#also this is a simple set because i am lacking time and inspiration but i wanted to do something still

[cactuslester]

phil lester: then ⤐ now

happy 37th birthday @amazingphil!!!

[soapoet]

PJO pick-a-card reading

Luke Castellan; A message from above

Soapy scribbles: I opted to format this topic as generally as possible since we all hold various different beliefs. Whether this message comes from your spirit guides, angels, higher self, God, any deity, ancestor or passed loved ones, or anything beyond my comprehension, is for you alone to know based on how it resonates with you. I am just the messenger and it is no business of mine who your particular sender is.

01.

Shufflemancy: Travelling by James Spiteri

You're coming out of a period of stagnation. Either delays entirely out of your control, or the sheer lack of motivation has kept you at a stalemate unable to proceed with your plans. You have found comfort in distractions aplenty. A seemingly never-ending cycle of avoiding the next step because it appears so very daunting, then being overcome with guilt and shame, which you again run from, chasing anything and everything which would put these feelings at bay. Now the first step looks less frightening, and you may feel more motivated to journey onwards.

Growing pains may feature, but you are able to handle them well. You may feel inclined to keep secrets, especially regarding your endeavours. This will prove beneficial as it reduces pressure, you now have nobody to hold yourself accountable but you, and you avoid the urge to run away should anybody dare inquire about your progress. Push yourself forward, as unnerving as it may be. You will quickly notice how light you are on your feet and the distance you can go when harnessing the dopamine from simply overcoming this fear.

Do not be too hard on yourself or expect to run a marathon. A little progress is better than none, but do not use busy work as yet another distraction. You have great gifts and plenty to share with the world, and you are destined to inspire others with your achievements and your accolades. As much as you detest routine, try to keep even a small one. Do a little bit every day to inch yourself closer to your dreams. To avoid feelings of uncertainty and your fears of failure, set aside time to sit with yourself in silence and ask yourself why you want this, where it will lead, and why that is where you want to be and what you hope to achieve, the life you wish to lead and what legacy you wish you leave. Remind yourself of the answers to these questions whenever motivation begins to evade you on your journey.

Sometimes a writer can only muster a sentence, perhaps one they will later entirely eliminate, yet they did something. And sometimes all this writer can do is stare at the manuscript before them and give of themselves nothing. Yet they did something. They got up to look at it rather than wince across the room and refuse to rise to the occasion at all. Celebrate even your smallest victories and allow yourself a cheer when you muster even the slightest effort. Do not expect perfection of yourself and know that many before you had to go through trial and error, and learn and adapt along the way. That is perfectly okay and you do not need a doctorate straight out of the womb to be good enough.

02.

Shufflemancy: Kiss the rain by Yiruma

You must cease this pattern of giving up your energy so easily to so many who are not deserving of your time. When bad news arrive, it is fine to feel whichever way you feel, but anchoring your emotions to this negativity will suck you dry of the life force that you need to shine. You are allowed to have boundaries and you are encouraged to enforce them and guard them closely. Those who would trespass should know punishment swiftly. Do not tolerate things you do not tolerate truly. Do not quietly hope unfortunate things go away and that people notice your discomfort and stop what they're doing that is harming you.

Stand up for yourself and make your thoughts and feelings heard. It is also not your duty or responsibility to translate a simple no or a stop to people wilfully ignorant and always finding a justification for their words and actions. No is a full sentence. Anybody who fails to internalize this fact and look in the mirror to reflect and to change any behaviour that's lead them to ignore this simple command is not a headache to take as yours. You should be unapologetic in your selfcare and demand space when you need it. Set aside your fears and shoo away any prowling feelings of shame and guilt. If you would be happier alone than in bad company, seek solitude and cut off what no longer serves you.

There are lessons some learn only upon a collapse. You may pray for a change of heart and hope for the sun to shine again, but you do not need to weather storms that are not yours to experience. You're not a bad person for stepping back and saying enough is enough in a situation that only causes you distress. Those who need help must want it and ask for it. You can promise to be there when they're ready and aid in their recovery, and still express to them the grief that they have caused you. Sometimes people need to be faced with the harsh truth. The pain and the agony and sleepless nights which they have brought upon you and others and be shown they could truly lose it all lest they stop and strive to do and be better.

If somebody truly needs help and you do not have the heart to abandon them, seek assistance. You need not be alone in a quest which requires more than you alone have to give. There are many sources of help and even more solutions once more hands are there to help, and you only have two and are allowed to seek extra pairs to aid you in this task. You are commended for your resilience and your kind heart. It may break and bleed often, and you must know that things will get better. These rough waters will calm soon enough and you will find peace.

03.

Shufflemancy: Ballerina by Yehezkel Raz

You don't need to run so fast. You have all the time in the world to make the changes that you want and need. Slow down and allow yourself to breathe. You have been much too hard on yourself and allowed everything outside of you to weigh you down. Shelf some burdens that were never yours to carry and make the choice to serve yourself for a change. Be gentle with yourself and listen to your own body and soul, and act according to that which is truly in your best interest. You are your own worst enemy when you let the beasts feed upon your negative self talk and your fixations on perceived failures.

Know that you have no more need for tips and tricks and new methods to your madness. You already have everything that you need, and no tool beyond your own consciousness is required. You could paint cathedral ceilings with just your imagination, so cease your struggle and let yourself be carried by the stream. Do not waver in your convictions, and do not let doubt lead you astray. Stick to what you know in your heart to be true and cast away every inkling of worry and fear.

You need to learn to let life happen to you rather than holding the reins so tightly you vitiate the opportunity to experience the present moment altogether. The present is all we really have, so try your best to cling neither to the past or the future. We all have regrets behind us, and wishes for the future, but it is the present moment which we truly have control over and get to experience.

Let go of any unhealthy dependencies you may have allowed to take root in your garden. Whether this is a person, a habit, or a situation, if it isn't doing you any good in the long-term, do your best to weed it out so that more energy may be received by the things you do wish to grow and nurture. If you feel unqualified to tackle some of this gardening, do not hesitate to ask for help and guidance from gentle people who will understand how delicate some situations may be. You do not need to tolerate fear mongering or unnecessary pressure, time constraints or misplaced ultimatums. Be direct with what you need and the tone and feel you wish to engage in so that you do not end up feeling cornered and threatened so much that you refuse any help at all in favour of protecting yourself from harsh criticism and judgement.

[sweetly-yours-and-mine]

Could I request a little ‘A got roped into a blind date by their friends. They don't want a new relationship and plan to make themselves as unlikeable as possible to dissuade any further possible setups. All of that goes through the window when they see how gorgeous B is.’ with Santi as person A

(if you get this twice I’m sorry I can’t remember if I sent this irl or not because I saw the post when I was hazy and delusional at 2 AM)

Pairing: Santiago Garcia x Reader

Word Count: 912

A/N: Just opened up my askbox for some requests! First time writing for Santi, very very excited about this one! (And don't worry ab requesting twice, hun! It was a very inspiring prompt)

Warnings: fluff, santi thinks he's unlovable, a bit angsty ig?, frankie morales is a good bro, poorly edited (author has BDE)

Santiago really didn’t do the whole dating thing. 

The flowers and the small-talk and the footsies over cheese-stuffed appetisers. 

He had a long-term relationship with running away, that strange, filtered aeroplane air making him feel closer to home than any of his mother’s cooking could ever hope to do. 

Better put, he wasn’t relationship material. 

It wasn’t a deliberate choice from his end. 

It sort of just…happened. 

Life had morphed Santiago into the jagged, crooked, ugly thing that he was now. 

In all of his attempts (three) at the real thing, all his tries at the dart board called love, it usually always ended in the same fashion. He’d take her to meet his friends, she’d realise sooner than later that she’d drawn the losing hand out of the four of them, and it was downhill from there. 

One of them had been kind enough even to enlighten him to exactly what he lacked. 

You just need to be more…Frankie, Santi. 

Though it hurt, it was good to get out in the open like that. The plain, mumpy truth, in all its glory: 

Santiago wasn’t relationship material because of the amount of ‘Frankie-ness’ that was lacking in his blood and DNA, because he was the losing hand, the cracked skipping stone in the middle of a torrential river on the way to the safety of land and love, true love. 

And so, in what would be considered a sociologist’s dream case study, Santiago did what he did best, self-fulfilled then self-destructed. 

He was the intermediary for girls before they managed to find their Frankie, Benny, Will. 

It was a tough truth to chew, left a bitter taste in his mouth, that he’d only been created for people to recognize their self-worth and move on. There was a disagreeable insinuation behind it, if he thought about it too long. 

Which was precisely why he didn’t. 

And he ran away instead when things got too hard, too painful. Like a thumbtack in the heel of his foot. 

But Frankie on the other hand, Frankie thought about it long and hard. Too hard and too long, no matter how often Santiago told him to quit it. 

From his seat behind the driver’s wheel, Frankie was able to watch everything with a keen, honed eye, his two ears moving back and forth like a great-horned owl’s. 

And nothing was able to go past Frankie’s eyes without him picking it up and giving it a thorough inspection.

Which is why Frankie's been adamant about it. A real pain in the ass. 

Santiago was the bachelor of the group now. The only single one left. 

And Frankie was set on changing that. 

No matter how much Santiago protested. 

Will and Benny gave in to Santiago’s reality with a simple nod, the former’s eyes sad and sombre, the latter’s teasing a little light-hearted and half-hearted. 

But Frankie and him had the strongest bond he’s ever experienced. Saving a guy’s life a couple times does that to you. 

Santiago knows, if anything, that whatever happens in this god-forsaken world, that Frankie will always be his rock, the one constant in a world of possibilities and probabilities.

But it also meant that Frankie had some sort of gall that the others didn’t. 

And tonight, he meant to put an end to it, swiftly and surely. 

The sibling of a friend of a cousin. 

That still doesn’t mean Santiago wants to be here. 

Detached enough from them that if it all went to shit, the ripples would be minimal. Attached enough to them to make the small talk a little less small-talkey.

“You’re frowning.” 

“That’s because I’m mad, pendejo,” he grumbles back at the baseball cap. 

Frankie huffs and though he can’t see it, he hears the eye-roll. 

He feels like a petulant child, like he’s being babysat to make sure he won’t act out. 

Which is what he is precisely planning to do. 

He’ll take care of it quickly. Despite his cynical, eighty-year-old with three cats schmick he’s settling into nicely, he still has a bit of heart. And whoever the poor person was that had been roped into this will be roped out just as quickly. No harm done and Santiago’s Frankie problem fixed once and for all. 

With another huff, Frankie leans back in his seat and fixes him with beady eyes, “At least, try to be a little agreeable.” 

He only grumbles in response. 

It’s a white-and-red chequered tablecloth kind of place. Corny, romantic, candle-lit. 

Santiago was hoping he’d never have to set foot in such a place again. 

The door jingles open. 

Show-time. 

Frankie sends him another one of his glares, and Santiago sends it straight back, letting it settle on his face, deep into the grooves of it. 

There’s rolls and rolls of nervousness fading off of you. 

But you look nice-

Beautiful. 

Gorgeous. 

The air’s been swamped out of his lungs. 

This wasn’t supposed to be part of the plan. This weird, fluttering thing that’s been going on his body since he laid eyes on you. 

Santiago’s vaguely aware that you’re talking with Frankie, thanking him for arranging it all. 

And there’s a lull in the murmurs. 

He hastily gathers himself up, the angry little press of lines on his forehead all but gone. 

He scrambles for the flowers Frankie made him buy you and holds them out, swallowing thickly, “Hi, I’m Santi.” 

He hopes that this’ll make for a hell of a first-date story.

Thanks for reading, if you liked it, please consider leaving some feedback! I don't usually respond, but I obsess and re-read reblogs and comments constantly.

Masterlist here, requests here.

[harmonic-melodii]

Writerly Questionnaire

Thanks, @davycoquette, It's time for me to drop some more lore about myself! My answers will most likely end up longwinded. And here's a link to the original post too for the questions if you'd like to fill them out yourself! Link

About You

When did you start writing?

I started writing around 2016, so when I was about 12 years old. I was already an avid reader and devoured every single book I came across. Back then my stories were much more fantastical, but the passion never died.

Are the genres/themes you enjoy reading different from the ones you write?

I will never write Historical Fiction despite it being one of my favorite genres to read. Books that delve into alternative history or simple romance stories that take place around historic events have always held a special place in my heart. Why will I never write in that genre? Because I'm not built for the research that goes into creating those settings.

I also enjoy the occasional romance novel, though I don't write romance-specific stories. The lightheartedness is a much-needed break from the gritty stories and concepts I write. At most I include romantic subplots in some things, but I don't like focusing on romance as a plot.

Is there an author (or just a fellow writer!) you want to emulate, or one to whom you’re often compared?

Not for my fantasy works. For sci-fi, I would like to emulate Ray Bradbury. I've always loved his books and short stories. And how he wrote about the human condition and its interactions with technology for better and worse. Though I cannot say I have written anything as profound yet.

As for poetry, I'm heavily inspired by many African-American poets like Langston Hughes and Maya Angelou. As a young black woman myself, I hold a lot of respect for similar artists in my discipline that came before me. And while my poems are inspired by my experiences and struggles with race, I believe they can bridge gaps of understanding.

Overall, I have never been compared to any authors.

Can you tell me a little about your writing space(s)? (Room, coffee shop, desk, etc.)

My writing spaces are as chaotic and fluid as me. Sometimes I will be sitting at my desk with a water bottle and typing on my computer. Other times I'll lie in bed at 2 am typing furiously into my notes app. Hell, I have a tiny spiral notebook that's a bunch of index cards with entire plots and character profiles. I write wherever and whenever I can.

What’s your most effective way to muster up some muse?

Music. I create countless playlists, some of which I'll share soon. I probably have over 70 total. Not all for my WIP or other characters that exist, but all of them are for writing in some form or another. Otherwise, I try to regularly consume new media. That is a lot harder because it takes so much energy for me to engage with new content, but when it works it works.

Did the place(s) you grew up in influence the people and places you write about?

Not necessarily. Very little of my inspiration comes from the beach town I grew up in. Rather I'm influenced by places where I've endured insane life trauma. Don't worry, there's no trauma dumping here. I want to write about those places because it allows me to visit them again safely and on my own terms.

As for people, yes a handful of my characters are inspired by people I've met. Some are not the best. But hey, it makes for decent inspiration.

Are there any recurring themes in your writing, and if so, do they surprise you at all?

I feel like I always gravitate towards writing about religion in some form or another. I was raised Christian myself and currently identify as Agonistic. I like deconstructing faith and what it means to believe in something greater than yourself. So it doesn't entirely surprise me that I circle back to religion in one way or another.

I also write a lot about family dynamics and the platonic love or lack thereof within those dynamics. And about the limits of love and what is considered "too much".

Your Characters

Me? Talking about the lesbians in my novel?? Yep!

Would you please tell me about your current favorite character? (Current WIP, past WIP, never used, etc.)

Hands down my favorite character in the cast is Aaliyah. She's the main protagonist. An optimistic college freshman, who has an intense thirst for knowledge. She was raised by her father, Ezra, all on his own. Ever since she could remember it's only been the two of them. She's funny, sweet, but very sheltered at the end of the day.

Which of your characters do you think you’d be friends with in real life?

I think I'd be decent friends with Graham. She's a guitarist in a rock band. A little rough around the edges, but I'd love to hear the music she plays.

Which of your characters would you dislike the most if you met them?

It'd probably be Ezra. He's a strict man and quite judgmental of people. If anything he'd dislike me first and I'd simply have to fire back on principle.

Tell me about the process of coming up with of one, all, or any of your characters.

In general, all of my characters start as an idea or concept. For example: Graham came to fruition because I thought it'd be funny for the man who oversees campus safety at this small college to have a rebellious daughter. Then slowly, I add more details about who she is as a person. I ask "why?" questions all of the time. Once I have a solid idea of who they are, I connect them to other characters. Sometimes relationships come before the solid idea and they help.

Do you notice any recurring themes/traits among your characters?

I write so many lgbtq+ and people of color. I genuinely don't think I have many cishet white characters. Because if they're not straight, then they're bisexual, lesbian, or asexual. I write a handful of trans people (Graham my darling beloved is trans). And I don't write a ton of white people because I enjoy writing things that represent me and my communities.

When it comes to this specific unnamed WIP the characters share themes of guilt, love, and rebellion. Which is what creates the perfect storm of the plot they find themselves in.

How do you picture them? (As real people you imagined, as models/actors who exist in real life, as imaginary artwork, as artwork you made or commissioned, anime style, etc.)

I use picrews to imagine what my characters look like. I don't draw and I prefer the blank canvas I get with avatar creators. It's very freeing.

Your Writing

What’s your reason for writing?

I write to share my thoughts and feelings. My opinions will be heard one way or another.

Is there a specific comment or type of comment you find particularly motivating coming from your readers?

Honestly, most comments are motivating enough. Just the idea that someone looked at my work and felt compelled to write something about it is enough for me.

What do you feel is your greatest strength as a writer?

Character building and writing tension. I feel both go hand in hand when you're writing scenes. The stronger the character the better potential for a tangible relationship between the two.

What have you been frequently told your greatest writing strength is by others?

Professors have complimented me on tension and character-building. I've been told I have the ability to really dig things out.

How do you feel about your own writing? (Answer in whatever way you interpret this question.)

It's fun and cool. Best hobby ever!

If you were the last person on earth and knew your writing would never be read by another human, would you still write?

Definitely. In fact, I'd probably write in obscure and weird places. Like I'd get paint and write lines of poetry on the street. Things like that. All of my writing doesn't need to be read, I just like getting it out of my head.

When you write, are you influenced by what others might enjoy reading, or do you write purely what you enjoy? If it’s a mix of the two, which holds the most influence?

As someone who has also written fanfiction, I don't care what other people enjoy. I write for myself first and foremost. Because for every single person who doesn't like my writing, I know there's at least a handful of people who love it. If I focused on what people enjoyed reading I simply wouldn't be writing my WIP novel.

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Tag list time !

@sodaliteskull @honeybewrites @cowboybrunch @writeblragenda

+ Open tag to anyone else who wants to participate!

[brilla-brilla-estrellita]

Crafting Wings

I finally remembered today that tumblr is a blog, and that in addition to whatever fandom nonsense I reblog, I can also post bloggy things on it. Obvious, right?

I am making a set of dragon wings for an event coming up in mid-June. They are of course inspired by Simon Snow and will be red dragon wings (though the pattern I bought from them is technically for a wyvern). I'm hoping that posting progress updates here will help me stick to it and actually get it done in time. I'm breaking it down into teeny tiny easy peasy steps and only looking at the very next step to try to keep the overwhelm and executive dysfunction at bay. This is likely to lead me down a path of "If I'd thought about it earlier, I could have..." But you know what? I always end up there anyway.

So first, I spent a long long long long long (long long long...) time trying to decide how to make these wings. I really wanted articulated wings, bonus if I could move them without obviously pushing or pulling or something. But looking at how people had made that happen was overwhelming. They require so much time and skill and I am prone to procrastination and crying and quitting when I mess up. I finally settled on this DIY Mechanical Wing kit by Chimera Wings. That would give me the frame for the wings, but they also have a sewing pattern (with printed AND video instructions) to make the covers for them!

This is what the contents of the kit looked like when I got it:

And this is the completed build! I almost didn't post this because I don't like the way I look, but you know what? Fuck that. I built something cool (using very simple, easy-to-follow instructions, sure) and I don't want to have to find a better fancier more flattering way to film that, so. I'm getting over it.

You can tell that I kinda struggle with the wing on my right side. I clearly need to stretch my arms out before wearing these. Truly. I tried it after I stretched and it's no big deal. Or maybe I'll add some sort of pulley after all. (HAH. Like I'll have time for that.)

Otherwise, the kit and wings are fantastic. It was so easy to put together and they feel very cool to wear. I should probably go write them a review...

I didn't actually takes pics of the next step, but I printed out the pattern on regular 8.5x11 paper and taped it together. It... was not very well done, but I'm hoping I got it close enough to not have messed up the pattern dimensions. After taping and then cutting out the completed pattern, I could move on to working with actual fabric!

I'm making a mock-up out of old sheets first because I have never once done any sewing project successfully the first time. I decided to mock-up only one wing instead of both, so this will surely be my downfall when I move onto the real deal.

The next two pictures are the front and back pieces for a single wing. I decided to cut them separately instead of at the same time by folding the fabric in half because every time I do more than one layer at a time, at least one of the layers comes out real fucked up. I blame being a lefty in a right-handed world. Scissors are of the devil.

The next step was to make buttonholes that are actually strap holes. I have a little baby basic machine, and it has some limitations. I discovered one of these limitations during my buttonhole test runs. As you can see, the machine-provided "buttonhole" stitches are just... lacking. I messed with a screw that controls the length of these stitches, but for some reason it can only be used to balance out the stitch lengths, not make them overall longer or shorter. I have no control for generally change stitch length. I only have the options presented to me on my stitch chooser knob. Alas, I have less than optimal buttonholes.

Pictured above: (Left) One very sad buttonhole test. (Right) A second buttonhole test in which one side is almost respectable and the other should be ashamed to call itself a buttonhole stitch.

Finally, I gave up and balanced the stitch lengths and just went with it. When I do the real deal, I will likely go use my friend's much fancier machine. For the mock-up, this is sufficient. The next three pictures show, with increasing zoom and blurriness, the completed buttonholes.

I am intentionally using very bright, contrasting thread so that when I inevitably fuck up, I can hopefully see the point of fuck up more clearly so as to rectify it on my next attempt.

And that brings us up to speed! Next Step: Pin the pieces together. That's it. That's the whole step. How many days will it take to overcome executive dysfunction and do it? Only time will tell.

As long as I can remember to update regularly, future posts should be quite short.

[thepinksailorr]

How to build confidence ?

You need to remind that building confidence its a process that you need to work from inside,being confident about you it will help to run after the things you want,don´t accepting less than you deserve,leading with the critics of others etc.

Develop skills.

Lack of confidence its not just about your appereance,of course, your looks play a lot in this part but there´s also that part of people which dont trust themselves because they believe that everthing they do is not good enough or they keep thinking that they can`t do nothing,like,spenting your whole time looking at other peoples life in instagram it wouldn´t help you,comparing yourself to people who are beautiful and talented it will clearly not help you.

If you work in a skill such as learning a new language,learning how to play guitar,taking dance class,painting or drawing,you are building talent abilities to yourself that will boost your confidence from inside to outside.You gonna start to trust yourself more,remember that investing in yourself is always a blessing,a gift,because this is what you deserve.

Consume content which will help you to boost your confidence

Listen to songs that will make you feel the hottest girl in the town,dance to this songs,little by little you will see the changes.

Songs like Maneater of Nelly Furtado,Don´t Cha of Pussycats Dolls, Black Barbie-Nicky Minaj,music itself can influence the way we feel as also what we watch,listen and read,follow woman who can inspire you and watch videos that can help you too.

Affirmation

Begin to affirm good things about yourself,don´t say ´´i am so ugly, i can´t make anything right,´´ i wish to be different´´,STOP! You just gonna get worst,you dont´ need this type of negativy in your life!Start to repeat affirmations in your head or speak in front the mirror how much you are talented,smart,loved,amazing,funny and a lot of qualities,´`But i am not like that´ IT DOENST FUCKING MATTER! Start to say that you are simple are and then you started to be! Just act like you always has been this way,say you in your head that you`ve always been super pretty,super lucky,always funny,always happy,have amazing friend!manifest this into your life!

This is all,my sailors.Remember that you are able to achieve anything that you set your mind to.

[zedecksiew]

Three Objects

Sketching has been good at breaking up the misery of staring at a manuscript and being stuck. At least with the drawing I'm roadblocked by my lack of skill rather than my lack of ideas. There are things from an adventure I am currently writing for Colin Le Sueur’s We Deal In Lead. It began as a homage to Wisit Sasanatieng’s tomyamgong western Fa Thalai Chon / Tears Of The Black Tiger.

+++

WIDOW GON'S PALANQUIN

A broad teak throne: canopied, curtained, cushioned. Stinks of tobacco.

Its bearers: the captive brothers Khol. Every night Lady Sao Rai visits their garage, selects a brother, and fucks him in her grandmother's palanquin.

The Khols are too afraid to refuse her.

+

The Widow is matriarch of House Gon. It will be her fiftieth birthday, soon. An elaborate fete is planned.

Captives are found across the sea, created through poverty, criminal sentences, or legal abduction. By Admiralty law, a captive must go free once they earn their owner their original price, a hundred times over.

In practice, few owners obey.

+++

It should be obvious what captives are. I ding-donged with myself about the nomenclature, here.

A simple reason for avoiding the word "slave" is because most people think "transatlantic slave trade" as soon as you say it. If nothing else I want to avoid the association because it is inaccurate.

On the other hand: annoying to have to decenter Southeast Asia in this way! The equivalent of having to say "chai tea" when I should be able to say "tea", because that is what the word means to me!

(I strain against this specific problem often.)

Finally I decided "captive" was good, after all. This kind of legalistic euphemism ("Oh, they aren't slaves, they are indentured servants.") is exactly in character for rich assholes bending language to assuage their consciences.

+++

HOUSEHOLD PSYCHOPHONE

Listening room: settees; shelf of wax-cylinder records; a podium on which sits a psychophone.

Pop a cylinder into the psychophone, point its antenna at a servant wearing the receiving brooch, listen to them sing in an alto entirely not their own.

+

Psychophones have been ruinous to local performers. Once-celebrated local singers have been reduced to glorified loudspeakers: vessels for the voices of famous chanteuses from across the Ocean.

This home entertainment system requires at least two to operate:

One servant (or more commonly a servitor) to turn the crank;

One servant to serve as a receiver-singer.

A receiver-singer's health eventually suffers. When you have somebody else's voice (and soul) forced into you over and over, and you begin to lose your own …

+++

This one was troublesome. Felt like production design. Appliance design.

Had several goals:

The core mechanism has to look like it makes sense, to its own internal logic. No greebling; every bit needs to look like it has a purpose.

Lots of ornamentation. This is a luxury device belonging to aristocrats from a rococo Indochinese-inspired society. It needs to be a jewelbox.

Genteel normalisation of vicious magic. The needle made of bone; the antenna that is basically a massive needle pointed at your head---but disguised as a pretty bird.

The receiver-brooch is something I discovered while sketching. Seems gameable? Also, in the spirit of point 3: the brooch has a pin you stick in your forehead.

+++

GHOST WATER

Auw Yin Yan, the Sea of Sorrows---of Sighs.

Imagine bodies in a mass grave the size of a country. Imagine them luminescent, in motion. Pulled by the moon, waved by the wind, clawing at the quay.

+

Always forms into human shapes: when poured into a bowl, ghost water sits as a balled fist.

Like saltwater in most respects. The Sea teems with marine life, though these are cunning and cruel in human ways. Humans cannot swim ghost water. Do not fall in.

Ghosts wear the outfits and injuries they had at death. Rarely, one will crawl onto land, eyes open, a hungry ghast.

+++

Yeah, so: the wider campaign setting for this adventure is defined by the Sea of Sorrows. It has whales and islands and pirates. It is filled with ghosts instead of water.

I saw the Sea in my mind as a vast Escher-esque tangle of interlocking ghost-bodies.

A wave would be bodies flinging themselves on a beach; their arms and hands dragging on the sand as they pull back into the surf.

I drew a way simpler visual. And the ghost's hair is cheating: it already looks like water.

Still: very pleased with this sketch. Gentle, sort of sweet, quietly creepy. Also it is a modest bailing bucket, which contrasts with the material excess of the palanquin and psychophone.

+++

[rhejac]

eden of the east (2009)

From the first 5 minutes of this anime, I was highly amused by the main character, Akira Takizawa. This anime is filled with so many funny moments, that they almost distract me from the underlying dread the mystery gave me. From the get go, the viewer has no idea what kind of person they are supposed to root for. And yes, root for, because he ends up being charming even as he shows up naked waving around a gun.

The global issues that the anime tackles are pretty clear from the get go. Saki, who seems to be in a state of unrest amidst her unemployment and the expectations, complains about how if she were to accept her circumstances she would be taken advantage of as a young person in society. She feels like a burden to her family, who assure her that they can still support her while she tries to find a job. The whole anime, viewers watch young people who are attempting to make themselves useful to a society that is set on tradition. As Saki attends the interview, she is expected to be a young person with unique ideas, and not a "conformist," however, it seems like society constantly wants young people to conform anyways. It is these conflicting expectations portrayed on screen that show why young people turn out to be NEETs in the end.

Moreover, this is shown on a much bigger scale with Yuki, one of the Seleção. Both of his parents died by the abusive work conditions in Japan, and he crumbled under the Neoliberalism expectations of society, told that he is responsible for his shortcomings.

As someone who is from Generation Z, I heavily relate to the themes of this anime. Baby Boomers seemed to have easier times getting houses and jobs, while my generation struggles to do the same. Now, college is much more expensive and it seems like opportunities are slim to none. And while my generation protests overworking themselves to meet the traditional working conditions, we are told that we are lazy.

Style wise, the anime was super satisfying to watch. I was mesmerized by the way the animation captured something so simple as lights turning on. More specifically, in the NEET captivity area when the lights turned on, they seemed to burst with light that almost makes you feel disoriented. It breathed life into the animation so well. The style also reminded me of Your Name, specifically how the eyes and noses were drawn. The missile scene also left me reminiscent of the movie, so I wonder if there was some inspiration taken from this anime, for if I am just making connections from nothing.

Overall, this anime did leave me discontent. The ending was left on a cliffhanger, which is understandable given that there are 2 movies that wrap things up. However, I found that Saki and her friend's character lacked much purpose in the overall narrative. I did, however, enjoy their characterizations and interactions, especially while Saki and Micchon parted the sea of naked NEETs whilst screaming in horror.

[beautifulscreaminglady]

As promised, my thoughts on Sense and Sensibility (2024)

(Looking for what REAL people of color wore in the Regency era? Check out my Pinterest board!)

The clothes weren't as bad as I was expecting. The fabrics vary from garish prints, to heavy embroidery, to plain colors.

The main problem seems to be that they are ill fitting. The men's coats seem to add extra bulk to the actors.

The production itself has scenes that appear to be copied from both the 1995 production and the 2009 production.

Elinor's hair is styled in an ancient Greek inspired arrangement that enjoyed popularity during the Regency era. I think it is a beautiful style for Black hair. Most of the women's hairstyles are quite good.

Colonel Brandon's beard and mustache are not period accurate. He should be clean shaven. Compare to this portrait of Pierre Toussaint.

The main problem seems to be that they are ill fitting. The men's coats seem to add extra bulk to the actors.

On the other hand, the ladies bonnets appear to be too small. I thought Margaret's bonnet was weird as hell but apparently it's a real design from the late regency to early romantic period.

Marianne's boots are visible after she has her famous fall. They have a prominent heel. Regency boots for women were very flat without a heel or with a very low heel.

Margaret's shoes here are also very odd. They look almost like 16th century women's shoes.

I don't know what kind of shoes Marianne is wearing here but they look a bit clunky. This is a production where $15 plain, solid colored pleather flats from Amazon would not be out of place, if budget necessitated it.

The blue gloves are period accurate!

Costume Parisien, 1798

In an article about the movie, it was mentioned that the set dressers added real historical portraits of Black people. I noticed the famous Portrait of a Man in a Red Suit and a GIANT bust portrait of Dido Belle (cropped from the original). I also spotted some 16th or 17th century portraits of Black men that seemed vaguely familiar. Other artwork was unfortunately too hidden in shadow or out of focus for me to recognize.

There are also some other things that made this production more Black, such as the scene where Wentworth and Marianne bond over their shared interest in art and find that they both admire Phillis Wheatley's poetry.

There were some changes that raised my eyebrows. The child of Colonel Brandon's ward is his!

At the ball in London I am almost positive that Seal's Kiss From A Rose was being played by the violinists.

Final thoughts:

According to the costume designer, she had to make 68 costumes in 20 days. This is absolutely an insane demand. While some of the costumes were rented, the time crunch is quite obvious on the other costumes. People who work in film and television do not deserve to be treated like this. Hallmark has a ridiculous turnaround time for their productions, but at this point I feel like the Hallmark back catalog is big enough it can afford to make fewer but more high quality productions.

Or perhaps we can sacrifice complex, unnecessarily over the top costumes in favor of simple but pretty costumes such as the ones in Mr Malcolm's List (2022), which also notably starred people of color.

I think that people of color DESERVE beautiful costume dramas, but this is not what it could have been. The first (and currently only) Black Jane Austen adaptation in existence deserved more. I love Sense and Sensibility but this adaptation broke my heart because it lacked the richness and warmth of the 1995 and even the 2006 versions.

[kneelingshadowsalome]

GIRLIE I LOVE YOUR WORK ESPECIALLY THE ONES ON AO3!!! IM TRYNAA BE LIKE YOU BESTIE, PLEASE CAN I HAVE SOME WRITING TIPS/111!!!!???

(btw i really love man-sized, just finished it a couple days ago and AAAAAAAAA ITS SO GOOD I SWEAR!!!! LIKE MARRY ME PLEASE?!!?!)

Oh my goodness. You must be what they call a pookie 😘❤️ (I will marry you or adopt you, there's no middle ground.)

Thank you so much, you're making me blush!

I'm probably not the best person to give advice because I don't really know what's going on with my writing… It's a godawful mess. But I'll try!

So, writing tips under the cut ->

1. This might be boring and said a 100 times before, but... Show, don't tell! Obviously, I break this rule all the time when I go inside my character's head and explain how they feel and not just what they see, smell, hear, and touch. But if you're writing angst or fluff like I am, I'd say you must go inside the skin to dig into the character. (Also, f* the rules 😇)

2. If you don't know where to start, start with the dialogue. Even if it's just 4-10 sentences per scene. Then you can fill the gaps with some action, emotion/sensation and worldbuilding. But dialogue is actually the heart of your story and it creates some of the best tension; treat it with respect! Also: less is more with dialogue. Not always... but usually is.

3. Write from your own experience. We all have something to draw from, even if it's something as simple as how it feels to skinny dip in a cold lake. Or a hot bathtub. How does it feel to wake up from a nightmare or kiss someone you love? Like, truly feel? Don't tone it down!

4. If you want to sound more poetic, use metaphors and symbols and mythology. If you want to sound original, use history and culture and simply anything you have up your sleeve. All the "useless" knowledge: bring it on baby! When used sparingly, these can add to the depth of your storytelling.

5. Sculpt the paragraphs, then focus on the sentences, then hone single words. Whip out a goddamn dictionary. Search synonyms online (Thesaurus etc). Work with the words until they sound right for the story you wish to tell. Choose words that are most "alive" in your story's context, words that inspire feeling and stir emotion.

6. Read your story out loud or at least inside your head. That way you'll notice the errors and can fix the flow and rhythm of the story. Everyone loves a well-paced story! Sometimes just moving a sentence to a different paragraph or deleting it entirely can resolve an issue.

7. If you write a long fic, establish a core problem in the first chapter and remember to solve it before the story ends. For example in Man-sized, I presented an issue of trust. It was heavily inspired by my own lack of trust in men and the fear of getting played. Again, don't be afraid to draw from your own experience!

8. Music can help set the mood and bring out your creative flow. I have numerous playlists for writing or create a new one for the particular story in mind. If I want to write some heavyweight yearning, I'll blast some heavyweight yearning songs while I write. I don't know if this works for everybody; some people might need silence and space for creating.

9. The most important tip: WRITE FOR YOURSELF. Write the difficult, the overwhelming, the taboo. Write the most self-indulgent, shmexy scene ever! Or the fluffiest meet-cute that puts a smile on your face.

And if you're one of those writers who are not happy with their writing... write some more. Play with it, just don't give a shit. Let the inner demons give you courage and inspiration. Write about how shitty it feels to feel inadequate. You might find you just wrote some good poetry on suffering.

It's always better to write from love and joy instead of fear and shame – besides, life is too damn short to feel ashamed! Live a little and enjoy what you do, let writing be your escape. It's supposed to be a shelter where you can flee to when life is dull and hard and unfair. If other people's writing inspires you to write, then read. If other people's writing puts you down, save yourself some heartache and don't engage: just mind your own business and do your own thing.

Hope you found some of these tips helpful 💕 Much love 🩷💋 and happy, reckless writing!

[willedeservesbetter]

OMG, I'm enjoying your vampire fic so much! You are very talented and I'm very grateful you decided to write and post it. I haven't been thrilled by a fic so much since the Darkest Little Paradise. I have no idea where you will lead this story and I'm eager to know! (that said, I'm not hurrying you up - please take as much time as you need to feel inspired again)

Also want you to know - you are not writing into the void - look at all the kudos - 200 people read it a liked it! It's a lot! And we are not allowed to leave more than 1 kudo - you would have 15 times more! And as soon as it will be completed, more people will come to read it - so many of us are traumatized by abandoned amazing stories, not everyone has a courage to commit to an on-going fic.

As for lack of comments...

I'm speechless every time i finish a chapter, sorry for not saying anything.

It's a guilty pleasure fic, people are just people, they may feel embarrassed to enjoy 'good boys go bad'

People may want to avoid others commenting on their opinions

People (me, I'm people) didn't realize how much the feedback is important for you personally

Writers express their discomfort with comments like 'what is next? 'I'm ready for more', 'can't wait' and the like so often in this fandom - some choose rather not to comment anything at all than unintentionally making writers uncomfortable. And frankly, it's not fun getting constantly scolded by authors for wanting to show your love and commitment.

Anyway! I hope you'll find your joy back! I'll be waiting!!! Your fic is amazing and is very needed.

Hey,

First of all, thank you for your kind message and your words. It means a lot to me and it makes me very happy that my fic brings you so much joy. I can also take away your fear I abandoned my fic. I will update the last chapters, they will come and I will try going back in the groove again in October. Especially Wilhelm’s backstory is too important for me to stop writing now.

But was it my plan to end the story soon-ish? The answer is simple: no. I had a lot of motivation and joy to keep going indefinitely and the last chapter I posted had 2/3 hints for future storylines I had planned. I might still write them, never say never, but currently it is more important to me to find a good ending that works now in the story.

Going to some of your points/explanations, I hope you do not mind I will give you my perspective, and how certain decisions will eventually reach certain conclusions:

I understand that writing a dark fic has risks. I was already prepared that people would not post comments because they are afraid they would get judged. Especially because this is a fic set in the Young Royal universe and I really went the extra-mile to make Wilhelm and Simon monsters. I wanted them to be vampires and not Twilight 2.0. As a matter of fact, I am certain many stopped reading because it got too dark (which is fine!), and I am even more sure I am also judged by some people (which is not fine!).

It is one of the reasons I opened the option to leave guest comments, so readers could leave ANY comment, without it being linked to their real accounts. By any comment, I mean any comment. Of course, I love the longer ones, but I am equally excited to get heart emojis. It is a nice feeling to see that people actually read my fic when I update. It also shows people are reading new chapters when I post them.

Yes, I have 200 kudos, but half of them I got before chapter 6 for instance, and I know I lost readers with that chapter. How many of them are actually still reading? I do not know. Based on the feedback from the last chapters, I only knew of 3 people actually reading this fic (and one of them is one of my best friends and she doesn’t even like YR), and I am not kidding when I say it felt as if I was updating into the void.

There is a very bitter boomerang effect for not giving comments: why should I invest hours, energy, passion and dedication when in return my story is treated as a “dirty little secret”? No one owes me anything, but why should I keep investing so much, when in return my readers cannot even take 30 seconds to reply back with a heart? How many fics got abandoned, because writers thought they had no audience and no one cares if they keep updating?

Then something else happened: on Tumblr suddenly, everyone went gaga over Wilmon as vampires. I saw polls, I saw discussions, I saw one-shots. Other authors got so much love and likes and messages for writing short vampire snippets. It was so much fun at first! It was not fun anymore when my fic did not get mentioned once. It was also not fun when I saw comments in the vein of “Simon being a vampire is wrong”. I see the number of kudos, I see my number of subscribers, I see the number of HITS I get. My fic is not a secret, and yet despite having written 70k words of Wilmon being vampires, it did not matter compared to 500-word snippets.

The conclusion I reached was pretty simple: the problem is not that it is a dark fic. The problem is not that I am writing Wilmon as vampires. The problem is my fic is not worth recommending. The problem is my writing and world building is not good enough. The problem is I am the author and I am nobody in this fandom.

(and let’s be very blunt, this fandom is not welcoming to people who have opinions/ideas outside of the norm. Hence my statement I was insane writing a dark fic for THIS fandom. It was a disaster in the making from the start).

I did not want to beg for comments. I also wanted to avoid another public emotional breakdown for feeling so sad and exhausted. A hiatus and ending the fic was the only option for me. I honestly expected maybe 3 people would care about my author's note. I had lost all trust in my fic, in my story, in my writing and in my plans.

I took a massive risk writing this fic. I hope you understand why it hurts so much when in return it gets treated as a “dirty little secret”. Because no matter the intention, this is sending a message to the author, so please do not be surprised when the author eventually has to make decisions that are not in favor of the reader. Because “my” vampires will stay alive in my mind – I know where they will go next. But I have no obligation to keep sharing.

This sounds more dramatic than it was my intention. As I said, I will finish this story and I really appreciate your message and word’s. I am a fickle person and maybe in November I will randomly post the sequel. Who knows. But for now I need to take 10 steps back, before I will make more decisions that I might regret later. I think I owe this to myself.

[wdr2-rlbmut]

Stanford’s writing layoffs prompt backlash

Stanford is clearing the ranks of lecturers at its prestigious creative writing program to make way for a new batch.

By Nanette Asimov

Stanford University’s announcement that 23 creative writing instructors will be pushed out of their jobs and replaced has set off a national backlash in the literary community and among students in the program.

“Why would senior faculty vote to fire their colleagues who are doing so much of the work of teaching?” celebrated author Joyce Carol Oates posted on social media, raising questions about whether Stanford’s decision was meant to save money or was inspired by rank sexism.

“I am puzzled most by the lack of simple collegiality & generosity at one of the most wealthy universities in the world,” Oates wrote. “Stanford’s endowment could support an entire nation. Yet, much-admired (writing instructors) were fired after having requested modest raises which would have brought their salaries to levels far below senior faculty.”

Also, she noted, “only male senior professors voted to fire.”

Stanford officials say their decision to replace the instructors, some of whom have taught there for many years, is about none of the above.

Instead, the program that allowed the 23 instructors to teach Stanford undergraduates in the first place was intended only to provide them with “term-limited appointments” of about one year, Stanford explained on Aug. 21.

“Changes to the program were made based on the program’s values and original intent; it was not based on finances,” Debra Satz, dean of Stanford’s School of Humanities and Sciences told the Chronicle.

The act of learning and teaching creative writing can inspire deep bonds between students and instructors, said some of those very students and instructors.

To hear them tell it, students learn to peer inside their souls and convey what’s there to readers, while instructors are nothing short of the clergy who guide them to enlightenment.

“Undergraduate writing workshops are places where students, away from their families and their hometowns for perhaps the first time, are able to tell stories they’ve never told before and craft those stories into art,” Peter Lessler, a 2017 Stanford graduate who majored in math wrote to the university about the importance of the program.

Now, the San Francisco resident is working full-time on a novel.

The study of writing is “serious and necessary,” he wrote, and gets into “the spiritual work that John Keats called ‘soul making.’”

The classes of about 15 undergraduates each have waiting lists by the hundreds each quarter, say the instructors, who are not just any writing hacks off the street.

All 23 are graduates of Stanford’s selective Wallace Stegner Fellowship, “considered the most prestigious creative writing fellowship in the U.S. for emerging writers,” university officials wrote in their announcement.

Stegner, who established Stanford’s creative writing program in 1946, was a literary master whose novels, such as the Pulitzer Prize-winning “Angle of Repose,” and “The Big Rock Candy Mountain,” were often set in the American west.

Also in the 1940s, a Texas oilman named E.H. Jones, whose brother, Richard Foster Jones was head of Stanford’s English department, established the Stegner Fellowship.

Its graduates could apply for a “Jones Lectureship” which were the short-term teaching appointments that continue to this day.

Over time, however, the instructors stayed on for years.

“I’m very sad because I love my job so much,” said Nina Schloesser, who became a Jones lecturer in 2012 and said she has been told to leave after this year.

“It’s been my honor to see many young people grow,” she said, adding that instructors and students have formed “lasting relationships that are about our love of craft and love of literature. For me, it’s been very profound.”

Colleague Sarah Frisch, a former Stegner fellow who became a Jones lecturer in 2009, said, “I feel heartbroken. Not just for myself. I feel heartbroken for future generations of students who won’t have the benefit of long-term relationships.”

The instructors said that after they asked the university for a raise last year, Stanford provided it, but also set up a working group to consider changes to the program.

This month, the working group decided to restore the intent of the Jones lectureship and give new Stegner Fellows “the opportunity to apply to be Jones Lecturers once they have completed their fellowships,” Satz said in her letter.

It was also signed by Gabriella Safran, a senior dean for the humanities and arts, and Nicholas Jenkins, faculty co-director of the creative writing program.

The new appointments will be one year “with the possibility of renewal for up to four more years.”

Lessler and hundreds of other supporters have signed a petition asking the university to reverse its decision.

Tom Kealey, one of the 23 lecturers being let go, called the layoffs a “scandal” and wrote in a post on Medium that “the impact on undergraduates will be immense.” Reach Nanette Asimov:nasimov@sfchronicle.com; Threads: @NanetteAsimov

[hallowgracie]

Once Upon a Time: The Origins & Evolution of Crystal Magic

Crystal Magic is the title of my long on-going project that is essentially a space opera retelling of several fairytales. I have been working on this project since 2018, and it's been through many different evolutions.

It started as a script project for a high school creative writing class, a simple retelling of one of the Brothers Grimm's lesser-known fairytales in a different setting than pre-1800s Germany in the form of a short film script.

I chose Snow-White and Rose-Red and wanted to put it in a Star Wars inspired setting, because I was totally obsessed with the franchise at the time. One of the first ideas I remember about the project was reading the original fairytale and re-envisioning the mystic forest as an equally-as-mysterious city on an alien planet, still bustling with life as a forest is, but sterile in its lack of interaction with our protagonists.

In particular, the idea that sparked me to choose to continue with that direction for the project was the idea of tying the city to its origins by using tall skyscrapers like a forest, and turning the street-lamps green to keep that color story. That's when I knew I had an idea worth exploring.

In adapting the story, I was making careful choices. For example, in the original fairytale, I'd say Snow-White is the more focused-on of the two sisters, being the one to get with the bear prince in the end. She was also more of the ideal girl character in the Grimms' work, being pious and domestic and shy, while Rose-Red was wild and spirited.

Naturally, given the change in genre expectations and given that Snow White had a second fairytale (I know they aren't the same but shhh) that Rose-Red would be the central character of the screenplay.

But I never stopped wondering about what would happen to my Snow-White after her encounter with the space-opera version of the alien bear prince and dwarf sorcerer. Would she go on to fall in love with a dwarf-prince perhaps and learn their side of the story?

So I turned the screenplay into a proof of concept short story and began re-building the world, over and over again until I felt I got it right.

A lot has changed since the original screenplay now that we are on the fourth novel draft. None of the characters have their original names for one, with the twins originally being named Kiki Starshine and Gwenillian (no, I am not kidding), the setting being Earth that has made contact with aliens, and the dwarves being turned into bejeweled aliens known as the Diamondgardians.

But there are elements of that original version still there. The Otsoans, the bear-inspired aliens may have changed in their design motifs a great many times, but they have remained in every version of the story, as have the Diamondgardians with their name changes to the Heirhelm and later the Annwynese, all with their aesthetic sensibilities clarified and reimagined.

And at the heart of it still are Snow-White, a dark-haired girl who is gentle and domestic and shy, and Rose-Red, her wilder sister with dreams beyond their simple home.

I've taken many hiatuses from this project over the last several years, but I always come back to this story and find new ways to tell it. I've learned so much from this project about the nature of writing and how if an idea is truly powerful and meant to be, it will stick around.

[dashawfrostart]

This Week In "Time & Again" #10: Colours Are Getting Colourful, Indeed!

So, just as promised and exactly as planned, I'm working on the colouring for Chapter 5. And boy, it goes very well now, let me tell you! In fact, it goes so fantastically well, I honestly don't even wanna be here right now writing this post that most people will not even bother reading (we live in the age of Likes and Emojis, after all, so longreads are usually not welcome... but see if I care!), and I just want to keep working on the colouring. Just like I do almost every day, almost non-stop. Quite possibly over 40 hours a week. And I'm not even getting paid for it. That's dedication, innit?.. But making another post on how it is going, even if there's not much to tell aside from an incredibly simple and modest yet surprisingly descriptive "'Iz gude!" (pardon my Scottish, ahem), is kind of a moral obligation for me. I decided that I'm gonna make posts about the progress - so that decision should be carried on with.

So... yes, iz goin' gude! 🤣

This time I did not bother trying to decide what approach to use in colouring the characters. I decided to aim for the same simplistic way of colouring from Chapter 4, with a lack of shading. "Atlantis" is still one of my greatest artistic inspirations, and the masterly executed balance of visual simplicity and skillful complexity in the art style of that movie is something that drives me to keep working on my own style, to strive to achieve a similar effect, because this is what I want my work to be like, too. Of course, a little experiment will also take place in Chapter 5, since I don't like my visual works to feel static and inanimate. But I'm not going to tell what exactly it will be yet. You will see. It's going to be something very obvious and easy to notice, for I've never done anything like that in any of my previous works. 😉

The question of backgrounds tho, contrary to the character colouring method, is a much, much trickier question. With every new chapter in development, I ask myself how to draw and colour the backgrounds in such a way that it's in harmony with the characters, but allows them to also stand out - but not too much (otherwise there's no harmony). And this question has not been answered fully by me. I keep experimenting. I'm still searching. For now and for this particular chapter, however, it all seems pretty straightforward to me. I opted for a simple background with a little bit of a painted, splattered "texture" to it. And I achieve this effect through layering colours and the texture with specific settings, usually using Soft Light (SVG) blending mode for the dark parts. And if I need an even darker shade - I put an additional black rectangle on top of it and play with its opacity until I get the desired effect. ("A very LARGE gif below" warning!)

For the obvious reason of spoiler avoidance, I will refrain from further explanation and I'll limit my demonstration primarily with the textual description, for now. But, just as proposed long ago, I am indeed still planning on creating a WIP thread on Krita forum. Your horribly introverted and seriously muse possessed dear artist simply should take a break from colouring everything like an obsessed maniac and finally get the Sch***e done. Eventually 😁

There's something else interesting I wanted to note before wrapping it up for today. Something somewhat technical.

Because I have increased the page size for the last 4 chapters of my crazy endeavour, suddenly I remembered that I also need to rescale the rest of the pages that serve as - as I call them - "framing materials" for the chapters. And that includes (and, as you may guess - but not limited to): the cover art, the background for all kinds of bonus materials, the back design (for potential printing on paper), the chapter title page, Vorsatz und Nachsatz, the credits page, and, of course, the Characters' IDs page... Yup, all of that stuff required to get the higher resolution variations, exactly 1/3 larger size of the original. And I forgot about it at first. I guess, my idea to turn it into a webcomic prevailed and befogged my consciousness ever so slightly. Or a lot. Not sure. But the fact is, that just slipped my mind.

Of course, a poor designer in my could've just enlarged the already existing pages by 33% to get the expected result in a few clicks hassle-free. But that's only the poor designer. Because everybody who tried to draw at least something digitally in their lives would know that that would only destroy the quality of the artworks. And that is totally unacceptable for me. And I'm no poor designer. "Time & Again" is awesome. No sloppiness allowed, I says. This is why I needed to redo everything layer by layer, file by file in higher resolution. It was that clear. Am I being too techy? Well, deal with it 😎.

But good thing I'm so practical: I already had all of the elements drawn in higher resolutions than needed. And those I didn't have - they were all vector-based, so they didn't even need any extra work. Good job, me! 😁 The moral of the story is simple: dear artists, whenever you work on something like that, just make higher resolution drawings - just in case, even if you don't need them that large for your particular current tasks. Because you might need the larger art in the future. Because who knows? What if you go crazy and haphazardly decide to up the resolution for everything, like it happened to me? This is something that I also learnt from the videogame development tutorials, and that was quite an obvious idea, now that I'm thinking about it. Drawing everything in twice the resolution you need is a truly good advice. Surely, it might save you from a lot of frustration.

But back to my circus and my monkeys. Since I always make all the geometric elements for the page designs in Inkscape, it was simply a matter of a couple clicks to re-save my older page outlines and templates in higher resolution. The same goes with text. I love vector stuffz 🤩 The only page I needed to tinker with a bit longer than everything else was the Characters' IDs page. This is my vector template:

From today's perspective, I do not understand why it was made this way - can't be responsible for my past self, right? right???... - but the colouring of the Characters' IDs was done in Krita instead of Inkscape. Which is a bit absurd, because I used simple gradients to fill in each of the "character cards" individually. And I could've easily done it in Inkscape, too. But to save myself some time, I decided not to unravel that twisted ball of yarn and did the same: coloured them all in Krita. Again. Because why not? - it's extremely easy. However, I have discovered imperfections that I was able to remove in this "new, hi-res edition".

Each "character card" has an inner circle of solid colour around the character's portrait. And apparently, in all 4 of the previous chapters, those were not aligned properly. The screenshot above demonstrates that: once I copy-pasted the new template on top of the old one for comparison, the placements of the inner circles did not match (the black one is the perfectly aligned new circle; the pink parts sticking out from behind it are the parts of the old and misaligned circle from the previous chapters). Of course, I seriously doubt it anybody would stare and measure how precise I am down to the pixel... But this time to me this misalignment was pretty obvious. And the puny perfectionist in me raged. A lot.

So that has been fixed. Hurrah for Align and Distribute options in Inkscape 😁 Remember this, pals: Align and Distribute are women's best friends - not dogs, not diamonds, and... definitely not what the rest of the internet suggests. Yikes. (and to be fair, Align and Distribute should be the best friend of everybody, not only women! Honest!!!)

Again, because I drew all the character portraits in significantly higher resolution than needed long ago, I just copy-pasted and rescaled them to the right size. And then... after a few sessions of copy-pasting and rescaling, everything was done and ready to go!

And for now that is probably enough. Once I stop colouring for a while next time, I'll drop by again to write another one typical - and perhaps, somewhat techy as usual - longread that some of you might be interested in. But for now - bah-byes, and cheer up! Valentine's Day is soon, and spring is just around the corner. Be happy just like Jeanny! See you soon! 👋

[238ent]

How To Make A Short Film

Making a short film can seem like an indomitable task. Most writers and directors struggle to get their productions off the ground, often because they lack the resources to get started. No need to worry though, we’re going to show you step-by-step how to make a short film with video guides and all the software you’ll need. Make sure to reference this guide as you’re going through your production to check off all of the steps.

1. Start with a question

Ask yourself, what kind of film do I want to make? You can choose from one of the dozens of movie genres, or filmmaking styles such as Film Noir, Cinéma Vérité, or Dogme 95. Whichever direction you decide to go, just remember to make sure you can actually do it. It's nice to dream of a big-budget sci-fi epic but few of us would be able to realize that dream.

Making a short film begins with organization and preparation. The bigger the scale of your production, the more obstacles you're likely to run into. Make sure to plan for road-bumps accordingly.

Your short film doesn’t have to be a big production. If this is your first time making a short, then you’re going to want to keep things as simple as possible. Just keep in mind that our rules for how to make a short film apply to productions of all sizes.

2. Develop a concept

Every story starts with a concept. Don’t limit yourself at this stage of production — dream up the story you want to make. Brainstorm short film ideas, watch some of the best short films for inspiration, and see what sticks.

Filmmaking is an art-form of endless possibilities, so you don’t want to start the process by telling yourself that what you want to make is impossible.

It may end up being impossible, but the most important thing at this step is to try your best to conceptualize what you want to see. Also, you’re going to want to set up a production calendar so that you can stick to a timeline.

3. Write a script

There’s a wide variety of ways to tackle your script. Here are some additional tips on writing a short film.

The process of learning how to properly format a screenplay can be a nightmare. One engaging way to learn the formatting guidelines is to read professional screenplays. We have dozens of script teardowns with screenplay PDFs for you to choose from. You may also want to consider picking up a copy of The Screenwriter’s Bible and the Save the Cat beat sheet.

Your short script should be between 5-50 pages. Remember, each page of your script roughly equates to one minute of screen-time. Once you finish writing your first draft, spend some time away from it if possible (1-2 weeks) then go back and do an edit.

When it seems like it’s in good shape, you might want to share a few copies with friends/colleagues and request that they give you some notes. Don’t be discouraged if you receive tough feedback, that will only help you get better!

HOW TO MAKE A SHORT FILM SCRIPT BREAKDOWN

4. Make a script breakdown

Once you’re satisfied with your script, you’re going to want to do a script breakdown. This will help organize the story of your film into a practical production. If you’ve never done a script breakdown before, don’t worry, this video will explain what you need to know to get started:

The difference between a script and a script breakdown can be night and day. Oftentimes, the script is nothing more than the story itself. The script breakdown is where that story becomes the blueprint for a production.

5. Draw storyboards

Now it’s time to visualize your film. Download StudioBinder’s storyboard creator software to get started. If you’re not a good artist, don’t worry, neither am I. The video below will show you everything you need to know to get the vision out of your brain and onto the page.

No matter how good you are at drawing, storyboards help to bring a film’s vision to life.

6. Finalize your scope

This is the stage in which you will have to start considering the realistic scope of your production. Don’t be afraid though, it’s just a matter of finding the best option. A lot depends on your budget, but there are five essential things you’re going to need regardless:

Choosing a Camera

Renting equipment like lighting kits and DSLR Mics

Casting Your Talent

Hiring a Crew

Securing Set(s) and/or Locations

Let’s say you’re trying to make your movie for as cheap as possible. Your smartphone can be your camera. Don’t believe me? Just listen to award winning director Sean Baker explain how he made his 2015 film Tangerine entirely on iPhones:

Looking for cast and crew? Perhaps your friends are interested in helping out. When you use only what’s at your disposal to make a movie, that’s called zero budget filmmaking. And if you want to stand out with your zero budget filmmaking, consider reading up on Dogme 95 and adhering to the filmmaking “vows of chastity” as popularized by Danish directors Thomas Vinterberg and Lars von Trier.

For something more elaborate, you may want to look at hiring cast and crew. Check out our

[raymonwright]

How To Make A Short Film

Making a short film can seem like an indomitable task. Most writers and directors struggle to get their productions off the ground, often because they lack the resources to get started. No need to worry though, we’re going to show you step-by-step how to make a short film with video guides and all the software you’ll need. Make sure to reference this guide as you’re going through your production to check off all of the steps.

1. Start with a question

Ask yourself, what kind of film do I want to make? You can choose from one of the dozens of movie genres, or filmmaking styles such as Film Noir, Cinéma Vérité, or Dogme 95. Whichever direction you decide to go, just remember to make sure you can actually do it. It's nice to dream of a big-budget sci-fi epic but few of us would be able to realize that dream.

Making a short film begins with organization and preparation. The bigger the scale of your production, the more obstacles you're likely to run into. Make sure to plan for road-bumps accordingly.

Your short film doesn’t have to be a big production. If this is your first time making a short, then you’re going to want to keep things as simple as possible. Just keep in mind that our rules for how to make a short film apply to productions of all sizes.

2. Develop a concept

Every story starts with a concept. Don’t limit yourself at this stage of production — dream up the story you want to make. Brainstorm short film ideas, watch some of the best short films for inspiration, and see what sticks.

Filmmaking is an art-form of endless possibilities, so you don’t want to start the process by telling yourself that what you want to make is impossible.

It may end up being impossible, but the most important thing at this step is to try your best to conceptualize what you want to see. Also, you’re going to want to set up a production calendar so that you can stick to a timeline.

3. Write a script

There’s a wide variety of ways to tackle your script. Here are some additional tips on writing a short film. First, start by downloading StudioBinder’s screenwriting software.

The process of learning how to properly format a screenplay can be a nightmare. One engaging way to learn the formatting guidelines is to read professional screenplays. We have dozens of script teardowns with screenplay PDFs for you to choose from. You may also want to consider picking up a copy of The Screenwriter’s Bible and the Save the Cat beat sheet.

Your short script should be between 5-50 pages. Remember, each page of your script roughly equates to one minute of screen-time. Once you finish writing your first draft, spend some time away from it if possible (1-2 weeks) then go back and do an edit.

When it seems like it’s in good shape, you might want to share a few copies with friends/colleagues and request that they give you some notes. Don’t be discouraged if you receive tough feedback, that will only help you get better!

4. Make a script breakdown

Once you’re satisfied with your script, you’re going to want to do a script breakdown. This will help organize the story of your film into a practical production. If you’ve never done a script breakdown before, don’t worry, this video will explain what you need to know to get started:

The difference between a script and a script breakdown can be night and day. Oftentimes, the script is nothing more than the story itself. The script breakdown is where that story becomes the blueprint for a production.

5. Draw storyboards

Now it’s time to visualize your film. Download StudioBinder’s storyboard creator software to get started. If you’re not a good artist, don’t worry, neither am I. The video below will show you everything you need to know to get the vision out of your brain and onto the page.

Looking for cast and crew? Perhaps your friends are interested in helping out. When you use only what’s at your disposal to make a movie, that’s called zero budget filmmaking. And if you want to stand out with your zero budget filmmaking, consider reading up on Dogme 95 and adhering to the filmmaking “vows of chastity” as popularized by Danish directors Thomas Vinterberg and Lars von Trier.

For something more elaborate, you may want to look at hiring cast and crew. Check out our guide to casting websites to see where you should be looking for talent. If you do choose to hire actors, then you’re going to need to read up on actor release forms.

As for equipment, you’re going to want to look at mics and cameras. If you don’t want to shoot on a smartphone, then you should consider buying a DSLR camera. For anything more expensive, renting is your best bet. For guidance, look at how we recreated the iconic “What’s in the box?” scene from Se7en for just $400 dollars. If you’re hiring a cinematographer, make sure you’re on the same page as them in regards to equipment before the shoot.

No matter what strategy you end up choosing, you’re still going to need a mic and a place to shoot. I cannot stress it enough: audio quality can make or break your short. Get a mic, and read our guide on sound recording. Once you have that, then you need to find a place to shoot.

Ideally, you’d have a sound-stage where you could build a set. If not, then you’re just going to have to get creative. Just remember to review permitting guidelines for shooting in public places.

7. Show up to set prepared

Once you’ve gotten your cast and crew together, you’re going to want to make sure you have a clear line of communication. Try using our film crew management software or setting up a work group chat. You'll want to create call sheets to keep everyone organized.

After you get that set up, there are just two more things you need to do: lay out your filming schedule and finalize your shot list. Check out the video below to see how to make a shot list for a modern production.

The more organized you are before shooting the better. A shot list will make your job as director infinitely easier on set.

8. Always have your shot list

You’re finally here, the first day of shooting. Countless weeks of preparation have led to this moment. The most important thing to do is… enjoy yourself!

Remember, we make films because we love cinema. Take your job as director seriously, but don’t get too stressed out. Some things will be out of your control, i.e, weather, sick cast and crew, etc.

But that’s okay, nothing great comes easy.

Make sure to check out our guide to directing actors to see how you should handle your talent. Our series “The Shot List” will show you everything you need to know about shot size, camera framing, camera movement, and more.

Get creative in your role as director but also keep in mind that the things that work, work for a reason. It’s never a bad idea to hone your craft by taking inspiration from established filmmakers. Consider reviewing our series on the directing styles of famous filmmakers like David Fincher, Paul Thomas Anderson, and Stanley Kubrick.

9. Review footage and audio

Throughout your shoot, make sure to check off your shot list. You’ll be thanking yourself in post for doing your due diligence on set. This often includes reviewing dailies as the production progresses.

Also, review your shots, and make sure your audio is clear. It may be necessary to record ADR and/or Foley sound, or turn to the free sound effects online to really polish the audio.

10. Reorganize everything

You’ve gotten all your footage and now you’re ready to start editing. Import all the video and audio into your editing software and get started.

If you’re not experienced in editing, read up on the post production process and Final Cut Pro vs. Adobe Premiere Pro. If you’ve got the money to hire a professional editor, you can always do that as well.

If you’re using Premiere Pro or Final Cut, there’s no shortage of tutorials that will answer your most specific questions. Thinking about adding some VFX to your short? It’s never been easier to do. Just check out how we recreated a VFX-heavy scene from Inception for just $350 dollars. Don’t be afraid to test out After Effects if you have an Adobe Creative Cloud subscription. It may seem intimidating, but after a few hours of practice, you’ll know the basics of the program.

11. Last-Minute Check and Formatting

After your short has gone through a bunch of edits and you think it’s ready for an export, remember to check for these four things:

Make sure the picture is bright enough

Make sure the audio has been cleaned up

Look for frame inserts

Don’t forget credits

If everything looks good, export in the format of your choice.

12. Celebrate your work

You did it! You completed a short film. Get your cast and crew together, call some friends over, and watch that movie!

It may not seem like a huge accomplishment, but just think about how much work you put in. Through the process, you’ve become a better filmmaker.

If you think your short is competition worthy, consider submitting to a film festival. You don’t need to take your short film to Sundance or Cannes either, there are thousands of smaller festivals for up-and-coming filmmakers.