#I'm very proud of this comic. writing something short in a limited and with just trope characters setting was so much fun!

[spicymotte]

Ad Infinitum // Winner of an Excellence Award in the Tapas International Comic Contest (Contest theme: The Last Train) Summary: In an act of self-sacrifice, the heroine defeats the villain. This courageous act, however, throws them both into limbo, where they're now stuck, nervously waiting to see if this is the end of everything - or a new beginning.

[lil-cutesy-things]

How to enrich and expand your vocabulary (Writing 101 with an old soul #2)

Hi lovelies and welcome to the second part of my series "Writing 101 with an old soul"!! *clap clap* 👏👏👏

So today's lesson is going to be about:

┌─── ∘°❉°∘ ───┐

Enriching your vocabulary

└─── °∘❉∘° ───┘

Here are some basic tips that worked for me and allowed me to expand and broaden my vocabulary:

✘ Read. A lot. I know it may sound annoying as hell but I hardly ever find myself learning new words when talking to someone, unless they are really eloquent or use technical vocabulary of course. I would recommend reading basically everything, even the material that you dislike or do not find interesting. Just a brief reminder – there are lots of media out there that you can find really easily. Literature is not limited to novels – think of short stories, fanfiction, poetry, comics, manga, graphic novels, etc. (And most of the time you don't even have to buy them to read them!)

✘ Watch movies, series, documentaries, etc. It may help you learn technical vocabulary if its main focus is on a topic that you want to learn more about. Plus it can be of great help to learn more about timelines, managing space and time, well-written or poorly-written characters, recurring themes, symbols and metaphors, etc.

✘ Listen to music which the lyrics are not in your first language. It will not only help you learn little by little other languages, but will also help you broaden your point of view, expand your mind and your horizons. Obviously you have to stay patient and be kind to yourself –it will not happen overnight. But I can guarantee that it will have a positive cultural and psychological impact on you.

Now you may wonder, "What should I do with my new breadth of vocabulary?"

Here is an example. You want to describe one of your female characters who is called Poppy (yes, just like the flower) and give your readers a glimpse of what she looks like. You already have some ideas about her physical appearance and made a list out of them:

Quite fragile/delicate at first sight

Real pretty though

Black ebony eyes

Red hair + thin, white strands

Soft & smooth skin

No make-up

So now that you have enough words to describe Poppy, you can start writing a descriptive passage focused on her.

I would advise you to start with very simple, basic sentences in order to be able to make them more beautiful later. It could be something like:

"Poppy seemed quite fragile at first sight but she was really pretty though. She had black ebony eyes and red hair with thin, white strands. Her skin looked soft and smooth even though she was not wearing any make-up."

Let's try and embellish this description, shall we?

I took this descriptive passage from one of the stories that I posted on Wattpad – be careful that I first wrote it in French and then translated it in English for this lesson. So your Poppy is:

"[...] of fragile and delicate beauty. She had long, straight bright red hair with thin, white strands that she braided and adorned with pearls. Whenever she smiled, little wrinkles formed at the corner of her bright eyes, black ebony eyes being a sharp contrast to her milky complexion. She had high cheekbones, lips in bold red barely lighter than of her hair. [...] She [...] never wore make-up. In truth, she did not need any of it – with her pale complexion, perfect smooth skin, lively eyes and naturally red lips, she was so beautiful she could make envious even those who were most confident in themselves."

Do you see the changes I made? Can you now clearly picture Poppy in your mind?

When I wrote this descriptive passage, I made sure to use lots of adjectives to characterise her and make her livelier and easier to imagine. I think it is a description that plays on the visuals (see the colours that pop up again and again, can you see a theme there?) and one I'm very proud of.

┌──❀*̥˚───❀*̥˚─┐

Homework

└───❀*̥˚───❀*̥˚┘

No, you're not dreaming, lovely people! There's homework for you to do! For real!

Instructions: Think of something you like, something that feels familiar and makes you feel safe and comforted. Try and write a description of it. I want you to be proud of the final result. You can post it in the comments if you like.

And that's all for today. As always take care of yourselves and stay safe. You're worth it, darling~ ♡

꒒ ০ ⌵ ୧ ♡

[nikulyne]

I never really talked about a pair of ocs I ended up creating as a result of some songs this past summer

They're not the most original concept in the world, but I like them, they're basically a 'scientist and their creation duo' in a sense and I have an idea for a comic strip for em as like, an introduction to em that I'd like to draft eventually

Their names are Aiden and Alexis, I know a few of you will be somewhat familiar with em. I like to jokingly refer to Aiden as half a werewolf, as he's a wolf based human character but with mechanical parts that can shift between a "human" look and a "were" look. He was part of a group of these, all genetically modified to take on characteristics of animals but also cybernetically enhanced.

Pretty syfy, has probably been done before, don't care.

Alexis was one of the engineers of the projects, specifically overlooking Aiden, before he was put as the lead of the project. As the new lead, he got to spend a lot more time with Aiden, he grew more fond of him and wanted to see his project through to fruition. However, during some testing, something causes Aiden to lash out and maim some of the workers, which prompts the facility to decide to put a stop to that project and plan to terminate him, along with some other canid based projects due to their hassle.

Upon getting the notice for Aiden's termination, Alexis ends up SETTING THE BUILDING ON FIRE, and help Aiden escape. In the original ideas for these characters, Alexis ended up being shot and killed during their escape (security obviously trying to stop them as well other projects making their own escape during the chaos) leading to Aiden having to leave him behind, buuttttttt I ended up liking them as a duo and decided to change it to where Alexis is shot in the leg, but him and Aiden escape into the surrounding forest together.

So character wise,

Alexis is kind of an asshole. Very proud, pretty cocky about his accomplishments, especially the work he put into Aiden and a few other projects. After he was promoted to head of this project, he was able to be a lot closer with Aiden than before, eventually leading to them developing some form of a bond despite Alexis trying not to.

Aiden doesn't know a whole lot about anything, having been raised and modified right at that facility. He's quiet, and much prefers to stay away from conflict. He's more or less one of those "large entity that's more afraid of you than you are of it"

He's timid, but quite curious, and while the two of them are on the run he gets to learn a lot about the world outside of the facility. A very good boy indeed.

A silly lil oc duo I'm never going to do anything with, but I still think they're cool

Especially when someone asks me how many werewolf characters I have and i end up responding with "like, 3 and a half?" Because idk if Aiden counts as a werewolf, he's just a guy

Later this week I might talk more about my fav ocs Liam and Skyler, two of the other werewolves in their own universe separate from whatever the hell Aiden and Alexis have going on, and maybe even post the short story I wrote for em about a year ago

(And maybe even talk about and draft some other stories for them, the lack of character limit on Tumblr might actually get me to write more for them)

[shywhitemoose]

Hi! I really like following you—your posts always make me smile! I saw that you like getting asks but don’t like to do ask games, so can I ask you some questions from a recent fanfic writer ask game??

What do you like most about your own writing?

What’s something you’ve recently felt proud of related to your writing?

And can you name one or more of your fave comfort fics??

No pressure to answer, I was just curious! Have a good night! 💜

Hello! This is really sweet, thank you. I suppose it's not so much that I don't like to do ask games, it's just that it's unfamiliar to me and I'm... not one of the cool kids, you know? Like I wonder, I've only written one fic so far (and even that’s not complete yet) - am I even qualified to call myself a writer yet? And my art is all over the place (not literally, but aesthetically speaking) because I haven't been doing digital long enough to have developed a consistent style - am I really allowed to call myself an artist? Am I allowed to think anyone will want to know things about me or the stuff I create? These are silly questions, I know, but my brain just.. 🤷‍♀️

Anyway, to your questions 😊

What do you like most about your own writing?

Hmm, well my own writing is limited, but I guess within the chapters I've written, I think I like my dialogues the most. I try to find a good balance of humor and emotion and I *think* I’m usually successful? Of course I really just have my characters to thank for that- it helps that they already have such entertaining chemistry to start with :)

What’s something you’ve recently felt proud of related to your writing?

Oh dear. I think maybe I'm just proud that I'm still doing it, ha. It doesn't come naturally to me at all. I mean I've never been able to just sit down and write a page. I swear, every paragraph - at least when there’s no dialogue, but even sometimes when there is - is a Process. I will be particularly proud when I finish the next chapter because it's given me more trouble than any others (how do all you authors churn out such lovely smut on the regular? I'm over here struggling for days about how to get a hand where it needs to be, lol. And don't get me started on how the Force is supposed to play into all this.)

Can you name one or more of your fave comfort fics??

Is it weird to include my own? It’s just that I started writing Adrift and Entangled *specifically* as something I could come back to and read for comfort. Chapters 12-14 put my heart in a particularly warm, cozy place.

For other works, I’m VERY out of touch with what is currently out there because I don’t have a ton of time to read these days. But:

With a Warm and Tender Hand by temple_mistress (I don’t know if this person has a tumblr) is one of the first Obikin fics I ever read and it just really stuck with me. It’s very, well, warm and tender :) It’s been a while, but I’ve probably re-read this more than any other fic I’ve come across.

Another piece that has stayed with me is this short, spicy, but heart-melting prompt fill by @glimmerglanger from many many months ago. Poor Obi-Wan is impotent here, and the way they write what Anakin does for him just turns me into a pile of mush. I still think about it.

The Snowball Effect by @twilightofthe has brought me comfort through laughter on more than one occasion. It’s a two-chapter modern AU and the author is hysterical.

What I’ve seen on tumblr of @tennessoui‘s Keeping up with the Skywalker Kenobis AU has also brought me great joy, and her AO3 version is high priority on my to-read list. Super sweet, and it also involves the kids, which gives me extra feels.

Speaking of kids, I’m reminded of Homestead, by @jswander and @whohatessand. It’s part of a longer series that I haven’t gotten to yet, but this first work was just lovely. A good snuggle up with a warm beverage and let your heart feel all the feels sort of fic.

It’s not in traditional fic format, but I also find great comfort in @shatouto‘s Redeeming Vader AU comic installments. It’s a WIP, but the story is beautiful, and the art is exquisite.

Whew... I guess that was more than one, lol. Suggestions for other good comfort fics welcome - I know they’re out there I probably just haven’t gotten to them yet!

[karliesbuzzcut]

(100) Million Dollar Lawsuit

Intro | part1 | part2 | part3 | part4

We are on the last chapter (for now) and this the most chaotic one. Mainly because it doesn’t follow any kind of chronological order (or logical sense), it’s just Russ going in circles for literal years.

But I’ll try my best to condense it for you, so all you need to do is to keep your seat belt fastened until the aircraft stops completely.

Right after the failed Ari lawsuit, Russ goes back to his one and only love: Taylor Swift 💫 And he has learned a lesson — not a good lesson, mind you, but a lesson: small claims courts won’t take him anywhere. If he really wants to punish women for not complimenting his suit, he will have to file a multi-million dollar federal lawsuit.

But, since denying sex from The Russell isn’t illegal (yet), he had to come at it from a different angle. I’m going to give Russ a chance to explain himself first.

Before you ask: yes, the following was Russell’s response to a woman thanking Taylor for visiting an 8 year-old girl who was very badly burned in an accident.

As I’ve always said, it’s okay if you aren’t fluent in Bullshit. That’s what I’m here for.

You see, Russell views human interactions as a series of transactions: I make a tweet worth liking, you go on a date with me; I take you to Olive Garden, you give me a handie for free; I put on a suit, you hug me and smile; I write you a song and sue you, you produce said song. Whenever women don’t fulfil their side of the deal, he becomes enraged.

But the reason he has such a strong hate-boner for Tay, is because she seemed to also follow his same ‘moral code’. A kid makes a cute video, she visits them at the hospital. A fan writes her a letter inviting her to their wedding, she goes to the wedding. A couple of kids fold 1989 paper cranes for Andrea, Taylor invites them to one of her concerts.

Russ thought “this is a done deal”. He didn’t write that song for Taylor because he particular liked her; he just thought she’d be the most likely artist to produce it — or at least acknowledge his existence.

I mentioned before that Russ wrote a whole-ass book about this. And I think it’s as good a time as any to talk about it. For a short amount of time, Russell chilled out about the ✨100 million dollar lawsuit ✨ but my guess is that he thought his book would get him the same results as a lawsuit? To be fair, the book is fantastic. 5/5, would recommend. 

He details the harassment he went through after suing Taylor Swift (the first time). Apparently old ladies at coffee shops would scream at him because he dared to sue Our Queen. A Mexican even pointed a gun at him (it wasn’t me, guys! Just a fellow countryman ❤️) and ordered Russ to drop the lawsuit. Computers at his job caught on literal fire because he was sent very powerful viruses. His friend Ken — who definitely exists! — was hit with a Molotov cocktail. Yep. 2016 was definitely the year people were willing to murder for Taylor Swift.

There’s also this brilliant dream sequence that involves an owl with the voice of Morgan Freeman, and Taylor’s agents guarding a tower in which she’s being held captive. 

ALSO ALSO: an entire chapter is called “SHE CHOSE HIM OVER ME”. Taylor Swift chose Joe Alwyn — a man she actually knows — over a man she’s not even aware exists. Women, amiright?

I think Russell would enjoy the Kaylor community to a certain extent. Not the lesbian part, obviously: he doesn’t trust women who don’t want to touch his peen. I just mean the baseless hatred of Joe. Look, I made a little collage of his rants ❤️ tell me if any of this sounds familiar!

You know — I’ve been joking around a lot about Russell just wanting to do the nasty with Taylor. But you know me, I like joking around. In reality Russ only wants what is fair. He wants to put a stop to all these senseless acts of kindness perpetrated by Taylor ‘The Generous’ Swift.

This isn’t about him at all, actually. Shame on you for thinking there’s an ounce of greed in that selfless little body of his. HE’S DOING THIS TO PROTECT THE KIDS WITH CANCER!

There are no ulterior motives here! This isn’t about a date!

THIS IS NOT ABOUT A DATE AT ALL GUYS STOP SAYING THAT.

I think this is my favourite post of his, because– grammatically speaking –he doesn’t specify which of them is wearing the red dress. And that sends me every goddamn time.

Anyway. The book, as magnificent as it was, got him absolutely nowhere. I know, I can’t believe it either. So he went back to focus on his lawsuit. But apparently not enough, because he didn’t serve her properly..? Now, don’t expect me to understand this, because I am very stupid (so it’s quite a good thing that I haven’t sued anybody for millions of dollars) but something about him sending the lawsuit to her old legal team..? And then trying to force UPS to serve her? I think he even said he was going to serve her in the middle of one of her concerts... but I’m guessing that didn’t go as planned 🤷‍♀️ oops.

Of course, Russie wouldn’t allow such an anticlimactic ending. Can you guess what he did? Please tell me that you can guess what he did. HE MADE ANOTHER SONG 😭❤️

This one is called ‘I Don’t Get You, Taylor Swift’. Another masterpiece that we definitely didn’t deserve 🙌

This was around April, 2019. By then I was being lured away by Kaylors, so I broke it off with Russ. I know that he filed a 3rd lawsuit against Taylor last year, which is just like the second one but hopefully this time he’ll be able to serve. And listen— I know that sounds like an awful thing to wish on Taylor, but I’d rather have Russell occupied suing a rich woman (who isn’t even going to deal with him), than a poor sex worker in Nevada. I bet TayTay would prefer that too.

Well guys, I’ve mentioned this a few times already, but I really had to be selective with the amount of information I was going to throw at you. I’ve avoided some of the shittier stuff he said or did, because I wanted to keep these posts as lighthearted as possible. I also didn’t touch on many things because they would just derail us. Like for example: one of the few lawsuits he has filed against someone who isn’t a woman, was against the state of Utah. I know, right? He’s trying to singlehandedly legalise prostitution in Utah, and even wrote a book (more like a pamphlet) brilliantly titled ‘Why I'm Making It Legal for Your 18 Year Old Daughter to Get In Bed with a Complete Stranger for Only 500 Bucks: A Short Essay from a Pro Se Litigant who is Challenging the Utah Brothel Bans’.

I copy-pasted that title guys, I swear to god.

The book is very graphic. This one I certainly do not recommend as I still suffer nightmares because of it.

Soren is a character who also had to be cut out — which is a shame because he really tried to be a good christian and help Russell. Not as in “I support you, Russell” but as in “why don’t you take a nap, Russell”. Turns out, even cinnamon rolls have a limit. Russ, of course, blames Taylor Swift for the fact that he’s losing his friends. I’m not joking — it’s an article in his lawsuit:

Greer has lost family relationships, friend connections and business connections because of the trauma of Taylor Swift. His family tells him to "get over it," resulting in shouting matches and strained relationships. Greer's friends get annoyed by his focusing on the trauma of it, when nobody knows the pain of getting rejected by a public figure — twice — and the fallout that has resulted from it.

Russell embodies that comic/meme of the little guy who puts a stick in his bicycle’s wheels and then blames Taylor Swift when he inevitably falls.

Sooooo...

Maybe someday I’ll write a post about Russ’ latest antics. I know he still posts stupid stuff on Facebook, which he later deletes. He shined especially bright at the peak of the BLM movement. He also plead guilty to electronic communications harassment— did you see that conviction coming? Yes, yes you did 😌

Regarding Taylor, I read that Russ knew someone who knew Todrick Hall — and Russ sent him a song and video for Taylor. All he got back was a Cease and Desist letter. But I’d have to do a bit of digging to get the details. I was already so overwhelmed with organising the information I was previously aware of, that I decided to leave the newer stuff for another time. You know, once I’ve had some time to inform myself... as well as a really long shower.

Since I left so much shit out, I’ll be taking questions if you have any. And if you can muster the courage to ask them. I’m weirdly proud of being some kind of Russell encyclopaedia. I might not have much going for me...

There’s no ‘but’ — that was the complete statement.

Before I go, I wanted to add this screenshot. I absolutely love it because it summarises ✨The Russell Experience✨. Russ wants Taylor to know pain, poverty and punishment. But when asked “why?” his answer is just “oh, I was ignored lol”

*none of the screenshots are mine

[theshinsun]

brace urself, this is for the writing meta ask: 2, 6, 7, 14, 17, 19, 20 (if you need a direction for this... I always wanted to hear more about Bring Me Roses), 21, 22, and 24 bc i'm nosy and still very into your craft. thank you buddy!!

2. Tell us about what you’re most looking forward to writing – in your current project, or a future project

I'm so excited/terrified to finally start my knb college AU. I've been sitting on this idea for almost two years I'm so ready but at the same time I'm so not ready.

The gist is it's every single self-indulgent, chaotic, projection-ridden idea I've ever wanted for these boys all rolled in a big ball of shenanigans and character growth. It's a beautiful mess and I can't wait to make it happen as soon as ANR is done.

6. What character do you have the most fun writing?

This is gonna come right the fuck out of left field, but I love writing Himuro. I have so much fun writing just... snark, and that boy is the perfect outlet, there's no bottom to that salt mine. I remember getting a similar kick out of writing Tsukishima in the past, I just live for sassy dialogue. It ain't much but it's honest work.

7. What do you think are the characteristics of your personal writing style? Would others agree?

My style is very present, I think (which is funny bc there was a time I never would have considered writing present tense) focusing on what's happening and how it makes the character feel in the moment. I like to write specific, detailed imagery, but I try to keep it short and relevant to the scene, so I can move along and focus on what's important. I wouldn't call it fast-paced, exactly, but it is pretty to-the-point. And I think, based on the feedback I've received, that people who read my fics might agree with that. I've heard that my writing is very personal and character-driven, and I think that might be a byproduct of the time I spent writing in first person. Now I write almost exclusively third person limited, but I still like to get in the character's head and tell the story from their "point of view", I guess. 

14. At what point in writing do you come up with a title?

It depends almost entirely on how quick I'm able to come up with a pun lol. Sometimes a fic has a title before I've even written the first sentence, sometimes I have to scramble for something, anything in the last few seconds before I publish it. A lot of the time I'll have a working title like "that one really fucked up aokaga oneshot" for pretty much the duration of writing a new fic… and a lot of the time I'll end up using song titles, even though we're past the days of writing songfics. 

17. Do you think readers perceive your work - or you - differently to you? What do you think would surprise your readers about your writing or your motivations?

I think, to a degree, people get different things from my writing than I intended -- which is good! The way a piece of writing can be interpreted completely differently depending on who's reading it is one of the best things about being a writer tbh. I think people might be surprised, though, how different my fics often turn out from how I set out to make them. These days I've usually got a pretty detailed outline for what's going to happen, but even with all the preparation in the world, sometimes a fic will take a sudden detour I didn't expect, or something I wrote before will take on new meaning and change the direction I meant to go in. This definitely happens more with my longer fics, but there are times even with oneshots where I look back at what I set out to write, and what I ended up writing, and they're completely different.

19. Is there something you always find yourself repeating in your writing? (favourite verb, something you describe ‘too often’, trope you can’t get enough of?)

I tend to write a lot of scenes with characters talking while in the car (cars are an intentional motif in ANR, but in something like GWGE there's not actually a lot of narrative purpose to this) I don't know why, maybe because it's a convenient way to have characters talk one-on-one, or maybe it's because I've had a lot of meaningful conversations while riding passenger, couldn't tell you, but it's cropped up more than once in my current fics and will probably feature in some of my upcoming ones (the college AU strikes me as a likely candidate), and I think it's worth taking note of.

20. Tell us the meta about your writing that you really want to ramble to people about (symbolism you’ve included, character or relationship development that you love, hidden references, callbacks or clues for future scenes?)

SINCE you mentioned Bring Me Roses, and I never really get to talk about it, pls allow me to go on a lengthy tangent about my most underrated fic of all time. (Like 90% of the reason it's still incomplete almost two years later is because the response when I posted it was so underwhelming, but I still stand by it. Someday I'll finish it, hopefully, if just for myself.) 

I'm so fucking proud of the language in this one. It's not perfect, by any means, but the imagery in my opinion is very strong, and almost every line of dialogue is saying something without really saying it. There are frequent allusions that something happened to Aomine's mother, relatively recently, and that Momoi is worried about him overworking out of grief or guilt, but none of those things are ever actually stated. There's also some pretty heavy implicit flirting between Aomine and Kuroko, even if it's a bit unusual and they're both playing it coy at this stage, the chemistry is there and the interest is mutual. And of course, because it's a florist AU, the flower symbolism… I spent so long researching bouquets, plant husbandry, how to prep and preserve cut flowers, and of course… flower meanings. The main ones that keep getting brought up are dahlias, which have just as many negative connotations as positive ones, including betrayal and instability, but also dignity, creativity and change, and come in a variety of colors shapes and even sizes (Islander or "dinnerplate" dahlias were definitely going to feature in part 2… as well as the connection between them and Aomine's mother). I know a lot of these things might not hit as hard because there's no actual payoff (yet), but still, in terms of "show don't tell" and setting up things to come, I don't think I have a single better example in my fic repertoire, I really went all out with this.

It's a shame I never got to follow through, but I got the impression that there just wasn't a lot of interest, and even if that alone is kind of a dumb reason not to continue, after I worked so hard to pull off what I did, the lack of response really killed my motivation. (I wonder sometimes if it would've been better received if it was an AoKaga fic… actually, I don't need to wonder, I'm sure it would have been, but that's not the story I set out to tell and I'm not going to change it.)

21. What other medium do you think your story would work well as? (film, webcomic, animated series?)

Oh, I'd love to do some of my fics as comics. I even tried it at one point; GWGE was going to be a comic originally, before I decided a multichapter fic would probably be less exhausting (the first couple pages are still floating around in my art tag somewhere, though this was back in high school so the quality is… heh).

22. Do you reread your old works? How do you feel about them?

Yeah… I reread a lot. Usually while I'm working on a new chapter, I'll go over the ones that lead up to it to make sure I don't repeat the same phrases too much and that the continuity lines up, and I'll also admit to going back and just reading my own fics for fun. Sometimes the only one who's written exactly what I want to see is me. 

How I feel about them depends on the fic… some of my older ones are a mix of nostalgia and cringe tbh, but there are some I still genuinely enjoy revisiting from time to time. 

24. Would you say your writing has changed over time?

Oh hell yeah. For… better and worse, honestly. I feel like I've lost some fluidity and confidence in my writing, and it sometimes turns kind of stilted, so I try to overcompensate which results in pretty jarring changes of tone, but at the same time, I've gotten much better with rhythm and syntax, my grammar skills are always improving, and I'm able to incorporate a lot more intentional meaning and subtext without always stating things outright.

[bookofchaos]

Week 3 Reflection

(Yes I did just make a pun about my own title)

Had some realizations this week. Been sleeping poorly. Kinda getting what I can when I can. I'm stressed and feel like I am everywhere but no where.

Part of that is due to lack of a real schedule. So one of the things I did do was build something like that for myself. I'm incredibly visual, so check lists are a must.

Streaming has a lot of learning to it. There's a lot to check when it comes to computer performance and sound. I've been incredibly grateful to Ducky for letting me know when something is off. I'm trying to learn marketing stuff so I can bring in more viewers. It's working and not at the same time.

I'm starting to feel gimmicky when it comes to using tarot for character designs because of the marketing stuff. I dunno if that's imposter syndrome or just me being uncomfy or an actual issue... If that make sense at all.

My last stream went really well energy wise... and then immediately sunk when I realized that my sworn enemy StreamLabs only recorded 15 minutes of the actual stream. I made a giraffe woman on accident! I wanted to share my failure that was really funny with the world! *dramatic sigh*

My ego was hurt. (May still be since writing this, who knows? haha). But it's gonna be okay. I have other ways to stream. I can use a window streaming if I want to continue on Twitch. Also, YouTube is making changes to their streaming set up, so I am going to start trying there.

The downside to the YouTube streaming is I need to make shorts... and well, I dunno - I get freaked out! It's so short. I am very much a verbose person. So to be so limited and have to hook people in like 3 seconds (actually 30) is intimidating.

I'll do it. I'll learn. I'll grow. This is all good for me, but I do just wanna whine.

On a bit more serious note, I've decided that making a comic is too much for me right now. I am good enough to learn a program and start practicing. I love that I'm practicing weekly infront of whomever will watch. That is a huge step for me. But I am not able to just take a blank canvas and place a body in a decent random position for me to then manipulate into a full fledged comic scene. I have steps that I need to practice.

And I am! I am doing the practice. So this isn't something I'm never gonna be able to do. It's just very much out of my wheel house.

Actually these past few weeks have shown me that I tend to go REAL big to my detriment.

Smaller steps are good and healthy and important.

I'm also learning that if I want to do something, I need to be able to do it within the general time frame of the idea appearing in my head or else I just overthink it. Improv has always been a skill I've been pretty decent at. I mean, I got a full ride scholarship in college off of my improv skills alone. But.... I didn't realize how it so closely connected to my work ethics! Haha

Yay, learning! <.< ... >.>

I'm going to keep going. I'm really proud about how far I've come. It just feels a bit low right now. (bruised egos, y'all...)

Good things that happened this week include new followers to my YouTube channel! Two friends and one random person from a YouTube short I made. My dishes are done. I am trying out reacting to movies to see how I enjoy that. My first recording was great but also bleh. I loved the format because I'm not having to create something outta nothing, but I found out that unless using mozilla fire fox, recording movies are black screens of death. (Again learning).

I'm sure there's more good things. I'm just too sleep deprived to truly be able to remember them.

Love y'all!

[ilovemyself3-blog1]

READ IN YOUR WAY

Reading was never something I thought I would enjoy. I was in the team of non-readers and never thought anything pleasant about it. Today when I look back at times I really hate being so judgemental. I started reading when I felt the world is going against me and the only companion was my books which helped me. So I'm writing this to help those who find it hard to get into reading and discover their own taste in it.

Here is a list of various reading mediums and platforms which in one time or another helped me to read -

Physical Books - The traditional hardcover or paperback books which I was introduced to in school probably like you have been.

Pros - If you like to hold on your book while reading or love the feel of the papers or love the smell of the pages in short if physical books is your aesthetic go for it. There is nothing better than holding on to your favorite book and enjoy the reading process.

Cons - It is very hard to carry around and isn't cost efficient. But there is always a choice to borrow and library can be good place for hangout.

Comics/ Graphic Novels - If you're not into reading traditional physical books and love illustrated books with pictures and arts then this is a great choice.

Pros - When you see things, it gets easy for you to get into the story. So if you're starting to read and reading is not something you enjoy then read Comics or Graphic Novels. It get you invested and really help developing a reading habit and if you like art just check out few comics it will help you.

Cons - It has the same problems as the traditional physical books but ebooks can be helpful and less costly.

Manga - This is Japanese Comics. The only difference is that in normal comics we read from left to right but in Manga we have to read from right to left. Manga is generally uncolored with amazing art style.

Pros and Cons are same. Though Crunchyroll be a good place to check out Manga at cheap price.

Ebooks - Books you can buy or get on your electronic devices like phone, computer, etc.

Pros - Cost efficient and easy to carry. You can carry thousands of books with you without worrying about space and you can read anywhere you wish.

Cons - Be careful with your eyes. The lights can be harmful. (A tip for you - use blue lights when reading in dark or you have your Kindle Reader to protect your eyes. And you want to be invested in reading and stay undistracted make sure to switch off your internet connection.)

Online Reading Communities - There are many websites where people write their stories and publish. Wattpad and Fanfiction.net are of the many sites where you can read online self published books for free. Reading should never be stopped because of money. These platforms give access to thousands of books to delve into and find your own reading experience free of cost. If you are into writing then these sites are ideal for you.

Pros - It is free of cost. If you're fan of someone, you can meet several individuals with same taste and read fanfictions of your favorite videogame character or celebrity. Even you can publish your story. It can be very helpful for the people who aspire to be writers.

Cons - If you want to improve your English this might not be the best place. The books are raw and often have grammatical errors as aren't always thoroughly edited.

Webtoon (Manhwa/Manhua) - Webtoon is a reading medium where you can read comics which are published online. Manhwa is the Korean Webtoon and Manhua is Chinese Webtoon. Just like Manga and Comics you can get them at your fingertips.

Pros - There are many platforms where you can read for free like in Line Webtoon and Tapas. It has a huge genre and lot of choose from. Various translations are available for the same webtoon.

Cons- I have been reading Webtoons for a long period of time and it's very hard to point any deficiency.

Audiobooks - In audiobooks the narrator reads the story for you so if you have hard time to get into books or have any reading disability audiobooks can be the best for you.

Pros - You don't have to carry books with you all the time and can even read when you're doing other works. A huge help for someone who is busy and don't have time to physically read the books.

Cons - Audiobooks can be as costly as physical books. You can get Librivox on Google playstore to listen to audiobooks for classics for free. Another problem I faced is when you're reading books with wide range of characters it gets hard to stay invested in every character.

I hope this list will help you discover your comfortable reading medium and help you to read books in future. Reading should never be limited to traditional books even you reading this blog is a sort of reading so be proud of yourself. Thanks sticking till the end.

#readingisfun #readinghabits #reading #readforlife #readingforlife