#Solidarity my fellow writers

[sadprose-auroras]

On Top – Hazel Callahan x reader

Hi! I have been able to think of literally nothing else but this character, so I simply had to. Shoutout to all the incredible writers who have been doing the lord’s work writing for Hazel already, you’re all amazing <3 I just had to add my little contribution.

Content: mild violence, sexual themes and making out, cursing, out of practise writing, no use of y/n.

Summary: Cheerleader!reader and Hazel have the hots for each other. Other stuff contextualises that, but it’s not as interesting. That’s about it. Please let me know if you enjoy! Word count: 4.4k

You first heard about the club when PJ and Josie approached you in the hallway as you were searching desperately for a book in your locker.

“Where is it?” you mumbled to yourself, when the pair came up behind you suddenly.

“Hey!”

You yelped in surprise, whipping around.

“Oh, hi. PJ. Josie.” You smiled. You weren’t particularly close with the two best friends, but you were friendly. Josie, more so. It wasn’t hard to be a little annoyed when you saw PJ treat Hazel the way she did. Okay, so maybe it infuriated you. Sure, your immense crush on Hazel might have had something to do with it, but nobody deserved to be tossed aside carelessly like that.

“What’s up? Um, we have a proposition for you,” Josie said. You frowned.

“Okay, what is it?” You were suddenly a little nervous.

“We think there is a serious lack of female solidarity at this school,” said PJ.

“Agreed,” you nodded. And you really did.

“So we’ve started this women’s, uh, like, um, solidarity club, to help us, y’know, come together, beat the patriarchy, learn to defend ourselves, it’s in the gym after school if you feel like coming along?” PJ asked.

“That actually sounds great.” You were excited. You’d be lying if you said you weren’t slightly terrified of everything that was going on.

“Really? Great! And we were thinking that maybe you could bring along, y’know, some of your friends? Like- oh gosh, for example, Brittany and Isabel? Or-or- any of your, y’know fellow cheerleaders.”

You suppressed a smile. They were so not obvious. But you were down. Although you were considered fairly popular being a cheerleader, you were keen to hang out with some other girls. It felt like nobody truly understood you.

“I make no promises about Brittany and Isabel but I’ll ask! I’ll see you guys then,” you smiled, closing your locker. The bell rang, and you said your goodbyes as you headed off to class. You gave up on finding your book. Classes were weirdly short at your school, anyway.

------------------------------------------------------------

It didn’t take much convincing to get your friends to join you. Isabel was immediately excited about the club, and Brittany, bless her soul, followed Isabel anywhere she went. Your shoes awkwardly squeaked on the gym floor as the three of you walked in and approached the group. All eyes turned to the three of you, some sitting, some standing, and a silence fell among everyone. You cleared your throat, speaking up first.

“Hey, this is the women’s solidarity club, right? We want to join.”

To your surprise, Hazel was the first to bound over and smile. Your heartbeat rapidly increased and your cheeks warmed, so you quickly looked down, avoiding eye contact.

“Hey you guys, come on in! We were just about to start-“

“Trust exercises.” Josie interrupted.

“Wrestling- wrestling each other.” PJ said at the same time, her eyes locked on Brittany. “It’s a fight club, actually.” You frowned. Surely if you were going to start a club, you’d have a clear picture of what it was going to be first? They seemed to have no idea what they were doing.

Your friend seemed completely ignorant, or at the least unphased by PJ’s crush on her. Hazel cleared her throat, and you felt a surge of sympathy for the girl. Not that you would ever tell her that. You could barely look at her without melting into a puddle. Her big, dreamy eyes that you could pretty much drown in. Her smooth-as-honey voice. Her radiant smile. The way she was so sweet to everyone, even if they didn’t deserve it. How she was simultaneously so sure of herself, seemingly so confident. Her floppy hair that was always getting in her eyes, and just looked so soft that you always wanted to just reach out and-

Oh shit. You were definitely staring now. You looked away quickly, heart racing.

“We’re not supposed to talk about th-“ Josie mumbled to PJ. “It’s a self defence club,” she explained to the group. “Come on,” she gestured, and you all gathered in a circle, sitting down. Hazel sat next to you, and you had never been so aware of somebody’s physical presence before. All you needed to do was move your leg over a few inches and hers would be touching yours. You were vaguely aware of PJ explaining that you were going to practise defending yourselves against each other, but you were only half listening. You were too busy staring at Hazel’s knee. It was so close to yours. You were snapped out of your thoughts by her knee nudging yours. You looked up at Hazel, mortified that you were caught out.

“That’s you,” Hazel said.

“Huh? What? Oh,” you laughed nervously, putting two-and-two together. Josie had said your name. You gulped. You really didn’t want to go first. Surely fighting each other was counterintuitive for solidarity? You sat up, moving to the middle of the circle.

“And um… Hazel.” Josie said. Your eyes widened. You particularly didn’t want to fight her. What if you hurt her?

“Right, okay,” Hazel chuckled awkwardly, standing up to move into the middle as well. You smiled at each other nervously and began circling each other.

“C’mon!” someone shouted.

“Hit each other!” somebody else yelled even louder. Your heart racing, you took a step forward, swinging your fist, nowhere near as hard as you could have, cringing as you did so. Hazel, thankfully, ducked, and you missed. Continuing to circle each other, you both laughed nervously.

The group shouted encouragements, egging you both on. Hazel swung this time as you attempted to dodge. You didn’t quite move fast enough though, and her fist made contact with your cheekbone. You bit back a smile. It was not okay how much you enjoyed it.

“Get her, Hazel! Slay queen!” Sylvie shouted, as she swung again, and this time you ducked quickly. Using the opportunity, you thought you’d better try again, and attempted a right hook, cringing internally when your fist made contact. Hazel smiled. She actually smiled.

“Nice one,” she said, hitting you again, knocking you down onto your back. Amidst the shock, you were vaguely aware of your lip bleeding from where Hazel’s ring made contact. Before you could move to get up, she was on top of you, hips straddling yours, pinning down your wrists. The way her body was pressed against yours made your head spin and your breath quicken. Not to mention the throbbing between your thighs. Your cheer skirt had ridden up in the process, and it was difficult not to notice the only thing covering you were the thin bike shorts underneath.

“Ready to give up yet?” she asked, smirking. You smiled, using all of your strength to push her off you, the two of you rolling over so now you were on top of her. There was something about this particular situation that was making you so much more brave then usual.

“Definitely not,” you replied. There was a bit of back and forth as you rolled around, eventually ending up on your back, Hazel on top of you. Not that you were complaining. The soft noises she made, grunting and groaning as you fought, were possibly the hottest sounds you had ever heard in your entire life. It made you wonder what she sounded if they were noises of pleasure, instead of pain, if she might moan in delight if you were to kiss her neck, if you were to be between her legs, how she would gasp-

“Hazel wins!”

Oh fuck. Your train of thought had absolutely distracted you. You literally had forgotten to keep fighting back, too busy enjoying yourself. Hazel stood up, the loss of the feeling of her against you a large disappointment. You picked yourself up as well, wincing at the pain. Hazel was looking pretty worse for wear as well, blood dripping from her nose, hair mused. You vaguely wondered if it was normal to find it incredibly sexy.

“Well done,” you said, as she reached out to shake your hand. God, she was so endearing. You tried to ignore how much sweat had pooled on your palms.

“You too,” she said, “you were amazing.”

------------------------------------------------------------

The next few weeks in the club were truly amazing. Despite the fighting being the thing to bring all of you together, you really felt like you had bonded with every single one of the girls more than you could have imagined. There was a beauty in the trust you put in each other’s hands to be that violent with each other.

More than anything, you felt closer to Hazel. You could actually speak to her without feeling like you were going to explode with anxiety, instead wanting to explode with affection. The pair of you had developed a habit of sitting next to one another, and after every meeting you would hang around after everyone else had left, caught up in conversation. Those small moments were such a safe space, they felt electric; you felt like you could tell her anything and she would listen. And vice versa.

Well. Almost anything.

The two of you were sitting cross-legged in the middle of the gym floor, facing each other. You couldn’t even remember how long ago everyone else had left.

“I dunno, I just feel like this is the first time I’ve had actual, real, friends in school, you know?” Hazel said. The sadness in her eyes and twitch in her brow made you want to scream, to grab the shoulders of anyone who didn’t want to be her friend and ask what the fuck was fundamentally wrong with them.

You nodded sympathetically.

“Me too. I mean, I love Brittany and Isabel, but we didn’t even talk about anything that wasn’t cheer or schoolwork or petty relationship drama until we joined the club. Now we talk about real things.”

“That’s so great,” Hazel said softly, turning your insides to mush.

“You’re so great,” you breathed out quickly, gently placing your hand on her leg before you could think. You cleared your throat, drawing your hand back and placing it back in your lap, clasping your hands together.

“Thank you,” she said your name, and you fought the urge to melt into the floor at the way your name passed through her lips.

Suddenly, the door swung open, and you both whipped your heads to see who it was. PJ wandered in, and you stiffened.

“Hey, I left my backpack.” She jogged up, grabbing it off the ground and swinging it onto her shoulder. “What are you guys doing?”

“Nothing,” you said, possibly a little too defensively.

“Yeah, just talking,” Hazel said, standing up. You basically deflated with disappointment.

“We still on for tonight? I really need some help,” PJ said to Hazel expectedly, and she nodded in response.

“Yeah, for sure. See you later,” she smiled at you, and you tried to hide your disappointment.

“Bye guys,” you waved, waiting until they left to lay down on the floor and groan.

------------------------------------------------------------

“PJ, you’re a liar!”

“Yeah, well, you have no friends and a skank as a mom, so…”

The pain on Hazel’s face was evident. She looked like a kicked puppy. Your blood boiled. How dare PJ say that, after everything Hazel had done for her? Enough was enough. You shot up, stalking over to PJ, rage burning inside of you. With one swift movement, you swung your fist right to the centre of her face, knocking her clean onto the floor.

It suddenly dawned on you what you had done. All of your friends watched in shock, mouths hanging open. Nervously, you turned around, Hazel gazing at you in shock.

“I-uh-“ you stuttered, utterly humiliated. Before you could apologise to PJ for taking it too far, before anyone could say anything, Hazel darted off, the doors shutting loudly behind her.

“PJ, I’m sorry, I-“ you stuttered out to the girl still laying on the floor, before taking off after Hazel.

“Haze, wait!” You followed her figure out the gym, down the hallway, around a corner, and into the toilets.

You entered, taking a deep breath. Hazel was leaning against the sink, chewing on her fingernails.

“Are you okay? I’m so sorry, that was uncalled for. I know you don’t need me to stand up for you, and I know you like PJ, and that was so not my place, and-“ you said quickly. “I’m just really sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologise to me,” Hazel sighed. “You were incredible. I should be thanking you, really.”

“Oh.” You took a small step forward, hands clasped behind your back.

“I don’t like PJ, by the way,” she shook her head, chuckling. Your stomach rolled and dipped.

“Oh?”

“Yeah,” she smiled softly.

“I just hear the way she speaks to you, and I don’t know, I think you deserve better than that,” you shrugged.

“I know I do,” she said, shuffling back and forth nervously. “I just always want to see the best in people, I guess.”

“I love that about you,” you said quickly, without thinking. Blood rushed to your cheeks. You were getting dangerously close to confessing the entirety of your feelings for her. She was the one who made you feel brave. Hazel looked away shyly at this, grinning. God, she was beautiful. You took a moment to admire her.

“That doesn’t mean that you can’t be self-assured and brave at the same time,” you continued. “Really, I’ve always thought that you seem so confident.”

“I’m not as brave as I could be,” she said quietly, scanning your face. “As you.” She inched ever so closer to you. Her eyes were burning into yours, making you feel positively dizzy. “There’s so many things I wish I could do, but I just… don’t have the confidence.” Her voice got quieter and quieter as she spoke.

“Like what?” you asked, nibbling at your bottom lip. You didn’t even remember when you got this close to each other, all you had to do was lean forward just a bit and you would be-

“Oh my god, Hazel are you okay?” the door swung open, and you both jumped back.

“Y-yeah, thanks Josie,” Hazel replied, her adorable face reddening. “It was a wake-up call, if I’m honest.”

“Between you and me, PJ had it coming,” Josie said, placing her hand on your shoulder. You smiled at her gratefully. “Someone had to do it. I really think she’ll come to her senses and realise that she needs to treat you better, Hazel.”

“Thank you. Honestly, I don’t even care that much anymore,” she shrugged, stealing a glance at you. Your breath quickened.

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It took a few weeks, but everything pretty much went back to normal. PJ was genuinely showing Hazel how sorry she was, appreciating all of the work she did for the club. You and PJ were fine, as well. You forgave each other. Meetings went back to normal, and you found yourself constantly grateful for the group of strong, brave, kind-hearted, supportive girls.

You were currently sitting on your bed, books sprawled out in front of you, ‘studying.’ Okay, so maybe you weren’t entirely concentrating on science homework. Maybe, just maybe, you couldn’t get a certain brunette out of the forefront of your mind. Particularly a certain near-kiss incident. You always presumed there was no way she liked you, that she liked PJ, but now you weren’t sure. Would she have kissed you if you hadn’t been interrupted? Your doorbell rang, and you sighed in relief at the distraction from your rumination. Being home alone, you went down your stairs, heading towards the door and opening it before checking who it was. Nothing could have prepared you to see Hazel standing there, looking incredibly nervous and incredibly adorable. She was wearing a back and white shirt paired with a black vest that should have been illegal to look that good in.

“Hey!” you said, perhaps a little too cheerfully. “What are you doing here? Do you wanna come in?”

She grinned that smile of hers that you swear could cure any disease.

“Yeah, thanks. Just came to see you, if that’s okay? I know it’s a bit weird, I hope I’m not interrupting anything?” You shook your head as she wiped her feet before entering, and you shut the door behind her.

“Just studying. So boring. I’m grateful for the distraction,” you chuckled. And you truly were grateful. It’s as if all your worries and anxieties about Hazel disappeared as soon as she was in front of you. Because it was just Hazel. Your Hazel. Your friend. And no matter what, you loved her. And you knew she cared for you, romantic or not. And that wasn’t going to change.

“Look, I-“ she started, taking a deep breath, and then beginning again. “I’m trying to be brave like you are. To say what I feel when I feel it.” Her voice was steady and even. You wanted to correct her, tell her that you don’t say what you feel, but she continued.

“And what I feel, is that I might just die if I don’t kiss you right now.”

Holy shit.

Instead of responding, you placed your hand behind her neck, both of your bodies moving in sync towards each other. The moment your lips met, you exhaled through your noses in sync. As if you were both saying, finally. Her hands found your waist as your lips softly grazed one another’s, testing the water. You parted your lips slightly, deepening the kiss. Kissing somebody new usually felt daunting as you learned to navigate it, but you had never felt safer. Hazel’s hands moved back and forth on your waist, as her tongue darted out ever so slightly. You moaned softly into the kiss, hands gently threading through the hair at the bottom of her neck. It was just as soft as you imagined.

You pulled apart for a moment, faces close to one another. Neither of you could contain your smiles. You vaguely wondered if it was possible to faint from feeling so many butterflies. Not being able to help yourself, you reached up and brushed her hair out of her eyes.

“Wow,” you exhaled.

Hazel was the first one to move this time, crashing your lips together with more urgency this time. The kiss grew more passionate as you wrapped your arms around each other, yours draped around her neck, hers engulfing your entire back. It was as if you couldn’t get any closer, as if you were drowning and kissing each other was oxygen. Pulling apart ever so slightly, you gave her one last kiss, then another, because you simply couldn’t help it.

“You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that.” You giggled, arms still draped around her neck.

“Me too,” she whispered, before kissing your forehead. God, could she get any cuter?

“Really?” you raised an eyebrow, as you both began to move to get more comfortable on the couch, sitting beside one another.

“Yeah, are you kidding!?” she said dramatically. “But you’re like this hot, popular cheerleader, I never thought I’d have a chance with you!”

“I’m hot? Have you seen you?” you asked in disbelief.

She blushes a deep shade of red, mouth opening slightly as if she was going to say something, then closing it again.

“I didn’t even know if you were gay,” she eventually says.

You laughed.

“Don’t you remember the first time we fought? That was like, a sexual spiritual awakening. That was the gayest shit ever.” Hazel threw her head back and laughed, eyes crinkling at the sides.

“I can’t ever forget.”

“Oh! Also…” you said, grinning from ear to ear, absolutely giddy with disbelief that this was actually happening. You pulled your top up slightly to reveal your ribs, where a small tattoo of a pair of interlocked scissors resided. You both laughed. Hazel’s cheeks reddened, and she stuttered.

“Well, I- I mean… maybe you want to be a hairdresser?” she laughed, eyes glued to the tattoo.

“God, that’s so hot,” she mumbled under her breath. “Can I?” she asked reaching out, and you nodded, heart lurching at her care for asking. She gently traced the tattoo, and you let out a shaky breath. She was barely touching you, and yet her effect on you was all-encompassing. Goosebumps prickled your skin everywhere, not just where she was touching you.

“Hazel,” you whispered, barely loud enough for her to hear. “You can take it off if you want.” Your voice came out shakier than you anticipated. Hazel gulped, nodded, then pulled your top off, your arms stretching up to help her. She tossed it on the floor, eyes scanning all of you as if she couldn’t quite take it all in. You were in a plain cotton bra, still wearing your cheer skirt, but Hazel made you feel like you were wearing the most expensive, fancy lingerie ever. You cupped her face, thumbing her cheek, before pulling her in for a kiss. You kissed her with less urgency this time, taking the time to explore each other’s mouths slowly and passionately. She pulled you onto her lap, so you were straddling her, her hands resting on your hips. You slowly began to move against her in rhythm, moaning into the kiss.

Hazel murmured your name against your lips, breathing shakily.

“I want- I- you’re so-“ she tried. “Jesus fucking christ,” she said as she buried her face in the crook of your neck.

“Tell me what you want,” you whispered, running your fingers through her hair. Hazel began to kiss your neck, leaving a trail of kisses up to your ear. Shivers ran down your spine, and you sighed in pleasure.

“Whatever you want. Do whatever you want with me,” she whispered into your ear, and you quite literally nearly came right there and then.

“No, what do you want?” you asked, thumbing at her lip. She opened her mouth, sucking on your thumb before releasing it with a pop. You swore, she was going to actually put you into cardiac arrest. Despite this action, you could tell nobody had really asked her that before, and she was at a loss for words.

“I want to make you feel good. Is that okay?” you asked, instead of letting her answer.

“God yes,” she basically moaned, kissing you. Meanwhile, you pushed her vest off, making quick work of undoing the buttons of her shirt. You tossed the items on the floor, barely breaking your lips apart for a moment.

“Lay down for me,” you moved off her lap, letting her get comfortable. This gave you the perfect opportunity to run your eyes over her body. She was left in a soft black crop top and jeans. Looking down at her, her chest rising and falling, soft skin to die for, eyes wide with desire, lips plump from making out, it crossed your mind that you had never, ever, ever, seen a more heavenly sight.

“You’re so beautiful,” you breathed out, moving to straddle her again, intertwining your fingers together above her head.

“You’re the most beautiful,” she retaliated, nudging your noses together. You both giggled, and you kissed her softly.

“Take the compliment, baby. I mean it,” you said, kissing her again, before she could respond again. Still holding one of her hands, you moved the other down her tummy, lightly tracing patterns on her skin. Her eyes fluttered as she bit her lip.

“Touch me,” she said. You smirked.

“Now we’re getting somewhere,” you chuckled, glad she was asking for what she wanted.

“Can I take these off?” you blinked at her, fiddling with a belt loop on her jeans.

“Please,” she said breathily, arching her back slightly. You undid the button, the zipper, then stood up so she could shimmy out of them, you yanked them off her legs a little too hard, your feet giving out beneath you as you stumbled backwards, landing on your ass on the floor in shock. You looked at each other for a second, before both bursting out laughing.

“Smooth,” Hazel said between loud laughs. “Really smooth. How did you even manage that?” she teased, getting off the couch, instead onto the floor with you, crawling towards you. Your eyes drifted down to her cleavage, then back to her eyes. You inhaled sharply.

“Shut up,” you teased back, as she moved on top of you, pinning you down.

“I feel like we’ve been here before,” Hazel mused, holding your wrists down.

“I’m definitely getting flashbacks,” you laughed. “Except this time, I can just…” you kissed her, a little sloppily, but neither of you cared because it was so hot.

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The very next day, you and Hazel walked hand in hand into a club meeting, giggling and whispering to each other. You were the last ones to arrive, having gotten a little distracted in the janitor’s closet.

Everyone turned to look at the pair of you, all seemingly realising what was happening at the exact same moment.

“Oh my god, FINALLY!”

“You fucked! Finally!”

“You were so obvious!”

“Slay queens!”

A chorus of excitement engulfed you, as everyone crowded around you, hugging the pair of you. PJ included.

“I’m really happy for you guys. This-“ she pointed back and forth between you, then made some inappropriate gestures, “makes a lot of sense.”

“Thanks, dude.” Hazel smiled at her.

“Okay, let’s start!” Josie chimed, and you all sat down in a circle. You didn’t let go of Hazel’s hand for a moment. “As per our new protocol, we’re drawing names for pairings.” She held up a hat full of slips with all of your names on it, shaking it around. She stuck her hand in, swirled it around a little too long for dramatic effect. She drew a paper out, reading it aloud.

“Hazel!” You internally groaned. You didn’t want anyone else to get that close to your girl.

“And….” She picked another piece, reading your name out. You grinned.

“Are you game?” Hazel asked, and you nodded enthusiastically.

“Only if you are.”

“Are you kidding?” She leaned into your ear to whisper. “Any excuse to get you on top of me.”

[nkjemisin]

Me, scrolling tumblr reading a good strike for screenwriters thread

Also me: HUGO THREE TIME AWARD WINNER AND FAMOUS AUTHOR NK JEMISIN?!?

LOL. Well, yeah. I wrote a script last year (before the strike) for "The Fifth Season" film that Sony/Tristar is currently developing, so I'm now qualified to join the WGA. (Haven't done it yet bc of the strike, but I will when I can.) And even if I weren't qualified, writers are writers, and I'm always gonna show solidarity with my fellow creatives when they're fighting The Man.

(ID: A rainy sidewalk. N. K. Jemisin stands in the foreground holding a picket sign that reads WRITERS GUILD ON STRIKE! Handwritten underneath: Book Writers Stand for WGA. Jemisin is wearing shorts and a black shirt that reads "PENCILS THE F*CK DOWN". In the background are several other people carrying picket signs, text blurry.)

Also. ::cough:: It's, uh. Five Hugos. 😅

(ID: Photo of a glass trophy cabinet. Visible are 5 Hugos, a Nebula, and the top of a BSFA.)

[sapphos-darlings]

There's something I've been thinking a lot recently, about how lesbianism is truly a unique sexual orientation even among other minority ones, and how that affects our art and writing that should be about self-expression. Lesbians are so far in the margins, being first women, then a minority of women by being same-sex attracted, and then a minority of those ssa women by being exclusively ssa. That's not even mentioning other factors that might intersect, such as race or ability. This can leave us feeling isolated and scrambling for support and allies, and in my opinion, one can compromise too much while struggling to be understood, and even lose important parts of yourself in the quest for solidarity and inclusivity.

So, what I want to say to my fellow lesbian writers and artists:

Be bold.

Be honest.

Be unapologetic.

Question your motives and biases again to make sure you're not holding yourself back. Don't let yourself become your own lesbophobic call-out-poster or a narrowminded critic. Don't chew up your ideas, opinions and creativity just so some hypothetical audience would have easier time swallowing it.

Don't shrink back and lie to make your art appeal to others. Dare to prefer women and lesbians. Dare to put lesbians first. Dare to center lesbians. Dare to center lesbians like you and focus on topics that are important to you.

Personally for me becoming the loud and self-centered lesbian writer has meant that I've started to write lesbian/lesbian couples without feeling the need to "be fair" in terms of representation. I've started to write about explicitly homosexual experiences, where women love women not "despite their sex" but because of it, and are sure and happy about that.

I no longer cloak lesbian sexuality in "soft sapphic vibes" or leave it without a clear definition. I've started to exclude men from the women's stories. I've shed the need to include heterosexuals in main roles, even other women.

I started to exclude hyper feminine tropes just because I don't like them. I started writing masculine women and butches without worrying they are "too much". I create lesbian characters who are flawed, in pain, evil, complex and unlikable, and put them in thrillers and horror without worrying about crossing a line into that dreaded "too much".

I've pushed down many invisible walls by examining the ways I've people-pleased and shied away from how strong and unique the lesbian experience is.

Behind all those walls are stories I really long to tell, the kind that resonate with me, the kind I want to have in this world.

And I know no one else is going to depict lesbians like we do ourselves. No one else is going to tell our stories like we do, or paint us like we do, so let's stop wasting time pleasing others and start telling our own stories - unfiltered and proud.

[pricegouge]

Speaking of unionizing-

My bisexual ass is gonna trauma bond with the second toy instantly and half the time the boys come down to the basement cell they’ll see me and her making out sloppy style. To Cope. For some reason the visual of having a fellow captive to go to for comfort/softness/solidarity makes my horny lizard brain go wILD. Bonus points if I get to make out sloppy style. To Cope

No cause that was sincerely my immediate reaction to that prompt as well like why are we fighting, other doll, we have to unionize. We have to make out to develop our union. Anyway, I'm SO sorry this took so long to answer. I saved it for a while hoping to write something nice for it but I'm deep in writer's block hell so here's this instead.

(Haul)

cw: dubcon/noncon, oral

The second time they bring home a doll for you to play with, John does not bother playing any games. Her name is Paula, but she tells you to just call her Chick. That's what all her friends call her, she says. You hold her all night and offer her what comfort you can, all the while waiting for the other shoe to drop in the morning, but it never does.

Instead, you're carted off together, Simon being nice enough to let you both shower, though he says Chick will have to earn her curtain privileges. You look politely away, of course, but you can't help noticing how she doesn't cringe from you the same way she does him.

At night when you lay with her, you worry what it says, how pleased you are by her comfort with you. It's one thing knowing your time with the boys has changed you, another thing seeing yourself take advantage of a fellow scared victim, pressing against her at night just to feel her warmth and her softness. Then she says one morning that she can't imagine how you've managed to last so long and it's like she hands you back your humanity, the immediate realization that you're not like them nearly knocking you off your feet. Of course you're nothing like your captors - you're just scared and alone and in need of comfort and company, same as her.

The first time you brush your lips against Chick's in the dead of night, pressed up against her head to toe in an attempt to stave off the chill of the very walls that surround you, she goes rigid and still, entire body wound up tighter than a drum. You apologize, of course, and she brushes it off, but you can tell how little she relaxes the rest of the night, how tense she is even in sleep. It eats you alive, reminds you of the first doll the boys brought home. Does Chick think you're just another tormentor too? Does she think you're simply biding your time, gaining her trust? You worry about what she worries about, spend all night chasing your thoughts in circles - and then wake up with her wrapped around your back, soft chest pressed close. You can tell she's awake by her breathing and when she knows you are too, she laces her fingers with yours. She says you're going to get out of here. You kiss the back of her hand.

You can't give her hope, but you can distract her.

When Chick kisses you, she's hesitant and shy. You ask if she's ever been with a woman and she talks about her college roommate, a story you only half listen to, brushing your lips against her hairline as you let her soothe herself with her rambling. As she peters out, you kiss her mouth, soft as you can manage. You're unsure if the shiver that racks her stems from the chill or genuine desire but she blossoms under you regardless, unfolding and encouraging your hands to drag across her skin. It's not much more than that, that first time, but soon enough you're both looking forward to the odd hours you're left alone, to the soft touches and hot drag of tongues. Fingers and stifled sighs, a softness you haven't known in months, maybe years. Certainly not since being in the basement, at least - even when your captors try to be kind, there's no hiding their nature long enough to let you ease into their warmth like this.

It's only after Chick finally opens up to you completely, lets you between her thighs and damn near drowns you in her arousal all night that the other shoe finally drops, John waking you both the next morning with a leery grin that tips you off immediately, though he doesn't say anything until much later, when it's just you and him in his office where he keeps you under his desk while the boys tear into Chick a little too hard in the next room.

"Christ, listen to her," John rumbles, hand cradling the base of your skull as he feeds you his cock. Unfortunately, you can, Chick's cries loud enough you can hear them over the droning of your own pulse. John's own voice is breathless when he continues, "You're gonna have to be real sweet with her again tonight, doll, won't you? Gotta keep her happy or we might get bored again."

[constellationandcompendium]

Writeblr Intro

Greetings traveller!

About Me:

She/her, early 30s

PhD graduate working in heritage

British (obsessed with tea)

Also sings and crochets

Enjoys both Star Trek & Star Wars

Occasional NaNoWriMo participant

Fanfic writer of 15 years making the jump into original fiction (find my fandom blog @thetamehistorian)

Happy to take asks / play tag games etc.

Has a habit of designing covers rather than writing

Second attempt at this blog (main blog this time, cha cha real smooth)

Tends To Write / Read

Sci-Fi & Cyberpunk

Urban Fantasy & Fantasy

Historical

Comedy (this suprised me too)

Introducing My WIPS

A crime thriller with a touch of cyberpunk...

Featuring

Man with habit of doing wrong thing for right reason

Best buds to reluctant allies to ‘I would die for you’

That ‘I can’t believe you’ve done this’ meme

Conspiracies and double agents

Lots of angst and hurt (with some comfort)

Wholesome parent / child relationships

Summary

Solaris City has a problem. Whilst the metropolis flourishes, down below in the old mines the Undercity grows wild and dangerous, it’s people cut off from the prosperity above, dreaming of the sun and spreading Haze - an addictive drug.

Elias also has a problem. Working for the Bureau has cleaned his slate but he hasn’t cut all ties with those underground. Now there’s a girl hidden in his flat and something big has been uncovered that has his contacts in a flurry.

With two days to go to a vote on unifying the two halves of the city, and his friend Sebastien caught right in the middle, Elias has a feeling that it'll only take one domino falling for everything to come crashing down.

Work Page

First Draft Complete, If Messy (Mind the Plot Holes)

A sci-fi comedy of a ship of misfits...

Featuring

Puns for ship names (and just bad jokes in general)

Captain packing up the ship and all its crew because they can no longer thrive in this household

Overly social parents (please stop inviting my professor over to dinner)

Space worker unions (and aliens)

Learning self-worth and finding strength through working together

Found family

Summary

The United Earth Ship Archimedes patrols the border of charted space. Beyond it - the vast and unexplored reaches of the universe.

It’s an exciting prospect for Aster Kobor, newly graduated from the fleet academy and hoping to make her mark upon the stars. Unfortunately, it only takes a few weeks for Aster to realise that the Archimedes is nicknamed ‘the screw’ for a reason. It’s a ship for the rejects and misfits, those deemed unfit to serve in the frontier ships and command never lets them do anything exciting. Still, Aster is determined to make the best of it and, unbeknownst to her, her meddling Captain is about to give the crew of the Archimedes their chance to show command what they're made of.

Soon a bad reputation is the least of their troubles and, whether the crew like it or not, they’ll have to learn to survive in deep space - where their only certainty is each other.

Work Page

Currently Wrangling Vibes Into ~ Characters ~ and ~ Plot ~

A historical novel about determined women, trains, and winning a war…

Featuring

One woman’s obsession with the railways

Code breaking commuters

Breakfasts cooked on a coal shovel

Being accidentally adopted by an elderly fireman and driver duo

Occasional air raid for added ~spice~

Solidarity in the face of adversity and outdated systems

Summary

Bea had always been fascinated by the railways, but her dream of driving one of the locomotives always seemed out of reach. Working the trains is dangerous, dirty, and completely off limits to the fairer sex.

Then the war came and the men went off the fight. Answering the call to help, Bea and her fellow railway volunteers find themselves with an opportunity of a lifetime. Obscured from judging eyes by steam and smoke they shadow the veteran drivers and engineers, learning what they can on the job and hitting the library when they can't.

The trains need to run, they are vital to the war effort. All it would take is one rogue bomb, one mishap to take out a driver and the wheels stop spinning.

Or at least, that's what the station manager thinks.

Work Page

Currently Doing Research and Initial Planning!

[alltimefail]

Hello fellow Agatha All Along fans! I’m reaching out on behalf of Dead Boy Detectives! Please, we need your help!

I’m here in a desperate plea of fandom solidarity: will you guys please sign our petition and, moreover, would you be willing to check out Dead Boy Detectives on Netflix?

This isn’t just about getting a season 2: we’re trying to get justice for the cast, crew, and writers behind this unapologetically queer show. Netflix has gotten far too comfortable canceling fantasy shows, especially ones that are diverse or LGBTQ+ (like Dead Boy Detectives), and we want to send a message that our stories are worth telling.

Dead Boy Detectives is campy, supernatural, and oh so delightfully QUEER! The age range of characters, much like Agatha, is diverse, and the lead cast is 3/4 POC! It’s also full of drama, horror, magic, romance, action, stunning visuals, cunty villains, and hilarious quips. But my favorite part of all is the show’s heavy focus on themes of grief, overcoming trauma, and self-acceptance through emotionally provocative character arcs that will touch your heart. I'm also a huge fan of Agatha All Along, so I feel confident when I promise you guys will LOVE this show and should check it out! It’s a perfect binge for spooky season at only 8 episodes!💜

[thebibliosphere]

Fellow adhd writer, how do I stick with a single topic and finish it? I could always manage my academic papers well enough but I’ve been trying to write fic for the last few years and can’t ever seem to finish one before another idea grabs me and I keep following one idea after the other

So, the way I manage that, is I often have more than one project going on at once. Being able to alternate between them provides my shiny crow brain with enough stimulation and variety to prevent me from getting bored.

I also keep a word document of "random thoughts that won't leave me tf alone," where I scribble things down to get the idea and impulse to follow it out of my head.

If I still can't stop thinking about it, I'll start planning it out. Devoting that level of attention to something will do one of two things for me. One, I'll have the outline for my next WIP done, or two, my brain will go, "aw, you want to make this into work?" and drop it like a hot potato.

To make progress on current projects, I set small daily goals. On average days, my minimum creative word count is 500.

Which, by the way, is often on par with the goal professional, award-winning writers set for themselves. Being able to write tens of thousands of words in a day sure is a thing some people are capable of (I am when I'm hyperfixating), but it's not sustainable, and you may be setting yourself up for burnout--especially if you try to maintain it longterm.

On bad days, I will reduce it to "okay, let's do a half hour and see how far I get." If I'm able to trap my attention, great. I'll keep going until I meet my goal.

If I can't, I accept that today is a low-attention day and acknowledge that I likely need more sleep, food, or stimulating recreation to give my brain both a rest and a boost. I do not consider these lost or failed days. They are all part of the productive, creative cycle and necessary. This is true whether you are NT or ND.

Body doubling can also be very helpful for those of us who work better with others present. I do body doubling with friends or people in my Discord sometimes. (Starting that up again soon, folks, just as soon as I get the okay to start working more from the eye doctor!) So if that sounds like something you'd enjoy, try asking friends if they'd like to set time aside to write together. Shared productivity can be beneficial for keeping ADHD and other flavors of ND on track.

If you lose all interest in a project. Shelve it and follow one of the other WIPS. Sometimes you need to be in a better place to work on certain things, and that's okay.

Some people thrive with a stricter structure than that, but this is what works for me. Small goals, allowing myself the time to follow diversions (while also trying to meet daily goals), and taking the time out to ensure I'm getting enough good stimulation in other ways. Took me a while in therapy to figure out a healthy work-life balance, but that's mine.

I hope that helps or provides a greater sense of solidarity.

[horizon-verizon]

Netty’s erasure is being justified by some with the excuse that it would be problematic to depict a young Black girl in a relationship with an older white man and then be used to create conflict between two white characters. But there was an easy and obvious solution to that problem which has been provided by the author himself in F&B: The theory of Daemon having a paternal relationship with Nettles, be it as her biological father or father figure. They could have shown her as a child from an affair he had long ago with whom he tries to connect. Or, had they been more creative, he could have been a mentor to her and grown to care for her because of her loyalty and because she reminded him of his own children with whom he had no conflict whatsoever in canon. Given how they lose Luke, Viserys, and Jace in quick succession, it would make sense for him to be protective of her. But Condal and Hess would never opt for those routes simply because it would amount to admitting that Daemon - for whom they harbour hatred so visceral as if he stole their girlfriends, left them penniless on the streets, and kicked their dogs – is a human being capable of emotion and reason. It would wound their ego. There was absolutely no need to make up drama between him and his daughters just to force a ‘redemption arc’ when he never needed one.

But it is rather concerning to see how they would rather mess with the canonical characterizations of more than one female character, sideline them and outright erase them, how they would rather subject them to gratuitous violence than accept that this one male character they’re unhealthily obsessed with vilifying, is not this one dimensional monster they have made him up to be in their minds. The little girls who played Baela and Rhaena as kids had their scenes deleted and the actress who played Rhaena had to make a post about it on Instagram. Baela had one significant scene and dialogue in S1 with Rhaenys which gave a glimpse to her character that was deleted. What all scenes had in common was that they portrayed a softer side to Daemon and proved that he cared for his daughters and was involved in their lives. Other deleted scenes include Daemon proposing a toast for Viserys because it was decided that one improvised scene where Daemon expressed his love for his brother by crowning him would be more than enough and the one where he mourns Visenya which got edited out. The pattern is evident. Most female characters in the story are disposable and interchangeable for C&H and not worth putting any effort or thought. They are treated as plot devices meant to be used to further the arcs of the male characters the writers love or to prove a point against the male characters they hate. They are seldom prioritized. Maybe that’s why Black Aly was robbed off her moment in the Battle Of the Burning Mill which happens offscreen. Her presence would have made the Blackwoods appear like the badasses they are in canon and defeated C&H’s plans to demonize them. Also because they can’t possibly have a woman have agency and engage in warfare out of her own freewill because wars are for men to wage while women need to preach peace :/

Now, if my predictions are correct, then Jeyne Arryn and the Vale subplot will be made all about Daemon too because of the made-up canon-defying murder of Rhea Royce that was birthed by Condal’s galaxy brain. What a way to miss the point of that subplot from the book. The Vale alliance was never about Daemon but about Rhaenyra and the empathy Jeyne had for her cousin as a fellow woman whose inheritance was threatened by her male relatives. Her dislike for Daemon was overshadowed by her feelings of solidarity for Rhaenyra.

This show is such a droll tragedy that at times I wish they just stop pretending and accept it for what it is: The Adventures Of Historian and Philosopher Almond ft. Hugh the Greatest Family Man to have ever Family Manned in Westeros Hammer.

The pattern is evident. Most female characters in the story are disposable and interchangeable for C&H and not worth putting any effort or thought. They are treated as plot devices meant to be used to further the arcs of the male characters the writers love or to prove a point against the male characters they hate. They are seldom prioritized.

@deus-sema

Reminds me--and it is definitely connected to & fueled by the same principle of male centeredness--when SA and rape against women is used more to define a male character than to elucidate anyone on why men rape in fiction. It's either to signify a man who rescues said woman as "good"; the man who does it as "bad". And that's it. How does the woman feel and develop into the future with this incident, how does the community deal or not deal with the event and not just the rapist/would be rapist, what does anyone do to try to prevent it, etc., nothing.

Which underplays rape and gender violence as "a thing that happens" as if innate to human nature and not malleable behavior for the sake of creating character for males.

They are treated as plot devices meant to be used to further the arcs of the male characters the writers love or to prove a point against the male characters they hate.

In a recent reaction post to Epi 5, I said that the writers trying to make their version of Rhaenyra seem suppressed by her own council by making the "monarchs can't go into battle" thing an excuse to not deal with a woman make war instead of a pretty valid reason that had real life male monarchs not actually go to war themselves MOST of the time (the one who is meant to be the opposite of the fiery and proud Rhaenyra GRRM described but also a Rhaenyra who is trying her damdnest to be taking seriously or approved by the men around her as if that was who bk!rhaenyra was).

@thevelaryons said this in their post about how HotD writes Rhaenys and Corlys' relationship:

Yet despite all that, their relationship onscreen is still a loving one. Like I said, it’s a writing issue. Corlys and Rhaenys are clearly meant to be viewed as a loving couple but the central theme of HOTD is apparently that women are always victims of the men in their lives. Corlys as a man must fall into this in some way. But like always, the writers go overboard in their heavy-handed attempts to depict misogyny onscreen. So Corlys’ actions towards Rhaenys are such that there is a lack of respect but somehow there is love.

And they are coming from how HotD rewrote Rhaenys to be way too accepting of the Hull boys in her awareness when book!Corlys actually kept them away from anywhere Rhaenys herself might go to see them or discover them...bc she too didn't take what she and most noblewomen would see as insults to them of their husband's not only cheating but bringing their bastards around in the same spaces as their wives. Rhaenys was a Targ princess and very proud to be one.

Though Marilda is impressive as a human being (leading her own trad eboats later on), in the social context of these people I don't think noblemen would not take exception to not only their wives cheat on them but also cheat on them with any lower classed man or a stable boy and male readers not identify & recognize that as bringing shame to that man. Yes, men are socially graced to cheat, but noblewomen in Westeros still are expected to not have to raise his by-blows or have those bastards "sully" their own status by having them around. that's just the way things go, as those men love to say.

Then there is Daemon-at-Harrenhal trying to display his great leadership that he wants to prove to both Viserys and Rhaenyra that he was as capable of being a monarch/leader as he thinks they don't think he should be. Based on incompetence. Which is compounded by his bungling the Blackwoods and Brackens thing and thus endangering Rhaenyra's ability to get more soldiers...when bookwise, he doesn't perform any such stupidity and never tried to prove anything about his being able to be a competent king/independent agent to anyone. In fact he, like Jace, manages to collect many supporters from Rhaenyra with little problem. not only that, bk!Rhaenyra had an almost a ubiquitous and eager base in the Riverlands. These are CRITICAL changes made for shallow & logically inconsistent drama. Inconsistent bc we see Daemon and Rhaenyra have more or less a pretty settled marriage where Rhaenyra shows she had trusted Daemon to at least not betray her...which is why her later despair at his death and "betrayal" with Nettles was as intense as it was.

It reveals a pattern HotD makes of trying to poke fingers at misogyny while still being very sexist in how they do it by simplifying their men like Daemon and Corlys, try to overpunish and vilify Daemon, as well as how they pacified their female characters. It's all a distorted, very overly literal and unnuanced rewrite of the original story. But what else is new?

This is the story people want, right?

[lynxgriffin]

I've been seeing a lot of doom and gloom about the animation industry lately, particularly related to AI, overwork, underpay, etc. As an artist in the industry, would you mind sharing your view of things? Is it as bad as it looks?

It's definitely rough out there right now, just because of a number of different factors:

Being overworked and underpaid has been an issue for a real long time. This area is actually improving a little bit (but not completely) since I first came into the industry.

Social media platforms collapsing because of crappy management's poor decision-making is a problem, since that's where a lot of artists network and even find new jobs.

The streaming bubble is a big reason why a lot of my friends are out of work right now...a lot of our work was going into streaming, and the streaming companies in turn have screwed over artists in a number of different ways (weird splits on seasons, cancelling shows to avoid residuals, not giving proper credit or marketing, obfuscated viewership numbers, etc.) So either streaming needs to be fixed to be artist and viewer-friendly, or better platforms need to come about for hosting shows and movies.

AI is definitely an issue, but it's not just the animation industry; it's something to deal with in a lot of different industries. That's one of the big reasons that the writers and actors are striking, and it's very important that they get job protection from that, since that will affect a lot of other industries. (Animation's union, TAG, can't sympathy strike right now; their contract is renewed next year...and where I work in Canada, most studios don't even have a union.)

If you're looking to get into the industry yourself, what I do want to emphasize is that this is not a death knell, and that you shouldn't give up on it! The industry always goes through ups and downs, and unfortunately right now we're in a down state, and it's nerve-wracking since it's not clear when or how we'll go back up. But despite what tech bros and mediocre capitalists lacking imagination may say, the world will always need art made by humans, and that includes animation. The important thing to remember is that you're not going at it alone, and that as with most things, there's real power in unionizing and solidarity with fellow artists. That's why I think union stuff keeps coming up, and why it's so important...because collective action is the real solution to all these problems the industry is facing right now.

[lootboxindie]

PSA hateful anon bait

Hey guys, Indie here, I don't usually make posts like this and I'm doing it from my mostly inactive reblog/sideblog because my main blog is really just for art but I have questions for people who create content for Horizon:

Has anyone been getting baity-asks in their inbox recently?

At the start of this year, every time I post ship-related art I get hate in my inbox. Is this a common occurrence for fellow writers and fanartists within this fandom?

I'd say I'm a pretty casual fan, I don't really share my opinions or participate in discourse on tumblr, I just post fanart and occasionally interact with some of you guys! Not sure what made me a target besides having a different ship preference than others lol. If that's all it takes to get hate, well, it's 2024 can we just.. idk.. get over it.

Just curious about the general state of this fandom these days. Not sure if there's anything that can be done except to ignore them. I don't know what compelled me to post this. I suppose I'm just looking for some solidarity in the community. It kind of sucks that the only messages I ever get are hateful! It doesn't bother me too much but I noticed it seems to only happen when I post something Horizon related. I'd hate if any newcomers get such a rude welcome to this space because I know there's still good and fun people within this fandom <3

This doesn't deter me at all from posting what I want, but I hope that in the future, the fandom returns to being a more vibrant and positive space :)

[cupcraft]

"AI won't compete with talented artists"

Is my least favorite argument around AI art/writing/etc.

Firstly it poses these big issues for me: you don't understand how making art works and that people develop as an artist, that there's an easy way to place the line of who are "good talentrd artists". But there's one I want to go into more than these two issues and thats the by saying this you assume capitalists and the system we have gives a shit about "real good artists".

Capitalism doesn't care if artists can be talented or good at what they do. They don't care if the artist had a large portfolio, has worked on big named projects, is highly revered or respected, or even that they're resume is longer than most. They don't. The goal of capitalism is profit which relies heavily on worker exploitation. And with the advent of the unionization Renaissance and the writer actors strike plus much more, you can kind of piece together why talent isn't going to matter with ai art. Unionization and worker solidarity is the anthesis to workers exploitation. Solidarity is an attempt to remove power of capitalists to exploit. So, why did the execs during the writers strike/actors strike want ai so bad and kept putting their feet down? Why is ai art so promising to capitalists?

Well here's an article describing the excuse of why they want ai art

But in reality this really translates to "instead of exploiting workers (ones that will unionize/go on strike) we can replace and steal their work and avoid issues with a human worker". The propaganda is always "it will help innovation and creativity" the company line of all capitalism. But capitalism doesn't actually want to advance or be transformative or even innovate (source is general topic not just ai art). They want to maintain power and profit.

Talented artists (if you can even pick a definable line for that) will not survive in a world that does not carefully regulate AI and protect their creative property. They just won't. Automation of work can never work under a framework of capitalism where peoples jobs are tied to their Healthcare and livability.

People assume that business has their best interests at heart and many assume "well it doesn't affect me ofc bc I enjoy making ai art,". And it's a fools errand. The foot in the door to art, to automating and ridding human artists in the pursuance of profit and cheap efficiency is bad and it will get worse. The foot in the door with no regulations will affect other jobs, other humans, other fields. (Take ridding cashiers at grocery stores as a recent example. The source is a bit pro in its tone sadly, but I thought it a good article to read about the concept. And how ai forces customers to be free training for the ai so they can sell u more shit lmfao). And as more and more jobs are replaced with no regulation or power given to workers, economic disparity will get worse. And you having fun with ai art don't see that the foot in thendoor is dangerous and you don't care bc it currently doesn't affect you.

And this isn't to fear monger. Or to say technology is bad. What it is to say is stop placing your trust into businesses whose goal is efficiency and profit and exploitation above all else and stand in solidarity with your fellow human. Beg for regulations and control and protections for their sake and yours.

[the-unpopular-opinion]

Fan fiction writing and why you as a reader and writer need to care that what happens now is not right

And here is What The Popular WRITERS from THAT fandom taught me about fanfiction writing, and why I won't try that again

And The 10....More Than 10 Lessons I wish I knew earlier about fanfic writing in a fandom

Let me tell you my story....

I wish I've never posted, and if I knew, how the general new author is being treated around I most definitely would not. Or at least I would think twice....or more times.

I thought, that people are genuinely so supportive, to all and every author, by observing interactions between people.

Turns out .....They. Are. NOT.

THERE IS NO SOLIDARITY TO THE FELLOW AUTHOR ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE NEW.

NO ONE CARES TO CHECK YOUR THING.

NO ONE CARES TO HELP.

NOTHING.

THEY GO TO THEIR FAVORITES AND PRAISE THEM PUBLICLY and all the time AND THAT’S ABOUT IT.

A LOT OF PEOPLE GIVE UP AND QUIT BUT THEY COULDN’T CARE LESS.

* I have seen authors write anonymously to other writers blog, asking for advice, after they have been trying a long time but have been ignored, discarded and etc. despite doing their best.  Trying to get into the writing guild, or telling their pain of being exhausted trying.

I never wrote to another blog, but it's horrible that there is not even a way to tell how disappointed you are. I wrote on mine, but none of my followers gave a f*, neither whoever else from the fandom, so I quit trying.

At the end: I got 2 kind messages from people, who were not even my followers. I'm greatly and forever thankful to them!

But nobody else cared anyway.

That's the most horrible part of it.

After being ignored for long, at the end there is no one to talk to about it.

-- Here what I've learned though. Go there on your own risk.

The following post contains: cynicism, sarcasm and correct facts. With a pinch of salt. If you are under the age that grants EMOTIONAL MATURITY  and critical thinking you may as well skip.

I would advise you to read it if you are a new author and want to post your thing or an author that had seen it with their own eyes....

AND IF YOU CARE ABOUT THE FUTURE OF FAN FICTION AS SUCH AND THE DIVERSITY OF IT, YOU NEED TO TRY TO ACT DIFFERENTLY.

OTHERWISE...THAT WON’T BE THE FIRST OR THE LAST FANDOM THAT WILL SEE THE CLIQUES AND ALL THE ELSE THAT COMES WITH IT.

One of the places I saw.....Not the fandom I come from but you get the idea.....

SO HERE.....

The 10..... More Than 10 Lessons, I wish I knew earlier about fanfic writing in a fandom

Lesson One

It doesn't matter how good you are.

You might be the finest author out there and write great and all......

and STILL get nothing under your fics ( or 10 to 20 notes mostly likes), no comments or engagement - no matter how good you are.

I say this,IN CASE you posted and got nothing, SO YOU to know that probably, 99,9% probably, IT’S NOT YOU.

And in  A LOT OF CASES - it DOESN’T GET BETTER WITH TIME.

I CAN’T TELL YOU IF IT WILL GET BETTER....because SOMETIMES IS DOESN’T AND SOMETIMES IT DOES.

That’s how most of the authors ( new authors and not-seen but good authors) GET TREATED IN GENERAL.

Lesson Two

The ONLY thing that matters is, who are your ...."friends".

And to make the right kind of....."friends", you need to BECOME A PROFESSIONAL SYCOPHANT, AND go on popular blogs TO EXERCISE EXCESSIVE FLATTERY, in hopes that you and your fan-fics will get noticed.

The hard truth:

You only become seen and/or  popular if popular blogs - the more popular the better - reblog you and recommend you.

Or if you have many ENGAGED WITH YOUR WORK friends and/or followers.

The catch is....that your followers and/or friends NEED TO CARE ABOUT YOU AND YOUR WORK, and reblog, comment and engage with it.

Otherwise it all empty numbers in a list that does nothing!

Side note: I, personally, would recommend going to REDDIT.

Those people know the truth, and we talk active authors, who fic write 10 years and more. The name of the fandom does not mater, because all this is in every fandom on tumblr.

Yes - it does happen. And no - it's not right but...no one else cares. Except me, and may be someone else I don't know personally.

However - I'm no part of any fandom, and am practically free agent with no moral obligation to sugarcoat s***t.

Here is me, leaving you clues. Anyways, I base that all on research that took a year and a lot of googling....so ...yeah

Back to our program:

So if you want to make....”friends” on the right places......

You need to heavily socialize, leave long sophisticated comments as if it is your day to day highs paying job in case you want to be an author.

AND IN CASE YOU HAVE ANY LIMITATIONS such as:

sensory overload

social anxieties

making friends is hard for you for one or other reason

anxieties of any kind

and etcetera

You have got yourself a problem.

And now about the writers guild here.....Ah, the writer guild - here what I have seen:

Lesson Next

The Other authors treat you like competition

*If that's not how you got treated - good for you.

In all other cases:

Unless you are in one of their friends circles they won't:

engage with you and/or your fics

even try to help in some way

They will keep to themselves and their groups.

And if you sink - you sink.

They couldn't care less about:

you being new, and needing the most of support only to gain some sort of visibility, other than 20 likes/ notes.

In fact - the less competition with fics, the better

99 % Silent treatment , 1% Else

If you get lucky.....You will know it.

Lesson Four

A lot of authors use their free fan fic writing, as a stepping stone to original books....which would sell.

And that means they try gather a following, that will probably buy their original books only because they were fans of their fic.

You will feel it.

That's why they treat you like competition in a first place.

Otherwise no one, could be so cold hearted, and just ignore cries for help by a fellow writer.

Unless it is a business or about something people need.

Unless you want to get rid of those people, and have less competition.

Not to mention that comment I read under someone's writing "If someday you publish a book I will buy it...."

And then watching that ALREADY HAPPENING as Someone else “published*”a book ( *welcome in the era of self-publishing), and now offered the said book, signed and etc.it as a “reward” in a “follower CELEBRATION” EVENT.

Yeah, it seems.

I will wonder no more why people act like they do.

Well I thought it's for fun....

There is no fun in stepping on others because you need to to do marketing for your (future) writing endeavors.

Some of us were there just for fun and sharing with like minded people.....But ah well.....

Lesson Next and even the last point aside....

As someone else mentioned,  some people may "reject" you simply because they secretly envy you.

Or perceive you as a "threat".

Or simply because...they don’t like you...or your avatar

( *shrug*)

No one however would tell you how they feel, they will "smile and nod" and then stab you in the back.

So BE AWARE.....

Lesson

A lot of authors will ONLY INTERACT WITH YOU, and your writing, no matter the quality of it, and with respect and consider you, IF YOU ARE A POPULAR  BLOG....especially popular writing blog.

It does not matter how good you write, or what good you do.

You may be a great writer, and a person, and they will still ignore you.

Because they ONLY need the POPULAR BLOGS SUPPORT.

BECAUSE....THEY ARE POPULAR.

Your support as  not-popular, means nothing to them.

Because, the only way to get higher in "fandom hierarchy" is to ...FLATTER and CATER TO POPULAR  writing BLOGS, in a hope than they will become friendly and/or recommend  your fic.

That's THE ONLY WAY  your fic to be read and seen.

And Unless you have a lot of engaged followers and friends is the other option.....

But the usual way is the fic/ fics to be recommended by others...and most importantly POPULAR OTHERS.

So that that type of writer blogs/ people -

will rather compliment, and flatter a bad  fic and writing BUT POPULAR author, THAN to  tell / recommend  anyone who is NOT.

As those authors aim to get seen themselves that's what they do.

Lesson

Being  POPULAR  does NOT guarantee a good writing or a GENUINE E PERSON BEHIND THE NAME

That's was the most disappointing of it all.

Lesson

BEING  POPULAR AND BEING GOOD IN WRITING, ARE TWO SEPARATE, AND COMPLETELY DIFFERENT THINGS to start with.

As I mentioned earlier....

I personally have seen "bad" writers get more notes. attention, a$$ kissing, and love by the fandom than good ones.

And if you ask why....I can't tell you because I don't have a clue.

-- On the questions of how to get into the writers circles--

There is NO guarantee that you will succeed though.

NO MATTER WHAT YOU DO.

Lesson

You need to be proactive in "making friends".

IMO - That "you must do this, or that or else" demand, is not a fun thing.  That "making friends because otherwise no one would read, you" is NOT a friendly activity.

It's more like mutual benefits. and that is not a friendship.

It becomes a barter - "read mine I will read yours" kind of deal, or authors gives what the crowd needs, because they do not read otherwise.

Once you go there, once you go to the barter side of it -because it's a barter-a fic material/s for engagement... and it becomes a "business".

Yes, no one pays you ( fanfics must be free copyright and all in mind).

But the time investment still stands. Both sides.

The readers though invests time for enjoyment.

And the writer......THE WRITER DOES THE WORK

THE WRITERS do all the work, including activities such like but not limited to:  

cold pitches = reaching to other blogs* not knowing what the outcome will be * mainly popular blogs*

marketing = bringing your fic to the attention of your readers

design = designing your dividers, mood boards, fic covers and etc.

investing time in it = writing  ( for free *)

And the problem:

if you can’t even get some attention - comments, reblogs, some talk or anything at all on your work - what's the point?

Investing time, no one will return you, in something that gives nothing back? Not a wise "investment"* (* fanfiction is free taking in account copyrights and al that. And should stay that way.)

Also such writing for online posting becomes:

Dull

Time wasting activity

It becomes HARD WORK

And hard work for nothing is NOT "fun"

No engagement = no fun

You may become bitter, and quit writing altogether

and etcetera

And it's supposed to be fun.

And as added bonus:  Business is where people would play dirty, if they need to. AND THEY DO.

P:S Don't get me wrong though. I'm sure that some people could find friends like that. But at large - it is not the right way to do it. And in general - not a good idea.

Lesson

Unless you are (already) popular, or have many friends, or belong to a large group, in which people support each other's writing, mostly  based on personal internal relations and friendships, or have exceptional people/social skills - you are doomed.

That's about it.

And in case you have any sort of social anxiety, get sensory overload  by too much online interactions, or have any other limitation...No one cares.

In general they do the silent treatment.

They may also rather discriminate, and then marking and covering  that up as "I owe no one nothing" if you try to say something. Or they would simply ignore all legitimate complains, or worries you may have.

Unless you are popular, have many engaged followers/friends and etc.  Then you get the special treatment.  

Ah, well. That leads to Lesson Next.

Lesson Next

There is no place where a new, or not so new authors can voice their concerns.Nothing organized and no one will show you to one even if it existed.

You either write ANONYMOUSLY on other blogs, preferably popular, or the fandom may exile you and other pleasantries, if you even try to point a problem.

Otherwise, if you are not popular, and you write on your blog, your posts would most likely:

get ignored - unless you have engaged followers

get no notes - unless you have engaged followers

Lesson

It doesn't matter how good you are, it only matters if you are at the right place, at the right time.

In other words, AT THE END,  if you have got the lucky, is all that matters.

And if you are lucky, you will know.

--And now and more lessons - fic wise--

Lesson

The only fics that are being written are x reader content.

Want to write OC?

Tough luck.

You try. Prepare for disappointment.

Don't theorize about it. Don't EVEN think about it.

DON'T.

Unless you are already popular, or have many engaged with your writing friends, or belong to large group in which people support each other writing...sounds familiar ?

My case: I wrote with not described, not named OC btw. I used "she" instead of "you". Got 10 likes, and people not giving a fuck. Based on other fics that were getting 90 and more notes and interaction mine was not bad. Nevertheless. No one cared.

Even popular writers, when writing with characters, and not 'x reader' fics, were getting less notes on their writing, compared to their x reader fics.

Lesson

No one wants to write what's not popular. And that leads to.....There is No diversity.

Because it would not be read, because the "almighty" readers, who  have the power to "praise and punish" with their attention.

And what for an author would write hours and hours only to be rejected.

Anyways here it is...

And that lead to LESSON NEXT

Lesson

EVERYONE WRITES TO WIN

also know as being seen fanfic author in a fandom. ( also as - Getting more than 99 notes on your writing)

There is no organic, natural interaction.

It's either mutual benefiting friendships

....quid pro quo AND only if you are lucky. A lot of people CAN’T even get that no matter how many times they recommend and read others...

Also servility and sycophancy

or you are on your own.

It's either praises on popular blogs, and in friend circles or complete silence.

But you may get lucky if you like gambling with the unknown. In that case - good for you.

And as winning - being seen and known author - is the one goal here, despite the fact what they will try to make you think.....

They will play DIRTY, if they need to.

AND THAT OFFERS NEXT LESSON ON ITS OWN:

Lesson

Sycophancy, Servility and Flattery  or

How to get into a writers friend circle as a new author

If You want to get in writers friend circle, a.k.a become a seen fanfic author, you do that by exercising general and/or high level sycophancy, servility and extreme flattery on popular blogs.

And it does not matter whether you really like what you read or not.

Note : You may, in fact, enjoy popular writers, some are very good. Some of them are genuinely good people too. But you need to be careful.

In the most cases. though.....

You need to:

write sophisticated comments

interact for hours, and as if it is your high-end paid everyday job -- 'cause authors love that s**t,

And if you don't do that - you don't exist, and they will forget about ya.

Also - you need to write ungodly amounts of fiction, BUT only one that fits their taste...otherwise...or ELSE.

And in short:

if you want to be seen as an author, and/or to become popular, you need to do it and be very social about it no matter if you have limitations of whatever kind. Otherwise no one will help.

Though.....There is the downside......

You may never get in one of those circles, no matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, and  for one reason or another.

EVEN if you do the sycophancy and flattery and servile stuff.

Even if you sell your soul, it may not happen and have the desired effect, because it's a question of luck.

So - choose wisely. Wanna play roulette with a loaded gun with all bullets present but one?  That's the odds.

Anyways, and in case you don't succeed to enter one of their circles:

Then you get ignored, because no one gives a f***** otherwise.

And you write, create and put efforts and time into nothing.

Unless you don't mind to be ignored, or you create and write nevertheless, and not for any attention.

Side Note: It's not about popularity as such  by the way. It's about a normal amount of attention, every creator needs now and then.

LESSON

EVERYONE  in the fandom is a “WRITER”. ALSO AVID READER AND WRITER COMBO

Which you may or may not be.

And even if you comment under other people fics and recommend, you may NOT get anything back.

( I saw many people say that while I was searching ....)

That’s why I said that all that sycophancy and friends with benefits is bad....

It becomes work you need to do for some reason other than enjoying writing and reading fiction and communicating, and it becomes messy.

._.

--Lessons about characters--

Lesson NEXT

The People in the fandom, have and are entitled to a group, fandom-shared, pre-conception of what behaviour certain characters of the actor NEED TO EXHIBIT in the fiction written, in order to be acceptable in writing.

You either write a lot of what they need, want, crave and etc. otherwise - no one reads you, if you do not comply.

And never, in no case, don't you dare to forget. that you the writer MUST, in all and every case, to write ALWAYS and ONLY, with "YOU"......or else.

They punish by ignoring, exercising their "right" to do whatever, and in this case exercising their "right" to ignore, and do the the silent treatment, because what for ill-meant audacity is you- the writer, to offer something for diversity.

( /sarcasm intended. And please think for yourself why such behaviour is UNACCEPTABLE).

It does not matter, if you have an interesting story.

Unless you are lucky, and get the jackpot like that one person I followed.

Or unless you only create what they think the character should be like, and a lot of it.

(Or unless you are backed by a lot of people who love all you do.)

In all other cases - you are doomed to fail.

Here more about the characters.

Examples:

* Markus Pike is a sweetheart.

I saw a fic about a "bad "Marcus once. It had 42 notes. The usual amount of notes, that this same author was getting on their fics was about 800 and more.....

Next - The EQ 2 character.

Oh dear. I can talk about that for hours. Don't even get me started.....

He is usually perceived as rude and mean. And is always like 99,9 % always dominant. The mean, rude, heartless dominant kind of them.

He usually spits....on things, cheats his wife, bangs the babysitter, calls you a wh******, and he is possessive and all that.

And sometimes he is abuser and that kind of thing. And sometimes there are fics about him being submissive. And they allllll ( except some) are in some sort of Pit.

And that's it.

No other men on tumblr.'s fanfiction All Dominant. The rude kind. All into BDSM dynamic. That's it.

--

Side Note: I don't have problems with dominant characters!!!!! And I don't have problems with personal preferences and kinks.

I do however have problem with the lack of diversity. Because there is NO diversity.  

People from the dominant spectrum, come in varieties as  everyone else. Also people as a whole are different.

Lesson Unless you follow the unwritten rules of THAT writing fandom, you are doomed as new writer.

Or unless you get lucky...whatever you have, and get.

Have an genuine author need to write something out of love or whatever ?

You better be popular, or have a large friends and/or followers circle.

And last, but not least:

CLIQUES.

Cliques everywhere

Wanna genuine high-school rejection feeling?

You are on the right place.

So that's that.

If you did any of those, and you've succeeded, you are probably:

already in a writers friend circle and you "enjoy" fics and friendly talks with your writer friends

and/or are seen author.

Good for you. Congratulations for things working ot in your favour

----------Otherwise--------------

Welcome to The Void of The Ignored -- We don't have fun here.

-- Thank you for reading my observations and  for the utmost patience. Thank you for not getting offended by my cynicism and sarcasm. My intention is not to "offend".  I don't like to be rude.

But to point out things that need fixing

In conclusion -

I don't think that this way of behaviour is welcoming to new authors or authors who may have limitations - like social anxiety, sensory overload for one reason or another, or anything else on that note that makes it harder for them, to be authors under your ruler ship.

I personally won't ever post fan fiction online, especially in this community.

But if you, whoever read this all, think you can handle the rejection and the pain that comes with it - You are welcome to try.

Your time, your life.

And If you are lucky, you may have it better.

I however won't do that again. I only felt like my duty to leave a warning.

Because no one warned me, and I needed counseling because I got PTSD because of all that ( and not only). That's what they told me.

So my rating personally:

- 10000000 stars Would NOT recommend.

--

Disclaimer :

As I mentioned, that's how I was treated and what I saw. Also apparently, that's a standard way in which the writers on tumblr behave as a whole. ( by doing some research you find some very interesting and unsettling things. )

P:S I put so many disclaimers and side notes, because the last time I tried to states something politely, that was my opinion, and my feelings, with me being in a state of depression because of that "fine treatment" no one warned me about,  it was taken as "offense" - which it was not.

See my rules of online conduit and behaviour here. Ones I adhere to, and I never go against.

I believe in common courtesy, thank you.

I apologize, if that is too old-school to you.

That resulted in me being dumped by my EX-fave, content creator. Because their bestie got "offended", that they were no longer able to use my deleted content for their fic. And they were a heavy user of  my content. I wonder though, and what if I was the one who had 2000 followers, not the other way around....what it would be then?

And for the record - I DON'T PARTICIPATE IN friendship triangulation. Whoever wanted that, was NOT me.

--

Also - I won't tolerate to be "punished" for having an opinion.

One, stated in not rude manner. I ALWAYS try my best not to be rude.

But seriously, some people get offended, if you do not think like them, and that's childish at it's best.

[your-local-uwu-artist]

update! finished season 4 time to start up season 5

I am glad to report that this season has brought peace to my inner 9 year old (who was upset about the treatment of snakes in season 1) further more just as I had gotten used to 'goodmadan' (thats what I dubbed him in my head) he is now gone :(

anyway: I am actually so proud of my wonderful son <3

I never updated my opinions on the cole-jay-nya thing. I actually ended up not minding it. the rivalry was very much a general rivalry not a love rivalry. I defintly got the vibe Cole just wanted to piss Jay off. which is good because if the writers actually tried to pull a heterosexual romance involving cole it would NOT have been believable. I also actually really liked the internal conflict it gave Nya.

I also LOVE LOVE L O V E D how they like: managed to adress Zane's death at the end of rebooted. the funeral scene was already a lot but I genuinely did not expect for it to have that much of an impact. I thought it would be a quick death fakeout you know? and then they go own to show the ways everyone is grieving and how that grief seperated the group and it's like 'wait this is actually sad as fuck wait what i might cry wait' XD

I think that one thing I posted about this show being really satisfactory as a viewer holds up a lot. I really appreciate how not only do we have these themes and full circles within a season but I also feel like the separation of the ninja at the beggining of the season called me all the way back to 'home'. (aside from being a super fucking relatable episode) I think that episode kinda like: really cemented the Ninja as a team. and my god LLOYD my son has grown sooo much <3 I feel like: so proud of him actually <333

Chen was a FUN villain. capital A Asshole, excellent theatrics. his design is FANTASTIC: the voice actor did a great job at bringing it all together. he was unhinged and evil and ethically fucked and morally even more fucked and an egotistical capitalist. he's MANIPULATIVE, manipulative as FUCK, honestly I think that's what made him a good villain, not his prowess, the way he fucking lives for the drama he causes. also I kind of got the impression that after being banished to the island he got a few screws loose. maybe that was just me but idk, I think it's the voice actors delivery of some lines and his evil laughter that gave me that vibe. like he's just not quite all there.

I think the stuff with the noodle factory prisoners was probably my favorite. I mentioned this but a while back I read a fanfic that had something comparable going on, but it was lot heavier in tone so in that fic the characters had to leave a lot of their fellow captives behind. I think the way how it was so 'all of us get out or none of us do' and that solidarity kinda like: was particularly nice to see with that fic on my mind, it healed the anguish left behind by that fic. also once again SO SATISFACTORY. when they finally executed their escape plan. dude I was fuckign cheering lets fucking gooooo

anyway I REALLY loved this season. also this is kinda silly but it's got me excited for when this one fanfic I am obsessed with tackles on this season. it's still on season 2 but I know the author has plans and I will gladly patiently reread this fic excessively while waiting for updates lmao

alrighty: time to go binge season 5: whenever I finish that I'll be sure to update you guys :3 Idk if anyone actually cares but talking to the void is fun anyway sooo

[ceph-the-ghost-writer]

Writeblr Summoning Circle Intro

Patreon (you can join for free btw)

Ao3

Taglist sign-up

Hello and welcome to my shrine place of power writing blog. I'm Ceph, they/them, and despite the ghostly username I am, in fact, a regular human adult with a job, college homework, skin, blood, etc. Video games, houseplants, and buying books faster than I read them are just a few of my hobbies.

I write different flavors of fantasy mostly, with sprinkles of horror and romance/spice thrown in for pizzazz. If you're interested in...

Vampires, werecreatures, necromancers, merfolk, and/or passive-aggressive poltergeists

Resourceful protagonists in terrible peril who sometimes make choices that change things forever, for better or worse

Lovers becoming enemies becoming forced allies and maybe more in some cases

Themes of solidarity, the myriad facets of love, and people fighting for a better future

Slow burns

Worldbuilding that I definitely don't make up on the fly

Mortals becoming deities and vice versa

Telepathic monsters that could devour your soul -OR- become your best friend

Liminal spaces like roadside diners at 3 a.m

...you might find my WIPs tolerable. Possibly even fun.

Follow my sideblogs @dysthanasia-series and/or @the-primrose-path-story to get notifications for new chapters and other neat story-related stuff. Check out @coven-archives to see what I'm reblogging from fellow writers. Or just ask to be put on a taglist for a WIP you're interested in.

I welcome asks, prompts, writblr events (Worldbuilding Wednesday, etc.), and any interactions that lead to transmutating Internet strangers into friends. Do tell me about your characters and lore. I want to devour know all of it. Yes, even the obscure facts that never really make it into the story despite hours of research poured into them. Especially those.

That's pretty much it. Feel free to reblog or like this post or invite me into an object you own at the stroke of midnight if you want me to give a follow.

Below the cut you'll find a list of WIPs and links to read them which will increase my power every time you click one. Content advisories are at the top of each work and chapter.

Apophenia

Genre(s): Urban/Paranormal fantasy, vampires, post-apocalyptic

Status: Redraft in progress

Mermaids don't exist. Every agent of the Coven, the organization that researches and governs the supernatural community, knows that. Accepting a classified assignment to investigate sightings along the Broken Coast is just an easy paycheck as far as Isaac Soto is concerned (not to mention another way to avoid dealing with his trauma and relationship issues).

A chance meeting with a charming stranger in a roadside diner changes not only the course of Isaac's assignment but the trajectory of his life. A life now in danger of being cut short unless he figures out how to escape the bloodborn who takes him hostage, a necromancer out to kill both of them, and the corruption at the heart of the organization he thought he believed in.

The Primrose Path

Genre(s): High fantasy, romance/erotica

Status: Rough draft in progress

When his village is taken captive by an enemy nation, Illuminator Ân's priority is to make sure his people survive to fight another day. Faced with everything he's stood against as a priest of Cyanos, god of light and life, Ân prays for the strength to overcome and do what he must. It's not long before he receives signs that his petitions have been heard. Just not by the deity he serves.

Beyond & Between

Genre(s): High fantasy, portal fantasy, whump

Status: Occasional, out-of-order updates

Sail beyond where the seas turn red, until the sky is filled with unfamiliar stars, to the lands between realities. Magic and the power to leave one's old life behind awaits for those brave enough to seek it.

Beyond & Between is a collection of stories set in the strange places settled by ancient people, deities, and creatures from Earth who fell through the cracks.

Whumptober 2022

Each prompt followed by the story series it's set in and the MC. Content guidelines at the start of each story.

[strawberrylemonadesoda]

An agreement has been reached between AMTPT and the union. All picketing locations will be closed at November 9th,12:01 AM

Finally, the demands regarding compensation and protection of the actors and crew members against AI have been heard! More details will be provided by SAG-AFTRA in the upcoming hours. To all the actors, actresses and crew, my respects and here's to a promising future. Here's one last picket line picture (that I forgot to add) of our total badass daddy Slang, who stood in solidarity with his fellow thespians and writers from day one.

(I feel represented by that lady at the left)

[north-wilkesboro-moonshine-cave]

*gets hit with the f1 ask game beam*

tagged by both @oxygenpdf and @flyingcakeee!! Thanks <3

Who is your favorite driver?

I'm a new fan and I haven't begun properly my Summer Of Race Car Homework so it's all current drivers, but Alex Albon and Logan Sargeant are my faves.

Do you have any other favorite drivers?

I am new, and I honestly like a lot of them. My other faves are probably Zhou Guanyu (fascinated by that man), Yuki Tsunoda (fellow short king), and Oscar Piastri (April Aries Solidarity)

EDIT: FORGOT TO MENTION GEORGE RUSSELL, HAUNTED DOLL OF A MAN WHO I AM VERY INTRIGUED AND COMPELLED BY

Who is your least favorite driver?

I don't really have a least favorite! I don't really know anything about either driver for Haas I guess. So maybe them by default? My sister went to a robotics meet this year sponsored by Haas and decided she will root against them forever because of that meet tho. (this is possibly one of her funniest choices. she does not pay attention to motorsports at all, and only glances over my shoulder to ask how bad things are going for Haas)

Do you pull for drivers or do you like teams as well?

I am definitely driver based, but I picked the Williams team (more on this later) because I managed to catch the portion of pre-season testing where Albon was in the commentary box doing his champagne bit and I like. immediately decided I was rooting for him and Williams by extension. But bc of how i engage with sports I definitely also like teams (sorta. race car homework will decide how much I do later maybe)

If you like teams, what team do you pull for?

Williams (Albon and Logan and then got hit with Lia Block in F1Academy. Lia Block I Would Kill For You) but also Sauber (I pick teams based on color frequently and that green matched my hair last year, and is my fave type of green)

If you could take over as team principal for any team, who would it be and why?

Please christ do not put me in any situation of leadership. Just make me be in charge of like. whatever fuckin weird challenges they make em do on grill the grid. That i would be okay at I think.

How long have you been in F1

Uhhhh....February this year? I was *aware* of it and had friends into it before, and I knew like Hamilton and Verstappen before this year, and I knew who Schumacher was (VAGUELY!) but uh yeah. New Entry. New As Hell Entry, Even.

What got you into F1?

This is actually very funny. A couple buddies of mine have joked that they were gonna get me into motorsports for AGES, because it is "the perfect sport for me" and our new year resolution was to begin that process with nascar, since its "my cultural heritage as a redneck." (this is DEEPLY true and I cannot deny my family ties to nascar, redneckery, and general car silliness) February rolls around and Hamilton to Ferrari gets announced and I, recognizing who Lewis Hamilton is and being deeply surprised by the tumblr news bulletin text my friends to check in on em.

Group response is, "JESUS CHRIST!"

The following response is something to the tune of: "We're changing it up actually. Gee, you love sketchy business practices, financial crime, adrenaline junkie tendencies, weird contract trivia, AND athletes who are weird as fuck, Gee. We're starting you with F1 instead. have fun, please enjoy white collar crime and car racing. we will give u homework when the semester's over" And they did.

So I started following blogs posting memes, binged a few seasons of dts and analyzed the editing bc im a reality tv scholar in my heart and also the editing in that show is FASCINATING TO ME, and started watching highlights and found ways to watch the races, and boy. its a lot of fun! I was really surprised how chatty everyone is/seems to be in the fandom (and in the sports fandoms I guess?) so that's definitely helped.

Do you enjoy fanfic/rpf?

I will read literally any kind of fanfiction if the AU pitch is wild enough and boy does athlete rpf give writers good stuff to work with. I'm a former fanfic editor/beta reader, if the concept compels me I am here for it. Also, I love enabling crazy aus (hi wiz! <3) even if im not an rpf writer myself.

How do you view new fans?

I *AM* a new fan! I try to be conscious of my relative newness, but I'm enthusiastic to be here and having fun. So. Hope that's working!

Are your friends and family into F1 as well?

No, but we're a nascar family and we used to always be on a little family trip to my grandparents' house during the same week as the Indy500, so growing up we'd all be very sunburned and therefore hiding out inside while that race was on, so I grew up watching the indy500 (very different from nascar but this is also my fams only interaction with indy). I'm working on getting into nascar for the family, and Indy just to be the family's indycar and f1 correspondent.

For the friends, I do have those friends into f1 and theyre all gems and some of the oddest people I've ever experienced (very much the lesbians/gays who watch all sports stereotype), however the Car Chatter has always gone over my head until this year, but ya know. you move away and get busy so keeping track of hobbies and sports is hard when you arent religiously blocking someone every time a rivalry match goes down lol

Are you open to talking to other fans/making friends?

Of course! I am a very extroverted and social person I love making friends <333

i'll be real i have no clue who has and hasnt been tagged yet so im just gonna throw some names out and hope at least one of yall hasnt gotten this notification already lmao and if u haven't been tagged yet but follow me and would like to answer questions, consider this me tagging u spiritually

@two-tyred-problems, @wisteriagoesvroom, @stockcarbaby24 and @kissingwalls