#and of course it is always more complicated than what a tumblr post can provide. but by and large i have noticed this trend

[uncanny-tranny]

A lot of cis people may not want to hear this, but here goes:

You are going to have more in common with trans people who have a similar gender identity to you than you think. Trans people are reliable narrators of their own experiences, and whether you like it or not, we will have similar or even identical experiences to yours. Cis people don't have a monopoly over their gender or the experiences people have as a result of their gender.

[bitterrobin]

3, 9 and 12 for the hater ask game <3

3. a screenshot of the worst take you've seen on Tumblr -- ooh I have a screenshot, hold on.

yeah. Granted, its an old post back when the Tim/Damian conflict was more recent (I think 2013/2014-ish) but it's still very emblematic of those kinds of Tim fans. The kind of fans who treat Damian (a child) as an abomination who will never change while still excusing Jason (a young adult/current adult). I still laugh at this, its so egregious. "Jason never tried to kill me" sure man. sure. "--in no way suggests he's changed his goals at all" uh huh. "im not coming back to the manor" okay. goodbye. I swear some people treat this era like Damian was trying to alien assimilate into the family and destroy only Tim's life on purpose. Because of course everything's about Tim, nothing can be nuanced enough to include the 10 year old's trauma and everyone's else's grief into account, and if you excuse the child's actions then you're advocating for bullying/bad parenting/sibling abuse /s.

9. worst part of canon -- simple answer, how writers will always rehash arcs and the same "explorations of a character." More complicated answer, I'm not a fan of the way supporting characters have been erased in current/modern comics. I don't like when those characters explicitly created to support the main character's plot lines and expand their world are either completely gone or so sanded down they're practically splinters of wood. Some examples, I see mentions of Tim's wider supporting cast that are gone (idk Ives sounds interesting), theres the fact Maya Ducard hasn't shown up until very very recently, Harold Allnut and Leslie Thompkins vanished into the aether, Waller got super-butchered etc.

12. the unpopular character you actually like/why you should like them -- hmm. Kind of hard to answer since I can't gauge the unpopular ones in wider fandom. Technically, every character has their haters- ah wait. hold on i'm receiving a vision. ITS THE PARENTS. No matter which side of the fandom its always the parents (TM) that get disparaged and raked through the coals. Willis and Catherine Todd, Janet and Jack Drake, Crystal Brown, Talia al Ghul, I could go on probably. Yes, I do actually like all of them. Willis's abusive nature was a retcon and even if it wasn't, its still rooted in classist ideas of "Poor man will inevitably abuse wife/child because he is poor and unsatisfied, something something he didn't work hard enough for capitalism." Willis can be a subpar father, but hitting his child shouldn't be the only aspect to explore. Jason tried getting revenge for his dad's death, he loved him, what you do with that is more interesting to me than "Willis sucked and Jason hates him and Bruce is better/Bruce is equally as bad and Jason also hates him." Catherine and Crystals addictions are often portrayed as "absent and not nearly there enough to provide their child protection." Catherine's sickness/addiction was super up to interpretation until it was retconned to "full blown drug addict". Crystal was being abused and trying. Children can resent their parents over this, but sometimes you need to look past the character and at the actual writer who wrote this into canon. Did they or did they not hold their own bigoted views and insert them into the comics because that's what they wanted and no one stopped them? Janet was dead before she could meaningfully warp Tim and by all accounts she was loving to Tim even when she wasn't always there. All of Jack's flaws are so utterly banal and human and a clear signifier of the 90's/2000's ideas of parenting that making him more than a slightly pathetic and macho-oriented man just...doesn't make sense to me. And I won't get into Talia because we'll be here for hours. I will say that Talia is truly in a lose/lose situation because people will hate her whether she actually has a hand in Damian's childhood or not. To me all of these parents can be nuanced and interesting to explore, especially in situations without their children. I like writing about Willis and Catherine's childhoods. I like exploring Talia's relationship with her father. I like thinking about Jack being hopeless and still having redeeming qualities and Janet being so loved by him it destroys him when she dies. I just think the idea of "parents before they were parents" is neat! I love thinking about the people they used to be before a child, because having children is so changing. Was Willis affected by his own parents? Did Willis actually know Lady Shiva as friends or was there some crazy backstory we'll never get? Did Catherine have her own hobbies and dreams, did she always want a child and accepted Jason as her own so readily because it haunted her for years? Did Janet go into archaeology for a specific reason, was it a family passion? Did Jack meet Janet and covet her intelligence and independence? Did Talia dream of becoming a world-renowned surgeon and having that be accepted by her father wholeheartedly, having her successes be her own successes?

Disclaimer: If you vent using DC characters then thats entirely valid! I'm just weirdly neurotic about accurate portrayals and in no way am I an authority on any of the above.

[mythsandheather]

I've been pretty curious about the LO Critical side. I'm asking genuinely but what are the reasons why LO has such a strong anti Fandom.

Do people not like it? I was curious because it seems like a lot of lo critical/anti lo blogs seem to enjoy certain aspects and characters. Is it the author people don't enjoy?

Like I said I'm really being genuine. I think people have the right to have like their own critical space for a free webcomic. It's just interesting because it's like. This Fandom has a second Fandom of people who seem to hate the comic.

The anti community for any fandom is sure to be a complex place that’s usually, in my experience, more built on pain and disappointment than anything else. Pain because something important to you no longer provides comfort, maybe even perpetrates harmful themes for your own personal experiences, and disappointment because this is something you used to love and you wish could be better.

There’s two parts of the anti community for LO. There’s one part that, as you said, still holds some affection for the series, for memories attached to it and for some characters. There’s also another part that, again as you said, straight up just hate it.

I’ll briefly touch on the first part. They can see so clearly how LO could be infinitely better and that’s frustrating. They can see all the flaws they didn’t notice or didn’t want to see before and are exasperated by why it’s allowed to continue this way. Let’s not forget that a significant number of LO’s critics are people who were young teens and read it in their formative years without realising what they were being so carelessly exposed to.

With that realisation, there’s a level of anger and horror at learning what was put in front of them, marketed as safe and heavily promoted at every turn, and it’s only gotten worse over time. That must be an absolutely gut-wrenching thing to feel over something you loved once.

So in that sense, you’re correct; a big part of the anger comes down to Rachel herself and her choices.

Then there’s the other part of the anti fandom, the part that just out and out hates it and always has. This is where yours truly fits in.

Now, I was super active on tumblr during 2014-2017, when fandoms like Steven Universe, FNAF and Undertale were at their peak. I had to learn, trial by fire, how to be real critical of any media I consumed. There is certainly a downside to this, I tend to see the negatives of anything I enjoy first and then find positives later. The upside is it’s certainly been one helluva way to improve my media literacy and spot the bs from a mile away.

A lot of people don’t believe when I say I got skeevy, uncomfortable, gross vibes from LO from chapter one, but I did. I don’t know what it was, but it set me off so bad that I couldn’t get past “her butt is shaped like a heart” and never read it again.

Now I’m willing to admit that this part of the fandom, like me, are the way we are because we were never the target demographic for LO.

Therefore, when it came out and got popular, we were the ones who were absolutely baffled and the ones who got dog piled and called every name under the sun by fans for a long time…that is, of course, until a lot of those fans grew up, realised what they were reading and turned on the series.

As I said, the critical side of any fandom is complicated and this is just my two cents.

I could do a much longer post about how fucking angry I am at Rachel personally for the fact she’s from my country, a country who constantly gets ignored, and given this amazing chance that so many of us wish we could have, yet chose to peddle her self insert x celebrity crush jailbait fantasy.

I could talk all day about how physically sickened I am that she’s taken so many aspects of trauma experiences by myself and millions of others and used it as ignorant, glamourised, fetishised shock-material.

I could go on at length about what a racist, misogynistic, homophobic piece of baggage she is and how she’s permanently done damage to another culture while completely misrepresenting ours…but I won’t.

I’ll just draw more mean art of Persephone’s giant lips and Hades accidentally letting the air out of them with his mosquito nose instead.

What’s Rachel going to do? Draw a goofy, technicolor caricature of me in her comic that’ll blend into the background, be only half finished and look like a recoloured Persephone in her otherwise pristine and totally professional looking masterpiece that’s definitely not losing readers? Oh wait—

[guapoduoshipper]

Something to say:

TL;DR: There are people wanting to get away from the difficult environment of these purgatory days so we will be working on this blog with some Guapoduo content to make a safe space for everyone :)

We have noticed that these last few days have been a bit complicated in terms of moods and mixed emotions within the fandom. Both those that are normal in an event as intense as purgatory and others derived from misunderstandings due to lack of context or contrary opinions, especially on twitter.

That's why the admins of this blog (Lyn and M ) want to remind you that Guapoduoshipper is a space made by guapoduers dedicated to guapoduers, since the beginning the purpose has been to provide a healthy space where we can share the love we have for our ship always keeping a friendly mood.

With that in mind, this week we'll both be working to bring Guapoduo content herebesides what happens in Purgatory (which we'll keep talking about, of course): headcanons, new songs for the playlist (and we'll FINALLY post the spotify link), screenshots of past VODs and general analysis.

We'll also continue to re-blogging art, analysis and screenshots that the community shares in the #guapoduo and #spiderbit tags so that content will also be archived on the blog.

In the not too distant future we would also like to start recommending fanfics, it is a project that excites us a lot but right now we are both saturated so for the moment it is only a "coming soon".

For all this we just ask for a little patience. Like everyone here, we only do this as a hobby and we don't make money in any way with this (it's not our intention either, we do all this because we enjoy it), so it's normal that sometimes personal situations demand us more attention than a tumblr blog about gay cubitos.

Finally we remind you that our inbox is open for all of you and your music recommendations for the playlist, your analysis, fanfic recommendations, etc. If you are an artist (fanficker, animator, illustrator) and you would like us to publish some of your work related to Guapoduo, we will be happy to do it.

Thank you so much to those who share our content on twitter! We are so happy when our work reaches other platforms, you are always welcome to do so as long as you remember to leave us credit

So, for those of you who want to take a break from the heavy atmosphere of these days, we welcome you to explore our content:

This is all from fans for fans made with lots of love, thanks for following us!

- Lyn & M

[graylinesspam]

I’m still trying to define my asexuality for myself, and your posts have helped clear up that definition, I think. How did you come to defining your own? If you’re comfortable talking about it, no worries if not

Honestly, i am very uninterested in strict definitions. Instead of making things overly complicated by trying to define exactly what it means to me, I have oversimplified. Asexuality is non or very little sexual attraction.

I don't see the need for making it any more complicated than that because I generally don't bother to explain myself or my sexuality to other people. I do so on this website purely because I've seen a lot of my fellow ace people, such as yourself, struggling especially in the wake of the acephobic wave that hit tumblr a few years back.

If you want to know about my personal experience trying to figure out what the fuck sexual attraction even is. I'm gonna be real, idek.

I have never in my life seen another person's physical body and thought, "yeah, that arouses me. I'd like to have sex with them".

In all reality i think sex might be a fun activity in the way that like smoking weed is a fun activity. It's stimulating to the senses and the hormones within my body. But that's it. I came to the conclusion that I am ace in part because it is very hard for me to conceptualize sex.

I either find myself thinking of it selfishly as a way for my own orgasms to be achieved. Or conversely as a way to do that for someone else. I have to center one person as the focus of sex when i think about it. Either i am getting or they are. The idea of sex as an activity that two people are engaging in together for intimacy is foreign to me. It seems more like a service being performed. Which i have come to realize is a very cold and sterile way of viewing it.

Even in the most romantic way of viewing it i still see it as just another act of service. I might bring someone pleasure in the same way I might make them coffee before they wakeup. Or cook for them. Or run an errand. Or buy them a gift. It's showing affection but the way i view it seems to be surface level to the way that others do.

I say that I am neutral to the topic of sex because I honestly don't care about it half as much as everyone else seems to. It's just a tool.

And because i don't experience attraction to people i don't experience the tolerance to them and the side effects of sex that other people do. There are no rose colored glasses. I don't like excessive bodily fluids. spit and sexual fluid doesn't become less gross. genitals don't become less weird. the concept of sticking your genitals together for stimulation doesn't become less bizarre. Some allosexual people talk about experiences where they're "brought out of it" or "icked out" basically turned off and suddenly bothered by the sexual process. Well I am never turned on by my partner and therefore am always kinda there.

Which isn't to say I can't enjoy sex. it's just that engaging with another person has so many caveats, and stipulations, and downsides that i find myself very unmotivated to engage with it.

I don't like that sex drive really just means libido, because I have plenty of libido, but I have basically no drive to actually engage in sex. I want to cum. end of story. Everything that gets in the way of that is just a complication.

And of course I feel like such a douche whenever I think something like that. Because it legitimately sounds like dialogue from a narcissistic male lady harassing character in a 90s sitcom.

which is why generally I just avoid it all together. There is something more to sex that a lot of people are looking for, a kind of connection , intimacy, and validation that I cannot provide them.

Whatever it is, I don't have it.

(The tone of this is very frustrated, which honestly, with this topic, currently, I am. But i don't mean to be discouraging. Your experience can be and probably is different from mine. And if it's not...at least we're in this boat together.)

[tetsuskei-archive]

risu loved your hot take about smut.

also is it just me or like writing smut has always been relatively easier than fluff or even suggestive banter type shit? because in smut, you can bullet point- yeah they gonna do this and this and this and call it a day but fluff requires some depth. a perfect setting for the fluff or angst to actually be enhanced.

And according to each author’s writing style, they have to add imagery, or like metaphors or engaging dialogues to make it work. For me, when I was writing suggestive/banter related fics for kuroo or gojo, I was staring at the screen in despair so that my brain conjures some smart words or a perfect setting for them to act on. So it was relatively harder for me. And if other authors have faced such similar challenges and yet post majority sfws, you can guess the amount of hardwork they’ve put into it and would love for any sort of appreciation of their work. And

Im not downplaying smut authors by any means, every piece of writing takes up a fair share of effort and even I’ve had my fair share of challenges in writing smut too because firstly I experience high key embarrassment proofreading it and secondly, good smut requires the same criteria too (it’s just sfw fics gets the floor to portray a reader’s personality more than its nsfw counterpart) it’s just we want the audiences to interact with these posts with the same enthusiasm and not read and toss it aside :((

to our dear readers, Lores are fun. Just get yourself out of that sex bubble and you’ll see why a simple fic of having breakfast with nanami in scotland is actually so much fun to read and enjoy

happy reading!!

sami thank u for sending this! providing my thoughts under the cut.

i honestly am shocked by how many ppl commented on that. (someone said i was ‘insulting the intelligence of those who only read smut’ and was being ‘misogynistic’. i didn’t intend to do that, and think my words were taken out of context by that point, but it is what it is now.)

i do agree that with smut if i have an idea of the dynamic i want and what the characters might be into, i can plan a course of action for what is going to happen. sometimes i start w smut and then incorporate the plot later tbh.

you’re absolutely right, there’s nothing wrong with reading and writing smut. no one is any better if they don’t read smut than those who do. personally my comment was only towards the select who constantly intake content on here and aren’t always careful about what they read. even heavily more so towards the porn link posts too. hence why my original comment said ‘some’ because obviously it doesn’t apply to everyone.

i really do admire those who are able to world build so fluently and with great detail whether that is in smut or not. i agree with your point that it may be a bit more complicated to build a story without smut if you’re focusing more on characterization, personality, and setting. smut pieces that bring this to the table seem like the longer ones for the most part, but that doesn’t mean shorter ones can’t either. also i know it’s another tricky thing to mention is how people go about making their reader with personality or not bc ppl complain anyway anyhow when there’s something they can’t identify with.

at the end of the day i just wish to keep supporting ppls writing in general but also wish the tumblr community was more friendly like it used to be. a lot of ppl seem discouraged lately about their writing and i hope that things can get better soon.

(btw breakfast with nanami in scotland sounds heavenly! pls sign me up immediately <3)

[thewholedamnboulangerie]

I was tagged by @bisexualbard-writes my beloved to post 5 things I like about myself!!! Thank youuuuuu ☀️🦦💖🪐🥰

I have a pretty good sense of direction, and oh my god when I was younger I did NOT appreciate this enough. I don't have the innate sense of where north is that some people do, but (particularly if I'm travelling in right angles, not in curved lines) I can usually keep track of the general direction I'm going in with a lot of accuracy, and I can read maps super easily and remember the exact routes I've taken before, provided they aren't too complicated!! It is a vvv useful skill and I LOVE it.

I am very good at picking up foreign languages! Comparatively speaking I haven't made much progress with Thai, given that I've been semi-immersed in it for close to a year and a half by now, but that's mainly because I've just been learning via osmosis rather than putting any actual effort in whatsoever. Still, I can usually understand any really simple sentences without much trouble and pick out at least a few words of the more complex ones when I'm watching something in Thai now, so that's something!! (Also, my duolingo streak is currently at 951 days!)

I am quite judicious, just as a general rule (...with the notable exception of What Time To Go To Bed). As in: I don't tend to act rashly, or speak tactlessly, but for the most part I'm also fairly good at steering clear of the level of caution that just saps joy and stirs up anxiety rather than actually being beneficial. This is not to say that I always make sensible decisions - far from it! I am always making objectively silly decisions! But since my objectively silly decisions tend to be for the purposes of indulging in the delights, as long as they fulfil that goal and don't cause any collateral damage that's too insane, I'm usually happy to consider them subjectively Correct decisions (with - and I really and truly CANNOT stress this enough - the exception of absolutely any decision related to sleeping habits 💀).

I am SO good at platonically matchmaking my friends!! I love to introduce my friends to each other, or throw them into groupchats together, or (on one memorable occasion) drag the blorbos from my tumblr dashboard AND the blorbos from my workplace to the theatre together! And then watch as they all instantly imprint on each other like lil ducklings!!! This has happened so many times and it is my favourite thing every single time! (And of course, the fact that my own taste in friends is so elite is almost certainly a contributory factor to how well they always get along. All of you are so so good and lovely! ❤️)

I am very good at directing my gaze. By which I mean several things!! First of all: I AM ALWAYS PERCEIVING. When it comes to things I care about and enjoy, I am noticing details! I am connecting dots! I am picking up on hidden meanings! I am spotting clues and interpreting them! I am reading your tags with fluency and delight even though you censored them and miscounted the asterisks! I am remembering that thing you said five months ago and bringing it up again at the funniest possible moment!!! My brain is Kim Theerapanyakul's murderboard and it is covered EXCLUSIVELY in all the things that are shiniest and most precious To Me and I am solving their mysteries!!! Secondly: when it comes to the worst parts of fandom culture, I am never perceiving. If there is a bad take, I will simply not see it. If I do see it, I will simply forget about it in 3 minutes flat. No cursed opinion has any power over me because I shall simply magnetically repel it thank you goodbye xoxo Most importantly: I am a very firm believer that life is always terrible and also that life is simultaneously always wonderful. Both are true at all times; it just depends where you're looking. And sometimes life inevitably forces your gaze towards the most terrible things the world has to offer, and there's no choice but to engage with them. But when given the choice, I like to think that I'm pretty good at directing my gaze towards the wonderful end of the scale. The everyday delights are my best friends and hopefully they always will be!

Tagging a few blorbos from my dashboard who I don't thiiiiiiink have been tagged in this yet: @divorcedmalewife, @fallen-robin, @youneedtolightenup, @yourrescuemission, @diamondcrystals, @thevorelock, @guntapon, @nangong-shunu

[notsosilentsister]

What is your female characters pet peeves? How do you think female characters should be written? And do you think people often minimise violence against women when it is subtle or passive?

One of my most reblogged posts on tumblr is quote by writer Foz Meadows, about the lack of redemption arcs for female anti-heroines. So that's definitely something I'd like to see more of, for instance. It doesn't mean that I think you should never write iredeemable female villains though. Firstly, because "should" is always a tricky word in the context of art, wouldn't want to sound dogmatic, etc. Secondly, because I don't generally mind cartoon villains; sometimes that's just verissimilitude.

Sure, I usually prefer multidimensional, dynamic characters with complicated motivations, drawn in a nuanced, psychologically plausible manner. But there's also a place in story-telling for cartoon villains and Mary Sues, broad archetypes and blank slates for audiences to project onto. Characters don't have to be relatable, redeemable, admireable, complicated, dynamic, nuanced, plausible, active, memorable, unique, not even interesting. The interesting thing about a piece of fiction doesn't have to be a character. Not every piece of writing has to be character driven. There is no way any individual character could be written that I would consider categorically wrong.

One does notice patterns though, some of which I'm not too fond of. The dearth of redemption arcs for female anti-heroines for instance. Or how the prototypical Blorbo on Tumblr is probably male.

A Blorbo is not necessarily a protagonist, or even a character with a lot of agency, lines, scenes. A Blorbo can play a quite minor role in the source material. The whole thing about the Blorbo is that the fans do most of the work themselves. They sift the canon for every crumb of info, no matter how meagre the yield, and create the most lavish meals by adding home-grown ingredients. It's an ever repeating miracle at the foot of the mountain, a perfect use-case for the age-old wisdom that a little can go a long way, with a bit of crowd participation, if you know the tricks.

But it doesn't just happen, there are some tricks, and they are, it seems to me, sometimes a bit neglected for female characters. A lazy writer might consider a female character as likelable by default, merely by virtue of not having her do anything overly objectionable. Or they might equip her with all sorts of interesting characteristics on paper, but fail to follow through on show-don't-tell. The biggest issue however, the biggest obstacle on the road to potential blorbo-hood, is being done with creating a character too quickly, letting her remain as the placeholder that was introduced in the first outline.

The important thing about a Blorbo is that you can imagine a life for them beyond the narrative of the source material. They must seem more than a mere plot device, an obstacle for the protagonist to overcome, a victim to avenge, a trophy to win, a provider of exposition, a token to meet a diversity quota.

Of course a lot of writers, in their first outline - if they use an outline - might start with plot devices instead of characters. Ideally these are just placeholders, to be replaced by the actual characters in revision after revision, as their image becomes clearer and clearer in the writer's mind and the organically evolve beyond their initial conception. Some writers say the characters take on a life of their own. I tend to find this too cute by half, implying there's not much agency on part of the writer. But I do think there's a valueable idea in there, the idea that you have to let the process take you beyond your first idea, because let's face, first ideas are often very dull. To allow a character to come alive in that way, there has to be willingness to let them grow beyond the place initally reserved for them by the placeholder, to create that space for growth in your mind, to revise and adjust original plans accordingly.

Some writers won't do that, they'll stick to their initial outline come what may, they have no curiosity for their characters beyond their plot function and they're never going to be my favorites. But not everything has to cater to my preferences, and compelling characters are not the only way to sell a story. That's not really my issue.

My beef is with writers who can apparently make that space for evolution for their male characters, and seem to stick with their first outline when it comes to the female ones. Of course I don't have any conclusive evidence for that, it's just a feeling you get with some characters who seem to remain mere placeholders to the end, there's just never the slightest whiff about them that seems to point beyond a first idea. I think this is a subtle violence already, this lack of curiosity, lack of imagination, lack of willigness to change plans to do a character justice, comittment to keeping a character in their original place. Especially because it's an attitude all too easily transferred to real-life-relationships with women and might trigger a lot of frustration and agression when women fail to serve the function they were assigned at the start.

[vees-strangeworld-omniverse]

STALEMATE SHIFTER: the triffins and triffinoid

(NOTE: description copy-pasted from DA where i normally post my works. any context that is missing here on tumblr can be found on my DA [linked here and on pinned post] )

[this image is best viewed when opened in another tab]

so, the third and final of the "Big three" that were the three shifters created during the stalemate wars. these guys are by far the most broken and complicated and...well, you'll quickly see why.

some of the stuff on the first image may be wrong and i changed it when writing. it really was just a mess, but i tried to make sense of it as i when along.

like with the kelvxerns and tronics, let's start with some backstory.....

THE (rather scattered) BACKSTORY

    like with the kelxverns and tronics, they were created during the stalemate wars, intended to help out in conflict, and when the pukanis got wind of the project the documents were destroyed in a fire in an attempt to cover up their actions. However, while both the tronics and kelxverns had at least some of their documents survive, the triffinoids are a...different story.     you see, everything we know about them comes from only two or three surviving documents about them, the rest being cross-references in some of the other stalemate's surviving documents. This was because, unlike the previous two in which a good deal of the information survived, almost all of the documents that specifically surrounded them were destroyed, leaving behind nothing but, again, cross-references and three documents. However, even what little available information there gave enough insight onto what exactly the trifinoids were.

    based on both the information and general speculation/theories, the trifinoids were among the first stalemates to be created. They were made as a testing ground for various forms of genetic manipulation and shifting technology. bits and pieces of references also suggest that they may have also been made to participate in warfare, and perhaps possibly be kept as "exotic mutant pets". Whatever the case, by the time the pukanis began to figure out about the stalemate shifters, there were several different varieties of triffinoids, and it seemed there was intent on creating more. It also seemed that, of all the stalemates out there, the trifinoids were the most valuable yet the most incriminating, and thus more effort was put in to destroy all of the documents than the kelxverns or tronics.       However, even though such little documents about the trifinoids themselves survived, there are multiple references and mentions of them in many of the other stalemate's surviving documents, of which often refer back to the trifinoid regarding the various special abilities each stalemate shifters had.     Although triffinoids have been long freed from the horrors of wartime genetic manipulation, they are still of value to the scientific community, as they provide some valuable information on the stalemate's powers. Though nowadays, these tests and studies are done in a significantly more ethical manner with willing participants. 

TRIFFINOID BASICS

    Now that we got down the lore of the triffinoids, we can now get down to some of the basics of what triffinoids are.

First things first: what exactly is a triffinoid?

Triffinoids are a general term for an elkinet-animal hybrid that had the head, neck and body of an elkinet, and the limbs, back and (sometimes) tail of a non-argonian, earth-like tetrapods. They may also have other animal parts such as horns, ears, manes, wings even, ect, often (but not always) belonging to the same animals as what they’re made of. That, of course, is the general description of what a triffinoid is. 

There are a total of three major triffinoid groups that exist:

-triffins: single-species hybrids who have the back and limbs of a flying/gliding non-argonian animal. They also have zygodactyl feet, regardless of what species they’re part of.

-common triffinoid: any regular triffinoid that is single-species, often also having the tail of their respective animal.

-hybrid triffinoids: triffinoids that are a hybrid of more than one animal. They can consist of up to four main animals, which take the form of the forelimb, hindlimbs, back and/or tail. 

    The exact animals they are made up of can vary wildly, but like said above they consist of non-argonian, earth-like tetrapods. And that could be practically anything: our earth fauna, mythical creatures, earth-like critters from other worlds, ect. Their size also varies wildly between that of an elkinet and that of whichever animal they consist of.     Triffinoids, depending on the hybrid, are capable of bipedal locomotion much like their elkinet counterpart, however with some triffinoids their animal-like locomotion is often the way to go, and sometimes they’re even incapable of walking on two legs. Bizarrely, though, their forelimbs are surprisingly dexterous, regardless of if they shouldn't be (i.e. paws, wings, hooves). It wouldn't be perfect by any means, but being able to hold and manipulate an object with what they got is rather impressive.     Behavior-wise, despite the animalistic appearances, most if not all triffinoids are rather civil, capable of speaking, literacy, ect. However, some animalistic tendencies are also included, which tend to happen involuntarily. These are usual noises and body language reminiscent of whatever animals they’re a hybrid of.

 Interestingly, there’s not just those basic triffinoid form, but also shifters as well, which we conveniently go onto next…

TRIFFINOID SHIFTERS AND THE “TRIFFVERNS”

    Because of course my little screwed up mind would come up with some kind of shape/size shifting counterparts.

Of all the stalemates create, the triffinoids have the most shifter species to their name. It would make some sense, though, since they were meant to test the shapeshifting technology as well. Some of the smaller, less grand type of triffinoid shifter includes the following:

-triffin kelxvern: a regular kelvern who’s elkinet form is a triffinoid. Typically their non-elkinet form is either a human or an anthro. If humans, they are always some kind of hybrid of the same animals their triffinoid form consist of, usually in the form of a mini hybrid like a kemonomimi (though they may have animal arms or legs as well). With anthros, however, mini hybrids are pretty rare. However, interestingly enough, whatever species the anthro is will always be part of their triffinoid form (ie a horse anthro being part-horse as a triffinoid).

-hideaway triff: similar to the triffin kelxvern, the difference here is that instead of having a human or anthro for a non-elkinet form, they instead are able to turn into whatever animal they are a hybrid of (specifically the sentient talking animals). Typically, hideaway tariffs are usual a common triffinoid and thus only have one animal to their name, but as hybrid triffinoids can change int multiple animals (which, again, are the same as whatever animal they’re a hybrid of)

-triffinet: triffinets, unlike the previous two, switch strictly between an elkinet and a triffinoid. Still technically considered a form of kelxvern, the triffinoid form is treated as the non-elkinet form in there case. Their elkinet form, depending on the hybrid, may also sometimes have small, vestigial wins on their back, as well as horns, ears, and really anything that makes them a minihybrid. However, this is on an individual basis, as sometimes they may not even show any signs that they’re a triffinoid.

-sizechanger triff: sizechanger triff, as the name would suggest, are unlike all the others here for the simple fact that they only size-shift between their aircraft and animal counterpart’s sizes. Much like with the hideaway triff, they’re typically a common triffinoid but hybrid triffinoids aren't unheard of either. Similarly with the triffinets, their animal sizes are treated as the non-elkinet forms.

    Now, regardless of the kind of shifter, they’re all still have the same specifics as kelxverns, which include the following:

-created via specific premeeristite -transformation from non-elkinet to elkinet starts at the limbs/tails and works it’s way up (Note: their half-plane form looks more like a triffinoid with human parts replacing airplane parts, see triffverns below) -either gains shifting powers slowly or suddenly (dependant on if either one or both parents are shifter triffinoids). -cannot reproduce naturally and need to be artificially incubated (we’ll get more into that later at the end)

    However, their is one big shifter type that has all of those abilities, and that is the Triffvern.

Although triffinoids were meant to be test subjects, the triffverns were believed to be some kind of “final product”, or at least some catch-all for further studies. However, of course that’s just speculation, since like said there's very little on the triffinoids themselves, let alone the triffverns.

Anyways, the triffvern has all of the shifting powers of the other triffinoid shifters. With all of those forms (of which are shown above),they are separated into three categories: elkinet, non-elkinet and halfplane:

ELKINET

-primary triffinoid form: their main form as well as their default. The primary form is always a hybrid triffinoid, always consisting of 2-4 animal species, with at least one flying/gliding animal. 

-secondary: much of the same as the primary, but now only single-species. Although this is also an odd extra halfplane form from animal to primary triffinoif or elkinet form, since it’s the same size as their other elkinet forms the body treats it as an elkinet form, and thus it’s classified as such.

-elkinet: your standard elkinet form. Typically with the triffverns, the elkinet form often have at least one piece of animal parts to them, which is commonly vestigial wings, horns, ears, ect. The transition from human to elkinet form is exactly the same as a regular kelxvern. 

NON-ELKINET

-human: standard “human” form, but like the triffin kelvern, they’re always a minihybrid between the different animals. And, of course this form can also be an anthro as well.

-animal: unlike most others here, the animal form has no hybrid stuff going on. They are basically an average talking animal.

HALF-PLANES

-half-triff: half triffs look almost exactly like their primary triffinoid form, except their elkinet bodies are replaced with that of a human. No surprise, this occurs between their primary form and non-elkinet form.

-part-triff/sphinx form: sometimes also called secondary half-triff form, because it’s much like the half triff, but single-species like the secondary triffinoid form. This form occurs between the human form and the animal/secondary triffinoid form.

    Beyond the shapeshifting, triffverns can also size-shift between human, elkinet and animal forms, and they can do this in any form. This, however, is a learning curve, and usually like with kelverns they typically have to learn how to shapeshift into the basics first, then try to go after changing specific parts and then they’re finally capable of sizeshifting. However, unlike other kelxverns the triffverns have sizeshifting as a natural part of their abilities, and often they get to this point faster than the standard kelxvern.

MISC TRIVIA AND FACTS

Alright, now for some facts ant trivia that i couldn't bother placing somewhere different.

1-the whole reproduction and children thing     Yeah, you can tell i’m starting to reach my end with this. Anyways, triffinoids and their shifter counterparts can only have children with other elkinets species (standard, tronic or non-shifting triffinoids) or stalemate shifters (any elkinet shifter created by premeerisite or similar “stones”). They cannot reproduce with humans/anthros, nor talking animals, something which many believe is intentional. 

2-interspecies triffinoids and their first transformations     Of course, there exist created, pure and interspecies triffinoids, much like there is with any of the stalemate shifters. With most of the triffinoid shifters, it’s pretty simple: pure shifters are born one form, and slowly begin to gain their shifting abilities at a young age; likewise, interspecies/created triffinoid shifters get their abilities more suddenly and at a older age.     When it comes to interspecies/create triffverns, they don't exactly go through all of the forms, rather instead they initially go through the standard elkinet-to-human/vise versa first, and usually after that they then start changing into their other forms and eventually are able to size-shift.

[cathartes-aura-shitposting]

STALEMATE SHIFTER: the triffins and triffinoid

(NOTE: description copy-pasted from DA where i normally post my works. any context that is missing here on tumblr can be found on my DA [linked here and on pinned post] )

[this image is best viewed when opened in another tab]

so, the third and final of the "Big three" that were the three shifters created during the stalemate wars. these guys are by far the most broken and complicated and...well, you'll quickly see why.

some of the stuff on the first image may be wrong and i changed it when writing. it really was just a mess, but i tried to make sense of it as i when along.

like with the kelvxerns and tronics, let's start with some backstory.....

THE (rather scattered) BACKSTORY

    like with the kelxverns and tronics, they were created during the stalemate wars, intended to help out in conflict, and when the pukanis got wind of the project the documents were destroyed in a fire in an attempt to cover up their actions. However, while both the tronics and kelxverns had at least some of their documents survive, the triffinoids are a...different story.     you see, everything we know about them comes from only two or three surviving documents about them, the rest being cross-references in some of the other stalemate's surviving documents. This was because, unlike the previous two in which a good deal of the information survived, almost all of the documents that specifically surrounded them were destroyed, leaving behind nothing but, again, cross-references and three documents. However, even what little available information there gave enough insight onto what exactly the trifinoids were.

    based on both the information and general speculation/theories, the trifinoids were among the first stalemates to be created. They were made as a testing ground for various forms of genetic manipulation and shifting technology. bits and pieces of references also suggest that they may have also been made to participate in warfare, and perhaps possibly be kept as "exotic mutant pets". Whatever the case, by the time the pukanis began to figure out about the stalemate shifters, there were several different varieties of triffinoids, and it seemed there was intent on creating more. It also seemed that, of all the stalemates out there, the trifinoids were the most valuable yet the most incriminating, and thus more effort was put in to destroy all of the documents than the kelxverns or tronics.       However, even though such little documents about the trifinoids themselves survived, there are multiple references and mentions of them in many of the other stalemate's surviving documents, of which often refer back to the trifinoid regarding the various special abilities each stalemate shifters had.     Although triffinoids have been long freed from the horrors of wartime genetic manipulation, they are still of value to the scientific community, as they provide some valuable information on the stalemate's powers. Though nowadays, these tests and studies are done in a significantly more ethical manner with willing participants. 

TRIFFINOID BASICS

    Now that we got down the lore of the triffinoids, we can now get down to some of the basics of what triffinoids are.

First things first: what exactly is a triffinoid?

Triffinoids are a general term for an elkinet-animal hybrid that had the head, neck and body of an elkinet, and the limbs, back and (sometimes) tail of a non-argonian, earth-like tetrapods. They may also have other animal parts such as horns, ears, manes, wings even, ect, often (but not always) belonging to the same animals as what they’re made of. That, of course, is the general description of what a triffinoid is. 

There are a total of three major triffinoid groups that exist:

-triffins: single-species hybrids who have the back and limbs of a flying/gliding non-argonian animal. They also have zygodactyl feet, regardless of what species they’re part of.

-common triffinoid: any regular triffinoid that is single-species, often also having the tail of their respective animal.

-hybrid triffinoids: triffinoids that are a hybrid of more than one animal. They can consist of up to four main animals, which take the form of the forelimb, hindlimbs, back and/or tail. 

    The exact animals they are made up of can vary wildly, but like said above they consist of non-argonian, earth-like tetrapods. And that could be practically anything: our earth fauna, mythical creatures, earth-like critters from other worlds, ect. Their size also varies wildly between that of an elkinet and that of whichever animal they consist of.     Triffinoids, depending on the hybrid, are capable of bipedal locomotion much like their elkinet counterpart, however with some triffinoids their animal-like locomotion is often the way to go, and sometimes they’re even incapable of walking on two legs. Bizarrely, though, their forelimbs are surprisingly dexterous, regardless of if they shouldn't be (i.e. paws, wings, hooves). It wouldn't be perfect by any means, but being able to hold and manipulate an object with what they got is rather impressive.     Behavior-wise, despite the animalistic appearances, most if not all triffinoids are rather civil, capable of speaking, literacy, ect. However, some animalistic tendencies are also included, which tend to happen involuntarily. These are usual noises and body language reminiscent of whatever animals they’re a hybrid of.

 Interestingly, there’s not just those basic triffinoid form, but also shifters as well, which we conveniently go onto next…

TRIFFINOID SHIFTERS AND THE “TRIFFVERNS”

    Because of course my little screwed up mind would come up with some kind of shape/size shifting counterparts.

Of all the stalemates create, the triffinoids have the most shifter species to their name. It would make some sense, though, since they were meant to test the shapeshifting technology as well. Some of the smaller, less grand type of triffinoid shifter includes the following:

-triffin kelxvern: a regular kelvern who’s elkinet form is a triffinoid. Typically their non-elkinet form is either a human or an anthro. If humans, they are always some kind of hybrid of the same animals their triffinoid form consist of, usually in the form of a mini hybrid like a kemonomimi (though they may have animal arms or legs as well). With anthros, however, mini hybrids are pretty rare. However, interestingly enough, whatever species the anthro is will always be part of their triffinoid form (ie a horse anthro being part-horse as a triffinoid).

-hideaway triff: similar to the triffin kelxvern, the difference here is that instead of having a human or anthro for a non-elkinet form, they instead are able to turn into whatever animal they are a hybrid of (specifically the sentient talking animals). Typically, hideaway tariffs are usual a common triffinoid and thus only have one animal to their name, but as hybrid triffinoids can change int multiple animals (which, again, are the same as whatever animal they’re a hybrid of)

-triffinet: triffinets, unlike the previous two, switch strictly between an elkinet and a triffinoid. Still technically considered a form of kelxvern, the triffinoid form is treated as the non-elkinet form in there case. Their elkinet form, depending on the hybrid, may also sometimes have small, vestigial wins on their back, as well as horns, ears, and really anything that makes them a minihybrid. However, this is on an individual basis, as sometimes they may not even show any signs that they’re a triffinoid.

-sizechanger triff: sizechanger triff, as the name would suggest, are unlike all the others here for the simple fact that they only size-shift between their aircraft and animal counterpart’s sizes. Much like with the hideaway triff, they’re typically a common triffinoid but hybrid triffinoids aren't unheard of either. Similarly with the triffinets, their animal sizes are treated as the non-elkinet forms.

    Now, regardless of the kind of shifter, they’re all still have the same specifics as kelxverns, which include the following:

-created via specific premeeristite -transformation from non-elkinet to elkinet starts at the limbs/tails and works it’s way up (Note: their half-plane form looks more like a triffinoid with human parts replacing airplane parts, see triffverns below) -either gains shifting powers slowly or suddenly (dependant on if either one or both parents are shifter triffinoids). -cannot reproduce naturally and need to be artificially incubated (we’ll get more into that later at the end)

    However, their is one big shifter type that has all of those abilities, and that is the Triffvern.

Although triffinoids were meant to be test subjects, the triffverns were believed to be some kind of “final product”, or at least some catch-all for further studies. However, of course that’s just speculation, since like said there's very little on the triffinoids themselves, let alone the triffverns.

Anyways, the triffvern has all of the shifting powers of the other triffinoid shifters. With all of those forms (of which are shown above),they are separated into three categories: elkinet, non-elkinet and halfplane:

ELKINET

-primary triffinoid form: their main form as well as their default. The primary form is always a hybrid triffinoid, always consisting of 2-4 animal species, with at least one flying/gliding animal. 

-secondary: much of the same as the primary, but now only single-species. Although this is also an odd extra halfplane form from animal to primary triffinoif or elkinet form, since it’s the same size as their other elkinet forms the body treats it as an elkinet form, and thus it’s classified as such.

-elkinet: your standard elkinet form. Typically with the triffverns, the elkinet form often have at least one piece of animal parts to them, which is commonly vestigial wings, horns, ears, ect. The transition from human to elkinet form is exactly the same as a regular kelxvern. 

NON-ELKINET

-human: standard “human” form, but like the triffin kelvern, they’re always a minihybrid between the different animals. And, of course this form can also be an anthro as well.

-animal: unlike most others here, the animal form has no hybrid stuff going on. They are basically an average talking animal.

HALF-PLANES

-half-triff: half triffs look almost exactly like their primary triffinoid form, except their elkinet bodies are replaced with that of a human. No surprise, this occurs between their primary form and non-elkinet form.

-part-triff/sphinx form: sometimes also called secondary half-triff form, because it’s much like the half triff, but single-species like the secondary triffinoid form. This form occurs between the human form and the animal/secondary triffinoid form.

    Beyond the shapeshifting, triffverns can also size-shift between human, elkinet and animal forms, and they can do this in any form. This, however, is a learning curve, and usually like with kelverns they typically have to learn how to shapeshift into the basics first, then try to go after changing specific parts and then they’re finally capable of sizeshifting. However, unlike other kelxverns the triffverns have sizeshifting as a natural part of their abilities, and often they get to this point faster than the standard kelxvern.

MISC TRIVIA AND FACTS

Alright, now for some facts ant trivia that i couldn't bother placing somewhere different.

1-the whole reproduction and children thing     Yeah, you can tell i’m starting to reach my end with this. Anyways, triffinoids and their shifter counterparts can only have children with other elkinets species (standard, tronic or non-shifting triffinoids) or stalemate shifters (any elkinet shifter created by premeerisite or similar “stones”). They cannot reproduce with humans/anthros, nor talking animals, something which many believe is intentional. 

2-interspecies triffinoids and their first transformations     Of course, there exist created, pure and interspecies triffinoids, much like there is with any of the stalemate shifters. With most of the triffinoid shifters, it’s pretty simple: pure shifters are born one form, and slowly begin to gain their shifting abilities at a young age; likewise, interspecies/created triffinoid shifters get their abilities more suddenly and at a older age.     When it comes to interspecies/create triffverns, they don't exactly go through all of the forms, rather instead they initially go through the standard elkinet-to-human/vise versa first, and usually after that they then start changing into their other forms and eventually are able to size-shift.

[antimonarchy]

How to Create Image Descriptions

So I’ve been creating image descriptions on tumblr for about a month, and I wanted to share some helpful guides I’ve found on how to create them as well as my own tips that I’ve picked up. Video descriptions and transcripts are also necessary, but since I mostly focus on image descriptions that’s what this guide is about. This might get a bit long, so fair warning. 

What are image descriptions?

Image descriptions are a textual depiction of what is going on in an image, as shown with the image below. 

[Image ID: A picture of a person with short black hair working on a computer. They are sitting at a wooden table with a large blue pot of pink flowers in front of a grey brick wall. A guitar is propped up against the wall in the background, and there is a string of lights near the ceiling. /.End ID]

Why create image descriptions?

The primary reason for creating image descriptions is to allow people who are blind/have limited vision to experience visual content. Many people who are blind/have low vision use screenreaders, which read text out loud when it is clicked or hovered over with a mouse. A large amount of online content, such as pictures, graphics, or drawings, is visual and so possibly cannot be experienced by someone with vision problems. As a general rule of thumb, anything that can be dragged or dropped most probably requires a description. In addition, if someone has partial vision and attempts to zoom in on an image, sometimes it can become pixelated and impossible to understand. 

Some neurodivergent people might need a description to understand the tone of an image, such as the meaning of facial expressions of a person to understand what emotion the artist is trying to depict

Some people might not have high speed internet or have low computer memory, meaning that they turn off images in order to save space. This means that they as well might require descriptions of visual content

Are image descriptions the same as alt text?

no, alt text and image descriptions serve the same purpose, but they are different in how they are presented. Alt text, short for alternative text, is included in the html of an image and can be read by a screen reader. However, there are many reasons why many prefer image descriptions over alt text. 

There is a limit of 200 words in alt text on tumblr specifically (and not in other contexts, which makes this information only applicable here), which means that detailed images or graphics are unable to be described fully without possibly cutting out important information. 

People who require descriptions, but who do not use a screenreader, must right-click and search through the html of an image in order to find alt text, but with an image description they are saved that work. 

Who should create image descriptions?

Everyone who is able to should create image descriptions. A content creator is best able to communicate the message of their work through text, as they are the one who created it and thus understand its message the best. While of course it takes practice when starting out, over time image descriptions become second nature when posting visual content. Always check the notes of a tumblr post for an ID rather than reblogging without one. 

What should be included in image descriptions?

There is no simple answer to this question, there are a variety of resources and guides on how to create one, and you should not accept my advice as the ultimate authority, as I am by no means a professional, and only create descriptions in my spare time as part of the effort to make Tumblr more accessible. However, here is my information for those starting out. 

First, consider what type of visual content it is. Is it fanart of a tv show, a screenshot of a tweet, or an informational graphic meant to educate people on a particular issue? 

Then, consider what information is most important in the image. If the visual content is an image of a famous building, then in writing the description the focus should be on the building, rather than describing for instance the color of the sky, surrounding buildings, or the clothing of the people walking by, as they are not the information that is being presented. 

Perkins ELearning has an excellent list of things that should generally be included, which I will include here. In my experience, these are the most important elements to describe

The people and animals in an image

The background or setting of an image

Elements that relate to the context specifically, so if it was an image of a congested highway on a news website, the description would mention the packed cars

The colors of an image (don’t overdo it however, a simple ‘light blue’ will suffice, no need to say something like ‘a color blue that is similar to the color of a robin’s egg’ unless it is crucial to the viewer’s comprehension of an image)

Context for an image. For instance, imagine if someone had drawn a version of the Bernie Sanders ‘I am once again asking’ meme, with Eleanor Shellstrop from the Good Place saying “I am once again asking for there to be a Medium Place.” Rather than provide a description to the example such as:                                          [Image ID: A drawing of Eleanor Shellstrop saying “I am once again asking for there to be a Medium Place.” /.End ID] you would instead say                                                                                                [Image ID: A redraw of the Bernie Sanders ‘I am once again asking’ meme with Eleanor Shellstrop from The Good Place saying “I am once again asking for there to be a Medium Place. /.End ID]

If the image is of a social media post, include the username/handle of the creator as well as the reactions (likes/reblogs) if they are visible in the image, as they may be cut off by the original screenshotter. 

If it is a drawing or piece of art, always look for the artist’s signature when writing a description

How do I write an image description?

To start off, here is an example description written for a piece of art I made myself. 

[Image ID: A digital drawing of Suki from Avatar: The Last Airbender over a gold background.  She is shown from the shoulders up facing the viewer, and has a neutral expression. She is wearing metal armor over a light green tunic, and is wearing her Kyoshi Warriors facepaint and headdress. The artist’s signature ‘Astra’ is written in the lower right of the image. /.End ID]

In this description:

I made clear where the description begins and ends, so that someone with a screenreader is not confused. I usually use brackets ([ ]), write the words ‘Image ID’ (or video/gif/other) and finish with a slash, period, and the words End ID. (/.End ID)

I emphasized the type of image, in this case a digital drawing

I said the character’s name (obviously this may not be known if describing a photo or something you are not familiar with)

I described the background and the character’s clothing

I described her expression

I included the description of my signature.

This is my basic process for writing a description

I first say what the content is, such as a drawing, photo, or screenshot of a tweet.

I then use what is called Object-Action-Context for the most part, which UXDesign has a long article on https://uxdesign.cc/how-to-write-an-image-description-2f30d3bf5546. For example, [Image ID: A photo of a person standing in a crowd waving to someone out of view in front of a river. /.End ID] While obviously I would usually provide more information than that, Person = object, standing + waving to someone out of view = action, and ‘in a crowd’ = context. 

I describe the clothing that might be worn

I talk about the position that people in an image might be in, such as leaning against one another on a couch, or standing with their fingers intertwined

I talk about the expressions on their faces, if shown

I talk about their general appearance (if important to the description) such as hair color/length

As said before, I talk about the context of an image if necessary

If the background is a simple color, I usually include it in the first sentence of the description. However if it is more complicated, such as a river winding through a dense forest, I include that at the end of the description after describing the important elements. 

Typically if I am reblogging an image, I do not add on any commentary after creating an image description, as this allows others to reblog my description without my personal reaction. If I want to add on to an image, I usually reblog my description post. 

In general, it is best to remain objective when writing a description, meaning not including your opinion of the content. However especially in an informal setting, say for instance you were describing an adorable cow, I would see it as fine to say [Image ID: A small drawing of an adorable cow. /.End ID] because the emphasis is on the appearance. There isn’t a clearcut answer, and it really depends on the context. 

What are some tips for writing descriptions/common pitfalls?

If there is an element of an image like a line that represents an emotion, or a sound effect like ‘clang’ if something falls, include that in the description. For instance, [Image ID: ...beside the mug that has fallen on the floor, there are the words ‘sploosh’ indicating the sound of the water that has spilled out. /.End ID]

Put image descriptions first. Don’t hide them under readmores or any other text. If you have something with multiple images and you are the creator, place the description under each image in succession rather than all at the end. Readmores are ableist, as they require someone who has vision problems/one of the conditions described above to do more work to access the message of visual content. 

If you are mentioning the skin color and/or race of someone in an image, make sure you describe it for anyone else who might be in an image. Don’t just describe the race of someone who appears to not be white. This doesn’t mean that you have to describe race, such as if the character is one whose race is commonly known, just that if you do, make sure you do it for all characters/people in an image. 

In order to write IDs effectively, I’ve found it useful to download a screen reader. I use NVDA, which is entirely free and easy to use and can be downloaded here: https://www.nvaccess.org/download/. 

Insert + Q turns it off

While my guide has focused mostly on image descriptions, video descriptions are also necessary. However they are not my area of expertise, and differ slightly, so I would recommend anyone interested in them to check out this website https://www.washington.edu/accessibility/videos/

Transcripts, for those who are d/Deaf/Hard of Hearing, are also necessary for making content accessible, and might be required for content that also has a visual format, such as a Tiktok. I would recommend this website https://www.w3.org/WAI/media/av/transcripts/ for anyone interested in writing transcripts

What are some more resources I can check out?

Here are a series of websites that I have found while researching how to write descriptions

UX Design -  I mentioned UX Design earlier when talking about Object - Action - Context, this article is very useful and examines how to structure a description and provides very useful examples for beginners

Perkins E-Learning - This article is very useful in helping someone what to include in a description, such as clothing or background information, as well as providing some additional information on alt text if you are interested

Meloukhianet - This blog post by s. e. smith goes into detail on the elements of an image to emphasize depending on its context, using the example of a picture of their cat sunning himself. 

SOAP - This article by the Stanford Online Accessibility Program (SOAP) provides a large amount of information on the purpose of image descriptions and what content requires them

HubPages - This article by SOTD and Zera discusses the difference between sparse, lush, and overdone descriptions, which is the amount of information included, and if/when each should be used. 

I hope you found this information helpful, I encourage everyone to check out these websites, and my inbox is always open for questions!

[sxfik]

let's talk about episode 16 and why it confirms solhwi endgame

back to masterlist

a/n: as always, this is just my opinion and what i interpreted from episode 16! some of this might be a stretch (or wishful thinking lol) but ya know, feel free to start discussions etc.

just through my time scrolling here on tumblr and on twitter, i've seen many viewers be disappointed with the last episode and it's lack of confirmation for solhwi (and also like understandably so, we'd all love to see a more "firm" confirmation). but i genuinely think that this whole episode was a confirmation of their feelings for each other, that there was something there.

the most important thing to remember about this show is that it is not a romance. the main plot is centered around the mystery but also these students learning how to navigate the law and trying to show the different sides of the law (ways the law can be used to help vs. ways the law can be used to harm). we, of course, also get to explore the relationships of the group with their family, their professors and with each other. so overall, i think we can all agree that we weren't going to get an "explicit" confirmation of their feelings for each other.

i think one of the things law school does really well as a show is that it doesn't give a "perfect" ending to every story. for example, in many shows, we see every plot line resolve in the show with no open endings and in general, it ends up all resolving with in the span of two episodes. but with episode 16, especially the ending scenes, we see that not everything is resolved. we don't get an answer for every single mystery, such as seung-jae's story line or the full extent of professor seo and assemblyman koi's relationship. what we do get instead is a "set-up" to show or hint at how the relationship might develop in the future. this also applies to the relationships within the story: for example, we don't really get a full ending for kang sol B's issues with her family. rather, we see that they are going to therapy and working it out together. we don't get a true ending to the court case with ji ho's dad. even with kang dan and her story, we don't get to see a "full" resolution to it, but we do get a hint/a sense that everything is on track to be resolved. many people might argue that this is a sign of bad writing but i disagree. i believe that this is realistic writing, because the issues that are faced by the students in the show is not resolvable in one year and neither are their relationships.

with that in mind, i would apply the same logic to solhwi. like i said, i didn't think we'd get a kiss scene or anything similar to that in their 1L year. through this season, we are tracking joon hwi and sol A's relationship as it grows from classmates to acquaintances to friends to in like to in love (especially for han joon hwi). if you go through and rewatch the show, you can see that as the episodes go on, we see han joon hwi and sol's relationship develop into something that is based on trust, care, appreciation and communication.

i've seen many people say that we've over hyped their relationship in the last couple episodes but i don't believe that's true. i believe that the show is trying to display that both of them are falling for each other, they're both seeing each other in a "new light." for joon hwi, that moment came much quicker; like i said in this post, joon hwi is realizing the extent of his feelings towards her when he says that he owes her. and this last episode proves it! this whole episode we see the camera focus on han joon hwi's reactions and his love for sol, except he's actually aware of himself. earlier, the reactions came out without him realizing or being aware that he's in love with her. but this episode? he is aware of his feelings for her. throughout this episode we watch as his admiration for her grows louder and louder, from smirks and soft smiles at her to appreciation for her knowledge and talents. we see the hint of defensiveness cross his face when ji ho insults kang sol (which by the way definetly felt more like ji ho was taunting joon hwi that he was actually insulting kang sol). even sol B knows when she asks to start but he makes her wait for sol A.

and in the end, we see that sol is realizing her feelings too. i believe for her, the change came through ye-seul's trial. some part of her always loved his company and his friendship but after the trial, and their friends teasing their jealousy, i think sol definitely took more note of joon hwi. i think it's evident in their 1L year in this episode, the looks of appreciation she gives him, the way her eyes seem to always land on him in the end. and ESPECIALLY the courtroom scene where sol and joon hwi were practicing her argument, we can see her feel the tension and his presence as he grows closer to her, we can see her getting flustered and nervous around him in a the way you would with someone who's position is your life is graduating from friends to a crush. the beginnings of this episode definitely show that solhwi is starting to full on fall for each other.

THEN during their 3L year, we can see how they're full blown gone for each other. i genuinely think that at this point, they are in a relationship with each other and here is why.

one: the moment sol sees joon hwi walk by, she calls out his name asking him what he's up to. then when he responds "i want to wind down" she follows him. when they get out of the elevator, she says "you said you wanted to wind down?" and he lets out a teasing laugh at that. i definetly think that she was talking about/expecting something completely different when he said he wanted to wind down, because as he explains that he wants to wind down by "watching the trial," you can watch the gears turning in her head before answering "right, i should wind down too" in an embarrassed way, with joon hwi teasingly smiling at her (obviously he knows where her mind went to). and then after stretching, sol makes her classic "you're so annoying/you're so frustrating" face at him.

two: as kang sol and joon hwi provides counsel to the old man, we see joon hwi once again watch kang sol but the expression on his face this time, is a lot different to the expressions that we've had previously. before, the reactions and expressions were more distant, more "in admiration" and in amazement (about her and his feelings for her). but in his reactions this time around, we see it's more firm, it's more confident. it's a completely different expression of love than what we've seen before. it's a lot more similar to one that a boyfriend or a husband gives their significant other than the expression a boy gives to his crush. it's a lot less amazement and enamorment and more content, proud expression.

(honestly it's kinda hard to describe how different the expressions are in words, but if you watch the moment around 1:00:00, you'll see what i mean)

here's the thing: the concepts and issues that law school is showing us are not resolvable issues in one year, and they are not "easily" resolvable issues either. that is what this show has been trying to show us: that the law is complex and it's application in the real world is even more complicated. so it would not make sense for this show to wrap everything up in a neat bow and present it to us in the final episode. moreover, solhwi has forged a friendship through the pressures of law school as well as the overarching mystery and plot of the show. this season was centered around watching them develop a relationship together and this show hints and shows that solhwi are soulmates, their relationship will not be an epic love story where there are grand gestures or confessions of love. it is a gradual change from friend to lovers, while having independent development and maintaining their own goals in life. the very ending, we see them reach their goals as lawyer and prosecutor but they still come together. if they were to have a confession scene in the very end of the show i believe that it would have been too rushed without enough development on both sides. i think that law school ended in the best way for both characters without reversing or skipping their development while leaving room and hinting at the possibilities for the future.

[rafaelblackbird15]

Teen Wolf Fic Recs Part 2: Steter

It took me quite awhile to gather all these together, so please enjoy discovering more parts to the incredible world of Teen Wolf, provided to you by the wonderful writers of our fandom.

Leave comments and kudos for these writers if you can, they really deserve it, they're wonderful. And it's my honour to try and share their creations with tumblr.

These are Steter, Stiles Stilinski/Peter Hale fanfictions. Read them at your will. Check the tags on the actual fics for warnings and such.

I have included links to authors that write a lot of Steter as well, and some of their fics for examples. I'm sorry this post got so long, haha, but enjoy the stories, they're worth it.

If any of the links don't work, just comment and I'll fix it.

Check out my other Sterek fic recs [Part 3] and [Part 4] and Steter fic recs [Part 1]

*********

Broken Bones and Broken Bonds by twothumbsandnostakeincanon(somanyofthekids) on Archive of Our Own

Words: 20148

Chapters: 4/?

Summary:

Stiles kind of wished that he’d at least tried weed before this. 

Or something, you know? Maybe taken up a graffiti hobby, or even just skateboarded in front of City Hall often enough to get a citation. 

He wished he’d done something to be deserving of the looks people gave him now, rather than just being the recipient of his dead father’s unused power. 

**********

Stigmata by twothumbsandnostakeincanon (somanyofthekids) on Archive of Our Own

Words: 1661

Chapters: 1/1

Summary:

He feels so hollow that he almost wonders if he's been turned inside out. This emptiness he feels; is it the vastness of the entire world?

How do you fill a world? With people, he supposes. But his people no longer want him.

He needs people.

*********

Beefcake Mountain by twothumbsandnostakeincanon(somanyofthekids) on Archive of Our Own

Words: 14565

Chapters: 7/7

Summary:

Shortly after moving back to Beacon Hills, the left hand of the Hale Pack opened a text from a mysterious number.

"Is there a mirror in your pants? Because I can see myself in them."

What the f—

**********

Steter Week 2019 by twothumbsandnostakeincanon(somanyofthekids)

Works: 4

Complete: No

Summary:

There isn't a summary listed so I've included the first fic underneath:

Marvelous Miss and Magnificent Mischief by twothumbsandnostakeincanon(somanyofthekids)

Words: 3346

Chapters: 1/1

also Part 1 of the Magnificent Mischief series

Summary:

“Marvelous Miss and the Magnificent Mischief!” the carnival barker shouted just outside the corridor with all the food tents. “Come see Miss Paige do amazing tricks with her talking raven! He not only speaks, but he jokes! He teases! He philosophizes!”

********

Author: twothumbsandnostakeincanon(somanyofthekids)

This author has a lot of wonderful Steter fics, and their writing of the pairing is really worth having a good look through.

*******

Blood Runs Cold by Smalls2233 on Archive of Our Own

Words: 111408

Chapters: 22/22

Summary:

“So then why are we letting Scott and Derek search for it if you know it's useless?”

Peter looked down at Stiles and cocked his head with a grin. “Because I think seeing my nephew and your best friend run around like headless chickens while I think up a plan is hysterical.”

“And the plan is…?”

----

Trusting Peter Hale is something that Stiles had repeatedly told himself to never do. He had seen first hand the results of Peter's plans and schemes, but when a shadow began tormenting Beacon Hills, he found that sometimes he'd have to to play along with Peter's games.

This story does include a dose of Chris&Stiles interaction about midway and carries on throughout, and then Chris/Peter towards the midend, which also carries on. And it kind of dissolves into Chris/Peter/Stiles. If that's not your taste, that's fine, because the majority of the story is Stiles/Peter, and that majority is really really good Steter.

**********

No One Listening Tonight by Smalls2233

Words: 6985

Chapters: 1/1

Summary:

That left… well it left Peter and only Peter. Relying on Peter for help was only slightly better than stabbing himself through the eye with a hot poker. But desperate times called for desperate measures.

Of course, there was always the option of packing up and letting whatever was trying to destroy the town succeed this time. Stiles snorted under his breath as he thought about how that would probably leave him with fewer injuries than dealing with Peter would. But unfortunately, that wasn’t an option. Stiles knew he needed to head downtown to Peter’s apartment and pray the man was willing to work with him.

----

Stiles stumbles into a magical trap forged by a wannabe warlock.

*********

Author: Smalls2233

*********

Blue by Wynnebat on Archive of Our Own

Words: 3179

Chapters: 2/2

Summary:

Derek brings both Scott and Stiles to the hospital to prove a point about hunters, but Stiles isn’t sure the point he’s getting is the point Derek’s trying to make. Especially when his black and white world explodes into color the moment he looks into Peter Hale’s eyes.

*********

The Long Way Around by Wynnebat on Archive of Our Own

Words: 15569

Chapters: 3/3

Summary:

When Peter leaves Beacon Hills for good, he expects that to be it for the broken bonds of the last remaining members of the Hale pack. Fate and Stiles Stilinski aren’t of the same opinion.

**********

Prowl by Wynnebat on Archive of Our Own

Words: 3454

Chapters: 1/1

Summary:

Laura's body is never found, but instead of continuing with his murder spree, Peter gets distracted by the scent of his mate. Stiles gets very distracted by the huge wolf that starts showing up at his house all the time.

**********

Author: Wynnebat

This author writes some really interesting, deep stories about Steter that are really beautiful.

**********

your last white lie (everything is not alright) by snowdarkred on Archive of Our Own

Words: 4023

Chapters: 1/1

Summary:

Stiles says yes, and things go downhill from there.

**********

reflect by snowdarkred on Archive of Our Own

Words: 569

Chapters: 1/1

Part 1 of the dig your teeth in and tear until you taste (peter/stiles oneshots) series

Summary:

(previously posted to tumblr)

When he dreams, he can sometimes still hear his mother’s voice, explaining it to him: Reflections are the price we pay for what we are.

*********

sentire by snowdarkred on Archive of Our Own

Words: 1027

Chapters: 1/1

Part 2 of the dig your teeth in and tear until you taste (peter/stiles oneshots) series

Summary:

[to feel]

Stiles hears the whisper of death before it strikes.

**********

Author:

snowdarkred

This author writes some really intense, interesting stories about Peter and Stiles. Not as long as some fics are, but they're really good adaptions of Steter with a lot of feeling.

**********

The Striking Complication by aurevell on Archive of Our Own

Words: 27235

Chapters: 4/15

Summary:

The smile slips off Stiles’s face. “Hey, um. Why am I here?” he asks, voice unsteady. “I’m—I have this weird feeling like I shouldn’t leave you. I’ve felt all day like...” He can’t finish the thought.

Peter looks as surprised as Stiles feels. A strange expression passes over his face, there and gone before Stiles can decipher it.

Stiles snaps awake each morning with the sense that he’s missing something. Weirder still, he can’t wrap his head around his sudden, inexplicable trust in Peter Hale, who seems to know way more than he’s letting on. Nor can he guess why a half-remembered nightmare seems to haunt his every move.

Rinse and repeat. Because time loops suck, apparently.

*******

Author: aurevell

This author has 11 Teen Wolf fics under their belt. 5 Sterek and 6 Steter. Happy rummaging!

**********

the teeth right down to the blood by sazzafraz on Archive of Our Own

Words: 2133

Chapters: 1/1

Summary:

‘We’re pretty fucked right now.’ Scott says. Stiles doesn’t speak but there’s something singing in his bones that says Scott got the message anyway. (In which both are bit and things are gruesome.)

This has a sprinkling of Scott/Stiles, Scott/Stiles/Peter, and Scott/Allison as well as Steter, but it's worth the read, a good story with an interesting concept.

*********

Author: sazzafraz

This author doesn't have that many Steter stories, although they do have a few. Although they do have some pretty lengthy Teen Wolf fics about other characters of the show.

***********

Everything goes (wow) by midmorning_bomb on Archive of Our Own

Words: 8215

Chapters: 5/5

Part 1 of the Aranea & Babewolf series

Summary:

It was supposed to go like this:

1. Peter summons demon to the circle.

2. Demon remains in said circle until Peter outlines their contract.

3. Demon agrees to elegantly crafted contract, becoming loyally bound to Peter and Peter alone.

Instead, the creature steps casually out of the circle, tosses its things onto the leather sofa, and starts immediately meddling in Peter’s immaculate space, touching all of Peter’s very expensive things.

*********

It's only by midmorning_bomb on Archive of Our Own

Words: 2905

Chapters: 3/5

Part 2 of the Aranea & Babewolf series

Summary:

“Darling, please don’t pout.”

“You’re pouting.” Stiles pouts, from the upper corner of the library, everything from his hip bones down an angry mass of hissing fangs and venomous chelicerae. “Why would we ever go back to that garbage town? Everyone there is the worst, the only good thing is the very rad and awesome curse I laid.”

*********

You are a memory by midmorning_bomb on Archive of Our Own

Words: 900

Chapters: 1/1

Part 2 of the Little glimpse series

Summary:

If he has to bleed to breathe warmth back into Peter’s icy body, he will.

Because Peter’s done the same for him.

********

Author: midmorning_bomb

This author has 16 Steter fics. A little unfriendly to some of the other characters, but it's only kind of obvious because it's not subtle about it, and not exactly underserved. Has some really interesting ideas as well as some kind, well developed Steter. Definitely have a read through.

***********

[zelzenik]

a huge informal essay on being biracial and shipping zutara

ok genuinely i’m so tired of this. so, so tired of this. obviously not all biracial people are the same, and we have our own experiences/histories based on our own racial identities, but a lot of the biracial ZK friends that i’ve made via tumblr/ao3 have the same or similar opinions that i do, and we are TIRED. that being said, i’m not speaking for all biracial people, but i’m speaking from a place of personal experience.

those who headcanon Fire Lady Katara are not inherently in the wrong. those who do not headcanon Fire Lady Katara are ALSO not inherently in the wrong either. there are racist/sexist ways to execute this headcanon, the same way there are with literally every other headcanon. those who attack this trope, though, need to evaluate themselves because the reasons they give are often sexist and racist (ironically lol).

i’m literally half Asian (from a country that was heavily colonized by other Asian countries). did my Asian parent have to give up their Asian culture in order to be with my non-Asian parent? NO. did my Asian parent have to give up their Asian identity in order to be with my non-Asian parent? NO. did the presence of my non-Asian parent completely erase all the harmful racism my Asian parent experienced growing up? OF COURSE NOT.

i’ve read a LOT of ZK fic over the past few months, and i can say that i’ve read most, if not all, of the major Fire Lady Katara fics that exist within the fandom, and i cannot name a single one where Katara is forced to give up her culture in favor of Zuko’s. even in various ZK art pieces that feature Fire Lord Zuko and Fire Lady Katara, Katara often has Water Tribe furs and symbols incorporated with her regalia, and sometimes ZUKO does too. my non-Asian parent wears the traditional dress of my Asian parent’s culture when the situation calls for it, and my Asian parent does the same. (and that’s just an example with clothing - there are tons more applicable situations). interracial relationships are (under most circumstances) a blending of all the cultures present, and often, incorporating the other’s culture into daily life is an act of love. my non-Asian parent LOVES my Asian parent’s culture and does everything in their power to respect it, cherish it, and help my Asian parent to pass it down to their children (like me, lol). i can’t imagine Zuko not doing the same for Katara. 

similarly with the above point, i can’t recall any Fire Lady Katara fic where Katara’s racial identity gets erased in favor of Zuko’s. just because those fics tend to occur in the Fire Nation doesn’t mean that she’s... not Water Tribe anymore. just because my Asian parent does not live in an Asian country doesn’t make them any less Asian. i’m not spending much time on this point because it literally doesn’t make sense.

i do think that it’s important to mention, though, that Zuko’s presence in Katara’s life does not erase the way the Fire Nation hurt her. that hurt will likely always exist because those types of wounds go deep. but at the end of the day, they’re both two PEOPLE. they’re Katara and Zuko. the same way that Indians marry British people or Koreans marry Japanese people, people from the Water Tribe can marry those in the Fire Nation. to imply that a marriage couldn’t occur between someone from the Fire Nation and someone else from the Water Tribe is stupid because it happens all the time in the real world.

i honestly think it’s really stupid that some SJWs act as though they’re doing non-white or biracial or multiracial people a favor by attacking a headcanon that was created and has been largely supported by those who are oppressed in the real world bc of their race. obviously the Fire Lady Katara trope isn’t for everyone, but to imply that it’s racist and sexist while tearing down the POCs who headcanon it? really? don’t get me wrong, i LOVE Katara (i would do anything for her, no lie), but how is attacking real POCs better than defending imaginary ones? sorry not sorry, but that’s stupid.

the Fire Lady Katara trope has the potential to grant Katara with tons of agency, not only within her relationship with her significant other, but also with the country that HURT her (so she can prove any of the prejudiced Fire Nation people the hell wrong and provide protection for the Water Tribe in a post-war world). 

and going a step further, personally, i identify heavily with Zutara Steambabies (as i know a bunch of my other biracial ZK friends do) because of the intricacy behind their racial identities. a Fire Nation and Water Tribe union WOULD be complicated due to the countries’ histories together, but that doesn’t make it impossible. love CAN be born despite broken histories and deep-set prejudices. that’s part of what makes Zutara so beautiful, in my opinion. 

finally, i don’t know what people are on when they attack mostly only Zutara for these sort of headcanons. don’t y’all realize that 85% of all the canon/fanon ships within the ATLA-verse are interracial?? K*taang is interracial. Sukka is interracial. Taang is interracial. Z*kka is interracial. Jetko is interracial. Azutara is interracial. Jue is interracial. Tokka is interracial. Jetara is interracial. Ty Lokka is interracial. Jinko is interracial. (I COULD GO ON). y’all are straight CLOWNING if you only come for Zutara shippers on the grounds that we’re being racist and sexist for having a headcanon like Fire Lady Katara. don’t be a hypocrite.

additionally, just because you’re poc or biracial or multiracial does not mean that you can’t be racist. so many of the people who attack this headcanon pull the “i’m biracial!” or “i’m a poc!” card. I’M NOT HAVING IT. it’s okay if the trope isn’t for you! you’re free to headcanon whatever you want. to be blatantly racist to other poc or biracial or multiracial ppl who headcanon, though, it is wrong. we already catch enough flack irl for being what we are without people attacking us in our fandom spaces too.

that being said, i love Zutara deeply. for me, as a biracial person, it’s a comfort ship. a bunch of kids posting and mistagging salt regarding our headcanons isn’t gonna change that, lol.

[herotome]

Devlog #37: Before&After GUI

Hi-ho, Wudgey here! Once again we're going to do something a little different today.

I was initially going to write a BIIIG overview of the progress we've made, but I noticed it was already getting long just from talking about the new GUI... (and apparently tumblr has a 10 image limit per post, boooo). So, I'll limit this post just to the new screens, and I'll queue up a post on our CG progress a little later. :)

A lot of this will be familiar if you've tuned in regularly to our updates; but this time I'll go into a little more detail on my process to buff out the post a bit.

First off, some before and after images as promised by the devlog title:

Name Entry Screen (Before 1/2)

I've always felt strongly about incorporating gameplay mechanics into the actual story. When I came up with the idea of having the MC write her name as part of the job search process, I was immediately invested in that direction! Originally, I was going to have the player type in their name into the Clammy Lady's tablet once they actually reached the job fair... but as you can see, it's not visually enticing.

Name Entry Screen (Before 2/2)

I reworked the idea into a resume (which makes an appearance in the March 2021 prologue demo). In my country you're expected to provide a professional headshot along with your information, which suits my nefarious purposes. The player now has an in-universe interface where they can update their picture AND type out in their name.

Name Entry Screen (After)

Finally, with help from some Ko-Fi donors, I was able to commission Re.Alice (who has a vastly more powerful background in graphic design than I do) to tighten the screen concepts and add some pizazz! Once she was done, I was able to code in some animation to give the resume screen more life.

Save Screen (Before)

Next up is the save screen. I didn't have a specific concept in mind for this one (hence the default renpy layout), but I do have strong preferences in save/load formatting from playing other games.

I referenced my favorites: Hollow Knight, Dragon Age, and Mystic Messenger. I quickly decided that I Do Not Like numbered pages, and I would replace it with a scrollbar. I did appreciate screencaptured preview pictures though, and I liked having specific names for each chapter as the player progresses.

Save Screen (After)

(I created a bigger screencapture here because the save slot text is on the small side ;;;)

Again, Alice was fantastic in helping me capture what I wanted! I also enlisted help from @synstoria for the more advanced programming areas. Once they were done, I adjusted the text format, asset positioning and added another touch of animation. I even added a bit of kerning here... who knew my college typography course would randomly pay dividends? lol.

You can see in the upper right, I've written some code to create "checkpoints" that can be loaded from this screen. The default Ren'py autosave system works by saving at EVERY choice; since Herotome is a choice-heavy game, it doesn't make a lot of sense to autosave so frequently! Instead, I'll be utilizing a checkpoint system to save before every major conversation - so if you make a mistake (or want to make chaotic gremlin choices and then claim takesies-backsies), you'll be able to use the checkpoint return to a secure area and try again.

The system will NOT save in the middle of bad endings, so you won't have to worry about getting stuck!

Choices/Textbox (Before 1/2)

What a blast from the past....! I hated the vbox choice screen so much I had to change it asap!! It's a bit nostalgic to see my original Katie sketch; I drew her on paper and added color with the multiply tool. :')

As for the textbox, I didn't really know what I wanted. I struggled with several concepts before settling for a basic gray halftone design for the time being.

Choices/Textbox (Before 2/2)

I designed placeholder assets and recruited @synstoria again to help me with the complicated coding parts. I just randomly go feral and want to break the default ren'py formatting!

I was less satisfied with the textbox, but after several concept sketches I was starting to get somewhere after I researching some superhero art deco images.

Choices/Textbox (After)

After Alice worked on the design, I adjusted the choicebox positions to be higher on the screen, so players clicking the textbox should be less likely to click on a low-hanging choice by accident. (Not that accidental clicks should remotely ruin the gaming experience, if the checkpoints work as intended...)

CONCLUSION

I'm excited about the strides we've made. Next up I'll be updating the Options screen, and I expect to update the Logbook and a couple of other screens further in the development timeline.

These visual updates will be rolled out along with the next installment, which I've decided to call Episode 1 (release date TBA). The common route will have 2-3 episodes in total before branching off into character routes. Normally I'm not keen on episodic releases, but I'm reaaally impatient for you guys to meet the love interests --and, of course, I'm impatient for you guys to talk to Warden a bit more. ^^

Please look forward to the next progress update! And if you'd like to help speed up our process (and get some spicy previews of our game's villain), please consider dropping by our Ko-Fi. We're at 72% of our goal to fund the sprite, which means we're almost there!!

I hope you’re all staying safe and keeping warm.

Much love,

Wudgey.

[lordjohngreyreadingnook]

Lord John AU Event Master List

A very special thank you to all of the writers, artists, and readers who helped make the Lord John AU Event a success! All good things must come to an end, and the body of Lord John fanworks has grown immensely during this event.

Because Pan is still a geek, here’s an infographic with some of our stats. 

Below the cut, you’ll find a masterlist of all of the art and fics submitted for the event. Most of the fics can be found in the AO3 Collection, and all titles in the master list below are links to the original work posting (AO3 or Tumblr).

Here’s how we did!

Master List Below!

Art Links

“E-girl Claire and her boyfriend John” by @deanwinchesterangelfucker

“Gender-swapped, established relationship John and Jamie” by @deanwinchesterangelfucker

Fic Links

Title: extra credit Author: @iihappydaysii Rating: E Ship: Brian/John AU Category: High School Word Count: 2,532 Summary:  Brian Randall (Jamie Fraser's gay son, of course) needs to get his grade up in his trig class taught by who other than his father's friend, John Grey.

Title: Die for this Kingdom Author: @mistresspandorawritesthings Rating: M Ship: Jamie/John AU Category: Mob Word Count: 45,255 Summary:  All Jamie “Fortnight” Fraser wants is to provide a good, safe life for his family in Chicago. But with tragedies keeping him tangled in his uncle’s deadly schemes and one tenacious—and handsome—police officer determined to bring him in, Fortnight Fraser has a choice to make. Bend to Dougal’s will… or burn it all to the ground.

Title: Remember Hawaii Author: @mistresspandorawritesthings Rating: E Ship: Hector/John AU Category: Semi-Modern Word Count: 5,119 Summary:  The chances of John Grey unexpectedly seeing Hector Dalrymple in a group of Marines was always small but never zero. In the vastness of the Pacific Ocean, Hawaii is tiny. What are the odds they'd both be there at the same time?

Title: Tasting Sunshine Author: @andhopethatsoon Rating: E Ship: John/Stephan AU Category: Supernatural/Fantasy Word Count: 6,421 Summary:  Every fae and their godmother knows that you DON'T eat the oranges from THOSE trees or you will summon the Summer King who will demand your heart’s desire in return.

Title: At Operator’s Discretion Author: @mistresspandorawritesthings Rating: E Ship: Jamie/John AU Category: Assassins Word Count: 6,210 Summary:  John Grey is an operator specializing in surveillance and termination--that is, spying and murder. He keeps all this a secret from his husband, Alex Malcolm, for Alex's protection. But when a contract comes in for one James Fraser, Grey's life gets all kinds of complicated.

Title: Theatre Masks Author: @faeriesfanficblog Rating: G Ship: Jamie/John AU Category: Modern Word Count: 1,238 Summary:  A modern AU. Jamie Fraser is an autistic playwriter attending a theatre premiere with his husband Lord John Grey.

Title: The Wild Hunt Author: @mistresspandorawritesthings Rating: E Ship: Jamie/John/Tom AU Category: Supernatural/Fantasy Word Count: 8,033 Summary:  The Sorcerer is rumored to be the only being able to influence the Wild Hunt, the same Wild Hunt hell-bent on destroying the world to get to John Grey. But the Sorcerer's aid comes with stipulations.

Title: The Right Tool for the Job Author: @iihappydaysii & @mistresspandorawritesthings Rating: E Ship: Jamie/John AU Category: Modern Word Count: 5,825 Summary:  Jamie makes an embarrassing emergency call after a sexual mishap, and John Grey is the paramedic who shows up to help.

Title: gotta listen when the devil’s calling Author: @narastories Rating: E Ship: BJR/Jamie/John AU Category: Modern Word Count: 6,105 Summary:  John wasn't looking forward to his birthday. Aberdeen was cold and bloody far away. This year they also got a surprise travel companion last minute and John is convinced, it couldn't get any worse. But perhaps, it's not so bad after all.

Title: Off the Only Path I Knew (WIP) Author: @jesuisprest747 Rating: M Ship: Jamie/John AU Category: College/University Word Count: 8,920 Summary: Nothing about University is going as Jamie Fraser planned. He misses his family and friends back home, and the friends he's made at University don't feel quite right. Under pressure from his father, he is studying business instead of his true passion - Classics and Literature. To top it all off, his roommate barely speaks to him. A story about friendship, love, and following your heart.

Title: And Say We’ll Never Part Author: @mistresspandorawritesthings Rating: E Ship: Hector/John AU Category: Semi-Modern Word Count: 6,872 Summary: The war has been over for months, and the Allied forces are slowly demobilizing. With the help of his friend and battle buddy Harry Quarry, newly-discharged John Grey ensures that Hector has a home waiting for him.

Title: Lemon Drop Author: @mistresspandorawritesthings Rating: E Ship: Hal/John/Percy AU Category: Modern Word Count: 6,335 Summary:  Weeks into their mother's engagement, John and Hal still haven't been formally introduced to their soon-to-be step-brother. So Hal suggests they take matters into their own hands. And if it turns out Percy is up for a little fun... all the better.

Title: A Pocketful of Posies Author: @levisqueaks Rating: M Ship: Brian/John (end game); Jamie/John  AU Category: Modern Word Count: 3,483 Summary:  Jamie breaks up with John a mere week before his wedding to a girl John knew nothing about. 20 years later, John finally gets a little bit of closure.

Title: London Calling - Come out of the Cupboard Author: @angstosaur  Rating: E Ship: Claire/Jamie/John AU Category: Semi-modern Word Count: 24,337 Summary:  Setting – Bloomsbury, London, early 1980’s John is a newly qualified solicitor and is working in Holborn. When he was studying law in London his mother insisted he stay in her apartment in Bloomsbury. He agreed as long as he could share with his old school friend, Claire Beauchamp. Claire has just finished at medical school and has a post as a junior doctor at a large London Hospital. They’re just good friends. That’s all. Really. After all, John is gay. Then, Jamie Fraser enters their lives and suddenly all that was taken for granted is called into question.

Title: John Grey’s Anatomy (WIP) Author: @jesuisprest747​ Rating: E Ship: Claire/Jamie/John AU Category: Modern medical Word Count: 25,452 Summary:  When John Grey decided to move to America in early 2020 to escape his past and make a new start at Boston Memorial Hospital, he only wished to work hard at his anesthesiology fellowship and heal his broken heart. Little did he know that he would soon meet two people who would change his life forever, against the background of the world's first global pandemic in over a hundred years.

Title: Blood Bound (WIP) Author: @mistresspandorawritesthings​ Rating: E Ship: Jamie/John; Jenny/Minnie AU Category: Supernatural/fantasy Word Count: 2,862 Summary:  Jamie Fraser grew up with the knowledge of the unholy evil that walks the earth. For more generations than his father could count, Fraser women have been the lone soldiers charged with keeping the evil things at bay. But when one wrong move on a haunted bog in Ireland transforms Jamie into the very thing he was taught to help his sister eradicate, he's forced to reevaluate everything he thought he knew about monsters.

Title: Love is a three-edged sword (WIP) Author: @angstosaur  Rating: M Ship: Claire/Jamie/John AU Category: Authurian Word Count: 74,668 Summary: An Arthurian themed AU featuring characters from Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series of books and the Lord John Grey stories. The enduring love triangle of Arthur, Guinevere and Lancelot retold with a different twist. Expect canon to be used and abused, mythology to be woven in as desired and for there to be scenes of an explicit nature.T his is neither Outlander nor Arthurian legend as you may know it, or accept it, but it’s a story that called to me many months ago and I shall endeavour to write it. The characters are fictional and I’ve put them in an indeterminate time, so there will be less historical accuracy than my previous long story.