#every time i edit this post the “keep reading” thing jumps down a paragraph

[flickering-nightfall]

I’m pretty sure that you made a post explaining why the arm is not the umbilical but I can’t find it, so, if you did make one, can you give a link to it? Sorry if you didn’t make one, I don’t have very good memory.

I'm not entirely sure which post that is but it sounds like something I'd ramble about? I have this post talking about making a 3D umbilical and this post talking about making a 3D arm with allusions to that buuut...

If that post doesn't exist then I'll make one right now!

Here, I made a diagram of terminology I use for the puppet/arm/umbilical structure. These terms aren't necessarily canon - they're just what I use.

As for umbilicals being different from mechanical arms, it's an interpretation, I think. But there's reasons why I call them different things.

So first here's this Moon dialogue.

(I think that's vanilla dialogue? The wiki confuses me sometimes. Link here if you want to see it yourself.)

We can assume from that dialogue that the wires + cord are the "umbilical." Moon's are obviously cut, but Pebbles' are not. And Moon's puppet is still attached to her mechanical arm.

(Lots more under the cut)

Umbilicals in real life resemble the wire/cord structure far more than the mechanical arm portion does. So that's another reason I refer to the wire/cord as the umbilical.

Lemme slap some stuff from my iterator headcanons doc here.

I like interpreting the puppet as a place to focus an iterator's consciousness. It acts as a sensory hub and a means to interact more finely with their surroundings. Neurons, in turn, are active memory comparable to RAM. Moon refers to Pebbles' imprints on his neurons as "a ghost left from his processing routines." They're not meant for long-term memory storage, but upper processes such as, well... thinking... cannot be done without them. So removing neurons affects an iterator’s ability to encode, recall, and process information. (Courtesy of my friend Folly, I also think they're mostly made out of fat. Kind of gross to eat.) Although Moon's umbilical is severed, she is still able to see through and control the movements of her puppet. So either she has some sort of other connection to the rest of her can, or her consciousness comes from the puppet rather than the can. The mechanical arm’s functions would be mostly structure-to-puppet function (control movements of arm and puppet, transmit the sensory information of the puppet) while the wire/cord handles more consciousness-in-puppet-to-structure function (facilitates awareness and control over superstructure and all that encompasses). So both the cord and the arm are part of the iterator-to-puppet connection, but the cord is more important. I feel like with the wire OR the arm's internals intact, the iterator can maintain perception of the puppet. When you give Moon an overseer eye, she says, “I am not much more than what you are looking at - a little creature in a box.” This can be literal, or it can imply that her perception is just limited to what she can see through her puppet in her damaged state.

In Rivulet’s campaign, the rarefaction cell could be partial compensation for a missing umbilical. Moon can move on her arm, call up image projections, reconnect to her overseers, and broadcast locally to Pebbles after getting the rarefaction cell. She refers to it as finally having her freedom back. But we don't know how many of her systems she does or does not have access to anymore.

If you eat one of Pebbles' neurons in front of him as Rivulet he says "I would appreciate if you would not eat those. My umbilical will keep me conscious, but every neuron lost is a piece of me lost as well..." We know that Pebbles keeps his wires/cord/arm connected in Saint's campaign, though, and he remains conscious despite having no visible neurons. Does the umbilical compensate for the lack of neurons as well? Maybe there are some still alive in the structure that we can’t see, and the umbilical allows him to stay connected to them.

...honestly, I think downpour makes questions about umbilicals harder to answer than if you only base off of vanilla lore. But I like working with downpour stuff, so oh well.

One last thing - the wiki page for Moon also says this under her trivia: "Looks to the Moon is still connected to the wall by her umbilical, but the damaged hardware lacks power to let her move around." Other references to umbilicals written throughout the wiki imply the arm is the umbilical as well. But! I don't know where the writers of that got that information. I don't think there's anything in the game that confirms that the umbilical and the arm are the same. If there's anything in the game that supports that, let me know~

So to summarize: I think evidence suggests the wires + cord are the umbilical because Moon refers to hers being cut. The mechanical arm could also be a part of the umbilical, or it be considered a different part that provides function in a different way. I usually refer to them separately, but that's just me, and I mostly do it for the sake of clarity. It's not confirmed canon.

There are a lot of things about Rain World lore you can run in circles around for hours, but not find any definitive conclusions for. It's part of the fun even if it drives me nuts sometimes. Come be confused with me :)

[abalonetea]

I was just wondering kinda what your process for novel writing is? Please don't feel like you have to answer or spend any time or anything answering!

Hi hi! Sorry this took so long to answer, the month has been crazy busy and flown by just like that! I've super been looking forward to answering this, though!

My process is actually pretty straight forward! When I get an idea, I write it down as a concept, usually one paragraph that just sums up the basic thought. I share a lot of these on Patreon, just as a side note! Then, when one of the concepts is a Big Enough Thought that I can't stop thinking about it, it gets pulled into its own file!

At this point, it becomes an outline! I use a bullet point method, breaking down all of the things I want to happen in the novel. Sometimes, I get super excited and will even have bullet-point conversations included, or set lines of description I come up with as I outline it!

Then the writing process starts! For shorter novels (25k-40k) I write them in a chronological order, starting with the first bullet point in the outline and working my way through. For longer stories (like Abyss, sitting at 115k right now), I pick whatever section of the outline I think sounds interesting at the time and that's where I start writing.

Now, for me the big key is that I don't start talking about it on tumblr until it's got at least 10k written for it. Otherwise, I would be throwing new characters up every five hours and y'all would never hear about them again, ever. So, once it hits about 10k, then I'm free to post whatever.

Another key for me is that while I have one Main Story I'm actively trying to complete, I let myself write down scenes and chapters out of other stories. This keeps me from getting super antsy if I hit a block. So, let's say I'm actively working my way through writing The Possession of Joshua Roe. I get an idea for a new crime thriller, I write down the idea and the outline and maybe even a chapter or two. Then I jump back to TPJR!

Once the first draft is finished, I let the book sit for at least three months. Not only does this give me time to get those New Idea Jitters out and do some fun project hopping, but by the time the three months is up, the idea feels fresh again!

So, I'll jump back in and start reading at chapter one, writing as I go. Sometimes, I'll only add about 1k or 2k words to the draft. Other times, I'll add entire chapters. (I Drowned In The Summer of 85 had 20k words added at this phase!) Then, I let it sit again. Usually for another month or so, and jump back in for another round. The focus of this round is the copyediting, so grammar and punctuation and the like. By the time I finish this third read through, I'll know whether the draft is complete or not.

If it's complete, I move on to making steps toward publishing. If it's not, then I wait a month, add in what needs to be added, and then do another round of copy editing on it!

Any novel that starts feeling like a real deal gets its own playlist! I listen to the playlist most of the time I'm writing for that book!

[circular-time]

I started to reply to @ssaalexblake 's comments on The Power of the Doctor but my reply ran away and joined the circus turned into an ESSAY with animated gifs

(don't worry I wasn't jumping on you, your thoughts just inspired more thoughts, but Tumblr's post editor doesn't let us copy/paste multiple paragraphs to a new post)

I keep trying to prune it down but every time I do my brain adds And Another Thing

and there's all these comments behind spoiler-tags (bless you all) I should read first that might say what i said more concisely

so now it's stuck in my drafts and it's STILL not done and Tumblr keeps losing edits argh should I spam y'all with my Yaz ramblings behind a cut or let it rot?

[thegingeralien]

Thought I might share my “doing homework with adhd” tips in case the might help even just one person (because that would make me feel happy).

Who am I to be giving you advice? Good point! I am still terrible at studying and I’m 26 and at University for the millionth time. But I have studied A LOT in my 22 years of schooling with varying degrees of success.

I see a lot of people, especially teenagers or first year university/college students, with ADHD asking for tips on how to study. But if you do a google search most of the websites and advice that comes up can be extremely ableist. So I hope I can help someone!

TIPS TO HELP YOU STUDY WHEN YOU HAVE AN ADHD GREMLIN BRAIN!:

1. Chewing gum!

- This might come across as a weird one, but it has actually really helped me. I use it as a form of stimming to help keep me focused and concentrating. Other forms of stimming can potentially end up being more of a distraction when you actually need to be reading or writing - but they can help if you just need to be listening. Try not to get a bubble gum or fun flavoured one though - as they can end up making your mouth feel dry, lose flavour quickly, and just give your brain way too many sensory things to become distracted with.

2. Buying colour coded stationary!

- New stationary can make me really excited to start studying, but that excitement never lasts long and the act of buying stationary can sometimes become it’s own hobby. That’s not what we are going for here. I really recommend, especially if you are a visual learner like me, to buy colour coded stationary. This means removable page markers, different coloured post it notes, highlighters, sometimes even pens. This way if your mind jumps from one topic to the other, it doesn’t matter. Go with the flow. Forcing your ADHD gremlin brain to focus can be extremely counter intuitive. So pick a colour for each topic, and stick to that system to find organisation among your own chaos!

3. Buy a really cheap, boring year diary with hardly any writing inside.

- Not sure if your school/university has their own diary but they can be perfect for what I am on about. Generally you can find them for really cheap, soft cover, no writing or designs within the dates. Just dates, days, weeks and lines where you can write your homework. This helped me a lot in High School. I wish I had kept doing it in University, but I am good with giving advice, and not so much with taking it. I used to decorate the outside of it however I wanted. Some years I would redecorate the same diary every semester. In the public holidays or holiday days I would colour those lines in with different highlighters to make it look like a rainbow. But every assignment due date, homework, draft, rewrite, form I had to bring back, library book due date, school activity days, ANYTHING to do with school I would write in there with reminds and check lists. Important due dates would be highlighted, general homework and daily to do lists t(o help me not leave my assignments to the last minute) would have a tick box beside them (because ticking tick boxes is free dopamine). Try to not put birthdays or fun things in it. This is a small way to stay on track so it helps you actually stay on track with the big things when you’re home.

4. Big whiteboards stuck on the wall where you can’t avoid it.

- This is not something I had in school, but I so wish I did. I have been using this recently to keep on top of house work (as maintaining your own house is tiring) and my small business or other things I really can’t avoid. If I physically write it down (not just in my phone) it psychologically does help you commit it to memory. Again, physically putting a line through a task you just completed is a hecking great rush of dopamine. But the biggest reason I love my white board, I can’t ignore it. It is stuck to the wall and is never out of sight, out of mind. I can’t put my phone or diary down and then refuse to look at it until I’m past the due date. Again, I’m not a perfect person, there are days where I don’t do anything I have written on the white board. But the great thing is, I don’t have to continuously feel like I failure, as I can wipe it all off the next morning or week and start fresh. I also put important things I have to remember that I’m doing during the week so I don’t forget them.

5. Icky Medication.

- I know not everyone wants to be on medication, and I understand. I am not forcing you to. No matter what your opinions are, you lovely gremlin who is still reading this post, regarding medication, you are valid and I respect you. My personal experience with medication has not been the best. I have been misdiagnosed for a severe chunk of my academic life which has seen me trying to focus and maintain school work under some even worse states then I am unmedicated! However, since receiving my diagnosis and finding the right ADHD medication for me, I have the ability to get so much work done without having to unnecessarily struggle. It’s unfortunately not magic, it will not turn me into a robot that makes me do work and turn out incredible, noble peace prize winning assignments (as much as I wish that were possible). I still have the ability to be a lump, doom scrolling through tumblr, forgetting to eat, and ignoring responsibilities. But it really helps me when I sit down and start that thing that isn’t fun. Yesterday it helped me hyperfocus on cleaning my office which was a terrifying room to be in. So it’s pretty close to magic in my opinion!

6. Accessing Disability Support at your place of learning.

- Not all of you taking the time to read this will have either a) an offical diagnosis or b) a good disability support available to you wherever you are completing your studies. And that is okay. This dot point just won’t be for you right now. But keep it in mind for a time when it might apply to you, as it’s something I never thought I would need, but will never take for granted ever again.

- If you have an offical diagnosis and Disability Support, make an appointment with the disability support adviser. DO IT NOW! Get your psychiatrist to write a diagnosis letter outlining that you have <enter superpower that makes you hilarious here> and that you are receiving <enter x,y,z treatment here> and that you would benefit from receiving <enter what you have always wished you had on the days you can’t make your ADHD gremlin brain do the thing here>. Now these benefits can be, but not limit to: automatic extensions on ALL assignments, extra time on exams, extra breaks to walk around while taking exams, special consideration when marking assignments, my university allows me to take exams in a separate room with only the other students in my subject who also have disability support (occasionally I have taken an exam alone with only a tutor present) so I don’t get distracted, permission to take fidget items into class or exam (I have the option to wear headphones, as long as I can display that they are not connected to anything). Maybe you can come up with some great ones for you with your disability advisor or your psychiatrist.

- The disability advisor will often go through your course outline with you at the start of each semester or year. This is annoying and a great time for disassociating, but can be useful in hindsight because you are made aware of everything that will come up during your class so you are not surprised. Because lets be honest, it is unlikely you are going to look at the course calendar too often.

- Side Note: I make an appointment every semester with my disability support officer for my area of study to make sure I have my special considerations for the year. Now I may go through the whole year without ever using my considerations. However, the fact that I know they are there takes an insane amount of pressure off of myself. If I’m having an insanely screwy loony tune mental health moment, I can email my coordinator my disability plan and say I need an extension due to personal reasons, and WHOOP, there it izzzzz.

7. Dedicated one thing or a few things that have nothing to do with food/alcohol/other substances to reward yourself with for doing the thing!

- This may not work for everyone. It doesn’t always work for me. I used to reward myself with food, but that only reinforced my stimming with overeating and my already bad relationship with food. And I feel as though that would be the same with any other substance that can be linked with addiction. (Addiction is a tough word, cause what aren’t I addicted to, I have ADHD, but hopefully you get what I mean!).

-Now, boring try and not choose this aside, lets think of somethings that work really well as rewards!

- My partner likes to come give me a kiss and a hug when ever they have written and reread a paragraph, you might buy a book when you get a really good mark, you might want to go make a cup of tea and watch an episode of your hyperfixation after studying for <enter a good period of time here>, you might allow yourself to partake in an activity you usually do while procrastinating (but at least this time you know you aren’t putting something off), talk to someone who you know will tell you they are proud of you as they understand the mental struggle you go through to concentrate (if you can’t think of anyone, it is 110% okay if that person are the amazing people on tumblr or the adhd tumblr chats. We will freaking pop a bottle of champagne for you cause we get it!).

- Try and make what ever you choose be something in a different room or away from your working space. Getting out can really calm you down.

8. Don’t be afraid to ask for assistance.

- This is true for anything, but I don’t mean just asking your teacher to give you extra help understanding the task and marking rubric. Many people online, tutors, librarians at your school, past or present students offer assistance rereading and making small edits (they won’t make it magical unfortunately) to your assignments. If you are like me and once you have written or completed the dreaded thing, you can not imagine or force your gremlin brain reread or edit the thing. So it can help to just delegate this to someone else, who hasn’t read it before, so they won’t disassociate or skim read it. They will often notice things you never would have even if you were neurotypical as that is just what happens when you have been working on something for so long.

9. Repetitive music.

- It generally helps if this has no lyrics. Lo-fi is amazing. Classical is alright too if it works for you, but both my partner and I agree that it can really assist you to keep up pace and focus when the beat is a high and repetitive (almost meditative) tempo.

10. Limit your screen space.

- This is a tip completely from my partner @dr-adhd who also has ADHD, is an avid PC gamer and is consistently in a battle with their gremlin brain to focus on completing their PhD. They have discovered that it really helps them to limit their screen space - simply put, work on one screen only. They have done more work more easily when they have their one screen on their laptop to focus on. Whereas their office has multiple screens so they could be playing runescape, watching YouTube, listening to lo-fi and doing work - which never worked (shocking right hahaha).

11. At the risk of sounding like a Mum... Put your phone and other electronics other than the assignment necessary one, away.

- I am a Mum, but to a fluffy puppy dog, so I hate to sound like my Mum when I was in high school, but she was right. Mobiles are the single easiest and biggest distraction in ADHD history. I often, even at coffee shops, have to turn my phone over so that I am not consistently looking at it every time the screen lights up to say the pizza place has sent me a coupon, or a carpet place that has been having a sale since I was born is... still having a sale, or a friend from school wants you to watch this TikTok. Even though you might not want to ignore your friends, because people pleasing, difficulting making/keeping friends and RSD are hecking real things, but they can all wait. Trust me, none of them are urgent. That TikTok will still be funny in an hour or two. And I’m probably completely right when I say that whomever just messaged you, never replies as quickly as you want them too. So I doubt they are going to think twice if you are MIA to finish your thing.

My partner or I might add to this later, but at the moment I already know that I probably wouldn’t read this wall of words if I was the one reading it, so if you are still with me, THANK YOU and I really hope I might have helped you. Sorry for the mound of words, but maybe you can reblog, screen shot, or save this and read a dot point at a time or refer to it when you need. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, I promise what ever it is, I’ve asked the same thing once in my life or something MUCH stupider.

[nanowrimo]

When Should You Worldbuild for Your Novel?

Every year, we’re lucky to have great sponsors for our nonprofit events. World Anvil, a 2020 NaNo sponsor, is a writing software that helps you develop and organize your characters, plot and world setting. Today, World Anvil Director Janet Forbes shares some tips for worldbuilding at all stages of your novel:

As a writing and worldbuilding expert, and the director of the award-winning worldbuilding and novel writing software World Anvil, I get asked this question a lot: at which stage during the novel writing process should you be worldbuilding? Should you be worldbuilding as you plot, as you draft, or as you edit? And—I see you out there, you glorious pantsers—what if you don’t plot? When should you be worldbuilding?

A quick disclaimer & explanation:

EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT! (Isn’t it beautiful?) This post is full of suggestions. If in doubt, try things out! But not everything will work for everyone. Experiment with these ideas, and develop a novel writing process that works for you!

Some of the best worldbuilding articles are only a few sentences—just long enough to document your ideas! You’ll probably expand them a bit through the drafting process as you discover or decide more details. But don’t feel you have to write the entire “Silmarillion” for your world! Longer articles often just mean more to read through when you’re in a hurry.

When to worldbuild as a Plotter?

Are you a plotter? Prefer to take a run at a first draft with a solid plan? Then here are some of the best places to work worldbuilding into your novel writing method!

Worldbuild the big stuff during the plotting phase

As a plotter, a lot of the big worldbuilding ideas probably come as you plot your novel. You’ll need characters who live in settlements, and were probably educated in organizations. They may or may not adhere to certain traditions or religions. You might add magic systems,  supernatural powers, and/or futuristic technology (which you’ll need to know the limitations of!). Writing down your ideas NOW means that you have them safe, and won’t lose them!

Worldbuilding your organizations, like Nations, Religions, Jedis, Police Forces and Universities, will help give them more impact, and make your world feel more dynamic and real!

Image Credit: Davina, made on World Anvil.

If your novel is an event novel—aliens invade, the Earth quakes, or a zombie virus is let loose—then write a bit about the nature of the threat. If you’re creating a character novel, make sure you have some notes on your main character’s background, mentors, relationships, education and skills. 

Worldbuilding these elements of your plot—even in just a few notes—before you start the first draft will really help you down the line! You can plan all of these out using the worldbuilding templates in World Anvil. They give you the freedom to create WHATEVER you want, help you connect everything together, and make everything searchable when you need it!

Worldbuilding during Draft 1—character experience and juicy details!

So, if you’re anything like me, you’ll probably find that something magical happens during your first draft. You start to consider your world through your character’s eyes! This means adding a lot of details to your worldbuilding—both SHOWING rather than TELLING, and sensory detail.

For example, you won’t tell your readers that an organization is evil. Instead, you can show a poor man in the stocks because he couldn’t afford his tithe or tax. Add that punishment to the  worldbuilding article about the evil organization, so you can remember it for later (or for book 2!).

Also, as your characters interact with places and people, they’ll feel, smell and hear (and maybe taste) details which heighten the experience. This makes your writing more evocative, and invites readers to feel they’re living in your novel, too! 

Add these details—you can even copy-paste relevant paragraphs as quotes—into your worldbuilding articles. Some Plotters prefer to do this scene by scene as they write their first draft. Others (like me!) prefer to do this as a separate stage, once the first draft is done. Read through the first draft, and add quotations or details into your worldbuilding articles. Future-you will thank you!

A fantastic example of a quick character profile! Hotlinks (shown here in red) help you link everything together in your world, so you can find things easily! 

Image Credit: ShyRedFox, created on World Anvil

Worldbuilding as a Panster!

If you’d rather fly by the seat of your pants than plot out each step of your novel, then congratulations—you’re a Panster! You probably love the exciting feeling of discovering your story as you write your first draft. So here are some ways you can work worldbuilding into your novel writing process!

Characters are worldbuilding too!

Most pantsers I know love to craft characters, even if they don’t know what will happen to them over the course of the story! And characters are full to the brim with worldbuilding opportunities! 

For example, the places your characters were born, went to school, travelled—they are all important locations to worldbuild in a few sentences. Which country is your character from? Do they fit in and, if not, which traditions or view points do they chafe against? These are all excellent places to start your worldbuilding, even before NaNoWriMo has started. You’ll still be pantsing—just Pantsing with Purpose! 

And remember, none of these ideas are set in stone - you can always change them later. It’s just a jumping off point, to give you inspiration. 

Characters are worldbuilding too! Writing out a detailed character profile is a great way to discover more about your main character. World Anvil provides prompts to help you flesh out your characters even more.

Image Credit: Dhelian, created on World Anvil

Plan worldbuilding using the “Jot, Bin, Pants” method!

The Jot, Bin, Pants method (originally developed by Cassandra Lee Yieng) is a way to plan without plotting! Once you have those scenes, scan through them quickly. You’ll already spot elements you can write short worldbuilding articles about! If a scene takes place in a ship, a smart townhouse, or an abandoned castle, write a few sentences about that space. What material is it built from? What feelings does it conjure up? 

Now you have a few notes on that location, you’ll be able to recapture the feeling much more quickly during crunch time, and get your words written!

Keep worldbuilding notes during Draft 1

Another helpful moment to make notes is at the end of each writing session during Draft 1. Try spending 5 minutes documenting the people, places and things you came up with. World Anvil’s tree layout can give you a lot of inspiration when you’re glancing over your setting to decide what should happen next! So if you mention a creature, a character, a location or a technology, scribble down a few notes about your ideas. You never know - it might save your character’s life!

With World Anvil’s novel writing software, you can easily reference your worldbuilding and update your series bible either AS you write, or after each writing session! 

The worldbuilding review phase 

Regardless of Plotterism or Pantitude, you should eventually have Draft 1 of a book! Granted, it probably needs some tweaks right now. But there’s a story there, characters, ideas, and an ending. Congratulations!

Now is a great time to take stock of your worldbuilding. As you read through your novel, build up your world bible or series bible. Make sure you have articles for each major character, for the places and things you’ve introduced - just a few sentences is fine. But as you edit and flesh out your novel, these will be great references to have, and it’ll speed up the next phase no end!

Worldbuilding and Structural Edits

During structural edits, i.e. re-editing the actual story and big ideas of your book, you’ll find that keeping an updated version of your series bible is really useful! You can do this as you edit (which is what I prefer) or at the end of each draft. 

By the time you’re at line edits, you’ll be done with your worldbuilding… and ready to get on with your novel’s sequel! And I can promise you - you’ll be thanking past-you for keeping such good worldbuilding notes in your Series Bible! 

If you want to keep your worldbuilding organized and instantly available in your novel writing software interface, then check out World Anvil! We’re recommended by Writer’s Digest, as well as bestselling authors like Brian McClellan, Chris Fox, Jenna Moreci, and literally a million other writers and worldbuilders! You can also pick up a 25% discount with the coupon code NANOWRIMO!

Become the ultimate writer and worldbuilder : NaNoWriMo participants get 25% off World Anvil!

Whatever you’re writing, and whenever you worldbuild, World Anvil will help to develop and organize your characters, plot and world setting, link everything together, and write your novel in our integrated novel writing software! 

And right now you can bag 25% off 6 & 12 month memberships of Master Tier and above, using the coupon code NANOWRIMO on checkout! 

Janet Forbes (pen name J.D. Blythe) is a published author and the Director of World Anvil, the ultimate worldbuilding and novel writing platform! This award-winning software helps you organize, store and track your worldbuilding as you’re writing your novel. Our novel writing software, accessible from anywhere, integrates stunningly with your worldbuilding. And when it’s time to publish, you can export, or publish directly on the World Anvil platform and monetize YOUR way! Check it out at World Anvil.

[buildmeafairytale]

Elow’s POV

Edit: I added a couple paragraphs so this would make more sense, I hadn't realized I posted it unfinished!

Hey all! This is just a NSFW little blub from my recent story from Elow’s POV. Here is a link to part one, if you haven’t read it and want to :) I also just want to thank you all for the support and kind words, it means a great deal.

Siphorus was infuriating. He struts around, with his pretty markings and thick arms, and plays the role of protector. As if I am something to be protected from! Hrmf. I cross my arms and lean back against the counter, a dramatic pout on my lips. But I don’t care if I am being dramatic. I am getting tired of his perfection. 

So what if he is handsome and helped Master Lillian and I figure things out? He is still another demon with the same master as me. He is more confident than I am. With way more arms. I don’t know why Lily would ever keep me, given a choice.

Master Lily, I chastise myself. I at least need to get points for being polite. I’m not too good at much else. I heave out a sigh, missing her. I wish she would come home soon. When she’s here, things seem brighter. She is sweet to me, and hasn’t made me expand on what I meant when I told her I had never had a master so nice. 

I’ve had masters before who would be so angry once they realized they summoned a demon who wasn’t very powerful. Sure, I can do some things, but I’m mostly good at plants and gardening, which is not something I’ve been summoned for. My new master loves her garden though, and the fact that she trusts me to use my magic on something so dear to her makes me feel like I have a purpose. When she first showed me the garden and I grew a strawberry for her, she was so excited. She told me how amazing that was, and I feel myself glow at the memory. 

I’m too lost in self pity and thoughts of Siphorus’s hands and Master’s lips that I do not hear Siphorus come into the room. I jump, and he gives me a friendly smile. He has food with him, and while neither of us has to eat it to sustain ourselves, we all like the family dinner type routine we had. Is it another excuse to be present and around Siphorus and my master? Possibly.

“Sorry to have spooked you, I got us dinner.” He says, setting the table with an easy wave of his hands. So good at magic too, unlike me. My sullen mood sinks even further. 

Siphorus comes closer, a frown on his face. “Is something wrong?” 

I shake my head and all the bad thoughts away, hoping he couldn’t sense them. His magic is powerful, and I don’t rule out the possibility.  

He presses me to the wall, and another set of hands goes to work untying my bottoms. He kisses and nips at my lips until my eyes are glossed over and mewls are leaving me without my permission. 

“No, no, everything is fine. Thank you!” I give him a smile, remembering my manners. I can’t be rude to him, even if he is the better demon. I don’t want to be rude to him, either. Everything in me strives to please him, too. He isn’t my master, but the urge to please is still strong. I can’t help zoning out when his lips move, too enraptured by them. I wouldn’t want him to know of my self pity, either. The confident demon that he is, he could never understand. 

I go to walk by him, but a hand wraps around my bicep, stopping me in my tracks. I try to suppress the shiver ran through me, but Siphorus catches it all the same. He leans in and I feel his magic run around me, gentle but incessant. I try to block it out and keep my thoughts and desires to myself, but he brushes over me and I yield.

I can tell the moment he detects it. He freezes, magic and all, before his eyes snap to mine. If I could blush, I would be beet red right about now. I'm sure he can feel this embarrassment too, but to my shock he does not tease me. He kisses me. He kisses me softly, over and over again, until I get my wits about me and respond. His kisses grow harder, and I gasp into his mouth as his fangs press into my lips.

He wraps one large hand around my throbbing dick, and I think I can die a happy demon. I go to return the favor, reaching for him, but another hand comes and grabs my own. Much to my surprise, he laces our long fingers together and brings my scarred hand to his lips. The intimacy has me squirming, the pleasure from being denied it so long is almost too much. 

Siphorus captures my gaze, and whispers “So good,” to me. He looks at me as if I am something to behold, and I feel my urges to please him bubble up to the surface. 

“I want to make you feel good,” I moan out, arching into his touch. 

“You are - you do make me feel good. Let me pleasure you,” he whispers, hotly into my skin. 

If that’s what he wants, then so be it. I let myself get lost in him, arching and writhing against his skin. Neither of us like to wear a lot of clothing, so before I realize it we are both bare. He lifts me and lays me down. My thoughts grow foggy, and every touch feels like sparks dancing on my skin. 

I feel his member rutting against me and he finally lets me touch him back. My hand dances down his abdomen and wraps around his shaft. He is larger and thicker than anything I have taken before, but he takes his time with me. He whispers sweet words into my skin as his hands open me up and pleasure me. He manages to produce lube, too. Another benefit of his advanced magic. 

He spreads it over his cock, the thick, black and white monster of a thing. It’s pointed at the tip, and spears me apart in the most spine-tingling of ways. Siphous has his head tilted back, his face contorted in pleasure as I ripple around him.

“You feel so good, Elow, so good for me,” He moans out, and I start to rock my hips. Saccharine filth continues to fall from his lips, only causing more pleasure to build in me. My pace increases, aided by the many hands of my lover. That is, until he becomes distracted. 

I hear a gasp from the door, and to my complete mortification, there stands Master Lillian. I freeze and look away, but Siphorus makes no move to hide. I still feel foggy from all of the pleasure and praise, and when Siphorus continues to dote on me, I find no reason to move. All so suddenly my master is touching me, too. I think I have found heaven here in this home. 

[fanfictionaries]

The Seduction of Sirius Black - Part 1

Pairing: Hermione Granger x Sirius Black

Summary:

Hermione loves her boyfriend, but there’s just one little problem -- she’s hopelessly attracted to Sirius Black. 

Warnings: Swearing, Smut/18+ NSFW, Angst, Ron bashing (sorry) 

Author’s Note: Posting some old stuff! Honestly, editing it has been a nice lead back into really writing. Very cathartic! 

Also, apologies for the Ron bashing in this story. I know it’s a stupid trope and to a certain extent I really enjoy Ron as a character, buuuuut I’m using it as a cheap way to move plot. 

ALSO, this is obviously a AU where Sirius didn’t die in the Department of Mysteries. 

ALSO (and this is the last one I swear), I AM a big fan of Wolfstar but I also have daddy issues and find Sirius Black extremely attractive and this is my tumblr so I can write the stories I want I guess. Haha Not to mention, Sirius Black gives BIG bisexual energy.  

MASTERLIST

*** 

Hermione didn’t really know when it had happened – this attraction to Sirius Black. It wasn’t as if she had woken up one day with the sudden urge to jump across the table and shag the older wizard into the next life. The whole thing had occurred much more gradually than that, she supposed. However, despite all of the trivial aspects of her…situation, Hermione chose instead to focus purely on the fact that he was entirely off limits. For many reasons. There was no way anyone in her close-knit circle of friends would be okay with her becoming entangled with a man more than twice her age and who also happened to be her best friend’s god father. It would be unacceptable. It would be impractical. Most of all it would be highly inappropriate as she was currently dating her other best friend, Ronald Weasley.

She supposed the attraction was inevitable to a certain degree. At the beginning, nearly a year and half ago, things like physical attraction were far from her mind. She’d just started her new position at the Ministry, Harry and Ron were training to be Aurors, the war had just come to an end and thus her life was a whirlwind of people and places. But over time things slowed down. Ronald was stationed away on official Auror business more and more often, leaving very little time for him to visit her and when he did come back, he had to split his time between her and his large family. Harry, having waited for Ginny to finish her final year at Hogwarts, had gone and married her the summer after and for all intents and purposes abandoned her. Harry…

It was really all Harry’s fault. Or at least that’s what Hermione liked to think whenever she felt her heart skip and her pulse slip between her thighs in Sirius Black’s presence. It had been Harry’s idea for Hermione to move into Grimmauld Place with him and Sirius after the war. Family, it seemed, had taken an important role in everyone’s lives when Lord Voldemort fell for the final time. All of the Weasley children had moved back to their childhood home of the Burrow – even Charlie much to everyone’s great surprise and delight. Tonks and Remus moved in with her mother and father, Andromeda and Theodore, to bask in the cheer of their newborn baby Teddy. And Harry had moved in with Sirius. Everyone had felt the need to be closer than ever to the ones that they loved, and Hermione completely understood that need. In fact, if she had had a family to go to, she would have moved in with them as well. But her parents were still in Australia somewhere, the location even unknown to herself as she’d designed it that way. Harry, being fully aware of this fact, insisted that she move in with him and Sirius. Hermione had been fully prepared to get her own flat in London. But after a bit of prodding she’d accepted Harry’s offer, secretly grateful that her best friend was so kind and thoughtful. Now, she probably cursed him name at least five times a day.

Hermione had been happy for him and Ginny when they announced their engagement. She’d cried not only when Ginny asked her to be her maid of honor, but also when the two had said their ‘I do’s. However, Harry moved out of Grimmauld Place following their marriage and subsequently left her to live with Sirius Black all by herself. So now she sat in the quaint little kitchen of the Black home, sipping her morning tea, and trying incredibly hard to keep her attention on her book rather than glance up at the rugged wizard sitting across from her.

“Hmpf” Sirius let out the little sound of surprise before continuing, “Would you look at that. Sources say that while Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, announces no final decisions have been made in regard to the recent Magical Creature Equality Act proposed last month, there are certain voices in the Ministry that are persuading not only the members of the Wizengamot, but the Minister himself to vote yes for magical creature equality.” He read the words aloud, peaking over his paper at her and raising his eyebrows. “I wonder who those certain voices or voice is…” he mused humorously.

It was no secret that shortly after being appointed a position in the Ministry department of Magical Creatures, Hermione had gone about being a personal activist for Magical Creature rights. Merlin, she had written almost the entire Act herself. Her hand still cramped at the thought of the hours she spent in her office and the library at Grimmauld Place scribbling away with her quill.

“No idea,” Hermione responded, feigning ignorance but blushing all the same in embarrassment. She kept her eyes on the pages of her book but found no matter how many times she read and reread the same paragraph she couldn’t retain it. Slowly her eyes shifted to the man in front of her. His gaze was fixed on the paper and so she was free to take him in. He had just showered, his wavy brown hair hanging damp to his shoulders. It made him look, in her opinion, especially delectable that morning. Hermione felt herself blush even deeper at the lewd thoughts threatening to enter her mind before looking back down at her book and scolding herself.

“So, when is Ronald coming for a visit again? Need me to clear off any time soon?” Sirius asked, sparking up conversation after the long bout of silence.

“Unfortunately, he won’t be back till next month,” she sighed, ignoring the second half of Sirius’s question.

“Well that’s not too bad I suppose—” Sirius smiled warmly and set down his paper as he stood up “—It gives you plenty of time to focus on getting the Ministry on board with your Act before you’re…distracted.” Sirius added the last part with a teasing implication not lost on Hermione.

“My Act?” Hermione asked, raising an eyebrow jokingly as she stood up as well and took her teacup to the sink. She grabbed the sponge to begin washing up when Sirius took it from her hand.

“I can do the washing up. You’re going to be late for work. Besides, it’s not like I work or anything. Might as well do something productive today,” he stated dryly, turning on the tap.

“Hmm, yes. I’ve been meaning to talk to you about that. You’ve become quite the lay-about. When are you going to get a job and start contributing to the household?” Hermione asked cheekily.

“Lay-about? Need I remind you that this is my house that you live in, rent free. You’re lucky a kind old man like me has taken a liking to you, or you’d be on the streets, kitten,” Sirius said, flicking some water off his fingertips in her direction.

“More like taken pity on me—” Hermione shook her head “—and you’re far from an old man, Sirius. I swear, you’d like people to think you’re closer to eighty than twenty!” She exited the kitchen and slipped into her heels next to the front door.

“Mind picking up some milk on your way home, kitten? We’re almost out!” Sirius called out to her, ignoring her statement on his age. Hermione tried not to focus on the way her stomach flipped in response to Sirius using his nickname for her for a second time that morning.

“Sure thing!” she called back before exiting the front door and apparating the moment she hit the sidewalk.

Hermione found it very difficult to work that day. The summer heat had become abysmal, proving to be quite the sticky, humid season, and of course that meant the Ministry’s cooling charms were on the fritz. By the time the day was over, Hermione’s hair had grown three times its size. Catching her reflection in a Ministry window, Hermione had gasped at its state. Even she hadn’t known it could get that big. In addition, her silk blouse that she had tucked into a polyester pencil skirt had become damp and uncomfortable from the sweat that accumulated on her body throughout the day.  And even after casting multiple drying spells to herself and her clothes, there was still nothing she could do about her hair. To add to her physical discomfort, she also struggled with a mental discomfort as well. Ron had been plaguing her mind all day long.

Ronald Weasley. Her oldest friend, now boyfriend. It hadn’t been a shock to anyone when they had gotten together after the war had ended. It had almost been expected in fact. She’d liked him since third year and aside from his short tryst with Lavender Brown, it had been obvious they would be together. Hermione loved Ron, she really did, but he was gone so often. Gone often and when he was home things felt…off. His affection seemed to have waned and Hermione was left thinking that perhaps it had something to do with her. Every time he chose to kiss her cheek as opposed to her lips or pat her leg friendly instead of holding her hand Hermione felt a little blow to her confidence. Bitterly she thought of how he and Lavender had been all over each other sixth year. She certainly wouldn’t enjoy having Ron’s tongue shoved down her throat in broad daylight, but surely, it’d be nice to have him show a bit of affection. In the beginning he’d been much more enthusiastic. They would often sneak off for a cheeky snog and hands often lingered under tables. They’d even gone all the way. It had been romantic and sweet, and Ron had certainly enjoyed himself. Or at least she thought he had. But now she wasn’t so sure. Maybe she’d been rubbish at it and he didn’t know how to tell her. Maybe he just didn’t find her attractive anymore. She had put on a bit of weight in the past year and a half. Hermione figured it was for the best as she was no longer starving to death on the run from Voldemort and his Death Eaters. But now when she looked in the mirror her eyes focused for too long on the swell of her breasts, the curve of her hips, the thickness of her thighs, and the softness of her stomach.

Despite this possibility, Hermione couldn’t help but feel guilty about her lustful thoughts involving Sirius. She often tried to reason with herself that it was perfectly normal to feel such base emotions. Everyone had them and as long as she didn’t act on them, she was fine. She was just lonely, and Sirius was there.

Resolving to speak with Ron about her concerns when he returned in a week, Hermione shook the troubling thoughts from her head and continued down Diagon Alley, intending to just pop by the small corner store at the end for some milk and maybe some ice-cream for later. She needed a small pick-me-up after the day she’d had. Jogging the last few steps to the corner store, Hermione pulled open the heavy door and sighed happily as the cooling charms inside enveloped her. She wiped her forehead with her arm and headed to the back of the store where the freezer section was. The store was practically deserted aside from a single witch staring at the ice pops with a heavy look of concentration. Hermione walked up next to her to stare at the ice-cream choices and smiled when she spotted the Rocky Road. It was Ron’s favorite.

“It’s a scorcher out there, innit?” commented the witch, her thick London accent coming through endearingly sweet. Hermione looked to her left and took in the girl. She was thin and tan with beautiful golden hair tied up into a long ponytail. She had a friendly, heart-shaped face and sparkly green eyes. Something about her seemed familiar – Hermione must have seen her somewhere before.

“I’m practically melting,” agreed Hermione, shaking her head, and grabbing the Rocky Road, thinking she would have that tonight rather than her usual Mint Chocolate-Chip.

“Any fun plans for the heat?” the pretty blonde asked casually, grabbing a box of grape ice pops and a carton of Rocky Road ice-cream as well.

“Not really. Probably just go home and cast as many cooling charms as possible—” Hermione crinkled her nose and quirked the corner of her mouth in a wry grin “—Yourself?”

“Me and my boyfriend are planning a nice night in. He’s just got back from assignment with the Ministry. He’s an Auror, so we’re doing a bit of celebrating before he has to go back.” The girl smiled, her voice heavy with adoration.

“How nice! My boyfriend’s an Auror as well.”

“Really?” the girl asked, eyes lighting up.

“Yes, he’s actually away on assignment right now. I wonder if they know—” Hermione had been about to ask if perhaps their respective partners were familiar with each other when a voice called out from the end of the aisle.

“Babe, they didn’t have the crisps you like, but—” Basket hanging from one hand and a bag of Salt and Vinegar crisps in the other, Ron stopped dead in his tracts at the sight of Hermione. His eyes grew wide, mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. “’Mione?”

Hermione stared back too, but unlike Ron she was unable to find her voice. Instead she just stared. Ron was back from assignment? Why hadn’t he told her? What was he doing there? Why was he calling this girl babe when—

“Wait—‘Mione? As in Hermione Granger?” the witch asked, taking a step back from Hermione and towards Ron. She looked at Hermione with wide, incredulous eyes. “Oh my gosh, I feel so foolish. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize you.”

Hermione looked on in confusion as she watched the witch hook her arm in Ron’s and smile politely back at her.

“Hermione,” Ron said her name again, but Hermione was too busy taking the two of them in. She felt like an absolute fool. The carton of Rocky Road slipped from her fingers and landed on the linoleum floor of the shop with a dull thud. Then, in a panic, Hermione turned on the spot and fled, hearing Ron’s call after her mix with a small ‘Oh my’ from the pretty blonde witch.

There were a million places Hermione could have gone. There were a million places Hermione should have gone. All of them much better choices than the seedy little muggle bar she found just outside of Diagon Alley. She should have gone home. Or to Harry. Or to Ginny. The smart choice was to tell someone what had happened and to talk it out. But instead, she spent the next four hours doing her best to get well and truly pissed. Drinking wasn’t like Hermione and certainly the first glass of whiskey had been hard to get down. But she found after the first two, she hardly tasted the biting liquid anymore and the dulling effect of the alcohol was just so nice.

It was just past ten in the evening when Hermione left the bar, tipping this way and that way in her heels and feeling exceptionally light-headed. The night had cooled down and the sun had just set, allowing Hermione to feel some semblance of relief as she walked down the street to a nearby alleyway. It probably wasn’t the best idea to apparate when she was so inebriated, but Hermione wasn’t really thinking in that moment. She just knew she didn’t want to walk. Thankfully, she managed to land, although very ungracefully, in front of Grimmauld Place without splinching herself.

“Shit,” Hermione whispered followed by a snort of laughter when she tripped over the threshold after finally getting her key in the keyhole. The world had gone all wobbly it had taken her ages to find the right key and get it in the lock. Closing the front door as quietly behind her as possible Hermione found herself overtaken by the strong urge to laugh again. Hermione Granger was well and truly sloshed and for some reason she found that to be very funny.

“Hermione?”

Hermione jumped at her name, letting out a little shriek as she turned around and found Sirius standing in the hall. The hall was dark, but light streamed out through the doorway to the kitchen illuminating him in long shadows where he stood, arms crossed.

“Sirius—” Hermione held a hand to her heart, feeling it beat wildly in her chest. “I didn’t think you’d still be up.”

“It’s past eleven, where have you been?” There was a strange tone to his voice, like he was angry with her but also like he was speaking to a small, frightened animal.

Past eleven? How long had it taken her to unlock the front door?

“I was—” Hermione tripped on the rug, catching herself on the wall and letting out another little laugh “—I stopped and had a little post-work drink.” Her words were slurred, even to her own ears and she laughed again, holding a hand over mouth in embarrassment. “Well, maybe one or two post-work drinks.”

“Are you drunk, kitten?” Sirius asked, sounding amused now.

Hermione continued down the hall, getting closer and closer to Sirius. Each step was a new struggle. A trip here, a wobble there. But Hermione didn’t care. In fact, she felt…good. Free almost. “Maaaaybe,” she drawled, giggling like a small child as she closed the last bit of distance and swayed before Sirius.

He stared down at her, arms now uncrossed as he seemed to be trying to figure out whether he should be amused or concerned. Hermione’s mouth went dry. Now that she was closer, she could see him more clearly and Merlin did she see him. There was a shadow of facial hair across his square jaw, and down his neck. Hermione found herself wondering what it felt like – whether it was soft or rough. Gaze traveling down the thickness of his neck she found his upperhalf bare, the only thing covering his torso, an open robe revealing the inky black of his tattoos. She loved his tattoos. They made him look dangerous. Mysterious. Hot. His chest was free of hair, the lean muscles dipping low and high like delicious hills and valleys she’d so like to explore. In fact…she reached out a hand, her body working opposite of a clear head as her fingertips tentatively touched the smooth planes of Sirius’ chest. He was warm.

He went sort of rigid under her touch, but Hermione barely noticed. Instead she was too entranced by the feel of him. Had she ever touched him before? She didn’t think she had. Her gazed traveled further south and with it, so did her fingertips. Ghosting down the center of his chest from sternum to bellybutton, she blushed furiously at the sight of thick dark hair starting at his navel and disappearing below a pair of pajama pants that sat dangerously low on his hips. She swallowed thickly, her breath coming in thick hot puffs as her hand traveled further, barely brushing the thick hair before a hand shot out and grasped her wrist.

Hermione gasped, looking up suddenly into the stormy eyes of Sirius Black before her. He lifted her wrist to shoulder height, pulling her forward slightly as he did it. The distance between them closed even more.

“Kitten.” It was a warning. Hermione knew it. But for some reason her whiskey-idled brain didn’t care. She liked the risk behind his tone. Her body practically purred at the sound of his special nickname just for her – the irony of that sentiment lost on her in the moment.

“Yes, Sirius?” she responded, her voice coming out deep and breathy and dare she say seductive? Hermione had never sounded like that before. She kind of liked it. Looking up at him with her best attempt at innocent eyes, she waited for him to say something.

Sirius stared down at her, his face a stony mask, but a war was raging behind his eyes. Hermione’s gaze flickered from the stormy grey of his eyes to the fullness of his lips and back up. With a deep breath and a long swallow that made his Adam’s apple bob in a mouth-watering way, Sirius finally spoke.

“You should go to bed.”

Hermione huffed, a bit like a petulant child but not quite as bratty. “What if I don’t want to?”

“It wasn’t really a suggestion.” His tone was dark, and it sent a surprising thrill through Hermione’s body. Her center throbbed. Her breath hitched. Maybe it was all in her head – this thick tension between them. Or maybe it wasn’t. It was certainly taboo, this…energy radiating between them. But Hermione didn’t really care because in that moment she made the sudden realization that she could have this. She could have this and not be the bad guy. Ron was the bad guy. All those months of guilt for feeling basic human attraction and he was off shagging some beautiful, leggy blonde. But now…she didn’t have to feel guilty anymore.

Before she could stop herself, Hermione lifted up onto her toes and closed the distance between them. Their lips pressed together for a moment, firm and warm. When Sirius failed to respond, Hermione’s stomach dropped, and she made the mortifying realization that he didn’t want to kiss her. She was just beginning to pull away, an apology poised on her lips when the grip on her wrist vanished and reappeared around her waist, pulling her in tightly as Sirius’s lips claimed her own.

It all happened very quickly. A meshing of lips and teeth and tongue that left her hot, sticky, and out of breath. Before she knew it, she was being pushed up against the wall of the hallway, her back and head hitting the plaster hard, but she did not care. The only thing she could focus on was the feeling of Sirius’s lips on her own and the hot cloud of their shared breath.

His hands remained wrapped tightly around her torso, gripping the material of her blouse in his fists, but Hermione’s hands were everywhere. She wanted to touch all of him, and she was determined to do so. It wasn’t until her hands wound themselves around his neck and threaded up into his hair, gripping the strands vice-like, that Sirius broke. He let out a ragged groan before moving his hands from around her waist to her front. Grabbing the material of her blouse in each hand, he gave a great tug, not even bothering to try and unbutton it. Hermione gasped at the sound of ripping fabric and the pop of her blouse buttons. Cool air brushing her sensitive skin and the hitch in his breath made Hermione acutely aware that she was now bare to him from the waist up. She remembered the bra she’d chosen to wear that day – a thin and see-through number that cupped her breasts perfectly but left little to the imagination. He was kissing her neck then, sucking and biting in ways that left her breathless and needy. His hands covered her breasts, kneading and stroking in a gentle way that contrasted so strikingly with how he was attacking her neck.

The only thing Hermione could do in that moment was hold on for dear life. Her heart felt like it was going to beat out of her chest and when Sirius’s mouth traveled south to envelope of her nipples, she thought that actually had. She let out a low, needy moan and arched into him. Feeling bold, she slid a hand from his hair, down the firm planes of his chest and to the front of his pajama bottoms. At the feel of his hard length she whined, high and breathy. Her hand had been there for barely a moment before Sirius tore away from her, distancing himself the width of the hallway. Hermione leaned against the wall behind her, needing the stability of it to stay upright due to her still drunk nature and the shaky state of her legs.

“What?” she asked, looking at the panting man across from her with confusion.

Sirius stared at her for a moment, chest falling up and down as pieces of his thick dark hair hung in his face. Hermione tried to focus but the only thing she could think of was how much she wanted to brush that hair from his gorgeous features so she could see him more clearly.

“You’re drunk. You should go to bed,” said Sirius, his voice low and gravely and filled with an edge of regret.

“But—” Hermione hesitated, confused at his response “—I don’t understand.” She crossed the distance between them, kissing up the older wizard’s neck. Did he think she didn’t want this?

“Kitten.” Sirius’s voice was strained, but he still managed to grab Hermione’s wandering hands and push her away again. Hermione gasped at his rough touch as he pulled her off of him. “I said you should go to bed.”

Hermione stared up at him in shock for a moment before a surprising rage filled her. Was she not good enough for him? Was she not pretty enough? Did he not enjoy what they’d been doing? The hot sting of angry tears reached the inner corners of her eyes and she tore out of Sirius’s grip before stomping up the stairs towards her room with a huff.

Part 2

[thoughts-on-bangtan]

Let’s talk about: RUN! BTS episode 125

by Admin 1 and Admin 2

So, episode 125 of RUN BTS aired yesterday and we thought it’d be fun to talk about it, share our favorite moments, things we noticed, and other miscellaneous things we thought would be nice to mention. The episode was filmed at their dorm and featured a special guest in form of Baek jong-won who is a famous Korean chef. The episode was special because of that, but also due to the fact that it was used to highlight Korean pork ham which uses the parts of pigs that usually don’t get chosen by restaurants and the average consumers, and also to honor Korean pig farmers in times of COVID.

The members were split into two teams, though Yoongi was missing in the episode which leads us to believe that the episode was likely filmed sometimes in December 2020 (as well as the fact that Tae had that pimple on his cheek which he also had in his birthday vlive). The teams—Tae, Jimin and Seokjin vs. Hoseok, Namjoon and JK—consisted of one person per team who knows what they are doing—Seokjin and JK—and two people with limited or a complete lack of knowledge in the kitchen. Each team was given a recipe they were supposed to cook using the aforementioned ham and that’s what they did, driving Chef Baek slightly crazy (but also making him seem endeared by Bangtan’s cluelessness and kind of lack of confidence within the kitchen) with their constant questions and requests for assistance.

Now that we have the general gist of the episode down, lets jump into the actual point of this post (it turned out quite long, if you don’t want to read the entire thing, perhaps at least read the last couple of paragraphs since they’re kind of important):

One thing that made both of us very, very happy was the fact that Tae was in an outstandingly good mood, cracking jokes and smiling the entire time. We’ve seen his quieter mood in episodes filmed in the first half of 2020, so seeing him this happy while filming this episode was truly amazing and once again made the episode even more special in that regard.

We also had Tae turn to Chef Baek and tell him about how his mom learned how to cook from him and if he could potentially get an autograph from him for his mom. This had Chef Baek all surprised and flustered, since he likely didn’t expect a member of the biggest group in Korea to want his autograph, saying that if anything shouldn’t he be the one asking this question. At that also Namjoon spoke up and quietly asked if he could get one for his mom as well since otherwise he wouldn’t be allowed to come home. In his vlive after the RUN episode was posted, Namjoon mentioned how yes, he did get that autograph in the end and that he also gave the knife to his mom as well since a knife like that is dangerous. Adorable.

At some point JK asked Chef Baek the golden question of whether or not he likes mint chocolate ice cream, followed by the question of pineapple on pizza, yes or no, and how that’s a question they are, for some reason, asked quite frequently when abroad. This was followed by Tae asking if he can eat eight crackers in a minute which led to the following commentary from Jimin:

Another detail we thought was quite funny was how instead of doing something related to cooking, Tae spent some time moving around the kitchen space cleaning away trash or washing dishes, therefore evading having to cook since it seems that isn’t his forte or he simply knew that Jimin and Seokjin would manage to do it just fine. But he did attempt to make rice, which though it turned out well, still was accompanied not only by him asking Chef Baek if he should use cold or warm water, but also Tae grabbing Jimin to ask him for help with the rice cooker.

Speaking of the rice cooker, the very one they used in the episode seems to be the same one they’ve been using since about 2014 and, if I remember correctly, might’ve been a gift from ARMY. This isn’t the only kitchen item they got from ARMY and still own and use to this day, since they also (among other things) have a set of colored bowls that can be seen standing on the shelves.

2014

2020

Something very endearing and cute though was Namjoon peeling a potato in tiny, which reminded me very much of that time around the campfire in Bon Voyage 4. Knowing Namjoon, looking at him peeling it so carefully, we were both kind of worried he might somehow hurt himself while doing it, which by no means is us trying to portray Namjoon as too stupid to do it or anything like that, but he himself said he isn’t that great in the kitchen after all.

After waiting for it since summer 2019, we finally also got a look at JK’s forearm and all the tattoos on it in HD, a big step up from looking at the blurry shots of it in Bon Voyage 4 or their refection in some microwave. ARMY on sns went crazy over it, most staying respectful while also curious, though of course there were also some idiots who felt the need to voice their negative opinions no one asked for. I think it’s an interesting step, and perhaps a really valuable one, that he felt confident and assured enough to show them to us instead of having the editors blur them like they’ve done so in episodes of In The SOOP (both the TV and Weverse versions).

At the end of the episode they all sat down together so that Chef Baek could try their dishes, with someone asking him if maybe they could all win those special engraved knives after all but Chef Baek seemed adamant about how only one team can win. While he tried their dishes Chef Baek complemented different things that the members had done well, leading Seokjin to turn red as he does whenever someone complements him, as well as Jimin looking fond and proud of Tae when Chef Baek complemented something Tae had done and they even high fived each other. Very cute and supportive, love that.

Before he chose a winner, everyone in their respective teams held hands and waited in anticipation to see who won. Thanks to editing we didn’t see the moment of Chef Baek raising the winner’s hand, which created a comedic moment where Seokjin stood up yelling triumphantly just to be very confused when also the other team was cheering. Meaning in the end all of them won and received the knives, including Yoongi despite him not being present. The teams stood up for group hugs where, I don’t know if you noticed, but we thought it was quite cute how vmin hugging seemed so natural and like something they’ve done this way a million times already with Jimin slotting his shoulder below Tae’s arm and his body against Tae’s “automatically” while being a little unsure what to do with his other arm before moving it to pull Seokjin into the hug as well. It’s these little things about Tae and Jimin that get us, you know.

Also someone pointed out a cute parallel between a famous vmin hug picture and Jimin’s arm/hand on Tae’s back during the group hug that I thought we’d show you as well.

Something I think this episode showed us in terms of vmin content is that, even if there aren’t many obvious “moments” (due to obvious reasons I kind of really don’t like that term but for a lack of a better one…), it’s still clear to see in the background how they gravitate toward each other, which of course you can argue was because they’re in the same team, but that doesn’t change the fact that Tae or Jimin could’ve just as well interacted with/asked Seokjin for things or giggled with him, but instead they still had their little moments with each other, while of course also interacting with Seokjin. We’re definitely curious if the Behind cut will show us some more of the vmin moments that we just got glimpses at in the background in the main episode.

As for namjin, since they were on different teams, there weren’t really any interactions between those two but that’s okay. Their interactions with their own teammates were great enough, Namjoon’s team trying to include him in the process even if he himself said the only thing he actually did was peel those potatoes.

A final thing we’d want to mention is a glimpse we got of the sheer number of cameras and people that were present in the background while they were filming this episode, which are likely also present during every other episode and piece of content they film. Looking at that, it doesn’t surprise us in the slightest that vmin (and even namjin, and the other members) might not be as eager/willing to show the true version/amount of affection they have for each other. I mean, who would want to showcase themselves in such a manner in front of so many lenses and eyes, even more so since for the filming of this episode surely also staff belonging to Chef Baek were present?

I think it’s important to keep these things in mind when we discuss vmin (and namjin) interactions in most of their content. Since we usually don’t see their staff and cameras, it creates this illusion of it just being them present and doing their thing, when in reality they are constantly being watched by a number of staff and cameras. Would you really want to be all over your soulmate while you’re being watched like that? Especially in more meaningful ways? Surely these things were easier for them when they were younger, a little greener and more inexperienced, so to speak, and not yet quite so (potentially) emotionally involved with each other, but now? After?

It certainly explains quite a bit of what some insist on classifying as “cold” or “distanced” behavior, doesn’t it? It’s easier to play the role you created for yourself and, in a way, use as shield (BTS V and BTS Jimin, BTS RM and BTS Jin) instead of showing your private (Kim Taehyung and Park Jimin, Kim Namjoon and Kim Seokjin) emotions and behaviors with each other, you know what I mean?

All in all, it was a really, really fun episode that had us howling with laughter.

[where-theres-smoak-2]

Fandom Thoughts

First thing I want to say is this post is just me speculating and expressing my thought on things. I’m sure many people will disagree with me or have a different interpretation and that’s ok. I could be totally way off base with everything I say but like I said this is just my interpretation of and my thoughts on things, also just want to say that I mean no disrespect to anyone or anyone’s fandom so yeah.  

So we all know that B*ghead is the largest fandom and the most popular ship. There’s no lying about that. I think it became so popular out of a combination of things, I think Cole’s popularity from his time on the Disney channel did bring across a lot of fans. I mean I could be totally wrong about this but I do feel like alot of the B*ghead fans were originally Cole fans. I’ll be honest, I didn’t watch Riverdale when it first aired, it was about 6 episodes in when my sister told me it was a good show about a murder mystery and that I’d never guess who was on it? Cody from suite life. I myself originally started watching the show because I was curious about the fact that Cole was on it and then stuck around because I got invested in the mystery and because from that very first episode I was hooked by Barchie and saw so much potential with them. I do think another contributing factor to the B*ghead ship’s popularity was the fact that the actors themselves became a couple and so people weren’t just invested in the ship but in the actors’ relationship too. I also do think that the fandom was very ‘loud’ on social media and there was alot of engagement. All of that combined with the fact that they did have some cute scenes together I think was the perfect storm to creating a popular ship.  

However V*rchie doesn’t actually seem that popular to me. In fact from what I can tell its a much smaller fandom and I would argue that after B*ghead the most popular ship out of the three is Barchie. Barchie has always won out in fan polls against v*rchie and I feel like I see more comments from the Barchie fandom than I do the V*rchie fandom. To me it has always been more of a B*ghead vs Barchie thing than a V*rchie vs Barchie thing. It always felt more like V*rchie got support because it kept Archie out of the way of B*ghead. In fact I see quite alot of support for Veggie and for Archosie and alot of people admit that they liked those parings over V*rchie. I myself loved Veggie together far more than V*rchie and I didn’t mind Archosie I thought they were cute, I didn’t like them as much as I did Veggie but I still thought they had some really nice moments together. I think after Betty, I liked Archie with Josie best. 

But here’s another thing to bear in mind. Whilst Riverdale and its ships are popular online and get alot of chatter on social media and has its fandoms which are very vocal on social media, there is also the general audience. These are the people who just watch the show every week, they don’t talk about it on social media, they don’t look up interviews and obsess over every little crumb of info the writers put out trying to figure out what might happen in the next episode. They are the silent part of the audience, I suppose you could call them. And I would say that this part of the audience far outnumbers the part that are involved in the fandom side of the show. Of course its very difficult to really know what this side of the audience really thinks of the show because they aren’t out on social media telling people what they think. The best way is to know what they think is to look at the ratings and the netflix streams. 

I mean I know that the ratings don’t really matter a whole lot when it comes to whether or not the network will renew a show and that streams mean more nowadays anyway. But in my opinion I do think the ratings can still give you an idea on how interested the audience is in the show. The way I see it is that if I am really excited by a show, I spend all week looking forward to the next episode and you can bet your ass that when that show’s next episode airs I am sitting down in front of that tv and watching it live if I can, because I don’t want to wait a second longer than I have to when I want to see it. With this season all the Barchies know that the most live viewed episodes of the season were 5x05 and 5x06, the two episodes that were promoted with Barchie. The lowest two episodes not just for this season but in the shows history were 5x08 and 5x09. These were the two episodes that had the V*rchie and B*ghead content. 

I also discovered this website flixpatrol that tracks the top tens on Netflix in various countries each day of the week. You can also look up specific shows to see where in the top ten they come each day of the week and I think I found something interesting. Now obviously because its week by week I could only really get information for episode 9.  

So what can this information tell us. Well episode 9 aired on the 24th and appeared on Netflix in alot of countries on the 25th. This chart shows where in the top 10 Riverdale fell this week, I’ve outlined those two dates in red. A dash indicates that it didn’t appear in the top ten that day. Now we can see that Riverdale most definitely does better on Netflix than it does in the live views and is consistently in the top ten in most countries. However, as I said, I did notice something. On the days it appears on Netflix we can see  that in most countries it doesn’t appear in the top ten and in the countries it does it is very low on the list coming in at mostly, 8,9 or 10. To me this suggests, like with the live ratings, that people just aren’t rushing to watch it. Some of this can be explained by the fact that it airs on a week night and it does fall high on the list on the Saturday after it airs on Netflix which could suggest that people are waiting until the weekend to watch it. But again, maybe its just me, but when I really want to watch a show, when I am really excited by a show, I will stay up late or I will get up early to watch it. I mean when 5x05 and 5x06 aired I was up early on the Thursday morning refreshing my Netflix page over and over waiting for the episode to become available because I was that excited to watch the episode.

*Edit: I’ve learnt that I have read this chart completely wrong as there is a one day lag, so the ratings on the 26th show that people were tuning in on the 25th which is the day it becomes available on Netflix in those countries. So ignore everything I just said in the paragraph above. I am going to keep the chart in for those who are interested in those numbers though. But yeah apologies for that.*   

To me this doesn’t really line up with the whole B*ghead is the most popular ship. I mean with B*ghead being the most popular ship then this last episode should be the most watched and I’ll admit I was a little surprised that it didn’t have more views. So why is that, we know B*ghead is popular so why aren’t we seeing it in the views. Well I think the answer is whilst they are popular, whilst it has a large fandom, its not popular or big enough to save the show by itself. And to be clear this is just my opinion which I’ve based on what I’ve seen people saying on social media and in YouTube reactions and reviews and from this data from the amount of people tuning into the show. But I think as much as many people like B*ghead, more people dislike/ are bored of V*rchie, are bored of the repetitive plotlines, are getting frustrated with the nonsensical plots. I think it has just gotten to the point where the things they don’t like about the show, or the things they’ve become bored with, far outweigh any appeal one ship might have. Basically I just get this overwhelming sense that people have lost any excitement they felt at this show. And this goes beyond any ships, whilst I do think alot of people tune in because of ships, there is more factoring into it than just that. I feel like all the excitement that came with the time jump and with seeing something new with Barchie and seeing something new with them being adults and dealing with adult themes, has worn off. It happened so fast too. I mean after episode 8 aired it was like a dementor had come along and sucked all the happiness out of the fandom. All of that energy that had existed before was just gone in the space of 45 mins. 

But here’s my question. I did notice a little bit of that energy come back when the promo for ep 10 was released and it showed that shot of Jabitha together. Again I do think that alot of people like this idea of Jabitha together or at least are intrigued by it. Although I know there are quite a few B*ghead fans who think the romance is unnecessary. But again I think this interest in Jabitha is because it is something new and therefore it is something interesting. I’ve also seen some Veggie fans creeping out of the woodwork over the last few weeks. So what I am wondering is if the show decided to go the route of Barchie, Veggie, Jabitha, Choni and Kangs would that generate enough buzz and would all those smaller fandoms together be enough to revive the show a bit. Especially if they couple those ships with some interesting new storylines to go with them as well as keeping the interactions between characters varied. I mean I am not expecting the views to suddenly jump up massively back to what they used to be in like season 2 but I do wonder if it would be enough to breathe life back into the fandom again.   

[jasperwhitcock]

Favorite Twilight blogs?

i’m always ready to answer this ask again because i love mentioning everyone i admire hehe. here are my fave blogs, my friends, & why they’re the best. ♡

@bellasredchevy ugh i love kae. do i have the power to appoint a ruler of the renaissance? no. but if i could... it’d be kae bc all her takes are the takes. i think her answers to asks are always either really funny and witty or just really smart. she’s super kind but she’s also a very no bullshit person because she’ll tell it like it is to shitty anons. she also has really cool life experiences that she’ll very casually mention and you’re like i’m sorry what. u worked w... tigers??? why can’t i let that go this is literally not the first time i’ve brought that up lmao. anyways, if kae told me to jump off a cliff (recreationally and recklessly), i’d do it. 

@inthemiddleofmymidnight i think kim is the first friend i made on here. she’s wonderful and insanely funny. maybe i’m just easy to make laugh but every story she tells truly makes me laugh out loud... and i’ll laugh again thinking about it later. she is truly a meme queen. her posts... chef’s kiss. also she will put team edward/team jacob shirts in ur animal crossing able’s sisters if u ask. i love u kimmie im ur biggest fan. also like me, kim would be afraid to dive off the cliff if we were cliff diving but then she’d be the one to PUSH me sdhjfhsj i just love her so much. her friendship literally means so much to me!!

@bellaskhakis nayana is the type to go from trashing edward relentlessly to simping for edward in 2 seconds. in real life she’s probably stressing over school but mentally she is in forks, wa in bella & edward’s lil cottage reading fanfiction. if u need recommendations, she’s got u. she’s a great listener & friend & her humor is like wonderfully chaotic. she’ll cry but then she’ll take that energy and drunk liveblog the twilight movies or buy a bunch of plants. if ur friends w her, she will send u all the funny tiktoks & that is LOVE. nay would think she would want to cliff dive but then need to talk herself into it while everyone else goes first and then realize she was the last person up there and freak out but then dive anyways

@cullen-collective omg kaity is such a great person to talk to. she’s like jacob – she’s an easy person to talk to. she listens but also really makes u feel comfortable & like u’ve been friends forever. kaity don’t read the rest of this paragraph i don’t want u to feel self conscious/overly self aware hehe BUT my fave part of kaity’s blogs as i’ve said to her before is like the literal stream of consciousness happening in her tags. why do i feel like kaity would run and JUMP. would she do a cannonball??? i would like to see it

@teamjacobthot my love for dij... unconditional. irrevocable. dee is just like COOL. why did i feel so lame saying that. she just has the best energy and i know i keep calling everyone funny but really dee is FUNNY. like kaity, she’s also the kind of person that i feel like you just automatically get along with & feel comfortable around. obviously we’re all here for fun but i feel like dee’s blog really embodies that fun like no other because either in her posts or notes or answers to asks... it’s the most chaotic unexpected topics that will truly kill u. im thinking of that freaking diarrhea ask she got that she just reblogged again... cursed. but i love her. look i’m not saying she WOULD bc i’m sure it’s probably much scarier once ur actually up there but i feel like dee would also be the instigator with cliff diving and do some kind of trick like a flip idk if she really would but MAYBE

@howlonghaveyoubeenseventeen emma is the ultimate sweetie. always down to talk abt cute dogs or painting or disney channel movies or how jacob is superior to all. she’s just precious and kind but ready to THROW DOWN for u in one second. i literally have been laughing at the same joke for like two weeks but when i said two hurricanes looked like they were coming towards houston she said “good thing i have two fists” shdusdjdkd. emma is the type of friend who would remind u that if u really don't want to jump off the cliff, don’t feel peer pressured bc u don’t have to. but then if u built up the courage, she’d be the one to hold ur hand and jump with u. ok i’m retiring the cliff diving thing i’m sorry i really RAN with that.

@kaquiche man i love taryn. i feel like taryn’s meme usage is always perfect & also she would definitely save ur life. she does ARCHERY ok she would protect us all in the event of a zombie apocalypse. i’m literally fighting the urge to say FUNNY again but it’s not my fault if everyone makes me LAUGH here. taryn’s one of the first people i remember seeing interact w my posts 🥺 she been supporting me since DAY ONE baby. i just love her. she’ll hype u up. she’ll always make u CRY with her twilight video edits. seriously if u want that emo twilight content to make u FEEL SOMETHING... this is who to follow.

@bellas-dumptruck-ass i love elaine and she’s going to laugh at me again but i really think elaine is so smart!!! like a genius... my brain could not process the info that she’s literally studying like it’s no big deal. elaine is so sweet ugh i keep saying that but everyone is just really super kindhearted here ok!! her username KILLS me. like i think this is truly peak comedy. her brand... it’s everything to me. classic memes & great tags.

@phil-dwyer-stan-account addison is SO SO nice and understanding and sensitive. if nayana is in bella & edward’s cottage reading, addison is in there baking bread and cookies and brownies. she’s beautiful and sweet and silly and has the disney channel TEA you didn’t know you needed. she’s another person that will instantly befriend you. she’ll go out of her way to really let you know that she admires you & is excited to be ur friend. the actual definition of a sweetheart. is she the real life esme?? she might be

@volturialice g... i’m lowkey her biggest fan. name a post that didn’t go off...i’ll wait. like literally all of her memes will make u laugh. u know what?? g IS the twilight renaissance. her latest midnight sun posts have especially been making me die and if you’re new here, she’s probably like one of the first blogs u have to follow. every time i see her username in my notifications... my heart is FAT 💗 also she writes fanfics so if ur looking for twilight fanfiction, she has a bunch & also a rec!!

@leahclearwaterdefensesquad kate is so kind & one of my go to people for tag games, but kate is ALWAYS providing the leah content that we NEED. also the lesbian twilight ship moodboards and PLAYLISTS. i also really appreciate how kate & @vampireguarddogs are always some of the first blogs i see that boost a lot of important talking points related to the series on racism. bc if you’re going to be in this fandom, there’s a lot you need to make sure you’re educated on since this series is problematic. like we’re all here to be nostalgic and have fun but we can’t do that whilst ignoring relevant conversations. dee & kae also always have great takes in these discussions too!

@edytheelizabethcullen ok i’m going to try & wrap this up bc i’ve been going on forever and there’s a lot of blogs i really love & admire, but i’ll finish by saying that alex is an actual angel and so intelligent and charming and u will have great conversations about the series with her!!

[zwritesstuff]

Writing a First Draft

I’ve seen a lot of advice posts that encourage writing a “bad” first draft, or saying that the point of the first draft isn’t to be “good” just to be done, but I have yet to see any examples of what that actually means (which is unfortunate because for a lot of first-time writers that may just mean that their best effort on a first draft isn’t “good enough”), so that’s what I’m here for! The ultimate advocate of ugly writing, babey! Let’s write some “bad” first drafts!!

Forewarning that this is going to be difficult for you perfectionists out there (same hat tho!!!), but really, if you’re looking to finish a first draft within a reasonable time frame (and not continue to rewrite the beginning 50 times to get there, only to be disappointed when the next scenes aren’t as “good” as the beginning), then this really is the way to go. Perfectionism comes in super handy in later drafts, but it’s a real burden in the first draft, and I really really relate to that. What I find that helps keep my perfectionism in check while I’m drafting is to keep a separate Word doc open (or a notebook and pen at hand) to jot down new ideas or things that have changed throughout the draft. Putting a page number down next to the notation will save your life as well. Your future self will thank you!

Okay, so let’s get into it! You have an idea, and you need to get that first draft out before you lose motivation or move on to a shiny new WIP idea. What’s that first draft going to look like?

Write the scenes you’re excited about first. If you’re someone who, like myself, needs to write things in chronological order, then write these scenes in chronological order - but! if you have the conclusion figured out, then write it now, yes, even before that one bit in the middle you’re not sure about. Is it likely that some details in these scenes will change as you keep writing different parts of the book? Yes! Do it anyway! Anything you write will be helpful for later drafts, so write those scenes!!! Plus, if you start with what you’re excited about, you’ll want to keep writing even after they’re finished, because your brain will just keep generating other super cool ideas for those in-between scenes. And yeah, there will definitely be filler scenes to write, but you can probably worry about those in the next draft.

If you’re on a roll, don’t worry about punctuation, grammar, or spelling. I mean it! If those red squiggles in Word bother you, turn them off (they’re really only semi-helpful for editing, and we’re not doing that right now). If you write faster and think better using “internet grammar” (minimal/excessive punctuation, no capitalization, weird spelling, etc.), then do that! If it helps you get words on the page, it’s worth doing.

If you’re not on a roll, try putting some space between what you’ve written and what you need to write. For me, that frequently means hitting enter (even mid-sentence if I suddenly get stuck), typing “monkey,” and then hitting enter again, as many times as it takes for my brain to reboot and remember what the hell I was going for. If that means I have a chain of 20 monkeys in the middle of a paragraph, so be it. They get to hang out there until I come back in draft two and delete them. 

I’ve also written “uhhhhhh” and “oh fuck now what” several times in a first draft. It happens. It’s easier to write in a way that mirrors your thought process, so just do what works. Use memes in your prose to keep it moving - it’ll make future you laugh when you go back through on draft two!

Don’t be afraid to change major pieces of plot - but don’t you dare go back and rewrite earlier pieces to match! Let’s say you’re at the end of act one and you revealed some tragic detail about your MC’s backstory, but now you’re in the middle of act two and you’ve realized that it no longer fits your idea of MC and you no longer want it to be true. Simply make a brief note of it and keep writing like that scene in act one never happened. Deleting, rewriting, and repurposing are all for later drafts! The goal on the first draft is literally just to reach the end - and it’s inevitable that you’ll find and change the story along the way.

Forget about foreshadowing. No matter how detailed of an outliner you are, the fact is that in the first draft you really don’t actually know what’s going to happen yet in your book (see point 5). So forget about trying to foreshadow. Spell out what’s happening plain as day - because the first draft is just one long exposition dump to aide you in future drafts. If you get halfway through and a sudden twist or weird piece of backstory jumps out at you, write it in as if you had foreshadowed, even though you haven’t yet. Make a note of it, and maybe even note where you could foreshadow this in the next few drafts, but keep moving forward. 

Changing perspectives is fine even if it goes against how you know you want your final draft to be. If you have a scene in mind that you know you need to include, but you have no idea how MC would react during it, but you know how your side character would react, write the scene from the side character’s perspective. You can think about MC’s POV in that scene later - again, the point is just to get it written, so if switching POVs gets you through the scene, do it.

Ultimately, this is what people mean when they say your first draft is going to be “ugly.” It’s going to be a little (or a lot) messy. But that’s okay. The struggle of the beginning writer is realizing that your first draft is not going to look like anything you’ve read before - because those are final drafts. And to the gifted writers who breezed through school (like I did) by submitting their first draft essays for grading - that’s not going to work here. Every time you rewrite a piece, it gets better. If you try to make your first draft perfect, you will just end up frustrated and disappointed at the time you wasted, because you’ll end up reworking 80% of it or more in the subsequent drafts. Your writing style will change and improve, and your knowledge will grow, and every time you revisit a draft, that will be reflected.

So write that ugly draft. Insert so many author’s notes mid-paragraph that you look like an early 2000s fanfic writer. Contradict previous scenes like you’re constructing the most elaborate Winchester Mystery House -esque draft the world has ever seen, complete with paragraphs that lead to nowhere and mysterious monkey chains cutting sentences in half. 

And then, in the second draft, make it look as though the first draft never happened.

[lalahbug]

Hidden Emotions - Levi x Reader

Fandom: Attack on Titan Word Count: 2,888

My Masterlist

Warnings/disclaim: general I wrote this before I knew about the lifespan of a Titan shifter, so that doesn’t exist in this certain fanfic, okay? Okay.

Author’s Note: continued under story Originally posted on DeviantArt, same username, on 03/05/2017. Revamped/edited in 2020.

___ is a blank for your name/oc/whatever you prefer Written in 3rd person

Line/header is to separate paragraphs to indicate time skips, as Tumblr hates my formatting. I do not own it, found it as a free vector to use though.

Story under cut

          “State your name and business.” Levi droned as someone knocked at his door.

          “___, Erwin told me you wanted to see me.”

          “Enter.”

          ___ pushed the door open and closed it lightly, she walked up to his desk and stood, until Levi glanced up at her and gestured to her to sit.

          “Erwin said you had something you needed to tell me.”

          “Yes.” Levi kept writing for a moment until he was done with his sentence. Oh, how he loved her patience. He put down his pen then leaned back crossing his arms across his chest. “You’ve been in the Scout Regiment, for about 4 years, correct?” She nodded. “You haven’t died but you haven’t really done anything notable,” she nodded in agreement.

          ’She talks less than I do. She always does her job, keeps to herself.’ Levi thought to himself.

          “Erwin and I believe you have more potential. We need you to be better. Starting Monday, you’ll be a Squad Leader. Our new recruits will be under you until they die or are put into another squad.”

          “Thank you very much for this opportunity,” Levi was about to say, you’re welcome. “But, I would like to decline if I can. I do not believe I would be a good leader. I’m a pawn, maybe a rook. I’m no knight such as yourself and Hange. I do not believe I could be better. I apologize.”

          Levi just stared at her. He was not expecting this at all. Her eyes were as deadpanned as his. He never knew she had self-doubt like this, is this why she never did anything notable? Because she figured she can’t do more?

          “You are a Squad Leader as of Monday. It has already been decided. If you have issues, you may ask any Squad Leader or Erwin. You will meet your squad Monday morning in the mess hall.”

          “Yes, sir.” He saw a glint in her eyes, it was either worry or fear, it was too fast for him to tell.

          “Then you’re dismissed,“ she nodded and stood up, pushed in her chair.

          “Levi!” Hange busted into his room. “Oh, ___!” Hange hugged her, causing her to stiffen.

          “Afternoon, Hange. Please let go.”

          “I’m your best friend, who you tell everything to and I can’t even hug you!” Hange whined.

          “We can talk later, I would like to go to my room.”

          “Did Shorty say something weird? Like he loves you?”

          “Oi!”

          “Hange, even if Captain did. Nothing would happen, you know that.” ___ pulled herself out of Hange’s arm. “I’m a Squad Leader as of Monday. So I would like to get some materials. I will see you later.”

          “Oh! That’s awesome! Let me know if you need anything!”

          Levi’s eyes widened a bit. ___ actually smiled full-heartedly at Hange.

          “Of course, Hange. I always go to you,” with that, she left. As much as Levi hates Hange, he liked having her around when he was with ___. Hange brought a side to her that Levi never saw.

          “What the fuck was that about me loving her?” Levi spat at Hange.

          “Well, you do. You need to start dropping hints. She’s so clueless. You’ve loved her for like three years, you always stare at her! Come on, Shorty!”

          “Shut up, Shitty Glasses! God, I regret you ever figuring that out,” Levi pinched the bridge of his nose. “What did she mean, nothing would happen, even if I told her?”

          “Oh that. Well, she doesn’t want a relationship. She doesn’t see a point since she’s in the Regiment. Knowing that she’ll die and leave her lover behind.” Hange paused and looked down. “The thought of it, makes her almost cry. It’s the first time I ever saw her eyes water.”

          “I doubt she’ll die anytime soon. She’s the only one who ever survives when her squad dies. She’s outlived many of her Squad Leaders.”

          “It’s a bit strange if you think about it. How does she always survive? It’s like she’s a titan like Eren.” Hange chuckled a bit, before realizing that wasn’t actually too bad of an explanation.

          “If she is, why would she be here for so long? You’ve known her since you were both young adults.”

          “Huh.” Hange tapped her chin. “I want to ask her now. I wonder if she’ll lie or not. Her eyes do a weird shake like thing when she lies or is nervous.”

          “Let me know how that goes, now get out,” Levi grumbled while getting back to his paperwork. Hange left his office, closing the door. “How would I drop hints when she’s so impervious with her emotions?” he mumbled to himself.

          Levi was walking towards ___’s room. Not that he would ever admit it to anyone, but he had been going to her room every night. To check on her, make sure she was okay. Sometimes he would sit in her room if she was tossing and turning.

          Cracking her door open to see if she was in bed, for once in the past 5 weeks, she wasn’t. Also, a first, her room was a mess, papers and books were everywhere. Confused, Levi walked into her room, picking up one of the books, it was about leadership.

          “She is actually freaking out. That’s cute,” Levi placed the book back where it was, ignoring the mess, he went to go find her. It’s not his mess to clean, he’d make her clean it instead.

          She was pacing outside with a book in her hand, she flipping through the pages. She made a small groan before leaning back on a tree and sliding down it to sit. Staring up at the canopy, stars peeping through the leaves.

          “Why aren’t you in bed?” ___ snapped her gaze over to Levi.

          “Evening, Heichou.” Levi paused as he noticed a slight blush on her cheeks before she looked back up. “The sky is beautiful tonight, it’s been awhile since I’ve been outside this late,“ she mainly whispered to herself.

          “You haven’t answered my question.” Levi stood in front of her, she looked from the sky to him.

          “I know, as I am now. I can’t be a Squad Leader. I don’t have the confidence, the only time I can be aggressive is when I notice someone about to die. I do everything I can. I even lost my foot that one time. I can’t do this on my own. Hange is going to help me more tomorrow, but I figured I could do my own studying and research in the meantime. I got upset at myself, so I came outside to read.”

          Levi stared at her, as she rambled, this is the most he had ever heard her talk in one go. Maybe this is the side that Hange always got to see. The one Hange said he’d love. Her sweet and worrying, a bit scared but wanting to fight side.

          “Why?” she looked at Levi.

          “What?”

          “What do you guys see in me? Just because I can stay alive, doesn’t mean I am worth anything.”

          “___.” Levi squatted down in front of her. “Being able to stay alive out there, is a rare thing. You’ve got something that makes it so you fight harder. Erwin wants you to pass that one to others. So we can keep more people.”

          “What if I can’t?”

          “Then we’ll keep losing people. You can make great split decisions, many which have saved us before. You’ll be a fine leader.”

          “Do you really think so, Levi?” ___ sat up more, looking into his eyes, trying to read him. 

          Levi was so happy to hear his name roll off her tongue, for the first time. His heart twinged at her cute, sad, worried (e/c) eyes.

          “Yes,” he gave her a small smirk, which caused her to blush, lean back and look back up. Levi noticed this. Oh, how he wanted to kiss her.

          “Thank you,” she whispered.

          As Levi leaned towards her, before something clicked in his mind. “Early, you said you lost a foot. Which one?”

          She looked back at him, her eyes shook slightly. “My right, I meant almost lost. Sorry about the confusion.” Her normal tone was back, she was closing back up. Levi studied her for a moment, she was lying.

          “You suck at lying.”

          “If I lost a foot, it wouldn’t be in my boot, right now.”

          Levi put a hand on her arm, in case she tried to escape. “Unless you’re a titan, like Eren.”

          She glared at him for a moment. “You’re being stupid,“ she smacked his hand and stood up. “I’m going to bed.” Levi pushed her up against the tree, pinning her by her wrist. “Get off me.”

          “Stop lying to me.”

          “What difference does it make to you? Whether I am a titan or not? I’m still ___.”

          “If you’re a titan, you’ve been deceiving us all, you could have helped. You have let all of us down, by letting hundreds die.” Levi spat at her. Her eyes widened. “Plus, you’ve outlived everyone in your squads. How have you been doing that? What are you hiding?” Levi growled at her when she didn’t answer him. “You’re a fucking disgrace,” Levi gripped her by the front of her shirt, starting to walk and dragging her.

          “What are you doing?”

          “We’re going to Erwin. Now.”

          “I’m sorry.” Levi turned his head to look at her, meeting her fist.

          By the time he opened his eyes. She was gone.

          Levi burst into Hange’s room. “___’s gone!” Hange jumped out of bed.

          “What do you mean gone?!”

          “I confronted her. She’s a titan. When dragging her to Erwin. She punched me and disappeared.”

          “Why didn’t you just talk to her about it? You’ve scared her off, Shorty! We could have talked it out then talked to Erwin!” Hange was shaking Levi by the shoulders. Before letting go and quickly pulling on some shoes.

          “Where are you going?!” Levi chased after her.

          “To find, ___! She’s my best friend; titan, and lair, but she’s still my dearest friend! And if you truly loved her, you wouldn’t have been such an ass!” Hange ran out of the building. Levi groaned as his heart ached and chased after Hange. 

          ___ was sitting on top of the Rose Wall. Staring down at the titans below, out in the distance. The wind was blowing her hair around. She wanted to jump down and transform, run far away. But at the same time, she wanted to run into Hange’s arms, cling to her. She put her hands over her ears and curled up, trying to not cry. She had no right to cry, she had lied to everyone for almost 15 years. She brought this upon herself, she just wanted to be a human and live and die among them. She had never thought of helping them, there wasn’t an urge until 5 years ago. But even if she would have tried to help, she probably would have been killed. That is what she had always thought until Eren came along. She always tried to help, only transforming when she knew there was no other choice. 

          Screams of her fallen comrades flooded her mind, she broke down crying. Curling up even tighter, rocking back and forth. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder. Hange was kneeling next to her, with a small smile.

          ___ nearly jumped on Hange, crying and clinging to her. Of course, Hange just held ___. Hange knew all of her hiding spots. Now that Hange knew her best friend was a titan, this certain hiding spot, made a lot more sense. 

          Levi stared at ___, he had never seen her cry, saw her broken looks but never a tear. He could hear her gasping for air as she clung to Hange, mumbling sorry over and over. She’s beautiful, even while crying.

          ___ pushed away from Hange, sitting on her knees and rubbing her eyes, trying to stop crying. “I’m sorry I never told you. I could have helped you. I could have helped humanity. I’m so sorry. I lied to you for nearly 15 years. I don’t deserve a friend like you,” she was starting to hiccup from crying so much. Hange threw a glare over her shoulder to Levi, who looked away from her glare.

          “You’re my best friend. I understand why you never told me or anyone. If you would have when our world wasn’t getting worse. They likely would have killed you.” Hange looked at ___, who was still trying to stop herself from crying. “Until everything with Eren, even if you would have told me. I would have kept it secret with you, in fear of you being killed. You’ve never hurt anyone that didn’t attack you first. Even titans. You’re the sweetest girl I’ve ever known. In fear of letting anyone down, you’ve held back and been under the radar in fear of having to explain yourself.” Hange hugged ___ as the tears finally stopped.

          “I can’t get their screams out of my head. My last squad. An abnormal attacked, I didn’t want to lose them. After two got ate, I transformed. But they ran from me in fear, which made them die. Even at my strongest, I fail. I’m such a disgrace, I can’t do this Hange. I should have never entered the city.”

          “I know the screams won’t stop. You’ve always had them, since your first expedition. You’ve been telling me that for years.” Hange rubbed her back. Levi just stared at her. Feeling guilty for the words he had spat at his love beforehand.

          “Hange, I want to die now.”

          Hange smack ___ across the face. “Don’t you say that shit!” ___ laughed a bit, Hange smiled. ___ then noticed Levi and crawled behind Hange so he could no longer see her. Levi clicked his tongue before walking over and gripping ___ by the arm. Pulling her to her feet, his tight grip making her squeak a bit.

          “You punched me really hard you know.”

          “You were dragging me off. I claim self-defense.”

          “You still have to pay for the pain you did to my head.”

          “Fine, I’ll clean the stables.”

          “No.” With one tug, he crashed his lips onto hers. She squeaked and pushed him away. Hange clapped.

          “Finally!” Hange cheered.

          “Shut up!”

          “What?” ___ looked at both of them.

          Hange popped up and kissed ___ on the cheek. “When you’re done. I want to talk before you see Erwin. I’ll leave you to lover boy, for now,“  Hange walked off.

          “I am very confused.” ___ glanced at Hange walking away then at Levi’s hand on her arm. “Can you let go?”

          “Will you stay?” she gave him a small nod and he let go of her arm. They looked into each other’s eyes for a moment. They were basically the same height, so Levi just leaned forward and pressed his lips softly to hers for a small second. 

          “I thought you hated me.”

          “Because of what I said earlier?” she looked away. “I’m not good with my emotions. I’ve loved you for 3 years. I was about to kiss you before my fucking brain clicked what you said.” Levi put a hand on her face, pressing his cooling hand against her warm cheek that Hange had smacked. “I’m sorry. Let’s head back,” she nodded, staring at him for a moment before heading down the wall.

          While walking back, Levi wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

          ___ looked at Levi, with a confused look.

          “Would you fucking say something instead of just staring at me? You’re starting to piss me off.”

          “You love me?”

          He clicked his tongue. “That’s why I kissed you.”

          “I thought you knew about me being a titan and no longer trusted me. That’s why you were checking on me every night.” Levi started blushing a bit. “But you did that because you love me?”

          Levi coughed. “So you knew? And yes that’s why.” He stopped and stood in front of her. Putting a hand on her cheek again, running a thumb over her cheekbone and smirked as she started blushing. She glanced at his lips then back at his eyes. “Oi, brat.” She raised an eyebrow at him.

          “Brat? You’re like 5 years older than me,“ she scoffed at him.

          Levi rolled his eyes before kissing her, moving his hand to the back of her neck, to deepen the kiss. ___ bowed her body into his, wrapping her arms around his neck. Levi pulled away a bit. 

          “You still haven’t really replied to my confession.”

          “I like you.”

          Levi clicked his tongue in frustration. “Fucking brat.”

          She gave him a small smirk before giving him a light kiss. “Old perv.”

          “Tch.” picked her up, throwing her over his shoulder. “I’ll teach you how to respect your elders.”

          “Put me down!” She ordered him.

          “I don’t take orders from you, bitch.” Levi smacked her ass, earning a small yelp.

          “I have a feeling my lesson, isn’t going to be something I would ever learn in school.”

          “Your lesson is only to be taught by me. The lesson you need to learn right now, can’t be taught with words… only with action.” A small smirk pulled at the corner of his lips as he heard the female make a loud gulp.

Author’s Note: continued Also Levi is a bit OOC. I really disliked this fanfic when I wrote it. But it got positive feedback years ago, so I guess it’s decent but still. I am sorry for this shit.      

[krisrix]

Hey! I was just wondering if you had any advice for a first time fanfic writer? I haven't done any creative writing since I was twelve and have no clue where to start, but I got an idea for a wayward son au that I cannot get out of my head!!

My friend, I am with you!!! I did very little prose writing from ages 15-30 (only RP, which is not quite the same, since you’re only writing your character a little at a time, always in reaction to the other players). Then I read Carry On was like “I have to write a nightmares/bed-sharing fic” and just went fucking hog wild.

I’ve got one big suggestion, and then a whole bunch of less important ones.

Here’s the big suggestion:

Chase your bliss! This is a hobby above all else, and it’s something we’re all supposed to be having fun with. A little stress is good, but if you feel it’s getting out of hand, take a step back and reevaluate what you’re trying to get out of the process.

I’m a creature that needs constant validation, and sometimes that can be paralyzing—there’s a lot of worrying about whether or not people will like what I’m working on... But here’s the secret: they will. 

Someone somewhere will like what you made. Even if they never let you know. You gotta have faith that they’re out there.

Maybe it’s not as many people as you wanted. Maybe you even get some mean responses. But no matter what, there will always be at least one person out there who is fucking thrilled you made the thing you made and shared it with the world.

Keep yourself and that one person in mind. They’re your not-so-imaginary friend throughout this journey. Create for the two of you and no one else.

Okay, now here are the more technical suggestions:

Finished, not perfect. Repeat this to yourself forever, ad nauseam. Tattoo it inside your eyelids. You will never internalize this enough. You will never internalize this enough.

Don’t edit as you go, just keep writing! Going back to reread in order to get your bearings or see which trains of thought you’d like to follow is all fine; try to limit it to that. The key idea is to get all your thoughts out and onto the paper/screen. Then, you can edit. (I personally am terrible at this. I edit constantly. About 75% of my time “writing” is actually obsessively editing. Do as I say, not as I do.) And relatedly...

Get your ideas out as fast as possible. This can mean many things. You could make an outline. You could write with dialogue only to start. You could jump around and write scenes as they come to you. Whatever you’d like. So long as you just keep writing. Because whatever it is you’re holding in your head that you sweaaaarrrr you’ll not forget when the time comes? Buddy, you’re gonna forget it.

Do writing sprints. When you’re feeling demotivated or like your brain is filled with cotton, try setting a timer for 15 minutes and don’t stop writing until the timer goes off. Maybe whatever you wrote during that sprint is garbage—that’s okay! It’s about loosening your mind and getting the gears spinning. Like how artists do warm-up sketches! It’s about inspiring new trains of thought or getting you in the zone. You don’t need to post it or keep it! And speaking of not needing to keep everything you write...

Don’t be afraid to kill your darlings. That is, if you wrote something and it’s just not working, remove it! Sometimes we write ourselves into a corner. Or we chase down an idea that’s awesome but doesn’t fit with the plot or mood we were going for. I’ve had times where that’s happened and I ran with it, and it worked out really well! Other times, not so much. In Limit Break chapter 3, I kept trying to cram something in that just was not working, and I wound up only stressing myself out and wasting a lot of time. Eventually, I pulled that part out and set it aside. I’ve got a graveyard document for all the bits I’ve scraped from various fics. Maybe I’ll reuse those bits one day, or maybe they will forever rot there. Who knows! It doesn’t matter. Not every word, or paragraph, or chapter is going to be good. Not every idea is precious. Sometimes you need to recognize that, cut your losses, and try anew.

If you can’t think of a word/spell/response/reasoning/anything, use a placeholder. I type ELEPHANT in all caps whenever I’m struggling to come up with something. Then, using the “find and replace” feature, I’ll go back and fill these sections in once I’ve got all the other stuff written—or once the solution comes to me while I’m in the middle of some unrelated task, like doing the dishes. I wait way too long until caving to this advice; I’ll stare at the screen and wrack my brain for an hour. Don’t be like me. Don’t let your momentum die because you’re stuck! Pop in a placeholder and carry on!

You should probably use a beta. I had no beta on my first fic nor on 5 Times They Half-Arsed It (too embarrassed LOL). Otherwise, I always use the brilliant @carryonsimoncarryonbaz. Reach out to your friend group for help—or come DM me! Having another pair of eyes (or two! or three!) look at your work is pretty much always a good thing. Betas can fill a few different roles: they’ll help you spot spelling and grammar stuff (no matter how careful you think you were); they can point out inconsistencies or things that need clarification; they can find weird word choices; they can help you untangle problem areas or push you in new directions, etc. And they can be your cheering squad and offer you encouragement throughout!!

Be upfront with your beta(s) about how much you’d like/need from them, so that they can best help you. Constructive criticism is how we all get better, but sometimes it’s just not about that, you know? Sometimes you just want someone to be at your side during the process. (Other than your not-so-imaginary friend, of course~)

But really, above all else, chase your bliss.

I hope any of this helps! 🖤 Come chat with me again any time. Good luck! o7

[lordabovehelpme]

Hola! I hope you day has been good so far! :)

I know I am not the only one to feel this but I adore your blog! I, too, and a fellow writer, but I was wondering how did you gain an audience? How did you start from your first post? Did you wait for requests? Or did you just jump right in?

Sorry, that was a lot of questions, but I was just curious as I’m trying to start up my blog! I really look up to you and your blog! 🥰🤩🥸

-🪐

Hello, hon!

First off, let me just tell you how overjoyed I am at the fact that you thought to ask me. When I first read this I had the biggest smile on my face. It means so much to me that you look up to me. Literally, I am crying over here!

Second of all, I wish I had some really good thought out advice for you. But I really don’t, however, I will give you the best advice that I can.

The first time I ever wrote fanfic, it was an idea that had been plaguing my mind for days. I tried to find other fics that would satisfy me, but I just couldn’t. So I sat down and practically said “Fine, I’ll do it myself.” I had no experience writing but I tried to give it my all. I don’t know why, (But I am thankful I did), but I decided to set up a Tumblr account and post it. I had no expectations of it going anywhere.

However, I woke up the next day with so much love and support being shared over my fic. That is the one thing that has really blown me away; How amazing every single person is in this fandom. They offer so much kindness that it has become mindblowing.

Now, what I do when I write is, as cliche as it sounds, I just write. Whatever comes to my mind, I put it down on paper. (Well really a google doc but we don’t need to know the details) Or if I am laying in bed and something pops into my mind, I write it down on any paper I can find. Now, I just have a pen and notebook that permanently stays on my night desk. Oo, also, whatever you write down doesn’t have to be elaborate, just whatever will make you remember your ideas.

One piece of advice is, when you are writing and you seem to be in a good flow, don’t let little details stop you. If you have no idea where to go next, or what a character should say, just add those handy three little dots, and continue on. Don’t get caught up in the little things! Sometimes I have a plan for a fic, other times I have no idea where I am going with it. But those are always the most fun to write, at least for me.

Writing, for me, is like a puzzle. It has little pieces that when put together, make one really beautiful picture. However, there is no right way to put those pieces together, just whatever seems to work for you.

Now, for how I gained an audience. Man, I really could not tell you. I am still flummoxed with how many people interact with me. However, I would say, make sure to use tags. I know that when I first started reading fanfic I would just read everything under the recent side of a certain tag. Other people do the same thing, so using tags is a huge thing!!! Use gifs and photos, to draw people's eyes to your fic. Do a small summary, make them want to read your fic! Capture them with that first paragraph!!!!

Get yourself out there! Ask for feedback, maybe find a friend who could read your stuff and give you an honest review. I edit my stuff at least twice before I post it. Read through it with a fine pick comb. Read it out loud, does it flow right? Do you stop on any words? Did you misspell anything? Did you use the right version of their, there, or they’re? How about your and you’re? I always find that these simple little things are the ones I often look over, it sucks!

How did I start receiving requests? Again, I have no idea. I just woke up one day and saw that someone had put one in. I was like, hell yeah, let's do this! And I started to write for it. Usually, once people see that you are open to taking requests, they’ll start to ask themselves. It’s kinda a “get the ball rolling” situation. You could also just do a post saying that you are taking requests. In addition, just keep posting, at least semi, regularly. (I need to get better at this too.) Get people to keep seeing your account.

Did I just jump right in? Hell yeah! As I do with everything in my life, why not start big. Like I said before, I was not expecting myself to blow up this much, I still find it crazy. But I just started posting little stories I had written without paying attention to the note count.

It’s easy to become hyper fixated and base your worth off of how many likes you get, how many reblogs you get, and how many people comment on your stuff. In my case, a few months ago, Tumblr was not sharing my stuff so I would only average about five likes per post. Sure I was discouraged, but I had taught myself not to base myself off on those numbers. Thankfully, it has been sorted out, but do you get what I am trying to say? You should be posting for yourself, not a number on a screen.

I try to write as much as I can now. Even if I don’t want to post anything, I still try to do even a small creative writing. You’ll notice that at the beginning of my masterlist, my writing is not as good as my writing now, and probably in a few months, my writing will be so much better. It all just comes down to practice.

Descriptive words are your friend!!! If it’s one thing I’ve learned from all my writing classes, it is to set the scene. The setting is such a big part of a story, and yet some people tend to look over it. Really try and immerse yourself and your characters into the plotline.

Try not to have your sentences start with the same word over and over again. Also, break up your sentence structure. Sure you want a nice flow, but it doesn’t want to become monotonous. In addition, try not to use the same words within your sentences. Just as speaking, when someone says a single word a ton, the listener will become fixated on that word and not pay attention to the rest of them. So, moral of the story, break it up! Find new cool words to use. I always have a tab open where I can just put the word I want to use and look up cool new synonyms.

But at the end of the day, this should be something you enjoy. I’ve seen way too many writers get burnt out and start to view their writing as a job. If you notice that this is starting to happen, take a step back and ask yourself why? Is it the genre? Are you just not feeling the vibe of a story? Are you just in a funk? Etc. Take a break until you feel better! Self-care is the best medicine!

In conclusion, thank you so much for asking me. I wish I had some vast knowledge of fanfic writing, but I really don’t. I am still learning every day. But that is the best part! I love looking back at my old writing and going, “wow I really have grown.” It always feels so rewarding.

I hope this helps you, I know it’s kind of long, but I thought they were all good points. If you want, please tag me when you start to post, I would love love love to read your stuff! Obviously, I understand if you don’t want to, no hard feelings there.

Thank you again, darling. If you feel like no one is supporting you, remember you have me over here ready to help you in any way, shape, or form! I love you so much, and good luck!

[writing-and-nutmeg]

Hey! I’ve been reading your work and I was wondering what advice you could give someone who’s trying to start a writing blog and also an aspiring author?

Hello, fellow writer! 😃 I started my writing blog a few months ago, so I’m still learning a lot from my fellow writeblrs, but I’d be happy to share what’s helped me in creating my blog—although most, if not all, of my advice is going to be stolen from @pens-swords-stuff lovely post here, which I’d definitely recommend checking out. 😉

~Reach out to other writeblrs

 This is really important if you’re looking to gain a following count. Follow them, reblog and comment on their writing, slip into their inbox, etc. The writeblr community is super supportive—I’ve met so many lovely writers on this site—and not only is it a wonderful experience to interact with other writers and read their work, but it’s also a great way to start making yourself known. 

Post writing-related stuff, not just original writing:

As fun (and sometimes nerve wracking 😅) as it is to post your writing, it’s also great to sprinkle some other stuff in there alongside your WIP: relatable writing memes, writing prompts, etc. I’ve only just begun to post my own writing on my blog, so I can credit many of my followers to the writing memes and prompts that I post. 

Again, I’d definitely recommend checking out @pens-swords-stuff post here, which is a great resource for new writeblrs.

Now, I’m not quite sure if this is part of your question, but you mentioned being an aspiring author when you asked for advice, so I’ll throw in some of what I’ve learned in my writing journey.

I officially decided that I wanted to be a writer a little over a year-and-a-half ago. In that time, I’ve learned TONS about what works best for be when I write. Here’s what I’ve discovered:

~I have to give myself permission to write a bad draft. When I first start writing a scene/chapter, I always start with a freewrite first. A freewrite is the most liberating thing I can do as a writer: I write without fear of messing up, because in a freewrite, it is IMPOSSIBLE to mess up. Here’s a good definition I found on study.com: 

“Freewriting is the practice of writing down all your thoughts without stopping, and without regard for spelling, grammar, or any of the usual rules for writing.”

You basically write without stopping. You throw your thoughts on the page in a jumbled heap, and you keep going with no thought to misspelled words, fragmented sentences, or a paragraph you think could be phrased better. I usually set a ten minute timer and just write whatever comes to my mind. It’s really helpful for me, because it helps me flesh out where I want the chapter to go, what I want the characters to do, the rough sketch of the words I will use—and I do it all without fear of not being perfect, because a freewrite tosses the idea of perfection out the window! 

Trying to write a perfect first draft is impossible for me. In freewriting, I remind myself of that, and I let go of the fear of writing “bad writing” and simply allow myself to write without restriction. 

~After my freewrite, I start my first draft. This is where I rewrite my freewrite. My freewrite is a jumbled, discordant mess of half-assembled thoughts, choppy dialogue, rambling sentences, and nonsensical transitions—and in rewriting it, I attempt to tidy it up a bit. I’ve learned that for myself, I can’t aim for perfection; I become too caught up in all the tiny details and start to obsess over them. So for my first draft, I simply try to rewrite my freewrite not so that it’s not perfect (which I find to be an impossible standard anyway), but so that it’s slightly less messy.

~Then I move onto the second draft, and the third, and the fourth; through each draft, I slowly create a piece that becomes better and better: The dialogue become smoother and more natural; scattered words morph from building blocks and into solid, vivid imagery; the sentences flow together well and the variety in their structure is easy on the reader’s eye.

~After I reach a point where I’m satisfied with the last draft I’ve written, I usually take a break from it. I wait anywhere between a few days to a few weeks (sometimes longer) before I look back at it with fresh editing eyes. :)

Wow, that got long and kinda turned into a rabbit trail. 😳🐰 Sorry. 

To sum up my advice for aspiring writers: Give yourself permission to write badly. Not all of your words will be perfect. And that’s okay. Think of the “bad words” (for lack of a better term) as the foundation for the “good words” (asldjgalsg I need to come up with better terms 🙈) that you will  write. 

Again, that’s just my writing process, and that’s what I’ve found works really, really well for me personally. Every writer has their different writing process, so definitely do what works best for you. 

I’m SUPER sorry for how long this response is. I’m not even sure if the second part of my response was included in your question. If it wasn’t, then please ignore me, and my deepest apologies for tossing all these words at you. 😅

I wish you the best of luck in your writing journey! If any other writeblrs want to jump in and add their thoughts, then please do so!!

-Nutmeg ❤️

[fyeahbecachloe]

the one where beca doesn’t like dogs (4/4)

Beca/Chloe Rating: T Word Count: 2885 Summary:What looked like an emaciated wolf was currently lying on her floor glaring at her. Eyes wide, Beca stood there frozen afraid it would attack her.

OR

Beca doesn’t like dogs but she’s dating a veterinarian so she’s pretty much screwed.

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3

READ ON AO3

Weekends used to be days to go out, hang with friends, go to the beach, or have date nights. Now weekends to Beca is lying on the couch doing close to nothing except watch TV and spend as much time with Chloe doing minimal activities. The exhaustion from their week only allowed them to do so much movement. The only strenuous activities they participated in was sex.

Beca was lounging on their couch, watching a Chopped marathon while Chloe cooked them lunch. She was helping earlier until Chloe kicked her out because apparently kitchen knives were not to be played with. MJ was watching her cook and hoping she’d drop a piece of food on the floor. Every once in a while Beca could hear Chloe talking to him.

“Such a good sous-chef!” Chloe praised and MJ barked. “So much better than Beca.”

Beca scoffed and lifted her head to yell at Chloe. “I heard that!” She returned back to watching but could already hear MJ running from the kitchen and into the family room where she was. He quickly jumped onto the couch and laid his entire body on top of Beca’s. His head was lying on her chest and he looked at her expectantly.

The first time he ever did that, Beca nearly pushed him off but now she’s so used to it. MJ has been in their house for about 6 weeks and he has been completely transformed. His fur has fully grown back and he was the appropriate weight. His one paw was no longer red and raw abut covered in his normal white fur. The fur on his damaged ear grew back as much as it could. He’ll always look a little funny with one pointed ear and one half an ear but Chloe said it made him that much more special. He still looked grumpy though but Beca kind of really liked that about him.

“What’s up, dude? You help Chloe cook my lunch? Am I going to be eating mouthfuls of fur?” Beca reached over and scratched behind his ear. MJ let out a little howl that sounded like he was almost talking. Another thing Beca found out while he’s been there. Huskies are talkative.

“Baby, food’s ready!” Chloe called from the kitchen.

MJ jumped off of Beca and quickly ran into the kitchen. Beca followed him, shaking her head, and sat down at the island and watched as Chloe set MJ’s food bowl down on the floor. “You do know I’m ‘baby’ right?” Beca said to MJ as he waited patiently for Chloe to give him his command.  “She was telling me food was ready, not you.” But MJ wasn’t paying attention to her because Chloe had given the command and was already wolfing down his food.

Chloe laughed and set hers and Beca’s plate of food on the island. “You are ridiculous, you know that?”

“He’s ridiculous,” Beca muttered and twirled a large quantity of spaghetti on her fork and took a huge bite.

Chloe shook her head in the amusement and began eating her lunch. “So MJ is pretty much ready for adoption.”

Beca swallowed her food and took a sip of her Coke. “Oh yeah?” MJ had already finished his food and was doing his normal sitting/begging for scraps.

“Yup,” Chloe took a bite of her spaghetti before continuing. “We’re going to film one more update at the clinic, finishing the editing, and then post in on our youtube. Then MJ is going to do a little photo shoot for the adoption website. I’m sure he’ll be adopted super quickly.” Chloe grabbed her iPad that was next to her on the island and opened up the notepad that had a long paragraph written on it. “This is what’s going to accompany his adoption post.” She handed the iPad to Beca.

Hi! I’m MJ, a Siberian Husky. My rescuers estimate me to be about 2 years old. I’m 55 lbs of pure fluff. I know I look grumpy but I can assure you, I’m a big love and cuddle bug. I’m already house trained and know all my commands. I’m very good on a leash and love to stick close to my humans. And while I get along with other dogs, I prefer to be the only dog in a house. I’m also good with small humans too! I’m very active so I need daily exercise so a house with a yard would be a perfect furever home. I’m also a good listener even though I only have one ear! Please consider adopting me, I’ll love you furever!

Beca finished reading with a smile on her face. “Did you write this?”

Chloe grinned. “No, MJ did, duh.” The smiled fell from her face as if she was just realizing something. She looked down at MJ sadly. “You ready for your forever home, buddy? We’re going to have to say goodbye soon.” MJ walked over to her side and put his head on her lap and let out a dog sigh.

Even though Chloe was looking down at MJ, Beca could tell that she had tears in her eyes. She put her fork down and slid her plate to the side and turned in her chair so she was facing Chloe fully.

“What if this was his forever home?”

Chloe turned her head so fast she felt the wind from her hair. Sure enough, her eyes were filled with tears. “What?”

Beca smiled and took Chloe’s hand. “I’m saying, what if we adopt him and he becomes our dog?”

Tears were now falling down Chloe’s face. “Beca, are you serious? You want to keep MJ?” Beca nodded now only realizing the tears in her own eyes as Chloe pulled her into a kiss. She could see MJ’s tail wagging from the corner of her eye. Chloe pulled back only to stand up and pull Beca into a full body hug with her face in her neck. MJ jumped on them and started barking wanting to be a part of the hug.

“You hear that, buddy?” Chloe asked, pulling slightly back from Beca while still having one arm around her. “Mama wants to keep you forever!” MJ titled his at head both of them before jumping up to stand on hind legs while his front paws were on Chloe’s leg.

Beca watched the exchange with a tearful smile. She never told Chloe but whenever she heard her talking to MJ, Chloe always referred to Beca as “mama” and herself as “mommy.” At the time, Beca knew that Chloe was already dangerously attached but a part of her really didn’t mind having that title. MJ was practically the dog clone of her. Not that she’d ever admit that to Chloe.

“So what’s next, mommy?” Beca quipped. “When do we sign the adoption papers? Or like do a gender reveal or whatever it is that straight couples do?”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “I’ll fill them out on Monday and I’ll change all the information on his chip. Still gotta film the last update and tell our audience that we decided to keep him.” She looked at Beca curiously. “What changed you mind?”

Beca took a deep breath and looked down at MJ who was still looking at them like something was about to happen. “Partially you, partially this stinky butt. When he’s not annoying the crap out of me, he’s so…” She stopped not really know how to describe a dog she never wanted made her feel. “Warm.” She looked back Chloe who was looking at her like she was the whole world. “Like you. You both feel like home.”

Chloe was crying again as she softly kissed Beca. “I have a confession to make.”

Beca grinned. “What? You knew I would want to keep him the entire time?”

“Actually no, after all these years, you still surprise me.” Beca smiled at that. “No, I wanted to say that I named him at the clinic when we first got him.”

Beca squinted at her not quite sure where she was going with this. “Okay?”

Chloe let out a laugh. “MJ stands for Mitchell Jr., I named him after you.”

If Chloe wasn’t already holding her, Beca would’ve pulled back from shock. Her mouth was open in offense. “You named a mangy dog after me? How very dare you!” MJ let out an annoyed grunt at Beca’s outburst (proving Chloe’s point more) before going back to his spot in the family room.

“Babe, please, you’re exactly the same. First, he looks grumpy as hell. He has blue eyes, (“You have blue eyes!”), he seemed to only like me and not anyone else, he doesn’t really like playing with other dogs, but once you get to know him, he’s the softest, sweetest dog in the world. Just like you.” She finished by tapping Beca on her nose.

Beca grumbled. “I’m not the dog.” Chloe laughed and pulled her back for another kiss.

“I love you, thanks for letting us keep MJ.”

“I love you too, please don’t tell anyone you named him after me.”

Chloe’s laughter filled the entire house. “I promise.”

--

Beca was working on a remix at the studio when she got a notification on her phone from youtube. Unlocking her phone, her lock screen was now a picture of Chloe with MJ, she smiled when she saw that Chloe had finally posted MJ’s rescue video. Pausing what she was doing on her mixing program, Beca went to her laptop and opened up a browser to youtube and clicked on her subscription notifications.

The thumbnail on the video was of MJ smiling and Beca couldn’t help her own as she clicked the play button. A black screen with the text WARNING: GRAPHIC WOUND PICURES CONTAINED IN VIDEO. PLEASE ADVISE appeared. Beca frowned because she knew that she’s probably going to be seeing MJ’s damaged ear.

“Hey guys, welcome back to Scrappy Little Pawbuddies, I’m Doctor Chloe.” The video started with Chloe walking outside while filming herself.  “I’m here with Xavier.” The camera moved behind Chloe where one of Chloe’s coworkers waved. “We just received a call about an injured husky that’s been frequenting an old shed. The local neighbors are not quite sure how long he’s been there but they have been leaving food for him. We’re here to see if we can get him back to the clinic.

The camera turned so Beca could see where they were walking to. The shed was located on an old lot and she could see MJ coming into view as Chloe and Xavier got closer. “There he is.” Chloe’s voice was a whisper and they stopped about 10 feet from where MJ was. He looked awful laying on the ground like that. He looked just liked when Beca first met him but a lot dirtier and his ear was bleeding. MJ definitely noticed them approaching because he quickly stood up with his tail between his legs. The camera was set on the ground but still had a good shot of the dog and she saw Xavier slowly approaching with a hamburger and a soft snare.

“Hey buddy, you hungry?” Xavier said as he stopped and knelt down a few feet away from MJ but he was already baring his teeth and was growling quietly. Xavier ripped a few pieces off the hamburger and threw it towards MJ. MJ sniffed at them but didn’t eat any pieces. Text appeared on the bottom of the screen. Xavier realized that the dog probably didn’t trust men so we waited a little while before Dr. Chloe tried.

There was an obvious time jump in the video as it cross faded so now Chloe was sitting in front of MJ and was trying to coax him out of the shed.

“Are you sure you don’t want any food? It’s really good.” She too threw some pieces of burger to MJ but this time he ate a few. He very slowly walked out of the shed and approached Chloe. Beca has watched enough of these videos but it still made her worry every single time Chloe would be this close to a stray especially if it was a bigger dog. Chloe had gotten her fair share of bites from scared dogs. But this time, Beca actually knew how this rescue was going to end.

“Good boy!” MJ was completely within in Chloe’s reach now and he licked her hand. She carefully and easily slipped a loose leash around his neck and gently petted him. The video continued showing Chloe and Xavier walking MJ back to the rescue van and he allowed Xavier to lift him into the crate in the back. The video faded again and now they were back in the clinic and Chloe was standing next MJ who was on an exam table. It looked like he was just freshly bathed and his ear was cleaned up. He was trying to lick Chloe as he she spoke to the camera

”Hey guys, we’re back in the clinic and we decided to name him MJ. We ran a few tests on him, gave him a bath, and cleaned out his ear which looks like was bitten by another dog. It had a little infection so he’s now on antibiotics. He was thankfully heartworm negative and surprisingly no fleas or ticks. Main concerns are his paw, ear, and it looked like he had some irritated skin at some point hence the patches of fur missing. It’s thankfully not mange so that hair will grow back soon. He was surprisingly microchipped but unfortunately the phone number was disconnected.”

Another text appeared on the screen explaining to the audience that the previous owner had died.

“We’re going to keep him here for a few days before he goes off to a foster. Well, actually I’m going to foster him until he’s ready for adoption.” Chloe smiled as she tried to keep MJ from trying to lick her during her entire explanation. “He’s actually already very trained so he seems like he’ll be a really good house guest. We’ll keep you updated on his progress.”

The video continued on as Chloe filmed his progress and it was really something to see MJ transform to a healthy dog. Of course Beca was there during the entire thing but to see it happen on a time lapsed video definitely showed the stark difference. Finally it got to the final update which Beca knew was filmed just a few days ago. MJ was wearing a Barden Bella scarf around his neck. Chloe’s idea obviously.

“Hey guys! Back with the final update with MJ and you’ll be happy to know he’s been adopted.” Chloe paused for dramatic effect. “By me! And my girlfriend. Yes, a complete foster fail, right buddy?” MJ licked her face. “We wanted to thank everyone again for watching and donating. If it weren’t for you, these rescues wouldn’t be possible. MJ is now a happy and healthy, very spoiled dog. Thanks for watching this video and we’ll see you again on the next rescue on Scrappy Little Pawbuddies! Say bye, MJ!” Beca let out a laugh when MJ raised his paw a few times and it looked like he was waving. The video faded to a screen with all the information on the rescue and how to adopt and ways to donate.

Beca scrolled through the comments and smiled at all the ones thanking Chloe and the rescue for all they do and the ones saying how cute MJ was. Of course she rolled her eyes on the ones asking about “Dr. Chloe’s girlfriend” and the rest of the comments telling the user that it was Beca. Sometimes she forgot she was actually a little famous.

Her facetime ringtone interrupted her perusing through the comments and her face broke into a smile when she answered Chloe’s call.

“Hey babe!” Chloe’s blurry face came into focus and Beca could see she was in her office. “Did you watch the video?”

“Of course I did, our little stinker is going to be famous.” Beca saw the phone’s camera flip and then she saw MJ’s grumpy face appear on her screen. “What’s up, dude? You’re about to go viral, please don’t let that inflate your ego.” Beca could tell he was a little confused as to where her voice was coming from so he just barked. Chloe turned the camera back to her.

“What time are you expecting to be home tonight? I’m cutting out early because it’s a slower day so I’ll probably be home around 5.”

Beca looked at the remix she was currently working on and saw she only had a few more things to tweak. “I probably could be out by 6 if I’m lucky. Don’t worry about dinner, I’ll get us take out.”

Chloe smiled. “Okay, I’ll let you get back to work so you can home early. MJ! Come say bye to mama.” She flipped the camera again and MJ did his little wave. Beca reflexively waved back. “Bye Beca, love you.”

“Love you, too.”

Beca continued her work with a big smile on her face. The rest of the day flew by as Beca’s mind was filled with thoughts of coming home to her family.