#More world building than romance

[maximusblack-hp]

Loras Tyrell x OC Male

Technically an Self-insert

He knows which universe he’s in, from his last life he remembers pirating the three-season shows and having to look away from the screen every other second due to his confusion about what he was seeing. As if he knew he shouldn’t be watching for his age.

He was supposed to be killed as an infant but instead, he was safe by his only uncle. Turns out he wasn’t the only reincarnated but so was his half-brother Jon Snow known now as Jaehaerys III Targaryen. Then there is also his uncle Viserys III Targaryen and his aunt Daenerys Targaryen. His aunt is technically the third of her name but apparently, it only counts if the person before you was a ruler. There has never been a female Targaryen ruler so therefore she is considered the first of her name.

The four of them are reincarnated and they have this theory it’s due to their Targaryen blood. It’s not that far of a stretch after all Targaryen can command dragons, walk through fire, and have visions of future or past events.

All of them seem to be immune to fire but Viserys is the only one who feels pain from it and sensitivity to light. He and Daenerys have visions but Daenerys focuses on the past while his focus is on the future. Jaehaerys has a mental link to all of them. He’s practically the medical version of a phone call.

Viserys who is the oldest among them whether in this life or the last will never stop being flabbergasted on how long it took for them to realize they all had past life memories. Maybe it's an old age superiority complex Aegon doesn’t really know. Though Aegon and Daenerys died very young in their last life so they don’t really feel that deep connection to the past like Viserys and Jaehaerys are.

Aegon has this theory that their memories aren’t due to their Targaryen blood but due to their connection with the world they’re in. In one way or another, they recognize this world from one source of media to another from their worlds.

In Daenerys’ World, it was a cartoon for kids about dragons and royalty. In his world, it was a three-volume novel with a three-season show about Dothraki and Sullied fighting against the hierarchy. Though really it was just a premise for NSFW content instead of any actual real plot.

In Jaehaerys’ world, it was a comic about ice monster zombies that could only be killed by fire from a dragon fire. And due to the Targaryens being extinct the nation as a whole was screwed. There were even plans in the making to adapt it into a post-apocalyptic movie of what happens to the ancestors of the main characters' kids in the comics who manage to get over the seas.

Then there is Viserys’ world, the one with the most complex version of the story. When Aegon first asked Viserys about it he got a 10-hour rant about how much it sucked and that he hated it except for the Dothraki and Dragons. Although Viserys seems to hate this world he is oddly very passionate about, with his so-called ‘hate.’ Then again there is a very thin line between love and hate.

Aegon is just happy that the craziness of this world seems to be in a calm trance. Though he knows it won’t last for long but he’s content. He is to be crowned soon by his uncle, no longer needing to hide his true identity or the person he loves.

Everyone knows that Lores is his lover and future spouse and there is nothing they can do. It’s nothing new among Targaryens and it doesn’t matter as long as there is a blood heir. Which shouldn’t be a problem for him since apparently his cousin Rhaegal was birthed by Viserys. The number of secrets among the Targaryen bloodline will never cease to amaze them.

It might take a while before he and Loras have children, if anything it’s shocking it hasn’t happened yet. From how often they fucked like bunnies in the heat but then again he needs to bottom for it to happen. Ageon is willing to do it but it will take a while for him to get Loras to agree since his lover loves Bottoms and never thought of them ever doing it the other way around.

Sighing, Aegon turns around to snuggle Loras’ body under him while giving a kiss to Loras' bruised nape from all the love mites on it. It’s too early for him to worry about other events he’ll deal with later. And not on his own for he no longer needs to hide who he is whether be it his identity or who he beds.

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

Asunder

slow-paced high fantasy

a woman who has a contract with an eldritch entity allowing her to see the dead & survives by taking various jobs

when a job searching for stranded smugglers in a cave goes wrong, she ends up with the soul of a dying stranger bound to her shadow

along with a scholar and her old childhood friend, they travel to his home country to find a way to unbind him and save them both

dark fantasy world with gods, demonic entities, arcane magic, and semi-sentient beasts used as transport

[idreamofneonsheep]

Being a writer is so fun because every day I wake up and think that I could absolutely write a fourth wing or a lightlark in like 3 months, market it on tiktok, and then not have to worry abt my student loans

And then I remember I don't want to contribute to the shitty state of fantasy and such so I'd actually just spend a billion years making a good book and my debt would continue festering

[thenighttrain]

the chokehold the hunger games has on pop culture is insane. there are still so many hit tweets/posts about it in 2024, people continue to analyse it and find new things, it changed the dystopian book landscape because everything got compared to thg, and even now i still see YA books being compared to it. it set the standard for YA books, in many ways. and as the years go by, it becomes more & more relevant - it’s so timeless, such an iconic series and its lasting success is very well deserved 🖤

[coolspacequips]

Have been reading this sci-fi romance and like UGH u ever really wish a book was just at least a little better??? There's stuff in this that's interesting but also a lot about it that's so... Juvenile and kinda undercooked lol...... But it's so hard finding good romance bc for a lot of romance readers this is enough, except even then not really since they prolly didn't fuck nasty enough in this book for the ppl that just need the merest pretense to read smut (which is fine if that's what u like there's just an oversaturation of this, esp when you can have a light plot/heavy smut story with slightly better writing and internal world building without having to explain and describe the 'boring' parts 😅)

[cross-d-a]

too tired to write too tired to read but I’m nOT too tired to daydream about a new fic au..,,,,,..,.

[kimboo-york]

CHAPTER 13 IS UP ON REAM!!!

New early-access installments are available to my followers on Ream! (Free chapters being released later on down the line, I promise!)

THE START OF AN EPIC ADVENTURE OF MYTHS, MAGIC, AND LEGENDS BEING BORN! FEATURING A FANTASY ROAD TRIP, A SLOW-BURN MMF LOVE TRIAD, DRAGONS, AND MAGIC DOGS!!!!

The tranquil solitude of Astra’s monastic life is shattered in an instant when a brutal assault destroys the only home she has ever known. Thrown into the untamed, wild magic of the outside world, she must rely on an uneasy alliance: a charismatic thief, a suspicious warrior, an injured dragon, and two demonic dogs. Is her secret and reviled ability to communicate with the dead the key to their survival?

If you enjoy sprawling, epic fantasies but think there needs to be more middle-aged women protagonist necromancers with multiple love interests and an adorable, spunky, and very contrary dragon sidekick, then you will love this story!

[jinx-blackout-84]

Goodnight guys <3

I love you and I hope your night is full of rest. I hope it sits over your shoulders like water, I hope your blankets are warm and inviting and I hope your mind is quiet and tired. I hope it smells like lavender and warm flannels when you fall asleep. I hope you can hear a poem rattling in the back of your mind and I hope it tells you that I love you. I love you because you are sunlight and you keep all of the constellations in those little flecks in your eyes. You are possibility and a universe and flesh and song and love. You are love and I love you. But most of all, I hope that you can set down the weight of being everything and nothing. I hope you can drop the weight of existing that weighs down on your shoulders and I hope you can rest in a night made of collages and green plastic glow-in-the-dark stars that hang above your head to remind you of warmth and peace. I hope your night is serene and I hope the night wraps around you like a hug. I love you.

Goodnight.

[tempestclerics]

rereading tâm's character sheet. my girl is genuinely a disaster but i love her anyway

[ivomartins]

@GOD WHAT TF DO YOU MEAN PSI ONLY GETS 3 SEASONS

[cannedsoupcansoup]

Voltron was such a good show at first, it was literally one of my favourites. A part of me always wonders what would come of it if we didn't have all the fucking shipping drama because 1. Romance was not even a central plot element of this show about GIANT ROBOTS IN SPACE, 2. The character dynamics would have been so much better handled if there wasn't constant stress over people interpreting minor interactions as shipping-fuel. Like, if none of the big drama happened, we'd probably end up with a wonderful 10/10 show, but instead we got a show that starts off as 10/10 but ends up as 3/10 with an ending that makes me so fucking angry it's unbelievable.

[pharawee]

sorry love didn't mean to sound bad, I also love petekenta and would love for them to have a nice bonding scene. Dean is my poor meow. He just wanted to drive a nice car but was defeated by nepotism lol.

No worries, I didn't take it to heart. 💜 I just wanted to... cover all my bases just in case lmao

And it's not like I don't enjoy all of the other pairings as well - it's just that PeteKenta has bewitched me body and soul. But with the fixed pairings being what they are, it was always just going to be breadcrumbs and missed chances with these two anyway.*

*which funnily enough is part of their charm for me since I automatically tend to gravitate towards side characters and rarepairs anyway.

That being said: JUSTICE FOR DEAN. Defeated by nepotism really says it best. Yes maybe he shouldn't have attempted to murder Babe and maaaybe manipulating Charlie's car wasn't it either* but really, imagine being a professional racecar driver and then you're rudely pushed aside for the special alpha's new boy toy who hasn't even driven a supercar before. I'd go evil too. Especially if one of my evil sidekicks who's literally murdered people before seems to be forgiven way too easily because he's getting cozy with one of the gang (yes I know, Kenta deserves the world but try and see it from Dean's perspective lmao).

*Then again, Team X doesn't seem to use telemetry sensors of any kind so their cars are death traps anyway.

[urlocalmagicalcat]

really long rant (happy rant) in the tags, mostly towards @synthetic-lavender /vpos

romance repulsed aros and romance favourable aros are both cool and valid but because i never see anything about us: shoutout to romance indifferent aros. romance neutral aros. aros who just couldn't care less. aros who have a conflicted relationship with romance. aros who are fine with romance in some contexts but not in others. aros who don't mind romance when it's not amatonormativity being shoved down their throats. aros who haven't yet figured out their feelings about romance. aros to whom romance is Just Something That Exists. y'all are rad as hell and it's okay not to 'pick a side'!!

[kimboo-york]

CHAPTER THREE ON REAM

Installments continue to be “public” for all (you’ll need a ream account, but it’s free)! After that, new installments will be “early access” for my supporters, with free chapters being released later on down the line.

THE START OF AN EPIC ADVENTURE OF MYTHS, MAGIC, AND LEGENDS BEING BORN! FEATURING A FANTASY ROAD TRIP, A SLOW-BURN MMF LOVE TRIAD, DRAGONS, AND MAGIC DOGS!!!!

The tranquil solitude of Astra’s monastic life is shattered in an instant when a brutal assault destroys the only home she has ever known. Thrown into the untamed, wild magic of the outside world, she must rely on an uneasy alliance: a charismatic thief, a suspicious warrior, an injured dragon, and two demonic dogs. Is her secret and reviled ability to communicate with the dead the key to their survival? If you enjoy sprawling, epic fantasies but think there needs to be more middle-aged women protagonist necromancers with multiple love interests and an adorable, spunky, and very contrary dragon sidekick, then you will love this story!

[olis-inkwell-symposium]

Developing Backstory: Bringing Characters to Life

1. Where It All Started: The Character’s Origin

Place of Birth: Where did your character first see the world? Think about the impact of this place—was it a busy city where they had to fight for attention or a quiet village where everyone knew everyone’s business? This location doesn’t just say where they’re from; it shapes how they see the world.

Family and Upbringing: What was their family like? Were their parents loving or distant? Maybe they were raised by someone other than their parents—a mentor, an older sibling, or even alone. Family (or the lack of it) is usually one of the most significant factors in shaping who someone becomes.

Society’s Expectations: What was expected of them when they were young? Possibly, they were born into wealth, with all the pressure to continue the family legacy, or maybe they were raised to be invisible in a world where survival mattered. How does this influence who they are now? Do they accept or reject those expectations?

2. Childhood Events That Left a Mark

First Taste of Conflict: Think about the first time the character realized the world wasn’t a perfect place. Maybe they witnessed violence or faced betrayal. What was that moment, and how did it stick with them? This moment usually lays the foundation for the character’s emotional landscape—fear, hope, ambition, or distrust all come from these early life lessons.

Childhood Dreams: When they were young, what did they want to be? Every child has dreams—did they want to be a knight, a scholar, or even just someone who could travel the world? Did they have to give up these dreams? How does that lost dream shape them now?

Formative Relationships: Who was their first best friend, mentor, or enemy? Childhood friendships and relationships often create deep bonds or wounds that last into adulthood. Did they have a mentor who taught them everything, only to betray them? Did they lose a childhood friend that still haunts them?

3. The Teen Years: Where They Start to Become Who They Are

Trials and Tribulations: What’s the biggest challenge they faced as they grew up? Was it losing a loved one, failing at something important, or maybe being forced into a role they didn’t want? These teenage years are where the emotional armor starts forming—how did the difficulties they faced shape them into the person they are now?

Education or Training: How did they learn what they know? Were they formally trained by an institution, learning everything by the book, or did they learn through experience, like a street-smart survivalist? What impact does their education or lack of it have on how they interact with others?

Teenage Bonds: Did they have a first love or a first major falling out with someone close to them? These experiences often create emotional scars or connections that they carry with them into adulthood. How does that past friendship or romance influence their behavior now?

4. Key Life Events: The Big Moments That Define Them

Trauma or Loss: Was there a moment that changed everything? Think about a significant loss—maybe a loved one, their home, or a sense of identity. How does this event affect their worldview? Do they build walls around themselves or dive into relationships with reckless abandon because they fear losing more?

Victory or Failure: Did they experience a moment of triumph or devastating defeat? Success and failure leave their marks. Were they celebrated as a hero once, leading them to overconfidence, or did they fail when everyone was counting on them, leading to crippling self-doubt?

Betrayal: Was there a betrayal that shaped their adult relationships? Whether it is a friend, family member, or lover, betrayal often changes how we trust others. Do they close themselves off, constantly expecting betrayal, or try to rebuild trust, afraid of being left alone again.

5. Where They Stand Now: The Present Moment

What Drives Them Today: What’s the one thing pushing them forward now? Is it revenge, the need to restore their family’s honor, or maybe even just survival? Whatever it is, this motivation should tie directly back to their experiences.

Emotional Baggage: What unresolved emotional wounds are they carrying? Everyone has scars from their past—some are visible, others not so much. How do these emotional wounds affect how they treat others, how they react to conflict, and how they move through the world.

Current Relationships: Who’s still in their life from their past, and how do they feel about it? Did they reconnect with someone they thought they’d lost, or are they haunted by unresolved issues with people from their past? Do they have any ongoing tensions or regrets tied to these people?

6. Tying Themes to Their Backstory

Cultural or Mythological Influence: How does their personal story tie into the larger world’s mythology or culture? Do they carry a family legacy, a curse, or a prophecy that hangs over them? How does this influence their interactions with others and their perception of themselves?

Recurring Symbols: Are there objects, dreams, or people that keep showing up in their life, symbolizing their journey? Perhaps a recurring nightmare haunts them, or they carry an object from their past that’s both a source of comfort and pain

7. Character Arc: The Journey from Past to Present

How Does Their Past Shape Their Growth?: Every character has emotional baggage that needs resolving. How does their backstory drive their arc? Do they need to forgive themselves, let go of the past, or accept who they’ve become to move forward?

Unanswered Questions from the Past: Are there any mysteries in their backstory they need to solve? Maybe they’re unaware of their true parentage, or maybe there’s a forgotten event from their childhood that will resurface and change everything.

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

Ways I can think of that “DanDaDan” differs from other shonen series:

* Female MC is as important as male MC

* Canon romance gets consistent development through the series. I think that’s part of the reason why the MC ships with the rivals (Aira, Jiji) aren’t as popular with the fandom for once. The main ship is actually getting good development, so the fanbase doesn’t have to make up headcanons to fill in the space.

* Flips the found family trope on its head by having the main group despise new people whenever they show up and they even actively try to kick them out. The new people only end up staying because they keep lingering around to the point that the main group just gives up and lets them stay.

* The rivals aren’t emo or angst-ridden. Aira is a delusional tryhard popular girl while Jiji is a himbo drama queen. I’d even go as far to say that the MCs are the ones who are emo and angst-ridden.

* Supporting cast is more than just important, they become integral to the story. I’d say that the further you read into DanDaDan, the more it becomes an ensemble cast where everyone is a protagonist in their own right.

* World-building is all over the place, but in a good way. Most other shonen are pretty consistent with what kind of world their characters live in. MHA is superhero-based, Naruto is ninjas and magic, Bleach is spirits, and so on. DanDaDan feels like the author just throws whatever cool shit they can think of into the story. That’s actually the reason why I wrote in a different post that DanDaDan reminds me more of Marvel/DC than any other shonen series, it manages to capture the catch-all insanity of those comics.

* Doesn’t rely on hidden power-ups. The main characters either have to outsmart the villains or they have to train to get better with the powers they already have.

* The pervert comic relief guy is actually endearing for once. Not because of his pervert tendencies, but because he’s so oblivious to how socially inept he is that it’s kind of funny. This is gonna sound strange, but he sorta reminds me of Thor in Thor Ragnarok. Full of himself and oblivious to how dumb he can be. He’s Thor without the good looks lol.

* Flips the “nerdy outcast loser somehow gets a harem” trope. Instead of making Okarun cooler than how he actually is, the story emphasizes that the women who fall for Okarun are as weird as him. Momo is a weird outcast, Aira has main character syndrome, Vamola doesn’t understand how to human because she’s literally not one, Rin thought Okarun was a vampire (and wanted him to be).

* Flips the “elderly figure in charge of the teenagers” trope. I don’t really get motherly figure vibes from Seiko Ayase, I get more “cool wine aunt who is stuck with her niece” vibes. In fact, there was the arc where Okarun showed up to her in spirit mode to get her help with fighting off the alien invasion and Seiko’s response was, “Well, I’m not in the area and I have other shit to do, so you kids figure it out.”

* The series takes the piss out of the trope of mystical/magical items that the group acquired to get their powers. I mean…the main mystical MacGuffin in the series are Okarun’s balls.

* Okarun was about to go into an “I’m weak / I wish I was stronger / I want to get stronger for my friends” breakdown, but Turbo Granny told him to shut up and keep fighting.

* Not afraid to put the “cool girl” in as many funny situations as possible. Off the top of my head, the series built up Momo as this cool, tough girl who doesn’t take shit from anyone…then several chapters later, Okarun found out she got a job at a maid cafe.

(Feel free to add to the list!)