#and when I’m unsure about a word I look it up in an online dictionary to make sure I understood the meaning

[hatredmadeofgold]

Typing “proshipping definition” or “antishipping definition” into the google search bar is not even 5 minutes of effort and that people do not fucking do this whenever they aren’t sure about the meaning of something and blindly believe some bullshit some random ass person says on the internet is appalling to be honest.

Like, do you really believe everything you read on the internet? Especially on “everyone lies about everything” websites such as tumblr or Twitter? Has no one ever taught you critical thinking skills?

Well, guess that checks out for most antis 🙄

Kind of upsetting to see "Proship", a simple and easy to understand term, constantly having its definition changed by people who are......not proship.

"Proship means you like loli and shota." Try again.

"Proship means you're a pedophile." Try again.

"People proship because they make the character they are closest to more relatable" ....????? Try again????

Proship is just not harassing people over fiction. That's literally it. Anti-harassment. Not all proshippers are lolisho. Some are even grossed out by it too. But proshippers realize it's all fucking fiction and if they're uncomfortable by it, they'll block the person and move on with their lives (aka being a normal, decent human being). Not start a harassment campaign against that person and try to ruin their lives. If you don't know what proship means, LOOK. IT. UP. Don't hear the "definition" from antis who try to make proshippers look bad. Also if you're just gonna say "well lolicons deserve to be harassed", save it. No they don't. If that's how you feel. Stay the fuck offline forever and work on becoming a decent person. Hope this helps.

[letters-to-rosie]

Section Four: Delivery

How we package the tour is just about as important as everything else. This is normally where one would talk about grammar, but I find that general grammar advice can be kinda hard to give. Even in English, different kinds of English have different rules. I use American English rules (usually Chicago style), but I break the rules all the time for fun. If grammar is a concern (and it can be, since it can hinder the communication process), I’d recommend doing some practice online. I’ve recommended the Longman’s Student Grammar to a client before as well, but honestly, this is the internet, and it’s probably not that deep lol. Because I tend to think of writing as a communicative process, the questions I ask myself about delivery are often related to that: how does this come across? Is this being explained in a way that relies on patterns of my own thinking that my audience doesn’t necessarily share? Is this clear? If it’s not clear, how can I improve its clarity?

Generally, clarity is the chief concern for me. If I’m not being clear, then I’m not communicating, and if I’m not communicating, the experience of my readers is hampered. But otherwise? Go crazy.

When I work with friends to resolve issues of writing on the sentence level, many times the trouble at hand is that their vision in their heads is not making it onto the page. It’s important to remember that things that are obvious to us are not necessarily so to other people. While we don’t want to overexplain everything in a way that feels condescending, it’s good to be mindful and look for blind spots we may have. The good thing is that many other aforementioned writing tools such as perspective, narrative distance and voice, tone, and the like are helpful in this task. As are thinking of our goals. No writing delivery will ever be perfect, but we can always practice in ways that lead us closer to our goals.

Some things I like to keep in mind include:

Asking whether my descriptions impair meaning. I think a lot of people like to develop prose styles that feel rich and artistic. However, sometimes it can be hard to accomplish this and still get an intended meaning across. I often rewrite descriptions I feel like are unhelpful to make them simpler. As I improve, however, I feel like my range of options for descriptions grows along with me, and my prose becomes richer.

Rhythm. This one is a bit hard because it’s not equal for everyone; familiarity with the spoken version of the language you’re writing in and musical sensibility are big advantages here. Just like speech, written language has rhythm. This is often mentioned in the context of sentence length, but it’s also helpful for word choice. Good rhythm reduces awkwardness, and less awkward writing is easier to read. If a section of writing feels awkward, I almost always suggest reading it aloud. Reading things aloud is helpful for uncovering where things feel redundant, bulky, or confusing. I’ve read entire editing assignments aloud for this reason.

Word choice. Word choice is one of those things that improves with reading. Beyond that, it’s hard to improve at it. We need not be beholden to dictionary definitions of words, especially when writing in a creative way, but the communication aspect of writing does mean that some words might not get across what we mean. I tend to doublecheck ones I’m unsure about, just in case. If it doesn’t have to do with meaning, then go crazy! There are some words that just sound more fun than others. Trust yourself here (I make like all my word choice decisions based on rhythm and the potential for wordplay. If a pun can be made, I’m making it).

Beyond that, things like dialogue, how much description to apply, how short or long you want sentences to be, how you want the writing to feel—just about all of that is subject to your goals. Don’t be afraid to change things up if you think it’ll help your vision for your writing! Especially in “The Fire Next Time” and “revolution,” I’ve been doing a good bit of experimenting, trying things like more natural-sounding dialogue, varying the level of description, cursing, and so on. It’s really fun! It makes the projects very different from anything I’ve written before them.

[kiingocreative]

The Structure of Story is now available! Check it out on Amazon, via the link in our bio, or at https://kiingo.co/book

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There are some buzz words everywhere and, in the writing world, and it feels to me like ‘journaling’ is one of them. It’s something everyone seems to be doing.

It took me a while to build a journaling habit, and I wouldn’t say I’m quite there yet with my Journaling discipline, but whatever experience I’ve had with it has been incredibly beneficial.

What’s Journaling?

Back to the old trusted dictionary! Journaling is defined as:

To write in a journal or diary.

Simple, right?

For those of you with a penchant for etymology and random fun facts, the word ‘journal’ comes from the Latin ‘diurnalis’, or ‘diurnus’, meaning ‘daily’. In late Middle English, a journal originally referred to a book containing the appointed times of daily prayers. (If you use this as an ice-breaker at your next dinner party, please let me know!)

Nowadays, journaling is a lot more about keeping track of one’s praying schedule, and much more about recording one’s thoughts in an informal, free-flowing, stream-of-consciousness manner.

It’ll take different forms for different people, and the great thing about it is that (in my view) there isn’t a right or wrong way to journal. The only right way to do it is the way that feels right to you. As with any form of writing, craft or art in general, it’s all about individual preference, and highly subjective. And because Journaling is generally something that remains personal and private, you can do whatever the heck you want with it.

Pretty great, isn’t it?

Why Journaling is Good For You.

Based on my own experience, I’ve found a few benefits to journaling:

Pressure-free writing.

I’ve found that Journaling, because it follows no set rule and isn’t meant to be shared, is a great chance to write without any pressure. To write just because you want to write, with no other agenda than indulging in your love of putting words together on a page.

To me, writing without an outcome in mind is always liberating. It’s a chance to reconnect with your craft in way you might not if there was a clear purpose to it, like writing a book due to be published or a blog article meant to be posted online.

Experiment with your writing.

Journaling is also the perfect format to experiment with your writing, and try your hand at something new. Maybe you normally write fiction, and Journaling is a chance to give poetry a go. Maybe you generally blog, and your journal can start hosting plots and ideas for a novel, regardless of what you make of it later. Maybe you’ll want to try writing exercises—like jotting down ideas from a prompt or in a specific style. Or you could start recording dreams and memories you can remember.

Discomfort is where we grow, so putting yourself in those situations regularly is a great opportunity to expand your writing abilities and hone your skills. Who knows, there may be writing gold in there somewhere!

Never forget an idea.

I don’t know about you, but I often get ideas for my writing and beyond at the most inconvenient moments—in the shower, whilst cooking, doing the dishes, or picking up dog poop (I know, oh the glamour of a writer’s life!). I always think that I’ll remember these, but the truth is, most of them get forgotten, never to be retrieved again from the confines of my mind.

Journaling is a great way never to lose sight of an idea. My Journaling involves a lot of notes about random ideas I have for a plot, a story, a post, or life activities in general. They serve as inspiration for the future. Writing them down helps me rest assured that I can go back to that list and explore it later, whenever convenient.

Free your mind &notice trends.

One of the most important things I’ve notice happen when I journal, is that it helps me empty my mind fro ma lot of the never-ending thinking loops I tend to fall victim to. By putting thoughts down on paper, I’m able to see them more clearly, and my brain finally feels like it no longer needs to hold onto them. Jotting things down is a great way to break your pattern of thinking (or, if you’re like me, obsessing) and to allow yourself time to take a step back and look at the big picture.

Whether it’s something you’re stuck on in your writing, or in your life in general, journaling on it is powerful, especially if you do it regularly. Not only will you create more space in your mind for better and brighter things—say, your next brilliant writing idea!—but it’ll also give you a chance to notice trends and recurring themes. And that’s a great way to build awareness about your own patterns of behaviour, and start eradicating your most negative or toxic thinking habits.

Keep a record.

Performance coach Tony Robbins (yes, him again! What can I say, I’m a huge fan) says that ‘if your life is worth living it’s worth recording’. I couldn’t agree more. Journaling gives you a chance to be your own life historian. To keep track of where you’ve been and how far you’ve gone. To look back on those day-to-day accomplishments that may look minute at the time but all add up to something big and wonderful in the end.

Looking at your own existence and experience as something that’s worth keeping a record of also sends your subconscious mind a clear message: that’s you’re worthy. You’re enough. Every moment of your life has an impact, the good and the bad, and helps mould who you become.

I’d say there are few more powerful truths to embrace in your lifetime!

Getting Started with Journaling.

That’s all well and good, you might say, but where do I start?

Fear not, my friend, here are some suggestions to get you started.

1. Set a schedule — If you don’t make time for it, chances are it won’t happen, because life has a habit of getting in the way. Identify a time that works best for you—whether that’s morning, midday, evening etc.—and schedule it in your calendar, setting a reminder so you don’t forget about it. If finding time daily feels daunting or unrealistic, why not start with once a week, or a couple of times a week?

2. Make it a habit — Stick to it! Whether it comes naturally or not, be disciplined about it. Embrace whatever comes, both the joys and the discomfort of it. Set yourself a goal—every day for a week, every other day for a month etc.—and sit with it for the entire duration you committed to.

3. Set a timer — Journaling doesn’t have to take a lot of time. I tend to journal for about ten minutes at a time on average, sometimes less and sometimes more. If you’re unsure what duration to start with, set a timer for ten minutes and see what comes up.

4. Let it flow — As I mentioned above, Journaling may or may not feel natural at first. It may feel great or it may feel uncomfortable. Whatever comes up for you, let it flow. Why not journal about the sensations and feelings the experience of journaling brings up? It may end up being one thing one day and something altogether different the next. Whatever it is for you at any given time is what’s right. Be open-minded, remember this is unique and personal, and no one—not even you—should ever judge it.

The Power of Rituals.

If you’re still unsure about the value of journaling, or about getting started with it, let me say this one final thing: the most important piece of the puzzle, as with anything else you do, is defining your ‘why’—i.e. the reasons behind your decision to start (or continue) journaling. Ask yourself:

Why do you want to start journaling?

Why is it important to you?

How do you think it’ll make you feel? How do you want it to make you feel?

What difference do you think it’ll make to you, to your life, to your writing?

Clearly defining your ‘why’ and your intentions will help you maintain the habit. More importantly, understanding the value this holds to you will take journaling from a mere habit—which can feel like a chore—to a ritual of self-care. That’s the difference between doing it because you think it’s cool, or because everyone is doing it, or because you think you should do it, and doing it because you know for a fact, in your core, that this will make you and your writing better and stronger.

This will go a long way in making it more enjoyable. It’ll help you build rituals around it that are nurturing and caring. Get yourself to acknowledge why it’s good for you and why it’s pleasurable, and then set up the environment to make your journaling time feel like an absolute treat. Maybe that’s setting the scene in the room where you journal with a candle or some background music. Maybe that’s selecting a nice notebook if you’re doing this by hand, or picking your favourite writing spot, at home or beyond.

Eventually, these will all act as triggers to get you into the right journaling mindset whenever you’re sitting down for it.

And if you’re not quite sure what that all looks like for you… Well. Isn’t that a great topic to start journaling about?

[fantranslatorbychoice]

Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi Volume 6 Intermission 3 - Kasuga and O-ryo

T/N: Yep, it’s a double premiere guys, I hope you all enjoy. =)

As always, if you like this translation, you can heart it, share the link, reblog, I just respectfully ask that DO NOT REPOST ELSEWHERE. This is my contribution to the scant English content of this fandom, and I worked really hard to finish this thing, it’s not like I just copy-pasted everything. I even had to build the kanji in Jisho one by one. Try it and you’ll see what I mean.You can rave about this, rant about this, reply, etc. but if possible please link back to this page. If you’re unsure how to do that, just copy the web address of this page. If you’re on a blogsite just insert the web address as a hyperlink as a link back to here. Honestly if this light novel was officially-published in English, I wouldn’t even be doing this right now... And if it did, I’d take this offline to support the publishers and Yuuma-sensei. Creators support creators, is what I believe in. I’ll prolly do 1-5 once 6-10 has been done, or however long I can manage to translate the raw texts, it can take a toll at times.  As previously-mentioned in earlier chapters, if you stumbled upon this one, the two seasons of the anime covered volumes 1-5, so other than the extra details, you didn’t miss much stuff.

No spoilers lol

P261 "Hmph. You're the newly-hired kid? Really, you're named Kasuga? Aren't you a stumpy little tanuki-girl? I am O-ryo, the future Wakaokami. I'll train you under me, and I'll be sure to drill the job of being a waitress into your head."

I remember well, the day that I first met O-ryo sama. I am Kasuga, a Bunmon Tanuki, while still a child was chased off from my home by my Hachiyo Baba-sama to experience the outside world, and along with my uncle Chiaki who also has nowhere else to go, we inquired in, and started working in Tenjin-ya. It was that first day. That person who called me stumpy, has hair and skin as white as snow, it was the conspicuously beautiful snow lady. Her personality is of someone who hates losing. She was a selfish Sempai, but has an indomitable and strong willpower to rise to the top, and I thought that surprisingly, I have come to like this person. As such, in order to gain her dream position of Wakaokami, she exerted herself no matter what it took. P262 A woman who fights her battles to win. I came to her side and I recorded her heroic battles, and I wrote about it in my diary.

"Hey.... Hey, why are you asking something while falling asleep, Kasuga-kun, HEY!" "Whaaaa~" In the middle of talking about something regarding a Hachiyo's marriage at great length, sitting on my heels I was nodding off to sleep. Since early morning I have been with Aoi-chan, and I have been going about here and there. I was feeling confident. I was dozing off in front of Byakuya-sama. Is Byakuya-sama angry or is he surprised? "Good grief. You're a reliable and shrewd girl girl, and I think that it's beyond expectations that you're going to get married to a Hachiyo... yet I am worried that they'll find faults on you. That is a position that has many enemies, do you understand? "Yeah, I get it. I have watched Aoi-chan for a long time. But Aoi-chan is awesome... Even though she's in a disadvantage, she was aware of her own strengths. Furthermore, in Tenjin-ya, when Aoi-chan gets married to Odanna-sama, isn't there anyone who grumbles about it?" "Hmmm. in that case, isn't that a problem? Because nobody's complaining, probably there's a group that's P263 thinking about rubbing her out of existence." "That point, I am fine with that. I plan to not make enemies with my demeanor, an incomptetent person making a blunder. Well, at any rate, from the very start I have been incompetent." "..." Byakuya-sama narrowed his eyes, and with a snap hit the corner of his mouth with his fan. I thought that he was going to say something but, he just scolded me and released me after saying "You can go now" . Wahh, after standing up from sitting on my feet, they fell asleep and started tingling painfully... Holding the Maneki-neko** coin bank, I planned to go back to Yugao. Along the way, the waitresses looked over here, and started gossiping and whispering to each other. Up until now the friends that were calling me in carefree voices, and the sempai that used to fiddle with and pushed me around, now they pass sideways, and bow their heads subserviently, and flees anywhere. Oh well, I could understand why they became like that but... I come in contact with the management staff that were like Shizuna-chan and they are normally composed, but I'm a normal girl, aren't I? I feel like I'm a sore thumb sicking out. "Kasuga, Kasuga" "...Chiaki" From the other side of the hallway, peeping over here looking worried, it was my uncle, the tanuki. T/N: Maneki-neko, the beckoning cat, famously known for bringing in luck. It's said that it was originally named after a cat that waved to a monk to go inside a shrine and the monk almost got struck by lightning or something, so it was a lucky omen. P264 He approached while calling for me. "What is it, from now onwards I'm helping out at Yugao." "It's not that, you were called for by Byakuya-sama, and I got worried somewhat." "It's nothing. It's just that I'm developing a souvenir product with Aoi-chan." "Why you, aren't you scowling at me?" "Why, my relative shouldn't speak about me flippantly." He isn't necessarily overprotective and he wasn't saying anything like that, but ever since the old days Chiaki has been worrying about me. He's just a nice and charming person who took care of me, and he always looks after those that are just like me. Though I'm already fine, even at this age he still worries about me... "Chiaki aren't you staying behind here in Tenjin-ya?" "Yep. I'll continue working here. Even though I was thinking of coming along with you." "It's fine, it's nothing. I've always been taken care of by uncle, I cannot function properly being a Hachiyo's wife." "...Kasuga" His eyes gloomily welling up, holding down the corner of his eyes, Chiaki went "That tiny Kasuga has grown to be praise-worthy" "Ahhh stop it already, don't be gloomy.. Get over it." Shh... Uncle you're annoying. P265 While being paid extra care, I could feel myself fading away. Our relationship, even though we are family, here we cannot become too overly-familiar. The love that tanuki give to each other are the strongest among Ayakashi, as such they aren't entrusted to to other people, which makes tanuki unaware about so many things such as getting close to and connecting with strangers. Those people, now matter how much we studied them, we couldn't find them... With regards to those, I thought I learned those in Tenjin-ya.

"Oh.." In front of the passageway that connects the door to Yugao, there is someone who is sneakily peeping in. Isn't that... "O-ryo sama, what are you doing over that place?" "Kyaaa!" O-ryo sama jumped up suprised. With a sluggish expression, she slowly looked back. Opening her mouth as if about to talk, hesitatingly, she made a weird face by sticking her lower lip out. "H-hmph." In the end, O-ryo sama took her leave without saying anything. P266 I slightly tugged on O-ryo sama's sleeves. "What now?" O-ryo sama icily stared down at me with that severe gaze. Oh well, I've been used to that gaze. "Uhm, I believe so, that O-ryo sama will likely aim to be Wakaokami again." ".... what?" "Within Tenjin-ya, there's something that only O-ryo sama can surely do." Pulling my hands immediately from the hem, I madly dashed towards the inner garden where Yugao was. The O-ryo sama who was aiming to be Wakaokami. And the one who made her dream come true, the O-ryo sama that became Wakaokami. To me, O-ryo sama is dazzling, despite the many enemies she makes, being hated by her colleagues, being gutsy and only wants to rise up into the world. The one I adored. After doing so many different things, O-ryo sama eventually became demoted from Wakaokami, and yet... When O-ryo sama becomes Wakaokami once again. Truly, I support that from the sidelines..

End of Intermission 3, Volume 6. Previous - Chapter 8 Next - Chapter 9

References:

Wonderful site for the youkai references

Other stuff I used to do this: Kodansha Kanji Learner’s Dictionary (you can buy here, I’m not sponsored btw). I was about to buy the older edition but then the newer one came out 2013 so I bought that instead. Worth buying since I was able to find nearly all of the words I needed just by stroke pattern alone.

Merriam-Webster's Japanese-English Dictionary (the red-covered 1996 version is apparently out of print right now). This is what I have been using for a very long time, I bought it when I was still a fetus (yes I am old so what lol), and after so many years, when compared to newer editions, I still prefer this one since its entirety is Japanese-English, the English to Japanese gloss are just 16 pages tops, so you get more Japanese words for your buck. But that’s just my opinion, maybe other people prefer the Jap-En x En-Jap IDEK.

Basic online dictionary, Jisho. Knowledge of verb conjugations  and other words are necessary since not all have entries.

If you can read Japanese, you can buy the whole set in Amazon Japan, they’re shipping worldwide now, I think.

[yaboylevi]

Hello there,sorry for bothering you,just a little question! If I remember correctly you said somewhere that you aren't native english speaker,I've always thought you were,is it your 2nd language?If not,could I ask please how did you improve it that much?I think it's safe to say my english level is intermediate since most of the times I understand what I read and I know a lot more than beginner english! 1/2

I understand what I read but I can't really write myself because my grammar is suck and my teacher isn't helping at all,I need my english grammar to be perfect for a reason,so would you mind me if I asked for a few advice? if you wouldn't thanks in advance ! again sorry for bothering you don't have to answer if you don't want to 2/2

Hi!

Okay, first of all, your English is super fine!

English is my second language, and I struggled with it a lot, still do. 

I started studying it when I was in elementary school so it's almost been 20 years. Granted, the teachers were heavily underqualified at the time, and I never had good English teachers for most of my school years. I remember some defining moments in my learning of English: in middle school I was a big fan of Avril Lavigne and I wanted to understand her lyrics (we didn't use the internet that much at the time and there were hardly good translations online) so I armed myself with a dictionary and her lyrics booklet. Towards the end of high school I started watching anime in earnest, and most of the time I watched them with English subs because finding subs in my native language was a hassle. Then a bit later I fell hard for No.6, found its English novels online and started reading those and I realized I understood English enough to read books. So I started reading books in English. Then I decided to translate a couple of novels from English into my native language. 

Even then, I realized that my written English, and my listening and speaking skills were very subpar, compared to my reading abilities. We rarely had to write common real-life sentences in school, and we spoke and listened to real-life conversations, like...never.

So (for different reasons) I opened a twitter account where I tweeted only in English and interacted only with other English speaking people (i realized often they weren't natives but that was good bc at least I wouldn't feel conscious about my skills). At the beginning I struggled a lot with coming up with even the simplest sentences, especially if I was in a fast-paced chat, sometimes I couldn't find the words, now it's become second nature. I still make mistakes. My only consolation is that English natives make mistakes as well ("should of", "per say" "your" instead of "you're", they sometimes don't know the meaning of certain, less common words). 

Then, in order to improve my listening skills, I started watching movies in English with English subs. It was really hard of course, but I just read the subs until I could feel myself looking at them less and less, and now I can watch most movies without subs. I think doing this could also help your grammar. When I am unsure about a grammar structure I find myself thinking back on if I ever heard someone say a sentence like that, if it even sounds good if I were to read it out loud, and what would be the most natural way to say it. Being used to spoken English can improve your writing a lot. Of course, I also google grammar structures I'm not sure of.

And finally, for written English, you can also download Grammarly, a browser add-on that corrects your grammar mistakes. For example:

The free version I own doesn't catch ALL of the mistakes, but it helps, especially with typos or when I'm too lazy to add proper commas and capital letters or if I forget a damn 's' for a plural!

Also, based on your native language, you can study (more like, try and become actively aware of) the differences between that and English. I think it helps a lot, because, for example, sometimes I can tell if a person speaks my same native language by the mistakes they make or the weird sentence structures they use. So being aware of these differences is important. 

Then, of course, I studied some clauses structure books (though tbh I hardly learned practical things from them lol) and used grammar builders.

Also, I just found this image and I feel it's true. The more proficient you become, the slower it is to improve.

You're already at an intermediate level and I think it's great. You just need to use English a lot, the things you need to learn aren't many now so it might feel frustrating if you're not making super visible progress every week. Just know that you're still, always learning.

[inviouswriting]

i think would have asked you to pick all for the writer ask ^^lll but pick the ones you want to answer the most? XD

I think I will do all of them. I was thinking about it myself and feel like it. Thank you for sending this in.

ink: what do you do to “set the mood” when writing?

I start thinking about the setting I want to write before a title or a character pops into mind. It’s why I love one word prompts because they spark off instantly.

pen and paper: do you prefer writing by hand or on a device? why?

Computer. Spell check and punctuation checker. I recently purchased word for my new laptop and it has been so helpful. I rarely write by hand. (I have bad handwriting.)

diary: how many pieces have you written that are just for you or will never see the light of day? 

There are a few stories I have written that are personal and keep to myself. Mostly original stories because not a lot of people read my original works. Maybe some day I’ll post them.

journal: do you ever write just so you can enjoy something to read?

All. The. Time. You think I write for just the fandom? I write for myself because I have stories that no one has read. Others have stories I haven’t read before. I love writing as everything comes out different than it was in my head. Like Fire I just posted. I intended that to be longer, but settled for what I wrote here. Simple. I love re-reading my own stuff because it helps me figure out what and where to take the next drabble or story I write.

novella: do you prefer to write short stories, one-shots, or entire novels?

Short stories and one-shots are easier to manage. I wrote for the fandom of Undertale. I had a really popular story I was writing. I had everything planned out, everything going for it. I had daily reviews and the sort. Then it got too much. It felt like a chore than something I wanted to do. I like shorts, they’re fun to write, and I can complete them within a day or a few minutes of sitting down and starting to write. I have a whole novel in my head I want to write. But I just don’t know how the world will perceive it.

pulitzer: tell about/link a piece where you felt your writing was the best.

This would have to be “Heaven” it is a story I wrote for the Bleach fandom. It was my first major focused graphic smut story... (If anyone has figured I am one of those writers. I can write it without problems) It broke me out of the same ol same ol “Hey I just write pwps.” No I write amazing romantic stories now. 

genre: what genre do you prefer to write in?

smuts... romance. I am pretty good at them. I can also write horror really well if I ever entertain the dark side enough. My reaper~

narrator: what pov do you like writing in best?

Second and third pov. I can’t stand first person. I feel like I am writing a diary. It feels weird.

backstory: how did you come to love writing?

I am a reader. I love books and spent most of my youth in libraries. I have learned to love the fictional works. Fantasy is my favorite genre to read. (I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t.) I started writing I think... around 12. Nothing explicit till maybe... 16-18. 

time-lapse: how long have you been writing (as a hobby or for work)? 

Since I can remember doing rp stuff. I think 11-12. It’s been like 20 years... (For those curious I am 31.)

characterization: describe your favorite character(s) you’ve written.

I’ll go by fandom where I’ve improved most

FF14. Aymeric is my favorite. I love writing things for him. Close second and growing is Estinien.

Kamigami no asobi - Hades. I love this guy. I learned I can write softly and beautifully.

Bleach - Ulquiorra. There is something about this particular character. I learned and grew as a writer because of Bleach. Ulquiorra is one of my favorite villains to write. 

Original work - My reaper Kiya. Kiya Shinikami (My black mage) stems into original works I do work on every so often. She is far from my own personality. I broke the mary sue stereotype with her. Whenever I am unsure of how I want to write for a fandom I do toss her in and see if I can make my writing work. How Trust came around. (I do have a story that would feature her in her full tilt self. Just how to write it.)

carnegie: what authors and/or books/stories have inspired you to write or influenced your work?

When I could start taking note of writing. Susan Fletcher. I enjoyed her Dragon’s milk series. (It’s an older children’s novel. but worth reading.) I enjoy authors like Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, and other fictional independent writers I see on sites and here. No one influences my writing because just like drawing. People need to focus on their own natural style of writing. Even if it is messy and uncoordinated.

faulkner: what tropes do you LOVE writing? which ones are your guilty pleasure?

Femme fatals. I have a soft spot for lovers at first sight...

o’connor: what tropes/genres do you dislike writing?

The “Came from a broken life and is obviously god’s gift to the object of desire” There is having a broken life. Then there is building the work and pulling through it. Going to Kiya here. In her story. She is someone who grew up in Elizabeth Bathory’s home. She was killed for her blood. In the after life. She rose to great heights then fell from her position only to ascend to something. She achieved her greatness through countless struggles and didn’t let her murder constrict how she goes through her life now. She was even Bathory’s reaper when it came time to collect.

dickinson: what insecurities do you have about your own writing? what do you think you should improve on?

Whether or not people truly enjoy my work. I have comprehension problems here and there. Punctuation has never been my best, even through school. I just can’t grasp it like others can. And I fear that is a put off for others.

playlist: what kind of music/songs help you write? do you have a writing playlist?

I tend to listen to trance or “mood” songs. Things that set a mood for the area I write in. If it is something longer than drabbles. Trance or instrumental music is best. (Specially for essay writing.)

record: have you written things based off of songs? do you like to?

I’ve written a few things. I do like writing songs with a music theme to them. 

nobel: have you published anything you’ve written? online or irl?

Yes! I am! I am published in an anthology for the pairing Ulquihime. https://www.deviantart.com/157yrs/art/Cross-Your-Heart-398611831 All the proceeds for this anthology are suppose to go to the children’s heart foundation. None of the writers or artists for this anthology make a dime off it. My story is called Ice.

notepad: can you write anywhere or do you have to be in a specific place and mood to write?

Drabbles are spot writing and they’re always on tumblr. I like the blue background as easier to look at than the white of my word.

parchment: how often do you or your personal life influence your writing?

Rarely. I keep my personal life from seeping into my writing. I want to separate myself as much as possible.

dedication: if you were to publish a book or multiple, who would you dedicate the book(s) to?

trope: what’s a pet peeve you have about writing? 

How easy it is. People who draw know how hard it is to perfect their skills. Same with writing. It isn’t “magic in words.” It’s time and dedication to improvement just the same. You don’t just wake up and go “I’m going to write the best thing ever.” without references, a thesaurus and dictionary. 

input: what’s something you hate that people say to you about writing/your writing?

“ It’s like someone else’s.” I kinda find it impersonal that way as I have strived to stand apart from others. I want to be remembered for me. Not remembered as a copy cat of someone else.

critic: what’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received about writing?

Be patient. It seems like it is hard to do, and yes it is. But spending time to write, and focus on it, keeping a steady patient flow of how you write is crucial so you never get burned out.  Also keep prompt blogs and lists saved always. They do help.

mifflin: what do you feel is your strong suit in writing? 

Romance. I’ve been told I have a way with words. I just like to write an emotion I try to convey.

houghton: what’s something you love that people compliment your pieces on?

Enjoying my work. compliments and comments tell me I am doing good. Silence kills writers and artists. 

This was a bit long but I loved taking a moment to write all this as a way to get to know the person behind the blog. I’m pretty easy going and straightforward. 

[ryouverua]

ragnar-viking replied to your photo “You can find Kokichi’s dashboard on the wiki if this image doesn’t...”

I think the "Suspicious" is only directed at Maki, otherwise he probably would have done the same as he did with the monokubs having a category, which fits with how antagonistic he was towards her if he suspected something about her. Also, with the Shuichi one, its notable he also put a ? at the end, whether that is his general distrust or still being unsure where Shuichi falls (specifically in Ouma's and Kaito's battle for how to approach a case) is harder to say.

pretends tumblr isn’t on fire, proceeds as normal

Ah that makes sense. I was wondering if it could potentially go up/down columns which would have interesting implications, but the arrow seems pretty self-explanatory.

I’m sure he had some questions about Shuichi! He was the one who espoused the belief that you couldn’t trust anyone, and even Kaito said you can’t know everything about a person. Honestly, I think the fact that he put the word trustworthy on the board at all is still really significant!

apeironstella replied to your photo  

“You can find Kokichi’s dashboard on the wiki if this image doesn’t...”

                       Yeah, suspicious is most likely for Maki as ragnar-viking said, and also on Shuichi, there is also how it was in Japanese version as well to add to the uncertain tone to that "Trustworthy", actually! This post explains it rather well, I think <3 http://oumakokichi.tumblr.com/post/157201628290/komaedamnit-here-it-is-a-better-picture-of                   

                       So I think it is fair to say that he HOPED Shuichi would be the one he could possibly trust (especially after seeing some of his Date events, not going to spoil them but just will say that I highly recommend to check the A/V room if/when you date him in Salmon Mode) but also seemed to be uncertain on, as while Shuichi did rely on logic, his entire arc being about being afraid to uncover the truth while also simultaneously being against Kokichi's lies as well, regardless of if they are "good" or "bad" lies? That's the vibe I get, at least?                                     

                       WAIT, THAT LINK HAS SPOILERS WHILE DESCRIBING KEEBO SECTION I JUST REMEMBERED THAT I'M SORRY--                    

                       So, without going into spoiler territory, In Japanese there is " 油断ならない? " right next to Shuichi, which they say means "tricky", and checking online dictionaries, seems to be fairly accurate. "Yudan naranai" seems to mean that a person makes you feel somewhat uneasy/you are unable to figure out what makes them tick/in general there is a sense of off-ness with that person or situation. Literally, it means "Can not drop [my] guard [around that person]" so I guess while that's not the exact meaning there, still carries a sense of guard/trouble trusting? But still, he did seem to want to trust him, especially given his FTEs/Dates/even Love Hotel scene later on, so <3                    

It’s okay, I saw the other messages before I checked the link! I’ll save it for later though; it sounds like a good read.

Oooh yeah, ‘tricky’ is very different than ‘trustworthy?’. That’s pretty interesting tbh - I wonder why they made that particular change. I know a lot of people have been telling me about all the changes the translators made that, by accident or on purpose, may have made Kokichi come off a little more malicious, but this seems to be walking it back in a big way - and honestly, going farther than the japanese version. ‘Tricky’ implies evaluating a potential opponent - ‘trustworthy’ implies evaluating a potential ally.

Of course, if we want to read into the literal sense of ‘cannot drop my guard [around that person]’, maybe you can interpret that literally? Like, he challenged Shuichi by keeping up with his mask/lying that much more? Though ah, he still did approach him near the end of Chapter 4...

It would be interesting to take a closer look at Kokichi’s ‘should I / shouldn’t I’ struggle with Shuichi tbh! I’ve definitely neglected Saiouma recently (both platonic and romantic) so maybe that’s part of what I’ll do when I finally finish his FTEs ~

[rickysam317]

How students should write good assignments for better grades?

We’ve all been there. You get a paperback from your instructor or check your grades online, and there it is, a grade much lower than you wanted. Or, even worse, the grade you expected. Getting a poor grade on an exam or quiz creates an immediate sense of dread. You might be thinking, What did I do wrong? Am I in the wrong class? Maybe I’m not smart enough? You can become smart again with Assignment Help.

What you do after receiving the grade is more important than the grade itself. One grade doesn’t define your entire semester, your career, or most importantly, you as a person. Grades, however, are a source of feedback for understanding the material. So using that feedback in a positive and productive way will serve you well.

Below are some important points you should take care of your assignments for better grades. But, nevertheless, you are always open to take assignment help online with expert companies like from assignmenthelpshop.

Preview the Class Material before a Lecture

If you have ever been in an accounting class and didn’t understand a thing the professor said, this is for you. Going through the class material before each lecture will help you familiarize yourself with what the lessons will be about.

You will get benefit from a class if you can follow through its discussions.

Check the deadline

There’s nothing worse than scheduling time to sit down and write then glancing at the calendar and realizing you’ve only got a few days left. Double-checking the deadline means you’ll have no nasty surprises.

Expert tip: There are many apps out there that can add a ‘countdown’ to your phone or tablet. Use these to keep your assignment deadline in mind.

Plan your time

Finding time to write is easier said than done, but if you break your time down into manageable chunks you’ll find it’s much easier to keep on top of your workload. Try scheduling mini-deadlines along the way (e.g. aim to have the first section done by a certain day) to keep your momentum going. And if you are facing challenge in finding time, take assignment help online today.

Expert tip: Be realistic about the time you have spare, and the time you’re willing to give up. If you schedule a writing session at 9 p.m. on Friday evening when you’d rather be relaxing, chances are you won’t get anything done.

Plan your assignment structure

Before you start, it can help to create a basic assignment structure. This can be as detailed as you like but the basic structure should contain your introduction points, your key arguments and points, and your planned conclusion.

Expert tip: Try writing out your plan on sticky notes. These will allow you to rearrange your arguments and points easily as your plan develops.

Have a great Introduction

You wouldn’t start a conversation without introducing yourself; your assignment is the same. Your first paragraph should introduce your key argument, add a bit of context and the key issues of the question, and then go on to explain how you plan to answer it.

Expert tip: Some people find it easier to write their introduction after they’ve finished the rest of their assignment. Give it a try!

Getting over writer’s block

Struggling to write? There’s nothing more frustrating than putting aside time to write and then just staring at a blank page. Luckily, there are lots of things to try to get you inspired: a change of scenery, putting on some music, writing another section of the essay, or just taking a short break. Our expert can provide you assignment help online that can get you through writers block.

Expert tip: If you find yourself unable to write, try to use your time to read ahead or re-read what you’ve already written.

Make sure you use your ‘essay voice’

While each university, school or each college will probably have its own style guide, you should always use a neutral and professional tone when writing an assignment. Try to avoid slang, overly-familiar phrases and definitely don’t use text-speak!

Expert tip: If you’re not sure about a phrase or word, search for it online to see what other publications use it. If it’s in a dictionary or used by a national newspaper it’s probably OK to use in your assignment.

Summarise with a Conclusion

Your conclusion is your final chance to summarise your argument and leave a lasting impression with your reader. Make sure you recap the key points and arguments you made in your assignment, including supporting evidence if needed.

Expert tip: Make sure that you don’t introduce any new ideas in your conclusion; this section is purely for summarising your previous arguments.

Check and double-check your spelling

Nothing can give a bad impression as quickly as a spelling mistake. Errors are distracting, look unprofessional and in the worst case they can undermine your argument. If you’re unsure about the correct use of a word, look it up online or use an alternative that you’re more comfortable with.

Expert tip: While you’re running your spell-checker, check your word count too. You’re usually allowed to deviate by 10% above or below the assignment word count, but check with your institution’s guidelines.

Cite your sources

References and creating a bibliography are key skills that you unfortunately have to master when writing an assignment. Check your institution’s guidelines before you start to make sure you’re including all the information you need.

Expert tip: Some eBooks have a citation feature that automatically collates all the information you need for your bibliography.

Ask for help, if you need it

If there’s any doubt in your mind about the question of the requirements of the assignment, ask your tutor. It’s better to start right than have to re-write in the last few days.

Expert tip: Remember, your tutor wants you to do well. He or she will not be annoyed if you need to ask a few questions.

We have the best professionals that will help you out in the best way possible. Ask for Assignment Help Online today. With our help, you can be all set to rock with your assignment now!

Source Link:-

https://rickysama.blogspot.com/2020/09/how-students-should-write-good.html

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About me

Reading And Writing Center

Reading And Writing Center You must write many pages… and should you don't consider yourself to be a great and passionate writer, then you will certainly find it exhausting to organise your findings properly. Eventually, you will find yourself breaking the flow and repeating the identical data right here and there. Now, I even have some concept and hopefully I will use on my website. I even have been writing a web site on Nepal with plenty of useful informations. “preserving it brief,” you will also avoid 7-10, avoiding rambling, fluff, redundancy, and over writing. I agree that big phrases are not all the time greatest, but I’m unsure how I really feel about steering clear of ‘longer’ words. Sometimes, I suppose “utilize” is an acceptable alternative for use. Use can sound bland whereas make the most of, when you ask me, falls under step 2 of being specific – make the most of paints a more descriptive picture for the reader. If you guys may assist me tips on how to simplify my writing visiting my web site that might be superior. I assume that everyone who writes ought to read Stephen King’s ‘On Writing’, even if you’re not a fiction author. Love this as so many of us are guilty of these at one point or another. You is not going to become a greater writer by abandoning your craft and aiming for the bottom of the pile. You turn out to be a greater writer by mastering your craft and aiming at any a part of the pile you choose. Earlier I used to really feel I wasn’t good at writing for I couldn’t keep in mind lengthy words, however much I had tried. Really, I had given lots to digest lengthy dictionary word in order that I might also write ‘good’. Somewhere inside I all the time hated trying into the dictionary while studying books. And that was in all probability the explanation why I could never remember long phrases. The thought is to welcome readers and allow them to know that we're just as odd as another person. Want to avoid wasting time and have your professional job software ready in minutes? Here are a sample cowl letter and a matching resume made with our resume and canopy letter builder. You can calculate custom cost on-line and order online. We have properly researched fascinating subject for Dissertation. So you'll be able to have best dissertation with good writing and research scope. After spending a ton of cash within the tutorial world, if you end up ready to get your diploma you may be told to submit a customized dissertation. When you have a look at the necessities of your project, you will feel as though you'll fail miserably. After all, the final yr project is considered to be the most deadly task for a reason. So, if you assume you will wrestle because of this paper, then Dissertation Corp able to guide you as soon as potential. Read my weblog, The Pragmatic Marketer for insights and tips. All these rules basically work together – if you use one, typically instances, the remainder will observe. This retains the readers coming back as having easy English laid out permits extra understanding, instantly encouraging him/her to ENGAGE with the writer; which is essential. I do have a tendency of getting slightly lengthy winded some instances. The missing phrases are in your head if you write the article and if you evaluate it proper after writing. The missing words are no longer in your head whenever you come back later to evaluation and edit the article. I even have been struggling to put in writing these easy phrases and clarify appropriately. You must write many pages… and when you don’t consider yourself to be a good and passionate writer, then you'll actually battle with organizing your findings correctly. You will find yourself breaking the flow and repeating the same data right here and there.

[viahhapocalyptica]

I really want to learn Finnish but it scares me so much more than the other Scandinavian languages I know...teach me ur ways ;—;

Heeiiidon’t be scared young Padiwan, Finnish is more of a beautiful enigma than a scary monster :3 (apart from Helsinki slang and the stuff you read onSuomitumppu… That shit’s terrifying XD).Firstup: Finnish is not a Scandinavian/Norse language, that’s possiblywhy it’s intimidating. Unless you speak Estonian,Hungarian, or various indigenous Siberian languages, it’s not gonnabe familiar. But that’s why it’s fun! ‘Cause it’s totally different :3 You just throw away everythingyou think you know about how languages work and you start fromscratch.Secondly: Here’s some facts that make it sound less scary– there’s no grammatical genders. There’sno gender pronouns either, there’s just “hän” for he or she (or“se” in spoken Finnish which literally means “it” XD).There’s also no articles, which means that sometimes I forget tosay “the” and “a/an” in English now. And also the spelling istotally phonetic. Every letter only makes one sound, so spelling andpronunciation are simple. Oh, and there’s only two tenses: Present and past. Bloody marvellous Myways you say? Well personally I began witha book called Teach Yourself Finnish by Terttu Leney. I HIGHLYrecommend investing in this book, preferably a more recent version (oldest oneis too formal). I taught myselfspelling and grammar and basically the most important shit solelyfrom that book for something like 8 years before I got lessons, and Istill go through it from time to time. Honestly you should see thestate of my copy XD When I finally started lessons, my teacherscouldn’t believe I had taught myself. So I literally can’tpraise it enough.Thatsaid, there’s other good books out there too, I’ll put themin a list at the end of this ramble :3NextI got lessons. I am lucky that I live a few towns away from anAnglo-Finn group called Camberleyn Suomikoulu (Camberley’s Finnishschool), who are basically a bunch of Finns who mingle whilst theirspouses/kids get taught Finnish. I’m their novelty student XD But they treat me as a Finn too. :3Anyway,I know it may not be so simple for most people to get lessons. If youhave looked/googled all over and can’t find any near enough to you,are there any Finnish embassies or groups in your country that dointensive courses a couple times a year? Also consider gettinglessons over Skype. There are teachers who even have group lessons ifyou are nervous :3 Or find Finnish speakers who don’t mindcommunicating with you often, there are people here on tumblr forexample in the langblr community, and loads more on forums andlanguage communities across t’internet who may be able to help.Honestly my knowledge on this is not great as I am not that involved(would you believe I am quite shy irl -__-), but I’m sure it won’tbe difficult to find more info about other communities if you findsome Finnish langblrs. I don’t follow loads but I will put themat the end of this ramble too.Forhelp with vocabulary, there are websites and apps that can help you.Memrise has absolutely FUCKTONNES of useful vocab, for example. The courses are put together by Memrise users so it’s all free, thoughsadly that also means you might want to be wary of accuracy here andthere. “3000 most common words”, “Beginner’s Finnish” (with amoomin for a pic), and “Vocabulary from Selkouutiset”, areparticularly good vocab lists. Interesting to note that the appexercises (at least on iphone) are different from the website, but both are good.Mondlyis also great! You get a free lesson every day, even if you don’tbuy the full version :3 I’m dreaming of the day I can afford ittbh, it has speech recognition like on Duolingo, which is so rare forFinnish *____*Clozemaster is something I’ve just discovered, it’slike the last two apps/websites but it presents the words in context,which is pretty damn useful in Finnish. There are so many other random/smaller websiteswhich are good for reference also, not just for vocab but alsophrases and tidbits of grammar. I’ll put them at the end.Ifyou can, try to listen to Finnish radio, news, or even watch the Moomins,so that you can hear more every day and casual subjects andconversation, as opposed to song lyrics and interviews, or thosebloody voice actors who speak slowly for the accompanying audio totextbooks. I mean, that’s useful at first, but nobody speaks likethat irl.

Oh,also I better acknowledge the cases, conjugations, and consonantgradation. It seems pretty intimidating I know, but don’t worry!There is method in that madness. The rules of Finnish grammar arelogical with only very few exceptions, and therefore in time becomequite easy to apply. Chances are you won’t know what to do at timesand that’s fine - I don’t think anyone will give you shit for gettingthings wrong. But if you are unsure and want to check how toconjugate words and such, use Wiktionary. You can search for a word there and it should have awhole table of all possible conjugations when you click the little “more”button :3 Sometimes there are examples in context as well.Personally I’ve always had a little table of case names with examples on my wall where I work, because sometimes a textbookwill say “use ___ with the elative case” and I can’t rememberwhat the fuck that means (because I just know it as “the -sta/-stä ending”,for example XD) and it’s made life so much easier than having to lookit up every time. East to reach conjugation tables/lists are definitely your friend.BeforeI stop rambling (finally) and get to the links - maybe this willapply to other languages, maybe not, but imo keeping on top ofFinnish is a daily thing. Doing my Mondly lesson and two Memrisesessions a day has greatly improved my listening skills,and it helps with keeping vocab fresh in my mind. That is my bareminimum a day - I can do more, but never less. It’s a new-ish routinein my life, but it’s already helped soooo SOOO much. Just five littlemeasly minutes a day, every day, find something to practice whetherit’s vocab or reading about grammar, or one exercise in a book. Thenyou can choose to do extra or not. If you choose to do loads, do NOTgive yourself a day off the next day. Still do those five minutes. Ipromise you will learn faster than cramming it all in your head forlike three days straight, then burning out for a month, then beingintimidated by the pile you have to catch up on. I speak fromexperience. XD

So,onto those links. 

Websites mentionedhere:www.memrise.comwww.mondlylanguages.comwww.clozemaster.comwww.wiktionary.com

Otheruseful websites for just abouteverything:www.uusikielemme.fi/index.html– “Finnish for busy people”, great for simplified explanationsto grammar and lists of important vocab. Also inSpanish.www.101languages.net/finnish/- This website has audio samples of common words, a conjugator, atranslator, radio, news, vocab and phrases, a conversational course,the whole friggin’ works.www.livelingua.com/project/fsi/Finnish/- some free and extensive courses with audiohere.https://twitter.com/kaikkisanat– a twitter account posting literally every Finnishword.www.sanakirja.org - online dictionarywww.urbaanisanakirja.fi– dictionary for slang words. The definitions are in Finnishthough.http://extreme-finnish.teachable.com/- a course on spoken Finnish.www.randomfinnishlesson.com– a great blog with lots of useful anecdotes, grammardeconstructing, slang words, vocab etc… The owner occasionallyteaches over skype, she also does podcasts in simple Finnish andstuff.http://donnerwetter.kielikeskus.helsinki.fi/FinnishForForeigners/parts-index.htm– useful exercises andsuch.https://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/selkouutiset/- the news in simpleFinnish.https://viahhapocalypticalangblr.tumblr.com/post/154651215026/starryskiesandlanguages-memrise-finnish#notes– A masterpost of other helpful Finnish content.Some langblrs/tumblrblogs with useful Finnishcontent:@blackteaandlanguages​@letslearnfinnish​@useless-finlandfacts​@learnsuomi​@uselessfinnish​@thisisfinnish​@finugriclanguages​@hiiru-lainen​@finnishproverbs​@finnishwords​@catfinnish​@just-finnish-learning-things​@finland-is-cooler-than-you​@viahhapocalypticalangblr​(this is mine, I’m not terribly active there but I try to reblog anyuseful shit I see and occasionally talk about life inFinnish.)Books I can recommend:Teach Yourself Finnish byTerttu LeneyFrom Start To Finnish by Leila WhiteHyvin Menee!Suomea Aikuisille (series)Suomen Mestari (series)BerlitzFinnish phrasebook & dictionary (good for travelling)I haveloads more in my collection but I haven’t managed to read them yetso… Watch this space for more info maybe?I have probablyforgotten some things here and there but I hope you get the idea, andsome kind of starting point. I wish you the best of luck learningthis unique and beautiful language, and please feel free to ask any questions if you get stuck. Tsemppiä! And may yourencounters with the partitive case be peaceful and easy to understand XD

[gguksgalaxy]

Sigil pt. 1

Mastepost | Part 2 –>

Short: Luhan gets invited into an excellence program, where he meets a man names Yixing who has odd golden tattoos and an odder story. Words: 2890 (short i know) Notes for Update: 20 Warnings: fainting really.....that's it, and probably blaspheme. Pairings: Luhan x OC A/N: please let me know what you think!!! I'm making a dictionary post about the terms after i post this btw.

The further he found himself driving away from civilisation, the more Luhan started to regret selling his new apartment so soon. He’d finished his master’s degree a month ago, and found a place to live in the city. An offer too good to be true. But as someone with an aptitude for languages and a desire to learn he over hastily replied to the letter he’d received.

Lu Han,

You’ve been invited to join an alumni excellence program on ancient languages at the Zhang School for Ancient and Modern Languages. We’ve taken notice of your grades and achievements at your previous schoolings and offer you a full scholarship. This includes educational fee and residential costs, everything is taken care off. More information about our school and courses is included in the envelope. For a free consultation feel free to visit our school at any time, take this letter with you and some means of identification. We’re closed on Sunday.

We hope to see you soon,

Zhang Yixing

At first he’d thought it sounded sketchy, and to be honest he still did. There wasn’t a lot of information found about the school online. They seemed to specialise in languages and the information that came with the invitation was really official. Going to take a look wouldn’t hurt right? Maybe he should’ve done more research. He’d googled this Zhang Yixing, a Chinese man, well man…He was younger than Luhan. How he’d gotten his own school made him wonder, but it was a recently established school. God the more he thought about it the more anxious he got. What the hell. It wasn’t some kind of trap, they weren’t going to kidnap him. He was a normal guy who had a thing with languages. He had nothing to take. Where the hell was this school though? He was somewhere in a forest right now, driving on a barely existing road. Luckily it showed up on google maps. So he just followed along until a huge estate came into view. It was a manor, old fashioned bricked with a white porch. The garden was beautiful, and there were quite simple cars outside the door. There was nobody to be seen on the perimeter so far, and nobody by the door. From his car he just looked at the windows, nothing seemed to move. In the summer surely somebody at this school would be studying outside at noon on a Monday right? There was a small statue of an angel on the tip of the roof, wings spread widely. And Luhan notices all the stained glass in the windows on the upper floor. Maybe it used to be one of those modern churches? He parked his car next to the other ones and stepped outside into the July sun. It was hot and he left his blazer in the car, rolling up the sleeves of his dark blue blouse as he stepped up to the front door. He looked for a bell, but there was only one of those old fashioned knocking things on the door. It was encased in another pair of wings. Much of a theme? With a bit of a chuckle he grabbed the handle and knocked on the door three times. Then he waited. A boy opened the door, younger than him by a couple of years. Tan skin and a sharp jawline a lot of buys would kill for. He was taller, and slimmer, dressed in casual jeans and a t-shirt. “Hi, you’re here for Yixing?” Calling your dean by the first name? “Yeah, I got an invitation.” He showed his envelope. “Oh you must be Luhan, I’m Jongin.” He extended his hand with a warm smile and Luhan took it. “I’ll show you to his office.” Jongin stepped aside to let him in and he found himself in a huge open foyer, with stairs leading up at either side to a second floor, and a third floor could be seen above that. “Oh hey Jongin, is this Luhan?” A guy with sharp eyes and a short posture rounded the corner from one of the hallways. He grinned and stepped over, shaking Luhan’s hand. “I’m Minseok, but most of them call me Min.” “Luhan.” “Is he in his office?” Jongin asked Minseok. The other nodded. “I think he just got back from his walk. Should be in.” Jongin led Luhan up one of the stairs. “Did you drive far to get here?” “No, a little over an hour. What do you study?” There was a flicker of confusion in Jongin’s eyes and Luhan wondered then. “Oh I study Japanese at the moment. We’re here.” He stopped at a large white double door and Jongin knocked once. The guy he’d seen as Zhang Yixing online opened the door. Friendly eyes framed with thin round glasses and dimpled smile. “Luhan?” “Yes, Zhang Yixing I assume?” “The one. Thank you Jongin.” He said, nodding the other off. “Come on, step in. We got lots to talk about.” He stepped aside. “I just got back from a walk in the garden, let me get some water. Do you want anything to drink?” He sounded much older than he looked, much older. “Just water is fine.” Mr Zhang stepped to a corner of his large office. There was a huge mahogany desk with three chairs, two couches with a table, dressers, cabinets with what were probably files. Everything seemed to be in the same slightly antique style.   “Here.” He set a glass down on the desk and motioned for Luhan to sit in one of the chairs. “Have a seat.” He crossed to the other side of the desk and shrugged off his blazer. The sun caught light on his white skin through the large window behind him and he almost gasped. Around his neck was some sort of necklace, not it was more a tattoo. The way it moved with his skin. It was gold, shining in the sunlight, a band like a collar, opaque and about 2 inches thick. Almost like those golden sticky tattoos he’d seen some younger girls wear this summer. It was certainly odd for someone of his age, gender and profession. Mr Zhang smiled sweetly and sat down, rolling up the sleeves of his light blue blouse. It revealed more of the same type of tattoos. This time like manacles around his wrist, a bit thinner, but the exact same colour. They shimmered and moved as he twisted his hands when he pushed his glasses back up his nose. “So let me just jump right into this.” He sighed, sitting down and leaning back. His black hair was pushed back from his face and his eyes looked a little tired. “This is not a school, you might’ve noticed.” Luhan was silent, unsure of what to reply to him. He was stunned, felt stupid, and kind of anxious as to what was going to happen. But the man in front of him seemed more like an old soul than someone who’d plot a crime against him. “I understand you’re confused, that’s a very natural reaction. I’m going to show you something, and all I’m asking from you is that you hear me out. If you decide to not do anything with this in the end it’s okay. I’m just asking for thirty minutes of your time to listen to my story.” He calmly stated. Luhan contemplated leaving, just getting up and walking out of the door. But the man with the soft smile and odd tattoos made him curious. Too curious maybe. “I’ll listen.” “This is not some scheme, if that’s what you think. It’s about your family lineage.” “My family?” “Your father, and his ancestors. You’re a descendant of a long line that trails back into the old ages. And tracing it led me to you.” “You’re not making any sense.” “Just listen. Have you ever heard of nephilim?” Luhan scoffed and was about to stand up. “Don’t leave, please hear me out. I need your help.” “Yeah my help, what is this? Some kind of tv show?” “Luhan, please. If at the end you decide to discard the information I’ve offered you today nothing will happen. I just ask of you that you listen to everything I have to say.” Luhan sighed deeply, and gave a short nod. “Fine, I have heard of nephilim. They’re supposed descendants of angels.” The other nodded. “Very well, although that’s not completely how it works. Nephilim are specifically descendant of archangels. There’s seven of them, Michael, Gabriel, Samael, Azrael, Ramiel, Uriel and Raphael. God’s closest allies, who messed up by congregating with humans and producing offspring. God’s beloved human’s tainted by his angels. Lucifer, the eighth of them, was most responsible for doing so, and as God’s favourite it came as a shock. There was notice of the children, the nephilim, they were different. Faster, stronger, righteous and smarter. For god to kill his beloved human’s because his angels made a mistake seemed to harsh of punishment. So he limited the offspring, to one child per family, one lineage in every continent, making for 49 lineages. All nephilim are born with a mark, invisible to their own eyes. It can be enkindled so to speak by the archangels in times of need. Almost like a exigency army. Now the whole story of Lucifer being cast out of heaven is related to this but it’s long and not important. “After Lucifer was cast out of heaven and into hell, he felt more powerful, angry at god. He gathered the archdemons of the underworld, known better as Satan, Asmodeus, Beezlebub, Mammon, Belphegor, and Leviathan. He joined their courses and thought them the ways out of hell. They scouted the earth in look of the perfect offspring to claim as their own. And so they abducted a child from it’s family, brought it into hell, and trained it into perfection. For the archdemons themselves cannot infiltrate into the human society and wreack the havoc they want. Their so to speak children are known as cambia, cambion singular, and they leave a path of destruction in their wake. They tempt humans and corrupt them, sometimes kill them. They bring thunderstorms and ravaging animals anywhere they go. You might’ve noticed the crime rates going up, outbreaks off common illnesses that have a higher body count than usual. They’ve been gaining more power over the last three centuries. It’s only getting worse. “Up in heaven this caught the attention of the archangels and they had to find a way to stop them. The cambia, they aren’t easy to kill or find. They’re fast, trained murder machines. The archangels could not find common ground as to how to kill them best, they fought over it, each with their own reason and plan. God got angry at them, because while they were having brotherly disputes over what to do, these demons were killing his human’s. So all seven of them were cast out of heaven, for their mistakes and inability. God gave them the command to find the lineages, each archangel located on a continent, seven to be found. To find them, enkindle them, and train them. To collect an army to take on these demons. The one with the ability to kill all seven would be let back into heaven.” There was silence after that long story, and Luhan’s mind was running too fast to comprehend everything in one go. But there was one thing he understood. “So I am one of these Nephilim?” “Yes.” “And so is my father?” “And his mother, and her father, and I can go on for quite some time. But you see, each lineage peeks at a certain time. Where one of the strongest of nephilim are born, and you are one of those. The one before you, in your lineage, was over 120 years ago. I could not get to her then.” “It can also be females?” “In a way it can, but it’s not acceptable to use women for means of fighting.” Luhan chuckled. “Oldfashioned.” “It was 120 years ago Luhan.” That’s when something clicked. “You’re over 120 years old?” he gasped. Yixing smiled lightly and nodded. “I’m ages old, as old as creation itself.” “Excuse me?” “I go my Zhang Yixing at the moment. But my official name is Ramiel, angel of kindness.” Luhan pushed his chair back, it screeched over the hardwood floor as he stood up. “You’re crazy.” He moved towards the door, but Yixing was up and behind him, grasping his arm, before he could even blink. “Don’t go, I can prove it. Let me finish.” “I’ve heard enough.” Luhan bit. “Luhan, calm down, getting angry at me is not going to get you anywhere. I’m not going to hurt you. You met Jongin earlier, he’s my descendant, a nephilim like you. All the others here are as well. You’re the last one to complete the seven.” He was boiling with an odd sense of anger. “I’m not a half angel, angels don’t exist. You’re making up this whole gigantic story and I don’t even understand why. What do you want from me?” Yixing was still holding onto his arm, a deadly grip. “Sit down, and I’ll show you.” “I’m not sitting down.” “Then you can stay standing, but don’t run when I let you go. I’m not going to chase you, I just need you to hear this. I want to show you something.” Luhan took a shaky breath and looked at the other. “What, are you going to show me? Your wings? Can you fly? Shoot bolts from your fingers?” “Don’t confuse me with Barachiel please. We can go into closer lore later on. For now I need to get something from the other side of the room, I trust you that you don’t try anything. Fighting me is a bad decision, and running won’t help either of us.” He was confused. “You said I could leave?” he watched the supposed archangel walk to the dresser and grab something small, that looked like a lens container. “Yes, after I strip you of your mark. Your powers are strong and sitting beneath the surface, it’s noticeable, I can sense it. The demons can too, they will find you. I’m glad that they haven’t yet.” “My father too?” “No, just you, because you’re a peak in the lineage. Now let me show you something.” He sat the lens container down, took off his glasses, and unscrewed the caps. Yixing reached into his eye, taking out a dark lens, and placing it in the fluid. “Us archangels aren’t born with bodies, we’re entities. But when we were cast out we received bodies, all of us strikingly blue eyes. Now as someone with asian background it would attract too much attention. So I wear lenses.” He placed the second one inside the container and looked up at Luhan. Luhan gasped. They indeed were blue, but unnaturally so, almost fluorescent. “You’re playing a sick game here.” “Luhan, this is all real.” He unrolled his sleeve, and Luhan watched his every move, every twitch of his finger. His legs were shaking with anxiety. “I’m not playing any games with you.” Yixing moved his fingers up to the buttons of his shirt and undid them one by one, revealing white skin. “What are you doing?” “I know this seems wrong, but this is probably the only way I can convince you.” Yixing said, and he undid the last button. He shrugged the shirt of with easy and folded it over the chair. Luhan saw it, and staggered back a little, gaining a confused look from Yixing. “Don’t be afraid.” Luhan saw the text on his chest, from shoulder to shoulder, it was an odd script that he’d never seen before. But he found himself with the ability to read it. Thou shalt show kindness to others. And an odd sigil like mark on his stomach, something he’d seen before in a book. “Watch okay?” Yixing said slowly, as he took a deep breath. Luhan wasn’t sure of what to do. But he watched, closely so, as the tattoos around his neck wrists, and also upper arms seemed to materialise. Solid golden bands came to wrap themselves around him, and gained size. They moved up into short pins that seemed to cover him like armour around his lower arms and chest. The one around his neck ran freely to the text that moved and shaped into armour as well. He wasn’t covered, just his lower arms and upper chest. The sigil hadn’t moved though, but his eyes seemed to be alight. There was silence, and Luhan stepped back even further, until he hit the hard surface of a cabinet, the glass making noise. “Don’t come near me.” “Luhan, it’s okay.” Yixing smiled softly and let out a deep breath, the armour creeping back over body and back into his skin. The text returning and his eyes becoming lighter. He turned around slowly, revealing large diagonal scars on his back. Like lost wings. Everything around him swayed, and he saw the room flip as he fell to the ground and fainted.

@oh-beyond @xingtrash @nunchiwrites @bootyfulohsehun @xiubaek13 @melyyexo @yeollieollie @yourseth @exosmutxoxo @k-reativewriting @kpopfanfictrash  (Message me for tags!)

[imaldrei-blog]

Cite Seeing: Your Image Goes to Waste, When You Copy and Paste! (Plagiarism in Digital Marketing)

          In today’s day and age society has become more immersed in the digital world, with the use of various social media outlets, people are connecting to each other virtually in an effort to create an online presence and to build their personal brand. The widespread use of the internet has shared the ability to connect to each other globally in the matter of seconds. This in turn has not only affected the way we interact with one another, but also the way we voice our opinions, get or interpret ideas, and share information or knowledge that’s readily available at the touch of our fingertips. Social Media, I would argue, has been an important catalyst that’s shaped today’s digital landscape. We have various Social Media outlets in which we can share our lives, our stories, global and local news updates, celebrity gossip or gossip in general, facts, information, videos, our professional profiles, and pretty much anything with hardly any limitation. I think by now you’re starting to get the point, the use of the internet, has changed our lives dramatically in how we obtain and share knowledge and information. A major downside to having this vast amount of information available to the world is something as simple as “Plagiarism”. Now I know we’ve all been talked to at one point about plagiarism during our times in school, but it still also applies to everyone when you graduate and carry on with your lives. It’s a relevant ongoing topic, especially in today’s world where people share ideas all the time over the internet.

          The word plagiarism is defined in the dictionary as “An act or instance of using or closely imitating the language and thoughts of another author without authorization and the representation of that author’s work as one’s own, as by not crediting the original author” (complete definition). You may be asking yourself, so what’s the relevance between plagiarism and the use of social media? Well let me tell you. With the influx of information sharing through our social networks, people basically have the freedom to use and pass off other people’s ideas as their own. As people voice their opinions and thoughts through popular social media apps such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram they copy and paste text taken from other sources without giving credible mention to the actual authors. Although people may not have the intention of stealing other people’s ideas, they do plagiarize when they don’t give proper credit to the original source. Citations and references are not commonly found on your everyday tweets, and or on the average Facebook wall posts. I can’t count the amount of times that I have logged into Facebook, saw some really nice quotes on friend’s statuses or wall posts, and noticed no credit given to any author or even where they got the quote from. Plagiarism in social media is an ongoing problem, as people don’t bother to take the time to give noticeable mention that the ideas and thoughts they are sharing don’t belong to them.

          In order to avoid plagiarizing content, take time to mention who actually wrote the original piece. There’s a huge difference when citing sources academically for school and through social media. Obviously every school follows a particular style whether it be MLA or APA, sites like Purdue Online Writing Lab provide the proper way to cite and reference sources. The way social media apps and websites are structured providing credit to where it’s due would be a less formal. The quick and easy approach would be to write the authors name and year they wrote it, at the very least have their full name mentioned. Even providing a link as to where the information was taken from will provide the original authors credit enough for their thoughts. I understand that social media apps are commonly used on our smart phones and typically on the go, therefore what people post on social media are done at a fast pace. It is definitely more convenient to copy something and paste it when you want it done quickly and easily. Not everyone enjoyed having to reference and properly cite information in high school due to the extra time it took to do so. But in social media there is no consequences from plagiarizing, which is often why people do it frequently without even thinking about their own actions. No one wants to have their thoughts and ideas stolen. It’s a very unethical thing to do plagiarizing someone else’s work, thoughts or ideas, and reflects back on you and your personal brand. A little advice we’ve all been given in school during our talks about plagiarism, is simply, if it’s not common knowledge or you’re unsure about it your original idea, do yourselves all a favor and CITE it anyways! Just like in school, if you are caught for plagiarism you don’t deserve the grade, thus in terms of social media, you don’t deserve the respect and recognition for that thought. Figure 1 depicts this scenario pretty accurately I would say.

          I’m sure there’s a lot of people out there wondering, what can I do to prevent others from plagiarizing my content on social media? In all honesty, I only know of a couple preventative measures to counteract people who plagiarize content. Firstly, I know articles or blogs written are normally protected by copyright, so the material you publish to your site are generally protected, but it still doesn’t necessarily stop people from taking your ideas. I honestly don’t know if something you wrote down on Facebook or Twitter can be copyrighted, but you can however use free online websites which allow you to see if your thoughts or ideas have already been published or posted elsewhere. For all my photography friends who upload their photos to advertise their businesses or photography skills, I know they do protect their work with watermarks and logos. I may not be your average blogger or social media buff, therefore I am certainly no expert on how to protect your content from being plagiarized on social media. But, when I did google about plagiarism and how to prevent it, there was an interesting blog written by Sandra Miller on “How to Protect your Blog from Plagiarism”. Although she discusses techniques specifically for blogs, I feel it’s still relevant in terms of plagiarism and social media content. She mentions the use of watermarks as well, and the fact that blog content is actually copyrighted the instant you upload the blog online. Something else talked about was the use of a site called plagspotter to track if there and scan if there any duplicates of content shared. It also allows you to regularly monitor actions on your website, whether people have copied or even used the content. For further information for the bloggers out there, feel free to look her up.

          Now that most people are involved within the digital community through the use of various social media outlets, we visit the idea of personal branding. Just by looking at the term “personal branding”, you can tell that it has to do with the image you portray yourself, essentially marketing your personal brand, which most obviously is you! I know everyone has different definitions of what Personal Branding is, but one definition in particular I like was by Laura Lake, she stated “personal branding is the process of developing a ‘mark’ that is created around your personal name or your career. You use this ‘mark’ to express and communicate your skills, personality and values. The end goal is that the personal brand that you develop will build your reputation and help you to grow your network in a way that interests others. They will then seek you out for your knowledge and expertise.” The idea of your personal brand is a reflection upon your individual character, and how others perceive you. As you can see from Figure 2 your personal branding power can make you stand out, but depending on how you portray yourself, it can either be standing out negatively or positively.            Plagiarizing is damaging to your personal brand simply because you no longer are authentic. You are basically claiming the ideas and the work of others and passing it off as your own personal accomplishments. This in turn reflects negatively on your image of having bad ethical behaviors and beliefs, when it’s evident that the material you share or post is not original. You want your personal brand to stand out positively, so make sure you give credit where credit is due. Be the person people go to for creative original ideas and insights, therefore being the innovator not the imitator.

          Finally after all this exciting talk about plagiarism and your personal brand, we should already have a pretty clear picture of why plagiarism is not acceptable. We know that plagiarism is in essence a form of theft, in terms of stealing other people’s ideas and thoughts and presenting them as their own. Everyone knows that it’s an unethical practice, yet people still continue to ignore its significant effects on personal branding. No one likes to be called a liar, nor have their credibility questioned. Because when you plagiarize you automatically put your brand on the line, to be viewed and judged negatively when your authenticity is in question. The bottom line is, it’s never worth it to plagiarize, cite everything that is not your original work and give credit to those who actually deserve the recognition. You’re wasting all credibility to your brand, when you can’t come up with your own creative thoughts. So remember, your image goes to waste when you copy and paste! I don’t know how many of you are Disney fans, but I’ll leave you here with this clip of the Lion King. It puts into question, whether or not Disney copied its ideas of the Lion King from someone else (in other words plagiarized). You be the judge, and enjoy the Lion King video!

[ai-da-ice]

hi, i want to ask you something, how long did you learn japanese and can you give me some useful websites, books or advice so i can learn japanese more, thank you

YES, SOTA’S NEW HAIRSTYLE GIVES HIM A MATURE KIND OF HANDSOME, I’M ALL ABOUT IT!!!

Anyways, I started self-teaching myself written Japanese around 2012ish? And I started self-teaching spoken Japanese fairly recently, so I’m still pretty garbage at it. That’s one of the reasons I wanted to come to Japan, so I could get better.

When it comes to learning written Japanese, I mainly used “Essential Kanji: 2,000 Basic Japanese Characters” by P.G. O’Neil + lots and lots and lots of flashcard training!!! When I was translating something and unsure of the kanji/meaning, I used two online tools. One I like to use when I have kanji in front of me and don’t know the meaning: Romajidesu. The other is good for when I’m translating a magazine and can’t identify the kanji and thus don’t know how to plug it in to Romajidesu for a definition. When that happens, I draw the kanji into this site and hope the right kanji shows up!

My #1 tip for kanji? Learn how to count stroke order right away-- it makes kanji so much easier to look up in a dictionary if you can determine how many strokes it is.

For spoken Japanese, I’d actually advise either attending professional lessons or doing an intensive audio course. I started self-teaching with textbooks, which helped me improve my structure and phrasing, but I really struggled with identifying sentence meanings outside of vocab words because I wasn’t hearing the sentences spoken aloud properly. Also, I actually found watching episodes of Slice of Life anime, once with subtitles and the next time without pretty useful. Language in those shows try to mirror real life usage and they aren’t throwing around fantasy terms every other second, so that has helped me out a lot with natural dialogue flow. 

I’m still very low level at speaking, so I don’t have a lot of good resources to share yet, but my number one advice is if you aren’t learning with a class, try to find someone to practice speaking to and trying out conversations on. Hearing yourself conversing is very important, and missing out on that can be a major downside to self-teaching if you never work out a way to practice dialogue other than examples in a textbook!

[fantranslatorbychoice]

Oh glob, what have I gotten myself into? Just some long updates lol XD

Well, the year’s almost over, and it’s already the second half. The first half was too much and to be honest, I had to swim with the circumstances I am in right now so I had to put this passion non-profit project on hold, like seriously. But I did started translating the first few pages as early as December last year, as my very nice benefactor actually sent me the rest of the entire set of the Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi series after sending off the first 4 volumes. Probably read the entire thing first. But hey, free stuff is free so why complain. Plus my benefactor actually got the entire set for a steal, won’t say how much but in Amazon Japan, the last time I checked the whole set is roughly around $150 or a bit around that. and that’s just the first 7 volumes. Probably there’s an entire set now that’s about $200, as the final volume was released around August 2019.

Spoiler alert: the entire light novel series is made up of 10 volumes, so if you read it, the afterword by Yuuma-sensei specifically says that volume 10 is the final one, and Yuuma-sensei feels sad about it.

Yeah I highlighted that part in red, just in case many Kakuriyo fans still have some extreme hunger pangs or are unsure whether the novel series has ended. Here you go, straight from the horse’s mouth. Yuuma-sensei also has another Ayakashi light novel series, 浅草鬼嫁日記, roughly-translated to “Asakusa Wife from Hell Diaries”. Seems fun, they’re literally ogres - Oni living in the real world, like a reverse Kakuriyo thing. Who knows, maybe someday I can score that series too lol. The writer really likes Ayakashi, if it’s not that obvious yet 草 草 草 草  yeah I write kusa lol oml I should stop... But returning to the Kakuriyo series.. I won’t spoil what happened lol but I will probably make a commentary on that once I get the translations up and running.

Which leads me to my next announcement:

I PLAN TO UPLOAD THE DIRECT TRANSLATIONS OF JUST THE INTERMISSIONS/INTERLUDES ( 幕間 ) AND THE AFTERWORDS (あとがき) OF EACH VOLUME.

Chapter 5 is the only complete and full English Translation that I will be uploading here, and the rest will be summarized versions of the chapters plus my translation notes and commentaries.

Bummer, right?

Well, to be honest, after starting my initial translations I ran into several issues which made me feel sucker-punched and added to the stuff I’m worried about:

Issues regarding plagiarism (either my stuff getting plagiarized or potentially being accused of it)

Translating everything actually takes too long, even for me (I’ll explain that later)

More serious issues like possible DMCA-ish complaints (won’t want my hardwork just getting flagged and killed)

Personal stuff piling up and affecting my momentum

To be honest, when I received the books, I was so excited to work with them and upload as much as I can. But lots of things happened one after another, plus the worldwide issue that we have right now, so doing fun stuff wasn’t at the front of my priorities. So at the moment, I am mostly offline, by necessity, like connection is slower and with data cap, so I mostly do my translations with whatever hardcopies of dictionaries that I have on hand, offline. It’s good and all since I can put my skills to the test, but it can be expected that not all of the words are available in the books so I still have to hook on Jisho just to find the missing words I need. So my stuff pretty much looks like this:

I could just take pictures of these and upload them here but the maximum number of pics that tumblr allows is 15, and good glob I have more than 15 pages of translated material. Plus, as you can see above, some parts are untranslated and I had to find them in Jisho once I get online, so right now I have about 50% word-processed with the raw parts cooked, and I only have 12 raw pages remaining to be cooked and hashed lol

Which leads me to my next issues: my slowness (yeah I have to surrender on my slowness) and my fears regarding plagiarism.

I actually only started doing these translations in full blast around 2 months ago, and eventually I had to slow down so I won’t get bogged down since I also do other stuff. But I found out that ploughing through it can get quite draining. I started thinking that fan-subbing and scanlating were easier because aside from working digitally, these were also mostly done in teams so work time gets cut. Well, those were the days lol But for this one, aside from flying solo, I had to use all of my offline resources a lot, like doing everything by hand. It finally broke me about half-way and I had to step away from it, like reaaaaally step away from it. I thought I could finish 50+ pages in a span of a week. Well, I wasn’t exactly wrong there, but I also had other stuff to do, and if I just read it like I would any book without having to do anything, it’s a done deal. But having to translate stuff was draining, I felt frustrated so it broke me. I have to write each page by hand, leave out the words I can’t find or don’t know, and move on to the next page until my body stops working. Rinse and repeat until I could finish about 10 pages and get on with the typesetting and completing the missing parts. That takes a while so I just do my best to be patient.

Then the thoughts of plagiarism popped in and out, like I started thinking how to ensure that my stuff doesn’t get stolen and reposted elsewhere, or worse, getting my site shut down because fan translations are ambiguously illegal, like fansubs and scanlations, and I think those were what got me the most, so I just gave up midway. I’d say ambiguously illegal because if a series or title wasn’t licensed elsewhere then translating it is a fair game. But if it’s already released as a translated version by publishers, then releasing a translated version is like labelled as stealing, even if it’s non-profit. Of course profiteering is the worst, some steal what others work hard for, that they did for free, and sell them off. Scumbags to the bone smh I do my best to be within the fair use thing since I understand how much effort is made in creating content, so at present I have just decided to just put up the intermissions and the afterwords because aside from these being only a few pages long, it’s less likely to get whacked. Plus it’s easier for my psyche to just sum up each chapter and add some comments on it so it won’t be taken down, plus I wont’ be too-attached so even if some nutjobs repost it elsewhere because some people are just unempathetic like that, at least I won’t be as resentful. Plus the afterwords are just so cute, Yuuma-sensei gives off an adorable and relatable vibe, so I feel like aside from just showing off her stories, I think she needs to get signal-boosted too, so people would have an idea on who wrote this hunger-inducing light novel series lol.  I only started to pick up the whole thing again about a week ago, and I still wasn’t fast but at least I got to add at least 20 more pages translated, plus I started to type the first pages and add the missing words so at the very least, I felt some sort of achievement. It gave me some hope, and to be honest I have been doing this to maintain my sanity even for just a bit, so I guess I will do my best to bring Yuuma-sensei’s work out into the world. It’s a really good series, and it got animated into 2 seasons, plus the manga’s out, so that says a lot on how the series caught on. It can’t be denied that it’s a really engrossing series, so I don’t see any reason why this really good series should remain hidden. It probably has a lot of fans but aren’t being too attached into it because of language barriers, and even in my own way, I would like to bridge that gap. I mean, I may have slow internet that can only open mails in basic html but hey, this is the least I could do for the fandom. It’s not like I spew out doujin stuff or anything lol

OK, so summing up this long-ass update:

Chapter 5 - The Mysterious Capital Youto** - coming soon

Will just translate the intermissions and afterwords into English

English summaries of the chapters plus commentaries will be uploaded

Please don’t expect any fast uploads lol it’s not like I do ctrl+A into Google translate and slap it in here. Nothing against doing that but.. uhm, sometimes AI don’t get the nuances translated, and a lot gets lost in translation, so at best, anything done by some trash enthusiast, even noobs can still have some oomph in it that soulless beings can’t even top off. But hey, that’s just my opinion lol

So yeah, there you have it, a long update. Oh, and I changed the name of this blog because I have other raw stuff that I may be able to put here without any fear of being taken down because they’re in the public domain, so they’re all fair game since I don’t get any profit from them anyway and others may also appreciate them too. Hint: One is a series of Japanese classic  fantasy short stories, the other one is a set of instructional manuals on how to write kana and kanji in ballpen and brushpens. They’re a bit lighter so once I get Chapter 5 up I’ll do them as soon as I get rested.

See you all later and thank you for stumbling in this blog. xoxoxo

[thefrostfalgar]

Day 3: Skype

Skipping the U because i’m forever alone~~ lel no it was because my schedule is so mean!

enjoy x)

Eustass Kid rushed to the small, temporary apartment on the outer part of the nowhereland he had spent his last three weeks in. His pale skin turned pinkish, almost as red as his hair from sunburn.

The redhead sighed as he enter the small room where he spent his night fidgeting / passing out. No, not because he managed to get away from the heat of Tropical Island weather, to an air conned small room that is almost as cold as his small house far north. Instead, he felt relieved for another reason.

A reason that sits neatly in his working desk in the corner of the room.

He hurried himself to sit on the too small chair for his built, but it’s not like he had any option, or even will stay long enough to complain. He opened his laptop, and double click the blue icon with S logo on his desktop screen. “Come on,” he muttered as he thumped his fingers to the table, restless and furious as he glared at the small round animation spinning round and round as they prepare for the app to launch. “Come on,” he muttered again, heart racing from fatigue, anger, and another feeling that he never thought existed until a few weeks ago.

A feeling caused by the absence of certain someone.

Eustass Kid was normally a carefree guy. He was well known as a man who don’t get attached. People come. People go. Time heals shit. Life goes on. That’s basically his motto; in that exact order.

But that was before.

Kid nearly ripped his face in half when the window is ready, showing a picture of a dark skinned, raven-haired guy who glared at the camera that took the picture.

Even better, he saw a round green button below that photo.

Kid almost broke his touchpad hitting the video button. It takes only two rings, before his mostly black screen turned into a full screen hotness of the very olive skinned man in green scrubs.

The man with grey eyes blinked twice, before grinning like a mad man he is.

“Finally!” he said. The picture froze for a second before it gives him the live image of the man he longed for ever since he arrived in this uncivilized hell hole. “Eustass-ya?”

“Yo. Can you hear me?”

“Clearly. Can you hear me?”

“Eustass!” he shouted, too excited to keep his voice down.

“Once again, Eustass is NOT a synonym for perfect. Believe me, I know. I’ve looked in every dictionary I can find,” Law chuckled. Kid laughed with him, unsure of what to say now that they have the long-awaited Skype call. So much to say, so little words he can say. That is another thing only this bastard of a Doctor can do to him.

“But well, hello, stranger,” Law started again. His chuckles reduced into a coy smile.

“Hey, asshole,” Kid replied.

“Is that how you greet someone you haven't seen for days? Reducing them into a certain body part? That’s rude, even for you. But again, I know that means ‘I miss you’ in tough slash retard guy language, huh?”

“Yeah pretty much, yeah.”

Law grinned. “Are you sure you miss me? Or do you only miss that one particular body part of me?” he asked, pretended to hurt but Kid can tell that Trafalgar Law, the smug looking, smart mouthed sexy ass doctor is just as eager as he is. It’s not just baseless statement. He knew because after spending almost a year dating that guy and another half year waking up by his side, he could tell that Trafalgar Law can only pull two expressions; the calm, collected attitude that he shows to the world despite of what he thinks or feels, and the grinning evil face he only show Eustass and some of his close friends only when he’s happy.

And boy, does that hot Doctor grins right now!

“That too,” Kid decided to play along.

“Well, you wouldn’t miss anything if you don’t go half way around the world just to watch your machine drills to the center of the earth,” Trafalgar replied. He propped his head on his folded hand, looking up to the camera innocently. Fuck, Kid just wanted to grab him and kiss him right now, instead of doing a small talk.

“Don’t bullshit me, Trafalgar. You were the one who was so eager to get rid of me the first time.”

“Don’t bullshit me, Eustass-ya. You were the one who can’t stop whining about seeing your machine in action on the actual mining site.”

So much sass. Kid was so thirsty of snarky remarks of his boyfriend, he was so ready to gulp it all. But before he could voice his answer, he could hear a loud, urgent voice from Law’s side.

“Law, we got emergency.”

That got to be Penguin. Again. Shitty little bird.

Law scowled, for the first time looking a little bit tense. “What happened, Pen?”

“Gunshot victim. You’re needed.”

Kid almost groaned in defeat as Penguin speak fluent Grey’s Anatomy to Law. His boyfriend only scowled, nodded, scowled some more, and then turned to him in an obvious guilt.

“I’m sorry, Eustass-ya.”

“Ugh ditch it. People die every day anyway.”

“So cruel, Captain. I thought you date me because I’m a hero that can save lives?”

“I date you because you are a hot piece of ass. Now sit and ditch it.”

Law chuckled. “I won’t be long,” he said. “Be right back. I promise. I love you.”

Before Kid could answer or protest, Law had disappeared from the screen, running away to the emergency unit where he fucking needed. Kid groaned in disappointment, palms pressing his eyes as he realized that based on experience, “Emergency” combined with “you’re needed” from that shitty little bird always means that Law will be locked in the emergency room for hours. Kid got up from his chair, propping his laptop on top of his bed, facing the bathroom’s door so he can still see Law’s office while taking shower. Just in case he got false alarm and get back sooner than Kid predicted. Kid then took off his shirt, standing under the rain of cold water as he mourn his decision to come to this Nowhereville in the middle of unknownland. It was a supervision job that only the machine builder can take. Franky was supposed to be the one that go and supervise the machine, but his wife got pregnant, leaving Kid no choice than to go─well, he did have a choice, but he was so proud of his machine that he can’t resist the opportunity to actually see it in action.

When he relay the news to Trafalgar, he only shrugged. “Go, then. We can always Skype to talk to each other. Saw Pen and Killer does that. It looks like they never separated at all,” then added with a cunning smile. “We can try the hot Skype sessions too.”

But then reality hits hard. Forget Hot Skype sessions. They can barely make any calls, with Kid turned out have to stay in limited service area, where internet signal is rare and weak most of the time. Kid had to purchase signal booster to the nearby city, which took him 2 hours driving in bumpy, slippery dirt road to stabilize the internet. Then, when all is settled and Kid could even watch 10 episodes of Hannibal without any delays, their call attempts were ruined because of time difference. Either Kid fell asleep while waiting for Law to online, or Law never showed up at all with all the emergencies in the hospital, even on weekends.

“13 hours difference sucks!” Kid yelled to the bathroom walls. He decided to get out of the shower, put on his clean shirt and shorts, and lay down on the bed, plugging in his laptop charger with his eyes occasionally glance to the screen. It’s still showing blank white hospital wall on the other side of the world. Law’s office.

Kid put the laptop on his stomach, letting out a small smile as he recalling the moment he first enter Law’s office, doing the not-so-safe-for-work thing. Law always ditched the idea when Kid threw them, but once they were provided with the opportunity, the nasty Doc was always the one who follow through on the ideas.

Kid missed him so much. He should have known that Skype just won’t cut it. He needs the doc. Hell, even this small bed feels too large for him without Law’s body beside him.

“Damn you, Doc,” Kid smiled. “You’re really gonna be the death of me, you know that? I don’t know why I even agreed to this whole 18 weeks away from you. Can barely stand the last 3 weeks. Too bad I can’t just ditch this now. But you, though. You can ditch the patients. People die every day. I will die if we can’t talk more than few lines in the next week. You really got into my skin, aren’t you? You little shit head.”

Out of desperation and sleepiness, Kid continued to blabber randomly.  He’s saying things that he wouldn’t caught say out loud sober, even to save his own life. He kept talking and talking, before ended up fell asleep with skype still on, like he always did the past two weeks.

Kid woke up one hour early the next morning. His laptop still rest on his stomach, but the screen is dead. He yawned, lazily starting his laptop back just to check on his luck with this Skype thing.

But just like many other attempts before, Law is offline at this hour. Probably fell asleep on his laptop too, or too busy focusing his mind on another emergency.

However, this time, he saw that Law left a message.

A video message.

That’s just enough to jolt Kid to full consciousness. He eagerly played the video, which shows Law still in his scrubs, but with heavier eyes. His mouth curved into a wide, cheeky grin. Kid smiled automatically, replying the bastard’s smile even though he’s not actually there to see it.

“Hi, Eustass-ya,” he started. Kid mirrored Law’s smirk. His sleepiness just evaporated. “So, while I’m in the emergency room, Shachi sat on his desk just in front of mine, working the papers from today’s patients. He might heard something. One or two…”

“Law, don’t say my name! I don’t want the Captain kill me the moment he set foot here!” someone yelled in the background, distracting Law from his words. He smiled cunningly through the screen, obviously at Shachi. That pause is enough to make Kid blush hard. Oh, shit. What did he say last night? He did remember saying things. He just can’t remember exactly what, though. Shit. How screwed is he?

“Yeah, anyway, he might heard one or two things of your… confessions to me,” Law paused for a moment. His signature move to surprise / kill people with his words. “And might recorded that for me to hear. I must confess, I never thought of you as a romantic type,” he continued. However, he can’t seem to hold the amused smirk anymore. Kid choked on his own saliva. What did that Shachi guy recorded? Fuck. How much did he heard?

“I know tough guy like you don’t say weak things like ‘I miss you’ a lot. Hence why you always say it indirectly. But really, you’re such an idiot,” he shook his head, clearly amused. Shit shit shit. “Since our schedule is making it impossible for us to meet on Skype, say, how about I record a video message like this when I have time, and you recorded yours when you have time? But I promise, it would only be for a while. I’m booking a plane ticket departing next month. So don’t sulk about it anymore. Or sulk. I don’t care. I’ll punish you for humiliating me with those lovey dovey words either way,” he laughed, almost evilly while Kid widened his eyes. 

Holy shit! He’s gonna come here, to the middle of nowhere?

“By the way, I think I found your absence irritating too,” Law said, in a softer voice. “So see you next time. Record something nice for me to wake up to, will you?”

And with that, the video time indicator hits the right part of the screen and the video stopped. Kid set up his laptop camera, and hit the record button.  

“Nice, Doc. Now it's gonna be hard for me to beat that big surprise of yours. The only thing big around here is something in my pants but that's not a surprise for you anymore. So instead, to celebrate the news of you coming here…” 

[notarealdisciple]

Do These Things to Improve Your Collocations

If you have been studying English even for a short time, chances are you have already heard or read hundreds of collocations. A collocation is a group of two or more words that is almost always used together. Here are a few examples: heavy rain big decision break a habit make a mistake It would sound strange if someone said, “huge rain” “large decision” “finish a habit” or “do a mistake.” Most people would understand the meaning, but native English speakers would never combine words in that way. We would not say, for instance, “I’m hoping to hear about the large decision later today.” The point is that some words go together in English and some do not. There is no grammatical reason why. And that sometimes makes collocations difficult for English learners. If you don’t know, for example, that “big decision” is a collocation, it is not so easy to guess. Another thing that can make these things tricky is that many English words have several collocations. For instance, the word “decision” can be used in “difficult decision,” “final decision” and many others. Today on Everyday Grammar, we will give you three practice exercises on collocations. Improving your use of collocations will help your English sound more natural, which will make you more easily understood. Learn by recognizing One of the best ways to look for collocations is to read and listen to many things in English. This will help you start to recognize them when you see and hear them. In this first exercise, you will hear a short story with several collocations. Most in the story begin with common verbs such as have, get, make and take. But note that collocations can be made of any part of speech, not just verbs, but also nouns, adverbs and adjectives. Now, listen to the story and write down as many collocations as you hear: We had plans to meet some good friends by 11. So this morning, I took a shower by 9. As I was making the bed, I could hear heavy rain outside. I checked the weather and saw it was going to be a cold, wet day. So I got dressed in warm clothes. My husband made breakfast. The pancakes were tasty but whenever he cooks, he makes a mess! But he did wash the dishes so I can’t complain. So anyway, we took the train and met our friends at a holiday market. We had a great time but probably spent too much money! So, what did you find? Here are the verb-noun collocations: have plans, make the bed, take a shower, check the weather, make breakfast, make a mess, wash the dishes, take the train, have a good time and spend money You also heard the adjective-noun collocations “good friends,” “heavy rain” and “warm clothes” and the verb-verb collocations “get dressed” and “can’t complain.” This gives you some idea of just how much we use them. They are everywhere! Learn with a dictionary OK, onto the second exercise: using a collocation dictionary. Earlier, I told you that some English words have many collocations. So let’s take a few words from the story and see what I mean. You can find a few good collocation dictionaries online, such as freecollocation.com.*  Now, try looking up the word “make” and find two collocations that were not in the story. Then, look up the word “time” and find two collocations that were not in the story. For “make,” you might for example find “make an effort” and “make money.” For “time,” you might for example find “free time” and “take your time.” Again, there are many possibilities for each word. These are just a few. Using a collocation dictionary can be helpful, but do not attempt to make long lists and memorize them. Instead, note just a few collocations every time and write a sentence or two for each that relates to your own life. For example, for “free time,” you might write “I wish I had more free time during the week” or “I will finally have free time when I go home for the holiday.” Then, try using some of these in your real life conversations. Learn by observation All right. That brings us to the third practice activity. TV, or television programs can teach you a lot about collocations. One way to use them is to observe and note the collocations you find in a few minutes of dialogue on a TV show or movie. Then, just as in the last exercise, write a sentence for each that you might use in real life, and practice using it sometime in conversation. Another fun thing you might try is a little less usual. Some of you may remember the 1990s British TV show Mr. Bean. On the show, Mr. Bean would find humorous solutions to the problems of everyday life, like shopping, going to restaurants, traveling or celebrating holidays. But here is what’s unusual about the show: there is almost no dialogue. So, in this activity, you are testing which collocations you can name without hearing anyone speaking. On our website, you will find a short video of Mr. Bean. Watch the video and try to name a few collocations to describe the place, people, things and actions you see.  If you’re unsure whether something is a collocation, you can check it in a collocation dictionary. And don’t forget to tell us what you find! I’m Alice Bryant. Alice Bryant wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. *Oxford is a British dictionary but includes American collocations. British and American English share most of the same collocations but be aware of small differences.  ________________________________________   Practice 1 Write two or three sentences about your own life using collocations you heard today. You can choose from: have plans, make the bed, take a shower, check the weather, make breakfast, make a mess, wash (the) dishes or any of the others. Then, try using your sentences in real conversations. Practice 2 Note that the Mr. Bean practice exercise is fairly advanced so don't worry if you can't find many collocations. You can still try it for fun! Watch the video carefully a few times and see what collocations you can name from observation.  ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story habit – n. something that a person does often in a regular and repeated way grammatical – adj. of or relating to grammar guess – v. to form an opinion or give an answer about something when you do not know much or anything about it shower – n. the act of washing your body with a shower check – v.  to get information by looking at something or asking about something pancake – n. a thin, flat, round cake that is made by cooking batter on both sides mess – n. a very dirty or untidy state or condition  dictionary – n. a book that lists words in alphabetical order and gives the words' meanings, forms and pronunciations conversation – n. an informal talk involving two people or a small group of people dialogue – n. a conversation between two or more people Source: https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/doing-these-things-will-improve-your-collocations/5192719.html