#but alas I have unnamed ocs and all the ideas

[wyked-ao3]

Writer Questions

Thank you @illarian-rambling for leaving an open tag here

What is your absolute all-time favorite idea you’ve ever had?

It's probably going to be a toss up between the unnamed work I have in mind that has a kitsune and tpcg series including the short works to tag along.

Is there a question you’ve been asked in the past that really stands out to you, and you still think about sometimes?

Which of my OC's do I relate to the most ..

What is your favorite part of being a writer? What parts could you take or leave?

I love writing and wold building and crafting the characters but... editing and formating are me weakness... although I really am trying to improve at both and compared to the fanfictions i wrote last year I have came a long way already but alas I still have a lot of room for improvement...but even it can be fun.

What is your greatest motivation to write/create?

My friends on here and the characters themselves, plus it is something I find fun.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever read or been given as a writer?

Your writing doesn't have to be perfect we all begin somewhere, you can't learn if you don't try.

What do you wish you knew when you were first starting out writing?

Don't outline if you must use bullet points (as a mostly pantser who just know the general direction...outlines are a waste of time for me) Also make up a chart of how to use punctuation and keep it next to you while editing...I still need to add em dashes to it....

What is your favorite story you’ve written to completion? Link it if you’d like and can!

I'm not sure.. depending on the mood...and I'm still working on my original works

Which of your characters would you say has the most controversial mindset? Why do you say so, and how do you personally feel about their ideals?

Um... Braith was raised an assassin her opinion of what a killing offense is would be controversial. Adoh's vengeance arc...0_o spoilers so can't go there and Kieran is out for a similar reason. Amon he would be the sort to kill one to save many...or kill many to save one...it just depends on your value to him.

If you, when you first started writing, met you now, what would younger you think?

Depending on the age ....some would be more positive than others.

Np Tagging @tragedycoded @gioiaalbanoart @adhdprincess @evilwriter37

[jnixz]

adding onto the show ideas--

There's definitely an introduction to Bob where he's just doing something completely normal for him (working with the plants in the Motherlobe, getting a nice meal with Compton at the Lumberstack, just sitting with Helmut and being the most lovestruck man you have ever seen) and as soon as he notices the ASC he just freaking runs/hides because he's not ready for a new person. it's the worst running/hiding job ever and yet everyone just goes "...ok social battery is dead let's leave him be"

Helmut's introduction is either completely normal or ASC getting SLAMMED into by a hamster ball

I also want to request just... every single little background job is played by Ford. No one ever reacts.

Aye, Bob would have a relatively normal introduction, doing his own thing. I haven’t written much about Bob but for my own characterization of him, I try to keep in mind the first interaction with Bob in the greenhouse before he gets pissed off, as well as the interactions in the island where he continues gardening and even has his comment about the campfire. And also remember his reaction on seeing Nick's Body (w/o knowing it was Helmut) and it was asking a familiar someone (who is Raz in that case) for information.

So my take on Bob is that he can handle his interactions his well enough. But would prefer plants and people he is friends with. His social battery on interactions with other people gets consumed faster. Perhaps when he was younger and less socially experienced after being alone for so long he would flee but being older, he can hold his ground especially with plants around. Part of the GnG character development with the gang stays and its being able to socialize nice yes.

But yeah if he does flee in the interaction, he’d say something about needing to work on his garden or talk to his husband, leaving, and if ASC tries to follow, they nearly trip on some plants and -- hey wait did those plants just move on their on? (aka me referencing plants removing themselves from the Astralathe on their own after Bob leaves to catch-up with Helmut scene). 

ASC<-- clueless on other psychic powers other than the basics and is spooked out by sudden plant sentience.

As for Helmut intro well...

My mind instantly set the setting of the shot to be further into the future post the second game, where characters are able to do more of reconciliations and adjustments to the new normal daily life to be set post-game.

So that would mean that Helmut would be in back in his body and is at the last bits of the required recovery and adjustment back to his body.

Regardless, the idea of Helmut’s introduction being him pinballing around in the brain ball is very entertaining and certainly a good way to introduce those inventions are normal thing around this organization. Despite that regularity though, there is that line that something happened to his body that may or may not be elaborated on depending on if ASC knows about what happened to Helmut Fullbear at the Deluge of Grulovia (if they even know that). Then he continues on merrily zipping by to his husband.

Man I really am making it like ASC is an ignorant protagonist lad in need of exposition. We will think of what they know when we know why they are even in the Motherlobe in the first place, and if they are the protagonist or just a companion.

ASC would meet Compton at Lumberstack Diner, where he has cleaned it up and put it up to as a small business with Sam and Cassie. So that would be a nice and proper introduction experience. But then the food is served with animals balancing the dishes on their heads and someone can take the request customers have and successfully is understood by the employees. Again, surprising amount of higher intelligence from the animals and working like they are from Disney cooperating like they are doing a musical number.

Very tempted Cassie’s intro is her Green-Needle-Witch costume. Perhaps being sent out to the forest to find her and absolutely getting scared shitless instead.  Cassie has obtained better and actual bee-keeping clothes we see in the memory vault, but when she tends to the hive in Forgetful Forest, she dons on the costume for scaring and pranking opportunities on newcomers. It’s tradition now to send newbies into the forest just for this experience.

OH perhaps the order of meeting these two would be GNW, then Compton and Cassie at the diner where they Cassie whispers to Compton about ASC’s reaction in the forest as a joke between them. Compton is so amused but does give ASC a free comfort food, doesn’t explains and just says a line that vaguely  references that the experience in the Forgetful forest is quite normal, all while giving a knowing wink.

It is important to me that every psychic 7 member exude some form of cryptid energy.

Ford most of all.

That said, you would DEFINITELY see Ford just in the background doing various jobs. I am now considering that ASC actually met Ford before after bumping into him cleaning as a Janitor. 

It could be right after ASC (& co. if that’s the protag thing) arrives in the setting, on their way to meet their guide or whomever they are suppose to meet. But in their rush they accidentally slip on a wet floor sign and bump into Ford. A quick shot of him being intimidating even as a janitor, but that quickly does away as he asks if they are alright and makes a sassy joke on them. Just a small quite interaction and a small apology before moving on to meet the guide just on the room around the corner. ASC explains and even mentions bumping into someone, attempting to point to where Ford was at, only to find it empty and clean. They are extremely confused. Guide continues the conversation to more important matters though and shows them around.

Following that would be small encounters with Ford doing many other jobs, and just like in psychonauts 1 before meeting Agent Cruller, they have no freaking idea what’s up with this guy and am I just imagining him everywhere? They never really had a chance to voice their question (nor get exposition about the psychic 7) before Ford’s proper(or more explained) introduction with the at the Diner. The audience then gets the idea that this guy is important and goes back to record all his previous background appearances like Blendin Blandin in Gravity Falls. 

How he disappears so quickly is never explained for a long time. Audience and Characters don’t know about his teleportation yet. Only one question was remained and even more opens up. Cryptid Vibes remains.

[alonelysimp]

dango!!! i don’t even remembering seeing anything about your oc until your reblog a few hours ago 🥺 could i ask; a, h and l for this mysterious character?

I.. I never talk abt them !! I think at best I mentioned them in passing !! there's two of them, both unnamed because that shit hard ;; so they have placeholders for now !! I should make a formal post introducing them eventually...

Ask game

For context, Ash is a traveller from Mondstadt. He's... for lack of a better term, a foxboy. He's (somewhat) modelled after a fennec fox, but with the colour scheme of a fox from Dragonspine, which he should really change bc that's not gonna camouflage him anywhere else :/ Oh, also he's a cryo allogene and knows a bit abt alchemy.

Tortilla is a god that lives in Watatsumi, most commonly found around the Sangonomiya shrine. They were a joke, but alas, here we are. Technically their name is Seiran, but they haven't used that since they started living as a human Zhongli-style. Oh also they're Orobashi's very much alive lover (in comparison to Orobashi, the very much dead snake god), so they're the snakekisser here not me !! (the name Tortilla is in reference to the hurricane tortilla vine btw, I have no idea what their name is nor their pronouns <3)

A. Affection: How does your OC express affection to the people they love?

I'd like to think Ash leaves small trinkets on your doorstep. Ranging from like actual usable things in a neat little box, to bones. Just bones, no box or anything. Perhaps he's really a crow and not a fox. Other than that, his love language is quality time. Which is. Ironic. With him being a traveller and all and is barely home. He loves doing literally anything as long as you're there with him.

Tortilla will run around and do errands for you. Definitely an acts of service person. Their area of expertise is more in commissions, but shopping, cooking (it's usually edible), it's already done <3 They don't have the *best* relationship with cleaning. In their mind, as long as they know where everything is, there's no need to clean? Just don't let it get too bad, they still pick up after themself. Oh speaking of that, they're also really good at finding lost items. Their record for the longest time was about 76 hours, the item was overseas and in Liyue already. The average is around 2 hours though :)

H. Help: When someone your OC loves has a problem, how does your OC try to help them? Do they prefer to comfort, offer advice, or fix the problem? Would your OC go out of their way to help a stranger?

After hearing about it, Ash's first instinct is to work out ways to resolve the issue. He's really... really awkward with comfort. Maybe a hug if you ask for one? But it won't be the first thing coming to his mind. I mean, most of his lore in Dragonspine is him saving people from hypothermia. He has a soft spot for children tho... a good portion of his paycheck from the guild goes to them. He helps Anthony with the medical bills bc Mond's healthcare is like, just as bad as America :)

It depends on how close you are to Tortilla, but if they're your first choice, then I'd assume you to be fairly close. Lowkey outcast of Sangonomiya shrine even though they watched it get built things yk :/ Anyways expect a hug first thing (unless you're really mad abt it then they won't get in the way of that or if you don't want one), and maybe a few comforting words. Overall far better than Ash, but they're still a bit rusty at it ;; They would go out of their way to help someone, as long as it doesn't cause them too much trouble. Now, this *has* gotten them into a bit of a tough spot a few times, but they are a god after all. It may be old and rusty, but power still remains in their form.

L. Loyalty: Is your OC more loyal to their family, their friends, or a mix of both? Why?

...Well I mean.... oh dear this is awkward.. to put it bluntly, Ash was orphaned at 8. He grew up with Bennett and the Adventurer's Guild until he was able to join the Guild himself. Found family... !! He has a few friends outside of whatever family he has currently, namely Lyney, Lynette, Zhongli, kinda Tartaglia, Xingqiu, kinda Chongyun (by association), somewhat Bito (Curse's OC), I mean Albedo too I suppose.... yeah thats about it. His family currently consists of Bennett, the Guild, and Sucrose. I mean I wouldn't say he's besties with anyone but Lyney, Lynette, and Xingqiu? A pretty even split, but would choose his family probably? I mean he also had a pretty good relationship with his biological family if that counts.

Again, Tortilla doesn't have a family !! They're dead !! No found family here this time so friends ig? Mostly the Sangonomiya clan, the resistance. They're vaguely acquainted with people from Narukami. They left Inazuma once, just to see what Teyvat had become since the Archon War. A nervewracking experience, to say the least. Especially because one of the gods might recognize them. They did meet one person they got along with quite well, but it's been hundreds of years since.

[blossomoranges]

child of peace

hi! this is a piece i wrote a while ago and got the confidence to post thanks to the lovely members of the @ikesennw. hope you enjoy reading.

pairing: Nobunaga/Mitsunari/OC (my character, Sonya)

Mitsunari gazes down at the child in his arms. She's a serene little thing, he muses, beaming at the way she's begun snuffling quietly in her sleep. Her tiny fist is wrapped around his index finger. He's overwhelmed by… something. It fills up the cup that is his heart and threatens to spill over. The emotions he experiences have always been hard to identify. Is pride the word he is searching for? No, it must be something different.

A distraction from his self-reflection comes in the form of a kiss pressed to his head. Sonya. She nuzzles her left cheek against his own. The strange texture of her scars provides a stark contrast with her peach-soft skin, and the tactician would not change it for the world.

“Thank you for holding her, Mitsu. You're a wonderful dad. ” She runs careful fingers through the baby's shock of dark hair, humming to herself all the while. The princess has resolved yet another of his problems through kind words, without even meaning to. 

Perhaps the unnamed feeling was contentment, paternal instinct, and love for this tiny child all rolled into one. It is a suitable enough explanation. 

A few quiet moments pass before the silence is broken.

“Oh, goodness. Look at those two. ” Sonya gestures to the other pair in the tenshu. 

Azuchi's daimyo sits cross-legged upon a cushion directly across from Mitsunari. The sight of the awe-inspiring commander of the Oda Forces can bring terror to his enemies and hope to his allies. On this occasion, seeing Nobunaga causes their princess to break into sonorous giggles, the sound reverberating in Mitsunari's heart. Katsu is spread out across his lap, fast asleep and snoring away, utterly oblivious to his father's predicament. 

Mitsunari takes a moment to analyze the situation. His lord's right hand is stuck fast inside a drawstring bag of konpeito, unable to shift upwards as Katsu's head is leaning upon his arm. Nobunaga clearly doesn't wish to wake him. As a sworn vassal under his command the tactician would normally lend aid in an instant, but alas, he does not wish to disturb the newborn cradled close to his chest. He will have to fight this battle alone.

In the midst of scrutinizing the situation, he neglects to notice that the princess has decided to take action. She'd shuffled over on her knees, and placed gentle hands behind her son's sleep-tousled head to relieve the pressure on the daimyo's arm. Free to raise a handful of the colorful candies, Nobunaga is triumphant at last. Together they adjust Katsu so his head is tucked beneath his father's chin. He pops the pieces of konpeito past his lips.

"Thank you, my dearest. Don't move now. Rest." The dulcet baritone of his voice is barely audible, but he attempts a few one-handed signs. You. Stay. Thanks.

She smiles at his efforts, adjusting her legs into a more comfortable position. 

"Oh! I had an idea for a name. ” Her expression is hopeful. “I don't know why, but I always loved the name Irina. It means peace. ”

“Peace… that's wonderful. I love it. ” Mitsunari, ever the sweetheart, lights up with approval.

Their heads turn to the daimyo as if on cue. They had previously discussed names, and it was decided that the child would only receive a name all three of her parents agreed on.

“Hmm. She will grow and prosper in a unified nation, ushering in this new era. Peace is most suitable. ” Nobunaga has spent decades crafting a stoic front, but his guards are down now. His expression is open, filled with too much love to stand the sensation.

It helps that he greatly enjoys his lovers' responses. Sonya claps her hands together in a private round of applause and her delight is as clear as the sky above. Tears welled up in Mitsunari's lavender eyes as he casts a glance down at their daughter once more.

“Our Irina. We love you. ” 

[autumnslance]

Tumblr Writing Prompts

A Master post for my writing that starts here on Tumblr. The FFXIV Writes have their own Master posts (2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021), and my lore/speculation posts have their own page, so this is for blurbs, scenes, microfics, and the occasional proper story about my characters and various NPCs.

Most of these are also on my Ao3, but for Tumblr, this is a little more organized than tag diving, and rebloggable. This post is also linked in the fic writing page and my pinned post.

In roughly chronological order, with listings for what patch/expac it’s set in for spoilers if necessary. Divided by NPCs, Unnamed WoL, fics with 2 or more of my OCs, individual OC stories, ship fics, AUs, and the rare adult-only stories at the bottom. Below the cut:

NPCS:

Chin Up - Thancred and Yda chat in the Sharlayan Colony. Pre-game.

Not a Hero - A young girl encounters Ardbert. Heavensward 3.x

Never Gets Easier - Count Edmont takes a walk. Post-HW 3.3.

Sigurista - Urianger and a letter from the Arcanists. HW 3.4

Meraki - About Dragons and Dragoons; HW 3.5-ish.

Punctual - Conjurer Crew, post-Stormblood 4.0.

Random Headcanons - Scion HCs through StB 4.5.

Cid Headcanon - Led to my “After Omega” story. Post-ARR 2.0 (for this post).

Warning - Urianger’s trustworthiness is questioned. Pre-Shadowbringers 5.0.

Harsh Whisper - Estinien infiltrating the Empire with allies, ShB 5.0

Not a Savior - The Shadowkeeper. Role Quests capstone, ShB 5.0

Getting Used To - The Oracle and her Guardian, post ShB 5.2

Unnamed WoL:

Rules - For a Warrior of Light.

Fireworks - Thoughts about fireworks. WoL’s got issues.

Dust Motes - Rest after the Praetorium. Post-ARR 2.0.

Tomorrow - NOAH’s attempts to open the Crystal Tower. Post-ARR 2.5.

Shimmer - Thoughts on Revenant’s Toll. Post-ARR 2.5.

Silence - Nighttime thoughts in the Falling Snows. Post-ARR 2.5.

In Dreams -The only place to meet someone. Post-HW 3.0.

Savior - Immediate aftermath of the Final Steps of Faith. HW 3.3.

Left Behind - Partings throughout Heavensward. Through 3.5.

Trusted - Betrayal. ARR 2.5, Heavensward 3.5.

Jealousy - In the sense of guarding something. Post-HW.

Diary - Dark Knight journal entries. StB 4.0.

Crave - Why does the WoL hang with Hildibrand? StB 4.2-ish.

What Happens on the Steppe... - Telling Lyse about ‘Little Sun.’ StB 4.4.

Stars - Red Mage apprentices take a break. StB 4.4-ish.

Dusk Motes - Dustiness on the First. ShB early 5.0.

Heartbeats - Ancient memories, Shadowbringers 5.0 finale.

Seductive Kiss - Not naming names. Just a couple being a couple.

MultiMuse:

Similarities (Dark/Aeryn) - OOC Rumination on my mains.

Backstory (Dark/C’oretta) - Short blurbs on backstory moments.

Childhood Memory (Dark/C’oretta) - More backstory moments.

Gold Saucer - Blurb on the ladies’ Manderville Saucer preferences.

Family - Memories of family members.

Meeting - Dark and Aeryn meet at the Lancer’s Guild. Early ARR.

Calamity Plans - Dark/C’oretta/Aeryn discuss if another Calamity is imminent.

Sunbathing - The chocobos of Gage Acquisitions wait in the sun.

Gifts - Starlight gift reactions, nebulous Shadowbringers timeframe.

Reactions - Multi-prompts for Multiple alts.

3 AM - C’oretta calls on Dark for help.

Fashion Issues - Aeryn & Iyna have different ideas.

Year of the What? - Iyna & Aeryn, Heavensturn 2020. StB 4.5 mentions.

Escape Plan - C’oretta’s going to turn Iyna and Dark grey before their time.

Unsupervised - Aeryn regrets asking C’oretta’s help on behalf of a friend.

Convalescence - Iyna takes care of an injured-and bored-C’oretta.

C’oretta Khell:

A Long Way To Go - some backstory, from Hamon Holyfist’s PoV.

NPC: Hamon - Blurb about Hamon’s place in C’oretta’s life.

A Boy I Knew - Blurb about one of C’oretta’s casual youthful affairs.

Filthy - Violet the “piggy” is a troublemaker.

Crave - Beating bad guys is appetite-inducing. HW/StB MNK spoilers.

Walking on Ice - Literally. As a desert girl. She’s not a happy cat.

On Purpose - C’oretta is good at what she does.

Dear Future Me - Starlight silliness.

Iyna Cauld:

Simo and Tyrsis - Blurb on Iyna’s past Garlean interactions.

NPC: Fran - Blurb on Fran’s place in Iyna’s life.

Soft Prompts - General get to know responses

Nostalgia - Missing things you never want back.

Dark Autumn:

It Runs In the Family - A family legend on a lack of magic.

NPC: Cold Autumn - Blurb about Dark’s oldest brother.

Rampage - The Seventh Umbral Calamity.

Post-Traveling - Sensory prompt of returning home.

Chocobo - Bandit is also a troublemaker.

Morning - Dark is a morning person.

Formal - Certain preparations made before formal Twin Adder events.

Protector - Dark doesn’t like bullies.

Notebook - Journaling while there’s a lull in fighting, end of StB.

Rumors (Last Dragoon AU) - In a friend’s Eighth Umbral Era AU.

Shy Kiss - Starlight Celebration 2019 RP Prompt.

Long Lost - Finding an old, lost item.

Aeryn Striker:

The Other Warrior of Light - Meta inspo for Aeryn’s appearance & story.

Aeryn’s Magic - Meta on why/how magic was difficult & what changed.

seaswolchallenge May 2020 - 30 prompts, all over the timeline.

Febhyurary 2021 - 28 screenshots & blurbs, all thru the timeline.

About Kai - Blurb about one of Aeryn’s stepsiblings.

Sick - Backstory about a difficult time.

Unwell - How does Aeryn handle being sick herself?

Preparation - Backstory, about leaving home.

Dragoon’s Memory - Ser Alberic comments on knowing Aeryn

Hard Lesson - Blurb on learning/changing over time.

Wanting - Dark Knight questions. End of ARR/Early HW.

Cuddling Type - Tataru teases Aeryn about a knight. End of ARR/Early HW.

Clouds - Odd weather makes a mage uneasy.

Feather - Chocobo hunting for charity.

Garden - Just a breather.

Red - The color she wears most often.

Sanctum - Taking in the ambiance at the Sanctum of the Twelve.

Love - Contemplating religion.

Fast Learner - Lessons learned from Ilberd Feare. Through end of HW 3.5.

Blood - Thoughts during the assault on the Reach. Early StB 4.0

Gritty Eyes - Memories of a campfire shared with Gosetsu. StB 4.0.

5 Intimate Moments - Platonic times with friends, through Stormblood.

Blush - It’s easy to make Aeryn blush. Post-StB/Pre-ShB.

Heart - Talking to a departed friend. Post-ARR 2.5, thru StB.

Sanity - Shigure and Aeryn discuss Hildibrand. StB patches.

Friends - Offered support. Red Mage spoilers, StB 4.5.

Loyal and Stubborn - The scene before facing the Ascian. StB 4.55

Safe - Estinien getting Aeryn off the battlefield. StB 4.55

Notebook - Waiting for word of the Beacon. Post-StB 4.5/Pre-ShB 5.0.

Connected - A gift from Lyse to keep Aeryn’s BFF close. StB 4.5/ShB 5.0.

Comfort Food - Aeryn and Alisaie discuss food. ShB 5.0

Memory - Another’s memory is her nightmare. Ardbert listens. ShB 5.0.

Seven Devils - A brief alternate take on the battle for Eulmore. ShB 5.0

Waiting - Aeryn maintains an old tradition through the night. ShB 5.0 end.

Omelets - Aeryn vs F’lhaminn and late night snacks. Sometime in ShB.

Common Arguments - Prompt; Aeryn vs her fellow Scions. Through ShB.

Dear Future Me - Post 5.1 Journal Entry.

Shippy Nonsense - Aeryn/Thancred clean relationship fics:

Romance Rambles - Blurb on Aeryn’s relationship with Haurchefant. HW.

Literary Interests - Blurb on how Thancred & Aeryn connect & spend time.

Flirtatious - A response to being flirted at. Early ARR 2.0 timeframe.

Humidity - A dance in Revenant’s Toll. ARR patches.

Sparring - Tensions run high ‘twixt Aeryn and Thancred. HW 3.2.

Flowers - A gift left in a locked room. Sometime during HW patches.

Make it Better - Important talk night before Ala Mhigo. End of StB 4.0

Betting Pool - Everyone has noticed. StB 4.4.

Description - Young Minfilia asks Thancred about Aeryn. Pre/Early ShB 5.0

Market Conversation - Thancred and Emet-Selch have a chat. ShB 5.0

When the Time Comes - Aeryn asks a favor of Thancred. ShB 5.0

No Defense - Forgetful Aeryn influenced by C’oretta. Sometime in ShB.

2 AM - Trouble sleeping before calling the final element with Eden. ShB 5.2

What If? - AU Scenarios:

Bad End Iyna | Bad End Dark | Bad End Aeryn | Bad End C’oretta |

NOT SFW Lemons:

Plans - Iyna backstory; an affair that wasn’t all it seemed.

Afterimages - Thancred the morning after “Sparring”. HW 3.2.

Please - Aeryn & Thancred post-Throne Room Summoning. StB 4.1.

Rak’tika Rendezvous - Aeryn & Thancred post-Qitana Ravel. ShB 5.0.

Night In - Aeryn & Thancred, followup of another prompt. Sometime in ShB 5.x.

[bigmoodword]

11/11/11 Tag Game

tagged by: @confunderewrites ! ahhh! these are great questions! thank you, thank you, thank you.

Rules: Answer 11 questions, ask 11 questions, and tag 11 people to answer them

1. How many abandoned WIPs do you have, if any?  Which one would you most likely pick up again if you had to?

several, including a goosebumps-inspired horror story and a very julie of the wolves tale told from the wolf pack’s perspective. that said, most of these come from my pre-college days, so i’m not terribly inclined to resurrect them.

butbutbut! the one wip i’m trying to salvage has been mentioned previously as the crazy complex story i’ve cut in half, leading to [ stray ] and hopefully an urban fantasy wip down the line. once upon a time, this wip was on fictionpress, but ah, i deleted it wholesale when i decided it was dumb. i really, really regret that (don’t ever do it, friends!), and the only reason it’s still on my radar today is because i recycled a few ideas/characters for a roleplay.

2. Do you have an OC that floats in and out of different stories?  i.e. your guinea pig for alternate universes.  Do they have their own story?

my immortal. haha this party-hardy character has a tendency to pop up as a supporting character in different wips. it’s very... “always the bridesmaid but never the bride,” you know? they could have their own story. maybe. we’ll see.

3. If your WIP was being made into a movie, would you want to be hands-on or hands-off?  As in, what level of creative power would you want?

for stray, i’d have a couple firm ground rules, but so long as the core message is in tact? nah. i’d actually look forward to the differences, because seeing someone else’s creative take on the same idea sounds delightful.

4. What’s a trope that everyone loves but you can’t stand?

this is tough. i don’t think there’s a trope i can’t stand whatsoever. well-done tropes are well-done tropes, and even if i might not fawn over one quite as much as others, i can respect why it’s popular. 

so changing the question a bit: what’s a well-loved iteration of a trope i can’t stand? the tuxedo and martini agents in the first kingsman movie. tonally, that movie is a mess, and i didn’t like how the first half built up the kingsmen as emblematic of an ideal/positive masculinity only to become... well, the exact same james bond power fantasy i’ve seen a thousand times before. no lie. it was kind of a bummer. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

5. For your characters, do you have specific face-claims in mind or do you leave it up to reader interpretation? (within reason of course)

i have some vague face claims in mind, but those face claims are still only approximations. ideally, i’d be a good enough artist to draw the characters myself, but alas! my own sketches are just approximations as well. 

i’m actually happy to trust a lot of a character’s appearance to reader interpretation. so long as the broad strokes are there, i love the unique details people come up with on their own.

6. What is your oldest WIP?

ahahaha. so again, the og wip i’m currently trying to partition out is the oldest wip still standing in some form, but! to actually shed a little more light on it... it was an urban fantasy story that featured eight major characters and rotating perspectives. so you know. kinda crazy in scope. 

in short, a demon, an immortal, a werewolf, an average human, a fairy princess, two seraphim, and death himself all want to stop the apocalypse, but they can’t see the forest for the trees. they’re all so consumed by their own issues and so convinced of their own righteousness or another’s evil that actually working together is nigh impossible. 

i think of it like a stageplay with a single set. like. the point isn’t the apocalypse itself. it’s how all these wildly different personalities clash and create a puzzle of unreliable narrators. in theory, the goal is to try and uncover the real “truth” everyone’s talking around, but by the end, we’ve turned the very concept of an objective truth on its head.

suuuuuper lofty. /coughcough;

7. Is there anything your characters have done while you were writing that just came out of nowhere?

love. my characters falling in love (and i mean real love, not just a crush) almost always comes out of nowhere. i never plan on it, and one day i’ll write an exchange, note a little bit of chemistry, then step back and just. oh. yeah, i guess they’re a thing now.

8. Is there a writing decision you were surprised you made?  (ex: killing off a character, taking the story down a different path, etc.)

i usually have things super plotted out, but sometimes certain themes kind of creep in. for example, i have a tendency to flirt with christian motifs, then one day all those threads finally came together and i realized i’d written something honestly kind of blasphemous? :X 

i liked the low-key commentary on trends in u.s. christianity, but not being religious myself, it also felt kind of mean. it was also pretty preachy, so. ;P

9. Do you bounce ideas off people when writing?  Or do you tend to wait until the first draft is completed?

so in a lot of ways i’m addicted to the relief of someone else saying “yeah, this is a good idea.” i want it. it inspires me to keep running with whatever i’m doing. but on the other hand, if i get a vote of confidence, i’m terrified of losing it. i want to keep checking in. i want to keep asking about new ideas. it’s no bueno, so while i like bouncing ideas off other people, it’s generally better for me to keep most things under wraps. at least until i’ve finished a first draft.

10. What is your favourite place to write?

at home. curled up on the couch with a blanket. surrounded by the soft peeps of my birds and the millennial elevator music known as chillmix.

11. Two of your protags from two different WIPs just switched places.  How do they react?

in stray, an unnamed character well-equipped to handle the criminal underground breaks out the guns (both arms and firearms), then turns to lily and tells her point-blank that he admires everything she’s trying to do. lily.exe is broken.

meanwhile, in unnamed character’s world, carter’s unconscious, foaming at the mouth, and probably bleeding. he was just told all those things that go bump in the night are real, and realizing he’s a fragile human, he fainted. on the way down, he hit his head on a nice man’s expensive coffee table. that nice man is attempting cpr.

Tagging: [ @illthdar ][ @multifacetedscorpio ][ @quartzses ][ @shaping-infinity ][ @honiewrites ][ @penzag ][ @scribble-dee-vee ][ @theswordofpens ][ @thelittlestspider ][ @bookenders ][ @waterfallwritings ]

Your questions are:

1. using one sentence summaries, can you tell me about your wips?

2. what inspired them?

3. which of your ocs do you most identify with?

4. if you’ve ever cried while reading, which book cued the waterworks?

5. how do you conduct research for your wips and what’s the most interesting thing you’ve discovered in said research?

6. thus far, which scene has been the most difficult to write?

7. which of your ocs do you like the least?

8. which pov and tense do you prefer to write in?

9. do you write poetry?

10. who is your writing role model?

11. if you could give your younger writer self some advice, what would it be?

[mstigergun]

OC Kiss Week, “the fire like a shroud”

OC Kiss Week, Day SIX (I’ve just totally deviated from the original plan and gone in my own direction at this point)

Prompted by @openthepocketwatch and featuring Alla Trevelyan and Evelyn Lavellan (bonus companion meme here, and also Hayley has a bunch of gorgeous Evelyn artwork on her blog, so you should go look at that!!). And as much as I tried to get this little story around to a proper kiss (because look at Evelyn, and these two have such an easy vibe and clearly Alla has A Thing for very competent ladies, especially very competent ladies who like to bestow blades as a way of showing that they care), the words just wouldn’t cooperate. Which was really frustrating, but alas. Stories are gonna do what they’re gonna do! 

I’ve set this in AU: inglorious (of course) and have run with the idea that Evelyn continues to be The Best craftswoman and a continued friend of Trevelyans far and wide. Set vaguely in the early days of being in Skyhold, when it’s still kind of shitty.

(Please don’t squint at my made-up smithing procedures!)

[~1900 words]

the fire like a shroud

Annealing, in metallurgy and materials science, is a heat treatment that alters the physical and sometimes chemical properties of a material to increase its malleability and reduce its hardness, making it more workable.

“Don't be cross,” says Alla, the very moment she steps past the threshold to the Undercroft, its damp and heated air like passing from winter straight through to summer afternoons. “But I've brought you another blade to sort out.”

The hammer in Evelyn's hand falls to a rest, as she rubs her cheek – sooty and flushed with heat – against her bicep. “Alla Trevelyan, you’re a fickle woman. Didn't I just send you into the field with a new sword?”

She had, the blade so gleaming and sharp that Alla had nearly gasped when first Evelyn had offered it forward, her fingers curling and uncurling with eagerness at her sides. Which had been before she'd even felt how perfectly it had been weighted, how adeptly Evelyn had tailored it to Alla's build and fighting style. Like an extension of her arms, only much more prone to splitting skills as if they were warmed butter.

“So you did, but surely, rare and enchanted blades warrant your skill.” She nearly skips down the stairs, sliding past bristling trunks of swords in need of sharpening and piles of tarnished armour waiting to have dents pounded out.

Evelyn watches, her lips quirked into their omnipresent smile – the one that curls with Evelyn’s trademarked mischievousness. But the moment her stare dips down to the blade in Alla's hand, a tarnished arc better resigned to scrap than to battle, that smile becomes skeptical. “I’ll need a bit more flattering if you want me to work on that, Alla.”

Which is fair enough: to say the sword had seen better days is not too dissimilar from saying that Skyhold, with the holes in its walls and its roof, with its crumbling foundations, is prone to being slightly drafty.

“Have I told you yet home many heads I cleaved from bodies with Red Glory?” Alla draws near enough that the heat rolling from the forge makes sweat gather in the hollow of her throat. She leans in, presses her lips to Evelyn's cheek – which smells, as always, of smoke and steel and some unnamed sweetness beneath. “A great number, is how many. As many heads as stones on a mountainside.”

“Oh, I'm sure.” Evelyn plucks the new, sad sword from Alla's grip and hefts it upwards. It twists in the light, metal a speckled mess that looks more suited to boulders and lichen than a once hallowed blade. Her glittering stare is attentive as she works the blade, feeling its heft with the roll of her wrist, examining the way the edge has been forged. “Where did you find this?”

Alla hops backwards onto a low table where an assortment of hilts rests. “A cave.”

Her friend's eyes narrow, knowing. “You're just saying that.” Still, she twists the sword in her hand, a nimble, efficient touch. A master's evaluation.

And she's right, of course. Alla found it in an unremarkable box in the middle of a very boring stretch of grassland.

But she's certain – absolutely positive – it has a grand story, this sword. Felt it the moment she first placed her hand upon the hilt, its weight familiar and welcoming despite the circumstances that saw her matching through the Exalted Plains.

She can hardly lie, though. “It’s possible,” Alla admits, “that the cave is metaphor.”

“A metaphor for a grimy trunk?”

Alla laughs, reaching to undo the laces at her throat. Her skin prickles uncomfortably with heat. The rest of the castle may be frigid, but the smithy is always blistering. “Just so, I'm afraid. There's something to it, though, isn't there?”

Evelyn sets it down gently on the table farthest from the forge, brushing her hands against the heavy apron she wears when working. “There may be. When I finish with it. If I finish with it. I just can't figure out why you'd bother, Alla.” A small pause, then, “You do like Red Glory?”

Which sets something vaguely guilty and very complicated to twisting in Alla's belly. She must seem ungrateful indeed, which cannot stand. Not when she feels precisely the opposite. Not when Evelyn has been spending, if the word on the air is true, all hours of the day here, making and repairing blades and armour and any of the other hundred things an organization like the Inquisition needs.

She’s been working herself to the bone, without so much as a thought for herself. And now Alla seems –

You’re a fickle woman, Evelyn had joked. And of course Alla isn’t, but to even appear ungrateful…

So she straightens her shoulders. “I love it,” Alla says, plain. “It is, without qualification, the best sword I've ever had, Evelyn, and I don't say that lightly.”

Evelyn’s smile is brilliant. “I thought it was one of my best.”

Between them, a lull falls – soft and easy, hushed by the sound of the waterfall, the crackling heat of the fires. The weight of the mountain around them. It’s one of the things Alla likes so much about coming to the Undercroft: it’s quiet enough that she can hear herself think, or can choose to not think at all. Alla can sit, sipping tea and reading a book, or watching Evelyn work, or chatting amicably.

Respite.

But not everyone is so fortunate.

“It’s not for me, this new one,” Alla offers. After all, Evelyn is certainly due an explanation. And though the details aren’t Alla’s to tell, she might set the stage clearly enough so that Evelyn understands just how precious the task at hand is.

“Hm.” Evelyn turns, grasping at a dagger she’s in the process of remaking. She plunges it into the violent red of the forge, her skin glowing golden under the rich firelight. “So,” she says, while the blade heats white-hot. “Who’s the lucky warrior, then?”

Alla doesn’t have a chance to respond, because the next moment Evelyn’s hauled the dagger from the coals and returned it to its anvil. Her hammer strikes in some staccato pattern Alla’s never been able to discern. Some time later, while Alla’s considering all of the ways in which she might explain and all of the ways in which she can’t, Evelyn plunges the dagger into a waiting barrel of water.

“You know my sister, Yuliya,” Alla starts, as careful as training exercises inside the ring. Nary a misplaced foot.

Evelyn fusses with the dagger, twisting it in the barrel. Her cheeks are flushed, forehead sheened with sweat. A piece of hair, come loose from its binding, brushes her jaw. “I've seen her a few times. Usually in the gardens, often reading the Chant.”

That would be the sort of thing a Dalish elf notices, Alla supposes. The unease continues to coil.

“Well,” says Alla, very aware that she walks an impossibly thin line between confiding and telling tales not rightly belonging to her, however often they keep her up at night. “She hasn't quite been herself lately. Not in awhile, I'm afraid, and we used to be very close. And since she and I have always shared our love for swords…”

Evelyn shoots her a look, eyes bright. “And axes,” she suggests. “And sometimes maces?”

“Yes, sometimes maces,” Alla laughs, scrubbing one hand against the back of her neck. “Once we were obsessed with the notion of cutlasses. She must have written me a hundred letters about pirate battle tactics and their applications! Still. I'd thought… Well. With a truly remarkable sword in her hand, mightn't she feel more like herself?”

That wins her Evelyn’s full attention. She turns, squaring her shoulders, her head tilting to one side. “Maybe,” Evelyn says, slow. “It’s something I’ve actually tried, and – You know, you might be the only other person I know who thinks that giving someone something sharp and shiny might help them come back to themselves.”

She understands. Bless her, this wonderful, generous woman, who’s all but hidden herself away in the Undercroft in an attempt to somehow see the Inquisition to better, brighter days.

Evelyn deserves better than being asked for endless favours, than long nights by the blistering heat of the forge, than the omnipresent hiss of the waterfall. However nice any one thing may be in moderation, surely even the loveliest of comforts can become grating in excess.

Time, perhaps, for a generosity of Alla’s own. “Besides,” she adds mildly as she hops down from the table and rolls her shoulders, a familiar, welcome stretch after the long journey back to Skyhold, “Rumour has it you're bored to tears inside these walls.”

“Oh?” Evelyn's eyebrows shoot up, her arms folding across her chest, half-leaning against the table to her side. Between the pose, and the soot, and the little familiar smirk, she looks more a treasure-chasing rogue than a smith. A convergence of many identities, all tied up in one small elf. “And is our rumour monger named Virion or Talen perhaps?”

Both, actually. Though Evelyn need not know.

“Regardless of origin” Alla says, wandering nearer Evelyn’s work table and peering at her hundred little projects, “If there's any substance to such idle gossip, I have heard tell of an old abandoned mining village not terribly far from here. I could get leave from the Inquisitor. We must always be looking for fine metals, after all. And buried treasures.”

“Buried treasures,” Evelyn repeats. “Like sad swords in mouldy crates?”

“Is there any other sort?”

Evelyn snorts, a short and breathy laugh. She reaches and tucks her stray piece of hair behind one pointed ear. “Of course there is, but I'm not fussy. I'll take treasures of all sorts.”

“So…” Alla reaches and runs her fingers along the sword she'd brought across endless miles, all for the sake of her sister. And in utter faith that Evelyn will be able to make something divine of it. To make something that will remind Yuliya of who she is, beneath the rust of the horrors of her past. “You'll try to return this to its former glory? As a favour to me?”

Evelyn edges near Alla, her narrow shoulders bumping against Alla’s arm – a deliberate jostle, warm and comfortable. “You don’t even need to bribe me with treasure,” she says. “But now that you’ve made the offer…”

The relief is immediate. Alla sighs, warm and contented, reaching to fold her arm around Evelyn’s shoulders. Again she leans down, pressing a kiss to Evelyn’s temple and taking a moment to again tuck that stubborn piece of hair back into place. “You,” she says, “are an absolute delight. Now, you must tell me all about what you’ve been up to since we last spoke. I killed a great deal of things with that sublime sword of yours. And you?”

They drift apart, Evelyn turning again to tend to her work as she regales Alla with stories of the group of Antivan thieves who’d shown up with some very mysterious goods on offer. Alla settles into her customary place, and lets her usual concerns – about her sister and the dark circles beneath Yuliya’s eyes, about all that led to them being here, about the Inquisitor, the state of the world, her foolish brothers, her new friends, about upcoming battles and the very real fact of their own fragile mortality – drift away. Like steam over water, or smoke from the forge. Until there is nothing left but quiet and laughter and plans for adventure.