#Where it's so overdone that I don't care how unique it is because there's so many that do almost the exact same thing

[crossover-enthusiast]

If I had the motivation and skillset for it I'd make an entire video essay about how the FNF modding scene has changed -- and not about scringus and dingus or the various dramas they've gotten into over the years, but legitimately how the scene has changed from so much creatively and love for the base game cast and people's original characters to creepypasta characters being recycled over and over and the actual canonical characters being downright ignored unless it's the now rare and far more considerably niche remix mod or the one in a million original mod

[ronearoundblindly]

heh heheheheheheh 😏 A, Q, & Y for Ransom pretty pls 🫶🏻💕

*General/Canon Ransom and RoAR!Ransom have been requested, so I'll describe it like before he met his rich!reader and after. I would like to remind everyone that Ran is a *super-duper dickhead* who thinks very rudely and drops f-bombs left and right. This serves as your warning. Enjoy!

Prompts based on this dirty ask game. MINORS DNI.

A - Alone Time

BEFORE - On the off chance he can't find a booty call from the long list in his contacts, yeah, Ran will jerk off. He also has toys, several, and will watch a variety of porn because he barely pays attention to the actual content. Vague sex vibes only are required.

He is not gentle with himself. There is not foreplay. He concentrates more on his pleasure than imagining anyone else participating with him.

Ya know, kinda like how he has actual sex. He doesn't fucking care as long as he gets off.

AFTER - So it's no longer the rolodex of his contacts. Ran's found phone sex with you (due to you traveling soooo much). He'd probably attribute this to just being around you and seeing you more than any other sexual partner--he never had a girlfriend before you--but Ransom does picture your face and body when he gets off alone.

It's not a love thing. It's from all the exposure. He's fucked you more than any single person ever and sees you over video chat. It's not because you unlocked a real human connection for him.

He...does seem to come a lot harder when he imagines you with him and your voice taunting, praising him.

Fucking hell!!! If you ruin masturbation for him, he's gonna be so fucking mad, you fucking bitch.

Now where the hell is your perfume and his fleshlight?

Q - Quiet Please

BEFORE - His volume varies. He hates listening to overdone moans from whichever bimbo is on his dick. Boring. He doesn't really need them to enjoy himself. Save the casting couch shit for someone who cares.

AFTER - His volume varies, but overall, he makes a fuckton more noise than he did before. You especially like him loud when riding him. He hams it up a little then. He performs. Whatever. Sue him.

Many times now, it's been established that Ran really fucking enjoys your genuine vocalization during sex. His brain has filed them away from rainy days, or rather, international timezone days.

Y - Yes, Master

BEFORE - He's been called 'daddy' by several women, but he never told them to do that. He didn't correct them either. He does not participate in BDSM scenes because if he has to discuss the sex that much, he's already bored.

Ran would have said that calling him 'Hugh'--unless he's actually fucking the help--would instantly kill his boner, but apparently...

AFTER - You call him 'Hugh.' He's grown fond of it.

Something about you calling him 'Ran' or 'Ransom' sounds very cold and distant, it sounds like you're mad at him, and it sounds like you don't know each other now. He's either scared or deeply disturbed by you referring to his middle name when you two are all alone. (In public, for the most part, you introduce him as 'Ransom' so that other people don't try to call him 'Hugh.' He will fucking lose his shit if John Doe Fuckface calls for 'Hugh Drysdale' to donate money to something. Shove. It up. Your ass. Buddy.)

In the past, he's called women 'whore' and 'slut' and whatnot in the bedroom, mostly for their benefit. Ran is afraid to call you any of that because you're in the unique position of retaliating...and he cares. Like if you withhold sex? That's very bad for him.

He never had to think much about this.

He's slipped and called you 'bitch' in heated moments, which has seemed to amuse you more than anything else. That confuses Ransom.

Between 'Hugh' and 'bitch' while you two fuck, there's a pattern sometimes. You degrade him; he makes you come till you can't stand. He gets to walk away as a taunt. It's a great system for him.

Why does he like that? Why does he still think of that one fight in the woods between your house and Harlan's? Why can't he forget that one magnificent awful time you referred to yourself as 'momma' to deeply fuck with him? He won't bring it up because if you don't remember it happened, then he doesn't either. Never happened.

You have called him 'Daddy' a grand total of one time, and it was worth it, not for any sort of kink, just a nod to how much shit you two had been through up until that moment. It was a big deal. He'll remember that forever.

Thank you for asking!

[Main Masterlist; Dirty Asks Masterlist; Ko-fi]

[indigosabyss]

With over 400k words under my belt of purely crossover fanfiction (no really) I feel like I've dabbled enough in the genre to pinpoint three distinct types of Crossover Fanfiction Setups. With no one else to rant about this, and the hopes that this will be helpful to someone, here's you go:

A Breakdown on All Three Ways to Cross Fandoms Together

1- Fandom Fusion

My favorite type. This is where the worlds are happening on the same plane, simultaneously with one another. So, both stories are happening, or have happened, or will happen, without meshing with each other. Except they don't. Characters from each world meet, and get pulled into the other world's shenanigans. Very easy to do when both stories are both taking place in modern day Earth. Or in similar time periods of Earth.

2- Portal Crossover

Breaking out the isekai trope here. It's a classic work, with a built in setup in stories where grand cosmic scale is introduced. I'm talking the Gate sending Edward Elric into another world, or jonmartin finding Somewhere Else to be another medium entirely. Or Amphibia's music box, or Owl House's Between Dimensions or- or- or- you get it.

It's easy to do, and people are generally willing to accept PORTAL happening esp in superhero media and the like. You dont have to figure out how to make the fandoms compatible either, and gives a good common goal for all parties to work towards (i.e. return the interloper home)

Doesn't have to be a trans dimensional portal. Could be a time travel thing. Or visions. Or whichever plot device you find fits most. I enjoy this a lot because it forces characters who would never normally meet to interact and we need that. The two fandoms being transported could easily be fictional in each other's universes. Or not. The possibilities are endless with this one, just on a surface level.

3- Scenery Change

Last, there is the Alternate Universe Setting. Or, as I prefer, the Scenery Change. This is where the characters from one fandom are taken wholesale and translated into another setting, never having experienced their Original World. You know which ones I'm talking about. The Percy Jackson AUs where characters from another fandom are given godly parents. The Hunger Game AUs. The fandom w four easily separated groups that we do not talk about anymore but is prolly still v prevalent.

There's a lot that can be done with this, ranging both from fluff oneshots to 100k plots, but I've found that this is most effective when unique characters are placed into a very structured setting from another media, where their unique perspectives and reactions will color the overdone situation and give it life. The appeal of these crossovers lie solely in this: "We've seen it happen before, but what would happen if these characters were here?"

And. It. Works.

--------

So, yeah, careful observation has made me categorize these three premises. Tell me if you think there are more. Probably might do some breakdowns on the themes and the possibilities each premise holds the best weight for, and what goes into a crossover AFTER the two fandoms meet.

[lillifaba]

Here's why I'm still unimpressed with the Wicked movie trailer

A while ago I made a post explaining my thoughts on the Wicked teaser trailer. A lot of it was mostly negative due to the poor CGI, acting, lines etc... Well the official trailer dropped and I've got some new thoughts both good and bad. This is going to be way longer than my last post because I'm going to go into detail about why I think this movie won't live up to the musical by comparing it to other movies and musicals. I'll also be talking about some scenes from the featurette.

THIS IS JUST MY OPINION SO FAR ON WHAT WE SEE IF YOU LIKE THE TRAILER OR LIKE ANY OF THE ACTORS THEN DON'T GET YOUR PANTIES IN A TWIST MY WORD ISN'T GOSPEL NOR IS IT MY FINAL OPINION ON THE MOVIE.

Starting off with things I liked:

I'm actually starting to warm up to Cynthia as Elphaba. In my last post I argued I didn't entirely see her as Elphaba mainly because it was obvious she's a thirty seven year old playing an eighteen year old. While I still believe she doesn't pass for younger Elphie and her simple "I am" comeback is weak, hearing more of her lines and performance is actually on point with Elphaba's character. I wouldn't be against her revisiting Elphaba on stage after the movie. Bottom line: I think she's a great singer and am happy a fellow WOC is playing Elphie.

Holy shit that witch cackle gave me goosebumps. It might be the editing and sound in the trailer that makes me feel that way so we'll have to see when it happens in the movie.

Michelle Yeoh???? Like hello? Although she seems more toned down compared to the campy personality MM has on stage, she plays the role of the evil villain quite well. (I'm sad she had to stop using her beautiful Malaysian accent ;_; I hope it was by her choice and not by the choice of the executives.)

Some set designs look quite nice. I'm particularly curious about the scene where The Wizard is dancing around a full size diorama of Oz.

The effects of the grimmerie are quite neat. I despise the new shape of the book, but I think it's cool how instead of going for some floating colorful lights to pass as "look magic oooo", they're going for the spells to be coming out of the pages. Very unique.

And now, on to the negative. This is where I'll be comparing some of the shots and scenes of the trailer to other movies and parts of the musical.

I hate hate hate the CGI. You don't understand I absoultely for forever deeply truly LOATHE the CGI. It cheapens the movie and all that talk and show about how they built up the sets and rainbows showing over their productions goes all out the window when I see those flying monkeys.

Let's talk good CGI vs rushed CGI.

First off I do not blame the VFX artists for this movie looking the way it does so far. VFX artists are one of the most overworked and underpaid workers in the film industry who have to pump out content in a short amount of time. It is also not their fault that audiences are tired of seeing overdone CGI movies every month. It's part of the reason why the Wicked teaser trailer got so much hate when it came out (on top of Ari/🧽, reactionary bros, etc...)

The CGI (mostly in the Emerald City) looks AI generated. Most of my issues with it come from the effects looking poorly rendered. Elphaba flying looks obviously fake. I know they recently touched up some of these scenes but honestly it doesn't make a difference to me at all in quality.

If John Chu and the team behind this movie really cared about this like they insist they do, it wouldn't hurt to take time with the effects. When you do so, you get mind blowing results like this:

Onto other effects: The flying monkeys don't look great. They look poorly rendered along with the rest of the effects. For that I wish they would've stuck to practical effects like Pan's Labyrinth did or literally any character Doug Jones plays like down below.

Heck, even the musical does a better job:

I seriously encourage you to watch B T S footage of Wicked to see how insane and amazing this effect is. Once you see it, you'll realize just how bad the movie fucked up on this.

Bottom line: movies that take their time with CGI effects and utilize other methods like practical effects before leaving everything up to post have better results than your run of the mill CGI Marvel or DC blockbuster.

I'm still not feeling Arianna as Glinda. Before you fans eat me up alive I need to say again I don't hate her and even like some of the stuff she puts out there. This critique is not a reflection on who she is as a person because I don't know her personally. With that out of the way I still cannot stand her Glinda impression. "But Lilli!" You say. "You said you didn't like Ari as Glinda because she's not giving Glinda but she's doing Glinda's voice!" And I stand by that. She's not giving Glinda. She's giving Kristen Chenoweth. You might think that's the whole point of playing Glinda but let me ask you; When you watch Megan Hilty as Glinda, did you think she was imitating KC to the bone? What about Kendra Kassebaum? Ginna Claire Mason or McKenzie Kurtz? Did you think KC was imitating Billie Burke? Or were all of them doing their own interpretations of Glinda that made the character unique to themselves and not a copycat version of the original? Because I argue that's what makes every Glinda special and unique from the previous actress who played her. Doing a copycat rendition of KC makes me believe you have no faith in yourself as an actor and you are incapable of playing character that's been done before without having to copy the source material beat for beat. Because of this, I still cannot seperate Ari the pop star from Glinda The Good.

This point has less to do with Ari as Glinda in the movie and more as what she's doing to promote the movie. I have no idea where else to rant about it but here. I hate hate HATE how Arianna is making this movie and Glinda her ENTIRE personality. She acts like she's part of this fandom yet never interacts with anyone in it (unless its directly involves her) and it all feels so... artificial and money grabbing. Someone please tell me I'm not alone. Like girl please call me when you read and write fanfic on AO3 and get three kudos on your multichap fic lol.

DTL: Again I ask, WHY IS THIS MOVIE SO DARK? DTL is meant to be in a ballroom with tons of bright lights and projections. This ballroom looks so dark and depressing. I'm not thinking "let's dance because dust is what we come to" I'm thinking "turn me into dust already." When I saw Elphaba putting that hat on in the teaser trailer, I thought that was a scene in defying gravity. John Chu failed this scene which makes me angry because I this is my favorite scene in the musical.

Adding on to DTL, we have to talk about the scene where Elphaba and Glinda establish their friendship. If you know this scene in the musical (which duh) you'll know that this is where Glinda realizes that she did a horrible thing to Elphie and wants to make things right, even if it means putting her reputation in the gutter in front of her friends. I know this is an edited trailer so we won't know for sure how the full scene plays out in the final movie, but Glinda immediately going for a hug before they start dancing threw me off guard. At this point, they still aren't best friends because Elphaba doesn't realize that Glinda is sorry for what she did, their relationship is only now starting to build up. Let me ask you, what do you think makes a scene more impactful? Glinda hesitantly and nervously walking up to interupt Elphaba doing a solo dance and then cutting in to make her feel less alone, which eventually leads to all while making them ease up around each other as the song and dance progresses OR Glinda rushing into a bear hug with Elphaba before they even establish them making amends on the dance floor? One seems like a slow burn that tugs at your heartstrings while the other feels like a cheap attempt to get some kind of emotional response from the audience? (Then again not sure how this scene will play in movie but it's not looking good right now)

Final point, why is Elphaba crying during this scene? I get she's just been put through public humiliation and is just now getting an act of kindness from someone but don't you think it's too soon to show her in such a vulnerable position? One of the things about Elphaba in both the musical and books is that she's built a wall of apathy around her because she's been judged her whole life and doesn't care how other people percive her. We don't see her breakdown in the musical until Nessa's death because she's been forced to stay strong her entire life. Maybe at the earliest, we'll see her tear up during defying gravity but I'd argue that's a part of the actress playing her and not the character herself.

I hate how this trailer has been edited to make Arianna look like the protagonist. I get she's bringing in a large audience, but she's playing the secondary character, not the main one. It just pisses me that the protagonist (who is a WOC) has to be in the shadow of the white woman. It almost makes me believe they're doing it because they're more worried people would be offended at the prospect of a POC being a leading role.

The main actors still look way too mature to be playing their characters. I spoke about this already. I don't buy any of these adults (with the exception of Marissa Bode) as college freshmen.

Still hate that riff at the end of defying gravity and that after all the backlash, they're still going with it. I also can't believe some of you are defending it to the death and acting like Cynthia Fucking Erivo can't do a better take than what she gave. (Yes, I know every Elphaba does a different take on the riff and we all have our favorite ones but I'm going to say something that is controversial yet brave: Not every riff that every Elphaba does is great. Some of them are range from underwhelming to straight up bad) Here's a reddit post I found that better explains my gripe with the riff since I'm bad at explaining musical terms:

Costume and makeup design is still atrocious. I'm sorry, but the low effort looking costumes cannot hold up to the extravagance and camp the stage has. They should've brought Susan Hilferty back. Look at Elphaba's act 2 dress and the dress movie Elphaba wears and tell me you're not disappointed.

Adding on, why does everything look modern, including the makeup? Arianna using her brand of makeup in the movie doesn't impress me when she's using a modern day mascara wand over her wispy falsies in a 1900's inspired society when she should be using one of these:

Like... come on? Can you imagine a scene of Glinda doing her makeup while she's ranting to Elphaba about how men (except for darling Fifi of course <3) are so entitled and disrespectful and in the middle of her sentence, she just SPITS on her mascara cake, scrubs the brush like she's scrubbing the floor and does her lashes? Iconic honestly.

Adding on to the makeup looking modernized, I'm not a fan of Elphaba's modernized makeup either. It could be the deaging filter they added on everyone older than thirty but one thing that stood out to me is they used 90's era lip liner on her. I'm much aware if you're darker skinned, you will often times need to use a liner in order to blend in parts around your mouth that are darker in comparison to your lips. Counterpoint however:

They could've easily used a dark lipstick post-Popular like they already do. The 1900's era mostly used a single shade of lip color anyways. And no, I don't want to hear from any of you how none of this matters because Oz is an advanced society or some half assed excuse why it's totally okay they didn't care about the miniscule details while they cared about the number of tulips used in Munchkinland for NMTW. (also note: Oz was considered an advanced society FOR THE TIME IT WAS CREATED. Meaning they weren't envisioning the future items we have now like a mascara wand) If they allowed Arianna to use her own brand of makeup for the movie, they could've allowed an expert on BW's makeup history on set for their main protagonist.

Set design. I've got to say, while some of the sets are impressive, they really don't fit into Wicked or Oz. I mostly blame CGI and lighting, but even then, it can't hold up to the simple, yet brightly colored sets we see on stage. Shiz looks like something out of Hogwarts, which nearly every fantasy academia story looks like these days. Can we please have something original for once?

What I would've enjoyed seeing the movie do is something similar to Melanine Martinez's K-12. They were working on one location on a smaller budget, yet it looks better than the dimly lit and CGI sets we're seeing.

Obviously I'm not saying Wicked should look EXACTLY like K-12 because they have completely different themes and genres, but my point is good lighting, original set designs and color correcting can take you a long way. Wicked is deserving of having the same whimsy look that the WOZ movie had, while still having dark parts where needed.

Some more examples of good use of lighting during dark scenes in movies:

Continuing from not being a fan of the sets, I'm FUMING at the location of Fiyero and Elphaba freeing the lion cub. Why is it in a dark dreary forest?????? Did John Chu mix up the locations between INTG and ALAYM???? The lion cub scene takes place in the poppy field, with a soft orange pinkish lighting that creates a romantic atmosphere and establishes the growing romance between Fiyero and Elphaba (<3) This forest looks too erie and mystical, which should've been used for act 2.

Another hot take: I think the tulip field in Munchkinland looks completely unnecessary. I literally do not care if they planted thousands of rows of them. They look CGI'd because nearly everything in this movie is CGI.

Now onto some things I'm confused about.

God I was so looking forward to Peter Dinklage as the voice for Dr. Dillamond,but from what I heard of his voice acting so far, it just sounds... underwhelming. But I can't complain too much because at least it's not James Corden. I still believe in Peter and hope he will pull through.

Why did they feel the need to change the shape of the grimmerie? It was fine the way it was!

Adding to Dr. D, I'm not sure if I like his new design. I'm guessing they're taking inspiration from the book but if we're discussing live action, I really prefer makeup effects over CGI. One of the things I liked about the Animals in Wicked and in Cats the Musical is they find a perfect balance between blending human features and animal species without it going into the uncanny valley.

I feel underwhelmed by Jeff Goldbulm's acting as The Wizard :( I can't complain too much because he kinda-

On a final note: I think this movie just cannot and will not match up to the excellence of the musical. Will it be a good movie? I don't know yet. I'll still see it in theaters and will give my thoughts.

While brainstorming my thoughts for this trailer, I've really been thinking about why I hate what I'm seeing so far while I enjoy other interpretations of Wicked, especially when it comes to costumes. Then I realized something.

I love non-replica productions of Wicked... So why don't I like the design of this movie?

Part two of my take COMING THANKSGIVING 2025

Not really, give me like a week or two.

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

so i've been thinking about horde prime and what a wasted potential he was. when we were first introduced to horde prime, we are led to believe that he is an intimidating and heartless dictator, the biggest threat adora has faced so far.

and yet, as the series progresses, we are just left with questions as to WHY this guy is so powerful and feared. all adora has to do is save catra and horde prime is already fuming and frothing at the mouth. literally all his clones could be taken out by just hitting a weak spot, as demonstrated by catra and glimmer. any of the etherians (i.e. the princesses) who were brainwashed were also easily reversed. catra basically died but not for more than 5 minutes, before adora brings her back to life. basically, there's nothing long-lasting about horde prime's actions and nothing intimidating about him.

i've already mentioned some of the other problems i have with horde prime's character, the main one being that.. he's just boring. it's so clear that horde prime was only created because catra and hordak were on their way to redemption, and the show needed a new threat. but horde prime is so lazily written, you barely register him as an actual villain.

in my opinion, there are three things you can add to a villain in order to flesh them out:

sympathetic qualities: the typical tragic backstory, misguided intentions, moments of humanization and compassion. it's an overdone trope but if utilized well and in moderation, it can be very compelling.

complex motives: even if you don't agree with their way of carrying out their plan, you do agree with their ideals or morals. you get where they're coming from and you can relate to their reason for doing what they're doing.

parallels with protagonist/hero: if your hero and villain have similarities or something that connects them, the stakes are automatically raised. there's the fear that the hero could end up like the villain, if they're not careful. even if we know that the hero is not gonna end up like the villain, there's still something satisfying about seeing two characters who are fundamentally the same person but on different sides with different experiences to back them up.

good ol' personality: if you want to create a pure evil villain who is just evil for the heck of it, that's fine. just make sure you give them something that makes them stand out, whether it's a flamboyant personality, witty quip or even a catchy musical number. this is the reason why most disney villains are so memorable despite having no complexity or redeeming qualities.

so, which one of these would work best for horde prime? any of them, honestly, but i would probably choose not to give him a tragic past, just because of how both catra and hordak already got those. i don't want to redeem all the villains of this show.

the other three are very applicable and can even be used all together. horde prime can have a complex motivation, parallels with adora (or heck, even catra) and have a compelling personality.

but honestly, just one of these is enough to flesh out a villain. for example, bill cipher from gravity falls has no tragic backstory, complex motive or parallels with the heroes. but what makes him so likeable and interesting to audience is his personality alone. he's humorous, he's snarky, he's chaotic and calmly admits to being crazy. his unique character design and insane power also makes him stand out from regular villains.

for another example, lord viren from the dragon prince is not very compelling, personality-wise. however, his goal of protecting and fighting for humans at any cost, and his parallels with callum make us want to see more of him and how his story ends.

in all these shows, the villains aren't just a decorative piece thrown into the story last-minute. whether they were introduced from the beginning or later on, they have a purpose. they pose a real threat and the main plotline is about defeating them. the romance is only secondary.

but in s5 of spop, the main conflict isn't “will adora stop horde prime from destroying the world?”, it's “will adora make out with her abusive sister?” or “can catra act like a responsible adult for once?” (hint: the answer is no.)

so either, you could explain why horde prime does what he does. all we know right now is his vague past with mara and the first ones, and his egotistic desire to “purify” everyone. while this is a good start, the show never elaborates on it. horde prime's character supposedly has themes of religious trauma but it's portrayed in an almost cartoonish way. we could have gotten more details about why he thinks his actions are justified. what he hopes to accomplish by purifying everyone.

or they could have given us a connection with horde prime and one of our protagonists. preferably adora. but no, the only character horde prime had a direct connection with was hordak. they could have expanded on that and shown more of their relationship. but instead of showing religious guilt and trauma through hordak, they replaced that with chipped catra. because of course, the only character whose trauma is acknowledged by the narrative is catra.

there were some clear-cut parallels between catra and horde prime (brainwashing people to turn them into weapons, abusing a family member, attempting to destroy the entire world) but they never even mentioned that. because that would mean reminding the audience that catra was just as bad as prime. it would have made for an interesting narrative, especially if catra acknowledged all of this and felt insanely guilty for doing all that she did, trying to do better so that she won't be like horde prime.

or, as a last resort, they could have given horde prime a personality. because in canon, his personality is just evil™ and egotistic. that's it. he's just a garden-variety villain and while his character design is interesting, there's nothing that stands out about him. (not to mention, giving him a hairstyle that resembles dreadlocks when he is supposed to be a representation of a white dictator)

i just feel like they could have made prime a really intimidating and complex villain but they completely missed the mark. horde prime is just a minor inconvenience in s5, the real threat is the “gay pining and angst” between catra and adora.

[ellorypurebloodculture]

After my first driving lesson that make my anxiety go brrr i would like to ask 🤗 and 🤲

Firstly, virtual high five. Congratulations!

🤗 What advice would you give to new fanfic writers that are just getting started?

Write what you want to write and don't let commenters change the direction of your story.

If you have anxiety about receiving feedback, AO3 has an option where you can just not allow people to comment at all. (I've used this feature multiple times. Remember to take care of your mental health.)

Don't compare your statistics to other people's statistics, especially not popular authors. They'll have many subscribers, potentially thousands, who will receive notifications when a new fic is posted, which potentially gives them a hit, etc. for each of those people. You will be starting from zero.

Don't feel like you have to conform to popular tropes. But, also, don't feel like you can't write popular tropes because they're "overdone" and "so-and-so already did it better".

Developing a writing style is a learning process. Don't fall into the trap of thinking something has to be "perfect" or "unique". Fanfic is a collective experience. We all learn from each other and, inevitably, absorb parts of each other's styles that we like.

Remember to include introspection (how the character thinks/feels) so the POV character is relatable to the reader.

And vary sentence structure and length so it doesn't feel like reading a shopping list.

But, mostly, have fun with it.

If you want to write an epic 150k fic that's a canon rehash, go for it! If you want to write 500 words of a character getting turned into a balloon animal and floating away, go for it!

And if you don't ever want to post, you don't have to. You aren't obligated to share what you write. You can hoard it like an author-dragon on a pile of stories. (I've probably got around 500k of unposted fics.)

🤲 Would you please share a snippet of a wip?

Heir Draco Malfoy swoops around Ravenclaw Tower so quickly on his Nimbus 2001 that the brisk morning breeze drags tears from his eyes. He grins and completes the Sloth Grip Roll so that he's sitting properly on his broom again. This, despite what anyone else might say, is something that Draco earned for himself.

His title, his wealth, and so on might be inherited. Yet, his flying skills are not.

Draco has dedicated countless hours to mastering flying since his beloved mother, Lady Narcissa Malfoy nee Black, bestowed a training broom upon him for his fifth birthday. It was a racing broom and he still has it to this day. Others might accuse him of sentimentality if they ever find out, but Draco doesn't care.

He wasn't raised by house-elves and tutors, unlike several of his acquaintances. His parents actually nurtured and taught him.

It's infuriating that people speak of Potter as if he's the second coming of Merlin on a broom. Draco is thrice the flier that Potter will ever be. (Though, Draco will grudgingly admit that Potter is a better Seeker. Only silently, though. And only ever to himself. If the speccy git hadn't fashioned himself Draco's rival, Draco would have been a Chaser, to be sure. The best Chaser that Hogwarts had seen since Lord James Potter himself.)

[crymeariveronceagain]

Do you have any tips on how to write a fanfic? I have some ideas but I have no idea where to start.

Mmmm.... okay.

This is tricky, because it all depends on your strengths as a writer, what you like to do, etc.

For me, though.

Fanfic is a lot like acting. You have to get into the head of a character you didn't write and behave like they would, but write it down.

So, I suppose, here are my tips. Very River-Specific. One size does not fit all!!!

Pick a plot you like. Who cares if it's fake dating. Who cares if it's enemies to lovers. Who cares if it's soulmates. Who the actual f cares if it's something that's popular, cheesy, or overused. Who cares if it's been done. Fanfic is all about overused plots and overdone tropes. Just write it. There will be an audience. I swear to you. Do you want to know how many "Tony Stark Adopts Hyrda Peter Parker" fics with super similar plots there are out there? A ton. And I'd read them all again for completely different reasons. No one can right your story like you can, my friend. You're amazing, and don't worry about that. Pick something you like, pick something self indulgent that flows, maybe start off small in a nice clean one shot of punching a character who needs to be punched(that's what I did). If you've got funky, unique, untried ideas, use them, but don't feel like everything you write has to be brand new and untried. That's not why we write fanfic, Love <3

Write about characters how you view them. If you hate a character, describe why you hate them in detail. If you love a character, show why you love them. If you relate to a character, show us why. I relate to Sophie like I relate to Marina and The Diamonds, okay? Like, sweet stars above, she and I vibe so well. I know what she's thinking because it's basically what I'm thinking, just a little more scattered. Keefe is broken, in my head, and there's usually an underlying pain to his existence. Etc, etc. I find pieces in each character I can attach to, and then I run with those. You'll see this in a lot of my fics, I pick out characteristics, and I especially stick to those when it comes to side characters. For instance, Tam is usually super annoying or super loving. Marella always behaves like she's the physical embodiment of a chili pepper. Biana is always smart on her feet and well dressed. Like, I just hold onto those things and vibe with it. If they're main characters, I'll psychoanalyze the heck out of the characters, but usually, until then, they serve the purpose they serve.

Don't just focus on characters' good attributes. Be sure to let your characters fuck up. I mean it. They're just people. Let them mess up, screw up, ruin it. Make everything go down the toilet. Make it all horrible and awful. And then fix it. Show them in all their ruined glory. Show the one character's complete distrust of others, and don't solve it too quickly. Show the one character's anger issues, and don't change them, just shift them around, expose why. This is what makes fics interesting to read!

Don't just focus on character's bad choices. If there is one thing that is not fun(usually), it's watching everything go constantly bad always. Give!!! The characters!!! Something fluffy!!! Like, if it's a little self-indulgent scene of cookie-baking, or hair cuts, or shopping, or a date, or a dinner, or something fun and cute that is just a filler for the huge dangerous plot, or if that is the plot, then good for you. Have the characters be flawed, but don't only make bad things happen to them. Love your characters, they deserve a break, too. Except for the characters you want people to hate. Give THEM no mercy.

Be sure to have fun. Fanfic is about having fun. If you're not having fun, why do it. Abandon the project that isn't fun anymore, do something new! Who cares if you posted it already, you're not under any requirements to keep going. You put in effort for free, baby! They get what they get, and as long as you ahve fun, keep going with it! If it's not fun, stop! No one really minds all that much. They'll probably be sad and disappointed for a small moment, but, hey, "life is pain, princess. Anyone who says differently is selling something." They'll live, and this is your project! Have fun with it, and don't worry about what other people think!

hope these help! feel free to send me another ask if you want more tips!! :D

[sophsun1]

I know you're totally against a reboot and I think currently they're SUPER overdone, but like a good QaF.... retelling for the 2020s would be fun (for me!)

but just this was not that, his 70 year old mom coming out as a Lesbian after she gets finger banged in the bathroom of a queer Jazz bar by the lesbian partner of her son's best friend who's also the mother of her grandkids? it's like soap opera mad libs!

also like I'm sure the script went through A LOT of re-writes, so at some point it might have been QaF and they wanted to keep Justin/Nate but fully hired a 24 year old to play a 17 year old and they did NOT look like they were in high school nooo nooo NO

also Ryan O'Connell like he already made a FULL 2 season TV show being that SAME character, 20something with CP, a co-dependent disability mom, failure to launch, moving out, "am I unfuckable in gay world as a disabled person?" etc like Special was a good show why would you do it again as a bad subplot of a lesser show?

also also the flashback.... like... how they kept bleeping the deadname, and like Brodie big sin is calling Ruthie that but it's bleeped out just... like... seems so weird? choices just choices, like it's either too upsetting/insensitive to trans viewers to do, or its not, censoring the word (even though you can clearly lip read what name it is) doesn't change the scene? it just makes it weird?

clearly can go on all day about that fucking trainwreck madness

Hey anon!

It was just a hot mess and at times to me I felt like 'are they deliberately taking the piss here is it supposed to be comedic?'

But the thing is I don't want to watch a third retelling of the Brian/Justin story we've been there done that. We got the original vision with Stuart/Nathan and then the US retelling of that and their own canon universe with Gale/Randy. They are both amazing in their own ways we don't need a 2022 one of the same people. Not to mention both the actors and characters of Brodie/Nate had no chemistry and were cringe.

Be original! Be unique! They had the template there they had more poc/trans characters/disabled characters and diversity but then totally failed on the execution.

None of these characters were likeable or made me feel for them because any moment of sensitivity or care was immediately followed up by some insane plot twist. Brodie's argument where he used the dead name felt so forced and was never even addressed fully afterwards because suddenly he was in love with Ruthie so yk let's just skip over that. The ending in the rain with the kiss was a choice it was both offensive and cliché.

Julian as a character was one of the better ones and it was refreshing to see him as a disabled character navigating his love life and place in the community but of course was then muddied with crazy soap opera love twists.

Brodie being involved in 1435 storylines at once where his mother/brother/best friend and her partner were all involved in some group swapping sex partners plot was just fucking bonkers.

I never cared about these characters because the show chose quantity instead of quality and never fleshed out one plot properly. The uk/us cast made me love the characters, hate them, empathise with them because they felt relatable and like real people the reboot were just like a joke. Not to mention the standard of actors were just higher in previous versions.

Like you say there's so many things that were wrong with the show we'd be here forever talking about it. But yk saving grace it's been cancelled so no fear of a part two 😌

[lilover131]

Is Tsubasa manga worth to buy? I don't mind the dark and twisty story, but I'm afraid it would have too many repetitive and long fighting scenes, like usual shonen mangas do. But I love Syaosaku and want to see more tender moments between them.

Hi there!!! I'm really so happy you asked me about this! I know there are many out there who are hesitant to read/buy Tsubasa because of a lot of the things that are said about it around the internet, so I'll give you my honest take here as a diehard fan. Apologies in advance for the length.

YES. I absolutely think the manga is worth the buy.

To address your concerns about the repetitive and long fighting scenes, one thing I can tell you is that I don't much care for fight scenes that are repetitive either. You'll see a certain kind of formula in a lot of shonen series where the characters have some epic battle that they start off losing, and then suddenly they summon some hidden power or true form (like becoming Super Saiyan in DBZ, Plus Ultra in MHA, or Dragon Force in Fairytail). It's often overdone in anime and makes fights rather predictable (no offense to those who like the series I mentioned. I enjoyed them plenty myself).

But this doesn't happen in Tsubasa. It doesn't contain that usual formula, and the characters are perfectly happy avoiding violence if at all possible. They also only ever improve upon or draw on the strengths we know they already have, so there's no hidden power waiting to burst out after some sort of intense emotional moment. They simply grow in a very natural sort of way. The only reason you see a fight in this series is either because 1. a person/group is standing in the way of their goal and aggression is the only option, or 2. they are defending themselves from someone who attacked them first.

Additionally, each fight scene feels completely different from the last. I can recall details of pretty much every fight scene that happened in Tsubasa because they are all unique enough to easily tell apart (my favorite is in a world called 'Infinity', but I won't spoil the details of that fight). I never once got the feeling that the fight scenes blended together or that they were unnecessary.

The fact that they travel to different worlds as well makes the story so flexible. Their style of fighting can sometimes change depending on the rules of the world around them (the first world they travel to in particular kinda displays that), and because they travel to all sorts of different worlds, you never know what sort of situations they might run into. Literally anything can happen, and any genre can be explored because all they have to do is go to a world in which those things exist. It's genius.

But the best part about Tsubasa is not the fights but the emotional growth. Each character in the main cast changes quite dramatically from how they started out, and they learn so much from their story and the people around them. There's a big plot twist as well that occurs about halfway through the series that completely changes everything, and as someone who read the series as it was serialized, I can tell you it was absolutely mind blowing. One arc in the series singlehandedly turns the entire story on its head and changes every character's goal, and seeing how they react and adapt to the changing situations around them is such a wild ride.

It's a good thing you're okay with dark and twisty, because there is angst galore in Tsubasa, but in seriously the best way. I watched them go through these things and thought "yes, this is horrible, but look how strong they are to get through it all", and that inspired me. One of the major themes in Tsubasa is that we make mistakes, some that cannot be taken back, and the best thing we can do is keeping looking up and moving forward. It also reminds us that there is not even one person on this planet who wouldn't be missed by someone if they were lost, no matter what they've done. Whether you intend to or not, you leave an imprint on those that you meet, like a ripple in the water.

Naturally, the SyaoSaku scenes are fantastic. I always love me some SyaoSaku, and one thing you learn about them in this series is that they will literally do anything to save and protect each other. Their love is truly infallible and unable to be broken by any force. And the way CLAMP expresses their feelings for each other through their actions, words, and trials is just so beautiful. Better yet, their scenes are truly made more sweet by the angst moments in between as well as the smile inducing found family moments they have with Kurogane, Fai, and Mokona. The dynamics of the entire group are honestly just so so wonderful and give me such a big grin every time I see it. The closeness between them all is really almost tangible.

The only warnings I can give is that it is a long story, but not nearly as long as some of the other shonen series out there. Also, the story does admittedly get a bit (or a lot) confusing towards the end, particularly in the final arc. However if you ask me, I think it was purposely meant to not make full sense due to the nature of the main conflict (I might try to tackle that topic in another post at some point when I find the time and energy). Even I have a hard time explaining it sometimes to others, but I think the overall message CLAMP wanted to convey is still there, and I love it even with its flaws.

If you read all of this, I want to thank you sincerely for asking this question, and I hope this helped! If you do end up buying/reading it, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

[engagemachine]

hi there! i have been a fan of your writing for 2 years now!!!it stucks with me and ive grown so much since i first started reading your fics, taylor is so special to me and you too!!!

i know its kinda cliché but i would LOVE your take on a AU where bruce wayne is somewhat part of taylors life and the joker shows up (you can make that however youd like, i would just absolutely batshit on how you would write bruce), i know its a really drained subject in the "fanbase" but i totally feel like your picture on it would totally differ from whats already out there, since your storytelling is super unique, believe me, no one has the talent you have to write the joker!!!ive looked!!! your way is simply special and so accurate, i feel like it would be something more than worth reading!!!anyway id love if youd give your opinion on it, have a great day!!!

Hi baby doll. 🥰 Oh thank you so much for this message, this is SO cute. <3 Thank you for being a reader for TWO YEARS (I'm honored!!!!) And also you are so sweet to say that Taylor (and me) are so special to you. PLS. Don't make me cry.....

Re: Bruce Wayne. Okay, so it's kind of crazy to think about, but like, in all the years that I've spent writing for the TDK fandom (started posting in 2009) I've only written Bruce once during that entire time, and it was for a crossover AU with The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, so we didn't even get to see him interact with other characters within the universe (such as Alfred, for example).

Readers throughout the years keep requesting this though, this idea of Taylor being under Bruce Wayne's care and/or being adopted by him, and the more I see people wanting to read about it, the more I catch myself maybe... slightly... leaning into it. There is little doubt in my mind that the two of them together could lead to so many amazing moments and character interactions. They're both orphans, after all, and they both share the common thread that is the Joker (even though Taylor wouldn't know this, because she doesn't know Bruce Wayne is Batman). But also he'd be such a father figure for her, which Taylor has never had in her entire life, and that's already such an interesting dynamic to think about. He would take very good care of her and she would probably called Alfred "Uncle Alfred" or something, like can we PLEASE discuss this..........................

My main problem with constructing an AU of this nature is that once Taylor has had a taste of the good life, I don't conceivably see her ever wanting to be with the Joker again. BUT, the more I've thought about it, the more I can see the Joker finding SOME way of getting under Taylor's skin (it's what he's best at, after all) and manipulating her into believing that Bruce can't offer her the kind of life that he can, that Bruce doesn't care about her, etc, etc.

Also, it's interesting to consider how Taylor and the Joker might meet in an AU like this. Would she even remember him from her past? In the JK/Burn universe, we find out that the Joker has been looking for after having spent many years thinking about her. But in this universe, would he still care about her? Would he maybe see her on TV (when she's adopted by Bruce, because obviously this would be a hugely publicized moment) and how old would she be? I hate the idea of him kidnapping her as a way of sending shockwaves through the city and getting Batman's attention (just because it's so trite and overdone in the fandom, even I don't think I could freshen up that trope) but then how else are they meeting/coming into contact with each other?

An AU like this is daunting to me because it would have to be planned out so far in advance... and I generally don't plan my stories that far ahead. I've just never been that kind of writer. My best writing comes when I'm winging it, generally speaking.

IDK. What are your thoughts? Did anything I mention here interest you?