#building blocks as a representation of creation works way too well

[aphidoideart]

#058: Oneiroboros

Description: Capable of rearranging its shape and its color into near infinite variations, Oneiroboros is the force that allows dreams to simulate any and all possibilities! As it moves, it allows dreamers to create worlds with their own unique physics, create people with their own unique intelligence, and the ability to manipulate these things to the dreamer's will! The more tangible it appears, the more control you'll have over your dreams!

Inspiration: I had a dream I was designing this very guy! I basically traced my dream self's art 1 to 1! And it worked out so well!!

Etymology: Oneiros (Greek for Dreams) + Ouroboros

[demigodforfend]

Twilight of the Demigods: Forfend Edition - Session 16

Kagoshi stepped in front of the party and spread his hands. "Alright. The easiest way to go about this is to split up. I really don't want to go to the temple with Chimney and, Kairi, you already know what's going on with me. So you two go there. And I'll go to the library."

He spun on his heel and tromped toward the Grand Library.

Melzaryn lit up. "Study bros!" He rushed after Kagoshi.

Kagoshi bristled, but settled himself down and allowed Melzaryn to stay at his side.

Forfend looked down at Kairi.

"To the temple," she shrugged.

Forfend nodded.

It watched the city as they walked. The air about Cragwall was intense, nervous. Everyone was on edge after yesterday's events.

In the ruins of the Teleportation Hub, cleanup had only just begun. The area was roped off and guarded. Melancholy workers sifted through the rubble.

The hustle and bustle surrounding it was not diminished by the somber work. If anything, it was intensified. Frantic people went about their daily business with an over-vigilant eye. Tension abounded.

Forfend paused to observe the crowd about the temple. People flooded in but trickled out. Many of them must be seeking council or comfort in this trying time.

They were scared. Of course they were turning to the gods.

Forfend lumbered forward.

The crowd parted around it, too busy to stop and stare but too unnerved to block its way.

The entrance of the massive building was marked by ornately carved pillars. They soared upwards and culminated in a roof of spiraling steeples. Beautiful stained glass cast rainbows across the ground both inside and outside the expansive cathedral.

The enormous oak doors were propped open as wide as they could be. Paladins and heroes of legends Forfend was sure it had never heard were carved straight from the stone wall. A particularly towering paladin framed the entryway, holding his sword and shield aloft.

Forfend strode inside.

Elegant arches lined the length of the massive hall. Bright paintings of angels and other celestial beings covered the walls and ceiling. Winding couatls, open-armed devas, prancing kirins, stoic planetars, and more all watched over the temple's visitors from their carvings and canvasses.

The architects and construction crew had done well cultivating the holy atmosphere. The priests and clerics had done well maintaining it. Divine energy thrummed through the air. Forfend could feel it in its chest, softly warming its core.

Forfend caught itself staring up at the expansive mural across the ceiling. It told the tale of creation, of the Age of the Gods, of the Sundering, and finally of the defeat of the Sunderer. All of it led slowly to a representation of Genesis, the Creator himself.

Genesis's symbol rose into the air, taking up the entirety of the back wall. The top point of the star brushed the ceiling and the arms of it brushed the walls to either side. Gold inlaid the spiraling center and stained glass filled in the gaps between. Otherworldly colors cast themselves far across the floor at the behest of this depiction, touching every corner.

Genesis was where it all began. As such, swirling stone carvings made it appear the entirety of the cathedral was spawned outward from the magic of his symbol. Markings of Genesis were clear in the design of every facet of the building.

Forfend pulled its gaze away from the stunning monument and took in the carvings of every other deity in the pantheon.

They lined the hall, each one marking a large open recess dedicated entirely to their individual worship. The statues varied wildly in composition and style, but each one was immaculately designed and upkept.

Pews and podiums surrounded many of the deities' feet. The seats were crowded in most of the alcoves. The temple was filled with the overlapping chatter of more than a dozen different sermons.

Kairi bumped against Forfend's side.

It looked down to see her pressing fingers to her temples and squinting against what it assumed to be the assaulting colors of a thousand different emotions. Forfend couldn't imagine what it might be like for her to see so much information all the time, but it certainly didn't look pleasant at the moment.

It gently tugged her closer against it.

"Lybearon's statue is there. If there are any priests or clerics who could understand Kagoshi's situation, it would be followers of the Redeemer," Forfend suggested.

Kairi followed where it was pointing.

A statue of solid white marble knelt, a soft smile on his face as he reached down to welcome any who would approach him into his arms. The majority of the depiction's height was in its gracefully spread wings, stretching skyward.

Lybearon was beloved because of his kindness, acceptance, and forgiveness. There would be no better hand to place Kagoshi's troubles in. Forfend was certain of that, despite its unfamiliarity with the post-Sundering deity.

"Oh, yeah, thanks," Kairi mumbled. "I'll try to figure out what to say."

Forfend nodded solemnly. "Nothing about Kagoshi is ever easy."

"That too. But mostly, I just mean because it's hard to think with all the people around." Kairi covered her eyes.

Forfend spotted the statue of Somnum. The great satyr leaned on his shepherd's crook as he drifted off to sleep. It guided Kairi over to his designated area.

Like Lybearon, the god of rest was also born after the Sundering. Forfend was not familiar with him, but it knew his zone was sure to be a safe, quiet space.

Comfortable chairs lined the area. Several people were leaned back or curled up in them, sleeping soundly. The walls of the alcove seemed to be designed to muffle sound. The entire space felt protected from the noise happening only a few feet from it.

Kairi managed to open her eyes properly. She still kept a hand pressed to the the side of her head, but at least she seemed less out of it.

A priest dressed in elaborate but comfortable vestments hobbled toward them on his cane. He had gray skin, gray fur, fuzzy pointed ears, and a broad nose that almost looked animalistic.

Forfend didn't recognize his race, though it supposed that didn't matter much. It was quite certain the priest wouldn't recognize its race either.

The priest leaned heavily on the top of his cane and whispered, "Hello, how may I help you? Or do you only need a quiet place to rest?"

Forfend lowered its voice as much as it could out of respect. "We only needed a quieter space."

It tried not to cringe outwardly at its loudness. It couldn't drop far below a typical conversational volume.

At least it had made the attempt.

The priest nodded kindly and thankfully did not address how comparatively loud Forfend's mechanical baritone was. "I understand. Please, make yourselves at home and stay for as long as you would like." He motioned off to the side where a large plush couch sat currently unoccupied.

"Thank you." Forfend ducked its head politely.

The priest turned and ambled slowly around the alcove, observing his sleeping congregation like a shepherd with his sheep.

Kairi moved to take the seat they'd been offered.

Forfend followed. It pressed carefully on the cushions several times before it determined it was safe to sit down.

The couch didn't even creak as Forfend's bulk sank straight into it. Nothing so soft had ever surrounded it before. It nearly wondered if even it could sleep here.

Kairi leaned back and closed her eyes.

After a short break, she sat forward again. "Alright, I think I'm as good as I'm going to get. Let's go see Lybearon before the migraine gets really nasty again."

Forfend nodded. It struggled to free itself from the plush couch, but eventually it found its footing again.

Kairi led the way with Forfend sticking close against her back.

The crowd parted around Forfend, inadvertantly giving Kairi a wide berth as well.

A pair of guards stepped in front of them.

These particular guards wore pale gray, blue, and white rather than the typical browns and blacks and dark grays of military armor. They were assigned specifically to work here in the temple and they looked rather nervous.

"I'm sorry to interrupt," one began, "but what is your business here? We just need to be sure."

Forfend knelt to make itself less threatening and took stock of the symbol of Cassis emblazoned on a chain around the guard's neck.

The guard looked into Forfend's face. His back went rigid as his face fell slack. He clicked his jaw shut.

"Like everyone else here, we are seeking council and to worship the gods. Hoping to get answers from them," it said simply.

"I see," the guard swallowed. "I wish you the best of luck."

"Thank you." Forfend lit its chest orange.

"Just remain careful." He nodded at the crowd flowing around them. "They seem wary of you."

"Most people are at first," Forfend hummed. "They will get over that in time. I assure you, I am quite friendly."

The guard let a slight smile touch his lips. "I'm glad to hear that. Nonetheless, please remain vigilant." He and his partner stepped aside to let Forfend and Kairi pass.

"I will," it promised as it spurred itself into motion again to keep pace with Kairi. "Thank you."

Kairi ducked straight into Lybearon's space.

The area wasn't as crowded as Forfend would've guessed. Only a small handful of people were about. Most of them were at the foot of the statue, lost in prayer or begging forgiveness for wrongdoings.

A teifling of hulking muscle chatted seriously with one of the worshippers. One of his curling horns was broken and sinister tattoos covered every inch not already marred by numerous, deep, overlapping scars.

It took Forfend a moment to realize he was the cleric here. His white vestments were at odds with his dark appearance.

Forfend hummed to itself. What an excellent representation of redemption he was. This was exactly the type of cleric it should've expected to see under Lybearon's wings.

The teifling caught sight of the pair and placed a comforting hand on the shoulder of the man he was speaking with. He nodded, pat the man's shoulder, and politely took his leave to greet the new arrivals.

"Greetings, friends," the teifling cleric said in a rough, gravelly voice. "How may I assist you? Do you wish to seek redemption under the Redeemer's gaze? Are you here to confess sins?"

Kairi swayed back and forth, her hands latched behind her back. "Um, it's a bit complicated. It's not about us. It's about a friend of ours. He's dealing with something that's..." Kairi trailed off and creased her brow as she considered her phrasing. "Not letting him make good decisions," she finally settled.

The cleric nodded grimly.

"We're trying to figure out how to help him," Kairi said. "He's got some really uncontrollable rage issues. Do you know of anything we could do or use to help? Anything at all? A place we could go even?"

The cleric rested his chin on his hand and hummed.

Kairi leaned against Forfend. "I'm sorry if I'm a little incoherent. I have a splitting headache."

"It's quite alright," the cleric assured. "Would you like a more private place to discuss this?"

"Yes, please," Kairi immediately accepted.

He looked up at Forfend. "Would you like to come with her?"

"I would," it responded.

He nodded once and turned. "Please, follow me." He led them towards the back of the alcove.

He paused, tapping another priest on the shoulder. "Please, assist them," he requested, motioning to the other people milling about the area. "I'm taking these two for a more private talk."

"Of course." The priest immediately shuffled off to fulfill the order.

The teifling cleric escorted Kairi and Forfend into an enclosed room tucked at the back corner of Lybearon's zone.

The tiny office was almost completely bereft of decoration. It was plain, simple, but not necessarily discomforting.

"So, tell me about this friend of yours," the cleric nudged as he sat down behind his small desk.

Forfend remained standing, tucking itself into the corner to leave room for its companion.

Kairi took the guest chair and folded her hands on the table. She seemed to be considering her words for a long moment.

The cleric suddenly straightened his shoulders. "Oh, forgive my impoliteness. My name is Faith. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Forfend," it ducked its head politely.

"Kairi Camilla," she almost mumbled, much more lost in other thoughts.

Faith nodded to them both. "Tell me about this friend you speak of?"

"His name is Kagoshi," Kairi began. "He's got a few small issues." She stopped herself immediately and sighed. "I say that, but they're not small. They're very big issues."

She twiddled her fingers and looked Faith in the face. "There are times when he gets angry. Extremely angry. When that happens, he's not himself anymore. Something else takes over. Things don't go well for anyone when that happens."

"He has intense anger," Faith nodded sagely. "The way you describe it is interesting. Would you say his rage is of the mundane variety or the magical variety?"

"Definitely magic," Kairi answered.

"I see. When it comes to the magical variety, there are a number of things that may cause it," Faith informed. "For example, the most common is a curse. Perhaps a curse of unrelenting rage. I've encountered a few in my time. Thankfully, in my devotion to Lybearon, I am blessed with some ability to remove them."

Forfend hummed. It would be nice if Kagoshi's troubles were only a curse, but that was doubtful.

"Another option, and a more terrifying one, is possession," Faith continued. "Based on your description, that seems more likely."

He paused to watch their reactions and seemed perplexed when neither of them showed surprise or additional concern.

"Whatever the case, if there is an outside influence causing his rage, we would need to do a full exorcism. The difficulty of that will depend on the power of the entity." He sat back in his chair and steepled his fingers.

After a brief moment, he sat forward again. "The third possibility, as strange as this may sound, could be a hard-inserted arcane influence. Something given to him at birth. In that case, there would be nothing we could do but help him work around it. You know him better than I. Of the three, which do you think seems most likely?"

Forfend's best guess was a sordid combination of the second and third.

"It definitely has something to do with his past," Kairi said, "but that's not all of it. He's got another... situation happening too. A newer one. I think it's best I don't share everything."

Faith hummed. "I understand. Perhaps, if you would like, I could check up on him personally and see what I could gather? Maybe find a solution? Or suggest one, at the very least?"

"Yes," Kairi accepted. "I'll ask him about it for sure. He'll have to finish the things he needed to do first though."

"Feel free to bring him to me whenever you feel you would like me to take a look," Faith offered generously. "I will be here and waiting." He pulled a piece of parchment from his desk and wrote something in large, sweeping letters. "If I'm not here, you may find me at this address." He gave the paper to Kairi.

"Thank you," Forfend and Kairi said at the same time.

"It is my pleasure. Is there anything else you needed?"

"I think that was everything," Kairi shook her head.

Faith stood. "Then please allow me to escort you back out to the main floor."

Kairi got up, pushed her chair in, and followed him back out into the cathedral proper.

Forfend was right on her heels and edging ever closer as they were engulfed by the crowd once again.

Kairi pressed her hands to her head and tucked herself tight against its bulk.

"I would like to make a stop," Forfend requested.

"As long as I don't have to try to think in here anymore, that's fine with me," Kairi agreed.

"Thank you," it responded earnestly and scanned the expansive hall.

Forfend quickly spotted what it was looking for: a statue of solid iron gleaming in the multicolored light.

It appraised the visage of Fornax with a critical eye as it drew closer.

All things considered, the artists had very nearly captured his exact likeness.

The muscle definition was overzealous, but otherwise the proportions were stunningly on par. Though Forfend was most impressed by how well Fornax's forever stern, stoic expression had been mimicked. It could've been staring into the face of the god himself and it would not have known the difference.

Obsidian lined the seams were the plates of iron met and a fire burned in the statue's center, billowing smoke and flame from the forge in Fornax's abdomen. A clever facsimile.

The statue held aloft a forge hammer as though about to bring it crashing down on the anvil in front of him.

Forfend nodded in approval. Fornax was always working. It was only right he be depicted as such.

Forfend strode past the statue into the worship zone.

There were a handful of people praying at the feet of the statue, but most were worshipping in what Forfend considered to be the most effective way: working.

This alcove did not have chairs or pews. Instead, it was one huge workstation. A series of forges and equipment lined the wall. There was a backroom tucked off to the side where metal was stored until ready for use by the congregation.

Most of the people here were forging or planning or refining one project or another. The heat in the air and the smell of hot metal lifted Forfend's spirits to the ceiling and beyond. It wished Fletch could see this.

Forfend watched the congregation going about their craft. Some were clearly new and trying out simple projects to learn. Some had come for inspiration, bringing their home projects in with them. Others were clearly skilled and focused heavily on what they were doing.

One of the latter seemed to be particularly zeroed in on his task. His hammer tinged rhythmically away at the metal in front of him.

Forfend tilted its head as it got caught up watching him.

He was an incredibly broad-shouldered dwarf. Thick ropes of muscle coiled tight in his arms and cascaded down his back. His long, beautifully braided beard matched his long, beautifully braided hair and both were as white as the fires at the heart of his forge.

Forfend watched him bring his hammer down over and over and over again, striking red-hot metal into careful form. The instrument he wielded was elegant, but powerful. Every facet of the hammer was designed to add to both its beauty and functionality.

Forfend realized the tool was the dwarf's holy symbol before it realized he was wearing vestments. Another cleric of Fornax, just like itself.

Forfend's chest glowed bright.

The dwarf cleric returned the hammer to his belt and lifted the scorching metal with his bare hands. Despite this, he suffered no burns as he quenched the blade.

He placed it gently down by a set of completed swords that all looked to be perfectly uniform. It recognized the hilts as the very same ones the temple guards had been carrying on their belts.

Protecting the temple with his craft. A valiant cause.

The dwarf dusted his hands off on his work apron and grabbed the fresh sword. He pressed it to the grindstone and began honing the edge.

Forfend started to approach him when it noticed the eyes on it.

Several of the worshippers had stopped to stare.

Forfend waved at them.

"Hi," one of them blurted. He lifted his hand in a weak wave.

"Hello," Forfend greeted in turn.

"What, uh, what are you... doing here?" the stranger stuttered.

"Well," Forfend hummed, "worshipping was the plan. Perhaps forging something."

"Oh," the man bobbed his head in an over-enthusiastic nod. "Cool. Cool, cool, cool, cool. Um, metal's back there if you need to use some. And, uh, donations are appreciated too if you can supply them. We have an offering plate there."

He pointed to an anvil cracked nearly in half by overuse. It had been reworked slightly and repurposed to function as a bowl. Coins filled it.

Forfend nodded and dropped ten gold pieces into the offering plate.

To its surprise, Kairi followed suit.

Forfend looked down at her. "Kairi, you purchased a longsword recently, did you not?"

"A rapier, but yes." Kairi touched the hilt of the slender weapon.

"Would you like it improved?"

Kairi blinked in surprise. "Oh, yes, please. Thank you." She drew the blade and offered it up.

Forfend took it gently and found an unoccupied work station.

The moment it touched the furnace, the obsidian linings in the statue of Fornax lit up brilliant orange. The light traced down through obsidian lines in the floor until it disappeared beneath the workstation.

Suddenly, the forge burst to life.

Fire crackled as Forfend marveled at the magical ingenuity. The orange light receded, but the flames remained.

Forfend hummed, refocusing on the job at hand. It spun the rapier in its grasp.

Gilthur had done an excellent job, but there were still places to improve. The base could be reinforced and the edge sharpened. The piercing tip could be more severely tapered.

A sensation Forfend recognized from working in Gilthur's forge overtook it.

It was lifted from its body, away from its awareness of its surroundings, and entrenched in the work it now knew precisely how to do.

Smoke wafted from its back and sparks spurted into the air. They drifted harmlessly around the alcove.

Forfend's hands moved faster than it could keep up with, flowing from one task to the next without pause.

It didn't need to watch to know what it was doing. It didn't need to try. Everything fell seamlessly into place.

In what could've been seconds or hours, the work was nearly done.

Forfend's hammer struck the heated metal, throwing more sparks into the air. These joined the ones drifting from its back and swirled across the workstations.

One last strike sent white light surging across the blade.

Forfend traced its fingers across the hilt, leaving subtle geometric etchings in its wake. Every one was a prayer to Fornax.

It sank back into its awareness with much more grace than the last time. Steam rushed as it inspected its work.

Divine magic glimmered in the grooves of the hilt and along the newly sharpened tip.

This was now a holy weapon capable of wielding radiance as a blade against evil.

Forfend gently tapped it and the light faded out for the moment.

Forfend turned slowly and placed the rapier back in Kairi's hands.

The statue of Fornax, an inert representation, seemed to watch Forfend from the corner of its eye. A sheen passed across the visage's pupil and disappeared.

Fornax had seen, had blessed.

Forfend's chest lit up.

It only then noticed the crowd.

Everyone in the forge had stopped. Most of them knelt in prayer. Even the hustle and bustle outside the alcove had halted to view the spectacle Forfend had inadvertently created.

Around it, the floating sparks slowly swirled and burnt out one by one.

With the last spark, the dumbstruck atmosphere finally began to ebb.

The cleric of Fornax approached reverently. "Is this an omen?"

Forfend hummed. "I am not sure," it answered honestly. "I do not decide when I am an omen."

The cleric nodded thoughtfully. "Well, you are certainly a sign we're doing something right."

The sentiment was extremely similar to the one Gilthur had expressed.

"Bramdren Steelpast," the cleric introduced himself.

"Forfend," it returned the gesture.

Bramdren bowed.

Forfend took a half-step back, startled. "That is not necessary."

"I'm glad to make your acquaintance, Forfend."

Forfend offered its hand to shake instead.

Bramdren accepted, shaking once firmly.

"It is nice to meet you," Forfend rumbled.

"Likewise," Bramdren replied.

He was stoic, but there was an underlying discomfort in his features. He was nervous about how to handle this situation. Forfend wasn't sure how to put his mind at ease.

"What brings you here, Forfend?" he asked.

Forfend loosened its posture, the weight of the world dragging its shoulders down a bit. "Less pleasant business than I would like."

Bramdren spread his arms, offering space to explain.

Steam hissed in Forfend's chest. "Strictly speaking, I am here because a friend of mine was wrongly accused of a crime. But in my travels, Fornax has alerted me to many happenings in the world I had been unaware of. He has let me know that it is time to get back to work."

"Hm, I see." Bramdren stroked his beard. "Well, you have certainly inspired all of us. If there's anything you need, let us know."

Forfend nodded. "I will. In the meantime, may I see that hammer you were using?"

"Please." He tugged it from his belt so quickly it got snagged. He shifted, tugged again, and passed the hammer up.

Forfend turned the instrument over in its hands. It was small in Forfend's oversized grip, but it looked even more gorgeously crafted up close.

The primary shape of the hammer mirrored the symbol of Fornax carved into Forfend's face almost exactly. The intricacies in the etchings added to the effect.

Forfend gently handed the tool back to its owner. "It is a beautiful piece," it complimented sincerely.

"Thank you. I forged it myself in a moment of inspiration. Fitting that another one would seek it out." Bramdren bowed again. "I thank you for gracing us with your presence."

"Please." Forfend's chest bloomed red. "I am just a standard blacksmith."

Bramdren chuckled and tugged at his beard. "Then the rest of us have much catching up to do."

The majority of the praying crowd suddenly perked up and scrambled back to their workstations, returning to their forging with renewed vigor.

Forfend watched them for a moment. It figured they'd been struck by inspiration the same way Gilthur had. They would create freely and easily for hours if they so wished.

Forfend basked in the glow of fervent smiths and the heat of the forges. Relaxing warmth spread from its center to the tips of its extremities.

Unfortunately, it had other things that needed tending to. It couldn't stay to enjoy this forever.

"As much as I would like to spend the rest of the day here, we should reconvene with Melzaryn and Kagoshi," Forfend hummed.

Kairi nodded. "It would be nice to be somewhere a little less crowded.

Forfend knelt in front of Bramdren. "Thank you for allowing me to smith in your church. I hope to return soon."

Bramdren bowed. "I look forward to it."

Forfend bundled Kairi in close to its side and escorted her out of the cathedral.

The plaza outside was still busy, but less tightly packed. It was much easier to freely move.

Kairi didn't seem any less pained though.

Forfend started to usher her towards the library when it spotted Melzaryn wading through the crowd towards them. It did not see Kagoshi with him.

Melzaryn walked straight up to the pair and stopped, rocking on his heels. He looked uncharacteristically frazzled. "As you may be able to assume, there were... complications," he sighed wearily.

"Where is Kagoshi?" Forfend asked, deep concern dropping its core too low in its chest.

"My best guess? Where we started our day." Melzaryn shrugged.

"The jail?!" Forfend balked. "What did he do?"

Kairi pressed her hand to her face and shook her head. "What did he do this time?"

"Admittedly, it was a bit of both of our faults," Melzaryn mumbled. "But, he was, mm... not himself for a moment."

"Oh," Forfend hummed low in its chest.

"Also, I had to burn a book and I'm very upset about that." He crossed his arms and chewed at the inside of his lip, a scowl looking very out of place on his usually taciturn smirking face.

Forfend tilted its head back and forth a bit. "Well, fair enough. What happened?"

"That alter ego thing he's got? It tried to learn."

Forfend cocked its head, confusion swarming its senses.

"Luckily, no one died," Melzaryn added.

"I feel that is the bare minimum," it fussed. "I feel that should be a given in most situations. Especially library trips!"

"The real lucky part was that the book let me burn it."

"I am confused again," Forfend stated.

"You know how you're alive?" Melzaryn gestured to its entire stony form, "And you're rocks?"

"Yes?"

"That can kind of happen to other things."

"Ah," Forfend nodded, understanding at least somewhat. "I see. What do you think we should do?"

"I'm not sure there's anything we can do about it," Melzaryn admitted.

"Do we not need to go to the prison and talk to someone about it or something?" Forfend wondered aloud.

"Oh, that's most certainly step one." Melzaryn laughed derisively. "I just don't think they'll help us."

"We have to try."

"Then off we go," Kairi piped up and tugged on both their arms.

"Hold on, I do have one thing I need to do first," Melzaryn interjected.

He turned to face the magic shop Forfend had first noticed on their way to the jail.

Moli's Marvelous Mementos.

[clairenatural]

i had a dream that sam and dean took cas to an art museum and showed him all these paintings of angels and it was like that scene in vincent and the doctor and cas said these paintings are beautiful because they depict the angels as human when a true angel could never be described as anything but monstrous and i woke up crying

anon i love this SO much. i love it so much i had to write it. this is 1.4k, destiel, human!cas

They’re making their way out of the city, monster killed and day saved, when Castiel sees a poster, pasted up on the side of the plywood wall of a construction site. It’s an angel—he doesn’t recognize the artist, but he’d guess late 19th century. Be Not Afraid: a History of Angels in Art, it proclaims, the logo of the city’s largest art gallery tucked into the corner.

Castiel stares at it. The angel on the poster stares back, wings spread and staff raised. Valiant. Something in his heart twitches, but it’s hard to place. He still has his blade, tucked safely into the trunk with the rest of their frequently used weapons, and he never had wings like that; even the shadows, the ones they showed to humans, were simply the closest representation to the real thing possible in this dimension (his back aches anyway, dimly, his human body reacting to the loss as if they were real severed appendages. He ignores it).

Dean notices, because of course he does. He stops, because of course he does, and flags Sam down before his long legs can carry him too far ahead. “Hey. You good?”

Castiel isn’t sure how long he’s been staring at the poster, but it’s long enough that Dean is obviously concerned. “Hm? Oh. Yes, I’m—I’m fine.”

Dean nods but doesn’t move. He considers the poster. “Art gallery, huh?” he asks, avoiding the obvious elephant. Castiel appreciates it. He nods back.

“I’ve never been to one,” he offers, as explanation. It seems odd—he can remember the painting of the Sistine Chapel, he remembers watching with fascination as humans began collecting the smaller paintings into collections and museums, but he’d never been inside one. It hadn’t seemed necessary. Humans collect art in large boxes to remember their history, but Castiel has seen it all.

Dean seems surprised by this. “Seriously?” Castiel nods, and there’s a pause, and he’s about to turn and keep heading towards the car, and Kansas, and home, when Dean claps him on the shoulder and turns to call over his own.

“Sammy! How do you feel about seeing some art?”

“You want to go to an art gallery?” Sam sounds incredulous, and is closer behind him than Cas expected. He hadn’t noticed him retreat the half-block he’d managed to gain on them.

“Yeah, why not? Come on. What happened to ‘a little culture wouldn’t hurt, Dean?’”

"What happened to ‘I’ve got plenty of culture, eat your damn burger?’”

“It’ll be fun, Sam,” Dean counters. Something in his tone has changed. Cas doesn’t think too hard about it.

There’s a long pause, and Cas knows there’s some sort of communication happening he can’t hear or see. “…Okay,” Sam concedes. “Okay, sure. Yeah. Let’s go.”

So they do.

Dean makes a comment about “haven’t been in one of these since I was a kid,” before they all fall into the hushed silence of the museum floor. It’s nice—nicer than Castiel had expected. Not in aesthetics; the building is sleek, and modern, and the art is obviously beautiful. But it’s nice to be there. It feels almost Holy—humans, funny creatures they are, with their habit of treating their own culture with the respect of something divine. Creating houses of worship out of museums and libraries and living rooms. 

He wanders through the various exhibits but doesn’t really pay attention until he ends up in the exhibit from the poster. He’d managed to lose the Winchesters halfway through the photography exhibit, when both the brothers had gotten distracted. Castiel had continued onward anyway, on a mission, and by the time he finds himself walking into the angel exhibit he’s on his own.

He comes to a stop in front of one of the largest paintings in the room. It’s not the same angel as the poster. It’s several, actually, looking over what appears to be Mary and a baby Jesus. The angels are beautiful—smooth, flawless skin. They have long hair that looks soft, even in paint. They’re wearing white robes, and their wings are white and dove-like. None of these angels have several heads, rotating bands of fire, or thousands of eyes. They’re beautiful, but they aren’t angels. The human who painted this didn’t know that, of course—none of them did. Humanity was faced with the concept of divinity and conceptualized it as a version of itself.

“The real things ain’t as cuddly, huh?”

Dean’s voice startles him, which he hates, both because he hates being startled and because he’s still adjusting to Dean being able to sneak up on him.

“I was just thinking,” he starts, pretending he’d known Dean was there the whole time, “you paint us like we’re human.” Not ‘us’ anymore, he reminds himself, but he brushes that thought off. Not now.

Beside him, Dean snorts. “Yeah, well. If you’d told any of those Renaissance guys that the real angels are dickhead balls of celestial intent, they’d’ve arrested you for heresy.”

Castiel shakes his head. “No.” he pauses. “Well, yes. But that’s—” he turns to face Dean for the first time. He notices Sam over Dean’s shoulder, focusing intently on a painting a few feet away and obviously pretending not to listen.

“My father—God—Chuck,” he cycles through, which will never not be weird, “created us first, but not in his image. We weren’t worthy of that. Only you were. Humans, his perfect creation, modeled after their creator. But then—” he turns back to the painting and gestures to it. “You created us in your image. You thought about divinity and you couldn’t conceive anything more Holy than yourselves.”

Dean shifts. He tries for a laugh, but it comes out short. “Well, damn, Cas. Way to make a guy feel self-centered.”

Castiel turns back to him. He blinks. He frowns. That’s not what he means. “Most of my siblings thought so,” he agrees. “But I always thought it was an honor. Look,” He turns again and reaches out for the painting, only remembering a few inches from its surface to not touch it.  “This one has a lyre. You always paint us playing music. But music, art….these are human things, Dean.” He lets his hand fall, but keeps his eyes forward.  “We’re soldiers. They don’t teach us to play the harp in Heaven, they train us to fight. But these angels are…soft. Kind. Angels you trust to protect. The kind of angels people pray to, build churches to.” He looks back at Dean, who is staring at him with a frown. He holds his gaze, steady, and takes a deep breath before finishing. “I wish I was—that any of us were—worthy of being depicted this way. I wish we were the angels you paint us as.”

There’s a long pause while Dean searches his face, obviously trying to decide on the right reaction. If they were at home, Cas thinks Dean might reach out and hug him. Instead, Dean reaches out to clap a hand on his shoulder—he lets it linger there, and Cas knows what it means, so that’s okay, too. “For what it’s worth,” he starts, and his voice is softer than the last time he spoke. “You’re the closest thing to those angels that I’ve ever seen.”

It’s a nice sentiment, but Cas smiles sadly as he turns back to the painting. “I’m not any kind of angel anymore,” he points out, and tries his hardest to keep his voice neutral.

Dean squeezes his shoulder and tilts his head, trying to recapture Castiel’s gaze. “Hey. Look at me.” Reluctantly, he looks back over. “Your wings weren’t what made you a good angel, alright?” he brings his other hand up to poke into Castiel’s chest. “That was all in here.”

He sounds like he’s quoting the Wizard of Oz, and Cas wants to make a joke about that, but he’s also never wanted to kiss Dean more. He doesn’t, because they’re in a museum, and they’re still working up to that, but he makes a note to do it later. Instead, he reaches up and pulls Dean’s hand away from his chest, links it in his own, and squeezes.

“Thank you,” he says, and it’s earnest, and it’s for everything.

Dean smiles. He understands. He squeezes back.

[autumn-foxfire]

The whole thing about Toorus cover has already been frustrating enough but whats even worse is the amount of ppl that had come out of woodwork to yell 'its not even the first time he sexualized a minor!!!' or 'this is shonen what did you expect??? Other mangaka do it too'

Like you understand that first is just worse and second is no excuse. Like yeah Hori probs wont see any of the outrage and that cover will sell like hotcakes but these are still important conversations to have in fandom about the standards of the way women are treated in manga. Like why no try to build a mood in fandom where mangaka are held to higher expectations instead of just giving up cuz 'its shonen standard'. Drawing cute girls for teen boys to swoon over is one thing, putting an almost completely naked minor on the cover of ur very popular (and publicly sold like i cant imagine how this will look on BOOKSTORE SHELVES) is another. I also see many ppl bitch about like 'oh ppl who complain the most are those who write explicit bakudeku smut' which like, wild conclusion to some to and probably not true but also i think ppl have to understand that influence of a random fic writer in a fandom (even if a popular one) is Very different from influence of a popular mangaka whos work influences the fandom culture anyway. Like there will be ppl who write freaky shit in every fandom but the mangaka very much sets up the bar there i feel.

Like, Witch Hat Atelier is extremly non sexual manga (aside from Qifrey whos sad and wet) and the only sexual content ive encountered for it was between the two adults in it. There IS a creator there that draws minor x adult explicit stuff (as i said freaks in every fandom) but the only reason i know of them is cuz there were warnings from other users like 'hey this person is posting yxz art tagged under the main manga tag, it can be p upseting so make sure to block them!' its a whole different climate for real.

Uhhhh long story short like ppl are allowed to discuss weird stuff a mangaka pulls, thats good for the fandom, why is everyone on twitter so damn ready for this to be their hill to die on lmao all ppl are saying is 'wow pretty gross for Hori to put a naked teenager on the cover' hows that controversial

....long time no rant at foxy i hope i made sense

I completely agree with you, Lucy and I'm mad that the attitude in fandom a lot of the time is "well there's nothing you can do about it so why complain?"

Why aren't we allowed to hold Mangaka, grown men, accountable for the shit they draw and sell to a wide audience. Why can't I be upset that yet again a female body is being exploited by a grown man for sales.

Yes, she's fictional but that's not the issue! It's an issue that it's okay just because she's female and this has been normalized! Imagine the outrage in public that would have caused if it was Deku in such a pose?! It probably wouldn't be allowed to be printed, let alone on the cover of such a popular magazine that is sold to young boys.

It's because people brush it off that it's everywhere that NOTHING WILL CHANGE. Yes, my voice will probably go unheard regardless but at least I'm saying something about it, at least I'm supporting people who are also upset that their bodies are used like this. It's better than ignoring it and the people hurt by Hori's choice (which you'll notice are mostly females).

And the argument that fandom creates content just as bad is null. Firstly, a fandom creator who barely gets over 100 views most of the time will NEVER carry the same influence that a man who draws in over 10s of 1000s. Not to mention, it's deflecting the issue. We're not talking about the creation of porn, we're talking about how Hori has exploited the female body, using a character of his that is a minor, for profit as representation for his work.

My question is WHAT DOES THIS COVER DO. It doesn't represent Hagakure as a character nor it doesn't represent his story of heroism. It exists just for people to, frankly, jerk off over. As a fan of BNHA, I don't want what was once one of my favourite stories represented in such a way! I don't want a character to be reduced to this!

If Hori wanted to draw sexy females for young males, he should have created an ecchi manga, not a shonen one. At least then I wouldn't have to see this bullshit with my own eyes and have it supposed to represent something I used to love.

I'm upset as a female because I'm tired of shonen artists getting away with using girls like this, especially teenage girls.

[afoolforatook]

I liked your post on Qrow and grief. I think 99% of rwby discourse is people being upset with writers choices and handling of characters vs being defensive of character actions as commentary on real world situations. Like most Adam discourse is between the writers decision to make a civil rights leader an abusive villain vs people noting that abusers can and do hijack social justice movements. One is anger at the writers not the character the other is concern about the character not the writers.

Thanks (sorry, I just forget asks exist sometimes....oops)

Honestly, I avoid discourse as much as possible (the tiniest bit of possible conflict makes me feel physically ill, thnks rsd, which is why I never really actively participated in fandom as a creator before FG) so I can’t say much on other issues such as Adam, but I can see that. 

I think the issue usually starts when there’s a disconnect between understanding characters and their actions in the context of the world and story, and the context of why the writers choose to frame things the way they do. 

Which personally, is where most of my own frustration comes from about RWBY’s writing. Because there is so much of it that is genuinely brilliant, deep, powerful storytelling that has all the building blocks for some important subversive storylines, and has such amazing attention to detail and thought put behind it, but then doesn’t always get developed consistently enough to pull it all together with the appropriate tone/intent. We know they can do such powerful things with all the potential they set up, so when it falls flat, for reasons that seem like inconsistent direction and intent, or narrow understanding of complicated topics, or just plain sloppy oversight, it can be really disappointing

Grief is one of those topics that I take very seriously when it comes to how it is portrayed in media, and it’s something I hope to be able to be a part of creating better realistic representation for. So many people believe they understand grief because they’ve seen it in movies and shows and books that rarely show it in all its complexity and diversity. And so when they see characters, and even real people, grieving in ways that don’t fit that mold, that may seem callous or toxic from an outside perspective, it can feel like poor writing or characterization. Because we as a society don’t talk about grief, not really, not honestly, it makes us uncomfortable. So, through no fault of their own, people don’t understand how that kind of trauma changes how you think, and affects you on a daily basis.

There are a lot of complicated topics that RWBY has a lot of potential to do important, powerful things with, in how they tell this story. Some they have handled well previously, and some they *really* haven’t.  Mental health, abuse, racism, classism, lgbtq representation, morality, trauma, grief. And I certainly won’t say any single one of those is more important than any other. 

But, personally, grief is the one that will hit me hardest if they mishandle it. There will be other places to turn for diverse, informed, meaningful narratives about all those other topics, and of course the same is true for grief. I certainly don’t want to have those topics mishandled in RWBY, and RT and CRWBY have a responsibility to put in the work to avoid that and to admit when they don’t, and if all of those things were just horrendously mishandled it would be upsetting and infuriating, but in the end, there would be other material, other, diverse, creators to turn to. 

But RWBY is in a (certainly not completely unique, but fairly rare) special position when it comes to showing the place that grief in all its complexities has in storytelling. And how, in turn, storytelling can play a huge part in helping people process their own grief.  

Because RWBY is a story, a world, created by a man (of color) who died far too young, and whose legacy is now carried on by his friends and family (and a company that, while certainly popular and well known in its niche, is by no means mainstream). They know grief. And they have a rare opportunity —with a story perfectly built to address this kind of narrative— to be able to provide others who are grieving with a complex, inspiring, empowering reflection of their experiences, which are so often absent, or oversimplified, or treated as shock factor or tear-jerkers in media. 

For most other projects in that kind of situation (sudden loss of a young creator, a creator of color, not already backed by a huge production company, with not only story and animation development to work on, but a unique soundtrack that is one of the things at the core of the show’s appeal imo), the story would have most likely been abandoned after the creator’s death. Roosterteeth, and RWBY, certainly have a not insignificant following now (and even did to a lesser extent, at the time of Monty’s death, less than six months after the end of volume 2) but RWBY was still pretty new, not nearly as popular as it is now. I watched the first volume when it was brand new, and I think the start of volume 2, but then didn’t come back to it until the end of volume 6, so I don’t know for sure what things were like in both the fandom and production following Monty’s death. But I am sure that RWBY’s survival is due to tremendous work and dedication and love for Monty and his creation. Volume 7 ended on the fifth anniversary of Monty’s death, and regardless of your opinion on the quality of the show over that time, the fact that it has come this far at all is almost miraculous. 

For a story, and a team, so well suited for this point of view, to not simply ignore the topic (as so many writers do, aka one tribute episode and then it’s like it never happened), but to actually address it, only to fail to do it true, honest, important, justice, would be (at least personally) devastating. 

None of this is to say that because of their grief, or in order to ‘properly’ honor Monty, CRWBY was obligated to make grief an important part of this narrative, especially so soon after a loss and in a project where it is impossible to separate their feelings for the story from their grief over Monty. They did not owe us, or ‘Monty’s memory’, their personal trauma. Not everyone wants or needs to put their grief in their work. To have decided to gloss over that narrative thread and aspect of character growth, or included it but never make it a main theme, would, admittedly, still have been somewhat disappointing, but understandable given the circumstances. 

But they didn’t do that. They gave it a prominent role. (Also admittedly not as much as I would have liked at times, but still much more than plenty of other stories) In the music, in the symbolism, in the character development, in the main plot. Grief, in multiple manifestations, is a huge part of RWBY. I am immensely grateful for that, and regardless of the issues I have and may have in the future, that is something that will always be very important to me. 

But, in making that choice, they gave themselves an obligation to follow through. To consciously make grief a complex part of multiple characters’ narrative, and then fumble the execution and turn that pain into cheap shock factor or poorly framed justification is, in my eyes, an irresponsible failure that could work to only damage the vulnerable people you had gotten to trust you. Especially when it comes in the form of showing a character finally starting to recover, only to get torn down again out of nowhere. 

I’m not saying that this is already a failure in how they’ve handled Qrow’s grief, there’s just too much still to happen to be able to say that or not. But any trust I had in their intentions and narrative direction was destroyed by Ch12 (which is a different topic all together really), so I’ll just have to wait and see.

Ahhhhhh this got wayy too long (and probably not put the best way, oops brain dump.)

[a-libertine-affair]

An Analysis of Fallin’ Flower

I had to do it because I did a very brief one earlier, and I have way too much time on my hands ~and wine but that’s not the point haha~ This is only my personal interpretation of the imagery contained within the video, so please just enjoy as such! (or feel free to build off of it!)  This is probably me going a little too deep into a beautiful video but I’m compelled to do it. I really don’t know where to start, but I’ll start with the three different states of limitations and “chains” that the members are bound by. Imagery: Chains, Dirt, Ropes Meaning: The Physical Boundaries and Limitations I saw the chains, dirt, and ropes as a physical representation of the hardship and suffering that one must go through (and SVT undoubtedly has experienced) to reach one’s best moments in life, the start of your most beautiful in life. Sometimes there are physical boundaries and limits that you must overcome in order for you to bloom. I saw The8 and Hoshi’s desperate but beautiful dance as one breaking free from these physical limits - they’re close to the dirt because they’re only starting to sprout, and they’re working hard in order to grow. It’s not an easy path, as evidenced by their metal chains embedded in concrete, but they manage to break free from it later (A point I will touch on later!!) Jeonghan’s limits are both metal, harder to break, and cloth - easier to undo. I think he’s the bridge between the members who really represent the physical struggles (Hoshi, Minghao) and the more mental and intangible struggles and limitations that one is put through. He’s bound by both these struggles and is in-between both the physical/mental struggles and the time of day (because he’s in a bed). Imagery: Suspension, Isolation, Veils Meaning: Limbo, the in-between I should have put Jeonghan here, but oh well!! Refer to the previous paragraph :P There are different types of isolation in this film. Almost all the members (Chan (Dino), Seungcheol (S.COUPS), DK, and Seungkwan, Joshua, Woozi, Wonwoo, etc.) are shown to be alone in their respective landscapes. I’m going to point out a few members in particular, because their scenes stood out the most to me. Let’s talk about DK. He’s shown in a desolate, dirt-filled landscape with a bunch of what look like moons orbiting him. There are 13 of them (look at roughly ~3:10ish and count them :P), but he’s in a darker version of the group shot where everything is dark and even those orbiting moons are dark. They’re lit by some sort of light source in the distance, but they light up the side that’s not facing him - which would mean that he would see only darkness, or the new moon. I only think that the state of brightness of these moons have some overarching role in narrating their overall story of coming together and finding each other to bloom, but he may just be the representation of one of the phases of light that I saw in the video. Jun is another interesting member in the video, similarly to Jeonghan - but where Jeonghan represents the physical in-between of night and day, dream and reality (with the bed), Jun I think represents the limbo between not quite blooming and being stuck in the phase before blooming. He’s floating in air (thanks, wire!!) and is the closest out of all the members to the flowers, but he has nothing solid to support him. He’s not standing on solid ground. He can’t quite reach the flowers, the ultimate goal, but he isn’t quite on the ground either. Mingyu is somewhat similar to Jun in that he’s sitting on a doorway full of flowers, but the doorway is something fragile and more tangible than just floating in air. The door opens - I’m not sure whether Mingyu has just gotten there (opened the door to the flowers,) or is sitting on the door with the flowers before it opens and lets him fall. Either way, he’s in a precarious situation. Oh, and the veils! Veils usually mean a separation from something (re: the mysterious veil in Harry Potter), and Seungcheol/Seungkwan are surrounded by them. They’re neither here nor there. I would classify Seungcheol as being close to dawn and Seungkwan being closer to mid-day/noon judging by the color of light in their scenes, which means Seungkwan represents the part of day that’s closer to the ultimate end goal, the blooming. He even holds a bouquet of flowers while Seungcheol’s only covered in petals. The whole isolation bit of the other members are another part of the video, I think, where it’s hinted that none of them felt that they could do it alone. Minghao and Hoshi end up breaking the concrete block that hold their chains when they find that they can dance and work together, and Wonwoo’s isolation suddenly ends when Jun’s feet hit solid ground and they find each other. Imagery: Paint Strokes, Broken Vases, Film Meaning: The Mental/Immaterial Boundaries and Limitations I feel like Joshua, Vernon, and Woozi all represent the mental boundaries and limitations that people go through when they are growing or creating something. Woozi’s covered in the paint marks, the “scars” of creation - the painting that he’s working on has no face, just painted over with white, and he struggles in expressing himself artistically. I saw this as his mental struggle of being an artist and of bearing the weight of creating SVT’s music. His limitations are more of a mental block, where his mind being painted white is more of a struggle for him. I saw Joshua’s scenes as a more poetic and romantic representation of what it’s like to grow up. He has a lot of broken vases and containers for storing flowers. He even has flowers as “wounds” - It’s this obsession and desperation of wanting to be a great person who can have and hold the fleeting beauty of flowers, whether it is love, art, joy. He’s pained with the memories of what flowers he used to hold, or whether or not he’s “worthy” enough of holding them. Vernon’s more of the sentimental one - I saw the catalogued representations of flowers to mean that he’s more about remembering or wanting to keep the beautiful memories alive forever. You replay your best moments, the most beautiful memories, the passing of time. He’s the embodiment of you realizing that these moments don’t last forever. Now for the final bit: The passing of time (Darkness to light), and the eventual reunion of all 13 members with the flowers and full moons!! Each member is in a particular time of day, whether it is darkness (dawn), mid-day, or sunset/twilight. This could mean a lot of things, but I like to think of it as different points in a journey - you have to go through those moments as you live through a day, and it’s only natural to start off in one and end up at another. The mirrors are (literal) reflections of the members and they’re shown to step on these mirrored stepping stones, finally bringing them together. I saw this to mean that while each mirror is representative of each member, it also reflects the people who step on them. I am you, you are me. We are together. DK starts off as a new moon, the day progresses, and eventually the members all come together in full bloom while the 13 moons are fully bright and lit. I took this as a symbol of meaning that they’ve always worked together to get where they are, and it’s a testament to their bond that they believe they’re at the most beautiful moment in life together :’( If you read through this random wall of text, hope you enjoyed! :’) I may come back and edit this post because I’m pretty sure I forgot to mention a lot of things, but I simply love this video and am thankful to SVT for letting me experience it <3 edit: here is part 2

[enviroblog-spring21]

Blog IX: Providence Lost a BIG Opportunity for Environmental Planning.

The number of living people on planet Earth reached one billion people in 1804, an unprecedented milestone after 200,000 years of our species’ ascendence. Although it took 200,000 years for the human population to reach one billion people, it took only 200 to reach seven billion. In 2009, humanity cleared yet another milestone, the number of people residing in cities exceeding those living in rural areas for the first time in human history.[1]Current population trends centuries in the making act in tandem with the current climate crisis, of which more humans than ever will be forced to deal with in the twenty-first century and beyond.

Chapter six of Living in the Environment heavily focuses on Earth’s carrying capacity–– i.e., the number of people that existing natural capital and ecosystem services can adequately support. Debate about the physical boundary to human growth has gone on for centuries. Notably, in 1798, Thomas Malthus hypothesized that exponential population growth coupled with comparably stagnant food production created a proverbial ceiling for the exponential population growth he identified. Of course, during Malthus’s time, industrial agriculture was somewhat of an oxymoron, he could have never predicted that food production too would also increase exponentially due to industrialized agriculture.

During my History of Capitalism, I was required to read Planet of Slums by Mike Davis. The book delineates an environmental history of what is perhaps the ultimate rejection of Malthus’ hypothesis: The Green Revolution. After World War II, philanthropic efforts on the part of the Ford Foundation and the Rockefeller foundation introduced industrial agriculture technologies such as pesticides, fertilizers, irrigation infrastructure, and high-yield crop variants to what they saw as destitute peasant populations, most notably in India, Mexico, and the Philippines. Although the intentions of the foundations were good, (although incredibly utilitarian in hindsight) what ensued was the disenfranchisement of peasants from their land, followed by the swelling of slums encircling cities such as Mumbai, Mexico City, and Manila, contributing the lion’s share of urban development globally. The Ford and Rockefeller foundations assumed that the peasants, needing not to grow their own food any longer, would live a metropolitan urban lifestyle as they enjoyed in the West.

Urban slum dwellers in the global South account for the majority of the world’s urban expansion. In summary: More people today are living in cities today but in the ever-expanding rings of slums within and surrounding cities. I can already see North American urban planners looking at global urban demographics and concluding that the pro-urban sentiment espoused by the authors of their dogma over the years has finally caught on, and people are ascending to a new urban rapture. Slum-dwellers, the vast majority of urban populations in the Global South, endure the most reprehensible environmental conditions in the world. The largest city in North America, Mexico City, has a dirty environmental secret that foreign visitors to places like Chapultepec Park seldom know. The city hoards several tons of feces in open-air garbage dumps, located next to or on top of the city’s slums. Slum-dwellers are known to scavenge dumps and landfills in hopes to find something of sustenance or utility, and particles of shit carry through the air often irritating the throat and lungs of people unfortunate enough to be in proximity to them. In Mumbai, not many people other than slum-dwellers shoulder such disproportionate burdens of climate change. Slum dwellings are often constructed out of scrap metal with no ventilation or proper insolation. When monsoon season arrives dwellings often flood, and when the water drains out it leaves mold behind to be perpetually inhaled. The tin walls and rooves of slum buildings in the summer make the unfortunate residents inside feel like they’re baking, even more so with rising temperatures.[]

North American urbanists may think that cities have a default setting towards environmental friendliness, as we see in the global South, they do not. This sentiment may come from, the improving environmental condition of cities in the Global North (although they have a long way to go.) Mayor Bloomberg’s “PlaNYC” initiative provides excellent examples of what cities ought to do in order to effectively mitigate climate change. Two things from the plan I find incredibly interesting are congestion pricing and the creation of beautiful waterfront parks, perhaps the most physical representation of Bloomberg’s legacy (aside from rebuilding from the rubble of Ground Zero.) Congestion pricing in New York City is effectively a toll on vehicles moving in and out of Midtown Manhattan during times where traffic is heaviest. Cities such as London, Milan, and Stockholm show that levying tolls on rush hour traffic is an effective way to incentivize transit ridership and get carbon-emitting cars off the road. The majority of New York City residents don’t even own a car anyways[2], making the weight of each resident’s carbon footprint a whole lot lighter. Fewer cars on the road equates to lower carbon emissions. Unfortunately, however, New York City lags behind its international counterparts due to the reluctance of Trump DOT under Secretary Elaine Chao to implement anything of the sort. Biden’s DOT, however, recently lifted the roadblocks to congestion pricing leftover from the previous administration, and the city should be set to implement it in a matter of months.[3]

The Bloomberg administration also constructed some magnificent and beloved waterfront parks on top of former industrial sites. One of the best examples of this Bloomberg initiative is Brooklyn Bridge Park (BBP.) The park makes for a great case study in sustainable design,[4] I believe that it represents part of what other coastal cities in the Northeast ought to be doing with their waterfronts to mitigate the effects of climate change. Old industrial piers on the edge of Brooklyn Heights were transformed into Brooklyn Bridge Park using recycled wood and granite for park benches, structures, and decking, as well as recycled fill material from the (long-delayed) East Side Access Project. BBP also restores vital habitats of native plants, birds, and marine life by recreating the salt marshes and meadows that were destroyed as Brooklyn grew. Notably, the BBP also partnered with the Billion Oyster Project to restore oyster reefs to the Hudson. The reintroduction of oysters is in large part responsible for the estuary’s dramatic environmental turnaround from a deathly polluted waterway to a place where even whales and seals have returned.[5]

Providence has the opportunity to create its own iteration of a Brooklyn Bridge Park-style sustainable green space, but that opportunity is already diminished and threatened to be completely decimated by development. In 2002 the Rhode Island Department of Transportation completed work on relocating an old elevated viaduct of Interstate-95 that separated Downtown Providence from the Jewelry District for over half a century. While I would have preferred the complete demolition of I-95 within Providence, still, it was a great first step by the state’s tragic history of land-use planning. Being such a poor city, however, and desperately wanting to scrape off residents from Boston and New York, the city put as much land as it possibly could up for development.

While a sustainable park was implemented in the execution of the former I-95 land’s master plan, it is much smaller than it needs to be. Therefore, the park’s potential utility as a public amenity that both protects Downtown Providence from rising sea levels and provides Providentians much-needed greenspace is considerably diminished. Even the existing parkland is threatened by a high-rise mixed-use luxury condominium building that would become the tallest structure in the state.

If I were in control of land-use planning of the land formally under the Interstate, I would strictly follow the Smart Growth Tools outlined in Chapter 20 of Living in the Environment. First, I would cordon off everything east of Dyer Street from development and hire the same landscape architecture firm that built Brooklyn Bridge Park to build a park on the model of BBP. Certainly, I would make the blocks of the new streets way smaller as to fit in with the historic streetscape of Downtown Providence and the Jewelry District to promote a mixture of uses and encourage transportation alternatives to automobiles. Scattered across the blocks I may create smaller urban parks on the model of those such as Father Demo Square in Greenwich Village. Some of my zoning ordinances would impose constrictive parking maximums instead of minimums, call for each building to implement green roofing, and encourage density and the mixing of uses, and inciting tax incentives would be offered to buildings that achieve high LEED ratings. Unsurprisingly, none of these incentives are being implemented by the State of Rhode Island or the City of Providence.

When Superstorm Sandy hit New York City, Brooklyn Bridge Park withstood better than city officials expected. The park absorbed much of the blow the storm dealt to surrounding neighborhoods.[6]Unlike New York, Providence has the geographic advantage of not being a low-lying archipelago. The city’s geography is characterized by steep rolling hills and deep river valleys and flatlands, the former comprises more of the city than the latter. Therefore, the city is naturally going to be more resilient than many of its northeastern counterparts. The only parts it needs to protect is its immediate waterfront and the flatland valleys of Downtown Providence. It seems as though the city’s urban planning department has been reduced to a wealth management agency. They would rather boost property tax rates and cram as much new development they can under the city’s arcane zoning laws rather than conserve and protect our irreplaceable, historic urban patrimony with a public amenity capitalized on to its full potential.

WC: 1,559

Question: The "15-Minute City," where people can find all of their needs and wants within a fifteen-minute walk from their home is often cited as one of the strongest answers cities give to climate change, by inducing less consumption (especially in the transportation sector.) However, I fear that designated 15-Minute city areas could become enclaves for the rich. Arguably, places like Greenwich Village in New York, or Wayland in Providence are already rich enclaves of the 15-minute city.

If we do not address inequality while implementing 15-minute city plans, will all

the environmental benefits be offset by the larger consumption habits of rich populations?

[1] United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs: Population Division https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications/urbanization/urban-rural.asp#:~:text=By%20the%20middle%20of%202009,urbanization%20remain%20among%20development%20groups. [2] NYCEDC: New Yorkers and Their Cars, https://edc.nyc/article/new-yorkers-and-their-cars#:~:text=According%20to%20recent%20census%20estimates,own%20three%20or%20more!). [3] Kuntzman, Gersh. Congestion Pricing May Not Go Anywhere Unless Biden Wins, Mayor Says. Streetsblog NYC, 14 July 2020 https://nyc.streetsblog.org/2020/07/14/congestion-pricing-may-not-go-anywhere-unless-biden-wins-mayor-says/ [4] https://www.brooklynbridgepark.org/about/sustainability/ [5] https://untappedcities.com/2021/02/03/history-new-york-city-oysters/ [6] https://www.ecolandscaping.org/01/managing-water-in-the-landscape/stormwater-management/weathering-the-storm-horticulture-management-in-brooklyn-bridge-park-in-the-aftermath-of-hurricane-sandy/

[onestowatch]

99 Neighbors on Vermont, 99 Radio, and Their New Singles “QWOP” and “Basement” [Q&A]

99 Neighbors has been disrupting current notions of what band and rap collectives look and sound like. Hailing from the unlikely city of Burlington, Vermont, artists HANKNATIVE, Shane Kaseta, and Sam Paulino met Somba and Juju to form what soon became the ever evolving 99 Neighbors. Later, members Connor “Swank,” Jared “JFear,” and Aidan Ostby joined the group, all adding their own new unique perspective.  

The group’s debut project Television showcased the group as one not afraid to take risks and defy genres. 99 Neighbors are now breaking their 2020 silence with the hard-hitting singles “Basement” and “QWOP.”

We had the pleasure of connecting with 99 Neighbors via email to talk about coming up in Vermont, their creative process, new singles, and more.

Ones To Watch: How did growing up in Vermont influence your music?

AIDAN: Vermont is a beautiful and secluded place. Young people can grow up feeling a disconnect between their lives and the culture/creative output of the mainstream. Kids in New York can go to so many places in the city to see exciting up and coming artists in-person and really get a feel for who they are and what they’re about. That sort of culture does not exist in even the most populated areas of Vermont. If you want to connect with artists and gain knowledge about music, it's either all on you or it's going to come down to word of mouth. Despite it being tough to connect deeply with influences compared to places with more contact with big artists, Vermont also provides (in my opinion) one of the most beautiful places to be creative in the country. I’ve never felt closer to the essence of my own life than when i was biking in Burlington, and kids in Vermont are so lucky to have access to that scenery and that very same seclusion that can seem limiting at times. Vermont is a wonderful place to be creative and a horrible place to be expansive.

What are some places to visit for someone going to Burlington for the first time?

JUJU: For a first time visitor, I’d recommend grabbing some food from the homie Kujt at his cart “South End Sliders” on Church Street marketplace. From there it's a short walk down to the waterfront where you can get a creamie at Burlington Bay and enjoy the view of sunset over the lake!

How has the creative process changed since signing to a major label?

SOMBA: At first I was worried about being consumed by the process of making accessible music for a wide audience. Luckily at this point I’m really happy to be learning new ways to communicate our ideas (as bold as they may be) through the internal accessibility and communication of our narrative structure’s composition. As opposed to some looming, speculative silent majority that is the music market, I focus on the building block mechanics to our songs & just keep the label-y shit in mind as I go. To elaborate, our sound design, and vocal performance in combination with lyrics and musical composition all have to have a conversation with each other and you. For me the Warner helped show me that the industry-buzz-word of “communication” actually goes a long way. It’s much better to try to clear up anything in the way of greatness than to focus on some vague goal of being great.

Where did you get the idea to start 99 Radio?

JARED: Sam and I had the idea to start 99 Radio during the first COVID lockdown in early March. We missed the experience of partying with our homies on the weekend, and we knew a lot of our fans did too, so we wanted to try and capture as much of that energy as possible through a livestream. Twitch was the perfect platform to host 99 Radio on because of the dope community we already had built up there, as well as not capping our broadcast at a certain length (we typically go for 3-4 hours).

Being stuck inside for a long ass time has had a pretty heavy toll on my mental health, but having a way to break up the monotony of quarantine life, as well as a new reason to look forward to the weekend, has been super beneficial during this pandemic.

With so many members, does it become difficult to create a singular vision or sound?

SWANK: Sometimes having multiple members can be a struggle when opinions differ but for the most part, we have organically grown better at making music together just by going through life together. With everything we been through, we have learned many things about each other and how we work so we can move forward in ways we think will be successful. A key thing for that is communication. We still got ways to go before we perfect it but right now we doing alright !

What do you hope fans will take away from listening to “QWOP” and “Basement”?

HANK: I want it to be an intro to who we are for people who don’t already know. The playfulness of the duo, combined with the serious aspects kind of serve as the setting. We’re some young people enjoying where life’s taken us since we started our journey, but at the same time there’s an air of seriousness. This all matters...

It also serves as a great representation of our last year specifically. We took this mf from the basement apartment we were crashing in and Burlington, and it’s a wild ride.

How is the upcoming release different thanTelevision?

SAM: I think it's smarter to compare these singles to our previous single run last year, given Television is a full body of work!

The process of making QWOP and Basement was similar to the creation of songs like Fuck No, Bangarang, Ripstick and Mercy II. Creating with the sole purpose of having fun and letting whatever happens happen. A carefree feeling with intent, if you will!

Who are some of your Ones to Watch?

99 NEIGHBORS: BKTheRula, Mavi, Ovrkast., Spit Infinity, Dijon, Will Keeper, and Serious Klein.

[dracula-resurrected]

Vlad’s Moving Castle || SCCAU || Ch.1

There was a mechanical whirling in the distance muffled a bit by the fog that was starting to dissipate in the cool morning outside the usually sleepy town of Sea Coast City. Citizens murmured as to the reason, some said it was the enemy drawing near, others might have thought it to be their own military getting ready to defend them war after all was in the air, others the ones who knew well enough to speak of the feared wizard who’s castle could vanish without so much as a trace may yet be taking form nearby.

“You know he takes the souls of the prettiest girls.”

“Oh I heard he took a girl’s soul just because she smiled at him!”

This was followed by nods of assent as the discussing villagers made their way through the busy streets. With war in the air people were making a show of patriotism and many young brave souls had signed up to fight for the King’s banner. All wizards had been called forth to make haste and pledge their magic to lend aid to the fight. Nearly all had come save but one...

Raelia Honeystone sat ignoring the festivities as her hands sewed the final clutch of buttons the hat she had been making. Her family’s haberdashery was one of the finest in the lands’ even the late Queen herself had purchased a hat. The missing Prince was a known frequenter of their wares. Setting the hat down she reached for another fingers dancing over baubles, buttons, ribbons and other findings picking each one out to make this hat it’s own unique creation. The door opened quickly and Julius her Father came bursting in, “OH Honey!” A nickname of hers “You must see this hat I found during my travels isn’t it just delightful?”

“You made it home!” Setting down the hat and rushing to her Father and embracing him. “Oh Julius it is wonderful!”

“Nothing like the creations you make,” Julius looked around then back at her he had taken the young girl as an apprentice some time ago and in a tragic turn of events when her birth family had been killed he had taken her in further still making her one of his many children he had adopted over the years.

“You boast of me too much! I’m not any better than any of the other girls.” Honey insisted.

“No you are I hope someday you will find someone who helps you see how much worth you have.” Julius looked at the clock and gasped. “OH I’m going to be late for that appointment! See you,” He booped her nose, hugging her quick, and running off.

Honey shook her head glancing back at the hat she had been wearing and remembering a errand of her own. She had to go and see her brother Kit who was working at one of the local stores. Grabbing her hat off the hook and tucking in the note of how to get there she made her way from the shop into the bustling streets.

It was absolute chaos children skipped about waving flags of the kingdom as adults ushered them on or fought to keep them in place. There was marching soldiers and drums, trumpets, cheering, and other cacophonies of sound.

Stepping into a much quieter alleyway she let out a sigh before making her way relieved that there was little to no one here. At least until two rather nosy soldiers blocked her way. She stood there a moment silently looking at them as if imploring them to stand aside or hoping that they might just back away. When they didn’t she voiced it, “Would you mind stepping aside?”

“Aww but then we wouldn’t get to see you anymore,” One said rather creepily.

“You won’t like what you see if you don’t move.” Honey said feeling a strong surge of annoyance.

“Oh this one thinks she is a wolf!”

“More like a Puppy!”

“Gentlemen the lady made it very clear that you should get out of her way, that isn’t very good representation of the King’s forces if you don’t listen.” A disembodied voice said from behind. “I suggest you do.” With that both men slammed into the opposite walls. “There that wasn’t hard.” The man said before taking Honey’s arm. “Why don’t we get you to where you are going?”

Honey stared at the newcomer in awe once they were out of earshot of the two soldiers she let him know what she was thinking. “I had that under control.”

“Oh I know but the King is going to need all the soldiers he can get.” The man said offering a charming smile to her.

Honey continued her way the stranger walking with her, she would have spoken up against it were it not for the fact that he seemed to be also heading in that direction.

His head looked around, “I hope you don’t mind my suggesting that we pick up our pace, there seems to be some unwanted guests making their way towards us.”

Their pace quickened as Honey saw them strange creatures made from some ooze came bustling out all around them, they were surrounded! She felt nervousness rising in her and she was about to voice this even suggest that he was the one they wanted and that she wanted nothing to do with this however the look at his face silenced this. He had a rather determined look to his face as one hand moved around her waist and another took her hand. “Just like we are now one foot in front of the other.” He spoke softly into her ear and as they steped they began to climb high, high, high into the air like an air-balloon. Their ascent was graceful and honestly Honey had never had an experience like this. She must have been dreaming or this man was a wizard and had stolen her heart! Oh What if he was that one wizard who stole souls? They danced across the roof tops gently bobbing and bouncing from rooftop to rooftop. “I must say you are born for this.” He said before they made one final landing at the roof of the building she had been going to. “There now,” He set her onto the balcony there. “You go on, I don’t think they would follow you from here, not after I’m done with them. I look forward to seeing you again.” With that he was gone as quickly as he had appeared to her.

Honey watched him go not realizing she had not brought her arm down from where he had let go. A flush rose to her cheeks coloring them as she slowly came back to reality and her wits once more. “What a strange day dream!” She made her way down into the store and sent word for her Brother to come see her in their usual meeting spot.

Kit was a handsome man who stole the eyes of every man and woman who came into the shop, always the one requested and who could blame a single patron? He had a brilliant laugh, and a charming disposition, his green eyes met many under those thick lashes. Always quick to help and serve he made quite the money on tips alone. So even with the shop getting so busy he dropped everything to see his sister. “Honey!” He nearly bowled her over as he hugged her. “Oh it has been a moment, seeing as you never come out of the shop!”

“I have a lot of work to do and so do you!” Honey told him as she let go of the embrace, Kit was her favorite of her siblings and being around him made the day more bearable. He had often been the one at the counter of the shop in their home but now with his new job she barely saw him. “It is good to see you,” She agreed at last. “I wanted to see you in case.” She fell silent for a moment as her eyes caught the green of his and for a moment she was reminded of someone else.

“In case?” He encouraged her thoughts to come back.

“In case they draft you.”

“Do you really think it will come to that?”

“Who knows,” Honey said. “I would join up if it meant I could keep those I loved safe.”

“I know but you know the laws on that, besides I doubt the war will last long if it does.”

“Do you think we will win?”

“I don’t know but I don’t see either Kingdoms wanting to fight for so long. One just needs to find that Prince who went missing.”

“I certainly hope they do, before they start the drafts. I really hope it won’t come to that.”

“Bee.” Kit said pressing his forehead his personal nickname for her. “If they do I’ll simply become a woman.”

Honey laughed. “You would make a rather pretty woman.”

“You already do.” Kit said.

“You sound like Father.”

“He’s right, you don’t give yourself credit.” Taking off her hat he ruffled her hair placing it back on. “Now then little bee you must buzz away and I need to as well. I’ll see you again I promise!” He waved as he made his way back to the front of the store.

The crowds were less dense as the main festivities and marches had ended, Honey made her way home unbothered by another her mind drifting back to that strange man with clear green eyes and strawberry blond hair. “He had to have been a wizard to have done all that, I wonder if he took my mind when I wasn’t looking.” She shook her head before hopping up the steps of the Hat Shop. The shop was darkened as it was late and many of her siblings had gone to bed. Honey sighed before locking the door and lighting a lamp. As she hung up her hat the strangest sound was made. Ordinarily the sound of the shop bell was often heard dinging as customers came in and out however this was after hours. More than this she knew she had locked it, turning she saw the woman standing before her. “I believe you missed the sign out there, our shop hours are already passed, we are closed. Come back tomorrow.”

“No I don’t think I would want to return to such a drab and kitschy little haberdashery. I can’t even imagine why the royal families would enter such an establishment.”

It was one thing to enter after hours it was quite another to enter be told to leave and then to insult the establishment! “I don’t want to repeat myself, leave, we don’t want your business.”

“Oh our business will be done with shortly,” The crimson smile on her face was unsettling, a flash of her hand through her nearly white locks as she brushed her hair from over her shoulders making her way towards Honey.

Honey took steps back her hands reaching back to find the pair of scissors next to her before she could raise them she was surrounded in darkness when her vision cleared she felt so tired and sore. Her hands raised and a groan came from her mouth sounding like she chain smoked cigarettes for two decades straight made her silence herself. Hands were gnarled now the skin thin with age and spotted too. Oh how ever was she going to explain this now? What would her family think? No they couldn’t know until she fixed this! The other woman’s voice caught her attention.

“Tell Vlad that he owes me something oh and don’t worry about telling anyone about this little curse of yours, because you see, the thing is you can’t!”

[infinityskitchen]

Andrew Brenza and Concrete Poetry: "Playing with the Material of Language"

What if a poem is modeled after a rock garden and  each letter is transformed into a stone?

If anyone would explore this idea, it would be Andrew Brenza. Brenza is an experimental poet and librarian, whose work creative work merges language and visual art. His mini-poetry collection, “Rock Gardens,” organizes language into, well, a rock garden. This poetic masterpiece appeared in 8th issue of Infinity’s Kitchen Literary Journal. 

What does “Rock Gardens” look like? The piece consists of five separate poems that each use a single word to create intricate visual patterns (see excerpt images below). The issue describes Brenza’s concrete poetry as a “linguistic Japanese rock gardens: simple in presentation, highly ordered, but open to the air.” 

Image excerpts from the Infinity’s Kitchen vol. 8.

These word-gardens use repetition and organization to evoke something maddening and beautiful. It’s the transformation of word into abstraction and design. The first image above repeats the word “Reset” while the second one uses “Heathiest.” I fell in love with these poems’ airy complexity the second I saw them. 

You might be wondering why “Rock Gardens” matters…well, buckle up, because this post will talk about visual poetry and how it captures the ‘in-a-pickle’ mess of life and the soul. 

Brenza’s Art and Experimentation   I had the chance to email Brenza some questions about his creative life and work. He was generous enough to dig into his motivations and creative process.

‘Experimentation’ can be a shifty word—not because it’s sketchy in nature, (although its definition can be), but because it means different things to different creators. So, thinking back to “Rock Gardens,” I asked Brenza if he still considers his work experimental. 

While he does believe his work is “very experimental,” (his words!), Brenza doesn’t concern himself with this label during his creation process. Or, as Brenza says,

I do not really think about whether my work is experimental or not these days. I just do it.

This might be one of the healthiest approaches to writing and art. Don’t concern yourself with labels and genres, just create. Follow the impulse and see where it leads. 

Not surprising, Brenza recommends young poets (who want to experiment) take a light-hearted approach to new projects. Just play. Let creativity flow through you and see where it leads! Let yourself become part of the process and the experimentation. 

In Brenza’s own words,

I would say, try not to take yourself too seriously. Play around, see what happens, let the piece come into its own. If the work stinks, try again. Rushed judgment can easily shut down the creative process. So take your time, and let the piece breathe.    

I love this piece of advice. It reminds creators that good writing (or good art) takes patience and try-and-error. Its okay to mess up, to revise, to start again.  

Automatic Souls and the “Predicament of the Soul”  Over the years, Brenza’s poetry has become increacingly visual. Recently, Brenza published two books of visual poetry. 

One of these books is Automatic Souls (Timglaset: Publisher of Visual Poetries). This collection merges language and icons to create visual wonder. Brenza told me that he is very proud of this book and that the publisher did an amazing job, doing his visual poetry justice.

Text is inserted within or underneath visuals, captioning and contextualizing robotic scenes (see images below). Using Bauhaus era  typography, Brenza evokes mechanical creatures that capture predicaments, to use his word, of human life. 

Images taken from the publisher’s website

There is something archaic and futuristic, organic and mechanical, in this world. The images pull me in with their glyph like nature.

In the afterword, Brenza said 

The characters in this world did not ask for their predicaments. They did not ask for the nature of their compositions. Yet they respond to those predicaments given the nature of their compositions. This is how it goes in the half-light of a fading free will.

The publisher sees this book as “a chilling reminder of the predicament of the soul,” and I’m inclined to agree. Genes dictate our compositions; circumstances we have no control of surround our birth. The world doesn’t give us much consideration either. How do we respond to our own predicaments? 

Album, in Concrete and How it Draws on Art, Music, and Writing Brenza also recently published Album, In Concrete (Alien Buddha Press). 

This book, as the title suggests, is like an album. It contains Brenza’s visual poetry and asemic writing, which Brenza’s website says “explores visual representations of melody in specific keys/letters.” Ah, the merging of music, art, and poetry! 

Art (usually) strives to express something real or felt. Music also works to reveal or support something—I mean, haven’t you ever listened to a song to feel happier, or maybe even listened to one to feel even sadder? 

Visual poetry and asemic writing function on this premise. Because our world and our emotions are complex, its natural to explore reality in hybrid and cross-genre creations. Album, in Concrete arises from such a wonderful overlap (see image below).

 Image taken from Brenza’s website

Brenza’s Creative Process Now that we’ve seen some of Brenza’s concrete and visual poetry, you may be wondering what his creative process is like. At the very least, I was super curious to learn how Brenza’s unique style came to life. 

Brenza said this about his craft:

much of my process in making these [experimental] works comes from playing with the material of language until I stumble upon something that looks interesting to me.

We see this play with linguistic materials in “Rock Gardens” and Automatic Souls for sure. There is a deconstruction and rebuilding of meaning, words, and symbols.

Brenza’s creative process begins each morning, before he heads off to work. Running on coffee, Brenza spends about an hour writing. He says “all of [his] recent work has come out of this daily ritual.”

Writing rituals are pretty important. They force your mind to take the time to create and may involve you going to a café, using paper and pen, or meditating before you sit to write.  

According to Brenza, experimentation is central to his creative process. It guides his creative play.

Brenza pulls, pushes, massages, and rearranges language “until something interesting happens.” That takes a lot of patience, but Brenza doesn’t stop until he feels “a piece is done, or hopeless, or [he] runs out of time and have to go to work.” Experimentation gives Brenza the freedom to play with language’s building-blocks, to explore, mess up, and find something strange yet compelling.

Time, of course, limits how much anyone can do. Experimentation is not as constraining.  

I asked Brenza what makes his creative process effective. For this visual poet, it boils down to the emotions he experiences as his creation unfolds. I guess an effective creative process is one that makes the artist feel something extraordinary. 

As Brenza says, 

I suppose it is the feelings that are unleashed as a result of the creative process, of the thing that is created.

Obliviously,  Brenza’s creativity demands digital platforms. His craft requires a proficiency in publishing software.

I’m sure many contemporary artists and hybrid writers would agree that mastering digital art and publishing applications is central to producing compelling visual poetry. 

Life as a Motivation  What drives Brenza onward? What compels him to create and stretch language into the visual? Like any artist and writer, he must have some sort of inspiration or motivation. Brenza claims the latter.

Brenza creativity is a lifeline. Expression and creation give him an outlet and the opportunity to get in touch with his selfhood. He wants 

to feel human despite [his] often-stultifying middle-class existence. In short, it is the making of and exposure to art that allows life to be bearable. 

I wanted to add in Brenza’s own words because so many of us feel trapped by our circumstances or limited one way or another. Writing and art alleviate our stagnation.  

—

Andrew Brenza’s recent chapbooks include Poems in C (Viktlösheten Press), Bitter Almonds & Mown Grass (Shirt Pocket Press), Waterlight (Simulacrum Press), and Excerpt from Alphabeticon (No Press). He is also the author of three full-length collections of visual poetry, Automatic Souls (Timglaset Editions), Gossamer Lid (Trembling Pillow Press) and Album, in Concrete (Alien Buddha Press). He can found somewhere in North America.

Learn more about Brenza’s work here.

Huge thanks for Brenza for taking the time to discuss his creative life!

[tiredbluejay]

The Infodump is Here

@supericelight I’m sorry in advance.

So. Jessin. I don’t have a visual representation because I can’t settle on a design for him. I know a few things about his appearance: he has pale orange eyes in all four of his regenerations, and his skin is completely opaque (as opposed to translucent as in humans and most Gallifreyans).

Simply put, he’s part TARDIS coral. In Ten’s console room, you can see the coral in its natural state in the columns. All TARDISes are grown from coral, manipulated into the exo-shell and internal dimensions and augmented with objects made from Block Transfer equations. (Block Transfer Mathematics can make “real” objects out of nothing but a series of equations; I don’t fully understand it either.) The coral makes up the base structure of a TARDIS, and the equipment used therein is made up of Block Transfer Equations.

Jessin, like all current members of his House, Nulltide, is a Gallifreyan with recombinant DNA composed of 80% Gallifreyan and 20% TARDIS coral. Nulltide’s genome was modified by hand to accept the coral DNA during its first generation in an effort to become what the House members sought to understand.

The founder, Caestus, was a brilliant engineer who developed technology powerful enough to stop the tides of the Arcadian Ocean and allow the city of Arcadia to be build without the threat of destruction looming over everyone’s heads. When her work was rendered obsolete by the ocean being burned away, she turned her attention to developing technology for TARDISes, and found them impossible to understand due to their semi-autonomous nature and ability to reject things that they felt did not suit them. So she gave up after a few centuries and remarked to her cousins, “We cannot hope to understand that which we are not.”

Renva took this a bit too literally, deciding to solve the problem by having their next generation become (part) TARDIS. He stole TARDIS coral from the Black Hole Shipyard, integrated it into the House’s loom, and started creating new cousins. Everything went downhill for a while; the rest of House Nulltide found out and realized that they couldn’t turn him over to the High Council for tampering with their genome because they’d strike all of Nulltide from history, not just Renva. They had to fix his mess without alerting anyone else.

Caestus thought his solution was brilliant and worked with him to stabilize the hybrid DNA, as the initial genome was highly volatile and caused their new cousins to die within days or hours of being created. After many trials, many deaths, and their Housekeeper begging them to stop because she couldn’t take losing any more children, they finally stabilized it enough. It wasn’t perfect, though.

Their new cousins only had three regenerations (four total bodies) instead of the usual twelve, and with each regeneration, their DNA would become more and more unstable until it ripped itself apart during a failed fourth regeneration. They had an insatiable longing for the Time Vortex, to the point where they’d steal a TARDIS, disable her curiosity circuit, and stay in the Vortex with her until someone came to retrieve them. Eventually the other Nulltide cousins figured out how to engage the hybrids enough to drown out the pull of the Vortex.

House Nulltide is forbidden from becoming Time Lords because of their past renegade problem. They can take classes at the Patrex Academy but cannot attend the Time Academy in any capacity. Nowadays, they’re brilliant TARDIS engineers and have developed almost all defense systems on TARDISes Types 38 and later. Part of the reason for their success is their ability to speak to TARDISes as if they were fellow Gallifreyans. It looks to outsiders like they’re talking to themselves when they do, as TARDISes are purely telepathic. They consider TARDISes to their sisters, while TARDISes see them as nieces and nephews, as they are the hybrid children of one of their own.

Their existence is unsettling to pure Gallifreyans at best and mildly painful at worst. It’s very similar to the uncanny valley—they look almost exactly like pure Gallifreyans, but there’s always something off (the opaque skin, the pale orange eyes, the spacey attitude, the way they just know things they have no way of knowing). Other Gallifreyans can sense that there’s something “wrong” with Nulltide, but they can’t pinpoint what it is, and that’s enough to put them on edge.

Jessin himself is the youngest member of House Nulltide, barely 116 years old when he leaves Gallifrey. That makes him about 14-15 in terms of how humans develop. He was attending the Patrex Academy and had been about to graduate with a focus in TARDIS Repair and Maintenance, but unfortunately, he got expelled. Young Gallifreyans, much like young humans, can be rather cruel when they can tell there’s something not normal about an individual. Some classmates of his from more respected Houses told him they wanted help studying for exams, rigged a console to explode in his face, and made him take the fall for it.

He’s used to being one of the smartest people in the room, especially where TARDIS repair is concerned, having created a method to save dying TARDISes who are deleting their own pocket dimensions due to a failed subroutine at just shy of 95 years old. He created this method to save a Type 50 he’d been working on since he entered the Patrex Academy, but he only figured it out fully when it was too late to save her.

When the Master arrived on Gallifrey (not by choice, mind you) sometime before Castrovalva, his TARDIS was suffering from the same failed subroutine, and Jessin was quick to jump on the chance to save her. The Master wasn’t too thrilled by the idea of taking a companion, especially one so young, but faced with his TARDIS’ imminent death, he had no other choice. Things get especially complicated when the other reason Jessin is so willing to help is revealed: he mistook the Master for the Doctor, since they’re both Prydonian Renegades with Old-Type TARDISes.

Away from Gallifrey for the first time in his life, racing against time to save a dying TARDIS, and worrying about the stability of this new branch timeline he’s created, Jessin is Stressed. It’s starting to hit him that while he is brilliant, outside of TARDIS repair, he doesn’t know much of anything at all. And on top of that, he’s starting to doubt that his new friend is who he says he is, because he doesn’t act much like the Doctor at all.

Jessin is sweet and naïve. He prefers to believe most beings are well-intentioned and kind even if he knows that’s not true, and he tries to focus on the best-case scenario outcomes because considering the less-than-ideal possibilities stresses him out a lot. He’s also insecure about his age relative to his intelligence, often getting frustrated when people dismiss him as a child or as ignorant when they won’t bother explaining anything to him. Where other Gallifreyans find him unsettling purely due to his hybrid nature, he finds non-hybrids and non-TARDISes very confusing and funny, but he’s willing to make an effort to understand them.

He has trouble paying attention to everything happening in his physical environment because TARDISes are so much more interesting and can keep his attention with very little effort. This has led to others remarking that he’s “Not quite here.” There are times when he comes across as rude due to not paying enough attention to the beings around him. He rambles a lot, mostly because he gets off track. For example, he’ll start talking about topic A, which is tangentially related to topic B, and mid-sentence switch to talking about topic B.

He loves to collect broken alien tech and see what he can make out of it. It’s very rare for the things he makes to work the way he intends them to, if they work at all, but he has fun and it keeps his hands busy. When he isn’t messing with some random bit of alien tech or working on repairs, he’s usually rubbing the grip of his multipurpose sonic tool or playing with the hems of his clothes while he tries to figure out something to do. He’s also very particular about the things he makes and collects, gets agitated when people move them or touch them without asking, and doesn’t care much for trying to name his creations.

I need to stop before I go on for another two pages. His story is very long and complicated, and he is just the embodiment of the anxieties of being a gifted kid whose peers caught up in high school, growing up as a neurodivergent queer kid in a very Catholic community, my dissociation from being truly human, and my experiences with idolizing the wrong people for the wrong reasons. I want him to wear Ouji and/or Boystyle because he has absolutely no happy ending and his entire story is one big Break the Cutie and he needs something cute and happy, goddamnit!

[davidrsmithlove]

Fit for Format – Forget Content Marketing Without This

When talking about content marketing, the majority of people automatically think of blog posts. And sure, text is one of the leading formats when it comes to content. It’s easy to produce, inherently supports SEO, is simple to update, and can be repurposed in almost countless ways.

However, it’s far from being the only format that matters. In fact, in 2021, it could be said that several other ones deserve much more of your attention.

So how can marketers find the absolute best format for their goals? 

First, they need to understand that putting together a content marketing strategy cannot be approached as a step-by-step checklist. No guide can work ubiquitously, simply because different brands have different goals, distribution channels, and target audiences. For this reason, to get a marketing plan that truly works, marketers must consider the specific audience they’re targeting. Then they must develop a plan of action based on that audience’s preferences and the goals they have in mind. 

And that means finding the best fitting format for each distribution channel and intent.

How Buyers Consume Content

Last year saw a dramatic increase in the time people spent in front of a screen. According to DoubleVerify, the average screen time in 2020 was 6 hours and 59 minutes, with streaming services seeing notable usage boosts. Another resource, App Annie, states that the most used apps in the first quarter of 2020 included Snapchat, Twitch, and TikTok for Gen Z, clearly indicating that some content formats drew more attention than others.

For marketers, this probably isn’t too much of a surprise. 

Research from 2020 shows that the most invested-in format in 2019 included video, which was closely followed by blogs and eBooks. Usage statistics also reveal that social media apps remained the most used during the past 12 months, with TikTok leading the race.

All of this information is in line with the data we’ve had access to for a while. For example, WordPress states that there are 70 million new posts on its platform each month (and that’s just for blogs that use WP). And even back in 2019, 500 hours of video were being uploaded to YouTube every minute. 

Naturally, this type of knowledge should have a significant impact on content marketing strategies. More importantly, it should help inform the decisions marketers make regarding formats. After all, people don’t go to YouTube to read a text – they go there to watch videos on topics of interest. 

So, if your target audience is showing a preference for select platforms, that’s where you’ll have to rank if you want to stand a fighting chance of effectively grabbing their attention.

The Top Formats in 2021

Blogs

Though text posts may not be the hippest way to reach customers, they still work extremely well. And that’s no surprise.

Let’s consider the fact that the average person makes around 3-4 Google searches per day. We also know that 8% of all Google queries are phrased as questions. Bearing this in mind, it’s quite evident that providing answers makes for an excellent strategy to reach new customers. And blogs are still the best way to do that, seeing how videos get 6.3% of clicks and images just 3%.

In 2021, however, the way to get text content to work won’t be to churn out daily blog posts, stuffing them with keywords, or building backlinks from shady sites. Instead, it’ll be to pay closer attention to user queries, provide valuable information, and hopefully, win a spot in the Featured snippets and People also ask sections of SERPs.

Another thing to keep in mind about producing text is that, in 2021, longer is better. The average 800-word post is no match to longer articles. In fact, according to Semrush, posts that contain 7000+ words get the most average unique pageviews and shares.

Of course, you don’t have to write an eBook for each topic you cover. But do try to hit that sweet spot between 1500 and 2000 words to get the best results. Then, if you’ve got more to say on the subject offer a gated resource that will further educate your audience. A good example of this can be seen in Skillcrush’s post on remote work. At the bottom of the post, they have an email capturing lead magnet directly related to the remote working topic.

image source: skillcrush.com

Videos

We’ve already covered the way consumers are shifting to multimedia-oriented platforms. In fact, on all the popular social networks, video posts tend to get the highest engagement rates, making them an excellent investment for marketers.

However, there’s a significant contrast between formats when producing for different distribution channels.

Long-form videos work best for YouTube. On this platform, the average length of a video is 11.7 minutes, with some creators producing content three times that length. Seeing how the network accounts for 99.9% of Google’s video traffic, as well as its popularity across multiple generations, it’s a good investment for brands that want to take a step up from blogs.

Vat19, for example, bases its marketing strategy on creating entertaining videos that center around its products. Following current trends and adopting a friendly voice, they’re getting millions of views and thousands of comments, proving that they’ve chosen the ideal format to reach their target audience.

Still, most other distribution platforms display a preference for shorter creations. Instagram’s video limit is 60 seconds, as is Snapchat’s. In December 2020, TikTok started testing a longer 3-minute format. But that’s still multiple times shorter than the average on YouTube. So, taking everything into consideration, it’s clear that short-form video is the way to go for most platforms.

So how can marketers make a limited format work in their favor?

Well, one way would be to invest in content that lends itself to visual representation. For example, a company such as Joi can greatly benefit from transforming its recipes page into a series of TikTok posts showing the preparation process. As most recipes are easy-to-follow, they require no in-depth explanations and can fit into the traditional 60-second limitations.

@addjoi

Vegan Samoa Bars

Happy Friday from us to you! Recipe is in the comments. #veganrecipes #vegandessert #madewithjoi #addjoi #healthyrecipes

♬ Put Your Records On – Ritt Momney

Visuals

Then there’s the most sought-after digital asset out there: images. It’s no secret that visual information boosts any post’s performance. Articles with images get 94% more views, social media posts get higher engagement rates, and consumers make purchasing decisions based on photos.

But the thing is, marketers aren’t necessarily making the most of visuals.

According to Venngage, as many as 40% of companies use stock photos, a practice that can hardly be counted as a viable content marketing strategy. Moreover, visuals created for one distribution channel don’t necessarily have to work for another.

As an example, look to mattress brand Zoma. Comparing the Instagram performance of their posts, it’s easy to notice that the visual content reposted from their website gets several times fewer comments and likes than the images created specifically for the platform. What’s more, their best-performing posts include those made with a clear strategy in place, such as their athlete spotlights that make smart use of user-generated content.

image source: instagram.com

Industry Insights

As we move through the best ways to utilize digital formats in your content marketing campaigns, it’s crucial not to disregard any brand’s most valuable asset: its experience and know-how.

Though not necessarily appropriate for social media sharing (unless in the format of infographics), industry insights can and should play a role in your marketing plan. In addition to offering eBooks, white papers, research reports, and survey results on their websites, businesses can also build their reputations around being a trustworthy source of information.

For example, Deloitte’s content marketing strategy is based around the sole idea of positioning themselves as the go-to resource in a wide range of business-related topics. Their extensive Insights page offers resources on anything – from workspace design to cybersecurity in the electric power sector. 

image source: deloitte.com

But their most valuable digital assets include their in-depth reports. These are available to download to anyone in exchange for a name and email address, making them an exceptionally successful lead generation method.

The Alternatives

Although we’ve covered the four most popular online content categories, there are still quite a few options out there. And they can be just as effective at getting you the desired results as the traditional formats.

Podcasts, for example, are becoming more popular every year. According to Statista, the number of monthly active podcast listeners is expected to hit 164 million by 2024, more than doubling over five years. The e-learning market is growing as well, with an average annual growth rate of 9.1%.

Then, there are the more innovative formats you could explore. An interactive map, such as the one created for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, is an excellent example of what can be done with some basic information and a creative approach.

image source: rio2016interactivemap.com

Conclusion

There are numerous options brands can explore if they want to make content marketing work in their favor. In fact, being agile in adopting novel trends and brave enough to experiment with lesser-known methods makes for a great strategy. 

Of course, that doesn’t mean disregarding traditional content formats like blogs. But it does necessitate a willingness to experiment and a high level of diligence when doing research and measuring results. Because, in the end, the best way to find what works best isn’t to follow advice. It’s to try things out and make data-based decisions that will work towards a predetermined goal.

Get a free consultation

[magnificentmktg]

Fit for Format – Forget Content Marketing Without This

When talking about content marketing, the majority of people automatically think of blog posts. And sure, text is one of the leading formats when it comes to content. It's easy to produce, inherently supports SEO, is simple to update, and can be repurposed in almost countless ways.

However, it's far from being the only format that matters. In fact, in 2021, it could be said that several other ones deserve much more of your attention.

So how can marketers find the absolute best format for their goals? 

First, they need to understand that putting together a content marketing strategy cannot be approached as a step-by-step checklist. No guide can work ubiquitously, simply because different brands have different goals, distribution channels, and target audiences. For this reason, to get a marketing plan that truly works, marketers must consider the specific audience they're targeting. Then they must develop a plan of action based on that audience's preferences and the goals they have in mind. 

And that means finding the best fitting format for each distribution channel and intent.

How Buyers Consume Content

Last year saw a dramatic increase in the time people spent in front of a screen. According to DoubleVerify, the average screen time in 2020 was 6 hours and 59 minutes, with streaming services seeing notable usage boosts. Another resource, App Annie, states that the most used apps in the first quarter of 2020 included Snapchat, Twitch, and TikTok for Gen Z, clearly indicating that some content formats drew more attention than others.

For marketers, this probably isn't too much of a surprise. 

Research from 2020 shows that the most invested-in format in 2019 included video, which was closely followed by blogs and eBooks. Usage statistics also reveal that social media apps remained the most used during the past 12 months, with TikTok leading the race.

All of this information is in line with the data we've had access to for a while. For example, WordPress states that there are 70 million new posts on its platform each month (and that's just for blogs that use WP). And even back in 2019, 500 hours of video were being uploaded to YouTube every minute. 

Naturally, this type of knowledge should have a significant impact on content marketing strategies. More importantly, it should help inform the decisions marketers make regarding formats. After all, people don't go to YouTube to read a text – they go there to watch videos on topics of interest. 

So, if your target audience is showing a preference for select platforms, that's where you'll have to rank if you want to stand a fighting chance of effectively grabbing their attention.

The Top Formats in 2021

Blogs

Though text posts may not be the hippest way to reach customers, they still work extremely well. And that's no surprise.

Let's consider the fact that the average person makes around 3-4 Google searches per day. We also know that 8% of all Google queries are phrased as questions. Bearing this in mind, it's quite evident that providing answers makes for an excellent strategy to reach new customers. And blogs are still the best way to do that, seeing how videos get 6.3% of clicks and images just 3%.

In 2021, however, the way to get text content to work won't be to churn out daily blog posts, stuffing them with keywords, or building backlinks from shady sites. Instead, it'll be to pay closer attention to user queries, provide valuable information, and hopefully, win a spot in the Featured snippets and People also ask sections of SERPs.

Another thing to keep in mind about producing text is that, in 2021, longer is better. The average 800-word post is no match to longer articles. In fact, according to Semrush, posts that contain 7000+ words get the most average unique pageviews and shares.

Of course, you don't have to write an eBook for each topic you cover. But do try to hit that sweet spot between 1500 and 2000 words to get the best results. Then, if you've got more to say on the subject offer a gated resource that will further educate your audience. A good example of this can be seen in Skillcrush’s post on remote work. At the bottom of the post, they have an email capturing lead magnet directly related to the remote working topic.

image source: skillcrush.com

Videos

We've already covered the way consumers are shifting to multimedia-oriented platforms. In fact, on all the popular social networks, video posts tend to get the highest engagement rates, making them an excellent investment for marketers.

However, there's a significant contrast between formats when producing for different distribution channels.

Long-form videos work best for YouTube. On this platform, the average length of a video is 11.7 minutes, with some creators producing content three times that length. Seeing how the network accounts for 99.9% of Google's video traffic, as well as its popularity across multiple generations, it's a good investment for brands that want to take a step up from blogs.

Vat19, for example, bases its marketing strategy on creating entertaining videos that center around its products. Following current trends and adopting a friendly voice, they're getting millions of views and thousands of comments, proving that they've chosen the ideal format to reach their target audience.

Still, most other distribution platforms display a preference for shorter creations. Instagram's video limit is 60 seconds, as is Snapchat's. In December 2020, TikTok started testing a longer 3-minute format. But that's still multiple times shorter than the average on YouTube. So, taking everything into consideration, it's clear that short-form video is the way to go for most platforms.

So how can marketers make a limited format work in their favor?

Well, one way would be to invest in content that lends itself to visual representation. For example, a company such as Joi can greatly benefit from transforming its recipes page into a series of TikTok posts showing the preparation process. As most recipes are easy-to-follow, they require no in-depth explanations and can fit into the traditional 60-second limitations.

@addjoi

Vegan Samoa Bars 🤯 Happy Friday from us to you! Recipe is in the comments. #veganrecipes #vegandessert #madewithjoi #addjoi #healthyrecipes

♬ Put Your Records On - Ritt Momney

Visuals

Then there's the most sought-after digital asset out there: images. It's no secret that visual information boosts any post's performance. Articles with images get 94% more views, social media posts get higher engagement rates, and consumers make purchasing decisions based on photos.

But the thing is, marketers aren't necessarily making the most of visuals.

According to Venngage, as many as 40% of companies use stock photos, a practice that can hardly be counted as a viable content marketing strategy. Moreover, visuals created for one distribution channel don't necessarily have to work for another.

As an example, look to mattress brand Zoma. Comparing the Instagram performance of their posts, it's easy to notice that the visual content reposted from their website gets several times fewer comments and likes than the images created specifically for the platform. What's more, their best-performing posts include those made with a clear strategy in place, such as their athlete spotlights that make smart use of user-generated content.

image source: instagram.com

Industry Insights

As we move through the best ways to utilize digital formats in your content marketing campaigns, it's crucial not to disregard any brand's most valuable asset: its experience and know-how.

Though not necessarily appropriate for social media sharing (unless in the format of infographics), industry insights can and should play a role in your marketing plan. In addition to offering eBooks, white papers, research reports, and survey results on their websites, businesses can also build their reputations around being a trustworthy source of information.

For example, Deloitte's content marketing strategy is based around the sole idea of positioning themselves as the go-to resource in a wide range of business-related topics. Their extensive Insights page offers resources on anything – from workspace design to cybersecurity in the electric power sector. 

image source: deloitte.com

But their most valuable digital assets include their in-depth reports. These are available to download to anyone in exchange for a name and email address, making them an exceptionally successful lead generation method.

The Alternatives

Although we've covered the four most popular online content categories, there are still quite a few options out there. And they can be just as effective at getting you the desired results as the traditional formats.

Podcasts, for example, are becoming more popular every year. According to Statista, the number of monthly active podcast listeners is expected to hit 164 million by 2024, more than doubling over five years. The e-learning market is growing as well, with an average annual growth rate of 9.1%.

Then, there are the more innovative formats you could explore. An interactive map, such as the one created for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, is an excellent example of what can be done with some basic information and a creative approach.

image source: rio2016interactivemap.com

Conclusion

There are numerous options brands can explore if they want to make content marketing work in their favor. In fact, being agile in adopting novel trends and brave enough to experiment with lesser-known methods makes for a great strategy. 

Of course, that doesn't mean disregarding traditional content formats like blogs. But it does necessitate a willingness to experiment and a high level of diligence when doing research and measuring results. Because, in the end, the best way to find what works best isn't to follow advice. It's to try things out and make data-based decisions that will work towards a predetermined goal.

Get a free consultation

[stripedigital]

Know What to Post on Instagram & What Your Customers Want to See

It is not at all surprising when we look at Google’s search data that shows more than 3,000 people search [ what to post on Instagram ] every month.

The onset and growth of social media channels has quenched customers’ thirst of instant gratification, and one platform has stood the test of times in the most prominent fashion – Instagram.

Time and time again we have stressed the importance of social media marketing playing a massive role in overall growth for small businesses.

We have looked at how social media strategies can grow your business and have also discussed specific social media tips for small business owners. 

We are always committed to helping entrepreneurs understand the power of social media in connecting their brands with target audiences.

Through this article we want to share some effective Instagram specific content marketing tactics that will help you get answers to your questions about what to post on Instagram and be successful.

Before jumping into answering the query what to post on Instagram, we need to look at what exactly makes Instagram the social media powerhouse it is today and why small business owners need to take note and enhance their presence here.

According to Statista, a user spends close to 3 minutes on Instagram per session compared to 1.5 minutes on Facebook.

And if this piece of data showing the average amount of time spent on the platform isn’t proof enough, its $1 billion acquisition by Facebook in 2012 should encourage you of its rising popularity among younger audiences.

After engaging 100 million additional users every year, continuously for the last 6 years, this mainly photo-sharing social channel is showing no signs of stopping anytime soon.

Experts believe this platform will keep growing in popularity among audiences owing this increase to a number of new features and updates. Small business owners, too, are jumping on the bandwagon to get their products advertised on Instagram.

And rightly so. Instagram not only conveys your timeline and story through pictures but it has been successful in capturing and retaining the imagination of a large audience that has always yearned for visual gratification.

Instagram not only now has over 1 billion active users, but it also has some of the most active users out there that are producing content and engaging with brands. Some say 3 times more than its nearest competitor, Twitter. Instagram’s parent company, Facebook, on the other hand has reached 2.41 billion monthly active users.

This immensely popular social media channel has not only kept audiences captivated with its photo and video sharing capabilities but also helped business owners create an army of followers for their brands.

In this blog post, we are going to take a look at the most asked question that small business owners want to know about this platform – what to post on Instagram?

We will give you a detailed understanding of what you, as a business owner, can expect out of this social media platform.

We will also share examples of what to post on Instagram that will keep your target audience engaged.

Let’s take a look at what to post on Instagram that is engaging and will grab the attention of users all the while making your brand’s content resonate with them!

The 15 Best Ideas of What to Post on Instagram

1.Quality photos & videos

Instagram is all about creative representation of your brand and how you engage your target audience by consistently posting content that is visually appealing. Using quality images and video will go a long way in increasing your post’s reach.

You will soon see users interact with your brand.

The most effective photos have a width of at least 1080 pixels with an aspect ratio between 1.91:1 and 4:5. For videos, a resolution of at least 1920 x 1080 is most effective.

Regardless of dimension, photos appear as a center cropped square in the photo grid on your profile. So make sure you post images that are still visually pleasing in this format as well.

2. Show them what you do but in a creative way

Remember that your business is on Instagram to make a connection with your audience, not hard sell them on your products. Compel them to follow your brand journey rather than having an Instagram presence just to patronize your followers.

Looking at some recent statistics, almost 50% of Instagram users conduct product research on social media and a user’s brand engagement is 10 times more than that on any other social media channel.

With new innovations coming to the IG business platform, you can now post shoppable images.

You simply tag your popular products in an image and users can tap the image to see more details about the product. Tapping that information will then take them to your website, all while still within the Instagram interface, and allow them to make a purchase.

This feature allows businesses to boost revenue and gives them new options of what to post on Instagram while sticking to Instagram’s creative medium. 

3. Engage them with posts around their favorites

People are always favorable towards things they love. So posting about their favorite season, flavors, childhood memory, etc. will strike the right chord.

After a little research about your ideal target audience, you’ll know more about what to post on Instagram that your audience will like. You can create posts that talk about your business and their favorite interests at the same time.

Take this Starbucks post, for example. They know many of their patrons value healthy fruits and vegetables in their diet.

You can’t purchase a carrot at Starbucks, but you can purchase a healthy smoothie. They successfully combined audience interests and their products, and the engagements on this post shows that customers like the content!

4. Tutorials & Demonstrations

Everyone loves how-to videos. They are a great way to capture audience attention, share information about your products, and build user engagement.

If you’re a makeup artist or salon owner for example, you’ve probably encountered tons of “how-to” questions from clients at work. If your clients are asking these questions, then so are thousands of other people on social media.

Use Instagram as a chance to answer those questions and demonstrate a new hairstyle or product to your followers.

These tutorial posts are just one of the ways you can improve your customers’ experience while using your product. That in itself can prove to be a highly effective answer when you start wondering about what to post on Instagram.

5. Go Behind the Scenes

If you are running a business, you are bound to engage in various happenings from product testing and marketing launches to customer experiences.

Whether you are a consumer facing business or a B2B service provider, chances are you already love organizing events that engage your customer, clients, and employees alike.

These sources make for great content that you can use to engage your fans on social media. Think of all the creative ways you can cover these events and meet ups.

Show behind the scene footage of building up a product or event. Create edits and bloopers or simply ask employees to pretty pose for pictures. If possible, take a stolen shot.

Don’t organize your office instead show it off as messy as it always is everyday. Your goal here is to show your followers a glimpse of what you do behind their backs.

Make it natural and honest because this is what customers admire best in a brand.

Post these on your story and then repurpose for content posts later after the story is gone. The more you brainstorm the more you’ll realize you have a multitude of content to post on Instagram.

6. Capture Different Moods

With video & photography at its base, Instagram can be a breeding ground for creative energy. Make your business postings no different.

Users love to see pictures and videos that capture different moods. If it is something they relate to, you’re in for an impressive return for your efforts and will soon see traffic increase.

Capture different moods and moments from your employees or customers and reveal your product story or brand values.

For example when Starbucks launched their new drink flavor around Easter, they had some employees dressed with bunny ears pose with the new drink.

This type of on-the-spot fun, while capturing the current mood around the product, can also increase post engagements and traffic for your brand.

7. DIY projects around your products & service

Lego as a brand has always wanted to connect with kids to make new products with Lego blocks. They invited kids and let their imagination run wild by providing its products and captured all their creations.

DIY projects have the power to connect with an ever inquisitive audience. Let alone a great execution. Explore how your products can be used by a DIY audience and if you find a match, create a project presentation to post on Instagram.

You can also utilize and repurpose posts that your audience has tagged you in. People love to show off their creations on social media and love it even more when the brand they follow recognizes their efforts.

This technique is a great way to capture the imagination of DIYers. Your product explorations in itself will answer the evading question – what to post on Instagram.

8. Use trending props in posts

From fidget spinners to Pokémon Go suits. We have found it interesting how a brand’s Instagram posts featuring the latest trends that people relate to can increase engagement on posts.

Instagram is still a safe haven for businesses who do not want to pay to be seen much like the other big players. In our own experience, organic Instagram posts typically generate 3 times more engagement than the other social media channels.

For example a brick and mortar sweets store in Manhattan shared employees pictures dressed up as Pokémon Go characters right when the viral game was trending.

This was not only a smart idea to tap into a nostalgic audience but also a great way to keep up with the current trends in context to their brand offerings.

9. Instagram Ads that your customers want to see

A recent study related to Instagram revealed that using colored visuals in your content increases people’s willingness to engage by more than 65%.

Even if you are using paid advertising solutions on Instagram make sure you are aware of not only your target audience but also the graphics you use in your posts, from cropping to colors.

Firstly, make visuals a rule of thumb when deciding what to post on Instagram and what not to. You cannot get away with shabby visuals that don’t represent your brand in a positive light.

Secondly, use relevant calls to action in your posts.

It is not necessary for every post to have a call to action, but it is encouraged if you want to interact and have conversations with your audience.

You can also boost posts on Instagram, which features a variety of call to action options. You can schedule a free chat with our team to learn more about how you can grow your business using Instagram’s organic and paid tactics.

10. Using Popular Hashtags

Hashtags are still one of the most popular forms of tagging used in Instagram posts for individuals and business alike.

The power of these keyword tags in posts is invaluable and will help make your posts more visible in trending circles. An important aspect of writing posts for your business should include researching trending hashtags that your target audience is following.

Then include those hashtags as keywords in posts. For example when Taco Bell was launching their $1 menu, they used a trending hashtag that was followed by their target audience for this post – #Breakfast.

Hashtags have also been used powerfully by social movements like the recent #MeToo and #TimesUp.

11. Collaborate and mention others

If you are a new business that is just getting started or you just don’t really know what to post on Instagram, you definitely want to look beyond what other big brands are doing.

It is important to understand why you need a social strategy in the first place. Every business is unique, with a unique set of customers and identifiers. Play by your own strengths and have a little fun while you are at it.

Collaborations and tagging is another great way to engage your target audience.

It is a way to piggy back on existing profiles that are strong which eventually will can give a boost to the visibility of your post and help any of your local marketing efforts too.

For example when Nike was launching a new range of teen sneakers, they first posted them on their Instagram feed and tagged popular teen artists asking them for their opinion.

This is a great way to take advantage from the visibility of already established profiles but make sure to be as relevant as possible and your content is interesting enough for them to engage with you.

12. Giveaways and contests

Another effective tactic is to start thinking about what to post on Instagram in terms of contests and giveaways for your customers.

Think of all the ways your customers can be engaged through an epic Instagram contest that offers a giveaway for posting cool pictures while tagging your business.

There are more than enough examples of brands doing this well.

They are successfully engaging their target audience with their business on Instagram. Much like how a cookie brand decided to attract users to try out their brand and increase brand awareness through a contest offering a free shirt, rather than the more traditional way of giving out free samples at the mall.

13. Live Videos

Instagram has a built-in Live video feature in its feed that lets users share a live video of their activity during the day. This is can be used by brands to talk about their events and launches.

In 2019, research notes that 65% of consumers are more likely to buy a concert ticket after viewing a live video and 70% prefer watching a brand’s video versus reading a blog post for example.

These statistics can’t be ignored and show that live videos should definitely be included in your Instagram content arsenal.

Source: Livestream

14. Influencer marketing

It is more probable than not that your customers are socially influenced, follow, or even idolize a fellow Instagram-er. We are not talking about national celebrities or film stars. We’ll leave those to the big companies like Nike and Capital One.

Micro-influencers are regular people like us who have generated a strong following on social media by their consistently witty, interesting, and quality content. Such micro-influencers can be found after a little research.

It is always a good idea to partner with them to help get the word out about your products through a trusted member of your target audience.

Chances are their post about your product will be seen by many more people than when you post about it on your profile. And this can be a good tactic to have in your arsenal.

15. Spread the cheer of national holidays & festivities

Whether it is Thanksgiving or St. Patty’s, everyone loves a brand that is celebrating their favorite holidays along with them.

As a business owner you can take advantage of the easily available online annual festivity calendar for small businesses.

Post about special promotions your business may be hosting around these days or just celebrate the day with your fans through branded content.

Connecting with your customers during these common celebrations is an effective tactic that can be used to post on Instagram.

Wrapping it Up

We hope you found our advice on what to post on Instagram useful. Using these methods will give your brand and content strategy the boost you need to see greater results. Our staff is always willing to discuss the future of your business on Instagram. Take the time to talk to us and learn how our social media marketing company can help your brand grow in today’s competitive digital landscape.

The post Know What to Post on Instagram & What Your Customers Want to See appeared first on Digital Marketing Blog.

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Effective 10 web design principles every designer should know

1. Purpose sets the foundation

A website’s messaging and calls to action are key to supporting its goals. A site’s purpose can be as simple as promoting purchases, telling a company’s story, or providing tutorials. You should be able to capture your site’s intent in a sentence or two — think mission statement.

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A site design isn't something you should make up as you go along. A purpose will give you a clear plan and guide the design and content creation. Winging it isn't a practical design philosophy.

 Part of solidifying your site’s purpose is knowing who it's for — who is your audience, what information do they need, and how will your site provide it? Knowing your audience’s demographics and pain points will help you find the right direction for your site.

 There are the broad intentions of a design and there are the specifics of a marketing strategy to beat the competition. How will visuals and content reinforce your brand and make it stand out? And how can your site provide more value than your competitors? Building a brand and building an audience is important.

2. Content gives meaning

Quality content is useful, clear, and guides your audience toward actions you want them to take. SEO should be planned for and woven into the content. SEO can be thoughtfully and tastefully executed with a conversational tone that integrates keywords and phrases that don’t distract from your message.

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Defining your site’s purpose helps inform the content you need and adopting a content-first approach means working with real content from the beginning of the design process. Real content makes it easier to spot changes that need to be made along the way instead of drowning in adjustments and overhauls at the end.

3. Visuals keep people engaged

Every design element should reflect and communicate a brand's identity. Photos, illustrations, and other graphics balance out text and break up the web page, giving the eyes a rest from reading.

 An exciting hero image makes a good first impression. Animated transitions and scroll-triggered effects keep people moving and take navigation from a mindless necessity to an interactive experience. Regardless of a brand’s style, visuals should add energy to a design instead of just taking up space. Software companies, food trucks, and accountants can all be creative with their site’s graphics while staying on-brand.

 Your visuals should be high-quality and look good — use clear, color-balanced photos and graphics with appropriate size and resolution. Bad visuals can ruin a great design.

4. Harmony makes a design sing

Every important element of a layout should work together — right down to its HTML and CSS. If the oversized button in a contrasting color doesn’t have good reasons for its nonconformity, it won’t feel right. Incongruities distract and interrupt the user experience. It’s hard to see the overall great when something feels off. On the same token, bad user experience can cause website visitors to bounce — hurting your chances of ranking in Google.

 A good designer makes things user-friendly and knows what fonts, visuals, and types of navigation capture attention. They have a vision for how they all fit together. New designers are often tempted to cram as much excitement they can into a layout. But when too many elements are demanding our attention, we lose focus.

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Skilled web designers are thoughtful about the weight of each element and they know when to use restraint. They know how to create a page design that’s effortless to navigate. This sense of harmony also extends to the brand identity. Everything from the site’s voice and tone to the color palette should be consistent.

 Brand guidelines and a living style guide can help with consistency. Brand guidelines serve as a comprehensive explanation for everything from content to colors. And a living style guide shows how everything looks together and makes site-wide changes easy and immediate.

5. Typography shapes perception

Typography is a vessel for thoughts. Along with the actual words, the shapes and stylization of letters convey meaning. Typography is like a decoder ring, translating an author’s ideas into a visual representation.

 Fonts should suit both the placement choice and tone of a design. Cursive typefaces may work well for headings or decorative purposes, but they’re impractical for large blocks of text.

 The wrong font can undermine important content. Just ask the scientists who announced the discovery of the Higgs boson particle with a slideshow featuring Comic Sans. People had quite a bit to say about this choice of typography. And who knows — maybe the naysayers were wrong? Be sure to know and like your reason for choosing a font.

 There’s room in a design for traditional typefaces and ones with more personality. For large blocks of content and other important information, a straightforward font makes for better readability. Stylized typography should be treated like strong spices — add a little here and there for a bit of flavor.

 6. Organization unifies

Content should have logic, flow, and fit into a hierarchy. Your content should guide your audience to an inevitable conclusion, each piece building on what came before it. Each sentence should offer more clarity about your brand and purpose, keeping readers reading in anticipation of what’s next.

 Header tags should be used to structure content and help web crawlers rank your site for web searches. If you don’t have all the finalized content before starting a design, at least use headers to help frame what you’re building.

 Visual elements should also be organized. Define sections with images and graphics that complement the written content.

7. Colors set the tone

Using their product’s packaging and ingredients to inform the site’s color palette, Simply Chocolate’s design flows with their brand and shows off their tasty chocolate bars.

 The palette you choose for a design communicates so much. It can be playful, like a toy company, or more serious for a site offering financial services. A color scheme can do a lot to reflect a brand’s spirit and message.

Choose colors that communicate your identity and — most importantly — make the content easy to read. With that in mind, always run your color combinations through a color contrast checker to ensure readability.

8. White space creates balance

White space, buttons, and other visual design elements help images and content stand out, and keep a layout from being cluttered. White space, also known as negative space, is an important aspect of any utilitarian design. Without it, messaging can turn into an indistinct blob.

9. Visual hierarchy keeps navigation simple

The visual hierarchy of your site’s navigation should make it easy to access your content in just a few steps. Of course, you don’t want any content to be missed, but endless dropdowns, buttons, and internal links will overwhelm people.

 The pathways to your site’s sections and content should be clear and easy to use. Imagine an intersection with 3 street options versus 10 — simplicity makes for a better journey.

10. Authenticity fosters trust

From their grassroots beginnings to being acquired by a large corporation, Ben & Jerry’s communicated and stayed true to their values.

 “Good design is honest. It does not make a product more innovative, powerful or valuable than it really is. It does not attempt to manipulate the consumer with promises that cannot be kept.”  — From Vitsoe’s “The power of good design.”

 Consumers are savvy. They can see through shallow marketing jargon — they want and expect brands to be real. Along with a site’s visual sizzle, there should also be depth and authenticity. If you’ve ever landed on a site with fake testimonials, you’ve probably immediately bounced. We know when someone’s trying to pull one over on us, and it never feels good.

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Cliches and vague marketing copy won’t help you connect with people. Position your brand as a voice of authenticity by providing information that has value and communicates the humanity behind your brand.