#also very INTERESTING you shared that post about characters not knowing what genre they're in Aabria

[lyndentree63]

I just finished episode 6 of Burrow's End and I have SO MANY THOUGHTS.

I just keep thinking about expectations, and the way Aabria. . . plays with them. But also — Ok back up because one of the things I noticed about ACOFAF is that Aabria is really good at listening to players, taking what do they do and say, and in return saying I believe you, then weaving it into the narrative. (The Green Hunter is the most obvious example of this.) And she's doing this with Burrow's End in a way that's even more intense than it was in ACOFAF. . . it's not manipulative, and 'genre subversion' isn't quite the concept I'm looking for. . . it's playing into the player's expectations. She's holding up a big mirror but the players (and us as an audience!) aren't realising that it's a reflection of the path they just carved out, they think they're seeing a new hallway. It's not quite a feedback loop, but it is more of characters latching on to an idea and RUNNING with it and not stopping to question or wonder if maybe they should be running full-tilt ahead? Anyways I think I'm starting to understand why 5e was chosen for Burrow's End.

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

I wouldn't really agree that boys are just arm candy in magical girl shows and only there to look cute. Yeah, sure the girls' friendships are the focus, but the boys are usually very much involved in the plot and most shows do explore their feelings about the odd things that happen due to magical shenanigans even if they aren't in the know (It's why ML baffles me even more with how they screwed up Adren's arc when he's the deuteragonist, when all these boys are supporting cast and get well rounded arcs)

I'm not much of a winx fan, but the specialists were very much not arm candy. Did the girls talk about them being cute? Yes, it's what teenage girls do. Did the narrative suggest they were good looking? Yes, but that's standard for most love interests in any genre. But we still got scenes with them talking amongst themselves about how they themselves feel and they got a fair share of badass fight scenes even if they wield no magic. A large amount of episodes actually included the boys and girls working as a team solving a mystery or fighting a villain. The girls might deal the finishing blow but the boys were still integral to the plot.

I hope this doesn't come across as hate, it definitely wasn't my intention. I'm just a bit too passionate about the magical girl genre.

I do think you have a good point with ML having a problem choosing a genre or blending two genres successfully.

For the CCS fans, I will add though that Cardcaptor Sakura had both Tomoyo and Syaoran serve as sources of motivation for Sakura. And both Sakura and Syaoran collecting cards even if Sakura is the only one who could seal them and yet never made you question whether Syaoran was even necessary for the job the way ml does with Chat.

I wasn't trying to say that boys have no part to play in magical girl team shows or that they're always treated as having no lives beyond the girls, that's why I mentioned that the Winx Club boys - aka, the Specialists - have their own (mostly off screen) lives and occasionally show up help the girls:

the boys are usually off doing their own thing and only occasionally show up for a date or to give the girls a ride on their cool bikes or magical spaceship

Even then, this is certainly a simplification of the roles that they play in the story, but I kind of had to simplify their roles down to their base components for the original post's discussion as I was talking in broad strokes of how these stories are written.

In terms of those broad strokes, the Specialists are absolutely only there for shipping fodder. That's why each one is assigned to a girl from the start and why their main role in the narrative is supporting their assigned love interest or causing relationship-based drama for their assigned love interest. If it weren't for shipping, then the Specialists would not exist.

While the Specialists do have fleshed out characters and may even effect the plot, the execution of those elements is designed around the girls. A really obvious example of this is the character Timmy, who has character development as the boy's tech guy. Why is he into technology? Because he's the designated love interest for the fairy of Technology and we have to show why they're a good match. Along similar lines, the boys don't really get plots that are removed from the girls because this is the girl's show. Every episode features one or more of the Winx, but the boys are optional and often don't appear.

This is because, narratively speaking, the boys are just love interests and that brings us back to Miraculous' big problem. You can't have a show where Adrien is written like a Specialist while also being part of the Winx Club and where Alya is written like she's part of the Winx Club while technically being more of a Specialist in terms of power set and actual narrative role.

I'm was thinking back to my memories of various Winx Club plots to find one that really highlighted what I mean here and I remembered that one of the big dramas in season one was the reveal that Bloom's love interest - Sky - was in an arranged marriage and had just never told her. As it turns out, that's a great example of what I'm talking about re Adrien!

Is that plot line technically based around Sky and letting his life effect the plot? Sure, but the fallout of that reveal revolves around Bloom, not Sky. The story doesn't really care how Sky's feeling as the conflict progresses. Instead, it focuses on how it affects Bloom and her friends because of course it does! She's the main character. It would be really weird if that plot suddenly focused on her side character love interest and his friends during one of her darkest hours/biggest moments.

Think of that and then consider how the ending of season five is written. Notice any similarities? Sure, this is Adrien's family drama, but because he's just a Specialist, the focus isn't on him. It's on Winx Club member Marinette and Adrien only shows up at the end for a kiss. That is the problem. That is what I'm talking about when I say that Miraculous will randomly write him as if we're watching a magical girl team show where Adrien is just the love interest.

In fact, let's really dig into this example because it's a good one.

You can have a look at the transcript for the finale episode of Miraculous season five here and see for yourself that Adrien doesn't even show up on screen until the final scenes when the big drama is over. The Winx Club wiki also has episode transcripts, so I took a look to see what happened in Winx land during the arranged marriage reveal plot (I love that this is a thing. It's so useful for fact checking myself!) This is the script for the episode after Bloom learns the truth. Sky does not appear even though his lies and family drama are the fuel for this episode's events, which are a major part of the season's arc. Note how perfectly that matches Adrien's writing?

Similarly, Sky's dialogue in the reveal episode is all about Bloom. He's worried about her learning the truth and thinking less of him. To match that, here's Adrien's only real dialogue in the penultimate episode of season five (full transcript):

Adrien:(Covers his ears.) I cannot transform... (Looks at his ring and tries taking it off.) Plagg: What are you doing?! Adrien: I'm not in my right mind. I'm too angry — at myself for falling short of Marinette's love, at my father for sending me here in London, at this stupid app and these rings that use my image... it makes me sick! This nightmare is giving me the horrible feeling that, if I transform, I'll get akumatized and destroy everything with my Cataclysm — Marinette, Ladybug... (Takes off the ring and hands it to Plagg.)

Switching back to Winx. After Bloom learns the truth about Sky, bad things happen because she's depressed. This results in her and the Winx going off on a journey to learn the truth of who Bloom is. After the girls share this big plot moment and Bloom gets her mojo back, the boys show up to be their ride home and to give Bloom her romance moment where Sky wins her back by declaring that he broke off the arranged married because he loves her.

Sky notably doesn't get an arc about choosing between his arranged marriage and his true love. We don't even know that the marriage is broken off until he tells Bloom because that was never really a conflict as far as the narrative was concerned. Of course he's going to pick Bloom! He's her designated side character love interest! He only exists to be with her. We don't need to treat this as a serious thing for him. The arranged marriage plot was never about him anyway. It was about giving Bloom a reason to have a darkest hour moment that moves the plot forward. Similarly, Sky calling off the marriage is nowhere near as important as him telling Bloom that he's called off the marriage to be with her in a grand romantic gesture.

This perfectly mirrors Miraculous' season five ending where Adrien doesn't appear until after Marinette is done fighting her big girl power fight against his father. As far as the writing is concerned, that fight isn't about him. His connection to the villain only really matters in terms of how it affects Marinette's actions during the final battle. Then, when the battle is over, Adrien shows up to give Marinette her big romance moment because, while the plot may be driven by Adrien's family, he is not a Winx club member. He's just a Specialist. Or, in the words of the head writer:

[image text: She's Barbie, he's Ken. You don't like it. I get it. It won't change. Anything else?] (The full, even more damning context of this tweet can be found here.)

What else can I say other than, "I rest my case."

Oh, and also that I didn't take this as an attack. I just thought it was a good opportunity to really dig into the nuances of this and what I was talking about in that original post as I never know how obvious this stuff is if you don't closely study story telling. As this case study hopefully shows, if a show is about a group of girl friends using the power of friendship, then their love interests may have important roles, but the boys are never going to be more important than the girls and most of the boy's screen time will be focused on romance and how their existence effects the girls because it's ultimately the girls' world. Without them, the show wouldn't exist. Without the boys? Well, then we just wouldn't have a romance plot.

[astralexpressarchives]

The Renheng Iceberg Explained

Alright so there's this renheng iceberg on twitter that I was recently informed about. I'm wayyy too deep into the lore so I skipped to the bottom and everything there was stuff I was already more than familiar with.

So I figured why not put all this information to some use and make a post explaining the more obscure items on the iceberg and leaving out the self-explanatory ones, doing my best to reference as well as possible.

Blade gazing at Imbibitor Lunae statue

This was a hidden interaction where you could find Blade standing near the statue of Imbibitor Lunae at the scalegorge after revealing Dan Heng's vidyadhara form. He says he is 'mourning for folly' and asks you if Dan Heng is happy. You can watch a video about this here.

Good friends who are bad for each other

This is Kafka's description of what she knows about Blade and Dan Heng's history in her companion quest. This answer is a "truth" in her game of truth and lies.

"Apparently, they used to be good friends... Well, good friends who were bad for each other. Bladie forgot nearly everything, so he doesn't remember well. Together, they did something bad — something terrible. It led to horrific consequences. That's the information I managed to piece together. Bladie refused to tell me the details."

Dan Heng gets nightmares about blade

We see this in-game in the cinematic leading up to the Xianzhou questline. This is also suggested in the Only Silence Remains lightcone description.

Matching Jade Ornaments

Referring to this idea.

There is also a vidyadhara egg that says:

"You edge closer to the pearlescent shell and have a dream in which you are a Pearlkeeper who rides the waves, and travels across the ancient sea with your true love. The time you have spent with your lover is full of happiness, but the time of hatching rebirth is determined by destiny. You secretly put a jade pendant in your mouth so your lover can recognize each other in the next life."

And considering that DH:IL 4 story has him refusing to speak during the entirety of his interrogation, death sentence, and final verdict, it definitely leaves room for imagination.

Bracer Lore

This one encompasses a few of the other ones on the iceberg, too. Really, it's worth reading the entirety of the Passerby of Wandering Clouds relic set lore. Keep in mind all relic sets are in chronological order of head/gloves/body/feet. The bracer also mentions this part about 'That owner also once shared company and drinks with the unnamed, the two of them simply gazing at the moon with no words exchanged.' This has an interesting meaning in CN that tells us this drinking was an engagement ceremony. People thought this must be a typo but, despite many tickets from people, their only response has been that they're unable to comment further. They still haven't changed it as of patch 1.4.

Dan Heng polishes and gaze longingly at Cloud Piercer

A recent addition in patch 1.4 where Pom-pom now says:

"Passenger Dan Heng often carefully maintains and polishes his spear. Although the Express is very safe, it seems that he is not willing to drop his guard. Hmm, Pom-Pom can tell that when he polishes his spear, there isn't just alertness in his eyes, but a glint of longing, too. Don't underestimate me, Pom-Pom had dealt with all kinds of different passengers!"

I'm sure by now everyone knows that cloudpiercer was made by Yingxing (Blade).

You can see screenshots of this interaction in this post.

Mirror Inverted Colours

Apparently, a big part of CN character design focuses around the concept of inverted colour palette designs for ships. Because Blade and Dan Heng share inverted colours, this is considered a good sign for the ship as it indicates they were most likely designed together.

Danmei Coded

Danmei is the CN genre for mlm. It has a lot of stereotypical tropes that are very common in this genre and apply to renheng also. My personal opinion is that renheng is very similar to something written by Meatbun in particular - this is a danmei author who wrote erha, yuwu, and casefile compendium. The associated tropes are:

Lovers to enemies back to lovers angst timeline often including misunderstandings involving tragic betrayal

Black/red character x white/blue/green character

Under the moonlight

Amnesia and/or reincarnation themes

Protag did something that made everybody turn on them + complicated political drama plot

Redemption in death/isolation/retreating from the world at the end

Waiting frankly ridiculous amounts of time to be with the lover again

One character pursuing the other character literally

One character considered dead or demonic in some capacity, the other is ethereal and godly

Mortal x immortal

Afterlife/spirit realm shenanigans usually involving fractured souls as a result of torment

Contrasting personalities + others don't think they should get along/are bad for each other (usually the deviant personality is considered to be corrupting the noble/revered personality in some way which often involves a rebellion)

Mirrored Ultimates

Their ultimate animation sequences are very similar with close eyes with weapon - open eyes - attack.

And both of their ultimates take place in different versions of the same location:

Vidyadharas can't identify items belonging to their past yet Dan Heng got the bracer, jade pendant(?), and cloud piercer

There is an NPC named Lingling in the alchemy commission who is responsible for assisting in vidyadhara hatching rebirth. She collects the personal belongings of vidyadhara who claim that they want to keep the items for their next life. She says that:

From what I've seen, most Vidyadhara lack emotions fresh after their rebirth, and are unable to understand the sentiments of their previous selves. Not a single one has ever been able to identify which one of these items used to belong to them.

This is a big indicator that DH = DF and that their romance will be continuing in this life, too. We know from Passerby of Wandering Clouds relic set that Dan Heng is still in possession of the bracer because of the line: "His fingertips could still faintly feel the temperature from the other."

The stars always accompany the moon

This is a reference to their names in CN where the Xing in Yingxing means moon and the Yue in Yinyue jun (Imbibitor Lunae) means Moon. Their ship name Xingyue means Star and Moon, which is often why you will see them referred to with the Star/Moon emojis as well as the sword/leaf emoji.

Blade came to see Dan Heng blushing when Xiyan asked him to act the character in his story

This is referring to this video on weibo where Dan Heng is talking to Xiyan. You can see the characters in the crowd then Dan Heng starts blushing. The next time you see the crowd, Blade has arrived third from the right.

"Eternal Regrets of a High Elder" and "Dreams from a Past Life"

These are arias from the Cloudcry Songbook written by a Vidyadhara named Lingjie who reincarnated into Chunfen. Lingjie was an opera singer and apparently a big fan of Dan Feng and his romantic life.

My friend wrote the poem analysis of both of these arias. I would strongly recommend reading her translations.

TW: These translations do include mentions of a new leaked poem. Some of the content is NSFW.

Dan Heng named himself "Dan Heng" due to the "Dan" character carved by Yingxing/Blade

We know that Vidyadhara do not usually name themselves based on their past lives as they have no attachment to them. The other iteration of Dan Heng was named Yubie for example. Dan Heng's name in CN is  丹恒. The Dan 丹 means red/pellet/powder/cinnabar. You can see Dan is inscribed on his spear that Yingxing made for him, thus the logical conclusion is that Dan Heng saw the inscription and chose it as his name.

The Star of the East (Jupiter, Wood Star)'s god is Ying Xing, and their guardian beast is Azure Dragon/Canglong/Qinglong

This one is the only one I didn't understand when I first saw it, so I had to request the help of my CN knowing friends to figure it out.

Yingxing's name is 应星 (where the 星 means star).

The CN god of Jupiter Taisui Xingjun 太岁星君 is known as Yin Jiao 殷交

Jupiter is the planet associated with the Chinese wood element, known as the wood star

Azure Dragon is known as Canglong or Qinglong in CN. This is the guardian of Jupiter (the wood star).

Blade's fansong equates Yingxing with 听星 (judging star) which is an alias for Taisui Xingjun

You can read my friend's explanation of the relevant line in the fansong below.

Dan Feng's crime was inspired by Chang'E, the moon goddess for stealing an elixir of immortality and Yingxing was inspired by Hou Yi, a mortal and husband of Chang'E (he was given immortality but didn't, this parallels and contrasts Yingxing's immortality)

So there's actually a bit more to this. I'm going to just use my friend's explanation here:

According to Shang dynasty’s Guicang, It is said that there is a moon maiden who escaped to the moon after stealing an immortality pill. This story was eventually given more details: The moon maiden became known as Heng’e 姮娥, who was the wife of Hou Yi - the hero who shot down the 9 suns. Hou Yi was given an immortality pill/herb as a reward, but Heng’e stole it and flew to the moon. In some versions, upon finding out, Hou Yi tried to shot down her to prevent her from floating to the moon, but he hesitated and ended up choosing not to in the end because he still loved her. In the moon, Heng’e stayed in a palace called 廣寒宮 (the Vast Palace of Coldness) and cursed to be separated from her husband, alone with only the moon rabbits and the immortal osmanthus tree forever. Later on, her name was changed to Chang’e 嫦娥 because Emperor Wen of Han’s name was 劉恆 Liu Heng, and so the 姮 Heng part of her name became a taboo. The interesting here is that 姮 (Heng’e), 恆 (Liu Heng), 恒 (Dan Heng) are all alternative ways to write the same character, 姮, which originally means moon, Heng’e. In addition, we also have a lot of official artworks depicting Dan Heng with the moon and osmanthus flowers:

Yeah so I think that just about covers everything. I left out the ones that were self-explanatory but if anyone is still confused about any of them I can try to elaborate further in the replies.

[robinswrites]

About Me

Hi! My name's Robin, and after years of writing and posting fanfic (on a different account, which I will be continuing with), I've decided to start trying to get my original fiction published. I am A Trans who doesn't much care what pronouns/gendered terms you use for me as long as you're not being deliberately insulting. The various stories I'm writing or want to write vary in genre from fantasy to science fiction and horror, but they're all queer (in different ways, because queerness isn't necessarily approached in SF/F cultures in the same way as in our own, and they don't necessarily fit the often very romance-focussed conventional ideas of what queer rep looks like, but it is present in everything I write).

I am an adult, and my writing is aimed at adults (I've noticed a few people getting their stories labelled as YA when they're really not aimed at that audience at all, so I thought I'd make that clear right from the start), but I'm not writing anything so explicit that I'd object to someone under 18 following me if they're interested in my stories. I will use tags and TWs on my posts--feel free to let me know if I forget.

WIPs

My three main WIPs are novels that I intend to publish (I'm an incurable WIP-hopper and have been alternating between writing bits of each of these for years...), so I'm not going to be posting the stories themselves online, but I will be sharing character and setting info, discussing progress, taking part in the usual writeblr ask events, etc. One is a deliberately over-the-top space opera sci-fi, one is a modern-day fantasy, and the other a mediaeval fantasy. At some point, they might even have titles. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

I'm also sometimes going to be writing short stories and submitting to anthologies and magazines--I'll post updates on where to find any that get accepted.

And at some point soon, a free short story will be going up here as a taster of my work!

I'm also currently doing a major rewrite of the plot outline for a webcomic I initially plotted out as a teenager--once I've got the story to make sense, I'm hoping to start drawing and posting some stuff for that.

What else?

I'm hoping to use this account to follow and get to know other authors, to follow and interact with publishers, take part in any writing events that look interesting--and also to some extent for general blogging.

You'll probably see some reblogs of gifs of films I like, and other mostly-on-topic reblogs (I'm not going to use this account for random memes).

I might share music I've been listening to, or sometimes post about anything interesting I've been doing/places I've been going. I do aim to stick to interesting stuff--I'm not going to be blogging about what I ate for breakfast, but if there's something that I think really would interest SF/F fans and writers, I might do a blog post, especially if I got some cool photos, instead of getting home and thinking too late "I really should have taken some photos of that [supposedly haunted secondhand bookshop / sword I was tempted to buy in an antique shop / whatever]".

Fandom stuff and other "general nonsense" posts and reblogs will stay on my other account.

Looking forward to sharing what I do here on writeblr and getting to know more original fiction writers in this community!

[hyperpotamianarch]

All right, I posted a couple of Jewish stuff, so maybe it's time for a nice Fantasy post. Also, Howl's Moving Castle and Anne of Green Gables. You'll get it by the end.

You see, I'm not a writer yet. Which seems like a bad beginning, but it's going to tie in soon. I do want to be a writer, and have attempted to write books multiple times. Usually I have an idea that I try to latch on and make into a good story, though that doesn't always work. And yes, I've seen that post about writing encyclopedias or annotated maps and am seriously considering it. But anyway, one of my latest ideas was: what if Anne of Green Gables, but Fantasy?

The cause for this idea is the fact I'm usually very locked on Fantasy. By which I mean, I usually refuse to read things outside of this genre, with maybe Sci-Fi added in. I have somewhat mellowed out since and will not immediately refuse any non-Fantasy book recommendation, but I'd still prefer Fantasy over all else. Anne of Green Gables has, to some degree, come to be an exception. By which I mean, it's almost unique among my favourite books in not being Fantasy.

It is thus that I thought, hey. What if I take that thing I really like and make a similar thing in the genre I really like? That'll be great, won't it?

Well, the jury is still out on that. I still didn't figure out the essence of what I liked about Anne of Green Gables, so I don't really know how I might take on this project. I currently have two story ideas that are supposedly under this umbrella - one is a crossover fic that I didn't manage to actually make to work, and another which is an attempt at Urban Fantasy that is vaguely in the works. I would focus on the fic for now, though, because it arose from a realization I had: the closest thing to Fantasy Anne of Green Gables I've ever read is probably Howl's Moving Castle.

It's important to note that this is not so in plot. In general plot, those books are vastly different. It's not in characters either - I believe the only things Sophie and Anne share are temper strong enough to hit their live interest on the head, hair that could roughly considered to be ginger and a general belief they're ugly. The latter isn't really accurate and manifests in vastly different ways in the two.

No, what I do believe those books share is some of their atmosphere. They are still far from identical, as Anne's character is central to her book and Sophie is very different, but there are similarities. Here is the antagonistic relationship with the love interest throughout the book, and there are the relatively lower, more personal stakes of this book. I mean, there are many large differences, but... basically, Anne of Green Gables in Fantasy would have to be (I think) Cozy Fantasy. And Howl's Moving Castle is, in a way, a Cozy Fantasy book: it mostly deals with the day to day life of the four inhabitants of the Moving Castle, from Sophie's PoV. Sure, there's a curse that drives the plot forward and a witch and her fire demon, both perfectly willing to kill anyone who stands in their way. But it's still about How Sophie Cleans the House; How Sophie Pushes Her Nose Into Howl's Relationship With Her Sister; and How Sophie Is Generally A Nosy Old Woman Living In The House Of The Flippant And Cowardly Wizard Howell Jenkins.

I may have lost it a bit there. But it really is about the daily life in the Castle, which I think puts it a step closer. So, I thought of a crossover fic named Katie of the House of Reflections. It didn't really work, though I think the idea has potential if only I developed it a little more.

That is it: a comparison of the stories of two ginger girls who had anime adaptations. Don't thank me yet. You still didn't see me add Princess Eilonwy and Shallan Davar into the mix.

[seventeendeer]

... prefacing this with "I'm not out to pick at your post here", because it intrigued me and made me reflect on how (relatively) little I know about the 60/70s and guns -- although you said that nobody knows how to write about various aspects about TF2's canon (middle-aged mostly-white mostly-men, the time period, guns, etc.), I'm unsure if that was hyperbole and thus I've gotta ask -- is there anyone within the fandom that you think has done a halfway decent job re: writing any of these things

I've been into TF2 for over a decade, and while I've read my share of fic, I freely admit I haven't found any I think really nailed it. at least not any that engaged with it constructively.

that's not to say it doesn't exist! the tf2 fandom is huge and I'm certain there are fantastic writers out there who know what they're doing.

however, I have found that increasingly in recent years, fans just ... don't even know where to start. back when I first entered the fandom (~2010), there was at least a basic understanding of the tropes the game is parodying, because they were much more present in the public consciousness. the game was conceived and released at a time where it was assumed players would recognize the genres parodied and the historical context depicted (if only from pop culture, if nothing else), and approach the characters accordingly.

however, times have changed and those assumptions no longer hold true. younger fans come into the game without the ability to recognize the cultural context it was supposed to exist in, which naturally leads to a flattened, superficial reading of the game.

which in turn leads to a fandom that is increasingly detached from the spirit of the game, who don't have the tools to interpret the comedy the way it was supposed to read when it was first released in 2007.

which in turn has made me less and less interested in engaging with the fandom. what I have seen does not encourage me to get back to it. like I mentioned in the post I made, even the newer official comics don't even seem to really "get" the original game, so it's no wonder the fandom struggles with the same thing. I think a lot of fanworks are more based on the comics than on the game anyway these days, which simply isn't my thing.

one piece of fanwork that has sparked my interest recently, though, is Emesis Blue! I haven't watched it yet, but from what little I've been able to gather, I think there's a chance it might actually be closer in spirit to the game than anything I've seen before. it makes certain creative choices I don't strictly find appealing, but just the fact that it's willing to veer closer to the soul of the game makes me very, very curious. even though it changes up a bunch of superficial details and has a very different tone from the game, I still get the feeling whoever made it had a real interest in engaging with the original "text" as it was intended to be read, even though it's done in a way that wasn't the intended fan reaction. I may very well give it a go at some point! I'd rather see fanwork that understands yet disregards canon intentionally as an artistic choice than fanwork that superficially resembles canon without understanding it. whether or not Emesis Blue is any good I have no idea, but I at least admire what it seems to be trying to do.

(although I should clarify I don't think knowing anything about guns is important to understanding TF2. when you read that post I made yesterday, I need you to imagine me with my head in my hands complaining drunkenly to a bartender who tells me I've had enough. some of it is definitely real annoyance, but some of it was also just exaggerated annoyance for the funnies because at the end of the day it's not that serious. TF2 will survive being largely misunderstood, I'm sure. I might not survive TF2 being misunderstood but that's a me-problem)

[colescorner]

Reading Wrap Up: June-August 2024

Hello out there! I've been very inconsistent about posting regularly, I am gonna be working on that to try to make a schedule to have regularly scheduled content for you guys...anyway, I'm gonna share what I've read the last couple months! My wrap ups may contain SPOILERS so read at your own risk.

June

Source: Goodreads

Title: The Last Hours: Chain of Thorns Author: Cassandra Clare Genre(s): Fantasy, YA, Fiction Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

For anyone that's seen any of my book reviews or bookish posts before knows Cassandra Clare is my favorite author! She is responsible for turning me into the reader I am! So, it's only natural that I start with one of her books...Chain of Thorns. This is the final book in The Last Hours trilogy which is a follow up to her earlier trilogy The Infernal Devices. We follow James and Cordelia and the merry thieves as they must save London from a demon invasion all while trying to mend their friendship with one another.

One of the things I always enjoy with Clare's books are the ensemble of characters we meet. Each character is unique, distinct in their voice and serve a purpose to carry the story forward. Some of my favorite characters that I have really connected with are Thomas Lightwood and Alister Carstairs. Their pairing seemed so unlikely at first, but throughout the course the book, we see how their relationship develops. Thomas is very endearing and likable and Alister is the polar opposite, which is why their pairing was an interesting surprise! I became invested in them and what would become of them as this trilogy came to a close.

I am a sucker for a good romance and one of my favorite tropes is forbidden lovers and Clare is a master of this trope. This trope is displayed in James and Cordelia as well as Alister Carstairs and Thomas Lightwood. Clare's characters are inevitably human so they're flawed as we all are which makes the tension between James and Cordelia, and Alister and Thomas all the more palpable. Each couple keeps each other at a distance for their own reasons and as the story progresses, you cannot help but to root for each respective couple to end up together! James and Cordelia are kept apart over the course the series even though it is evident that they love each other.

Even though Clare's plot can be intricate in each novel, I find it easy to slip into this world she has created. I have been reading her books since 2010 so I am very familiar with her writing style. I still think her books are approachable to those who might be new to the fantasy genre.

I will say it did take me a little bit to get back into this world, but once I did, I was able to leave reality and travel to Edwardian London. It was good to be back in a familiar setting. I did throughly enjoy reading this book, it has an enjoyable plot, diverse characters, good pacing and a satisfying conclusion.

If you've never read any of Clare's shadowhunter books before, I recommend reading them in publication order.

July

Source: Goodreads

Title: On Cenorship: A Public Librarian Examines Cancel Culture in the U.S. Author: James LaRue Genre(s): Nonfiction, Politics, Books About Books, Social Justice Publisher: Fulcrum Publishing

Recently, I've been wanting to read books about censorship, both in general but also specifically surrounding books banning which seems to been on rise for the last few years now. This book is written by a librarian with 25+ years of experience in the industry. He has worked tirelessly to defend the freedom of people having access to books of all genres and topics.

Throughout this book, LaRue goes in depth about the adverse effects that banning books can have not just in small community but on a much broader scale. LaRue makes the point that libraries are not just for one person or type of person but that it is a community space. And as such, patrons should be able to have the freedom and access to all types of books, even ones that could be classified as controversial. He also explores the process of what happens when a book at the library is challenged, which I could not get enough of!

If anyone enjoys books about censorship and books, then do yourself a favor and read this one! I devoured it and I loved it, I found it so enlightening and lifted my spirits to know there are people who, in my opinion are true patriots of this county by standing up for our intellectual freedom to read what we want!

Source: Goodreads

Title: Book Lovers Author: Emily Henry Genre(s): Fiction, Contemporary, Romance Publisher: Berkley

Because of my love for reading, I enjoy reading books about books. This is my first Emily Henry book, at lot of my bookish friends have recommended her to me and after reading this, I can safely say that I want to read her other works as well! I am a hopeless romantic and I find I love a good romance read!

Even from just reading the synopsis, I had a good feeling about this book and my instinct was right! This book follows Nora, a literary agent in New York and is known as a "shark" to many of her colleagues and Charlie who is a book editor. Nora knows Charlie and is not fond of him at all. Nora's sister, Libby invites her on trip to Sunshine Falls, a setting from a popular author, whom is Nora's biggest client, for a girls trip The twist is that Libby has made a list of popular bookish tropes that Nora has to try and accomplish before their trip comes to an end. Nora reluctantly goes only to discover that Charlie is also in Sunshine falls because he grew up there! Nora is pretty much pissed that Charlie of all the places in the world, had to come here while she is on her trip with her sister.

One of the tropes I've realized I enjoy is enemies to lovers. I love the main characters in this story, I love how Nora is a complicated character, it makes her character development all the more gratifying as the story progresses. Charlie is equally as complicated as Nora, both of them are sort of at odds with one another, throughout the course o the book but they eventually develop feelings for one another.

It was easy for me to slip into the world that Henry creates, her characters feel real, tangible, making the reader become invested to keep turning the page to figure out what is to become of Nora and Charlie, will they get together at the end or will Nora keep him at a distance like she has with everyone else?

I'm not gonna lie, I became extremely invested in this story and there were points where I cried and laughed and experienced a whole range of emotions. I completely fell in love with Nora and Charlie and their story.

Source: Goodreads

Title: Read Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times Author: Azar Nafisi Genre(s): Nonfiction, books about books, Essays, Politics Publisher: Dey Street Books

I've been making more of an effort to read books from other genres this year, specifically nonfiction and most of the books I've read so far this year from that genre have been pretty good! I'm continuing reading about censorship and I found this one at my local bookshop.

This book is a collection of letters the author wrote to her late father. Each letter has the author informing her deceased father about the current state of the world while also making connections through the many critical authors that influenced her throughout her life. The letters also make the point of why literature is important in a true democracy.

What was truly astounding about the book was the parallels she made between the United States and Islamic Republic of Iran, where she grew up. I was astonished to say the least when I realized how many parallels there are. It was very thought-provoking and I annotated the crap out of it!

If anyone enjoys books about books and censorship, I would highly recommend giving this book a read!

Source: Goodreads

Title: The Song of Achilles Author: Madeline Miller Genre(s): Historical Fiction, Fiction, Fantasy, Romance Publisher: Ecco

If anyone has seen the books I've reviewed or talked about before, then you know I love me some Greek Mythology! This is the first book I've read my Madeline Miller and I must say I was very impressed and already have her other novel Circe and novella Galatea (which I've read already). This is a retelling of legend of Achilles and his companion Patroclus, whom I've never heard of before. Once I settled in, I got lost in the world that Madeline Miller brought to life.

Achilles is a demi-god born from a sea nymph, he is destined to become the greatest hero in the land and lead his people to victory against the army of Troy. Patroclus was from another kingdom who got banished when he killed a boy in his youth. Patroclus was banished to the kingdom where Achilles was they were both boys. Patroclus befriend Achilles and eventually became his companion. Patroclus accompanies Achilles on his quest to become this great champion. The bond they create over the course of their journey is one of friendship, brotherhood, and love.

You cannot help but become invested in the story of Achilles and Patroclus and continue to turn the pages to see how everything will play out. The ending was bittersweet, part of me wishes it would have ended differently but another part of me is glad it ended the way it did because it has a humanity to it.

[banavalope]

Really apropos of nothing - from your perspective, anyway - but I do wish it were. Easier? Less open for exploitation? For artists to be able to explore the concept of shared / collaborative universes more often in the pursuit of creating original art.

(more discussion of topic under cut in the event no one cares lol)

I'll note first that I'm having a different conversation here than the ad nauseam one about an artist's right to own and profit off their intellectual property. We do not disagree on this point, I am staunchly in favor, always, of independent artists staking claim on what is theirs and protecting themselves with ownership and copyright. What I'm against is corporate abuse of this protection, because literally what do they need it for, they are billionaires. Eat my ass, my life has only been made worse learning that Disney tried to fucking copyright the names Thor and Loki. So, let's digress.

I'm coming at this from a background of having grown up on adoptables RPG forums circa Gaiaonline, it was a large portion of my internet community life; the concept of an adoptables RPG is tangentially related to shared universes. They have similar DNA: a collection of people all flocking to a concept and, through communal effort, build the canon together. It's non-commital, it's more than just you and some friends creating a story, it's a little like an open RPG except you get to keep whatever you made up if you decide you're jumping ship from Gaia to Deviantart because let's say you got into a weird internet fight once with a 22 year old over a PNG you paid fake money for, and have decided you really just don't need that kind of drama in your life now that you've turned 17.

Where they differ is in the most important aspect of one being open source by permission, and the other by design.

Collaborative works like Orion's Arm, or SCP for a more mainstream example, are fascinating examples of what I mean. The dedication to building open source fictional backdrops anyone can use for anything, for profit or not, that nobody can solely own. Of course, I feel like these examples exist so perfectly because the sci-fi genre has itself always been this way. D&D is also this way. Those are nice points of inspirational reference, but they're only two genres. Very specific genres, at that.

Because you have to sometimes consider, there exist people who want to write, or want to create, who are likely very good at these things, but struggle to come up with an """""original""""" idea within their topic of interest. Maybe their interest is so niche it's impossible to separate it from the original point of inspiration (see: every time someone calls out typing quirks as homestuck derivative) Alternatively are the people good at coming up with a multitude of ideas based on one topic, but no good at stringing them together into some kind of cohesive idea, or maybe just lack the motivation to do it. Not everything has to be a thing, sometimes you just want to share an idea in a way that matters without it being your magnum opus. Yeah, you could post them into the screaming void of the social media abyss, though it's hardly a satisfying compromise.

Imagine the work that could be created if there were genres upon genres of open source worldbuilding projects, and the safety of knowing the idea you're riffing off of hurts no one to use, as being riffed off of is its intended purpose for existing. Nobody owns it! We all agreed to that at the start! Go nuts! Sell it, if you want to!

"You're just describing fandom AU", yes, dear reader, astute observation. Shared universes are, to me, the natural evolution of a fandom. Instead of only joking about how, after a point, an AU is just an original story, or a certain amount of headcanons creates a whole new character, you take that joke to its logical conclusion. Maybe it goes under recognized as the next step up because we're all so focused on making fun of people for it, but to say so risks sounding spicy.

Anyway, I love collaborative storytelling, I love shared universes and open source material, so much so that I want to bake it into my own art projects. I want there to be more free art created and curated by independent artists, ensuring struggling independent artists who can't afford to be free are able to make their living. I want art to be more accessible beyond just access to products. I have exhausted the SCP wiki, and hunger.

[sotwk]

Sorry for bothering you with so many asks recently but here goes. I haven't read The Broken Shield (yet) but I think it is really a shame when fics that aren't romance-oriented get less attention, despite all the effort people clearly put into them. I guess all I can do is encourage you by saying that although non-romantic fics may not be as popular, that doesn't mean that their stories are less interesting or important and I personally think they're great.

Aww @hobbitwrangler you're so kind and sweet and supportive (especially since we're relatively new Moots) and I cannot believe you think any of your Asks would ever bother me! <3 Thank you so much for this encouraging message. You are 10,000% welcome in my Ask Box any time with whatever thoughts pop in your head!

There's a quote from my favorite childhood sports movie, "D2: The Mighty Ducks", by Julie Gaffney, that pops into my mind when it comes to this particular fanfiction woe:

At the end of this month, I will celebrate my 1-year anniversary on Tumblr. I came here to share my "Sons of the Woodland King" AU stories following a nearly 10-year hiatus from writing any fanfic. Before that, I was doing forum roleplaying, mostly in Marvel, so it was very action-oriented. Eventually I became unable to keep up with the posting speed of my peers, and I decided to try something new.

Don't get me wrong; I have enjoyed writing and sharing all the Reader Insert romances that have gained a decent amount of attention and wonderful feedback that I am grateful for. But if you were to ask me what my strongest suits/genres are, romance isn't at the top of the list. It's action, drama/angst, and then romance is tied for third with family relationships.

I like writing about badass heroes kicking ass. If my fics get Mature ratings, it would be likely for Violent content, not Sex. I like making readers swoon, but I also want them to be like this:

Unfortunately, it has become clear to me during my time on Tumblr and Ao3 that most fanfiction readers aren't quite that interested in stories that feature this. That's the primary reason why none of my fics so far have featured much action. (Broken Shield probably contains the most.) I know writers are supposed to write whatever they want without a care for feedback, but that hasn't been what I have done.

So, even though I am happy to write and share things that are popular because they make others happy, I just feel like by not writing and posting the fics that I am probably most skilled at and feel passionate about, I'm not "showing the world what I can do".

My hope is that eventually, after I have earned the trust of my readers and followers, they will enjoy my writing enough to give my Gen fics a chance. After all, there is so much potential when you have amazing kickass characters like Thranduil and sons, Boromir, Eomer, Thorin, etc. to work with!

[greywindys]

Weeb anon returns :'D : Samurai Flamenco wedding suit cards in the spinoff app is probably the most infamous example, but there was also Lucky Star (wedding scenario official art), I think Hibike Euphonium and a couple more yuri anime I'm not caught up on (girls in wedding dresses are a lot more popular, wonder why :P ), Kaworu and Shinji from Evangelion had wedding ring merch and wedding outfits for merch… I'm sure there's more of it though, Japan is always on top of its subtle fanservice merch.

Interesting what you're saying though! Again, might just be me coping, but I honestly feel like Jamie and Damon could crack at some point, if only to spite bigots, since the world is pretty ugly these days and they're punks at heart (not the correct technical term… but y'kno what I mean lol). Kinda like MCR used to make out on stage just to piss off some crowds. I think their perspective has definitely shifted over the years, especially since they're getting a lot of younger LGBTQ fans and they know it. Damon's out there dancing with a pride flag, singing "are you tranz like me?" and kissing Seye in all fairness haha. But they probably don't want to undermine 20 years' worth of work and ending up getting asked about 2doc every interview or sideline Noodle and Russ even more than they already are. I dunno, don't wanna play a mind reader. TLDR: I'm not starry-eyed thinking it'll ever happen, but I see a small possibility of them being fine with it now more than ever, whereas there was no chance a few years ago.

Ahhh okay! I'm learning a lot here. I'm very basic with my anime/manga consumption and really haven't ventured out of the shonen genre....ever idt lol. Up until recently I had only read or watched 4 different series. Thanks for sharing what you know!

I guess I'm skeptical of them not because I think they're uncomfortable with the idea, but moreso because I don't think they care enough about really developing the lore and characters. I also don't think the ship aligns with either of their personal, for lack of a better word, "headcanons" about 2D and Murdoc. Of the two, I think Jamie would be more likely to go, "fuck it" and let the writers do whatever. He already kind of does this - since P4, it's been the writers who have been the source of all the 2Doc hints we get in interviews, tiktoks, etc. Afaik, Jamie isn't involved in that.

Damon, as far as I know, doesn't seem to have any semblence of shipper vision. During P5, he said in an interview that 2D was happy Murdoc was in jail, and wanted him to stay there forever haha. And most recently, if I remember correctly, he said he didn't care about the PR side of Gorillaz at all, which I assume included the character interviews, lore updates via social media etc.. All of which he is entitled to feel! But I bring them up to support my impression that he isn't a shipper, and I wouldn't expect him to go to bat for 2Doc if he wanted to make a statement. But I might have missed some things, so if you or anyone reading this knows of any counter-evidence, I'm open to hearing it.

And that's true that canon 2Doc would probably be the final nail in the coffin for Russel and Noodle's relevance. And that would be a bummer, ngl. I'd feel bad for my friends who are fans of them.

That all being said, I think you bring up some good point, and ia that Jamon are both supportive of the fans and LGBT community, and are comfortable being open about that. But does that overlap with their respective interpretations of 2D and Murdoc? Idk. I think if I was placing a bet, I'd put money on Jamie giving Noodle a girlfriend before any ship between the guys. But my main theory is that management will eventually see that 2Doc is popular and accepted by enough of the fandom that it will help them trend lol. But I'm also not expecting anything...but it's fun to conjecture about.

We'll see how this post has aged after 20 years 🤣

[tabby-shieldmaiden]

I'm still working on my current WIP, which isn't really Shonen with Women. This is to practice finishing projects from beginning to end, from conceptualisation to posting. And I'm making good progress on that, writing 400 words a day.

And I do have a list of works I want to finish before engaging with a lot of Shonen umbrella works (presently it's all the books I bought but haven't read yet -> Bayonetta 1 and 2 -> finish Sailor Moon). This is to clear my watch/read/play list because I get to anything new. (And if I'm not done with my WIP yet, it may be more toyetic media so as to continuously motivate me to write; I tend to do best researching as I write).

I think I do want to share some ideas I have right now though. Also some thing which I want to do first.

My next WIP is probably a bit closer to SWW, even if it wasn't really conceptualised as such. It's post-apocalyptic fiction, it explores gender relations, I play around with tropes and cliches, I'm hoping to make it relevant to SEAsia as a story. And the current protagonist I'm conceptualising is probably going to be something special. When I write original fiction I tend to just make up ocs as I go along, but I think I have a pretty good idea of what she is even before putting down a word. She's blorbo from my brain to me.

I know I want to do yuri. One appeal from Shonen already is the homoeroticism. I think we should have Shonen yuri, as a result. Like just. Shonen lesbians. And avoid the heteronormativity prevalent in the genre too (it's both a heteronormative and homoerotic genre, funnily enough). Make them canon lesbians.

Though it would also probably be interesting to explore F/M in such a setting. I had discussed this with a friend before, but basically she pointed out that a part of the reason for Shonen's heteronormativity is because of the misogyny, because men typically aren't expected to really be invested in women's inner lives. So playing around with gender there could also be interesting. (My F/M couples will also likely be queer in some way, bi4bi, T4T, A4A, or any combination of them.)

I also do want to see if I can write a work that's also rooted in an aspec sensibility. This is mostly to do my part in creating an aspec culture in some way, beyond the flags and the emojis and the basic 101 stuff. I know it's possible within this genre. I mean, just look at the popularity of One Piece! I can do that but with more girls, I'm sure.

As for characters and themes, I think it'll be interesting to have a work about exploring the politics of disgust. Especially as it pertains to women/intersectional feminism. I'm even envisioning a protagonist already. I want her to have some sort of 'gross' power. And I know I want her to be curious about it. Like, if she can control people's large intestines, I want her to want to know what that means. If she learns she controls large intestines via talking to the bacteria in them, I want her to do things like buy some Yakult or fish meat out of a dumpster and try and see if she can communicate with that too. I want a curious protagonist, because I think they're fun to write.

I think I should be open towards the various subgenres found under the Shonen umbrella. Competition to be the very best, battle series, superhero, mecha, what have you.

I do kind of have a concept for a story that plays on 'elemental masters'. And especially when elements go beyond the Wuxing elements/the four classical elements (think stuff like the element of ice, sand, tech, what have you). Mostly, this is because a surprisingly large amount of Western Shonen is like this. I want to see if I can play around with it and do my own version. (Also more focus on female leads lololol.)

I want to read some classics like the Iliad and other epics, because they are very much proto-Shonen in a lot of ways.

I also think it would be really funny if I watched Ninjago and read Naruto simultaneously. BUT every time I finish a season of Ninjago I watch a woman-centred Asian film and every time I finish an arc of Naruto I read a Japanese novel written by a woman. And at the end I read the Wikipedia page on ninjas. I don't know what this will do to my brain exactly, but it will probably do something to my brain.

In all seriousness though, I think I would like to do silly exercises like that to ensure I keep getting ideas. Just need to think of more thematically appropriate silly exercises to do after that.

But yeah. Assuming I finish my watchlist, I guess the media I'll prioritise engaging with first is peripheral SWW, Shonen with female leads, and Shonen written by women. We'll see where all of that takes me afterwards. My watchlists tend to be fickle, but yeah. I guess I have a rough plan. Just gotta fuck around and find out where I go after that.

[lunariamv]

about me :>

so i just realized i cant just be some random person posting stuff without much context..... so here we go

┊⠀┊   ┊⠀┊

┊ ˚➶ ｡˚     ✧

˚✧

hi, my name is lunaria, or luna ^^

˚✧ some grill that wants to be a artist, writer, and maybe like a lowkey game dev

˚✧ i consume a lot of media: video games, anime, yt, movies, tv shows, books, fanfics, etc

˚✧ i really love the impact media and stories have on the world and people, and there's a lot i love, but also there's a lot out there that frustrates me, or feels like it's missing something, so i wanna throw my hat into the ring and make my own content for me and other girls like me <3

˚✧ atm i write fanfics to practice writing and build an audience, and i draw fanart to improve art skill, also just so i have an art portfolio,,,, cuz if i just started posting games without much of a background i feel like ppl are gonna be like,, "who tf is this???" lol

⊹˚. game dev??? ⊹˚.

i'm really interested in making my own games, specifically rpg maker ones because rpg maker/rpg horror/indie horror is my fav genre (pewdiepie's misao gameplay was my first horror game ever <3); i just love retro horror style a lot

so i'm practicing pixel art and stuff and then later i want to learn some 日本語 so i can translate the games, and also learn to make music so i can go full toby fox lol

and then maybe later on if i got rlly ambitious and had a lot of money id make fancy otome games, manga, fancy horror games, and pERSONA FOR GIRLS

i have a lot of ideas for diff series and id love to share them all <3

⊹˚. my inspirations: ⊹˚.

˚✧ game wise: currently my inspirations are charon (of those yan charon games) and dsp (ik they go by a different name now but that's what i know them as, also its funny because the name reminds me of darksydephil HAHAHA); i like the retro pixel and slight horror themes and aesthetic of their games, but i dislike the writing, so i'm gonna make my own :D

also i like the idea of an oc multiverse like dsp's so i want that too

toby fox is also technically an inspiration too; i wanna learn music so i can make my own bangers with little references and leitmotifs for fun :>>>

˚✧ writing wise: i have a lot, but my main inspirations are mostly like writing in the anime-ish games; danganronpa, persona, ace attorney, yttd, kakegurui; psychological stuff where you gotta think about them, but they also have unique quirky characters and they interact with each other in creative ways

also horror and psychological, i like writing about scary stuff and characters with their complexities, and addressing the rlly messed up parts of humanity and society bc its spooky;; sometimes with a very dark nihilistic outlook bc i love angst, or sometimes with an optimistic one

((thats kinda why i like yan stories but more in the horror sense, like look at all the crazy scary stuff this person is doing lol))

but for characters in general, i like stuff with FEMCS <33333 persona 3 with ya girl kotone shiomi, danganronpa v3 with kaede, sara in your turn to die, genshin lumine, and that one part in ace attorney where we get to play as mia fey

that's also why i lowkey like the writing in romcom/chick flick movies, cuz its just unique characters and stories and usually has a female protag or a group of girls as the mcs

LIKE MISS CONGENIALITY, MEAN GIRLS, AND LEGALLY BLONDE I LOVE THOSE MOVIES SM AND I HAVE MILLIONS MORE EXAMPLES BUT WE'D BE HERE FOREVER

but aside from heavy and horror stories, i also like simple cute straightforward stories like older barbie movies XD (or winx, mlp, bratz, monster high…); they're just really wholesome and cute where ya girl goes on a magical adventure with quirky characters and learns good lessons like trust, courage, friendship, etc…

ITS MUSHY BUT I LOVE IT AAAAA

so my main theme is being a girl and doing stuff, bc girlbossing is fun

but ya know i like making hot guy characters too wwwww

⊹˚. my art/writing style ⊹˚.

i'd say in general its like a mix of asian themes with western; its like anime but with western elements in it

i'd also sometimes like to explore other cultures too, kinda like how jjba has varying characters bc that's cool;; but if i have characters with varying nationalities its because i want to, not bc a woke person held me at gunpoint

⊹˚. aesthetics ⊹˚.

i have a lot that i like, but here's my main favorites i guess that will be in my things

˚✧ cute + edgy; melanie martinez, lucy loone, yandere, ddlc;; basically anything where you juxtapose cutesy with scary horror -- its so fun and subversive

˚✧ femcel/female sigma/doomer girl/anti-egirl; LANA DEL REY LANA DEL REY bc i'm a sad girl

˚✧ retro things; 80s and 90s but mostly early 2000s stuff; early internet, old stuff, y2k, scene/emo, mcbling -- huge emphasis on mcbling, i love the girly hedonistic aspects of it -- ayesha erotica, panty and stocking, bad girls club;; that aesthetic i love it sm LETS DO OUR NAILS AND PARTY ^^^^^^

˚✧ internet horror stuffs -- indie horror, analog horror, internet mysteries, meta horror, local58, mandela catalogue, fnaf, creepypastas, liminal spaces

˚✧ then some internet guy stuff -- vaporwave, cyberpunk, blade runner, hotline miami, madness combat, carpenter brut, etc -- i'm tomboyish in this regard xd, i fangirl over guns and edgy sigma guys fighting

⊹˚. extra stuff about me (bc who tf r u >_>) ⊹˚.

writes a character bio

˚✧ name: luna

˚✧ some randy girl that likes to make stuff

˚✧ not rlly a weeb but i like asian culture a lot, japanese, chinese, korean, vietnamese, thai, laos, filipino (yes), etc

˚✧ sigma?? i think people should be rewarded based on talent and skill, rather than their identity. if i am successful, its because my work is good, not because i am a minority. i'm also learning to draw, write, make music, etc because i want to make content without having to rely on others for assets. why ask other people if i can do it myself? B)

˚✧ i like cute things and being girly, like dressing up and having stuffed animals and cute stationary everywhere :> if i have a chance to be extra and decorate something, i will take it in a heart beat

˚✧ i'm a stocking kin, i love sweets, cake specifically, and milk tea (im addicted to boba its horrible T-T)

˚✧ i like tea, i drink 2-3 cups a day :) oolong is my fav atm

˚✧ cat >>>>

˚✧ unhealthy attraction to fictional men… currently thirsting over tohru adachi 💀💀💀 LOL my friends are like "eww wtf is wrong with you???" i must be a raccoon because i really love garbage

☸ my links ☸

all my links are on caard, but here's an organized list of the main ones; my tumblr will be my main hub for stuff i guess; the degree of activity ranges ;-;

˚☸ art stuff

✧ newgrounds (i wanna be a newgrounds girl tbh)

✧ twitter

✧ insta

✧ tiktok

˚☸ writing stuff (fanfictions)

✧ quotev

✧ wattpad

✧ archive

˚☸ oc archive

✧ deviantart (bc im too lazy to code toyhouse atm)

also apologies if i dont respond to things fast enough, im shy

˚☸ dividers by cafekitsune

[bookwyrminspiration]

I saw your post about bookworm Sophie, and would like to tell you some thoughts about it. Also, nonbinary he/they Sophie is one of my favorite ways to write Sophie, so I am using it here, but feel free to ignore it.

Okay, so I think it would be very fun if Sophie was one of those kids who read both books that are “for girls” and “for guys.” Examples include those books about a school cupcake club, sport books, historical fiction, and a bunch of assorted fantasy. He also has a grudge against Moby Dick and Jane Austen, since people kept trying to get they to read them so often at a young age when he didn’t want to.

He took a break from reading when they first learned she was an elf, but eventually he found his roots again. However, now it was less the books she read back in the human world. Instead, it was nonfiction books that had both happy and sad endings for stories to tell their friends and discuss with Bronte . It was science fiction that he didn’t particularly like but knew Dex loved to hear about. It was graphic novels that made them cry and Keefe gush over the art. It was poetry that made their heart seize and cry and gave Tam a place to hid. It was all this, and so much more.

Sophie’s reading style changed from the human world to the lost cities. He still read for themself, but now he has friends who they can rope into reading with them. They love seeing how their friends react to things, since they never seen it before.

Sorry this is long but I have a lot of thoughts to share!

-⚙️

Don't apologize, this is lovely! Sophie being a reader--all versions of him--is something that can be so so special, I adore it. They seem like the kind of kid who would absolutely blow through books so fast, so even if he has a specific genre he liked, their voracious appetite for reading means he got a taste of a variety of different genres.

I love the idea that they'd use this piece of themself them carried over from the human world--his disconnect, the solace he found in reading, the joy he got from it--to connect with a completely different set of people in a different world. It's a merging of the two. Something that comforted him when he was alone now used as a social, personal bridge of connection with the people they're surrounded themselves with.

It'd be interesting to see the ways his taste changes after what he's been through. Was it the friendships and belonging that attracted them to their prior tastes, a sort of vicarious wishful experience? So would they want to read stories where the main characters make it out, finding comfort that things go well somewhere? Or would reading them be uninteresting and frustrating because he knows that's not how it works?

I know you explained a little about your ideas of their taste in other categories, but I was wondering how their relationship with fantasy would change specifically. I suspect it would be a blend of the two depending on his mood. I hope Sophie enjoys the ways he and all their friends connect and interact over various things they read :)

[coconutcows]

Augh Reddit's terrible about that sort of thing, I'm sorry they question your competence over literally any comment... It's very frustrating too how, when you tell them that insult was absolutely unnecessary, they say it's a public forum and they don't NEED to ask for your permission to speak. Even if they're deliberately being an asshole!!! 😒 (That's been my experience, at least.)

Honestly, it doesn't make any sense why people act so put-upon because other people need more explanations- not everyone can glean what the story is trying to say in it's totality; isn't that kinda what fandom's about anyways????

You're not alone either! I didn't know about Anya's sexual assault at Jimmy's hands!! Like yourself, I thought it was domestic violence and the two already had an established romantic relationship, NOT that she was violated and forced to interact with her abuser. Only figured that out after... you guessed it, looking at the comments!

On a more positive note, your posts about Mouthwash made me finally see what all the fuss was about, and it's a very, VERY good game! I've even recommended it to a friend who's very interested in it, and that wouldn't have been possible without your passion! :>

It was very intriguing seeing how the characters interacted and what their thought processes were, all from the perspectives of people who were pretty biased. Anya, Swansea, and Daisuke grew on me the most but all the characters have personality! Speaking of characters, which one(s) are your favorite(s) and why? I'd love to know!

P.S. Congrats on the new lease! May your new home be sturdy and lacking mold!

Ah, I’m sorry to hear people have been so rude to you on Reddit, I don’t know why people are so brazen and self-centred there. Luckily the worst encounter I’ve had was someone calling me “Smoothbrained” for saying men and women aren’t actually that different about a picture of cis female athletes being called men (Don’t go on the facepalm subreddit, it’s a nasty one). Mostly though I just get people asserting their intelligence over mine, even if they’re just like completely wrong. I once commented that Lagoona Blue from Monster High is amphibious like a frog meaning she can breathe on land and in water. Someone replied to me saying “Frogs can’t breathe in water”, which puzzled me so hard I had to google it because I thought I’d missed out on some big frog news since I was in third grade. Nope, they do breathe underwater, I mean how else would they hibernate right??

And yeah, I’ve always thought that’s what fandom is about!!! Sharing thoughts and opinions and appreciation for something with likeminded people. Attitudes like that are what make people scared to become involved with a fandom community. Interesting way to put it also, about a story’s totality, because I’ve actually been thinking about making a post about how little information we actually get in Mouthwashing, and how what we get is tightly connected to the story it tells without branching out. You know, despite my lack of media literacy lol.

But yeah, the first couple watches I just thought maybe they had a casual thing, or a fling, and Anya wound up pregnant with the more common plot line being She wants to Keep It and He wants her to Get Rid of It, willing to kill her to get his way. Which is unfortunately common irl and realistic enough I didn’t question it. With the lock question I thought she was worried about him attacking or killing her, not that she had already been violated y’know? Im not used to rape and sexual assault being taken seriously, least of all in the horror genre where it’s normally used for shock value.

And that’s huge if true!!!! My thoughts and stuff being the reason someone checks something out is super cool, I’d never think something like that’d happen tbh. I’m super self conscious so I hold back a lot on saying things and making posts about stuff. I’m glad you enjoyed it!!! I couldn’t say why, but you know how people will talk about a piece of media fundamentally changing them as a person?? Mouthwashing is that for me. It scratched something in my brain and it will not let go.

I love all the characters!!! Well, except Jimmy, but even admittedly he is a good well written character. There’s purpose behind hating him rather than just someone people find annoying.

Anya is a sweetheart, she’s trying so hard, she wants to help people, and out of everyone on the ship she’s the loneliest. I hate that she kills herself so much but in a bittersweet way it is nice she went out on her own terms rather than at Jimmy’s hands. We also know so so little about her, everything we know is tied to her womanhood rather than her as a person, and I think most people can see her experience growing up, or know someone who did, with her being meek, quiet, and withdrawn.

Swansea I’ve mentioned in the tags of some reblogs but he reminds me a lot of some of my family members, particularly my deceased Great Uncle, who was very gruff and liked to pick and tease and wouldn’t mince words but had a big heart. Plus an older character willing to go apeshit to protect younger/more vulnerable people is always aces in my book (and the developers seem to have a soft spot for him so they’ve done some fun stuff)

Daisuke really is a little angel with a halo made of hibiscus flowers. He’s miserable there but he’s trying so hard. All he wants is to make people proud and in the end it got him killed.

And Curly, I could write a long block of text for him but I’ll try to keep it shortish. I love Curly, he’s been the image of the game forever. My opinion of him did sully when I realized what happened with Anya, but I can’t hate him. Partially I just grew too attached to post crash Curly, but also some people act as though he literally helped Jimmy with the assault when really all the pre crash stuff took place over a week. I don’t think he was going to Help Jimmy, I think he was just trying to figure out what to do and keep Jimmy calm until they could get to some form of authority. If he knew Jimmy was volatile he wouldn’t want to jostle that bomb, which makes sense as to why he got panicky when Anya told Jimmy alone and when Jimmy decided the best course of action was KILLING THEM ALL IN A CRASH TO HIDE HIS CRIME.

I have so many more thoughts since this game has been rotating in my brain for nearly a month now. There’s so much more there and I really look forward to Wrong Organs future endeavours (also really recommend How Fish is Made and it’s DLC, The Last One and Then Another which features Curly post crash if you haven’t already. AlphaBetaGamer has playthroughs of both those as well)

And thank you!!! 😊 it’s a very nice place and definitely mold free lol

[punch-love]

38, 45, 55, 60 [Night Terror], 78, 79

38. What is your most self-indulgent posted story?

anything for sure. I very much wrote it for myself to jack off to exclusively and when I was done I was like...........I guess I'll post this...? I didn't plan to while writing it which is why it's so barefaced and unapologetically depraved.

45. What genre/trope do you tend to write the most?

enemies to friends to lovers is going to be shoved into my casket at this point.

55. Have you noticed any patterns in your fics?  Words/expressions that appear a lot, themes, common settings, etc?

I really like writing around the truth, I've noticed. I usually write characters who are unable to verbalize what they think or feel, and they betray themselves in other (often physical) ways. I think it's interesting to tell a story without having the characters know what type of story they're in. I often complain about how readers will be like "why don't these two idiots know that they're in love?" and it's because they don't know they're in a romance! On the flip side, "why doesn't this idiot know that he's in danger?" it's because he DOES think he's in a romance. I think it's fun to write stories where characters assume they're in a different genre than they actually are.

60. In Night Terror, what inspired the idea for the plot?

I audibly freeze whenever someone mentions Night Terror because I feel bad for leaving it at one chapter when it really should have gotten finished considering the content. I was inspired by the fact that a lot of works have those two sharing the same bed without considering the implications of how dangerous they both are to share a bed with. I also liked the fact that they both would have very different reactions to being attacked in their sleep.

78. What motivates you during the writing process?

Answered.

79. Do you have any writing advice you want to share?

It's important to be open and interested in critique. If you aren't comfortable receiving negative feedback, it will stunt your growth as a writer. I'm not saying you have to be eagerly seeking out a proverbial beating, but it's easy to develop blind spots as a writer and when you open yourself to being read by a critical eye, they can help point those out. I write with the voices of many people who have pointed out my weaknesses in the back of my mind whenever I work on something and it makes my pieces that much stronger.

[elegant-agent]

For what it's worth, most mecha series are very much "A corrupt democracy rotting from the inside out fight space nazis," following in the themes set up in the defining series to the real robot genre (Gundam, of course.)

So I'm kinda skeptical of that kind of marxist critique. Like, that flawed series might just be the point - how like other mecha series, these are the good guys until you dig deeper and realize the situation is quite complex.

You can note that the first campaign ever released results in you uncovering a genocide and how that interacts with the history of the setting. And it's like... Mmmm, yeah, I think you ARE supposed to question things here.

yeah! like you don't just hear about hercynia's history of being tbk'd, you fucking *witness* it and its survivors and the remnants of those weapons all around the planet! and the people who made those weapons are still walking around! harrison armory is made from the remnants of seccomm, the people who engineered and coordinated the hercynian crisis and literally decades of human rights abuse! and they're part of union's core political stances!

the situation around union is infinitely complex because it's obvious that, of every faction around the universe, union is probably up there in terms of "actually does good things" between the dojhr and ambassadors genuinely wanting to connect outer planets to union's post-scarcity society. but also, union outright admits that their society cannot function without shacking NHPs who are debatably sentient outside of being shackled. shackled for a good reason? probably. i think it's good that the book never explains what cycling truly is: mindwiping, therapy, or anything else. it's this ambiguity that i really like, because it can be presented in either way, and they'd both feel correct.

also also! the corebook mentions how most people benefiting from union's administration never get the chance to even go to the coreworlds or even meet the ambassadors on their planet! it's this very interesting idea of benefiting from something you'd never meet, because union rule is genuinely utopian from all accounts i remember. but that also means that the people benefiting from it never realize what union is capable of back in the core worlds. they don't know about the baronies or the ungratefuls or the hercynian crisis.

union is very obviously a flawed entity, by no means perfect. if you want to fight against union, that's entirely valid, because union is infinitely huge; there's no way that everyone in union shares the same sort of sentimentality that the corebook presents itself with. hell, you can even argue against the ways that union absorbs independent planets into itself; that's how solstice rain starts, by union wanting to bring an entire planet into their fold, even though one of the major nation expresses disinterest in this.

maybe i'm looking too deep into this, but union isn't about being a totally good guy or a secret bad guy all along or making compromises in a galaxy full of morally gray characters. i have no idea what to conclude from it, but all i know is that union is infinitely fuckin complex in a galaxy where people are shattered and separated.