#I seriously have no words but thank you

[moth-scrunk]

[kizzer55555]

DP x DC: The Most Dangerous Card Game

Ok so Danny has essentially claimed earth as his. And he is fully aware that there are constant threats to the planet. Now he can’t stop a threat that originates on earth (that’s something he’ll leave to the Justice league) but he can do something about outside threats. Doing some research on ancient spells, rituals, and artifacts, he cast a world wide barrier on the planet to protect it from hostile threats so they cannot enter. This will prevent another Pariah Dark incident. However, barriers like this come at a price. You see, there are two ways to make a barrier. Either make one powered up by your own energy and power (which would be constantly draining) or set up a barrier with rules. The way magic works is that nothing can be absolutely indestructible. It must have a weakness. The most powerful barriers weren’t the ones reinforced with layer after layer of protective charms and buffed up with power. Those could eventually be destroyed either by being overpowered, wearing them down, or by cutting off the original power source. No, the most powerful barriers were the ones with a deliberate weakness. A barrier indestructible except for one spot. A cage that can only be opened from the outside. Or that can only be passed with a key or by solving a riddle. So Danny chooses this type of barrier and does the necessary ritual and pours in enough power to make it. And he adds his condition for anyone to enter. 

Now the Justice league? Find out about the barrier when Trigon attempts to attack, they were preparing after he threatened what he would do once he got to earth. How he would destroy them. The Justice league tried to take the fight to him first but were utterly destroyed, so they retreated home to tend to their injuries, and fortify earth for one. Last. Stand. Only when Trigon makes his big entrance…he’s stopped.

The Justice league watch in awe as this thin see-through barrier with beautiful green swirls and speckled white lights like stars apears blocking Trigon and his army’s advance. The barrier looks so thin and fragile yet no matter how hard the warlord hits, none of his attacks can get through and neither can he damage said barrier. That’s when Constantine and Zatanna recognizes what this barrier is. Something only a powerful entity could create. For a moment, the league is filled with hope that Trigon can’t get through yet Constantine also explains that it’s not impenetrable. And clearly Trigon knows this too for he calls out a challenge. 

And that’s when, in a flash of light, a tiny glowing teenager appears. He looked absolutly minuscule compared to Trigon and yet practically glowed with power (this isn’t a King Danny AU though).

And that is when the conditions for passing the barrier are revealed. And the Justice realize that the only thing stopping Trigon and his army from decimating earth. The only way he can get through….is by beating this glowing teenager in a card game. 

Not just any card game though. The most convoluted game Sam, Danny, and Tucker invented themselves. It’s like the infinite realms version of magic the gathering, combined with Pokémon, and chess. And Danny is the master. So sit down Trigon and let’s play.

(The most intense card game of the Justice league’s life).

After Danny wins, this happens a few more times with outer word beings and possibly even demons attempting to invade earth, yet none have been able to beat the mysterious teenager in a card game. Constantine might even take a crack at it and try to figure out how to play. He’s really bad though. Every time this happens, the Justice league worry that this might be the time the teenager looses. Yet every time, he wins (even if only barely). 

Meanwhile, Danny, Sam, and Tucker have gotten addicted to the game and play it almost daily. Some teachers might seem them playing the game are are like ‘awww how cute’ not realizing this game is literally saving the world. Jazz is just happy they aren’t spending as much time on their screens playing Doomed.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Happy very belated birthday.. I hope you had much time celebrating by digging for tubers : )

I'M DIGGING FOR TUBERS! AND NO ONE CAN STOP ME!

[fatuismooches]

EVEN MORE CUTE DOTTORE MOMENTS TO MAKE YOU SMILE 🙏 (because I am too tired to post anything of quality)

[tapakah0]

OKAY YOU JUST DECIDED TO KIIL ME TODAY WITH COMPLIMENTS YOU KNOW WHAT? YOU DID IT. AND I WILL COME BACK WITH REVENGE.

[deoidesign]

hi. I just read your entire comic in one go and I’ve gotta say I am in love with it. as a trans guy with hair that looks so much like Steve’s and who loves werewolves, I had to physically restrain myself from squealing out loud upon realizing he was trans, because I am currently living in a room with five other people in a small community in rural Alaska and didn’t want to explain to them the joys of seeing yourself in a character and then realizing “oh shit they’re trans like me”. I hope you are doing well, and may the gods of creativity and carpal tunnel bless you with much fruit in your artistic endeavors.

how could I ever show how deeply messages like this touch me... I never know what to say, I want so badly to have the proper words to show you how grateful I am

This is why I write. so that people get to feel like this, and I could never reflect that properly with just my words... But I want you to know that.

I hope to make something that is worthy of your love, and I hope every day that my work is sufficient to show I love you. so I'm relieved that it's succeeding and you feel seen.

Thank you for sharing this with me, I love you

[kaurwreck]

hi! i really want to tell you that i love love love your blog. i feel so much joy when i see you've made a long post with your thoughts. i admire the way you engage with things you enjoy! you've genuinely inspired me to get back into reading. i've been struggling with migraines and after some time i started associating reading with suffering. i stumbled upon your blog because of bsd, and i got so fascinated with the way you communicate with the source material that i had a childlike realization: i want to have that too! and i picked up akutagawa, and i'm enjoying myself so much. i'm never not thinking about the post where you said that the trick to being clever is to stop obsessing over being right. life-changing, really. sending you so so so much love! p.s. as a russian-speaker it's a delight reading your thoughts on dostoevsky, especially seeing you use diminutives, for some reason. in russian slang we sometimes say, "ты так чувствуешь!" ("you are really feeling!") meaning "you really get it on an emotional level!" and that's what i think every time i read your thoughts on dostoevsky.

I hesitated to answer this ask because I wanted to covet it and hoard it and keep it tucked away where I could revisit it to my greedy heart's content without anyone noticing, but I'd rather you know that this ask was so delightful to receive and absolutely melted me in the best way, so I'm publishing it even though that means submitting to the mortifying ordeal of creating a tag so that I can more easily return to your kind words, and perhaps other, similar asks and posts that are emotional balms.

Also, I am so sorry, I'm sleep-deprived and I was so excited and charmed and delighted by your ask that I lost my mind and wrote you a veritable novel in response. Thus, I've added a readmore and headings (because WOW, I went on tangents, sorry!)

Returning to Reading

I'm so sorry you have migraines; I don't get them often, but I do occasionally get them, and it's some of the worst, least tolerable pain I've ever experienced. So, whatever it's worth, you have my sympathy and admiration, especially since returning to reading when you experience frequent migraines implicates some common triggers. (Never mind how annoying I know it is when you're in too much pain to read as a distraction either.) But I'm delighted you're reframing your relationship with reading separate from suffering, and that you're enjoying the process! I'm also returning to reading, and while I don't have the same challenges, I am also engaging in a process of relearning and recontextualizing reading for myself, so I'm always here to chat about it.

I'm especially thrilled that you picked up Akutagawa; Akutagawa is the author who also coaxed me back into reading literature (as opposed to comics or webnovels). He might still be my favorite even now that I've read several, several other modern Japanese authors.

Akutagawa Adoration Hours

[I apologize; I hyperfocused and wrote an entire multi-paragraph essay on how much I love Akutagawa below... I promise I come back to your ask!]

Akutagawa's literary voice is just so vivid, sharp, and intentional. He compels you to cling to the weight of each word with rich, clever language that cuts to the hearts of matters frankly, bluntly, and sometimes scathingly. But even when his authorial voice is ostensibly irreverent or lacquered with detachment, he cradles his most foolish characters, bundling them with naked affection for their sincerity, vulnerability, and childish conviction. They embody his unadulterated faith, and he reserves for them in the implication the same salvation he's convinced he's too sullied by shame, terror, and self-consciousness to deserve. Akutagawa does not squander the gravity of your attention, and even in brief vignettes in which humans become lice or have had their personhood severed from them by the untenable yet escalating demands of their responsibilities to others, there's humanity in his horror and absurdity, and closure in his ambiguity. I rarely feel as if there's certainty in Akutagawa's narratives, but neither do I feel as if nothing that occurred mattered.

Even when nothing has objectively changed for the characters, Akutagawa sources meaning from the subjective perceptions of the characters, the impact of which is rarely diminished by the objective or observable. Thus, the bleakness, horror, and absurdity of the characters' circumstances are sometimes interminable, but they shelter Akutagawa's fondness and latent certainty that existential meaning is inherent to humanity because of, rather than despite, our fragility, foolishness, and callous disregard for measurable truth.

His contemporaries criticized him for the detachment and perceived stagnancy lent by his polish and technical brilliance, but I've never read any of his stories and not felt an earnestness that persists entirely apart from the explicit narrative, as if someone is reading over my shoulder and murmuring "isn't she brave?" whenever a character is so simple in their sincerity that they become vulnerable to humiliation and abuse. And that's not detachment; that's Akutagawa relentlessly writing hope, love, and compassion into the creases of his own grotesque fear, and in doing so, filling spaces we perceive as empty in ourselves with the faith and devotion he was so certain he lacked.

You Said Childlike In Passing But Chapter 55 of the Tao Te Ching Rewired My Brain and I Was Lost In the Akutagawa Sauce So...

And it's childlike how, even when characters like O-Gin are debased and humiliated, Akutagawa yearns for their salvation enough to smudge the ink at the edges of his precisely rendered language so the silly, ignorant little fools might transcend the boundaries of the narrative that otherwise ruthlessly scorned and punished them for their guilelessness. His need for innocence is itself indicative of the keen sense of violation that prompts a toddler to indignation when his jejune reliance on fairness is first exploited and then provided as cause for exploitation.

Akutagawa was wise enough to know childlike conclusions are the most profound and self-actualizing insights we can have, but too certain of the inevitability of his suffering and too overly prescribed barbiturates to nurture and cherish his own salvific childishness. So, your realization was brilliant for its childlike wisdom, and I think it's both wonderful and meaningful that you then nurtured that wisdom by pursuing the relationship you wanted with the source material.

Being Right vs. Playful Engagement

I'm also so glad that the post about being clever =/= obsessing over being right was sticky and impactful! It's, quite frankly, immensely less fun and more pressure if you're hinging your enjoyment on whether you're right when engaging with media where "right" is subjective and layered, and where you're engaging with a foreign cultural context. I get the impression that centering your engagement on making and assessing the accuracy of predictions also lends itself to biases, defensiveness, disappointment, misplaced resentment based on unmet expectations, and incuriosity; at least more so than engaging with the story playfully and sincerely.

I'm also just extremely biased towards bsd and Asagiri's approach to storytelling; I think he's engaging in a challenging and layered approach to storytelling that is wholly unique to him. (At least, based on my own experiences with referential multimedia titles.) I'm so charmed by how Asagiri throws himself into creative challenges and engages in meaningful and remarkably substantive conversations with the source materials, his own portfolio of interlocking narratives, and his audience. I would kill to chat with him about his processes.

Everyone I'd Encountered Who Seemed Parasocially Obsessed With Dostoevsky Was Right

Before I get into this next babble tangent, I want you to know that your kind words and perspective as a Russian-speaker regarding my Dostoevsky thoughts mean SO much to me; I'm very proud if I'm able to do an ounce of justice to the text in my ramblings, and I'm so excited to know the appropriate phrase for what I'm experiencing right now because I am REALLY feeling.

I was admittedly a little nervous about reading his works with only minimal background, and I went into Crime and Punishment without first consulting any published critiques and analyses (which I sometimes do for foreign classics to bridge gaps in context). But, I was eager to start the story, so I decided to just get into it with the understanding I might need to pause for further research if I felt I was missing too much context to engage with the text meaningfully. But, wow, I was immediately consumed. I struggled to put it down for most of it, and I've been staying up too late and sneakily reading at work; things I haven't done since I was in middle school.

While I know I'm missing context, even with the attentive footnotes (and I absolutely will read so many academic papers on it once I finish these last fifty pages), I was pleasantly surprised by how not only engaging his writing and this translation are but also by how familiar with and connected I feel to the characters and circumstances and emotions and dynamics. He has rendered the human experience and specific flavors of People into such compassionate, teasing, sincere, frank, and sobering characters who I feel like I've had entire conversations with.

I love classic lit, but Dostoevsky is sincerely rekindling a joy I haven't felt in years while reading. Also, his frankness and compassion regarding alcoholism and parentified children and trauma and ennui and guilt and the contradictions we grapple with within ourselves and with who we are to different people are giving me a framework for reflecting on swaths of my trauma and childhood that I've struggled to articulate my thoughts and emotions around for years.

I'm so energized and excited about reading his other works, but, wow, I'm going to miss these characters so much.

Accounting For My Crimes Against the Russian Language

I have very little background in Russian, but I'm passingly familiar because in high school (i) I was obsessed with Russian history, particularly related to the USSR and swaths of imperial Russia (I actually taught the lesson on Ivan IV Vasilyevich in my Western Civ class because my teacher was pregnant and exhausted and I knew the material better than she did); and (ii) I studied Russian with a private tutor in my senior year of high school (very lightly; once a week, only for a year, I met with her and two French language teachers from my school who were also interested in Russian for hour-long lessons and to receive homework assignments).

So, while my experience with the language is shallow at best, I've always loved Russian diminutives. I'm obsessed with the sheer amount of information relayed in someone's name. It's incredible. Of the languages I'm familiar with, none have a comparably satisfying gradient range of (i) affection and (ii) disrespect.

That said, I use diminutives for characters I'm particularly fond of, to show affection, and to teasingly disrespect them since I think it's quite overfamiliar for me to take such liberties.

Also, while I try to check after myself to ensure I'm using them correctly, I have only a surface-level understanding of what I'm doing, and some language forum threads are more helpful than others, so I'm very, very sorry if I use any incorrectly, and I encourage you (and any other Russian speakers and learners) to yell at me if you notice I'm misusing someone's name.

So far, my approach has been to check general searches, forums, and Reddit when I've encountered diminutives in Crime and Punishment, and I'll continue to look up every single name variation in the Dostoevsky novels I'm reading, no matter how long it may take me to realize what I've been scouring for isn't a diminutive at all but instead probably (emphasis on "probably," because no one providing English explanations seemed wholly certain) the same name but spoken in the form native to a separate Slavic language than the languages anyone else in the conversation was using, not that it really seemed to matter, since the same characters within the same conversation each used multiple forms of the same, with only one remark on what was most likely the correct form, which everyone ignored/disregarded, including the remarking character. So if you have context on THAT dynamic, I would love to hear about the etiquette and conventions around language forms among the many different languages and dialects in Eastern Europe.

For reference, the diminutives I've been using re: Crime and Punishment and bsd, with more context:

Raskolnikov is "Rodya" unless he's naughty, in which case I call him "Rodka." Unless he's REALLY naughty, then he's Raskolnikov.

Avdotya is Dunya always; I do feel egregious because she commands grace and gravitas, and I respect her SO much. But I love her dearly and am very warm towards her and everything she does, so I call her Dunya as if she were my sister because if she were, I would treat her better than Rodka right now.

Razumikhin is Dima which may be wildly incorrect, both in form and historical context; the only reason I haven't confirmed it yet is because I had an OC named Dmitri in high school that I was very fond of and referred to affectionately as Dima, and I'm similarly fond of Razumikhin, so I've delayed confirming and correcting myself here, although that's very Rodka-naughty of me, I know.

Fedya is always bsd!Fyodor, and only when he has really wide eyes and is being adorable bunny Fedya. He is Fyodor when he is being nasty or squinting. I call the author by either his last or full name, although I'm sure I've carelessly called him Fyodor before too. I try to maintain some consistency in distinguishing who I'm referencing between the characters and their namesakes.

Tl;dr: I love Russian diminutives. The only other time I've come close to feeling the same amount of immense delight over names-as-love-and-violence is when my work mentor, who is Chinese, was providing me with her preferred titles (laoban ["old boss," old meaning "venerable" rather than indicating age], jiejie ["big sister"]), and my other coworker chimed in to say, "Wouldn't you be da-jiejie ["first/eldest big sister"], since you're the oldest?" If looks could kill.

[thirdtimed]

id just lik e to say.. this is probably the biggest/most active fanbase i have ever. ever posted fanart in and the numbers are frankly overwhelming to me. unbelievable to me tjat there are hundreds of you here... and every word i receive on my art is so so so kind. i wish i could say thank you a million times... even if i am just making fanart i have a lot of fun drawing it and my heart swells 1000x its size when ppl tell me they have fun looking at it too.......... sorry i am at heart a very sappy and overly sentimental person. Much love in my heart for everyone & everything. at a point where i can't take it sometimes

lets play and have fun forever. my final message.

[jovialoddity]

Heya! I just want to say your awesome! I look up to you and your art , and your art inspired me to test out some new styles , to push myself and try new things with art (Something I'm scared of doing) .

You've also introduced me to a lot. Like , Madness, will wood and David Bowie, as well as People are strange by The Doors and the movie Labyrinth as well as The Lost Boys ( All of those have the vibes I always wanted in songs and movies) as well as the SMG4 Fandom through your mr puzzles art .

And I just wanted to also say thank you for making me feel more confident and comfortable to post my art on social media. When I posted the Professor Puzzles art , I was scared it wasn't good enough . And when you reblogged them , I would panic thinking you didn't like them . But you did like them ! I would feel that fear turn into relief. Knowing my favorite artist , actually likes my art!

(Sorry if this is SUPER long . This last paragraph is the last one)

And as a south african I always thought that I wouldn't meet another south african artist , who had a bold , and exaggerated style. In a good way , I love styles like that , but i was always to scared to try it out in my art.

Okay I'm done typing this LONG ass essay . I just wanted to say thank for everything. Your awesome and I hope you have a lovely day/afternoon/night !

Oh my GOD??? This might genuinely be one of the kindest messages anyone on the internet has ever sent me, i don’t even know what to say except THANK YOU SO MUCH 🥹🥹💖💖💖💖

I can’t even express it in words how happy I am that my art has inspired you so much, I never would have expected that my art would be good enough for people to even VAGUELY reference, but hearing that it inspires you and makes you wanna branch out with your own style… that made me so unbelievably happy.

And the fact that you’ve actually taken interest in my dumb little interests and music??? That is SO amazing to hear oh my god, I’m so happy you wanted to check out the things I like that I’ve mentioned and ended up liking them!! Madness and Will Wood are probably some of my favorite bands/artists EVER and Labyrinth is one of my favorite movies, I’m so glad you ended up enjoying them too!! A lot of the people I know in real life have pretty different taste from me in this stuff, so I’m super happy you were able to find some enjoyment out of them.

I’M SO HAPPY TO HEAR THAT YOU FEEL MORE COMFORTABLE POSTING YOUR ART BECAUSE OF ME TOO!! I’ve LOVED what I’ve seen from your blog so far, whether it’s been fanart for me or not, and it means so much that I could help you feel more confident in it!! I myself struggle with being confident enough in my art to post it, so it’s surprising that I could help somebody else with it, but I’m so glad you have been able to feel more confident in it because you have some amazing ideas and your art is adorable!

I just can’t even put into words how happy this made me to read, thank you so much for taking the time to type this all out. I hope you have an AMAZING day or night as well!!!

[mappingthesky]

as 2024 comes to a close i jus wanna say how much fun I’ve had on this blog over the past year :’) i feel so grateful for every person ive interacted with and every friend i’ve made, and for anyone who has ever supported the 108k+ words (???) of gay fanfic i’ve written this year :’) here’s to more words and more fun times ::)

[templeofvengeance]

A PORTAL OF GOLDEN SPARKS swirls open at the Temple, and Stephen walks through, winking up at Khonshu with a smirk.

❝ I'm here to fulfill my CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATION with you, Big Guy. ❞ Two fingers from each hand flourish outwardly, and a platter materializes before him. It floats toward Khonshu on a cloud of golden light, revealing an assortment of manitcore hearts drizzled in chocolate. ❝ Had a nasty run-in with these suckers a few dimensions over. I hope you weren't expecting human hearts, though. Might break some of that moral code I tend to get so horny about. ❞

A stick of Kyphi incense ignites itself at the alter, and Stephen flies up toward the god, pecking the side of a rather dusty skull before slipping through the opening in the roof of the temple. When he's nothing but a silhouette against the backdrop of the moon, Stephen grins.

❝ HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY, KHONSHU. What do you say to a midnight flight? ❞

( idk if there's a hole in the top of his temple but for the sake of this ask, it does have one sldfjsdlkj )

[The Contractual Obligations]

It had seemed fair to expect a dull night. With his Avatar occupied-- no work or vengeance being done to liven things up-- Khonshu had little to do but sit in his temple and watch over the world, seeing uncountable couples going about their date nights. He didn't feel envy-- even in ancient times, Khonshu had avoided romantic connections in favor of work and the company of his worshippers. Other gods felt the compulsion to connect, gather consorts, birth children, or even enjoy intimacy with mortals for fun. It was a pull Khonshu had never felt, the way Hathor once described it to him. (Though, Hathor had managed to pull him in anyway.)

He could not feel much ill-will towards what might as well be a holy day for her, even if it would just be another dull night to him.

… In theory.

The wizard's appearance and gift has him shocked-- it would be fair to say he had never received a Valentine's Day present, with how relatively new the holiday was. Manticores, he can sense-- he catches himself stifling a laugh, and not just at the idea of getting aroused at the Hippocratic Oath. 'Khonshu that eats hearts,' so the aspect of him is called in the Cannibal Hymn, refers to the hearts of other gods, not humans. Are Manticores closer or further away? It hardly matters. Khonshu is still… pleased.

What a strange set of circumstances to find himself pleased by.

He is picking up a heart to taste when the sorcerer is fluttering by like a manic pixie, and Khonshu drops the heart back on the platter to touch the spot where he was just kissed. Leaving a smear of chocolate on his 'cheek'.

"So eager. You would not allow me the time to properly enjoy your gift?" Khonshu notes, as though there's anything stopping the platter of hearts from coming along as an in-flight meal. He re-picks up the one he'd dropped anyway, opening his jaw to toss it in, savoring-- all of it. The taste, the incense, even the doctor's silhouette with the light of his almost-full-moon at his back is a nice visual. Khonshu must give full marks for presentation. Khonshu 'swallows,' the offering converted to golden dust falling into the hole where his neck should be. His form glows a faint white. Empowered by such quality worship, whether or not the man would call it that.

He had not turned down the offer of a night flight. Khonshu's form snapped to dust, trailing up out the hole in the temple ceiling to reappear alongside Strange in midair. "Very well. In the spirit of the holiday, I will accompany you. There are, however, my own contractual obligations to speak of. I believe I promised you something you have not yet seen."

The Duat would be an easy one. Giving him a glimpse into the Field of Reeds (letting him taste a manifestation of his inner peace, a bit dark and on-the-nose for 'something you haven't seen'--) would get Khonshu in major trouble if Osiris found out, but more importantly, he doesn't actually know what Strange has or hasn't seen. Only that his educated guess can't be wrong, if he plans to meet his own challenge.

"I enjoy the nights on earth," Khonshu hummed, and he did. "But it has been awhile, since I've flown across the Overvoid. Celestial Heliopolis." The birthplace of his race of gods. It was beautiful, last he remembered.

[masquenoire]

Losing steam a little now it's late but I really loved and appreciated so many people sending in those icon prompts! Thank you so much, it's really helped because not writing for so long just made doing anything so daunting but this? Was a lot of fun to do, and I hope it was just as fun for everybody else! Got just a few left so will answer them in the morning before getting caught up in chores and work, not getting the time off I hoped but even today's little meme helped a lot!

[princekirijo]

Imma be honest with you chief this week has not been fun. At all

[whollyjoly]

Hi Em!! Thank you so much for putting together such an amazing ask game 🩵 I hope you’re doing well. Would you mind answering 1, 4, 17 and 25? Take care 🩵

hello hello my dear!! its been my absolute pleasure seeing everyone spread the good vibes, so im glad people are enjoying this 🥰

im sorry its so late, but here are my answers!

1 - what is your fav part about being in the fandom?

i wrote a super sappy and long answer here, but basically all of YOU is what makes this fandom the most fun to be a part of!

4 - whats a moodboard that you just want to live inside of?

ohhhhhhhh so many?? the moodboard creators in this fandom are fucking TOP TIER and i love all of them so much!! but here's a few that come to mind:

this christmas babe and gene moodboard by @footprintsinthesxnd is so comfy and so cozy and they deserve nice christmases okay!!

speaking of christmas moodboards, @onlyyouexisthere has this incredibly aesthetic board for some of our fav boys around christmas time, and i just want to live inside every single one okay??

this speirs moodboard by the one and only @xxluckystrike is so beautiful? like i love the combo of hard and soft edges (the bandage + the smoke + the chess), since i feel like that dichotomy isnt something thats always shown with speirs, but feels so true with his character. anyways i want to walk through a museum with blood on my knuckles and smoke in my lungs after looking at this okay

and of course, this chuck grant moodboard by the incredible the amazing YOU @sweetxvanixlla was one of the first things i saw and loved in the fandom for grant?? the beach vibes, the light blues, the carefree energy, it all is so perfect. and i was like "holy SHIT this is good also now i too love grant" so i can thank you for that 🥰

bonus from @the-cinnamontography-is-amazing that i cant stop laughing at it

17 - your fav fanwork about an underrated character?

oh i was HOPING to get this because there's this one fic i love SO MUCH and i just!! want to scream about it from the rooftops!!

Come In From The Cold by rebelsquad (T, 24k) is a Smokey-centric Coffee Shop AU, and it just warms my heart in all the best ways. First of all, Smokey is an incredible narrator, and I love how the author captures his voice in this so hard!! I also just love that it centers around some of the more underrated characters (Smokey, Alley, Shifty, Tab, Skinny, and Popeye), but also has great interactions with the regulars as well! The found family vibes are just *chefs kiss*, and it is also the perfect mood for winter ✨ I cannot recommend it enough!!

25 - what colors do your mutuals most remind you of?

i dont even know why this turned out like this? but i went full vibes ✨

@sweetxvanixlla - midnight blue feels so right for you, my dear. starry nights and deep blue velvet cushions, something steady and calm but sparkles in just the right light. a cup of herbal tea on a tuesday night, and the thrum of a quiet city hums beneath your tongue. theres something so quiet and still about the night, that moment when people are talking and you dont have to participate, you just sit and let their words flow over you, enjoy their presence and energy and that feeling is midnight blue.

@xxluckystrike - girl, you are golden. warmth and positivity and laughter that itself is a kind of music, just as much as the songs you love and share and make art for. its the type of gold you feel on a late summer day, echoing up from the passenger seat of a convertible as you drive with your friend across a rolling field of wheat, of corn, of wildflowers. there's soda in the cupholders, and the carbonation matches the bubbles springing from the bottom of your lungs. sunny, summery, golden.

@malarkgirlypop - pink. the snap of a piece of bubble gum, the sugar rush from a strawberry lollipop, the pop of a bright shade of lipstick, quirked up into a smirk. your presence is loud and beautiful like the sound of a boombox atop a vespa, zipping through a busy beachside pier and delighting everyone who hears. pink is the feeling of just being yourself, unashamedly and wildly, and reveling in the wake of your energy.

@panzershrike-pretz - green, but that vibrant green of the sun hitting a park just right, and there's almost a glow, or a halo, across the field. it's the kind of green reserved for grass stains, made after the first spring day that's warm enough to go and spend time outside. it's the color of collapsing in a cackling heap after goofing around with your friends, and they're laughing because you're laughing because they're laughing. what are you laughing about? it doesnt matter, maybe its nothing, maybe its the cow chewing away on the green grass in the distance. no matter, because it is joy.

@footprintsinthesxnd - idk why but lavender is the immediate thing that comes to mind? something calm and soothing and steady, a breath of fresh air, walking through a field with the sun on your neck and the smell of the purple flowers filling the air. a gentle breeze ripples across your fingertips. it's quiet, but not silent, and the lavender doesnt break in the wind - it bends, and the flower seems to brighten in response. your energy is the deep breath that is taken after that moment - content and at ease.

@blood-mocha-latte - so this might not make sense outside my head but...that color a candle flame gives when reflected off a marble statue. something in the liminal space between warmth and cool, between hard and soft, between cold creams and whites and bright oranges and yellows. the ethereal quality of walking through a gallery alone, silent save for the feeling welling up from each piece of art you pass. the tiles echo this soft color, the flickering candle makes the shadows across the paintings dance, and one can't help but want to explore further, to linger with the treasures you've created.

@ronsparky - sky blue, but not the crayola sky blue. the sky blue of an early morning on the top of a mountain, mist obscuring pieces of the horizon and you could convince yourself you are the only human on the planet. a sky blue that rivals on being crisp and soft, that suggests unlimited possibility if you just reached your hand out a little farther. one can't help but feel that every small, new thing from this view is a joy - and its a feeling so wondrous and contagious that you cant help but spread it to those you interact with. the sky shifts, ever so slightly, but the color follows you down the mountain.

@georgieluz - red, but not quite. a bird flitters into view from where you sit on a bench in a forested park. its winter, and the trees feel bare and lonely. surprisingly, the bird isnt a pigeon - it's a vermillion flycatcher. the bird stands out triumphantly against the monochrome sky as if a beacon, or a challenge to some higher power that says i am here. its bold, its singular, and one cant help but admire the sheer presence of this small vermillion creature. but when it opens its beak and sings, the trees dont look so lonely any more.

@next-autopsy - you know that color when a fire burns down, and the embers are glowing with a deep mahogany? the edges of smoke dont obscure the color or heat from the coals, it only seems to make them more ephemeral. its a mesmerizing color, its the feeling where you want so desperately to stretch out your fingers and know what that heartbeat of fire feels like, and although the burn doesnt completely dissuade you, you still pull your hand back. the dancing mahogany glows a little brighter, then dimmer, as if in time with your breathing.

@onlyyouexisthere - the words "pale green" dont quite do justice to the vibes your presence gives off. the softest pale green? cashmere, the color of mint leaves reflecting morning dew? maybe that's the closest, the feeling of looking out over a snow-brushed hill, hands warmed by a mug of silver needle tea, wrapped in a cozy cashmere sweater. something comforting but crisp, familiar but fresh, nostalgic but new. something pale green.

@land-sh - one time, i was on an airplane flying across the arctic. it was the middle of the night, and i looked out the window and slowly, over the course of two hours, watched the sun rise. the sky started as a pitch black, stars breaking up the endless void, and slowly, one color at a time it lightened into a blindingly bright day. but there was a moment, about 37 minutes in, and im pretty sure everyone on the plane was asleep. outside, all i could see was this deep, vast purple. it felt like there could be anything and everything beyond that color, and i was the only in the universe who would ever see it. idk why, but thats the color and vibe that comes to mind when i think of you.

@coco-bean-1218 - see, i thought about chocolate brown for you before i even realized that its just your username. but maybe its more than chocolate, maybe something closer to chestnut. you're that feeling when you walk through an orchard, it's november, and although the sun is shining its the kind of sun that seems to make everything more crisp than warm. as you walk through, there's a small crunch under your shoe - a chestnut. there's a deeply satisfying smell in the air, something woody and comforting, and you just want to get lost in the rows upon rows of chestnut brown dotting the branches and littering ground.

@samwinchesterslostshoe - okay so bear with me on this one - slate gray. the slate gray of a city on a rainy day, clouds and sky and sidewalk almost blending together into one entity. you duck into a coffee shop you never would have noticed if not for the weather. at first, you think the walls are just reflecting the color from the outside, and you feel a lonely pang. but then, you notice it - art, stickers, little notes of love written in sharpie and tucked in the space between tables. they stand out among the walls, and the absence of color makes their presence even brighter. and the coffee? so good. it's the best you've ever had, and you realize the coffee shop is just like the walls - you find beauty you never would have noticed without the slate gray of the sky.

....so i have no idea if any of this makes sense outside of my head, but here we are. if i missed you i am so sorry!!!

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okay okay i am sorry this is so long-winded. i am in fact, a long-winded bitch.

but thank you so much for asking this, and for just being such a wonderful part of our community! i hope your day goes super well!! 💕💕

[elekinetic]

user elekinetic do you have any tips to spare for outlining fics 😭 i feel like I word vomit any of the concept that I have in my head, and dialogue ,and build off that adding paragraphs as I go and I go so slow bc of it. But ive been trying hard lately to write a list of “scenes” and bullet point the story but yeah.

do you know anything that could help me have an idea of where to go start to finish instead of starting at the random spot I’ve come up with first? I waste so much writing time because I haven’t built a backstory for characters and things like that so i don’t always know how they start the story off, only the situation they’re in. Is that something that could help? Making a list for each character or something? Would love to hear your thoughts thank you! <3

hi! first of all i’m so flattered you asked! to be clear, i am a very slow writer too lmao and i’m relatively new to prose writing, and though in very confident in my understanding of what makes a good story (W screenwriting), i am still figuring out my outlining process. but hey! let’s learn together.

sorry in advance for how long this is. i love talking.

so i basically figure everything out in the outline and write after i feel very good about it. if you have a strong foundation, everything gets a hell of a lot easier. t kind of sounds like your process might be similar to mine, so i’m just gonna explain what i'm doing for my current project.

my key document is my “bible.” i split it up into a couple different sections using page breaks (page breaks my best friend ily page breaks):

pitch/word vomit summary

scene ideas

outline

notes

ok so wtf does that mean.

1. pitch/word vomit summary — explain your concept. bc i've got a film/tv background, im starting off with my logline. (e.g. "after robin learns will is gay, they have a heart to heart in an abandoned video store about insecurity and feeling alone. they learn they're not." sometimes i'll follow that up with a note to myself like, "this fic isn't robin finding out, this is what happens after. starts with her already knowing. will pov, focus on his perception of robin changing. subtly reference toward feelings about mike, dont come out (haha) and say it") then, i write as MUCH of the concept down as i can, like i'm explaining it to a friend. (sometimes i copy and paste rants from dms directly into the document). it can be totally out of order, non-sensical, contradictory. just get as many of your ideas down as possible. you want to be able to come back to this and be like, oh i totally forgot about that. vague chapter summaries, personal notes about themes, whatever you want. i have a list of beats that you find in romantic dramas for inspiration and a paragraph abt ways i want to parallel/subvert s3 of st. just. go ham. 2. scene ideas — this is pretty self explanatory. i take some of the stuff i have in the p/s and flesh it out, or put down new ideas. this is where i'm writing out dialogue in bullet points, or what i want them to be Really Saying. (e.g. "mike: [panics bc he feels seen, tries to flip it back on (redacted) and fails] ") this is for when i can see stuff more clearly or i get out of the shower with a whole exchange in my head. gonna be out of order, a little all over the place. 3. outline — so. this is where you start piecing it together. put the bullet points in order. figure out objective of each scene and what needs to happen to accomplish that goal. figure out pacing, what needs to happen when. this step is where im looking at dialogue and thinking "why does mike say that? why does he feel that way? what needs to happen to get him to this point emotionally?" or looking at scenes and thinking "these are two scenes with people arguing back to back. lets make sure they feel different and give the characters different tactics to get what they want (byler argument where mike is avoiding will vs max argument where max is avoiding lucas. i could use this to highlight similarities and differences in the relationships, but having two scenes with the same tactics back to back might feel repetitive. maybe i move the scenes farther apart or change circumstances. maybe mike and will are having a veiled argument while theyre with a group of friends in a public space and max and lucas' argument is outside max's house.) also asking if conflicts are resolved too quickly, if the miscommunications feel too convenient, if characters disappear or are only around as plot devices. write. troubleshoot. repeat. 4. random notes — everything else that doesnt fit. for me this is literally just taylor swift lyrics (writing the fic vaguely off of a Specific Song that SHOULD BE STREAMED MORE WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE anyway) and links to posts i use as character reference to make sure im staying true to the characters. (remembering will said "i was being a total jerk to el, i deserved it," AND "you're ruining everything, and for what!"/"i wasn't moping!")

i want it to be clear im doing all of this at the same time. im jumping around and pulling new ideas and rearranging as stuff changes. i think the thing that's really hard is that i want to be able to sit down, write the outline, and then move on. but for us scatterbrained writers, you're gonna have to re-outline and readjust like. a thousand times. and that's okay. that's good! it feels tedious as hell but the story is so much better for it.

take your time. let yourself be slow. keep finding holes in your story and fill the world in as you fix them.

here are some more questions i ask myself to make the story better:

What are you trying to accomplish over the course of the story? What is it about? (for the will&robin fic, it was something about feeling seen for the first time.) When you get lost in your story or aren't sure why a scene feels stale, come back to this. is the scene furthering that goal?

What is changing internally for each of your main characters? (yes theyre dating by the end but like. what do they learn.)

Are the side characters people or props? (will pov scene of a party-wide picnic where everyone's talking but will is focused on mike's hands.... where is max's head at in the scene? you don't have to have a super long backstory and she doesn't have to be a big part of the plot, but if she's saying something, figure out why she's saying it. if will is having a heart to heart with el, understand why el is responding the way she is. the scene's goal may be to get will through a breakthrough, but el's circumstances will change in the scene too. figure out how this conversation lands with her. oh, and remember the adults are people too!)

Why is this character saying this/why are they responding this way? (this should answer your "where do i start?" question. start in that random spot and figure out A) why they are there and B) why they are reacting the way they do (see last bullet point).

side note: some of the best advice i ever got was "enter the scene late, exit early." skip the prologue. try starting from that random spot. if it feels like something's missing, figure out exactly what that something is, and go from there

Do the stakes feel high enough?

What do i need to set up to make sure this scene/beat is satisfying as possible? (are will and mike going to have a big argument? oh, so we have to show tension before.... BAM you have another scene to write and your outline is fuller)

i could go on a lot longer but. basically.

i edit while i write. i'm someone who needs a very fucking strong outline and a very fucking clear idea of the story before i can start writing it. i'm putting probably 70-80% of the leg work in at the start so i can focus on making the prose (or script, most of the time) the best it can be.

THAT BEING SAID, this is just the way i do it and i have like. a fic and a half published. im taking my sweet time bc im creatively burned out and this is for fun first and foremost. like i said. i am a Very Slow Writer.

i highly, highly recommend hitting up the ask boxes of writers like @/strangeswift, @/wiseatom, @/astrobei, or @/andiwriteordie. no guarantees on responses bc they are busy ppl with busy lives but i really do think theyre some of the best writers out here right now, and im not just saying that bc they're my friends. abby (strangeswift) and i have been each other's sounding board through a lot of projects and she's almost done with one of her first Big Fics, so its worth asking her about that.

i hope this helps! ah!!

[ohagi-bites]

I— what— the fuck— wow. Thank y’all. So much!! First milestone 🫂🫂🫂