#also don't take this post seriously it's more about my mediocre reading of his character and my headcanons/wishes than a theory

[torgawl]

a bit obsessed with the idea of kusakabe dying as a form of sacrifice to specifically protect/save somebody else. it's consistent enough with the theme of the past generation achieving no meaningful feats against significant threats but it's also ironic enough that someone without a technique and who claims their philosophy is primarily self-sacrificial - although he tends to stay from his own ideals in critical moments, proving he's not only brave when necessary but he does have a sense of responsabilty and guilt - ultimately redeems themselves through death resulting in the achievement of something his colleagues have failed to do. not that i'm wishing for him to die, i hope he doesn't. but it would also make a clear-cut distinction between him and a character like mei mei, who narratively serves a very similar purpose (besides her being a foil to nanami). to have someone be awarded by their selfishness just for it to not be worth much within a world and system that runs and sustains itself due to the sorcerer's labour power, whose only means of subsistence is to sell themselves away. a class of people who is doomed no matter what path they choose to take, as long as they do not break free from their duties and as long as the system doesn't collapse. a death that could serve as a symbol of punishment towards solidarity and altruism but a win for revolution.

[generalherasyndulla]

for the ask meme, the five numbers you like the least. not the questions. the literal numbers.

"the five numbers you like the least" bruh I'm still not sure why I'd be expected to have strong number opinions but here we are I guess.

Also you didn't specify a fandom so I'm just gonna jump around here for funsies

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

Alright listen aitsf/aini fandom. I get why a lot of y'all don't like Lien. His interactions with Kizuna early on aren't great and there's a valid critque to be said about that dynamic perpetuating creepy stalkerish tendencies "wearing a woman down until she accepts a relationship". BUT there's a lot more to him than that which is super compelling. Lien at the chronological start of the game is a former criminal trying to better himself and feeling bummed out because he got fired from a legitimate job he had because of his criminal history. Ultimately his relationship with Kizuna motivates Lien to better himself and not give up and find a job that suits his skill set. I think the exploration of classism and the struggles of trying to better yourself in a society that believes "once a criminal always a criminal" in Lien is compelling plus he's just a big dumb guy that loves his girlfriend. YES their first meeting was bad but dammit Lien being Kizuna's legs for her so they can dance is so fucking cute and it fucking got me. Sorry haters in this house I love Lien Twining.

17. there should be more of this type of fic/art

I think there should be Sam and Max fic that actually fits closer to Steve Purcell's style. I've seen some really great fanart/fan comics that I think feel very Sam and Max and fit the style of its various incarnations but fic is kind of a different story. I've definitely read some INCREDIBLE sam and max fics but overall most of them are kinda mediocre and I think it's because a lot of sam and max writers are young and aren't quite equipped to tell a story that fits sam and max, mostly by treating them too seriously. Sam and Max is first and foremost a comedy and even canon at its darkest still manages to have plenty of genuinely funny moments. There's nothing wrong with trying to explore a more serious side to the characters mind you but a lot of it in my opinion takes it too far to the point where Sam and Max don't feel like Sam and Max.

18. it's absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on...

Okay buffy fandom, maybe I am looking in the wrong place by why is there Robin Wood fandom. I know season 7 sucks but Robin is a highlight of that season for me. I think he's a very compelling character, the son of a slayer who lost his mom at a young age and takes up the fight himself. I don't think the show really used his character to the fullest potential but that's what fandom is supposed to be for. At least it is when the character with untapped potential is white but ALAS here we are. Anyway I love Robin a lot I don't talk about him much but I think he's neat and I wish there was more appreciation for him out there.

19. you're mad/ashamed/horrified you actually kind of like...

Nothing tbh. CRINGE CULTURE IS DEAD BABY IN THIS HOUSE WE'RE BEING GENUINE ABOUT WHAT WE LIKE!!!!! THAT'S WHAT THE REAL COOL KIDS (TM) ARE DOING

23. ship you've unwillingly come around to

Probably franmaya. Like I used to really like not like it when I was younger (mostly because Maya is my favourite character while I didn't care much for Franziska. Like I didn't hate franziska per se I just didn't like her as much as other. idk what to tell you somehow I didn't get the crush on franziska gene that every other sapphic woman has) but due to it being a common background ship in narumitsu fics and one really good analysis post tumblr breaking down maya and franziska's similarities in a way that actually made it click I've softened on the ship. I still won't actively seek it out but I might reblog a cute fanart here or there if I come across it.

Thanks for the asks dude, even if u asked them in the weirdest fucking way

send me some more "choose violence" fandom asks

[blurglesmurfklaine]

🍓🍎🫐 :)

hi bella!!!

🍓 What’s a fic you’ve written you feel is underrated?

For Klaine... I'm actually not really sure?? I think they've done okay in the fandom, as in, people who like them like the, and people who don't just don't read and I'm okay with that? You know what no, I'm lying. I think It Only Takes A Taste is underratted lmao BUT I get why it's not as popular. You have to buy in a little more and it's a little silly but I promise it's super sweet, too!

For Javey, I want to say Yours, Jack is kinda underrated but also like... I don't think the fandom is that big anymore, and I JUST got here lmao. also think that I started writing for it at a weird time because it's not like I'm 14 and have the time to pump out 20 mediocre fics a day like i used to when I was a kid, but I think over the last decade my writing ha improved and something something that post about as you hone your skill it takes more time?? So it FEELS like I'm putting all this time into something no one is reading but I'm also trying to re-frame my relationship with writing so yah

🍎 Is there anything you straight-up won’t write?

probably just student/teacher relationships and significant age gap. I'd say hardcore kinky stuff too but eh you never know. I'm getting older and I'm sure I'll be bored once I'm in a nursing home or soemthing

🫐 What’s your favorite underrated thing in your fandom? (A ship that only you seem to write for, a character there’s almost no fics about, a trope that criminally hasn’t been written yet, etc.)

OH MY GOD OKAY THANK YOU FOR ASKING THIS!

As you may know, Chris Colfer played the character "Carson Philips" in his movie Struck By Lightning. Darren Criss played "Aaron Christopherson" in the Last Friday Night music video.

In 2012, people started shipping them together and it's seriously the greatest thing in the world. There are 16 works for them on Ao3 and I have read every. single. one.

I'm linking some of my favorites here because holy shit they are all SO SO GOOOOOOOD

Feel Again by @drosophilase (I quite literally reread this one about once a year)

I Saw the Dead by luckie_dee

If I Lose Myself by dizzy

Tragically, the current fandom consists of roughly a discarded napkin, a single cornchip, and myself. We are small but mighty. The cornchip makes a fantastic guac.

Thanks for sending this in! :D

[that-shamrock-vibe]

Movie Review: Cinderella (Spoilers)

Disclaimer: I am posting this review the day after the movie airs on Amazon Prime, so if you haven't yet seen it don't read on until you do.

General Reaction:

It is slightly weird to think of another movie studio taking on one of the classic fairy-tales that isn't Disney, because, as I am sure is the case for a large portion of the mainstream audience, Disney have almost claimed fairytale adaptations as their own.

However, as identified, Cinderella, is a fairy tale and one created long before Disney came about. As such, other studios are allowed to put across their own interpretation of these classic stories that we have seen a lot of times adapted at this point.

That being said, we have seen many different adaptations of Cinderella at this point from the classis Disney Animation version and it's live-action counterpart, to modern-day reworkings like A Cinderella Story of the mid-noughties starring Hilary Duff.

It's quite an easy story to tell and adapt to a variety of different settings, and what this 2021 retelling does with the story blends the old-fashioned with the modern. Does that mean it is set apart from the others? Well in my opinion yes and no.

While this is a Sony movie, it plays a lot like a Disney Channel Original Movie. From the comedy to the settings to the costuming and the music, it plays like the best of those types of movies. I'm talking the High School Musical franchise and the Descendants franchise. It is by no means bad or corny, but it isn't even on the level of the 2016 live-action Cinderella.

While that version was pretty much a straightforward live-action version of the original animated version, the style of the movie outweighed the substance.

Here however, there is a great blend of both style and substance. The story takes the classic elements of the original Cinderella fairy tale but tries to inject a modern and feministic twist that the recent live-action Beauty and the Beast tried to do.

In terms of whether this version of Cinderella stands out in the crowd of Cinderella movies, I would say it does. Not only is the titular character race-bent and the setting she is in seemingly plays into that, but the reworking of the Fairy Godmother as the Fab G as well as giving the Stepmother a more humanised backstory allows for a more compelling take on a classic.

Cast:

Because this is just the one all-in review I'm not going to do an in-depth character analysis and instead group the characters as who were my favourites, who did a passable job, who was bad and who were for some reason just there.

Favourites:

I have a top 3/4 favourite characters in this movie. Idina Menzel's Stepmother Vivian, Billy Porter's Fab G, Minnie Driver's Queen Beatrice and additionally Beverly Knight's Queen Tatiana.

Idina Menzel was always going to be fantastic in this movie, but to see her portray what is traditionally the villain character in the movie as a sympathetic character as part of the movie's feminist agenda was an interesting twist. No cat for a start, I don't know if Lucifer was a part of the original fairy tale but of course in the Disney adaptations Lady Tremaine is always accompanied by her faithful feline, but also the fact that her backstory parallels Ella's current story and the fact Vivian was so willing to have Ella reject her passion to do what is expected of her just as was forced on her was actually great motivation.

In truth I have only ever seen Billy Porter in one other thing aside from this movie and that was American Horror Story: Apocalypse. I have never seen Pose though I have heard good things, but from what I understand, Billy Porter only really has one speed. However, as the character's name states, that speed is fabulous. I loved Fab G in this movie, the fairy godmother is usually one of my favourite characters in the movie and every interpretation I have seen has brought something different and memorable. If this version of Cinderella is remembered for anything it will be for this very modernised take on the Fairy Godmother, not only gender-bending and race-bending a traditionally white female character, but with Porter choosing to make the character non-binary and that outfit speaks for itself, Fab G was simply a fabulous character.

In both Disney adaptations, I have never heard mention or reference to Prince Charming having a living mother...or a dead one for that matter. So to not only have the Queen being in a chunk of this movie, but also having her own story branch tying into the feminist agenda running through the movie and being portrayed by Minnie Driver, I was in love with this character.

Pretty much similar to the Fab G, if you've seen Beverly Knight's one second in the trailers you've pretty much seen her in the movie. She contributes to Ella's story in the movie and only appears in the latter half of the movie in 2 maybe 3 scenes but she makes an impact because she's Beverly Knight. My only gripe with her is she does not sing in the movie, you have Beverly Knight with not even a solo in a group number?

Passable:

Unfortunately the star of the movie Camilla Cabello is just passable in this movie as Cinderella. She does have some humour about her and her singing is great despite maybe being autotuned because I know how she can sing, but she doesn't feel like Cinderella to me, it actually feels more like a version of what Emma Watson was doing with Belle in the live-action Beauty and the Beast rather than Cinderella but at least she tried.

As for Nicholas Galitzine, he's definitely more engaging as a modern-day Prince Charming, Robert is definitely more engaging a character than Ella unfortunately, which to be fair is still good as the 2015 Cinderella is the only other adaptation to really make the Prince interesting, but I can't quite put my finger on exactly which movie it is but there is another movie I have seen where the Prince Regent doesn't want to be king but the Princess does and has to fight for her right to be it...that's pretty much this story for them.

Also Pierce Brosnan as the King, despite jokingly singing towards the end, did a great job at being the archetype of old-fashioned values with his on-screen wife Minnie Driver's queen pushing him into a modern-day thinking.

Bad:

As for who's bad, I have to say it pains but the British comic relief characters really let the side down in this movie.

In the three mice defence, Romesh Ranganathan and James Acaster are somewhat funny but unnecessary. James Corden however is abismal in this movie. I get he produces it, but particularly after Cats I do not understand 1) Why he'd want to portray another CG animal or 2) Ever think that one shot of him changing back from human to mouse with his head on a mouse body was funny...it was terrifying.

Also this movie is supposedly a family-audience movie...so why include a crass joke of Corden's character talking about peeing out of his front tail?

Additionally to the three mice, Rob Beckett has a surprising role in this movie as a potential suitor for Vivian's daughters, but he simply portrays such a creepy, cringe-worthy character it's almost uncomfortable to watch.

New Additions:

So as well as the two queens and the British comic relief there is also the addition of Princess Gwen to the movie who is the sister of the Prince and the one who wants to be ruler. It's kind of the same story as Jasmine's in the live-action Aladdin as wanting to be Sultan but being a woman isn't taken seriously, however here it is treated more comedically as every time there is a serious moment with the King trying to force Robert to grow up and be King, she always tries to interject with "Would this be a bad time to tell you about an actual real reason why I would be a good ruler" and they make sense but she's always dismissed until the very end.

Then there's a town crier, who is also inserted as a musical number while he's reading his proclamations but as a rap. Honestly I don't know Doc Brown as an artist but I did happen to enjoy what he contributed.

Music:

Which brings us on nicely to the music of the movie as this is a musical and I usually break down the songs. Again this time I will be doing groupings of best to worse.

Honestly my favourite number is probably "Shining Star" mostly performed by Billy Porter with verses by Camilla Cabello and, unfortunately, James Corden.

I also enjoyed the two original songs of the movie, "Million to One" which is Cabello's "I Want" song of the movie and used a lot through the movie, and then also "Dream Girl" which is Idina's main other song but also sung by basically the women of the movie, it's Idina Menzel if you don't give her an original song it's an insult.

Idina's other song is a cover of "Material Girl" and honestly it is a lot of fun, Nicholas Galitzine's rendition of "Somebody to Love" was also fun and surprising as I did not think this guy could sing that well.

The group numbers were fun and well choreographed but they are also somewhat forgettable. The song at the ball of "Whatta Man/Seven Nation Army" was probably the most memorable but still just mediocre.

Recommendation:

So with all that said, would I recommend watching Sony's Cinderella? Honestly I would say it is worth at least one viewing, and I do recommend watching all the way through just to get the full experience. I do think it will do better as a streaming movie than it would have done as a theatrical release, but I cannot pinpoint a market for this movie.

I don't think this will go down as one of the great adaptations, but there are moments and aspects of the movie that sets it apart from the crowd.

Overall I rate this movie a 7/10, it's not as fantastic as I feel the trailers were making it out to be, but having seen the movie twice there are definitely elements of the movie I looked forward to watching the second time around.

So that's my review of Sony's Cinderella, what did you guys think? Post your comments and check out more Movie Reviews as well as other posts.

[imagining-in-the-margins]

I'm here! Finally answering these Anon Asks!

1. It is real (for now) 😅 It'll be very different than before - exclusive to Paramount+, not including all of the original cast*, only 10 episodes, and will be focused on one case rather than a procedural.

* The main S15 cast was invited back. Kirsten is not returning, and I think Daniel Henney will be busy on his new show. Matthew mentioned not really wanting to, but he was willing to reconsider. Paget and Joe have been very vocal supporters of the reboot, but Paget has been calling for fans to support her in negotiations.

We'll see. Not much has been decided yet. You can read more here.

2. You're my favorite and I hope you get all the hugs and kisses you desire, friend 😚

3. Yeah... I really blame the writers. They clearly wanted her to be some weird, stereotypical "spunky" girl. But, naturally, the writing team is riddled with misogyny and a deep misunderstanding of women, lmao. RLC is an amazing actress. I don't know what she could have done to save that mess of a character.

I really think her character was unnecessary on top of all of that. Spencer's final arc was about how he spent his whole life basing his worth and purpose on the women in his life (his Mother, JJ, Maeve, Cat). Date Night would have been a lot more meaningful if, after he got closure with Cat, he realized that he was still his own person, and would continue to exist after she was gone, and that he was going to be okay.

They could've done something great... but, alas...

4. Awe, of course! Like I mentioned before, I am planning on collecting Dad!Spencer fics to post on Father's Day. I hope that they all comfort you and reassure you that, even though your Father failed you, there are still so many people who will love and appreciate you, and we want you to know it!

5. So, there is a sequel to the book (which I have not read!) where he ends up in a remarkably similar situation. Here is the summary:

A month after narrowly surviving the most harrowing night of his life, Chip Taylor is living in a seedy, pay-by-the-week motel in a sleepy coastal town in Florida. He still has most of the 68 grand he and his crazy ex-girlfriend stole back in Tennessee, but he's a man living at loose ends, directionless and without a plan. He's drinking too much and surrendering to too many of the same temptations that landed him in so much trouble in the first place. It isn't long before Chip finds himself wrapped up in another nightmarish descent into bloody madness and chaos. And this time his survival is more in doubt than ever.

That is, obviously, super depressing, lmao. Probably realistic, too, honestly. I personally like to believe that he got a decent job and lived a modest life. He met a very sweet person that treated him well. He got therapy and spent the rest of his life being perfectly mediocre and happy about it. But to be honest, I haven't thought about it a lot!

6. Angst is a category of literature, although the term is usually used exclusively in fanfiction. Here is a simple definition from Urban Dictionary that, I feel, summarizes it well:

An adjective describing a situation or literary piece which contains dark, depressing, angry, and/or brooding emotions from the participating characters.

7. Ugh, I'm so sorry that you had a bad experience. Medications can be so hard. For you for take steps, even in such a state, to try to self-soothe is extremely impressive and you should be proud of yourself!

I'm glad you exist, too, and I'm so happy to hear that my mindless Spotify collections provided you some comfort in such an awful time.

I hope you have a wonderful day, too. Long-term medication regimens are seriously exhausting, and you are doing a great job. Keep it up, friend! You deserve so much happiness in life, and I'm so proud of you for taking care of yourself the best you can.

8. [NSFW] Hi friend! I can't say much on this subject, as I'm not a lesbian myself, but I do want to assure you that I've heard other lesbians, gay men, and aroace people express similar sentiments!

The truth is, to me, erotica is completely different aspect of enjoyment than the physical acts of sex. There are many things I enjoy reading or watching that I would never engage in physically. When you view erotica as a form of expression, separate from the expression of physicality, you might find that the true divide isn't the gender of the characters, but the emotions and connections established.

TL;DR, I'm very sorry you're feeling confused, but I know a ton of lesbians who enjoy reading het erotica, and you shouldn't necessarily feel like you are less valid of a lesbian because you like erotica works (written predominantly by women, mind you!).

Also, if your friends mock you for reading fanfiction, they kind of sound like jerks. There isn't much difference between fanfic and published works such as Outlander, which have remarkable success. You could always just say you read that (the smut scenes are, IMO, significantly less cringy in Outlander than other mainstream erotica, such as 50 Shades).

I hope that you get some relief from the frustration you're feeling. If you decide that you're bisexual and just heavily lean to women, I am happy to celebrate that with you, but I'm just as excited to celebrate if you decide that you are still a lesbian! 💕

Best of luck, friend. I'm happy you're here no matter what ☺️

[alliterative-albatross]

So, I sent you (@disgruntledspacedad) a pretty long ask a while ago (back when you had anon on) and I'm decently sure Tumblr ate it (or maybe you ignored it, in which case, feel free to ignore this one as well). But then I saw one of those "writers appreciate feedback no matter how long" posts, so I'm back here. Here is my mediocre attempt to rewrite my original review of your work. Bear in mind that English is not my first language, so if at any point my phrasing sounds weird to you, you know why. Mandatory disclaimer/apology: this might get a little too long 😅

RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

I remember being SO mad at myself for not finding this sooner. I binge read it one afternoon with no thoughts for any real life responsibilities I might have had (and no regrets). Javiears is one hell of an unconventional relationship in the beginning, and I really love what you did with them. The whole premise of your story is quite refreshing, and you somehow manage to convey the trust and mutual respect there two feel for one another without explicitly showing us the beginning of their "entanglement".

Also, fuck you for what you did to poor Emilio, that man was a saint and he deserved better! I honestly can't believe that I got so attached to a character that appeared so little in the story, but it happened, and his death kind of broke my heart.

But the Javiears reunion + mild confession was lovely, and felt completely deserved. And of course the sex scene. I won't lie, I expected a bit better from Javi there, but I did like how utterly /human/ it was. Capturing that humanity, the imperfections in each character is something you're really good at (more on that later).

AFTERSHOCKS

Ah, my emotionally constipated babies who really need to work out their communication issues. I do love them, though. And this short series did a really good job of delving a bit deeper into Ears's and Javi's psyche. Kudos to you for dealing with the medical "aftershocks" of living through an explosion AND using that experience to move your emotional plot forward. These two need to grow a lot before they can get to a stable point in their relationship, and you really manage to convey their insecurity and fear of commitment/intimacy while making it clear that they're in it for the long run and that theirs is a relationship that WILL work out so help them God.

IF I FALL

Ouch. Punch me in the gut while you're at it, why don't you?

But seriously, "If I Fall" is SO FUCKING GOOD. Don't get me wrong, it's angstier than an image of Jesus on the cross (don't judge me, it's Holy Week and I just got home from accompanying my grandma to church), but it somehow works beautifully. You, my dear, play heartstrings like they're a fucking guitar and I AM HERE FOR IT.

You're doing an amazing job at making me feel everything these characters are feeling, which is both awful (bc pain) and impressive.

Also, if anything happens to Ana I will cry, because she is adorable and wonderful and has suffered way too much already and really deserves a break and some cookies.

Also also, if anything happens to Ears I will cry, because she is badass and wonderful and has suffered way too much already and really deserves a break and some cookies.

Also also also, if anything happens to Javi I will cry, because he is loving and wonderful and has suffered way too much already and really deserves a break and some cookies.

Basically, I am really invested in the well-being of these characters and can't wait until they're happy and safe again (please tell me they will be, my heart can't handle much more pain).

A quick note on the angst complaints: yes, this story is way angstier than most other fics out there and it can be a bit too much at times, especially considering how many chapters of pain it's been. BUT it's obvious that "If I Fall" NEEDS this amount of angst to get where it's going, to send the message it wants to and to properly develop its characters. The pain is as important to this story as flour is to bread. You may not like eating flour on its own (I don't think anyone does), but you love bread (because bread is amazing) and you must recognize that bread NEEDS flour to work. It wouldn't be bread otherwise. And eating the flour as part of the bread even makes you like the flour because the bread is just DELICIOUS.

I fully understand and sympathize with the people who have elected to table "If I Fall" until it's completed so they can binge read it knowing there's a happy ending in sight, but in case you're feeling a bit self conscious about all the angst, please know that your story is beautiful not in spite of the pain, but rather /because of it/.

PS: No, I'm not high/drunk, I just really like bread

AUTHOR'S NOTES

Silly thing to comment on, I know, but I do feel like it's important that you know how useful your ANs have been. There are many details in the story that I simply wouldn't fully get without reading your comments at the end of each chapter, and I appreciate your writing a hell of a lot more knowing how deeply you understand and care for each one of your characters. Plus, it is obvious how much work you've put into researching a country and a time period that are (from what I gather) unfamiliar to you, and I really do believe you've done an amazing job of it.

JAVIER PEÑA

My boy. I love your characterization of this complicated character, and I have eagerly read each and every one of your headcanons about him. I can't really say if your version is fully faithful to the source material because it's been a while since I saw Narcos, but your Javi most definitely reads like a real person. He's fairly consistent as a character, and I feel like everything he does is perfectly natural for him to do as a character. He makes for an unconventional yet deeply interesting romantic lead, and so far I have thoroughly enjoyed all his POV chapters/scenes.

OCs

I know you've gotten some flack for making her into an OC halfway into the story, and while I get why the sudden change may have felt like a disappointment for some, I don't share that sentiment. I firmly believe that this fandom is unfairly harsh towards Original Characters and their creators, and I don't really understand why. Listen, I love Reader fics, and consume many Reader fics. I have read dozens, maybe even hundreds, and I can safely say that I've only ever "inserted" myself in approximately 10% of those stories. Reader characters are not as blank as their writers may want them to be. They can't be. They're characters, and character have personalities and moral values and senses of humor and a bunch of other things. Reader characters may not have a backstory or a physical description attached (and even that's not guaranteed), but they're still characters.

And on a more personal note, pretending they're actual blank slates is naive at best and insensitive at worst. Reader characters are American coded 99% of the time, and white coded 95% of the time. Not every readers is white nor American, even if that's the predominant demographic on Tumblr. When I read a JavixReader fic about a woman who speaks exactly zero Spanish, I know she's not me. The story may be beautifully written and have an amazing plot and character development, but the Reader *isn't me*. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, and some of my favorite xReader stories feature a "reader" who couldn't be more different from me, but it's something that enemies of OC fics should take into account. Particularly if they are white and/or American. But I digress.

HANNAH AARONS

Your character is amazing. She's strong, smart, confident, independent and an all-around badass. She gets kidnapped while pregnant and still focuses on problem solving and survival. But she's also overly guarded and mistrustful, and really needs to work on her communication skills. There are times when I absolutely love her and even admire her, and other times when I want to whack her with a slipper. She's no Mary Sue, but remains interesting and likeable throughout the story. She feels wholly human and real, and that's no easy task. I like her, I am invested in her, and I can't wait to see what's next for her. She's a compelling and three dimensional protagonist in a complex story who never fails to draw me in. I love her. She's your baby, and you should be proud of her.

Also, quick question about personality types: I know you've typed Javi as ESFP and Ears as ENTP (100% agree on both, btw), but have you given any thought to their enneagram types? I personally have always seen Ears as being somewhere on the thinking triad, maybe a 7 or even a 6w7, but I'm not too sure about Javi. 9w8 maybe? He could also be a 6w5 🤔

PARTING THOUGHTS

Basically, I love your story, your characters and your writing in general. You are a fantastic storyteller and wordsmith. You get into the heads of incredibly different characters personality-wise (Ears, Javi, Berna...) and manage to capture all of their complexities and quirks every single time. And it doesn't feel like it's something innate for you either. To me, it seems that you have put a lot of work and effort into understanding each and every one of your characters, who they are, why they do what they do and what they want. And let me tell you, all that effort has been more than worth it. "Better Love" is a fanfic, but it wouldn't be out of place in a regular bookstore, if I'm honest. I don't know what you do for a living or if you've ever considered writing professionally, but you clearly have the skills and the drive to create some masterpieces.

You are amazing and your writing is a gift. Thank you for sharing it with us, and have a nice day! ~ 🍪

~

My friend, I apologize for hoarding your first ask. I’ve been sitting on it because I’m not gonna lie, I enjoy going back and rereading it. It gave me a lot of comfort when I was in a pretty dark place, both personally and in regards to my writing, and I was reluctant to send it out into the the abyss of Tumblr where I might never see it again. 

That’s not fair, though. You put just as much effort into sending me that review as I put into my writing, and I apologize for never responding to you.

Okay, anyway, so twice now, you’ve made me cry. In a good way, I promise! 

I absolutely love your bread/flour metaphor. It made perfect sense. I want the emotional release of Javi and Hannah’s reunion to be earned, and in order to do that, the angst has to come first (there are also a few plot “ingredients” that have yet to make their appearances). Thank you very much for understanding that, and for voicing it so eloquently.

I appreciate your comments on my research and characterization. You’re correct that I’ve put a lot of time and effort into crafting a universe. In a lot of ways, I’m doing my best to stay true to the source material (regarding culture and timelines in particular), and in others, I’m branching into my own territory. 

On that note, I’ve never once regretted fully embracing Hannah Aarons’ identity as an OC. She’s stayed consistent in my mind from the beginning, and it was a relief to finally share my vision of her with the audience. And for the record, I totally agree with you regarding “reader” characters. Every reader insert echoes the perspective of their author, no matter how vague the physical description. I can only imagine how grating that must be from the perspective of a non-white, non-american reader. Thank you so much for sharing your insight! I will certainly keep it in mind the next time I write a “reader insert” fic.

Okay, enneagrams! I am much less familiar with enneagram than I am MBTI, but I agree 110% that Javi is a 9 with a strong 8 wing. I waffled back and forth on Ears a little, but eventually landed on 8w7 for her. It came down to the eight’s deepest fear, which is being controlled. That’s Ears all over, and the fact that she and Javi share that eight willfulness means that they might butt heads a little, which also seems very appropriate for them. Big thanks to @remusstark for her insight into the eight frame of mind - our conversations helped solidify my decision on this. :)

Anyway, I’m just rambling now. The big take-away point that I want you to get is that I am so, so grateful to you, both for your insightful feedback and your dedication in making sure that I actually saw it. You are an absolute gem and a deep thinker, Cookie-Anon, and if you ever feel like sliding into my DM’s, I’d welcome the opportunity to get to know you better.

Mad love and soft hugs, 

~ Jay

[anxious-acushla]

I think you hit a nerve talking about arya's privilege because apparently you are not talking about gendry's male privilege and I think they are making it out as some sort of unfair standards thing. I don't think people realize what feudalism is about and that nobles DO have a responsibilities that go with the opportunities that people lower down the social scale don't have. And nobles are afforded more rights in regards to their welfare that lowborns don't have, male or female. (part 1/3)

(part 2/3) We have many instances in the books where lowborn men are tortured (blue bard, marillion) or killed (mycah/lommy). If people want to talk about male privilege a better comparison is between arya and bran. There is a difference in how they treat someone like jeyne poole or pretty pia versus how people treat a sansa or arya. I think a lot of stans just want arya to have the benefits and none of the responsibilities. That is not realistic.

(Part 3/3) Yes, it is easier for men because women are subjected to sexual violence which happens to women more frequently. I think that if we get the books, Arya will realize and understand that she did have opportunities that other people don't have and I think she will use her position to do some real good for the commonfolk. Arya doesn't fully understand yet but I think she will when the series ends. it's part of growing up and learning about the world around her.

Alright nonny, you can stay. I appreciate this for so many reasons, the main one being that I’ve seen the passive aggressive posts going around after I posted my answer to the ask and I’ve wanted to defend myself (even though I don’t need to defend myself to anyone, much less people that won’t — AGAIN — bring topics to me so we can discuss them like adults) but was trying to bite my tongue.

So a few things before everyone comes for me:

Me not mentioning Gendry’s male privilege does not mean I don’t believe in its existence. The anon brought up Arya’s privilege so I responded re: Arya’s privilege. I mentioned Gendry in contrast when it comes to Arya’s privilege. It was not to show that perhaps he, being a man, does not also have his advantages in life. 

Let’s unpack that too. Did Gendry have advantages with TNW as a dude? Sure he did. Would I call “not getting raped” a privilege? No...but you can. Is his current standing as a Lord and his choice to keep Arya in his life despite them not being married a privilege that wouldn’t be afforded to a Lady in his shoes? Sure. Similarly, if Gendry and Arya are caught together, it’s her reputation that is ruined and not his. That’s male privilege. It’s real. Gendry and all men in GOT have it to a certain extent if we’re going to boil it down to “more immune to sexual assault”. But again, this is MY OPINION and ya’ll are more than welcome to have yours. Last time I checked I was the only one out here openly stating my beliefs while the rest of you hide behind anon or write passive aggressive posts but go off, sis.

“Privileged people can be oppressed. Their privilege doesn’t negate their oppression nor does their oppression negate their privilege.” - an actual thing I said sooo???

After much deliberation I’ve come to the conclusion that everyone coming after me, probably including the original anon, hasn’t actually read Exhale? Which...lolz. I went into answering the first anon thinking they had but now I’m pretty convinced they haven’t? And if they did, it’s likely they only read the most recent chapter? Not that it matters. I said what I said and I stand by it. But it is put in a more clear context when you put it as a counterpart to my current story. It’s not my fault some of you don’t read my mediocre fix-it fic. 

My comment on privilege is *mostly* a comment toward Show!Arya. If you do read Exhale it’s about 75% based off the show. Show!Arya has privilege and if you think she doesn’t...yikes (but you do you, boo!) 

But YES, Book!Arya has so much learning and growing to do and I can’t wait to see GRRM actually do her justice. I don’t think how the show ended is how GRRM will end the series. He may take twelve years to release a book but the man knows his characters and believes in the world he has built. So Show!Arya has privilege and it is essentially Show!Arya in Exhale that Sansa questions. 

Lastly, no one knows me? I write a fic that gets very little attention compared to most? I’m getting shit for having the gall to share an opinion? An opinion that I’m more than happy to a) discuss with anyone who comes to me like a mature human and b) won’t bother you about if you don’t agree? 

I lied. This is my last point: FANDOMS ARE SUPPOSED TO BE POSITIVE AVENUES FOR FANS TO COME TOGETHER AND SHARE THEIR LOVE OF A TV SHOW/BOOK/MOVIE, ETC. We get enough garbage from creators and other fandoms, etc. etc. etc. Why do we do this *to eachother*? Why is everyone so focused on the negative that they immediately assume the worst? What is with the condescension? Don’t like what you see and don’t want to respond to it in a way that is constructive? Keep it scrollin’. Block a tag. Unfollow someone. Fandom is supposed to be a healthy outlet and some of you seriously ruin it. 

[justanearth-boundmisfit]

(1) y'know it's so funny seeing the positivity police make all these posts about how they're stating their opinion abt the show that destiel is endgame & they never actually mean it bc they don't know anything but yet continue writing 58482923625 million metas on the color shirt dean is wearing & that one beer label that has the bi flag on it and how jack is uwu gonna bring his daddies together uwu like lmfaooo that's why we're calling ur shit out bc younger fans eat this shit up and start

Hi anon! Under the cut it goes the reply, you know, it got long as usual….and wanky. 

(A note after an asshole tried to police me: don’t like my rants or me venting or fandom wank and above all criticism towards the show: go away, this is not for you and it’s tagged properly.)

I agree with all that you said. But let me tell you this: before this year I never had a problem with what metas wrote about spn, Cas or destiel. After all internet is full with metas and fan theories about every show out there and every movie ever made. There are crazy as fuck theories that I’ve read and moved on, because everyone has a right to have a reading about the show they are watching. I was never against that. In fact there were some metas in the fandom that I truly admired because they were on point and they shared all of their thoughts with us. Kudos to them.

But then these new metas started to arrive with only one objective in mind: to prove that destiel is going to be canon no matter what. And again, ok, they had their readings, they hoped for something, I didn’t agree, but it was not my place to say anything. Suddenly all these people started to say that Cas being dead was a good thing. They were happy about it in fact and I was wtf? Really confused there, because no matter how much you love a ship, if you really like the characters you can’t be happy one of them is dead! And we have already so much shit from the show and the haters towards Cas, than to see “fans” clapping for his death… yeah I just couldn’t shut up. Not going to take well people cheering about my favorite character dying you know? 

After that, when a bunch of us said: hey that’s not ok, wtf are you saying that is good that Cas is gone? The mocking started. And I don’t follow any of them, but I’ve seen the posts ok? Because people shared them with me. I’m not fucking lying, I don’t need to. So, we bitter Cas fans not only had to put up with the haters but now we were also being mocked by some of his “fans” as well. I let it pass too, because I don’t like going to blogs to police people you know? I don’t do that. I vent and rant in my blog, but to go to their blogs to start shit as they were doing…nah, didn’t worth my time, really. But of course then, their policing began. I mean, I’m here, on my little corner, with my people, sad and bitter about not having Cas, and I see the positivity police going everywhere telling us: “you don’t know how to watch the show! Why don’t you like Jack? Why are you being so negative?! You do know that this is a drama right? I went through your tags and I’m baffled you are so wrong in everything!” And I’m not exaggerating here, these are things they said to us. In our blogs, through messages, or tagging us directly, reblogging us. So right there was the moment when I reached my fucking limit. Sorry not sorry. 

I have to put up with more than half the fandom cheering that Cas is dead or gone or absent, but also I can’t be sad or bitter or angry about that? What.the.ever.fuck??? I’m not having that shit ffs! I don’t care if they have 2423242 titles on their walls, nothing gives them the right to tell other people how to feel, or how to see things. We can exchange opinions, we can disagree or agree, but to police me about how I feel for my favorite character or if I watch the show this or that way, or to tell me to stop watching because I only like Cas,  who the fuck gave them the right? 

And now they are upset because we say that they are not really Cas’s fans. After they were really happy for his death, because endgame! Cry me a river! Don’t believe in their shit for one minute. I’ve never saw any fans happy about their fave dying, another exclusive and horrible thing spn fandom has now. I can’t fucking believe it. And all because of a ship. So they can’t tell me they like Cas if they prefer him dead, because of a sick notion that that is what is going to make destiel canon after 9 fucking seasons. If they prefer a placebo!cas because aaaawww dadstiel!! If they say that Cas being gone and captured is a good thing. They are so full of shit and themselves that I can’t believe how many people are buying their fucking lies and twisted readings. 

Which brings me to the poor people that believe in them and parrot everywhere their lies. I’m sorry for them really. I know the majority are new to the fandom and to the ship, and want to believe and be positive. And well I can’t feel anything but sorry for them. They are buying not only tptb lies, but also the bs these metas are spewing everywhere. And look I want a big happy ending for Cas too ok? Of course I want that! So I get it. But how that is going to happen if we only have Cas for a few minutes and then no Cas at all for months? If every time we saw him this season he was either dead, talking to the empty, on a fucking out of place cowboys cosplay episode and then saved by asshole Lucifer and on top of all that, being captured by a demon? How? And I didn’t need 2423423422 words to resume how Cas story line has been this season, to show you how crappy it is. It’s just there! I can’t be blind ffs! After all these years what purpose it serves being blind as fuck? 

Fandom being so happy with Cas being absent or clapping about placebo!cas, and not shouting to the rooftops how unfair that is, it’s what is going to give us even less Cas. A lot of us said it last season. And now here were are. We didn’t even saw him for the mid season finale. And I’m not fucking happy about being right. I surely hope with every season that I’m wrong as all fuck about my thoughts about Cas’s story and where they are taking it. Seriously. Last season a bunch of us saw Cas’s death coming, we wrote about it and how sad it was, and we got shit for that. Again. And I cried rivers watching Cas being stabbed on the back ok? Even if I knew it was going to happen I was really upset. I’m tired of seeing him hurt, bleeding, tortured, without powers, or with powers but treated like a weak angel (remember the I couldn’t kill a vampire? wft?), a fool that despite having all this pop culture in his head thanks to Metatron, doesn’t know who Beyoncé is, that goes to suicide missions that make no sense at all… I’m tired. And sad. And angry. And I have a right to express that on my fucking blog.

*sigh* And then they give me the discourse of “spnfamily!!” Lmao! Give me a break! hashtag only love! my fucking ass! This fandom has some good people ofc, but it’s also full of hypocrites. Don’t give me the peace! speech if you started shit in the first place, threw the rock, and hid the hand. Why people in this fandom can’t accept criticism towards a show that is mediocre at the best of times I will never understand. Now we even have “Cas’s fans” policing everywhere when we should stick together loving him. And wanting him back. You know, instead of wanting him dead, because of a fucking ship.

This got reaaaaally long, XD. Sorry! I guess I’m venting after a week or reading so much bs. 

Take care anon!

[topicprinter]

Hi r/Entrepreneur, this a collection of "Don'ts" that I've come up with after being in the Instagram game for a while. It's about a 7 minute read, I haven't done a TLDR because I think the titles of the points would be a enough for anyone in a hurry :) The original article is here for anyone who wants to read it there or give me some love. Without further a do...7 Deadly Sins of Instagram MarketingSome basic wisdom gathered from managing several social media accounts, running countless campaigns and growing a pet blog to to 75k plus followers (don’t judge the stats, I’ve neglected growing it lately OK!). Avoid doing these things and you will get some great traction with your Insta-Endevours.1 - Trying to make every post an advertInstagram, or any social media platform is not for sticking your product in a person’s face. You know who you become when you do that? You become that one guy that everyone knows, who’s constantly trying to sell you something. You’re the digital version of that. Don’t be that.Instead, use your profile to congregate people that enjoy your content that will likely be interested in your product. Your profile should be a home for your customer. If you’re selling beard oil. You shouldn’t be posting your product in the foreground of every photo, not even in the background. You should be finding models with killer beards, videos of barbers doing their styling on a customer, beard maintenance guides. Build social arbitrage. If you’re providing entertainment, information and value to your customer, your product will sell itself. Every now and again, promote your product. And for fuck sake make it personal, don’t talk in corporate-language. We’ll get to that..2 - Loading every post with every somewhat relevant hashtag under the sunLook it’s fine to load your post with hashtags as long as they’re relevant and thought out. You get 30 hashtags and each one has the ability to lead a potential customer to your content. Is your product related to cats? Cool, #cat and #cats are probably the most mediocre hashtags you could tag your content with. Why? Because they’re not targeted at all, completely broad and off the mark when you’re trying to find enthusiastic cat owners. Instead think of tags as small communities. Say you product is a cat toy — you’re looking for cat owners, who are enthusiastic about cute fluffy things and regularly active with their pets. Try tagging your content with #dailyfluff, #petscorner, #kittenlove. Try finding large blog accounts that have their own hashtags, that they use for selecting content to feature, use them. Don’t just load a post up and wait for magic to happen, find a good mix of small and large hashtags to grow your account. Tagging all your content with hashtags that have 20 million photos attached to them will only drown your content and make it compete with thousands of other photos. Pro Tip #1 — If a significant part of your audience (say 15% or more) is from a different country or has a different first language, it may be worth it to use a few of those 30 hashtags to cater for that segment by using their language.3 - Neglecting the CaptionHave you seen a post with just hashtags under it, without a caption? If you have, you’ve seen the Instagram equivalent of a pizza without cheese. Is it a pizza? Sure, it’s got the sauce and all… Am I eating it? Get that abomination out of my face.The caption is the content, just as much as the picture is… Instagram lets you post a picture and a maximum 2200 character caption. You’re absolutely nuts if you don’t use that to your advantage. How bland is a picture on it own? A picture says a thousand words but 2200 characters is about 400 words extra. That’s almost half a picture and you could probably use it to 10x the value of your post. Why do you think memes are so popular? It’s not because of the picture, it’s the picture and caption combined that’s making that fucker go viral. If you’re selling wine and you post a picture of your co-founder and yourself having wine together, why wouldn’t you caption that and describe what’s happening. If I saw the picture and read “Nothing beats enjoying a lovely Sauvignon blanc and some cheese on a Sunday afternoon by the coast, with your best friend — Have a lovely weekend everyone!” — I’m now instantly craving wine and cheese, and likely to be your customer at some point since you conveniently sell the wine I just saw. As opposed to seeing the picture and not knowing the context at all. Be smart, write a well written caption.Common Sense Tip #1 — Don’t neglect your profile Bio either. Describe what you’re about and invoke some interest — and for fuck sake, utilise that 1 link you get. Link them to your latest product, e-mail list, video, god… something… If I see one more blank bio or one less link, I’m going to shoot myself.4 - Spraying, praying and making it rain when approaching influencers to promote youNot all influencers are created equal and just because an account has 100k followers, doesn’t mean it’s going to be effective for your purposes. You might be thinking. “Well yeah, we have to check if the followers are legitimate, we have to check the engagement rate and make sure it’s a real account.” You would be correct in thinking that, and if you weren’t thinking that, please do that before committing to a promotion… What I’m actually talking about comes after all the vetting has been done. My problem is with marketing campaigns that set a budget and go nuts with any old account that appears to be somewhat related to your product/service. Even if these accounts have been vetted and confirmed to be real, you need to apply the same principles as we covered with the hashtag situation. The influencer accounts have to be relevant to you niche, highly targeted, have enthusiastic followers that trust the influencer. No matter what your product is, there will be accounts out there that are pumped about that product, so find them. When spending your money, don’t go wide and shallow, go for depth where it counts. 7–8 generic 100k accounts will be less effective than 3–4 high quality accounts, even if they’re less than 20k each.Pro Tip #2 — Micro-influencers seem to be the best bang for your buck these days. These are accounts with less than 10k followers who have built deep trust with their followers not unlike that of a friendship. Their followers are highly engaged and will take their recommendation at high regard. They’re also very lovely to work with for the most part and will go the extra mile if your product fits their audience. Start DM-ing ladies and gentlemen.5 - Not keeping up to date with the rollout of new features that could greatly benefit youHow many of you have created a serious strategy or routine for Instagram stories and Instagram carousel? Scratch that, how many of you even regularly use those features? Instagram’s story feature has eclipsed Snapchats by 2 fold as of the beginning of this month. That’s 300 million users that are actively engaging with this new feature. A feature that lets you embed locations, links and even polls… polls! People crave expressing their opinions and Instagram Stories lets you give your audience just that! Look if you aren’t getting aroused by that piece of information, then this article is not for you.You need to keep up with what Instagram is doing and you need to follow the stats that inevitably become available for those new features. This isn’t even a Instagram thing, it’s a marketing thing. Create a strategy around what you’ll share using stories and carousel, how frequently you’ll post them and how best to engage with your followers using them. You can do so many things with Carousels. You can treat them as comic strips if it works for your business. If you need to hire someone to tell your business’ story, then do that. You’ll find thousands of young up-and-coming marketing professionals, that would kill to create Snapchat and Instagram content to tell your story. Just make sure you’re at least experimenting with the new stuff.6 - Not engaging with your followersIf you’re serious about selling and serious about Instagram, you better be replying to comments left right and center. If your post has 4 comments and 2 of those aren’t from you replying to the other 2, you’re doing it wrong (the exception being people tagging each other). If you have a direct message in your inbox that you haven’t replied to or acknowledged, reply! If you are replying, but you’re doing it in corporate lingo resembling that of a PR statement, you’re coming off as disingenuous.Remember when we talked about the micro-influencers in our second pro tip. They have built trust by befriending their followers. Friends talk and interact with each other, don’t take each other too seriously and are there to help. Be that friend for your follower and they just might become your customer.Pro Tip #3 — As much as we want it to, Instagram doesn’t solely revolve around our content. Engaging with our customers means engaging when it’s their content as well. Sounds hard? It could be if you’ve got a fair few followers but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try your best in this department.7 - Being out of touch and not tailoring your content.Have you ever seen an Instagram post that is a cropped flyer with the caption that goes something like — “Hello dear followers, we are extremely excited to announce that we are running a new program called x and we are inviting you to join our e-mail list so we can update you on our upcoming blah blah blah” — this isn’t an e-mail, this isn’t a flyer, this isn’t a notice board. This is social media, learn to be social for god sake. When you try to become a part of a community, a platform, you need to tailor your content for those eyes. If you go around like you’re at a networking event handing out business cards, you’re just not going to get any business here. You need to appeal to your audience AND optimise for the platform. No matter how much I love burgers, I’m not going to get excited about a burger joint that’s on Instagram posting clear cut stock image bullshit and captions that sound like the human equivalent of a terms and conditions copy. For all the people who haven’t seen this… you haven’t seen this because those profiles never ever grow. They do exist however, they are there and they are infuriating.Instead of doing that, make sure the photo/image is actually aesthetically pleasing or interesting. This is an image platform after all. Also, make your caption informal. It can still be professional and informal without going full suit and tie. Define the purpose for your Instagram account, research how hashtags work, observe how your followers interact with you on the platform and tailor you content accordingly.Hey guys, if you enjoyed this I'd appreciate some love on the actual article here