#I really like writing depressing things about my favourite characters don't I. what's up with that

[elysianstars]

Painful Fell Dragon thought of the day: What if the gift of Nel's dragonstone is what ultimately got Nil killed?

So, Xenologue Sombron sent his offspring into battle while they were still very young. Nil and Rafal were clearly nowhere near adulthood, when they were thrown against enemy soldiers (even accounting for Engage's anime art style, and the dragons' weird ageing process). Which makes me wonder how those soldiers – composed of humans and Divine Dragons, the supposedly more morally upstanding side – were okay with killing children, who'd been given no choice in the matter? Because that sounds like war crime behaviour from both sides.

If a few were regrettably caught in crossfire, because the Divine side didn't realise what was happening, that's one thing. But I doubt this was an isolated incident, with Nil and Rafal being the only 'failures' sent off in that manner. Not with the general Hunger Games mindset that was going on in Gradlon.

So, who was targeting them regardless? I'm going to say humans, because human soldiers would feel weaker and more desperate, facing off against dragons. We're told that dragons are physically superior, stronger and faster, so even a child might be a threat to them.

...Especially one who wore a dragonstone on his chest, hinting at the ability to become a much bigger, deadlier creature. Maybe it'd be possible to spare the others, but a child who could transform would be significantly higher up the hit list, for anyone with knowledge about their species. Don't you think so?

What if the enemy was afraid of Nel's dragonstone, assumed that Nil was a powerful foe, and went out of their way to erase him?

Obviously this is pure speculation, and there's nothing in canon to explain why Nil died while Rafal managed to live. But that sure would be some excruciating irony, wouldn't it?

[silverstar-8]

Lucifer's Headcanons!

I decided to write some headcanons for Luci. There will be sfw as well as nsfw ones! I'll might create more, but for now there will be only one part.

Also, I think you could say Lucifer x Reader, because I'm talking about "you" while describing some of his interactions. But most of the time, I think about my self-insert. Just letting you know!

SFW (Some random, but also romantic ones. They are NOT in the order):

Of course, he loves making his little ducks in his workshop, but he can create other things too! I have a feeling that he would make toys for Charlie and also jewellery. He is really creative with them.

He moved in to the hotel and the apple tower is his. I know it's more like prediction for a future season, but it isn't 100% confirmed, so still counts as a headcanon.

He is autistic. Yes, I know he has depression, but for me he is depressed autistic.

If he is around someone he loves (romantically) his tail shows up. It might even wag! Really fast!

And also, his tail would totally hug his lover's leg. And he wouldn't even notice.

He is a little bit more social than he was before. He's still struggling, but visiting more Charlie and helping her with a lot of stuff is still a big step!

When he's sad and alone, he is hugging himself with his wings. He's in wings' town. It's his way to comfort himself.

About wings, he can also do this if his loved one feel sad. He will literally hug with arms and wings. Really comfy.

Also, his feathers are really, REALLY soft. Great for petting. (He loves when someone is petting them)

If you feel sad, he would probably hum a melody or even literally sing for you. As well as playing an instrument, because why not. He can do all of this.

When he was alone, he talked with his clones. They are connected to his thought, so the conversations were interesting. He still sometimes talks with them, but most of the time he's using them for helping him with stuff, like makeup.

He likes to jump in the pile of rubber ducks. It is comforting for him.

He's pansexual. I don't have an explanation for this, I just feel he's so fruity XD

He has dark gray arms AND legs.

He has also hooves.

He is that short, because he actually like this height. He was like that since he was created and it would be really weird for him to change height.

But also! He loves to be carried!

And carry others!

NSFW below! (Time to be more wild, hehe)

First, I want to share my personal favourite nsfw headcanon I created. I've seen that most people assume that he has a dick. And of course, it's valid! Everyone can have their own headcanons, but I decided to think more about his design and what he is. So, he is an angel. Fallen, but still an angel. And he looks like a doll. What I mean to say is that he isn't human. He might look like one, but he doesn't even have ears or nose. So after this analysis, I've thought to give him... nothing! Yes! He is like a doll! He has nothing down here. No dick, no anus, none. BUT, remember everyone that he is a shapeshifter! He can adjust! So even if he doesn't have anything down here, he can create anything he or his partner wants. Dick? Sure! Pussy? Of course! Both? Why not?! Maybe something more crazy, like tentacles? We can go wild as fuck! I love inhuman characters like Lucifer, because you can actually create something really crazy like that! And it makes sense! I mean, think about it! Why angels would need anything down here? It just makes sense that they don't have anything here!

So, as I said, he can create anything he wants, but what is happening with him when he doesn't have anything? I've thought about this too! So, when he doesn't have reproductive organs, few spots on his body are becoming more sensitive when he's horny. They are: Hands, hooves, tail, around his horns, few spots on his wings. If you massage those places, he can have orgasm. It is a little different experience than what we, human can achieve, but it's as intense, if not even more sometimes, as our orgasm.

About horns... if you pull them during sex, he can come just from this. But you have to do this strong! Don't worry, you won't hurt him.

He fucked with his clones for sure. He is the fucking sin of Pride, of course he had to have fun time with himself. But it is kinda like advanced masturbation, because he controls them.

But it also means, that with a partner, he could use his clones, so you could have a literal gangbang with just Lucifer.

He prefers folks with pussies. It is just his personal favourite, but he wouldn't mind if his loved one had different thing! He would eat you anyway.

He is a total switch. He is the literal definition of this. He feels comfortable in being sub, dom, top and bottom.

As a power bottom, he is a little shit, because he is challenging your dominance. He loves it.

I can imagine that in dominant role, he would be really caring or more aggressive, depending what you wanted.

He talks a lot during sex. He would say a lot of dirty things with his deep voice.

He can growl when he is close to the climax.

He has totally a kink that is connected to him being a king.

And also daddy kink. I can totally imagine that he would have this.

His demonic side might appear during sex. He thinks that it's too scary, but if he sees that you like it, he will show it more.

For now it's all! Those are my headcanons, so I hope you had fun reading them!

See ya! ~ Silver

[glitter-stained]

Some of the posts I see here y'all gotta stop seeing fanfics as "bad dc takes". Like, it's perfectly fine to not like a trope that's popular in fanfic, but you gotta stop seeing it as character meta is what I'm saying. Fanfic writers are not canon writers, they do not owe you canon compliant, and you don't get to assume that what they're writing comes from a place of ignorance when there are so many reasons to include/not include something in your fic.

Like, allow me to use my own fics as example since they're the only one I have background info on the knowledge and motivations of the author:

-I wrote a fic with Lazarus Rage in it once. Do I know it's not canon? Absolutely. Do I think it's necessary for the understanding of Jason's character? Not at all, I think canon Jason is more interesting without the pit rage. I just wanted to write it once because it looked cathartic and you know what? It was. It was super cathartic. I wanted to write a story about the progression of a depressive episodes and using pit rage to talk about the feeling of loss of control with intense anger issues and sensation of loss and deep self-hatred afterwards, and i thought writing this is gonna feel good and it felt good, for me and for the readers.

-I'm also currently finishing another fic, in which I've simplified Tim's relationship with Jason's a lot (basically Tim is still haunted by Jason's ghost and Dick is still his favourite Robin but the victim blaming is much less intense and there's an intense, genuine admiration for Jason and happiness to get him back). Is it because I hate canon and its complexity? No, I love it, I love when character relationships are fucked up and they make a mess. I'd love to explore that in a different fic, even have the prompt already. But I'm writing a really intense fic about trauma, taboo and lack of communication around sexual abuse, and there are so many characters pov and things happening and I have to do this right because we're talking about things that happen to real people and not being accidentally insensitive or sending a shit message is more important to me than perfect canon compliance, and it's just not the place for it. This story isn't about tim, and it's not about victim-blaming. It's a fascinating can of worms to open, but I'm not gonna open it if I don't have the space to deal with it because I'm not gonna let worms roam freely all over my fanfic when I can choose not to include the worms in my story, because it might rely on base material but it's still a finite story that exists within its own scope because I'm not a comics writer, I'm a fanfic writer and my story doesn't exist as a pure extension of the comics and I don't owe you canon compliance. And how boring would that be if we could only write canon compliant stuff! No more coffee shop aus, no powers aus, fantasy aus, no more non canon ships between characters that hated eachother until the day they died (but had so much sexual tension)... Fanfic is not one single entity that takes place in a simplified version of the canon universe complete with consistent lukewarm tropes and watered down understanding of characters. Fanfics are rich and diverse and yeah canon compliant is great and i want more of it but the universe is so much wider and that's what makes it rich! Do some people write fanfic and also don't interact with or know canon? Sure, plenty of them. Does that fanfic reflect their opinion of canon? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. You don't know that. In the meantime, people are still creating extra content and enriching the fandom experience and if you don't like it, genuinely, the filter tags button is right there. That's not to say there are no racist or classist or sexist tropes in fanfics, but again that exists within the scope of that story. Bad writing exists in canon, and it exists in fanfics, and sometimes a story is canon compliant with a terrible message and sometimes a story is canon divergent with a terrible message and pushing away everyone who writes things that aren't canon compliant is not going to fix these issues in the dc fandom. Telling people to "not write the character at all if you're going to write them ooc" assumes your understanding of what is essential to the character is perfect and The Right Way to interact with a fandom and it's patronising and not only do you take the risk of looking like a moron the second you make a mistake, it is actual gatekeeping and the reason many people find getting into comics/fandom intimidating in the first place. (And it also shits on the potential of AUs like dark reflections, mafia etc. Of course Mafia Bruce who kills people is deeply ooc. These stories are still fun and it's not wrong to write them!)

"This story really should have addressed that thing that happens in canon" did it happen in the setting of the fic? No? Then shut up and let the fic tell its own story, it doesn't have to "address" anything it doesn't have space for. Again, don't like don't read is a thing. Fanfic enriches the fandom, it doesn't take away from it, but you know what can? Canon writing. I'm way more concerned with what dc is having batman represent nowadays than with fanfic I haven't read because I knew I wouldn't like it.

TLDR: It's understandable to be upset when people who don't interact with canon material at all try to assert their opinion on canon as the truth, especially if they call any attempt at disagreeing with the mischaracterization gatekeeping, but that doesn't make you immune to being a gatekeeper. Assuming you know a writer's knowledge and opinions on a character because of that one fic of them is naive and a misunderstanding of what fanfic is. Fanfic writers are still real people who give you cool stuff for free and you don't have to like it but you still have to be respectful about it, and all that negative energy you spend on rants about "bad character and" you've read in fanfics would be so much better spent on bad canon writing because these people do have the power to fuck your favourite character over and they do owe you canon compliance, and with the amount of effort some fanfic writers put into their fics compared to some of the writers who get payed to write canon, you guys could stand to be more respectful about fanfics.

[very-straight-blog]

This might sound funny and cringey, but I feel like I lost something I cared about and now it's just sadness and depression. Like it's a TV show, I get it, but we waited 2 years and for what? To get the two worst episodes imaginable. I'm really starting to believe that Sapochnik was responsible for everything good in s1, bcz Condal and Hess ruined this show. S1 wasn't perfect and I didn't like a lot of things in it, but it still managed to keep me invested so I hoped that in s2 everything would be improved. And yet, I'm so terribly disappointed. Alicent's characterization makes no sense anymore, like they want so badly to show her as a bad mother and a hypocrite and really - after ruining bnc with Alicole sex now it had to follow with her not being able to console her son but hoping on Criston is a must do?? What sort of degenerates write this??

Aemond is also ruined for me and I would love to erase that crappy brothel scene from my memory. What was it for? To show his mommy issues, vulnerability... Idc. The dialogue was bad and they did him dirty with the angles and the pose. And now he's apparently going to be there *again* in e3 and we'll get full frontal nudity. Idk why the actor agreed to this since they are obviously making a joke and meme material of his character. Not to mention that he straight up lied in the promos about being loyal (if the RR leaks are true and I'm almost 100% sure they are). I get that they are told what to say, but a more general answer would have been much better than a lie. In brief, one of my favourite s1 characters is also destroyed.

Then Cole. My god, I only waithig for him to look at the camera and say "do you hate me enough already hahah?" He's the writers punching bag atp.

Helaena barely exists.

Otto is Viserys' fanboy and ofc, appalled by his grandson. It's not as he just has lost a son and was forced to take the crown in the first place by him and his mother, no less.

Aegon got more screentime and I love Tom's performance, but I'm not fooled. He is still depicted as weak, politically inept and rash. And he'll still be a bully, apparently. Just to justify his brother's treason. F*ck you Condal, Hess and whoever else is responsible for this mess.

Anyway, sorry for the rant. I just don't get how anyone can seriously praise this shitshow anymore. It could have been great, but the creators are obviously not up to the task which is now painfully obvious. I wouldn't mind the greens as villains, but don't write them as a walking joke. I'm quitting the show and would like just to forget about it. This adaptation of the Dance was a huge mistake.

I feel you! By the way, I haven't participated in any fandom life, I think, for 10 years or more, but thanks to HOTD, I started this blog, I write some critical (well, kinda) reviews, and English isn't even my native language. I've been waiting for the second season for two years and now I just feel tired and empty. So far, the only thing I've liked about these two episodes is Aegon's storyline, that's all. Everything else is bad, very bad, and judging by the leaks, it'll be even worse.

Firstly, the series has a very strange pace of the narrative. We didn't get a bunch of important plot scenes, and even those that remained were shown in a hurry, but at the same time we have many scenes like "Rhaenyra stares at the dust for three minutes", unnecessary dialogues and PAUSES between lines.

Secondly, again, an insane amount of important plot details are left behind the scenes and this is absolutely wrong. Aemond's return home, the family's reaction to what he did. Aegon's reaction when he learned of his son's death. Aemond's reaction when he finds out what his actions have led to. And so on and so forth. Many of the characters' actions are shown without context. Alicent fucks with Criston - cool, but can I have some additional information? How long has this been going on, what feelings do they have for each other, how have they developed, like, anything? The same can be said about the scene in the brothel - no context.

Thirdly, it's unclear what's going on with the characters, as if the screenwriters decided to make the greens the most unpleasant people in the world. So far, I only like Aegon and Helaena. I can't even say anything about Aemond, because his only dialogue scene is built around Daemon and Luke, damn them. I just can't.

Everything annoys me except Aegon lol. So yes, I understand you.

[my-rose-tinted-glasses]

Hey bestie popping by with a random ask: what have been your favs so far from your old jbl project?

Hi! Thank you for the random ask.

I was actually just working on my monthly breakdown so I was trying to write just a couple of sentences about what I watched this month so this comes at a good time because this month I definitely saw one of my favs.

The Novelist. I don't know if I can coherently convey my thoughts about it but I'll give it a try. I think there were several factors that made me take so long to watch it. I never read full reviews about it, because although I don't mind spoilers in general, I also like to go into some shows as unbiased as possible. That was not easy. I basically went into it thinking it was depressing and it involved a lot of sex that I wasn't sure where it would land of the consent scale. I don't really remember where I got this idea tbh. Anyway.

Although after hearing people like you, @twig-tea and @bengiyo talk about it in different contexts I was less wary about it for sure. So I went into it with a more open mind, even with reservations. I mean I basically went through the lighter parts of the ojbl list first, so part of me was dreading the rest. I don't mind darker stories, or darker bl's. I have way darker ones coming up on the list. But I always feel like I need to be in the right frame of mind for them. Because I can get too emotionally invested and my moods tends to swing easily.

All this to say, I wasn't expecting a story about two lonely people 'using' each other to fight that loneliness. As I was just writing in my breakdown post, Kijima was such an interesting character to me. Because in the beginning I was just curious about him, like there was something odd about him, his demeanor. And when I realized that he was faking part of it and just using Kuzumi I hated him. So much. But, and I have to give major props to the actor, because in episode 4 when Kuzumi leaves and Kijima in on the table just listening to the record and crumpling the pages, I was gone. I fully saw him for the first time. That man is lonely and hopeless and I felt so much for him in that moment. And that of course lasted through to the end and that smile

I was practically clapping. Brilliant. It was such a beautiful ending. I felt like the show broke my heart a bit and it was all healed in this moment.

So to recap, not only was this a wonderful surprise that completely obliterated my expectations, but it's so beautiful. Everything is good. The cinematography, the music, the acting, everything was brilliant. So good. So if everyone that reads this has not yet seen for some reason or another I urge you to do it. I still have yet to see the other installments so I can't speak to all of it but this one is so worth it. I honestly can't believe that Kijima has become such an important character to me.

I think before this one, my favourites were for sure the first two I watched. Ai No Kotodama and No Touching at All.

They were both such great surprises. Let me just quickly look through my notes because my memory might betray me. Oh okay.

Ai no Kotodama I really enjoyed how it was shot and edited. I liked how they used several things to mirror the relationship, the perfume , the stair gazing and the other couple. I felt everything served the story in a really interesting way. I also like that the girl wasn't the usual bl girl and in the end she was actually jealous of their relationship more than in love with either of them. I also really like how the film made me unsure about their relationship almost from the start, because it makes sense in this case. My confusion mirrors Shinya's confusion and fear.

I also really liked No Touching at All's directing. It was really interesting how they used the camera work. For most of the film the couple is usually far away from us, the camera is on the other side of the room or something like that. And it's almost keeping us at a distance. So when the camera finally gets close up, it's during their break up, which I thought was intentional to cause the most emotional impact. Like now you should be invested in this moment because so are they. They are being honest for the first time so there are no more barriers for us because they are being truthful and removing their own. I also think Shima's internal struggle was really well portrayed, I liked the fact that he initiated the break up for self preservation reasons and so Togawa coming back to him at the end is what allows him to trust it. It makes me believe more in their future together.

This got a bit longer than I intended. These three are definitely my favourites but I'm really enjoying this project, even if I don't love everything, I think there's always something positive about all of them. At least the ones I've watched.

Anyway I hope that answers your question. My next one will probably be Mood Indigo and I'll have to look at my list again but I know I have a couple other ones on there still to watch.

Thank you so the question.

[inamindfarfaraway]

So I saw your post here [https://www.tumblr.com/inamindfarfaraway/690058488775327745/batfamily-fanworks-that-purport-to-be-set-in-the] and oh my gosh YOU ARE SO RIGHT!

As much as I enjoy it, Hush is definitely to blame for this as it is held as THE end-all-be-all of all BatFam stories yet Cass (who an acclaimed ongoing series as Batgirl around the same time) was suspiciously missing from it along with Steph. Yet we only ever get flashbacks to Bab's time as Batgirl so that storyline also ended up cementing Bab's legacy as "the one and only Batgirl". Methinks a certain editor in charge at the time mandated for Cass and Steph to not appear in Hush because they-according to him-"were way too toxic" for said storyline. Because you see, as soon as he became a leading editor, his number one priority was getting rid of Steph and stripping Cass of her Batgirl role.

And so the age of darkness began...

First, there was War Games that solely existed to torture Steph in the most vile, most voyeuristic ways before killing her off. Then there was Robin: One Year Later, one of the worst, horrific character-assassination storylines since Spider-Man's One More Day, where Cass was suddenly turned into an over-the-top Saturday Morning cartoon villain obsessed with killing everyone, giving long-winded "together we can rule the world" speeches and being able to speak and write in fluent Navajo. ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT LANGUAGES IN THE WORLD. Then there was Redemption Road which, despite its good moments and happy ending, did even more damage to Cass's character. And finally, we have Battle For The Cowl which ended up pushing Cass and Steph so far into the background, they were basically erased from the BatFamily altogether.

Yet despite Steph's well-received run as Batgirl, DC's poor marketing and the lead up to the New 52 prevented the series from becoming a proper bestseller and it was cancelled without any fanfare whatsoever. Still, all those horrible decisions and storylines (like War Games and Robin: One Year Later) did such massive, long term damage to the characters that, even despite all the small good things (Steph's Batgirl series to the excellent Gates Of Gotham mini-series starring Cass), they were buried from public consciousness. As for Duke (another character, I'm a fan of), I think its just a case of him being a very recent character, a lack of marketing and higher-ups not knowing what to do with him.

As for the asshole editor who everything to burry the Batgirls, he was eventually fired for creating an "unsafe working environment". And yes, his name rhymes with "Ban Video".

As for the people who keep erasing Cass, Steph and Duke from fan works, I know it sounds depressing but hear me out: Fandom, be it comics, video games, films, cartoons, TV shows, ect, has an unconscious bias of white male favouritism. (Yes, I know Dick is Romani, Damien half-Arabic/Asian yet they're still quite white-passing)

YES! THANK YOU! ALL OF THIS!

It is so sad and frustrating that these bias persist even in communities that are meant to be about joy and love; but of course the Batfam fandom has issues with sexism and racism when the canon also has for so long. I'm sure most fans don't try to be prejudiced, but male and white-passing characters are so much more popular than others. The unfair treatment of Steph as Robin and both her and Barbara in making Babs Batgirl again for no reason is one of the things I wrote Robins: The Musical to vent about, and that's only the tip of the iceberg.

Thanks for the explanation! I was already familiar with most of the context you generously provided, but I still really appreciate it as a specific comics shame/recommendation guide and education for others. I wasn't aware of Gates of Gotham and will read it! Black Bat my beloved. Dan Didio when I catch you...

(My original post is here)

[formulaocean]

Fic Writer Interview (Ty for the tag @honeyandthunderstorms 💕)

All under the cut as ever!

How many works do you have on ao3?

On this account 9! A couple are anon (if you‘re seeing this on tumblr I really do not care however) and I did have an old account though.

What’s your total word count?

So far 75,788 apparently. Curious to see what it’ll get to by the end of the year in all honesty!

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

On this account-

et circenses

Sweet as Cinnamon

FIA Mandated Work of Public Interest

“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free”

Both But I miss you (I’m sorry) and You’re So Golden are apparently at the same exact count which I did not know!

Strange to see them in this order actually!

Do you respond to comments? Why/ why not?

I try to now- originally I just didn’t want to open up a work again once it’d been posted so I was awful but try to now and think fondly of commentators I recognise but it’s still not all the time. I try to comment on fics I read too (although I’m reading a bit less online now)- it’s just a nice thing to do :)

What's the fic you've written with the angstiest ending?

I left my multi chap fic on a literal cliff hanger recently so likely that! Otherwise You’re Nothing More Than His Wife as the ending is both ambiguous and depressing and just full of angsty lesbians as a whole.

What's the fic you've written with the happiest ending?

But I miss you (I’m sorry). Brocedes healed and Lewis won Silverstone there is no greater joy than that. Plus the mental image of Lewis and Vivian making Nico’s daughters costumes for The Eras Tour? I think about it A LOT.

Do you write crossovers?

I have literally written/ am writing a Hunger Games F1 AU if that counts? Otherwise I have a tennis x f1 crossover in my drafts I repeatedly come back to and will try to finish off over winter- Charles and Jannik become friends and figure out how to woo an emotional support rival over the course of the 2024 F1 and ATP seasons.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Not really? One person got weirdly angry about writing Charles as a top (they switch for me in general and I was going through a bottom max phase but like I get it). Also I was told that one chapter of a fic was quite similar to a Harry Potter one but we worked it out in the comments :)

Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Um. On occasion. Definitely as a way to explore characters and I wish I wrote smut better because the sections are short in comparison to the fics. I have literally gotten writers block from not liking the smut part before in premises which hinge on it being written.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Definitely not. If I had I’d say get better taste.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not other than by me! My drafts/plots are all in German first before they get written.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No but there’s a few people I bounce ideas off of and do the same in return! I am not on discord though so when you ask me about what I think about what you shared there I literally do not know 😅

What's your all-time favourite ship?

Oh wow. Probably Percabeth. For nostalgia’s sake. Or Sansa/Margeary for a similar reason.

What's a WIP that you want to finish but don't think you ever will?

There’s a Charles/Lewis Ferrari one which keeps growing but then I realise I need to add more to it whenever it does grow so I’ll say that for now.

Basically Charles seduces everyone around Lewis but to levels that psychologically haunt him during a title fight. Recently Lewis walked in on a garage 16 gangbang but thought he hallucinated it after seeing Charles out for dinner with Fred at the only vegan restaurant in Maranello 10 minutes later. He runs to see Seb in Switzerland to calm down but turns out Charles is already there and eating sourdough and may or may not have had a threesome with Seb and his wife. Nico and Carlos and the fencer are involved. It’s just a bit of a wild ride.

Other than that a Carlandoscar life drawing au I gave up on when McLaren were annoying me. Oscar signs up to be a model to fulfil an art cred for engineering, Carlos is a history of art grad student and the ta, Lando is Oscar’s roommate and a graphic design student with a crush on Carlos and takes the class not expecting to see Oscar in the nude. Mark Webber is there.

What are your writing strengths?

I’ve been told themes and world building!

What are your writing weaknesses?

Time management and general clunkiness in grammar and tenses. Just your classic second language things :)

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

Occasional words are fine but don’t overuse it. When it’s clunks of text it just reminds me of academic journals that go between English, Latin, Greek, German, and Italian all in 2 pages.

What was the first fandom you wrote for?

I think it was Les Mis? That or The 100.

What's a fandom/ship you haven't written for yet but want to?

F1 wise something involving Oscar or George as a main character or a stand-alone Sebchal rather than Sebchalmax.

Other than that I have a few tennis mini ideas and lines I just haven’t ventured there yet- f1 is more fandom to me I guess but I’d love to do Sincaraz or Igaryna properly.

What's your favourite fic you've written?

“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free”. I just find it really beautiful. I took a bit of inspiration from it for my vestal virgin au that should be out during winter break and going back into a historical/artsy tone has been really nice.

I’m so bad at matching tumblr users to fic writers but no pressure tagging @f1ggotry @saviour-of-lord @chandelier-s-notebook @f1-giuki @on-sinkingships @toppamplemousse and anyone else who wants 💕

[liesmyth]

hi i wasnt following u when ted lasso s3 came out so im curious to know what your general thoughts on the season were, i thought there were some rly good moments but i dont think im ever gonna forgive them for half-assing and giving up on ted's depression storyline amongst Many other things

OH MAN, unfortunately my opinion overall is pretty negative. Which, don't get me wrong, can be very good for fandom because the "fix it" impulse to fix what went wrong always gets my fic brain going, but... it really felt half-assed in so many ways, which is a double let-down considering that the whole time it was airing, the production wouldn't commit to actually saying it was the last season, wasn't marketed as such, and it generally felt like the whole show fizzled out vs. having what should have been a well-deserved send-off.

My main gripe is that it felt like... the writers had Points they wanted to hit and didn't care what they wrote as long as they got there. Genuinely all of the characters were paid dust in different ways (nobody more than Roy IMO who got flanderized beyond belief). The pacing was very uneven, so much crammed into the series but at the same time very little that had actual emotional resonance happened; it feels like a sharp downhill from how well-crafted the earlier seasons were, especially season 1. Someone should have really told JSuds "No" at least once or twice or two hundred times.

Strangely enough, the actual final episode was really alright for me, because it was self-referential and #meta as hell but never pretended to serve an actual narrative purpose beyond being a bookend; I much prefer that to the whole middle-of-the-season arc where the show tried to juggle so many plotlines and fumbled everything. I also don't especially care about things I've seen other people get worked up about (Ted's arc / his ending, Dr Jacob, Jamie's dad etc) just because I never expected much from that front to begin with & I don't really want media to teach me stuff — like, I get why someone may be bummed by "bad mental health storyline rep!" but to me it's just another example of bad storytelling to go with all the others. I totally get having a visceral reaction to it, though! But I don't really think any screenwriter sits at a table saying "I'm going to make a show about mental health that handles it correctly." They sit at the table and think about how to fictionalise a story of a guy going through it, using his mental health as a hook, among others. I care way less about characters being therapised and stable and healthy than I do about a story being good, you know? The issue with TDS3 is that it was simply boring. To me.

I will say, I actually liked the season a lot more while it was airing that now that it's over; week-by-week I kept having hope they'd course correct things, I had fun speculating, and I decided what to pick and choose to enjoy from the new episodes. I think S3 is WAY better when consumed in a weekly format than looked at as a whole. Some of my favourite fandom moments were writing fic about an episode that just aired while waiting for the next

[banditywrites]

20 questions for writers

Thank you for tagging me, @adelfie !!

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

48

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

560,158

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Oh. Gosh. Now it seems to be Batfam and Voltron. But I have also written Fullmetal Alchemist and I can see myself going back there someday.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

A Lonely Mind- Lance struggles with depression, choosing to hide his problems, he starts down a dangerous road alone.

Luminous Beings- Jason has the ability to see a light around people that are going to die. Tim is the brightest kid he has ever seen.

The Drifter- Lance picks up a "hitchhiker" without realizing it.

O Come Let Us Adore Him-Lance finds himself stranded on a planet that has a hidden danger. It's a good thing he has such welcoming hosts to keep him safe.

Rules and Other Broken Things-5 Times Tim's anxiety took the wheel and 1 time he reached out for help when he needed it

5. Do you respond to comments?

I do now! I didn't used to. I try to get to comment responses within a few days.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Hmmmm. I do my best to make sure my fics have peaceful endings at least. But maybe The Drifter. That one still felt quite sad in the end.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

That's hard to judge too. My characters go through so much... Maybe Luminous Beings actually. Because people were only mildly traumatized.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Once. On my fic: Upon the Road.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

No. lol. If I write characters holding hands in a romantic way, I blush super hard. I just can't write those kind of interactions.

10. Do you write crossovers?

No. But back in the day there was almost a Voltron and Fma fic.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

No. I had someone say they bought my fic online, but it turned out they confused me with icypanther. So it was all good.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

One time! But I don't think the translator finished working on it.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No, but that is intriguing.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

Platonic relationships are what I love. I will read ships, just haven't really written them .

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

The third installment of the O Come Let Us Adore Him series.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue maybe? Also, being succinct.

17: What are your writing weaknesses?

Describing environments. If I say there is a room, just picture any room you would like basically

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I'm rewriting this answer because I realized I didn't read the whole question. Writing in another language is always hard if you don't know the language. I've tried it out. Not really my thing. But I was more comfortable writing about sign language than any other language.

19. First fandom you wrote for? 

... Pokemon. lol

20. Favourite fic you've written?

For Voltron: O Come Let Us Adore Him

For the rest: Foul Depths (FMA)

I don't know who would like to do this, but anyone who follows me, feel free! Thank you again for this opportunity!

[katyakurae]

OMG Thank you for liking my art!!! I am very proud of my little nuggests, been team appleradio since day one. I agree, any fic where a deal causes lucifer to be the one in the losing position immediately scrambles my brain, like no way Lucifer is that scared of Al, or desperate for any kind of company that they have him being easily manipulated by Alastor and fall for the deer tricks...Lucy has witnessed his manipulation and threat to his status in Charlie's life, let’s give the devil some credit. Also I am not saying Al is not smart but I don’t see him as this master manipulator everyone wants him to be. He definitely likes to think he is, but in reality Al just spends a lot of time observing people, so he knows how to act around them and manipulate them to do what he wants. Or at least that’s how I see his persona. He works hard for what he craves most and always waits the right moments to attack or use what he has at his disposal to survive, but in the end he is just a silly little guy with so much ego to put shame on the devil himself, who can see through his bullshit miles away lol

So yea what u done with those two is the only way I would have seen a deal between them play out. Alastor was always gonna lose against Lucifer.

Ohh wait I just remembered that one of the reasons Al wasn’t using his shadows to escape Lucy in the last chapters is cause he exhausted his power and wasn’t feeling very well afterwards. Could it be that something happen to him when he ran away from Angel?!?!He hasn’t appeared at all during all that chaos between the two Morningstar and that’s so unlike him. U don’t have to answer ofc, my brain just won’t shut up and I needed to write it somewhere ehehe

Unrelated but I read others storyline u worked on and they way u write just makes me want to read more, the dialogue are so entertaining and the characters are so well written that I don’t even mind using google translate for every few sentences. I have a very poor attention span, but u managed to pique my interest more than once now and I gotta say I am impressed And grateful that my curiosity won the other night. One of my fav scene from one of ur fic, called ‘Embajadores Celestiales’was when Lucy slapped Alastor…like the gasp I let out cause I thought he was gonna hug him or something, that was so funny and also when Alastor confesses to his mother that he lied to her. Couldn’t stop laughing at Al saying he should have told his mum about the people in the fridge and invited her to dinner lmao I love that silly little deer so much!!!

Cannot wait to read more of your work. It was such a pleasure 💜

Yeah, I see your point. I mean, Lucifer is older than time. And yeah, he is clumsy, depressed and a disaster, but I don't see him falling for Alastor's little mind games.

It's like what you said. Alastor is smart and works hard, but he is not the ultimate mastermind. That's an ego thing and, highly probably, a charade to feel safe. In control. I also see him more as an opportunist. When he recognizes a chance, he takes it. And yeah, he may has some kind of plan in the long shot, but it's not enough to rope the literal Devil. And if he tries (I hope he tries) it will end... badly.

(You can tell Alastor is my favourite character cause I want to see him suffer.)

I will not make spoilers u.u buuuut (it's no secret, I just post the new sneak peek) you will see soon in the new chapter. It will be out tomorrow!

Anyway, it really makes me so happy to read your kind words, opinions and coments either in The Deal or in my other works. I hope you keep enjoying it!

Thank you so much! 💜💜💜

Read you soon!

[13eyond13]

Hello, can I ask from this ask game :

https://www.tumblr.com/threecheersforinking/677824836625694720/anime-ask-game?source=share

For anime/manga : Death Note and Berserk.

Thanks 🌻

Hi! Sure thing:

DEATH NOTE:

Favorite Character: L was basically a "love at first sight" situation for me and the main reason I ever checked out the anime (I just really loved eccentric loner sad boys at the time and he just looked exactly up my alley at a glance, hahaha). And he has stayed extremely dear to me and my favourite cartoon guy ever basically since! I actually think Light is a bit more of a complicated/interesting character than L is to think about in-depth, and has become also kind of my favourite one in the series in a different way over time, but L is def the one that I was really obsessed with from the start.

Favorite Arc/Episode/Scene: I love everything up until the Yotsuba arc the most I think, I just find it so much fun in the beginning of the story when everything is so well-written and so exciting and tense and fast-paced. The university arc stuff MIGHT be the part that I just find the most fun and funny in the way that Death Note is known to be, with all the detailed little mind games and bitch moves and shocking reveals every other page, ahahah. I remember laughing out loud so many times during that section of the story just due to how ridiculous it gets and how often everyone is pulling the rug out from under each other nearly constantly.

And my favourite scene is probably the "first ever friend" scene in the manga. I WILL NEVER STOP THINKING ABOUT IT it's just so funny and mysterious and intriguing and layered to me

Character I Think is Underrated: Mikami is fairly underrated, but at the same time I myself am not the best at intuitively understanding him or creating content about him either...

Character I Think is Overrated: Matt (sorry I actually like him in the manga, but I just don't think he's that interesting really)

Favorite Ship/Pairing: Lawlight! I never needed much convincing about this.... I went straight from watching the anime to going "omg they should have kissed..."

Something I Love About the Show/Movie: The anime's audio elements are just so iconic and so good a lot of the time! It makes some of the manga scenes SO MUCH better just with stuff like the gregorian chanting while Light's writing the names. And no lie, it's really easy to follow as a story without even seeing what's happening onscreen, too. I used to listen to the English dub while drawing or doing my work sometimes and it felt almost exactly like an audio play.

-

BERSERK:

Favorite Character: Guts is by far my favourite! Which was a total surprise to me, because I thought he was going to be a pretty boring macho action hero cardboard cutout type guy going in. I got very attached to him while reading the manga after a few volumes, and now he's one of my all-time faves...

Favorite Arc/Episode/Scene: I'm going to be very basic and say The Golden Age, but IT'S JUST REALLY GOOD OKAY. It's better than good, it's the reason the series went from just "ok this is pretty interesting" to "OMG WTF THIS IS SO GOOD I'M SO INVESTED NOW"

And my favourite scene?? Hmm.... extremely hard question, but I feel like the sword fights between Guts and Griffith are definitely some of the peak moments. Their first one is iconic in so many ways, but the second one in the snow really got me in the feels and made my stomach drop and my heart beat a bit faster as well!

Character I Think is Underrated: I feel like Casca is just kinda hard to talk about with other fans. She's my second favourite character in the series, but I feel like it's just really difficult to discuss her without it just getting either depressing or into too sensitive territory or something? I love her dearly in the manga, but the fandom space here seems only much fun to talk about Guts and Griffith in for me

Character I Think is Overrated: I am not THAT well-versed in who is overrated or underrated in this fandom, but I feel like mostly almost all the characters aside from maybe Griffith and Guts are a bit underrated and under-explored in fan stuff that I've seen? That might be entirely on me and the fact that I'm mostly looking at griffguts stuff, though...

Favorite Ship/Pairing: griffguts drives so much of the angst and the drama and I think is basically canon to me at this point... I don't think it's hard to interpret Griffith as in love with Guts, but I also think Guts is in love with Griffith too in just a more furtive sort of way

Something I Love About the Show/Movie:

I only partially watched the 1997 anime so far, and the Guts theme song in it is so good! My god that's still such a good fitting song for him and his personality somehow. And I'd never actually heard it before I read the series either!

[crguang]

Hey, it's G

I'm thinking about posting another Kafka fanfic, but sometimes I wonder why I'm so depressed lol

I mean, damn, the idea I have in my head makes me want to curl up in the fetal position and cry for five days straight, but I guess that's just my intensely hungry girl side...

I wanted to send you a song I heard and I was like "is this some kind of Kafka's favorite song?" because the original version also focuses a lot on the violin.

https://youtu.be/HuS5NuXRb5Y?si=UJHOmBJiP3FaNNvW

Other than that, I guess I'm also really needy, please don't judge me, I'd just like to see something like, imagine Kafka sitting down and you standing in front of him. Under what circumstances do you think she would let us mere mortals hug her head from above? Or just place it against our abdomen and stroke her hair?

Why Kafka? Why are you so difficult? I just wish you'd give in for once. 😭😭😭

this is too real LMFAO i hate her sometimes, she can be annoying to write for because it’s hard to picture her reactions to certain situations and wonder what would be going through her head at that moment while also trying to be consistent with her base characterization. like the scenario you’re picturing, i kinda have no idea😭 maybe im not thinking hard enough (or thinking too much into it) but it’s kind of a vulnerable position to be in with you standing above her and her making herself smaller, and she’d have to be leaning on you and not the other way around. she could do it to indulge you, i dont see why she wouldnt, she has her needy moments too. her arms hang loosely around your waist while you play with her hair, forehead resting tiredly against your stomach. she may hum when you scratch her head or just keep talking the whole time. it’s weird to think of her as “small” when thats not how she sees herself or acts, so imagining her actually being vulnerable and seeking physical affection because of it is a bit blurry for me😭

also, you should definitely post that other fic, sometimes we actually needs our comfort characters to comfort us and that’s ok! the nice thing about writing is that you can so whatever you want no matter how self indulgent, you should write for yourself first and foremost. about the song, i can see why the violin instrumental made you think of kafka, i listen to violin often and she’s always on my mind whenever i do. i think she’d loveee fast-paced tempo music a lot judging by the vivaldi in her theme song… i feel like she’d enjoy these other vivaldi as well and probably some Paganini too but im not too good with artists names😭 i think kafka would like haunting melodies as well for when she needs to clear her mind (concerto grosso is so gorgeous and has a sort of wistfulness to it, do we think she’d have a harder time portraying more emotional songs for things she doesnt experience often…? or does she just lock tf in)

Golha is a personal favourite of mine that im super biased towards so i decided she’d enjoy it too hehe

[fitzrove]

One undertheorised aspect of Elisabeth [yes I'm approaching the show like a research field] is that of the POV in Mayerling. Setting aside/ignoring my favourite interpretation (ie. Lucheni's POV colours every scene from beginning to end), I started thinking: could it be we're seeing it through Elisabeth's eyes?

The first time Elisabeth acknowledges the mirror imagery (which is built between her and Rudolf in the Vienna-based productions) is literally right after his death - "you were like me, you needed me / I left you on your own to free myself -- / The fault is mine". She seems to see "the truth" (what the show has constructed for us to see from the start - Elisabeth's emancipation and Rudolf's isolation) and blames herself for it. And that "truth", as it is represented in the show, includes (personified) Death.

But is it really "the truth", or is it what Elisabeth has come up with in her long solitary hours despairing in the crypt? Has she, while mourning him, just begun to think back on everything she knows about Rudolf and reinterpreted his life as a nightmare similar to her own - looking to Death for guidance and comfort and yet suffering as a result? Maybe Elisabeth isn't just observing; she's interpreting and creating (the narrative) before our eyes. What we see happen to Rudolf before that point is her hindsight. And ok the implications are kind of horrifying especially for Schatten reprises where Tod really goes at it physically, like, her imagining Rudolf suffering like that - like she has with depression as well, in DLT and WITW - over and over (in Mayerling too) and not being able to stop it because he's already dead.

Granted, there are some things that make this less likely: ie. the overall strength of the Lucheni interpretation (I think it's the canon one honestly, there's too much evidence to ignore) as well as the historical fact that Elisabeth remained mostly ignorant of Rudolf's political writings and aspirations even after his death, but it's still interesting to think about.

In any case I don't think Rudolf is in control of his own narrative like traditional fictional characters are - and why should he be, he's a minor character in a show using storybook/circus/etc aesthetics as an artistic device. He's in control of his actions within that narrative (ie. Elisabeth saying his death is her fault is not really true), but he's really a plot device. And therefore:

1)conspiracy bad XDD

2) Mirror imagery good, hence removing the mayerling kiss horribly bad

3) what if Elisabeth made up Mama, schatten reprise and Mayerling after the fact, while despairing and overthinking what she could've done differently during Totenklage (out of all the candidates for "narrator"/POV character, Rudolf is just about the unlikeliest person in the show - he's only born halfway in and dies before it ends)

Fourth point under the cut for whining XD Might delete that part later

4) i keep saying this ad nauseam but we do not really need more/expanded mayerling (or rudolf immorality) stuff in the show ahsjfkggkkf. I get that in terms of history and the public sphere, we need justice and spotlight for Mary, but the show is about the death of liberal politics through Rudolf and it's already unclear to some people so we don't need to make it more confusing for them. Based on the level of reading comprehension online re my favourite shows I don't trust people to understand the symbolic death of liberal Europe in the face of Hass AND the rudolf-elisabeth mirror imagery AND Rudolf as a historical person being complicated and shitty. The last one can be brought into it through acting I think, but we don't need to change the staging to be heavier on the historical Mayerling stuff. You can criticise the portrayal, you can think Elisabeth does a bad job of portraying Rudolf and normalizes abuse or murder or something, but you can't really change how it's depicted without wrecking the architecture of the show. Rudolf literally has no canon personality beyond "sad" [being gay for death is part of this] and "struggling politically"

I promise i'm not sexist and horrible btw akjsjdjdfkgkg. But like legit. Rudolf already comes as a matching set with the mayerling affair in the public sphere. Elisabeth is like the only thing where his political legacy (or lack thereof) is of equal importance, and the portrayal is generally sympathetic. I'm not saying we can't do more rudolf media that addresses it with more complexity, but Elisabeth is not the time or place - especially since if we did include more of the Mary stuff (as a staging choice, since the script is set), it would almost certainly fail to do anything meaningful in terms of her historical legacy, given that she wouldn't be named (can't stop the mayerling sequence to give a spoken rundown of events...), and her life and personality beyond the circumstances of her death would once again be overshadowed by her ending up in Mayerling

[aurcls]

HSHQTASK059: FAREWELL !

i know i already yapped in the admin post but let me continue <3

1: when did you join ? what made you join ? what do you remember from the plotlines that were current at the time ? where were you in life when you joined and where are you now ?

i joined in 2015 as a high school freshman, jfc ! i don't think there was anything major going on, the rp was very much a rich kids rp so the drama was chill and petty; entertaining but not that deep. one thing that made me join ( aside from my obsession with royals ) was the fact that phoebe tonkin - THE most popular fc at the time - was up for grabs. i thought it was meant to be !

2: which characters have you written over the years ?

errrmmm... merjem/kalla, olivier, livia, florencio, alexander, anneli, lixun, nicole, maryam, blazej, definitely some other characters whose names and existence i cannot remember

3: what is your favourite plotline that you've been part of ?

i think this is just nostalgia but i think olivier-viggo-armani-lykke-anton-etc era was my fave. artistically it's very hollow but i think the lightness of it all makes it my favourite. i also sort of view it as a testament of my own naivety and youth. i'm not saying i'm old now but i'm not 17 without a single worry. back then ( because i wasn't busy and i could sat in front of my computer for hours ) the plots moved quickly and the threads were really fun to follow. there weren't that many characters so everyone was, in a way, forced to write with each other so the plotlines were very interactive. i appreciate the organic way things evolved. ( i do have a soft spot for annexei but i think it's mainly bc i admire alexei's characterization so much and elisa's ability to depict depression )

4: what about other people's plotlines ?

i was insanely invested in the zulu conflict of 2020. it had so many moving parts and i think if it had only gotten a chance to evolve even further, it would have been on a whole new level <3

5: who is your favourite character from the ones you've played ? why ? what made you love them ? what made them so fun to write ?

i think nicole or olivier. nicole's plotline was so well defined that it was fun to write her. i loved her relationships and it was interesting to write someone older. i think she's a character i could write a book about but she wasn't the best for an rp setting ? getting a chance to be involved in the english drama was wonderful ! olivier on the other hand... i think he's just a fave because he lets me connect to the old days ? when rp was a top priority and everything was exciting and fun. i don't want this to sound like it isn't that anymore but times were different back then and i don't think it ever felt the same after maybe high school graduation ?

6: if you could relive a plotline, which would it be ?

i think the finale of the english plotline maybe ? or the insanity of the lawn chair thing. possibly the rise of olykke too <3 but honestly i would like to experience all of it again, as cliche as it sounds. i will very think of the nights i stayed up until 4 or 5 am just to write/read the dash. waiting for a reply was such an addictive feeling and idk where i'll find my replacement for it. it really breaks my heart and makes me feel very old to realize that i don't know if i'll experience the excitement again. those sleep-deprived nights were some of my best. i've said "it's just rp" a million times but honestly, rping itself is such an experience and i'm glad i've gotten to get the best version of it.

7: is there a plotline that you'd edit now if you could ?

i think i'd improve the kalla era's germany. i didn't do much with it.

8: what's a plotline you wish you would have been able to finish before closing or just write more of ?

i would have loved to finish aurel x araya story, i mean i can probably still accomplish that but nbskdgbjs there were big plans for the slovakians and it's a shame we never got to write it out on the dash. i think i would have enjoyed writing the inner struggle of blazej. he had a lot of potential but alas, it could not be !

9: what is your favourite ooc memory ?

i have two that stick out but my trip with serre ? we were on my sister's couch writing the stupid lawn chair saga and i think it was the first time in a long time that i had that much fun writing ! the second one would be me visiting evy because it was a surreal experience and i have to admit i was so socially awkward that evy's family probably thinks i'm weird nfgbkdsgbj i just think it's amazing that those two meetings could happen ? prior to hshq, i hadn't really believed in online friendships, everyone felt just too remote ! a special mention goes to this crackthread thing we wrote: link just a random memory though: i remember when we did those feedback surveys. we sorta forgot them but they were so important at that one point. other funny thing is our old adminooc blog. snapchat replaced it and then some years later discord replaced snapchat. we should bring the admin snapchat back btw @armanicatherina & @barbiebraganca

10: where can others find you if they want to get in touch ?

i'll be on discord !!! you can find me on the hshq server ( which we aren't deleting if i can have a say ;) )

11: what else would you like to say ?

i said a lot in the admin post but i actually had to "keep it short" so here i will say so many things that you wish i had edited this. for me rping has been an amazing way to connect with other people, learn about people through writing and to experience emotions that i wouldn't otherwise. some of the words i've read here have managed to capture thoughts that i hadn't been able to put into words and it's been amazing to see how differently people think but also how alike some feelings among different people are. i often try to wrap my head around the fact that this group's been going for eight amazing years. i've gone through a lot in those eight years and the existence of this group has brought me a lot of joy. i am sad to let go of it and i guess i'm in a bit of denial because i keep thinking that 1x1 rping exists and y'know... even if a group doesn't exist, threads can still happen. when i think about hshq and the plotlines i've read and written, one thing really sticks out to me and it's the way we shifted from a p basic rich kids rp into something intricate and sophisticated ( yes, we had a drug related nye event and we've had a fair share of petty fights ). the range of emotions people have been able to write and the psychological work they've done to write a convincing and very realistic humans is something everyone can be proud of. i don't know if i look like a sadist but i was most impressed by the depictions of sadness, guilt and self-loathing. in my opinion it's not easy to write a piece of sad prose without it being a bit melodramatic. aside from hshq's longevity, the most amazing thing has to be everyone's willingness to get involved. the plot drops that i wrote wouldn't have happened without your input and when it got too tough for me to write them myself, y'all stepped up and continued the plotdrops with your newsposts. as an admin, it's been so so so so so awesome that we've been able to put some responsibilities on the members and have you guys perform better than well. i think we did something unique here and i'm so proud of us as a group!!!! i wish i could flex about this irl because hshq's history and way of working is something extraordinary. i really wish i could properly put my love for hshq into words. i don't know how to express its meaning and influence in my life. i feel like it has helped me to improve my writing but more importantly it has taught me a thing of two about empathy <3 i really hope we'll stay in touch and if anyone comes to europe, or more spesifically finland, don't be afraid to message me bc i'd love to meet up !

[will80sbyers]

I don't know. I feel like you lost your hope that byler will be endgame in season 5? I feel like you lost your natural joy in general. I can feel that in the way you write your tells. You seem less dynamic,less happy to be here. It's not a criticism at all, just something I've personally noticed so I wondered if you are doing okay rn.

I'm sorry that I've not been as joyful :(

I'm still sick and don't have much energy these days so it could be part of that too, but yeah I'm not as confident in byler as I was after all of these news, the revelations about the play made me lose hope in a good storyline in general because if they don't care even about the supernatural story why would they make a good story for the characters and not one that can "shock" the audiences and that's it

Do they really care about the details of the story if they change big things this easily just for convenience? Was all the foreshadowing we found just a coincidence or are we misreading things? Maybe they think putting it only because Will is in love with Mike is a good idea even if they don't plan on making them endgame?

Maybe the rainbows were all because of this rainbow operation ship thing of the play and not much about the gay coding? I don't even know anymore.

Do they even care about the themes they presented previously after seeing that they don't even stand up for the innocent Palestinians and don't recognize a state that's acting as an oppressor in the real world? That's also what I'm asking myself about them as a team of writers and as people

I know they don't have to say things but they did for other occasions... that whole speech David made was just a spectacle and not the principles of the people involved in the show?

I loved this show because it seemed like they wanted to convey a message that they aren't upholding outside of it now so why would they uphold it in the finale of the show

and in general outside of stranger things the situation around the world is fucked up and I've been sad for that too, watching the graphic videos I've seen this month impacted me, watching people I care about not care at all also impacted my view of them and it feels lonely irl like I don't have friends because we are too different in basic values, and I was already depressed for other things in my life outside of all of this going back to Italy to my old life was depressing, having to live with my parents again makes me in a bad mood every single day because of how they talk to me

Also the whole fandom seems dead anyway, people have decided to leave stranger things because of what the actors and Ross did (which is completely valid) so there isn't even much to interact with in my dash at least

I'm sorry that I can't find a way to be more happy but it's just not a good period at all for me... I hope to find back my passion for the show and the fandom when they start filming, I'm just really afraid that my favourite character will be mistreated again in the end and I'm not sure about what they think will be a good "happy" ending at the moment

In general I think that even starting from a place where I didn't expect too much from them I may have highly overestimated their writing and maybe the redditors are right and stranger things will end up being that type of shitty (imo) story "the 80s nostalgia straight show" that they want

[sleazyjester]

Ooooooooo i honestly adore how Basil from peppersteak au is so... real(?) you know? I can't really put it into words, but something about him is just so painfully *real* and I'm always curious to see what he'll do/say next

Now that we know a little bit more about Basil, could you tell us more about peppersteak au's Sunny? I'm almost as curious about his opinion on Basil as Basil himself haha

Love your work so much, both your writing and your drawings, they're all so awesome! I'm literally crazy about peppersteak au

okay.

when writing sunny, i indirectly projected myself onto him. but that itself is quite boring, so i just thought... what if he had my flaws but make it 10 times worse? i have a love hate relationship with writing him because he is incredibly relatable but in a way that gets you embarrassed, like seeing your past self's idiotic mistakes. it's just frustrating. he is supposed to be a frustrating character that ends up fixing some things about himself. many times, at least while growing up, flawed characters that dealt with depression or other mood disorders were shown to be their own victims, but here i wanted to expand a little bit more on that and show how your mental state can affect the ones you love the most as well.

when it comes to basil, i think he doesn't know it himself. he's been in denial about his feelings since forever, so it's kinda hard to get somebody out of that loop, but them being together and even getting intimate brought sunny comfort because of nostalgia and the need for familiarity. to him, basil is like a time capsule that leads to sunny's most precious memories, but also his worst. just like an addiction, it can make you feel euphoric or absolutely miserable.

it's a complicated relationship that can either feel absolutely right or tremendously underwhelming and wrong. they've shared so much with each other that they have become intertwined. even if they were to move away from each other, block their phone numbers, never speak again... faith would still find a way. they are each other's curse. and i think that's beautiful.

as additions to the post, sunny loves nintendo and watches porn before bed. it's whatevz. his favourite color is yellow and his favourite food is pepper steak, though he also has a massive sweet tooth. he watches youtube while eating and owns a butterfly knife. he started reading edgar allan poe because he didn't get the south park references from that one episode.

i don't know. he can be silly, spontaneous and fun. but also so fucking stupid. he's like 3 scared boys in a 20 year old's trench coat.

that's bout it. thanks for the compliments!