#fic writers take these characters seriously so it doesnt always work when they write his voice

[youngpettyqueen]

Also since I didn't send one last time, anything about it's not chicken soup, but it's good for the soul!

YES I love a double ask I love it so much and I love to think about this particular fic

ok I wanna ramble about a particular sequence in relation to my particular writing style-

"“If you don’t kiss my forehead before you leave,” Hawkeye says, seriously, “Then I’m going to have a fit.”

Trapper snorts, raising a brow at him. “That right?” He asks. Hawkeye nods, still with that oh-so-serious look on his face, so he just smiles and pushes his hair aside again, “Alright, c’mere…”

He leans down and drops the requested kiss onto Hawkeye’s forehead. Then, for good measure, he also drops one on the bridge of his nose. He pulls away and hovers for a moment, savouring the sight of Hawkeye’s giddy little smile.

Cute. He thinks, again.

“Alright, I really gotta go,” Trapper says, even though he takes a quick second to press one last kiss in the space between Hawkeye’s brows. When he pulls back this time he gets up, collects the bowl, and turns to Hawkeye to tell him, “Send Radar my way if ya need anything. I’ll be back with your lunch in a few hours.”"

so a fun fact about me is that I am a romance writer (I am actively working on a romance novel which is on its third draft) and this fic was a fun exercise in writing domestic fluffy romance which is not my usual type of romance writing! I usually only write domestic fluffy romance with like, DND and writing stuff with mine and my friend's characters, so doing this in fanfic is overall fairly new to me. this particular exchange between these two was one of the main points of writing this fic- as ive said with this one it was written to make me feel better while I was absolutely miserable with covid, and few things cheer me up quite like straight up FLUFF

Hawkeye and Trapper really suit this fluffy domesticity for me because I dont read either of them as being particularly repressed. Hawkeye cant hide his feelings to save his life and Trapper really doesnt seem to ever try to hide how he feels. as a result these two are easy to write being fairly open (as open as the time and place will allow, at least) and very domestic and, well, cute. of course Trapper's gonna give him a kiss on the forehead, and then, even though he doesnt have to, he's gonna give him a couple more. and of course Hawkeye's not gonna hesitate to ask! theyre open with each other, theyre comfortable with each other- this is all canon, its just easy and convenient for me to use that in my Piercentyre agenda ksdjskjdha

speaking as someone who doesnt write straight up fluff very often, this was a very fun exercise in it. it flowed really naturally, it makes me want to write more of it, and it let me practice a style I admittedly dont practice as often. I definitely want to write more things like this, things that are sickly sweet and fluffy, and im definitely hoping to do more of it with Piercentyre specifically. writing them has reallyyyyyyy grown on me, I always liked them as a pairing but after rewatching the early seasons ive fallen even more in love with them

all this said the WIP I have for them currently is very much not all sweet domestic fluff and does in fact involve quite a bit of angst but honestly I might shove some sweet tooth-rotting fluff in there cause its just so damn fun to write. who knows, not me, I dont even have an outline for the damn thing fskjdfhskj

[aclosetfan]

the pet peeve/pettiest opinion i have abt this fandom is how sometimes ppl portray the blues w/o any substance and/or any sort of depth like they do the greens and reds🤝

I don’t even think this is petty, it’s just true 🤷‍♀️ it seriously irks me to no end. I’m so glad you brought this up!!! lmaooo short response is I 100% agree with you.  unfortunately, I agree with you so much I wrote a whole freaking essay, which can be found under the cut. I could rant about this all day long. I don’t even care. The blues are such a disappointing couple :( I wish fic writers would cut out the cutesy pure bs that you find so often with these two.

I really think that the biggest problem with the blues (and Boomer) is all rooted in Bubbles’ characterization. I think she’s the most difficult for people to write because she’s the least “problematic.” And a lot of people don’t know what to do with her because no one can relate to unproblematic. She’s written as (excuse the annoying early 2010s expression, but it fits) the perfect cinnamon bun and there’s no conflict if a character doesn’t have some kind of internal conflict, they’re boring! They get tossed to the side!! Blossom is often written struggling with leadership and perfectionism. Buttercup is often written struggling with impulsiveness and aggression. People relate to them because they’ve “gone through things” most people have experienced themselves. Fic writers like writing Bloss and BC for the same reason because you can only write what you know! But shoot, writers still got to place Bubbles in somehow! So she’s either an airhead, or a crybaby, or too innocent/naïve, or the uwu character, which is good for a few laughs but 🤷‍♀️ it gets pretty 2D and old real quick. Her biggest issue in the show was people babying her, but usually, that conflict is written off in fics with one simple “OH so she’s actually a badass” scene and that’s like it?? It’s never visited again?? (Even though all her solo episodes focus on her accepting who she is despite what others think so idk if badass scenes actually do her justice. She’s a lover not a fighter at the end of the day tbh.) It’s understandable though. I struggle with Bubbles because I’m not as optimistic as her character, and I certainly don’t relate to being “the joy and laughter.” It’s hard writing someone whose fanon character is interpreted as practically flawless. In ppg fics you’re also juggling a big group of characters, so it’s advantageous to rely on the simpler archetype tropes. So, I think it’s easier for people to set Bubbles up in a relationship than explore her more thoroughly since she’s the sensitive one who would be into the lovey-dovey stuff. Further, if you want to give readers a break from the heavier themes of your main plot, having a cute side pairing is a good safe escape. Not a lot of thought is needed to make those relationships work. And since Boomer’s just there and also underdeveloped, they get paired together. And because people (rightly) want to stray from the predator/prey trope because Bubbles is just so Pure(tm) and the trope feels assault-y, writers make Boomer inherently good. But now you’re just stuck with two good, cute characters. That’s it. And because their plot in the story revolves around their romantic relationship, it's their relationship that is the only thing that aids in their character development. The blues make up the lighthearted B-plot (but probably more like C-plot because the greens are usually B-plot material) The blues seem to follow two tropes: 1. Pure childhood crushes—Boomer was always good and wants to do good by Bubbles and she wants to “protect” him from his “mean” brothers 2. Bubbles “fixes” Boomer, but he really doesn’t need any fixing in the first place because he was good all along, he just needed encouragement. (Weird side note, have you noticed how Bubbles is always like “Boomie you’re NOT stupid” and then all the sudden it’s like the boy has a PhD) And I'm not faulting anyone for having a b-plot relationship with the blues. If it’s done right, being in a relationship does wonders for people! But relationships are work and without the blues having their personalities developed OUTSIDE the relationship, there’s no “work” to be done. They’re just the Perfect Couple and it’s boring. Don’t get me wrong, I like the pairing (it’s v cute), but what’s nice about the greens and the reds is that each individual character has usually been personalized (Butch not so much, in my opinion, his character generally revolves around BC, but bear with me for argument's sake), which makes their relationships with other characters fun to read. The greens and the reds are flushed out because their most basic archetypes are the most relatable and easiest to write. The Blues, though, just seem to get together. Bubbles is a hard character to write, so by default, so is Boomer. They have no conflict outside each other that would trigger character development. They flirt, sometimes Bubbles resists, then they’re together. She’s the cutest thing ever and he’s a simp for it. Easy, fluffy, they fade to the background because now that they’re together what happens to them next?? Irl people either get married or they break up. Most of these fics are high school AUs, so they can’t get married, and no one wants the cute ones to break up, so they just start to enter and exit the story as convenient segues. And that’s disappointing because individually they could be so interesting. Bubbles has to struggle with the fact that people infantize her. Her ideas are often dismissed, people treat her like a ditz, and her ability to be a hero is often called into question because she’s the one who seeks peaceful alternatives, and when she DOESNT seek those alternatives, people in the show freak out and become scared. Like I said before, most bubbles centric episodes focus on her accepting her sensitive side and using it to overcome a conflict. Also, HIM’s like her main villain in all her episodes. and, shit, one of her nicknames is literally Chubbles. She’s been called fat a few times. There’s so much a writer can do with her conflict-wise. Optimism and sensitivity don’t equal naivety, we don’t have to make her Pure. In fact, it’d be way more fun to see her trying to show everyone that she’s no longer a child but a young woman. And Boomer has like 3 episodes, right? Maybe 4? Literally in all of them, he’s a bratty little boy. He carries slugs in his pockets. He’s bad at trash talking. Easily distracted. Fights with his brothers. Dumb and chaotic. Good at spitting. He doesn’t put Bubbles on a pedestal. He wants to beat her up. He’s not a good guy. Bubbles thinks he’s cute. That’s literally all we know about him lmao. He wouldn’t be soft so why would what we know translate into a boring unproblematic underdeveloped boy?? You can write him unfulfilled. You could write him stuck in his brothers’ shadows. You could write him as a weirdo who’s obsessed with bugs (to match bubbles animal obsession). In my head, if Brick’s the smart one and Butch is the strong one, I make Boomer the charming one. And charming boys are dangerous boys 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️he probably had to charm his way out of plenty of dumb situations. I also make him unluckily lucky since he gets captured by the girls in one episode, but he still makes it out just fine. Everything bad that could happen happens to him but Boomer’s like “eh 🤷‍♀️ It’ll blow over. Lol already died once. What can ya do?” So you've got a girl who is never taken seriously and a boy who takes nothing seriously and yall really think their relationship would be unproblematic??? Individually, these two characters could be fun to write if the fic author plans it out correctly! Idk why their relationship wouldn't be either. If you want a compelling romance, you’ve got to make compelling characters. 

[sugar-petals]

This's been on my mind for awhile and i just wanted to know if im the only one: im both a hard and soft stan for all the bangtan boys but I just can't read any y/n x hobi kind of fics cause it feels weird?? Like I thirst over him (im not saying i dont think he's sexy, handsome or anything, cause he is!!) but it doesnt go so far from that. i cant picture myself dating or *being intimate* with him the way i do with the others..but why?? Maybe its the image he transmits?Wanted to hear your thoughts

as a general note first. it could be any member that a fan might feel more platonic about: simply a matter of character, looks, perceived connection. as you say, it might be that he sends out something else to you. that being said —there are two components to talk about here.

I. ON HOSEOK WRITERS

you’re very right about how sometimes, there’s a strong lateral portrayal going on if an idol fits a particular stereotype. you might be able to picture yourself in a scenario with a member, but it’s not something that’s written in the fandom. maybe because authors didn’t think about it. or maybe it’s unpopular. or not agreed on. several reasons can coincide.

fact is, image can for sure steer the way x reader fics are made. a lot of stage, photoshoot, and MV moments inspire many writers. you do have to say that it’s not all there is though. there’s a portion that gets ideas from backstage anecdotes. and a third fraction comes up with something on their own. a fourth wildly mixes everything. a fifth portion has someone else in mind but writes person XYZ instead. a sixth uses a mainstream porn or twt/tiktok trend as the basis of the character (... uncomfortable). a seventh author uses their life experience. another author replicates a popular book/movie. and so on.

hobi x reader writers have good reasons to get the first of inspo from his performance work where he shines. he’s the most stage-savvy member after all. they might get stuck there and not go any further because there’s already a lot to say about him going all out there. you might feel a way different atraction if someone wrote about a more private hoseok, or not, who knows? if there was some material about that. it’d be interesting to see how it plays out. advocating for some domestic hobi right here 😄

II. ON J-HOPE AND THE FANDOM

another fandom dynamic and bighit strategy that contributes to the effect. i always get the feeling he’s shown to us or shows himself in a more restricted, media-conscious type of way. more professional, less transparent. he’s not yoongi baring his most hidden concerns all day. he’s more sleek, not a target sphere of vulnerability or directness. 

it’s not about privacy, but opinion: we know his family and hobbies and personality, but seemingly not the innermost hoseok. he’s the member that projects the most out but nobody can venture in. extroversion is a better shield than most people think. even if he says something very intimate, or raps about it, he keeps his smile on, and it takes the attention away. namjoon lets us gaze into his mind and strikes that tone, hoseok remains more elusive. his role in the team fortifies that, he doesn’t have to do the concept work that RM/suga do as producers.

a fanfic plot needs some degree of that innermost being in any kind of portrayal to really get to a reader. jimin is so desired as a date by many because he carries a lot of things about him on his sleeve. someone who decides not to do that will leave people guessing and unsure. it’s not always the looks: the idol who’s the least blank slate in a group is often the most beloved. 

they’re easier to picture as your counterpart, an emotional bridge is easier to build. again then — some advocating here: doesn’t his professionalism make hobi even sexier? i find that mature and reasonable of him. you can imagine how seriously he’d take a relationship, and he can separate between his different worlds very well. hobi treats being an idol like an idol. 

the prevailing problem is. hobi’s already shown in body focus, that he’s the dance headquarters of bts doesn’t help, and fans can only pick that up, or spin a 2D narrative of him. it’s been discussed often that hoseok handles stardom and self-reveal with more distance, he chooses to protect himself more than the rest. so what i think is that you have problems going past superficial thirst because 

a) hobi hardly shows himself past his performer self by choice

b) the company promotes him that way

c) the fandom can’t go deeper than that either, on what basis. so, his stage presence and thirst potential becomes overhyped instead. 

which is a testament to his talent but also a tale on how you can fetishize someone: as is often pointed out when people only look at hoseok based on how he can grind his hips in choreography omitting everything else about him. it’s because there’s no going further and deeper from either side. it’s agreed upon and part of the game, but it’s also sad that hoseok uses that blank slate to stay safe, or whatever reason is behind it. it’s business right there.

honestly, it IS a strong kind of strategy to prevail and keep your grind. a lot of idols could benefit from having even a tinge of hoseok’s approach to fame. if he becomes less in reach that way but he rather enjoys him image and fans go along and he’s okay with that, it’s something to deal with in a manner of, hey we see the actual point of it. 

he doesn’t have to feel reachable or as vulnerable as other members opt to be, and the idea of hoseok is that he’s the sun in the first place. it does you good but getting so close isn’t the purpose 😉 some people are more meant to shine from way above. you see how namjoon is the moon man, much nearer to earth, revealing itself up close. you get the analogy, and we get back to the first paragraph like this, it always comes down to character after all.

[nympsycho-ao3]

How are you such an amazing writer? Seriously. (This is me asking for advice.)

Ur making me blush, anon uwu

Me, bullshitting my way through a fic, only to open this message asking for advice:

Anyway I guess.. hm...

Advice... I cant figure out how to put a line break on mobile oop-

I guess just try to keep a goal in mind. Like where does the story need to go? And how can I get there in the most natural way I can imagine?

For example, if the commissioner wants 1) spanking, 2)doggy style, 3)cum eating, 3 things that are pretty disconnected, I would try to imagine what sort of character traits are needed to keep the flow of actions relatively natural. So, maybe reader would be combative, so that whatever position the other character wants them to end up in could be a result of manhandling. Or maybe a clueless reader would trip over something and end up in the character's lap. Idk it's hard to explain, but one of my pet peeves in my own writing is when things happen for no reason, like if reader just perched herself over his lap and then decides to assume doggy position. Unless the reader is very dominant that just doesnt seem natural.

A lot of people start with the characters and mould the story around them. Which is excellent if your characters are rock-solid, but characterization is my weak point and especially so for reader-inserts because the goal is to be sort of broad. So I decide the characters based on what the story needs from them, not vice versa.

Most of my ideas come around when I'm in the shower or driving. I get the fic prompt, and give myself a few days to just think, not write or plan or anything just think like "hm it would be neat if this happened". So I'd recommend you find your place and get comfy in it.

I dont really do outlines if it's a shorter story. Longer ones maybe, like Flourish would probably have been much more concise and planned if I had done an outline lol. If I remember a piece of dialogue I really want in the fic I will write it down tho.

I dont think of a title until I post so that's why they're always pretty poopy titles but who even cares h e h

I collect a lot of writing techniques from other writers, as well as what I dont like. So read, read, read some more. Especially smut, there's so many ways to approach it depending on your technique and what you find arousing.

Putting the stories that circulate around your mind onto paper is hard. Give yourself time to adjust and edit, but don't go to overboard with it. In the end, there's usually a reason you decided to add whatever detail or dialogue, so dont get caught up in too much revision. That takes the fun out of it for me personally.

Dont ever give up on a story because you think others wont like it. My second most popular fic is a fucking melone breeding fic, never in a million years did I think that would be that popular. On the other hand, one of my personal favorite fics remains less popular. Either way, I got the words out there, and I enjoy every single hit, kudos, comment, bookmark they get. Dont get caught up in "ugh this fic only has 20 kudos what am I doing wrong?" Because that's still 20 people who liked your work enough to read and express their support. Whether it's 5 people or 500, your writing had an impact on real life, actual humans. It's easy to collect those numbers and forget they're people, but they are, and I think that's real gosh darn neat.

I keep my inbox and messages open for people asking for writing advice, though I cant fathom why someone would want it and I'm immensely flattered! One of my giveaway winners just wanted to collab with me and that's real sweet.

I hope that wasn't just a bunch of garbage and if you have any questions about something specific always feel free to reach out :)

[polyamorous-mysme]

Do you think the 5 main rfa members be in a poly relationship with each other? Or would it work with mc? I've read some soulmate fics and was curious abt your opinion

you know ive done a couple of these in my rfa x rfa tag and i think its a super interesting dynamic to ponder ive only ever really read one mysme soulmate au fic because at the time i was searching for them it was the only one up and only had two chapters and i even wrote the first part of one myself

but the problem i have with rfa x rfa is just trying to write it. because there are so many dynamics in it, especially when you bring in MC, a totally projected character that you either have to make as generic as possible or somewhat self-insert, its really difficult to write in a way thats still engaging and interesting

ive always said i like polyamorous mystic messenger without mc specifically because as MC your interactions with the characters are already scripted, and how you might normally talk to a group of people, even lovingly sarcastic, can get you a bad end. that being said, i do like that writing MC into a fic gives you the option of having an OC without … really having an OC? because mc is already IN the game and already IN the plot, you’re just giving them characteristics that you want in your fic or in your headcanons. often when i write headcanons that involve MC i wish there was more of a template given by the req for how they personally see MC – because its such an inherently diverse character! – but when i write fics its an entirely different story. MC can be your self-insert or MC can be based off an original character you’ve had for years and i love that malleability.

that being said though, given who MC is in the actual game, RFA x RFA is just a little bit more difficult in some ways and easier in others when you include MC. MC is someone that pushes for growth for all the members of the RFA, but it can get to the point where that’s all someone’s take of MC is for. you kind of have to stretch a lot of what the mysme writers give you if you’re writing something with that many relationships if you dont have MC in there with the ability to empathize with everyone and help everyone else understand each other.

zen is very self-absorbed. not in a malicious way, but in a vain, often-doesnt-understand-anyone’s-feelings kind of way. 

jumin is calculated and driven by logic rather than emotions, and when he IS driven by his emotions, he also does it without thinking because letting himself feel things isnt a practiced thing for him

jaehee is obsessed with her work and making everything perfect because that’s where she gets her self-worth. she doesn’t take time for herself and runs herself ragged.

yoosung is the polar opposite of jumin. a lot of what he does, he brings logic to it at the beginning, and then loses that train of thought and does what is going to make him feel better here, now. he’s very involved in self-gratification which leads him to feeling sorry for himself rather than do what he needs to do.

707 is eclectic and uses humor to mask any real information about him. he’s afraid to let people get close to him because he thinks it will hurt them, and any time he tries to talk about himself seriously the reactions he gets pushes him into covering up with a joke.

what mc does is teaches zen to empathize and learn that putting all of yourself out there for everyone else’s consumption isn’t always healthy. mc teaches jaehee to focus on her own needs and to base her self-worth in gratification of the work she does rather than the amount of work she does. mc teaches jumin that emotions are not always irrational or illogical or harmful, and that he needs to feel to be healthy. mc teaches yoosung to set a goal and work towards it and experience the joy of having that goal met rather than seeking for endorphins in a gaming addiction. mc teaches 707 that its okay to need people and to reach out. 

without all of that you have five people with totally different personalities, none of whom entirely understand or particularly like each other, but that doesnt mean they were always like that to one another.

i know this post is all over the place and i apologize for that but when it comes down to it, either way of writing all of the RFA in a relationship works if you have MC with a personality but still with the function of who MC is in the game, OR if you find a way to get the RFA to interact with each other in the way MC teaches them to without needing MC, or if you write them how they were before the whole Rika situation went down.

[aicosu]

Hey guys! I wanted to know how was the fifty shades darker movie? Was it decent or was it really bad like some people are saying?

Omfg.

I actually have intense complicated thoughts on Fifty Shades.I’ve been obsessed with the rise and fall story of Fifty Shades, mostly because I’m a fanfiction writer myself and super - SUPER fucking familiar with the community and it’s inner workings. LONG POST AHEAD. 

The tale of HOW and WHY Fifty Shades even hit bestseller is amazing. AD I SEE IT HAPPEN EVERYDAY ON AO3. Like, keeping your fanfic chapters to a couple thosand words, updating weekly, and commenting on comments for your fic to up the comment count (something I refuse to do for this very reason) is a VIABLE method to staying on the top list of any fandom on any fanfic hosting website. Even if you only have the same 10 people commenting on your fic, fic you comment back, 20 comments per chapter nad have 60 chapters? Thats 1200 comments! FUCKING INSANE. I see it everyday. I think every fanfic reader/writer knows that ONE STORY thats ALWAYS on top, for this reason alone, even when (JUST LIKE EL JAMES) the writing is horrendous. 

So! When I researched all of this once the book was released and had all that controversy about BDSM I was both suprised, impressed and horrified. Suprised that a fanfic had even MADE it this far. Impressed because, you got to give the girl kudos. Having her original fanfic readers comment and rate her book on amazon with copy pasta reviews and skyrocketing her to #1 is ingenious. It is, from a marketing stand point its amazing. And of course, I was horrified and dissapointed that with all the fanfics out there, it had to be this one. Not only was the writing terrible, but its a terrible terrible representation of the bdsm culture and community. 

Do not misunderstand me; The Fifty Shades books are horribly written and super problematic. 

The Movies: 

Okay so, I’m a huge film buff. Huge. I took film history and cinematic storytelling in college and I love analyzing movies. 

From a director and writer and cinematographers standpoint, I was literally curious about HOW THE FUCK YOU EVEN FILM THIS MOVIE?? Like, will they have exposition of her ‘INNER GODDESS’ like some odd edgar wright cut aways to a Lizzie McQuire type Anastasia steel!?!? WILL THEY ACTUALLY FILM HIM RIPPING OUT HER TAMPON TO FUCK HER?? (this happens in the book) LIke I needed to know. I had to know. SO I had to see the first movie. I was too curious. AND I wanted to see a legit, from my generation, written fanfiction, adapated for film. Its too groundbreaking, even if you have problems with the story and films how is that not fascinating. 

After watching it this is what I got (I did not pay for this movie btw.) 

EVERY FANFICTION I EVER READ EVER ALL ROLLED UP INTO ONE META MINDFUCK. Like!??? I have almost a keen adoration for how WEIRD it is to see ON SCREEN lines like “Your biting your lip.” LIKE – thats fanfiction from 2005, the lip bite. The FUCKING. Dialogue of this movie is like a collection of all the terrible coffee shop aus, high school, fanfic soap opera craziness. Or how he just bumps into her at her work and shit!? OR the fanfic issue of a 20-something yr old interviewing the SUPER HOT hotshot bachelor who has tons of money because….why? WHAT DOES HE DO? In fanfic it doesnt matter but in the movie THEY NEVER ADDRESS THIS EITHER> 

I MEAN its literally that FIC. The one where theres nothing left of your ship you havent consumed, and this one aint so great but eh its 4am on a tuesday and it has 45 chapters. 

I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend any writer or reader to watch this film just for the weird TRIP it is. It freaks me out mann its nuts! 

The movie literally breaks hundreds of Cinematic rules JUST TO tell the story because its source material is what it is. Theres no introduction to the protagnist, no side introduction to our love interest like a rom con always does and the Meet Cute is isn’t a meet cute, it plays like a PROMPT. And its in the first 3 minutes of the film. 

And the Twilight source the fic hangs on can be seen there on screen. Seattle, him saving her from the bike/car, his big rich family compared to her remarried mom (to a golfer not a baseball guy), and her estranged dad whose never around, the weirdness of Christian Grey thats missing that can only be explained by -immortal vampire-. Its insane. They didn’t change any of it. You can see Twilight right there its hilarious. 

AND BECAUSE ITS FIC, theres actually, surprisingly, some really good moments? Its few and far between, but I find the bar scene generally funny and charming. Anastasia anyway. Christian is a creepy from first minute to last minute of every movie because what can you do with a non-vampire-vampire character, really? But Anastasia is pretty funny in a way Bella swan never was. I love the whole “Your so bossy, come here, come here, go away go away!” dialogue. FUCKING hilarious. And so unarguable a FANFIC genre of WIT. I like those moments. Or the buisness meeting about the bdsm contract “please turn to page 5 and strike out ‘anal fisting.’” “Are you sure?” “YUP.” (no paraphrasing, she literally says YUP. 10/10 delivery) Also love the texting scenes, reminds me too much of MS though and I immediately felt like trash. 

Now, aside from those moments, hands down, terrible fucking plot. But it had terribel fucking plot to begin with. 

What I was suprised about was that the film crew and creators DID IN FACT listen to te protests and uproar about the controversy of the content of the film. And I was suprised to see that THEY CHANGED a lot of stuff and cut out a lot of shit too. Christian NEVER touches her unless she says so. There actually a lot of moments stressing the consent thing. Even in the room, he tells her to hold out her hand and test the pain, and se if its ok. If its ever to much, he tells her to say stop, and he will. In fact, we see a lot of “nos” that he adheres to. Whereas in the books hes on he like a grade A rapist. They also add her in negotiating a ton of the terms. 

Theres no tampon pulling scene and no inner goddess, much to my dismay/happiness. Lol. 

HOWEVER.Aside from terrible plot, after making changes to the controversy, the movie didnt go far enough to differentiate the problematic nature of CHRISTIAN and the lifestyle of BDSM. Because Anna is a stranger of both, both are presented to the audience as BAD. We see bdsm through the lens of someone who USES IT THE WRONG WAY, FOR THE WRONG THINGS, and thats the main idea the movie can seem to target, and the book never bothered to learn. That last red room scene is Confusing at best, since its all consensual and really tame looking to anyone apart of bdsm, and misdirecting at worst to anyone not apart of it. Because its obvious Christian has ACTUAL Issues, but we’re made to believe all BDSM is like that, and its just not true. 

TO THE SEQUELS CREDIT, 50SDarker goes a little more into this. Not just with dialogue, but showing how Anna is accepting of and in control of BDSM. She asks for specific thinks and seeks out certain sexual activities and calls him out on the shadier parts of his own personality, But in my opinion, its not enough. Theres too much –between the lines– and for a movie ABOUT this lifestyle, its to important to skim over like they do. Thats probably the most disapointing part. 

All in all, its a terrible plot and terrible movie, that doesnt know enough about a material it references, and cant stand alone without its SOURCE material. 

Theres way too many helicopter shots of places, and vehicles. Greys idea of romancise seems to be fancy transportation of some sort and his idea of -KINKY- sex is Cunnilingus, missionary, missionary cunnilingus, and missionary with some handcuffs. But its a WILD ride to watch. And has its genenuinly charming moments that can only come from the COMMUNITY of FANFICTION that molded it. As we know, fandom is just as much influenced by the original fiction as it is the headcanons, aus, peronality tropes and almost mandala effect culture the FANS put into it. And I love and adore that secret part of the movies. Dakota Johnson is also super charming and natural as Anna. A Bella swan, oc, induced character, self instert type fanfic pov. And to do that is some acting talent right there. And finally, and I’m probably the ONLY one here, but Im not 100% upset that 50shades got a movie. Because yes, its terrible in a on of fucking ways. But its STILL a fanfic on screen. And thats incredible. Thats why I bought tickets to support the sequel. She may have manipulated the rise to fame, but EL James still showed us the path to that goal. Fanifc to novelist, novelist to billiondollar box office numbers. EL James was ON SET, telling them how to film – HER FANFICTION. Thats a THING now. You cant not take fanfiction as a community and tool seriously now. Not when it made that much money. And hey, look at Superhero movies. We had to sit through too many shit Xmen and Daredevil movies to get an Iron man. 

I will sit through a few 50shades to get my fucking favorite fanfics on screen too. Its not like Hollywood has any better stories to put up but Adam Sandler movies.

[astion]

A Giant TOZ Fic Rec List

ive been wanting to make a fic rec list forever and now i finally can!!! i havent read every fic in the fandom obviously so this isnt an exhaustive list, but these are some of my personal favs, many of them well-known and some of them not!! most of these are sormik, but theres a few other ships mixed in

ive linked peoples blogs if i can find them, if not, ive just put a link to their ao3 profile

stranger in a strange land (by Authoress / @kiribakus) - rated t, sormik arranged marriages and fancy mikleos and wingman lailah and rose and really, really honestly good writing (as always), whats not to like?

Method Acting (by Metis_Ink) - rated t, sormik + dezerose I WOULD DIE FOR THIS FIC its one of my absolute favs theres so much pining and tension and a FAKE RELATIONSHIP and amazing writing i was grinning and squealing throughout the entire thing

taking back the crown (by hamnet / @happyprompto)  - rated m, sormik the biggest, best adventure a fic will ever take you on. its the captive prince au you never knew you needed, SUPER easy to get hooked on, features (understandably) asshole-ish mikleo and lovable zaveid. i love zaveid so much in this fic

the color of the wheat fields (by namio / @ghostofcrux) - rated g, sormik IVE SAID IT BEFORE AND I’LL SAY IT AGAIN: please let me live in this fic. it features some of the most gorgeously poetic writing you’ll read, a comforting small mountain village aesthetic, and slice-of-life adventures with sorey and mikleo. the only regret i have about this fic is that i didnt read it sooner!!

everything stays (by SportsAnimeRuinedMyLife) - rated t, sormik sorey comes back as a seraph but he’s lost most of his memory which means i cried bittersweet tears through this entire fic, its one of the purest sweetest most uplifting things i’ve ever read

toz drabbles (by centricexit / @saltin) - not rated, sormik if im being honest this is probably my favorite work in the zestiria tag on ao3. there are five drabbles and i love every single one, the first one especially, but i honestly have enough good things to say about all of them to fill pages and pages!!! theyre all achingly beautiful, its 100% worth your time to check them out

a light that never goes out (by lyriumveins / @tactician) - rated t, sormik BAND AU!!!! BAND AU!!!!!!! BAND AU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and some of the best characterization ever. this fic was so entertaining and funny and perfect, the found family dynamic of the group was super strong and IM NOT JUST biased bc i live for mikleo playing classical piano, trust me its worth a read

for Sorey, when he wakes (by centricexit / @saltin) - not rated, sormik the epilogue fic you will cry real tears over bc the writing is so beautiful. i actually burst into tears over some lines like how do you even cOME UP WITH SOMETHING SO GORGEOUS

A voice through the darkness (by strikedawn) - rated g, sormik SUPER CUTE SUPER WELL-WRITTEN fic where sorey is a motivational speaker and mikleo is a writer and honestly theres never been a more perfect au??? i loved every part of this and clung to every word

Elixir Vitae (by Brightwinged / @brightwingedworks) - rated e, sormik i was SO elated when i saw sormik armitization smut and i honestly got even more than i was expecting, bc it wasnt just smut it was INCREDIBLY BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN SMUT, with some sentences that made me pause and set down my phone and consider how perfect they were

demon’s venom (by healing) - rated e, sormik UM HELLO if you read sormik smut then youve probably read this fic bc ITS DEFINITELY ONE OF THE BEST SORMIK SMUT FICS OUT THERE and who doesnt love some good ol’ fashioned elixir induced sex ;))))

dreaming (by healing) - rated g, sormik, platonic edna/mikleo IF YOU LIKE the relationship between edna and mikleo and would love to see it explored more then this is 100% the fic for you. i never thought their relationship could hurt so much but this fic HURT MAN, it was so thoughtful and sweet and beautiful :’’’)))

eternity in the horizon (by aetherae) - rated g, gen ooooOOHH MY GOD THIS FIC. if you like alisha even a little you NEED to read this fic, bc its the most thoughtful, spot-on characterization of her ive ever read and the care with which the author writes blows me away every time i read it!!!!! theres so much knowledge and so much to dive into and it made me remember why i love alisha so much ;;;

ambigram (by SinningShipper) - rated e, sormik HEY this is seriously some of the best smut ive ever read. the way the author dealt with corruption while still balancing sorey and mikleos personalities is just flat out amazing. it was a really really well executed concept and im really curious to know more about whats going to happen, like a smut fic has never left me wanting a plot-filled sequel but theres a first time for everything

take us to glory (by velvetcrowbars / @sogokita) - rated g, sormik yall i started crying the second i read the SUMMARY of this fic, literally before i even clicked into it!!! ive honestly never cried so consistently through a fic like i did for this one. it was SO gorgeous and i lingered over every word and also the tsoa reference really got me good ;;;;

be the overflow (by laskaris) - rated t, sormik pay attention to that major character death warning bc boyyy does that pack a punch. honestly reading this fic felt like having a hot butter knife stabbed through my chest and i loved every minute of it. the writing is rly beautiful too which makes reading it feel a very satisfying kind of painful 

Equivalent Exchange (by MatrixCube / @matrixcube) - rated t, zaveid/mikleo ok i just have to put in a very strong recommendation for this fic bc its ZAVEID/MIKLEO WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGH A FIC THIS GOOD WOULD EVER BE WRITTEN FOR THE SHIP!!!! the plot is so good and the relationship is so well developed and i would honestly be tripping over myself to praise this fic even if it didnt include my rarepair otp!! this fic is the best thing to happen to me all year please check it out

close your eyes and come back (by aspiringpencilcase) - rated g, sormik HELLO I LOVE LAILAH AND MIKLEOS RELATIONSHIP AND THIS FIC IS SO BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN, i was smiling and crying a bit all throughout it. its so sweet and gorgeous ;;;;

For All Her Goodness (by Woofemus / @floopers) - rated t, roseali THE ROSEALI FIC WEVE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR, its honestly so good and so beautifully characterized and the fact that we get to see so much of what goes on inside of roses head and what happens after she becomes a shepherd is delightful!! i feel like theres definitely not enough fics from roses pov so it was really refreshing and i LOVED how she was written!!!