#anyhow this is enough i think XD

[sillyfreakx5]

he didn't respond for over 5 hours and it's the middle of the day in his timezone aaaaa did i do something wrong??? (he usually replies quite quickly and i already sent several texts)

[urlocalwormtoday]

jrwi httyd au ? more likely than you think

[monkiesimp]

Hello

I heard headcanons and I just had to put in a request for some!!

I was wondering if you could give some general hcs for MK, Redson, and Macaque with an s/o who has a hard time verbalizing their adoration and love for them in person (cause they get to flustered/ embarrassed from it) so they leave around little notes or letters telling them how they feel instead !!

æææ that's so cute ���� yes

MK:

- He really doesn't mind at all that you have troubles showing affection or verbalizing it, he'll give you all the love.

- He wouldn't tease you if you get flustered or embarrassed, he wants you to enjoy small gestures as much as he does :3

- Even if you have hard time showing it back he can see you enjoy his affections and that's enough for him

- He finds your leaving sticky notes and letters so cute and adorable .... He definitely takes a picture and saves it on his phone if he finds a particular one that's too cute not to save.

- If he had a bad day your little notes would be enough to get him happy again, even if it isn't really related to what's he feeling he can't help but find it cute and smile

- But uh, if he's awfully sad the smile won't really last-

- In return he's also leaving some letters and notes around for you sometimes! He finds it fun and wants to join in

- Gives you even more love after the notes he receives by hugging you and holding you and NEVER LETTING GO CUS YOU'RE TOO GODDAMN CUTE he can't help himself

Red Son:

- Honestly he doesn't show much affection to you, and since you don't either you two mostly don't really cuddle or anything. Maybe show small gestures but if you do both of you will be blushing hard, mostly you. Red can control it at times

- Still both of you are pretty embarrassed and flustered while showing affections to one another xD

- Since you don't show as much love for him as he does, you leave around notes for him to read.

- He'd definitely be doing something then he sees your note, he pauses and stops working just to read it a few times over and over. He'd read it multiple times, yes.

- If someone walks in he's immediately startled and starts mumbling to himself how stupid you are (you're not), he's trying to hide the fact he stared at the letter for at least 10 mins so he's mumbling to himself to hide it. Yeah, bad excuse cause everyone can see his blushing face

- Doesn't really mention much about the letters, maybe sometimes but you can see he likes them so you keep making more, and yeah he loves it!

- He saves all your notes on some board, he doesn't wanna throw it away. You just see a white board full of some stuff from his work and then also a few notes you made for him around it too

- He loves it, even if he doesn't show it

Macaque:

- Since you're so flustered by his love and affections, he'd sometimes tease you about it but not always, just sometimes cause he loves making you blush

- He doesn't mean anything bad, he just finds it cute

- Honestly it took it your all to start leaving him some notes to read cause you were kinda scared he'd make fun of you for it-

- But he didn't, so yay

- He likes receiving letters and notes from you, it's a bit difficult to leave him notes around cause God knows where he is and goes to

- Anyhow, every time he reads your note his tail would be swishing without him realizing it, every time he stops it and goes back to reading it starts wagging again. It's impossible to control.

- He reads it with a smile on his face, and not like a small smile but a genuine one

- He honestly doesn't even realize he's smiling while reading your notes either 💀

- He just kinda opens up a shadow portal and stuffs the note in there, just to store it for memories, who knows maybe he'd like to read it again one day when he misses you

- He'd definitely ask for more letters and notes from you and tell you he loves it and how adorable it is

- He loves you more and more the more letters he reads, he immediately thinks in his mind that you're definitely a keeper

[spotofmummery]

Dip pen practice!

I haven't used a manga dip pen in... gosh... 15 some years? I've been getting into fountain pens lately, and rediscovered my old dip pen set. So I decided to buy some ink for it and explore with physical media again.

Lesson learned today: I vastly underestimated the amount of time it takes for wet ink to dry well enough to erase over it without smear-city. Also, make sure the nib is secure in the pen or... PLOP!

Oops. Nothing a little Photoshop can't fix, though. XD

Anyhow, first practice. Have a thinking Amon.

[kame-writes]

Concerning the media overlords au:

First of all: I love it! Thank you for sharing the idea with us <33

Second: Does Alastor live in the tower with the other Vees? And does Alastor still move into the hotel? If yes, on a scale of one to absolutely how sad/pissed/jealous is Vox after receiving this info?

3. I'd like to imagine Velvette's fingers are constantly itching to get ahold of that handsome deer man, who doesn't know how to dress himself properly or trendy, and give his wardrobe an upgrade. Could you imagine this happening? (Maybe with lots of alcohol involved. So that he would at least temporarily let her experiment with his clothes. Bonus points if she is able to take picture too. Vox would obviously make himself some copies for.. private reasons...) Do you see my vision?? Can you see it??

4. Can Vox convince Alastor to do more audio features within their network? Like podcasts or interviews and the like? Or are they just screams as well? (I recently discovered a podcast about cooking, where each week they talk about one ingredient and explain a recipe with it. I think this would fit Alastor's preferences very well.. tho the ingredients might not be as commonly used now that I think about it... anyhow... now I can't stop thinking about Hannibal and Alastor hosting a food podcast.. oops.. sorry, but not really)

5. You mentioned that Husk still works in his casino, if he isn't needed. Do you have any headcanons for Niffty's whereabouts?

Anyway that's all for now! Have a lovely day/night! <33

p.s. Sorry if this ask is intrusive. For some questions it's pretty clear that I've already imagined something for myself that may or may not fit with your vision of this au. If you feel like I overstepped, feel free to ignore this or send me an alastor_fuck_u. gif :D

Im am very happy to have questions asked! You have no idea how many ideas i have and dont know what to do with xD

I'd love to see other peoples headcanons and ideas for this universe, if anyone does anything for it then please tag me so i can see ^^

This is gonna get long so I've put it under a read more

2: No one is really sure if he lives there or just works there. He HAS his own suite in the tower, but he's not always there when they go look for him, and not being able to find him is very a common occurrence, made more frustrating because he refuses to carry or awnser the mobile phone they forced on him. He hangs around in the common areas like the kitchen and living room sometimes. And if they do manage to rope him into something like a movie night its a huge hassle, because he will insist on a black and white or silent film if he HAS to engage with the tv, and Vel and Val hate those.

The whole top of the Tower is dominated by his large Radio tower though, its slightly seperated from the rest of the building, suspended above it with a staircase/ladder to enter the hatch. Valentino is usually not brave enough to check there for Alastor.

Its the same with the hotel. He does move into his own room there, but goes back and forth a lot, and doesnt have a schedule. Vox tires to pretend hes fine with it at first but often ends up the hotel to be a pain in the ass to Charlie, and getting kicked out by the staff of Alastor. Hes convinced himself that Alastor will lose interest sooner rather than later, and the others just tune out his whining at this point. No one buys it when he claims he didnt even notice Alastor was gone as soon as the Radio Demon gets back to the tower.

3: I may be planning to draw this haha He does let her dress him up ocassionally, he has a few differant suits he's approved of and kept, but does wear his original the most the time. Velvette has a line of 'Vintage chic' clothing that partly started as a way to get Alastor to agree to changing his 'ratty ass old man style' by appealing to clothes that were updated takes on his era. He still very rarely leaves the tower in anything but his own usual attire.

He does on rare occasions allow photos to be taken of him by the vees (and once, later on by charlie, under strict instructions that she keeps it to herself) but no video. And none under any circumstances are allowed on social media. He has blown up a few phones that have attempted, both the Vees and employees.

4: Alastor has agreed to be on a podcast a few times, but its rare, and only if its somehting hes really interested in talking about. It's one of the few modern things he approves of since its just a version of a radio talk show. Same with interviews, he keeps them even more extremly rare, and the mystery of the radio Demon keeps sinners in fear more than him being in the public. Vox always wants him to do more since the ratings sky rocket when Alastor features.

When Alastor has done an interview it is with his back to the camera, and sitting in a large wingbacked stupidly over the top ornate chair, that hides him from being seen, except maybe the top tuffs of his ears and antlers. And he doesnt reveal much about himself when he does. The chair is partly to hide him, and partly to stop the equitment form glitching too much. He likes to pulls faces and makes gestures deliberatly made to make Vox falter and look stupid on camera, since hes the only one who can see him in that chair.

He has teased on his own radio show that one 'lucky' sinner may get the chance to be on both a guest star on his radio broadcast AND a livestream if the mood takes. Valentino had to inform him that what he's referring to is called a snuff film

5: Niffty gets moved to the hotel pretty much full time once Alastor gets involved, Husk is a part time employee, but ends up spending less time at his casino as time goes on.

Valentino is happy Niffty is gone because she creeps him out, she ocassionally hung around his studio during work hours, especially if theyre doing a scene with 'bad boys'. Vox isn't bothered. Velvette is not happy, especially that Niffty is reduced to a maid/janitor for the hotel, and makes that very known to Alastor. Velvette loves Niffty, they are chaos sisters and work on very sketchy sounding potions together, and gang up against the boys.

Niffty is also a great seamstress herself and brings her designs to Velvette like an excited child showing off their latest art project. Almost none of these get used, but Vel has fun forcing models to parade around the studio and work in something Nifftys made, they often include bugs and bodyparts, Velvette finds this halarious.

[amethystfairy1]

hiya it’s been a hot minute since I sent an ask but I want you to know that I’ve been reading all your stuff for months now, refreshing multiple times a day bc I can’t get enough and I adore everything you write <3<3<3 I think your more recent writing with the darker themes is well done, it adds the perfect amount of angst and stakes to the story, more than vague threats of getting hurt, esp in the under city, but it’s not too much at the same time. Also your newest TT treebark is probs my favorite fic thus far, and treebark isn’t even my favorite ship lmao. It’s so arghhh yesss with Rens acting but Martyn can’t tell nooooo 😭 I REALLY want to know what Ren was thinking that whole time negotiating with the bandits, esp when he finally looked at Martyn bc he could probably hear his cries the whole time and UGH it breaks my heart in a good way. AND MARTYN ACCEPTING THAT REN WOULD DO THIS, AND FORGIVING HIM????? The angst, the FEELS. Stunning. A masterpiece. I start my days checking to see if you’ve posted I’m so obsessed XD. Might have to draw the scene… anyhow. I see you get a lot of requests to write certain ships now bc all the stories r so captivating we just HAVE to know more. But. I hope you don’t feel pressured or stressed about it, make sure to prioritize your own wants first. The quality is worth the wait <3 that said, I’m going insane over Martyn. oH also!!! Ren grabbing the wolf pendant!!!!!! He knows how much it means to Martyn my HEART they’re so AAAaAAaAaaaaA!! And he waited until he was between Martyn and the bandits to attack! To protect him! 🥺🥺🥺 the little details are so sweet I’m dying to know rens thoughts. He probably has the rage of a thousand suns in him after seeing Martyn tied up, hurt, crying, bc they would DARE lay a finger on the only one who protected him, who was nice to him. Just. Tomorrow can’t come fast enough. I’m def gonna draw this. Also side note love the new pfp

Hello!!!! Good to see you!!!!

I'm so glad you're still reading and enjoying my works!

Also very happy to hear you're enjoying the darker themes that have been coming up recently in both TTSBC and TT! You're exactly right, that's exactly the sort of thing I was trying to nail...oh yeah ANGST with Treebark right now!

I mean. If you feel inspired. I would LOVE if you drew this scene. Because like, I have that art you did of Ren asleep on Martyn's shoulder as the cover image to my Treebark fanfic doc 🥹

Thank youuuu I appreciate the thought about not feeling pressured or stressed, I promise I'm not! I know everyone is just excited for their favorite/most compelling storyline to continue! And like I've said elsewhere, I plan to stick to my mantra...when I try to write something I'm not in the mood to write, I burn out and don't feel like writing at all. That's what happened to me the last time I stopped writing, and I didn't post at all for nearly a year. I HATED THAT. So TTSBC and TT is the perfect situation for me! Lots of ships, lots of characters, lots of dynamics, and between the two I can write BASICALLY anything I feel like at any point in time! So yeah! I'll write what I feel like writing in the moment, because that's always when I come up with my best stuff!

THE WOLFS PENDANT YUP GOOD CATCH. Ren's a good guy, he pays attention to that sort of thing 💖

I'm glad you like my new pfp!!! I love it! It's by my same friend who drew my old pfp, but THIS one is of an original character of mine everyone who reads TTSBC is very familiar with and people very scared of, but I assure you, any resemblance to characters previously mentioned is purely coincidental, hypotheticals should be, should be, should be dismissed, and there is no need to be concerned. 😉

Thank you for coming by again!!!

[springkuinn]

A letter to Wanderer

Genshin Impact Wanderer x Reader

This is a little something I've written in times of extreme emotions. I was also inspired by a wanderer playlist so my motivation to write just surged in. The name at the end is the name I chose to give to my wanderer. Frankly, these are the things I wish to say to this fandango man, does anyone relate to me? XD

To you of wandering heart,

I love you.

But I know someone like me can't stand beside you. I know that it can't be me. But I wish and hope every day that you find happiness, peace and a place to belong to someday. It doesn't need to be now. But I do hope that someday, someday you'll truly smile.

And I hope that one day, you find people who will accept you as I do. You've done evil things, yes. And I myself believe that you do not deserve to be truly forgiven. However, I always pray and wish that you'll find a family. A family who's willing to forgive you in stand of the world. Because you don't deserve everyone's forgiveness. You don't deserve the forgiveness of every family you've ruined. But a wandering man will become tired someday too, and you deserve a home. A home where you will wish to rest in someday.

A home with a backyard would be nice. Oh, and a treehouse! Since you seem to like high places. Hmm, now I'm wondering if it's because so you can look down on people...

I know you might be thinking, how condescending of me to say these. But jokes on you, I'm still into you. Hahaha, you can burn this letter or tear it apart and feed it to the fishes at Devadaha Pool. But my feelings will not go into oblivion along with it if you do so. And I'm happily wheezing away just imagining how much you might be blenching now while reading this. Or I might be mistaken, and you've long thrown this letter away. Anyhow, I'm sure you've realized that I'm long gone as you are reading this. I wonder what face you're making now?

I hope that you begin to accept that you are worthy of happiness too. Don't ever think that you do not. Even if it's just one person, I hope that you can open your heart to them and accept love again. You are worthy of it, you do.

Wanderer, I truly truly truly love you. Unconditionally so. I love you. Saying this a million times is not nearly enough. And I fear that my time is also running out.

Thank you for existing, Shinrin.

---

"Hah" A quiet scoff left Wanderer's mouth as he stared at your letter. Tipping his hat to cover his eyes from the wind, he crumpled the paper.

" You think too highly of yourself Y/N... "

"I don't even have a heart, you idiot." He breathed out the last words as he felt something scratching his throat. The silence and peace emanating from the forest and chirps of birds almost mocking the unexplainable chaos inside him. He doesn't understand the tug in his heart, nor the reason for his furrowed brows. He's supposed to not have a heart, to not have the slightest of emotions.

"Tsk." Maybe being around the kind Nahida affected his brain into thinking things like this. Or is it really just an illusion from his mind? Is the lone tear that slipped out of his eye all a trick? He doesn't know. And there is no one to tell him anymore in this world.

Shinrin:

Shin- new, heart, true & Rin- group of trees

I gave him this name in hopes that he'll find a new home where he can truly find his heart and his true meaning in life, in his new region: the Sumeru.

springkuinn~~~

[delicateartisantrash]

Gauging Interest:

So....

....i actually got inspired to consider doing this project by my Star Wars fic, Travel Buddies, which has reached a large enough audience i often wonder of any people who might struggle to read through longer chapters, or who would love to listen and have the mental space to, but don't have the time to stare at a screen actually reading.

I sometimes throw my own stories on a text-to-speech reading to listen to while I'm physically busy doing cleaning or work or art or other tasks, and while i can fall into the story, sometimes that fake voice breaks my immersion with weird pronunciations of names and such, and I wanted to just do a reading outright.

My biggest hangup... i SUCK at voice acting. I used to practice it all the time as a kid and then i got teased all the time because i just fucking. If someone has an accent and I'm talking to them it's a struggle to not pick it up, it's not even intentional i just do it and my friends loved making me talk British or Aussie (which was often because friends in that group were in Britan and Australia xD) before i had to GO TO CLASS OR WORK FUCK

Fuuuuuuuuck

Anyhow

I miss it

I strangled it out of myself being self conscious without even realizing that and i kinda want fix that. I'm not the greatest I'll never be the best but i can talk decent.

I don't necessarily need to make a dedicated published project out of my practice though, so my question is-- would anyone wish to hear an audio book of my fanfics? I would be doing all of them, though I'd likely start with Leaking Spark and Travel Buddies as they have the easiest flow for me to read without getting self conscious.

(reblogs appreciated! ❤️)

[dennydraws]

Sometimes checking local bookstores have some rare finds...

And I was most definitely not expecting to find the FF14 Manga there but I take it XD;; I highly doubt it was intentional but having the price sticker over Asahi's face absolutely killed me lol

But this will be a talk about manga books and not specifically about FF14's manga book which was hilarious by the way XD;;

(Press F for Urianger... well, for Thancred really but ya know...)

It may come as a surprise but I'm not exactly a big manga reader. I think it was primary because manga wasn't as available or popular here when I was growing up and when I started spreading I started feeling too old for it. Now looking back, I was mid 20 I wasn't too old lol But also I was not in a financial position to spend on what I considered luxurious hobby materials. I never looked at manga books as anything but forbidden pricey thing that I could do without... even though looking back I could've learned a lot or enriched my art journey but... when you try to graduate university, freelance and cover for struggling and sick family these things are not something you think to spend on... ANYHOWSIES, I did not intend to share sad artist backstory, more like I wanted to explain my relationship with actual manga books has been an odd one XD;

It wasn't until recently that I started to actually go to bookstores during my lunch break and browse manga books and regular books too. However now they are so many that I get overwhelmed. Now that I have my preferences, I don't feel comfortable just grabbing a book on a whim. I still very much hate the idea of blindly spending on things that may not be of use to me. But even so I began to reach out, grab something, try it, see what I can learn from it. I feel like a teenager dipping toes into something they've always looked from behind the shop window but now they can actually afford it! XD;; I tried to start with books whose anime I deeply enjoyed and maybe look over what's around them - surely there will be something similar!

And then to my surprise I started noticing... Artbooks! Usually the ones I am interested in are on the obscure side? Or at least I've never found any of those I was interested in... ever XD

It has always been a lot more art books available here for WoW or LoL or whatever western-ish game franchise which... while I respect them, I just don't really enjoy their art style. And I did grow up surrounded by boys and a bully big brother whom I've always tried to impress or be "cool enough" to hang out with him (I was never cool enough to hang out with him u_u) and as result I had to deny myself a lot of things I was enjoying but I thought they are embarrassing - a lot of typically girly genres things because he'd mock them and if he mocks them then they were bad and I'd never be "cool enough" if I showed interest in them! Oh noes! Now that post turned into more personal down pour XD;

As years went on and after some reflection and years of existing in a healthy friend circle I started to enjoy the things I always wanted to enjoy growing up. I see them in new light now and I appreciate them with the eyes of a grown up while still kind of connect to this lost childhood spark. It's been really nice.

Plus I'm enjoying reading ...well, normal books, a lot more. Some years ago you wouldn't find me able to sit and read but now I do and quite enjoy it!

I don't know where I was going with this post XD I wanted to share I found the FF14 manga in a local store during my lunch break and it escalated to, I've been slowly buying and reading more manga and artbooks as of this year! It's never too late to reconnect with things you wanted to enjoy but couldn't in the past :D;;

Anyhow! Thank you for reading this silly lil ramble post, dear web traveller! I hope you will have great rest of the day and smooth week ahead!

[beardedmrbean]

Almost there!

In other news, DuoLingo now has this Weekly Goals thing

I think I'm doing ok. XD

(Some stuff is missing from my usual cause I switched to Hawaiian for a bit.)

So at 1350 do you get a parade?

this is closing in on 4 years so it would be well deserved if so

as for missing things I wouldn't have even noticed.

Goals deal my bible app has things like that but it's not weekly or anything it's just the occasional "challenge" last one was do a lesson every day for 7 days, which is easy enough and I would have done it anyhow.

I think they should do a parade for you, you've earned it.

[melancholy-marionette]

Hi! How are you today?

You've likely already been asked this, but what do you use to make visual novels? How did you learn to do it? All the ones you make are so cool!!! 💖

Heya! I would say 'tired' is probably the main way I feel today xD I’ve been staying up until 4am again recently and forcing myself up again at 8:30am trying to make up for lost time on the jam that I’m currently taking part in with Lazy Polar Bear x3 (otome/josei jam)

We even tried our best to plan some stuff in advance so that we could have a chilled-out jam for once, but the world had other plans it seems, haha. We've both been hit by a fair bit of bad luck, so I’m pushing myself in the hope we’ll still be able to release a demo in time for the end of the jam. Energy drinks are very much my friend atm x3

I’m so sorry it’s taken me forever to answer anyhow! I’m still majorly behind on pretty much everything >.< so most of my replies are at snail speed, haha. It doesn’t help that my PC died at the end of April, and trying to get a new one has been a nightmare :( 

I knew it was on its way out for a while, so I’d been saving up + making sure to regularly backup data (thankfully, I don’t think I lost too much!) Managed to scrape together enough to get a new one, but when it was delivered, something was wrong with it >.< The first time I powered it on, there was a super loud scraping sound from a fan or something, and it threw up some BIOS error stuff instead of booting Windows.

I contacted the company, and they arranged to collect it & rebuild it for me, which took a while to do. Just had the rebuilt one delivered this week, but there’s still something not quite right about it :( It takes over 1 minute to boot up from pressing to power on (for reference, my PC that died was over 10 years old and booted up in about 10 seconds!) The 4th time I powered the new one on, it lit up inside, but never displayed anything. I gave it 5 minutes, but still nothing, so had to hit the reset button on the case.

Aaaand, one of the hard drives scans show it’s temperature is 68 degrees while the PC is idle, which doesn’t seem good >.< Neither does how hot the processor and graphics cards are showing on temperature readings when idle. As far as I can tell though, all the fans are working fine! 

Still in contact with support trying to find out what is going on :( Which is not what I need while trying to work on a jam project, haha.

Anyways, I’m so sorry for the giant ramble there!! To actually answer your question x3 I don’t think I’ve been asked it that much actually! Maybe only like once or twice :3 The first couple of VNs I made were made with Tyranobuilder cos that was the first thing I came across that seemed easy to use, and it was :D I did try Ren’Py first, but after completing a few tutorials and making a demo project, I hated having to do code stuff so much that I knew it would make me not want to make a full game if that was how I had to do it >.<

I got Tyranobuilder in a Humble Bundle years ago, and it claimed you could make VNs from scratch without writing a single line of code because it used a drag & drop system, so I figured I’d give it a shot! It definitely did what it said on the tin :3 I made my first-ever game with it (Solipsism Reigns) + another one after that (Impostor) before switching to something else. (well, there was also the CiQ demo too, but that's irrelevant now that the game is being made in Nani!)

I think I read a couple of basic tutorials for Tyrano, but it was honestly all really easy to get going with by just poking around in there and seeing what did what, haha.

Besides those first couple of games, everything else I’ve made has been using Naninovel in Unity. I’d say Nani took longer to get started with, but the tutorials are vast and very detailed, so that was a big help. I also managed to get it while it was on sale, so that was a relief since it’s quite expensive full price.

I switched for a couple of reasons. One being that the drag & drop system in Tyrano was fantastic for a beginner like me, but also quite slow, so once I’d grown a bit more confident with how things worked, I figured something like Naninovel with an easy-to-understand scripting language would probably allow me to work faster!

The other big reason was because of how buggy Tyrano seemed to be >.< There were a lot of issues in it that didn’t seem to be having fixes worked on by the software devs at the time (I believe they have since updated it though!) And it was just frustrating to discover there was the odd bug in my game that I couldn’t fix because it was caused by something in the software itself that I hadn’t even touched.

I’ve stuck with Naninovel because it’s definitely easy to use, has a tonne of brilliant guides, and the support on Discord has always been exceptional whenever I’ve needed help on how to do something :3 There’s still a lot about it that I don’t know how to use or little gripes I have with it here and there, but overall, I do prefer it to Tyrano. Nothing is ever gonna be perfect.

It does make collaborating difficult sometimes though because Ren’Py is still the most commonly used tool for making VNs I guess. So if you want to work with people to do code and stuff, and 1 only has knowledge of Ren’Py while the other only has knowledge of Nani’s scripting language and what Nani can do, it’s like you’re speaking two completely different languages when it comes to trying to understand each other x3

If I didn’t have to write code, I would probably use Ren’Py xD It’s just, while I still dislike having to type thousands of lines of Naniscript, I find it at least manageable without getting the world’s biggest headache, haha.

I’m glad that you think the stuff I make turns out cool though! :3 That means a lot ^-^ I always kinda feel like an impostor when it comes to everything I do in game dev just cos I never had any proper training or education >.< I guess a lot of VN devs are probably self-taught though! It is fun to figure things out yourself by trial and error, but I’m sure I must be doing heaps of stuff wrong xD or at least in ways that aren’t exactly the most efficient x3 I muddle through though :D 

Hope you are well + that May is turning out to be a marvellous month for you! Or at the very least, that you have had better luck than me lately, haha.

[redhoodinternaldialectical]

Was wondering who's your favourite Jason Todd writer. (Maybe least favourite too)

Oooh this is a tough one! In part because I'm not entirely sure who to count as a Jason Todd writer, and in another part because I'm trying to pick someone other than Winick bc saying it's him feels too obvious lmao

The joke answer is Bruce Jones, because I genuinely adore Nightwing: Brothers In Blood, though I uhhh- look I GET why other people do not xD

But really maybe I should just bite the bullet and say it's Judd Winick. I do love what he did with the character and I can say with confidence that I'm not just listing him cause of Under the Red Hood. Seeing Red in Green Arrow (2001) is like my favorite comic run ever. Jason's appearance in Outsiders (2003) is great. Streets Run Red in B&R was solid. Lost Days remains my favorite interpretation of the time after he came back, despite the fact that I have some criticisms.

That being said, I do think I mildly prefer him in an anti-hero role rather than Winick's sympathetic villain who can sometimes be reasoned with, and I quite like what Rosenburg has been doing with him.

It feels like Rosenburg has a really solid idea in his head of who Jason is and why/how he clashes with the other bats. I enjoyed The Man Who Stopped Laughing way more than I thought I would. Taskforce Z has definite merits. Gotham War was a complete clusterfuck and horribly organized, but I do think I see what he was going for there and was interested even though it clashed badly with what the other writers were doing.

So yeah, I guess that's my answer. Rosenburg is my fav modern Jason writer so far and Winick remains the heavyweight champion of Jason writing overall.

My least favorite on the other hand isn't any of the usual suspects (Starlin, Morrison, and Lobdell)

Starlin seemed to want to write vicious, seedy thrillers about realistic serial killers and the worst that humanity has to offer and was instead stuck writing Batman and Robin lmao. Should he have just found other employment instead, or knuckled down and written to the tone of the material at hand? Probably! However, putting Batman and Robin in a world that was patently unfit for their type of heroics was interesting to read for me, and frankly, most of what I love about Jason wouldn't exist without it.

Morrison was certainly unfavorable to Jason, but using Jason and Dick as opposing ideas of what it means to be Batman is honestly really cool, and idk I think if you can get passed the aesthetics this version of him works.

Lobdell... might actually just be bad at writing entirely? But! Lobdell has a lot of good ideas and can write something that's fun. There are several more competently put together stories that I can't say the same of.

So yeah, it's none of them, because Cavan Scott was the one who wrote the worst rendition of Jason I've ever had the misfortune to read.

Even mother fucking Battle for the Cowl did a better job with Jason! Just by giving him character motivations and a reason to be in the plot! Titans United Jason is a complete asshole to everyone around him despite having reasons not to be. Like, not even for no reason! For negative three reasons!! There are many different roles he could have taken in this comic that would have been interesting, but instead he is "thug who insults Connor Kent and is generally useless and incompetent".

Though to be fair to him, Titans United was a tie in for a TV show that has very, very different histories for all of the characters involved. It was basically a commercial and as far as I can tell this author wasn't involved in the show or any of the characters outside of this one comic. It might honestly be unfair to call him a Jason Todd writer at all.

And if we don't count little one offs like that then... yeah I don't really know who my least favorite would be *shrug*

Anyhow I feel like I've rambled more than long enough, hope this was an interesting read and thank you thank you for sending the ask :3 !

[choicesmc]

okay because i still have tabletop gaming on the brain (and I know you play now hehe):

would any of your MCs/OCs ever join a D&D campaign? (or something more niche like Ars Magica?) What would their classes be? What parts would they most enjoy?

ty sunshine! 💖

thank you for dropping by o/

Rin -> funny enough I actually headcannon that Rin starts a rival D&D club after trying to join Edgar’s table. She thought it’d be fun. Anyhow, she’s usually DM but on the rare occasion the group’s playing a one-shot, Rin’s often a barbarian. Though she’s dabbled with fighters and warlocks, barbarian is the only one that really sticks xD I think she really enjoys playing a character that’s just allowed to feel, who’s allowed to use and acknowledge intense emotions to the team’s benefit rather than their detriment, if that makes sense? When it comes to campaigns, she leans more towards ‘dungeon’ mechanics (<- ie getting quest after quest with less importance on fleshing out a character/role play) over anything else! (Also: she is a dice-hoarder, what can she say? Dice are pretty)

*Rams -> really wanted to play D&D but couldn’t find time for it… now, xe would join a campaign (if offered) but doesn’t go out looking for one. Out of all my MCs, co’d be the most open to other ttrpgs though just know co will almost always be the healer. In D&D, ze splits between cleric and druid with a mean lean towards druid. Rams is very much a roleplayer, ze doesn’t mind lots of battles but they take last priority to really getting in character and playing out a story.

Fiona -> I think he plays on the off chance if he happens to have the time + the energy. Like, you might find him wandering into a dice store and dropping in on a game every couple of months. But also, Fiona is the type whose character is a self-insert. The only difference between Ivo and Fiona is that Ivo is a traveling bard and, arguably, Fiona is not. I’d say, Fiona tends to prefer non-homebrew campaigns because 1) they are familiar and he can really focus on knowing his party members even if for just one night and 2) homebrew campaigns make him feel more bad about not being a consistent party member. (Also: only has the beginners’ pack blue dice)

Jiahao -> never played. Would play to satisfy her curiosity if a friend really wanted her to play with them. If she did ever play, his character would be a rogue. Like fallen noble turned crooked criminal type!

*Wanted to add: in Rams’ universe, there’s a D&D equivalent called Immortal Realms in which the BOLAS characters are part of a pre-made campaign kit

[zombolouge]

to those of you reading Fanatical and hoping for updates: (below readmore just to keep from cluttering screens)

I'M SO SORRY. IT'S NOT DEAD I SWEAR. It's still the story I'm actively working on. I got about as far as I could in the published chapters before I hit a few points where I was like "oh I need this later part to be more concrete before I can move on". That hit right about when my burnout hit, as I tend to have after a big output of words like what it took to finish Indefensible (and start Fanatical).

Currently the things I needed to figure out are a lot more solid, but writing hasn't quite returned to me yet.

There IS a bit of a ticking clock on it, because the next DA game comes out at the end of October. I have a very dear-to-my-heart Dragon Age fic series that I'll absolutely be adding to with fic from the new game, so that will definitely capture my interest for a time. (also hey, if you liked Indefensible/Fanatical, check out my other series's on A03! lol for most my other fics you prob don't even need to have played the games their based on, since I change canon to my liking anyhow XD)

I was in a blind panic about this looming event because I think I knew there was no way I'd be back from burnout AND have enough time/energy to finish Fanatical before DA comes out. I really, really wanted to lol but realistically I don't see that happening. Which means Fanatical will be on hiatus until I'm done with DA.

Never fear, though, I'm still actively engaging with AA - my group chat fam has been doing a read-through of the games with me, where we pick characters and act out their lines, and it's been a hoot. We're still back in AA1, so that'll be a long-running endeavor. I'm *positive* that it'll pull me back into AA once I finish up with DA (and my DA fics don't tend to run nearly as long as the AA stuff, so I shouldn't be as burned out after. Although now that I've said that I've undoubtedly jinxed myself. Alas.)

Anyhow, I just wanted you guys to know I think about it often and I haven't abandoned it and I WILL DO MY VERY BEST TO ENSURE I COME BACK TO IT BEFORE ANOTHER THREE YEARS HAS PASSED. I'M SORRY Y'ALL. The tides of my brain are not always predictable lol and unfortunately I still have a day job and a physical body which must be tended, so I can't devote ALL my energy to getting it back in the saddle before it's ready.

Love and peace to you all, go read my shit and be insane with me about it, and have a nice day <3

[velvetvexations]

ok this is a vent but its not rlly the kind i think ur used to

i genuinely miss old flippy phones so much! i miss when phones had an actual personality and it had just as much value as a personal accessory as it did for its utility. i miss being able to throw my phone in a pile and being able to pick mine out instantly because they were all unique.

obviously i realise how intuitive a touch screen is but i also really miss using a T9 keyboard, i could use that shit without even looking and text my friends from inside my pocket, i miss having buttons i could actually feel. being able to flip or slide my phone open is just an unbeatable vibe and also im never gonna forgive phone design teams for removing the headphone jack, wtf is this shit where i need some ugly dongle or headphones with a special lead that i cant use with my other stuff.

the only thing sort of close to this that exists are things that have partial smartphone features that use outdated OS or things with giant emergency call buttons that are designed for older folk. either that or those zflips/motorola things that you can fold are a cool move but atm those are prohibitively expensive and prone to breaking, i hope those continue to develop but, theyre still just not the same XD

i would love so much if there was thing that was like, smartphone guts inside a dumbphone shell, that was designed with aesthetics in mind so that it could be somewhat personalised to each user. ideally it would have both a T9 and a small touchpad for navigation but not on the screen itself, this thing wouldnt be designed for phone gamers obviously. and! the screen would be able to swivel between vertical and horizontal orientation i know some older japanese models were able to do that for tv watching purposes.

dumb little rant but wanted to get it out XD

Funnily enough I could never use cell phones as a kid because I hated those interfaces. When touchscreen phones became relatively affordable it was like a miracle, except then I just turned out to not be someone who really uses a phone ever. As a result I can now look at older cell phones that I could never vibe with and see them as my perfect aesthetic while knowing I wouldn't really be using a cell phone either way anyhow.

[amethystina]

I saw someone ask how many chapters you think Who Holds the Devil will be, and it got me thinking about how long (word wise) it might actually end up being since it’s already ~270K. This fic is a monster where it currently stands and if there’s still a lot left to go, the final word count might be insane. It makes me curious as to what the longest fic you’ve ever written was. Have you ever written a singular fic as big as this one before? What’s the most challenging part of writing stories this big? Is it outlining, continuity, or is it less to do with the story itself and more to do with things like potential burnout etc.?

(Okay, so, this is going to be quite long (which is very on-brand), perhaps a little more detailed than you asked for, and also delve into my insecurities in a way that might be TMI. Read at your own risk x'D)

Yeah, I can't say for sure how many chapters I'll write or how high the final word count will be, but it's definitely going to be a very, very long fic.

As for other fics I've written, my very first fanfic was a series (three parts that tell an overarching story, plus nine bonus chapters) that clocks in at 290k. And, after that, I've written two more than go past the 100k mark, one at 183k (if you count the bonus chapters) and another that lands at 127k. So writing long fics isn't anything new to me, but Who Holds the Devil is definitely the longest so far.

As for the most challenging part, that differs depending on the story. That first fic I wrote was a Teen Wolf one where I basically did a third season (before the actual third season aired) and the challenge was definitely the continuity, keeping all the details in order (both from canon and my own creations), and making sure to write the frankly rather big cast of characters in a believable way. It was meant to be a cohesive story that spanned over three parts, but each part also had to have its own internal structure and climax, slowly building up to the big finale in the third instalment. Hilariously enough, I was too young and dumb to even realise how big of an undertaking that was and just kept writing, blissfully unaware of my own hubris. And, somehow, I pulled it off.

But in hindsight? I was nothing short of insane. Especially considering my, at the time, untested skills at actually finishing a story of that length — in English, to boot, which isn't even my native language. I had written original stories before that, some of which were quite long, but none of that size or complexity. Like, I'm not sure I would dare try that now, even with the added experience and skills I've accumulated since then x'D

Sometimes, ignorance truly is bliss.

Anyhow, the more I write, the easier the outlining, continuity, pacing, characters etc. gets so that's rarely a problem. And a lot of that has always come naturally to me in a way I can't really explain. Like, that 183k fic? I wrote that entirely without a timeline, outline, or notes. I just kept it all in my head and went by instinct and, somehow, never had to go back and correct a mistake — not even once. Which is kind of wild when I look back on it (not to mention reckless) but yeah. And the fic is Autonomy, for those of you wondering.

I don't know what it's like for others, but I rarely get stuck on planning and outlining. I usually just figure out a beginning and a couple of key scenes and off I go. And then everything just falls into place as I keep writing, sort of outlining itself without conscious effort from me, long before I actually reach that point in the story (my brain works faster than my hands, I guess? xD). So I usually figure out the ending before I reach the halfway point and then it's just a matter of filling in the empty spaces in between. And, somehow, my brain just automatically manages to figure out the pacing, continuity, and details without me having to pay attention. Don't ask me how that works, it just does x'D

Since it's so much bigger, I do have a timeline for Who Holds the Devil, though, to keep track of where we are and remember important dates (like Go Eun's birthday! :D) as well as a document with notes for future scenes. But that's mostly because I got so excited about some of them and wanted to write down all the cool dialogue before I accidentally forgot it.

So I would say that the more experience I get, it's definitely not the story itself that makes writing long fics difficult — that part is honestly the easy one. Burnout is definitely a factor, though, especially for a fic of this length. Basically, I'm a sprinter, not a marathon runner. I will usually write a lot of words in a short period of time, then have long stretches when I write nothing at all. If I divide my total word count from last year, I actually wrote over 500 words a day, except it's usually more along the lines of 6k three days in a row, then nothing for three weeks x'D

Anyway, since I know this about myself, I usually never start posting a fic until I've finished writing it, since there might otherwise be months without updates. But I obviously had to change that with Who Holds the Devil and that has proven a bit of a challenge, I will admit. I'm not used to regular or even semi-regular updates like this, so I've had to change my habits quite a lot. But I still make sure to recognise when I have to take longer breaks (which does happen, usually after a very intense portion of the fic) just to let my brain cool down a little.

Fortunately, since I'm very goal-oriented, I never lose sight of what I'm doing, however, even during these breaks. I'm not someone who needs to feel inspired or motivated to keep writing, so I can just pick it up again whenever I like. That's not to say I force myself to write, but I can usually trick myself into getting excited enough to continue simply by taking myself over that first hurdle when everything just feels boring and uninteresting.

I'm stubborn as all hell, is what I'm saying, which is definitely useful when writing long fics.

Because, at a certain point, you're going to need more than just inspiration and eagerness if you want to finish. I have not written a single long fic during which I didn't have a moment — often more than one — where I questioned if I truly wanted to continue or not, either because I was at a boring part of the story or felt overwhelmed by the thought of how much further I had to go.

And that's honestly the most challenging part with Who Holds the Devil. I'm confident in my writing, my characterisation, my ideas, and even my plot, but sometimes when I look at my notes and see how much more I have to write, all I feel is doubt. And, in an interesting turn of events, it's not even my own commitment I'm doubting, but everyone else's.

I know I can get through this and stick with this fic to the bitter end, but can you?

Now, don't misunderstand me — my readers don't owe me anything. You can stop reading any time and you should if you're not enjoying the story, but I would be lying if I said that the amount of criticism and questions I get about the length isn't beginning to wear me down. It makes me second-guess every single choice I've made about the plot, pacing, and overall tone of the story.

At the same time, of course I get why people ask. Some want to know when they can start reading because WIPs are scary (I can totally relate) and these readers have no reason to trust me when I say that I will finish this fic, come hell or high water. Heck, I've already lost two grandparents during the writing of this fic and I'm still going. I even tried to write one chapter while sitting at my grandmother's bedside, waiting for her to die (bad idea in hindsight, my writing was very incoherent — do not recommend).

But it's not like everyone who runs across my fic automatically knows that. They don't know me so of course they'll ask, not knowing that they're the fifth person to do so in less than two months. And that kind of hurts.

And I won't deny that there's probably a bit of pride involved as well — it's annoying to have people question my choices — but, more than anything, it's telling me that I must be doing something wrong. My readers don't trust me. And, well, that's kind of alarming as a writer, when the whole point is to take someone on a ride and they keep asking you for directions or "are we there yet?"

Clearly, I'm doing something wrong.

Now, this is not EVERYONE. I have so, so many lovely readers who enjoy both the insane length and glacial slow burn of this fic — I know that. But there's always a niggling doubt at the back of my mind that I'm eventually going to alienate every single reader because this fic is just Too Long. Or that they'll simply give up on the story since it's going to take us beyond Yo Han and Ga On kissing. Like, this fic isn't just about the two of them getting together, but also how they'll make their relationship work in the long term with their individual and shared baggage taken into account. It's going to continue long past the point of them kissing for the first time, as well as them having sex for the first time.

And a lot of people lose interest after the first kiss or the first sex scene. Which is fine — each to their own — but it's very disheartening to be told that as the author. I've had people ask me in what chapter they'll finally kiss so they can jump to that chapter and ignore the rest. I've had people tell me they're going to stop reading because they just can't stand the annoyingly slow burn anymore. I've had people tell me the fic is already too long for them to read and, here I am, knowing it'll take a lot more words to even come close to finishing it.

And that, at least in the case with Who Holds the Devil, is the biggest challenge — to stay motivated and committed when more and more people are telling me I'm not doing this right. It's daunting enough as a writer to look at your fic and realise that, damn, I have such a long way to go, without also having people tell you, to your face, that, yeah, that's way too fucking long, what the fuck are you doing?

It makes you wonder why you should even keep going, especially when you know how much time and effort you're going to have to devote to the project.

What's the point?

Because despite all the lovely comments I get, praising the level of detail and how realistic everything feels, we all know that negative comments have a tendency to stick with us longer. I can't ignore them even if I desperately want to. And, to make matters worse, not all of them are even intended to be mean. Some just want to know how long the fic will be — which is fully reasonable. But those entirely reasonable questions just pile on top of this mountain of doubt I already have, telling me that this is all pointless. My commitment to this fic is a mistake. I'm wasting my time. It's not Good Enough. It's Too Long.

Now, all that said, I love Who Holds the Devil. I love exploring the characters and the story, and I honestly don't think I'll stop writing it. Because, cliché as it might sound, I do write for myself, not others. I share with others because I know people like my writing, but I'd still be writing even if no one wants to read it. So, worst-case scenario, if people are no longer interested, I'll just keep writing it but will stop posting.

Because, when it comes down to it, I don't need validation to write. I can write in complete solitude. As mentioned, I usually finish a fic before posting, which means I've sometimes completed a 60k fic without a single word of encouragement from another person. I LOVE validation, as most writers do, but I don't actually need it to keep working on a project.

Interestingly, what I'm seeing with Who Holds the Devil, is that too much attention can, apparently, instead make me doubt my commitment to a project in a way that's honestly pretty fascinating? I felt more confident about the fic BEFORE I started posting it, BEFORE I knew if anyone would even want to read it x'D

Now is when I feel the doubt, because what these comments are telling me is that, sure, a lot of people would want to read this fic, but it's too long so now they're not gonna. And, in many ways, that feels like a failure on my part, even if I of course know that tastes differ, we can't please everyone etc. etc.

Tell that to my anxiety.

So yeah. For me, personally, it's definitely outside things that make writing long fics difficult, more specifically opinions from other people that make me doubt my skill level, intentions with the fic, and if it's even worth writing in the first place. I'm actually pretty confident about the rest and, even if I struggle sometimes, I can usually push my way through those issues.

Sidenote: As someone who likes to analyse people's behaviour (including my own), it's pretty fascinating to realise that my biggest issue isn't that I feel pressured to produce more or post on a certain schedule — which is what most fanfic authors struggle with — but that I might, in fact, be doing too much? My fic is just too goddamn long for people to handle.

Like, you gotta admit — that's pretty funny xD

Anyway. All of that said, know that I don't regret writing Who Holds the Devil and that I certainly don't regret posting it. I also have every intention of finishing it and I doubt I'll actually reach a point where I'll stop posting. As long as there's even one person out there who enjoys reading the fic, that's enough for me to keep posting.

So to all of you out there — especially if you happen to be one of those who just casually asked me how long the fic will be without knowing all of this shit — I'm fine. I'm not angry or upset with you. I know the majority of you love the fic and wouldn't want me to change a thing. I also know that these insecurities of mine are… well, not unreasonable, but I don't need to listen to them. And I try my best not to (it's just difficult some days, you know?)

So, to finish this off, just know that I love you, appreciate you, and have no regrets. And thank you so, so much for reading my fic, even if it's long, and taking the time to comment, kudos, or even just gush about it with your friends. To know that my writing brings joy to other people and that it can help support you through difficult times or make your day better is the best feeling ever.

Thank you 💜

… also, chapter 29 will probably be another 15k one, because fuck my life x'D