for the next chapters. The episode doesn't just last one day.

Then to the current status. Chapter 31 is completed. And there are now 161.000 words. The last chapter turned out completely different than originally planned. But I like it :) Sometimes I get carried away while writing and Tim and Lucy take on a life of their own. And besides, everything always takes longer as expected. Then one planned chapter suddenly turns into three. But what's the point?

Then many thanks again to @himynameiscookies. I really love it when I get the chapters back from her corrected. She is a big part in writting the story. And does wonderful work.

Sneak Peak:

Unfortunately, Sunday flies by far too quickly.

They wake up almost at the same time in the morning, and Kojo's ears must be very good, as they soon hear a distinct whine at the door. They spontaneously decide to take Kojo for a walk together and to pick up some fresh baked goods from the bakery on the way back. Tim whips up scrambled eggs with bacon. Kojo gets a generous portion of it, and they share the remainder, using a plate and two forks. They also enjoy bread rolls with butter, along with coffee and kisses.

After breakfast, they embark on their hiking trip, with Tim taking the wheel, as usual. Tim always drives, which Lucy chalks up to it being a man thing. Regardless, Tim's private life mirrors his work life. Lucy sits in the passenger seat, a routine she's become so accustomed to that it doesn't even register anymore.

The hike is another wonderful trail in the mountains of Los Angeles. They relish their time together - engaging in conversations, savoring the mountainous quiet, basking in each other's company, reveling in closeness, and appreciating the freedom of being unobserved.

They could talk for hours without running out of things to say. They could be silent for hours without it becoming uncomfortable. It's all easy. It's carefree. It's as if they've been together forever.

They get back to Tim's house in the late afternoon. Kojo is so exhausted, he simply marches from the truck straight through the front door to his dog bed and immediately closes his eyes. They decide to order food because neither of them feels like cooking. It's still a bit early to eat, but they had only packed a small snack for their hiking.

Tim has just placed an order through the app on his phone when Tamara sends a text to Lucy. The message states that she will be staying with her friend at college. The one with the roommate who often drives to her boyfriend's house. So, she gets the now empty bed. This means that Tamara can avoid the traffic in the morning and sleep almost an hour longer. Tamara describes it as an offer that you can't refuse.

The news feels a little bit like winning the lottery for Lucy and Tim. And as if it were the most natural thing in the world and as if they had done this countless times before, it's only logical that Lucy spends the night at Tim's again.

They spend the evening much like the previous one, watching a movie. However, this time they start earlier because they both have work the next day. Lucy needs to wake up early to drive back to her apartment in the morning. The second night wasn't initially planned, and she'll need fresh clothes, but that doesn't bother her at all. She's happy to rise earlier if it means she gets to spend more time with Tim.

And the evening ends just like the previous one. With a lot of kissing, getting to know each other’s bodies and making out without anything else happening. Just like the night before. They drift off to sleep once more, arms entwined, only Lucy to be jolted awake by her phone alarm the next morning. It feels too early, too abrupt. The weekend, that precious time when they could simply be together without any obligations, has come to an end. The routine of everyday life has resumed.

[thatonetwig]

So I imagine Void as a bit of a picky eater...

...

"Hello! What can I get started for you two?", the waiter said as he took out his notepad.

"Uhh, Void, you wanna go first? I'm still deciding.", Hood said, looking up and down his menu.

"No problem.", Void replied.

"So uhh...can I get the chi- no, wait. The- nah. Not that either.", Void muttered as he scanned the menu.

After a few moments of Void correcting himself, Hood looked up from his menu at him with a confused and annoyed glare.

...

("Void, you do this every time."), Hood whispered to him.

("Why don't you order for me then?! You know what I like!"), Void muttered back.

"Should I give you gentlemen some more time?", the waiter said.

"Nah. He'll just have a cup of sparkling wine and a baked mac and cheese. Extra crispy.", Hood said with a sigh.

"Got that! And for you, sir?"

"I'll get the chicken and waffles, please. Do you guys have Red Bull by any chance?", Hood asked. He noticed that Void had cringed slightly when he had ordered the chicken and waffles.

"We do! Alright! Your orders will be out soon!", the waiter said before leaving.

Once he left, Void let out a sigh and began playing with the fork on the table.

"Hood, I don't get ya sometimes.", Void said.

"Huh? What do you mean?", Hood asked, confused.

"How're you able to try all of these weird combinations and all of that? Why don't you just stick with what you're used to like I do?", Void replied.

"Well, sometimes you just gotta have an open mind, you know? You'll never know if you like it!", Hood said encouragingly.

"But...it's just so...weird, you know? What happens if I don't like it?", Void said.

"Then that's okay! You can just keep trying until you find one you like!", Hood replied.

"That's easy for you to say.", Void said.

Hood looked down at the table before suddenly getting an idea.

"Here, I'll tell you what. I'll let you try my food when it gets here. How's that sound?", Hood suggested.

"What? That...stuff? No wa-"

"I promise I'll never bother you about this again if you don't like it.", Hood interrupted as he took Void's hand and held it in his own.

He thought for a few moments while staring down at the table.

"Fine."

A few minutes later, the waiter came back with their dishes.

"Here you two go! I hope you enjoy your meals!"

"Thanks man. Appreciate it.", Hood said before the waiter walked off.

Once he was gone, Hood swapped Void's food with his own.

"Go on. Try it.", he said as he poured some syrup onto the waffles.

Void stared down at the odd combination in front of him with a mix of nervousness and disgust.

"On second thought...I dunno if I want to do this.", Void said.

Before he could back out of it, Hood thought of a way to get him to cave in.

"Oh, what's wrong? Is the greatest pop star in the universe no match for some chicken and waffles?", Hood said, taunting his ego.

"W-what?! No way! I ain't scared! Just watch!", Void said as he grabbed a fork.

With no more hesitation, Void cut a bit of the waffle off while grabbing a piece of fried chicken and shoving both of them into his mouth at once.

He stared at Hood with a smug look while chewing before his eyes suddenly widened.

"So? How do you like it?", Hood asked, raising a brow.

Without a word, Void brought Hood's plate closer to him.

"Eh?"

"You can have that now. I like this.", Void said before he proceeded to tear into the rest of the meal.

"Wait, but-!", Hood tried to protest, but it was too late.

He then looked down at the cup of wine and baked mac and cheese in front of him.

"Uhh..."

"What's wrong, Hood? I thought it was good to have an, "open mind?", Void said as he looked up from his food while making air quotations.

"Hey!", Hood shouted.

...

I had chicken and waffles for the first time today and just had to write this.

[hinge]

Hinge presents an anthology of love stories almost never told. Read more on https://no-ordinary-love.co

[scrunkore]

Scunkore Media "Thread" 2023: Part 4

welcome back to the scrunko core

38) Miitopia (Switch, 2021)

Mii games are a dying breed, and honestly I'm not sure why they put this game on Switch when they did, but that's whatever really. It definitely has its fair share of improvements from the 3DS original, with a bit more content and an absolutely fantastic custom makeup tool that lets you make every Mii that much more unique, being put to great use by a whole bunch of creators. The game itself, though... it's still not anything special aside from that, and also its cute story bits and Mii interactions, but those get old well before you actually finish the game. And the game takes a while to get through, too, feeling very repetitive and grindy even while you constantly make progress. Basically, the game does some fun things, but it's not nearly enough to make the whole experience remain interesting throughout. It's just painfully average as an actual game, and I'd really rather have a new Tomodachi Life game, but that seems unlikely at this point. [2.5★]

39) The Super Mario Bros. Movie (Movie, 2023)

I'll never get over the reaction to the casting announcement for this movie, that was the funniest shit to come from that one Nintendo Direct presentation and unfortunately it might be more memorable than the actual movie itself. Chris Pratt Mario is the least of its issues (actually the voice acting is fine) - the plot and indeed most of the characters are pretty half-baked and it feels like they rushed the story through basic plot points between various action pieces, but at the very least that does mean it's never boring. Trouble is, that does mean I can't say the movie is good, despite the really nice-looking visuals and great soundtrack (when it's not using corporate-mandated licensed songs), both clearly made with a lot of love for the series. Sure, it was an entertaining movie, with some fun elements like Jack Black Bowser banging out the tunes, but realistically I think it's pretty average when I'm not giggling at the references - the critics were in fact correct, who knew. Still, does give me some hope for future Nintendo movies, because it was well-made. [3★]

40) The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Switch, 2023)

Breath of the Wild, one of the biggest and most popular games Nintendo has ever put out, finally got its sequel, and it somehow makes that game look like a demo. Everything new that they added results in Tears of the Kingdom blowing Breath of the Wild out of the water - the world map is about three times the size due to the added cave systems and whole new areas above and below Hyrule, the abilities Link gets to use are so much more complex and fun to use (especially the building mechanics), the enemies/bosses and side quests are more interesting, the list really does go on. It even has an excellent story that, while still unfortunately leaning back into "rescue the princess", delivers a really enjoyable narrative only marred by the fact that you can kind of ruin it by viewing it outside of the intended order, but I guess for an open-world game that's fine. I held off on writing this bit because I didn't really know what to say other than "game good", and now I don't want it to go on too long because I'll start rambling. The game is just really fucking good, man. Sometimes things in it are annoying, but I say that about every game, including Breath of the Wild - it may not be a particularly interesting opinion, but I think this game has just about perfected what it wants to be, and I have no idea what the Zelda team is going to do next. [5★]

41) Sonic Adventure (Dreamcast/PC, 1999/2011)

Next time someone tries to tell me that Sonic "had a rough transition to 3D" and it's clear they're talking about this game specifically, I think I might push them out of the nearest window, because that lie has gone on for far too long, though admittedly the ports of this thing have a couple unique issues and that's kinda why I modded the Steam port to be more in line with the Dreamcast version. But regardless, yes, this game is really good fun. It's a pretty unique 3D platformer with an excellent hub world and several different gameplay styles that each offer something fresh - from speeding through levels to fishing for a kind of annoying frog, I do rather like them all to varying degrees. The general vibes of the game as a whole (mainly down to the locales but also things like the incredible music) are pretty cool too, and the solidly enjoyable story - especially the parts with Gamma - is told in cutscenes that may look a bit awkward now but still have a lot of charm to them. Everything culminates in the classic final fight against Chaos, and that will always be really cool despite the actual gameplay of that fight being a bit of a pain. If you haven't played a "good" 3D Sonic game, open your heart up to this one - but do grab the mod loader if you're playing the Steam release. [4★]

42) Sonic Adventure 2 (Dreamcast/PC, 2001/2012)

The sequel to Sonic Adventure is kind of a few steps forward and a few steps back, and production-wise we know it was a bit rushed, which does explain some issues, but thankfully the subsequent ports ended up having less issues than the prior game's. Adventure 2 takes a hit in not having a cool hub world to explore and instead opting for typical menus separating the two routes that include most of the different level types introduced in the first game, and one of those level types (the emerald hunts) is designed so much worse this time around for god knows what reason. In fact, the game can be a bit more annoying to play in a lot of areas, although plenty of the time it's just because it's deliberately more challenging and not actual bad design. But it makes up for anything that might be worse than in the first game by having even cooler presentation, with a stronger storyline featuring everyone's favourite grumpy hedgehog Shadow and better cutscenes, more banger music, and going right up into space for the supersonic finale. So generally it's both better and worse than the first game, but hey, you live and learn. [4★]

43) Sonic Triple Trouble 16-bit (PC, 2022)

With the upcoming Sonic Superstars set to feature Fang for the first time since the original Triple Trouple, now's as good a time as any to check out the stellar fan remake that turns it into an awesome 16-bit style game mechanically rather similar to Sonic 3, like the more traditional Sonic 4 that we never got. It's a lovingly crafted game that perfectly re-imagines the zones from the original with much cleaner graphics and refreshed music accurate to the hardware it's trying to replicate, and more spectacular setpieces that give it a whole new burst of character, plus it's full of its own fun original gimmicks and surprises too. A full run of the game getting all Chaos Emeralds and defeating the incredibly cool true final boss won't take you very long, but if you're a fan of the classic games you're bound to enjoy the ride and want to replay it with the unlockable characters too. Definitely a really cool fangame that's worth checking out. [4.5★]

44) Pokémon Infinite Fusion V5.X (PC, 2022)

It's the Pokémon fangame that got all the content creators posting YouTube shorts of the funny things they made in it, and of course, it's easy to see why a game with a fusion gimmick would have so much mass appeal - it's a massive undertaking from the people working on the thousands of different sprites required, and the idea of fusing Pokémon together has been popular for over a decade at this point. And that's a gimmick that the game handles really well, every battle presents you with some new cute combination or hybrid abomination and you never know what's coming up next, plus you'll always be mixing and matching with your own stuff to see what happens and if you can make something completely overpowered (I recommend Shedinja + Absol for maximum cheese). Though, I'm not that big on the core adventure itself, because it's just Kanto again with some Johto and the Sevii Islands tacked onto it, along with more Pokémon of course, and the new story elements are just kind of whatever unfortunately. It's also an RPG Maker game, so there's some jank to be seen, but I'm used to that considering the other things I've played. So all in all, it's hard carried by the fusion mechanic, but at least it manages to nail that, and it's still being updated constantly with new sprites to check out. [3.5★]

45) Puzzle Bobble Everybubble! (Switch, 2023)

I don't feel much for this game, so I'll keep it short. I've only really dabbled in Puzzle Bobble once or twice, and so I figured I'd give this one a whirl, but it wasn't that good all things considered. Sure, it gets the core gameplay right, as it should, and the online multiplayer works pretty well, but what I found pretty annoying was the story mode - a lot of the levels are just stupid and a pain in the ass, at least for me, so maybe I'm not a hardcore Bobble-head after all. The characters are rather annoying too, but maybe that's just in this entry, who knows? If there are better iterations of this series then I'd be down to play those as well, I just didn't like this one that much outside of dicking around with non-story mode content, which was decent enough. [2.5★]

46) Nimona (Movie, 2023)

The once-cancelled Blue Sky adaptation of a comic from ND Stevenson, showrunner of that very queer She-Ra series, actually got rescued by Annapurna and actually came out this year, and boy am I glad it did, not least because of how poorly animation tends to get treated by so many of the large corporations. The movie is an incredibly fun and deeply heartfelt story of people society was all too keen to paint as monsters because of an authoritarian regime, and it's definitely pretty clear about its messages in a way that pretty much anyone can understand. It's also quite well-animated and put together really nicely, and although I have heard that it goes for a more family-friendly angle than the original comic did, it still manages to get everything across effectively and hit the right emotional beats, and it uses its runtime as well as one could expect from it. Also, I gotta say, this one's also very queer - the two most important male characters in the story are gay and get to kiss on-screen which is awesome, and I definitely get gender vibes from the titular Nimona, the awesome transforming girl who gets the most action in the movie. Maybe it's a good thing someone other than Disney released it, because I'm not sure how keen they are about gay people and anti-establishment messaging (this isn't even really a joke unfortunately). But anyway, this movie was awesome, and I hope we do see more projects like it. [4.5★]

47) Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective (Switch, 2023)

Ghost Trick has always been one of those really cool and unique DS puzzle games that people have been demanding everyone play for years, and in this case it's easy to see why that's all they were saying about it (in a good way). The story of this game is frankly too good to spoil, with some pretty great twists and turns that it takes, and I highly doubt anyone will be able to predict quite how it ends because that truly blindsided me and I loved it. The excellent cast of characters kind of helped with that too, especially the best boy of all time Missile; it's just very well-written as a whole. Now in terms of gameplay it's no slouch either, delivering some honestly genius puzzles revolving around setting up Rube Goldberg-esque series of movements with various objects that you, a ghost, can take control to prevent people from dying. Some of these puzzles are real head-scratchers, but I think anyone can get through them with enough trial and error, and it is immensely satisfying when you do, so it's a damn good puzzle game. Also worth mentioning, though it goes without saying if you've seen the game before, is that it has a really slick visual style with character designs that pop, and an excellent soundtrack that is very much welcome. Genuinely an incredible game, and I think they should let Shu Takumi do more original projects if this is what he can cook up. [5★]

48-49) Azure Striker Gunvolt: Striker Pack (Switch, 2017)

Had to check out some of Inti Creates' flagship titles when I saw they were doing a Love Live game in a similar style, and yeah, this is a fun type of game that feels inspired by certain Mega Man spinoffs. Both games in this pack have cool run-and-gun gameplay where you can "tag" enemies do deal more damage to them, and of course you kind of have to balance that with avoiding taking damage yourself. Not a problem in the levels themselves, but taking on bosses is where it can get super tricky, especially towards the end of the first game which is just way harder than the rest for some reason (so the first game does seem to require grinding for levels and equipment). So the core gamplay is something I quite like, but I'm not a fan of how it often presents the story as text boxes appearing during the action where you're not going to be paying attention to them because you're busy, and honestly I don't much care for the story and characters anyway (and honestly why are there so many little girls in these games, they even turn characters into them in the second one). I do also enjoy the little gimmick of having straight-up idol music playing at certain times when you're powered up, and the music is just kinda good in general, so there is that. Decently fun games overall, there's not that much left to say about them. [3.5★]

Finally, I'm done catching up on this, future entries will just have their own posts. Hope you enjoy these poorly-made stream-of-consciousness mini-reviews!

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[stevensavage]

Yellow Sticky Notes And Operating Costs

(This column is posted at www.StevenSavage.com, Steve's Tumblr, and Pillowfort.  Find out more at my newsletter, and all my social media at my linktr.ee)

Once, many years ago (I think in the 2010s?) I interviewed at a video editing software company to be a Project Manager. When I asked what tools they used to track work, they pointed at a glass divider covered in sticky notes. That was it, that’s how they wrote video editing software which, as you may guess, is not exactly a simple process.

If you’re familiar with Agile methods, it may not seem entirely unusual. If you’re not familiar, then I’ll summarize all-too-simply: Agile is about breaking work into small, easy, tested chunks as you go through a larger list of work. It’s basically quick, evaluated development of software in order of importance.

So sticky notes were, in theory, all you needed for Agile, especially if the Product Owner (person with The Big List Of Stuff To Do) had their act together. I’m going to assume this company had one that did since, hey, sticky notes.

This experience stuck with me. Now, some 15+ years later, having used many project management tools, having seem many technical innovations, being friends with people in tech for decades, a lot of us seem to want the sticky notes back.

We’re beset by enormous choices of tools and the tools have choices. You can buy this software package or that and integrate them. All of them have their own workflow which you have to learn, but you can also customize your workflow so you can confuse yourself your own way. Plus you have to work with everyone else’s tools together in some half-baked integration.

But when all of that doesn’t work, does the tool fix it? Nope you get to! So soon you’re downloading a spreadsheet from one tool, to load into another tool, then you have to correct the issues. That’s if you can think like the people that designed the tools or the workflow, and those people weren’t you.

Past a certain point all our new helpful tools require so much learning and reconciliation, we might want to use sticky notes. And yes, I have met people who still use sticky notes in otherwise high-tech organizations.

I’ve begun to wonder if we’ve entered an era where we’re so awash in tools that the price of learning them, customizing them, and integrating them outweighs their value. This is amplified by the latest updates and changes from vendors, companies being bought out, or regulation and policy changes. There’s a lot of change and adaption that we have to put time into so we theoretically become efficient in the time left.

And that’s before there’s a software outage somewhere in the Rube Goldberg world of ours that brings it all to a halt. I’m looking at you, Crowdstrike, I still have trauma as I write this.

I’m finding a great test of good software is to ask how it would work if it wasn’t software. What if was, I don’t know - done by yellow sticky notes? What if the software wasn’t software but a human recorded, human run physical process. Would it still make sense?

This is something I noticed working with certain medical and research software. Some of it may have old-school looks, or be specialized, but it works (and has to or people get hurt). I once took a training course on medical software and it was both insanely complex because of medical processes, but in review everything I learned made perfect sense and I could see how it’d be done on yellow sticky notes. Even I, some IT nerd who shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near a patient could figure out how this all came together - and had decades before the software existed.

Sometimes it’s worth asking “what if we did this old school” to see what the software should do and how much cost there would be in changing everything or making it incoherent.

And, hey, maybe you’ll just go back to the sticky notes. Maybe you should.

Steven Savage

www.StevenSavage.com

www.InformoTron.com

[noficbyhalves]

Okay, this is something I've had percolating in my brain for a bit, and I've finally had the impetus to turn it into a post for some reason I blame finally trying to catch up on cards' podcast while running errands and also unemployment turning my brain into soup earlier this year. Rambly bullshit incoming.

So everyone and their mom has an opinion on first/third person perspective in fiction. Which is better, which is easier, which is more suited for different applications, etc etc. Especially in fandom spaces, where you often have a higher-than-average concentration of new writers feeling insecure about their skills (and genuinely looking for resources to improve, while also justifying their own choices with all the nuance that tumblr is known for /s).

(Second person isn't really relevant to this discussion, bc it only really works if 1. you're writing fic in a fandom where it's an established convention which is just a real pretentious way to say homestuck tbh or 2. you are deliberately playing with themes of dissociation from ones own identity or somesuch. Either way, no one stumbles ass-backwards into second person, nor is anyone willing to go to bat for it being the one singular correct perspective, which is actually a shame. Not because they'd be right, but because it would make for an interesting thread.)

Third person is a frosting, first person is a glaze

...Alright I'm gonna need you to bear with me here

So aside from the bit about people preferring different things everyones preferences are valid blah blah, I do mean this as an actual baking metaphor.

If you've ever seen those videos where they turn a cake into an intricately shaped... like a strawberry or a shoe or something? Usually they're using frosting (often topped with a layer of fondant but that's not relevant to the metaphor). Generally there's a crumb coat (smoothed base coating), topped with more intentional shaping like piping to make a specific shape or texture. As such, there's often a pretty thick layer when the cake is finished, which hides the shape of the original bake pretty thoroughly. If there are cracks, or the cake crumbled, or the top isn't perfectly level, the baker can just patch it over with frosting and no one will notice.

In contrast, glaze molds very closely to the shape of what you're pouring it over. Not to say that it can't also be gorgeous or intricate (look at galaxy mirror glaze cakes they're so pretty oh my god), but a glaze will not cover imperfections in your bake. You will see every lump and uneven surface, and that's just a fact of how glaze works.

Back to the writing metaphor, I hope you see where I'm going with this. Third person will - generally speaking - work to camouflage your weak points at least a little, because of the level of distance between the reader and your POV character(s), even in limited. First person will put your sins on full display. Which is not to say that first person is bad, or even that you shouldn't start out writing it (start by writing what makes you excited! Always!), but that pulling it off so that it hits with your intended audience is orders of magnitude harder, even for experienced writers. Because you are so entrenched in your POV character's head at all times, your conveyance of emotion and characterization and tone needs to be constantly on point, with no breathing room. Your POV character cannot take a backseat for part of a conversation, or to set a scene, or give exposition. We're trapped in their brain, and every sentence in your document needs to be colored by that. Also, if you end up with a "I can't stand the MC but I love the villain/snarky sidekick/love interest" situation your readers are wayyyy more likely to bail, for aforementioned "trapped in this asshole's head" reasons. (This is part of the reason that some people dismiss first-person fic out of hand, because fic is a medium with a lot of inexperienced writers, and first person can be like taking a highlighter to that inexperience. Personally I'm more of a "first person is a red flag but if you can pull off your first 100-odd words I'm still listening" kind of person, but I totally get where those people are coming from.)

To be clear, these are all problems that can show up in third person, but as the writer you have the option to pull the camera back when that emotional breathing room is needed. You can switch to a different POV character for pacing reasons, and your readers do not enter with the expectation of knowing every single thought in your MCs skull. Not that these flaws will never exist, you can just control where you put the frosting on a little thicker, and sometimes that really does make the difference.

[starzfield]

Even if he wasn’t entirely comfortable with the risk of it all, after what he went through to get this job - and not just him, friends as well - Lukan doubted it would go that far. And he had enough of a (good) reputation for it to not suffer from some bad gossip. Even if Nunnally was, to outside eyes, a patient, they were both aware it wasn’t exactly like that.

Though the man had no intention to encourage Nunnally’s attempts at romance towards him, he sometimes thought about romance. And about bringing someone to meet his family…

After the disappointment of his choice of career, he was more than reluctant to bring a partner they wouldn’t like.

It wouldn’t stop him or make him break up. But he wasn’t looking forward to it.

And if his family had good opinions about humans, it was a different matter to bring one as a girlfriend. Potential future wife and mother. It may be hypocritical of them when they left the werewolf clan to live among humans, but Lukan knew his family would prefer him to date one of his own kind. Just thinking about this was headache inducing, honestly.

But today it was just tea with a woman, so Lukan banned this line of thought.

“I look like one, and yet.” He smiled, amused.

“It sounds like both of us aren’t good at poetry, then. At least we share the enjoyment of it, I think it’s enough. There’s no need to be able to write poetry to appreciate it, is there ?”

Despite no question asked, really, Lukan answered with the sigh of a tired parent at their kid’s antics.

“Yes. He uses it to flirt with any woman crossing his path. You’d think being married and having kids would change him, but no.”

The genuine happiness from painting showed on the man’s face. It was a hobby he truly enjoyed, even if he wasn’t an expert. “Either gouache or watercolor, not oil. Watercolor is my favorite though, I really like how it makes the scenery look, a bit eerie…”

He chuckled. “I’ll show you mine if you show me yours.”

Was the amused suggestion, though he fully expected her to agree in a heartbeat.

A nod followed her saying yes to his invitation, but he noted the hint of surprise. The therapist guessed she was actually assuming it’d go like this - which was fine, he did invite her and intended to pay for her order, and asked only to be sure they were on the same page.

Having entirely thrown out the thought of her being a patient for now, he was simply treating this encounter as a nice moment to spend with an acquaintance, maybe the beginning of a friend. Though, yes. He was aware it was not the kind of thing to do with patients usually, and he wouldn’t, except Nunnally was a special case. Threw at him in hope he would ‘bring her back to the correct way to be’, to follow the wish of her grandmother. And since Lukan was firmly against this, and didn’t intend to do as the old woman wanted… There was no hurt in this.

Probably.

“As long as it’s close to a window, it’s fine.” Though he would never pick a chair next to the door and back to it, his instincts were way too highware in this position.

Once the order was made, they went to a free table, and Lukan of course pulled out the chair for her. He wasn’t sure if it was from too much novel or the way he was raised, but it came naturally to him.

He just had the cookie with him, since tea was getting ready and would be brought to their table once done.

“I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to choose only one favorite among teas. I like too many of them, and I enjoy changing flavour everytime I take one. My taste also changes depending on the heat and weather. But cinnamon is always nice in winter, I think.”

His eyes landed on the cookie, the answer taking more time to come out, until he chuckled, self-conscious.

“I wouldn’t say cookies are my favorite, but if I pick something close to baked goods, like muffin, I feel like some huge traitor.”

He shook his head, the smile on his lips telling how dumb he thought it sounded. “What about you ?”

Amber eyes stared at Nunnally with curiosity matching hers.

Nunnally had that brief thought that perhaps her and Lukan should not meet (date). But she had dismissed it immediately. She didn’t expect any problems to appear, and if they did, she would simply deny everything and stop seeing him. After all she was not an official patient. No-one would find any evidence that would have linked him to her, to Miss. Ambly des Ayvalles. And Nunnally doubted her family would choose to make any possible scandal bigger than absolutely necessary.

So, Nunnally did feel pretty safe and rather confident. For him and for herself. And it was just a drink. A casual drink of two almost strangers. Though Nunnally knew better than to believe in such lies.  

And if she were to fall in love, wouldn’t her father be simply happy?; a lie again (she knew it), but it did make her feel better. Her father perhaps would not be happy, but he could have been convinced (that was a truth Nunnally deeply believed in).

So, Nunnally laughed cheerfully: --

“And you do look like a person who could write poetry…”

“Though I have been told so do I, but…I cannot…” – she laughed – “I’ve tried. A long time ago. But when I was reading my own poems after some time, I was laughing at how poor they were…though I like poetry…” – for a moment, Nunnally wanted to share her favourite poem with Lukan, but finally decided against it.

“…for evil things…?” – a spark of interests in her blue eyes, but then Nunnally decided against continuing this subject. Especially after Lukan’s next remark: --

 “You need to show me your art one day! Watercolors or oil painting?” – it was exciting; Nunnally expected he was a romantic soul; and here he was! Why anyone would expect this man to end up running a bakery!? It obviously was not a job for him! – “I draw. Pencil and charcoal mainly. But I also paint sometimes. Though I am not too good at it.” – she was, but it wasn’t that Nunnally was aware of that. With her skills and abilities never being good enough, and her tutors always looking for a perfection, she could not have provided, she just accepted she was not good – “I also play piano and violin.” – classical education; she assumed, but she still liked it – “And horse riding…” – again classics for her social circle.

“Nothing too exciting…” – she downplayed herself again, although Nunnally liked her hobbies.

They soon reached the café. It was a cozy place; so Lukan-like in her mind. Nunnally opted for coffee. Simple black. And a sandwich. She nodded upon Lukan’s next words: --

“Yes, I’ll happily accept.” – but these small interactions make her slightly surprised; she just assumed he had invited her. After all, she was a woman, and… Yes, it was difficult not to follow the patterns so deeply rooted in her.

“Any favourite table of yours?” – she asked – “And is this your favourite tea?”

“…and your favourite type of sweet?” – she was curious about him; it was exciting to learn about him.   

[hinge]

Hinge presents an anthology of love stories almost never told. Read more on https://no-ordinary-love.co

[mrslittletall]

Cooking Mama 2 Review

People wanted it, so here I am typing up my Cooking Mama 2 review:

So, first thing first, the game is a clear improvement over the first. You still have a lot of recipes to cook up in little minigames, but they got rid of the "change recipe" mechanic, which was a good thing.

Because while it was fun to discover the recipes, it also meant that a lot of recipes were starting the exact same and you were doing the same steps over and over again, which got repetitive quick. They also started to add some sweets and baked goods into the recipes, which were completely absent from the first game, so that was nice too.

You simply unlock recipes by doing well on the available recipes, so unlocking all of them was not hard. And after you have all recipes, you can go to a new mode where you can feed Mama and your friends and family and cook the recipes without help in one go. Failing a mini game starts over (this time Mama won't fix it for you).

I liked this mode, it was a lot of fun to see how well you could do without warning what the next step would be.

So, now on to the mini games. They actually brought back a few mini games from the first game, but most of them were new or improved. The cutting minigame for example, in the first one to dice an onion you had to half it, then do another mini game to slice it and then another mini game to dice it. That is now all in one step. They also added an indicator to the "fry something" minigame and are showing you where you forgot to peel something.

For some recipes there are completely unique minigames, for example the pizza has you roll out the pizza dough by being a pizza artist (I failed this one so often when I tried to gold medal) and the Ravioli recipe lets you cut out the Ravioli and stuff.

There were some mini games that I found pretty hard. The first one was "let it cook until it is in the green area". If you had too little heat, it would be undercooked, too much and it would boil over. You could stir to get the heat down, but wow, it was hard to get it correctly.

The second hard mini game was a simon says style where you had to put ingredients in the bowl in the correct order and it was shown to you really quickly. Most of the time it was pretty easy, but sometimes there were five or six thing to remember and that was when it was getting hard! I totally get why Jaiden struggled with the Mango pudding…

The graphics of the games were fine, like in the first one. You now can customize Mama and let her wear something else and have different colours for your kitchen appliances, so that was fun. The sounds were typical DS quality and I have to apologize to the music of the first game.

That actually wasn't royalty free music! The second game uses it too in a remixed version, so it was totally composed for the game. It has the same charming piano melodies as the first game, but is nothing to write home about.

I played until I gold medalled every recipe with Mama and got at least a medal from everyone I could feed. Oh, and there was a third mode where you could compete in some minigames and see how much of a record you manage. I played that too.

So which recipes did I struggle the most with?

Cream puffs, strawberry roll and ravioli.

The cream puffs had this damn mini game where you had to remember six things and I failed it so so OFTEN! At least the rest of the recipe was easy, so when I finally got it, it was over for the cream puffs!

The strawberry roll had a brutal mini game where you had to get eggs fluffy. That was far too hard for the time you got. I needed to practice a lot.

And the ravioli? Well, had a noodle machine mini game where you could really mess up easily and Mama was VILE on this one, even one mistake and she wouldn't give you a gold medal… Mama, whyyyy…

Anyway, it was an enjoyable game overall. Improved the first game in all points and the food looked legit very tasty and I even felt like I want to see and try some of the recipes myself.

Oh, I need to tell you about my favourite recipe ^^ Sweet potatoes. Sounds simple, right? Just bake them!

NOPE! The game has you bake them, then you spoon them out and make pulp, then you fill the spooned out sweet potatoes with the pulp, then you put egg yolk on the sweet potatoes and bake them again and that is the finished product!

[ahundredtimesover]

i can’t get enough of the TLA couple. After I saw your post about jungkook’s pov when y/n was unconscious i couldn’t help but wonder what was jk’s reaction when he found out y/n is pregnant and how did he found out🙈🙈

i hope if your time will let you we will see some snippets from the life of the tla couple because they became one of my favs.

Hi, Viki! This was lovely to write, thank you for the request! 🥰 I hope you enjoy it because these two are just so soft. - This takes place at the end of part 03

Title: The Love After Drabble (03): You're gonna be a mom || Jungkook comes home to a surprise

WC: 3,050

Warning: pregnancy talk, light smut (kissing, breast play)

From: The Love After (werewolf!JK x human!reader)

##

“Hi, are you busy?”

You lay on your back with your phone on speaker, listening to your sister order what seems to be lunch at 3PM.

“I’m on my first break after 12 hours,” Baram replies, her slurping sound of her drink irritating you, causing you to wince. “And I’ve got 12 more after this.”

“Oh, that’s tough,” you sigh, hoping she gets more time for rest than she’s afforded, but knowing your sister, she thrives off this kind of pressure-packed environment at the town hospital; she excels in it, too. “How’s Hoseok taking it? And the kids?”

“Taking it like a champ, as always.”

You feel her smile over the phone as she talks about her mate, how Hoseok is like a one-man show at the moment, doing everything at home on his own while still showing up for his warrior duties.

“And the kids have been surprisingly behaved. I swear, that treehouse was your best idea yet. We owe Jungkook for building it for us. Thank you,” she continues.

“Well, it showed up in one of the landscaping books he got when he was building our porch. I just thought it might help the kids since you’ve been so busy,” you explain, recalling how you’d brought it up and Jungkook had been excited to build it for his nephews.

“It has,” Baram exclaims. “It’s helping mother, too, in a way. She sits on the porch and just watches them play. I think it keeps her mind off things.”

You hum, knowing that’s how she’s been dealing with your grandfather’s passing - just surrounding herself with people who remind her of him. She visited you just the other day and spent an entire night baking you a variety of pies, something she’s never done before.

“That’s good. At least she knows she’s still got a growing family to turn to now that she’s lost grandfather, too.”

“She knows, she always says so,” Baram says. “Anyway, I’ve got just a bit of time left. Did you need anything?”

“Yes, your help,” you mumble, recalling why you needed your sister in the first place. “I need your expert advice and uh, your support. Or something.”

Her interest is piqued, and you hear her tired voice turn curious. “Okay. Well, the last time you said those same words, you asked me to remove your IUD because you and Jungkook had finally decided you wanted to have children.”

“Yes, that is correct,” you confirm.

“That was a few weeks ago.”

“Also correct,” you hum, thinking back to that time then, when you had Baram’s kids over to babysit and they ran around your garden, their laughter echoing through the woods and you’d caught Jungkook’s tender smile at their sound - at the way they squealed and wandered into your herb and flower patches, at how they plucked out plants and asked him what they were, at how they had so much energy for hours but were the softest pups when they were finally asleep.

You smile at the memory, and how that night, Jungkook asked what you thought about finally having kids, wondered if you both thought you had enough love in you again to create love, and if you were ready after your grandfather’s passing, given the emotional and physical pain that losing him caused you.

But you knew that with the way Jungkook loved you, that you had enough love in you to want to create it with him, that you’re strong enough to handle anything now with him next to you. You knew that with the overwhelming love you had for him, you were ready to give even more of yourself by creating a family together.

You’d called Baram the next day and had her assist you to get off birth control, and Jungkook made love to you that night in a way he never had before, and that’s probably what got you here.

“Okay. So tell me how you’ve been feeling,” Baram bursts through your thoughts, knowing you only ever run to her for medical advice.

“Well, I’ve been feeling quite dizzy and nauseous. My supervisor demanded that I go home right after lunch,” you narrate, and you laugh at Baram’s remark that he probably didn’t want to be the subject of Jungkook’s ire if something bad happened to you under his watch. “And I keep urinating. And I suddenly can’t stand the scent of basil.”

She merely hums in response, and you bite your lip as you wait for her to say something, unsure if you’re nervous because you might be pregnant, or that you may not be. That seems to be the only plausible reason why you’re feeling like this because, like you’re always reminded, werewolves don’t get sick.

“Does your body feel different?”

“Yes, I just told you how I’ve been feeling!” You grunt, getting impatient.

“I know, but I don’t mean that,” she huffs, unable to express what she really means. “Do you feel like something’s going on in your body but you don’t know what it is? Like there’s just something new or different? You’re not a normal human anymore, ___. You can sense the inner workings of your body. I mean, that’s how I knew.”

You're the one who now goes silent, suddenly thinking back to a week ago when you’d woken up feeling disoriented, like your body didn’t feel like yours, as if you were numb but incredibly sensitive at the same time. You recall the moments you’d felt weightless but heavy, and that something was off but you couldn’t determine what it was, and you’d space out as you try hard to feel, to sense if there’s really life that’s growing inside you. Like now.

“Okay, I take that as a yes,” Baram giggles. “Look, I’m thinking you might be pregnant but we won’t be absolutely sure until you take a test. I could come over tomorrow, if you want. Or you could come to me, if you don’t want Jungkook to know yet.”

“You can come over. He’s with Namjoon in the city to meet some other pack leaders and won’t be back until Monday,” you say, suddenly missing your mate after he left early this morning. “I’ll take the test then and uh, see what happens.”

Baram bids you goodbye and leaves you with your thoughts as you mindlessly stroke your belly, the thought of having created a new life with Jungkook making your heart swell with pride.

**

It’s the first time this ever happened, and you’re glad that Jungkook isn’t even in town, as he would probably hear your gurgling sounds as you vomit your guts out even from a mile away.

You quickly wash up and walk back to the room, yelling to your sister to come in after you’d heard her open the front door.

“Do I look pregnant?” You ask, standing by your bed as you try to read her face, see if she could tell just by looking at you.

“You sound pregnant. Quite the morning sickness, eh?” She smiles, and it’s comforting to think that she knows exactly what you’re feeling, and how to calm you down.

You both get to work, with her handing over the test kit to you and you quickly doing your thing, calling her to the bathroom right after as you both stand by the sink, waiting for the line to appear.

And it does. Two of them.

You feel dazed for a moment, until you feel Baram’s arms wrap around you from behind, but unlike all the times she’s done it before, this feels different.

“You’re gonna be a mom, ___,” she whispers, meeting your glassy eyes in the mirror, with the softest smile you’ve ever seen on her face. “I’m so, so happy for you.”

Your tears fall as you nod, the reality dawning on you that you’ve created something with Jungkook, the manifestation of the love you both nurtured, that you worked hard for, that you let grow and live in you, that you both live out, after thinking you’d never feel that again.

But they’re here, forming inside of you, growing as each day goes by, and you can’t wait for Jungkook to come home so you can share this joy with him.

“How are you going to tell him?” Baram asks.

There are so many ways, you think. You could tell him outright when he gets home, or during a special dinner that you’ll prepare, or before bed as you read a book that he’ll probably ask you to read out loud, or when his hands and lips are all over your body, or after you’ve come down from your highs and he’s looking tenderly at you like he always does.

“I’ve got an idea,” you smile. “I think he’ll really like it.”

**

Jungkook comes home exhausted.

It takes a lot to tire him. Working and hunting don’t do that, so you could only assume the worst when you’d spotted the fatigue in his eyes and heard the way he dragged his body to the dining chair.

What was meant to be a negotiation escalated into a confrontation, one that turned physical because your allied pack just had to pick a fight with one of the groups they’ve been having issues with, Jungkook narrates, and Namjoon had to pick a side to, ironically, keep the peace.

“And then we encountered a pack of territorial wolves on the way home, and I’d expended much of my energy by then and I’m just so tired,” he exhales. “I couldn’t eat, couldn’t sleep… couldn’t see you, be with you,” he trails, taking your hand and gently kissing it.

“I just want a warm bath and a good sleep after we clean up,” he continues.

“No, I’ll clean up,” you correct him. “It’s been a tough few days, you need to get some rest. I’ll be fine here, don’t worry.”

He has an apologetic look on his face, and you feel bad that he feels bad for not helping around the house this once. But you convince him that you don’t need his help, and he kisses you deeply before he trudges to the bathroom and gets ready for bed.

He’s asleep by the time you enter the bedroom, and he’s snoring when you return after washing up yourself. You gaze at him as you slide into bed, quelling the bit of disappointment you feel at not being able to tell him tonight. He needs his rest, and that’s more important than giving him the news, even if you know that’s important as well.

His arm immediately pulls you closer once he feels you lie down, and you smile at the thought that it’s something he’d do even if he’s in the middle of a dream.

“Missed you,” he mumbles in your ear, his hand sliding up your bare thigh, sneaking underneath your nightgown, and directing your leg to lay on top of his.

“I missed you, too,” you look at him, marveling at his relaxed state with the sliver of the moonlight dancing on his face.

You peck his lips as a goodnight, and with his eyes closed, he leans in to chase your own, deepening the kiss as he feels your softness, something he hated being without.

He goes for another one, and another one, the kiss getting more heated than the last, and it’s not long until you’re both lost in the taste of each other, his hand burying itself in your hair while yours digs through his bare chest, your heartbeats racing once the yearning and desire creep in, overtaking you.

Jungkook lays you on your back and lightly sits himself on your hips, slowly removing your clothes while his eyes don’t move away from you.

“I thought you’re so tired,” you tease, the playful smile on your face telling him you know what he wants, and it’s something that you want, too.

“Yeah, but not for this,” he grunts, lowering himself to you for another kiss. “Never for this.”

You moan at the feel of his hot breath and his tongue on your neck and your chest, your body shivering once he reaches your pert nipples, the sensitivity quickly becoming too much. His one hand kneads your breast while the other travels down your torso, burning you with his touch, and your mouth parts at how good he feels, until you stop feeling him altogether.

You open your eyes, frustrated with him for abruptly stopping like that, but you’re met with furrowed brows and parted lips, and you can’t help but mirror his look.

“Is… is everything okay?” You stammer.

“Is there… is there something you want to tell me?”

His question catches you off guard and you try to recall if there’s anything you need to tell him, aside from the little secret you’re putting off letting him know because you want him to be more awake when you do.

“I do?”

You see Jungkook steady his breath as he sits back up, prompting you to do the same and lean your back against the bed frame. He touches you again - first your cheek, then your breast, causing you to shiver again, then your belly.

And his hand stays there.

“___… You’re… we’re… we’re pregnant,” he whispers.

Your eyes widen in surprise, thinking of how he could’ve known just by touching you.

“You can sense that?” You exclaim.

“Yeah, I can,” he says, taking your hand.

“How?”

“Well, your breasts have gotten bigger, and you’re way more sensitive tonight than I recall,” he observes, and your pout causes him to teasingly smile, but it softens right after. “And I could sense a heartbeat,” he palms your belly, gently, lovingly, then he looks up to meet your curious eyes. “Actually, I sense two.”

“We’re having two babies?” You shriek.

You’re a mess of emotions as you realize exactly how all this is playing out, even more at the thought that you’re actually carrying two pups right now.

“We are. Wait, why do you look sad?” Jungkook panics, disappointment creeping in at the thought that you might not actually want this.

“Because this isn’t how I planned on telling you. And I only made one,” you pout.

“How did you plan on telling me? And only made one, what?”

You sigh, knowing that he’s not gonna let this go. You went from being excited to tell him, to accepting that it will have to wait tomorrow, to now being a tiny bit disheartened because you really wanted to surprise him. But it’s out in the open now, and there’s really no other better time than this moment.

You reach for a little package from the drawer of your bedside table and place it in front of him, opening the box to reveal a set of yellow baby mittens that you knitted yourself over the weeked.

“I was gonna show these to you tonight, but you were too tired so I planned on doing it tomorrow,” you explain, “but you had to go and spoil my surprise,” you pout again.

Jungkook doesn’t tear his eyes away from the cutest thing he’d ever seen, and he takes the mittens, so tiny against his large hands, the adorable ribbons adding a touch of elegance to it.

You made this, with so much love, he could tell. It’s beautiful and perfect, just like the little ones you’re carrying in your womb.

“Hey, say something,” you nudge him, suddenly becoming nervous.

“I… I can’t. I’m speechless, ___,” he looks at you, his eyes glassy. “I’m sorry I spoiled it but I just, I felt it and I just wanted to make sure it’s real,” he sighs, a tear finally sliding down his face. “I was wondering when it was gonna happen, and I just… I mean, I’ve been waiting and I’m just so happy.”

His lips quiver and you smile at the sight of Jungkook, bare in heart and body and soul just like you are, as you share the joy of knowing you created love in its best form.

“Well, I did get my IUD removed not long ago and then you pretty much sexed me up like you wanted to put a baby inside me that same night and uh, you did; two, actually,” you laugh, and he revels in your sound, knowing there’ll be two more joining you in just a few months.

“Not a normal human,” he playfully shrugs.

You gaze at Jungkook as he continues to stare at the mittens, as if he’s already imagining the tiny hands that will be warmed by them, and this look of his is priceless.

“I love you, Jungkook,” you say, and it’s what makes him turn to look at you. “I love you so much and I just know we’re going to have an unbelievably happy life with our two angels. I just know it.”

He delicately places the mittens back in the box then sets it aside. He takes you in his arms and cradles you, wanting to express in more ways just how much he loves you, and that he knows you’re going to make his place a home for your children, the way you lovingly did for him.

Because you’re home - you’re the heart of it, the foundation of it, the light of it. You let all the scared and lonely parts of him heal, and even if it took a while, once you were both here, you never failed to show him what love is like, what home is like, what giving what’s left of yourself to another is like, and that’s how he knows you love him.

“I love you so much, ___,” he kisses you deeply. “And I believe we were in the middle of something before I spoiled the surprise.”

His smile is sweet but his eyes are full of desire, and you give in like you do every single time.

Because he’s home - he’s the heart of it, the foundation of it, the light of it. He let all the cold and broken parts of you heal, and you’ll spend every moment of your long life together making sure he knows that, that he feels that - that he’s love, and the most beautiful form of it is what he deserves.

##

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[fuck-customers]

You said you went to culinary school???

This girl transfers from a sales floor position to the bakery. She takes over my old job as mixer, so I can focus on cakes. So she makes muffins and whatever is on sale that needs to be physically made, instead of being thaw and sell. This is her only job, and to just help package said muffins after she finishes.

Now, when I was doing this job, I was also the opening baker. The closer sets everything up on racks and I proof and bake them, topping pastries and making donuts, culling the floor, and a bunch of other shit. Then I could break or mix after all the breakfast items are put out. (I came in at 4 and wouldn't finish that till 7 or 8)

Now we have a different baker, she does midnight so everything's done earlier. The mixer still comes in at 4am.

when I had both of those jobs at once, I was able to get everything done, even if I stayed over. We wouldn't be missing blueberry muffins unless we were out of the ingredients. TELL ME WHY she wanders around the store making her list, then goes ever so slowly, gets very little done, and gets really angry when we tell her nicely to speed it up. Now she's fighting with the baker.

But she still takes all her breaks (I haven't had a lunch in almost 2 years because there's so much to do) and leaves on time. (I've done more 10 hour shifts than 8) and doesn't do her dishes.

Not only that, she kinda sucks. She picked it up fast at first, then plateoed and is stuck at very beginner level, and has been here 5 months.

The baker had covid so I did her job, and when it was this girls day off I did mixing too. So my old 2 jobs. My boss was amazed that I got twice the amount of work done in the same time. Thats cuz I don't fuck around.

Plus on the rare occasions she does her dishes (wow!!) She dilutes the soap. Its one of those hose systems that has the concentration already figured out. Do not touch. Plus she doesn't know shit about food safety. Aren't you supposed to learn that before even going into a semi professional kitchen?? She was using really bad eggs for days and either didn't notice or didn't care. But how would you not notice the SMELL?? we threw them all out when we noticed, and she came back all confused.

And when she tries to help with cakes, she just messes everything up. Also why try to do someone else's job when yours isn't even half done??

I constantly have to remind her that she would rather us tell her to speed up, than have a customer or the owner scream in your face bc we don't have corn muffins.

And today a customer came in looking for a cake that she took the order for. The form said 5/30. Today is 5/23. So the customer is sad and yes were able to get something for him but what the fuck??? Literally just write the correct date???

Its super nice to have an extra set of hands, but ohmygosh this is... a lot.

Plus shes always complaining about her problems, which in most peoples lives aren't even problems! She's got such boring problems! I wish I had her problems, life would be so much easier!!

So yeah. She claims to have gone to culinary school, but can't do shit right. And when we correct her she gets mad or cries. We literally do not know what to do. She's gotta get her big girl pants on and put some work in.

If she ever works in a full kitchen, she'll be eaten alive.

[youre-a-total--poser]

It’s Not The Same Without Them

The Avengers x Teen Reader

Warnings: None

Age: 16

Word Count: 1,079

Requests: Open

Summary: Christmas just isn't what it used to be 

A/N: Who doesn't love a sad Christmas story. I might write a more happy one for Christmas day. 

---------⧗---------

Christmas was always your favourite holiday. Every year was always the same.

Baking cinnamon cookies with Wanda, Hanging up the Christmas lights with Tony, Christmas tree shopping with Clint and Natasha, everyone together helping decorate the tree, Steve lifting you high in the air so you could put the star on top of the tree, running downstairs on Christmas morning and seeing the pile of presents but most importantly getting to spend time with your family. 

But this year was different everyone was gone and you were left alone sitting in the apartment that was going to be yours and Natasha’s when you got back. The place where you should’ve spent the rest of your childhood with the person who took care for so long. You wished that you could one day call her your mom. But that was all gone now. 

It was your first Christmas since coming back after the snap. You couldn’t stop thinking about those past memories. Just thinking about them made you tear up. The more you thought about it the more upset you got to the point where you were lying on the sofa and ended up crying yourself to sleep. 

You had a dream you woke up back at the compound and made your way down stairs and you saw someone standing in the kitchen it took you a second to realise who it was 

“Nat?” You questioned if it was really her 

“Hey, sweetheart.” She said as she turned around to face you 

“Nat,” you said again you ran over to her and wrapped your arms around her and hugged her tightly letting out a sigh of relief. 

You were so happy to be back in her arms you never thought that you would ever get to hug her again. 

“I’ve missed you so much.” You whispered. 

“It’s only been 8 hours since you saw me last you couldn’t have missed me that much.” She said whilst rubbing your back. 

She heard that you were starting to cry. She pulled herself away from the hug and cupped your face and wiped the tears away. 

“Oh, sweetheart, it’s okay don’t cry, you’re safe, I’ve got you.” She softly spoke then pulled you into her once more 

“Hey, Nat, where do you want this box?” Asked by a voice coming from behind you. 

You turned your head and your eyes lit up when you saw who it was 

“Steve!” You called out as he was putting the box on the ground. 

You let go of Nat and you quickly walked over to Steve and crashed into him wrapping your arm around his waist. 

“How’s my favourite girl?” He asked you 

“Hey!” Nat said sounded offended. 

“One of my favourite girls!” He corrected himself. 

“Better.” She said whilst smirking. 

“Hey, kid, are you helping or not? These lights aren’t going to hang themselves.” Tony said appearing round the corner. 

“Tony’s here too?” You excitedly said, Looking up at Steve then over at Natasha 

“Yeah, of course he is here, “Nat confusedly said. 

You then removed yourself from Steve and walked over to Tony.

You then proceeded to give him a hug even though you know that he wasn’t much of a hugger so instead he patted your head a couple of times.

 “What’s up with you, Y/N/N, you’re acting like you haven’t seen us in so long?” Nat asked wondering what has gotten into you. 

“So are we going to hang those lights or not?” You said changing the subject to ignore her questions. 

You let go of Tony and you made your way outside. 

---------⧗---------

You were standing on the driveway in front of the compound and Tony had the boots on his suit on and was up in the air putting up some lights. 

He landed back on the ground to get the next load of lights that you were holding and he noticed that you were shivering. 

“Go back inside and get warm.” He ordered you. 

You thanked him and you went back inside. 

When you walked back in you got hit by a cinnamon smell. 

You followed the smell to the kitchen and Wanda was there filling up piping bags with colourful frosting 

“I’m never going to get over the smell of your cinnamon cookies.” You said then you took a deep breath. 

“Come help me decorate them.” Wanda said holding out the piping bag for you to take. 

As you finished decorating a cookie you felt a pair of hands on your shoulders. 

You look up and Natasha is towering over. You lean back into her and she wraps her arm around her shoulder. 

Wanda couldn't help but smile when she looked at you. She knew just by looking at you that since you felt safe beside them you were allowing yourself to let your guard down and act vulnerable.

After you and Wanda finished decorating the cookies you put them on a plate and took them through to the common room so the team can eat them during the Christmas movie marathon. 

After a few movies, everyone was gone and it was just you and Nat left. 

You were leaning against her trying not to fall asleep. 

“It’s time for you to leave now.” Natasha said turning off the t.v.

You sat upright so you can look at her. You knew what she meant but you didn’t want to.

“No, I want to stay here with you.” You told her as the tears started forming in your eyes.

“I know you do, honey, but you have your whole life to live you have to go and live for the both of us.” She said. 

“But I can’t do it without you, I need you.” You softly said. 

“I’ll be with you forever in here.” She pointed to your heart. 

A few tears escaped from your eyes and she wiped when away then she pulled you into a hug. 

“I miss you so much.” You cried. 

“I miss you too but it’s time for you to wake up now.” She whispered in your ear 

You woke up and your face was wet. 

You dried your face then you grabbed the blanket from the couch and wrapped it around your body. 

You opened the window and climbed out onto the fire escape and looked up at the starry sky. 

“I’ll make you proud, mama, I promise.” You said to the sky hoping that she could hear you.

[serendipitous-magic]

What is your writing advice for young people who want to write fanfiction and original stories in the near future?

If this is just Way Too Much, skip to the end (#16). My most important piece of advice is there. I also happen to think #5 is pretty good.

-_-_-_-

1) Literally just write. Write whatever you want, and do a lot of it.

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2) You don’t have to post everything. In fact you don’t have to post anything. You can, don’t get me wrong, but it can be intimidating to sit down and think “I will now write something that other people will see and read and judge with their eyeballs.” Because that’s probably gonna lead to nerves and writer's block. Just write down the ideas that you have, the things you want to write, whatever’s in your brain that you want to explore and expand upon and make into something. And then if you want to, share it. Or don’t share it. I have plenty of half-baked ideas and documents and random story chapters and shit hidden away on my Google Drive that will never see the light of day, for a whole number of reasons. I wanted to write it but it wasn’t ~Spicy~ enough to warrant posting, or it’s only like an eighth of a good idea, or it’s like one scene with no story around it, or it’s just something incredibly self-indulgent I just wanted to write for my own enjoyment.

Point being, don’t write for other people. Don’t write so that other people can read it; write what you want, write for yourself, and then if you want to share it, do.

_-_

3) You can pretty much ignore any and all of these for fanfiction. In fact, you can ignore pretty much any rules or guidelines you want for fanfiction. Fanfic is a sandbox. You don’t have to be a “professional writer” to post fic. No one expects you to be Stephen King or Margaret Atwood. Fanfic is just for playing in a fandom and having fun. If you wanna write a 50 chapter slow burn with very little plot aside from the OTP slowly getting to know each other, and no real stakes or central conflict, I guarantee people would read that. Really, fanfiction is the Old West of writing: lawless, wild, unpredictable, and free.

However, here are the rules you must follow:

-Separate your paragraphs. (I’m sure you know this already, but I’m gonna say it anyway just in case.) Do not post one big block of text. Make a paragraph break when someone new is talking, when the characters are in a new place, when a new event occurs that changes the scene, when a chunk of time has passed, and when there’s a major change in subject.

-I know it’s obvious, but... grammar, punctuation, and capitalization. They exist to make writing easy for readers to read, and more people will read your stuff if they don’t have to stop and try to figure out what you meant.

-Use tags and labels, as is possible with whatever site you’re using. Especially if you include possibly triggering content in your story. Again, I know it’s obvious, but it’s common courtesy. Bonus: tagging the themes and content of your story helps readers find it and read it :)

-If possible, limit the use of all-caps and exclamation marks / question marks. 99% of the time, one ! or one ? will do. If you overload the page with a lot of all-caps and long rows of exclamation marks or question marks, it hampers readability.

... That’s literally all I can think of. And, like I said, it’s all pretty basic stuff. You were probably rolling your eyes like, “Uh, yeah, Gwen, I know.” But that’s literally it. You can pretty much do whatever you want in fanfic.

That being said, here’s my advice for both fanfiction and original work...

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4) A quick and dirty rule for coming up with a plot, starting a story, keeping up pacing, or maintaining tension: figure out what dreams, desires, and goals are nearest and dearest to your main character’s heart (see #16). Then set up the main conflict to be directly in opposition to that goal. It doesn’t have to be in a tangible way, though it could be. But, if your main character wants more than anything to reach the ships on the southern coast of your world and sail to a new life, make sure the main conflict immediately prevents them from doing that - in fact, make sure to send them north. If your main character just wants to keep their loved ones safe, kidnap the loved ones. If your main character just wants to date their best-friend-turned-crush, make sure they think they have no chance - or, make them cocky about it, and make sure it makes Person B determined not to ever like them. You get it. Figure out what your character most wants, and then keep them from having that. Boom - your conflict now ties in with your character's motivation. It's like instant yeast for plots.

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5) If you’re anything like me, you want your first draft to be Good, despite all that advice about how the first draft doesn’t have to be good and it’s just to get words on the page, yadda yadda. And if you’re somewhat of a perfectionist (like myself), it’s easy to get stuck looking at a blank page because you don’t have The Perfect Words, and you want what you write to be Good the first time.

Here’s how I cheat that:

Instead of trying to write a Good First Draft from a blank page, hit the enter key a few times, skip a little down on the page, change your ink to red (or blue, or whatever - just something immediately identifiable as Not Black) and just thought vomit. Write whatever the hell you’re thinking, exactly as you think it. Don’t worry about it being readable, don’t worry about narrative flow for now, don’t worry about covering all the details, don’t worry about anything except either a) getting all the details of your idea out onto the page, whether that’s a lot or whether it’s just a sentence or two, or b) if you don’t have an idea yet, finding your way there.

Because this method is also very good for finding your way to ideas when you’re stuck in writer’s block.

Because of how human brains work, getting this stuff out onto the page - in all its messy, stream-of-consciousness glory - will likely spark more thoughts. As you write your original idea about the scene, it’ll likely spark more ideas. Creation begets creation. If you just start thought-vomiting your ideas onto the page, chances are you’ll think of more things as you go, and you’ll start filling out description or dialogue or tone or action or whatever, and pretty soon the scene starts writing itself.

Not sure where you’re going with the scene or which ideas you wanna use? Use a lot of ambivalent language in your “thought-vomit draft.” My pre-writing notes are chock-full of the words “maybe,” “perhaps,” and the phrases, “At some point...” and “...or something like that.” In this way, I don’t tie myself down to one idea; it’s just an idea, and I’m keeping it on the page in case I use it, but I might chuck it in the trash or change it or whatever.

And then, once your ideas for the scene (or story, or chapter, or whatever) are on the page, then go back to the top and start translating them into a “real” first draft. Use black ink, and start copy-pasting chunks of the thought-vomit up into the top part of the document and translating them into Draft 1. Separate out paragraphs where paragraph breaks should be. Add the correct punctuation and whatnot. Change “describe the lobby here - include potted plants, fancy carpet, blood stain, etc.” into an actual description of the lobby. Flesh it out, or condense, or whatever it needs. And if you’re still stuck, change back to red ink and ramble some more until you find a path that feels right, then plug that in. This keeps you from looking at a blank page, and it allows you to generate a kind of Draft 0.5, somewhere between a plan and a first draft.

You don’t have to use every idea. Like I said, jot down whatever comes to mind, put a “maybe” before or after it, and keep working. If the idea grabs you and you wanna keep expanding on it and exploring it, cool. If you just wanna jot it down so you don’t forget it and then move on, also cool. Red-ink draft / “thought-vomit draft” is your time to jump around in the timeline, add or finesse details at whatever point your brain moves to, etc. Don’t try to do it exactly in story order, because you will get tangential thoughts and ideas, and you will not remember to write them down five pages later when you finally get to taking notes on that scene. Trust me. On that note...

_-_

6) Write everything down the moment you think of it. Seriously.

“I’ll remember it when I get around to writing that scene in a couple days / weeks / months (/years).”

You won’t.

Write it down.

Phone, journal, google docs - hell, my family regularly laughs at me for grabbing a napkin during dinner and scribbling thoughts down alongside pasta sauce stains.

And then, once you have it written down somewhere...

_-_

7) Consolidate your writing ideas in one place.

Maybe this isn’t really your style, and that’s totally chill.

Buuuut, if you’re Type-A like me - or if you tend to be somewhat unorganized and you know you’ll lose track of your writing notes if they’re scattered across multiple notebooks, journals, napkins, phone notes, etc. - having one consolidated document of notes is a life saver. I keep mine on Google Docs so I can access it, add to it, and look through it for inspiration anywhere at any time. When I have one of those Shower Thoughts that I jot down on my phone or on a napkin during dinner, I set myself a reminder on my phone to type it up in my Story Ideas document later.

(Or, if the idea I had was for a story of mine that I’ve already started planning / drafting / whatever, I put it in the document for that story instead of the Big Random Story Ideas doc. You get it.)

_-_

8) Have other ways to collect and save writing ideas, besides just writing stuff down. If you like Pinterest, make pinterest boards of your characters or stories or settings or whatever. If you’re big into playlists, make a playlist for your character / setting / story / etc. Or both. Or something else. I’m not good at drawing, but maybe you are, and maybe you like to draw your ideas. Whatever form it takes, having another way to save ideas and think about your stories is invaluable.

_-_

9) Some writers can just start writing with no idea where the story is going, and they just kind of figure it out as they go. I envy those writers. And I do that sometimes for fanfiction, where the stakes are somewhat lower and the audience is reading more for scene-to-scene enjoyment (and to see their OTP kiss) than for a Driving And Compelling Narrative.

But here’s the thing: especially if you’re just kind of starting out, writing without some sort of plan is really, really hard, and will likely lead you into a slow, meandering narrative that will likely frustrate you.

Even if you think you’re someone that just can’t write with a plan (and again, I have the highest respect for pansters out there - I don’t know how you do it, you crazy bastards, but you keep doing you) - even if you think “I can’t work with plans, they’re too prescriptive, I just want to write and see what happens -”

Try at least making the most skeletal of plans.

Even if you have no clue what 90% of the story is, yet. That’s fine. But you need to have some idea of what you’re building to, even if that’s nothing more specific than a feeling, or a turning point for your character. Even if your entire plan for everything beyond Chapter 1 is, “At some point, Charlie needs to realize that Ed was lying to her.”

This is where those Draft 0.5 notes come in handy. Because, more than likely, working on your current scene that way will spark ideas for later scenes, which you can put down at the bottom of the document and save for when they become relevant. In my experience, the line between planning ahead and making a Draft 0.5 is exceptionally thin. One can quickly turn into the other.

If you’re really, really resistant to the idea of planning ahead, that’s okay. It’s not everybody’s style. But for the love of all that is holy, write down your ideas for future scenes, even if you’re a person that doesn’t like to plan and writes only in story order, because you will not remember that idea once you get to that scene.

_-_

10) You don’t have to write in order.

Here’s the thing: I’m a person that can only do my Draft 1 in story order (meaning, chronological order). I just have to be in that flow; I need to write in story order for me to best channel where the character is at from scene to scene, both narratively and emotionally.

But my Thought Vomit Draft is another thing entirely. By using the brain hack of putting my notes in red (or another color, it doesn’t matter) and going down to the bottom of the document / page and taking notes there, and then integrating them into whatever plan I have, and then translating them into Draft 1 once I get there in the story - by doing that, I can get my good ideas onto the page (and expound upon them and let my muse carry me and ride that momentum while I’m in the moment of inspiration) without writing out of order.

Maybe that’s just me. But if you’re a person who really prefers to write in story order, that could be hugely helpful to you. It is to me.

_-_

11) Emotion and motivation will do more for your story than technicalities of plot.

If your characters really care about something, and their journey through the (shaky or weak) plot is emotionally engaging, it will be a much more compelling story than a story with a “perfect” plot and unrelatable or unmotivated characters.

If your characters care about what they’re doing, and it means something to them, and their goals and actions are driven by dreams or fears or emotions that are integral to who they are, your audience will care too. If you have a perfectly crafted plot that hits all the right beats and has high stakes and fast pacing and drama - but your characters don’t connect with what’s happening in a way that’s deeply meaningful or emotional for them? You’re gonna have a hard time engaging readers.

When in doubt, prioritize character emotion and motivation over plot. Emotion is what drives story.

This power is highly exploitable. (Just look at pulp novels and shitty but entertaining movies.) You can even use it to glaze over plot holes or reinvigorate a limp narrative. Use it that way sparingly, though. It’s a band-aid, not a surgery. 

_-_

12) Evil villains are hard to write - mostly because there are very few truly evil people in the world. (There are a few. Billionaires and several big name politicians come to mind.) But by and large, there aren’t that many evil people. There are plenty of bad people, but bad people have some good in them, somewhere in there. Trying to write an evil villain is hard, because they often turn very cartoony.

Here’s a tip: it’s much easier to write antagonists who aren’t evil. Even if they’re bad people. Of course, there’s no reason you can’t write a villain that’s just truly evil - a serial killer, or an abuser, or a billionaire, or someone who legit just wants to hurt people or blow up the earth or stay in control of an oppressed population, or whatever. But chances are, it’s gonna be really hard to make them feel real, and even harder to create a plot around them that doesn’t feel forced or contrived.

Instead, try writing an antagonist / villain whose motivations and goals directly clash with your protagonist’s - but not because they want to take over the world or see people suffer. Write an antagonist who’s chaotic good, but whose perception of the situation is completely opposite from your hero’s. Write an antagonist whose only desire is to save people, and who will do anything to achieve that goal - anything. Write an antagonist who believes in the letter of the law, and will hinder and oppose the hero’s methods even if they agree with the hero’s motivation. Write an antagonist who got in way over their head and did some things they regret, and now they don’t know how to get out, and they’re doing their best but whatever they set in motion is too powerful for them to stop now.

Write villains who are human. Write a killer who thought they were doing the right thing by taking their victim out of the equation, who vomits at the sight of the body and sobs over the grave they dig. Write a government leader who truly believes she’s doing what’s best for her people in the long-term, even if it might hurt them in the short term, and is willing to endure the hatred and belligerence of the masses if it means securing what she thinks is a better future for her people. Write a teenage bully that thinks they’re the one being picked on by the world, and they’re just fighting back, standing their ground. Write a scientist who will break any code of ethics and hurt anyone he needs to - in order to bring back his baby sister from the grave, because he promised her he’d protect her and he failed. Write an antagonist who is selfish and self-centered and capricious - because in order to survive they had to look out for Number One, and that habit ain’t about to break anytime soon.

Write villains who aren’t even villains. Write antagonists who oppose the hero because of moral differences. Write antagonists who are trying to do the right thing. Write antagonists who treat the heroes with kindness and dignity and respect and gentleness.

They don’t have to be good. They don’t have to be Misunderstood Sweethearts who “deserve” a redemption arc. They can be cruel and nasty and dismissive and callous and violent and etc. etc.

Just hesitate before you make them Evil-with-a-capital-E. Because evil is hard to write, and honestly, boring to read. Flawed human beings with goals and motivations that directly oppose the main characters’ are much easier to write and much more interesting to read.

Ask why. Why is your villain trying to take over the world? What does that even mean? Are they trying to create a Star-Trek-like post-capitalism utopia, but they know that won’t happen in a million lifetimes, so they’re trying to do it by force? Are they actually super in favor of human rights, but they got very impatient waiting for the world to do anything about poverty and war, so they decided to take it into their own hands? Are they determined to fix the world - no matter the cost? Are they terrified and overwhelmed, but committed to see it through to the end? Or - maybe they’re just doing it on a dare. Maybe they don’t really give a shit about world domination, they were just a mediocre rich white guy who decided to fuck around and find out, and now he’s kind of curious how far he can take this thing. And now he’s kind of an internationally-wanted criminal, so he’s kind of stuck living on his hidden private island in his multi-billion dollar secret base, strapping lasers to sharks’ heads for the hell of it. Gross, selfish, uncaring, and dangerous? For sure. Evil? Depends on your definition. See, now we’re getting somewhere.

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13) It’s tempting to let the plot control the characters. It’s easy to drop your characters into a situation and see how they react. But here’s the thing: that doesn’t drive plot. In fact, it bogs down pacing. Instead, try to build you plot off of your characters’ actions and decisions. Let your character build their own situation. Not to say it should go they way they wanted it to go; in fact, usually, their grand plans should go to hell very quickly. But having the characters take action and make decisions, and letting the plot develop based on that, is much easier to make compelling than making a rigid series of events and then trying to herd your characters into them.

_-_

14) Having trouble justifying a character’s actions? Consider having them make the opposite decision, or having them approach the situation in a different way. For example: you need your character to go meet the bad guy, for plot reasons, even though there’s no way it’s not a trap. If the character goes, readers are gonna be groaning with their head in their hands, because c’mon man, that was really fucking stupid. But he’s gotta go, because the plot needs that. Two ways you might handle this: a) He knows it’s probably a trap. He decides not to go. The plot conspires to get him near the villain anyway. Or, b) He knows it’s a trap. But he needs to go, for (insert reasons here). So, he approaches it in an unexpected way. He brings backup, recruiting a side character we met earlier in the story. Or he arrives on the back of a dragon, because ain’t nobody gonna fuck with a dude on a dragon. Or he goes - early, and ambushes the villain. It may work, it may not. He may get himself kidnapped anyway. But it moves the plot along without having Stupid Hero Syndrome.

_-_

15) This is a legit piece of advice: if all of this sounds overwhelming, literally just ignore it and write what you want. For real. Writing should be fun, and every single writer operates differently. If you’re sitting here like “I’m getting stressed just reading this,” just flip me a good-natured bird and get on with your life. I promise I won’t take it personally. Same goes for literally any other writing advice you see. Lots of rules and guidelines can very quickly make anything thoroughly un-fun. Just write. If you’re passionate about it and you do it for long enough, you’ll start figuring out the tips and tricks on your own.

_-_

16) Here’s the best piece of advice I can give you: know your characters. More importantly, know what’s important to them. Build their personality and decisions off of that, and build your plot off of their decisions.

I see a lot of character building sheets that ask a shit-ton of questions like “What’s their most prized possession?” “Do they like their family?” “What’s their favorite food?”

And while these are good questions, my problem with this type of character building is that if you start there, with the little stuff, you’re building on nothing. IMO, to make a truly strong character (not strong like Inner Strength, strong like effective), you need a strong foundation.

Here are the things you must know about your character:

a) What are their greatest fears / deepest insecurities? And I don’t mean “wasps” or “heights.” I mean the deep shit. I mean fears like “living a meaningless life,” or “turning out just like their parents,” or “that no one will ever love them,” or “being powerless.” You may say, “But they’re really scared of wasps! They fall into a wasp nest when they were little and got stung so much they almost died!” Great! That’s a fantastic bit of backstory. They should absolutely be afraid of wasps, and that should absolutely be an impediment later in the story. But dig deeper. What about that event actually scarred them? Was it the helplessness? Stumbling around, swatting at the air, not being able to do a single thing to stop what was happening to them? Was it that they were alone, and no matter how loud they screamed, no one was coming? Was it the bodily horror of feeling themself turn into an inhuman creature as they swelled up from the stings, unable to move their fingers or face normally anymore?

And don’t forget insecurities, because those factor in, too. Are they deeply insecure about their identity? Do they believe, deep down, that they’re ugly? Did they grow up poor and they’ve always been really touchy about that? Why? Dig deep. Figure out what really, really bothers them.

b) What are their hopes and dreams? What do they truly want out of life? What do they consider the most valuable to their experience here in this thing called life? Is it the freedom to forge their own path and be independent? Is it the approval of their family or peers? Is it a home? Is it knowledge, or understanding? Spiritual fulfillment? Is it deeply important to them that they contribute to their community, or protect those they love? What do they need in order to feel truly and deeply fulfilled in life?

Figure out those two things (each one encompasses several things, btw, you don’t have to stop at just one for each), and then use that to inform how they behave and the types of decisions they make within the story. 

It also informs character behavior and personality. 

Let’s say we have a character who’s afraid of helplessness. They’re probably gonna be the person that always wants to do something, try something, no matter how hopeless the situation seems. They’d despise just sitting and waiting, probably, because it makes them feel powerless. They might even be the person that makes rash decisions and acts impulsively and puts themself in danger unnecessarily, because in their mind it’s better than being at the mercy of fate. This is one way you could use a character’s personality to inform their decisions, which in turn helps to inform plot.

Or, let’s say we have a character whose greatest fear is being left behind or forgotten. We may have a chatterbox on our hands. They might be obnoxious. They might love the spotlight, constantly vying for attention no matter the situation, because deep down they’re so afraid that they’d be forgotten otherwise. Or, it may go the opposite way. They may be so afraid of people leaving them that they’re terrified of bothering people. They don’t want to do anything that could annoy people, anything that might give people a reason to leave them. They might be exceedingly polite, quiet, accommodating. A push-over, really.

These are two nearly opposite types of personalities, both stemming from the same core fear/insecurity. You can go a lot of different ways with it. But if you build on that strong foundation, you’ll have a strong character, and a stronger plot.

Likewise, the structure of your story can and should inform the design of these character traits. If you need your characters to team up near the end, it may be impactful if you give your main character a deep fear of commitment, an insecurity about being unwanted or left behind, and make them highly value independence and freedom. That could make their team-up for the final battle very meaningful. Conversely, you can use your character’s deepest fears and desires to help design the plot. Is your character deeply insecure about voicing their opinions or taking a stand, because of trauma they faced in the past? Make them face that. Build that into the climactic third act. Give them the big inspirational speech where they stand up and talk about what they believe to be important, what they think the group should do. And then design that character arc to run through the story, giving you more handholds and stepping stones, more pieces of foundation on which to design the plot.

In this way, character should inform story as much as story informs character. It’s a feedback loop.

Bonus: if you build your character and your plot off of each other in this way, it automatically starts to build in the foundations of that emotional investment I mentioned earlier. If your character’s decisions are based on what they most want and do not want in life, you basically have your character motivation and stakes pre-built.

Note: you need to know these things about your villain, too.

-_-_-

I’m genuinely sorry about the length of this, lmao. But you did ask.

Best of luck!

Edit: I forgot an important one:

17) Start when the scene starts and end when the scene ends.

What do I mean by that?

If your notes say “Danny asks Nicole out after school and majorly flubs it,” start the scene when Danny approaches Nicole after school. Better yet, cold-open the scene on “I was wondering if, you know, you’d wanna. You know. Hang out some time?”

Don’t start that morning when Danny goes to school, unless you’re gonna cover the school day in like one or two sentences. Don’t spend whole paragraphs going through the school day, unless it’s to cover other plot points first (in which case apply these same guidelines there), or if the paragraphs are there for a specific reason, like to illustrate how stressed he is and how it seems like every little thing is going wrong. Even then, trim the fat as much as possible. Expounding and describing everything Moment-to-moment is for the meat of the scenes, not the leading-up-to and coming-away-from.

Here’s my rule of thumb: study how and when movies cut from scene to scene. Movies have exceptionally strict, limited time for storytelling; they’re excellent examples of starting a scene when the plot point starts and ending when it’s over. If you can’t picture a movie showing everything you showed, start the scene later and end it earlier.