#and i want the world to be good to eachother

[atariakana]

I've seen lots of these types of posts lately and with the new year coming up, now seems like a good time to share a personal anecdote:

A few New Years ago--I don't remember exactly which, time is soup to me these days--I made a New Year's Resolution to leave at least one comment on every fic I finished. It is the only resolution I have ever kept for more than like, a month. I stopped commenting on every fic at some point, because some days my brain just Will Not cooperate and it was causing undue pressure for something that was supposed to be fun, but--for at least two years, I kept it up. Some of them were essay-comments, some of them were one sentence, some were just emojis. But I always found something to say, and do you know what? It was one of the best things I've ever done. Here are some reasons why:

1. I got better at expressing myself. At first it was hard to put all of my Big Complicated Feelings about a fic into words, but as I continued to leave comments pretty much daily, it obviously got easier. And this started to bleed into my regular life--it got so much easier to express gratitude, care, and love to my friends and family. The words didn't get stuck in my throat anymore, and it wasn't as hard to parse complex emotions. It genuinely made me a better communicator.

2. I got to make people happy for fast, easy, and free. Sometimes I would spend like 30 seconds just giving my honest thoughts and I would get a reply back that I made an author's week. Their entire week! For just saying what was on my mind! After they made my week by writing something beautiful about a thing I loved! It's, like, the world's best positive feedback loop. You get to TALK to the people making beautiful art and THEY TALK BACK. NOWEHERE else do you get that kind of direct connection, quite frankly. Revel in it.

3. Extra lore drops/easter eggs/explanations for things. I love lore so much and when people construct complex little universes or paragraphs worth of justification for like one (1) throwaway mechanic or trope I eat that shit up. And all of that doesn't always make it into the fic, however, sometimes if you ask for it. The author will just. Tell you. And sometimes, you don't even have to ask, you just talk about an aspect you liked and the author will be like "funny you should mention that" and tell you background you didn't even know existed. Again I say: where else do you get this so easily. Revel!

4. The joy of receiving AO3 emails. This one may sound silly but honestly when most of what I get are promo emails and correspondence I Do Not want to deal with, the little spark of happiness I get from seeing "reply to your comment on..." in my inbox is such a blessing. Between chapter updates and comment replies, there was a period when I was getting like a dozen AO3 emails a week. Do not underestimate the serotonin boost receiving a dozen AO3 emails in a week can give you.

Most of the people I interact with/have interacted with regularly have been in fandom for a good ten years, at least, and so are part of an older fandom culture. But I have gotten glimpses, through posts like this, of a changing climate. People seem to have mistakenly constructed a divide between the Artist and the Consumer. This is a divide that exists, perhaps, for big time actors and pop stars, who are doing a job and getting paid for their work, and who have large numbers of fans who want their attention. But the relationship between fic authors and fic readers is not that of Artists and Consumers--we are a community. Nobody here has legions of fans, we are the fans, and the reason we post anything is in the hopes of connecting with someone over the things that we love. We are doing this for eachother. AO3 comments are not the same as writing a letter to your favorite youtuber or whatever, they are engaging with your community. And engaging with a community is one of the most rewarding things you can do.

So tl;dr: leave comments! It's fun I promise!

someone I follow on the bird app just announced they’re starting a very exclusive private fic server because they and a bunch of other people want to talk about how much they love the fics they’re reading, and as an author can I just say that a really great place to talk about a fic you love is in the comments for that fic

I understand that people are trying to create safe spaces, but as the number of comments that I get on my fics dwindles with each passing year, knowing these spaces exist where my fics are being discussed, places that I am excluded from, makes me want to write fic LESS

I mean I guess who cares, right, because if I stop writing, there’s 10,000 other people that will continue…but if you participate in a fic “book club” server and you say nice things there about a fic you loved, maybe copy and paste that into a comment on AO3?

the only thing fanfic writers are asking for in return for hours of hard work is attention. please don’t rob us of the one thing that we hope for when we hit “post”

[roseflowerthorns]

So someone messaged me on WhatsApp to keep on here, because even though I suffer with depression apparently I'm allowed to vent my feelings on my own blog, because I'm human xD

So I guess I'm going to stop trying to vanish for months at a time and just get on with things.

I'm a different person week to week I'm afraid it's just situational, and some days I'm just rock bottom and want to ghost the world entirely, I know I've moaned a lot the past few weeks when going into hospital I think I just mentally really crashed to rock bottom with it recently, but instead of deciding I'm going to vanish off my social media, I'm just going to close this app and make a cup of tea instead, even if I vanish for a few days now and again.

So here is some positive things this week -

✌️ I brought my toddler to the library yesterday and we both got our own library cards, he was chuffed to bits to pick out the design and write his name and has insisted on carrying it around with him none stop haha :3

We got him out about six books out and we have managed to read four already also the guy there was amazing with him and got him super involved in a little activity book they do there he was so excited, plus we played the massive connect four game haha 😅

I got myself three out and I started reading before bed last night and all of a sudden remembered I actually flaming love to read and so every few weeks we are going to get a bunch out and it will be our little thing, feels good to get back into reading again, I'm a book worm at heart tbh, also I used a bookmark yesterday my friend gifted me a while ago and it's so pretty and made me smile haha :3

✌️ Even though I'm out of hospital and it's now been three weeks. I'm still in a major flare right now, I've been struggling to stay positive with the pain and stiffness I'm enduring everyday, because of my stupid sps, but I've decided I'm actually hopeful for January because I get to see a brand new neuro at the start of the month, I looked him up and he looks like a really friendly person, so fingers crossed :)

✌️ Before bed last night I was like actually maybe I am better on my own, and decided to think of all the reasons why I'm probably better on my own without a partner. Then proceeded to dream of a zombie apocalypse of all things haha, and in it I had a boyfriend and we were battling through it together, but we were madly in love and super passionately into eachother, and then I woke up like, oh yeah I actually deserve real love and happiness, despite me being a chaotic mess at times. Someone someday will see me beyond my own perceived flaws at times and love me regardless so yeah :D

✌️Yesterday I got two compliments - Someone yesterday whilst I was out and about - I gave some money and some food to two homeless people and an older woman had seen me twice do this without me realising through town, and called me a ray of sunshine in a dim world and well that's possibly one of the nicest compliments I've ever had off a stranger in person.

Then in a crowded shop I was getting worse and going completely rigid the more walking I was doing, because venturing out during a flare wasn't the best but I had an appointment so didn't have a choice really, and I was on the verge of crying because I was in so much pain, but wanted to get Ethan some jumpers so ventured in, but I could barely stand at the checkout, and was clinging onto my walker with lots of bags, and an older woman asked if I was alright, then she said that despite being in pain she can tell what a wonderful mother I am because I was making him laugh and how I talk to him, despite struggling to get up from grabbing something off the floor haha.

Then she complimented my son saying how wonderful he is as he was helping me :3

So yeah sometimes complimenting a stranger can really make their day because I really needed to hear something positive yesterday because internally I'm really struggling to keep positive at the moment.

✌️ I'm getting more in the Christmas mood finally which I didn't think would happen this year, but you just can't not when you have a toddler haha ^^ I'm excited for him to see what santa brings him and we are going to do some little christmas crafts as we got a Christmas crafting book yesterday for toddlers! :3 I also budgeted yesterday and made a list of ideas to get Ethan and so I feel more prepared haha :3

✌️ My treats to myself this year for Christmas - I'm going to buy some lacto free tablets and treat myself to a lindt selection box off their website (pistachio, popcorn lindt and others I've never tried, it's my fave chocolate) eugh and a heated blanket if I can afford haha :3

So yeah,

I'm slowly trying to pull myself back together I'm sure going into next year I will be a lot more positive haha 😅🎄

[loser-jpg]

FUCK EVERYONE WHO SAID ANGEL WAS GONNA BE THE ONE TO DIE HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAH THAT SILLY SPIDER BOYS GONNA LIVE FOREVER AND HES GONNA HAVE THE MOST SICKENINGLY SWEET SLOW BURN LOVE STORY WITH THAT STUPID GAMBLING CAT

[kroosluvr]

we'll stand together, even at the end - especially at the end.

[luck-of-the-drawings]

smth smth about 'the thing that the character did that you thought was rly rly funny in the moment is actually linked to a terrible trauma that lies within said character.' or wahtever.

[a-whiff-of-a-dream]

Davrin kinda gives off 'Dad who didnt really want that dog, they got one for the kids though and now he has to care for it himself' vibes

[wojtekaneko]

While relistening to the final episodes I was overwhelmed with the urge to grab and shake Jon until hes making any sense. So not having any real Jarchivist around I was compelled (haha) to draw it.

bonus Jon closeups (+me)

[leolaroot]

tshirt that says i enjoy overdramatic and slightly silly science fiction but sincerity is a must at all times.

[bmpmp3]

everyone on earth probably has a hypothetical farming sim in their mind's eye that they daydream about on occasion because of the unfortunate situation that despite there being like a thousand farming games released every minute only like 4 of them are any good. and i think this is fun, i think its good to keep the imagination alive. if i made a farming sim i would bring back rival marriages from the old friends of mineral town. i want to steal someones wife.

[zeb-z]

ok listen. you're badboyhalo and having the worst week of your life. you're willing and wanting to give anything, anything, to get your kids back. forever, your crush/enemy/friend/date partner?/ president sits you down and asks you to marry him. he's on a drug that makes him manically happy and has an extreme level of brainwashing for federation purposes.

you consider for the briefest moment saying yes, because you're drowning in your grief and hard in bargaining, but it won't do anything to help bring the eggs back, forever doesn't know anything. forever wants the eggs back as much as you do, the real one at least, you know this.

you're surrounded by roses. you ask him what you can do to help him, what he needs, asking the forever that you know is in there somewhere. any other personal feelings aside, he's your friend and he clearly needs help. he asks you to marry him again. he tells you to stop making some noise that he's clearly hearing through auditory hallucination. you just want your kids back, you keep telling him this, until he snaps and starts shooting mines under both of you.

forever is still out of his mind. your kids are still missing. the roses are burning.

bad said no to the proposal, of course he did. that's not forever, the kids are gone, this is no time or place for such a thing even if forever was himself. but I don't think forever asked because he feels "opposite than what he usually feels" under the pills. he's manic and under the influence and half brainwashed - he wants every day to be the best day.

and how heartbreaking is that? that bad is only being proposed to while forever is out of his mind. that forever wants bad to say yes because that would make the day the best day ever for him. that under any other circumstances, on that bench with the roses all around them, it might have been something good?

[druidshollow]

"what would your character be like without their trauma?" is such a hard question for me because it makes me feel like a massive asshole LMAO

(im attaching a picture of a tundra literally to add context to my ramble in the tags because my posts are structured by a sane person) (you should read the ramble in the tags i talk so much about rivers fsr)

[fujii-draws]

hey fujii do you wanna hear about a silly little thing i thought of earlier. so you know how in red/blue rescue team, eevee used to be in the "naive" category, whereas in explorers of sky, it's in the "jolly" category? it made me think about ribbons, specifically because of how the rescue team personality test describes the naive trait.

in rescue team, the naive type is described to be someone whos highly curious, and someone who likes rare things. their cheerful and carefree make everything fun for the people around them, but they also have the flaw of being childish, never sitting still, and always being on the move. (it also says that they might be selfish but i dont see that applying to ribbons tbh..)

it seems so oddly fitting for ribbons because her personality does show those traits in particular. she's a silly little thing and her bright cheery personality, and she is childish to some extent. and of course, can't forget her curiosity. especially with how curious she got when it came to dusknoir. and of course, we can't forget about the *actual* definition of naive. naivety in the sense of choosing to believe that dusknoir, despite how his aura flared with malice, bared no ill intent. to think that someone who is so great, so wise, so kind and caring could ever be capable of shattering her world apart.. that was naive. because she believed he was what she thought he was, and because it was her naivety that nearly got her and aimilios killed. you'd think she'd have learned from the drowzee incident where two kids displaying trust in a spur-of-the-moment stranger who coincidentally showed them kindness in their misfortune was a mistake, but i suppose that's what being a naive little child does to you.

(anyways im sorry if this sounds incoherent and out of the blue. have a good day)

DONT YOU DARE APOLOGIZE FOR THIS. THE JOLLY AND NAIVE NATURES FIT MY GIRL SO WELL. (Unhinged rant in tags)

[triglycercule]

yada yada happy halloween to these FREAKS (and you guys :3 and myself i gusss :3) doodle from art class that i GUESS could be considered halloween...... idk ok idk ok something was up with me when i drew this

[hballegro]

highly recommend livetweeting things you watch to your friends or family because then you get shit like

[xxcherrycherixx]

Brooklynn getting with the broker? Nah fam we already got bored and moved on from that-

THE HANDLER getting with the broker? Fucking chefs kiss 🤌

[solsempre]

not naming any names but i personally think team orders should be abolished