#I honestly can't think of a more rational explanation for this

[mirror-and-mind]

This is such a weird thing to do. Why is he importing love potions from as far away from Japan as possible? The shipping costs must be insane. Does Britain really have love potions that are so superior to any that can be acquired from somewhere closer? Is Britain even a love potion-manufacturing country? What the hell's in them?

[writingquestionsanswered]

How to write a fantasy when you're an extremely logical person?

I have this problem where I try to figure out how everything in my world works as “scientifically” as I possibly can even though, as a fantasy, I can't expect it to be 100% rational/logical. I can't seem to write just from imagination or approach my story as a creative. I'm always overthinking and complicating things as I come up with explanations for why things are the way they are, and it's stressing me out. I could, of course, see where this logic takes me. But honestly, I’d prefer if I could just stop getting hung up over tiny details

Logical Writer Struggling with Overthinking Fantasy

I have the exact same problem, and TBH, I'm still trying to figure it out for myself. One thing thats... kind of (?) helping is recognizing that fleshing it out for myself doesn't mean I have to flesh it out for the reader. In other words, sometimes (for me, at least) it seems to be enough to logic it all out to my own satisfaction, but then give myself permission to leave it off the page. What I'm finding, most of the time, is that if it genuinely needs to be there it will work its way in naturally. So, as an example, I had spent an obscene amount of time trying to come up with a plausible scientific explanation for something that is scientifically implausible, and then I had worked it into my plotting--which only cluttered things and created problems--so I scrapped my plotting and started again without the attempt at scientific logic. The result was something that felt infinitely more magical and fantastical, and what ended up happening was there was a brief exchange between two characters in which I came up with an off-the-cuff quip that summed up all that scientific-hoop-jumping in a way that made it the buttress I wanted it to be, but without all the clutter and shenanigans of actually working it into the story. It was enough that I felt like it would be enough to pacify a skeptical reader, but it didn't dampen the magic or clutter things up.

So, that's my best, personal experience advice... if you have the time, energy, and ability, let yourself go to town with shoring up the logic of your story's world, but give yourself permission to leave it out of the story except and unless it works its way in naturally, which it probably will. I think, on some level, having the "math" all worked out in your head makes it easier for your brain to see where it fits into the story naturally rather than trying to shoehorn it in where it doesn't belong.

I hope that helps!

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

I’ve been writing seriously for over 30 years and love to share what I’ve learned. Have a writing question? My inbox is always open!

♦ Questions that violate my ask policies will be deleted! ♦ Please see my master list of top posts before asking ♦ Learn more about WQA here

[hang1n]

Thinking about how Alec would process his emotions (and just about him in general):

I feel like Alec would rationalize his feelings to a detrimental extent.

Funneh receiving a gift from Evan that's objectively greater than his? Yeah, that makes sense, and even though he's kinda hurt by the sentiment he'll back away and throw away his own gift because it's pointless if Funneh already has a better gift. Why would he feel upset over this? Clearly Evan was better, and Funneh prefers him over Alec, so it's okay because she's happy and well.

Are you picking up what I'm putting down?

Having to deal with leaving Funneh for Yandere? That makes sense, totally. And even though he's kinda angry (more like fuming at having to meet up with his boss whilst on a date with the girl of his dreams). That's okay, it's fine because it's not like he can do anything else; Yandere has dirt on him, and vice versa. He needs the money. He needs this. He can't do anything about this. So, he calms down fairly easily, and somehow keeps his anger intact because he shouldn't be angry.

DO YOU GET ME!?!??

Inherently, Alec simply views his problems as just problems. It's not a big deal– it's fine; it's okay, he can handle this much because he's dealt with worse and he'll continue to deal with even worst soon enough. He minimizes his issues, because of course he does. It's the only sort of control he feels he has over his life, and Alec is desperate to feel in control, for once.

Because his entire life, he has never really been in control. External issues have always defined him, and he's unable to break away from this identity. After all, who would he be without serving someone else? His home has robbed his childhood and life from him– having to mature early, work for his family, and provide and take care of things that should absolutely not be a child's responsibility. Yandere’s dirty work was probably something hurriedly pushed into his hands, and he was forced to deal with it– because he needs this, needs the money, needs to keep going because what then if he doesn't??

And yes, I know, we've seen him speaking harshly at times (mostly to those he doesn't like, because he rarely ever speaks to Funneh like that. So honestly, I think we're really seeing him through rose-tinted glasses for the entire series because it's from Funneh’s perspective). But I think that's just him being impulsive, unable to keep everything from spilling and being far too fed up with people. Also I just think he doesn't care sometimes, especially when it's someone he doesn't care about– I don't think he bothers speaking with care around those kind of people. Also, essentially– I think Alec treats people like how they treat him. If they don't respect him, then he'll be just as petty and won't respect them either. If they're nice to him, he'll tone it down, and remain fairly respectful. As said from his wiki ‘when someone bites him, he bites back.’ I think it's quite a fitting explanation for his actions. Sometimes.

[macsimagines]

THE KISAKI YANDERE POST WAS SO GOOD ?? I NEED TO SEE A PART 2 LIKE WHERE HE FOUND OUT YOU ABORTED THE BABY I NEED TO KNOW IF HE WOULD GET ANGRY OR WHAT ? AND HOW READER REFUSE TO GET MARRIED YET 😻😻 I'm on my knees 😞

YA YOU DO BOO I GOT YOU. I'M HERE FOR SOFT YANDERE KISAKI AND I EAT ANGST FOR BREAKFAST -Ms.Mac

Yandere!Kisaki Tetta

He plays it off when you don't tell him you're pregnant yet. He thinks ok it just hasn't hit yet. He's super suspicious when he notices you're acting strange though.

Ever the thinker he tries to come up with excuses for you. You're probably still getting ready for college. You honestly might still think you're going since you don't realize something waaaaay more important is coming up.

Kisaki has already made deals and prepped everything beforehand. He's got a well paying part time job, and he knows he can balance class work with it. He's also got savings stocked up from his gang days. You won't live as lavishly as he wants but your baby, his baby, is going to be provided for.

This guy is making a lot of sacrifices already you need to be ready to do the same. He know you must have noticed your period is late so why haven't you said anything yet?

Unless...there's no way you're trying to keep it a secret from him right? Or worse yet...

No. He won't allow it. Now he's using even more resources and connections and now he's found out you've made yourself an appointment at an illegal clinic to abort this baby. His fucking baby.

He can't contain his rage. He wants to kill you for thinking you could kill his child. But he knows better. He rationalizes. You just were scared, you made a very dumb decision. You almost made a horrible mistake.

You're dumbstruck to find Tetta at the clinic on the day of your appointment. You were so damn careful, how could he know...

"Just what do you think you're doing, (Y/N)?"

You're crying the whole way to Tetta's big fancy apartment. The one he's been begging you to come and stay at with him. He kept complaining it was way too huge for one person because of course it was. Who the hell needed a luxury three bedroom sound proof apartment all to themselves?

Kisaki doesn't say anything while you cry and try to explain how you're not ready for a baby, how you know how bad he wants to be married and to have a family but you just can't right now.

He doesn't say anything just listen while he helps you take off your jacket, and takes your phone, pulling something from your his back pocket...

It's his own fault. He accepts that he definitely made some poor choices. He really should've just held off until you were engaged. But it's fine. He'll take responsibility.

You feel him rubbing you back whispering how it's gonna be ok. How he's going to make it ok.

Then something clicks around your neck. A metal collar, with a chain leading to the wall. You're so stunned and confused staring at Tetta for an explanation.

"Don't give me that look, Y/N. I wanted to get you a pretty engagement ring, but you're just so fucking stubborn. So godamn stupid.' He explains walking away from you, "But I can fix this. You just need some time to adjust. To get used to the idea. I'm gonna make some calls. You need to settle in."

[ultimate-marysue]

Seeing Alice try to explain to Sam and Celia what happened and being unable to come up with a rational explanation despite trying with all her might reminds me more of John confessing that he believes the statements than it does the Martin-Prentiss incident.

You can't truly say there's something supernatural in TMA until the Jane Prentiss attack/Michael. That's when the audience and most of the cast say "got it, it truly is supernatural". Obviously as the audience of a horror podcast you were already pretty sure of it, but still. There's enough "it was actually aliens/the government" twist to be aware off.

In Tmagp things are different from the start, we don't have just one pov, we're more like a semi omniscient voyeur. We know the horrors are real because we listened to TMA (we may not know if it's the same horrors though). But not only that, several of our main cast already believed in the supernatural to begin with.

Sam kept asking Alice if she thought the incidents were real

Celia has never tried to hide that she believes they absolutely are

Colin is convinced something really weird/paranormal is happening

Gwen probably wasn't sold in the beginning but very soon she found out they are, in fact, very real

Lena Knew they were real

Alice was the only skeptical by episode 10. John was still going strong in the whole "there is no such thing as supernatural entities" by episode 39. And not only him. We only have his pov, but pretty much no one was talking(out loud) about paranormal things being real until they had a personal experience down the line. By the time John confesses he's not a real skeptic, both the audience and the rest of the characters know the supernatural is real. Meanwhile in protocol Alice is the only one holding the "nope, don't think about it" front.

Cue episode 15-16. Despite her best attempts at rationalizing what happened she can't find a logical explanation. She is reacting the way any normal, sane, human being would to a paranormal encounter. And the thing is, if this was the institute, her coworkers reaction would have ranged from "I'm going to go along with your story so you can calm down and later we can find out what really happened" to "well that couldn't have happened because ghosts aren't real".

But instead she gets Samama "hmmm this puter telling me a storytime sounds really compelling" Khalid and Celia "I'm from a different dimension that got overrun by the horrors" Ripley. And now that the last bastion for skepticism in the OIAR has fallen there's no reason to pretend. There's no image of professionalism to uphold. To Sam and Celia, Alice admitting to something like that is all the proof they need. It's confirmation bias from the last person that would want to confirm your bias so it must be true.

Honestly, I can't wait to see how this turns out. I wouldn't be surprised if Alice tries to convince herself she hallucinated the whole thing and then an incident comes in with eerily similar details...I just can't wait. I'm a sucker for skeptical characters having to confront something real.

[mofffun]

King-Ohger Character Song memo

link to streaming

Gira - Kind King

oooh rock! something Taisei himself likes? (Masashi mentioned they quickly became friends because they have football and rock bands in common)

the opening electric tunes is a consistent Dug motif

His voice is SO cute and the mismatch with the instrumetns XD

I like 'i gotta we gotta' part. catchy kinda slogan-y like self pep talk

Gira will stand up to unjustice and do it himself, but with the bonds with his friends too 😭😭

the longer I listen to it the less it sounds like Taisei?? and closer to sports anime freshman protag. I look forward to listening its live version.

Overall the song is very motivating and cheerful, let's just say it does sound like something Gira could write himself.

there's no beating INFERNO, but the lyrics is direct and cute, very fitting for Gira's character.

You get the chara song is how the character wants to express themselves and the image song is who they are from an outside perspective.

Yanma - Teppen Online

hmmm I'm surprised by the chorus? (+ve)

musically I don't find much surprise with this one but I like the chorus. Try & Fight and I'm still alive were just too impactful.

no wait it sounds like the most we learn about Prez?

In the lyrics he said, "some things don't need to be said (out loud)" and yeah, he's a bit shy in expressing affection huh? Or say, he believes in action more than words and he's the traditional manly type that's like, "hing1 dai6, sum ziu3 lah"

Himeno - Golden Garden

the "I wish" song in musicals

That's Erica's voice???

'K I can see the second verse as Hime singing to Rita.

ah no bridge (I think none of them have bridge? :(

A very beautiful song. Gives me a 2000s shojo amime ED vibe.

Rita - Moffun's Song

Yeah no, I don't like Rita's stuck being a Moffun fan in their character song. Can't say I'm more impressed by the full version as a Yuzuki fan either

The short version impressed me by showing Yuzuki's range in just under a minute. The high note is moved to the very end of the song from verse 2

Some rationalize it as Rita themself choosing to use this version to represent themself and I can see the reasoning behind Rita's caring interior should've be apparent by now and you have the contrast with Ignorantia but UGH I want the Chief Justice actually singing about their struggle and duty and YOU KNOW MAYBE TOUCH ON THEIR CONNECTION WITH GOKKAN????? IN HIRAKAWA'S LOW IKEMEN VOICE???

On the other hand did we ever get an explanation of why Rita likes Moffun in the first place? We know it's not some tragic backstory and honestly, they could've like it simply because it's cute. And yes, I can infer why someone like Rita would like something like Moffun but hnnnnn it's not canon

but another contradiction I'm facing is actually I was glad to see an adult character who's not afraid of showing their otaku passionate side, but Rita's not fully committed to that...

Kaguragi - 仰天珍道中

hohoho I so look forward to Kaku-san's singing.

oh my god that's really good???

i can see him on a showa TV show in a white suit

this is gonna be a brainworm

it's much faster than I expected too.

there's lore in this lyrics… (looks up japanese dictionary)

Jeramie - 線上のTrickster

Masashi's in the "singing voice close to speaking voice" group.

Jeramie, you're not beating the Noel allegations

has some early 2000s J-rock vibes I guess?

It's not a bad song ay any rate but again (like the perfume) doesn't feel very Jeramie to me?? Maybe I've been paying too little attention to him my interpretation deviation from official's for the second time?

(I like The Prophet better but maybe this will warm up to me)

[ilikereadingactually]

Rakesfall

Rakesfall by Vajra Chandrasekera

i'm honestly not sure where to begin with this book, except that i really liked it, and also i had a glitch in the NetGalley app halfway through and thought it had disappeared, so i read two other books in between. the many layers of this story would have fallen together a little easier for me if i had read the whole thing consecutively, so i'm looking forward to an enlightening reread at some point! but i also think, as Molly Templeton pointed out in this great column, that i can't possibly understand everything happening in this book, and i'm not meant to. i don't have the necessary cultural context about Sri Lanka, but i can ride along and thoroughly enjoy myself, and i can learn!

i really dig a lot of what i do understand that's going on in this book though; the layered, looping structure is really exciting, and the way Chandrasekera weaves speculative elements into so many different settings—iterations of the past and the future and the even farther future—is unique each time, with some connecting elements that carry you through from one story to the next. and there's so much incredibly striking imagery, visuals that are going to stay with me for a long time. my reading experience of this book was weirdly drawn out through my own ineptitude with the app, but i would keep reading about Annelid and Leveret through so many more of their strange lifetimes.

the deets

how i read it: as i said, i had a weird experience of this one in the NetGalley app, but as always i'm delighted to have the access.

try this if you: love to float on a book like floating on the ocean and maybe go down rabbit holes afterward, dig reincarnation stories, or are into things that span huge swaths of time and wander all over the speculative genres!

some bits i really liked: i have so many more screenshots than i could possibly include here but this is a selection of things that made me gasp

We know another year has passed when the new year birds hoot in the background. Leveret and Annelid will grow older, too. This is that kind of show. There are only two kinds of show: the kind where people grow older and the kind where they don't. We, the fandom, love the first kind best. We love this show so much.

___

I am reborn, but not in a womb; I pass into this life midstride, walking on the street. I stumble, trip over myself, nearly faceplant. I am in media res, trying to swallow what for a moment seemed to choke in my throat. Is that true, or had I forgotten myself until this moment?

___

I voted for him myself, in the parliamentary election earlier this month where sixty people died. I voted for peace, even though peace seems like the kind of science fiction that posits a future utopia, sleek and bald and rational, without satisfactory explanation of how we get to there from here, this convoluted, bloody, tainted here, except by appealing to our better natures at critical moments, a long arc bending toward justice. It seems like science fiction, wrapped in a pulp cover.

___

Be anything other than a man, I tell my younger self now through the akashic record; be a mother of witches. My parents didn't want the devil in me out. She was already almost out; that was the problem. No, they wanted her sealed, stitched in tight. My unhealing wound.

___

I love, the Rake whispers like thunder, rattling her bones. I forgive. Embi stares at them. "You...forgive. I've left you trapped in a foreign poetic regime for ten thousand years. It should have been otherwise." There is no other wisdom, the Rake says. "You don't have to protect me," Embi says. "If protecting the world means that I need to be sacrificed, I'm ready. It took me a while to get ready, but I'm ready." You are the world, the Rake says. There is no difference.

___

The difference is that stories have endings, and histories understand that nothing ever ends. The difference is that stories are made and histories are told.

___

You and I are a we right here and now, whether we like it or not.

pub date: June 18, 2024! Go read it!

[cryptidcodex]

Ik your proendo and stuff

But what about system/headmate hoppers?

Honestly I can't say I know a lot about it. Just from a scientific point I wouldn't really say I think it's possible. I've formed introjects of abusers or people I was struggling to grieve. Honestly I'd say that's probably what was actually happening.

Grief is a hard thing for any brain to process, but even more so for someone with something complex like system hood. A fear of abandonment, a codependency or trauma bond, etc, make it all too easy to form introjects as well, and a lot of system members/Headmates will not be aware of what caused their creation.

Attachment to another systems Headmate can happen for many reasons, even just wanting an introject of a person or character, or in this case alter, who you admire or look up to, or you can use to seek approval in some way.

I have an introject of a little from a system who heavily abused me, because many of my head mates were struggling with the loss of that little as caretakers. While it would have been very easy for us to try to rationalize the happening by things like system hopping, as we are very spiritual and believe in magic, we've done a lot of research and also shadow work to understand how much we struggle with our BPD and handling grief, and were able to figure out the actual explanation.

Like I said, I could definitely stand to do more reading on the topic, but that's just my current understanding/opinion from what I have read. Thanks for asking!

~Blurry.

[authoralexharvey]

INTERVIEW WITH A WRITEBLR — @wordwizards

Who You Are:

Buddy || He/it

My day job is at a dental implant laboratory, which I really enjoy, but I also have the passion for writing that I like to keep on the side. I'm also a bit of a lame college dropout.

What You Write:

What genres do you write in? What age ranges do you write for?

Horror, paranormal, and sci-fi. New adult and adult.

What genre would you write in for the rest of your life, if you could? What about that genre appeals to you?

I think I would stick with science fiction since I like coming up with rational in-universe explanations for the fantastical things that exist in my stories. But honestly, I wouldn't like being stuck with one genre.

What genre/s will you not write unless you HAVE to? What about that genre turns you off?

Oddly enough, as much as I like reading historical fiction, I don't like writing it because I can't stop myself from overthinking the historical accuracy of what I'm writing…even though I know readers wouldn't care. Just hard to focus on the story when I'm spending all my time worrying about which slang terms existed in the time period!

Who is your target audience? Do you think anyone outside of that would get anything out of your works?

I definitely write with the intended audience of people in my age group, but I could see why someone much older or younger than me might read my books. It's not just about relating to the protagonist's age, or relating to the protagonist at all. Well, I read many books where I'm definitely not in the target audience, and I do have moments where I have to think, "Okay, I can tell this is not for me," but I also find it interesting to get other people's perspectives through the things they like. (And I'm kind of just over-analyzing because that's all I do with fiction now.)

What kind of themes do you tend to focus on? What kinds of tropes? What about them appeals to you?

When it comes to specific tropes, I like working with ones that I am currently interested in researching. For example, my latest interest is '50s alien invasion movies, so I like researching things common in those films and using them for my current project. As for themes, I've noticed that family is a big one, of course focusing less on "blood is thicker than water!" and more on things like how your parents affect your adult life and how to find who you consider your family. And since I have fairly character-driven stories there are usually themes of things like self-worth, figuring out your identity, or stuff like improving on yourself.

What themes or tropes can you not stand? What about them turn you off?

One that really gets on my nerves is when authors just randomly pair up side characters for the sake of a happy ending to the story, even though you have no reason to care about the characters dating. I find it annoying because I know the author is thinking to themselves that there has to be romance for the ending to be happy, but I don't see why that's the case! I've known many people unhappier in relationships than single, and seeing that in fiction is a reminder of how irritating people can be when you're happy to not date.

What are you currently working on? How long have you been working on it?

My main project is a story called Technophobia. Technically, I made the main characters in high school, but I kind of ping-ponged them around a few story concepts before coming up with an actual thing to write with them more recently.

Why do you write? What keeps you writing?

I just enjoy trying to translate things in my brain. I think it's good practice for if I get around to telling people how I'm feeling. And I keep going because I daydream constantly when I'm bored, so I come up with proper stories for them later.

How long have you been writing? What do you think first drew you to it?

I started writing for my creative writing lessons in the fifth grade, but I thought it was great and kept going after that. I liked reading a lot as a kid, I mean a LOT, and I also liked to daydream stories to help myself sleep. I didn't think much about proper story structure or writing techniques, but I had plenty of ideas, and it felt good to get it written down.

Where do you get your inspiration from? Is that how you got your inspiration for your current project? If not, where did the inspiration come from?

I think definitely from reading, and I'm not just talking fiction, though that's obviously very helpful in learning more about writing. But also nonfiction helps with writing a lot, and I think research is where I get most of my inspiration. It's nothing too fancy, but sometimes I'll spend a lot of time reading about something like radios, and I think, "Okay cool! What do I do with this?" and suddenly I'm writing a story about a person who's obsessed with collecting shortwave radios!

What work of yours are you most proud of? Why?

Probably my latest rough draft just because I struggled to keep motivated with it and I'm very happy that I was able to finish the first version of the story!

Have you published anything? Do you want to?

I haven't, but I keep going back and forth about whether I want to or not. I'd definitely like to share my finished projects somehow.

What part of the publishing process most appeals to you? What part least appeals to you?

Honestly, when I consider publishing, it's usually because I'm concerned about money and wonder if monetizing my main hobby would help me out. And that's great, but that's also my concern - like when you see people avoiding the things they genuinely like to focus more on what makes them money about it. I don't want that to happen, but you know, bills!

What part of the writing process most appeals to you? What part is least appealing?

I love starting stuff when I first have the inspiration and motivation, and the idea is all "shiny new". But finding out when to be finished is so hard for me because I keep overthinking it! Eventually I just need to tell myself, "Okay, it's done, it only looks bad because I've been reading the same passage all day. Leave it alone!"

Do you have a writing process? Do you have an ideal setup? Do you write in pure chaos? Talk about your process a bit.

I feel like calling it a "process" is a little too formal for my mess, but usually, I go to the desk in my bedroom and listen to music loosely connected with whatever I'm writing (the current project involves a lot of '80s hair metal) to write. I'm also fond of writing in Comic Sans to make it seem less serious (and then switching it to a fancier font that I prefer later), and if I'm extremely worried about getting embarrassed by what I'm writing, I'll use the Wingdings font. I also keep an Excel Spreadsheet where I track my writing periods. I put in the start and end time and the word count change, and I have a variety of formulas going to keep track of what I'm doing daily/monthly/yearly. For the first draft I like to just start writing whatever, and I tend to keep it very short, like maybe 10k words. After that I start doing a proper story outline and I keep a lot of notes of things I liked and disliked about the first little story I wrote. I try to get as detailed as possible to help myself out. I have a bad habit of constantly rewriting the first scenes so I'll often just write "PUT A BETTER INTRO" which is also what I do for school essays.

Your Thoughts on Writeblr:

How long have you been a writeblr? What inspired you to join the community?

Probably 2 years. I had a sideblog and then I wanted to make a new blog so I just made it my writeblr. I got tired of the other stuff I was posting on social media and I decided that I should just focus on the stuff I like, which is my own projects, so now I have that.

Shout out some of your favorite writeblrs. How did you find them and what made you want to follow them?

Man I love all my mutuals!! I've been in a writing server created by @writing-with-melon and it's a really positive experience. Also I read the first draft of @lady-grace-pens 's story and it's awesome!

What is your favorite part about writeblr?

I just think it's cool that you can see a bunch of different people at wildly different stages of their projects. I like to go into the main tags and see one person talking about getting published, immediately followed by another person talking about how they're just getting started. I also think that helps you feel less guilty about where you "should" be in writing.

What do you think writeblr could improve on? How do you think we can go about doing so?

Personally, I find it very annoying when a blogger is saying that no one shares their posts, but they rarely share other people's posts. I think people are scared of burying their own stuff, but now they're all too afraid to interact with one another! I don't know how to fix it but I do keep separate tags for my writing and stuff I'm reblogging, so that might help, or reblogging your own stuff multiple times? I don't know, but I just try not to be bitter towards people on my blog.

How do you contribute to the writeblr community? Do you think you could be doing more?

I like to go into the main tags to queue things on my blog often. I do also try to tag commentary when I'm sharing someone's story, but I feel like I ought to be more detailed with those, and I definitely want to send more people asks - especially when they share ask games.

What kinds of posts do you most like to interact with?

Love sharing short stories or snippets people post! I just like reading all that.

What kind of posts do you most like to make?

I keep dropping random lore about my stories when I feel like it.

Finally, anywhere else online we may be able to find you?

I'm not really anywhere else, but my personal sideblog is called @thehauntedbeach, and my Pinterest page is under the username wordwizards as well.

[thepaddock]

1/29/25

Hello honeys :3 This is technically being written on the 30th, but it's about the 29th so that's what the date will be! We had an okay day today. We woke up when we wanted to, thankfully! Even though we were very grumpy. For lunch, we had these weird bell pepper meat wrap things... They were okay, not a favorite. I think we had something else alongside it, but I don't remember what. I think it was sauteed vegetables. After lunch we finished the race we started, and we weren't really happy about it, especially Jonah. Today's been kind of rough alltogether. Thank you for pointing out while we were on call that we haven't had our meds in awhile, that was a really good explanation as to why we've been feeling so weird and has helped us kind of. Calm down and rationalize. Anyways, Fernando Alonso came in 1st, then Sebastian Vettel, then Jenson Button. They also changed up the way they do the after the race interview, which has also thrown us off a bit because there isn't as much discussion about the race afterwards, it feels very rushed. I prefer the longer after race interviews. But anyways, Sebastian ended up getting a penalty and losing his 2nd place position, moving down to 4th which made us really sad :( We already know he wins the championship for the 2012 season, so that's at least a little reprieve from that. Then after that, there was more talk about THAT server, and it's honestly made us kind of sad because everyone else gets to be in it except for us. Then we went to friend house! It was pretty good, very low-key. We pretty much just did separate things together, but it was good for the both of us. We got to have some Mac and cheese and a salad and some ice cream which was very delightful :3 Then we came home, had a pork chop and then wrote the rp post and then we called! I'm sorry that we've been so highstrung. We don't want to stress you guys out at all. We're just feeling really scared about life, emotions, disociation, pretty much everything... We hate being scared, and we're trying not to bottle it up. We're terrified of being bad. We're so appreciative of you all and how you've been meeting us with nothing but kindness, gentleness, and reassurance. We're working so hard to be the best version of ourselves so that we can be the absolute best for you guys. Your patience and love means the world to us. Thank you for reassuring us that we're doing good, we want to be so good for you guys. Even though we're terrified by everything right now, you guys help calm the raging waters in our mind. We love you guys so much, and we enjoy telling you guys everything about our day. We'd love to stream some races some day if you're down for that. You guys are the best girlfriends we ever could've dreamed of, you're everything to us. Your kindness and gentleness is so warm, your patience and grace is soothing. We want to share everything with you guys, every moment we spend together is a moment that we cherish. You guys are so beautiful and loving, we love everything about you guys. All of us love all of you. You're so appreciated and loved, more than you know. You're all such wonderful people. Hard workers. Amazing friends to those around you, and amazing partners. You're funny and charming and silly, we love smiling and laughing with you guys. You guys make the bad days better, and the good days great days. We love you all so much, we could write a whole book series, television show, and movie adaptation about it all! Thank you for loving us. Thank you for allowing us to love you. Thank you for being ours, thank you for us being yours. We love you guys to pieces. Words will never be enough for us to describe it. We hope you're sleeping well and that you have an amazing day today. We cherish you guys and we love you guys so, so so so so much!! Thank you for everything. We love you guys so much and can't wait for later because it means we'll get to spend more time together. We miss you guys, we love you guys always. to: @bumpin-thatbeat

[rabbiitte]

I don't understand Mew haters, I really, honestly don't. 😭

I get you Anon. I felt the same way a couple of weeks ago, but I already rationalized it. Actually, I think it makes sense that Mew is one of the most hated characters on the show (next to Boston and Top). Allow me to elaborate, I've identified three main reasons contributing to Mew's widespread unpopularity:

1 | Mew is a threat to Sand and Ray's relationship.

As we know, most people who watch Only Friends do so for their ships (in fact, this is something that the Thai industry encourages a lot in BLs). First and Khao are a very adored duo, this is related to the fact that they have more trajectory than the rest of the actors (many of whom are relatively new faces to those not deeply immersed in the Thai BL scene). As someone pointed out here on tumblr, people want a different story with the same ending, in which First a Khao (in their respective roles) stay together. Well, In this context, Mew emerges as a potential disruptor to the envisioned blissful resolution. A word from Mew is enough to jeopardize everything the Ray and Sand built.

2 | Mew isn't a transparent character.

Mew's enigmatic nature adds to the discomfort expressed by viewers throughout the series. Since the beginning of the series I've seen a lot of comments from people saying they feel uncomfortable because they can't read Mew. Basically, that which is unknown is uncomfortable. Mew is what I call "a character to interpret." In contrast to counterparts who lay bare their motivations, Mew shrouds his intentions in secrecy. He acts and, based on the clues offered by the narrative/visual storytelling, you must interpret his actions. The receptive audience, attuned to these cues, can discern subtle hints, such as those suggesting Mew's romantic sentiments for Top. Conversely, those less receptive might try to make Mew fit into the narrative they themselves have created, proposing interpretations grounded in personal perspectives and experiences. That's why there are so many people who say they dislike Mew because they know someone similar in real life. In essence, those who overlook narrative cues may attempt to fit Mew into personalized narratives, offering alternative explanations, such as positing that Mew's actions regarding Top are not fueled by love but by a desire for revenge due to a perceived superiority complex, divorcing it from heartbreak.

I think most people try to fit Mew into a negative narrative because he doesn't generate too much empathy. Typically, beloved characters resonate deeply with the audience, fostering a sense of identification and emotional connection (like Ray, Sand, or Nick). However, Mew's development has gone the opposite route to the route that would elicit empathy. Yes, we support Mew's revenge but, in real life, to get revenge on an ex is an uncommon choice. Despite outward declarations of support for revenge, societal moral education remains influential. In Mew's case, the chances of feeling empathy for him in his revenge era are constrained and contingent on specific conditions:

the revenge must be inventive yet not excessive, calculated without veering into obsession, causing harm without irreparable ruin. Mew is expected to mirror Boston but without becoming someone worse.

As I say, the possibility of the audience feeling an emotional connection to Mew at this point in the story, if they haven't already, is quite unlikely and diminished.

3 | Mew is the main character.

Undoubtedly, all the characters in Only Friends are protagonists but Mew is the main character. Don't know what the difference is between a main character and a protagonist? Don't worry!

Main Character: This term refers to the central character in terms of importance or relevance to the story. The development of the story revolves around this character, and often, his actions or changes are fundamental to the plot. He may or may not face the main conflicts, but their presence has a significant impact on the narrative.

Protagonist: This term refers to the character who drives the plot, the one who faces the central conflicts. The protagonist is not always the main character, although in many stories they are. The story's perspective is often presented from the protagonist's point of view.

In short, the main character is central in importance, while the protagonist is central in action, facing the crucial challenges of the story. Often these two roles overlap, but may be different in some stories.

In this case, Mew shapes the story's development and the protagonists' development, without him we wouldn't have any story (just think about it) because he's the center of the story. One of the side effects of this is increased screen time, something that people seem to be annoyed at (especially those who initially thought First and Khao were the main characters). I don't know what the order of publication of the promotional images was (although the most renowned actors always appear first, as in the case of the intro), but Mew occupies a central place in the official poster and takes the lead role in the trailer (so I don't know where that idea really came from). From the beginning, it was clear that Mew would assume a central role in the story. Do you see what I mean about how people don't get the clues that the narrative offers (the visual narrative is created even before the broadcast of a visual material, in promotional images)?

Although, even without any preconceived ideas, Book is a relatively new actor and some find it controversial to cast lesser-known actors in major roles.

[scoonsalicious]

Well, we're not really together atm, so I guess it's scientifically impossible for him to cheat on me, right? As much as it sucks to admit, he's currently not my boyfriend. He's technically allowed to go fuck whoever he wants. The parameters of our current relationship would make cheating a non-issue. I would seriously consider castrating him, but it's a free country. As for what would make me leave him for good? I don't really know how to answer that, honestly. If you had asked me two months ago, I would definitely say "having an emotional affair with your girlfriend's sworn nemesis," but here we are. Look, I'm not proud of the way I can't seem to quit him. I'm really not. But love makes you do fucking stupid ass things that your logical, rational, PhD-having brain tells you you should not be doing. I wish I had a better explanation for it than that, I really do. It would be so much easier to just wash my hands of him, to say goodbye and let him become part of my past, but how can I do that when he literally lives across the hall? When we work together? When all of his friends are my friends? I can't get distance, and I can't get perspective. It's like he's literally all I can see at any time.

Is that healthy? Absolutely not, but it's the reality of my life right now. And the sad truth of it is, I miss him. Maybe if I had more experience with healthy relationships, I'd see all the red flags in front of me, but when you're colorblind, they look like green flags, you know? Sorry-- bad trauma humor. I guess what I'm trying to say is, when you think you've found your person, it's really hard to let that go, and you want to keep believing that there's hope. I didn't have a lot of that growing up. I guess I'm not really willing to let go of it now.

[transmutationisms]

self harm is hot, useful, and honestly not any worse than giving yourself a stick and poke imo. i think people's motivations for it are often more complicated but there is all this built into the discussion around self harm about how dangerous it is and if we take your average non-suicidal self-harmer, they are almost certainly doing things less dangerous than getting into a car we can't have a real conversation about bodily autonomy on a large scale until we all admit that people do dangerous things all the time for all sorts of reasons, and just because one is more societally associated with being a freak doesn't make it some concretely worse form of harm

basically agree but i think the argument here would be that 'accepted' dangerous activities have benefits to them (eg, you get in a car for the purpose of getting somewhere) whereas things deemed 'self harm' have no purpose beyond causing yourself pain or injury. i'd obviously argue back with this that in fact the self harm activities DO serve a purpose or else we wouldnt do them lmao, whether it's self-soothing or emotional regulation or sexual fulfillment or whatever. so really what it comes down to i think, is what sorts of trade offs a person considers rational or normal. like, getting in a car is a good example because statistically it is quite dangerous but if you accede to the idea that going to your little job and making your little profits every day is socially useful and productive, then ofc the car trip appears rational and normal and social in a way that cutting or bruising yourself does not.

i will find this later also but: i read a fun article a while back about how cutting wasn't really a described phenomenon until like the early 20th century, so (as with many psych labels and descriptions) you can attach this behaviour to other things people did prior that were physically harmful to themselves, but really it's a bit anachronistic because there was a specific explanatory framework attached to cutting and self harm when it entered the literature. patients don't always accept such framework uncritically but there's a new type of feedback loop there, where people are now engaging with a specific professional / credentialled explanation of this behaviour and the desires that drive it, and are assimilating those explanations into their own self-conception and sense of identity, and often simultaneously challenging or defying them. meanwhile the public conceptions of this type of self harm from people who don't do it are kind of another can of worms, but the point remains that the conception of this behaviour we're familiar with now is relatively historically recent. which is just a point worth keeping in mind here imo. people had different ways of thinking about hurting themselves prior to these specific paychiatric discourses, and many still do, and they will in the future as well.

[thebramblewood]

Hey! :) First I want to say I just loveee your story and the universe you created and the lastest update is truly heartbreaking but I was super curious on the spellcaster vs vampire dynamic in your world and what are the limits of it, especially morally for Caleb:

If giving the chance, would Caleb have turned Morgyn and the sages to vampires in order to save them? Would Caleb even want to do that, would that even be saving them in his eyes or would it be condemning them - a fate almost worse than death?

Thank you soooooo much! I'm having so much fun writing, sharing, and discussing this story with you all, even when it's painful. 😭

Before I get to these questions directly, I want to reiterate that this all originates from me deciding to kill off the Sages as an inciting plot point in the legacy-based story I started this blog with, Escape from Windenburg. I posted that story here in short snippets, but in its original form it was essentially written like a novel. You can read it at my retired blog if you're so inclined. (Yes, I was doing all that for nobody but myself.)

Since I know most people don't have time to casually read a 17-chapter story, I'm going to link the most relevant parts. The attack on the Sages (which is shown but using EA animations, so it's not terribly graphic) and Misael's defeat is here. An explanation for why the Sages cannot be revived is here, and I semi-rewrote this for Caleb's talk with Grace a few weeks back. Honestly, the reasoning behind why the Sages are dead dead has always been kind of hand-wave-y, but the essence of it is that they'd been using magic to extend their lifetimes already and since they were already overdue for death, the universe literally refuses to give them back, even if methods of revival technically exist.

Combined with that fact, I know there are lots of different takes on vampire creation lore, but in this universe it's only possible if the person is still alive. They might be barely hanging on (like Helena), but they can't be fully dead. Therefore, Caleb still wouldn't have been able to fly to the Realm after getting the news from Grace and save the Sages by turning them. It was far too late by then. Now, if he had gone as soon as he started to worry and found them still alive, would he have actually turned them? This is a trickier question!

Keep in mind Helena is the first person he's ever turned, and he was faced with a similar conundrum - let her die or "save" her by turning her. In his mind, being a vampire is a curse, but if it's the only way to prevent an otherwise untimely and undeserved death, maybe it's worth it. Of course, as much as he'd like to downplay the role it played, the fact that Lilith begged him to do it can't be discounted. Would he have intervened if Helena were a random person attacked by a random vampire who he just happened to stumble upon in an alley somewhere? Probably not. He's not really the type to get involved in a situation if he doesn't have to (unless it's one created by his sister).

But if he was willing to do it for Helena, he would have absolutely turned Morgyn if given the chance. He certainly wouldn't have been thinking rationally, and he would've seen turning them as the only way to hold onto them. They were the one person Caleb had fully let know him and let himself fall in love with, and he would've done anything not to lose that. It would've been a selfish move, and he might've had to deal with the consequences later (especially if it wasn't what Morgyn wanted), but it would've felt like the only choice. As for the other Sages, if his tunnel vision even allowed him to register them, he'd hesitate at turning them because he has less of a personal connection. (Simeon and Faba were older and more traditional, so Morgyn didn't see much of them outside work and Caleb barely knew them).

I know that was a lot, but I hope it satisfied your curiosity! There's sometimes so much context crammed into my head that I can't fully fit into the posts themselves, so I always welcome questions or theories! 💜

[zhaoly]

been contemplating some stuff bc of the whole thing with halsin's writing

and this is a thought that I've had for a while since I came from the dragon age games (specifically origins in this case) but... like... I'm just so so over devs using sexual trauma and rape as plot devices

I think more often than not it's handled really poorly, especially if it's a character/companion that you're supposed to interact with a lot and not just a throwaway side lore detail. with DAO it wasn't a major theme in a companion's background but there were some pretty heavy themes of just... rape in general re: broodmothers and some of zevran's background stories.. and i'm just like... i'm! over! it! (and i love that game)

as a disclaimer, i've seen people saying that astarion's story actually deals with this topic in a respectful and meaningful way--i can't speak to that for myself bc i haven't played it yet--and i won't say that it's impossible to write this well into a character's story, but just that my personal opinion in general is that you really. don't need rape and SA to write a meaningful story

i understand that some people might look at halsin's story and say, poor bby he's dealing with trauma from the three years he was used as a sex slave and we need to be able to help him overcome it and i'm like... we don't though. we really DON'T need his character to have been tied up and raped for three fucking years in the name of "character development." we really DON'T need him expressing that it "wasn't all bad" and there were "positives" to it. and we really DON'T need the fans bearing the burden of trying to rationalize this as his coping method since there's no actual rational explanation of both why they wrote this in and how they wrote it.

i honestly don't believe for a second that that drow scene and dialogue was written with the level of nuance and depth that people want to believe. i'm not knocking on people for wanting to believe it, just that i'm taking this at complete face value and think this was treated as a "haha yeah i was a drow rape slave for three years, funny little tidbit about me!" moment (after he fondly chuckles about the drow courtesans remind him of his youth, no less) and nothing more.

i also highly, highly doubt that they would ever have written a female halsin. if they changed nothing but making him a woman, i can guarantee that shit wouldn't have made the final cut. but somehow it's okay for halsin's character to have all of this sexual trauma and be a literal rape slave for three years and then to brush it off as something "not without its positives" like COME on

we can do better with character stories

that's just my onion

[donnerpartyofone]

.

When I was little, in one of the earliest grades I forget which, my teacher sent me home with a note for my parents explaining that I was probably intellectually disabled and they should have me evaluated. The reason was that I was having an inordinate amount of trouble cutting and pasting. I'm sure the fact that I didn't talk and other kids treated me like a plague carrier contributed to this casual diagnosis. As my father tells it, he and my mom kind of freaked out about the possibility that they had a retarded child, and booked an IQ test for me. The legend goes that I tested higher than my mother, who had scored pretty high already, and it turned out the whole thing had been a misunderstanding; I was so shy that I always got stuck with left-handed scissors, because there was never enough of everything for the whole class, and I just never told anyone I needed something that I probably wasn't going to get. So therefore all my cutting and pasting efforts looked pretty "retarded". Ha ha ha. But I think that my parents' initial reaction to the note, that they thought it was completely possible that I was handicapped, is telling. I used to think about this anecdote in terms of how painfully introverted I've always been, but as a full grown adult I often wonder if my life could have been different if I had been put in special education. I'm just really, really incapable of things that my peers seem to do easily. Just now I was trying to organize something, and I even looked up the answer I needed (I typically use a calculator for even basic addition and subtraction, and look everything up online because whenever I just trust myself something gets ruined), and basically all I needed to know was whether or not 2 was greater than 10, and I just could not wrap my head around it, and actually I should have known the answer to my problem immediately because it was the same answer I already had for a different but related problem, but instead of just connecting the dots I started from scratch and got it wrong. And I didn't even know I had it wrong until I moronically said my conclusion out loud and someone else had to say "Ummm..." And I remember the last time I did this exact type of thing wrong, too. And on it goes. I don't know what the fuck to do with my life. I'm really fucking stupid, but you're not even allowed to admit that or someone accuses you of being negative or hard on yourself or some other thing that gives them permission to not listen to you and go on believing that life is equally great for everyone and we're all filled with the same limitless potential. It's painful to hear people tell me that secretly I'm actually smart when I don't produce any evidence and I don't reap any of the benefits. I usually go to the same allegory I use in response to the idea of being "beautiful in my own way", that saying I'm really smart when I can't do anything smart people do is like telling me I have a million dollars in the bank, just for some reason no one will take my money. I honestly think that, a lot of the time, people just assume I'm smart because I'm dorky and awkward and wear glasses and say a lot of adjectives. But I've never done anything in my life that would prove to someone that I'm smart and I struggle with the most humiliating concepts and operations all the time. I barely even got through college. It's just not there.

I feel constantly misunderstood by people, it's the whole reason I write, to try to become articulate enough to be understood, but after experiencing the same thing over and over again I think I have it inside out. I'm constantly struggling to get anyone to acknowledge or agree with what I'm saying because I'm way behind everybody else. I think it must be me who doesn't understand what anybody else is saying. That's a more rational explanation and I have to remind myself of it next time I find myself compulsively reiterating something that left everyone else scratching their head. I'm always wrong, and things have happened to me in my life that could only have happened to someone really fucking stupid. And like that would be fine if there were something for me to do. If there were some sort of halfway house I could get admitted to, or some sort of jail for stupidity. Sometimes I fantasize about like a commune I could go to where I can just do really basic manual labor like farming, and just eat what comes out of that, and just stay in my little cell all the time and be contained by having a stable routine and only one place to go. But of course any situation like that winds up turning into Jonestown or Willowbrook or whatever. Eventually I'll do something so stupid it will kill me and I'll win a Darwin award or something, but the more pressing issue is that my stupidity contributes to my emotional dysfunction. It's agonizing to be stupid, to be beneath everything you care about and admire and would like to do, and then you become hard to be around because having emotional problems is a bad quality that makes people dislike and avoid you (and who could blame them). And because I'm an intellectually-oriented person, like culturally and such, my stupidity becomes the defining characteristic of my existence. It would be OK if I were "sweet and dumb", or a dumb jock, or a sexy bimbo, or if I had a goal in life that was more material and sentiment-oriented like being a really great mom. But I don't have any of those co-components going on, only the dumb part, and you can't do anything with dumbness. It doesn't have a silver lining or a useful byproduct. It's incredibly destructive actually. I really don't know what I'm supposed to do with myself, and I don't want to do anything of the things I'm doing now. There just aren't any options for someone like me.