#I think this is about the time I rediscovered my tumblr account and about a week or two out before I became active

[hecateisalesbian]

it’s November 5th guys

[is-the-fire-real]

Whither the pro-Pals a year from now?

I feel that "fandom as politics" most adequately covers the behavior of pro-Palestinians on Tumblr, and being an Old Hand At Fandom, this gives me some impressions on what the future holds. I know this is a matter of great concern for those of us on Tumblr who are their favorite targets.

My estimates are not scientific, and are based on experience in seeing the rise and fall of many fandoms. I am not psychic and make no guarantees.

The Old Guard: The smallest contingent of pro-Palestinian activists will be permanently, irrevocably radicalized by propaganda, and they will not go back. Truthfully, there is nowhere for them to go. They have burned all of their online goodwill invested in this fandom, and as the rest fall away, they will rage at their own allies, burning those bridges as well. These people are just as hateful and insufferable IRL as they are online, so they will know nobody who isn't also pro-Pal. They will remain behind in the fandom. When it later repopularizes as Tumblr rediscovers the fandom due to future content being released in the form of another war, the Old Guard will snark and brag about how they carried the torch while everybody else abandoned the fandom of The Great Cause. The Old Guard will constitute the BNFs of the pro-Pal fandom and their closest friends, at most 10% of the current fandom.

The Fond Recollectors: A lack of new, shiny, emotionally-evocative content for the pro-Pal fandom will drop it, the same as how many fandom members abandon a fandom once it is cancelled or after endless delays for new material. These folks will not think of their time in the pro-Pal fandom as wasted. They will look back on this time of trauma, war, and upheaval as one of the most exhilarating and joyful times of their lives. They will generally act as though they weren't part of the fandom, but when they find people who used to be in the fandom, it will be like finding somebody who shares a fandom you used to adore. They will whisper, with smirking conspiratorialism, of how one time they got a Jewish--uh, Zionist--person to deactivate their Tumblr account. They will confess among one another how many times they sent "kys" messages to Zionists, and giggle. It will be like ex-Johnlockers lol'ing among themselves about having stalked the actors IRL. If the fandom gets new content in the form of a war, then the Fond Recollectors will rejoin with glee. They will accept the Old Guard's hostility ("Where were you all this time?") as their just punishment. Otherwise, Fond Recollectors will be mid-grade antisemitic in whatever new political or media fandoms they join. They will constitute roughly 30% of the current pro-Pal fandom, and will mostly be composed of folks who post extremely prolifically but are not currently BNFs.

The Shamefaced Ex-Fans: Whether we like it or not, most folks get caught up in a fandom cycle due to hype from friends and socmed pressure. This creates a peak of interest which is followed by burnout. A person in this category engaged constantly and thoughtlessly with pro-Palestinian fandom content for hours every day, yet never engaged with purpose or by creating transformative works. Once the fandom fails to produce enough new content, they will look around, dazed, and wonder what the hell they even liked about it in the first place. Now out of the hype cycle, Ex-Fans will be able to look more critically at their behavior. They will not recognize their Jew-hate, but they will recognize the silliness of a lot of their behavior. "Gosh, I can't believe I thought reblogging on Tumblr would end a war" will take the place of phrases like "... would make that ship become canon" in their lexicon. They will look back at this time with embarrassment; again, not because they understand the harm they have done, but because they understand it's "cringe" to care about stuff that's not pluperfect and doesn't achieve the stated goal. They will be the least apparently-antisemitic and the most likely to make friends with Jewish people online, because they will change their names and will not admit what they were doing during the Hamas/Israel war. If the pro-Pal fandom gets new content in the future--again, in the form of a new war--the Ex-Fans will primarily fall silent. They will be overwhelmed by shame (not guilt, and not responsibility). They will not rejoin unless dragged into it, but they will not speak out to support Jewish people. They will constitute roughly 60% of the current fandom.

These are bleak estimates, because a newly revitalized pro-Pal fandom will not need the Shamefaced Ex-Fans. The core of the fandom, the Old Guard and the Fond Recollectors, will do what all passionate cores of fandoms do in these situations: recruit. And while most of these recruits are destined to become Ex-Fans in the far future, many will join the other two categories, being partially or permanently radicalized into a movement of antisemitism.

In a sense, what we are seeing is what Tumblr would have been like if Moffat had said "Johnlock will never be canon, and it's all because of the Jews".

[everlastingday]

favourite fandom memories

thank you @thisbuildinghasfeelings for creating this tag game and for tagging me! 💜

favourite fandom memories tag game post

1 - how tarlos and lone star brought me back to tumblr and fandom after almost a decade

i still kind of feel like a bit of an imposter/outsider since i've only really been on here since late october, i think? i posted my first tarlos fic to ao3 after 5x05 aired, and then shortly after revived this tumblr account from the dead (my last post before then was literally in 2015 lol) because i was just itching for more tarlos and lone star content. rediscovering the joy of being part of a fandom has been such a highlight of the last year for me. it's a little intimidating to join a fandom that seems so tight-knit and already fully formed, but i want to thank anyone who's ever tagged me in anything and made me feel like i was also welcome to join in on the fun and not just lurk from the outside 💜

2 - liveblogging and post-episode analysis

i am a yapper and a rambler at heart and i've loved being able to liveblog the last few episodes and just sit with my feelings and write up my silly little thoughts. something about putting those thoughts into words and throwing them out into the void, even if nobody sees it, makes it such a different experience than just watching the episodes alone. my first post-episode word vomit about the tarlos loft fight will always remain my favourite because it's about them and love and family.

3 - fanfic, obviously

there are SO many talented fic writers in this fandom, i truly feel so blessed. my to-read list continues to grow by the day, and i hope that never stops being the case. i also want to shout out love game by @welcometololaland, which holds a special place in my heart because while it was not my first tarlos fic, it was my first foray into reading tarlos au fics, and the one that made me realize i actually really love au fics in general. i read it for the first time around this time last year, and have reread it so many times since then (and i definitely owe you all the comments lola, i'm so sorry! i promise one of those guest kudos is from me tho 🥲)

anyway let me stop being all in my feels and just say that despite being sad about the show ending soon, i'm so glad i'm not sad about it alone 💜

open tag & no-pressure tagging a few people under the cut!

@heartstringsduet @whatsintheboxmh @nancys-braids @reyesstrand @captain-gillian @lemonlyman-dotcom @bonheur-cafe @carlossreaders @lightningboltreader @eclectic-sassycoweyes @firstprince-history-huh @carlos-in-glasses @nisbanisba @henrygrass @emsprovisions @paperstorm @futures-tense

[dumb-phone-diaries]

So It's been like 2 months now since I started using the dumb phone. I had a few teething problems but I've actually solved a lot of the issues I mentioned in my last post. I've gotten much more used to the keyboard now and I've found a lot of shortcuts that i didn't realise were there at first so I'm now texting like a pro again.

The audiobook situation is not perfect but i've loaded this thing with a 32 gig SD card, and I found a wonderful opensource program called Libation, which scans my audible account, downloads my books and spits them into chapters all in one step. The bonus side effect of this is that I now have all of the books I've paid for stored on my computer hard drive where they won't disappear is audible changes their minds about hosting them.

This is probably very illegal and you should definitely not download it here: https://getlibation.com/

Granted, the books I'm currently listening to have chapters that are an hour long or so, and I can't exit out of the mp3 player without losing my spot. This has honestly been a blessing in disguise because it forces me to not be distracted every time I get a text message. have to wait for the end of the chapter before I can look at it. I can answer the phone without losing my place.

So yeah. the MP3 player could be better, and honestly there's no reason why it shouldn't be, I'm certain this thing has the capability, it's just shitty programming. But I'm dealing.

More significantly though. I've honestly been surprised at just how quickly my need to scroll has just gone. there wasn't even much of an adjustment period. for a couple of weeks I'd find myself occasionally picking up up my phone, unlocking it, and then locking it again and putting it down cuz there's nothing on there. But very quickly I just don't do that anymore. I don't even think about it that often. All the anxiety that I thought I was soothing, all the noise in my head that I thought i was turning off by scrolling, has just gone. The call was coming from inside the house, guys.

About once a week I come to my laptop and scroll tumblr for a few minutes, maybe half an hour, and I'm using pintrest very rarely if it's the best search engine for something I'm looking up, and I use facebook only for marketplace and my business page, and instagram again only for my business. It's forcing me to be very intentional about those things.

I've also rediscovered my ability to sit and stare into space. I haven't had the brain capacity to read a book with my eyes recently, so over breakfast I'm just... sitting and eating. Which I suppose is quite mindful. but also I'm just spacing out so maybe not. But that's something I haven't been able to do for a long time. It's nice.

I do need to get a camera though I think. I do need it for the business, I can't keep stealing my husband's phone to take pics, and sometimes he's not around when I want to make a post. Also I just like taking photos. The camera in the phone is sufficient for sending pics of things I found in the shops to my husband and sister, or sending my timesheet to my boss because his shitty software won't let me clock in on PC. But it's not good enough for product pics or anything like that.

I'm also now carrying my planner/journal/filofax thing around with me which is something i've been working toward doing for a long time. I don't have access to google calendar while out and about now so I need to write down my appointments properly. I bought a new bag that fits my journal, purse and book. I feel very cute using my planner in public.

So yeah. It's going well so far. I think this may be feasible as a permanent change.

[seat-safety-switch]

On my tombstone they will carve, IT NEVER GOT ECONOBOX ENOUGH FOR ME. I was a slave to those small engines, those dizzying peaky horsepower numbers lower than the fuel economy sticker, those Macpherson Struts. I’m getting sweaty just thinking about it. But mopeds? That was a bridge too far, or so I thought.

My accountant Roy saunters into the office, and he tells me that he just found five hundred bucks under the couch cushions in the breakroom and we should go buy mopeds. He impresses upon me the value of my investment in what he defines as motorized art, the alloy steeds spoken of in legend. In the parking lot, I ante up on the deal by popping the clips on my Subaru’s door card and extracting a further five hundred dollars, preserved minty-fresh by the vapour barrier.

As if on cue, the college radio station’s federally-mandated afternoon cultural appreciation programming, consisting entirely of artisanal banjo music, filled the speakers and our hearts with a sense of rural adventure. Together, we departed for the countryside, barging through covered bridges in full opposite lock.

“How many cylinders has it got?” I ask the swarthy man as he sneezed into his handkerchief, and rubbed his moly-greased paws on his hay-covered overalls.

“Got maybe one, I wager. I got it off one of them college boys came out here to protest the sour gas wells. Ambulance left it behind.”

I considered the moped carefully. It was a gently dented ‘71 Kreidler Florett, and it leaked oil and fuel in such quantities I had no doubt the paramedics had performed triage at the scene and slotted it into “already gone.”

“You boys aren’t college educated, are you?”

His line of questioning was interrupted by the stuffing of money down his denim neckhole. I was a moped owner. I was a motorcyclist. I was one of the Nicest People that you would meet, if you were driving a Honda at the time.

Weeks later, Roy tentatively rapped on the front door of my house. He was concerned. I hadn’t turned up to work for weeks. Did I have an accident learning to ride a motorcycle? I opened the door, just a crack, not wanting him to see my deep shame, but he shoved it open, knocking me onto my ass.

The scene that unfolded before him was one of horror. Every available surface in the house was occupied by mopeds, or moped parts. He turned and stared at me, his face white with disbelief.

“They’re just so small,” I whimpered. “I ran out of room in the garage and I just had to keep saving them they were so lonely, I don’t know what to do.”

As always, my intrepid accountant had a good idea of how to spend my money. Weeks later, our series of vintage moped rent-a-racer events had flourished and America was rediscovering its love of the two-stroke. We were both richer than we could imagine, but the greatly soaring demand for mopeds had raised the price of our junk into the stratosphere.

I rode home on the Kreidler, wondering where it had all gone so wrong. At the lights, I looked up to witness an enormous billboard, advertising the triumphant and flashy return of the Honda CT90. You asked for it, the ad copy roared, and here it is.

Yes. I asked for it.

Note: This is the 3000th entry on this tumblr. I can't believe it's lasted this long, and I'm a little humbled that people seem to be really enjoying it. In honour of the anniversary, this is my all-time favourite post (check out the best of tag for more, or enjoy a random post from the collection) and I'm taking the night off, rather than writing a new one. New shitbox posts resume tomorrow. Thanks for reading.

[katvenus]

So yesterday, July 27th 2024, I had this random urge of downloading tumblr, rediscovering my account. Since I didn't even remember I had an account, I had to request a new password, leading me to my old hotmail outlook so I could change it. To my surprise I found not 1, but 2 emails from Tumblr; a recent one requesting the password change and one sent earlier at 15:27 stating: "PANDORA turns 12 years old today!".

At first glance I was confused since I knew "Pandora" was the name I gave to my alter ego when I was a teen, but I didn't remember anything about this old tumblr account of mine, at all.

Apparently, part of me (Pandora, perhaps?) did remember though, since I just happened to log back into my dead tumblr exactly on its 12th anniversary, unbeknownst to me, and stumbled upon my old posts, pictures, scattered thoughts, narrow interests of that time... and upon the "#2014 revival" hashtags and blogs, which has surprisingly awakened a spark of nostalgia to my 2014 days...

I never really used tumblr that much even back then (as you can see if you look through my blog) and I highly doubt anyone will read this, but I thought stumbling upon my old blog on its anniversary and revisiting the sh*tposting of my younger self seemed like such a fated thing that I've decided it was worth writing about it and the feelings and thoughts it has evoked in me so that when 12 years from now I remember tumblr again I get to see a glimpse of yet another version of myself through the years.

Although I am a completely different person now (or perhaps, just a different version of the same person) and everything has changed so much, inside and out, I think I'm finally able of doing what 2014 me couldn't do and reconcile all parts of me, both good and bad, dark, light and even grey, and leave this blog up just as it was, even though I don't relate to past me anymore, because I guess she's still part of me somehow and I'm not ashamed of her the way she used to be.

And maybe even... with this whole 2014 nostalgia, looking back at my own picture and remembering those times... I might as well try to relive the blog to further feed into the nostalgia. Oh, to be 16 again, listening to the Arctic Monkeys and taking soft grunge/tumblr aesthetic photos as I changed my hair color every other week... Such a time of my life I truly thought I would never really miss but I guess it's already been long enough by now that it is worth the nostalgia!

[skepticalarrie]

Hi Allie, I just wanted to say thank you! I have been going down the Larry Rabbit hole the past weeks. triggered by Liam’s death, I first rediscovered my love for One Direction Music, then found out how much I also love listening to Harry and Louis, and finally got into Larry. Also I barely knew anything about Larry back then, I am fully on board now. I am in love with their undeniable love for each other. Your tumblr really helped me understand everything connected to them. From the industry, closeting, babygate, the bears, whatever there is. I started on TikTok, Instagram, and Reddit. But found Tumblr and especially yours going so much deeper. Like you wrote somewhere, being a Larry is not shipping them but believing in their Love and them being an item. Every time I think about something regarding Larry I just look through your posts and see if you wrote something connected. Today I had to deal with rather negative emotions. Which usually triggers multiple things and when I saw somewhere someone bringing up Louis denial from this year I felt really sick. I couldn’t separate my general feelings from that topic. At least for a moment. I went through your denials tag and read them all. Which helped me get a grip for that topic and separate it from my general feelings going on today. This last denial still irritates me a lot but I guess I get it. It’s part of the closeting. There is not really an ask here and you don’t have to reply. I guess I just wanted this to share with you.

Hi, anon! Oh, I’m so happy my blog has been helpful to you. I think when everything feels so fresh, it’s harder to control our emotions. I remember when I first got into Larry, I was constantly angry about everything. But over time, you start coming to terms with things, thinking more rationally, and realizing our place as fans... just observers of what they’re going through.

My advice is to surround yourself with people and accounts that bring you joy and don’t upset you. With time, your feelings will mature, and it’ll all feel less overwhelming 💕

[lumonyix]

welcome to my tumblr! (new and improved)

Hi there! I’m lumonyix (pronounced loom-oh-nicks) also known as Ace. I’m making my (not-so-grand) return to being active online (and by that I mean posting and then immediately leaving) as of now (late 2024).

If you know me from DeviantArt, Instagram, Twitter, or somewhere else (either by lumonyx or lumonyix), you are within the minority. I have never had a following and would not like to have one now, but I did try and get some traction on Instagram for a while. It’s better that I didn’t get much because if I were a teenager posting in today’s world people definitely would have hardcore bullied me because my art was very ugly for longer than it should have been. I think it’s at least presentable now. I am a hobbyist and draw purely for fun, when I have the time and energy.

I don’t expect this page to curate a following; if it somehow does I will be beyond shocked. As a heads-up, I am very bad at posting frequently. I’ll mainly post something when I draw something. Which is infrequently.

I am an avid fan of Dragon Ball currently, much of my artwork will probably be related to this. I was an extreme Team Galactic fan as a high schooler and am currently rediscovering my Cyrus obsession in real time :D

Nothing much else to say but list a few of my other interests:

I love to play video games and listen to music!! I also like reading manga (trying to get back into reading actual like, literature)

Steam Community :: aceofspace_

^this is my steam account if you want to know the kind of stuff I play! In terms of music, I will listen to just about anything but like alternative rock in particular!

I am obsessed with characters i literally love characters so much. characters are the most important parts of fiction to me and are my main artistic inspiration. Some of my favorites are:

Vegeta - Dragon Ball

Frieza - Dragon Ball (IMPORTANT NOTE: I hate him but am fixated on him. He is ugly and short. I have no love for him whatsoever. I think he is very gay. But i like thinking about him because making fun of him is therapeutic)

Shin - Dragon Ball

Cyrus - Pokémon

Pompompurin - Sanrio

Rarity - My Little Pony FIM

…and MANY more, mainly DBZ/Pokémon related

side note I am a shipper, i like thinking about my favorite characters kissing and occasionally drawing it. not super crazy about anything rn but I was the BIGGEST Cyrus x Cynthia shipper to ever exist and am slowly falling back down that rabbit hole. My Pokémon lore is too insane. Also around 2021 I started being a huge Frieza x Android 17 fan, I have a good amount of art sitting from that time, don’t think I’ll post it LOL but if you are a Cynthius or Frie17 truther ily.

that’s about it! I’m mainly just here to chill and keep a digital lookbook of my art around. if you actually read this far, thank you for listening to the ramblings of an insane person

so long!

[clearlynotjanus]

[leans into the mic hesitatingly. a loud screech of feedback is heard as i try to speak]

uhhhh hello? anyone still......here? hard to see the audience past the stage lights, you know how it is.

i haven't thought about this fandom in over a year. while writing my last loceit fic, i got very overwhelmed with how bogged down with terminology & lore & my general wordy writing style that i burned out of finishing the last chapter. at the same time, my partner & i rediscovered another anime...& when our hyperfixation there ended, we got into ffxiv... then bg3... & now dragon age... i've always disliked that about myself. never able to stay in one place long enough to feel like i've left an impact or had done anything interesting.

but i got the kindest comment of my ao3 history the other day on that abandoned loceit fic & i've been ruminating on it since. the person talked about how, despite it not being finished, they still thought about it at least once a month & came back to read it with excitement from time to time. i thought of all the fics i do the same with & compared myself to them... ofc there's a lot to be said about not treating fanfic authors or "fandom famous" people differently than anyone else, because online numbers are fake & all that, but there's an undeniable admiration, i think, we all have for people with "large accounts" or high kudos counts or exceptional artistic talent that we feel we don't compare to. i thought of myself in that lens for a moment, as someone who wrote something impactful enough to leave that lasting of a mark & it made me so happy. i felt fulfilled by it.

writing has always been my one talent, i've always thought it was the only thing i was destined to be good at. my opinion of my writing has hit peaks & valleys in my life of course, we all go through self doubt & ego issues, but at the end of the day, writing has been the one constant about myself. the one thing i've always wanted to challenge myself with, the one thing i could go back to, if nothing else. home.

with the current state of my country (america, unfortunately) i've started to think that my fantasies of writing anything "worth" reading are futile. it seems insignificant in the grand scheme, to create art when the world is ending. i never dreamed about any aspiration in my own lifetime. i've always wanted to leave something behind worth analyzing. worth talking about. worth exploring. sitting in various liberal arts classes in my life, i always daydreamed about one of my stories being the subject matter someday. long after i was dead. it's dismal to think that it might not be my own inability to create something worthy that prevents that daydream from coming into fruition.

every other queer person is rallying. they're brave for it but i can't bring myself to join the movement. not that anything i say or do will be monumental of course, but no one knows how big of a thing is going to come out of this. the little people might be caught up in it too. someday soon, sites like ao3 & tumblr may be gone, or at least inaccessible for americans. & that's terrifying. so i think of the person who left that lovely, inspiring comment on a fic i hadn't thought about in over a year, instead. because even if i never accomplished any of my bigger goals with my writing, i did, at least, leave a little bit of an impact & that has to be enough.

i want to say that i'll finish that fic in honor of all this. it feels right to say that, but with everything going on, i don't know if it would be the truth. i have a commission currently, & i've buried my head in the dragon age sands for now. i want to. i reread the whole fic & my notes from it for the last part & it's good. it's better than i remember it being, & i want to finish it. but as most of you have realized by now, i'm very bad with promises lmao

i do miss this fandom though, everything else aside (asides lmao) i had some good friends here before i burnt out & burned my bridges about it. i'm sorry for that. i hope everyone here has been doing better than me at least

[elderlingacademic]

Update

So, tumblr just saw fit to tell me that this blog is now nine years old, which is... wild and strange to me. It's been a long time since I've been on it, and some of the posts are still getting notes, so I thought I'd stop by with a catch-up on how things are.

So:

I've finished my PhD. The process was bad enough to make my mental health plummet to previously unseen depths (for me, anyway), which is why I dropped off the face of this earth blog. I managed to pass with technical corrections only, which is a huge achievement that I think one day I might figure out how to feel about, but it's too soon right now.

My mum has read it, and thought it was very good - I'm hoping sometime (it's gonna be years, but) to be able to reread it with a clear head and appreciate it. Same with Realm of the Elderlings, honestly.

End of PhD meant some big life changes, some of which I'm still in the middle of. I live in a different city now, and I'm trying to figure out what I want to do with my life, because academia is no longer the answer.

I guess for the last year since I finished I've been wanting to post something about this but trying to work out how, and I think that the core of it is this: it is okay for things to not work out how you expected. If you are neck-deep in academia right not, it is not the whole world, I promise you. I finished my PhD, but I seriously considered quitting, and I still don't think that would have been the wrong decision. (Neither was carrying on. They were both acceptable options, no matter how fraught I felt about them at the time).

We are taught to view our lives like a kind of funnel - we start with a plethora of options, and then we narrow down further and further until we specialise (oh we might have other unrelated hobbies, but the core of it is Our Thing). But that's not how that works, that's not how any of this works at all. The world is wide. I can choose anything now. I mean, most of the things I've thought of so far I don't actually want to do for various reasons, but I know myself well enough to know that I'll figure it out eventually. If I just let it simmer in the back of my head, and give it time. You don't have to know the answer; in a way, you are the answer, if that makes any kind of sense.

I stuck with the job that I picked up part time to fund my PhD, and took it full time. It's definitely not a forever option, but it was a blessing to be in a new city, strangely liberated from the PhD that took up eight years of my life (and the general academia that took up the majority of my whole life before then), and doing something I already knew how to do. It's helping rebuild my confidence, and I know that whatever come next is going to be something I can make something of.

I hope that's not so rambly as to be incoherent; regardless, I'm glad I wrote it. I do still see asks on this account, so if you ever have any queries about academia (not the technical side, but what it feels like to get through sometimes), let me know. I can't promise quick answers, but I'll try to answer most things.

I hope you are all well, and thank you for the notes that remind me this blog still exists - a testament to the love and enthusiasm I had for this project at the start, and that I still hope to rediscover some day.

[newmayhem]

So I just found out the other day that the Backlist + Chill podcast is ending after their next season so now I’m coming out of my unintentional hiatus for a hot second to give them their flowers! I chickened out on the Maeve’ra season and haven’t had a chance to listen to any of the most recent episodes but this was one of my favorite podcasts of all time and I’m going to miss it so much 😭. I think I started listening right at the beginning of their run because they were the only YA nostalgia book podcasts that even mentioned Den of Shadows. Every time a new episode dropped, I would literally plan my whole week around it. It was always really fun to rediscover (and sometimes be disappointed by) my old faves but most times, I didn’t even care about whatever books they were reviewing (I haven't read most of them), I’d just listen along because the reviews and banter are hilarious and their cohost chemistry is the best and they have a fun theme song. Their twitter account is also pretty great because I’m a Cliff Nielsen enthusiast and I love it when they post old book covers.

Also, idk if the dates actually line up, but I’m pretty sure they inspired me to get back into the Den of Shadows and start this project and blog in the first place (which I’m pretty sure ended up indirectly manifesting Dare Seize the Fire and ahar’s Patreon). So thank you, Backlist + Chill! (@seedsofwinter (idk if Cyna has a tumblr too, but please share this with her as well!))

[moonshine-nightlight]

i don’t know if you’ve answered this before, but I absolutely love your writing style! how did you get into writing?

thank you!!

short version is i got really into reading cool books when i was a kid and then i wanted to read other cool books but they didn't exist so i started just imagining those books and eventually i started writing them down.

longer version below the cut, if ur interested

it's been awhile but pretty sure i got into writing because i got really into reading lol. 4th grade (10 yrs old) is when i started just consuming as many books as i could get (i think something put me off when i was even younger but then i rediscovered books i liked and nothing could stop me) and i always loved imagining cool books or stories in my head (wouldn't it be so cool if i could find a book about x or with a character like y or had z in it? etc).

8th grade (13 yrs old) i think is when i started writing my own stories in spiral ring notebooks, both original stories (something about finding a magical path in the forest that led to colorful dragons i think?) and fanfiction (both my own and with a group of friends--we'd pass around the notebook and each write different parts of the fic).

while i've always had files and scrawled notes of original stuff, aside from some "poetry" i submitted to my high school literary magazine, i mostly posted/finished fanfic because it was shorter, i could get less distracted by worldbuilding, and those got views/comments which was more motivational.

i had a brief writing drought after i graduated college and my Real Job started and i was just very very busy, but i finally started posting again, but still just fanfic. i had started developing more original ideas and trying to actually write and finish some of them during this time, but did not truly consider posting any of it nor was i really making a lot of progress anyway.

then through tumblr, i stumbled upon some of the monster romance original works (@snowkissedmonsters i think was the specific writer i can remember jump starting that) and it kinda kickstart-ed the part of my brain that comes up with story ideas. and with some time, encouragement, and being possessed by the idea for "Nothing's Wrong with Dale", i started posting original works and haven't really stopped since.

i've always been interested in fantasy, sci-fi, speculative fiction etc, but more of my older ideas were YA because i was a YA (my protagonists tend to age as i did lol) and less romance focused, although many had sort of, side character love interests. i had always struggled with writing shorter stories and so i was interested in trying to really write short things both as a challenge to myself but also so i could actually frickin' finish stories that weren't fanfic. that's worked pretty well, even if i'm still not able to write one-shot original stories like some others out there.

i think i've imporoved a lot over the years and am really grateful for all the practice writing via fanfic i was able to do and am continuing to do, jsut on my other tumblrs/AO3 accounts (because i dont think there's a lot of audience overlap with this writing)

that's probably a longer answer than u wanted, but i hope it wasn't to rambling!

thanks again for asking and the compliment on my writing :)

[chickateeart]

"So you want to start blogging now...?"

I can hear my inner voice drawl.

Yes. Yes, I guess I do. Maybe?

I don't even remember the last time I wrote a blog post. I mean, sheesh - look at this place. Have you scrolled through it? I have. I've scrolled through it an awful lot the past few months. This space and other places I occupy (or used to, at least) on social media. As a result of having withdrawn completely from everyone online and offline, I've become increasingly critical of the person I chose to show online.. which began to extend to becoming critical of the person I was in real life.

"Is this person that I imagine myself to be or the person I imagine others want to see me be?"

Whoops - digging a little too deep now, so lemme hit the brakes and back it up a little. We will get there eventually (it's a theme I explore in my art and writing a lot, though you wouldn't know it), but how I perceive myself in public spaces isn't the point of this. What I wanted to say was that I've scrolled through this particular little piece of real estate I have here on tumblr and I realized that I never truly made this place my home. I never stopped long enough to slow down and make a nice welcoming space here - I would just drop my art or latest commission pricing and run.

How whack.

This is where I stretch my legs out and loosen up my grip on my carefully curated image, right? We get to talk shop here. I get to explain my art processes and my struggles and my successes and you can sit here and read

every.

single.

word.

and you'll be delighted.

Because why wouldn't you be, if you're here? Unless you're somebody new stumbling on this space, but let's be honest.. the only people here with me on my slice of tumblr are the bots, some rats, and possibly a friend or two if they're still around (hi! <3) - so basically everyone who is probably pretty well acquainted with me. You're likely quite delighted by little ol' me, if I know you as well as I think I do.

This is embarrassing...

Anyway... At this rate, I'm just rambling and getting my thoughts out on "paper". I keep a journal, but it's so much more "I do this for my mental health and I'll crumble if I don't do it" and while that's very important, I also need to nurture my deeply and horribly wounded creative spirit. I'm actually hoping using this tumblr and talking about my art will help give me a little accountability to my goals and make me feel more comfortable about sharing my art again at all.

The past couple of years have been difficult. I struggle to feel in touch with my art - the heart and message behind my creations and the voices that inspire my stories have all been strangled, held beneath muddy waters. Seriously! It's been a strangely desperate journey of rediscovering my voice and reclaiming even a sliver of my self-esteem - a journey that could certainly be told in a lovingly-crafted abstract animated film of some sort, if I were dedicated enough to do such a thing.. but even if I just type it out, one blog post at a time, maybe it's worth the embarrassment of vulnerability to share what's been rattling in this skull for so long.

That's it for tonight, but I hope I'll have a chance to catch you next week (or in a couple of weeks? Work has been utterly exhausting) when I share what I've been up to and vaguely what I'm planning. The loose plan right now is that, with any luck, a friend and I will be sharing a table at a local art fair in a few months. If that does happen, I wanna be ready with some pieces of work that I'm proud of, y'know? So, keep your eyes peeled. I'm looking forward to telling you all about it, okay? :)

♡Tee

P.S. I'm tagging these as "hey chickatee" because idk I think it's cute. Like you're saying "hello" to me by looking up the tag to catch the latest long-winded post by Yours Truly.

[winniethegoblin]

Welcome back, I nearly didn't recognise you

Hi, not sure what this is really, a somewhat ungraceful return to tumblr I guess. The last time I was on this site I don't think I was long out of my teens, I remember my time on here through the 2010s, it was wild and a lot of dodgy shit went down but I cant say I don't remember it fondly, partly.

Most fondly I remember the community, the connections, some of the closest friendships I ever had. You know I flew across the world to NYC to visit someone I met on here when I was still a teenager!? Mental. And since the mass exodus and the fall of tumblr I've only really been on the other main 3 insta, twt, fb. I don't even use fb so disregard that entirely, but insta is all fabricated performative bollocks, and twt is a scam since musk took over. Point being, its been a long long time since I've felt any sense of community on the internet, it became solely about showing off and updating your friends, family, and colleagues.

It wasn't until tonight when I was watching a documentary that I was reminded about an era of the internet in which building relationships with absolute strangers wasn't unheard of, it wasn't dangerous, it wasn't intimidating, people just built communities and I suddenly felt so alone. I had deleted all my socials from this era long ago, out of embarrassment from who I once was, or so I couldn't be found by the bad actors that were ever present in those days. In doing so I had severed myself from those communities, and after years of abusing this pink mush rattling around inside my skull I cant track down much and what I can leads to dead ends.

And so I guess that leads me here, creating a new tumblr account in the big year of 2024, wild. I dont know what this is really, a place to put my thoughts away from anyone in my real life, an attempt to rediscover what a communal internet is like, or just someone returning to the empty four walls that once was the bedroom they grew up in, in hopes to feel that comfort they once felt all those years ago.

[daydreamingdrawerette]

My handle is from my early Tumblr years (2010) and stems from my made-up "feminized" version of "drawer", as I like to draw (literally translated from the Dutch "tekenares"). And during the time I created my Tumblr, I was a slacky uni student who only thought about partying + anime + memes + fashion and admired the quirky-hipster and boho fashion aesthetics that were in style back then, so I guess that's why I associated myself with a daydreamer.

Years later, I renamed my handle to "SprummerHeart" which is a word play on chillwave band "Summer Heart" and the Spring-Summer transition was my fave time of the year (now I have mixed feelings about this period due to suffering a bit from grass pollen allergies since my late 20s)

When I rediscovered The Sims 2 in 2021 (a.k.a. the crisis that must not be named), I revamped this account to share my TS2 screenshots and keep up with the TS2 CC creators I like. I renamed my handle back to "daydreamingdrawerette" because I got back into drawing and my head was full of TS2 storytelling inspiration. So yeah, having TS2 as hyperfocus kept me sane during an era of uncertainty and limited activites.

But in daily life atm, I'm not a daydreamer most of the time and am actually hypervigilant instead. Thinking out loud, I could change my handle to "hypervigilantsimmerette" or the nickname I use on Sim forums and Discord, but it breaks links and tags on Tumblr 🤔.

📩 Simblr question of the day: What's the story behind your URL?

answer in whatever way is most comfortable for you and feel free to share this SQOTD around, make sure to use the hashtag SQOTD and tag me in separate posts ~ 💛

This question was contributed by an anon ! ~Thank you for the SQOTD contribution~

[choicesficwriterscreations]

CFWC Writer of the Month: liaromancewriter

Each month CFWC highlights one of our talented fanfic writers, and this month’s writer of the month is @liaromancewriter ! We hope you will enjoy learning more about her and her work below! The writer is selected at random. More info can be found on the navigation page.

Quick Links: 

Tumblr blog: liaromancewriter Tumblr Masterlist Maxenna Masterlist

Tumblr Blog: 

How do you want to be known on Tumblr? 

Lia or Mal. Both are my nicknames in real life, depending on who’s calling, so I respond to either.

1- When did you start playing Choices? What's the first book you played? 

I first downloaded Choices in August 2020 after being bombarded with its ads on another game. I figured I'll try it and see what it was about. My average track record for mobile games is 2-3 months, and then I get bored and delete the app. That didn't happen here because I quickly realized it's not a game but a library of fiction books in all genres. Two and a half years later, I'm still here reading Choices.

The first book I played (read?) was The Royal Romance. I believe it pre-loaded when I opened the app the first time. I fell in love with the Prince (who I named Aiden as it's my favorite boy name) from the first moment. To this day, I think the first two TRR books are the most romantic stories on Choices. 

Incidentally, I started playing Open Heart at the same time, but mostly to earn diamonds for TRR since medical stories weren’t really my thing (that’s changed now obviously). But Ethan Ramsey was equally irresistible and I had a hard time saving my diamonds when romancing the two.

2- When and why did you join Choices fandom?

I didn't know there was something called a Choices fandom, so it's very happenstance. Unofficially, I joined in November 2020 as a silent reader and didn't have a Tumblr account. Officially, I created my Tumblr account on December 7 and started becoming more active in January 2021. 

I had just finished Open Heart: Second Year and then Platinum (for the fourth time), and was feeling adrift. I was obsessed with Raleigh Carrera and googled him out of curiosity to see what might be out there. I came across fics posted on AO3 and then Tumblr. 

Then, I googled Ethan Ramsey as I was missing OH and just wanted to get lost in that world again. I came across a plethora of fanfics, mostly on Tumblr. I originally started reading them on my mobile browser and still have masterlist pages bookmarked (in order) on Safari for @lem-20 (the first OH writer I read and followed because her pfp match my book sprite), @jamespotterthefirst and @starrystarrytrouble. 

I didn't know fanfiction was a thing, so I was a bit baffled by all of it initially. The more I read, the more I loved the interpretations others were bringing to the story. I was also generally impressed by writers unafraid to write and post their work for the world to read, and that inspired me to want to publish my original stories online.   

3- How did you pick your url name? 

My original intent with Tumblr was to publish my original romantic fiction novel, Happy Ever After. And, maybe in the future write and post more original romance short stories as an exercise to rediscover my fiction voice. 

When I was creating the account, I blanked on what to call it. In a burst of "just pick a username already", I named my blog liaromancewriter to represent my nickname (Lia) and the type of stories I would be posting (romance). 

By the way, my desired account name initially was hopelessromantic, but it was taken. When I was setting up the blog headline and description, I decided to go with The Hopeful Romantic because the phrasing best embodied my perspective of soulmates and happy ever afters.

4- Go back to your archive and tell us about the first post on your Choices blog. 

My first Choices fandom post was a reblog game response on January 11. All posts on my blog before that were chapters of Happy Ever After.

5- How long have you been writing fanfiction?

I published my first ever fanfic, First Impressions, on February 15, 2021. So, about 22 months.

6- What is your favorite Choices book to write about?

I only write for Open Heart, so I would say it remains my favorite as I keep coming up with stories for this extended universe I’ve created for my pairings.

7- Share the first fanfic you wrote with us. Do you still like it or would you change anything about it?

The first fic I submitted to CFWC was Me Before You on April 5, 2021. I think I’d only heard about this blog in March of that year and didn’t know that anyone could submit. 

It’s very much an introspective piece, showing Ethan’s inner thoughts, and Cassie's too. I love writing descriptive stories about what people are thinking and feeling. It’s when my writing is the strongest.

I still like that story. Having said that, the middle of this fic drags a little, so I’d probably want to tighten that up. I also hadn't fully developed my headcanon for their relationship yet. Anyone who reads my work knows that it's like a TV series where everything is connected, and the plot continues along a specific timeline, even if one-shots are posted at different times of the year. 

So the timeline inside the story doesn't quite sync up perfectly with the rest, but I've learnt to let it go....somewhat. 😂

8- What is your favorite fic that you’ve written?

Can I pick two? I’m picking two, one for each of my pairings. At this stage, they’re both equal OTPs anyway.

Ethan & Cassie: Come Undone

Max & Sienna: Unforgettable

9- Do you have a fic that you didn’t expect to be well received, but it was? What about one you expected to be but could use a little more love?

I know that notes aren't everything since there are many silent readers out there. But it's the only metric Tumblr allows writers to use. So, this answer is solely based on that.

It’s not a fic, but a series. The original Maxenna series, Then There Was You, was incredibly popular both in terms of notes and comments and in attracting new readers despite the fact that I wrote it after the series had already ended, and it was a side character (Sienna) and an OC (Max). I’m forever grateful because it’s an original story in every sense of the word, with some nods/references to canon. Despite the fact that it’s Sienna, she’s an OC, too, since we don’t know too much about her in canon.

For the second part of this question, I thought Seeing Red would have been more popular. It's angsty, and has Ethan’s relationship with Louise, Cassie and Ethan fighting (somewhat). So, it was surprising it didn't get as many notes. But then, I also wrote it in 2022, and the fandom isn't what it used to be. So that could be one reason.

10- If you could write only angst, fluff, or smut for the rest of your writing life, which would it be and why? 

Fluff...absolutely 100% fluff. Anyone who knows me for five seconds knows that I'm all about finding and keeping your soulmate. Real life is hard, the fictional world doesn't have to be.

I grew up reading fairytales and love Hallmark movies. When I discovered romance books in uni, I fell in love with the journey of two people falling in love and finding their happy ever after. I also enjoy writing about relationships; while there are angsty moments in those, it's the resolution of finding your way to the light that makes me happy. Happy Endings Guaranteed is my motto. 

11- Do you ever recognize yourself in any of your MCs or in your writing?

I bring parts of myself to all my characters. In real life, I'm more like Ethan and Max; the professional and personal elements in their personalities are based on me and my experiences. 

Cassie's ambition and determination to prove herself are pure me. That's why even in canon, I never gave a thought to why a Junior Fellow was qualified to head the Diagnostics Team. I was running my own department by the time I was 30. It's all about seizing opportunities even if you don't think you're ready. You learn on the job and eventually make it your own.

One other observation is that I’m a champion researcher and accuracy is important to me. So, when I write I bring that accuracy and plausability to all scenarios. My Google history will attest to that. 😝

12- What element of writing do you struggle with most?

I struggle with writing common, every day body gestures without repeating myself. I can visualize the scene in my head like someone wrapping their arms around the other or framing their lover’s face between their hands. But I don’t always know how to write it well or at least have more diversity in the words/expressions that I use. 

13- Do you have any neglected work you really want to finish?

No. I don't do WIPs. Sometimes I'm not happy with a fic, so I'll write the first draft but not publish it for a while. I'll do/write other things and then come back to start editing the fic until it works. Candy Thieves and Postcard Memories are two good examples of that.

I do have a document with about 20+ possible story ideas, but some of those are random thoughts that might or might not have a story in them.

14- If someone you know in real life (who isn’t involved in fandoms) asked to read your work, would you let them? If yes, what would you recommend they read first? 

Absolutely! I mostly share my Wattpad account with them rather than Tumblr as the former can be easier to navigate for novice readers. But my close friends have my Tumblr blog link. 

I always ask them to read Happy Ever After (original work) first since it’s mine and doesn’t require knowledge of canon. But for fanfiction, I tell people to start at the top of my masterlist and work their way down. This way, they’ll get to meet my characters from the beginning and go on the journey with them, even if they’ve never read canon. 

15 - Are there any writers (published authors and/or fanfic writers) who influenced your writing?

I’m mostly influenced by published authors with Nora Roberts, Jayne Ann Krentz and Julie Garwood leading the pack. I love how Nora does scene setting and descriptions, and shows relationships between people (romantic and platonic); my approach to storytelling is largely influenced by her. 

Jayne Ann Krentz does a great job of writing spunky heroines who aren’t afraid to take chances, no matter if it’s a modern setting, paranormal or historical. While Julie Garwood’s novels are fluffy with wonderfully memorable characters especially the LI. Aiden Madison remains my perfect guy to this day and I wish he was real. 🥰

I do want to give a shoutout to @jamespotterthefirst whose edits and text fics showed me that there’s another interesting way to tell a story than writing prose. I live in hope she will finish her First Year Pictagram series (hint, hint, Bree 😉)

16- Which one of your stories would you most like to see as a movie/series? 

Maxenna’s original series would make a great Hallmark movie/series. As a student of Hallmark’s formula, I think it has all the elements including a slow burn, delayed first kiss, love declaration closer to the end, swoonworthy proposal and wedding, and of course family.

17- Do you write original stories? 

Absolutely, but maybe not as much recently (unless you count Maxenna). I’ve already talked about Happy Ever After here. I have 2 other completed manuscripts that I hope to do something with one day.

18 -  What other hobbies do you have?

I don’t have a ton of free time, so what I do have is reserved for reading books (my first love). Other than that, I watch a lot of cooking shows on Food Network. At the end of a long and busy day, there’s something very soothing about watching other people cook/work. 

19 - What’s your favorite emoji? 

😂